Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella delivers the keynote address of the Build Conference in San Francisco last year. (Eric Risberg / Associated Press) Microsoft on Sunday said it is exploring buying TikTok in four markets including the U.S. after the Trump administration raised national security concerns regarding the app's ties to China. The disclosure comes as TikTok faces increasing pressure from the Trump administration, which has called the popular app a national security threat and announced plans to ban it. Microsoft said it is in talks with the app's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to take control of TikTok in the U.S., Canada, New Zealand and Australia. If the deal is finalized, Microsoft plans to bring all American user data to U.S. servers and remove data backed up in foreign countries. Currently, TikTok stores U.S. user information in the U.S. and backs it up in Singapore. Microsoft said it hopes to complete the discussions with ByteDance no later than Sept. 15. But it is possible that a deal may not go through. "These discussions are preliminary and there can be no assurance that a transaction which involves Microsoft will proceed," Microsoft said in a statement. An acquisition by a U.S. company could help TikTok shed some of the scrutiny surrounding ByteDance. Some industry observers have raised concerns over whether the Chinese government could compel ByteDance to hand over information about U.S. users. "This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections," Microsoft's statement read. "The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries." TikTok says it has not and will not give U.S. user data to the Chinese government. The company said that later this year it will open a transparency and accountability center in Culver City where outside experts can examine its content moderation practices and see the code that powers its algorithms. Story continues Analysts said it makes sense that Microsoft would be interested in buying TikTok because social media is a weak spot for the Washington company, which counts among its specialties workplace and personal software, cloud computing, consumer-facing devices and gaming. "It sends a message to the world that they are not the Microsoft of old and we're all about making big bets," said Gene Munster, a managing partner for venture capital firm Loup Ventures. TikTok has had exponential growth since it launched in the U.S. in 2018. The app, excluding Chinese version Douyin, has been installed nearly 2.1 billion times as of July 30, according to market research firm Sensor Tower. Young users love its short comedic videos and novel dance clips. It has also become a haven for celebrities and a key way musicians get their songs discovered. During the pandemic, TikTok became even more popular as people looked for ways to entertain themselves at home. But Trump administration officials have warned that TikTok as well as other apps from Chinese software companies pose a national security threat. I hope that the American people will come to recognize these Chinese software companies doing business in the United States, whether its TikTok or [Chinese messaging app] WeChat are feeding data directly to the Chinese Communist Party, U.S. Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo told Fox News on Sunday. Those are the issues that President Trumps made clear were going to take care of. These are true national security issues. The debate over TikTok is playing out amid a broader trade war between the U.S. and China. Also in the backdrop is the debate over Huawei, a Chinese technology firm similarly described as a national security threat by the White House. Huawei denies the allegation. Microsoft in its statement said that it "fully appreciates the importance of addressing the president's concerns" and will continue dialogue with Trump and the U.S. government. Wedbush Securities analyst Daniel Ives places the prospects of Microsoft going through with the deal at 75% to 80%, "given the fluid situation and ByteDance's back against the wall with [Microsoft CEO Satya] Nadella & Co. being the only possible white knight." On Saturday, TikTok U.S. General Manager Vanessa Pappas said TikTok isnt planning on going anywhere. Were building the safest app, because we know its the right thing to do, Pappas said in a TikTok video. We appreciate the support, were here for the long run and continue to share your voice here and lets stand for TikTok. A TikTok spokeswoman did not immediately return a request for comment on Microsoft's statement. (Bloomberg) -- ByteDance Ltd. is exploring all possibilities to resolve an intensifying confrontation with Washington, Chief Executive Officer Zhang Yiming said, stressing the worlds largest startup has made no final decision on options like a sale of TikTok U.S. to Microsoft Corp. Beijing-based ByteDance has come under pressure from the White House and U.S. lawmakers to sell off its U.S. TikTok operations and now has a 45-day deadline on negotiations with Microsoft over such a deal. The company had tried to appease regulators -- who worry about its data collection and potential connection to the Chinese government -- by distancing its domestic operations from the popular video app, hiring nearly a thousand staff in the U.S. and appointing Walt Disney Co. veteran Kevin Mayer as TikTok CEO. But Zhang said efforts so far to assuage Washingtons concerns may have fallen short. The current geopolitical and public opinion environment is becoming more and more complex. We are facing great external pressure in some markets, the founder told employees in an internal memo. Our team in response has been working around the clock and overtime in the past few weeks to strive for the best outcome. Read more: With Deadline Set, Microsoft, ByteDance Still Have to Talk Price As TikTok surged to global popularity, American officials began calling for a national security investigation into the app. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, which investigates overseas acquisitions of U.S. businesses, last year opened a review of the Musical.ly purchase that led to TikToks creation. Even though weve repeatedly stressed that were a privately-run business, and despite our willingness to adopt even more technical solutions to allay their concerns, CFIUS still believes ByteDance has to sell the TikTok U.S. operation. We do not agree with this decision, Zhang wrote. Weve always firmly protected the security of users data, the platforms independence and transparency. Story continues Acknowledging that ByteDance is in negotiations with another tech firm, without naming Microsoft directly, the CEO wrote that the company is still engaged in internal discussions and no final decisions have been made. The attention of the outside world and rumors around TikTok might last for a while, Zhang said. (Updates with additional CEO quotes from third paragraph) 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. BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 3 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: Turkeys export to the member states of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) from January through May 2020 decreased by 11.8 percent compared to the same period of 2019, having made up almost $7.3 billion, the Turkish Ministry of Trade told Trend on July 8. During the reporting period, the export to the BSEC countries made up 11.8 percent of Turkeys total export volume in 2020, the ministry said. Meanwhile, Turkeys export to the BSEC member states in May 2020 plunged by 29.2 percent compared to May 2019 and stood at $1.3 billion. The export to the BSEC countries made up 13.1 percent of Turkeys total export volume in May 2020. According to the ministry, Turkeys import from the BSEC member states decreased by 17.1 percent from January through May 2020 and made up slightly over $11.5 billion compared to the same period of 2019. The import from the BSEC member states amounted to 13.9 percent of Turkeys total import volume from January through May 2020. In May 2020, Turkeys import from BSEC member states decreased by 35.7 percent compared to May 2019, standing at nearly $1.9 billion. Some 14.2 percent of Turkeys total import volume in May 2020 accounted for the import from the BSEC member states. Turkey's foreign trade turnover in May 2020 amounted to over $23.3 billion. In the reporting month, Turkey's exports dropped by 40.9 percent compared to May 2019, having stood at over $9.9 billion. Meanwhile, imports of Turkey in May 2020 went down by 27.8 percent compared to May 2019 and amounted to $13.3 billion. According to the ministry, in the first five months of this year, Turkeys trade turnover made up $144.1 billion. From January through May 2020, Turkish exports decreased by 19.7 percent compared to the same period in 2019, having amounted to $61.5 billion, the ministry said. It was also noted that Turkish imports dipped by 5.2 percent compared to the same period in 2019, having made up $82.5 billion. The foreign trade turnover of Turkey in 2019 made up $374.2 billion. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu Tuesday, August 4 may augur a big-one day haul for booksellers due to an unusual confluence of events: not one, but two highly anticipated blockbuster new releases are landing then. Jeff Kinneys second fantasy in his Wimpy Kid spinoff series, Rowley Jeffersons Awesome Friendly Adventure (Abrams/Amulet) is pubbing with a three-million copy initial print run. Stephenie Meyers fifth novel in the Twilight Saga, Midnight Sun (Little, Brown), a retelling of the romance between the vampire Edward and human teen Bella told from Edwards perspective, is pubbing with a million-copy initial print run. Last week, Hachette CEO Michael Pietsch disclosed that the number of preorders for Midnight Sun set a record for HBG. Publishers usually try to avoid raining on other publishers parades by scheduling their biggest releases in such a way that multiple blockbusters dont land together. But like so much else this year, both Rowley Jefferson and Midnight Suns landing on August 4 can be attributed to some extent to Covid-19: while one publisher postponed a street date, the other stayed the course. Rowley Jefferson was originally going to be published on April 7. According to Abrams CEO Michael Jacobs, the decision was made in mid-March to push back the pub date to August 4; Abrams shut down its Manhattan office on Friday, March 13, and the following Monday, announced that Rowley Jefferson's release was being postponed to late summer, even though the books were already printed and boxes had been shipped to distribution points. We had to pull them back, Jacobs recalled. It was quite a production. August 4 was selected because it was close but not too close to the start of the school year, and company executives assumed at the time that the pandemic would be under better control at that time. Jacobs explained also that Abrams wanted to allow some time between the release of this book and the October 27 release of Kinneys 15th book in the Wimpy Kid series, The Deep End. Jacobs maintains that theres little crossover between Kinneys middle-grade fans and Meyers fans, although her readers might be older siblings, parents, and aunts and uncles to his readers. Booksellers seem to be excited about both, he said. "It's going to be a great day for booksellers [on Tuesday]." Jacobs is right on that score. Carrie Deming of the Dog Eared Book in Palmyra, N.Y. reports that preorders for Midnight Sun are "way more" than she had anticipated, while Stefani Kelley of Benham Book Nook, a used bookstore in Brenham, Tex. reports that she is completely out of stock on all Twilight Saga books, "which has never happened, since maybe 2010/1011." And George Rishel of Sly Fox in Viden, Ill., is so excited, he is opening his bookstore at midnight to sell both books, advertising it as an "Awesome Vampires at Midnight" event. In an email, Megan Tingley, executive v-p and publisher of Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, explained that it had always been the imprints intention to publish Meyers novel on August 4, although the announcement was not made until May 4, due to the disruptions caused by the pandemic. Like Jacobs, Tingley regards the laydown of two blockbuster books on one day as hugely positive. It seems to me that both books have wildly different audiences, she wrote. It can only be a good thing for both bookstores and readers. I know for Stephenie, two of her goals with this publication have been to bring her fans a little joy by returning them to a world they love, and to support the bookstores that have supported her throughout her career. Meyer stated in that May 4 release, It feels strange to be making this announcement when the world is suffering through a pandemic, and no one really knows whats next. I thought seriously about delaying this announcement until things were back to normal; however, that felt wrong, considering how long those who are eager for this book have already waited. A Friendly Competition As for Kinney, hes taking it all in stride, joking to PW during a phone interview that he cant seem to escape Stephenies shadow. The indie bookstore that Kinney owns, An Unlikely Story in Plainville, Mass., is hosting a virtual event with Meyer on August 8, which will actually take place offsite, at a drive-in theater in North Smithfield, R.I. The event is almost completely sold out. Noting that a character in Rowley Jefferson, Kristof, is a teenage vampire in parody of Meyers Edward Cullen, Kinney said that his pre-pubescent readers cant help but get the Twilight Saga reference now since the two books are being released on the same day. He added that Barnes & Noble has a clock on its website counting down the days, minutes, and seconds until the release of Midnight Sun and that he tweeted to his followers to simply refer to that clock if wanting that information for Rowley Jefferson. Kinney also considers Meyer as being the only reason that he became a number one [New York Times] bestselling author in the first place. Kinney explained that Meyers third novel in the Twilight series, Eclipse, was published in 2007, at the same time that the first Diary of a Wimpy Kid was published. That third book bumped her to the bestsellers list for series, and so my book became the bestseller on the childrens list. I thought at first it was due to my own merits, but no, it was Stephenie. I think its fun to sort of be in competition. Who knew 13 years later, Diary of a Wimpy Kid and the Twilight Saga would still be going head to head? The storm has been downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm as it brings heavy rains to the state. Bands of heavy rain from Isaias, which has been downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm, have lashed Floridas east coast, disquieting officials already grappling with surging cases of the coronavirus in the US state. The storm, which was downgraded on Saturday afternoon, still threatened to bring heavy rain and flooding as it crawled just off Floridas Atlantic coast. Dont be fooled by the downgrade, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis warned at a news conference after the storm spent hours roughing up the Bahamas. Upper-level winds took much of the strength out of Isaias, Stacy Stewart, a senior hurricane specialist at the National Hurricane Center in Miami said. The storm also slowed down considerably. We were expecting a hurricane to develop and it didnt, Stewart told the Associated Press news agency on Monday. Its a tale of two storms. If you live on the west side of the storm, you didnt get much. If you live east of the storm, theres a lot of nasty weather there. Florida is on the west side of Isaias. Isaiass maximum sustained winds declined steadily throughout Saturday, and were at 100km/h (65m/h) on Sunday afternoon, the US National Hurricane Center said. The storms centre was located about 75km (45 miles)) east-southeast of Vero Beach in Florida and was forecast to travel near the states eastern coast throughout the day. Fluctuations in strength are possible into Tuesday, forecasters said. Heavy rain, flooding and high winds could batter much of the East Coast this week as the system is forecast to track up or just off the Atlantic seaboard. Isaias had caused destruction in the Caribbean. On Thursday, before it became a hurricane, it uprooted trees, destroyed crops and homes and caused widespread flooding and small landslides in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Isaias then snapped trees and knocked out power as it blew through the Bahamas on Saturday. Coronavirus epicentre Authorities in Florida had closed beaches, parks and coronavirus testing sites in preparation for the storm. DeSantis said the state was anticipating power outages and asked residents to have a weeks supply of water, food and medicine on hand. In preparing for the storm, officials had wrestled with how to have shelters where people can seek refuge while also safely physical distancing to prevent the spread of coronavirus. To date, the state has recorded more than 487,000 confirmed cases and some 7,000 deaths. In Palm Beach County, about 150 people were in shelters, according to emergency management spokeswoman Lisa De La Rionda. The county has a voluntary evacuation order for those living in mobile or manufactured homes, or those who feel their home cannot withstand winds. We dont anticipate many more evacuations, De La Riona said, adding that the evacuees are physically distant from each other and are wearing masks, due to the virus. In Indian River County, north of West Palm Beach, Florida, emergency shelters were clearing out on Sunday after Isaias was downgraded. Officials said 38 people registered at three schools used as shelters. Those areas now must be cleaned to ensure no traces of the coronavirus remain as teachers and staff report on Monday to prepare for the upcoming school year. No one was recorded to have checked in with COVID-19 symptoms. Temperature checks were done at the door, officials said, and isolation rooms were designated in case anyone came in with symptoms. The storm also did not affect the successful return of two astronauts aboard the SpaceX Dragon capsule, which splashed down into calm waters in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola. Test pilots Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken rode the capsule back to Earth less than a day after departing the International Space Station and two months after blasting off from Florida. 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. T he UK could drop coronavirus quarantine requirements for Brits returning from the Canary and Balearic islands today, a Spanish government minister has claimed. Tourism minister Reyes Maroto said the Spanish government had given UK authorities detailed assurances that they hoped could sway Westminster. She told local publication La Sexta: "[The islands] have a low incidence rate and today [the UK] have to review their indicators. "We are prudent because it does not depend on us. It is a decision of the British authorities, but we have given them all the arguments so that they can trust that their tourists are safe in Spanish destinations." A young couple embraces as the sun sets in the Balearic Islands / AP Travellers returning from Spain have been told to quarantine for 14 days since late July, after a rapid spike in the country's cases, and Brits have been told only to go to Spain if travel is essential. But talks have been taking place to make the Balearic and Canary islands exempt, the BBC reported last week, citing a UK government source. Ms Maroto said that if no exemption is given Spanish authorities will continue working with the British government to find a way for tourism to continue in future. She added: "For us, the best news is to have the destination open with the United Kingdom, which is our main issuing market. Tourists in Madrid / REUTERS "We have the best protocols and are highly valued by the tourists themselves, who have transferred to their government that they feel safe in Spain." But British authorities have indicated that no changes are likely on Monday, although quarantine measures are reviewed regularly. A government source told the Mirror: "There is no decision made and its certainly not happening in the immediate future. Spain has nearly 110,000 active coronavirus cases - with 3,092 reported on Friday, the largest daily increase since lockdown ended. People gather at La Barceloneta on July 27, 2020 in Barcelona, Spain / Getty Images Estimates show that Spain's tourism sector could be set to lose 36 billion this summer because of coronavirus. The Prime Ministers Official Spokesperson said he wasnt aware of any changes to the travel quarantine. DUSHANBE (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th August, 2020) Tajikistan denies extraditing the leader of an anti-Tehran exile royalist group whose detention has recently been reported by Iran, Interior Minister Ramazon Rahimzoda said on Monday. The Javan newspaper, linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, earlier reported that Tondar leader Jamshid Sharmahd had been detained on July 31 in Tajikistan and handed over to the Iranian authorities. "The information from a number of Iranian media outlets that Dushanbe extradited Jamshid Sharmahd, an active opponent of the Iranian authorities, to Tehran does not correspond to reality," Rahimzoda told reporters. The minister noted that not a single person had been extradited from Tajikistan to Iran and vice versa in the first half of the year. According to Iranian media, Sharmahd was seized as a result of a complex operation. The California-based Tondar group is considered a terrorist group in Iran and is suspected of masterminding a number of bombings and assassinations. Former President Barack Obama endorsed eight California Democratic candidates in November congressional races Monday, along with a South Bay Democrat who is competing against another Democrat for the state Senate. Obama backed Democratic Reps. Josh Harder of Turlock (Stanislaus County) and TJ Cox of Fresno, along with four Orange County Democrats Reps. Gil Cisneros and Harley Rouda of Laguna Beach, Katie Porter of Irvine and Mike Levin of San Juan Capistrano. All six beat Republicans in 2018 to win their first terms. Obama also endorsed Democratic Assemblywoman Christy Smith, who lost to Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Santa Clarita (Los Angeles County), in a special election in May to fill out the remaining House term of Democrat Katie Hill, who resigned last year. Smith and Garcia are facing off again in the fall for the full two-year term. The former president supported Ammar Campa-Najjar, who is running against former Rep. Darrell Issa for a vacant seat in northern San Diego County. It opened up when GOP Rep. Duncan Hunter resigned after pleading guilty to a felony count of misusing campaign funds. The only non-congressional candidate to win Obamas backing was Ann Ravel, who is running for state Senate to represent Santa Clara County against fellow Democrat Dave Cortese, a member of the county Board of Supervisors. Obama appointed Ravel to the Federal Election Commission in 2013. Im proud to endorse this diverse and hopeful collection of thoughtful, empathetic and highly qualified Democrats, Obama wrote in a Medium post. If youre in one of their districts ... make sure you vote for them this fall. And if you can, vote early by mail or in person. The Obama imprimatur is far from a sure-fire ticket to victory. In 2018, 232 candidates Obama endorsed won their elections and 110 candidates lost. Obama did not endorse Brynne Kennedy, a Democrat who is challenging Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Elk Grove (Sacramento County), in the Fourth Congressional District, which stretches across 10 counties from north of Sacramento to near Fresno. The former technology CEO has raised $1.4 million, slightly more than McClintock, who has raised $1.3 million. However, she has just $356,540 cash on hand, roughly half as much as he does. Kennedy says she is in a virtual dead heat with McClintock, citing a poll of 650 likely voters done by Lake Research for her campaign and released last week. Last month, analysts at the nonpartisan Cook Political Report downgraded McClintocks chances for re-election slightly, tabbing the district as likely Republican instead of solid Republican. Obama also didnt endorse Democrat Phil Arballo, a financial adviser who is challenging Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Tulare. Arballo has raised a healthy $2.1 million and has $449,126 cash on hand. But Nunes has raised $16.3 million and has $10 million on hand. Cooks Political Report lists the race as likely Republican. Joe Garofoli is The San Francisco Chronicles senior political writer. Email: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli A British woman has been handed over three and a half years of a jail term by a Malaysian court after she confessed to killing her husband during a fight. Samantha Jones pleaded guilty for killing her husband John William Jones on the Malaysian holiday island of Langkawi during a row in 2018. The couple got married in 2001 and were living on the resort island in northwest Malaysia since 2005. Defence lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo told the court that Samantha suffered years of physical and emotional abuse by her husband, who was an alleged alcoholic with a fierce temper. Kaur said that the fight broke out between the couple when John kicked Samantha while she was lying in bed in the early hours of the morning. Narrating the claimed sequence of events, the lawyer said that Samantha fled to the kitchen but her husband followed, during which she stabbed John with a knife. Prosecutors told the court the stabbing caused a 15-centimetre wound in the liver of John, who was under the influence of alcohol. Read: British Woman In Malaysia Court For Trial In Husbands Death Read: Ex-Malaysian PM Najib Found Guilty Of All Charges In 1MDB Graft Case Sentenced for culpable homicide The 52-year-old woman was initially charged with murder, which carries a mandatory death sentence in the Southeast Asian nation. However, the prosecutors later agreed to culpable homicide on the request of the defence lawyer, citing the years of abuse, and Samantha was sentenced to a jail term with a fine of 10,000 ringgit ($2,300). Samantha broke into tears when a prosecutor showed the murder weapon and photos of the crime scene to the High Court in the northern city of Alor Setar. A tearful Samantha told the court that she was scared and he was so angry, admitting the guilt while seeking a lighter penalty. I miss him terribly. What I did that night was unintended. I tried to stop him, I did not know it would happen like this, she said. Read: 2 American Oil Execs Jailed In Venezuela Put On Home Arrest Read: Police: Florida Couple Jailed For Refusing To Quarantine (Image: AP) general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya on Monday dismissed speculation that some party MPs from may join the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) before next year's Assembly polls in that state. All MPs from are with the party, he asserted. "Some journalists, influenced by the TMC government of West Bengal, are spreading confusion that some MPs are going to join the TMC. The reports about this are misleading and mischievous," Vijayvargiya, who is BJP's general secretary in-charge of West Bengal, told reporters here in Madhya Pradesh. "All BJP MPs from are with the party and they are engaged in the development of the country under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he added. The BJP won 18 out of 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal during the last year's general elections. The Assembly elections are due in 2021 in the state ruled by Mamata Banerjee-led TMC. Notably, Biplab Mitra, a prominent leader from north Bengal, returned to the TMC last week after quitting the BJP. Mitra, a former TMC MLA from Harirampur in South Dinajpur district, had switched over to the BJP in June last year in the presence of Vijayvargiya in New Delhi. (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.) TOKYO Asias factory pain continued to ease in July with contraction slowing in big export-reliant nations, adding to hopes the region is steadily emerging from the devastating hit of the coronavirus pandemic. Manufacturing activity in China expanded at the fastest pace in nearly a decade as domestic demand improved, a private sector survey showed on Monday, suggesting the worlds second-largest economy will help cushion the pandemics blow to world growth. But worries about a second wave of infections may weigh on global demand and business sentiment, keeping any rebound in Asias factory output feeble, some analysts say. Japan, for one, will enjoy only a very gradual and protracted recovery" as concerns about a resurgence in COVID-19 cases will weigh on domestic and overseas spending, said Stefan Angrick, senior economist at Oxford Economics. With the pace of recovery slowing in some of Japans key trading partners, exports and business spending are likely to continue to struggle," he said. Chinas Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index(PMI) rose to 52.8 last month from Junes 51.2, marking the sectors third consecutive month of growth and the biggest jump since January 2011. The upbeat findings echoed an official survey on Friday, adding to evidence the worlds second-largest economy is getting back on its feet faster than expected. Japan and South Korea saw factory activity shrink at a much slower pace, a sign that pressures on manufacturers were easing and raising hopes the worst impact from the pandemic was over. Taiwans manufacturing activity also rose above the 50-mark separating growth from contraction, suggesting that increased demand for work-from-home equipment is underpinning chip sales. But factory activity in the Philippines and Vietnam slid in July, underscoring the patchy nature of the recovery. Indias factory slump also deepened as renewed lockdown measures to contain surging virus cases weighed on demand and output. While the broad steadying of the PMI prints across the region point towards further stabilisation in the regional manufacturing sector after the April-May malaise, the path ahead remains a rocky one, as evidenced by the more uncertain tone in the latest reading for some economies," said Wellian Wiranto, an economist at OCBC Bank. Japans final au Jibun Bank Flash Manufacturing PMI rose to a seasonally adjusted 45.2 in July from 40.1 in June, marking the slowest pace of contraction in five months. South Koreas IHS Markit PMI rose to 46.9 in July from 43.4 in June, the highest reading since January, reflecting easing pressure on output and new orders. A gauge of expectations for South Koreas manufacturing output over the next 12 months jumped, though exports - which account for nearly 40% of the economy - remained a concern. Manufacturers maintained a bias towards price discounting and continued to take a cautious view on their staffing numbers," said IHS Markit economist Joe Hayes. The hit from lockdowns and social distancing policies to contain the virus has pushed many Asian economies into recession including Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Singapore. While some countries have eased restrictions, a renewed spike in infections has cast a shadow over the recovery prospects in Japan. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor There had been up to 16-18 attacks per day before the recent ceasefire. Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) says it has been the "seventh day without heavy weapons" after the latest ceasefire was introduced in Donbas. "According to the Main Situation Center at the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, the ceasefire regime in Donbas has been in place since midnight July 27, 2020, and isolated cases of its violation are not systemic," the NSDC's press service said in an update on August 3. "Unlike the previous 'Christmas,' 'harvest,' 'back-to-school' and many other announced ceasefires, which lasted a few days, today is the seventh day of the ceasefire without shots from heavy weapons and combat losses." Read alsoUkraine's Defense Ministry responds to Russia's statements on possible arming of Donbas The NSDC stresses that before the announcement of the latest ceasefire, there had been up to 16-18 attacks per day, "the vast majority of which was precision fire from heavy weapons artillery, mortars, anti-tank missile systems, as well as unmanned aerial vehicles and sniper rifles." "Weekly losses of servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine included two to three killed in action and six to eight wounded in action. The occupation forces suffered similar losses," it said. NSDC Secretary Oleksiy Danilov said that he hoped that the agreements reached by the Trilateral Contact Group would be further fulfilled and that "any attempts to discredit peace initiatives, including provocations along the lines of conflict, would be repelled." "We hope that the ceasefire will be a significant step towards the end of the war and the return of our territories," he added. The new ceasefire became effective from July 27. The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine reported that there had been over 200 violations of the ceasefire since then. Former Governor of Delta State, Emmanuel Uduaghan on Monday reacted to a report published in the media, in which he was listed among th... Former Governor of Delta State, Emmanuel Uduaghan on Monday reacted to a report published in the media, in which he was listed among those awarded various contracts by the Niger Delta Development Commission. In his reaction, Uduaghan through his Media Assistant, Monoyo Edon, said it was ridiculous that the said contract supposedly awarded to him is a road inside Port Harcourt town. He described the report as false while hoping the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio makes a corrective statement on the report which has since been widely circulated in the media space. The statement reads: The attention of His Excellency, former Gov of Delta State Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan, has been drawn to a publication by The Punch Newspapers of Monday 3rd August 2020, which stated that the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has linked two former governors of Delta State, Messrs James Ibori and Emmanuel Uduaghan, to the various contracts awarded by the Niger Delta Development Commission In the said publication, it was stated that Uduaghan was linked to the emergency repairs of Close B, Alhaji Estate & Environs, Rumuodomaya, Port Harcourt at a cost of N429m. We want to state very clearly that the said accusation is FALSE. Dr. Uduaghan has never approached the NDDC for any contract whatsoever. It is even more ridiculous that the said contract is a road inside Port Harcourt town. Dr. Uduaghan has drawn the attention of the Hon. Minister of the Niger Delta, Sen Godswill Akpabio to the publication and hopes he makes a correction. Members of the public are advised to disregard the mischevious publication. S chools will reopen at the start of the autumn term but local lockdowns could force some to close, Downing Street said today. In a briefing to journalists, the Prime Ministers official spokesman said schools would reopen for all pupils in all year groups". He said: You've heard from the Prime Minister on many occasions his absolute commitment to getting our children back into school in September and that's vital for their education and their development. We are planning for all pupils in all year groups to be in school full-time from the beginning of the autumn term. However, he added that it was "hypothetically" possible individual schools may need to close as part of a specific localised lockdown. Asked if some councils refuse to reopen schools as happened in May and June whether the Government could force them to, he replied: I think what the Prime Minister and the Education Secretary have sent is a very clear signal that we do expect all schools to be open from September and we have publishes detailed guidance on how that should be achieved. It comes after leading scientists and the head of a major teaching union raised concerns about going back to school as cases of Covid-19 started increasing again. Patrick Roach, general secretary of the NASUWT, which represents more than 300,000 teachers across the UK, said the government needed to take urgent action to convince parents and teachers that schools would be safe. He told the Observer: The warning from the chief medical officer [Chris Whitty] that a fine balance has to be struck in ensuring public health at this stage of the pandemic, and that the country may have reached the limits to the easing of lockdown, will no doubt prompt questions for many parents as well as for those working in schools. If schools are to reopen safely, the government will need to give them clarification about what they need to do to take account of the latest scientific evidence and advice, as well as sufficient time to review and, if necessary, adjust their reopening plans. Patrycja Wyrebek, 20, was found dead at her home in Drumalane Park, Newry on Sunday morning: PSNI/PA Wire A murder investigation has been launched following the death of a 20-year-old woman in Newry. Patrycja Wyrebek, who was originally from Poland, was found dead at her home in Drumalane Park in the city on Sunday morning. Following a post mortem examination, a murder probe was launched on Monday afternoon. A 23-year-old man arrested following the discovery of Ms Wyrebek's body remains in police custody. Detective inspector Mark Gibson said: "My thoughts are very much with Patrycjas family and friends at this extremely sad time. "I would appeal to anyone who was in the Drumalane Park area of Newry between 8.30pm on Saturday, 1 August and 8.30am on Sunday, 2 August and who saw or heard anything suspicious to contact detectives on the non-emergency number 101, quoting reference 692 03/08/20. "Alternatively, information can also be provided to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, which is 100% anonymous. Wendy Osefo may be the newest cast member of "The Real Housewives of Potomac," but she isn't your typical housewife. At 36 years old, the Nigerian-born mother of three is the first Black woman to earn a PhD in public affairs and community development at Rutgers University; is an assistant professor at Johns Hopkins; and regularly appears on national TV networks providing analysis on race and politics. She's also a philanthropist who serves as the CEO of an organization that helps minorities thrive in higher education, pulling from her experience serving as the director of an antipoverty initiative under President Barack Obama. We caught up with Osefo to talk about her immigrant upbringing, her work with the Black Lives Matter movement and how she's finding a way to fit the housewives into her already busy schedule. Q: Can you speak a bit about your upbringing in an immigrant Nigerian family? How did your experiences get you to where you are today? A: Not only are my parents both immigrants, but I consider myself an immigrant because I came to this country as a toddler. I was born in Nigeria. So, for me, my Nigerian background and culture is really at the base and at the root of everything I am. I was taught that you have to work hard, that there's nothing greater than success. I was also taught that quitting is not an option. So, everything that I've achieved in my life is a testament to my Nigerian heritage and my parents, who really instilled in me that if we came to this country with nothing, then you have no excuse but to be great and to be successful. They really emphasized academics and finding a career and being the best in that field. Q: Growing up, did you ever expect this? Did you see yourself being able to do everything that you're doing now or is this sort of a pleasant surprise? A: It is a pleasant surprise! I have no idea how I do what I do, nor did I aspire to do all these things. It really just fell upon me. One day, and I'll never forget this, one of my professors asked a question to the class and we had to stand up - it was Socratic method - and answer the question. And I didn't know the answer to the question. And the professor asked me, "Why don't you know this?" to which I told him I didn't have time to read. And then he said to me, "Did you go to sleep?" I said yes, and he was like, "So you had time," and he kicked me out of the class. That's an experience that I will never forget. And it's not good to not sleep, but I believe that you have 24 hours in your day, and you have to make the most of those 24 hours. If you can juggle things, then juggle it. We're only on this planet for a short period of time and we have to do everything we can while we're still here. Q: Why did you decide to do the "Housewives"? How did that opportunity come about? A: I know some of the ladies. We run in similar social circles and I sit on some of the same nonprofit boards. Since that was the case, it was a very organic relationship and I was approached to do the show. At first I was like I'm not sure if I want to do this because it's so different from what I'm known for. But then I realized at the end of the day, my brand is rooted in authenticity and being authentic whether I'm being a professor or a political commentator, and who I am is what you get. I'm a straight shooter. After talking with my family, they were like go for it! And I said to myself, you only live once. I don't want to be 90 years old looking back on my life wondering what if I hadn't taken this opportunity. Q: Did you have any reservations about how potential drama occurring on the show would affect your work and how you'd be perceived in your other roles? A: It's funny because "Housewives" is like an illustration of a group project gone bad. No matter how much you're being your authentic self, minding your business and doing what you need to do, you can't control what anybody else does. So the year I'm coming on, there's actually a big confrontation between some of my castmates and it's like, "Oh, my God, I can't believe this is happening." But the show really is rooted in showing our real lives and . . . I think it'll be interesting for the viewers to see how we each reacted to [the issue]. For me, it was sticking a fork in the sand and saying this is not what I stand for. I'm sad it happened but, in a sense, I'm also interested to see how people will react to how each of us handled it. Q: Being outspoken on current issues is a large part of who you are and what you do. BLM is at the top of the news again and you've been very involved sharing commentary on different TV networks. The cast of "The Real Housewives of Potomac" is composed of Black women. Is this a group that discusses these issues, and will we see anything on the show? A: Our group, we're very aware of the current climate. For me, I know the cameras followed me as I gave some commentary. I know BLM has caught the nation's attention at this time, but I have been doing this work for years. I marched when Trayvon Martin was killed and that was years ago. I'm excited that people are catching wind to this now, but this is my life's work. This is what I do. Something that I focused on while we were filming is getting Black women out to vote. That's something I'm passionate about - not just to get out and vote but to know the power of their vote, and we shot some scenes around that. I think this group is very engaged with these current issues and I'm excited because I've been doing this for a while and I'm glad people are coming on board. We need to propel this movement forward. Q: You also have three young children. Are they going to be on the show? A: They are. It's funny, I'm actually getting ready to pick up the cake for my daughter's first birthday and when we started filming she was only 6 weeks old, so people will see her as a baby baby and now she's basically running around the house. And my two little boys: Karter is 7 and Kruz is 5. I'm a mother of three. You're going to see them on the show because that's part of my story. I'm doing homework with them; I'm breastfeeding and trying to juggle a lot of things and still trying to be a good wife and a professor. So my kids are a big part of that. Q: Obviously, your work these days involves some heavy topics. Have you discussed BLM with your kids? A: My husband and I have had the conversation with our two older boys, just talking about why they're seeing certain things on the news. Because Mommy is on the news and if you walk into my house, you'll see a TV tuned into a national news network. They're hearing people protesting, they're hearing "no justice, no peace," so we had to explain to them why these people are in the streets and why they're seeing these images on the television. But in a few months, we're probably going to have to have "the talk" with our sons. That's a conversation that every Black household with boys has. My husband's father had that talk with him and my brother got that conversation as well. The talk is about what happens when you're pulled over by a police officer. That in-depth conversation we have not had, but we've let them know why the current climate in the country is the way it is and the history of racism in this country. Q: Have you thought about how you're going to approach that conversation with them? A: To be honest, no. I can't yet because even the first conversation about racism and Blackness and what that means, I was so emotional. I was crying through the whole thing. Because this is a 7-year-old and 5-year-old, and my older son's first question was, "So people won't like me because my skin is different than theirs?" As a mom, that's heartbreaking. It's so emotionally taxing to be honest with you. Q: I wish you luck when you do decide to have that conversation and I'm so sorry that you must have it. Shifting gears back to the Bravo side of things, who are you closest to on the show? A: Out of the whole cast at the start of filming, definitely Candiace [Dillard Bassett]. She and I were close. Ironically for Season 4, last season, Candiace invited me to the premiere party. . . . I was there, heavily pregnant, supporting my friend, so we've been close. Q: If you could be on any other Bravo show, which one would it be? A: I love to travel, so I would be on "Below Deck Mediterranean." I would get a free trip through that for sure. And you know what, I'd love to be on "Million Dollar Listing." Those houses are beyond! I want to do that in my next life. I want to be on "Million Dollar Listing" and I want to do the interior design. I love decorating. Q: Do you watch any of the other "Housewives" shows? Which one is your favorite? A: I love old school Jersey. "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" - I think Teresa is a freaking icon, c'mon! And "Beverly Hills" is so fabulous with the glitz and the glamour there. "Atlanta" is a good one, too. Q: Do you and the Potomac ladies spend a lot of time in D.C.? What are some of your favorite spots? A: Yes, D.C. is our playground! We love D.C. There's this African restaurant called Bukom down by Adams Morgan and their food is to die for. I'm Nigerian so of course I love Bukom. And Joe's Seafood for their cold crab legs. Q: How have you been spending time these last four to five months as things have slowed down? A: Oh, you know, besides being an elementary school teacher to my boys and a cook for my family and now a summer camp counselor - yeah, that takes up a lot of time! I've been home really focusing on the kids and even though it's been pretty intense, I have enjoyed the special moments because I haven't missed a beat. I saw my daughter's first steps, and I got to watch her first teeth come in and be there when my 5-year-old lost his first tooth. Because I'm so busy sometimes I miss these moments, but being home now I've been reveling and enjoying all of my kids' firsts and all of their big moments. And having date nights with my husband has been great, too. Many communities across the country want to contribute but dont know how or dont have the time to set up a new initiative. T3 Sixty decided to establish a service to facilitate and support those who want to make a positive contribution. said T3 Sixty President Jack Miller T3 Sixty, the residential real estate brokerage industrys leading management consulting and research firm, has developed a management consulting division focused on helping companies in the real estate industry improve their diversity efforts with more powerful strategies or more purposeful initiatives. Selected to lead this initiative for T3 Sixty is Kenya Burrell-VanWormer. She starts September 1. A 20-year real estate professional and licensed Realtor, Burrell-VanWormer has worked in banking since 2017, most recently as a vice president with Bank of America managing relationships with Realtors and builders in the companys south-central division. Previously, she worked with JP Morgan Chase in their affordable lending programs. In 2018, she served as chair of the 39,000-member Houston Association of Realtors (HAR) and received the HAR Young Professionals Network 20 Under 40 Rising Stars in Real Estate award. The desire by T3 Sixty to help improve diversity in the residential real estate industry was born out the frustration in seeing ongoing discrimination and the lack of opportunities that exist for people of color. "We must treat people of all backgrounds and race groups fairly and justly, Stefan Swanepoel, Chairman and CEO of T3 Sixty said. It is extremely important to create role models and road maps to success for anyone to follow. We and others are striving to be more diverse and inclusive in the industry and your leadership is respected and valued, said Houston Association of Realtors CEO Bob Hale. You also could not have made a better choice than Kenya Burrell-VanWormer to lead this initiative. Kenya is an amazing leader and has the passion to make this vision a reality. Many communities across the country want to contribute but dont know how or dont have the time to set up a new initiative. T3 Sixty decided to establish a service to facilitate and support those who want to make a positive contribution, said T3 Sixty President Jack Miller said. T3 Sixty will be announcing a national diversity initiative in September once Kenya is on board. In July, T3 Sixty hosted great conversations on the topic of diversity in real estate on its Friday Fireside chats with leaders from the industrys most prominent diverse associations. They spoke with Hope Atuel (Executive Officer, Asian Real Estate Association of America), Marisa Calderon (Executive Director, National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals), James Huang (President, Asian Real Estate Association of America), Sara Rodriquez (President, National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals), Antoine Thompson (Executive Director, National Association of Real Estate Brokers) and Donnell Williams (President, National Association of Real Estate Brokers). About T3 Sixty Exclusively serving the residential real estate brokerage industry, T3 Sixty provides management consulting and counseling to real estate C-level executives, organized real estate leaders, broker-owners and leaders of high-performance teams to help them grow their businesses. T3 Sixty also offers in-depth research, information and best practices with its hallmark Swanepoel Trends Report, an annual analysis of the biggest trends impacting the industry, and the Real Estate Almanac, a comprehensive examination of the U.S.s largest brokerages, franchises, networks, associations, MLSs and technology providers. More at t360.com. The Maharashtra government has reiterated its stand before the Bombay high court that it cannot allow street vendors to resume their businesses as of now. In an affidavit filed in HC, the state government has stated that there is no occasion even to consider allowing street vendors and hawkers to resume business in containment zones and areas where lockdown will continue to be imposed. As of now, they will also not be allowed to resume businesses in other areas outside lockdown areas and containment zones. This is particularly because, these sectors (street vending and hawking) fall under unorganised sectors and it is very difficult, if any and if at all, imposed for conducting such businesses, said the affidavit filed by Kishor Nimbalkar, secretary, disaster management, relief and rehabilitation department. Huge manpower including police and civic staff will be required to ensure compliance of guidelines issued for the conduct of these businesses and but the ground reality is that all these agencies are over-burdened and already exhausted, it added. The affidavit is filed in reply to public interest litigation filed by activist Manoj Oswal, for a declaration that the imposition of a complete ban on the sale of products or food by street vendors to be illegal or unconstitutional and violative of the rights of the people to conduct legitimate business. In his petition filed through advocate Ashish Verma, the 43-year-old activist from Pune said the nationwide lockdown has led to serious issues for the survival of the large population, including street vendors and traders who own very small informal shops and vends and the only possible relief for them was that they were allowed to conduct their daily business with reasonable restrictions. Oswal has termed the states stand as extremely high handed and insensitive. The assumption that the street vendors can cause more Covid-19 infections than the store or shop owners is not supported by science or findings by any research, said his rejoinder. Merely because these people are poor, they are being treated as more infectious and responsible for causing infections. This is a clear prejudice and nothing else, it added. The proposed criminal defamation law in Timor-Leste deals a blow to the reputation of a country founded firmly on the ideals freedom of expression, writes Jim Nolan. Timor-Leste Press Union together with Timor-Leste Journalists Association (AJTL) had a long march along the route of Liberdade Impress or the Press Freedom Street on the World Press Freedom Day 2019. Credit: TLPU In early June the government of Timor-Leste announced that it proposed to introduce new criminal defamation laws. The proposal was met with an immediate backlash from press freedom advocates NGOs and many politicians. The IFJ presented the government with a detailed critique of the proposal. On July 19, the national director for legal affairs at the Ministry of Justice, Nelinho Vital, informed journalists that the government would remove Article 187 (paragraph B, number 1) from the proposal after hearing public criticisms of the law. Nelinho Vital said s187-B would be removed. This section deals with what is known as aggravated penalties -- these penalties, if adopted, would mean that a sentence would be doubled or tripled if the defamation was of a public figure and/or through the media (including social media). It must be emphasised that Article 187-A remains in the proposed law. This article still criminalises all defamation, including that of public officials, political parties, and/or through the media. These offences will still carry penalties of a fine and up to one year in prison. Upon scrutiny, the only concession offered by the Ministry of Justice, turns out to be no concession at all. All it achieves is a clumsy attempt to blunt the serious and well-founded criticisms levelled by civil society groups. The substance of these criticisms has been left unanswered by this present proposal. It has been obvious since the inception of the proposal that it has been driven by thin skinned politicians who would like to enlist the power of the state to intimidate journalists. Is it possible to think of anyone other than politicians and powerful figures who would have any interest in invoking this law. No protection for journalists In its earlier advice, the IFJ warned that the proposal: - deals a blow to transparency in government by permitting politicians and powerful individuals to use the power of the state to prosecute journalists; - provides no defences of any kind, let alone any public interest defences, for published materials; - provides no protection for journalists and their sources; - provides no guidance for prosecutors; - will make the law worse than the equivalent law in Portugal. The IFJ noted that the proposal is directly contrary to the stated positions of numerous international human rights bodies, including the U.N. Human Rights Committee and the special rapporteurs on freedom of expression of the U.N., the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and the Organization of American States - all of whom have urged states to repeal criminal defamation laws. All of the criticisms of the original proposal stand. None have been answered by the Ministry of Justice. The proposal would be disturbing on its own, however it comes in a month when there have been region wide attacks on the media - in Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia. All of the attacks are calculated to intimidate and silence a free media and scrutiny of those in power and abuses of power. If enacted, this proposal will have the same impact. The important question for citizens and civil society groups in Timor-Leste remains. Can these proposals which threaten Timor-Lestes political freedoms be stopped? Jim Nolan is the International Federation of Journalists pro-bono legal counsel for the Asia-Pacific and a regular legal observer on legal cases in the region. The death toll from poisoning linked to toxic liquor in northern state of Punjab rose to 105 on Monday, police said. The death toll from poisoning linked to toxic liquor in Indias northern state of Punjab rose to 105 on Monday, as police carried out a crackdown on the illicit alcohol trade in the state following the worst bootleg alcohol incident this year. The toll soared from 21 on Friday after families reported deaths to administration officials over the Saturday to Sunday weekend. The first deaths were reported last Wednesday, and the number has continued to rise as poor farmers and workers fell ill after drinking the alcohol across three districts. Eighty people died in the Tarn Taran district over the past five days, senior official Kulwant Singh told DPA news agency, while state police confirmed 25 deaths in nearby Amritsar and Batala. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh earlier said he had ordered a special inquiry into the deaths and anyone found guilty will not be spared. Officials suspended The state government has suspended seven excise officials and six police officials even as opposition parties accused governing party leaders of patronising [the] spurious liquor trade. In a crackdown, police conducted dozens of raids across villages in which 30 bootleggers were arrested and smashed illegal distilleries, seizing thousands of litres of tainted liquor. The state government has suspended seven excise officials and six police officials [Narinder Nanu/AFP] Initial investigations revealed the liquor contained methanol, which can cause blindness and death when consumed in large amounts. Deaths from illegally brewed alcohol, known locally as hooch or country liquor, are common in India, where the poor cannot afford licensed brands from government-run shops. An average of 1,000 people die in India each year after consuming illegally distilled alcohol, government data shows. The liquor is usually made with poor-quality ingredients and sometimes mixed with industrial alcohol and toxic substances. A total of 151 people, mostly tea-plantation workers, died after drinking toxic alcohol last year in one of the worst cases of liquor poisoning in India in recent years. Mark Meadows and Steven Mnuchin will make yet another trip to Capitol Hill Monday for continued negotiations with Democrats on a new coronavirus stimulus package after weeks of talks deteriorated. Even if a deal were reached today, a vote to enact the package wouldn't take place until late this week or early next week meaning those receiving unemployment checks will go, at minimum, one week without the boosted $600-per-week benefits. Meadows, the president's chief of staff, and Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary, spent all last week on Capitol Hill negotiating with Democrats and Republicans to reach a deal before the enhanced benefits expired Friday. They also met with Democrats on Saturday in a last-ditch effort to reach a compromise to extend unemployment payments. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Monday morning that it's difficult to reach a deal with Republicans because she claims they are not willing to negotiate on the $600 unemployment benefit figure. 'A building is on fire and they are deciding how much water they want to have in the bucket,' 'Millions of people could have fallen into poverty without this $600,' she asserted. Republicans proposed a bill last Monday that included a decrease from the $600-per-week boost to a temporary $200-per-week payment on top of normal unemployment benefits. The decreased enhancement, in the Republican package, would then be phased out to a program that would cap unemployment at 70 per cent of the individual's pre-coronavirus wages. Meadows has vowed that he will be at the Capitol every day this week to reach a deal. 'We will be speaking to both the president on a regular basis and the staff on a regular basis,' Meadows said. 'We will be back every day until we solve this.' It could be a while until Americans see more economic relief in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic as Democrats and Republicans reach a deadlock in negotiations. While the White House officials make a push to reach a deal, fiscal conservatives on Capitol Hill are not keen on passing a fourth sweeping relief package. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (left) and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows (right) are heading to Capitol Hill Monday for more negotiations on getting the next coronavirus relief package passed Meadows promised to make a visit to the Capitol every day this week to reach a compromise on legislation as jobless Americans are now faced with losing their enhanced unemployment benefits House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told CNN Monday morning that Republicans are not willing to compromise on the $600-per-week unemployment benefit boost, which expired on Friday with no new deal on the table Mnuchin said Sunday morning that Republicans are not willing to concede to the high price tag Democrats want on the legislation a total of at least $3 trillion. 'That's something we're not going to do,' Mnuchin told ABC News This Week when asked about the $1 trillion measure Democrats are demanding in aid for state and local governments. The Republican proposal laid out by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Monday had a total cost of $1 trillion, which some Republicans claim is already too high a price for yet another round of relief in less than five months. Other than laying out the terms of the Republican-drafted legislation on Monday, however, McConnell has remained largely absent from negotiations and silent on the matter of the next package. 'We have to balance,' Mnuchin told ABC. 'There's obviously a need to support workers, support the economy.' 'On the other hand,' he said, 'we have to be careful about not piling on enormous amounts of debt.' In a sign of a continuing partisan stalemate over another relief bill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi could not give a timeline on Sunday. 'The fact is we will be close to an agreement when we have an agreement,' she told ABC's Martha Raddatz. Meadows and Mnuchin will meet with Pelosi (right) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (left) on Monday Mnuchin told ABC News on Sunday that Republicans won't give into Democrats' urge for $1 trillion to state and local governments in the next coronavirus stimulus package. 'We proposed a one-week extension at $600, so that while we negotiate a longer term solution at least all those people don't lose their money,' Mnuchin said. 'And I'm surprised that the Democrats won't agree to that' Pelosi signaled a stalemate in negotiations as she could not give a timeline on when an agreement on next package would be reached as enhanced unemployment benefits expired Friday 'The fact is, they put on the floor at the end of this week in the Senate $200,' she lamented of the GOP proposal of a cut from the unemployment boost. 'We are unified in our support for $600,' Pelosi asserted of the Democratic Party. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters Saturday: 'We're not close yet.' Mnuchin, whose interview with ABC News followed Pelosi's, said he was 'surprised' by her comments. The Treasury secretary has been the liaison between the White House and Congress, specifically with Democrats, as negotiations commenced in March for a slew of packages to provide relief to Americans and stimulus to the economy in the midst of the pandemic. 'The president is very concerned about the expiration of the unemployment's insurance,' Mnuchin assured. 'We proposed a one-week extension at $600, so that while we negotiate a longer term solution at least all those people don't lose their money,' he added. 'And I'm surprised that the Democrats won't agree to that. They are insistent on having this as part of a larger deal.' The unemployment boost, passed as part of a previous relief bill, expired Friday as lawmakers scrambled to reach a deal on extending or amending the enhanced benefits. Democrats want to keep the $600 benefits as the virus prevails, but the Republican proposal on Monday detailed a temporary decrease to $200-per-week. Republicans also revealed, however, that they intend for the decreased benefits to then be phased out after 30 or 60 days and replaced with a cap of 70 per cent of the individual's pre-coronavirus wages. Unemployment benefits were boosted to $600 extra per week as millions of Americans find themselves jobless in the midst of the pandemic, but Republicans are proposing that measure be decreased to $200 per week in the next bill The pandemic has left millions without jobs as Americans have been either temporarily or permanently laid off, had their hours cut or were furloughed. Republicans have lamented that the high rate of enhanced unemployment has incentivized the newly jobless to remain out of work and continue collecting checks. Mnuchin and Meadows, who have spent the last week negotiating with lawmakers, met with Democrats again on Saturday. 'It was a productive discussion,' Schumer told reporters at the Capitol Saturday. 'Now each side knows where, where they're at. And we are going to work very hard to come to an agreement.' Pelosi also sent out a dear colleague letter following the meeting. 'Today's meeting was more productive than our previous discussions, but no agreement can be reached yet,' Pelosi wrote. 'Work will continue on a staff level tomorrow,' the California Democrat continued. The Republican proposal included a second round of relief checks for Americans like those $1,200 direct checks sent earlier in the pandemic as part of a previous stimulus package. It also included more than $100 billion for schools in an effort to reopen in the fall and a stop in evictions for those who are unable to pay their rent. Northern Ireland will not be included in the UK's green car emission restrictions to be introduced next year, it has emerged. New regulations mean that, from January 1, 2021 - the end of the Brexit transition period - all cars sold in Northern Ireland will be counted as an EU sales under new strict carbon dioxide emission limits, the Guardian has reported. The UK and the EU have agreed the Northern Ireland protocol in a bid to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland, meaning many EU rules will still apply to Northern Ireland from January 1 - including those covering carbon dioxide limits. Under EU rules, all major car manufacturers who sell cars in the EU must reduce their average carbon emissions to below 95g per kilometre over the course of 2020 and 2021. The UK has pledged to enforce similar rules that are at least as stringent. Car manfucaturers who do not meet the target could face fines in the hundreds of millions of euros, with equivalent penalties in sterling in the UK. In order to avoid cars in Northern Ireland being counted twice in terms of emissions, a UK government consultation paper published earlier this month stated the region will be counted as an EU member for the purposes of working out average car emissions. Newly registered vehicles in Northern Ireland from 1 January 2021 will continue to be the subject of the EU regulation. The retained version of the regulation, and the subject of this consultation, will apply in Great Britain only," the paper stated. It is unclear what impact the new rules will have on businesses and customers, with potential variations in consumer demand and the circumstances of individual manufacturers. Earlier this year, however, the UK's car lobby group, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), warned that some carmakers could pulled models from sale as a result of the regulations. [Carmakers] will have to look at their model mix youve got to see whether thats economic. The fines are going to be severe and all of them will do everything they can to avoid that," SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said. It could be that you see a reduction in consumer choice through the removal of higher-emitting vehicles from not just the top end, but particular segments. Pokarna Group Limited gives Rs 1 cr to Nadu-Nedu programme 19 Jan 2022 | 1:58 AM Vijayawada, Jan 18 (UNI) Pokarna Group Limited has contributed Rs 1 crore towards providing basic amenities in schools under the Andhra Pradesh State Governments Nadu-Nedu programme. The cheque was handed over to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy by the Companys CMD Goutham Chand Jain as CSR under Connect to Andhra initiative. Connect to Andhra CEO V Koteswaramma was also present on the occasion. see more.. KCR misleading people on English medium in govt schools: Revanth Reddy 19 Jan 2022 | 1:28 AM Hyderabad, Jan 18 (UNI) Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) President A Revanth Reddy on Tuesday alleged that Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao was again misleading the people in the name of English medium education. see more.. Telangana: Public Health Director tests positive for Covid-19 19 Jan 2022 | 1:25 AM Hyderabad, Jan 18 (UNI) Telangana Public Health Director Dr Srinivas Rao on Tuesday admitted to hospital after he was tested positive for Covid-19. see more.. TSRTC transports 55 lakh passengers during Sankranti 18 Jan 2022 | 11:48 PM Hyderabad, Jan 18 (UNI) Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) has transported 55 lakhs passengers by running 4000 additional buses during sankranti festival for the benefit of people, a statement said on Tuesday. see more.. The Shiv Sena has honoured its commitment by transferring Rs 1 crore to the trust overseeing the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya, a senior party leader said on Sunday. The Sena's clarification came amidst reports quoting Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, chairman of the trust, as saying that no money was received from the Shiv Sena as promised, he said. The foundation laying ceremony for the construction of Ram temple is scheduled on August 5 for which the trust has invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The amount was transferred in the bank account of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust on July 27, the 60th birthday of Maharashtra Chief Minister and Sena president Uddhav Thackeray, Rajya Sabha MP Anil Desai said in a statement. "We have received confirmation and acknowledgement of the amount transfer from the trustee and treasurer (of thetrust)," he said in a statement. "We were surprised at reports of Nritya Gopal Das Maharaj saying that no money has been received from the Shiv Sena," Desai said. During his visit to Ayodhya in March this year, Thackeray had announced Rs 1 crore from his trust for theconstruction of a Ram temple. "Today, I want to announce that not from the stategovernment, but from my trust, I offer an amount of Rs 1 crore for the construction of Ram Temple here. It is just a smallcontribution from our part," he had said. STEINER SHUTTERS RESTAURANT, CASSANDRO FEATURE FILM ANNOUNCED, LUFISTO AUTOBIOGRAPHY AND MORE It was announced over the weekend that the Shoney's restaurant in Acworth, Georgia owned by former WCW World Champion Scott Steiner has closed. It opened in 2016 and shut down due to COVID-19 and will not be re-opening. The restaurant featured a display case featuring items from Steiner's career, including his Michigan University jacket, action figures, PPV posters and photos. Mark Bureau sent the following...The restaurant had been a staple of that exit for the 27 years I have lived here. It was torn to the ground and rebuilt prior to Scott buying it. Interesting note: It is one of the first Shoneys that had a full bar in it...at least it was the first one I had ever seen. It was a lot like Cheers. It had a lot of regular bargoers there. It will be missed. Deadline.com reported on 7/30 that Gael Garcia Bernal will star as lucha exotico star Cassandro in a feature film on his life and career. The film is being directed by Oscar winning and two-time Emmy nominee filmmaker Roger Ross Williams. As a filmmaker, my own life experience has inspired my passion to tell inspirational stories about outsiders and uplift the voices of people we dont normally see on screen. The true story of Cassandro, Saul Armendariz, was one I knew I wanted to tell from the moment I met him. I look forward to being able to bring Sauls story to a wide audience, said Williams. Deadline also reports that Amazon is in line to pick up the rights for the film but Amazon did not confirm that. ECW Press will be publishing an autobiography on Canadian star LuFisto in the Spring of 2022 with Greg Oliver co-authoring. Oliver is also co-authoring John Arezzi's memoir, which will be released next year. They just finished the final draft on that book. This week's edition of Vampiro Unleashed on the El Rey Network will feature Antonio Tijerno, the CEO of the Hispanic Foundation, discussing what qualities it takes to become a good leader. The episode will air on Thursday 8/6 at 9 PM EST. The El Rey Network will broadcast the 1970 film Santo vs. The Riders of Terror this Saturday 8/8 at 10 PM EST. The plot - "Santo must save a small town from a band of marauding lepers." Yesterday was the 22nd anniversary of the all-time best top to bottom ECW PPV ever, Heatwave '98 in Dayton, Ohio. The venue, The Hara Arena, was destroyed in 2019 by a tornado, although the remnants of the Arena still remain a year later. If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here! Senate Bill (SB) 98 (Chapter 24, Statutes of 2020) was passed and signed by the Governor at the end of June 2020. SB 820 (Chapter 110, Statutes of 2020) was passed and signed by the Governor in September 2020. SB 98 and SB 820 make substantive changes to Principal Apportionment funding calculations, as well as instructional time and attendance accounting requirements for FY 202021 commencing with Education Code (EC) Section 43500, et. seq for distance learning. The following FAQs are intended to provide local educational agencies (LEAs) with an overview of the Principal Apportionment changes as well as the instructional time and attendance accounting requirements for FY 202021. It is important to be aware that guidance may differ based on the type of LEA, specifically when it comes to classroom-based and nonclassroom-based charter schools. For the purposes of the following FAQs, the distance learning requirements apply to all school districts, county offices of education, classroom-based charter schools, and all newly operational charter schools that will begin instruction in the 202021 school year by September 30, 2020, which includes newly operational charter schools approved locally by January 1, 2020, that indicated in their petition that they will offer a nonclassroom-based program. Charter schools that operated as a nonclassroom-based charter school in FY 201920 continue to follow the independent study statutory requirements in Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 51745) of Chapter 5 of Part 28 of Division 4 and the implementing regulations for that article (EC Section 43505) in lieu of the distance learning requirements. The distance learning and Principal Apportionment statutes established in SB 98 and SB 820 will become inoperative on June 30, 2021. All of the instructional time and attendance accounting requirements in place prior to FY 202021 will be back in effect for FY 202122. Principal Apportionment | Instructional Time | Attendance Accounting and Reporting | Form J-13A Additional FAQs about distance learning requirements in the 202021 school year are available on the California Department of Education's (CDE) Distance Learning web page. Expand All | Collapse All Principal Apportionment Will the Principal Apportionment funding in 202021 be increased by the 2.31% cost of living adjustment (COLA)? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) No. While the COLA is 2.31% for 202021, SB 98 added EC Section 42238.021 which provides for a zero percent COLA for Principal Apportionment programs in 202021. Will the 202021 Principal Apportionment funding be held constant at 201920 funding levels, or is only the average daily attendance (ADA) held constant? (Updated 06-Oct-2020) Pursuant to EC Section 43502(b) added by SB 98, except for newly operational charter schools (see FAQ #4) and continuing LEAs that are eligible for a growth apportionment calculation pursuant to EC Section 43505(b)(2) added by SB 820, the 201920 reported ADA will be used to calculate 202021 funding. All other data used to calculate 202021 apportionments, such as California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS) enrollment and unduplicated pupil counts for the Unduplicated Pupil Percentage calculation, class size penalties, and local revenue will be based on 202021 data. For more information on growth funding eligibility for continuing LEAs please refer to the SB 820 Growth Funding Application FAQs. What ADA will be used as prior year ADA to calculate a school districts Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) apportionment for the 202122 FY? (Updated 09-Oct-2020) Based on current statute, for FY 202122 LCFF apportionments, the CDE will compare for a school district the following two data points and LCFF will be determined using the greater of the two ADA figures pursuant to EC Section 42238.05: The prior year ADA will be equal to the ADA reported by the school district for the 201920 FY, adjusted for any applicable charter school closures, changes in Necessary Small School status, or district reorganization, pursuant to EC Section 43502(b), paragraphs (2) through (4). For school districts that received an apportionment pursuant to EC Section 43505(b)(2) added by SB 820 in 202021, the prior year ADA will be equal to the proxy 202021 ADA used for funding. ADA will be equal to the ADA reported by the school district for the 201920 FY, adjusted for any applicable charter school closures, changes in Necessary Small School status, or district reorganization, pursuant to EC Section 43502(b), paragraphs (2) through (4). For school districts that received an apportionment pursuant to EC Section 43505(b)(2) added by SB 820 in 202021, the prior year ADA will be equal to the proxy 202021 ADA used for funding. The current year ADA will be equal to the ADA reported by the school district for the 202122 FY. How does SB 98 affect newly operational charter schools in 202021? (Updated 06-Oct-2020) Newly operational charter schools in 202021 will be funded based on their enrollment as of Information Day (October 7, 2020) that is reduced by the statewide average rate of absence as calculated by the department for the prior FY. A newly operational charter school is only eligible for funding in 202021 if it is authorized by the governing board of a school district or county board of education on or before June 30, 2020, or approved by the state board at its July 8 and 9, 2020 meetings and will begin offering instruction in FY 202021 prior to September 30, 2020. How will the 202021 scheduled Principal Apportionment payment deferrals be calculated? (Updated 06-Oct-2020) SB 98 authorizes Principal Apportionment cash deferrals for the 202021 FY by amending EC sections 14041.5 and 14041.6. The deferrals will apply to all Principal Apportionment programs, as listed in EC Section 14041(a), which include: County Office of Education, School District and Charter School LCFF State Aid, School District Basic Aid Choice, School District Basic Aid Court-Ordered Voluntary Pupil Transfer, School District Basic Aid Open Enrollment, School District Basic Aid Supplement Charter School Adjustment, Adults in Correctional Facilities, Special Education AB 602, and Special Education Infants 0-2. There will be specified cash deferrals for the months of February through May 2021, and the June payment will be entirely deferred to July 2021. For the February through May deferrals, the percentage of the payment deferred will be derived based on the total amount of the cash deferral specified in EC Section 14041.6, and will be deferred to the month specified in statute later in the same calendar year. Deferral information is available on the Principal Apportionment Payment Schedule web page. How can a school district or charter school apply for an exemption from the Principal Apportionment deferrals? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) A school district or charter school may receive an exemption from the deferrals pursuant to EC Section 14041.8 (refer to SB 98, Section 12 for EC Section 14041.8 deferral exemption requirements). More information and resources regarding the 202021 deferrals, cash flow, and deferral exemption process will be made available in the coming months and be sent out on the PASE listserv. Please follow the instructions provided on the CDE web page to subscribe to the PASE listserv. Will the 202021 Education Protection Account (EPA) apportionments also be deferred? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) No. The EPA apportionments are not subject to deferrals. Instructional Time Do all LEAs have an annual instructional day requirement in FY 202021? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) Yes. Pursuant to EC Section 43502(c), school districts and special day classes offered by county offices of education must offer 180 days of instruction. Charter schools must offer 175 days of instruction in FY 202021. Do nonclassroom-based charter schools have an annual instructional day requirement? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) Yes. The annual instructional day requirement for nonclassroom-based charter schools is 175 days of instruction. When does the instructional day requirement take effect? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) The instructional day requirement is in effect for the full 202021 FY. However, pursuant to EC Section 43504(i)(3), school districts, county offices of education, classroom-based charter schools, and all newly operational charter schools that provide distance learning shall not be penalized for instruction provided before September 1, 2020, that does not meet instructional time requirements. How does an LEA meet the annual instructional day requirement? (Updated 06-Oct-2020) SB 98 and SB 820 make a distinction between the requirements based on the type of LEA. For school districts, county offices of education, classroom-based charter schools, and all newly operational charter schools, in order for a day to count as a day of instruction towards meeting the annual instructional day requirement, students must be scheduled to attend for the school day established by the local governing board and the school day must be equivalent to at least a minimum day of instruction. The governing board may establish a school day in excess of 202021 minimum instructional day requirements noted below. A school day can be met through in-person instruction, distance learning, or a combination of in-person instruction and distance learning. For FY 202021 a minimum day of instruction for school districts, county offices of education, classroom-based charter schools, and all newly operational charter schools is as follows: 180 instructional minutes in TK/kindergarten. 230 instructional minutes in grades 1 to 3, inclusive. 240 instructional minutes in grades 4 to 12, inclusive. 180 instructional minutes for students in grades 11 and 12 that are also enrolled part time in classes of the California State University or the University of California for which academic credit will be provided upon satisfactory completion of enrolled courses. 180 instructional minutes for any student who is also a special part-time student enrolled in a community college under Article 1 (commencing with Section 48800) of Chapter 5 or Part 27 of Division 4 and who will receive academic credit upon satisfactory completion of enrolled courses. 180 instructional minutes for students enrolled in a continuation high school. 180 instructional minutes for students enrolled in an opportunity school. Charter schools that operated as nonclassroom-based in FY 201920 need to comply with all of the following requirements in FY 202021: Continue to meet all the independent study statutory requirements in Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 51745) of Chapter 5 of Part 28 of Division 4 and the implementing regulations for that article (EC Section 43505) in lieu of the distance learning requirements. Adopt a learning continuity and attendance plan pursuant to EC Section 43509 Offer 175 days of instruction and continue to maintain daily engagement records. Note, there are no minimum instructional day requirements for a nonclassroom-based charter school. Charter schools that operated as nonclassroom-based in FY 201920 need to comply with all of the following requirements in FY 202021: How is instructional time for in-person instruction calculated? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) Instructional time for in-person instruction is calculated based on time scheduled under the immediate physical supervision and control of a certificated employee of the LEA. LEAs would use their bell schedules, school calendars, and any other instructional time documentation as they always have to determine instructional time for in-person instruction. How is instructional time for distance learning calculated? (Posted 06-Oct-2020) Instructional time for distance learning is calculated based on the time value of synchronous and/or asynchronous instruction and assignments made by and certified by a certificated employee of the LEA. For charter schools, distance learning must be provided by a certificated employee pursuant to the requirements of EC sections 47605, 47605.4, and 47605.6. Can the minimum instructional day be met through a combination of distance learning and in-person instruction? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) Yes. Time scheduled under the immediate physical supervision of a certificated employee can be combined with assignments made under the general supervision of a certificated employee of an LEA to meet minimum instructional day requirements. Do the minimum instructional day requirements apply to all LEAs? (Updated 06-Oct-2020) In FY 202021, minimum instructional day requirements apply to all school districts, county offices of education, classroom-based charter schools, and all newly operational charter schools as follows: 180 instructional minutes in TK/kindergarten. 230 instructional minutes in grades 1 to 3, inclusive. 240 instructional minutes in grades 4 to 12, inclusive. 180 instructional minutes for students in grades 11 and 12 that are also enrolled part time in classes of the California State University or the University of California for which academic credit will be provided upon satisfactory completion of enrolled courses. 180 instructional minutes for any student who is also a special part-time student enrolled in a community college under Article 1 (commencing with Section 48800) of Chapter 5 or Part 27 of Division 4 and who will receive academic credit upon satisfactory completion of enrolled courses. 180 instructional minutes for students enrolled in a continuation high school. 180 instructional minutes for students enrolled in an opportunity school. Nonclassroom-based charter schools as of the 201920 FY do not have minimum instructional day requirements Can LEAs meet the minimum instructional day requirements through averaging over a span of instructional days? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) No. There is no instructional time averaging option for FY 202021. For more information about the minimum instructional day requirements, see FAQ #4 and FAQ #8. Do community day schools have a 360-minute minimum instructional day requirement in FY 202021? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) No. For FY 202021, the 360-minute minimum instructional day requirement for community day schools is not in effect. Community day schools must meet the same minimum instructional day requirements per grade span as traditional school sites. When does SB 98 become inoperative? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) The statutes established in SB 98 will become inoperative on June 30, 2021. All of the instructional time and attendance accounting requirements in place prior to FY 202021 will be back in effect for FY 202122. What happens if an LEA fails to meet the annual instructional day requirement in FY 202021? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) Pursuant to EC Section 43504(i)(1), if a school district or charter school fails to meet the annual instructional day requirement in FY 202021, that school district or charter school will be subject to a fiscal penalty. Do LEAs have annual instructional minute requirements in FY 202021? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) No. Pursuant to EC Section 43502(d)(1), the annual instructional minute requirements are waived in FY 202021. However, LEAs must meet annual instructional day requirements. How is distance learning defined as a mode of instruction in FY 202021? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) Distance learning may include, but is not limited to, all of the following: Interaction, instruction, and check-ins between teachers and students through the use of a computer or communications technology. Video or audio instruction in which the primary mode of communication between the student and certificated employee is online interaction, instructional television, video, telecourses, or other instruction that relies on computer or communications technology. The use of print materials incorporating assignments that are the subject of written or oral feedback. Pursuant to EC Section 43500, distance learning is defined as a mode of instruction in which the student and instructor are in different locations and students are under the general supervision of a certificated employee of the LEA.Distance learning may include, but is not limited to, all of the following: For additional information, please visit Distance Learning. Can passing time be included in instructional minute calculations for the 202021 school year? (Posted 22-Oct-2020) For distance learning, instructional time is based on the time value of assignments as determined, and certified to, by an employee of the LEA who possesses a valid certification document, registered as required by law. The purpose of a passing period is to provide for the actual time it takes students to physically move from class to class. Passing time is not included in instructional time during distance learning. For in-person instruction, the requirements for passing time remain the same as in previous years: Passing time is used in a departmentalized in-person instruction setting where pupils are changing instructors and/or courses. Passing periods between classes can be included as long as they are the actual time it takes to physically move from class to class and do not include time for going to a locker or the bathroom. Passing periods should not exceed 10 minutes between classes. There is no passing period before the first period of the day and one passing period between the period before lunch break and the period that meets after the lunch break. Lunch or break time is excluded. Attendance Accounting and Reporting Will LEAs be required to report ADA for apportionment in FY 202021? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) No. LEAs will not have to collect or report ADA for the purpose of apportionment in FY 202021. LEAs will be funded based on ADA reported in the 201920 P-2 and Annual apportionment periods. Newly operational charter schools in 202021 will be funded based on their enrollment as of Information Day (October 7, 2020) reported in CALPADS reduced by the statewide average rate of absence as calculated by the department for the prior FY. Will students be able to generate ADA for apportionment through distance learning in FY 202021? (Updated 02-Oct-2020) No. LEAs will not be collecting or reporting any ADA in FY 202021. However, an LEA may be eligible for growth funding pursuant to SB 820 (Chapter 110, Statutes 2020). For additional information, please visit CDE's SB 820 Growth Funding Application FAQs web page. Are LEAs required to record and take attendance in FY 202021? (Updated 02-Oct-2020) Yes. Although LEAs will not be reporting ADA in FY 202021, LEAs are required to record and track student attendance and participation for the purpose of compulsory education, reporting student attendance in CALPADS for chronic absence reporting and avoiding audit penalties. Completing daily participation records is akin to taking daily attendance and should include the method for verifying participation. If the daily participation record is used as an attendance record, LEAs will need to remember that students that do not participate in assigned distance learning or in-person instruction for at least part of the instructional day are considered absent and that those absences need to be categorized as either excused or unexcused for the purposes of compulsory education. For a list of the distance learning requirements subject to fiscal penalties during the Annual External Audit, including daily attendance and participation documentation, please see FAQ #6. For more information regarding daily participation verification please reference FAQ #10. For additional information regarding daily participation and weekly engagement recordkeeping, refer to FAQs #14 and #15. Can LEAs report ADA for the Extended School Year Special Education Program in FY 202021? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) The ADA attributed to the Extended School Year Special Education Program is reported in the FY that the program ends. The following information details the requirements for the Extended School Year Special Education Program for the summer of 2020. Extended School Year Special Education Program Ending by June 30, 2020 LEAs may claim Extended School Year Special Education ADA offered through distance learning as long as the LEA met all of the requirements in Section 96 of SB 98. The divisor of 175 remains the same. Extended School Year Special Education Program Ending after June 30, 2020 In FY 202021, LEAs will be funded based on ADA in the 201920 reported for both the P-2 and the Annual period apportionment. Therefore, LEAs would not be able to claim the ADA for the Extended School Year Special Education Program that ends after June 30, 2020 or before June 30, 2021 because the ADA would be attributed to FY 202021. Will ADA that was used to calculate an LEAs 202021 funding be audited as part of the 202021 Annual External Audit? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) No, because the 201920 ADA used to calculate 202021 funding will be audited pursuant to the 201920 audit process and therefore will not be audited again for the 202021 audit process. However, the instructional day requirement and some of the distance learning requirements are subject to fiscal penalties. More specifically, EC Section 43504(i) assigns an audit penalty calculation for school districts, county offices of education, classroom-based charter schools, and all newly operational charter schools that do not meet the following instructional time and distance learning requirements as of September 1, 2020: Offer the required number of instructional days per EC Section 43504(c). Document daily participation for each student, for each school day, on which distance learning is provided as required by EC Section 43504(d). Complete a weekly engagement record for each student documenting synchronous or asynchronous instruction for each whole or partial day of distance learning that verifies participation and tracks assignments as required by EC Section 43504(e). To the extent synchronous or asynchronous instruction is assigned to a student in distance learning, that instruction should be included in the assignments listed. Document absences as required by EC Section 43504(d)(1) and (f) for the purposes of chronic absenteeism tracking. Develop written procedures for tiered reengagement strategies for students that are absent from distance learning for more than 3 schooldays or 60 percent of the instructional days in a school week as required by EC Section 43504(f)(2). Which requirements of distance learning will be subject to fiscal penalties as a result of audit findings as part of the LEAs 202021 Annual External Audits? (Updated 02-Oct-2020) EC Section 43504(i) assigns an audit penalty calculation for school districts, county offices of education, classroom-based charter schools, and all newly operational charter schools that do not meet the following requirements as of September 1, 2020: Offer the required number of instructional days per EC Section 43504(c). Document daily participation for each student, for each school day, on which distance learning is provided as required by EC Section 43504(d). Complete a weekly engagement record for each student documenting synchronous or asynchronous instruction for each whole or partial day of distance learning that verifies participation and tracks assignments as required by EC Section 43504(e). To the extent synchronous or asynchronous instruction is assigned to a student in distance learning, that instruction should be included in the assignments listed. Document absences as required by EC Section 43504(d)(1) and (f) for the purposes of chronic absenteeism tracking. Develop written procedures for tiered reengagement strategies for students that are absent from distance learning for more than 3 schooldays or 60 percent of the instructional days in a school week as required by EC Section 43504(f)(2). For more information about using the optional CDE Combined Daily Participation and Weekly Engagement Template (CDE Template) (PDF) and other record keeping options, like making changes to the LEAs existing Student Information System (SIS) and Learning Management System (LMS) to meet these requirements, see FAQs #14 and 15. Are the distance learning requirements in part 24.5 of Division 3 of Title 2 the EC, (commencing with Section 43500) conditions of apportionment? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) School districts, county offices of education, classroom-based charter schools, and all newly operational charter schools will incur fiscal penalties for not meeting specific audited requirements of distance learning provisions in EC Section 43504(d)(e) and (f). All LEAs are bound by the statutory requirements of part 24.5 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the EC. Pursuant to EC sections 43502 and 43505 funding calculations for all LEAs, with the exception of newly operational charter schools, will be funded based on ADA reported in the 201920 P-2 and Annual apportionment periods, which will only include all full school months from July 1, 2019 to February 29, 2020. Newly operational charter schools in 202021 will be funded based on their enrollment as of Information Day (October 7, 2020) reported in CALPADS reduced by the statewide average rate of absence as calculated by the department for the prior FY. For more information about specific audit requirements see FAQ #6 above. Will funding for LEAs that are experiencing an increase in ADA in 202021 be adjusted? (Posted 02-Oct-2020) An LEA may be eligible for growth funding pursuant to SB 820 (Chapter 110, Statutes 2020). For additional information, please visit CDE's SB 820 Funding for Growing LEA FAQs web page. Is it possible for school districts and county offices of education to offer weekend classes through distance learning? (Posted 01-Aug-2020) It is possible for school districts and county offices of education to offer weekend classes through distance learning in FY 202021 for the purpose of making up or enhancing instruction. LEAs cannot generate make-up attendance for the purpose of chronic absenteeism through weekend classes. Does verification of participation in distance learning have to be done each day? Can a school employee use multiple days of student assignments combined and turned in on one day, or contact with a student, parent or guardian on one day during the week to verify participation for multiple days? (Posted 14-Aug-2020) Daily participation can be verified through a variety of methods. Participation may be verified through evidence of participation in online activities, completion of regular assignments, completion of assessments, and contact between employees of the LEA and students or parents or guardians, or by another means determined by an LEA. Verification can be done on a daily basis, on a weekly, or bi-weekly basis as long as an employee of the LEA makes a determination that the student participated. However, the ability to verify participation on a basis other than daily does not relieve an LEA of its responsibility to include daily live interaction as part of distance learning, or if daily interaction is not feasible to develop an alternative plan for frequent live interaction, pursuant to the requirements of EC Section 43503(b)(6). How should LEAs set up their attendance software in FY 202021? (Updated 02-Oct-2020) LEAs should work with their SIS provider to develop separate attendance codes to use in FY 202021. These attendance codes should specifically record attendance for the purpose of compulsory education through in-person instruction, distance learning, or a combination of in-person instruction and distance learning. Establishing unique attendance codes for documenting and verifying participation in distance learning, will help LEAs meet some of the additional documentation and record keeping requirements for distance learning as well as enable LEAs to run reports on distance learning participation for local use. These attendance codes should be separate from, or in addition to, the attendance codes used in FY 201920. This will allow LEAs to return to their existing attendance codes and record attendance for the purpose of apportionment in FY 202122. LEAs will map the attendance (and absence) codes that they create into the existing attendance and absence data fields in the Student Absence Summary (STAS) file for reporting to CALPADS. For questions related to data reporting in the STAS file, please contact the CALPADS Office at calpads@cde.ca.gov. Additional information related to attendance for the purpose of compulsory education, including excused and unexcused absences, is available on the Distance Learning Frequently Asked Questions web page under the Attendance and Absences section. Are attendance reports required to be signed? (Updated 02-Oct-2020) Yes. In order to meet contemporaneous records requirements, an employee of the LEA that can attest to the attendance/participation being documented through firsthand knowledge, such as a teacher or paraprofessional, is required to print and sign attendance reports. For students participating in in-person instruction, attendance records are to be signed weekly. For students participating in distance learning, attendance reports must be signed weekly or bi-weekly. The attendance reports can be used to verify daily participation. Although attendance reports can be signed by an employee of the LEA that can attest to the attendance/participation, because the optional CDE Template combines the attendance/participation and instructional time certification, and instructional time certification must be done by a certificated employee, the optional CDE Template must be signed by a certificated employee. For information on electronic signatures on the optional CDE Template, see FAQ #18. For information on electronic signatures on attendance reports when using an LEA alternative to the optional CDE Template, see FAQ #19. Should LEAs use positive or negative attendance? (Posted 20-Aug-2020) LEAs may choose to use either the positive or negative attendance method to record attendance in FY 202021. Changes to approved attendance accounting forms and procedures in FY 202021 will not require the CDEs approval. However, if a school district or county office of education switches their method of recording attendance in FY 202021, they will need to return to the method approved in their attendance accounting forms and procedures in FY 202122. Otherwise, the school district or county office of education will need to submit to the CDE any changes to their forms and/or procedures that had previously been approved. What participation and engagement records are LEAs required to maintain for students receiving instruction through distance learning? (Updated 02-Oct-2020) LEAs are required to maintain daily participation and a weekly engagement record for each student receiving instruction through distance learning. These are auditable records that must be made available for the LEAs 202021 Annual External Audits. These requirements apply to school districts, county offices of education, classroom-based charter schools, and all newly operational charter schools. LEAs must document daily participation for each student on each instructional day, in whole or in part, for which distance learning is provided. Daily participation is used to track attendance, and may include, but is not limited to, any of the following: evidence of participation in online activities completion of regular assignments completion of assessments contacts between employees of the LEA and the student or parents/guardians other methods of verification determined by LEAs A student who does not participate in distance learning for at least part of an instructional day is considered as absent for that instructional day. LEAs should categorize absences as either excused or not excused for the purpose of compulsory education. In compulsory education, only absences without a valid excuse are a violation. Additional information related to attendance for the purpose of compulsory education, including excused and unexcused absences, is available on the Distance Learning Frequently Asked Questions web page under the Attendance and Absences section. LEAs are also required to complete a weekly engagement record to document whether students assigned synchronous or asynchronous instruction for each whole or partial day of distance learning that is consistent with the plan developed by the local governing board, verify daily participation, and track assignments. In response to the additional recordkeeping requirements for student engagement and participation, CDE has developed an optional CDE Template for use in FY 202021. Refer to the CDE Template User Guide for detailed instructions, samples, and additional information on how to complete the template. Is an LEA required to use the CDE Template to document distance learning daily participation and weekly engagement? (Posted 02-Oct-2020) LEAs have many options to meet the daily participation tracking and weekly engagement records requirements in EC Section 43504. The LEA Alternatives for Tracking Daily Participation and Weekly Engagement for Distance Learning Guide provides detailed information and options on how an LEA can meet these requirements in lieu of using the optional CDE Template. Additionally, an alternative template to the CDE Template is also available. Daily participation and weekly engagement records may be made up of multiple documents stored in various locations. In this circumstance, LEAs should develop a plan to ensure documentation is easily accessible and can be compiled in order to provide to the auditor during the annual audit process to avoid a fiscal penalty. These requirements are in addition to attendance reporting for the purpose of compulsory education in CALPADS. How should LEAs record and maintain weekly engagement records? (Posted 20-Aug-2020) LEAs may choose to maintain the weekly engagement records either as electronic or paper records. The weekly engagement records must be made available for an auditor to complete the LEAs 202021 Annual External Audit. If a student participates in an independent study program during the 202021 school year, which distance learning requirements must a school district, county office of education, classroom-based charter school, and all newly operational charter schools need to meet to avoid fiscal penalties? (Posted 20-Aug-2020) Offer the required number of instructional days per EC Section 43504(c). Document daily participation for each student, for each school day, on which distance learning is provided as required by EC Section 43504(d). Complete a weekly engagement record for each student documenting synchronous or asynchronous instruction for each whole or partial day of distance learning that verifies participation and tracks assignments as required by EC Section 43504(e). To the extent synchronous or asynchronous instruction is assigned to a student in distance learning, that instruction should be included in the assignments listed. Document absences as required by EC Section 43504(d)(1) and (f) for the purposes of chronic absenteeism tracking. Develop written procedures for tiered reengagement strategies for students that are absent from distance learning for more than 3 schooldays or 60 percent of the instructional days in a school week as required by EC Section 43504(f)(2). Students may participate in independent study programs during the 202021 school year. When offering independent study programs, a school district, county office of education, classroom-based charter school, and all newly operational charter schools will need to ensure that all distance learning requirements are met, including those that have a fiscal consequence as follows: What are the signature requirements for attendance records and instructional time certification when using the optional CDE Template and are teachers able to use electronic signatures to sign the certification on the optional CDEs Template? (Posted 02-Oct-2020) The optional CDE Template combines the attendance/participation and instructional time certification requirement so that only one signature for both is required pursuant to the following: Criteria Combined attendance/participation and instructional time certification. Who can sign? The combined attendance/participation and instructional time certification in the CDE template must be signed by a certificated employee of the LEA. Frequency In Person Instruction: weekly Distance Learning: at least every two weeks under distance learning whether provided in whole or in a hybrid setting. Requirements to Electronically Sign The combined attendance/participation and instructional time certification in the CDE template can be certified to by signing and scanning the signed documentation, by electronically signing a PDF document, or through a signature application such as DocuSign, as long as security measures are in place to protect confidential student information. What are the signature requirements for the 202021 school year attendance records and the instructional time certification when LEAs are not using the optional CDE Template? (Updated 02-Oct-2020) The guidelines in the table below for attendance record certification apply to a school district or county office of education. Guidelines for charter schools follow at the end of this answer. Criteria Attendance Record Instructional Time Certification Who can sign? Attendance/absence reports must be certified by an employee of the LEA with firsthand knowledge of the students participation. Examples of employees that may have firsthand knowledge of student participation in assigned instruction, school work, and/or assessments include but may not be limited to: teachers, paraprofessionals, and attendance clerks. The instructional time certification must be signed by a certificated employee of the LEA. The certificated employee must certify to time value of assignments to ensure that minimum instructional day and annual school year length requirements can be met. Frequency In Person Instruction: weekly Distance Learning: at least every two weeks under distance learning whether provided in whole or in a hybrid setting. Statute does not specify the frequency with which instructional time certification must occur. Requirements to Electronically Sign For the 202021 school year only, CDE has determined that school districts and county offices of education can implement the use of electronic signatures for weekly attendance reports, daily participation, and weekly engagement records, even if the school district or county office of education does not have prior approval of their attendance accounting system using manual signatures, as long as the following is in place: 1. The electronic system has a procedure to track and verify that initial attendance is entered within two weeks from the calendar day of the school day for which the attendance is a record thereof. This flexibility would be for the purpose of distance learning attendance tracking only. Attendance for in-class instruction should still be entered on the calendar day of the school day of record. Under certain circumstances, such as wide-spread power outages, system interruptions, or for students participating in distance learning, teachers are allowed to electronically submit and certify attendance on a subsequent day or week, retaining paper documentation on which attendance was recorded contemporaneously; 2. The electronic system includes a report that lists the dates of data entry and modifications, and the employee identification of the person or persons logging the attendance information into the system; 3. The report described in #2 above is readily accessible to teachers and administrators for their review; 4. If the electronic system relies on passwords, there must be adequate safeguards to ensure that such passwords are accessible only to the employee for whom the password is created; and 5. For the 202021 school year only, school districts and county offices of education must receive a letter from their independent auditor, indicating that the attendance accounting system has been reviewed by the auditor and that the systems level of integrity is acceptable to the auditor. This letter would not need to be submitted to CDE. The time value of assignments may be certified to by signing and scanning the signed documentation, by electronically signing a PDF document, or through a signature application such as DocuSign, as long as security measures are in place to protect confidential student information. If the school district or county office of education meets the electronic signature attendance record requirements outlined above, from the date those requirements are met, the LEA will be able to utilize electronic signatures. School districts and county offices of education should revert to their CDE approved attendance accounting method with the beginning of the 202122 school year. Charter schools are not required to receive approval from CDE for their attendance accounting forms and procedures. As such, CDE does not approve attendance accounting forms and procedures for charter schools. This includes approval for the use of electronic signatures. Charter schools should work with their authorizer when making changes to their attendance accounting forms and procedures, including changes to allow electronic signatures. Is a students sample work product required to be included in the weekly engagement record? (Posted 02-Oct-2020) No. Form J-13A Kyne Santos is not your typical math tutor. You can find her sharing a lesson on TikTok, decked out in red statement earrings and a leopard print top, explaining how statistics can be manipulated to make Black Americans appear more violent. Formerly a contestant on "Canadas Drag Race," a reality competition television series based on the American series "RuPaul's Drag Race," the 22-year-old often teaches people how to do hair and makeup and sew their own clothes. However, the boredom of staying at home during the coronavirus pandemic got her to show off another passion: mathematics. Now, the Filipino Canadian drag queen has amassed over 700,000 followers on TikTok. In the early months of the pandemic, she began posting videos explaining mathematical concepts in full drag. Image: Kyne (Matt Barnes / Crave) Santos stresses the importance of using math for good and not evil. @onlinekyne Funny how the people using math to support their racism are hardly ever mathematicians. Cc: @nick.srq ##blacklivesmatter original sound - onlinekyne Santos said she wants to show viewers that you can love math while being whatever you want to be. Math has always been a very big part of my life. I just wanted to take a risk and try something new. Santos told NBC Asian America. Her topics range from prime numbers to math riddles to explaining the meaning of math memes like The limit does not exist from the film "Mean Girls." Santos said she was inspired to teach the subject after seeing young people leave school disliking it. The classic question that people ask in school is, When am I ever going to need this? And that is a question that I try to answer in my videos, she said. One example of how math is used in the real world, she said, is understanding whether a graph is portraying information fairly. Story continues In one video, she explains why a graph showing COVID-19 cases in the state of Georgia is misleading. The graph posted by Georgias Department of Public Health appears to show confirmed case counts declining. However, Santos shows that the dates on the x-axis are not in order, causing the highest values to show up on the left. After people on social media called out the graphs mistakes, Georgia officials apologized and corrected it. Math, whether you like it or not, is used to manipulate people because lots of people can be led one way or another by seeing numbers, Santos said. It is really important that when you see graphs, it is something that you have to analyze critically. Image: Kyne (Jackie Brown / Crave) Santos, who is also a mathematical finance major at the University of Waterloo in Canada, said her dad often taught her math as a kid. Growing up in a Filipino household, Santos said the way math and academics were talked about at home was what made her want to pursue it as a degree. Despite the stereotype that all Asians are good at math, Kyne said she doesnt really see it play out in her own life. Instead, Santos said being a drag queen who loves math shows that the Asian community is not a monolith. I do want to show people that you can be smart and successful and be whoever you want to be, she said. You can wear green hair and long nails and black lipstick and have those same accolades. While Santos and her family share a love of math, they didnt always agree when it came to her doing drag. Santos, whos been doing drag for three years, said she started by watching makeup tutorials. That passion eventually evolved into her becoming a drag queen. However, her parents were worried. While they were accepting of their child coming out as gay, they were worried Santos would get bullied. In the Philippines, where we come from, gay people are always the butt of every joke. They wanted me to have a life and have a little more respect, she said. Over time, Santos said her parents came to accept her passion. They even watched her when she competed on Canadas Drag Race. She placed 11th. Now, Santos said those experiences with her parents have only made her stronger. While her time on Canadas Drag Race was short, she said she wants to keep sharing her story on social media, teaching math and speaking in schools all while in drag. For now, she continues to explain mathematical concepts to her viewers because she sees that she is helping others. People will be like, You inspired me to continue pursuing math. I want to get a math degree. You make me want to enjoy math, Santos said. If I can show people that math is a lot more fun than they learn in school, then that is a good thing. Follow NBC Asian America on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Facebook permanently banned Dieudonne, a convicted anti-Semite, from both its main site as well as from Instagram. The company accuses the French comedian of using 'dehumanising terms against Jews'. 'In line with our policy on dangerous individuals and organisations, we have permanently banned Dieudonne M'Bala M'Bala from Facebook and Instagram', Facebook announced on Monday. France's Minister of Equality Elisabeth Moreno hailed the move and hoped for 'more such decisions'. 'Let there be no compromise with hatred!' she tweeted. 'Dehumanising' Jews Facebook said some of Dieudonne's posts used 'dehumanising terms against Jews'. Dieudonne's opponents accuse him of blunt racism, while his die-hard followers claim his right to free speech. The performer is infamous for a trademark hand gesture called the 'quenelle'. Largely interpreted as an inverted Nazi salute, the 'quenelle' gesture is defended by Dieudonne and his partisans as being 'anti-establishment'. 'The end of freedom' on the Internet In his usual provocative manner, Dieudonne reacted through his Twitter account to denounce the 'lobbies' who supposedly 'cherish the end of freedom on the Internet'. Twitter and Telegram are now Dieudonne's main surviving social media outlets. Repeat offender Dieudonne's shows rail against the 'Zionist lobby' which he claims controls the world. The French government has tried on several occasions to shut down these performances. He has a long list of convictions in France and in Belgium Recently fined 9,000 euros for posting an anti-Semitic video, Dieudonne had previously received a two-month suspended jail term for sympathising with a jihadist. He was also convicted and sentenced for tax fraud and money-laundering. To address these needs, WellCare is providing low-income and special needs plan members in select WellCare, WellCare TexanPlus and 'Ohana Medicare Advantage plans with free, monthly Shipt memberships for the remainder of 2020. With this benefit, members can have groceries and essentials delivered from a number of retailers directly to their homes through their Shipt account, which not only helps them easily obtain the essentials they need, but also helps reduce possible exposure to the virus by eliminating their need to go to the grocery store. The benefit, which is subject to availability, is being offered to more than 200,000 members across 23 states. "The effects of the pandemic are far-reaching, extending beyond medical care and affecting access to food, medicine, transportation, and more," said Michael Polen, Centene's Senior Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of Medicare Solutions. "We look forward to offering this new benefit as one more way to simplify access to everyday essentials, ensure continuity of care, and help our members stay safe and healthy during this challenging time." "We're proud to partner with WellCare to fuse their commitment to meeting the health needs of vulnerable populations and our expertise in delivering groceries and essentials to those who need them," said Rina Hurst, Chief Business Strategy Officer, Shipt. "Especially in these challenging times, Shipt seeks to simplify lives and spark connections. We believe this first-of-its-kind partnership accomplishes just that while helping thousands of members get what they need quickly and safely." Seniors and Food Insecurity, Transportation Issues Each day, millions of seniors across the country go hungry. According to a study by Feeding America , nearly 8% of Americans age 60 and older were "food insecure" in 2017. During the COVID-19 pandemic, WellCare's Community Connections Help Line , a toll-free, nationwide line available to anyone in need, has found increased demand for resources among seniors. The Help Line, which fielded more than 4,000 calls from Medicare members between March 1 and June 30, reports food assistance was the number-one most requested service (34%) accounting for more than one-third of all calls from this demographic. Medication assistance was the second most requested service (26%) followed by transportation (14%). Shipt Ensures Safety and Convenience for Members and Employees Shipt is available to more than 80% of U.S. households across 5,000 cities. The user-friendly app works with vetted, reliable Shipt Shoppers to ensure efficiency and user satisfaction. During the pandemic, Shipt's top priority has been the health and safety of members and shoppers. As a result, Shipt has increased support staff, added more shoppers to help with high demand, and provides financial assistance and personal protective equipment to its shoppers. To learn more, eligible WellCare members are encouraged to visit www.wellcare.com and log in to their member portal for instructions on how to take advantage of this benefit. ATTENTION: If you speak a language other than English, language assistance services, free of charge, are available to you. Call <1-877-374-4056> (TTY: 711). ATENCION: Si habla espanol, tiene a su disposicion servicios gratuitos de asistencia linguistica. Llame al <1-877-374-4056> (TTY: 711). <1-877-374-4056> (TTY711) About WellCare WellCare provides government-sponsored managed care services to families, children, seniors, and individuals with complex medical needs primarily through Medicaid, Medicare Advantage, and Medicare Prescription Drug Plans. WellCare is a wholly owned subsidiary of Centene Corporation, a leading multi-national healthcare enterprise committed to helping people live healthier lives. For more information about WellCare, please visit www.wellcare.com. About Shipt Shipt brings the store to your door. Through a community of Shipt Shoppers and a convenient app, Shipt provides personal shopping and delivery and is available to 80% of households in more than 5,000 U.S. cities. Shipt Shoppers go above and beyond, communicating in real time about preferences and substitutions. A curated marketplace of retailers, Shipt offers access to a variety of stores and product categories including fresh foods, household essentials, wellness products, office, and pet supplies. Shipt is an independently operated, wholly owned subsidiary of Target Corp. Founded and headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, Shipt also maintains an office in San Francisco. For more information, visit Shipt.com. Forward-Looking Statements All statements, other than statements of current or historical fact, contained in this press release are forward-looking statements. Without limiting the foregoing, forward-looking statements often use words such as "believe," "anticipate," "plan," "expect," "estimate," "intend," "seek," "target," "goal," "may," "will," "would," "could," "should," "can," "continue" and other similar words or expressions (and the negative thereof). Centene (the Company, our, or we) intends such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe-harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and we are including this statement for purposes of complying with these safe-harbor provisions. In particular, these statements include, without limitation, statements about our future operating or financial performance, market opportunity, growth strategy, competition, expected activities in completed and future acquisitions, including statements about the impact of our recently completed acquisition (the WellCare Acquisition) of WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (WellCare), other recent and future acquisitions, investments and the adequacy of our available cash resources. These forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and are based on numerous assumptions and assessments made by us in light of our experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions, business strategies, operating environments, future developments and other factors we believe appropriate. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are subject to change because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future, including economic, regulatory, competitive and other factors that may cause our or our industry's actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are based on information available to us on the date hereof. Except as may be otherwise required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements included in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date hereof. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, as actual results may differ materially from projections, estimates, or other forward-looking statements due to a variety of important factors, variables and events including but not limited to: the impact of COVID-19 on global markets, economic conditions and the healthcare industry and our results of operations, which is unknown; uncertainty as to our expected financial performance following completion and integration of the WellCare Acquisition; the possibility that the expected synergies and value creation from the WellCare Acquisition will not be realized, or will not be realized within the expected time period; the risk that unexpected costs will be incurred in connection with the integration of the WellCare Acquisition or that the integration of WellCare will be more difficult or time consuming than expected; unexpected costs, charges or expenses resulting from the WellCare Acquisition; the inability to retain key personnel; disruption from the completion of the WellCare Acquisition, including potential adverse reactions or changes to business relationships with customers, employees, suppliers or regulators, making it more difficult to maintain business and operational relationships; the risk that we may not be able to effectively manage our expanded operations; our ability to accurately predict and effectively manage health benefits and other operating expenses and reserves; competition; membership and revenue declines or unexpected trends; changes in healthcare practices, new technologies, and advances in medicine; increased healthcare costs; changes in economic, political or market conditions; changes in federal or state laws or regulations, including changes with respect to income tax reform or government healthcare programs as well as changes with respect to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act, collectively referred to as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and any regulations enacted thereunder that may result from changing political conditions or judicial actions, including the ultimate outcome in "Texas v. United States of America" regarding the constitutionality of the ACA; rate cuts or other payment reductions or delays by governmental payors and other risks and uncertainties affecting our government businesses; our ability to adequately price products on the Health Insurance Marketplaces and other commercial and Medicare products; tax matters; disasters or major epidemics; the outcome of legal and regulatory proceedings; changes in expected contract start dates; provider, state, federal and other contract changes and timing of regulatory approval of contracts; the expiration, suspension, or termination of our contracts with federal or state governments (including but not limited to Medicaid, Medicare, TRICARE or other customers); the difficulty of predicting the timing or outcome of pending or future litigation or government investigations; challenges to our contract awards; cyber-attacks or other privacy or data security incidents; the possibility that the expected synergies and value creation from acquired businesses, including businesses we may acquire in the future, will not be realized, or will not be realized within the expected time period; the exertion of management's time and our resources, and other expenses incurred and business changes required in connection with complying with the undertakings in connection with any regulatory, governmental or third party consents or approvals for acquisitions; disruption caused by significant completed and pending acquisitions, including, among others, the WellCare Acquisition, making it more difficult to maintain business and operational relationships; the risk that unexpected costs will be incurred in connection with the completion and/or integration of acquisition transactions; changes in expected closing dates, estimated purchase price and accretion for acquisitions; the risk that acquired businesses will not be integrated successfully; the risk that we may not be able to effectively manage our operations as they have expanded as a result of the WellCare Acquisition; restrictions and limitations in connection with our indebtedness; our ability to maintain or achieve improvement in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Star ratings and maintain or achieve improvement in other quality scores in each case that can impact revenue and future growth; availability of debt and equity financing, on terms that are favorable to us; inflation; foreign currency fluctuations; delays in costs associated with development and occupancy of our new East Coast headquarters in Charlotte; economic conditions in the Charlotte metropolitan area and risks and uncertainties discussed in the reports that Centene has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This list of important factors is not intended to be exhaustive. We discuss certain of these matters more fully, as well as certain other factors that may affect our business operations, financial condition and results of operations, in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including our annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K. Due to these important factors and risks, we cannot give assurances with respect to our future performance, including without limitation our ability to maintain adequate premium levels or our ability to control our future medical and selling, general and administrative costs. SOURCE WellCare Related Links http://www.wellcare.com Todays Headlines The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning. Email address By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Shimla: Two persons were killed and one injured when a pick-up truck fell into a 150-foot-deep gorge in Sunni tehsil of Shimla district on Monday morning. The deceased were identified as Deepak Chauhan, 20, of Karsog in Mandi, and Dimple Kumar, 23, of Thunag, also in Mandi district. The injured was identified as Kehar Singh, 27 of Karsog. The accident took place at 6am on Monday when they were going from Parwanoo to Sunni and the driver lost control of the vehicle near Sunni. The accident was noticed by local residents who informed the police. The injured person was referred to Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital, Shimla. Shimla superintendent of police (SP) Omapati Jamwal said investigation was on. NORWICH, England, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- BizClik Media Group (BMG), announced today the release of Business Chief APAC August 2020 edition. This month's cover features Sandeep Nag, Director of 5G at Capgemini. Nag discusses technological trends, 5G innovation and the impact of COVID-19 on the technology industry. "In order to cope with the massive increase in connected devices, you need to have access to a wide area of coverage. The evolution of 4G networks into 5G networks and beyond has allowed for better connectivity and increased the efficiency of connected devices." In addition to Capgemini, we speak to Jeanne Cate, Head of US Supply Chain Strategic Partnerships at Molson Coors on developing competitive advantages, Thorsten Scholz, CTO at Forwood Safety on how tech innovation, solid partnerships and a focused approach can transform safety culture, and Steve Reid, Chief People and Culture Officer at oOh! detailing the company's digital strategies and the impact of COVID-19 on workplace culture and operations. Elsewhere within our August edition of Business Chief APAC, we look at the top HR digital technology trends of 2020 and the digital transformation benefits they provide, while our Top 10 examines Asia's leading tech companies ranked by Forbes in its 'Top 100 Digital Companies 2019' list. Other features within this month's edition include insights, thoughts and developments from Sutherland Shire Council, DuluxGroup Limited, DOCOMO PACIFIC, Cellcard Cambodia, McAlpine Hussman - A Panasonic company, Mastercard, Marsh and Achmea Australia. READ BUSINESS CHIEF APAC MAGAZINE HERE Contact: Shirin Sadr [email protected] +442080542069 About Business Chief APAC https://www.businesschief.asia/ Business Chief is a 'Digital Community' that connects the world's largest brands and their most senior executives with the latest trends pivoting towards technology and digital transformation. Business Chief is a 'trusted authority' on the latest industry news combining 'Executive Thought Leadership Interviews' with the very latest case studies on Leadership & Digital Strategy, Corporate Finance, Technology and Human Capital. The focus of Business Chief's 'Digital Community' is to provide our users with the 'Ultimate Digital Experience' - an incredible digital magazine, a world-class website, an award-winning newsletter service as well as video reports, podcasts, blogs, webinars, white papers, research reports, virtual events and a database second to none. Business Chief also offers its advertising partners a unique blend of digital branding, content syndication and executive thought leadership articles as well as a 'gated intelligence community' providing ultimate demand generation and measurable 'Ad-Campaign' ROI's. Business Chief is read by industry professionals at all levels as well as technology and consulting executives. About Bizclik Media Group https://www.bizclikmedia.com/ BizClik Media Group is a UK-based media company with a global portfolio of leading industry, business and lifestyle digital communities. BizClik Media is fast becoming the trusted authority in Digital Media with a portfolio of brands across Technology & AI, Finance & Insurance, Manufacturing & Supply Chain, Energy & Mining, Construction, Healthcare, Wireless Communications & Data Centres. BizClik Media also publishes the 'highly acclaimed' Business Chief Magazine community which features a global website portfolio plus individual business magazine editions for North America, APAC & EMEA. SOURCE BizClik Media (Newser) A party boat allegedly cruised around New York City on Saturday night with more than 170 guests, leading to three arrests amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The four-story Liberty Belle riverboat has four bars, three outdoor decks, and can fit as many as 600; people complained to authorities about it departing Manhattan's Pier 36 around 8:30pm, and when it returned about three hours later, deputies intercepted it. The boat's captain was arrested and issued a summons for not properly displaying the craft's ID number, and the boat's two owners were arrested and charged with violations including serving liquor without a license. ABC 7 reports social distancing violations were also included in the charges. story continues below The company that operates the boat, Empire Cruises, claims on its website that it has ceased operations until further notice due to COVID-19. It's not clear if the company had started operating again, or what type of party was held aboard the boat, though the New York Daily News reports it was 1920s-themed. The New York Times reports state officials have recently been upping crackdowns on bars and other businesses violating social distancing and other safety requirements. (Read more coronavirus stories.) Filming on new Seven drama RFDS (working title) begins in Broken Hill today. Joining the previously announced cast of Justine Clarke, Stephen Peacocke and Rob Collins are Emma Hamilton, Ash Ricardo, Kate Mulvany, Rodney Afif and Jack Scott plus Sofia Nolan, Thomas Weatherall and Ash Hodgkinson in their first major television roles. The eight-hour drama centres around modern-day heroes of the Royal Flying Doctor Service as they navigate private lives as turbulent and profound as the emergencies they attend. Co-creator and Producer Imogen Banks said: We are absolutely thrilled to have assembled such a brilliant cast to bring our characters and this compelling world to life. The entire production is honoured to be highlighting the critical work of the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia, whilst showcasing the unique beauty of Broken Hill and its surrounds to audiences both in Australia and around the world. Obviously there are strict protocols in place as we take the health and safety of our cast, crew and the wider community very seriously, and are working closely with the Local Council, and within the Federal and State guidelines, as well as in accordance with all Government directives as they are issued, she continued. Seven Network Executive Producer Julie McGauran said: Now more than ever we should be celebrating true heroes, and we are excited that this series will highlight those of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, with powerful storylines set in the majesty of rural Australia. We are genuinely delighted to be working with this extraordinary cast and the amazing team of creatives to realise this series. Due to COVID delays the drama has now been pushed back to 2021. An Endemol Shine Banks production, with major production investment from the Seven Network in association with Screen Australia, RFDS (working title) is financed with support from Screen NSW through the Made In NSW Fund and the Regional Filming Fund, with Endemol Shine International handling worldwide sales. Co-created by Imogen Banks, Mark Fennessy and Ian Meadows, the series is being produced by Imogen Banks and Sara Richardson, written by Ian Meadows, Claire Phillips, Adrian Russell Wills and Jon Bell and directed by Jennifer Leacey, Jeremy Sims and Adrian Russell Wills with Endemol Shine Australias Mark Fennessy and Carl Fennessy and Sevens Julie McGauran as executive producers. Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill has hailed the late John Hume as "a huge figure in Irish politics for many years" who was "known the world over for his peacemaking efforts". She said Mr Hume was "a leader who worked tirelessly for the community and his beloved Derry". She added: "His work alongside Gerry Adams in the Hume-Adams talks were instrumental in creating the space for developing and progressing the peace process which led to the Good Friday Agreement." Former Londonderry priest Denis Bradley, who witnessed Bloody Sunday and facilitated a secret channel between the IRA and the British government for over 20 years, recalled being a pupil of the then history teacher and he told how Mr Hume, who later went into politics, "had a big influence on me". Mr Bradley said the former SDLP leader was "a good teacher" who was "passionate about education and politics". Referring to Mr Hume's Derry roots, Mr Bradley added: "When it came to the peace process he had authenticity that very few other people had". Austin Currie, founding member of the SDLP, said Mr Hume was "the greatest Irishman since Parnell" whose "place in Irish history is richly deserved". "Despite the pressures on him, his family and his beloved Derry, he displayed great moral, physical and political courage," said Mr Currie. "He never - not for one moment - departed from a complete insistence on the non-violent approach to our problems in Northern Ireland." Irish President Michael D Higgins highlighted Mr Hume's "deep commitment" and "practical demonstration of tolerance and social justice, often times in the face of strong opposition and tangible threats to his person and his family, asserted the fundamental principles of democracy". "He and those others who helped usher in a discourse that enabled a new era of civil rights and responsive government that few would have thought possible, have placed generations in their debt, have been a source of hope," Mr Higgins said. "That his efforts were recognised through the awarding of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize brought great joy not only to his people in Derry, his colleagues in politics, particularly in the SDLP, but to a wider global set of colleagues and fellow advocates for peace abroad who held him in the greatest esteem." Irish PM Micheal Martin also paid tribute, describing Mr Hume as "a great hero and a true peacemaker". "Throughout his long life he exhibited not just courage, but also fortitude, creativity and an utter conviction that democracy and human rights must define any modern society," he said. "For over four decades, he was a passionate advocate for a generous, outward-looking and all-encompassing concept of nationalism and republicanism. "For him the purpose of politics was to bring people together, not split them apart." Tanaiste Leo Varadkar said Mr Hume was "one of Ireland's greatest ever sons". He added: "He was a patriot, a peacemaker, a democrat, and a great, great Derryman." The late poet Seamus Heaney's Twitter feed said that Mr Hume "made hope and history rhyme" adding: "He was the once in a lifetime oak tree who rose up with a longed-for tidal wave of justice. A patriot." His predecessor Simon Coveney said: "John Hume has died. Ireland, all of us, should bow our heads in respect and thanks. What an extraordinary man, peacemaker, politician, leader, civil rights campaigner, family man, Derryman, inspiration. May he rest peacefully and his legacy live on." Tributes were also paid by the chairman of the International Fund for Ireland, which the former SDLP leader had helped set up. Paddy Harte described him as "one of the greatest peacemakers of our time" and a "true inspiration to us all". "His passion paved the way for peace and reconciliation as we know it today, leaving those darkest days of the Troubles firmly in the past," he said. "He leaves a legacy for peacemakers across the world and it is thanks to his influence that I hope we can continue our journey towards peace, knowing he has played an instrumental role in our work at the Fund." PHILADELPHIA (August 3, 2020) - The diverse situations experienced by health-care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic often present serious ethical challenges. From the allocation of resources and triage protocols to health-care worker and patient rights and the management of clinical trials, new ethical questions have come to the forefront of today's global public health emergency. In an editorial in the journal AJOB Empirical Bioethics, three nurse researchers provide ideas for meaningful empirical bioethics research related to the COVID-19 pandemic to aid clinicians in ethical decision-making approaches. "Empirical bioethics research on decision-making during this pandemic can contribute to a body of evidence describing these unique ethical challenges, as well as the failures and successes of the decisions made to address and resolve them," writes Connie Ulrich, PhD, RN, FAAN, Lillian S. Brunner Chair in Medical and Surgical Nursing and Professor of Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (Penn Nursing), one of the co-authors. The researchers outline a number of areas of opportunity in COVID-19-related bioethics studies, including: Descriptive studies defining current practices, opinions, and policies to inform research and interventions. Insight into sources and different constraints that lead to moral distress of health-care workers on the front lines of the pandemic. Assessment of the extent of which clinical practice reflects purported ethical norms. Development and testing of interventions aimed at closing the gap between reality and ethical ideals. "Better understanding the experiences, views, values, and expectations of stakeholders across diverse communities can ensure that the bioethics community--along with policymakers, public health and health care systems, and research institutions--is better prepared during the months and years that lie ahead as we tackle the problems raised by COVID-19 and for future pandemics," the authors conclude. ### The editorial, "COVID-19: Advancing Empirical Bioethics Research," is available online. Co-authors include Emily E. Anderson, PhD, MPH of the Neiswanger Institute for Bioethics, and Jennifer K. Walter, PhD, MD, MS, of Children's Hospital of Pennsylvania. About the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing The University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing is one of the world's leading schools of nursing. For the fifth year in a row, it is ranked the #1 nursing school in the world by QS University and is consistently ranked highly in the U.S. News & World Report annual list of best graduate schools. Penn Nursing is currently ranked # 1 in funding from the National Institutes of Health, among other schools of nursing, for the third consecutive year. Penn Nursing prepares nurse scientists and nurse leaders to meet the health needs of a global society through innovation in research, education, and practice. Follow Penn Nursing on: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, & Instagram. Jaipur: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has decided to declare a holiday in the desert state on August 9, the World Tribal Day, and also allocate a 5% of reservation to most backward classes (MBCs), including Gujjars in judicial services, which the experts say is his attempt to keep his flock of members of the legislative assembly (MLAs) together amid a bitter internal power struggle with sacked deputy CM Sachin Pilot, who himself is a Gujjar. The Congress government in Rajasthan is facing a crisis since July 12, when 18 party MLAs, loyal to Pilot, revolted and sought removal of Gehlot, a demand that not been met by the partys high command. On Sunday night, Gehlot announced that the upcoming World Tribal Day on August 9 would be a public holiday in the state and met the long-standing demand of the Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP). The two BTP MLAs are camping with 100 legislators supporting Gehlot in a Jaisalmer Hotel. All the MLAs along with Gehlot reached Jaisalmer, a desert town, on Friday from a hotel in Jaipur, where they were staying since July 12. The BTP had announced its support to the government on July 18 and had given a letter that listed 17 charter of demands, a few days after BTP national party chief Mahesh C Vasava issued a whip asking the party MLAs to remain neutral amid the power tussle. Congress leaders said the MLAs decided to support their government after Gehlot assured them that all their demand would be met once there is stability in the dispensation and there would be no dearth of funds for developmental works in their constituencies. BTP state president, Velaram Ghogra, said: It was a long pending demand and we are thankful to the CM for keeping it. We are hopeful that other demands will also be met. The second decision to give a 5% reservation to the MBCs in judicial services, which include the Gujjars, is to send a message that the government was working for the uplift of all communities, despite Pilots rebellion. Earlier, Gehlot had announced 5% of reservation for MBCs, including Gujjars, in other government jobs. The CM wants to send a message to the Gujjar community that the Congress is with them if, in case, by-polls takes place in the constituencies of the 19 rebel Congress MLAs, said a senior Congress functionary, requesting anonymity. There are eight Gujjar MLAs in Rajasthan Assembly, including Pilot. All of them are from the Congress, including one who had fought on the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) ticket but later merged with the Congress last September. In at least 10 of these 19 constituencies, the Gujjar community has a sizeable vote share, a Congress leader said. Gujjar leader Himmat Singh said the decision has come at the time, where there was some anger among the community members against the ouster of Pilot as state Congress president and the deputy CM. The decision would offset that anger to some extent, he said. The two decisions came days after Gehlot assured the MLAs at a Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting that their local area fund would be restored soon and the bureaucrats would cooperate with them in carrying out development works. The CM has assured the MLAs that there would be no dearth of money for developmental works in their constituencies and all their grievances would be redressed, said the Congress leader quoted above. Political analyst Narayan Bareth said Gehlot would use the available time before the start of the assembly session from August 14 to send a message that all is right with his government and there is no need to worry. I see more such decisions in the coming days. The latest decisions are an attempt to save the government. Besides the moves have also strengthened the Congresss traditional tribal base, which is part of Gehlots politics, he said. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Mukesh Pareek said there are many promises that are yet to be kept such as unemployment allowance, relief to farmers, and regularisation of contractual employees. The Gehlot government should also keep them without looking at political gains, he added. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON For the past three and a half decades, brothers Shankarlal and Bhagwatlal 'Pahaadhi' have been stitching clothes for Ram Lalla in Ayodhya. IMAGE: Soil of Aishbagh Ramlila ground is collected and sealed in a copper pot, to be sent for ground breaking ceremony of Ayodhya's Ram Temple, in Lucknow. Photograph: Nand Kumar/PTI Photo Their dedication will be manifest in the splendid dress they have meticulously crafted for the deity to wear on August 5, during the bhoomi pujan ceremony of the Ram temple. Operating from their shop named after their late father Babulal and located in Ayodhya's Badhi Kutiyaa area, the brothers stitch clothes for only deities and seers. "My father late Babulal started stitching the clothes of Ram Lalla in 1985. He used to carry our sewing machine to the Ramjanmabhoomi and stitch the clothes with me and my elder brother in tow," Shankarlal, 54, told PTI on Monday. "The three of us used to make the clothes of Lord Ram. The dresses were made and stitched virtually in front of the deity. Since then, our work is continuing," he said. Shankarlal said that for Wednesday, the day of bhoomi pujan to mark the beginning of the construction of the grand Ram temple in Ayodhya, two sets of dresses have been made -- one is green, while the other is orange. "The clothes are made using soft material such as makhmal (velvet). After all, they are for Ram Lalla who is a child. The green dress has been made keeping in mind the day-specific colour, while orange is considered auspicious," he said. On Wednesday, the green dress will be worn first and the orange one later, Shankarlal said. The special dress for the ceremony has nine gems stitched in golden thread. "There is grandeur in the clothes of the Lord as well," he said. On Sunday, the dresses were handed over by the tailors, said Acharya Satyendra Das, the chief priest of the Ram temple. "A day-specific colour scheme is followed for the dresses worn by Lord Ram. On Monday the dress is white, on Tuesday it is red, while on Wednesday it is the turn of the green dress for the Lord," Shankarlal said. On Thursdays the idol is dressed in yellow, Fridays are for cream-coloured dresses, on Saturdays it is the turn of blue clothes while on Sundays pink clothes adorn the deity. Shankarlal also said the same cloth, with which Ram's dress is stitched, is used to make dresses for Lakshman, Bharat, Shatrughan, Hanuman and Shaaligram. "Earlier, 11-metre-long fabric was required to make the dress, but now, we need about 17 metres of cloth. Once the grand temple is built, I do not know how much cloth will be required to make one set of dresses for Lord Ram and others," Shankarlal said. At present, Shankarlal is assisted by his nephews Pawan Kumar, Sanjay Kumar and Shravan Kumar. "My son Rajveer is in class 7. As soon as he clears class 8, he will join me," he said. Shankarlal's elder brother Bhagwatlal 'Pahaadhi' attributed their stitching expertise to God. "The entire family is involved in this. Whatever qualities have been given by God, we are making dresses using those qualities only. It is He who is getting them made by us, as He gets everything done." Interestingly, the brother duo and their family members depend on other tailors for their own apparels. "We only make clothes for Lord Ram and some clothes of seers. We do not accept any orders from the common people. We even do not make our own clothes. Our own clothes are made using the services and expertise of other tailors," Shankarlal said. "I feel overwhelmed that I was born in Ayodhya and got an opportunity to serve Ram Lalla. What could give more happiness than this?" he asked. The brothers and their shop are a centre of attraction these days due to the media's presence as the city prepares for the groundbreaking ceremony. Passersby often greet them with chants of 'Jai Sriram' which the duo is quick to reciprocate, much to the delight of the visiting devotees. Firefighters are battling a rapidly growing wildfire in Colusa County, prompting mandatory evacuations Sunday evening. Crews responded to a vegetation fire near the 3000 block of Sites Lodoga Road in Colusa County around 4:30 p.m. The fire is spreading with dangerous speed, jumping from 200 acres at 5 p.m. to 1,000 acres by 7:30 p.m., according to California Department of Forestry and Fire Protections Sonoma-Lake-Napa unit. The fire is threatening 12 structures, with mandatory evacuations underway at 3308 Sites Lodoga Road and Squaw Creek Road. The impacted area around East Park Reservoir is about 100 miles north of Santa Rosa. Sunday reached a hot 97 degrees near the site of the fire, with 8 mile per hour winds expected through the evening, according to the National Weather Service. Similar weather is expected to continue Monday and Tuesday, with no red flag warning. This is a developing story. Check back for updates. Janelle Bitker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: janelle.bitker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @janellebitker Toke Makinwa, a media personality, says police authorities are now investigating claims that her Banana Island home was seized by the As... Toke Makinwa, a media personality, says police authorities are now investigating claims that her Banana Island home was seized by the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON). On July 2, the AMCON had seized assets belonging to Festus Fadeyi and the Pan Ocean Group. It had said that they were holding on to debt of over N240 billion. There were, however, rumours on social media weeks later that Makinwas luxury apartment in Banana Island was seized and that the home said to have been listed among Fadeyis assets was a gift to her. On Monday, Makinwa took to her Twitter account to reveal that her legal team is now working with the police to trace the origin of the claim on social media. The account that started the vicious rumor on here deleted the tweets but I have reported to the police and an investigation is going on as I type, things are going to get very interesting, perhaps you gather all your coins cos I will buy that house in banana island pic.twitter.com/cKIqr4oSOq August 3, 2020 The account that started the vicious rumor on here deleted the tweets but I have reported to the police and an investigation is going on as I type, things are going to get very interesting, she wrote. The energy you put into spreading false stories should be the same energy you use to clarify and retract the same stories but over the years I have become an easy target and this has to stop. Anyone with a phone can literally type anything under the name of Anonymous and the media run with it without verifying, without contacting both parties and even when it comes out as false do we just move on to the next damage? This has to stop. Toke Makinwa (@tokstarr) August 3, 2020 But today, as a person, it just feels right to really express myself. And I am going to do just that. My mental health is key, my growth as a creative, my life. I get that we all love a good joke. I have a legal team and a management team who are capable and are working to have me focused on other aspects of my life But today as a person, it just feels right to really express myself and I am going to do just that. My mental health is key, my growth as a creative, my life.. Toke Makinwa (@tokstarr) August 3, 2020 I have given 10 years of my life working in the media, I know how important the media is but last week looking at what the media has become made me feel ashamed, has it really come to this? I have a legal team and a management team who are capable and are working to have me focused on other aspects of my life. Perhaps, you gather your coins cos Ill buy that house in Banana Island.We love to have a laugh, take the stress off most times. Its been a heavy year all round. But certain things have gone all too long because I have ignored it most time. My legacy is important to me.In a statement through Andrea Giaccaglia, her publicist, the radio presenter had denied any seizure of her property, threatening a lawsuit against a national newspaper over its report on it. Appointment 3 August 2020 Mr. Fernando Pane has been appointed General Manager of IL Tornabuoni while AG Hotels Group will be the management company overseeing the property. Mr. Pane brings to IL Tornabuoni his extensive background in the hospitality industry and in particular, significant experience with Italian luxury hotels. He joined AG Hotels in February 2020 after 6 years as Resort Manager of the famous, Hotel Il Pellicano, in Tuscany. His hotel background and deep knowledge of the industry is a result of professional experiences in Rome at Hotel Bernini Bristol, Eden Hotel and Marriott Grand Hotel Flora and in Switzerland at Badrutt's Palace Hotel in St. Moritz and Grand Hotel Park in Gstaad. By Joey Roulette (Reuters) - U.S. astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, who flew to the International Space Station in SpaceX's new Crew Dragon, splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday after a two-month voyage that was NASA's first crewed mission from home soil in nine years. Behnken and Hurley, tallying 64 days in space, undocked from the station on Saturday and returned home to land their capsule in calm waters off Florida's Pensacola coast on schedule at 2:48 p.m. ET following a 21-hour overnight journey aboard Crew Dragon "Endeavor." "This has been quite an odyssey," Hurley told senior NASA and SpaceX officials at a homecoming ceremony at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. "To be where we are now, the first crewed flight of Dragon, is just unbelievable." The successful splash-down, the first of its kind by NASA in 45 years, was a final test of whether SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk's spacecraft can transport astronauts to and from orbit a feat no private company has accomplished before. "This day heralds a new age of space exploration," Musk said. "I'm not very religious, but I prayed for this one." NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said the successful mission marked "a new era of human spaceflight where NASA is no longer the purchaser, owner and operator of all the hardware" but one of many future customers of space travel. "Today we really made history," Bridenstine told an earlier press conference. Despite Coast Guard restrictions and safety risks, spectators in private boats surrounded the splash-down site dozens of miles from shore as SpaceX and NASA recovery teams used a crane to hoist the spacecraft out of the water and onto a boat. The crew's retrieval from Crew Dragon was delayed slightly as the teams worked to flush its fuel tanks after sensing traces of nitrogen tetroxide fumes outside the capsule, a toxic gas from one the spacecraft's flammable fuels. Hurley, giving a thumbs up as he was wheeled out of the spacecraft on a stretcher, a normal procedure as astronauts adjust to Earth's gravity, said, "I'm just proud to be a small part of this whole effort to get a company and people to and from the space station." Story continues "Thanks for doing the most difficult parts and the most important parts of human spaceflight - getting us into orbit and bringing us home," Behnken told SpaceX mission control in Hawthorne, California, as the hatch door was opened. For the return sequence, on-board thrusters and two sets of parachutes worked autonomously to slow the acorn-shaped capsule, bringing Behnken and Hurley's speed of 17,500 miles per hour in orbit down to 350 mph upon atmospheric re-entry, and eventually 15 mph at splash-down. The pair were to undergo medical checks onshore in Pensacola ahead of a flight to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. FLAG CAPTURED NASA officials have said Crew Dragon, a pod with seven astronaut seats, was in a "very healthy" condition while docked at the space station, where astronauts conducted tests and monitored how the spacecraft performs in space. Behnken and Hurley undocked from the orbital station late on Saturday to begin their trip home, waking at 7:40 a.m. Sunday to a recorded wakeup call from their sons. "Good morning Dragon Endeavor," Hurleys son said in a recorded message sent to the capsule. "I'm happy you went into space but Im even happier that youre coming back home." NASA, aiming to galvanize a commercial space marketplace, awarded nearly $8 billion to SpaceX and Boeing Co collectively in 2014 to develop dueling space capsules, experimenting with a contract model that allows the space agency to buy astronaut seats from the two companies. Billionaire entrepreneur Musk's SpaceX became the first private company to send humans to orbit with the launch of Behnken and Hurley. "Congratulations SpaceX & NASA on completing first crewed Dragon flight!!," Musk wrote on Twitter after the splash-down, adding a U.S. flag emoji followed by "returned" referring to a rivalry with Boeing Co over which company's astronaut crew would be the first to retrieve an American flag left on the space station in 2011, when the last crewed mission launched from U.S. soil. Behnken and Hurley brought the flag back to Earth, stowed as cargo in Crew Dragon. The landmark mission, which took off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center on May 31, marked the first time the U.S. space agency launched humans from American soil since its shuttle program retired in 2011. Since then, the United States has relied on Russia's space program to launch its astronauts to the space station. "It was a great relief when I saw Bob and Doug come out of the capsule, smiling, thumbs up, looking very cheerful," SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell told reporters. "That was the good moment." (Reporting by Joey Roulette; Editing by Daniel Wallis) Highway 33 winds through the mountains of the Los Padres National Forest in Ventura County. (Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times) A popular Ventura County hiking area will remain off-limits for the next two months as officials look to stave off potentially unsafe crowding conditions amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Under an order from the Los Padres National Forest, part of Santa Paula Canyon from the forest boundary to about three miles above the area known as the Punch Bowl will remain closed until Sept. 30. Also closed will be the Big Cone, Cross and Jackson Hole campgrounds and the Last Chance Trail. "This extension was implemented due to the increasingly heavy vehicle traffic and large groups of visitors potentially creating conditions where recommended physical distancing protocol is not possible," officials said of the new restrictions. Violations will be punishable by a fine, potentially as much as $5,000 for an individual, and up to six months' imprisonment, according to the order. This map shows the area covered by the recent Los Padres National Forest closure order in Ventura County. (Los Padres National Forest) Santa Paula Canyon and Punch Bowls Trail in Ojai Valley originally closed in May after crowds of cooped-up Californians flocked to the area. As visitors descended in droves, officials said the Punch Bowl area was inundated with litter and human waste. The crowds themselves also were cause for concern, as officials stressed the need to avoid gathering in groups to help prevent transmission of the coronavirus. Officials said hundreds of volunteers have since worked to remove thousands of pounds of trash and clean graffiti from the canyon. The unnecessary damage to this area was very disheartening, but from that there was a very positive outcome when an amazing group of volunteers decided they were going to reclaim this special place, acting Ojai District Ranger Karina Gutierrez said in a statement. We will continue working with this group over the next two months while the area is closed so the land can begin to heal. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. According to new research, the failure to protect tropical rain forests has cost trillions of dollars stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, which has wreaked economic havoc and caused historic levels of unemployment in the United States and around the world. For decades, scientists and environmental activists have been trying to draw the world's attention to the many harms caused by the rapid destruction of tropical forests. One of these harms is the emergence of new diseases that are transmitted between wild animals and humans, either through direct contact or through contact with livestock that is then eaten by humans. The SARS-CoV-2 virus -- which has so far infected more than 15 million people worldwide -- appears to have been transmitted from bats to humans in China. "Much of this traces back to our indifference about what has been occurring at the edges of tropical forests," says Les Kaufman, a Boston University professor of biology. He recently brought together 18 experts from Princeton University, Duke University, Conservation International, and other institutions, to better understand the economic costs of reducing transmission of viruses like the novel coronavirus. Looking at existing research, they made a startling realization. They discovered that significantly reducing transmission of new diseases from tropical forests would cost, globally, between $22.2 and $30.7 billion each year. In stark contrast, they found that the COVID-19 pandemic will likely end up costing between $8.1 and $15.8 trillion globally -- roughly 500 times as costly as what it would take to invest in proposed preventive measures. To estimate the total financial cost of COVID-19, researchers included both the lost gross domestic product and the economic and workforce cost of hundreds of thousands of deaths worldwide. They published their findings in a policy brief in Science. The researchers say disease transmission from wild animals to humans occurs frequently near the edges of tropical forests, where human incursions increase the likelihood of contact with animals. These incursions take the form of logging, cattle ranching, and other livestock businesses, and the exotic animal trade, among others. Tropical forests are often cut down in a patchwork or checkerboard pattern, increasing the amount of land that lies at the edges of the forest and thus increasing the risk for disease transmission between species that would normally live in different ecosystems. To reduce disease transmission, Kaufman and his collaborators propose expanding wildlife trade monitoring programs, investing in efforts to end the wild meat trade in China, investing in policies to reduce deforestation by 40 percent, and fighting the transmission of disease from wild animals to livestock. In China alone, wildlife farming (a government-monitored effort to sustainably hunt wild animals without overhunting them) is an approximately $20 billion industry, employing 15 million people, say Kaufman and his peers. In many China communities, the purchase of wildlife and bushmeat -- meat from wildlife species -- is a status symbol. The researchers also propose to increase funding for creating an open source library of the unique genetic signatures of known viruses, which could help quickly pinpoint the source of emerging diseases and catch them more quickly, before they can spread. Every year, two new viruses are estimated to transfer from animals to humans, the researchers say. Historically, these have included HIV, MERS, SARS-CoV-1, H1N1, and most recently, the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19. Kaufman and his colleagues hope that their report will spur governments around the world, including the US government, to help fund these preventive measures. There are some signs of hope, they say, including the February announcement by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress that wildlife consumption for food or related trade would be banned in China. "The pandemic gives an incentive to do something addressing concerns that are immediate and threatening to individuals, and that's what moves people," says Kaufman. "There are many people who might object to the United States fronting money, but it's in our own best interest. Nothing seems more prudent than to give ourselves time to deal with this pandemic before the next one comes." AFG 2020 Apple Grower of the Year Robert Black Im amazed and shocked that I have won this award and appreciate being among my peers who have gone before me" Robert Black, Co-Owner of Catoctin Mountain Orchard in Thurmont, MD, has been named the 2020 Apple Grower of the YearSM by American Fruit Grower and Western Fruit Grower magazines, published by Meister Media Worldwide. Black, the 32nd recipient of the award, which began in 1989, will be honored Aug. 20 during a virtual edition of the annual USApple Outlook and Marketing Conference. Im amazed and shocked that I have won this award and appreciate being among my peers who have gone before me," Black, who shares co-ownership with his sister, Patricia, said. "This is absolutely an amazing thing to have happen to my family. My sister has always been the one to stay home to keep the home fires burning and allow me to travel. She certainly has been a great partner in this operation. David Eddy, the Editor of American Fruit Grower and Western Fruit Grower magazines and a member of the award selection committee, said the public nomination process spoke well of Blacks stature within the industry. Ill never forget the day I called Bob to tell him he had won the award. Because hes such a humble man, at first he actually insisted we must have made a mistake," Eddy said. "It just reinforced what I had already read in the many enthusiastic nominations we received endorsing Bob, from university researchers in multiple states, no less to numerous fellow growers. Bob is definitely a popular winner. Sponsored by Valent USA, the Apple Grower of the Year program honors individuals who have gone beyond the confines of the orchard and, through their involvement and leadership, have made genuine impacts on the apple industry. Bob demonstrates a willingness to listen and an openness to change that all come together as his personal recipe for success, Dion McBay, Vice President of Sales with Valent USA, said. Bob is a clear advocate for sustainable agriculture and has made investments and improvement in irrigation technology, integrated pest management, and the use of biological and biorational tools. Beyond his commitment to sustainable agriculture and his operational improvements, Bob is a relentless advocate for Maryland agriculture and a proud participant in the U.S. apple industry. Black represents the second Maryland farming operation to win the award, following Evan Milburn and his late son Nathan, of Milburn Orchards, who were honored in 2008. He is highly regarded for displaying leadership on the state and regional levels. Bob Black has been a staple in the Mid-Atlantic fruit-growing region for decades, Mark Boyer, the Co-Owner of Ridgetop Orchards in Fishertown, PA, said. He has served on almost every board position available both in fruits and vegetables to social and community. Always the first to help and the last to complain. Black has excelled in the areas of commercial planting and direct marketing and has served on the boards of the International Fruit Tree Association and Maryland State Horticultural Society. He is a member of the Midwest Apple Improvement Association (MAIA), which was founded by growers to produce varieties for its membership. I dont know any other grower who has more variety trials in progress, Brad Hollabaugh, the Apple Grower of the Year winner in 2000, representing Hollabaugh Bros., said. Bob is also always willing to share tricks, techniques, and the results of his many production endeavors. Equally, hes an avid listener to other growers, always looking for ways to improve his operation. USApple President and CEO Jim Bair credited Black for devoting his career to making a meaningful impact on the apple industry. When he is not working on groundbreaking innovations in his orchards, he is helping and championing other growers, Bair said. From his past leadership on USApples board to his ongoing commitment to represent Maryland every year during our Capitol Hill Day, he is always at the ready to advocate for the industry. We congratulate Bob for this much-deserved honor. About The Award: The Apple Grower of the YearSM Award is presented annually by American Fruit Grower and Western Fruit Grower magazines and honors apple growers who have gone beyond the confines of the orchard and have, through their involvement and leadership, made a real impact on the apple industry. American Fruit Grower and Western Fruit Grower are published by Meister Media Worldwide. GrowingProduce.com About Meister Media Worldwide Meister Media Worldwide offers business solutions designed to cultivate a sustainable world through the power of knowledge. It accomplishes this through a host of integrated print, digital and data product offerings, and a variety of in-person events with a singular focus: to further specialized agriculture globally. In addition, its business services division utilizes Meister Medias wealth of knowledge, combined with the latest technology, to develop strategic business services from concept planning through development and delivery. An industry leader, Meister Medias mission is to be your trusted partner, empowering the business of global agriculture to grow a better world. With headquarters in Willoughby, Ohio, Meister Media Worldwide was founded in 1932 and operates out of offices throughout the United States and around the world. MeisterMedia.com. NASHVILLE, Tenn., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Zander Insurance, one of the largest providers of term life insurance in the country, has partnered with Life Lessons to award more than $65,000 in scholarships to 10 students who lost a parent or guardian with little or no life insurance. This year is the sixth consecutive year Zander Insurance has sponsored scholarships through the Life Lessons program. Traditionally, the annual scholarship program awards one student. However, in the wake of COVID-19, Zander decided to award 10 applicants with a scholarship. "COVID-19 has made this a particularly tough year for students and families," said Jeff Zander, CEO of Zander Insurance. "We were deeply moved by the students' stories and wanted to applaud them for their determination in the face of tragedy. We hope to bring a small beam of light into their lives during this difficult time." According to a study by Life Happens, nine out of 10 Americans agree they need life insurance, yet only 60 percent say they have it. Zander aims to raise awareness of the importance of life insurance while helping students pay for college. To be considered for the scholarship, applicants had to submit an essay or video that explained how their lives have been emotionally and financially affected by the death of a parent or guardian. The 2020-2021 scholarship recipients are as follows: Samuel Muturi from Dorchester, Mass. from Daniel Carter from Auburn, Ala. from Erica Gahm from Overland Park, Kan. from Erin Schuttler from Raleigh, N.C. from Jade Smith from Branford, Conn. from Katelyn Yardley from Provo, Utah from Madalyn Touma from Rockledge, Fla. from Tamauri Beasley-Foster from Owings Mills, Md. Taylor Rebelez from Phoenix, Ariz. from Claire Houghton from Garnet Valley , Pa. Life Happens is a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating Americans about the importance of life insurance. This program is made possible by the generous financial support of the AIG Direct, Swiss Re Group, Pacific Life Foundation, Life Insurance Direct Marketing Association (LIDMA), MIB Group, All State and others. Life Happens also accepts contributions from individual donors. To learn more about making a tax-deductible donation, visit www.lifehappens.org/donate. For more information on the program, including the application process, program rules and past recipients, visit www.lifehappens.org/lifelessons. For more information about Zander Insurance, visit www.zanderins.com. About Life Happens Life Happens is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping consumers take personal financial responsibility through the ownership of life insurance and related products. The organization does not endorse any product, company or insurance advisor. Since its inception in 1994, Life Happens has provided the highest quality, independent and objective information for people seeking help with their insurance buying decisions. The organization supports the insurance industry by providing marketing tools and resources and convening the industry each September for Life Insurance Awareness Month. Life Happens is supported by more than 140 of the nation's leading insurance companies and financial services organizations. To learn more, visit www.lifehappens.org. About Zander Insurance Group Headquartered in Nashville, TN, Zander Insurance believes that nothing is more important than protecting families and businesses across the U.S. For more than 90 years, Zander has been putting clients first by simplifying the process of researching insurance products and allowing clients to purchase a complete portfolio from one company. This fourth-generation family/employee-owned business provides a complete selection of personal and business insurance products to their nationwide client base. As part of an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), 49 percent of the company is owned by employees through Zander Group Holdings. Zander Insurance is Dave Ramsey's choice for top quality insurance programs and services. For more information, visit www.zander.com. Media Contact: Brooke Semke, (636) 497-5122, [email protected] SOURCE Zander Insurance A brand new musical series will see major stars sing outdoors at four venues across England. Organised by two former Phantoms Earl Carpenter and John Owen-Jones, the open-air concerts will see four performers present a variety of tunes from iconic stage shows alongside live accompaniment. Carpenter and Owen-Jones will be joined by Kerry Ellis and Katie Hall for the events, which will visit the British Motor Museum in Warwickshire (25 to 27 September), Stonor Park near Henley-on-Thames (11 to 13 September)), Broadlands in Romsey (4 to 6 September) and Bywell Hall in Newcastle-upon-Tyne (18 to 20 September). Owen-Jones said: "Everyone knows one of the happiest and most joyful escapes can be a trip to see your favourite musical performed live and we felt a slice of that is exactly what was needed right now- we've all had enough of only looking at screens!" Audiences will be seated in "bubbles" of up to four guests, with bubbles spaced apart for social distancing purposes. The concerts also feature music director and accompanist Jennifer Whyte and cellist Yvonne Marie Parsons. Vickey Gibbs was her mothers Hannah child. In the Bible, a barren Hannah asks God for a child, promising to give that child back to Him. To honor that prayer, Mildred Gibbs, whod longed for a large family but suffered miscarriage after miscarriage following the birth of son Avery nine years prior, had to give Vickey back to God, Mildreds sister Cynthia ONeil said. It came full circle when Vickey became a minister. It was Gods plan. Decades later, as a working minister, life partner Cassandra White said, I had to share (Vickey Gibbs) with the world. Then an associate pastor at Houstons popular and progressive Resurrection Metropolitan Church, Gibbs goal was to have an impact and help people. White and family continue to share her now in their grief, as family, friends, congregants and strangers from across the country mourn Gibbs loss. The Rev. Vickey Gibbs died July 10 from COVID-19. More Information Link to Rev. Vickey Gibbs' final sermon at Resurrection Metropolitan Church https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3p-9q1D6fQ&feature=youtu.be See More Collapse Her loss is felt by many. A Facebook page set up in her memory is filled with comments from those impacted by Gibbs ministry. Vickey was one of the type of individuals that will meet you wherever you are, White said, and whatever she was doing, she would give of herself and her time. She was mom, she was big sister, a mentor, friend, a confidante. In a way, the word that comes to mind is savior, White said. She was there to help people through hard times. She gave of herself. It was a talent she had with their family as well as the public. If my response was too straightforward (dealing with their daughters Cara and Ariel), she had a way of coming back and smoothing it over, White said. Every time she was able to reframe or refocus things. They would often go straight to her for advice. Living to give White said of a woman who gave so generously of herself: Vickey truly saw herself as the hands and feet of Jesus. It is a quality inherited from her mother. If the apple doesnt fall far from the tree, Vickey was at the root of her mothers tree, ONeil said. Their home was always an open door. Anyone who needed a place to stay, a bath, a hot meal, they would give it. Thats just who they were and how they lived, she said. Mildred Gibbs was a renowned family matriarch. Several family members stayed at the Gibbs household. They included ONeil, who lived at their home on Bigner Road for almost a year before joining the U.S. Air Force after high school. The spirit of giving and caretaking in which Vickey Gibbs was immersed as a child absolutely influenced her, ONeil said. Vickey was absolutely her mothers child reaching out to others, feeding them. (Mildred) would feed you physically, but she would also feed you with the word of Christ. It wasnt surprising that Vickey went in the direction she did, being a helping hand to others. That was so much her mother. And her mom lived that life; she didnt just talk about it, she said. She believed in treating her neighbor the way she wanted to be treated. The church and a life of faith were ingrained in Vickey Gibbs, and the seeds of Mildreds influence spread through her in ever-expanding roots that nurtured all she would touch. The way she had that love and compassion for the word and for others was core to Mildred Gibbs and what she passed on to her children, ONeil said. Their faith was their life. Their life was their faith. The choir, the church, being an usher, you name it anything Vickey and her older brother Avery could be part of, they were, ONeil said. She also remembers Vickey Gibbs, who had a laugh that was infectious, as a smart child. Her mother believed in academics. The French High School yearbook of 1981 features a page of notable graduates. Beneath Gibbs name is a list of activities and achievements an honors graduate, member of student council, choir, Whos Who Among American High School Students and more. Everything a child would need to prosper, her parents were willing to give to her and her brother, ONeil said. Theyd work two jobs; theyd work overtime, whatever was necessary. A ministry for social justice was part of the family legacy. Whenever there was something Mildred thought wasnt right, she wouldnt just stand by, ONeil said. As a student at Rice University, in metropolitan Houston, and in concert with her family heritage, it made sense that Gibbs moved in the direction of activism for causes of social, economic and racial justice, ONeil said. But, like her mother, Gibbs also loved to cook, and did so often for church gatherings, which helped save the growing Resurrection Church congregation money. There was something for everyone, too, White said. if you were vegan, there would be something for you, and anything left over was given to others in need, including the homeless that camped out nearby. White recalls Gibbs especially loved baking breads, cookies, any desserts. And she loved experimenting with recipes, White said. I always looked at the pictures in cookbooks, but she could just see the final result in her mind. That was her way of giving and loving. Sharing life White and Gibbs met at Resurrection Church in 2000, when White joined as director of the gospel chorus that Gibbs had started years prior. At the time, Gibbs was working as an administrative assistant to the head pastor. She was like the czar of the office, White said. She was the first line of contact at the church and to the pastor. Upon meeting, White and Gibbs became fast friends. We both grew up in similar backgrounds, White said. Gibbs, who joined Resurrection at age 18 after moving to Houston for college, was raised in Beaumont in the conservative Black Missionary Baptist tradition that also informed Whites formative years of faith. Both shared a love of music, especially classical music. Vickey played the cello, and she loved to sing, White said. Vickey was really good with lyrics and she had a breadth of musical styles, influenced by her Southeast Texas roots. Her musical background was another family heritage the Stevens Sisters gospel group on moms side and another gospel group on dads side that performed in Beaumont and throughout the region. It expanded Whites own musical knowledge as a choral director and music lover. But Gibbs breadth of knowledge was greater than music, and she had a particular gift for retaining that knowledge and sharing it when needed most. It fascinated me how she could hold so much knowledge in her head, White said. It was the same with reading. She had so much book knowledge in her head, and she could use that in expanding church readings anything to help open peoples minds to seeing Jesus in a bigger way. Over their years-long deep friendship, the women eventually chose to take their connection to a deeper level. The first year was challenging, White said, as they navigated new boundaries for a new relationship. In 2016 the couple decided to marry. We didnt want to leave anyone out, because the whole church would have wanted to come to a large wedding, White said. One Friday, after work, the couple were married by lead pastor Troy Treash in a small, intimate ceremony. The pair continued their lives, building their family as Gibbs expanded the church ministry and its growth. The Rev. Treash, who met the Rev. Gibbs when he joined the church seven years ago as lead pastor, recalls that, When Vickey first came to Resurrection, she was one of two Black people. Those numbers are significantly different now. I loved working with Vickey, Treash said. She had a vision for justice in the world and inclusion that just wouldnt rest. Her vision was that everyone was included, and even if people didnt agree with her on everything, they could walk with her and with us. In her advocacy role, Gibbs led multiple marches, including those for immigration at the Texas border wall, justice for Sandra Bland and more. In recent months, as the deaths of George Floyd and Ahmed Aubry sparked unrest across the country, the news of families seeking asylum being turned away with their children held in detention along the U.S. border, and calls for racial justice and policy changes intensified amid a raging pandemic throughout our nations cities and rural communities, Gibbs was again at the fore. The COVID-19 crisis, and its interplay with issues of economic, social and racial injustice, fueled the message of her final sermon before congregants at Resurrection Metropolitan Church on Pentecost Sunday. We have not had our Pentecost moment, Gibbs repeated time and again throughout her sermon. I want our Pentecost moment, she said in conclusion. To get to it, I know I cannot be silent. I have to be a bridge over troubled waters to pray, Come, Holy Spirit, come. We have been given a good work to do. May we be faithful to complete it. Amen. The sermon was delivered in her characteristic style. She was calm and introspective, Treash said. Her approach was very near to the Bible. Jesus was not quiet of the powers that be and those who had been marginalized or were disadvantaged. He spoke to everyone, Treash said. Vickey understood that call of how lives matter, he said. One of her hopes is that the political would be a badge, because faith is a part of that. It would mean you were following Jesus. Treash recalls when the pair made a trip to the Peace and Justice Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama. As they drove through the area where she grew up, Gibbs pointed out spots burned in her memory by the images of burning crosses she had seen. At the Brazoria County Lynching Monuments, Gibbs scanned the memorials. Yeah, thats my family, he recalls her saying as the pair stood upon a grassy hill at the memorial. He remembers Gibbs lightly hitting him on the arm, asking him, Whats wrong with you white people? How could you do this? Treash remembers the encounter, feeling not judged, but embraced. It was actually a moment of trust. She was asking me, but she was actually willing to work with anyone working toward justice and our ministry, he said. Still ministering Although Gibbs wont be physically present as her legacy continues, White said, Shes still ministering to us for justice, love and mercy. She was always very adamant about getting our younger people involved in leadership and making sure the church doesnt die, that the movement doesnt die. No matter your race or sexual preference, it was all about making sure the church would be there for the next generation, White said. It was among Gibbs plans. She was always planning. In the week before her passing, Gibbs continued making plans, this time for her family and for her passing. She compiled a list for her partner, Cassandra White. Foremost amongst it was to make sure their grandson Xavier, whom she called Boo, remembers that she loves him every day. When the pandemic began, Gibbs knew, if either of them were to test positive, it was she who likely wouldnt make it, White recalls. Having been diagnosed with lupus as a young woman, Gibbs had already exceeded her life expectancy. She needed to plan. Gibbs was tested after symptoms began following notice that a church staff member had tested positive. Both women hoped for the best when her initial symptoms were eased by medications. Then, things turned. In Gibbs final week, White noticed the uptick in symptoms. She wasnt completing sentences like she normally would, and she wasnt cooking or finishing her coffee, White said. But being used to dealing with the pain from lupus, this was just another thing to deal with. Gibbs persevered until she couldnt. The family followed as she went into the hospital July 8 when symptoms escalated. By the evening of July 9, Gibbs was on life support. The morning of July 10, she passed. It all happened so quickly, White said. Because of a shortage in bed space amid the patient surge, Gibbs was never moved from her room in the ER at a Houston hospital after admittance. White, who had been there before, says it was oddly comforting knowing the space, the walls between them. I didnt know which room she was in, she said, but knowing the layout of the ER somehow made her feel close. In Gibbs final moments, a nurse held her cell phone up to Vickeys bed, and White spoke the last words she would say to her spouse. I dont know how much she understood. She had lost brain function by that point, White said, but the gesture alone was comforting. In hindsight, White said, we might have been in denial that final week. Maybe we should have gone (to the hospital earlier). Had they gone earlier, perhaps they wouldnt be where they are now, all of us grieving, White said. But here they are their daughters are here, their grandson is here, their church, the world; all who are mourning the loss of the Rev. Vickey Gibbs. White remembers the treasured moments enjoyed wine tasting in the Hill Country, when they would return home, their car filled with new favorite wines they had sampled, or simply a day in Galveston, sitting on The Strand with the windows rolled down to breathe in the salty Gulf sea air. Something about the smell of that water, the salt in the air, was very healing to her, White said. Whites memory resonates with ONeil, who recalls that, as a child, Gibbs summers were filled with family time spent at the Gulf Coast. They would go crabbing, then head to the beach, she said. It was part of the fabric that made Gibbs growing up life just a really happy childhood, ONeil said. Now, as White helps grandson Xavier, 18-months, navigate the loss of his Bibi, as he calls her, she tells him, Bibi is with the moon and the stars. Before bedtime, White tells him to look up into the night sky, the moon and stars above, reminding Xavier to blow a kiss as they wish Gibbs good night. He stretches out his arms, in the way that he does, White said, blows a kiss to the sky. And he speaks the nightly farewell, until the next: Goodnight, Bibi. kbrent@beaumontenterprise.com kbrent@beaumontenterprise.com Scar tissue is slowly growing on the Premier. How he has managed to maintain his equilibrium is anyone's guess. I cannot imagine anyone else doing a better job, neither from his front bench nor the opposition. The strain must be immense, as it is also on his inner circle and their advisers. Despite a begrudging acknowledgment of the difficulty of the task, there is little sympathy in the politically disengaged broader community after all, this is what we expect from leaders during any crisis, bushfire or otherwise. But this emergency has endured well beyond what anyone was expecting. No one factored in a six-month duration. There has been considerable debate within the Liberal Party about how combative they ought be. Michael OBrien, leader of the opposition, has maintained a critical but constructive stance and gets credit for it. Ambitious agitator Tim Smith has resorted to talking to Sydney radio shock-jocks, somehow imagining that this is enhancing his progression in the Victorian political stakes. To call for the state government to cede powers to the Commonwealth has marked him as something other than a sensible voice and not a serious contributor. The plea that we should accept six weeks of stage four instead of six months of Stage 3 is a well-calibrated and appropriate explanation to provide. The deadline is designed to try to rescue events such as the AFL grand final and the spring racing carnival, although the AFL Commission may have other ideas than a socially distanced half-crowd at the MCG. Parents of students attending private schools in Ogun State on Sunday protested the state governments decision to charge the sum of N25,000 on each student before testing them for COVID-19 ahead of their resumption on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. Ogun Government had asked the students to pay N25,000 each for COVID-19 test before being admitted into their schools in various designated outlets across the state. The Special Adviser on Primary and Secondary Education to the governor, Ronke Soyombo, who disclosed this in a statement on Saturday, said the students must present the evidence of the COVID-19 test in their various schools before being admitted. She said the states Ministry of Health has made provision for COVID-19 and malaria test for all boarding students across the state. The 250 MTR Specialist Hospital in Okemosan, Abeokuta; Ogun State General Hospital, Ota and the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH), Sagamu, are the state governments designated COVID-19 test centres. However, many of the parents took to the streets on Sunday to protest the imposition of N25,000 COVID-19 test on the students. The parents stormed the MTR specialist hospital in Oke-Mosan and expressed their displeasure at the governments decision to charge N25,000 for the test The Vice-Chairman of the Parents Teachers Association of one of the private schools in the state, Dr. Kehinde Sanwo, who spoke on behalf of the parents, queried the government for charging the students for COVID-19 test. The parents here are good citizens of Ogun State and we are taxpayers. And it is so disheartening that we are here at the MTR hospital, the venue for COVID-19 test. When we arrived, we were told to pay N25,000. Whereas, some people who arrived earlier paid nothing. So, we dont know where the decision came from. Some of us have more than two children. Why this segregation? Reacting to the protest, the state government insisted that the parents will need to pay the levy and get a certificate to show that their children are COVID-19 negative before they could resume school. The governors aide said the state government would bear the full costs of the test for students of the state-owned schools. Soyombo said: The government will bear the full costs of the COVID-19 Test for all the boarding SS3 students in the state-owned public schools. All private school owners are also expected to ensure that all their boarding students are certified COVID-19 test negative before being admitted into their boarding facilities. The Special Adviser to Governor Dapo Abiodun on Public Communications, Remmy Hazzan, said there was no discrimination or segregation about the matter, explaining its not segregation but a show of magnanimity by the state government. The test is not compulsory for day students, it is compulsory for borders. Boarders in public schools 100 percent subsidy, borders in private schools 50 percent subsidy. However, those in private schools or any parent may choose to approach any other lab aside from ours to get this test done. What is most important is that those labs that they go to must be NCDC certified. May I announce to you that anybody who is capable of enrolling his ward in private school has taken it beyond the level of a taxpayer. When you are in a private school, the argument of a taxpayer for such does not apply. Its the school that we are compelling now to ensure that those in the exit classes are COVID 19 negative and provide their test results. So, in providing it, if they want us to be the ones responsible for the test, we have gone one step further to give a 50 percent discount. If that is the argument of being a taxpayer, the state government has also done something. Most of the ones conducted by the state government have been free thus far and a good number of them have been paid for. But whether its free or paid for, someone somewhere is paying for it. So, the ones that are carried out by the state may not have been paid for by the patients but it costs the state government money. Meanwhile, Ogun State Government has directed all secondary school teachers in the state to resume on Monday, August 3, ahead of the West African Senior Secondary Schools Examination (WASSCE) scheduled for August 17, 2020. New Delhi: To make India among the leading countries of the world in the defence sector, including Aerospace and Naval Shipbuilding sectors, from design to production, with active participation of public and private sector and thus fulfilling the twin objectives of self-reliance and exports, Ministry of Defence (MoD) has formulated a draft Defence Production and Export Promotion Policy 2020 (DPEPP 2020), according to a government statement. The draft aims at providing impetus to self-reliance in defence manufacturing, multiple announcements were made under Atmanirbhar Bharat Package. "The DPEPP 2020 is envisaged as overarching guiding document of MoD to provide a focused, structured and significant thrust to defence production capabilities of the country for self-reliance and exports," said the MOD. MoD releases draft Defence Production and Export Promotion Policy 2020 https://t.co/S4hqCO4W80 pic.twitter.com/UX8AVNWC7E ADG (M&C) DPR (@SpokespersonMoD) August 3, 2020 DPEPP 2020: GOALS AND OBJECTIVES The policy has the following goals and objectives: 1. To achieve a turnover of Rs 1,75,000 Crores (US$ 25Bn) including export of Rs 35,000 Crore (US$ 5 Bn) in Aerospace and Defence goods and services by 2025. 2. To develop a dynamic, robust and competitive Defence industry, including Aerospace and Naval Shipbuilding industry to cater to the needs of Armed forces with quality products. 3. To reduce dependence on imports and take forward "Make in India" initiatives through domestic design and development. 4. To promote export of defence products and become part of the global defence value chains. 5. To create an environment that encourages R&D, rewards innovation creates Indian IP ownership and promotes a robust and self-reliant defence industry. FOCUS AREAS Procurement Reforms: Indigenization & Support to MSMEs/Startups; Optimize Resource Allocation; Investment Promotion, FDI and Ease of Doing Business; Innovation and R&D; DPSUs and OFB; Quality Assurance and Testing Infrastructure; and Export Promotion. Expeditious and streamlined procurement procedures are helpful in the development of Defence Production ecosystem and to impact the flow of investments into the sector as well as the use of technologies already developed by DRDO. Several reforms in the Defence Procurement Procedure for capital procurement have been proposed and are being notified. DPP2020 relies on the emerging dynamism of the Indian industry to build domestic capabilities for designing, developing and manufacturing defence equipment. The revision of Defence Procurement Manual (DPM) for revenue procurement is also underway. In addition to the above, the following strategies are proposed for expanding the domestic defence manufacturing ecosystem. 1. A negative list of weapons/platforms would be notified with year-wise timelines for placing an embargo on import of such items from those dates. This list would be updated periodically, without compromising on the operational requirements of the Services, to allow lead-time to industry to prepare itself for any such procurement which is likely to come up, subsequent to the indicated embargo date. 2. Defence procurement is a highly specialized activity that requires apriori estimation of the development and production lead times specifications and technologies involved, life cycle costs and maintenance requirements etc. of the platforms, equipment and weapon systems. In order to make the above assessment, a Project Management Unit (PMU), with representation from the Services, would be set up to support the acquisition process and facilitate the management of the contracts. This setup would bring in expertise to the process of acquisition as well as create focus and synergy in building military capabilities. 3. With self- reliance as the motto, the aim is to move away from licensed production to Design, Develop and produce wherein the Nation owns the Design Rights and IP of the systems. With this in view for systems projected in the LTIPP, a Technology Assessment Cell (TAC), with representation from the Services, would be created which would make an assessment of the TRL levels available in the country for all the major systems/ platforms and provide advice for initiation of AONs taking note of the time frames needed for development, trials and induction of systems to avoid immediate procurement requests to the maximum extent. The Technology Assessment Cell would also assess the industrial capability for design, development and production including re-engineering for production of various major systems like Armoured Vehicles, Submarines, Fighter Aircraft, Helicopters, Radars with the major industries in the country which could be categorized as: 1. System integrators with Design, Development, production, testing & certification capability and ability to develop and sustain the ecosystem required for the next 25-30 years. 5.3.2 System integrators who lack integral design, development and certification capability but have the capability and infrastructure to be development cum production partners of DRDO/ any other domestic development agency and have the ability to sustain the ecosystem so developed for next 25-30 years. 2. In addition, the Technology Assessment Cell (TAC) would carry out the scan of regional and global technological capacities and would also render advice to the Services while formulating SQRs. 3. Procurement of indigenously developed products/systems involves conducting a number of tests and trials and consumes a considerable amount of time as a result of which placement of orders is delayed and industry finds it difficult to carry out advance production planning. A comprehensive review and overhaul of the trials and testing procedures would be done to reduce the procurement cycle time. 4. Our Armed forces have over the years acquired a range of platforms from diverse sources leading to a buildup of spares and consumables which has resulted in sub-optimal planning and resource allocation. Efforts would be made to adopt a family of weapons approach to standardize and optimize inventory and supply chain management. 5. All Acceptances of Necessity (AoNs) involving procurement from domestic sources would be reviewed for time-bound procurement. 6. Efforts would be made to provide the industry greater visibility into the likely opportunities in the defence sector. Understanding future capital acquisition priorities will enable industry to develop technologies, carry out necessary groundwork and position themselves in an optimal manner to compete at the appropriate time. The process of obtaining AONs should be initiated by the SHQs taking note of the lead times needed for development and production indicating the overall quantities required. INDIGENIZATION AND SUPPORT TO MSMEs/STARTUPs The indigenization policy laid out by the department aims to create an industry ecosystem to indigenize the imported components (including alloys and special materials) and sub-assemblies for defence equipment and platform manufactured in India. 5,000 such items are proposed to be indigenized by 2025. In order to achieve this objective, the following strategies are proposed: 1. An indigenization portal will be developed for DPSUs/OFB/Services with an industry interface to provide development support to MSMEs/Startups/Industry for import substitution. 2. The Make-II process will be further strengthened and monitored to make it easier for the industry to provide indigenous solutions. 3. Inter-Governmental processes would be taken forward to indigenize spares and components for legacy platforms and equipment. 4. Public Procurement Order will be made applicable for procurement preference to those items in Defence sector for which domestic production capability exists. 5. The current provisions to enable Startups and MSMEs to participate in the procurement process would continue to be reviewed and further strengthened. 6. Defence Investor Cell in Department of Defence Production will provide handholding to MSMEs, investors and vendors in defence production for resolving issues with Central, State and other authorities. 7. Vendor Development would be taken up by OFB/ DPSUs and use of TReDS platform would be mandated for improving their liquidity and timely payments. 8. In the case of the critical products and materials currently being imported, DPSUs/OFB would consider issuing long term orders as feasible to incentivize the domestic industry and also have provision for a repeat order. In such cases, the resultant single vendor should also be acceptable with due price discovery and negotiations. 9. Services will hand-hold the industry through continuous interactions, sharing of information and arranging visits to repair establishments/field depots for better understanding/appreciation of the requirements. The policy has laid out the following goals and objectives: -Procurement Reforms -Indigenization & Support to MSMEs/Startups -Optimize Resource Allocation -Investment Promotion, FDI & Ease of Doing Business -Innovation and R&D -DPSUs and OFB -Quality Assurance & Testing Infrastructure -Export Promotion The draft DPEPP 2020 can be accessed at https://ddpmod.gov.in/dpepp and https://www.makeinindiadefence.gov.in/admin/webroot/writereaddata/upload... for public consultation and seeking inputs/comments from the stakeholders. The ministry will promulgate the policy based on inputs/comments on the draft DPEPP 2020 by August 17, 2020, to the email id dirpnc-ddp@nic.in. She confirmed her split from Carlin Sterritt last month, after weeks of speculation. But Angie Kent showed no sign of heartbreak when she visited a nightclub with her friends on Queensland's Sunshine Coast last weekend. The former Bachelorette, 30, appeared to be in high spirits as she enjoyed a night out with Married At First Sight's Heidi Latcham and two other pals. Enjoying the single life! The Bachelorette's Angie Kent (second from left) hit a Sunshine Coast nightclub with friends last weekend, after confirming her split from Carlin Sterritt The newly-single reality star was all smiles as she joined friends at The Drunken Dumpling bar. Angie looked stylish for the occasion in blue jeans, a pink jumper and black vest, as well as light pink boots. She completed her look with a black handbag, and styled her blonde hair straight. Out and about! The newly-single reality star was all smiles as she joined friends at The Drunken Dumpling bar Angie's outing comes a month after she confirmed her split from Carlin, whom she met on last year's season of The Bachelorette. 'We have not wanted to confirm until this point because there have been much bigger issues going on in the world and we've both been taking space to think about what we really want,' Angie told her Instagram followers on July 1. She added: 'Matters of the heart are extremely difficult and I'm sad to say that Carlin and I have broken up.' The details: She completed her look with a black handbag, and styled her blonde hair straight Angie admitted there had been 'a lot of speculation and rumours about the status of my relationship with Carlin', and apologised to the fans who were invested in their romance. 'I appreciate everyone's concern and the investment that many of you made into the show and our story, but this is real life and we both need privacy and time to heal,' she added. 'I just want to put the rumours to bed and to clarify so that questions stop. 'Please remember we are both human beings like everyone else, so be kind if you do choose to leave comments or messages. Words can be very hurtful - and compound already very difficult times.' Advertisement An emotional Elon Musk welcomed NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken home Sunday after their historic splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico aboard SpaceX's Dragon capsule. The billionaire SpaceX chief executive had rushed to Houston from the company's headquarters in Hawthorne, California, to welcome them. He was clearly moved and relieved while addressing the gathered group. It was the first time a private company has flown to the ISS carrying astronauts. 'This day heralds a new age of space exploration,' Musk said. 'I'm not very religious, but I prayed for this one.' The return home of Hurley and Behnken also marked the end of a two-month voyage that was NASA's first crewed mission from home soil in nine years. The two men began their journey when they took off from Cape Canaveral, Florida aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station on May 30. 'Welcome back to planet Earth and thanks for flying SpaceX,' said Mission Control from SpaceX headquarters. Musk tweeted: 'Congratulations SpaceX & NASA on completing first crewed Dragon flight!!' He added the U.S. flag emoji followed by 'returned' referring to a rivalry with Boeing Co over which company's astronaut crew would be the first to retrieve an American flag left on the space station in 2011, when the last crewed mission launched from U.S. soil. Behnken and Hurley brought the flag back to Earth, stowed as cargo in Crew Dragon. Musk later said of the mission: 'I think my entire adrenaline just dumped. These are difficult times, there's not that much good news...No matter where you are on planet Earth, this is a good thing. And I hope it brightens your day.' Elon Musk had rushed to Houston from SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California, to welcome them. He was clearly moved and relieved while addressing the group. 'I'm not very religious, but I prayed for this one,' he said NASA astronaut Robert Behnken gives a thumbs up to onlookers as he boards a plane at Naval Air Station Pensacola to return him and NASA astronaut Douglas Hurley home to Houston a few hours after the duo landed in their SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft off the coast of Pensacola, Florida NASA astronaut Douglas Hurley waves to onlookers after reuturning to Earth on Sunday in a dramatic, retro-style splashdown, their capsule parachuting into the Gulf of Mexico to close out an unprecedented test flight by Elon Musk's SpaceX company. The SpaceX capsule splashes down Sunday in the Gulf of Mexico. Astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken spent a little over two months on the International Space Station. It s the first splashdown in 45 years for NASA astronauts and the first time a private company has ferried people from orbit Support teams and recreational boaters arriving at the SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft shortly after it landed with NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley onboard in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola NASA astronauts Robert Behnken (L) and Douglas Hurley are seen inside the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule spacecraft which landed in the Gulf of Mexico after completing the Demo-2 mission to the International Space Station on August 2 Sunday's arrival was the first water landing by NASA since 1975, when crews were still using the Apollo rockets from the American moon missions. The return clears the way for another SpaceX crew launch as early as next month and possible tourist flights next year. 'It's a little bit overwhelming to see everybody here considering the things that have gone on the last few months since we've been off planet,' Hurley said after arriving back home in Houston Sunday evening where they were greeted by a small masked-gathering of family and officials, including Musk. The American space agency paid SpaceX and aerospace giant Boeing a total of about $7 billion for their 'space taxi' contracts. But Boeing's program has floundered badly after a failed test run late last year, which left SpaceX, a company founded only in 2002, as clear frontrunner. For the past nine years, US astronauts traveled exclusively on Russian Soyuz rockets, for a price of around $80 million per seat. The two astronauts were greeted by a small masked-gathering of family and officials, including Musk The SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft landing with NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley onboard It was the first splashdown by U.S. astronauts in 45 years, with the first commercially built and operated spacecraft to carry people to and from orbit. The return clears the way for another SpaceX crew launch as early as next month and possible tourist flights next year NASA Chief Astronaut Pat Forrester (L) and NASA astronaut and Crew Recovery Chief Shane Kimbrough onboard the SpaceX recovery vessel GO Navigator, prepare for a splashdown of the SpaceX Crew Dragon 'Endeavour' spacecraft NASA astronauts Douglas Hurley (L) and Robert Behnken prepare to depart their helicopter at Naval Air Station Pensacola The SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft being lifted onto the SpaceX GO Navigator recovery ship shortly after it landed. Test pilots Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken arrived back on Earth in their SpaceX Dragon capsule named Endeavour, less than a day after departing the International Space Station and two months after blasting off from Florida Behnken and Hurley, tallying 64 days in space, undocked from the station on Saturday and returned home to land their capsule in calm waters off Florida's Pensacola coast on schedule at 2:48 p.m. ET following a 21-hour overnight journey aboard Crew Dragon 'Endeavor.' 'This has been quite an odyssey,' Hurley told senior NASA and SpaceX officials at a homecoming ceremony at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. 'To be where we are now, the first crewed flight of Dragon, is just unbelievable.' NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said the successful mission marked 'a new era of human spaceflight where NASA is no longer the purchaser, owner and operator of all the hardware' but one of many future customers of space travel. 'Today we really made history,' Bridenstine told an earlier press conference. The SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft is seen as it lands. Within a half-hour of splashdown, the scorched and blistered 15-foot capsule was hoisted aboard a SpaceX recovery ship with a staff of more than 40, including medics The last time NASA astronauts returned from space to water was on July 24, 1975, in the Pacific, the scene of most splashdowns, to end a joint U.S.-Soviet mission known as Apollo-Soyuz Its throwback splashdown aside, SpaceX made history with the mission, which launched May 30 from NASA's Kennedy Space Center. It was the first time a private company launched people into orbit and also the first launch of NASA astronauts from home turf in nearly a decade Despite Coast Guard restrictions and safety risks, spectators in private boats surrounded the splash-down site dozens of miles from shore as SpaceX and NASA recovery teams used a crane to hoist the spacecraft out of the water and onto a boat. The crew's retrieval from Crew Dragon was delayed slightly as the teams worked to flush its fuel tanks after sensing traces of nitrogen tetroxide fumes outside the capsule, a toxic gas from one the spacecraft's flammable fuels. Hurley, giving a thumbs up as he was wheeled out of the spacecraft on a stretcher, a normal procedure as astronauts adjust to Earth's gravity, said: 'I'm just proud to be a small part of this whole effort to get a company and people to and from the space station.' 'Thanks for doing the most difficult parts and the most important parts of human spaceflight - getting us into orbit and bringing us home,' Behnken told SpaceX mission control in Hawthorne, California, as the hatch door was opened. The SpaceX Crew Dragon 'Endeavour' spacecraft is hoisted from the Gulf of Mexico onto the deck of the SpaceX recovery vessel. SpaceX needs six weeks to inspect the capsule before launching the next crew around the end of September By beating Boeing, SpaceX laid claim to a small U.S. flag left at the space station by Hurley and the rest of the last shuttle crew. Minutes after splashdown, Musk tweeted a flag emoji followed by 'returned' Behnken and Hurley, tallying 64 days in space, undocked from the station on Saturday and returned home to land their capsule in calm waters off Floridas Pensacola coast on schedule at 2:48 p.m. ET following a 21-hour overnight journey For the return sequence, on-board thrusters and two sets of parachutes worked autonomously to slow the acorn-shaped capsule, bringing Behnken and Hurley's speed of 17,500 miles per hour in orbit down to 350 mph upon atmospheric re-entry, and eventually 15 mph at splash-down. NASA officials have said Crew Dragon, a pod with seven astronaut seats, was in a 'very healthy' condition while docked at the space station, where astronauts conducted tests and monitored how the spacecraft performs in space. Behnken and Hurley undocked from the orbital station late on Saturday to begin their trip home, waking at 7:40 a.m. Sunday to a recorded wakeup call from their sons. 'Good morning Dragon Endeavor,' Hurley's son said in a recorded message sent to the capsule. 'I'm happy you went into space but I'm even happier that you're coming back home.' 'It was a great relief when I saw Bob and Doug come out of the capsule, smiling, thumbs up, looking very cheerful,' SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell told reporters. 'That was the good moment.' ) SpaceX support teams are deployed on a fast boat from the SpaceX recovery vessel GO Navigator ahead of a splashdown The astronauts' ride back to Earth was fast, bumpy and hot, at least on the outside. The spacecraft went from a screaming orbital speed of 17,500 mph to 350 mph during atmospheric reentry, and finally to 15 mph at splashdown. Peak heating during descent was 3,500 degrees Fahrenheit. The anticipated top G forces felt by the crew: four to five times the force of Earth's gravity. Within a half-hour of splashdown, the scorched and blistered 15-foot capsule was hoisted aboard a SpaceX recovery ship with a staff of more than 40, including doctors and nurses. To keep the returning astronauts safe in the pandemic, the recovery crew quarantined for two weeks and were tested for the coronavirus. The opening of the hatch was held up briefly by extra checks for toxic rocket fumes outside the capsule. After medical checkups, the astronauts were flown by helicopter to Pensacola and then to Houston. There was one unexpected problem that could have endangered the operation: Once the capsule was in the water, private boats 'just made a beeline for it,' and got too close, said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, promising to do better next time at keeping sightseers on pleasure boats safely away. NASA video showed one vessel flying a large campaign flag for President Donald Trump. The Coast Guard in Pensacola said it had deployed two vessels to keep the public at least 10 miles away from the capsule. Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, who both attended the launch, congratulated the SpaceX and NASA teams. 'Great to have NASA Astronauts return to Earth after very successful two month mission. Thank you to all!' Trump tweeted. SpaceX's Dragon capsule successfully landed in the Gulf of Mexico. This is the first time in the past 45 years that NASA has conducted a water landing NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken have returned home, marking the end of a historic mission that brought space flight back to US soil. The team splashed down off the coast of Pensacola, Florida in the Gulf of Mexico at 2:48pm ET, following a two-month mission on the International Space Station The last time NASA astronauts returned from space to water was on July 24, 1975, in the Pacific, the scene of most splashdowns, to end a joint U.S.-Soviet mission known as Apollo-Soyuz. The Mercury and Gemini crews in the early to mid-1960s parachuted into the Atlantic, while most of the later Apollo capsules hit the Pacific. The lone Russian 'splashdown' was in 1976 on a partially frozen lake amid a blizzard following an aborted mission; the harrowing recovery took hours. Gemini and Apollo astronaut Thomas Stafford the commander of the last crew to splash down watched the reentry on TV from his Florida home. While pleased with the crew's safe return, he wasn't overly impressed. 'It's what we did over 50 years ago,' he said. Its throwback splashdown aside, SpaceX made history with the mission, which launched May 30 from NASA's Kennedy Space Center. It was the first time a private company launched people into orbit and also the first launch of NASA astronauts from home turf in nearly a decade. Hurley was the pilot of NASA's last space shuttle flight in 2011 and the commander of this SpaceX flight. NASA turned to SpaceX and also Boeing to build capsules and ferry astronauts to and from the space station, following the retirement of the shuttles. Until Hurley and Behnken rocketed into orbit, NASA astronauts relied on Russian rockets. SpaceX already had experience hauling cargo to the space station, bringing those capsules back to a Pacific splashdown. SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell called the mission a springboard to 'doing even harder things,' like collaborating on astronaut flights to the moon and then Mars. 'There's no question, it was an enormous relief after months of anxiety making sure we could bring Bob and Doug back home safely,' Shotwell said. NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico aboard SpaceX's Dragon capsule and have emerged from the cabin, stepping foot on Earth the first time in 63 days The Falcon 9 rocket was pictured carrying the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft on May 30 SpaceX needs six weeks to inspect the capsule before launching the next crew around the end of September. This next mission of four astronauts will spend a full six months aboard the space station. Hurley and Behnken's capsule will be refurbished for another flight next spring. A Houston company run by a former NASA official, meanwhile, has partnered with SpaceX to send three customers to the space station in fall 2021. 'It took years to get here, we brought the capablity back to America, and we came home safely to our families, and it took a lot of people a lot of time to make that happen,' Behnken said back in Houston. Boeing doesn't expect to launch its first crew until next year. The company encountered significant software problems in the debut of its Starliner capsule, with no one aboard, last year. Its capsules will touch down in the U.S. Southwest desert. Also on board: a toy dinosaur named Tremor, sent into space by the astronauts' young sons. The two boys recorded a wake-up call for their fathers Sunday morning. 'Don't worry, you can sleep in tomorrow,' said Behnken's 6-year-old son Theo, who was promised a puppy after the flight. 'Hurry home so we can go get my dog.' The University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center Rio Rancho campus is growing its nursing and medical-assistant student cohorts, as construction of the orthopedic center of excellence nears. Laura Burton, Health Sciences Center associate director of business operations, said the incoming Bachelor of Science in Nursing cohort at the Rio Rancho campus is 24 students, up from eight the first year, 2018. The campus hosted two cohorts of eight and two of 16 before moving up to 24 students this month. So theyre more quickly than planned increasing student numbers, she said. That first cohort of students has graduated, Burton added. The UNM College of Nursing is planning renovations, including construction of a high-fidelity simulation lab, which has robotic mannequins that respond to students actions. So its a big, heavy technology load, along with resources purchasing that equipment, Burton said. She hopes the remodeling will finish in January. Rio Rancho nursing students have been going to Albuquerque for the high-fidelity simulation lab. The medical-assistant program, a collaboration between UNM and Central New Mexico Community College, has 12 students in its incoming cohort, the biggest number so far, Burton said. The first cohort graduated, passed the certification exams and found jobs within a month of graduation. The programs lecture classes are online. Students attend skills labs in person on weekends and in the evenings. Theyre trying to make it more accessible for people who are working, maybe trying to change careers but wanting to get into the medical field, Burton said. HSC Rio Rancho also houses the last three classes of special-education teacher training, which is continuing this semester. It includes student-teaching in Rio Rancho Public Schools. Were trying, in the COVID world, to figure out how to do this, Burton said. In addition, the Health Careers Academy for high school students went forward this summer online. For August, leaders are working on campus re-entry plans for COVID safety in academics, moving toward more hybrid online/in-person instruction. New center for excellence The second building next to Sandoval Regional Medical Center is officially part of the HSC Rio Rancho campus and on HSC property. SRMC President and CEO Jamie Silva-Steele said she and others are preparing for a virtual ground-breaking celebration Aug. 17, with work scheduled to start Aug. 24. She expects the building to be operational in November 2021. The Center for Excellence of Orthopaedic Surgery and Rehabilitation will include clinical, research and teaching. Silva-Steele said the facility will allow UNM to add orthopedic surgeons, orthopedic medical residents and other learners in various areas. She said SRMC has about 36 students working there, and she expects the second building will allow the count to reach 81. Students will come from across all disciplines, but especially rehabilitation students, medical students and undergraduate researchers, Silva-Steele said. The five-year plan involves adding six new surgeons and other providers to address chronic pain and general orthopedic needs, eventually serving 913 patients a week. Were probably, on the clinical side, quadrupling the access, Silva-Steele said. 18-year-old Zhong Fangrong decides to study archeology in Peking University, leading to heated online debate. A left-behind girl in Leiyang, central Chinas Hunan Province, has received books and souvenirs from about 10 renowned museums across China, after her decision to study archeology, one of the less popular majors in Peking University, was mocked by netizens, who claimed that the girl was doomed for not choosing a lucrative profession. Born into a poor family, 18-year-old Zhong Fangrong has been taken care of mostly by her grandparents and separated from her parents since she was a toddler, as they have to work far from home to make a living. Despite not receiving care from her parents, as well as having less educational resources, the country girl came fourth out of 194,000 students who sat this years national colleague entrance exams in Hunan, and then decided to study archeology at Peking University. Zhongs decision was soon brought into question by some netizens, who noted that choosing such an unpopular major may make her already poverty-stricken life even harder, adding that the girl is wasting her only chance to drastically change her future. Living in a remote village, the girls decision may have been influenced by her narrow horizons. She may not know that archaeologists cannot earn much, and wasted her golden ticket to a rich and comfortable future, said a netizen on Sina Weibo. In response to the netizens concerns, Zhong noted that her decision was influenced by Fan Jinshi, a female Chinese archaeologist who has been hailed as the daughter of Dunhuang for her over 50 years of dedication to studying and preserving the Dunhuang Grottoes, adding that she would not regret her decision. I never expected that my choice would cause such a controversy online. I have had great interest in history and cultural relics since I was a little girl, and Fan Jinshis story has inspired me to continue pursuing my dream, said Zhong on her Sina Weibo. Zhongs story soon went viral online, with about 10 renowned Chinese museums and archeological institutes sending gifts and best wishes to the girl, encouraging her to pursue her dream of studying archaeology. As of press time, the hashtag ZhongSpoiledByChineseMuseums had garnered over 50 million views on Sina Weibo, with most netizens wishing the girl a bright future. The Hunan Institute of Archeology gave Zhong books about her hometowns history, as well as clothes embroidered with patterns of famous Hunan cultural relics, while the Henan Institute of Archeology sent her a book about archeology in Henan province and a set of archeological tools. Zhongs idol, 82-year-old Fan Jinshi, also sent her a copy of her biography and a letter encouraging her to cherish her dream and study hard, while Peking University has also sent congratulations to the girl, expressing the wish that she follow in Fans footsteps. Peking University also replied to Zhongs Weibo on Sunday, giving her a warm welcome and hoping that she finds her lifes passion at the university. For most people, the only purpose in life is to get rich and become important, but this girl has chosen a different path. It may be hard, it may be less lucrative, but she is being true to herself, and her devotion to archeology will surely help Chinas future research in history, said one netizen. Enable Ginger Cannot connect to Ginger Check your internet connection or reload the browser Disable in this text field Edit Log in to edit with Ginger Log in to edit with Ginger A press release from the Torrance Police Department in California about the arrests of Gregory and Rachel Howell. Torrance Police Department/ Facebook A California couple was arrested on hate-crime and vandalism charges on Friday, the Torrance Police Department said. Gregory and Rachel Howell are accused of yelling "white power" and "only white lives matter" at a Black man and his girlfriend in late July. "Never in my life did I think I was gonna experience this," the girlfriend, Itzel Lopez, told KTLA. "It's actually really scary. They don't even know you and they're willing to hurt you." Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. A California couple were arrested on Friday on hate-crime and vandalism charges after a racist confrontation in late July that "began as a road rage situation," the Torrance Police Department said. On July 22 at about 10:30 p.m., a man and a woman stopped their truck in front of a car with Itzel Lopez and her boyfriend, who were driving home from a birthday dinner, Lopez told KTLA. Lopez posted footage of the altercation on Instagram. In the video, a woman next to the car can be heard saying, "Only white lives matter, b----!" The man does the Nazi salute. The department said in a press release that the man exited the truck, walked up to the car, and yelled "white power" while doing the salute, and that the woman also got out of the truck and yelled "only white lives matter." The police said that the man hit the car with a shovel as Lopez and her boyfriend tried to drive away and that the woman damaged the driver's side mirror. The next day, Lopez and her boyfriend, who is Black, filed a police report alleging a hate crime and vandalism. The police arrested Gregory and Rachel Howell on Friday. They posted bail and were released the same day, NBC News reported. "We were just in shock. We didn't know what was going on," Lopez told KTLA. "Never in my life did I think I was gonna experience this. It's actually really scary. They don't even know you and they're willing to hurt you." Read the original article on Insider U.S. new vehicle sales in July continued to show signs of recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, as Toyota Motor Corp on Monday posted its lowest sales decline since the COVID-19 outbreak slammed the sector in mid-March. The Japanese automaker said that its sales in July fell 19% versus the same month in 2019, to 169,484 units. That was Toyotas best month since before the pandemic shuttered North American production for two months and led to closed showrooms across numerous U.S. states. The rebound in U.S. auto sales since hitting a bottom in April has seen major automakers scramble to ramp up production and boost weak inventories at dealerships, especially in states where they remained open throughout the shutdowns. The rebound in sales, though, could be threatened by spiking cases in southern and southwestern U.S. states, which have increased uncertainty over the U.S. economic recovery. Hyundai Motor Co reported a modest year-on-year 0.6% gain in U.S. sales for July, selling 57,677 units. Achieving an overall sales increase despite the ongoing pandemic is a tremendous accomplishment and speaks to the depth and quality of our product lineup and resiliency of our dealers," Hyundais North American sales chief, Randy Parker, said in a statement. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor Tyrepower has been running a national programme for two years in conjunction with Cooper Tyres to donate $5 to hospice for each tyre sold. Across the 18 Tyrepower stores nationwide, they have raised $52,000 so far. The funds are distributed locally, so Warkworth Tyrepowers donations go direct to Harbour Hospice. The programme began in Warkworth when puncture repairs were done for free in exchange for a gold coin donation to Hospice, but has now been rolled out across New Zealand. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) Quarantine passes will be required once again starting Tuesday in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal as these areas shift back to modified enhanced community quarantine. Interior Department Spokesperson Jonathan Malaya confirmed on Monday that quarantine passes are required in ECQ and MECQ areas to limit the people allowed to go out. Only one pass is issued per household so they can purchase food and medicine. When asked if residents need to obtain new quarantine passes or if they can use the old ones, Malaya said local executives will hold a meeting to decide on this. However, San Juan Mayor Francis Zamora said his barangay captains will issue new passes. In line with the implementation of MECQ, the city government of San Juan also adjusted its curfew hours to 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. from the previous 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., and reinstated total liquor ban in the city. This means selling, purchasing, and consumption of any alcoholic beverage in public places is prohibited again. First-time violators will have to perform community service for eight hours and pay 3,000 or be jailed for one month. Second-time violators will face a 16-hour community service, a fine worth 4,000 or a three-months jail time. Meanwhile, in an interview on CNN Philippines, Philippine National Police spokesperson BGen. Bernard Banac said previously issued quarantine passes are still valid. He added that those who will travel to work tomorrow should prepare their company identification cards. The PNP is all set for the implementation of the MECQ by midnight tonight," Banac said. "By tomorrow, we expect that checkpoints will be set up again in all borders inside Metro Manila, 'yung mga inter-city and inter-province borders natin." The PNP is all set for the implementation of the MECQ by midnight tonight. By tomorrow, we expect that checkpoints will be set up again in all borders inside Metro Manila, 'yung mga inter-city and inter-province borders natin," Banac said. Joint Task Force COVID Shield Commander Guillermo Eleazar said they will add more checkpoints in these four areas to contain the movement of people. Police officers deployed in checkpoints will inspect quarantine passes of those traveling amid the lockdown. He added that by midnight of August 4, those who are not listed as authorized to go out will not be allowed to cross the borders of the cities and municipalities to avail of basic goods and services. President Rodrigo Duterte placed Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal under a two-week modified ECQ from Aug. 4 until August 18, following the appeal of healthcare workers. Other parts of the country are under a more relaxed general community quarantine or modified GCQ. Under MECQ, any person below 21 years old and those who are 60 and above are required to stay home, except when obtaining essential goods and services, as well as reporting to work in permitted industries. Also prohibited to leave their residences are those with immunodeficiency, comorbidity, or other health risks, and pregnant women. Directed by Aanand L Rai, Rakshabandhan will be produced by Colour Yellow Productions and Akshay Kumar's production house Cape Of Good Films. Akshay Kumar on Monday took to Twitter to announce his next film Raksha Bandhan. Directed by Aanand L Rai, Raksha Bandhan will be produced by Colour Yellow Productions and Cape Of Good Films. The film is written by the director's long time collaborator, Himanshu Sharma, whose credits include Zero, Raanjhanaa and the Tanu Weds Manu franchise. Kumar revealed the first poster of the film and wrote, "A story that touches your heart so deeply & so instantly, its the quickest Ive signed a film in my career." He adds that he has dedicated this film to his sisters. Raksha Bandhan is likely to release on 5 November, 2021 Check out the announcement here Meanwhile, Kumar will also star in Rai's upcoming feature Atrangi Re. The project is a joint production by Colour Yellow Productions, T-Series and Cape Of Good Films. Kumar will soon be heading to the United Kingdom to start the shooting for his next action drama Bellbottom. The team of Bellbottom, including actors Vaani Kapoor, Huma Qureshi and Lara Dutta, will also be travelling to the UK in August for a start-to-finish schedule. The producers had previously mentioned that they have chalked out a plan to ensure the safety of the entire crew amid the pandemic. Apart from these films, Kumar has Laxmmi Bomb, Sooryavanshi, Bachchan Pandey, Prithviraj in pipeline. ANN ARBOR, MI An Ann Arbor man has been sentenced to probation after pleading no contest to possessing child pornography earlier this year. Washtenaw County Trial Judge Carol Kuhnke sentenced Brian Christopher Himlin on May 19, to five years probation and 100 hours of community service months after he pleaded guilty to one felony count of possession of child sexually abusive material, court records show. Included in his sentence, Himlin is not allowed to access the internet without the approval of the Michigan Department of Corrections and he must register as a sex offender until 2035. The Michigan State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force launched an investigation into Himlin, 51, after receiving a tip through the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in spring 2019, according to a task force statement. Police obtained a search warrant of Himlins Ann Arbor home, where state troopers seized several electronic devices suspected of containing child pornography, police said. He was arrested and arraigned Aug. 16, 2019, on one count each of aggravated possession of child sexually abusive material, a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison, and possession of child sexually abusive material, records show. He waived his Dec. 12 preliminary examination on the two child pornography charges, sending his case to the Washtenaw County Trial Court, court records show. Ann Arbor man facing child pornography charges heads to trial On Jan. 28, Himlin pleaded no contest to the lesser possession charge, dismissing the aggravated possession charge, records show. He was originally scheduled for sentencing on March 31, but the hearing was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused many state operations to temporarily shut down. State police encourage parents to speak to their children about the safe use of the internet, adding the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children provides a comprehensive list of resources on its website at missingkids.org. Anyone with information regarding possible child sexual exploitation is asked to report it to the CyberTipline at missingkids.org/cybertipline. More from The Ann Arbor News: Nonprofit invites people to rappel down Ann Arbor hotel for fundraiser Absentee ballot lost in the mail? You can still vote in Michigan primary Tuesday 39,000 absentee ballots in Washtenaw County still unreturned one day before primary Trumps reported agreement for Microsoft to continue talks to buy social media app comes after he threatened to ban it. United States President Donald Trump has agreed to give Chinas ByteDance 45 days to negotiate a sale of popular short-video app TikTok to Microsoft Corp, two people familiar with the matter told the Reuters News Agency. US officials have said TikTok under its Chinese parent poses a national risk because of the personal data it handles. Trump said on Friday that he was planning to ban TikTok in the US after dismissing the idea of a sale to Microsoft. But following a discussion between Trump and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, the Redwood, Washington-based company said in a statement on Sunday that it would continue negotiations to acquire TikTok from ByteDance, and that it aimed to reach a deal by September 15. It was not immediately clear what changed Trumps mind. Banning TikTok would alienate many of its young users before the US presidential election in November, and would likely trigger a wave of legal challenges. Several prominent Republican legislators issued statements in the last two days urging Trump to back a sale of TikTok to Microsoft. A win-win in the making, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham tweeted in response to Trumps new stance on Sunday. The negotiations between ByteDance and Microsoft will be overseen by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), a US government panel that has the right to block any agreement, according to the sources, who requested anonymity in advance of a White House announcement. Microsoft cautioned in its statement that there is no certainty a deal will be reached. Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury, Microsoft said in a statement. ByteDance and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. As relations between the United States and China deteriorate over trade, Hong Kongs autonomy, cybersecurity and the spread of the novel coronavirus, TikTok has emerged as a flashpoint in the dispute between the worlds two largest economies. Microsoft, which also owns professional social media network LinkedIn, would become a major competitor to social media giants such as Facebook Inc and Snap Inc were its bid for TikTok to succeed. Under the proposed deal, Microsoft said it would take over TikToks operations in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It said it would ensure that all private data of TikToks American users are transferred to and remains in the US. TikTok has become immensely popular with younger audiences, but the Chinese-owned app has also turned into another flashpoint in the US-China dispute [File: Shiho Fukada/Bloomberg] Microsoft may invite other US investors to acquire minority stakes in TikTok, the company added. About 70 percent of the outside capital ByteDance has raised came from the US. It is not clear how much Microsoft could pay for TikTok. Reuters reported last week that ByteDances valuation expectations for the app exceeded $50bn, although US pressure to divest it could lower that price tag. A key issue in the negotiations will be separating TikToks technology from ByteDances infrastructure and access, to alleviate US concerns about the integrity of personal data. ByteDance owns a Chinese short video app called Douyin that was based on the same code used for TikTok. One idea under consideration is to give Microsoft and ByteDance a transition period to develop technology for TikTok that will be completely separate from ByteDance, one of the sources said. App scrutiny The US has been increasingly scrutinising app developers over the personal data they handle, especially if some of it involves US military or intelligence personnel. Ordering the divestment of TikTok would not be the first time the White House has taken action over such concerns. Earlier this year, Chinese gaming company Beijing Kunlun Tech Co Ltd sold Grindr LLC, a popular gay dating app it bought in 2016, for $620m after being ordered by CFIUS to divest. In 2018, CFIUS forced Chinas Ant Financial to scrap plans to buy MoneyGram International Inc over concerns about the safety of data that could identify US citizens. ByteDance was valued at as much as $140bn earlier this year when one of its shareholders, Cheetah Mobile, sold a small stake in a private deal, Reuters has reported. The start-ups investors include Japans SoftBank Group Corp. Taking on Facebook Meanwhile, ByteDance accused Facebook of plagiarism and smears although it did not elaborate on the accusation. The Chinese firm also said it faced complex and unimaginable difficulties as it worked to grow into a global company. The Beijing-based firm made the comments in a statement late on Sunday posted on its official account on Jinri Toutiao, a news aggregator app it owns. ByteDance has always been committed to becoming a global company. During this process, we have faced all kinds of complex and unimaginable difficulties, including the tense international political environment, collision and conflict of different cultures and plagiarism and smears from competitor Facebook, it said. TikTok has attracted criticism from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who last year accused the app of censoring political protest. TikTok has denied the claim. Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Its the hottest social media platform on the planet. Its growing faster than Facebook (FB), Twitter (TWTR), and Instagram. And it could come crashing down any day now. Of course, Im talking about TikTok. You may have heard of TikTok. You may even have a teenager suddenly singing and dancing around the house because of it. In short, TikTok is a video sharing app where users can create short dance, lip-sync, comedy, and talent videos. Q2 2020 hedge fund letters, conferences and more And Right Now, Millions Of Young Americans Are Hooked In the first quarter of 2020, there was a total of 315 million downloads worldwidea 58% increase from the previous quarter and the most to date. Currently, TikTok has 800 million users worldwide, and an estimated 80 million users in the US. And get this: TikTok has only been available in the US since 2018! These days, young people in the US now spend almost as much time on TikTok as they do watching videos on YouTube. But as I said, this addictive app could soon be gone for good. You see, not only is it insanely popular, Its also highly controversial. In fact, Trump and his administration are looking into banning TikTok. Not months from now, but weeks. And when he does, it could send one specific stock to the moon. Let me explain. TikTok Isn't An American Company Its owned by the Chinese parent company ByteDance which, thanks to TikTok, is worth a whopping $75 billion. Its the worlds most valuable private company, according to CB Insights. When companies get this big, they attract criticism, especially Chinese companies. You see, its no secret that the US government and China arent on the best terms. Trumps been waging a trade war on China since he stepped into the Oval Office. The Chinese Communist Party is also infamous for stealing intellectual property. And, as a social media app, TikTok has mountains of personal data to collect on its users. Now, TikTok Is Doing Everything It Can To Distance Itself From The Chinese Government Story continues In May, it hired American and former Disney executive Kevin Mayer as CEO. It also says its never provided user data to the Chinese government, nor would we do so if asked. Still, many cybersecurity experts fear that the private data of American users could end up in the hands of Chinas Communist Party. There are even reports that TikTok can read anything and everything on users Apple (AAPL) iPhone devices. That includes passwords, work documents, sensitive emails, and financial information! Wells Fargo (WFC)one of the nations biggest bankshas banned its employees from using it. The US Army and Navy have also barred service members from using the app on government phones, after the Pentagon issued a warning. Earlier This Month, Trump Called Out TikTok By Name He said his administration is now considering banning the TikTok app. That same week, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called TikTok a national security threat. Pompeo also said that the administration was certainly looking at banning the app. And the Trump administration is now running ad campaigns asking for support of a TikTok ban. Trump TikTok Now, its too early to tell if Trump will ban TikTok outright. But it wouldnt surprise me at all if he does. The White House has already said that restrictions on TikTok could come in weeks, not months. The US wouldnt even be the first country to ban TikTok. Last month, India banned TikTok along with 59 other Chinese apps due to an ongoing border clash with China. India was an even bigger TikTok market than the US. It accounted for 30% of all TikTok downloads! If Trump Does Clamp Down On TikTok, That Will Cause One US Stock To Soar Im talking about Snap (SNAP). Snap is the biggest US social media company after Facebook. It owns the wildly popular app, Snapchat. Like TikTok, Snapchat is a hit with the kids. About 90% of 13- to 24-year-olds in the US use Snapchat. To put that in perspective, just 39% of young folks use Facebook. Snap is also at the forefront of the augmented reality (AR) megatrend. Snap could explode higher if Trump bans TikTok. And Im clearly not the only investor who thinks so. On July 8, Snap spiked 6% on talk of a TikTok ban. To be fair, Snap isnt the exact same experience as TikTok. But it could offer something eerily similar soon. You see, Snapchat is currently recreating the TikTok experience on its platform. According to TechCrunch, Snapchat has begun experimenting with a vertical swiping motion that mimics how TikTok works. This tells me Snapchat is looking to fill the huge void that will come from a TikTok ban . But thats not the only reason for you to consider investing in SNAP. The stock is also emerging from a monster base that its been carving out since it went public three years ago. Its now close to eclipsing its IPO-day high. A breakout at this key level would represent a massive change in character for the stock. And it could signal the beginning of a major long-term rally for SNAP. In closing, SNAP looks like its on the cusp of a major move higher. And a TikTok ban by Trump could be the catalyst that sends this stock through the roof. The Great Disruptors: 3 Breakthrough Stocks Set to Double Your Money" Get my latest report where I reveal my three favorite stocks that will hand you 100% gains as they disrupt whole industries. Get your free copy here. By Mauldin Economics Video: Top 5 Stocks Among Hedge Funds At Insider Monkey we scour multiple sources to uncover the next great investment idea. Cannabis stocks are roaring back in 2020, so we are checking out this under-the-radar stock. We go through lists like the 10 most profitable companies in the world to pick the best large-cap stocks to buy. Even though we recommend positions in only a tiny fraction of the companies we analyze, we check out as many stocks as we can. We read hedge fund investor letters and listen to stock pitches at hedge fund conferences. If you want to find out the best healthcare stock to buy right now, you can watch our latest hedge fund manager interview here. You can subscribe to our free enewsletter below to receive our stories in your inbox: TDT | Manama The Information and eGovernment Authority (iGA) announced yesterday that 30 volunteers have signed up to support the team responsible for deploying advanced technologies to limit the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19), by assisting the BeAware Bahrain application project. The iGA emphasised that the culture of volunteerism receives significant support from Bahrains public and private sectors, who have been able to instill such values from members of the public and help strengthen community bonds, especially during the current pandemic. The iGA extended its utmost appreciation to all who have demonstrated their willingness to support the Kingdoms efforts to combat COVID-19. The iGA stated that the volunteers were selected via national volunteering platform volunteer. gov.bh to provide logistical support needed by the authority. The iGA held a series of preparatory meetings with the selected volunteers via video conference, to highlight the main tasks required, as well as provide guidelines regarding regulations and other terms. The volunteers were divided among three locations to provide logistical support for the BeAware Bahrain application. The first team, based at Bahrain International Airport, supported arriving passengers on how to download and activate the app, explaining to them its features and how it should be used during their self-isolation periods. They also helped the registration team process passengers in accordance with precautionary procedures and measures. The second team received individuals with appointments at Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre. The team worked on familiarising users with the features of the app, downloading and registration, and ways to use its eServices, including how to view the information it provides and receive notifications. The team played a vital role providing technical and logistical support to the administrative team on the processes of registering individuals for home self-isolation periods. The third group, the virtual team, provided technical support to users by answering inquiries related to the app, in coordination with the Ministry of Healths 444 contact center. They also helped other teams ensure business continuity and managed the preparation and reactivation of home self-isolation e-bracelets. U. of I. has said it will set up more than a dozen testing sites across the Urbana-Champaign campus and offer the service for free to students, faculty or staff. The test requires a saliva sample to be dropped into a test tube, with results expected in five hours, though it can take longer in some cases. The tests were approved by the Illinois Department of Public Health, but the university is still seeking emergency use authorization through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, August 4 2020 The Manpower Ministry has announced that it will reopen the recruitment and placement of Indonesian migrant workers in a bid to strengthen the countrys economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 20, the ministry issued a regulation to temporarily halt the placement of migrant workers in foreign countries due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A new ministerial regulation, issued on July 29, lifts the restriction. To accelerate the recovery of the national economy and seeing that several countries have also reopened to foreign workers, it is necessary for us to also reopen the opportunity for our migrant workers to work in destination countries, Manpower Minister Ida Fauziyah said on Thursday as quoted by kompas.com. 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 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 Vietnam has emerged as a popular destination for industrial property projects as increased labour costs, trade disputes and COVID-19 prompt global manufacturers to vary their supply chains throughout Asia, according to CBRE. COVID-19 has caused temporary difficulties for upcoming business plans, but with a long-term investment strategy, industrial real estate in Viet Nam is still very attractive. Photo doanhnghiepphattrien.vn The US-China trade conflict benefited Viet Nams industrial property market in 2019 as manufacturers began shifting production to alternative markets. Average asking rents for industrial land in Viet Nam increased by as much as 10 per cent, with some industrial parks reporting rent growth of up to 40 per cent year-on-year, CBRE said. Vietnam Jones Lang Lasalle Company (JLL Vietnam) said land prices in the industrial property segment have reached new levels even though the disease has impacted the land lease process. COVID-19 has caused temporary difficulties for upcoming business plans, but with a long-term investment strategy, industrial real estate in Viet Nam is still very attractive. In the second quarter of this year, JLL Vietnam recorded rising land prices with an average of US$106 per sq.m for a lease cycle, up 9.7 per cent compared to the same period last year for the southern industrial property market. Meanwhile, the rent price of ready-built factories was still stable at $3.5-5 per sq.m per month, because the contract is only short term for 3-5 years and tenants are also susceptible to the pandemic's impact. The recent disruptions have prompted companies to diversify supply chains throughout Asia. We have seen some manufacturers moving away from centralised supply toward increased diversification, said Desmond Sim, head of research, Singapore and Southeast Asia, at CBRE. Countries that are already investing in new infrastructure and are more open to attracting industry likely will receive the lions share of relocations. CBRE also expects to see a shift in trade patterns with this growing focus on diversifying supply chains and production locations, Sim said. This trend has already started. While China is the worlds largest export economy by value, China-to-US exports decreased by 12.7 per cent in 2019, and total trade between the countries fell by US$100 billion year-on-year. Countries that have benefited from this shift include Taiwan and Viet Nam, the fastest-growing trade partners with the US. Total trade between the US and these two markets rose in 2019 by $18.7 billion and $9.1 billion, respectively. Countries outside Asia, such as Belgium, the Netherlands and France, have seen increased activity as well. Although there are some barriers to entry, including a shortage of industrial land in prime locations and a lack of infrastructure in key areas, Viet Nams manufacturing industry and industrial real estate market stand to benefit from the rapid changes in global trade and supply chains, as long as trade with developed countries remains a key growth driver, according to CBRE. In addition to infrastructure facilitating the movement of goods and driving demand for logistics space over the long term, CBRE also sees e-commerce growth changing warehousing demand in Asia-Pacific, including Viet Nam. Total cross-border e-commerce sales in the region are expected to more than double to $389.5 billion in 2023 from $181.4 billion in 2018. The integration of local supply chains likely will blend industrial and retail real estate, affecting the way goods are warehoused and delivered to consumers. Bonded warehouses, which enable storage of goods without payment of duty, are increasingly popular amid rising consumer demand for imported products, as they facilitate faster delivery than direct shipping from the country of origin. CBRE expects an increase in leasing demand for these warehouses, especially in large consumer markets such as China and India. VNS Voting-by-mail is set to play a vital role in the 2020 election for millions of Americans who are either immuno-compromised or just dont want to risk contracting COVID and then spreading disease because they happened to stand in the one polling booth operated by Steven, the snot-smearer. In fact, 77% of Americans, as of this writing, should be able to vote by mail in the fall. Its why a healthy United States Postal Service is so important to our democracy this year, and its also why Louis DeJoy heading the United States Postal Service is so troubling. You see, DeJoy is a major investor in USPS competitors like UPS and trucking company J.B. Hunt. Appointing DeJoy to be Postmaster General, as Trump did in early May, is like putting Sir Mix-a-Lot in charge of a task force to hunt down big-butted vampires. In almost every political fight, you can count on one thing: the creation of a stereotype that can summon critics outrage and make its defense indefensible. Ronald Reagans 1976 bid for the White House introduced America to his twisted iteration of the welfare queen who exploited public assistance to live large. Hillary Clinton dubbed her foes the vast right-wing conspiracy and, later, the deplorables. Barack Obama forced his signature healthcare law into reality by mobilizing his backers against the specter of big insurance companies reflexive greed. Today President Donald Trumps Administration has added a new member to this long list of political boogeymen: the 31 million Americans who lost their jobs during this coronavirus pandemic and are now cast as bilking the system through unemployment benefits deemed too generous. We want to fix the issue where in some cases people are overpaid, and we want to make sure theres the right incentive, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told ABC News in an interview that aired on Sunday. It matches the rhetoric of his fellow Republicans in the White House and in Congress as they reject Democrats efforts to extend the temporary $600 supplement for out-of-work Americans that expired last week. Make sense of what matters in Washington. Sign up for the daily D.C. Brief newsletter. Casting a broad slice of the country as exploiters of taxpayer generosity isnt a new tactic. Nor does it necessarily work. Just ask Mitt Romney, whose 2012 presidential campaign sank when he said 47% of Americans were basically freeloaders. And that was before COVID-19 tanked the U.S. economy, sent one-third of its G.D.P. into the garbage and left Americans confidence spiraling. On the surface, it seems absurd that some workers could be making more money while staying home than they were while at their regular jobs. But that was, at some point, the case for as many as two-thirds of workers, based on a May paper from the University of Chicago. It stems from the now-expired $600 federal supplement to their state unemployment benefits, as well as a pandemic that hit the lowest-paid workers the hardest. Starting this week, millions of unemployed Americans will be left to get by solely on state-provided unemployment insurance. The average state unemployment benefit is $380 per week; in places like Mississippi, the payout can be as little as $235 per week. Story continues In a rational and amoral system, many Americans should have chosen to stay home and collect the bigger checks during that window. But Americans are not always rational creatures. In fact, of the workers who went back to their jobs in June, 7 out of 10 actually took pay cuts to go back to the workplace, according to one analysis. Another Yale study found workers who made more money while out of a job out-paced their neighbors in returning to the workforce. A Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago survey found those receiving the amped-up unemployment benefits were spending twice as much time looking for a job as the typical out-of-work American. And in a survey of unemployed Americans from the Bipartisan Policy Center, only 16% said they were staying home because of the added federal cash. In other words, Americans like to work. Spending 40 hours a week on their feet may penalizes them relative to spending that time on a couch, both monetarily and by posing an increased threat to their health and their families physical wellbeing. But for many, in a time of utter non-normalcy, getting back to even the worst-paying jobs restores some sense of calm. A version of this article first appeared in The DC Brief, TIMEs politics newsletter. Sign up here to get stories like this sent to your inbox every weekday. New York Army National Guard Col. Jeffrey Baker of Rotterdam received a Legion of Merit and a New York State Conspicuous Service Medal during his retirement ceremony at the Army Aviation Support Facility in Latham. Baker also received an Order of Saint Michael, an award specific to the Army Aviation community, which recognizes aviators who show uncommon distinction during their careers. The deputy state Army aviation officer was honored for his 30 years of exemplary military duty. Baker was quick to turn his recognition into praise for his peers and subordinates. "If it ever sounds like I'm bragging, it's truly not about me. I'm really bragging about the men and women I've served with all these years, past and present. I would not be here without you. I really mean that," he said. His previous assignments included duty with the 3rd Battalion, 142nd Aviation Regiment, where he served as a platoon leader, company commander, logistics officer, operations officer, executive officer and eventually the battalion commander. He also served as the flight detachment commander while deployed to Bosnia in 2002, and as a staff officer and pilot in command while deployed to Iraq in 2008, where he flew more than 200 combat hours. He has also been a part of a NATO support missions to Iceland, training in Nicaragua, rotations to the Army's Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, La., the 1998 ice storms in upstate New York, two missions to Honduras, and relief support for Hurricanes Katrina and Irene, as well as Superstorm Sandy. He has also logged more than 2,000 accident-free flying hours. The Albany College of Pharmacy graduate is a pharmacist at Price Chopper in Johnstown. A native of Harrisville, New York, he also earned a degree from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, where he received his commission through ROTC in 1990. Baker has also earned a Bronze Star, a Defense Meritorious Service Medal, an Army Achievement Medal, an Army Reserve Component Achievement Medal, and a Senior Army Aviator Badge. Arctic mission Three LC-130 Skibirds crews of the 109th Airlift Wing will fly out of the Stratton Air National Guard Base in Scotia Tuesday, launching a three-week mission to carry critical supplies to Summit Station, the only year-round science station that operates on the Greenland ice cap. The LC-130 Skibirds will be supported by 20 air crew members and 40 maintenance airmen as they deliver 280,000 pounds about 40,000 gallons of fuel and 30,000 pounds of food and other supplies, according to Sr. Master Sgt. William Gizara, unit spokesman. Summit Station is operated by CH2MHill Polar Services for the National Science Foundation's Arctic Research Program and hosts scientists conducting climate and other research. It is the "only high-altitude, high-latitude, inland, year-round observing station in the Arctic," according to the NSF. The station will house five personnel throughout the winter. "The missions our unit completes are critical to the lifeline of Summit Station and we are honored to continue to provide stability and support," said Col. Michele Kilgore, 109th commander. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. During the U.S. winter season, the 109th supports Operation Deep Freeze in Antarctica, and in the summer months, the unit normally flies to Greenland not only to continue their support for the NSF but also to train for Antarctic operations. This includes running the annual "Kool School," which trains airmen in arctic survival techniques. The fuel is being transported by filling up the planes' fuel tanks completely. Fuel that is not needed for the 836-mile, 4-hour round trip from the 109th Airlift Wing's base at Kangerlussuaq, Greenland, to Summit Station is then offloaded into fuel bladders and tanks at the station. This allows the aircraft to carry both fuel and food at the same time, according to Maj. Daniel Urband, chief of 109th Greenland operations This minimizes the amount of trips needs to resupply the station. The crews plan to complete three round trips a day during the mission, Urband said. New leader Stephen R. Reilly, the son of Richard and Maureen Reilly of Schodack, has been commissioned as a Navy ensign. The 2016 Columbia High School graduate received an Navy Reserve Officers Training Corps scholarship. He graduated cum laude from State University Maritime College in the Bronx with a bachelor's of science in mechanical engineering. He will report to Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla., in September to begin his pilot training. News of your troops and units can be sent to Duty Calls, Terry Brown, Times Union, Box 15000, Albany, NY 12212 or brownt@timesunion.com. Donald Trump and his company may be the subject of New York prosecutors' deeper inquiry into possible bank fraud, according to new court filings from District Attorney Cyrus Vance. The office is seeking to dismiss the president's lawsuit that aims to shield him from disclosing his financial records. The district attorney called the lawsuit "baseless" and claimed it "utterly failed" to prove a bad faith argument that was previously made to the court. Mr Vance's district court filings point to "undisputed" news reports about the president's businesses and his wealth that would justify a legal basis for a subpoena to probe those records. More follows On the Frontline Against China, the US Coast Guard Is Taking on Missions the US Navy Can't Do Competition with China has drawn more Pentagon resources to the Pacific, but the most visible U.S. military presence there... Former SDLP leader and Nobel peace prize winner John Hume has died aged 83 years. Here we reflect on his career, life and achievement Born January 18, 1937, in Derry, a city divided by poverty and religious discrimination. Read More He went on to become an internationally acknowledged human rights and peace campaigner, Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1998, and named Irelands Greatest Person by popular vote on RTE television in 2010. Educated in St Columbs College, Derry, and Maynooth, where he abandoned studies for the Catholic priesthood. Became a teacher of history and French and a community activist in his native city. Married wife Pat, also a teacher in 1960. They had five children. Originally, active in the credit union movement, and housing action, fighting discrimination against nationalists. An early activist in the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association. A life-long proponent of peaceful protest he criticised the old Nationalist Partys failure to properly represent the Catholic minority. Elected to the Northern Ireland parliament in 1969. In 1970 helped found the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) seeking justice via non-violent action. Briefly Commerce Minister in 1974 in the power-sharing government, set up under the 1973 Sunningdale Agreement and smashed by Loyalist trade unions. From 1972 onwards he had begun successfully forging long-term links with key Irish-US politicians, notably Senators Ted Kennedy and US House speaker, Tipp ONeill. These people eventually exerted big influence in London on the Northern Ireland issues. Elected to the European Parliament in 1979 he became an increasingly influential figure in Dublin, London, Brussels and Washington. He also took over leadership of the SDLP. Associated with the New Ireland Forum in 1984 which led on to the 1985 Anglo Irish Agreement. In the early 1990s began controversial talks with Sinn Fein and the IRA via Gerry Adams. He faced criticism on all sides and long periods of doubt. But they yielded an IRA ceasefire in 1994 and the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. In October 1998 John Hume and Ulster Unionist Party leader, David Trimble, were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In 2001 he turned down an opportunity to become Northern Ireland deputy first minister and retired in 2004. In recent years he has suffered poor health with problems including dementia. The Bono regional Minister Evelyn Kumi has dismissed claims that military officials have been deployed to the region to prevent some ethnic groups from registering in the ongoing voters registration exercise. It comes after a viral video in which some military officials were seen asking people in queues to register questions sparking anger from a local chief in the community. Former President Mahama in reaction to the video said the government was preventing Ewes and other minority groups from registering. Commenting on the development on the Morning Starr Monday, the minister said the soldiers are in the community following a peace accord signed between the NDC and NPP parliamentary candidates in the constituency. The soldiers there are not preventing anyone from registering. What they are saying is that theyll not allow people bused to cross the barrier. And that if you are from Banda, walk to the registration center and register. I havent received any information that some men dressed in military attire are harassing residents and preventing them from registering but if such people are seen there, I trust the police to do their work, he told sit-in host Lantam Papanko. Meanwhile, the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) has in a statement rejected claims of ethnic targeting in its military deployment to the Banda District in the Bono Region. The Military wishes to state that on 30th July 2020, the Bono Regional Security Council met representatives of the two main political parties NPP and NDC to deliberate on the peaceful conduct of the registration exercise. This was in the wake of the disturbances that resulted in the unfortunate demise of one person. The Agreement signed by Mr. Joe Danquah (NPP) and Hon Ahmed Ibrahim (NDC MP Banda) and witnessed by the Hon Regional Minister stated as follows: We the undersigned agreed today to maintain peace in the Banda District during the remaining days of the voters registration exercise and after, until the end of the 2020 General Elections in December 2020, the statement added. ---starrfmonline RICHMOND, Va. - A circuit court judge on Monday dismissed one lawsuit seeking to preserve a towering state-owned statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee but let a second suit stand, blocking Gov. Ralph Northam - at least temporarily - from removing the Confederate tribute. Richmond Circuit Court Judge Reilly Marchant threw out a case brought by William C. Gregory, the great-grandson of a couple who in 1887 donated land for the statue on the city's famous Monument Avenue. In so doing, Marchant dissolved a related injunction barring the governor from removing the equestrian statue. But the judge issued a new, 90-day injunction in the other case, which was brought by several Monument Avenue residents who contend that removing the monument would hurt their property values. Marchant did not immediately set a date for a hearing in that case. Democratic Attorney General Mark Herring, whose office is defending the Democratic Northam in the case, has filed a motion to dismiss it. "Attorney General Herring remains committed to ensuring this divisive, antiquated relic is removed as soon as possible," Herring spokeswoman Charlotte Gomer said. After the judge's decisions, Northam tweeted: "Make no mistake, the Lee monument will come down. And Virginia will be better for it." Patrick McSweeney, the former state GOP chairman who represents the Monument Avenue residents in their case, said he does not comment on pending litigation. Gregory's lawyer, Joseph Blackburn Jr., also declined to comment. Erected in 1890, the Lee monument glorified the Confederacy, anchored the grand residential district designed around it and intimidated newly freed blacks. In modern times, the statue has been polarizing - championed by some for its historical and artistic merit, reviled by others as a symbol of racial oppression. Northam ordered its removal in early June amid demonstrations against police brutality and racial injustice ignited by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody in May. But the Gregory lawsuit, and a related injunction, landed before crews could get to work. Gregory had contended in his suit that removal would violate language in the deed recording the land transfer from his great-grandparents. In it, the state had promised to "affectionately protect" the statue. The judge found that Gregory "has no statutory standing and no private right of action" to bring the suit. The lawsuit brought by the Monument Avenue residents makes a similar argument about the deed language, but it is premised on the plaintiffs' rights as homeowners. They contend their properties would lose value and they would lose historic district tax breaks "as a result of the loss of a priceless work of art from their neighborhood." Four other Confederate monuments came down along the avenue in June and July, all of them owned by the city. One fell at the hands of protesters, the other three on the orders of Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney. A third lawsuit, filed by an anonymous plaintiff, challenges Stoney's removal of a total of 14 Confederate statues and memorials, most of them in other parts of town. Marchant, who held a hearing in that case last month, indicated that it is unlikely the city will be forced to reinstall the monuments. But the judge also expressed deep skepticism in that hearing about Stoney's unilateral decision to remove the statues, which began coming down July 1 without the approval of the City Council and against the advice of the city attorney. Stoney said he was acting under powers derived from a state of emergency that Northam had declared at the mayor's request amid the unrest. The mayor contended that the statues posed a public safety threat because protesters were trying to pull them down. He also said they were a magnet for demonstrations, which could contribute to the spread of the novel coronavirus. On Monday, the council voted unanimously for an ordinance authorizing the city to remove Confederate monuments on city-owned property. The move, which was intended to comply with the process laid out by a new state law giving localities the authority to remove Confederate monuments, drew criticism from one council member, Reva Trammell, who wondered why the council would back Stoney's action given that it has already drawn a court challenge. Only a single Confederate statue remains on city property: a memorial to Confederate Gen. A.P. Hill, who is buried under the statue in a traffic circle on Richmond's Northside. Even before the suit was filed, city officials said they would not remove that one immediately because they had to research rules governing monuments that double as burial sites. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 21:50:30|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close LUSAKA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Zambia reported 233 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, bringing the total confirmed tally to 6,580, as the health ministry urged people to abide by preventive measures to stem the spread of the pandemic. Minister of Health Chitalu Chilufya blamed the rapid surge in infections on large crowds and people's failure to stick to social distancing. Adherence to preventive measures is not negotiable and there will be enhanced enforcement, he told a briefing on COVID-19. "Huge gatherings are key areas of COVID-19 transmission in Zambia," Chilufya said. "It is important for people to stay at home for protection." The country also recorded 208 recoveries in the previous 24 hours, bringing total recoveries to 4,701. There are 1,708 active cases of COVID-19 in Zambia; 39 of them are on oxygen support, six of whom in intensive care units. Zambia has conducted 87,380 tests since it reported the first cases in March. Enditem Burger King worker slain over delay in order: Authorities in Florida say a Burger King worker was fatally shot Saturday night after a dispute over a delay in a food order. The Orange County Sheriff's Office identified the suspect in a news release Sunday as Kelvis Rodriguez Tormes, 37. Authorities said he is charged with first-degree murder with a firearm, destruction of evidence and possession of a firearm by a felon. The victim was identified as Desmond Armond Joshua Jr., 22, who had only recently begun working at the restaurant. The Orlando Sentinel reported that the shooting followed a confrontation between Joshua and a woman over the length of time it took for a drive-through food order to be completed. The woman was refunded her money, then left and returned with Rodriguez Tormes, authorities said. After a scuffle, deputies say Joshua was shot in the parking lot and later died at a hospital. Jail records Sunday did not list an attorney for Rodriguez Tormes. Multiple fuel smuggling scams are being run in Zimbabwe with cheap fuel being smuggled from Mozambique, sometimes mislabelled to avoid customs duty, and sold or re-exported for hard currency while fuel bought in Zimbabwe for local currency is suspected of being smuggled out and sold for hard currency. Recently, the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority arrested two men for smuggling into Zimbabwe five tankers of petrol, a total of 221 000 litres, using forged papers that designated the contents as crude de-gummed soya bean oil, which is exempted from duty. This comes hard on the heels of an announcement by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) that fuel was being smuggled into Zimbabwe from Mozambique and reshipped to South Africa, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The development also explains, investigators believe, why some fuel dealers can afford to sell fuel in foreign currency at prices much lower than those set by the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (Zera), which allows only modest mark-ups on properly-taxed directly-imported fuels. Complex cartels are reportedly importing fuel from Mozambique at prices in the region of 50 US cents a litre before taking it to neighbouring countries using forged export documents. Zacc is now demanding explanations from some 42 fuel companies of their fuel dealings. Two suspects were arrested last month, the first on these sort of charges, for smuggling 221 000 litres of petrol from Mozambique via Forbes Border Post in Mutare. They allegedly forged the import papers and misrepresented to Zimra officials that they were importing soya bean oil, duty-free. Malvern Mugodoki (38) an agent working for Vernson Freight Pvt Ltd and Wellington Kusalaweka (34), who operates from Hurudza House in Mutare, were arrested on fraud charges. Mugodoki and Kusawela were freed on $10 000 bail each. However, the names of company or companies that imported the fuel were not mentioned in court. According to the State, Mugodoki, a clearing agent, received petrol import documents from three truck drivers Beven Munyaradzi Mavhaza, George Muzimbawake, and Langton Mabee for processing. He was tasked to facilitate the clearing of three trucks: registration number AEZ 3183 loaded with 45 000 litres of petrol, AEU 9772 with 41 000 litres and AEG 7618 with 45 000 litres. After receiving the papers, Mugodoki allegedly connived with Kasalaweka to alter the original import documents where the product was indicated as petrol so that it reads crude de-gummed soya bean oil, exempted from paying import duty, the court was told. They went to Kasalawekas workplace at Hurudza House in Mutare where they forged the import invoices to indicate the product was crude de-gummed soya oil, reads the court documents. The pair later subcontracted Southern Business Services clearing agents, who are authorised to clear tankers, to do the work. The subcontracted agents handed the forged documents over to Zimra officials for processing. Acting on the misrepresentation, Zimra produced the manifests for the three trucks, reads the papers. Later on Zimra received information that the tankers had petrol and that its officers had been duped. Manicaland police CID together with Zimra officers swiftly reacted and impounded the trucks. A check on the load proved the product to be petrol. The two were arrested and charged with fraud. While seized with the case of three tankers, police also received information that two other tankers ferrying were awaiting fraudulent clearance by the same suspects. The two trucks ferrying about 90 000 litres of fuel purchased by some two Harare-based companies were also impounded. Manifests showing the false declarations and the computer used in the fraud were held as exhibits in respect of the first three tankers case. The original import papers for petrol were recovered from the house of one of the suspects girlfriend while copies of the fake papers presented to Zimra were recovered at Southern Business Clearing Agents premises in Mutare. Zimra spokesperson Mr Francis Chimanda said the Mutare case was the first one since reports on fuel smuggling filtered last year. Recently, five tankers were seized at Forbes Border Post for false declaration. The tankers were reported to be transporting crude soya oil while they were transporting fuel. Fake documents were submitted in support of the declaration. Zimra keeps records of all seized goods and in that record there is no fuel seizure as the most recent fuel seizures are the beginning on fuels, he said. However, Zimra has made a total of 60 seizures of different other goods at Forbes Border Post since January this year. Zacc chairperson Justice Loice Matanda-Moyo is on record saying her investigations, the police and Zimra were jointly investigating fuel smuggling. Zacc and Zimra have been conducting an investigation into reports received, indicating that there has been a massive and expansive operation involving smuggling of significant volumes of fuel, mainly diesel and petrol through a number of our ports of entry. Investigations carried out thus far reveal the existence of a criminal fuel smuggling syndicate involving entities that are registered in Zimbabwe and in a neighbouring country. This criminal project has been in operation for a period of two years and its activities have caused financial prejudice to the Government of Zimbabwe and that of the neighbouring country, said Justice Matanda-Moyo. Early this year over 25 million litres of fuel smuggled from Zimbabwe were intercepted by police in South Africa. The original source of the fuel is unknown; it could be diverted fuel bought in Zimbabwe dollars or re-exported cheap fuel smuggled from Mozambique. Zacc has since asked 42 companies registered in Zimbabwe to furnish investigators with documentation relating to their fuel dealings. The companies are: Global Oil, Com Oil Petrol, Victoria Falls Truck, Unique Jay, Nansane (Rosmitrick), Bankable Resources, Silver Air, Timkase Investments, Dexfueld Pvt Ltd, Chilota Mine, Mann Aggregates, Matriflex Oils, Bresville Investments, Fastlane Petroleum, Couderay Oil, Outrech Comm, Plulixey Petroleum, Bantu Africa Mining, Valley Field Holdings, Takunda Fuel Services, Musa Petroleum, Einstein Energy, Kinsey Mining, Emirates Valley, Afrifor, Megabest, Nelich Investments, BOL Supplies, Traderose Investments, Coalvart Enterprises, Kit Kat Enterprises, Skybuild Construction, Elkrus Pvt Limited, Getmack Fuels, Falika Pvt Ltd, Bustque, Talebrant Investments, Peritus, Downtown Fuel, Valbazen Enterprises, Quick Gases and Roomi Truckshop. When customs duties were raised significantly at the end of 2018 to bring Zimbabwean pricing into line with regional norms, there were suspicions based on the dramatic rise in fuel purchases in Zimbabwe that fuel was being smuggled out of the country and sold on black markets in the region. The recent exchange rate fluctuations and the premium paid on the black market for foreign currency have enhanced fears that the same problem may be resurfacing. Herald COPENHAGEN, Denmark A Norwegian cruise ship line halted all trips and apologized Monday for procedural errors after a coronavirus outbreak on one ship infected at least 5 passengers and 36 crew. Health authorities fear the ship also could have spread the virus to dozens of towns and villages along Norways western coast. The confirmed virus cases from the MS Roald Amundsen raise new questions about safety on all cruise ships during a pandemic even as the devastated cruise ship industry is pressing to resume sailings after chaotically shutting down in March. In response to the outbreak, Norway on Monday closed its ports to cruise ships for two weeks. The Hurtigruten cruise line was one of the first companies to resume sailing during the pandemic, starting cruises to Norway out of northern Germany in June with a single ship, then adding cruises in July to the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. The 41 people on the MS Roald Amundsen who tested positive have been admitted to the University Hospital of North Norway in Tromsoe, north of the Arctic Circle, where the ship currently is docked. The cruise line said it suspended the ship and two others the MS Fridtjof Nansen and the MS Spitsbergen from operating for an indefinite period. A preliminary evaluation shows that there has been a failure in several of our internal procedures, Hurtigruten CEO Daniel Skjeldam said in a statement. He added the company that sails along Norways picturesque coast between Bergen in the south and Kirkenes in the north is now in the process of a full review of all procedures. It has contacted passengers who had been on the MS Roald Amundsen for its July 17-24 and July 25-31 trips from Bergen to Svalbard, which is known for its polar bears. The ship had 209 guests on the first voyage and 178 on the second. All other crew members tested negative. But since the cruise line often acts like a local ferry, traveling from port to port along Norways western coast, the virus may not have been contained onboard. Some passengers disembarked along the route and may have spread the virus to their local communities. A total of 69 municipalities in Norway could have been affected, Norwegian news agency NTB reported. Officials in the northern city of Tromsoe are urging anyone who traveled on the ship or had any contact with it to get in touch with health authorities. Police in Norway are opening an investigation to find out whether any laws had been broken. Its not yet clear how the MS Roald Amundsen outbreak began. NTB reported that 33 of the infected crew members came from the Philippines and the others were from Norway, France and Germany. The passengers were from all over the world. Skjeldam said cruise ship officials did not know they should have notified passengers after the first infection was reported Friday, adding that they followed the advice of the ships doctors. But Line Vold of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health said its advice was to inform passengers and crew as soon as possible so they could monitor their health and go into quarantine or isolation, if needed. We have made mistakes. On behalf of all of us in Hurtigruten, I am sorry for what has happened. We take full responsibility, Skjeldam said. The Norwegian government announced Monday it was tightening the rules for cruise ships by banning ships with more than 100 passengers from docking in Norwegian harbors and disembarking passengers and crew for two weeks. The ban does not apply to ferries. Health Minister Bent Hoeie said the situation on the Hurtigruten ship prompted the decision. In Italy, the Costa Crociere cruise ship line said three crew members from two ships in Civitavecchia, near Rome, have tested positive for the coronavirus. The cruise company said two assigned to the Costa Deliziosa were hospitalized and a third, assigned to the Costa Favolosa, was in isolation on the ship. The Italian cruise company, which is part of Carnival Corp. said the crews of both ships were being screened in view of the possible relaunch of our cruises, as soon as the government gives the authorization. The Cabinet was to meet on the matter Sunday. Costa Crociere said that all crew members were tested for the virus before leaving their countries, then undergo a second test once they arrive in Italy, after which they are put under a two-week monitoring period. In the South Pacific, some 340 passengers and crew were confined on a cruise ship in Tahiti on Monday after one traveler tested positive for the virus. The commissariat for French Polynesia said all those aboard the Paul Gauguin cruise ship are being tested and will be kept in their cabins pending the results. The South Pacific archipelago started reopening to tourists last month, with a requirement that all visitors get tested before arriving and re-tested four days later. Cruise lines stopped sailing in mid-March after several high-profile coronavirus outbreaks at sea. More than 710 people fell ill aboard Carnivals Diamond Princess cruise ship while it was quarantined off Japan and 13 people died. The Cruise Lines International Association, which represents more than 50 companies and 95% of global cruise capacity, said the resumption of cruises has been extremely limited so far. The voyages taking place must have approval from and follow the requirements of national governments, it said. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control is not allowing cruise ships in U.S. waters at least through September. The industry association said it is still developing COVID-19-control procedures based on advice from governments and medical experts and once they are finalized, member companies will be required to adopt them. A German cruise ship last week set sail from Hamburg, testing procedures for how cruise ships can operate safely during the pandemic. The ship sailed with less than 50% capacity and only went on a four-day trip at sea with no stops at other ports. ___ Colleen Barry in Milan, Angela Charlton in Paris and Dee-Ann Durbin in Detroit contributed to this report. __ Follow APs pandemic coverage at http://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak Los Angeles City Councilman Jose Huizar, pictured in 2011, pleaded not guilty on Monday to racketeering, bribery, money laundering and other federal charges. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) Los Angeles City Councilman Jose Huizar pleaded not guilty on Monday to bribery, money laundering and an array of other charges, his first public response to the allegations in the corruption probe since prosecutors began securing guilty pleas from others in the case. Prosecutors announced last week that Huizar had been indicted on 34 felony counts, including wire fraud, mail fraud, tax evasion and giving false statements to investigators, which follow a previous allegation that he had been heading a criminal enterprise involving real estate developers, City Hall supplicants and an assortment of bribes. Huizar, wearing a mask, entered his plea while appearing before a federal judge by video conference. His lawyers had previously declined to address the allegations lodged by federal prosecutors, saying they intended to wage a defense in court. It was the councilman's first court appearance since he received permission to have two deputy federal public defenders, Charles Snyder and Carel Ale, represent him in the probe. After he was arrested in June on a racketeering charge, City Controller Ron Galperin halted payment of the councilman's salary, which was nearly $214,000 annually. A federal judge later determined that Huizar, who was first elected to the council in 2005, lacks the financial resources to "pay fully for retained counsel," instructing him to pay the court $3,000 per month while he is represented by the public defender's office. Huizar, 51, has been accused of securing a wide array of bribes, including cash, luxury hotel stays, expensive suits, campaign donations and other perks from businessmen looking to develop multi-story real estate projects in his district, or profit from that development in other ways. Prosecutors said he had received at least $1.5 million in "illicit financial benefits." The 113-page indictment, and a related affidavit filed two months ago, said Huizar relied on family members to launder the bribe proceeds. The documents offer a series of sordid allegations about the councilman, with prosecutors alleging that: Story continues A Chinese billionaire seeking to build a 77-story skyscraper downtown provided $600,000 in collateral for a loan that helped the councilman quietly settle a sexual harassment lawsuit lodged against him by a former staffer. Huizar took out a loan from a company connected with that billionaire, which came with an $800,000 balloon payment that would have come due this month, had Huizar not stopped making payments on it altogether, investigators said. A businessman who wanted Huizar to introduce him to real estate developers provided the councilman escorts, $10,000 in cash per month and free hotel stays so that Huizar could carry out an affair. Prosecutors said Huizar instructed that businessman not to tell the FBI about his use of escort/prostitution services, whom he referred to as "dessert." A real estate consultant, who later pleaded guilty in the case, complained that Huizar had asked him to coordinate a trip to Cuba for Huizar and a woman with whom the councilman was allegedly having an affair. The consultant declined, fearing that it would expose their corrupt relationships, prosecutors said. I told [Huizar], I said look, were all gonna be on record and if something happens, everything, everyones dead, the consultant said, according to the indictment filed last week. A trial-setting conference in the case is scheduled for Wednesday. Samsung is considering acquiring a small stake in ARM, between 3% and 5%, reports an industry official. The plan is for the remaining shares to be bought by a consortium of fabless semi-conductor companies, adds the insider. Samsungs goal is to reduce the royalty payments for producing chipsets based on the ARM platform the Cortex CPU and Mali GPU designs. The Korean giant uses these in its Exynos chipsets. Even if a company skips Cortex in favor of its own CPU design (e.g. the M-series cores), it still needs to pay a royalty for the use of the ARM instruction set. Thats not a concern for Samsung anymore as it shut down its custom CPU division. However, Apple is moving Macs to its in-house ARM-based chipsets, so it will need a license for the foreseeable future. Thats why Apple was one of the companies rumored to be interested in acquiring ARM. Some reports claimed that Nvidia was in advanced talks to acquire the firm fully, but there are questions as to whether thats possible. First, can the GPU maker foot the $41 billion bill? Thats SoftBanks valuation for ARM, according to the insider. Second and most important, such a deal might not even be approved. ARM-licensed CPUs are found anywhere from smartphones to washing machines and putting a single company in charge raises concerns of antitrust violations. SoftBank doesnt make chipsets, but Apple, Nvidia and Samsung all compete in the field to some extent, so they may be blocked if they try to buy 100% of ARM. Thats likely part of the reason Samsung wont try to takeover the company but share it with a consortium this will assure regulators that there wont be any anti-competitive behavior. Such a strategy has worked well for Samsung since it acquired a 3% stake in ASML back in 2012 (for $642 million). The Dutch company is currently the only one in the world that produces vital lithography equipment for Extreme UltraViolet (EUV) chips. Since then, Samsung has enjoyed a good relationship with the company even though it sold off half of its stake in 2016 and currently holds 1.5%. Samsung accounted for 29% of ASMLs sales in Q1 of 2020 as it has been expanding its EUV fab capacity. Source 02.08.2020 LISTEN One person has been killed instantly while another is battling for his life after a group of Nigerians clashed at a local pub in Kasoa. According to Citi News sources, the incident happened last Friday. The two groups were reportedly fighting over a woman leading to a man identified as Obinna Chucks, a Nigerian national, being stabbed by another group in front of the Gomoa Budumburam Police Station and is receiving treatment at the Cape Teaching Hospital. The identity of the individual who was also stabbed to death in the Blue Rose estate close to Gomoa Budumburam is not yet known. Speaking to Citi News chairman of the Nigeria Community in Gomoa Budumburam, Emmanuel Azebuike, indicated that efforts to collaborate with the Ghana Police Service to arrest these criminals have so far been unsuccessful. This has been a long lingering issue but as the chairman of the Nigeria community I have reported the activities of some of my brothers to the Police but its like Ghana believes in the law, The chairman of the Nigerian Community told Citi News. What I heard was that it was a lady that brought the issues where she was misbehaving towards one of the members. Emmanuel Azebuike indicated that those involved must be arrested and dealt with according to the laws of the land adding that the authorities are not happy about the incident that has happened. It is something very painful but what I know is that this incident is not related to the Nigerian who was shot by the Gomoa Budumburam Police. But the police have arrested one suspects and I also heard that one of the group has gone to put the house of one of the suspects on fire but the army and the Police have managed to put the fire down. He added that some of Nigerians are tarnishing the image of decent Nigerians in Ghana adding that the law must take its course. We are here under the confinement of the laws of Ghana and I have always been advising my brothers to always be law-abiding but most of these boys who are causing problems have nothing to show and we who have our wives and businesses here are rather behaving ourselves. I am telling the government I will help them to fish out these bads boys, Nigerian are good people but some of them have come here to cause problems for is, Emmanuel Azebuike said. He added that the police has not been proactive whenever they give them information leading to the arrest of these criminals adding that the Nigeria government is not in support of these criminals. We need peace and we cannot be running away because of these few criminals who dont know what they are here for he added. My government is not happy to be honest with you, Emmanuel Azebuike said. citinewsroom Candidates begin to file nominating petitions as election year kicks off Two local petitions have already been filed for local seats up for election in 2022. Photograph: Sergio Flores/Reuters An older man in an orange apron greets customers at the Home Depot in College Station, Texas. Signs serving as a reminder they are living through a pandemic are plastered on the sliding glass doors: Face covering required. The reminder is much needed because to an outsider, Texas looked almost the same in July 2019 as it does in July 2020, despite Covid-19 having claimed more than 6,000 lives in the state and more than 150,000 lives in the US since March. Customers at the home improvement store walk in wearing masks, which have become highly politicized, only to lower them below their chins to speak or remove them altogether. In the upscale neighborhood of Montrose in Houston, the multi-story Agora coffee house is full of people hungry for coffee, pastries and conversation. Its difficult to spot an open seat inside or outside on the patio. Its also difficult to spot anyone wearing anything resembling a face covering. The Texas governor, Greg Abbott, a Republican, caught flak for allowing the reopening of bars, restaurants, movie theaters and shopping malls back in early May. In June, he said that Texas was wide open for business. Now in late July, more than four months into the Covid-19 pandemic, a mandatory mask order is in place across the state a reversal from Abbotts initial position that the government should not infringe on personal rights by telling citizens what to do. Signage about mask requirements are seen in an Austin, Texas, restaurant. Photograph: Sergio Flores/Reuters But, with little enforcement except by some businesses, some worry Abbotts reversals are too little, too late. As hospitals struggle and cases mount, much of ordinary life in Texas still appears to continue as normal. We didnt shut down early enough, the Texas congresswoman Sylvia Garcia, a Democrat, said in a recent interview with ABC. [Abbott] failed to early order a mask law across the state. He has not given local officials the flexibility to do what they need to do in their own cities and counties. Related: 'The hotspot of a hotspot of a hotspot': coronavirus takes heavy toll in south Texas Story continues Texas has recently been reporting record single-day death tolls. Since the recording of data begun on 4 March, there had been 5,877 Covid-related deaths in the state as of 28 July. According to the Covid Tracking Project, Texas only saw 2,170 new tests per 1 million people as of 23 July. Thats about 60,500 new tests in total for the 29 million people in the state. The total number of tests (that came back both positive and negative in the state) is 3,164,656, or under 14%. Despite these numbers, many businesses in Texas remain fully operational. Meanwhile masks, which health experts recommend to prevent the transmission of the highly contagious virus, have become a symbol of Americas bitter political divide, with many Texas Republican officials shunning them after Donald Trump long refused to wear one in public. On Wednesday, the Texas congressman Louie Gohmert, who steadfastly refused to wear a mask during much of the coronavirus pandemic, said he had tested positive for Covid-19 and would self-quarantine for 10 days. Its really ironic, because a lot of people have made a big deal out of my not wearing a mask a lot, Gohmert said in an interview with KETK-TV. But in the last week or two, I have worn a mask more than I have in the whole last four months. Abbotts lieutenant governor, Dan Patrick, was also often at odds with the governor on masks, and recently criticized the advice of one of the USs top public health experts, Dr Anthony Fauci. In an interview in March, Patrick said he would rather die than see the economy destroyed for his grandchildren. Lets get back to work. Lets get back to living, he said. Lets be smart about it, and those of us who are 70-plus, well take care of ourselves, but dont sacrifice the country. Before Abbott announced the statewide mask order, Diana Robles said she didnt think the pandemic was being taken seriously in Texas. Robles, a recent high school graduate and an essential worker at a grocery store in Houston, has been working upwards of 40-plus hours a week. Since the pandemic, weve gotten busier. Our orders have quadrupled, Robles said. Once the mask law was implemented, I saw a difference. We can now refuse service to those who dont wear a mask, Robles said. What scares me the most was that I could be doing everything right but I didnt know if other people were. Something could have been done way sooner to prevent this. Robles has been tasked with limiting rolls of paper towels and toilet paper rolls as well as de-escalating tense situations with customers. She recounted some experiences dealing with difficult customers. I witnessed a lady that wanted to return a ham. We told her we werent accepting returns during Covid. My manager is from Venezuela and has a bit of an accent. The customer told her to go back to her country and threw the ham at her face, Robles said. Some customers are not understanding. I just wish people were considerate. Marisol Galarza is a daycare provider in Round Rock, Texas. Despite the soaring cases in the state, Galarza said the daycare is seeing new enrollments each week. Our director is giving us the option to take breaks from work if were not comfortable but we have bills so we cant really do that, she said. Galarzas workplace has been implementing safeguards to prevent the spread of the virus such as placing kids 6ft apart during nap time, but Galarza says she remains nervous. The kids wear their masks below their nose or under their chin, Galarza said. Its so hard because you dont want to tell them not to hug their friends. Since the pandemic, Galarza said she has considered changing careers. This is not going to be sustainable. Were going to be at high risk with high-capacity classrooms. I wash my hands after everything I do and I put on gloves. I see some teachers not even washing their hands. Texas schools and universities are due to resume in-person learning for the fall semester. The University of Texas announced plans to start football season on 5 September at 50% capacity, with an estimated 50,000 fans in the stands. Nonye Imo, a resident physician in Dallas, said the states response had been terrible. The economy was prioritized over human life. The desire to make money was prioritized over human life, Imo said. That is terrible. The current people who are in charge who fumbled this response need to be voted out. Imo said she had already witnessed the toll the virus has taken on herself and her colleagues. I got assigned to the ICU the first month of my program. We have had to limit visitors so people cannot visit their family members who are critically ill, Imo said. But the attendings I work with in the Covid unit are bearing the brunt of it. Imo said it was an overwhelming time to be entering medicine. I have grown to think about medicine as a calling but its interesting for that idea to be tested so early in my career, Imo said. Im willing to take the risk but I didnt think Id have to take it on so early. When asked about Texass outlook over the next few months, she said: The community spread rate is so high. The word pandemic is not just being used to scare people. The media is not blowing it up. This is serious. Libya returnees in Edo State have expressed their readiness to mobilise voters in the state to re-elect Governor Godwin Obaseki and his deputy, Rt. Hon. Comrade Philip Shaibu, ahead of the September 19, 2020, gubernatorial election. Mr. Eghe Igbinoba, spoke to journalists on behalf of the returnees in Benin City on Sunday. Mr. Igbinoba said, Governor Obaseki who is the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) demonstrated true leadership when we had crisis in Libya. Thousands of Edo youths were trapped in Libya and didnt know what to do. We were so frustrated and many of us had given up on hope for any rescue plan. But Obaseki rose to the challenge and liaised with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the federal government to rescue us. When we arrived Lagos, vehicles sent by the Obaseki-led government were waiting to take us to Edo State. For the first time in my life, I was very proud of the fact that I am from Edo State. My friends from other states did not receive such Very Important Personality (VIP) treatment. When we arrived Benin City, we were tested for various diseases, treated and rehabilitated. After that we were taught various skills and starter packs were given to us to start a new life. Today many of us are doing well and we owe our new life to our governor. In the past, we had returnees from Libya and elsewhere but no one paid them any attention, he said. Igbinoba urged Edo voters to come out en masse on to cast their votes for Obaseki. When quizzed on some achievements of Obaseki, he said: I am very proud of the revamp of the former Benin Technical College, which is now Government Science and Technical College. With such a college, our youths do not have go to Libya by road anymore. CHICAGO - July in Chicago ended as it began: Mourning the death of a child whose only mistake was venturing outside to play when someone armed with a gun came to the neighbourhood hunting for an enemy. On Monday, two days after his department released statistics that revealed the month had been one of the deadliest in the history of the city, Police Superintendent David Brown repeated what has become a grim ritual of recounting the death of a child. This time, the story was about Janari Ricks. Nine years old, (he) was shot and killed while doing what every child in our city should able to do without a second thought ... playing with friends on a warm summer evening just outside his front door, said Brown. Now, instead of planning for his future, Janaris parents are arranging for their childs funeral. His death underscores a surge in gun violence in the the United States that has been building all year. In New York City, there have been 237 homicides in 2020 compared to 181 for the same period last year. In Atlanta, the totals are lower but the surge is apparent: 76 homicides so far this year compared to 56 for the first seven months of 2019. Of this years total number of homicides, 23, or nearly a third, were recorded in July alone. It has been a similar story in Boston. After recording 25 homicides in the first seven months of 2019, Boston had 35 during the same period this year. And 15 of those were during July. Just how many of the years victims are children is difficult to say. But every day headlines around the country tell story after story of children dying while doing nothing more than being children. In Ohio, in little more than a week: A 14-year-old boy in Columbus died on July 25 when he was shot while riding a scooter; An infant was killed and his twin brother wounded when someone fired shots into their home on July 22. And on Sunday, a 1-year-old was killed in Akron and two adults wounded when someone opened fire on a home. It was not immediately clear exactly how many children were homicide victims this year in Ohio, but in Columbus alone, the total stands at 13. In Philadelphia, a 7-year-old shot in the head over the weekend during a shootout between three men in front of his home later died of his injuries. Police spokesman Inspector Sekou Kinebrew said Zamar Jones died Monday. The boy was sitting on his porch Saturday when he was shot. One of the men involved in the shooting, Christopher Linder, 27, was arrested and charged with attempted murder and aggravated assault, and now faces murder charges, the district attorneys office said. The others involved in the shooting arent in custody. According to Philadelphia police, the city has seen a 36% increase in gun violence this year over last year. The number of people murdered through Sunday was 255, a 34% increase over last year, and more than the annual total for 2014, when 248 people were slain. In the minutes after July became August, the Chicago Police Department reported there had been 105 homicides during the month compared to 44 in July 2019, making it the deadliest month in the city since September 1992. Chicago had suffered 440 homicides by the end of July, compared to 290 for the same period last year. And more and more of the victims are children. Brown said Janari was the 38th juvenile to be fatally shot in the city this year. In all, 19 children under the age of 10 have been shot in 2020, five of them fatally. According to a report published Monday in the Chicago Tribune, those five homicides are more than double the tally for children under 10 shot and killed than in any other year in the last eight years. The reasons, according to those who watch the violence, try to prevent it and have been touched by it, begin with the open gang warfare in Chicago that seems to have increased in recent years. Brown has said there are more than 100,000 gang members who belong to the citys 55 known gangs that are themselves divided into some 2,500 subsets of gangs. But recent shootings, including one outside the funeral of a gang member, underlines a terrorizing fact about the gangs: they seem more willing than ever to simply open fire in the direction of a rival without regard to anyone else. That is what happened on the evening of July 4 when, according to prosecutors, three men in a car spotted a man they believed killed a member of their gang days before. They climbed out of the vehicle and opened fire. One of bullets struck the intended target in the ankle, but a nother hit 7-year-old Natalia Wallace in the forehead and killed her as she played in front of her grandmothers house. We shouldnt have to worry about somebody pulling up to shoot (but) it just seems like its becoming the new normal. A child shot dead playing in the street, just being a kid, said her father, Nathan Wallace. She was just enjoying the 4th. The Rev. Michael Pfleger, a Roman Catholic priest and prominent activist on the citys South Side for more than 40 years, said this new normal involves a willingness to shoot whoever is near an intended target. The shootings used to be targeted, but now it is spraying at porches, parks, down the street, he said. I dont think theyre trying to kill kids but I think their attitude is, I may not get you but I know those are your friends and family out there and I will get somebody you know. ___ Associated Press writers Kate Brumback in Atlanta; Andrew Welsh-Huggins in Columbus, Ohio; and Alanna Durkin Richer in Boston contributed to this report. While several people have come forward to help those in need amid the lockdown, a woman from the Kashmir Valley is providing sanitary napkins to women and young girls who have limited means. Irfana Zargar is distributing free sanitary napkins to girls and women in Srinagar and nearby villages in the Kashmir valley. Due to the coronavirus lockdown, women in Kashmir were facing problems in getting their hands on sanitary napkins due to their free movement and closure of markets. With most establishments downing their shutters in light of the COVID-19 lockdown, many had lost access to essentials, including hygiene products. However, Irfana Zargar came to the rescue of 5000 underprivileged women in the Srinagar district, by providing them sanitary napkins. pic.twitter.com/udICOVEbMZ DD NEWS SRINAGAR (@ddnewsSrinagar) June 20, 2020 Under an initiative called ''Eva Safety Kit'', Irfana Zargar decided to do something for women and she dedicated the initiative to her late and beloved father, Ghulam Hassan Zargar. She has distributed menstrual kits in around 15 washrooms around Srinagar which are available at free of cost. "I started this concept in the washrooms first, when it came to my mind, I wanted to cover 15 washrooms in Srinagar city and later go to villages" Irfana told news agency ANI. #WomenEmpowerment at its best. While some people are distributing necessary food items to the needy amid #Covid_19 lockdown, Irfana Zargar is busy distributing free of cost sanitary kits to women & young girls in #Srinagar & nearby villages in #Kashmir valley. 1/n @Nidhi @nistula pic.twitter.com/FagIj5NWWj SARIA WANI (@SariaW) August 3, 2020 "If my sisters and brothers are with me then by the grace of God I will take this initiative forward and I want to take this mission to villages after the lockdown gets lifted, I will start this initiative again in the washrooms" she added. Irfana has invested half her salary in purchasing menstrual products and has distributed it all to unprivileged girls. Irfana Zargar's kit contains all the essentials that are required for maintaining healthy menstrual practices like sanitary napkins, antispasmodics and hand wash. She said it is imperative that women are taken care of as they are the building blocks of the society. Microsoft has posted a statement today on its corporate blog that says it will continue discussions on a potential TikTok purchase in the U.S. As a part of the statement, it says that it may invite other "American investors" to participate on a minority basis. The company says that this is a result of conversations between CEO Satya Nadella and President Trump. That is, basically, the "news" here. Previous reports and our own digging pointed to the situation being totally in the hands of the White House, with Microsoft willing to make the buy but having roadblocks in the form of presidential sentiment. If Satya has engaged Trump directly then there could be light at the end of this possibility tunnel after all. "Following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald J. Trump, Microsoft is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the United States," the statement reads. "Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury." Microsoft says that in any case their discussions about acquisition from ByteDance would complete no later than September 15th, 2020 and that it is keeping discussion ongoing with the president and the U.S. government. The purchase would cover TikTok operations in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand and would result in Microsoft owning and operating it in those markets. One region not mentioned here is India, which could provide an interesting future opportunity for both companies if this deal goes down. If Microsoft can position itself as a steward of TikTok, it removes the data issue (if not the over-arching national tensions between China and India). Unsurprisingly, data and privacy protections make an appearance, with Microsoft assuring that "the operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries." Story continues "Among other measures, Microsoft would ensure that all private data of TikToks American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the United States, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred." The historical here (if you can call it that because this whole thing has been the work of but a couple weeks tops) is that Microsoft is pursuing TikTok because ByteDance needs to divest it in order to keep it running in the U.S., one of its biggest markets. That need arose when the White House decided that it was important to make a stink about data sovereignty with relation to the China-owned network. Even though social services of many kinds, including Facebook, Twitter, Google (all of which are banned in China already) and others, offer aggregate data through advertising brokerages that can make deals globally, the opportunity presented itself to run up the anti-China flag and take aim at an easy target -- an app that undoubtedly has access to an enormous amount of behavioral data on U.S. citizens and therefore has genuine data privacy concerns. And then there's the fun Twitter theory that Trump just got pissed at a comedian who got very popular making fun of him on the platform. Anyway, now we have another tock in the TikTok ticking clock. We'll reach out to all parties, but this looks like it may be the final result of this weekend's flurry of news on this. We'll see you Monday morning. Gov. Andrew Cuomo today said parents will be the ultimate decision makers on whether or not they send their children to school. Cuomo said while he will make a decision later this week on whether or not to reopen schools, parents will be the ones to actually decide if they are comfortable sending their children back into classrooms. They wont do it if they are uncertain, he said. Although the nearly 700 districts submitted plans to the state Education Department last week, that doesnt necessarily mean teachers and children will be returning to classrooms this fall. Those plans detail how each district plans to teach kids this fall: online, hybrid or all in class. Related article: How is your school reopening? See 63 Central New York school district coronavirus plans Parents have a lot of questions, and Cuomo said he encourages all schools to set up virtual discussion groups to answer questions from parents and make them part of the process. Time is short, so it should start now, he said. Traditionally, New York state public schools open just after Labor Day, which is five weeks away. Its not well the government says the school are open, now everybody must go. Its not going to happen that way,' he said. Parents arent going to trust their school district; its an issue of public health, he said. Parents want to understand the information for themselves, and make their own decisions. They will have lots of questions. Cuomo said some school districts plans are undecipherable, and some havent come in yet. Some dont have enough detail, and some raise questions to be answered. Schools cant just open in a vacuum - you need parents and teachers to be comfortable and you need the children to show up,' he said. Many Central New York districts are taking surveys of parents to try to figure out how many will send their kids back to school. Most districts have given parents the option to have kids learn online. The governor said not reopening schools is also highly problematic for a variety of reasons. For one, online learning is not an equalizer; its a separator,' he said. Students in poorer districts as well as some rural areas often dont access to the internet which makes online learning impossible. Coronavirus and schools Hybrid school reopening plans leave CNY parents scrambling: A lot of people I know are quitting their jobs to be home NY coronavirus restart: Schools may have to let cautious parents keep their kids home all week Yes, CNY kids are probably going back to school in fall. But heres the stuff youll hate (video) McMahon: Hybrid school reopening plans will create an absolute crisis Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com Elizabeth Doran covers education, suburban government and development, breaking news and more. Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact her anytime 315-470-3012 or email edoran@syracuse.com After more than two decades, a social media marketplace brought together a student who had recently arrived in Canada and a teacher who made him feel welcome and inspired all those years ago. And it was all due to an ad for a flower planter. In August 1997, Nashat Cassim was just five-years-old when he arrived in Toronto from Sri Lanka with his parents and sister. The family settled in Regent Park and Cassim remembers it was a strange and scary time. "At the time it was a little intimidating; it wasn't always the safest place to live. I know my parents were feeling pretty overwhelmed." Just before he started at his new school in his new country, two junior kindergarten teachers from Sprucecourt Public School, located right where Regent Park meets Cabbagetown, paid a visit to his house. TDSB Along with school supplies, they brought encouragement, advice and support, which continued through the school year. After about a year and a half, the family moved out of downtown, eventually buying a home in Markham, north of the city. Cassim would go on to high school, then university and is now doing his residency in pediatric dentistry at the University of Toronto. He works at the Hospital for Sick Children, Mount Sinai Hospital and does outreach work in his old Regent Park neighbourhood. He founded an after-school program there called Junior Smiles to teach kids about oral health. He has taught at dental schools abroad and hopes to eventually become a professor. 'I remember him so well' Earlier this month, Cassim's mother asked him to post the flower planter she wanted to sell on Facebook Marketplace. Someone named Karen Ayotte responded, but she was in The Beach neighbourhood in Toronto and could not go to Markham to pick it up. For Cassim, the name sounded familiar, so he clicked on her profile. "My teacher's name was Ms. Ayotte and I look at the school she worked at and now the gears are turning in my head." Story continues So Cassim messaged her back asking if she taught senior kindergarten back in the 1990s and when she said yes, he sent her a picture of them both along with another teacher, Ms. Gibson. "I remember him so well," said Ayotte, who taught for 32 years at Spruce Court Public School and is the longest-serving teacher the school has had. submitted by Nashat Cassim "He was a quiet child quite liked by his classmates, eager to learn, a little bit shy," she said. "But he had a lot of support from his parents," Ayotte recalled, adding she and another teacher used to do home visits and introduce themselves to families and let them know what to expect in September. Ayotte, 64, is still working for the Toronto District School Board as a site administrator in its International Language program. "I find the newcomers coming to this country take education very seriously." She was happy to reconnect with Cassim and the two arranged a time and place to meet. He brought her the flower stand, which he gave to her for free, along with a long thank you note and a Tim Horton's gift card. "How it happened is so surprising to say the least," Ayotte said. "I was a little overwhelmed. And to hear how successful he is did my heart a lot of good." 'They had such an impact on me' Cassim thinks his success is at least partly due to Ayotte and Ms. Gibson, the other teacher who visited him that day so long ago. "I think that value of education and that passion for education traces back to me having such a good experience," he said, adding he often wished he could thank these two warm and encouraging educators. "I always kind of wondered about those two teachers because they had such an impact on me, but back then social media was non-existent," said Cassim. "I didn't even know teachers had first names. I didn't even know teachers didn't live at school. The idea of contacting teachers was not really in my head back then, but as I grew older I always remembered those teachers and thought of them fondly." Cassim also tracked down Ms. Gibson, who had moved up to Uxbridge, Ont. All three plan to get together as soon as it's safe amid the COVID-19 pandemic. "I don't know if I'd be where I am today without them giving me that foundation," said Cassim. "It's a good reminder of what an impact a good teacher can have." NEW DELHI (PTI): India on Sunday pressed for complete disengagement of Chinese troops at the earliest from Pangong Tso and a couple of other friction points in eastern Ladakh during the nearly 11-hour-long intense negotiations between senior commanders of the two armies, people familiar with the developments said. The fifth round of Corps Commander-level talks began at 11 AM at a designated meeting point in Moldo on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and continued beyond 10 PM, they said. Even as both sides are engaged in diplomatic and military talks, the Indian Army is making elaborate preparations to maintain its current strength of troops in all key areas in eastern Ladakh in the harsh winter months as a resolution to the border row appears dim, they said. At the talks, the Indian side insisted on complete disengagement of Chinese troops at the earliest and immediate restoration of status quo ante in all areas of eastern Ladakh prior to May 5 when the standoff began following a clash between the two armies in Pangong Tso, they said. The Indian delegation was led by Lt Gen Harinder Singh, the commander of the Leh-based 14 Corps, while the Chinese side was to be headed by Major General Liu Lin, commander of the South Xinjiang military region. The previous round of Corps Commander-level talks had taken place on July 14 and it lasted for nearly 15 hours. The Chinese army has pulled back from Galwan Valley and certain other friction points but the withdrawal of troops has not moved forward from the Finger areas in Pangong Tso since the last round of military talks as demanded by India, sources said. India has been insisting that China must withdraw its forces from areas between Finger Four and Eight. The mountain spurs in the area are referred to as Fingers. The focus of the talks was to be on finalising the modalities for further de-escalation, and disengagement of troops from various friction points, said the sources. There was no official word on details of the meeting. On July 24, India and China held another round of diplomatic talks on the border issue. After the talks, the Ministry of External Affairs said both sides agreed that an early and complete disengagement of the troops along the LAC in accordance with bilateral agreement and protocols was essential for overall development of bilateral relations. The formal process of disengagement of troops began on July 6, a day after a nearly two-hour telephonic conversation between National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on ways to bring down tension in the area. The first round of the Lt General talks was held on June 6 during which both sides finalised an agreement to disengage gradually from all the standoff points beginning with Galwan Valley. However, the situation deteriorated following the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15 in which 20 Indian Army personnel were killed as the two sides significantly bolstered their deployments in most areas along the LAC. The Chinese side also suffered casualties in the June 15 clashes but it is yet to give out the details. According to an American intelligence report, the number of casualties on the Chinese side was 35. The second round of talks took place on June 22. In the third round of military talks on June 30, both sides agreed on an "expeditious, phased and step wise" de-escalation as a "priority" to end the standoff. Following the Galwan Valley incident, the government has given the armed forces "full freedom" to give a "befitting" response to any Chinese misadventure along the LAC. The Army has sent thousands of additional troops to forward locations along the border following the deadly clashes. The IAF has also moved air defence systems as well as a sizeable number of its frontline combat jets and attack helicopters to several key air bases. - A 24-year-old Nigerian man says he has recently landed a job as an assistant vice president for one of the largest banks in the United Kingdom - The graduate of mathematics and finance made the disclosure on Twitter - He, however, did not disclose the name of the bank Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in A Nigerian man with the Twitter handle @taizer_ on Twitter has said he recently got a job as an assistant vice president for one of the largest banks in the United Kingdom. The 24-year-old man made the disclosure on the microblogging site but did not disclose the name of the bank. However, he did not disclose the name of the bank. @taizer_, who is a graduate of mathematics and finance, wrote: Aced my interview, got the job and now youre looking at the newest Assistant Vice President in one of the largest UK banks. READ ALSO: Meet supermodel from Ghana who was awarded as model of the year in Canada The 24-year-old Nigerian man says he got a job as an assistant vice president for one of the largest banks in the UK. Photo credit: @taizer_/Twitter Source: UGC As expected, Nigerians took to the comment section of the post to congratulate him. A Twitter user with the handle @BolanleOdu wrote: "Know that your win is not for you alone. It is for many others who have skin like yours and identity like yours. "Congratulations." READ ALSO: Kafaba killing: Son shares unfulfilled wish of murdered 90-year-old mother Another user with the handle @a_dmp9 wrote: "Congratulations mate! Wish you nothing but good vibes and success for the rest of your career." @Deputyzaddy wrote: "Congratulations brother.. this is just the beginning of your rise to career success... Shine on." @summshawty wrote: "Congrats thats a big accomplishment holyy!!" Below are other comments: READ ALSO: Drolor Bosso Adamtey I: Ghanaian King & Christian leader in U.S. condemns killing of 90-year-old Meanwhile, it was previously reported that a Nigerian man who arrived Canada as a student five years ago took to Twitter to share his success story. The man identified as Tunde Omotoye said he arrived Canada five years ago as a student who was unsure of what the future had for him in the North American country. Despite the uncertainty, he revealed that he has launched his own company five years after leaving the shores of Nigeria. According to Omotoye, his company's aim is to help immigrants like him navigate their immigration and career journeys confidently and swiftly. He tweeted: "5 years ago, I arrived Canada. A student, unsure of what the future had for me in Canada. Enjoy reading our stories? Download YEN's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Ghana news! Faces of Ghana: 2 brothers paving roads in Ghana with granite and cobblestones: Share your stories and news by getting interactive on our Facebook page! Source: YEN.com.gh Michelle Klimesh said that Diablo Gymnastics had its best financial year ever in 2019. 2020 couldnt look more different. Instead, the business owner is doing everything she can to keep the San Ramon business running, including selling her great-grandfathers house in Iowa, which has been in her family for generations. Thank God I was so financially conservative, Klimesh said. Most gymnastic schools are like restaurants, and if I had to guess they arent going to make it through the pandemic. Many were already in debt before this started. Klimesh said she was lucky to have money in the bank when the pandemic hit, as well as a line of credit reserved for emergencies. She received a PPP loan in April, but since the gym hasnt been able to reopen fully shes not able to spend the allotted amount on payroll for it to be forgiven. Shes been able to use some of it on rent and keeping health care coverage for her employees, but shes waiting to use the rest of it. Klimesh said shes also negotiating with her landlord to delay a few rent payments, something she said she feels fortunate to be able to do since she has such a kind landlord. But now, shes in debt, which she said she hates and has never experienced since she took over the gym in 1979. She began to look at her assets and knew it was time to sell the family house. Shes currently in Iowa fixing up the house, which was built in 1920, to put it on the market, and even if it doesnt sell, shell start renting it. Theres also a GoFundMe running to benefit the gym, which she said her daughter encouraged her to start months ago, but she resisted. Her daughter, who also works for her, continued to pressure her and Klimesh said she finally decided that if things didnt look like they were getting better by July 31, shed relent. Her daughter set up the fundraiser on Aug. 1 and as of publishing, it had raised more than $30,000 of its $90,000 goal. I finally gave up thinking I could fix this myself, Klimesh said. At some point, you have to ask for help. Its not above me. Now I know I can already cover rent and healthcare for August. She said shes been overwhelmed by the support, receiving money from students she taught more than 30 years ago. Kids I havent seen in 35 years are sending me money, she said. And they arent kids anymore theyre 50-year-old women. But theyre still teenagers in my mind. Its been emotional to get back in touch with people. Tessa McLean is a digital editor with SFGATE. Email her at tessa.mclean@sfgate.com or follow her on Twitter @mcleantessa. Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi (R) has virtual meeting with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on July 30 (Source: antara) During a virtual meeting with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on July 30, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said there is a need for China, as a signatory to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC), to abide by the code of conduct while trying to resolve disputes related to the East Sea with Southeast Asian countries, the Indonesian news agency Antara reported on August 1. Marsudi said in media briefing that the TAC has been accessioned by many countries, including China, the US, India, Australia, Japan, and the Republic of Korea. Therefore, it is the obligation of those countries to follow the treatys principles. She also stressed that dialogue is the best way to resolve conflicts and highlighted the consistent principle upheld by Indonesia in addressing the struggle for territory and power in the East Sea: that of respecting international law. The diplomat also called on all parties to continue to prioritise cooperation and collaboration, rather than adverse rivalry./. Vatican City: The Vatican has rejected a report in a German newspaper that claimed former pope Benedict XVI was seriously ill. The clarification came hours after Benedict's biographer, Peter Seewald, sparked alarm by telling the Passauer Neue Presse that he had found the ex-pope exceptionally frail when he visited him on Saturday. Emeritus pope Benedict XVI on his departure from Germany after visiting his brother in June. Credit:DPA The Vatican's statement described the former pontiff's health as "not particularly worrying". Benedict XVI, the first pontiff in 600 years to resign instead of ruling for life, was an old man of 93 who is overcoming the most acute phase of a painful but not grave illness, the Vatican said. After the coronavirus pandemic hit New Jersey in March, Bergen County teen Ajay Sachdev felt a sense of purpose helping students with their homework on an online tutoring site. But he couldnt shake the feeling that others were being left behind those that couldnt afford the private lessons, which he offered for $10 an hour, the lowest amount the site allowed. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) London, United Kingdom Mon, August 3, 2020 07:06 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b0e586 2 Lifestyle hygge,lifestyle,cottagecore,trend,nature Free While the Danish concept for coziness has taken the world by storm since the late 2010s, the cottagecore aesthetic is now poised to overtake hygge as the biggest lifestyle trend of the post-coronavirus era. Whereas hygge has been a central tenet of Danish culture for centuries, cottagecore is championed by an emerging community of millennial devotees who promote an idealized interpretation of pastoral life across social media. The nostalgia-driven trend is particularly popular on TikTok, where hordes of cottagecore enthusiasts have shared videos of themselves interacting with farm animals, taking forest baths or baking a loaf of bread in their whimsical country cottage. Among them are Lillie Elkins, a self-described cottagecore witch, who garnered some 348,200 likes on the Chinese platform with a video of her morning routine on an overcast day. I woke up to a cloudy day, so I made lemon bars and candied lemons until the sun came out, she wrote in the caption for her post. As a growing number of people begin to question the long-term benefits of city life after months of lockdown, cottagecore appears as a sustainable, eco-friendly and anxiety-free alternative to the unpredictable nature of daily life. There is a huge movement towards slowing down and reaching back towards aspects of yesteryear. Handwritten notes, eating outdoors, candles, flowers, homeopathic and DIY remedies you name it, Nora Melton, Nashville-based event stylist and founder of Styled by Nora, comments. Hygge encompasses a similar feeling of cozy contentment and wellbeing through the most mundane aspects of everyday life, such as lighting a candle, enjoying a hearty meal with friends and family or reading a book curled up under a blanket. However, while hygge calls for soothing neutrals and modern Danish design, cottagecore swaps ornament-hating Scandinavian minimalism with maximalist and personality-rich interiors that give a modern twist to cottage life. This taste for old-school design translates into ceramic floral dinnerware, lace tablecloths, patterned wallpapers and cozy furniture pieces reminiscent of a simpler life in the countryside. Although it can seem ostensibly feminine, cottagecore transcends gender divides to appeal to a broad, millennial-ish clientele that shares a common love for eclectic home furnishings and rich patterns. British interior designers Ben Pentreath and Luke Edward Hall have long been champions of the cottagecore aesthetic. Everything comes back into style. People want to engage in activities and ideas that make them seem different or unique. In a time where technology is everything, reverting back to slower more intentional moments makes people feel good, Melton adds. Topics : hygge lifestyle cottagecore trend nature Editorial Frydenberg A confused economist A couple of weeks ago, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg told ABC televisions Insiders program that Thatcher and Reagan are figures of hate for the left because they were so successful. For him, their success was marked by the fact that One got two terms, which was the maximum that you can get in the United States. Margaret Thatcher got 11 and a half years, the result of both former leaders cut[ting] red tape and they cut taxes and delivered stronger economies. These remarks should make anyone with an ounce of moral fibre recoil in disgust. However, were these economics stronger? Thatchers UK was always bogged down with the highest rate of unemployment the country had seen in half a century, with income inequality reaching heights not seen in the previous decade. According to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, The proportions of households that were core poor and breadline poor declined during the 1970s, but then increased again during the 1980s. And now, in the drivers seat of our economy, during a completely unprecedented economic and health crisis, is a man who thinks the kind of economic legacy Thatcher left behind was something to be admired, and even worse, to take inspiration from! These comments only leave us asking: What aspects of Thatcherism is Frydenberg going to take inspiration from? Will Thatchers education cuts, which resulted in the snatching of free milk from school kids, be a model to emulate? We already know what the our government thinks of university students (Guardian #1921, Editorial: Arts and humanities suffer under new government plan) so this wouldnt be too far off the mark. Perhaps even more confusing than suggesting Thatcher and Reagan are inspirations during this incredibly precarious time was Frydenbergs comments about the kind of government the Morrison government intends on being during this pandemic: We are not a government of austerity. We are a government that will support the economy at a time that they need it, but we will also be disciplined. What he means by disciplined is anyones guess, but it is likely that all Frydenberg is attempting to do here is to speak out of both sides of his mouth. Frydenberg is merely trying to conceal the seriousness of the economic situation Australia is facing. In this regard, Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has done a great job in highlighting the hypocrisy of the Coalition. When in opposition, it hounded the Rudd government for its spending during the Global Financial Crisis qualifying the debt accumulated as unbearable, ($48 bil) crippling, ($90 bil) exorbitant, ($153 bil) and addicted ($160 bil). But now, with a deficit of $677 bil, the debt is somehow manageable, a far-cry from its early proclamations of an economy that was going to be back in the black. It is important to note that spending, when it is in the interests of the working-class, is not a bad thing. However, while the government has had to swallow some hard pills and subsidise wages in the form of JobKeeper, and support those made redundant with JobSeeker Coronavirus supplement, it nonetheless is attempting remove itself from any obligation it has to those suffering the most. Just last week, the Guardian reported on the cuts to the JobSeeker coronavirus supplement that will see the program paying out only $815.70 per fortnight or $58 a day by October, putting those without jobs back behind the poverty-line. It also reported on the cuts to JobKeeper of $300 at the same time. We must ensure that our government never follows through with the kinds of disastrous economic management of the Thatcher and Reagan years, and keep the present rate of JobKeeper and JobSeeker so that the working-class isnt left in the cold. By Trend Renewable energy sector is of particular interest both for Romania and Azerbaijan, Niculae Havrile?, State Secretary of the Ministry for Economy, Energy and Business Environment of Romania, told Trend. "The use of energy from renewable sources has many potential benefits, including a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and diversification of energy supply. Romania has assumed the achievement of a target of 30.7 percent regarding the share of renewable energy in 2030, from the level of 24 percent reached in 2017. We know that Azerbaijan has also set ambitious targets for the share of renewable and alternative energy in the total energy consumption mix, and has under consideration or implementation a number of projects," said the state secretary. Havrile? noted that Romania has a significant potential in terms of renewables from wind, hydro, solar, geothermal or biomass sources, and important projects are underway or undergoing assessment. "In addition to classic projects such as photovoltaic and wind farms, there are also new projects that use innovative technologies that combine renewable capacities with the existing cogeneration plants. Recent assessments regarding the Black Sea coast area and the offshore area show that the wind potential which can be developed in the short and medium term is high with the possibility of obtaining a considerable amount of energy. It is estimated that Romanias offshore wind potential at the Black Sea is of over 70,000 MW. In this context, the biggest European on-shore wind farm is located in Romania and the Romanian authorities are promoting the inclusion of the Black Sea in the future EU Strategy for off shore wind energy production," he said. The state secretary said a suggestive example in the line of projects considered for development of the renewable energy sector is the tender for a feasibility study aimed at exploring the opportunity to invest in wind or solar energy, as well as biogas and geothermal power plants that was launched this year by Romgaz company, the largest Romanian natural gas producer. "At the same time, Hidroelectrica, the most important Romanian energy company in hydro generation, intends to expand its production portfolio in renewables and develop new wind capacities onshore and offshore. Both examples are relevant of a larger trend of energy producers moving into renewables and beyond their "traditional" areas in search of growth opportunities," said Havrile?. "For these reasons, the renewable energy sector is of particular interest both for Romania and Azerbaijan. There are a multitude of project proposals for capitalizing on the potential of this sector in both countries, some of which I mentioned before. We hope to be able to resume discussions with our Azerbaijani friends as soon as possible, both at ministry and companies level, in order to take advantage of the opportunities for cooperation in this field, based on partnership and mutual interest." He quarantined with his ex wife and three eldest daughters in Idaho. And Bruce Willis appears to have returned to California to be with his wife Emma and their children after he was spotted enjoying a bike ride in Brentwood on Sunday. The actor, 65, cut a casual figure in shorts as he soaked up the sunshine and went for a relaxing cycle around the area. Casual: Bruce Willis, 65, cut a casual figure as he went for a bike ride in Brentwood, California, on Sunday after isolating in Idaho with his ex wife Bruce looked relaxed as he exercised, donning a pair of trainers and striped blue socks to ensure he was comfortable. He also made sure to stay safe by wearing a helmet and kept hydrated by taking a bottle of water with him for the cycle. Although his wife Emma, 41, and their two daughters Mabel, eight, and Evelyn, six, were seen in California in May, this is the first time that Bruce has been seen back in the state. In Instagram Story posts, the English/American actress showed the girls hanging out near the Santa Monica Pier. Laid back: The actor looked relaxed as he peddled along the treat in checked shorts, trainers and a simple black t-shirt Emma made it clear she was ready to be on the West Coast, backing the clips with the Beach Boy's classic California Girls. 'And then back to reality,' she captioned one post of the stunning horizon. Bruce was reportedly visiting his ex and adult daughters when he got stuck at Demi's Sun Valley, Idaho residence after lockdowns swept across the states, halting travel. Going back to Cali: Bruce's wife Emma Hemming, 41, shared photos of their daughters back in California in May, but the actor was nowhere to be seen During that time Emma stayed with their daughters Mabel and Evelyn but eventually they were able to fly to Idaho to join Bruce in May. Sources made it clear that there was nothing strange about the arrangement, as Emma and Demi have a close relationship. 'Demi and Emma are close, and all three get on great as a big blended family,' insider told People.' There are no issues at all. Emma needed to stay in L.A. with the young kids.' Family time: Bruce previously spent quarantine in Sun Valley, Idaho with his ex Demi Moore, 57, and three eldest daughters Rumer, 31, Scout, 29, and Tallulah, 26. Emma and their girls Mabel, eight, and Evelyn, six, managed to join later Emma and the girls eventually made it to Idaho, meaning the entire extended family got to spend some time in lockdown together. Bruce and Demi were married from 1987 to 2000 and share daughters Rumer, 31, Scout, 29, and Tallulah, 26. After their divorce, he went on to marry Emma in 2009. And Demi recently gave a glimpse into her and ex Bruce's relationship, crediting him for her bathroom's quirky interior designs. Home style: Bruce was reportedly visiting his ex and adult daughters when he got stuck at Demi's Sun Valley, Idaho residence after lockdowns swept across the states, halting travel The actress, 57, was asked about the plush bathroom in her Idaho home during a remote appearance on Late Night With Seth Meyers. Seth, 46, brought it up after Demi shared a snap of her bathroom on social media, with the floor covered in brown carpeting. Blaming her ex-husband for the decision to line her bathroom with carpet, Demi joked to Seth: 'That originally was a Bruce Willis choice, not to put it all on him.' The Apple Fire burns behind mountains near Beaumont, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) A huge wildfire in mountains east of Los Angeles that is Southern California's biggest blaze so far this year was still raging Monday, with thousands of people forced to evacuate their homes. The blaze in Riverside County, among several wildfires across California, had consumed more than 41 square miles (about 106 square kilometers) of dry brush and timber since it broke out Friday evening, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. As of Monday morning, it was just 5% contained and the fire along with coronavirus precautions made for added stress at an evacuation center, said John Medina, an American Red Cross spokesman. Volunteers used to "close contact" with evacuees have had to adjust their approach during a time of social distancing, Medina said. "I mean, that's part of the recovery of a disaster, is that you have to show warmth and love and caring. And that's hard when you're standing six feet away. So that's the biggest challenge," Medina told KESQ-TV. Bill Boehm helped his mother evacuate her home with her three horses and said the pandemic hasn't stopped people from coming together to assist each other. "Everyone seemed to be wearing masks and such, so that type of precaution was still going on," Boehm told the news station. A brush fire burns at the Apple Fire in Banning, Calif., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) Investigators are trying to determine the cause of the blaze that began as two adjacent fires in Cherry Valley, a rural area near the city of Beaumont, about 85 miles (137 kilometers) east of downtown Los Angeles. Flames raced along brushy ridge tops and came close to houses while firefighters attacked from the ground and air. One home and two outbuildings were destroyed, California fire officials said. No injuries were reported. In Northern California, evacuations were ordered after a wildfire that sparked Sunday afternoon spread quickly and burned near homes near the East Park Reservoir in Colusa County. Complicating firefighters' efforts were temperatures in the area north of Sacramento were expected to hit the upper 90s (around 36 Celsius) by Monday afternoon. On California's central coast, a fire in San Luis Obispo County was 60% contained Monday after burning more than 2 square miles (6 square kilometers) of brush east of the community of Santa Margarita. Two structures were destroyed but officials said it was unclear whether they were homes. Firefighters work against the Apple Fire near Banning, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) Hand crews work on the remaining hot spots from a brush fire at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, Calif., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) Hand crews line up to work on the remaining hot spots from a brush fire at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, Calif., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) A firefighter watches the Apple Fire in Banning, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) Firefighters watch the Apple Fire in Banning, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) A firefighter watches the Apple Fire in Banning, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) A firefighter watches a brush fire at the Apple Fire in Banning, Calif., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) A firefighter watches as a helicopter drops water onto the Apple Fire near Banning, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) Some rises behind an area burned by a brush fire at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, Calif., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) An area sits scorched by a brush fire at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, Calif., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) Hand crews work on the remaining hot spots from a brush fire at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, Calif., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) A firefighter runs as the wind blows at the Apple Fire in Banning, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) In Riverside County, officials allowed flames from the so-called Apple Fire to run up the side of Mount San Gorgonio, an 11,000-foot (3,350-meter) peak, because it wasn't safe to let crews work in such steep, rugged terrain, said Lisa Cox, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service. Evacuation orders and advisories were issued for about 2,500 homes in mountain, canyon and foothill neighborhoods. Campgrounds and hiking trails were closed in the San Gorgonio Wilderness area of the San Bernardino National Forest. A huge smoke plume was visible for miles around and contributed to poor air quality. The temperature hit 109 degrees (43 Celsius) Sunday in nearby Palm Springs but conditions were expected to cool slightly on Monday. Explore further Firefighters struggle to contain blaze in southern California 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Representative image Fall in stone-pelting incidents and continued crackdown on separatist leaders in Jammu and Kashmir are key factors of a decreasing trend of violence since the abrogation of Article 370 last year, officials said on Monday. A comparative analysis of the data gathered since the constitutional changes were made last year shows that separatists, who used to give call for strikes in Kashmir, are in disarray after the government continued to crack its whip by seizing their bank accounts and attaching assets allegedly amassed through terror funds, they said. On August 5 last year, the Centre abrogated the special status guaranteed to Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 of the Constitution and bifurcated the state into Union Territories Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. There has been barely any bandh call during the last one year by separatist groups, which have virtually become non-functional after the government arrested their main leaders like Yasin Malik of JKLF in a 1990 case of gunning down IAF personnel and Shahbir Shah of Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party (JKDFP) in a 2007 money laundering case. Sale of medical seats in Pakistan by separatist leaders also came to the fore during last year, officials said, adding that it left the public at large disgruntled. Large gatherings at funerals of local militants came to an abrupt halt after the government changed the norms and did not identify the killed militants, the officials said, adding that in some cases, the terrorists were identified but the bodies were sent to unidentified graveyards, either at Baramulla or Ganderbal, and buried in the presence of their family members. Giving the statistics of the declining trend of violence, the officials said there were 532 incidents of stone pelting in 2018, 389 in 2019 and 102 in 2020. The incidents of stone pelting were down by 27 per cent in 2019 in comparison to 2018 and 73 per cent in 2020. As many as 2,268 stone pelters were arrested in 2018, 1,127 in 2019 and 1,152 in 2020. A total of 583 militants were arrested under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) in 2018, 849 in 2019 and 444 in 2020, the statistics said. Fifty-eight Hurriyat leaders were also detained in 2018, 70 in 2019 and six in 2020, while 29 activists of the banned Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) were detained in 2019 and eight in 2020. The security cover, by way of residential guards, personal security officers (PSOs) and vehicles, has also been taken away from all separatist leaders since 2019. Action was taken against JeI and JKLF activists which included registration of 51 cases and arrest of 117 JeI activists, of which, 29 were detained under the Public Safety Act. A total of 82 bank accounts involving Rs 70,44,073 were frozen and 19 premises housing JeI offices were raided during the course of investigation, it said. Besides the house of separatist leader Asiya Andrabi was attached in a UAPA case, with security agencies regularly monitoring and taking required action against terror funding and other cases pertaining to separatists. As many as 173 cases registered under UAPA have been charge sheeted in courts in 2019 (140 cases) and 2020 (33 cases), according to the official estimate. Representative Image Srinagar administration on August 3 evening imposed a curfew in the city citing inputs of violent protests on the first anniversary of revocation of article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). Centre had, on August last year, revoked J&K's special status under Article 370 of Indian Constitution. These restrictions shall come into force with immediate effect and shall remain in force on August 4 and 5, the order said, adding, the restrictions previously ordered on account of COVID-19 shall continue thereafter till August 8, unless revised earlier. Srinagar Senior Superintendent of Police has reported that a series of inputs have been received suggesting that separatist and Pakistan-sponsored groups are planning to observe August 5 as "Black Day" and violent action or protests are not ruled out. "There are specific inputs about violent protests endangering public life and property," the order said, according to reports. The administration, according to reports, has also said that the gathering of protesters could be detrimental to efforts for COVID-19 containment. There is more than a whiff of desperation in the re-emergence of the thermonuclear bomb of hysterical rhetoric, that President Trump is just like (or even worse than!) Hitler. Never mind the absence of death camps the very fact that his enemies are free to employ the most irresponsible and vile language against him without disappearing in the dead of night refutes the charge. Yet we have taxpayer-funded PBS and NPR pushing the comparison hard ("Trump is the most dangerous figure in human history"), and, on the same weekend, the man who handed the Democrats' nomination to Biden joining the absurdist chorus as one of CNN's most prominent anchors accepts the comparison to Mussolini and even Hitler and moves along to the next topic. The Right Scoop reports: Democrat Rep. James Clyburn said on CNN on Sunday that Trump doesn't plan to allow an election at all, but that he will instead seize power and keep it because he is Mussolini. In a PBS interview on Friday, Clyburn said that Trump won't give up power, and that "He's not planning to give up the office. He thinks that the American people will be duped by him, like the people of Germany was duped by Adolf Hitler." CNN's Dana Bash asked him, with virtually no skepticism, "do you really think Donald Trump is comparable to Adolf Hitler?" "What I said started about two and a half, maybe three years ago, after one of his State of the Unions. But I feel very strongly that this man has taken on a strong-arm tactics, and I feel very strongly that he is Mussolini, Putin is Hitler. I said that back then and I believe that," said Clyburn. "I believe very strongly that this guy never had any idea about being, want to peacefully transfer power. I don't think he plans to leave the White House. He doesn't plan to have fair and unfettered elections," Clyburn continued. "I believe that he plans to install himself in some kind of emergency way to continue hold onto office and that's why the American people had better wake up." "I know a little bit about history," he lied. "And I know how countries find their demise." Bash let him go on for a while about how and why Trump is Mussolini before she asked him an unrelated question about who Biden will pick for a running mate. She let it go without any follow-up or challenge. With the death of John Lewis, James Clyburn is arguably the top African-American politician in the Democrat party. When he threw his support to Biden in the South Carolina Democrat primary, that in effect handed the party's nomination to him. It would not be an exaggeration to call Clyburn a kingmaker. With black support for Trump higher than for any other Republican in living memory, Clyburn may be fighting a rearguard action. The trashing of black neighborhoods, led by white Antifa-types, has not improved life for the residents, and the gutting of law enforcement in the wake of "defund the police" campaigns in various big cities has inflicted skyrocketing crime rates on inner-city residents. The escalation of rhetoric obviously is intended to stanch the flow of support for Trump. But there may be a slightly longer-term plan. It appears that the Democrats' 2020 version of Strzok-Page's "insurance policy" against a Trump victory may be to use mail-in ballots to prolong ballot-counting for months, beyond even the Electoral College convening to select the next president. Left-wing icon Harvard Law School Professor Laurence Tribe just started instructing us that if no president is named on that date, Nancy Pelosi becomes president as speaker of the House and third in line, according to the Constitution. If they are denied the victory that the polls tell them ought to be theirs (just as in 2016), the Dems want chaos and are making the argument that any steps Trump might take to counter the chaos makes him Hitler and Mussolini, triggering violent mass resistance and a potential coup on the part of politicized top ranks of the military and FBI. Photo credit: YouTube screen grab. Welcome to Morningstar.co.uk! You have been redirected here from Hemscott.com as we are merging our websites to provide you with a one-stop shop for all your investment research needs.To search for a security, type the name or ticker in the search box at the top of the page and select from the dropdown results.Registered Hemscott users can log in to Morningstar using the same login details. Similarly, if you are a Hemscott Premium user, you now have a Morningstar Premium account which you can access using the same login details. Project to preserve Black churches gets $20M donation; Mayfield church first to receive funds This one takes culinary diplomacy to new heights. Step forward celebrity chef and Good Food columnist Adam Liaw, who has even more reasons to be smiling than usual. The chef has just trousered $394,900 to make a cooking series showcasing Malaysian food. And who is funding this little wheeze? The taxpayer. Liaw is the director and secretary of Everyday Media, which has been awarded the cash via the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trades "public diplomacy" category. The money will go towards the production of a program provisionally titled Adam Liaws Heritage Kitchen, which will promote "Australias finest produce in cooking Malaysian dishes, showcase Australias scenic regions to promote tourism destinations, and feature personal stories of Australian producers/farmers to support the cultural connection between Australia and Malaysia". Who knew Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne was such a MasterChef fan? Up to 100 boy racers have been pictured ignoring social guidelines just up the M1 from the Leicester lockdown zone. The groups met up on Sunday evening at Phoenix Park tram stop in Nottingham, despite the nearby city of Leicester having a spike in coronavirus cases. The petrol heads could be seen clearly flouting rules to keep apart to prevent the spread of the deadly pandemic. There was more than 100 people at the event in the retail park and it went on throughout the evening. It comes as a number of public spaces and businesses will begin reopening in Leicester today such as pubs, restaurants and cafes. Car enthusiasts and petrol heads meet up in Nottingham, despite nearby Leicester being in lockdown Groups of people met up in Nottingham at a retail park to show off their motors The large groups of people did not appear to be sticking to social distancing rules The city went into lockdown on June 29 after officials became concerned about the rising Covid-19 infection rate. However from today a number of public spaces and businesses are set to reopen for the first time since March. Despite the opening of cafes, bars and restaurants, people are still not allowed to mix with different households, as officials try to limit a further spike in infections. Previously a spike in cases meant the city was the first in the UK to have a local lockdown, and did not enjoy the eased restrictions announced by the government on July 4. The meet up in Nottingham on Sunday evening is thought to have attracted 100 people A number of people crowd around a car in Nottingham on Sunday evening Up to 100 people met up on Sunday night in Nottingham. In nearby Leicester lockdown rules are beginning to ease today All non-essential shops were told to close and schools were shut. Residents were advised to stay at home as much as possible and warned against all but essential travel. The lockdown zone included 147 local authority-controlled schools that had to close. The zone also took in 239 restaurants, 196 hair salons or barbers and 182 pubs. It is also not clear whether there are any characteristics of Leicester which made it more likely to see a surge in cases. It was always likely that surges in cases would be seen in cities first. There are more people, raising the risk, and those people are more likely to live in densely populated areas and come into contact with strangers on a regular basis. Experts have previously said that many of the risk factors in Leicester are the same in all major cities in England. Dr Shaun Fitzgerald, from the University of Cambridge, previously said: 'There will be differences in the ease with which people can maintain physical distance between densely populated areas and rural environments so it isn't surprising to me that we may see localised flare-ups, which in turn may need suppressing through delayed easing or temporary re-introduction of some constraints on some movements and activities.' Leicester also has high levels of deprivation, which affects people's lives in ways that put them at risk of catching the virus. Dr Simon Clarke, a microbiologist at the University of Reading, told MailOnline: 'In deprived areas people are more likely to have to go to work, less likely to be able to work from home, and more likely to use public transport. They can't distance themselves from others.' Neighbourhood Policing Inspector Simon Riley, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: 'Nottinghamshire Police was called to a report of a gathering of around 70 cars in Phoenix Park tram stop car park at around 9.10pm on Sunday 2 August 2020. 'The group had dispersed prior to police arrival. However, this is something that we take seriously and we will respond to any reports in the future. 'Anyone who has any concerns in their local area should speak to one of our officers out on patrol or call 101. In an emergency, dial 999.' Stock markets rose on both sides of the Atlantic Monday as hopeful economic data prompted bargain hunting and a tech stock surge saw the Nasdaq finish at a record high. Analysts did not seem entirely sure about the reasons for the rebound that also brought some solid gains to Asia's equity markets. Investors were undeterred by worsening coronavirus numbers in many parts of the world, festering US-China tension and Washington's continued inability to come up with an agreement for more relief spending. Michael Hewson at CMC suggested that "US markets appear to be being propped up by a cohort of the large tech stocks, as well as a resilient pharmaceutical sector, on optimism about a possible vaccine or vaccines." On Wall Street, Microsoft's progress towards a deal to buy popular video-sharing app TikTok powered the tech-rich Nasdaq up 1.5 percent to its latest record close while the Dow and S&P 500 also gained. Quincy Krosby of Prudential said investors are trying to find growth where they can as the United States remains in deep trouble. "Until investors and traders see that the economy is on a solid trajectory, they cling to the growth, the balance sheets and the cash flows of these big tech names," she said. "The economy is slowing down and perhaps even stalling. That has investors concerned." Lawmakers in Washington had still not reached an agreement on Monday on another spending measure to rescue the world's largest economy from the coronavirus downturn, after supplementary unemployment payments credited with boosting consumption expired last week. - 'Traders at the beach' - Among the day's data releases was an Institute for Supply Management report showing US manufacturing continuing to rebound in July, along with better-than-expected Japanese GDP data and forecast-beating Chinese manufacturing numbers. Volumes were however light thanks to the summer holiday season, which possibly explained part of the strong market moves. "I suspect a lot of traders are at the beach," said Stephen Innes at Axicorp, which he said was "the primary reason why its unwise to craft a narrative to rationalise August's market behavior." Key European indices were up by around two percent or more at the close after manufacturing sector surveys in the region pointed to a return to growth. - 'Remains rampant' - Earlier, Japan's Nikkei 225 had received a boost from data showing the economy contracted less than first thought in January-March. Shanghai also surged following a forecast-beating reading on factory activity from Caixin, days after an official report pointed to a much-improved manufacturing sector. Meanwhile, a spike in coronavirus infections has forced fresh lockdowns and sparked worries about the impact on the world economy. "COVID-19 either remains rampant or is making worrying localized comebacks across the world," said Jeffrey Halley at OANDA. "Although not priced into financial markets yet, it remains the critical risk factor to global recovery." - Key figures around 2100 GMT - New York - Dow: UP 0.9 percent at 26,664.40 (close) New York - S&P 500: UP 0.7 percent at 3,294.61 (close) New York - Nasdaq: UP 1.5 percent at 10,902.80 (close) London - FTSE 100: UP 2.3 percent at 6,032.85 points (close) Frankfurt - DAX 30: UP 2.7 percent at 12,646.98 (close) Paris - CAC 40: UP 1.9 percent at 4,875.93 (close) EURO STOXX 50: UP 2.3 percent at 3,248.28 (close) Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 2.2 percent at 22,195.38 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng: DOWN 0.6 percent at 24,458.13 (close) Shanghai - Composite: UP 1.8 percent at 3,367.97 (close) Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1764 from $1.1775 at 2100 GMT Dollar/yen: UP at 105.95 yen from 105.88 yen Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3076 from $1.3072 Euro/pound: DOWN at 89.97 pence from 90.07 West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.3 percent at $40.81 per barrel Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.9 percent at $43.91 burs-cs/dw Taxes and the Emissions Trading Scheme make up 56 per cent of the price of fuel nationally and 62 per cent of the price of fuel in Auckland, which has an additional regional fuel tax. Motorists now pay more in fuel taxes than they do on the fuel itself, following an increase in diesel and petrol excise taxes last month. Motorists are paying $1.23 per litre in tax in Auckland, and $1.12 in Kaipara. The average fuel price for 91 unleaded petrol in New Zealand, including taxes, is about $2 a litre. Fuel tax increased by three and a half cents per litre on July 1. Its the third year in a row that the tax has increased, but the Government has ruled out any further increases to the fuel tax for the next three years. Road user charges for diesel vehicles also increased from $71 to $76 per 1000 kilometres. The impact of tax and user charges hikes has been offset by lower fuel prices globally due to Covid-19. Most of the fuel tax, and the source of the increase, is the 70.024 cent levy designated for the National Land Transport Fund (NLTF). Money from the fund must be spent on transport projects. The Automobile Association has renewed its calls to the government to remove GST from fuel tax. AA spokesperson Mark Stockdale says it is unfair to have a tax on a tax, which represents an additional cost of 11 cents per litre for motorists. The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) forecasts it will spend $460 million from the NLTF in Northland between 2018 and 2021, including $23 million on the Matakohe bridges. In the Auckland region, the NZTA forecasts it will spend $5.7 billion over the same period, including $46 million on the Matakana link road and $33 million for Dome Valley safety improvements. Other spending includes $67 million for the Northern Pathway a cycle and walking path across the Auckland Harbour Bridge formerly known as SkyPath, and $119 million for a new electrified rail line in south Auckland. Meanwhile, Auckland Transport (AT) has revealed how Auckland Councils controversial 10 cents per litre regional fuel tax is spent. The money has been allocated to 14 regional projects, including improvements to downtown Auckland bus routes, the downtown ferry terminal, electric trains and the Penlink motorway on the Hibiscus Coast. AT has also indicated money will be allocated towards the growth-related transport sector in Warkworth in the second half of the decade. A full breakdown on how fuel tax money is spent can be found on the NZTA and AT websites. nzta.govt.nz/planning-and-investment/national-land-transport-programme/2018-21-nltp/regional-summaries/ at.govt.nz/about-us/transport-plans-strategies/regional-fuel-tax/ Allentown, PA (18103) Today Partly sunny, brisk, and chilly. Winds should ease up later in the day.. Tonight Partly to mostly cloudy and cold. That's one quick drop for man; one giant splash for mankind. The safe return of SpaceX's Crew Dragon is not on the scale of the moon landings, of course, but it could certainly be a step towards space travel successes of similarly soaring heights. The capsule left Earth some two months ago, carrying two astronauts who were to visit the International Space Station but also carry out one of the most high-stakes tests possible: the final assessment of the capsule itself, conducting the mission it was built to do, and ensuring that it could go on to be approved for more regular Nasa missions. It was not only a test of the capsule itself, but of Nasa's overarching Commercial Crew Programme. That has seen it turn to private companies Elon Musk's SpaceX most famously, but others too in an attempt to restore its former success in space travel. In all, the mission marks a historic success: it is the first time that astronauts were sent from US soil since the Space Shuttle programme ended in 2011, and the first successful splashdown in 45 years, since the Apollo programme. Recommended Nasa astronauts safely drop into sea after pioneering SpaceX mission Nasa hopes that it will return the space agency and its space flight capabilities to those historic heights. It hopes that it will now be able to reliably and routinely fly astronauts to space from home, as it did with the Space Shuttle, and use that to explore more of the solar system, as with Apollo. The collaboration between SpaceX and Nasa where the private company builds the rocket and capsule, and the space agency directs and funds the mission as well as providing the astronauts is its aim for doing that. It hopes that will allow for the full ingenuity and risk to be taken on by the private sector, while it gets to benefit from American-made spacecraft carrying US astronauts from its own facilities. The space agency is already hailing the mission as proof that it works. "Welcome home, Bob and Doug! Congratulations to the NASA and SpaceX teams for the incredible work to make this test flight possible, said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine in a statement released after the successful splashdown. Its a testament to what we can accomplish when we work together to do something once thought impossible. Partners are key to how we go farther than ever before and take the next steps on daring missions to the Moon and Mars." Of course, nothing this big happens in one moment. The mission was hailed as a success as soon as the rocket successfully launched, and the test while very high-stakes was just the end of an extensive assessment process that has been ongoing since 2015. Before that, Nasa's Commercial Program had been running for years, in the hope that such a breakthrough was possible. It was started 10 years ago and has included other companies, too including Boeing, which plans crewed tests of its own soon. Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures Show all 10 1 /10 Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures Mystic Mountain, a pillar of gas and dust standing at three-light-years tall, bursting with jets of gas from fledgling stars buried within, was captured by Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope in February 2010 Nasa/ESA/STScI Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures The first ever selfie taken on an alien planet, captured by Nasa's Curiosity Rover in the early days of its mission to explore Mars in 2012 Nasa/JPL-Caltech/MSSS Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures Death of a star: This image from Nasa's Chandra X-ray telescope shows the supernova of Tycho, a star in our Milky Way galaxy Nasa Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures Arrokoth, the most distant object ever explored, pictured here on 1 January 2019 by a camera on Nasa's New Horizons spaceraft at a distance of 4.1 billion miles from Earth Getty Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures An image of the Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy seen in infrared light by the Herschel Space Observatory in January 2012. Regions of space such as this are where new stars are born from a mixture of elements and cosmic dust Nasa Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures The first ever image of a black hole, captured by the Event Horizon telescope, as part of a global collaboration involving Nasa, and released on 10 April 2019. The image reveals the black hole at the centre of Messier 87, a massive galaxy in the nearby Virgo galaxy cluster. This black hole resides about 54 million light-years from Earth Getty Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures Pluto, as pictured by Nasa's New Horizons spacecraft as it flew over the dwarf planet for the first time ever in July 2015 Nasa/APL/SwRI Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures A coronal mass ejection as seen by the Chandra Observatory in 2019. This is the first time that Chandra has detected this phenomenon from a star other than the Sun Nasa Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures Dark, narrow, 100 meter-long streaks running downhill on the surface Mars were believed to be evidence of contemporary flowing water. It has since been suggested that they may instead be formed by flowing sand Nasa/JPL/University of Arizona Nasa's groundbreaking decade of space exploration: In pictures Morning Aurora: Nasa astronaut Scott Kelly captured this photograph of the green lights of the aurora from the International Space Station in October 2015 Nasa/Scott Kelly The philosophical underpinnings of that programme run even further than that. They arguably began in failure, when Nasa and the US banked on the Space Shuttle being the future of space travel and when that programme came to an end without the promised replacement, the space agency was forced to rely on buying tickets on Russian spacecraft to get its astronauts to the International Space Station. There is of course nothing to say that the new programmes could end in similar disappointment. The space shuttle looked like the future until it did not, and public space agencies have still achieved far more success than any private company when it comes to travelling in space. But they are much more likely, of course, to have great success. According to both Nasa and SpaceX, that success could lead to humans going to the Moon to live, and from there heading on to Mars; landing in the sea could be one little part of the grand path to explore further in our solar system than many ever dreamed possible. Silver prices rose to Rs 65,531 per kg on August 3 as participants increased their long positions. The white metal has witnessed sharp volatility in the last few session as traders assess the possibility of recent price gains sustaining. Silver holdings in iShares ETF were down by 101.38 tonne to 17,669.66 tonne. In the futures market, silver for September delivery touched an intraday high of Rs 65,951 and a low of Rs 65,319 per kg on the Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX). So far in the current series, the precious metal has touched a low of Rs 41,558 and a high of Rs 67,560. Silver futures for September delivery jumped Rs 677, or 1.04 percent, to Rs 65,661 per kg at 14:18 hours on a business turnover of 13,893 lots. The same for the December delivery edged higher Rs 713, or 1.07 percent, to Rs 67,313 per kg on a turnover of 851 lots. The value of September and December contracts traded so far is Rs 2,006.35 crore and Rs 41.52 crore, respectively. The spot gold-to-silver ratio currently stands at 80.99 to 1, which means the amount of silver required to buy one ounce of gold. "Silver may witness choppy trade amid mixed factors. We recommend waiting for lower levels to create fresh long positions as investors buying has subsided," said Kotak Securities. At 08:52 (GMT), the precious metal was up 1.09 percent at $24.48 an ounce in New York. There are several unknowns and concerns about students and teachers possibly returning to in-person learning in a few weeks in Orleans Parish amid the "extreme outbreak" of coronavirus, Dr. Joseph Kanter of the Louisiana Department of Health told the New Orleans City Council on Monday afternoon. The council convened a meeting with health officials and local school leaders to discuss the reopening of schools. NOLA Public Schools will begin the year with virtual learning only and re-evaluate its plans later in the month. A few issues Kanter outlined to the council: -- The lack of federal guidelines to help inform local schools' plans, Kanter said, is "regrettable." He said all options for returning to class are "challenging." Vaccine news in your inbox Once a week we'll update you on the progress of COVID-19 vaccinations. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up -- There's a lack of data about about how children can spread the virus. Kanter called the handful of studies published "inconclusive." He pointed to a recent study that found widespread transmission at a Georgia summer camp consisting of mostly adult staff and children under the age off 11. In one week, 44% of people at the camp tested positive. -- Starts and stops of classes will be inevitable, Kanter said, as "there's going to be a lot of exposure." But he added that if Orleans public schools can adhere to the strict guidelines for reopening that he "really" does believe transmission of the virus will be low. Read more about those guidelines here. NOLA Public Schools officials have said they'd watch health data closely in late August and decide if an in-person return after Labor Day is possible. NOLA Public Schools offers guidance to parents preparing for 'a school year like no other' Defending his decision to start the school year remotely, NOLA Public Schools Superintendent Henderson Lewis Jr. said in a virtual meeting Wed This story will continue to be updated. Staff writer Della Hasselle contributed to this report. WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said Monday that he had fired the chair of the Tennessee Valley Authority, criticizing the federally owned corporation for hiring foreign workers. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 3/8/2020 (533 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with U.S. tech workers, before signing an Executive Order on hiring American workers, in the Cabinet Room of the White House, Monday, Aug. 3, 2020, in Washington.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon) WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said Monday that he had fired the chair of the Tennessee Valley Authority, criticizing the federally owned corporation for hiring foreign workers. Trump told reporters at the White House that he was formally removing chair Skip Thompson and another member of the board, and he threatened to remove other board members if they continued to hire foreign labour. Thompson was appointed to the post by Trump. The TVA was created in 1933 to provide flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing and economic development to the Tennessee Valley, a region that was hard hit by the Great Depression. The region covers most of Tennessee and parts of Alabama, Mississippi and Kentucky as well as small sections of Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia. Trump also removed board member Richard Howorth, another presidential appointee. Trump also urged the TVA board to immediately hire a new chief executive officer who puts the interests of Americans first." According to the president, the current CEO, Jeff Lyash, earned $8 million a year. The new CEO must be paid no more than $500,000 a year, said Trump, who lacks the authority to remove the CEO. We want the TVA to take action on this immediately. ... Let this serve as a warning to any federally appointed board: If you betray American workers, you will hear two words: Youre fired. Trump said the authority was replacing many of its in-house technology workers with contractors who rely heavily on foreign workers under the H1-B visa program for highly skilled workers. All TVA employees are U.S. based citizens, said authority public information officer Jim Hopson. All jobs related to TVAs Information Technology department must be performed in the U.S. by individuals who may legally work in this country. As a federal corporation, TVAs Board members serve at the pleasure of the President, Hopson added. As Trump was meeting with workers who would shortly be laid off by the authority, he was passed a note from chief of staff Mark Meadows that said Lyash had called the White House and was promising to address the labour concerns. Some of the attendees, who are set to see their last paycheque at the end of the month, teared up as Trump read the message. 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. Trump acknowledged that he was made aware of the issue after seeing a television ad that aired in prime time on Fox News and was produced by U.S. Tech Workers, a non-profit that wants to limit visas given to foreign technology workers. The group, led by Kevin Lynn, criticized the TVA for furloughing its own workers and replacing them with contractors using foreign workers with H-1B visas. The ad, Lynn said, had an audience of one," aiming to persuade Trump to stop the TVA from outsourcing much of its information technology division. Trump made the announcement as he signed an executive order to require all federal agencies to complete an internal audit to prove they are not replacing qualified American workers with people from other countries. The White House said the order will help prevent federal agencies from unfairly replacing American workers with lower cost foreign labour. The order followed the TVAs announcement that it would outsource 20% of its technology jobs to companies based in foreign countries. TVAs action could cause more than 200 highly skilled American tech workers in Tennessee to lose their jobs to foreign workers hired on temporary work visas, according to the White House. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said the TVA doesn't get any taxpayer money and defended the CEO's salary, saying it is in the bottom fourth of what his counterparts earn at other big utilities. TVA may have shown poor judgment hiring foreign companies during a pandemic, but, on most counts, it does a very good job of producing large amounts of low-cost, reliable electricity. Residential electric rates are among the 25 per cent lowest in the country, and industrial rates are among the lowest 10 per cent, Alexander said in a statement. TVAs debt is the lowest in 30 years, its pension fund is stronger and TVA leads the country in new nuclear power plants. Capt Amarinder Singh and Arvind Kejriwal Chandigarh: In a scathing counter to Arvind Kejriwals demand for CBI probe into the hooch tragedy, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh asked his Delhi counterpart to mind his own business and not to exploit the tragic affair for reviving his defunct Aam Aadmi Partys stake in the state. Captain Amarinder ticked off the Delhi chief minister over the latters Twitter remark that the case should be handed over to CBI. So many people have died and all you are interested in is making political meat from the incident. Dont you have any shame? asked the Chief Minister of Kejriwal, telling the latter to concentrate on maintaining law and order in his own state, which was notorious for the brazen manner in which criminals and gangs were roaming the streets without fear. Advertisement Arvind Kejriwal and Capt Amarinder Trashing Kejriwals claim that none of the illicit liquor cases from the last few months have been solved by local police, the Punjab Chief Minister asked the AAP leader to verify his facts before shooting through his mouth. Citing the recent April 22 case of an illicit liquor factory being busted in District Khanna, Captain Amarinder pointed out that eight accused had been arrested and a manhunt had been launched for seven others who were absconding. In another case, the two kingpins behind an illicit liquor distillery operating in Patiala district were arrested on May 22 and June 13 this year, and on July 10, the challan had been filed in the court. Advertisement Another case was similarly unearthed in May with the arrest of a mafia leader, against whom the police was waiting for chemical analysis report to move forward. Capt Amarinder Singh and Arvind Kejriwal Expressing full faith in the Punjab Police, which had shown exemplary speed to take quick action in all the recent illicit liquor cases, the Chief Minister said Kejriwals demand for CBI probe was nothing but a political gimmick aimed at regaining lost foothold for his party, which had completely lost ground in Punjab despite being the principal opposition party. Captain Amarinder pointed out that despite the cases of targeted killings in Punjab being handed over the CBI, it was eventually the Punjab Police that had solved the same. Advertisement Even in the sacrilege cases, the CBI failed to deliver and it is the Punjab Police which is unravelling the case and had made several interests, including of high-profile police officers. It was obvious that more than the CBI, it was in the interest of the local police to ensure that all criminal cases are solved expeditiously, he said. Rather than delay the investigation and allow the trail to go cold even in the present spurious liquor case by handing over the probe to CBI, he was more interested in ensuring swift action against all those whose greed had cost the state around 100 lives, Captain Amarinder added. Advertisement Capt Amarinder Singh The Chief Minister asked Kejriwal to check out his facts before making unsubstantiated and wild allegations against his government, whose track record in curbing crime of all kinds was exemplary. Why dont you ask your Punjab unit for data and figures first and then comment on our working, he told the Delhi Chief Minister. Captain Amarinder also advised his Delhi counterpart to concentrate on his states horrendous Covid situation. Rather than worrying about Punjabs affairs, why dont you take care of the health and lives of Delhiites, the Chief Minister said, while wishing luck to Kejriwal in his fight against Covid. Pointing out that strict action was being taken against all those found guilty in any case of illicit brewing and smuggling, Captain Amarinder said that in this hooch tragedy, too, 30 persons had already been arrested under 5 FIRs registered in 3 districts. Moreover, 13 officials from the Police and Excise & Taxation departments had been suspended for negligence, while investigations were on to ascertain their complicity in the case, he said. A magisterial Commission of Inquiry had been set up with the mandate to submit its report within a month, he further pointed out, asking what was the need for CBI to take over the case when the local police was handling it so effectively. Liquor In fact, said the Chief Minister, on his strict directives, a concerted campaign had been launched in the state by the police in January this year against smugglers of illicit liquor/spirit, many of whom were already in police net and facing action as per the law. The Chief Minister said not only had he given the police force a free hand to take any action needed to control crime and maintain law & order in the state but had also made it clear to them that nobody found involved guilty in any case should be spared. In fact, he said he had specifically directed the police to crack down against public servants or any senior officers who were misusing their power and position to nurture or help criminals in any way. The novel coronavirus pandemic, accelerating climate change, unprecedented social upheaval and long-neglected disparities simultaneously sharing the spotlightwhats not to learn from this epic summer that historians and sociologists will reference as one of modern humanitys defining moments? In June, I experienced an a-ha moment upon hearing Solomon Hsiang summarize his research in Nature, demonstrating the effectiveness of policies in stalling the spread of COVID-19. In one study, Hsiang, Chancellors Professor of Public Policy and the Principal Investigator of the Global Policy Laboratory at UC Berkeley, remarked, I dont think any human endeavor has ever saved so many lives in such a short period of time. There have been huge personal costs to staying home and canceling events, but the data show that each day made a profound difference. What was that difference? First, establishing and following policies works. In the absence of policy, the research team estimated that early infections of COVID-19 would grow at a rate of roughly 38% per day, a doubling time of approximately two days. Second, across six countries (China, South Korea, Italy, France, Iran and the United States), interventions set by policy prevented or delayed approximately 62 million confirmed cases, corresponding to averting roughly 530 million total infections. Statistically significant interventions included home isolation, business closures and other large-scale social distancing measures that showed large and measurable health benefits. See Hsiangs YouTube clip at https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=109&v=c6kyiMecoV8&feature=emb_logo In addition to Hsiangs UC Berkeley position, he is a Carnegie Fellow, a National Geographic Society Explorer, and a graduate of Columbia University with a Ph.D. in Sustainable Development. His blog reveals a keen sense of humor and ability to translate complex concepts into everyday language. Hsiangs earlier research studied the impact of climate change (thermal stress) on rates of interpersonal violence and social conflict around the world, and on the disastrous economic impact of the U.S. decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement. We can expect an avalanche of published research as well as touching personal accounts about COVID-19 in the months ahead. Here are excerpts from two Health Affairs studies that caught my eye. As the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) spreads throughout the United States, evidence is mounting that racial and ethnic minorities and socioeconomically disadvantaged groups are bearing a disproportionate burden of illness and death. Our study provides real-world evidence that there are racial and ethnic disparities in the presentation of COVID-19. (Azar, et al, July 2020) The study provides evidence that states in the US mandating use of face masks in public had a greater decline in daily COVID-19 growth rates after issuing these mandates compared to states that did not issue mandates. Estimates suggest as many as 230,000450,000 COVID-19 cases were possibly averted by May 22, 2020 by these mandates. (Lyu & Wehby, August 2020) At this point the reader might ask, What does all this have to do with climate change? Based on several studies and papers on the topic, heres my take on the subject: Heres my take on the subject: COVID-19 and climate change are both crises of epic proportion. COVID-19 was predictable and, at the same time, became suddenly overwhelming. Within weeks its impact grew, and continues to grow, exponentially. The tipping point came for the U.S. in March when our normal existence ceased to exist and we put in place emergency response policies, though certainly not as well as we could or should have done on a national and international scale. In the face of COVID-19, the reputable scientists among us advised collective action. Those who followed that expert advice and acted, realized results. We, and our neighbors throughout the world, endured hardships and face a long recovery. Somewhere along the line we grew impatient and began to ignore the science. We are now experiencing the consequences of our impulsivity. Climate Change is predictable and its impact is growing exponentially. Gradual at first, climate change is now rapidly accelerating toward irreversible tipping points. As with COVID-19, the science supporting the impact and rate of climate change is irrefutable. We know what needs to be done to avoid climate catastrophe. However, we seem unable to comprehend the necessity of taking immediate and sustained climate action on a global scale to preserve the earth and its inhabitants. Distinct from COVID-19, we are unable to see immediate results of our interventions. The beneficial outcome of most actions taken today will be evident only long into the future. Patience is a victim of our need for instantaneous satisfaction. As with COVID-19, climate change disproportionately affects those with the fewest resources to weather its impact, at least in the short term. From the standpoint of social justice, COVID-19 and climate change are one, and impel us to look in the mirror before we can look ahead to a future that MUST be far different, infinitely more just and greatly more equitable than the one we left behind as winter ended and COVID-19 began in the early months of 2020. References: Azar, K. et al. (2020, July). Disparities in outcomes among COVID-19 patients in a large health care system In California. Health Affairs39(7). doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2020.00598) Hsiang, S. et al. (2020, June 8). The effect of large-scale anti-contagion policies on the COVID-19 pandemic. Nature.doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2404-8 (2020). Wei Lyu, W., & Wehby, G., (2020, August). Community use of face masks and COVID-19: evidence from a natural experiment of state mandates in the US. Health Affairs39(8). doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2020.00818 (Editorial comment: We can also say references available on request if the full citations cannot be included with the published article.) Watch now: How To Teach Your Kids To Be Eco-Friendly Lynne Baker is a registered nurse, teacher, mom, grandmother, member of Napa Climate Now/350 Bay Area, member of Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments (ANHE) and actively engaged in get-out-the-vote activities for the 2020 national election. Napa Climate NOW! is a local non-profit citizens group advocating for smart climate solutions based on the latest climate science, part of 350 Bay Area. Find more information at /napa.350bayarea.org. Its good news: In what translates into a new, collaborative, bi-partisan initiative called Be a Litter Hero, a program created by Borough President James Oddo and Richmond County District Attorney Michael E. McMahon elected officials from different political arenas members of The Van Duzer Street Civic Association are being encouraged to host clean-ups right in their own neighborhoods. In fact, civic minded residents already tackled a stretch of land in Stapleton, while at the same time a group of local volunteers cleared debris in St. George. Both groups collected litter and abandoned shopping carts, followed by a courtesy pickup by New Yorks Strongest. UNSW's decision to remove social media posts about the erosion of human rights in Hong Kong has attracted a warning from Education Minister Dan Tehan, who said universities should prize free speech as a pillar of Australian democracy. The university was embroiled in controversy over the weekend when it deleted social media posts and altered an online article following an online protest from Chinese nationalists. The backlash was fuelled by a Sydney-based lawyer with links to the Chinese consulate, who called for students to launch a campaign against UNSW to correct the university's political views. Education Minister Dan Tehan said universities should prize freedom of speech. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen The original Twitter post linking to the article, which was based on comments from Human Rights Watch Australia director and UNSW adjunct lecturer Elaine Pearson, quoted her warning that "now is a pivotal moment to bring attention to the rapidly deteriorating situation in Hong Kong". Ms Pearson called for the United Nations to establish a special envoy to monitor human rights in Hong Kong as the Chinese government cracks down on dissent and winds back the city's legal autonomy from Beijing. Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan resumed talks on Ethiopias mega dam on the Nile River today. It is the first round of negotiations since Ethiopias controversial announcement in July that the first stage of dam filling had been completed. The three countries irrigation ministers participated in the African Union-backed discussions on Monday, the state-run Sudan News Agency reported. Ethiopia built the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile River, which is a tributary of the Nile River. Ethiopia wants to fill the dam to provide electricity to the country and help alleviate poverty. The upstream nations, Egypt and Sudan, believe filling the dam sans an agreement could dangerously lower the water levels in the Nile in their countries. This is the first round of talks since Ethiopia announced but then backtracked from the unilateral filling of the dam last month. On July 15, public broadcaster Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation announced the filling of the dam had begun. Sudan quickly said the water levels in its parts of the river dropped. The same day, Ethiopias water minister denied the filling had started, saying that heavy rainfall resulted in an increase in the dams water levels. In a statement days later, Ethiopia said the first year of filling had been achieved and stated its desire to continue negotiations. The next talks will be on Thursday, according to Sudan News Agency. The countries are unlikely to budge from their previous positions despite averting a crisis in July. Ethiopian diplomatic accounts celebrated the first year of filling on Twitter today using the #ItsMyDam hashtag. Egypt criticized the filling Ethiopia has done until now during the meeting today, according to the Egyptian state-owned media outlet Al-Ahram. At 96, Giuseppe Paterno has faced many tests in lifechildhood poverty, war and, more recently, the global pandemic. Now, he has sailed through an exam that makes him Italys oldest university graduate. This week, the former railway worker stepped forward to receive his diploma and the traditional laurel wreath awarded to Italian students when they graduate, applauded by his family, teachers and fellow students more than 70 years his junior. I am a normal person, like many others, he said, when asked what it felt like to be graduating so late. In terms of age I have surpassed all the others but I didnt do it for this. Giuseppe Paterno, 96, Italys oldest student, wears a traditional laurel wreath awarded to Italian students when they graduate, as he attends his graduation at the University of Palermo, in Palermo, Italy, July 29, 2020. (Guglielmo Mangiapane/REUTERS) Giuseppe Paterno, 96, completed his undergraduate degree in history and philosophy. (Guglielmo Mangiapane/REUTERS) Already in his 90s when he enrolled for a degree in History and Philosophy at the University of Palermo, Paterno grew up loving books, but he never had the chance to study. I said, thats it, now or never, and so in 2017, I decided to enrol, he told Reuters in his apartment in the Sicilian city of Palermo, which he rarely leaves nowadays due to his frailty. I understood that it was a little late to get a three-year degree but I said to myself lets see if I can do it. On Wednesday, he graduated first in his class with top honors, receiving congratulations from the university chancellor Fabrizio Micari. Great depression, then war Growing up in a poor family in Sicily in the years before the Great Depression, Paterno received only basic schooling as a child. He joined the Navy and served during World War II before going on to work in the railways as he married and brought up two children. In a society focused on rebuilding after the war, work and family were the priorities, but Paterno wanted to learn and graduated from high school at the age of 31, always harboring a desire to go further. Knowledge is like a suitcase that I carry with me, it is a treasure, he said. As a student, he tapped out his essays on the manual typewriter his mother gave him when he retired from the railways in 1984. He eschewed Google in favor of printed books and was not tempted by the late-night student parties of his 20-year-old classmates, who applauded him warmly at the graduation ceremony. The graduation certificate of Giuseppe Paterno is pictured at the University of Palermo, in Palermo, Italy, July 29, 2020. (Guglielmo Mangiapane/REUTERS) Giuseppe Paterno uses his typewriter as he studies for an exam at his home in Palermo, Italy, Nov. 4, 2019. (Guglielmo Mangiapane/REUTERS) You are an example for younger students, his Sociology professor, Francesca Rizzuto, told him after he passed his final oral examination in June. Paterno confessed to a little unease with the video calls that replaced classroom teaching during the shutdown but said he was not put off by the disease itself after the war and everything else he had been through. All of that strengthened us, all of my peer group, all of those who are still alive, he said. It didnt really scare us that much. As for what he planned to do next, he said he was not about to stop now that he had graduated. My project for the future is to devote myself to writing; I want to revisit all the texts I didnt have a chance to explore further. This is my goal, he added. My project for the future is to devote myself to writing; I want to revisit all the texts I didnt have a chance to explore further. This is my goal, said Paterno. (Guglielmo Mangiapane/REUTERS) (Newser) Spains former monarch, King Juan Carlos I, says he is leaving Spain to live in another country amid a financial scandal. The royal familys website on Monday published a letter from Juan Carlos to his son, King Felipe VI, saying, I am informing you of my considered decision to move, during this period, out of Spain. Juan Carlos, in the letter, says he made the decision against the backdrop of public repercussions of certain episodes of my past private life. He says he wants to ensure he doesnt make his sons role difficult, adding that my legacy and my own dignity, demand that it should be so. He did not say which country he will be moving to, reports the AP. story continues below Since Spains Supreme Court opened its probe earlier this year, Spanish media outlets have published damaging testimony from a separate Swiss investigation into an alleged $76 million gift to Juan Carlos by Saudi Arabias late King Abdullah. Juan Carlos allegedly then transferred a large amount to a former companion in what investigators say might have been an attempt to hide the money from authorities. The 82-year-old former king is credited with helping Spain peacefully restore democracy after the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975. But marred by scandals in the later years of his reign, Juan Carlos in 2014 abdicated in favor of his son Felipe VI, losing the inviolability protection Spains Constitution grants to the head of state. Juan Carlos lawyer said that even though the king will be outside Spain he intends to be available to cooperate with the investigation. (Read more King Juan Carlos I stories.) Apex Ventures, a Vienna, Austria-based venture capital firm, is launching its second fund, which will focus on digital health startups. Led by partner Gordon Euller, a qualified doctor and radiologist who has previously worked at AKH, Viennas General Hospital, as well as at McKinsey in London, Apex Digital Health will back seed stage deep-tech companies with defendable IP. The focus area will expand from DACH-based companies, to those based in the rest of Europe, Israel and the US. To date, most of Apex Ventures investments have been made in the DACH region, through its Austrian base. The firm recently exited portfolio company Lendflo and completed four new investments in the areas of digital pathology, radiology and neurology. Venture partner Kelly Klein has recently joined the fund to head up the firms activities in Israel, which will be assisted by the funds European network. In addition, Apex Ventures will shortly issue a call (along with the Herman Hauser Investment Group) for the best European startups in the strategic areas of In-silico trials and AI supported healthcare data marketplaces. Founded in 2017, Apex Ventures is an early stage investor focused on Seed in marketplaces, fintech, SaaS, digital media, ecommerce and digital health companies. The company has operations in Austria, Germany, Israel and Silicon Valley. FinSMEs 03/08/2020 A group of Australia's leading infectious disease experts is pushing for the Victorian government to be more transparent with its coronavirus data, arguing a stark lack of detail is hindering their ability to properly analyse the state's unfolding crisis. "The first question is what data do the government actually have? Because they havent really told us," said epidemiologist Professor John Mathews from the University of Melbourne. "If the government wants to have the confidence of the population, then it should be prepared to be transparent on what data it has and what it hopes to do with that data to improve things." A coronavirus test is conducted at a Royal Melbourne Hospital clinic. Credit:Getty Images Rather than just raw numbers and postcodes, Professor Mathews wants the government to provide a list of data items collected during testing and contact tracing, such as: whether a person was symptomatic; what symptoms they presented with; whether they were close contacts of a positive case; and a breakdown of turnaround times for test results. When Julie Lynch was told on Tuesday that a child at Hawthorn Early Years had tested positive to COVID-19, she moved quickly to close down her childcare centre. By 3.15pm, parents had collected their children and the centre shut its doors. Hawthorn Early Years closed after a child tested positive to coronavirus. Credit:Wayne Taylor All staff working in the junior program the infected child attends, and all families with a child there, were directed into 14-day quarantine. Ms Lynch doesnt know when her community-run centre on Glenferrie Road will reopen; that will depend on the advice of the Department of Health and Human Services, which is dealing with a ballooning backlog of contact tracing tasks. Yemen's Houthi rebels on Monday claimed they shot down a U.S.-made drone over the country's northern border with Saudi Arabia. The kingdom and the U.S. military on Monday did not immediately acknowledge losing a drone. Brig. Gen. Yehia Sarie, a Houthi military spokesman, said in a statement their air defenses downed an AeroVironment RQ-20 Puma drone Sunday over the district of Harad in Yemen's northern Hajjah province. Footage later aired by the Houthi's Al-Masirah satellite channel showed fighters gathered around the hand-launched drone, which appeared to have bullet holes in it. Masking tape on its tail bore what appeared to be the palm-tree and crossed-swords logo of Saudi Arabia. Arabic written on the side read "God Bless You," an inscription common on Saudi aircraft. The Saudi military, which has been fighting the Houthis since 2015, is not known to operate this drone. A Saudi military spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. First used by U.S. special forces, other arms of the American military now use the unarmed drone for surveillance work. The U.S. military's Central Command and Air Force Central Command did not immediately respond to a request for comment. NEW YORK, N.Y. -- New York City will bring back outdoor dining next summer, or possibly even earlier, after the citys open restaurants program proved to be a success for thousands of restaurants across the city, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Monday. The first round of open restaurants will end Oct. 31 and will return June 1, 2021. Since the outdoor dining program launched in June, de Blasio said 9,000 restaurants were able to reopen after months of being shuttered from the coronavirus pandemic and about 80,000 New Yorkers were able to go back to work. I want people in communities to look forward and see that were going to keep coming back strong, I want the folks that own the restaurants to know that theyre going to have that additional revenue going forward, the folks that work in the restaurants to know that whatever else we weather, we have seen that this experiment worked, de Blasio told reporters during a press conference with reporters Monday. The first round of open restaurants will end Oct. 31 and will return June 1, 2021. However, de Blasio said there was a possibility that the city would bring back the program even earlier. Expect that wonderful outdoor dining back next year, we may even extend it further earlier in the spring, but well start with June 1st for now, he said. FOLLOW SYDNEY KASHIWAGI ON TWITTER. WHITE LAKE TOWNSHIP, MI A suspect is in custody in connection to the death of a poker player whose burned remains were found at an Oakland County park in July. A 60-year-old Pontiac man was arrested on Friday, July 31, in the investigation of the homicide death of Susie Zhao, of White Lake Township, WXYZ reports. Charges have not been released. A complaint will be forwarded to the Oakland County Prosecutors Office. The burned body of 33-year-old Susie Zhao, known as Susie Q when playing poker professionally, was discovered by a passerby on July 13 at the Pontiac Lake Recreation Area in Oakland County. RELATED: Death of woman found burned in Michigan park could be linked to her pro poker career Zhao recently lived in Los Angeles. She relocated to Michigan about a month before her death. White Lake Township Police obtained search warrants on Thursday, July 30, WXYZ reports. Detectives and an FBI task force assigned to the case began to search for a suspect vehicle, which was located on Friday morning. The vehicle was stopped near I-275 and Michigan Avenue where the search warrant was executed. The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information about this case is asked to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALLFBI or submit tips online to tips.fbi.gov. READ MORE: Yes, Matthew Stafford has tested positive for COVID-19 Suspect caught shooting gun right in front of parked MSP troopers, 4 arrested following pursuit Man killed in head-on crash with tanker truck on U.S. 127 near Jackson A lifelong volunteer for more than 60 years has been announced as the winner of the Lifetime Service Award in the TECT Community Awards. Lex Spencer freely shares his time and knowledge of cycling with the community. Fixing bikes for Waipuna Hospice, Travel Safe, Salvation Army and others across the community at no cost, has earned him the monikers Mr Fix It and the crazy bike guy. Lex first got into fixing bikes for students in the Kids Can Ride Cycle programme in 2013. Since then he has had around 65 bikes passed onto him which he has repaired and donated to schools as part of the programme. Along with checking and repairing about 85 bikes a year for Waipuna Hospice shops, he also runs cycling maintenance workshops and has designed many wacky bikes for family-friendly community events. In addition to his unassuming but engaging voluntary involvement in cycling activities, he is passionate about environmental conservation matters, providing ongoing maintenance and ecological restoration of Hammond Street Walkway Esplanade. He also creates sculptures for the community to enjoy, which can be found along the walkway. Lex says a lifetime of volunteering has been built on the help others provided him over the years. I volunteer because I can. Ive always enjoyed doing these things for the community because over the years there have been times in my life where people have helped me, and as a result, it gives me great pleasure to help other people. It doesnt matter what it is it could be anything. Youve got to have a reason to get up in the morning, and I think if these things are in front of me, Ill do it. I enjoy meeting so many people along the way, and you feel most appreciated for what you do. As long as the council are happy for me to carry on my work on the walkway, and the Waipuna Hospice and other charities still want me to fix bikes, Ill carry on doing it. Karen Smith worked closely with Lex while a Travel Safe Team Leader at Tauranga City Council, putting his name forward for the awards as the communitys cycling gem. Lex is a very humble person who has a passion for cycling. He freely shares his time and knowledge of cycling with the community people of all ages and abilities, and from a diverse range of backgrounds, enjoy and benefit from time spent with Lex, says Karen. He is our community gem. Whenever we would ring him up for a community event to bring his crazy bikes along, do a maintenance workshop, or help with any of our children or adult programmes, he has always been willing to go the extra mile and come out and help. Travel Safe congratulate Lex on his award, he is a worthy recipient, and we know his community appreciate the time and effort he gives to volunteering. All 2020 TECT Community Awards finalist and winner videos can be viewed on the website and on the TECT Facebook page. New Delhi: National Conference leader Omar Abdullah on Sunday pointed out that while people were boycotting Chinese goods in the wake of incursions in Ladakh by the neighbouring country, the Indian Premier League cricket tournament has been allowed to retain all its sponsors, including those from the neighbouring country. "Chinese cellphone makers will continue as title sponsors of the IPL while people are told to boycott Chinese products. It's no wonder China is thumbing it's nose at us when we are so confused about how to handle Chinese money/investment/sponsorship/advertising," he wrote on Twitter. The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister was reacting to the news about the IPL Governing Council's decision to retain all its sponsors, including Chinese mobile company VIVO, in the event to be held in the United Arab Emirates from September 19 to November 10. "BCCI/IPL governing council has decided to retain all sponsors including the big Chinese ones. I feel bad for those idiots who threw their Chinese made TVs off their balconies only to see this happen," Abdullah wrote on the microblogging website. In another tweet, he said "we always suspected that we really can't manage" without the sponsorship and advertising of Chinese companies. "The sheer suddenness of the move, the unexpected nature of the move, the unpredictability of the move. They don't know what hit them. Now the Chinese will know.......... what we always suspected that we really can't manage without their sponsorship & advertising," the NC leader said, while referring to the remarks of a news anchor of a private television channel. The Nigerian Governors Forum, NGF, has assured residents in Borno State that they are committed to stop the worsening security situation in the state as they prepare to meet the President and Service Chiefs to discuss measures to curb insecurity on Tuesday. They rejoiced with the governor of the state Babagana Zulum and other fellows who were with him during a recent attack by Boko Haram terrorists on their way back from a state assignment. Chairman of the NGF, Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi, disclosed this in a statement made available to journalists in Abuja on Monday. He said, On behalf of the 36 State Governors of the Federal Republic of Nigeria under the platform of the NGF, I write to express our solidarity with you and the people of Borno State, following the attack last Wednesday, by gunmen suspected to be members of the Boko Haram sect. This is one unwarranted attack too many. It epitomises our collective vulnerability and the fragility of the countrys security architecture. Although you emerged from this incident unscathed, we note with regret the injuries sustained by two members of the Civilian Joint Task Force and a Police Officer attached to your convoy and do accordingly pray for their quick recovery. Mr. Governor, Forum members are resolutely behind you in your effort to rid Borno State of these dastardly and wicked agents of evil. We are appalled by the worsening security situation in the country generally, in-spite of all the efforts of government to end it. On our part, the NEC Sub-Committee on Security will be meeting tomorrow and rising from the resolutions thereof soon dialogue with Mr. President and the nations Security Chiefs to discuss this worrisome and rapidly degenerating situation. Stephen Galiczynski, who grew up in Philadelphia, went to Rockefeller Center Aug. 1, the day his flag design went up as one of 193 flags showing the strength, resilience and cultural diversity in New York. Read more Stephen Galiczynski, a New York artist who grew up in Philadelphias Ludlow neighborhood, has landed a huge win: His 8-by-5-foot flag design, More Modern Madonnas, was selected from more than 1,000 entries to fly on one of the 193 flagpoles that surround New Yorks Rink at Rockefeller Center until Aug. 16. I skate there every winter, Galiczynski said upon hearing the news last week, and now Im in some way a part of this iconic landmark. Usually, those flags represent the 193 member countries of the United Nations. They are only replaced for certain holidays and celebrations, such as Christmas, Fourth of July, and Pride. In May, as the city was struggling with the coronavirus pandemic, Rockefeller Center announced the design challenge, inviting New Yorkers to submit work showing their love for the city and celebrating its diversity and resilience. There are 180 winning designs from the public, and 13 flags by invited artists, including Faith Ringgold, Carmen Herrera, Jeff Koons, Laurie Anderson, Hank Willis Thomas, Shantell Martin, and KAWS. Galiczynskis winning design shows four abstract Madonnas with child, each a different color represented as triangles and circles. Although his art is diverse and uses different styles, he said abstract is his favorite, having been most influenced by Andy Warhol and Jackson Pollock. The Art Museum was the destination' Galiczynski may be a New Yorker now, but as a boy he lived on Fourth Street between Jefferson and Master Streets, the fifth of seven children. His father, William, was a truck driver for Acme supermarkets. His mother, Connie, who just turned 88, painted portraits and started a nonprofit that created housing for senior citizens. READ MORE: Activist angels fund the return of Fishtown Police Athletic League Galiczynski and his older brother W.P. Galiczynski, also an artist, were influenced by their mother, who always had art materials around the house. The two often rode their bicycles to Kelly and Martin Luther King Drives then East and West River Drives riding around the river, then popping in to spend time at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. READ MORE: Big dreams for blue-collar Bucks painter The Art Museum was the destination, he said. They also frequented the Rodin Museum and the old Norman Rockwell Museum, at 601 Walnut St., which no longer exists. After North Catholic High, Galiczynski earned a degree in Russian studies at La Salle University. During his junior year studying in Switzerland, he backpacked with a Eurail pass to visit major museums around Europe: the Louvre, Musee dOrsay, and the Prado were just a few. After La Salle, he studied in St. Petersburg, Russia, for a summer, to hone his language skills. There, he lived close enough to walk to the renowned Hermitage Museum almost daily. After working in Washington,, as a Russian translator, he moved to New York in the 1980s to study acting. There was a five-year stint on the soap opera One Life to Live, and hes been seen as a courtroom sketch artist on Law & Order. He also had a speaking role in the Adam Sandler movie Big Daddy. Another acting gig included being a stand-in for both Jack McBrayer and Jane Krakowski on the set of 30 Rock. Now his flag design will have its turn. More than four and a half million cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in the United States and June statistics show unemployment is at over 11 percent. Senate Republicans and House Democrats remain at odds over a relief bill for American citizens. VOAs Esha Sarai has more. VOA Khmer's Hong Chenda narrates. A fire at a thermal power station in the Russian Arctic city of Norilsk has killed one person, local emergency officials said. According to the local branch of the Emergency Situations Ministry on August 3, the fire broke out at a section that was under repair but was promptly contained and the incident did not affect the station's operations. The TETs-2 thermal power station is owned by a subsidiary of Nornickel, the world's leading palladium and nickel producer, which is owned by Russia's richest man, Vladimir Potanin. On May 29, some 21,000 tons of diesel fuel spilled into a river and the Pyasino lake from the reservoir of another Nornickel thermal power plant, TETs-3. Russia's ecological watchdog, Rosprirodnadzor, has estimated the damage from the leakage at $2 billion. Last month, Norilsk Nickel reported that another 45 tons of fuel spilled into the local waters in the Arctic from its aviation fuel pipeline. Based on reporting by TASS and Interfax NEW YORK U.N. investigators monitoring compliance with sanctions on North Korea are looking into a possible military and technology deal between Pyongyang and Venezuela and have warned Caracas that it could be in violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions. In two previously unreported letters to Venezuelas U.N. ambassador, Samuel Moncada - sent in October and last month and seen by Reuters - the independent panel of U.N. experts asked for specific terms of the agreement and spelled out the U.N. sanctions that could bar such a deal. The probe comes as U.S. sanctions on the South American country - intended to force out President Nicolas Maduro over allegations he rigged his 2018 re-election - and increasing diplomatic isolation are pushing Venezuela to deepen ties with U.S. adversaries like Iran and North Korea. Taking into consideration that such cooperation is a recognized way for the DPRK to violate relevant U.N. resolutions, the Panel would like to request a response concerning information regarding above suspected cooperation," panel coordinator Alastair Morgan wrote on June 12. North Koreas formal name is the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK). The country has been subject to U.N. sanctions since 2006. The sanctions have been strengthened by the 15-member U.N. Security Council over the years in a bid to cut off funding for Pyongyangs nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The U.N. panel of experts reports annually to the council on sanctions compliance. In its latest annual report, on March 2, the panel said it had started probing a possible military and technological cooperation deal signed by Diosdado Cabello - who leads the ruling socialist party and a legislative body known as the National Constituent Assembly loyal to Maduro - during a September 2019 Pyongyang trip. Reuters could not verify whether a military and technological deal between North Korea and Venezuela exists and the U.N. report and letters did not provide any details. In an Oct. 2, 2019 tweet, Maduro congratulated Cabello for the tremendous agreements" signed during his recent Asian tour, which included stops in North Korea and Vietnam. The investigators October letter to Moncada includes a news report about the Maduro tweet as an exhibit; it is unclear whether their probe has unearthed further evidence beyond that report. During a conversation with Cabello on state television the night of the tweet, Maduro referenced military agreements but did not provide details or specify whether they were signed with North Korea or Vietnam. You were deployed with our brothers in North Korea and Vietnam, reaching great agreements for agricultural production, political formation, industrial production, commercial and energy exchange, for military support and cooperation," Maduro said. Venezuelas information ministry, which responds to media inquiries on behalf of the government, and Moncada did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the U.N. investigation. North Koreas U.N. mission in New York also did not immediately respond to a request for comment. During the televised conversation with Maduro, Cabello described North Korea in almost utopian terms, praising the cleanliness of its streets and stating he did not see a single person with a bitter or sad face." On the streets, children walk home singing happily, they stop at corners to listen to orchestras playing for them as they pass. And whos in the orchestras? Children, as well," Cabello said. But he also made reference to a secret," adding, What I saw later I will tell you in person." Maduro replied: All I can say is, tremendous agreement." Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor Esteemed Media Partners For almost two years, a young man believed to possess the gift of identifying and neutralizing witches has been operating from his base in Widana, a village under the Pusiga District in the Upper East Region of Ghana. The village shares border with the Republic of Togo. Sadly, despite numerous dehumanizing video and audio recordings of mostly accused women allegedly confessing as witches, there was no action by the police to stop the disturbing trend due to prevailing religious and cultural norms. In some of the recording, a young man is heard/seen engaging victims to extract a confession from them. After almost two years of operation, it was only last week the Culprit and his accomplices were arrested following the successful petitioning of the IGP by the Sanneh Institute and advocacy from the media notably TV3. The arrest has however been met with mixed reaction among the people of Bawku- a sigh of relief by those whose relations have been identified on one hand and those who perceive the young man as a redeemer and believe witchcraft is rampant in Bawku and its environments. In the said petition, https://www.tsinet.org/petition , the Sanneh Institute observed that the belief in witchcraft goes back many generations and is deeply rooted and widespread in the Ghanaian society, across religious faiths, among literates and illiterates and in both urban and rural settings. Whiles commending the Petitioners and the IGP for the swift response to end the possible human rights violations, RISE-Ghana calls for a sustained dialogue to ensure more responsive and accountable institutions and citizenry. Support the petition, https://www.tsinet.org/petition to criminalize witchcraft allegations in Ghana. The IGP and the Ministry of Interior should use the situation as an entry point to increase police coverage to the UN Standard of minimum of Police-Citizen ratio of 1:500. The Pusiga District Security Committee (DISEC) should activate local government provisions that require active participation of citizens in local governance by using Ghanas recently adopted Popular Participation (P2) policy and provisions such as the Public Relations and Complains Committees (PRCC) among others. The novel I Am Aware project pioneered by CDD-Ghana and funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation which is empowering citizens to serve as Social Action Groups, the Oxfam/WILDAF led European Union funded Enough Project on ending Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in Ghana and efforts by the Songtaba and Action Aid to disband witches camps should be replicated across the country to increase citizen efficacy and state responsiveness and accountability. Stakeholders involved in the adjudication of the case should take into account local religious and cultural norms in dealing with the situation to manage the aftermath and avoid possible negative consequences such as the persecution of the alleged witches. Awal Ahmed Kariama Executive Director Vision: A world in which Human Rights and Sustainable Development informs all actions to empower people to live in DIGNITY. Core Values: Accountability, Equal Opportunities & Diversity, Mutual Respect, Inclusion, Equity & Justice. Mission: To facilitate and initiate processes/programs that empower poor peoples movements to access and utilize the social, human and natural resources they need in a sustainable and timely manner to become se Urumqi ensures medicine, food supply amid resurgence of COVID-19 - Xinhua | English.news.cn Urumqi in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has worked to ensure sufficient medicine and food supply amid a resurgence of COVID-19 infections. The regional capital of Xinjiang is home to more than 1,100 designated retail pharmacies, of which 90 percent remain open during the epidemic to ensure a stable supply of drugs and daily protective articles, according to He Xinguo, an official with the medical security bureau of Urumqi. On Saturday, the trading volume of Xinjiang Jiuding farm produce wholesale market, the largest in the region, reached 3,412 tonnes, said Liu Guangming, general manager of Xinjiang Jiuding Agricultural Products Management Co., Ltd. Its vegetable, fruit and meat supplies account for around 85 percent in winter and 50 percent of the Xinjiang market in summer. Currently, it is open 24 hours to meet the demand of local residents. All personnel in the market have taken nucleic acid tests on July 18. From July 25 to 27, the market was thoroughly disinfected, while more than 5,400 people, including employees and traders, underwent the second round of testing. All of them have tested negative for the novel coronavirus. More than 1,600 samples of frozen food, fresh fruits and vegetables were tested, and all produced negative results for COVID-19. Xinjiang reported 30 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases Saturday, according to the regional health commission's daily report. Among the 30 cases, 29 were in Urumqi and one was in Kashgar Prefecture. The region also saw nine new asymptomatic cases in Urumqi Saturday. By Saturday, Xinjiang had 569 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 112 asymptomatic cases, while 14,640 people continue to be under medical observation. 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 A FILM-MAKER from Henley has been nominated for a Bafta award. Beth Staley, 25, travelled to Cambodia to make a documentary about rats that are trained to sniff out landmines. The film, called Scratching the Surface, was the final part of her masters degree in wildlife film-making that she took at the University of the West of England in Bristol. Miss Staley is one of three finalists in the British Academy of Film and Television Arts student film awards for a documentary. The winner will be announced at a virtual awards ceremony next Friday. Her film was chosen from nearly 700 submissions submitted from students in 35 countries. She made the shortlist of 20 before being named the only entry from the UK to make the final. Miss Staley, whose father Allan is a photographer and mother Deborah Kelly is a journalist, spent two weeks in Cambodia in May last year. She spoke to people affected by landmines, including patients at a rehabilitation centre that creates and fits prosthetics for those who have lost limbs in blasts. She also spoke to farmers and charity workers from APOPO, which has trained the giant African pouched rat to detect TNT using its sense of smell. Miss Staley filmed the animals at work in the K5 mine belt, one of the worlds most mined areas of land, where explosives are still being found 45 years after the end of the Vietnam War when at least 26 million explosive submunitions were dropped on Cambodia. During her visit to the rehabilitation centre in Siem Reap, Miss Staley spoke to a man who had lost his lower right leg below the knee after stepping on a mine and was being fitted with a prosthetic. I went there to get to the problem of the story, she said. I went with a Cambodian translator. It is very hard for me to relate to those situations so it was very important we got this part of the story right. At the end of the day its their story and I wanted to make sure they were comfortable with how we were portraying it. The centre is amazing and the work they are doing is changing peoples lives. They can go back to work or to school with these prosthetics. We filmed the process of the prosthetics being built. The main thing was to get the balance right to show the problem but respect the individuals who were sitting down and chatting through their traumatic experiences. Miss Staley, a former pupil of Trinity primary and Gillotts School in Henley, also spent a week in Preah Vihear in north Cambodia, near the border with Thailand, where mines are still being cleared. Its the most densely mined area in the world, she said. Thats where I filmed the rats going out on to the minefield and discovering the mines. I had to do a big risk assessment for my university to actually go out and film there. When I got to the minefield itself I was under the complete control of the workers and mine clearers. I had to go through all the safety training and had to wear the big bomb vest and visor. It was a very different experience for me but really very humbling to see. I didnt know what a minefield really looked like and, in my mind, it would be a vast expanse of nothingness. We got there and the minefield was literally in the middle of a village. There were places they were clearing and 300m away there was a house with children playing. It brings home how close the problem is. It was scary to be honest. When you walk around Henley, or wherever, you never have to think about stepping on a landmine. Walking out into the field with all my gear and camera, I knew I was completely safe because they create these paths which are all clear but there could have been mines 100m to the left or right. The people that live there have that constant fear in their minds. I cant imagine how destroying it could be. Although it was risk that I was taking, it was a story that really needs to be told. I wanted to highlight the amazing work the rats are doing and the work of the charity. They put their lives on the line to help and I thought it was a really inspiring story. In some cases, the mines were on farmland, affecting farmers livelihoods, and in others, children had limited access to school as they didnt know where the mines were. Miss Staley said the charitys work also changed peoples perception of rats, which work 90 times faster than human clearers can. They are too light to set off the mines so they can run freely over affected areas without being injured. The rats are trained in Tanzania, where APOPO is based, and flown to Cambodia, where they work only from 6am to 9am each day because they are nocturnal. Miss Staley said: It was just so interesting to see the level of trust that the handlers have in these rats. A rat will clear a box of land and if they dont indicate theres a mine in it they will get a second rat to do the same box again. If he doesnt indicate anything either they take the tape away and walk all over it. They have 100 per cent trust in them. After completing filming, she returned to Siem Reap to get some more close-up shots of rats which had recently arrived from Tanzania. After returning home, she edited and polished the film and its sound, which she finished at the end of August last year. Scratching the Surface, which is just over 12 minutes long, had its premiere at a cinema in Bristol in October. It was also selected for the Wilderland Film Festival and shown at the Royal Geographic Society in London. It also won best short film at an Australian film festival called Scinema. Miss Staley said: When I got to see it again on the big screen I was really happy with how it turned out. It does justice to the rats hopefully and the charity and the rehabilitation centre really liked it. The Bafta student awards are an annual event celebrating the works of the next generation of film-makers from around the world. Film schools submit their best work and members of the academy review the entries before selecting the best films in three rounds of voting. Miss Staleys university lecturer submitted the work of some students on her masters course and she and another student made the shortlist of 20. She said: I am absolutely thrilled that Scratching the Surface has been nominated. It has boosted my confidence. Its a tricky industry to get into and you get knocked back quite a lot, so to get some recognition like this is really good because I worked really hard on it. My hope is that this will bring the film to a wider audience and raise awareness of the continued threat landmines pose in Cambodia and the fantastic work APOPO is completing to combat this. The film is an amalgamation of hard work from so many parties and the continued support I have received from the UWE course, in partnership with the BBCs Natural History Unit, has been outstanding. The awards are run from the academys Los Angeles centre and the finalists are normally invited to the city to participate in a number of events and programmes. However, because of the coronavirus pandemic, these events are being held virtually, as will the awards ceremony when the winners will be revealed. Miss Staley will watch this at home in Cromwell Road with her parents. She started making films for the Henley Youth Festival when she was 11 and a pupil at Gillotts. She was presented with the festivals Elizabeth Griffin Award, which is presented annually to someone who has made a special contribution to the event. Miss Staley said: Making films for the youth festival is what really sparked my interest of going into TV and documentaries. From that to going to Cambodia and making a film about rats thats been nominated for a BAFTA is just a crazy experience. To watch Scratching the Surface, visit https://vimeo.com/372354444 Shenandoah, IA (51601) Today Partly cloudy early followed by cloudy skies overnight. Low 13F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy early followed by cloudy skies overnight. Low 13F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph. An Alabama high school principal created a parody video of the 1990 MC Hammer classic Cant Touch This to encourage students to stay healthy at school amid coronavirus this year. Dr. Quentin Lee, principal at Childersburg High School, wrote the rap himself, including lyrics like Covid! Is stressing me, all the updates from the CDC. Lysol! Cant be found, Ive looked all around this town. He told Alabama News Center he wrote the lyrics in 15 minutes, then called film director Jaylen Mitchell of City Vizualz to record it. Volunteers included several students, and teacher Jessica Veazey. The video has garnered nearly 300,000 views since it was posted Tuesday. In the video, Lee raps and dances around the high school with students and teachers while telling them to put their masks on and to sanitize their hands. At one point, he dances toward students holding a measuring tape, telling them not to stand so close together. Another time, he appears from behind a vending machine to spray it with Lysol spray while a student tries to purchase a snack. Cant Touch This isnt the first humorous video Lee has created about Covid-19. In April, he posted a video, introducing it as a song I wrote that I hope touches your heart and that lets you know how Ive been feeling in this Covid pandemic. He begins playing music on a keyboard and promptly begins screaming. Lee has been principal at Childersburg High since 2017, before that serving in other administrative roles in the Talladega County school system, and as band director at Talladega County Central High School. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources Hybrid school reopening plans leave CNY parents scrambling 1st Syracusan injected in Covid-19 vaccine study wants to fix mess were in Syracuse University suspends fraternity for reckless and selfish actions amid coronavirus Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com All in all, the MX Master 3 is a great mouse. If youre right handed, its comfortable, customizable, and sturdy. Easy Flow is good for switching between Macs, but it still needs to work out its kinks with file transfers. I have two desktop Mac setups, one at home and one at the Macworld office (ah, going to the office, those were the days). Both those setups have Logitech mice. My work setup has the Performance Mouse MX that Ive been using for over ten(!) years. At home, I have the original MX Master, which Ive been using for four years. Suffice to say, I love these mice. They have a similar design that fits my hand beautifully, they feel great and are highly functional. Logitech recently released the MX Master 3, the latest entry in its MX series that also works with the iPad. It has many of the same features as the two mice Ive been using, but it has one design change thats an improvement, making it a slightly better mouse. Design and buttons The MX Master 3 design doesnt deviate much from previous MX mice, including the MX Master 2S, its predecessor, which I have not used. Made for the right hand (sorry, lefties), the Master 3 has a cradle for your thumb, and the body of the mouse rests under your palm. Its a comfortable design for me, and I never experience any fatigue or discomfort. (For reference, I wear a large size mens glove.) In addition to the standard left and right mouse buttons, there are three buttons for your thumb: one at the base of the cradle, and back/forward (or undo/redo) buttons at the top. The predecessors to the MX Master 3 had the back/forward button behind the thumbwheel and stacked on top of each other, which I found awkward, so I didnt use those buttons. But theyre now placed below the thumbwheel and in a more intuitive front and back alignment, which is an improvement. Logitech lenty of button on the MX Master 3, and theyre all customizable. The button at the base of the thumb cradle is a gesture button and it works in conjunction with a mouse gesture. For example, if you hold the button down and move the mouse up, it launches Mission Control. The scroll wheel between the right and left mouse buttons (which itself is a button, too) can automatically switch from ratcheted scrolling to free spinning. It switches if you are, for example, quickly scrolling up or down a long webpage. While the switching works well, I prefer free spinning all the time. Fortunately, you can use the mode button below the scroll wheel to set the mode. You can customize and also assign application-specific functions to all of the mouse buttons and the scroll wheels with Logitechs software utility, Logi Options. It saves all of your settings to the cloud (you have to create an account with Logitech), so if you use the mouse with another device (more on that in a bit), your settings come with you. I tried the app with a developer beta of macOS Big Sur, and I wasnt able to get the app to recognize the mouse. Logitech will probably have a Big Sur update ready when the OS is updated this fall. Logitech Use the Logi Options app to customize all the buttons and scrollwheels. Logitech claims that the MX Master 3s battery can last up to 70 days. Ive been using the mouse for nearly a month, and I havent had to recharge it. Theres a battery life indicator in Logitechs software, but it would be nice if there was a quick view available though the Logitech menu bar icon. Multi-device use The MX Master 3 can be paired with up to three devices over Bluetooth. Underneath the mouse is the Easy Switch button, with numbered indicators to show which device the mouse is connected to. After youve done the initial pairing, all you have to do is press the Easy Switch button to the proper indicator thats associated with the device you are using, and it is connected. If you frequently use multiple devices, Easy Switch is convenient, but there is another feature called Flow that could be very helpful. With Flow, you can use one MX Master 3 with two computers and switch between the two simply by moving the cursor through the edge of the screen. Flow also supports a few functions, such as cut, copy, and paste. So if you, say, have a Mac laptop to do field work, and then you get back to the office and work on a desktop Mac, you can set up Flow so that you can copy an item on your laptop, move the cursor through the side of the screen, and switch control of the mouse to the desktop Mac. Then you can paste the item. Logitech Flow settings. It worked well for switching between Macs, but file transfers were a different story. I had a problem with Flow, however. I was able to copy a file from one Mac, use Flow to switch to the other Mac, and then paste the file. But each time I pasted, the file disappeared a couple of seconds later. At one point I was quick enough to double-click the file before it disappeared, but I got a message saying that the file was empty and then the file vanished. The pasted file wasnt in the Trash, so Im not sure where it ended up. With the widespread use of cloud storage, the ability to use Flow for file transfers isnt vital, and it is an issue Logitech will surely fix. But if you find yourself using two Macs at a time, Flow is a quick way to switch the connection. Bottom line I was already a fan of Logitechs MX Master mice and Im still a fan. The MX Master 3 mouse itself has what seems like a minor design change with its back/forward buttons, but I think it is an improvement. The Logitech software makes it simple to customize the buttons and scroll wheels. I did find a quirk with Flow, but even with that, it is still a useful feature. All in all, the MX Master 3 is a great mouse. Now, of the older MX mice I already have, I just need to decide which one to retire. Decent Americans who are feeling perplexed today shouldn't be ashamed about it. There is good reason to be perplexed. On the one hand, in the name of health and safety, we are being asked by government to compromise personal freedoms that we have always taken for granted: going to work, going to church, sending our children off to school, meeting our friends in our favorite restaurant. We walk around wearing annoying masks and try to respect social distancing limits. But decent Americans are perplexed because we would expect that allowing more government into our personal space would happen uniformly, that in allowing more government, we are all sacrificing together for some greater good, some greater necessity. But instead, we look around and see chaos. We see no uniformity. Protests, often violent, are sweeping our cities. The same public officials who tell us to keep our kids at home; who tell us to not pray in church, as we have always prayed; who limit our places of work and livelihood look the other way, often with approval, as hooligans tear apart our cities. Greater demands from government should mean increasing respect for the law. But we're seeing the opposite: government making more demands while disrespect for the law increases across the nation. We just saw a decision in the nation's Supreme Court where a Nevada church petition to be treated equally to Nevada's casinos regarding COVID-19 attendance limits was rejected with no explanation. Justice Samuel Alito got to the heart of the matter in his dissenting opinion, saying: "For months now, States and their subdivisions, have responded to the pandemic by imposing unprecedented restrictions on personal liberty, including free exercise of religion. ... Now four months have passed since the original declaration. The problem is no longer one of exigency, but one of considered yet discriminatory treatment of places of worship." "Calvary Chapel has also brought to our attention," continued Alito, "evidence that the Governor has favored certain speakers over others. When large numbers of protesters openly violated provisions of the Directive, such as the rule against groups of more than 50 people, the Governor not only declined to enforce the directive but publicly supported and participated in a protest." I am looking at a photograph of a mass of protesters marching, shoulder to shoulder, through the streets of Oakland, Calif., this in the same state that is limiting church attendance to 25% capacity and prohibiting singing in church. In May, the Supreme Court rejected a challenge by South Bay United Pentecostal Church in Chula Vista, Calif., to the state's restrictions on church attendance. Justice Brett Kavanaugh noted in his dissent that secular businesses like supermarkets, restaurants and hair salons are not subject to the same restrictions as houses of worship. A group of Orthodox Jewish Americans sued the New York governor and New York City mayor for lack of uniformity in gathering limits between houses of worship, and secular business activity, protests and demonstrations. Going hand in hand with the rioting and violence is a nationwide surge in crime. The Wall Street Journal reports increases in homicides in Milwaukee, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and Kansas City. At the same time, there is violence and damage from protesters in Seattle, Portland and Louisville. We can't have a free and civil society without law. And law means nothing if we can't agree on what the law is and if it is not applied uniformly. Politics needs to follow law. Today's chaos is symptomatic of law following politics. Well-intentioned citizens cannot sacrifice their freedom in an environment like this. We must take the initiative to open our schools, our churches and our businesses. Amidst the chaos, citizens need to take control of their own lives. They have a civic duty to do it. It will help the nation and its recovery. Star Parker is an author and president of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education. Contact her at www.urbancure.org. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 4 The Delhi University is likely to hold a key meeting this week to decide on the syllabus of four courses, as the online classes are slated to begin from August 10. Teachers have said the syllabus of four courses-- Political Science, Sociology, History and English-- for the third and the fifth semesters was yet to be finalised. They had expressed apprehensions about how they would be able to start the classes. A row had erupted over the syllabus of these subjects last year, with a right-wing teachers outfit alleging that the curriculum was pro-Left. The syllabus of the four courses for the first semester was referred back by the executive council to the departments. It had submitted the revised syllabus to the oversight committee, which had passed the syllabus of the first semester. We are holding a meeting either on Monday or Tuesday, professor Maharaj Pandit, chairman of the oversight committee on syllabi, said. The registrar is looking into the issue. We have circulated it among the deans so we should be able to reach a consensus, Pandit said. Professors of English and Political Science departments said they had sent reminders to the oversight committee regarding the approval of the syllabi. A professor from the English department, requesting anonymity, said they had sent the syllabus and have sent reminders to the committee regarding the approval. He hoped that the committee would approve the syllabi before August 10. We are writing to them to approve the syllabi. More than a month ago we had sent the syllabi, Veena Kukreja, head of Political Science department, said. There was a letter from the university to send the syllabi for approval of the oversight committee. I think it should be done before August 10, she added. Rating Action: Moody's rates Harvest Midstream Ba3, new notes issue B1 Global Credit Research - 03 Aug 2020 New York, August 03, 2020 -- Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") assigned first time ratings to Harvest Midstream I, L.P. (Harvest Midstream, or "the partnership") including a Ba3 Corporate Family Rating (CFR), a Ba3-PD Probability of Default Rating (PDR) and a B1 rating to its proposed issuance of $600 million senior unsecured notes. Moody's considers Harvest Midstream to have good liquidity. The outlook is stable. Harvest Midstream is a private, diversified oil and natural gas gathering and processing (G&P) company whose 1% general partner and its limited partnership units are owned and controlled by Hildebrand Enterprises LP (Hildebrand). Under the common ownership of Hildebrand, Harvest Midstream has a strategic relationship with its sister affiliate Hilcorp Energy I, L.P. (HEI, Ba1 RUR down) for whom it provides midstream services in support of much of its production. Harvest Midstream intends to use the proceeds of the proposed notes issue to repay its term loan and amounts outstanding under its revolving credit facility. "Harvest Midstream generates a stable, contract-based revenue stream, over 80% of which is generated under fixed-fee contracts, providing a degree of certainty to cash flow available for debt service," commented Andrew Brooks, Moody's Vice President. "Moreover, with modest levels of projected growth capital spending, and a limited initial distribution payout, Harvest Midstream should be able to rapidly de-lever to its targeted level of under 3.5x debt/EBITDA." Assignments: ..Issuer: Harvest Midstream I, L.P. .... Probability of Default Rating, Assigned Ba3-PD .... Corporate Family Rating, Assigned Ba3 ....Senior Unsecured Notes, Assigned B1 (LGD5) Outlook Actions: ..Issuer: Harvest Midstream I, L.P. ....Outlook, Assigned Stable RATINGS RATIONALE Story continues The scale of Harvest Midstream's diverse midstream operating platform was significantly enlarged with its $1.1 billion acquisition in October 2018 of G&P assets in the San Juan Basin of New Mexico and Colorado, which more than doubled its base revenues. The gathering pipeline assets and natural gas processing capacity acquired through Harvest Four Corners, LLC (Four Corners) represents approximately 70% of the partnership's total revenue, and generates about two-thirds of its EBITDA. In July 2017, Hilcorp San Juan, an affliate of HEI, acquired San Juan Basin oil and natural gas assets in a $3.0 billion transaction with The Carlyle Group. Harvest Midstream is one of only two principal natural gas gatherers in the San Juan, moving about one-third of all volumes out of the basin, and 54% of Hilcorp's total San Juan production. Fixed-fee contract provisions govern about 75% of Four Corners' revenue, with its top four contract counterparties comprising 80% of revenues under contracts with about a five-year average remaining life. Other midstream components of Harvest Midstream's asset base are its gathering and transportation operations in Alaska, whose contracts are 100% fixed-fee fee or cost of service based, joint ventures in South Louisiana, the Eagle Ford Shale and the Utica and other locations in Texas and Louisiana. On June 30, HEI closed on its $5.5 billion acquisition of BP p.l.c.'s (BP, A1 negative) entire Alaskan upstream and midstream asset base. HEI expects to finance the acquisition through a combination of seller-financing and cash. With the acquisition having now closed, Moody's expects to soon resolve its review of HEI's rating; depending on the outcome of the review, Harvest Midstream's Ba3 CFR could come under downward pressure. BP Alaska's midstream assets are comprised of its 49% interest in the Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) and additional pipeline segments and gathering systems. The BP Alaska midstream assets will be sold to Harvest Midstream in a $100 million transaction, which should close in 2020's third quarter, furthering another significant increase in the partnership's size and scale. Pro forma for BP Alaska midstream, Harvest Midstream's full year revenue and EBITDA are projected to increase by over 50%, mitigating to an extent the partnership's outsized exposure to the San Juan. BP Alaska's midstream contribution to consolidated EBITDA and cash flow will also accelerate the deleveraging of the partnership. Harvest Midstream's proposed notes issue will repay its Term Loan A, which will then be terminated, and borrowings under the partnership's revolving credit facility, while augmenting its capital structure to support potential future growth opportunities. At closing, debt/EBITDA will approximate 4.5x, adjusting for the proportional consolidation of joint venture debt, however, with modest projected growth in capital spending and distribution payouts, Harvest Midstream should generate positive free cash flow in amounts sufficient to de-lever its balance sheet to under its targeted 3.5x debt/EBITDA in 2021. The rapid spread of the coronavirus outbreak, deteriorating global economic outlook, low oil and natural gas prices, and high asset price volatility have created an unprecedented credit shock across a range of sectors and regions. We regard the coronavirus outbreak as a social risk under our ESG framework, given the substantial implications for public health and safety. Harvest Midstream's exposure to commodity price and volumetric risk leaves it vulnerable to shifts in market demand and sentiment in these unprecedented operating conditions. The singular control Mr. Jeffery Hildebrand wields over the Hilcorp enterprises, including Harvest Midstream, through his ownership of Hildebrand Enterprises is also considered in the partnership's credit profile. However, Harvest Midstream has prospered under Hildebrand's control and leadership, limiting its use of excessive debt financing. Environmental considerations have a growing impact on Moody's credit analysis for midstream energy companies, indirectly related to potential carbon dioxide regulations and methane leakages. The risk of oil spills along TAPS and the environmental fragility of the Alaskan tundra raise potential social risks. A strong financial position and low financial leverage are important characteristics for managing these environmental and social risks. Moody's regards Hilcorp Midstream as having good liquidity. In addition to repaying and terminating its secured Term Loan A, net proceeds from the proposed notes offering will also be used to repay a portion of the debt outstanding under the partnership's $600 million secured revolving credit facility ($457 million outstanding at March 31). The revolver is scheduled to mature in October 2023. Pro forma for the proposed notes issue, Harvest Midstream will have about $600 million of available liquidity. Two of Harvest Midstream's joint venture companies also have outstanding revolving credit debt, which have recourse solely to the respective joint ventures themselves, and are not guaranteed by Harvest Midstream. The proposed $600 million senior unsecured notes are rated B1, one-notch below the Ba3 CFR in consideration of the priority claim that the secured revolving credit has relative to the partnership's assets. The outlook is stable reflecting Harvest Midstream's expected declining debt leverage, underpinned by the contractual source of cash flow which helps insulate the partnership from the full brunt of commodity price and volume risk. FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS Harvest Midstream could be upgraded to Ba2 should leverage drop below 3.5x, should EBITDA exceed $500 million and presuming that EBITDA is not exposed to additional commodity price or volume risk. Harvest Midstream could be downgraded should leverage exceed 4.5x, or should contract structure erode resulting in increased leverage. Should HEI be downgraded below Ba3, Harvest Midstream would also be downgraded. The principal methodology used in these ratings was Midstream Energy published in December 2018 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1147839. Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology. Harvest Midstream I, L.P.'s assets are operated by its general partner, Harvest Midstream Company, headquartered in Houston, Texas. REGULATORY DISCLOSURES For further specification of Moody's key rating assumptions and sensitivity analysis, see the sections Methodology Assumptions and Sensitivity to Assumptions in the disclosure form. Moody's Rating Symbols and Definitions can be found at: https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_79004. For ratings issued on a program, series, category/class of debt or security this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the same series, category/class of debt, security or pursuant to a program for which the ratings are derived exclusively from existing ratings in accordance with Moody's rating practices. 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Police have just seven days to find out who killed a Welsh backpacker in Thailand as the 20-year statute of limitations is due to run out. Kirsty Jones, 23, from Tredomen, near Brecon in Powys, was raped and strangled at a guesthouse in Thailand while travelling in August 2000. Dyfed-Powys Police officers have just one week left before the law expires on August 10. Kirsty Jones, 23, pictured, from Tredomen, near Brecon in Powys, was raped and strangled at a guesthouse in Thailand while travelling in August 2000 The Liverpool University graduate was three months into a two-year around the world trip when she was killed. She was found dead in a room at the Aree guest house in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, 435 miles (700km) north of Bangkok. UK officers have been to the scene to help with the investigation. The Liverpool University graduate was three months into a two-year around the world trip to Asia, Australia, New Zealand and South America when she was killed Ms Jones, a farmer's daughter, had planned a global adventure taking in Asia as well as Australia and New Zealand before finishing in South America. Under Thai law, officers only have 20 years to charge someone with an offence, according to the BBC. If convicted, the crime may be punishable by death, or someone could be sentenced to life imprisonment or a 20-year jail term. Dyfed-Powys Police said its officers had met with investigators in Chiang Mai 'to obtain information on their investigation, and assist with the forensic examination of exhibits'. A spokesperson said the police have the statute of limitations 'firmly in mind' as investigations continue. Despite a number of arrests and a 10,000 reward for information, no-one has ever been charged with her murder. Dyfed-Powys Police officers have just one week to find who killed Ms Jones before the law expires on August 10 Ms Jones decided from the age of 14 that she had wanted to take a gap year before going on to university and set off for Australia in 1996. After a safe and successful trip, the bright A-level student had fallen in love with travelling. She completed an English and media studies degree at in 1999 - then spent a year working to fund her next big trip. Her mother Sue Jones, pictured right, said the family knew it was 'unlikely much will change' or that 'anyone would come forwards' Her family said they felt no reason to worry second time that she went travelling as was older, wiser and more experienced In a previous interview, her mother Sue Jones said the family knew it was 'unlikely much will change' or that 'anyone would come forwards'. 'I just hope we did everything that we could for Kirsty, and that after 20 years she will be able to rest in peace,' she said. Sorry! This content is not available in your region Amaravati, Aug 3 : Telugu Desam Party (TDP) President and leader of opposition in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly, N. Chandrababu Naidu, on Monday set a 48-hour deadline for Chief Minister Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy to either withdraw his three capitals decision or dissolve the Assembly to seek fresh public mandate for his trifurcation move. Addressing a press conference here, Naidu dared the Chief Minister to seek a fresh mandate if he had the courage and if he was fully confident of having total approval of the people for his three capitals plan. "If the people vote for and bring the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) back to power in the re-election, then the TDP would humbly accept their mandate and it would not raise its dissenting voice against the decision again. If the CM does not come out with a proper response, the TDP along with the other opposition parties would intensify their agitation, not just through legal battles, but also to make the CM a culprit in the people's court," he said. The former Chief Minister reminded Jagan Reddy that he and his party leaders had promised the people in the 2019 election campaign that Amaravati would continue to be the only capital city and that it would be fully developed. After making that promise, the CM has no right to shift the capital out of Amaravati without the approval of all the five crore people of the State, he said. Naidu recalled how the YSRCP leaders made the innocent voters believe that Amaravati would not be destroyed even if Jagan Reddy became the Chief Minister. "But, after coming to power, the CM backstabbed and betrayed all the five crore people of the state by going ahead with his capital shifting without discussing or taking prior approval of the people," Naidu said. Stating that Amaravati was selected after duly abiding by the AP Reorganisation Act 2014, Naidu pointed out that no government would have the right to destroy this as it would only create greater problems that would crush the prospects of future generations. He said the YSRCP government was going to kill Amaravati in the same way that the then Congress government approved the bifurcation Bill by shutting down live telecast and closing the doors of the Parliament. Eventually, the people taught a bitter lesson to the Congress. The TDP chief pointed out that agreements were reached with thousands of farmers by the government-formed Capital Region Development Authority. It would amount to breach of trust if their agreements were violated. "Promises were made to the farmers that nine cities would be developed and large scale investments would be made to develop the capital city. Also, the AP High Court was established in Amaravati after a Presidential order was issued in consultation with the Supreme Court," he said. Meanwhile, protests continued by the farmers in various villages of Amaravati against the state Governor giving his approval to the two Bills for trifurcation of the state capital. For more than 230 days, farmers in 29 villages continued their protest demanding the withdrawal its three capitals move. The YSRCP government plans to develop Visakhapatnam as administrative capital and Kurnool as judicial capital, reducing Amaravati to a mere legislative capital. The village is satisfied that Tucker Development is moving forward with all due haste, Community Development Director Steve McNellis wrote in an email. Mr. Tucker and his firm have consistently been in contact with the village and have been showing progress throughout the year, in spite of the pandemic. The village continues to be excited about this project and looks forward to construction getting underway, hopefully by the end of the year. The alleged mistreatment of the Bihar police team in Mumbai also snowballed into a political controversy Political leaders across the party line on Monday raised the issue in the state assembly and urged Bihar CM Nitish Kumar to recommend a CBI probe into the death of Sushant Singh Rajput. PTI Photo Patna: The tussle between Bihar and Maharashtra police over the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput intensified on Monday after an IPS officer from Patna Vinay Tiwary was directed to stay under home quarantine by the BMC authorities. Reacting over the incident Bihar CM Nitish Kumar said, Whatever happened to the officer was unfortunate. Our DGP will speak with the authorities in Mumbai. When asked whether he would speak with Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray regarding the alleged mistreatment of Bihar cadre IPS officer in Mumbai, Nitish Kumar said that this is not a political issue for us. We are aware of our legal responsibilities. Bihar DGP would be discussing the issue with authorities in Mumbai. The alleged mistreatment of the Bihar police team in Mumbai also snowballed into a political controversy. Political leaders across the party line on Monday raised the issue in the state assembly and urged Bihar CM Nitish Kumar to recommend a CBI probe into the death of Sushant Singh Rajput. The demand was first raised by Neeraj Singh Bablu, a BJP MLA and Sushant Singh Rajputs cousin. It is evident that the Maharashtra government is trying to create hurdles in the way of Bihar police who has been sent to investigate the case. Forcing an IPS officer to stay under home quarantine hours after he arrived in Mumbai to lead the probe also raises serious doubts, BJP MLA and Sushant Singh Rajputs cousin said. Neeraj Singhs demand for CBI probe was supported by the leader of the opposition Tejashwi Yadav who said that the RJD was the first party to make the demand. I have also requested the state government that the upcoming film city in Rajgir should be named after Sushant Singh Rajput. The Bihar police had launched an investigation into the case after the deceased actors father KK Singh lodged an FIR against actress Rhea Chakraborty on July 25. He had also alleged huge financial irregularities and accused Rheas family of cheating and abetment of suicide. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 15:55:55|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close SYDNEY, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Papua New Guinea's (PNG) total COVID-19 cases have reached 110, with 19 more cases recorded on Sunday. PNG's National Pandemic Controller David Manning said most of the new cases were found in the nation's capital of Port Moresby and one was from the country's second biggest city of Lae. "While the capital remains the focal point of PNG's surge of confirmed COVID-19 cases in recent days, another new case was reported today from Lae," Manning said. Manning described the increasing rate of new cases as alarming. "Seventeen days ago, we announced the 13th case after no case was detected for a month. This is an increase of 98 cases in just 17 days and this is very concerning," he said. According to Manning, the pandemic has put great pressure on PNG's already stretched medical resources, with the Rita Flynn Isolation Centre in the capital already reaching its maximum capacity of 70. PNG's National Control Centre Incident Manager Dr. Daoni Esorom said they are now working on turning Taurama Aquatic Centre in Port Moresby into a field hospital with 300 extra beds to help cope with the situation. Officials have also ramped up testing around the capital area and conducted 10,471 tests so far. Enditem A 38-year-old Chattanooga man was shot multiple times and killed on Taylor Street early Sunday morning. The victim was identified as Cartrvous Moore. Chattanooga Police responded to a person shot call in the 1900 block of Taylor Street. Upon arrival, police located the victim with multiple gunshot wounds. Hamilton County EMS and Chattanooga Fire responded and pronounced the victim deceased. People in the area said they heard multiple gunshots around 5 a.m. Also, a 31-year-old man was shot at an undisclosed location. A t approximately 4:01 a.m. on Sunday, Chattanooga Police were notified that a person arrived at a local hospital with a gunshot wound. Upon arrival, police spoke with the person shot who said the incident occurred on Saturday during daylight hours. Injuries are considered non-life threatening. Police were unable to locate a crime scene. Chattanooga Police ask anyone with information regarding the incidents to call 423-698-2525 or submit a tip via the CPD Mobile App. You can remain anonymous. By Tom Polansek CHICAGO, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Tyson Foods Inc is seeking to convince Beijing to lift a ban on U.S. chicken shipments from an Arkansas plant where workers tested positive for COVID-19, President Dean Banks said on Monday China has emerged as the largest export market for American poultry, overtaking Mexico this spring, after Beijing in November ended a nearly five-year embargo on imports from the United States. Since June, China's customs authority has blocked chicken from Tyson's plant in Springdale, Arkansas, as part of an all-out effort to control the spread of COVID-19 in China. Globally, Beijing has suspended imports from more than 20 overseas plants processing pork, beef and poultry. "We've been interacting with them and making sure that they have all the information they need about the precautionary measures, the protective measures that plant has taken," Banks told reporters on a call. "We'd love to continue to export product from that facility, but that's in the hands of the Chinese government." Tyson on Monday also named Banks as its new chief executive and reported quarterly earnings that were hurt by the pandemic. More than 16,000 U.S. meatpacking workers have been infected with COVID-19 at dozens of plants, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Jim Sumner, president of the USA Poultry & Egg Export Council, said the United States is lucky Beijing suspended imports from just one American plant. As of last week, China had blocked six Brazilian facilities, according to Brazil's agriculture ministry. China is also testing imported meat and seafood for COVID-19, although processors say food cannot transmit the coronavirus. China has increased imports as a deadly pig disease has decimated its herd over the past two years. "We've seen a bottleneck in ports emerge a little bit due to testing," Banks said. "Their demand is very, very strong right now and so they're doing everything they can to keep things moving." (Reporting by Tom Polansek Editing by Marguerita Choy) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Tehran, Iran Mon, August 3, 2020 07:30 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b0f98b 2 World Iran,coronavirus,COVID-19,SARS-CoV-2,pandemic-bonds,virus-corona,novel-coronavirus Free Iran on Sunday reported its highest single-day novel coronavirus infection count in nearly a month, warning that most of its provinces have been hit by a resurgence of the disease. The Islamic republic has been battling the Middle East's deadliest outbreak of COVID-19 since late February. After a lull in deaths and infections from April to May, it now appears that the provinces first hit, including the holy city of Qom, are back in the same place as figures have been on the rise. Health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari said that 2,685 more people had tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, the country's highest single-day count since July 8. This raises total cases identified since late February to 309,437, she added. Another 208 people also died during the same period, bringing the overall toll to 17,190. According to Lari, the situation is "concerning" in 25 out of Iran's 31 provinces. "Sadly, since late June, daily infections have been on a rising trajectory" in Qom in central Iran, she said. "We are concerned that trivializing the situation and lax observance of health protocols may lead to a worsening of the outbreak in the province." Lari warned against travel to Mazandaran, a popular northern tourist resort at the vanguard of the outbreak where daily infections had more than quadrupled in the past six weeks. Official figures show a marked increase in deaths and infections since the end of June. As a result, mask-wearing was made compulsory in covered areas and provinces were given powers to reimpose restrictive measures. Iranian media said that renowned Iranian filmmaker Khosro Sinai, 79, had died from the virus on Saturday. Celebrated and awarded in numerous Iranian and international festivals, Sinai was the latest high-profile figure to succumb to COVID-19 in Iran following several government officials and politicians. Calling all students! The Age wants to hear about your experience of school life during lockdown 2.0, whether you're in the classroom or learning from home. We're asking Victorian school students of all ages to write us a letter of no more than 100 words, describing your thoughts and feelings about the past few weeks. Are you faring better than last time? Are you tired of it? What are your survival tips? Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to the Hanumangarhi temple before heading out for the ceremony to lay the foundation stone for the Ram temples construction on August 5 in Uttar Pradeshs Ayodhya has a special reason, a priest at the 10th-century shrine has said. The Prime Minister and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath will perform a special puja at Hanumangarhi, a temple dedicated to Lord Hanuman, and then go to Ram Janmabhoomi for the bhoomi pujan. Without Lord Hanuman, no work of Lord Ram can begin. That is why Modi ji and Yogi ji are coming and will do special pooja at Hanumangarhi temple and then will lay the foundation for the construction of Ram temple at Janmabhoomi Sthal with the blessings of Hanuman ji, Madhuvan Das, a Hanumangarhi temple, was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. Das said no work has been done without the blessings of Hanuman, a devotee of Lord Ram, so the first blessing will be sought from him for the smooth construction of the Ram temple. Mahant Raju Das, the head priest of Hanumangarhi, said they have been allocated seven minutes for Prime Ministers rituals at the temple, according to ANI. Vedic priests will escort the Prime Minister while reciting mantras to the Hanumangarhi temple where the ceremony will also include prayers for his wellbeing and to reduce the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the country. The head priest said only four priests are likely to conduct the prayers in the temple. We have to follow social distancing, these are the orders we have received from the Prime Ministers Office. So, following the norms, no one will be allowed to touch the Prime Minister neither will they offer him prasad, he said. The temple town has been decked up ahead of the August 5 ceremony when PM Modi will lay the foundation stone for construction of the Ram temple. The construction of Ram temple will begin after the ceremony to lay the foundation stone and several dignitaries from the political and religious fields are expected to take part. Jamaica's high court ruled Friday that a school was within its rights to demand that a girl cut her dreadlocks to attend classes. The ruling by the Supreme Court of Jamaica capped a two-year battle after the girl then 5 years old was told she must cut her dreadlocks for "hygiene" reasons to study at Kensington Primary School in a Kingston suburb. A rights group, Jamaicans for Justice, had initially lent support to the family, saying the order for the girl to cut her dreadlocks amounted a denial of her freedom of expression and her access to education. Others viewed the court battle as a stand against rules seen as discrimination against people who wear "natural" hair, including Rastafarians whose dreadlocks are part of their religious tradition. The girl and her parents, Dale and Sherine Virgo, who both wear dreadlocks, plan to appeal, said their lawyer, Isat Buchanan. I will not be cutting my daughters hair, Sherine Virgo said immediately after the ruling. If they give me that ultimatum again, I will be moving her. Virgos daughter now 7 years old and identified in court papers only as Z because she is a minor was attending classes at the school after the courts delivered an injunction against the Ministry of Education, allowing her to go to school with her dreadlocks intact. When the school closed this spring because of the coronavirus pandemic, the girl was home-schooled. I am more than surprised. It is most unfortunate, Buchanan said. It is a most unfortunate day for Black people and for Rastafarian people in Jamaica. The girls father called the ruling another sign of systemic racism. A child was refused because of her Black hair, you know? said Dale Virgo. Its so weird that right now in the current climate of the world, in 2020, we are having protests, and Black people are fed up. This is an opportunity the Jamaican government and the legal system had to right these wrongs and lead the world and make a change, he continued. But they have decided to keep the same system. The judgment was delivered in a small courtroom populated mainly by lawyers and the girls parents. The minister of education, Karl Samuda, declined to comment on the ruling, which came on the eve of Emancipation Day, celebrated in Jamaica and elsewhere to mark the end of slavery in the British Empire. Im very cautious about where I tread, he said, especially on a sensitive enough subject like that. Source: washingtonpost.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 NEW DELHI (PTI): The Rafale aircraft will give India a strategic advantage in case of any aerial combat with China in the mountainous Tibet region as the fleet will be able to use the terrain to its advantage, destroy enemy air defence and incapacitate the surface-to-air missiles, former Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal (retd) B S Dhanoa said on Sunday. Dhanoa, known as the architect of the Balakot strikes, said the Rafale jets along with S-400 missile systems will give the Indian Air Force a major combat edge in the entire region and that India's adversaries will think twice before starting a war with it. In case of Pakistan, he said the purpose of the S-400 and Rafale is to hit Pakistani aircraft inside Pakistani air space and not when they come inside Indian territory, adding the neighbouring country would not have responded on February 27 last year to the Balakot air strikes if India had the French-manufactured jets then. In an interview to PTI, Dhanoa said the Rafale, with its fantastic electronic warfare suite and manoeuvrability, will be able to use mountainous terrain in Tibet to its advantage and blind the enemy before India's strike aircraft penetrate hostile airspace to carry out their missions. The former Chief of Air Staff also said that the Rafales being supplied to the IAF are much more advanced than the ones being used by the French Air Force as India had asked for something "more" due to requirement to operate in unique conditions like operations from Leh. Five Rafale jets out of 36 arrived in India last week at a time the country is in the midst of a bitter border row with China in the high altitude eastern Ladakh region. "Rafale has got a fantastic Electronic Warfare (EW) suite (SPECTRA), fantastic weapons and therefore are capable of protecting themselves electronically besides being able to use the terrain to their advantage," Dhanoa said. "So they (Rafales) can play an important role in doing DEAD (Destruction of Enemy Air Defence) on the surface-to-air missiles that the Chinese have put on Tibet. "Once you take out those surface to air missiles, then other aircraft like Su-30, Jaguars, even Mig 21s can go out and drop the bombs on the Chinese forces. The strike aircraft carrying bombs can put tonnes and tonnes of bombs on the enemy troops, freely carrying out their mission. But if you do not do DEAD then you will suffer a lot of casualties," he said. The leading air forces globally carry out Suppression of Enemy Air Defence (SEAD) or DEAD using their top of the line aircraft or weapons before launching any major operation in hostile territories. As the Chief of Air Staff, Dhanoa had strongly defended the Rafale deal when the opposition parties ramped up attack on the government alleging massive irregularities in the procurement. The top IAF brass led by Dhanoa played a key role in implementation of the mega deal. "Against China there are big Himalayan mountains in between us which create serious line of sight issues. You can put a missile with a range of 300-400 kms on the ground in Tibet or in India. But it will only work within the line of sight," he said. He said the Rafales, with terrain following capability, will give India a major capability enhancement. "In air combat, the first thing that is important is information dominance, you get information and deny the enemy the information. The key role the Rafales will play in Tibet is information dominance and in case of Pakistan, it is a major deterrent. Of course there will be other roles too," he said. Asked about the comparison between the Rafales and J-20 fighter jets of China, he said the Chinese aircraft is not stealthy and presently, with its current engines, cannot super-cruise unlike the newly-acquired Indian fleet. In a beyond visual range (BVR) combat, he said Indian missiles are far superior than theirs. The French avionics on board the Rafale are "far superior" than the Chinese systems in J-20s, he said. "Hence in a BVR environment the Rafales are superior to the J-20s," he added. "With the induction of the Rafales we will have a tremendous jump in capability. That's why I called both (Rafale and S-400) of them game changers. Both these platforms will give the IAF a tremendous capability jump. The Rafale in the air and S-400 on the ground." In October 2018, India signed a US$ 5 billion deal to buy the S-400 air defence missile systems from Russia to bolster the IAF's air defence mechanism. The 'Triumf' interceptor-based missile system can destroy incoming hostile aircraft, missiles and even drones at ranges of up to 400 km. The delivery of the missile systems is scheduled to begin next year. "Both S-400 and Rafales are critical game changers. Rafale is a deterrent. The purpose of deterrence is not to fight a war. Purpose of deterrence is to make the other person think twice before he starts a war or a skirmish with you," he said. He said the Pakistanis would not have responded on February 27 last year to India's Balakot strikes if India had the Rafale jets. In this context, he also mentioned an operation by the IAF to drop bombs on a Pakistani post along the LoC in Kel sector in 2002, and how Pakistani Air Force never dared to respond to it. "On August 2, 2002, we did bombing of a Pakistani post as the Pakistanis had intruded about 600-700 metres inside the LoC in our area and set up a post. We bombed with four Mirage 2000s and after that the Pakistanis never came back," Dhanoa said. "The Pakistanis never ever dreamt of bombing an Indian post in retaliation because we had Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missiles on Mirage 2000, MiG 29 and the Su-30s and they did not have any BVR missiles on any of their fighters," he recalled. "They just kept quiet about it and just didn't acknowledge that something had happened and later on played it low key when the news did break in the international media! That is what is called deterrence," he added. Asked whether India should consider procuring two more squadrons of Rafales as it makes operational sense, Dhanoa called it a good idea and said that it will be the "cheapest option" of getting a 4.5 generation fighter into the air force. "We already have infrastructure for two squadrons. We do not need additional infrastructure for the next two squadrons. They will come, in my assessment, at 60 to 70 per cent of the cost of the current ones," he said. "The cost of research and development for all India-specific enhancements have already been covered. The next two squadrons of Rafales will be the cheapest option of getting a 4.5 generation fighter into the air force," he added. Dhanoa, who retired as the IAF Chief on September 30, 2019, said having two more squadrons of Rafales will give the force a lot of strength. "If you have 72-80 aircraft, it will match whatever F-16s the Pakistanis have got. It will be good for deterrence," he said adding it will make economic sense. Dhanoa also thanked all the people who stood by the Rafale deal, including the defence minister, the civil servants, the then defence secretary, the director general (acquisition) and many others in the government. "You have to give them full marks, because they stood by it despite many apprehensions. Normally everybody gets scared that this deal may be termed later as a scam and they may be hauled up by the investigation agencies after their retirement, or some other roving inquiry that may happen which may implicate them in the future. These people stood by it; we signed and executed the deal," he said. Dhanoa said the political leadership also stood their ground and did not dump the deal. "They were going into an election. You could have always opted for a soft option of setting up a committee. Everybody stood their ground. The national leadership, the bureaucracy. That is why you have the aircraft," he added. Dhanoa also expressed happiness that the first squadron of Rafales will be part of the Number 17 Squadron, also known as 'Golden Arrows', based in Ambala. "I am very happy...I was the last Commodore Commandant of 17 squadron. It got number plated in March 2012. It stopped flying in December 2011. Having celebrated our Diamond Jubilee in October 2011. Last year the Squadron has been resurrected and this year aircraft have finally come to the Squadron," he said. "Golden Arrows have a very rich tradition. The Squadron has fought in all the wars. It participated in the Liberation of Goa, 1965 war, 1971 war, and it fought in Kargil," he added. Dhanoa commanded the squadron during the Kargil war. "In case, there is fighting in Eastern Ladakh, we will not miss it," the Air Chief Marshal (Retd.) said in a lighter vein. The Guardian The Steelers quarterback is headed to the Hall of Fame. But he was unloved outside Pittsburgh for understandable reasons Ben Roethlisberger almost certainly played his final game in the NFL on Sunday. Photograph: Ed Zurga/AP Ben Roethlisberger is lucky that football legacies are not decided by finales. If Sunday night was indeed Big Bens last ever NFL game, as he has strongly hinted, it wasnt exactly a mic drop. In the 42-21 beatdown by the Chiefs, Roethlisberger struggled with rollouts, and l Startling video shows a young woman being put in handcuffs on a beach in North Carolina after 'some Karen' called the cops complaining about her thong bikini. Sam Panda, a professional aerialist, was enjoying some sand and sun in this weekend when police officers showed up and detained her in cuffs all because, she said, another woman didn't approve of her bathing suit. 'A woman called the cops on me because of my bikini,' she wrote on Facebook, sharing the vide. 'That's how this all started. Some Karen decided that my body was offensive to her and showed her child that her body could one day lead to her arrest.' Detained: Startling video shows a young woman being put in handcuffs on a beach in North Carolina after 'some Karen' called the cops complaining about her thong bikini Cuffed: Sam Panda, a professional aerialist, shared video of the incident on Facebook Baring too much? Officers told Sam that her thong bikini was against the law in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina The video begins with Sam being put in handcuffs, with two officers neither wearing a face mask detaining her. She has demanded to be shown the penal code that shows that she can't wear her bikini on the beach, and one of the officers says they will shown them the ordinance at their car. 'Why is it illegal to wear a bikini on the beach?' a man off camera asks, as Sam adds: 'I literally wear this every day.' When they get to the car, however, the officer reads aloud an ordinance, which says that 'it shall be unlawful for anyone to appear in the nude' on public beaches. 'I'm not nude!' Sam protests. The officer replies that she is wearing a thong, which Sam says isn't nudity. 'You put me in handcuffs for being in a thong!' she says, begging the cop holding her to let her go. On duty: The video begins with Sam being put in handcuffs, with two officers neither wearing a face mask detaining her 'Why is it illegal to wear a bikini on the beach?' a man off camera asks, as Sam adds: 'I literally wear this every day' Laws: The officer reads aloud an ordinance, which says that 'it shall be unlawful for anyone to appear in the nude' on public beaches Rules: Section 14-83 of the city's municipal code, passed in 1993, reads: 'Public exposure of specified anatomical parts unlawful' Consequences: The ordinance disallows the showing of buttocks. Previously, officers would give a warning first, but in 2009 the law changed. Now, officers can give a ticket right away While the nudity ordinance read by the officers doesn't seem to actually apply to Sam's thong bikini, the city of Myrtle Beach does, in fact, outlaw thongs on the beach. Section 14-83 of the city's municipal code, passed in 1993, reads: 'Public exposure of specified anatomical parts unlawful.' 'It shall be unlawful for any person to intentionally appear in any public place in such a state of dress or undress so as to expose to the view of others the human male or female genitals, pubic area, pubic hair, buttocks, anus, vulva or any portion of the female breast at or below the areola thereof,' it reads. The inclusion of 'buttocks' in particular rules out wearing thongs. According to NBC affiliate WMBF, those who broke the law were initially given a warning to cover up before officers would issue a ticket. However, in 2009, the City Council updated the ordinance to do away with warnings. 'There's been a law the last 16 years against thongs period,' then-Mayor John Rhodes said at the time. 'Is it a good thing? A bad thing? Well, it's the law.' 'I am not nude. Everything that is a private part is covered,' she says. 'You can't tell me I can't wear a thong' Upset: Finally, the officers remove Sam's handcuffs, but the group continues to argue about the detainment for several minutes Viral: Sam later shared the video on Facebook where she didn't complain about the officers, but about the woman who called the police on her in the first place 'A woman called the cops on me because of my bikini,' she said. 'Some Karen decided that my body was offensive to her and showed her child that her body could one day lead to her arrest' Still, though, the law and its update appear to call for the officers to have given Sam a ticket not put her in handcuffs. In the video, the officers also take issue with what Sam's female friend is wearing: a sheer white top through which her nipples are visible. After continued argument over whether or not a thong constitutes nudity, one of the officers changes direction, saying that she was detained because of 'how [she was] acting.' Some minutes pass before a third officer shows up. Sam explains the situation to the third officer, giving him a play-by-play of the events leading up to that point. 'I am not nude. Everything that is a private part is covered,' she says. 'You can't tell me I can't wear a thong.' Finally, the officers remove Sam's handcuffs, but the group continues to argue about the detainment for several minutes. Details: Police claim the call came from someone who complained about two women 'wearing thong bikinis and a see-through top that were dancing and soliciting videos on the beach' Impressive: Sam is a professional aerialist and boasts an impressive following thanks to her acrobatic tricks Rant: On Facebook, she wrote angrily that the woman who called the cops 's***-shamed' her 'And worst of all, you showed your daughter that her body is something she should be ashamed of and could be detained for,' she said TMZ reports that local police claim the call came from someone who complained of two women 'who were wearing thong bikinis and a see-through top that were dancing and soliciting videos on the beach.' The officers claim that Sam tried to walk away from them, which is why they detained her. They were released without charges. Some Karen decided that my body was offensive to her and showed her child that her body could one day lead to her arrest Sam later shared the video on Facebook where she didn't complain about the officers, but about the woman who called the police on her in the first place. 'If you are a woman, and you decide to call the police on other women for their bodies ON A BEACH, IN FRONT OF YOUR TEENAGE DAUGHTER... 'You have allowed a 105 pound woman to get rushed, aggressively grabbed, manhandled, and cuffed. You allowed two women to be s***-shamed publicly on a beach for their bathing suits. 'And worst of all, you showed your daughter that her body is something she should be ashamed of and could be detained for. You showed her that a man can harm a woman over the way her body is viewed by other people. 'You have objectified a female body that does not belong to you and have showed your daughter that those actions are acceptable. You should be absolutely ashamed of yourself,' she wrote. (Natural News) Far-left billionaire George Soros has announced he is pumping another staggering amount of cash into the radical Black Lives Matter organization. (Article by Jay Greenberg republished from NeonNettle.com) With America burning under the leftist push for socialism, Hungarian-born financier Soros announced he is donating another $220 million to the Black Lives Matter movement. Much of Soros money is going into efforts to defund the police and control 2020 voting systems, his foundation revealed. This is the time for urgent and bold action to address racial injustice in America, Alex Soros, George Soros son and deputy chair of the Soros familys Open Society Foundations, said in a statement. The younger Soros also revealed their radical-left push to abolish Amercas prisons. These investments will empower proven leaders in the black community to reimagine policing, end mass incarceration, and eliminate the barriers to opportunity that have been the source of inequity for too long, Alex Soros said. George Soros is pumping money into Black Lives Matter as America is ravaged by protests and rioting Soros group is blaming Americas founding for racial injustice and vows to stop it. We recognize that the struggle to dismantle systemic racism is an ongoing one; it has existed from the dawn of the republic to the present day and is embedded in every level of government and in our penal and justice systems, said Open Society Foundations President Patrick Gaspard. But the power surge of people who have taken to the streets to demand that this nation do betterpeople of all ages, from all backgrounds and in every corner of this countrygives hope to us all, said Gaspard. We are honored to be able to carry on the vital work of fighting for rights, dignity, and equity for oppressed people the world over started by our founder and chair, George Soros, Gaspard added. While $150 million of the funds are part of a five-year plan, Open Society Foundations says a $70 million will be immediately spent on plans for ongoing efforts to fight voter suppression and disinformation and ensure safe and secure elections in the midst of the pandemic. This likely refers to vote-by-mail programs and overturning ballot security laws. George Soros son, Alex Soros, says much if the money will toward pushing to defund the police and abolish prisons Black Lives Matter has been widely slammed for its shady funding and hidden agenda to push Marxism. Legendary black rapper Lord Jamar recently blasted BLM, saying he doesnt support the group because it isnt our movement it was given to us by George Soros. The 51-year-old music star, who started hip-hip group Brand Nubian in 1989, was asked during a recent interview with Turning Point USA whether he supports the BLM protests, to which he responded: No. Absolutely not. When asked to elaborate on why he doesnt support the group, Lord Jamar said: Because this isnt our movement. Its a movement that was given to us by, you know, George Soros and his f**king boys. Because they saw how things were going and they didnt want it to go back to the 60s to where we start having our own, organic movement. Read more at: NeonNettle.com Every name on the BrandBucket marketplace is exclusively listed with BrandBucket. That means that all of our sellers are very responsive, making for quick domain transfers. A dedicated BrandBucket agent will manage your domain transfer from beginning to end, ensuring a secure and easy transaction. They will manage the receipt of the domain into one of BrandBuckets secure registrar accounts and then complete the transfer to you. 1. Verification and registrar choice After we receive the payment and verify it, we will reach out via email to confirm which registrar you want the domain transferred to. We also provide a link to our tracking system, where you can communicate with us, check on the status of your transfer, view your invoice, and download your logo files. In most cases, if a domain is moved between accounts at a single registrar, the transfer is quick and usually completes within 48 hours. If a domain changes registrars (in other words, you would like to move it away from where it is currently registered), the transfer is slower. The total transfer time can then be anywhere from 48 hours to 7 days. 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Rating Action: Moody's Assigns First-Time Baa3 Ratings to AES Panama Generation Holdings; Outlook Stable Global Credit Research - 03 Aug 2020 New York, August 03, 2020 -- Moody's Investors Service, ("Moody's") today assigned first-time Baa3 issuer and debt ratings to AES Panama Generation Holdings S. de R.L. ("AES PGH" or "Issuer") and its proposed $1,381 million Reg S / 144 A Senior Secured Notes in a 7-year and 10-year tranches (due 2027 and 2030; together the "Notes"). The outlook on the ratings is stable. The Notes will rank pari passu with a 3-year fully amortizing $104.5 million Senior Secured Loan (due 2023), for a total outstanding debt of $1,486 million. AES PGH is an entity created with the sole purpose of issuing consolidated debt of the operating companies of AES Global Power Holdings in Panama. The various assets of AES are operated under four entities (together, the "OpCos" or the "Portfolio"): AES Changuinola, AES Panama S.R.L., and Costa Norte LNG Terminal and Gas Natural Atlantico (together "AES Colon"). The Notes and Loan proceeds will refinance most of existing debt at the OpCos which will in turn enter into Intercompany Loans (ICL) with the Issuer. Assignments: ..Issuer: AES Panama Generation Holdings S. de R.L. ....Issuer Rating, Assigned Baa3 ....Senior Secured Regular Bond/Debenture, Assigned Baa3 Outlook Actions: ..Issuer: AES Panama Generation Holdings S. de R.L. ....Outlook, Assigned Stable RATINGS RATIONALE The ratings assigned reflect the strategic, competitive and highly contracted (82% on average) generation portfolio of assets in Panama that contribute to more than 37% of the country's generation. Importantly, a large portion of the energy and capacity is contracted with the three Panamanian distribution companies ("DISCOs"), which are partially government owned and effectively operate as regional monopolies in Panama. As such, we consider that the counterparty risk of these DISCOs reflects the broader electricity demand risk in the country. Furthermore, AES Panama includes natural gas generation assets, which mitigates exposure to low hydro generation, that accounts for more than half of total capacity. Story continues The proposed transaction also considers various credit enhancements including a $50 million liquidity facility, additional indebtedness tests and dividend lock-ups. Notwithstanding, the ratings are tempered by the high leverage and refinancing risk. The credit enhancement provided by the dividend lock-up mechanism is tempered by the fact that dividend distributions on AES Panama S.R.L. also relies on the approval of the Government of Panama (Baa1 stable), however risk is partially mitigated by the track-record and good relationship with the Government of Panama. The assigned rating also considers that the transaction will benefit from AES Global Power Holdings' pledge of shares of the OpCos to a trust as security for the ICLs. Our assigned rating also reflects AES Global Power Holdings' internal dividend distribution policy that considers minimum cash balances at the OpCos and capital investment needs. Dividend distributions are projected to be sizable although this is counterbalanced by the additional indebtedness tests and dividend lock-ups in case there's a default on any of the ICLs. Moody's Base Case scenario assumes a P(90) generation on the hydro assets in 2023 and 2024 and a cap on AES Colon's LNG storage asset from 2023 to 2030 (up to 24 Trillion British Thermal Units, "TBTU") which represents, on average, a 41% drop on the storage revenues, compared to the Management Case. Under the Moody's Base Case scenario, projected financial metrics are consistent with Ba scores under our methodology. Cash from Operations Pre-Working Capital (CFO Pre-W/C) + Interest / Interest is expected to average 4.3x (2020-2030), CFO Pre-W/C / Debt ratio projected to average 17% and Retained Cash Flow to Debt Ratio to average 9.0% over the same period, as a result of the planned dividend distributions from the OpCos to GPH. We also project that Debt / EBITDA will approach 4.0x at AES Panama in the next 3 to 5 years as the company reduces its debt balance. ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL, GOVERNANCE CONSIDERATIONS In Moody's view, environmental risks are not material to AES PGH's credit profile. While the unregulated utilities and unregulated power is among three sectors (besides coal mining and coal terminals) in Moody's environmental heat map that have "immediate, elevated risk" from climate change considerations, AES PGH is considered to have low carbon transition risk since most of its generation capacity is hydro. Social risks are not material to AES PGH credit profile. AES PGH has low social risk and we are unaware of any concern regarding unions, or communities. We view AES PGH's corporate governance as a moderate risk. Their dividend distribution policy relies on minimum target cash balances and the decision to distribute dividends is shared with other stockholders at the operating company level. These risks are partially mitigated by the structure that could trap AES Global Power Holdings' portion of the dividends and the pledge of shares as collateral. The stable outlook reflects our view that AES PGH will maintain stable and visible cash flows that support projected financial metrics. Specifically, we expect that CFO Pre-W/C /debt and the interest coverage ratios will average around 17% and 4.0x, respectively and on a projected basis. FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS We could upgrade AES PGH's ratings if the company reduces its debt balances or increases its cash flow generation such that it records CFO Pre-W/C /debt at or above 20% the interest coverage ratio at or above 4.5x. We could downgrade AES PGH's ratings if the company records FFO/debt below 15% on a sustained basis the interest coverage ratio remains below 3.0x on a sustained basis. Projected Debt / EBITDA above 4.0x on a sustained basis could also exert downward pressure on the ratings. The principal methodology used in these ratings was Unregulated Utilities and Unregulated Power Companies published in May 2017 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1066389. Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology. REGULATORY DISCLOSURES For further specification of Moody's key rating assumptions and sensitivity analysis, see the sections Methodology Assumptions and Sensitivity to Assumptions in the disclosure form. Moody's Rating Symbols and Definitions can be found at: https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_79004. For ratings issued on a program, series, category/class of debt or security this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the same series, category/class of debt, security or pursuant to a program for which the ratings are derived exclusively from existing ratings in accordance with Moody's rating practices. For ratings issued on a support provider, this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to the credit rating action on the support provider and in relation to each particular credit rating action for securities that derive their credit ratings from the support provider's credit rating. For provisional ratings, this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to the provisional rating assigned, and in relation to a definitive rating that may be assigned subsequent to the final issuance of the debt, in each case where the transaction structure and terms have not changed prior to the assignment of the definitive rating in a manner that would have affected the rating. For further information please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page for the respective issuer on www.moodys.com. For any affected securities or rated entities receiving direct credit support from the primary entity(ies) of this credit rating action, and whose ratings may change as a result of this credit rating action, the associated regulatory disclosures will be those of the guarantor entity. Exceptions to this approach exist for the following disclosures, if applicable to jurisdiction: Ancillary Services, Disclosure to rated entity, Disclosure from rated entity. The ratings have been disclosed to the rated entity or its designated agent(s) and issued with no amendment resulting from that disclosure. These ratings are solicited. Please refer to Moody's Policy for Designating and Assigning Unsolicited Credit Ratings available on its website www.moodys.com. Regulatory disclosures contained in this press release apply to the credit rating and, if applicable, the related rating outlook or rating review. Moody's general principles for assessing environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks in our credit analysis can be found at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1133569. The Global Scale Credit Rating on this Credit Rating Announcement was issued by one of Moody's affiliates outside the EU and is endorsed by Moody's Deutschland GmbH, An der Welle 5, Frankfurt am Main 60322, Germany, in accordance with Art.4 paragraph 3 of the Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 on Credit Rating Agencies. Further information on the EU endorsement status and on the Moody's office that issued the credit rating is available on www.moodys.com. Please see www.moodys.com for any updates on changes to the lead rating analyst and to the Moody's legal entity that has issued the rating. Please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for additional regulatory disclosures for each credit rating. Adrian Garza Vice President - Senior Analyst Project Finance Group Moody's de Mexico S.A. de C.V Ave. Paseo de las Palmas No. 405 - 502 Col. Lomas de Chapultepec Mexico, DF 11000 Mexico JOURNALISTS: 1 888 779 5833 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 Alejandro Olivo Associate Managing Director Project Finance Group JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 Releasing Office: Moody's Investors Service, Inc. 250 Greenwich Street New York, NY 10007 U.S.A. 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Therefore, credit ratings assigned by MSFJ are Non-NRSRO Credit Ratings. Non-NRSRO Credit Ratings are assigned by an entity that is not a NRSRO and, consequently, the rated obligation will not qualify for certain types of treatment under U.S. laws. MJKK and MSFJ are credit rating agencies registered with the Japan Financial Services Agency and their registration numbers are FSA Commissioner (Ratings) No. 2 and 3 respectively. MJKK or MSFJ (as applicable) hereby disclose that most issuers of debt securities (including corporate and municipal bonds, debentures, notes and commercial paper) and preferred stock rated by MJKK or MSFJ (as applicable) have, prior to assignment of any credit rating, agreed to pay to MJKK or MSFJ (as applicable) for credit ratings opinions and services rendered by it fees ranging from JPY125,000 to approximately JPY250,000,000. MJKK and MSFJ also maintain policies and procedures to address Japanese regulatory requirements. PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Justice Anna Richardson, updates on the status of the function books to keep all stakeholders informed. A letter has been sent to the Council of Advice requesting an update on the timeline for the delivery of their advice on the draft legislation concerning the repeal of Rechtspositie Korps Politie Nederlandse Antillen 2000 and the salary scales for the Police Force of St. Maarten (KPSM). This advice concerns the function book of the KPSM; one of the nine departments within the Ministry of Justice. A function book comprises three parts; firstly, the functions and their job descriptions, secondly, the valuation and assignment of scales to the functions based on the weight of the function, and finally, the formation plan noting FTEs (Full-Time Equivalents) per function. The first part has been completed for all nine departments within the Ministry of Justice. On Thursday, July 29, the Council of Ministers approved the establishment of a Project Group that will focus on the finalization and legislative ratification of the function books and placing personnel in the functions thereafter. The Project Group will comprise of a Steering Committee and a Workgroup with representatives from the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of General Affairs, and the Ministry of Finance. The Project Group is scheduled to launch in the coming weeks once its national decree is finalized. Minister Richardson states, Regarding the function books, following proper protocol within the legal framework is of the utmost importance to guarantee that things are completed in the right manner. Within the legal framework, there will be an inclusive process, and it designates the legal responsibility of all parties. The legal framework will involve the Committee of Civil Servants Unions (CCSU) representing the unions and the Department Heads of the Ministry of Justice. The framework and related legislation specifically outlines when the CCSU is to be approached and their legal role. The Minister of Justice will meet with Department Heads of the Ministry of Justice to discuss the status and approach to their departmental function book. The Department Heads will be charged with disseminating specific information on the status of the function book to their personnel. To promote transparency and communication, the Cabinet of the Ministry of Justice commits to continuous updates on this matter both internally, and to the public. The completion of the function books remains among the Top Five priorities of the Minister of Justice. Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - Twenty illegal migrants have been rescued by Libyan coast guards after their boat broke down about 30 km east of Mellita in the west, Libya's Interior Ministry of the Government of National Accord (GNA) announced on Monday LUXEMBOURG, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On July 28, 2020, Ecuador Social Bond S.a r.l (the "Company") commenced a solicitation of the consents ("Consents") of holders ("Holders") of the 2.60% Class A Social Notes due 2035 (the "Class A Notes") and the Zero Coupon Class B Social Notes due 2035 (the "Class B Notes"; together with the Class A Notes, individually, a "S.a r.l Note" and collectively, the "S.a r.l Notes"), which are governed by the trust indenture dated as of January 30, 2020 (the "S.a r.l Notes Indenture"). The Company announced today that it is extending the deadline to deliver Consents from 5:00 p.m., Central European Summer Time (11:00 a.m., New York City time), on August 3, 2020 (the "Old Expiration Time") to 5:00 p.m., Central European Summer Time (11:00 a.m., New York City time), on Thursday August 6, 2020 the (the "New Expiration Time"). As set forth in the consent solicitation statement dated July 28, 2020 (the "Consent Solicitation Statement"), the Company reserved the right to extend the Old Expiration Time in its sole discretion and further reserves the right to extend the New Expiration Time in its sole discretion. Consents will continue to be irrevocable, except under limited circumstances. By delivering a Consent at or prior to the New Expiration Time and not revoking, if applicable, such Consent, each Holder agrees to direct us to give our consent to the Ecuador Social Bond Modifications, subject to the receipt of Requisite Consents. The terms of the Consent Solicitation Statement are not otherwise modified by the announcement of the New Expiration Time. Capitalized terms used herein but not defined herein shall have the meanings ascribed thereto in the Consent Solicitation Statement. On July 31, 2020, the Republic of Ecuador (the "Republic") notified us that it was extending the deadline for us to consent to certain modifications (the "Ecuador Social Bond Modifications") relating to the Company's interest as the sole holder of the Republic of Ecuador's U.S. $400,000,000 7.25% Ecuador Social Bonds due 2035 issued by the Republic of Ecuador pursuant to an indenture dated January 30, 2020 (the "Ecuador Social Bonds Indenture"). The Republic has given us until 5:00 p.m., Central European Summer Time (11:00 a.m., New York City time), on August 7, 2020 to consent to the Ecuador Social Bond Modifications. Since our consent to the Ecuador Social Bond Modifications is contingent upon us receiving the consent of the Majority Holders under this Consent Solicitation, the Company has decided to announce the New Expiration Time so that the deadline to deliver Consents under this Consent Solicitation is consistent with the new deadline that the Republic has given us to consent to the Ecuador Social Bond Modifications. We are not offering to pay a fee to any Holder in connection with this Consent Solicitation, as extended. We reserve the right to waive or modify any term of, or terminate, the Consent Solicitation at any time and in our sole discretion. We reserve the right in our sole discretion to reject any and all Consents with respect to the S.a r.l Notes. Identifiers for the S.a r.l Notes consist of ISINs: Class A Notes: XS2106052827 / XS2106052405; Class B Notes: XS2106053635 / XS2106053551. This announcement is for informational purposes only and is not a solicitation of consents of any Holders of S.a r.l Notes. The solicitation of consents of Holders of S.a r.l Notes is only being made pursuant to the Consent Solicitation. Each Holder of S.a r.l Notes should read the Consent Solicitation Statement carefully prior to making any decision with respect to providing its consent because it contains important information. The Company will make (or cause to be made) all further announcements regarding the Consent Solicitation by press release in accordance with applicable law. We have not registered the Consent Solicitation or the S.a r.l Notes under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), or any state securities law. The Consents may not be solicited in the United States or to any U.S. persons except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act. Consents are being solicited only from holders of the S.a r.l Notes that are (1) "qualified institutional buyers" as defined in Rule 144A under the Securities Act ("QIBs"), (2) "institutional accredited investors" within the meaning of Rule 501(a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) of Regulation D under the Securities Act ("IAI"), and (3) outside the United States, in compliance with Regulation S under the Securities Act. In connection with this Consent Solicitation, Citigroup Global Markets Inc. is acting as Consent Solicitation Agent (the "Consent Solicitation Agent") and Global Bondholder Services Corporation is acting as Information and Tabulation Agent (the "Information and Tabulation Agent"). For the avoidance of doubt, the proposed Ecuador Social Bond Modifications are not being proposed by us, the trustee of the S.a r.l Notes Indenture, the Consent Solicitation Agent or the Information and Tabulation Agent; you are being asked pursuant to the S.a r.l Notes Indenture to permit us to approve the modifications to the Ecuador Social Bond Indenture by the Ecuador Social Bond Modifications. The proposed Ecuador Social Bond Modifications are proposed by the Republic in connection with its Ecuador Social Bonds. Because we are the 100% holder of the Ecuador Social Bonds, the Republic has requested our consent in the Ecuador Social Bond Consent. None of the Company, the Consent Solicitation Agent, the trustee of the S.a r.l Notes Indenture, the Information and Tabulation Agent, or any of their respective directors, employees, affiliates, agents or representatives makes any recommendation as to whether Holders should deliver Consents pursuant to the Consent Solicitation, as extended, and no one has been authorized by any of them to make such a recommendation. Each Holder must make its own decision as to whether to give a Consent. The Consent Solicitation Statement is available from the Information and Tabulation Agent. The Information and Tabulation Agent for the Consent Solicitation Global Bondholder Services Corporation 65 Broadway Suite 404 New York, New York 10006 Attn: Corporate Actions Banks and Brokers call: (212) 430-3774 Toll free: (866)-470-3800 By facsimile: (212) 430-3775/3779 Confirmation: (212) 430-3774 Email: [email protected] If you have any questions about the Consent Solicitation, as extended, you should contact Citigroup Global Markets Inc. or Global Bondholder Services Corporation at their respective addresses and telephone numbers. Requests for copies of the Consent Solicitation Statement may be directed to the Information and Tabulation Agent. The Consent Solicitation Agent Citigroup Global Markets Inc. 388 Greenwich Street, 7th Floor New York, New York 10013 Attn: Liability Management Group Toll Free:+1-800-558-3745 Collect: +1-212- 723-6106 Ecuador Social Bond S.a r.l. c/o TMF Luxembourg S.A. 46A, Avenue J.F. Kennedy, L-1855 Luxembourg Tel: +352 42 71 711 Attention: the Board of Managers SOURCE Ecuador Social Bond S.a r.l Apple plans to move 10% of its global manufacturing to India in 5 years Apple Inc. is expected to manufacture mobile phones in India, with an incremental production value of a $29 billion in the next five years, mostly for the export market. This is based on eligibility under the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, which closed on July 31. The move will help the company shift production from China, where around 95 per cent of its mobiles are currently manufactured, say analysts. They point out that India could constitute around 10 per cent of Apples global production at ... Kaplow Communications: Changing Conversations Kaplow Communications, known for its strategic brand marketing and superior media relationships, announced that it was named a Top Place to Work by PR News. Recognized for the agencys overall culture, as well as expanding divisions and creating new roles based on employees interests, Kaplow was also honored for its dedication to team member development. Im so proud of the entire Kaplow team for their contributions to our culture, our work and our results, said Liz Kaplow, Founder and CEO of the eponymous public relations agency. From the beginning, it has been our goal to attract top talent and create a working environment that prioritizes work-life balance and value. Kaplows culture is collaborative, communicative, down-to-earth, and fun. Defined by the four pillars of T.R.E.E. Trust, Respect, Energy and Enthusiasm, Kaplow is guided by a transparent and empathetic approach to internal and external communications. This enables a collaborative culture where everyone has a direct line of communication to senior management, including Liz Kaplow herself, the companys president, CFO and Senior Vice Presidents. Dedicated to providing growth-opportunities for its team, the New York City-based agency, houses Beauty, Lifestyle and Health & Wellness categories, as well as Influencer Management. With a history of promoting division leads from within, Kaplow regularly provides employees with the career mobility they crave, which contributes to the agencys higher than average retention rates. In fact, Kaplow boasts a stunning retention rate of staff that has stayed with the company for five or more years. In addition, the agency offers numerous committees such as New Earned Media, Marketing and Social Media which provide team members at all levels the opportunity to grow their skills outside of their day-to-day client workload. These committees provide deeper exposure to senior leaders and often open the door to new work assignments. Encouraging volunteerism, Kaplow sponsors efforts during official work hours and its commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility is communicated regularly and enshrined in the employee handbook. Kaplow also has a strategic partnership with Givz, a company that enables frictionless donation to every registered charity in America. As part of the agencys 2019 holiday gift, as well as in response to the Coronavirus crisis, Kaplow added funds to all employees Givz accounts, allowing them to directly donate to the charity of their choice. About Kaplow Communications Kaplow Communications, based in New York City, specializes in conceptualizing and executing integrated campaigns that change conversations in todays digital world. Its award-winning programs include brand strategy, media relations, influencer marketing and executive visibility, reaching consumers at every touch point and creating an emotional bond that drives loyalty and brand love. For information, call 212-221-1713 or visit http://www.kaplow.com/our-services. Texas is among 12 states where the wait time to receive COVID-19 results is more than three days, a new study shows. The median wait time in Texas was four days, while most states was exactly three days, according to the study conducted by The COVID-19 Consortium, a collaborative research project from Northeastern, Harvard, Rutgers and Northwestern universities. Only six states Hawaii, Iowa, Kentucky, New Jersey, Ohio, and Washington had a median wait time of two days. The others with more than three-daylong wait times were Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Florida, Montana, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee, plus the District of Columbia. Arizona, Montana, Oklahoma and South Carolina were the longest in the country at five days, which authors said marks the point at which testing becomes useless for containing the spread of the virus. SOME TESTS DONT COUNT: Thousands of Texans are getting rapid-result COVID tests. The state isnt counting them. At San Antonio city testing sites, officials said Monday that the turnaround time for results is one to three days. In some places with outbreaks, however, the wait could be markedly longer. Last month, Harris County health officials said that the average wait for results from commercial labs, which are used by all the countys public testing sites as well as most private sites, was 16 days. Study authors found that the long wait times were consistent across the country, which they said indicated that the problem is more national in scope than local. Authors also note that most, or 63 percent of Americans, are not getting results within the one to two days that would allow for the most effective contract tracing. The study also found that mean wait times for African Americans and Hispanics were longer by about a day five days and 4.6 days, respectively, compared to 3.9 for whites. Virtual Town Hall for UW Employees Today University of Wyoming employees are invited to a virtual town-hall meeting at 5:30 p.m. today (Monday) to learn more about the universitys fall return plan. The session will air on WyoCast at https://wyolinks.uwyo.edu/FallReturnEmployeesAug3. It also will be recorded for later viewing using that link. Following a welcome by President Ed Seidel and a brief presentation on measures the university is taking to have a successful semester amid the COVID-19 pandemic, employees will be allowed to submit written questions via WyoCast. Instructions on how to submit questions may be found here. There are many moving parts to our plan for the fall semester, requiring new and different approaches for just about everyone associated with UW, Seidel says. We hope this virtual town hall will help bring more clarity for our faculty and staff as the semester approaches, and allow for questions to be answered in a manner that will provide broad guidance and important details. The time of this initial town-hall meeting for employees with Seidel was necessary to provide greatest opportunity for participation of fall return working group chairs and others in a timely manner. Additional town-hall meetings are being planned to take place before the start of the semester and after it begins. The university will endeavor to schedule those sessions during the regular workday and allow release time for employees to participate. 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. Nigerian Pastor TB Joshua has offered virtual prayer for healing for those afflicted with COVID-19 in an Isolation Centre in Honduras, Central America. A video posted to Emmanuel TVs YouTube Channel showed the prominent cleric praying for bedridden patients hooked up to oxygen tanks and surrounded by hospital staff heavily laden with protective gear. Where can we go from Gods presence? Distance is not a barrier because He is Spirit,Joshua declared in front of several huge screens relaying in real-time the footage from the several wards within the Honduran Isolation Centre. By the power of the Holy Spirit that affliction, that COVID-19 be flushed out, he prayed stretching forth his hands towards the dozens of patients on the multiple screens at the Emmanuel TV Studios in Lagos, Nigeria, in a program tagged Interactive Prayer Session. During the prayer which was translated simultaneously into Spanish several patients began to involuntarily vomit whilst others rose to their feet from their hospital beds, waved their hands joyously and removed the oxygen apparatus fixed to their nose as a sign of supernatural healing. Jesus that has freed you will help you to maintain your miracle. Make the Word of God the standard for your life, Joshua counselled after declaring dozens of COVID-19 patients free. I sensed the healing and delivering power of God, explained Aracely, one of the Honduran patients, after the prayer. I felt my lungs fill up with air Im no longer using the oxygen mask, she testified. I couldnt go to the toilet before but immediately after the prayer, I felt like rushing to the toilet, another patient immediately acknowledged. I passed out a lot of foul substance that was the power of the prayer. I saw a white light that illuminated me and asked me to remove my oxygen mask, another lady stated. m not choking any longer, she excitedly stated, with others testifying their sense of smell and taste was restored and their strength revitalized following the prayer. Afterwards, representatives of the medical staff at the hospital thanked Joshua for his prayers and support. The video concluded by stressing that it was not intended to discourage anyone from seeking medical treatment as good Christians are good citizens. If you dont believe in God with medicine, you cannot believe in God without medicine,Joshua said. Last month, the World Health Organisation reacted to a video in which a Cameroonian medical doctor was healed of COVID-19 after receiving interactive prayer from Joshuas ministry, acknowledging spiritual leadership is very important in a time like this. Since starting its Interactive Prayer Sessions in which online prayer is offered via video calls Joshuas ministry has prayed for COVID-19 patients from around the world, prompting the cleric to recently declare his readiness to freely pray for those in Isolation Centers. Joshua, who had been absent for seven weeks from Emmanuel TVs broadcasts, earlier shared a sermon titled Mistakes Are Correctable. We wake up in the morning determined to get it right. Before we know it, we have missed the mark, Joshua began, stressing that making a mistake was not the issue but how we handle it matters. For instance, the issue of COVID-19 is a mistake. However, how we are handling it has led us to where we are today, he continued, citing the uncertainties and twists and turns of life. If you make a mistake, as we all do sometimes, dont run from God; run to Him, Joshua taught, adding that mistakes actually make Christian life more interesting and more valuable and serve as a means to draw us closer to God. We made the call - and all of us have made the bad call in some areas of our lives, he acknowledged, parabolically describing that everyone has feet of clay to some extent. Joshua concluded by calling on viewers to have a genuine connection with God. When we connect with Jesus genuinely by way of a personal relationship, He will walk you through everything you do, he stressed, before proceeding to pray for viewers. Joshuas videos have been viewed over one billion times in various languages on YouTube, with his official English Channel reaching 1.7 million subscribers. VIDEO - Gareth Watson is a freelance journalist covering Sub Saharan Africa. He is usually based in Cape Town, South Africa. Wockhardt hit an upper circuit of 10% at Rs 303.40 after the company announced that it has entered into an agreement with the UK Government to fill finish COVID-19 vaccines. The manufacturing will be undertaken at CP Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Wockhardt based in Wrexham, North Wales. As per the terms of the agreement the company has reserved manufacturing capacity to allow for the supply of multiple vaccines to the UK Government in its fight against COVID19, including AZD1222, the vaccine co-invented by the University of Oxford and its spinout company, Vaccitech and licensed by AstraZeneca. The government has reserved one fill and finish production line for its exclusive use for the next 18 months in order to guarantee the supply of vaccines required to fight COVID-19 in the UK. Dr Habil Khorakiwala, Founder Chairman of Wockhardt, said: "The pandemic of COVID-19 is a challenge for all and needs a concerted effort to overcome. We are proud to be collaborating with the UK Government to make vaccines available and the arrangement brings in a huge sense of purpose and pride, it upholds our ongoing commitment to fight against such a pandemic of global human importance." Wockhardt is a global pharmaceutical and biotechnology organization, providing affordable, high-quality medicines. The company recorded a consolidated net profit of Rs 48.29 crore in Q4 March 2020 as against a net loss of Rs 14.47 crore in Q4 March 2019. Net sales dropped 20.25% to Rs 686.93 crore in Q4 FY20 as compared to Rs 861.34 crore in Q4 FY19. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Kabul, Aug 3 : At least 13 people were killed and 42 others injured in an attack on a prison in Afghanistan's Jalalabad city that continued on Monday after it began the previous evening, officials said. Attaullah Khogyani, spokesman for the Nangarhar Governor, confirmed to TOLO News that the attack was still ongoing in the prison in the city's PD4 area and so far three attackers have been killed. The total number of attackers is unknown, but an Afghan commando in Jalalabad said the there may be "over 20". Another informed source confirmed that 700 inmates who fled the prison have been re-captured. A total of 1,500 inmates were in the prison originally, the source said. The attack took place at 6.44 p.m. on Sunday after a suicide bomber detonated a vehicle full of explosives at the entrance gate of the prison. Emal Neyazi, Nangarhar's police chief, told TOLO News that two blasts occurred inside the prison. According to media reports, the Islamic State terror group has claimed responsibility, but there was no official confirmation. The Taliban has denied their involvement in the attack. The attack began on the last day of the Eid ceasefire between the Taliban and the Afghan government. Advertisement More than a dozen people have been injured after three sightseeing hot air balloons crashed in separate incidents in Wyoming. The balloons, which are all owned by the same tour company, went down separately and did not crash into each other near Teton Village, a popular western Wyoming tourist destination, early on Monday. Teton County Sheriff Matt Carr said weather may have contributed to the crashes but exactly what happened wasn't known and was still being investigated. Authorities say between 16 and 20 people were injured in the crashes. The balloons, which are all owned by the same tour company, went down separately and did not crash into each other near Teton Village in Wyoming early on Monday At least one person was seriously injured and was flown to a hospital in Idaho Falls, Idaho for treatment. Five others were transported to via ambulances to St John's Health in Jackson, Wyoming. The crash scene involved an area about half a mile long. One of the balloons, which was carrying 12-year-old Robert Krayevski and his family, dragged along the ground and crashed through a fence after going down. 'Our captain fell off while we were in it,' the boy told local outlet the News&Guide. 'We bounced and went back up in the air by ourselves. The captain was yelling to pull the red ropes. We tipped over and we had to get out because of possible fire. I got out and people were laying on the ground hurt.' Authorities say between 16 and 20 people were injured in the crashes. The crash scene involved an area about half a mile long Clinton Phillips, a Texas resident who was in another balloons with 20 others, described the crash as terrifying. 'I couldn't believe how beautiful everything was and then we were in hell a few minutes later. It was crazy,' Phillips said. 'We were desperately trying not to fall out. It was lifting us up and slamming us back down again.' All of the balloons belonged to the Wyoming Balloon Company. The company has not yet commented on the crash. The weather in Jackson Hole, near Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks, was partly cloudy with winds of 9 mph shortly after the accident. Kolkata : Two more doctors alleged to be actively involved in the international child trafficking racket in West Bengal have been arrested by the CID. Dilip Ghosh, formerly working with state-run R G Kar Medical College and Hospital linked to Sri Krishna Nursing Home on College Street in the city and Nityananda Biswas were arrested by CID sleuths late last night for their alleged involvement in the racket, a senior CID officer said. Both Ghosh and Biswas, he said, had played crucial roles in the child trafficking racket and have been involved with it for a long time. With the two arrests, a total 20 people have been arrested by CID in a span of 10 days since the racket was unearthed at Baduria in North 24 Parganas. Ghosh, a resident of Salt Lake, was called by CID yesterday afternoon for an over an hour-long grilling at its headquarters at Bhawani Bhawan. During grilling it surfaced that the doctor, who is in his mid-60s, knew Santosh Kumar Samanta, who was associated with the same nursing home and was also arrested for his alleged involvement in the racket. The doctor, who was an active member of BJP, was asked to surrender his passport during Tuesdays grilling. Biswas, a resident of Parnashree area of Behala, was picked up from his residence, the officer said. Despite the fact that shark populations are going up and more people are using the water than ever before, were not really seeing more people actually being bitten by sharks, Lowe said. In fact, in some years, the rate has gone down. So what that tells us, as a scientist, is that were not on their menu at all. But occasionally accidents happen. The tweet Richard Costigan posted July 23 was bluntly honest: "We tried our best to limit exposure to #COVID19 but we slipped up somewhere." Costigan tweeted while waiting anxiously in the parking lot of a hospital outside Sacramento. The veteran Republican political consultant had just dropped his wife, Gloria, off at the emergency room. He wasn't allowed to go in with her. His thoughts traveled back to the small family gathering they had attended in Georgia nearly two weeks before with their 23-year-old daughter, Emma, and 17-year-old son, Andrew. They had planned it so carefully. Nobody wanted to get Gloria's 88-year-old mother sick. But here they were, Costigan's wife battling for breath in the ER, and Costigan sitting in his car coughing. The family's journey since then has been one of sleeplessness, pain and worry about the future. And it's one that Costigan, who worked as deputy chief of staff for Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, is taking to social media and his 4,400 Twitter followers. Looking back, Costigan, 54, doesn't think he and Gloria, 53, contracted the virus on their separate flights to Georgia, where the family owns a home. The flights were nearly empty and the passengers and crew wore masks, he said. In Georgia, the family continued its regimen of social distancing and wore masks whenever they left the house protocols they had followed for months at home in California. And when they gathered with their relatives on that sunny Saturday in July, they were careful to space the chairs 6 feet apart in the backyard. But they didn't wear masks, he said, and family members went in and out of the house to grab drinks and use the restroom. "We thought we'd done everything right, and we screwed up," Costigan said in a July 29 phone interview. "We made a big mistake." Now seven of the 10 family members who attended that backyard gathering are sick. Emma and Andrew don't have any symptoms but haven't been tested. Exactly who introduced COVID-19 to the group is unclear. No one showed signs of sickness at the time. The first person to become sick was Gloria's sister, then her niece then her mom. Gloria Costigan became sick after they returned to Sacramento, spent a night in the hospital, needed an oxygen machine at home and developed COVID-related pneumonia. By Saturday, however, she no longer needed supplemental oxygen. Costigan's reputation as a straight shooter, respected and liked by both Democrats and Republicans, could help change minds about the virus, said Barbara O'Connor, emeritus director of the Institute for the Study of Politics and Media at California State University-Sacramento. "I think that Richard is being very honest about what's going on," said O'Connor, who has known Costigan for decades. "It's not political. It's really human." Lawmakers who have responded on Twitter with messages of support include state Controller Betty Yee, and state Sens. Richard Bloom and Steve Glazer, all Democrats. Sen. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento), a physician who chairs the Senate Health Committee, has texted well wishes to Costigan. For his followers, Costigan's chronicles of the virus remain grim. "I can't go very far without needing to lay down," he wrote in a July 25 tweet. "Been sleeping constantly last two days and the joint pain is intense." In another tweet two days later, the symptoms were the same: Gloria's 88-year-old mom is at home with a cough, he said. Costigan talked to California Healthline about his family's disease odyssey and what he hopes people will take away from his COVID-19 Twitter chronicles. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. Q: You have tweeted in such detail about the horrible symptoms you experienced. How do you feel now? My ribs just hurt with the coughing and the fatigue, and my joints hurt. I have the sweats and vivid dreams. I sleep on the floor because it's more comfortable than the bed. This thing just hits like a ton of bricks. It's also the nervousness of it. How long is it going to last? Who are we going to expose to it? I just don't know what the end game is. Q: What is it like at your house now? I wear a mask inside, Gloria wears a mask inside, and Andrew wears a mask. Gloria is sleeping in Emma's old bedroom, I'm in our bedroom, and Andrew stays upstairs. When I'm hacking, you can see the spit come out. I'm worried about getting pneumonia. That's something I'm worried about giving to my kid. It's not just COVID. Our daughter can only stand on our front porch. She delivers food to us. She puts it by the door, rings the bell and stands 6 feet back. Q: You suspect you got COVID from the family gathering in Georgia. How do you trace it to that event? When we looked at everybody that was at the gathering, we were trying to figure it out. It started with my sister-in-law getting sick. Out of 10 of us, seven of us are sick. We never thought of our family being the one to harm us. Sometimes, you can't control your anger. You want to be mad at someone. Gloria and I just decided we're not going to blame anyone. We just don't know who had it. Q: How has this experience been so far for you and your family? It's been a bizarre week. I went to Kaiser Thursday night. You drop your significant other off. You can't go in. Off they go to the tented area and I wait in the parking lot. She is admitted. Her oxygen levels are low. She gets a CT, she gets a shot in her stomach for possible blood clots. She gets out Friday and they send oxygen tanks to your house. She's in her early 50s and doesn't have any health issues [otherwise]. Saturday, my son is doubling over in pain. I end up in the ER with my son, and I start coughing. I'm getting the side eye from everyone. Thankfully, he had a kidney stone. Q: What kind of precautions have you and your family taken these past few months? We hadn't been anywhere for months. It was: Stay home. Work from home. No school. Going to the store was extremely stressful. You go to the store, mask up, glove up, you bleach your shoes when you come home, spray down your car, wash your hands, use a towel to dry your hands, the towel goes straight into the washing machine. Our son got frustrated with us because we wouldn't let him see his friends. He saw photos of friends of his partying at Folsom Lake. We were the hardcore parents. Q: In posts on social media, you are asking people to wear a mask. Why do you think it's become a political issue? I've been taking flak from friends of mine because I've been posting "wear a mask." Wearing a mask somehow it has become a freedom issue. It's not a grand conspiracy. Wearing a mask is a simple thing to do to prevent someone else from getting sick. I do not understand how this has turned into a political issue. The government has a role to play. This is a health care crisis. Q: How do you move forward in this pandemic? We're locking down. Nobody is coming into our circle. I don't want it again. To see my wife this way is hard. I want folks to realize this thing is non-discriminatory. It doesn't matter who you are. This KHN story first published on California Healthline, a service of the California Health Care Foundation. Director and playwright Jessica Swale has said it is a privilege to release one of the first new films since cinemas reopened and encouraged people who are visiting pubs to also return to the big screen. Swale, who won an Olivier Award for her play Nell Gwynn, makes her film directorial debut with Summerland, which reunited her with the shows star Gemma Arterton. The film, about a solitary writer who takes in an evacuee during the Blitz, is among the first new releases since cinemas reopened their doors, alongside Unhinged starring Russell Crowe and Proxima starring Eva Green. Swale told the PA news agency: I feel like its actually a real privilege to be part of the very first moment of films coming back. Because I know lots of films are waiting in the wings to make sure that there is going to be a big enough audience for them but Im really actually proud of the producers here who were brave enough to say There might not be a lot of people but someone has got to go first and we have got to reopen the doors and try and save some of those independent cinemas that frankly are really under threat. We have to get in, we have to get back and we have to encourage people to come back and this film is so much about believing in the possibility of things improving and in hope and redemption and the importance of imagination and being open minded and I feel like that is so resonant with this moment. Of course lots of people still need to shield, of course for a lot of people it isnt safe, but if youre going to go to the pub and hang out with a bunch of other people, then going to the cinema should be something that should absolutely be back on our radar too and the arts are so essential in giving people joy and some escapism and making us remember the important things in life so Im really proud to be part of this moment. Discussing what appealed to her about Swales script, Arterton said: I procured the script somehow, I cant even remember how, and I read it on my sofa and I just cried. Video of the Day Expand Close Gemma Arterton in Summerland (Michael Wharley/Lionsgate) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Gemma Arterton in Summerland (Michael Wharley/Lionsgate) I never cry reading a script. Its very rare, but it was the world, it was so clear. Jess had written these beautiful characters that were so detailed and realised, it just sprang out at me. But it was also the magic realism in the story. Im always drawn to anything that explores the other and I particularly love magic realism because its rooted in realty. It just transported me and it just takes you to another level so that was what I loved about it. It was just beautiful storytelling and very, very original. I think these days when everything, well not everything, but a lot of stuff, is remakes and prequels and sequels and all that, its just really special to get something that is really original. Summerland is out now in UK cinemas. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) speaks at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 26, 2020. (Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo) Pelosi: Democrats Want to Keep $600 Unemployment Benefits While Joblessness Stays High House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said that while its essential that Republicans and Democrats come to an agreement soon on a stimulus package, its imperative to keep the expanded federal unemployment insurance while the jobless rate remains high. If the unemployment goes down, then that number can go down, Pelosi said Aug. 3 in a televised interview, referring to the $600-per-week extra benefit that expired late last month. It was authorized in the CARES Act, passed in March, to offset joblessness incurred during the pandemic lockdowns. I think that the number, the $600, is related more to the unemployment rate, she told CNN. In the interview, the speaker said the United States remains mired in a national emergency, arguing that some issues could be ameliorated by the federal benefits. In May, Democrats passed the HEROES Act in the House, which would allow the payments to continue until January 2021. Republicans, in their HEALS Act unveiled last week in the Senate, proposed $200-per-week extra payments until a program to pay a recipient 70 percent of their wages is implemented. A building is on fire and they are deciding how much water they want to have in the bucket. Millions of people could have fallen into poverty without this $600, Pelosi said. The Department of Labor reported last week that the unemployment rate is currently at around 11.1 percent. When she was asked about the progress on both sides, Pelosi said that its imperative that an agreement is made soon. Well, lets see when we meet today, she told CNN. Its absolutely essential that we reach agreement. Democrats also oppose liability protections for corporations, proposed by Republicans. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, (R-Ky.) has said a bill wont pass the Senate if it doesnt include immunity for businesses, hospitals, and schools. Democrats have also pushed for $1 trillion to be distributed to state and local governments, which Republicans oppose. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told ABC News on Aug. 2 that both sides agree on sending more stimulus checks and payments to Americans, mirroring a program that was implemented in the CARES Act. White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on Aug. 2 cast a dour tone on the negotiations, telling CBS News that hes not optimistic that both sides can reach a consensus in the very near term. Meadows, Mnuchin, Pelosi, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) are slated to hold a meeting on the relief package on Aug. 3. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, called for a temporary extension of the unemployment benefits and a federal eviction moratorium as talks progress. At least, three people were killed and four others injured, after a suicide bomber blew himself up near a busy restaurant in Mogadishus Hamarjajab district, medical officials and witnesses said on Monday. We have carried three bodies and four injured people to the hospitals, Abdikadir Abdirrahman, Director of Aamin Ambulance, told Xinhua by phone. Police sources told Xinhua that security forces managed to stop the suicide bomber by firing at him before reaching his target. Government spokesman, Ismael Mukhtar Omar, however, said two people were killed and another one was injured when a suicide bomber, wearing a suicide vest, blew himself up at the entrance of the busy Lul Yamani restaurant. The attacker wanted to blow up himself inside the restaurant, but one of its restaurant security staff grabbed him and stopped him at the gate before blowing up, Omar said. READ ALSO: Witnesses said they heard a huge blast near Mogadishu seaport. As I was travelling near the road, I heard a huge blast; then I ran away for my safety, Said Ahmed, a witness, said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the latest attack but the militant group al-Shabab, which is fighting to overthrow the Western-backed government has usually conducted such attacks in the past. (Xinhua/NAN) Welcome Guest! You Are Here: CHICAGO, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Africa data center construction market is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 11% during the period 20192025. Key Highlights Offered in the Report: Around $2.5 billion will be invested in building data centers across Africa during 2020-2025. Hyperscale investments to add over 2.5 million square feet of data center space in the Africa market during 2020-2025. The growing Africa data center will provide over $1 billion cumulative revenue opportunity for power infrastructure suppliers. South Africa dominated data center investments with over 40% share, followed by Morocco , Egypt , Kenya , and Nigeria in 2019. Adoption of free cooling chillers and evaporative coolers will grow to benefit from free cooling in many Africa countries leading to reduced power consumption by cooling systems. Key Offerings: Market Size & Forecast by Revenue | 20192025 Market Dynamics Leading trends, growth drivers, restraints, and investment opportunities Market Segmentation A detailed analysis by electrical infrastructure, mechanical infrastructure, general construction, tier standards, and geography Competitive Landscape List of 6 construction contractors, 8 support infrastructure providers, and 11 data center investors Get your sample today! https://www.arizton.com/market-reports/africa-data-center-construction-market-size-analysis Africa Data Center Construction Market Segmentation The UPS and generator markets will continue to grow due to the increasing construction of large and mega data center facilities and inaccurate power grid connectivity. The power market is expected to witness significant growth due to the non-reliability of power grids in Africa . . Most colocation facilities in Africa have installed physical security solutions ranging from perimeter to rack-guarded through CCTV cameras and biometric systems. Companies have also adopted DCIM/BMS solutions that enable remote monitoring of entire data center operations. have installed physical security solutions ranging from perimeter to rack-guarded through CCTV cameras and biometric systems. Companies have also adopted DCIM/BMS solutions that enable remote monitoring of entire data center operations. In Morocco , data centers are certified as Tier III facilities in terms of design. The facilities in Egypt are mostly Tier III standard certified in terms of design and are developed to support at rack density of up to 15 kW, with their average PUE being around 1.5. In Nigeria , most facilities are certified Tier III facilities by the Uptime Institute in terms of data center design and construction. Africa Data Center Construction Market by Electrical Infrastructure UPS Systems Generators Transfer Switches & Switchgears PDUs Other Electrical Infrastructure Africa Data Center Construction Market by Mechanical Infrastructure Cooling Systems CRAC & CRAH Units Chiller Units Cooling Towers & Dry Coolers Other Units Racks Other Mechanical Infrastructure Africa Data Center Construction Market by General Construction Building Development Installation & Commissioning Services Building Designs Physical Security DCIM Africa Data Center Construction Market by Tier Standard Tier I & Tier II Tier III Tier IV Africa Data Center Construction Market Dynamics The data center market is witnessing significant growth in African countries such as South Africa, Morocco, Kenya, Nigeria, and others in recent years. The rising internet population has been a strong factor for growth. Moreover, government agencies across countries are looking to improve their digital economy and are involved in a variety of smart city projects that fuel the growth of data centers and edge facilities throughout the region. African countries such as South Africa, Kenya, and Morocco have already started taking initiatives for smart cities and plan to improve the network coverage. Key Drivers and Trends fueling Market Growth: Availability of Renewable Energy Fuels Procurement Growth Government Support to Boost Digital Economy Cloud Adoption Fueling Data Center Investments Migration from On-Premise Infrastructure to Colocation & Managed Services Africa Data Center Construction Market Geography South Africa is witnessing major development of data centers, where cities such as Cape Town and Johannesburg are the preferred places for data center development. The market is also witnessing higher adoption of cloud-based solutions among enterprises. South Africa is rapidly emerging as a center for public and private cloud hosting, which is expected to fuel the data center development in the country. In April 2020, AWS established a cloud region in Cape Town. Get your sample today! https://www.arizton.com/market-reports/africa-data-center-construction-market-size-analysis Africa Data Center Construction Market by Geography South Africa Morocco Kenya Nigeria Egypt Other Countries Prominent Data Center Support Infrastructure Vendors ABB Caterpillar Cummins Eaton Shenzhen Envicool Technology Legrand MTU On Site Energy Schneider Electric STULZ Rittal Vertiv Prominent Construction Contractors Atkins Aveng Grinaker Concor Edarat Group Etix Everywhere Future-tech Huawei ISG Prominent Data Center Investors Africa Data Centres (Liquid Telecom) Amazon Web Services (AWS) Icolo.io Internet Technologies Angola (ITA) Inwi MDXI (MainOne) N+ONE Orange Raxio Data Center Rayan Data Center Teraco Data Environments Explore our data center knowledge base profile to know more about the industry. Read some of the top-selling reports: About Arizton: Arizton Advisory and Intelligence is an innovation and quality-driven firm, which offers cutting-edge research solutions to clients across the world. We excel in providing comprehensive market intelligence reports and advisory and consulting services. We offer comprehensive market research reports on industries such as consumer goods & retail technology, automotive and mobility, smart tech, healthcare, and life sciences, industrial machinery, chemicals and materials, IT and media, logistics and packaging. These reports contain detailed industry analysis, market size, share, growth drivers, and trend forecasts. Arizton comprises a team of exuberant and well-experienced analysts who have mastered in generating incisive reports. Our specialist analysts possess exemplary skills in market research. We train our team in advanced research practices, techniques, and ethics to outperform in fabricating impregnable research reports. Mail: [email protected] Call: +1-312-235-2040 +1-302-469-0707 SOURCE Arizton Advisory & Intelligence A massive search by the army and the police is underway in south Kashmirs Kulgam and Shopian districts to trace a Territorial Army (TA) soldier who went missing Sunday night when he was on his way home. Rifleman Shakir Manzoor, a resident of Shopian, went missing after his car was stopped by some unidentified people at Rambhama village in Kulgam district on Sunday evening. The army suspects that militants operating in south Kashmir are behind the kidnapping of the 24-year-old soldier who had joined the Armys 162 TA battalion in 2018 and was now with 22 sector Rashtriya Rifles. Officials said the soldiers car was stopped and then set on fire by the unidentified people and when relatives and police reached near the spot in the evening, he was missing. Police officials fear that Manzoor has been abducted by militants. Police have also questioned some people near the spot where the burnt car was found. Soon after the incident, police and army teams launched a joint operation in several areas of Shopian and Kulgam districts to trace Manzoor. On Monday morning they expanded the search operations but he couldnt be located till the evening. So far no militant group has claimed responsibility for the abduction. The abandoned burnt car of Manzoor has been found near Kulgam. It is suspected that the soldier has been abducted by terrorists. Search operation is in progress, an army spokesperson said in a statement. Relatives said Manzoor was on leave when his car stopped and set on fire. By APD writer Alice International media has massively reported on the US-China trade war since the spring of 2018 with prolonged negotiations. But they also revealed a big weakness of the US in the duel with China. That is the US weapon industrys heavy dependence on China, although the White House and the Pentagon have taken steps to deal with Beijings possible cutting of raw material supply in the 21st century. Between 2004-2017, up to 80% of the rare metals that the United States bought came from China. Estonia, France and Japan also supply processed rare earths to the US, but the original ore comes from China. This Asian "giant" controls up to 40% of the world's rare metal reserves, according to a survey by the US Geological Center. In 2018, China provided up to 70% of rare earth consumed globally and Last year, almost 90% of all the processing into usable oxides was done in China. Could the US start its own refining industry for rare earths? It's certainly possible, but this would take time and the sources of ore could be limited if China were ruled out. The restriction of exports to the United States, if enforced, could have a major impact on major US industries worth trillions of dollars that rely on rare earth minerals. The US Department of Defense planned to allocate the necessary budgets for the exploitation, processing and storage of essential metal resources for national security. Journalist Guillaume Pitron, who specializes in rare earth research and is the author of many documentaries and news reports, was not surprised that the US Department of Defense directly intervened in this file. Guillaume Pitron said that on the Chinese side, more than ever, it is aware of the superiority it has with the United States. This is of course an advantage both commercially and industrially and especially strategically. Without China's rare earth, the US could not develop its weapon industry and manufacture F-35 fighters or Abraham armored vehicles... On the US side, Washington's response covered everything from politics to industry. The US is seeking to reduce its dependence on China by extracting ores and refining for rare metals and then turning these rare metals into magnets. Only in this latter form,will rare metalsbe able to serve high technologies. TheUS now consumes 9% of the world's rare earth. Until 2019, Mountain Pass in California was almost the only operating mine. However, ironically, 50,000 tonnes of rare earth mined each year here must be sent to China for processing and returned to the US in the form of metal. Moreover, it is not easy for the US to restart the supply chain.According to the Pentagon report, by 2022, the US will have three more rare earth mining facilities in operation. Le Figaro revealed Round Top Mountain in Texas, not far from the border with Mexico, could be a solution to help the US become more independent on rare metals. It is home to 16 of the 17 "rare" minerals, which are essential for the high-end electronics industry with mining potential of over 130 years. Prior to the Pentagon, US President Donald Trump in late December 2017 issued a decree to ensure reliable supplies of vital minerals for national security. Rare earth as well as uranium are on the list of 35 items. However, as rare metal expert Guillaume Pitron said, rare earth mining is an industrial chain that requires special technology. According to the journalist, the US has acquired Japan's Hitachi Group and a few American companies have mastered this technology but only produce at a small level, not enough to ensure the demand nationwide. Currently outside of China, the US can count on three other partners including France, Estonia and Japan. However, all three are only capable of providing a limited supply. Meanwhile, Washington is also looking for an alliance with Australia and the European Union (EU). An industry analyst cited by Le Figaro as saying that, if the EU, the US and some other countries in the world did not quickly guarantee rare and independent supplies of metals outside of China, it would be the time when China is the only one capable of producing high-tech equipment. Not only is the US arms industry in demand for rare metals, but at a time when Washington is betting on the electric car market, its demand for rare earth is growing. Therefore, the need for independence from the main supplier, China, is increasingly urgent. USA Rare Earth Group has loudly announced the inauguration of the first rare earth processing plant outside of China in Colorado. In addition, the US side is also constantly expanding cooperation with partners in Australia or Japan. USA Rare Earth said it will partner with Japan's Hitachi to open a factory in North Carolina with the ability to meet up to 17% of US demand. The above-mentioned moves show that the US has taken very long steps to gradually separate from the almost monopoly supplier of the world, China. But rare earth expert Guillaume Pitron said China's dominance in this area is not at stake. "China still has a huge advantage over the US," the expert noted. Up to 95% of the rare earth produced in the world is from this country and about 70% to 75% of the rare metal magnets are also from Chinese factories. This is an advantage both in terms of industry and technology that no one can surpass China. It took Beijing decades to climb to the top of that technological ladder, even if the US focused on developing rare earth industry, that could not immediately reverse the situation and China would still prevail for many more years. (ASIA PACIFIC DAILY) At 98, Cecil Mullin is Sunny Corner's last surviving veteran of the Second World War. That's why Terry Scott, president of the Royal Canadian Legion branch in Sunny Corner, wanted to make sure the man who helped get wounded soldiers to medical help received a quilt of valour to honour what he did during the war. "It was to thank him for his service and it's our way of appreciating what he done for us, well, the little that we can do, through this quilt of valour," Scott said. Quilts of Valour Canada is an organization that makes quilts to honour the "significant contribution made by injured Canadian Armed Forces members and veterans," according to its website. They are made by quilters all across Canada. Mullin's daughter Faye Nowlan said the quilts are to be wrapped around the veterans to give them comfort from wounds or traumatic events they experienced. Nowlan said after her father returned to Sunny Corner in 1945, he took a forestry course in Fredericton and became a forest ranger in his hometown. He then married and raised his family in there. Faye Nowlan/Submitted "He loved being in the woods. He lived in the woods. Every forestry camp I think that there ever was he had us visiting it." The quilt Mullin received was made by a quilter from Fredericton. After COVID-19 delayed the presentation, Mullin's family recently joined him and legion members outside the Miramichi seniors residence where he lives for a short service. As the rain poured down, the handmade patchwork quilt was unfolded by his three children, Nowlan, Brad Mullin and Colleen Matchett. "We got to wrap it around my dad's shoulders," said Nowlan. Scott read a short thank you before Mullin himself spoke. "You should have heard the speech he gave after," Scott said. "He said he couldn't 'appreciate it more, all the people coming here to do that for me' and he looked at me and he said, 'I know you had something to do with it because you always do.'" Story continues Nowlan said her father thanked everybody there. "He said, 'I'm not quite sure how I came about getting this but I just want to thank you all for what you do for me'." Nowlan said the family still takes Mullin for trips into the woods when they can. "We visit all the old places that he liked to go." A fourth man has been arrested in relation with the smuggling attempt of more than 100 immigrants who had crossed the border illegally, states an arrest affidavit filed this week. A criminal complaint filed July 27 identified the suspect as Christian Uriel Perez-Garay. He was charged with conceal, harbor, or shield immigrants from detection or attempt to conceal, harbor, or shield immigrants from detection. Federal authorities first arrested co-defendants Reginald Brown Jr., Jesus Orozco-Rojo and Luis Salvador Hernandez-Hernandez on the charges of transporting, attempting to transport and conspiring to transport immigrants, and harboring immigrants. Homeland Security Investigation special agents said the case began on July 21 when they received information regarding a suspicious tractor-trailer parked at the end of a cul-de-sac off Killam Industrial Boulevard. Several vehicles would approach the back of the trailer and then depart, according to the affidavit. HSI relayed information on the tractor-trailer to the U.S. Border Patrol. The 18-wheeler arrived at the checkpoint on Interstate 35, where authorities identified its driver as Brown. Agents said they discovered 58 immigrants from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador in the back of the trailer, according to court documents. Brown was arrested. Further investigation led special agents to a stash house in the 2700 block of Mier Street. HSI, Border Patrol and Laredo police set up surveillance at the stash house, which was a small apartment behind a main residence on Mier. Moments later, an LPD officer pulled over a green 2003 Chevrolet Avalanche that had departed from the residence. Authorities identified the driver as Orozco-Rojo and the front seat passenger as Hernandez-Hernandez. Both were immigrants from Mexico who had crossed the border illegally. Orozco-Rojo and Hernandez-Hernandez were transporting three women who were citizens of Mexico and Guatemala who were in the country illegally. Special agents then learned from a woman that there were about 30 people at the house on Mier. HSI special agents conducted a knock-and-talk at the residence. An individual was then seen fleeing from a rear window of the residence. Agents caught up to him. He allegedly admitted to crossing the border illegally. As HSI special agents and Border Patrol secured the outside of the home, 23 started coming out the front door on their own, according to court documents. All were citizens of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador who had crossed the border illegally. A special response team from U.S. Customs and Border Protection discovered an additional 22 immigrants inside the home. In total, authorities detained 46 people at the stash house. Overall, law enforcement officials detained 107 immigrants, including five juveniles, from the traffic stop on the Avalanche, the stash house on Mier and the 18-wheeler at the checkpoint. In a post-arrest interview, Brown claimed that the trailer was empty and sealed, according to court documents. He could not explain a time gap between leaving a gas station around noon and arriving at the checkpoint at 1:40 p.m., states the affidavit. Orozco-Rojo and Hernandez-Hernandez also agreed to a post-arrest interview. Orozco-Rojo claimed he and Hernandez-Hernandez had transported immigrants to a tractor-trailer earlier in the day. Orozco-Rojo said he was transporting the female immigrants found in his vehicle to another location for harboring. Orozco-Rojo claimed he would get paid $400 to $500 a week for transporting immigrants. Hernandez-Hernandez stated that he would deliver food and water to the immigrants at the stash house. A member of a human smuggling organization compensated him for that, according to court documents. Hernandez-Hernandez and Orozco-Rojo further stated they knew they were transporting immigrants to a residence in the 3100 block of San Luis Street. Hernandez-Hernandez stated that a man he knew as Urraca was in charge of the stash house on Mier. Hernandez-Hernandez added that Urraca lived at the San Luis residence. Orozco-Rojo added that a man he identified as Perez-Garay also lived at the home on San Luis. Orozco-Rojo stated Perez-Garay oversaw the stash house, provided instructions and would pay him, states the affidavit. Special agents interviewed the landlords of the residence on Mier. A rental agreement showed Perez-Garay and Orozco-Rojo as the residents. On July 23, authorities set up surveillance at the home on San Luis. Authorities conducted a consensual encounter with Perez-Garay, who was determined to be a Mexican citizen who was in the country illegally. HSI special agents spoke again to Orozco-Rojo and Hernandez-Hernandez. Authorities presented a photo lineup that included Perez-Garay. Orozco-Rojo did not make a positive identification, but Hernandez-Hernandez positively identified Perez-Garay as the individual he knew as Urraca, according to court documents. Hernandez-Hernandez added that Perez-Garay would give him money to purchase food and water for the immigrants at the stash house on Mier. Additionally, Perez-Garay would instruct Hernandez-Hernandez to keep the change as a form of payment, states the affidavit. The landlords also identified Perez-Garay from the photo lineup. Perez-Garay allegedly agreed to a post-arrest interview. Perez-Garay stated he allowed his friends to use the property but did not recall their names. Perez-Garay stated he last paid rent for the property four to five months prior. Perez-Garay further stated he did not know who was currently paying the rent on the Mier residence. Perez-Garay admitted to previously transporting (immigrants) in the past, states the affidavit. One insurer to really take this on board is Erie Insurance, a Pennsylvania-based publicly held insurance company, offering auto, home, commercial and life insurance through a network of over 13,000 independent insurance agents. Over the course of the past few months, the P&C insurer has announced $200 million in rate cuts, as well as providing $200 million in dividends for personal and commercial auto customers in the 12 states and the District of Columbia where the company does business. In addition, the firm has released funds to support local COVID-19 community efforts. Read next: GEICO, Progressive to challenge State Farms dominant insurance position Jacqueline Tirpak, vice president of corporate claims at Erie Insurance, commented: Some of our customers are really experiencing financial hardships, and so, we realized pretty early on the impact [the pandemic] was going to have. Weve always been the type of company that works with our customers where they have some financial problems and might need a little bit more flexibility. That has certainly come in handy, and weve received a lot of those calls. Our customer care people have experienced record-breaking volume, and theyve handled it very well, whether theyre delaying a payment date, adjusting installment dates, changing pay plans, waiving penalties - theyre just a couple of examples of what weve been doing for our customers. Weve also implemented a dividend relief program, as well as rate reductions, for longer-term steady relief for our customers. Read more: Insurers looking to up investments in commercial warehouses In April, Erie Insurance added gift card and gift certificate reimbursement coverage to its ErieSecure Home policies in response to the changes and mandatory shutdowns impacting businesses across the US. With this additional feature, homeowners can be reimbursed for remaining balances on eligible gift cards that can no longer be used at independently owned and operated local businesses due to business closures. Its a small change, but as Tirpak commented: Were trying to help our customers support their local businesses. Another thing weve done, which Im especially proud of, is weve provided our [distribution] force of over 13,000 independent agents with $2.5 million in available funds for them to support their local businesses, she added. The project, named ERIE Agents Giving Back reimburses Erie agents who are thanking first responders and healthcare workers and supporting other local relief efforts. Turpak added: Its been really rewarding to see on Facebook, LinkedIn, and some other social media formats, how our agents have really gotten out there and supported their local businesses, whether it was a food bank, or a shelter, or first responders. Its been really neat to see that. Erie Insurance is not alone in providing relief and support to customers throughout the public health crisis. Many insurers can be commended for their efforts in this area. Any extra effort, no matter how small, will be remembered by agents and end-customers in the future. Sushant Singh Rajputs choreographer friend, Ganesh Hiwarkar, has said that the actor once talked him out of suicide. Ganesh, who first met the actor in 2007, said that Sushant had a conversation with him after he expressed suicidal thoughts. He told Zee News, When my girlfriend broke up with me, I was so depressed that I wanted to commit suicide, it was Sushant who sat with me for many hours explaining that I should not take the step. He even spoke to my friend. Ganesh wondered how Sushant himself could take the drastic step. Sushant died by suicide on June 14, at the age of 34. The choreographer joined the loud chorus demanding a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the actors death. As far as I knew him, he could never be depressed about career, personal relationships or financial issues, he said, refuting expert opinion and overwhelming evidence of Sushants struggles with depression. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajputs friend Siddharth Pithani says actor cried, fainted at being associated with former manager Disha Salians death In Sushants life there was no such thing as failure, he would immediately forget and focus on the future. I cannot believe that he would commit suicide due to career, relationship or financial reasons, Ganesh said, adding that he suspects foul play, which has been categorically ruled out by the Mumbai Police. Like Ganesh, Sushants ex-girlfriend Ankita Lokhande has also questioned the depression narrative. In an interview to Republic TV, she said, Sushant was not the guy who could commit suicide. We have seen worse situations when we were together. He was a happy-go-lucky guy. She added, He might be upset, anxious, yes, but depression is a big word. Calling someone bipolar is a big thing. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918 Follow @htshowbiz for more SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON With the massive DEFUND THE WALL street mural approved by Laredo City Council this week, the No Border Wall Coalition is hoping to send a message to a national audience and to Washington, D.C.: that the way communities along the U.S.-Mexico border are perceived and therefore funded needs to be examined and altered. The Department of Homeland Security is working toward constructing the border wall through 69 miles of mostly private property in Webb and Zapata counties. A construction contract for 14 of those miles has been award for $275 million, about $20 million per mile. The No Border Wall Coalition called up various entities around Laredo to ask what the equivalent of one mile of border wall could afford: full tuition, fees, room and board for 1,600 TAMIU students, or a level II major trauma center for 3.3 years, for example. This work became about really exploring not just the deep needs in Laredo, but beginning to imagine beautiful, big things that we could have if the governments priorities and funding were different, and really put our needs first, said Tricia Cortez, member of the coalition and executive director of the Rio Grande International Study Center. Detractors of the mural project have bemoaned the expense of taxpayer dollars, but the installation will be entirely paid for by the coalition and executed by volunteers, said No Border Wall Coalition member Karen Gaytan. She said it should cost between $5,000 and $10,000 and be completed by the end of August. The No Border Wall Coalition was inspired by calls to defund the police and Black Lives Matter murals in cities across the country. Some of these murals have been vandalized, but Gaytan said it isnt a major worry. It is one of our concerns, but what we most hope people remember is that this is a message of hope, she said. The wall is a massive project that strips away Laredoans property rights, constitutional rights and federal protections, Cortez said. It steals land and it destroys public spaces. It destroys neighborhoods and it blocks us off from something so fundamental to Laredo, which is the river, she said. ... We really wanted people to understand at a national level what this wall means here. I see Laredo and the border as the staging grounds for this very far-right ideology coming out of D.C. And the wall is the ultimate symbol of (that). Julia Wallace may be reached at 956-728-2543 or jwallace@lmtonline.com The National Service Scheme (NSS) has justified the enrolment of newly trained tertiary-level teachers (graduates) from the Colleges of Education on the scheme. The Scheme is insisting that it is an opportunity being offered to the graduates to undertake one-year national service in fulfillment of Act 426 of 1980. The management of NSS has said this is being done during the period of the already existing induction/probation programme that ushers in newly trained teachers to full teacher status. A statement by the Corporate Affairs Directorate of the NSS said it had noted with utter dismay and shock the abolition campaign of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) against the enrolment if it comes to power. The management of the scheme deems the comments as unfortunate and feels compelled in the present circumstances, and for what we perceive should be in the public interest, to share hard facts in the hope to bring clarity to the circumstances surrounding the introduction of the programme. It is important to recall that management of the scheme with approval from government introduced the service programme for the newly trained teachers in 2018 to afford newly trained teachers an opportunity to offer a one-year national service in fulfillment of Act 426 of 1980 and is to be done during the period of the already existing induction/probation programme that ushered in newly trained teachers to full teacher status. This was purely a policy decision which seeks to include all qualified and eligible graduates as stipulated in the NSS ACT 426 of 1980. This is the legal framework that established the scheme, the statement indicated. It added that beginning from 2019, the first cohort of newly trained teachers was deployed after extensive stakeholder engagement among the parties including the National Service Scheme, Ghana Education Service (GES), National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE), and the National Teaching Council (NTC). The NSS, therefore, advised politicians to stay away from denigrating a nationally accepted programme that serves as a transition between school and the world of work that instills in the youth the sense and spirit of nation-building and civic responsibility. The statement explained that teachers who received certificate A qualification from Teacher Training Colleges fell short of enrolment onto the National Service Scheme because the institutions did not offer tertiary education unlike today and following their upgrade into diploma-awarding institutions and the passage of the Colleges of Education Act, Act 847, they were placed under the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE). The statement said this brought graduates from the Colleges of Education into the bracket of students required to undergo a compulsory one-year service to the state. This means that graduates from our Colleges of Education which have now been upgraded to the tertiary status do not have the luxury option of avoiding national service as propounded by ex-President of the Republic of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, and his cohorts, it added. NSS management said, It is absolutely critical for members of the public and especially the NDC to be reminded that graduates of a tertiary institution that are liable to national service cannot be employed contrary to the provisions of the NSS Act. ---Daily Guide Jerusalem, Aug 3 : Israel's army said its troops attacked a "terror squad" that attempted to plant explosive devices near the disputed border between Syria and Israel. A military spokesperson said in a statement on Sunday that the incident took place late on Sunday night near the Alpha Line between Syria and Israel, Xinhua news agency reported. "Soldiers thwarted an attempt to place improvised explosive devices (IEDs,)" the spokesperson said. The Israeli troops spotted a "terror squad" of four fighters placing explosive devices adjacent to the security fence, near an IDF post. In response, troops and an aircraft fired simultaneously towards the group. "A hit was identified," the statement read. The spokesperson did not say whether the fighters opened fire at the Israeli forces but said no injuries were reported among the Israeli forces. "The Northern Command maintains elevated readiness for various scenarios," the army said in the statement. "The IDF holds the Syrian regime responsible for all events on Syrian soil and will not tolerate any violation of Israeli sovereignty." Tensions along Israel's borders with Lebanon and Syria have been on the rise since a fighter with Hezbollah was killed in an apparent Israeli airstrike in Syria in July. Last Monday, Israel said it thwarted an infiltration attempt by Hezbollah. Hezbollah denied such an attempt took place. Filming is underway across Adelaide and the Adelaide Hills region on upcoming ABC comedy Aftertaste, following COVID-19 delays. The six-part comedy series (previously known as Yes, Chef) stars Erik Thomson as Easton West an internationally-renowned yet volatile celebrity chef who has a spectacular fall from grace and returns to his hometown in the Adelaide Hills. West endeavours to rebuild his career and restore his reputation, with the help of his talented, young, pastry-chef niece Diana (Natalie Abbott). The series also features Rachel Griffiths (Total Control, The Wilds), Wayne Blair (Mystery Road, Top End Wedding), Susan Prior (Glitch, Frayed), Peter Carroll (The Power of the Dog, Crazy Rich Asians) and Remy Hii (Harrow, Spider-Man: Far From Home), Kavitha Anandasivam (The Hunting) and Justin Amankwah (Fat Pizza vs Housos). Erik Thomson said I am thrilled to be finally donning the chef whites and working with such an exciting cast and crew. The Adelaide Hills is the perfect backdrop for our irreverent take on food culture, and the notion of the notorious celebrity chef. The series is created by Julie De Fina and Matthew Bate, directed by Jonathan Brough (The End, Rosehaven, The Family Law) and produced by Closer Productions (The Hunting, F***ing Adelaide, Animals). CEO of the South Australian Film Corporation Kate Croser said the SAFC-commissioned Deloitte Risk Assessment Tool was crucial to ensuring the production could meet its COVID-safe requirements. The Risk Assessment Tool has been instrumental in navigating the path back to production, and providing the framework and structure needed to get this production up and running within COVID-Safe guidelines, she said. We congratulate Closer Productions on this home-grown ABC primetime comedy commission, the first for a South Australian company, and their determination to get this great new series on screen. They are paving the way for other productions to start shooting in South Australia. It is also fantastic to partner again with the ABC to deliver high-quality television content following the success of flagship dramas Stateless and Operation Buffalo, and the recent ABC Childrens titles First Day and Are You Tougher Than Your Ancestors? Producer Rebecca Summerton said With the support of ABC, Screen Australia and SAFC, we are delighted to commence filming today. We have a terrific cast and crew and are looking forward to bringing this irreverent new comedy to audiences soon. Minister for Innovation and Skills David Pisoni said, The rigorous work done by the South Australian Film Corporation to support Adelaides Closer Productions has resulted in screen production re-starting in the state. We welcome the news that 76 crew and 34 cast from South Australia are back working in our local screen industry. The production will also employ almost 200 local extras. It will premiere next year on ABC. Production Credits: Aftertaste is a Closer production for the ABC, with major production investment from Screen Australia in association with the South Australian Film Corporation and financed with support from the ABC. Producers: Rebecca Summerton, Matthew Bate and Erik Thomson. Executive Producers: Julie De Fina and Rachel Griffiths. ABC Executive Producer: Rebecca Anderson. International Distributor ABC Commercial. DNA Script will soon begin testing the SYNTAX system with a select group of partners Paris based DNA synthesis company DNA Script has announced a $50 million extension to its Series B financing, bringing the total investment of this round to $89 million. This oversubscribed round is led by Casdin Capital and joined by Danaher Life Sciences, Agilent Technologies, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, through its corporate venture arm, M Ventures three of the worlds leaders in oligo synthesis LSP, the Bpifrance Large Venture Fund and Illumina Ventures. Eli Casdin, Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Casdin Capital, will join DNA Scripts Board of Directors. Funding from this investment round will enable DNA Script to accelerate the development of its suite of enzymatic DNA synthesis (EDS) technologies in particular, to support the commercial launch of the companys SYNTAX DNA benchtop printer. DNA Script will soon begin testing the SYNTAX system with a select group of partners, with plans to launch a beta testing program later this year and take orders for the DNA printer by next year. Over the long term, funding from the Series B financing will enable DNA Script to further develop the companys core enzymatic synthesis technology in particular, towards the development of new synthesis platforms as well as to ramp up its commercial and manufacturing capabilities. The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Monday said the Congress government has gone into panic mode over the hooch tragedy as the roots of the episode lead to the chief ministers office and the cabinet ministers were roped in to cover up the sins of the ruling party. In a statement, SAD spokesman Daljit Singh Cheema said the parroting of old lies indicated that CM Amarinder Singh had become jittery given the scale of the tragedy and only an independent inquiry by a sitting judge of the high court or the CBI would nail the culprits. The Akali Dal would not rest till justice was done to the victims of the states biggest hooch tragedy. No amount of damage control by even the entire cabinet can save the Congressmen who have played with the lives of innocent people by supplying poisonous liquor to them. After the Indian government banned TikTok, the U.S. government was also considering doing the same due to TikToks parent company, ByteDance, having close ties with the Chinese government. In a surprise move, Microsoft has now confirmed its interest to purchase TikTok in the United States and a few other markets. The announcement comes after a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald Trump. The Redmond company says that it is ready to acquire TikTok after a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the US. Microsoft says that it will hold talks with TikToks parent company ByteDance for the acquisition and move to complete the entire process by September 15th, 2020. The discussions with ByteDance will build upon a notification made by Microsoft and ByteDance to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The two companies have provided notice of their intent to explore a preliminary proposal that would involve a purchase of the TikTok service in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand and would result in Microsoft owning and operating TikTok in these markets. Microsoft may invite other American investors to participate on a minority basis in this purchase. The Redmond company says it will build on the experience offered by TikTok by improving its security measures, privacy, and more. Microsoft will also work on moving the data of TikTok users in the U.S. to American servers. We Want to Hear From You Microsofts proposal to acquire TikTok in certain markets is definitely an interesting one. The company does not have any major social networking sites under its portfolio and by acquiring TikTok, it could easily gain access to millions of users in major markets worldwide. What do you think about Microsofts intention to acquire TikTok? Drop a comment and let us know! [Via Microsoft Season 7 of Gilmore Girls felt markedly different from the six seasons that came before it. There is a good reason for that, too. Amy Sherman-Palladino wasnt responsible for the last season of the show. New writers penned an interesting storyline for Logan Huntzberger, Rory Gilmores longtime beau. In the final season of the show, Logan was job hunting after leaving his familys media fortune behind. By the time the show wrapped, Logan had landed a new gig in San Francisco, but fans have long been curious about what company took on the heir to the Huntzberger fortune. Logan Huntzberger left Connecticut to work in California When Logan walked away from Rory for the last time in season 7 of Gilmore Girls, he was getting ready to embark on a brand new career. While Logan never mentioned exactly what he was going to be doing, his future looked bright. So bright, in fact, that he wanted to share it with Rory. RELATED: Gilmore Girls: Did Rory Gilmore Initially Like Logan Huntzberger Because of His Family? Logan wanted Rory to move to San Francisco with him upon her graduation from Yale. To ensure she knew he was serious about their future, he opted to propose. Rory, much to the chagrin of some fans, turned him down. Rory and Logan seemingly ended their relationship then and there. She headed off on the campaign trail, and he headed out to California. Fans who watched the Netflix revival know that Rory and Logan found their way back to each other, but the second time around, their relationship was far more clandestine. Did Logan Huntzberger move to California to work for Facebook or Buzzfeed? In the final season of Gilmore Girls Logan revealed that he had accepted a position at an emerging internet company. The job meant he would be moving to Palo Alto and would be a partner in the company. Logan never mentioned what the company was, but fans have some guesses. One fan suggested that Logan was talking about Facebook when he mentioned the business, based on the fact that his failed business venture the previous season was in the social media space. Facebook, in 2007, would have been considered an emerging business. In 2007, Facebook was just picking up steam. Their headquarters, at the time, was located in Palo Alto, although theyve since moved to Menlo Park, California, according to ZDNet.While Facebook seems like it could have been the company Logan was hinting at, a Reddit user suggested Logan may have been taking on a job at Buzzfeed, considering his journalistic attributes. Matt Czuchry | Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic RELATED: Gilmore Girls: Hear Us Out, Season 7 Was Amazing For Logan Huntzberger Buzzfeed was founded in 2006 and would have also been considered an emerging company, at the time. Buzzfeed, however, has headquarters in several cities. Its main office is located in New York, but a large Los Angeles office also exists. They also have an office in San Francisco but did not have a team in Palo Alto in 2007. Logan could have easily worked from New York, where he was already based, if that were the case, meaning the move to California likely would not have been necessary. Regardless of what he was doing in season 7, Logan clearly fell back into the family business in the revival Whether Logan was working for a well-known social media firm or a large media brand in season 7, its pretty clear what he was doing in the revival. In the Netflix mini-series, Logan was living and working in London, just like he was when Sherman-Palladino last left him in season 6. Logan clearly fell back into the family business. RELATED: Gilmore Girls: Is This Proof That Logan is the Father of Rorys Baby? The revival didnt delve deeply into what happened to bring him back into Mitchums good graces, but fans can assume Sherman-Palladino was operating under the auspice that he never stood up to his father, and never walked away from his familys fortune in the first place. Logans job, however, wasnt the most disappointing thing about his appearance in the revival. Reddit fans were incredibly disappointed to see Logan and Rory carrying on an affair for the majority of the four-part series. Employees work at a production line of an electronics company in Rongan County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, May 17, 2020. Guangxi, a key region in China's poverty-relief mission, has been making unremitting efforts to win the tough battle against poverty by securing employment of the poor population. Trying to get people employed has played a vital role in Guangxi's large-scale campaign to fight poverty, as it can lift the whole family out of poverty. It has proven the most effective and direct way to help shake off poverty. Additionally, it has shown that if people could work in a long term, intergenerational transmission of poverty can be effectively mitigated. In recent years, the regional government has given top priority to employment work by enacting more active employment policies, organizing vocational trainings, and improving services to support employment and entrepreneurs. These measures have ensured impoverished people's access to job opportunities and public services. Those poor people who have been relocated to more inhabitable areas are mostly living a stable life due to working. They are able to access to jobs thanks to vocational training services and job opportunities offered by poverty-relief workshops near resettlement sites. (Xinhua/Huang Xiaobang) El Paso, Texas, is our Ellis Island, and thus it is sacred ground. Tragically, the city also now is the location of perhaps the worst mass murder of Mexicans and Mexican Americans in U.S. history. The exact crime scene was the Walmart Supercenter in the Cielo Vista Mall. Not far from the U.S.-Mexico border, the shopping center is a destination spot for Mexican nationals who think everything is better in the United States if you can survive the trip. Police officers later would say that as they were taking Crusius into custody, without incident (ah, we see you, white privilege), the suspect blurted out that he wanted to kill as many Mexicans as possible. Crusius allegedly slaughtered 22 people that day. One of the two dozen people wounded later died of his injuries, raising the death toll to 23. He faces both federal and state charges. In El Paso, funeral parlors were overrun. It took several weeks to bury the dead. Juan Gabriels haunting ballad, Amor Eterno (Eternal Love) was played at so many gravesites that mourners memorized the words. 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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. The Catalyst Building will be the first CLT building in the state of Washington and the first vertically-integrated CLT project that Katerra has managed from inception to completion. Cross-laminated timber is more than a structural building material. It is an opportunity to evolve the very nature of building design and construction, and we believe that it will be the backbone for future generations of high-performance, low-carbon buildings. Katerra has solidified its position as North Americas only end-to-end supplier of mass timber, demonstrated by the ramping of its unmatched cross-laminated timber (CLT) manufacturing operation, successful delivery of leading-edge mass timber client projects, and continued advancement of quality, sustainable product offerings. Katerra offers mass timber design, engineering, and construction services, in addition to material production and distribution, all under one roof. This fully-integrated approach stands alone in the North American construction market, further strengthened by technology and supply chain prowessextensive product performance testing, scaled purchasing power, and high-volume fabricationresulting in mass timber building systems of the highest quality on the market, more efficiently and widely available than ever before outside of Europe. Cross-laminated timber is more than a structural building material. It is an opportunity to evolve the very nature of building design and construction, and we believe that it will be the backbone for future generations of high-performance, low-carbon buildings, said Katerra Director of Mass Timber Integration, Nick Milestone. With an integrated, technology-driven team, every discipline works together to continually improve production speed, efficiency, and quality. Today we have the capacity to supply roughly one 250,000-square-foot building per week, which positions Katerra to help dramatically scale CLT production across North America and drive growth across the industry. TWEET THIS: Tech-driven construction company @katerrainc is now North Americas only end-to-end #CLT design, manufacturing and construction firm. It can produce over 185,000 cu mt of CLT annually, the largest in North America. https://youtu.be/UCeglzDdFnI Manufacturing Operation Katerras state-of-the-art CLT manufacturing facility in Spokane Valley, Washington is equipped with extensive automation technologies, as well as one of the largest CLT presses currently in operation globally. The factory is the largest single-use CLT facility in North America, producing 30% of the current North American mass timber manufacturing capacity two times any comparable manufacturer. Project Delivery Katerras integrated approach to mass timber is demonstrated in the Catalyst Building, a 159,000-square-foot commercial building project in Spokane, Washington. Catalyst is the first CLT building in the state and the first vertically-integrated CLT project that Katerra has managed from inception to completion. In order to address vibration from a nearby active train track at Catalyst, Katerra developed the Katerra CLT Rib Panel, the first long-span mass timber floor solution in North America to address vibration without the use of any concrete or structural composite action. The building was found to be effectively carbon neutral by a third-party life-cycle assessment study and is expected to be certified as one of the largest net zero carbon and net zero energy buildings in the world. In addition to end-to-end developer clients, Katerra also works with architect, engineer, and builder customers to supply flexible mass timber and supporting services that meet the needs of project teams. The EMCO headquarters in British Columbia incorporates the use of Katerra 5-ply panels, prefabricated offsite within 1-mm tolerance to the project architects designs. The mass timber installed in less than two weeks, helping to create one of the first ever mass timber industrial spaces in Canada. Product Quality & Sustainability Katerra is one of just three CLT manufacturers in North America to receive Declare labeling from the International Living Future Institute. Katerras CLT factory has received Chain of Custody (CoC) certification under three major certification programs: Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Forest Stewardship Council, and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification. Katerra is the only company with a 5-ply flat panel CLT product that is fire-rated for up to two hoursdouble the industry average. All products have been tested to meet or exceed all ANSI/APA PRG 320 standards for strength, seismic, fire, vibration and acoustic performance. For more information about Katerra and its portfolio of products and services, please visit katerra.com/clt. About Katerra Katerra is on a mission to transform construction through technology every process and every product. As a new breed of company within industry, Katerra is powered through vertical integration and technology investment to provide a range of services and products to clients across the construction value chain. Founded in 2015, Katerras demonstrated progress includes advanced manufacturing facilities, design and construction services, dozens of completed projects, and a growing product portfolio that includes whole-building platforms and sustainable mass timber. For more information, visit http://www.katerra.com. Berlin, Germany -- (SBWIRE) -- 08/03/2020 -- Procurement professionals have a lot to contribute to the modern world, particularly given the progress of the global pandemic and the impact this has had on logistics and supply chains. DSJ Global DE partners with talented people at senior levels across the industry and throughout Germany, including in major cities such as Berlin and Frankfurt, Cologne, Hamburg and Munich. The firm has a wealth of expertise in supporting the development of senior procurement careers in Deutschland and in ensuring that businesses are able to recruit people at all levels. Procurement has a huge impact on businesses. It can be responsible for up to 70% of business spending and the right team can significantly reduce a company's purchasing costs. As a result, team building in this area is essential, especially with respect to senior procurement professionals. Those with procurement expertise have the potential to reduce business spend substantially and this can have a positive impact right across an enterprise. Recruitment can often seem like a challenge to the organisations looking for those people with the right experience and skillset to make positive change happen. Most businesses are very aware of the obstacles that they face when it comes to finding, developing and retaining procurement talent in order to secure the future of the business. DSJ Global DE has a great deal of insight into these challenges and partners with a broad spectrum of businesses to ensure that they feel more manageable. The firm invests in its own consultants, optimising training and access to technology to ensure that they are able to deliver the most effective and knowledgeable service to companies and individuals who want to evolve and grow in this area. As a result, DSJ Global DE consultants are specialists and have the talent and resources to ensure that the right connections can be made. There are opportunities in procurement for individuals at all levels but senior professionals are particularly in demand. Given the impact of technology on the sector it's no surprise that those candidates with a working knowledge of new technology, from automation to artificial intelligence, are likely to be preferred. DSJ Global DE works with candidates in Berlin and Hamburg, Munich, Cologne and Frankfurt to help make career-defining moves and with businesses keen to hire the best people. The firm's reach is international too as part of the Phaidon International group DSJ Global DE is the recruitment partner of choice to 70+ world leading companies. "During uncertain times, DSJ Global DE offers reassurance. Crises come in many different forms financial crashes, oil gluts, and now a global pandemic". commented Luis Rolm, Global Marketing Director at DSJ Global DE. He went on to say, "Yet, whatever the challenge, we remain steadfast in our service. We continue to offer guidance to clients in the logistics and supply chain sectors and help them secure top talent." To find out more information about senior procurement careers in Deutschland, visit https://www.dsjglobal.de/disciplines/procurement. For any media enquiries please contact Gary Elliott at Iconic Digital 020 7100 0726. For all other enquiries please contact DSJ Global DE: +49 30 72 62 11 444. For more information about DSJ Global services, please go to https://www.dsjglobal.de. About DSJ Global DE DSJ Global DE is transforming the process of recruitment to make it more agile and adaptable to the challenges that businesses in the logistics and supply chain industry face today. Generations of political support for sugar cultivation have helped India become the second-largest producer of sugar worldwide. Now, the countrys commitment to renewable energy could create additional benefits, like conserving natural resources and providing better nutrition to the poor. Stanford researchers conducted the first comprehensive analysis of Indias sugar industry and its impact on water, food and energy resources through the lens of its political economy that is, how entrenched political interests in sugar production threaten food, water and energy security over time. The results show that a national biofuel policy encouraging production of ethanol made directly from sugarcane juice may make Indias water and energy resources more sustainable. Using sugarcane juice instead of molasses would also free up land and irrigation water for growing nutrient-rich foods. The research was published July 24 in Environmental Research Letters. There are spillover effects between sectors, unintended consequences, said co-author Rosamond Naylor, a food security expert and the William Wrigley Professor in Stanfords School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences (Stanford Earth). Its very instructive to think about the connection between food, water and energy because the solution may not be in the sector youre focusing on. Moving toward renewables Somewhat analogous to the corn industry in the U.S., which has shifted about 40 percent of its output to ethanol production in recent years, policymakers in India many of whom benefit financially from the sugar industry are currently exploring how to use sugarcane to increase energy independence and shift toward renewable energy use. The Indian government has set a goal to increase the ethanol-to-gasoline blending rate from its current rate of about 6 percent to 20 percent by 2030 and introduced several policies to promote production of ethanol from sugarcane. The increased blending rate is a desirable goal for improved energy security, the researchers write. However, its effects on human health and the environment will largely depend on which sugar product ends up being the main feedstock: juice extracted from crushed sugarcane, or molasses, a by-product from sugar processing. Indias national policy on biofuels only recently began allowing use of sugarcane juice in ethanol production, in addition to molasses. If the energy industry continues to use molasses as the bioethanol feedstock to meet its target, it would require additional water and land resources and result in the production of extra sugar, said co-author Anjuli Jain Figueroa, a postdoctoral researcher in Earth system science. In contrast, if the industry used the sugarcane juice to produce ethanol, the target could be met without requiring additional water and land beyond current levels. Using sugarcane juice to create ethanol could also help alleviate government spending to subsidize sugar and sell it below cost in its public distribution system. Entrenched incentives The public distribution system of sugar in India dates to the 1950s, when frequent famines plagued the country. Back then, sugar helped to meet basic calorie requirements. But today with micronutrient deficiency leading to illness, disabilities and even death the Indian government is more concerned with nutrition. In India right now, even poor populations have met their basic calorie needs, said Naylor, who is also a senior fellow at the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment. They have been able to buy sugar at subsidized prices, but meanwhile they dont have access to adequate protein and micronutrients for cognitive growth and for physical well-being. Sugarcane cultivation in India has expanded in part because of policies that incentivize production, including a minimum price, guaranteed sales of sugarcane and public distribution of sugar. These regulations have become entrenched over many generations, making the crop highly profitable to the 6 million farmers in the country, but the empty-calorie crop reduces the amount of resources available for micronutrient-rich foods. Using scarce natural resources to produce a crop that doesnt fulfill nutritional needs for the second most populated country in the world can place pressure on the global food system if more and more food imports are required to meet the rising demand in India, Naylor said. Balancing act The researchers focused their analysis on Maharashtra in western India, one of the countrys largest sugarcane-producing states. Sugarcane cultivation in Maharashtra has increased sevenfold in the past 50 years to become the dominant user of irrigation water. The study found that in 2010-11, sugarcane occupied only 4 percent of Maharashtras total cropped areas but used 61 percent of the states irrigation water. Meanwhile, irrigation for other nutritious food crops remained lower than the national averages. Irrigation of sugarcane in our study region is about four times that of all other crops and has doubled from 2000 to 2010. This resulted in about a 50 percent reduction of river flow over that period, said co-author Steven Gorelick, the Cyrus Fisher Tolman Professor at Stanford Earth. Given that this region is susceptible to significant drought, future water management is likely to be quite challenging. As part of continued efforts to examine the Indian sugar industry and its impacts, lead author Ju Young Lee, a PhD student in Earth system science, also developed satellite imagery analyses to identify sugarcane from space. Despite the importance of sugarcane in the water, food and energy sectors in India, there are no reliable sugarcane maps for recent years and in time series, Lee said. Using remote sensing data, I am developing current time-series sugarcane maps in Maharashtra an important step forward. Scarcity or abundance? The agricultural area of Maharashtra is considered drought-ridden, and yet in September 2019, the region experienced major floods that killed 21 people and caused 28,000 residents of Pune city to evacuate. While the researchers started the FUSE project in Maharashtra with an explicit focus on drought management, their objectives expanded to include flooding after witnessing the devastation of Pune during their research period, presenting a far more difficult water management problem, according to co-author Steven Gorelick. Climate projections over the next 40 to 80 years suggest maybe a 10 percent increase in rainfall, but much greater variability and that variability is what worries me the most, in terms of future management of both floods and droughts, Gorelick said. ### The researchers worked with stakeholders in India, including NGOs, academics and government officials, to focus the goals of the project. The research is part of Food Water Energy for Urban Sustainable Environments (FUSE), an international consortium supported in part by the National Science Foundation through the Belmont Forum to address competition for scarce resources in stressed urban food-water-energy systems including the impacts of climate variability. Naylor is also a senior fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and a professor, by courtesy, of economics. Gorelick is also lead principal investigator of FUSE and a senior fellow at the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment. The research was supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation. - Nine out of the 95 Ghanaian nurses who traveled to Barbados to work have tested positive for COVID-19 - The nine infected nurses are said to be asymptomatic - The country recorded 12 new cases out of 248 tests conducted on persons who came from high-risk, countries including Ghana Our manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in Nine out of the 95 Ghanaian nurses who traveled to Barbados to work for two years have tested positive for COVID-19. According to the acting Chief Medical Officer of Barbados, Dr. Kenneth George, the nine infected nurses are said to be asymptomatic. In a report filed by CitiNewsroom.com, the country recorded 12 new cases out of 248 tests conducted on persons who came from high-risk, countries including Ghana. COVID-19: 9 Ghanaian nurses in Barbados test positive for the virus Source: UGC Source: Original READ ALSO: Government is considering a loan system for needy tertiary students - Akufo-Addo It should be noted that all of the nurses went into a 14-day quarantine on arrival, Dr. Kenneth George said. The 95 Ghanaian nurses arrived in Barbados on Thursday, July 30, 2020, via a chartered flight. In November 2019, the Health Ministry announced that 120 Ghanaian nurses had been selected to serve a two-year contract in Barbados under a Human Resources Agreement between the two countries. READ ALSO: Photos drop from colorful outdooring ceremony of first female VC of KNUST In other news, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has revealed that his administration is considering putting a loan system in place to help needy tertiary students. This according to Nana Addo will help cater adequately for deprived tertiary students who through no fault of theirs cannot pay for their tuition. This move comes on the back of his NPP administrations free Senior High School and Technical and Vocational Education and Training introduced in 2017. READ ALSO: Pretty photos drop as Serwaa Amihere's sister celebrates her birthday Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang's full speech at her outdooring | #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 loading......... Malibu, CA, Aug 3, 2020 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Rockridge Resources Ltd. ( CVE:ROCK ) ( OTCMKTS:RRRLF ) ( FRA:RR0 ) is pleased to announce that it plans to conduct a diamond drilling program at its Raney Gold Project located southwest of Timmins, Ontario, Canada.The results of the recently completed summer field program will assist in delineating and prioritizing drill targets over the broad structural corridor that hosts the high-grade gold mineralization.To listen to the interview, please visit:About Rockridge Resources Ltd Rockridge Resources (CVE:ROCK) is a publicly traded mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral resource properties in Canada and other mining-friendly jurisdictions. The Company's Raney Gold Project is a high-grade gold exploration project located in the same greenstone belt that hosts the world-class Timmins and Kirkland Lake lode gold mining camps. The Company's Knife Lake Project is in Saskatchewan, which is ranked as the #3 mining jurisdiction in the world by the Fraser Institute. The project hosts the Knife Lake deposit, which is a VMS, near-surface copper-cobalt-gold-silver-zinc deposit open along strike and at depth. Rockridge's goal is to maximize shareholder value through new mineral discoveries, committed long-term partnerships, and the advancement of exploration projects in geopolitically favourable jurisdictions. Hydroxychloroquine: What is being said? Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Debate over the anti-malarial hydroxychloroquine, a drug some say is an effective treatment for the coronavirus, has resurged amid the ongoing pandemic and Big Tech and social media platforms censoring medical professionals who promote it. The persistent back-and-forth about the drug has continued in part because of fluctuating case numbers and growing deaths as vaccines and other therapeutics are being developed. Earlier this year, President Donald Trump brought attention to the drug after he said he had been taking it as a preventative measure. The president began the regimen following two White House staffers testing positive for the coronavirus. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro contracted the virus and has credited the drug for his recovery. Still, some in the medical community say there is little to no evidence that it is a helpful treatment for the disease. Below is a round-up of what has taken place in recent months surrounding this drug. Drs. Birx, Fauci, others opposed: HCQ not effective Among those who have said the drug for treating COVID-19 is not effective is Dr. Deborah Birx, who has been a key figure advising the president as the White House coronavirus response coordinator. In a Thursday interview with Fox & Friends, Birx explained that while some say the drug is effective, it's more complicated. "Science and medicine has always been full of accounts like this," she said, when asked about the doctors who spoke on Monday in favor of the drug, whose stories were subsequently scrubbed from the internet. "And that's why you do randomized clinical trials, to actually be able to compare patient to patient," she said, noting that the doctors in the individualized practices had no controls. Thus far, in the randomized controls, there is no evidence that hydroxychloroquine improves those patients' outcomes, she said. "Whether they have mild, moderate disease or whether they're seriously ill in the hospital. Medicine always has these reports and that's why we do these randomized control trials. There also may be a specific subgroup that does benefit but we can't see those in those randomized controlled trials." Asked about whether doctors should have the freedom to prescribe the drug if they think their patient will benefit and if pharmacy boards should be permitted to ban it across the board, Birx replied that it varies by state. "Medical boards decide for their state based on clinical practices," she said, noting that Ohio, which recently instituted such a ban, must have had a specific reason for taking the approach it did and that every state has to examine their situation independently. At the behest of Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, the Ohio Board of Pharmacy reversed course on its ban on the drug Thursday. The initial ban prohibited pharmacies, clinics and other medical institutions from selling or dispensing the drugs but they would still be used in clinical trials. Dr. Anthony Fauci, who has in large part spearheaded the nationwide response to COVID-19, said in an MSNBC interview Wednesday: "The scientific data, the cumulative data on trials, namely clinical trials that were randomized and controlled in the proper way, all of those trials showed consistently that hydroxychloroquine is not effective." Similarly, Dr. Carlos del Rio, an infectious disease physician at Emory University School of Medicine, told NBC News that there is no reason to keep talking about the drug in the context of COVID-19. It does not work for treatment or for prevention. I have no idea why there is still talk about it, but its wrong, he said. Some doctors say the drug works On the steps of the United States Supreme Court Monday, a group of doctors dressed in white coats who called themselves America's Frontline Doctors said that they have been treating many patients who have a variety of medical conditions, including those who have contracted COVID-19, with the drug and that it has invariably helped them. Notable among the physicians who spoke was Dr. Stella Immanuel, a Houston-based doctor who was born in the African nation of Cameroon. "Nobody needs to get sick. This virus has a cure it is called hydroxychloroquine, I have treated over 350 patients and not had one death," Immanuel said, noting she had extensive experience treating malaria patients in West Africa. Considerable mass media coverage of her words has centered on the fact that she is also a pastor who has a deliverance ministry and on her previous remarks about what sexual and health problems demonic spirits can cause. Video footage of their remarks was soon scrubbed from many social media platforms and website hosting service Squarespace disbanded the doctors' website. Dr. Joe Ladapo, a physician from the University of California-Los Angeles who appeared with the group, told USA TODAY in an email that he showed up at the event on the steps of the high court "because I believe its critically important for us to have a discussion that includes different perspectives about our approach to COVID-19." Arguing in favor of the drug, Harvey A. Risch, a professor of epidemiology at Yale School of Public Health, opined in Newsweek last Thursday that the medication is a particularly good treatment when given early on when patients become sick with COVID-19 and when combined with antibiotics like azithromycin or doxycycline and the nutritional supplement zinc. "Physicians who have been using these medications in the face of widespread skepticism have been truly heroic. They have done what the science shows is best for their patients, often at great personal risk," Risch said. "I myself know of two doctors who have saved the lives of hundreds of patients with these medications, but are now fighting state medical boards to save their licenses and reputations. The cases against them are completely without scientific merit." The medication has become disregarded partly because it has become highly politicized, he continued, explaining that many see support for or opposition to the drug as a political identity marker. But the drug has not been properly used in many studies, he maintained. The Food and Drug Administration recently announced concerns about cardiac arrhythmia risk but Risch argued that it was based on an incomplete picture of how such cases are reported in the agency's Adverse Event Reporting System. "In the future, I believe this misbegotten episode regarding hydroxychloroquine will be studied by sociologists of medicine as a classic example of how extra-scientific factors overrode clear-cut medical evidence," he said. "But for now, reality demands a clear, scientific eye on the evidence and where it points. For the sake of high-risk patients, for the sake of our parents and grandparents, for the sake of the unemployed, for our economy and for our polity, especially those disproportionally affected, we must start treating immediately." Houstonians not wearing masks will now face a $250 fine, Mayor Sylvester Turner announced Monday. The move is a pivot from educating the public about wearing masks, Turner said. Now, Houston police officers will be tasked with issuing warnings to people who do not wear masks, as mandated by the state of Texas. Anyone who does not heed the warning will be issued the citation. The mayor cited rising case numbers, particularly several days of more than 1,000 new cases. Turner said Houston's COVID-19 testing positivity rate has been dropping and is now 17 percent. "We need it to be 5 percent or below," Turner said. "Seventeen is too high; ten is too high; the number needs to be 5 percent or below." Officers will not respond to 911 calls about people not wearing masks, Turner said. TikTok, the social media app Donald Trump said he was considering banning, is "evaluating" moving the location of its Beijing headquarters following the confrontation with the president. The announcement comes after reports began circulating that TikTok was planning to establish its new headquarters in London in an attempt to distance the app's connection with China. A spokesman for TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, said the company "is committed to be a global company" and that "in light of the current situation, ByteDance has been evaluating the possibility of establishing TikTok's headquarters outside of the US, to better serve our global users." TikTok has come under fire over claims that the app has security flaws and insinuations from US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that it is feeding user data to the Chinese government. "These Chinese software companies doing business in the US, whether it's TikTok or WeChat - there are countless more ... are feeding data to the Chinese Communist Party, their national security apparatus," Mr Pompeo claimed. The company has denied any connection with the Communist party and assured critics that users' personal data could not be accessed by the Chinese government. In addition to being the object of the president's ire, TikTok has also caught the attention of Microsoft. The software giant is considering purchasing TikTok, and said it intended to continue examining its options despite the president's threat to ban the app. "Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the president's concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury," the company said in a statement. Since the onset of the coronavirus, Mr Trump's administration has been antagonistic towards China, at times accusing it of lying about the coronavirus, of plotting to influence the 2020 US election and of using mobile apps to infiltrate US phones and mine them for data. As a result, Mr Trump and his advisers - at least initially - opposed Microsoft's purchase of TikTok. Peter Navarro, the president's trade adviser, went so far as to accuse Microsoft of enabling Chinese efforts to monitor and data mine user's personal data, and said the company should have to divest its business in China if it bought TikTok. Recommended Trump may ban other popular apps after TikTok says secretary of state Last week, Mr Trump appeared to agree with the hawkish tone Mr Navarro sent, preferring instead to outright ban the app rather than allow it to be bought. According to the New York Times, worried aides and Congressional allies called him to discuss the move, warning him that doing so would hurt him with younger voters. Despite the anti-Trump reputation the app earned thanks to the apocryphal story of TikTok users tanking Mr Trump's Tulsa rally, the app is widely used by young conservatives, including those who post pro-Trump content. On Monday, Mr Trump said he does not mind if Microsoft purchases TikTok, but said the company had to decide before 15 September. Microsoft said it will move quickly to finish negotiations by the deadline. GENEVA The World Health Organization warned on Monday that there might never be a silver bullet" for COVID-19 in the form of a perfect vaccine and that the road to normality would be long, with some countries requiring a reset of strategy. More than 18.14 million people around the world are reported to have been infected with the disease and 688,080 have died, according to a Reuters tally, with some nations that thought they were over the worst experiencing a resurgence. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and WHO emergencies head Mike Ryan exhorted nations to rigorously enforce health measures such as mask-wearing, social distancing, hand-washing and testing. The message to people and governments is clear: Do it all," Tedros told a virtual news briefing from the U.N. bodys headquarters in Geneva. He said face masks should become a symbol of solidarity round the world. A number of vaccines are now in phase three clinical trials and we all hope to have a number of effective vaccines that can help prevent people from infection. However, theres no silver bullet at the moment - and there might never be." The WHO head said that, while the coronavirus was the biggest health emergency since the early 20th century, the international scramble for a vaccine was also unprecedented". But he underscored uncertainties. There are concerns that we may not have a vaccine that may work, or its protection could be for just a few months, not more. But until we finish the clinical trials, we will not know." THE WAY OUT IS LONG" Ryan said countries with high transmission rates, including Brazil and India, needed to brace for a big battle: The way out is long and requires a sustained commitment," he said, calling for a reset" of approach in some places. Some countries are really going to have to take a step back now and really take a look at how they are addressing the pandemic within their national borders," he added. Asked about the U.S. outbreak, which White House coronavirus experts say is entering a new phase", he said officials seemed to have set out the right path" and it was not the WHOs job to do so. The WHO officials said an advance investigation team had concluded its China mission and laid out the groundwork for further efforts to identify the origins of the virus. The study is one of the demands made by top donor the United States which plans to leave the body next year, accusing it of being too acquiescent to China. A larger, WHO-led team of Chinese and international experts is planned next, including in the city of Wuhan, although the timing and composition of that was unclear. Ryan said China had already given some information but knowledge gaps remained. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor Former Bravo reality star Peter Thomas has announced he's battling COVID-19. The ex-husband of Real Housewives Of Atlanta's Cynthia Bailey shared the news with his Instagram followers on Sunday. In a video, which he shot while lying in bed, Thomas, 58, described suffering tremendous pain along with sweats, chills, vomiting and diarrhea. 'Excruciating': Former Bravo reality star Peter Thomas announced in an Instagram video on Sunday that he's enduring a painful battle with COVID-19 Exposed: Thomas, 58, who owns Bar One in Miami Beach, blamed taking photos with fans without a mask on for getting the coronavirus Thomas revealed he has been in bed for eight days and only tested positive for the coronavirus after five tests previously came back negative. 'It's the most excruciating pain I could think of,' he shared. 'The pain is crazy. Chills all day and all night.' He went on: 'I want you guys to take this thing extremely serious because it's no joke. The pain don't go away. Your body is extremely sensitive, the slightest little thing, it's constant pain everywhere.' Ordeal: 'It's the most excruciating pain I could think of,' he shared. 'The pain is crazy. Chills all day and all night..... it's constant pain everywhere'. He's pictured in 2013 Thomas, who owns Bar One in Miami Beach, said he believes he caught the virus while taking selfies with fans without a mask on. 'People come up to me and ask me to take pictures all the time and they want me to have the mask off and they want to hug on me and they say they like me,' he explained in the video. 'I take those pictures, and every time I take those pictures, I'm praying to God that I don't get this thing, but it caught up to me.' He then urged his followers to 'wear your mask, wear gloves and practice social distancing,' Reality TV couple: Thomas became a celebrity after tying the knot with RHOA's Cynthia Bailey in 2010, in a ceremony shown during season 3 of Real Housewives Of Atlanta (pictured 2015) Miami is one of Florida's major hotspots for COVID-19 which has been ravaging the state. On Monday, Miami-Dade County reported 954 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 25 new deaths. The county now has a total of 123,644 confirmed cases and 1,694 deaths, according to the Miami Herald. Thomas became a celebrity after tying the knot with Bailey in 2010, in a ceremony shown during season 3 of Real Housewives Of Atlanta. The couple split in 2016 and finalized their divorce the following year. Thomas, who said he's grateful to be alive, said he must continue to isolate for another seven days when he will be tested again and he must have two tests come back negative before he can leave his home again. By Trend Within a week after the call of the head of state, more than 50,000 young people turned to Azerbaijans State Service for Mobilization and Conscription, declaring their readiness to defend their homeland, MP of Azerbaijan Arzu Naghiyev told national Real TV channel, Trend reports. Naghiyev noted that this is an important indicator of the unity of the army and the people. Despite the fact that the Azerbaijani army is fully equipped and has a powerful staff potential, the young generation has once again demonstrated its readiness to defend the motherland, the MP said. The Azerbaijani army is further strengthening its power and increasing its battle effectiveness through military exercises. An example of this is the exercises held these days together with the Turkish Armed Forces, said Naghiyev. The MP noted that during the recent battles in the Tovuz direction of the border, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces gave an adequate rebuff in response to the planned provocation of Armenia, and ensured the security of the state border and civilians. "Azerbaijani soldier knows very well with whom and for what he is fighting, and that is what matters," Naghiyev added. Frances coronavirus infection has rate crept higher as health authorities warn the country is going backwards in its battle against the pandemic. Elsewhere in Europe, Spain has cracked down on nightlife, while German authorities were confident enough to send a cruise ship out to sea with 1,200 passengers for a weekend test of how the industry can begin to resume. French health authorities said the closely-watched R infection gauge is now up to 1.3, suggesting that infected people are contaminating 1.3 other people on average. A resident wearing a mask to curb the spread of the coronavirus stands near a shuttered store that offered visa application services outside the United States Consulate in Chengdu in southwestern Chinas Sichuan province (AP) Frances daily new infections are also rising up to 1,130 on Friday. Covid-19 has already killed at least 30,195 people in the country and infection indicators now resemble those seen in May, when France was coming out of its strict two-month lockdown. We have thus erased much of the progress that wed achieved in the first weeks of lockdown-easing, health authorities said, adding that the French appear to be letting down their guard during their summer holidays, with those testing positive making less of an effort to self-isolate. They appealed for a return to collective discipline, asking people to work from home and get tested if they have any suspicions of infection. In Spain, Catalonia became the latest region to crack down on nightlife, trying to halt new infection clusters. India is the third hardest-hit country by the pandemic in the world after the United States and Brazil (AP) The wealthy north-east region home to Barcelona ordered all nightclubs to close for 15 days and put a midnight curfew on bars in the greater Barcelona area and other towns around Lleida that have become contagion hot zones. Spain has reported more than 900 new daily infections for the last two days as authorities warn that the country that lost 28,000 lives before getting its outbreak under control could be facing the start of a second major outbreak. Despite the concerns, some European countries continued to gradually reopen. A German cruise ship set sail for the first time since the industry was shut down. Story continues Mein Schiff 2 sailed from the port of Hamburg towards Norway on Friday night, and passengers will spend the weekend at sea with no land stops before returning to Germany on Monday. The Tui cruise ship Mein Schiff 2 departs from Hamburg (AP) The ship had only 1,200 people on board compared with its normal 2,900 capacity. But with many other cruise companies now looking toward trips in 2021, interest is sure to be high in how Germany, which has been praised for its handling of the pandemic, can kick off the struggling cruise industry. In other parts of the world, the pandemic appears to have the upper hand. India, which has the worlds third-highest infections behind the United States and Brazil, reported its death toll rose by 740 to 30,601. It saw a surge of more than 49,000 new cases, raising its total to over 1.2 million. The home ministry issued an advisory calling for Independence Day celebrations on August 15 to avoid large gatherings. South Africa, Africas hardest-hit country, reported more than 13,000 new cases, raising its total to more than 408,000. A volunteer provides free face mask to children who have come to see Machindranath chariot festival, which was postponed at the last minute as a precaution against the spread of coronavirus in Lalitpur, Nepal (AP) South Korea reported more than 100 new coronavirus cases for the first time in four months. The 113 new cases included 36 workers returning from Iraq and 32 crew members of a Russian freighter. Worldwide, more than 15.7 million infections and over 640,000 deaths have been reported, according to data compiled from government announcements by Johns Hopkins University. Experts say all those figures understate the true toll of the pandemic, due to limited testing and other issues. In the United States, which has the worlds worst outbreak, Texas, which has been struggling with the virus, braced for the arrival of Hurricane Hanna, which could make everything more difficult. The storm is heading for Nueces County, one of the states coronavirus hotspots. In Mississippi, governor Tate Reeves tightened controls on bars to protect young, drunk, careless folks. Women wearing face masks to help protect against the spread of the new coronavirus watch a mobile phone at the Gyeongbok Palace in Seoul (AP) Bars already were limited to operating at 50% capacity. Now patrons will have to sit down to order alcohol and sales stop at 11pm. New Orleans mayor LaToya Cantrell ordered bars closed and banned restaurants from selling alcoholic drinks to take away. The call came after more than 2,000 new cases were reported for the surrounding state of Louisiana, including 103 in New Orleans. The United States has suffered more than 145,000 deaths and has more than 4.1 million confirmed cases. In Australia, premier Daniel Andrews of the southern state of Victoria announced five deaths and 357 new cases. Victoria, where the death toll has risen to 61, earlier closed its border with neighbouring New South Wales. In Yemen, 97 medical workers have died of the virus, a serious blow to a country with few doctors that is in the midst of a five-year-old war, the humanitarian group MedGlobal said in a report. The overwhelming death toll will have immense short-term and long-term health effects, said the reports lead author, Kathleen Fallon. Two Nasa astronauts returned to Earth last night in a dramatic, retro-style splashdown, their capsule parachuting into the Gulf of Mexico to finish an unprecedented test flight by Elon Musk's SpaceX company. It was the first splashdown by US astronauts in 45 years, with the first commercially built and operated spacecraft to carry people to and from orbit. The return clears the way for another SpaceX crew launch as early as next month and possible tourist flights next year. Test pilots Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken rode the SpaceX Dragon capsule back to Earth less than a day after departing the International Space Station and two months after blasting off from Florida. The capsule parachuted into the calm gulf waters off the coast of Pensacola, hundreds of kilometres from Tropical Storm Isaias pounding Florida's Atlantic coast. "Welcome back to planet Earth and thanks for flying SpaceX," the company's Mission Control said. More than an hour after splashdown, the astronauts emerged from their capsule on the deck of a recovery ship, both signalling a thumbs-up as they headed for medical exams. The astronauts' ride home in the capsule dubbed Endeavour was fast, bumpy and hot, at least on the outside. The spacecraft went from a screaming orbital speed of 28,000kmh to 560kmh during atmospheric re-entry, and finally to 25kmh at splashdown. Peak heating during descent was 1,900 degrees Celsius. The anticipated top G forces felt by the crew was four to five times the force of Earth's gravity. Within a half-hour of splashdown, the scorched and blistered 15-foot capsule was on board a SpaceX recovery ship with a staff of more than 40, including doctors and nurses. To keep the returning astronauts safe in the pandemic, the recovery crew quarantined for two weeks and were tested for the coronavirus. The opening of the hatch was held up briefly by extra checks for toxic rocket fumes outside the capsule. After medical exams, the astronauts were expected to fly home to Houston for a reunion with their families. Test pilot Mr Hurley offered final thanks just before he exited the capsule. "Anybody who's touched Endeavour, you should take a moment to just cherish the day, especially given all the things that have happened this year." The last time Nasa astronauts returned from space to water was on July 24, 1975, in the Pacific, the scene of most splashdowns, to end a joint US-Soviet mission known as Apollo-Soyuz. The Mercury and Gemini crews in the early to mid-1960s parachuted into the Atlantic, while most of the later Apollo capsules hit the Pacific. The lone Russian "splashdown" was in 1976 on a partially frozen lake amid a blizzard following an aborted mission; the harrowing recovery took hours. SpaceX made history with this mission, which launched on May 30 from Nasa's Kennedy Space Centre. It was the first time a private company launched people into orbit and also the first launch of Nasa astronauts from home soil in nearly a decade. Mr Hurley came full circle, serving as pilot of Nasa's last space shuttle flight in 2011 and the commander of this SpaceX flight. The Uber logo is displayed on a mobile phone in this picture illustration By Tina Bellon NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Monday denied a request by an Uber Technologies Inc customer to overturn an arbitration win for the company in a price-fixing case over claims the arbitrator only ruled in Uber's favor because he was scared. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff in Manhattan said the claim was without merit, with the arbitrator, Les Weinstein, simply joking when he said he dismissed the lawsuit in February and said he acted out of fear. "After carefully reviewing the full record, the court finds that the arbitrator's concluding remarks, rather than a sincere confession of fear, were simply an attempt at humor - one of many made by the arbitrator throughout the hearing," Rakoff wrote on Monday. Spencer Meyer initiated the high-profile 2015 antitrust lawsuit alleging Uber engaged in an illegal conspiracy with its drivers to coordinate high "surge pricing" fares during periods of heavy demand by agreeing to charge prices set by an algorithm in the Uber ride-hailing app. The lawsuit sought a nationwide ban against surge pricing. A ruling against the company would have threatened Uber's business, which takes a cut from drivers' earnings. The company argues its drivers are independent contractors and that its app is merely a technology platform connecting drivers with passengers. After going through several courts, the lawsuit was sent into arbitration in 2019 in accordance with Uber's terms of service. Weinstein, the arbitrator, dismissed Spencer's lawsuit on Feb. 22. According to court transcripts, he concluded his ruling by saying: "I must say I act out of fear. My fear is if I ruled Uber illegal, I would need security. I wouldn't be able to walk the streets at night. People would be after me." Spencer in May asked Rakoff to overturn the ruling, arguing Weinstein had displayed "evident partiality." (Reporting by Tina Bellon in New York; Editing by Tom Brown) [August 03, 2020] Weyland Tech Launches Digital Marketing Campaign for CreateApp in Taiwan Following High ROI Pilot Program NEW YORK, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Weyland Tech, Inc. (OTCQX: WEYL), a leading global provider of eCommerce, mCommerce, and fintech business enablement solutions, has launched a new digital marketing campaign for its CreateApp mCommerce platform-as-a-service (PaaS) in Taiwan. The launch follows a successful pilot marketing program that has included online seminars hosted by CreateApps chief product officer and founder, Eddie Foong. The seminars were attended by potential distributors and resellers interested in remarketing CreateApp as an ideal solution for any small-and-medium business (SMB) looking for an easy and affordable way to establish a mobile presence. CreateApp subscriptions were subsequently purchased by attendees in blocks of 10, who then resold them to SMBs across Taiwan. So far, this has resulted in more than 1,000 new CreateApp customers, with a marketing ROI to Weyland of about 3-to-1 on the first month. Weylands partner in Taiwan, Now Mastery, LLP, an affiliate of NYSE-listed Line Corporation, has supported the marketing campaign by promoting CreateApp to its online followers. Now Mastery is led by Joseph Kay, a best-selling author who is widely regarded as the preeminent authority on Internet marketing for small business owners in Taiwan. A major influencer, Kay has attracted more than 400,000 followers on Lines small-business marketplace and 67,000 on Facebook. According to Foong: We estimate our opportunity with Now Mastery totals more than $8 million in annual subscription based its 400,000 followers who we have been inviting in stages to our CreateApp seminars. Given the tremendous response weve received, we expect this group to provide us a highly-effective and cost-efficient means to reach the 1.3 million SMBs across the country. Now Mastery followers can sign up for special CreateApp subscription pricing ranging from US$25 to $110 per month, depending on the features and modules they use, such as digital marketing via Facebook and data analytics. In contrast to how the company been private-labeling CreateApp for its distributors in Indonesia, the new model in Taiwan sells CreateApp under its owned brand. Foong says the different structure creates higher margins at around 30%, which is more in line with the typical SaaS revenue model, and with little to no R&D costs its end. Now Mastery also helps to provides ongoing advice and support for its CreateApp users. Weyland sees strong growth of CreateApp in Taiwan driven by the trend of tech savvy citizens working more from home, and COVID-19 accelerating the rise of the digital economy, according to a recent article by BDO. Forbes says Taiwans economy should still grow 1.77% this year, based on the twin effects stemming the spread of the coronavirus and an elaborate government stimulus program. Economic activity has picked up on the island, as coronavirus outbreak fears ease, according to the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research. While Taiwans population of 28 million is small compared to other markets in the region, its consumer habits and openness make it an easy market to navigate as well as introduce and test consumer acceptance of new online services. Internet speeds in Taiwan rank among the top in the world; IP protection is well-established, and the cultural similarities to China make for good testing grounds to launch and experiment with new ideas before moving into larger regional markets. According to Export.gov, more than 85 percent of Taiwanese citizens are connected to the Internet and more than 70 percent access the Internet using a smartphone device, making it one of the most connected consumer bases in the world. Further, a significant portion of the population is now shopping on mobile devices. Currently about 48% of all online transactions in Taiwan are mobile-based, and this number is expected to reach 61% by 2022. We plan to expand our new seminar marketing approach to attract new distributors in other parts of the world, including Europe and particularly in Italy where weve already established a presence, said Foong. Medias-ComS SA , a Swiss company specializing in media and communications, will be helping us to provide training and support for a new CreateApp campaign in Italy. CreateApp enables businesses anywhere in the world to create and deploy native Apple iOS or Google Android mobile applications without technical knowledge or background. CreateApp empowers SMBs to increase sales, reach more customers, manage logistics, conduct financial transactions, and promote their products and services in an easy, affordable and highly efficient way. The CreateApp user base, comprised of businesses across Southeast Asia, grew 47 percent last year to more than 360,000. Weylands acquisition of Minneapolis-based Logiq earlier this year is also expected to eventually provide lead-generation tools for Taiwanese SMBs that can help to increase online sales. About LINE Corporation Based in Japan, LINE Corporation (NYSE:LN/TSE:3938) is dedicated to the mission of Closing the Distance, bringing together information, services and people. The LINE messaging app launched in June 2011 and since then has grown into a diverse, global ecosystem that includes AI technology, Fintech and more. For more information, visit www.linecorp.com. About Weyland Tech Weyland Tech, Inc. (OTCQX: WEYL) is a U.S.-based leading global provider of eCommerce, mCommerce, and fintech business enablement solutions. Its CreateApp platform-as-a-service enables small-and-medium sized businesses worldwide to easily create and deploy a native mobile app for their business without technical knowledge or background. CreateApp empowers businesses to reach more customers, increase sales, manage logistics, and promote their products and services in an easy, affordable, and highly efficient way. CreateApp is offered in 14 languages across 10 countries and three continents, including some of the fastest-growing emerging markets in Southeast Asia. Weylands subsidiary, Logiq Inc., provides a data-driven, end-to-end eCommerce marketing solution for enterprises and major U.S. brands, like Home Advisor, QuinStreet and Sunrun. The AI-powered LogiqX data engine delivers valuable consumer insights that enhance the ROI of online marketing spend. The companys AtozPay subsidiary offers mobile payments, e-wallet, and the AtozGo hyper-local food delivery services in Indonesia, which has the fastest-growing mobile economy in Southeast Asia. For more information about Weyland Tech, go to weyland-tech.com. Important Cautions Regarding Forward Looking Statements This press release contains certain forward-looking statements relating to the business of the Company. All statements, other than statements of historical fact included herein are forward-looking statements including statements regarding: the adoption of our product offerings by SMBs and other businesses; the ability of the company to expand its new seminar marketing approach, the ability to expand its new seminar marketing approach to distributors; the ability of the Company to successfully integrate the assets of Logiq, the continued growth of the eCommerce segment and the ability of the Company to continue its expansion into that segment; the ability of the Company to attract customers and partners and generate revenues; the ability of the Company to successfully execute its business plan; the business strategy, plans, and objectives of the Company; the continued use and success of AtozGo and AtozPay; and any other statements of non-historical information. These forward-looking statements are often identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as believes, expects or similar expressions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, they do involve assumptions, risks, and uncertainties, and these expectations may prove to be incorrect. Investors should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release. The Companys actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors, including those discussed in the Companys periodic reports that are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and available on its website (www.sec.gov). All forward-looking statements attributable to the Company or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by these factors. Other than as required under the securities laws, the Company does not assume any duty to update these forward-looking statements. LogiqX is a trademark of Logiq, Inc. All rights reserved. Company Contact Brent Suen, CEO Weyland Tech Inc. Email contact Media & Investor Contact Ronald Both or Grant Stude CMA Investor & Media Relations Tel (949) 432-7566 WEYL@cma.team [ Back To SIP Trunking Home's Homepage ] The father of a 15-year-old girl who disappeared from inner-western Sydney nearly eight years ago says he begged for help before his daughter went missing. Katrina Bohnenkamp was last officially seen in October 2012, after moving around several foster carers and boarding houses throughout her childhood. Her father, Maiko Bohnenkamp, told the inquest into her disappearance that he was unable to take care of his daughter, having dealt with active drug addiction for 35 years. Katrina Bohnenkamp (right) was last seen in October 2012, with father Maiko Bohnenkamp (left) stating the pair would argue but he would never hurt her The night before she disappeared Katrina was at her father's Strathfield boarding house. Deputy State Coroner Carmel Forbes heard their final conversation was calm, before he passed out. But senior counsel Philip Strickland disputes the claim, pointing to previous police recordings where Mr Bohnenkamp spoke about a final argument with Katrina over her use of ice and dalliances with older men. Mr Strickland suggested Katrina's father had changed his story because he was worried his original account implicated him in the disappearance. 'She turns up on my doorstep, I'm a toxic junkie, I begged for help....and something's gone pear-shaped and you want to blame me,' Mr Bohnenkamp told the inquest. 'Yes, I have arguments with my kids. Does it mean I go bury her in a backyard, no.' Ms Forbes heard how the troubled teen would turn up at her father's house all hours of the morning demanding money, before he would send her back to whichever carer she was supposed to be living with. Mr Strickland questioned Mr Bohnenkamp about the inconsistencies in his statements over the years, which he said were due to drug addiction and intoxication. Mr Bohnenkamp believes his daughter was hanging around a 40-year-old man who had inappropriate relations with her He likened his life during addiction to 'groundhog day' and that dates or specific events all blended into one. At the time of Katrina's disappearance, Mr Bohnenkamp said he would regularly ingest a mixture of heroin, methadone and valium or Xanax, 'enough to kill an elephant'. 'I still need to know what happened to my daughter,' he said. 'I was not a fit role model or parent, but I do love my children, that's why I wanted to stay away, I was living a toxic life not very good for kids. 'I still believe she's alive.' Mr Bohnenkamp said he had begged for help when his daughter went missing eight years ago Mr Bohnenkamp also believes his daughter was hanging around a 40-year-old man who had inappropriate relations with her. Katrina's stepbrother Rick Olden, who gave evidence from Bathurst Correctional Centre, said he returned to the Strathfield home from Tasmania about a week before Katrina disappeared. The first time he saw Katrina she told him someone was shooting her up with a hard substance. Olden said Mr Bohnenkamp could 'snap' and recounted a number of physical fights he had with him, but that he'd never seen him act violently towards Katrina. The inquest will continue on Tuesday. Then Pope Benedict XVI, right, walks with his brother priest Georg Ratzinger in Regensburg, southern Germany in 2006 (Dieter Endlicher/AP) Former Pope Benedict XVI is seriously ill after returning to the Vatican from a visit to Germany, German newspaper Passauer Neue Presse reported on Monday, citing his biographer. Benedict, aged 93, has become very frail and his voice is barely audible, author Peter Seewald told the daily. But at a meeting with Seewald on Saturday, German-born Benedict appeared optimistic, and said he might pick up writing again if he regains his strength, the report said, adding he was suffering from shingles. Benedict came to his native Bavaria in June to pay his ailing brother Georg Ratzinger a final visit. Ratzinger, aged 96, died shortly afterwards. It was Benedict's first trip outside Italy since 2013, the year he resigned the papacy. Monday, August 3, 2020 at 3:46PM Embed from Getty Images Google has announced a partnership and US$450 million investment into security firm ADT, giving it a 6.6% share of the company. The plan is to let ADT's technicians sell and install Google Nest products, which could help attract customers who are intimidated by setting up smart home products on their own. At the same time, ADT gets to use Google's smart home and AI technology expertise to develop its home security product range. Google wants to become the "cornerstone of ADT's smart home offering." "Over time, Nest's devices, powered by Google's machine learning capabilities, will enhance ADT's security monitoring," Google said. "The goal is to give customers fewer false alarms, more ways to receive alarm events and better detection of potential incidents inside and around the home." It isn't clear, though, if this partnership will extend beyond the US. Source: Engadget A crowd of people gathered outside the Pennsylvania Capitol on Monday to remember the late civil rights leader and congressman John Lewis and respond to his call for people to get in good trouble, necessary trouble in the fight for racial justice and equality. Through spiritual and protests songs and speeches, community leaders and activists spoke of the need for people of all colors, faiths and sexual orientations to come together to achieve the goal that Lewis dedicated his life to championing. We need the whites in this community, in the city of Harrisburg, in Susquehanna, in Lower Paxton and other areas to put Blacks in positions of power and to come along as allies and give support to it. We need you, said the Rev. Earl Harris, who has spent a lifetime advocating for racial justice and equity. Harris afterward was overcome by the heat and collapsed on the Capitol steps where he was attended to by emergency personnel. During the event, Harris spoke directly to the Black elected officials to step up as well. We need Blacks who are not ashamed of being Black sitting in positions of power, he said Not blacks who are just happy to be in the room. The gathering to remember the legacy of the late congressman, who died July 17 and is now buried about 700 miles away in an Atlanta, Ga., cemetery, drew a diverse crowd of about 70 people. Virtually all were masked and standing socially distant apart on the Capitol steps under the hot sun. Community activist Cole Goodman and others picked up on the theme in their remarks in calling for the entire community to become involved in the fight to change our society to make it a fairer and better one for all. It cant just take Black people in this movement. We need everybody. Whether youre Caucasian, whether youre Asian-American, whether youre Native American, whether youre a member of the LGBTQ-plus community, we need you to march with us and use your privilege to gain the reforms were up here shouting about, Goodman said. FairCityAgenda.orgs Otto Banks said it comes down to a fight for economic justice. He said to eradicate poverty, violence and racism requires leaders, the business community and policy makers to pick up on the message that was heard from the rallies and riots in recent months. We must develop meaningful, results-oriented policies and programs that are designed to move people away from the grip of welfare dependency and crime to the warm embrace of self-sufficiency, Banks said. We had a civil rights movement. Now its time for a Silver Rights movement. Its about economic equity. If you want to change the trajectory of a community you must give the community access. Banks said there is much work to do to carry on Lewis legacy and called for forming partnerships to coordinate actions between government and the private sector to began rebuilding the community through improvements in criminal justice, education, health care and economic equity for all. The Civil Rights Movement gave us, meaning people of color, the right to sit at the counter, Banks said. This movement today is now giving us the opportunity to actually enjoy the meal and have the economic resources to pay for the meal so to speak as well. 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. American drone operated by Saudi-led coalition shot down by Yemen's army Iran Press TV Sunday, 02 August 2020 1:06 PM An American drone operated by the Saudi-led coalition has been shot down by Yemen's army over the northern province of Hajjah. The spokesman for Yemeni Armed Forces, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, said on Sunday afternoon that air defense forces had targeted the AeroVironment RQ-20 Puma drone with a proper missile as it was hovering over the Harad district close to the border with Saudi Arabia's Jizan region. The American aircraft is a small and hand-launched unmanned aerial vehicle. It can be equipped with an electro-optical infrared camera and is primarily used for surveillance and intelligence gathering purposes. Later in the day, Saudi-led military aircraft launched four airstrikes against several areas in Ajasher desert in Yemen's northern province of Jawf. The warplanes also pounded Emarat area in the Kitaf wa al-Boqe'e district of the northwestern mountainous province of Sa'ada on three occasions. No casualties have been reported. Elsewhere, dozens of militiamen loyal to Yemen's former President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and patronized by Riyadh were killed or injured in a counteroffensive by Yemeni allies in Najran, southwestern Saudi Arabia. A Yemeni military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said mercenaries fighting for Saudi Arabia mounted a multi-pronged attack in Sawh area of the region but were confronted by Yemeni troops in hours-long fierce battles. In March 2015, Saudi Arabia embarked on a bloody campaign against Yemen with the declared aim of putting Hadi back into the seat of power, and eliminate the Houthi Ansarullah movement. Riyadh has not been alone in the campaign. It has been flanked by regional allies and enjoys arms supplies from its Western backers. Over 100,000 people have been killed. That is according to some semi-official figures. The Saudi regime has failed to fulfill the objective of its deadly campaign. The war has also destroyed and shut down Yemen's infrastructure. The Yemeni population has been subjected to large-scale hunger and diseases aggravated by the naval blockade imposed on the country by the coalition of aggressors. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Around 100 to 150 law enforcement personnel went into a bar party in Los Angeles without following COVID-19 precautionary measures like social distancing and wearing a facemask. Social distancing and wearing of facemasks are just two of the best precautionary measures that best combat the infectious and deadly COVID-19. However, many are still not following it despite the recent resurgence of the virus linked to public gatherings in the country. On Friday night, dozens of people or between 100 to 150 law enforcement personnel or first responders attended a party at a Los Angeles bar. According to a published report on CNN News, these people did not wear facemasks nor observed social distancing. Spokeswoman of the bar said that the party was attended by different first responders to celebrate their profession. Report about the party was tipped off from a credible source who knows the event according to CNN News. The attendees in the party can be seen outside through the bar's window from the sidewalk. Attendees were seen drinking cocktails under the flashing lights to club music, loud enough that it vibrated security bars. Additionally, attendees entered the bar through the back door. Lisa Strangis, a spokeswoman for 1933 Group, which owns the bar on North Vine St, said that the Sassafras Saloon owners rented the bar out to someone who wanted to "honor a group of first responders." Meanwhile, Strangis declined to name the attendees of the bar party. She did not also name as to what agency the responders belonged to. However, she said that renters paid the space, and the 1933 Group staff and employees worked the event. Additionally, she also denied that around 100 to 150 attended the party that night. When she was asked how many attended, she declined to answer the question and did not provide the number of attendees. Moreover, Strangis did not also give details about who hosted the party because it is private for her. A man spoke to the CNN News that night and said they don't have any COVID-19 concern because everyone is either groups of families or work at the same place. The man also added that everyone had been tested for the virus. That is why he is confident to say that everyone inside does not carry the virus. The man who spoke with the news outlet declined to be named. He said, "Everybody's spaced there. Everybody's wearing things. Everybody's getting temperature checks." However, the event raises concerns because the number of infections in California continues to increase. During the party held in Los Angeles, the number of COVID-19 infections in California has surpassed over 500,000 according to the official tallied data of the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. On Sunday, the state has recorded more than 9,000 deaths since the pandemic began. The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health released a statement on Sunday. It said, "We are investigating reports of a private indoor party and remind all businesses that have been ordered to close indoor operations that there are no exceptions. This is exactly the situation that puts our entire community at unnecessary risk." Health experts and officials repeatedly warned to avoid large gatherings in this time of the global pandemic. They firmly believed that is one of the several causes of the increase of COVID-19 infections in the country when they see the restrictions in June. Check these out! With the Andhra Pradesh government passing orders de-notifying Amaravati as the capital region, farmers of the hitherto capital area on Monday moved the high court challenging the formation of three capital cities for the state. Rajadhani Rythu Parirakshana Samithi (farmers committee to safeguard the state capital) filed a petition in the high court seeking a stay on the implementation of the gazette notifications issued by the state government on Friday. The gazette notifications, issued soon after Governor Biswabhushan Harichandan gave his assent to the bills, sought to abolish the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority (APCRDA) and form three separate capitals the executive capital at Visakhapatnam, legislative capital at Amaravati and a judicial capital at Kurnool. ALSO READ | Andhra govt begins process to shift capital to Vizag, farmers plan to move court The petitioner challenged the notifications and requested that the high court stall the shifting of the Raj Bhawan, Chief Ministers Office and state secretariat from Amaravati to Visakhapatnam and the high court to Kurnool. The petitioner also questioned the legality of the reports of the expert committee led by retired IAS officer G N Rao and the high-powered committee comprising ministers and senior bureaucrats, based on whose recommendations the Andhra government took a decision on the three capitals. The high court posted the case for hearing on Tuesday. Late on Saturday night, the state government issued orders abolishing APCRDA, thereby de-notifying Amaravati as the capital city of Andhra Pradesh. In place of APCRDA, the government order created the Amaravati Metropolitan Region Development Authority (AMRDA). All the areas within the jurisdiction of the hitherto capital region have now come under AMRDA. All the assets, liabilities, agreements and concessions, which were handled by the APCRDA, will now be vested with the new authority. According to the order, the AMRDA would be headed by a chairperson and comprise 11 members with secretary of the municipal administration and urban development department as the deputy chairperson and commissioner as the member-convenor. The authority would also include experts of national or international repute who possess knowledge in urban governance, urban planning, conservation, environment and transportation as members, the order said. VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pretium Resources Inc. (TSX/NYSE:PVG) ("Pretivm" or the "Company") is deeply saddened to report a fatality resulting from an incident that occurred Friday, July 31st at the Brucejack Mine. The isolated incident occurred during maintenance at a support facility on surface. The injured employee was treated immediately by the site emergency response team and then transported to the hospital in Terrace, British Columbia where he passed away today. "It is with a heavy heart that I am reporting this tragic loss. Our immediate focus is to support his family, friends and colleagues at this difficult time," said Jacques Perron, President and CEO of Pretivm. "The safety and well-being of our employees is our topmost priority and we will investigate the incident fully. This tragedy is a devastating reminder of the critical importance of safety in all aspects of mine site operations." Operations at Brucejack were suspended on Friday and have since resumed. The Company is fully cooperating with an investigation of the incident. About Pretivm Pretivm is an intermediate gold producer with the high-grade underground Brucejack Mine in northern British Columbia. For further information contact: Troy Shultz Manager, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications Pretium Resources Inc. Suite 2300, Four Bentall Centre, 1055 Dunsmuir Street PO Box 49334 Vancouver, BC V7X 1L4 (604) 558-1784 invest@pretivm.com (mailto:invest@pretivm.com) (SEDAR filings: Pretium Resources Inc.) Forward-Looking Information This news release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation (collectively herein referred to as "forward-looking information"), including the "safe harbour" provisions of Canadian provincial securities legislation and the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Wherever possible, words such as "plans", "expects", "guidance", "projects", "assumes", "budget", "strategy", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "modeled', "targets" and similar expressions or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative forms of any of these terms and similar expressions, have been used to identify forward-looking information. Forward-looking information may include, but is not limited to, information with respect to the fatal incident at the Brucejack Mine, the investigation(s) of such incident and the findings and outcomes of such investigation(s). Forward-looking information is subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results, actions, events, conditions, performance or achievements to materially differ from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information including, without limitation, those set out in our Annual Information Form and From 40-F, each dated February 21, 2020, for the year ended December 31, 2019, our MD&A for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, and our other disclosure documents as filed in Canada on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and in the United States through EDGAR at the Security and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov (collectively, "the Pretivm Disclosure Documents"). Our forward-looking information is based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations and opinions of management on the date the statements are made, including, without limitation, those set out in the Pretivm Disclosure Documents, many of which may be difficult to predict and beyond our control. Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. Forward-looking information involves statements about the future and is inherently uncertain, and our actual achievements or other future events or conditions may differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking information due to a variety of risks, uncertainties and other factors. For the reasons set forth above, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. We do not assume any obligation to update forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by applicable law. For the reasons set forth above, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Neither the TSX nor the NYSE has approved or disapproved of the information contained herein. July 19 12:57 p.m.: An officer dispatched to a traffic crash on Edwards Boulevard cited Uvaldo E. Rosas Villegas, 29, Lake Geneva, on suspicion of operating without a valid license and operating a motor vehicle without insurance. July 18 11:31 p.m.: An officer West Main Street near Country Club Drive cited Luis A. Moreno, 47, Elkhorn, on suspicion of possession of drug paraphernalia. July 17 11:45 p.m.: Officers dispatched to the 700 block of West Main Street arrested Lazaro X. Ozuna, 23, Delavan, on suspicion of battery to a law enforcement officer, resisting police, and disorderly conduct. 12:32 a.m.: Officers dispatched to the 700 block of West Main Street arrested Barrett L. Terhark, 26, Wautoma, on suspicion of felony bail jumping and resisting/obstructing an officer. July 16 10:06 p.m.: An officer dispatched to a traffic crash on West Main Street near Mill Street cited Lisa M. Grendel, 47, Volo, Illinois, on suspicion of inattentive driving. 12:51 a.m.: An officer conducting a traffic stop on South Edwards Boulevard near State Highway 50 cited Terry L. Quaid, 50, Kenosha, on suspicion of driving the wrong way on a divided highway and operating while under the influence. July 15 6:05 p.m.: An officer conducting a traffic stop on Center Street near Geneva Street cited Larry E. Schulz, 68, Lake Geneva, on suspicion of vehicle operator fail/wear seat belt. 12:08 p.m.: An officer dispatched to the 200 block of North Edwards Boulevard cited Jacob G. Popelka, 34, McHenry, Illinois, on suspicion of retail theft. 2:01 a.m.: An officer in the 700 block of West Main Street cited Morgan T. Foley, 34, Lake Geneva, on suspicion of disorderly conduct. July 14 10:41 p.m.: An officer at 830 Wrigley Drive cited Andrew D. Weber, 20, Racine, on suspicion of reckless driving-endanger safety. July 12 5:43 p.m.: An officer responding to a traffic crash on Townline Road near North Wells Street cited Juan Rolando Cortes Jaramillo, 31, Lake Geneva, on suspicion of inattentive driving. 9 a.m.: An officer requested by a building inspector to Conant Street cited Wayne M. Rogers, 58, Lake Geneva, on suspicion of blighted buildings and premises. July 11 7:56 p.m.: An officer cited Gerardo P. Erber Jr., 21, Racine, on suspicion of operating a motor vehicle without insurance, possession of open intoxicants in a motor vehicle and displaying unauthorized vehicle registration plate. 6:37 a.m.: An officer dispatched to the 1700 block of Conant Street cited Wayne M. Rogers, 58, Lake Geneva, on suspicion of criminal damage to property. July 9 7:22 p.m.: An officer dispatched to the 200 block of North Edwards Boulevard cited Stephanie Ann Jeters, 31, Elkhorn, on suspicion of retail theft and obstructing an officer. July 7 4:33 p.m.: An officer dispatched to the 1100 block of Pleasant Street cited Shaila K.M. Bart, 29, Lake Geneva, on suspicion of theft. July 5 8:58 p.m.: An officer on Townline Road cited Orlando Wilson Jr., 22, Beloit, on suspicion of failure to stop at a stop sign, operating while revoked, and interlock ignition tampering/fail to install/violate court order. 7:17 p.m.: An officer conducting a traffic stop on Campbell Street near North Wells Street cited Laura Reyes Ruiz, 34, Wheeling, Illinois, on suspicion of operating without a valid license. 12:48 a.m.: Officers dispatched to a state park cited Santiago Manuel Bravo, no age given, Rockford, Illinois, on suspicion of operating while under the influencefirst offense. 12:12 a.m.: Officers in the Cook Street parking lot cited Alexis N. Tucci, 20, Crystal Lake, Illinois, on suspicion of underage drinking/possession. July 2 10:35 p.m.: An officer dispatched to an unreported location cited a 16-year-old boy on suspicion of possession of cigarettes or tobacco. 1:48 a.m.: An officer at an unreported location cited a 13-year-old boy on suspicion of a curfew violation and possession of tobacco. July 1 2:01 a.m.: An officer dispatched to Williams Street near Grant Street cited Travis J. Ross, 37, Williams Bay, on suspicion of unreasonable and imprudent speed, deviation from designated lane, reckless driving-endanger safety and hit and run-unattended vehicle. June 30 3:15 p.m.: Officers investigating sign theft complaints from PNC Bank and the street department cited Ryan M. Tisa, 25, Lake Geneva, on suspicion of theft-simple between $50-$200. 4:08 a.m.: Officers dispatched to the 600 block of Sage Street arrested Jose Antonio Soto Serna, 28, Lake Geneva, on suspicion of trespassing and disorderly conduct. June 20 2:47 a.m.: An officer in the 700 block of Geneva Street referred recommended charges against Travis John Ross, 37, Williams Bay, on suspicion of possession of a schedule II narcotic drug. June 19 5:31 p.m.: An officer in the 200 block of North Edwards Boulevard cited Jeffrey Aaron Neal, 30, Lake Geneva, on suspicion of felony bail jumping and felony retail theft. ~MP Bijlani hospitalized.~ PHILIPSBURG:--- St. Maarten has registered 66 positive COVID-19 cases in its second wave confirmed Minister of VSA Richard Panneflek. The Minister said that the visitors that arrived on St. Maarten on Saturday, August 1st were all tested negative. The Minister explained that while visitors to the island are required to take a PCR test at least 72 hours before arriving on the island some 30 persons had to be tested on Saturday when they landed at the Princess Juliana International Airport. He said it was either because those persons did not do the correct test in their homeland thus they were retested and all of them tested negative. While the numbers of COVID-19 cases are running high the Ministry has said that this is because more tests are being conducted on a daily basis, the Ministry is urging persons to take the necessary precautions such as wearing a mask in public places, sanitizing one's hands as often as possible while maintaining the 2 meters apart. In the meantime, Member of Parliament Sidhardt Cookie Bijlani announced on his Facebook that he was admitted to the St. Maarten Medical Center on August 2nd as his symptoms worsened. Bijlani said he was feeling much better by Sunday afternoon after receiving treatment. COVID-19 now risen to 66 cases. As of August 2nd, at 4:00 PM, the ministry of VSA was informed by Dr. Raissa Tjon-Kon-Fat, that we currently have 66 active cases on Sint Maarten. The new total of confirmed cases now stands at 146. Minister Panneflek expresses his deepest sympathy to the bereaved family and friends of the patient who has unfortunately succumbed to COVID-19. The total number of deaths due to COVID-19 is currently 16. Of the active cases, the Collective Prevention Services (CPS) are monitoring 65 people in home isolation. The Minister of Public Health Social Development and Labour (VSA) the honorable Richard Panneflek announced that we now have sixty-six (66), active cases of persons who have contracted COVID-19. The number of people recovered since the first case surfaced on St. Maarten earlier this year remains at 64. One Hundred and sixty- seven (167) people are now in quarantine based on contact tracing investigations carried out by CPS on persons who may have been in contact with any of the 66 active cases. In a continued effort to control, the spread of the virus CPS has now tested 151 people at the Princess Juliana International Airport, (PJIA) and 759 people throughout the community. As the numbers continue to increase for positive cases, CPS will continue to actively execute its contact tracing measures. Please continue to practice all sanitary measures set for the general public by wearing face masks, practicing social distancing, sanitizing your hands as frequent as possible, and washing your hands with soap. Let us continue to work collectively together to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Pastor John MacArthur may face fine, arrest for holding indoor services: 'We will obey God rather than men' Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment County officials have allegedly threatened Grace Community Church in California with fines and possible arrest for reopening his church in defiance of lockdown orders from Gov. Gavin Newsom during the pandemic. Still, Pastor John MacArthur has vowed to continue in-person services. "We will obey God rather than men," MacArthur said in a video statement Friday. "We're going to be faithful to the Lord and we're going to leave the results to Him. Whatever happens is going to be what He allows to happen. But He will be on our side because we will be obedient and faithful to His word." We will not bow to Caesar, he added. "The Lord Jesus Christ is our king." Officials from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health have threatened MacArthur with repercussions such as fines and even possible arrest if his church doesnt comply with state orders, the Rev. Franklin Graham, president of Samaritans Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, wrote on Facebook. The departments Environmental Health division "is investigating and will be reaching out to the church leaders to let them know they need to comply with the Health Officer Order, Religion News Service reported. MacArthur noted that this wouldn't be the first time that they find themselves "in a trial" or "end up in a court setting." In 1980, Grace Community Church was sued for clergy malpractice by the parents of a 24-year-old, who was part of the church, after he committed suicide. Nearly a decade later, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case, allowing California Supreme Court's decision to dismiss the lawsuit to stand. While he said he doesn't know "what the Lord has for us" this time around, they will continue meeting for worship every Sunday. "We will meet as the church of Jesus Christ because we're commanded to do that. We will sing, we will pray, we will fellowship, we will proclaim the Word of God far and wide and even around the world through this livestream opportunity that we have," the pastor stressed. Commenting on churches, including megachurches, that have chosen to shut down until January, MacArthur said, "I dont have any way to understand that other than they dont know what a church is and they dont shepherd their people but thats sad. "And you have a lot of people in Christianity, who seem to be significant leaders, who arent giving any strength and courage to the church, theyre not standing up and rising up and calling on Christians to be the church in the world as I said on Sunday." The pastor also addressed "misinformation" about his church and ministry regarding the Paycheck Protection Program. He clarified that the federal government did send us money; we did not receive that money. We sent it back We did not receive a dime from the federal government. California continues to see a surge in coronavirus cases. It had a record high of 215 COVID-19 deaths on Friday. Total confirmed cases so far are 516,000 and over 9,000 deaths have been recorded in the state. Amid the surge, Newsom indefinitely closed churches and other businesses in more than 30 of the states 58 counties. Some churches, including Destiny Christian Church in Rocklin, said they would still gather for worship. In an earlier statement, MacArthur and elders of the church said they "respectfully inform our civic leaders that they have exceeded their legitimate jurisdiction, and faithfulness to Christ prohibits us from observing the restrictions they want to impose on our corporate worship services." Government officials have no right to interfere in ecclesiastical matters in a way that undermines or disregards the God-given authority of pastors and elders, MacArthur wrote. "Compliance would be disobedience to our Lords clear commands." Grace Community Church is making efforts to accommodate all persons as they take various precautions during the pandemic. About a thousand extra seats will be kept outside the church building for those who may want to sit in the open. The church will also provide sanitizers and masks for those who want them. MacArthur noted that they want to be as "gracious as we can be to as many people as possible" and be welcoming to all whether people want to remain at home and watch online, attend in person but prefer outside seating, or wear masks or not wear masks. "We don't want anybody to feel unwelcome. We don't want anybody to feel like an outsider because they sit outside or because they decide to wear a mask ... That's all fine. That's all temporary. That's all superficial kinds of things," he said. YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. Speaker of Parliament of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan has issued a statement on the anniversary of the Sinjar massacre, noting that on August 3 the Armenian nation, together with the Yazidi community of Armenia, is commemorating the Yazidis who were killed by terrorists 6 years ago in northern Iraq. As a nation who survived genocide, we cannot stay indifferent upon witnessing the same crime being committed against any other people, he said. Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan Send to Email Address Your Name Your Email Address Post was not sent - check your email addresses! Email check failed, please try again Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. The Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP) West Bengal unit has urged the Mamata Banerjee administration to withdraw the statewide lockdown restrictions, which have been enforced to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak, on August 5, the day on which the bhoomi pujan for the Ram temple is scheduled. We have urged the West Bengal government to reconsider its decision of enforcing a lockdown on August 5 and withdraw it. People are already saddened by the pandemic. The state government should not increase their burden, said Dilip Ghosh, president, BJPs Bengal unit. The West Bengal government has declared a statewide lockdown on seven non-consecutive days in August. The first lockdown will be enforced on Wednesday (August 5). Earlier, the opposition parties had attacked the state government for appeasement and incompetence, as the lockdown dates in August were changed at least three times. They had earlier changed the dates four times. There is no harm if it is changed once more. Its a historic and proud day. The state government should not create an environment in which people cant celebrate the occasion, Ghosh added. Even though Banerjee had announced that bi-weekly lockdowns would be enforced on every weekend, later the dates were changed, as they coincide with Bakr-Eid, Independence Day, Raksha Bandhan and Ganesh Chaturthi. We have changed the dates for occasions such as Raksha Bandhan, Independence Day, Ganesh Chaturthi, and Bakr-Eid. People can watch the bhoomi pujan at Ayodha on television sitting at home. The BJP is playing dirty politics, said Sougata Roy, a Trinamool Congress (TMC) Member of Parliament (MP) from Dum Dum and a party spokesperson. Preparations are in progress for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lay the foundation stone of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on Wednesday. The Bengal BJP has urged people to play conch shells and to ring bells to celebrate the occasion on August 5. In the evening, earthen lamps, or diyas, will be lit at homes. The opposition Congress and the Communist Party of India (Maoist), or the CPI(M), have said that lockdown dates should not be decided to suit religious occasions. Lockdown is enforced to control the pandemic. Its very unfortunate that lockdown dates are being announced after taking into consideration religious occasions, said Amitabha Chakraborty, a Congress leader. Lockdown dates cant be announced based on panjika (Hindu almanac). The Covid-19 has devastated the economy, as many have lost jobs and are suffering from pangs of hunger. Both the BJP and the TMC have failed to combat the viral outbreak at the Centre and the state, respectively, said Sujan Chakraborty, a CPI(M) legislator from Jadavpur and a leader of the Left parties in the Bengal assembly. This content is expired! Unfortunely this content is expired and cannot be viewed anymore; if You are the owner of this content please login to our Website, go to our access panel and enable this content again. President Akufo-Addo has said the December elections is an opportunity for Ghanaians to decide on his handiwork after trying him for a four-year term in government. Speaking to the media in Kyebi in the Eastern region Monday after registering with the first lady, President Akufo Addo said In 2016, I asked the people of Ghana to give me a chance and see my handiwork, they gave me the chance so it is now to them to decide how they see the work. I told them to try me, and they have tried me so it behoves on them to decide if it is good or bad. On my part, I have done my best. President Akufo-Addo said he was satisfied with the registration process and the adherence to COVID-19 safety protocols. I am very impressed with the arrangement by the EC for people to register in safety with all that is going on in the country and at the same time increase in number. I want to encourage everybody, we still have three days to go, everybody who hasnt register to try and register so that when the d-day comes, you can also participate in choosing the government of your choice. What will be sad, is to sit in the house and then have people take the decision for you. It is better that everybody who has not yet registered comes out and register. It is a simple process it is not complicated. The President also visited some registration centres. The President and his entourage will be in the Eastern Region for some days for a working visit. He is expected to cut sod for the commencement of some infrastructural projects and inspect ongoing ones. ---starrfmonline A cat detained at Sri Lanka's main prison while allegedly trying to smuggle drugs and cell phone SIM cards has escaped, media reports said Monday. The feline was detected by jail intelligence officials on Saturday at the high-security Welikada Prison, a police official said. He said nearly two grams of heroin, two SIM cards and a memory chip were found in a small plastic bag tied around the cat's neck. 'Drug-smuggling cat' who was jailed after being found with heroin and SIM cards tied around its neck, is pictured after police found it trying to smuggle the goods into a prison in Colombo In this handout picture taken on August 1, 2020, and released by Sri Lanka Police, a prison-officer shows a cat detained at the high-security Welikada Prison in Colombo But it escaped on Sunday from a prison room where it was kept, the Aruna newspaper said. There was no immediate comment from prison authorities. The prison had reported an increase in incidents of people throwing small packets of drugs, cell phones and phone chargers over the walls in recent weeks. Sri Lanka is battling a major drug problem with some anti-narcotics detectives also implicated in selling confiscated drugs. Police last week seized an eagle allegedly used by drug traffickers to distribute narcotics in a suburb of Colombo. WESTFIELD Jorge Alvarado and his wife, Rosana, moved to Westfield five years ago after working for years in supermarkets in New York City. They were close to her family here. And they started working for a demolition company in Holyoke while living near East Mountain Road near Hampton Ponds. Problem was, Jorge Alvarado said, there wasnt a food store he liked really close by. He was thinking of a neighborhood-type place where busy commuters could stop by on the way home from work. Now there is. And the Alvarados own it. They had a soft opening for Hampton Ponds Market earlier this week. One thing is when youre working in a supermarket and the other is when you own it, said Jorge Alvarado, who worked his way up to management at the Fairway chain over 15 years. It took us a long time. Everything is family savings. He described the 10,000-square-foot store of which 8,000 square feet is display space as a medium-sized market. Its got meat, produce, canned goods, milk, eggs and butter, as well as beer and wine. He said its a mix of convenience-oriented wares and specialty items. "We are a neighborhood supermarket," he said. Beer and wine is important because it generates other sales. Folks want to buy their beverages and their food in the same place. Its located in the Hampton Ponds Plaza, 1029 North Road, also known as Route 202, a commuter route between Westfield and Holyoke. Its an eclectic strip mall that also has a day care, pizzeria and Chinese restaurant. Developers built the plaza in 1988 at the site of what was once a drive-in movie theater. The plaza has been home to a number of markets over the years, including Big Es of Westfield Inc., and a store called simply Hampton Ponds Supermarket. When the Alvarados first visited, the store was called Freshco. "It wasn't what I expected," he said. "It was more like a 99-cent store." But then Rosana Alvarado noticed the market was for sale. They decided to take the plunge, buying the business last year. The city granted the liquor licenses in July 2019, and the new owners had to negotiate with the landlords as well before opening. So far, they have 10 employees. Alvarado said the toughest part of the process was securing a supplier that met his customers needs for a variety of high-quality foods. AG, Associated Grocers of New England, kept turning him down because it had the account at the location before and had seen those stores fail. He wanted a supplier like AG because he wanted nicer items, like the Seventh Generation brand of cleaning supplies and premium pasta. He had to start renovating and refitting the store before AG, a cooperative based in New Hampshire, would change its mind. "They had to come down and see," he said. "They had to see how the store is all clean, neat and well organized." The Alvarados will have to compete against Big Y which has two Westfield stores Stop & Shop and discounter Price Rite. Walmart, the worlds largest retailer, has a store three miles away. Jorge Alvarado said his strategy will be to appeal to the busy commuter who wants to grab a meal or a few ingredients on the way home from work or in the middle of running other errands. Then its about making sure he has what the customer is looking for, plus some items like the organic foods, that they werent expecting. "I think little by little, customers are amazed," he said. He hasnt had difficulty getting products in due to coronavirus. But like all stores hes requiring masks and working hard to keep carts clean and avoid contact that can spread the disease. When he adds hot food, it wont be a buffet. Hell have an employee there to dish out the food and wrap it for the customer to take. Related Content: This one takes culinary diplomacy to new heights. Step forward celebrity chef and Good Food columnist Adam Liaw, who has even more reasons to be smiling than usual. The chef has just trousered $394,900 to make a cooking series showcasing Malaysian food. And who is funding this little wheeze? The taxpayer. Liaw is the director and secretary of company Everday Media, which has been awarded the cash via the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trades public diplomacy category. The money will go towards the production of a program provisionally titled Adam Liaws Heritage Kitchen, which will promote Australias finest produce in cooking Malaysian dishes, showcase Australias scenic regions to promote tourism destinations, and feature personal stories of Australian producers/farmers to support the cultural connection between Australia and Malaysia. Who knew Foreign Minister Marise Payne was such a Masterchef fan? At least 29 people were killed in a raid on an Afghan prison claimed by the Islamic State group, officials said Monday, as the country waited to see if a government ceasefire with the Taliban would rupture after its formal expiration. Fighting finally ended at mid-afternoon at the jail in the eastern city of Jalalabad, where about 1,700 IS and Taliban inmates were being held. IS's news outlet Amaq said its fighters were behind the raid that had started with a suicide car bomb attack, and saw more than 1,000 inmates escape before most of them were recaptured. The attack was the most violent incident since the Taliban and Afghan security forces held a three-day ceasefire over the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha which ended Sunday. IS was not part of the truce which Afghan authorities hoped would pave the way for peace talks with the Taliban as early as this week. An AFP correspondent who toured the prison after the attack ended saw bodies of some attackers and inmates lying in the prison compound. The entrance to the jail was blown up by the initial car bomb attack. Several cells were burnt and damaged, while some had prisoners inside. The Nangarhar governor's spokesman Attaullah Khogyani told AFP that 29 people had died in the fighting. Officials said a total of 10 attackers were also killed. Meanwhile, the government accused the Taliban of violating the ceasefire 38 times over the three-day truce. Interior ministry spokesman Tareq Arian said the insurgents had killed 20 civilians and wounded 40 by "carrying out terrorist and offensive attacks as well as using landmines". The Taliban rejected his charges. Under a deal signed by the Taliban and the United States in February, the "intra-Afghan" talks were supposed to start in March. Talks however were delayed amid political infighting in Kabul, and as an agreed prisoner swap dragged on. - Prisoner release - Both Kabul and the Taliban have signalled they could be ready to start talks after Eid, and the Afghan government on Sunday offered to extend the ceasefire. Story continues The insurgents have not formally responded. The biggest hurdle to talks starting is a contentious prisoner swap stipulated under the US-Taliban deal. Under the exchange, Kabul is meant to free around 5,000 Taliban prisoners in return for 1,000 Afghan security personnel held captive by the insurgents. The National Security Council said Sunday that more than 4,900 inmates have been freed, and the Taliban last week said they had already met their side of the commitment. Afghan authorities, however, have refused to free about 400 Taliban inmates accused of serious crimes such as murder and even attacks against foreign countries. A gathering of Afghan elders will decide their fate on August 7 in Kabul, President Ashraf Ghani's spokesman said. Sediq Sediqqi said Washington had told Kabul that if it freed 4,600 Taliban prisoners the peace talks could begin. "We don't see any honesty and commitment from the Taliban for peace," Sediqqi told reporters. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, eager for a diplomatic win ahead of elections, discussed the prisoner issue by videoconference Monday with Taliban chief negotiator Mullah Baradar, insurgent spokesman Suhail Shaheen said. The US State Department would not comment. - Rumours Taliban regrouping - The rare respite from violence over Eid gave some Afghans the opportunity to safely visit relatives after long periods apart. "I managed to visit my village for the first time in two years," said Khalil Ahmad from volatile Uruzgan province. "There were many Taliban checkposts on the way, but they did not bother anyone." But in the northern province of Kunduz on Monday, any sense of calm felt short-lived. One resident, Atiqullah, who only uses one name, said that rumours were circulating that the Taliban were regrouping around Kunduz city. "Today, you see that familiar fear in people's faces again and I am more careful not to leave home today unless it's absolutely necessary," he told AFP. Sunday's raid on the prison came a day after Afghanistan's intelligence agency announced the killing of a top IS commander near Jalalabad. Nangarhar province has seen deadly IS attacks, including a suiicide bomb that killed 32 mourners at a funeral in May. The IS attacks continue despite officials claiming last year that the group had been defeated in Nangarhar. Two homes at the same address in Hammond caused confusion that led a contractor to demolishing the wrong property, now the city and the contractor are at odds over who should pay for it. Wrexhams magistrates court 5.4m improvements will be delivered by Spring 2021 This article is old - Published: Monday, Aug 3rd, 2020 Wrexham Magistrates Court will undergo 5.4m worth of renovations to boost capacity, improve accessibility, and deliver more trials. The Ministry of Justice say the project will see a new, state-of-the-art two-storey custody suite built, which will securely detain more defendants and keep the public safe something that was confirmed back in 2017 to then MP Ian Lucas. The plans to build a new cell block and entrance at Wrexham Magistrates Court have were given the go ahead by the Planning Committee back in October. Plans for the new cells were submitted for consideration back in 2017, but a decision was delayed due to concerns over the loss of trees nearby. As Wrexham.com have long documented until new facilities are built, all custodial cases are being dealt with in Mold rather than Wrexham causing a great deal of inconvenience to witnesses, victims of crime and local solicitors, as well as defendants and has saw the future of the court called into question. Todays announcement is the first that puts a price tag on the plans, and states the upgrade will be delivered by Spring 2021, and is the first milestone in the 142 million investment by UK Government to improve and modernise courtrooms across England and Wales. UK Government Courts Minister, Chris Philp, said: This investment will allow Wrexham Magistrates Courts to better serve its community, delivering jobs locally and dramatically enhancing its ability to hear more cases. It is the just the latest example of our commitment to give courts the resources needed to uphold the rule of law and deliver swifter justice for victims. The plans seek to help modernise the court and will consider sustainability initiatives to improve the energy performance of the building and reduce its impact on the environment. The work will be completed by local contractors where possible, delivering jobs and investment to the area. 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. Shopping centre owner Hammerson has confirmed it is considering tapping investors for cash and is in 'advanced talks' to sell its stake in continental European business VIA Outlets. The Birmingham Bullring's owner, which has been struggling to collect rent from shut-down retailers during the coronavirus pandemic, is trying to raise extra cash as it struggles with a 2.8billion debt. Hammerson said it was considering a rights issue, which could raise up to 600million. It comes amid fears the shopping mall owner could end up like rival Intu, which fell into administration in June after talks with lenders failed. Hammerson, which owns the Birmingham Bullring, is scrambling for cash Hammerson, which also owns London's Brent Cross and Croydon's Centrale, was forced to close its shopping centres after the coronavirus lockdown and many on reopening have struggled to attract shoppers back. It has only received a fraction of rent due over the past six months in a stand-off with hard-hit retailers and restaurant owners that has left many shopping centre owners on the brink. Hammerson is currently the London Stock Exchange's most shorted company, which means hedge funds and other investors are taking contracts betting its share price will fall further. Hammerson shares, which have plunged 80 per cent this year, fell another 10 per cent to 58p in morning trading on Monday. The company's 492million market value is dwarfed by its 2.8billion of debt. Following speculation over the weekend, Hammerson also confirmed plans to sell its 50 per cent stake in VIA Outlets to APG, a Dutch pension fund which is already Hammerson's partner in VIA. VIA Outlets manages premium fashion outlets in cities like Prague, Oslo, Zurich, Porto and Palma. On Saturday Sky News reported that the deal could fetch as much as 800million for the troubled business. 'The company confirms that it is in advanced discussions on the terms of a possible disposal of its 50 per cent interest in VIA Outlets to its joint venture partner APG,' Hammerson said in a statement to investors. Hammerson, which also owns London's Brent Cross (pictured) and Croydon's Centrale, has been struggling to collect rent from shut-down retailers during the coronavirus pandemic Analysts at Liberum said the potentially 'imminent' rights issue together with the sale of VIA Outlets it could take off some of the pressure, but is not a magic bullet. 'Successful execution would remove a near-term covenant headache, but not solve the longer-term problem, in our view,' the analysts said. They added: 'We think raising c. 1.3billion is more like the quantum needed to restore the balance sheet to a more comfortable level. 'We question investors' appetite for this transaction in the current market.' File image On August 2, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa and Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit, among others, joined the growing list of high-profile politicians and prominent public figures in India to have tested positive for COVID-19. Union Home Minister Shah took to Twitter and announced that he had been infected by COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. "On getting the initial symptoms of corona, I got the test done and the report came back positive. My health is fine, but I am being admitted to the hospital on the advice of doctors. I request that all of you who have come in contact with me in the last few days, please isolate yourself and get your inquiry done," he said. He was admitted to Medanta, a private hospital in Gurugram. According to news agency ANI, a team of doctors, led by All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Director Dr Randeep Guleria, is expected to visit Medanta hospital to review Shahs COVID-19 treatment. 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 Karnataka CM Taking to Twitter, Yediyurappa said he has tested positive for COVID-19 and was being hospitalised as a precaution. "I have tested positive for coronavirus. Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self quarantine," the veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader wrote on Twitter. Yediyurappa is the fourth member of his Cabinet to contract the disease. Earlier, Forest Minister Anand Singh, Tourism Minister CT Ravi and Agriculture Minister BC Patil had tested positive for COVID-19. Tamil Nadu Governor Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit, 80, also tested positive for COVID-19, according to a statement issued by a Chennai hospital. He was advised home isolation as the infection is mild. "He is asymptomatic and clinically stable," Chennai's Kauvery Hospital said in a statement. A medical team from the hospital will be monitoring the governor's health. The governor had been previously advised to go on a seven-day self-isolation period upon doctor's advice. Last week, 84 people at the Raj Bhavan had tested positive for COVID-19. However, the Governor's Office had then said none of them had come in contact with Purohit or other senior officials. Follow our LIVE blog for the latest updates of the novel coronavirus pandemic On the same day, Uttar Pradeshs only woman Cabinet minister Kamal Rani Varun died due to COVID-19 at a hospital in Lucknow. She was 62. The technical education minister, who had tested positive for COVID-19 on July 18, breathed her last at the Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPIMS). She reportedly had co-morbidities, including diabetes, hypertension and hyperthyroidism. The states water minister Mahendra Singh and the chief of BJP's Uttar Pradesh unit Swatantra Dev Singh also tested positive for COVID-19. Many other ministers in Uttar Pradesh had tested positive for the infectious disease earlier. Last week, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had tested positive for COVID-19. He later held a Cabinet meeting from the hospital via video conference. India reported 17.5 lakh COVID-19 cases as of August 2. This figure includes cases related to foreign nationals in the country, a death toll of 37,364, over 11 lakh recoveries and 5.6 lakh active cases. Globally, there have been over 1.79 crore confirmed cases of COVID-19. More than 6.85 lakh people have died so far. Like Hong Kong, HSBC has long sat at the crossroads between East and West, a big global bank based in Britain that has revelled in and profited from its deep relationship with China. And like Hong Kong, it is now caught in the middle of a new era of confrontation between Beijing and major Western governments. In China, HSBC has been accused of setting traps to ensnare the Chinese tech giant, Huawei. In Britain, it has been admonished for lobbying on behalf of Huawei. Straddling neutral ground is no longer an option. HSBC got called out in China for not publicly backing the new national security law in Hong Kong. When the bank eventually expressed support on its Chinese social media account, members of the British Parliament demanded an explanation and urged HSBC to rescind the statement. Global businesses are increasingly under pressure to pick sides as the United States and its allies target the political and economic agenda of China. American technology companies like Facebook, Twitter, Google and LinkedIn have pledged to defy data requests in Hong Kong under Chinas new security law. Manufacturers have disentangled their supply chains to cut out Chinese companies that the US government has banned over human rights violations or national security concerns. Big banks are scouring client lists to ensure compliance after the United States imposed sanctions on individuals considered to be eroding Hong Kongs autonomy. Many multinationals also worry that complying with US law may mean breaking the new Chinese rules in Hong Kong or cost them access to the second-largest economy in the world. A recent survey by the American Chamber of Commerce found that nearly half of the firms it surveyed are extremely concerned about recent developments with the national security law. There are multiple tail winds pushing the global business world toward this highly geopolitically sensitive environment where the landscape has shifted fundamentally and you can no longer be agnostic. said Jude Blanchette, a China scholar at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. It is the logical extension of this new paradigm where economic security is now considered national security. HSBC and Huawei declined to comment. HSBC, which now derives most of its revenues in Hong Kong and China, has long navigated politics and profits. During Japans occupation of Hong Kong during World War II, the head of HSBC was forced to sign bank notes for the Japanese government. He also secretly provided aid to military prisoners and bank employees. As Britain and China negotiated the handover of Hong Kong in the early 1980s, HSBC was viewed with mistrust by the Chinese Communist Party for its role in helping to finance the trade of opium in the late 1880s. In a move that helped it win back Beijings favor, it made plans for a splashy new headquarters in Hong Kong. HSBC also began to lend to the local businessmen who would go on to build the conglomerates that turned the city into a global financial center. As Hong Kong profited from its role as a gateway between China and the west, HSBCs own business boomed. But HSBCs unique standing has become a pitfall. During the anti-government demonstrations last year, HSBC was targeted for its Beijing connections. Protesters smeared red paint on the bronze lions outside the banks headquarters and set one on fire. One of HSBCs clients, Huawei, has been the major source of political tension for the bank. The Trump administration put Huawei and other Chinese technology companies on a so-called entity list over national security concerns, which prevents them from using American technology and software. In response, China created its own list and last year, Chinese state media suggested that HSBC be put on it. As Washington lobbied Western governments to block Huawei from building their 5G networks, HSBCs chairman, Mark Tucker, held private meetings with advisers to Prime Minister Boris Johnson on behalf of the Chinese company. Local British media and politicians lashed out at HSBC. One member of Parliament took to Twitter to write about it. The binary choice being forced on companies like HSBC is not coming from the U.K. We are not asking private businesses to endorse policy or face punishment. We are not threatening to withdraw economic cooperation if a U.K. company fails in a bid, wrote Tom Tugendhat, a member of the Conservative Party and chairman of Britains Foreign Affairs Committee. Even before the back-channel gestures failed and Britain blocked Huawei, HSBC was in the crosshairs of Chinas state-run media. The HSBC chairmans warning to Downing Street is far-fetched and absurd, and seems more like a political statement than a business comment, The Global Times wrote in an editorial on its English website. In recent days, Beijing has hurled a series of accusations against HSBC for cooperating in the case against the Huawei chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, who is in detention in Canada and fighting extradition to the United States. Huawei is accused of flouting Iranian sanctions and misleading HSBC about its dealings with an Iranian company. Mengs legal team has argued that Huawei did not hide anything from HSBC about its dealings in Iran. Wallowing in degradation and with its reputation at rock bottom, HSBC may struggle to continue to enjoy treatment in China, one state-controlled newspaper warned. Piling on, other state controlled newspapers accused HSBC of malice and dishonesty. The Peoples Daily accused HSBC of setting traps and argued that the evidence filed to the court revealed that the case was entirely a political case with fabricated criminal evidence. On its Chinese social media account, the bank offered a simple defense of its cooperation with prosecutors. HSBC has no malice against Huawei, nor has it framed Huawei, it said in its statement. Alexandra Stevenson c.2020 The New York Times Company Sushant Singh Rajput had Google-searched his name, 'painless death', 'schizophrenia', and 'bipolar disorder' before his death. Amid reports that the late actor was suffering from depression, Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh told the media that Rajput had searched for the aforementioned words and phrases a couple of hours before his death. He had also searched for his name to see what was written about him. The actor, according to Singh was upset that his name was linked with the death of his ex-manager Disha Salian, who had passed away five days before him. "Sushant Singh Rajput was searching his name for around two hours the night before his death," said the Mumbai Police Commissioner. A case of accidental death was registered regarding the death of Disha Salian. The Commissioner said that Salian had a party at her fiance's residence before she took her own life at 3am. Singh said that it was verified through CCTV footage. "There was a message we saw, which was sent by Sushant to his lawyer on why his name was being dragged in the Disha Salian suicide case. Sushant was very disturbed since the suicide as his name was being dragged into it," stated the official. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajput case: Bihar Police looks into actor's finances; friend says forced to give false statements Commissioner Singh said that Bihar Police -- who is also investigating the case -- has no jurisdiction to investigate and that Mumbai Police is seeking legal opinion on that. He said that Rajput's father KK Singh's complaint against Rhea Chakraborty has not been received by them. Speaking about the FIR, Singh said that the family had said on June 16 that there was no suspicion on anyone. Chakraborty who was living with Rajput was also depressed and had left home on June 8, six days before his death, stated the Commissioner. Rajput's sister had come over after Chakraborty left but she also returned home on June 13. "Rhea had some disputes with Sushant's family. We recorded Rhea's statement twice. We examined if there was a troubled relationship. She shared how they met. She has shared about his mental illness and also incidents pertaining to that. Doctors' prescriptions were also shared. We have verified everything about their Europe tour," said the Commissioner regarding Rajput and Chakraborty's relationship. The couple had gone on an Europe tour in October last year. The Mumbai Police said that they tried to speak to Sushant Singh Rajput's family but to no avail. The case is being investigated by the Mumbai Police as well as Bihar Police. A team of Bihar Police officials had reached Mumbai to probe the case. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajput case: ED files money laundering case American Hustle actor Bradley Cooper is in talks to star in the next feature film from Magnolia director Paul Thomas Anderson, which is to be set in the San Fernando Valley, California of the 1970s according to The Hollywood Reporter. Cooper, 45, is still coming off hot after successes like last year's blockbuster Avengers: Endgame, for which he again voiced the character of space raccoon Rocket, and A Star Is Born from the year before that, which garnered him a whopping three Oscar nods including Best Actor and Best Picture. Next project: Bradley Cooper is now in talks to star in the next feature film from Magnolia director Paul Thomas Anderson; Cooper seen here in February 2019 Anderson, 50, is the decorated director of films such as Boogie Nights, There Will Be Blood and Phantom Thread, whose films regularly earn widespread acclaim and accolades. The new film, which is yet to be titled, will follow a child actor as he attends high school in the Valley in the 70s. That particular swath of geography north of central Los Angeles has frequently served as a setting for Anderson's films, including his sprawling 1999 masterpiece Magnolia, as well as his period porn odyssey Boogie Nights from 1997. Auteur: Anderson is the decorated director of films such as Boogie Nights and Phantom Thread, whose films regularly earn widespread acclaim and accolades; seen in January 2018 Oscar-winner: PTA's 2007 film There Will Be Blood won lead actor Daniel Day-Lewis the second of his three Best Actor Academy Awards The new project was initially targeting a spring/summer 2020 start date for production, but that of course was pushed back due to the COVID-19 shutdown. According to THR, sources are hopeful that the film will start shooting this fall instead, but that is of course dependent on how and when productions will be permitted to resume in Los Angeles as the pandemic carries on. Paul Thomas is also a prolific short-film and music video director, having created many pieces for musical acts such as Fiona Apple (who is also his former flame), Radiohead and Aimee Mann. Intense: The director's new film is to be set in the San Fernando Valley, which has served as the setting for many of his films including 1999's Magnolia; Tom Cruise seen here in that film Recently, PTA has made a number of videos for musical trio Haim, as well as the somewhat bizarre short musical film Anima from last year, starring Radiohead's Thom Yorke. Cooper, meanwhile, still has to finish production on Guillermo Del Toro's period noir Nightmare Alley, costarring Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette and Rooney Mara. That film was forced to stop shooting earlier this year due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. Busy man: Cooper, meanwhile, still has to finish production on Guillermo Del Toro's period noir Nightmare Alley, costarring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara; seen here in June 2019 Bradley, who has also developed quite a resume as an Academy Award-nominated producer, is also prepping his Leonard Bernstein biopic for Netflix, titled Bernstein. For that project, Cooper is not only set to star as the iconic composer, but is also directing the film as well as cowriting the screenplay. Additionally, he will produce that picture along with Joker (and Hangover) partner Todd Phillips, Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg. The Silver Linings Playbook star made his feature directorial debut with 2018's A Star Is Born. The Delhi Polices armoury of anti-riot gear is in urgent need of an upgrade with nearly 70% of all tear gas shells and grenades, and 30% of bulletproof vests deemed condemned (discarded) or on the verge of condemnation (declared unusable), data from a recent police inventory shows. Thats not all. About 36% of all helmets, 19% of lathis (batons), and 13% of poly carbonate body shields have been put in the category of to be condemned, the data further shows. Since the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) was passed in Parliament last December, the city has witnessed numerous protests, many of them violent, and a communal riot in north-east Delhi in February that left 53 dead and over 400 injured. Also read: Tahir Hussain was given task of collecting glass bottles during Delhi violence: Report Between December 15 and 19, 2019, the city police fired nearly 450 tear gas shells to quell anti-CAA protests in Jamia Nagar and Seelampur-Jafarabad. Nearly 3,500 tear gas shells and gas grenades were used against rioters during the communal violence that ravaged several parts of north-east Delhi between February 24 and 26, a senior officer in the know of the matter, on condition of anonymity, said. As tear gas shells, their launching guns, gas grenades, bulletproof vests, body shields, lathis and helmets are key anti-riot equipment and hundreds of demonstrations are organised every year in the national capital, the Delhi Police is gearing up to strengthen its armoury. Towards that end, the force recently carried out an inventory of anti-riot equipment available in all 15 police districts of Delhi and as many other units of Delhi Police. After the evaluation, a list was drawn up on the equipment required and a proposal was drafted for the procurement of these items, said officials from provision and logistics (P&L) department that deals in the sale and purchase of items for the Delhi Police. The assessment of arms, ammunition and anti-riot equipment is done periodically to ascertain the status and condition of such items. On the basis of the assessment, we prepare a list of items required, and send the proposal to the ministry of home affairs for release of funds. A proposal to purchase anti-riot equipment is in the pipeline, Delhi Police spokesperson Mandeep Singh Randhawa said. Also read: Former JNU student Umar Khalid questioned in Delhi riots case, cellphone seized Data accessed by Hindustan Times shows that the police presently have 61,279 tear gas shells and gas grenades but about 70% of them have either expired or are nearing expiry date. Similarly, of the 16,607 bulletproof vests with the force, 5,104 (nearly 30%) are to be disposed of. The police have 18,685 helmets of which 6,718 are not fit for use. Of the 16,486 poly carbonate body shields and 23,195 lathis, 2,230 shields and 4,531 lathis have been declared unusable, shows the data. Poor maintenance and storage in unsuitable conditions are the prime reasons for the gear going to waste. The purchasing is vendor-driven and so the items procured are of poor quality. The ideal way would be to choose a vendor on the basis of quality and specification of items required as ascertained by the technical committee, Vikram Singh, former director-general (DG) of Uttar Pradesh Police, said. Many serving officers of the Delhi Police supported the former UP Police chiefs view and said anti-riot items are usually stored in malkhanas (storage room where recovered goods as well as arms and ammunition are stored) of police stations and these spaces are not temperature controlled. There is no fixed life span for a bulletproof vest. The vest armour is damaged only by gunshots. Its the cloth and fitting buckles that decay because of poor storage and maintenance. The vests get mildewed from the sweat of the wearer and the damp and humid conditions in malkhanas, an officer, who did not want to be named said. Another officer from the P&L department said tear gas shells and gas grenades come with an expiry date, which is between three and five years. The expired shells are used for training sessions at the police training college, the officer said, adding that lathis and body shields sustain damage either during their use or because of poor maintenance. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A woman has died after she was allegedly stabbed multiple times at a home in western Sydney. Multiple emergency services were called to an apartment block in Ingleby Street, Oatlands at around 4.50pm on Monday. Police shut down the street as paramedics performed CPR on the woman who had significant injuries, police said. The woman aged in her 30s, was rushed to Westmead Hospital in a critical condition but died a short time later. A man, 25, was arrested at the scene and taken to Granville Police Station, where he's assisting police with their inquiries. Multiple emergency crews were called to a street in Oatlands on Monday night, where a woman was allegedly stabbed multiple times. She later died in hospital Paramedics performed CPR on the woman before she was rushed to hospital in a critical condition and has since died. Pictured are police examining the scene Ingleby Street in Oatlands remains closed off as police continue their investigations Police said the man arrested at the scene was known to the woman. A NSW Ambulance spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia four crews attended the scene, along with CareFlight. Police remain at the scene and have launched an investigation into the incident. Officers are investigating reports the fatal incident could be been sparked by a possible love triangle, Nine News reported. Police arrested a man at the scene, who was taken to Granville Police Station for questioning A second man also known to the woman is believed to have been at the home at the time of the alleged stabbing but fled after calling police. He was treated nearby for a minor injury and didn't require further treatment. 'He's not an offender and we have located him and [he] is currently helping us back at Granville Police Station with a statement,' Chief Inspector Adam Philipps told the ABC. A second crime scene linked to the alleged attack is being examined in a nearby street. 'We are still in the infancy of the investigation,' Chief Inspector Philipps said. 'We are currently doing a canvassing of the units and we're just hoping now to try and put some sort of picture around not only today's incident, but the relationship of the female and the two parties involved today.' Anyone with information should call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. John Hume, the Northern Irish politician who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1998 for his role in the British province's peace process, has died aged 83, his family announced Monday. Hume, the former leader of the mainly Catholic Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), shared the Nobel with David Trimble of the pro-British Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) after the pair helped forge the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement. "We are deeply saddened to announce that John passed away peacefully in the early hours of the morning after a short illness," his family said in a statement. "John was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a great-grandfather and a brother. He was very much loved, and his loss will be deeply felt by all his extended family." The statement noted that Hume had been suffering from dementia and in the care of a nursing home in Londonderry. The ex-SDLP leader helped to end three decades of bloody strife in Northern Ireland between the largely Catholic nationalist community who want to unify with Ireland and Protestant unionists who want to remain part of Britain. A moderate voice during a conflict that had killed almost 3,600 people, Hume helped lead the cross-community peace process that culminated in the landmark Good Friday deal reached by Belfast, Dublin, London. Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said it was "impossible to properly express the scale and significance of John Hume's life". "He was one of the towering figures of Irish public life of the last century," he said on Twitter. "His vision and tenacity saved this country." The SDLP said: "We all live in the Ireland he imagined -- at peace and free to decide our own destiny." Hume's family said his funeral would be arranged in accordance with current government regulations severely limiting the number of attendees due to the risk of spreading coronavirus. "We realise this will mean that many will be unable to join us, and we will arrange a memorial service and a celebration of his life in due course," they said. Prison authorities are trying to relocate people being held in a custody centre underneath the Melbourne Magistrates Court building after two positive coronavirus tests. Victoria Police, which manages the centre, confirmed two staff had tested positive at the weekend and that the centre was now in lockdown for a deep clean. Credit:Penny Stephens Police and Corrections Victoria officials are working on relocating the prisoners to other jails. It was unclear how many people were being moved. Police and health officials are also trying to trace whether other police staff were in contact with the pair who recorded positive tests. Syria and Turkey Sunday condemned as illegal an alleged oil deal between a US firm and Kurdish rebels [Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)] controlling the northeastern part of the war-torn country. The Syrian foreign ministry, Reuters reports, in statement accused the named US firm of stealing Syrias crude. Damascus condemns in the strongest terms the agreement signed between al-Qasd militia (SDF) and an American oil company to steal Syrias oil under the sponsorship and support of the American administration, the statement said. This agreement is null and void and has no legal basis, it said. The alleged deal was confirmed by Turkey which condemned the U.S. for supporting the deal, which disregards international law, Syrias territorial integrity, unity and sovereignty and finances terrorism, Daily Sabah reports. Ankara also criticized the SDF of aiming at dividing Syria and exploit its natural resources. Turkey accused the SDF of fostering the YPG; a terrorist group. The Syrian regime has lost control of oil fields in in a stretch east of the Euphrates River in Deir al-Zor. The field are controlled by US forces. John Stinner, the Appropriations Committee chairman, the money man, the guy who best understands the impact that major additional property tax relief will have on the state budget now and in the future. Steve Lathrop, a skilled, experienced and successful legislative negotiator. Mike McDonnell, who honed his negotiating skills as labor's voice in the bargaining room. And Scheer, the guy who brought them together and commands the legislative agenda. Members of the Capitol news crew have not received any invitations to sit in on a negotiating session and watch what must be a frank and compelling give-and-take. That would be instructive and illuminating, and fun, but it would alter the dynamics and ain't gonna happen. *** Finishing up: * As Taylor Gage, spokesman for Gov. Pete Ricketts, knows, we're always trying to get inside closed doors. The guy who let me inside most often was Gov. Ben Nelson, and those were (I think) revealing and compelling stories. Aged 68, I am, like millions of people in their 60s, still working. And, also like millions in this age group, I have an underlying health condition an auto-immune disease. So, as the nation gears up to return to work, how worried should people like me be? And if we are worried, what are our options? Already, some older people with medical conditions who have told their employers they are too frightened to go back to work have been threatened with disciplinary action or the sack. The first point is that many older people have to work. The official state pension age has been rising for several years and, from October, it will be 66. Indeed, prior to Covid-19, 2.8 million people in their 60s were working, a number that would surprise many. Aged 68, I am, like millions of people in their 60s, still working. And, also like millions in this age group, I have an underlying health condition an auto-immune disease, writes Dorothy Byrne, pictured above I am lucky enough, in my role as editor-at-large at Channel 4, to be able to work from home. I have not missed the hideous commute on the Northern Line in London and dressing up for the office. The Government position was that if you could work from home, then you should. But now it wants us to get back into our shops, offices, factories and other places of work carefully. In many ways we older workers will be looking forward to seeing colleagues and work friends just as much as younger people are. I also feel concern for the small businesses near my office in Westminster. I went to collect a dress Id left at the dry cleaners next to the Channel 4 building before the pandemic and was greeted like a celebrity. When I dropped into a nearby coffee bar, I was sad to see it completely empty. People of my age are undoubtedly at higher risk than younger groups. In the UK, the emphasis has always been on the risk to those aged 70 or over who were advised to minimise contact with people outside their homes regardless of medical conditions. However, the World Health Organisation (WHO) says anyone aged 60 or over is at higher risk if they contract Covid-19, and still advises they should be visited only by healthy people and avoid crowded spaces. Public Health England has pointed out this advice is applied to both developed and developing countries where life expectancy and health in older ages are very different. But the WHO says the advice is relevant everywhere. In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said anyone 65 and older was at high risk of severe illness should they contract Covid-19, and France and Switzerland warned anyone aged 65 and over they were at risk. People of my age are undoubtedly at higher risk than younger groups. In the UK, the emphasis has always been on the risk to those aged 70 or over who were advised to minimise contact with people outside their homes regardless of medical conditions So what might be the consequences if I did contract Covid-19 through returning to work? Early in the pandemic, I noted that in China, 3.6 per cent of people aged 60 to 69 who contracted Covid-19 died and in Italy, 3.5 per cent. Office for National Statistics figures show the risk increases with age here, too. In May, there was just one Covid-19 death for each 100,000 people aged 20 to 24, 13 per 100,000 aged 40 to 44, but that shot up to 110.9 for the 60 to 64 bracket and 168.7 for those aged 65 to 69. But how significant is it to be at higher risk? Data from July 20-26 show that one person in 1,500 had Covid-19, which is just a quarter of the rate two months earlier, so the risk for everyone is generally receding. We also have to face the fact that older people die more anyway. Professor Sarah Harper, a gerontologist at the Oxford Institute of Population Ageing, says it seems Covid-19 increases the risk of premature death only marginally among people in their 60s. The risk of dying appears to be following the overall mortality risk by age, she explains. Ones chance of dying from Covid-19 is still very small, even at over 70. In fact, the chance of dying from an underlying health condition is still in most cases greater than the chance of dying from Covid-19. One of the UKs leading statisticians, Professor David Spiegelhalter, of the Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication in Cambridge, concurred: The risk is still roughly equivalent to the risk of dying this year from something else, which on average for 65 to 69-year-olds is around 1.5 per cent for men and 1 per cent for women. Professor Spiegelhalter points out that age is the dominant factor when looking at the risk of death from Covid-19 but nine-tenths of people who died had pre-existing medical conditions. And this is what worries older workers; many people in their 60s in the UK have underlying medical conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure, which raise their level of risk of severe infection or death from Covid-19. The numbers are significant the charity Diabetes UK estimates around 13.6 per cent of people 60 to 69 in England and Wales have diabetes. Age UK says 47 per cent of men and 40 per cent of women in their 60s in England around 1.35 million people have been diagnosed with high blood pressure. Many people have had cancer, potentially lowering immunity. My auto-immune condition is two related diseases polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) and giant cell arteritis (GCA), both affecting people in their late 50s onwards. PMR causes severe inflammation in the shoulder and hip joints. GCA, left untreated, can cause such serious inflammation in the arteries in the head that it may result in partial or total irreversible sight loss. And many people with PMR and GCA take drugs that affect immunity. At the start of lockdown, I was on the immunosuppressant drug tocilizumab for a temporary relapse in my GCA, which lowered my white blood cell count and I was warned it made me vulnerable. Around half the people with my condition are likely to have other health conditions, too, and this issue of people with multiple health conditions going back to work is worrying charities. Helen Kirrane, Diabetes UKs head of policy, says: Workers at potential risk who can work from home should have the right to do so and furlough should be adapted and extended for others. Age UK has carried out a new analysis showing 319,000 older workers (50 and over) were among the 2.2 million who were shielded until last weekend. Altogether 28 per cent of people shielding normally work. A lot of commentators have portrayed the end of shielding as good news for those stuck at home, but many are terrified of having to go to work. Age UK is among charities backing a parliamentary petition calling for the furlough scheme to be extended for high-risk people who cant safely return to their workplace. I spoke to several charities who are taking calls from those being pressurised into returning. Liz Egan, of Macmillan Cancer Support, says: Some people have to choose between protecting their health and protecting their jobs. Our phone helpline is receiving an increasing number of calls. Some employers are saying that furlough has ended and people are required to go back to work. But extending furlough for those at high risk may include hundreds of thousands of people and be a significant cost when the economy is already in trouble. There is an added problem of determining who would be included. Englands Chief Medical Officer has commissioned a team led by the University of Oxford to develop a risk prediction tool to identify those at highest risk of infection or serious illness from Covid-19. For now, people are being advised to seek help from their doctors, although there is no guarantee they will be deemed unfit to return to the workplace. But many employers are letting people work at home if they may be at risk (and indeed, under the law, employers have to make reasonable adjustments for people with disabilities, which includes anyone whos had cancer). When I contacted the Department of Health, a spokesperson sounded a sympathetic note, telling me: We understand how challenging this pandemic is for people, especially those with long-term conditions and rare diseases, and we must do everything we can to support them. But added: The latest evidence shows that the chance of encountering coronavirus in the community continues to decline and this has allowed for the relaxation of our guidance. I am no longer on tocilizumab so, looking at the statistics, I will go back to my office when asked, but I wont go on public transport: I will walk or drive. But if I were still on the drug which lowered my immunity, I would be very nervous about going back at all. I can certainly understand why older people with several significant conditions would be worried. Of course, if there is a second wave, we will all have to re-think. For more information and guidance about cancer and returning to work, visit www.macmillan.org.uk/coronavirus or call Macmillans free support line on 0808 808 00 00 (open 7 days a week, 8am-8pm). Veg in disguise Sneaky ways to add veg without anyone noticing. This week: Pasta sauce This recipe makes four servings and counts as two of your five-a-day per serving. Finely chop 175g red pepper, 75g onion and 100g courgette, and saute in olive oil until tender. Blend the sauteed veg into a puree with a hand blender, then mix into a jar (around 300g) of tomato and basil pasta sauce. Use as a sauce for a pasta of your choice, or in a lasagne. Tomato pasta sauce already counts as at least one of your five-a-day, but the extra veg turns it into two portions. The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has denied reports by the media that the not-so-long-ago Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS) deployed at the country's points of entry has resulted in revenue loses for the country. GRA in a press statement dated August 3, 2020, asserted that the numerous media reportage of ICUMS 'causing' revenue losses at the country's land and sea borders, particularly the Tema Collection was 'completely misleading and does not represent the facts on the ground.' According to the revenue mobilization body, monthly average revenue collection pre-Covid-19 and during Covid-19 are GHS 942 million and GHS 574.8 million respectively. It argues that, the GHS 574.8 revenue mobilization figure compared to end-June revenue mobilization figure of GHS 554 million at the Tema Collection point does not show significant differences in revenue mobilization hence, ICUMS cannot be said to be the cause of the revenue shortfalls as the media seem to suggest. The cause of revenue shortfalls the GRA argues further, is due to the border closure and restrictions placed on movement of persons resulting in a slowdown in port-related activities due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The body clearing the air on the misconception that the ICUMS is to blame for the variances in the revenue at the ports, stated that it is focused on its core mandate of mobilising revenue for national development and that it remains committed to constantly monitoring revenue performance at the ports whilst making efforts to resolve all initial challenges in the deployment of the ICUMS. The Wirecard scandal has highlighted the need for a common European regulatory regime for financial firms, according to European Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis. The collapse of the German electronic payments company with almost 2bn of funds unaccounted for could now spark a revamp of how the European Union carries out financial supervision, Mr Dombrovskis said an interview with the 'Financial Times'. The financial technology company's collapse shows that previous attempts to bolster financial watchdogs in Brussels were a "missed opportunity" and highlight a need for another push, he said. A previous effort by Mr Dombrovskis to give agencies, including the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), greater clout and more independence from member states was heavily watered down, but he indicated that could be revisited in the wake of the Wirecard scandal. ESMA said in July that it planned to probe the quality of German financial regulator BaFin's work, as well as look at the role of FREP, a private-sector body responsible for monitoring company accounts in Germany. The Wirecard insolvency in June after 1.9bn of cash went missing breached "all three lines of defence" meant to protect EU investors, Mr Dombrovskis said: regulations and corporate governance, auditors, and supervision from public authorities. The case has raised major question marks over the quality of financial regulation in Germany, where Wirecard is based. The EU is also considering stronger regulations for audit committees of companies' own boards of directors, he said. Siddhanta Mishra By Express News Service First, they were dealt with a heavy blow of the Covid-19 lockdown. Then, comes the governments Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant) campaign a nationwide call to reduce dependence on imports, especially from China, in the wake of the violent face-off between the Indian Army and Chinas PLA troops in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh. Traders and businessmen in the national capital have now begun asking whether it is reasonable to completely shun the import of China-made products. The traders complain that there has been a sharp decline in the sales of automobiles and electronic items such as cellphones, televisions, computers and laptops. And with a series of festivals, beginning with Raksha Bandhan, lined up for the next few months, they fear that the campaign might cause a large-scale business loss. According to market experts, approximately trade worth up to Rs 40,000 crore takes places in this festival season across India, out of which up to Rs 22,000 crore business is China-dominated. In Delhi alone, trade worth Rs 2,300 crore takes place during Raksha Bandhan. The rakhis from Delhis Sadar Bazaar are sold all over the country, the market is not decorated with China-made bright rakhis as it used to be in previous years. According to the Confederation of All Indian Traders (CAIT), Indias largest traders body, every year trade of more than Rs 6,000 crore takes place over the festival. Chinas portion of this trade is around Rs 4,000 crore. It is this business that the traders body has planned to bring down to zero. a Pakistan refugee displays rakhis made for soldiers ahead of the Raksha Bandhan festival near Majnu ka Tilla Delhi traders selling Chinese products are in a dilemma. On one hand, they want to advocate Prime Minister Narendra Modis Atmanirbhar Bharat call. On the other hand, they cant afford to incur more losses, especially in the festive season. The overreliance on Chinese imports has tied the hands of many business owners, while a few others support the idea of a complete ban. Around 3,000 items, ranging from finished goods, raw material to spare parts and technology, are imported from China at present, and banning them overnight would be a big blow for the traders. Since the Galwan Valley skirmish, which led to the death of 20 Indian soldiers, several traders organisations have protested against Beijing and demanded a complete boycott of Chinese products, but Mahinder Aggarwal, president of All Delhi Computer Traders Association (ADCTA), believes it wont be possible so quickly. Ninety-per cent business of electronic items in India is dominated by Chinese imports. The traders have decided to boycott Chinese products, but the government, too, needs to help us. A clear roadmap with policies and rules implemented in time to promote small and medium businesses needs to be done. Only then, we can achieve the target of China-free markets, says Aggarwal. The Covid-19 pandemic and unparalleled protective measures taken by the government to stem its spread have severely impacted economic activity at Nehru Place market, Asias largest computer and electronic market. women purchase rakhi at Sadar Bazaar in Gurugram | Shekhar Yadav/PTI Now, with a wave of anti-Chinese anger is cresting in the national capital, Aggarwal who owns a shop at the market says, the business has gone for a toss due to problems in the supply chain from China. According to him, while the demand for electronic items has increased during the pandemic, the supply has been very slow. The government recently increased the customs duty on imports from China by 30 per cent. Now, the people who have already made full payments for electronic spare parts and computer components are unable to receive their packages from the airport. We are facing a huge shortage in supply, adds the ADCTA president. The city alone trades approximately 10,000 computer items per day. Most local bodies such as the New Delhi Traders Association and Defence Colony Market Association have given the call to boycott Chinese products to make the dragon spineless. Brajesh Goyal, president of the Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI), says it is time for a strategic ban on Chinese goods. The first step that the government should take is to restrict those Chinese goods which are already made in India or can be easily made in the country without importing anything from China. Indian manufacturers need little support to substitute the Chinese import for these items says Goyal. But traders, according to Goyal, will have to make some sacrifices to make this movement successful. From India-made Rafale Rakhi to t-shirts printed with this Diwali no Chinese products, few traders are hitting the streets to create more awareness among people about the campaign. Praveen Khandelwal, president of the CAIT, which had started the campaign, says this time the traders have made up their minds that they wont import anything from China. We are getting good response from the public who are also not willing to buy made in China goods. This is a great opportunity to promote our made in India items, says Khandelwal. The CAIT has set a target to reduce Chinas business by `1 lakh crore in Indian markets. Currently, everything that we buy has Chinese links. China has grown its trade exponentially in India in the last decade. The festivals lined up for the next few months will be a real challenge for the traders. By promoting the governments initiative of vocal for local, many of our artisans and craftsmen would get an opportunity to reach out to every corner of the country. In Delhi, traders are ready to work with the government, adds Khandelwal. The Defence Colony Residents Welfare Association was one of the first group of citizens to begin demonstrations against sale of China-made products after the violent face-off. Rajinder Malik, president of the Defence Colony Market Association, says: Many traders have already procured their supply from China. Now, they have no other option but to sell them. But we have resolved that there will be no fresh imports from China. The Telecom Equipment Manufacturers Association of India (TEMA), has welcomed the Modi governments move to ban the 59 Chinese mobile apps. Now, we request the government to make the Public Procurement (Preference to Make in India) applicable to the private sector, including all telecom operators, as well. The countrywide PPP-MII will create a strong foundation for Indian brands to fulfil the mission of Atmanirbhar Bharat in telecom manufacturing, says NK Goyal, chairman emeritus, TEMA. While the government has banned popular apps such as TikTok, Shareit and UC Browser, doctors fear that there could be an adverse impact on some youth. Dr Mohit Sharma, a senior resident at the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS), says the move could lead to cause problems like depression among some youngsters. Last month, an 18-year-old TikTok star, a student of the Delhi University, died by suicide. No suicide note was discovered but reports suggested that the ban on TikTok could have pushed her to take her life. Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, a member of the ruling NPP, has cautioned the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) to stop playing politics with the Security Service. The NDC has accused some security officials of intimidation at some voters registration centres. This comes on the back of a video gone viral on social media where the NDC General Secretary, Johnson Asiedu Nketia is seen arguing with military officers. But Gabby Otchere-Darko has debunked claims that the NPP is trying to intimidate NDC members and supporters. To him, it is rather the opposition party that is fanning ethnocentric sentiments and therefore warned them to refrain from such behavior. 4th Republican politics has always been about each of the two main parties trying their hardest, against the odds, to police the ballot in the others stronghold. Yet, when the NDC in Govt uses the security forces and macho men to protect the process in Ashanti Region, for example, they are never accused of a deliberate, concerted tribal attack against Asanteman or Ashantis. The NPP makes a conscious effort to protect the integrity of nationhood. The issue is not stretched to ignite and explode ethnocentrism for partisan gain. Remember when NDC in the office used force and violence to prevent Akans based in the area from registering in Odododiodio? The NPP, under Akufo-Addo, did not accuse the NDC of being anti-Akan, asking Akans to rise up against the ruling party. The NPP leadership took a responsible decision not to exploit the situation ethnocentrically, he wrote on his Facebook page. Read the full statement below: 4th Republican politics has always been about each of the two main parties trying their hardest, against the odds, to police the ballot in the others stronghold. Yet, when the NDC in Govt uses the security forces and macho men to protect the process in Ashanti Region, for example, they are never accused of a deliberate, concerted tribal attack against Asanteman or Ashantis. The NPP makes a conscious effort to protect the integrity of nationhood. The issue is not stretched to ignite and explode ethnocentrism for partisan gain. Remember when NDC in the office used force and violence to prevent Akans based in the area from registering in Odododiodio? The NPP, under Akufo-Addo did not accuse the NDC of being anti-Akan, asking Akans to rise up against the ruling party. The NPP leadership took a responsible decision not to exploit the situation ethnocentrically. Indeed when one NPP MP, in understandable anger and frustration, asked provocatively what would happen if NPP employed the same discriminatory tactics against non-Akans and attacked them in Kumasi, the NPP party issued a statement to condemn it; the police, under an NDC administration, arrested the NPP MP, locked him up and ill-advisedly charged him with treason. For the NPP party then, the focus was more on the NDC parliamentary candidate and his gang who were terrorizing Akan voters from registering in Odododiodio than using it to turn one region against another or one ethnic group against the other. Think about it. Please do... Source: Josephine Acheampomaa/[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 ByteDance is not backing down from its ambitions to become a global technology powerhouse, even as TikTok loses its largest market (India) and faces insurmountable challenges in the U.S. But some in China are blasting the Beijing-based company as too accommodating and yielding to U.S. demands. ByteDance said it will "remain committed to our vision to become a globalized company" despite the flurry of challenges thrown at it, it said in a statement posted late Sunday. Following months of efforts to sway U.S. regulators and the public, TikTok reluctantly arrived at two concessions: "We faced the real possibility of a forced sale of TikToks US business by CFIUS or an executive order banning on the TikTok app in the US," ByteDance founder and CEO Zhang Yiming wrote to employees in a letter on Monday. The TikTok saga is evolving on an hourly basis. As of writing, Microsoft has confirmed it's in talks with U.S. officials to pursue a TikTok purchase. Trump previously said he would not support the purchase of the Chinese-owned app by an American company. On the China end, Zhang told his staff that the company has "initiated preliminary discussions with a tech company to help clear the way for us to continue offering the TikTok app in the US." The message corroborates reassurance from the app's U.S. general manager Vanessa Pappas that TikTok is "not planning on going anywhere." Zhang is unabashed about his frustration in the letter: "We disagree with CFIUSs conclusion because we have always been committed to user safety, platform neutrality, and transparency. However, we understand their decision in the current macro environment." Angry netizens But ByteDance's responses clearly have not won favor with some people in China. On Weibo, a popular microblogging platform in China, hundreds of anonymous users joined in under a post about Zhang's letter, cursing him as a traitor of China, an American apologist and a coward, among many other labels. Story continues "Zhang Yiming used to praise the US for allowing debate, unlike in China, where opinions are one-sided. Now he got a slap in the face, why doesn't he go argue with the US?" chastised one of the most popular comments with more than 3,600 likes. The commentator appears to be referring to some of Zhang's Weibo posts from the early 2010s, which can be seen by some as liberal-leaning, putting the entrepreneur in the rank of "public intellectuals." The term has in recent years been thought of as derogatory, as internet patriots see the group as ignorant and worshippers of Western values. "The general view among Chinese social media users is that this is a tit-for-tat measure as part of the ongoing U.S.-China trade war. They also believe that these steps are being taken due to TikToks success and because it has now become a threat to U.S. platforms such as Facebook and Twitter," said Rich Bishop, CEO of AppInChina, which helps international apps and games publish in China. Zhang's Weibo account is currently suspended, presumably to prevent armies of angry patriots from flooding his posts. It's hard to gauge how representative the online sentiment is of the Chinese public, or whether the discourse is orchestrated by government-paid commentators. Compared to the internet fury, though, Beijing appeared relatively resigned, with a Foreign Ministry spokesperson merely denying U.S. allegations against TikTok as fabricated "out of nothing" during a regular presser. (There's no concrete evidence publicly presented by the U.S. government yet to support its claims that TikTok is a national security threat.) After all, the Chinese government can't do much to retaliate, given there are scant examples of American internet giants with a considerable business in China. There's also little impetus for Beijing to stand up for ByteDance. Unlike Huawei, which provides the backbone of telecoms networks in China and many other countries, ByteDance is far from being seen as a "national champion." The state-of-the-art content algorithms it claims to have, after all, are used to hook people to the screens. If anything, the Party is probably warier of what people consume on Bytedance apps rather than viewing them as a strategic partner in China's race to be a global tech leader. Sympathy from peers Startups and investors in China are more sympathetic toward ByteDance. Many agree that if the Microsoft deal goes through, it could be the least bad outcome for TikTok. "They are stuck between a rock and a hard place," said William Bao Bean, general partner at Chinaccelerator, a cross-border accelerator backed by SOSV. "We are in a fast-changing regulatory environment. I think the consumers would probably want to continue using the service, and this is one potential way to make that happen. Obviously, I don't think it's what ByteDance really wants." AppInChina's Bishop reminded us of Microsoft's non-confrontational attitude toward Beijing. "I think its a good outcome for all sides. Microsoft of course benefits hugely from getting into social media. ByteDance gets a good payout, and Bytedance and the Chinese government are relatively friendly towards Microsoft." The tech community is well aware that TikTok is a rarity. Although the backlash will have a chilling effect on Chinese companies expanding to the U.S., and potentially other Western markets, there simply aren't many internet companies going from China to the West in the first place. "Most solutions that are built for China don't solve problems that people have in the West," observed Bao Bean. Chinese games probably have the best shot in conquering the West, as WeChat parent Tencent, through aggressive acquisitions and numerous smash-hits, has demonstrated. Smaller developers resort to the strategy of "laying low" about their Chinese origin. "We simply don't take media interviews," said the CEO of a U.S.-listed Chinese internet firm on condition of anonymity. "It's not about the chilling effect. The problem is there won't be opportunities in the U.S., Canada, Australia or India anymore. The chance of succeeding in Europe is also becoming smaller, and the risks are increasing a lot," a former executive overseeing an American giant's Chinese business lamented, asking not to be named. "From now on, Chinese companies going global can only look to Southeast Asia, Africa and South America." Vietnamese shares may continue to fall this week as a spike in fresh coronavirus cases fuelled concerns that the path to economic recovery could be hindered. Outside the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE). Signs of a resurgence in coronavirus cases in Viet Nam unnerved investors who were hoping for a swift economic recovery from the crisis. Photo tinnhanhchungkhoan.vn The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) lost 0.34 per cent to end Friday at 798.39 points. It had lost a total of 3.7 per cent last week. An average of 310.4 million shares were traded on the HoSE during each session last week, worth VND4.9 trillion. On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index slumped 0.55 per cent to end Friday at 107.51 points. The northern market index had declined 1.7 per cent last week. An average of 48.7 million shares were traded on the HNX during each session last week, worth VND444 billion. Two women infected with COVID-19 were confirmed dead Sunday afternoon, bringing Viet Nam's tally of COVID-19 casualties to five. Both patients suffering from underlying health conditions were diagnosed with COVID-19 on July 31. Viet Nam has recorded 590 cases so far, 212 being active cases. Over 94,000 are in quarantine. According to Le Anh Tung, Market & Macro Strategist at KB Securities Vietnam, investors are quite sensitive to the COVID-19 movements. Signs of a resurgence in coronavirus cases in Viet Nam unnerved investors who were hoping for a swift economic recovery from the crisis, he said. I am afraid that the main trend of the market in August is going down. The rapid spread of COVID-19 coupled with the complicated nature of the infection cases in major hospitals, makes the pandemic more complex than it was the first time. Therefore, the risks of another social distancing order may happen and the stock market will witness an additional deep decline, he said. But the market may rebound afterwards as investors still pinned hopes on drastic action of the Government in the fight against COVID-19, having their faith in the stock market again, Tung said. I think that the market may move sideways next week and the VN-Index is forecast to fluctuate in the price range of 745-800 points, said Nguyen The Minh, director of Analysis Division at Yuanta Vietnam Securities Co. As the short-term trend of the market is still down, the appropriate strategy for investors at present is to sell off and reduce their stock proportion. However, the cash flow still shows signs of different orientation and investors still have opportunities to seek profits in each specific industry group, he said. According to Tran Xuan Bach, a stock analyst at Bao Viet Securities Co, the VN-Index is forecast to continually oscillate between resistance 810-820 points and support 780 points next week. Q2 business result reporting season is gradually losing its impact on the market movement. The market will lack supporting information during the early weeks of August, therefore, the VN-Indexs movement will be driven mainly by news related to the COVID-19 pandemic, Bach said. Stock exposure should be maintained at below 25 per cent of the portfolio. Investors should only open buying positions at low proportion at support zone of 775-785 points, prioritising portfolio-existing positions, Bach said. With the market going down last week, almost all major sectors declined. Consumer services stocks such as Vietnam Airlines Group (HVN) slumped 10.9 per cent, Vietjet (VJC) lost 9 per cent and SCSC Cargo Service Corporation (SCS) was down 4.8 per cent. Oil and gas stocks also decreased, PetroViet Nam Coating JSC (PVB) decreasing 9.1 per cent, PetroVietnam Technical Services Corporation (PVS) falling 9.3 per cent, Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Company Limited (BSR) losing 7.8 per cent and PetroVietnam Oil Corporation (OIL) moving down 5.5 per cent. Banking stocks also saw a steep fall with Techcombank (TCB) down 6.9 per cent, Vietcombank (VCB) losing 5.7 per cent, HDBank (HDB) falling 5.3 per cent, Military Bank (MBB) and VPBank (VPB) both down 4.7 per cent. VNS And he concluded, Thank you very much for the good ship Endeavour. Lou Behnken, 71, said he never was surprised his son moved into the engineering/science field, something that interested him since his grade-school days. He was always good at math and science, and he would try to figure out how everything worked, Behnken said. As a kid, he was always taking his bike apart, adding some part or making some improvement, and then putting it back together, he said. Those bike-tweaking episodes all took place at the St. Ann home where Lou Behnken still lives, and where he and his late wife, Cindy, raised their son and daughter, Marianne Behnken. Col. Behnken is a 1988 graduate of Pattonville High. His father graduated from that school in 1967, before seeing action in Vietnam, including the Battle of Hue, with the 5th Marine Division. He had some of the same teachers I did at Pattonville, Lou Behnken said, then conceded, He was a much better student than I was. An effort by a Martinsville City Council member to return $7,500 to a city property owner was ignored Tuesday at a regular meeting in council chambers and even drew an apology from a fellow council member to two members of the city's administration for those actions. Council member Danny Turner accused City Attorney and Assistant City Manager Eric Monday of pulling one over on Ebony Millner by selling her a home on Dillard Street that had liens attached. A deed on file in the Martinsville Clerks Office, prepared by Monday and signed on Oct. 9 by City Manager and Martinsville Land Bank Authority Director Leon Towarnicki, shows a house at 539 Dillard St. and an adjoining lot were sold to Millner for $7,500 on the conditions that Millner bring the property up to code within 12 months and occupy the home within 24 months. Failure to meet those conditions would result in the ownership of the property, including any improvements, reverting to the city. Turner explained that, when Millner learned the cost to renovate the property was far greater than expected, she decided to sell it. Thats when she discovered a lien attributed to the previous owner was attached to the property. The deed on file with the clerks office states in all capital letters: "THIS DEED WAS PREPARED WITHOUT THE BENEFIT OF A CURRENT TITLE EXAMINATION OR A CURRENT SURVEY. Although the normal procedure in the transfer of real estate is for the buyer to conduct a title search before purchasing the property, which would reveal any such liens, Turner said he felt the city should have assumed that responsibility. The lien turned out to be an error, but the matter is now confused with additional liens that have been placed on the property. All it took was a phone call, Monday said to council members. The attorney that filed the lien on the property before Ms. Millner purchased it had been satisfied, and he said he had forgotten to file a release. Monday went on to explain that, although the previous lien proved to be moot, additional liens have been placed against the property as a result of Millners ownership. Millner said she listed the house with a local real estate agent and had multiple offers but was unable to sell it without a clear title. The contract for the listing is scheduled to expire this week. I was asking what I paid for it, but with the lien[s], there is no net profit, Millner said. I have been paying individuals to keep the yard clean, and Ive gone to several banks, but they say if Im not living in the house, then I cant qualify for a loan. Without a loan, Millner has no money to renovate the property, estimated by one contractor to cost as much as $60,000. The kitchen floor is inhabited by groundhogs - the house is falling in, Millner said. The city inspector wouldnt step into the home with me. It was pretty terrifying. Millner said she had never purchased a home, didnt know her responsibilities as a buyer and trusted the city when they told her the house was a good fixer-upper. Said Millner: They even said they would throw in the adjacent lot for free. Monday advised council members against refunding Millners money. There are eight other judgments against an Ebony Millner for $7,540.38, Monday said. They all attached when she bought the property. Millner has never acknowledged any of the judgments, and it is certainly an impediment to obtain conventional financing. If we refund - we would pay $7,500 to satisfy pre-existing unsatisfied judgments. Monday said Millner came to his office unannounced and that he explained the situation to her. It was not what she wanted to hear and did not appreciate the manner I told her, Monday said. Millner said she felt threatened by Monday. He was very gruff - disrespectful and hateful, Millner said. If i didnt have my child with me, I would have been afraid he would have put his hands on me. Said Monday to council: She has six months left to complete rehab of the project, and its my recommendation that you not set an unfortunate precedent. It sends a message if you enter into an agreement with us, we will let you out. Turners motion died on the floor for lack of a second, but during the council members comments at the end of the meeting, Vice-Mayor Chad Martin apologized to Monday and Zoning Administrator Kris Bridges for Turner's going against them in defense of Millner. "Not only are we voted in to protect the citizens, but we are also voted in to protect city employees as well, Martin said. "It is very frustrating to know that somebody uses a position to go after our city employees when they have no just cause for it. And I would like to apologize to Eric Monday and Kris because youre not going to get it from the person who did it. Bill Wyatt is a reporter for the Martinsville Bulletin. He can be reached at 276-638-8801, Ext. 236. Follow him @billdwyatt 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. Meghan Markle's royal biography has stripped her of her HRH title and has been edited to downplay her work after her Megxit departure to Los Angeles. The page's bio, which details senior members of the royal family's background and duties, now refers to Meghan, 38, as 'she' or the 'Duchess', instead of 'Her Royal Highness'. Details of the Duchess of Sussex's education, career and royal engagements have been moved from her 'about' page to a biography section. The previously described details of Meghan's philanthropic activities have also been moved to the 'Charitable Work' part of the royal's page. The second line of the 'About The Duchess of Sussex' section now references her move to America with Prince Harry, 35, stating: 'As announced in January, The Duke and Duchess have stepped back as senior members of The Royal Family'. Meghan Markle's royal biography has stripped her of her HRH title and has been edited to downplay her work after her Megxit departure to Los Angeles The rest of the royal family, including the Duke of Sussex, still have a biography in place. Reference to The Duchess moving to Toronto, Canada, during her filming for Suits has also been removed, including a line saying she felt 'very connected' to the country, which became like a 'second home' to her. Meghan's writing and editing of a lifestyle website called The Tig has been kept in under the career section, but referral to her 'using the platform to discuss social issues' has been taken out. Meghan's bio previously stated: 'From a young age, The Duchess had a keen awareness of social issues and actively participated in charitable work. 'Aged 11 she successfully campaigned for a company to alter their television advert that used sexist language to sell washing-up liquid. 'Her Royal Highness also volunteered at a soup kitchen in Skid Row, Los Angeles from the age of 13-17. She continued to volunteer at the soup kitchen when she would return home to Los Angeles until the age of 22. Before: The page, which details senior members of the royal family's background and duties, no longer contains large parts of Meghan Markle's history - which have since been moved The 'About The Duchess of Sussex' section now references her move to America with Prince Harry, 35, stating the pair have 'stepped back' as senior members of the Royal Family The Duchess of Sussex, 38, has nothing written directly under the biography subheading on her page, while other members of the royal family still do 'These early experiences helped to shape her lifelong commitment to causes such as social injustice and women's empowerment'. The lines describing Meghan's date of birth and referencing her parents have been deleted, and it now introduces Meghan by her marriage to Harry, referencing their son Archie, aged one. Going on to describe their step back from the limelight, it continues: 'They are balancing their time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour their duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and their patronages. 'Frogmore Cottage in the UK remains their family home.' Before: The Duchess' career section, which referred to her as 'Her Royal Highness' and said she used The Tig 'as a platform to discuss social issues' Meghan's career section afterwards, with details of The Tig shortened and mention of her move to Toronto, Canada during Suits removed, while referring to her as 'she' or 'Duchess' The 'About me' section concludes: 'The Duchess will continue to support a number of charitable causes and organisations which reflect the issues with which she has long been associated including the arts, access to education, support for women and animal welfare. 'The Duchess' official titles are The Duchess of Sussex, Countess of Dumbarton and Baroness Kilkeel.' The changes appear to have taken place around May, after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped down as senior members of the royal family on March 31. The Duchess' education and career in legal drama Suits are still referenced on the page, along with her charity work and royal engagements. A spokesperson for Buckingham Palace told MailOnline: 'The website is updated on a regular basis to reflect the work of Members of the Royal Family.' TANZANIA, Tanzania - Six years after Islamic State fighters launched an attack on Iraqs Yazidi minority, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad and human rights lawyer Amal Clooney accused government leaders and the United Nations on Monday of failing to bring the extremists responsible for the genocide to justice. Murad, whose mother and six brothers were killed by Islamic State fighters, told a U.N. commemoration of the Aug. 3, 2014 massacre in Iraqs Sinjar region that the Yazidis feel abandoned by the international community. The status quo is destroying our community and international inaction is enabling the extremist group to accomplish their goal of eradicating the Yazidis from Iraq, warned Murad, who was captured by IS and held as a sex slave for months before escaping. Clooney, the wife of actor George Clooney who represents the Yazidis, said that when she addressed the U.N. Security Council last year she proposed ways to achieve justice for those who died, are missing and still captive including authorizing the International Criminal Court to put IS on trial and creating a court by treaty between the U.N. and Iraq. No progress has been made, she said. None of the pathways to a court have been studied, pursued, or seriously discussed at the United Nations, or by the Security Council, Clooney said. No conference of foreign ministers has been convened. No government proposals, or counter-proposals, have been put forward and analyzed. No state has offered to host international trials. She recalled warning the Security Council last year that if no action was taken, IS fighters held in makeshift prisons in Syria were at risk of escaping and there would be no justice. Clooney said the escapes she feared took place last October when hundreds of IS prisoners walked free from those camps. Yazidis are followers of an ancient faith who are falsely branded devil-worshippers by Sunni extremists, many of whom joined IS. When the Islamic Sate group swept into northern Iraq in 2014, the militants massacred thousands of Yazidi men and enslaved an estimated 7,000 women and girls. Many managed to escape as U.S.-backed Iraqi forces gradually drove the militants from their self-declared caliphate that once spanned a third of both Iraq and Syria in a grueling 3-year campaign. But in a joint statement, Murad and Clooney said there is no concerted attempt to search for or rescue over 2,800 women and children who remain missing and in captivity in Iraq and Syria. They said over 200,000 Yazidis almost half the community in Iraq remain displaced in camps without adequate medical treatment and an increased risk of exposure to the COVID-19 virus. And Murad and Clooney said over 120,000 Yazidis who have returned to Sinjar desperately need health care, electricity, shelter, clean water, sanitation, education and opportunities to make a living. Murad told the commemoration that the Yazidis are caught in a dispute between the Iraqi government in Baghdad and the Kurdish regional government in Erbil over who will control Sinjar which has curtailed services and investment and she urged them to quickly resolve it. While Murad and Clooney said they are grateful that the U.N. has authorized an international investigation of IS atrocities against the Yazidis, Murad stressed that an investigation is not a trial, and we want our day in court. We must not let another year go by and stay in the status quo, the Nobel laureate said. The international community must fulfil its promise to deliver justice for the Yazidi community. ... Survivors cannot wait another six years for the world to act. Clooney cited efforts to achieve justice within six years after past atrocities including the Nazi defeat in World War II and the genocides in Rwanda in 1994 and the Bosnian town of Srebrenica in 1995. More recently, she said, an international team authorized by the U.N. Human Rights Council is preparing cases against perpetrators of the alleged genocide against the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar. In addition, 57 nations are supporting a case brought by Gambia at the International Court of Justice under the Genocide Convention, and the International Criminal Court is investigating crimes in Myanmar, she said. Yazidi survivors deserve no less, Clooney said, stressing that government leaders, U.N. diplomats and all those with influence have a responsibility to respond. Doing nothing is not only wrong, it is dangerous because these fighters are not going away, and their toxic ideology continues to spread, she said. And justice is possible now, just as it has been possible before, if only it is made a priority. Microsoft said on Sunday (US time) it will continue talks to buy short-form video app TikTok after its chief executive spoke with President Donald Trump in a weekend of uncertainty clouding the future of the Chinese-owned app. Microsoft said in a blog post that chief executive Satya Nadella and Trump had spoken and that the company is committed to addressing Trump's concerns about the social media platform. Trump previously indicated that he was not in favour of a deal and said he planned to ban TikTok in the United States. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is pushing forward with plans to acquire TikTok after a conversation with President Trump. Credit:Bloomberg He had also been considering options over the past few days to force Beijing-based parent company ByteDance to divest in TikTok in the US due to national security concerns, according to people familiar with the talks who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss them publicly. Microsoft confirmed that it will "move quickly" on discussions with ByteDance and said it has given the US government notice of a possible acquisition of the US assets of TikTok. Responding with urgency and innovation, often siloed disciplines and communities are mobilizing to focus on a single global challenge during this pandemic. Previously intractable barriers to collaboration have dissolved in the face of a shared, common goal. The response has been a mission-critical combination of the worlds scientific, technological and medical experts, in collaboration with a diversity of civic and business leaders, combatting the coronavirus together. This way of working demands leaders with vision and courage: vision to identify and communicate with clarity what has to be done, and courage to throw off the old ways of working while the world plunges into uncertainty. We see examples of innovative and courageous leadership in the programs we head. Each demonstrates a way of working that unlocks the potential in our society by cutting across and through arbitrary barriers. Truman Scholar Ginny Bowen, a CDC epidemiologist and U.S. Public Health Service officer, has now deployed three times to help bridge science and society so we can better understand the incidence, distribution and containment of COVID-19. U.S. Sen. and Truman Scholar Chris Coons of Delaware is spearheading bipartisan legislation to expand national service programs into COVID-19 response. Working across scientific disciplines, Schmidt Science Fellows Hal Holmes at Conservation X Labs in Seattle and Fahim Farzadfard at MitoLab in Boston are repurposing a DNA tool originally designed to prevent trafficking of endangered wildlife to instead detect SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. Global pandemics, inequality, racism and terrorism, to name just a few none of these thorny challenges can be wrestled into submission through narrow approaches. The future needs all the talent we can muster sitting at the table, working together. As we look to emerge from the pandemic, no challenge can now be considered too big to tackle, nor too small to matter. Today we call on funders to be imaginative and risk-positive. In the face of the pandemic, we have embraced ambitious science, becoming comfortable with letting our scientists aim high, and learning from failure and iteration. Initiatives such as the Gates Foundation, Wellcome and Mastercard COVID-19 treatment accelerator project bring together different funders to combine and leverage their strengths to bring potential COVID-19 treatments to those who need them as quickly as possible. We need funders to collaborate to deploy a critical mass of resources. Working together, they can share intelligence, strategies and plans and pool resources to ensure that every dollar invested works hard for the common interests of society. We need these efforts to be underpinned by a sustained bipartisan engagement and a recognition of the importance of the public investment in science. As former Google CEO Eric Schmidt recently wrote, so many of the innovations that emerged from what we recognize today as Silicon Valley were catalyzed by public grants to universities. Public or private investment in innovation should not be seen as either/or, but as a continuum that reflects the way private enterprise benefits from government funding for fundamental science, and society reaps the rewards of enterprise accelerating new products, treatments or services into reality. The way that federally funded centers, such as the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, work in partnership with universities and industry to develop and disseminate technologies shows how cross-sector collaboration achieves greater impact, faster. We call on all institutions to break down barriers between traditional disciplines and professions. The university of the post-pandemic world needs focus on training collaborative and discipline-crossing leaders; depth of knowledge will always be important, but we must additionally focus on helping students achieve breadth and the ability to translate across knowledge areas. University campuses will look radically different, with the addition of interdisciplinary training and challenge-focused research centers. Reward structures, such as tenure and promotion, must incentivize collaboration rather than solitary achievement in a single discipline. Some are already blazing this trail. Duke University runs its Bass Connections Model, bringing students and faculty together across multiple departments to engage students in project-based learning focused on great societal challenges. The Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT brings scientists, clinicians and industry partners together to tackle cancer and translate innovation to the bedside quickly. Finally, when new knowledge is generated it needs to be shared quickly and openly. We look to the media and academic publishers to reform their models to disseminate important findings rapidly, responsibly, and in support of constructive, rational debate of the policy implications. And we call on scientists, policymakers, civil servants and leaders themselves to consider at all stages of their work: How can your work most positively impact society? Who could you team up with outside of your discipline in order to amplify your impact? What is the world you wish to live in, and how can you help get there? Navigating an uncertain future requires a big tent. We all have work to do. Lets do it together. Terry Babcock-Lumish is the executive xecretary of the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation, the nations official living memorial to Americas 33rd president. Megan Wheeler is the executive director of Schmidt Science Fellows. RTHK: Spain's ex-king heads for exile amid graft probe Spain's former king Juan Carlos, who is facing investigation at home and abroad for corruption, announced on Monday that he plans to go into exile. The 82-year-old revealed he would leave the country in a letter to his son, the current King Felipe VI who accepted his decision, the royal palace said in a statement. "Guided by the conviction to best serve the people of Spain, its institutions, and you as king, I inform you of my decision at this time to go into exile outside Spain," Juan Carlos wrote. "It's a decision I take with deep anguish, but great peace of mind," he said. Probes are under way in Switzerland and Spain where media regularly publish details of the murky management of funds allegedly paid to the former head of state by Saudi Arabia. Spain's Supreme Court announced in June an investigation to determine the legal responsibility of the ex-monarch but because of the immunity he holds only for acts committed after his abdication. The suspicions focus on US$100 million alleged to have been paid secretly into a Swiss bank account in 2008. Juan Carlos ascended the throne in 1975 on the death of the fascist dictator Francisco Franco and ruled for 38 years before abdicating in favour of his son Felipe VI in June 2014. He was a popular figure for decades, playing a key role in the democratic transition from the Franco dictatorship which ruled Spain from 1939-1975. But an inquiry opened in Spain in September 2018 following the publication of records attributed to German businesswoman Corinna Larsen, allegedly a one-time mistress of Juan Carlos. She claimed he had received a commission when a consortium of Spanish companies were awarded a high-speed railway contract to link the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. (AFP) This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Documentary streamer iwonder premieres Jihad Jane, a tale of two Americans descent into terrorism, the pasts that paved their way to radicalisation and the trail left in their wake. Head of Content Alexandra Fox-Hughes says: While no-one can excuse the actions of two women who followed the dark path we see in Jihad Jane, what emerges is a far more complex and nuanced story of how scars from the past can create personal demons from which some people are unable to escape. In March 2010, two American women, including one who named herself Jihad Jane, were taken into custody as part of a number of high-profile arrests in Waterford, Ireland. In 2014 Jihad Jane, real name Colleen LaRose, a blonde, blue-eyed woman from suburban Philadelphia, was convicted of conspiracy to murder a Swedish artist who drew a cartoon of the prophet Muhammad. Handled sensitively throughout, and with unprecedented access to the people involved, for the first time ever the documentary tells the story of LaRoses path to terrorism and her radicalisation via the dark corners of social media and the internet. Dating back to a childhood filled with abuse, the film shows how those early years paved the way for the damaged and doomed relationships that followed and her eventual decision to leave the US to join the Algerian leader of a Jihadist group. Set against the backdrop of post 9-11 America, what emerges is a thought-provoking and haunting portrait of a world caught up in the turmoil of terrorism and how two vulnerable, white, suburban women were taken down a path of radical extremism through online forums and internet propaganda. Thursday August 6 on iwonder. Akash Jain The crisis caused by COVID-19 has been very harsh and unimaginable as it is a once in a life time event. Threat to life and threat to livelihood have rattled people. Naturally, the containment measures like the lockdown of the entire country to break the chain of virus will have significant effects on the global economy. While this current situation is unique in many ways, fear and greed are still the common denominators of every crisis. India is no exception as the economy has to come to a grinding halt amidst the ongoing lockdown. The lockdown to curb virus spread has forced permanent damage in exports markets for all the major economies except to some extent Indian Pharma. MSMEs would be the worst affected as there would no cashflow as income would be missing. India was already in a bad shape with India's GDP taking massive hit in last 2-3 years due to miniscule credit growth and slowdown in consumption. Investment-led spending also took a hit. Various crisis and scams like IL&FS, Yes Bank, DHFL, PMC Bank tore apart the Indian Financial System and questions were raised on the regulatory front and on basic survival of Non Banking Financial Companies. Bank credit growth was shattered to an over five-decade low of 6.14 percent in the fiscal ended March 31, 2020 amid a faltering economy, lower demand and risk aversion among banks, RBI data showed. Domestically, disappointing GDP data would always remain an overhang on Indian equities which is expected to clock negative growth during COVID-19 crisis. According to RBI, economic activity Q2FY21 may remain subdued due to social distancing measures and the temporary shortage of labour. Recovery in economic activity is expected to begin in Q3FY21 and gain momentum in Q4 as supply lines are gradually restored to normalcy and demand gradually revives. Domestic economic activity has been impacted severely by the lockdown which has extended over the past three months. Recently, S&P Global Ratings had said Indian economy is in deep trouble with growth expected to contract by 5 percent this fiscal. Negative newsflow related to economy will always give opportunities to investors to cheery pick quality companies at distressed valuations. We expect improved earnings performance in FY22 and FY23. Ideally, one should look at companies which has seen massive destruction in their share price, companies that can survive due to the side effects of country lockdown, have strong portfolio of brands, strong management integrity, monopoly kind of presence, competitive advantage, have weathered the storm in different market cycles, low debt and debt free, able to generate positive cashflow consistently. The news related to faster discovery and launch of vaccine for COVID-19 may fuel the market. We believe cooling of Indian equities will be healthy for investors as whopping rally in last four months was led by liquidity through FPIs. July 2020 rally can be attributed to positive developments related to COVID-19 vaccine, relaxations in Unlock 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 and better-than-expected Q1FY21 result of majority companies announced so far. In June 2020, FPIs poured $2.73 billion in Indian equities, which is the highest this year and importantly surpassed pre-COVID-19 levels. The FPI inflows came amidst rush of liquidity in the markets globally after central banks around the world announced stimulus measures to help their economies. The stimulus measures given by the G4 central banks such as the US Federal Reserve, Bank of England, European Central Bank, and Bank of Japan, have helped fill the global markets with liquidity, marquee Indian companies tapping the secondary stock market by raising funds also contributed towards the increase in FPI flows. After hitting a record high in January 2020, Indian equity benchmarks crashed 40 percent to hit around four-year low level on March 24, 2020. The Benchmark indices in June 2020 quarter witnessed a sharp and fast rally of 20 percent in both Sensex and Nifty which is very sharp led by liquidity (by global central banks) and gradual re-opening of economies despite virus risk. Hence, utmost caution is warranted at current levels. Exponential rise in COVID-19 cases and escalating India China tensions would always remain an overhang on Indian equities. Equities rallying along with Gold make us uncomfortable as it is clear case of global liquidity as big economies have resorted to printing money as part of stimulus package. Progress of ongoing monsoon, global cues and management commentary in Q1FY21 earnings season will drive market direction. The author is Vice President Research at Ajcon Global. : The views and investment tips expressed by investment expert on Moneycontrol.com are his own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. By Greg Roumeliotis, Echo Wang and Matt Spetalnick NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump only agreed to allow Microsoft Corp to negotiate the acquisition of popular short-video app TikTok if it could secure a deal in 45 days, three people familiar with the matter said on Sunday. The move represents an about-face for Trump and prompted the U.S. tech giant to declare its interest in the blockbuster social media deal that could further inflame U.S.-China relations. Trump said on Friday he was planning to ban TikTok amid concerns that its Chinese ownership represents a national security risk because of the personal data it handles. The proposed acquisition of TikTok, which boasts 100 millions U.S. users, would offer Microsoft a rare opportunity to become a major competitor to social media giants such as Facebook Inc and Snap Inc. Microsoft also owns professional social media network LinkedIn. Trump had dismissed the idea of a sale to Microsoft on Friday. But following a discussion between Trump and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, the Redwood, Washington-based company said in a statement on Sunday that it would continue negotiations to acquire TikTok from ByteDance, and that it aimed to reach a deal by Sept. 15. This is a deadline that was put to ByteDance and Microsoft by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which scrutinizes deals for potential national security risks, according to the sources. Trump changed his mind following pressure from some of his advisers and many in his Republican party, one of the sources said. Banning TikTok would alienate many of its young users ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November, and would likely trigger a wave of legal challenges. Several prominent Republican lawmakers put out statements in the last two days urging Trump to back a sale of TikTok to Microsoft. "A win-win in the making," Republican Senator Lindsey Graham tweeted in response to Trump's new stance on Sunday. Story continues The negotiations between ByteDance and Microsoft will be overseen by CFIUS, a U.S. government panel that has the right to block any agreement, according to the sources, who requested anonymity ahead of a White House announcement. Microsoft cautioned in its statement that there is no certainty a deal will be reached. "Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President's concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury," Microsoft said in a statement. ByteDance and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Microsoft talks. In a statement issued late on Sunday that did not mention TikTok, ByteDance said it faced "complex and unimaginable difficulties" in going global. As relations between the United States and China deteriorate over trade, Hong Kong's autonomy, cyber security and the spread of the novel coronavirus, TikTok has emerged as a flashpoint in the dispute between the world's two largest economies. State-backed newspaper China Daily on Monday called ByteDance the victim of a "witch hunt" from the United States, and said Washington had not provided evidence to support its allegation that TikTok posed a threat to U.S. national security. Under the proposed deal, Microsoft said it would take over TikTok's operations in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It said it would ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. Microsoft may invite other American investors to acquire minority stakes in TikTok, the company added. About 70% of the outside capital ByteDance has raised has come from the United States. It is not clear how much Microsoft could pay for TikTok. Reuters reported last week that ByteDance's valuation expectations for the app exceeded $50 billion, although U.S. pressure to divest it could lower that price tag. A key issue in the negotiations will be separating TikTok's technology from ByteDance's infrastructure and access, to alleviate U.S. concerns about the integrity of personal data. ByteDance owns a Chinese short video app called Douyin that was based on the same code used for TikTok. One idea under consideration is to give Microsoft and ByteDance a transition period to develop technology for TikTok that will be completely separate from ByteDance, one of the sources said. Microsoft said it did not intend to provide further updates until there was a definitive outcome in the negotiations. APP SCRUTINY The United States has been increasingly scrutinizing app developers over the personal data they handle, especially if some of it involves U.S. military or intelligence personnel. Ordering the divestment of TikTok would not be the first time the White House has taken action over such concerns. Earlier this year, Chinese gaming company Beijing Kunlun Tech Co Ltd sold Grindr LLC, a popular gay dating app it bought in 2016, for $620 million after being ordered by CFIUS to divest. In 2018, CFIUS forced China's Ant Financial to scrap plans to buy MoneyGram International Inc over concerns about the safety of data that could identify U.S. citizens. ByteDance was valued at as much as $140 billion earlier this year when one of its shareholders, Cheetah Mobile, sold a small stake in a private deal, Reuters has reported. The start-up's investors include Japan's SoftBank Group Corp. (Reporting by Greg Roumeliotis and Echo Wang in New York and Matt Spetalnick in Washington, D.C.; Additional reporting by David Shepardson, Peter Schroeder and Alexandra Alper in Washington, D.C., Brenda Goh and Engen Tham in Shanghai; Editing by Jacqueline Wong, Dan Grebler and Edwina Gibbs) It is well known that China can order Chinese communications companies to hand over their customers' data. This is why Australia is contemplating banning the Chinese-owned video-sharing platform TikTok, which is popular with teenagers around the globe except in China, where it's not available. What is often overlooked is that the Australian government can do the same thing to companies operating here, including ones owned overseas. Now the Morrison government wants to go much further. It has a bill before Parliament to give it the right to force companies in other countries to hand over data. If passed, which is almost certain, this will be the first significant example of Australia applying its criminal laws extra-territorially. ASIO will have the right to demand communications providers to supply electronic data from other countries. Credit:Fairfax After reciprocal agreements with the US, Britain and other "like-minded" countries are reached, the bill gives ASIO and Australian law-enforcement bodies the right to make communications providers in these countries produce any electronic data they request and remove encryption. Although the full list is not yet available, few Australians realise that the FBI and a wide range of American law-enforcement and security bodies will have reciprocal rights to access private data held by Australian people and corporations. Senior advocate Prashant Bhushan, who is facing criminal contempt proceedings in the Supreme Court, in his affidavit, submitted to the apex court, said the criticism of the Chief Justice of India does not scandalise the apex court or lower its authority. Bhushan made the submission in an affidavit before the Supreme Court on Sunday, in which he also said that to suggest that the CJI is the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court is the CJI is to undermine the institution of the Supreme Court of India. A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra had earlier issued a contempt notice to Bhushan in a suo moto case following a petition requesting the same over two of his tweets. "To bona fide critique the actions of a CJI, or a succession of CJIs, cannot and does not scandalise the court, nor does it lower the authority of the court. To assume or suggest that 'the CJI is the SC, and the SC is the CJI' is to undermine the institution of the Supreme Court of India," the affidavit said. Bhushan submitted that his tweet about Chief Justice of India riding a motorbike was to underline his anguish at the non-physical functioning of the Supreme Court for last more than three months, with hardly any cases being heard. The affidavit further said that Bhushan's tweet about last four Chief Justice of India was his "bonafide impression" about them and it is his considered opinion that "Supreme Court allowed the destruction of democracy" and such expression of opinion, however, "outspoken, disagreeable or unpalatable" can't constitute contempt. "What I have tweeted is thus my bonafide impression about the manner and functioning of the Supreme court in the past years and especially about the role of the last four Chief Justices have played vis a vis their role in being a check and balance on the powers of the executive, their role in ensuring that the supreme court functions in a transparent and accountable manner and was constrained to say that they, contributed to undermining democracy," the affidavit said. "Freedom of expression and the concomitant right to criticise includes a fair and robust criticism of the judiciary. This cannot amount to contempt of court or lowering the dignity of the court in any manner," it added. On his tweet about Chief Justice SA Bobde riding a motorbike last month, Bushan said that fact about the CJI being seen in the presence of many people without a mask was meant to highlight the incongruity of the situation where the CJI keeps the court virtually in lockdown due to COVID fears is on the other hand seen in public without a mask. "The fact that he was on a motorcycle costing 50 lakhs owned by a BJP leader had been established by documentary evidence published on social media. The fact that it was in Raj Bhavan had also been reported in various sections of the media. My expressing anguish by highlighting this incongruity and the attendant facts cannot be said to constitute contempt of court. If it were to be so regarded, it would stifle free speech and would constitute an unreasonable restriction on Article l9(1Xa) of the Constitution", the affidavit said. Notably, Bhushan had in a tweet on June 27 accused the Supreme Court of playing a part in the "destruction of India's democracy" in the last six years. President Trump is still fighting against having to face a defamation lawsuit by the writer E. Jean Carroll, who claimed in a book that the president raped her long before he was in office. Lawyers for Carroll argued earlier this month that Trump can no longer claim to be immune from her defamation lawsuit simply because he is a sitting president, given a recent landmark decision by the Supreme Court. The court found in early July that a president is not immune from criminal investigations and subpoenas, stemming from an investigation into Trumps financial dealings by Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance, which had demanded his tax records. More from WWD Now, lawyers for Trump claim the ruling does not apply to Carrolls case, because its a civil lawsuit at the state level, not a criminal one, according to a letter sent late last week to the judge overseeing the case. Carroll, a longtime magazine writer and advice columnist for Elle based in New York, filed her lawsuit against Trump late last year in New York state court alleging that he defamed her by publicly calling her accusation that he raped her in the mid-Nineties fiction. He also implied that she is paid as a Democratic operative, as is New York Magazine, where her allegation first appeared as part of a review of her book. Admitting Trump is now not immune from criminal proceedings at the state level, given the decision in the Vance case, Trumps lawyer insisted that there is no relevant ruling on civil actions, leaving him with immunity. State courts, under the Supremacy Clause, are not empowered to exercise any jurisdiction or control over the presidents official conduct, attorney Marc Kasowitz wrote. Moreover, the Supreme Court has made clear that its holdings concerning the amenability of the president to criminal process do not, as plaintiff would have it, extend in a mechanistic fashion to civil litigation. Carrolls attorneys argued broadly that nothing in the [Vance] decision limits its analysis to criminal proceedings, according to a letter to the judge. Story continues It follows directly from Vance that Trumps assertions of immunity in this case, as well as his purported arguments for a stay, are completely baseless, they added. But Kasowitz isnt giving it up, insisting that civil and criminal cases between state and federal courts offer different concepts of immunity. He went on to argue that the Supreme Courts decision in a separate case over the same issue of Trump refusing to hand over any of his tax or financial records, this time to the U.S. Congress, telling the lower court to do a further review of the scope of documents being requested, also works in favor of Trumps immunity. By telling the court to do another review, Trump being forced to hand over any records to Congress is almost certainly delayed until after the upcoming November election. There is no pressing need for a state court to exercise control over a sitting president in a civil action, particularly because the action can be resumed when the president is no longer in office, Kasowitz wrote. Although Trump is trailing behind former Vice President Joe Biden in national voter polls on the election, he could win the November election. If the New York court sides with Trumps argument now, it could mean he would not have to face Carrolls claims until the beginning of 2025. For More, See: A Lot of Companies Spent More on Facebook Advertising Amid Boycott What People Are Shopping for Now, Months Into a Pandemic Interim Hearst Magazines President Named, Search for Successor Begins Google will replace third-party cookies with trust tokens in the near future. The new mechanism is said to help combat bot-based ad frauds. Third-party cookies have turned out to be a big privacy nightmare for internet users. Even as Apple (Safari) and others have made efforts to address this problem, Google is taking this to a new level eliminate third-party cookies by 2022. The ambitious plan includes replacing third-party cookies with what Google describes as trust tokens. The company says the new API can help combat ad fraud by being able to differentiate between bots and real users. The company has already begun testing these trust tokens with developers. More will come on board with live testing very soon. Were also exploring a range of other approaches to improve user privacy while ensuring publishers can earn what they need to fund great content and advertisers can reach the right people for their products. For example, we support the use of advertiser and publisher first-party data (based on direct interactions with customers they have relationships with) to deliver more relevant and helpful experiencesas long as users have transparency and control over the use of that data, said Google in a blog post. ALSO READ: Indias IT must better its immunity in the Covid-19 era, an overview Google also criticised the use of hidden techniques to access users data or track them covertly. It said that practices such as fingerprinting should be blocked. The company further pointed out its new approach to digital advertising is based on a cross-platform focus which aims to bring consistency across the web, mobile app, connected TV, and digital audio. The new trust tokens come as part of Googles efforts to bring more transparency to ads on the web. ALSO READ: Google is missing out on the Covid e-commerce revolution The company pointed out that it already offers a Why this ad icon on digital advertisements that help users understand why they are seeing the ad on the page. Google says the Why this ad receives more than 15 million user interactions every day. Going forward, Google is going to make some changes to the feature in a bid to make the experience better. This includes the roll-out of a new feature called About this ad that will show users information about the advertiser, such as verified name. The information will be available for display ads bought via Google Ads and Display & Video 360. The company plans to extend this to all ad surfaces by 2021. - The US Navys first Black female tactical aircraft pilot, Lieutenant Madeline Swegle, has received her aviator 'Wings of Gold' - The young trailblazer attained the landmark milestone on July 7 after she completed tactical air strike training at NAS Kingsville - Lt. j.g. Swegle was officially decorated with her gold wings on July 31 Our manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in Install our latest app for Android and read the best news about Ghana! Lt. j.g. Madeline Swegle, the US Navys first Black female tactical aircraft pilot, was decorated with her 'Wings of Gold' on Friday, July 31. As earlier reported by YEN.cm.gh, Lt. j.g. Madeline Swegle made history in July when she graduated as the first-ever Black female tactical pilot in the US Navy's history. She completed tactical air strike training at Naval Air Station (NAS) Kingsville on July 7. For her remarkable historic milestone, Swegle was named a naval aviator and awarded her well-earned aviator wings at a small ceremony. Lieutenant j.g. Madeline Swegle Photo credit: UGC Source: UGC READ ALSO: I'm proud of him - Maame Dokono celebrates 'son' Shatta Wale in video after Already release The brief ceremony was held at Naval Air Station Kingsville in Texas in the United States. The young Black woman, who has become an example for young women who want to clinch a similar feat, expressed her excitement for the award. She said she had hoped to see ''someone who looked like her in this role'' because ''she never intended to be the first.'' READ ALSO: Shatta Michy finally speaks on Shatta Wale-Beyonce collaboration (video) Swegle's historic milestone follows in the footsteps of other groundbreaking women and minorities in the US Navy, like Rosemary Mariner and Brenda Robinson. YEN.com.gh recently reported that Ghanaian creative, David Boanuh, is an entrepreneur and founder of Beautiful Stories, a filmmaking start-up that produces social media and television ads. David, who is 19 years old, has years of experience as a creative and his recent work as the director of photography for the scenes in Ghana for Beyonce's Black is King film speak volumes of his talent. His company has also produced social media and television ads for multiple Unilever brands; Baileys, Vaseline, Blue Band, and Geisha. David received praise from his alma mater, Ashesi University, for his work on Black is King in a post that read: David Boanuh '19 served as Director of Photography for scenes shot in Ghana, helping bring unique representations of Africa to the film described as a "a celebratory memoir for the world on the Black experience." READ ALSO: Meet the 7 students who graduated with first class law degrees from Legon in 2020 (photos) Faces of Ghana: 2 brothers paving roads in Ghana with granite and cobblestones: 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 page. Source: YEN.com.gh For small farmers like Kaleb J. Hill, uncertainty has always been just a part of life. Droughts or floods can kill off whole crops, shifting culinary trends can make staples suddenly unsellable. Even seemingly minor changes in temperature can upend their best laid plans. And for urban farmers like Hill who depend on the farm-to-table restaurant movement and consumers willing and able to spend a little more for fresh, local produce, learning to live with uncertainty is a vital survival skill. But nothing could prepare Hill, or anyone else for that matter, for the chaos of the COVID-19 pandemic. Local farmers were scared, says Hill, a fourth-generation agriculturist who owns an urban farm in the Hollygrove neighborhood. Overnight, the trendy restaurants that used locally sourced ingredients were gone. Consumers whod been loyal customers were suddenly out of work, farmer markets were closed, everyone was gripped with panic. People were talking about letting their crops die in the field. Thats their livelihood, Hill says. The sure bet was that operations like Hills wouldnt last the spring, much less deeper into the hot, Louisiana summer after all, even restaurants reliant on cheap meat and produce shipped in from giant industrial agribusinesses were already announcing bankruptcies. But the same Hollygrove streets that raised up Lil Wayne have, against all odds, turned out to be rich soil for Hills hopes to grow in. Instead of closing up shop, he says, hes not only surviving, hes seen new customers as well. It seems like more people want to know where their food comes from, Hill says. Theyre willing to spend a little more money to know whos handling their food, and to know its safe. Hill is part of a growing number of small farmers who have found a market directly with consumers themselves. Those consumers are buying locally in record numbers and showing its not only quality and ethically-minded restaurateurs who are willing to pay more for produce and meat. Fresh food for all Food always has been a central part of Hills life. His great-grandparents were sharecroppers in the Florida panhandle, raising peanuts and traditional Southern vegetables like okra and bell peppers. His grandparents moved across the Deep South, and one set of grandparents settled in St. James Parish. Hill says they, too, were farmers. They passed on what they knew to their kids, and ultimately to him. I used to help them out on their farm, he remembers. Ive got uncles that raised beef cattle, chickens and crops. I grew up going from farm to farm learning different parts of the craft. Hill studied biology at Xavier University, but his passion remained growing and sharing healthy food. He founded Oko Vue Produce Co. on a plot of land in Hollygrove before he graduated. As if it wasnt already obvious, COVID-19 has made the connection between public health and nutrition urgently clear. Coronavirus death rates have been linked to diseases related to poor nutrition. Rates of chronic illnesses like diabetes and heart disease are well above the national average in New Orleans and Louisiana particularly among its poorer residents and minority residents in the city have accounted for more than three in four coronavirus deaths. New Orleans is full of food deserts, Hill says, noting that many low-income residents cant get to grocery stores. So I wanted to bring fresh food to them. He created an online ordering system at makingroceriesmarket.com and he works with approximately a dozen other local Black farmers to provide an array of produce each day. The key, he explains, is that hell deliver orders to customers doors anywhere in the city. I dont want fresh, healthy food to be something only for rich people, he says. We all need it. So Ill bring the food directly to you, and because its grown locally and can stay on the vine until its ready to be eaten its a lot fresher and more nutritious than that California tomato youll get at the grocery store. A new model It turns out Hills model was uniquely suited to stand up to the financial hardships caused by the coronavirus pandemic. He sold produce to restaurants (and he says those accounts have fizzled) but the majority of his sales were already directly to consumers. Additionally, in a time when Americans were hesitant to enter crowded grocery stores, and were eager to know who was handling their food, having produce delivered by a local farmer has been appealing. Weve got a lot of new customers now, he says, because people care about where their food is coming from in a way they didnt before COVID. The transition, however, has not been so seamless for other local farmers and distributors. JV Foods in Kenner purchases products in bulk from 60 mostly-local and regional producers everything from honey made in Flora, Mississippi, to wagyu beef from Monroe, Louisiana. Co-owner Tim Bordes says they were distributing that food to approximately 400 restaurants in the South. The day after COVID-19 closed restaurants, Bordes says he received a $100,000 shipment of beef he had previously ordered. He said he was worried for his company that he wouldnt be able to sell the $250,000 worth of food he then had in his warehouse and he also worried for the dozens of local farmers he worked with. Where would they sell the meat and produce theyd been raising for the last several months? We had an entire cow in our freezer, and no restaurant that could take it, Bordes says. If I couldn't sell this one, how could I buy more? As a last resort, he texted a few friends to see if they were interested in buying a few cuts of beef. Bordes says he was completely shocked by what happened next. Not only did my friends buy some of the meat we were stuck with, but then they texted their friends to see if they wanted to do the same, he says. Not only did they buy the meat, but they also spread the word and it just kind of continued like that until I was out of meat. Bordes says his new customers asked if they could get more, which he was happy to do, and they also wanted products from other local producers. I think it was just way higher quality food than they were used to getting outside a high-end restaurant, he says. Even when restaurants open back up, Im going to keep part of my business focused on retail to individual consumers. Its a great way for me and the local producers I work with to diversify our businesses. Industrial farming falters Kate Estrade is the co-owner of Local Cooling Farms, a 16-acre property on the Northshore where she and her husband, Grant, raise livestock including pigs, cattle, chickens and goats. In addition to producing their own food, the Estrades sell their product as well as the products of other local farmers directly from their Metairie shop, Laughing Buddha Nursery. On a recent Tuesday, Estrade had nearly 100 items available from more than a dozen local producers: eggs and a wide variety of pork products from their own farm; steak and lamb from Opelousas, shrimp and fish from Montegut; beets, eggplant and okra from Mississippi; as well as locally produced jelly, cream cheese, pasta, mushrooms and more. Like Hill and Bordes, theyve seen retail business skyrocket since March. Its been bonkers, Estrade says. Our email list where we communicate what were selling for the day has increased by 600 people since COVID began, and our sales in May were up 175% from the previous year. But why has a global pandemic motivated so many New Orleanians to begin shopping locally? Its part of a national trend, she says. The USDA reported in 2018 that more than half the money Americans spent on food was on meals prepared and eaten away from home largely at restaurants. Once COVID closed restaurants, consumers had to find their food elsewhere, Estrade says. I think they went to grocery stores first, she says, but I had new customers who were showing up in a panic in March saying the grocery store aisles were empty. So they started buying milk, meat and everything else from us, and if I ran out, Id usually be able to get more from other local farmers Estrade says this supply issue in grocery stores across the city and country happened for several reasons. She points to the many cases of large-scale food providers being forced to close amid coronavirus outbreaks in their facilities. Thats not a surprise, right? You have these plants with 6,000 to 8,000 employees on an assembly line working in close quarters. Besides being a human rights issue, that doesnt seem like a good idea during a pandemic, she says. She points to Kasad Brothers a regional slaughterhouse in Mississippi she uses and their 20 employees as a more responsible option. Even when operations have been able to continue, larger producers were unable to pivot in a changing market. In the case of milk, for example, Estrade says larger dairy producers package their product in two-and-a-half-gallon containers for use by restaurants and schools. But when schools and restaurants closed, they were unable to change their packaging to meet demand at grocery stores. Individual consumers dont want two-and-a-half gallon containers of milk, she says. Most important, Estrade believes, is that consumers want to buy food from someone they can trust. Our customers dont know whoever owns that factory farm in California or Mexico, and they don't know how many people have handled their food, she says. But they know me and they can look me in the eyes and can ask me about my values. They trust that Im selling healthy and high-quality food, because they know thats what I eat and thats what I care about. The real cost of food If theres one consistent complaint about local food that frustrates producers, its that its bougie and costs too much. Maybe we should replace the word cost with value, says Graison Gill, the owner of Bellegarde Bakery, which was forced to temporarily close due to the loss of revenue during coronavirus. Maybe we should be talking about what were getting in return for that higher price, and what the cost is if we continue to eat from the industrial food system. For many in the food industry, the greatest value local food adds is to the health of those who eat their products. George Barisich is a shrimper and oyster farmer in St. Bernard Parish who struggles to compete against imported shrimp, which now makes up more than 92% of the U.S. market. You go into a grocery store in Louisiana and youre still going to see lots of shrimp from China, Thailand and India, he says. But, gosh, you dont want to know how they raise those shrimp tons cramped in one pond, and theyre dumping hormones and antibiotics on them just to keep them alive. Yeah, its cheaper, but do you really want to put all that in your body? Margee Green is the Executive Director of SPROUT NOLA, where she trains and supports local farmers so they can earn a living wage selling fresh and healthy food to New Orleanians. In addition to the health benefits of eating local food, she says local farming is also beneficial to the environment. All farmers should be businesspeople and environmentalists, she says, but when factory farms are spraying fertilizer and pesticides recklessly over their crops, thats not being a good environmentalist. She says local farmers are more likely to be conservative with their chemical use and are more likely to use cover crops to capture carbon and protect against chemical run-off into waterways. Growing food near where it's eaten can also cut down on the carbon emissions it takes to drive produce across the country. As Louisianians, we see the damage these actions have on our planet, our health and on our economy, Green says. Local farmers care about Louisiana and dont want to add to things like the Gulf of Mexicos dead zone or sea-level rise. We want to help stop them. Grow Dat Green believes its urgent that we produce and eat more local food, but acknowledges that accessing and affording this food can be challenging for many lower-income New Orleanians. Still, she doesnt believe farmers can or should be expected to charge less money for their products. Local farmers want everyone to have access to fresh and healthy food, she says, but they shouldnt need to accept less than a living wage to make that happen, and they shouldnt have to resort to paying their team less than a living wage, either. Gill of Bellegarde Bakery says locally produced food should be subsidized to make it affordable, and argues that when industrial farms are allowed to hire low-wage migrant labor and have them work in substandard conditions, that is a form of subsidy (Its called corporate welfare he says) that local producers shouldnt be expected to compete against. But Gill says its also up to consumers to stop supporting these systems. Maybe youll save a dollar buying that California tomato at Sysco instead of from a local farmer, he says, but what is the cost of that dollar? The health impact, the environmental impact, the human rights impact, the way we treat animals if we dont pay the money for quality food now, were going to pay for it in other ways later. Theres no getting around it. Grow Dat Youth Farm executive director Devon Turner believes her organization and other local nonprofits can help solve the problem of access. She says as many as 35% of New Orleanians find themselves without access to fresh food up from 25% before the pandemic. Grow Dat attempts to bring healthy, locally grown food to these residents by using fundraising dollars and volunteer labor. Turner says there are two ways in which they try to address this inaccessibility to healthy food. First, they donate nearly a third of the produce they grow on their seven-acre farm in City Park to vulnerable New Orleanians. Second, they have a youth leadership program thats trained more than 320 young New Orleanians about farming, leadership and the workings of the local food system. Thats the work that makes us unique, Turner says. Were preparing new leaders to take on food-related challenges in their home communities, and our hope is that will result in a lot more healthy food for a lot more people. The consumer decides Eating locally means more than just going into a local bakery and buying a baguette, Gill says. Its almost meaningless when those ingredients are from somewhere else, because the only thing local youre paying for is payroll. If we purchase food made with local ingredients all of that money is going back to the local economy. We all need to be smarter consumers. For those looking to purchase local food, producers like Hills Makin Groceries Market, Estrades Local Cooling Farms, Bordes JV Foods and Turners Grow Dat Youth Farm all offer online order forms. Similarly, consumers can contact local farmers and talk to them about purchasing food directly. Estrade says its hard to plan for the future without knowing how consumers will respond when COVID is under control and larger food systems return to normal. Weve gained 600 new customers, but does that mean we should raise more pigs? she asks. Itll take months before theyre ready for slaughter and who knows how many of these customers stick with us after the pandemic is gone. We hope its a lot, but we dont know yet. Hill is hopeful. He says he fell in love with farming because hes passionate about connecting with his neighbors and introducing them to fresh and healthy food they may have never known was accessible to them. Thats something far away industrial food systems cant do very well, he says. But I live in the same city as you. You can come to my farm, or I can bring produce to your door. This is a chance to remind people where their food comes from, and thats very exciting. Best of New Orleans 2020: Vote Now Since 1986, Gambit readers have voted for the things they think make the New Orleans area sp The Ohio Harness Horsemens Association will provide live coverage of racing from the Wood County Fairgrounds in Bowling Green, Ohio on Monday (Aug. 3). Post time for the nine-race card is 4 p.m. (EDT). The races will be streamed live on the Ohio Harness Horsemens Associations Facebook page and YouTube channel. Replays of the races will be available on the Trot and Pace Marketing website, trotandpacemarketing.com, following the completion of racing. The race program for Wood County are available on the OHHA website. The Ohio Horsemens Association will continue its live fair racing coverage on Tuesday (Aug. 4) from the Columbiana County Fairgrounds in Lisbon, Ohio. Wednesday, the OHHA travels to Wapakoneta, Ohio for coverage from the Auglaize County Fairgrounds. Thursdays coverage will be from Xenia, Ohio, and the Greene County Fairgrounds. The Ohio Harness Horsemens Association will be live streaming Ohio fair races throughout the summer. For a complete schedule go to OHHA.com. (OHHA) Hamilton wins British Grand Prix on three wheels FORMULA ONE: Lewis Hamilton took a record-breaking seventh home-race victory at the British Grand Prix yesterday (Aug 2) on just three wheels after a last-lap tyre failure robbed him of a cruise to the chequered flag. Formula-One By Michael Lamonato Monday 3 August 2020, 09:30AM Lewis Hamilton nursed home his Mercedes with a punctured left-front tire on the final lap of his victory in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone yesterday (Aug 2). Photo: AFP. Hamiltons front-left tyre let go with half a lap remaining and a 40-second advantage over second-placed Max Verstappen, who had just put on a set of the fastest rubber. The gap closed at a ferocious rate, but Hamilton coaxed his stricken car to the line with five seconds of his margin remaining to record perhaps the most tense home win of his career. Up until that last lap everything was relatively smooth sailing, he said. The last few laps I started to back off, then down the straight it de-plated. I was just praying to try to get it around to not be too slow. I nearly didnt get it around the last two corners, but I did. That was definitely a heart-in-the mouth kind of feeling. Just driving it, trying to keep the speed up. For Verstappen the outcome was bittersweet. He had been running a lonely third behind Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas when on lap 52 the second-placed Mercedes suffered what turned out to be a foreboding front-left tyre blowout. The Dutchman zoomed past the stricken Bottas to inherit second, but with the Finn no threat behind and Hamilton too far ahead to attack, he dived into the pits for a set of soft tyres to score a bonus point for fastest lap. The team wasnt to know Hamilton would suddenly become vulnerable had Verstappen only been close enough to take advantage. Its lucky and unlucky, he said. Im very happy with second, its a good result for us again. [Mercedes] were of course in the race too quick. Then of course Valtteri got a puncture. They boxed me to go for the fastest lap, then of course Lewis got a puncture himself Bottas couldnt hold onto the final podium place, his tyre failure coming early on lap 50 and consequently forcing him to limp back to the pits, losing bucketloads of time. He emerged from his emergency pit sop in 12th, which became a desperate 11th after McLarens Carlos Sainz also succumbed to a tyre blowout on the final lap falling from fifth to 13th. Instead it was Charles Leclerc who inherited a rostrum finish for Ferrari. The Monegasque was off the pace of the top two teams all race but managed to keep himself out of the fray of the midfield to capitalise on the chaos that unfolded ahead. On that weve been lucky, he said. But apart form that, looking at us, I think weve done the best we could have done today. The potential, the performance, of the car is not where we want it to be, but today we took every opportunity. The spate of explosive rubber came about thanks to an ambitious strategy brought about by a lap-12 safety cartriggered by a violent crash at the ferocious Maggots and Becketts complex by AlphaTauris Daniil Kvyat, who emerged from the wreckage shaken but unscathed. With 40 laps remaining in the race, the caution period was right on the cusp of the maximum tyre life of the hard tyre, but the prospect of a one-stop strategy was tempting enough for almost the entire field to adopt it. Renault wasnt so afflicted by tyre trouble, allowing Daniel Ricciardo to chase home Leclerc, the Australian falling short of a podium by just 1.1 seconds. It equalled Ricciardos best Renault result, having earnt it with a late-race pass on Lando Norris, who finished fifth ahead of Esteban Ocon, completing Renaults first double points finish of the year. Pierre Gasly finished seventh for AlphaTauri, holding off Red Bull Racings Alex Albon on a difficult weekend for the Thai driver. Albon had missed a lot of practice time after a crash on Friday and an electrical problem on Saturday on his way to 13th on the grid, from where he became embroiled in a crash with Kevin Magnussen on the first lap of the race, punting the Dane into the gravel and out of the race with an ambitious move down the inside at the final turn. For the error he copped a five-second penalty and was forced to make an early stop to change tyres. He toiled his way through the midfield until lap 30, when he made a second stop for the medium tyre, which allowed him to scythe past six cars on his way to eighth place. Lance Stroll sunk to ninth after starting sixth for Racing Point, the Canadian fading the longer the race went on. Sebastian Vettel finished a dispirited 10th on a difficult weekend for the German. Technical problems robbed him of most of his practice time, which led to him qualifying well off the pace in 10th. He slipped to as low as 12th last in the race before the string of tyre failures bumped him back up into the points. INVISTAs technology and licensing group, INVISTA Performance Technologies (IPT), and Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Co., Ltd (Hengli) are pleased to announce the successful start-up of Henglis 5th PTA line. Henglis 5th PTA line with 2.5 million tonnes per annum capacity, utilising INVISTAs industry leading P8 PTA technology, successfully started up on June 29, 2020. Hengli also operates another 4 PTA lines on the same site on Changxing Island (Dalian), all of which utilise advantaged PTA technology licensed from INVISTA, with a total capacity of 11.6 million tonnes per annum. This makes Hengli the largest PTA producing site in the world. With integrated facilities and advantaged variable cost performance, Henglis PTA product is very competitive in the marketplace. Adam Sackett, IPT vice president PTA, commented, I congratulate Hengli on achieving another important milestone this year. The successful start-up of Henglis 5th PTA line yet again highlights the quick ramp-up capability of PTA plants utilising our technology. Fast project execution, trouble-free and stable operation at low variable cost, enables our licensees to achieve a good return on their PTA investment. INVISTAs industry-leading PTA technology, including its latest version of P8 technology, is available as a license package from IPT. For more information, please visit the IPT website at www.ipt.invista.com. About INVISTA: From the fibers in your carpet to the plastic in your automobiles, INVISTAs commitment to continuous improvement has led its employees to develop some of the most durable, versatile polymers and fibers in the world. A subsidiary of Koch Industries since 2004, INVISTA brings to market the proprietary ingredients for nylon 6,6 and recognized brands including STAINMASTER, CORDURA and ANTRON. INVISTA also offers specialty chemical intermediates and process technologies. See the bigger picture at INVISTA.com. About Hengli Group: Hengli Group is an international company that owns a diversity of business: petrochemical, advanced polyester materials, textiles, trading, finance and thermal power. In 2019, Henglis total revenue was 556.7 billion RMB, ranking No. 181 in the Fortune Global 500 list. Hengli operates the largest PTA plant in the world combined with the biggest performance fibre textile production base. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200803005262/en/ The number of COVID-19 patients in Ladakh rose to eight on Wednesday, after two more patients tested positive for the dreaded virus. Image Source: IANS News Bhubaneswar, Aug 3 : The Covid-19 death toll crossed the 200-mark in Odisha as 10 patients succumbed to the deadly virus in the last 24 hours, informed the health department on Monday. The number of fatalities due to coronavirus rose to 217 in the state. The fresh Covid deaths have been reported from Ganjam (3), Khurda (1), Gajapati (2), Rayagada (3) and Kalahandi (1). The number of COVID-19 positive cases in the state rose to 36,297 as 1,384 more persons tested positive for the virus, said the department. Of the new cases, 873 were detected in quarantine while 511 are local contact cases. Corona hotspot Ganjam reported highest 331 positive cases followed by Khurda (211), Koraput (97), Sambalpur (93) and Cuttack (89). The number of active cases in the state rose to 14,095 while 21,954 persons have recovered so far. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Minister of Defense Davit Tonoyan held a telephone conversation on August 3 with Lebanons Defense Minister, Deputy Prime Minister Zeina Akar. Tonoyan congratulated his counterpart on the 75th anniversary of founding of the Lebanese armed forces. The parties discussed the epidemic situation in the military of the two countries and exchanged ideas over creating additional possibilities for cooperation, the Armenian Defense Ministry said in a news release. Zeina Akar highlighted the importance of the Armenian military units participation in the UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon). In response, Tonoyan reiterated Armenias decisiveness in continuing the mission. Davit Tonoyan and Zeina Akar also addressed regional military-political developments and the need for enhancing and deepening military cooperation within the framework of bilateral treaties, the press release said. Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan The Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has again reappointed Adebayo Ninalowo as the Pro-Chancellor of the Lagos State University (LASU) despite his involvement in the controversial diversion of N198 million pension fund. Mr Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday, approved the appointment of chairpersons and Governing Council members for four state-owned tertiary institutions: LASU, Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education (AOCOED), Lagos State Polytechnic and Michael Otedola College of Primary Education (MOCPED). PREMIUM TIMES last year exposed how Mr Ninalowo and the institutions Vice-Chancellor, Olanrewaju Fagbohun, illegally withdrew the huge sum from the contributory pension of the institutions employees to purchase 12 luxury vehicles for members of its top echelon. The management also used an additional N83.37 million from the same fund to buy four buses, documents obtained by this newspaper revealed. Sources in the university told this newspaper then that the management decided to use a large chunk of the money for things with completely no correlation with that for which it was withdrawn. The vehicles were three pieces of Toyota Corolla1.8 Gli CVT AT LS Luxury model at N63 million plus VAT, seven pieces of Toyota Corolla 1,8 Gli CVT AT FS luxury model at N113.9 million, and two pieces of Toyota Yaris Sedan AT LS (New Model) at N21.42 million for a total of N198.34 million. The cars were distributed to top management members in the week of October 22, 2018, this newspaper findings revealed. Despite multiple official memos issued by the universitys Governing Council, its highest decision-making body, the spokesperson of the school, Ademola Adekoya, said at no time did the university divert funds from the staff pension. Amidst PREMIUM TIMES revelation, the universitys management mandated its staff to sign an oath of secrecy at a time when the Nigerian government was pursuing a whistle-blowing policy, which encourages and rewards civil servants and others to expose financial crimes. The Lagos State Head of Service, Hakeem Muri-Okunola, who announced the reappointment of Mr Ninalowo in a statement, did not respond to PREMIUM TIMES inquiries on whether the state governor is aware of the diversion of the pension funds. Dundee the beer-drinking and cigarette-smoking cockatoo has been found after he disappeared in mysterious circumstances. Trevor 'Pud' Bilston said he feared he had lost his 'best mate' for good when the bird flew away from a fishing shack in Bynoe Harbour, south-east of Darwin, last month. But on Pud's 71st birthday on Friday, he received a call telling him Dundee had been handed in to an animal shelter in Berry Springs, over 100km away. A beer-drinking and smoking cockatoo named Dundee has been returned to his owner Trevor 'Pud' Bilston after the cheeky cocky disappeared in mysterious circumstances last month Dundee serves as Pud's companion animal and has nursed his owner through some 'tough times' since he suffered a severe stroke several years ago. Pud's personal carer, Terry Smith, said he was delighted to have the cockatoo home, but they both agreed it was time to put him on a health kick. 'I told Pud to take Dundee to Alcoholics Anonymous and buy him a nicotine patch and see if we can break the bad habits he's picked up,' he said. The cocky is well-known by the locals of Dundee Beach, east of Darwin, for his bad habits of drinking out of any beer can he find and chewing on cigarette butts at the tables outside the pub. Pub (pictured) and his carer believe it is finally time to get Dundee away from his bad habit of drinking and smoking Pud believes the eight-year-old bird was 'searching for a girlfriend' when he became lost in unfamiliar terrain at the fishing shack and couldn't find his way back. Shortly after he was spotted by locals drinking out of a beer can. Pud believes his bird was picked up by a man with dreadlocks and driven away. Mr Smith said they were still not sure how Dundee came to be in Berry Springs. Pud said he had raised Dundee ever since he was a chick when he found him while landscaping in his backyard. 'I was using the bulldozer and I pushed down a tree down he was in and he came out squawking with no feathers,' he said. 'So I just took him in, and he's been my friend ever since then.' Pub's carer Terry Smith (pictured) said the cockatoo had helped his owner through some 'tough times' after he had a severe stroke Augusta Ada King, Mary Keller, Adele Goldberg what do these names mean to you? To us, they speak of unsung heroes, pioneers of the tech industry that inspired the creation of the very machine you are reading this piece of material from right now. They are the very women that saw through the veil, peered into the future, and against all odds used their wisdom, intellect and drive to innovate in a space many believed they had no right working in. RSAWEB is celebrating women in tech at their next webinar For Womens month this August, RSAWEB is hosting a webinar that seeks to celebrate South African women in technology on Friday the 7th of August. RSAWEBs motivations for doing so are quite glaring. Did you know that, not only in South Africa, but globally women are highly underrepresented in the wide, wonderful and ever-evolving world of technology? As an industry that thrives off innovation and the willingness to progress, it should surely be represented by half the population, shouldnt it? A recent study carried out by the Women In Tech initiative brought to light that out of around 236,000 technology-related jobs in South Africa, only 23% of them are currently held by women. Another study conducted in 2017 called the Global Gender Gap Report showed us that only 13% of South African graduates in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) space for that year were female. Mindsets need shifting, and current female tech giants need to leverage their success, passions, and knowledge to inspire future females in the industry. Sign up now to meet these inspiring women for yourself and get insights into what makes them tick at RSAWEBs Women In Tech Webinar Meet the inspiring women speaking at RSAWEBs upcoming webinar RSAWEB have gathered a group of like-minded female Titans in South Africas technology industry to share their innovative thoughts around South Africas tech space, and their experiences of being a leader in an industry that seems to be dominated by men. These are the panelists involved in the RSAWEB Women in Tech Webinar: Carey van Vlaanderen CEO at ESET Southern Africa Carey van Vlaanderen has been the fearless leader and CEO of ESET Southern Africa for the last 11 years. Her business journey started just after she left University when she joined the founders of a tech company now known as 4Di Group. From there, Carey moved over to ESET Southern Africa where she would forge a path forward for the company, helping transform it into one of South Africas leading and most advanced cybersecurity solutions. Register now to meet Carey Sharon Vergotine Head of IT: Robotic Process Automation & Cognitive Services at Old Mutual South Africa With strategic and operational experience in Business and IT partnerships, Sharon Vergotine currently heads up IT for Robotic Process Automation & Cognitive Services at Old Mutual. Sharons focus is unlocking the value of emerging technologies to drive automation and digitisation adoption. Her responsibilities include defining and implementing group-wide strategies for AI, RPA, and Innovation at Old Mutual, establish Technology Centre of Excellence, deliver savings targets and ensure scalable and mature technology automation capability. Register now to meet Sharon Nomfundo Ndlanya Business Technology Manager: South and Sub-Saharan Africa at Johnson & Johnson Working for one of the largest multinational corporations in the world is no mean feat and neither is holding the title of Business Technology Manager for South and Sub-Saharan Africa at Johnson & Johnson. On top of this, Nomfundo is skilled in business partnering, delivering on practical IT strategies, streamlining business processes, and is well versed in the Software Development Life Cycle planning process. Register now to meet Nomfundo Omeshnee Naidoo Director of Information Systems at the City of Cape Town Omeshnee Naidoo is the current Director of Information Systems at the City of Cape Town. She has worked in the Information and Communication Technology industry for close to two decades. Omeshnee has experience consulting businesses around the world on diverse and innovative system and strategy implementations. She also has experience implementing enterprise resource planning and is proud to be considered one of South Africas top digital transformation experts. Register now to meet Omeshnee Lisa Strydom Manager of Channels: Africa at Veeam Software As the African Channel Manager Lead for Veeam, Lisa Strydom oversees the strategy for the Africa channel from on-premises solutions to the cloud offerings in Veeams portfolio. Last year she focused on data breaches and ransomware incidents in the hopes of positioning Veeam as the go-to software companies use to mitigate these attacks. In 2017, Lisa won the Veeam EMEA Channel Manager Award a prestigious accolade that saw her outshine other channel managers from around the globe. She makes a great addition to the Webinars lineup. Register now to meet Lisa Wendy Bailey Business Unit Head at RSAWEB As a Business Unit Head at RSAWEB, Wendy is in charge of making sure that the companys consumer product range remains competitive, relevant and sustainable. Being in the tech industry, she keeps her gaze focused on the customer journey, and effortlessly implements change and improvement strategies. She also executes sales plans, manages sales pipelines, and ensures that RSAWEBs products remain competitive in a fierce and saturated market. Register now to meet Wendy For this Women in Tech webinar, RSAWEB are using some of their female staff to represent. The master of ceremonies will be RSAWEBs Head of Enterprise, Leonore Lotz, and is coordinated and arranged by RSAWEBs female marketing members: Kayla Siden (Head of Creative) and Valeria Zvinawashe (Project Manager). Book your spot at this inspiring and uplifting Webinar, where RSAWEB will seek to celebrate Womens Month through having innovative and rewarding conversations with some of South Africas leading women in tech. Date: Friday, 7th of August 2020 Time: 10:30 AM RSVP today Dont miss out on this momentous occasion, join RSAWEB and other leading figures in tech at this inspiring webinar Trump Jr, who is leading his father's 2020 re-election campaign, played a key role in the outreach to the Indian-American community in 2016, which he has continued during the last three-and-a-half years. (AP) Washington: US President Donald Trump has a key advantage in the battleground states that could re-elect him in November, his eldest son Donald Trump Jr has said, citing an op-ed which claims that 50 per cent of Indian-American voters in these states are moving away from the opposition Democratic Party towards his father. Seeking re-election for his second consecutive term, Trump, 74, is pitted against Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, 77, in the November 3 presidential elections. Most of the opinion polls show that Biden is several points ahead of Trump. Trump Jr, who is leading his father's 2020 re-election campaign, played a key role in the outreach to the Indian-American community in 2016, which he has continued during the last three-and-a-half years. A Key Advantage in Battleground States Could Secure 2020 for Trump, he tweeted on Sunday, along with an op-ed written by an ardent Trump supporter Al Mason in the latest issue of American Greatness news website. According to the article, Trump, a Republican, could find himself the recipient of tens of thousands of Indian-American votes across the United States. I have stirred the pot with my findings - and the air bubbles of appreciation by the Trump supporters and fear of the Democrats are floating around, Mason, one of the honorary co-chairs of the Trump Victory Finance Committee, told PTI after the tweet by Trump Jr. As the co-chairman of the Trump Victory Indian American Finance Committee, I have seen firsthand the results of grassroots polling efforts of Indian-American communities in each of these states, Mason wrote in his op-ed. Come November 3, 2020, Trump could find himself the recipient of tens of thousands of votes from Indian-American communities across the US, and in particular, in the battleground states, including Florida, Virginia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, that Trump needs most to secure his reelection, Mason said. Quite simply, the results show that as many as 50 per cent of potential Indian-American voters, the vast majority of whom traditionally have voted Democrats in presidential elections, will defect from the Democratic Party and vote for President Trump, he said. This mass defection could add tens of thousands of new Trump voters in key battleground states and could very well end up helping to secure the president's reelection, Mason said. In response to a question, Mason said that the Democrats have discussed similar findings at their town hall, attended by heavy weights like former US ambassador to India Richard Verma, Biden Unity Task Force Economic Policy Advisor Sonal Shah, former US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy and Center for the American Progress Action Fund CEO Neera Tanden. Some Indian-American leaders who were part of the Trump campaign in 2016, are threatened by the attention the community is giving to my findings. They fear their importance seems to have been lost. But they have nothing to fear - as I am not the leader of the Indian-American community, nor am I representing the community in any manner, form or shape, Mason said. Mason said he is helping to bring all the Indian-American leaders and groups of Trump supporters under one umbrella in support of Trump's re-election. My opinions are not the Trump campaign's talking points - but purely my findings and views, which I truly believe will be the outcome of the presidency on November 3rd, 2020-Trump Victory, he asserted. Referring to his survey, Mason wrote in the op-ed that Trump's support among Indian-Americans is the result of at least a year of aggressive outreach on the part of the president and his campaign to bolster the historic relationship between the United States and India, and to reach out to the Indian-American communities within the US on a more personal level. In September, nearly 50,000 Indian-Americans attended a packed rally in Houston co-headlined by President Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Dubbed 'Howdy Modi!', the event represented the largest rally ever held with a foreign leader in the US, he wrote. In my own conversations with colleagues and with friends, and in my research team's findings, one trend becomes overwhelmingly clear: Indian-Americans, perhaps for the first time ever, feel both acknowledged and respected by the president of the US. The president's historic support of the US-India relationship and the Trump campaign's sustained outreach to Indian-Americans at home has resulted in increased support and rising popularity among potential Indian-American voters, Mason added. Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh on Monday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should defer the foundation stone laying ceremony for from August 5 as it will be an "inauspicious hour" for the event. "I request Modi Ji again that the inauspicious occasion of August 5 (for foundation stone laying ceremony for Ram temple) should be deferred. The construction of is to begin after hundreds of years of struggle and PM Modi should leave his stubbornness that may cause an obstruction in the process," Digvijaya tweeted (translated from Hindi). The Congress leader went on to claim that several BJP leaders were falling sick due to COVID-19 as the result of ignoring the norms of Sanatan Dharma. "The results of ignoring the norms of Sanatan Dharma are - all priests of tested positive for COVID-19, death of UP Minister Kamal Rani Varun due to corona, UP BJP chief tested COVID-19 positive, Home Minister Amit Shah tested positive for COVID-19, Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan tested positive for COVID-19, Karnataka CM Yediyurappa tested positive for COVID-19," he added. "Lord Ram is the epicentre of faith for crores of Hindus and the PM should not play with norms and traditions of Sanatan Dharma established across thousands of years," he added. The Congress leader further questioned the urgency of holding the foundation stone laying event in times when COVID-19 spread is prevalent across the country. "By laying the foundation stone for Ram temple at an inauspicious hour, how many people do you want to send to the hospital Modi Ji? Yogi Ji, please explain to Modi Ji. In your presence, why are the norms and traditions of Sanatan Dharma being broken? What is your compulsion that you are allowing this to happen?" he contended. "One more question arises. A minister of the Uttar Pradesh government died due to coronavirus. Union Home Minister tested positive for COVID-19 and Uttar Pradesh BJP chief also tested positive. In these circumstances, whether Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and India's Prime Minister should not be quarantined? Is being quarantined only mandated for common people? Not for Prime Minister and Chief Ministers? The time limit for quarantine is 14 days," he added. He further said that the entire cabinet should go into quarantine otherwise they will infect the residents of "These people's religion is 'Hindutva' and not 'Sanatan Dharma'. hence they have nothing to do with Sanatan Dharma's traditions. They have broken all the norms. Now, Modi Ji will issue the muhurta and he will only lay the foundation stone," he tweeted. The Prime Minister is scheduled to lay the foundation stone of the Ram temple in on August 5. The construction of Ram temple will begin after the ceremony to lay the foundation stone in which Chief Ministers of several states, Ministers from the Union Cabinet and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat are also likely to participate. (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.) Serbias newly elected parliament was sworn in on August 3 in Belgrade amid a noisy protest in front of the parliament building and claims that the election that put them into power was rigged. The swearing-in of the 250 members of parliament sets the clock ticking on a 90-day period in which they must form a new government. Lawmakers wore masks and maintained social-distancing guidelines designed to control the spread of the coronavirus as the swearing-in ceremony took place. The populist Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) of President Aleksandar Vucic dominates the parliament with a majority of 188 seats. The Socialist Party (SPS), an SNS ally, forms the next largest bloc with 32 members. The new Serbian Patriotic Alliance (SPAS) has 11 deputies and has expressed interest in joining a ruling majority. Another four minority parties are represented with a total of 19 seats. Parliamentarians were greeted by a protest of several dozen people, who booed and chanted thieves and betrayal" as lawmakers arrived. Some of them threw eggs and tomatoes toward the building. Police sealed off much of the area in front of the assembly to prevent a repeat of violent protests that took place last month against Vucic, the outcome of the June 21 election, and the governments response to a resurgence of the coronavirus in Serbia. Critics and rights groups accuse the president of trampling over Serbia's democracy by exercising an outsized influence over state institutions and the media. The opposition has also complained about the lack of free and fair voting conditions and a danger to public health amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Serbia's main opposition parties boycotted the vote, decrying what they say is Vucic's increasingly autocratic rule over the country, which is seeking membership in the European Union. Sasa Radulovic, the leader of the Enough Is Enough (DJB) party, which took part in the election but failed to win enough votes to be represented in the new parliament, participated in the protest and called for the annulment of the results and a new election. He accused the government of falsifying electoral reports at polling stations. Radulovic claimed to have proof of the wrongdoing. The United Opposition of Serbia also raised false election results and said as of August 3 Serbia officially has no parliament because the 250 new parliamentarians were not elected legally. Vucic has repeatedly denied interfering in the vote, saying his opponents are crying foul because they have little popular support. Vucic was elected to a five-year term in April 2017 and did not run in the June 21 election. But he dominated the campaign through the mainstream media, which he controls. With reporting by AP and AFP A TELEVISION presenter gave millions of viewers a laugh when he took an unexpected tumble on a boat in Henley live on air. Andi Peters, who appears on ITVs breakfast show Good Morning Britain, was in a Hobbs of Henley launch with managing director Jonathan Hobbs when the incident happened at about 7am on Thursday last week. He was in the town promoting a competition for one viewer to win 95,000. Peters told studio hosts Adil Ray and Ranvir Singh that he had been looking forward to vising Henley, saying: This is the kind of morning you would want. Cruising on the Thames! Lets go, Jonathan! However, he then tripped and spun around before landing on the boats leather seats, leaving the London presenters in fits of laughter. After Peters had recovered, Singh joked: You havent quite found your sea legs there, Andi. Can I just say what an honour it is to be on the same show as a professional? In another segment later in the show, the former BBC childrens presenter was chatting to the hosts while on board Hobbs cruise hire boat New Orleans. The studio pair pointed out two police officers watching from Thames Side, so Peters turned around and shouted, Do you want an autograph?. When the broadcasting was over, Mr Hobbs took members of the TV crew on a river trip before Peters went off for lunch with a friend. Mr Hobbs said the programme had approached him a couple of weeks earlier and shot a pre-recorded film about another competition. The crew enjoyed the experience so asked him if they could return and broadcast live from the river. Mr Hobbs said: I was in four of the broadcasts on Thursday. The first was when Andi was arriving at the boat and he asked where are we? and where are we going? I explained, Were in Henley-on-Thames, the jewel in the crown of the River Thames. Then he stepped aboard and did a comedy fall. Then we went off in the boat, heading up towards Marsh Lock, where the next live broadcast was going to be. After that we headed down to Henley Bridge for 8.30am and we had a really nice shot, facing Henley Bridge and looking down at what would have been the regatta course. He was talking about what a lovely place Henley is and how its a great place to go boating. He was a joy to work with and really good fun. He said he would definitely come back to visit. Hes a really interesting guy and so much fun and charismatic. It was really nice getting to know him. He was asking me what is so special about Henley and I said its the spiritual home of rowing and the centre of boating on the Thames. I also talked about the number of boats we have available to hire, shamelessly promoting the business as you have to when you give your time for free. I explained we have a large fleet of boats that allow you to explore the Thames for an hour or a week. In the summer the crew want to focus on something that attracts people as theres a leisure element to the broadcasts and Henley is a very popular place. The COVID-19 pandemic has severely dragged down revenues of the Vietnam Airlines Corporation (Vietnam Airlines) and the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) in the second quarter of this year. The Vietnam Airlines Corporation (Vietnam Airlines) suffers losses of 4.03 trillion VND (172.72 million USD) in the second quarter of 2020. Vietnam Airlines reported 6 trillion VND (257.1 million USD) in second-quarter revenue, down nearly 70 percent from the previous quarter, as a result of a month-long social distancing order in April and the ongoing suspension of international flights. The corporation suffered quarterly losses of 4.03 trillion VND (172.72 million USD), raising the total losses in the first half of the year to more than 6.64 trillion VND. In mid-July, the State-run firm estimated its revenue would halve to around 50 trillion VND and losses would mount to 13 trillion VND this year. Vietnam Airlines is seeking an urgent bailout of 12 trillion VND from the government to help it overcome difficulties. By the end of the second quarter, its asset totalled 66.69 trillion VND, a decline of 12.7 percent from the beginning of the year and its equity shrunk by more than 38 percent to close to 11.43 trillion VND. Meanwhile, ACV has recorded post-tax losses of over 365 billion VND from April to June as its revenues plunged 76.6 percent from the same period last year to over 1.04 trillion VND. A year earlier, the company enjoyed about 1.7 trillion VND in profit. The second-quarter losses have been offset by 1.55 trillion VND in first-quarter post-tax profit before the coronavirus hit the aviation industry. In the first half of 2020, the airport operator posted more than 1.19 trillion VND in post-tax profit. ACV projected that the number of air passengers would reduce by 41 percent year-on-year to 69.2 million in 2020 while the volume of cargoes going through 21 airports across Vietnam would fall 13 percent to 1.34 million tonnes./.VNA Will SCIC invest in Vietnam Airlines? The attempt by the government to rescue Vietnam Airlines with investment capital of VND12 trillion raises a question about the equality between state-owned and private enterprises. Westerly, RI (02891) Today A few passing clouds. Low 17F. WNW winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to less than 5 mph.. Tonight A few passing clouds. Low 17F. WNW winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to less than 5 mph. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 01:00:09|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) on Monday said it is facing a funding shortfall to meet humanitarian needs in Ethiopia. "Only 28.9 percent of 1.65 billion U.S. dollars needed to meet humanitarian needs in Ethiopia in 2020 has been received," the UNOCHA said in a report. UNOCHA appealed to humanitarian partners to cover the rest 1.17 billion U.S. dollars needed to comprehensively meet humanitarian needs in Ethiopia in 2020. In June, the Ethiopian government and humanitarian partners including the UN released a revised 2020 Humanitarian needs appeal document. The joint Ethiopia government-humanitarian partners document identified 16.5 million people who need emergency food and non-food assistance at a cost of 1.65 billion U.S. dollars. Ethiopia is facing a huge humanitarian crisis caused by a host of factors including persistent food insecurity, displacement, disease outbreaks, climate change and the rapidly increasing cases of COVID-19. In addition, the east African country is facing the worst desert locust invasion in decades with the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians put in jeopardy. Enditem Midnight Oil's first new song in 18 years will be broadcast worldwide as part of the National Indigenous Music Awards this Saturday from 7pm. Gadigal Land, named for the traditional owners of a large swath of Sydney, is flagged as "a provocative recount of what happened in this place, and elsewhere in Australia, since 1788". Midnight Oil perform in Sydney's Domain in November 2017. Credit: Brook Mitchell The song features singers Kaleena Briggs, Bunna Lawrie, Dan Sultan and Gadigal poet Joel Davison. It is the first taste of the band's seven-song mini-album, The Makarrata Project, created in collaboration with First Nations artists and slated for October release. "Weve always been happy to lend our voice to those who call for racial justice, but it really feels like weve reached a tipping point," the band said in a statement. DENVER, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sola Salon Studios, the world's largest and fastest growing salon studios franchise, announced today the signing of multi-unit development agreements with eight franchise groups that will bring 22 new locations to key markets throughout the U.S. over the next several years, including Florida, New York, California, Michigan, Wisconsin and Nebraska. This surge in franchise development is fueled by Sola's recent growth, where it opened 16 new locations in North America in June and July, and reflects the brand's simple, yet compelling franchise opportunity. "The salon industry as a whole was tremendously impacted by the mandated closures associated with COVID-19. However, what we've seeing since salon businesses have been allowed to reopen is that our model seems to be coming out strong, with demand being incredibly high for salon studios and there being an increased interest in our franchise opportunity," said Christina Russell, CEO of Sola Salon Studios. "While we're still working to navigate these unprecedented times, we're energized to know that our innovative model is resonating with so many beauty professionals and franchisees alike, and we couldn't be more thrilled to welcome these new franchisees into our Sola family." The eight new franchise groups and their development plans with Sola include: Karl Baumert plans to open three new Sola Salon Studios within New York City . With a background in investment banking and an investor in co-working spaces, Baumert is looking to expand the co-working model to the salon industry in Manhattan . plans to open three new Sola Salon Studios within . With a background in investment banking and an investor in co-working spaces, Baumert is looking to expand the co-working model to the salon industry in . Jamie Feldkamp and Niki Kimble will open one new location in Grand Rapids, Michigan . Having worked as a hair stylist for several years, Kimble was attracted to Sola's unique salon model and their location is slated to open in January 2021 . and will open one new location in . Having worked as a hair stylist for several years, Kimble was attracted to Sola's unique salon model and their location is slated to open in . Experienced restaurant operator Dan Bowers has signed an agreement to open three units throughout Miami-Dade County in Florida , adding to his portfolio of QSR concepts. has signed an agreement to open three units throughout in , adding to his portfolio of QSR concepts. Franchising industry veteran, John Mathie plans to open three locations throughout Milwaukee, Wisconsin . A long-time franchise owner of fitness concepts, John was looking to diversify his portfolio and found Sola's business model to be the perfect fit. plans to open three locations throughout . A long-time franchise owner of fitness concepts, John was looking to diversify his portfolio and found Sola's business model to be the perfect fit. With a longstanding career in the oil and gas industry, Tom Callinan has signed a multi-unit development agreement to open three new Sola locations throughout Brevard County in Florida . has signed a multi-unit development agreement to open three new Sola locations throughout in . Brothers Nader and Ron Hashual, along with business partner Ramzi Salem , have agreed to open three new Sola locations in San Bernardino, California . The Hashuals own an accounting and consulting business while Ramzi owns convenience stores and QSR concepts throughout the region. , have agreed to open three new Sola locations in . The Hashuals own an accounting and consulting business while Ramzi owns convenience stores and QSR concepts throughout the region. Brian and Nicole Neesen signed a three-unit agreement in Nebraska . With 15 years of franchising experience, they were looking to add a beauty and wellness business to their portfolio and think that Sola's salon studios model is the future of the industry. signed a three-unit agreement in . With 15 years of franchising experience, they were looking to add a beauty and wellness business to their portfolio and think that Sola's salon studios model is the future of the industry. Reed Nelson , a United States Navy Seal who served in Afghanistan and is also an experienced franchisee, has agreed to open three units in the Florida panhandle. In addition to these recent signings, Sola Salon Studios opened 16 new locations over the past couple of months to expand its North American footprint even further. New salons opened from the west coast of the U.S. including California, Arizona and Washington to the east coast in Maryland, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and South Carolina. The brand also broadened its Canadian presence with a new location now open in Calgary, Alberta. Sola Salon Studios leads the largest segment within the $64 billion salon services market, more than doubling in size in the last five years, and was recently named the salon suites category leader on Entrepreneur magazine's prestigious and highly competitive 2020 Franchise 500 ranking of the top franchise opportunities. Each of Sola's salon studios features a collective of 20-40 boutique, move-in-ready salon suites all under one roof where hair stylists, estheticians, nail technicians and massage therapists can each individually operate their own businesses without the risk and hassle of traditional salon ownership. As the most dominant brand in the segment, Sola Salon Studios has created a turnkey solution for beauty professionals to explore a better life as an entrepreneur, and has led the way as the largest and fastest growing salon studios concept. Sola is driven by its desire to use real estate to help aspiring business owners achieve their dreams and is looking for franchisees who feel the same way. The brand is actively seeking qualified candidates including experienced foodservice operators to help grow its brand footprint throughout the U.S. and beyond. To learn more about franchise opportunities with Sola Salon Studios, contact Lori Merrall, director of franchise development, at [email protected] or visit www.solafranchising.com. ABOUT SOLA SALON STUDIOS In 2004, Sola Salon Studios was established with the opening of its first location in Denver, Colorado. Now with 519 locations open in the U.S., Canada and Brazil, Sola is proud to offer 15,000+ independent beauty professionals the freedom and benefits of salon ownership without the risk and overhead of opening a traditional salon. Its innovative salon model empowers hairdressers, estheticians, nail techs, massage therapists and other like-minded professionals to take control of their lives and their careers. Sola provides beauty professionals with beautiful, fully-equipped salon studios alongside the support and tools they need to launch their salon business in no time. For more information, please visit www.solasalonstudios.com. Contact: Julia Block Fish Consulting 954-893-9150 [email protected] SOURCE Sola Salon Studios Related Links http://www.solasalonstudios.com The late Rishi Kapoor had received much praise for his performance in Anubhav Sinha's Mulk. Anubhav recently opened up on working with Rishi in the hard-hitting issue based film, and expressed sadness at not being able to collaborate with Rishi again. Speaking to Mumbai Mirror, Anubhav shared that Rishi Kapoor agreed to be part of the film fifteen minutes into its narration. "Pura sunayenge (You'll narrate the entire thing)?" was Rishi's reaction, as recalled by Anubhav. Mulk was about a Muslim family trying to defend itself from religious bigotry and reclaim its honour, after a member gets involved in terrorism. "Hero kaun hai (Who's the protagonist)?" asked Rishi, and was surprised to learn that it was him. Anubhav also shared that Rishi was nervous and certain that the film would get banned, during its Central Board of Film Certification screening. "Chintuji wasn't convinced the film was over and insisted I keep 10 days as a back-up. Then, one day my CFO came to me asking if I had some shooting left, saying Chintuji had allotted dates between January 5 and 15, 2018," said Anubhav, adding, "During the censor screening, Chintuji was on tenterhooks, calling every 30 seconds for an update, afraid Mulk would be banned. After a 90-minute discussion, when I stepped out with a U/A certificate and told him so, he repeated in disbelief, 'You mean picture release hogi?" Rishi left to the US for his cancer treatment, soon after the film's release. "On his return, we met at the Bachchans' Diwali party. I ran to hug him little knowing that he'd go away so soon. I had planned many more movies with him," said Anubhav. Mulk also starred Taapsee Pannu, Neena Gupta, Rajat Kapoor and Manoj Pahwa in lead roles. Rishi Kapoor passed away on April 30, 2020, after battling leukemia for nearly two years. ALSO READ: Sanjay Dutt Calls Rishi Kapoor 'Elder Brother'; Says It Will Take A While For The Loss To Sink In Clash between Mumbai Police and the probing team from Bihar continues in Sushant Singh Rajput's death case, IPS Vinay Tiwari of the Patna team now allegedly forced to stay in quarantine by the BMC without proper accommodation, as politics around the case intensifies gauging immense public attention. IPS officer Vinay Tiwari heading a police team from Patna probing case related to actor Sushant Singh Rajputs death has been forcibly quarantined by the municipal authorities in Mumbai, Bihar Director-General of Police (DGP) Gupteshwar Pandey said. DGP Pandey alleged that Patna (Central) Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Tiwari, who arrived in Mumbai on Sunday was put under quarantine by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). IPS officer Binay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from Patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11 pm today. He was not provided accommodation in the IPSMess despite a request and was staying in a guest house in Goregaw, the Bihar DGP tweeted. A team of Bihar Police is in Mumbai to probe the matter on the basis of an FIR which was registered in Patna based on a complaint filed by Rajputs father KK Singh against actor Rhea Chakraborty under several sections including abetment to suicide. Also read: Sushants sim cards registered under Siddharth Pithanis name, tracking call records: Bihar Police Also read: Sushants therapist opens up about his mental health, receives massive backlash Meanwhile, corporator and BJP leader in Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), Vinod Mishra condemned Patna SSPs forcible quarantine in Mumbai. I condemn this incident. I would like to ask Maharashtra Chief Minister and Home Minister that the entire country wants to solve Sushant Singh Rajputs death mystery. Bihar Police officials have been coming to Mumbai nowadays in connection with this case but you are not supporting them. You did not quarantine them but when an IPS officer came ahead to solve this case, he was forcibly quarantined, said Mishra. Who do you (Chief Minister) want to save? he added. On Sunday, after reaching Mumbai, Tiwari, told reporters, The investigation is going in the right direction. Senior officials are also satisfied with our investigation. Our team is conducting a probe here for the past one week. The next step is supervision, for which a senior officer is needed. So I have been sent here. We are here to get all the important evidence and facts. We are taking statements of the concerned people. We are investigating every angle in the case. Stating that she was the deceased actors girlfriend, actor Rhea Chakraborty had earlier demanded a CBI probe into Rajputs death case to understand what pressures prompted Sushant to take this step. According to the Maharashtra Police, statements of 41 people, including filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt film critic Rajeev Masand, director-producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali, and filmmaker Aditya Chopra have been recorded in the investigation so far. Rajput was found dead in his Mumbai residence on June 14. Also read: Amit Shah tests Covid-19 positive, hospitalised A man looks at a J-31 gyrfalcon stealth fighter plane model designed by Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) at the Beijing International Aviation Expo in Beijing on Sept. 17, 2015. (WANG ZHAO/AFP via Getty Images) Millions Worth of PPP Loans Went to Chinese-Owned Companies, Report Finds Hundreds of millions of U.S. taxpayer dollars went to Chinese companies from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which was designed to help small businesses survive during the pandemic, according to a new report. A review of public PPP loan data by consultancy firm Horizon Advisory found that $192 million to $419 million in loans were given to more than 125 Chinese-owned or -invested companies operating in the United States. Many of the loans were substantial, with at least 32 Chinese-owned firms receiving more than $1 million under the program, totaling between $85 million and $180 million, it found. The recipients included Chinese state-owned enterprises, companies that supported Beijings military development program, firms identified by the United States as national security threats, and media outlets controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the report said. Many were based in critical industries such as aerospace, pharmaceuticals, and semiconductor manufacturing. These are sectors that the CCP has slated for aggressive development to achieve global dominance, with the goal of supplanting competitors in the United States and other countries. The report concluded that without appropriate policy guardrails and monitoring of U.S. tax dollars intended for relief, recovery, and growth of the U.S. economy, there is a significant risk that funds will support foreign strategic rivals, namely China. Many of these Chinese-linked firms could have tapped into other sources of capital from public or private markets to support their American operations, the report said. Their PPP participation saved U.S.-based jobs, but likely at the expense of other U.S. small businesses. Horizon Advisorys findings come amid rising scrutiny of Chinese companies, particularly tech firms, in the United States. President Donald Trump said on Aug. 3 that he would ban Chinese-owned short video app TikTok on Sept. 15 if its not sold to Microsoft or another American company. His administration is also considering barring other Chinese social media apps, citing national security risks. U.S. officials have raised the alarm that these apps could be used to spy on Americans, given that Chinese laws compel all companies to cooperate with security agencies when asked. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is also reviewing whether Chinese companies listed on American exchanges should be compelled to abide by U.S. audit laws. The Chinese regime denies U.S. regulators access to audit books of Chinese firms, citing the information as state secrets. About $517 billion of PPP loans have been issued since March, when the measure was introduced to help businesses with 500 or fewer workers pay their staff and bills during the economic downturn as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The program drew criticism after reports that large companies that could have had access to other forms of credit received loans, prompting the Treasury Department to warn that bigger companies could face penalties if they couldnt show the loan was essential. The report said that loans went to affiliates of three Chinese companies that featured on a Pentagon list of 20 firms that are owned or controlled by the Chinese military. It found that six recipients were affiliated with state-owned companies that supply arms to Chinas Peoples Liberation Army, including Aviation Industry Corp. of China, China Aerospace Science and Industry, and China North Industries Group Corporation (Norinco Group). Chinese-linked biotech companies were also identified, including California-based Dendreon Pharmaceuticals, which received between $5 million to $10 million in PPP loans. Dendreon is owned by Nanjing Xinbai, a Chinese state-invested company that is controlled by a tech conglomerate with close ties to the CCP. California-based robotics and AI company CloudMinds Technology Inc. received between $1 million to $2 million in loans. It is a subsidiary of Beijing-based CloudMinds, which was added to the commerce departments trade blacklist over their ties to the Chinese military back in May. Loans also went to a U.S. subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Phoenix TV, a pro-Beijing media outlet. While the company is private, a 2019 report by the Hoover Institution at Stanford University said Phoenix TV is fully controlled by [the] Chinese government. Congress and the Trump administration are currently negotiating a second stimulus package that is likely to include more funding for PPP. A Senate Republican recently proposed that the stimulus bill disqualify entities affiliated with China from the loan program, though it remains to be seen if this will be included in the final package. The Treasury Department did not respond to a request for comment. Congress MP on Monday questioned Union Home Minster Amit Shah's choice of a private hospital over a government one after he tested positive for on Sunday. Taking to Twitter, Congress leader Tharoor said, "True. Wonder why our Home Minister, when ill, chose not to go to but to a private hospital in a neighbouring state." "Public institutions need the patronage of the powerful if they are to inspire public confidence," he added. Union Home Minister on Sunday informed that he has tested positive for and has been advised by the doctors to be admitted to the hospital. Taking to Twitter, Shah said that he underwent test after getting the initial symptoms of the virus. He also appealed to people who have come in contact with him in the last few days to isolate themselves and get tested. "On getting the initial symptoms of corona, I got the test done and the report has come positive. My health is fine, but I am being admitted to the hospital on the advice of doctors. I request all of you who have come in contact with me in the last few days, please isolate yourself and get your test done," Shah tweeted. On Saturday, Shah addressed a webinar 'Lokmanya Tilak: Swaraj to Atmanirbhar Bharat' organized by ICCR Delhi on the 100th death anniversary of Lokmanya Tilak. (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.) On July 29, Iran's Mehr news agency carried a statement by Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force leader. Mehr is a Tehran-based multilingual news agency owned and operated by the Islamic Ideology Dissemination organization, which observers describe as the governments propaganda arm. Hajizadehs statement came on the second day of an Iranian military drill in the Strait of Hormuz and in the broader Persian Gulf region. One target in the drill was a mockup of a U.S. military ship a replica of the Nimitz-class aircraft carriers the U.S. Navy routinely sails in the Persian Gulf waters. Iranian news agencies reported that the drills "simulated a real warzone engagement and were meant to send across a message of warning to those potentially seeking to undermine the countrys security. Nour-1, Irans first military satellite, which was launched in April, monitored the wargames and simultaneously transmitted high resolution images of the U.S.-operated al-Udeid Airbase in Qatar, the Iranian news agencies reported. Iranian state TV channels broadcast live video of the exercise, followed by footage of the destruction of the mockup vessel in their hourly news programs and special features. According to Mehr, General Hajizadeh said the drills demonstrated the IRGCs extensive capabilities, including the launch of missiles: "During the Payambar-e Azam 14 (The Great Prophet) war games in south Iran, IRGC successfully launched underground ballistic missiles for the first time in the world." That claim is false. It may be a first-time success for Iran, but the world has been launching missiles from the underground platforms called silos for decades. Nazi Germany built the first underground missile-launching hubs around 1943. The Nazis constructed silos in occupied France and the Baltics, using the latter as a test site for long-range missiles (V-2, A-4) which, at the time, were top secret. By the beginning of 1944, U.S. intelligence had identified and bombed 96 Nazi silos, preventing them from becoming operational. After World War II, the U.S. military adopted the technology for intercontinental nuclear missiles, building hundreds of silos across the country during the Cold War. The Soviet Union and other countries followed suit. According to the Arms Control Association, 31 countries have ballistic missiles, and few still launch them from the underground hubs. The U.S. considers launching silos vulnerable and the technology outdated. It now focuses on mobile launch technologies. Many of the U.S. missile silos have been decommissioned. Some have been purchased by private citizens and turned into houses or safe bunkers. Following the 9/11 terror attacks in 2001, the market for silos heated up. Intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) are considered especially dangerous as weapons of mass destruction because of their ability to carry nuclear, biological or chemical warheads. They are relatively precise and fast, and some are capable of hypersonic speeds. During Irans latest exercises, U.S. military bases in Saudi Arabia and Qatar were briefly put on high alert after detecting the missile launches in Iran, the Pentagon said. Cmdr. Rebecca Rebarich, a spokesperson for the U.S. Navys 5th Fleet, called Irans behavior irresponsible and reckless. Still, she said the drills have not disrupted coalition operations in the area nor had any impacts to the free flow of commerce in the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waters. The U.S. Navys 5th Fleet has been deployed to the Persian Gulf as part of the International Maritime Security Construct (IMSC), a multinational effort, currently led by the U.K., to safeguard maritime traffic in the region. In November 2019, the U.S. launched Operation Sentinel to increase surveillance of and security in key waterways in the Middle East to ensure freedom of navigation in light of recent events in the Arabian Gulf region. Based in Bahrain, Operation Sentinel includes the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Australia and the United Kingdom. For decades, Iran has opposed any Western naval presence in the Persian Gulf, but Tehrans actions have seldom crossed the threshold of verbal threats and occasional harassment of the U.S. vessels. Experts say extreme escalation in the Gulf would be a double-edged sword for Iran, cutting it off from its main supply routes. The New York Times reported on July 18 that Iran and China had forged a wide-ranging economic and security partnership, under which Beijing will invest billions of dollars in Irans energy and other sectors. The agreement with China is a game changer for Iran, Elisa Catalano Ewers and Ariana Tabatabai wrote in the War on the Rocks blog. The deal would allow Iran to close the Strait of Hormuz without losing its ability to export oil and forfeiting corresponding revenues. It would also allow Iran to sustain energy supplies to China, thus avoiding the political backlash that might come from taking more offensive actions in the Strait of Hormuz, they wrote. When Google released the Pixel 3a and 3a XL, they were pretty good deals -- you could pay as little as $399 for a phone with the same clean software and excellent camera performance as the companys earlier, more premium devices. The strategy paid off: Google sold 3 million Pixel 3a phones in its first two quarters on the market, compared to just 2 million Pixel 4s in the same amount of time. To help replicate that success, Google made the new Pixel 4a even cheaper: There's just one version, and it costs $349. That might not sound like a huge difference, but it's enough to undercut the devices most obvious rival, the iPhone SE. (While the iPhone 11 remains Apples most popular model , CEO Tim Cook said during the companys earnings call last week that the $400 SE has been useful in luring customers away from Android devices.) Fifty dollars isn't nothing to the kind of cost-conscious consumer Google is targeting with the 4a, either. But most important is what you're actually getting for the price: This is the company's first all-screen phone, it packs 6GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, and it shoots pictures as well as the Pixel 4. The best thing about the Pixel 4a is just how good a deal it is. To get the Pixel 4a's price as low as possible, Google had to rethink its smartphone strategy completely. For one, the fun color combinations that had become a hallmark of the Pixel line are out. Early renders showed the Pixel 4a clad in a handful of whimsical finishes -- my personal favorite was this baby blue number. But, by the end of its development cycle, Google had channeled Henry Ford and whittled the options down to one: plain black, with a cyan power button. Chris Velazco/Engadget Google also had to decide whether to buck another long-running tradition. Since the beginning, Pixel smartphones came in two versions: regular and XL. Things are different this year, theres only a vanilla 4a. Google plans to release a 5G version later this year, and that may have been the source of the few Pixel 4a XL leaks we saw in the months leading up to today's announcement. (Rumors suggest the 4a 5G will be bigger than the regular 4a, so it could fill the same niche a Pixel XL traditionally would.) While Google would not definitively state whether a standalone XL model was ever in development, Brian Rakowski, VP of product management for the Pixel, confirmed that the decision to skip an XL release helped the company trim costs for its smaller phone. "We're limiting the number of different configurations we're doing," he told Engadget. "We focused all our resources on black. We're not doing an XL version. That gave us some efficiencies right there." After these decisions were locked in, the company had just one version of the most affordable Pixel 4a to continually refine. In a bid to reduce costs, Google's designers and engineers worked to build the device in a way that reduced the need for extraneous materials and labor. "[The Pixel 4a] is easier to manufacture, so it takes less people to put it together," Rakowski said. "There are fewer parts, and a lot of the things that add cost -- it's just pennies, but they add up. You have an extra screw, an extra connector, extra adhesive, or an extra part that wouldn't be necessary if you configured it differently." Chris Velazco/Engadget It's too early to tell whether this gamble on cost will pay off, but it's clear that Google is keen to play a bigger role outside the flagship space where it has struggled to find a foothold. The shift certainly makes sense financially -- sales estimates released by research firm Strategy Analytics earlier this year confirmed that the best-selling Android phones were not premium flagships, but more affordable devices like Samsung's Galaxy A51 and the Xiaomi Redmi 8. No wonder Google's upcoming phone releases feel a little different. As for the Pixel 4a 5G the company's working on? It'll likely cost $499 when it's released later this year. And persistent rumors suggest that Google has adopted the upper-midrange Snapdragon 765 for its upcoming Pixel 5, which in terms of performance puts it in the same class as the Motorola Edge, LG Velvet and the OnePlus Nord. Rakowski was quick to confirm that Google isn't done with flagship phones yet. "There's a lot to be done there," he says. But expect to see a lot out of this new, more cost-conscious Google in the future. State BJP president Dilip Ghosh Monday appealed to the TMC government to withdraw its decision on total lockdown on August 5, the day scheduled for 'bhoomi pujan' (groundbreaking ceremony) at Ayodhya for the Ram temple, and said the decision reflects the ruling party's strategy to turn "West Bengal into Bangladesh". If dates of the lockdown could be changed keeping in mind the Eid festival on August 1, then why can't the same be done on August 5 keeping in mind celebrations for the Ram temple 'bhoomi pujan' across the country, he questioned. "We appeal to the state government to change the date of the August 5 lockdown. We had no problem with state government changing dates for the lockdown due to the Eid festival. Similarly the sentiment of the Hindus over the construction of Ram Mandir should not be ignored," Ghosh said. "A lockdown on August 5 will not allow a suitable atmosphere for those who want to celebrate the historic day of bhoomi pujan for the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. This mindset of the TMC government is a reflection of its strategy to turn West Bengal into Bangladesh," the BJP leader said. The TMC leadership termed BJP's assertion as "baseless" and urged it to refrain from communal politics amid the COVID-19 pandemic. "Everyone should keep in mind that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected Bengal and the entire country. This is not a time to pursue communal politics. In Bengal, we have witnessed harmony and brotherhood among all religions and cultures for decades; we should not spoil it," TMC senior leader and minister Firhad Hakim said. The August 5 ceremony will mark the beginning of the construction of Ram temple after a decades-long title suit over the site at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh was settled by Supreme Court in November, 2019. The West Bengal government has decided to impose a biweekly complete lockdown in the state to break the chain of COVID-19 transmission. Total lockdown will be in place on August 5, 8, 16, 17, 23, 24 and 31, as a part of state government's clampdown strategy. Military Tribunal To Investigate 'Astronomical Corruption' Case Linked To IRGC Radio Farda August 02, 2020 In an interview with reformist daily Etemad on Sunday August 2, A Tehran City Councillor, Mahmoud Mirlohi, has revealed that the case of illegal sale of properties by the Tehran Municipality under Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf is still open for investigation. Qalibaf (Ghalibaf), who is currently the Speaker of Iranian Parliament (Majles) was the mayor of Tehran for 12 years from 2005 To 2017. The case, also known as "the astronomical corruption at the Tehran Municipality," has been under investigation on and off since 2017 and Qalibaf has lodged a counter-complaint against councillor Mirlohi and Yashar Soltani, a journalist who first disclosed the case on his website Memari News. Mirlohi told Etemad that the dossier of "astronomical corruption at the Tehran Municipality" has disappeared in the corridors of the Iranian Judiciary. However, he disclosed that some of the properties that had been illegally transferred to an IRGC-affiliate, the Rasa Tejarat Company, have been taken back during the past weeks. Rasa Tejarat is part of the IRGC's Cooperative Foundation. Qalibaf is a former IRGC major general and still enjoys the support and confidence of the military organization. Initial reports about the case said that the Municipality had sold over 670 real estate properties to regime insiders and the circle of Qalibaf's aides at prices much lower than the market price. Mirlohi told Etemad on Sunday that the case now includes over 2,000 properties as further follow ups have revealed. It is not clear how many of the properties were cheaply given away to Rasa Tejarat and how many to individuals, some of whom were most probably also members of IRGC. The councillor says the current Mayor Pirouz Hanachi is slated to talk about 41 of the illegal sales in which former municipality officials and some former Tehran City Councillors are said to have been involved. Reports by the State Audit Organization as well as media reports have revealed in 2017 that numerous real properties were sold at "unreal and very low" prices, sometimes with a 50 percent discount and in 60 instalments during the time Qalibaf served as Tehran's mayor. Although the State Audit Organization has confirmed that at least 200 properties were sold illegally by the Tehran Municipality, there has been no report on any legal investigation about the role and responsibility of Qalibaf in these cases. In other words, Qalibaf has not been indicted or officially implicated in the astronomical corruption case even after Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei ordered an investigation into IRGC-linked corruption at the municipality. Oddly enough, while the original case remains unattended to, Qalibaf's complaint against Mirlohi has already been investigated at Bench 15 of the Tehran Court chaired by Judge Hamid Alizadeh. Judge Alizadeh is currently under arrest as an accomplice in a major bribery case involving former Deputy Judiciary Chief Akbar Tabari. Despite being implicated by the media in the corruption case, Qalibaf has been an advocate of anti-corruption campaigns in Iran in recent years, particularly after 2017 when he was one of the contestants in the presidential race. Meanwhile, other Tehran City Councillors have revealed in their interviews with Etemad that as a result of the illegal transaction with the Tehran Municipality, the IRGC-affiliated Rasa Tejarat Company owes 40 trillion rials (around $1.25 billion at the time) to the Municipality, but it has refused to pay its debt. In 2018, another IRGC-linked outfit called Yas Holding was accused of owing the municipality around $11 billion. There is still no official report on the details of possible investigations, but anecdotal accounts indicate that the case of astronomical corruption is also being investigated at the Iranian Armed Forces' Judicial Organization. Apart from major General Qalibaf's involvement as the former mayor of Tehran, the presence of IRGC-affiliated companies in the case puts the matter in the jurisdiction of the Armed Forces' Judicial Organization. This is likely to make matters about the case even less transparent. Source: https://en.radiofarda.com/a/military-tribunal -to-investigate-astronomical-corruption-case -linked-to-irgc/30762487.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 Shelley Lewis in New York in 2006 - Billy Farrell/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images A Manchester-born publisher has been identified as the alleged former girlfriend of Jeffrey Epstein named in legal papers relating to Ghislaine Maxwell that were unsealed by a Manhattan court last week. A woman named as Shelley was allegedly named by Ms Maxwell as Epsteins girlfriend between 1999 and 2002, according to an email contained in papers released by US District Judge Loretta Preska. It has now been claimed that the woman is Shelley Ann Lewis, 43, a wellness entrepreneur, who runs a company called The Equanimity Expert. There is no suggestion that Ms Lewis was aware of any criminal behaviour by Epstein during the time of their alleged relationship. It coincided with the time when Virginia Giuffre alleges she was coerced into having sex with the Duke of York an allegation that Prince Andrew has repeatedly and vehemently denied. Ms Lewis could, lawyers believe, be approached by prosecutors and attorneys in the United States acting for Epsteins victims to ask what she knew about the alleged behaviour of Ms Maxwell and Epstein. The tranche of papers was compiled during a defamation case brought against Ms Maxwell by Ms Giuffre. They were released despite fierce opposition from Ms Maxwells legal team. In a January 2015 email to Epstein, Ms Maxwell wrote: I would appreciate it if Shelley would come out and say she was your gfriend I think she was from end [19]99 to 2002. Epstein replied: OK with me. Ms Lewis name appears repeatedly on the flight logs of Epsteins private planes, on occasion travelling alone with the disgraced financier, who was found dead in a jail cell a year ago. Related: Documents detail sex abuse allegations; Maxwell, Epstein Destinations included New York and Little St James the financiers private island in the Caribbean where many of the offences are alleged to have taken place. It is believed they met in 1999 when Ms Lewis, then 22, was working for Christies auction house in New York. Epstein was 46 at the time. Story continues The company Ms Lewis now runs says it offers a six-week course hosted by some of the leading thinkers in the fields of big picture decision making, neuroscience and psychology. The companys website adds: After an experience of direct awakening at age seventeen, Shelley has been on the path of inner transformation ever since. Her meditation centre, called Sacred Space, is intended to help New Yorkers find respite from the citys frantic pace and cultivate practices for Inner Peace. Ms Lewis is understood to divide her time between New York and west London, where she owns a flat. She was also the author of A Key to the Heart, a bestselling childrens book, which has reportedly been praised by Laura Bush, the former First Lady and author J K Rowling. Ms Lewis father, Brian, a retired businessman told The Mail on Sunday: Ive not seen my daughter for ages. I have no idea what she would want to say. Ms Lewis deleted all her social media profiles a short time after the release of the court documents on Friday. Ms Maxwell, the daughter of the late Robert Maxwell, a Labour MP and owner of the Mirror Group of newspapers, is in custody in New York awaiting trial. Charged with six counts of child abuse allegedly committed between 1994 and 1997, Ms Maxwell, who has denied the allegations, is due to stand trial next July. Other documents remain sealed and Ms Maxwells legal team are seeking to prevent their release. Some papers, which were due to be released on Monday, will be kept under wraps, including Ms Maxwells own deposition in which she has denied knowledge of Epsteins activities. Judges in the US Court of Appeals agreed to delay their publication in a two-page order published on Saturday. A further hearing has been listed for September. The Telegraph has approached Ms Lewis for comment. Despite seemingly insurmountable odds, African-American women have excelled in all areas of human endeavor including corporate America, government, law, medicine, education, sports, and the arts, among other fields. Yet, African-American women continue to wrestle with a nation that repeatedly questions and diminishes their worth, competence, and capacity to add distinctive value. And, now, even the ambition of African-American women is being weaponized to further deny opportunities for which they have trained and worked hard to just be considered. Since when did being ambitious become a negative trait given that the American dream is predicated upon this very notion? Ambition has been the saving grace of Black people since we were dropped on the shores of America in 1619. The resolve for freedom birthed ambition and set the course for Black women who struggled to keep their families together as they longed for a better life. The ambition of Black women too numerous to name was instrumental in securing basic rights like liberty, justice, education and equal representation through the right to vote. The outrage occasioned by the misuse of the word "ambition" is heightened when we consider historically that references to Black women as "overly ambitious" have been code words designed to marginalize Black women, deny them opportunities, trammel their hopes, mute their voices and dehumanize their existence. White men in power who have long mischaracterized Black women as "too ambitious" have used the term as code for angry, aggressive, and intemperate in order to render us invisible and deny us a seat at countless tables of power. Moreover, the "too ambitious" commentary advanced by Chris Dodd and the Biden donors is a direct assault on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and an affront to the practical education HBCUs necessarily impart to students. The Vice Presidential contender against whom this criticism was leveled attended one of the most prestigious HBCUs in the country where she was trained, among other things, to be ambitious. So, this dog whistle undermines one of the important qualities HBCUs instill in Black students. HBCU graduates are taught to achieve, to persevere, to grow and, yes, to be ambitious. HBCU graduates are commanded to be trailblazers to go where there is no path and leave a trail. As an HBCU president, I was simply stunned to read this latest assault on African-American women. I encounter thousands of young Black women from various backgrounds who arrive on college campuses with passive, indifferent attitudes which are nurtured into competence, ambition, and a commitment to leave their mark on the world. The negative connotation Dodd and the donors apply to "ambition" is precisely what I cultivate and celebrate. There is no place in the Democratic Party for these kinds of thoughts and attitudes, and the Democratic Party should strongly condemn these statements. The "ambition" of African-American women has served the Democratic Party well over the years and has, in fact, been determinative in the outcome of critical elections. Not only are Black women the most loyal voters for the Democratic Party, they are crucial to igniting Black voters across all demographics to turn out in record numbers. When Black women are engaged, they bring their families, their networks and their communities along with them. Ambitious Black women from all walks of life have offered themselves for service in upcoming elections. No matter which candidates you support, you cannot support the marginalization of talent and experience by framing it negatively and calling it "too ambitious." The hallmark of Black women from HBCUs is their ambition. It is their calling card. That is how we train them. When I see ambition in a Black woman, I know we have done our job. For more information, contact: Kelli Sharpe [email protected] [email protected] 615-415-9444 SOURCE Dr. Glenda Glover, President, Tennessee State University BELGRADE, Serbia - Serbias new parliament convened Monday amid protests by the some opposition parties and far-right groups claiming that the parliamentary election, overwhelmingly won by the ruling populists, was rigged. Dozens of protesters booed and jeered at the lawmakers arriving to the inaugural parliament session in the domed downtown parliament building. Some of them threw eggs toward the building. Police sealed off much of the area in front of the assembly to prevent the repeat of violent protests last month at the same location against the increasingly autocratic rule of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic. Vucics ruling Serbian Progressive Party swept the June 21 parliamentary vote that was boycotted by several of the main opposition parties. The Progressives won 188 seats in the 250-member assembly. The rest of the seats went to Vucics allies or minority groups, meaning that the real opposition will not be represented. The opposition boycott was carried out citing the lack of free and fair voting conditions and a danger to public health amid the COVID-19 pandemic. But a number of smaller parties decided to run, saying the boycott only sidelined an already marginalized opposition. Sasa Radulovic, the leader of one of the parties that ran in the election, took part in Mondays protest. The government has forged the elections by falsifying the final electoral reports at the polling stations, he said, claiming he has proof of the wrongdoing. Vucic has repeatedly denied interfering in the vote, saying his opponents are crying foul because they have little popular support. Vucic, who was elected to a five-year term in April 2017 and was not running for office this time, still dominated the election campaign through the mainstream media which he controls, denouncing and ridiculing his critics. He rejected allegations that by taking a leading role in the campaign, he was abusing his largely ceremonial presidential powers. Most of the opposition parties accused Vucic and his government of letting the coronavirus crisis spin out of control in order to hold the election that tightened the ruling partys grip on power amid widespread feelings of chaos. Lawmakers at the inaugural parliament session wore face masks, and kept social distancing rules. A United Nations plane careened off the runway while touching down in the northern Malian city of Gao on Monday, officials said, injuring six people. According to Abdoulaye Maiga, a witness to the accident who works for an airport-security company, the plane had to make an emergency landing, at which point it "left the runway". An official with the UN peacekeeping force in Mali, known as MINUSMA, told AFP that at least six people had been hurt in the accident. Another MINUSMA official, who declined to be named, said that the flight had left the capital city Bamako with seven Russian nationals aboard. A photo circulated on social media on Monday, appearing to show a badly damaged white plane, bearing UN insignia, in a puddle of mud. AFP did not independently confirm the image. UN peacekeepers deployed to Mali in July 2013, after jihadists seized much of the north of the country the previous year. The MINUSMA now has 13,000 troops in Mali, while France has 5,100 soldiers as part of Operation Barkhane, its anti-jihad force in the Sahel. Despite the presence of thousands of foreign troops, the conflict has engulfed the centre of the country and spread to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger to the west. Thousands of military and civilian lives have died in the conflict to date. Search Keywords: Short link: 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 Harry and William fell out, when Duke of Sussex branded older brother a 'snob' Prince Harry took offence when his 'snobby' brother cautioned him not to rush into marrying Meghan Markle. Harry took offence when William told him: 'Take as much time as you need to get to know this girl.' Harry is said to have considered the choice of the words 'this girl' to be condescending. 'In those last two words, 'this girl', Harry heard the tone of snobbishness that was anathema to his approach to the world,' claims the book. 'During his ten-year career in the military, outside the Royal bubble, he had learnt not to make snap judgments about people based on their accent, education, ethnicity, class or profession.' Prince Harry took offence when his 'snobby' brother cautioned him not to rush into marrying Meghan Markle. Pictured: The brothers with Meghan Markle and Kate Middle at Westminster Abbey in 2018 Meghan was disappointed Kate never reached out Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle never became friends - while the Duchess of Sussex was 'disappointed' she never reached out to her or visited. The Duchesses 'struggled to move past distance politeness' and had 'nothing in common other than the fact that they lived at Kensington Palace', according to the authors of Finding Freedom. In one particularly awkward encounter when Meghan was dating Harry, Kate went alone in her Range Rover on a shopping trip - despite the fact Meghan was also going to the same street. The lack of any friendship between the pair was confirmed in 2018 when the Sussexes announced they wanted to base their family at Windsor. Despite this frostiness, Meghan felt hurt at newspaper stories of the 'duelling duchesses' and was angry at the failure of the palace press office to correct them. Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle never became friends - while the Duchess of Sussex was 'disappointed' she never reached out to her or visited. The pair are pictured at Wimbledon together in 2018 Courtiers branded Meghan Markle a 'showgirl with lots of baggage' and said 'there's something about her I don't trust' A courtier in the Royal Household has said 'there is something I don't trust' about Meghan Markle, the book claims. The book, Finding Freedom, claims as soon as Meghan was introduced to members of the Royal Household, tensions emerged. One source claimed: 'She comes with a lot of baggage.' Another suggested: There's just something about her I don't trust.' Another described Meghan as 'Harry's showgirl Harry was convinced he was going to marry Meghan after the second date The biography describes in detail the couple's first date in Soho, London, which went so well that Meghan later confided in a friend: 'Do I sound crazy when I say this could have legs?'. Before arriving in the capital she had also told a confidant that she'd be happy for 'a nice English gentleman to flirt with' while promoting Suits in Britain. During that first date at London's Dean Street Townhouse the couple spent three hours in conversation, Harry drinking beer and Meghan sipping martinis. Harry was said to be 'in a trance' and had told himself: 'I've got to up my game here' when trying to impress the LA-born actress. The book says: 'Meghan had enough dating experience to know a charmer when she saw one, and Harry was obviously not at all that' - adding the couple were 'immediately obsessed' with each other and bonded over their joint 'passions for wanting to make change for good'. The biography describes in detail the couple's first date in Soho, London, which went so well that Meghan later confided in a friend: 'Do I sound crazy when I say this could have legs?'. The couple are pictured in March According to one friend quoted in the book, Harry and Meghan 'chatted a lot' but the evening, like the night before, ended chastely, with Harry returning to Kensington Palace despite their 'electric chemistry'. Describing how they flirted throughout, the authors said: 'A touch of an arm here, direct eye contact there.' The pair had now met just twice but Harry already knew 'they would be together at that point', a friend said, adding of Meghan: 'She was ticking every box fast.' Meghan, who was in London visiting, documented much of her trip on social media. The night out was so successful the second date the following night at the same venue where they are said to have sneaked in via a side door, hidden from view by a delivery truck bringing in produce and fresh fish from Billingsgate Market. Prince Harry was the first to say 'I love you' in his relationship with Meghan Markle, with friends revealing the couple were 'immediately obsessed' with each other. They are pictured in March this year One trusted waiter was asked to serve them the entire evening to keep it private. According to one friend quoted in the book, Harry and Meghan chatted a lot but the evening, like the night before, ended chastely, with Harry returning to Kensington Palace despite their electric chemistry. Describing how they flirted throughout, the authors said: A touch of an arm here, direct eye contact there. The pair had now met just twice but Harry already knew they would be together at that point, a friend said, adding of Meghan: She was ticking every box fast. Meghan, who was in London visiting, documented much of her trip on social media. Harry was the first to say 'I love you' Prince Harry was the first to say 'I love you' in his relationship with Meghan Markle, with friends revealing the couple were 'immediately obsessed' with each other. Meghan's necklace controversy Meghan Markle was left 'frustrated and emotional' after a palace aide 'scolded' her for wearing a necklace with the initials H and M before she and Prince Harry were engaged, according to Finding Freedom. The former Suits star, 38, was spotted wearing the personalised 184 14 karat gold chain by Los Angeles-based designer Maya Brenner - believed to have been a gift from the prince - while out shopping in Toronto in December 2016. The bold move was seen as an early indication of the seriousness of their relationship - a month after the news of their love affair emerged. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex later announced their engagement in November 2017. The former Suits star, 38, was spotted wearing the personalised chain - believed to have been a gift from the prince - while out shopping in Toronto According to a source close to the couple, following the publication of the images Meghan received a dressing down from a palace aide. 'She was advised that wearing such a necklace only served to encourage the photographers to keep pursuing such images and new headlines,' they said. Prince Harry was REFUSED Queen's offer of a trial period' that would have allowed him and Meghan Markle to return to the fold 12 months after Megxit Prince Harry was so keen on quitting the royal family that he initially refused the offer of a trial period which could have seen him and Meghan return to the UK after Megxit, The review was insisted upon by courtiers and other royals, with the Queen keen to let Harry know he could return to the fold if he changed his mind. However, the Duke of Sussex was keen to make a 'clean break' and had to be persuaded to agree to the trial period. A source said: 'He was adamantly opposed to the review process.' Harry is thought to have been against the idea because it came from 'the institution' and he feared that a review would lessen the impact of their departure, allowing the media to write they could return. Prince Harry was so keen on quitting the royal family that he initially refused the offer of a trial period which could have seen him and Meghan return to the UK after Megxit. Meghan is pictured with the Queen in June 2018 Harry believed the 'old guard' at Buckingham Palace disliked Meghan and wanted to make her life difficult. That belief is thought to have fuelled his desire to not include a review option in Megxit. Harry 'ditched an old friend for criticising Meghan' The Duke of Sussex was so 'incandescent' with rage at the racist abuse Meghan Markle received after their relationship went public that he ditched an old friend for gossiping about her. Harry was shocked at the reception given to his new girlfriend by his social circle and the wider public, according to Finding Freedom. He was especially concerned about the ugliness of racism...both unconscious and intentional. Charles didn't know about Harry's press statement Before they were engaged, Harry gave a bombshell statement from Kensington Palace condemning the press while confirming Harry's new girlfriend. But it's release coincided with Prince Charles' tour in the Middle East, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall having arrived in Bahrain to meet the country's King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa. The palace decided to go ahead with the statement, much of it drafted by Harry himself. Before they were engaged, Harry gave a bombshell statement from Kensington Palace condemning the press while confirming Harry's new girlfriend, upsetting Charles who didn't know about the statement until 20 minutes before. Pictured: Prince Harry and Prince William walk behind Charles, and the Queen at Westminster Abbey. Also pictured: Duchesses of Cornwall (front), Cambridge (middle) and Sussex (back) His father only learnt of the statement 20 minutes before it was released and, unsurprisingly, it soon dominated the news cycle. Prince Charles and his team were left crushed and disappointed, though Charles also understood the intervention was a necessary one. However, the episode only served to prove that Harry felt the need to prioritise the woman he loved over duty to the royal family. Harry had a secret Instagram account Harry used the username SpikeyMau5, inspired by Canadian DJ Deadmau5, before freezing the account after his relationship with the former Suits star emerged in October 2016. The private Instagram profile had a mouse-shaped helmet for a picture - but piqued attention from Meghan's legions of fans when she became just one of two people following it four years ago just after the couple had a blind date at Dean Street Townhouse in Soho. The 'Spikey' element of its name came from the code word used by Scotland Yard officers guarding the Duke of Sussex 24/7. Harry and Meghan's 1500 a night camping trip Six weeks after their first date, Harry took Meghan to Botswana where the pair stayed in 1,500-a-night tents. A friend is quoted as saying: She came back smiling and just completely spellbound. Meghans phone was also said to be full of photos, including selfies of her and Harry. Ive never felt that safe that close to someone in such a short amount of time, she reportedly told a friend. They continued their relationship in secret with Harry flying out to Canada to spend time with her. But the authors said that ever since the couples trip to Africa, their romance had been on a fast track. Technically the getaway was just their third date but by then, they were each already dancing around the idea that this just may be a for ever thing, a friend said. The biography also claims: - The roles of police officials in various gold smuggling cases have come under scrutiny many times. With many officials from higher as well as the lower ranks detained and investigated in similar cases in the past, the recent incident in which 15 kg fake gold was confiscated demonstrates how the law enforcers also collude with racketeers in similar cases repeatedly. It has been found that two constables of the Metropolitan Police Circle in Darbarmarg, Bahadur Singh Kadayat and Prasanna Shrestha, were helping the accused flee rather than arresting them in the June 28 incident. The two personnel, as well as their informant, seem to have played a dual role in this case, which ultimately turned out to be a failure for both the smugglers and the police. What had happened Metropolitan Police Circle, Darbarmagarg had reported last week that its personnel found 15 kilograms of yellow material, looking like gold, along with two pistols in Kamaladi of Kathmandu on June 28. Later, it was revealed that only a half kilogram of the material was gold whereas the rest was silver, plated in gold. Following the revelation, the investigators turned suspicious about the role of the police and launched a high-level investigation. What has been found Officials involved in the investigation identify Nilesh Sakhiya and Sanjay Patel as key perpetrators in the case. Having come from Rajasthan, India with a plan to smuggle fake gold from Nepal, they have been found to have contacted their acquaintance, Iltaf Hussain Ansari of Bara, seeking his help in the task. As reported in Indian media, there is a growing trend in Rajasthan to sell counterfeit gold as genuine. Sakhiya and Patel came to Nepal with the plan to smuggle the fake gold to their home country. They had come to Bara on foot after parking their vehicle near the border area and came in contact with Hussein, who is also involved in counterfeit note trade. It has been found that the trioSakhiya, Patel, and Ansarientered Kathmandu on July 16 on Ansaris vehicle (Ba 6 Cha 5519) from Bara. They were planning to get aid from Dewan Patel of Rajasthan, who has been running a jewellery shop in New Road of Kathmandu for a long time. According to the officers involved in the investigation, Dewan Patel had asked Manish Mallik to coat the silver with gold to send it to the trio. Sakhiya and Sanjay Patel had already paid Rs 5.6 million for 14 kgs of silver. But, they did not pay any extra money for the gold plating. Dewan Patel had taken the bag of the yellow metal to Kamaladi to hand over to the trio. But the three still did not want to pay him for the gold-plating of silver as promised. Instead, they promised to pay the money gradually. An official involved in the investigation tells Onlinekhabar that Dewan Patel then planned to extort money from the trio by taking aid from the police. The dual role The group of three still had not paid the sum to Dewan Patel. So, he decided to tip the police and took help from his brother Kaushal Patel, who had a good acquaintance with police constable Bahadur Singh Kadayat when Kadayat was working in the Lazimpat station. Kadayat and Kaushal Patel then planned t rob the group of three of the white-turned-yellow metal so that Dewan Patel could get the money from them as demanded. On July 27 night, Kadayat was instructed to proceed as planned who, being the driver of the Durbarmarg police stations crime response vehicle, was incapable to execute it alone. Therefore, he asked help from Prasanna Shrestha, a constable at the police station. Meanwhile, Shrestha informed the stations chief DSP Ranjan Dahal that 15 kg of gold was being smuggled; he however did not give him details of the incident. Interestingly, Dahal did not know that Shrestha was informed by Kadayat, and Kadayat also did not know that Shrestha had leaked the information to DSP Dahal. Moreover, all three were unaware that the yellow metal was counterfeit gold. Kaushal Patel had falsely informed Kadayat that as it was genuine gold as he feared that the police would not help him if he told them if was fake. It has been found that Dewan Patel and Kaushal Patel had planned to make money from the police claiming themselves to be informants if the robbery plan had failed. Meanwhile, Shrestha wanted to inform his boss, Dahal, about the incident because he thought he could show him his hard work if the Patel brothers plan of robbing the fake gold failed. If there appeared any controversy in the process, the constable also thought the DSP would be blamed. Accordingly, the constable informed Dahal and waited in an ambush near the Chinese Visa Centre in Hattisar. But, the vehicle carrying the fake gold diverted to Kamalpokhari instead. Finding out that the police were chasing them, meanwhile, Sanjay Patel and Iltaf Ansari dropped Nilesh Sakhiya in Sundhara with the bag of gold. Sakhiya was told to take another vehicle from there, says an official involved in the investigation. He was told that he would be picked up later from anywhere he would go and that he would be bailed if caught. But, as soon as Sakhiya got out of the car, Bahadur Singh Kadayat grabbed him by the collar and took him to the pedestrian bridge nearby. Sakhiya then gave him the bag of gold to Kadayat, and Kadayat let him go. Meanwhile, he took out one of the 16 biscuits of gold and gave it to his friend, Umesh Shrestha, who hid it in his room at Bagbazar. Investigators later confiscated the gold bar from his room. Soon DSP Dahal arrived in Sundhara, and Kadayat got afraid of action against him. Therefore, he gave 15 biscuits of supposed gold to his boss, saying that the accused threw the bag and ran away. Police are now investigating whether Nilesh Sakhiya may have any relation with Dewan and Kaushal Patels. Dewan Patel, Vijay Patel, and Nilesh Sakhiya have been arrested while Iltaf Hussain Ansari is still at large. Faisal Sultan is currently the chief executive officer of Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital, a charity hospital started by the Pakistan prime minister Islamabad: Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan on Monday appointed his focal person on COVID-19 as the new health minister, the third in less than two years, amidst the ongoing fight against the coronavirus that has claimed nearly 6,000 lives and infected over 2,80,000 people in the country. Dr Faisal Sultan has been appointed as Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) with the status of a federal minister. He is the chief executive officer of Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital, Khan's charity hospital. "Prime Minister has been pleased to appoint Dr Faisal Sultan as SAPM on National Health Services, Regulation & Coordination with immediate effect. Dr Faisal Sultan shall hold status of Federal Minister, according to an official statement. Sultan, the prime minister's focal person on COVID-19, will replace Dr Zafar Mirza, who resigned last week as SAPM on health. On Wednesday, Mirza had taken to Twitter to announce his resignation as the SAPM on health, saying he had made the decision over the "negative discussion about the role of SAPMs and criticism of the government". Mirza was appointed last year after Amir Kayani was sacked as health minister when he failed to curb the prices of drugs in the country. Kayani was the first health minister in Khan's cabinet after he became the prime minister on 18 August, 2018. A consultant physician on medicine and infectious diseases, Sultan completed his graduation from the King Edward Medical College University, Lahore, in 1987. He also holds the postgraduate degrees of Diplomate American Board of Internal Medicine (1992) and Diplomate American Board of Infectious Disease (1994). "I am very pleased about the appointment of Dr Faisal Sultan as SAPM health. As Fed Minister he will be able to make decisions which is important. A capable professional with a good worldview. A good friend. I wish him every success," Mirza said in a tweet on Monday. The number of coronavirus cases in Pakistan reached 280,027 on Monday after 330 new infections were detected. The COVID-19 fatalities in the country stand at 5,984, the Ministry of National Health Services said on Monday. Genoa (Italy) -- Italy inaugurates a sleek new bridge in Genoa on Monday, though relatives of the 43 people killed when the old viaduct collapsed say the pomp and ceremony risk overshadowing the tragedy. Jets trailing the colours of the Italian flag will roar overhead as the national anthem plays, almost two years to the day the Morandi highway gave way during heavy rain, hurling dozens of cars and several trucks onto railway tracks below. President Sergio Mattarella will be the first to officially cross the new bridge, designed by famed Italian architect Renzo Piano, who gave it a curved, gleaming underbelly evoking the hull of a ship in tribute to Genoa's maritime history. The names of the victims will be read aloud -- though many of their loved ones will not be present. "We won't be at the inauguration, we don't want the tragedy to be transformed into a carnival," said Egle Possetti, whose sister died in the August 14, 2018 disaster along with her husband and their two children. "You can have this sort of big party if you knock down the bridge because it's old, you build a new one, and no one's died." The Morandi bridge had been riddled with structural problems for decades, leading to expensive maintenance, and its collapse threw the spotlight on Italy's creaking infrastructure. The tragedy also ended the longstanding concession of highway maintenance by a company majority-owned by the powerful Benetton family. The new high-tech structure will have four maintenance robots running along its length to spot weathering or erosion, as well as a special dehumidification system to limit corrosion. It is expected to open to traffic on Tuesday or Wednesday. 'An atrocious sight' Architect Piano, a Genoa native whose building designs include the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris and The Shard in London, has described his new creation as a "child born of tragedy". "It was horrific. I remember the sounds, the smells, terrible things," said Silvano Ruffoni, one of the first paramedics on the scene when, at just after 11:30 am, some 250 metres (820 feet) of the vast concrete structure crumbled into the void. "We were met by such an atrocious sight. The bridge was gone. We were thunderstruck," he said in an interview with the local daily Il Secolo XIX last week. The new viaduct, he said, was "a sign of rebirth". But Possetti, who is a spokeswoman for a victims' relatives group, said she would "never cross that bridge". "How could you be there and not think of everything that happened, and that destroyed your family," she told AFP. The Morandi was hailed a marvel of engineering when it opened in 1967, but an investigation into the disaster found it was neglected. Autostrade, which runs almost half of Italy's motorway network, has been accused of failing to maintain it properly, amid allegations of falsified safety reports and in-house pressure to slash maintenance costs. Atlantia, the parent group of Autostrade, is controlled by the wealthy Benetton family, which finally bowed to pressure last month to relinquish control of its besmirched toll-road operator, which will be nationalised. Autostrade is under investigation, along with several transport ministry officials, for culpable homicide. The preliminary probe is due to wind up in October, before a trial begins early next year, Possetti said. My hope is we will all do an outstanding job of de-escalating tensions, Mr. Wheeler said. At the precinct on Saturday night, the crowd stood on the street and chanted. Officers set up bright lights to shine into the crowd, angering some. When it appeared one of the officers had brought out what looked like a camera to film the crowd, some protesters pointed lasers at the device. Police said someone threw a glass jar or bottle at officers. The protest crowds have remained much larger than they had been in the days before federal agents had arrived. While protest crowds numbered in the thousands in early June, those figures waned over the month. But with the federal courthouse among the targets of some of the remaining demonstrators, and President Trump issuing an executive order to protect statues and government property around the country, federal agents deployed at the beginning of July. After months of delay, on July 23 the governments of Canada and Nova Scotia announced they were setting up a so-called "review panel" to examine the worst mass shooting in Canadian history. This more secretive and less powerful process was not the independent public inquiry that those most impacted by this event as well as law professors, Senators, and womens rights advocates had unanimously called for. Reaction was vocal and swift. The victims and families mobilized. Protests and general strikes were held across Nova Scotia. Petitions were signed. Federal Liberal backbenchers began disagreeing with their own governments decision. And so, mere days after their first announcement, on July 28, the governments finally made the right call and announced a public inquiry. So, what is a public inquiry, and why is this such a big deal? In a nutshell, an inquiry is a court-like process. Commissioners are appointed to investigate particular questions and given powers similar to those of a judge. They can order the production of documents, compel witnesses to give evidence, and make other orders necessary to support the inquiry process. Interested parties, including victims and their families, can choose to participate in the process, which permits them to call and cross-examine witnesses. Most importantly, an inquiry is public; anyone can attend or watch online. They can read the evidence, listen to the witnesses, and hear updates on the news as the inquiry does its work. Creating a public process with teeth to examine the worst mass shooting in Canadian history is imperative for many reasons. First, a public inquiry is more powerful than the "review panel" first announced, and is thus better positioned to uncover the truth. An inquiry can compel answers from unwilling parties because of the legal powers that underpin it. The entities whose conduct has been implicated including the police can be required to show up, produce documents, and cannot hide behind the excuse of "active investigations." Second, by default, an inquiry is open to the public. It pursues facts in the public interest, and opens its work to public scrutiny. The "review panel," by contrast, would not have been required to conduct its business in public or disclose any evidence it received. This transparency matters. It will enable the victims and their families to understand what really happened, and for all Nova Scotians to have confidence in the process itself. Third, public inquiries are better equipped to tackle systemic and structural problems, like gender-based violence or policing issues. They can make recommendations that governments are required to consider and respond to. In the current climate, when serious debates about defunding the police are ongoing, there is heightened demand to scrutinize police action. A public inquiry is better placed to do that scrutinizing and to recommend how to fix what went wrong. Finally, the victims and their families deserve this more powerful, transparent process. If we care about them as well as the broader societal impacts of the shooting particularly for women we should choose a process that accounts for their needs. This whole saga begs larger questions about why a public inquiry was not convened from the outset. Is this yet another example of womens rights not being taken seriously? Do the two responsible Ministers both retired police officers perhaps have a blindspot when it comes to policing issues? Would governments have acted the same way if the shootings had happened in Toronto or Montreal? Regardless, it is a good thing that governments eventually got to the right place on this. Nova Scotia will now have the public inquiry it deserves. NEW YORK, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Aniview LTD announced their approved status as the latest VENDOR to join IAB Europe's Transparency and Consent framework (the Framework). The framework, which was launched in April 2018, is designed to help all parties in the digital advertising chain ensure that they comply with the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and ePrivacy Directive when processing personal data or accessing and/or storing information on a user's device, such as cookies, advertising identifiers, device identifiers and other tracking technologies. The Framework was developed by IAB Europe in collaboration with organisations and professionals in the digital advertising industry. It provides transparency to consumers about how, and by whom, their personal data is processed. It also enables users to express choices. Moreover, the TCF enables vendors engaged in programmatic advertising to know ahead of time whether their own and/or their partners' transparency and consent status allows them to lawfully process personal data for online advertising and related purposes. Through the Framework, publishers can continue funding themselves through relevant online advertising, and brands can continue to reach their audiences. All the while and most importantly, consumer privacy is protected. Joining IAB Europe's Transparency and Consent framework is another important step for us to create a safe environment for our clients, as we are fully committed to the highest standards of transparency, said Alon Carmel CEO of Aniview. The added registration of Aniview LTD to the Framework, further bolsters IAB Europe's mission to raise the standard and trust in digital advertising across Europe. Aniview's patented technology provides a full ecosystem for serving video ads. Established in 2013, the company is dedicated to changing the landscape of video advertising through innovative technology. Amongst Aniview's clients are Premium publishers, networks, and advertisers around the world, who are utilizing Aniview's technology to deliver billions of monthly impressions. Aniview contact: Press: [email protected] Israel: Alon Carmel, CEO [email protected] US: Yael Schuster [email protected] SOURCE Aniview Inc. Related Links https://www.aniview.com By Ank Kuipers PARAMARIBO (Reuters) - Suriname's state-owned oil company Staatsolie is considering farming in to an offshore oil block where Apache Corp and France's Total SA have announced a third major discovery, an executive said on Sunday. Staatsolie has the right to a stake of up to 20% in the 1.4 million acre Block 58, where Apache and Total last week announced the find at the Kwaskwasi-1 well. The stake would cost the company $1-$1.5 billion to acquire given total development costs of $6-$7 billion, acting general manager Agnes Moensi-Sokowikromo told reporters. She said that while the company is keen to participate, now may not be the best time to begin raising funds given recent downgrades to Suriname's credit ratings. "We have to make sure that the funding is in order and that we are ready, and for that we need the state because we can't do it alone," Moensi-Sokowikromo said at a press conference. Suriname's economy collapsed under former strongman Desi Bouterse, who left office last month after former Justice Minister Chan Santokhi beat him in a June election. Discoveries this year have raised hopes that oil could boost the economy of Suriname, a former Dutch colony of 575,000 people. Optimism has surged since a consortium led by Exxon Mobil Corp discovered vast amounts of oil in neighboring Guyana, where crude production began last December. Santokhi told the press conference the government expected to receive between 60%-70% of total oil revenues once production began, which the state plans to deposit into a "savings and stabilization fund." "We have to make sure there are regulations that ensure the oil and the income from the oil will be used for sustainable development," Santokhi said. (Reporting by Ank Kuipers in Paramaribo, Suriname; Writing by Luc Cohen; editing by Richard Pullin) Harry Murray "I've always been impressed by Harry. His energy, enthusiasm, and care for agents is admirable and infectious." Chris Trapani, CEO and Co-Founder Sereno Group is inspired to announce the return of Harry Murray to its recently acquired East Bay brokerage, J. Rockcliff, where he will serve as the VP of Experience in the Danville office. A San Francisco Bay Area real estate executive with more than 40 years in real estate and over thirty years in executive management, Murray worked at Fox and Carskadon before going on to help build Alain Pinel Realtors into the successful real estate brokerage it became. Its a great honor and quite fitting to finally have this opportunity to work together with Harry and specifically at this critical inflection point in the history of real estate. We are excited to expand and amplify our good fight to ensure the long-term success and livelihood of quality, committed REALTORS, said Chris Trapani, Co-Founder, and CEO of Sereno Group. Before his first stint with J. Rockcliff, Murray managed the Fox and Carskadon Los Gatos office for over ten years, acted as Broker of Record for Alain Pinel Realtors for nearly 17 years and was Vice President and Directing Officer at Intero Real Estate Services. In his previous role as Vice President of J. Rockcliff, Murray played a pivotal role in the companys significance and success leading a powerhouse group of the most respected and productive agents out of its Danville office. Murray and Trapani, along with the combined leadership teams at both J. Rockcliff and Sereno Group are committed to a purposeful vision to protect the livelihood of REALTORS and ensure the role of the real estate professional continues to thrive. Sereno Groups independent growth plans include further expansion in the greater Bay Area and throughout Northern California with more announcements coming soon. About Sereno Group Founded in 2006, Sereno Group is, with the acquisition of J. Rockcliff, the largest independent and locally-owned residential real estate company with thirteen offices and 500 agents in Silicon Valley, Santa Cruz Coast, and the East Bay producing nearly $5 Billion in annual sales volume. The company offers a highly curated support platform and provides agents with concierge services to strengthen client relationships, as well as world-class technology for well-executed transactions. Sereno Group is particularly proud of its agent-driven 1% For Good, an initiative that is changing lives in our local communities, and to date, generated over $3.2 million in charitable donations. At the signing ceremony, Dr. Amr S. Talaat, the Minister of EMCIT, H.E. Mohamed Elbadri, the Ambassador of Egypt to China, and H.E. Liao Liqiang, the Ambassador of China to Egypt, all delivered remarks on the innovative cooperation between the two countries. After the remarks concluded, Ahmed Tantawy, the Executive Director of Applied Innovation Center (AIC) of EMCIT, Dr. Hu Yu, the Executive President of iFLYTEK, and Dr. Liu Junhua, the Deputy Director of iFLYTEK AI Research Institute, all spoke briefly about the agreement. Mr. Duan Dawei, the Senior Vice President and CFO of iFLYTEK, as well as other guests, attended the ceremony. Building a Bridge Between China and Egypt As ancient countries with long histories and splendid cultures, China and Egypt have made significant contributions to the dissemination of human knowledge and science. At the signing ceremony, Dr. Amr S. Talaat, the Minister of EMCIT, spoke about the significance of using translation software to increase the exchange and distribution of knowledge and science, a practice that will be extended and amplified to promote the economic development of both China and Egypt. He concluded by saying that he looks forward to strengthening Egypt's scientific and technological cooperation with China. "Egypt is the first African country to establish diplomatic relations with China. China and Egypt have established a comprehensive strategic partnership over the past 64 years," said Mr. Liao Liqiang, the Ambassador of China to Egypt. He explained that this cooperation helps to build a bridge of communication, friendship, and international rejuvenation for a quarter of the world's population. Mr. Liao Liqiang emphasized that the China-Egypt relationship is taking solid steps toward building a strong relationship with the Arab world and other African countries. In his speech, Dr. Hu Yu, the Executive President of iFLYTEK, pointed out that the cooperation presents iFLYTEK with a great opportunity to learn about Middle Eastern and African markets. After the Chinese-Arabic language system is complete, users will be able to use iFLYTEK's AI products. Dr. Hu Yu added that iFLYTEK plans to fully support the research on Arabic speech synthesis, speech recognition, and machine translation. Dr. Liu Junhua, the Deputy Director of iFLYTEK AI Research Institute, underlined two important aspects of the agreement. First, the two sides will finalize the construction of a high performing Chinese-Arabic automatic translation system. Second, iFLYTEK will provide speech and language technology training and share successful experiences with Egypt, helping young Egyptian researchers and engineers improve their skills. Seizing Opportunity Nothing can separate people who share the same vision. Before the signing ceremony, iFLYTEK had been in close contact with EMCIT in AI-related fields to explore cooperation opportunities. In August 2009, iFLYTEK signed a memorandum with EMCIT, and the prospects for cooperation between the two sides are now clear under the strategic framework. The Egyptian government has started the implementation of AI strategy and is committed to cultivating the technical skills of young citizens as well as a new generation of AI researchers and experts. Additionally, the government continuously promotes the application and development of artificial and cognitive intelligence in various fields. As one of the representative AI enterprises in China, iFLYTEK actively works toward its goal to "Create a Better World with AI," ensuring that multilingual technology research is one of its top priorities. After more than a year of discussions, Dr. Liu Junhua, the Deputy Director of iFLYTEK AI Research Institute, his team, and Ms. Fan Luting, the Regional Manager of Eastern Europe and the coordinator of this project, drafted and signed the research project agreement with the AIC. This agreement focuses on Arabic speech recognition, speech synthesis, and Chinese-Arabic translation and outlines six milestones to reach within the next three years, defining the responsibility divisions between the two parties. Throughout the next three years, the two parties will work together and develop a high performing Chinese-Arabic Speech Translation System to provide automatic translation services for the increasing demand for Chinese-Arabic bidirectional conversations and promote closer cooperation. Working Together to Advance Economic Cooperation The signing of the cooperation agreement represents an important aspect of the global infrastructure development strategy, the Belt and Road Initiative, to advance economic cooperation. On July 6, the 9th ministerial meeting of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum occurred. The meeting noted that under the current circumstances, it is crucial that China and the Arab world strengthen their cooperation and move forward together. Taking this meeting as an opportunity, the two sides revamped their strategic communication, coordination and steadily advanced their collaboration in various fields such as pandemic prevention and the improvement of the economic partnership between China and Arab countries. As a member of the AI national team, iFLYTEK actively promotes the construction of the Speech Silk Road. iFLYTEK is committed to providing Arabic language editions of commercial products and solutions to Egypt to improve China's research of Arabic and to promote economic and trade partnerships along the Belt and Road. Trying to accomplish something alone can be difficult, but working together makes it easier to achieve mutual goals. With an inclusive attitude, iFLYTEK will continue to actively carry out international cooperation to create a better world for all mankind. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1221805/Signing_Ceremony.jpg Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1222937/Logo.jpg SOURCE iFLYTEK China has long sought to increase its influence in the South China Sea, but its moves have often been offset by American and Australian intervention - PETTY OFFICER 2NDCLASS DIANA QUI/AFP China has quietly changed how it identifies a vast stretch of international waters in a shipping regulation, indicating it as a coastal region, rather than offshore, as authorities seek to exert even greater control over the South China Sea. The amended regulation, first drafted in the 1970s, went into effect on Saturday, and establishes a navigation area from Chinas Hainan island in the south, all the way down to the disputed Paracel Islands, which sit east of Vietnams coastline. The revision, however small, allows Beijing yet another avenue to justify its claims in the region. The move is pretty consistent with the broader, general patterns of China seeking creeping jurisdiction using domestic laws to assert its claims and extend control in the South China Sea, said Collin Koh,a research fellow at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. With those domestic laws and regulations being implemented quietly without fanfare, the less likely itll attract undue external attention, so that over time a fait accompli is created - in other words, for Beijing to change facts on the ground. The risk, in the long run, is that this area of ocean already flanked by Chinese military interests and installations, could turn a navigational zone to a future security alert zone, he said. The change comes as China has displayed increasing swagger in the South China Sea, where Beijing and a number of Southeast Asian countries all lay claim to the rocks, reefs and waters. The uninhabited island of Spratly in the South China Sea is one of the many disputed territories in the region - Erik de Castro/Reuters China has been accused of stepping up its maritime push in these resource-rich waters while the rest of the world remains busy battling the coronavirus pandemic. The US and Australia conducted joint naval exercises this summer in the region, angering Beijing. In response, the Chinese military in July engaged in drills in the region, deploying bombers and simulating nighttime takeoffs, long-range raids and attacks on sea targets, according to state media. Story continues Both Washington and Canberra have since officially rejected Chinese claims to the South China Sea. In the past, both countries had stressed the importance of all countries maintaining access to these waters, stopping short of classifying Chinese activity as illegal. The concern has long been that an increasingly assertive Beijing could use access to the South China Sea along key international shipping routes as a tool for economic coercion to squeeze nations during diplomatic rows. Beijings recent maritime push has extended beyond the South China Sea to the East China Sea, angering Japan. The Indian military has also stepped up operations in the Indian Ocean over concerns that China will next look to assert itself at sea against Delhi, after a land border skirmish in June led to a number of Indian casualties. In a surprising announcement, United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said US President Donald Trump would soon take action against Chinese-owned software TikTok that the official believes is posing a national security risk. Banning TikTok According to BBC, Pompeo accused the worldwide popular video app is among several that are directly sending data they gather from users to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The official's announcement comes a few days after Trump said he would have TikTok banned in the US. However, the company has denied the accusations that the Chinese government is controlling its operations or receives the data that the app gathers from its users. During an interview with Fox News Channel, Pompeo noted Trump's action would be taken into consideration concerning a variety of national security risks that other software present which are connected with the CCP. The secretary of state said there were plenty of other companies conducting their business within the United States who are possibly supplying sensitive information to the CCP. Pompeo noted the information could include facial recognition patterns, residential addresses, phone, numbers, and contacts. During the interview, Pompeo said US President Trump has had enough of the risks and will be working on fixing it. On Friday, Trump told reporters that he was planning on signing an executive order that would move to ban TikTok from operating in the United States. Currently, the app has nearly 80 million active users every month. ByteDance, a Chinese company, is the owner of TikTok, which is widely used by people around the world, mostly by individuals who are aged 20 years old or below. Also Read: Fauci Praises Trump's Coronavirus Policies That Saves Poeple's Lives Meaningless move However, despite the US president having the power to block the app from being used in the US, Alex Stamos, who was previously responsible for stopping foreign incursions at both Facebook and Yahoo, said Trump's administration should be looking forward to their next move, as reported by The New York Times. Stamos states that since the country does not have a powerful Firewall, if the US government successfully blocks TikTok, ByteDance could decide to make the app into a side-loaded Android app or a mobile website, which would be impossible for Trump to block. Amid the talks of banning the app in the country, tech-giant Microsoft is in the middle of discussions to buy TikTok. According to CNN, in a blog post on Sunday, CEO of Microsoft, Satya Nadella, said he had talked with Trump about purchasing TikTok. For weeks, several US lawmakers have expressed their worries that the app was giving out sensitive information of its users to the CCP. The concerns surface amid rising tensions between the US and China over several weeks of accusations of illegal activities from each party. The company said it was committed to taking the video app and giving it a complete security review and overhaul that would ensure the safety of its users' data and information which would benefit the United States. Microsoft had also noted that it would move quickly to discuss with officials in the coming weeks. Related Article: Fact Check: Will Trump's Order Drop the Prices of Insulin to "Pennies a Day?" @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces Lt. General Onik Gasparyan has visited the 4th and 5th Army Corps HQs on August 1, the Defense Ministry said in a news release. Gasparyan checked the readiness levels of the military bases, the implemented actions and the capabilities of commanders in commanding actions of the divisions in different scenarios. The commanders of the corps briefed Lt. General Gasparyan on the border situation, the troops physical, combat and morale level and mission objectives of the units. Lt. General Onik Gasparyan issued instructions to the unit commanders. Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan Claire Ehrlich has been appointed to librarian/instructor at Mohawk Valley Community College. Previously, she served as coordinator of library instruction at Carl Sandburg College, in Illinois, and was assistant director of Hannibal Free Public Library, in Missouri. Ehrlich holds a masters degree in library and information science from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, and a bachelors degree in English from the University of Notre Dame. Do you have a People in Motion item? Send your press release to business@syracuse.com. PHOENIX The biggest knock-down, drag-out primary election fight among the 90 Arizona Senate and House seats up for grabs in November features two sitting Republican lawmakers in a suburban north Phoenix district battling for the soul of the GOP. Sen. Heather Carter, known as one of the more moderate GOP lawmakers, is defending her seat against a challenge from Rep. Nancy Barto, a social conservative who has embraced anti-abortion and religious freedom legislation. Both have represented the 15th District, either in the Senate or House, for years Barto since 2006 and Carter since winning her first election in 2010. They are not fast friends, and backers of the candidates have poured more than $1.8 million into the race, breaking about 2-1 for Carter. The health care community is backing Carter, while social conservative and low-tax groups have Bartos back. The fierce GOP battle is playing out as Democrats see a chance to gain control of at least one legislative chamber for the first time in decades, a reality thats drawn business interests traditional Republican allies to get involved in Democratic primaries as well. Carter is not happy with Bartos tactics, which have attacked her for opposing some, but not most, anti-abortion legislation over the years. The lies and political spin in this campaign are over the top. My opponent kicked off her campaign attacking me and it was weeks before she even talked about herself, Carter said last week. Ive never seen anything like it in a legislative primary and the voters are sick and tired of it. Carter touted her efforts to champion health care issues, pushing for laws addressing the opioid epidemic, physician shortages, telemedicine and expanding the states Medicaid and KidsCare programs. And she said she is as anti-abortion as can be and only opposed unconstitutional restrictions on abortion. Not only am I pro-life but I am pro-pregnant mom, I am pro-mother, Carter said. Why does Nancy Barto fight me year after year to block the advance of some of the moms and baby bills that weve run. Barto is in a safe House seat and not term-limited, but said she is challenging Carter because the incumbents values dont align with the district. She didnt return a call seeking comment, instead sending a lengthy statement explaining her reasons for running. Because it isnt safe to allow a Senator from this district to continue undermining the freedoms and values she was elected to defend, all while misleading the voters of our district, she wrote. For the last 10 years, Carter has repeatedly voted with Democrats against the principles and values our district holds on limited, accountable government, education choice, protecting life and religious freedom, the 2nd amendment, illegal immigration and growing government health care. Carter said she votes with Republicans the vast majority of the time. But she has angered Republicans, especially in 2019 when she refused to back a state budget deal unless lawmakers approved a measure allowing people who were molested as children to sue their attackers. Barto said its important to oust Carter to protect religious freedom and individual liberties. We are living in historic times and witnessing how our freedoms have already been dangerously eroding, Barto wrote. We cant afford to see them destroyed. Whoever wins Tuesdays primary will automatically win the seat, since theres no Democrat running. Other Republican incumbents also face primary challenges. Sen. Sylvia Allen, a longtime 6th District lawmaker from Snowflake who chairs the Education Committee, is being challenged by retired Air Force Lt. Col. Wendy Rogers, who has run for Congress several times and now is eyeing the state Senate. Rogers has spent more than $450,000 on her effort as of mid-July, vastly more than Allens $110,000, and outside groups poured in more than $430,000 backing or opposing the candidates. Scottsdale Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita faces a well-funded challenge in the 23rd District from attorney Alex Kolodin, who has attacked her for being a scandal-plagued career politician. Thats a reference to allegations that she and her husband sexually harassed a female lobbyist, which she denies. Ugenti-Rita is a longtime lawmaker whose harassment allegations against former Rep. Don Shooter led to his expulsion. Sen. David Livingston is being challenged by two underfunded GOP candidates in Peorias 22nd District. And former Sen. Steve Montenegro is trying for a comeback. He left the Legislature in December 2017 to make an unsuccessful run for Congress. That effort was notable because of misconduct allegations against Montenegro dating from his Senate tenure that emerged during his U.S. House campaign. Montenegro is running for one of two 13th District House seats now held by Republicans Joanne Osborne and Timothy Dunn. The district runs from the western Phoenix suburbs down to Yuma County. ___ This story has been corrected to reflect that the misconduct allegations against Steve Montenegro, who is seeking a state House seat, became public after he resigned his state Senate seat in December 2017, not while he was in office. Photo: The Canadian Press Canada will provide a military transport plane to support United Nations peacekeeping missions for another year despite losing its bid for a temporary seat on the UN Security Council. The first of 17 new CC-130J Hercules aircraft is seen through the cockpit of an older model of the Hercules after landing at Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Trenton on Friday, June 4, 2010. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrien Veczan Canada will provide a military transport plane to support United Nations peacekeeping missions for another year despite losing its bid for a temporary seat on the UN Security Council. Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan's office confirmed the continued deployment of a CC-130 Hercules in support of UN missions in Africa on Sunday, ending months of speculation about the fate of the mission. "The Canadian Armed Forces are playing an important role in transporting critical supplies and personnel to support the UN in the region," Sajjan said in a statement to The Canadian Press. "We understand the importance of Canada working with our international allies and partners like the United Nations, which is why we have renewed Canadian Armed Forces support for an additional year." The Hercules, which has been based out of Uganda five days per month since August 2019, was one of three signature promises that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made to the UN when Canada hosted a major peacekeeping summit in November 2017. Trudeau also promised the UN that Canada would provide a helicopter detachment, which operated in Mali from June 2018 to September 2019. He also pledged a quick reaction force comprised of up to 200 troops, which has yet to be fulfilled. Many saw the promises as an attempt by the Liberal government to bolster its bid for a two-year seat on the UN Security Council, and there had been questions about the CC-130 after Canada lost to Norway and Ireland on the first ballot in June. Sajjan also said that the Hercules recently resumed flights to and from Uganda after a four-month suspension due to COVID-19. "Following a temporary operational pause due to COVID-19, the tactical detachment in Uganda has recently completed a 10-day mission out of Entebbe," he said. The plane moved about 42 tonnes worth of cargo and 400 passengers, he added. Canadian Forces College professor Walter Dorn, one of Canada's foremost experts on peacekeeping, welcomed the extension, which he described as "pioneering" since the plane isn't assigned to one specific UN mission but helps many in Africa. "It's a pioneering service," he said. "The first national contribution for multi-operation air service in UN history, with operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan already serviced and other missions to be added." Dorn nonetheless lamented that the Hercules is only available for five days a month even as he noted that Canada's overall contribution to peacekeeping remains at an all-time low with 34 police officers and military personnel around the world. LOS ANGELES, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Wonderful Company, which is dedicated to harvesting health around the world, announced today that it has established a new $1 million relief fund to support nonprofit organizations and schools in California's Central Valley. The fund prioritizes local programs, services, and resources that were impacted by COVID-19, either by state and federal budget cuts or in direct response to new critical needs. Funding will go to the organizations and schools that can demonstrate community impact in Wasco, Delano, Shafter, Firebaugh, Avenal, Sanger, Mendota, or Del Rey. "Now more than ever, we are focused on the health and well-being of our employees, both while they are doing the essential work of feeding our nation and when they return home to be with their families. We are doing everything in our power to support the vulnerable communities where our employees live and work. Our hope is that our $1 million fund will help to stimulate or reinvigorate many vital programs whose budgets have been cut in the face of this devastating pandemic," said Andy Anzaldo, chief operating officer of Philanthropy at The Wonderful Company. "The Wonderful Company has become a critical partner in our ongoing efforts to provide fresh produce to rural communities like Wasco and Delano through our annual Farmers' Market program in the spring and summer," said Jeremy Tobias, CEO at Community Action Partnership of Kern (CAPK). "As we face the COVID-19 health crisis, these efforts have become vital for our communities. We've been able to use generous funding from the Wonderful Community Grants program to collect and deliver healthy fruits, vegetables, and staple foods to thousands of low-income individuals and families who are facing the greatest challenges during this pandemic." Submissions are now open for COVID-19 relief grants ranging from $1,000$100,000. Applications must be submitted by August 31, 2020 to receive priority and all participating organizations will be notified by September 14, 2020. To learn more about the submission process and requirements, please visit https://www.wonderfulcommunitygrants.com/. Since its launch in 2016, the Wonderful Community Grants program has contributed more than $2 million to 90 grants, including nonprofits and city and county governments. This year, Wonderful has significantly expanded the scope and funding of its existing program as part of a proactive and concerted company-wide fight against COVID-19. Each year, The Wonderful Company invests millions of dollars in far-reaching community development, education, and health and wellness programs across the Central Valley and beyond, with the goal of enriching and enhancing the lives of our employees who live there. Assets here: https://bit.ly/3feEWjT About The Wonderful Company The Wonderful Company is a privately held $5 billion global company dedicated to harvesting health around the world. Its iconic brands include FIJI Water, POM Wonderful, Wonderful Pistachios, Wonderful Halos, Wonderful Seedless Lemons, Teleflora, JUSTIN Wines, JNSQ Wines, and Landmark Wines. The Wonderful Company's connection to consumers has health at its heart and giving back in its DNA. To learn more about The Wonderful Company, its products, and its core values, visit www.wonderful.com, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. To view the current Corporate Social Responsibility report, visit www.wonderful.com/csr. SOURCE The Wonderful Company Related Links https://www.wonderful.com A man was flown to the hospital after being injured in a drive-by shooting early Monday afternoon near a Northwest Miami-Dade elementary school. Miami-Dade police responded to a shots fired call around 2:05 p.m. near 4710 Northwest 178th Terrace, according to a police spokesman. When officers arrived about a mile away from North Glade Elementary School they found a wounded adult man. Officers said the man was alert and conscious. Miami-Dade Fire Rescue airlifted the victim to Aventura Hospital and Medical Center. Police did not release a description of the car or the person responsible for the shooting, and said the investigation is ongoing. PHILADELPHIA - A new Penn Medicine study sheds light on yet another reason why the coronavirus pandemic is disproportionately killing the poor: Residents in low-income neighborhoods lack access to intensive care unit (ICU) beds. While the shortage of ICU beds in the United States has been documented since the pandemic began, the new report, published Monday in the August issue of Health Affairs, is the first to show how starkly a person's ZIP code affects access to COVID-19 care. Most dramatically, approximately half of communities with the lowest median household incomes (less than $35,000) have zero ICU beds per ten thousand residents age fifty or older, compared with just 3 percent of communities with household incomes of at least $90,000. ICU, or critical care units, provide life support and high-tech equipment for patients with serious, life-threatening illnesses who require continuous care and monitoring. In the case of COVID-19, patients who are unable to breathe on their own require the ventilator support offered by an ICU to survive. For seriously ill patients, having access to an ICU is the difference between life and death. The findings suggest that policymakers must take action, such as facilitating hospital sharing and publicly financing specialized resources, said study principal investigator Genevieve P. Kanter, PhD, an assistant professor of Medicine, Medical Ethics, and Health Policy in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. "Because low-income communities face higher infection rates of the virus, as well as a higher prevalence of comorbidities -- which increases the risk of death from the disease -- the low supply of ICU beds compounds the impact COVID-19 will have on these communities," Kanter said. "Plans should be made for coordinating how hospitals can share these burdens." The study sample consisted of the ICU bed capacity of 4,518 short-term and critical access hospitals in the 50 states and Washington, D.C., obtained from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Healthcare Provider Cost Reporting Information System. The researchers used 2018 five-year American Community Survey estimates to gather information about population, age distribution, racial distribution, and median household income. Rather than comparing ICU bed capacity by county or ZIP code, the researchers instead aggregated their data by hospital service area (HSA), which is defined as a set of ZIP codes corresponding to the area in which residents receive most of their hospital care. The study found that ICU availability varied considerably across the country. More than one third of American communities had zero ICU beds. Geographically, half of hospital service areas in the Midwest census region and 34 percent in the West had zero ICU beds per then thousand residents age fifty or older. By contrast, 52 percent of hospital service areas in the Northeast and 54 percent in the South had more than four ICU beds per ten thousand residents age fifty or older The researchers also found a large gap in access by income: 49 percent of the lowest-income communities had no ICU beds in their communities, compared to only 3 percent of the highest income areas. Conversely, 46 percent of the lowest-income communities had an ICU bed supply of more than four beds per ten thousand residents age fifty or older, while a total of 59 percent of the highest-income places had more than four beds per ten thousand. These differences were most pronounced in rural areas. Similar proportions of low-, middle-, and high-income communities in cities had access to more than seven ICU beds per ten thousand residents age fifty or older, compared with communities in less urban areas. In response to these disparities, the study's authors suggest several steps that policymakers might take to mitigate further harms of COVID-19 in these regions. First, they point out that individual hospitals facing severe COVID-19-related financial losses have little incentive to attract critically-ill patients from underserved areas, as these patients often lack extensive insurance coverage, and the costs of their care often exceed reimbursement rates. Therefore, the authors recommend that higher-level coordination is needed at the county, state, and federal levels to facilitate hospital sharing of the demand for care and to publicly finance specialized resources, such as ventilators and critical care doctors. Second, the researchers say that the typical emergency medical system guideline to "transport to the nearest hospital" should be revisited under these new pandemic conditions. Local emergency medical services agencies should develop plans for how and under what conditions patients can be transported to hospitals outside their immediate communities and how these transport protocols will be communicated to the public. And lastly, the study's authors argue that emergency funds need to be directed toward hospitals lacking sufficient ICU resources, especially those caring for large older populations that are more likely to be hospitalized for COVID-19. "I hope our study provides policymakers with information on which communities will be in greatest need, as well as guidance in the steps required to meet those needs," Kanter said. ### Additional Penn authors of this study are Andrea G. Segal and Peter W. Groeneveld. IONIA COUNTY, MI A Utah woman is charged with second-degree murder in an alleged drunken-driving crash that killed a Michigan State Police trooper. Trooper Caleb Starr, 33, assigned to the Lakeview post, died Friday, July 31, of injuries sustained in a July 10 crash near Saranac. State police announced that the other driver, a 28-year-old woman, was arrested Monday, Aug. 3, at a residence in Ionia. Her name was withheld pending arraignment in Ionia County District Court. She is charged with second-degree murder, operating with a high blood-alcohol content with a prior conviction, operating while license is suspended, revoked or denied, causing death, and operating while intoxicated. The crash happened around 10 p.m. The woman was driving east on Grand River Avenue, west of Nash Highway, when her vehicle crossed the center line and struck Starrs westbound patrol vehicle head-on, state police said. The woman was also seriously injured, police said. Starr lived in Mason with his wife, Rachael, and their girls, ages 5 and 2. A GoFundMe page was established to help his family. Starr joined state police in September 2018. Funeral services have not yet been finalized. Read more: State police trooper dies 3 weeks after head-on Ionia County crash Police believe Utah woman was drinking before crash that seriously injured state trooper Michigan mother of 1-year-old twin boys charged with child abuse after one dies Rajesh Kumar Thakur By Express News Service PATNA: Perturbed over the treatment meted out to Patna (Central) SP Vinay Tiwari in Mumbai, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar termed the act of civic authorities in Mumbai for placing the IPS officer under quarantine as"not right" . The chief minister, on being asked by the media on Monday morning, said that whatever happened to him (Tiwari) was not 'right'. "It is not political as Bihar police is discharging its legal responsibility. Our DGP has been asked to speak to his Maharashtra counterpart over the issue, "Kumar said while on his way to attend the monsoon session of Legislative Assembly. ALSO READ| Bihar DGP to speak to Maharashtra Police on cop being quarantined in Mumbai, says Nitish Kumar Meanwhile, leaders of all poltical parties, condemned the act of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) of placing an IPS officer, who was sent to lead the investigation on behalf of Bihar police of actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death. The JDU and BJP leaders accused the Maharashtra government of trying to influence the investigation by resorting to such an act. RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also termed the incident 'highly objectionable'. Bihar Congress MLC Prem Chandra Mishra termed the incident as 'the most unfortunate'. Meanwhile, DGP Gupteshwar Pandey said that all options are being discussed after this development with sources saying that the state police chief didn't sleep the whole night after he was informed by Tiwari about the developments. "Ab kehne ko kya bacha hai (Now what is left to speak about)," Pandey said when asked by the media on the developments. A senior IPS officer, preferring anonymity, said that the DGP has taken it seriously and as a challenge. "When it comes to the investigation or matter related to image of the department, he doesn't compromise with anyone," the officer said. Police sources as well as those in poltical fraternity were shocked to know that no other passengers of the flight by which Tiwari had gone to Mumbai on Sunday, have been quarantined except for the officer himself. "It goes without saying how the Maharashtra government has gone hell-bent upon to hush up the actor's death case by hook or by crook. The Mumbai Police are being used as a tool by the government," BJP spokesperson Dr Nikhil Anand alleged. Government-sanctioned safe supply not enough to get some off fentanyl-laced street drugs In the morning, David Keeler starts off with a dose of methadone dispensed by a pharmacist. A few hours later, he swallows 28 prescription pills of hydromorphone, a synthetic opioid prescribed by a doctor. By late afternoon, the 44-year-old Victoria man is turning to his own stash of drugs he bought from a dealer. "It just doesn't reach my addiction," Keeler said of the hydromorphone pills he takes every day, which were prescribed through the province's safe supply program. Back in March, new provincial guidelines were issued that gave physicians the go-ahead to more widely prescribe opiates and other substances to those struggling with addiction. In order to qualify for the medication, which is covered by B.C's Pharmacare plan, people have to be at risk of developing a COVID-19 infection and at high risk of overdosing or going through withdrawal. The change was made because of concerns that the pandemic could disrupt the drug supply, along with a desire to have those at risk self-isolate. Briar Stewart/CBC News However four months on, there has been a spike in the number of deadly overdoses and repeated calls for the government to do more to confront the opioid crisis, which was first declared a health emergency in B.C. in 2016. Some, including B.C.'s premier, John Horgan, and the head of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police have been calling for drug decriminalization while others want to see people legally prescribed the same substances they are addicted to. Prescription opioids Keeler is one of nearly 2,000 people now on hydromorphone in the province, most of whom have been given prescriptions since the safe supply program was rolled out. He started using heroin when he was 14, and at first, he said, the hydromorphone seemed to be reducing his cravings for more drugs, but now, he doesn't think it's having much effect. Some days, he doesn't even take the pills, which is why a stockpile is building up in the supportive housing unit he lives in. Story continues "Maybe more than half of the people that I know that are on these are looking to sell them," he said. Keeler, who works with the Society of Living Illicit Drug Users (SOLID), equates giving hydromorphone to a serious addict with giving Tylenol to someone who has just had major surgery: It is nowhere near strong enough. He would like to be prescribed heroin. "Give people what they need, because if they don't get what they need they are going to go after it." Briar Stewart/CBC Increased toxicity Experts say the drugs available on the streets have become even more deadly in recent months. In June, 175 people died of overdoses in B.C., which was the highest number in a single month since the province started tracking overdoses. Before that, May set a similarly dismal record with 171 deaths. According to B.C.'s Coroners Service, fentanyl is detected in more than 80 per cent of deadly overdoses, and toxicology tests between April and June found there was an increase in the number of deaths where "extreme fentanyl concentrations" were found in the bloodstream. The drug supply, which experts speculate comes by way of the U.S. and China, has been disrupted by the pandemic border closures to non-essential traffic and has become more toxic with not only higher levels of fentanyl but additional substances being added in. CBC Drug testing Allen Custance, a technician and harm reduction worker with the organization Get Your Drugs Tested, said he normally sees samples of what are called "down" drugs that are powerful depressants and can be a combination of fentanyl, heroin as well as other chemicals. Normally, he sees fentanyl concentrations between five to 10 per cent, but in recent months, he has been seeing some samples of "down" drugs with fentanyl at 20 to 30 per cent. "To most people, that is enough to overdose even a seasoned user with a higher tolerance," said Custance. He analyzes samples using a piece of equipment called an FTIR spectrometer, which employs an infrared laser to detect the chemical make-up of drugs. Most of the samples come from users and dealers who drop them off at the group's location in east Vancouver, but about a quarter are mailed in from other locations in Canada. In addition to fentanyl, he has been seeing more drugs that have benzodiazepines, tranquilizers that depress the central nervous system. WATCH | Allen Custance explains what he found when he tested the quality of street drugs: On Vancouver Island, a team from the University of Victoria is also testing drugs and seeing similar trends. Bruce Wallace, an associate professor and scientist with the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research, said they test about 100 samples a month. The service isn't just about showing which drugs are more potent; it's also about quality control, he says. "Just as when we go to the grocery store, we want the label to show the product that we are buying." Briar Stewart/CBC Having the overdose crisis worsen during the global pandemic has caused the province to move urgently on a number of fronts, such as introducing safe supply and moving people living in tent encampments into hotels. However, Wallace wishes Canada would move toward decriminalization. "[COVID-19] has really shone a light on a lot of the inequities that we have in society and a lot of what hasn't been working in public health" Wallace said. The drive to decriminalize Decriminalization would have to be done at a federal level, and Ottawa has not said what it thinks of the push to decriminalize illicit drugs, just that it is committed to harm reduction and treating substance use as a health issue. While the safe supply guidelines are seen as a significant step in B.C., some say there are still widespread challenges. Briar Stewart/CBC Many of the narcotics being prescribed have to be picked up every day at a pharmacy and while some offer delivery, Dr. Ashley Heaslip believes there are still barriers to access. She says people living in smaller communities may have more difficulty finding a doctor willing to write that kind of prescription, and if somebody is staying in shelters or on the street, it can be difficult to connect with the pharmacy every day. The province was unable to provide data for how many people who signed up for the program are still on it, and Heaslip said those who typically quit taking the prescriptions are without access to housing and additional support. Heaslip, who works with the PHS Community Services Society, says several ideas are being discussed about how to make it easier for people to get and stay on their prescriptions, but she says it is essential that those who use drugs are involved in any decisions. As for Keeler, he is still taking street drugs but said he always tests them first. After speaking with CBC, he was on his way to a memorial for three people who had died of overdoses in Victoria. "175 people in one month. It's ridiculous," he said. "It's your kids, it's your family, it's your friends." WATCH | Keeler would prefer to have safe access to heroin than the government-approved alternatives: GALVESTON, Texas - A multidisciplinary team from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston has uncovered a Zika virus mutation that may be responsible for the explosive viral transmission in 2015/2016 and for the cause of microcephaly (babies with small heads) born to infected pregnant women. The study is currently available in Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences. The Zika virus caused a global epidemic in 2015 and 2016. Like West Nile, dengue, yellow fever, and chikungunya viruses, the Zika virus is primarily transmitted by mosquitoes. These viruses pose constant threats to populations living in areas with mosquitoes. Dengue virus alone causes 390 million human infections each year. Because these viruses circulate between mosquitoes and animals/humans, they are prone to genetic mutations, making them highly capable of emerging and causing epidemics. In this study, the UTMB team has identified a mutation in the Zika envelope protein that can enhance mother-to-baby transmission in pregnant mice, increase neurological disease and lethality in newborn mice and elevate virus levels in the blood of infected non-human primates. When a mosquito bites an individual with the Zika virus, the elevated virus level in the blood increases the potential of transmitting the virus to mosquitoes, consequently promoting the establishment of urban transmission of the virus between mosquitoes and humans. "Our study demonstrates that the Zika envelope mutation V473M, which just occurred before the 2015 epidemic in the Americas, enhances Zika virus particle assembly in infected cells. The enhanced virus assembly leads to increased human disease and maternal transmission," said Pei-Yong Shi, I.H. Kempner professor of Human Genetics at UTMB. "The viral genetic change reported here, combined with the naive herd immunity, may have accounted for the Zika epidemic and severe diseases in 2015 and 2016." "There are over 500 known arboviruses, among which 100 of these can cause human diseases," said Chao Shan, a former UTMB Research Scientist who co-senior authored the study. "Because arbovirus polymerase - an enzyme responsible for amplifying the viral genetic footprint - lacks proofreading capability, these viruses are prone to high mutation frequencies. So, these viruses often emerge and reemerge. During the past two decades, we have witnessed the emergence of West Nile, dengue, yellow fever, chikungunya viruses, and Zika viruses." "RNA viruses are the pathogens most often responsible for outbreaks and epidemics, including Ebola virus and SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19" said Shi. "Understanding the mechanisms of viral emergence and transmission is essential to detect and respond to future outbreaks. Although the world is currently focusing on COVID-19, I am certain that COVID-19 will not be the last emerging virus we face. Moving forward, building public health capacity and countermeasure technology are the only effective means to overcome these threats." ### Other UTMB authors and external collaborators include Hongjie Xia, Sherry Haller, Sasha Azar, Yang Liu, Jianying Liu, Antonio Muruato, Rubing Chen, Shannan Ross, Maki Wakamiya, Nikos Vasilakis, Rongjuan Pei, Camila Fontes-Garfias, Sanjay Kumar Singh, Xuping Xie and Scott Weaver. To study emerging viruses, the UTMB team has received grants from the National Institutes of Health and philanthropic support from the Sealy & Smith Foundation; Robert J. Kleberg, Jr. and Helen C. Kleberg Foundation; John S. Dunn Foundation; Amon G. Carter Foundation; Gillson Longenbaugh Foundation; Summerfield G. Roberts Foundation. President Akufo-Addo has today, Monday, August 3, registered to vote. President Akufo-Addo registered at the Rock of Ages voter registration centre at Kyebi in the Eastern Region. The First Lady, Rebecca Akufo-Addo, and their kids, also registered at the same polling station. The President after registering urged Ghanaians who havent registered yet, to go and register so they can vote on December 7. You need to register to participate in choosing the government of your choice. What will be sad is to sit in the house and then other people make a decision for you. So its better that everybody who has not registered should come out and be registered. It is a simple process and its not complicated. In 2016, I asked the people of Ghana to give me a chance and see my handy works and they gave me the charge so it is now for them to decide on how they see my performance. President Akufo-Addo also thanked Electoral Commission officials at the centre for their work and urged all Ghanaians who have not registered to come and register. Director of Communications for Ghana Gas Company Limited, Ernest Owusu Bempah says the NDC's intention of bringing Prof Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang on board "to clean up the mess of the incompetent one" will not work. "They brought Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang to clean up the mess of the incompetent one . . . this shows the hypocrisy of the NDC. What didnt they do to Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings. They vilified her, they insulted her . . . today they are seeing Prof Jane Naana as their Messiah," he said. Speaking in an interview on Neat FM, Ernest Owusu Bempah asked Ghanaians to "compare Mahamas promises to his track record; they will realize that his comments are all deceitful and that he has nothing to offer". According to him the NDC will soon be exposed for their lies and deceit. Listen to him in the video 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 Siemens Healthineers agreed to buy Varian Medical Systems for about $16.4 billion in cash in the biggest medical acquisition of the year. The German medical technology company offered $177.5 a share for the Palo Alto, California-based business, 24% more than its closing price on Friday. The bid will be financed through both debt and equity, Siemens Healthineers said in a statement on Sunday. Bloomberg was first to report the offer on Saturday. The deal would give Healthineers a sizable market share in the rapidly growing field of cancer treatment where it has little presence currently. Siemens Healthineers said the purchase will a have a positive effect on earnings per share withing the first 12 months of the closing. The acquisition comes amid early signs of a pickup in deals after the spread of the coronavirus and a worsening economic outlook damped sentiment this year. Deal activity in the medical devices industry is also on the rise, with Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.s proposed acquisition of Qiagen NV for more than $10 billion and Smiths Group Plc mulling the sale of its medical equipment unit. The purchase will bring together two partners that have collaborated for more than a decade in areas such as radiotherapy diagnostics for cancer treatments. Varian recently traded at 38 times estimated earnings, compared with a multiple of 18 for the S&P 500 Health Care index. The companys shares are little changed this year, compared with a 3.4% advance in the S&P health index, leaving Varian with a market value of about $13 billion. Healthineers will finance the acquisition through a 15.2 billion-euro ($17.9 billion) bridge loan from Siemens AG, followed by a capital increase this year that the parent company will not participate in. As a result, Siemens stake in Healthineers will decline to about 72% from 85%, Siemens said in a statement. The planned dilution of Siemenss holding could pave the way for Healthineers to enter into Germanys benchmark DAX Index. Story continues Healthineers will look at possible inclusion next year, Chief Financial Officer Jochen Schmitz said in an interview. The Index has seen more turmoil than usual recently, with the exit of Lufthansa AG after 32 years, and Commerzbank AG. It wont be a short-term topic, but one we can look at next year, Schmitz said. Healthineers, which spun off from Siemens in 2018, has advanced 2.7% this year, boosting its market capitalization to 43.6 billion euros. Revenue in the third quarter was 3.31 billion euros while earnings before interest and taxes reached 461 million euros, the company said Sunday. The company also expects full-year earnings per share of between 1.54 euro and 1.62 euro, compared with 1.57 euro last year. Chief Executive Officer Bernd Montag said at the end of 2019 that the companys next acquisition would be close to home. Were not going to start doing, like, pacemakers, because it does not fit into our portfolio, Montag said in an interview at the time. More must-read international coverage from Fortune : This story was originally featured on Fortune.com live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More State-run engineering major BHEL on Monday said it is still grappling with uncertainties with regard to resumption of normal business operations as rising coronavirus infection cases have led to labour shortage and supply chain disruptions. The country went into a complete lockdown in March-end to check the spread of coronavirus and the government started giving relaxations in lockdown guidelines towards the April-end by gradually opening up economic activities. However, with COVID-19 cases still surging in various parts of the country, BHEL struggled to get back to its normal operational capacity. Meanwhile, India's COVID-19 tally has crossed the 18-lakh mark and the death toll has climbed to 38,135, official data showed on Monday. "Return to normal business operations is presently uncertain due to rising COVID-19 cases across the world, including India, disrupted supply chains and poor labour availability at project sites," the company said in a regulatory filing. 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 company said it is continuously assessing the prevailing conditions for taking the best possible steps, but a reasonable measure of the future impact will be possible only once the overall situation stabilises. The disruption of international supply chains in the first quarter of the calendar year, coupled with the nationwide lockdown towards end of Q4 FY20, has some impact on the financial parameters, in respect of revenues, profitability and cash inflows, the filing said. Cash collection activities continue, but delays due to the prevailing conditions are anticipated, it added. However, the company has got encouraging response from the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for utilising its manufacturing facilities. Earlier in May, BHEL had invited expression of interest (EOI) from global OEM firms to leverage its facilities as well as capabilities and to shift their production base to India amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The EOI was issued on premise that there were a large number of OEM firms who intended to shift their manufacturing base from China to other countries after the COVID-19 outbreak. BHEL said on Monday, "Nearly 60 relevant responses (on the EOI) have been received with more than 50 per cent companies of foreign origin, cutting across several sectors such as railways, defence & aerospace, e-mobility, power equipment, etc. High level teams at BHEL are working to take these forward in a time-bound manner. Suze Orman underwent surgery to remove a benign tumor on her spine. The financial expert and guru, 69, is currently recovering at home in Florida, her friend and team member Sarah posted on the star's official Facebook page. 'One week from her surgery she is getting better and stronger every day,' she wrote in the update. Get well soon: Suze Orman underwent surgery to remove a benign tumor on her spine on July 23; she shared an update and photo to her Facebook page via a team member She shared a snap of Suze in a wheelchair giving a thumbs up, while sporting a neck brace and face mask. Suze also explained on her podcast, Suze Orman's Women & Money, that despite the fact it was a benign tumor, it had to 'come out immediately.' She said on the podcast, which was released July 23, the day of her scheduled surgery: 'They found a tumor on my spine that is benign... But it needs to come out immediately.' Adding: 'So we will be getting on the place and going to the top surgeon in the United States to do this surgery.' Getting better every day: The financial expert and guru, 69, is currently recovering at home in Florida, her friend and team member Sarah posted on the star's official Facebook page; pictured September 17, 2018 in New York City Two days after her surgery, Suze and KT - Kathy Travis, Suze's wife of 10 years - shared an update on her Facebook page. The update read: 'Everything that was unknown, has now become the known! After 12 hours of a very difficult and delicate surgery on Thursday, Suze came through with flying colors, even to the doctor's amazement.' Adding: 'She is resting comfortably and now tackling her physical therapy homework!' Post op: Two days after her surgery, Suze and KT - Kathy Travis, Suze's wife of 10 years - shared an update on her Facebook page On Friday, Suze spoke to her team member Sarah via FaceTime that 'one week from her surgery she is getting better and stronger every day. I cannot express how much Suze and KT appreciate all of you for sharing your love and prayers with them.' Suze also gave advice to Sarah to pass along to readers about the COVID-pandemic and its effect on the economy and what to focus on amid the crisis. Suze ended her financial advice with words of wisdom; she said: 'The best thing you can do in your entire life is to ground yourself in the healing energy of love for yourself, and your family and friends. This world needs positive energy more than we have ever needed it before.' She continued: 'No on can count on anyone saving them, except for themselves. Don't be afraid, don't be angry, don't be ashamed. I am begging you all to be kind to each other, even with those that are not being kind and respectful to you.' Suze, who is a New York Times bestselling author, became a household name after appearing as a guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show and Larry King Live. Lifetime is gearing up to air its first holiday movie with an LGBTQ romance as its lead story. On Monday, the network announced its plans to premiere "The Christmas Set Up," which focuses on a love story between two men, later this year. The movie, whose cast is yet to be revealed, follows last year's "Twinkle All the Way," a movie that showed a same-sex kiss between a couple named Lex (Brian Sills) and Danny (Mark Ghanime). However, this time around, the gay love story will be front and center. Lifetime holiday movie "The Christmas Set Up" will follow Hugo, a New York lawyer, and his best friend, Madelyn, as they travel to Milwaukee to spend the holidays with Hugo's matchmaking mom, Kate. Sparks fly after Kate arranges for Hugo to meet Patrick, Hugos high school friend and secret crush. Watch TODAY All Day! Get the best news, information and inspiration from TODAY, all day long. In a press release, Lifetime said the movie and others airing during its "It's a Wonderful Lifetime" programming block this year including "A Sugar & Spice Holiday," which centers on an Asian American family is evidence of the network's "commitment for diverse storytelling with its storylines, talent and characters." "We are thrilled to continue our legacy of creating a holiday destination that is welcoming to all at Lifetime," Amy Winter, EVP and head of programming, Lifetime and LMN, said in a statement. "With more new movies than any one cable network for streamer, I couldnt be prouder of the incredible talent joining us in front of, and behind the camera, on these new holiday movies." Lifetime will announce its full slate of "It's a Wonderful Lifetime" programming in September. VLADIVOSTOK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd August, 2020) The Russian military has begun large-scale exercises at the Sergeyevsky training ground in Russia's Far East ahead of the second joint drills with the Laos People's Armed Forces, the press office of Russia's Eastern Military District said on Monday. "In Primorye, over 4,000 servicemen have started organizing marches, equipping strongholds, establishing communication systems, installing fortifications. During the active phase of the exercise, servicemen will work out tactical actions in defense and offensive, day and night," a statement read. The exercises involved about 500 pieces of equipment, including BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles, T-72B tanks, Msta-S self-propelled howitzers, mortar systems, barrel artillery, electronic warfare systems, communications equipment, attack helicopters and more. The last phase of the exercise will see servicemen firing live rounds. They will aim at about 1,500 targets imitating enemy armored vehicles and manpower from moving vehicles, the press release showed. The exercises are the preparation of the Air Defense Forces for the joint Russian-Laotian military exercises, Laros, which will be held in the fall of 2020. Russian military personnel took part in the first Laros exercises in the Southeast Asian nation late last year. A 37yr old National of Benin republic Gbese Peter has been arrested by men of Ogun State Police Command for allegedly defrauding a couple Mr and Mrs Bamigboye Alao of N5million under the pretence of helping them to overcome their spiritual problem and shielding their children from untimely death. The suspect was arrested following the complaint lodged at Sabo police station by Mrs Bamigboye who reported that she and her husband met the suspect about five years ago when he started discussing with them about a serious spiritual calamity awaiting them and their children if an urgent spiritual step is not taken. The Police Public Relations Officer for Ogun State Police Command, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi told The Nigerian Voice. He said "Out of fear of the unknown, the couple agreed to embark on the said spiritual journey and the suspect took them to the Republic of Benin where he gave them a wooden coffin which he instructed them not to open until he asked them to do so." He said the suspect started started collecting money from the couple, until they gave him s total sum of N5million. "When they realized that they have been swindled, the shocked led to the death of the husband." Upon the report, the DPO Sabo division SP Nicholas Tamunoinom detailed his detectives to go after the suspect and with the help of members of public, they succeeded in arresting him on the 25th of July 2020. "On interrogation, the suspect confessed collecting money under false pretence from the couple but he claimed that he only duped them of N3.5million and not N5milion as claimed by the woman, and that he has used the money to build a house for himself." The PPRO said a wooden coffin containing white cloth and a horn wrapped with white cloth and beads were recovered from the suspect. The Commissioner of Police in the state, CP Edward A. Ajogun ordered the immediate transfer of the suspect to the State criminal investigation and intelligence department for proper investigation and diligent prosecution. The Public Utility Workers Union (PUWU), has retained Mr. Michael Adumatta Nyantakyi, the General Secretary, and his Deputy, Richard Amiibah Nyaaba for another term in office. The duo were retained unopposed during an election held on Tuesday, July 28 at the 12th Quadrennial National Delegates Conference of the union. The conference was held under the theme, Re-positioning the Union in the face of the emerging challenges in the world of work at the PUWU Hospitality and Conference Centre at Kasoa in the Central Region. Mr. Nyantakyi, who enumerated some successes chalked in his first term in office, said prior to governments decision to privatize the Electricity Company of Ghana, the Union did its best to stop the move which was subsequently reversed. According to him, the administration engaged in advocacy and media campaigns to underscore why the union was not in support of governments move to privatize the power distribution company. Mr. Nyantakyi who was unopposed in the just ended elections indicated that he believes the administrations good works and achievements in the first four years partly accounted for why no one contested him. We came into office within a period when there were a lot of issues especially surrounding the ECG concession and we did our utmost in the form of advocacy and media campaigns to really bring the issues to the fore and why we think giving ECG out wasnt the best. So at least that determination and commitment we demonstrated was key, he said. He said the Union was vindicated when government went back on its decision with the deal. When government did not listen and went ahead to give ECG to a private operator and the whole concession arrangements ended in a fiasco, it also to a large extent came to support the position we had articulated, he stated. Mr. Nyantakyi said one of the things the leadership of the union also did was to provide training and capacity workshops for members, adding that members were also given unrestricted access to leadership of the Union which caused what he described as an energized base. The General Secretary said the move has made more members of the union active relative to the previous era. He said the new environment has also engendered a lot of competition at various levels in the union when it comes to elections. We have within these four years given training, capacity building and exposure to many of our leadership so that has energized our base. So many people are now more active in the Union than previously so our election at various levels over this period has become very competitive. I can say to a large extent that the Union has become attractive, he pointed out confidently. Mr. Nyantakyi further indicated that his first term in office also saw the creation of a website for the union which has been very active and added that anyone who seeks information about PUWU should visit the site. One other major achievement he highlighted was the completion of the PUWU Hospitality and Conference center which he indicated was started before his administration and added that executives put in a lot of efforts to see the completion of the project. We also, within the same four years, have managed to buy six additional plots of land at Kasoa which will be used for further development in future. We have also within the period, as part of efforts to ensure the union has alternative sources of income, bought a brand new 32-seater Coaster bus which will be used for rentals, he stated. He said the promotion of staff at ECG and GWCL was receiving the unions due attention. We have also pushed at the organizational level to make sure those promotions which had been a major challenge especially at ECG and GWCL have also changed. For the first time in 2018, we got over 100 of our junior staff promoted to senior grades and that was a major achievement, Mr. Nyantakyi said. Mr. Nyantakyi said these achievements coupled with the relationship he built with his members explain why he went unopposed in the elections. The newly elected executives to steer the affairs of the Union for the next four years are; Enoch Paul Hayes - National Chairman, Samuel Osei - Vice Chairman, Innocentia Kuupiel - Vice Chairperson, Michael Adumatta Nyantakyi - General Secretary, Richard Amiibah Nyaaba - Deputy General Secretary, Samuel Amoh Kakabaa - 1st National Trustee and Grace Addo - 2nd National Trustee. Source: Graphiconline.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 Every few days, Jan Young places a glass jar at the top of the steps that connect her driveway to her Heights home. The rail along the peak of this lift has a square cutout so Young can place bags of groceries and dog food there from the driveway rather than carrying them up the stairs. She now calls that space the sourdough portal. There she puts jars of sourdough starter to be collected, usually by strangers who then take the jars home and apply them to all manner of baking ends boasting crunchy crusts, sinuous cutout designs, bright colors, every conceivable shade of brown, light, fluffy interiors and one of the marks of a great sourdough loaf the crisp ridge or ear that rises over the loaf, giving it the look of an old concert bandshell. She has given away more than 120 jars so far. I didnt see any of this coming I had no idea this would be a thing, Young says. But it has been beautiful to see this grow the way it has. Because a sourdough starter is a living thing, some bakers name theirs. Young never intended to do so. But four months after she created her own sourdough starter which has since birthed other starters as far away as Los Angeles and Philadelphia shes thought about calling it Mother. Sourdough has become a culinary theme of the pandemic: a cooking activity that requires time and engagement, maintenance and study, trial and error, as well as a bit of flair. Young created her starter in late March when she first thought shed be spending a lot of time indoors. She put a notice on NextDoor, offering a free jar of starter for anyone interested in making bread. Her plan was part altruism and part research. She wanted to share this living thing shed created. But she also wanted to gather data from other bakers working in Houston, a baking environment volatile because of its heat and humidity. This process accidentally created a Facebook community, largely based in the Heights, called the Houston Heights Bread Club, which numbers nearly 400 people. Scrolling through the clubs Facebook page is akin to looking through a coffee-table book, with gorgeous photo after gorgeous photo of bread and bread-based creations. Baking sourdough is a hands-on experience. But we find ourselves living in remarkable times. So Youngs community has limited physical interaction. Mostly they know each other through the sourdough portal. Theyre usually wearing masks when they pick up the starter, so I dont know what they look like, Young says. All these people Ive never met them in person. * * * Lily Cheung lives near Young. Shes one of the few bread-club members Young knows by sight, sort of. Their interactions are still masked. And their connection started with the starter. Cheung has created some striking loaves over the past few months. Like Young, shed been baking but hadnt really tried working sourdough until the pandemic. She says she spends her work days looking at spreadsheets but is a mechanical engineer by trade. So I like to build things by hand, she says. Cooking marries these two things: Theres a little bit of math, but I also get a bit of hands-on work to make something. And then I get to eat it. Recently Cheung made a sourdough loaf using butterfly pea flower, which gave the bread a rich, marbled purple color. It didnt taste different, she says. But it was bright. For another loaf she used turmeric, which lent a radiant yellow to the breads interior. Cheungs interest in sourdough was largely twofold. Early in the pandemic, yeast was difficult to find at grocery stores. And as an engineer, she also likes a logistical challenge. Chris Molineaux had been following several groups on Facebook when he found the Heights club. His evolution on the Heights Bread Club page has been heartening, as his seeded rye-and-pumpernickel loaves a bread with a lovely aesthetic generated from contrasting colors quickly evolved from pale counterparts to a dark brown and a beige with striking contrast. He thinks Valrhona the Armani of cocoa powder made the difference. Here, Molineaux brings up a point restated by many of the bakers, who offer their free advice to newcomers: They recommend pursuing a single sourdough goal and falling into a process of trial and error that leads to refinement. As opposed to trying numerous different types of bread. There are so many different ways to bake a loaf of bread, he says. But tweak and refine. You control elements and study what works and what doesnt. I think thats how you get a great loaf of bread. Some have clearly been at it for years. One member of the group, Rosemary Schouten bakes focaccia that resembles paintings as much as it does food, with herbs, tomatoes and olives arranged into gorgeous baked still life pieces of art. * * * Sourdough is both a simple and fussy creature. For one thing, the starter is more like a pet than an ingredient, requiring some degree of maintenance to keep it alive. Joseph Yu-en Chen, a member of the group, compares it to the 90s digital pet the Tamagotchi. Theres some appeal there, too, he says. It isnt a pet, but it feels almost like a pet. If my refrigerator broke and it died, Id be low-key devastated. As for the bread, its advocates repeat, it can be made from just a few ingredients. Theres a pragmatic side to this: I know what Im putting inside my kids body: water, salt, flour, Chen says. He also acknowledges the complications. Its also this tactile thing thats interesting, and it feels removed from food. Weve become so disconnected from food. My grandparents generation, they could make these Chinese flatbreads, this tactile process, and the food was amazing. I think weve lost that. With sourdough, there are all these variables: the temperature, the proteins in the flour, the amount of water. And you have to touch it. A recipe will tell you one thing. But you need more. Which gets back to Youngs interest in giving away starter and talking to other bakers. She knew she was baking in an environment that required specific considerations. Even within Houston, she says, there are changing concerns. One of her loaves required three hours to proof in the winter and four hours this summer. Those involved with the club acknowledge a Facebook page isnt a full substitute for hands-on learning. But the group has become a safe place for bakers to share successes and failures and also to air their queries about the intricacies of working with sourdough. Everything about this group is so wholesome, Chen says. Baking fundamentally at its core is a noncontroversial thing. And who doesnt like fresh bread? But the community is so welcoming and nurturing. * * * Having handed out 120 jars of starter, Young is finally asking for something in return. Shes seeking jars from the group because her supply has nearly run out. Young is a bright figurehead for the group, with vibrant purple hair atop friendly eyes and a smile obscured by a mask during the few times she ventures outside. Shes met almost none of the members of her group. But an almost visceral personal connection has been made, even without physical connectivity. Young is always among the first to comment with awe on other bakers work if it worked, and encouragement if it did not. She told Molineaux he has magic in his hands. He appreciates the kind words. He also wonders if baking was waiting for him all along. His mother was an avid home baker, he says, with an affinity for rye. Its why hes baked so much rye, which he brings her after her hospital shifts. She told Molineaux that his great-grandfather ran a noted bakery in Canberra, Australia. It has definitely been a fun hobby, he says. But I also think its something Ill continue to do the rest of my life. Its hard to stop. Molineaux says hes given away between 40 and 50 loaves over the past four months. Im worried Im going to get emotional talking about it, but theres this amount of joy that occurs in giving and receiving bread, he says. To receive a freshly baked loaf. And I didnt anticipate that. I was baking just to practice. Molineaux delivered loaves to friends and acquaintances who reciprocate with homemade jams and preserves or homemade dumplings. Its not a drop with a disconnect, he says. It became something else. andrew.dansby@chron.com Super-fast coronavirus tests that return results in just 90 minutes could help keep schools open, a senior minister said today. Nadhim Zahawi said the new 90-minute tests - to be introduced next week - would available to be rolled-out into settings like classrooms in September to help reduce disruption. He spoke as Downing Street warned that limited school closures could form part of localised lockdowns designed to target trouble-spots without requiring a full nationwide shutdown that could cripple the economy. The tests, which give results in an hour-and-a-half, include one so simple it could soon be deployed in airports, offices, pubs and restaurants bringing testing to the bulk of the population. Many parents and teaching unions are fearful of a full re-opening of schools without a range of further safety measures in place on top of class size limits and distancing. Asked if the tests could be part of the plan to get children back to school, Mr Zahawitold BBC Radio 4's Today Programme: 'Yes, they can be rolled out to other settings, including schools, as I said, because one of the great innovation (sic) from these two brilliant gentlemen (Professor Chris Toumazou, founder of the Institute of Biomedical Engineering at Imperial College London, and Gordon Sanghera, CEO of Oxford Nanopore) is that this can be administered without someone having technical abilities or technical know-how.' Earlier, Health Secretary Matt Hancock had said: These technologies which deliver these rapid turnaround tests will mean we can expand testing capacity further, and into settings where - for instance, in schools we currently have survey testing, we have some testing - that would be able to be expanded, but also looking across the community where we want to test people who dont have symptoms, to find out where the virus is.' Nadhim Zahawi said the new 90-minute tests - to be introduced next week - would available to be rolled-out into settings like classrooms in September to help reduce disruption. Many parents and teaching unions, are fearful of a full re-opening of schools without a range of further safety measures in place on top of class size limits and distancing Schools will reopen 'for all pupils in all year groups' in England at the start of the autumn term but local lockdowns could force some closures, Downing Street said this afternoon. In a briefing to journalists, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'You've heard from the Prime Minister on many occasions his absolute commitment to getting children back into school in September and that's vital for their education and their development. 'We are planning for all pupils in all year groups to be in school full-time from the beginning of the autumn term.' He added that 'hypothetically' some schools might not reopen straight away 'if there was to be a very specific localised lockdown that requires a single school to close'. The companies involved in the new tests would not reveal the cost but claim it is similar or cheaper to current tests which are around 18 privately but less to the NHS. DNANudge today announced the government had placed a 161million order for just 5.8million tests, the equivalent of 27 per swab. Oxford Nanopore, which makes the other test called LamPORE, has not revealed how much its deal was worth. Experts have today called on Number 10 to confirm both tests are accurate by releasing data of the new devices. The government has already wasted millions of pounds by purchasing Covid tests that were later found to be inaccurate including two different types of antibody test from China. Professor Jon Deeks, a medical statistician at Birmingham University, warned the mistakes made in purchasing tests has even 'put lives at risk' because infected Brits could easily pass the virus on if they are wrongly told they are free of the virus. He said: 'We cannot emphasise how important it is to see independent evaluations of all tests before they are implemented.' Health Secretary Matt Hancock last night described the deals as 'life-saving' as the Government looks to halt a second wave of the disease, stopping the need for more draconian lockdowns and restart the stalled economy. Similar rapid diagnostic Covid-19 tests have been approved in the US for months. Thousands of trap lures deployed in new push to contain CRB infestation Hershey, Pa. -- Cannabinoid-containing products may alter the effects of some prescription drugs, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers. They published information that could help medical professionals make safe prescribing choices for their patients who use prescription, over-the-counter or illicit cannabinoid products. Kent Vrana, professor and chair of pharmacology at the College of Medicine, and Paul Kocis, a pharmacist at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, compiled a list of 57 medications that may not function as intended when used with medical cannabinoids, CBD oil (hemp oil) and medical or recreational marijuana. The list was published in the journal Medical Cannabis and Cannabinoids. The medications on the list have a narrow therapeutic index, meaning they are prescribed at specific doses - enough to be effective, but not enough to cause harm. Vrana says it's important for medical professionals to consider the list when prescribing medical cannabinoids and how it may affect other medications a patient is taking. To develop the list, the researchers looked at the prescribing information for four prescription cannabinoid medications. This information included a list of enzymes in the body that process the active ingredients in those medications, which can include delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD). They compared this information against prescribing information from common medications using information available from regulatory agencies like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to identify where there may be overlap, called a drug-drug interaction. The list contains a variety of drugs from heart medications to antibiotics and antifungals. As one example, researchers identified warfarin, a common anticoagulant that prevents harmful blood clots from forming, as having a potential drug-drug interaction with cannabinoid products. Often prescribed for patients with atrial fibrillation or following cardiac valve replacement, the drug has a narrow therapeutic index, and Vrana cautions that medical professionals consider this potential drug-drug interaction both when prescribing warfarin to patients on prescription cannabinoids or prescribing cannabinoids to a patient taking warfarin. The researchers say that medical professionals should also consider patient use of CBD oil products and medical and recreational marijuana when using or prescribing drugs on the identified list. Most of those products lack government regulation and there is little to no prescribing or drug-drug interaction information for those products. "Unregulated products often contain the same active ingredients as medical cannabinoids, though they may be present in different concentrations," Vrana said. "The drug-drug interaction information from medical cannabinoids may be useful as medical professionals consider the potential impact of over-the-counter or illicit cannabinoid products." Vrana advises that patients be honest with their health care providers about their use of cannabinoid products - from over-the-counter products to recreational marijuana. He says that doing so can help ensure the safe and effective use of prescribed medications. In addition to the identified list of 57 prescription medications with a narrow therapeutic index that is potentially impacted by concomitant cannabinoid use, a comprehensive list of 139 medications that could have a potential drug-drug interaction with a cannabinoid is available online. Vrana and Kocis plan to routinely update this drug-drug interaction list as newer medications are approved and real-world evidence accumulates. Kent Vrana received a sponsored research agreement from PA Options for Wellness, a medical cannabis provider and clinical registrant in Pennsylvania, and this research was supported in part by the agreement. The College of Medicine and PA Options for Wellness have a 10-year research agreement designed to help physicians and patients make better informed clinical decisions related to cannabinoids. ### The Electoral Commission says it has exceeded its target of registering about 15 million eligible Ghanaians in the ongoing Voter Registration Exercise across the country. Addressing the media at the 7th Edition of their "Let The Citizen Know" series in Accra Monday morning, the Deputy Commissioner in charge of Corporate Services, Dr Bossman Asare said at the end of the Phase 5 on Thursday, July 30, the Commission had registered 14,367,906 representing 95.5% of the total projected. He added that as at Saturday, 1st August, Day 33 out of 38, which marked the beginning of final Phase 6 of the exercise, the Commission had registered a total of 15,117, 438 eligible Ghanaians making it exceed its projected target. However, he added that the Commission is still open to register any eligible Ghanaian in the remaining days. He said the Greater Accra, Ashanti, Central and Eastern Regions account for almost 56 percent of the total registered as at the end of Phase 5. Greater Accra - 3, 129, 473, Ashanti Region - 2, 563, 285, Eastern Region - 1, 366,570 and the Central Region - 1, 330, 353. Detection of multiple voter registration The Electoral Commission (EC) last Wednesday said it has detected some multiple registration in the ongoing mass voter registration exercise. The detection followed the commencement of a deduplication exercise by the commission, a process that involves using machines to match pictures and fingerprints of persons who have registered to detect duplication. The Director of Electoral Services at the EC, Dr Serebour Quarcoo said the names of persons who would be confirmed to have engaged in multiple registration would be deleted. When asked what the fate of the culprits would be, he said their names would not be included in the final voters register, meaning such persons would not be able to vote on December 7. As to whether they would be prosecuted, he said the EC would take a decision on that. The compilation of a new voters register by the Electoral Commission (EC) commenced on June 30, 2020 across all the districts in the country. The exercise, which is expected to last for 38 days, is projected to capture the biometric data of about 15 million Ghanaians eligible to vote ahead of the 2020 December 7 general elections. Find below breakdown of statistics 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 Satellite Office Supports Joint Research with Technical University of Munich (TUM) NTT Research, Inc., a division of NTT (TYO:9432), today announced that it has opened an office in Munich, in support of a joint research agreement it entered with the Technical University of Munich (TUM) in November 2019. The joint research agreement associates the NTT Research's Medical and Health Informatics (MEI) Lab with the Neuroelectronics Group within TUM's Munich School of BioEngineering. Leading the Munich office is Dr. Tetsuhiko Teshima, an expert in nanomaterials who holds the dual titles of Research Scientist in the MEI Lab and Visiting Researcher in TUM's Neuroelectronics Group. The MEI Lab's two primary fields of research involve the bio digital twin initiative and nanosensor technology. Collaboration with TUM's Neuroelectronics Group involves the latter, in particular, three-dimensionally transformable and implantable electrodes. The scope for this multi-year research project includes screening and optimizing functional materials, assembling 3D structures and evaluating their biocompatibility. The MEI Lab office in Munich, located on Otl-Aicher Strasse, is a few kilometers northwest of the Englischer Garten, between the city center and TUM to the north. The office is another sign of NTT Research's commitment to this venture, as well as to expanding its presence beyond Silicon Valley. "We are delighted to officially open our new branch office, in support of this promising endeavor with the Technical University of Munich," said Hitonobu Tomoike, M.D., Ph.D., and MEI Lab Director. "We trust this will be a good home away from home for Dr. Teshima, as he pursues our joint goals with TUM to develop flexible electrodes with high biocompatibility." At TUM, Dr. Teshima is on the scientific staff of the Neuroelectronics Group, which is led by Dr. Bernard Wolfrum, Professor of Neuroelectronics at TUM in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and the Munich School of BioEngineering (MSB). Dr. Wolfrum's research focuses on neuro- and bioelectronics. Dr. Teshima, who began his three-year appointment to the MEI Lab on March 1, 2020, has conducted research on bio-interfaces, soft matter and other areas that overlap with specialties of the Neuroelectronics Group. His plan in Munich is first to study conductive and biocompatible materials, new printing techniques and the electrochemical measurement of the developed electrodes; then to develop new types of nanomaterial based sensors that can work inside the body; and finally to obtain data from the targeted tissues using these new sensors and work with NTT Research data scientists to develop automated predictive and diagnostic tools. The first project that Dr. Teshima is engaged in evolves adding "transformability," or the ability to change dimensions, to conventional electrodes. Related work in this area includes the questions of which stimuli can generate shape transformation and what changes in electrical or electro-chemical properties are associated with electrode transformation. In contrast to hard, 2D and brittle electrodes, semiconductors and sensors that are widely available today, Dr. Teshima anticipates a paradigm shift. "I believe that some types of soft, flexible and transformable products will be commercially available, especially in medical fields in the next five years," he noted in an interview on the NTT Research blog. "By working with the wonderful team at TUM, I hope to provide findings or engineering breakthroughs that can contribute to or accelerate this scientific and industrial trend." About NTT Research NTT Research opened its Palo Alto offices in July 2019 as a new Silicon Valley startup to conduct basic research and advance technologies that promote positive change for humankind. Currently, three labs are housed at NTT Research: the Physics and Informatics (PHI) Lab, the Cryptography and Information Security (CIS) Lab, and the Medical and Health Informatics (MEI) Lab. The organization aims to upgrade reality in three areas: 1) quantum information, neuro-science and photonics; 2) cryptographic and information security; and 3) medical and health informatics. NTT Research is part of NTT, a global technology and business solutions provider with an annual R&D budget of $3.6 billion. About the Technical University of Munich The Technical University of Munich (TUM) is one of Europe's leading research universities, with around 600 professors, 43,000 students, and 10,000 academic and non-academic staff. Its focus areas are the engineering sciences, natural sciences, life sciences and medicine, combined with economic and social sciences. TUM acts as an entrepreneurial university that promotes talents and creates value for society. In that it profits from having strong partners in science and industry. It is represented worldwide with the TUM Asia campus in Singapore as well as offices in Beijing, Brussels, Cairo, Mumbai, San Francisco, and Sao Paulo. Nobel Prize winners and inventors such as Rudolf Diesel, Carl von Linde, and Rudolf Mobauer have done research at TUM. In 2006, 2012, and 2019 it won recognition as a German "Excellence University." In international rankings, TUM regularly places among the best universities in Germany. About the Munich School of BioEngineering The Munich School of BioEngineering (MSB) is an interdisciplinary, cross-departmental research center within the Technical University of Munich (TUM). At the MSB researchers from a variety of academic disciplines work together to build foundations for new ways to diagnose and treat diseases and for technologies that compensate for physical disabilities. The MSB offers a wide variety of possibilities for interdisciplinary education in Bioengineering, Biomedical Technologies, Medical Physics, Medical Informatics and related subjects at both the Master's degree and Doctoral levels. NTT and the NTT logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of NIPPON TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE CORPORATION and/or its affiliates. All other referenced product names are trademarks of their respective owners. 2020 NIPPON TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE CORPORATION View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200803005180/en/ Contacts: NTT Research Contact: Chris Shaw Vice President, Global Marketing NTT Research +1-312-888-5412 chris.shaw@ntt-research.com Media Contact: Barrett Adair Wireside Communications For NTT Ltd. NTT Research +1-804-591-0689 badair@wireside.com President Trump delivered remarks last week from the James Brady Briefing Room at the White House. Trump was Mondays KVML Newsmaker of the Day. Here are his words: Thank you very much. Let me begin by expressing our sadness at the passing of a wonderful man and a dear friend of mine, Herman Cain. He was a very special person. I got to know him very well. And unfortunately, he passed away from the thing called the China virus. And we send our prayers to Hermans great wife, Gloria. Wonderful family. And I have to say, America grieves for all of the 150,000 Americans who had their lives taken by this horrible, invisible enemy. We mourn their loss, as a nation; we mourn their loss, as people as people that love one another. And were working very hard to not only contain this horrible event, this horrible plague its what it is, is a plague but also to come up with therapeutics and vaccines. And were making a lot of strides. All over the world, theyre having tremendous problems. A resurgence has taken place in many countries that people thought were doing well. Despite a wide range of approaches to the pandemic between countries, this resurgence in cases is occurring throughout large portions of our planet in Japan, China, Australia, Belgium, Spain, France, Germany, Hong Kong places where they thought it was they had really done great. It came back. And in a couple of cases, it came back very strongly. The virus was said to be under control, but new cases have risen very significantly once again. So when you think somebody is doing well, sometimes you have to hold your decision on that; you have to hold your statement. Since the beginning of June, daily new cases have increased by a factor of 14 times in Israel; 35 times thats 35 times in Japan; and nearly 30 times in Australia, just to name a few. These were countries that were doing incredibly well; leadership was being praised. Latin America now leads the world in confirmed infections. And with the scarcity of testing in Latin America, the true numbers you have no idea what they might be. And I can say scarcity of testing. Almost anywhere, except for our country. This disease is highly contagious and presents unique challenges to our border states. Meanwhile, states like California, Washington State, Maryland, Virginia, Nevada, Illinois, Oregon, and many others they were thought to be doing well, and they had a big resurgence and were hit very hard. And governors that were extremely popular are not so popular anymore. They were held up as models to follow, and then they got hit and now, Im not even saying this is their fault. Its probably not their fault. Its just the way it is. Thats the way it is. Highly infectious one of the most infectious diseases that anybody has ever seen. Not since 1917, over 100 years ago, has anyone seen anything like what were witnessing now. But these states have also seen the virus substantially rebound. And, again, no one is immune. No one is immune. These facts illustrate the imposing determinant and it is a determinant that a blanket shutdown to achieve a temporary reduction in cases is certainly not a viable long-term strategy for any country. People are starting to understand the disease now. We certainly have understood a lot about the disease that we didnt have any idea. We didnt nobody ever saw anything like this. The primary purpose of a shutdown was to flatten the curve, ensure sufficient hospital capacity, and develop effective treatments and therapies to reduce mortality. And weve done that. But it can come rearing back when you least suspect it. We did the right thing initially. We saved millions of lives, what we did. We did the right thing. But a permanent shutdown would no longer be the answer at all. A small shutdown of certain areas but we dont want to do that small shutdowns can be very helpful, but not for long periods of time. We understand what were dealing with now, but its a very complex situation. And I can only say: Thank Heaven that we that we are so advanced in what were doing, in terms of vaccines and therapies. We now know a great deal about the virus and how to treat it and who it targets. Almost half of the deaths come from less than 1 percent of our population. Think of it: Half of the deaths really, a tremendous number half of the deaths come from less than 1 percent of our population, those living in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. The average age of those who die from the illness is 78. Weve announced very strong measures to protect those who are most vulnerable. The scientific path forward is to protect those at highest risk, while allowing those at lower risk to carefully return to work and to school with appropriate precautions. Im once again urging the American people to protect their dear family and friends and anybody whos elderly especially if somebody is elderly and they have heart problems, if they have certain illnesses. Diabetes is a very bad one, having to do with what were discussing. But you want to protect the elderly and socially distance, wear a mask if you cannot socially distance, and practice vigorous hygiene. Everyone, even healthy young people, should be taking extraordinary care to avoid infecting those at the highest risk from this terrible disease. The elderly and those with chronic health issues have to be protected. In the current hotspots across the Sun Belt, the data is showing very encouraging signs. Arizona, in particular, has crossed an important threshold. For every person with the virus, were now seeing an average of less than one additional person infected. And the numbers are coming down and coming down very substantially. Theyre starting to come down in Florida. Arizona is really leading the way. I was in Texas yesterday, and theyre starting to come down significantly, we believe, in Texas. Need another few days to figure that one out, but it looks like theyre coming down very significantly. Earlier today, I visited the Red Cross headquarters to discuss plasma therapy which is a tremendous a tremendous thing that theyre looking at, and they have a lot of experience with it potentially lifesaving treatments that infuse sick patients with powerful antibodies donated by those who have recovered successfully from this disease. More than 2 million Americans have recovered from the virus, and today were asking them to visit Coronavirus.gov Coronavirus.gov and volunteer to donate plasma. We need plasma. Its something thats been very effective, and we need plasma from those that were infected and successfully recovered, as most people do. Most people do. Plasma is one of the many promising treatments my administration is accelerating. Weve secured over 90 percent of the worlds supply of remdesivir which is terrific an encouraging antiviral drug that can effectively block replication of the virus. Weve also approved the use of the widely-available steroid which has been very successful dexamethasone, which has shown success, even in patients at more advanced stages of the disease. On July 17th, we announced a $450 million agreement with Regeneron to build manufacturing plants and hundreds of thousands of doses of its antibody treatment, which is currently in late-stage clinical trials moving along very rapidly. Thats Regeneron. As a result of such significant strides in treatment, the mortality rate in those over the age of 18 is 85 percent lower than it was just in April. So in a very short period of time. Think of that: Just 18 85 percent lower than it was in April. Its a big statement. Now I want to provide an update on our efforts to ensure a strong economic comeback, including our negotiations on Capitol Hill. Throughout this crisis, my administration has taken the most aggressive action in history to rescue American workers. We love our American workers. And weve set records on job creation records two months in a row. We enacted a $3 trillion economic relief package. The Paycheck Protection Program alone saved over 50 million jobs. We delivered $300 billion to direct cash payments to Americans. We approved $500 billion for our hardest-hit industries $500 billion. We allowed struggling homeowners to reduce or defer their mortgage payments, and we put a nationwide moratorium on evictions from federally backed properties. It was a big thing, a very big thing. We also suspended student loan payments for six months, and were looking to do that additionally and for additional periods of time. As a result of these extraordinary steps by the administration, we added a record 7 million jobs in the two months past alone. To ensure this comeback continues, which we think it will we had a great foundation to build on. We were the strongest country in the world; nobody close. We were outdoing everybody from China. If you remember, for many years, you heard that in 2019, China would surpass the United States. Well, it didnt. We gained on them very significantly. We took it to a level that nobody has ever seen 2019, and well be back there very shortly. It wont take very long, based on everything that were seeing. Its not going to take very long. I think next year is going to be an excellent year maybe one of our best years ever, from an economic standpoint. We can never, ever forget the people that have been lost, and we never will. Well never forget them; never forget what happened. This could have been stopped in China. They should have stopped it, and they didnt. But Im asking Congress to pass additional legislation to support Americans in need. First, we want a temporary extension of expanded unemployment benefits. This will provide a critical bridge for Americans who lost their jobs to the pandemic through no fault of their own. This was not anybodys fault. From the standpoint of jobs, it happened a terrible thing happened. Couldve been stopped. It happened. I want to thank Senate Republicans for fighting to extend unemployment benefits today in the face of very strong Democrat obstruction, which Im surprised at because this is great for our country and its great for our workers, and it wasnt our workers fault. Second, were asking Democrats to work with us to find a solution that will temporarily stop evictions. We do not want people who have lost their jobs due to the virus to be evicted from their homes or apartments. We dont want that to happen. Third, we need Democrats to join us to pass additional economic relief payments for American citizens, like the payments sent directly to 160 million Americans earlier this year, which was a tremendously successful program. This money will help millions of hardworking families get by. My administration is also asking Democrats to work with us to pass $105 billion to help schools safely reopen. Children are not [sic] at the lowest risk. If you look at whats going on: the younger, the better. Amazing the immune system. For children, the lower they are in age, the lower the risk, in terms of the age group itself. I tell the story that, in New Jersey, with thousands and thousands of people dying sadly, dying the governor was telling me that only one Phil Murphy only one died under the age of 18. Thats incredible. Where thousands of people that died in the state of New Jersey, one made an impact; one died under the age of 18. Children are at the lowest risk of any age group from the virus. Indefinite school closures will inflict lasting harm to our nations children. We must follow the science and get students safely back to school, while protecting children, teachers, staff, and family. We have to remember that theres another side to this: Keeping them out of school and keeping work closed is causing death also. Economic harm, but its causing death for different reasons. But death probably more death. If governors do not want to open the public schools, the money should go to parents so they can send their children to the school of their choice. So we say if a school doesnt want to open or if a governor doesnt want to open maybe for a political reason and maybe not, but there is some of that going on the money should go to the parents so they can send their children to the school of their choice. If schools stay closed, the money should follow the students so families are in control of decisions about their sons and daughters about their children. But to pass a bill, Democrats must reject the extreme, partisan voices in their party. They have tremendous voices. Theyre looking at November 3rd. And probably a day later, theyll say, Lets open up the country. But the Democrats have to reject the extreme, partisan voices in their party so that we can get our country going even quicker than its going right now. We have a lot opening, and we have a lot of states that you thought were doing pretty poorly, from the standpoint of the virus, and theyre actually coming back very strong. This pandemic has underscored the importance of economic policies that put American families and workers first. I got elected on the fact that I put America first. For many, many decades, in my opinion, we put America last. If you look at the crazy, horrible, disgraceful trade deals that weve watched for many years destroy our country NAFTA, we terminated it. We have USMCA now, which is a great deal, and our farmers are doing really well despite the pandemic. But we put America first, Americas families first, and Americas workers first. But that means bringing jobs and factories back to our shores, reducing unnecessary regulations, and creating new training opportunities for jobs and for the future. Weve cut regulations at a level that no President has ever cut regulations. And weve cut taxes more than any President in the history of our country. Americans always rise to the challenge, and we will emerge more resilient, more self-reliant, more independent, and more prosperous than ever before. The Newsmaker of the Day is heard every weekday morning at 6:45, 7:45 and 8:45 on AM 1450 and FM 102.7 KVML. Tourists have returned to Spain after the easing of lockdown - David Ramos/Getty Images Europe Police have launched an investigation after a video emerged of a DJ spitting beer onto dancers at a beach club in a Spanish resort as the country battled to reduce a spike in coronavirus cases. Video film showed a man spraying the crowd with beer then offering some dancers drinks from the same bottle at the club in Torremolinos, a destination popular with British tourists near Malaga in southern Spain. Many people dancing do not appear to be wearing masks according to the images which were shared widely on social media. One member of the Spanish DJ duo called Les Castizos was said to be the person who spat the beer at the crowd during part of their act. Police said they were investigating the pair for alleged behaviour which does not abide by the measures of protection and security against coronavirus. Torremolinos council has closed the beach bar Kokun Ocean Club for 15 days after the video emerged. Offenders face fines of up to 60,000 for endangering public health in the most extreme cases. Spain is currently battling 483 outbreaks of Covid-19, health authorities said, of which 71 were in Andalusia, the region which includes Torremolinos. The video may not help Spain's left-wing government to restore international confidence that the country is a safe destination for tourists. The country's tourism industry was in disarray after Britain imposed a 14-day quarantine on travellers from Spain to the UK on July 25 and Germany and France advised travellers not to journey to Catalonia, Aragon and Navarre, three regions where coronavirus cases spiked last month. The incident involving the DJs took place last month at the Kokun Ocean Club on the Los Alamos beach in Torremolinos. The Association of Hoteliers of Malaga condemned the conduct of the DJs at the club. We condemn the grave irresponsibility which we observed in the images at the disco in Torremolinos, which showed a negligent attitude during a pandemic, it said in a statement. Story continues We will never defend such an attack on public health and reiterate our commitment to health standards. Fali Sotomayor, one of Les Castizos, apologised for their conduct, saying the pair felt ashamed and repentant. The video shows a specific moment in a show in which, unfortunately, we act irresponsibly, the pair said in a statement. The duo said that the club did not bear any responsibility for events. Sure, it might be warm Wednesday, but what about the rest of the week? Three common symptoms of COVID-19 are cough, high fever, and sore throat. However, there are six sure symptoms and signs that can tell whether you have COVID-19. There are symptoms that everybody should not disregard because these signs will tell you that you have COVID-19. There are no signs that the virus is showing signs of weakness. The new strain of COVID-19 is more infectious, according to a published report in Business Insider. The new Coronavirus Disease 2019 is distinct compared to other viruses. According to a published article in ETNT Health, around 40 percent of people infected with the virus are asymptomatic or do not show any signs or symptoms. Meanwhile, many have developed symptoms like cough, fever, and sore throat. However, these are the symptoms that you should not disregard because these will whether you are positive with the virus, according to the experts. 1. Long-Lasting Fatigue or Brain Fog Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, said that many COVID-19 patients reported feeling tired for a week, and they could not concentrate week before they were diagnosed. Dr. Fauci added that even people who recovered from the virus could not return to their normal lives anymore. Many of them still experience chronic fatigue syndromes such as brain fog, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating. 2. Rashes Andrew Chan, a professor of immunology and infectious disease at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, claimed that his COVID-19 Symptom Study app has detected what is known today as COVID fingers and toes. He also added that many people today experience strange dermatological manifestations like rashes and inflammation on fingers and toes. If you have this symptom, you need to be extra careful to avoid possible transmission of the virus within your family. 3. A Dry Cough A dry cough is a common sign of those who tested positive for the virus. If you have a dry cough along with a fever and have difficulty as well in breathing, then there is a big possibility that you are positive with the virus. A study conducted by CDC last month revealed that 43 percent of those who tested positive for the virus had experienced dry cough from 14 to 21 days after their diagnosis. 4. Loss of Smell or Taste Not every one of those who tested positive with the virus experienced this. However, in a study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association, around 64 percent of people who have COVID-19 lose their sense of taste and smell. The Centers for Disease Contol and Prevention also confirmed this study. They revealed in their survey that this symptom usually lasted a median time of eight days, but others experienced it for weeks. 5. Shortness of Breathing This is commonly the first sign of those who tested positive for the virus. Shortness of breathing could linger for weeks and sometimes for months. This happens because the virus causes lung inflammation, and this damage can make a person hard to breathe. Most of the time, this leads to pneumonia or Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) 6. Heart Damage Around three-quarters of people who tested positive with the virus had evidence of heart damage. A study related to this was even published in JAMA Cardiology. It was also found that COVID-19 can cause heart inflammation. These are the six symptoms that everybody should not disregard, according to the health experts. If you experience one of these symptoms, then better isolate yourself. If it gets worse, call your doctor or local health personnel immediately to assist you in what to do. Check these out! As Microsoft Circles, TikTok Ban Will Accomplish Nothing. Fix Security, Privacy Issues Instead. [OP-ED] News reports point to a Microsoft acquisition of TikTok after President Trump called for an all-out ban of the wildly popular social short video app. In the op-ed Techdirts Karl Bode explores why the calls to ban TikTok in the US dont actually make sense, and that those jockeying for the ban would be better off focusing on larger issues of privacy and security endemic to the tech industry. Guest post by Karl Bode of Techdirt Earlier this month I noted how the calls to ban TikTok didnt make a whole lot of sense. For one thing, a flood of researchers have shown that TikTok isnt doing anything any different than a flood of foreign and domestic services. Secondly, the majority of the most vocal pearl clutchers over the app (Josh Hawley, etc.) havent cared a whit about things like consumer privacy or internet security, suggesting its more about politics than policy. The wireless industry SS7 flaw? US cellular location data scandals? The rampant lack of any privacy or security standards in the internet of things? The need for election security funding? Most of the folks hyperventilating about TikTok havent made so much as a peep on these other subjects. Either you actually care about consumer privacy and internet security or you dont, and a huge swath of those hyperventilating about TikTok have been utterly absent from the broader conversation. In fact, many of them have done everything in their power to scuttle any effort to have even modest privacy guidelines for the internet era, and fought every effort to improve and properly fund election security. Again, thats because, for many its more about politics than serious, adult tech policy. Thats not to say there arent security concerns when it comes to installing Chinese-made apps on American devices, but that same argument can be made (but somehow isnt) for an absolute ocean of foreign and domestic services, hardware, and apps. Over the weekend, Kevin Roose at the New York Times made some similar points, noting that things tend to get stupid when you fuse politics with policy and domestic financial interests with national security (especially given lobbyists adore taking advantage of the lack of transparency in the latter): There are also reasons to be skeptical of the motives of TikToks biggest critics. Many conservative politicians, including Mr. Trump, appear to care more about appearing tough on China than preventing potential harm to TikTok users. And Silicon Valley tech companies like Facebook, whose executives have warned of the dangers of a Chinese tech takeover, would surely like to see regulators kneecap one of their major competitors. It took a while for this opinion to form out of the internet news and policy murk, but its nice to see folks realizing that banning TikTok, but doing nothing about an absolute ocean of foreign and domestic hardware, services, and apps that pose similar threats, is kind of pointless and stupid: Ill be honest: I dont buy the argument that TikTok is an urgent threat to Americas national security. Or, to put it more precisely, I am not convinced that TikTok is inherently more threatening to Americans than any other Chinese-owned app that collects data from Americans. If TikTok is a threat, so are WeChat, Alibaba and League of Legends, the popular video game, whose maker, Riot Games, is owned by Chinas Tencent. And since banning every Chinese-owned tech company from operating in America wouldnt be possible without erecting our own version of Chinas Great Wall a drastic step that would raise concerns about censorship and authoritarian control we need to figure out a way for Chinese apps and American democracy to coexist. But the piece goes a step further in smartly arguing that if you want to deter TikTok-esque privacy issues, youre better off fixing the underlying rot that has resulted in the cavalier treatment of consumer data. And using TikTok as an example of how to do security and privacy oversight correctly, you start by forcing the company to embrace open source, by finally getting off our collective, befuddled asses and passing a basic but tough US privacy law, by demanding greater transparency of TikTok (and every other company), and by ending our myopic view of security and privacy: I think TikTok is a bit of a red herring, Alex Stamos, Facebooks former chief security officer and a professor at Stanford University, told me in an interview. Ultimately, Mr. Stamos said, the question of what to do about TikTok is secondary to the question of how multinational tech giants in general should be treated. This is a chance to come up with a thoughtful model of how to regulate companies that operate in both the U.S. and China, no matter their ownership, he said. Granted that requires nuance and a holistic view of the real problem, and thats the last thing most of the folks crying about TikTok want. And they dont want that because theyre not genuinely interested in consumer privacy and internet security, theyre interested in putting on a little stage play for political reasons. Adult, good faith tech policy solutions that solve actual, real world problems is the very last thing on most of their minds. Share on: WASHINGTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Hip Hop Caucus, the political arm of Hip Hop, is re-launching their Respect My Vote! non-partisan campaign just in time for the 2020 election. Respect My Vote! is the longest running, most successful Hip Hop voter mobilization campaign. This year, the 2020 campaign is focused on ensuring communities are able to vote amidst the COVID-19 crisis, returning citizens exercise their right to vote, and young people are inspired to vote on issues such as racial justice and climate justice. People can register to vote and sign up to vote by mail at www.respectmyvote.com, and join the campaign by pledging to vote, signing up to volunteer in their communities, and spreading the word through their personal social media platforms. The Respect My Vote! campaign initially launched in 2008 and over the years received participation from influential voices in Hip Hop culture such as T.I., 2 Chainz, Keke Palmer, Charlamagne Tha God, Angela Simmons and Amber Rose amongst many others. "2020 is the year of truth. There has never been a more critical time than now for young Black, Indigenous and People of Color to vote," said Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr., the President and Founder of Hip Hop Caucus. "Respect My Vote! engages the Hip Hop community because the power of our cultural expression is a force that we must also bring to the polls. We will not let our democracy be threatened, the Hip Hop community will vote this November." Since 2008, this campaign has focused on long-term goals such as establishing voting as part of young people's civic lifestyle and motivating young people to be voices and activists for justice, equity, and sustainability. The campaign is targeting states such as AL, CO, FL, GA, MI, MN, NC, NV, PA, TX, VA, and WI. This year, the election season has been hit with its most notable obstacle, COVID-19 safety concerns. As a result, Hip Hop Caucus' Respect My Vote! is prepared with response strategies to protect voters from voter suppression and is helping voters register for mail-in ballots in states where absentee voting is available. The campaign also educates the public on voter laws by state including ex-offenders' right to vote, debunking the myth that if convicted of a felony, you permanently lose your right to vote. For more information about the Respect My Vote! campaign, to sign up to volunteer, and to get informed voting laws by state, please visit www.respectmyvote.com. About Hip Hop Caucus (www.hiphopcaucus.org) Formed in 2004, the Hip Hop Caucus (HHC) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization that leverages Hip Hop culture to encourage young people to participate in the democratic process. Through a collaborative leadership network, HHC addresses core issues affecting underserved communities. HHC programs and campaigns support solution-driven community organizing led by today's young leaders. SOURCE Hip Hop Caucus BALTIMORE, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Harlem Park Community Development Corporation ("Harlem Park CDC") announced its partnership with Ayers Saint Gross, to develop the Harlem Park neighborhood plan. The development of the plan includes in-depth community input and consists of a variety of new programs and investments to support neighborhood residents. In evaluating the concerns expressed by community members, Harlem Park CDC is launching a process to develop a 2020/2021 plan for Harlem Park. In efforts to ensure an all-inclusive plan, one that is designed to bring substantial improvements to Harlem Park/ West Baltimore and foster an environment for stakeholders, Harlem Park CDC has partnered with Ayers Saint Gross, whose portfolio proves that they will serve as a valuable asset in developing a plan that is beneficial to the Community. The two organizations are in the process of scheduling community engagement events throughout the summer, which will be followed by a steering committee, which will meet in Fall 2020, to adopt the plan for Spring-Summer 2021. According to Matthew H. King, Executive Director of Harlem Park CDC, the majority of the steering committee will be composed of existing stakeholders from Harlem Park & West Baltimore, real estate professionals and other experts in the field of urban planning who have contributed to the growth of communities in Baltimore, MD for decades. "In selecting our steering committee, we are giving great consideration to those who have the neighborhood's best interest in mind. We want the future of Harlem Park to reflect why our residents are proud to live and thrive in this community and to also capture the historical value that exists a diverse, progressive and accessible community, that enables everyone to the best version of themselves." -Matthew H. King. The proposed plan will address the following strategies: The creation and preservation of affordable housing; Connecting residents with economic opportunities; Enhancing community health. Once the Planning Commission adopts the proposed plan, The Harlem Park Neighborhood Plan will be recognized as City Policy and will guide all future investments for that area. We anticipate that this Community based plan will be the blueprint for all future development with-in our Community. About Harlem Park Community Development Corporation A pillar in the Harlem Park Community, the mission of the Harlem Park CDC is to develop and execute community-focused initiatives that will provide upward mobility and progressive lifestyles for all Baltimore residents with authority, empowerment, and energy. The Harlem Park CDC offers programs that grant residents access to nutritional foods, safe and secure housing options, security and safety procedures to decrease crime, and youth development programs to properly educate and mentor the youth of Baltimore. About Ayers Saint Gross Founded in 1912, Ayers Saint Gross is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland with offices in Washington, DC and Tempe, Arizona. Ayers Saint Gross employs an interdisciplinary staff of 150 professionals. The 102-year-old firm specializes in planning, building architecture, graphic designs and landscapes for institutional clients. Ayers Saint Gross projects can now be seen at 250 college campuses in 18 countries, as well as at leading national and international institutions. For more information about Ayers Saint Gross, visit www.asg-architects.com. Contacts: Matthew H. King, [email protected] | Phone Number: 443-275-9088 SOURCE Harlem Park Community Development Corporation Sorry for inconvenience! You have been redirected to this page due to the following reasons:-- Your session has expired. You have closed the browser, without logging out. If the problem persists, kindly remove all the temporary files and cookies from your browser. For IE - 1. Click on tools from the task bar of browser. 2. Click on Internet Options. 3. Click on "Delete temporary files." For Mozilla Firefox - 1. Click on tools from the task bar of browser. 2. Click on "Clear recent history." WASHINGTON - Three years after President Donald Trump canceled a decade-long plan to build an FBI headquarters in the Washington suburbs, the bureau's effort at securing a new home remains mired in uncertainty, with no active plan or funding source and thousands of agents still working at the crumbling and poorly secured J. Edgar Hoover Building in downtown Washington. But there is ample financial support and a clear plan for another FBI headquarters project, one in Hunstville, Ala., that will welcome 1,500 of the bureau's headquarters staff members from the Washington region next year and probably thousands more in coming years. The principal architect of the flow of FBI staff to Alabama's Redstone Arsenal complex is Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., the powerful chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee who has shepherded the project through approvals and secured $1.1 billion in funding for it over the past four years. During the same time period, Trump has fixated on building a new FBI headquarters in the District of Columbia, including his recent insistence that the Senate GOP coronavirus bill include a $1.8 billion request for the idea. But Trump's request has further hardened opposition from Democrats who are angry with the president for canceling in 2017 a years-long effort by the bureau to construct a secure campus in the Washington suburbs. Democrats say Trump's interest is in preventing a hotel from ever being built on the Hoover site, where it could compete with the nearby Trump hotel. "It reaffirmed what we originally thought - that this is personal to the president and his financial interests," said Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md. White House spokesman Judd Deere denied the accusations and said "the FBI desperately needs a new building and this measure provides critical funding for this project that would keep the building responsibly near the Department of Justice." Trump's surprise provision included no budget or plan for a new building and showed up in the bill after days of closed-door negotiations last month between administration officials, Shelby and other GOP senators on a variety of spending provisions in the legislation. A Shelby aide said the FBI money was included at the insistence of the administration. "Republicans were trying to reach a unified position going into negotiations with the Democrats. The administration was taking the lead in those negotiations and insisted it be included. That's why it was in there," said the aide, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. Committee chairmen generally consult with leadership on potentially contentious issues in pending legislation, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., seemed caught off guard upon hearing that the FBI language had made it into the bill when it was released. "I'm not sure that it is, is it?" McConnell replied after introducing the bill last week, when a reporter asked him why the FBI money was in the legislation. Upon being assured that it was, McConnell suggested asking the administration about its inclusion. When asked what the FBI provision was doing in a bill aimed at combating the coronavirus, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said, "I think everybody acknowledges that it's a funding mechanism. And I don't see it standing in the way of us getting a deal." The FBI, which spent years pushing the Washington suburban campus project under previous administrations, issued a statement to The Washington Post on Thursday, saying that it now supports the president's plan to build a smaller structure downtown and move more staff members outside the Beltway, but that its top priority is having a fully funded plan. "The FBI supports the option of staying on Pennsylvania Avenue; however, most important, the FBI seeks a viable, fully funded path that allows us to fulfill our facility requirements," spokeswoman Lauren Hagee Glintz said. Trump's FBI funding request faces bipartisan opposition to make it into any final package. Shelby has acknowledged that the administration's provision was a "stretch" to link to the pandemic. McConnell has said he opposes the provision because he does not think the bill should include "non-germane amendments." Before Trump came into office, Shelby had supported the Washington campus plan through an agreement with Barbara Mikulski of Maryland, a powerful Democratic senator on the Appropriations Committee at the time. According to members of Congress and aides from both parties, Shelby agreed to support funds for a new 11,000-employee campus in the Washington area that Mikulski wanted for Maryland. She supported his efforts to beef up the bureau's presence in Huntsville, at the Redstone Arsenal complex that already includes a national center and school for the analysis of improvised explosive devices. The agreement produced $913 million in appropriations for the Washington-area campus and an initial $76 million for Hunstville. In 2017, when Mikulski retired and Trump spiked the campus plan, the idea of a home for the bureau in Maryland's Prince George's County collapsed. Shelby's ambitions for Huntsville, however, have grown. With him as chair of the committee the past three-plus years, Congress appropriated $313 million in 2018, $285 million in 2019 and $433 million this year for the project, putting it over $1.1 billion. The FBI announced in 2018 that it would be moving 1,350 jobs to Huntsville from Washington-area locations. "I'm bullish on the FBI here," Shelby said during a gathering of the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce last year, according the website AL.Com. "I think it will be one of the biggest presences for the FBI outside of Washington." Indeed, the bureau later disclosed that it could move as many as 4,000 people there over the next decade. Paul Abbate, associate deputy director at the FBI, told CNBC that "we really look at it like an HQ2, a backup for the footprint that we have here in Washington, D.C." Regardless of whether Huntsville will benefit from the lack of a plan for a central FBI headquarters, it will be the bureau's biggest new facility outside Washington, capable of accommodating large staff transfers. Hagee Glintz said that as of now, 1,500 jobs are headed there, with most of the functions scheduled to be operational by the end of 2021. The ultimate number, she said, will depend on future funding. The bureau also is planning to relocate 250 jobs to a new data center and office in Pocatello, Idaho, and is evaluating space availability at existing facilities in Clarksburg, W.Va., and at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Va. When Trump came into office, policymakers in both major political parties were hopeful that he might be able to advance a building project that would consolidate the FBI by using his much ballyhooed dealmaking skills and private-sector real estate experience to cut red tape and construct a building that others could not. But his efforts have run aground amid accusations of conflicts of interest and lack of transparency. Early in the administration, the Trump-appointed leader of the General Services Administration (GSA), the agency that handles federal real estate, was asked by House Democrats about the White House's involvement in the project. When the administrator, Emily Murphy, did not disclose that she had met in the Oval Office with the president about it, the agency's inspector general later determined that she may have left Congress with the "misleading impression" that the White House had not been involved. The administration has since largely sidelined the GSA. When reached for comment, the GSA referred questions about the FBI provision in the coronavirus bill to the Office of Management and Budget and the FBI. Instead it has been Shelby, not Trump, who has fashioned agreements and swung bureaucratic workarounds to advance construction - at least for the FBI building in his state. At Redstone Arsenal, which is already home to more than 40,000 employees working at commands including an office of the Missile Defense Agency and NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, the FBI facility will add to a secure campus and bring jobs to a state with one of the nation's highest poverty rates. Sens. Cardin and Chris Van Hollen, Maryland Democrats, remain some of Trump's fiercest critics for his handling of FBI consolidation, saying he has set it back years and put the bureau at risk to advance his own interests. "It was outrageous for the president to try to exploit a national health emergency for his own purposes," Van Hollen said of the provision. But they do not begrudge Shelby for continuing to advance his part of the deal with Mikulski. There was no response to a message left with a former Mikulski aide. "She envisioned both these efforts moving forward at the same time," Van Hollen said. "And obviously the much bigger operation has been set back." Antifa Is the Natural Product of Our Educational System Commentary Antifa or antifalower case a, if you prefermay have gotten its start in Germany, but its flourishing here in the United States as never before. This growth occurred even though truly achieving the movements stated goalanarchywould create chaos, leading to civilizational destruction of a likely unparalleled extent in human history in our industrialized and high-tech nation of almost 330 million. The deepest causes of their violent and more than slightly deranged behavior are undoubtedly personal and psychoanalytic in nature. The story of the Seattle grandmother who identified her bomb-throwing grandson from video of a protective vest she bought himhe said he was peacefulis a novel crying out to be written. But whatever the psychological profiles of the individual Antifa members, almost all of them share one thing in common: They went to American schools. And those schools, with only a few notable exceptions, talked down and continue to talk down the United States of America to one degree or another from kindergarten through doctorate. It is, to my knowledge, unique in history that the public and private educational systems of a country so thoroughly and consistently criticize the country itself. (The Chinese Cultural Revolution did it briefly, but Maos immediate central government was always supported.) For decades, our schools have been self-replicating machines, preaching to college students, directly or indirectly, the left-wing gospel according to Howard Zinn (and the Frankfurt School and so forth) and sending them out in turn to preach this junior varsity, critical theory Marxism themselves as teachers at whatever level at all manner of institutions throughout the country. The youngest of those levels is perhaps the most dangerous because its the most impressionable. Antifa members are therefore only doing what they have been taught all along, getting rid of a cancer called the United States. This connection between Antifa and the teaching profession is so profound that some insist the majority of those hidden behind the black masks are indeed teachers. Others, needless to say including the liberal media, have denied this. Its impossible to know for certain. Antifa, like some Islamic terror groups, doesnt have a formal leadership structure; why would they need it? They also dont keep records. This, however, is probably a case where the cliche about smoke and fire applies. Whether Antifa is 50 percent teachers or 20 percent teachers, its a lot of teachers. Any reader of websites such as The College Fix or Campus Reform can see the extent to which almost all our schools have their tentacles buried deeply into the supposed social justice causes espoused more militantly in the streets by Antifa. The governors and mayors of the localities where the riots are taking place are themselves the products of the same educational institutions. This may account in part for their reluctance to crack down. Some part of them is identifying with the rioters. They want to burn it down, no matter if the violent protests lead to the renaming of this country as New Venezuela, figuratively and literally. Antifa is an excruciating public manifestation of a very deep infection that has metastasized throughout our society from the schools. It will only get worse if we dont change our educational systempronto. Ironically, the beginnings of this change are one of the few, perhaps the only, good things to emanate from the pandemic. With schools shut or online, many are evaluating whether the system serves our young people, practically (in terms of careers) or ideologically. What kind of education is it when 95 percent of college professors vote Democratic, and mostly left Democratic at that? Viewpoint diversity, anyone? Shall I homeschool my child? Shall I send him or her to college, so they can come back at Thanksgiving in an Antifa T-shirt and accuse me of being a capitalist pig when I just spent 50 grand for their tuition? Something is wrong with this picture. Change is undoubtedly coming. As a wise man once said, Faster, please. I dont know about you, but Im sick of mush-brains throwing firebombs at police stations. Roger L. Simon is an award-winning author, Oscar-nominated screenwriter, and co-founder of PJ Media. He is also a graduate of two Ivy League institutions to which he no longer donatesnot that they need the money. Find him on Twitter and Parler @rogerlsimon. Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. TUNIS - Tunisian President Kais Saied on Sunday said ''organizers of illegal maritime crossings, human traffickers, commit crimes that the State can't tolerate'', during a visit to the port of Sfax and Mahdia. The highest number of crossings towards Italy's coasts have departed from this region, where the president visited the headquarters of the regional coast guard. In a statement issued by the Tunisian presidency, Saied stressed the importance of the role undertaken by the coast guards in fighting irregular migration and reiterated his pledge to boost efforts to monitor the coast. However, according to the president, it is necessary to shed light on the real reasons behind the phenomenon, stressing the need for boosted cooperation between various countries to find new solutions to the problem of irregular migration, offering would-be migrants conditions that can convince them to remain in their home country. On a strictly operational level, the presidency of the government has recently given to the center of coordination of the coast guard of Mahdia, Sfax and Kerkennah a new aircraft to monitor the coast at night. (ANSAmed). Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC) in a statement has condemned the attempt by some Ghanaians to label the Presiding Bishop of Perez Chapel International, Bishop Charles Agyinasare as a linguist for any political party. According to the statement signed by the President of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC) Rev Prof Frimpong-Manso, the Council is in full support of its long-standing member who rose to occupy the high position of First Vice-President of the Council. The purpose of this statement is to declare our strong support for the Presiding Bishop, who is a long-standing member of the Council and who rose to occupy the very high position of First Vice-President of the Council, the statement read. The Council also described as very unfortunate some of the reactions to Bishop Agyinasares teachings on the theme Building A Future After Covid-19 which happened in the past one month; adding that people have resorted to insults, threats of harm, casting of innuendos and political branding. The statement again read that Bishop Agyinasare only sought to draw examples from his personal life, including his marriage, his financial dealings to encourage the youth that in the midst of present-day promiscuity, it is possible to live a life of chastity and integrity. The purpose is to help build a foundation for youth development as the next generation to take over this nation. In doing this, the Presiding Bishop has been highlighting issues on the political landscape, the attitude of civil servants and the clergy front, which should not have been so and which could be done differently. It added, We urge the press and the general public not to twist, distort, misrepresent, misreport or take out of context statements made by the Presiding Bishop and give them sensational headlines with the objective of giving the Presiding Bishop a political bad name in order to hang him. The Council however called on the two main political parties in Ghana, the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) and opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) to call their executives and members to order. As the nation enters the political campaign season, we wish to admonish the entire citizenry to do all we can to keep the political temperature at its lowest minimum and conduct all political activities with civility and decorum, the Council urged. It added, Lets make the campaign one of ideas, programs for national development and peace and not one of the insults, casting of aspersions, character assassination, violence and any actions that will threaten the peace and stability of our dear motherland. The Council, therefore, wished Ghanaians peaceful campaigns and free, fair and transparent elections, which will produce a God-given leader and government for this nation. 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 Ryanair has launched a High Court action aimed at setting aside what it claims are International travel restrictions announced by the Government earlier this month. Ryanair claims that the 'restrictions', arising out of the Covid19 pandemic, are unlawful, amount to a disproportionate interference of individual's rights and are detrimental to its business. In its action Ryanair is challenging measures, announced on July 21st last, including that persons not travel outside the Island of Ireland, save for essential purposes, and that everyone holiday at home in 2020. It is also challenging what it says are requirement for persons returning to the state from countries not on a designated green list to restrict their movement and self-isolate for a period of 14 days. Ryanairs claim the measures are mandatory in nature and have the same effect as regulations it says should have, but were not voted on or approved by the houses of the Oireachtais. As a result the airlines says the restrictions are unconstitutional and in breach of the 1970 and 2020 Health Acts, the European Convention of Human Rights and the European Charter of Fundamental Rights. Ryanair's action is against An Taoiseach, Ireland and the Attorney General. Aer Lingus Ltd is a notice party to the action. In correspondence opened to the court the state strongly denies the measures challenged, which it says are advisory and not mandatory in nature, are unlawful. It also said there is no basis for a legal challenge against the measures. It said its Covid-19 travel advisory notice in relation to non essential travel are necessary, proportionate and transparent measures designed to deal with the global health emergency. It said that the green list of countries will be reviewed on a fortnightly basis based on advice from public health officials. The airline represented by Martin Hayden SC and Eoin O'Shea Bl, say that the measures are more than just advice from the government regarding travel to and from Ireland. Mr Hayden agreed with Mr Justice Charles Meenan that its case is essentially that the government has introduced what are effectively "mandatory" regulations "under the cloak of advices." The 'restrictions' represent law making by the executive which ought to have been made law by the Oireachtais, counsel said. Without going through the proper processes the measures lack the proper checks and balances counsel added. Mr Hayden said the 'restrictions' have a real effect on people including persons ability to go back to work after returning to Ireland from a country that is not on the "green list of nations" without going into a 14 day self-isolation. There were also insurance implications, counsel added. Counsel added that the government's restrictions have raised serious questions for the entire airline industry in Ireland. As well as seeking orders setting aside the measures Ryanair also seeks various declarations These include a declaration that by announcing the restrictions the Government has unlawfully encroached on the legislative prerogratives of the Oireachtais and has breached articles 6, 40 and 15.2 of the Irish Constitution. It further seeks declarations that the outside the powers and breach laws and articles of legislation including the 1970 Health Act, the 2020 Health Act (Emergency Powers) the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, and the ECHR. After consider the application Mr Justice Meenan said Ryanair had raised important issues and directed that the application for leave be made in the presence of lawyers for the State respondents. The application was brought on an ex-parte basis, with only one party present in court. The judge said that given the urgency of the case it may be possible to have 'a telescoped hearing,' where both the application for leave and the challenge itself are heard at the same time. The matter will return before the court in mid August. Caitlyn Jenner insisted it was "just a joke" when she suggested she could be Kanye West's Vice President. The 70-year-old reality star - who was previously married to Kanye's mother-in-law Kris Jenner - recently claimed she had texted the 'All Day' rapper about his bid to run for office and asked to be his running mate, but has now admitted she wasn't serious. And quizzed on whether she thinks he'd make a good president, the 'I Am Cait' star refused to give a verdict. She told 'Good Morning Britain': "I can't even go there - we're living in such a political environment. "I don't even want to talk about politics anymore." The 'Famous' hitmaker - who has four children with wife Kim Kardashian West - has sparked concern recently with his erratic behaviour, including a string of Twitter rants in which he claimed he had tried to "divorce" his spouse and an emotional outburst at his first presidential rally in South Carolina last month. But Caitlyn admitted she "doesn't know" how her Kanye - who suffers from bipolar disorder - is at the moment. She said: "Honestly, I don't know. Since all of this has come down, I've kind of just watched it go down. He's living in Wyoming. "I wish him well. He's a really good guy." However, Caitlyn heaped praise on Kanye for his "big heart" and supportive ways. She said: "He's been the most kind, loving human being and so good to be throughout the years and he's been the best friend. "He's extremely supportive." The former Olympian previously declared her desire to be Vice President when asked if she'd vote for Kanye. She replied: "Oh I texted him and said, 'Can I be your VP?' What a combination!" Asked if she'll do it, she added: "We'll see." A leading disease expert from Melbourne has called for Sydney to go into coronavirus lockdown to avoid ending up like Victoria. Professor Tony Blakely, an epidemiologist and public health medicine specialist from the University of Melbourne, also suggested masks should be mandatory. 'I think New South Wales is on a knife edge,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'We've learnt that this virus gets ahead of us and for us to get ahead of the virus we need to take bold leaps. A leading disease expert from Melbourne has called for Sydney to commence stage three coronavirus lockdown and mandatory mask wearing (A woman shopping in Sydney pictured) Professor Tony Blakely (pictured), an epidemiologist from the University of Melbourne, said current coronavirus measures in NSW were not enough to avoid a second wave 'To me that means that they need to be seriously considering a Stage 3 lockdown in Sydney,' Professor Blakely explained. Under a Stage 3 lockdown, like the one being enforced in regional Victoria, residents are banned from leaving their homes except to go shopping for food and essential items, care and caregiving, daily exercise, work and study. Concerns over a second coronavirus wave in New South Wales have grown after Melbourne was forced into a Stage 4 lockdown on Sunday. Victoria is set to report 429 new cases and 13 deaths on Monday, bringing the total number of active cases to 6,751 active cases and the state's death toll to 136. A further 13 cases of coronavirus were also diagnosed in New South Wales on Monday - one of which could not be traced to any ongoing clusters. This is the seventh mystery case in NSW in the last week. Professor Blakely said current COVID-19 measures in New South Wales were not enough to curb the spread of the virus. 'Having seen what's happened in Victoria, New South Wales needs to ask itself "Could this be contained with contact tracing alone?" and I think the answer is no. 'It is extremely difficult to keep ahead of this virus with contact tracing and, given it's in multiple locations, the chance NSW will tip into a Victoria-like situation is real,' he explained. The epidemiologist said the pandemic was difficult to overcome due to the virus being 'sneaky as hell'. Premier Gladys Berejiklian (pictured) on Monday said authorities were doing everything they can to keep NSW from spiralling to the case numbers seen in Victoria 'A third of people are asymptomatic so they don't even know they've got the virus, the other two are infectious for 24 to 48 hours before they become symptomatic.' He said if Sydney waited any longer to go into a stage three lockdown it could be 'too late'. 'For a state that wants to achieve elimination this is the sort of brave decision making that is required,' Professor Blakely said. He also called for masks to be a requirement across New South Wales. 'Masks should be mandatory for outside by now, there's no economic cost of it,' he said. NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian admitted community transmission cases were a 'cause for concern' but said authorities were doing everything they could to keep the situation from spiralling like it has in Victoria. Professor Blakely said NSW needed to take 'bold leaps' to overcome the coronavirus pandemic (Sydneysiders soaking up the sun at picnics near Bondi Beach on Sunday pictured) She urged people to wear face masks in public from Monday. Ms Berejiklian said authorities would not make mask usage mandatory in NSW but revised current recommendations to address four specific circumstances. Masks should be worn by public-facing employees such as hospitality or supermarket workers, worshippers and residents of suburbs near COVID-19 clusters, as well as in situations where social distancing is impossible. 'We have been talking about masks for several weeks but obviously the persistent situation in Victoria gives us cause for alarm in terms of the potential for further seeding in NSW, and it is about risk mitigation strategy,' Ms Berejiklian said. Ms Berejiklian said she will be heeding the advice of health authorities in her daily life, calling wearing a mask 'the fourth line of defence'. Leading a company through a crisis is no mean feat and for some, it can be their undoing. But for those that get it right, it can be an opportunity to set the business apart from the pack. That was the case for Chinese technology giant Alibaba Group, executive vice chairman and director of Alibaba's entrepreneur fund Joe Tsai said in a recent interview. Now an e-commerce giant worth some $678 billion, Alibaba was about to launch Taobao, its online marketplace for consumers, in 2003 when crisis struck. China was hit hard by a then-novel coronavirus outbreak known at SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), which forced businesses to shutter and people to shelter in their homes. Leading amid crisis Joe Tsai, co-founder and executive vice chairman, Alibaba Group. S3studio | Getty Images News | Getty Images That might have been it for the nascent company. But instead, Tsai and his 17 co-founders, including Jack Ma, decided to pivot. They implemented what was then a novel and clunky work-from-home system to ensure the launch went ahead on time. "We wanted to make sure that when customers emailed or called us, we could serve them," said Tsai. "Obviously, the first thing you want to do is make sure your employees are safe and working in conditions where things continue to function. As long as that's in place, they can continue to serve their customers." Just weeks later, Taobao was launched as planned on May 10, 2003. The self-imposed quarantine became a watershed moment for China's economy, as domestic consumers turned to the internet to order goods online. Tsai said that steadfast commitment to the mission was instrumental to the company's success and remains so today: "Fast forward to today and our focus on the customer is still an absolute priority." Advice for entrepreneurs That offers an important lesson for start-ups struggling with today's Covid-19 pandemic, the entrepreneur continued during his wide-ranging discussion with Tony Wong, co-founder and CEO of e-commerce platform, Shopline. Specifically, business owners should focus on the core goal of their business. If that still remains, even amid the downturn, then it's worth carrying on. You have to go back to why you founded the business in the first place. Look at what the mission was and the problem you were trying to solve. Joe Tsai executive vice chairman, Alibaba Group While the COVID-19 pandemic has slowed or stopped plenty of projects across the country, a unique partnership in the South Valley is still moving forward. The South Valley Social Enterprise Center is slated to break ground on a $4.5 million center on Isleta Boulevard SW this fall. The center is a partnership between a pair of Albuquerque nonprofits Partnership for Community Action and Southwest Creations Collaborative and is designed to fill a variety of roles for the community. The heads of both organizations said the 17,360-square-foot building will function as an educational center and a manufacturing space, among other roles. Most importantly, the center will be designed to function as a community hub, one that could spur a different approach to economic development as Albuquerque looks to recover from the economic downturn associated with the pandemic. We wanted to do it differently, said Javier Martinez, executive director for Partnership for Community Action. We wanted it to be sustainable, we wanted it to be responsive to the needs of the community. Both organizations had plenty to gain from the partnership. For PCA, which aims to build strong communities in the historically underserved South Valley, the goal is to help the organization become less reliant on philanthropy, according to Martinez. We were really wanting to build a model thats more sustainable, he said. Martinez said the enterprise center will be funded through grants from the U.S. Department of Commerce, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Albuquerque Community Foundation. Susan Matteucci, executive director of Southwest Creations Collaborative, said the organization, a social enterprise that offers contract manufacturing services to help women earn a living wage, was outgrowing its current space and was looking for a facility to house its 45 full-time employees. It made so much sense to partner with an organization that really has the vision of what this is beyond just being another manufacturing site, Matteucci said. In addition to manufacturing, Martinez said the enterprise center will offer office space and educational services for kids and adults alike. The educational services will range from daycare for youngsters to college prep work for high-school students to economic training modules for adults. Martinez said the idea is to create a multi-generational community center that also acts as an economic hub for the region. We envision this as a space where people can come, create, strategize and implement, anchored by the manufacturing taking place outside, Martinez said. On the manufacturing side, Matteucci said the center will have dock space for loading and unloading freight. These facilities will be available for onsite small businesses to take advantage of as well. Putting it all together, Matteucci said the goal is to create an environment where South Valley entrepreneurs can succeed and grow. Our idea is we can help smaller businesses figure out how to reach bigger markets, Matteucci said. Long term, Martinez sees this approach as a new way of approaching economic development. Rather than focusing on bringing in large, out-of-state companies, he said New Mexico could focus on building up the entrepreneurs who are already here. The state, for a long time, has been chasing these unicorns, Martinez said. This is an opportunity to reinvest in these small, local communities. Stephen Hamway covers economic development, healthcare and tourism for the Journal. He can be reached at shamway@abqjournal.com. Learn more To read a column from the founders of the South Valley Social Enterprise Center, turn to page 9. These are the schools that have canceled classes for Jan. 18 Some school districts across the county are virtual today. Others will make up the snow day. This story was published in partnership with The 19th, a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom reporting on gender, politics and policy. It was weighing on her the prospect of starting a dream job in the middle of a pandemic, alone, her husband away 100 hours of the week helping fight COVID-19 in a hospital. Her two boys were at home, without a teacher, with assignments, walking in on her work calls, interrupting her, passing her sticky notes, requesting no, demanding her attention every hour they were awake. If you come in, I will lose my job, she told her 6-year-old in desperation. Her husband was the hero, saving lives. She was the terrible mom the worst mom ever, her sons told her and the terrible worker. In three months, Ellu Nasser watched as her white-knuckled grip on the labor force slackened. She drank more, before giving it up altogether in March. She told the dream job at a major consulting firm that her family responsibilities would get in the way of her work performance, so she couldnt begin June 1, their agreed start date. She slinked back to the part-time gig she had consulting on climate change. In June, she gave that up, too. Women like Ellu Nasser, in Austin, have had to make tough decisions about balancing employment and child care. The lucky ones were women who had a choice at all. For exactly one day, the relief was overwhelming. Then, worry. I kept wondering, How long will the personal choices I made around COVID-19 hurt me permanently? said Nasser, 42. I would like to be working for 25 more years. Thats a joy for me. My work is not separate from who I am as a person. Nasser was a stay-at-home mom for the first time in her life. She was collateral damage in what has become Americas first female recession. For the first time since they began a consistent upward climb in the labor force in the 1970s, women are suffering the repercussions of a system that still treats them unequally. Men are the primary breadwinners. Women are the primary low-income workers, whose jobs disappeared when coronavirus spread. During the pandemic, mothers have reduced their work hours four to five times more than fathers to care for children in a nation that hasnt created a strong caregiving foundation. Story continues When the economy crumbled, women fell hard. This year, female unemployment reached double digits for the first time since 1948, when the Bureau of Labor Statistics started tracking womens joblessness. White women havent been such a small share of the population with a job since the late 1970s. Women of color, who are more likely to be sole breadwinners and low-income workers, suffer acutely. The unemployment rate for Latinas was 15.3% in June. For Black women, it was 14%. For white men: 9%. Women in media: The 19th is the newest women-based publication to focus on gender, politics Women take on a greater share of parenting responsibilities under stay-at-home orders Melinda Gates: In pandemic, your actions can help save lives Women earn less than men: White women make 79 cents on the white male dollar, Black women make 62 cents, Native American women make 57 cents and Latinas make 54 cents. Women in America are living the consequence of years of occupational segregation that kept them out of managerial positions, stuck in low-paying jobs with few safeguards such as paid sick leave. When a third of the female workforce the grocery clerks, home health aides and social workers became essential workers this year, they were faced with difficult decisions about preserving their health or keeping their jobs. The rest found themselves more likely to be in positions that vanished overnight, such as the housekeepers and the retail clerks, or on the margins, in the jobs at risk of never coming back. The losses threaten decades of steady, hard-won progress. Nasser felt her loss most on the days when the constant run of doing dishes and cleaning up meals made it feel like her life was on hold. For the fall, shes patched together some home-schooling with a retired teacher for her kindergartner and a handful of other kids from her neighborhood in Austin, Texas. Her 9-year-old will return to private school. Having a child care option helped her say yes when the call came in late July reoffering the position she passed up in June. She acknowledged again and again that she is luckier than most. She was able to make the difficult decision to leave the workplace then return because her husband earns more than she does and they could afford to send their kids somewhere. Many women wont have that option this year. Its a simultaneous feeling of guilt that we are able to do it, she said, and sadness that this is the situation we were in. The fallout In 1958, women made up less than a third of the U.S. labor force. It took them 30 more years to reach 45%, a pace of growth through the late 20th century that helped usher in the most significant change in labor markets during the past century, wrote Harvard economist Claudia Goldin. Womens gains in the labor market helped create an economy that, according to some estimates, is $2 trillion larger than it would have been if womens participation levels remained where they were in 1970, when it really started to skyrocket. For the past several decades, the gender split in the labor force has largely evened out. Then came 2009, a recession that hurt predominantly male-dominated jobs such as construction and manufacturing. Women overtook men as more than half of the labor force for the first time. It has happened again only one other time: In December 2019, when coronavirus was still but a distant headline in China, women surpassed men at 50.04% of the labor force. It was a fleeting breakthrough. Nearly 11 million jobs held by women disappeared from February to May, erasing a decade of job gains by women in the labor force. In June, women regained 2.9 million positions, but those jobs, which are largely in the hospitality field, remain insecure as the spread of coronavirus forces new closures. Depending on the length of this recession and when an effective treatment or vaccine for COVID-19 is developed, there is a possibility many jobs lost by women will never come back, said Heidi Shierholz, senior economist and director of policy at the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). Home offices are expensive: Study says most people didn't have one before coronavirus About 8% of women who have been laid off have zero chance of being called back to the workforce compared with 6.4% of men, according to an analysis by EPI. Four percent expect to be called back but probably will not. Those jobs at risk are anticipated to be in fields vulnerable to social distancing, positions like the one Cristina Aguirre Sevillano has held since she emigrated from Cuba a decade ago. Aguirre, a housekeeper at Miami Beachs Fontainebleau hotel, is in a tenuous position: She was laid off from her full-time job in March, but when the resort reopened in June, limited work resumed. Shes been called back just a handful of times. Unemployment insurance has been unreliable in one of the states worst at administering it. The job she took sorting fruit at a warehouse in Miami to patch together some work over the spring turned out to be a mistake. On her seventh day sorting through crates, she went home with a fever. She couldnt breathe well. Coronavirus directly cost her a job. Aguirre, 50, recovered, but this has been the worst year weve had to endure, she said. Her 23-year-old daughter, who lives with her, also was laid off from a hotel job, and her husband is home recovering from a workplace injury. I had never experienced something like this in the little time Ive been in this country. Cristina Aguirre Sevillano was laid off at the start of the pandemic. Since then, she's been sick with coronavirus, recovered and returned to work, but with far fewer hours. She wrestles with the idea that her reliable job, the one she clung to for 10 years while her pay inched up to $15.17 an hour good by Florida standards could go away completely. Its a terrifying prospect for any low-wage worker, but particularly an immigrant. My English isnt good, she said in Spanish, implying the unspoken question: Who would take her at even remotely the same pay? As workers exit the labor force, skills will depreciate. Finding a job at the same level will become harder the longer theyre out of work. Because women will be most likely to be jobless, the gender pay gap will grow while overall wage growth will stall, said Gad Levanon, head of the labor market institute at the Conference Board, a nonprofit research group. Employers will have their pick of employees, and that will bring salaries down. Low-wage workers feel that drop most intensely. Women make up nearly two-thirds of the 40 lowest paid jobs. Support for minimum wage hikes is sputtering. In Virginia, for instance, the first minimum wage increase in a decade has been delayed four months at the insistence of business groups worried about the viruss impact. The outlook is bleak for those entering the job market or graduating college. The class of 2020 (and probably 2021) will enter a working world that pays less for the fewer jobs available. Its a vastly different situation from the one graduates expected to be in at the beginning of the year, when the USA was at virtual full employment. Unemployment in January was 3.6% among the lowest recorded rates since the late 1960s. According to a study in 2014 of graduates from 1974 to 2011, students who graduate during a recession are likely to see their salaries decline by 10% in their first year at work, followed by dips of about 2% every year during their first decade in the labor force. Higher-paying majors, where male students are concentrated, will fare better, but lower-wage majors, where women predominate, will feel the impact harder. Thats something that will impact them for the rest of their career, Levanon said. Its very, very hard to completely recover from that. William Spriggs, a professor in the Department of Economics at Howard University who was an assistant secretary for policy at the Department of Labor during the Obama administration, called it a catastrophe. We cannot continue to go through these economic spasms, where we lose a decade of job growth. And thats whats happening, Spriggs said. And so the people who have been left out, just as we get to the point where they get included, their resumes get stronger, their ability to withstand job losses gets better, then we send them back down the hill. A caring crisis For some women, hopes of climbing back out of this recession will hinge on one question: What happens to child care? The realities of the lopsided division of care inside American households has been on full display since work left the office and entered the home for those who kept their jobs, anyway. Women take on the overwhelming majority of child care responsibilities, spending 40% more time watching their children than fathers in couples in which the parents are married and working full time, according to a study by economists at Northwestern University. Child care facilities started closing by the thousands. Since January, 1 in 4 child care providers have lost their jobs, and as many as half of all child care slots could be lost as centers close, according to a study by the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning think tank. During a regular recession, women may have entered the labor force to supplement their partners lost hours; in this recession, now that the child care safety net is gone, that option is not available. Diana Niermann, CEO of Kozy Kids Enrichment Center, is pictured at the child care center on July 30, 2020 in Portland, Oregon. Since the coronavirus started, attendance at the center dropped from more than 90 children to 17. When the layoffs started, Diana Niermann said, some parents cried, telling her they were out of a job and would have to pull their kids from day care. Her facility in Portland, Oregon, called the Kozy Kids Enrichment Center, closed on Friday the 13th in March a bad omen if she ever saw one, she thought. An infusion of nearly $160,000 in a loan from the Paycheck Protection Program helped keep her from shutting down permanently, but the money was drained quickly to pay her staff and rent and to bring her facility to coronavirus-regulation standards so she could reopen in June. Of the 92 children Kozy Kids served pre-coronavirus, 17 came back. Much of Niermanns staff, discouraged by prospects in the child care industry, didnt return either. Her director quit on reopening day. I was like, Well, maybe Im not supposed to do this, but Ive been through so much that I was like, Im not giving up, this is what Ive done my whole life. This is what I believe in: good, quality care, Niermann said. Child care doesnt pay very much. We need to switch that. Policies have often overlooked the needs of working women, said Heather McCulloch, founder and executive director of Closing the Womens Wealth Gap, an initiative working to advance policies that build womens wealth. We dont recognize womens roles and so we never ask, Do women benefit? McCulloch said. We completely ignore or undervalue the role that women are playing, not just in their own families as breadwinners but also as economic drivers of the economy. If women dont benefit, the policies need to change because were all going to lose. Experts said coronavirus has helped many people understand, some for the first time, the challenges women have juggled for decades. Child care is a line item on multiple recovery proposals. The Democratic coronavirus relief package, called the Heroes Act, proposes setting aside $7 billion through the Child Care and Development Block Grant that would allow providers to get emergency help for payroll, cleaning supplies and other equipment. The bill passed the House but has stalled in the Senate. Senate Republicans released their own proposal in late July, a set of bills collectively known as the Heals Act, that would allocate more money to child care. The bills call for $5 billion through the Child Care and Development Block Grant and an additional $10 billion in back-to-work child care grants to help centers pay for costs brought on by the pandemic and to re-enroll children. Democrats called the plan unworkable. Both sides are discussing a joint proposal that could pass both chambers. Advocates, who applaud the renewed attention on child care, cautioned that neither plan sufficiently addresses the estimated $50 billion infusion needed to stabilize the industry. The issue is likely to continue garnering attention as the election draws near. Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, who cared for his two sons as a single father after his wife and daughter died in a car accident in 1972, released a caregiving plan that spans 10 years and earmarks $325 billion specifically for child care improvements, including free pre-kindergarten for 3- and 4-year-olds; child care tax credits of up to $8,000 for one child to low- and middle-income families; raises for child care workers; and incentives for businesses to build child care centers on their premises. If we truly want to reward work in this country, we have to ease the financial burden of care that families are carrying, Biden said last month during a speech in Delaware announcing the plan. Were trapped in a caregiving crisis, within an economic crisis within a health care crisis. While workers wait for Congress to make a decision on child care particularly before the school year many working mothers feel paralyzed. Jenny Galluzzo, co-founder of the Second Shift, a platform that matches professional women with freelance and consulting projects, said the site has seen four times as many applicants since February as women try to make up lost work hours with part-time consulting work. Beyond that, most women tell her theyre just waiting. You cant plan ahead in any concrete way. And that stress manifests itself because you dont know how to interact with the workforce. If youre out looking for a job, how can you know what job to take because you dont know in two months what your kids school situation will be? Galluzzo said. I worry for women because were taking an undue burden of all of the care and the invisible labor. I worry about all the strides weve made just being set back. What we are seeing play out is years of keeping women from positions of power where they could have turned their experiences into policy, said economist Olugbenga Ajilore with the Center for American Progress. Its years of child care being a womens issue not a priority. If we have more women in the economics field, if we have more women in Congress, child care would not be on the back burner, Ajilore said. When we think about women leaving the labor force, were not just losing economic output, but were losing that contribution limit. They shape the culture and the way you do business, the way we think about things. Thats what we are losing with this. In many ways, coronavirus has served as a magnifying glass, bringing into sharper focus issues such as child care that have long been ignored and employers are responding. Companies that once resisted flexible work set-ups, and particularly remote work, are starting to embrace the idea. We have been fighting for the ability for women to work remotely and flexibly for years. Its the number one thing women want for employment, and companies have now been forced to see that that model works, Galluzzo said. And when the economy comes back and jobs are more plentiful and our kids are in school, I see this as ultimately a benefit because you dont have to convince people any longer that [flexibility and being remote] works. Mara Geronemus shuttered her Miami Beach consulting office earlier this year. 'Can you have it all?' More than a decade ago, Mara Geronemus left a job at a big law firm in New York, moved to Miami Beach and sought more flexible law opportunities. After her third child was born, she opened her own business doing remote work for clients across the country, a position that let her stay deeply involved in the lives of her elementary school-age children. She launched a working moms networking group called All Before Dinner, and shes finishing a stint as the chair of the board of her childrens private Jewish faith school. It was all part of the plan. Her husband stayed in his inflexible, but well-paid, position as an interventional radiologist. When coronavirus sent her kids home, Geronemus said, it was like watching her house of cards collapse. She worked through the day to keep her kids on track with school responsibilities but found herself sitting down at the computer at 10 p.m. to start her own work. Often, her day wasnt over until at least 2 or 3 a.m. I havent pulled all-nighters since law school, Geronemus said. No matter how hard she tried, it wasnt enough. When the school year was over, her 6-year-old daughter had more than 200 unfinished assignments. We cant spend another school year or even another month doing things the way that we did it between March and June, she said. When she thinks about what would have to get cut, the calculation materializes quickly: My husband is not quitting his job, hes not leaving the hospital. My kids are not dropping out of school, Geronemus said. So what gives? Probably my work. She worked hard to get here, to leave New York and plant roots in a community that she is deeply invested in, to be the mom her kids rely on. When she shuttered her Miami Beach office this summer, it felt like it was starting to slip away. She was already halfway out. I want it all, and I had found a way and other women have found a way for a short period of time to have it all or most of it, or have it all on some days or most days, Geronemus said. Now 2020 is forcing us to reconsider, I guess, saying, Can you have it all? This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Coronavirus pandemic sets women back amid unemployment, child care crisis WASHINGTON - The House Oversight Committee has invited the new postmaster general to appear at a September hearing to examine operational changes at the U.S. Postal Service that are causing delays in mail deliveries across the country. The plan imposed by Louis DeJoy, a Republican fundraiser who took over the top job at the Postal Service in June, eliminates overtime for hundreds of thousands of postal workers and orders that mail be kept until the next day if postal distribution centres are running late. Rep. Carolyn Maloney, a New York Democrat who chairs the Oversight panel, said the Sept. 17 hearing will focus on the need for on-time mail delivery during the ongoing pandemic and upcoming election, which is expected to include a major expansion of mail-in ballots. President Donald Trump has warned that allowing more people to vote by mail will result in a CORRUPT ELECTION that will LEAD TO THE END OF OUR GREAT REPUBLICAN PARTY, even though theres no evidence that will happen. Trump, Vice-President Mike Pence and other top administration officials frequently vote absentee themselves. Last week, Trump even floated on Twitter the prospect of delaying the Nov. 3 election an idea lawmakers from both parties quickly shot down. Trump said Monday that the cash-strapped Postal Service is ill-equipped to add the expected influx of mail-in ballots to its responsibility to deliver mail and packages from the boom in internet shopping. I dont think the post office is prepared for a thing like this, Trump said at the White House. Trump also has called the Postal Service a joke and said package shipping rates should be at least four times higher for heavy users like Amazon. But shipping and packages are actually a top revenue generator for the Postal Service, and critics say Trump is merely looking to punish Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos in retaliation for unflattering coverage in The Washington Post, which Bezos owns. The Oversight committee intended to have the hearing with DeJoy this week, Maloney said, but was told DeJoy could not attend because of a meeting of the Postal Services Board of Governors. DeJoy has confirmed his availability for the September session, she said. The hearing comes as the Postal Service is reeling from mail delays and financial problems, even as record numbers of mail ballots are expected in the presidential election because of the coronavirus pandemic. Postal Service officials, bracing for steep losses from the nationwide shutdown caused by the virus, have warned they will run out of money by the end of September without help from Congress. The service reported a $4.5 billion loss for the quarter ending in March, before the full effects of the shutdown sank in, and expects losses totalling more than $22 billion over the next 18 months. The Postal Service is in a financially unsustainable position, stemming from substantial declines in mail volume and a broken business model, DeJoy said in a statement last week. We are currently unable to balance our costs with available funding sources to fulfil both our universal service mission and other legal obligations. Because of this, the Postal Service has experienced over a decade of financial losses, with no end in sight, and we face an impending liquidity crisis. Bills approved by the Democratic-controlled House would set aside $25 billion to keep the mail flowing, but they remain stalled in the Republican-controlled Senate. Congress has approved a $10 billion line of credit for the Postal Service, but it remains unused amid restrictions imposed by the Trump administration. The Postal Service and Treasury Department announced an agreement in principle on loan terms last week, with a formal agreement expected in the next few weeks. Even with the loan, the Postal Service remains on an unsustainable path and we will continue to focus on improving operational efficiency, DeJoy said. Besides cutting overtime, the new plan halts late trips that are sometimes needed to ensure on-time delivery. If postal distribution centres are running late, they will keep the mail for the next day,? Postal Service leaders say in a document obtained by The Associated Press. One aspect of these changes that may be difficult for employees is that temporarily we may see mail left behind or mail on the workroom floor or docks,? another document says. Democratic lawmakers have demanded answers from DeJoy following complaints from constituents about mail service delays and other problems. It is essential that the Postal Service not slow down mail or in any way compromise service for veterans, small businesses, rural communities, seniors and millions of Americans who rely on the mail including significant numbers who will be relying on the Postal Service to exercise their right to vote, a group of Democratic senators wrote in a letter to DeJoy last week. The senators, including Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York and Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, the top Democrat on a panel that oversees the Postal Service, said any changes to Postal Service operations must be carefully considered to ensure they do not limit service for Americans who rely on the mail for essentials, especially during a pandemic. In a separate letter, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., asked DeJoy to clarify whether the Postal Service plans to close some post offices and reduce hours at others in his rural state. Signs at some locations announced proposed closures as soon as Aug. 22 or 24, Manchin said, calling any such action a violation of both federal law and Postal Service rules that require 120 days notice before any closures. In many areas where reliable broadband is not an option, the Postal Service is their only link to medicine, Social Security checks and family members, Manchin said. Under new social distancing mandates, the Postal Service has become even more essential in keeping rural communities connected and economically viable. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) - After he was deemed ineligible to represent Duterte Youth Party-list last year, Ronald Cardema is back at the National Youth Commission (NYC) as a commissioner. Yes, but as NYC Commissioner not as NYC Chairman. And not as DILG Asec, said Department of Interior and Local Government Spokesperson Jonathan Malaya in a text message to CNN Philippines. This was contrary to an earlier social media post by Calamba Mayor Justin Marc Chipeco saying that Cardema was appointed as assistant secretary of NYC. NYC is under the supervision of DILG. The Commission on Elections First Division cancelled last year Cardemas nomination as first nominee of Duterte Youth for material misrepresentation as he was already 34 years old that time. The Party-list System Act provides a nominee of the youth sector must not be more than 30 years old. Cardema resigned from his post as chairman to supposedly replace his wife as first nominee of the party-list. Smoke billows from a fire in an area of the Amazon rainforest near Porto Velho, Rondonia State, Brazil: Reuters Brazils devastating fires in the Amazon have increased by a shocking 28 per cent from just one year ago, the countrys National Institute for Space Research has reported. The agency said it had recorded a total of 6,803 fires in the Amazon rainforest last month, compared to 5,318 in the same month of 2019. The enormous rise comes ahead of the traditional fire season for the region, which begins in August, and there are concerns Brazil could repeat the surge seen in fires in August 2019, when 30,900 fires were recorded by the institute - which represented a 12-year high for the month. More than 1,000 fires were registered on July 30, the highest number for a single day in July since 2005, according to an analysis by advocacy group Greenpeace Brasil. Its a terrible sign, Ane Alencar, science director at Brazils Amazon Environmental Research Institute told Reuters. We can expect that August will already be a difficult month and September will be worse yet. The sharp increase in fires comes amid domestic and international concern over right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro's calls to clear land in Brazil's Amazon to drive economic development. Environmental advocates blame Mr Bolsonaro for emboldening illegal loggers, miners and land speculators to destroy the forest with his vision of economic development for the region. But Mr Bolsonaro has said his plans to introduce mining and farming in protected reserves was a way to lift the region out of poverty. On 16 July, the government did however ban burning in the Pantanal wetlands and the Amazon forest for four months. Mr Bolsonaro also issued an order in May for the military to coordinate environmental actions in the Amazon. But experts said the fire numbers indicate the government's response is not being effective and also point to the possibility that this year's dry season will be even more prone to fires than last year. Carlos Nobre, a researcher at the Advanced Studies Institute in the State University of Sao Paulo, said the deforestation index also has remained high this year until July, compared to the last couple of years. Story continues We can conclude, with data until the end of July, that the effectiveness of government actions to reduce fires and deforestation is low, he said. Carlos Rittl, senior fellow at the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies in Germany, told the Associated Press that trends in the Amazon are worrisome. The tendency is that this will be a more dry year than 2019 and this makes it easier for the fire to spread, he said. Non-government organisation Amazon Conservation told Reuters it has tracked 62 major fires for the year as of 30 July. Many of those came after 15 July, when the fire ban went into effect, indicating it has not been entirely subscribed to, said Matt Finer, who leads the NGOs fire tracking project. The overwhelming majority of large fires, where elevated levels of aerosols in the smoke indicate large amounts of burning biomass, happened in recently deforested areas, with none found in virgin forest, Mr Finer said. Criminals generally extract valuable wood from the jungle before setting fire to the land to increase its value for farming and ranching. Natural fires are very rare in the Amazon. Deforestation hit an 11-year high in 2019 and has soared a further 25 per cent in the first half of 2020. Earlier this month, scientists at Nasa said higher surface temperatures in the tropical North Atlantic Ocean in 2020 were drawing moisture away from the southern Amazon. As a result, the southern Amazon landscape becomes dry and flammable, making human-set fires used for agriculture and land clearing more prone to growing out of control and spreading, Nasa said on its website. Additional reporting by agencies Read more Siberia wildfires engulf area larger than Greece Wildfires cause songbird dialect to change Greta Thunberg donates 90,000 to help Amazon tribes fight coronavirus Photos show illegal burning of Amazon amid record deforestation Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 05:39:19|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A man jogs near the White House in Washington, D.C., the United States, on July 21, 2020. (Xinhua/Liu Jie) The new policy is part of "ongoing efforts to protect the health and safety of the entire White House Complex," says a White House official. WASHINGTON, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The White House is mandating random coronavirus testing for staffers after President Donald Trump's national security adviser Robert O'Brien and several others working in the White House complex tested positive for the virus last month, local media reported on Monday. The new policy is part of "ongoing efforts to protect the health and safety of the entire White House Complex," said a White House official. The White House has already been testing Trump and Vice President Pence regularly for the coronavirus, in addition to testing individuals who come in close contact with them, according to a The Hill news report. Robert O'Brien, national security adviser for U.S. President Donald Trump, attends the 7th ASEAN-U.S. Summit in Bangkok, Thailand, Nov. 4, 2019. (Xinhua/Rachen Sageamsak) O'Brien, whose positive test was reported one week ago, is the highest-ranking White House official thus far to test positive for the virus. Also in July, a cafeteria employee working at the White House and a Marine assigned to Trump's helicopter squadron also tested positive for the virus, said the report. The D.C. metro area has recently witnessed an increase in coronavirus infections, as other areas of the country have experienced more dramatic surges in cases, said the report. Chandigarh Punjab Police on Monday apprehended 12 more persons, including two businessmen, and have launched a manhunt for a Ludhiana-based paint business owner, Rajesh Joshi. Joshi supplied the initial three drums of spurious liquor triggering the wave of deaths last week, where the toll is now 111, with seven deaths reported on Monday. Gurdaspur, Amritsar and Tarn Taran districts on Monday reported the deaths of two, two and three more persons respectively. The total number of arrests in the case has gone up to 37, including five kingpins of the illicit liquor mafia that spanned several districts of the state. A manhunt has been launched for eight more identified accused, said DGP Dinkar Gupta. With Punjab chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh asking the police not to spare anyone, the state police have launched a departmental inquiry against two DSPs and four SHOs suspended for negligence. The magisterial inquiry ordered by the CM is also probing the involvement of all suspects, as well as six police and seven excise and taxation officers who were already suspended. Among the arrests made is Ravinder Singh Anand of Moga. Anand, who runs a factory manufacturing jacks, had bought three cans of 200 litres each of the spurious liquor at Rs 11,000 a drum from Joshi, as he had started manufacturing hand sanitisers. From Anand, the three drums went to Avtar Singh, also of Moga, who sold it to Harjit Singh and his two sons, residents of village Pandori Gola in Tarn Taran, for Rs 28,000 a drum. Harjit and his sons paid Rs 50,000, with balance still pending, and hid the drums in bushes near their village. Anands questioning led to Joshi, who is evading arrest. (Photo : Photo by Brian McMahon on Unsplash ) This Mysterious Object Captured in Google Maps Scares Redditors; What is it? Google Maps has been widely-used all over the world. So its not surprising that the application is getting interests from social media users. Here's what's happening on Google Maps. Google Maps strikes another strange object image! In an exclusive report by Express UK, a strange object is now frightening users in Reddit. It was an image captured from Google Maps. The original post was based on a Redditor that turned out to be the one that found the mysterious building inside the Florida map. As described in the image, the strange object was located at the center of the Three Mile Island in Florida. This place had been a breeding ground for a nuclear incident that happened first in 1979. The image shows a white building that is sitting at the center of a forest. The Redditor that posted the picture said that he was intrigued by the building since it was far from anything or anyone in the city saying, "Even if there's a logical explanation for it, why is it so far from anything/anyone?" Another Redditor supported this claim by stating that there's something weird about the said white building. "Also, is it just me, or does it look odd as well?" said another user. If you zoomed in on the image, you will see nothing but trees. This is the reason why most Redditors speculate that the building may contain something inside, or living someone inside. In 2018, Metro UK also reported a strange object captured in the swamp of Florida. It was also found by a Redditor that caught it using a Google Street View. Not only people see strange things in Google Maps, there is also an irritating new settings applied on the app. Why people are complaining with Google Maps? Though Google Maps is created to solely give directions and routes for drivers, its not helping, according to some users in Google Forum. They complain that the app has been providing them with faster routes, without giving considerations to where the drivers wanted to go to. Drivers said that the fastest route of Google Maps are not always the fastest route for their destinations. "This is one of the most frustrating 'features' I've ever come across. I am presented options of routes before I start driving, I select one and then within a few minutes it's trying to turn me around because it's not as fast as one of the options that I purposefully did not select. To make matters worse it says 'if you want to stay on your current route tap no'. Where I am from It is illegal to touch your phone while driving and where it is legal it is highly dangerous," someone says. This article is owned by Tech Times. Written by Jamie Pancho 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Prison comes under deadly gunmen attack in eastern Afghanistan Iran Press TV Sunday, 02 August 2020 5:57 PM Gunmen have attacked a prison compound in Afghanistan's eastern province of Nangarhar, killing at least three people and injuring several others, local officials say. The spokesman for Nangarhar's provincial governor, Attaullah Khogyani, said on Sunday that the gunmen detonated a car packed with explosives at the entrance gate of the Jalalabad prison before opening fire on security guards. "A number of them have taken position in a market near the prison and are engaging the security forces," he said. "Fighting is continuing," he said, but added that government forces were in control of the situation. The ministry of interior confirmed the attack. "Based on initial information, at least three people have been killed and five more wounded," Tareq Arian, spokesman for the ministry said. The Ministry of Interior has also confirmed the explosion in Jalalabad, but did not provide any details. The Taliban militant group has denied any involvement. "This is not our attack. Our Mujahideen are not yet authorized to carry out attacks," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP. A few hours later, the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group claimed responsibility for the attack in Jalalabad, with officials saying that at least three bombs exploded outside the jail compound. Sunday's attack came on the third and final day of a ceasefire between the Taliban and Afghan government for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which marks the culmination of the annual Hajj pilgrimage. This is while the Afghan government and Taliban are completing the release of prisoners that has been underway in a gradual format as part of a prisoner swap between the two sides. Negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban militant group were expected to begin "in a week's time," following the completion of the prisoner exchange. The prisoner swap has been an Afghan government obligation under a deal between the United States and the Taliban that was struck in February. The Afghan government, which was not a signatory to the agreement, was required to release up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners. The militants, for their part, were obliged to free 1,000 government captives. The exchange has been regarded as a first step toward broader talks between the government and the militants. Its implementation had faced hurdles since the deal was signed. The deal envisages a complete withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan, and the Taliban pledged not to attack American and other foreign forces. They made no such pledge in relation to the Afghan government and people. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address A global, virtual event focused on how rapid advances in AI-related technologies will alter the future of accessibility and assistive technologies Sponsored by Verizon Media and Live-streamed on TechCrunch, December 2-3, 2020 NEW YORK, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Sight Tech Global announced its first annual event, dedicated to rapidly advancing technologies and innovations for people who are blind or visually impaired. The first of its kind, virtual and global event will livestream on Verizon Medias TechCrunch on December 2-3 and also be available live and on-demand on other platforms. Sight Tech Global will convene top technologists, human-computer interaction specialists, product designers, researchers, entrepreneurs and advocates to discuss the future of assistive technology as well as accessibility in general and how powerful emerging technologies like AI and AR will alter current-day approaches to navigation, human interaction, and access to information. Many of those experts and technologists will themselves be blind or visually impaired. Its very exciting to draw on TechCrunchs expertise in events production to assemble the worlds top experts on the topic of accessibility and rapidly advancing technologies like AI," says Ned Desmond, Sight Tech Globals founder and the former COO at TechCrunch. Everyone working in this area believes we are on the cusp of a revolution in capabilities and at the same time theres a huge amount of work to apply these emerging technologies in smart, inclusive and affordable ways. The Sight Tech Global website launched today and is open to the public. Sign up today to receive a free pass to the event, which will be 100% virtual. A $25 Pro Pass option will also be available that offers a more in-depth experience, including breakout sessions, Q&A with speakers, and networking. To sign up and learn more go to www.sighttechglobal.com Initial sponsors for the event include Verizon Media, Waymo and TechCrunch. Sight Tech Global is also announcing three speakers on the agenda: Professor Amnon Shashua, SVP at Intel, Dr. Cecily Morrison, a principal researcher at Microsoft, and Jim Fruchterman, founder of Benetech. Sight Global Tech is the initiative of the Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired, a non-profit serving people with sight loss in Silicon Valley and the surrounding area. All proceeds from Sight Tech Global will go to the Vista Center. "Sight Tech Global is a natural initiative for Vista Center, given our location in Silicon Valley, which has been the source of so much technology to benefit people who are blind or visually impaired, " says John Glass, the Vista Center board treasurer, who was born blind and worked for decades in sales and quality assurance roles at tech firms. "Our hope is that this event helps quicken the effort to bring the latest technologies to bear on accessibility." This year marks the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which is a reminder to all technology and media companies of the work that remains to be done to make their products fully accessible. Verizon Medias support for the event underscores the companys commitment to creating premium experiences for all of its users - including the 253 million people in the world who live with some type of visual impairment. "Sight Tech Global's focus on the application of advanced technologies like AI for assuring full inclusion of people with disabilities in our society is one of the most important discussions we should have right now," said Larry Goldberg, Verizon Media's Head of Accessibility. Verizon Media is providing advice on available resources for assuring a fully accessible event. Sight Tech Global is a virtual, global event founded in 2020 dedicated to exploring how advances in technologies like AI will produce better assistive technology and accessibility for people who are blind or visually impaired. The event is an initiative of the Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired. Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired The Vista Center, a 501 (c) (3) non-profit serves thousands of youth, working adults and seniors, who are blind or visually impaired through evaluation, counseling, education and training in Silicon Valley and the surrounding area. Founded in 1936, Vista Center is committed to developing thought leadership through the establishment of Sight Tech Global. Verizon Media Verizon Media, a division of Verizon Communications, Inc., houses a trusted media ecosystem of premium brands like Yahoo, TechCrunch and HuffPost to help people stay informed and entertained, communicate and transact, while creating new ways for advertisers and media partners to connect. From XR experiences to advertising and content technology, Verizon Media is an incubator of innovation and is revolutionizing the next generation of content creation in a 5G world. For more information, contact Ned Desmond Ned@SightTechGlobal.com or visit www.sighttechglobal.com. President Donald Trump grew testy as he doubled down on his support for hydroxychloroquine to combat the coronavirus despite experts on his own task force saying otherwise. Trump complained on Monday that the medicine, originally designed to treat malaria, became 'politically' toxic 'because I supported it.' The president, who took a two-week course of the medication in May, has been a steady defender of it even as Dr. Antony Fauci, Dr. Deborah Birx, and administration 'testing czar' Brett Giroir have said hydroxy is not effective. 'Hydroxy has tremendous support, but politically it is toxic, because I supported it. If I had said 'Do not use hydroxychloroquine under any circumstances,' they would have come out and said it's a great thing. Many doctors have come out strongly in favor of it, they want to break badly,' Trump told reporters at the White House. President Donald Trump doubled down on his support for hydroxychloroquine to combat the coronavirus and grew testy when pressed on the matter Dr. Antony Fauci, the director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has said hydroxy is not an effective treatment The president grew testy when pressed for details on why he kept supporting the drug after members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force said it was not an effective treatment for COVID. 'Hold it,' he said repeatedly to CNN's Jim Acosta, who kept interrupting the president to ask additional questions on the matter. 'Let me finish my answer,' Trump told the CNN White House correspondent at one point. 'Fake news, CNN, hold it.' President Trump took a two-week course of hydroxychloroquine in May Fauci, the director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told MSNBC last week that all the data and drug trials 'show consistently that hydroxychloroquine is not effective in the treatment of coronavirus disease or Covid-19.' Trump said he disagreed with the infectious disease expert. Fauci sits on the White House's Coronavirus Task Force. 'I don't agree with Fauci,' he said on Monday, adding: 'He's a good person, I like him. But we disagree on things. We disagree on things.' The president also touted a study out of Michigan as part of his argument for the drug. But Fauci told a congressional hearing last week that the study - out of the Henry Ford Health System, which found hydroxychloroquine cut the coronavirus death rate significantly - was 'flawed.' 'The Henry Ford Hospital study that was published was a non-controlled, retrospective cohort study that was confounded by a number of issues including the fact that many people who received hydroxychloroquine were also receiving corticosteroids, which we know from another study gives a clear benefit in reducing deaths with advanced disease. 'So that study is a flawed study.' On June 15, the FDA determined hydroxy is 'unlikely to be effective in treating' the virus and revoked the emergency use authorization that had allowed it to be used on some hospitalized patients. Additionally, Brett Giroir, the nation's assistant secretary for health who coordinates the administration's coronavirus testing, said on Sunday that there is no evidence the antimalarial drug is an 'effective' treatment for virus. Giroir debunked new theories supporting hydroxychloroquine saying scientific experts agree it's not a solution to the respiratory disease that has infected more than 4.6million and killed over 154,000. 'Most physicians and prescribers are evidence-based and they're not influenced by whatever is on Twitter or anything else. And the evidence just does not show hydroxychloroquine is effective right now,' he said on Meet the Press on Sunday. Though he didn't name Trump it was a direct jab at the president who last week went on a Twitter spree praising the drug as a therapy for the virus. President Donald Trump holds up a map of the coronavirus outbreak while speaking during a meeting with tech workers in the Cabinet Room of the White House Assistant Secretary for Health Brett Giroir debunked new theories about hydroxychloroquine saying the drug is not 'effective' in treating COVID-19 during an interview on Meet the Press on Sunday When asked about the drug Giroir said it's time to 'move on' from debating the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine and the medical community agrees it's not effective in treating the virus 'At this point in time, there has been five randomized controlled, placebo controlled trials that do not show any benefit to hydroxychloroquine. So, at this point in time, we don't recommend that as a treatment,' he explained. 'Hydroxychloroquine, I can't recommend that,' he added. When pushed on the drug, Giroir said the public needs to stop focusing on it when there are other effective therapies already in place. 'We need to move on from that and talk about what is effective,' Giroir said. 'We know that if you get COVID-19 now your chances of dying are incredibly less than it is in April because our health care providers know how to treat it better. We have effective therapies like Remdesivir and steroids, promising therapy like immune plasma and a vaccine really on the horizon,' he added. Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, also condemned the president's stance on hydroxy in a Fox News interview Thursday. 'We know in the randomized controlled trials to date and there's been several of them that there's not evidence that it [hydroxychloroquine] improves those patients' outcomes. Whether they have mild, moderate disease or whether they're seriously ill in the hospital,' she said. Additionally, President Trump came under fire last week when he defended a doctor who claimed that hydroxychloroquine is a 'cure' for coronavirus after her videos were removed by Twitter and resulted in his son's account being suspended. Dr. Stella Immanuel has a long history of supporting conspiracy theories and Trump ended his Tuesday press conference when pressed about his own retweets of her claims about hydroxy. 'She was on air along with many other doctors,' he said. 'They were big fans of hydroxychloroquine. And I thought she was very impressive in the sense that from where she came - I don't know which country she comes from - but she says she's had tremendous success with hundreds of different patients and I thought her voice was an important voice but I know nothing about her.' The president was being pressed by claims Immanuel has made that include face masks not working in combating COVID, alien DNA being used in prescriptions, and that the medical community is trying to make a vaccine to make a person immune to religion. Trump ended the matter by saying 'thank you very much' and leaving the podium. President Donald Trump defended the doctor whose claims he retweeted that hydroxychloroquine is a 'cure' for coronavirus got removed by Twitter President Trump defended Dr. Stella Immanuel, who has a long history of promoting conspiracy theories and who claims hydroxy cures coronavirus Trump also retweeted two videos of Dr. Stella Immanuel speaking in front of the US Capitol on Friday with others calling themselves 'America's Frontline Doctors'. She claimed anti-malaria drug hydroxycloroquine is effective in treating COVID-19, despite other medical research disproving that In May the World Health Organization stopped its hydroxychloroquine trial. The National Institutes for Health similarly halted their trial in June after determining it provided 'no benefit' in the patients studied. Trump retweeted a video of Dr. Immanuel claiming hydroxychloroquine works in battling the virus, which has infected more than 4.42 million and killed more than 151,000 Americans. The video was published by the right-wing media outlet Breitbart News and showed Immanuel and others calling themselves 'America's Frontline Doctors' staging a press conference in Washington, D.C. on Friday. She slammed 'fake doctors' who doubt the efficacy of the drug, and claimed it's a 'cure', adding 'you don't need a mask.' 'If some fake science comes out and says we've done studies and they found out that it doesn't work, I can tell you categorically it's fake science,' she said. 'I want to know who's conducted that study and who's behind it. Because there is no way I have treat 350 patients and counting and nobody is dead,' she said on how she allegedly treated patients with hydroxychloroquine along with zinc, and Zithromax. However, her claims are contrary to the extensive tests that have been done regarding the drug. Video of her fiery speech was shared on Twitter where it racked up over 14 million views on Monday, partly due to the promotion by far-right news organizations, but Twitter later took it down. Facebook and YouTube also began to pull down videos of her claims, claiming it's spreading misinformation about the pandemic. Immanuel demanded the social media platforms reupload her videos after they were taken down for spreading disinformation. She claimed God would crash their computers if they did not repost her speech. 'Hello Facebook put back my profile page and videos up or your computers with start crashing till you do. You are not bigger that God. I promise you. If my page is not back up face book will be down in Jesus name,' Immanuel said in a mistake-littered tweet Monday night. While Immanuel has been embraced by Trump and his supporters, the pediatrician and religious minister has made some outlandish claims in the past. She has often alleged that gynecological problems, like cysts and endometriosis, are actually caused by people dreaming about having intercourse with demons and witches. Immanuel also claims scientists are working on a vaccine to prevent people from being born religious and asserts that alien DNA is used in modern-day medical treatments. Flash Eight U.S. troops who have been missing in a training accident are presumed deceased as search and rescue operation off the California coast ended, the U.S. military said late Saturday. "After an extensive 40-hour search, the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), I Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF), and the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) concluded their search and rescue operation for seven missing Marines and one Sailor," said I Marine Expeditionary Force in a press release, noting that officials determined that there was little probability of a successful rescue given the circumstances of the incident. The mishap happened Thursday afternoon when an amphibious assault vehicle carrying 15 Marines and one Navy sailor began to take on water during a training exercise near San Clemente Island. One Marine was killed and two were injured in the accident while other Marines were rescued, the Marine Corps said previously. "It is with a heavy heart, that I decided to conclude the search and rescue effort," said Col. Christopher Bronzi, 15th MEU Commanding Officer, in the press release. "The steadfast dedication of the Marines, Sailors, and Coast Guardsmen to the persistent rescue effort was tremendous," he added. "I know all of us in the USMC family are extremely saddened following the announcement of the end of SAR (search and rescue) operations," U.S. Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger tweeted Sunday morning. "This difficult decision was made after all resources were exhausted. Our prayers continue to be with the family and friends of the 8 Marines and one Sailor we lost," he noted. Officials said that efforts will now turn to finding and recovering the missing service members. Over the course of the at-sea search, rescue helicopters, ships and watercraft searched more than 1,000 square nautical miles. The circumstances surrounding the mishap are being investigated, according to the press release. Buses are parked in Hai Chau District, Da Nang City on July 28, 2020 after authorities order a citywide social distancing campaign to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. Photo by VnExpress. Vietnams GDP could contract this year as a Covid-19 resurgence threatens to block the recovery of major sectors, experts say. There are possibilities that Vietnam will record negative growth this year as the rising number of community transmission cases undermines growth "motivation", Nguyen Duc Thanh, former head of the Vietnam Institute for Economic and Policy Research (VEPR) said. The VEPR had earlier last month forecast a GDP growth of 2.2 percent or 3.8 percent, thanks to rising domestic travel demand after the government eased its social distancing campaign in April. The forecast, however, has not taken into account a resurgence in Covid-19 cases, especially community transmission. Covid-19 returned to the community on July 25 after more than three months. Since then the country has reported 174 domestic infections. "If major economic centers in Vietnam are placed under lockdown, a zero growth rate would be a huge success," Thanh said, adding that VEPR might have to revise its forecast soon. In fact, he went further, saying GDP growth was no longer a practical target. "We need to figure out how to keep the negative growth to minimum." Economist Nguyen Tri Hieu said negative growth was a possibility if major cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City see a surge in number of cases, with thousands of residents having returned recently from Da Nang, now an outbreak hotspot with 120 cases. "August will be crucial: if the national tally surges during this month, businesses and services could be shut down and the economy will be severely hit." The negative growth will happen as tourism and aviation activities will be restricted again while exports are hit by plummeting orders from major markets, he added. Vietnams economy recorded a decade-low growth of 1.8 percent in the first half this year as the coronavirus pandemic crippled key sectors like tourism, aviation, manufacturing and exports. The pandemic has robbed 7.8 million workers of their jobs or their working hours, while trade turnover in the first seven months, for the first time in a decade, fell 1.3 percent year-on-year. How to save the economy in the last half of the year is now the main question, experts said. Nguyen Xuan Thanh, a lecturer at Fulbright School of Public Policy and Management, said Vietnam has been among the countries with the smallest ratio of Covid-19 financial support to businesses as a ratio of the GDP. The country has urged banks to support businesses but banks themselves are businesses and they have been reluctant to lend because of the fear of rising bad debt, he added. This means the government needs to make quicker and more practical decisions on supporting businesses rather than allowing delays in tax payment and cuts which do not have much impact, he said. Economist Can Van Luc said the government needs to optimize credit guarantee funds for small and medium businesses, which will allow banks to lend more to companies without fear of rising bad debt. Some experts remain optimistic, though. Tran Tho Dat, president of the National Economics University, said that making forecasts now is a challenging task as there are still many uncertainties. Vietnam had managed a growth of 0.36 percent in the second quarter despite having restricted many economic activities including aviation, tourism and services in April, he said. This time, if another social distancing campaign is imposed, Vietnam will have learned from its experience and the pandemics impacts could be less severe, he added. As of Monday morning, Vietnam has recorded 621 Covid -19 cases, including 242 active patients after 373 have recovered. See for yourself how and where vaccinations are ramping up, plus how COVID-19 infections and deaths still persist in most states. Microsoft Says It Will Continue Talks to Purchase TikTok While Addressing Trumps Security Concerns U.S. tech giant Microsoft said Sunday that discussions are still underway for a potential purchase of TikTok days after President Donald Trump signaled that he would not be supportive of such an acquisition by an American company while threatening to ban the social media app from operating in the United States. Microsofts Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella spoke with President Donald Trump about the matter on Sunday, the company said in a statement, noting that discussions to buy the app owned by China-based company Bytedance would move quickly in a matter of weeks, and are expected to be completed by Sept. 15 latest. Microsoft to continue discussions on potential TikTok purchase in the United States. https://t.co/mCDeeVPzyX Microsoft (@Microsoft) August 2, 2020 Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the presidents concerns, the companys statement said. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury. The short-video app is currently being probed by the U.S. Department of the Treasury as part of an ongoing Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) review. During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States Government, including with the President, Microsoft added. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on July 31 that he was considering banning TikTok in the United States as soon as Aug. 1, prompting the companys top U.S. representative to say that the app is not planning on going anywhere. Security Concerns U.S. officials and cybersecurity experts have long warned that the app is a surveillance tool for Chinas communist regime. TikTok is wildly popular among youth in the United States, with the company saying its app is used by more than 100 million people in the country. The Epoch Times reported in July that ByteDance hires censors in China to police content on the app from around the world. The app has previously censored an U.S. teenager who criticized the Chinese regimes mistreatment of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang, as well as a Chinese student who mocked Communist Chinas national anthem. Concerns have been raised that the app is sending sensitive data to the Chinese regime. The company has denied these claims and sought to distance itself from its Beijing owner, pointing to its American board members and new chief executive. It says its servers are located in the United States and Singapore, and that it would not share user data with the Chinese regime if requested. If talks are successful, Microsoft would own and operate TikTok in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The tech giant said it may invite other U.S. investors to take minority stakes. The White House, ByteDance, and TikTok didnt immediately respond to requests by The Epoch Times for comment. This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections, Microsoft said. The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries. Microsoft said it would also, among other measures, ensure that all private data of TikToks American users is transfered to and remains in the United States. To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the United States, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred, the company added. Microsoft in its statement emphasized that the discussions are preliminary, and that there is no guarantee that a transaction involving the company will go ahead. It is not clear how much Microsoft could pay for TikTok. ByteDance has said it expects valuation for the app to exceed $50 billion, although U.S. pressure to divest it could lower the price tag. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo meanwhile said that Trump will in the coming days move to address a range of national security threats posed by CCP-linked apps. President Trump has said enough, and were going to fix it, Pompeo told Fox News Sunday Morning Futures host Maria Bartiromo in an interview aired on Aug. 2. And so he will take action in the coming days with respect to a broad array of national security risks that are presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party. Ivan Pentchoukov and Reuters contributed to this report. IRVINE, Calif., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Mazda North American Operations (MNAO) today reported total July sales of 24,085 vehicles, an increase of 3.4 percent compared to July 2019. Year-to-date sales totaled 1 52,954 vehicles, a decrease of 5.5 percent compared to the same time last year. With 26 selling days in July, compared to 25 the year prior, the company posted a decrease of .6 percent on a Daily Selling Rate (DSR) basis. Sales Highlights Sales of the CX-30 reached an all-time high since the vehicle launched in November 201 9, with 3,787 vehicles sold. The CX-9 saw its best July since 201 1 with 2,335 vehicles sold, an increase of 9.4 percent compared to July 2019 . . CPO sales totaled 6,910 vehicles in July, an increase of 25 percent compared to July 201 9, and achieved a second-best all-time record. Mazda Motor de Mexico (MMdM) reported July sales of 2,524 vehicles, a decrease of 47.7 percent compared to July last year. Year-to-date sales decreased 30.3 percent, with 23,823 vehicles sold. Mazda North American Operations is headquartered in Irvine, California, and oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States and Mexico through approximately 620 dealers. Operations in Mexico are managed by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City. For more information on Mazda vehicles, including photography and B-roll, please visit the online Mazda media center at InsideMazda.MazdaUSA.com/Newsroom. Follow MNAO's social media channels through Twitter and Instagram at @MazdaUSA and Facebook at Facebook.com/MazdaUSA. Month-To-Date Year-To-Date July July YOY % % MTD July July YOY % % MTD 2020 2019 Change DSR 2020 2019 Change DSR Mazda3 3,231 3,651 (11.5)% (14.9)% 19,459 32,174 (39.5)% (39.9)% Mazda6 1,199 1,483 (19.2)% (22.3)% 9,284 14,558 (36.2)% (36.6)% MX-5 Miata 696 1,109 (37.2)% (39.7)% 5,016 5,023 (0.1)% (0.7)% CX-3 959 1,523 (37.0)% (39.5)% 5,716 8,307 (31.2)% (31.6)% CX-30 3,787 0 20,743 0 CX-5 11,878 13,391 (11.3)% (14.7)% 76,950 87,778 (12.3)% (12.8)% CX-9 2,335 2,135 9.4% 5.2% 15,786 14,007 12.7% 12.1% CARS 5,126 6,243 (17.9)% (21.1)% 33,759 51,755 (34.8)% (35.1)% TRUCKS 18,959 17,049 11.2% 6.9% 119,195 110,092 8.3% 7.7% TOTAL 24,085 23,292 3.4% (0.6)% 152,954 161,847 (5.5)% (6.0)% *Selling Days 26 25 179 178 SOURCE Mazda North American Operations Related Links www.mazdausa.com Over 50,000 food and agricultural workers have contracted COVID-19 in the United States, according to numbers compiled by the Food & Environment Reporting Network (FERN). As of its latest figures, 51,453 workers in the meatpacking, food processing and farming industries have contracted the disease since March. The overwhelming majority of these, 38,641, are meatpacking workers. These figures represent at least 635 plants and 89 farms and production facilities across the country, demonstrating that the virus has spread completely unchecked throughout these industries. At least 221 workers, including 174 meatpackers, have died. These figures, collated from various news sources and corporate press releases, represent the most comprehensive and up-to-date attempt to track the virus among meatpacking and farm workers. However, they are necessarily incomplete because there is no systematic, regular testing of meatpacking workers in the United States, much less a centralized system of publicly reporting the results. Instead, companies have released figures only in piecemeal fashion and from individual locations, often only after battles with local health authorities. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) does not keep regularly updated statistics for the sector and its latest figures are from a study released on July 7. Even these figures were likely a massive undercount. The CDC total of 16,233 cases at meatpacking plants was roughly half that reported by FERN at the time. However, this was enough for CDC to declare that 9 percent of the nationwide meatpacking workforce had already been infected. If FERNs numbers are accurate, this means that more than 20 percent of American meatpackers have been infected. By far the largest number of cases at a single employer is at poultry giant Tyson Foods, with a total of 10,104. Brazilian-owned JBS has outbreaks at 12 of its US-based facilities, with at least 2,660 cases and 14 deaths. This includes six deaths at its beef processing plant at Greeley, Colorado, where workers staged a wildcat walkout last month. Smithfield Foods has had outbreaks at 13 plants with at least 2,004 cases and 6 deaths. Last month, Smithfield Foods attempted to nullify a subpoena from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to the state of South Dakota that would result in disclosing the number of cases at Smithfields plants in the state. Smithfield Foods defended its request to the courts saying OSHAs investigation would damage how it and other companies work with government agencies in their response to the coronavirus pandemic, that is, in secret and on the companies terms. Smithfield representatives said that the company gave the South Dakota Department of Health information only because of an agreement that the information would be adequately protected. In press releases, Tyson Foods issued a statement saying that its extensive program of prevention and testing was being implemented in more than 40 U.S. locations, a small minority of its total US operations, in partnership with Matrix Medical Network, a private health care provider. According to FERN, Tyson has released testing figures from only 18 plants, with the most recent results announced on June 26. The company has conducted only 40,000 tests out of a total workforce of 122,000. In their drive to keep workers on the line making profits, the meatpacking companies are following the lead of President Trump, who signed an executive order in April to keep meatpacking plants open. Even before the pandemic, the meatpacking industry had some of the highest rates of workplace injuries and illnesses in the country, driven by unsanitary conditions and breakneck line speeds. Packed tightly on the line, meatpacking workers perform the same precise cutting motions thousands of times each day, producing astronomical levels of carpal tunnel syndrome and other cumulative trauma injuries. One federal study in 2013 found that 47 percent of workers at a South Carolina poultry plant had carpal tunnel syndrome. Trumps Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia, son of the late extreme-right Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, is a former corporate lawyer who led a crusade in the 1990s against ergonomics regulations designed to protect workers from repetitive motion injuries as junk science. Last week in the state of Utah, members of the medical community gathered outside the Utah Capitol building to call for the closing of meatpacking plants to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. What were asking is that the meat plants are closed, said Dr. Niki Davis of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a non-profit with over 12,000 members. Weve already had 168 deaths of meat packing plant workers in the United States. The group explained that meatpacking workers face the problem of proving where they had contracted the virus and of subsequently being denied benefits, creating an incentive for them to work through illnesses resulting in the further spread of the disease. Davis said doctors have received multiple reports of workers claiming they were forced to work in close proximity with others in unsanitary conditions. Among the 239 meat processing facilities in the United States that have reported COVID-19 cases, only 111 of them have documented their rudimentary intervention and prevention tactics to the CDC. Melbourne imposes virus curfew as South Africa tops 500,000 cases WORLD: Australias second-largest city Melbourne imposed an overnight curfew yesterday (Aug 2) to halt the spread of coronavirus cases, as South Africas infection count topped more than half a million. ChineseCoronavirusCOVID-19deathhealth By AFP Monday 3 August 2020, 09:45AM A group of police and soldiers patrol the Docklands area of Melbourne yesterday (Aug 2) after the announcement of new restrictions to curb the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. Photo: AFP Six months after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global emergency, the virus has killed more than 685,000 people and infected more than 17.8 million since it first emerged in China late last year. Fresh clusters have been reported in countries - such as Australia - that had previously brought their outbreaks under control, forcing governments to reimpose lockdown measures to curb the spread despite worries over more economic fallout. Australias Victoria state imposed fresh, sweeping restrictions yesterday, including a curfew in Melbourne for the next six weeks, a ban on weddings, and schools and universities going back online in the coming days. Anything short of this will see it drag on for months and months and months, said Victoria leader Daniel Andrews. Despite a lockdown, Melbourne has continued to report hundreds of new cases daily even as other states in Australia have reported zero or a small number of cases. Many other parts of the world are struggling with much bigger outbreaks. Health authorities in South Africa who had been expecting a surge in cases after the gradual loosening of a strict lockdown reported that infections had exceeded the half-million mark. The nation is by far the hardest-hit in Africa, accounting for more than half of diagnosed infections, although President Cyril Ramaphosa said the fatality rate is lower than the global average. Latin America and the Caribbean passed a grim milestone yesterday as fatalities in the region climbed over 200,000, with Brazil and Mexico accounting for nearly three-quarters of those deaths, according to an AFP tally compiled from official sources. Iran - battling the Middle Easts deadliest outbreak - yesterday also reported its highest single-day infection count in nearly a month, warning that most of its provinces have been hit by a resurgence of the disease. With infections and deaths soaring, WHO has said that the coronavirus pandemic is likely to be protracted and warned of possible response fatigue. WHO continues to assess the global risk level of COVID-19 to be very high, the agency said, adding that the effects of the pandemic will be felt for decades to come. Vaccine race Mexico overtook Britain to become the third hardest-hit country in virus deaths - after Brazil and the United States - with more than 46,600 fatal cases. The US, the worst-hit country in the world, has now tallied more than 4.6 million cases and 154,319 deaths. The pandemic has spurred a race for a vaccine with several Chinese companies at the forefront, while Russia has set a target date of September to roll out its own prophylactic. However, US infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci said it was unlikely his country would use any vaccine developed in either nation. As part of its Operation Warp Speed, the US government will pay pharmaceutical giants Sanofi and GSK up to $2.1 billion (B65.5bn) for the development of a COVID-19 vaccine, the companies said. Even as the race for a vaccine heats up, the pandemic and the lockdowns to stop its spread have hammered the global economy. France, Spain, Portugal and Italy all reported huge contractions in their economies for the April-June quarter, while Europe as a whole saw gross domestic product fall by 12.1%. While many of the continents outbreaks were largely brought under control, Switzerlands case numbers have crept up again in recent weeks, while Norway recorded its first virus death in two weeks. Despite the resurgence in cases, Europe has seen demonstrations against coronavirus curbs. Thousands protested in Berlin over the weekend urging a day of freedom from the restrictions, with some demonstrators dubbing the pandemic the biggest conspiracy theory - without offering any credible evidence. The protests, in which many demonstrators failed to wear masks or respect social distancing rules, triggered calls for tougher penalties against those who violate safeguards against the spread of coronavirus. At least 45 police were injured and more than 130 people were arrested. The pandemic has also continued to cause mayhem in the travel, sports, cultural and tourism sectors, with more airlines announcing mass job cuts and major festivals and cultural events scaling back. Latin Americas biggest airline, the Brazilian-Chilean group LATAM, said it would lay off least 2,700 crew, and British Airways pilots overwhelmingly voted to accept a deal cutting wages by 20%, with 270 jobs lost. Austrias month-long Salzburg festival celebrates its 100th anniversary, but now with a reduced programme and strict safety measures, including masks for spectators until they are seated and its 80,000 tickets - down from the usual 230,000 - personalised to enable contact-tracing. By PTI ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court on Monday ordered the Pakistan government to give "another chance" to India to appoint a lawyer for death-row prisoner Kulbhushan Jadhav, Pakistani media reports said. Jadhav, the 50-year-old retired Indian Navy officer, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April 2017. India approached the International Court of Justice against Pakistan for denial of consular access to Jadhav and challenging the death sentence. The Hague-based ICJ ruled in July 2019 that Pakistan must undertake an "effective review and reconsideration" of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav and also to grant consular access to India without further delay. On Monday, a two-member bench comprising IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb heard a petition filed by the Pakistan government to appoint a lawyer for Jadhav. The Pakistan government, in the petition, asked the IHC to appoint a legal representative for Jadhav so that it can fulfil its responsibility to see to the implementation of the ICJ's decision. It also claimed that Jadhav refused to file a review petition or an application to reconsider the verdict against him by the military court. "Now that the matter is in the high court, why not give India another chance," Justice Minallah was quoted as saying by Geo News. The judge said that the Indian government or Jadhav may reconsider their decision pertaining to the review petition. "India and Kulbhushan Jadhav should once again be extended an offer to appoint a legal representative" for the death row prisoner, he added. The chief justice asked the attorney general to 'convey' to Jadhav about his case in the high court and that he should appoint a lawyer. He also said that the government should approach India to appoint a counsel for Jadhav. The court observed that a fair trial was a right of Jadhav. Responding to the judge's remarks, Pakistan's Attorney General Khalid Javed Khan said an ordinance was issued to give an opportunity to India and Jadhav to file a review petition against the sentence. "We will contact India again through the Foreign Office," he said. Khan said it was practice that courts appoint a lawyer if one is not appointed by the convict. The chief justice asked if the ICJ's stay order against implementation of the sentence against Jadhav was still intact, and the attorney general said it was still intact. The court also asked the attorney general how much time was needed to complete the formalities to inform India. Khan replied that at least three weeks were required. The court adjourned the hearing till September 3. The Pakistan government filed the review petition in the IHC on July 22. However, the main parties, including the government of India, were not consulted ahead of the filing of the application by the Ministry of Law and Justice under an ordinance which was enacted on May 20. Under the 'International Court of Justice Review and Reconsideration Ordinance 2020', which was enacted on May 20, a petition for the review of a military court's decision can be made to Islamabad High Court through an application within 60 days of its promulgation. The ordinance was approved by the parliament last week. In New Delhi, External affairs ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava last month said Pakistan has once again exposed its "farcical" approach by denying available legal remedies to Jadhav against his death sentence which is also in contravention of the ICJ verdict, and asserted that it will explore further options in the case. Srivastava said Pakistan has blocked all the avenues for an effective remedy available to India in the case, while noting that New Delhi has so far requested consular access to Jadhav for 12 times over the past one year. The MEA spokesperson said Pakistan is not only in violation of the judgment of ICJ, but also of its own ordinance. Washington wasn't built on a swamp - but try telling that to American voters or the politicians they keep electing to metaphorically drain it. This facile fixation long ago turned into a catchphrase ("Drain the Swamp"), but for the most part, it's all promise and no follow-through. President Donald Trump is only the latest in a long line of bellicose, would-be reformers - of all ideological stripes - who campaign on the idea of a sickened, murky, ethically inhospitable U.S. capital in need of a deep cleanse. The only thing this long-held bias achieves is to keep Washington's taxpaying residents in an ironic limbo of second-class citizenship, unrepresented in Congress. Oh well - you've seen our license plates, you know D.C.'s drill. Daniel DiMauro and Morgan Pehme's intriguing documentary, "The Swamp" (premiering Tuesday on HBO), makes a good-natured and often compelling attempt to explain some of the endemic, deep-seeded dysfunctions of Congress (a.k.a. "Washington"), while also doing its best to not seem so naive as to present old outrages as fresh news. Aiming to untangle the story of Congress's immobilizing dependence on PAC fundraising and lobbyist influence, "The Swamp" is watchable mainly for its willingness to hang around with the likes of 38-year-old Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and give him a fair and up-close chance to explain himself as a self-styled iconoclast. He sleeps in his office. He does his own makeup each morning for TV appearances. He prefers Uber Eats to the potential blowback he might receive while trying to dine out around town. Descended from politicians, he likes to swagger around the Capitol in crisp suits and Ray-Ban sunglasses, in actual contradiction to his professed dislike of the place. Pedestrians pepper him with epithets; a scooter bro shouts "shame" as he whizzes past the congressman; back at home in the Florida panhandle, disgruntled constituents yell over Gaetz at a town hall. Fox News Channel and CNN, on the other hand, provide Gaetz daily and nightly opportunities to burnish his status as a provocateur, and Trump immediately answers his late-night "you up?" calls, so they can compare notes on how wonderful they are. This candid glimpse into Gaetz's world may come as something of an unctuous surprise to HBO's typical documentary viewer, who is used to being served agreeable agenda items from the left side of the menu. Without quite lapsing into make-believe, "The Swamp" follows Gaetz during 2019 and early 2020 as he fights mightily (and often obnoxiously) to stave off efforts to impeach his buddy president, while souring on the constant demands to raise money from GOP leadership, which keeps him routinely apprised of how much money he "owes" to the apparatus. "The Swamp" is not the first documentary to examine the open secret of those nefarious nearby call centers, in office buildings that are legally outside the ethical no-no zone, where representatives spend inordinate amounts of time in cubicles working the phone lines, begging big donors for more money. It's the easiest and most galling proof of a broken system. The film gets more interesting, however, when it turns its attention to some of Gaetz's similarly agitated colleagues - such as Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., who wrote a book in 2017 called "Drain the Swamp: How Washington Corruption Is Worse Than You Think," and Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., a techie Libertarian farmer who drives an electric car and prides himself on being last on the list of the GOP's fundraising tally. Massie also offers a much more entertaining metaphor for the U.S. Capitol than the overused swamp: Remember the half-built Death Star from "Return of the Jedi"? "If you come up here to visit, there's scaffolding on [the Capitol building] all the time and it looks like it's being worked on, but it's fully functional and it can destroy happiness and life anywhere. What I'm doing up here is looking for the one weakness in the Death Star - but sometimes I wind up in the trash compactor." Massie, who earned the nickname "Mr. No" for his propensity to vote nay even against his party's line (he says he does this only a quarter of the time, on average), revels in being a contrarian, which is entertaining. Yet "The Swamp" never makes a case that his rebelliousness has achieved much for his constituents. DiMauro and Pehme - whose previous work includes a Netflix documentary about Trump adviser Roger Stone - stick closely to just a few of the core principles held by Gaetz, Massie and Buck, while disregarding their less savory opinions, foibles and any other aspect that could interfere with the reform narrative. Such principles sometimes put these congressmen in the same corner as like-minded Democrats, sharing an aversion to starting new wars as well as ideas about campaign finance reform and term limits. The "where to begin" aspect of fixing Washington is as much a hurdle for the film as it is for the representatives, while the history of partisan gridlock and big-money influence is more easily traced to the rise of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in the 1994 midterm elections, when Republicans won a long-sought majority. Seeding dissent between voters and widening the rift between conservatives and liberals turned out to be a powerful moneymaker and a point of no return for both parties - "the perpetual campaign," says Harvard professor and government reform advocate Lawrence Lessig. Impeachment proceedings against Trump become a shiny object for everyone involved, including the filmmakers, who can't resist the drama - perhaps proving another point about why our leaders and representatives are able to concentrate on only one big thing at a time. Gaetz goes to dinner at Capitol Hill's Trattoria Alberto with an unlikely friend - former congresswoman Katie Hill, a California Democrat who resigned last November after admitting she had an affair with a campaign staffer and the surfacing of private photos she deemed an act of "revenge porn." Gaetz is curious about a campaign-finance reform proposal before the House that would help get money out of politics, in which the government would match small, grass-roots donations by a factor of five, eliminating the need for large donors. He confesses to Hill that he can't get his head around what he perceives as government handouts ("Welfare for politicians," he says), which she counters, because the idea still puts the responsibility for fundraising on the candidates - while limiting corporate influence. It's a fascinating moment that "The Swamp" captures, the barest hint of a lightbulb of awareness breaking through Gaetz's stubborn head. Soon Gaetz is seen publicly vowing to stop taking PAC contributions - the first Republican in Congress to do so. "The Swamp's" parting message seems clear enough: If you want to fix Washington, first fix yourself. - - - The Swamp (114 minutes) premieres Tuesday at 9 p.m. on HBO. Howard Marks put it nicely when he said that, rather than worrying about share price volatility, 'The possibility of permanent loss is the risk I worry about... and every practical investor I know worries about.' When we think about how risky a company is, we always like to look at its use of debt, since debt overload can lead to ruin. Importantly, Franchise Brands plc (LON:FRAN) does carry debt. But the more important question is: how much risk is that debt creating? Why Does Debt Bring Risk? Debt is a tool to help businesses grow, but if a business is incapable of paying off its lenders, then it exists at their mercy. If things get really bad, the lenders can take control of the business. While that is not too common, we often do see indebted companies permanently diluting shareholders because lenders force them to raise capital at a distressed price. By replacing dilution, though, debt can be an extremely good tool for businesses that need capital to invest in growth at high rates of return. The first thing to do when considering how much debt a business uses is to look at its cash and debt together. See our latest analysis for Franchise Brands What Is Franchise Brands's Debt? You can click the graphic below for the historical numbers, but it shows that Franchise Brands had UK6.04m of debt in June 2020, down from UK7.34m, one year before. However, its balance sheet shows it holds UK11.8m in cash, so it actually has UK5.78m net cash. How Healthy Is Franchise Brands's Balance Sheet? According to the last reported balance sheet, Franchise Brands had liabilities of UK11.5m due within 12 months, and liabilities of UK11.4m due beyond 12 months. Offsetting this, it had UK11.8m in cash and UK13.4m in receivables that were due within 12 months. So it can boast UK2.37m more liquid assets than total liabilities. This short term liquidity is a sign that Franchise Brands could probably pay off its debt with ease, as its balance sheet is far from stretched. Simply put, the fact that Franchise Brands has more cash than debt is arguably a good indication that it can manage its debt safely. Story continues But the bad news is that Franchise Brands has seen its EBIT plunge 10% in the last twelve months. If that rate of decline in earnings continues, the company could find itself in a tight spot. When analysing debt levels, the balance sheet is the obvious place to start. But ultimately the future profitability of the business will decide if Franchise Brands can strengthen its balance sheet over time. So if you want to see what the professionals think, you might find this free report on analyst profit forecasts to be interesting. Finally, while the tax-man may adore accounting profits, lenders only accept cold hard cash. Franchise Brands may have net cash on the balance sheet, but it is still interesting to look at how well the business converts its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) to free cash flow, because that will influence both its need for, and its capacity to manage debt. During the last three years, Franchise Brands produced sturdy free cash flow equating to 63% of its EBIT, about what we'd expect. This free cash flow puts the company in a good position to pay down debt, when appropriate. Summing up While it is always sensible to investigate a company's debt, in this case Franchise Brands has UK5.78m in net cash and a decent-looking balance sheet. So we are not troubled with Franchise Brands's debt use. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. But ultimately, every company can contain risks that exist outside of the balance sheet. Be aware that Franchise Brands is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , you should know about... Of course, if you're the type of investor who prefers buying stocks without the burden of debt, then don't hesitate to discover our exclusive list of net cash growth stocks, today. 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com. After Gulabo Sitabo and Shakuntala Devi, Zee Music Co. has now released the music album of Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl' starring Janhvi Kapoor in the lead, alongside Pankaj Tripathi, Angad Bedi and Manav Vij. The film is produced by Dharma Productions and Zee Studios. This is Zee Music Cos third OTT release during Covid after Gulabo Sitabo and Shakuntala Devi. Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl is a film about Flight Lieutenant Gunjan Saxena, India's first woman combat aviator who went all guns blazing into the heart of the war zone in Kargil and rescued injured soldiers in an unarmed helicopter. The film follows Gunjans journey as she discovers her passion and dream for flying. The movie is set to release on Netflix on 12th August 2020. Janhvi Kapoor says, The songs in the album are musically spirited. Every track is like a story in itself, woven together into an album that will linger in our minds for a long time. My favourite is Bharat Ki Beti, it moves me every time I hear it & ignites a feeling of unity & love for our motherland. Amit Trivedi will have you all looped up with this one. Amit Trivedi said Every song in the album evokes an intense feeling, be it love or patriotism. They will definitely strike an emotional recall with the listeners. Through Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl', popular music composer Amit Trivedi brings a myriad of emotions sewn into compositions that celebrate the story of air force pilot Gunjan Saxena. Yet again, Amit Trivedi brings to us a heart-thumping album. While Dhoom Dhadaka is a soaring take on the indomitable spirit of Gunjan, Aasman Di Pari is an upbeat and uplifting track by Jyoti Nooran. Bharat Ki Beti is inspirational in tone along with Dori Tutgaiyaan which is a heart-wrenching song that guarantees goosebumps. The album also includes Mann Ki Dori which is a love song that will have an instant connect with the listeners and Rekha O Rekha has a touch of Amit Trivedis contemporary signature style. Overall, the man behind creating music with an immense recall value is here with an album that fits the films narrative like a glove and casts a spell through the music. Apoorva Mehta, CEO, Dharma Productions says, "Strung together with soulful tunes and lyrics that touch the heart, the album of Gunjan Saxena - The Kargil Girl only adds to the radiating positivity of the film. Amit Trivedi's music and the lyrics by Kausar Munir has a charm to itself which hopefully the audience will connect with instantly Shariq Patel, CEO, Zee Studios said, "The soulful album, with Amit Trivedi's music and Kausar Munir's lyrics, adds a certain depth to this inspiring and riveting true story of Gunjan Saxena. I am sure the album will inspire and stay with the audiences over a long time." Commenting on the launch of Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl', Anurag Bedi, Business Head, Zee Music Company said, Amit Trivedi is an out-of-the-box composer who creates magic out of musical notes. Be it upbeat dance numbers like Udta Punjab or melodies like Pashmina from Fitoor which remain a favourite amongst music listeners to this day, Amit has given the industry iconic pieces of music and has set new music trends time and again. We are very excited to partner with Amit Trivedi after our collaboration in Andhadhun and Kedarnath. His compositions go beyond barriers of genre and leave a mark on music lovers. Zee Music Company recently crossed yet another milestone by completing 6 years amidst the dynamic landscape of the Indian music industry. Right from its inception in 2014, the music label has carved its niche to succeed as one of the top music publishers in India, publishing over 1,000 songs every year. At least 40 passengers and crew from a luxury Norwegian cruise liner have been diagnosed with coronavirus amid fears of a major outbreak. The cases were uncovered on board the MS Roald Amundsen after a passenger who took a trip on the vessel in mid-July tested positive last week. Health officials are now scrambling to track down 387 people from two different voyages who were allowed to depart the vessel before the outbreak was uncovered. The passengers hail from all 11 counties of Norway, sparking fears of a country-wide resurgence in the virus after the government was initially praised for its response. 36 crew and four passengers who took Arctic cruises on the Roald Amundsen cruise ship last month have since tested positive for coronavirus Authorities are now trying to track down 387 passengers who were allowed to disembark the vessel before the outbreak was reported (pictured, crew disinfect the ship) It is also used as a ferry service by those living along Norway's coast, amid fears that it could have spread the virus to isolated communities. Norway had been widely-praised for its response to the virus after going into strict lockdown early, with 9,286 cases and just 255 deaths. Hurtigruten, the company which owns the ship, became the first in Norway to relaunch its ships in mid-June, following a three-week shutdown due to the virus. The outbreak is thought to have originated from a cruise to the Arctic island of Svalbard between July 17 and 24. Upon returning from the cruise, one passenger fell sick and was tested for coronavirus - which came back positive. Norway was widely praised for its coronavirus response after going into lockdown early, but the new outbreak has caused fears of a country-wide resurgence (pictured, a graph showing the daily case toll in Norway throughout the pandemic) Norway has a low coroanvirus death toll compared to its European neighbours, with just 255 fatalities (pictured, a graph showing the daily death toll in Norway) Medics contacted Hurtigruten to inform them of the diagnosis on July 29, while another Svalbard cruise on the same vessel was underway, Norway's state broadcaster NRK reported. However, the cruise line did not issue a public alert until two days later, after passengers on board that cruise - which ran from July 25 to 31 - had departed. Bosses have admitted they failed to follow internal procedures for coronavirus outbreaks, and police have launched an investigation. 'We have made mistakes. On behalf of all of us in Hurtigruten, I am sorry for what has happened. We take full responsibility,' CEO Daniel Skjeldam said. The company insists that all passengers have now been emailed telling them to get a coronavirus test, but they cannot confirm whether the emails have been received. Public track and trace teams are now trying to directly contact each of the 387 passengers to alert them to the danger. The owners of the ship admit they knew a passenger had fallen sick two days before they put out an alert, allowing 178 people to disembark without getting tested (pictured, a test centre) The same crew travelled on both voyages. On Friday, four of them were hospitalised when the ship arrived back in the port of Tromsoe, and have since been confirmed to have the virus. Subsequent tests showed another 32 out of 158 staff were infected. In total, four passengers spread across both cruises have been diagnosed, but authorities say that number will certainly increase as more are contacted. Hurtigruten announced Monday that it will be suspending all cruises until further notice. Among the infected crew, 32 were from the Philippines while the rest were of Norwegian, French and German nationality, operator Hurtigruten said. 'We are working hard to contain this outbreak in order to limit the spread in the general population,' Tromsoe municipality chief doctor Kathrine Kristoffersen told a news conference. At the start of coronavirus outbreak in early 2020, thousands of passengers became stranded on cruise vessels in the waters of Asia, the United States and elsewhere, leading operators to cancel journeys and triggering mass layoffs. Separately, crew on board two Italian cruise ships - the Costa Deliziosa (pictured) and Costa Favolosa - have tested positive for coronavirus With measures such as reduced passenger capacity, social distancing and strict rules on hygiene, Hurtigruten aimed to persuade customers to return to the cruise industry. The MS Roald Amundsen is scheduled to sail around the British Isles in September, docking at ports in England and Scotland. Meanwhile in Italy, the Costa Crociere cruise ship line said Sunday three crew from two ships in Civitavecchia, near Rome, have tested positive for the coronavirus. The cruise company said two assigned to the Costa Deliziosa were hospitalized in good condition, and a third, on the Costa Favolosa, was in isolation on the ship. The Italian cruise company, which is part of Carnival Corp. said the crews of both ships were being screened 'in view of the possible relaunch of our cruises, as soon as the government gives the authorization.' The Cabinet is meeting on the matter next Sunday. Costa Crociere said that all crew members were tested for the virus before leaving their countries, then undergo a second test once they arrive in Italy, after which they are put under a two-week monitoring period. PARK CITY, Utah Aug. 3, 2020 Luxembourg USD$90 million Paul Crowe $3.4 billion Paris New York Los Angeles Park City, UT /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- NuView Life Sciences, Inc. announced that it has signed an agreement with GEM Global Yield LLC SCS, a-based private, alternative investment group. Under the accord, GEM agrees to purchase common shares from NuView on a firm commitment basis with an aggregate value of, upon NuView filing a Registration Statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The agreement provides NuView a 36-month drawdown period.NuView will use funds to complete a 600-patient in vitro double-blind clinical trial in accordance with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval process. NuView will also allocate funds for its in vivo diagnostics and Theranostic programs.NuView controls the timing and maximum amount of drawdown under this facility and has no minimum drawdown obligation.The NV-VPAC1(TM) test has been successfully utilized for in vitro and in vivo diagnostics detecting multiple types of cancer. In clinical studies, the test showed its ability to accurately detect cancer cells and their location not only inside the body, but outside as well, in voided biofluids, confirming the presence of shed cancer cells. NuView is confident the test has the potential for diagnosing a variety of cancers, transforming patient care. The GEM endorsement greatly expedites the process towards potential commercialization."This agreement with GEM helps to secure the funding for continued growth and development of NuView's NV-VPAC1(TM) portfolio. As we focus on moving our in vitro cancer diagnostics into the marketplace, we can simultaneously restart our in vivo diagnostics and Theranostic programs forward," stated, Chairman and CEO of NuView.About The GEM Group: Global Emerging Markets is a, alternative investment group with operations in, and. GEM manages a diverse set of investment vehicles focused on emerging markets that provide the group and its investors with a diversified portfolio of asset classes that span the global private investing spectrum. Each investment vehicle has a different degree of operational control, risk-adjusted return, and liquidity profile. The family of funds and investment vehicles provide GEM and its partners with exposure to: Small-Mid Cap Management Buyouts, Private Investments in Public Equities and select venture investments. For more information: http://www.gemny.comAbout NuView Life Sciences, Inc.: NuView Life Sciences, located in, is an innovative, clinical stage, precision oncology company. NuView's mission is to change the way cancer is currently diagnosed and treated. The earlier cancer is identified, the better the treatment options are and the greater the chances for successful outcomes. To learn more about NuView Life Sciences, please visit http://www.nuviewlifesciences.com.Forward-Looking Statements: This release may contain forward-looking statements, as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 or by the SEC in its rules, regulations, and releases. These forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements of plans, objectives, expectations, or intentions. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions and actual results may differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements. You should not put undue reliance on any forward-looking statements in this communication. We do not have any intention or obligation to update forward-looking statements after the date of this communication, except as required by law.SOURCE NuView Life Sciences CHICAGO 19th Ward neighbors have until Tuesday, Aug. 4, to weigh in on their experiences with mail service after an uptick of complaints about inconsistent mail delivery. Ald. Matt OShea and the Beverly Area Planning Association (BAPA) have launched a survey to document neighbors experiences. Throughout the month of July, mailboxes have gone empty in Mount Greenwood and across Chicago. A U.S. Postal Service government liaison blamed service issues on the "challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic" due to "a fluctuation in employee availability." The liaison also claimed that service complaints dropped by 45 percent July. OShea has requested a hearing about poor mail service before the Chicago City Council, stating that USPSs response doesnt jibe with the complaints his office has fielded. U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinskis (IL-03) office has also weighed in, calling the postal services response to a letter from OShea, and state lawmakers Sen. Bill Cunningham and Rep. Fran Hurley insufficient. The 6-question survey asks residents if theyre satisfied with their service and components of service, if the quality of mail service has changed since the pandemic and whether theyve experienced delivery gaps. So far, OSheas office has received 1,700 responses from residents. Responses will be received up until 5 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 4. Access the survey here. Related: Postal Service Shrugs Off Chicago Mail Delivery Complaints No Mail For Weeks: Is Postal Service 'Falling Apart' In Chicago? Poll Results: 40 Percent Say They Don't Get Mail For Days, Weeks This article originally appeared on the Beverly-MtGreenwood Patch DENVER A Denver neighborhood has voted to change its name after a yearslong debate over its association with a former mayor who was a member of the Ku Klux Klan. Stapleton residents voted Saturday to rebrand the neighborhood as Central Park, The Denver Post reported. Central Park, an ode to the green space that runs through the area, beat Skyview in the final round of voting by community members, earning 63% of the more than 5,800 votes cast. Its our sincere hope that each one of us treats this moment with fresh eyes and a common goal to treat each other with kindness, compassion and respect, said Amanda Allshouse, the president of the board of Stapleton United Neighbors. The neighborhood was named for Benjamin F. Stapleton and was built on the site of the former Stapleton International Airport. Stapleton was Denvers mayor for 20 years between 1923 and 1947. More than 65% of voting property owners opted to retain the Stapleton name in a referendum last summer. But the death of George Floyd and the ensuing unrest renewed the debate. Floyd, a Black man, died May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee on his neck while he was handcuffed and lying on the ground. His death prompted protests across the U.S. and around the world against police brutality and racial injustice. JuJu Nkrumah has been fighting to change the neighborhoods name since the 1990s, before people had even moved in. She long avoided going to the area, viewing the name as a slap in the face to Black people such as her. I give thanks and appreciation to my ancestors, Nkrumah said. Im so sorry they had to live with that in their face for so long. Its finally going to be over. Walker Stapleton, the great-grandson of the former mayor, tweeted in June that he was disappointed the democratic process represented by previous resident votes was being overlooked. But Walker Stapleton a former gubernatorial candidate and state treasurer said he supported the name change if it brings more equity, fairness and opportunity for Denver residents and Colorado residents of color. The Coldwell Banker Global Luxury certification course creates a standardized education model to help the newest generation of luxury agents meet and exceed the expectations of high-net-worth clients. Participating agents must meet strict production guidelines some of the most rigorous standards in the industry today Cameron Griggs and Chelsea Jordan of Coldwell Banker Seaside Realty have earned the Coldwell Banker Global Luxury Property Specialist designation, according to Pamela Smith, Vice President of Coldwell Banker Seaside Realty. To date, only ten percent of the more than 94,000 sales associates affiliated with the Coldwell Banker brand have been awarded with this designation. The Coldwell Banker Global Luxury program legacy traces its roots back to 1933 and is a comprehensive marketing curriculum designed specifically for marketing luxury residential properties to affluent buyers worldwide. Through the success of this initiative, Coldwell Banker affiliated agents and teams are recognized as global leaders in luxury real estate. The Coldwell Banker Global Luxury certification course creates a standardized education model to help the newest generation of luxury agents meet and exceed the expectations of high-net-worth clients. The course provides learning, networking, marketing strategies and mentorship, pairing the experience and first-hand knowledge of successful luxury agents with industry-leading resources. According to Craig Hogan, vice president of luxury for Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC, the objective of the program is to produce exceptional real estate professionals who represent exceptional properties. In order to participate in the course, participating agents must meet strict production guidelines some of the most rigorous standards in the industry today, said Hogan. Griggs has been affiliated with Coldwell Banker Seaside Realty for three years. She is an award-winning independent sales associate and member of the Brad Beacham Group who has earned many honors, including the 2019 Team of the Year award for the Kitty Hawk office. A native of Smithfield, NC and a graduate of Meredith College, Griggs currently resides in Kitty Hawk. I decided to become Global Luxury certified to better myself and my marketing techniques for my clients. Being certified will help me provide a higher level of service and provide a broader range of exposure. The Global Luxury training provided me with insight about geo-targeting affluent buyers for our specific market, introduced me to new marketing techniques, and provided valuable networking contacts with other agents who specialize in luxury, explains Griggs. Jordan has been affiliated with Coldwell Banker Seaside Realty for five years. She is an award-winning independent sales associate who has earned many honors, including the Agent of the Month and Outstanding Performance Award. A native of Kitty Hawk and a graduate of the University of South Carolina, Jordan currently resides in Kitty Hawk. I am proud to have earned the Global Luxury designation allowing me to elevate the client experience and raise the bar for customer service through the Global Luxury network, connections, and resources. It is an honor to serve this unique market segment and continue the legacy of luxury on the Outer Banks, says Jordan. I am pleased that both Cameron and Chelsea have not only achieved the specific Global Luxury production qualifications, but that they have also invested the time and resources into completing this prestigious course to take their marketing of Outer Banks luxury properties to the next level, says Smith. About Coldwell Banker Seaside Realty: With 30 years of local knowledge and experience, our family owned and operated company offers real estate services across the entire Outer Banks as well as all of northeastern North Carolina. Combined with the Coldwell Banker brand, one of the largest and most influential residential real estate brokerage franchises in the world, CB Seaside Realty offers top-tier real estate services to buyers and sellers throughout the region. Coldwell Banker Seaside Realty has sold the most real estate on the Outer Banks for the past six years and is number one in sales volume for the past four years*** *As reported by the Outer Banks Association of REALTORS MLS 1/01/2016 6/30/2020. **As reported by the Albemarle Area Association of REALTORS MLS 1/1/20 6/30/20 ***As reported by the Outer Banks Association of REALTORS MLS 1/01/2014 12/31/19 About Coldwell Banker Global Luxury: Coldwell Banker Global Luxury Property Specialists are an exclusive group within the Coldwell Banker organization, making up under ten percent of independent sales associates affiliated with the brand worldwide. Coldwell Banker affiliated agents conducted 27,600 transactions of homes priced at $1 million or more in 2019, more than any other national real estate brand. This equates to $144.4 million in sales every day with an average sales price of $1.9 million in this category. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker logo are registered mark owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. Coldwell Banker Global Luxury and the Coldwell Banker Global Luxury logo are service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. Each office is independently owned and operated. G oing to a city centre in Britain may be about as cheery as an appointment with the taxman of late, but one company is seeing the upside. Online estate agent Purplebricks has seen homeowners keen to stick their house up for sale and consider fleeing centres since the market reopened and stamp duty under 500,000 was cut. The possibility of more home working has caused people to re-examine their living arrangements. Boss Vic Darvey said there were signs of a market rebound nationwide: The key driver is people moving out of cities and densely populated locations. But he added the recovery is slower in London where Brexit and Covid concerns are weighing more heavily. Annual revenues at Purplebricks fell 2.4% to 111.1 million and losses widening by 7.9 million to 9.4 million. The shares, which began the year at 130p, rose 10% to 51p. Darvey added that around 10% to 20% of staff at the companys headquarters in Solihull had returned to the office, but their coming back was down to personal choice. On a lacklustre day, the FTSE 100 rose just 11 points to 5909 with the FTSE 250 down 45.37 points at 16,887. Music investor Hipgnosis Songs Fund ticked up 1% at 117.8p on its latest acquisition the catalogue of American crooner Barry Manilow, whose hits include Cant Smile Without You. Doorstep lender Non-Standard Finance paused plans to raise cash from shareholders after the City watchdog expressed concerns over some of its practices at its guarantor loans arm. It pledged to conduct an in-depth review but shares fell 25% to 3.97p. Cruise operator Carnival was also in choppy waters, saying delays in getting approval to restart operations from the Italian government meant it had to cancel trips planned for this week and next. The stock dived 4% to 793p. Insurer Hiscox has been under fire over not paying out on Covid business interuption claims, but the pandemic pushed it into the red. The Lloyds of London insurer put aside $232 million to deal with the crisis, up from $150 million previously earmarked for payouts including on travel and event cancellations. First-half losses hit $138.9 million and shares fell 6% to 734p. Small-cap spotlight City bankers are braced for a wave of business restructuring and insolvencies and investors today gained an option to buy into the hive of activity as K3 Capital bought Holborn-based Quantuma. Both firms specialise in advising SMEs, with Quantumas services including handling restructuring and insolvency, and K3 helping businesses to sell up. The deal builds on K3s acquisition of research and development tax credit specialist Randd in June and will help grow the groups scale in the UK and overseas. K3 shares rose 9% to 157p. Bank of India (BOI) on Monday reported a nearly 2.5 times rise in standalone net profit at Rs 843.6 crore in the April-June quarter as against Rs 242.6 crore in the corresponding period of last year on account of lower provisions. Net Interest Income (NII) saw a marginal fall to Rs 3,481.1 crore from Rs 3,485.4 crore in the quarter under review, Bank of India said in an exchange filing. In Q1FY21, non-performing assets (NPAs) declined 6 per cent to Rs 57,787.8 crore compared to Rs 61,549.9 crore in the same period last year. Net NPA fell 7.3 percent to Rs 13,275 crore from Rs 14,320.1 crore, on the Q-oQ basis. Gross NPA as a percentage of gross advances plunged 90 bps to 3.6 per cent from 3.9 per cent, on a sequential basis. Total provisions in Q1FY21 declined to Rs 1512.07 crore from Rs 1,911.98 crore in Q1FY20. "The COVID-19 continues to spread across many countries and in India and the same has resulted in significant volatility and decline in the global and local economic activities. The situation continues to be uncertain and the Bank is evaluating the situation on an ongoing basis. The major challenge for the Bank would arise from volatility in cash flows. Despite these events and conditions, there would not be any significant impact on Bank's results in future and on the going concern assumption," Bank of India said.Also read: Sovereign Gold Bond V Series opens for subscription: All you need to know Also read: Personal health IDs, e-records, doctors' registry part of Centre's digital health ecosystem plan Pompeo Hits Out at Hong Kong's Delay of Legislative Elections Sputnik News 07:18 GMT 02.08.2020 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo criticized the Hong Kong administration's one-year delay of the legislative elections, questioning whether Hong Kongers will ever be able to vote again. "The United States condemns the Hong Kong government's decision to postpone by one year upcoming Legislative Council elections originally scheduled for 6 September. There is no valid reason for such a lengthy delay. It is likely, therefore, that Hong Kong will never again be able to vote for anything or anyone," a Pompeo statement published on the State Department website read. Pompeo lashed out at Beijing for what he said was its flouting of the 1997 Sino-British Joint Declaration and Hong Kong's Basic Law. The statement urged Hong Kong authorities to reconsider the delay or risk continuing to become just another city in China. "We urge Hong Kong authorities to reconsider their decision. The elections should be held as close to the September 6 date as possible and in a manner that reflects the will and aspirations of the Hong Kong people. If they aren't, then regrettably Hong Kong will continue its march toward becoming just another Communist-run city in China," the statement read. A day earlier, Chief Executive Lam stood behind the government's decision to delay the elections, citing a worrying epidemiological situation in the country. She explained the lengthy delay as attributed to the fact that the elections require extensive preparations, which the government also wanted to avoid undertaking in times of high COVID-19 transmission. Lam also referred to the top body of China's parliament, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, as the highest ordinance qualified to extend the mandates of Hong Kong's current convocation on lawmakers, which expires on 30 September. Earlier in the week, Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced the decision to delay the September 6 election to the Legislative Assembly to 5 September 2021, citing coronavirus fears. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address As they prepare to resume play, the Marlins have announced a flurry of additions to the active roster (as covered on Twitter by reporters including Jordan MacPherson of the Miami Herald). Just wholl move to the COVID-19 injured list remains to be seen. Most of these players were picked up in the last week or so as the organizations coronavirus outbreak unfolded. The Fish will select the contracts of righties Nick Vincent and Josh A. Smith, infielders Logan Forsythe and Eddy Alvarez, and catcher Ryan Lavarnway. Also coming up are a host of other fill-ins that had already gone onto the 40-man roster. Outfielders Matt Joyce and Lewis Brinson are coming off of the injured list. Righties Justin Shafer, James Hoyt, and Mike Morin will join lefties Josh D. Smith, Richard Bleier, and Brian Moran in the bullpen. Most notably, perhaps, are the additions of youngsters Jordan Yamamoto, Monte Harrison, and Jorge Guzman. Yamamoto had 15 solid starts in 2019 and will be looking to lock down a job for the foreseeable future. As for Harrison, a former top-100 prospect, itll be his first taste of the bigs. Guzman is a live-armed young hurler wholl get his first look. In other news from Miami, both president Derek Jeter and manager Don Mattingly pushed back on the prevailing narrative surrounding the teams coronavirus issues. While the leaders acknowledged that some players may have let their guard down, they rejected any rumors that players had recklessly engaged in risky activities away from the ballpark. Jeter also rejected the notion that the Marlins players had made their own decision to take the field against the Phillies after several players tested positive. He says the organization simply played a scheduled game and noted that the league and opposing team had full knowledge of the testing results. The MS Roald Amundsen is docked at Tromso, Norway - TERJE PEDERSEN/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock A Covid-19 outbreak has hit an Arctic cruise ship, forcing hundreds of passengers into quarantine. Thirty-six crew members of the ship, which is operated by the first firm to resume international cruises in the wake of the pandemic, have tested positive for coronavirus, officials said over the weekend. Arriving at the northern Norwegian port of Tromso from the archipelago of Svalbard, the crew of the MS Roald Amundsen was quarantined on board the ship on Friday after four staff members tested positive for the virus and were hospitalised. Of the 158 crew members on board, 36 are infected, Pal Jakobsen, media officer for the city of Tromso said, confirming a development that raises fears of a resurgence of cases in Norway. Some 400 passengers from two cruises to Svalbard in July now face going into quarantine, while over the weekend the company scrambled to contact 20 passengers they were not immediately able to reach. The ship's company Hurtigruten had earlier indicated 33 positive tests. The infected crew were all Filipino apart from three people from France, Norway and Germany. The company said on Friday that four crew members "were isolated several days ago because of other disease symptoms, with no symptoms of Covid-19. "There was no reason to suspect Covid-19 when the ship docked in Tromso based on the symptoms they were showing," Hurtigruten said. The ship had nearly 180 passengers on board since departing on July 25. None of the passengers reported symptoms related to coronavirus during the voyage, Hurtigruten said. All passengers disembarked the ship on Friday but about 60 people have since been quarantined in Tromso, the cruise line said on Saturday. The crew members are the first coronavirus cases in Tromso hospital has seen since early June. The cruise industry has been decimated by the pandemic after numerous high-profile outbreaks took place on ships of holidaymakers. The FCO currently advises against all ocean cruises. Story continues The Norwegian Institute of Public Health has not ruled out the possibility of more cases emerging, "but we will only have the answer once the tests have been carried out". It recommended all passengers remain quarantined while awaiting their results. As of Friday, Norway had 9,208 confirmed cases of coronavirus. One person died of the virus on Friday night, bringing the country's death toll to 256. It was the first coronavirus-related death in the Nordic country in two weeks. InfraScan, a medical device firm specializing in brain injury and stroke diagnostic products, announced today the issuance by the US Patent Office of three additional patents that cover internal bleeding, brain trauma and stroke detection technologies. The first patent for invention number US 2020/0229712 A1 is for an optical probe for oximetry measurements. The second patent for invention number US 2020/0170554 A1 is for a non-invasive device for brain edema and autoregulation monitoring device and method. The patent was developed in collaboration with Drexel University, which owns the patent and licensed it exclusively to InfraScan. The third patent for invention number US 10,292,598 B2 is for devices and methods for detection of internal hematoma. This patent was developed in Hadassah Hospital in Israel, which licensed it exclusively to InfraScan. "The latest patents make claims in connection with near-infrared technology that allows local hypoxia and edema detection in addition to hemorrhage detection, said Baruch Ben Dor, PhD, president and CEO of InfraScan. Detecting changes from normal baseline as well as monitoring those parameters in trauma and stroke victims is crucial. It further expands our technology platform portfolio." The patents cover the technologies to expand the capabilities of InfraScan's Infrascanner, a hand-held, point-of-care device to detect bleeding in traumatic brain injury patients. InfraScan has over 1,000 devices deployed in the US and internationally, including with some of the world's leading neurotrauma and trauma experts. InfraScan also licensed a variety of patents that apply to hemorrhagic and ischemic stroke detection and brain hemorrhage monitoring. In the general population, an estimated 1.5 million individuals seek medical treatment for head trauma in the U.S. each year, and a total of 25 million individuals sustain head trauma annually worldwide. The Infrascanner has obtained FDA clearance, the CE mark, TGA, KFDA, and is now being marketed all over the world. About InfraScan InfraScan, Inc. is a medical device company that focuses on developing, commercializing and distributing portable brain scanner for head injury and stroke assessment based on near infrared (NIR) technologies. The company has received funding from the U.S. Army Medical Materiel Development Activity, U.S. Marine Corps, Office of Naval Research, BioAdvance, the Biotechnology Greenhouse of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania, and from the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation. For more information visit http://www.infrascanner.com. DETROIT, MI A woman was killed and her three children injured after a crash on Detroits east side. The Associated Press reports the 33-year-old woman was killed after a stolen vehicle crashed into the familys SUV on Saturday, police said. Two men in a stolen red Dodge Challenger struck the familys black Chevrolet Trailblazer before 5 p.m. on Saturday, police alleged. The men were hospitalized for injuries that were not considered life threatening. The children, ages 12, 5 and 5, were hospitalized and listed in stable condition. The men were arrested and a weapon was recovered. You have these farms who process their animals into the expensive cuts of meat the New Yorks, the ribeyes, the tenderloins and then grind the rest of it into hamburger. Well, they end up selling the New Yorks, the ribeyes and tenderloins the first few days, and then theyre left with only the hamburger, which may or may not sell, Hanft said. We buy the whole animal from three local farms and it relieves them of the burden of selling what they think they dont want. Advertisement The defeated Vice-Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last elections, Mr. Peter Obi, amply deserves the title of a smooth operator. He derives joy in deceiving the people about his piety. He so much likes to be seen as being right in all instances, even when the issues are direct opposites. Just a little peep into Peter Obis recent activities will expose his hypocrisy. He was all over the newspapers and the online media with condolence messages on the deaths of the former Minister of Science and Technology, Major-General Sam Momah, and the former Senator and leader of Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, Ayo Fasanmi,who both died on Wednesday, July 29, 2020. According to Peter Obi, Today, I, with other Nigerians, mourn the death of Senator Ayo Fasanmi and Major General Sam Momah, two great men, whose landmark achievements in our country will be remembered for generations to come. (The) late Pa Ayo Fasanmi was an elder statesman who made enviable footprints in his profession and society in general. His public and political positions at different times in his life were accompanied by laudable contributions to the nation. Aside his contributions to academics, (the) late Gen. Momah, who recently launched his 13th book, served the country and humanity, as a former military administrator, with many honours and achievements to his name. Only an unprincipled fellow can oppose someone viciously in his lifetime only to wax eloquent upon his death. General Momah was President Muhammadu Buharis right-hand man in his lifetime, and Peter Obi was at daggers-drawn with any promotion of the interests of Buhari. Obi would think that the people had completely forgotten his diatribes of the past against his enemies. In this light, Peter Obi would want to deceive the world that Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, whom he ran with as the vice-presidential candidate of the PDP, is such a principled lover of Ndi-Igbo. Obi forgets that people know that Atiku was arguably the singular force that wrecked the venerable Dr Alex Ekwuemes campaign to be president of Nigeria, reportedly shouting Biafra when Ekwueme was addressing the Jos Convention crowd back in 1999. He mobilised serving and retired generals in 1998 and 1999 to stop Ekwueme from being the PDP presidential candidate, reminding them that he was Igbo, or better Biafran. It is obvious that Peter Obi is speaking with both sides of the mouth. He can only be said to be shedding crocodile tears for General Momah and Senator Fasanmi. For a man who is known for his open campaign against the Yoruba, it is galling that Peter Obi is claiming to be mourning the passing of Pa Fasanmi. Not a few commentators have had an axe or two to grind with Peter Obi over his anti-Yoruba politics given that he literally made all his money in Yorubaland. Incidentally, it was in the selfsame Yoruba territory that his aides were caught pants down wanting to launder millions of Naira at 7 Aerodrome Road, Apapa, Lagos, the office of Next International, his personal enterprise. Instead of building bridges of understanding, Peter Obi erects wedges of hate. He so likes to see himself in the news every day, more than even his principal Atiku who had since been withdrawn. Peter Obi still wants to be seen as both the governor of Anambra State and the vice-president of Nigeria. This has brought so much division within the PDP. In the words of the now deceased Echezona Okechi, former chairman of Anambra State House of Assembly Committee on Public Petitions, If the PDP is practically dead at the national level, it is in a worse state in Obis Anambra State: it can never resurrect here. Obi and one or two of his political associates may soon be the only remaining PDP members in the state. To remain relevant in the national consciousness, the former governor now attends every function with religious commitment. And he prefers to speak on each occasion. Surprisingly, he prefers speaking outside Anambra State where he makes large claims. He carefully makes no such claims in Anambra State where the people know him better. The fear is that Peter Obis love for power is so obsessive that if he sees that the PDP is going nowhere in the drive for power he will dump the party the way he dumped APGA and join the ruling APC. Talk of a man of hypocrisy who is so enamoured of playing politics without principles. His forte is to deceive people who cannot properly look into his antecedents. Here was a man who fought almost to the death to upstage Senator Anyim Pius Anyim to become President Goodluck Jonathans Secretary to the Government of the Federation. When that pipedream failed, he upped the ante of succeeding Senator Stella Oduah as the Minister of Aviation. Even at that, he lost out to youthful Osita Chidoka. The relationship between Obi and Chidoka remains like that of cat and mouse. The truth is that Peter Obi is in dire need of putting principles in his playing of politics. The hypocritical mourning of General Momah and Senator Fasoranti once more exposes the man who back then lied that he had only one wristwatch and one pair of shoes. Ufomba is a retired civil servant in Onitsha. GROTON, Conn., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- ThayerMahan announced today its acquisition of Ocean Acoustical Services and Instrumentation Systems (OASIS). Founded in 2016, ThayerMahan has rapidly grown into an industry leader in autonomous marine sensor/system solutions. Led by its visionary founder, Michael J. Connor, ThayerMahan has developed patented technology solutions in acoustics, electronic sensing, autonomy, communications and data management while providing unique MDA (Maritime Domain Awareness) solutions to a diverse body of clients in government, industry and academia. ThayerMahan President and CEO, Mike Connor, stated, "Acquiring OASIS is a big step for ThayerMahan. We have been working with the OASIS team for over 4 years and have tremendous respect for their skill set. They are experts in the physics of underwater sound and add considerably to our ability to produce the software that drives our autonomous maritime acoustic collection systems. When we combine OASIS scientists with ThayerMahan's expert operators, we have the ability to deploy new maritime search capabilities faster than anyone else in the business." ThayerMahan has worked closely with OASIS in the development of cutting-edge acoustic sensor and processing technologies. Since 1990, OASIS has provided expert consulting services in all areas of underwater and airborne acoustics, noise control technologies, structural acoustics, and instrumentation and data acquisition systems. OASIS has extensive experience performing ocean acoustic experiments in both coastal and deep water. The company has been active in a number of government-funded research efforts focused on ocean acoustics and oceanography and has developed a real-time system (patent pending) for calculating the position and the transmission loss of a programmable acoustic target. Another core service provided by OASIS has been real-time advanced signal processing utilizing state-of-the-art DSP (Digital Signal Processing) chips has been a key element applied to automated unmanned vehicles. OASIS Founder and CEO, Phil Abbot, stated, "My team at OASIS has developed a world class consulting firm focusing in underwater acoustic sensing technology and integration with Unmanned Undersea Vehicles. With a deep understanding of the physics of sound and its interaction with the ocean environment, we have developed state-of-the-art autonomous algorithms and implemented them into low power digital signal processors, resulting in highly competent autonomous surveillance systems. As a part of ThayerMahan, we will see our products deployed in support of government and commercial sector clients in addition to the applied naval research community that we already serve." OASIS has provided cutting edge research on the acoustic signals produced by marine mammals to a variety of US government customers. This work has led to the development of an autonomous system to detect, classify, and locate marine mammals using acoustic sensors based on autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) platforms. ThayerMahan was represented by the firm Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati in this transaction. About ThayerMahan ThayerMahan, Inc. is a maritime technology company dedicated to providing its government and commercial clients with turn-key autonomous marine solutions, including deployment, operations, data gathering and analysis services, using state-of-the-art acoustic and electronic sensors integrated on a variety of host platforms tailored to specific mission criteria. The company is headquartered in Groton, CT with satellite presences in Boston and Washington, DC. For more information, please visit www.thayermahan.com or contact directly at [email protected]. Media Contact: Richard J. Hine ThayerMahan Chief Operating Officer [email protected] SOURCE ThayerMahan, Inc. Related Links http://www.thayermahan.com Lack of consistent rains in July has led to water storage in the four dams that service Pune Panshet, Warasgaon, Khadakvasla and Temghar - to its lowest level in the last three years for this time of the year. So far, the four dams are at 31.27 per cent capacity, while on the same date in 2019 and 2018, it was 88.0725 per cent and 86.1275 per cent, respectively. The dam stock has raised concerns about water cuts in the city, although Pune Municipal Corporation has said there will be no cuts to water supply. There are no such plans for water cuts right now. One should not panic as the monsoon will be very good in the coming days. After the second week of August it is forecast to rain heavily, said Aniruddha Pawaskar, superintending engineer, water supply and pumping department. Pune mayor Murlidhar Mohol said he will conduct a meeting with the PMC water department to know the details about water storage on Tuesday. Every year in June and July, catchment areas are expected to receive good rains, but this time, rains were not as heavy as compared to the past couple of years. Good rains are expected in August, said Anupam Kashyapi, head of India Meteorological Department, Pune. On Sunday as well, Pune did received sporadic rains with the maximum temperature at 31.1 degrees Celsius and the minimum temperature at 21.6 degrees Celsius. In case it does not rain for one more month then there can be a discussion on water cuts, but the India Meteorological Department has confirmed there is nothing to worry about, added Pawaskar. Since the last few days, the maximum temperature has been above 30 degrees Celsius giving people a pinch of summer in the monsoon season. The IMD has forecast moderate to isolated heavy rains in the city from August 3-5. The ghat regions will continue to receive heavy rains. Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) Hanoi - Public companies may receive a penalty of 2-3 billion VND (87,120-130,700 USD) for falsifying share listing and trading documents under a proposal from the Ministry of Finance. The companies would have to file to trade shares at thes within a maximum of 60 days.The penalty was proposed in a draft decree regulating fines for administrative violations in the securities sector.A fine of 400-500 million VND would be imposed if the company delivers false information in its listing documents or covering false information on purpose.The company would be fined 100-200 million VND for not correcting and supplementing information in its listing documents, or missing key information required by market regulators.Public companies may also receive a fine of 70-100 million VND if they do not adjust the details ofand trading and if they fail to register and trade shares on time in accordance with existing rules.A company would suffer a maximum fine of 500 million VND for using false information in its profile or covering false information when it files for listing shares on overseas markets. The minimum penalty for the violation is 400 million VND.If the company does not report to the State Securities Commission about issuing new shares and registering to the overseas markets depository agency, the fine would be 150-200 million VND.Not correcting the profile and supplementing required information in its overseas listing documents would be penalised between 100 million VND and 200 million VND.The finance ministry is collecting feedback from market regulators, analysts and securities companies on the draft.The full version of the draft decree is available on the Governments portal chinhphu.vn. - The SpaceX capsule that historically took two astronauts into space has returned to earth - Elon Musk's Dragon Capsule entered earth's atmosphere on Sunday afternoon, splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico - It brought home astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley after about two months at the International Space Station Astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley have returned home in the SpaceX capsule after nearly two months in space. On Sunday, August 2, Dragon Capsule, the first privately built aircraft to carry NASA astronauts into space, splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico. Hurley and Behnken were on board when the SpaceX capsule touched down in what was described as a "physically demanding way to return to Earth". READ ALSO: Total Bellas: John Cena's ex, her twin sister give birth to baby boys 1 day apart Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley have returned back home in the SpaceX capsule after about two months at the International Space Station (ISS). Photo: @SpaceX. Source: UGC READ ALSO: Nurse who contracted COVID-19 while pregnant can't recognise her baby Videos and photos were posted online by both NASA and SpaceX. In one of the clips, Hurley could be heard saying all good shortly after splashdown. People around the world watched a live-stream of the command centre and final minutes of the capsules descent back into orbit. "Good splashdown of Dragon confirmed! Welcome back to Earth, @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug," SpaceX captioned their post. READ ALSO: No DNA needed: Diamond's cute 10-month-old son enjoys sunny day in the pool READ ALSO: Inside Cristiano Ronaldo's amazing 5.5m yacht complete with modern kitchen, huge lounge The Daily Wire reported the NASA astronauts nicknamed the spacecraft "Endeavour" and Hurley was the first to emerge following the landing. "To anybody who has touched Endeavour, you should take a moment to just cherish this day, especially given all the things that have happened this year. We certainly cant thank you enough, our families cant thank you enough, Hurley said. READ ALSO: Urafiki wa Akothee na Zari wavunjika, amuondoa kwenye orodha ya marafiki zake Instagram Although both men were fine, the landing was not the easiest to pull off. Hurley explained during a press conference from space on Friday that a splash landing takes a physical toll on a person. The duo had to exercise in space to get their bodies ready for the challenging descend back to earth. In other news, an engineer in her 40s from Eldoret gifted her parents with a modern house in the town as a token of appreciation. The lady who used to work for Tullow Oil before joining a Chad-based company said she did not want to live a good life while her parents suffered. Michelle Boit who studied in the US saw her friends living like kings and queens while their folks lived like paupers back home. Michelle's mum and dad held a prayer ceremony to bless the ultra-chic home before moving in. 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. Corona has totally ruined our lives - Walter Waweru | Tuko TV Source: TUKO.co.ke When Americans panic, they buy guns lots of them. During the first six months of 2020, amid a global coronavirus pandemic, gun retailers have reported a record 10.3 million firearm transactions, according to a new survey by the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Overall, gun sales in the U.S. have increased by 95 percent while ammunition sales have increased 139 percent compared to the same period last year. And while various demographic groups are buying guns in 2020, African-Americans account for the highest increase in gun purchases of any group. The highest overall firearm sales increase comes from Black men and women, who show a 58.2% increase in purchases during the first six months of 2020 versus the same period last year, Jim Curcuruto, NSSF director of research and market development, wrote in his report. Bottom line is that there has never been a sustained surge in firearm sales quite like what we are in the midst of. Getty Images In many states, estimated gun sales doubled in March compared with February. In Utah, they nearly tripled. And in Michigan, a coronavirus hot spot, sales more than tripled. Yet its not the first time gun sales have surged following an event with national implications. In 2012, more than 3 million were purchased in the months after the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, in which a gunman killed 26 people, including 20 children, in Newtown, Conn. After this tragedy, Americans feared stricter gun laws so they bought more guns. In the eight years under President Obama, the gun industry grew 158 percent, according to the NSSF, over fears of impending gun control. While much of the spike in sales early on can be attributed to uncertainty surrounding business shutdowns and initial stay-at-home orders because of COVID-19 precautions, more recent sales may be due to an uneasiness around Black Lives Matter rallies and increased calls to defund police departments. Michael Cargill, a Black man and owner of Central Texas Gun Works in Austin, Texas, says that amid all the anxiety over the pandemic and rallies, people are buying guns to take personal responsibility for their safety. People were concerned with people breaking into their home or breaking into their vehicle or attacking them while theyre in their vehicles [after COVID-19], he said in a video interview with Yahoo News. So people wanted to take their own protection into their own hands. Story continues Michael Cargill, owner of Central Texas Gun Works in Austin, Texas. In the past few months, Cargill says hes seen triple the amount of people coming into his store wanting to purchase firearms, and hes noticed a surge in Black customers in particular. Cargill believes Black people are buying more guns because they are getting more educated on the history of gun control. Theyre understanding that gun control first started in the 1800s so people are realizing that every time there's a gun law thats targeting a certain group of people, its usually the African-American group, he said. So theyre saying, with everything going on, weve got to make sure that were legal with this firearm. Were going to make sure we know what the law is, we want to make sure we know where we can take it, where we cant take it. History shows that gun control laws have always been unfavorable to Black Americans. Even before America was a country, Black people were banned from owning guns. The first gun control law in the territory that is now the United States was passed in Virginia in 1640, journalist Daniel Rivero noted in a 2016 Splinter article. It explicitly banned black people from owning guns, even if they were not slaves. More than 200 years later, in 1857, the prospect of armed Black people became a crucial factor in the Dred Scott case. As Scott attempted to become an American citizen with all its inalienable rights that include owning a gun, the court ruled that "a negro, whose ancestors were imported into this country, and sold as slaves," were not "intended to be included in the general words used in [the Constitution]. Following the Civil War, when Black people attempted to arm themselves against white supremacists, Southern state governments passed so-called black codes barring them from owning guns. Two members of the Black Panther Party meeting with police Lt. Ernest Holloway on the steps of the California state Capitol in 1967. (Getty Images) Throughout the 1960s, the Black Panthers chose to open carry in California as a sign to police that they would no longer endure racial attacks. In 1967, 30 Black Panthers protested on the steps of the California state house armed with shotguns and pistols. They announced that the time has come for Black people to arm themselves. The move frightened politicians, and it wasnt long before then-Gov. Ronald Reagan signed a state ban on open carry into law, called the Mulford Act. Whitney Davis of Houston admits that learning more about Black history is the reason why she recently purchased two guns for herself. I realize in this country a long time ago, Black people weren't even allowed to own guns, she said. Daviss dad grew up on a ranch in rural Texas, where over his lifetime he accrued a lot of guns, but it wasnt until Davis learned more about her Black ancestors that she felt motivated to buy guns of her own. So just like people promote that our ancestors died for us to vote, they also died for us to be able to carry guns as well, she said. So I wanted to fulfill what my ancestors werent able to do in the past. Davis endorses a common rationale voiced by proponents of easing restrictions on guns. If everybody knows that everybody has a gun then maybe youre a lot of less likely to attack people or hurt people, she said. If everyone knows, if you have a gun, I got one too, its an equal playing field. Despite the increase in Black gun ownership and general knowledge about Black history, many Black people have still lost their lives over owning a gun. In 2016, legal gun owner Philando Castile was shot after informing a Minnesota police officer that he was armed, HuffPosts Julia Craven wrote. Two years prior, Tamir Rice was killed by Cleveland police while holding a toy gun. John Crawford suffered the same fate in a Beavercreek, Ohio, Walmart. On July 25, Garrett Foster, a white man, attended a Black Lives Matter protest in Austin, Texas, carrying a semi-automatic rifle. After a confrontation with a motorist, Foster was shot dead on July 25. The move for African-Americans to own guns appears to be a break from the progressive movement in American politics, which people of color generally align with. A view of Washington, D.C., following the 1968 riots. (Getty Images) The Congressional Black Caucus has pushed for stricter gun control measures in the past, most recently following two mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio. We have worked vigorously with House Democrats to pass universal background check legislation, Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, said in the aftermath of those two tragedies. The lawmaker said the CBC has also backed a bill to ban a loophole in gun control law introduced by Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, D-S.C. Rep. Bass did not return Yahoo News request for comment. But Republicans have been consistently resistant to increased gun control measures. In response to the CBCs push, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Congress was in a holding pattern on gun control. I still await guidance from the White House as to what [Trump] thinks hes comfortable signing, the Kentucky Republican said last September. If and when that happens, then well have a real possibility of actually changing the law and hopefully making some progress. Maj Toure, founder of Black Guns Matter, a nonprofit that educates people in urban communities on their Second Amendment rights through firearms training and education, believes the more Black people who have guns, the better race relations will be in America. If everyone has the right mindset with a gun, that solves race issues, Toure told Yahoo News in a phone interview. An armed society is a polite society. Maj Toure of Black Guns Matter at a town hall meeting in Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers/NurPhoto) Toure advocates for Black gun ownership as a tool for self-defense and pushes gun safety. But he acknowledges the fact that fear makes people buy things. Toure welcomes this. I love that so many Black people are buying guns, he said. If youre racist ... and you think that one group is inferior to another, then you should be afraid. _____ Read more from Yahoo News: As the parent of an adult with a developmental disability who lives at home, the pandemic hit us in a unique way. It was difficult enough for my husband and I to remain quarantined, separated from our usual daily routines, family and friends. Explaining to our daughter why she could not attend her beloved day habilitation program and be with her friends and staff pursuing activities in the community was not understood. At times, she was confused, bored and frustrated with no understanding of why her program was no longer a part of her day. Enter in her day-hab program, Heritage Christian Services, now virtual; and a very special staff member named Gene. For a short time every day via virtual learning, my daughter has a chance to see and experience what she so misses. Gene has been masterful in engaging my daughter, along with other participants, with modeling and promoting appropriate social skills along with various learning activities. LONDON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A groundbreaking executive advancement program was recently launched to optimally understand and manage the global impact of the "New Silk Road One Road One Belt" initiative launched by Xi Jinping. This unique "Executive DBA" combines the expertise and knowledge of Headspring, an executive development joint venture of IE Business School and the Financial Times, and the Silk Road Business School, the first educational platform of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The project offers accredited high-level learning programs for business executives across the world interested in the development of international trade along the New Silk Road. This is something other business schools or universities are currently unable to offer on a similar scale. The DBA is set to launch in October 2020 and covers topics from management to business technology, including Big Data, AI, and Data Science. It is open to anyone interested in the BRI, for example, individuals working in and with Chinese companies across Asia, Africa, and Europe. For maximum accessibility, the program will be delivered 100% online or in a blended format, making it suitable for people who are not able to commit to two years of full-time study. Course participants benefit from interactive sessions, live online webinars, and a free learning platform with asynchronous learning resources available in 12 languages. The learning process begins on-demand, providing additional flexibility. Face-to-face seminars and learning expeditions will also be available, mainly at the Master and Doctorate levels. Shorter courses leading to certification will follow shortly, with Master-level programs planned for the future. Other benefits of the project include the creation of a think tank and a forum where all participants and subject matter experts will be able to meet and work together, fostering knowledge sharing and collaboration across the belt. "This partnership is a great step forward in creating the largest scale offering dedicated to learning about the Silk Road Initiative," says Shiwei WU, the president of Silk Road Business School. "The combination of online and face-to-face, partnering with world-class learning institutions and the creation of the think-tank and forum will make this partnership 'the place to be' to know about the Silk Road from a business perspective." More information on the program can be found at https://go.headspringexecutive.com/silkroad-edba. SOURCE Headspring; Silk Road Education Related Links https://www.headspringexecutive.com KYODO NEWS - Aug 3, 2020 - 22:17 | All, Japan Households across Japan have received unsolicited packages of seeds marked as coming from China, similar to incidents overseas including in the United States and Britain, consumer authorities said Monday. The authorities are warning of potential scams and have urged the public not to plant the mysterious seeds as they may be infected with a virus, bacteria or pest. The warning follows multiple inquiries to the country's consumer affairs centers and the agriculture ministry's plant quarantine station. "The packages may be a scam that tricks the confused receiver into paying for the product, or a 'brushing scam' where a seller poses as the receiver and posts false customer reviews online to boost product ratings," said an official of the National Consumer Affairs Center. An official of the Plant Protection Station at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said recipients "must not plant the seeds as they may have virus, germs or pests." The city government of Miura in Kanagawa Prefecture, near Tokyo, said that a man in his 60s brought an envelope to them on July 30 saying that he was sent "something suspicious." The envelope, around 15 square centimeters in size, contained a plastic bag with around 100 brown seeds. The envelope, which did not have the sender's information, was marked as coming from the Chinese city of Shenzhen in Guangdong Province and labeled as containing jewels in English. It lacked a stamp indicating that the seeds had been approved during an import inspection by a plant quarantine officer. Seeds from overseas must be inspected when imported in line with Japan's plant protection law. A woman in her 60s in central Japan also consulted her local consumer affairs center in July after her sister received unsolicited seed packages for two straight days in envelopes labeled as containing rings. The Plant Protection Station said unsolicited seeds that were brought to them belong to the allium genus, which includes onions and garlic, and that none of the envelopes were stamped. PHOTOS: Living Tree Bridges In A Land Of Clouds NPR Climate change: Huge implications to Irish climate case across Europe BBC How a PG&;E Contractor With a Sketchy Past Made Millions After Californias Deadliest Fire Pro Publica Microsoft to press on with TikTok deal talks after call with Trump FT Revisiting the White Swans of 2020 Nouriel Roubini, Project Syndicate Big Tech, Anti-Trust & Kodak Investor Amnesia #COVID19 The state of play: Nature can be beautiful but also evil. It has brought us the worst pandemic in more than 100 years. What is it about #SARSCoV2 that makes it so nefarious? 1/ &;mdash; Eric Topol (@EricTopol) August 2, 2020 Fatigue plagues thousands suffering post-coronavirus symptoms FT * * * Im sorry, but its a fantasy WaPo. We still havent received our order of Plexiglas barriers, so were cutting up shower curtains and trying to make do with that. We got back two of those tests already both positive. Were still waiting on eight more. That makes 11 percent of my staff thats gotten covid, and we havent had a single student in our buildings since March. Part of our facility is closed down for decontamination, but we dont have anyone left to decontaminate it unless I want to put on my hazmat suit and go in there. What a day at school looks like in a pandemic Axios USS University No Mercy / No Malice SARS-CoV-2 Transmission and Infection Among Attendees of an Overnight Camp Georgia, June 2020 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Test results were available for 344 (58%) attendees; among these, 260 (76%) were positive. These findings demonstrate that SARS-CoV-2 spread efficiently in a youth-centric overnight setting, resulting in high attack rates among persons in all age groups, despite efforts by camp officials to implement most recommended strategies to prevent transmission. Except: Measures not implemented were cloth masks for campers and opening windows and doors for increased ventilation in buildings. Cloth masks were required for staff members. Camp attendees were cohorted by cabin and engaged in a variety of indoor and outdoor activities, including daily vigorous singing and cheering. So, I would urge that this spreading event is also a case study on how not to prevent aerosol transmission. Association Between Statewide School Closure and COVID-19 Incidence and Mortality in the US JAMA. From the abstract: There was a temporal association between statewide school closure and lower COVID-19 incidence and mortality, although some of the reductions may have been related to other concurrent nonpharmaceutical interventions. * * * A coronavirus vaccine wont change the world right away WaPo When a Vaccine Arrives, People Will Ignore the Anti-Vaxxers The Atlantic. The URL is people-are-suffering-too-much-refuse-vaccine: TINA. The Message of Measles The New Yorker * * * Delta flight returns to gate after two passengers refuse to wear masks The Hill Bar Harbor hospital sounds warning on undetected COVID-infected visitors Kennebec Journal Cramped workplaces, parties the factors fuelling local Covid-19 spikes Guardian (Re Silc). Bat caves! Avoid the 3 Cs: Closed spaces, crowded spaces, close contact settings. Back in 2018, I wrote an article, Of Witches and Whales, observing the strange yet incredible efforts of the humpback whales, who help, rescue, or even get into good ol fisticuffs to defend, any animal they come across that is being hurt or attacked. I had just returned from three years in Papua New Guinea, where (mostly) women were being blamed for common illnesses such as measles or flu, accused of being witches, and brutally tortured to death. Like many, I was deeply troubled by the surge of sorcery-related violence around me. Some of my friends were frontline combatants chatting and laughing with me over dinner one night, then the next day unexpectedly getting up close and personal with the crazed mobs. Arguing for hours with closed villagers to let an innocent life go, and sometimes even physically standing in the midst of the danger to slow or halt gruesome events. One morning found me rushing around my house, grabbing towels, blankets, water and food to send off with a rescue crew who had made a quick pit stop in my safe, gated compound. There, just outside my front door, their dirt-streaked vehicle was humming throatily, preparing to drive several hours across ridiculously bad roads to the nearest mission hospital. Inside the car, cowering in torn clothing and with her sobbing mother beside her, was a horrendously injured young woman. She had been raped with steel poles, beaten and pummelled and kicked, torched with coal-hot machetes, and was now left fighting for her life. Why? Because on her way home from getting groceries for her mother, she inadvertently walked past a strangers funeral. Her gender and anonymity, plus the wild and unfounded rumours of witchcraft that are running rampant in PNG, made her an immediate target for blame. She found herself dragged into the most horrific of nightmares, all for the crime of being female and walking home in quiet innocence. And now here she was, outside my back door, bleeding and broken, traumatized into mute fear. She was just a few years younger than me. She could have been me. The only difference between us was my stack of privileges: White. Employed. Born in a first-world country. I was free to visit a sick child without being blamed for their illness. I was free to plant vegetables without being accused of cursing my neighbours wilting crops. I was free to go to the market without worrying about being dragged off to be tortured and burned as a witch because a child I walked past later fell out of a tree and broke his arm. Then and now, I feel terribly helpless in the face of such rampant violence and needless suffering. There are heroes for sure, roaming the mountains of PNG, but they are under-resourced, often outright opposed by ignorance and greed, and far too few in numbers. And writing back then about the deep compassion of humpback whales, I wondered where the whales were for PNG. Who will rise up from the deep and defend the innocent? Who will bring education and enlightenment to minds still trapped in the Dark Ages? Who will speak for the young woman who trembled in the car outside my house that day, only to die the next day in excruciating pain from unimaginable injuries? I didnt expect the first wave of whales to be a group of kids off the coast of PNG. Yet here they are. Because just this month, on Bouganville Island in Papua New Guinea, a mismatched conglomeration of children and teens have risen up as humpback whales for their nation. Inspired by a storybook written by Anton Lutz, and led by their intrepid leader, Llane Munau, the young people have just released their first ever film: I dare you to take one hour and watch it. This movie filmed long before Covid-19 became yet another hazard in their world was scripted by the children themselves. The characters and scenes were set up carefully and acted enthusiastically, despite no one having any training in acting and film. They had only a few tech tools, and the most basic of sets and props which they set up or made themselves. Half of them dont own shoes, their classroom is empty of computers, resource cupboards and books, and desks are shared as precious commodity. The irony is that these kids would call themselves privileged. They have almost nothing materially, but they have passion and purpose. And they dug deep into that. With a few adults to help them, and the injustice of their countrys pain burning in their young hearts, they nurtured their own talent and built their own means. The result is revolutionary on a number of levels. Because these kids are more than just a youth group playing around with a camera. They are the uprising of the Hunger Games. They are the Divergents of the post-apocalyptic factions. They are the humpback whales of Papua New Guinea. Peter and Grace Make a Difference is a low-budget, high-quality movie, literally made by a bunch of barefoot kids. They have almost none of the equipment, paraphernalia and money that we would expect before wed do the same. They hang out under coconut trees, wear mismatched clothes their mothers found in cheap thrift stores, and entertain themselves with no toys in their jungle backyard. They have almost nothing compared to the average Kiwi kid, but they went out and made a kick-ass social justice movie anyway. And they did it in the midst of what we would call circumstantial poverty. Because they dont care about their privilege or lack thereof. Theyre making a difference regardless. And if a group of disadvantaged kids on a tiny island nation can make something this powerful, then surely we can use our very real privilege to make a difference too. When was the last time you took your privilege be it race, gender, wealth, health or simple good fortune and used it to do something good? Bring about something positive? Intentionally make a difference? Im not saying you should dive into Papua New Guineas tragic attacks and murders. Or start raising awareness and campaigning with human rights defenders. Or contacting local representatives or raising funds for the actual people on the front lines. (But hey, if you do feel this tugging on your heart, check out the links below, share these stories, even get in touch with SNAP directly). I AM saying its time to ask yourself this question: What am I doing with MY privilege? LEARN MORE: Peter and Grace Make a Difference Understanding Privilege Check your privilege why its not a bad thing Fighting to save the women of PNG Why is PNG still hunting witches? Sorcery-related violence surges in PNG Sorcery National Action Plan (PNG) Of Witches and Whales and When Women Crucify Women (Emmas previous articles about the sorcery accusations and related killings in PNG) The power of compassion A metal detectorist is toasting his success after discovering an extraordinary hoard of silver civil war era coins worth at least 100,000 in a field owned by his local pub. Luke Mahoney, 40, has searched for ancient treasures across the globe and so was astonished when he found the 'biggest hoard' of his life just behind the Lindsey Rose pub in Lindsey, Suffolk, using his trusty Minelab Equinox 800 detector. He unearthed 1,078 silver, hammered coins dating back to somewhere around the 15th century to the 17th century. Mr Mahoney said the most popular theory from experts and historians he has since spoke to is that they were buried in the field by a wealthy landowner who had gone off to fight in the English Civil War. Luke Mahoney, 40, unearthed 1,078 silver, hammered coins dating back to somewhere around the 15th-17th century behind the Lindsey Rose pub in Lindsey, Suffolk Valuation expert Nigel Mills examined some of the coins found and said the hoard would fetch at least 100,000 at auction. Mr Mahoney stayed up for three nights after discovering the haul of historic pieces, keeping watch for rival 'nighthawk' detectorists who might come to loot his precious find. The experienced detectorist has been looking for precious metals for the past ten years. He said he does it for the 'rush' and compared the thrill to an angler catching a big fish. The married father-of-three, who runs his own metal detector shop, Joan Allen Electrics, has lived in the Suffolk hamlet of Lindsey for the last five years. Mr Mahoney sits outside the Lindsey Rose pub where he found the civil war coins with his shovel and metal detector On July 26, he was out with two of his friends detecting in a field behind the Lindsey Rose pub after finally convincing the owner to let him search the field behind. Charlie Buckle, 26, who runs the pub with his father James, 55, said he was having Sunday lunch with his family when he got a call from Mr Mahoney saying he had found something special. Mr Buckle said: 'Luke gets quite excited about everything he finds so at first I was like "yeah, sure". But then he kept ringing and told me I had to come down and see what he had found.' Mr Mahoney and friends Dan Hunt and Matt Brown had been out searching the fields behind the Rose since 10am that morning. He has searched for ancient treasures across the globe and so was astonished when he found the 'biggest hoard' of his life behind his local pub The 15-acre field in which they found the coins had been recently cropped and a plough had somehow managed to crack a clay earthenware pot buried 2ft beneath the ground. Mr Mahoney said: 'We did some detecting in the morning and found a beautiful gold coin and a little sixpence and then we went and had lunch at the pub. 'We went back out to the fields and almost immediately I hit a signal and I pulled out this Charles I coin. Then I hit another signal, and another.' Mr Mahoney began digging with his customised stainless steel spade and quickly realised he was on to something serious. He added: 'They were everywhere. It was pandemonium. After ten minutes of searching I hit this massive signal and I thought "this is it". He said the earliest coin is an Elizabeth I era shilling dating back to 1573-78. The find also contained many Charles I half crown's from 1641-43 'We dug and saw the pot. That feeling of scraping the dirt away and seeing the coins is indescribable.' Mr Mahoney immediately contacted the local 'Finds liaison officer' and notified him of the find. He also declared the treasure to the coroner. He said the earliest coin is an Elizabeth I era shilling dating back to 1573-78. The find also contained many Charles I half crown's from 1641-43. Each Charles I coin would be worth around 50 to 75 but Mr Mills said they would be worth a lot more if they were linked to famous historic events. For the next three days and nights Mr Mahoney and his friends were forced to wait in their cars and keep watch for any 'nighthawks' - rival detectorists - who might come and steal their hoard. Mr Mahoney said: 'I was up for three days solid. I didn't sleep I just sat there with my eyes open looking for nighthawks. Mr Mahoney stayed awake for three nights after discovering the historic pieces 'I waited in my car watching all night making sure no-one tried to sneak in and take the hoard. Even now I am a bit paranoid.' He said that a few days ago he found a casing from a headphone in the field, indicating someone had sneaked in to search for any remnants of the hoard. Mr Mahoney credited his success to the 'unique' metal detector he was using, the Minelab Equinox 800. He said: 'I knew the other nighthawks wouldn't find anything because they weren't using the same detectors as us - they weren't using the Minelaw detectors. 'The Equinox - you switch it on and it does all the work for you. It would be able to tell me a bit of metal in the ground was a key for example.' Mr Mahoney (left) was detecting in the field with his two friends Dan Hunt (right) and Matt Brown (left) from 10am on July 26 Mr Mahoney said the machines are so good he would never consider using anything else. He hopes he may yet find something of even greater historical value and urged people to take up his beloved hobby. He said: 'If you think you have a bit of Indiana Jones in you, you should do it.' Vice-president of Global Marketing from Minelab Michelle Meyers said: 'When we first found out about Luke's discovery we knew he was on to something. 'He told us he'd been using one of our metal detectors and the whole Minelab team were thrilled for him, we knew what an incredible feeling unearthing a find like this is. 'Luke is a seasoned metal detectorist and knows what to do but we immediately offered our help in making sure he had access to the proper authorities in the UK. 'Starting your journey to becoming a metal detecting enthusiast is very easy and very rewarding but you must follow the laws in your own country. 'In the UK that means abiding by the Treasure Act 1996 and reporting all finds. 'We're delighted for Luke and can't wait to see what else he unearths.' The Armenian government said on Monday that it is considering lifting a coronavirus-related ban on rallies while keeping in place other safety rules imposed by it more than four months ago. The government declared a state of emergency on March 16 after confirming the first cases of the coronavirus in Armenia. With the virus continuing to spread across the country, emergency rule has been extended on a monthly basis since April. It allows the authorities to ban all street gatherings, enforce social distancing and hygiene rules, ban or restrict some types of business activity, seal off local communities hit by COVID-19 outbreaks and impose a nationwide lockdown. The government kept the state of emergency in place even after lifting lockdown restrictions and reopening virtually all sectors of the Armenian economy in early May. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and other government officials have said that it still needs the emergency powers to make Armenians wear mandatory face masks in all public areas and follow other rules designed to contain the epidemic. The monthly extensions of the state of emergency are increasingly criticized by opposition groups, however. Some of them claim that Pashinian is exploiting the coronavirus crisis to prevent anti-government street protests. The prime minister and his political allies deny this. Speaking at a recent cabinet meeting, Pashinian said that the authorities should explore alternative legal mechanisms for enforcing the coronavirus safety rules. We do realize that we cannot and must not endlessly extend the state of emergency, he said. Pashinians spokeswoman, Mane Gevorgian, told RFE/RLs Armenian service that an interagency task force is now working on a relevant government bill. Working groups are continuing to work on a daily basis and I hope that we will be able to present a final draft to the public in the coming days, she said. I can assure you that nothing is going to change with regard to anti-epidemic rules. The option of maintaining the state of emergency but lifting the ban on rallies is under discussion. Gevorgian cautioned that it is still not clear whether the bill will be drafted and sent to the Armenian parliament for approval before the state of emergency ends on August 12. The government has yet to decide whether to extend it by another month, she said. The government said last week that the daily number of new coronavirus cases has fallen considerably since mid-July after months of rapid growth. Pashinian expressed hope that Armenia will practically overcome its coronavirus crisis already in September. A total of 39,102 cases have been registered in the country of about 3 million to date. The Armenian Ministry of Health also reported on Monday morning that 8 more people died from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the official death toll to 762. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Akiko Okamoto (Reuters) Tokyo, Japan Mon, August 3, 2020 12:30 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b28d3a 2 World Japan,atomic-bomb,Nuclear,disarmament Free Terumi Tanaka was 13 when a US warplane dropped a plutonium bomb on the southern Japanese city of Nagasaki, on Aug. 9, 1945. Sitting at home with a book that morning, Tanaka knew instantly when his surroundings turned a blinding bright white that the massive boom was not one of the air raids he had gotten accustomed to in the waning days of World War Two. "I felt this was something terrible, so I ran downstairs and ducked, covered my ears and closed my eyes," Tanaka, now 88, told Reuters. "And at that moment, I lost consciousness." Just 3.2 km from the epicenter, Tanaka was miraculously unharmed, as were his mother and two sisters. Tanaka's father had died of illness previously. Tanaka's grandfather, aunt and uncle weren't as lucky. Three days after the 10,000-pound (4,536kg) bomb, nicknamed "Fat Boy", exploded over the city, Tanaka ventured towards the epicenter to check on his relatives. It was only then that the scale of the calamity sank in. Buildings in the city had been reduced to charred piles of rubble and twisted metal, a vast expanse of land was wiped out, and corpses and burn victims with flesh peeling off their bones littered the ground. His grandfather was one of them: Tanaka dabbed a wet handkerchief to his mouth, which appeared to silently cry out for water. That was their last encounter. Three days after the hydrogen bomb attack in Hiroshima, the Nagasaki blast killed about 27,000 instantly and more than 70,000 by the end of the year. Japan surrendered six days later. For nearly 50 years, Tanaka has been speaking out for nuclear disarmament hoping that his experiences as a witness to one of the only two nuclear bombs ever to be used in conflict would serve to end their potential use. In this 75th year since the war ended, the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted some key events, such as a New York exhibition that Tanaka helped to organize. Instead, Tanaka, who served as head of the "Hidankyo" victims' group for more than 20 years, has turned online to spread his message, with the unexpected benefit of reaching a broader audience. But he worries that time is running out. "After all the atomic bomb survivors are gone, I'm worried whether people will be able to really understand what we have experienced," he said. NATO operates by consensus, so Turkish objections can stall nearly any policy, and its diplomats are both diligent and knowledgeable, on top of every ball, as one NATO official said. France has also used its effective veto to pursue national interests, but never to undermine collective defense, NATO ambassadors say. But Turkey has blocked NATO partnerships for countries it dislikes, like Israel, Armenia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates. More seriously, for many months Turkey blocked a NATO plan for the defense of Poland and the Baltic nations, which all border Russia. And Turkey wanted NATO to list various armed Kurdish groups, which have fought for their independence, as terrorist groups something that NATO does not do. Some of these same Kurdish groups are also Washingtons best allies in its fight against Islamic State and Al Qaeda in Syria and Iraq. A deal was supposedly worked out at the last NATO summit meeting in December in London, but Turkey created bureaucratic complications, and it was only in late June that Turkey relented after considerable pressure from official Washington, which has lost patience with Mr. Erdogan and is infuriated by his insistence on buying the S-400. If deployed, the S-400 would put Russian engineers inside a NATO air defense system, giving them valuable insights into the alliances strengths while threatening to diminish the capability of the expensive fifth-generation fighter, the F-35. The assumption is that Mr. Erdogan, who has grown significantly more suspicious since a failed 2016 coup against him, wants to be able to shoot down American and Israeli planes like the ones his own air force used in the coup attempt. Every time we discuss Russia in NATO, everyone thinks of the S-400 and no one says anything, said one European diplomat, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter. Its a major breach in NATO air defense, and its not even discussed. One thing you can say about rocks is that we have plenty of them. In a state built on limestone, sandstone and shale, thats not surprising. But what is surprising is how many rock fairies we have. I recently wrote a column about such a rock fairy, who painted small stones and scattered them around her Northeast Heights neighborhood along with clues for a scavenger hunt. She is an incredible artist! reader Jane Ripple told us. We traveled to Ripples neighborhood off Louisiana NE in search of this elusive Rock Fairy, but though we found many colorful examples of her handiwork we did not find her. And maybe, I said, it was just enough to know there are rock fairies like her out there, trying to bring a smile and sprinkle a little fun, a little joy into their communities. The column, which was published July 25, was labeled a Bright Spot, a designation the Journal uses for stories to make you smile. I hope you did. Then came your emails and posts, and I was the one smiling. Joann Danella wrote that Corrales is a haven for rock fairies like her, their handiwork present along ditch banks, horse trails and the folds of stately cottonwoods. The fairies even have a Facebook page called Corrales Rocks!, which has 173 members. When walking down the ditch banks between Corrales Road and Loma Larga you will find little surprises of fun, encouragement and joy. We have painted and planted 50 rocks for folks to enjoy, said Annette Hoffman-Rodden, another rock fairy. We are asking others to add rocks, too. Across town in the Sandia foothills, Diane Ogawa has been posting photos of rocks she finds on her walks since April, many of them painted with uplifting words such as Be mindful, Youre the best and Just listen. The rock fairies have been busy, she said. In the West Side community of Andalucia, rock fairies craft their stones with useful messages. They are painted rocks with cute masked faces, reminding us silently to mask up, Corinne Berendt wrote. My friend/neighbor and I have painted numerous rocks with illustrative and worded reminders for dog walkers to pick up their poop. Back in Ripples neighborhood, a new rock appeared two days after the column was published, this one right in her front yard. The rock had the painted image of the Albuquerque Journal with the headline Rock Fairy and the words Thank you! It was signed by RF. Some wise sage said, enjoy the little things in life because one day youll look back and realize they were the big things. These painted rocks are put there by people who want only to spread a little joy, provide a bright spot, maybe a little wisdom to strangers who pass by. They remind us of the goodness still in this crazy world and they beckon us to become rock fairies, too, spreading joy. And thats pretty big. A bright spot at last You have to admire the tenacity of Ken Gillen, a retired Sandia National Laboratories chemist who hoped that his prestigious award in the field of rubber technology was bright enough to be considered a Journal Bright Spot. He emailed the newsroom May 16 but never heard back. He sent several more. He also sent emails to me, and those, too, got lost in the clutter. Weeks passed. But he didnt give up. He contacted our circulation department, which in turn contacted me. To my embarrassment, I found two previous emails from him. Gillen is the first person from a national laboratory to win the 2020 Melvin Mooney Distinguished Technology Award from the Rubber Division of the American Chemical Society, but thats not the only reason he tried so hard to get his news in the newspaper. I have been a subscriber to the Journal for 45 years and I have always wanted to get my picture in the paper besides an eventual obituary, he wrote. I can certainly appreciate that. We can all appreciate Gillen for the work he and his Sandia colleagues have done over the years with aging polymers, researching the effects of temperature, radiation, humidity and mechanical stress on the rubber we use in everything from childrens toys to the seals in nuclear weapons. Every time we get in our cars, we can thank Gillen for the strength and endurance of our tires. Every time we walk on a floor, wear kitchen gloves, spot a satellite in the sky or undergo surgical procedures requiring the use of medical tubing, we can thank Gillen. His award thanks him for his exceptional technical competence by making significant and repeated contributions to rubber technology. Gillen retired from Sandia in 2004 after 30 years, but he continues doing research, writing papers and giving talks. He not only deserves his bright spot. He is one. Im honored to share his light with you. UpFront is a front-page news and opinion column. Reach Joline at 730-2793, jkrueger@abqjournal.com, Facebook or @jolinegkg on Twitter. Whether in flood early-warning systems or in agriculture - rainfall measurements are of great importance. However, there is a lack of accurate data for many regions in the world due to the fact that comprehensive measurements have so far been too expensive. This could change with a new method that has just passed its practical test. Researchers at KIT (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology) and the University of Augsburg have succeeded in utilizing the commercial microwave link network (CML) operated by mobile network providers for Germany-wide rainfall measurements. This new technology is now planned to be used in West Africa. The team published their results in the scientific journals Hydrology and Earth System Sciences and Atmospheric Measurement Techniques. Rain can significantly impair the performance of a mobile network. But a phenomenon that can cause headaches for telecommunications companies is a stroke of luck for meteorological research: "We have developed a completely new method for rain measurement from this interaction between weather events and human technology," says Professor Harald Kunstmann from the Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research - Atmospheric Environmental Research (IMK-IFU), the so-called Campus Alpin of KIT. "If a commercial microwave link network (CML) is in place, we neither need a new infrastructure nor additional ground staff." Together with scientists from the University of Augsburg, his KIT team now succeeded in performing the first Germany-wide rainfall measurement with the new method: They were able to derive rainfall maps with high temporal resolution based on the attenuation of the CMLs between several thousand of mobile phone masts that is caused by precipitation. "A comparison with the measurements of the German Meteorological Service shows that we have achieved a high degree of correlation," explains Maximilian Graf, member of the research team. Improved accuracy thanks to artificial intelligence (AI) Precipitation could be determined thanks to the CML antennas installed in mobile phone masts for signal transmission over long distances. "A frequency of 15 to 40 gigahertz is used here. Its wavelength corresponds to the typical size of raindrops," explains Dr. Christian Chwala who coordinates this research work at the University of Augsburg. "Increasing precipitation weakens the signal that radio masts use to exchange information. Over one year, we measured the current attenuation obtained from 4,000 CMLs with a temporal resolution of 1 minute. The resulting data set is unique in its resolution and enormous size." Besides the classical methods of data analysis, the researchers used artificial intelligence (AI) to filter the rain signal from the noisy measurement results. "Other factors, such as wind or the sun, can also cause a slight attenuation of the signal. With the help of our AI, we were able to identify the signal attenuation that was due to rainfall," says Julius Polz, another scientist from the research group. "We have now trained our AI in such a way that we no longer need to calibrate the system using traditional methods of rain measurement." Thus, it is suitable for application in regions without significant rainfall measurements that could be considered for AI training, such as West Africa. Planned use in West Africa For Germany, however, the method works mainly in spring, summer, and fall. "This is because sleet and freezing rain cause a higher attenuation than liquid precipitation, and snow cannot be measured with the CML network at all," explains Harald Kunstmann. Several projects are currently underway where the researchers will measure rainfall using CMLs, with one particular focus on Germany, in cooperation with the German Meteorological Service and the Office for the Environment of the state of Saxony. In the course of the summer, further projects will start in the Czech Republic and in Burkina Faso, where a nationwide collection of CML data is to be established for the first time in Africa. ### Original publications: Graf, M., Chwala, C., Polz, J., and Kunstmann, H. (2020): Rainfall estimation from a German-wide commercial microwave link network: optimized processing and validation for 1 year of data. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 24, 2931-2950, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2931-2020 Polz, J., Chwala, C., Graf, M., & Kunstmann, H. (2020): Rain event detection in commercial microwave link attenuation data using convolutional neural networks. Atmospheric Measurement Techniques, 13, 3835-3853, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-3835-2020 More information on the KIT Climate and Environment Center: http://www.klima-umwelt.kit.edu Press contact: Martin Heidelberger, Editor/Press Officer, Tel.: +49 721 608-41169, martin heidelberger@kit edu Being "The Research University in the Helmholtz Association", KIT creates and imparts knowledge for the society and the environment. It is the objective to make significant contributions to the global challenges in the fields of energy, mobility, and information. For this, about 9,300 employees cooperate in a broad range of disciplines in natural sciences, engineering sciences, economics, and the humanities and social sciences. KIT prepares its 24,400 students for responsible tasks in society, industry, and science by offering research-based study programs. Innovation efforts at KIT build a bridge between important scientific findings and their application for the benefit of society, economic prosperity, and the preservation of our natural basis of life. KIT is one of the German universities of excellence. Congress MP Karti Chidambaram said he has tested positive for Covid-19 on Monday (August 3, 2020). Karti shared the information taking to his Twitter handle. The son of former finance minister P Chidambaram said his symptoms are mild and he has gone into self-isolation on medical advice. ''I have just tested positive for COVID. My symptoms are mild and as per medical advice, I am under home quarantine. I would urge all those who have recently been in contact with me to follow medical protocol,'' Karti tweeted. I have just tested positive for #Covid. My symptoms are mild and as per medical advice I am under home quarantine. I would urge all those who have recently been in contact with me to follow medical protocol. Karti P Chidambaram (@KartiPC) August 3, 2020 Soon after Karti shared the news on Twitter, 'Get well soon' messages started pouring in from his well-wisher. Puducherry Chief Minister V.Narayanasamy also wishes him speedy recovery, writing, ''I received the message that Shri Karthick Chidambaram tested positive for Covid-19 . I wish him well and pray God for his speedy recovery.'' I received the message that Shri Karthick Chidambaram tested positive for #Covid_19 . I wish him well and pray God for his speedy recovery. @KartiPC V.Narayanasamy (@VNarayanasami) August 3, 2020 This news of Karti Chidambaram comes a day after Union home minister Amit Shah and Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa tested for coronavirus on Sunday. Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister Kamla Rani Varun, died on Sunday (August 2) due to coronavirus infection. She was undergoing treatment at a Lucknow hospital. Pandemic failures in aged care revealed in survey United Workers Union Statement Pandemic failures in aged care revealed in survey; workers feel unprepared, untrained, unsafe. Shocking gaps in coronavirus preparations by aged care providers have been revealed in a new national survey of more than 1,000 aged care workers. The survey also shows lockdowns and other coronavirus measures have seriously affected aged care workers and the residents they care for, with staff shortages, increased workloads, and some residents not seen for whole days at a stretch. Results from the United Workers Union survey show large gaps in aged care pandemic preparations: Three in ten residential aged care workers said they had received no additional training in coronavirus safety measures or on correctly using personal protective equipment. More than two thirds of aged care workers do not feel very prepared to deal with a coronavirus outbreak. Four in ten workers feel their aged care facility has not communicated their infection plan well. One in three home care workers said they did not have enough supplies of hand sanitiser and gloves. Only one in ten home care workers said they had been given a contactless thermometer. The survey reveals workers struggling with staff shortages and increased workloads since the outbreak: Two-thirds of residential care workers and one half of home care workers say their workloads have increased since the pandemic. Seventy-five per cent of workers say they dont have enough staff to provide quality care. Eight out of ten aged care workers say they always or often dont have the time to provide the social and emotional support to those they care for (up from seven out of ten last year). Ninety per cent of aged care workers said they did not have enough time to complete tasks (about the same as last year). Forty-four per cent of aged care workers said they would be unlikely to be working in the sector in five years time (up from thirty-seven per cent last year). The survey raises structural issues that make stopping coronavirus and keeping aged care staff challenging: Nine out of ten aged care workers said they could not afford to take unpaid leave. Nine out of ten aged care workers are worried their colleagues may have to work if they have mild symptoms because of a lack of leave. Only sixteen per cent of workers report their providers have offered some form of paid pandemic sick leave. Aged care workers report staff shortages occur because shifts are not filled when people do take coronavirus-related leave. Only one in ten workers said they felt more valued since the onset of the pandemic. More than half of frontline care workers say the federal governments controversial retention bonus has had no impact on retaining them in the industry. Survey reveals exhausted workers unable to help those they care for: United Workers Union aged care director Carolyn Smith said the findings confirmed the dire conditions facing aged care workers nationally during the pandemic. Aged care workers have revealed they feel unprepared, untrained and unsafe in the face of this pandemic, which is a damning indictment on national preparations to protect Australias most vulnerable people, Smith said. The public has a right to be very concerned that workers feel unable to take leave if they are suffering minor symptoms because there is no financial safety net for them. What is also shocking is that in these known hotspots for coronavirus transmission, workers report less staff, more work and less ability to care for those they care for. The federal governments band-aid solutions for pandemic staffing in the sector including the under-whelming retention bonus have clearly not worked. In our submission to the Royal Commission on the impact of COVID-19, we are again calling on the federal government to fund aged care in a way that recognises the crisis in aged care, and tie that funding to improving workers wages and conditions. Workers reveal the despair they face when dealing with the impacts of coronavirus: We wake them up, put them in a chair, all day with no visitors, no extra staff and put them back to bed 8 hours later, with staff hardly getting a chance to talk to them. The reason Id leave aged care is because its not really care, I feel like a robot. Some residents are going all day without staff even entering their rooms as there isnt enough of us. Residents being restricted to either their own room or lodge have created many more behaviours and along with residents wanting more one-on-one attention, personal carers are stretched to give any quality of care. Aged care worker and United Workers Union member Jay from Queensland says: Residents really needed support from staff. They got stressed, anxious and other stuff because they couldnt see their families. We had to become their friends and families. We did not get personal training about COVID-19, it was online. Half of the people didnt even know there was training. We still need that to happen. Aged care worker and United Workers Union member Mel from Western Australia says: Theres a lot more expectations we have had to be more vigilant about times when family members are allowed in or allowed out; thats all extra work we had to take on. People were quite upset; families were quite upset. It took a toll on the staff as well. If we were to be really under the pump, we would struggle big time. That would be the case in most facilities, because we dont have the training and we dont have the staff to deal with the very unwell. Home care worker and United Workers Union member Karen from NSW says: Its been so stressful, we go into someones house with a series of safety questions but they may have dementia and not be able to answer them. We sometimes have to buy our own PPE. We are under a hell of a stress out on the frontline, in the community, while we see the rest of the company are safely working from home. Makes us feel a bit unappreciated. About the survey: The survey was conducted in May and June, with responses from every state and territory predominantly made up of United Workers members in Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia (residential) and NSW (home care). Tweet Next article Resist the war drive Back to index page Hurricane Isaias is expected to make landfall Monday night with "dangerous winds and storm surge," the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said in an 8 p.m. update. The latest: Isaias reached hurricane strength Monday evening. A tropical storm warning has been extended into Maine, and a tornado watch has been issued for parts of the Carolinas until 2 a.m. A tweet previously embedded here has been deleted or was tweeted from an account that has been suspended or deleted. A storm surge warning is in effect the North Carolina and Virginia border. A hurricane warning is in effect from South Santee River, S.C., to Surf City, N.C. Two-to-four inches of rain fell from Miami to Palm Beach and "a few hundred customers" lost power as Isaias skirted Florida's east coast Sunday, per the Miami Herald, which notes little damage had been reported by Sunday evening. What to watch: "It's going to be a teetering thing ... a strong storm or really weak hurricane," according to National Weather Service Charleston meteorologist Rebecca Davidson, the Post and Courier reports. Its been an interesting storm, thats for sure. The big picture: Isaias pummeled the Bahamas and parts of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic as a Category 1 hurricane Friday before being downgraded to a tropical storm Saturday evening. Isaias strengthened slightly as it brushed past Florida's east coast, per the NHC. Isaias is expected to continue up the East Coast of the U.S. through the middle of this week, mostly as a strong tropical storm. The state of play: North Carolina evacuations began Saturday evening in Holden and Ocean Isle beaches and Hatteras and Ocracoke islands. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) tweeted Saturday, "Evacuations are unnecessary, but please take personal precautions." Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout. Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday appointed his focal person on as the new health minister, the third in less than two years, amidst the ongoing fight against the that has claimed nearly 6,000 lives and infected over 280,000 people in the country. Dr Faisal Sultan has been appointed as Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) with the status of a federal minister. He is the chief executive officer of Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital, Khan's charity hospital. "Prime Minister has been pleased to appoint Dr Faisal Sultan as SAPM on National Health Services, Regulation & Coordination with immediate effect. Dr Faisal Sultan shall hold status of Federal Minister, according to an official statement. Sultan, the prime minister's focal person on COVID-19, will replace Dr Zafar Mirza, who resigned last week as SAPM on health. On Wednesday, Mirza had taken to Twitter to announce his resignation as the SAPM on health, saying he had made the decision over the "negative discussion about the role of SAPMs and criticism of the government". Mirza was appointed last year after Amir Kayani was sacked as health minister when he failed to curb the prices of drugs in the country. Kayani was the first health minister in Khan's cabinet after he became the prime minister on August 18, 2018. A consultant physician on medicine and infectious diseases, Sultan completed his graduation from the King Edward Medical College University, Lahore, in 1987. He also holds the postgraduate degrees of Diplomate American Board of Internal Medicine (1992) and Diplomate American Board of Infectious Disease (1994). "I am very pleased about the appointment of Dr Faisal Sultan as SAPM health. As Fed Minister he will be able to make decisions which is important. A capable professional with a good worldview. A good friend. I wish him every success," Mirza said in a tweet on Monday. The number of cases in Pakistan reached 280,027 on Monday after 330 new infections were detected. The fatalities in the country stand at 5,984, the Ministry of National Health Services said on Monday. (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.) Russian Vaccine Developer Further Tempers Official's Claim Of October Rollout By RFE/RL August 02, 2020 Researchers behind one of two Russian candidate vaccines against the coronavirus undergoing the approval process in that country say they plan to launch production in November, raising further questions about official Russian pledges to have a vaccination campaign well under way before then. The director-general of the Vektor State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology, Rinat Maksyutov, predicted on August 2 that his institution would start manufacturing a vaccine in November. "We expect to start production already in November this year," Maksyutov told Rossiya-1 TV's Vesti program, according to TASS. "So closer to the end of this year and the start of next year we can talk about switching to vaccination at least for [people] from risk groups with a further switch to massive vaccination." Russian officials have consistently touted an aggressive schedule for a vaccine against the pathogen that has infected at least 849,000 and killed more than 14,000 people in Russia, the fourth- and 11th-worst figures in the world, respectively. Many outside experts have expressed skepticism at some of the Russian claims, and few specifics have emerged amid widespread accusations that Moscow has lied about many aspects of the outbreak and officials' handling of it. President Vladimir Putin and many other officials have appeared especially keen to portray any progress as a testament to Russia's place as a major global player in the fields of science and medicine. Health Minister Mikhail Murashko further surprised many when he vowed on August 1 that Russia would implement "extensive vaccination" in October. Speaking to journalists in Nizhny Novgorod, Murashko added that teachers and medical workers would be given priority for the vaccination program. Murashko did not provide any other details about the vaccine or the vaccination program. Earlier in the week, Reuters reported that an unnamed source had said Russia's first COVID-19 vaccine candidate should secure government approval in August. Russia reportedly has two candidate vaccines being considered for approval: Vektor's and another developed by the Moscow-based Gamaleya Institute in cooperation with the Defense Ministry. Few confirmable details have been released on either effort. Well over 100 major candidate vaccine efforts are continuing around the world in an unprecedented dedication of scientific and medical resources to finding safe and effective vaccines and treatments against the deadly coronavirus that emerged in central China late last year to kill at least 685,000 people, throw billions of people into lockdowns to prevent its spread, and ravage economies around the world. Many of the most optimistic researchers around the world have suggested the development of a vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2 virus at the heart of the six-month pandemic that has infected at least 17.8 million people around the world will take until the end of the year at least -- still a remarkable pace compared to the years or decades that most vaccines take. The head of Russia's sovereign wealth fund that is financing vaccine research, Kiril Dmitriyev, has called it "a Sputnik moment," in reference to the successful launch by the Soviet Union in 1957 of the world's first satellite. "Americans were surprised when they heard Sputnik's beeping," Dmitriyev told CNN. "It's the same with this vaccine. Russia will have got there first." In testimony before the U.S. Congress on July 31, Anthony Fauci, the United States' top infectious-diseases official, expressed concern about reported COVID-19 vaccines being developed in Russia and China. "I do hope that the Chinese and the Russians are actually testing the vaccine before they are administering the vaccine to anyone," Fauci said. With reporting by TASS, Reuters, and AFP Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russian-vaccine- developer-further-tempers-official-s-claim- of-october-rollout/30762323.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 Starting today through Labor Day, Monday, September 7 th , Burlington is encouraging shoppers to donate $1 or more at check-out at one of their more than 730 stores nationwide to contribute to the cause. All funds donated will provide essential resources, like distance learning supplies and tools to teachers at schools with high-need student populations within Burlington store communities. Donating as little as a $1 at check-out will go a long way in supporting teachers to help students succeed this school year. Distance learning caused by the pandemic has created added challenges for both teachers and students nationwide. Teachers estimate that 43 percent of students have become disengaged, often due to lack of critical resources like the Internet. As a result, 45 percent of teachers said that their spending has increased since distance learning began, with 70 percent mailing or delivering supplies such as worksheets, pens, pencils and notebooks to students' homes to help keep them eager about learning.* "During these unique and extremely challenging times, students still need to learn, and teachers still need to teach. We want students to be able to have access to supplies wherever learning will take place this school year," said Michael O'Sullivan, CEO, Burlington Stores. "We have a long-standing partnership with AdoptAClassroom.org, and we are excited to once again join them in continuing to support teachers and students in our store communities nationwide." "This work wouldn't be possible without the amazing support from partners like Burlington," said Ann Pifer, Executive Director, AdoptAClassroom.org. "Their ongoing commitment has made a significant difference for teachers and students nationwide, and only emphasizes, regardless of the unusual times, education continues to be the foundation for success - especially for our underserved communities." *In June 2020, in response to COVID-19, AdoptAClassroom.org surveyed U.S. educators to find out how much PreK-12 teachers spend on school supplies in the era of distance learning. AdoptAClassroom.org received nearly 4,000 unique, completed surveys from PreK-12 teachers at public, private, and charter schools nationwide. The survey found that during the 2019/2020 school year teachers are spending more than ever before, regardless if they are teaching in the classroom or from their homes. To learn more, visit the 2020 AdoptAClassroom.org survey. ABOUT BURLINGTON STORES, INC. Burlington Stores, Inc., headquartered in New Jersey, is a nationally recognized off-price retailer with Fiscal 2019 net sales of $7.3 billion. The Company is a Fortune 500 company and its common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "BURL." The Company operated 736 stores (which include temporarily closed stores) as of the end of the first quarter of Fiscal 2020, in 45 states and Puerto Rico, principally under the name Burlington Stores. The Company's stores offer an extensive selection of in-season, fashion-focused merchandise at up to 60% off other retailers' prices, including women's ready-to-wear apparel, menswear, youth apparel, baby, beauty, footwear, accessories, home, toys, gifts and coats. ABOUT ADOPTACLASSROOM.ORG AdoptAClassroom.org is a national, award-winning nonprofit that provides the most flexible and accountable funding for K-12 teachers and schools throughout the U.S. Our proprietary, easy-to-use education fundraising platform helps teachers, principals, and administrators give every child the tools they deserve to succeed in school. Since 1998, we have raised more than $39 million and supported 5.4 million students. As a 501(c)(3) organization, we hold a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator. For more information, or to donate, please visit www.adoptaclassroom.org. Media Contacts: Crystal Williams Tierney 215-790-4152 [email protected] SOURCE AdoptAClassroom.org Related Links https://www.burlington.com 'The death of John Hume represents the loss of 20th century Irelands most significant and consequential political figure,' SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said in a statement. John Hume, a Roman Catholic architect of Northern Ireland's Good Friday peace agreement who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in ending 30 years of sectarian violence, died on Monday at the age of 83, his SDLP party said. Hume, who is credited with kick-starting peace negotiations in the British region, shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 1998 with Northern Ireland's then first minister, David Trimble of the Protestant Ulster Unionist Party. Hume died in a care home in his native Londonderry in the early hours of Monday morning, his family said in a statement. "The death of John Hume represents the loss of 20th century Irelands most significant and consequential political figure," SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said in a statement. "This is an historic moment on this island but most of all it is a moment of deep, deep sadness." Hume, a moderate nationalist and civil rights campaigner, held pioneering talks with Gerry Adams, who was at the time the leader of the Sinn Fein party that was then the political wing of the Irish Republican Army (IRA). The talks helped pave the way for a joint initiative by the British and Irish governments in 1993. That spawned a peace process and an IRA truce in 1994 and talks that produced the watershed Good Friday accord. "All of us, should bow our heads in respect & thanks. What an extraordinary man, peacemaker, politician, leader, civil rights campaigner, family man, Derryman, inspiration," Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said in a statement. Search Keywords: Short link: Alisha Rahaman Sarkar By Online Desk A day after a 10-member National Investigative Agency (NIA) team conducted raids at Delhi University professor Hany Babus residence, his wife Dr Jenny Rowena said that they will fight the legal battle without giving in to fear. The NIA had arrested 54-year-old Hany Babu Musaliyarveettil Tharayil for allegedly propagating Naxal activities and Maoist ideology and being a "co-conspirator" in the Elgar Parishad case. Babu is the latest person and the 12th person to be arrested in the case. Earlier, the police had arrested rights activist Sudha Bharadwaj, poet Varavara Rao (who is fighting COVID-19), Vernon Gonsalves, Anand Teltumbde, Gautam Navlakha and other intellectuals on charges of provocation which led to clashes among caste groups leading to loss of life and property in Koregaon Bhima. Speaking to The New Indian Express, Rowena, an associate professor at the Miranda House college said, The government is giving out a message to others that if you speak up like Babu, youll also face the same consequences. We are not even Leftist but we are being branded as Maoists. They are talking about things that we have no idea about. This is not a time to fear, this is the time to resist. This is the second time that their home has been raided after 2018. The NIA seized cash receipts of the defence committee. The NIA took hard drives without giving me hash value so I dont know what they will say. I kept telling them that you cant take devices but they have taken away anyway, she added. A hash value is a numeric value that identifies data, which acts as an electronic seal on digital devices. It is used in courts to prove that data on digital devices has not been tampered with. Questioning the government's malicious intent to throttle dissent she said, "The impunity with which they can do this to a person who has not even stepped out for a protest outside the university. How can they call Babu a Maoist when he has always adhered to Constitutional values? Why would Babu keep documents in a computer that can incriminate him and wait for the police to arrive. She added that "why would Babu sit with documents that could implicate him" after they found his name in an alleged letter on prison-rights activist Rona Wilsons hard disk. The police claimed that the letter mentioned a Naxal plot to assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi and overthrow the government Babu is a member of The Committee for the Defence and Release of GN Saibaba, a former DU professor who was charged with life for allegedly having Maoist ties. Despite the ongoing pandemic posing a threat to jail inmates, the Government of India has been arresting students and intellectuals for their alleged involvement in riots, which has drawn heavy criticism from the civil society. "Students cant speak, teachers cant speak, this is fascism. If not for the pandemic, imagine the protests that would have erupted in DU. Last time, there were so many people who raised their voices in the aftermath of just a raise, this time it would have been huge," she said. "From my college friends to Babus friends everyone has shown their support and that is our biggest strength. My department too has been very supportive, she added. "My family is ready, Babu is ready to face them". The woman who has accused a Tory MP of rape last night claimed that ministers care more about protecting him and the party than about safeguarding victims. The former Parliamentary researcher in her 20s told of her relief after learning that the ex-minister was arrested at the weekend. But she said she was 'devastated' when the Conservatives decided not to suspend the MP, who cannot be named for legal reasons. The alleged victim, who also cannot be named, said senior ministers 'seem to care more about protecting the MP and the party than protecting victims and other women'. She told ITV News: 'It's taken me a long time to build up the courage and strength to finally go to the police. It was a relief...to see he was arrested so quickly.' The woman raised her allegations with Conservative chief whip Mark Spencer in April but claims he did not take any action or encourage her to contact police. She accused him of evading questions about when he would suspend the whip from the MP, adding: 'I felt like he did not take me seriously or recognise the severity of what had happened.' Claire Waxman, the victims' commissioner for London (left), said not suspending the MP sends the wrong message, while former deputy chief whip Anne Milton (right) urged the senior Tory MP accused of rape to give up the whip voluntarily It is understood Mr Spencer does not believe that a sexual assault was reported to him in their conversation, but he acknowledges that she told him of abusive behaviour and threats. He suggested that she take her allegations to the appropriate authority. The woman said: 'I feel like the chief whip has never taken my allegations seriously or even cared. Since the news of the arrest the chief whip or anyone from the party has not contacted me at all, not to...offer support or anything.' Mr Spencer yesterday insisted that the allegations against the MP are being taken 'very seriously' as the party came under increasing pressure over its decision not to withdraw the whip. Boris Johnson was accused of 'reneging' on his promise to take sexual harassment complaints seriously. Former Tory deputy chief whip Anne Milton urged the MP to act voluntarily. She said: 'Giving up the whip is a serious step. It would provide an appropriate way forward and should not be considered an admission of guilt.' Mrs Milton told The Times: 'In any other profession it wouldn't happen that a person suspected of a crime would be carrying on as normal.' Claire Waxman, the victims' commissioner for London, quoted the Prime Minister. The accuser has raised her allegations with Conservative chief whip Mark Spencer (pictured today) in April but claims he did not take any action or encourage her to contact police She said: '"Women must have the confidence that crimes, domestic violence and sexual abuse, are treated seriously" said Boris Johnson last year. 'However, not suspending an MP accused of rape while investigations are ongoing conveys a different message.' MPs have previously chosen to suspend themselves after being accused of wrongdoing. Conservative Nigel Evans gave up the whip and the deputy speaker role in 2013 as he faced allegations of sexual assault. He was later cleared and recently became deputy speaker again. Amy Leversidge, of the FDA civil service union, said: 'If this scenario occurred in any other workplace it would be quite reasonable and proportionate for the employer to suspend the individual to allow an investigation to take place. 'At this stage, it isn't about guilt or innocence but rather a duty of care to everyone involved.' Tory MP Caroline Nokes, chairman of the Women and Equalities Committee, called for reform of the system for making complaints against MPs. She said: 'There needs to be a simple, well-publicised and known process for this sort of incident to be reported. 'It should not be reliant on a young (because many staff in Westminster are young) man or woman having to make their way to the chief whip, who can be a very daunting figure, or to the Leader of the House whose very job title makes them sound remote from most people's experiences. 'I have long thought there needs to be a system whereby staff are directly employed by IPSA [Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority], giving them a direct route to complain to their employer who is then not the MP. 'In any large organisation there needs to be a transparent process whereby a complaint can easily be made and, whilst Parliament has made progress, I am far from convinced we yet have a system that is fit for 2020.' One senior female Tory MP said: 'Of course, the MP should be suspended if there's no way of identifying the victim.' Labour said it sent a 'terrible message' that senior figures were able to secure 'protection' through their Westminster status. Yesterday Mr Spencer said the police must carry out their investigation before 'we can assess where we're at'. He stressed: 'I think it is down to the police to do that thorough investigation, not for the whips office to investigate this alleged crime.' On Friday police received allegations relating to four incidents in London. They said a man was arrested on Saturday on suspicion of rape. He has been bailed until mid-August. The MP is accused of coercing the woman into sex while they were in a relationship. Chief whip Mark Spencer 'knew senior Tory MP accused of rape was in a sexual relationship with woman - but was unaware of any allegations of sexual assault after she complained in April' By James Tapsfield, political editor for MailOnline Chief whip Mark Spencer today stood by his decision not to suspend the senior Tory MP arrested on suspicion of rape. The party is under mounting pressure, including from the alleged victim, to strip the ex-minister of the Conservative whip. But Mr Spencer said it was right to allow the police to conclude their investigation before taking any action, while also stressing the need to protect the identity of the accuser. The former parliamentary researcher in her 20s has alleged she was assaulted and forced to have sex. She claims that she was left so traumatised by their relationship last year that she ended up in hospital. Defending his handling of the case, Mr Spencer today said: 'They are very serious allegations and we do take those allegations very seriously. 'I think it is down to the police to do that thorough investigation, not for the Whips Office to investigate this alleged crime, it is for the police and the authorities to do that. 'Once they've come to that conclusion, then we can assess where we're at and the position that the MP find themselves in.' Opposition politicians have condemned the 'shocking' decision not to withdraw the whip from the MP. London's Victims Commissioner, Claire Waxman, accused Boris Johnson of breaking a vow to treat abuse against women 'seriously'. However, a senior Tory source told MailOnline that suspending the MP would inevitably lead to them being identified. It was claimed today the Chief Whip was aware the MP was in a sexual relationship with a woman when she made a complaint about his behaviour - but not that there was an allegation of sexual assault. Sources insisted that when Mr Spencer spoke to the woman in April he was not told of any accusation of serious sexual abuse by the unnamed former minister. A spokesman for Mr Spencer said: 'The Chief Whip takes all allegations of harassment and abuse extremely seriously and has strongly encouraged anybody who has approached him to contact the appropriate authorities, including Parliament's Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme, which can formally carry out independent and confidential investigations.' Mr Spencer is understood to be adamant that when he spoke to the woman she did not refer to any 'serious sexual abuse'. However, sources confirmed he was aware that the pair had a sexual relationship. The alleged victim has hit out at the party for not taking swift action, telling The Times: 'It's insulting and shows they never cared.' Women within the Tory ranks are demanding the Party takes action after a former Conservative MP was last week convicted of sexual assault in a separate case. An ex-Tory minister told the Daily Telegraph: 'I'm surprised the whip hasn't been removed considering what happened to Charlie Elphicke. I think the chief has a lot to answer for.' Opposition politicians have condemned the 'shocking' decision not to withdraw the whip from the MP. Pictured, the Houses of Parliament today The PM told MPs last year women 'must have the confidence that crimes, domestic violence and sexual abuse, are treated seriously by our law enforcement system'. Bur Ms Waxman warned on Twitter that 'not suspending an MP accused of rape while investigations are ongoing conveys a different message'. Asked about the situation in a round of interviews this morning, business minister Nadhim Zahawi told Sky News he did not know the details of the investigation. 'There's a victim here as well. I think it's a right for us to wait until the police can do their investigation, and then you'll be hearing from the chief whip as to what action will be taken,' he said. Supporters of the accused MP, who cannot be named, say he 'totally' denies the allegations after he was questioned and bailed by police. He has also been given the '100 per cent' backing of his local party. In a statement issued by the former minister's local association, its chairman said the MP disputed the allegations. '[The MP] has made us aware of allegations made against him,' they said. 'He denies these totally. And this association give him our 100 per cent support. 'Some of the officers of this association have known him for around 25 years and from our knowledge of him in a political and personal capacity we can't accept that there is any truth whatsoever in these accusations.' The Metropolitan Police said it had received allegations on Friday of sexual offences and assault relating to four separate incidents at addresses in London, including in Westminster, between July last year and January this year. A spokesman said: 'The Met has launched an investigation into the allegations.' A man in his 50s was arrested on suspicion of rape and was taken into custody at an east London police station, the force added. He was later released on bail to a date in mid-August. SDLP Leader Colum Eastwood has hailed John Hume as "truly Irelands greatest" following his death aged 83. Mr Hume, a Noble peace prize winner, was regarded by many as the driving force behind Northern Irelands 1998 Good Friday peace agreement. The party announced his passing on Monday morning. Read More SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said the death of John Hume represents the loss of "20th century Irelands most significant and consequential political figure". Expand Close John Hume with David Trimble (PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume with David Trimble (PA) "It is no exaggeration to say that each and every one of us now lives in the Ireland Hume imagined an island at peace and free to decide its own destiny," Mr Eastwood said. "This is an historic moment on this island but most of all it is a moment of deep, deep sadness. In the days ahead, Ireland will be united in mourning his loss. However amidst that national mourning, it is equally true that the marking of Johns death also opens up a space to reflect on, and celebrate, the magnitude of his life." Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next John Hume 1937 - 2020: A life in pictures Close John Hume playing with his children John Hume is carried aloft through Londonderry city centre after being returned as MP for Foyle in 1987 John Hume on his wedding day with wife Pat John Hume is detained by soldiers during a civil rights protest in Londonderry in August 1971. John Hume John Hume in thoughtful mood at the SDLP party conference in Newcastle in 1979 Bertie Ahern and John Hume as they took part in a press conference on the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in Belfast. Picture Charles McQuillan/Pacemaker. U2 star Bono is flanked by David Trimble and John Hume on stage during a special concert in Belfast to promote the Yes vote in the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement (Chris Bacon/PA) PA John Hume with his good friend, Senator Ted Kennedy, in the Bogside John Hume with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan John Hume and his wife Pat at the Foyle Arts Centre in Londonderry after hearing that he and David Trimble were to share the Nobel Peace Prize Photopress Belfast John Hume with party colleague Seamus Mallon John Hume and David Trimble with U2 frontman Bono celebrating the Good Friday Agreement The SDLP team led by leader John Hume arrives at Stormont in 1999 to start the process of selecting ministers for the devolved government John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast Hometown heroes: John Hume celebrates with Derry City players after their 2010 First Division win SPORTSFILE Former SDLP leader John Hume and Bill Clinton pictured in front of the Guildhall. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams (left) and SDLP leader John Hume (Chris Bacon/PA) PA John Hume worked with Ian Paisley PA SDLP leader John Hume with his wife Pat speak to the media after he and David Trimble won the Nobel Peace Prize (PA) PA John Hume in front of the Stormont Building in 2002 (Paul Faith/PA) John Hume with David Trimble (PA) PA Bill Clinton in front of the Guildhall with former SDLP leader John Hume and his wife Pat. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. SDLP Conference, St Columb's Hall, Derry 12th March 2016. SDLP Leader Colm Eastwood John Hume at the conclusion of the conference Photo:Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. File photo dated 19/10/2000 of the Dalai Lama (left) meeting with fellow Nobel peace laureate John Hume, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. Photo: Martin McCullough/PA Wire PA File photo dated 24/08/2014 of John Hume and his wife Pat, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. PA Photo.Photo: Niall Carson/PA Wire PA Handout File photo dated 12/04/2000 of Former South African President Nelson Mandela meeting John Hume at the South African Embassy in Dublin Photo: PA Wire PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume playing with his children Mr Eastwood added that "the life of John Hume will forever be a blessing upon this island since Ireland is now blessed by the peace he gifted to us all. It is the greatest legacy a political leader can bestow upon his country". After some 800 years which inflicted so much hurt and harm on all our peoples, it is John Hume who must now be remembered as the great healer of that history. "Hume will always find a home amongst the pantheon of great Irish leaders and it is only right and natural that he will now be spoken of in the very same breath as OConnell and Parnell. It is important that Johns endeavours are fully appreciated in terms of their sheer scale - his impact and legacy extends well beyond one lifetime and well beyond the confines of Northern Ireland. His lifes work brought to an end the seemingly intractable historical arc of bitter conflict between the neighbouring islands of Britain and Ireland. "After some 800 years which inflicted so much hurt and harm on all our peoples, it is John Hume who must now be remembered as the great healer of that history. For all of these reasons and more, John Hume truly was Irelands greatest." He proved that solutions and partnership were possible and that even the greatest obstacles could be overcome. Mr Eastwood sent his condolences to the Hume family, including his wife Pat, children Terese, Aine, Aidan, John and Mo, his brothers and sisters and all his grandchildren. "It is especially poignant that Johns death has occurred as we concluded celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Movement, a time which first awakened his political journey. Witnessing the enflamed streets of the 1960s and a community determined to rise up and put an end to the systematic discrimination of the state, John choose to build a politics and a political party which was true to its time and true to the aspirations and the needs of our people. "In setting off on that political path, John embodied and thus gave birth to a new political creed on this island, transforming the conflicting traditions which had rigidly defined our past. That new creed imagined a better and a shared future beyond the rubble of our history. It taught us that it is far better to live for Ireland than to die for Ireland, it challenged us to pursue the path of politics rather than the reactionary instinct of violence, it dared us always to choose principle ahead of easy populism and it told us that human difference doesnt have to mean division. "The Good Friday Agreement, embraced and endorsed by the Irish people in 1998, is the institutional embodiment of that creed and its vision. John was not simply the Agreements architect or its builder, he was very much both. He will forever remain its enduring inspiration." Mr Eastwood added that "through the power of Johns truly European imagination, through the depth of his language, he proved that solutions and partnership were possible and that even the greatest obstacles could be overcome". Expand Close John Hume in front of the Stormont Building in 2002 (Paul Faith/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume in front of the Stormont Building in 2002 (Paul Faith/PA) "The three strands of relationships, amongst and between the islands of Britain and Ireland, remains a template of genuine genius and, if utilised, its structures and original ethos still hold the potential to guide us through and beyond the turbulence of our political present. "As a result of his efforts, Hume achieved the rarest of things in a political career he became a living statesman. It is telling that John Hume remains the only person to have received the Gandhi Peace Prize, the Martin Luther King Award and of course the Nobel Peace Prize. In truth though and true to his character, the greatest reward for John was not personal recognition it was instead found in the end to the violence and death which had taken ownership of our streets for far too long." Mr Eastwood also gave a special mention to Derry, which today is "shrouded in grief". "Derry was beloved by John and in return he was beloved by the people of this city. Whether in Washington, Brussels, London or Dublin, Johns first thought was always for the people of his hometown. His early involvement in the Credit Union Movement and later his success in bringing thousands of jobs was testament to the fact that forefront in Humes mind was always the cause of social justice and fighting poverty. John brought hope back into this city where it was too often in short supply. It is something our city will never forget. "John Hume once summed up his political philosophy in saying, I never thought in terms of being a leader. I thought very simply in terms of helping people. The simplicity of that statement remains a powerful insight into the patriotic devotion that came to define the man. Having spent his life in the service of others, no-one is more deserving of the eternal rest which now awaits him." JALALABAD, Afghanistan - Militants affiliated with the Islamic State group stormed a prison in eastern Afghanistan in a daylong siege that left at least 39 people dead, including the assailants, and freed nearly 400 of their fighters before security forces restored order, a government official said Monday. The attack underscored that the Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan is still a formidable presence, and it highlighted the challenges ahead as U.S. and NATO forces begin to withdraw following Washingtons peace deal with the Taliban. The peace accord aims to recruit the Taliban to battle the militants from IS, which U.S. officials have told The Associated Press is the Americans biggest foe in Afghanistan. Both the Taliban and the IS affiliate are staunch rivals. At least 10 of the dead were IS militants involved in the assault to free their comrades from the prison in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, said Ajmal Omar, a provincial council member. The rest of the dead were believed to be prisoners, civilians and Afghan forces, although no official breakdown was given. Another 50 people were wounded in the attack that began Sunday when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives-packed vehicle at the entrance to the prison complex some 115 kilometres (70 miles) east of Kabul, Omar said. Other militants simultaneously stormed the prison and took up positions in nearby residential buildings. They fired on Afghan troops for several hours, even after the security forces retook the prison and began recapturing some of the inmates. Of the five prisoners killed by the militants, at least three were members of the Taliban, showing the tensions between the two factions. An AP photographer who went inside the prison, which houses about 1,500 inmates, said he saw the bodies of five of the attackers and at least four prisoners. Omar said about 430 prisoners stayed in their cells or hid during the siege. It was unclear Monday how many prisoners remained at large. One inmate, who gave his name as Azizullah, said he heard the powerful explosion, followed by the militants storming into the main prison block, shouting for their fighters and telling them to flee. The aim of this attack was to rescue all Daesh members inside the prison, and unfortunately that included five or six senior Daesh people, Omar said, using an Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group, which is also known as ISIS. Among the prisoners who escaped was the groups shadow governor for neighbouring Kunar Province, he said. The Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan, known as IS in Khorasan Province, claimed responsibility for the attack. The militants have established a base in Nangarhar Province. Afghanistan has seen a recent surge in violence, with most attacks claimed by IS militants. U.S. and Afghan forces along with the Taliban have pounded IS positions. While the groups strength might have been reduced, analysts say it is still able to stage such high-profile attacks such as the jailbreak. Rumours of the demise of ISIS in Afghanistan are greatly exaggerated. It retains the capacity to carry out attacks, and it continues to gain new recruits ranging from disaffected former Taliban fighters to newly radicalized young Afghans, said Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Wilson Center. The attack on the jail took place in terrain where ISIS has long had a deep presence, and it used tactics that the group has frequently deployed in Afghanistan, he said. It amplifies, for Kabul and Washington and other NATO partners, just how serious the ISIS challenge remains. On Saturday, authorities said Afghan special forces killed a senior Islamic State commander near Jalalabad. The Talibans political spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, told the AP that his group was not involved in the prison attack. We have a cease-fire and are not involved in any of these attacks anywhere in the country, he said. The Taliban had declared a three-day cease-fire starting Friday for the major Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. The cease-fire expired at midnight Sunday, although it wasnt immediately clear if it would be extended. The U.S. reached the peace deal with the Taliban in February, but a second, crucial round of negotiations between the Taliban and the political leadership in Kabul has yet to begin. Washington has been pushing for an early start to intra-Afghan negotiations that have repeatedly been delayed since the Taliban accord was reached. In a tweet late Monday, Shaheen said U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held a video call with the Talibans chief negotiator, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar. His Pashto language tweet said Pompeo welcomed the cease-fire. Shaheen repeated the Talibans demand that the Afghan government free all 5,000 Taliban prisoners it holds in line with the deal. President Ashraf Ghani has refused to release the last 400, calling a grand council of elders for Thursday to decide the issue. While the Islamic State group has seen its so-called caliphate stretching across Iraq and Syria eliminated after years of fighting, the group has continued its attacks in Afghanistan. The extremists also have battled the Taliban, which was overthrown by the U.S. in a 2001 American-led invasion following the Sept. 11 attacks. A United Nations report released last month estimated the membership of IS in Afghanistan at 2,200. While its leadership has been depleted, IS still counts among its leaders a Syrian national Abu Said Mohammad al-Khorasani. The report also said the monitoring team had received information that two senior Islamic State commanders, Abu Qutaibah and Abu Hajar al-Iraqi, had recently arrived in Afghanistan from the Middle East. - Faiez reported from Kabul, Afghanistan. Associated Press writer Kathy Gannon in Islamabad contributed. Read more about: In early March, Gladys, a Caribbean restaurant in Brooklyn, was bringing in about $35,000 a week in revenue. The Bank Street Bookstore, a 50-year-old childrens shop in Manhattan, was preparing for busy spring and summer shopping seasons. And Busy Bodies, a play space for children in Brooklyn, had just wrapped up months of packed classes with long waiting lists. Five months later, those once prosperous businesses have evaporated. Gladys and Busy Bodies are closed for good and Bank Street, one of the citys last childrens bookstores, will shut down permanently in August. The three are victims of the economic destruction that threatens to derail New York Citys recovery from the financial collapse triggered by the coronavirus pandemic. An expanding universe of distinctive small businesses from coffee shops to dry cleaners to hardware stores that give New Yorks neighborhoods their unique personalities and are key to the citys economy are starting to topple. The three Marine Corps amphibious assault vehicles that left a training beach on a California island last week took the normal preparatory steps before entering the water, the service's top general said this week. But they hit rough seas after passing the surf zone on their way back to the amphibious transport dock Somerset from San Clemente Island, leaving one AAV filling with more water than it could pump out, Commandant Gen. David Berger said on Monday. Nine of the 16 troops inside that vehicle were killed in the accident that left the AAV on the seafloor. "Eventually that trac sank," Berger said, referring to the amphibious tracked vehicle, colloquially known as an amtrac. "The other amtrac converged on it and pulled some of the Marines out of the water. And they had safety boats in the water as well, which pulled some Marines out of the water." Read Next: Marines Suspend All AAV Water Ops as Search for 8 Missing Troops Continues One of those Marines -- Lance Cpl. Guillermo Perez -- suffered a serious head injury, the commandant said. "They tried to save him, [but] could not," he said. Eight others -- Pfcs. Bryan Baltierra, Evan Bath and Jack Ryan Ostrovsky; Lance Cpls. Marco Barranco and Chase Sweetwood; Cpls. Wesley Rodd and Cesar Villanueva; and Navy Hospitalman Christopher Gnem -- have not yet been found. The Marine Corps ended a search-and-rescue mission for them on Sunday, declaring them deceased. All nine service members killed in the accident were under the age of 24. Berger said the search continues to find the remains of the fallen. The Navy was initially using a tethered submersible to find the AAV, he said. Now they're using a pair of autonomous search vehicles he said look like submarines with sonars on the front. "The goal right now is to locate the amtrac," Berger said, speaking from Quantico, Virginia, where he attended a change of command ceremony. "Once they can locate the amtrac, they can work hard to recover the remains and eventually recover the whole [vehicle]." The Marines and sailor were assigned to Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 4th Marines. They were preparing for an upcoming deployment with the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit. The Marines had completed their training off California's coast on Thursday when they were headed back to the Somerset. Lt. Gen. Joseph Osterman, the former head of I Marine Expeditionary Force, told reporters last week that the AAV sank in several hundred feet of water. The Navy is using the unmanned vehicles to find the amtrac since it's in an area that's too deep for divers to reach. The investigation into the accident has already started, Berger said. "We have no idea what caused it and won't know for a while," he added. "The Marines that were recovered obviously saw what happened, or part of it, so that will be really helpful. And then they'll recover the amtrac and we'll see where it goes from there." Berger last week halted all water operations for AAVs until the Marine Corps determines what caused one to sink. The service's fleet of AAVs date back to the early 1970s, and have been involved in deadly accidents in the past. The Marine Corps is in the process of replacing those vehicles, but that's not set to begin for several more months. For now, AAVs are only permitted to operate on land until all 800-plus in use are inspected in accordance with Berger's directive. All the Marines who died in last week's accident were infantry riflemen. Gnem was their corpsman. Baltierra, 18, was from Corona, California. The day before his death marked the one-year point from when he shipped off to boot camp at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego. He later completed his military occupational specialty training as an 0311 rifleman at the School of Infantry-West. Barranco, 21, of Montebello, California, reported to boot camp in February 2019. He, too, trained at SOI-West. Bath, 19, of Oak Creek, Wisconsin, reported to boot camp in San Diego the same day Baltierra did in July 2019. He then trained as a rifleman at SOI-West. Gnem, 22, of Stockton, California, joined the Navy in May 2017. He reported to 1st Marine Regiment in December 2019 after completing training as a fleet Marine force hospital corpsman. Gnem had a Navy Good Conduct Medal. Ostrovsky, 21, of Bend, Oregon, reported to Marine Corps boot camp in San Diego in June 2019. He also completed training as an 0311 rifleman at SOI-West. Rodd, 23, of Harris, Texas, reported to boot camp in San Diego in January 2017. In addition to training at SOI-West, Rodd also completed Marine Corps Security Force Guard Training in Virginia in 2017. He served with Security Force Regiment before reporting to 1/4. Rodd had a Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal. Perez, 20, of New Braunfels, Texas, went to boot camp in June 2019. He completed his MOS training at SOI-West. Sweetwood, 19, of Portland, Oregon, went to boot camp in San Diego in December 2018. He also trained at SOI-West. Villanueva, 21, of Riverside, California, went to boot camp in San Diego in September 2017. Like the other riflemen, Villanueva trained at SOI-West before he, too, reported to Marine Corps Security Force Guard Training in Virginia. He served with the Security Force Regiment before joining 1/4 and had previously deployed. -- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins. Related: Marine Corps IDs 9 Troops Lost in Tragic AAV Accident Michael 'Wippa' Wipfli has revealed that his furious wife, Lisa, asked him to 'move out' over the weekend, after he posted a very unflattering picture of her to Instagram. Speaking on his Nova FM breakfast show on Monday, the 40-year-old radio host said he was 'in the doghouse' after sharing the photo of Lisa looking eerily like late pop star Michael Jackson while they were enjoying a day out in Sydney's Rose Bay. 'When I took this photo with Lisa, I looked at it and I thought, "Oh my god, if I zoom in a little bit... that's Michael Jackson!"' he chuckled. In the doghouse! Michael 'Wippa' Wipfli (right) has revealed that his wife, Lisa (left), asked him to 'move out' over the weekend, after he posted a very unflattering picture of her to Instagram His co-host Sarah McGilvray couldn't get over the likeness, saying: 'It's phenomenal!' But Wippa admitted the trouble really started when they got home. He said: 'It was just when I posted it yesterday afternoon, she was upstairs trying to settle Francesca [their daughter] and then I hear a head poking out the door, "Michael!" I thought, "Got her a beauty; I reckon I know why she's yelling!"' Spooky! Speaking on his Nova FM breakfast show on Monday, the 40-year-old radio host said he was 'in the doghouse' after sharing the photo of Lisa (left) looking eerily like late pop star Michael Jackson (right) while they were enjoying a day out in Sydney's Rose Bay Uncanny: 'When I took this photo with Lisa, I looked at it and I thought, "Oh my god, if I zoom in a little bit... that's Michael Jackson!"' Wippa chuckled on air Wippa continued: 'I've had 100 messages of people saying, "You're dead! You're getting a divorce!" One bloke wrote, "There's only 10 people at your funeral, sorry mate, put your list together now!"' He admitted that he knew he was going to be in trouble before he posted the image, but thought it was too good an opportunity to let slip by. 'Normally I would've had to get it approved [by Lisa],' he said. Worth it! Wippa (pictured) admitted that he knew he was going to be in trouble before he posted the image, but thought it was too good an opportunity to let slip by 'I thought I was never gonna get that past the gate! I had to go for forgiveness over approval because I was never going to get approval!' Wippa then joked that he might be needing a place to crash for a while. 'Anyway, I've had to move out. I was wondering if I could come and stay at your place?' he asked his co-host Ryan 'Fitzy' Fitzgerald. Loved up: Despite their recent hiccup, Wippa and Lisa have been happily married for almost seven years Wippa shared the image with his 54,000 Instagram followers on Sunday, and captioned it: 'He's alive! Michael Jackson spotted in Rose Bay, Sydney.' Despite their recent hiccup, Wippa and Lisa have been happily married for almost seven years. The couple share three children, sons Theodore, four, and Jack, three, and daughter Francesca, three months. KYODO NEWS - Aug 2, 2020 - 20:58 | World, All China can detect nuclear missiles launched from an enemy and counterattack using nuclear weapons within minutes before they land in the country, according to a paper written by a Chinese former military officer. His remarks indicated China may have completed a missile attack early warning system while bolstering its nuclear programs, which could threaten the United States in security terms, foreign affairs experts said. Development of the system requires advanced missile defense technologies integrating artificial satellites to detect missile launches with sea-based radar, they said. China has apparently increased its missile defense capabilities in recent years, as the leadership of President Xi Jinping has stepped up efforts to give the nation's military "world-class" status by the mid-21st century. The paper was written by Yang Chengjun, a Chinese specialist on nuclear missiles, who had long worked for the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force, which has a nuclear missile unit. In the paper, Yang also emphasized that China's nuclear capacity has become comprehensively comparable to those of the United States and Russia. China has so far pledged to pursue the policy of "no first use of nuclear weapons" under any circumstances. The basic principle of its nuclear strategy is that the country would counterattack with the nuclear weapons remaining without being destroyed after being hit by the enemy's nuclear weapons. Storm Sinluka, Vietnams second in 2020, weakened into a tropical depression after making landfall in the north-central province of Thanh Hoa late on Sunday afternoon. Average wind speeds in Thanh Hoas coastal areas were recorded at 40-50 kilometers per hour and gusts at up to 75km per hour. Local residents stated that the storm was not strong enough to alleviate the heat and lack of rainfall that had plagued the province for two months. However, the combined effect of the storm and rising tide did place some pressure on the coastal embankment in Thanh Hoa and caused some flooding in a few areas. Heavy downpours are expected to dampen the province for the next two days due to the storms circulation, creating favorable conditions for agricultural production. Residents get back to their usual activities after Storm Sinluka has weakened in Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam, August 2, 2020. Photo: Ha Dong / Tuoi Tre The rains will also add more water to local reservoirs and irrigation dams, which have dried out after a two-month drought, according to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. The weather conditions will pose a high risk of landslides and flash floods in mountainous areas. The Thanh Hoa administration has ordered relevant agencies to be ready to assist affected residents. In northern Vietnam, it is expected to continue raining until August 8, according to the National Center for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! The Tamil Nadu government on August 3 rejected the Centre's three-language formula proposed in the new National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and said there will not be any deviation from the two-language policy being followed in the state. Taking strong exception to the proposal for the three-language formula in the NEP, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami who chaired a Cabinet meeting at the Secretariat, said the state has been following the two-language policy for several decades and there will be no change in it. Also read | New Education Policy: Breakfast for school children besides mid-day meals "Tamil Nadu will never allow the Centre's three- language policy. The state will continue with it's dual language policy (of Tamil and English)," the chief minister said. "The three-language formula in the NEP is painful and saddening. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) should reconsider the three-language policy," he said, adding the Centre should allow the states to implement their own policy on the subject. Also read: Why Indian students may no longer have to spend huge amounts to earn a foreign degree Palaniswami said there will be no change to the two- language formula which the state had adopted decades ago. Teaching up to class 5 in mother tongue or regional language and lowering the stakes of board exams are part of the sweeping reforms in the new NEP unveiled last week. New Orders and Production Growing; Employment Contracting; Supplier Deliveries Slowing at Slower Rate; Backlog Growing; Raw Materials Inventories Contracting; Customers' Inventories Too Low; Prices Increasing; Exports and Imports Growing TEMPE, Ariz., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Economic activity in the manufacturing sector grew in July, with the overall economy notching a third consecutive month of growth, say the nation's supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business. The report was issued today by Timothy R. Fiore, CPSM, C.P.M., Chair of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Manufacturing Business Survey Committee: "The July PMI registered 54.2 percent, up 1.6 percentage points from the June reading of 52.6 percent. This figure indicates expansion in the overall economy for the third month in a row after a contraction in April, which ended a period of 131 consecutive months of growth. The New Orders Index registered 61.5 percent, an increase of 5.1 percentage points from the June reading of 56.4 percent. The Production Index registered 62.1 percent, up 4.8 percentage points compared to the June reading of 57.3 percent. The Backlog of Orders Index registered 51.8 percent, an increase of 6.5 percentage points compared to the June reading of 45.3 percent. The Employment Index registered 44.3 percent, an increase of 2.2 percentage points from the June reading of 42.1 percent. The Supplier Deliveries Index registered 55.8 percent, down 1.1 percentage points from the June figure of 56.9 percent. "The Inventories Index registered 47 percent, 3.5 percentage points lower than the June reading of 50.5 percent. The Prices Index registered 53.2 percent, up 1.9 percentage points compared to the June reading of 51.3 percent. The New Export Orders Index registered 50.4 percent, an increase of 2.8 percentage points compared to the June reading of 47.6 percent. The Imports Index registered 53.1 percent, a 4.3-percentage point increase from the June reading of 48.8 percent. "In July, manufacturing continued its recovery after the disruption caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Panel sentiment was generally optimistic (two positive comments for every one cautious comment), continuing a trend from June. Demand expanded, with the (1) New Orders Index growing at a strong level, supported by the New Export Orders Index re-entering expansion; (2) Customers' Inventories Index remaining at a level considered a positive for future production, and (3) Backlog of Orders Index returning to expansion for the first time in five months. Consumption (measured by the Production and Employment indexes) contributed positively (a combined 7-percentage point increase) to the PMI calculation, with industries continuing to expand output after May's return-to-work actions. Inputs expressed as supplier deliveries, inventories and imports weakened for the third straight month, due to supplier delivery issues abating and import levels re-entering expansion. Inventory levels contracted due to strong production output, supplier delivery difficulties and inventory minimization. Inputs contributed negatively (a combined 4.6-percentage point decrease) to the PMI calculation but were more than offset by the demand and consumption improvement, as was the case in June. (The Supplier Deliveries and Inventories indexes directly factor into the PMI; the Imports Index does not.) Prices remained in expansion, supporting a positive outlook. "The growth cycle continues for the second straight month after three prior months of COVID-19 disruptions. Demand and consumption continued to drive expansion growth, with inputs remaining at parity with supply and demand. Among the six biggest industry sectors, Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products remains the best-performing industry sector, with Chemical Products, Computer & Electronic Products and Petroleum & Coal Products growing respectably. Transportation Equipment and Fabricated Metal Products continue to contract, but at soft levels," says Fiore. Of the 18 manufacturing industries, 13 reported growth in July, in the following order: Wood Products; Furniture & Related Products; Textile Mills; Printing & Related Support Activities; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Chemical Products; Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Computer & Electronic Products; Primary Metals; Petroleum & Coal Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; and Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components. The three industries reporting contraction in July are: Transportation Equipment; Machinery; and Fabricated Metal Products. WHAT RESPONDENTS ARE SAYING "Orders starting to pick up. [An] increase of about 35 percent to 40 percent." (Chemical Products) "Overall business remains down almost 70 percent. We are hanging on to as many employees as possible, but we will have to lay off 30 percent or more for at least two to three months until September or October." (Transportation Equipment) "While demand in the coming six months is stabilizing, it is at a significant reduction and clear that customers have little confidence in the forecasts. Export orders to Brazil , South Africa , [and the] Middle East are largely cancelled for balance of 2020." (Fabricated Metal Products) , , [and the] are largely cancelled for balance of 2020." (Fabricated Metal Products) "Manufacturing outlook has improved greatly in June, as business has resumed at nearly 100 percent. We have implemented a number of safeguards that are costing extra money, but we are running." (Computer & Electronic Products) "Stabilizing demand for refrigerated and frozen beverage and dessert, but still at higher level than a year ago. Uncertainty of school opening in the fall: How much demand will continue or shift will be dictated by students returning to school or not." (Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products) "Uncertainty regarding our industry and business has not improved. We are developing the 2021 budget around multiple scenarios." (Petroleum & Coal Products) "Incoming orders are slow. This is usually our busiest time of the year, but production is reduced due to lack of demand. Additional layoffs expected." (Furniture & Related Products) "General business climate continues to be subdued, driving highly conservative forecasting due to variability in the ongoing pandemic-driven conditions and economic response." (Machinery) "We are still seeing our customers shut down or effected by COVID-19. We are hoping for a bounce back in September." (Miscellaneous Manufacturing) "General business conditions are in a general slowing pattern. Many of the plants are on reduced hours and/or furloughs. About 20 percent to 25 percent of plants are scheduled to be consolidated in the next six months to improve margins and profitability." (Nonmetallic Mineral Products) MANUFACTURING AT A GLANCE July 2020 Index Series Index Jul Series Index Jun Percentage Point Change Direction Rate of Change Trend* (Months) PMI 54.2 52.6 +1.6 Growing Faster 2 New Orders 61.5 56.4 +5.1 Growing Faster 2 Production 62.1 57.3 +4.8 Growing Faster 2 Employment 44.3 42.1 +2.2 Contracting Slower 12 Supplier Deliveries 55.8 56.9 -1.1 Slowing Slower 9 Inventories 47.0 50.5 -3.5 Contracting From Growing 1 Customers' Inventories 41.6 44.6 -3.0 Too Low Faster 46 Prices 53.2 51.3 +1.9 Increasing Faster 2 Backlog of Orders 51.8 45.3 +6.5 Growing From Contracting 1 New Export Orders 50.4 47.6 +2.8 Growing From Contracting 1 Imports 53.1 48.8 +4.3 Growing From Contracting 1 OVERALL ECONOMY Growing Faster 3 Manufacturing Sector Growing Faster 2 Manufacturing ISM Report On Business data is seasonally adjusted for the New Orders, Production, Employment and Inventories indexes. *Number of months moving in current direction. COMMODITIES REPORTED UP/DOWN IN PRICE AND IN SHORT SUPPLY Commodities Up in Price Aluminum (2); Copper (2); Crude Oil (3); Diesel Fuel (2); High-Density Polyethylene; Lumber; Oil-Based Products; Plastic Products; Polypropylene; and Precious Metals. Commodities Down in Price Diesel Fuel (5); Steel Hot Rolled; and Steel Products (4). Commodities in Short Supply Alcohols; Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) (3); PPE Gloves (5); PPE Masks; and Sanitizers & Disinfectants (2). Note: The number of consecutive months the commodity is listed is indicated after each item. JULY 2020 MANUFACTURING INDEX SUMMARIES PMI Manufacturing grew in July, as the PMI registered 54.2 percent, 1.6 percentage points higher than the June reading of 52.6 percent. "The PMI signaled a continued rebuilding of economic activity in July and reached its highest level of expansion since March 2019, when the index registered 54.6 percent. Four of the big six industry sectors expanded. The New Orders and Production indexes returned to strong expansion levels. The Supplier Deliveries Index remained at a more normal level of tension between supply and demand. Seven of the 10 subindexes registered expansion, up from five in June," says Fiore. A reading above 50 percent indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding; below 50 percent indicates that it is generally contracting. A PMI above 42.8 percent, over a period of time, generally indicates an expansion of the overall economy. Therefore, the July PMI indicates the overall economy grew in July for the third consecutive month following contraction in April. "The past relationship between the PMI and the overall economy indicates that the PMI for July (54.2 percent) corresponds to a 3.3-percent increase in real gross domestic product (GDP) on an annualized basis," says Fiore. THE LAST 12 MONTHS Month PMI Month PMI Jul 2020 54.2 Jan 2020 50.9 Jun 2020 52.6 Dec 2019 47.8 May 2020 43.1 Nov 2019 48.1 Apr 2020 41.5 Oct 2019 48.5 Mar 2020 49.1 Sep 2019 48.2 Feb 2020 50.1 Aug 2019 48.8 Average for 12 months 48.6 High 54.2 Low 41.5 New Orders ISM's New Orders Index registered 61.5 percent in July, an increase of 5.1 percentage points compared to the 56.4 percent reported in June. This indicates that new orders grew for the second consecutive month. "All of the top six industry sectors (Chemical Products; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Petroleum & Coal Products; Transportation Equipment and Computer & Electronic Products) expanded. Demand improved in July, as demonstrated by 13 industry sectors expanding and only two contracting. The index achieved its highest level of performance since September 2018 (61.8 percent)," says Fiore. A New Orders Index above 52.5 percent, over time, is generally consistent with an increase in the Census Bureau's series on manufacturing orders (in constant 2000 dollars). Of the 18 manufacturing industries, the 13 that reported growth in new orders in July in the following order are: Wood Products; Furniture & Related Products; Primary Metals; Plastics & Rubber Products; Chemical Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Petroleum & Coal Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Transportation Equipment; Computer & Electronic Products; and Machinery. The two industries reporting a decline in new orders in July are: Textile Mills; and Paper Products. New Orders %Higher %Same %Lower Net Index Jul 2020 41.1 40.0 18.8 +22.3 61.5 Jun 2020 37.3 38.9 23.9 +13.4 56.4 May 2020 21.2 26.0 52.9 -31.7 31.8 Apr 2020 17.7 22.7 59.7 -42.0 27.1 Production The Production Index registered 62.1 percent in July, up 4.8 percentage points from 57.3 percent in June, indicating growth for the second consecutive month. "Five of the top six industries expanded strongly and none contracted, a marked improvement from June. The index achieved its highest level of performance since August 2018, when it registered 63.1 percent," says Fiore. An index above 51.7 percent, over time, is generally consistent with an increase in the Federal Reserve Board's Industrial Production figures. The 16 industries reporting growth in production during the month of July listed in order are: Primary Metals; Wood Products; Textile Mills; Furniture & Related Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; Plastics & Rubber Products; Chemical Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Computer & Electronic Products; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Paper Products; Machinery; Transportation Equipment; and Miscellaneous Manufacturing. No industries reported a decrease in production in July. Production %Higher %Same %Lower Net Index Jul 2020 41.6 39.9 18.5 +23.1 62.1 Jun 2020 39.2 37.7 23.1 +16.1 57.3 May 2020 20.7 27.8 51.5 -30.8 33.2 Apr 2020 18.6 21.2 60.2 -41.6 27.5 Employment ISM's Employment Index registered 44.3 percent in July, 2.2 percentage points higher than the June reading of 42.1 percent. "This is the 12th consecutive month of employment contraction, at a slower rate compared to June. Only one of the six big industry sectors experienced expansion, as factories were able to achieve significant gains in output with a reduced labor pool. Long-term labor market growth remains uncertain, but strong new-order levels and an expanding backlog signify potential strength for the rest of the third quarter," says Fiore. An Employment Index above 50.8 percent, over time, is generally consistent with an increase in the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data on manufacturing employment. Of the 18 manufacturing industries, the five industries to report employment growth in July are: Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; Furniture & Related Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; and Computer & Electronic Products. The 10 industries reporting a decrease in employment in July, in the following order, are: Transportation Equipment; Paper Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Primary Metals; Textile Mills; Petroleum & Coal Products; Chemical Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Fabricated Metal Products; and Machinery. Employment %Higher %Same %Lower Net Index Jul 2020 15.3 59.9 24.7 -9.4 44.3 Jun 2020 14.6 58.8 26.6 -12.0 42.1 May 2020 7.6 51.2 41.1 -33.5 32.1 Apr 2020 2.8 50.7 46.6 -43.8 27.5 Supplier Deliveries The delivery performance of suppliers to manufacturing organizations was slower in July, as the Supplier Deliveries Index registered 55.8 percent. This is 1.1 percentage points lower than the 56.9 percent reported in June. "Suppliers continue to struggle to deliver, although at a slower rate compared to June. Plant interruptions, transportation challenges and continuing difficulties in supplier labor markets are still factors. The Supplier Delivery Index continues to reflect a healthier supply/demand balance compared to spring and early summer," says Fiore. A reading below 50 percent indicates faster deliveries, while a reading above 50 percent indicates slower deliveries. Twelve of 18 industries reported slower supplier deliveries in July, listed in the following order: Textile Mills; Petroleum & Coal Products; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Wood Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Furniture & Related Products; Paper Products; Computer & Electronic Products; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Machinery; Chemical Products; and Fabricated Metal Products. The two industries reporting faster supplier deliveries in July are: Primary Metals; and Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components. Supplier Deliveries %Slower %Same %Faster Net Index Jul 2020 22.2 67.4 10.5 +11.7 55.8 Jun 2020 22.9 68.1 9.0 +13.9 56.9 May 2020 41.0 54.2 4.9 +36.1 68.0 Apr 2020 55.8 40.3 3.9 +51.9 76.0 Inventories The Inventories Index registered 47 percent in July, 3.5 percentage points lower than the 50.5 percent reported for June. Inventories contracted after two consecutive months of expansion. "Inventory levels were impacted by increases in production output and restrained by continuing supplier difficulties. Panelists also indicated restraint in increasing inventories due to uncertainty in overall future market demand," says Fiore. An Inventories Index greater than 44.3 percent, over time, is generally consistent with expansion in the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) figures on overall manufacturing inventories (in chained 2000 dollars). The three industries reporting higher inventories in July are: Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Paper Products; and Miscellaneous Manufacturing. The nine industries reporting a decrease in inventories in July listed in order are: Primary Metals; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Machinery; Plastics & Rubber Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Chemical Products; Computer & Electronic Products; and Transportation Equipment. Six industries reported no change in inventories in July compared to June. Inventories %Higher %Same %Lower Net Index Jul 2020 21.2 51.6 27.2 -6.0 47.0 Jun 2020 22.9 54.1 23.0 -0.1 50.5 May 2020 29.0 42.0 29.0 0.0 50.4 Apr 2020 31.7 37.2 31.2 +0.5 49.7 Customers' Inventories ISM's Customers' Inventories Index registered 41.6 percent in July, 3 percentage points lower than the 44.6 percent reported for June, indicating that customers' inventory levels were considered too low. "Customers' inventories are too low for the 46th consecutive month and moved further into 'too low' territory in July, a positive for future production," says Fiore. Of the 18 industries, the two reporting higher customers' inventories in July are: Petroleum & Coal Products; and Furniture & Related Products. The 13 industries reporting customers' inventories as too low during July listed in order are: Wood Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Paper Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Primary Metals; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Machinery; Textile Mills; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Chemical Products; Transportation Equipment; and Computer & Electronic Products. Customers' Inventories % Reporting %Too High %About Right %Too Low Net Index Jul 2020 74 12.6 58.0 29.4 -16.8 41.6 Jun 2020 74 15.4 58.4 26.1 -10.7 44.6 May 2020 75 21.8 48.7 29.5 -7.7 46.2 Apr 2020 73 21.7 54.2 24.1 -2.4 48.8 Prices The ISM Prices Index registered 53.2 percent, 1.9 percentage points higher than the June reading of 51.3 percent, indicating raw materials prices increased for the second consecutive month. "Price increases were driven primarily by plastics, lumber, aluminum, copper and petroleum products. Price growth remains at a stable supplier/buyer relationship," says Fiore. A Prices Index above 52.5 percent, over time, is generally consistent with an increase in the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Producer Price Index for Intermediate Materials. The 10 industries reporting paying increased prices for raw materials in July listed in order are: Textile Mills; Primary Metals; Wood Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Paper Products; Computer & Electronic Products; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Chemical Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; and Machinery. The two industries reporting a decrease in prices for raw materials in July are: Transportation Equipment; and Fabricated Metal Products. Six industries reported no change in prices in July compared to June. Prices %Higher %Same %Lower Net Index Jul 2020 22.7 61.2 16.2 +6.5 53.2 Jun 2020 18.5 65.6 15.9 +2.6 51.3 May 2020 13.9 53.8 32.3 -18.4 40.8 Apr 2020 10.0 50.6 39.4 -29.4 35.3 Backlog of Orders ISM's Backlog of Orders Index registered 51.8 percent in July, a 6.5-percentage point increase compared to the 45.3 percent reported in June, indicating order backlogs expanded after four consecutive months of contraction. "The return of backlog expansion is a positive for the future. Backlog expansion indicates that new-order intake was sufficient to offset production output and grow backlog during the period. Three of the six big industry sectors' backlogs expanded, an improvement from June. The index achieved its highest level of expansion since April 2019 (53.9 percent)," says Fiore. The 10 industries reporting growth in order backlogs in July, in the following order, are: Wood Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Primary Metals; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Paper Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Chemical Products; Machinery; and Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components. In July, four industries reported lower backlogs: Textile Mills; Transportation Equipment; Computer & Electronic Products; and Miscellaneous Manufacturing. Backlog of Orders % Reporting %Higher %Same %Lower Net Index Jul 2020 87 20.3 63.0 16.7 +3.6 51.8 Jun 2020 89 19.4 51.9 28.7 -9.3 45.3 May 2020 91 18.2 40.1 41.8 -23.6 38.2 Apr 2020 91 20.9 33.7 45.4 -24.5 37.8 New Export Orders ISM's New Export Orders Index registered 50.4 percent in July, up 2.8 percentage points compared to the June reading of 47.6 percent. "The New Export Orders Index expanded modestly after four straight months of contraction, with two of the six big industry sectors expanding. New export orders were a positive factor to the growth in new orders," says Fiore. The six industries reporting growth in new export orders in July in the following order are: Furniture & Related Products; Wood Products; Computer & Electronic Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Chemical Products; and Miscellaneous Manufacturing. The four industries reporting a decrease in new export orders in July are: Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Paper Products; and Machinery. Seven industries reported no change in new export orders in July compared to June. New Export Orders % Reporting %Higher %Same %Lower Net Index Jul 2020 74 14.8 71.4 13.9 +0.9 50.4 Jun 2020 75 13.8 67.7 18.5 -4.7 47.6 May 2020 77 14.3 50.6 35.2 -20.9 39.5 Apr 2020 79 12.0 46.5 41.5 -29.5 35.3 Imports ISM's Imports Index registered 53.1 percent in July, up 4.3 percentage points compared to the 48.8 percent reported for June. "Imports expanded after five consecutive months of contraction, reflecting increased U.S. demand. The index reached its highest level of expansion since February 2019, when it registered 55.3 percent," says Fiore. The 11 industries reporting growth in imports in July in the following order are: Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; Wood Products; Textile Mills; Fabricated Metal Products; Furniture & Related Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Chemical Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Machinery; and Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products. The two industries reporting a decrease in imports in July are: Primary Metals; and Miscellaneous Manufacturing. Imports % Reporting %Higher %Same %Lower Net Index Jul 2020 85 17.4 71.4 11.2 +6.2 53.1 Jun 2020 83 15.3 67.1 17.6 -2.3 48.8 May 2020 84 13.6 55.4 31.0 -17.4 41.3 Apr 2020 86 20.4 44.6 35.1 -14.7 42.7 The Supplier Deliveries, Customers' Inventories, Prices, Backlog of Orders, New Export Orders and Imports indexes do not meet the accepted criteria for seasonal adjustments. Buying Policy Average commitment lead time for Capital Expenditures increased by four days in July to 136 days. Average lead time for Production Materials increased by three days to 66 days. Average lead time for Maintenance, Repair and Operating (MRO) Supplies decreased by one day to 35 days. Percent Reporting Capital Expenditures Hand-to-Mouth 30 Days 60 Days 90 Days 6 Months 1 Year+ Average Days Jul 2020 24 7 8 18 24 19 136 Jun 2020 25 7 9 17 24 18 132 May 2020 24 7 10 16 23 20 137 Apr 2020 26 6 11 17 20 20 133 Percent Reporting Production Materials Hand-to-Mouth 30 Days 60 Days 90 Days 6 Months 1 Year+ Average Days Jul 2020 10 35 25 20 8 2 66 Jun 2020 11 37 25 18 7 2 63 May 2020 12 34 28 15 9 2 65 Apr 2020 14 33 23 20 8 2 64 Percent Reporting MRO Supplies Hand-to-Mouth 30 Days 60 Days 90 Days 6 Months 1 Year+ Average Days Jul 2020 38 35 16 8 3 0 35 Jun 2020 38 37 15 7 2 1 36 May 2020 39 31 17 10 3 0 36 Apr 2020 39 32 14 10 4 1 40 About This Report DO NOT CONFUSE THIS NATIONAL REPORT with the various regional purchasing reports released across the country. The national report's information reflects the entire U.S., while the regional reports contain primarily regional data from their local vicinities. Also, the information in the regional reports is not used in calculating the results of the national report. The information compiled in this report is for the month of July 2020. The data presented herein is obtained from a survey of manufacturing supply executives based on information they have collected within their respective organizations. ISM makes no representation, other than that stated within this release, regarding the individual company data collection procedures. The data should be compared to all other economic data sources when used in decision-making. Data and Method of Presentation The Manufacturing ISM Report On Business is based on data compiled from purchasing and supply executives nationwide. The composition of the Manufacturing Business Survey Committee is stratified according to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) and each of the following NAICS-based industry's contribution to gross domestic product (GDP): Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Textile Mills; Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Wood Products; Paper Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; Petroleum & Coal Products; Chemical Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Primary Metals; Fabricated Metal Products; Machinery; Computer & Electronic Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Transportation Equipment; Furniture & Related Products; and Miscellaneous Manufacturing (products such as medical equipment and supplies, jewelry, sporting goods, toys and office supplies). The data are weighted based on each industry's contribution to GDP. According to the BEA estimates for 2018 GDP (released October 29, 2019), the six largest manufacturing sub-sectors are: Computer & Electronic Products; Chemical Products; Transportation Equipment Manufacturing; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Petroleum & Coal Products; and Fabricated Metal Products. Beginning in February 2018 with January 2018 data, computation of the indexes is accomplished utilizing unrounded numbers. Survey responses reflect the change, if any, in the current month compared to the previous month. For each of the indicators measured (New Orders, Backlog of Orders, New Export Orders, Imports, Production, Supplier Deliveries, Inventories, Customers' Inventories, Employment and Prices), this report shows the percentage reporting each response, the net difference between the number of responses in the positive economic direction (higher, better and slower for Supplier Deliveries) and the negative economic direction (lower, worse and faster for Supplier Deliveries), and the diffusion index. Responses are raw data and are never changed. The diffusion index includes the percent of positive responses plus one-half of those responding the same (considered positive). The resulting single index number for those meeting the criteria for seasonal adjustments (PMI, New Orders, Production, Employment and Inventories) is then seasonally adjusted to allow for the effects of repetitive intra-year variations resulting primarily from normal differences in weather conditions, various institutional arrangements, and differences attributable to non-moveable holidays. All seasonal adjustment factors are subject annually to relatively minor changes when conditions warrant them. The PMI is a composite index based on the diffusion indexes of five of the indexes with equal weights: New Orders (seasonally adjusted), Production (seasonally adjusted), Employment (seasonally adjusted), Supplier Deliveries (seasonally adjusted), and Inventories. Diffusion indexes have the properties of leading indicators and are convenient summary measures showing the prevailing direction of change and the scope of change. A PMI reading above 50 percent indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding; below 50 percent indicates that it is generally declining. A PMI above 42.8 percent, over a period of time, indicates that the overall economy, or gross domestic product (GDP), is generally expanding; below 42.8 percent, it is generally declining. The distance from 50 percent or 42.8 percent is indicative of the extent of the expansion or decline. With some of the indicators within this report, ISM has indicated the departure point between expansion and decline of comparable government series, as determined by regression analysis. The Manufacturing ISM Report On Business survey is sent out to Manufacturing Business Survey Committee respondents the first part of each month. Respondents are asked to report on information for the current month for U.S. operations only. ISM receives survey responses throughout most of any given month, with the majority of respondents generally waiting until late in the month to submit responses to give the most accurate picture of current business activity. ISM then compiles the report for release on the first business day of the following month. The industries reporting growth, as indicated in the Manufacturing ISM Report On Business monthly report, are listed in the order of most growth to least growth. For the industries reporting contraction or decreases, those are listed in the order of the highest level of contraction/decrease to the least level of contraction/decrease. Responses to Buying Policy reflect the percent reporting the current month's lead time, the approximate weighted number of days ahead for which commitments are made for Capital Expenditures; Production Materials; and Maintenance, Repair and Operating (MRO) Supplies, expressed as hand-to-mouth (five days), 30 days, 60 days, 90 days, six months (180 days), a year or more (360 days), and the weighted average number of days. These responses are raw data, never revised, and not seasonally adjusted since there is no significant seasonal pattern. ISM ROB Content The Institute for Supply Management ("ISM") Report On Business (both Manufacturing and Non-Manufacturing) ("ISM ROB") contains information, text, files, images, video, sounds, musical works, works of authorship, applications, and any other materials or content (collectively, "Content") of ISM ("ISM ROB Content"). 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Report On Business, PMI, and NMI are registered trademarks of Institute for Supply Management. Institute for Supply Management and ISM are registered trademarks of Institute for Supply Management, Inc. About Institute for Supply Management Institute for Supply Management (ISM) serves supply management professionals in more than 90 countries. Its 50,000 members around the world manage about US$1 trillion in corporate and government supply chain procurement annually. Founded in 1915 as the first supply management institute in the world, ISM is committed to advancing the practice of supply management to drive value and competitive advantage for its members, contributing to a prosperous and sustainable world. ISM leads the profession through the ISM Report On Business, its highly regarded certification programs and the ISM Mastery Model. This report has been issued by the association since 1931, except for a four-year interruption during World War II. The full text version of the Manufacturing ISM Report On Business is posted on ISM's website at www.ismrob.org on the first business day* of every month after 10:00 a.m. ET. The next Manufacturing ISM Report On Business featuring August 2020 data will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET on Tuesday, September 1, 2020. *Unless the New York Stock Exchange is closed. Contact: Kristina Cahill Report On Business Analyst ISM, ROB/Research Manager Tempe, Arizona +1 480.455.5910 Email: [email protected] SOURCE Institute for Supply Management Related Links http://www.ism.ws 'If the Ram Mandir is made, it is because of the collective strength of our country.' IMAGE: Hindu priests and Vishva Hindu Parishad members in Ahmedabad perform rituals next to pots filled with holy water and soil which was brought from various Hindu religious sites before taking it to Ayodhya for the bhoomi puja, July 27, 2020. Photograph: Amit Dave/Reuters Bhupender Yadav is emerging as the man for all seasons in the Bharatiya Janata Party. Under Narendra Damodardas Modi's leadership, in its second term in power, the BJP is going to see many fundamental changes. Modi is trying to make the BJP fit for the 21st century. Yadav is one of the most trusted members of the team handling the assignment of transformation . In the last six years he has headed 12 Parliamentary committees which in itself speaks about his position in Modi's scheme of things. His strengths are that he is a lawyer and participated early in the party's major agenda including the Ayodhya movement. He was the government council before the Liberhan Commission which inquired into the December 6, 1992 demolition of the Babri Masjid. Yadav explains what the August 5 bhoomi puja of the Ram Mandir means to him and his party. The first part of an exclusive interview with Senior Rediff.com Contributor Sheela Bhatt. How do you see the bhoomi puja of the Ram Mandir on August 5? The issue of the Ram Janambhoomi is the issue portraying a cultural renaissance of the country. We should not look at this event narrowly. Bhagwan Ram has been India's hero. Ram was a very compassionate and modest ruler. Ram fought against injustice. Shri Ram was also the kind of ruler who articulated people's welfare at the centrepoint of governance. And Ram is -- from every category, every understanding, and, for everybody in India's traditions -- a spiritual being. And we believe that despite the disagreements in our society, we have our private lives as well, where we have our own relationships, subjects, liabilities, responsibilities and duties. Lord Ram is present not just in India, but he is present in the history of all of South East Asia, be it Sri Lanka or Thailand, be it Cambodia or Laos, every place has a performance of the Ramayan and Ram Leela. Ram is for mankind. And, when I call making of the Ram temple a cultural renaissance, this culture has been around for a long time. It is a part of our ethics, lifestyle and values. And that continuity was hurt by the people who subjected India to slavery. People have struggled for long to reclaim that space in public. Later, we fought a legal battle against British from 1863 onwards. Ultimately the Supreme Court finalised the issue of our faith and our rights. After the judgment, the government created a sense of peace across the country. According to the orders of the Supreme Court, a trust was made. And that long time wish of the Indian people that the place that was the birthplace of such a great ruler becomes a place of social welfare, equality, trust, traditions, development and harmony across every category, where welfare of the world is practiced, the opportunity for that to be created has been presented on August 5. IMAGE: Members of the Shri Ram Janambhoomi Teerth Kshetra, the trust setup to oversee construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya at its first meeting at Greater Kailash-I in New Delhi, February 19, 2020. Photograph: Kamal Singh/PTI Photo Quite a few leaders of the Muslim community fought this issue for over fifty years in the Supreme Court, so this is not a small issue. There is no anger, because after the judgment arrived not a single stand was taken against it. Moreover, the land that was allotted to the Muslims, they have accepted it. Now there is no controversy over this. Ram is not only for the Hindus, Ram is for everyone. Everyone includes Hindus and Muslims. There is no controversy. But there is controversy regarding demolition of the Babri Masjid. Without the demolition there was no possibility of a temple. Right? This is no longer a topic of controversy. The decision has been made. I know what every Indian feels, every Indian -- be it young, old, poor, rich, upper class, lower class, across different religions. Everyone is happy with the decision. IMAGE: Devotees at the Ram Janambhoomi Nyas-run workshop in Ayodhya. Photograph: PTI Photo Is India united on this issue? I feel so. And I am completely confident also. You can see it. All stakeholders are functioning peacefully. When L K Advani lead the Ram Mandir movement it had political considerations. For a long time, in our country, in an unfortunate manner, politics is seen through a narrow prism. There was a point in time when the BJP started speaking against pseudo-secularism. The proposal was passed at (the BJP's) Palampur session (national convention i 1989) also. For the cultural restoration of original India, there should be a Ram Mandir made on the Ram Janambhoomi, this was also presented in the agenda by the BJP. And there is nothing wrong, because any political party has an objective to contribute to the pride of the country. And the main principle of the BJP is that India comes First. The BJP has come forward with an ideological mission. In 1952, when the BJP only got three percent votes, we had the ideology which is the same now in 2020, when we have got 303 seats. We have been awakening people towards our views as we have been moving forward. IMAGE: Devotees at a Ram Mandir workshop in Ayodhya. Photograph: ANI Photo Behind Advani's movement there was political consideration too. That had our commitment. Whoever wants to look at it politically can do so, but yes, the commitment is to take India forward keeping its glorious traditions intact and making India a great country. Our core cultural heritage, scientific approach and Indian Constitutional values, these three things are what makes up our ideology. I would repeat these hundred times! Who all should be credited for the movement? There was a collective community leadership since 1526, the start of Babur's rule. Whenever and wherever in India there was an attack on religion places people constantly fought, protested and struggled for the dignity of the place. In this context, the Rath Yatra and Advaniji has played an important part. Particularly, Advaniji spread awareness of the issue all over India. But several people who were not politically inclined, from Ashok Singhalji, Ramchandra Paramhansji to many swamis to Rajmata Vijayarajeji (Scindia) and at one point even the Congress's Nirmal Khatriji played a role. People who went to remove the locks, to people who worshipped Ram over centuries have contributed and played a role in awakening of consciousness of Ram. From 1526 to 2020, hundreds of millions of faithful Indians have kept the issue alive. The culture of the Ramayan, the life of Ram, every year those who perform the Ram Leela, in every language in India, in every village, in every city have helped in the endeavour. Ram has been kept alive in our hearts. And if the Ram Mandir is made, it is because of the collective strength of our country. Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com Washington: US President Donald Trump said on Monday he does not oppose Microsoft buying the US operations of TikTok and said he will ban the service in the United States on September 15 if no deal is done. Trump's comments confirmed a Reuters report on Sunday that he had agreed to give China's ByteDance 45 days to negotiate a sale. TikTok has become a flashpoint amid rising US-China tensions in recent months. Credit:Bloomberg Microsoft has confirmed CEO Satya Nadella has spoken to Trump, and the software giant and TikTok's parent ByteDance have given the US government a notice of intent to explore a deal for the service in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. US Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer backed the potential sale, but one senior Trump adviser raised concerns. Kanpur, Aug 3 : In a shocking incident, a 52-year-old Block Education Officer (BEO), allegedly committed suicide in Kanpur after he tested positive for the novel coronavirus. According to the police, the family members took the victim, Suresh Chandra Verma, to the Ursula Horseman hospital here after he complained of fever and breathlessness on July 26. The next day, he underwent a coronavirus test. "On August 1, he was confirmed positive for corona after which doctors asked him to remain in home quarantine," the family said. Inspector Kotwali, Dinesh Chandra Mishra, said the BEO was found hanging from ceiling fan of his room on Sunday. However, no suicide note has been recovered and further investigations are underway. Police said that his family members suspect that he committed suicide due to his ailment. The Animal Sanctuary in Matakana rescues animals that have been abandoned or abused. Matakana Animal Sanctuarys Shawn Bishop got the fright of her life when she was alerted that three of her hand-raised pets had been sold for meat at the Tuakau Saleyards. Two years ago, three steers, Dash, Dancer and Buck, had been adopted to a woman under a no-kill contract. The contract specified that the animals would not be slaughtered or eaten and that the owners must return the animals if they were no longer able to keep them. After finding out her former pets were destined for the supermarket, Shawn immediately contacted the saleyards and was able to track down the livestock agent the steers had been sold to. Shawn says the agent had a suspicion they were pets because of their friendly nature and he agreed to sell them back to Shawn. Ironically, because the steers had been hand-raised, they commanded a good price at the market and Shawn had to pay $3450 to buy them back. She started a bring the boys home campaign on Givealittle and was overwhelmed to receive $3355. Borrowed Earth Ceramics in Whangaparaoa even donated a piece of art for auction to raise funds. Then, chief executive of animal protection organisation SAFE, Debra Ashton, contacted Shawn and offered to pay the full repurchase price. Shawn was absolutely courageous in her love for these animals, and its a privilege to be able to support her so they can live the life they deserve, Debra says. The funds already donated will be used for the rescue of other hand-reared cows. Shawn says she has hired a lawyer to pursue the owner who breached the no-kill contract. She hopes that at the very least they will be forced to pay for the cost of saving the steers. China on Monday accused the United States of monitoring, harassing and willfully detaining Chinese students and researchers in the U.S. Foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbins comments follow the denial of a bail request in California for a university researcher accused of lying about her ties to Chinas military and governing Communist Party to gain access to the United States. Wang also criticized the Trump administration for imposing sanctions on a major paramilitary organization in the countrys western Xinjiang region and on two officials for alleged human rights abuses against ethnic and religious minorities. Wang said China had no intention of helping Juan Tang escape from the United States, but did not otherwise comment directly on the accusations against her. However, he said China urges the U.S. to handle the case fairly in accordance with the law and ensure the safety and legitimate rights and interests due to Tang. For some time, the U.S., with ideological prejudice, keeps monitoring, harassing and willfully detaining Chinese students and researchers, and making presumptions of guilt against Chinese researchers, Wang said. The U.S. actions have seriously violated the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens and severely disrupted the normal cultural and personnel exchanges between China and the U.S., which amounts to outright political persecution, he said. In denying bail, U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah Barnes said Tang, 37, would have reason to leave the country if released. Tang has been held without bail since July 23 when she was arrested after she left the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco to seek medical care for her asthma. Tang, who has a doctorate in cellular biology, entered the United States on Dec. 27, 2019, to work at the University of California, Davis, as a visiting researcher in the Department of Radiation Oncology, Alexandra Negin, an assistant federal public defender, said in her filing asking the court for her release on bail. The lab closed because of the coronavirus pandemic and Tang had been preparing to return to China, Negin said. Tang and three other scientists living in the U.S. face charges of lying about their status as members of Chinas Peoples Liberation Army, or PLA. All were charged with visa fraud, the Justice Department said. Tang was the last of the four to be arrested after the Justice Department accused the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco of harboring a known fugitive. Negin said Tang went to the consulate to seek help and remained there after FBI agents questioned her at her Davis apartment on June 20 and executed a search warrant, seizing her passport and visa. Agents found photographs of Tang in a uniform of the civilian cadre of the PLA and also reviewed articles from China that identified her military affiliation. Negin argued that the evidence against Tang is based on old photographs from when she was a student at a medical school run by the military and documents that were translated on apps. Wang said the U.S. State and Treasury Department penalties targeting the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps seriously interfered in Chinas internal affairs and violated the basic norms of international relations. The sanctions hit the corps, its commander and former political commissar for alleged abuses against Uighur Muslims, including mass arbitrary detentions, forced labor and torture. They freeze any assets the targets may have in U.S. jurisdictions, and perhaps more significantly, bar Americans from doing business with them, Wang repeated Chinas assertion that it has been acting against violence, terrorism and separatism and that Xinjiang-related issues are not about human rights, ethnic groups, or religions at all. China has used that in an attempt to deflect international condemnation of its internment of more than 1 million Uighurs and members of other Muslim minority groups in prison-like camps that it calls re-education and job training centers, along with other abuses. The corps acts like a parallel government in the vast, resource-rich region, operating its own schools, courts and a large network of businesses. A federal appeals court has thrown out a Gresham mans confession to Multnomah County sheriffs deputies that he shined a laser at a police plane, finding they violated his Fourth Amendment rights by not telling him he was under arrest and questioning him without giving him Miranda warnings. Eight months later, an FBI agent arrived at the Gresham mans door, saying he was there to ask follow-up questions about the laser incident, which led to an indictment. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the constitutional violations from the Gresham mans first encounter with sheriffs deputies tainted the second encounter with the FBI agent. The court said all of the Gresham mans statements to investigators should have been suppressed. In July 2019, Nikolay P. Bocharnikov was sentenced to three years of federal probation for aiming the laser pointer at an aircraft. Prosecutors had argued that enough time -- eight months -- had passed between the sheriff deputies encounter with Bocharnikov and the FBI agents visit to separate the two encounters and remove any taint from the initial unlawful arrest. But 9th Circuit Judge Jay S. Bybee wrote in the ruling that the March 2018 encounter, introduced as a follow up to the first, was directly linked to the original illegalities. While significant time had passed, that time was collapsed by (FBI) Agent (Adam) Hoover opening the conversation by stating that he was following up on the original investigation, Bybee wrote. Without other intervening circumstances that act to separate the incidents, the government cannot carry its burden of proving that Bocharnikovs statements to Agent Hoover were sufficiently attenuated from the illegal detention and seizure eight months prior. His statements should have been suppressed. Bocharnikov, a mobile locksmith, took home the green laser pointer from a stolen car that Portland police had called him to unlock after officers had recovered it in 2016. Portland police told Bocharnikov that he could keep some items discovered in the car because they didnt belong to the owner, according to court records. A year later, he pointed the laser at a Portland police plane flying overhead, according to court records. Multnomah County sheriffs deputies showed up at his Gresham home shortly after in July 2017. He had just emerged from a shower and was wearing only boxer shorts when they handcuffed him and sat him on the front steps of the house. A deputy explained the seriousness of the incident and said they were there only to recover the laser in question, according to the court ruling. Bocharnikov then admitted to shining the laser at the plane, stating he didnt think it could reach that far, according to the court records. He apologized and had his wife retrieve the laser and hand it over to the officers. The deputies took the laser, released Bocharnikov and left. In March 2018, after the case was referred to the FBI, an agent went back to Bocharnikovs home, concerned about the legality of the 2017 questioning. Bocharnikov told the federal agent his laser pointing was a stupid thing to do and it was a mistake, according to the courts ruling. Three weeks later, a federal grand jury indicted Bocharnikov. Bocharnikovs defense lawyer, assistant federal public defender Conor Huseby, tried to suppress his statements, but U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown denied Bocharnikovs motion, holding that the March 2018 interview was not a continuation of the July 2017 interrogation. He then pleaded guilty to the charge. -- Maxine Bernstein Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com; 503-221-8212 Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian Subscribe to Facebook page Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. Federal MPs have condemned the University of NSW for deleting social media posts about human rights in Hong Kong following an online backlash from Chinese nationalists. The university faced a barrage of pro-China criticism over the weekend after publishing an article that expressed concern about Beijing's crackdown in Hong Kong. A post on Twitter sharing the link was subsequently removed by the university. The University of NSW has come under fire for its handling of an article about Hong Kong. Credit:Louise Kennerley Liberal senator James Paterson criticised the university's actions, accusing the institution of valuing its revenue from Chinese students over academic freedom. "This craven behaviour by UNSW is yet more evidence of the compromised relationship many of our universities have with communist China," he said. Advertisement No10 today refused to rule out effectively sealing off London if coronavirus cases spike as Sadiq Khan accused Boris Johnson of 'riding roughshod' over the city's best interests. The Mayor of London has written to the PM to voice 'great surprise' at suggestions a quarantine zone could be created within the M25, complaining that it has been 12 weeks since he was invited to a Cobra meeting and the lack of consultation is 'unacceptable'. Mr Johnson held a 'war game' session with Chancellor Rishi Sunak last week to run through possible options as fears mount over a second peak in the disease. Measures being considered included lockdown-like conditions for London, with the M25 acting as a barrier around the capital. Drastic plans could also see people banned from leaving the towns or cities they live in, with entire areas turned into no-go zones. Downing Street said the government's 'Contain' strategy set out that restrictions can be imposed on transport links 'if there is an area that is particularly badly affected'. But the PM's spokesman said that was not only a possibility for London because any location could be subject to similar curbs. Official figures show the worst-hit area of the capital is currently Hackney and the City of London, with 19.4 cases diagnosed for every 100,000 people between July 25 and 31. It is a lower rate than that of seven of ten boroughs in Greater Manchester, which was last week hit by tough new lockdown measures to control growing outbreaks. It comes as the UK today recorded its most coronavirus infections in six weeks, after 938 people were diagnosed with the life-threatening disease in 24 hours. Not since June 27 - a week before pubs, restaurants, hairdressers and cinemas opened on 'Super Saturday' - have daily cases been so high. In other developments today: Health Secretary Matt Hancock has dismissed 'inaccurate' claims that all over-50s could be ordered to shield if the situation deteriorates; The coronavirus R rate could be as high as 1.1 in the North West of England, scientists say as separate data revealed infections have doubled in a week in locked-down parts of Greater Manchester; The government has launched its 'eat out to help out' scheme with 50 per cent discounts to encourage people to support restaurants; A top scientist has condemned the 'shroud of secrecy' around government decision-making on coronavirus; Civil servants are rebelling against Mr Johnson's call for them to return to offices amid concerns about the risk of infection; New 90-minute saliva tests have been unveiled and hailed as a 'game-changer' by ministers. A map of London shows the weekly infection rates how many cases were diagnosed for every 100,000 people between July 25 and 31 across the capital's 32 boroughs. For comparison, the highest rate in London is in Hackney and the City of London (19.4), making it the fifteenth worst-hit area of England and behind seven of ten boroughs in Greater Manchester, which was last week hit by tough new lockdown measures to control soaring coronavirus cases. Green arrows show if the infection rate in the borough has decreased in the pat week, while red arrows show the opposite. Yellow line means no change Mayor of London Sadiq Khan (pictured last month) has written to the PM to voice 'great surprise' at suggestions the capital could be effectively sealed off if there is a spike in coronavirus infections Mr Khan said it was 'totally unacceptable' that contingency plans were being discussed without his knowledge Top scientist slams 'shroud of secrecy' over Covid decisions A top scientist has slammed the 'shroud of secrecy' around the government's coronavirus decisions - as civil servants rebel over Boris Johnson's call for people to return to offices. Sir Paul Nurse, chief of the Francis Crick Institute, raised concerns that crucial choices seemed to be made by a 'black box' in Whitehall with the results sometimes 'shambolic'. He insisted more transparency and scrutiny was needed to get the 'best results'. The intervention came as the government faces a fresh backlash about mixed messaging. Treasury subsidies for eating out at restaurants are launched today, and advice that everyone should work from home is being downgraded. However, there are also mounting rumours about tightening coronavirus rules in some areas, with fears of a looming second wave. Civil servants have complained they are being used as guinea pigs for the return to offices, with claims of more cases at the heart of government over the past fortnight. Advertisement A letter sent to Mr Johnson from Mr Khan and chair of London Councils, Peter John, said: 'It is with great surprise that we read in the Sunday papers that Government held a critical exercise last week in which a major resurgence in Covid-19 infections in London was a central scenario. 'According to media reports, the plans included using the M25 as a quarantine ring effectively sealing off the city. 'Our surprise is that such far-reaching contingency plans have been discussed and tested without the involvement or awareness of London's government. 'This is clearly totally unacceptable and an affront to London and Londoners.' The letter also said the Government has been slow to take decisions or has taken the wrong decisions 'time and again throughout this crisis', adding: 'This must stop. 'Riding roughshod over democratically elected representatives who understand their communities better than central Government will lead to worse outcomes for Londoners, and the country as a whole.' In a tweet, Mr Khan said: 'Excluding local leaders in this way won't help us control the virus and must stop now.' Downing Street said the ability to impose travel restrictions had been set out in its strategy for preventing the spread of coronavirus but denied it was a plan specifically drawn up for the capital. The 'Contain' strategy sets out 'the possibility of putting in place restrictions on travel if there is an area that is particularly badly affected'. 'One of the steps within that potentially includes closing down local transport networks,' the Prime Minister's official spokesman said. 'It's there, it's contained in the document, it's not a new thing - we have informed the public and politicians of that being a potential action that we could take. CORONAVIRUS R RATE COULD BE AS HIGH AS 1.1 IN THE NORTH WEST The coronavirus reproduction rate could be as high as 1.1 in the North West of England, according to figures released today as separate data revealed infections have doubled in a week in locked-down parts of Greater Manchester. Researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine estimate the 'R' level has risen well above the danger zone in the North West, where 4.5million people were put under tough new lockdown measures last week because of a spike in cases. The R - which represents the average number of people an infected Covid-19 patient passes the disease to - must stay below 1 or the virus will start to grow exponentially. The data, compiled by the university's Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, suggests cases in the region could double in 56 days if the R rate is not squashed. But the estimates are slightly out of date due to a lag in the way the reproduction rate is calculated, meaning they only go up to July 18. Any effect last week's lockdown might've had on the R value won't show up in the figures for several weeks. Separate worrying figures published by Public Health England today show that infection rates increased in nine out of 10 boroughs in Manchester between July 22 and 29, two days before the new rules were introduced. Rochdale was the only place where cases were not on the rise but infections have now also started to dip in Wigan and Bolton after a weekend of lockdown measures. Oldham, the second worst affected borough in England, saw 148 cases over the week taking its rate from 41.6 to 62.8 cases per 100,000 people. Rates in both the City of Manchester and Tameside have more than doubled in seven days. Advertisement 'But, to be clear, it's not something that is specific to London or anywhere else.' Meanwhile, a top scientist has slammed the 'shroud of secrecy' around the government's coronavirus decisions. Sir Paul Nurse, chief of the Francis Crick Institute, raised concerns that crucial choices seemed to be made by a 'black box' in Whitehall with the results sometimes 'shambolic'. He insisted more transparency and scrutiny was needed to get the 'best results'. The intervention came as the government faces a fresh backlash about mixed messaging. Treasury subsidies for eating out at restaurants are launched today, and advice that everyone should work from home is being downgraded. However, there are also mounting rumours about tightening coronavirus rules in some areas, with fears of a looming second wave. Civil servants have complained they are being used as guinea pigs for the return to offices, with claims of more cases at the heart of government over the past fortnight. A leading expert today hit out at the 'rash' move to put 4.5million people in the North West under tough new lockdown measures because of a spike in coronavirus cases. Ministers last week announced people from different homes in Greater Manchester, parts of Lancashire and West Yorkshire would be banned from meeting each other inside their homes or in gardens following a spike in cases. But Professor Carl Heneghan, director of Oxford University's Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine, claimed Covid-19 cases aren't actually rising despite government figures showing an upwards trend. He said the rising infection rates are down to more people being tested and warned of inaccuracies in the data, telling the Daily Telegraph: 'The northern lockdown was a rash decision. 'Wheres the rise? By date of test through July theres no change if you factor in all the increased testing thats going on.' He warned there was a rise in detected cases because of more targeted testing in areas such as Oldham, the second-worst hit borough in the country with 55.2 cases for every 100,000 people in the past week. Boris Johnson (pictured today) held a 'war game' session with Chancellor Rishi Sunak to run through possible options if there is a second coronavirus peak Tube journeys are 75% down on the day Boris urges Britons to return to work: Trains are far from full as workers ignore pleas to get back to their desks London Underground journeys are still down by 75 per cent on last year as workers ignored the government's drive to get back to work today. Just 240,000 trips were made on the Tube during this morning's rush hour to 10am, which marks a six per cent increase on last week. Passengers, some still not wearing face coverings, had plenty of space for social distancing as a few took the Jubilee Line into the city centre. Boris Johnson had heralded today the first Monday in August as the day 'work from home' guidance ends and Britain should return to the office. But almost five in six office employees will continue to stay at home despite the desperate drive to reignite the economy. Commuters sat on the Tube on their phones and read the newspaper this morning, with plenty of spare seats and only a few travellers forced to stand. It is a world away from the usual jostle for a position at rush hour, when thousands of weary Londoners cram into all available spaces in the carriages. On a typical morning before the coronavirus struck, about 1,124,825 would take the London Underground between 4am and 10am. But during the pandemic this plummeted by up to 90 per cent, with just 109,306 taking the network on the morning of May 29. MailOnline has contacted Transport for London for today's figures. Liverpool Street Station in central London looks bare today as few passengers take to public transport to get back to the office A woman scratches her head as she walks down a gangway from a train as she gets into Liverpool Street Station in central London Slide me Left: Today. Right: Last week. The London Underground remained quiet at rush hour this morning despite the PM saying 'work from home' is over Passengers, some still not wearing face coverings (pictured), had plenty of space for social distancing as a few took the Jubilee Line into the city centre A few passengers leave the train at Liverpool Street Station this morning as they head to work in the city centre Desolate trains are parked at Liverpool Street Station in London which was devoid of commuters at rush hour today Boris Johnson had heralded today the first Monday in August as the day 'work from home' guidance ends and Britain should return to the office. But rush hour was quiet London traffic data from TomTom shows congestion at rush hour this morning stood at just 22 per cent, down from 26 per cent last week and 52 per cent last year. But Apple mobility trends, which is only available up to Saturday, suggests there are more people driving in London - up 10 per cent - while walking and transit are down 11 per cent and 29 per cent respectively. A Mail audit of 30 of Britain's biggest firms, representing 320,000 employees, found just 17 per cent of office-based staff would travel to work this week. The PM said Britons could go back to the workplace at the 'discretion' of their employers and would no longer be advised to stay away from public transport. But many businesses are not planning for most workers to return to offices until at least towards the end of the year, while the likes of Facebook and bank RBS said staff will not go back until 2021. Coronavirus R-rate in the North West may now be as high as 1.1 as figures show cases have DOUBLED in some parts of locked-down Greater Manchester and officials declare a major incident The coronavirus reproduction rate could be as high as 1.1 in the North West of England, according to figures released today - as separate data revealed infections have doubled in a week in locked-down parts of Greater Manchester. Researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine estimate the 'R' level has risen well above the danger zone in the North West, where 4.5million people were put under tough new lockdown measures last week because of a spike in cases. The R - which represents the average number of people an infected Covid-19 patient passes the disease to - must stay below 1 or the virus will start to grow exponentially. The data, compiled by the university's Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, suggests cases in the region could double in 56 days if the R rate is not squashed. But the estimates are slightly out of date due to a lag in the way the reproduction rate is calculated, meaning they only go up to July 18. Any effect last week's lockdown might've had on the R value won't show up in the figures for several weeks. Separate worrying figures published by Public Health England today show that infection rates increased in nine out of 10 boroughs in Manchester between July 22 and 29, two days before the new rules were introduced. Rochdale was the only place where cases were not on the rise but infections have now also started to dip in Wigan and Bolton after a weekend of lockdown measures. Oldham, the second worst affected borough in England, saw 148 cases over the week taking its rate from 41.6 to 62.8 cases per 100,000 people. Rates in both the City of Manchester and Tameside have more than doubled in seven days. Local public health officials who were privy to the PHE data declared a 'major incident' in Greater Manchester over the weekend due to the rapidly escalating transmission rates. The alert level is normally reserved for major floods or terror attacks. Researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine estimate that the R rate has crept to 1.1 in the North West of England This graph shows the number of infections across Greater Manchester from July 1 to July 29, two days before the new lockdown measures were reintroduced Revellers in Manchester on Saturday night did not follow social distancing measures despite the rise in cases HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL BE AFFECTED BY THE NEW RULES? Greater Manchester (including City of Manchester, Trafford, Stockport, Oldham, Bury, Wigan, Bolton, Tameside, Rochdale and Salford): 2,835,686 Blackburn with Darwen: 149,696 Burnley: 88,920 Hyndburn: 81,043 Pendle: 92,112 Rossendale: 71,482 Bradford: 539,776 Calderdale: 211,455 Kirklees: 439,787 Total: 4,509,957 Advertisement Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham told the Manchester Evening News that the figures 'underline the need for caution and to follow the guidance. All 2.8million residents in Greater Manchester were banned from meeting anyone from different households inside their homes or in gardens, in a drastic move that was announced with just three hours' notice last Friday. The ban, also applied to parts of Lancashire and West Yorkshire, extended to pubs and restaurants but those businesses are permitted to remain open for people visiting individually or from the same household. But young people are still flocking to packed pubs, with large groups of friends gathering at busy nightspots on Saturday. Ministers have been urged to encourage youngsters to abide by the rules, which are designed to halt the spread of the virus and give the economy chance to recover. Meanwhile, mounting fears of a second wave last week prompted Boris Johnson to announce he was 'squeezing the brake pedal' on lifting coronavirus restrictions still throttling some sectors of UK business. Officials have drawn up radical plans that could see millions of people including over-50s asked to stay at home, if the virus does strike again. And two new game-changing tests will be offered to millions of Britons in a major advance in the war on coronavirus as the government looks to avert a second wave and restart the stalled economy, which experts fear face a 'long and precarious' recovery. Researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine calculated the R rate for all regions in the UK by drawing on figures from Public Health England, the NHS and Office for National Statistics to get aggregate case data. Researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine calculated the R rate for all regions in the UK by drawing on figures from Public Health England, the NHS and Office for National Statistics to aggregate case data They believe the reproduction rate - the average number of people an infected patient passes the disease to - is at 1 in the West Midlands and Yorkshire The R in the East Midlands is still just under 1, according to the estimates, but it is hovering at the danger zone in London After escaping the first epidemic relatively unscathed, the South East has also seen its R creep up to 1, the researchers say TWO NEW COVID TESTS THAT GIVE RESULTS IN 90 MINUTES TO BE OFFERED TO BRITS Two new game-changing tests will be offered to millions of Britons in a major advance in the war on coronavirus. Hailed as 'transformative', the tests which give results in 90 minutes will start being rolled out from next week. One is so simple it could soon be deployed in airports, offices, schools, pubs and restaurants bringing testing to the bulk of the population. The companies involved would not reveal the cost but claim it is similar or cheaper to current tests which are around 18 privately but less to the NHS. Health Secretary Matt Hancock last night described the move as 'lifesaving' as the Government looks to avert a second wave of the disease, prevent the need for draconian lockdowns and restart the stalled economy. The two tests will initially be introduced in the NHS and care homes before being made available more widely over the next few months. Unlike current tests given mainly to patients who already think they have the virus, the new methods will be used to routinely screen members of the public who show no symptoms. Officials hope they will flag up local outbreaks before they take hold, avoiding the need for local lockdowns such as that imposed in the North West last week. Advertisement They estimate the R is above the level 1 in the North West (1.1), Wales (1.1) and Northern Ireland (1.3). But due to the low case rates in Wales and Northern Ireland, they are less confident about their estimates. Scientists say the R becomes increasingly difficult to predict when there are only a handful of cases each day, because one small cluster can skew the figures upwards. The researchers also believe the R is hovering at the danger zone of 1 in London, the South East, West Midlands and in Yorkshire and The Humber. Data released today by Public Health England, which takes into account cases diagnosed between July 25 and 31 the first day of the measures being in place, shows that infection rates are still rising in seven of the 10 boroughs in Greater Manchester. Bury home to 190,000 people saw the biggest rise in cases compared to the week before. Its infection rate jumped by 112 per cent, to 18.9 cases for every 100,000 people. Stockport's coronavirus infection rate jumped by 59 per cent to 22.3 compared to the previous seven-day spell, followed by a 51 per cent rise in the City of Manchester (32.5) and a 41 per cent increase in Tameside (24.4). Salford's rate jumped 18 per cent to 23.6, followed by a slightly smaller 7 per cent rise in Oldham (55.2) and just a 3 per cent increase in Trafford (34.3). However, Rochdale's infection rate dropped 38 per cent to 24.5, Wigan's plummeted by 24 per cent to 4.9 and Bolton's fell 2 per cent to 17.9. Sir Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council, urged residents to stay calm last night after officials decided to increase their readiness as they grapple with the escalating coronavirus transmission rates in the region. 'People should not be alarmed that a major incident has been declared,' Sir Richard said. The Labour politician called the move 'standard practice for complex situations' and said it would allow a 'central command structure' to be created to enable agencies to 'draw on extra resources'. Oldham has seen the highest number of cases in Greater Manchester, with the boroughs of Trafford, Tameside, Rochdale and Stockport, along with the cities of Manchester and Salford, also featuring among a list of England's 20 worst-hit areas. This graphic shows infection rates in the North West - with parts of Greater Manchester seeing among the highest concentrations of cases, according to figures released today A group of friends out on the town have a hug on Manchester's Wilmslow Road which was packed on Saturday night It was still business as usual for restaurants and pubs across Manchester yesterday Groups of people - including eight women who appear to be celebrating a hen do - were pictured meeting for drinks in the city centre yesterday RESIDENTS OF BEAUTY SPOTS BRACE FOR FRESH STAMPEDE OF TRAVELLERS FOR AFRICAN 'HEAT FLARE' Residents of beauty spots across Britain are bracing for a fresh stampede of revellers as a major 'African heat flare' is set to roast the country during a ten-day heatwave. Tourists are expected to flock back to beaches across the country as temperatures up to 91F (33C) sweep in from central Europe by the end of the week - following 71F (22C) highs today. But the warm weather will concern local authorities in areas such as Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Sussex which can expect another huge influx of holidaymakers as Britons shun foreign trips to go on staycations. Beleaguered Cornish residents reported over the weekend how the popular county had turned into 'Benidorm on steroids' as floods of visitors left them too scared to leave their homes. Meanwhile Thanet District Council in Kent begged people to avoid four of the area's beaches - including the popular Margate's Main Sands - due to the number of visitors. And a drunken fight broke out on the seafront in Brighton on Saturday night as two women went toe-to-toe and others cheered and ignored social distancing. Advertisement Pictures of partygoers packing local nightspots this weekend are likely to cause concern amid the rise in cases. Writing in the Sunday Mirror before the announcement, Labour mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said people in the area 'on the whole' had been brilliant at adhering to the new rules and rejected 'efforts to blame some for breaking lockdown rules'. The comments follow a claim made by Tory MP Craig Whittaker, whose West Yorkshire seat of Calder Valley was one of the areas affected by the fresh lockdown measures, that it was the 'BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic) communities that are not taking this seriously enough'. While the new regulations for Blackburn with Darwen and Bradford were published on Friday, those for Greater Manchester are not expected to be published until this week. Mr Burnham has said restrictions will be reviewed on a weekly basis. It came as former England midfielder Paul Scholes was accused of holding a party at his Oldham home to celebrate his son's 21st on the same day lockdown measures were reimposed across parts of the North West. The Sun cited phone footage as showing revellers ignored social distancing 'as they drank and danced' at the seven-hour party on Friday, with the paper citing Tory MP Andrew Bridgen criticising Mr Scholes for 'reckless behaviour'. Greater Manchester Police said they attended the property and encouraged those present to 'be compliant' with the newly imposed restrictions. In national developments, Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick cast doubt on reports of so-called 'nuclear' options under consideration for avoiding a second national lockdown. The Times reported the Prime Minister held a 'war game' session with Chancellor Rishi Sunak on Wednesday to run through possible options in the event of a second wave of infections, measures that are said to include lockdown-like conditions for London, with the M25 acting as a barrier around the capital. But Mr Jenrick told Times Radio the mooted proposals, such as asking those as young as 50 to shield from society, were 'just speculation'. Meanwhile, Mr Sunak's Eat Out To Help Out scheme launched today, giving diners 50 per cent off at a range of pubs and restaurants. Two new game-changing tests are also set to be offered to millions of Britons in a major advance in the war on coronavirus. Hailed as 'transformative', the tests which give results in 90 minutes will start being rolled out from next week. One is so simple it could soon be deployed in airports, offices, schools, pubs and restaurants bringing testing to the bulk of the population. And the Government will start testing sewage to track coronavirus and could ban domestic travel to stop local outbreaks. It comes as residents of beauty spots across Britain were today bracing for a fresh stampede of revellers as a major 'African heat flare' is set to roast the country during a ten-day heatwave. Tourists are expected to flock back to beaches across the country as temperatures up to 91F (33C) sweep in from central Europe by the end of the week - following 71F (22C) highs today. But the warm weather will concern local authorities in areas such as Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Sussex which can expect another huge influx of holidaymakers as Britons shun foreign trips to go on staycations. Beleaguered Cornish residents reported over the weekend how the popular county had turned into 'Benidorm on steroids' as floods of visitors left them too scared to leave their homes. Meanwhile Thanet District Council in Kent begged people to avoid four of the area's beaches - including the popular Margate's Main Sands - due to the number of visitors. And a drunken fight broke out on the seafront in Brighton on Saturday night as two women went toe-to-toe and others cheered and ignored social distancing. ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development says it has invested over $300-million into Ghana's economy. Areas of investment, the bank said include, Energy, Trade, Technology, Tourism and hospitality industry. Dr George Nana Agyekum Donkor, the President of the Bank, made this known when he and other staff of the bank paid a courtesy call on Chief Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah at his office in Accra on Monday. The meeting was to afford the bank to discuss with Ghana's Judiciary matters of mutual interest. Dr Donkor said the bank was currently providing electricity to 114 communities in Ashanti and Bono Regions. The bank is also constructing an ultra-modern hospital in Bekwai in the Ashanti Region and a shopping mall in Kumasi, Dr Donkor, who had also worked with the bench and left in 2003, said he was elated to have returned to Ghana to hold discussions with Ghana's Judiciary. "We are here to meet the judiciary to see how best we could be of use to them in their operations, especially in the training of judges and staff in the area of Information Communication and Technology (ICT). The bank is ready to collaborate with the judiciary in the areas of mutual interest," he added. According to him, the bank has over the years followed the development in the judiciary, adding that the judiciary was key to the progress of every nation. "If the judiciary does well, we will also do well", he added. The President of the Bank said as a matter of urgency, the Bank was going to lend support for the training of Judges and staff. Chief Justice Yeboah appealed to the bank to assist the judiciary to build its Judicial Training Institute. According to the Chief Justice, the land was acquired but the judiciary's challenge was with funding of the project. "Our problem has to do with financing. It has not been easy securing funding for the project look at our budgetary allocation. The judiciary is a non-profit making institution. We would have gone far but for the money. We need about $50 million for the construction of the institute." Chief Justice Yeboah said the Indian High Commission had promised to provide the judiciary library with over 50,000 books. According to Justice Yeboah, the training institute was crucial in the training of judges and supporting staff adding "we need to be abreast with Technology now." The bank is made up of 15-member states and is located in Togo. Source: GNA 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 Patna (Central) Superintendent of Police Vinay Tiwari, who has been sent from Bihar to head the four-member team carrying out an investigation into Sushant Singh Rajputs death, said that the Bihar Police have not received the documents of the case from the Mumbai Police yet. He also said that there is no proper coordination between the two police teams. We havent received the case-related documents from Mumbai police yet. We will collect all the documents, including the accidental death report, post-mortem and forensic reports and statements of people interviewed by Mumbai cops, Tiwari told Mid-Day. There is no proper coordination between Mumbai and Bihar police and that is why I have come to Mumbai. I will guide my officers, he added. Last month, Sushants father KK Singh filed an FIR in Patna against the actors girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and six others alleging abetment to suicide, cheating and wrongful confinement, among other things. In his complaint, he alleged that Rhea threatened to frame Sushant for the death of his former manager Disha Salian and misappropriated crores from his bank account. Tiwari said that the Bihar Police have no plans of arresting Rhea just yet but if need be, we will take her into custody. We have registered an FIR and we have already started our investigation. We are on the right track now. Since last week, our officers have already recorded the statements of people linked to this case, he added. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajputs sister Shweta says disgraceful as Patna IPS officer to lead probe forcibly quarantined in Mumbai Meanwhile, Tiwari has been forcibly quarantined after his arrival in Mumbai. Bihar Director General of Police Gupteshwar Pandey wrote on Facebook, IPS officer Vinay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11 pm today.He was not provided accommodation in the IPS Mess despite request and was staying in a guest house in Goregaon. Sushants sister Shweta Singh Kirti condemned this development in a Facebook post and wrote, What? Is this even for real? How can an officer sent on duty be quarantined for 14 Days? #JusticeForSushant. She also called it disgraceful in another post. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918 . Follow @htshowbiz for more Canadas more than 100 immigration programs and streams in the economic class offer a wide range of opportunities for prospective immigrants. Canada boasts more than 100 economic immigration pathways Canadas more than 100 immigration programs and streams in the economic class offer a wide range of opportunities for prospective immigrants. Canada boasts more than 100 economic immigration pathways Canadas more than 100 immigration programs and streams in the economic class offer a wide range of opportunities for prospective immigrants. Canada boasts more than 100 economic immigration pathways Canadas more than 100 immigration programs and streams in the economic class offer a wide range of opportunities for prospective immigrants. Alexandra Miekus Aa Accessibility Font Style Serif Sans Font Size A A CIC News has conducted a new analysis since January and there are now 104 economic immigration pathways in Canada. The federal government and every Canadian province and territory have been making great strides over the past three decades with the introduction of many economic immigration pathways. The goal: Provide a variety of immigration pathways so that Canada can meet the needs of a larger number of potential immigrants who, in turn, can bring a variety of skills and contribute to the countrys economic growth. Canadas immigration system welcomes permanent residents through three main avenues: as economic immigrants bringing both capital and labour skills, as family members sponsored under the family reunification program, and as refugees who are accepted into the country on humanitarian and compassionate grounds. The economic class accounts for the largest share of immigration to Canada, with about 6 in 10 immigrants selected for their positive impact on the economy. Most economic immigrants are highly skilled workers who apply from abroad, as well as highly skilled temporary workers and international students already living in Canada. Those interested in becoming permanent residents in Canada can submit a profile to the Express Entry pool, where they are electronically screened for eligibility to one of the three main economic immigration programsthe Federal Skilled Worker Class, Federal Skilled Trades Class and Canadian Experience Class. Eligible candidates who are entered into the Express Entry pool are ranked based on a score awarded under what is known as the Comprehensive Ranking System or CRS. The CRS awards points for factors that include age, education, skilled work experience and proficiency in English or French, which are both the official languages of Canada, as well as other factors. Get a free Express Entry assessment In addition, the federal government has a host of pilot programs that fall under the economic category such as the Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program, the Agri-Food Immigration Pilot and the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot. A growing number of immigrants are being admitted through PNPs Canadas Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) has grown substantially since its introduction in the 1990s and has now become the second most important avenue for skilled foreign workers to obtain permanent residence in Canada, after the Express Entry system. In 1996, only 233 people were admitted to Canada through the PNP. Today, admission targets for the program are set at over 60,000. The PNP allows participating Canadian provinces and territories to nominate a set amount of immigration candidates for permanent residence each year through its own unique program. Each of these programs is designed to provide Canadian provinces, particularly smaller ones struggling to attract immigrants, with greater flexibility and the ability to tailor economic immigration to their specific labour market needs and overall economic development priorities. All Canadian provinces and territories with a PNP have at least one enhanced nomination stream that is linked to the federal Express Entry system. Express Entry candidates who receive a provincial nomination are awarded an additional 600 points toward their CRS score, which effectively fast-tracks them for an invitation to apply (ITA) for Canadian permanent residence. Recent weeks have seen PNP streams in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Prince Edward Island and Ontario issue more than 2,500 invitations to workers with a range of skills and professional experience to apply for a nomination for Canadian permanent residence. Earlier this week, Canada also hosted two Express Entry draws. This year, Canada aims to welcome nearly 200,000 economic immigrants through its more than 100 economic immigration streams, of which about 90,000 are expected to arrive through its three Express Entry programs and 65,000 through PNPs. Find out if you are eligible for Canadian immigration 2020 CIC News All Rights Reserved Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and home minister Anil Deshmukh are determined about not handing over actor Sushant Singh Rajputs suicide case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), despite the pressure mounting on them from various quarters. Both Thackeray and Deshmukh are convinced that the Mumbai Police is capable of handling the probe. In a meeting held at CM Thackerays residence on Sunday, it was also decided to take cognisance of the attempts to defame Maharashtra Police and the state government, especially through social media, over the investigation. Brihanmumbai Municipal Commission (BMC) authorities have also clarified on Monday morning that they had quarantined Bihar Police officer Vinay Tiwari the previous evening as per the laid-down coronavirus disease (Covid-19) norms as he was a domestic air traveller and he is at liberty to apply for exemption from home quarantine. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON LUXEMBOURG, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Globant (NYSE: GLOB), a digitally native technology services company, today announced the acquisition of gA , a leading digital and cloud transformation services company with presence in the United States, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Spain. With this acquisition, Globant reinforces its leading positioning delivering digital and cognitive transformation as it broadens its expertise in Life Sciences, CPG, Manufacturing and Logistics. gA also complements and deepens Globant's capabilities to deliver cloud journey and enterprise application services. "In gA we found the perfect partner for our future plans, as we enhance our portfolio for Healthcare and Life Sciences. They have built outstanding lasting relationships with many Fortune 500 companies," said Martin Migoya, Globant's CEO and co-founder. "The world is changing and many industries are facing an amazing opportunity. gA's portfolio will deepen our service offering to help our clients in their transformation journey." gA is a global technology company that uses digital platforms and transformation services to empower large companies in America and Europe to reformulate their business models and organizations harnessing the insights and power of data, AI and people. They have key strategic partnerships with companies like Oracle and SAP, and strong specialization around Data Science & Machine Learning, Process Intelligence and Cloud capabilities. Headquartered in Miami, gA has more than 1,100 IT professionals working with renowned brands such as Johnson & Johnson, Cardinal Health, Medtronic, Honda, Avon, DHL, Equifax, PepsiCo, AXA, Arcor, and DirecTV, among others. "We're excited to join Globant, one of the leading companies delivering digital transformation. We began our operations almost 30 years ago, with a focus on enterprise technologies and business process management. Today, in the era of converging technologies, we bring our Innovation and Cloud Journey capabilities into Globant, to create a broader service offering to our joint customers. In addition, this will enhance our global footprint and bring new professional opportunities to our employees." Roberto Wagmaister, CEO and founder of gA, said. Martin Umaran, Globant co-founder and Chief of Staff in charge of M&A, added: "It is really rewarding to be able to close this transaction that was completely executed during this pandemic crisis. The whole process was done virtually, showing how much two companies can achieve when they think big and align visions. We are really excited to bring gA's talent onboard. They share our entrepreneurial and innovative DNA, strong values and lasting customer relationships. For us, it's key to build the best global team ready to face the most demanding challenges." About Globant We are a digitally native company where innovation, design and engineering meet scale. We use the latest technologies in the digital and cognitive field to transform organizations in every aspect. We have more than 12,500 employees and we are present in 16 countries working for companies like Google, Rockwell Automation, Electronic Arts and Santander, among others. We have been named a Worldwide Leader of Digital Strategy Consulting Services by the IDC MarketScape. We were also featured as a business case study at Harvard , MIT , and Stanford. , , and Stanford. We are a member of the Cybersecurity Tech Accord. For more information, visit www.globant.com Forward Looking Statements This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The expectations related to the businesses of Globant and gA may differ from their actual results and consequently, you should not rely on these forward looking statements as predictions of future events. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as "believe," "may," "will", "estimate," "continue," "anticipate," "intend," "should," "plan," "expect," "predict," "potential," or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, expectations with respect to the anticipated benefits of the proposed transaction. These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the expected results. Most of these factors are outside of the control of Globant and gA and are difficult to predict. Factors that may cause such differences include, but are not limited to: (1) the ability to recognize the anticipated benefits of the proposed transaction, (2) costs related to the proposed transaction, (3) changes in applicable laws or regulations, (4) the demand for gA's services together with the possibility that gA may be adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors; and (5) other factors discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in our most recent Form 20-F filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Because of these uncertainties, you should not make any investment decision based on these forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements for any reason after the date of this press release whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Contact Kellie Flaherty Senior PR Manager Walker Sands, for Globant [email protected] 773.459.6954 SOURCE Globant Related Links http://www.globant.com Mexican police and military forces on Sunday arrested the leader of the Santa Rosa de Lima gang who spread violence through north-central Mexico and fought a years-long bloody turf battle with the Jalisco cartel, AP reported. The armed forces and officials in the state of Guanajuato said they had captured Jose Antonio Yepez Ortiz, better known by his nickname El Marro, which means The Sledgehammer. Yepez Ortiz was unusual among gang leaders because he posted videos with emotional calls to his followers. But Mexicos top civilian security official, Alfonso Durazo, said Yepez Ortiz would be charged with organized crime and fuel theft. Yepez Ortiz had been the subject of massive manhunts for years, and was caught along with five other suspects allegedly holding a kidnapped businesswoman. He was among Mexicos most wanted suspects. His Santa Rosa gang was not a drug cartel, but rather a powerful, violent gang that stole fuel from government pipelines and refineries and robbing freight from trains. The Santa Rosa gang was also unusual in that it tried to build a support network among local residents by allowing them to take a minor share in the spoils of the robberies. But when authorities stepped up security around the trains and pipelines over the last two years, the gang turned to extortion and kidnapping. Watchdog tells of Russian businesses still operating in Ukraine 09:50, 03.08.20 3917 The report also covers Ukrainian companies operating in Russia. A 21-year-old Northern Virginia man drowned in Lake Anna over the weekend. The Louisa County Sheriffs Office is investigating the death of Patrick Byrnes, of Vienna, on Saturday evening in what was reported as an apparent drowning, according to a press release. Byrnes, reported to have been a strong swimmer, came to the lake to visit a friend, the release said, and had been swimming in the water off Old Mill Road. He was last seen swimming out to a floating chair about 20 feet from the end of a dock. The area was searched by marine units of the Louisa and Spotsylvania County sheriffs offices, Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and Louisa and Spotsylvania fire and rescue divisions. Byrnes' body eventually was located by the Spotsylvania County Dive Team and was transported to the medical examiner's office. This was the second drowning at Lake Anna in less than a month. Nathaniel R. Mines, 50, of Alexandria, drowned at the lake on July 12. 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. From Country Living Sir David Attenborough will join forces with Hans Zimmer and rapper Dave for a special Natural History event Planet Earth: A Celebration. The special one-hour programme brings together eight of the most extraordinary sequences from Planet Earth II and Blue Planet II, featuring musical performances that aim "to lift the nation's spirits during a time of crisis", the BBC has announced in a press release. In his first Natural History spectacular of the year, David Attenborough has recorded a new narration for the programme which will take viewers on an adventure around the world, from the East Cape of South Africa to the north of Norway, from Chile to the Indian Ocean, to see how animals overcome adversity to survive and thrive in some of the world's most challenging environments, offering a message of hope to humanity. Photo credit: Getty Images To accompany these sequences, Hans Zimmer, Jacob Shea and the team at Bleeding Fingers have created new compositions, and rearranged original scores, for "this exciting, joyful and adrenaline packed journey round the world". Photo credit: USO - Getty Images The BBC has revealed that the string section of the score is performed in a socially distanced space by the BBC Concert Orchestra, and accompanied by Brit and Mercury Award-winning UK rapper Dave, who will be featured performing on the grand piano. Hans Zimmer said: "Working with David on so many of his magnificent programs celebrating nature and our planet has been a joy for me. I am constantly inspired by what he is able to capture, and the collection of sequences featured in Planet Earth: A Celebration is truly special. "It was an honour to once again work with David, Jacob Shea and the BBC Concert Orchestra to highlight these incredible stories once again." Photo credit: getty Dave added: "I've always been a fan of powerful natural history documentaries. This is a programme where nature and music come together, so it was only right that I lent my talent, my time, and my attention to this project. It was a pleasure to work alongside Sir David Attenborough and Hans Zimmer." Story continues Planet Earth: A Celebration is a one-off hour long special which will air on BBC One. Like this article? Sign up to our newsletter to get more articles like this delivered straight to your inbox. SIGN UP You Might Also Like The results from this years data strongly indicate that employee and organisational productivity and sustainability would greatly benefit from a focus on these four features, Professor Bevan Catley says. Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Disability Support Workers (DSWs) are risking illness with minimal training during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, a new survey has found. Led by researchers at the University of Melbourne Disability and Health Unit and UNSW Canberra, the national survey also found these workers face financial hardship. Of those who took time off due to illness, only 47 percent were paid, reflecting the workforce's casual nature. Thirty-four percent faced financial difficulties like not being able to pay an electricity, gas or phone bill on time or being unable to pay their rent. The researchers conducted the online survey of 357 Australian DSWs between late May and June 2020 about their experiences working during the pandemic. Respondents ranged from 18-75 and 83 percent were women. Like health and aged-care workers, DSWs can't physically distance while working. They worked with an average six people with disability in the week before the survey. It also found: 53 percent provided support with tasks that require close personal contact like feeding and brushing teeth 23 percent had not received any COVID-19 infection control training Of the 77 percent who did receive training, 48 percent would like more 64 percent had received or purchased some form of personal protection equipment (PPE). More than half (54 percent) received gloves and 37 percent masks from their employer. Notably, 38 percent purchased their own masks 23 percent had been tested for COVID-19 infection and 11 percent wanted to be tested 14 percent worked for more than one provider and six percent worked in both the aged-care and disability sector 30 percent worked in two or more settings, and 14 percent worked in three or more settings 27 percent canceled shifts because they were worried about COVID-19 infection and 35 percent had shifts canceled by clients or employers due to fear of COVID-19 16 percent reported high psychological distress levels consistent with serious probable mental illness; 22 percent of workers experiencing financial stress had probable mental illness, compared to 14 percent among those who did not report financial problems. The researchers have made 11 recommendations, including updating PPE guidelines, proactively reaching out to DSWs so they can receive the required training, ensuring they have access to pandemic leave and making sure expert health staff can provide back-up if needed. The survey reflects the situation for workers when PPE was just being made available to workers after a marked shortage in March and April. With cases now rising in Victoria, on 17 July PPE became compulsory for DSWs in hot spot areas. Lead researchers Dr. Ashley McAllister, Research Fellow in Disability and Health and Professor Anne Kavanagh, who is Chair in Disability and Health and Academic Director of the University's Melbourne Disability Institute, said the situation in Victoria was serious with COVID-19 cases recorded among people with disability in group homes and among support workers. "This presents very real difficulties for workers with little or no training who now have to implement meticulous infection control procedures and use full PPE," Professor Kavanagh said. "Some people with disability, particularly those with psychosocial, autism and/or intellectual disabilities, may find it very challenging to self-isolate or quarantine and may have difficulties with personal hygiene and physical distancing. Further, workers are themselves having to self-isolate or quarantine because they are infected or are a close contact of a case. This means that familiar workers are no longer available to support infected clients at a very stressful time." Disability Support Worker Kristy says, "My work has completely changed since COVID. The day service I work in has closed. I am now working across multiple group homes. Every day we get new advice on what to do and that is stressful. I am worried about protecting the people I work with as many have health problems and if they got COVID they would really be at risk of dying from it. In one home I worked residents were isolated after testing and many workers didn't want to work because they were worried about their own or a family members health. Imagine what could happen if one of the residents had tested positive. If regular workers aren't working, then that will be really difficult for many people with disability who are already stressed by COVID and the restrictions on what they do. I feel like the government has forgotten about people with disability and support workers. All the attention is on aged-care but disability services have the same risks, even worse perhaps because so many of the people have other health problems." Explore further Australian disability workers fear a lack of support for the sector during COVID-19 Uma Bharti in Ayodhya for Ram temple's bhumi pujan, after saying no Covid positive Uma Bharti hospitalised, says wants to appear for Babri case verdict Uma Bharati's Bureaucracy is there to pick up our chappals remarks sparks controversy Uma Bharti to stay away from Ayodhya event as COVID-19 precaution India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Aug 03: Senior BJP leader, Uma Bharti has said that she will stay away from the August 5 event at Ayodhya. She decided not to attend the Bhumi Pujan for the Ram Mandir on August 5 as a COVID-19 precaution. She would instead visit the site after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and others leave after the event. "When I heard about Amit Shah and other BJP leaders testing positive I was worried about those attending the Ayodhya event, especially PM Mod, Uma Bharti said in a tweet. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News Drones, restrictions on outsiders, Covid-19 protocols in Ayodhya ahead of Ram temple event She said that she would leave Bhopal today evening and reach Ayodhya by tomorrow evening. I will stay away from the place where PM Modi and others would be present. I will reach the spot after everyone leaves, she also said in a tweet. Meanwhile various rituals will be conducted today leading up to the August 5 event. The rituals will begin with the Ganesh puja. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath will visit Ayodhya today and take stock of the preparations for the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Ram Temple. Senior leaders, L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi will attend the event through video conference. The two leaders will be incited by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad. There has been speculation about the invitation to the two leaders, who are considered to be architects of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement that led to the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, August 3, 2020, 10:05 [IST] Photo: The Canadian Press President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with U.S. tech workers, before signing an Executive Order on hiring American workers, in the Cabinet Room of the White House, Monday, Aug. 3, 2020, in Washington. President Donald Trump said Monday that he had fired the chair of the Tennessee Valley Authority, saying the executive was getting paid too much and was hiring foreign workers. Trump told reporters at the White House that he was formally removing the authority's chair of the board and another member of the board, and he threatened to remove other board members if they keep hiring foreign labour. The TVA is a federally owned corporation created in 1933 to provide flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing and economic development to the Tennessee Valley, a region that was hard hit by the Great Depression. The region covers most of Tennessee and parts of Alabama, Mississippi and Kentucky as well as small sections of Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia. He said the TVA board must immediately hire a new chief executive officer who puts the interests of Americans first." According to Trump, the CEO earns $8 million a year. The new CEO must be paid no more than $500,000 a year, Trump said. We want the TVA to take action on this immediately. ... Let this serve as a warning to any federally appointed board: If you betray American workers, you will hear two words: Youre fired. U.S. Tech Workers, a non-profit that wants to limit visas given to foreign technology workers, took out an ad to persuade Trump to stop the TVA from outsourcing much of its information technology division. The group, led by Kevin Lynn, criticized the TVA for furloughing its own workers and replacing them with contractors using foreign workers with H-1B visas. Trump made the announcement as he signed an executive order to require all federal agencies to complete an internal audit to prove they are not replacing qualified American workers with people from other countries. The White House said the order will help prevent federal agencies from unfairly replacing American workers with lower cost foreign labour. The order followed the TVAs announcement that it would outsource 20% of its technology jobs to companies based in foreign countries. TVAs action could cause more than 200 highly skilled American tech workers in Tennessee to lose their jobs to foreign workers hired on temporary work visas, according to the White House. But Republican Sen. Labor Alexander of Tennessee said the TVA doesn't get any taxpayer money. Commenting on the issue in April, Alexander said the White House was spreading misinformation. He said that TVA chief executive officers' pay is lower than other large utilities and that TVA energy rates are among the lowest in the nation. A mother has spent more than $32,000 in legal fees trying to save her 'gentle' Staffy from death row after he attacked two dogs, killing one. Sunshine Coast mother Kara Chaplin has gone to the Supreme Court in a bid to save her beloved American Staffordshire terrier cross 'Sarge' from being put down. The ten-year-old Staffy was put on death row in March last year after escaping her back yard through the garage and attacking a passing dog. It was Sarge's second offence, after he ran through a faulty gate in 2016 and killed a small dog. He was declared a 'dangerous dog' following the first attack and Ms Chaplin was ordered by her local council not to take Sarge out of the house without a muzzle. Pictured: Pet owner Kara Chaplin visiting her dog Sarge, who has been on death row for 16 months The ten-year-old staffy previously ran through a faulty gate in 2016 and killed a small dog On Friday, Ms Chaplin filed an appeal at Brisbane Supreme Court after she lost an appeal to save the dog's life in the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal on June 3. The mother wrote on a Go Fund Me campaign set up to help with legal costs that she has spent $32,295.18 of her life savings battling the case in court. '[It] which was my money, savings, family and friends' money, donations from complete strangers who are supporting us,' she wrote on the campaign page. Ms Chaplin has raised more than $14,000 so far. It is the first time a case of this nature has been taken to the Supreme Court. The Tribunal would not overturn the Sunshine Coast Council's decision on April 16 last year to put Sarge down over fears he likely attack again. Ms Chaplin filed an appeal at Brisbane Supreme Court after she lost an appeal to save the dog's life. Pictured: Ms Chaplin's young daughter with Sarge The staffy has been awaiting death at the council-run pound for almost 16 months while Ms Chaplin fights for her beloved pet's life in court. Sarge is required to remain behind a wire fence while his family visit him in custody. Ms Chaplin claimed she spent $7,000 on a new fence with self-closing gates to keep the dog contained on her 13-hectare property, should he be freed. The victim of the second attack suffered a scratch on its face and Ms Chaplin paid $881 for the owner to take their pet to the vet. She was also fined $3,829 in the Magistrates Court for the second attack. 'Sarge is not just a dog, he is our family member and he is loved dearly,' Ms Chaplin wrote on a Go Fund Me page The mother used the donations to pay for reports by an animal behaviourist to be used in court. 'Sarge is not just a dog, he is our family member and he is loved dearly,' Ms Chaplin wrote. 'Sarge had a very normal life interacting with all kinds of dogs at off leash beaches and off leash parks where he had no issues at all. 'Euthanasia should be the absolute last point of call.' Ms Chaplin said she took Sarge home when he was eight weeks' old, eight years ago. There is no set date for the Supreme Court hearing. New Delhi, Aug 3 : Upset over "mudslinging" within the party as young and old brigades in the Congress lashed out at one another over the past week, former chief Rahul Gandhi has conveyed his uneasiness, even though Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh have remained silent while the party appeared "adrift". Sources said Rahul Gandhi is upset over media reports about the struggle within the party so both the brigades have been asked to confine their views to party platforms only. The party has told leaders categorically that questioning the UPA's 10 year regime from 2004 to 2014 is "unacceptable". The decade-long UPA rule was steered under the leadership of Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. The in-fighting reached such proportion that sources say Randeep Singh Surjewala had to be summoned from Rajasthan to brief the media. He also warned both the factions to refrain from making comments on social media and said no "Twitter" play will be appreciated by the party. Congress communication department chief Surjewala responding to a question on Sunday warned: "I will advise friends who are playing twitter-twitter should stop making comments on social media. We have internal democracy and we are not forcing anybody to retire. So keep your views in appropriate party forums." Comparing with BJP, he said that there is no "margdarshak mandal" and the party should fight the BJP together. "In this time of crisis senior leaders who have worked in the government and organisation should stand shoulder to shoulder with Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Manmohan Singh. "The responsibility of the senior leaders is to guide the youngsters and promote them and also make way for them," said Surjewala. The Congress' young and veteran brigades are at loggerheads on social media ever since a July 30 meeting, when sources said that Rajiv Satav a newly elected member of the Rajya Sabha and considered close to Rahul Gandhi had asked for introspection of the 10 years of UPA rule. He was countered by the veterans. Post this incident former Union Ministers Manish Tewari, Anand Sharma, Milind Deora and Shashi Tharoor rallied behind the Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and slammed those who questioned the UPA's regime, attacking the younger lot of the party. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text President Akufo-Addo has advised Ghanaians not to relent on their responsibilities regarding adherence to the COVID-19 safety protocols. He said that was the way to go in order to stem the spread of the pandemic, which had over the last four months led to 182 deaths in the country. According to the Ghana Health Service's portal on the pandemic, the country's confirmed case count stood at 35,501 with 32,096 recoveries as of Friday, July 31. Eight of the confirmed cases have been identified as critical. President Akufo-Addo, who was addressing the Ashanti Regional leadership of the Muslim community, at the Kumasi Central Mosque, rallied the people to comply with the mandatory wearing of nose masks. "We are required as good citizens to always maintain personal Hygiene, while observing all the COVID-19 preventive protocols for own good," he noted. The President said Ghana's recovery and death rates in respect of the pandemic indicated that the government's resolve to deal with the threat posed by the coronavirus disease was on course. However, he said: "The citizenry should not take things for granted but continue to do the right thing to enhance their wellbeing." President Akufo-Addo, who is on a working visit to the Region, was grateful to the leadership of the Muslim community for creating the needed awareness on the disease amongst the people. He asked them not to relax in their efforts to support government in the fight against the pandemic. Sheikh Haroun Abdul- Mummin, the Regional Chief Imam, said the Muslim faithful would continue to pray fervently for the protection of the citizenry. ---GNA On Saturday, i.e., August 1, 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the students participating in the grand finale of Smart India Hackathon 2020. The Smart India Hackathon is a nation-wide initiative organized by the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE). The initiative provides students with a platform to solve some of the pressing IT problems prevalent in our day-to-day lives. Initiated in 2017, the competition breeds a culture of product innovation and a mindset of problem-solving among the youth. This year's Smart India Hackathon witnessed more than 1,000 students competing for the initiative. Students competed to solve 243 problem statements from 37 central government departments, 17 state governments, and 20 industries, with each problem statement carrying prize money of Rs 1 Lakh. During his speech addressing the students that spanned nearly 20 minutes, PM Modi pointed out some of the critical elements that would ensure India's growth and prosperity. Here are the key take-aways' from Prime Minister Modi's speech at the Smart India Hackathon 2020: Learn, Question, and Solve is the Way Forward During his address, Prime Minister Modi appealed to the country's youth, not to stop doing three things learn, question, and solve. PM Modi said, "Learn so you can question things, question, and you will be able to create solutions. When you solve problems and make efforts, with your efforts, you grow, and with you, India grows". National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 Access to 21st Century Education In his speech, Prime Minister Modi hailed the recently introduced National Education Policy 2020. The Prime Minister said that the policy was specially designed keeping in mind the aspirations of the youth in India. He said that the policy is an attempt towards the systematic reforms within the Indian education system. "The 21st century is an era of knowledge. This is the time to increase focus on --learning, research, innovation. And, this is exactly what India's National Education Policy, 2020 does," PM Modi said. The Prime Minister further added, "Among the most exciting things about the policy is the emphasis on interdisciplinary study. This concept has been gaining popularity. And, rightly so. One size does not fit all. One subject does not define who you are". Smart India Hackathon is Just a Stepping Stone During his address, the Prime Minister pointed out and assured the students that the Hackathon is not the first problem they have to solve. It is merely the beginning of many such initiatives to follow. Awareness about Women Hygiene In addition to all this, Narendra Modi also stressed the importance of women's hygiene in India. He talked about the efforts made by the government in providing affordable biodegradable pads to women. Focus on Quality Education According to PM Narendra Modi, initiatives such as Smart India Hackathon, more scholarships for students all these are aimed to ensure that our education system becomes modern and progressive When a cigar shop clerk told Adam Zaborowski on Friday that he had to wear a mask in the shop, the 35-year-old angrily refused. Instead, he grabbed two stogies, stormed outside - and then pulled a handgun and shot at the clerk, Bethlehem Township, Pa., police said. The next day, cornered near his home, Zaborowski allegedly fired at police with an AK-47, sparking a wild shootout with at least seven officers that ended with him shot multiple times and under arrest. The case is the latest violent incident tied to arguments over mandatory mask orders. But Zaborowski's reaction was driven by his own intense difficulty with the pandemic, his attorney claimed; before the shootout, Zaborowski had lost his job and had also recently lost custody of his child. "He just wasn't dealing well with the loss of his job, the loss of his child, just not handling the pandemic well," John Waldron told the Express-Times on Sunday, while noting those factors didn't justify his violent conduct. "I think he was getting stretched too tight." In recent weeks, police say that arguments over masks have led to the vicious beating of Trader Joe's employees in New York, the fatal shooting of a Family Dollar store security guard in Michigan, and the shooting of a McDonald's worker in Oklahoma. That violence adds more challenges for retail stores and restaurants where workers are left to dictate mask rules that authorities often haven't given police the option to enforce. Zaborowksi's alleged crime spree started Friday morning at Cigars International in Bethlehem Township, where he adamantly argued that he didn't have to wear a mask, even after a clerk offered to serve him curbside. Instead, Zaborowski pulled out a sheet of paper to point out a line in Pennsylvania state law that he insisted proved that he didn't have to wear a mask, a witness to the scene told WFMZ. In fact, Pennsylvania, which has had more than 113,000 cases of covid-19 and more than 7,200 deaths, made masks mandatory in most locations outside of the home starting July 1. "It was crazy," said Tom Gallagher, who was shopping in the store at the time. "It's a mask, you know. The guy was obviously anti-mask." After Zaborowski walked out without paying for his cigars, police say he fired his gun once in the air and twice at a clerk who confronted him outside. Multiple customers were also sitting outside the shop in the direction he fired. The next morning, police and state troopers were waiting to arrest Zaborowski outside his home in Slatington, Pa., when he hopped in a truck and drove off, police told the Express-Times. When they stopped him nearby, he jumped out of the vehicle and started firing at police with the AK-47 and a semiautomatic handgun. "Both the Slatington Borough officer and troopers returned fire and struck Zaborowski," Trooper Nathan Branosky said in a news release. Zaborowski was hit in the buttocks and leg, Waldron said, and is expected to recover. "The fact that he got shot twice with non-life-threatening injures when he had an AK-47 and another handgun, Adam is very fortunate he ended up the way he did," Waldron told the Express -Times. He's now charged with 22 counts including attempted homicide, aggravated assault, and robbery, police said, and is being held on $1 million bail. The Minority in Parliament wants the Employment and Labour Minister, Ignatius Baffour Awuah to be invited to the House to provide details on employment figures in the country amid the covid-19 pandemic. The Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu noted that mthe figures will help ascertain the true extent of the impact of COVID-19 on employment and related matters. Speaking in the House, Haruna Iddrisu said the issue is urgent as legislators must be fully aware of the financial and economic impact of COVID-19. The Minister for Employment will have to come and update the House on the impact of COVID-19 on employment [in Ghana] and the measures the government is taking to support distressed industries and companies. We haven't seen any program for that purpose. We need to know the real economic and financial impact of COVID-19 on employment in Ghana, he said. Meanwhile, the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu says the Minister was ready to furnish the House with that information, but was put on hold because the information wasn't complete. He said the Minister is expected to provide the House with the information before it goes on recess later this month. Ghana's economy, like many others the world over, has been hit by the impact of the pandemic, compelling many firms to lay off workers. The ban on public gatherings has led to a massive downturn in activities in sectors like hospitality and leisure. Some have already laid off casual workers and are preparing to cut down on permanent staff. The three-week lockdown also led to a slowdown in economic activities in Ghana's main economic hubs. ----citinewsroom (TNS) Hawaii Gov. David Ige vetoed a spending plan that would have added $100 in state weekly unemployment benefits in the era of COVID-19, hoping that an embattled Congress will continue supplementing state benefits at something close to the current, weekly level of $600 in additional federal aid.The state Legislature had included $230 million in Senate Bill 126 that was intended to help mitigate the potential loss of $600 in weekly federal unemployment payments known as plus-up that are scheduled to end today while weekly state unemployment benefits continue.An unemployed worker in Hawaii receiving the maximum weekly benefit of $1,248 will see that payment drop to $648.Ige said he hopes Congress comes up with a compromise to continue the $600-a-week federal benefit or something close to it. That would make the $230 million in added state money for unemployment benefits unnecessary.I am committed to supporting Hawaii residents who have been impacted by COVID-19. That includes continuing to provide standard UI benefits, even if the U.S. Congress fails to extend the plus up federal benefits, Ige said in a statement. We will need maximum flexibility to use the funds where they are needed most. It will not serve our community if the funds are designated for a specific purpose by the budget bill, and the funds are not used because they were not necessary or they were duplicated by potential federal support. These are unprecedented times when we are facing enormous budget challenges as a result of COVID-19. Difficult decisions will have to be made.The veto was one of eight spending cuts that Ige made to Senate Bill 126, which spelled out how the state would spend $635 million in federal CARES Act funding by the end of the year.The bill, as passed by the Legislature, created a plan to provide ongoing, immediate relief to residents and small businesses who are suffering from the devastating economic shutdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic, House Speaker Scott Saiki said in a news release.Iges veto of the states extra $100 in weekly unemployment benefits poses the most obvious impact on workers idled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.But Ige also chopped a $100 million spending plan for housing and rental assistance and related costs, saying that $50 million is enough to launch a program by the end of the year.Unpaid rent will be the most pressing problem facing our residents, Saiki said in his statement. Our proposal specifically targeted assistance for the most vulnerable families to prevent evictions and homelessness. Even with this veto, we will work with the governor to reallocate funds to maximize rental assistance for our residents.Asked about the possibility of reconvening to consider overriding any of Iges vetoes in SB 126, Saiki told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser that House members need to meet with Senate leaders and Ige to discuss how the administration plans to use the funds that he vetoed.We have to review the governors veto message and then discuss with the House members and Senate leadership whether to consider an override, Saiki wrote to the Star-Advertiser. We will also meet with the governor to discuss the specific plan for the use of the vetoed funds.Lawmakers could override Iges vetoes with a two-thirds vote.State Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz, chairman of the state Senate special committee on COVID-19, said Ige met with lawmakers before his announcement Thursday.Deciding to eliminate the $230 million for $100 weekly supplemental unemployment benefits makes sense for now, Dela Cruz said.There is little pressure in the Senate to try to override any of Iges eight vetoes in SB 126 at this point, Dela Cruz said, especially because the $230 million in unemployment benefits funding can still be spent by the end of the year, if necessary.House Finance Chairwoman Sylvia Luke called the challenges facing Hawaiis economy especially with COVID-19 numbers escalating mind-boggling.The economic problems couple with the expected demand for millions of dollars in social service support are likely to be even worse than during the 18-month economic recession between 2007 and 2009, she said.Clearly, the state and the counties cannot take care of this on their own, Luke said. This is very concerning. Its going to get worse before it gets better. The situation were in wont evaporate by the end of the year. Major decisions, and difficult decisions, will have to be made in the coming years. ROME (AP) New rules on wearing masks in England came into effect Friday, with people entering shops, banks and supermarkets now required to wear face coverings, while Romania reported a record for daily infections and France announced mandatory testing for arrivals from 16 countries, including the United States. People in England can be fined as much as 100 pounds ($127) by police if they refuse. Places like restaurants, pubs, gyms and hairdressers are exempt. John Apter, the national chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said officers would be available as a last resort but added that he hopes the public will continue to do the right thing" to protect other citizens. French Prime Minister Jean Castex announced on Friday that as of August 1, travelers entering France from 16 countries where the viral circulation is strong including the United States must undergo compulsory tests on arrival at French airports or ports unless they can present a negative test less than 72 hours old from their countries of departure. Those testing positive on arrival must isolate for 14 days. Health authorities say cases on the French mainland have surged 66% in the past three weeks and 26% in the last week alone. Concerns had already prompted the government to make mask-wearing mandatory in all indoor public spaces this week. In Belgium, health authorities said a three-year old girl has died after testing positive for COVID-19 as new infections surged 89% from the previous week. Belgian authorities have bolstered restrictions to slow the spread of coronavirus, including making masks mandatory in crowded outdoor public spaces. Overall, Europe has seen over 201,000 deaths in the pandemic, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. Experts say the true toll from the coronavirus worldwide is much higher, due to limited testing and other issues. Romania set an all-time high for daily new infections Friday and authorities blamed the surge on a failure to wear masks, including in indoor public places or on mass transit. Story continues In Italy, most new cases have occurred in northern Italy, where the outbreak in Europe began, but southern regions have lately been seeing clusters of infections. Many recent cases have been traced to people returning from abroad, most of them foreign workers. Other clusters were among migrants rescued at sea and vacationers. Last week, the mayor of the tourist-mecca island of Capri ordered people to wear masks in the streets. Capri's main square, with its trendy cafes and narrow streets, had been jammed with holiday-goers, many not wearing masks. Three young Romans who returned home after a holiday tested positive, Italian media said Friday. Italian Health Minister Roberto Speranza on Friday ordered everyone entering Italy who had been in either Romania or Bulgaria during the last 14 days to self-quarantine. A few weeks ago, a cluster of cases was traced to an apartment complex in a town near Naples housing Bulgarian farm workers. In Italy, masks must be worn in shops, banks, on public transport and outdoors where it's impossible to keep a safe distance apart. Amid fears in Spain that poor living conditions for seasonal agricultural workers are creating coronavirus hotspots, the Spanish farm minister said Friday said authorities are pressing employers to provide decent accommodations and transport for the workers. The Health Ministry reported 971 new daily infections, the biggest daily increase since Spain's lockdown ended. German authorities plan to set up testing stations at airports to encourage people arriving from high-risk countries to get tested for the coronavirus. They also will allow people arriving from other places to get tested for free within three days -- though not at airports. Fridays decision by the health ministers of Germanys 16 states came amid mounting concern that holidaymakers could bring the virus back with them. There also is worry that not everyone returning from a long list of countries designated as high-risk is going into self-quarantine for 14 days as they are supposed to -- unless they test negative. Berlins state health minister, Dilek Kalayci, said that in the end we want to call on all people returning to Germany to get tested. Russia, which had halted all international flights and shut down its borders in late March to stem the outbreak, is resuming international flights starting on Aug. 1 with just three countries Britain, Turkey and Tanzania while the government works to expand the list. Earlier this month, Russia didnt make the list of countries whose citizens are allowed to travel to European Union countries. So far, Russia's health officials have reported over 800,000 confirmed cases and 13,046 deaths. And as scientists around the world search for a vaccine to halt the pandemic, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has dismissed activists seeking to oppose vaccinations as nuts. Britain has Europe's worst recorded pandemic toll at over 45,600 deaths. ___ Associated Press writers across Europe contributed to this report. ___ Follow APs pandemic coverage at http://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak Albany, N.Y. -- An Upstate New York county exec says he had the coronavirus as early as December, potentially making him one of the first Americans to get Covid-19. Albany County Executive Dan McCoy told reporters Monday that he got an antibody test in May which showed he previously contracted the virus. When I got tested (for coronavirus I had) been negative every time, but I did do the antibodies (test) and I had it, McCoy said during a press briefing. I had the Covid back in December-January, they put the timetable down before it even broke here, before we even knew about it. According to the Times-Union, McCoy was referring to a doctor who spoke about the results of his antibody test. Studies indicate coronavirus antibodies diminish over time, and the level of antibodies in his system in May suggested he had the virus in December, January or February. The novel coronavirus was first reported in late December in Wuhan, China, after dozens of people contracted pneumonia-like symptoms. The U.S. reported its first case Jan. 21 in Washington state and New York state confirmed its first case March 1, though an antibodies study found Covid-19 was likely spreading in the Empire State as early as January. McCoy had not previously disclosed the results of the antibody test, the Albany newspaper reported. McCoy said he got sick at some point after traveling with county executives of America and traveling with the military in Texas, but doesnt know exactly where he couldve contracted the virus. He added that antibodies do not mean hes immune from the coronavirus. It doesnt mean I cant get it again, doesnt mean I have antibodies against it. Just means I had it once and got through it, he said. Scary because I didnt know what I was dealing with at the time but I knew the fact was that I was really sick. McCoy added that hes been very cautious and had to tell his daughter to postpone her May wedding to October, with less than 50 people planning to attend under Gov. Andrew Cuomos coronavirus guidelines. I wear my mask all the time at a function and if I dont want to, I leave, McCoy said. McCoy said Albany County has now confirmed 2,304 positive cases of Covid-19, an increase of nine from the day before. No new deaths have been reported in the county, which has reported 126 total deaths from coronavirus. More than 18 million cases of coronavirus have been confirmed worldwide, including 4.7 million in the U.S. Covid-19 has been blamed for 690,000 deaths globally and at least 155,000 in the U.S. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources Onondaga Countys 7-day average of positive coronavirus tests still below 1%, McMahon says Coronavirus in NY: Hospitalizations down, federal response a colossal blunder, Cuomo says First 400 Syracuse University students arrive for 2-week quarantine in dorms Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com Maharashtras home minister, Anil Deshmukh, has said the investigation into the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput by Mumbai Police is heading in the right direction as a turf war with the team from Patna Police over the case raged on. Mumbai Police investigation is progressing in the right direction in a professional manner, Deshmukh was quoted as saying by news agency ANI on Monday. Before this, the minister had condemned the demand for a transfer of the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and also questioned the jurisdiction of the Bihar police. @MumbaiPolice already began investigating allegations about @itsSSR's unfortunate alleged suicide. Even if Bihar Police registered an offence in Patna, under Ch. 12 & 13 of the #CrPC it has to be investigated,inquired & tried by police & courts within whose jurisdiction the offence is committed. I condemn the demand for the @itsSSR case to be handed to #CBI, Deshmukh tweeted on Sunday. The case is now being politcised for political gains. #MaharashtraPolice is inquiring into the case professionally & are competent in digging out the truth, leaving no stone unturned! he said. If Mumbai Police are already investigating the case, so anyone not related to Maharashtra government and not related to the case should not comment on it as Mumbai Police is capable of conducting the probe on its own, Sanjay Raut, senior Shiv Sena leader, also said, according to ANI. Deshmukh has rejected demands for a CBI probe into the actors death more than once, saying Mumbai Police are doing their job. In his Sunday tweets, the minister was referring to the parallel investigation being conducted by a four-member team special investigation team (SIT) from Patna Police into the complaint lodged by Rajputs father, KK Singh. The actors father lodged a police complaint against actor Rhea Chakraborty and her family members and the department registered a first information report (FIR) under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including abetment to suicide. Authorities in Bihar sent Vinay Tiwari, a superintendent of police, to Mumbai on Sunday, amid reports that the Mumbai Police were not cooperating with the team from Patna, which arrived in the Maharashtra capital on July 27. Then Bihars director general of police (DGP) Gupteshwar Pandey alleged late on Sunday that Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, who had taken a flight to Mumbai, was forcibly quarantined by civic authorities in the city. Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar also said on Monday the forcible quarantine of the Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, who was sent to Mumbai lead the probe into the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, was not right and that the force is just doing their duty. A minister from Bihar also questioned the civic bodys decision to quarantine Tiwari. Four Bihar police officers are already in Mumbai. They also went there on a flight but were not quarantined. We sent an IPS officer to speed up the probe but he was quarantined when he started his investigation, Sanjay Jha said, according to ANI. On its part, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) issued a clarification on Monday and said that they have instructed Tiwari to apply for an exemption in home quarantine period because of the raging coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak in the city. Rajput, 34, was found dead in his apartment in Bandra in Mumbai on June 14. Mumbai Police have said the actor died by suicide. Man, dog pronounced dead after early morning explosion, structure fire near Harbor Springs A man and a dog have both died as the result of an explosion and structure fire early Tuesday morning in West Traverse Township near Harbor Springs. A Pakistani court on Monday directed the government to inform India to appoint a lawyer for Kulbhushan Jadhav, the former Indian Navy officer sentenced to death for alleged involvement in spying, in order to file a review petition against his conviction. A two-judge bench of the Islamabad high court headed by chief justice Athar Minallah also directed the Pakistan government to again inform Jadhav, 50, of his rights under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations and the International Court of Justices (ICJ) order of 2019 staying his execution and calling for a review of his conviction. Referring to an ordinance promulgated by Pakistan to give effect to ICJs order, the bench said: He shall be specifically informed regarding his right to avail the statutory remedy provided under the Ordinance of 2020 and to authorise the Government of India to arrange legal representation on his behalf. The judges ordered the formation of a larger bench to hear the case in view of its importance and adjourned the matter till September 3. Pakistans attorney general Khalid Jawed Khan told the media after Mondays hearing the high court had said Jadhav would be given a second chance to engage a lawyer. The federal government also wants that he should himself engage a lawyer, Khan said, speaking in Urdu. Asked by reporters whether Indian lawyers could appear in the Islamabad high court on behalf of Jadhav, Khan said only Pakistani lawyers and those who are entitled to practice in Pakistan can be appointed. In response to another question on whether Indian lawyers could assist any Pakistani counsel engaged for Jadhav, he said, This option has not been considered as of now. There was no immediate response from Indian officials to the development. The high court also appointed three senior lawyers Abid Hassan Manto, Hamid Khan and former attorney general Makhdoom Ali Khan as amici curiae or friends of the court to ensure that the judgement of the [ICJ] is effectively implemented. In its order, the high court further said it expected Jadhavs right to a fair trial will be respected and utmost care will be exercised while making statements,...reporting by print and electronic media or otherwise commenting on or relating to the proceedings. Before joining the Islamabad high court, Minallah was a leading lawyer and played a key role in the lawyers movement against former dictator Pervez Musharraf. Some of his rulings have gone against the military establishment. India recently said Pakistan had blocked all its efforts to seek remedies in the case of Jadhav, who was arrested by Pakistani security agencies in Balochistan in March 2016 and charged with involvement in spying. India rejected these allegations and said he was kidnapped by Pakistani operatives from the Iranian port of Chabahar, where he was running a business. The Pakistan government has promulgated the International Court of Justice (Review and Reconsideration) Ordinance 2020 to allow Jadhav to appeal against the death sentence given to him by a military court in 2017. The ordinance was recently tabled in Parliament for approval. External affairs ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava told a virtual weekly news briefing last week that Pakistan had systematically blocked all of Indias attempts to seek remedies for Jadhav. He also accused Pakistan of violating the 2019 judgement of ICJ, which called for an effective review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentencing of Jadhav. India has also accused Pakistan of not providing unhindered, unimpeded and unconditional access to Jadhav or the official documents needed for filing a review petition. We reserve our position in this matter, which includes the right to avail of further remedies. Ill also reiterate that we stand committed to protect the life of our national Kulbhushan Jadhav, Srivastava had said last week. On July 22, the Pakistan government petitioned the Islamabad high court to appoint a lawyer to represent Jadhav. The petition contended Jadhav was made aware of his rights but had refused to file a review petition against his sentence and that India had not demonstrated a bonafide serious intent to avail of remedies. However, India dismissed the contentions made in this petition and said a Pakistani lawyer appointed by it had been unable to file a review petition on July 18 as he wasnt provided the necessary documents by Pakistani authorities. Indian officials had also walked out of a meeting with Jadhav on July 16 after Pakistan breached assurances of providing unimpeded consular access. In this Athens police blotter, a gunshot was fired near Waffle House, a woman tried to swing from ceiling fans at North Avenue Laundry and two men stole over $100 of beer from Murphys Express. Patna, Aug 3 : One of the two friends of actor Sushant Singh Rajput appeared before Bihar Police while the another one has also contacted with the police after they received notices under Section 160 of the CrPC. Bihar Police had sent notices to Sushant's friends -- Dipesh and Siddharth Pathani -- in connection with the actor's alleged suicide case. After this, Dipesh appeared before the police on Sunday night, while Siddharth has also made a contact. Patna Range IGP Sanjay Singh told IANS on Monday that both were sent notices under section 160 of CrPC on Sunday and were asked to sit face-to-face and record the statement. Dipesh appeared before the police at night but Siddharth is yet to arrive. He said that in any case, Siddharth will also have to come before the police and if he does not come, further action will be taken. It is said that Siddharth was the first to see Sushant's dead body as he was living with the actor. Meanwhile, in the case of forcibly quarantining IPS officer Vinay Tiwari, who has gone to Mumbai to investigate the case, Singh said that Bihar Police was also looking into these cases. Tiwari reached Mumbai on Sunday afternoon. On reaching there, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation officials quarantined Tiwari before he could take his first big step. Bihar Police DGP Gupteshwar Pandey had disclosed late on Sunday on his Twitter handle that Tiwari has been quarantined forcibly. Tiwari had said at the Mumbai airport that the investigation into Sushant case was moving in the right direction. He then went to a guest house in Goregaon with four of his companions where he had a long chat with his colleagues. On Monday, he was to meet DCP Abhishek Trimukhe of Bandra Zone-9. Trimukhe is looking after the case related to Sushant's suspicious death. Now, Tiwari will remain in quarantine till August 15. The BMC, however, did not disclose the whereabouts of Tiwari. The body of Sushant, who hails from Patna, was found on June 14 in his flat in Bandra, Mumbai. After this, the Mumbai police were investigating the matter. After this Sushant's father K.K. Singh lodged a case in Patna on July 25 against the actor's friend Rhea Chakraborty and her family and six others for allegedly inciting their son to suicide. A team of Bihar Police is in Mumbai to investigate the matter. (Manoj Pathak can be reached at manoj.p@ians.in) Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery Bazaar Corporate Radar | Feb 22, 2021, 12:00 AM IST Bazaar Corporate Radar Bazaar Corporate Radar is your window into the minds of top CEOs, Boardrooms, global economists, fund managers and sector analysts. If it?s making news, you?ll find it on Bazaar Corporate Radar. My heart exults in the LORD; My horn is exalted in the LORD, my mouth speaks boldly against my enemies, because I rejoice in Your salvation. Hannah (1 Samuel 2:1) Hannah was barren, but her heartbroken, earnest prayer for a child was answered by the birth of her son, Samuel. In her prayer, she promised the Lord that if He would remember her, she would give her son to serve the Lord all the days of His life. When Samuel was weaned and Hannah made good on her promise and delivered him to the temple, instead of being downcast about letting her son go, she was full of gratitude, thanksgiving and praise. Centuries later, the following quote was penned by another Hannah: There are three requisites to the proper enjoyment of earthly blessings: a thankful reflection, on the goodness of the giver; a deep sense of our own unworthiness; and a recollection of the uncertainty of our long possessing them. The first will make us grateful; the second, humble; and the third, moderate. Hannah More Hannah More dedicated her life to education, writing and social reform. Though she was born in 1745 near Bristol, England and had no impressive social status, she became well known and respected for her intellect, writing, and Christian principles, as well as for being a leader in the abolition of Britains slave trade. Leadership and Ministry Thus let all Your enemies perish, O LORD; But let those who love Him be like the rising of the sun in its might. - Deborah (Judges 5:31) Deborah was a well-respected prophetess, song writer, leader and the only female judge mentioned in the Bible. Because of her, the Israelite army defeated its enemy, Hazor, and then enjoyed forty years of peace. She followed Gods command, even when her instructions from Him were reluctantly received and questioned by the Israelite army leader, Barak. Here is the principle - adapt your measures to the necessity of the people to whom you minister. You are to take the Gospel to them in such modes and circumstances as will gain for it from them a hearing. - Catherine Booth Born in England in 1829, Catherine Booth was the wife of the founder of The Salvation Army, William Booth. Because of her influence in the formation of The Salvation Army she was known as the Army Mother. Later, when her husband became ill, she took on the administration of the Salvation Army, and became the mentor to "Hallelujah lasses" young women who were employed by the Salvation Army for ministry. Photo credit: Crosscards.com US President Donald Trump has agreed to give Chinas ByteDance 45 days to negotiate a sale of popular short-video app TikTok to Microsoft Corp, two people familiar with the matter said on Sunday. US officials have said TikTok under its Chinese parent poses a national risk because of the personal data it handles. Trump said on Friday he was planning to ban TikTok in the United States after dismissing the idea of a sale to Microsoft. But following a discussion between Trump and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, the Redwood, Washington-based company said in a statement that it would continue negotiations to acquire TikTok from ByteDance, and that it aimed to reach a deal by Sept. 15. It was not immediately clear what changed Trumps mind. Several prominent Republican lawmakers put out statements in the last two days urging him to back a sale of TikTok to Microsoft. The negotiations between ByteDance and Microsoft will be overseen by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, a US government panel that has the right to block any agreement, the sources added. Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury, Microsoft said in a statement. ByteDance and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Under the proposed deal, Microsoft said it would take over TikToks operations in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It said it would ensure that all private data of TikToks American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. Microsoft may invite other American investors to acquire minority stakes in TikTok, the company added. About 70% of ByteDance investors come from the United States. The village of Banka in Azerbaijan should have plentiful supplies of water as it lies beside one of the country's mightiest rivers, the Kura. But the river has shallowed dramatically this summer and has become contaminated with salty seawater, in what experts warn is an unfolding ecological disaster. "Our animals are dying. We don't get water in time," said farmer Maryam Hasanova, as she waited for a truck to deliver water. Residents in two southern regions have suffered acute water shortages for months, and people like Hasanova -- who have smallholdings with crops and cattle -- have been particularly affected. Wide expanses of cracked grey silt can be seen above the waterline of the river near the village. "The drop in water levels in the Kura this summer is unprecedented," reaching nearly two metres (six feet) in some regions, said the director of the Baku's Institute of Geology, Ramiz Mammadov. "Kura's riverbed is a frightening sight," he said. "This is an ecological disaster", said Telman Zeynalov, the head of Azerbaijan's Centre for Ecological Forecasting. - 'Terrible state' - Originating in northeastern Turkey, the 1,515-kilometre (941-mile) river flows through Georgia and Azerbaijan into the Caspian Sea, playing a major role in the ecosystem of the entire Caucasus region. Close to the delta where Banka is located, the river's current has slowed down so much that saltwater from the Caspian is flowing upstream. "We can't use it, nor can we use it for animals to drink," said local resident Famil Akhmedov, a pensioner in his 80s. Originating in northeastern Turkey, the 1,515-kilometre (941-mile) river flows through Georgia and Azerbaijan into the Caspian Sea, playing a major role in the ecosystem of the entire Caucasus region / AFP/File "We're in a terrible state." A communal water tank stands in the village street of one-storey houses waiting to be filled by deliveries from a truck. But Hasanova complained that the amount of water delivered by the authorities was far less than the villagers' real needs. Some villagers were filling plastic bottles with murky water directly from the river despite the saltwater contamination. Residents are angry about the government's apparent indifference to their plight. People are "suffering from water shortages and the local authorities are refusing to listen to our complaints," said one resident, Famil Hasanov. - Unregulated use - Global warming is a factor in the rapidly worsening crisis, geologist Mammadov said, since Azerbaijan has seen a 30-percent decrease in rainfall over the last decade. "This problem isn't anything new. We are witnessing similar issues in arid regions around the globe," he said. Uncontrolled and unregulated use of water for agriculture is exacerbating the crisis, he added. "The number of new farms and fish farms along the river is constantly growing, leading to excessive water use," he said. "There are water pumps everywhere you look." Another factor may be a vast reservoir called Mingachevir dammed off in the river close to the Georgian border and used to power Azerbaijan's largest hydroelectric plant, said ecologist Zeynalov. He suggested that more research was needed into its use of water. Geologist Mammadov said Azerbaijan's limited water resources can only be enough for everyone if it is used prudently. In April, the oil-rich country's authoritarian President Ilham Aliyev issued a decree on the "rational" use of water resources and set up a governmental commission tasked with restoring the Kura's water levels. Mammadov said the commission has recently tabled long-overdue guidelines that are essential for addressing the crisis. "The problem can be resolved if there is political will and if we stop abusing nature," he said. Raviji, the same thing just happened to me: Shashi Tharoor to seek explanation from Twitter What is itat e-dwar the new e-filing portal of the IT appellate tribunal Social media companies free to do business, but should be accountable to Indian laws: Ravi Shankar Prasad Big step towards transparency: Prasad on first compliance report by Google, FB under new IT rules If over 45 countries use Pegasus, why target just India?, asks Ravi Shankar Prasad Ravi Shankar Prasad goes into self-isolation after Amit Shah tests positive India pti-PTI New Delhi, Aug 03: IT and Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has gone into self isolation, as he had met Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday evening. Prasad does not have any symptoms and the self-isolation is purely based on existing protocol. Shah, on Sunday, had said he had tested positive for coronavirus and was getting admitted to a hospital following the advice of doctors. Karnataka Minister CT Ravi tests positive for COVID19 Prasad, who is also the Law Minister, tweeted on Monday that he has isolated himself at home for a few days, as per protocol. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News "Friends! I'm absolutely fine. To follow protocol I hv isolated myself at home for few days as I had met Amit Shah Ji on Saturday evening for n official meeting. I'm working from home & following daily routine including Yoga & exercise. Also reading books & enjoying classical music," Prasad tweeted. A source said Prasad does not have any symptoms. Home Minister Amit Shah was admitted to a private hospital in Gurugram on Sunday. "I have undergone a coronavirus test after showing initial symptoms and have tested positive. My health is fine but I am getting admitted to a hospital on the advice of doctors," Shah had tweeted in Hindi. The home minister had also requested those who had come in contact with him in the last few days to get tested for coronavirus and isolate themselves. Prasad, in tweet on Sunday, had wished Shah a speedy recovery. On Sunday, Union Minister Babul Supriyo too tweeted that he is going into self-isolation since he had met Shah a day before in the evening. Supriyo had said has been advised by doctors to confine himself away from his family members for the next few days, and will undergo a test soon. A small demonstration was held as members of the new Serbian parliament were sworn in on August 3. The protesters said the June 21 parliamentary election was rigged, and part of the opposition had boycotted it. First-look images for new series Long Way Up show Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman embarking on a motorcycle journey through South and Central America. In the new Apple TV+ programme the pair will travel 13,000 miles over 100 days from Ushuaia at the southern tip of Argentina up to Mexico. (Apple TV+/PA) They will be riding prototype electric Harley-Davidsons on their journey, which takes them through 13 countries including Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia. They will be followed by directors David Alexanian and Russ Malkin in an electric car. (Apple TV+/PA) The series follows their previous long-distance motorcycle journeys, in Long Way Round and Long Way Down. The first three episodes of Long Way Up will premiere on Apple TV+ on September 18, with new episodes subsequently being made available on a weekly basis. Regina Pringle, a Texas native who worked in an orthodontic clinic prior to pursuing a full-time career in writing, has published her new book The Forbidden Tree: a riveting short story that keeps the pages turning until the stunning conclusion. Pringle writes, A secret society of high schoolers is up for a challenge to find the darkest tree of them all: the forbidden tree. The tree that would stand as tall as a skyscraper building and was as wide as a flowing river. This tree would grant you anything you wanted, such as making you the richest person in the world, but it came with a deadly price. Each student would get $100,000 in their group if they found the forbidden tree located in a forbidden place like Camp Clover. Located deep, deep, deep in the woods, it would be like finding a needle in a haystack. As students continued to stand firm on the dare that was made to follow through at the end of their senior year, students who participate in these dares took a secret oath to follow through each dare carried out through the secret society. Perhaps this year would be more challenging and deadly than the previous years of dares made through the secret society. Camp Cloverwhich was closed off to the communities around due to the horrific murders that occurred theremade the dare that much more interesting and challenging, not to mention how much money was involved as the kids prepared for this deadly trip ahead. If you were not strong-minded, the tree would suck your soul, making you the deadliest evil person walking the earth. As the seniors prepared for the deadliest trip being ordered, they had no idea that they might not return home to see their loved ones again. Little did they know that this might be their last time eating meals from home. As the time drew nearer, nervousness started to set in. Now, whos ready to go camping? Published by Page Publishing, Regina Pringles engrossing book is an excellent choice for avid mystery/horror readers. Readers who wish to experience this engaging work can purchase The Forbidden Tree at bookstores everywhere, or online at the Apple iTunes store, Amazon, Google Play, or Barnes and Noble. For additional information or media inquiries, contact Page Publishing at 866-315-2708. About Page Publishing: Page Publishing is a traditional, full-service publishing house that handles all the intricacies involved in publishing its authors books, including distribution in the worlds largest retail outlets and royalty generation. Page Publishing knows that authors need to be free to create - not mired in logistics like eBook conversion, establishing wholesale accounts, insurance, shipping, taxes, and so on. Pages accomplished writers and publishing professionals allow authors to leave behind these complex and time-consuming issues to focus on their passion: writing and creating. Learn more at http://www.pagepublishing.com. People who laugh frequently in their everyday lives may be better equipped to deal with stressful events although this does not seem to apply to the intensity of laughter, according to a research team from the University of Basel. It is estimated that people typically laugh 18 times a day generally during interactions with other people and depending on the degree of pleasure they experience. Researchers have also reported differences related to time of day, age, and gender for example, it is known that women smile more than men on average. Now, researchers from the Division of Clinical Psychology and Epidemiology of the Department of Psychology at the University of Basel have recently conducted a study on the relationship between stressful events and laughter in terms of perceived stress in everyday life. In the intensive longitudinal study, an acoustic signal from a mobile phone app prompted participants to answer questions eight times a day at irregular intervals for a period of 14 days. The questions related to the frequency and intensity of laughter and the reason for laughing as well as any stressful events or stress symptoms experienced in the time since the last signal. Using this method, the researchers working with the lead authors, Dr. Thea Zander-Schellenberg and Dr. Isabella Collins, were able to study the relationships between laughter, stressful events, and physical and psychological symptoms of stress (I had a headache or I felt restless) as part of everyday life. The newly published analysis was based on data from 41 psychology students, 33 of whom were women, with an average age of just under 22. Any Microsoft deal to purchase TikTok would resolve many of Australia's security concerns about the social media platform, according to government MPs and investors. Microsoft on Monday confirmed it was continuing discussions to buy TikTok in the United States, with the technology giant saying it would also explore a proposal to purchase TikToks operations in Australia, along with the Canadian and New Zealand services. US President Donald Trump on Monday gave Chinese company ByteDance 45 days to sell TikTok or face being banned in the United States. Microsoft is continuing negotiations to buy TikTok. Credit:Bloomberg Government MPs, who declined to be identified because an inquiry into the video sharing app was ongoing, believe a Microsoft acquisition would blunt much of the security threat in Australia. Microsoft supplies a significant portion of the Australian governments cloud computing infrastructure. An Islamic human rights organisation, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has rejected the examination timetable recently released by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) for the conduct of the 2020 West African Secondary School Certificate Examinations (WASSCE). WAEC scheduled the examinations to begin on Tuesday, August 11 but MURIC said the timetable clashes with the period of Friday Jumuah prayers. The group stated its position in a press statement issued on Monday by its director and founder, Ishaq Akintola. Below is the statement by the group: PRESS RELEASE: MURIC REJECTS WAECS ANTI-MUSLIM TIMETABLE An Islamic human rights organisation, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has rejected the examination timetable recently released by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) for the conduct of the 2020 West African Secondary School Certificate Examinations (WASSCE) scheduled to begin on Tuesday, 11th August, 2020. The organisation based its rejection on the clash between WAECs timetable and the period of Friday Jumuah prayers. This was made known to newsmen in a press statement issued on Monday, 3rd August, 2020 by Professor Ishaq Akintola, Director and Founder of the organization. The group said, WAEC has again fixed some of its subjects for the period of the Muslim Friday Jumuah prayer in its examination which begins next week Tuesday 11th August, 2020. These are papers that Muslim candidates are also expected to take. The implications are very serious. WAEC is deliberately creating a wedge between young Muslims and the mosque. WAEC is making it impossible for Muslim youth to worship. The examination body is encroaching upon Allah-given fundamental rights of Muslim candidates to access freedom of religion as guaranteed by Section 38 (i) & (ii) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. At best, the examination body is reducing the chances of good performance among Muslim candidates. A quick glance at the timetable recently released by WAEC shows that there are at least three clashes between examination periods and Muslim prayers on Fridays: Management-in-Living (2 pm, Friday 14th August, 2020); Literature-in-English (2 pm, Friday 21st August); Health Science (1.30 pm, Friday, 4th September). This timetable is exclusive, sectional, parochial, insensitive and provocative. It is an invitation to anarchy. It is designed to cause pain to Muslim candidates. It is therefore the handiwork of sadists and anarchists. It smirks of an anti-Muslim machinery oiled by the passion for hate and injustice. This is in spite of efforts made by us to guard against this kind of clash. It will be recalled that MURIC issued a proactive press statement on Tuesday 23rd June, 2020 under the caption Consider the Friday Question in Your Timetable: MURIC Tells WAEC. This press release was expected to remind WAEC of the need to avoid the present controversy. But WAEC ignored it. The examination body cannot claim ignorance of this reminder because it was well published by the media. We are perturbed by WAECs recalcitrance. The fact that the examination body ignored the above advice shows that it deliberately targets Muslims for persecution. It inflicts unbearable psychological trauma on young Muslim candidates. It is unacceptable. This has to stop. There is also enough evidence that this is not the first time WAEC will fix examinations during the Muslim prayer period on Friday. MURICs struggle with WAEC over the Friday question is of great antiquity. Unfortunately WAEC does not appear ready to learn from history. We will cite at least two past clashes and our interface with the examination body. The timetable clashed with Jumuah service in 2015 and MURIC cried out thereby forcing the examination authority to adjust its timetable. Again in 2018 WAEC reenacted the same scenario. MURIC kicked again and WAEC adjusted its timetable It was due to this constant occurrence that we took a proactive step two months ago by cautioning WAEC not to allow its timetable to clash with the Jumuah period this year but the leopard refused to change its skin. Is WAEC deaf? How can a public institution be so insensitive? What have the Muslims done to deserve being treated like blacks in apartheid South Africa? We wonder why it should be so difficult for WAEC to leave out three hours only (from 12 noon to 3 pm) on Fridays in its examination timetable to allow Muslims to worship. Muslim candidates need three hours because the prayer usually starts around 1 pm. They need at least one hour to get to the mosque, one hour for the service inside the mosque and another one hour to return to the examination hall. Muslims everywhere in the world do not joke with the Friday Jumuah prayer. This special weekly prayer has divine and scriptural basis in Quran 62:9-11 and any attempt to circumspect it by any means constitutes a challenge to divine authority. Justice also demands that the Muslim prayer period be respected by all, especially by WAEC because the Christian Sunday remains sacrosanct. Perhaps WAEC examinations should be held on Sunday morning if it will not respect the Muslim prayer period. What right does WAEC have to force Muslim candidates to write examination during Friday prayer time when the examination body does not fix its examinations on Sunday to disturb Christian worship? Is WAEC deliberately destabilizing Muslim candidates? How can a Muslim candidate be in the right frame of mind to sit for an examination slated for 2 pm on a Friday when he must be in the mosque from 1 pm to 2.30 pm? What is WAECs gameplan? Is WAECs timetable planned by double agents? MURIC calls the attention of the Federal Government and the Ministry of Education to WAECs excesses. Muslim candidates should not be blamed if they refuse to write examination under duress. Any examination that infringes upon freedom of religion is ultra vires, unlawful, illegal, illegitimate and unconstitutional. Candidates for such examinations acting alone or in conjunction with their parents have every right to use every lawful means to stop the examination. WAEC is therefore invited to take notice of impending action by Muslim candidates unless it adjusts its timetable to accommodate Muslim Jumuah service during the coming examinations. Muslim candidates must be given three hours every Friday. This is non-negotiable. Nigerian Muslims will liberate themselves from slavery, serfdom and religious apartheid if government is lackadaisical. The only thing MURIC opposes is violence. Our message to WAEC is very clear and simple: We warned you early enough but you decided to dare Nigerian Muslims with your satanic timetable. We are returning it back to sender. Adjust your timetable and stop provoking Muslims forthwith. Let the Muslims go. Advertisements #LettheMuslimsgo. Professor Ishaq Akintola, Director, Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) Dear Editor: A fantasy Joe Biden chooses Mitt Romney for vice president, Michael Bloomberg for secretary of state (someone not intimidated by Putin), Kamala Harris for attorney general, Andrew Yang for commerce secretary, Pete Buttigieg for defense, Oprah Winfrey for education, and Jeff Flake from homeland security. If he chooses a female running mate, its Susan Rice, moving Romney to secretary of state. Thus begins the unifying moderate centrist party that takes a name used before: Democratic Republicans. The party on the left includes Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, with the Freedom Caucus on the right. The Democratic Republicans win two elections, re-establishing the U.S. as the Beacon of Hope for the World. We start a nationwide discussion on history, regarding who statues represent before tearing them down mob-style. The Jeannette Rankin Amendment is established, ending the U.S. position of arms dealer to the world. Our military helps eliminate Taliban, ISIS, Boko Haram, al-Shabab and other death cults. With Frances assistance, we clean the Sahara. Terrorism ends at home by neutralizing street gangs and addressing the needs of gang members children. Frederick Douglass said, It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men. We remove MS-13 from the Central American triangle, forcibly eradicating corruption. This addresses immigration problems. The three countries become Costa Rica and get rid of poverty. Remember, as John Lennon said, Theres no problem, only solutions. Jeffrey Gold West Hurley, N.Y. ZURICH, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Chubb Limited today announced management changes to its life and general insurance operations in Asia. Cunqiang Li has been named Executive Deputy General Manager and Chief Strategy Officer of Huatai Insurance Group, the holding company of Huatai P&C Insurance Company, Huatai Life Insurance Company and Huatai Asset Management Company, among other subsidiaries. The appointment was made by the Board of Directors of Huatai Insurance Group at a meeting on July 30 and is subject to approval from the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission. Currently, Mr. Li is Chief Operating Officer of Chubb Life, Chubb's international life insurance division. In his new role, Mr. Li will have strategic management oversight of all Huatai Group businesses. As the largest shareholder, Chubb currently owns 46.2% of Huatai Group and has also agreed to the intended terms of a subsequent purchase of an additional 7.1% of the company that would give Chubb majority ownership. Brad Bennett has been named Chief Operating Officer of Chubb Life. Currently, he is Senior Vice President, Chubb Group and Regional President of the company's Far East operations in Japan. He also provides oversight to Chubb Life's business in Korea. In his new role, Mr. Bennett will focus on leading the day-to-day operations of Chubb Life's Asian life insurance entities in seven countries and territories in Asia, including Hong Kong SAR, Indonesia, Korea, Myanmar, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. Mr. Li will report to Minghao Zhao, General Manager of Huatai Group. Mr. Bennett will report to Russell Bundschuh, Senior Vice President, Chubb Group and President, Chubb Life. The appointment of Mr. Bennett is effective October 1, 2020. "The leadership changes we announce today speak to the experience and depth of Chubb's management team and to the significant long-term opportunity for the company in China and across Asia," said Evan G. Greenberg, Chairman and CEO of Chubb. "I have worked with both executives for many years, know their capabilities and have great confidence in them." "With our increasing stake in Huatai, we have an opportunity to build a significant Chinese insurance company that will meet the growing protection needs of Chinese consumers and businesses," Mr. Greenberg continued. "Cunqiang has the right experience for his new leadership role: he is a strong and effective leader who knows the Chinese market, Huatai's business and Chubb's culture. He also brings deep technical and financial management experience. At the same time, I am also very pleased that Brad is moving into this new and important role in our Asia-focused Chubb Life business, which is emerging as a meaningful contributor to the company's growth and profitability." "Since he joined Chubb Life in 2017, Cunqiang has played an important role in managing the development and growth of our Life business across the region. He will continue to play an important role overseeing our Huatai Life joint venture," said Mr. Bundschuh. "I am also pleased to welcome Brad to his new position. Brad, who has led agency businesses in both the U.S. and Asia, has a proven track record of execution. His exceptional expertise in operations and distribution will help position the Chubb Life business for continued growth and progress." Mr. Li has more than 25 years of insurance industry experience. Prior to joining Chubb Life in 2017, he served as Chairman and CEO of Beijing-based Huatai Life. From 2012 to 2016, he was CEO and General Manager. Previously, he held positions of increasing seniority and responsibility at Mass Mutual for 10 years, most recently as Mass Mutual International's Senior Managing Director and CFO. He began his financial career in public accounting. Mr. Li holds a BS degree from Northwest Normal University of China and a Master's degree from McGill University in Montreal. Mr. Bennett has more than 30 years of insurance industry experience. He joined the company in 2012 as President of Combined Insurance after more than 17 years with AIG. Mr. Bennett has extensive experience working in the Asia region and has held senior positions in Thailand, Korea, Malaysia and Japan. He began his career as an agent with Allstate in the U.S. and held a number of field sales management positions there. He received his BS degree from California State University. About Chubb With operations in 54 countries and territories, Chubb provides commercial and personal property and casualty insurance, personal accident and supplemental health insurance, reinsurance and life insurance to a diverse group of clients. As an underwriting company, we assess, assume and manage risk with insight and discipline. We service and pay our claims fairly. The company is also defined by its extensive product and service offerings, broad distribution capabilities, exceptional financial strength and local operations globally. Parent company Chubb Limited is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: CB) and is a component of the S&P 500 index. Chubb maintains executive offices in Zurich, New York, London, Paris and other locations, and employs approximately 33,000 people worldwide. Additional information can be found at: www.chubb.com Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements Forward-looking statements made in this press release, such as statements regarding Chubb's investment in Huatai, reflect the company's current views with respect to future events and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual results to differ materially from these statements. Additional information regarding factors that could cause differences from these forward-looking statements appears in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. SOURCE Chubb Limited Related Links http://www.chubb.com There were many arguments surrounding the passage of the phase 4 of the coronavirus relief operations after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that the two sides can't agree even on basics. Republican Florida Senator Rick Scott told Fox News on Sunday that democrats "just want to waste your money" after talks on the phase 4 of coronavirus relief was impeded in the Senate as boosted unemployment benefits expired. Senate Republicans revealed "HEALS Act" last week. This is their version of fresh round of coronavirus relief. HEALS Act is a relief package that focuses on Health Economic Assistance, Liability protection and Schools, according to a report. HEALS Act has a budget over $1 trillion and is the Republican Alternative to the House's Heroes Act. The Heroes Act is the $3 trillion legislation passed in May and was considered to be the most expensive legislation passed by that body. Heroes Act includes $915 billion in state and local aid that aims to prevent layoffs of public workers such as first responders and teachers. Scott said on Sunday that Senate Republicans would like to get something done. "Let's help those that have lost their jobs, get this economy open. Let's help our small businesses get going again, but unfortunately Democrats, they just want to waste your money," he was quoted in a report. Scott also said that Democrats now want to spend another $3 trillion on top of the at least trillion that has now been spent. He added that Democrats want Florida taxpayers to pay for New York or Illinois, or California's prior pension problems. The Florida senator said this is just a "grab bag" for Democrats to take advantage of a crisis. Scott went on saying that somebody has to pay for this down the road, adding that he wants to ensure that everybody is being taken care of but he does not want to waste people's money. Unemployment Benefits Scott said that the Democrats have no sense or urgency after blocking last week the extension of unemployment benefits at the current level. They also blocked a proposal to say that they will compensate people at 1/3 their compensation. U.S. lawmakers have been warned that millions of American will be left without any financial safety nets as Congress and the White House are trying to reach an agreement on a new fiscal stimulus package. The White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said on Sunday that the two parties are still far from reaching an agreement. The failure to seal a deal by July 31 has left more than 25 million people in the U.S. are losing access to the extra $600 federal unemployment benefits, according to CBS News report. CBS News report said that Democrats are aiming for an extension of the $600 in extra aid, however, Republicans want a $200 per week aid. Michele Evermore, senior policy analyst at the National Employment Law Project estimated that even if lawmakers reach an agreement the following weeks, there would be a gap of at least two weeks until jobless workers get the new aid. Evermore added that this will affect Bank of America, saying that each week with a gap in jobless aid will shred $18 billion in income from U.S. households. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 19:30:37|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A swarm of desert locusts invade parts of Mwingi Town in Kitui County, Kenya, Feb. 20, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhang Yu) The Food and Agriculture Organization warns that large numbers of desert locust swarms that have formed in Horn of Africa, mainly Ethiopia and Kenya, since January 2020 could move west in the coming weeks, threatening fields, pastures and livelihoods in West Africa. ADDIS ABABA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said on Sunday that large numbers of desert locust swarms that have formed in Horn of Africa (HoA), mainly Ethiopia and Kenya, since January 2020 could move west in the coming weeks, threatening fields, pastures and livelihoods in West Africa. The FAO, which noted the full extent of the desert locust swarm warning, stressed its latest situation update on Sunday that national surveillance operations are in full swing, and control measures are ready because of the major early warning and rapid response effort coordinated by FAO. "We have witnessed the unprecedented desert locust threat to food security and livelihoods in East Africa, and we are doing everything we can to prevent a similar crisis repeating in the Sahel region, which is already experiencing several ongoing crises," a FAO statement read. According to FAO's desert locust watch, swarms that bred in spring in East Africa are now shifting to the summer breeding areas, and countries west of the HoA should remain on high alert. The FAO also noted that most of the swarms in northwest Kenya are expected to ride winds carrying them north to cross South Sudan into Sudan. "Unless it rains more in Sudan's desert, providing favorable breeding conditions for the pests, the locusts will not stay in Sudan for long and would instead move west through the Sahel of West Africa in search of food and favorable breeding areas," it added. Last week, the FAO had warned that the East Africa region is facing an unprecedented triple food security threat caused by the combined effects of recent severe floods, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the upsurge of desert locusts. The FAO, in a joint position statement issued together with the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP) stressed that "urgent action is required to prevent a major food crisis in Eastern Africa." It emphasized that there is an increased risk of below-average rains during the upcoming October to December season, which could further threaten food security and livelihoods across the region. According to FAO, even before these current challenges, Eastern Africa was considered among the most food insecure regions of the world, with nearly 28 million people in food insecurity crisis in 2019, or 20 percent of the total severely food insecure population across the world. A swarm of desert locusts invade parts of Mwingi Town in Kitui County, Kenya, Feb. 20, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhang Yu) It also stressed that an estimated nine million children under the age of five suffer from acute malnutrition, including two million facing severe acute malnutrition. The IGAD region is also one of the world's leading sources and hosts of internally displaced persons and refugees and asylum seekers who, due to limited livelihood opportunities and degraded coping mechanisms, are particularly vulnerable to food insecurity and malnutrition, according to the FAO. The FAO, which has been working closely with countries at risk in the region to coordinate a major preparation campaign in case the worst happens, also on Sunday stressed that national contingency plans are now activated. The desert locust, which is considered as the "most dangerous of the nearly one dozen species of locusts," is a major food security peril in desert areas across 20 countries, stretching from west Africa all the way to India, covering nearly 16 million square kilometers, according to the FAO. According to the FAO, the desert locust is "the most destructive migratory pest in the world," in which a single swarm covering 1-square-km contains up to 80 million locusts and can eat the same amount of food in one day as about 35,000 people. Locust numbers increase 20 times in three months with every new generation. UPDATE: Dixson has been found safe in Ohio. WATERFORD, MI The Michigan State Police are looking for a missing Michigan woman. An Endangered Missing Advisory was issued Monday for Kathy Jane Dixson, 61, who has not been seen since she left her home in Waterford on Sunday night. Police found her abandoned vehicle on southbound I-75 near Summit Street in Monroe Countys Erie Township at 7 a.m. on Monday. The cars windows were down, the hazard lights were on, and keys left on the drivers seat. A K9 track located a second set of keys, just west of the vehicle, according to police. Dixson, who police say, suffers from mental health issues, is described as a white female about 5 feet, 4 inches tall. She weighs about 145 pounds, has brown hair and blue eyes. An Endangered Missing Alert is the procedure that Michigan authorities use for missing people whose cases do not fit the AMBER Alert criteria, but in which authorities would like the publics help in locating someone. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is urged to call 911 or the Michigan State Police, Monroe Post, at 734-242-3500. Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer told CNBC on Monday the company's pursuit of TikTok is "exciting" and that it's well-equipped to deal with any regulatory issues that would come with it. Microsoft confirmed in a blog post Sunday it has held talks with the social media app's China-based parent company ByteDance to buy its business in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand. President Donald Trump has threatened to ban the app over national security concerns, and lawmakers have moved to restrict it from government-issued devices. On Friday, Trump said he opposed the potential deal, but Microsoft said in its post that CEO Satya Nadella spoke with Trump and intends to finish talks with ByteDance by Sept. 15. "Obviously it depends on the price," Ballmer said in a "Squawk Box" interview. "Price is important as well as whatever restrictions come with it from a government perspective, but I think it's an exciting avenue for Microsoft to really increase its consumer base." Ballmer is still Microsoft's largest shareholder, and shares were up more than 4% in early trading Monday. While Microsoft has made its mark with enterprise products in recent years, Ballmer recalled that its roots are as a consumer-facing business. "There [are] successes and failures in the consumer business, and I think it's important to remember you've got to keep trying new things in order to build new businesses," he said. WEST CHESTER The resumption of criminal jury trials in Chester County was supposed to begin Monday. Things did not go as planned. The 83 potential jurors who were summoned to the county Justice Center, processed through the courthouses health check entry system, given basic juror instructions, outfitted with plastic face shields to ward off COVID-19 infection and brought to a specially cordoned-off courtroom to begin jury selection in the case of a man accused of selling cocaine and pills to police informant were sent home before 10:30 a.m. after the defendant decided to accept a plea offer from the prosecution. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate your service, Chester County Common Pleas Judge Patrick Carmody told about 24 of the panelists before dismissing them from jury duty. I just want to thank you so much. Because you came in, someone pleaded guilty, Carmody said. The trial of defendant Alan Erol Carter Sr., 48, of Coatesville, was scheduled to be the first criminal jury trial in the county since the courts suspended most proceedings in March because of the coronavirus pandemic. As Carmody explained it, even though the countys Common Pleas and Magisterial District judges had been working through the crisis on other cases and matters, no jurors had been called to the courthouse in the previous 19 weeks. Carters trial was to have been the first jury trial in suburban Philadelphia since the pandemic struck, the judge said, although cases in Berks County and other nearby counties have been held. A report Monday said that Philadelphia courts had not even begun holding routine preliminary hearings in criminal cases since March. Late last month, court personnel held an hours-long trial run for the upcoming jury trials to gauge what would have to happen to be able to complete a COVID-19 safe proceeding, with attorneys and witnesses wearing masks and social distance rules in effect so that even the jurors were physically separated from one another. Theres a huge backlog of cases now, even though weve been able to move forward with others, Carmody told those who had been called for jury duty Monday. There will be jurors called to the courthouse Tuesday to begin selection in a civil trial before Judge Jacqueline Carroll Cody that is expected to last three weeks and will test the limit of jurors patience during the pandemic, weather permitting as the region braces for the impact of Hurricane Isaias through the week. A second criminal trial before Judge Ann Marie Wheatcraft was called off after the defendant in that case decided to plead guilty as well. Carter, the defendant in Carmodys case, was accused of selling illegal drugs to an informant on multiple occasions in December 2018 in the city. But because of witness problems on behalf of the prosecution, he was offered a lenient plea agreement which would see him eligible for parole next month. He decided to accept, and the need for the COVID-19-ready jurors disappeared. To contact staff writer Michael P. Rellahan call 610-696-1544. MOSCOW, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sheremetyevo International Airport's Terminal D began servicing international and domestic flights on August 1. The opening of Terminal D was made possible by the gradual ending of restrictions on domestic and international passenger traffic and the gradual increase in the number of flights arriving at and departing from the airport. Terminal D was closed to passengers temporarily on April 1 amid a decrease in passenger traffic and the introduction of additional restrictions in international air transportation. The first international departure from Terminal D is Aeroflot flight 2130 was scheduled to depart for Istanbul on 1 August at 07:50 Moscow time. The first regular international arrival is Aeroflot 2131 from Istanbul is scheduled for 17:00 Moscow time. Departure from Terminal D of the first regular domestic flight, Nordwind 4541 on the Sheremetyevo-Omsk route, was scheduled for 1 August at 00:10 Moscow time. The first domestic arrival, Rossiya 5800 from Sochi, was scheduled for 00:45 Moscow time. Terminal D provides a range of necessary services and facilities: Multilevel parking; Public transport stops; Sale of goods in vending machines (including PPE); Cafes and restaurants; Heinemann Duty Free shops; shops; Express diagnostic service for coronavirus with results available in 60 minutes (Terminal D health center). The test results are issued in Russian and English. Sheremetyevo Airport pays special attention to protecting the safety and health protection of customers, guests and employees. To this end, Sheremetyevo is fully implementing a set of measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection in accordance with the instructions and recommendations of state bodies and medical institutions. Sheremetyevo International Airport is fully ready to resume regular international passenger flights. Taking into account possible changes, passengers are advised to check the status of flights through official communication channels and in the contact centers of airlines and Sheremetyevo airport. Sheremetyevo International Airport is one of the TOP-10 hub airports in Europe, the largest Russian airport in terms of passenger and cargo traffic. The route network comprises more than 230 destinations. In 2019, the airport served 49 million 933 thousand passengers, which is 8.9% more than in 2018. Sheremetyevo is the best airport in terms of the quality of services in Europe, the absolute world leader in punctuality of flights, the owner of the highest 5-star Skytrax rating. You can find additional information at http://www.svo.aero SOURCE Sheremetyevo International Airport Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, left, and SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, second from right, arrive at the Korea Furniture Museum in Seoul, in this July 4, 2019, file photo, to attend a dinner with the leaders of Korea's conglomerates. / Korea Times file By Baek Byung-yeul Samsung Electronics is set to join the acquisition race for the British semiconductor company Arm, which has been put up for sale by its current owner SoftBank, but the Korean tech giant will try to participate in the bid in the form of equity investment, obtaining a small stake in the chip-designing firm, according to a top official in the semiconductor industry here, Monday. "Samsung Electronics is considering acquiring a small stake in Arm, which will be between 3 percent and 5 percent," said the top industry official, who requested to remain anonymous. "Arm will be acquired by a consortium led by multiple parties from the semiconductor industry given the complex nature of Arm's shareholding structure." The official also mentioned that Samsung's move in the acquisition race will be similar to that of acquiring equities in Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML. In 2012, Samsung acquired a 3-percent stake in ASML Holdings for 766.4 billion won ($642 million). The Korean tech giant decided to become a stakeholder in the Dutch company as it is the world's largest manufacturer of lithography systems, which are used to print circuit patterns on silicon wafers. ASML is also the only supplier for the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology-based lithography equipment, a core product used to produce smaller and more power-efficient chips. "As seen in Samsung's previous equity purchasing in ASML, Samsung will likely try to acquire equities in Arm. As Samsung could solidify its partnership with ASML after the equity acquisition, Samsung expects it can reduce its licensing fee expenditure by securing equity in Arm," the official added. Established in 1990, the U.K.-based company Arm is a global leader in mobile chip architecture design that generates profit by licensing its intellectual property to tech giants including Samsung Electronics, Apple and Qualcomm. Mobile application processor chips are used in most smartphones; Apple's A-series, Samsung's Exynos and Qualcomm's Snapdragon chips are based on Arm's architecture. Every chipmaker using the architecture pays a licensing fee upfront, which depends on the complexity of the design, and the companies additionally pay a royalty for each chip sold. Its mother company SoftBank is considering either selling Arm or going through with an initial public offering for the chip-designing unit because the Japanese tech giant is strapped for cash after its $100 billion Vision Fund posted losses for two consecutive quarters. It was rumored that Samsung or other tech giants such as Apple or Nvidia would attempt to acquire Arm as such a move could help them take the upper hand in the semiconductor market. But Jim Handy, a U.S.-based seasoned semiconductor analyst working for Objective Analysis, said Arm will be merged by a consortium comprised of fabless companies or intelligent system design companies such as Rambus, Cadence and Synopsys. The rationale for that is because these firms are similar to Arm, generating revenue through IP licensing. Recently, some suggested that Nvidia, a U.S.-based graphics chip maker, would become the sole suitor for Arm, but the top official said it is unlikely because it will be difficult for the graphics chip maker to win approval from the various fair trade commissions in semiconductor powerhouse regions: the U.S., the EU, and East Asia Japan, China and Korea. The official also expressed doubt whether Nvidia has sufficient financial firepower to become an independent acquirer of Arm given SoftBank reportedly wants to sell Arm based on a valuation of over $41 billion. "Nvidia won't become the sole suitor for Arm as the company needs to win approvals from fair trade authorities in countries that are doing business with the British company. I think it will be difficult for Nvidia to gain approval from any of those authorities," he said. The Davenport Police Department said that a father was murdered at his son's funeral. According to the police, at about 11:30 a.m. Saturday, authorities responded to a call to Weert's Funeral Home. Callers said a man at the scene had a gun and a person had been shot. Bystanders said the man fled the scene in a vehicle. Web Toolbar by Wibiya HOUSTON, July 31, 2020 /CNW/ -- National Salmonella Lawyer Jory Lange is investigating the Red Onions Salmonella Outbreak. 326 people in the United States and Canada have contracted Salmonella Newport. 47 people have been hospitalized with Salmonella infections. Salmonella Lawsuits are likely to follow, says The Lange Law Firm, PLLC. "The scary thing about this outbreak is, as a consumer, there's nothing you can do to tell whether the red onions that you are buying is safe. You can't taste, smell, or see Salmonella. Red onions that are contaminated with Salmonella may look, smell, and taste just like any other onions.This is why it's critical that companies who make and sell our food, especially ready-to-eat foods like red onions, ensure the food is safe before they sell it," said national Salmonella food poisoning lawyer Jory Lange. Sysco Recalls Red Onions In Canada, food industry giant Sysco is recalling Red Onions imported from the United States. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency's findings in its investigation of this Salmonella outbreak triggered Sysco's Red Onions Recall. Sysco's Imperial Fresh brand jumbo onions are among the products affected in the recall. More products may also be included in this outbreak. The investigation is ongoing. Compensation for Salmonella Those who contracted Salmonella infections after eating food tainted with Salmonella may be entitled to compensation. To learn more about making a claim for Salmonella compensation, please visit the Lange Law Firm's website, www.MakeFoodSafe.com or call 833.330.3663. How Many Are Ill? In the US, here's the case count by state: Arizona (13 cases), California (10 cases), Florida (1), Idaho (5), Illinois (9), Iowa (10), Maine (2), Michigan (15), Minnesota (3), Missouri (3), Montana (11), Nebraska (5), North Carolina (3), North Dakota (3), Ohio (5), Oregon (51), South Dakota (6), Tennessee (2), Utah (40), Virginia (3), Washington (1), Wisconsin (2), and Wyoming (9). In Canada, here's the case count by province: British Columbia (43), Alberta (55), Manitoba (13), Ontario (2), and Prince Edward Island (1). About the legal team: Jory Lange with The Lange Law Firm, PLLC is one of the United States' leading Salmonella lawyers. Mr. Lange has helped families from Arizona, California, Illinois, Michigan, Montana, Oregon, Utah, and in states across the nation. Contacts The Lange Law Firm, PLLC Jory D. Lange Jr. www.MakeFoodSafe.com Candess Zona-Mendola 833.330.3663 candess@jorylange.com From agitated Hong Kongers and members of the Tibetan diaspora to angry Indians after the Galwan Valley face-off and even progressive Iranians, an unusual coalition is taking shape in Canada to collectively protest against the Chinese government in cities across the country. A series of such protests have taken place since late June when the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress in Toronto staged a protest near the Chinese Consulate in solidarity with India and against Chinas actions in Ladakh. Since then, protests have occurred in Vancouver, more in Toronto and Montreal. On Saturday, a rally was organized in downtown Toronto and among those who participated was Gloria Fung, president of Canada-Hong Kong Link - a platform for 15 groups countering Chinas moves in Hong Kong including a recent national security law. Also read: Finger Area in focus as India, China hold talks I do not support Chinas move towards India, thats the reason why I participated in this rally. I would like us to show our solidarity to each other because we are facing a common threat, she said of her presence at the Toronto rally. The Hong Kongers have been agitating against China for the past couple of years and held a major rally in Toronto last August, as did Tibetan immigrants to Canada. Sunny Sonam, vice-president of RTYC in Toronto, said they had to take advantage of the reality that the world was right now focused on China partly due to the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic and because of its actions in Hong Kong and the Galwan Valley. And while the Tibetan community has held many protests over the years against the Chinese occupation of the plateau, their cause is getting a lift because of the current circumstances, as he said, Because of that, Tibetan people are getting more attention. Other disparate groups have also joined in these marches and demonstrations against China in Canada, including Taiwanese and Vietnamese-origin Canadians, even Bangladeshi minorities. Toronto-based Salman Sina of the International Human Rights Centre in Canada helmed protests in July in the city and this Sunday in Montreal. A refugee from Iran, Sina said of his motivation, As human rights defenders, we are seeing whats going on with the Uighurs, Tibetans and Hong Kong because of China. I decided to unite people suffering because of the Chinese regime. Unity is better than division. We have a common cause. Such protests also have resonance in Canada because two citizens, including a former diplomat, have spent more than 600 days in prison in China in what Ottawa has described as hostage diplomacy by Beijing in retaliation against the detention of a senior executive of the Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei in Vancouver in late 2018. As Fung prepares for a large protest in August in Toronto, she is hopeful there will be greater cooperation and collaboration between these groups going ahead, as she said, We hope to invite other communities and civil society organisations to come together for a unified voice. Hong Kong denied plans to harvest residents DNA as part of a China-backed coronavirus-testing blitz, as deep political mistrust further complicates the citys efforts to contain its worst outbreak ever. The Hong Kong government on Sunday welcomed Chinese government experts who are setting up a temporary laboratory to dramatically expand its ability to track a third wave of Covid-19 cases. The push quickly fanned suspicions that authorities would use the opportunity to collect DNA samples from residents, a tactic local law enforcement have recently employed in activist arrests, after widespread use by police in Xinjiang and elsewhere on the mainland. The Hong Kong government solemnly clarified that this is absolutely unfounded," pledging in a statement that samples will not be transported to the mainland for testing." The government blamed certain individuals" for spreading the theory online and promised to look into whether spreading untrue claims intentionally by certain individuals would constitute criminal offense." The controversy underscores mounting mistrust between the government and the local pro-democracy political opposition in the wake of a national security law imposed by China in June. Last week, the government barred a dozen pro-democracy candidates from campaigning for office and delayed local legislative elections planned for Sept. 6 for a one year -- a move condemned by U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo as an attempt to crush dissent. State broadcaster CCTV reported on Saturday that all 7.5 million Hong Kong residents will receive free virus testing, without citing sources. The report also estimated the testing could be completed within a few days," though no public information has been released on how the testing drive will be conducted. Chinas National Health Commission declined comment, while the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Tracking dissidents Hong Kongs appeal to mainland experts is aimed at achieving the widespread testing that helped underpin successful virus-eradication strategies in cities like Wuhan and Beijing. While theres so far been no suggestion that those campaigns are being used for DNA harvesting, they come at a time of increased international scrutiny on the collection and use of such data by Chinese law enforcement. China is building the worlds largest police-run DNA database," enrolling tens of millions of individuals with no control over how their samples are collected, stored and used," the Australian Strategic Policy Institute said in a report released in June. Hong Kongs police have already begun collecting DNA samples from protesters arrested under the new national security law, a practice that lawyers described as a rare occurrence during last years protests. Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong, who has said he wants to hire a bodyguard to protect himself from detention after being barred from running for office, compared the testing push to Beijings efforts to track other groups suspected of secessionist tendencies such as the largely Muslim Uighur minority in Xinjiang. Starting from today, #Beijing will send medical personnel from China to #HK for mass testing. Just like #nationalsecuritylaw legislation, the decision is unilaterally imposed without public consultation," Wong said on Twitter. As China is paving ways to extend its surveillance systems to #Hongkong, it is worrying that HK might soon become Xinjiang." Subscribe to Mint Newsletters * Enter a valid email * Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Never miss a story! Stay connected and informed with Mint. Download our App Now!! David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Several Republican senators on Sunday backed a plan by Chinas ByteDance to divest the U.S. operations of TikTok after President Donald Trump said on Friday he had decided to ban the popular short-video app. Senator John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, said on Twitter that a divestment and purchase by U.S. company is win-win. Senator Roger Wicker, a Republican who chairs the Commerce Committee, echoed Cornyn but added that tight security measures need to be part of any deal in order to protect consumer data and ensure no foreign access. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told ABC on Sunday that the Committee on Foreign Investment on the United States agrees that TikTok cannot stay in the current format because it risks sending back information on 100 million Americans. Mnuchin said he and U.S. congressional leaders all agree there has to be a change. He added that Trump could either force a sale or the president can block the app using (International Emergency Economic Powers Ac). U.S. officials have said TikTok under its Chinese parent poses a national risk because of the personal data it handles. Reuters reported on Saturday that ByteDance, in a bid to save a deal with the White House, agreed to divest the U.S. operations of TikTok completely. ByteDance was previously seeking to keep a minority stake in the U.S. business of TikTok, which the White House had rejected. Under the new proposed deal, ByteDance would exit completely and Microsoft Corp would take over TikTok in the United States, according to sources. Republican Senator Marco Rubio on Sunday said on Twitter if the company & data can be purchased & secured by a trusted U.S. company that would be a positive & acceptable outcome. On Saturday, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said the right answer to address security concerns about TikTok would be to have an American company like Microsoft take over TikTok. Win-win. Keeps competition alive and data out of the hands of the Chinese Communist Party. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Fox News on Sunday that Trump will take action in the coming days with respect to a broad array of national security risks that are presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party. Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Dan Grebler A whopping 85% of Black Americans who smoke use mentholated cigarettes. (Joe Raedle / Getty Images) Recall with us the chilling scene in the 1972 film The Godfather in which a Mafia don prohibits his people from selling drugs to anyone except the dark people, the coloreds theyre animals anyway, so let them lose their souls. As the California Legislature considers a bill prohibiting the sale of flavored tobacco products, will it show the same contempt for the health of the states Black population? In this year of racial introspection, it should not be possible. But history tells a different story. Big Tobacco has successfully conducted a decades-long campaign to lure and hook Black smokers by marketing menthol-infused products specifically to Black consumers. They have helped destroy Black health in the process a whopping 85% of Black Americans who smoke use mentholated cigarettes, or menthols. Senate Bill 793 would make it illegal for stores to sell flavored tobacco products, including menthol-flavored vaping cartridges and cigarettes. Introduced early this year, the bill is scheduled to be taken up soon by the state Assembly Health Committee. At a time of national reckoning over the mistreatment of Black people, Black leaders in the state have largely stayed silent including members of the California Legislative Black Caucus regarding this matter critical to Black health. This has left the door open for the powerful industry lobby to protect its pipeline of new, young Black tobacco users. About 70% of Black Americans ages 12 to 17 who smoke use menthol cigarettes, the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids reports. Menthols numbing sensation makes smoking seem less harsh and leads smokers to consume more tobacco because it is more palatable. This effect also makes menthols more enticing to youth who are also more susceptible to both the addictiveness and harm of nicotine. The tobacco companies have a long history of aggressively marketing deadlier menthol tobacco products to the Black community. Many Black Americans over 30 have distinct memories of menthol ads on the radio and in magazines and newspapers. For decades, tobacco companies sponsored concerts and other events to push menthol sales. Story continues This effort has had a devastating and measurable effect. Black Americans have the greatest burden of tobacco-related mortality of any ethnic or racial group in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Tobacco use is a major contributor to the three leading causes of death among Black Americans heart disease, cancer and stroke. For us and so many others, the tobacco-related death toll is personal. Rev. Cager saw his big brother Rob get hooked early on menthol cigarettes and die of lung cancer. He was only 58. Big Tobacco is not just good at creating carcinogenic addictions. It also excels at getting its way politically by reaching into its deep pockets and contributing to political campaigns and deploying specious arguments. For instance, the National Assn. of Tobacco Outlets claims that banning the sale of menthol tobacco products could criminalize their possession even though the bill would allow for personal possession and use of these products. The state legislation clarifies what products retailers can sell. A fellow reverend has presented perhaps the most offensive argument defending Big Tobacco that smoking is a choice Black people are entitled to make. Through fierce marketing, Big Tobacco is choosing a lethal addiction for them. Within faith communities, there is growing concern that our elected leaders in Los Angeles and the state might allow the industrys influence to "Trump" the issue of Black health. We capitalize the T here because if legislators do exempt menthol products from their ban, they will be echoing the stance of the president, who early this year said that he, too, would exclude menthol from any ban because its a big industry and we want to protect that industry. Jurisdictions throughout California have dealt decisively with the vaping crisis by passing comprehensive bans, in part out of concern for the health of the Black community. Long Beach, Oakland, Burbank and Carson have restricted the sale of menthol cigarettes and are among the vast majority of the nearly 80 cities and counties in the state that have done the right thing and ended the sale of menthol and other tobacco products. California should ban the sale of all flavored tobacco including menthol cigarettes and help right a historic wrong that for far too long has allowed the tobacco industry to jeopardize the health of Black Americans. The Rev. John E. Cager III is pastor of Ward African Methodist Episcopal Church in Los Angeles and president of the Los Angeles Council of Religious Leaders. The Rev. Peter Laarman is a retired United Church of Christ minister. Gender-based violence is soaring among displaced women and girls during the coronavirus crisis, a new report has warned. A study by Refugees International has suggested lockdowns, border closures, and economic desperation caused by the public health emergency increase the risk of displaced women and girls suffering domestic abuse at the hands of their partners, conflict-related sexual violence, human trafficking, and forced and early marriage. Researchers warn some of the most vulnerable populations in the world have avoided the worst of the coronavirus crisis so far but this is set to change due to coronavirus infection rates growing most rapidly in low-income nations. There are more than 79 million refugees, asylum seekers, and internally displaced people worldwide who constitute almost one per cent of the worlds population. Devon Cone, senior advocate for women and girls at Refugees International, told The Independent coronavirus chaos means families are suffering from additional stress, which can compound pre-existing patterns of domestic abuse. She said: As options for safety and economic sustainability for families decrease with economic devastation, lockdown and border closures, gender-based violence increases. Also a lot of service providers which support women and girls who experience violence are operating at reduced capacity or closed altogether. The added stress and financial insecurity that families are suffering also increases the risk of gender-based violence and especially intimate partner violence. It is exacerbating existing patterns and increasing those trends. Finally, on top of that, measures to mitigate the spread of coronavirus are making the gender-based violence harder to address. I spoke to a worker in a Greek refugee camp. She said the stress there is very high due to the uncertainty about what is going to happen next and when asylum cases will be processed and this is leading to higher levels of violence perpetrated against women by male partners within families. The women there feel abandoned and feel like there are not enough resources in the camp to address what is going on. Ms Cone said the global pandemic was putting women and girls at increased risk of human trafficking and forced marriage adding that the usual agencies that monitor these trends are currently having trouble collating data. Recommended Girls at risk of not returning to school in Africa and Asia Also statistics about forced marriage and human trafficking were already almost always lower than the reality, she added. But now, as borders close there are less legal options to enter neighbouring countries safely to seek asylum or economic opportunities so the risk of human trafficking rises. Ms Cone described displaced women and girls as those who have been forced to flee their home because of conflict, persecution or economic collapse and have moved into another part of their country or gone to another nation altogether. Matters were particularly difficult for displaced women who do not have access to government support, she added. The report calls for law enforcement officials not to deport or punish those who seek service provision or protection linked to gender-based violence irrespective of what their legal position is. In the UK, domestic violence has soared during the Covid-19 emergency with a report released by MPs revealing domestic abuse killings doubled in the first 21 days of lockdown. At the end of May, it emerged calls to the UKs national domestic abuse helpline had risen by 66 per cent and visits to its website surged by 950 per cent since the start of the coronavirus lockdown. A study, carried out by the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency (UNFPA) at the end of April, warned the coronavirus crisis could stall measures to curb the practice of child marriage and possibly lead to an additional 13 million child marriages in the next decade that could have been stopped. More than 20,000 underage girls are married every day, research by Save the Children charity from 2017 found. Chinese artificial intelligence company Shanghai Zhizhen Intelligent Network Technology Co., Ltd., also known as Xiao-i, has filed a lawsuit against Apple Inc, alleging it has infringed on its patents. The company is calling for 10 billion yuan ($1.43 billion) in damages and demands that Apple cease "manufacturing, using, promising to sell, selling, and importing" products that infringe on the patent, it said in a social media post. Xiao-i argued that Apple's voice-recognition technology Siri infringes on a patent that it applied for in 2004 and was granted in 2009. Apple did not respond to a request for comment. Reuters was not immediately available to find a copy of the court filing. The lawsuit marks the continuation of a row that has been ongoing for nearly a decade. Shanghai Zhizhen first sued Apple for patent infringement in 2012 regarding its voice recognition technology. In July, China's Supreme People's court ruled that the patent was valid. Well, Granny, you know Im going to do everything in my power, Rowe replied carefully. Im going to watch how the coronavirus is playing out and Im going to watch to see what makes the most sense and do whatever I need to do, because you know I also value the reunions and I love you so much and Ill do whatever I can. Okay? 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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(0x7f04858198b0)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f04856aa370)', '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(0x7f04858198b0)') 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(0x7f04856aa370)') 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(0x7f0485824280)') 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(0x7f04856aa370)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f04856aa370)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0484cc2bb0)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f0485839148)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f0485839148)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 The Moroccan Mission in Ghana has commended the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Usman Nuhu Sharubutu for his exemplary leadership role in strengthening cordial relations between the Kingdom of Morocco and the Republic of Ghana in his capacity as the spiritual head of the Ghana Branch of King Mohammed VI Foundation of African Oulema. Courtesy Call Paying a courtesy call on the Chief Imam today (July 29) to offer her warmest congratulations on the occasion of Eid-ul-Adha and receive his blessings on the Moroccan National Day (which falls on July 30, 2020) the Moroccan Ambassador to Ghana, Mrs Imane Ouaadil lauded the National Chief Imam for his immense contribution towards the maintenance of peace and promoting national development in the country. We recognise the strong and compassionate leadership, wisdom and guidance of the Chief Imam especially during these unsettling times of COVID-19 pandemic and the courageous decisions he has taken to guide the Muslim community in Ghana to comply with safety standards and health regulations put in place by the Government of Ghana in order to keep the pandemic in control, she stated. The Ambassador further wished the Chief Imam good health, strength, and Allahs ever-present grace as he leads the Muslim community to celebrate this years Eid-ul-Adha. Mrs Imane Ouaadil on behalf of the Kingdom of Morocco presented two Rams and bags of flour to the Chief Imam to be shared among the vulnerable Muslim community as they celebrate the Eid-ul-Adha. Gratitude On his part, Sheikh Osmanu Nuhu Sharubutu expressed thanks and appreciation to the Moroccan ambassador for her kind gesture and offered prayers and blessings for good health and long life for the King of Morocco and for the wellbeing and prosperity of the people of Morocco. Source: graphiconline.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 Iranian social media users pushed the hashtag created in support of Kurdish tansborder porters (kolbar) to the top of trending hashtags in Persian on Sunday. During the so-called "Twitterstorm" Sunday evening tweets with the hashtag "Don't Kill Kolbars" were retweeted more than 100,000. The Twitter storm or protest by hashtags was spurred by several new reports about the killing of Kurdish porters by border guards in the mountainous border areas of Iran's Kordestan and West Azarbaijan provinces across from Iraq. According to Hengaw, a Kurdish human rights organization, 6 kolbars were shot dead and 14 others were wounded by Iranian border guards in July. Thousands of impoverished Kurds engage in the deadly trade of carrying massive loads on their backs across the border with Iraqi Kurdistan through extremely dangerous terrain in return for a small fee. Many get caught in snowstorms in the treacherous mountain paths and others are shot by border guards and patrols. The practice developed as small-scale, cross-border transport of goods to evade import-export restrictions and customs duties, but after decades it is part of the local life and economy. Some have coined the term "human mules" for the kolbars. Human rights organizations say authorization of the border-guards to shoot-on-sight has led to the death of 79 kolbars and injury of 66 others in 2019. In December, Hengaw said in the same year twenty-one adolescents and children working as porters had died from soldiers bullets or cold weather. The Twitter campaign against what human rights organizations call "systematic killing of kolbars" followed an online campaign on July 14 with the "Don't Kill" hashtag in response to the confirmation of death sentences against three young men arrested at anti-government protests last November. The hashtag in Persian trended on Twitter and posts with the hashtag were used more than ten million times and the campaign attracted global attention. The hashtag was again used to protest to the Supreme Court decision to uphold the death sentences issued against three young men for anti-government protests in December 2017 and January 2019. Iranian authorities defend the border guards' killing of kolbars by resorting to the accusation of smuggling. Critics, however, say many kolbars engage in the dangerous profession due to the extensive poverty and very high unemployment rates in the regions where the discriminated against Kurdish-speaking population is in majority. Peter Babakitis in "The Journeyman" A rogue corporate spy and a beautiful and mysterious activist join forces to expose massive banking fraud in the Eurozone. Peter Babakitiss The Journeyman wins Best Feature Thriller at the Austria International Film Festival 2020. In this head-spinning cyber-thriller, a rogue corporate spy and a beautiful and mysterious activist join forces to expose massive banking fraud in the Eurozone - risking their lives in the process as they evade and battle the assassins that are on their trail. It all ends in a high-octane showdown between our protagonists and the ruthless relentlessness of the cartel that is determined to crush them. This is the latest and most ambitious offering from indie Sumless Treasuries, whose Henry V, Kuksu, and Classic Stories have garnered international acclaim. An independent, guerilla production shot in Greece, Switzerland, The Netherlands and California, "The Journeyman" whisks us through international locations, where the action mounts to a soaring climax. Peter Babakitis, known for his off-beat performance as Shakespeares King Henry V in his film of the same name, returns in the lead role of Lawrence, a corporate spy, who finds himself in over his head as his shocking discoveries begin to threaten his life. Awards were also received from IndieFest, MIFF, TMFF, Bronze Award from International Independent Film Awards. The lead actress Krystal Langevin has received a Best Actress Award from Londons Flicks Festival for her subtle and nuanced performance as the passionate activist Ariana, who becomes Lawrences Guide into Europes financial underworld. Indie favorite Brian Narelle (Dark Star, Space Ninja, 13 Reasons Why) plays the key role of Waldenstein. Anchored in real current events in todays Europe and using original documentary footage, The Journeyman is a gritty mystery that follows our protagonist as he uncovers a massive plot by corrupt bankers to loot the European economy. Similar to the espionage epics of John Le Carre and Graham Greene, the film evokes an atmosphere of paranoia and intrigue in international locations, culminating in a breathless struggle for survival. Theatrical release has been delayed due to the pandemic, but Sumless Treasuries has announced streaming options for The Journeyman, and it is soon to be streaming on Amazon. Sumless Treasuries Releasing 713A Sir Francis Drake Blvd. San Anselmo, CA 94960 415-596-3353 banfus@gmail.com live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More In light of the deadly spread of COVID-19, health and safety features will become priority thereby changing the way consumers shop, forcing companies to look at new avenues to sell cars, N Chandrasekaran, chairman, Tata Motors said. Addressing shareholders in the 75th annual report, Chandrasekaran said, As we look ahead over the next two years, we anticipate a tremendous deal of transformation stemming from COVID-19. Consumer behaviour will change in numerous ways, from demanding more integrated digital experiences to prioritising health and safety features across purchasing decisions. Though an expensive alternative to public transport, personal mobility will become a more accepted way of travel in the future. This is already seen through an uptick in demand for small hatchbacks during June and July as reported by the countrys largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki. The move to slow travel and personal (versus public and/or shared) transport may shape future demand for passenger vehicles. Greater scrutiny will be placed on building environmental sustainability and climate resilience into the very core of business models, Chandrasekaran added. Tata Motors is pushing through a strategic plan that will see the passenger vehicle business including electric vehicle division placed under a separate entity. The company is trying to bring in a partner who can assist in getting future ready but has declined to cede control of the division. The global auto industry has grappled with multiple issues during the year. On one hand, we saw greater clarity emerge on Brexit; yet on the other hand, mounting trade tensions, muted global growth and enhanced regulatory norms have fundamentally changed the contours of the business environment, Chandrasekaran observed. The Indian auto industry faced an unprecedented year, marked by significant headwinds. Domestic auto sales declined by 18 percent in FY20, the lowest since the data series was introduced in 2001. Alongside a broad economic slowdown, regulatory changesincluding changed axle load norms and the migration to BSVI emission standardsfuelled uncertainty for both consumers and suppliers. During FY20, Tata Motors completely revamped its product portfolio with the upgradation to Bharat Stage VI emission norms. Yesteryear models like Zest, Bolt, Nano, Sumo and Safari made way for Nexon, Tiago, Tigor, Altroz and Harrier. The company also launched its second all-electric model Nexon EV after upgrading its first EV car Tigor. In FY19, we delivered positive net income of Rs 2,021 crore, after making losses for five years. In both FY18 and FY19, TML produced positive free cash flows, following five years in negative territory. In FY20, this turnaround journey has been interrupted, as demand deteriorated sharply on the back of an abruptly slowing economy coupled with the spread of COVID-19, Tata Motors chairman stated. Panaji, Aug 3 : Goa BJP chief Sadanand Shet Tanavade on Monday said the people of the state will "not tolerate" if the Raj Bhavan complex is converted into a five-star hotel. Tanavade's statement comes amid an ongoing tussle between Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and Governor Satya Pal Malik over the proposed construction of a new Raj Bhavan complex by replacing the existing centuries-old Colonial era mansion located near here. "Goans will not take it lying down if politicians decide to convert Raj Bhavan into a five-star hotel," the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said. Responding to Sawant's announcement, Malik in a statement on August 1, called the proposal irrational and imprudent, saying that the capital investment was unnecessary especially at a time when financial resources were required to tackle the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Amid the tussle between the Chief Minister and the Governor, Goa Congress president Girish Chodankar has also alleged that the existing Raj Bhavan was in the process of being converted into a five-star hotel for the purpose of setting up a casino operation. Responding to the charge, Tanavade challenged Chodankar to provide proof that the Raj Bhavan complex was being converted into a five-star hotel. "One cannot make baseless allegations like this. Chodankar should show proof before shooting his mouth," Tanavade said. He added that one of the reasons why the proposal to build a new Raj Bhavan complex may have been taken was on account rainwater seepage in the present building, which dates back to the Portuguese colonial era. LCR-Reader booth at Nepcon Asia Siborg visited Nepcon Asia to show their newest LCR-Reader-MPA device, an all-in-one multimeter with 0.1% basic accuracy, 100 kHz test frequency and wide range of features. LCR-Reader-MPA was introduced in 2019 as an affordable, multi-purpose Digital Multimeter. Since then, Siborg has attended events to display the device and provide a hands-on experience for customers. At Nepcon Asia in Shenzhen, Siborg drew attention while presenting the LCR-Reader-MPA; the devices ability to quickly and accurately test components showed great enthusiasm. In that case Siborg partnered with a Chinese company based in Shenzhen, AI-ROX Polytronics, representing Siborg in China. The LCR-Reader-MPA is a lightweight alternative to bench-type LCR/ESR meters. The MPA is able to determine the type of component and the best test parameters before measuring with a 0.1% basic accuracy. The device does most of the work; when in automatic mode, the MPA will do all the guesswork, and display only highly accurate measurement results on the OLED display, including any secondary values. Easy Short/Open calibration of the device significantly simplifies the removal of parasitic tweezer impedance. Nepcon Asia in Shenzhen showed great interest in the device. Many manufacturers come to the show looking for new and exciting technology; many were enthusiastic about the ability to test unknown components with speed and accuracy. But most were excited about the large range of test options available on the device. There was definitely a buzz from the audience, said Michael Obrecht, Director of Siborg Systems Inc., people were excited about fast and accurate measurements; no set-up was also mentioned a lot. When we started presenting the device and mentioned that there would be a Bluetooth model in the future, people really got excited. Major manufacturing companies from Shenzhen were there and spoke highly of the ability to remotely record test measurements in real-time. This is a very practical ability for quality control. Features on LCR-Reader-MPA: Test frequency 100, 120 Hz, 1, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 75 and 100 kHz 0.1% Basic accuracy Manual and full automatic LCR, ESR, LED/Diode testing Easy Open/Short calibration and offset removal 3.2 Volt LED test voltage Test Signal Reduction to 0.1V for in-circuit measurements Test Signal levels of 0.1, 0.5 and 1 Vrms NIST Traceable Calibration Certificate Large and Super Large Capacitance testing to 640 mF Signal Generator with Sine wave up to 100 kHz Li-Poly battery with micro-USB charging 1 oz. weight Gold-plated test leads LCR-Reader was introduced in 2014 as a budget alternative to other tweezer-multimeters with a 0.5% basic accuracy and the ability to change only the test mode. In 2017, Siborg released the LCR-Reader-MP as a device between Smart Tweezers meters and LCR-Reader; this model offered a 0.1% basic accuracy and more features, including an oscilloscope mode. There are now three models of LCR-Reader-MPA: the base MPA model, the MPAL with lower range of test frequencies, and LCR-Reader-MPA BT with Bluetooth. The Bluetooth model can connect to PC and Android and automatically records measurement data remotely in real-time. Users are able to save the measurement results to a file or database. Profiles can also be set to automatically grant a pass/fail depending on the parameters set, if a component does not reach these parameters, it is granted a fail. Siborgs devices are available in their online LCR-Reader Store, along with other test equipment and many accessories and parts. Some of the other test equipment available is the Kelvin Probe Connector kit that allows any LCR-Reader, MPA or Smart Tweezers device as a probe station. Siborg offers many of their products on their Amazon sales channels in Europe and North America. Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan has accused Clive Palmer of seeking to enter WA so he can promote hydroxychloroquine as a coronavirus cure. The billionaire mining magnate, who was denied an exemption to WA's hard border closures, is challenging the restrictions on the basis they are unconstitutional. A ruling is expected in the High Court in October after a four-day hearing wrapped up in the Federal Court last week. Clive Palmer, who was denied an exemption to WA's hard border closures, is challenging the restrictions on the basis they are unconstitutional Mr Palmer has claimed he wanted to enter WA to attend to business interests and meet WA senator and Finance Minister Mathias Cormann. But WA's premier claims Mr Palmer had other intentions when he initially submitted his application. 'He wanted to come to Western Australia to promote hydroxychloroquine to the people of the state as some sort of cure for COVID,' Mr McGowan told reporters on Monday. 'All the evidence is not only is it not a cure, it's actually dangerous. 'Him coming to Western Australia to promote a dangerous drug, I don't think was a good thing for our state and I'm pleased that (WA Police) rejected him.' Mr Palmer in April announced he had purchased almost 33 million doses of hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malarial drug touted by US President Donald Trump which has since been found to be ineffective at treating COVID-19. Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan has accused Clive Palmer of seeking to enter WA so he can promote hydroxychloroquine as a coronavirus cure It also emerged on Monday that Mr Palmer's pilot had completed some of the exemption application forms on his behalf and they contained errors. Prime Minister Scott Morrison wrote to Mr McGowan at the weekend saying the Commonwealth would no longer support the High Court case after taking into account the evolving state of the pandemic in recent months. Having labelled Mr Palmer 'Australia's greatest egomaniac', Mr McGowan said he was prepared to reconcile with the Morrison government. 'I want to get on with the prime minister, I want to work together with Senator Cormann ... this has been a pretty big road bump but we're past it now and I think relations between the state and Commonwealth should get back onto an even keel,' he said. Mr Palmer said it was 'astounding' the premier and his ministers continued to publicly comment on a matter that was before the court. 'They need to respect the court's independence and as officers of the court, they need to take these responsibilities seriously,'' he said in a statement. WA recorded no new virus cases on Monday, leaving the state with six active cases. The premier announced $319 million in new funding for upgrades at 63 public schools across the state, the latest in a series of stimulus measures. 'These are extraordinary times and we have to use our financial capacity to get people back to work,' Mr McGowan said. 'We've got to get a pipeline of investment now. We can't wait till later.' White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Monday that he thinks there is "a degree" of airborne spread of the coronavirus, although the role it plays is still being studied. "I think that there certainly is a degree of aerosolization," Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said during an interview with the Journal of the American Medical Association. "But I'm going to take a step back and make sure that we learn the facts before we start talking about it." Health experts have said that the coronavirus is generally transmitted person to person through large respiratory droplets, often when someone sneezes or coughs. The World Health Organization first warned in March that such droplets could be kicked up into the air where they might become airborne and linger in certain environments. In July, the WHO published new guidance that acknowledged it can't rule out the possibility the coronavirus can be transmitted through air particles in closed spaces indoors, including in gyms and restaurants. They previously had warned that the virus may become airborne in certain environments, such as during "medical procedures that generate aerosols." Damascus condemns "void agreement" between US company, SDF militants for stealing Syria oil Iran Press TV Sunday, 02 August 2020 2:01 PM Syria has strongly condemned an agreement signed between the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) militant group and an American oil company aimed at stealing the country's oil, stressing that Damascus considers the contract null and void with no legal effect. On Sunday, Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates made the comments in a statement, carried by Syria's official news agency SANA, saying such a theft is carried out under the sponsorship and support of Washington. "Syria considers this agreement null and void, and has no legal effect while warning again that such despicable acts express the approach of those client militias, which have accepted to be a cheap puppet in the hands of the US occupation," the statement said. On Thursday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed for the first time that a US oil company would begin work in SDF-controlled northeastern Syria, during his testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "I talked to General Mazloum [Abdi] yesterday, with the SDF. Apparently they've signed a deal with an American oil company to modernize the oil fields in northeastern Syria. Are you supportive of that?" Senator Lindsay Graham asked Pompeo during the testimony, referring to the commander-in-chief of the US-backed SDF militant group. "We are," Pompeo responded. "The deal took a little longer, Senator, than we had hoped, and now we're in implementation." It is, however, not clear which American company is involved in the illegal project and whether any other companies were given an exemption to US oil sanctions on the Arab country. Al-Monitor, citing unnamed sources, named the company in a report on Thursday as Delta Crescent Energy LLC, a corporation organized under the laws of the state of Delaware, without giving further details. Elsewhere in the statement on Sunday, the Syrian Foreign Ministry denounced the illegal agreement as an integrated and aggravated theft, describing it as a deal between thieves who are stealing and thieves who are buying. The ministry lambasted the agreement as an assault against Syria's sovereignty and a continuation of the US hostile approach toward Syria. The ministry further slammed Washington for hindering the Syrian government's efforts for rebuilding what has been destroyed by the foreign-led terrorism, which is "mostly backed by the US administration itself." A US-led military coalition has been bombarding what it claimed as Daesh positions inside Syria since September 2014 without any authorization from the Damascus government or a UN mandate. The strikes have on many occasions resulted in civilian casualties and failed to fulfill their declared aim of countering terrorism. The Syrian government has repeatedly condemned the airstrikes, stressing that they have not been authorized by the Syrian government or the UN Security Council. The US has long been providing the SDF with arms and militant training, calling them a key partner in the purported fight against the Daesh terrorist group. Many observers, however, see the support in the context of Washington's plans to carve out a foothold in the Arab country. That support has also angered Washington's NATO ally, Turkey, which views militants from the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) the backbone of the SDF as a terrorist organization tied to the homegrown Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) that has been engaged in a destructive war inside Turkey for decades. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Sushmitha Ramakrishnan By Express News Service CHENNAI: Community certificates are meant to set things right for the historically oppressed communities, by granting them opportunities that they were denied in the name of caste. It was in the year 2013, when Selvam and his family, belonging to the Irula community, first approached the revenue office in Tambaram and applied for a community certificate. I was in Class V when we first applied. I have finished my Class 12 exams now. I still havent gotten my certificate, Selvam says. A higher education degree continues to remain elusive for many people like Selvam and his brother, who aspire to break their shackles imposed by their caste and fly higher. The seven-year-long pursuit to obtain a community certificate has still not yielded any result. Selvam fears that he will not stand a chance to go to college without the certificate. My brother was sent to a polytechnic institute instead of a college for the same reason. My father pleaded with the principal of the institute to admit my brother, on the promise that he will submit the community certificate as soon as we get it, he explains. ALSO READ: Anguish Bonafide - How Tamil Nadu's Irula students are struggling to pursue higher education It has been two years now, Selvams brother has been asking for excuses every time he is asked about the certificate. They told him that he cannot get his degree without producing the certificate. How can I dream to study further when it is not easy for my brother? Selvam wishes to study BCom, but is scared that he may never set foot in a college. In my brothers case, my father personally met principals of many institutions and requested them to take my brother conditionally without the certificate. Now, with the lockdown restricting our movement, he may not be able to do that for me, he worries. Ravi, Selvams father, asks not to reveal his elder sons identity as it may jeopardise his career altogether. In 2013, the RDO at Tambaram accepted our request for the certificate. But the officer was transferred after six months, he says. After a few years, the revenue officials have told Ravi that he should apply for the certificate at his native place. We have lived in Madurapakkam near Tambaram for about 12 years now. But they want us to apply in Tiruvannamalai, our native place. While Ravi has been travelling back and forth to Tiruvannamalai over the past few years, his efforts are put to halt by the lockdown. My son finished his Class 12 now. I have no means to travel to Tiruvannamalai to meet the officials repeatedly and remind them of my case. he says lamenting that his sons education may come to an end with this lockdown. By Lambert Strether of Corrente. #COVID19 At reader request, Ive added this daily chart from 91-DIVOCThe data is the Johns Hopkins CSSE data. Here is the site. Back to our top five problem states: Florida, California, Texas, Georgia, and Arizona, with New York for comparison: Not a plateau in our five problem states, fortunately. This chart includes new cases and positivity. Positivity is concerning. In terms of undercounting as measured by positivity (higher is bad), the order from worst to best would be AZ, FL, GA, TX, CA, at 7.46%, is still too high by WHO standards (they want 5%). So all the states are making progress in testing, especially Arizona (20.2%) but all have a way to go. 91-DIVOC has some new charts. By Census Bureau regions: By Governors political party: CA: California COVID-19 cases spiked after July 4th. Family gatherings helped the spread, experts say. [USA Today]. County health officials throughout California are increasingly reporting that close social gatherings and spread of the virus within a household are larger drivers of transmission than tourism. While there are very real concerns about travel to far-flung and small communities where hospitals could be quickly overwhelmed, it isnt currently public health officials main worry. HI: With cases increasing at a distressing rate, Lt. Gov. Josh Green says a statewide lockdown might be the only way out [Star-Advertiser]. Hawaiis positive COVID-19 cases went back to triple digits Sunday, adding another data point to a surge that is bringing the state closer to another widespread lockdown and garnering national attention. [Lt. Gov. Josh Green] said the state is at a crossroads now, and this week is the last week to get the numbers under control without having to take dramatic measures. If we see another week of triple digits, the only sensible thing to do is to have a two- to four-week shutdown with only essential work occurring to keep ourselves alive, he said. It certainly makes the opening of schools problematic and any trans-Pacific travel problematic. MO: Missouri got millions to fight COVID-19, but 50 health agencies havent seen a penny [Kansas City Star]. By early May, the federal government had delivered hundreds of millions of dollars to Missouri to fight the spread of the coronavirus Of Missouris 114 counties, only 17 local health agencies reported receiving aid. Thirteen said they did not apply for funds and another 34 did not participate in the survey. NV: What Happens In Vegas Doesnt Stay In Vegas [Eschaton]. Cant see any real problem with a high new case rate in a state/city where people fly in for a couple of days, spend it all in an enclosed space with a lot of other people from all around the country, and then fly back home. TX: Im just so, so tired' [Houston Chronicle]. The strain has hit everyone up and down the medical chain in hospitals, from doctors to support staff. They all say they feel it, disheartened by a pandemic with no finish line. Often, though, the brunt is being borne most by the hands-on workers, those who hover after the doctor has left the room, monitoring conditions, administering medication, stepping in as surrogate family. Nursing shifts are sometimes stretching 17 hours or longer with few if any days off because there are often not enough staff at some facilities to relieve them. Fear of bringing the virus home to family or falling sick themselves is a constant. Politics But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? James Madison, Federalist 51 They had one weapon left and both knew it: treachery. Frank Herbert, Dune They had learned nothing, and forgotten nothing. Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord The electoral map. July 17: Georgia, Ohio, ME-2 move from Leans Republican to Toss-up. Continued yikes. On July 7, the tossup were 86. Only July 17, they were 56. Now they are 91. This puts Biden at 278, i.e. over 270. August 3: Still no changes. Click the map to create your own at 270toWin.com So, taking the consensus as a given, 270 (total) 204 (Trumps) = 66. Trump must win 66 from the states in play: AZ (11), FL (29), MI (16), NC (15), PA (20), and WI (10) plus 1 to win not tie = 102. 102 66 = 36. So if Trump wins FL, MI, NC, and PA (29 + 16 + 15 + 20 = 80), he wins. Thats a heavy lift. I think Ive got the math right this time! 2020 Biden (D)(1): Via email, NH: Saw new yard signs for state elections, and US Senatorial elections, but no new Biden signs. There is zero energy for that guy. Not even car stickers, nothing. Biden (D)(2): Via email, Seattle, WA: I see more trump signs out here in Seattle than Biden signs. I think the trumpers are not as shy about their candidate as Bidens supporters. Biden (D)(3): More in Seatte: Inspirational stuff. https://t.co/YvQcwQxxBw dilan (@dilanpcook) August 1, 2020 Biden (D)(4): The guy stuffed with formaldehyde is only 9 points ahead of Trump even though the economy has collapsed, there's a plague, and civil war looms. This is looking bad for the Dems. https://t.co/jsBSClQSzS Sharmine Narwani (@snarwani) August 2, 2020 I try to discount Democrat triumphalism And it is true that a five point swing beats a nine-point lead. Thats not insuperable, especially for a mercurial candidate like Trump. But national polls dont matter; only swing states do. Sanders (D)(1): Sanders endorses ending filibuster to pass voting rights legislation [Axios]. Sure, but not for Medicare for All? Trump (R)(1): The case for Trump will come down to his record. Its a strong one. [Hugh Hewitt, WaPo]. Oddly, Hewitt omits nuking TPP. And doesnt mention COVID. He concludes: Theres an aesthetic critique of Trump that has convinced elites that he must be beaten, that he is cruel and beneath the office. But Americans want their jobs and security back. They like the police. And, yes, most of the time they mostly admire Trumps style and, almost always, his results. I hate the body language metaphor, but Trumps body language suggests to me that a colorable vaccine could be doable. So does WaPo; that would be why they just emitted an editorial saying that downplaying a vaccines importance. Stats Watch At reader request, I added some business stats back in. Please give Econintersect click-throughs; theyre a good, old-school blog that covers more than stats. If anybody knows of other aggregators, please contact me at the email address below. Manufacturing: July 2020 ISM and Markit Manufacturing Surveys Improve [Econintersect]. Based on these surveys and the district Federal Reserve Surveys, one would expect the Feds Industrial Production index growth rate to be slightly better than last month. Overall, surveys do not have a high correlation to the movement of industrial production (manufacturing) since the Great Recession. No question these surveys suggest the economy is no longer in recession. Construction: June 2020 Construction Spending Declined [Econintersect]. Construction spending is trending downward but remarkedly strong considering the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Private construction had been fueling construction growth but currently, public construction is fueling the growth. Consider this a slightly worse report relative to last month. Construction employment has contracted significantly. * * * Retail: Hermes sales plunge 42 per cent amid global coronavirus store closures [CNA Luxury]. The iconic Birkin bag may be the worlds most resilient luxury product in times of crisis, but even its maker is feeling the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic. French luxury goods company Hermes has announced that sales fell 42 per cent in the second quarter as the coronavirus pandemic forced it to shutter stores across the globe and pause production. the silver lining of the pandemic lies in Hermess online channels, where sales have grown by double-digits across Asia. Online sales in the first half increased by more than 100 per cent in China, with growth continuing even after stores reopened in the country, reported Jing Daily. In a sign of confidence, Hermes also announced that it has increased its workforce by almost 300 people, mostly in production. Tech: Huawei somehow becomes the #1 phone manufacturer, thanks to the coronavirus [Ars Technica]. Despite aggressive sanctions from the US government, Huawei has become the number 1 smartphone manufacturer in the world, according to Canalys. The companys 55.8 million smartphone shipments in Q2 2020 put it at the top of Canalys charts for the quarter, marking the first time the company has passed Samsung for the top spot. Huaweis top spot isnt really due to it defeating US sanctions. Huaweis sales are actually down slightly compared to last year, but in the age of the coronavirus, sales being down only slightly; is a major win. Tech: Comcast Cable, Internet Revenues Buoy Firm Through COVID-19 Turbulence [CRN]. Comcast Corp.s strength in business services, sought-after high-speed internet, and wireless carried the cable giants balance sheet during an otherwise tumultuous fiscal period brought on by the disruptive COVID-19 pandemic. The cable giants best-in-class and flexible broadband network the core of the company saw record-low customer churn during the second-quarter of the year, said Comcast Chairman and CEO Brian Roberts during Comcasts Q2 2020 earnings call on Thursday. This confirms that our investments are working. We offer differentiated products and services, and a fantastic customer experience, he said. Comcasts NBCUniversal entertainment and theme parks segment, on the other hand, succumbed to park closures, postponed filming schedules, and cancelled sporting events during the quarter with a 25 percent decline in revenues. Eesh, what is a fantastic customer experience on broadband? Tech: Amazon will invest over $10 billion in its satellite internet network after receiving FCC authorization [CNBC]. Amazons project, known as Kuiper, would see the company launch 3,236 satellites into low Earth orbit. Amazon says it will deploy the satellites in five phases, with broadband service beginning once it has 578 satellites in orbit. Manufacturing: US chip industry plots route back to homegrown production [Financial Times]. Many advanced chips are designed in the US, but only around 12 per cent are manufactured there. There is no mystery behind the anxiety. China is still years behind the US in semiconductors, but it is racing to develop a globally competitive chip industry and is projected to become a serious competitor by the end of the decade. And: Taiwans silicon shield makes it the 51st [US] state, said [Dan Hutcheson, chairman of VLSI Research and a longtime chip analyst], referring to the theory that the countrys leadership in chip technology is its best defence against aggression from China. The US needs to protect Taiwan it cant afford to lose it to China.' * * * Todays Fear & Greed Index: 67 Greed (previous close: 65 Greed) [CNN]. One week ago: 65 (Greed). (0 is Extreme Fear; 100 is Extreme Greed). Last updated Aug 3 at 1:02pm. Solid greed. Starting to get dull. Rapture Index: Closes up one Beast Government. The government movement is having trouble with world unity [Rapture Ready]. Record High, October 10, 2016: 189. Current: 182. (Remember that bringing on the rapture is a good thing.) Beast Government is volatile! The Biosphere With coronavirus keeping commuters at home, soot pollution in Cleveland, Akron down significantly [Cleveland.com]. A byproduct of many Ohioans working from home to avoid spread of COVID-19 coronavirus is that harmful soot from automobile exhaust has dropped significantly in Greater Cleveland. Pollution data collected by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency shows air quality ratings improving in both Cleveland and Akron within about a week of Gov. Mike DeWine issuing his stay-at-home order on March 22. And pollution levels in both cities still remained below five-year averages for a majority of business days in both June and July, the most recent data cleveland.com could obtain from the EPA showed, though the trend was less pronounced in Akron. This country regrew its lost forest. Can the world learn from it? [CNN]. In the 1940s, 75% of Costa Rica was cloaked in lush rainforests. Then the loggers arrived, chainsaws in hand, and cleared the land to grow crops and raise livestock. While there is ongoing debate about the extent of reduction, it is thought that between a half and a third of forest cover had been destroyed by 1987. Soon after this all-time low, the government took a series of radical actions to convert the country back into a natural paradise. In 1996 it made it illegal to chop down forest without approval from authorities and the following year it introduced PES, [PES, which pays farmers to protect watersheds, conserve biodiversity or capture carbon dioxide]. Today almost 60% of the land is once again forest. Arctic sea ice could disappear completely within two months time [Arctic News]. Arctic sea ice fell by 3.239 million km in extent in 25 days (i.e. from July 1 to 25, 2020). Melting will likely continue for another two months. If it continues on its current trajectory, the remaining 6.333 million km of Arctic sea ice could disappear completely within two months time. The fall in extent over the next two months time may not remain as as steep as it was in July, yet the sea ice still could disappear completely. One reason for this is that, over the years, sea ice thickness has been declining even faster than extent. The rapid decline in sea ice thickness is illustrated by the sequence of images below. Amazon region: Brazil records big increase in fires [BBC]. Official figures from Brazil have shown a big increase in the number of fires in the Amazon region in July compared with the same month last year. Satellite images compiled by Brazils National Space Agency revealed there were 6,803 a rise of 28%. President Jair Bolsonaro has encouraged agricultural and mining activities in the Amazon. But under pressure from international investors in early July his government banned starting fires in the region. International investors? Really? Health Care How the Pandemic Defeated America [Ed Yong, The Atlantic]. Since the pandemic began, I have spoken with more than 100 experts in a variety of fields. Ive learned that almost everything that went wrong with Americas response to the pandemic was predictable and preventable. A sluggish response by a government denuded of expertise allowed the coronavirus to gain a foothold. Chronic underfunding of public health neutered the nations ability to prevent the pathogens spread. A bloated, inefficient health-care system left hospitals ill-prepared for the ensuing wave of sickness. Racist policies that have endured since the days of colonization and slavery left Indigenous and Black Americans especially vulnerable to COVID19. The decades-long process of shredding the nations social safety net forced millions of essential workers in low-paying jobs to risk their life for their livelihood. The same social-media platforms that sowed partisanship and misinformation during the 2014 Ebola outbreak in Africa and the 2016 U.S. election became vectors for conspiracy theories during the 2020 pandemic. I could file this under failed state, too (though after The People, No, that experts makes my Spidey sense tingle). COVID-19 long-term toll signals billions in healthcare costs ahead [Reuters]. Studies of COVID-19 patients keep uncovering new complications associated with the disease. With mounting evidence that some COVID-19 survivors face months, or possibly years, of debilitating complications, healthcare experts are beginning to study possible long-term costs. Bruce Lee of the City University of New York (CUNY) Public School of Health estimated that if 20% of the U.S. population contracts the virus, the one-year post-hospitalization costs would be at least $50 billion, before factoring in longer-term care for lingering health problems. Without a vaccine, if 80% of the population became infected, that cost would balloon to $204 billion. Worlds greatest newspaper hazes over the distinction between indoor and outdoor transmission: The media's misinformation campaign continues on the front page of the Sunday @nytimes. What's driving the latest surge in cases? Apparently people enjoying themselves at spacious beaches and parks and drive-in movies. pic.twitter.com/Ho0UaMj0WD Julia Marcus, PhD, MPH (@JuliaLMarcus) August 2, 2020 I think the idea behind the beach photos is to shame. But cant we get the science right? Trump owes us an apology. Chinese scientist at the center of COVID-19 origin theories speaks out [Science]. n her written answers to Science, [Shi Zhengli] explained in great detail why she thinks her lab [Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV)[is blameless. WIV has identified hundreds of bat viruses over the years, but never anything close to SARS-CoV-2, she says. Although much speculation has centered on RaTG13, the bat virus that most closely resembles SARS-CoV-2, differences in the sequences of the two viruses suggest they diverged from a common ancestor somewhere between 20 and 70 years ago. Shi notes that her lab never cultured the bat virus, making an accident far less likely. Shi mentioned several other factors that she says exonerate her lab. Their research meets strict biosafety rules, she said, and the lab is subject to periodic inspections by a third-party institution authorized by the government. Antibody tests have shown there is zero infection among institute staff or students with SARS-CoV-2 or SARS-related viruses. Shi said WIV has never been ordered to destroy any samples after the pandemic erupted and she was sure the virus didnt come from the Wuhan Center for Disease Control and Preventionor another lab in the cityeither: Based on daily academic exchanges and discussion, I can rule out such a possibility. Carefully vetted, no doubt. But: Shi ended her answers to Science on a similar note. Over the past 20 years, coronaviruses have been disrupting and impacting human lives and economies, she said. Here, I would like to make an appeal to the international community to strengthen international cooperation on research into the origins of emerging viruses. I hope scientists around the world can stand together and work together.' Black Injustice Tipping Point How the Antislavery Movement Ignited a Political Revolution [Matt Karp, Jacobin]. The transformation in political consciousness that Garnet witnessed in 1856 is the subject of Matt Karps essay in Catalyst, The Mass Politics of Antislavery, which traces the development of the movement against slavery in the decades leading up to the Civil War. This movement included militant abolitionists, but also many ordinary white Northerners and small farmers a diverse coalition pulled together by the nascent Republican Party. Founded in 1854, the Republican Party was part of a movement that brought abolitionism from the fringe to the center of American politics by fusing moral opposition to slavery with appeals to the material interests of those who might otherwise have been indifferent to the antislavery cause. Indeed, hatred of the Slave Power became the driving force within the Republican movement, which never lost sight of abolitionism, even as it sought to expand its appeal and broaden its base. Groves of Academe Colleges Seek Waivers From Risk-Taking Students [Inside Higher Ed]. As fall semester approaches, students are increasingly opposing liability waivers and informed consent agreements required by colleges as a condition of returning to campus. Some of the agreements are more explicit than others, such as the contract used by Bates, which legal experts say implies that students are waiving their right to pursue litigation for negligence on the part of the college. Mary Pols, a spokesperson for Bates, said in an email that the colleges fall reopening plan emphasizes student choice[ and the written acknowledgment is intended to help students and their families make an informed decision about the fall semester. Students may choose to return to campus, study remotely, or take a leave, Pols wrote. That choice lies squarely with students and their families, depending on their personal circumstances the college has been and will continue to be flexible as students plans change over the summer. Agreements at other institutions attempt to conceal the legal language within statements about students responsibility to follow public health guidance and general information about how to prevent the spread of coronavirus, some students said. Guillotine Watch Eight Shocking Secrets I Learned While Working on Private Jets [Bloomberg]. [O]utfitting an aircraft with silverware, bedding, and electronics exceeds $100,000. (Much of it gets stolen.) Im shocked. Class Warfare Mnuchin on $600 unemployment benefit: We cant be paying people more to stay home' [The Hill]. If you want them to stay home during a pandemic, thats what you should do. Of course, C-M-C rules. Property May Not Be Theft, but Its Not NOT Theft [The Nation]. [P]roperty destruction needs to be taken seriously as a coherent, intelligent form of political speech. Reframing property destruction as a fully conscious, intelligent form of resistance is important for a number of reasons. It forces us to distinguish between violence against people (often in the name of property protection) and violence against non-living things. It explicitly acknowledges the role of coercion in political struggle that is obscured by a reductive notion of nonviolence as the gold standard of democratic change. And it invites us to examine something so fundamental to the very terms of our political thought that it often escapes scrutiny. Namely, private property. The recent attacks on buildings, monuments, and police stations that occurred in the course of protests against state-sanctioned murder were not an unfortunate byproduct of otherwise peaceful, legitimate protests but integral to them. Hmm. News of the Wired How the 1918 Pandemic Got Meme-ified in Jokes, Songs and Poems [Smithsonian]. Take, as an example, poems everyday people wrote about the Spanish Flu, which were published widely in local and national newspapers. Media of the time labored under the close watch of World War I media censorship, which aimed to curb public dissent. However, newspapers did frequently publish poetry, providing an outlet for regular people to submit their work and vent their frustrations. Some papers contained specific pages for humorous pieces, odd facts, and anecdotes. Others placed poems in the midst of local or national news. Memento mori> Properly taking care of photo archives is difficult & expensive. Photographers, if you care about your legacy, start planning now. Don't leave it to your survivors. That's how many archives have ended up in dumpsters. Seriously. https://t.co/yotNosck5I John Edwin Mason (@johnedwinmason) August 1, 2020 News you can use: today on amazon i accidentally discovered that you can just buy wheel locks for cheap enough to put on someone's car who pissed you off pic.twitter.com/6GprVyFyIP POKEY ALSO (in spirit) (@rabcyr_alt) August 1, 2020 * * * Readers, feel free to contact me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, with (a) links, and even better (b) sources I should curate regularly, (c) how to send me a check if you are allergic to PayPal, and (d) to find out how to send me images of plants. Vegetables are fine! Fungi and coral are deemed to be honorary plants! If you want your handle to appear as a credit, please place it at the start of your mail in parentheses: (thus). Otherwise, I will anonymize by using your initials. See the previous Water Cooler (with plant) here. Todays plant (CR): CR writes: Will the deer allow us to have any zucchini? Remains to be seen. I suppose forest fires come under the rubric of plants (periol), so bonus: * * * Readers: Water Cooler is a standalone entity not covered by the annual NC fundraiser. So if you see a link you especially like, or an item you wouldnt see anywhere else, please do not hesitate to express your appreciation in tangible form. Remember, a tip jar is for tipping! Regular positive feedback both makes me feel good and lets me know Im on the right track with coverage. When I get no donations for five or ten days I get worried. More tangibly, a constant trickle of donations helps me with expenses, and I factor in that trickle when setting fundraising goals: Here is the screen that will appear, which I have helpfully annotated. If you hate PayPal, you can email me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, and I will give you directions on how to send a check. Thank you! All racial comments are inappropriate given the heightened sensitivity to racism in our country today, Schiro said. Elected officials, especially, need to be mindful, he added. We are and should be held to a higher standard. I can assure citizens of Luray that kind of thinking is not indicative of the council. New Delhi, Aug 3 : Though India has entered Unlock 3.0, the pause in the fitness industry is likely to last longer. The new normal is here to stay as gyms will not be re-opening to the world as they used to be. It has become important for the fitness industry to be very careful, maintain proper hygiene and use technology to avoid any contact that could lead to the transfer of the virus. COVID-19 has created a 'new normal' everywhere and the focus has shifted to health and safety like never before. As the industry heads towards this new direction, the fitness enthusiasts are sitting on the fence - anxious to return yet nervous. "Gyms will have to reassure their members that they have taken all the preventive measures to safeguard them from unnecessary exposure. In Unlock 3.0, a contactless gym experience with integrated technology at the core of reopening strategy is the only way forward to reduce the risk of any transmission," says Amaresh Ojha, Founder & CEO, Gympik. Every gym irrespective of their scale needs technology for a safer phased exit from the lockdown. "We have upgraded our software Traqade by Gympik to offer a contactless all-in-one gym management SaaS solution to our clients. Be it app-based slot booking, contactless member check-ins to touchless payments and virtual training, we are committed to supporting our fitness partners to bring back members safely- with minimum upheaval and complete peace of mind. We have also recently released an e-book- 'Gym owner's playbook to survive the Covid-19 challenge' to help the gym owners sail through the crisis," adds Ojha. While gym owners wait for the official guidelines from the government, many of them have modified their SOPs and trained staff on all Covid proof safety and sanitization plans. Ankit Sachdeva, Gym Owner, Ilift Fitness informed "we have also limited the length of the training sessions and have put a cap on the number of members that can workout at a time through an app's slot booking feature so that our members can get back to their workouts safely socially distanced". But getting back to the business at this time may seem like starting afresh, feels Arun Chaudhary, Gym Owner, Sweat Fitness. "We support stringent safety standards at the gym. We have put in place a lot of protocols with the help of technology right from slot booking with the App, online payments and contactless member check-ins instead of biometric to ensure social distancing is maintained and each member gets a healthy workout space." "Things have changed completely for us in Unlock 3. Unlike earlier, members can't simply walk into the gym." Viraj Ramesh Trivedi, Gym Owner, Mickey Mehta's Gym Borivali conducted by V.R. Fitness, said: "Another major change that we have done to create a safer workout environment for our members is that we have eliminated the biometric access control with a simple touchless QR code-based mobile check-in via our member app." (Puja Gupta can be contacted at puja.g@ians.in) -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text TOWANDA An investigation is continuing into the cause of a fire that gutted a Towanda business on Monday, sending up smoke that could be seen from miles away. There were no injuries in the fire at Precision Tooling Group, 304 S. Quincy St. Crews were dispatched around 11:30 a.m. to what was described as a working structure fire. When we got there, we had heavy fire, said Towanda Fire Chief Brett Lueschen. The first engine on the scene started an attack, but with the amount of fire we had, we called in mutual aid departments, immediately. Those included Bloomington, Normal, Hudson, Lexington, and some tenders, a type of truck that specializes in the transportation of water from a water source to a fire scene, from fire departments in Cooksville, Chenoa and Washington. "We had two aerial trucks one from Normal and one from Bloomington helping us out," he added. "It took about two hours to get it under control." Lueschen did not know how many employees were at the site and said the fire's cause would likely be under investigation for awhile. Smoke and flames could be seen coming from the roof of the single-story building minutes after the first call went out. Employees and neighbors were outside watching firefighters at the scene. "The employees were examined by Lexington Fire, but nobody was transported," he said. TJ Mccmartry, an employee, said he and his coworkers were having a lunch break when they smelled smoke and safely evacuated the building. The business owner told a Pantagraph reporter at the scene that he didn't want to comment. Tammy and Frank Kmieciaks backyard faces Precision Tooling Group, and their pool and two sheds are just feet away from the back portion of the building, which did not appear to have exterior damage on Monday afternoon. Tammy Kmieciak said her husband was at work and she ran to her neighbors house to help them evacuate as soon as she saw the flames. We were just unloading our groceries and immediately evacuated our pets and then I went next door to help, she said. Kmieciak and her son, Cory, safely removed their family dog and two cats from the home. PHOTOS: Fire rips through Precision Tooling Group in Towanda The latest Crime Stoppers of McLean County Contact Kevin Barlow at (309) 820-3238. Follow him on Twitter: @pg_barlow 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. BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 3 By Nargiz Sadikhova - Trend: The value of trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Greece amounted to over $567.7 million over first four months of 2020 compared to $423.3 million during the same period of 2019, Trend reports with reference to Kazakhstans Statistics Committee. The share of Greece in the total value of Kazakhstans trade turnover stood at 2 percent during the reporting period of 2020 compared to 1.5 percent during the same period of 2019. Kazakhstans export to Greece amounted to $562.01 million over the period from January through April 2020 compared to $417.9 million during the same period of 2019. Greece's share in the total volume of Kazakhstans export amounted to 3.1 percent during the reporting period of 2020, compared to 2.3 percent during the same period of 2019. In turn, Kazakhstans import from Greece amounted to $5.7 million over the reporting period compared to $5.4 million during the same period of 2019. Greeces total share in Kazakhstans import reached 0.1 percent during the reporting period of 2020 and remained unchanged in comparison with the same period of 2019. Total volume of Kazakhstans trade turnover made up $28.1 million over the period from Jan. through Apr. 2020 which indicates a decrease from $28.8 million during the same period of 2019. Kazakhstans export amounted to $18.3 million during the reporting period of 2020 ($18.5 million in the same period of 2019), whereas import amounted to $9.8 million ($10.3 million). --- Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh One possible solution to cellular agriculture's biggest problem -- how to develop a cheap, humane growth material for cultured meat -- may have come from a conversation in line at a Tim Hortons in Alberta. The husband and wife duo of Matt and Jalene Anderson-Baron were waiting for Timbits and coffee and talking about the technology behind their startup, Future Fields, when Jalene suggested a possible new growth medium. Matt Anderson-Baron had hit a wall in his research, and the pair, which represented two-thirds of the founding triumvirate of Future Fields, were out for a snack. Along with co-founder Lejjy Gafour, the three friends had set out to launch a startup from Canada that could do something about the world's reliance on animals for protein. They recognized that the attendant problems associated with animal farming were unsustainable at a scale needed to meet global demand for meat. So the three turned their attention to cell-based alternatives to the meat market. "It was all just our interesting crazy side project that we never thought would turn into a business," said Jalene Anderson-Baron. "That has evolved into a successful business idea over the last year." Future Fields co-founders. Image credit: Future Fields Initially, the trio had hoped to launch their own cultured meat brand to sell lab-grown chicken to the world, but after four months spent experimenting in the lab, Matt Anderson-Baron and the rest of the team decided to pivot and begin work on a new growth serum. All thanks to Tim Hortons. "Our MVP was a chicken nugget. It worked out to be about $3,000 per pound which is obviously not a lucrative business model, given that the aim was to produce something price comparable to meat," said Anderson-Brown. "We shifted to focus on a new medium that would be economically viable. Originally we intended it for something that just we used. We didnt realize at first the novelty of our product and how beneficial it would be to the industry. About eight months ago we decided to pivot and make that growth medium our product." Story continues Now, as it gets ready to leave the Y Combinator accelerator program, the company has some paid contracts in place and will be rolling out the first couple of pilot product lines of its cell growth material for shipment within the next month. The potential demand for the company's product is huge. Alpha Meats, Shiok Meat, Finless Foods, Memphis Meats, Meatable, Mosa Meat, Aleph Farms, Future Meat Technologies, Lab Farm Foods and Eaat are all companies developing lab-grown alternatives to meat and fish. All told, these companies have raised well over $200 million. Some of the biggest names in traditional meat production like Tyson Foods are investing in meat alternatives. Image Credit: Getty Images/VectorMine "Its about getting the price at scale. The companies that are using smaller volumes are bringing it down 10 to 100 times cheaper. We can do that. But our superpower is producing the growth medium at scale and doing it 1,000 times cheaper," said Matt Anderson-Brown. "Were talking about $2 to $3 per liter at scale." Future Fields' founders didn't say much about the technology that they're using, except to say that they're genetically modifying a specific organism by inserting the genetic code for specific protein production into their unidentified cell line to produce different growth factors. The University of Alberta isn't unique in its development of a Health Accelerator Program, but its equity-free approach allows startups and would-be bio-engineering entrepreneurs an opportunity to develop their businesses without fear of dilution. Future Fields has already raised a small, pre-seed round of $480,000 from a group of undisclosed angel investors and the Grow Agrifood Tech Accelerator out of Singapore. And the company has the capacity to produce a few hundred liters of its growth factor, according to Gafour, and is working on plans to scale up production to hit tens of thousands of liters per month over the next year. For Gafour and his compatriots, the cellular agriculture industry has already reached an inflection point, and the next steps are less about scientific discovery and radical innovation and more about iteration and commercialization. "With the inclusion of a growth media solution, the core pieces are in place, and now it's a matter of understanding the efficiencies in being able to scale it up," said Gafour. Still, there are other components that need to be developed for the industry to truly bring down costs to a point where it can compete with traditional meat. Companies still need to develop a scaffolding to support the growth of protein cells into the muscle and fatty tissues that give meat its flavor. Bioreactor design needs to improve as well, according to Matt Anderson-Baron. "It's the wild west. There's so many things still to be done." And there are many companies working on these technologies as well. Glycosan, Lyopor and Prellis are all working on building tissue scaffolding that can be used for animal organ development. "The vision of our company was to accelerate this industry and move the industry along," said Jalene Anderson-Baron. "At first we didnt realize the potential of our technology. We thought that everyone would overcome that roadblock around the same time. As we were speaking with other companies and speaking with investors who had been in touch with other companies, we realized this was the key piece to move the industry forward." A team of researchers from Japan has demonstrated a light-based reaction that yields high numbers of the base chemical component required to produce bioactive compounds used in common industry products. They published their results on June 11 in Organic Letters. "We developed a redox potential-controlled and cost-effective method to synthesize multisubstituted cyclobutanes, which are present in the core structure of various products and bioactive components," said paper author Yujiro Hoshino, a research associate at Yokohama National University. Cycloaddition reactions allow to prepare carbocyclic and heterocyclic organic compounds with atom-efficiency. For a long time, researchers carried out photocycloadditions of olefins such as styrenes, a chemical used in the production of plastics and rubber, by treating them with high-energy ultraviolet light or transition metal catalysts, which are known to be toxic and expensive chemical reagents. The reaction mainly provides homo-dimer, not hetero-dimer. In addition, the powerful light damages the bonds holding the chemical together, allowing it to break apart and reform in a new configuration, known as a cyclobutene ring. Redox potential refers to how easily a chemical loses or gains electrons. Hoshino and co-workers take advantage of this characteristic and applied a green, visible light to styrenes situated in a two-by-two arrangement, allowing the chemical components and bonds to selectively reorganize as the light freed electrons from the styrenes. The newly organized chemical components were multisubstituted cyclobutanes. "By focusing on the different redox potential between various styrenes and optimizing our light catalysts, we developed a mild and clean method to synthesize multisubstituted cyclobutanes," Kenta Tanaka, paper first author and an assistant professor at Tokyo University of Science, said. "Emphasis will be placed on the strategy which shows the potential to synthesize multisubstituted cyclobutanes via radical cation species without any transition metal catalysts," said another corresponding author Kiyoshi Honda, a professor at Yokohama National University. Next, the researchers plan to expand the use of various visible-light catalysis methods. "We hope our reaction system provides an efficient and new method for green-light-driven organic chemical reactions, and that we continue to contribute to the field," Hoshino said. ### This work was supported in part by the Nanotechnology Platform Program at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in Japan and Yokohama National University. Other contributors include Yoshinori Iwama and Mami Kishimoto, both of whom are affiliated with the Graduate School of Environment and Information Sciences at Yokohama National University; and Naoya Ohtuska, Institute for Molecular Science. Yokohama National University (YNU or Yokokoku) is a Japanese national university founded in 1949. YNU provides students with a practical education utilizing the wide expertise of its faculty and facilitates engagement with the global community. YNU's strength in the academic research of practical application sciences leads to high-impact publications and contributes to international scientific research and the global society. For more information, please see: https://www.ynu.ac.jp/english/ Samantha Jones, left, has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison after she stabbed her husband to death. (AFP via Getty Images) A British woman who fatally stabbed her husband in Malaysia has avoided the death penalty. Samantha Jones, 54, pleaded guilty to a lesser charge on Monday and was sentenced to three and a half years in prison. Her husband John William Jones, 62, was found dead in the couples resort home on 18 October, 2018. On Monday her lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo said prosecutors had reduced the original murder charge to culpable homicide, which is murder without intent, after the defence appealed to the attorney-generals office. In Malaysia a conviction for murder carries a mandatory death sentence by hanging. She is very relieved having come to terms with what happened that night and for the court to understand what happened that night. She didnt intend for this to happen, her lawyer said after the hearing in Alor Setar in the northern state of Kedah. In addition to the jail sentence, Jones was also fined 10,000 ringgit (1,800). Samantha Jones, left, escorted by a police officer for a previous court appearance in October 2018. (AFP via Getty Images) Jones, originally from Somerset, was charged with her husbands murder two years ago after his body and a bloodstained kitchen knife were found in the property. Police say Jones confessed to stabbing her husband in the chest during a heated argument. Wearing a mask and handcuffed, Jones was escorted by police into the courthouse on Monday. The couple moved to tropical Langkawi island 11 years ago under the Malaysia My Second Home programme, which gives foreigners long-staying visas. Sangeet Kaur Deo, the lawyer for Samantha Jones, said the defendant had pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and avoided the death penalty. (AP Photo) British woman Samantha Jones, right, was detained in October 2018 after the death of her husband in Malaysia. (AP) Her lawyer said the couple, who had been married for 17 years, were devoted to each other but Jones was struggling with physical violence by her husband. Unfortunately, Samantha found herself at the receiving end of abuse, the lawyer said. She supported John through various therapies to address certain problems that he had, none of which worked obviously, until that unfortunate night when things took a turn for the worst. She has accepted the fact that she needs to serve the sentence. She acknowledged the fact that a life is lost and I think she is looking forward to her own recovery because this was indeed a traumatising event for her. The lawyer added that Jones, who has spent 20 months in detention, could be released as early as the end of next year with one-third off the sentence for good behaviour. In 1989, Derrick Gregory, from Ealing, London, was hanged in Malaysia after being convicted of drug smuggling. By PTI KOLKATA: The number of single-day COVID-19 fatalities in West Bengal crossed 50-mark on Monday after 53 people succumbed to the disease, taking the death toll to 1,731, the health department said. The states coronavirus caseload also mounted to 78,232 after the highest one-day spike of 2,716 fresh cases was reported from different districts. Kolkata and North 24 Parganas district both accounted for 21 deaths, while three deaths each were reported from South 24 Parganas and Howrah and one each from Hooghly, Dakshin Dinajpur, Uttar Dinajpur, Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar districts, the department said in a bulletin. Of the 53 deaths, 50 were due to comorbidities where COVID-19 was incidental. The metropolis also topped the list of fresh infections with 756 cases, followed by 510 in North 24 Parganas, 185 from Howrah, 151 from Darjeeling, 144 from South 24 Parganas, 91 from Hooghly, 90 from Malda, 82 from Purba Medinipur and 79 from Coochbehar districts. The remaining 628 cases were reported from test 14 districts of West Bengal, the bulletin said. Since Sunday, 2,088 patients have been released from hospitals, and the discharge rate is now 70.07 per cent, it said. So far, 54,818 people in the state have recovered from the disease. The number of active cases stood at 21,683. In the last 24 hours, 22,122 samples have been tested in West Bengal. Aiming to free up private hospital beds for COVID-19 patients requiring emergency treatment, the West Bengal Clinical Establishment Regulatory Commission in an advisory said that only the doctor will decide on admission or discharge. The decision of the examining doctor taken without any extraneous consideration or recommendation will be deemed final, it said. If the number of waiting patients is more than the number of vacant beds, the doctor on duty would examine each patient and allot beds to the most deserving ones ignoring any extraneous considerations or recommendations. The decision of the doctor on duty will be final and binding upon all, said an advisory from the Commission. The examining doctor will also take the final call on shifting a patient from the general bed to the ICU or ITU, the advisory stated. We have noticed that patients refuse to go home without a confirmatory coronavirus negative report though the discharge guidelines state that clinically fit patient can now be sent home even without testing negative. Following this we have decided on this new advisory so that patients who need to be hospitalised do not have to wait as they do get any vacancies, one member of the Commission said. If the patient wants he/she can shift to a safe house after being discharged from the hospital but will not be allowed to occupy a bed pending a negative COVID-19 report, he said. In West Bengal there are 55 private hospitals so far treating COVID-9 patients. With 37.88 per cent occupancy there are at the moment 11,552 beds for patients of the pandemic in West Bengal. 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Brandon Palaniuk. of Rathdrum, Idaho, turned in an impressive bag of five smallmouth bass with a total weight of 21 pounds, six ounces ending up with a four-day total of 80 pounds, 1 ounce. He was in fifth place coming into the final day, according to Bassmaster.com. Seth Feider of New Market, Minn., finished second with 78-14. After mixing it up with largemouth and smallmouth for three days, he focused on the latter Sunday and caught a five-fish limit weighing 19-14 to go with his previous bags that went 20-1, 21-7 and 17-8. He won $28,000. Feider also won the Phoenix Boats Big Bass honors with a 6-6 largemouth he caught on Day 2, earning an additional $1,000. Upstate N.Y. native Jamie Hartman, who came into Sundays final leading the pack by a mere ounce and was the top angler on Thursday, Friday and Sunday, faded to third. His four-day total was 78 pounds, 5 ounces. His five fish on Sunday weighed 18 pounds, 9 ounces. He was awarded $20,000. For Palaniuk, who was the 2017 Elite Series Angler of the Year, this was his four B.A.S.S. win. After three days of mostly calm conditions, the final day of competition brought strong winds, clouds and occasional showers conditions that were favorable to Palaniuks fishing strategy. He spent his day targeting flats with scattered rock and boulders within the Inland Sea (Champlains northeast section), After a strong start yielded a pair of 4-pound-class fish by 8:30 a.m., Palaniuk continued catching nice-sized smallmouth throughout the day. One spot produced smallmouth bass weighing 4-4, 4-6 and 4-8 pounds between 12:10 and 1:56 p.m. It was just one of those days where everything worked out, Palaniuk told Bassmaster.com. All week long, I said, Just give me a shot, because I looked at the weather and I knew we were going to get that windy weather we got in practice. I had a really good practice and I felt like I could literally drive around, look at my (Humminbird) LakeMaster charts, pull up on a spot and catch big ones. I think the wind this morning helped push those baitfish up and it moved a lot of those fish up, he said. I literally started laughing while I was fighting them, because it was that good. Sticking with what produced the majority of his bites this week, Palaniuk told Bassmaster.com he caught his final-round fish on a drop shot with a green pumpkin/blue fleck X Zone Finesse Slammer. He used a No. 2 drop-shot hook and a 3/8-ounce VMC tungsten teardrop weight. Jamie Hartman, an Upstate NY native now living in Russellville, Ark., faded to third after leading the first three days of the tournament. Photo courtesy of B.A.S.S.SYR For Hartman, a native of Newport, N.Y. and now living in Russellville, Ark., the final day was a heartbreak after leading three days. On Saturday, he lost an hour and a half of late-morning fishing time to a mechanical issue. A service technician identified a battery problem and a replacement got Hartman back on his way. He told Bassmaster.com he focused Sunday on a rocky point with grass and caught his his fish on a Carolina rig with a craw bait and a 3/8-ounce peanut butter and jelly color Riot Baits Lil Creeper jig with a twin-tail trailer. Sundays weather seemed to stifle the hot morning bite he had experienced the previous three days. The bites were slow; very spaced out it took me until 11 before I had a decent weight, he told Bassmaster.com. The mornings had been slow, but when the sun would come up, it was like a light switch and they started eating good. We didnt get that today. Hartman also took home $3,000 for being the highest-placing entrant in the Toyota Bonus Bucks program. See Bassmaster.com for complete tournament results. The tournament was hosted by the Adirondack Coast Visitors Bureau, City of Plattsburgh and Clinton County with support from the Office of the Governor of the State of New York. The Lake Champlain tournament had the anglers fishing a waterway that stretched 107-miles in length and straddled the New York and Vermont border, and reaches into lower Quebec. The small Canadian section of the lake was off-limits to the anglers due to the closure of the U.S. Canadian border to non-essential travel. The Champlain competition finishes the two, back to back Elite Series tournaments in Upstate New York. The weekend before, the 86 Elite Series anglers competed on the St. Lawrence River. Canadian Chris Johnson won that contest. An earlier tournament on Cayuga Lake was cancelled and has since been rescheduled for Sept. 30 Oct. 3 on Alabamas Lake Guntersville, The next stop on the Elite Series tour takes the anglers to Lake St. Clair in Michigan for a competition set for Aug. 20-23. MORE: Look what I caught! Awesome, cute Update NY youngster fish photos Lunker Land 2020: Upstate NY bass anglers share photos of their catches Conn. teen lands monster, 42-inch Skaneateles Lake trout after missing it two times Get Outdoors: Anglers share pictures of salmon, trout caught on Lake Ontario 03.08.2020 LISTEN The two major political parties are considering to have a policy on Free Tertiary. The implementation of the Free Senior High School has laid a foundation for the delivery of free educational services to the higher levels. The tertiary level of education is broader than the basic school level. The cost to be absorbed will be higher than the cost of the Free Senior High School. The returns on the investments in education will be earned in the long term. Therefore, such a choice must target areas that are productive in nature, which will possibly produce maximum outputs. The outcomes of such a choice should impact deeply on the economic performance of the country in areas such as Agriculture, Oil and Gas, Financial sector, Health sector, Manufacturing and Construction. The policy should be skewed to targeted areas or sectors of the economy. Free Tertiary will relieve financial burdens on parents if implemented eventually. On the contrary, the political parties must not pursue policies that put much pressure on the states coffers. The demand to have quality man-power or human resource is not in Free Tertiary Education. Training and developing quality human resource can be done without the pursuit of a Free Tertiary Education. There are many factors that will challenge the pursuit of a Free Tertiary Education: unemployment, increasing the debt levels of the country, sustainability of the programme and others. Even if it is the desire of a government to implement Free Tertiary Education, it should be targeted at scientic and technical learning and not general training in the humanities. Scientific and technical learning, vocational education, engineering and training and development of the human resource in other modern fields should be the concern of the political parties. Instead of a Free Tertiary Education, the political parties should consider giving subsidies. The challenge currently is employment, which is not guaranteed after the completion of a University programme. Policies that give subsidies to reduce the financial burden on parents and students are the preferred choices. School fees should be reduced to the lowest possible levels. If all the tertiary institutions charge lower fees, tertiary education will be accessible to everyone. Unemployment issues should be the focus of the political parties. For instance, if tertiary students can share the cost of training them with the government, it will open more opportunities to the poor to access tertiary education and reduce poverty levels. The policy desires of the political parties should be changed to lean towards cost-sharing in education than full-cost absorption. The country has other challenging issues to address. The major political parties in Ghana should make it a determined effort to end the provision of public good in education at the basic and secondary levels and begin the development of a model that favours cost-sharing. Though the constitution charges the state to make higher education accessible, by progressive introduction of free education, the political parties should not hastily undertake such a programme. The use of cost-sharing strategies to properly develop the human capital will ensure adequate availability of financial resources to solve other problems. Considerable number of people have had their training in the humanities. There is over-supply of the services needed in the humanities. Accountants, Economists, HR Managers, Financial experts etc. are in abundant supply. There is a deficit in the applied sciences: the country needs more surveyors, engineers, microbiologists, biologists, chemists, geologists etc. These areas constitute the applied sciences. It is imperative the country develop more of its human capital in these areas. In Ghana and in many other African countries, the public sector creates jobs and this demand will continue to exist for every government. Governments are expected to employ the graduates churned out from the private and public Universities. Other challenging issues must be addressed too. There are a combination of possible alternative policies that can be rolled out or pursued with regard to the human capital development of the country. The state can use cost-sharing strategies to partially relieve parents of the burden of paying the full cost of education. It will ensure the availability of resources to cater for the needs of the other sectors of the economy. The financial burden on the government is already high. Policies that target specific applied science areas which directly impact on the real sectors of the economy and have the capacities to spur growth as well as generate employment should be the concerns of the political parties and governments. Governments are expected to create job opportunities for the young graduates who complete their programmes every year. There is a financial burden on the government to create jobs and perform other functions excellently. The use of the cost-sharing strategy will help the government generate enough revenue to pursue other programmes. Therefore, developing the human capital of the country does not depend on the implementation of a Free Tertiary Education. It is about targeting some specific areas that impact deeply on the economy by training people in those fields. Emmanuel Kwabena Wucharey Economics Tutor, A growing Activist, and A Religion Enthusiast. That case, filed by five residents of the Monument Avenue Historic District, is now the key cog in the fight over the statues future, which has gained increased attention since the May killing of George Floyd in the custody of Minneapolis police. On June 4, Northam ordered the Confederate tribute taken down as soon as possible, but the legal challenges keep it standing. Protesters have gathered at the statue for much of the past two months. Attorney General Mark Herring has filed a motion to dismiss the case brought by the residents, a spokeswoman said. That filing is pending. Governor Northam appreciates the dismissal of the Gregory case, and looks forward to another victory in court as soon as possible, Northam spokeswoman Alena Yarmosky said in a statement. This statue will come down and Virginia will be the better for it. Asked last week if the Department of General Services, the state agency in charge of removal, has more site work to do around the statue or if its prepared to take it down immediately should the injunction be lifted, agency spokeswoman Dena Potter said, Well be prepared to proceed once the way is clear. India insists on Chinese pullback, but higher level of diplomatic talks would be needed India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Aug 03: India has insisted on early and complete disengagement of the Chinese army soldiers from the new areas occupied on the bank of the Pangong Tso. During the fifth round of military level commander talks held on Sunday, India said that the Chinese PLA should disengage at the Gogra areas as well. Further, it was also told to the Chinese to pullback from the Depsang Plains in Eastern Ladakh. While no official word was made available, sources told OneIndia that the talks went late into the night on Sunday. The meeting began at 11 am on Sunday. How Rafales will provide India an advantage in aerial combat over China The talks were held in the midst of the Chinese refusing to disengage fully on the north bank of Pangong Tso as well as Patrolling Point 17-A at Gogra. The PLA has been refusing to adhere to the disengagement process which was finalised during the fourth round of military talks that was held on July 14. The official cited above said that this may call for higher level of diplomatic talks between the two countries. Meanwhile, a battalion of the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army has been mobilised at the Lipulekh Pass near Uttarakhand. Around 1,000 PLA soldiers have been moved at some distance from the border. Troops have been witnessed here over the past few weeks outside the Ladakh sector, where India and China have been engaged in a standoff since May. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News However there has been a build up of forces across the Line of Actual Control at Lipukekh Pass, top officials told OneIndia. There has been also been an increase of troops along the LAC in parts of North Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. Lipulekh Pass has been in the news after Nepal objected to an 80-kilometre road which was built by India to the Himalayan Pass. It may be recalled that Nepal had escalated tensions with India and even redrawn its political map to add the Kalapani area and Lipulekh Pass. It has claimed that these areas which lie close to the tri-junction of India, China and Nepal as its own. India has however matched the strength of the Chinese and is also keeping a very close watch on Nepal in this connection. (ANSA) - ROME, 03 AGO - A 25-year-old Senegalese man was insulted and attacked by two people on a beach in the Tuscan town of Castiglione della Pescaia at the weekend because they did not want him there due to the colour of his skin, local media reported on Monday. The victim, named as Mamady Dabakh Mankara, has lived in Italy for four years and worked for over a year for a Grosseto coooperative that provides assistance to young disabled people. The victim has barraged by racist insults by a man as soon as he put his towel down on the beach on Saturday and told to go away. He was then physically attacked by the man and another person. He was punched twice and suffered injuries that should heal in seven days, according to the reports. (ANSA). North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency on Friday to help prepare for Hurricane Isaias, which he said will bring atypical challenges given the longstanding COVID-19 crisis. The emergency declaration, running concurrently with the one for the coronavirus in place for months, will help state and local governments respond more nimbly to the storm, Cooper said at a media briefing. The state already has adjusted its traditional shelter options to take social distancing into account. With the right protection and sheltering, we can keep people safe from the storm while at the same time trying to avoid making the pandemic worse, Cooper said at a media briefing. A hurricane during a pandemic is double trouble, but the state has been carefully preparing for this scenario. The National Weather Service forecast indicated the storm would increase ocean swells and cause rip currents, starting Friday and continuing into this week. Cooper said the state could feel the greatest impact of the storm Monday night and into Tuesday. Tropical storm-force winds could be felt as early as Sunday night. Hyde County authorities announced on Friday the evacuation of Ocracoke Island residents and nonresident property owners starting at 6 a.m. Saturday. Ocracoke Island is accessible only by ferry. Coastal residents being asked to evacuate should first try to locate family or friends to stay with inland, Cooper said, or stay at a hotel if they can afford one. If they can do neither, theyll be directed to shelter reception centers, where theyll undergo health screenings. Those with COVID-19 symptoms will be isolated or receive medical treatment, officials said. Others will go to shelters that are smaller and can hold fewer clients to comply with social distancing, Division of Emergency Management Director Mike Sprayberry said. Sheltering is going to be different this year, Sprayberry said. Cooper said recruiting shelter volunteers is more challenging because older adults at higher risk for virus complications are less likely to work. Swift water rescue teams, if needed for the storm, will have personal protective gear to quell the spread of the virus, Sprayberry said. Some coastal COVID-19 testing sites may need to be rescheduled or canceled due to the storm. Ocracoke is still recovering from Hurricane Dorian. The storm hit last September, launching a 7-foot (2-meter) storm surge over parts of the islands village, which measures about a square mile. Many people remain displaced or are still waiting for houses to be raised higher off the ground. The islands one school, which serves approximately 170 students, is being rebuilt. Officials are suggesting Ocracoke residents to take the Ocracoke-Hatteras ferry route to evacuate because routes on Pamlico Sound are operating at significantly reduced capacity due to shoaling in a channel. Other local governments, in consultation with state officials, will make evacuation decisions, Cooper said. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters COVID-19 Hurricane North Carolina S Godson Wisely Dass By Express News Service THOOTHUKUDI: The prospects of cattle herding and the flora and fauna along Thamirabarani look bleak as the grasslands along the river are being converted for purposes such as industrial growth. A study by an environmental organisation has revealed the worrisome conversion. Armed with the data, the research scholars foresee an extinction of these ecologically crucial pastoral lands. In the first column of this two-part series, TNIE takes a look at how the cattle rearers are digesting the new normal. In 2001, the Tamil Nadu Animal Husbandry Department issued a Government Order (G.O.) protecting the grazing fields (meichal porambokku) from being converted for other purposes. If the conversion is essential, an equal piece of land should be made available for grazing, the order stated. The grazing fields comprise fallow, dry and barren lands. Agasthyamalai Community Conservation Centre, an unit of Bangalore-based Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) conducted a five-year study on the grasslands of Thamirabarani river plains. The study focussed on the disappearance of grazing fields in the Thamirabarani river plains and its impact on the dependent flora, fauna and cattle herders. The study was centred at grazing fields at Paruthipadu and Peikulam. Speaking to TNIE, M Mathivanan, Senior Research Associate who worked on the research, said grassland is an important ecosystem essential for the environmental balance and food chain. Thamirabarani grasslands have a distinctive flora and fauna. However, the lands are being allotted for various non-agriculture purposes, including real estate, he said. The community that depends on grasslands Konars aka Edayars are the traditional cattle herders who count on these grasslands. A herder, on an average, rears 150 to 200 goats/sheep at any given time and earn between Rs1.5 lakh and Rs2.5 lakh in a year. Across the traditional route The herders guide the cattle across the grazing route stretching up to 100 km in a span of 5-8 months. The grazing fields that received rains are the apple of their eyes. The paddy harvest season is a preferred period for the herders to set up temporary cattle camps aka kedai on private farms. The idea is to replenish the soil with manure nutrients. Perumal, a cattle herder of Peikulam near Sathankulam, said every year he drives a flock of 160 sheep to Manimutharu located 100 km away via the traditional route. According to Perumal, in the recent times, it has become impossible to let the cattle in all grazing fields across the stretch, as some have been fenced and some house industrial units. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 01:03:43|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BERLIN, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Monday called on all citizens to "show consideration, caution and responsibility" in view of rising COVID-19 infection numbers in Germany. "The irresponsibility of a few is a risk for us all," said Steinmeier in a video message. "If we are not particularly careful now, we are endangering the health of many. And we also endanger the recovery of our society, our economy, our cultural life." Steinmeier addressed the country's population after protests against COVID-19 restriction measures hit the German capital Berlin on Saturday. Although organizers had initially announced up to half a million people, the rally was attended by 20,000 people, according to German police. By keeping a minimum distance, by observing the rules of hygiene and by wearing mouth and nose protection in specified places, it had been possible to re-open restaurants and cafes and to ease travel restrictions in Germany, said Steinmeier. "But the interim success must not make us careless," stressed Steinmeier. "The summer mood is good for us all. But it must not lead us to become inattentive in our fight against the pandemic." "Let us be particularly careful now, in our leisure time, at work, but also at our holiday destination and after returning from a journey," said Steinmeier. From Saturday, all travelers returning to Germany from abroad had the possibility to be tested for COVID-19 within 72 hours after their return voluntarily and free of charge, according to the Ministry of Health. Returnees from COVID-19 risk areas would have to undergo mandatory testing upon request when entering the country, if a corresponding order comes into force this week. "The increasing number of infections in Germany is a clear warning signal," said Minister of Health Jens Spahn, adding "The coronavirus does not take a holiday." Enditem Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. Amid all the uncertainty, disruption, and fear wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic, there is one point upon which we can all agree: we must get our children back in school, and do it in a way that is safe for all concerned. We believe the provinces plan, announced last Thursday, is a good start. It is a complicated and ambitious endeavor, and a great deal of work has gone into the document. However, some crucial issues remain unresolved. While the Education Ministry wisely relied on the comprehensive report led by The Hospital for Sick Children, it is now time to consult our frontline pediatricians. After all, if children show signs of COVID-19, we are the health care professionals in the community who parents call first. As frontline community pediatricians, we directly see the impact of children being out of the classroom. Our patients display greater anxiety, more behavioral problems, and increased medical issues such as weight gain. The damage is aggravated for those with special needs, or who come from marginalized communities. We see parents with elevated stress levels as they struggle to cope. They now face further stresses as they decide whether it is safe to send their children back to school. We know the measures that are effective in controlling the spread of the coronavirus, because they have worked in other countries like Denmark. We hope Ontario follows similar protocols. It appears the ministry is appropriately enacting strict screening procedures to prevent symptomatic individuals from entering school, and providing funding for rapid, effective testing and contact tracing when potential infections appear. We agree with the requirement for face masks, with exemptions for younger children, and we trust that frequent hand washing will be demanded. Some questions remain. Will elementary schools be able to provide sufficient physical distancing? We know from our local schools that classes of 23 students or more are common. It may be difficult if not impossible to maintain a bubble of one metre. What about cramped, poorly ventilated portables? It would also be helpful to hear more details on the use of outdoor classrooms when weather permits. We have been fortunate to date in not seeing large numbers of Ontario children infected, but this is a new virus and our knowledge remains preliminary. Yes, there is evidence that younger children are less likely to become sick or spread the disease, but we should take note of a recent study from South Korea which indicated that those over the age of 10 can spread the coronavirus as much as adults all the more reason to be concerned about class sizes for elementary school students in that age range. We are not experts in educational funding, but we feel it is imperative that schools receive all the resources they need in a timely manner. Half measures could be disastrous. As Dr. Michael Ryan of the World Health Organization has said, the most important prerequisite for opening schools is to suppress the virus. The numbers in Ontario are encouraging, but in a vast province like ours, the rate of community spread has varied from community to community, so the same standards should not be imposed everywhere. We must be alert, nimble, and flexible. If there is an outbreak somewhere, as is likely, we must act quickly and decisively to isolate the infected and adjust the teaching model in the affected community. The urgent task of safely returning two million Ontario students to their classrooms must be a partnership. Pediatricians have always played a central role in childrens wellbeing. As proud representatives of community pediatricians in the province, the Pediatricians Alliance of Ontario stands ready to advise and collaborate with parents, the province, educators, and public health policy makers. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 22:20:11|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close DALIAN, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The northeastern Chinese city of Dalian has preliminarily ruled out the possibility of the recent COVID-19 resurgence originating from domestic transmission, according to the local health commission. An epidemiological survey showed that the local outbreak since July 9 may have started from a seafood processing workshop in the Dalian Kaiyang World Seafood Co., Ltd., said Zhao Zuowei, director of the Health Commission of Dalian. The gene sequence of the local virus samples is different from that of the domestically prevalent virus in China, and the connections with outbreaks in Urumqi, Beijing and several other cities in northeast China have also been ruled out, Zhao said. The possibility that the virus is imported from overseas has not been excluded, Zhao said. By the end of Sunday, Dalian had reported a total of 87 confirmed local cases during the recent resurgence. Enditem Waves driven by Tropical Storm Isaias crash over the jetty on the north side of the Palm Beach Inlet in Palm Beach Shores Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. The Canadian Hurricane Centre says a tropical storm that has lashed parts of the eastern U.S. should be diminished in strength by the time it reaches eastern Canada. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lannis Waters/The Palm Beach Post via AP Founder and General Overseer of the Synagogue Church of All Nations, SCOAN, Prophet Temitope Balogun Joshua, has begun virtual prayer ... Founder and General Overseer of the Synagogue Church of All Nations, SCOAN, Prophet Temitope Balogun Joshua, has begun virtual prayer for healing of those afflicted with COVID-19 in isolation centres. A Youtube video at the weekend showed the cleric praying for bedridden patients hooked up to oxygen tanks and surrounded by hospital staff heavily laden with protective gear. The video captured Joshua praying in front of several huge screens relaying in real-time the footage from the several wards within Isolation centres in Honduras, a central American nation. During the prayer, which was translated simultaneously into Spanish, several patients were seen vomiting whilst others were seen rising to their feet from their hospital beds and waving their hands. Jesus that has freed you will help you to maintain your miracle. Make the Word of God the standard for your life, Joshua counselled after declaring dozens of COVID-19 patients free. Afterwards, representatives of the medical staff at the hospital thanked Joshua for his prayers and support. The video concluded by stressing that it was not intended to discourage anyone from seeking medical treatment as good Christians are good citizens. In July, the World Health Organisation, WHO, reacted to a video in which a Cameroonian medical doctor was reportedly healed of COVID-19 after receiving interactive prayer from Joshuas ministry. WHO had acknowledged that spiritual leadership is very important in a time like this. The cleric had recently declared his readiness to freely pray for those in Isolation Centers in Nigeria and around the world. For instance, the issue of COVID-19 is a mistake. However, how we are handling it has led us to where we are today, he continued, citing the uncertainties and twists and turns of life. If you make a mistake, as we all do sometimes, dont run from God; run to Him, Joshua said. Video: ARRESTS, CITATIONS Jacksonville Police ARRESTS, CITATIONS Jon J. Bullard, 35, homeless, was arrested at 8:56 p.m. Friday on charges of possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia. Jasmine A. Gardner, 19, of 311 N. West St., Apt. 3, was cited on a charge of driving while license is revoked after a traffic stop in the 600 block of North Main Street at 11:17 p.m. Saturday. THEFTS, BURGLARIES Police are investigating a womans report that more than $200 in lottery tickets were taken from her wallet about 6:34 a.m. Saturday while she was at a business in the 800 block of West Morton Avenue. Compiled by Rochelle Eiselt The Chinese Army's secret unit '61398', known for cyber espionage, is eyeing information related to India's defence and research, the security agencies sounded an alert on Monday. According to a report of the security agencies, this secret unit of the People's Liberation of Army (PLA) has intensified its activities against India. Many cases have been reported in the last few months in which Chinese hackers associated with the PLA attempted to gather sensitive information of the country through cyber espionage. Headquartered in Datong Avenue of Pudong district in China's Shanghai, unit '61398' is witnessing a spurt in these activities, asserted an officer deployed in the central security speaking to Zee Media. "Through unit '61398', China has been engaged in gathering information like cyber, space and geolocation intelligence around the world for a long time. These units are found to be very active against India," said the officer. Since 2015, PLA has centralized its space, cyber and electronic warfare (EW) assets in the newly raised PLA Strategic Support Force (PLASSF). Therefore the unit '61398' which deals with cyber warfare and was under erstwhile 3 PLA (General Staff Department Third Department) have been subordinated under the network system department of the PLASSF. Another officer who is aware of the development said that there is a report of at least three cyber hackers supporting cyber espionage activities. Recently, there have been attempts made by these hackers to send a special computer programme worldwide by attaching malware tools to cyber espionage. Icebug, Hidden Lynx (a professional advanced persistent threat using the program) and APT-12 have been used for attacking government and industrial organization by Chinese hackers. In 2014, the US had charged five PLA military officers for espionage and they were part of unit '61398'. The US agencies believe that, like Unit '61398', many such groups exist in China with the active support of the PLA, who are engaged in cyber spying around the world. Many analysts believe China now has the capability to successfully target critical infrastructure during the war. There is also concern that Chinese hackers may disrupt the electric grid and banking system through cyber attacks. live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Bandhan Bank share price plunged 10.60 percent to settle at Rs 308.65 on BSE after reports that promoters offloaded 20.9 percent equity via a block deal on August 3. The size for the block deal is Rs 10,500 crore, and the floor price was set at Rs 311.10, reports suggested. Bandhan bank promoters sold 20.95 percent stake via block deal; their holding now stands at 40 percent, CNBC-TV18 reported. The counter of Bandhan Bank witnessed heavy buying by foreign institutional investors (FIIs) through various bulk deals on BSE on August 3. Names of Morgan Stanley Asia Singapore PTE, Camas Investments PTE, Caladium Investment PTE, Copthall Mauritius Investment, Societe Generale and Credit Suisse Singapore featured among the FIIs that bought shares of Bandhan Bank, data on BSE showed. The move was a part of the bank's effort to bring down promoter shareholding in the lender to meet the Reserve Bank of India's regulatory norms. As per the RBI's new banking licensing norms, banks have to bring down the promoter holding to 40 percent within three years from the date of commencement of business. Credit Suisse Securities (India) Private Limited, JP Morgan India Private Limited, Goldman Sachs (India) Securities and JM Financial Institutional were the bookrunners for the deal. The bank witnessed almost 47 percent jump in its business to Rs 1,29,000 in FY20. Deposits grew by 32 percent to Rs 57,082 crore during the year, while the advances jumped by 60.5 percent to Rs 71,846 crore. : The above report is compiled from information available on public platforms. Moneycontrol advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. Our Divisions Copyright 2021-22 DB Corp ltd., All Rights Reserved This website follows the DNPA Code of Ethics. A number of Manitobans will receive another cheque from Manitoba Public Insurance, after the Crown corporation determined that not everyone got the correct amount for their recent rebates. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 3/8/2020 (533 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Advertisement Advertise With Us A number of Manitobans will receive another cheque from Manitoba Public Insurance, after the Crown corporation determined that not everyone got the correct amount for their recent rebates. Some Manitobans will be receiving another cheque from Manitoba Public Insurance determined that not everyone got the correct amount for their recent rebates. Earlier this year, MPI announced that it would be refunding policyholders approximately $110 million as of COVID-19 relief measure after the pandemic led to lower than expected numbers of claims. Customers received a rebate worth 11 per cent of their policy, totalling between $140 and $160 for most people. However, MPI spokesperson Brian Smiley told the Sun on Monday that some customers and Autopac dealers raised concerns about not receiving a correct amount, prompting a system review. That review concluded that approximately 9,600 policyholders did not receive the correct amount due to computer error and will be receiving a second cheque to make up the difference. To qualify in the first place, the rebate amount needed to be greater than $10. With the corrected amounts, some people will now have crossed that threshold and will be receiving a cheque for the first time. Approximately $253,000 in cheques was sent out through Canada Post last week, Smiley said. The Brandon Sun By far the biggest threat to Uganda is ignorance. There is probably more ignorance in Uganda than any other place in Africa, and it is mostly the root of all our problems -- not bad leaders. A bad leader can be reasoned with, motivated by logic, especially if rewards can be realized. An ignorant person, on the other hand, requires understanding to overcome thoughtless self-injurious decisions. Ignorance leads to fear, fear leads to the dark side. Its not easy to solve problems such as poverty, diseases, and corruption with an uninformed population. It is also quite easy for any leader to become a dictator if majority of the population are ignorant. Most Ugandans will own big TVs but no libraries in their homes. The only book they have is the one telling them to pray and believe to solve problems. Very few encourage each other to read as many books as possible. On social media, posts about sex, insults and other strange behaviours attract our attention than educative ones. Ignorance has destroyed local businesses. We have normalized certain things as Ugandans, like the poor customer service in the restaurant industry and elsewhere. Last time, I was in Wandegeya, Kampala, I visited a restaurant there, the waitress approached our table with a non-smiling face, What do you want? she asked. In my experience of working in the hospitality a few years ago, black customers were less likely to complain more than other races. Other races would complain about minor things and they would normally get what they want. Even those who are serving black customers, subconsciously, do not expect them to complain. A complaining black customer is more frown upon than other races. People running businesses are rarely taught about emotional labourthey just care about profits and losses. A lot of our Ugandan brothers and sisters are using peoples ignorance to enrich themselves. For instance, I recently watched a video of a one pastor Ronnie telling a couple where a man had erectile dysfunction, that the mans ex-wife was doing witchcraft on him. This behaviour of taking advantage of the poor in Africa was started by the missionaries who were sent to our country with religious dogmas to steal or take the resources under the pretence of spreading Christianity. This is well documented in the King Leopolds letter of 1883 to the missionaries. But what hurts most is that our own brothers are the ones who are the perpetuators of such great evil. Not believing in God is ignorance itself, but misusing Gods message is awful! In Uganda, most people would believe a lie told about someone without asking any questions. If ignorance is bliss, majority of Ugandans in their 20s must be orgasmic. They feigned ignorance (or maybe they were not feigning at all) when Bobi Wines group started telling them that Dr. Kiiza Besigye is a mole and he (Bobi) is the only true opposition. The great irony here, however, is that Bobi, unlike every person in his People Power Movement (now NUP party), knew that Besigye was/is a genuine opposition leader but he kept quite over it for two consecutive years- simply to promote his political career and that makes him a hypocrite in my book, and a guy who cannot be trusted by anybody. As if Bobi has not done enough damage within the opposition; he is continuing to distract the efforts of the coronavirus public health promotion team. Last year the pandemic broke out in China, by December, most Ugandans were mocking the Chinese with statements such as, they eat rats, dogs, bats- that's why they are sick, it is a Chinese disease. Fast forward February 2020, when the virus is spreading like wildfire, most of them began saying, "It is only affecting people who are white. Then, Black Americans started testing positive, and the message changed to, Someone has paid them, they are acting up, those guys are actors, a black man is immune to the virus because of the Melanin in their skin, even Chinese doctors said so, etc." Then, more cases started being reported in Africa, especially in the north. Eventually, President Museveni put Uganda under lockdown, and what do Ugandans say? "We can't afford the lockdown, we are unemployed, theres no Covid here; patients in quarantine are dancing, how are we going to put food on the table? ...blah blah. Now, as the country prepares for the 2021 elections, the Electoral Commission produced a road map which includes banning rallies and public gatherings. Guess what? Bobi pops up again with his selfishness and said, Its time we begin disregarding all those restrictions and lets start now: Whoever arrests or questions you as to why you arent complying with the same, tell them its President Robert Kyagulanyi Sentamu who directed us to. And then we see what they can do to you. I cant believe hes being allowed to take advantage of our ill-informed people to the extent of risking their lives into something as useless as election ralliesafter all, the winner of the forthcoming elections is already known. And if Museveni puts the country under lockdown again, you will find people lamenting again. Yes, there is no doubt that Museveni has profited greatly from Covid-19, but the level of misinformation and disinformation displayed by the population and some leaders is worrying. Marcus Garvey once said: Never forget that intelligence rules the world and ignorance carries the burden. Therefore, my people need to wake up. Our ignorance is the main thing pulling us back! Mystery Seeds From China Find Their Way to Labrador The first time Renee Ball received mystery seeds in the mail from China, it puzzled her. Then, a few weeks later, it happened again. She had ordered some seeds online at her Churchill Falls home, but these didnt appear to be what she ordered, so she put off planting them. I thought Id wait, not plant them, since there wasnt any clear address of where theyd come from other than China. I held on to them and never gave it a second thought until I got the second ones and thought that was weird. It wasnt what Id ordered, and the label said beads.' Shortly after that, she ran across social media posts from a variety of agencies in the United States and Canada warning people about unsolicited mystery seeds sometimes labelled as jewellery and the potential dangers of planting them. One of those agencies is the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), which issued a statement on July 28, which said unauthorized seeds could be the seeds of invasive plants, or carry plant pests, which can be harmful when introduced into Canada. These species can invade agricultural and natural areas, causing serious damage to our plant resources, the statement read. Package with seeds that appear to be from China. (Whitehouse Police Department Ohio) Ball said she never even considered planting the seeds she received, but knows some people might, which is concerning. She contacted the government about the packages she received but hadnt heard back at the time of this interview. I dont know what to do with them, she said. I dont want to burn them, not knowing what they are, and I dont want to put them in the trash, [because] theyll make their way into the environment somehow. Ball said it surprised her to see how widespread the reports of the seeds are, and she couldnt possibly speculate for the reason behind it. SaltWire Network contacted the CFIA for an interview and was sent an audio statement from Wendy Asbil, the national manager of the invasive alien species and domestic plant health programs section of the CFIAs plant health and biosecurity directorate. She said they had received reports from most Canadian provinces about the seeds and are working with their U.S. counterparts on the issue. These unauthorized seeds could be from invasive plants or could even carry plant pests, which can be harmful when introduced into Canada, Asbil said. They could invade agricultural and natural areas, causing serious damage to our plant resources and the environment. Asbil said if anyone has planted the seeds, they are asked to remove them and contact the CFIA. Anyone who has received the seeds is asked to contact their regional CFIA office. By Evan Careen Amid absence of skilled employment in villages, migrant workers who had left for home during coronavirus lockdown are returning to cities, a survey said. Nearly two-third of migrant workers have either returned to cities or wish to do so, said the survey of 4,835 households across 11 states in 48 districts in Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha, Rajasthan and Tripura. The study was conducted in the period of June 24 to July 8. According to the survey, while 29 per cent of migrants, who had left for villages during coronavirus lockdown, are now back in cities, 45 per cent want to do the same. The survey is a collaborative study by the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (India), Action for Social Advancement, Grameen Sahara, i-Saksham, PRADAN, SAATHI-UP, SeSTA, Seva Mandir and Transform Rural India Foundation. "Absence of skilled employment in villages is reflected in the fact that nearly 2/3rd of returned migrants have either migrated again or wish to do so," it added. "More than one-fourth of the migrant workers are still searching for work in villages," the study added. It also found that one in 4 households is thinking of taking their child out of school (24 per cent). "Though distress is still considerable, structural changes are not yet visible and the health risk of COVID-19 in rural India is rising," the study warned. The survey also showed that 43 per cent of households still reported reduction in meals, while 55 per cent said they have reduced the meal items. The study found that about 6 per cent of households have mortgaged household items, while 15 per cent sold their livestock to tackle the financial distress.(With agency inputs) Also read: Sovereign Gold Bond V Series opens for subscription: All you need to know Also read: Personal health IDs, e-records, doctors' registry part of Centre's digital health ecosystem plan By Trend A number of restrictions have been mitigated in the Azerbaijani cities and districts in which the tough quarantine regime is in force and throughout the country in accordance with the current sanitary and epidemiological situation, Trend reports citing the Operational Headquarters under the Azerbaijani Cabinet of Ministers. Along with mitigation of some restrictions in the country, a number of restrictions remain in force. The following restrictions will remain in effect till 00:00 (GMT+4) August 31, 2020: - entry into and exit from the territory of the country by vehicles and planes (excluding special and charter flights); - entry to and exit from Azerbaijans cities and districts in which the special tough quarantine regime is in force, and passenger transportation by vehicles and planes from other cities and districts of the country (excluding Azerbaijans Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic) except for the movement of special vehicles, including ambulances, emergency vehicles, rescue vehicles and vehicles carrying cargo; - group or individual reception of citizens in the state bodies except for ASAN Service Centers and DOST Service Centers. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Sri Lankans are all set to elect their representatives to the 255-member Parliament on August 5, in what has been touted as the most expensive election in the countrys history. The election will likely mark the beginning of Rajapaksa clans renewed grip on the country after being in parliamentary opposition for five years. OPPOSITION IN TATTERS Given the bickering opposition, the major contender is the Mahinda Rajapaksa-led Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), which is not only expected to win the election, but is vying for the superpower two-third majority in Parliament. Amid mudslinging and political bickering, the opposition in the country continues to be in tatters. The rift in the opposition isnt something new, but came to fore in 2018 when then president Maithripala Sirisena and then prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe launched a full-blown attack against each other in public, prompting a constitutional crisis in the country. The crisis saw two prime ministers in the country -- Wickremesinghe and Mahinda, and was only resolved after Mahinda Rajapaksa backed down from his position. However, Rajapaksa was appointed PM by brother Gotabaya in November 2019, after Wickremesinghe quit following the drubbing in presidential polls. Meanwhile, an internal rift within Ranil Wickremesinghe-led United National Party led to the formation of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), headlined by Sujith Premadasa (Premadasa, however continues to be a member of UNP as of August 2). The move is expected to deal a major blow to consolidation of Tamil votes, with both UNP and SJB eyeing their votes. Speaking to News18, Professor of International Relations at the South Asian University Dr Sanjay K Bhardwaj termed the current scenario in Sri Lanka as populism politics. Within a majoritarian interface, one cant have a parliamentary solution because the majority has the broad mandate to make laws in Parliament, he said. The Tamil National Alliance, the major group representing minority Tamil living in north and east Sri Lanka, also faces its biggest hurdle yet. TNA secured 16 seats in the last polls, yet the thousands of Tamilians in the country face unemployment and marginalisation. Amid the noise and chatter of polls, the development issue seems to be conspicuously missing from the poll agenda. GOTABAYA: THE RETURN OF THE CLAN The key players also include President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who won the 2019 presidential polls amid the mass rhetoric following the Easter bombings by Islamist groups. Parliament was dissolved on April 25 this year, post which the Election Commission postponed elections twice citing Covid-19 concerns. Despite constitutional provisions warranting a maximum of three months of parliamentary recess, Gotabaya continued to rule the country with almost no oversight for almost two months. Since taking charge, Gotabaya has taken a host of decisions to militarise the upper echelons of power and a widespread crackdown on journalists and civil society activists. From printing driving licences to creating a presidential force tasked with building a secure, disciplined and virtuous society, Gotabaya has put military officers in charge of all these policies. The shift has emboldened the majoritarian discourse in the country that has seen years of civil war and bloodshed. THE CHINA PIVOT Rajapaksa during his earlier tenure in 2015 adopted a favourable approach to China. This was evident during the Hambantota Port debacle, which his successor Ranil Wickremesinghe tried to renege on, claiming the security of the port was in the countrys hands. The cycle appears to repeat itself. Despite apprehensions, China continues to plough in more money into the country. Nikkei Asian Review reported earlier this year that despite owing China over $4.8 billion, President Gotabaya continues to follow in his brother Mahindas footsteps. The President signed onto over a billion dollars in pandemic relief loans from Beijing this year. In another instance, when asked about the SLPPs vision for the rule, Basil Rajapaksa claimed that Chinese Communist Party was an admirable model. Professor Bharadwaj says that India will have a tightrope to walk to handle its adversaries in the region. Quoting maritime strategist Alfred Mahan, Bharadwaj said, Whoever controls the Indian Ocean will dominate Asia, the destiny of the world will be decided on its waters. It is in Chinas interest to circumvent major choke-points to its oil transportation and Sri Lanka, theory its location, serves as a major avenue for that, he said. The overtures continue to be a headache for India, but despite many efforts, India continues to be on the back foot. Last month, Sri Lanka announced that it had put on review the proposed Eastern Container Terminal at the Colombo Port amid multiple protests by port workers. The project was envisaged to be jointly developed by India and Japan, but the sudden move by the Sri Lankan government has raised suspicions of Chinas hand behind the decision. AMENDMENT 19: THE THORN IN SLPPS FLESH The major rallying point of SLPP appears to be two-third majority in Parliament. The elusive majority will arm Rajapaksa to alter the constitutional fabric of Sri Lanka and change the direction of the country -- for good or for bad. The Rajapaksa clan specifically aims to repeal the 19th Amendment of the Sri Lankan constitution, which limits the presidential powers relative to Parliament and Judiciary and ensure unbridled power to the clan as an extension. Over 16 million residents have registered to vote on August 5 and will elect representatives for its 255-member assembly. Thousands of polling booths have been set up to ensure the process goes smoothly even as Covid-19 shadow continues to looms over the constitutional process. Chicago: Teachers and support staff at more than 35 school districts across the United States on Monday staged protests over plans to resume in-class instruction while COVID-19 is surging in many parts of the country. The protesters, who formed car caravans and attached signs and painted messages on their vehicles, demand schools hold off until scientific data supports such a move. Rachel Bardes holds a sign in front of the Orange County Public Schools headquarters as teachers protest with a car parade around the administration centre in Orlando, Florida. Credit:AP They want districts to wait until safety protocols such as lower class sizes and virus testing are established, and schools are staffed with an adequate number of counsellors and nurses, according to a website set up for the demonstrations. On Twitter, the Milwaukee Teachers' Education Association showed protesters making fake gravestones that said, "Here lies a third grade student from Green Bay who caught COVID at school" and "RIP Grandma caught COVID helping grand kids with homework." CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Why did ex-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder have a framed photo of a nuclear power plant in his office? Were talking about what federal agents took from Householders office in an investigation into the FirstEnergy nuclear bailout bill on This Week in the CLE. Listen online here. Editor Chris Quinn hosts our daily half-hour coronavirus news podcast, with editors Jane Kahoun, Kris Wernowsky and me, answering all sorts of questions from the news. Youve been sending Chris lots of thoughts and suggestions on our from-the-newsroom account, in which he shares once or twice a day what were thinking about at cleveland.com. You can sign up for free by sending a text to 216-868-4802. And youve been offering all sorts of great perspective in our coronavirus alert account, which has 13,000-plus subscribers. You can sign up for free by texting 216-279-7784. Here are the questions were answering today: 1) What did federal investigators take out of ex-House Speaker Larry Householders office when they raided it? Heres a partial list: Nine folders with papers, a Team Householder cap, a framed nuclear plant photo, four thank-you cards, a silver iPhone and a floor plan of Jeff Longstreths consulting firm office. 2) It looks like the situation on whether schools will open as scheduled is coming into focus, so whats the picture? Districts across Cuyahoga County are scrambling to adjust plans for the upcoming school year, following the county Board of Healths guidance that classes should start online. 3) How did the Cleveland School of the Arts let an abuser near students for years, and what are some of the students now doing about it? Five former students are suing the Cleveland school board, alleging that they were sexually abused for years by a dance instructor at the School of the Arts. 4) Why is this week a clear signal that Ohio is a battleground state in the presidential election? President Donald Trump is coming for a fundraiser, and his challenger, former Vice President Joe Biden, has a virtual tour featuring local officials across the state. 5) Schools might be staying closed to protect children, but that raises other problems for the safety of children. What is Cuyahoga County doing to help parents find daycare and to ferret out child abuse cases that authorities normally learn of through teachers in the schools? Cuyahoga officials are looking for solutions to help residents with child care. In April, they began accepting online child abuse complaints as a way to encourage reporting while kids are out of school. 6) Why is a criminal case against the grandson of Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson staying in Juvenile Court, over the objections of county prosecutor Michael OMalley? A judge on Friday denied a request for the teenager to be tried as an adult, in a case where police say he drove a from which a passenger shot at undercover police. 7) What are the two groups who sued Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose trying to change in time for the presidential election this November? The Ohio Democratic Party wants to allow online requests for absentee ballots, and the League of Women Voters are challenging the practice of election officials matching voter signatures on ballots and the ballot applications. Want more? You can find all our past episodes 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 numbers tell the story The end goal Currently there are 14 million people living in urban communities in the U.S. who cannot access telehealth service, yet the Federal Communications Commission and USDA will spend $5 billion this year to get telehealth and broadband to 4 million rural households. At the same time, the FCCs spending for its $9.25 monthly urban subsidy program, Lifeline, has dropped from $2.2 billion to less than $1 billion.In a time when COVID-19 is disproportionally killing Black Americans, urban communities need high-quality affordable broadband services and infrastructure, and not subsidies that go toward poor infrastructure that often is unable to run telehealth apps. For example,reported that Black people made up 32 percent of Louisianas population but 70 percent of COVID-19 deaths. They are 14 percent Michigans population but 41 percent of deaths, and in Illinois, 42 percent of COVID-19 deaths are African-American, though they comprise just 15 percent of its population.The high percentages of COVID-related deaths are caused by the health issues afflicting this population, afflictions that telehealth can mitigate. But consumers cannot have telehealth without fast, affordable, reliable broadband. Subsequently, federal or state broadband funding that does not target urban communities fails to deliver telehealth or broadband to constituents who need it desperately.The FCC plans to finance broadband through the $20 billion Rural Digital Opportunity Fund over the next 10 years. The agency has a Rural Health Care Program (RHCP) thats being increased to over $1 billion this year, while the Senate wants to add another $2 billion to this fund. Two Senators also want to create a $50 million for fund more telehealth to rural areas, and the USDA has its own cache of broadband cash and loans.The FCCs Lifeline subsidy started as a way to ensure low-income people had basic telephone service come hell or high water. The Obama administration expanded it to give recipients the option to get telephone or broadband. However, theres no way $9.25 buys poor people anything more than a cheap mobile phone and an inadequate data plan. Furthermore, in an atmosphere one article describes as proven hostile toward programs aimed at helping poor people get online, Lifeline is constantly under attack.In 2005 I wrote my first book on community broadband that chronicled Philadelphias fight for citywide high-speed Internet. I interviewed their steering committee, who explained they often could tell who had home Internet access based on the economic prosperity or lack thereof in a neighborhood. Ninety-five percent of the houses in affluent areas had Internet; rates dropped to 45 to 50 percent in low-income neighborhoods.In the 111 largest U.S. cities, people of color comprise 75 percent of unconnected households, according to the 2018 U.S. Census American Community Survey. These major metropolitan areas need telehealth to level the healthcare playing field. For example, one-third of the U.S. population has high blood pressure, but 43 percent of Black women and a slightly lower percentage of Black men suffer from hypertension. Plus, twice as many Black people die from strokes as all other ethnic groups combined.Further, Twenty-eight percent of all men and 17 percent of women in the U.S. dont have a personal doctor or health-care provider. But an analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation shows higher rates for minorities, such as 33 percent for Hispanic women and 31 percent for African-American men It's also notable that many of our essential workers, and low-income workers in general, must work two and three jobs to make ends meet. They typically dont get paid sick leave to visit doctors, which is particularly bad for workers with chronic illnesses. Redlined public transportation systems are the bane of the working poor, and another reason they dont see doctor often.As Congress prepares legislation for new broadband infrastructure projects, it is imperative there be parity between rural and urban programs. Both rural and urban communities pay federal taxes and are assessed fees on their phone bills to fund these various broadband and telehealth grant programs. Everyone should benefit directly from these investmentsA policy paper from the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) addresses in-depth the issue of parity in federal broadband funding , noting that the federal governments existing broadband programs target tens of billions of dollars to expand broadband availability for residents of unserved and underserved rural areas, while studiously ignoring tens of millions of urban Americans who still lack high-speed internet service.Its name indicates that the RHCP target only rural hospitals. Many people dont realize that hospitals in urban areas can be included in grants that are made to consortia, says former FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn. In a consortium, a urban hospital serves as an anchor for the rural hospitals, providing them with specialists, nurses and telehealth resources.Besides expanding the RHCP to fully include stand-alone urban hospitals, the FCC still has a big problem. The grants boost healthcare providers fiber broadband and provide patients with tablets and other equipment to facilitate telehealth, but they fail to provide broadband to private homes. Giving homes telehealth without reliable, affordable Internet access is like giving people boots and telling them to pull themselves up by their bootstraps, but not giving them straps.For example, Neighborhood Family Practice (NFP) is a seven-office practice in Cleveland, Ohio, and one of the first recipients of the FCC's Emergency COVID-19 telehealth grants. Twenty-seven percent of Cleveland households do not have Internet access, and some of them are NFP patients. If you consider a patient who has achronic illness and is older," said NFP CEO Jean Polster , "they also are less likely to be tech savvy or to have broadband access.The U.S. House of Representatives has a $100 billion broadband infrastructure bill on the table, hopefully with stated urban/rural funding parity goals. What they really need, however, is a companion bill that mandates strict accountability and deep audits that hold grant recipients feet to the fire. It doesnt help to give away billions if there is neither incentive nor punishment to funding recipients for finishing the job correctly.Given the inadequacy of a federal $9.25 broadband subsidy in a gigabyte world, the FCCs Lifeline program also needs a makeover. One option is the the Emergency Broadband Connections Act , introduced by Sen. Ron Wyden, R-Ore., that raises the subsidy to $50 a month ($75 on tribal lands), encourages ISPs to offer free minutes and data, and provides laptops or computers for those who qualify.I recommend adding one more element to the makeover: Municipal and community leaders should be encouraged to form urban co-ops and nonprofit organizations to build constituent-owned networks that are managed by people experienced in telecom. It may seem like a radical idea, but this arrangement puts the people who have the boadband pain directly in charge of resolving infrastructure issues.Too many poor people have been left with insufficient broadband and healthcare. Isnt it time for new solutions? File image BJP's West Bengal unit has urged the Mamata Banerjee-led state government to revoke lockdown restrictions imposed on August 5 as it coincides with the Ram temple bhoomi poojan in Ayodhya. The West Bengal government has been imposing biweekly lockdowns since last month to keep the spread of COVID-19 under control. In August, the statewide lockdown will be observed on seven non-consecutive days, the first of which coincides with the bhoomi poojan of the Ram Mandir. The biweekly lockdown dates decided by the Bengal government have been changed in the past to ensure they do not coincide with Bakr-Eid, Raksha Bandhan, Independence Day, and Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations. With that in mind, Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh urged West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to reconsider enforcing a lockdown on August 5, Hindustan Times has reported. He said, "The West Bengal government had earlier changed the dates four times. There is no harm if it is changed once more. It is a historic and proud day. The state government should not create an environment in which people cannot celebrate the occasion." 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 Earlier, the state BJP leaders had accused the Bengal government of appeasement for changing lockdown dates in August at least thrice. Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Sougata Roy has dubbed the state BJP's request as dirty politics. Ruling out the need for withdrawing the lockdown order, he said, "People can watch bhoomi poojan on television from home and there is no need to step out to celebrate." CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ReversingLabs the leading provider of explainable threat intelligence solutions today announced that is has been named a winner in the Black Unicorn Awards for the second consecutive year. ReversingLabs competed against many of the industrys leading providers of cybersecurity products and services for this prestigious award. The term Black Unicorn signifies a cybersecurity company that has the potential to reach a $1 billion dollar market value as determined by private or public investment, and these awards showcase those companies with this kind of incredible potential in the cybersecurity marketplace. Were pleased to name ReversingLabs as a winner among a small, elite group of cybersecurity industry leaders in our second annual Black Unicorn awards, said judges Robert R. Ackerman Jr. of Allegis Cyber , David DeWalt of NightDragon and Gary Miliefsky of Cyber Defense Media Group . We are honored to be named a Black Unicorn for 2020, illustrating our continued ability to successfully combat the next generation of intelligence cyber threats, and recognizing the dedication of the entire ReversingLabs team, said Mario Vuksan, CEO and Co-Founder, ReversingLabs. The addition of our explainable threat intelligence capabilities to the ReversingLabs Titanium Platform, our continued growth, and our commitment to delivering transparent and trusted malware insights that address the cybersecurity skills gap have demonstrated that were on target to fulfill our destiny as a Black Unicorn. For more information and to see the complete list of finalists for the Black Unicorn Awards for 2020 please visit https://cyberdefenseawards.com/black-unicorn-awards-winners-2020/ About ReversingLabs ReversingLabs is the leading provider of explainable threat intelligence solutions that shed the necessary light on complex file-based threats for enterprises stretched for time and expertise. Its hybrid-cloud Titanium Platform enables digital business resiliency, protects against new modern architecture exposures, and automates manual SOC and Threat Hunting processes with a transparency that arms junior analysts to confidently take action. ReversingLabs is used by the worlds most advanced security vendors and deployed across all industries searching for a more intelligent way to get at the root of the web, mobile, email, cloud, app development and supply chain threat problem, of which files and objects have become major risk contributors. ReversingLabs Titanium Platform provides broad integration support with more than 4,000 unique file and object formats, speeds detection of malicious objects through automated static analysis, prioritizing the highest risks with actionable detail in only .005 seconds. With unmatched breadth and privacy, the platform accurately detects threats through explainable machine learning models, leveraging the largest repository of malware in the industry, containing more than 10 billion files and objects. Delivering transparency and trust, thousands of human readable indicators explain why a classification and threat verdict was determined, while integrating at scale across the enterprise with connectors that support existing file repository, SIEM, SOAR, threat intelligence platform and sandbox investments, reducing incident response time for SOC analysts, while providing high priority and detailed threat information for both developers and hunters to take quick action. Learn more at https://www.reversinglabs.com, or connect on LinkedIn or Twitter . About Cyber Defense Awards This is Cyber Defense Magazines 8th year of honoring cybersecurity innovators, in this case the Black Unicorn Awards for 2020 on our Cyber Defense Awards platform. In this competition, judges for these prestigious awards includes cybersecurity industry veterans, trailblazers and market makers Gary Miliefsky of CDMG, Robert R. Ackerman Jr. of Allegis Cyber and David DeWalt of NightDragon with much appreciation to emeritus judge Robert Herjavec of Herjavec Group. To see the complete list of finalists for the Black Unicorn Awards for 2020 please visit https://cyberdefenseawards.com/black-unicorn-awards-winners-2020/ About Cyber Defense Magazine Cyber Defense Magazine was founded in 2012 by Gary S. Miliefsky, globally recognized cyber security thought leader, inventor and entrepreneur and continues to be the premier source of IT Security information. We are managed and published by and for ethical, honest, passionate information security professionals. Our mission is to share cutting-edge knowledge, real-world stories and awards on the best ideas, products and services in the information technology industry. We deliver electronic magazines every month online for free, and limited print editions exclusively for the RSA, BlackHat and IPEXPO conferences and our limited edition paid reprint subscribers. Learn more about us at http://www.cyberdefensemagazine.com . Cyber Defense Magazine is a proud member of the Cyber Defense Media Group. Media Contact: Jennifer Balinski, Guyer Group jennifer.balinski@guyergroup.com A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/f237d52d-53b6-4094-8322-17069faefb0f Dak Lak Province in Vietnams Centra Highlands has reinstated enhanced social distancing rules across its entire capital city of Buon Ma Thuot from Monday after three COVID-19 patients were documented there. The enhanced social distancing regulations have to be practiced from 0:00 Monday until the end of August 16 in accordance with the prime ministers directive No. 16 issued on March 31. Accordingly, citizens are requested to stay home and only go out under absolutely necessary circumstances, and maintain a minimum distance of two meters in social interaction. Gatherings of more than two people outside public offices, schools, hospitals, and in public spaces in general are banned while all non-essential businesses must be shuttered. From Sunday afternoon, authorities in Buon Ma Thuot City have also sealed off several streets where two COVID-19 patients stayed or had been to. The blocked roads include Hoang Dieu Street, an alley on Ama Khe Street, an alley on Nguyen Van Cu Street, and a section of National Highway 14 passing through Hoa Thuan Commune in the city. A woman from Ho Chi Minh City visited some relatives houses on these streets before being diagnosed with the disease on Sunday evening and identified as Vietnams COVID-19 patient No. 601. She came into contact with at least 114 people in Buon Ma Thuot City, according to Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper. Volunteers provide necessities for a COVID-19 quarantine center in Buon Ma Thuot City, Dak Lak Province, Vietnam, August 2, 2020. Photo: Trung Tan / Tuoi Tre Meanwhile, patient No. 602 a relative of patient No. 601 lives in a house at No. 101 on National Highway 14 passing through Hoa Thuan Commune. Both patients recently attended a wedding party in the central city of Da Nang, Vietnams current outbreak epicenter where 174 community-based infection cases since July 25 can be traced to. Previously, a woman returning to Buon Ma Thuot from Da Nang was confirmed as patient No. 448 on July 29. On Sunday afternoon, the Peoples Committee of Buon Ma Thuot established a quarantine center with a capacity of 100 people at a middle school on Phan Boi Chau Street. Earlier, the provincial administration had also put three other quarantine zones in the city into operation. Before Buon Ma Thuot, the central cities of Da Nang and Hoi An also imposed enhanced social distancing measures from July 28 and 31, respectively, to curb the spread of COVID-19. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Subscriber content preview PORTLAND (AP) Nike has filed documents with the state of Oregon that show its recently announced layoffs will eliminate at least 500 jobs at the company's world headquarters near Beaverton. The company announced the downsizing July 22 after disclosing a rare money-losing quarter in June, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported. . . . Comedienne and Presenter Valentina Nana Agyeiwaa popularly known as Afia Schwarzenegger has asked former President John Dramani Mahama to bear with her in her recent endorsement of the NPPs flagship program, the Free SHS. According to her, it is her unselfish desire that has led her to endorse the Nana Addo led NPP government for another Four (4) year term in government. "In as much as I would have you come back to lead this country as President, I equally believe that some people and for that matter Ghanaians also need to enjoy the free SHS policy which my two (2) children have relatively enjoy and their continues stay in power will also afford other Ghanaians the opportunity to have their wards educated and I believe that if the NPP government is allowed to stay in power, they will continue with the policy for other families to enjoy," she said in a video which has gone viral. Speaking on Okay FM's 'Ade Akye Abia' program, she appealed to the former President to bear with her and understand her recent decision. "I know I will be the biggest beneficiary if the John Mahama government is given the opportunity to lead this country again but I cannot remain selfish to deprive other Ghanaians who can not afford to pay for their children's schools," she said. Afia Schwarzenneger, a fierce critic of Ghana's President HE. Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo-Addo and a best friend of the former President, HE John Dramani Mahama in a recent video has asked Ghanaians to vote for the NPP government and Nana Akufo-Addo for him to continue with their free SHS policy which he believes will help other Ghanaians especially the girls to acquire knowledge and not indulge in activities that will endanger their future. " . . I'm sure a lot of people will be disappointed hearing from me on air because calls have come in and I've chosen not to talk to anybody, I'm doing what I think is right . . . I will love everybody to respect my decision which will not become words trading and insults . . . I'm sure my Father, John Dramani Mahama being a democratic man he is will sit down and nod, even though he will be hurt, I'm sure he will go with me on my decision . . ." she told Kwame Nkrumah 'Tikese' Watch video below Source: Isaac Kwame Owusu/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 Its not every day that you get cast as a superhero. So no wonder Brie Larson marked the four-year anniversary of when she joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The Oscar-winning star of Room made her debut as the titular hero in Captain Marvel in 2019. And following a show-stopping appearance in Avengers: Endgame, fans are primed and ready for Captain Marvel 2. But could the sequel make a classic MCU mistake? Brie Larson at The Cinema Society | Paul Bruinooge/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images Captain Marvel 2 is coming, but what will it be about? Following the $1.1 billion worldwide gross of Captain Marvel, everyone knew a sequel was coming. But Marvel Studios didnt officially announce it until April 2020. Now fans can expect the movie to hit theaters on July 8, 2022. But what is the plot of Captain Marvel 2? Actually, no one really knows yet. Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige has teased the sequel could be set between the first movie and the heros re-emergence in Avengers: Endgame. Yet, most of the rumors have revolved around what Captain Marvel might be up to in the present day. In the meantime, Larson has been enjoying her break from the MCU. The actor has started a YouTube channel and been very active in social media. But its likely getting to be about time for her to start thinking about getting back into Carol Danvers headspace for the sequel. RELATED: Captain Marvel 2: Brie Larsons Marvel Hero Takes on the MCUs Next Huge Cosmic Villain in New Fan Art The movie could suffer the same problem as another MCU sequel Captain Marvel introduced the hero to mainstream audiences. The movie directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck chronicled Carol Danvers origin story and set up a ton of potential for more stories. However, the sequel could be about to make a big mistake. Similarly to Captain Marvel, Iron Man single-handedly made Tony Stark an iconic character and kickstarted the MCU. Larson is reportedly in line to step up as the figurehead of the franchise going forward, following Robert Downey Jr.s departure. So Captain Marvel 2 has a lot riding on it. Yet, just like Iron Man 2, the upcoming film could be taking on too much. If Carol Danvers is destined to lead the MCU, her sophomore effort could be saddled with a lot of setup for Phase 5. RELATED: Why Captain Marvel 2 Should Stay in the 1990s Will Captain Marvel still be able to lead her own sequel? After all, the story of Iron Man 2 similarly suffered because of how it leads directly into The Avengers. It also introduced Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), developed Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), and gave fans the origin of War Machine (Don Cheadle). As a result, Many fans believe Iron Man 2 had to do too much heavy lifting. Rather than tell a focused solo story, it suffered under the weight of the greater MCU. And if rumors hold true, Captain Marvel 2 will bring in other heroes, robbing Larson of the spotlight. Some sources claim the movie will include Spider-Man, while others report Nova, Ms. Marvel, and others will play pivotal roles. If Captain Marvel 2 does serve as the end of Phase 4, it makes sense it will tee up what comes next but hopefully not at its title heros expense. Authorities have successfully unsealed Ghislaine Maxwell's documents, which could reveal bombshell details about Prince Andrew's connection with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Based on the documents, lawyers of two anonymous victims of Epstein tried to get hold of some files from the unsealed documents, which would prove how the Duke of York helped his pedophile friend get away from justice. Based on the motions filed by the lawyers of Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2, they accused Prince Andrew of lobbying the U.S. government to help Epstein get a plea deal from his 2008 case that put him in jail for just 18 months. "(They are) seeking documents regarding Epstein's lobbying efforts to persuade the government to give him a favorable plea arrangement, including efforts on his behalf by Prince Andrew and former Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz," the lawyers wrote, as reported by the Daily Mail. "They have alleged these materials are needed to prove their allegations that, after Epstein signed the non-prosecution agreement, his performance was delayed while he used his significant social and political connections to lobby the justice department to obtain a more favorable plea deal," it added. The newly released court files could reportedly prove that Prince Andrew used his power to pressure the U.S. government to help Epstein escape serious charges from his 2008 child prostitution case. He was allowed to plead guilty in exchange for an 18-month jail sentence and was allowed to serve some of it on a work-release program, which gave him the freedom to leave prison 12 hours a day for six days a week. According to the Courthouse News, the said documents were a part of the files from Maxwell's 2015 defamation lawsuit filed by one of Epstein's former victims, Virginia Roberts. On Thursday, the data were made public. The unsealed documents also contain allegations that Epstein forced underaged girls to have sex with Prince Andrew as part of the billionaire's effort to obtain incriminating evidence that he could use to blackmail the 60-year-old royal. Prince Andrew denied all those allegations when the case was heard in 2015. Virginia Roberts Transcript Meanwhile, the unsealed documents also include a transcript of deposition of Virginia Roberts, who previously claimed to have been forced to have sex with Prince Andrew on several occasions. In the transcript, Roberts was asked by investigators if the Duke of York would have a "relevant information" on the case, to which she replied: "Yes, he would know a lot of the truth." 'I don't know how much he'd be able to help you with, but seeing as he's in a lot of trouble himself these days, I think he might, so I think he might be valuable," Roberts added. Roberts furthered that she met Prince Andrew in March 2001 at Maxwell's townhouse, where she was forced to have sex with him for the first time. She said the sexual encounter happened three times when she was still 17 years old. All of these allegations were denied by Prince Andrew during a messy BBC Newsnight interview last November 2019. READ MORE: Finding Freedom: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle's Bombshell Biography Could DESTROY the Royal Family He also rejected Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's suggestion for 'e-bhoomi pujan' and said the ground-breaking ceremony should be held with great fervour. New Delhi: Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Friday said that the 'bhoomi pujan' ceremony of the proposed Ram temple in Ayodhya, scheduled to be held on August 5, is not required amid the COVID-19 pandemic and could be organised later when things normalised. Speaking to a Marathi news channel, the MNS chief said, "The bhoomi pujan is not required at this time as people are in a different mindset right now. It could have been held after two months when things normalise. People would have enjoyed the ceremony then." According to the members of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra trust, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visit Ayodhya on August 5 for the bhoomi pujan to begin the construction of the Ram temple. Thackeray also found faults in the way the state government handled the COVID-19 situation in Maharashtra and said that it was necessary to allay people's fears regarding the disease. "It is important to help people come out of this fear. The restrictions imposed by the state government, news on TV channels and messages on WhatsApp have all led to a kind of chaos. You need to make people feel relaxed," Thackeray added. Expressing concerns over the financial crisis and job losses in the state, the MNS chief made a strong pitch for resumption of economic activities. When asked about his cousin Uddhav Thackeray's performance as a CM, the MNS chief said he had seen the Shiv Sena president 'only on TV'. "I could not see his work in the last four-and-a-half to five months," he added. 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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 Another 43 people have been injured in the attack, which began late on Sunday when an IS suicide bomber slammed his explosive-laden vehicle into the entrance to the jail in Jalalabad, capital of Nangarhar province, some 70 miles (115km) east of Kabul. More assailants then opened fire. Three attackers have been killed so far but the battle was continuing on Monday with sporadic gunfire still coming from the prison grounds, said Attaullah Khogyani, a spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province. Some of the dead were prisoners, he said, as well as civilians, prison guards and Afghan security personnel. ISs affiliate in Afghanistan, known as IS in Khorasan province, claimed responsibility for the attack. The affiliate has its headquarters in Nangarhar province. The motive of the attack was not immediately clear; however, another provincial official said some prisoners escaped during the fighting. Advertisement The prison houses about 1,500 inmates, of whom several hundred are believed to belong to the IS affiliate in Afghanistan. The attack came a day after the Afghan intelligence agency said a senior IS commander had been killed by Afghan special forces near Jalalabad. While IS has seen its so-called caliphate stretching across Iraq and Syria eliminated after a years-long campaign, the group has continued fighting in Afghanistan. The extremists have also battled the Taliban in the country, whom the US overthrew following the 2001 American-led invasion after the September 11 attacks. The Talibans political spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, told the Associated Press that his group was not involved in the Jalalabad attack. The US struck a peace deal with the Taliban in February. A second, crucial round of negotiations between the Taliban and the political leadership in Kabul has yet to start. Nevertheless, Washington and Nato have already begun withdrawing troops in line with the deal. We have a ceasefire and are not involved in any of these attacks anywhere in the country, he said. The Taliban declared a three-day ceasefire starting on Friday for the major Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. It expired at 12am local time on Monday, although it was not immediately clear if it would be extended as the US pushes for an early start to intra-Afghan negotiations which have repeatedly been delayed since Washington signed a peace deal with the Taliban in February. The Taliban also denied being involved in a suicide bombing in eastern Logar province late Thursday which killed at least nine people and wounded 40 others. Afghanistan has seen a recent spike in violence, with most attacks claimed by the local IS affiliate. YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. The information published by the avia.pro website claiming that Turkish F-16 fighter jets have flown near to the Armenian border and were at one point only 56 kilometers (airstrike proximity) away from Yerevan has been denied by the Armenian military as fake news. This information is false, Armenian Defense Ministry spokesperson Shushan Stepanyan told ARMENPRESS. The avia.pro website claimed in an article that the Turkish fighter jets flew in Azerbaijani airspace and approached Armenia and were 56 kilometers away from Yerevan, a "distance of airstrikes". Reporting by Lilit Demuryan; Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan Mahurangi College is a step closer to formally occupying around nine hectares of native bush bordering the school and the Mahurangi River that it is using as a living classroom. Rodney Local Board voted last month to approve the public notification of Auckland Councils intention to grant the Board of Trustees a community licence to occupy the blocks of native bush in Falls Road River Reserve and View Road Bush Reserve. When and if that is finally approved, the college will hold its licence for 10 years, and have one 10-year right to renew it. The standard licence term is for five years, but Board members heard from college representatives that this period was too short. Forest project coordinator Colin Binsted said they needed to raise up to $400,000 to build a bridge across the river for students to access the northern bank, so a 10-year licence was needed to enable and encourage effective fundraising. Weve got a pontoon to cross at the moment, and were getting a slipway, he said. Weve got people in the community donating their services for free. We need security of tenure. Principal David Macleod said the outdoor learning initiative started in 2018 had become a key part of school life. Weve elevated this project right up there, the living forest, he said. Were getting support from the whole community and our students have an absolute passion, its the heart of our kids in college. The meeting heard that students had already caught 30 rats by trapping around the school grounds, had learnt about and established kauri dieback protocols, and were using the outdoor learning areas across a range of subjects. Board of Trustees chair Dean Iverson said the board saw hands-on outdoor education as important, not least since the number of students struggling with anxiety issues had been increasing. The non-exclusive community licence will replace a memorandum of understanding between Rodney Local Board and the colleges Board of Trustees that was signed in June last year. The daily figure of confirmed coronavirus infections in Nigeria again declined on Sunday, continuing a trend that began on Friday. On Sunday, 304 coronavirus infections were recorded in the country, the lowest number in at least two weeks The latest figure brings the total number of infections in the country to 43, 841, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC). Sundays figure is slightly lower than the 386 cases recorded on Saturday, and the 462 and 481 infections reported on Thursday and Friday. The NCDC in its daily update of the infection on its verified Twitter handle @NCDCgov said five fatalities were recorded from the virus on Sunday pushing the total number of confirmed deaths from the virus to 888. According to the NCDC, out of a total 43,841 infected persons so far, 20,308 have recovered and have been discharged after treatment in the countrys 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). There are still over 22, 000 active cases in Nigeria. The new cases, according to the NCDC, were found in the following 15 states: Lagos-81 FCT-39 Abia-31 Kaduna-24 Rivers-23 Plateau-16 Cross River-13 Ebonyi-12 Ondo-12 Ekiti-11 Edo-11 Benue-10 Nasarawa-10 Ogun-6 Gombe-5. The latest update came as many state governments shuffle plans for reopening of schools. Some states, including Ogun, had earlier fixed resumption of secondary schools for August 4, months after a nationwide halt of academic activities necessitated by COVID-19. Parents of private school students in Ogun State have protested against a N25,000 fee returning boarding students have been asked to pay for a coronavirus test. Lagos, Nigerias commercial nerve, remains the most impacted by the contagion, with the state holding over 15,000, over one-third of Nigerias total. More than 12,000 people are still on admission in the city of over 20 million people while about 192 people have died from coronavirus complications in Lagos. Nigeria is Africas third most impacted country behind only South Africa and Egypt. The federal and state governments are working to increase testing as authorities stress that cases definitely far exceed the current tally with less than 300,000 people tested so far. Nigeria has tested about 280,000 of its 200 million population. Iranian authorities have arrested a number of Afghans for waving the Taliban flag at a park in the capital, Tehran, during celebrations for the Eid al-Adha holy festival this past weekend. According to Iranian state-run news outlets ISNA and Mehr News, the head of Tehrans police force, Ali Zolghadiri, arrested the group because they showed support for the hard-line Sunni Islamist movement by waving its flag publicly and then posting photos on social media. All of the individuals who participated in this incident have been detained, including a man named Mohammed Arif Ahmadi, an Afghan social media activist living in Tehran who was responsible for posting the photos online, according to reports by the state-controlled media in Iran. The individuals are now in Iranian custody and a thorough investigation of the case is under way, Zolghadiri added. Insaf, another Iranian news agency, quoted the activist Ahmadi as saying that the photos were published without permission and I express great remorse. The Taliban have refrained from commenting on the incident. But on August 3, the Afghan government called on Tehran to stop pro-Taliban propaganda. The peace process that the Afghan government and the people of Afghanistan are supporting should be supported in practice and they should prevent moves that could affect this process, Afghan foreign affairs ministry spokesman Gran Hewad said. During a recent visit to Kabul, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi spoke with Afghan media and vehemently rejected the presence of the Taliban in his country. The Taliban do not have an office in Iran, he stated. Araghchi stressed numerous times that the Taliban are not active in Iran, but he did allow that it is possible for Taliban supporters to travel to and from Iran alongside other Afghans. Irans Shiite clerical regime considered the Taliban archenemies when the movement swept across Afghanistan in the mid-1990s. The two sides pulled back from the brink of war after Iranian diplomats were killed during the Taliban takeover of the northern city of Mazar-e Sharif. While Tehran initially supported the Talibans downfall in the aftermath of a U.S.-led military invasion in late 2001, it gradually reached out to insurgent leaders after its relationship with Washington worsened following the 2002 characterization of the country as part of an Axis of Evil by then President George W. Bush. In recent years, senior Taliban figures have made public visits to hold talks with senior Iranian officials, and Afghan and Western officials have blamed Iran for supporting the Taliban. -- With reporting by Tolo News Founder and CEO of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg leaves after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France on May 10, 2019. Facebook is preparing for the United States to rely on mail-in voting for the 2020 presidential election and will educate users on the process, in an effort to get ahead of potential disinformation. The social media platform has planned a curriculum around "getting people ready for the fact that there's a high likelihood that it takes days or weeks to count this and there's nothing wrong or illegitimate about that," CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a New York Times interview. Facebook could also implement new rules around premature claims of victory or other results, he added. Dozens of states have expanded vote-by-mail access, as the coronavirus continues to spread in the U.S. Vote by mail will give people a safe way to cast a ballot in November. But, it will take much longer for results to be tallied than on a typical Election Day. However, disinformation could surge on social media platforms with new election changes. Some Republican politicians have objected to expanding access to mail-in ballots. President Donald Trump has even said, for example, that results will be "inaccurate" and "fraudulent." tweet Social media platforms, including Facebook, have flagged some of the president's claims surrounding mail-in voting and redirected users to voting information. Zuckerberg told the Times that Facebook will pull results from wire services to provide accurate information on the election. Read the full New York Times column here. The U.S. Chemical Safety Board, which has only one board member instead of the usual five, on Friday postponed a scheduled public meeting that was to include discussion of its plans to operate even as President Donald Trump pushes to shut the watchdog agency responsible for probing major chemical accidents. Chairperson Katherine Lemos, a Trump appointee and the sole member of the historically five-person board, had scheduled the meeting to discuss investigations and plans to carry out its important safety mission, CSB spokeswoman Hillary Cohen said before the event was canceled. The meeting was postponed because of technical problems with the conference call service that was to link Lemos and CSB staffers. The agency has not set a date for a new meeting. The meeting in part was to discuss the possible release of results of an investigation on a 2018 explosion at a Pasadena, Texas, ethylene plant, as well as how (the board) will move forward with a quorum of one,' the CSB said. Lemos plan to keep operating as a board of one would allow it to issue final reports, which lay out the root causes of fires and explosions at chemical plants and refineries. It would also allow her to change the status of recommendations the CSB makes to industry and agencies. Labor and industry groups have protested the Trump administrations efforts to cut CSB funding and leave positions unfilled. The board has no regulatory or enforcement powers, but its final reports and recommendations often shine a spotlight on industry and regulatory agency failures leading to changes in operations and new rules. The CSB is one of the best deals in Washington, said Michael Wright, a safety official with the United Steelworkers union which has advocated full funding for the agency. Three of Donald Trumps trips to Mar-a-Lago are equal to the CSBs entire budget. Which is a better deal for the American people? asked Wright, citing government spending records. The American Chemistry Council, which lobbies on behalf of U.S. chemical makers, also would like to see the boards five spots filled, said a spokesman. We support the CSB having all its members and the board being adequately funded, said spokesman Scott Jensen. Weve not said that to the White House, weve said that to Congress. Trump previously sought to eliminate funding for the CSB and proposed to cut its $12 million budget in the next fiscal year. Lemos was Trumps first nomination and was confirmed for her 5-year term by the Senate in March 2020, after the terms of other board members expired in December and January. The agency has a staff of 47 people. (Reporting by Erwin Seba; Editing by Dan Grebler) Top Photo: Firefighters battle a petrochemical fire at the Intercontinental Terminals Company Monday, March 18, 2019, in Deer Park, Texas. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip) Topics Chemicals When you think technology and innovation, pioneering, the first names that normally come to mind are those of men; Microsoft's Bill Gates, Apple's Steve Jobs and Google's Larry Page and Sergey Brinn. While their contributions are undeniable and prolific, there are other names worthy of being celebrated too. Image supplied Susan Kare Susan Kares work with user interfaces helped to bring the first Apple computer to life. Her skills in typography and graphic design are responsible for many aspects of the Mac interface still used today, including the command icon. She was also behind the Happy Mac icon that greeted users during boot up, and the trash can icon. Her work played an important role in Jobs efforts to make the personal computer more personable. After Jobs was forced out of Apple in the mid-80s, Kare moved on to Microsoft, where she worked on the Windows 3.0 operating system. She has since done work for Facebook, helping to create some of their digital gifts, including the rubber ducky. Susan Kares work with user interfaces helped to bring the first Apple computer to life. Her skills in typography and graphic design are responsible for many aspects of the Mac interface still used today, including the command icon. She was also behind the Happy Mac icon that greeted users during boot up, and the trash can icon. Her work played an important role in Jobs efforts to make the personal computer more personable. After Jobs was forced out of Apple in the mid-80s, Kare moved on to Microsoft, where she worked on the Windows 3.0 operating system. She has since done work for Facebook, helping to create some of their digital gifts, including the rubber ducky. Grace Hopper Navy Rear Admiral Grace Hopper is known to many as the Queen of Software, or as Grandma COBOL. Hopper invented some of the earliest English-language programming languages and is most closely associated with Common Business-Oriented Language (COBOL), which was based off the FLOW-MATIC language she invented in 1958. Hopper thought that if programming was created in a language that was easier for people to understand, there would be more computer programmers. Today, COBOL is still widely used to build new business applications. Navy Rear Admiral Grace Hopper is known to many as the Queen of Software, or as Grandma COBOL. Hopper invented some of the earliest English-language programming languages and is most closely associated with Common Business-Oriented Language (COBOL), which was based off the FLOW-MATIC language she invented in 1958. Hopper thought that if programming was created in a language that was easier for people to understand, there would be more computer programmers. Today, COBOL is still widely used to build new business applications. Joan Ball A group of men at Harvard University got credit for the first computerised dating service, 'Operation Match.' However, it was a woman in England who first devised a way to determine compatibility using a computer. Ball founded and ran the St. James Computer Dating Service, which she later re-named Com-Pat, short for computerised compatibility. She translated survey answers about what a prospective lover did not want in a partner to punch cards, which she then ran through a time-shared computer. Her programme would reveal the match in the system, and people using the service would receive the name and address of whoever they had been paired with. She made the first match-by-computer in 1964; a year before Operation Match at Harvard was up and running. A group of men at Harvard University got credit for the first computerised dating service, 'Operation Match.' However, it was a woman in England who first devised a way to determine compatibility using a computer. Ball founded and ran the St. James Computer Dating Service, which she later re-named Com-Pat, short for computerised compatibility. She translated survey answers about what a prospective lover did not want in a partner to punch cards, which she then ran through a time-shared computer. Her programme would reveal the match in the system, and people using the service would receive the name and address of whoever they had been paired with. She made the first match-by-computer in 1964; a year before Operation Match at Harvard was up and running. Elma Gardner Pem Farnsworth Farnsworth helped her husband, Philo T. Farnsworth, develop the television and was among the first people whose images were transmitted on TV. Farnsworth worked by her husband's side in his laboratories and fought for decades to assure his place in history after his 1971 death. His first TV transmission was on 7 September 1927, in his San Francisco lab, when the 21-year-old inventor sent the image of a horizontal line to a receiver in the next room. Farnsworth recalled that morning in the lab saying it was a very small screen, about the size of a postage stamp. At first, her and her husband were stunned, it seemed too good to be true. Then Mr Farnsworth said, there you have it; electric television. The first human images transmitted by Farnsworth were of his wife and her brother, Cliff Gardner. A three-and-a-half-inch square image of his wife with her eyes closed was transmitted on 19 October 1929, the first woman on TV. Philo Farnsworth gave his wife equal credit in his invention, saying, that it was the two of them who started TV. From the size of a postage stamp to TVs today that could rival an IMAX cinema experience, its simply incredible how technology has progressed in less than a century, acknowledges Meyer. Now so much more than simply a TV, that once electric television, has become your homes control centre. The Skyworth S9A OLED TV is a case in point. Being an AI TV, it can be controlled solely by the users voice and supports both Google Assistant and other smart home devices such as Amazon Alexa. When that grainy image of Farnsworth was first transmitted it was hard for anyone to imagine it could get any better. Meyer explains that one of the most amazing S9A OLED features is the Chameleon AI PQ Extreme. Its a picture quality improvement technology based on the PQ chip. Using AI technology to search, recognise and reconstruct image objects, it improves the picture quality precisely. Chameleon AI PQ Extreme analyses object details based on AI algorithm and adjusts colour performance, particularly red, blue and green, in real time. This means that each pixel can perform at its most accurate and purest colour. So be it movies, sport or series, your Skyworth features will match your likes every time. Farnsworth helped her husband, Philo T. Farnsworth, develop the television and was among the first people whose images were transmitted on TV. Farnsworth worked by her husband's side in his laboratories and fought for decades to assure his place in history after his 1971 death. His first TV transmission was on 7 September 1927, in his San Francisco lab, when the 21-year-old inventor sent the image of a horizontal line to a receiver in the next room. Farnsworth recalled that morning in the lab saying it was a very small screen, about the size of a postage stamp. At first, her and her husband were stunned, it seemed too good to be true. Then Mr Farnsworth said, there you have it; electric television. The first human images transmitted by Farnsworth were of his wife and her brother, Cliff Gardner. A three-and-a-half-inch square image of his wife with her eyes closed was transmitted on 19 October 1929, the first woman on TV. Philo Farnsworth gave his wife equal credit in his invention, saying, that it was the two of them who started TV. From the size of a postage stamp to TVs today that could rival an IMAX cinema experience, its simply incredible how technology has progressed in less than a century, acknowledges Meyer. Now so much more than simply a TV, that once electric television, has become your homes control centre. The Skyworth S9A OLED TV is a case in point. Being an AI TV, it can be controlled solely by the users voice and supports both Google Assistant and other smart home devices such as Amazon Alexa. When that grainy image of Farnsworth was first transmitted it was hard for anyone to imagine it could get any better. Meyer explains that one of the most amazing S9A OLED features is the Chameleon AI PQ Extreme. Its a picture quality improvement technology based on the PQ chip. Using AI technology to search, recognise and reconstruct image objects, it improves the picture quality precisely. Chameleon AI PQ Extreme analyses object details based on AI algorithm and adjusts colour performance, particularly red, blue and green, in real time. This means that each pixel can perform at its most accurate and purest colour. So be it movies, sport or series, your Skyworth features will match your likes every time. Mary Allen Wilkes Not only did Wilkes help develop what is now considered the first personal computer, she was also the first person to have a PC in her home. Wilkes worked on the LINC (Laboratory INstrument Computer) computer as a programmer and instructions author. She is credited with writing the LINC's operating programme manual and was also the programmer of the LAP6 operating system for the LINC. Shes stated that she took the LINC home with her in order to write the operating system, helping to make working remotely a reality for so many of us today. Not only did Wilkes help develop what is now considered the first personal computer, she was also the first person to have a PC in her home. Wilkes worked on the LINC (Laboratory INstrument Computer) computer as a programmer and instructions author. She is credited with writing the LINC's operating programme manual and was also the programmer of the LAP6 operating system for the LINC. Shes stated that she took the LINC home with her in order to write the operating system, helping to make working remotely a reality for so many of us today. Donna Dubinsky Before there was the iPhone, there was the Blackberry, and before the Blackberry there was the Palm Pilot. While not as mainstream as the latter, the Palm Pilot was ground-breaking and changed the business landscape. Businesspeople could now do business on the go, from the palm of their hands. Though built and prototyped by Jeff Hawkins, the Palm Pilot was brought to market by Dubinsky an alumnus of Harvard Business School and Apple, who built the first Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) company, Palm. After leaving Palm, Dubinsky founded Handspring, with its signature Visor PDA able to store data and access programmes beyond a calendar and a few games. Before there was the iPhone, there was the Blackberry, and before the Blackberry there was the Palm Pilot. While not as mainstream as the latter, the Palm Pilot was ground-breaking and changed the business landscape. Businesspeople could now do business on the go, from the palm of their hands. Though built and prototyped by Jeff Hawkins, the Palm Pilot was brought to market by Dubinsky an alumnus of Harvard Business School and Apple, who built the first Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) company, Palm. After leaving Palm, Dubinsky founded Handspring, with its signature Visor PDA able to store data and access programmes beyond a calendar and a few games. Karen Sparck Jones The search engines we use daily rely on the natural language processing discoveries made by female computer scientist, Karen Sparck Jones. She was recruited to Cambridge into the Language Research Unit by another female professor, the computational linguist Margaret Masterman. Jones' most notable achievements laid the groundwork for the sort of information retrieval we use today. She introduced the use of thesauri into language processing, allowing for computational recognition of similar words. She also introduced the idea and methods of term weighing in information retrieval, that helped queries determine which terms were the most relevant. The search engines we use daily rely on the natural language processing discoveries made by female computer scientist, Karen Sparck Jones. She was recruited to Cambridge into the Language Research Unit by another female professor, the computational linguist Margaret Masterman. Jones' most notable achievements laid the groundwork for the sort of information retrieval we use today. She introduced the use of thesauri into language processing, allowing for computational recognition of similar words. She also introduced the idea and methods of term weighing in information retrieval, that helped queries determine which terms were the most relevant. Dr. Erna Hoover We have Hoover to thank for a major reduction in dropped calls and busy signals. Patented in 1971, Hoover developed a telephony switching computer programme while working at Bell Laboratories. The programme allowed phones to keep functioning under high call volumes, preventing it from hanging up on itself. We have Hoover to thank for a major reduction in dropped calls and busy signals. Patented in 1971, Hoover developed a telephony switching computer programme while working at Bell Laboratories. The programme allowed phones to keep functioning under high call volumes, preventing it from hanging up on itself. Adele Goldberg Without this woman, the Apple desktop environment might not look the way it does today. Goldberg was a researcher at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) in the 1970s. She was the lone woman among a group of men who, together, built the Smalltalk-80 programming language and developed the infrastructure and design for overlapping windows on display screens, or Graphical User Interface (GUI). Goldberg has stated that she was forced by her superiors to show Smalltalk and the GUI to Steve Jobs and his team, even though she thought it was not a good idea to show Jobs their intellectual property. Jobs was transfixed by Smalltalk and knew the GUI technology Goldberg had helped developed represented the future of computing, and that of Apple. Without this woman, the Apple desktop environment might not look the way it does today. Goldberg was a researcher at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) in the 1970s. She was the lone woman among a group of men who, together, built the Smalltalk-80 programming language and developed the infrastructure and design for overlapping windows on display screens, or Graphical User Interface (GUI). Goldberg has stated that she was forced by her superiors to show Smalltalk and the GUI to Steve Jobs and his team, even though she thought it was not a good idea to show Jobs their intellectual property. Jobs was transfixed by Smalltalk and knew the GUI technology Goldberg had helped developed represented the future of computing, and that of Apple. Carol Shaw Shaw is the person behind some retro video games most loved graphics. Shes considered the first female video game designer and programmer. She is most famous for her 1982 game River Raid, but she also contributed to 3-D Tic-Tac-Toe in 1979 and Video Checkers in 1980, among many others. Her unpublished 1978 Polo is the first documented game designed and programmed by a woman. There are women who drove technological innovation in the 19th and 20th centuries and continue to do so in the 21st century. These inventors of key technological architects of modern life have for the most part gone unheard and their praises unsung. The woman who created the Palm Pilot, the woman who made working from home a reality, the woman who invented online dating and the woman who played a pivotal role in the invention of the television we know and rely on so heavily today, are just a few of many.In honour of Womens Month, Bridget Meyer, marketing manager at Skyworth, details 10 incredible women who have helped shape technology as we know it: Controversial Television personality, Valentina Nana Agyeiwaa popularly called, Afia Schwarzenegger, has endorsed the second term bid of President Akufo-Addo, praising the free education policy of the administration. Afia Schwarzenegger joined the #4More 4 Nana campaign over the weekend when he posted on Instagram her preference for President Akufo-Addo against NDC's John Mahama who she campaigned in 2016. She cited the freebies such as electricity, water, etc, President Akufo-Addo was offering Ghanaians as a reason for campaigning for his re-election. In a 49 seconds video posted on Instagram, she pleaded with Ghanaian prospective voters to vote for President Akufo-Addo come December 7, 2020, saying me, I want four more years for Nana. She said she would have prefer canvassing for votes for John Mahama as she did in 2020 but the future of Ghanaian youngsters citing the free Senior High School policy of the administration as the best programme to shape the future of the Ghanaian youth. She said President Akufo-Addo is gradually delivering on his campaign promises including provision of free water, free electricity, free SHS which her children are beneficiaries, claiming that the President is shaming all doubting Thomas about his campaign promises. She said #4More 4 Nana is the way to go. ----Daily Guide Appropriately enough it all began with a credit union loan. It was 1972 and Northern Ireland was enduring a terrible year of murder and mayhem, including the killing of 14 innocent people by British soldiers in Derry. John Hume, a charismatic civil rights leader from Derry, had big ideas about finding a way out of the mess this country was in. But he had no money. He and his wife, Pat, had five children and all were entirely dependent on her teachers salary. Suddenly, he got an invitation to meet one of the most influential Irish-Americans, Senator Ted Kennedy, at the Irish Embassy in Bonn. The credit union loan, appropriately to a man who had championed the foundation of those peoples banks all over Ireland, covered the flight and a hotel room. Read More And happily the meeting was a huge success. Ted Kennedy believed John Hume had the formula which could unlock the conflict in Northern Ireland, and he was prepared to use his influence in Washington to put the case to Britain. The story is told in a documentary film John Hume in America made in 2018. The documentary drew in a huge range of characters who were at the heart of it all over almost 40 years. Contributors included two US Presidents, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, two British Prime Ministers, John Major and Tony Blair, the American mediator, George Mitchell, and former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern. Expand Close Skilled politician: former SDLP leader John Hume (right), with Tip ONeill during his visit to America / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Skilled politician: former SDLP leader John Hume (right), with Tip ONeill during his visit to America There were also a host of former Irish diplomats whose unsung skills proved vital in the whole 30-year-long series of interlinked projects. John Humes message was deceptively simple: Nothing would be achieved by violence. The people of Ireland were divided it was not about two pieces of turf. Resolution must begin in NI and the key to any change was the principle of consent. In America this message faced two potent enemies. One enemy was Irish-Americans unthinking IRA support, via the money jar on the bar. Read More The other, more powerful enemy, was reticence by Washington's political elite, who accepted that Northern Irelands problems were an internal UK matter, and they did not risk irking London by interfering. John Hume set out to change the Washington elites view of Northern Ireland as a more urgent but achievable goal. Changing grass-roots Irish-America would have to wait. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next John Hume 1937 - 2020: A life in pictures Close John Hume playing with his children John Hume is carried aloft through Londonderry city centre after being returned as MP for Foyle in 1987 John Hume on his wedding day with wife Pat John Hume is detained by soldiers during a civil rights protest in Londonderry in August 1971. John Hume John Hume in thoughtful mood at the SDLP party conference in Newcastle in 1979 Bertie Ahern and John Hume as they took part in a press conference on the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in Belfast. Picture Charles McQuillan/Pacemaker. U2 star Bono is flanked by David Trimble and John Hume on stage during a special concert in Belfast to promote the Yes vote in the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement (Chris Bacon/PA) PA John Hume with his good friend, Senator Ted Kennedy, in the Bogside John Hume with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan John Hume and his wife Pat at the Foyle Arts Centre in Londonderry after hearing that he and David Trimble were to share the Nobel Peace Prize Photopress Belfast John Hume with party colleague Seamus Mallon John Hume and David Trimble with U2 frontman Bono celebrating the Good Friday Agreement The SDLP team led by leader John Hume arrives at Stormont in 1999 to start the process of selecting ministers for the devolved government John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast Hometown heroes: John Hume celebrates with Derry City players after their 2010 First Division win SPORTSFILE Former SDLP leader John Hume and Bill Clinton pictured in front of the Guildhall. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams (left) and SDLP leader John Hume (Chris Bacon/PA) PA John Hume worked with Ian Paisley PA SDLP leader John Hume with his wife Pat speak to the media after he and David Trimble won the Nobel Peace Prize (PA) PA John Hume in front of the Stormont Building in 2002 (Paul Faith/PA) John Hume with David Trimble (PA) PA Bill Clinton in front of the Guildhall with former SDLP leader John Hume and his wife Pat. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. SDLP Conference, St Columb's Hall, Derry 12th March 2016. SDLP Leader Colm Eastwood John Hume at the conclusion of the conference Photo:Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. File photo dated 19/10/2000 of the Dalai Lama (left) meeting with fellow Nobel peace laureate John Hume, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. Photo: Martin McCullough/PA Wire PA File photo dated 24/08/2014 of John Hume and his wife Pat, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. PA Photo.Photo: Niall Carson/PA Wire PA Handout File photo dated 12/04/2000 of Former South African President Nelson Mandela meeting John Hume at the South African Embassy in Dublin Photo: PA Wire PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume playing with his children Relatively quickly he succeeded by persuading not just Ted Kennedy, but a host of others including the legendary Tipp ONeill, as speaker of the House of Representatives, the second most powerful politician in the USA. To paraphrase his long-time colleague the late, Seamus Mallon, John Hume went to where power was and he sought to use all his persuasive powers to influence those with that power. Over a tireless political career, he successfully sold this self-proclaimed single transferrable speech in Dublin, Washington, London, and Brussels. Eventually he even sold it, albeit very belatedly, to Sinn Fein and the IRA. There is an interesting contribution from Gerry Adams who admits they "wasted years." He does not add that they also wasted thousands of lives. Read More John Hume himself was too ill to take part in the making of that 2018 film. But it is replete with footage of his memorable comments and assessments. Very striking is his defence of the hugely controversial Hume-Adams dialogue in the early 1990s, insisting he was doing it to help save lives, it was no disrespect to IRA victims. There are many other evocative moments, not least Humes lament for the dead hunger striker, Bobby Sands, whom he saw as a pawn of both British and IRA propaganda. It was praise indeed to hear the Democratic Unionist Party MP, Geoffrey Donaldson, admit Hume was light years ahead of Unionists in opening up these US contacts. Expand Close Margaret Thatcher, former British Prime Minister, on a visit to Belfast. 1981. Mrs Thatcher chatting with the SDLP leader John Hume. 6/3/1981 / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Margaret Thatcher, former British Prime Minister, on a visit to Belfast. 1981. Mrs Thatcher chatting with the SDLP leader John Hume. 6/3/1981 It was also interesting to note that Margaret Thatchers close ally, Lord McAlpine, had said the hardline British Prime Minister lamented agreeing the 1985 Anglo Irish Agreement. But she said the Americans had made her do it. This film is not all upbeat achievements, though there are uplifting moments. The grim reality of all the reverses, the senseless killing and destruction, are well chronicled via lots of old footage. John Hume worked closely with Dublin, especially the Irish diplomats. But he always argued that Dublin governments had never defined why they wanted from Irish unity. This left unionists to characterise it as conquest of the north by the south making unity a dirty word. Ireland must be one of the few places on earth where people seriously suggest it is wrong to unite people, John Hume reflected. But for all that John Hume was no saint. Expand Close Former SDLP Party Leader John Hume shakes the hand of Seamus Mallon after he ruled himself out for the post of Second Minister of the new Northern Ireland Assembly and nominated his Deputy Seamus Mallon instead / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Former SDLP Party Leader John Hume shakes the hand of Seamus Mallon after he ruled himself out for the post of Second Minister of the new Northern Ireland Assembly and nominated his Deputy Seamus Mallon instead Seamus Mallon, who died this past January, said he could be a difficult person, bad at accepting criticism, and prone to solo runs which disenchanted colleagues. But Mallons verdict was unequivocal: There is a greatness about his political life, what he did, and what he helped to change. I would put him in the same breath as Parnell and Daniel OConnell. Jonathan Stevens with his partner Laura Burford and four of his children. (Wales News) A hero father of seven who died helping to save three of his children from drowning on Barmouth Beach in Gwynedd, north Wales, on Sunday has been named. Jonathan Stevens, 36, from Telford, Shropshire, was at the popular spot with three of his children when the youngsters began to struggle in the water after being caught in a riptide at lunchtime on Sunday. He tried to pull the children, aged between 10 and 12, to safety but succumbed to the strong rip current himself. A major rescue operation was launched, with a lifeboat and Coastguard rescue helicopter dispatched, and he was pulled from the water. Stevens was given medical care at the scene before being airlifted to Ysbyty Gwynedd hospital, where he died. The children were said to be suffering from suspected hypothermia and were given medical care. On Monday his heartbroken partner Laura Burford said Stevens had died a hero, saving their babies". In a statement to North Wales Live provided by a relative, Burford, 34, who was at home in Telford when the tragedy happened, said: "I am absolutely devastated to say that I have lost the complete love of my life. Search and Rescue mission: Stevens, 36, tried to pull his children - who had been caught in the rip tide - to safety. "All seven of his beautiful kids have lost their dad. He died saving his kids' lives in the sea. "There are no words to describe the pain. I will always be grateful to (him) for bringing our babies back. "I love him, always have, and always will." A GoFundMe page has been set up for Burford and the children by friend Mel Plowman and had raised more than 2,700 by Monday afternoon. Plowman described Stevens as a "true hero" and said she hoped to raise money to support his loved ones. A Coastguard search and rescue helicopter dispatched and Stevens was airlifted to hospital but died in Ysbyty Gwynedd. (Wales News) Police and the Coastguard were called at 1.58pm today to a report that a man had got into difficulty in the sea in Barmouth. The man, believed to be in his 30s, was taken by Air Ambulance to Ysybyty Gwynedd, where he tragically died. His family have been made aware. pic.twitter.com/kKVm57PpfO North Wales Police #KeepWalesSafe (@NWPolice) August 2, 2020 A spokesman for North Wales Police said: "Police and the Coastguard were called at 1.58pm on Sunday to a report that a man had got into difficulty in the sea in Barmouth. Story continues "The man was taken by air ambulance to Ysbyty Gwynedd, where he tragically died." A Coastguard spokesman said: "At 1.31pm HM Coastguard received a 999 call reporting people in the water off Barmouth and sent Barmouth coastguard rescue team, Barmouth RNLI lifeboat, and HM Coastguard's fixed wing aircraft. Tragedy: Barmouth beach in North Wales. (Wales News) "Barmouth harbour master and the Coastguard rescue helicopter and helimed also attended. A male casualty was recovered from the water and transferred to Ysbyty Gwynedd in a serious condition." A spokeswoman for the Welsh Ambulance Service said: We were called at 1.39pm to reports of persons caught in a rip tide at Barmouth beach. "We sent two rapid response cars and two emergency ambulances to the scene where crews were also supported by a Wales Air Ambulance and a search and rescue helicopter. "Three patients were taken to Ysbyty Gwynedd. Calif. county bans indoor church services, secular facilities to counter jump in COVID-19 cases Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment A county in California has ordered the closing of indoor worship services, as well as other secular facilities like gyms and shopping malls, to counter a rise in COVID-19 cases. San Mateo County began the official closure of indoor church services at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, several hours before many worship services would have begun. The County Managers Office explained that the shutdowns occurred because the county was put on a monitoring list for the coronavirus. In addition to houses of worship, other entities barred from indoor operation include fitness centers, nail salons, shopping malls, and nonessential offices. Weve been anticipating being added to the monitoring list as our case rate hovers above the states target, explained San Mateo County Manager Mike Callagy in a statement. Its clear that COVID-19 continues to spread in our community and in the Bay Area. Its vital that we all do everything we can wearing face coverings, washing our hands, and avoiding gatherings to slow and eventually stop the spread. These individual actions can make a huge difference. As of last Friday, San Mateo reported 5,544 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 119 deaths of which 80 were in nursing homes, according to CBS San Francisco. A state with a high number of COVID-19 cases, California has garnered controversy for some of the measures it has taken to curb the spread of the pandemic, especially in regards to churches. Orders by Governor Gavin Newsom have included banning most religious gatherings as well as prohibiting singing, seen by some to be comparable to coughing or sneezing. Such measures have led to backlash. For example, the Pasadena-based Harvest Rock Church and Harvest International Ministries filed suit against Newsom over the meeting restrictions. The suit says the governors order that bans all indoor worship services in as many as 30 counties also bans members from gathering at home for Bible studies in the affected counties. The Governors orders impose disparately onerous prohibitions and numerical restrictions on religious gatherings in churches, and even on in-home Bible studies, worship meetings, and life groups, claimed the lawsuit. And the Governor has imposed these draconian restrictions on Plaintiffs while openly celebrating and encouraging mass gatherings for protests. The Constitution demands more and so should this Court. John MacArthur, pastor at Grace Community Church, announced that his congregation was going to be obedient to God's Word and hold in-person worship services. Jonathan Leeman, editorial director of the ministry group 9Marks, expressed concern over churches following MacArthur without more discernment. He explained that churches can still meet outdoors and that, in past crises, churches have altered their worship patterns in light of national calamities due to government orders. Churches in coastal cities during World War Two accommodated evening black-out requirements in case enemy planes hit the coasts. Those churches didnt insist the government had no right to restrict our worship, wrote Leeman. In other words, just because you think God will ultimately vindicate your decision to disobey the government on the last day doesnt mean its wise. You might have other options that avoid undue attention. The foreign ministry has ordered a senior diplomat to return home immediately over allegations that he sexually assaulted a local embassy employee when stationed in New Zealand, an official said Monday. The New Zealander has accused the senior diplomat of groping parts of his body on three different occasions in 2017. The case has drawn fresh attention after New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern raised the issue in a phone call with President Moon Jae-in last week. "We issued an order as of today for him to return home immediately. It's a personnel measure taken for causing a lot of trouble," a senior ministry official said, adding that South Korea was willing to cooperate on the diplomat's extradition at New Zealand's request. The diplomat left Wellington in February 2018 and is stationed in the Philippines. On Saturday, Winston Peters, New Zealand's foreign minister, also urged Seoul to cooperate by waiving the accused man's diplomatic immunity and sending him to New Zealand for an investigation. (Yonhap) In a surprising development, IPS officer Binay Tiwari, who reached Mumbai from Patna on Sunday (August 2) to probe a case related to the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput has been "forcibly quarantined" for 14 days by Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials. It is to be noted that Tiwari is leading a Bihar Police team which is in Mumbai to investigate an "abetment to suicide" case on the basis of an FIR filed by Sushant's father K K Singh in Patna. In his FIR, Sushant's father has named actress Rhea Chakraborty and her family members as accused. "IPS officer Vinay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from Patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11 PM today," Bihar Director General of Police (DGP) Pandey tweeted. IPS officer Binay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11pm today.He was not provided accommodation in the IPSMess despite request and was staying in a guest house in Goregaw pic.twitter.com/JUPFRpqiGE IPS Gupteshwar Pandey (@ips_gupteshwar) August 2, 2020 "He was not provided accommodation in the IPS mess, despite request, and was staying in a Guest House in Goregaon," he said. Notably, Mumbai Police is already probing this case and has so far recorded statements of as many as 37 people including Rhea, Mahesh Bhatt, Aditya Chopra, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Sanjana Sanghi along with actor's personal staff members and doctors. Sushant, a resident of Patna, reportedly died by suicide at his Bandra residence in Mumbai on June 14. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh on Sunday (August 2) condemned the demand for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) investigation into Sushant's death case. He shared on social media that even though the Patna Police has filed an FIR into Sushant's death and is investigating the case, it will be the onus of Mumbai Police to carry out investigation as per jurisdictional norms. A mother who tried to single-handedly dig her way into a jail in Ukraine to free her murderer son is now facing being locked up herself. The 51-year-old woman, who has not been named, rented a house near the jail in southern Zaporizhia region where her son is serving a life sentence. She then used shovels and pickaxes in order to dig a 10ft-deep tunnel in a nearby field which then ran for 35ft underground to just under the prison walls. A 51-year-old mother has been jailed in Ukraine after attempting to dig an escape tunnel under jail walls so she could free her son, who is serving a life sentence for murder The woman rented a house in the town closest to the prison, then dug a 10ft-deep tunnel in a nearby field which ran for 35ft underground towards the jail She dug only at night so as not to attract attention, arriving at the dig site on a silent electric scooter. A jail guard said: 'She had a kind of trolley, a piece of plywood with small wheels, so she could remove the soil.' The soil was dumped near a disused garage, close to where the dig site was located. The woman had shifted some three tons of earth by the time she was caught and arrested, three weeks after starting her project. During the day, the woman kept indoors so as not to attract attention as a outsider. When Ukrainian TV station TSN showed a photo of her to a nearby shopkeeper, he did not recognise her. The woman used hand tools (left) to excavate the earth, and a placed a trolley inside the tunnel (right) which she used to remove three tons of debris The tunnel had almost got underneath the prison walls (pictured) when it was discovered, and the woman now faces being locked up as well Local resident Serhey Pilnyansky said: 'This mother prepared thoroughly. 'Perhaps she is a miner's daughter. 'To dig three metres deep would be hard enough. 'She had no excavator or anything of the kind.' No details have been given about the identity of her son who is from Mykolaiv, a five-hour drive away, but is now jailed in the bleak penal colony. During a search of the rented house, police found hand tools for digging. The woman won praise from Ukrainians. 'This is a real mother - not one of those who abandon their children,' said a commenter. Kangana Ranauts team has shared a glimpse of her Raksha Bandhan celebrations on Instagram. The Manikarnika actor tied the rakhi to her brother Aksht and also wrote a special note to him on the occasion. Her sister Rangoli was also a part of the celebrations. Kangana wore a black-and-white printed ethnic suit and paired it with a huge colourful hairband and boots. The look was reminiscent of Mexican artiste Frida Kahlo. Her team shared the pictures and the letter with the caption, Kangana, a gypsy soul, at Rakhi celebrations with her family in Manali. Kangana wrote in the letter, Dear Aksht, When we were kids papa bought you plastic guns and cycles for me, I played with your guns and you rode my cycles, I love your sense of humor there is never a dull moment with you, I know I have chosen my enemies beyond your reach but I notice your helplessness when they bully me. I see that silent tear fall when they character assassin me, when I challenge the system parents may scold me and create a lot of noise but I dont miss you silently stand behind them conflicted and still, I appreciate when you read all the comments under my trailers I hate when you get anxious if my films dont open well, above everything what I appreciate the most is you never show me how much you care ... I love you and I am so fortunate to have a brother like you. Kangana. Also read: Raksha Bandhan: From Ranbir-Riddhima to Abhishek-Shweta, here are 9 most talked about brother-sister duos of Bollywood The Judgementall Hai Kya actor has been in the eye of the storm for her several interviews post the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput, followed by a raging debate on nepotism. She has alleged that Karan Johar and Aditya Chopras production houses systematically work with each other and in sync with each other - whom to promote, whom to demote, whom to destroy. She also called Taapsee Pannu, Richa Chadha and Swara Bhasker B-grade actresses and needy outsiders. Follow @htshowbiz for more SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Stocks to watch today: Here is a list of top stocks that are likely to be in focus in Monday's trading session based on latest developments. Share Market News Live: Sensex down 300 points, Nifty at 11,025; IndusInd Bank, Kotak Bank top losers Maruti: Company reported a 1.3% increase in domestic passenger vehicle sales to 1,01,307 units as against 1,00,006 units in July 2019. Mahindra & Mahindra: Company reported 27% jump in its tractor sales at 25,402 units in July as against 19,992 units of tractor in July 2019. Company's domestic sales grew 28% to 24,463 units in July this year, as compared to 19,174 units in the year-ago month. Hero MotoCorp: Company reported a 3.97% dip in sales to 5,14,509 units in July compared to 5,35,810 units in July 2019. Sequentially, the sales grew 14% over June. Bandhan Bank: Ledner's main shareholder, Bandhan Financial Holdings will sell 337.4 million shares worth Rs 10,500 crore via block deal to meet the RBI shareholding norms. Tata Motors: The company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 8,443.98 crore for the quarter ended June 2020as against the net loss of Rs 3,679.66 crore in the year-ago quarter. Indian Oil Corp: Company said it will invest Rs 13,805 crore to set up a plant in Odisha's Paradip to manufacture raw materials for the textile sector. The project is expected to be completed by 2024. Cadila: Company received tentative nod from the USFDA to market Carbidopa and Levodopa extended-release capsules, used for the treatment of symptoms of Parkinson's disease, in the US market. We are in a pandemic today that the world hasn't seen the likes of in 102 years. Mildred Geraldine "Gerri" Schappals is one of the few people in the world who has survived both. The 102-year-old New Englander lived through a severe bout of the flu during the 1918 pandemic as a baby. And now, a century later, punctuated by two bouts of cancer, Schappals also has recovered from covid-19 in the pandemic of 2020. Schappals - an Irish Catholic known for her witty one-liners - is the oldest resident at the Huntington at Nashua, a retirement and assisted-living community in Nashua, N.H. "I don't think of myself as old," said Schappals, who is moderately deaf and provided an interview through her daughter, Julia Schappals. Julia Schappals, 68, calls her mother feisty and tough and "an example of a good, fighting treasure." She is an anomaly, and not just because of her age. The elder Schappals was not particularly health-conscious throughout her life, yet she seems to have a bulletproof immune system. She credits that to the 1918 flu pandemic, her daughter said. Julia Schappals cannot recall a single time when her mother got sick with a respiratory ailment like the cold or flu. In fact, Gerri Schappals had disdain for anyone who did get sick. "I really think that having the 1918 flu strengthened everything about me," she said. "I never had colds or illnesses until I got cancer, and even then I pulled through. It's either that or Mother Nature thinks I died in 1918, so she ignores me." - - - Gerri Schappals was born in Worcester, Mass., on Jan. 18, 1918, when World War I was raging, and women didn't have the right to vote. Eleven months after she was born - in November, the same month when the war officially ended - baby Gerri, her mother and her teenage brother, Joseph, came down with the dreaded flu. The virus ended up killing an estimated 675,000 people in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Schappals was so ill that when her parents changed her diaper, they didn't bother pinning it because she couldn't move. Doctors feared that she and her mother would die, although Joseph's case was mild, Julia Schappals said. "Lo and behold, my mother pulled through, and so did her mother and brother," said Julia Schappals, a semiretired lawyer. Family legend has it that the doctor who examined them cried because they were his only patients who survived the flu. After her recovery from the 1918 flu pandemic, Gerri Schappals recalls kids being out sick for weeks at a time with ailments like scarlet fever and measles, and they would have a "Quarantine" sign on their house. Her childhood is full of memories from daily life in the early 20th century, such as waking up in the summertime to the clop-clop-clop of the milkman's horse and going to a Saturday matinee movie for 10 cents. Her life intersected with a long-gone generation for today: Gerri Schappals remembers assemblies in elementary school in which Civil War veterans would speak. She also recalls kids reciting political chants they learned from their parents for the 1928 presidential election between Herbert Hoover and Al Smith. Gerri Schappals, who loved playing the piano, used to spread the newspaper on the living room floor to read about Charles Lindbergh's 1927 flight over the Atlantic Ocean - the first solo transatlantic flight. She lived through the Great Depression of the 1930s, but since her father did not lose his job, the family didn't suffer as much as others. - - - Mildred went to college and graduate school and became a teacher - then later a principal at an elementary school and supervisor of elementary instruction for Nashua public schools. She met her husband - Everett "Gus" Schappals, who was in the Navy - in Washington during World War II. They moved to New Hampshire in 1962, and it became the family's permanent home. The couple had two daughters - Julia Schappals and Jade Walsh. Gerri Schappals, who has been widowed since 1983, has three grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. After she retired in the late 1980s, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a lumpectomy and radiation. She beat the disease, but a few years later, doctors diagnosed her with stage 3 colon cancer, from which she also recovered after surgery. Also in the 1980s, she fell on the edge of a swimming pool while trying to retrieve a frog from it. She had emergency surgery and a shoulder replacement. After she recovered, friends often gave her frog knickknacks as a gag. She had survived a lot, but life had another hit in store for her as a centenarian - and even that wasn't a knockout punch. - - - In May, Schappals felt sick for a few days and had a spiking fever. She went to the hospital, where she got tested for the novel coronavirus. The test came back positive, but by then she was feeling better. "I figured this is probably a little much for somebody who is 102, and that this is probably going to take her," said her daughter. But Schappals recovered and feels fine, to everyone's astonishment. "I would say she's an Amazon!" Julia Schappals said. What is her secret to longevity? Her ongoing joke is that she slipped through the cracks somewhere in the Grim Reaper's book. But when she's being introspective, she credits a strong immune system, avoidance of excessive worry and even her love of red wine. She was known to say, "Jesus did not change water into wine so that I could look at it." Gerri Schappals keeps the staff and fellow residents at Huntington entertained, said Lisa Valcourt, executive director. "She has quite the sense of humor, she's a very funny lady," Valcourt said. She added that Schappals energy is strong. "She's been through so much in her lifetime," Valcourt said. "When you look at everything that she's been through and her positive attitude that she's maintained, it makes all of us want to be stronger." Looking back on her long life, Schappals - who struggles with periodic memory lapses but is otherwise very sharp - said she is satisfied and happy. She advises young people to be positive and honest with themselves. And she offers this insight: "Most people are innately good and sympathetic," she said. "They want to do the right thing, but it's easy to be sidetracked by selfishness and emotion." "The more things change, the more they remain the same," Schappals said. "I believe that now." Is there anything else she wants to add? "Yeah," she told her daughter. "When can we go for a car ride?" KUALA LUMPUR, July 26 (Reuters) - Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak will on Tuesday face the first verdict in a series of criminal trials against him over billions of dollars allegedly stolen from 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), a state fund he co-founded in 2009. WHAT IS 1MDB? 1MDB was a sovereign fund set up in 2009 with the help of Malaysian financier Jho Low to promote economic development. Najib chaired its advisory board until 2016. HOW DID BILLIONS GO MISSING? 1MDB raised billions of dollars in bonds for use in investment projects and joint ventures between 2009 and 2013. The U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) said $4.5 billion was diverted to offshore bank accounts and shell companies, many linked to Low. Malaysian authorities say at least $4.3 billion more is unaccounted for. The funds siphoned off were used to buy luxury assets and real estate for Low and his associates, including a private jet, a superyacht, hotels, and artwork by Picasso and Monet, U.S. lawsuits said. Some of the money was allegedly used to finance Hollywood films including 2013's "The Wolf of Wall Street", produced by Red Granite, a film company co-founded by Najib's stepson, Riza Aziz. Malaysian prosecutors withdrew money laundering charges against Riza in May after reaching a $107.3 million settlement. HOW WAS NAJIB INVOLVED? Authorities say Najib illegally received more than $1 billion traceable to 1MDB. Najib, voted out in a 2018 election amid public anger over the scandal, has plead not guilty to 42 criminal charges over losses at 1MDB and other state entities. Defence lawyers say he was misled by Low and that the funds in his accounts were donations from the Saudi royal family. Najib's wife, Rosmah Mansor, has also been charged with money laundering and bribery. She has pleaded not guilty. HOW ARE AUTHORITIES INVESTIGATING 1MDB? At least six countries, including Singapore and Switzerland, have launched money laundering, financial mismanagement and criminal investigations into 1MDB dealings. Story continues The DoJ struck a deal in November to recoup $1 billion from the sale of seized assets linked to Low, a record haul for a U.S. anti-corruption probe. Malaysia had also accused Goldman Sachs of misleading investors over three bond sales totalling $6.5 billion that the U.S. bank helped raise for 1MDB. Goldman had pleaded not guilty and consistently denied wrongdoing. This week, Goldman agreed to settle the dispute for $3.9 billion with Malaysia, which will drop all criminal charges against the bank. WHERE IS LOW NOW? Low, charged in Malaysia and the United States over his central role in the case, denies wrongdoing. His whereabouts are not known though authorities believe he may be hiding in China. (Reporting by Rozanna Latiff Editing by Robert Birsel) ST. LOUIS, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Graybar, a leading distributor of electrical, communications and data networking products and provider of related supply chain management and logistics services, today reported its second quarter results. For the second quarter of 2020, Graybar achieved net sales of $1.8 billion, a 9.5 percent decrease compared to the same period last year. Net income attributable to Graybar for the quarter was $37.1 million, down 21.1 percent from the same period in 2019. For the first half of the year, the company reported net sales of $3.5 billion, a 5.1 percent decrease compared to the same period last year. Net income attributable to Graybar for the first six months of 2020 decreased 28.0 percent to $58.5 million. "As we navigate today's uncertain economic environment, we remain focused on keeping our people safe, serving our customers, and making wise decisions for the long-term health of our business," said Kathleen M. Mazzarella, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Graybar. "I am extremely proud of our employees' strength in the face of adversity over the past several months. Together, we have supported our customers and our communities, and we have moved our company forward in the midst of challenging circumstances. Graybar's financial position remains solid, and we look forward to playing a vital role in our nation's recovery." Graybar, a Fortune 500 corporation and one of the largest employee-owned companies in North America, is a leader in the distribution of high quality electrical, communications and data networking products, and specializes in related supply chain management and logistics services. Through its network of 288 North American distribution facilities, it stocks and sells products from thousands of manufacturers, helping its customers power, network and secure their facilities with speed, intelligence and efficiency. For more information, visit www.graybar.com or call 1-800-GRAYBAR. Media Contact: Tim Sommer (314) 578-7672 [email protected] SOURCE Graybar Related Links http://www.Graybar.com The treatment, Xeglyze, was developed by Hatchtech, an Australian pharmaceutical company and will be commercialised by Dr Reddy's Laboratories. Hatchtech CEO Hugh Alsop estimates that it is only the 13th drug developed primarily by an Australian company to be given FDA approval. Over the last decade the FDA has only approved, on average, 37 new drugs each year. Unlike other treatments, Xeglyze, a topical lotion, only requires one use to be effective. Currently many over the counter treatments require multiple usages and timing the application of these can be difficult. This is because most treatments do not kill eggs. While the first treatment is directed at lice in the crawling stage, a second treatment is required to kill off any newly hatched lice or nymphs. Researchers say timing these separate treatments can be difficult and burdensome. Failure to comply can result in lice remaining present as eggs continue to hatch. The treatment offered by Xeglyze only requires one 10-minute topical application, making it far more convenient than alternatives. Associate Professor Bowles, who is an expert in animal health and management at the Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, said that the key to developing a treatment that killed eggs as well as lice involved investigating the enzymes that contribute to egg hatching and lice survival. He found that metalloproteases - which perform a number of important roles within the developing egg and the crawling stages - can be inhibited using the organic molecule, abametapir. Over several years, Associate Professor Bowles tested the efficacy of different concentrations of abametapir and its ability to kill eggs at all stages in development. "We know that some head lice treatments are becoming less effective as lice develop resistance to certain chemicals," Associate Professor Bowles said. "Creating an easier way to delouse helps prevent people from experiencing the irritation and embarrassment of head lice. Treatment with Xeglyze requires far less of the time-consuming work of combing out lice and eggs that is normally required of other treatments." University-backed venture capital firm Uniseed provided initial seed funding for Hatchtech, which was founded in 2001 by Associate Professor Bowles (then Deputy Director of the Centre for Animal Biotechnology at the University of Melbourne). The University also subsequently invested in the company using its long-term investment funds through life sciences venture capital firm GBS Venture Partners. Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Jim McCluskey said that the approval of an Australian-developed drug in a US market was a huge achievement. "This is a terrific example of how University researchers can partner with industry to produce new treatments and find solutions to problems," Professor McCluskey said. "This long-term collaboration between the University of Melbourne and Hatchtech also shows how global opportunities can be successfully created in critical areas of research.'' Hatchtech CEO and University of Melbourne alumnus, Mr Alsop said that he was excited to see the FDA approval of Xeglyze. "The FDA's approval of Xeglyze is the culmination of the journey to gain approval of the product originally developed by Hatchtech. We look forward to product launch in the United States, enabling availability of this novel product for the treatment of head lice infestation," Mr Alsop said. In Australia approximately 17 per cent of children experience head lice each year. While in the U.S there are an estimated 6 - 12 million cases annually, resulting in children missing school and parents missing work. The total sales of head lice treatments in the USA are approximately $U350 million. ### Commodity trading giant Vitol bought back shares worth $2.2 billion from its top 350 executives and employees who are the owners of the company, Bloomberg reported, noting this brings the total paid out over the last 15 years to $14 billion. The record payout highlights the resilience of the trading industry even when the commodities it trades in go through the bust phase of the industrys cycle. Even this resilience, however, has limits. Vitol reported a 70-percent drop in profits for the first quarter of the year because of the coronavirus pandemic and the resulting collapse in oil demand. The commodity trader had expected a strong year for oil demand and had entered 2020 with a sizeable inventory, the Financial Times reported in June. However, as the pandemic spread across the world and countries went on lockdown, these expectations went out of the window. In March this year, Vitols chief executive Russell Hardy told Bloomberg in an interview that he expected oil demand to slump by between 15 and 20 million barrels over several weeks. Its pretty huge in terms of anything weve had to deal with before, Hardy said. Vitol called the end of the worst period for the oil market in early May, with Hardy telling Reuters that Its a bit easier to see the future, so the market is more able to make an educated guess about what that supply/demand balance looks like. We havent had a monster rally. Its just a statement that the worst is over. Indeed, the commodity trading major expects to turn in a reasonable result this financial year despite the 70-percent profit drop for the first quarter. Prices have stabilized at $43 a barrel for Brent crude and $40 a barrel for West Texas Intermediate, but demand recovery remains a bumpy ride. By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Strides made through research and education targeting premature deaths from one of the Madison County regions biggest killers heart disease appear to be slowing, according to details of a new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association. The study by researchers in the U.S. and China looked at about 1.6 million premature cardiac deaths between 1999 and 2017 among those ages 35 to 74. It determined declines in heart disease-related deaths has slowed since 2010 and noted growing disparities in Black adults and in younger people. Heart disease was responsible for 686 of the 2,772 deaths in Madison County in 2017, the most recent information available through the Illinois Department of Public Health. The second-leading cause of death, cancer, was blamed in 602 deaths, for comparison. Heart disease also was the top killer statewide, responsible for 25,017 of 107,041 disease-related deaths in 2017. Increasing numbers of out-of-hospital deaths and fatal heart attacks in younger age groups, coupled with a steady widening of disparity of socioeconomic and health environment factors affecting health care at the county level, appear to be the key drivers of the slowdown, lead investigator Zhi-Jie Zheng said. He is a former lead epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a supervisory medical epidemiologist at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute in Bethesda, Maryland. Among the key findings of the study were that premature heart-disease death rates were twice as high for men as women, and that more than 60% of the 1.6 million premature deaths from diseases of the heart between 1999 and 2017 happened outside of a hospital. In Illinois, the cardiovascular death rate for men is about 317.8 per 100,000, compared to the U.S. rate of 314.7, according to the CDC. It is highest among Blacks, at 359.3 compared to 253.6 for whites, according to CDC data. The cardiovascular death rate for women in Illinois is 217.8 per 100,000, compared to 215.5 nationwide. Although the United States experienced remarkable decline in cardiovascular disease mortality that was coined as one of the major public health accomplishments of the 20th century, Zheng said, the study indicates more has to be done to improve behavior and lifestyle factors. Our findings suggest a need for health care policy changes and programs that can identify high-risk, young populations prone to premature cardiac death and support improved cardiac health, he told American Heart Association News. Sumi Sukanya Dutta By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The number of active Covid-19 cases in India may be going up, but there has been a considerable fall in the requirement for ICU beds, ventilators and oxygen beds in the last two months, an analysis of the government data shows. On May 20, when the number of active cases in the country was 61,149, 3% of the cases or 1,834 patients were in the ICU, 0.45% or 275 patients were on ventilator while 2.94% cases or 1,797-patients were on oxygen support, according to details shared by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. In comparison, on July 31, when the country had 5,28,242 active Covid-19 cases, 1.61% or 8,504 were in the ICU, 0.28% or 1,580 patients were on 1580 patients are on ventilator and 2.3% or 12,255 were on oxygen support. This drop in the number of severe cases also reflects the declining case fatality rate. While this figure stood at above 3% in May-end, it's 2.15% now. It's also supported by the clinical experience of doctors treating Covid-19 patients in various parts of the country. Experts point out that this improvement in the clinical outcome of many severely sick patients could be attributed to better medical management of patients that includes early use of steroids, quick detection of cases owing to increased testing rates, and avoiding the use of invasive ventilators. The health ministry statistics confirm what clinicians like us are experiencing across the board, said Dr. Anupam Singh, an infectious disease expert from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh. In the course of the pandemic we have been learning on the go and are definitely seeing the number of deaths and moderately and severely ill patients declining, he said, adding that a dramatic change has been noticed after the use of steroid in patients requiring which arrests the progression of moderate illness. Evidence worldwide so far has suggested that some steroidssuch as dexamethasone and methylprednisolone -- cut down the mortality rate by nearly one third. In its Covid-19 clinical management protocol, AIIMS Delhi on June 1 had recommended using steroid and anti-coagulants or blood thinners as blood clotting is also a main cause of mortality in Covid-19 patients. This guideline has been extensively followed since mid-June in most parts of the country and the clinical outcomes have improved considerably, said Dr. Singh. Starting mid-May steroid was being used in very few patients and in probably only in very late stages of the disease. Dr. Yatin Mehta, head of critical care medicine department in Medanta hospital in Gurugram said that introduction of rapid antigen tests as a quick testing method to identify Covid-19 cases may have been a very helpful tool in saving lives, despite its limitations. It allows a large number of mild cases to be identified who can then be observed and medically managed even if at home, he said. That way, a large number of mild cases are being prevented from progressing to advanced stages of illness as is reflected in decreasing need for oxygen support. Syria Views US-Kurdish Oil Deal as 'Theft' Lacking Any Legal Force Sputnik News 12:33 GMT 02.08.2020 DUBAI (Sputnik) - Syria considers an oil deal recently struck between an alliance of Kurdish militias and a US company to be null and void, a Foreign Ministry official told SANA on Sunday. "Syria has condemned in the strongest terms the agreement signed between Qasad militia 'SDF' and a U.S. oil company to steal the Syrian oil, affirming that it considers it null and void and [that the deal] has no legal effect," the official said. The official went on to note that it is "an integrated and aggravated theft," which "can be only described as a deal between thieves who are stealing and thieves who are buying." During testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday, US State Secretary Mike Pompeo said that an American oil firm has secured a deal to modernize oil fields controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The name of the company has not been revealed. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address To the relief of many who travel regularly to and from the UK, the Easyjet airline announced earlier this week that it would be resuming flights to Gibraltar from Bristol from Sunday, 2 August. The flights are scheduled to run on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. After shutting down operations during the coronavirus lockdown, Easyjet began to reintroduce some routes from mid-June but these were mainly domestic flights within the UK and one international flight to France. The airline began offering a restricted service between Gatwick, Manchester and Gibraltar earlier this month. At present, Gibraltar residents who have not visited Spain recently do not have to self-isolate on arrival in UK. Nimesh Chandan In Greek mythology, one comes across a bandit character named Procrustes who lived on The Sacred Way between Athens and Eleusis. Procrustes used to invite tired travelers to his home, give them food and offer them his bed to rest. However, if the travelers were short and did not fit the bed completely, he would hammer and stretch them. If the travelers were tall, Procrustes would amputate the excess length. In either case, the travelers died. This story of the Procrustean Bed is used to describe how people try to fit facts into a preconceived theory. Researchers have shown that we actively seek out only the information that supports our beliefs or actions and ignore or undermine the information that is contradictory. This tendency affects investment decisions too. It comes in the form of two characteristics of our behavior Confirmation Bias and Cognitive Dissonance. Confirmation bias Once we make an investment, we actively search for reassurance and confirmation for our actions. We love meeting people who have something good to say about it. This may include other like-minded investors, analysts recommending this particular stock/asset, owners or management of the company etc. We also start noticing every small positive development, no matter how insignificant to our case. New information is also viewed under the lens of existing convictions. This is confirmation bias. Confirmation bias may lead to overconfidence and negligence of the buy-sell discipline. Investors who only look for positive news about their investments are vulnerable to high portfolio concentration or even high leverage. They may miss spotting a change in the business trend or in identifying a mistake in their forecasts. The result? Bad investment outcomes. How do you counter the confirmation bias? The antidote to confirmation bias was discovered way back in the 16th Century. During a canonization process (an act by which a Christian Church declares a person as Saint) employed by the Roman Catholic Church, a person is assigned to argue against it. It was this persons job to take a skeptical view of the candidates character and to look for holes in the evidence. The position of this person was known as Advocatus Diaboli or commonly referred to as The Devils Advocate. Confirmation bias can be managed by having a team member or a friend play the devils advocate against the investment decision. We must make sure the person is someone we trust and would act in our best interest. The decision-maker must be mentally prepared to accept the negative findings. So, you must understand that the knowledge about the downside risks to the investment does not make the investment case weak; in fact, it makes it stronger. Cognitive dissonance When the new information conflicts with our pre-existing beliefs and decisions, we experience a mental discomfort called the cognitive dissonance. This condition is also known as psychological scotoma when people are faced with information that is inconvenient to their ego, they respond by turning a blind eye to it. After making an investment, if there is a negative development reported in the company or some other stock comes in as a better option, we have a hard time accepting the new reality. Our mind struggles to rationalize the conflicting information to alleviate this discomfort. Investors can go to great lengths to justify their decisions. One of the most dangerous rationalization statements in financial markets is this time its different. As a result of cognitive dissonance, investors either add to their loss-making investments or continue holding them as they sink. Many investors also mentally assign the loss to luck or a third party to relieve themselves of the pain. By not accepting their mistake, these investors make themselves vulnerable to repeating them. How to avoid the pitfalls of cognitive dissonance? Expecting mistakes, accepting mistakes and learning from mistakes are the way out of this dissonance. Investing is simple not easy; hence expect mistakes. Before making an investment, investors must go through a pre-mortem analysis. If you are buying a stock, imagine that two years hence, (or at the end of your investment horizon) the stock has given a negative return. List down all the things that you think may have led to such a poor return. It is important to do this exercise before taking the action to remain unbiased. Perform a scenario analysis, giving a base case, bear case and bull case with probabilities of these cases coming true. These tools will help the mind expect and accept the mistakes. Maintain an investment journal where you record every investment decision. When evaluating the outcomes, compare them with your journal and check what worked and what did not. Use your experiences (especially your mistakes) to make an investment checklist. Before making the next investment, refer to the checklist and ensure that you dont repeat a previous mistake. Back to Procrustes! Procrustes continued his reign of terror until he was captured and killed by Theseus, a Greek hero of Athens. The name Theseus comes from the Greek word Thesmos which means rule or precept. Taking inspiration from Greek mythology, investors can also use these rules or precepts (like Devils Advocate, Pre-mortem, Scenario Analysis, Investment journal and Investment checklist) to overcome confirmation bias and cognitive dissonance. (The writer is Head-Investments, Equities, Canara Robeco Asset Management) For the last 10 years, after I married an American-turned- New Zealander, we would travel each winter to spend three fun summer months at our home in the Southern Hemisphere on New Zealands South Island. Then wed head home to California and spring, to our home in the Sierra foothills. Id relish the lacy white blossoms on my apple trees, the bright yellow, red and pink tulip bulbs I planted the previous fall and the joy of feeling winter wake up into the fresh and exciting energy of spring. But this year, at the end of March, just weeks before our scheduled flight back to California, COVID-19 stopped the world. New Zealand closed its borders, our flights home, through Fiji, were cancelled and a state of national emergency was declared as New Zealand entered a Level 4 lockdown, the highest level, for four weeks. Jacinda Ardern, the 39-year old prime minister, spoke to the almost 5 million Kiwis that first day and then daily, together with the health minister, providing facts and specifics of what we were to do. Stay home. Do not leave your property, even to exercise. For older people, order your groceries online and have them delivered. Similar, I believe, to the U.S. lockdown. But the prime minister provided much more than a calm and reassuring presence. She exuded warmth and kindness. She encouraged the team New Zealand that we could do this, if we all would work together and follow the rules. She acknowledged everyone often for our efforts and for the sacrifices we were all making. She did Facebook Live updates from her home, wearing a sweatshirt, after tucking her toddler into bed. When I listened to her, I felt seen and appreciated for facing the challenges, deprivations and even boredom, we were all facing. We were in New Zealand in March 2019, when a man gunned down worshipers at two mosques, killing 50, including a 3-year-old child. Less than a week later, the government, led by Ardern, banned all semi-automatic military style weapons. And the citizens complied. Ardern went to the families of those killed at the mosque wearing a head scarf and hugged them. The nation stopped for a minute of silence one week later to honor those who had died, embracing the idea that we are all one. There is no them and us. Amid the COVID-19 crisis, we watched and listened to Arderns daily briefings and followed the rules. After a month of total lockdown, which began on March 25, we gradually moved through levels three and two. And then on June 8, 10 weeks after the first lockdown and 38 days without a case of person-to-person transmission of COVID-19, we moved to Level 1. As she had promised, and with a warm Thank you, New Zealand, in her announcement, we returned to normal life again (within our close borders). (For a complete description of each level of New Zealands lockdown system, go to covid19.govt.nz/covid-19/restrictions/alert-system-overview/.) The powerful deliciousness of normal felt like food after starvation. We could go to a busy restaurant and sit inside, laugh, hug dear friends, shake hands with new ones, no masks, no social distancing. The wonder of it still lingers. New Zealand is an example of what can happen with sane, solid, warm and encouraging, science-based leadership, even against the worst pandemic in 100 years. That there can be an end point, but it takes the sacrifice of being willing to follow the rules, even when they are annoying and inconvenient. The distance of nearly 7,000 miles between here and California still yawns for me. I miss my home, my garden, my family, summer, my life there. But I realize that the life Im missing, normal, COVID-19-free life, is not the life that is happening in California right now. Im missing the life I left in January, not life as it is at this moment. For now, well stay on here and enjoy normal, safety and sanity, though bundled up against cold winter winds that blow north from Antarctica and the South Pole. But my heart is still there, cheering you on California. Stay safe. I am watching from afar. Watch now: How to properly wear and wash your cloth face mask Diane Covington-Carter is an award-winning writer and frequent contributor to the Napa Valley Register. www.dianecovingtoncarter.com Launched in 2019, Vital Essentials Freeze-Dried Hemp Chews feature custom terpene profiles to enhance the desired effects for specific conditions pets may experience. The custom terpene profiles were developed by a bioengineering team specializing in plant derived product formulation and therapeutic applications of hemp and hemp oil. By combining hemp oil with 100% beef, these Hemp Chews are the most natural product available on the market today. "Most other hemp chews for pets are made with a host of ingredients that are not necessarily high quality or healthy for our pets," commented Melissa Olson, VP Sales & Marketing. "Our hemp chews are all natural and made with Wisconsin sourced hemp oil, which is considered among the highest quality in the United States. And, like our other freeze-dried products, we use only USA sourced meat and do not include fillers, grains, gluten or artificial ingredients in any of our food or treats." Festival Foods, a Wisconsin-based company, operates 32 stores throughout the state and has introduced Vital Essentials Hemp Chews in the pet section of all locations except Fort Atkinson and La Crosse-Copeland Ave. There are three options to choose from: RELAX, RELIEF and REVIVE. RELIEF Hemp Chews are made for dogs that experience pain and inflammation and may help improve mobility. REVIVE Hemp Dog Chews are formulated to help regulate focus, energy and enhance stamina. RELAX Hemp Chews formula may help relieve nervousness, stress, anxiety and support calmness in dogs. For more information about Vital Essentials Freeze-Dried Hemp Chews, please visit www.veraw.com. About Carnivore Meat Company Carnivore Meat Company is an award-winning manufacturer of premium raw frozen and freeze-dried pet food and treats. The Green Bay, Wisconsin company's rapidly growing brands include Vital Essentials, VE RAW BAR and Vital Cat, which are distributed to over 6,000 retailers nationwide, in 14 international markets and online to Chewy.com, Amazon, PetFlow.com and others. Long considered a raw pet food pioneer, the company's freeze-dried products division supplies private label, co-packing and ingredients to customers globally. Carnivore Meat Company is family owned and has been recognized for its growth accomplishments and manufacturing excellence with a number of awards in recent years, including Greater Green Bay Chamber Growth Award, Wisconsin Manufacturer of the Year Award, Governor's Export Achievement Award, Greater Green Bay Chamber Manufacturing Award of Distinction and Inc 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies. www.carnivoremeat.com Media Contact: Melissa Olson | [email protected] Dir: 920-367-4063 | Cell: 920-615-2460 Mail: Vital Essentials, P.O. Box 9227, Green Bay, WI 54308-9227 SOURCE Carnivore Meat Company Related Links https://www.carnivoremeat.com 'Little has been mentioned in the media about self-employed pensioners, which is puzzling' (stock photo) I write in support of publican Joe Mellett (Elderly publicans are left to carry the can our nerves and mental health are starting to fray, Letters, August 1 ) and his comments regarding the blatant discrimination in the Governments refusal to include self-employed pensioners in the Covid payment scheme. I receive a State pension, and am a self-employed, tax-paying musician, dealing mainly with the pub and hotel sector. My work supplemented my pension so that I could continue contributing to the economy. This work has ceased. My outgoings have not. Little has been mentioned in the media about self-employed pensioners, which is puzzling. Perhaps politicians would fret were it to be pointed out to taxpayers that the pensions they are diligently saving for might one day be used against them. Fergus OReilly Leap, Co Cork TD hit a nerve with remarks about public sector workers I wonder did Fianna Fail TD Marc MacSharry realise the reaction he would get following his comments on some public sector workers (TD to work through recess after bizarre comments, Irish Independent, July 31). He seemed to hit a nerve, especially with Siptu. Sometimes the truth hurts. Maybe thats whats upsetting the unions. Tom Mitchell Loughrea, Co Galway Limiting off-licence sales would soon curtail parties Dr Ronan Glynn and his wise men are insisting on keeping small pubs closed and asking people not to have house parties. On a brief shopping trip to one of my local supermarkets, over the course of 10 minutes I watched trolley-loads of alcohol being bought. It would surely be more effective against the spread of the pandemic to close, or at least limit, the off-licence sale of alcohol rather than keeping pubs closed. Eamon Ward Wexford Robust and holistic solutions to public health are needed The coronavirus has shown itself to be disrespectful of social classes and races. It spurs individuals, public, private and voluntary sectors, universities and governments to work in tandem to improve slum dwellings, to make the fruits of medical discoveries and technologies available to the wider populace and to confront global inequalities. We all pay a collective price for the failure to take a personal and shared responsibility to tackle obesity, diabetes, alcohol abuse, smoking, sedentary and unhealthy lifestyles, sexually transmitted diseases and air, water and noise pollution, environmental degradation and climate change. Its time for more robust and holistic solutions to public health. Dr Munjed Farid Al Qutob London, UK The arts are not a vehicle for some British colonial plot Emma Kellys reference to Britains obsession with claiming Irish talent (Hands off Paul Mescal, hes ours, Irish Independent, August 1) betrays a curious combination of jingoism and a claim to victim-hood on the subject of her neighbour. As the long and age-old eastward procession of Irish hopefuls shows be they entertainers, writers, students or teachers as well as tradesmen and professionals of all stripes the real and admirable obsession is the pursuit of security, success and recognition by the talented, enterprising and ambitious of this island. They go across the water, invited or uninvited, and are welcomed. It is time for this to be acknowledged and applauded since the two islands form a cultural complex and Kellys embarrassing insistence that British hospitality and acclaim are a colonial plot against Ireland to be routed. Incidentally, the distinguished Fiona Shaw, whom Kelly cites as a victim of rapacious appropriation, is a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE). I dont recall her turning the honour down, nor her equally distinguished fellow-Londoner Edna OBrien her damehood. Nor should they have. John Wilson Foster Portaferry, Co Down Isnt it time the United States was appropriately renamed? Considering the disconnection across America in recent times regarding its worsening Covid crisis, the ongoing racial tensions on that continent and Mr Trumps leadership style, one must wonder if the time has now come to rename the United States more appropriately as the Dis-United States of America? Richard Callan Beaumont, Dublin 9 SCORES of consumers were left stranded in Bulawayo yesterday, failing to buy prepaid power tokens as the Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) online system had some technical glitches. Enterprising electricity token vendors who somehow had access to the system in the city yesterday were selling the tokens with a 30 percent premium. Only the ZETDC 13th Avenue branch was open and there was a very long queue of consumers seeking service. In the queues, consumers were failing to maintain social distancing, with residents disregarding Covid-19 prevention measures as some were not properly wearing their masks. Mrs Mavis Ncube said Zesa was short-changing consumers. She said electricity had run out at her house on Thursday and perishables in her refrigerator were going bad. The Zesa banking hall in Nkulumane was shut down long ago. We can only buy power via EcoCash, supermarkets or at Zesa offices in the city centre. All other platforms are down except the offices in town. You know how difficult it is to get into town nowadays. Zesa should just get technicians to fix this problem, she fumed. Mrs Ncube said she had joined the queue around 9AM and three hours later, she had moved a few metres. Mr Sipho Nyathi from Gwabalanda said he was afraid of catching Covid-19 in the queue but he had no choice. There is no social distancing here. We may all get sick. If EcoCash was working, I could have bought tokens from home, he said. It is fishy that when no one else seems to be able to access the electricity token network, some electricity vendors are doing it. They are exploiting consumers by demanding 30 percent of ones purchase on top of the regular price. Energy and Power Development Minister Fortune Chasi had, by press time, not responded to questions sent to him, while his phone rang unanswered. His deputy, Cde Magna Mudyiwa said she was not aware of the matter as she had travelled to her constituency. Im sorry I am not sure of what could have been the challenge as I was in the constituency. Perhaps there is a problem with the system. I am driving to Harare and I will be able to give a response tomorrow after establishing the challenge, she said. There is a growing pattern of system glitches on the electricity payment platforms as most people prefer to purchase power on the first day of the month due to a misconception that electricity is cheaper at the beginning of the month. However, electricity only becomes more expensive if a consumer buys more than 300kwh in any calendar month. Some consumers had genuinely run out of power before month-end and had patiently waited for the new month to buy the subsidised electricity tokens as they could not afford the non-subsidised tariff band. Most consumers buy electricity using online platforms including EcoCash and through other financial institutions but all the facilities were down yesterday, leaving citizens stranded. Last month, after the system glitches, consumers took to social media to vent their frustrations, prompting Minister Chasi to say he would engage the utility over the matter. I have received many complaints from the public on Zesa payment platforms. On Thursday I will have a discussion with them on the matter, he tweeted then. ZETDC last month also issued a statement that its systems were overwhelmed by the high volumes of users purchasing tokens on the first few days of the month, due to the misconception that tokens are cheaper on the first day of the month. ZETDC advises that delays being experienced by customers are due to high volumes of token purchases during the beginning of the month and are putting pressure on the system, the position that we are in the process of addressing, read the statement. MEA implement PCR testing before entering Lebanon. Image: Middle East Airlines Passengers arriving in Lebanon as a final destination on board Middle East Airlines are required to: - Conduct a PCR test at one of the accredited laboratories by the relevant authorities in the countries from which they are departing within a maximum of 96 hours prior to the date of travel to Lebanon and show the PCR Test result at check-in counters. Passengers who do not carry a negative PCR Test result are not allowed to board MEA aircraft departing to Lebanon. - All arriving passengers at Rafik Hariri International Airport-Beirut will undergo another PCR Test, at MEA's expense, and the result of the examination will be informed to the passenger within 48 hours by the Ministry of Public Health. - All passengers who arrived in Lebanon and found that the results of the PCR Tests conducted upon arrival at Rafik Hariri International Airport were positive, should follow the medical guidelines and procedures set by the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health until they recover. Shane Crapper reckons there's never been a better time to be a delivery driver. He's busy, like many in his profession, as people coping with tightening lockdowns in Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire have driven an unprecedented boom in online shopping. Shane Crapper says the upturn in his workload has been fantastic. "Everyone is just so glad to see you." Credit:Jason South The arrival of these parcels can present a welcome escape from isolation, a space for connection, and as a result the people carrying them are becoming part of our lives. "It has been fantastic. Everyone is just so glad to see you," Mr Crapper said. "It makes their day. Theyre more happy to see me than my own family." NEW YORK, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- ATSG, a tech-enabled managed services and solutions company, announced today that it has been named as one of the world's premier managed service providers on the prestigious 2020 annual Channel Futures MSP 501 rankings. For the 13th year running, MSPs from around the globe completed an exhaustive survey and application this spring to self-report product offerings, annual total and recurring revenues, profits, revenue mix, growth opportunities, and company and customer demographic information. Applicants are ranked on a unique methodology that weights revenue figures according to long-term health and viability; commitment to recurring revenue; and operational efficiency. "We are honored to be named to the MSP 501 list of the best managed service providers across the globe," said Anthony J. D'Ambrosi, Chief Executive Officer, ATSG. "Our dedication to providing a world-class business technology and digital operations experience for our clients is what continues to distinguish ATSG in the market. I am so proud of how our team continues to deliver an elevated level of service, valued outcomes, and overall client intimacy." In the 13 years since its inception, the MSP 501 has evolved from a competitive ranking list into a vibrant group of service providers, vendors, distributors, consultants and industry analysts working together to define the growing managed service opportunity. "For the third year running, the applicant pool for the annual MSP 501 has grown year-over-year, making this year's list the most competitive in the survey's history," says Kris Blackmon, Senior Content Director at Channel Partners and Channel Futures. "The MSP 501 leveraged judgment methodology brand-new in 2020 to drill down into not just what makes a big managed service provider, but what makes a great managed service provider. The 2020 winners are truly the best examples of innovation, business acumen, and strategic savvy on the planet. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the 2020 winners and gratitude to the thousands of MSPs that have contributed to the continuing growth and success of both the 501 and the thriving managed services sector." The complete 2020 MSP 501 list is available at Channel Futures. Background The 2020 MSP 501 list is based on data collected by Channel Futures and its sister site, Channel Partners. Data was collected online from Mar. 1 through June 30, 2018. The MSP 501 list recognizes top managed service providers based on metrics including recurring revenue, profit margin, and other factors. About ATSG ATSG is a global, tech-enabled managed services and solutions company focused on innovative services that enable today's digital enterprise and end-user experiences. ATSG provides Intelligent IT through our Technology Solutions as a Service (TSaaS) portfolio to a wide variety of enterprises and organizations; leveraging our comprehensive offerings of rediTech, rediManage, and rediSecure, which deliver reliable, elastic, dynamic information technology, and world-class operations. ATSG is a privately held company headquartered in Manhattan, New York. For more information on ATSG, please visit us on the web at http://www.atsg.net/, like us on LinkedIn, follow us on Twitter, or become a fan on our Facebook page. #AboutATSG About Informa Tech Channel Futures, Channel Partners Online, Channel Partners Conference & Expo and Channel Partners Evolution are part of Informa Tech, a market leading B2B information provider with depth and specialization in the Information and Communications (ICT) Technology sector. We help drive the future by inspiring the Technology community to design, build, and run a better digital world through our market-leading research, media, training and event brands. Every year, we welcome 7,400+ subscribers to our research, more than 3.8 million unique visitors a month to our digital communities, 18,200+ students to our training programs and 225,000 delegates to our events. MEDIA CONTACT: Elizabeth Kubycheck Chief Marketing and Administrative Officer [email protected] SOURCE ATSG Related Links http://www.atsg.net Why are Latin American citizens counted in our census? By Michael R. Shannon A little over a year ago I wrote about another Trump administration immigration policy failure. Trump wanted to add a census question that asked if the respondent was a citizen of the USA. Adding that question should have been a simple administrative procedure since conducting the census is an executive branch function. But nothing is simple where Trump is concerned. The administration shouldve been prepared for the inevitable court challenge and shouldve had a topnotch legal team that supported the effort. Instead in keeping with usual Trump HR policies it appeared to have carefully selected a team of Resistance collaborators to defend the question. The Supreme Court rejected Trumps appeal with Chief Weathervane John Roberts explaining that the Trump administration could try again if it came up with a justification that Roberts liked personally. The lefts objection to Trumps question and subsequent lawsuit was never about intimidation. Claiming respondents would be too afraid to fill out the questionnaire and subsequently not be counted was just another leftist lie. What really worried Democrats was the possibility illegals would answer the question honestly, thereby letting the gato out of the bag. American citizens would suddenly see for themselves the astonishing number of illegals upwards of 29 million living permanently in the USA! Even worse, the left could not dispute the count because it came from the illegals themselves. Trump instinctively knew losing was a big problem. Voters might cut him some slack on building a giant border wall. They could understand how deporting millions of illegals would require some preparation time. But dropping the ball on a nineword question was something else again. Trump fell back on Twitter, promising he was absolutely moving forward with the question. When nothing else was heard I assumed another important immigration policy initiative had come a cropper due to Trumps short attention span and Jareds malign influence. I was wrong. Last week Trump bypassed The Supremes and issued an executive order announcing Uncle Sam will graciously locate Latin Americas citizens, but the illegals would not be included in the count that determines how many congressional representatives each state is allowed. Sanctuary states are outraged again! Counting the class of lawbreakers they have welcomed across the border adds to those states political power at the expense of conservative states who dont think coddling international criminals is sound policy. Rewarding the likes of California, New York and Illinois for entering into a conspiracy to undermine US immigration law would be like United Airlines giving frequent flyer miles to stowaways who hid in the cargo hold. Kris Koback, a US Senate candidate in Kansas who believes American citizens come first, told Breitbart, Trump is absolutely correct to exclude illegal aliens from congressional apportioning. Our constitution does not contemplate representing people whose very presence is illegal. The statement Trump issued in connection with his order put the issue very succinctly, My Administration will not support giving congressional representation to aliens who enter or remain in the country unlawfully, because doing so would create perverse incentives and undermine our system of government. Just as we do not give political power to people who are here temporarily, we should not give political power to people who should not be here at all. We also shouldnt be providing illegals with jobs, welfare, healthcare and their childrens education, which are perverse incentives written large, but thats a column for another day. Unfortunately for Trump and the immigration patriots who support him, theres a glaring intensity mismatch on the whole immigration issue. The left is united. Encourage illegal immigration and resist enforcement of immigration law in an effort to boost the population in your states and increase representation in the House. Step two is using that illegally increased representation to pass laws legalizing up to 29 million formerly illegals with a stroke of Gropey Joe Bidens pen. Three is never lose another national election for at least a generation. After which, it wont make a difference because the USA will be well on its way to becoming another in a long line of failed socialist states. Before Trump, conservatives lost every immigration conflict because our country club conservative presidents didnt care and their chamber of commerce donor class wanted more cheap, docile labor at the expense of American citizens. And now we live in a Press1forEnglish country that none of us wanted. Our elite overlords have more in common with the ruling class that runs Mexico. Both love Mexico and have nothing but disdain for most of America. Like it or not, Trump is our only, imperfect hope for fighting back on immigration. If AssistedLiving Joe wins in November, the census will be counting every illegal in the land and many of their relatives back home. Michael R. Shannon is a public relations and advertising consultant with corporate, government and political experience around the globe. He is a dynamic and entertaining keynote speaker. He can be reached at mandate.mmpr (at) gmail.com. He is also the author of Conservative Christian's Guidebook for Living in Secular Times (Now with added humor!). Home MEXICO CITY, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Mexican cement producer Cemex SAB de CV said on Monday that it closed the sale of assets in the United Kingdom to Breedon Group for $230 million, including some $30 million of debt. Proceeds from the divestment will be used for debt reduction and general corporate purposes, Cemex said in a statement, without providing details on what assets were divested. "With the closing of this transaction, CEMEX has met its stated asset sales target of between $1.5 billion and $2.0 billion," under a plan that runs from June 2018 until the end of 2020, it said. CEMEX said it remains committed to the United Kingdom and maintains a significant footprint in "key geographies". Monterrey-based Cemex, which operates in more than 50 countries, said this year it was delaying capital expenditure and cutting a percentage of employees' salaries or allowances for a period of three months to cut costs amid the coronavirus crisis. (Reporting by Anthony Esposito; editing by Jason Neely) Afghan security forces retook control of a prison from Islamic State group militants in the eastern city of Jalalabad on Monday, ending a siege in which hundreds of prisoners escaped. At least 29 people were killed in the assault on the prison that began on Sunday evening and in subsequent clashes with security forces, a spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province said. The attack is now over, Sohrab Qaderi, a member of the provincial council, told Reuters after security forces clashed overnight and into the day with militants who had taken over the prison watchtowers. More than 300 prisoners were still at large, according to Attaullah Khugyani, spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province. Of the 1,793 prisoners more than 1,025 had tried to escape and been recaptured while 430 had remained inside. The rest are missing, he said. Khugyani said civilians, prisoners and members of the security forces were among the 29 dead and more than 50 wounded before the final assault. A defence ministry statement said all 10 attackers had been killed by Afghan security forces, though a provincial council member and a witness inside the prison told Reuters the number was likely around 30. The attackers were Islamic State group militants trying to free their comrades from the prison in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, said Ajmal Omar, a provincial council member. The aim of this attack was to rescue all Daesh members inside the prison, and unfortunately that included five or six senior Daesh people, Omar said, using an Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group. Among the prisoners who escaped was the group's shadow governor for neighboring Kunar Province, he said. The Islamic State (IS) group affiliate in Afghanistan, known as IS in Khorasan Province, claimed responsibility for the attack. The militants have established a base in Nangarhar Province. The renewed violence comes at a sensitive time as Afghanistan as the United States attempts to launch new peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban, who say they oppose the Islamic State group. Story continues After detonating a car bomb at the entrance on Sunday evening, IS group militants overran the prison, where many of the group's fighters who were captured during a campaign in the past month were being held along with Taliban fighters and common criminals. As the siege dragged through the day, the normally bustling city was placed under a curfew. Jalalabad is completely empty, Qaderi said. Some 130km (80 miles) east of Kabul, Jalalabad lies on the highway leading to the Khyber Pass and the Pakistani city of Peshawar. The United States is drawing down troops after almost 19 years of war but security has remained volatile as the Taliban continue attacks on Afghan forces and other targets. A UN report last month estimated there were around 2,200 Islamic State group fighters in Afghanistan. While the group has lost territory and its leadership has been depleted, it remains capable of carrying out high-profile attacks, the report said. (FRANCE 24 with AP and REUTERS) The selfie habit might be a good place to start. Yes, yes, you want to preserve the memory of being in that lovely place. But perhaps not at every step you take. You dont look that different blocking every site on your list. And frankly, your friends are not truly thrilled to see all this posted. The Medical doctors under the auspices of the National Association of Government General Medical and Dental Practitioners (NAGGMDP), in Ondo State on Monday suspended its one-month old strike. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that doctors, who are employed by the state government, withdrew their services on June 24, over unpaid allowances. In a statement, the State Chairman of NAGGMDP, Oluwafemi Aina, on Monday said the strike was suspended after the government acceded to some of their demands The union, which is an affiliate of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), commended the state Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu and his team for also meeting the demands of other health workers. The doctors, however, implored the state government to address their other demands, which include: immediate domestication of the Special COVID-19 Hazard and Risk (Life) Insurance for all doctors, who were part of the frontline health care providers in the state. The doctors also demand the immediate circulation and institutionalisation of the modalities of the already begun deductions of doctors salaries into the National Housing Fund Contributions by workers in the States public service. The doctors are demanding for the payment of the remaining Special COVID-19 Hazard and Risk Allowances and payment of arrears of the Minimum Wage and consequential adjustments of basic salaries, which other non-Health Public Servants in the state have been enjoying since January 2020. READ ALSO: Mr Aina assured the state government that members of the association will continue to discharge their duties with passion. Meanwhile, the state government said on Monday it had spent over N3.13 billion to offset the outstanding allowances of workers and medical staff in the state. The state Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Donald Ojogo, disclosed this in Akure. The agreement for the payment was the outcome of last months (July) meeting between Gov. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu and union leaders in the state, Mr Ojogo said. He said Mr Akeredolu had last week approved that the outstanding allowances be paid following the conclusion of the series of meetings brokered by the Head of Service, Dare Aragbaiye. Part of the resolution was that the July allocation from the Federation Account should be used to offset these allowances. Some of the already cleared outstanding allowances include deductions, leave bonuses as well as pensions, he added. Mr Ojogo also revealed that 30 per cent of consolidated basic salary as hazard allowance for Medical Health Workers were also paid. (NAN) Lawyers in Hong Kong have hit out at the decision by the city's leaders to postpone Legislative Council (LegCo) elections for one year, saying they have "grave concern" that the move wasn't even legal. The Hong Kong Bar Association (HKBA) said in an Aug. 2 statement that the right to vote should be guaranteed by the city's mini-constitution, the Basic Law. "The HKBA considers that there are serious doubts about the legal and evidential basis of the governments decision," the association said in a statement on its website. While chief executive Carrie Lam has justified the move by pointing to a resurgence of coronavirus cases in Hong Kong in recent weeks, the HKBA said the United Nations has warned that governments should not do this. "States should provide transparency as to their decision-making processes in the context of elections ... and should consult with civil society in determining appropriate approaches," the statement cited the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association as saying. "States should take all measures possible to ensure the timely carrying out of elections, including through the utilization of alternative voting procedures such as mail-in ballots," it quoted them as saying. By contrast, Lam's decision had been taken with no consultation of civil society, nor with the advice of public health experts. "There is also little evidence that the [government] has considered alternative measures to alleviate the possible health risks," the HKBA said. It said Lam's administration had failed to explain in any satisfactory manner why the election had been postponed for a year, instead for a shorter time period. It warned that the decision, made by invoking emergency regulations, could turn out to be unlawful, as the regulations are currently the subject of a legal challenge before the Court of Final Appeal. It said there are already specific legal provisions for postponing elections by up to two weeks in times of danger, but that these aren't being used. "Alarmingly, the government has decided to seek a decision of the standing committee of the National Peoples Congress to resolve the question arising from the decision to postpone the election relating to the term of office of LegCo as stipulated by the Basic Law," the HKBA said. It said Lam is effectively inviting the ruling Chinese Communist Party in Beijing to override the Basic Law to preempt legal challenges to her decision. "This is contrary to the principles of legality and legal certainty and degrades the rule of law in Hong Kong," the HKBA said. US condemns decision In Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo condemned the decision to postpone the elections. "[China] has shown time and time again that it has no intention of fulfilling its promises to its own people," Pompeo tweeted. "The United States condemns its one year postponement of Hong Kongs Legislative Council elections." He said in a separate statement dated Aug. 2: "There is no valid reason for such a lengthy delay. It is likely, therefore, that Hong Kong will never again be able to vote for anything or anyone." Pompeo said Beijing has no intention of upholding the commitments it made to the Hong Kong people and the United Kingdom under the Sino-British Joint Declaration, a UN-registered treaty, and the Basic Law. Some may lose their seats Meanwhile, concerns are growing that four pro-democracy politicians whose nomination for the now-postponed election had been rejected by election officials, known as returning officers, will now be stripped of their current seats entirely. Tam Yiu-chung, who represents Hong Kong on the NPC standing committee told local media that allowing Alvin Yeung, Derek Kwok, and Kwok Ka-ki to continue to serve in LegCo and Fergus Leung to continue in the District Council would "create a conflict." "The returning officer has already decided that these Legislative Council members aren't eligible to run in the election," Tam said. "I think it would be a contradiction of that if they were allowed to return to LegCo for another year." Tam said it was up to the NPC standing committee, which will meet in Beijing on Aug. 8, to decide how to proceed. Yeung said he had been disqualified on shaky grounds in the first place. "I have only been disqualified by a returning officer, not by the people of Hong Kong," he said. "I do not agree that I do not uphold the Basic Law, and the returning officer's decision was based on a one-sided view." Zhang Xiaoming, deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of China's cabinet, the State Council, arrived in Hong Kong on Monday for meetings with officials and pro-China politicians. But Hong Kong current affairs commentator Liu Ruishao said Beijing has likely already decided what is going to happen next. "It is likely the NPC will decide that the disqualified members can't form part of the [interim] LegCo," Liu said. "The effect will be that the pro-democracy camp will then have less than half the one-third of seats needed to veto proposals." "Then, the government will be able to pass any number of laws that suit it or the pro-China camp without delay," he said. Reported by Lau Siu-fung for RFA's Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. After witnessing over 1 per cent fall in both the Sensex and Nifty last week, investors are expected to focus on the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) policy meet. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is scheduled to meet for three days, beginning August 4 and will announce the decision on August 6. That apart, investors will also keep an eye on key macroeconomic data that are scheduled to be released this week. Markit Manufacturing PMI for July is slated to be declared later in the day while the Markit Services PMI is expected to be released on August 5. Meanwhile, auto stocks are expected to hog the limelight as automakers release their July sales numbers. For instance, Maruti Suzuki has announced that it had sold 108,000 units in July, 88.2 per cent more than June 2020. Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd sold 25,678 units of commercial and passenger vehicles in July 2020indicating a month-on-month growth of 32.64 per cent. Besides, the next batch of quarterly earnings, stock-specific developments, global cues, and updates related to Covid-19 will continue to be on the investors' radar. On the earnings front, over 275 companies, including HPCL, Lupin, Cipla, and Mahindra & Mahindra are slated to declare their June quarter results during the week. Tata Motors said on Friday its consolidated net loss in the first quarter of current fiscal increased to Rs 8,438 crore from Rs 3,698 crore in the corresponding quarter of last year. Meanwhile, India has recorded 49,931 coronavirus cases in just 24 hours. The total Covid tally in India now stands at 1,464,991, including over 33,111 deaths. Now, a quick look at the market snapshot for today. The Indian are likely to see a negative start today as indicated by the SGX Nifty which was trading around 11,052 levels, down 52.95 points around 7:36 AM. Mattia Binotto says he is no longer Ferrari's technical director. After the Maranello team's uncompetitive start to 2020, it was announced that Enrico Cardile would head a new Performance Development department, supported by famous former chief designer Rory Byrne. The reshuffle left Binotto as team principal, but made no mention of whether he would continue to also serve as technical director. "I'm no longer a technical director," the Italian revealed to German broadcaster RTL after Sunday's British GP. "I'm just Ferrari team boss." Binotto also confirmed that Ferrari is actively recruiting, explaining: "We are looking for the right people." It comes after Ferrari chairman John Elkann controversially said last week that the fabled team would not be able to win a single race until 2022. "We are doing everything we can," Binotto answered when asked about that prediction, "and we are working hard to win a race before then." Although Charles Leclerc finished on the podium on Sunday, Sebastian Vettel - just tenth - said there is something "fundamentally wrong" with his red car. "Our people have clear goals," Binotto said. "Let them do their work and then we'll see what happens." As for any signs of rapid progress for Ferrari, he warned: "It's too early for updates. But when we get back to Maranello we will be working hard." Binotto also said he feels comfortable about his future at the team. "I have felt comfortable in this company for many years," he said. "We share the same vision and the same objectives and I thank Mr Camilleri and Mr Elkann for the support they give me. "The team is cohesive, and while the current situation is not easy, we have to understand the mistakes and improve. The team is united and hungry to do better." (GMM) Houston law enforcement officials will begin issuing fines and citations to people who do not comply with the states mask order, Mayor Sylvester Turner announced Monday. The mandate from Gov. Greg Abbott requires nearly all Texans to wear face coverings in most public settings and has been in effect since early July. Turner announced the change in enforcement during one of his regular briefings on the spread of the novel coronavirus, where he also announced 1,104 new COVID-19 cases and six deaths from the virus. The mayor said about 18 percent of tests are coming back positive in Houston, a rate that, like hospitalization levels, has dropped recently but remains high. Under Turners new directive, police will continue to issue warnings at first, as Abbotts order requires, before fining people $250 for a second offense. For months, we have been focusing on education and not citations, but now I am instructing the Houston Police Department to issue the necessary warnings and citations to anyone not wearing a mask in public if they do not meet the criteria for an exemption, he said. Police Chief Art Acevedo, who was appointed by Turner, agreed with the mayors order, saying it would help limit the spread of the coronavirus. He said HPDs tally of infected and quarantined officers has grown very rapidly, with 108 testing positive and 64 awaiting test results. What we need is for people to stop worrying about selfish interests and think about the collective interests, Acevedo said. We are better together, and we dont want to write tickets. We want people to do the right thing, to follow the science and simply have the courtesy to wear a mask in public and follow the other health and safety guidelines that have been put out. The Houston Fire Department, which is tasked with responding to complaints about businesses failing to comply with COVID-19 restrictions, had 130 firefighters in quarantine Monday, Chief Sam Pena said. Jerry Pacheco, a 17-year veteran of the department who worked as a paramedic at Station 101 in Kingwood, died early Monday after battling the virus. The department now has a total of 31 firefighters who are positive for COVID-19 and none hospitalized, Pena said. The mayor in April instructed police not to issue fines or citations for Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgos mask order, winning favor among some of Hidalgos critics. Before Monday, he had told police largely to issue warnings when enforcing the governors order. In April, Houston Police Officers Union President Joe Gamaldi said Hidalgos order was ridiculous and will only erode trust with our community and thanked Turner for being reasonable and telling folks HPD will not be issuing fines for Judge Hidalgos draconian mask order. Gamaldi, asked for comment on Turners order Monday, referred the Chronicle to the unions statement to members that said, While a $250 citation may be issued for anyone repeatedly refusing to comply and do not have a condition that exempts them, we also want to remind you that you should always give a verbal warning first and then use your discretion after that. Under no circumstances shall a person be arrested for only failing to wear a mask, the unions statement continued. Encourage those to wear a mask, just as we have done from day one, and remember you have discretion on Class C (misdemeanor) offenses. Abbotts mask order exempts people with medical conditions that prevent them from wearing face coverings and does not apply to people who are eating or exercising outside, among other exceptions. Turner said Houston police would not respond to 911 calls about people not wearing masks. He also urged Houstonians not to get mad at the police officers. Its all about public health and driving our numbers down, especially when in-person schooling is scheduled to start in September, Turner said. Fall is right around the corner with flu season. August then becomes a very, very critical month. Lives are at stake. At the county level, Hidalgo can suggest what enforcement approach Harris Countys numerous law enforcement agencies take, but the ultimate decision rests on officials at various municipalities and law enforcement agencies, not the county judge. Hidalgo spokesman Rafael Lemaitre said the judge is continuing to urge law enforcement agencies to use the orders enforcement provisions to encourage compliance, but he did not indicate any change in Hidalgos position. Education, of course, is always the priority, but law enforcement has had the latitude to issue citations when they see fit, Lemaitre said. At the end of the day, the best way to measure success will be by seeing a decline in the spread of COVID-19, not the number of fines or citations issued. Jason Spencer, a spokesman for the Harris County Sheriffs Office, said the agency has not felt the need to escalate to the point where were issuing citations, though he said officials would continue to review options in the days and weeks to come. The sheriffs office has yet to issue a citation under Abbotts order, Spencer said. In our experience so far, anytime a deputy approaches someone and suggests they put on a mask, people are voluntarily compliant, Spencer said. Abbott last month urged police across Texas to step up their enforcement of the mask order and separately slammed local leaders for their response, alleging widespread lax enforcement. If you look at the county judges or mayors who are asking for more authority to take action or to really shut things down completely back into lockdown mode that would really force Texans into poverty, I found one thing to be consistent, Abbott said in an interview on Beaumonts KFDM-TV. All of these local officials who are asking to shut Texas back down theyve absolutely refused to enforce the current executive orders that are already in place. Dozens of rural counties have decided not to enforce Abbotts order under a provision that allows counties with 20 or fewer active COVID-19 cases to opt out of the mandate. In Tarrant County, a spokesman for the district attorneys office said last week that because Abbotts order bars officers from detaining people, it appears that law enforcement cannot legally enforce the order, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported. State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, a Houston Republican who has been critical of mask mandates, said Turners move was unnecessary. Mayor Turner, where is the problem? Bettencourt said. The office buildings I have been in have 100 percent mask usage, and clearly TMC hospitalizations have been down for almost a month. Hospitalizations at the Texas Medical Center plateaued and then began to decline in mid-July, following a spike after the Fourth of July that halted earlier progress. Houston and Harris County officials are continuing to report far more daily cases than local contact tracers say they can handle, while the number of ICU beds occupied in the Houston region has remained flat at just under the operational capacity. jasper.scherer@chron.com General Secretary of the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia has warned the Akufo-Addo government of fomenting civil war with its persistent maligning of the people of Volta Region as aliens from Togo. According to him, the deployment of military officers at the borders of the Volta Region and Banda district with the sole aim of preventing the people from taking part in the voters registration exercise can spell doom for the country. Speaking on Okay FMs 'Ade Akye Abia' Morning Show, the NDC Chief Scribe posited that all peace-loving people should join the crusade against the Akufo-Addo government targeting one ethnic group of the country as people who are not Ghanaians; assuring that the NDC will remain in the Banda district to ensure that all the 2,000 people residing at the coastal belt of Banda register. We will continue to remain here to make sure that those 2,000 people will register because this can create serious problems as this government has targeted one ethnic group saying that they are not Ghanaians but Togolese; this is no joke as it can cause civil war in the country, he said. This is the time for anyone who seeks peace to speak against this development; this is not a good thing to entertain in the country. The same thing happened before in the Volta Region and when I came to Banda, I witnessed the same thing and I wonder if it is the same Togo people who have come to Banda, he added. He, however, exonerated the Electoral Commission (EC) of not involved in the military intimidation of the people in the Volta Region and Banda as he claims that the EC has understood for every Ghanaian eligible to register to take part in the exercise. To him, the intimidation is the handiwork of the Akufo-Addo government as it is the Regional Security Council that gave the instructions to the military officers to operate with; thus, it will be unfair to blame the problem with the security agencies on the EC. This is coming from the government itself because it controls the security agencies and it deployed them to Banda and gave them the instructions to operate with. You cannot blame the problems with the security agencies with the EC; this is coming the NPP government. "The Regional Minister can deploy the security agencies to any part of the registration centres or the region and so it is directly Regional Security Council issue and the same regional Security Council has signed an agreement with the two main political parties and after the agreement, the REGSEC redeployed the military officers to go against the agreement, he said. He, therefore, disclosed that former President Mahama, together with the MPs from the Volta Region are moving to Banda to confirm his earlier accusation that the Akufo-Addo government has deployed military officers to intimidate Voltarians. With the happenings in the registration exercise, Asiedu Nketia was hopeful that victory is in sight, forcing the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) government led by President Akufo-Addo to resort to wrong tactics by employing the service of the military officers to intimidate people at registration centres. "NPP is very hot and that is why they have resorted to that wrong tactics. All the intimidations going on in the country show that they fear that they will lose power to the NDC in the upcoming elections." 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 President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday that bars federal government agencies from displacing American nationals and citizens with foreign workers. It also calls for prohibiting American employers from using H-1B workers to displace Americans in outsourcing contracts. Indians have been largest beneficiaries of the H-1B visa programme. The White House said in a statement the order will create a policy where Federal agencies will focus on United States labor in lucrative Federal contracts as it will be :unfair for federal government agencies to replace perfectly qualified Americans with workers from other countries. All federal agencies will conduct an internal audit following to order to ensure only United States citizens and nationals are appointed to the competitive service.. The executive order also enjoins upon the department of labor, which is responsible for ensuring the fairness of the process of hiring foreign workers, to finalize guidance to prevent H-1B employers from moving H-1B workers to other employers job sites to displace Americans workers, in what is called third-arty locations, essentially the practice of outsourcing using foreign workers on H-1B. President Trumps actions will help combat employers misuse of H-1B visas, which were never intended to replace qualified American workers with low-cost foreign labor, said the White House. The is a follow-up of the April 2017 Buy American, Hire American executive order that unleashed a series of ongoing steps and measures bringing unprecedented scrutiny and tightening of the H-1B visa programme that has been in the crosshairs of the administrations immigration hardliners. Indian hired by US companies such as Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Amazon and US subsidiaries of Indian IT forms Infosys, TCS and Wipro are the largest beneficiaries of the H-1B visa programme, accounting for more than 70% of the 85,000 that are issued every year. A response is awaited from Nasscom, which represents the Indian IT industry. The immediate provocation for the Monday order is the decision in May for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), the largest federally owned power provider, to outsource 20% of its highly skilled tech workers to Accenture, Capgemini and CGI, that are based in Ireland, France and Canada respectively. The White House said TVAs action could lead to the firing of 200 highly-skilled American tech workers, who will be replaced by low-wage, foreign workers hired on temporary work visas. and cost the local economy tens of millions of dollars in the coming 5 years. So let this serve as a warning to any federally appointed board, Trump said at a White House event to sign the order, where he also said he was pushing for the firing of the TVA CEO Jeff Lyash. If you betray American workers, then you will hear two simple words youre fired. Youre fired. The Trump administration said outsourcing of hundreds of workers was especially detrimental in the middle of a pandemic, which has led to millions of job-losses. Trump has also suspended the H-1B visa programme as well as Green Cards to ensure Americans get the first shot at jobs becoming available now as the economy struggles to get back to normalcy, from record job losses. It also sought to frame the practice of outsourcing, with a new twists, asa national security risk, if linked to IT jobs that involve sensitive information. The reference was probably to the countrys growing estrangement from China, which the Trump administration has accused of theft of intellectual property rights. Many of the valleys scarring Mars' surface may have formed by water flowing under ancient ice sheets rather than being forged by open rivers a study has found. Researchers from the US used a special computer algorithm to study thousands of valleys on the red planet and reveal the processes that formed them. The team also compared the Martian valleys to the channels found under glaciers in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago revealing they have striking similarities. The findings throw 'cold water' on the long-standing 'warm and wet' hypothesis that suggested ancient Mars sported widespread rainfall, rivers and oceans. However, an ice-coated ancient Mars would have been more likely to support life, the team said with an ice sheet offering more stability to the underlying water. Furthermore, the ice coverage would have offered shelter from solar radiation in the absence of a magnetic field a shield that Mars lost billions of years ago. Many of the valleys scarring Mars' surface may have formed by water flowing under ancient ice sheets rather than being forged by open rivers a study has found. Researchers found that the surface of the red planet likely once resembled that of Canada's Devon ice cap, pictured Researchers from the US used a special computer algorithm to study thousands of valleys on the red planet and reveal the processes that formed them (Pictured, with the glacial and sub-glacial valleys shown in yellow and blue, and river-cut valleys in red) 'For the last 40 years, since Mars's valleys were first discovered, the assumption was that rivers once flowed on Mars, eroding and originating all of these valleys,' said paper author and geophysicist Anna Grau Galofre of the Arizona State University. 'But there are hundreds of valleys on Mars and they look very different from each other,' added Dr Grau Galofre, who undertook the research in her former position at the University of British Columbia. 'If you look at Earth from a satellite you see a lot of valleys some of them made by rivers, some made by glaciers, some made by other processes and each type has a distinctive shape.' 'Mars is similar, in that valleys look very different from each other, suggesting that many processes were at play to carve them.' In their study, Dr Grau Galofre and colleagues used a their new algorithm to discern the erosional processes that formed more than 10,000 of Mars' valleys. 'These results are the first evidence for extensive sub-glacial erosion driven by channelised meltwater drainage beneath an ancient ice sheet on Mars,' said paper author and earth scientist Mark Jellinek, also of the University of British Columbia. 'Only a fraction of valley networks match patterns typical of surface water erosion, which is in marked contrast to the conventional view.' 'Using the geomorphology of Mars' surface to rigorously reconstruct the character and evolution of the planet in a statistically meaningful way is, frankly, revolutionary.' 'There are hundreds of valleys on Mars and they look very different from each other,' said Dr Grau Galofre. Pictured, a surface map of the red planet, with all of its valley networks highlighted (in white, for those analysed by the researchers, with the remainder in purple) According to the researchers, the findings help to explain how the valleys would have formed 3.8 billion years ago at a time when the sun was less intense, on top of how Mars is already further away from the Sun than the Earth. 'Climate modelling predicts that Mars' ancient climate was much cooler during the time of valley network formation,' said Dr Grau Galofre. 'We tried to put everything together and bring up a hypothesis that hadn't really been considered: that channels and valleys networks can form under ice sheets, as part of the drainage system that forms naturally under an ice sheet.' The findings throw 'cold water' on the long-standing 'warm and wet' hypothesis that suggested ancient Mars sported widespread rainfall, rivers and oceans. Pictured, Mars including the Valles Marineris canyon system as imaged by the Viking 1 orbiter The team also compared the Martian valleys to the channels found under glaciers in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago revealing they have striking similarities. Pictured, a composite image showing Mars' Maumee valleys (top) superimposed on the channels of Devon island, north Canada (bottom). The shape of the channels and the overall network are consistent With their initial study complete, the researchers are now looking to apply their valley-analysing algorithms to the ancient landscapes of Earth. 'Currently we can reconstruct rigorously the history of global glaciation on Earth going back about a million to five million years,' said Professor Jellinek. 'Anna's work will enable us to explore the advance and retreat of ice sheets back to at least 35 million years ago to the beginnings of Antarctica, or earlier back in time well before the age of our oldest ice cores.' 'These are very elegant analytical tools,' he concluded. The full findings of the study were published in the journal Nature Geoscience. Last week, the Minister of Internal Affairs of Belarus announced the arrest of a 31-year-old man that is accused of distributing the infamous GandCrab ransomware. Last week, the Minister of Internal Affairs of Belarus announced the arrest of a man on charges of distributing the infamous GandCrab ransomware. The arrest is the result of an investigation conducted with help from law enforcement from the UK and Romania. The authorities did not reveal the name of the man, they arrested him in Gomel (Belarus). He had no previous criminal records at the time of the arrest, but it is known to be a member of a cybercrime forum to become an affiliate for the GandCrab ransomware operation. He allegedly subscribed the GandCrab ransomware-as-a-service to create his own version of the malware and spread it running a spam campaign. The GandCrab ransomware-as-a-service first emerged from Russian crime underground in early 2018. The GandCrab was advertised in the Russian hacking community, researchers from LMNTRIX who discovered it noticed that authors was leveraging the RIG and GrandSoft exploit kits to distribute the malware. As usually happen for Russian threat actors, members cannot use the ransomware to infect systems in countries in the former Soviet Republics that now comprise the Commonwealth of Independent States. Below some interesting points from the first advertisement for this threat: Prospective buyers are asked to join the partner program, in which profits from the ransomware are split 60:40 Large partners are able to increase their percentage of proceeds to 70 per cent As a Ransomware-as-a-service offering, technical support and updates are offered to partners Partners are prohibited from targeting countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States (Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine) violating this rule results in account deletion Partners must apply to use the ransomware, and there is a limited amount of seats available. reads the translation of the ad. The operators behind the GandCrab RaaS offer they platform maintaining 40% of the ransom, the percentage is reduced for large partners. Once infected, if the victim does not pay on time, he will have to pay a double ransom. The authors of the GandCrab RaaS also offers technical support and updates to its members, they also published a video tutorial that shows how the ransomware is able to avoid antivirus detection. The RaaS implements a user-friendly admin console, which is accessible via Tor Network, to allow malware customization (i.e. ransom amount, individual bots and encryption masks) According to Belarussian authorities, the man infected more than 1,000 computers with his customized variant of GandCrab, but is not known how many victims paid the ransom. He was demanding the payment of around $1,200 worth of Bitcoin. Officials believe that the man infected computers in more than 100 countries, most of them in India, the US, Ukraine, the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Russia. GandCrab made more than 54,000 victims across the world, including 156 in Belarus, officials said. Authorities also added that the man was involved in the distribution of cryptominers and wrote malware for other users on the same hacking forums. The GandCrab Ransomware-as-a-Service shut down operations in June 2019 and told affiliates to stop distributing the ransomware. The authors of the ransomware are still unknown and are at large. Security researchers Damian and David Montenegro, who follow the evolution of the GandCrab since its appearance, the GandCrab operators announced their decision of shutting down their operation in a post in popular hacking forums: The operators revealed they have generated more than $2 billion in ransom payments, earning on average of $2.5 million dollars per week. The operators revealed to have earned a net of $150 million that now have invested in legal activities. Pierluigi Paganini (SecurityAffairs hacking, malware) A New Braunfels Marine was one of nine troops killed in a training accident off the southern California coast. The Marines said Lance Cpl. Guillermo Perez, 20, was killed when his landing craft took on water off San Clemente Island. One of his sisters, Bobbie Medelez, wrote on her Facebook page, These next few days will be the hardest I cant tell you how much this is gonna hurt me & has hurt me I dont know how to take in all this I dont know how to stop all this hurt. The Marines said they ended a 40-hour search-and-rescue operation Sunday after an incident last week in which an amphibious assault vehicle carrying 15 Marines and one sailor began taking on water off the coast of San Clemente Island. Eight Marines were rescued Thursday. Two others were listed in critical condition at a local hospital. A report from the nonprofit U.S. Naval Institute said Perez was pronounced dead at the scene and taken to a hospital by helicopter. Two other Marines were injured and taken to Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, with one in critical condition and the others in stable condition, USNI said. The five other Marines were taken to the USS Somerset, an amphibious ship. It is with a heavy heart that I decided to conclude the search and rescue effort, said Col. Christopher Bronzi, 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit commanding officer. The steadfast dedication of the Marines, sailors. and Coast Guardsmen to the persistent rescue effort was tremendous. A military press release said that over the course of the search, Marine Corps, Navy, and Coast Guard helicopters, ships and watercraft searched more than 1,000 square nautical miles. Bronzi said the Marines would continue to search for the missing men. An investigation into the incident is underway. Perezs body was the only one found so far. The other dead were listed as Marine Pfc. Bryan Baltierra, 19, of Corona, Calif.; Lance Cpl. Marco Barranco, 21, of Montebello, Calif.; Pfc. Evan Bath, 19, of Oak Creek, Wis.; Pfc. Jack Ryan Ostrovsky, 21, of Bend, Ore.; Cpl. Wesley Rodd, 23, of Harris, Texas; Lance Cpl. Chase Sweetwood, 19, of Portland, Ore.; Cpl. Cesar Villanueva, 21, of Riverside, Calif., and Navy Hospitalman Christopher Gnem, 22, of Stockton, Calif. The type of amphibious assault vehicle in the mishap has been used by the Marines for beach landings since 1972, according to the FAS Military Analysis Network. Its three-man crew can carry 25 Marines and doubles as an armored personnel carrier. The Marines said Perez was a rifleman. sigc@express-news.net The Congress is unwilling to allow the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to solely take credit for the Ram Temple construction in Ayodhya and has entrusted the job of countering its arch-rival on the issue to its leaders in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, where Lord Ram is believed be have lived during his 14-year exile, functionaries aware of the matter said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to participate in the groundbreaking ceremony for the temple construction on August 5. A Supreme Court ruling in November ended a decades-old dispute and ordered that a Ram temple be built on the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid site in Ayodhya. Former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath and Congress workers across the state plan to recite Hanuman Chalisa, or devotional hymn to Lord Rams companion Hanuman, on Tuesday. The Congress government in neighbouring Chhattisgarh has announced the development of three tourist circuits linked to Rams exile as part of the partys attempt to claim his legacy. Nath on Monday said the country knows that late former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was instrumental behind opening the locks of the disputed site in Ayodhya in 1985. He said Rajiv Gandhi gave his consent for laying a foundation stone for the temple in 1989. In his first electoral speech in 1989, he [Rajiv Gandhi] talked about Ramrajya. This is all in the records. I wish to tell the young generation about this..., Nath said. Nath earlier announced his participation in the Hanuman Chalisa recitation for the statesprosperity and happiness. Bypolls to 27 assembly seats are due in Madhya Pradesh. They are crucial for BJPs governments survival in the state. The BJP has 107 legislators and needs to win at least nine of the 27 seats to reach the majority mark of 116 in the 230 member state assembly. The Congress, which won 114 assembly seats in the 2018 assembly elections, now has 89 seats. The resignations of 22 legislators in March brought down the Congress government in the state and paved the way for the BJPs return to power. A Congress Parliament member, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the recital is being organised to also send out a message that it was Rajiv Gandhi, who was instrumental behind what we are going to see on August 5, and that the BJP only drew political mileage from the issue. Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel announced on Sunday construction of a magnificent temple dedicated to Lord Rams mother, Mata Kaushalya, in Raipur as well as the development of religious tourist circuits also covering Turturiyas Valmiki Ashram. Lord Rams sons, Luv and Kush, are believed to have been born at the ashram. A 1,000-year-old Shiv Temple in Jagdalpur district, which Lord Ram is believed to have been established during the exile, will also be renovated, the Chhattisgarh government said in a statement on Monday. The way Shri Ram had established Shivling in Rameshwaram [Tamil Nadu] before leaving for Lanka, the same way he had established Shivling at Rampal area of Chhattisgarh as well, before moving from Northern to Southern part of India, and had performed customary rituals there, the statement said. The statement said Lord Ram spent some time of his exile in the forest of Turturiya. The projects related to Lord Ram will be part of Chhattisgarh governments Ram Van Gaman Path Project (Ram Forest Travel Route) worth Rs 137.45 crore, the statement said. As part of the projects first phase, nine of the 75 identified locations believed to have links with Lord Ram in the state will be developed and beautified. Baghel on Sunday said Mata Kaushalya was from Chhattisgarh and Lord Ram spent a significant amount of time during his 14-year-exile there. He said their initiatives would generate employment opportunities. Vijesh Lunawat, the state BJP vice-president in Madhya Pradesh, scoffed at the Congresss attempts. The country knows about the stand of the Congress and its leaders. Today, they are talking of Ram temple on seeing the massive sentiments of people across the country. It is better that they continue to practise the policy of [minority] appeasement that they have been practising for decades. Political analyst Girija Shankar said Nath and Baghels announcements suggest a vacuum at the partys central level. In fact, any stand like this should be decided by the partys central leadership which is not existing as it appears. Further, the Congress leaders in these states firmly believe that Congress won 2018 assembly elections because of their soft-Hindutva approach. They have failed to understand that it is because of the then BJP governments failure that Congress was voted to power in both the states. That is why the party leaders do not want to deviate from soft-Hindutva line. It is for the first time that the Mumbai Police Commissioner Parambir Singh has spoken out in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case. Speaking to media persons on Monday morning, Parambir Singh said that the Mumbai Police is capable enough to carry out the investigation in the Sushant death case. He also said that the closed circuit television (CCTV) footage of June 13 and 14 outside Sushant's house in Bandra is also being examined. The CP also clarified there was no party held at Sushant's house the day before the death of the actor. Sushant Case: , Disha | FilmiBeat He also said that all was not good between Sushant Singh Rajput and Rhea Chakraborty and that the police is examining financial transactions. There is no evidence of money transfer to Rhea Chakraborty's account but the police are still looking at that aspect, too. Sushant's Friend Says Actor Cried & Fainted When He Saw His Name Being Associated With Disha's Death The commissioner also mentioned that Sushant Singh Rajput Google-searched for two hours, including his name along with 'painless death' and 'schizophrenia'. As for Sushant's ex-manager Disha Salian's link to the case, the CP clarified that there were only a few friends in the party and Disha was under stress due to some deals that had not worked out. The police are probing that angle in the case. Worried about your mental well-being or of someone you know? Help is just a call away. Reach out to the nearest mental health specialist at COOJ Mental Health Foundation (COOJ)- 0832-2252525, Parivarthan- +91 7676 602 602, Connecting Trust- +91 992 200 1122/+91-992 200 4305 or Sahai- 080-25497777/ SAHAIHELPLINE@GMAIL.COM Trump has said voting by mail will be disastrous, but he's offered no solutions. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) President Trump's delay-the-election trial balloon on Twitter on Thursday was resoundingly denounced, and rightly so. Indeed, so thorough was the repudiation, including from top Republicans, that the president backtracked a little. I dont want to delay, Trump explained in a press conference to discuss the pandemic, I want to have the election. But I also dont want to have to wait for three months, and then find out that the ballots are all missing, and the election doesnt mean anything. Thats whats going to happen. Although delaying the election is an abhorrent idea, contrary to what this country stands for, the president does have a point about mail-in-voting. It could well be a disaster. What is astounding though oddly not actually surprising is the president doesnt want to do anything about it. First let me explain why Trump has a point. Although his claims of massive and systemic fraud are ill-founded and irresponsible, his point about the vote counting has a lot of merit. New York Citys June 23 primary was or rather, still is something of a train wreck. Ten times the normal number of voters cast their ballots by mail. The system was overwhelmed. As of this writing, two congressional races are still undecided 41 days after the vote. Im generally opposed to widespread voting by mail because I think election day (or even election weekend) is an important civic ritual and early voting, particularly in primaries, can end up thwarting popular will. That opposition melts away during a pandemic, of course, but the simple fact is that mail-in balloting has never been tried on the scale that might be required come November. The five states that are already vote-by-mail only Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington and Utah should be fine. But in other states it might be a hot mess. Not only could ballot-counting efforts be overwhelmed; the post office could be as well, causing ballots to be lost or excessively delayed. Story continues Many argue that Trump is making a tactical mistake in attacking mail balloting. Republicans have spent years building up their vote-by-mail operations, leaving the Democrats far behind. Launching a campaign to discredit a system well suited to harvest votes from the disproportionately older and rural voters making up his base seems like madness. On the other hand, as my colleague Sarah Isgur at the Dispatch notes, a hot mess could actually be in Trumps interest. Absentee ballots are rejected purely for technical reasons, such as failing to fill out a line on the form at a higher rate than those cast in person. And if Democrats trust mail-in balloting and Republicans dont, more Democrats are likely to vote by mail and have more of their ballots rejected as a result. In Wisconsins April primary, some 23,000 absentee ballots were thrown out. In 2016, Trump carried Wisconsin by 22,748 votes. Whats remarkable, though, is that most of the conversation is about Trumps political or psychological needs, and not his obligations as president. Its been made clear to him that moving the election is a non-starter, not least because he has no legal or constitutional power to move it. Whats his response? To preemptively discredit the election results. Even his complaints about the problems with mail-in voting are couched not in his obligations as chief executive to see that the integrity of our elections be preserved, but in partisan grievance. Hes tweeted about a CORRUPT ELECTION that will LEAD TO THE END OF OUR GREAT REPUBLICAN PARTY. If Trump is so concerned about the legitimacy of the election why not, you know, do something to assure the election is conducted properly? Fox News Chris Wallace asked Trump campaign advisor Jason Miller this very question. His answer: Well, ultimately, this is the governors at the state level who have to be responsible for their states. Of course, Miller has a point, in that state election officials are responsible for conducting the vote. But the federal government has responsibilities, too. Theres nothing stopping the president from pushing a massive effort to, say, gear up the U.S. Postal Service to handle an increased volume of mail during the election period. Instead, the donor he appointed to run the USPS has eliminated overtime for postal workers, virtually ensuring delivery delays. Trump could also use the same emergency powers hes used to acquire ventilators to buy secure ballot drop boxes and provide them to states. Putting aside plausible theories that Trump is deliberately laying a foundation to claim that he was robbed of reelection, his response is of a piece with his pandemic denial. Just as you cant get the schools open or the economy revived without dealing with the pandemic, you cant have a normal election by just pretending there's no pandemic, either. Predicting it will just disappear isnt a strategy. But rather than face that reality and take appropriate action, Trump prefers to carp as if his hands are tied but his fingers are free to tweet. Chinas Most Valuable Listed Company Draws Scrutiny for Corruption Ties News Analysis The most valuable publicly traded company in the United StatesApple Inc.attracts almost universal admiration for its iconic brand, resiliency, and stock market performance. Not so for the most valued Chinese-listed company, Kweichow Moutai, whose 2.1 trillion yuan ($301 billion) market capitalization shot past the No. 2 Chinese-listed company, Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, in June. Being Chinasas well as the worldsmost valuable liquor distiller, Moutai is generally admired as much as it is scorned. Kweichow Moutais most recent quarter (which ended June 30) saw its sales growth slow to five-year lows as the company continued to battle accusations that it benefits from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)s rampant corruption. First, what is Kweichow Moutai? Among casual Western investors, its one of the least well-known of Chinas major state-owned companies. Partially listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, Kweichow Moutai is known for producing maotai, a popular baijiua colorless Chinese liquor thats typically 3060 percent alcohol. Maotai is a regional icon in the southwestern province of Guizhou. But while the liquor isnt especially enjoyable to drinkit has a fiery and savory tasteits the preferred alcoholic beverage of former CCP leader Mao Zedong. The companys stock has become a favorable holding for institutional investors in the West. It is well-covered by equity research analysts at Wall Street banks. And since the beginning of the year, Kweichow Moutai shares have risen 42 percent, far outpacing the 8.5 percent gain of the Shanghai Composite Index. Kweichow Moutais eye-watering valuation as a distiller seems especially rich compared to its Western peers. Despite a relatively modest quarterly revenue figure of $2.9 billionwhich is less than one-third that of Anheuser-Busch InBevsKweichow Moutais market capitalization is greater than the combined value of AB InBev, Heineken, and Diageo. Domestic Backlash Part of Kweichow Moutais appeal to investors is its popularity among wealthy Chinese and supposed resiliency during the CCP virus pandemic. But the companys status among the Chinese elite has also garnered it scorn from the average Chinese. The more that its stock and liquor price soar, the greater the apparent public backlash. Top-end bottles of maotai can fetch thousands to tens of thousands of dollars at auction. Maotai baijiu is one of the most popular gifts of bribery within the CCP, since its seen as more subtle than bringing a suitcase of cash. On July 16, Kweichow Moutai shares tumbled as much as 8.4 percent after a social media platform under Peoples Dailythe CCPs mouthpiece newspaperquestioned whether the companys skyrocketing stock price is linked to rampant corruption and graft. The platform Learning Group (Xuexi Xiaozu in Chinese) published an article, titled Moutai smells bad. Whos footing the bill? in which the author notes maotais role in business and high-level political dealings, and reminds readers that the companys former chairman, Yuan Renguo, was sacked for corruption. Yuan, who headed the company from 20112018, was removed from his post and dismissed from the CCP for taking huge amount of bribes and other severe violations of discipline and law, according to a 2019 report by Caixin, a Chinese business magazine. Thirteen other company executives were also under investigation. Its particularly ironic that the most valuable company in China is also a name associated with graft and corruption. Slowing Revenues and Profits Growth Temporary? During its most recent quarter, Kweichow Moutais sales growth of 9.5 percent and net profit growth of 9 percent were both below market expectations, while top-line growth was the slowest since 2015. But analysts say those results are still decent given that the CCP virus pandemic has affected production and reduced demand. Chinas high-income households are still drawn to luxury goods such as maotai liquor, despite the pandemic. The purchasing power of wealthier families has been less affected by the pandemic due to their large asset base, Fitch Ratings observed in a note, pointing out that 1Q20 sales of high-end liquor brands, such as Kweichow Moutai and Wuliangye, rose by 13 percent and 15 percent year-on-year, respectively, while sales of low-end names declined. While profits and sales were below expectations, 2020 estimates were still on track, Morgan Stanley analysts wrote in a note to clients on July 28. Distributors will start replenishment orders in August for 4Q, on track with the full-year plan. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 10:25:04|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close LIMA, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- Peru on Sunday reported 428,850 cases of COVID-19 after 3,657 new cases of infection were detected in the previous day. The country's COVID-19 death toll rose to 19,614, according to the Health Ministry. Health authorities have conducted 2,404,046 tests to detect the virus. Of those who tested positive, 13,743 people required hospitalization, including 1,410 on ventilators in intensive care units. Peru's government maintains lockdown measures in seven regions with the worst outbreaks, though a nationwide curfew is still in place. Enditem A study carried out by renowned Egyptologist Zahi Hawass and Sahar Saleem, professor of radiology at Cairo University who specialises in scanning mummies, has solved the mystery of the mummy of the screaming woman from the Royal Cachette in Deir El-Bahari. Hawass told Ahram Online that the CT study and analysis conducted on the mummy revealed that severe atherosclerosis of the coronary arteries had led to sudden death of the Egyptian princess from a heart attack. He said that the ancient Egyptian embalming process had preserved the posture of the princess at the moment of death. Hawass explains that the story began in 1881, when the Royal Cachette of Deir El-Bahari was discovered in Luxor. The site is where the priests of the 21st and 22nd dynasties hid royal members from previous dynasties, to protect them from grave robbers. The Royal Cachette contained the "mummy of the screaming man. Recent studies using CT scans and DNA, done by the scientific team of the Egyptian Mummy Project, proved that the mummy is that of Pentawere, son of King Ramses III, who was forced to commit suicide by hanging as a punishment for his involvement in the killing of his father, in what is known as the Harem Conspiracy. The murderous son was punished by not being embalmed; his body was wrapped in a sheep skin, which indicates that he was considered "unclean" and that his fate was to be punished in the afterlife. Other mummies were wrapped in white linen and carefully mummified. The same Royal Cachette in Deir El-Bahari also contained a mummy of a woman showing signs of terror, pain and opened mouth as if screaming, hence known as "the mummy of the screaming woman." To solve this mystery, Hawass and Saleem carried out a study and examined the mummy with a CT machine located at the Egyptian Museum. Writings in the ancient hieratic Egyptian language on the linen wraps of the mummy read: The royal daughter, the royal sister of Meret Amon. However, the mummy was considered unknown and was thus designated the mummy of the unknown woman A as there were many princesses with the same name, for example Meret Amun, daughter of King Seqenenre of the end of the seventeenth dynasty (1558-1553 BC), and also Meret Amun, daughter of King Ramses II (1279-1213 BC) from the nineteenth dynasty. The results of CT scan indicates that the mummy of the screaming woman is a woman who died in her sixth decade. Unlike Pentawere, the body of the woman received a good mummification treatment. Consequently, it is obvious that the circumstances of her death are different. Hawass said that the CT results indicate that the mummy suffered from severe degree of atherosclerosis, which affected many arteries of the body. He explains that atherosclerosis is a degenerative disease that progressively affects the arterial wall, leading to a narrowing of the cavity and blockage of the vessel. The CT scan showed that she suffered from atherosclerosis of the right and left coronary arteries, neck arteries, abdominal aorta and iliac arteries, as well as the arteries of the lower extremities. Cardiac diseases, especially coronary artery disease, are the leading cause of sudden death in adults in the modern period. It seems that the screaming woman died suddenly while in her current body posture, with flexed crossed legs. Consequent to death, her head was tilted to the right side and her jaw dropped. We assume that the dead body of the screaming woman might not have been discovered until hours later, enough to develop rigor mortis, said Hawass. We assume that the embalmers likely mummified the contracted body of the screaming woman before it decomposed or relaxed. The embalmers were thus unable to secure the mouth closed or put the contracted body in the state of lying down, as was usual with the other mummies, thus preserving her facial expression and posture at the time of death, he said. Search Keywords: Short link: Penka Enclave East Legon Residents Association on today Monday called on the authorities to demolish a building being constructed on an access road in the area to safeguard the community. The Association said it had petitioned the Office of the Vice President and the Chief of Staff on the issue with the relevant pictures attached after all steps to stop the construction had failed. Mr Enoch Gyasi Nkansah, a member of the Association, told the media in Accra that the construction was being done on the only access road to the community, which had served the people for 30 years, especially during emergencies. Giving a background to the actions taken by the Association, he said on June 9 it petitioned the Attorney General to go to their aid and the matter was referred to the Local Government Ministry. Mr Nkansah said the Minister tasked the Ministry's Engineer to inspect the site, after which it was established that the site was actually a road on the Master Plan. He said the Association made follow-ups to the Ministry and several meetings with the Engineer and the Ayawaso West Municipal Chief Executive to discuss the progress of the matter. "..The Association was told that the case was in court and the building was going to be pulled down. But after a few months we saw construction works on the building was being continued," he said. He said the Association went back to notify the Assembly about the development and that later when workers came to the site to work, he personally called the Assembly's lawyer who asked him to take pictures and videos. The group later presented the pictures and a petition to the Ayawaso West Municipal Assembly. ---GNA Lots are seen along Dover Street in Philadelphia's Grays Ferry neighborhood. The city sold them for $1 each in the 1990s, but property values have recently risen significantly. Read more A South Philadelphia man has been arrested on charges that he stole land owned by a neighborhood organization that he helped start decades ago, long before the citys economic revival made the properties valuable. Mark Meighan, 60, of Grays Ferry, was charged last week with theft by deception, records tampering, forgery, and other offenses, court filings show. The Inquirer reported in October that Meighan was said to be under investigation over his handling of seven rowhouse-size parcels on South Dover Street, which he is accused of taking from the Guenther Street Civic Association neighborhood group. Records show that he had deeded the properties together worth upward of $300,000, based on other sales in the area to himself for $1 each in September 2017. After taking ownership of the parcels, Meighan allegedly continued to collect payments from people who parked at the properties, keeping the cash for himself, according to the warrant for his arrest. Neighbors told The Inquirer last year that he had also openly discussed selling the properties to a developer or building houses on them himself. Soaring property values in some Philadelphia neighborhoods have made the city an attractive hunting ground for real estate scammers, who in some cases forge deeds to seize ownership of homes and vacant lots they can flip. Meighan, a retired treatment-plant manager with the Water Department, is accused of betraying the trust of longtime neighbors, who looked to him with increasing disappointment and anger as news of the accusations filtered through the community. Brian Clinton, an assistant chief of staff for Mayor Jim Kenney whose parents grew up in Grays Ferry and continues to attend Mass there at St. Gabriel Catholic Church, said people were shocked that Meighan didnt give up the properties of his own accord to regain his standing in the community. I dont think anyone thought it would go this far, he said. He had his opportunity to make it right and he didnt, so its just sad. Meighans lawyer, John DIntino Jr., declined to comment on the arrest. Assistant District Attorney Kimberly Esack, who oversaw the probe into Meighan as head of the offices Economic Crime Unit, declined through a spokesperson to be interviewed, citing the ongoing investigation. The properties that Meighan is accused of stealing are on the 1400 block of South Dover Street, an area of vacant lots sandwiched between South 29th Street and South Newkirk Street, south of Reed Street and north of Dickinson Street. READ MORE: South Philly neighborhood upended by longtime residents apparent land grab as property values soar That section of Dover Street was once called Guenther Street, which is how the Guenther Street Civic Association got its name. The group was formed in the late 1990s after homeowners on 29th and Newkirk Streets were given the option of buying the then-city-owned properties directly behind their homes on Dover Street to use as parking. With property in Grays Ferry holding very little monetary value at the time, the parcels were offered for $1 each, although the buyers were required to pay $1,000 to fence them. The Guenther Street groups mission was to communally own and manage the lots that went unclaimed by owners of adjoining homes. Meighan and another neighbor, funeral-home operator William Shea, were signatories on the deeds transferring those properties to the group in 1999. Over the years, the Guenther Street group rented some of the parking spaces to other Grays Ferry neighbors to cover property taxes and other expenses, with Shea serving as treasurer until he moved from the neighborhood in 2014. Guenther Street treasurer duties fell to another neighbor until 2016, when Meighan took over the groups finances, a community member told The Inquirer last year. Management of the lots seemingly continued as before until the autumn of 2017, when the neighbor who served until 2016 as treasurer and whose address was still on file with the city as the Guenther Street groups official contact received notices that the properties had changed hands. A member of the Guenther Street Civic Association, identified in the arrest warrant by her initials, told police investigating the transaction last year that she recently learned that GSCA no longer owns the properties, as they have been transferred into Meighans name, according to the document. Meighan is now collecting the rents for the parking space himself. Meighan also violated the groups bylaws that require its executive board to approve any land sales, the member told investigators. He committed a crime against the public trust, and hes being appropriately punished for it, said Carmine Zulli, president of the nonprofit Grays Ferry Community Council. It seems this is a step toward hopefully the situation being righted, at least from a community perspective. Meighan was arraigned July 27 after his arrest and released without bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 10. Twenty-five of the 53 new Covid-19 cases notified to health authorities were in Dublin. However, the latest figures from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) showed there were no new deaths reported yesterday. Of the 53 new cases, 27 were men and 26 were women. Eighty per cent were aged 45 and under. As well as the 25 cases in Dublin, 19 were in Laois, six in Kildare and the remaining three were spread across two other counties. It brings to 26,162 the number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland, with four people now in intensive care. Acting Chief Medical Off-icer Dr Ronan Glynn and the Department of Health said the source of transmission for more than 90pc of cases reported yesterday had been identified. Susceptible "This is a positive development in light of the number of cases reported over the past few days," Dr Glynn said. "However, our five-day average for cases reported is now 47. We all need to continue to adopt a prevention mindset and continue making good choices to protect ourselves and others while trying to live safely with Covid-19. "People are still susceptible, this virus has not changed. We know how to break the chains of transmission." Parents are being urged to introduce curfews after a beach party led to several public order arrests. The party took place on Kilkee beach in Co Clare on Saturday night, with some residents reporting it went on to 3am. Fianna Fail councillor Cillian Murphy called on parents to impose curfews. Clare County Council is set to block off the bandstand on the beach from 6pm. A number of public order arrests were made as gardai were alerted to the party. "This looked like the aftermath of Oxegen, and parents should be looking now at a curfew for their children and young people to prevent this again," Cllr Murphy said. "There were lots of teenagers. At 6.30am I heard loud voices outside. "The reality is these kids were out and their parents didn't know where they were. "If they did know, there was no responsibility taken for what happened. Really, the parents need to know where their children and young people are, due to Covid-19." Residents and even those living outside of the coastal town took to social media to vent their anger. One woman tweeted: "Do the rules apply to some and not others? Absolutely disgraceful to see the scenes on Kilkee beach tonight, and this isn't the first of it. Nonsense "It's no wonder cases are on the rise again with this nonsense going on, and it isn't just at night either." Footage shared online showed a large number of young people partying in very close proximity and rubbish left behind afterwards. The council's ground team cleaned the area in the morning. Calls are being made for a stronger garda presence to ensure further incidents are prevented. The youths partied under the bandstand on the seafront and photos appear to show some damage caused. "I'm concerned about the fact you have 15 to 18-year-olds out very late at night, lots of alcohol involved and no social distancing whatsoever," Mr Murphy said. "On the other hand, we're looking at children going back to school in September. "There's a responsibility with parents to make sure they know where their kids are. "In the UK there are localised lockdowns. I don't have the expertise to discuss that, but we have to be able to say we're protecting people. "How do we protect the people who live here and those who visit here?" Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State has insisted that President Muhammadu Buhari must know the truth about the security situation in ... Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State has insisted that President Muhammadu Buhari must know the truth about the security situation in the North East. He maintained that there is sabotage in the system that will not allow terrorists to stop operating in the region. The Governor spoke on Sunday during a meeting with his counterparts from Kebbi and Jigawa States, Atiku Bagudu and Badaru Abubakar, respectively who paid him a solidarity visit over the recent attack in Baga. The Governor said some elements are trying to frustrate the effort of the Buhari government in ending terrorism, adding that Buhari needs to know the truth. He said, Let me also re-echo my previous position with respect to the level of insurgency in Borno State, I earlier said that the gravity of the insurgency cannot be compared with what has happened between 2011 to 2015, and 2015 to date. Yes, its true. The President has done well. But theres sabotage in the system that will not allow insurgency to end; the President has to know this very important point. When he came to Maiduguri two months ago, I said so because between 2011 to 2015, at a time, almost about 22 LGAs were under the insurgents. He lamented that out of the four roads that lead to the State capital, Maiduguri, only one was functional. NORRISTOWN A Lansdale man has pleaded not guilty to charges he abused the corpse of a friend, after the friend died at his home, by wrapping the body in a large trash bag and placing it in the trunk of the dead mans vehicle before abandoning it on a parking lot. Shamsuzzaman Mollah, 35, of the first block of Elm Drive, entered the not guilty plea when he waived his arraignment on the charges in Montgomery County Court. A judge will now set a trial date for Mollah, who remains free on bail pending trial. Specifically, Mollah faces charges of abuse of corpse, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and theft by unlawful taking in connection with an alleged April 29, 2018, incident related to the death of 33-year-old Daniel Torres, a Quakertown, Bucks County, man who operated a Bridgeport barbershop. If hes convicted of all the charges at trial, Mollah faces a possible maximum sentence of 41/2 to 9 years in prison. Assistant District Attorney Scott Frame is handling the case. Defense lawyer Anita Seth represents Mollah. An investigation began on May 3, 2018, when Torres mother reported her son missing to Pennsylvania State Police. Torres mother told police Torres was last seen alive on April 29 and that he was at Mollahs residence, according to the criminal complaint filed by Lansdale Detective Nicholas Oropeza and county Detective James Reape. On May 9, Lansdale police responded to the parking lot of the Twin Pines Apartment complex in the 700 block of North Valley Forge Road after a resident there reported that a white Nissan Altima vehicle hadnt been moved since being parked there about 6:50 p.m. April 29 by a person wearing a hooded sweatshirt. The resident reported the occupant exited the vehicle with the hood up over his head and synched closed and then walked toward Eighth Street, according to court papers. Investigation revealed the strong odor of decomposition emitting from the trunk of the Nissan, Oropeza and Reape wrote in the criminal complaint, adding Torres body was found in the trunk of the vehicle that was owned by Torres. Torres body was contained inside a large black trash bag. An autopsy determined that although the body was in decomposition, there were no signs of trauma. Toxicology tests uncovered the presence of opioids and ethanol in Torres bloodstream, leading a forensic pathologist to opine that Torres may have died from opioid and ethanol intoxication, according to the criminal complaint. The cause and manner of death were ruled undetermined. Detectives subsequently interviewed Mollah, who initially told authorities Torres slept at his residence on the evening of April 28 into the morning hours of April 29 after the pair had been out with another friend at the Creekside Cabaret in Colmar, according to the arrest affidavit. Detectives uncovered video surveillance from cameras in the area of the Twin Pines Apartments and Mollahs residence and also analyzed cellphone records that assisted them in the investigation, according to court documents. A search of Mollahs residence by investigators uncovered a box of contractor clean-up bags. The bag is identical in shape, color and design as the bag that was found to contain the body of Daniel Torres, Oropeza and Reape alleged in the criminal complaint. Mollah, detectives learned, was under the supervision of county adult probation officials at the time of the alleged incident. Based upon the evidence recovered, detectives alleged that Mollah was present on April 29 when Torres died inside the Elm Drive residence from ethanol and opioid intoxication, according to the arrest affidavit. Following his death, Mollah secreted Torres body inside the trunk of his Nissan Altima, fearing his connection to Torres death may cause a violation of his Montgomery County probation, Oropeza and Reape alleged. Mollah then drove Torres vehicle to the Twin Pines Apartment parking lot and abandoned it there, detectives alleged. U.S. to Act on China Software Beyond TikTok, Pompeo Says (Bloomberg) -- The Trump administration will announce measures shortly against a broad array of Chinese-owned software deemed to pose national-security risks, U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo said. The comments suggest a possible widening of U.S. measures beyond TikTok, the popular music-video app owned by ByteDance Ltd., one of Chinas biggest tech companies. President Donald Trump told reporters Friday that he plans to ban TikTok from the U.S., but his decision hasnt been announced. Pompeo signaled he expects a Trump announcement shortly. Chinese newspapers slammed a potential ban on TikTok. The president continues to weigh his options and may have an answer Monday or Tuesday, Fox Business reported on Sunday evening. Trumps decision has implications for Microsoft Corp., which has been exploring an acquisition of the app from ByteDance. Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella spoke with Trump on Sunday to salvage the companys effort to buy TikToks operations in the U.S. and several other countries. Microsoft Tries To Salvage Deal To Buy TikTok, Appease Trump Talks to buy the music video app would seek a resolution in a matter of weeks and look to be completed no later than Sept. 15, Microsoft said in a statement. The company will continue to engage Trump and the U.S. government, adding that Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the presidents concerns. If the company & data can be purchased & secured by a trusted U.S. company that would be a positive & acceptable outcome, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida said on Twitter. Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a Trump confidant, tweeted that he understands the concerns of TikTok fans and users and that Microsoft taking over would be a win-win. Senators John Cornyn of Texas and Roger Wicker of Mississippi made similar comments, although Wicker also urged tight security measures to protect consumer data. Chinese software companies doing business in the U.S. are feeding data directly to Chinese authorities whether its TikTok or WeChat -- there are countless more, Pompeo, on of the Trump administratons China hawks, said on Fox News Channels Sunday Morning Futures. Story continues Trump will take action in the coming days with respect to a broad array of national-security risks that are presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party, Pompeo said. Trump can either force a sale of TikTok or block the app by executive order, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on ABCs This Week, adding that he wouldnt discuss specifics on his talks with the president on the topic. CFIUS Objections Mnuchin, who heads the Committee on Foreign Investment on the United States, or CFIUS, said the entire committee agrees that TikTok cannot stay in the current format because it risks sending back information on 100 million Americans. That view that there has to be a change is shared by lawmakers including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, Mnuchin said. TikTok has become one of the worlds most popular apps. Its been downloaded more than 2 billion times globally and more than 165 million times in the U.S. ByteDance is prepared to sell 100% of TikToks U.S. operations as a way to head off a ban by Trump, two people with knowledge of the situation said earlier. TikTok has hired almost 1,000 people in the U.S. this year and will be employing another 10,000 into great paying jobs in the U.S., a company spokeswoman said in a statement. The businesss $1 billion creator fund also supports people in the country who are building livelihoods from the platform, she added. TikTok U.S. user data is stored in the U.S., with strict controls on employee access, she said. TikToks biggest investors come from the U.S. We are committed to protecting our users privacy and safety. Chinese state media defended TikTok, characterizing the Trump administrations antagonism toward the company in a similar fashion to U.S. politicians attitude toward the Chinese global networking giant Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. The China Daily wrote in an editorial on Sunday that although the Oval Office claims to oppose authoritarianism, it has a penchant for arbitrarily demonstrating its own authority. And an editorial in the Global Times, one of Chinas most combative state-run papers, said that the U.S. claim that TikTok threatens its own national security is purely hypothetical and unwarranted charge -- just like the groundless accusation that Huawei gathers intelligence for the Chinese government. (Updates with Microsoft statement from fourth paragraph) 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. LaVoieHealthScience (LHS), an integrated investor and public relations consulting agency focused on advancing health and science innovations, today announced that Donna L. LaVoie, President, CEO and Founder of LHS, has been named to the PharmaVOICE 100 Most Inspiring People in the life-sciences industry. Since 2005, the PharmaVOICE 100 has honored more than 1,500 industry executives for their contributions to the life sciences. It remains the only awards program that recognizes achievement across all sectors of the life science industry. This year, Donna joins a list of 99 other inspirational, accomplished leaders who are continuing to drive health and science innovation. As a proven leader in strategic communications for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, healthcare, medical device and medical technology companies, Donna was named to the PharmaVOICE 100 for her influence as a corporate leader, passion and conviction for the industry and her ability to think outside the box and develop and implement breakthrough, integrated communications strategies. In addition, the recognition highlights how she has inspired and motivated those around her as a mentor and through her many positive contributions to the industry. To date, LHS has served more than 375 commercial and pre-commercial clients, both domestic and global. After founding LHS in 2001, Donna has steadily grown the agency by overseeing key account strategies, forming strategic alliances with industry collaborators, building a strong senior management team capable of mentoring the next generation of life science leaders and expanding the agencys presence in Boston and New York City. Donna is the architect behind LHS core methodologies, including LHS Immersion a message development and positioning platform for established and emerging companies and the LHS Fifteen-Slide Presentation. It is a great honor to be included this year in the PharmaVOICE 100, said Donna L. LaVoie. I continue to be inspired each day by the dedication of my team and the breakthrough work our clients do to bring advances in health and improve patient lives. We are operating during an extremely difficult time and rising to meet the challenges presented to us is more important than ever. We must keep moving to drive innovation. Donna and the other 2020 honorees will be celebrated during 24-hours of digital programming on Thursday, September 10 that will include interactive panels, networking opportunities, video interviews and more. About LaVoieHealthScience LaVoieHealthScience partners with leading health and science brands to build value for their companies, attract capital and reach key stakeholders through integrated communications, relationship building and marketing. The firm provides strategic consulting, public relations and investor relations to build recognition and increase sales and value for health science innovations and has two trademarked methodologies for its strategic communications advisory services. The agency has received over 50 awards in recognition of the work done by its strategic thinkers for health and science industry-leading clients. LHS was inducted in the 2018 Inc. 5000 Hall of Fame List of Fastest Growing Private Companies, as well as ranked on the ODwyers list of 2020 Healthcare Public Relations Firms and Boston Business Journals Largest PR Firms in Massachusetts. Agency and Media Contact: Katie Gallagher Account Director, PR and Marketing 617-792-3937 kgallagher@lavoiehealthscience.com The Covid-19 pandemic has shown people some real flaws in our public education systems. If Joe Biden is elected, will he fix them? Many school districts had trouble adapting to the sudden closure and were never able to deliver effective distance learning. Many parents were surprised how low schools expectations were and disappointed by the quality of education their children were receiving. Different children had very different experiences with distance learning. Even more than usual, they will arrive at school next fall with different needs. Batch processingteaching an entire classroom the same thing at the same pacewill work even worse than usual. We need an education system that is adaptable, that meets all students where they are, that helps them move at a pace that works for them, and that has high expectations for all of them. As many schools have demonstrated, children rise to the expectations we set for them. As we reopen schools, we shouldnt simply restore the old public education system. We should aim higher and apply the lessons of the last four months to building a more flexible, resilient K-12 school system. Unfortunately, its unlikely Bidens education plan written before the coronavirus appeared can produce what we need. It would pour massive amounts of money into the old, centralized district model, offering no systemic change to the millions of low-income and minorities families who have been failed by the status quo. No doubt because he was courting the teachers unions, Bidens plan never mentions the phrase charter school. Yet these public schools, which are freed from district bureaucracies, have demonstrated that they educate urban children far more effectively than district schools. By their fourth year in a charter, urban charter students learn 50 percent more every year than district students with similar demographics and past test scores, according to Stanford Universitys Center for Research on Education Outcomes. Free from red tape and bureaucracy, charters are nimbler than district-operated schools. Recent surveys by the Center for Reinventing Public Education, at the University of Washington, show that charter management organizations transitioned to distance learning faster and more thoroughly this spring than districts did, on average. They were already more likely to use educational software and to deliver personalized learning, to help children move at their own pace. It is sad that Biden, who worked with President Obama to create a Race to the Top in K-12 education that offered firm support for charters, has turned a cold shoulder to these innovative public schools. They have significant lessons to teach us about how to organize public education in the 21st century. For one, they make it clear that we need to decentralize, giving school leaders (including teams of teachers in teacher-powered schools) authority to hire and fire, control their budgets, shift school schedules, and choose their teaching methods. They know what works for their students and teachers far better than central office bureaucrats do. But more autonomy for schools is hardly a magic bullet. We also know from the charter sector that not every empowered school will succeed because effective educationparticularly in the inner cityis not easy. So, we have to pair autonomy with accountability: If a school fails repeatedly and cannot right the ship, its leaders and teachers should be replaced by a new team. This is what our fastest improving urban school systems of recent decadesin New Orleans, Washington, D.C., Chicago, and Denverhave done. We also need more diverse learning models. The pandemic has shown us once again that different kids flourish in different environments. Some loved distance learning; others hated it. Some longed for the arts and drama they were missing; others wanted more science, math, and technology. In urban areas, where transportation can be provided, we should encourage a variety of school models, give parents good information about them, and let them choose schools that best fit their children. Taxpayers dollars should follow their choices, so the adults running schools know they have to deliver to get their funding. This is also what we see in New Orleans, D.C., Chicago, and Denver. President Biden will ensure that no childs future is determined by their zip code, parents income, race, or disability, Bidens plan declares. Districts that assign children to schools based on where they live fail this test. The only way to deliver on Bidens promise is to maximize school choice, with guidelines to ensure a mix of incomes in every school. (The Supreme Court has made it illegal to ensure a racial mix, but by mixing incomes, we almost always increase racial diversity.) Denver has several dozen schools that show how well this can work. In sum, we need well-run school districts to steer our systemsto ensure they have the right mix of schools, that all types of students are finding opportunity, and that no group is losing out. But districts need to leave the rowing to those who manage schools. Even if Biden could somehow build a coalition to support spending vast new sums on K-12 education during a time of immense deficits, his plan would not give us these kinds of school systems. Instead, we would simply put more money into the same old command-and-control systems, without sufficient variety, choice, or competition. Our principals and teachers would still feel disempowered, unable to deliver the quality they know their students deserve. Centralized, rule-driven, bureaucratic monopolies worked well enough during the Industrial Era, when most graduates would go on to manual labor or stay home and raise kids. But global competition has raised the bar dramatically; todays graduates must be able to do so much more to earn a decent living. Meanwhile the pace of change has accelerated, and computer technologies have made amazing things possible. In the 21st century, success comes from decentralized networks of mission-driven organizations whose customers have choices, not from top-down bureaucracies. Fortunately, Biden has ample opportunity to add whats missing to his education plan. As the fall campaign begins in earnest, he should offer the nation a new vision for 21st century schools that are decentralized, autonomous, tailored to diverse learning needs, and strictly accountable for delivering high-quality education to all children. gettyimagesbank Mid-tier IT firms cry foul over oligopolistic market By Park Jae-hyuk SK C&C and Samsung SDS have unnerved midsize IT service operators here, as the conglomerates have begun to aggressively enter the domestic financial information service market amid the government's deregulatory measures. The SK Group's IT service affiliate has already decided to submit its tender for Korea Post's next-generation financial information system management worth 206.4 billion won ($172 million). Samsung SDS is also likely to submit its tender for the deal. Korea Post began inviting tenders, Monday, and will select the preferred negotiator in mid-September. The contract will be finalized in October. In 2006, Samsung SDS had been chosen as the postal service agency's next-generation system operator. SK C&C also carried out several projects with it in the past. Samsung SDS has remained cautious about the ongoing bid, saying it is reviewing the feasibility of the project at this moment. But the company will likely seek to expand its presence in public projects further given that it was chosen in June as the preferred negotiator for Korea Development Bank's (KDB) IT system management project valued at 287 billion won. The Samsung affiliate resumed engaging in financial and public IT projects last year, five years after the top-tier IT service provider had decided to leave the market in 2014. During its hiatus, mid-tier IT firms such as ITCEN expanded their presence in the local financial software market. ITCEN signed a 5.5 billion won contract with Korea Post in 2017 for maintenance of the national postal service's financial system. The government regulations that went into effect in 2013 to bar conglomerates from participating in public software projects have also helped the growth of medium-sized IT firms. Since last year, however, the government changed its stance by allowing big companies to participate in public projects that are considered to use "new technologies." As a result, both SK C&C and Samsung SDS were able to participate in a bid to provide IT services to KDB which is pursuing speedy digitization amid the rising popularity of contactless transactions. Industry officials expect the private sector will also clarify their preference for larger IT service providers given that the government-led projects have already excluded mid-tier companies. In April, LG CNS was chosen as the company to direct integration between Shinhan Life Insurance and Orange Life Insurance in their IT services. The envisioned bidding for a contract to provide IT services to Prudential Life Insurance Company of Korea that was sold recently to KB Financial Group will also likely be won by one of Samsung SDS, SK C&C and LG CNS. Prudential Life had signed a 25 billion won IT outsourcing deal with Samsung SDS in 2010. Considering the domestic financial sector's efforts for cost reduction and the financial regulator's deregulatory measures, industry officials expect the big three IT service providers will continue to enjoy rising demand for IT outsourcing. This has raised concerns among mid-tier IT service operators. They have called for the government to again tighten its regulations to bar conglomerates from participating in public projects. The Korea IT Service Industry Association has urged the government to come up with measures to manage the coexistence of large, medium-sized and small IT firms. Fortunately for midsize firms, there still exists a chance that they could win the Korea Post's financial information system management deal. One of the key variables is that the government cut its budget for the project from the initial estimation of 300 billion won, so as to finance its "Digital New Deal" drive. If the conglomerates regard the downsized project as unprofitable, they may decide not to submit their tenders. In the KDB deal, LG CNS unexpectedly dropped out of the project just before the deadline for the bid application. The LG affiliate, which is the smallest among the sector's top three providers, said nothing has been decided yet regarding its possible participation in the Korea Post deal. Editors Note: The Reporter-Telegram will publish profiles on those who file for school board. At least five people have filed for seats on the Midland ISD school board. The district reported early last week that the following have filed to put their names on the Nov. 3 ballot: Michael Booker, James Fuller and Matt Galindo in District 1, Rachel Davis in District 2, Steve Vargas in District 4, Bryan Murry in District 7 and Joseph Gallegos in District 7. The Reporter-Telegram has not learned of any other candidates who have filed or announced. Four of Midland ISDs seven seats are on the ballot, and two current office holders have made re-election bids official Fuller and Murry. The Reporter-Telegram has not talked with either Robert Marquez in District 2 or John Kennedy in District 4 about their intentions this fall. The filing period started in mid-July and continues through 5 p.m. Aug. 17. The Reporter-Telegram expects to have an updated list this week of those who have filed, along with additional candidate profiles. District 1 is generally east Midland, District 2 starts in southeast Midland and heads south, District 4 starts in central Midland and extends to the southwest, and District 7 is in northwest Midland. To see the school board district map, go to Midland ISDs board of trustees page on the districts website midlandisd.net. A packet with the application forms and other important information can be picked up at the Midland ISD superintendents office, 615 W. Missouri Ave., according to Midland ISD. Because of COVID-19 guidelines, email veronica.ramirez@midlandisd.net for more information or appointment times to pick up a packet and/or return the application. Midland College and Midland County Hospital District Three of the nine Midland College seats are scheduled to be on the ballot in November. They are Places 7, 8 and 9. Midland Colleges seats are at-large positions, so a person can run for any seat, and all eligible voters within the college district vote on each place. Bahola Edwards, assistant to the president and board of trustees, coordinates voting. Anyone wishing to file for the board can pick up information from her. Her office is located in the Presidents Office located in the Pevehouse Administration Building. Four of the seven positions on the Midland County Hospital District are scheduled to be on the ballot in November. They are Districts 1, 2, 5 and 6. The physical address for filing applications in person for place on the hospital district ballot is Midland Memorial Hospital, 400 Rosalind Redfern Grover Parkway. Laura Isbell is the contact. Editor's Note: This article was updated to show that Galindo and Booker had filed for a place on the District 1 ballot. 'Astounded - Encountering God in Everyday Moments' Upcoming Release by Angela Donadio International Speaker, Podcast Host Angela Donadio to Release Third Book with Bridge Logos Publishers NEWS PROVIDED BY Bridge Logos Aug. 3, 2020 FREDERICKSBURG, Va., Aug. 3, 2020 /Christian Newswire/ -- In a year of unprecedented uncertainty, Astounded: Encountering God in Everyday Moments, is a welcome reprieve. In her newest book, Astounded, Angela Donadio reveals how God can use even the worst of circumstances to bring out the best in our lives, offering 52 devotions for daily or weekly encouragement. Angela shares raw, personal stories and shows the reader how to keep their eyes peeled for the miracle hidden in life's messy moments. Each devotion includes a key Bible verse, fresh spiritual insight, and practical application to help the reader encounter God in everyday moments. Some days, real life is more outrageous than fiction, but sometimes, everyday moments are unexpected miracles. Because just when we least expect it, God breathes on a situation and leaves us astounded. Angela Donadio is an international speaker and writer, podcast host, recording artist, mother and advocate for women, especially rural pastors wives and their children in Africa. She is the author of Finding Joy When Life is Out Of Focus: Philippians--Study for Joy-Thirsty Women and Fearless: Ordinary Women of the Bible who Dared to Do Extraordinary Things. As a women's pastor and ordained minister, she serves alongside her husband, Dale, at a thriving church in Virginia. She shares her passion for ministry through her music, monthly blog and weekly podcast. Astounded is available October 1, 2020 at all retailers and online stores. To schedule an author interview or for other press inquiries, please contact Suzi Wooldridge at swooldridge@bridgelogos.com. Learn more about Angela at angeladonadio.com or follow her on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. About Bridge Logos Bridge Logos, Inc. is a Christian publishing company based in Newberry, FL, USA. It also has a UK office in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. Founded in 1967, Bridge publishes books that glorify and honor God from timeless Pure Gold Classics by famous historical authors to more contemporary works by internationally renowned authors including: minister and evangelist Ray Comfort; best-selling author and popular speaker, Carol Burton McLeod; Rita and Dennis Bennett; Kathryn Kuhlman; Nicky Cruz; and many others. Learn more at www.bridgelogos.com SOURCE Bridge Logos CONTACT: Angela Donadio, 540-429-6048, angela@angeladonadio.com Representation: Suzanne Kuhn, Brookstone Creative Group, Suzanne@brookstonecreativegroup.com Related Links Angeladonadio.com A group of Six stars will come together for a special one-night-only performance. 11 stars will perform in the one-off day-time event, which is hosted by the West End Musical Drive-In at the "Drive-In" venue north of Walthamstow in outer London. Courtney Bowman, Maddie Bulleyment, Collette Guitart, Sophie Isaacs, Vicki Manser, Shekinah McFarlane, Grace Mouat, Natalie Paris, Jarneia Richard-Noel, Courtney Stapleton and Jodie Steele will also come together for the show, which will run for 2 hours and feature a celebration of all things musical theatre but, please note, this will not be a production of Six the Musical. The event will begin at 1.30pm, with arrivals from 12.45pm. Only 300 spots are available. Earlier this month the Six production proper had to cancel a major UK tour, following significant uncertainty around different venue locations. Producer Chris Steward commented: "We're so excited to be bringing so many Queens together for such a special performance. Although it's a drive in, in-line with government guidelines, fans will also be able to attend in small groups even without a car and be right at the front of the stage. If last Saturday's event is anything to go by the atmosphere is going to be electric!" The V-shaped rebound has been aided by a gush of liquidity flooding the global financial system, thanks to balance sheet expansion. Equity markets across the world are having a dream run, thanks to aggressive stimulus measures by central banks. Most global indices have managed to overcome deep losses suffered in March, amid the Covid-19 pandemic, to trade in the green on a year-to-date (YTD) basis. On July 23, the benchmark Nifty closed at 11,133 - the index is currently just 8.5 per cent down on YTD basis and 10 per cent shy of a new all-time high. It managed to make giant strides despite the unprecedented economic shock following the lockdown. The Indian benchmarks have rebounded 47 per cent from their March lows, having gained 27 per cent in the past two months. The V-shaped rebound has been aided by a gush of liquidity flooding the global financial system, thanks to balance sheet expansion - especially by central banks of the G4 bloc. Concerns have surfaced regarding further expansion in the US Feds B/S, following a rapid ramp-up this year (which had helped shore up markets). However, the easy money trade could sustain well into the next year, predict experts. The European Union announced a $850-billion recovery fund on Tuesday. Other G4 peers including the Fed, Bank of Japan (BoJ), and Bank of England (BoE), are expected to follow suit. Morgan Stanley has, in a July 15 note, projected G4 central banks to expand their B/S by $12 trillion by end-2021. G4 central banks have announced aggressive quantitative easing programs. "We estimate them to make asset purchase of $12 trillion this easing cycle. "Fed alone will make cumulative asset purchases of $6.2 trillion by the end of 2021, it said. Experts said money printing would provide a floor to global financial markets and a liquidity boost to developing nations. Central banks are clear they will print money for the next two years. As they print money to finance economies, cost of capital will further reduce. "Our country will receive more foreign portfolio investment (FPI) and foreign direct investment (FDI) flows to fund economic revival. "This will be a 3-year recovery. Markets are discounting economic recovery for the next 3 years, said Saurabh Mukherjea, founder of Marcellus Investment Managers. After a record sell-off by FPIs of over $8 billion in March, the YTDinvestment rally has improved significantly. At present, FPI outflows stand at about $2 billion. Experts believe the YTD tally for both foreign flows and equity markets could turn positive on a YTD basis. When there is more monetary easing, cash finds its way to the equity markets; it is difficult to establish a direct correlation. "But the money indirectly seeps into the system. So, equity prices will remain buoyant, said U R Bhat, director of Dalton Capital. Not just G4 but even BRIC nations are expected to announce further fiscal and monetary measures. Monetary easing may continue till normalcy is restored. Central banks are contemplating further easing. "In India, easing has not been much but compared to our finances, it is still significant. "There is no other way - money has to be made available cheaply. "This is the only way you can handle the economic consequences of the pandemic, said Bhat. While easy money trade will keep equities buoyant, experts have sounded a note of caution regarding asset price bubbles. Liquidity always takes markets to a higher place than you logically expect. "Institutional participation has taken a back seat. "Activity is being led by retail investors, who are enjoying the ride. "This is going to reverse, but we dont know what the catalyst will be, said Andrew Holland, CEO of Avendus Capital Alternate Strategies. Photograph: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters The Pope to donate 100,000 to help migrants on border of Belarus and Poland Fourth vaccine against COVID-19 is not enough for Omicron World is on verge of country defaults French Foreign Ministry considers unacceptable Azerbaijan statements about Pecresse US to return two valuable artifacts over 4,000 years old to Iraq Germany may consider halting Nord Stream 2 if Russia attacks Ukraine Israel successfully completes test of anti-ballistic missile system Plane landing in Sochi struck by lightning Putin and Aliyev discuss Ukraine situation Greek PM Mitsotakis threatens Turkey with sanctions Handelsblatt: US and EU abandon idea of disconnecting Russia from SWIFT international payment system Artsakh President meets representatives of non-governmental organizations Avalanche kills person in Iran Erdogan says he is pleased with decline in volatility of lira NEWS.am daily digest: 18.01.22 Turkey and Azerbaijan to start laying gas pipeline to supply Nakhichevan UK begins to supply Ukraine with anti-tank weapons Armenian PM holds meeting on Armenia's Transformation Strategy until 2050 Nagorno-Karabakh: Remains of another Armenian soldier found in Jrakan region Tehran to not accept any border change in South Caucasus Dollar holding relatively steady in Armenia Armenia special representative: Future process depends on Turkeys constructiveness degree Erdogan: Gas from Mediterranean to Europe can only be pumped through Turkey Iranian Consul General discusses customs cooperation in Nakhijevan Inecobank brings Apple Pay to customers Parliament vice-speaker says he is familiar with Armenia proposals on border demarcation commission work US Secretary of State to visit Kyiv Russia, Iran and China to hold joint naval drills OSCE Chairmanship on Aliyev statement: We reiterate our full support to Minsk Group Co-Chairs Artsakh NSS denies rumors about penetration of Azerbaijanis into Karabakh villages Indonesian parliament approves bill to relocate capital Armenia PM to Bulgaria colleague: Our interstate relations are marked by continuous development of cooperation Armenian President meets Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Azerbaijan to ban foreigners from visiting Nagorno-Karabakh occupied part European Parliament new speaker elected Armenian National Interests Fund participates in Abu Dhabi Sustainable Development Week summit North Korea fires missiles for fourth time this year ECHR recognizes violation of Armenian PM's rights after 2008 elections Turkey reveals plans to produce combat aircraft Karabakh official: Azerbaijan presidents impudent behavior is due to OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs silence Azerbaijan special services force Artsakh resident to intelligence work Copper price is stable Minister of State: OSCE MG Co-Chairs must accept exercise of Karabakh people's right to self-determination Armenia President, UAE Minister of State discuss possibilities of cooperation in science and technology Investigation into criminal case of several Armenia soldiers returned from Azerbaijan captivity is over Canada sends detachment of special forces to Ukraine Armenia ex-President Kocharyan, former deputy PM now MP Gevorgyan case trial resumes 2 more persons die of coronavirus in Artsakh Armenia family has 10th child Converse Bank brings Apple Pay to customers Gold is getting weaker Lacote: French institute to operate in Armenia (PHOTOS) Ardshinbank Brings Apple Pay to Customers Armenia President in UAE, meets with Emirati environment minister Armenia legislature approves changes to several laws Differences in data on coronavirus deaths in Armenia are corrected 360 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia Norway to begin Breivik early release hearing Economy minister to head Armenia side of commission on economic cooperation with Kazakhstan Mexico crime photojournalist killed Newspaper: Criminal case against Armenia archbishop dropped Newspaper: Opposition Armenia Bloc in parliament to toughen its tactics Scientists discover large breeding colony of icefish in southern Antarctica China creates low-gravity artificial moon Tehran welcomes normalization of Armenia-Turkey relations Russian and Iranian Foreign Ministers discuss regional issues UN Secretary-General: Vaccinate whole world to end pandemic Giant asteroid to fly past our planet Armenian President meets with Executive Director of Mubadala Investment Company UAE counting on Turkey Indonesia to move capital by 2024 Passenger traffic at Armenian airports decreased by 30% Armenian Investigative Committee: Six soldiers captured in November arrested Turkish government to discuss Rubinyan-Kilic meeting results German FM threatens Russia in case of aggression against Ukraine Armenian MFA senior staff meets with ambassadors to European countries Turkish court acquits German journalist Mesale Tolu Turkish UAV intercepted over Greek island Protest in front of Armenian Health Ministry France introduces vaccine passes Bitcoin begins to lose out competitors Exchange rates in Armenia Safari browser caught leaking user data Xi Jinping: Confrontation between major powers can have disastrous consequences Lukashevich: Russia concerned that OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs may not be able to visit Nagorno-Karabakh Court obligates Armenia ruling force MP to prove ex-President Sargsyan lost more than $100M in casinos Ex-ruling party official: Armenia authorities may renounce Genocide, Karabakh Armenian PM's party decides to provide free textbooks to non-state schools Times: Johnson prepares cadre purge to save his own skin Pecresse accuses French government of inaction after Aliyev's statements on her Karabakh visit Armenia President attends Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week forum opening Armenia legislature ruling majority member: It is possible for us to have neighborly relations with Azerbaijan President approves Artsakh government decisions on provision of financial assistance Armenia parliament opposition faction leader on canceling US visit: We must fulfill our international duties Fire in Abu Dhabi kills three people ANIF Anti-Crisis Fund to invest in Armenia cargo transportation Azerbaijan to soon open bus routes to Artsakhs occupied Shushi Armenia ruling force MP, businessman: Turks will be able to use our medical services in Gyumri, Yerevan Erdogan wants to save Turkish economy with oil production in the Black Sea Copper rises in price A 'hero' family dog chased off a group of four machete-wielding home invaders who broke down the door to her family's home. When father-of-four Paul Davis's house in Birmingham was attacked by the hooded thugs, his devoted Staffordshire bull terrier Macey didn't think twice about 'laying her life on the line' for her family. CCTV footage captures a group of men surveying the house and looking in windows before one charges forward to break down the door. With two swift kicks, the door is brought down and a second man rushes in, pulling out a machete. But seven-year-old Macey and French bulldog Bruce, three, are not about to let them enter freely. A 'hero' family dog chased off a group of four machete-wielding home invaders after the gang broke into a home in Birmingham When father-of-four Paul Davis's house was attacked by the hooded thugs, his devoted Staffordshire bull terrier Macey (pictured) didn't think twice about 'laying her life on the line' for her family Mr Davis lives with his fiancee Jenna Byrne (pictured together), also 36, and his three daughters With two swift kicks, the door is brought down and a second man rushes in, pulling out a machete (pictured) The man backs up out of the house when he realises the dogs are there before sending his horrifying weapon crashing down on Bruce. Macey fights back and chases him outside before sprinting down the street after the men who flee in fear. Poor Bruce was left with a gash on his back in the attack and Macey was kicked as she pursued the men along the road. Mechanic Mr Davis, 36, had no idea what was going on when the noise of the attack awoke him in the middle of the night on July 30. CCTV footage captures a group of men surveying the house and looking in windows (pictured) before one charges forward to break down the door Seven-year-old Macey (right) and French bulldog Bruce, three, (left) were not about to let them enter freely Macey fights back and chases him outside before sprinting down the street after the men who flee in fear But as he jumped out of bed to check, the banging finished and Paul discovered his faithful pooch staring up at his window from the driveway below. Mr Davis, who lives with his fiancee Jenna Byrne, also 36, and his three daughters, said: 'Macey is our absolute hero. 'I'd always questioned what she would do if we were attacked but she darted past me. 'It was like she looked at me and decided "dad isn't going, I am". She laid her life on the line for us. 'I think she saved my life that night and probably that of Jenna and the girls too. When I saw her sat there looking up at the bedroom like "I got them dad", I was gobsmacked. 'She's had lots of treats. She slept in the bed with me last night, we bought her a dog cake and a bottle of dog beer. 'She'll keep getting them for the rest of her life. We can never repay her for what she did.' Mr Davis believes the house was targeted due to the Land Rover on their driveway, but because of Macey's fearless intervention, the only damage caused to the family home was a smashed front door and some broken brickwork around it. Mr Davis believes the house was targeted due to the Land Rover on their driveway, but because of Macey's fearless intervention, the only damage caused to the family home was a smashed front door and some broken brickwork around it. Pictured: Mr Davis's daughter Kayli with their dogs Poor Bruce was left with a gash on his back (pictured) in the attack and Macey was kicked as she pursued the men along the road In their escape, the culprits dented the wing mirror of a mobility car used to transport youngest daughter Klara, seven. There may not be much physical damage done to the house, but Mr Davis and his girls Kayli, 15, Kortney, 12, and Klara are all emotionally scarred by the attack. Son Jay, 17, was out of the house when the incident happened. Mr Davis said: 'We're all still really shaken up. The girls don't want to stay in the house and that's the hardest part. 'The thing that really affects me is how this has and will continue to affect my kids. Kortney has gone to stay at my mum's for now. Kayli hasn't been able to sleep. 'I haven't eaten since. My belly is rumbling but I'm not hungry. 'I just don't want this happening to any other families. A couple more houses were tried by them on our street, one on our side of the road and another on the opposite side. Mr Davis spoiled his brave pooches with a dog cake which read 'heros' along with ice cream and doggy beer 'We were all fast asleep and I must have woken up on the first kick. I heard the end of it but just thought it was a big bang. 'So I looked out of the window as a first reaction and all I saw was that shiny machete in the air. All I could think was I need to look after Jenna and the girls. 'I felt slightly better knowing the girls were locked in their rooms but then I realised I had no idea what the scumbags were going to do. 'I knew I'd seen a few of them so I just stood three steps down from the top of the stairs and stayed there for a minute but it felt so much louder. 'When I hadn't heard any banging downstairs, I peeked out of the window to see if they were still outside. I couldn't see anything even when I looked up and down the road. 'Jenna had a panic attack and Kayli was on the phone for an ambulance. 'Bruce must have run downstairs first. He got hit with the knife properly and has a gash on his back. 'Macey moves so fast I don't think they hit her with the machete, but they did kick her across the road.' Despite the emotional effects, Mr Davis and his family know that Macey will always be prepared to protect them. Ms Byrne said: 'I just love the fact you can see Macey looking up at the window all proud like "I did it dad, I got rid of them". 'The other angle is great because you can see her chasing them off. Even from something so horrible, it was quite funny to see her go for their ankles. 'Staffies do get a lot of stick these days and it can be hard because people try to make them a bully breed. 'It was just so amazing to see what she did for us. For her to sit outside and wait to come back in like that, it just shows how good a dog she is. 'She's such a big part of our family and just a really lovely dog with the kids. She wouldn't bite anyone even if we told her to. 'There's no training for her to have done what she did, it was just her natural instinct to protect us.' New Haven, Conn. -- Sarecycline, a drug approved for use in the United States in 2018, is the first new antibiotic approved to treat acne in more than 40 years. Now, researchers at Yale and the University of Illinois-Chicago have discovered how its unique chemical structure makes it effective. Their new study is the most detailed biological analysis to date for sarecycline, one of a number of tetracycline antibiotics (such as doxycycline and minocycline) used to treat acne. The researchers report findings Aug. 3 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. They found that unlike other tetracycline drugs, sarecycline binds to messenger RNA (mRNA) -- molecules within a cell that provide a code for making proteins -- in bacterial ribosomes. Ribosomes, found in all living cells, link amino acids together. Sarecycline and other tetracyclines treat acne by inhibiting bacterial protein synthesis. They block ribosome function in Cutibacterium acnes, the pathogenic bacterium in acne. "We show that the structure of sarecycline matters," said Dr. Christopher Bunick, associate professor of dermatology at Yale and co-corresponding author of the study. "This mode of action has never been seen before in this class of antibiotics, and suggests that sarecycline has unique properties among the tetracycline class." Importantly, the researchers found an explanation for why sarecycline has such a low drug-resistance profile, boosting its effectiveness. Sarecycline thwarts TetM, a ribosome guardian protein that protects bacteria from outside interference. Bunick and his team said the broader implication of the study is that structural knowledge of tetracycline compounds could be used to engineer better antibiotics. "This could result in therapies with better or longer-lasting efficacy, fewer side effects, and lower drug resistance," Bunick said. "Future agents could be used not just in acne, but potentially in other skin disorders and infections as well." ### The co-corresponding author of the study was Yury Polikanov of the University of Illinois-Chicago. Zahra Batool of UIC was first author of the study and Ivan Lomakin of Yale was a co-author. The National Institutes of Health, State of Illinois startup funds, and a research grant from Almirall funded the research. Bunick has received honoraria for consulting and speaking for Almirall. Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 3 : While Kerala Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief K. Surendran demanded probe by a federal agency into a fraud committed by a treasury official, the Congress sought a comprehensive vigilance probe, here on Monday. The Rs 2 crore fraud by an accountant attached to the Treasury surfaced last week. M.R. Bijulal, the official, is absconding. His wife, who is a school teacher and named accused in the case, pleaded ignorance. "I don't have any clue. I have no role. I don't know how much money has come into my account. Biju had said there were some issues as he played an online card game. When I asked him about it, he left the home and is missing since then," she said. With opposition parties raising the issue, Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Issac said in a Facebook post on Monday Bijulal would be dismissed from the service. "The order for dismissal will be released within a few days after completing the procedure. This is not just an irregularity. Bijulal has committed a serious cyber crime. A special investigation team is probing the case. "All, except one official who detected the fraud, will be shifted out from this particular office," Issac said. Issac became active after Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala wrote to the vigilance director to conduct a comprehensive probe as financial frauds had been committed earlier also. The fraud was detected on July 28. According to the preliminary probe, it was committed using the password and log-in name of a recently retired official. As such a fraud can't be committed by just one person -- there are three points of online checking -- it remains to be seen how many other officials were involved in it. New Delhi: The government has decided to construct strategic rail lines along the borders with neighbouring countries including China and Pakistan, the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday. The proposal for construction of railway lines along China, Nepal and Pakistan borders has been initiated by the defence ministry as a strategic line, minister of state for railways Rajen Gohain said in a written reply. A total of 14 strategic lines have been identified, out of which four strategic lines -- the 378km Missamari-Tenga-Tawang line, the 498km Bilaspur-Manali-Leh line, the 227km Pasighat-Tezu-Rupai line, and the 249km North Lakhimpur-Bame-Silapathar line -- have been decided to be taken up in the first phase. However, Gohain said, none of these projects has been sanctioned. Since all these projects pass through very difficult terrains of the Himalayas, stability, geology, constructibility, maintainability and safety issues are to be examined, he said. Accordingly, the Final Location Survey (FLS) has been taken at a cost of Rs 345 crore. For the year 2016-17, the ministry of defence has provided Rs 87.18 crore. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. (Natural News) Following Big Techs unanimous decision the other day to pull all footage of the Americas Frontline Doctors (AFD) White Coat Summit event from its respective platforms, LifeSiteNews created a petition to break up the Big Tech monopoly that quickly went viral. In less than two days, this LifeSite petition you can sign it here has garnered nearly 50,000 signatures. It calls on Congress to take swift action in breaking up the Silicon Valley stranglehold over free speech and the First Amendment. Since Big Tech has now started to censor news and opinion, its clear that more competition not monopoly is needed on the internet, says Gualberto Garcia Jones, LifeSites director of advocacy. Big Tech needs to be broken up so that competition of ideas can flourish again in America. In case you missed it, the AFD event was quickly censored after its doctors, including the now-famous Dr. Stella Immanuel, spoke out in favor of health freedom. For daring to mention hydroxychloroquine and zinc, both of which have shown incredible success in treating Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) patients, AFD has seen its online presence drop to almost zero, thanks to Big Tech censorship. Big Techs policy, which entails the censorship of legitimate news and opinion, is seriously undermining free speech and democracy itself, LifeSite contends. Most Americans, regardless of political persuasion, agree that Big Tech needs to be broken up in the public interest of preserving free speech In its petition, LifeSite calls on the government to use existing antitrust laws to break up companies like Facebook, Twitter, and Google for their relentless efforts to stifle online free speech. In addition to conspiring to erase from the internet the AFD White Coat Summit event, these tech platforms have implemented entire systems internally to crack down on wrongthink, including by limiting what users are able to pull up in internet searches. Recently, at Facebook, two whistleblowers came forward to attest that the platform aggressively discriminates against conservatives on a global scale for the purpose of influencing election outcomes, the petition adds. Likewise, Twitter has been the subject of numerous free speech controversies for years, it further explains, including an announcement made back in March that Twitter would be cracking down on misinformation concerning the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19). Back in 2018, Google, YouTube and other tech platforms conspired to manipulate the results of the Irish abortion referendum by blacklisting pro-life videos and manipulating pro-life search terms. All of this and more represents a direct assault on the First Amendment, and something that must be stopped if free speech is to have any chance at surviving in this new digital reality. Of course, we believe that people are capable of sorting through opinion and news themselves. However, we cannot accept Big Tech stepping in to censor what opinion and news is available, Garcia Jones further states. Regrettably, Big Tech must now be broken up if legitimate free speech is going to survive and continue to thrive on the internet. The good news is that most Americans, including folks from both sides of the aisle, agree that Big Tech censorship is completely out of control. A whopping 75 percent of them responded to a Pew poll indicating that Silicon Valley has too much influence over society, and that something needs to be done to ensure that peoples free speech rights are not getting trampled by tyrant extremists. This petition calls on policymakers to be level-headed in this regard and use existing laws against monopolies to start the process of breaking up Big Tech, LifeSite says. For more related news about Big Tech censorship, be sure to check out Censorship.news. Sources for this article include: LifeSiteNews.com NaturalNews.com New Delhi: The Mumbai police has been at the receiving end of public wrath on social media over handling of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death case. Backing public sentiment, former Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis's wife Amruta Fadnavis has tweeted on the same. Amruta Fadnavis tweeted: The manner in which #SushantSinghRajputDeathCase is being handled - I feel #Mumbai has lost humanity & is no more safe to live - for innocent, self respecting citizens #JusticeforSushantSingRajput #JusticeForDishaSalian The manner in which #SushantSinghRajputDeathCase is being handled - I feel #Mumbai has lost humanity & is no more safe to live - for innocent, self respecting citizens #JusticeforSushantSingRajput #JusticeForDishaSalian AMRUTA FADNAVIS (@fadnavis_amruta) August 3, 2020 Netizens have been trolling Mumbai police over the irregularities found in handling both Sushant and his former manager Disha Salian's mysterious death. The latter allegedly fell down top a high rise apartment window in Mumbai on June 8, 2020, a few days before Sushant was found dead in his Bandra residence on June 14. Several political leaders, parties and fans have been pressing for a CBI inquiry into the case since many new developments have been unravelled. Bihar police have come into action and a parallel investigation along with Mumbai police is on track to come to a conclusion. by p. Peter Geremia, PIME A PIME missionary with 50 years in Mindanao gives his thoughts. Are the parables of Jesus impossible dreams or can they become reality? Killing people and destroying property can be stopped. The money now used for war and revolution can be used to create more jobs and provide everyone with good wages. Zamboanga (AsiaNews) In our area, on the island of Mindanao, the military and the New People's Army (NPA) rebels have been fighting for over 50 years. Lately, President Duterte has sent battalion after battalion to put an end to the NPA insurgency, offering them the choice to surrender or be exterminated. I am a modest missionary who got caught in the crossfire after I arrived in the Philippines in 1972. Most of the casualties on both sides come from the poorest families and many widows and orphan children have asked me to bless the victims of this seemingly endless conflict. Two of my fellow missionary priests have been killed along with many civilians . . . I keep on praying for peace and I dream of discovering some magic that would suddenly melt the weapons in the hands of both armed groups who, once disarmed, can start asking, Why are we killing each other? Arent we brothers and sisters? While waiting for the magic solution, I was struck by two parables Jesus told long ago. I wish to propose to the military and their Commander in Chief the story of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-31). A father had two sons. The younger one rebelled and took half of the family property and wasted it. He ended up come close to starving to death, like some rebels now. Finally, he decided to surrender expecting to be treated like a slave. To his surprise, his father ran to embrace him and overwhelmed him with so much affection and joy, inviting all the neighbours to celebrate because the son who was dead came back to life; he was lost and was finally found. Everybody welcomed the lost sheep, except the older brother who remembered all the harm and shame that the foolish brother had caused to the family. But the father pleaded with his law-abiding son to Join the celebration, all the children and all people pray for you to be reconciled with your brother and forget your grudges and give peace a chance! Can rebels return to their communities and be welcomed like the prodigal son? I wish to tell another parable to the NPA (Matthew 20:1-16). At the time of Jesus, most poor people did not have decent jobs or fair pay. Here comes a strange landlord who gives jobs to everyone, even to those who are late to work. Then, he gives a generous salary starting with the late comers. Those who worked all day under the heat of the sun expected double pay, but they all received the same pay. Those who worked more than the latecomers cried out unfair! This is a rotten system; some landlords give charity to the lazy ones, but we can have fair wages only if we eliminate all landlords! The strange landlord in the parable replied, I only wish that all have enough for their families, jobs for all and a family salary for all. Can landlords become so generous? The parables of Jesus surprised His listeners as impossible dreams. Can such dreams come true? This kind of dream can stop the killings and destruction of property; the money now used for war and revolution can be used to create more jobs and provide good wages to everyone. Peace can make us all winners, while war makes us all losers. Meet the adorable pup who's become an Instagram sensation thanks to her very unique appearance and 'human-like expressions'. Small seal and white Italian greyhound Penelope lives with her owner Kayla Harvey in Gardner, Kansas, who adopted the sweet pooch three years ago, in July 2017. The fluffy companion, who Kayla describes as 'sneaky, mischievous and stubborn' was adopted when she was just eight weeks old and is now three. Say cheese! Penelope the Italian greyhound has become a social media star thanks to her toothy grins and 'human-like' facial expressions Happy as can be! Penelope's owner, Kayla Harvey, from Kansas, regularly dresses up the pup in an array of colorful accessories to add even more fun to her photos Sassy! Kayla says that Penelope is 'stubborn', 'sneaky' and 'mischievous' Connection: Penelope was adopted by Kayla in July 2017 when the pooch was just eight weeks old, and she is now three And thanks to her unique 'Goose-like' look and hilarious facial expressions, she's amassed a whopping 86,900 followers on Instagram, @penelope_goose, where she regularly poses in an array of vibrant outfits. Fan club: Kayla began posting images of Penelope on her Facebook page, where they quickly went viral - so she set up a separate Instagram account for the pup Speaking to Jam Press about her pups success, Kayla explained, 'After I got Penelope, I was so completely in love with her that I started to post pictures of her on my Facebook constantly. 'Penelope became the focus of my Facebook and I decided it would be fun to have a place of [her] own to post pictures. That's when I started her own Instagram! 'I think people like Penelope's page because she is so quirky and expressive. Penelope's facial expressions are almost human. 'She cracks me up with her antics daily. I'm glad others can share that with me.' Kayla said Penelope is unlike any dog she has ever met. 'In a lot of ways I see her as an animal breed of her own! Penelope is funny in a way that is almost human. She loves games and jokes and tricks and seems to really enjoy getting people to laugh.' Strike a pose: 'After I got Penelope, I was so completely in love with her that I started to post pictures of her on my Facebook constantly,' Kayle shared Like looking in a mirror! Penelope's expressions delight her many followers, with lots of people pointing out how 'human' they look Cheeky: 'Penelope is funny in a way that is almost human,' Kayla said Court jester: Penelope loves to make people laugh and smile, Kayla shared 'Although she likes to do things her own way, even when she's not supposed to, she is also incredibly loving, sweet and endearing and makes the people she loves feel very cherished.' 'Penelope has brought me so much joy and love. She keeps me company when I'm too ill to go anywhere and makes me laugh on days when I didn't think I could even smile. There's not a day that goes by that I am not extremely grateful to have my Penelope in my family.' Kayla said she adopted Penelope when her youngest child was about to start Kindergarten and she knew she would be at home alone. 'It would be the first time I wouldn't have a young child at home in over 12 years,' she said. 'During the time I was raising children, I had become chronically ill and going back to work wasn't an option for me. Being chronically ill can extremely isolating, and my dogs are who I spend the majority of my time with. 'The family I got Penelope from told me of a puppy that was unlike any puppy they had ever seen. She was calm and sweet in a way it takes most puppies years to settle into. A perfect pup for someone like me who is chronically ill.' 'Penelope is also the most loving and affectionate dog I have ever met. She loves cuddling and gives real hugs!' Kayla added. Matchy matchy: Kayla will even dress up to match Penelope in some of her most popular posts Perfect fit: Kayla has a chronic illness, and says that she adopted Penelope in part because of her docile, calm nature Together: 'She was calm and sweet in a way it takes most puppies years to settle into. A perfect pup for someone like me who is chronically ill,' she explained Heartwarming: 'Penelope has brought me so much joy and love. She keeps me company when I'm too ill to go anywhere,' she said Company: Kayla says that her illness made her feel incredibly isolated, but having Penelope around makes her feel as though she always has someone to turn to Cuddly: 'Penelope is also the most loving and affectionate dog I have ever met. She loves cuddling and gives real hugs!' Kayla added 'They were inside Israeli territory but beyond the fence,' military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus told journalists in a telephone briefing. The Israeli army said Monday it had killed four men laying explosives at a security fence along the Israeli-occupied sector of the Golan Heights, adjacent to Syrian-controlled territory. "They were inside Israeli territory but beyond the fence," military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus told journalists in a telephone briefing. He said an Israeli commando unit lying in wait attacked the intruders shortly after 11 pm Sunday (2000 GMT) with assault rifles and sniper fire backed by air strikes. "Our estimate is that all four were killed," Conricus said in English, adding that there were no Israeli casualties. Tensions are already high between bitter rivals Israel and Syria. Last month, Israeli army helicopters struck military targets in southern Syria in retaliation for earlier "munitions" fire towards Israel. Israel did not directly blame Syrian forces for the munitions fire, but said it held the Damascus government responsible. Several Israeli media outlets reported that the military actions were in response to an increased threat from the Iran-backed Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah, which has a significant presence in Syria. Last month, five Iran-backed fighters were killed in an Israeli missile strike south of Damascus, according to Britain-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Conricus said Israeli troops were early Monday searching the area of the incident for clues but that he could not immediately link the overnight attack to the Lebanese group or its sponsors in Tehran. "We do not know at this stage and we cannot confirm a link between this terrorist squad and Hezbollah or Iranians," he said. "We know that there are many different factions operating on Syrian soil." The Syrian Observatory said it was "likely", but it could not be confirmed, that the attackers were from the Syrian Resistance to Liberate the Golan -- a Hezbollah-linked group formed more than six years ago to launch attacks against Israel in the disputed area. Conricus said that Israel's Maglan commando unit had been deployed at the attack site for several days. "We spotted irregular night-time activity in this specific location for the past week and we had a commando unit deployed in the area," he said. He added that for Israeli civilians on the Golan Heights, normal life was uninterrupted during the incident. Search Keywords: Short link: A man who refused to wear a mask in a store, stole two cigars, fired a handgun at the clerk and later an AK-47 at cops coming to arrest him, injuring one of them, was "not handling the pandemic well," says his lawyer. Adam Zaborowski, 35, was taken into custody after the shootout with officers in Slatington, Pa., police said. Lehigh Valley Live reports the kind of day that only some of us can get out of alive. The 35-year-old Slatington man was charged Saturday with attempting to kill seven police officers near his home at 801 Main St. That shootout followed an incident Friday where Zaborowski allegedly shot at a clerk at Cigars International in Bethlehem Township. He allegedly refused to wear a face mask in the cigar store despite the threat of COVID-19. "He just wasn't dealing well with the loss of his job, the loss of his child, just not handling the pandemic well," Waldron said. "I think he was getting stretched too tight." Correction: The shootout was in Slatington, not Bethlehem Township, Pa. (Newser) The small-scale miner in Tanzania who sold two of his finds for $3.4 million in June has made another big sale. Saniniu Laizer collected $2 million for a 14-pound Tanzanite stone, the BBC reports. The rare gemstoneswhich a geologist said could be gone in 20 yearsare found in green, red, purple and blue hues. The price goes up as color and clarity improve. Laizer said in June that he'd build a school with some of his windfall; on Monday, the father of 30 said he also plans a health facility for his community in the northern part of the country. story continues below At a ceremony Monday, Laizer told other miners that his experience shows they should do business with the government instead of mining companies. He handled the sale of his first finds the same way, per the Nairobi News. Laizer has a government license, but there's much illegal mining in the region. "Selling to the government means there are no shortcuts... they are transparent," he said. (Read more Tanzania stories.) El presidente @MartinVizcarraC acompano al premier @PCaterianoB y a los ministros de Estado hasta la puerta de Palacio de Gobierno para ratificarles su respaldo con miras a su presentacion en el Congreso donde solicitaran el #VotoDeConfianza. pic.twitter.com/JY2xpPSlvO Kansas City to receive nearly $19 million in federal Coronavirus relief funding from Jackson County More than two months after Kansas City's mayor requested the city's portion of federal funding for Coronavirus relief in Jackson County, the money is making its way to city hall. Mayor Quinton Lucas tweeted his frustration Sunday, "In Missouri it appears that even when we have billions to spend on public health, we can't get around to it. Followup on this hotly debated free money from the government that's desperately needed to protect the public and pay all of those loans that are financing so much of this town's speculative development.Read more: President Donald Trump said Monday he was firing the chairman of the TVA board and a second board member for outsourcing TVA IT jobs overseas. Over 60 TVA's U.S. workers recently were laid off, including some in Chattanooga. James "Skip" Thompson of Decatur, Ala., is the current chairman. President Trump also said that TVA's Jeff Lyash is way overpaid, saying he gets around $8 million a year. He said the pay should be no more than $500,000. TVA has been criticized by U.S. Tech Workers, a group formed to fight replacement of U.S. jobs with foreign ones. Senate candidate Bill Hagerty praised "President Donald Trumps latest Executive Order to ensure Americans are not displaced by foreign workers using federal dollars. Additionally, President Trump is keeping his promise to drain the swamp by firing two Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) board members. President Donald Trump is right, we cant outsource American jobs at a time when our unemployment rate is higher than ever. Thanks to Communist China, we are in the midst of the biggest economic downturn since the Great Depression. President Trump and his Administration have taken unprecedented steps to keep people employed during this difficult period and it flies in the face of those efforts when TVA decides to outsource Tennessee jobs at this time. Our power grid is an integral component of our nations infrastructure and there are significant national security concerns associated with outsourcing any aspect of software or IT management to firms that may be foreign-owned, staffed or otherwise impacted. We need to put the American worker and our national security first. President Trump is making good on his promise to drain the swamp, and as your next Senator, I will continue to work with President Trump to bring our supply chains home and make Made in the USA the theme of our nation once more. Dr. Manny Sethi, another GOP Senate candidate, said, President Trump was right to take action on the Tennessee Valley Authority. Our public utilities do not need overpaid bureaucrats and executives. I am grateful to see the President take these steps because it will hopefully help TVA move in the right direction - towards transparency and accountability. Senator Lamar Alexander said, TVA may have shown poor judgment hiring foreign companies during a pandemic, but, on most counts, it does a very good job of producing large amounts of low-cost, reliable electricity. Residential electric rates are among the 25 percent lowest in the country, and industrial rates are among the lowest 10 percent. TVAs debt is the lowest in 30 years, its pension fund is stronger and TVA leads the country in new nuclear power plants. According to TVA, the annual total compensation of TVAs CEO is in the bottom fourth of what the CEOs of other big utilities earn and is set strictly according to requirements of federal law. TVA receives no federal tax dollars. James Mackler, a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, said, Outsourcing jobs to private contracting companies, well known for offshoring operations, during a pandemic that has already taken more than 50 million American jobs, is wrong and undermines the mission of TVA to make life better for the people of the Tennessee Valley. I support the presidents decision to do something about it. In the Senate, Ill seek to serve on the Environment & Public Works Committee, which oversees TVA, as its critical Tennesseans have a voice in all discussions about an agency that is and has been so essential to our state. By Express News Service VIJAYAWADA: Eleven more persons succumbed to Covid-19 in Krishna district, taking the toll to 175. As many as 379 more persons contracted the virus in the last 24 hours, pushing the count to 7,579. The district has 2,540 active cases now and 4,864 people recovered so far. A total of 136 persons were discharged from Covid hospitals between 9 am on Saturday and 9 am on Sunday. On July 29, Transport Minister Perni Venkataramaiah announced that a total lockdown would be enforced in Machilipatnam revenue division to contain the spread of the virus. However, the Centre issued guidelines for Unlock 3.0 to resume operation of various sectors. Tahsildar NSK Khajavali on Sunday issued orders revising the lockdown order issued earlier. He said strict containment measures will be implemented in the places where more active cases were reported in the Machilipatnam Municipal Corporation (MMC) limits from August 3 to 9. A total of 599 corona cases have been reported so far in the division, which includes Machilipatnam Urban and Rural, Challapalli and Nagayalanka mandals. As on Sunday, Machilipatnam Urban has 278 active cases, followed by rural (41), Challapalli (30) and Nagayalanka (30). According to the orders, from Monday, essential commodities like vegetables, groceries and agriculture related shops, will be opened from 6 am to 9 am. Public transport, including inter division bus services (APSRTC) will not be permitted during normal hours except transport to and from hospitals, airports and railway stations. Banking services will be available for the public from 7 am to 9 am. But bank employees should attend their duties from 7 to 11 am. Banks should be closed by 11 am in all the containment areas. Speaking at a task force meeting held on Sunday, Khajavali said that exemptions were given for police, health, revenue, urban local bodies, fire, electricity, water, municipal services, ATM and media personnel. Containment measures will be enforced strictly in Challapalli and Nagayalanka and a decision will be taken for the remaining mandals, considering the severity of the virus spread. If any individual found violating the containment measures, stern action will be initiated against him under IPC (45 of 1860), he said. Divisional Covid-19 Officer Balasubramanyam said that except Wednesday, TrueNat tests will be conducted at the district government hospital and samples will be collected at the Chief Minister Health Care Centres and Primary Health Centres. He called upon people with suspected coronavirus symptoms to undergo tests at the earliest to curb the spread of Covid-19. Washington: Katy Perry was the nights big honoree, but Hillary Clinton got the biggest ovation as the former presidential candidate presented the pop star with an award from UNICEF at Snowflake Ball. Clinton, who lost the recent election to Donald Trump, gave Perry the Audrey Hepburn Humanitarian Award for her charitable efforts with the organization. Her appearance at the event was a surprise, and Clinton got a sustained standing ovation from the cheering crowd. She described Perry as someone who has the spirit and the energy and the compassion that Audrey Hepburn brought to her work from UNICEF. She added that Perry had the most Twitter followers, then jokingly added that she might have some competition an apparent reference to the ever-tweeting president-elect. Clinton also said Perrys lyrics remind us when you get knocked down to get back up causing more cheers to erupt in the audience. Perry was a big supporter of the Democrat, who won the popular vote, and even campaigned for her. She broke into tears when Clinton surprised her with her appearance at the event. In her acceptance speech, Perry credited Clinton for helping use her voice for more than just her hits. Hillary has lit that voice inside of me, and that light will never go out! she shouted. It will get brighter and brighter and brighter. Thank you, Hillary. You motivate me and so many millions of people who appreciate you for your incredible work, Perry said as the crowd gave Clinton another ovation. Clinton has made only one other public appearance at an event since conceding the race to Trump. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. The on Monday urged people to get themselves tested for COVID-19 in the wake of Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa's positive result. The department also said that the travel history of the Chief Minister will be checked. "All those who met Chief Minister in the last 2-3 days will be tested for COVID-19. Chief Minister's travel history of last one week will be checked," said the state Health Department. Yediyurappa and his daughter have been admitted to the Manipal Hospital in Bengaluru for observation after testing positive for COVID-19. The Chief Minister is in a clinically stable condition. "Karnataka Chief Minister has been admitted to the hospital for observation. He is doing well, is clinically stable and will be monitored closely by our team," Manipal Hospital said on Monday. "His daughter has tested positive for COVID-19. She has been admitted to the hospital," added the hospital in another statement. Yediyurappa, had on Sunday tweeted, that he had tested positive for COVID-19. The Chief Minister, 77, said he is fine and is being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. "I have tested positive for Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self-quarantine," Yediyurappa wrote. (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.) Former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, has said that Governor Godwin Obaseki does not ... Former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, has said that Governor Godwin Obaseki does not pose any threat to the APC candidate, Osagie Ize-Iyamu in the forthcoming governorship election. Addressing the party faithful on Sunday, Oshiomhole said that a Obaseki is not even eligible to contest for the election. Oshiomhole said that it was a known fact that Ize-Iyamu, the APC candidate, finished from law school, adding that his former classmates have testified to that . According to the former Governor of Edo State, Obaseki is not a threat. How can a man who is not eligible for election be a threat? I was a governor and I did election and won in 2012 and not one life was lost; none was also lost in my time when he (Obaseki) won. Obaseki cannot point to new primary and secondary schools he has built in four years. Osagie Ize-Iyamu finished from law school; his former classmates have testified to that. We knew about Gov Obasekis credentials after PDP took him to court. Being friends with those who get good grades has a positive impact on students' academic performance, HSE University researchers learn Social networks have been found to influence academic performance: students tend to perform better with high-performers among their friends, as some people are capable of inspiring others to try harder, according to Sofia Dokuka, Dilara Valeyeva and Maria Yudkevich of the HSE University. Their paper was published in PLOS ONE. Most researchers in educational sciences recognize four factors affecting student academic performance, namely: the family's socioeconomic status, the time spent on independent learning and preparation for classes, the time spent working on a job or practicing a hobby and the university or school environment. However, recent empirical studies indicate that the role of the social environment may be underestimated, as classmates can greatly influence one another's behaviour and academic success. Most studies question the role of social environment. Yet the value of many such studies is limited due to serious design flaws - such as viewing a random group of classmates as one's social network or assuming that a student's position in his or her social network is static. Rather than being random, one's social network is a product of conscious and dynamic choice. Social networks, particularly among college freshmen, can change considerably over time - e.g. a student can break up with an underachieving friend and seek the company of A-graders. Using 2013-2014 data on the social networks of 117 first-year students of the Faculty of Economics at a Russian university, researchers examined whether academic performance plays a role when students choose their friends and tutors among classmates. They also examined how friends and tutors influence each other's performance during their studies. They analysed the data using stochastic actor-based modeling to address the dynamics and other nuances of social group members' behavior. According to the authors, in choosing friends, students do not usually consider academic performance, but over time - often in the middle of the academic year - all members in a peer group tend to perform at about the same level. 'With the use of data on the dynamics of friendship, assistance and academic performance networks, we monitor essential differences in the functionality of these connections. We have proven that asking for help with studies does not lead to growth in performance. However, friendship with those who get good grades does,' said Sofia Dokuka, https://www.hse.ru/en/staff/sofi Research Fellow at the HSE Institute of Education. Thus, most students who surrounded themselves with high-achievers improved their performance over time. The opposite was also true - those who befriended underachievers eventually experienced a drop in grades. According to the authors, while underachievers have a stronger influence on their networks, high performers tend to gain popularity and expand their influence over time, particularly by helping other students with their studies. Men were found to have larger networks than women, and all students were more likely to be friends with those whom they had known before college, classmates of the same gender, and members of their study group. ### Key barometers declined further and hit day's low in mid afternoon trade. At 14:28 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tumbled 624.41 points or 1.66% at 36,982.78. The Nifty 50 index slipped 162.40 points or 1.47% at 10,911.05. Reliance Industries (down 2.08%), HDFC (down 2.60%) and HDFC Bank (down 3.16%) were major index shakers. Weak domestic economic data and negative global cues weighed on sentiment. A surge in fresh coronavirus cases and intensifying US-China tensions also put pressure on stocks. The broader market was mixed with S&P BSE Mid-Cap index down 0.04% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rising 0.97%. There were more buyers than sellers. On the BSE, 1346 shares rose and 1215 shares fell. A total of 183 shares were unchanged. Numbers to Track: The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper was flat at 5.837%. In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee edged lower to 74.81 compared with its previous closing 75.01. In the commodities market, Brent crude for October 2020 settlement fell 29 cents to $43.23 a barrel. The contract rose 0.62% to end at $ 43.52 in the previous trading session. MCX Gold futures for 5 August 2020 settlement fell 0.2% to Rs 53,720. COVID-19 Update: Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 18,093,891 with 689,428 deaths. India reported 5,79,357 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 38,135 deaths while 11,86,203 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. Buzzing Index: The Nifty Metal index was up 0.74% at 2,163.15, bucking weak market sentiment. Ratnamani Metals & Tubes (up 9.28%), Welspun Corp (up up 4.95%), Vedanta (up 2.72%), Jindal Steel & Power (up 1.87%), Tata Steel (up 1.86%) and Steel Authority of India (up 0.29%) were top gainers in metal segment. NMDC was up 1.25%. The state-owned miner said its iron ore production rose 12.89% to 2.19 million tonnes (MT) in July 2020 from 1.94 MT produced in July 2019. Iron ore sales climbed 6.6% to 2.57 MT in July 2020 as against 2.41 MT in July 2019. The announcement was made during market hours today, 3 August 2020. Sequentially, production declined 13.1% in July 2020 from 2.52 MT in June 2020. Sales rose 3.63% during the month from 2.48 MT in June 2020. Further, NMDC revised prices of iron ore with effect from 31 July 2020. The company hiked prices of lump ore by Rs 200 or 8.16% to Rs 2,650 per ton. Prices of fines were hiked by Rs 200 or 9.26% to Rs 2,360 per ton. Stocks in Spotlight: CreditAccess Grameen rose 1.4%. The microfinance player reported 24.9% drop in consolidated net profit to Rs 72 crore on 64.6% rise in total income to Rs 619.87 crore in Q1 June 2020 over Q1 June 2019. Net Interest Income (NII) jumped 55.2% to Rs 383.2 crore in Q1 FY21 from Rs 246.9 crore crore in Q1 FY20. Net Interest Margin (NIM) stood at 12.6% as on 30 June 2020. Gross loan portfolio grew by 53.9% YoY to Rs 11,724 crore in Q1 FY21. The microfinance institution's total expected credit loss (ECL) provisions were at Rs 476.8 crore (4.21% of loan portfolio). This includes additional provisions of Rs 152.5 crore during the quarter, on account of COVID-19 impact. The total COVID-19 additional provisioning buffer was at Rs 245.6 crore (2.17% of loan portfolio). The ratio of gross NPAs to gross advances stood at 1.63% as on 30 June 2020. Cadila Healthcare gained 1.48%. The pharma company said it received tentative approval from the US-based drug regulator to market Carbidopa and Levodopa extended-release capsules in multiple strengths. Zydus Cadila said the medication is used to treat the symptoms of Parkinson's disease (such as shakiness, stiffness, difficulty moving) or Parkinson-like conditions. The drug will be manufactured at the group's formulation manufacturing facility at SEZ, Ahmedabad in Gujarat. SML Isuzu surged 2.53%. The vehicle sales slumped 64% to 307 units in July 2020 from 857 units in July 2019. The company's vehicles sales tanked 95% to 202 units in Q1 June 2020 as against 4,282 units in Q1 June 2019. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) (Natural News) A journalist who was stabbed in the back at a protest outside of the federal courthouse in Portland said that he was targeted because of his right-wing politics and activism. Twenty-five-year-old Andrew Duncomb films demonstrations and other political events using the name Black Rebel. He is a vocal supporter of President Trump and recently traveled from his Northern California home to Portland in order to document the violent protests that have been taking place outside of the Hatfield courthouse. Many Democrat officials have been claiming the protests are peaceful despite claims to the contrary by many in attendance. The incident took place at around 2:30 in the morning, when Duncomb and some friends noticed they were being followed for several blocks. He can be seen on video confronting a man wearing overalls, goggles and a respirator. When he asked the man why he was following him, the man stuck a knife into his back. Duncomb can be heard screaming in pain before falling backward. Others present pried the man away from Duncomb and held him down until police arrived on the scene. Blake David Hampe was arrested on the scene and is being held on $250,000 bail on charges of second-degree assault and the unlawful use of a weapon. The 43-year-old suspect is believed to be a member of Antifa. He claimed that Duncomb tried to choke him, but that is not supported by the video footage of the events. Hampe has a past conviction for possessing child pornography in New Hampshire. Duncomb said that he had a knife and a can of bear mace with him, but he was hesitant to use them because he did not want to endanger innocent bystanders. He said that the protesters were alerted to his presence in the area after he arrived. The conservative activist has more than 20,000 followers on Facebook and Twitter. He was treated at a hospital and later released. He said the blade went into his back between his rib cage and hip, missing his spinal cord by just a few inches. He is now recovering and said he hopes to get back to covering protests soon. The videographer frequently challenges Democrats and takes issue with the leftist narrative. He said: I was stopped for being a conservative journalist. He added that the attack will not stop him from continuing his coverage. Duncomb was trying to provide a more balanced view of what is going on in Portland Duncomb, who is black, has fervently defended the confederate flag and monuments. He said he was filming in Portland because he wanted to prove that its not just the feds creating the problems. The city has been the scene of nightly protests since the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody. Federal agents have been sent in to help keep the situation under control despite opposition from the citys liberal leadership. Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf has said the federal agents will not be leaving the city until the federal courthouse is safe and secure. Protesters have been throwing fireworks, cans and bottles at the courthouse and the federal officers protecting it, shining lasers in their eyes and trying to tear down reinforced fences. The mainstream media tries to make it look like Trump is the one who is spreading violence by sending federal agents into Portland, but the actions of these antifa thugs speak for themselves. This is no longer about protecting black lives, and no one can argue otherwise when a black man was actually stabbed in the back for being a vocal Trump supporter. Sources for this article include: NeonNettle.com WashingtonExaminer.com Sinn Fein TD Pearse Doherty has called for the campaign for a united Ireland to be stepped up. Taoiseach Micheal Martin has said he is not in favour of a border poll for a united Ireland, saying last month that it would be divisive. Mr Martin said his focus is on the new Shared Island unit that will seek to build stronger relationships between the Irish Government and the Stormont Executive. Mr Doherty has said the time is right to prepare for Irish unity and called on the Irish government to actively get involved in the campaign to secure and win an Irish unity referendum. Sinn Fein TD @PearseDoherty has encouraged people to tune in to tonight's special online National Hunger Strike Commemoration live at 8pm on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pic.twitter.com/osX0H8e4MR Sinn Fein (@sinnfeinireland) August 2, 2020 Delivering the main address at the National Hunger Strike Commemoration, which was held online this year, Mr Doherty said: Now is the time to step up the campaign for Irish unity. He said the 10 men who died on hunger strike in Long Kesh in 1981, as well as republicans who died on hunger strike in previous years, continue to be held in the highest esteem by republicans everywhere. The Good Friday Agreement, voted for by the people, contains provision for a referendum on Irish unity. Securing that referendum should now be the shared goal of everyone who supports the reunification of this island and its people. The discussion on Irish unity is already well under way across the island. Republicans and others who support unity are talking about what Irish unity will look like and how to secure it. Even those currently opposed to reunification are talking about it and considering what their place in a united Ireland would be. So it simply doesnt make any sense for those who claim that the time is not right. The conversation has begun. There is a role for everyone in that discussion and Im calling on as many people as possible to get involved. In particular, the Irish government has a key role to play. As a co-guarantor of the Good Friday Agreement, the Irish government has a responsibility to ensure its full implementation. We need to see this new Irish government actively planning for unity. Warm words wont secure or win a referendum. Im so proud to represent the same constituency that elected Hunger Striker Kieran Doherty as TD in 1981. Remembering him today on his anniversary. pic.twitter.com/4X2zASVuqH Matt Carthy TD (@mattcarthy) August 2, 2020 The Irish government needs to establish a Joint Oireachtas Committee on Unity, bring forward a White Paper, and convene a Citizens Assembly inclusive of the entire island to discuss and plan for reunification, he said. Northern Irelands First Minister Arlene Foster said on Friday that she thinks people living in Northern Ireland would not vote for a united Ireland. Speaking at the first meeting of the North South Ministerial Council meeting in three years, she said: I have to say everyone knows my position in relation a border poll. If it was called today, of course people would vote to remain in the United Kingdom. The online commemoration, which was broadcast on social media platforms, featured the poetry of Bobby Sands and music from Damien Dempsey. STRONG LEADERSHIP: John Hume, who helped bring about peace in the North, on a rooftop overlooking the Catholic Bogside neighbourhood of Derry in 1970. Picture: Leif Skoogfors/Getty Images SDLP leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner John Hume has been described as a "great hero and true peace maker" in tributes paid to him this morning. Taoiseach Micheal Martin, former prime minister Tony Blair, President Michael D Higgins and Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald are among a number of political figures who have extended their condolences to the Hume family. President Higgins said Mr Hume "transformed and remodelled" politics in Ireland and the underwent the search for peace "with a personal bravery and leadership, and with a personal bravery and leadership informed by a steadfast belief in the principles and values of genuine democracy." "Mar Uachtaran na hEireann, as President of Ireland, may I say how deeply grateful we all should be that we had such a person as John Hume to create a light of hope in the most difficult of times," he said. "It was Seamus Mallon, that other great statesman and courageous peace seeker and builder, who observed: 'Inside was a man who had something big to do. There is a greatness about his political life in what he did and what he helped to do. I would put him in the same breath as Parnell and Daniel O' Connell.' "We are grieving in this difficult year 2020 for two great apostles and seekers of peace. "Whatever the loss to all on this island, to his family his loss is greatest. To his wife Pat, his children, and all those who loved him, Sabina and I send our deepest sympathy." Expand Close Instrumental in peace process in the North: John Hume / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Instrumental in peace process in the North: John Hume Taoiseach Micheal Martin regarded Mr Hume as a "great hero and a true peace maker". Mr Martin said: Throughout his long life he exhibited not just courage, but also fortitude, creativity and an utter conviction that democracy and human rights must define any modern society. For over four decades, he was a passionate advocate for a generous, outward-looking and all-encompassing concept of nationalism and republicanism. For him the purpose of politics was to bring people together, not split them apart." Mr Martin said Mr Hume "kept hope alive" during paramilitary terrorism and sectarian strife. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next A life in pictures: John Hume Close John Hume. PA Photo: Paul Faith John Hume and his wife Pat on their wedding day in 1960 John Hume at a civil rights protest in Derry in 1971. Albert Reynolds, Gerry Adams and John Hume celebrate the IRA ceasefire at Government buildings. 6/9/1994 WISDOM: John Hume with a young Bertie Ahern From left, Gerry Adams, Albert Reynolds and John Hume in 1994 after the announcement of the first IRA ceasefire Bishop Daly pictured with John Hume and Charles Haughey Photo: NPA/Independent collection Nelson Mandela with John Hume at the South African Embassy in Dublin in 2000 Former US President Bill Clinton with John Hume and his wife Pat as they walk along Peace Bridge in Derry city John Hume Charisma: John Hume was blessed with a tender heart and tough mind. John Hume receiving the Nobel Peace Prize Peter Robinson, Martin McGuinness, Bill Clinton and John Hume pictured in 2010 Picture: Pacemaker / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume. PA Photo: Paul Faith Read More He continued: "With patience, resilience and unswerving commitment, he triumphed and delivered a victory for peace. While the 1998 Good Friday Agreement was the product of many peoples work, can anyone really claim that it would have happened without John Hume? "He didnt just talk about peace, he worked unstintingly for peace, at times in the face of the most virulent criticism and risk to his life. He knew that to be a peace maker on this island meant being a risk taker. John Humes life was one of towering achievement. His vision was realised and while illness took away his voice, his presence remains all around us on this island in the form of political stability and he has left us a powerful legacy of peace and reconciliation. Such achievement of course meant much sacrifice a sacrifice shared by his wife Pat and his family but they knew it was for the greater good." Expand Close John Hume receiving the Nobel Peace Prize / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume receiving the Nobel Peace Prize Mr Martin extended his sympathies to Mr Hume's wife Pat and his five children Aine, Therese, John jnr, Aidan, and Mo, adding: "Their grief will be great but they can take pride in the knowledge that they have shared their life with one of the greatest Irish people that ever lived. All people on this island will give thanks for his life. Tanaiste Leo Varadkar said Mr Hume has left a "legacy of peace, progress and stability." His unique ability to bring people together, to embrace and respect each others differences without being consumed by them, made him one of the most transformational figures to ever live north or south of the border," Mr Varadkar said. Today, we mourn the passing of one of Irelands greatest ever sons. He ranks alongside OConnell and Parnell in the pantheon of Irelands great leaders. He was a patriot, a peacemaker, a democrat, and a great great Derryman. RIP John Hume. Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) August 3, 2020 He leaves behind a legendary legacy of peace, progress and stability. His hard work and sacrifice will never be forgotten. I extend my deepest condolences to his wife Pat and five children." Former Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams has expressed a "deep sense of personal loss." "Over the many years of private conversation I got to know John well and we came to trust and respect each others opinions, and to accept that our common objective was to end conflict on the island of Ireland and create the conditions for a lasting peace with justice," he said. Expand Close John Hume and Gerry Adams / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume and Gerry Adams "John was very down to earth and easy to talk to. Our conversations were never combative. He listened attentively to my opinions while ably arguing his own views when we disagreed. I have many happy memories of my engagements with John. "The Good Friday Agreement in 1998, 12 years after we first met, was a landmark moment for both of us. "But one of my favourite memories is of John and I standing in the White House during St Patricks Day celebrations in March 1995 singing the Town I Loved So Well to an appreciative and much bemused Irish American audience. "Johns contribution to Irish politics cannot be underestimated. When others talked endlessly about peace, John grasped the challenge and helped make peace happen." Former Taoiseach John Bruton described Mr Hume as "the pivotal figure of the twentieth century in the development of thinking about Irelands future." "He reframed the problem from being one about who held sovereignty over land, to being one about people, and how they related to one another," he said. "Thus reframed, the issue became one to which violence and coercion became completely irrelevant. This was the intellectual basis of the peace process. "The issue was no longer one about winning or losing, but about sharing or choosing not to share. "In practical terms, he won the argument. That is why we have peace today." The Social Democratic and Labour Party paid tribute to Mr Hume on social media this morning, writing: "I never thought in terms of being a leader. I thought very simply in terms of helping people. I never thought in terms of being a leader. I thought very simply in terms of helping people. Nobel Laureate and former SDLP Leader John Hume passed away last night. We all live in the Ireland he imagined - at peace and free to decide our own destiny. Thank you, John. pic.twitter.com/0yO5KWaTv7 Social Democratic and Labour Party (@SDLPlive) August 3, 2020 "Nobel Laureate and former SDLP Leader John Hume passed away last night. We all live in the Ireland he imagined - at peace and free to decide our own destiny. "Thank you, John." Former prime minister Tony Blair, who was in Number 10 when the Good Friday Agreement was signed, said Mr Hume was a "political titan". John Hume was a political titan; a visionary who refused to believe the future had to be the same as the past," he said. His contribution to peace in Northern Ireland was epic and he will rightly be remembered for it. He was insistent it was possible, tireless in pursuit of it and endlessly creative in seeking ways of making it happen. Beyond that, he was a remarkable combination of an open mind to the world and practical politics. In any place, in any party, anywhere, he would have stood tall. It was good fortune that he was born on the island of Ireland. I was fortunate to work with John on the Good Friday Agreement but also to get to know him years before. He influenced my politics in many ways, but his belief in working through differences to find compromise will stay with me forever. My thoughts are with Patricia and the rest of his family. He will be greatly missed. Expand Close WISDOM: John Hume with a young Bertie Ahern / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp WISDOM: John Hume with a young Bertie Ahern Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said Mr Hume was a "champion of peace" whose passing will be mourned in "all communities across Ireland and beyond our seas. He added: "John Humes legacy is a proud one and I truly believe his name will stand tall in our history alongside giants like Parnell and OConnell. "Successive Taoisigh recognised John as the voice of sane and sensible constitutional nationalism in Northern Ireland. He gave a high example in public service and he was shrewd and astute politician, who played a distinguished role in making peace in Ireland and in shaping the Good Friday Agreement." Democratic Unionist Party Leader Arlene Foster said Mr Hume left a "unique mark" in the House of Commons. Sincere condolences to Pat & the wider Hume family. A giant in Irish nationalism, John left his unique mark in the House of Commons, Brussels & Washington. In our darkest days he recognised that violence was the wrong path & worked steadfastly to promote democratic politics. pic.twitter.com/Ctkdfxa4Au Arlene Foster #ProudofNI. (@ArleneFosterUK) August 3, 2020 Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald expressed her condolences to Mr Hume's family on behalf of her party. "It is with great sadness that I have learned this morning of the passing of John Hume. "On my own behalf and on behalf of Sinn Fein, I want to extend my sincerest and deepest condolences to John's wife Pat, to their children, to their wider family, to John's wide circle of friends and to his colleagues in the SDLP," she said. "John leaves a lasting legacy and the international and national esteem in which he is held is immense. There is no better example of that than his receipt of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize." Expand Close John Hume with his wife Pat, who has spoken of his struggle with dementia / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume with his wife Pat, who has spoken of his struggle with dementia Justice Minister Helen McEntee said Irish people all over the world will mourn Mr Hume's passing. "He was a giant in Irish history and a man of uncompromising courage and integrity, who never yielded in his opposition to the terrible violence perpetrated during the Troubles. His legacy is the peace we enjoy on this island today, North and South," she said. "His achievements, with partners in the Northern Ireland peace process, have also given hope to many millions worldwide, suffering seemingly intractable conflicts in their own homeplaces." The Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU) has also paid tribute to Mr Hume, a past president, on behalf of its Board, staff and members. Mr Hume was a founding member of Derry Credit Union in 1960, Northern Ireland's first credit union. He became the youngest ever president of the ILCU aged 27 years in 1964, and served in this position until 1968. In 2001, he was appointed Life Director of the ILCU. The ILCU said Mr Hume was "one of the driving forces for the establishment of the credit union movement in Ireland." "He will be sadly missed by all who knew him but his legacy will endure through the peace he created on this island and the credit union movement he helped build," they added. Expand Close Seamus Mallon with SDLP leader John Hume. Photo: Peter Jordan / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Seamus Mallon with SDLP leader John Hume. Photo: Peter Jordan Civil rights activist and founder of the SDLP, Austin Currie described Mr Hume as the "greatest Irishman since Parnell". "His place in Irish history is richly deserved. Despite the pressures on him, his family and his beloved Derry, he displayed great moral, physical and political courage. "He never - not for one moment - departed from a complete insistence on the non-violent approach to our problems in Northern Ireland," Mr Austin Currie said. Humes consistency provided a compass through some terrible times. He was the first to look for solutions beyond Northern Ireland to Europe and the US - a gift of vision acknowledged by the first leader of the SDLP, Gerry Fitt. He was a born teacher and we have learned so much from him. "Today we think of Pat and Johns family. We remember all the memories we share through the years. Most of all, we remember that John Hume was a prime mover in bringing about the process that brought peace to Ireland and the entire country owes him an immense gratitude." Mr Hume (83) passed away in the early hours of the morning following a short illness. In a statement, Mr Humes family said: We are deeply saddened to announce that John passed away peacefully in the early hours of the morning after a short illness. We would like to extend our deepest and heartfelt thanks to the care and nursing staff of Owen Mor nursing home in Derry. The care they have shown John in the last months of his life has been exceptional. They added: John was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a great grandfather and a brother. He was very much loved, and his loss will be deeply felt by all his extended family. It seems particularly apt for these strange and fearful days to remember the phrase that gave hope to John and so many of us through dark times: we shall overcome. US tech giant Microsoft has confirmed that it is continuing talks to purchase the US operations of Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok. Microsoft boss Satya Nadella had a conversation with President Donald Trump about the acquisition on Sunday, the tech firm said. Microsoft stressed that it "fully appreciates the importance" of addressing President Trump's concerns. A full security review of the app will be conducted, the company added. Microsoft will also have to provide the US government with a list of the "proper economic benefits" to the country, it said in a blog post. The tech giant hopes to conclude discussions with TikTok's parent firm ByteDance by 15 September. Microsoft said it was looking to purchase the TikTok service in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and would operate the app in these markets. The tech firm added that it "may" invite other American investors to participate in the purchase "on a minority basis". Microsoft emphasised that it would ensure that "all private data of TikTok's American users" was transferred to and remained in the US. Further, it would ensure that any data currently stored or backed up outside the country would be deleted from servers after it was transferred to US data centres. It also said that Microsoft "appreciates the US Government's and President Trump's personal involvement as it continues to develop strong security protections for the country." But the tech giant added that current discussions were still in the "preliminary" stage, and as such there was "no assurance" that the purchase would proceed. Government concerns A possible sale of TikTok's US operations to Microsoft was thought to be on hold after Donald Trump vowed to ban the video-sharing app, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The potential sale was had been seen close to agreement but was put in doubt after the US president's warning on Friday. And on Sunday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that President Trump would take action "in the coming days" against Chinese-owned software that he believed to pose a national security risk. Speaking to Fox News, Mr Pompeo said the action would be taken "with respect to a broad array of national security risks that are presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party". Short-form video app TikTok is thought to have about half a billion active users worldwide - and about 80 million in the US - with a huge proportion of these in their teens or early 20s. Some US politicians are worried the app's Chinese owner ByteDance poses a risk to national security because it could be used to collect Americans' personal data. Regulators have also raised their own safety concerns. Late on Friday, Mr Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One: "As far as TikTok is concerned we're banning them from the United States." And in a statement on Saturday, a White House spokesman said: "The administration has very serious national security concerns over TikTok. We continue to evaluate future policy." The Wall Street Journal said ByteDance tried to make significant concessions to the White House, including creating of thousands of jobs over three years. A sale of the US operation to Microsoft, which owns LinkedIn, would give the US tech giant a far greater presence in social media, an area dominated by rivals. The value of TikTok's US arm has been put at between $15bn and $30bn (11bn-23bn). According to the Financial Times, some executives at ByteDance believe Mr Trump's intervention may just be a negotiating ploy to help Microsoft secure a better deal. TikTok declined to discuss the possible Microsoft deal, but a spokesperson said in a statement on Sunday: "While we do not comment on rumours or speculation, we are confident in the long-term success of TikTok." The statement re-iterated that the company was committed to protecting the privacy and safety of users. 'Bizarre' The move to ban TikTok comes at a time of heightened tensions between the Trump administration and the Chinese government over a number of issues, including trade disputes and Beijing's handling of the coronavirus outbreak. The president's announcement on Friday was criticised by some in the tech sector, including former Facebook chief security officer Alex Stamos, who questioned whether the move was spurred by national security concerns. He tweeted: "This is getting bizarre. A 100% sale to an American company would have been considered a radical solution two week ago and, eventually, mitigates any reasonable data protection concerns. If the White House kills this we know this isn't about national security." Mr Trump was also criticised by the American Civil Liberties Union. "Banning an app that millions of Americans use to communicate with each other is a danger to free expression and is technologically impractical," said the ACLU's surveillance and cybersecurity counsel, Jennifer Granick. "Shutting one platform down, even if it were legally possible to do so, harms freedom of speech online and does nothing to resolve the broader problem of unjustified government surveillance," she said. On Saturday, in a bid to reassure TikTok's millions of US users, Vanessa Pappas, the country's general manager said in a video message: "We're not going anywhere . . . We're here for the long run. "When it comes to safety and security, we're building the safest app because we know it's the right thing to do. So we appreciate the support." Source: BBC 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 New Jersey federal judge whose son was murdered by a disgruntled, misogynistic lawyer she once ruled in a case over spoke out on Monday morning to call for greater protections for judges. Esther Salas' son Daniel, 20, was shot and killed at the family's home in New Brunswick, New Jersey, on July 19 by Roy Den Hollander, a vengeful 72-year-old lawyer who held a grudge against Salas. Hollander killed Daniel and also wounded Salas' husband, Mark, before fleeing the state and shooting himself the next day. He is also believed to have killed lawyer Marc Angelucci in Los Angeles eight days earlier in a reckless murdering spree that was prompted by his terminal cancer diagnoses. Salas, in a video released on Monday morning, said the killings showed how dangerous it can become for judges and their families when they have to make 'tough calls' in court. She never ruled against Hollander but he complained in online ramblings that she dragged her heels in making a decision in the case he was fighting for which involved expanding the military draft to enlist women as well as men. Scroll down for video Judge Esther Salas released a video on Monday morning calling for judges to be given greater protections Roy Den Hollander, left, shot and killed Salas' son Daniel, 20, on July 19 'Two weeks ago, my life as I knew it changed in an instant and my family will never be the same. A mad man, who I believe was targeting me because of my position as a federal judge, came to my house,' she said. She went on to reveal that the family had been celebrating Daniel's 20th birthday over the weekend. On Sunday July 19, she and her husband went to church and allowed Daniel to rest. When they returned, she and him started talking in the basement. Salas said her son told her: 'Let's keep talking. I love talking to you mom.' 'It was at that exact moment that the doorbell rang. Daniel looked at me and said, "who is that?" 'Before I could say a word, he sprinted upstairs. Within seconds I heard the sound of bullets and someone screaming "no,"' she said, fighting tears. Hollander was holding a FedEx package in his hand. Salas revealed that her son and her husband went to the door at the same time and that Daniel stepped in front of his father to take the first bullet. 'Daniel being Daniel protected his father. And he took the shooter's first bullet directly to the chest. Salas revealed that her son stepped in front of her father to shield him from the first bullet Judge Salas' home in New Brunswick, New Jersey, where her son was killed and husband was injured on Sunday 'The monster then turned his attention to my husband and began to shoot at my husband. One shot after another,' she said. Salas' husband Mark, 63, survived but is still in the hospital after undergoing multiple surgeries. New York State Chief Judge, Janet DiFiore She said the pair are now living 'every parent's worst nightmare' and that she does not want anyone else to experience it. 'My family has experienced a pain that no one should ever have to endure. I am here asking everyone to help me ensure that no one ever has to experience this kind of pain,' she said. Salas is now asking for greater privacy for federal judges to keep their information secure. 'We may not be able to stop something like this from happening again. But we can make it hard for those who target us to track us down. 'As federal judges, we understand that our decisions will be scrutinized. Some may disagree strongly with our rulings. 'We know that our job requires us to make tough calls. Sometimes those calls can leave people angry and upset. That comes with the territory. 'We accept that. But what we cannot accept is when we are forced to live in fear for our lives because personal information like our home addresses can easily be obtained by anyone seeking to do us or our families harm. 'Unfortunately for my family, the threat was real. The free flow of information from the internet allowed this sick and depraved human being to find all our personal information and target us. 'Currently, federal judges' addresses and other information is readily available on the internet. In addition, there are companies that will sell your personal details that can be leveraged for nefarious purposes. 'In my case, the monster knew where I lived and what church we attended and had a complete dossier on me and my family. 'At the moment there is nothing we can do to stop it and that is unacceptable. My son's death cannot be in vain,' she pleaded. Hollander - who was diagnosed with melanoma recently - had a list of at least 12 other targets in his car. Judge Janet DiFiore, New York State's chief judge, was on the list, as were multiple others including two oncologists and two other judges, according to The New York Times. Their names have not been released. The two oncologists treated Hollander, whose cancer was terminal. At the time of his death, he had claimed online to have been mistreated by two oncologists, Dr. Philip Friedlander and Dr. Sonam Sharma. DALLAS, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Jacobs (NYSE:J) has launched a global Action Plan for Advancing Justice and Equality, which builds on Jacobs' existing global inclusion and diversity strategy, TogetherBeyondsm, and sets actionable initiatives and measurable objectives in the company's continuing efforts to address embedded and systemic racial inequities. "This action plan is about achieving true equality for all of our employees current and future with a focus on ensuring Black employees have the tools needed to advance and achieve their ultimate goals at Jacobs," said Jacobs Chair and CEO Steve Demetriou. "Using the power of Jacobs' strong underlying culture of inclusion and diversity to drive innovation in solutions means higher value for our employees, our customers and communities, and inevitably, higher returns for our shareholders." Employees initiated the development of the action plan with a team who collaborated alongside Jacobs' Board of Directors and Executive Leadership Team to outline three key sets of commitments and specific, measurable actions with performance outcomes: No. 1 Amplify culture of belonging Expand beyond our Conscious Inclusion program, training the full 55,000-person global workforce in Bystander Intervention by the end of FY21 Engage 3,000 Jacobs leaders over the next 12 months to increase their focus on justice and equality through meaningful discussion and dialogue with leading speakers and scholars on anti-racism, justice and equality Require I&D as a priority in senior leaders' annual performance plan tied to compensation for accountability Add Martin Luther King, Jr. , Day as a U.S. holiday; actively encourage employees to engage in volunteer opportunities around racial equality and justice; and drive adoption of MLK Jr. Day in the industry , Day as a U.S. holiday; actively encourage employees to engage in volunteer opportunities around racial equality and justice; and drive adoption of MLK Jr. Day in the industry Appoint TogetherBeyond leader to drive global I&D strategy and programs No. 2 Recruit, retain and advance Black employees based on merit Increase representation of Black employees at all levels over the next three years to proportionally reflect the overall external population, and provide continuous professional development and advancement Partner with external organizations to provide leadership development programs to accelerate advancement for Black employees to mid- and senior-level leadership Require senior leaders to sponsor and mentor two diverse employees (one of whom must be Black), ensuring global reach of mentoring opportunities and accountability for success Further strengthen diversity of the Board of Directors, including Black representation No. 3 Contribute to structural change in the broader society Donate $10M over the next five years in support of Black educational and professional development and scholarship opportunities over the next five years in support of Black educational and professional development and scholarship opportunities Promote programs and volunteer opportunities for organizations committed to justice and equality through Jacobs' Collectively sm giving and volunteering program. An example includes applying our expertise in water in at-risk urban and rural communities giving and volunteering program. An example includes applying our expertise in water in at-risk urban and rural communities Materially increase women- and minority-owned supplier and vendor spending over the next five years; expand Jacobs' Mentor-Protege program with local subcontractors, suppliers, and professional services firms to encourage more women and minority firm engagement and growth To drive this action plan as well as the global I&D strategy, Jacobs has appointed Jeff Dingle as Vice President and Global Director of TogetherBeyond. "Advancing justice and equality requires strong leadership and a relentless drive to deliver on the vision," Demetriou said. "Jeff is the right person to lead this important work and grow a culture where employees want to join, stay and thrive. "Ultimately, contributing to structural change at Jacobs and the broader society is about doing our part as a global leader, leveraging our scale within the industry to set the tone and influence peers. We must create a culture in which every person can access a future of opportunities. The time is now for us to get this right once and for all." About Jeff Dingle Jeff has more than 30 years' experience across several markets as well as a strong global network, including leadership roles in many industry organizations in the U.S. He currently serves as Vice President and Global Strategic Sales Director within Jacobs' People & Places Solutions line of business and brings a broad perspective to the TogetherBeyond role, having served in California state government, as well as a principal within three small minority-owned firms before joining Jacobs in 2008. Jeff is a registered professional engineer with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. About TogetherBeyondsm TogetherBeyond is Jacobs' approach to living inclusion every day and enabling diversity and equality globally. This means creating a culture of belonging where all thrive by embracing all perspectives. The TogetherBeyond Global Strategy is built on four strategic pillars: Culture Building & Engagement, Leadership Commitment & Accountability, Developing Talent and Growing the Business. About Jacobs At Jacobs, we're challenging today to reinvent tomorrow by solving the world's most critical problems for thriving cities, resilient environments, mission-critical outcomes, operational advancement, scientific discovery and cutting-edge manufacturing, turning abstract ideas into realities that transform the world for good. With $13 billion in revenue and a talent force of more than 55,000, Jacobs provides a full spectrum of professional services including consulting, technical, scientific and project delivery for the government and private sector. Visit jacobs.com and connect with Jacobs on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter. Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking statements as such term is defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and such statements are intended to be covered by the safe harbor provided by the same. Statements made in this release that are not based on historical fact are forward-looking statements. We base these forward-looking statements on management's current estimates and expectations as well as currently available competitive, financial and economic data. Forward-looking statements, however, are inherently uncertain. There are a variety of factors that could cause business results to differ materially from our forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the related reaction of governments on global and regional market conditions and the company's business. For a description of some additional factors that may occur that could cause actual results to differ from our forward-looking statements, see our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 27, 2019, and in particular the discussions contained under Item 1 - Business; Item 1A - Risk Factors; Item 3 - Legal Proceedings; and Item 7 - Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 26, 2020, and in particular the discussions contained under Part I, Item 2 - Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations; Part II, Item 1 - Legal Proceedings; and Part II, Item 1A - Risk Factors, as well as the company's other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company is not under any duty to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this press release to conform to actual results, except as required by applicable law. For press/media inquiries: Kerrie Sparks 214.583.8433 SOURCE Jacobs Related Links http://www.jacobs.com FORT WORTH, Texas Longtime country music disc jockey Bill Mack, whose Blue became a hit for LeAnn Rimes and won a 1996 Grammy Award for Country Music Song of the Year, died Friday at age 88, his son said. In a Facebook message, Macks son Billy Mack Smith said his father died Friday of COVID-19 but had underlying health conditions. Macks Midnight Cowboy Trucking Show overnight program on clear channel WBAP-AM in Fort Worth kept truckers entertained for decades and earned him a place in the Country Music DJ Hall of Fame. Mack later hosted programs on satellite radio and the syndicated Country Crossroads. He also wrote Drinking Champagne, a song covered by George Strait, Dean Martin and Willie Nelson. On Tuesday, Hamilton County resident Charles H. Coolidge, Medal of Honor recipient, and his family will celebrate his 99th birthday. In a nation of more than 330 million, there are less than 70 living Medal of Honor recipients and Charles H. Coolidge is one of only two living World War II recipients and the oldest recipient. It will, indeed, be a day of celebration at his home on Signal Mountain and across our county, Tennessee and the nation. While the Coolidge name is identifiable with several local sites including Coolidge Park and Coolidge Highway and many residents may know that Mr. Coolidge is a Medal of Honor recipient, most are unfamiliar with the actions which resulted in Mr. Coolidges recognition. His 99th birthday celebration offers an ideal time to recount his service to this nation, his valor in combat and his commitment to his community. Im sorry, Mac, youve got to come and get me. The Coolidge story often begins with his October 1944 encounter with a German tank commander and his utter disregard of the commanders demand that Coolidge and his men surrender. Instead, Charles H. Coolidges World War II experience began much earlier. Following his training stateside, Coolidge would later recount that the bloodiest fighting he encountered occurred in 1943 as he fought his way up through the underbelly of Europe, beginning with a landing at Salerno, Italy that would eventually lead to a fierce fight against the Germans at Monte Cassino. The path northward was difficult and, at one point, included maneuvers involving captured sheep and heavily mined fields, an action necessary for the U. S. forces to move safely forward in the field. By late summer 1944, Coolidge was a seasoned veteran who had refused battlefield promotions, choosing instead to remain a Technical Sergeant, U. S Army, serving and leading alongside his boys. At age 23, Coolidge had gained the respect of his troops after actions at Anzio, Rome and Naples, with the new objective, France, looming on the horizon. After landing at Cannes in mid-August, the U. S. forces began chasing the retreating Germans across the unfamiliar terrain. Its difficult to imagine today, but the U. S. troops covered more than 500 miles in only sixty days so that on October 24 Coolidge and his men were on the crest of Hill 623 near Belmont-sur-Buttant. It is at Hill 623 that the action for which Coolidge received the Medal of Honor began. During a quick reconnoitering move to establish possible machine gun positions, Coolidge and another sergeant ran into a group of German soldiers. Coolidge and his fellow sergeant, who spoke German, approached the soldiers and demanded their surrender, unsuccessfully, and an exchange of fire occurred with Coolidge taking out two of the German soldiers as he and his comrade ran back to their troops. As the ranking man in the unit, Coolidge assumed command of the unit and began organizing and encouraging the men, directing their fire as the Germans approached their site. After countering the Germans initial attach, Coolidge and his men fought valiantly the next three days to hold their position against unfavorable odds. On October 27, German tanks, supporting the German infantry, moved closer to the Americans position and the tank commander, standing in his open turret, demanded that they surrender. Coolidge, standing in front of the tanks in the open space, responded with his now famous quip, Im sorry, Mac, youve got to come and get me. What follows those words now guarantee Charles H. Coolidges place in World War II history. As the tank commander took aim at a zig-zagging Coolidge and fired repeatedly, Coolidge retreated and grabbed a bazooka, aimed at the tank and fired, but the bazooka failed. He would learn later that the batteries had been removed to power their communication radios. Not to be defeated, Coolidge pivoted and grabbed all the grenades he could find, crawling forward, skillfully lobbing them at the infantrymen huddled around the tanks. While his actions held the Germans at bay, he was eventually forced to evacuate his men to a safer position. The four intense days of fighting and Coolidges calm leadership resulted in his nomination for and award of the Medal of Honor, our nations highest military combat award. The recipient would later admit that he had heard of the Medal of Honor only because he was a Tennessean and had heard the stories of Sergeant Alvin C. York from Pall Mall. In an interesting chapter to Mr. Coolidges story, he and the famed WWI Sergeant would become friends and remain in contact until Yorks death in 1964, including a now famous appearance in the Chattanooga Armed Forces Day Parade along with MOH recipients Paul Huff and Raymond Cooley. While Charles H. Coolidge in now the oldest living Medal of Honor recipient, he has often said that he would most like to be remembered as a good father, a man of faith and a citizen who contributed to his community, including the veterans community. It is certain that his legacy serves as an inspiration for young students who participate in the Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Centers and the National Medal of Honor Foundations Character Development Program. The six characteristics identified as core traits of all Medal of Honor recipients - - commitment, courage, citizenship, sacrifice, integrity and patriotism - - have remained central to Mr. Coolidges life of service. A birthday celebration will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 4, at the Heritage Center, 2 Aquarium Way, complete with banners and cupcakes. The public is invited to participate and the Center will be open for tours, including the Coolidge exhibit. Tickets are available and appropriate safety precautions are in place, including available face masks and hand sanitizer along with social distancing protocol. The Center will be open from 10 am 6 pm. - - Linda Mines is the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Historian, the vice-president for Education, Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center and Regent, Chief John Ross Chapter, NSDAR. After thousands of people took to the streets of Berlin to protest mask mandates and other measures to slow the spread of coronavirus, German politicians are warning of a potential second wave of the virus. Markus Soder, the premier of the regional state of Bavaria and a potential candidate to succeed Chancellor Angela Merkel, warned on Twitter that we have to expect that corona will come back again with full force. I am very worried about the rising case numbers in Germany. Total alertness is needed, and thats why now is not the time for easing restrictions or naive carelessness. The protest, called The end of the pandemic day of freedom was attended by some 17,000 people on Saturday, Politico reported. Some participants told media outlets the virus was the biggest conspiracy theory. Health Minister Jens Spahn cautioned on Twitter, Yes, demonstrations should be possible in Corona times. But not like this. Distancing, hygiene rules and facemasks are meant to protect us all. Saskia Esken, co-leader of the Social Democrats, Chancellor Angela Merkels junior coalition partners, took sharp aim at the protesters on Twitter, saying Thousands of Covidiots are celebrating themselves as the second wave, without distancing, without masks. They are putting at risk not only our health, but our successes against the pandemic, to revive the economy, education and society. Irresponsible! When coronavirus ravaged Italy, Spain and France in the spring, Germany, which was less hard hit than other European nations, was lauded for its handling of the pandemic. But now the country is facing a possible resurgence of the virus, as the number of reported cases has been rising since the beginning of July, according to the Robert Koch Institute the governments main biomedical body. Far-right expert Olaf Sundermeyer warned that many people dont believe that the coronavirus exists and that it is just an invention to subdue the people. Story continues Many say they are being systematically lied to, he told German broadcaster ARD. More from National Review When Tian Feilong first arrived in Hong Kong as demands for free elections were on the rise, he said he felt sympathetic toward a society that seemed to reflect the liberal political ideas he had studied as a graduate student in Beijing. Then, as the calls escalated into protests across Hong Kong in 2014, he increasingly embraced Chinese warnings that freedom could go too far, threatening national unity. He became an ardent critic of the demonstrations, and six years later he is a staunch defender of the sweeping national security law that China has imposed on the former British ... State of the art technology will help early detection of lung cancer This article is old - Published: Monday, Aug 3rd, 2020 New technology capable of detecting lung cancer in its early stages is now available for patients across North Wales. Electromagnetic Navigation Bronchoscopy (ENB) uses GPS like technology to create a 3D map of the lungs. This map then helps doctors guide a catheter through the lungs most complex airways. It is a minimally invasive procedure that allows doctors to diagnose and prepare to treat cancerous lesions using a single procedure, as quickly as possible. The procedure will be carried out at Glan Clwyd Hospital by the Lung Cancer team, which includes Dr Robin Poyner, Dr Daniel Menzies, Dr Sakkarai Ambalavanan and Dr Abou Haggar. Glan Clwyd Hospital is the first district general hospital in Wales, and only second in the UK to use the Illumisite Navigation system by Medtronic. Dr Daniel Menzies, Consultant in Respiratory Medicine, said: Up until now it has been difficult to get an early diagnosis, sometimes because of the location of the cancer in the patients chest. With this new piece of equipment, it can detect lung cancer in its early stages, sometimes before other symptoms have become evident. This means there is potential for earlier treatment and a good outcome for the patient. One patient who has already benefited from this new technology is Ann Bedford, from Holyhead, who was offered this procedure during a trial last year. The 74-year-old was first diagnosed with lung cancer three years ago in her left lung, and last year discovered the cancer had returned. She said: When I was first diagnosed with lung cancer I had to undergo surgery and chemotherapy. Last year I went back into hospital after I became unwell and following some tests I was referred to Glan Clwyd Hospital where I was offered this new procedure. This diagnosed the second cancer in my right lung so much quicker and the procedure was much less invasive the staff were fantastic and explained the process very clearly to me. As the cancer was found early it gave me options on what treatment I could have and I now only need a short course of radiotherapy. Its amazing the advances in technology we now have this will help so many people in North Wales. The technology, worth 130,000, has been funded by the generous donations of patients and the community through NHS North Wales charity, Awyr Las. Dr Robin Poyner, Consultant in Respiratory Medicine, said he and the team were extremely grateful for the donation that has allowed them to purchase this life-saving equipment. He said: We are very grateful to Awyr Las for their support in purchasing the ENB equipment we need to further enhance our service. By introducing this new service it will also bring waiting times down for CT guided lung biopsies and reduce the number of CT scan follow ups, which will be hugely beneficial for our patients. Most patients who have ENB treatment can go home on the same day so this is a major advancement in technology for us, and will lead to a significant improvement in cancer care in North Wales. Kirsty Thomson, Head of Fundraising for Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, added: This is an excellent example of how donations to our healthcare services are helping frontline staff to lead the way in providing new and innovative treatment. This equipment was funded thanks to hundreds of generous donations from local people that wanted to give back to say thank you, or that chose to give to help ensure patients here in North Wales can receive the very best care. We are all hugely grateful to the fundraisers that have made this possible. Mike Pidding from Medtronic also wished to thank the charity for their support in purchasing the equipment. He added: We would like to thank the charity for kindly purchasing the system and to the consultants for their dedication and passion to set up and offer this service to the patients of North Wales. Without the charity and donations this would not have been possible. Top pic: Consultants Dr Daniel Menzies, Dr Robin Poyner and Dr Sakkarai Ambalavanan who are part of the Lung Cancer Team at Glan Clwyd Hospital and will be offering this service to patients. In southern Berkshire County, Tolland Department of Public Works employees have been working throughout the morning to clear trees from public roadways that had been blown down by the tornado that hit the area overnight. Authorities confirmed that a tornado touched down on South Main Street in the Berkshire County town of Sandisfield shortly before 7 p.m. The town of Tolland, Massachusetts, located in Hampden County, appeared to bear the brunt of the storm damage in the commonwealth over the weekend. A Tolland Department of Public Works spokesperson told MassLive that most of the destruction is in the woods. Although peoples homes and properties in the area were spared, power lines were knocked out and roads blocked. A 12-inch-diameter tree was downed at one point. More trees and power lines were knocked over on East Otis Road, and a utility pole reportedly snapped. Numerous trees were downed and some wires knocked over across the street not only on Belden but on Schoolhouse and Beech Hill roads, according to the National Weather Service. The National Weather Service has issued tropical storm warnings for Massachusetts as tropical storm Isaias moves up the Atlantic. Forecasters are expecting Isaias to move into Massachusetts Tuesday night before 8 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. Wind gusts of 40 to 60 mph, 2 to 4 inches of rainfall and strong rip currents off the southern coast of the commonwealth are possible. Flooding is forecast across New England but especially in Western Massachusetts and Connecticut, which may see 45 to 55 mph wind gusts as well. The National Weather Service issued a flash flood watch for Berkshire County. Power outages from downed trees and wires are also possible Tuesday through Wednesday. There is a much less likely but real threat of tornadoes, especially late Tuesday, according to forecasters. MassLive reporter Jackson Cote contributed to this story. Got a news tip or want to contact MassLive about this story? Email newstips@masslive.com or message us on Facebook orTwitter. You can also call our news tips line at 413-776-1364. On August 5, while all attention will be on Ayodhya with the first bricks for the construction of the Ram temple to be laid, 130 km away in Lucknow, a special CBI court will continue hearing the Babri Masjid demolition case. Some of the leading players of the temple movement may be present in Ayodhya on the day but, as accused in the demolition case, their fate will soon be decided by the court. Last year, on November 9, a Supreme Court bench headed by the-then Chief Justice of India, Ranjan Gogoi, had brought to an end the long-standing title suit over the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute. In a unanimous verdict, the bench ruled in favour of the Hindu litigants and ordered that the disputed 2.77 acre of land be handed over to a trust to be set up by the Centre for construction of a temple. With one case reaching finality in the apex court, focus has shifted to the other case. The case of demolition, which began after December 6, 1992. The Supreme Court in its title suit judgement had also observed that the demolition of the mosque was a criminal act. 28 YEARS OF DEMOLITION CASETHE HISTORY After 28 years of often-derailed investigations and trial, the matter has finally reached the concluding stages of hearing in the special CBI court in Lucknow. Out of the 32 surviving accused, 31 have recorded their final statements under section 313 of the CrPC. One of the lesser known accused is absconding. 351 witnesses have been examined so far. And to no ones surprise, all the accused have claimed innocence and alleged that they have been framed in the case. Heres a brief history of the case which has seen many ups and downs. A case which after almost three decades still lingers on. A case in which many of the 49 accused are already dead and those still active include some high-profile names of Indian politics: among them a former deputy prime minister, former chief minister, some former cabinet ministers, and a few sitting Members of Parliament . DEMOLITION AND THREE DIFFERENT TYPES OF FIRs Just minutes after demolition of the Babri mosque on December 6, 1992, the first FIR no. 197/92 was registered against unknown kar sevaks at 5.15pm under sections 395, 397, 332, 337, 338, 295, 297, 153A of IPC, and section 7 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act. Ten minutes later, a second FIR (no. 198/92) was registered under sections 153A, 153B, 505 of IPC against LK Advani, Ashok Singhal, Giriraj Kishore, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharti, Vinay Katiyar, Vishnu Hari Dalmiya and Sadhvi Ritambhara. This was the hate-and-provocative-speech case. Forty-seven other FIRs were also registered in the days to come related to offences of assault on media persons, looting valuables like cameras and reporting gadgets from them, etc. All FIRs were filed at Thana Ramjanmabhoomi in Ayodhya. CASES TO CBI In days following the FIRs, a curious move was made by the-then government. While case no. 197 was recommended for CBI probe, case no. 198 against accused politicians was handed to the CB-CID wing of the Uttar Pradesh police. On August 27, 1993, the UP state government transferred all the remaining 48 cases including case no. 198 for CBI probe. CBI took up the investigation in all the cases related to Babri Masjid demolition and filed a consolidated single charge sheet against 40 people in all the 49 cases in a special court of Lucknow on October 5, 1993. More than two years later, on January 11, 1996, the agency filed a supplementary charge sheet against nine other prominent people. The total tally of accused reached 49. CHARGE OF CRIMINAL CONSPIRACY SLAPPED Contrary to initial FIRs in the case, the CBI in its charge sheet came up with the argument of having concrete and strong evidence to prove that demolition of the mosque was the fallout of a larger and sinister conspiracy. It also came up with new names as accused, which included top guns of the BJP and RSS, the stalwarts of the Ram temple movement. A charge under section 120(b) of criminal conspiracy was added against the accused. LEGAL BATTLE AND DERAILMENTS THEREAFTER With the charge sheet being filed against the bigwigs of BJP and RSS, the stage was set for the commencement of trial in the case. However, the matter got entangled in legal complexities. September 9, 1997 The special judge after hearing the petitioner and the defense counsel, passed an order holding a prima facie case for framing of charges against the accused under section 120(B), that is criminal conspiracy, under IPC and other relevant sections of law. The court ordered that formal charges would be framed in the next hearing. Some of the accused move the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court against the lower courts decision to frame charges. The matter kept lingering through legal manoeuvrings. February 12, 2001 Justice Jagdish Bhalla of the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court passed a detailed order. He found no illegality in a joint single charge sheet for all the FIRs, since the offences were allegedly committed in the same course of action for accomplishing a conspiracy. However, taking note of an administrative lapse on part of the UP government, relating to notification of the trial court for crime no 198/92, that is hate speech case against Advani and others, the high court while upholding framing of charges in all other 48 cases, denied the same in case no. 198 against Advani, Joshi, Uma Bharti, Vinay Katiyar and others. The high court, however, said that the state governments faulty notification for fixing the trial court dated October 8, 1993 was curable and could be done so through another notification. May 4, 2001 Against the backdrop of the HC order, the Lucknow court dropped the proceedings against not just the original eight accused, but also against 13 others. June 16, 2001 The CBI wrote to the UP government, asking it to rectify the error pointed out by the high court and issue a fresh notification empowering the special court for resuming trial. The UP government then headed by chief minister Rajnath Singh decided not to issue any fresh notification. TRIAL IN DIFFERENT COURTS: LUCKNOW-RAEBARELI January 27, 2003 Following legal deliberations, the CBI moved a petition in the designated court of Raebareli, requesting the court to proceed with the trial of the case 198/92 related to hate speeches against Advani and others. September 19, 2003 In a major development, special magistrate, Raebareli, discharged Advani in case no. 198/92 but ordered framing of charges against the remaining accused. Advani was then the deputy prime minister of India. July 2005 On July 6, 2005, the high court after hearing several review petitions filed against the Raebareli courts order of acquitting Advani, ordered re-framing of charges against him and all the other accused. Subsequently on July 26, the Raebareli court framed charges against all the accused. As the matter kept languishing in two different courts, a debate raged about the necessity for it and whether the two separate trials could do justice to the matter in which the sequence of the crimes was related. The earlier order of the Lucknow trial court dropping proceedings against 13 other accused and further striking down the charge of criminal conspiracy against the most important of the accused, also remained a cause of legal concern. March 20, 2012 After a series of derailments and legal hurdles from the trial courts and high court, the CBI finally reached the Supreme Court in 2011 and subsequently filed an affidavit on March 20, 2012, during the UPA 2 government headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The CBI made a strong argument for a common trial of all the 49 cases. It argued: 1) Investigations in all 49 cases had disclosed that there was a single general conspiracy by all the 49 accused, to demolish the disputed structure. 2) Each of the accused facilitated and participated in the fulfilment of the criminal conspiracy. 3) All the 21 persons against whom the proceedings were dropped were party to criminal conspiracy. 4) The 13 accused who were not being tried for any offences in any court of law were party to the conspiracy and demolition. 5) Hence, it was in the interest of justice that all the accused involved in criminal conspiracy and demolition of the disputed structure were tried in the court of the special judge at Lucknow. Supreme Court April 19, 2017 After remaining pending for almost five years in the Supreme Court, a major moment in the case came on April 19, 2017. The top court ruled against the Allahabad HC order of dropping conspiracy charges. The SC ordered invoking of conspiracy charges against the accused including LK Advani and 20 others. The trial of all cases was also brought back to the Lucknow court. PRESENT STATUS: DAY-TO-DAY HEARING IN LUCKNOW COURT From 2017 onwards there had been speedy hearing in the case as the charges were framed and trial on the joint charge sheet began. In between, with Kalyan Singh becoming the governor of Rajasthan, trial against him was stopped since he occupied a constitutional office. However, last year, after he demitted the office of the governor, the trial against him also began. Last month most of the big names in the case including Advani, MM Joshi, Kalyan Singh, Uma Bharti, Vinay Katiyar and Champat Rai (general secretary of the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust) have recorded their final statements under section 313 of CrPC. So how long before the trial in the case is completed? Advocate Abhishek Ranjan, who is also the counsel for Advani, Joshi and Kalyan Singh, says The proceedings are in the final stages. After the 313 CrPC statement, the defence will once again like to question the needed witnesses. The Supreme Court has fixed August 31 as the final date for conclusion of the hearing. Hence day-to-day hearing is going on. SEVERAL ACCUSED AND WITNESSES ALREADY DEAD Over the course of 28 years, several accused have already died: Bal Thackeray, Ashok Singhal, Giriraj Kishore, and others. Senior advocate IB Singh, who had argued in defence of several of the accused, said, The trial is in its last leg now. We expect a judgement in the case soon. On the question that 28 years on, a judgement is still awaited from a CBI court, Singh said, The case has been of big drawbacks from the first day, right from why different FIRs were registered for a crime related to the same incident... over the years it has been more an effort of political witch hunt rather than serious investigation of the crime. But now, many hope the year of Bhoomi Poojan for the Ram temple will also bring judgment in the criminal act of demolishing a religious place: the Babri mosque. LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) The owner of a pharmacy that provided drugs to Nebraska for use in a 2018 execution expressed remorse Thursday for making the sale, but acknowledged that he knew prison officials wanted them for a lethal injection. Public records released late Thursday revealed that Community Pharmacy Services, in the Omaha suburb of Gretna, Nebraska, agreed to sell the drugs to the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services for two payments totaling $10,500. Community Pharmacy Services owner Kyle Janssen issued a statement minutes after state officials identified his company as their supplier, vowing never to sell to them again. Community Pharmacy Services has never supplied drugs since then to the Nebraska Department of Corrections or any other department of corrections, not will it ever again, Janssen said. I regretted the decision as it does not align with our company's values to provide the best patient care and customer service to the long-term care industry. Janssen said the state corrections system contracted with his company to manage its pharmacy operations from 2016 to 2018. He said during the course of the contract prison officials asked him for drugs that were later used in the August 2018 execution of Carey Dean Moore. The company fulfilled that order following all DEA protocols and procedures, and understood the potential use of those drugs, Janssen said. It's not clear if the company's contract services extended beyond 2018. The Nebraska Department of Correctional Services released records identifying its suppliers after a prolonged legal battle with the Omaha World-Herald, the Lincoln Journal Star and the American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska. The newspapers and the ACLU of Nebraska sued the state after prison officials refused to release public records identifying its supplier, despite having done so in the past. The case ended up before the Nebraska Supreme Court, which ordered the corrections department in May to release the records. Story continues Similar legal battles have played out in Arkansas, which last year expanded the secrecy law that shields the identity of its drug supplier. Today is another win for open government and the ACLU was proud to be a part of the effort to shine a bright light on the source of the lethal injection drugs utilized by the state of Nebraska as it rushed to carry out an execution shrouded in secrecy from start to finish, said Danielle Conrad, executive director of the ACLU of Nebraska. Moore's execution marked the first time that Nebraska had carried out the death penalty since 1997. Prison officials were under pressure to carry out an execution after a political fight over capital punishment in Nebraska. State lawmakers narrowly voted to abolish the death penalty in 2015, overriding the veto of Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts during his first year in office. Death penalty supporters responded to the vote with a petition drive, partially financed by Ricketts, which put the measure on Nebraska's 2016 general election ballot. The proposal to keep capital punishment won support from 60% of voters in the overwhelmingly conservative state. But critics at the time argued that Nebraska wouldn't be able to carry out another execution because of the difficulty in obtaining drugs. State officials previously spent $54,000 to purchased drugs from a middleman in India who never delivered them and refused to return the money. ___ This story has been corrected to show that two payments were made totaling $10,500. ___ Follow Grant Schulte on Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrantSchulte The Balearic and Canary islands will remain on the UK's quarantine list despite a Spanish minister insisting they were safe and pleading for their removal today. Arrivals from islands including Ibiza, Majorca, Tenerife and Gran Canaria have been under orders to self-isolate for 14 days since last week, when they joined the Spanish mainland on the UK's red travel list. Madrid's tourism minister, Reyes Maroto, said this morning that her government had sent Boris Johnson's administration fresh data that showed it was safe to restart quarantine-free travel to both sets of islands. Such a move would provide a boost for the thousands of Brits with holidays in the islands already booked but afraid that quarantine will affect their jobs on their return. But No10 dashed hopes of a swift change this afternoon, with the PM's spokesman saying there was no change to the quarantine advice. He told reporters that 'were some challenges in trying to look at this on a regionalised basis' and made a decision 'based on looking closely at the data'. That suggests that the island chains are likely to remain under quarantine until it is lifted on the Spanish mainland. Spain is leading Western Europe's major countries with an average of 60 coronavirus cases per 100,000 inhabitants. While the country's south and the Canary and Balearic islands remain in good shape, the regions of Navarra, Aragon, and Catalonia have registered more than 120 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over a 14-day period. This makes Spain's northeast the biggest European hot spot along with parts of Romania, according to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control. Spanish Tourism and Industry Minister, Reyes Maroto, pictured in Madrid, Spain, 30 May 2020 Tourists in Benidorm last week, who are now subject to quarantine restrictions when they return to the UK British Citizens arrive at the Malaga-Costa del Sol Airport after the UK imposed a quarantine on all travellers from Spain Travellers could lose their holidays AND cash as airlines refuse to cancel flights to Spain Airlines are refusing to cancel flights to Spain despite the Government advising against all but essential travel. The move means hundreds of thousands of British families are in limbo and at risk of losing thousands of pounds. It also puts the airline industry at odds with the Government because it is ignoring a public safety edict. The Government issued the travel warning after the emergence of a second wave of coronavirus in parts of Spain. Customers would normally expect travel firms to cancel the flights and offer refunds. But all the major carriers, which have suffered massive losses after the collapse of air travel, continue to offer the flights. This means families will potentially lose their holidays and their money. Advertisement In an interview with La Sexta television, Ms Maroto said the islands have a 'low incidence rate' and that the UK should review its conditions for travel. 'It is a decision of the British authorities, but we have given them all the arguments so that they can trust that their tourists are safe in Spanish destinations,' she said. 'If it is not the decision we expect, we will continue working with them. 'For us, the best news is to have the destination open with the United Kingdom, which is our main issuing market. 'We have the best protocols and are highly valued by the tourists themselves, who have transferred to their government that they feel safe in Spain. ' Last week, moments after the FCO hardened its stance on travel to Spain - forcing Britons returning to self-quarantine for two weeks. It prompted prime minister Pedro Sanchez to blast the restrictions as 'unjust', claiming tourists would be safer in his country than the UK. Tourists braced to enter quarantine spoke of their worries that the fortnight self-isolation could cost them paid work. It also struck fear in Spain, who felt the move could cut-off the country's summer-holiday season. An exclusive poll conducted by MailOnline revealed that a quarter of Britons were planning to alter their holiday plans after the shock decision to reimpose quarantine restrictions on Spain. Some 25 per cent said they were considering changes and more than a third (34 per cent) said they were now less likely to book a foreign holiday at all amid fears that other popular destinations could follow in having punitive restrictions put in place. Holidaymakers were given just five hours notice on Saturday night that those returning from Spain would have to self-isolate for 14 days following a spike in cases. On June 22, the day after Spain ended a national state of emergency and restored free movement around the country, the health ministry registered 125 new cases in 24 hours. Six weeks later, the daily count has jumped, hitting 1,525 on Friday. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has claimed that tourists are safer in his country than the UK. These are the worst coronavirus hotspots in each country and the number of coronavirus cases per 100,000 people The Spanish government and Britain's travel industry trade body, the Association of British Travel Agents, argue it is not necessary for the Canaries and Balearics to be included in the quarantine, pointing out that infection rates on these islands are low How do the worst infected areas in Spain compare to the UK? According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) over the last two weeks Spain has 35.1 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. This compares to 14.7 for the UK and 14.6 for nearby France. The three worst affected areas in the UK currently are Blackburn with Darwen, Leicester and Oldham. Blackburn with Darwen which has a rate of 75.2 per 100,000 people which is currently worst in the UK. Leicester, which currently has a government imposed local lockdown, has 56 per 100,000 and Oldham has 50.5 per 100,000. Spain also has specific areas that are seeing spikes in coronavirus cases, with the region of Catalonia particularly badly affected and well as Aragon and Navarre. The current rate for Aragon is 160.1 cases per 100,000, which is significantly higher than any region in the UK. Navarre has 79.2 cases per 100,000 and Catalonia has 63.1 cases per 100,000. The data is from the data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control). Advertisement Sanchez criticised the government's sudden decision to force Britons returning from Spain to stay at home for two weeks and called on the government to reconsider its decision. Tourists braced to enter quarantine are worried the fortnight self-isolating could cost them paid work and there are fears the newly-imposed rules could kill off the summer holiday season. Speaking moments after the Foreign Office hardened its stance and advised against non-essential travel to the whole of Spain, including the Balearic Islands and Canary Islands, Mr Sanchez told Spanish TV station Telecinco on Monday night: 'I think the UK's decision is an incorrect one. 'Spain is made up of a number of regions that have a cumulative rate of contagion that is lower than the European average as well as the UK average. 'The Spanish tourist industry has acted very responsibly over the past few months and has transferred a message of security with regards to the health emergency we are experiencing. 'It's true that on a global level the coronavirus pandemic continues to show a very worrying development and at European level as well, but in Spain the spread of the virus is not occurring in a uniform way. 'Sixty-two per cent of the new cases are occurring in two regions but in the majority of the country, the cumulative incidence of the virus is lower than the European average and the UK average.' Under proposals being fine-tuned by Matt Hancock, returning travellers who test negative eight days after they land will be given the green light to break quarantine early two days later. The additional two days is a buffer in case any symptoms arise, according to the Daily Telegraph which first revealed the planned reduction. A source told MailOnline that trimming the quarantine period from 14 days to 10 is a 'live discussion'. Mr Sanchez added: 'We are talking to the British authorities to try to get them to reconsider a decision which we think is mistaken if we take into account the epidemiological situation in Spain as a whole and specifically some of our tourist areas such as the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands as well as the Valencian Community or Andalucia. 'In epidemiological terms, it would be safer to be in these areas than in the UK. 'We are going to carry on talking because we are friends and we have many commercial and economic links as well as geopolitical links. 'Rather than reproaches what we have to do is try and find a point of equilibrium that above all involves the UK making its decision based on the cumulative evolution of the virus in these regions which are tourist areas.' It comes after the government extended travel restrictions to the Spanish islands and warned that other holiday destinations could follow. The Foreign Office is now warning against 'all but essential' travel to the Balearics and Canaries, having already done so for the mainland. Travel firm Jet2 responded to yesterday's diktat by cancelling flights to all Spanish destinations and told passengers not to go to the airport. Downing Street warned: 'Unfortunately no travel is risk-free during this pandemic.' Sources said there were 'no immediate plans' to change travel and quarantine advice to other countries. But Croatia and Belgium are thought to be of concern, and ministers are also monitoring France and Germany. The Vietnamese delegation was led by Le Hoai Trung, Deputy Foreign Minister and Chairman of the Vietnam - Cambodia Joint Committee on Border Demarcation and Marker Planting, while the Cambodian delegation was headed by Var Kim Hong, Senior Minister in charge of border affairs and Chairman of the Cambodia - Vietnam Joint Committee on Border Demarcation and Marker Planting. The two sides examined and agreed all 500 sets of border topographic maps, including 250 sets in Vietnamese - Khmer languages and 250 others in Khmer - Vietnamese languages with all signatures of the two countries' relevant authorities. Each side keeps 250 sets of original maps. The maps are part of the Vietnam - Cambodia land border demarcation protocol signed on October 5, 2019 along with the supplementary treaty to the 1985 Treaty on the Delimitation of National Boundaries and the 2005 Supplementary Treaty. The event laid an important foundation for both sides to hold a ceremony to exchange the document approving the validity of the supplementary treaty to the 1985 Treaty on the Delimitation of National Boundaries and the 2005 Supplementary Treaty, and the Vietnam - Cambodia land border demarcation protocol. Both sides agreed to inform each other about schedule for the ceremony via diplomatic channels after the two Governments end measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. A shooting Sunday afternoon in Newark left at least two men wounded by gunfire and a young child injured, authorities said. The two shooting victims suffered non-life threatening injuries from the attack in the 200 block of 6th Avenue, according to Newark Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose. The child was not shot, but possibly struck by an unspecified ricochet object to her leg, Ambrose said. Police responded to the gunfire around 4 p.m. Authorities did not immediately release more details. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. A man alleged to be a quack has been booked for issuing fake Covid-19 test reports to migrant labourers for 1,500. PS Gulati of Field Gunj was booked after a local resident recorded conversations with him and tipped off the Division Number 2 police. He was issuing fake Covid-19 test reports to migrant labourers wanting to travel to other states. After being booked he also handed over to police documents certifying negative Covid status which were believed to be fake. Assistant commissioner of police (central) Waryam Singh said a case had been registered against Gulati after investigations. The police also informed the health department about the quack and asked that his degrees be checked and action taken against him. The certificates issued by the accused were fake, Waryam Singh added. Ruby Ibarra is almost a modern day Hannah Montana. By day, shes a scientist at a Bay Area biotech company, working in the quality-control department on COVID-19 test kits and yes, even a vaccine. But by night, shes an up-and-coming hip-hop artist, performing sold-out shows with her band of eight, the Balikbayans (well, at least she used to in the Before Times; now all her performances take place online). Unlike Miley Cyrus sneakily wig-swapping character, however, she hasnt kept her double life a secret. At first, I tried not to make it a point but because of some opportunities that Ive been fortunate to be part of, like a commercial or some TV interviews, coworkers would randomly find it on TV, said Ibarra over the phone from her home in Hayward, where she is sheltering in place with her fiance. Theyd be like, Wait, is that you? and tell other people. For her, hip-hop and science have always been simultaneous. Shes been rapping since age 13, but knowing the financial reality of the music industry, she wanted a stable career to fall back on. Plus, she actually likes her day job: Outside of music, I've always been interested in science, because it pretty much explains how the world works, she said. While her coworkers have been supportive, even purchasing her last album, Circa91, when it dropped in 2017, many fans have remained unaware of her career in science. Recently, she took to Twitter to talk about it in an attempt to educate her followers about the pandemic. ... during this pandemic, Ive been paranoid af. I wear a mask, gloves, and spray down everything at work with bleach and alcohol , Ibarra shared on Twitter. It really annoys me to know that folks still takin this sht lightly or dont believe the virus is real or dont wear masks. If you get sick, even if ur asymptomatic IT AFFECTS OTHERS. Stop opening businesses and schools! This st is real. RELATED: '02 to infinity: 18-year-old Jwalt could be Oakland's next hip-hop star Courtesy of Ruby Ibarra Being so close to the virus and other people at her job, Ibarra takes safety measures extremely seriously. When I get home from work, I usually go straight to the bathroom, put all my clothes that I wore to work in a bag, and then I take a shower, she explained. I pretty much have to do the laundry multiple times throughout the week. When I ask Ibarra how she really feels when she sees people not wearing masks or social distancing, she takes a deep breath and laughs a little. I'll try to say this in a more calm way, and not be my usual pissed self about it, she said. But it really is upsetting and alarming whenever I go out in public and I see people without masks. As someone with nearly 50,000 Instagram followers, Ibarra feels a responsibility to speak out on topics where she might have an influence not just about taking the pandemic seriously, but also social justice issues. Recently on social media, Ibarra has been outspoken about the Black Lives Matter movement, and recent political and social developments happening in the Philippines, where she was born. Topics like these find their way into her music, too. On '90s hip-hop-inspired Circa91 (whose title refers to the year her family moved to America), she addresses topics including the patriarchy, colorism in the Philippines and the challenges her parents faced as new immigrants. With sharp lyricism and a rhythmic, multisyllabic flow, she switches effortlessly between rapping in English, Tagalog and Waray, a dialect native to her hometown. Donna Ibarra RELATED: Legendary drummer Sheila E. talks Bay Area upbringing ahead of benefit showcase for Oakland schools Ive always been a firm believer in that if you have a platform, you should definitely use it to your advantage and make sure that you're speaking for the people who feel like they don't have a voice, said Ibarra. Seeing how police brutality and racial inequality in general still continues to thrive, especially in this country, that's alerted me to recognize that these are all still very important things to talk about in my music ... If I can be an artist that can help start the dialogue for these conversations, Im more than willing to take that on. While quarantining, Ibarra is working on her sophomore album (which is definitely influenced by this years social issues), convening with her band members over Zoom and swapping home studio-recorded demos. Whether shes composing rap verses, decked out in full PPE at the laboratory, binging anime on Netflix, or pining for Korean barbecue, a memory of one of the last shows before shelter in place helps her soldier on. She and her band performed back-to-back, sold-out shows at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles back in February. Being able to be in a space as big as the Getty Museum with people that I admire and adore, like my band, and being able to perform our hearts out with the music that we love , she said, reminiscing. It's definitely going to be something I'll remember forever, and something I'll keep reflecting back on throughout this year just to keep me going. Madeline Wells is an SFGATE reporter. Email: madeline.wells@sfgate.com | Twitter: @madwells22 Riga City, Latvia -- (SBWIRE) -- 08/03/2020 -- The explosion of internet use over the last five years has changed the complete dynamics of the education ecosystem worldwide. Traditional "brick and mortar" educational platforms are now facing the heat with the growing penetration of self-paced eLearning professional courses. eLearning has helped education expand behind the confined boundaries of a classroom. Besides, it also facilitates the innovative use of technology and the sharing of ideas among students all across the globe. The current eLearning global market is expanding in the form of live online learning or self-paced learning. Currently valued at over USD 107 billion, the global eLearning market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18% over the next five years. While the U.S. and Europe grab a major share of the global eLearning market today, Asia is likely to leapfrog ahead of them over the next decade. Bitszcoin is committed to being a part of the digital education revolution in Asia and Africa. The wide expansion of Digital Learning Sector in Asia and Africa Some of Asia's biggest economies like India has seen a massive explosion in internet users over the last five years. The increasing internet penetration has provided a major boost to Asia's digital learning sector. As per ResearchAndMarkets.com India's digital learning market will grow tenfold in the period between 2019-2024 with an average CAGR growth of ~43.85%. Valued at INR 39 billion in 2018, the sector will grow to INR 360 billion by 2024. Online learning can't be regarded as the absolute replacement to physical classroom education, however, it helps to fill all the necessary gaps in the existing education system. Online learning is rather a low cost affair due to no barriers of physical infrastructure and geopolitical challenges. Asia has major leverage of its demographic dividend with a majority of the population falling in the 'youth' bracket. Thus, with the world set to embrace next-generation technologies, there lies an immense untapped opportunity in the digital learning market of Asia and Africa. It will also help to set the foundation and prepare the youth for jobs over the coming decade. Opportunities and Limitations In Digital Learning Market of Asia and Africa The high level of internet penetration and Asia's huge demographic dividend provides a massive market for digital learning. Some key Asia players and even global learning platforms like SkillShare have already tested the waters with Asia's digital learning market. Asia is focused on expanding its digital infrastructure and embrace next-generation technologies like 5G. There's also a demand for bringing Quality Global Education to big Asian economies like India, and the fastest way is digital. To make the Asian and African youth capable of next-generation jobs, the regional governments plans to provide digital training to 500 million people by 2022. There's also a growing demand for online certification in the continent. However, along with these massive opportunities, there are a few challenges down the road. The major challenge is the shift in mindset as people still doubt the credibility of online education. There's also a lack of awareness and content quality remains vernacular. A major transition and curriculum update is required shifting from old syllabus to adopting next-generation learning. Some major changes are required on the regulatory front to promote the digital way of learning. Segments of online test preparation remain largely regulated and reduce the autonomy of private players, ultimately resulting in operational challenges. Gamification of Learning and Training Making digital learning more engaging and interesting, Bitszcoin aims to leverage the latest trend of gamifying learning techniques through digital mediums. This process keeps participants motivated and improves their learning engagement. Gamifying the learning process helps the creators to make it more interactive and keeps the participants hooked. Some local players like Byjus and Khan Academy are already moving in this direction. The gamification-of-training industry is itself said to be worth more than $10 billion USD. Similarly, the simulation-based learning market also holds massive potential. About Bitszcoin Bitszcoin is the first cryptocurrency with the aim to promote online education. The platform promotes digital learning and online certification and options wide options for students looking to enter traditional and non-traditional fields. Bitszcoin is already conducting its token sale which will end by September 2020. Users can buy their Bitszcoin during the ongoing ICO at a rate of $0.066 per BITSZ coin. Post the ICO this September 2020, Bitszcoin aims to list the BITSZ cryptocurrency on a minimum of five exchanges. Later, it also plans to list it on the popular crypto index CoinMarketCap. About Cryptoshib Criptoshib tries to keep crypto enthusiasts updated with the latest happenings and stories from the crypto world. We try to post stories about projects and people of the crypto and blockchain communities from around the world. Media Contact https://cryptoshib.com/bitszcoin-elearning-education-asia-africa/ Below please find summaries of new articles that will be published in the next issue of Annals of Internal Medicine. The summaries are not intended to substitute for the full articles as a source of information. This information is under strict embargo and by taking it into possession, media representatives are committing to the terms of the embargo not only on their own behalf, but also on behalf of the organization they represent. 1. Canakinumab shows promise for treatment of large joint osteoarthritis Abstract: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/M20-0527 Editorial: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/M20-4938 URL goes live when the embargo lifts An exploratory analysis of data from the CANTOS (Canakinumab Anti-inflammatory Thrombosis Outcomes Study) randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled trial found that patients receiving interleukin-1 (IL-1) inhibitors had significantly lower rates of total hip or total knee replacements over an average follow up of 3.7 years. These findings are important, as no treatments currently exist that can either prevent or slow progression of osteoarthritis. The study is published in Annals of Internal Medicine. In the CANTOS trial, more than 10,000 patients with elevated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels and a history of myocardial infarction were randomly assigned canakinumab or placebo injections every 3 months for up to 5 years to determine the cardiovascular effects. Cardiovascular event rates fell among participants receiving a higher dose range of canakinumab, with the greatest magnitude of effect accruing among those with the most robust reductions in hs-CRP and IL-6. CANTOS, therefore, provided the researchers with a unique opportunity to explore the effects of IL-1 -targeted therapy versus placebo on incidence rates of total hip or total knee replacement surgeries. In their analysis, researchers from the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR), University of Leeds and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School found that the combined incidence rates for total hip or total knew replacements were 40 to 47 percent lower with canakinumab treatment, with all canakinumab doses reducing the number of joint replacements similarly. The reduction in joint replacements among patients who received canakinumab versus the placebo group became apparent after only one year of treatment and remained statistically significant when CANTOS participants with a history of crystalline or inflammatory arthritis were excluded. However, the authors provide a cautionary note that the number of women in the trial was relatively low, while knee osteoarthritis is a disease that predominates in older women. According to the authors of an accompanying editorial from the UC Davis Health, the results of this analysis are both unexpected and exciting. The investigators used elevated hs-CRP level as an entry criterion, and may have identified a subgroup of persons with osteoarthritis in whom inflammatory cytokines activate pathways that accelerate joint degeneration. The authors also note that joint replacement is a robust endpoint and one that might be adapted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for evaluating disease-modifying osteoarthritis drugs. Media contacts: For an embargoed PDF please contact Lauren Evans at laevans@acponline.org. The lead author, Paul M Ridker, MD, can be reached at pridker@bwh.harvard.edu. The lead author of the editorial, Nancy Lane, MD, can be reached through Charles Casey at cecasey@UCDAVIS.EDU. 2. Statin toxicity could occur when rosuvastatin and canagliflozin are prescribed together Abstract: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/L20-0549 URL goes live when the embargo lifts Physicians should be aware that canagliflozin could cause rosuvastatin toxicity when the two drugs are prescribed together. This is an important finding because these drugs are taken by millions of patients worldwide and are increasingly prescribed together. The first report of an interaction between these two drugs is published in Annals of Internal Medicine. Rosuvastatin is a commonly prescribed statin and canagliflozin is one of a newer class of diabetes drugs, the sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors. It is common for patients with diabetes to also take a statin. In fact, the American College of Cardiology currently recommends adding an SGLT2 inhibitor, such as canagliflozin, to the regimens of patients with diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Researchers from the University of Toronto describe the case of a patient who was hospitalized with severe rosuvastatin toxicity (manifesting as muscle damage and inability to walk) 2 weeks after starting canagliflozin. Although she had taken rosuvastatin uneventfully for more than 5 years, her blood rosuvastatin concentration when she arrived at the hospital was 15 times higher than expected for her dose. The authors speculate that canagliflozin caused rosuvastatin toxicity by increasing rosuvastatin absorption, and by reducing its elimination by the liver and kidney. The authors encourage clinicians to remain vigilant for features of myotoxicity when canagliflozin and rosuvastatin are co-prescribed. Media contacts: For an embargoed PDF please contact Lauren Evans at laevans@acponline.org. To speak with the lead author, David Juurlink, MD, PhD, please contact Monica Matys at Monica.Matys@sunnybrook.ca. 3. Clinicians go 'Beyond the Guidelines' to debate management of advanced kidney disease in a patient with dementia Annals Beyond the Guidelines discussions are based on real Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Grand Rounds Abstract: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/M20-2640 URL goes live when the embargo lifts In a new Annals 'Beyond the Guideline's feature, clinicians discuss appropriate care for an 85-year-old with advanced kidney disease and dementia. This is an important discussion, as chronic kidney disease (CKD) is more common in persons older than 65 years, which is also an age when coexisting conditions are likely to be present. The grand rounds presentation and accompanying videos are published in Annals of Internal Medicine. Sushrut S. Waikar, MD, MPH, is Chief of the Section of Nephrology as well as the Norman G. Levinsky Professor of Medicine at Boston University. Dr. Waikar suggests that in-patient hemodialysis may be the best option for this patient, as it might improve symptoms of uremia, and may be more compatible with the patient's living situation than in-home dialysis. Dr. Waikar recognizes that dialysis may not provide a survival benefit to the patient. For the same reason, Dr. Waikar does not recommend kidney transplantation. Melissa W. Wachterman, MD, MPH, MSc, holds joint appointments in General Medicine at VA Boston Healthcare System and Brigham and Women's Hospital and in the Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. She is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Wachterman believes that the care of patients with advanced kidney disease should be tailored to the individual patient based on their values, preferences, and goals rather than conceptualized as a dichotomous choice between conventional "one size fits all" dialysis and conservative management in which symptom management is limited to non-dialytic interventions. Based on the conversation with the patient's family about what matters most to the patient, Dr. Wachterman recommends a conservative management approach, while also noting that if the patient develops bothersome symptoms that do not respond to conservative interventions, they can discuss a trial of dialysis would potentially improve his quality of life. All 'Beyond the Guidelines' papers are based on the Department of Medicine Grand Rounds at BIDMC in Boston and include print, video, and educational components. A list of topics is available at http://www.annals.org/grandrounds. Media contacts: For an embargoed PDF please contact Lauren Evans at laevans@acponline.org. To speak with author, Melissa W. Wachterman, MD, MPH, MSc, please contact Kendra McKinnon at kmckinn1@bidmc.harvard.edu. Also in this issue: Health Professionals, Violence, and Social Change Garen Wintemute, MD, MPH Ideas & Opinions Abstract: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/M20-4411 In The Clinic: COPD Update Wassim W. Labaki, MD, MS; Sharon R. Rosenberg, MD, MS In The Clinic Abstract: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/AITC202008040 ### Chennai: Strongly backing Tamil Nadu's decades old two-language policy, the ruling AIADMK in the state on Monday rejected the Centre's three-language formula proposed in the new National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and said there will be no deviation from the existing system. "The three-language formula in the NEP is painful and saddening. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) should reconsider the three-language policy," Palaniswami said. Taking strong exception to the proposal, he said in a statement the state has been following the two-language policy for several decades and that there will be no change in it. His assertion came amidst opposition demand, including from DMK, that the government should reject the three-language formula proposed in NEP and stick to its two-language policy. Incidentally, ahead of today's meeting he convened to discuss the matter with his senior cabinet colleagues, the Opposition bloc led by DMK wrote to the chief minister, asking him to adopt a Cabinet resolution against the new NEP. "Tamil Nadu will never allow the Centre's three- language formula. The state will continue with its dual language policy (of Tamil and English)," Palaniswami said. He discussed the matter with his colleagues--Deputy CM O Panneerselvam, Ministers for higher education and school education, K P Anbalagan and K A Sengottaiyan, respectively and others. The Centre should allow the states to implement their own policy on the subject, he said, adding there will be no change to the two-language formula which the state had adopted decades ago. Teaching up to class 5 in mother tongue or regional language and lowering the stakes of board exams are part of the sweeping reforms in the new NEP unveiled last week by the Centre. However, the proposals have found resistance from the DMK-led opposition in the state, with the Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, MK Stalin, dubbing it as an attempt to "impose" Hindi and Sankrit. The anti-Hindi movement of the 1960s taken forward by the DMK had struck an instant chord among the Tamil masses then and is believed to be one of the key reasons for the Dravidian party storming to power in the 1967 elections under the late CN Annadurai, unseating a Congress government in the state for the first time in post-independent India. Palaniswami further said the state has been maintaining a consistent stand and that for about 80 years, the people of Tamil Nadu had been firm on two language policy. Late chief ministers Annadurai, MG Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa were firmly against 'imposition' of Hindi. He also recalled the historic resolution brought in the Tamil Nadu Assembly by late Annadurai on January 23, 1968, which proposed to abolish the three language policy in all schools in the state, removing Hindi from the State syllabus but allowing only Tamil and English. Later, the AIADMK government led M G Ramachandran had in 1986 adopted an Assembly resolution asserting the two language policy. Former chief minister J Jayalalithaa too was firm on opposing Hindi on non-Hindi speaking states and in thwarting such efforts and wanted Tamil to be declared as an official language of the country, he said. Palaniswami pointed out he himself had written to the Prime Minister in June 2019 stressing on two-language policy. Besides, he had reiterated this in his Independence Day address last year and on various occasions during the debates in the state Assembly, he recalled. Meanwhile, the Opposition DMK led alliance in Tamil Nadu--comprising the Congress, MDMK, VCK, CPM, CPI and MMK, collectively wrote a letter to Palaniswami asking him to pass a resolution against the new NEP in the Tamil Nadu Cabinet meeting. Many clauses in the new policy are trying to impose "Hindi" and "Sanskrit" and are "trying to do away with Tamil from the system, and this is against federalism, women rights and social justice. It was also "imposing" vedic culture, besides being mum on reservation, it said. "The NEP should be opposed in the initial stages itself," the letter added. Later, Stalin, in a Facebook post, thanked Palaniswami for the government stand on the matter. The NEP, passed by the Union Cabinet last week, laid emphasis on the mother tongue/local and regional language which will now be the medium of instruction at least till Class 5, but preferably till Class 8 and beyond. Also, Sanskrit will be offered at all levels of school and higher education as an option for students, including in the three-language formula. Chief Services Officer Recognized by Cyber Defense Magazine for Inspiring Customer-Obsessed Culture HOUSTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Alert Logic today announced that Sydna Kelley has been designated as a winner among the Top 100 Women in Cybersecurity by Cyber Defense Magazine during Black Hat USA 2020. This prestigious awards category recognizes and honors the industry's most respected and accomplished women in cybersecurity. As chief services officer, Sydna has elevated Alert Logic's focus on customer success through her commitment to operational excellence. She implemented a new, hyper-focused success operations practice, consolidating four teams into a new organization with a unified vision of relentless customer obsession. "Sydna is an exceptional business leader with immense passion for cultivating highly engaged, outcome-driven service delivery teams," said Bob Lyons, CEO, Alert Logic. "She exemplifies excellence by ensuring our customers and partners can count on Alert Logic to be their trusted advisor. We are thrilled for Sydna that she has received this well-deserved industry recognition." Sydna has spent more than 20 years streamlining operational efficiencies, eliminating waste, and creating scalable business models for disruptive and emerging companies. Her leadership has resulted in exponential valuation increases and acquisitions. She has held a variety of executive technology roles, including at Ascend Learning, Pfizer, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, and Freightquote.com. "It is truly an honor to be included on this prestigious list of highly accomplished and impressive women in cybersecurity," said Kelley. "Every day I think about how we can exceed the expectations of the thousands of Alert Logic customers and partners we serve, and I'm so proud of all the amazingly talented team members that make it possible to fulfill our promise of delivering unrivaled security value." About Alert Logic Alert Logic is the industry's first SaaS-enabled managed detection and response (MDR) provider, delivering unrivaled security value. Since no level of investment prevents or blocks 100% of attacks, you need to continuously identify and address breaches or gaps before they cause real damage. With limited budget and expertise, this level of security can seem out of reach. Our purpose-built technology and team of MDR security experts protect your organization and empower you to resolve whatever threats may come. Founded in 2002, Alert Logic is headquartered in Houston, Texas, with offices in Austin, Cardiff, London, and Cali, Colombia, and online at alertlogic.com. Alert Logic - our knowledge is your advantage. Alert Logic is a registered trademark of Alert Logic, Inc. All other trademarks listed herein are owned by their respective companies. About Cyber Defense Awards This is Cyber Defense Magazine's 8th year of honoring cybersecurity innovators, in this case the Black Unicorn Awards for 2020 on our Cyber Defense Awards platform. In this competition, judges for these prestigious awards includes cybersecurity industry veterans, trailblazers and market makers Gary Miliefsky of CDMG, Robert R. Ackerman Jr. of Allegis Cyber and David DeWalt of NightDragon with much appreciation to emeritus judge Robert Herjavec of Herjavec Group. To see the complete list of Top 100 Women in Cybersecurity for 2020 please visit https://cyberdefenseawards.com/top-100-women-in-cybersecurity-for-2020. About Cyber Defense Magazine Cyber Defense Magazine was founded in 2012 by Gary S. Miliefsky, globally recognized cyber security thought leader, inventor and entrepreneur and continues to be the premier source of IT Security information. We are managed and published by and for ethical, honest, passionate information security professionals. Our mission is to share cutting-edge knowledge, real-world stories and awards on the best ideas, products and services in the information technology industry. We deliver electronic magazines every month online for free, and limited print editions exclusively for the RSA, Black Hat and IPEXPO conferences and our limited edition paid reprint subscribers. Learn more about us at http://www.cyberdefensemagazine.com. Cyber Defense Magazine is a proud member of the Cyber Defense Media Group. For Alert Logic Inquiries: Christine Blake Public Relations W2 Communications 703-877-8114 Christine@w2comm.com Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/882591/Alert_Logic_Logo.jpg The new year has seen an increase in motor vehicle larceny in the central division with the FORT LAUDERDALE They didnt crack open and spew toxic gas. They didnt grow into flesh-eating Venus flytraps. And beanstalks didnt shoot into the sky. Those mysterious seeds that thousands of people across Florida and elsewhere found in their mailboxes in packages marked with Chinese characters were tested last week by the United States Department of Agriculture. Despite rumors that they could be agents of bioterrorism, it turns out theyre, well, run-of-the-mill seeds. Mustard, cabbage, morning glory, mint, sage, rosemary, lavender, hibiscus, and rose were among the varieties identified by the USDAs Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. Testing continues on thousands of samples turned in by recipients, but so far the USDA hasnt found evidence indicating that the deliveries were anything other than a scam by online retailers to pump up their e-commerce seller ratings. In the so-called brushing scam, online merchants send unsolicited packages of inexpensive goods to homes that are then logged by the merchants as verified customers. The scheme makes the sellers look more successful than they actually are. The USDA is still warning residents not to plant the seeds because some might be invasive or carry seed-borne viruses or other diseases. Recipients should avoid opening the packages but hold onto them and contact their state agriculture regulators for collection and testing. Alarm over the seeds spread across the nation in recent weeks, prompting warnings from the USDA and state agriculture officials. In Florida, the states Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services said it received at least 1,209 reports from residents who said they found unsolicited packages in their mailboxes. Some of the packages were imprinted with Chinese characters and the words China Post. Some packages were labeled as jewelry. Objects other than seeds, including spoons and forks, were inside some of the unsolicited packages, state officials said in a news release. Story continues Unopened packages and packages containing objects other than seeds should be reported immediately to the USDA Anti-Smuggling hotline at 1-800-877-3835 or by email at SITC.mail@aphis.usda.gov. Opened packages containing seeds should be reported to the states Division of Plant Industry by emailing FDACS.gov/SeedByMail. Recipients will be given the option of bringing the package to their local extension agents office or scheduling a pickup by a state agriculture department inspector. 2020 Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) Visit the Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) at www.sun-sentinel.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. A Kurdish group from Iran said Iranian forces struck its positions in Iraq today. The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan said Irans elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) fired missiles at their bases in a mountainous area near the border. There was material damage but no casualties, the party said in a tweet today. The attack took place in the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraqs Erbil province in an area close to the border with Iran. Iranian drones fired artillery shells at the group, according to Rudaw, the Kurdish news outlet in Iraq. Some Kurdish groups from Iran base themselves in remote areas of Iraqi Kurdistan near the Iran border. Iran sometimes strikes their positions. The most recent strike came in June when Iran shelled Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan fighters at the same time Turkey conducted operations against the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in Iraq. Iranian forces have been targeted in the conflict as well. In May, an unknown group ambushed IRGC soldiers in the Kurdistan province in western Iran. The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, PKK affiliates and other Kurdish groups fight for greater Kurdish autonomy within Iran. Their grievances include the execution of Kurdish political prisoners in the country. Moody's has upgraded YES Bank's long-term foreign and local currency bank deposit ratings to B3 from Caa1, following its equity capital raise of Rs 15,000 crore. The private sector lender's long-term foreign and local currency bank deposit ratings have been revised to B3 from Caa1, and foreign currency senior unsecured MTN program ratings have also been upgraded to (P) B3 from (P) Caa1, Moody's Investors Service said in a statement on Monday. The outlook on the ratings, where applicable, has been changed to stable from positive. "YES Bank's successful equity capital raise of Rs 15,000 crore (about $2 billion) has bolstered its solvency and is the main driver of the ratings upgrade.The successful equity raising showcases YES Bank's regained access to external market funds, which is a result of its improving financial strength and will support depositor confidence," Moody's said. YES Bank's follow-on public offer (FPO) to raise Rs 15,000 crore was subscribed 93 per cent on the final day of bidding. The bank had targeted to raise Rs 15,000 crore with help from SBI Capital. "Moody's also says, "as the bank's operations normalise the extraordinary government support will reduce. As a result, Moody's expects to lower support assumption in YES Bank's rating to moderate from high, as currently assumed, in line with the level assumed for Yes Bank's other Indian peers. A change in the support assumption to moderate may result in a one notch uplift to the bank's ratings." Moody's also said that it expects it will be challenging for the bank to restore its low-cost current and savings account (CASA) deposits to pre-March 2020 rescue levels.Also read: Sovereign Gold Bond V Series opens for subscription: All you need to know Also read: Personal health IDs, e-records, doctors' registry part of Centre's digital health ecosystem plan Astronaut Andrew Morgan took to Twitter on Wednesday as he shared the images of the California wildfires burning north of the Bay area from the International Space Station. Image Source: IANS News San Francisco, Aug 3 : More than 1,300 firefighters, backed by helicopters and water-dumping planes, were battling a massive wildfire in Southern California that has forced thousands of people from their homes east of Los Angeles. Dubbed "Apple Fire", the state's first major wildfire of the year began on July 31 as two adjacent blazes in Cherry Valley, an area near the city of Beaumont in Riverside County, reports the BBC. It has since stretched out to 20,516 acres, San Bernadino National Forest said in a tweet on Sunday. Parts of the blaze are on steep, rugged hillsides, making it hard for fire engines to reach. Around 8,000 residents have been asked to evacuate the area. Images show flumes of smoke filling the sky over the mountainous region. In a tweet, the National Weather Service said some smoke had blown east to Phoenix, Arizona - nearly 482 km away. The government body said the blaze had been fuelled by high temperatures, low humidity and dry vegetation in the area. The US Forest Service told the Riverside Press-Enterprise, a local newspaper, that because the fire was on rugged terrain, it was dangerous for firefighters to try and surround it. "We don't want to put fire-fighters in a dangerous situation," said spokesperson Lisa Cox. "It's burning in a straight line up a mountain." California Governor Gavin Newsom announced on Sunday that the state has secured a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help ensure the availability of resources to fight the wildfire, reports the Los Angeles Times. The grant will also assist local and state agencies responding to the fire to apply for reimbursements for up to 75% of fire suppression costs. By John J. Metzler Its very name, Hagia Sophia, evokes the ancient mysteries of Byzantium. Its setting along the Golden Horn on the majestic Bosphorus joining Europe and Asia in itself serves as a beacon for uniting world religions. Yet this magnificent church which has weathered the march of time and the shift of empires has now fallen victim to a very contemporary crisis; a crass political/religious move by Turkey's authoritarian leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan to again turn the historic structure into a mosque. Constructed in 537 A.D. by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian on the site of a church built by the Roman Emperor Constantine, Hagia Sophia became a revered symbol of Christianity in Constantinople. In 1453, when the Ottomans captured the city, the sultan ordered the church's transformation into a mosque. But nearly five centuries later, Hagia Sophia's status changed yet again in 1934 when Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern secular Turkey, converted the shrine into a museum to be shared by all faiths. Hagia Sophia, Holy Wisdom in Greek, remains the grande dame of Eastern Christendom in Istanbul, the pulsating metropolis on the crossroads of Europe and Asia Minor. The iconic 1,500-year-old structure with its massive domes, vaulted ceilings, golden mosaics, and surrounded by four minarets added by the Muslim conquerors five centuries ago, awes onlookers. Now the fates and Turkey's President Erdogan deemed that the structure return to Islam. Erdogan claims that Turkey had exercised its sovereign right: "After 86 years, Hagia Sophia will serve as a mosque again." Indeed the secular opposition party that controls Istanbul has described Erdogan's true intent as political rather than religious. World renowned Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk told the BBC, "Kemal Ataturk changed Hagia Sophia from a mosque to a museum, honoring all previous Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic history, making it a sign of Turkish modern secularism." Ataturk's political vision rested on dual pillars: Turkish nationalism and secularism. Of course President Erdogan is playing a populist game by appealing to the overwhelming Muslim Turkish majority. Serious economic setbacks from the COVID-19 pandemic, not to mention growing political opposition to his authoritarian style and policies, make playing the religious card a clever tactic especially among the rural Anatolian populace. But beyond pushback from many secular Turks there's a growing global consensus that Erdogan has upset a delicate balance of politics and faith in Turkey. A sermon by Ali Erbas, the chief of the powerful Presidency of Religious Affairs the Diyanet, implicitly cursed the republic's founder Kemal Ataturk for having turned the former mosque into a museum. Opposition parties accused Erbas of targeting the revered Ataturk. Pope Francis in Rome has shown his anguish saying his "thoughts go to Istanbul" and "I think of Santa Sophia and I am very pained." Patriarch Bartholomew of the Eastern Orthodox Church warned that the conversion of the sacred site would fracture two worlds. Notably the Russian Orthodox Church decried the move. UNESCO deeply regrets the decision of the Turkish authorities, made without prior discussion, to change the status of Hagia Sophia which is inscribed on the World Heritage List. "Hagia Sophia is an architectural masterpiece and a unique testimony to interactions between Europe and Asia over the centuries. Its status as a museum reflects the universal nature of its heritage, and makes it a powerful symbol for dialogue," said Director-General Audrey Azoulay. Hagia Sophia is located in old Istanbul near the magnificent Blue Mosque. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo advised, "The United States views a change in the status of the Hagia Sophia as diminishing the legacy of this remarkable building and its unsurpassed ability, so rare in the modern world, to serve humanity as a much-needed bridge between those of differing faith traditions and cultures." The Turkish Daily News stated that curiously on the day Hagia Sophia reopened as a religious site, was the anniversary of the 1923 Lausanne Treaty which prepared the way for "the foundation of the Republic of Turkey." The new state adopted the Latin alphabet, granted women's rights and implemented a secular order. "That's why the treaty has long been described as the title deed of the Republic of Turkey and a clear victory for Ataturk," opines Serkan Demitris. I fondly recall gazing over the rooftops of Istanbul from the Galata Tower in the Beyoglu District. One could not help but notice many church steeples and towers in the old city; buildings which have since been repurposed given the dwindling Christian community. Sadly President Erdogan's move has tarnished Turkey's image and questioned its secularism. John J. Metzler (jjmcolumn@earthlink.net) is a United Nations correspondent covering diplomatic and defense issues. He is the author of "Divided Dynamism The Diplomacy of Separated Nations; Germany, Korea, China." The views expressed in the above article are the author's own and do not reflect the editorial direction of The Korea Times. Massachusetts largest group of tech companies is calling on its members to double the percentage of Black and Latinx employees in the state by the end of the decade. Introduced on Monday, the 2030 Challenge by the Mass Technology Leadership Council aims to push the percentage of Black employees at tech companies in Massachusetts to 10% and Latinx workers to 14%. While MassTCL specifically mentioned Black and Latinx workers, the organization will continue to strive for gender equity within the tech work-sphere asa well. According to the MassTLC, the Massachusetts tech sector does not adequately reflect the diverse population of the state. More than calling for change, the MassTLC is asking its more than 450 members to commit to The Tech Compact for Social Justice, which outlines 12 steps to accomplish its 2030 Challenge. So far more than 60 companies have agreed to the commitment. This is a time when people are speaking out and we, as leaders, need to listen to them, CEO of MassTLC Tom Hopcroft said in a statement. This is how change happens, and it is why we launched The Tech Compact for Social Justice. We recognize that Boston and the tech industry have more to do to support and encourage the inclusion of black, Latinx and Indigenous people and we accept our responsibility to do more to make change at the company and community level. By agreeing to the Tech Compact for Social Justice, companies commit to introducing or expanding educational programs and opportunities that promote diversity. The compact states companies should invest in students of color to create more diversity in developmental programs too. They also commit to creating more diversity within leadership and board composition. The CEO of companies will be evaluated on racially diverse hiring, leadership development, and promotion, the compact says. By June 2022, companies that join the compact agree to self report demographic data of employees and hiring practices including at the leadership level and promotions. Reporting data will also include self reporting on racial diversity initiatives in purchasing and procurement as well as aggregate pay parity. Outside of the day-to-day operations, the compact calls for companies to leverage products and communications to support communities of color. Companies will also advocate for public policies that support opportunities for people of color. More than 60 companies have already signed on including Akamai, iRobot, TripAdvisor, Verizon and Wayfair. At Akamai, diversity is a mission-critical goal, executive vice president and chief human resources officer of Akamai Technologies Anthony Williams said in a statement. As long-time active members of MassTLC we are proud to join forces with them to create long-term change in the Massachusetts technology community. By pooling resources with other companies, we harness our collective influence for greater impact. Related Content: Albany punk band Male Patterns has been an entity since 2013. Its four members have played on their own or in various punk and hard rock projects together for roughly two decades. But theres something unique to Male Patterns and its no-nonsense approach. Its a basic hard-core form, said guitarist Mike Moak. We trim the fat and dont have much filler. I dont think any of us want to complicate things, vocalist Brendan Halayko added. What we like we like, what we dont we dont. I know I just try to sound like a barking dog. In 2013, drummer Dan Barker returned to the Capital Region after living in Boston for eight years. When he came back to town, he reconnected with longtime friend Moak and the two hit up Halayko and got to work on some tunes. After starting with a different bassist, KC Carvill from Moaks primary band, the long-running After the Fall, was brought in and Male Patterns lineup was set. And just like the genre of music they play, the groups ability to jell together was fast and loud. They were trying to find the most handsome guy in Albany to front a punk band, Halayko deadpanned. But I knew Moak a long time. Everything instantly clicked and we started playing this loud, energetic brand of hard-core. Immediately I could tell there was a good demeanor with the band, so it was pretty easy to jump right in, said Carvill. Mike has a very distinct style that always shines through. As a bassist, playing with a new drummer takes some feeling out, but Dan and I clicked pretty fast. And Brendans vocals have such a huge impact on the sound and made me want to play. Theyre different from any other Albany band. Male Patterns has put that chemistry to good use with a burst of creative activity, issuing an EP and LP on its own and a pair of split EPs with peers in the regional punk scene. The most recent of these splits officially came out on Aug. 1, the band teaming up with Executors out of New Jersey for the vinyl release. Split EPs are a classic piece of punk subculture, a way for genre fans to discover new bands and for the acts themselves to make new connections. For Male Patterns that networking has been part of the fun of playing together. Between each members existing relationships developed from prior bands and their commitment to playing festivals and gigs out-of-state, theyve grown a solid base of like-minded artists to seek out as collaborators and fans to share those efforts with. In 2015 we did a split with (Albany-based) Scuzz. We ran out of copies quickly because Scuzz toured a lot and because I traded (copies) with other labels, Barker said. Last year we played a couple of shows with Executors. We had recorded some stuff already, so we asked if they wanted to do a split with us. Their songs are instantly catchy, theyre super cool dudes, Halayko enthused. Their style is a little different than ours, but thats why I always like buying splits you get two different bands and styles on one record. Its always fun and its just good camaraderie. Considering the current state of affairs due to the coronavirus pandemic, those bonds are more important now than ever before. The Male Patterns/Executors split has been wrapped up on the musical side for most of the year, but the shutdown caused a delay in the printing of physical copies. Typically the group would play an EP release show to celebrate, but that obviously isnt possible right now. That doesnt have the group demoralized; as Barker noted, the bands focus the first few months have been on getting it made and now getting it out. The shutdown time was used to ensure the record comes equipped with unique cover art and design elements to make as quality an audiovisual product as possible. Now that its available Male Patterns is enthused for people to check out the finished product. And theyre looking forward to seeing their hard work come to fruition. Were much more laid back, no one is pushing to tour or anything, Carvill said. We still get done with what we need to. The new record is straight fire. Its kind of cool to see how far this can go without touring behind it, Moak stated. The act of buying records is never going to die, so hopefully people check this out and pick it up. For More Info To stream or purchase the music of Male Patterns, visit: www.malepatterns.bandcamp.com To stream Mike Moaks band After the Fall, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary with a new LP on Aug. 7, visit www.afterthefall518.com To stream Dan Barkers alt-rock band Ferriday, which released a new album in March, check out www.ferriday.bandcamp.com The Korean government braces for Japan's possible retaliation over the possible liquidation of Japanese corporate assets over the wartime forced labor issue. / gettyimagesbank By Kang Seung-woo With Japan's retaliation against a possible liquidation of Japanese corporate assets in the offing, the Korean government has come up with scenario-based countermeasures, according to sources, Monday. However, it remains to be seen whether its preparation is enough to cushion the impact of Japan's countermeasures. In 2018, Korea's Supreme Court ordered Japanese steelmakers Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal which benefited from the use of Korean forced labor during WWII to pay 100 million won ($83,000) in compensation to each of four surviving South Korean victims of the wartime atrocities. With their continued noncompliance, the Pohang branch of Daegu District Court began the process needed for liquidating their Korean assets in June. Should there be no response from the companies by Aug. 4, the court can liquidate their assets. However, the process is expected to take several months. As the deadline approaches, the Shinzo Abe administration has warned of serious consequences like its tightened control in 2019 on exports of three key industrial materials critical for Korea's chip and display industries. According to multiple sources, relevant government organizations have comprehensively explored countermeasures in the event of retaliatory actions by Japan since January. Feasible retaliatory options from Japan include tightening visa requirements for Koreans and temporarily recalling the Japanese ambassador to Korea as well as imposing heavy tariffs and seizing Korean assets in Japan. "Although it is the best way for the two countries to find diplomatic solutions ahead of the possible liquidation, the Korean government thinks it is not easy to do so," a source familiar with the matter said. "The government has drawn up measures against the worst scenario." The government is said to go tit-for-tat for tariff hikes or restrictions on visa issuance, while it will file a complaint with the World Trade Organization against any export curbs. The Korean government's measures come as there has been no sign of Seoul and Tokyo compromising and reaching an agreement on the issue. The government reportedly suggested to Japan that it would make up for the sales of Japanese companies' assets around March or April, but it was rejected. Japan consistently claims the 1965 normalization treaty between the two countries settled individual compensation issues, and nothing further is owed. Since then, there has been no discussion between the two sides, raising speculation that bilateral relations will continue to decline. Amid the deteriorating ties, however, there are growing whispers that President Moon Jae-in's new national security team may step up to resume under-the-table talks with the Japanese side. Park Jie-won, chief of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), is on intimate terms with Toshihiro Nikai, secretary-general of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party, while Suh Hoon, director of the National Security Office (NSO), has also built up a network with ranking Japanese officials. "When it comes to retaliatory measures that Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga has threatened and Japanese media have reported, the Korean government is expected to deal with them without a hitch," said Park Won-gon, a professor of international politics at Handong Global University. He said should the sale of the assets be carried out in the end, massive retaliation is likely. "For example, if Japanese banks and savings banks retrieve their investments in the local stock market, there could be a huge impact," Park said. The professor urged the national security team to take actions to settle the matter. "As far as I know, when Suh was the NIS chief, he was involved in the issue off the radar, contributing to coming up with the so-called Moon Hee-sang proposal together with Japan. Either Suh or Park needs to act for an updated one," Park said. The proposal named after the former National Assembly speaker meant creating a foundation to be funded by the involved companies, and the governments and citizens of Korea and Japan, to support the surviving victims of wartime forced labor. But this was scrapped with the expiration of the 20th National Assembly here. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 15:57:51|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A farmer wearing protective suit carries a box of prickly pear fruits at a farm on the outskirts of Sanaa, Yemen, July 21, 2020. (Photo by Mohammed Mohammed/Xinhua) SANAA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- It's harvest time of the prickly pear fruit in war-torn Yemen and the markets in Sanaa are packed with people despite the spread of COVID-19 pandemic. With the early morning sun, hundreds of farmers, villagers and street vendors go to the arid hills of the southeastern outskirts of the capital Sanaa to collect the prickly pear fruit. It is delicious, healthy, cheap and among the best-selling fruits in the local market. Many Yemeni farmers have turned to cultivate this kind of thorny desert plant in their farms after the civil war broke out five years ago. The long war in Yemen and economic blockade have led to continuing fuel shortages that caused the stop of irrigation pumps and turned thousands of fertile hectares into barren lands. "The cultivation of this fruit is profitable and bring in good income because it grows quickly and needs no much irrigation," Ahmed Mutahar told Xinhua in front of his farm in Ghaiman area in Khawlan district, about 30 km to the southeast of the capital Sanaa. "Many youth resort to this seasonal fruit to sell it on carts in the streets for making a living for their families," Mutahar added. Yemen has been mired in civil war since late 2014, when the Iran-backed Houthi group seized control of much of the country's north and forced the Saudi-backed government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to flee the capital Sanaa. The Saudi-led military coalition intervened in the Yemeni conflict in early 2015 to support Hadi's government. The war has killed tens of thousands of people, mostly civilians, displaced over 3 million, and caused the collapse of the country's economy and destroyed the infrastructure and the agricultural sector. "Yemen is the largest hunger crisis in the world. Millions of people are living on the edge of famine and the situation is getting worse by the day," said the World Food Programme (WFP) in a recent statement. "Over 20 million Yemenis are food insecure, of which nearly 10 million are acutely food insecure," the WFP added. Millions of families are struggling to get one meal a day, amid a rapid depreciation of the country's currency, stopping the payment of salaries, and the tightening economic embargo. The situation is getting worse by the day, forcing millions of Yemenis to search for any daily job opportunity. In the capital Sanaa, many young men and elders are pushing wheelbarrows full of prickly pear fruits in the corners of the crowded streets and markets. "In this season of prickly pear fruits, we are earning a living ... people come and buy," street vendor Ali Salman told Xinhua. Talal Abdulrahman, one of the Sanaa city's residents, came to buy. "It is delicious, healthy and cheap," he told Xinhua. Enditem Jalalabad Afghan security forces laid siege to a prison seized by Islamic State fighters in the eastern city of Jalalabad on Monday, with at least 24 people killed after the militants' overnight assault led to a mass jailbreak. The assault began on Sunday night on the jail in the eastern city of Jalalabad, Attaullah Khugyani, spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province, said. An Afghan security person at the prison attacked by Islamic State. Credit:AP After detonating a car bomb at the entrance on Sunday evening, IS gunmen overran the prison where many IS militants captured during a campaign in the past month were being held, along with Taliban fighters and common criminals. Of the 1793 prisoners, just over 1000 had tried to escape and been recaptured and 430 had remained inside the prison. More than 300 prisoners were still at large on Monday, the governor's spokesman said. Belmont Family Dentistry in Belmont, MA By modernizing our online presence, our patients can have a simpler, more efficient way of communicating with our office. Belmont Family Dentistry of Belmont, MA is thrilled to share its new Hybrid-Responsive website: https://www.belmontfamilydentistry.com. In addition to working on a refreshed website, the practice has been hard at work implementing new COVID-19 safety protocols to keep patients safe when they visit the office. Each of these changes reflects Belmont Family Dentistry's commitment to providing patients with exceptional service and care. The new website features a warm, welcoming design and more intuitive navigation. Usability is at the forefront with its Hybrid-Responsive technology, which allows the site to work equally well on tablets, smartphones, desktop computers, and laptops. This means that whether patients are at home, at work, or on-the-go, they can connect with Belmont Family Dentistry via their website and find exactly what they need. "By modernizing our online presence, our patients can have a simpler, more efficient way of communicating with our office," says Dr. Elizabeth Brachowicz. Design is only one part of the equation. The new belmontfamilydentistry.com website also allows patients to easily request an appointment online, access patient education on a wide variety of conditions and procedures, and read more about the practices doctors and staff. Just as the practice is embracing the latest in web design, it has also implemented advanced infection control at its office. Medical-grade HEPA air purifiers and high volume evacuation (HVE) technology are used to improve air quality and reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission via aerosols. Barriers have been installed at the front desk and checkout window and, as always, team members are required to wear personal protective equipment and wipe down surfaces with eco-friendly hypochlorous acid. The practice is also asking patients to do their part by abiding by social distancing guidelines, wearing a mask, and answering screening questions prior to their appointment. Upon arrival, patients will be asked to wait in their car until they receive a text indicating that the office is ready for them; their temperature will be taken once they enter the building. More information about Belmont Family Dentistrys COVID-19 safety protocols is available on the new website. About Dr. Elizabeth Jane Brachowicz Elizabeth Jane Brachowicz, DMD, grew up in Tampa Bay, Florida and earned her degree from Tufts University School of Dental Medicine. Dr. Liz is an active member of the American Dental Association, Massachusetts Dental Society, Middlesex District Dental Society, New England Academy for Cosmetic Dentistry, and the American Academy of Facial Esthetics. About Dr. Lam Nguyen Dr. Lam Nguyen grew up in Fort Worth, Texas and earned her degree at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine. Dr. Lam is an active member of the American Dental Association and the Massachusetts Dental Society. About Belmont Family Dentistry Belmont Family Dentistry offers comprehensive dental care to patients of all ages. Services include general dentistry, restorative dentistry, cosmetic dentistry, digital smile design, dental implants, facial aesthetics, and periodontal procedures. To learn more or request an appointment, visit the new website at https://www.belmontfamilydentistry.com, stop by the practice at 75 Trapelo Road, Belmont, MA 02478, or call 617-484-1760. Five local residents are suing the LAPD, alleging officers falsely labeled them as gang members. (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times) Five residents allege in a lawsuit filed Sunday that Los Angeles police officers labeled them gang members without evidence as part of a broader pattern of corruption that has caused irreparable harm to them and many others. Citing a growing scandal in which LAPD officers stand accused of lying about gang affiliations on field interview cards, the litigants are seeking class-action status to sue on behalf of thousands of people who they say "have been victims of scofflaw Los Angeles Police Department officers who filed fraudulent reports, lied under oath, and abused gang database systems." "We believe there are thousands of people who have been categorized and dehumanized," said Humberto Guizar, an attorney for the plaintiffs. "A law that was meant to stop gang violence was used incorrectly by the Police Department and subverted to the point where they criminalized thousands of people." One plaintiff, Sara Ochoa, alleged she worked as a California corrections officer until LAPD officers in January misclassified her as a gang associate "simply for going back to visit" the East L.A. neighborhood where she grew up. Guizar said Ochoa, a Latina mother of five, lost her job because of the incident and gang label even though she faces no charges. "She's trying to make it out of the systemic cesspool we live in, she makes it out, and then this is what they do to her?" he asked. A second plaintiff, Jajuan Johnson, alleged that LAPD officers pulled over a vehicle in which he was a passenger, then "blatantly lied in the police report they authored" by contending he was a Bloods gang member. A third plaintiff, Branden Costa, alleged LAPD officers accused him of a shooting and falsely labeled him as a gang member to bolster their case, even though video surveillance from that day showed he was elsewhere at the time of the shooting and could not have pulled the trigger. "Although Mr. Costa was acquitted of all charges, the falsely contrived gang identification followed him and has plagued his life every day since, causing him incalculable suffering and damage," the lawsuit states. Story continues An LAPD spokesman declined to comment on the pending litigation. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, represents the latest volley in a scandal that broke early this year and has grown in recent weeks. Three LAPD officers Braxton Shaw, Michael Coblentz and Nicolas Martinez were charged with falsifying records and obstructing justice in a 59-count complaint filed by Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey's office last month that alleged they claimed without evidence that people they had stopped were gang members or associates. That case is pending. Prosecutors said last week that they are reviewing hundreds of criminal cases in which Shaw, Coblentz and Martinez were listed as potential witnesses, to see if they can stand or should be dropped or reopened. Guizar said Shaw was involved in some of the arrests noted in the lawsuit. Shaw's attorney has previously said Shaw did nothing wrong and always followed directives from his superior officers. LAPD officials and prosecutors have also acknowledged that more than 20 additional officers remain under investigation in relation to gang labeling on field interview cards. The LAPD launched its investigation into field cards last year after a Van Nuys mother learned that her son had been identified as a gang member and challenged the assertion. A review of body-worn camera footage found inaccuracies in what an officer had recorded in relation to her son, and police agreed to remove him from a gang database while they conducted a broader review. In recent weeks, in response to growing protests over police abuses and calls from activists, LAPD officials announced they would stop adding names to the statewide CalGang database. Times staff writer Emily Alpert Reyes contributed to this report. WONDER POTIONs action-platformer has new content to test in this limited-time preview version of the next side-scrolling hit from NEOWIZ Manufacturing specialized products in a pharmaceutical manufacturing environment has a specific set of requirements when it comes to hand protection. Production and handling of these types of products typically happens in a clean or controlled environment and quite often in a sterile environment as well. When this particular application is further specialized into manufacturing or handling of a particular set of pharmaceuticals known as chemotherapeutic agents additional requirements come into play when selecting appropriate hand protection. This paper will explore these requirements and what an individual who is working in these environments should be concerned with, while selecting appropriate hand protection as part of their overall personal protective equipment ensemble. It should be noted that this paper discusses the use of gloves as personal protective equipment in an industrial or non-medical application. For those individuals who are handling chemotherapeutic agents in a medical setting additional regulatory requirements must be met. There are two primary reasons to wear personal protective gloves when working with these types of drugs. First and foremost to protect the individual from exposure to a potentially harmful substance and secondarily to protect the product from contamination. Chemotherapeutic agents are a class of chemical compounds designed and formulated as a drug product to inhibit the growth of or destroy rapidly growing cancer cells within the body. Therefore, by definition, they are either cytostatic or cytotoxic compounds and as such require the use of personal protective gloves that will act as an effective barrier between the hand and the chemical compound in question. Since these compounds are by nature destructive to human cells it is desirable to avoid exposure to these compounds. Determining whether a glove provides adequate protection How then does an individual working in these environments and potentially exposed to these types of chemical compounds know whether or not the gloves they are wearing will provide adequate protection? Gloves designed to be used in these environments can be evaluated for their protective qualities when in contact with chemical substances. This is done by conducting whats known as a chemical permeation test and is conducted under the guidance of two US industry consensus standards. These standards are known as ASTM D6978 Assessment of Resistance of Medical Gloves to Permeation by Chemotherapy Drugs and ASTM F739 Standard Test Method for Permeation of Liquids and Gases through Protective Clothing Materials under Conditions of Continuous Contact respectively. Whereas ASTM F739 is the general test method used to conduct chemical permeation testing, ASTM D6978 includes some additional requirements specific to chemotherapy drugs. Permeation is the process by which a chemical dissolves and/or moves through a protective glove material on a molecular level. Permeation can occur without damaging the material or by damaging the material by degrading it. Permeation is measured in the amount of time (minutes) it takes for a chemical to pass through the barrier at a determined permeation rate, which is referred to as Chemical Breakthrough Time; and the Permeation Rate which is the rate (volume over time) at which a chemical passes through the glove material. Penetration (break-through) is the movement of a chemical and/or micro-organism through the material via pinholes or other imperfections of a glove. Standard test methods The ASTM F739 standard test method is used to identify the actual chemical permeation resistance of glove materials under continuous contact with chemicals. The glove material to be tested is placed into a permeation test cell and sandwiched between the test chemical and a collection medium. The collection medium, usually a gas or liquid, is analyzed quantitatively for its concentration of the chemical that has permeated the barrier as a function of time after its initial contact with the glove material. Each material specimen to be tested is sampled from the palm of at least three gloves. An additional sample may be tested with just collection media as a test control depending upon the actual analytical methods used. All test specimens are cut to fit the same diameter as the flange of the permeation test cell (see Figure 1). Figure 1: Chemical Permeation Test Cell. Image Credit: Ansell The test chemical is introduced into the challenge compartment of the permeation cell and the time measuring device is started. The compartment containing the test chemical is completely filled during the period of the test. Under the requirements of ASTM F739 the breakthrough time of a chemical is deemed to occur when the sum of the permeation rates of each individual component reaches the rate of 0.1g/cm2/min. When a permeation rate of 0.1g/cm2/min is detected, then the breakthrough time is reported in minutes for each test specimen. If the permeation rate does not reach 0.1g/cm2/min then the duration of the test is reported. However, for chemotherapy agents under the additional requirements of the standard ASTM D6978 a more conservative breakthrough time is reported by determining a breakthrough time when 0.01g/cm2/min is reached. This is done in recognition of the cytotoxic/cytostatic properties of the chemical compounds in question. Why Ansell does not use the test method EN 16523-1:2015 as set out in the EN ISO 374 standard when testing against chemotherapy drugs Ansell gloves are tested against the most stringent standard, the American ASTM D6978-05 which employs a testing limit 100 times more stringent than its European counterpart. We do not test gloves using the EN16523-1:2015 (formerly EN374-3) method as this benchmark is not safe when assessing the suitability of a glove for protection against chemotherapy drugs. To illustrate how the two standards parameters compare we have highlighted the consequences in the table below. Table 1: Comparisons between EN 16523-1:2015 and ASTM D6978-05 : DIFFERENCE EN16523-1:2015 * ASTM D6978-05 ** CONSEQUENCE Thickness of the Test Specimens Sample has to be taken from the palm of the glove. (>400mm length - additional samples to be taken from cuff area)(EN374-1) Sample has to be taken from either the palm or the cuff of the glove, whichever is the thinner. The ASTM D6978-05 requirement ensures that the area of greatest risk is assessed. The cuff is usually the thinnest part of the glove, so gloves tested under EN16523-1:2015 are not challenged as rigorously. Test Temperature Testing to be conducted at a temperature of 231 C. Testing to be conducted at a temperature of 352 C. The higher tempertature specified by ASTM D6978-05 has two consequences: 1. The temperature is 2 C below body core temperature, which is similar to that of a human hand. 2. Permeation rates are greater at higher temperatures, making the test more stringent. Test Chemicals Testing is carried out against 1, 3 or 6 chemicals from a list of 18 chemicals (EN374-1). None of the chemicals is a chemotherapy drug. A minimum of nine chemotherapy drugs must be used for the test. Seven of them are mandatory under the standard; the other two must be selected from a pre-defined list. The EN374-1:2016 list of chemicals will not give a representation of how the gloves will perform when challenged by chemotherapy drugs. Users purchasing these gloves for chemo use should be advised to have them tested for suitability. Permeation Limit Breakthrough of the test chemical is deemed to have occurred when the permeation rate has reached 1.00g/cm2/min. Breakthrough of the test chemical is deemed to have occurred when the permeation rate has reached 0.01g/cm2/min. The ASTM D6978-05 test limit is set at 100th of the EN16523-1:2015 limit. This requirement is far more stringent and reflects the potential hazards presented by chemotherapy drugs. * EN16523-1:2015 Determination of material resistance to permeation by chemicals Part 1: Permeation by liquid chemical under conditions of continuous contact ** ASTM D6978-05 Standard practice for assessment of resistance of medical gloves to permeation by chemotherapy drugs Product contamination concerns While personal protection is the first concern when selecting a glove, protecting the product from external sources of contamination is equally important. Manufacturing of chemotherapy drugs is conducted under good manufacturing practices (GMP) in a sterile cleanroom environment and as such, product contamination must be avoided. A variety of sources of potential contamination must be taken into consideration, including biological, particulate and undesirable chemical residues. A contaminated product from any of these sources can lead to unacceptable production lots resulting in a costly and time consuming scenario to rectify. Recommended solutions How is an appropriate glove chosen for use with chemotherapy agents? As this paper illustrates several factors need to be taken into consideration Protection against: specific drugs being used other hazards or chemicals in the work place Protection of the products from external contamination Comfort Fit Ergonomics Costs Additionally, a common practice of wearing two pairs of single use gloves (double donning) can also enhance the end users protection against chemotherapy agents provided the gloves are chemotherapy drug approved and proven to be elastic and comfortable. In consideration of all these factors Ansell has several product offerings that fulfill these challenging and very specific needs of this environment. Glove box environment solutions Glove boxes play a vital role in protecting products from human or environmental contamination as well as protecting individuals and environments from hazardous chemicals used for the compounding of chemotherapy drugs. Due to the propensity of sensitive materials utilized in the life sciences, any of three different types of glove boxes may be used; Containment glove boxes, Isolation glove boxes and Isolators. The environment inside a glove box is typically sterile, clean and pressurized, either positively or negatively, to meet the specific requirements of the application. Isolators are used to contain some of the most dangerous and toxic material known to man, therefore they are ultra-clean and contained for product and personal protection. Ansell Life Sciences isolator glove solutions have been tested to the most stringent standard ASTM D6978 against chemotherapy drugs, to ensure the greatest possible protection, these results can be found in table 4. For sterile and cleanroom environments the following products have been tested against chemotherapy drugs using ASTM D6978 Standard. For non-sterile environments Ansell also has two non-sterile solutions (MICROFLEX 93-260 & 93-360). Table 2: Ansell Gloves TouchNTuff 83-500 TouchNTuff 93-700 TouchNTuff DermaShield 73-701 TouchNTuff 73-500 MICROFLEX 93-360 & 93-260** Polymer Sterile Polyisoprene Sterile Nitrile Sterile Neoprene Sterile Neoprene Non-Sterile Nitrile & Neoprene Chemotherapy Drug Tested Minimum Breakthrough Time (Minutes) using ASTM D6978 Standard Breakthrough of the test chemical is deemed to have occurred when the permeation rate has reached 0.01 g/cm/min Carmustine 10.2 2.5 86.6 35.7 69.2 Cisplatin No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT No breakthrough up to 240 minutes Cyclophosphamide No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes Cytarabine No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT Docetaxel No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT Doxorubicin Hydrochloride No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes Etoposide (Toposar) No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes Fluorouracil No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes Gemcitabine No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT Ifosfamide No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT Irinotecan No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT Methotrexate No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes Mitomycin No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT Oxaliplatin No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT Paclitaxel (Taxol) No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes Thiotepa 11.5 No breakthrough up to 240 minutes 98.1 47.6 67.6 Vincristine Sulfate No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes NT NT = Not Tested **MICROFLEX 93-360 is same base glove as MICROFLEX 93-260 with additional after treatments and clean packaging. For sterile and cleanroom environments the following products have been tested against chemotherapy drugs using ASTM D6978 Standard. Table 3: Ansell Gloves BioClean BUPS BioClean S-BFAP BioClean BENS BioClean BNPLS BioClean BPZS BioClean BNPS Polymer Sterile Polychloroprene Sterile Polychloroprene Sterile Nitrile Sterile Nitrile Sterile Nitrile Sterile Nitrile Chemotherapy Drug Tested Minimum Breakthrough Time (Minutes) using ASTM D6978 Standard Breakthrough of the test chemical is deemed to have occurred when the permeation rate has reached 0.01 g/cm/min Cisplatinum (Optional) No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes Carmustine 2 26 12 2 50 2.5 Cyclophosphamide No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes Doxorubicin Hydrochloride No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes 5-Fluorouracil No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes Methotrexate (Optional) No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes Etoposide No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes Paclitaxel No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 240 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes No breakthrough up to 480 minutes Thiotepa 48 35 30 1 108 111 For glove box environments the following products have been tested against chemotherapy drugs listed below along with their breakthrough time. Ansell have a range of sterile sleeve/glove systems which consist of components (nitrile sleeve & polychloroprene glove) tested to the ASTM D6978 standard - product codes GSG10NIT80, GSG10NIT85 & GSG10NITXLMA Table 4: Ansell Gloves BioClean GGL, CGL, GHG, CHG AlphaTec 85-500 AlphaTec 85-600 AlphaTec 85-300 Polymer Nitrile EPDM EPDM+ CSM Chemotherapy Drug Tested Minimum Breakthrough Time (minutes) using ASTM D6978 Standard Breakthrough of the test chemical is deemed to have occurred when the permeation rate has reached 0.01 g/cm2/min Bleomycin Sulphate >240 NT NT NT Carboplatin >240 NT NT NT Cytarabine HCI >240 NT NT NT Dacarbazine >240 NT NT NT 5-Fluorouracil >240 NT NT NT Daunorubicin HCI >240 NT NT NT Idarubicin >240 NT NT NT Ifosfamide >240 NT NT NT Melphalan >240 NT NT NT Mitomycin C >240 NT NT NT Mitoxantrone >240 NT NT NT Vincristine Sulphate >240 NT NT NT Carmustine >480 NT NT NT Cisplatin >480 NT NT NT Cyclophosphamide >480 NT NT NT Doxorubicin >480 NT NT NT Etoposide >480 >240 >240 >240 Fluorouracil >480 NT NT NT Paclitaxel >480 >240 >240 >240 Thiotepa >480 NT NT NT Methotrexate >480 >240 >240 >240 NT = Not Tested About Ansell For over a century, Ansell has delivered the most advanced protection solutions to millions of peopleat work, at home and in harms way. In 1905, Eric Ansell recognized an opportunity when his employer was looking to dispose of some manufacturing equipment. With this discarded machinery, he founded what was to become the Ansell Rubber Company, initially a balloon & condom company that eventually expanded into surgical, household and work gloves. In the years since, millions of people have come to rely on Ansells innovative products and safety solutions to protect them at home or on the job. The same dedication to quality and innovation that started with Eric Ansell, continues today, as Ansell has grown to serve 25 global industries in 120 countries in ways that shape and protect our modern world. Ansell is SAFETY. We protect the most valuable asset of any company its people." Magnus Nicolin, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Sponsored Content Policy: News-Medical.net publishes articles and related content that may be derived from sources where we have existing commercial relationships, provided such content adds value to the core editorial ethos of News-Medical.Net which is to educate and inform site visitors interested in medical research, science, medical devices and treatments. The university had been taking a critical look at the naming of its spaces, buildings and grounds for the past two years. That included a focus on Fillmore, the 13th president of the United States, who was the founding chancellor of UB, serving from 1846 until his death in 1874. A lawyer who also served in Congress, Fillmore helped establish some of Buffalos most enduring institutions. But his brief, three-year presidency is remembered in modern times for his support of the Compromise of 1850, which included the Fugitive Slave Act. That act required fugitive slaves to be returned to their owners even if they were found in a free state. The decision to rename these UB landmarks was endorsed by the President's Advisory Council on Race, which formed in June. A lot of research and vetting was done on the building and landmark names throughout the college campus before the recommendation was made to remove the names of these three men from campus sites, Tripathi said. Supporters of the name change said they hope other political leaders in the city and region consider following in UB's example. Texas law requires an insurer to defend the grandparents of a 10-year-old boy who was killed while driving their all-terrain vehicle against a negligence lawsuit, even though the carrier says neither the boy nor the crash was covered by its policy, a federal appellate court ruled. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a ruling by U.S. District Judge John McBryde that found State Farm Lloyds had no duty defend Janet and Melvin Richards because the policy did not promise a defense against groundless claims. The appellate panel, in an opinion issued July 20, said under Texas law an insurers duty to defend is far broader than its duty to indemnify an insured. The Texas Supreme Court leaved little room for another outcome when it answered a certified question from the 5th Circuit in March. A maxim in Texas state law known as the eight corners rule holds that an insurer has a duty to defend against a claim if allegations made within the four corners of the complaint allege a claim that is covered within the four corners of the policy. No external facts what lawyers call extrinsic evidence are relevant. The Supreme Court said the eight corners rule applies even if the policy doesnt promise coverage for groundless claims. District Judge McBryde had reached the opposite conclusion, finding that because State Farms policy did not promise that it would defend against groundless claims, unlike most homeowners policies. The Supreme Court did not say whether there are any exceptions to the eight corners rule, leaving that question for another day. But its decision that the absence of a promise within the policy does not exempt an insurer from the duty to defend settled the question as it pertains to the lawsuit against the Richards. The dispute stems from the death of Jayden Meals on June 11, 2017. Although only 10, Janet Richards had allowed the boy to drive her 2004 Polaris ATV without a helmet and without any safety instructions. Jayden flipped the vehicle while driving on a paved road near the Richards residence. He died shortly after from blunt-force trauma. The boys mother, Amanda Culver Meals, filed suit against the paternal grandparents, whose homeowners insurance policy had a $300,000 limit. Janet Richards readily admitted negligence in her answer to the complaint. State Farm Lloyds filed suit seeking a declaration from a federal judge that it has no duty to defend Richards from the suit. First, the insurer said Jayden resided with his grandparents, which would make him an insured person under the homeowners policy. The policy exempted the carrier from liability for bodily injury to any of its insureds. Secondly, the policy exempted any injury caused by a motor vehicle accident that occurred away from the insured premises. State Farm Lloyds argued that because Jayden was killed while driving on a road away from the Richards property, the crash was not covered. But the 5th Circuit noted in its opinion that Meals lawsuit did not state that her son lived with his grandparents. In fact, the lawsuit alleged the boy lived with his maternal grandmother, Sharen Culver. Also, the lawsuit alleges that the boy was killed because Richards had allowed him to drive the ATV on her property. It did not allege he was killed because he was allowed to take the ATV elsewhere. The court said both policy exclusions depended on extrinsic evidence that can be admitted at trial, but dont exempt the insurer from its duty to defend. In other words, those facts were not contained within both the four corners of the lawsuit and the four corners of the policy. Under the very narrow exception we have recognized, the extrinsic evidence must go solely to a fundamental issue of coverage which does not overlap with the merits of or engage the truth or falsity of any facts alleged in the underlying case,' the court said, citing Ooida Risk Retention Grp., Inc. v. Williams. Topics Lawsuits Carriers Texas Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Reuters) Bangkok, Thailand Mon, August 3, 2020 11:30 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b21ba3 2 SE Asia Thailand,Hit-and-Run,Red-Bull,witness Free Thailand's prime minister has ordered a second autopsy be conducted after the death of a key witness in a deadly hit-and-run case linked to the heir to the Red Bull energy drink fortune, amid public anger that the charges were dropped. Jaruchart Mardthong, 40, died in what police said looked like a motorcycle accident on Thursday, amid public suspicion about the exact cause of his death. Results of an initial autopsy have not yet been released. Local media said his family had planned to cremate the body on Sunday. He was a key witness in the police investigation into Vorayuth "Boss" Yoovidhya, who was accused of killing a police officer in 2012, according to deputy government spokeswoman Traisulee Traisoranakul. Police said last week that all charges against Vorayuth had been dropped, stirring public anger about the country's entrenched culture of impunity for the rich and well-connected. Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha wants to ensure justice and clear public suspicion over the case, Traisulee said in a statement on Sunday. "The prime minister reiterates that the government will help create justice in the case. Any wrongdoers will be punished. This case will not be unresolved in the public's mind," she said. Police said Jaruchart had died at hospital after crashing with another motorcycle driver, who was also injured but had left hospital. Prayuth previously said a committee had been formed to look at what led to the case being dropped but it would not interfere in the work of the attorney-general, police and court. The committee has 30 days to complete its task. Vorayuth had missed eight summonses to appear in court. He was accused of crashing his black Ferrari into policeman Wichien Klanprasert and dragging his body for dozens of meters before fleeing the scene. He was 27 at the time. Authorities issued a warrant for his arrest five years after the incident and Vorayuth later left the country. His current whereabouts are unknown. Police have said the old case against Vorayuth had officially ended and could only be relaunched if relatives of the victim filed the case directly to a court, or if there were new witnesses or evidence. At the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, with travel restrictions in place worldwide, we launched a new series The World Through a Lens in which photojournalists help transport you, virtually, to some of our planets most beautiful and intriguing places. This week, Andria Hautamaki shares a collection of images from rural Patagonia. Known for its soaring, glacier-capped Andean peaks and its labyrinth of fjords, Magallanes in southernmost Patagonia is Chiles largest but second least populated region. Daily existence here requires tenacity and resilience, and community life within the isolated villages is facilitated in part by an unlikely source: a network of rural schools. Growing ownership of companion animals across the globe drives the growth of the global veterinary medicine market. North America contributed the highest share in 2019, and will maintain its dominance throughout the forecast period. The demand for veterinary medicines is expected to decline during the Covid-19 pandemic as veterinary visits are limited. Animal healthcare approach has been changed and care for emergency cases and critically ill animals is provided. Portland, OR, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- According to the report published by Allied Market Research,the global veterinary medicine market generated $22.97billion in 2019, and is estimated to reach $29.69 billion by 2027, registering a CAGR of 4.6% from 2020 to 2027.The report offers anextensive analysis of changing market dynamics, key winning strategies, business performance, major segments, and competitive scenarios. Growing ownership of companion animals, increase in expenditure of animal healthcare,and surge in population of livestock across the globedrive the growth of the global veterinary medicine market.However,stringent government regulatory approvals associated with vaccines and veterinary drugsrestrain the market growth. Furthermore, increasing awareness toward animal healthis expected to provide new opportunitiesduring the forecast period. Request Sample Report at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/3366 Covid-19 scenario: The demand for veterinary medicines is expected to decline during the Covid-19 pandemic as veterinary visits are limited.Animal healthcare approach has been changed and care for emergency cases and critically ill animals is provided. However, companies are implementing various strategies to connect customers and veterinarians for integrated purchasing experience. Thus, this is expected to lead to stabilization in market overtime. According to some of the major veterinary companies such as Elanco, Huvepharma EOOD, and Dechra Pharmaceuticals PLC, the supply chain of veterinary medicines is mostly unaffected during the Covid-19 outbreak. The uninterrupted supply chain enabled veterinary companies to quickly shift to new strategies for maintaining the flow. Story continues The report offers a detailed segmentation of the global veterinary medicine market based onproduct, route of administration,animal type, distribution channel,and region. Based on product, the drugs segmentcontributed to the largest share in 2019, accounting for more than half of the total share, and is estimated to maintain its dominant position during the forecast period. However, the vaccines segmentis estimated to portray the highest CAGR of 5.7% during the forecast period. Based on route of administration, the parenteral routesegmentaccounted for the largest share in 2019, holding more than halfof the total share, and is expected to maintain the largest share throughout the forecast period. In addition, itis expected to register the highest CAGR of 5.2% from 2020 to 2027. Based on region,North Americacontributed the highest share, accounting formore than two-fifthsof the total market sharein 2019, and will maintain its dominance throughout the forecast period.However,Asia-Pacificisexpected to grow at the highest CAGR of 6.3% from 2020 to 2027. For Purchase Enquiry at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/purchase-enquiry/3366 Leading market players analyzed in the research include Merck & Co., Inc. (Intervet International B.V.), Zoetis, Inc.,DechraPharmaceuticals PLC,Elanco Animal Health, Virbac, Ceva Sante Animale, Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH, Vetoquinol S.A.,Evonik Industries AG., and ADM Animal Nutrition. Avenue Basic Plan | Library Access | 1 Year Subscription | Sign up for Avenue subscription to access more than 12,000+ company profiles and 2,000+ niche industry market research reports at $699 per month, per seat. For a year, the client needs to purchase minimum 2 seat plan. Avenue Library Subscription | Request for 14 days free trial of before buying: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/avenue/trial/starter Get more information: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/library-access Similar Reports: Veterinary Point of Care Blood Gas Analyzers Market - Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2017-2023 Veterinary Orthopedic Treatment Market-Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2017 - 2025 Animal Health Market - Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 20182025 Veterinary Pain Management Market- Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2020-2027 About Allied Market Research: Allied Market Research (AMR) is a full-service market research and business-consulting wing of Allied Analytics LLP based in Portland, Oregon. Allied Market Research provides global enterprises as well as medium and small businesses with unmatched quality of "Market Research Reports" and "Business Intelligence Solutions." AMR has a targeted view to provide business insights and consulting to assist its clients to make strategic business decisions and achieve sustainable growth in their respective market domains. AMR offers its services across 11 industry verticals including Life Sciences, Consumer Goods, Materials & Chemicals, Construction & Manufacturing, Food & Beverages, Energy & Power, Semiconductor & Electronics, Automotive & Transportation, ICT & Media, Aerospace & Defense, and BFSI. We are in professional corporate relations with various companies and this helps us in digging out market data that helps us generate accurate research data tables and confirms utmost accuracy in our market forecasting. Each and every data presented in the reports published by us is extracted through primary interviews with top officials from leading companies of domain concerned. Our secondary data procurement methodology includes deep online and offline research and discussion with knowledgeable professionals and analysts in the industry. CONTACT: Contact: David Correa 5933 NE Win Sivers Drive #205, Portland, OR 97220 United States Toll Free: 1-800-792-5285 UK: +44-845-528-1300 Hong Kong: +852-301-84916 India (Pune): +91-20-66346060 Fax: +1-855-550-5975 help@alliedmarketresearch.com Web: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com Follow Us on: LinkedIn Twitter A program in its infancy at the Jacksonville Correctional Facility will be focusing on helping those soon to be released develop life skills that will help them as they reintegrate into society. The Illinois Department of Corrections facility is implementing Level Up: Better Than Before, a peer mentoring program that will focus on teaching the participants various skills prior to the end of their sentences. Rochelle Briney, a corrections specialist and the program coordinator, said the program is just starting and in the early stages of development, with the first class of 17 mentors just receiving their certification. Briney said the mentors are all volunteers and were selected by staff members based on their behavior and character. They went through 40-plus hours of training to become mentors, Briney said. They have really good character and their behavior is high standard. They help reinforce positive behavior among their peers. The program will include six sessions a day lead by the mentors. The mentors will each lead small groups of 10 throughout the day on their wing. The topics will include anger management, life skills, relationship skills, leadership, mindfulness, overcoming criminal thinking and conflict resolution. While modeled after similar programs, the Jacksonville program is being modified to fit the needs of the participants and will continue to be developed. We hope to add more topics and programs, said Nicholas Chittick, one of the mentors in the program. While there are currently enough topics for each participant to do two 10-week phases, there is potential for a third phase for a full 30-week program. For Chittick, the program is a chance for him to help send good back out into the community through those that are being released. You can look at prison like a factory. You can export positivity or negativity, he said. This program is a way to export positivity. We want to give them a chance not to come back to this spot. Arnell Williams, another mentor for the program, said the goal of the program is to help those serving time develop the skills theyll need as they reenter society. We are hoping to better ourselves and the people around us, Williams said. This sends them back to society with skill sets they can use to become productive members of society. We want to help foster positive behavior. Williams said he volunteered to be a mentor because a lot of people in his wing already look to him for advice. Both Williams and Chittick have been serving time for more than 20 years, and both want others to avoid repeating offenses and ending back in jail. If I can help a guy learn from his mistakes early, to help him not come back here, I feel Im leading a purposeful life, Chittick said. While the focus is on those that will be leaving the prison within a two-year period, Briney said they have to be willing to participate as well. We are teaching them they have to be an active participant in their own rehabilitation, Briney said. When they go home, we want them to be successful in their own communities. Many firms have been caught off guard by the sudden spike in new Covid-19 cases, disrupting plans adjusted after the pandemics initial impacts. Garment factory owner Trang has a headache on her hands. She began calling workers back to work two months ago and started seeing orders picking up again in early July when Vietnam weathered the first wave of the novel coronavirus outbreak. But after the first community case was detected in Da Nang on July 25, many customers called early this week to cancel orders that shed expected to deliver in mid-August. The number of new orders from across many provinces and cities also began to drop. "I was trying to minimize losses from the first semi-lockdown earlier this year, and now this... everything stands still," the owner of the garment factory in Hanoi's Long Bien District said. Her greatest worry now was that all the capital shed spent on fabric that has recently arrived will now be stuck in inventory. Trang said she was considering a plan to find sewing companies to make cloth masks once again. Trang is one of many local entrepreneurs that have seen their plans upended even as they were recovering from the first disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Tien Nam, deputy director of a construction enterprise in Hanoi sighed after being on the phone for nearly half an hour with the investor of a construction project in Da Nang. "We have agreed to postpone the construction date from early August because the outbreak is strong there. This is a difficult decision for both sides but there is no other way," he said. This is the second time that Nam's construction project in Da Nang has been delayed by the pandemic, the first postponement happening in March. Nam is worried and does not know when the project can be kick-started again. "The machinery was transported to Da Nang a week ago and engineers and workers were mobilized. But now everything has been postponed indefinitely," he said. At the beginning of the year, the company was forced to cut its staff by half and reduce salaries of the remaining, including managerial cadre by 30-50 percent. The second wave of Covid-19 infections has him wondering: "What will the future be?" Enterprises in sectors other than manufacturing have also been hit hard by the second Covid-19 wave. The pandemic returned to the community on July 25 after more than three months. Since then the country has reported 174 domestic infections, including 120 cases in Da Nang. Six Covid-19 patients had died since Friday, including three on Sunday alone. Luu Huynh, representative of an event management company in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), said customers had just canceled five events scheduled for August and this number would increase sharply if the outbreak escalates. The last event to be canceled was a customer's conference specializing in electrical equipment to be held in Da Nang for which payment had been made for all air tickets and guest expenses. The company had already spent its own money to cover 50 percent of the event's construction costs, but the customer just canceled the event, giving no specific time when it can be reorganized. Dinh Trong Thinh, a professor at the Academy of Finance in Hanoi, said: "If the second Covid-19 wave develops complicatedly, the economy could go into a state of turmoil. Then businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises with limited capital will not make it," he said. The coronavirus pandemic has caused 7.8 million workers to lose their jobs or have working hours reduced. Shilajit Mitra By Express News Service In Lootcase, Kunal Keemu plays Nandan, a printing press employee whos hardpressed for cash. His wife, Lata (Rasika Dugal), is always nagging him to climb up in life. One night, Nandan comes across a suitcase full of money, whereupon hes chased by several parties looking to retrieve the stash. Director Rajesh Krishnan cites a grim inspiration behind the comic premise. On YouTube, theres a 5-minute video about what happened to the top ten people who won the biggest Lottos in America. Not a single guy survived. Some uncle or friend or partner duped them. WATCH TRAILER: The only guy who survived was actually quite rich and donated all the money he won, the filmmaker says. Lootcase is Rajeshs first feature as a director. He had shot several top commercials in the past and helmed a season of the TVF series Tripling (2016- 2019). Still, the challenge of a feature film was new. In advertising, a single shot doesnt last beyond three seconds. Its all about compression. Whereas in a film you are trying to sustain a graph over a long stretch of time, so that needs a wider skillset, Rajesh says, naming Mel Brooks, Jacques Tati and the Coen Brothers as his inspirations. In the film, Gajraj Rao plays a crooked politician who owns the bag of cash. He sets a cop (Ranvir Shorey) to find it at all costs. Their efforts are interrupted by Vijay Raaz, as the leader of a rival gang in on the chase. Ive been extremely lucky to have these talents on board, Rajesh shares. Gajraj is someone you can just look at and be entertained. Hes divinely gifted as an actor. Completed last year, Lootcases theatrical release was cancelled twice. It was later announced that the film will release, along with six others, on the streaming platform Disney+ Hotstar. In a tweet, Kunal had expressed his disappointment at not being invited to a virtual press meet for the film. Actor Vidyut Jammwal, whose film Khuda Hafiz is releasing on the same platform, had also lashed out against the snub. Kunal is a selfless guy, Rajesh says. An actor puts everything into a project so if he felt upset, its quite understandable. Having said that, I am completely convinced that the film is as important to Fox Star Studios as it is to us. They have supported us from the start and given us all the freedom. I feel what happened was an oversight and has been a little blown out of proportion. Around 5million Britons will take the ferry or Channel Tunnel this summer to embark on a holiday by car to avoid the dramas of using air travel, predictions suggest. Of these holidaymakers, around a third will be driving to overseas destinations for the very first time, with the surge in trips coming in August and September, according to a study by RAC Europe. With so many households considering a holiday by car in the coming years, Volkswagen has this week revealed the idea vehicle for a trek across Europe - the Caddy Mini Camper, due to arrive on the market later this year. Hitting the road: An estimated 5million Britons will be driving across the Channel in the next two months to reach holiday destinations, according to research by the RAC Concerns over the safety and dependability of air travel in recent months has driven many Britons to reconsider how they reach their holiday destinations in the future. With the coronavirus pandemic crippling flight firms and holidaymakers desperately seeking compensation for cancelled flights and Covid-19 restrictions for different countries, the more reliable form of transport is Britons' own cars. The RAC surveyed 2,000 people and found there is still a 'strong desire for holidays abroad' in the remaining summer months with the car clearly being seen as the best mode of transport for enjoying a safe and comfortable trip. Government estimates show UK residents made in the region of 12.6million visits to other EU countries via sea ports and the Channel Tunnel last year, with France being the single biggest destination according for 6.2million trips alone. The RAC predicts that 40 per cent of the overall number of annual visits that might be expected in a year could take place over the few remaining summer months, resulting in a surge in demand to book ferry crossings and spaces on the Channel Tunnel. In the last month, the RAC, along with fellow breakdown providers the AA and LV Britannia Rescue, said there has been a recent spike in sales of European vehicle assistance cover and drivers taking out longer policies - which suggests they intend to holiday by car more than once in the coming months. Demand for ferry crossings from Dover could surge between now and the end of September, warns the motoring group Availability of tickets to use the Channel Tunnel are also expected to be lower than usual in the next two months A poll by the RAC found a similar proportion of holidaymakers will travel by car this year as those who will risk 'air bridges'. A higher number of people will instead staycation in the UK The RAC Europe survey revealed that a similar proportion of people hope to drive to the continent as fly this year. In total around 16 per of those questioned said they were keen on a trip by car, with the same proportion hoping to take advantage of 'air bridges' to fly to locations. Breakdown cover for driving abroad Holidaymakers driving abroad should look for a high level of cover that helps them in whatever situation they find themselves in. For instance, RAC's Comprehensive Plus European Breakdown policy coves all roadside costs as well as all costs involved in bringing a vehicle back to the UK if needed (so long as its not beyond economic repair). An annual policy for a small car being driven in France costs around 120. Those towing caravans and trailers should look for a specialist policy that gives them comprehensive coverage abroad. Most standard breakdown policies dont cover large caravans and motorhomes, or cover the costs of getting a vehicle and caravan back home. And anyone planning on hiring a motorhome will also have to ensure their insurance covers them. The remainder either hope for a staycation this summer, plan on flying outside Europe or don't expect to take a holiday at all. The RAC is reminding drivers to check their breakdown policies cover them properly for a trip out of the UK. This is especially so for those people towing, with many policies having restrictions in place or offering inferior levels of cover that could put them in an awkward position should an unfortunate breakdown abroad happen. RAC Europe spokesperson Rod Dennis said the pandemic has forced Britons who don't want to miss out on a summer holiday to consider using their own motors to travel, but warned there could be limited availability of ferry and Eurotunnel tickets between now and the end of September. 'In many ways, opting to take the car [on holiday] makes a lot of sense those that do so have a safe space of their own when travelling, with zero or minimal contact needed with other people when crossing borders, while those staying in a caravan or tent also have the reassurance that they have a holiday base which is as safe an environment as possible,' he explained. 'Anyone driving also enjoys the flexibility that comes from having their own form of transport for getting about and is ideal for seeking out places far from the crowds. 'With so many people expected to be taking staycations this summer due to a combination of a greatly reduced flights schedule, together with a reticence to fly in busy cabins in close proximity to others, this year is clearly being seen as the ideal time to explore Europe by car. 'The only thing drivers will need to bear in mind is the more limited availability of ferry and Eurotunnel tickets.' Volkswagen has revealed these rendered images of how the new Caddy Mini-Camper will look VW to sell a compact campervan by the end of this year For motorists who prefer to staycation or camp across Europe, Volkswagen has a pretty hefty stronghold on the small campervan market with its California and Grand California range. We featured the California in our list of the best campervans earlier this year - and now there's going to be an even smaller one. It will be called the Caddy Mini-Camper and succeeds the previous Caddy Beach. VW will show the production version in September, with order books opening before the end of the year. It will have a two-metre long bed that folds in the back. It can also be removed and used outdoors. Under the bed is a storage compartment for the two camping chairs and table, seen in this picture Options for the new model will include a roof rack and this tent extension that fits to the rear of the vehicle to increase the accommodation options Like the California, it will be based on existing vans and MPVs in the German maker's range and features the same engine options, including a 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol engine and 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesels. Inside, it gets a folding bed that stretches almost two metres. This can be removed so owners can use the motor as a van or if they choose to sleep outdoors. There's also a panormaic roof so you can sleep under the stars, though this and all the other rear windows are also fitted with blinds if you want some privacy. There are foldable camping chairs and a table stowed in bags under the bed and the options list will include a roof rack and a tent extension that fits to the back of the camper to offer a much larger accommodation area. No price has been confirmed yet, but it should be significantly cheaper than the 55,000 starting price for the California range. Earlier in the summer, Land Rover announced a specialist roof-tent extension for the new Defender. It costs from 3,500 and sleeps just two people. TikTok logo is seen displayed on a phone screen in this illustration photo taken in Krakow, Poland on November 13, 2019. (Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images) ByteDance did not elaborate on the statement but said it was mainly aimed at its domestic Chinese audience. Facebook was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC. These include an "intense international political environment, the collision and conflict of different cultures, and the plagiarism and smear of competitor Facebook," the company said. Late Sunday, the Beijing-based firm said that it is "committed to becoming a global company" but it has faced "all kinds of complex and unimaginable difficulties," according to a CNBC translation of the Chinese statement. ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, accused Facebook of "plagiarism and smear," as it looks to go on the front foot following continued pressure on its business from the U.S. ByteDance released its statement before Microsoft confirmed that it is in talks to buy TikTok. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella spoke to President Donald Trump regarding a potential purchase of TikTok in the U.S., the company said. And the technology giant is exploring a purchase of TikTok in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand as well. TikTok has faced multiple accusations from Washington of scooping up American user data to send back to the Chinese government. TikTok has repeatedly denied that it does this. And before Microsoft announced its discussions to acquire part of TikTok, Trump said he would ban the social media app. Tensions between the U.S. and China have been rising with technology becoming one of the sectors caught in the middle of what some commentators have dubbed a "new Cold War." Meanwhile, Facebook, which is facing competitive pressures from TikTok, has tried to create rival products. Lasso, which was shut down last month, allowed people to record videos up to 15 seconds long and overlay music on top. And now Facebook is gearing up to launch another short video product called Instagram Reels. Last week, TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer, who was hired in May from Disney, called out Facebook. "We think fair competition makes all of us better. To those who wish to launch competitive products, we say bring it on. Facebook is even launching another copycat product, Reels (tied to Instagram), after their other copycat Lasso failed quickly," he said in a blog post. "But let's focus our energies on fair and open competition in service of our consumers, rather than maligning attacks by our competitor namely Facebook disguised as patriotism and designed to put an end to our very presence in the US." Mayer's comments came after Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg touted the social network as being "a proudly American company," in prepared remarks ahead of his testimony before the House Judiciary subcommittee on antitrust last Wednesday. As a former Pennsylvania sheriff, I agree with President Trumps decision to take initiative with Operation Legend to address crime across our nations cities. Quickly sending federal agents and other resources as soon as there is an increase in violence can save many lives. This quick, decisive action shows how committed President Trump is to restoring public safety and bringing criminals to justice. Since the beginning, he has always stood for law and order and aims to ensure there is peace in all communities across America. There is a lot at stake this election in November, especially with the unrest going on in our country right now. We need a strong leader like President Trump who stands for the law, justice and safety for all American citizens. Carolyn Bunny Welsh, Chadds Ford How many people need to be protected by a vaccine before its recommended for widespread use? Ideally, rates of disease will be 70 percent lower in vaccinated people than in unvaccinated people. The World Health Organization says a vaccine should be at minimum 50 percent effective, averaged across age groups. (We know from influenza that vaccines dont always work as well on older adults whose immune systems have declined.) This benchmark is crucial because a weak vaccine might be worse than no vaccine at all. We do not want people who are only slightly protected to behave as if they are invulnerable, which could exacerbate transmission. It is also costly to roll out a vaccine, diverting attention away from other efforts that we know work, like mask-wearing, and from testing better vaccines. The last thing Phase III trials do is examine safety. Earlier trials do this, too, but larger trials allow us to detect rarer side effects. One of those rare effects researchers are paying attention to is a paradoxical phenomenon known as immune enhancement, in which a vaccinated persons immune system overreacts to infection. Researchers can test for this by comparing the rates of disease severe enough to require hospitalization across the two groups. A clear signal that hospitalization is higher among vaccinated participants would mark the end of a vaccine. The speed of the trials depends on how quickly we can detect a difference between the two groups. If two vaccinated people became sick versus 10 who got a placebo, it could be because of chance. But if it were 20 compared to 100, we would feel much more confident that the vaccine was working. A key to getting a quick result is placing the trial in outbreak hot spots where people are most likely to be infected. We can even target the highest-risk people within those areas, using mobile teams to travel to neighborhoods, bringing the trial directly to the people. Some trials explicitly prioritize essential workers like health care workers or grocery employees. Others are simply focused on enrolling large numbers of participants as fast as possible. Combining those efforts, it could take as little as three to six months to generate enough convincing safety and efficacy data for companies to apply for expedited review by the Food and Drug Administration. There are ways for vaccines to be approved without definitive efficacy data, based on animal or immune response data instead, but the bar is extremely high, and for good reason. A precondition is that efficacy trials are not possible, typically because the disease is so rare or sporadic that it would require hundreds of thousands of participants to be followed for many years to tell if the vaccine is effective (rabies, for example). That is not the situation here. CBI, ED get time until May 4 to complete Aircel-Maxis probe Karti Chidambaram tests positive for COVID-19 India oi-Briti Roy Barman New Delhi, Aug 03: Karti Chidambaram, Congress MP and son of former union finance minister P Chidambaram, tests positive for COVID-19. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News Karti Chidambaram is having mild symptom and now under home-quarantine. Earlier on Monday, K Chidambaram had tweeted, "I have just tested positive for Covid. My symptoms are mild and as per medical advice I am under home quarnatine. I would urge all those who have recently been in contact with me to follow medical protocol." BS Yediyurappa under treatment for COVID, holds review meeting from hospital Earlier on Sunday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah (55) has tested positive for coronavirus and been admitted to Medanta hospital, located in Haryana's Gurugram near Delhi. In a tweet, the Minister said his health was fine but he was being hospitalised on the advice of doctors. Shah also requested that all those who have come in contact with me in the last few days, please isolate yourself and get your inquiry done. Shah had taken part in a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, which was attended by all top ministers, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, defence minister Rajnath Singh, and finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Besides Shah, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit also tested positive for coronavirus on Sunday. "I have tested positive for coronavirus. Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self quarantine," Yediyurappa tweeted. Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit has been advised home isolation and he will be monitored by a team of doctors from hospital. "The Governor's condition is mild, asymptomatic and he is clinically stable," said the hospital official. RTHK: France says it won't ratify HK extradition pact France on Monday said it was halting ratification of an extradition treaty with Hong Kong after Beijing introduced a controversial new security law in the SAR. "In light of the latest developments, France will not proceed as it stands with the ratification of the extradition agreement signed on May 4, 2017 between France and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region," the French foreign ministry said in a statement. The ministry bitterly criticised the new security law, saying it called into question the principle of "'one country, two systems'... and the fundamental freedoms that result from it." "This law also directly affects our citizens and our businesses," it added. Britain last month suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong "immediately and indefinitely" in response to the new law while Germany suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong over the decision to push back the Legislative Council election by a year. New Zealand said on Monday that it was suspending extradition to the SAR. The central and Hong Kong governments criticised Wellington's decision, accusing it of interfering with China's internal affairs. (AFP/RTHK) This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. KYIV Police detained a man who took a hostage in a bank in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Monday, deputy interior minister Anton Gerashchenko said. The hostage was released unharmed. Gerashchenko wrote on Facebook that the man had entered the bank at midday, told employees he had a bomb in his backpack and asked them to call police. Employees of the banking institution left the office while the head of the branch remained there (as hostage)," Gerashchenko said. He said the hostage taker was a citizen of Uzbekistan but gave no indication of his motive. Later Gerashchenko told local television that the man demanded to give interviews to journalists. Police allowed several reporters to talk to the hostage taker before storming the building. In an encounter broadcast live on Ukraines 112.ua television channel the man was heard to claim to be a holy spirit and criticized the authorities, saying President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had not delivered on his promises. The terrorist was captured alive. The explosion did not happen. Explosives technicians are working on site," Gerashchenko wrote after the storming. It was Ukraines third hostage incident in recent weeks. Last month, an armed man was arrested after holding 13 people captive on a bus for hours before freeing them.. On July 23 another man took a senior police officer hostage in the central Ukrainian city of Poltava before being shot dead by police on Saturday. The hostage was unharmed. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor Longtime criminal prosecutor Catherine Babbitt, who led the team that sent twice-convicted child killer Genene Jones back to prison on the verge of being set free, is retiring from the Bexar County District Attorneys Office. Immediately after Jones was sentenced Jan. 16 for killing a San Antonio baby in the 1980s, Babbitt began work on the Otis McKane capital murder trial. Like many trials pending jury selection, McKanes is on hold because of novel coronavirus restrictions. Hes charged in the fatal shooting of San Antonio Police Detective Benjamin Marconi in front of police headquarters in November 2016. When the COVID-19 pandemic, Babbitt began working from home. It was during that time that she began mulling retirement. Working from home since March kind of gave me a glimpse of what retirement might look like, Babbit, 57, said. I liked what I saw. She has prosecuted hundreds of cases over 33 years murders, child abuse, domestic violence and has headed divisions within the DAs office. She says she has lived a dream that began in junior high. Whether it is working on a big, high-profile case or not, the public service part of this job is helping people who have been hurt or wronged, and that person you are seeking justice for, she said. Its the most important thing in their life. She has worked for four district attorneys, Democrats and Republicans: Fred Rodriguez, Steve Hilbig, Susan Reed and current District Attorney Joe D. Gonzales. Babbitt left Reeds office in 1995 to practice law with her mother, Cynthia Foster, when she chose law as a second career. She returned to public service three years later. In 2000, Babbitt was involved in a tragic traffic accident in which she struck a mother and her child. Authorities said the mother walked out in front of her car without looking back, and that Babbitt tried to avoid her by swerving but was unable to avoid striking the two, according to a police report. The mother died, but the child survived. Although an investigation concluded Babbitt should not face charges, the incident became an issue in LaHoods campaign against Reed. Babbitt left the DAs Office in 2014 after LaHood unseated Reed. In January 2019, a week after he became the new DA, Gonzales tapped Babbitt to be chief of major crimes. Babbitt and Philip Kazen, a former state district judge, were among the first hires Gonzales made. The trios history spans three decades they attended St. Marys University School of Law around the same time in the 1980s. The three grew up together as young attorneys in the DAs Office under Rodriguez. Now, they work side-by-side with Gonzales as the leader. The new district attorney hired many of those young prosecutors as his seasoned administrators, people he said shared his goal and mission to improve the integrity of the office and seek criminal justice reform. We are like a family, Gonzales said. He thanked Babbitt for all the years of service she gave to Bexar County. Coming full circle with them on his team was like bringing the band back together. She was one of those type of prosecutors that you wanted to emulate, to achieve the skills that she possessed, Gonzales said. I remember her as being a great litigator and thats certainly something that we all strive for as young prosecutors. As Gonzales chief of major crimes, Babbitt immediately began the challenging task of preparing to take Jones to trial for crimes that had occurred nearly 40 years earlier. Jones had been convicted in 1984 of killing Kerrville toddler Chelsea McClellan with a fatal injection. Former Bexar County District Attorney Nicholas Nico LaHood, realizing Jones was to be released in 2018, took other cases to the grand jury in 2017, but was ousted by Gonzales at the ballot box before his team could get the cases to trial. Gonzales said that although the victims families were close to LaHood and felt more comfortable with his team, Babbitts calm approach and compassion helped them through the proceedings. Ill always be eternally grateful to her that she was able to take charge of that prosecution that ended up with a good result, Gonzales said. I think that the families finally got some closure and felt that they received justice, and in large part because of Catherines efforts. Jones pleaded guilty Jan. 16 to killing infant Joshua Sawyer, and in exchange received a life sentence. The four other cases were dismissed, but the former pediatric nurse, who is 70, will do 20 years of flat time before she ever sees the desk of a parole board, said Babbitt after the sentencing. She called the case one of the most complex and challenging and particularly atrocious. For her to decide on her watch who lived and who died is nothing short of evil, Babbitt said at the sentencing. Kazen, Gonzales first assistant, recalled Babbitt as a superstar in law school who smashed every expectation placed before her. Weve been thick as thieves and best friends for 35 years, Kazen said. I foresee us actually getting closer and having more time to spend as friends. At a virtual retirement party attended by some 80 people from county offices and others who have worked with Babbitt over 33 years took turns reminiscing and toasting her via Zoom video conference. Those things are said at your funeral, not when you are walking around, she said. Even though it was not in person, I was touched by that. Babbitt said her one regret is not being able to stay to see Gonzales through the end of his term. She plans to travel with her wife, Cindy Fuqua, and to enjoy the next phase of life. She quoted a line from The Summer Day, a poem by Mary Oliver: Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one, wild and precious life? I just love that, Babbitt said. I have been blessed with a long and fruitful career, and maybe it is time for me to live another life. Elizabeth Zavala covers county and state courts in San Antonio. To read more from Elizabeth, become a subscriber. ezavala@express-news.net | Twitter: @elizabeth2863 Multiple Obama Defense Department officials who publicly criticized news that the departments in-house training characterizes protestors and journalists as adversaries oversaw the same program during their own time in government. The story, published in Politico, at first claimed that Defense Secretary Mark Esper was instituting new training across the military in an effort to improve operational security (OPSEC), after a bombshell report involving leaked intelligence claimed there was evidence of Russian bounties that were paid to the Taliban to kill U.S. troops. Politico highlighted how the training included a hypothetical scenario where anti-government protestors and reporters show up at a secret military exercise. In the scenario, both groups are referred to as adversaries, a term defined in 2008 under then-Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence James Clapper as an individual, group, organization, or government that must be denied critical info. The protest group was an adversary, not because of its political beliefs, but because its intentions were contrary to the success of the training mission, the narrator in the scenario explains. Reporters also had contrary intentions and capabilities. They wanted to capture exercise activities and on video and report them on the evening news. In this instance, the reporters are adversaries. Politico quoted several former Obama-era DoD officials as criticizing the governments use of the term. George Little, who served as Pentagon press secretary from 2011 to 2013, called the use of adversaries to refer to protestors and the press appalling and dangerous. The Pentagon and the press have a long history over working alongside each other in service of the American people, he told Politico. Even when they dont see eye to eye on the issues, theres been a long history of respect for their common mission, and its unfortunate that the current Pentagon leadership has largely abandoned it. Story continues Former acting assistant secretary of defense for public affairs Price Floyd added that this witch hunt by Esper is just a way to try to clamp down on what they view as fake news, when in fact all the media is doing is reporting the facts. Brent Colburn, who worked as the head of the Pentagons public affairs from 2014 to 2015, tweeted that the directive was wrong and dangerous. Words matter, and fellow Americans are not adversaries, he stated. But after the Department of Defense pointed out the Pentagons OPSEC program began in 2010 and was revised in 2015 both under President Obama, Politico revised its story to make clear that the policy was not new, and was simply being shared with the entire military, not just select officials. The bottom line is that, while there have been some clear differences under this administration than the last, this wasnt one of them, James Joyner, head of Security Studies at Marine Corps University and nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, told National Review in an email. Our training isnt that well-conceived to begin with and I dont think anyone is vetting it for how its going to appear to external audiences, since its intended for in-house use. Following Politicos reporting, Esper directed the Pentagon to stop calling the news media and protestors adversaries in the training. But Little, Floyd, and Colburn have all failed to publicly acknowledge that the initial use of the term was not a development under the Trump administration. Little and Colburn did not return requests for comment. Floyd did not dispute that the program began under the Obama administration, telling National Review that I have heard the overall program was started sometime after I left it certainly wasnt going when I was there. Media reports at the time show Floyd left his role as director of media affairs for the Pentagon in September 2010. A 2012 directive on OPSEC to the Joint Chiefs of Staff points out that, per the Manchester Document, as much as 80 percent of the information collected by terrorists includes publicly available information from sources such as the news media. Adversaries often collect what appears to be insignificant unclassified data, the memo explains. However, when this data is aggregated with other pieces of information, it may provide a comprehensive view of friendly activities and intent that the adversary can use to act against friendly forces. The Obama administrations attempts to crack down on unauthorized leaks are well documented, with its record use of the Espionage Act to target leakers and journalists setting a precedent that has continued under the Trump administration. The unauthorized disclosure of classified information jeopardizes national security and is a violation of department regulation, policy, and, in certain cases, a criminal act that should be prosecuted, Little said in a 2012 press release announcing new measures to combat leaks. More from National Review The thing about protests against police brutality on American soil is that they are cyclical. History is full of attempts by white people to curtail Black mobilityslave patrols, redlining and residential segregation, police surveillance. Black people are tired of it. We been tired. And what happens when you squeeze an already disenfranchised population into a figurative corner? After a while, they explode. The protests that have followed George Floyds death in May are one example of such an explosion, but they are not the first. On Aug. 11, 1965, 21-year-old Marquette Frye was pulled over on 116th Street and Avalon Boulevard in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, for reckless driving. A crowd of 50 people watched as Frye failed sobriety tests. As the police were about to tow Marquettes car, his older brother Ronald brought their mother, Rena, to the scene. According to police reports, Marquette was compliant at first, but as soon as his mother and brother showed up, he turned spiteful, saying that they had to kill him to take him to jail. When the officers tried to arrest him, he resisted, and Rena jumped onto an officers back. An officer hit Marquette in the head with his baton, drawing blood. The crowd now swelled to almost a thousand people as Marquette, Ronald and Rena were hauled off to jail. The chaos that ensued left 34 people dead, including 23 killed by Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers or National Guard troops, as well as 1,032 injured, at least 600 buildings damaged from fires or looting, another 200 buildings completely destroyed, and around 3,500 people arrested. The event is now a specter that hovers over Black Angelenos, the memory still vivid. Depending on whom you ask, the Watts riots may or may not be called an uprising or rebellion. The pain had been bubbling for far too long. Those whod seen it were migrants, or their parents had migrated to give them a better life. And yet the problems they fled greeted them in a new area code. Rachelle James, a woman I met when I was researching Black migration to California, told me that Black people were just sick and tired of being sick and tired. By the time they reached Los Angeles, theyd just about had it with racism, and the city served as a pressure cooker for Black rage. Story continues Rachelle wanted me to meet the woman who picked up the first call into the police station when Marquette Frye was being arrested; she has been dealing with the fallout ever since. Regina is a first-generation Californian, born in 1942 and raised near Watts. Reginas grandfather, as she succinctly put it, was an uppity nigga. He owned an insurance company and made so much money that whites considered him a threat. Fleeing a lynch mob, he gathered his wife and their eight children and moved to California. When Reginas parents married, her father, whom she described as damaged by the war, worked as an elevator starter at the Southern California Edison company, and her mother became a beautician after working as a maid. By 15, Regina was married, and she had four children by the time she was 19. She became a police dispatcher because her husband had been employed in the same office previously. After applying, taking a test, and being hired in 1962, she worked at the Central Division, which is now the Parker Center, LAPD headquarters. During her probational period, she worked three months on the day shift, one month on night shift and the last month on the graveyard shift. The hours took a toll on her, but not so much as the work culture. She would be put on disciplinary probation for letting her hair hang over one eye or wearing a sleeveless top, and co-workers would shut the door on her as she came through the entrance right behind them. The episode she recalls most vividly involves a dog. At a different position, answering phones, this little old white lady was sitting next to me, and she reached in her purse, and she said, Have you ever seen my dog? I said no, and she pulled out a little picture of a little dog and showed it and asked, Do you know what his name is? And I said No, maam, and she said, Niggerhes black. There were only six Black employees out of 150, she recalled. Her job was to answer phones for the 77th Street Division, responsible for a predominantly Black neighborhood. The district required diligent multitasking to alert police of crimes in the area. You know, normal nights, come to work at 3 oclock in the afternoon. As the evening progresses, it got busier. All of a sudden, I hear that this officer needs help. Im waiting, and nothing. Then an officer comes in on the radio. I say, Please repeat yourself. Who are you? Where are you? Nothing. All the pains and knots of losing an officer who needs help. Finally I get him to come in, almost whispering, but it wasnt much help because the call was so broken up. I guess he was regretting that he started with officer needs help vs. officer needs assistance. Help means BAM [by any means]. Assistance means to get another patrol car down there. I figured that BAM was needed rather than waiting for a more orderly approach. At that point, I screamed out to the boys in the center, Ive got an officer needs help such and such. I finally got his location out of him, and of course they sent another police car, and then they took over from me. But by then every officer in 12 [of the 77th Street division] had heard it and is going completely nuts trying to figure out what it is. So it unfolded in a weird, strange way. I knew though, cause, it was 116th and Avalon, and I lived at 118th and Central Avenue, which is not far, O.K.? So I knew the neighborhood. Thats my neighborhood. Regina tried to tell her superiors not to escalate the situation, but they did so anyway. To this day, she is haunted by a single question: Why didnt they listen to me? Armed National Guardsmen force a line of Black men to stand against the wall of a building during the Watts riots in 1965 | Hulton Archive/Getty Images After work, when Regina ran home, she saw that the grocery store around the corner had been burned down and sparks were still flying from the roof. She made her children stay in the bedroom in the back of the house, thinking it too dangerous in the front. People were running down the street and looting stores and policemen were shooting. On the second night of the riots, there were military guards right off the Interstate 110 freeway. These white male guards pointed guns in her face and searched her car. Down on Imperial Highway, cars were ablaze, and people were screaming. After the riots were over, Reginas mental health suffered. She obsessed over her childrens safety and was often paralyzed by the stress. She would dream of answering phone calls at her job and talk in her sleep, ordering officers to return to the scene to find a missing limb. When I asked her how she coped with it all, her eyes were unyielding and unblinking. I waited patiently for her to continue. Then she replied, I didnt think about it, and thats a long story that Im writing about to try and figure out now. I learned very early in life how to compartmentalize, so if something was uncomfortable or painful, I could put it in one section and go onthe point that stuffs even coming up now that Id forgotten. Thats part of the weight on the stomach, and I can feel the pain when it comes up, when I remember and write about it now. Theyre all shut. All the horrors are shut. I later ask if microaggressions at the workplace increased after the riots, and she says, Too numb to know, too numb to know, too numb. Her compartments stored memories well, for she continued in detail: The hurt and the discouragement and the hopelessness, where we used to feel hopeeven in slavery, it was like, if I can just get free. How do you get free now? Theres no hope to get free. Where is the hope that you can pull yourself up? Like, I was 30 years old and I was driving down Pico heading to Bullocks department store to take my daughter to what they call White Gloves and Party Manners class. And were driving down the street, and I look at the building thats being built down there, and I dont remember if that was the Transamerica Building or whatits short now by comparison. I started to cry cause it was the first time it had ever occurred to me that no matter how hard I worked, what I did, or what I accomplished, I could never own a building like one of those. That my ceiling was way down. No matter what I didand I remember just sobbing and tried to pull myself together, and I was in a depression hole for a few weeks after that. I was 30 when it hit me. Its kind of bizarre that I was I really believed in the dream. I think they [the rioters] must have had the same realization about whatever they had set for their freedom. Here was a woman who inadvertently found herself in the meat grinder of American history. She was traumatized. You could almost hear the stress in her quiet home. There were things that she chose to forget, or that her body made her forget, in order to protect herself and stay alive. I recognized this pattern, but I was looking for a recovery from forgetfulness, a pilgrimage from the lands abandoned to the routes traversed. Then a question arose inside of me like a brief glimmer of light. If I knew the pattern, I had to ask this question and hope she would not be offended. When the riots were happening, did you ever feel the impulse to leave? I asked. At some point I had a dream of living in the country and being peaceful and sitting on the front porch making circles in the dirt with my big toe, and then I realized thats too much work. This exhaustion was of a level that I hadnt confronted till this moment. Regina was well aware of all that her parents had done to get here. She remembered how much she toiled to make a better living for herself, only to find herself swept up in one of the biggest riots the country has ever seen. Even afterward, she realized that she would never get as far as shes dreamed. But it was too much work to uproot and replant herself someplace else. There was too much baggage, too much history. Geographically, California is the last place Black people could flee in this country before winding up in the Pacific Ocean. Weve run on foot, boarded trains, driven cars and crossed rivers to be more free. In this day and age, we place our feet on pavements and march for the lives of those whove been slain by police officers. When we move, we resist in spite of the suppression. Again, our country is confronted with its ills, and white people are confronted with their anxieties about Black people having full autonomy over our lives. This is our collective history. This is our collective baggage. And if we do not unpack it, if the powers that be crush our necks, bind our hands and ankles, or do anything else to keep us from moving, an uprising will happen again. Fires will burnand the baggage will be waiting for us once more. Harper Adapted from Wandering in Strange Lands: A Daughter of the Great Migration Reclaims Her Roots by Morgan Jerkins, available Aug. 4 from Harper/HarperCollins Hiscox, the global specialist insurer, announced that Mike Krefta has decided to return to the UK in early 2021, having completed almost four years as CEO of Hiscox Re & ILS based in Bermuda. After 17 years with Hiscox, Krefta is looking to pursue interests outside of the insurance sector, and so will be leaving the business at the same time. The search for his successor has commenced, and an appointment will be announced in due course. Krefta has worked for Hiscox in both London and Bermuda in a variety of accounting, underwriting and catastrophe modelling roles, predominantly across the insurers big-ticket businesses. He has served as Hiscox Re chief underwriting officer, joint active underwriter of Syndicate 33 and active underwriter for Syndicate 6104, before becoming CEO of Hiscox Re & ILS and a member of the Executive Committee in 2017. As CEO of Hiscox Re & ILS, Krefta has overseen a 105-strong team, built a $866.5 million GWP business, and helped significantly grow the companys third party capital capability, including ILS funds which now have assets under management of $1.5 billion. Krefta has also brought his personal interest in philanthropic and environmental causes to two other roles he has held at Hiscox; as a Trustee to the Hiscox Foundation, the companys charitable foundation, and as executive sponsor for ESG, overseeing the development of Hiscoxs ESG strategy. Bronek Masojada, Hiscox Group CEO, commented: Mike has made an impressive contribution to the Hiscox Group during his tenure, and we have benefitted from his underwriting expertise, energy and commitment to the group. I would like to thank Mike for all he has done for Hiscox and he leaves with our very best wishes for the next chapter. This has been a difficult decision to make as Hiscox is a growing company with a bright future. It has been a great place to build a career, and I look forward to seeing the business prosper both as a passionate supporter, and as a shareholder, said Krefta. Related: New Haven, Conn. -- A new study from researchers at Yale and the Mayo Clinic found that emergency department (ED) visits dropped significantly in March as the public responded to messages about staying home as a result of the pandemic. The study, published in the Aug. 3 edition of JAMA Internal Medicine, looked at data from 24 emergency departments in five health-care systems: in Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and North Carolina. Researchers analyzed daily emergency department visits and ED hospital admissions for four months, from January to April 2020. As COVID-19 case rates increased nationally in March and April, along with public messaging about social distancing, emergency department visits plunged in all five states compared with visits in January and February 2020. Visits fell by 41.5% in Colorado, at the low end, and by 63.5% in New York, at the high end. During the same period, hospital admissions via the emergency department spiked, corresponding to state-level COVID-19 cases: rising by 22% in North Carolina to a high of 149% in New York. "This is a case where public messaging appears to have worked too well," said lead author Dr. Edward R. Melnick, associate professor of emergency medicine. "We said, 'stay home,' and what people heard was: 'Stay home at all costs to avoid COVID-19.'" The researchers concluded that, across the states, public health officials need to provide more nuance in their messaging -- to make clear that, even during a pandemic, it's crucial for people to continue visiting the emergency department for serious injuries and illnesses. "Our new rallying cry is that hospitals are safe," Melnick said. "Few hospitals outside of New York approached going over capacity during March and April 2020. That means a lot of people suffering from non-COVID illnesses and injuries may have stayed home and unnecessarily suffered or even died because they were too scared to come in." The 24 emergency departments included in the study varied widely in size and location, serving from small rural to large urban populations, with annual emergency department volume ranging from 12,500 to 115,000 patients per year. All five states experienced decline in ED visits beginning the week of March 11, with the greatest decline in New York (63.5%), followed by Massachusetts (57.4%), Connecticut (48.9%), North Carolina (46.5%), and Colorado (41.5%). These declines tracked closely with the spike in COVID-19 cases in each state. The trend lasted until mid-April. Melnick said they are continuing to expand the scope of their observations to include more states and to drill down further as to why people avoided going to the ED and what happened to them as a result. They'll be looking at "pre-hospital" data, such as people who dialed 9-1-1, he said, and examining the numbers of deaths in the field. He noted that recent studies conducted elsewhere have confirmed that people with serious conditions indeed stayed home to avoid going to the emergency department during the pandemic. "We want to understand what happened to people who didn't make it to the hospital and the barriers to seeking and receiving care," Melnick said. As a follow-up, Melnick looked at additional ED visit trends and hospital admission rates from April to June 30. He reported that after April 8, ED visits in all five states began to increase, but never returned to baseline. ### Other Yale researchers on the study include Dr. Gail D'Onofrio, professor of emergency medicine and chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine; Dr. Hyung Paek, lecturer in biostatistics; and Bidisha Nath, project manager at Yale University School of Medicine. Advertisement Children returning to school in September will trigger a devastating second wave of Covid-19 that could infect twice as many as the first unless the test and trace system drastically improves, a major study has claimed. Scientists said reopening schools in the UK would inevitably result in another crisis that peaks in December. But it could be avoided with pubs remaining open and no draconian lockdowns needed if testing is dramatically ramped up and the contact tracing system becomes better. Three quarters of people with Covid-19 would need to be tested and self-isolate to prevent a second wave caused by schools reopening. It emerged last night that ministers are drawing up plans for testing squads to enter classrooms in areas with a high infection rate to avoid closing down the how school. Experts found that, to prevent a second wave when schools reopen, the NHS contact tracing system must reach 68 per cent of cases and their contacts. But the current NHS system is 'not good enough'. It reaches half of contacts and only a fraction of symptomatic cases are tested, according to researchers from University College London and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. In other developments yesterday: The Government revealed people could be banned from leaving the towns or cities they live in as part of efforts to tackle local coronavirus outbreaks; One in ten public transport users are breaking rules on face coverings, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said; A scientist claimed millions are wrongly being put back into lockdown because of skewed data caused by mass testing; World health chiefs warned there may never be a silver bullet to beat coronavirus as cases topped 18 million globally; The firm which bought Thomas Cook shops said up to 878 employees out of 4,500 may lose their jobs; The latest figures for the UK showed nine more deaths and 938 new confirmed cases a six-week high; The first day of Rishi Sunak's Eat Out To Help Out scheme for 50 per cent means saw restaurants and fast food chains packed; Matt Hancock denied claims that over-50s will be targeted for a fresh lockdown as the Government was told that any new measures should be aimed more at young people; Recovered coronavirus patients should be exempt from social distancing and self-isolation if they develop further symptoms, according to scientists advising the Government. Children returning to school in September will trigger a devastating second wave of Covid-19 that could infect twice as many as the first unless the test and trace system improves, a major study has claimed (file photo of children heading to class) A second wave could be avoided with pubs remaining open and no draconian lockdowns needed if testing is dramatically ramped up and the contact tracing system becomes better (file photo of a doctor testing for virus with swab) Experts found that, to prevent a second wave when schools reopen, the NHS contact tracing system must reach 68 per cent of cases and their contacts. But as well as that, three quarters of people with Covid-19 would need to be tested and self-isolate (bottom, the measurements combined showing a second 'wave' would not occur) The authors said without improvements in testing it will be 'absolutely essential' to introduce other measures in September to 'mitigate' the effects of schools opening. This could mean pubs are forced to shut or greater restrictions are placed on people meeting indoors. England's chief medical officer last week admitted the UK may have reached a limit for how much society can be opened up safely, without leading to a resurgence of the virus. SLIM DOWN EXAMS, SAY UNIONS By Josh White, Education Reporter for the Daily Mail Teaching unions are demanding a reduction in content in next years exams due to the learning disruption caused by the pandemic. This years GCSE and A Level exams were cancelled and teachers now say next years exams should cover less material to mitigate the effects of pupils disrupted education. Although Boris Johnson has said all pupils will be back full-time from next month, union leaders say schools will not be able to make up for lost time. Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders union NAHT, said: Schools and students are now being left in the unenviable position that they will be expected to cover as much content as possible in a reduced amount of time. Mr Whitemans comments came after Ofqual, the exams watchdog, revealed its initial decisions about next years exams. At present, most exam criteria will remain the same but Ofqual has reduced the workload for English Literature GCSE. Ofqual has not yet said how it plans to ensure fairness between pupils, or whether exams will be held later in the summer than usual. Advertisement One scientist who advises the government even suggested closing pubs as a trade-off for allowing schools to finally open again. Getting children back to classrooms was heralded by Boris Johnson as a 'national priority' and it emerged last night ministers are considering sending testing squads into schools in hard-hit regions. A localised approach to tackling the crisis has been adopted by Downing Street, which has reimposed lockdown restrictions in some Northern towns suffering flare-ups. Teachers and pupils in areas with higher infection rates will receive be tested for the virus to allow authorities to identify any cases and keep schools open, according to The Times. When Leicester was plunged into a second lockdown, all schools were forced to shut - blanket measures ministers are keen to avoid in future. Education Secretary Gavin Williamson is working on a timetable to have all schools open full-time in September. To get children back into lessons he will reportedly pour millions of pounds into council pots to fund bus services for pupils. More school buses is seen as a key to getting pupils into school as it is easier to enforce social distancing, according to The Sun. Getting children into classrooms is also a crucial element in firing up the economy, as it will allow parents providing childcare to go back to work. Many businesses are not expecting workers to return to offices until the end of the year, while the likes of Facebook UK and the RBS banking group said staff will not go back until 2021. Financial services company Legal & General said just 1,200 of its 5,000 staff were back in the office and it was aiming to get 80 per cent of its workers back to the office for a day or two per fortnight. Advertising giant WPP said 99 per cent of its 11,000 staff continue to work remotely, adding: We will continue to allow people to work from home until they feel safe commuting and coming into work. HSBC, Europes largest bank, said it expected flexible working to become the norm after the pandemic, reducing its need for office space. RECOVERED COVID PATIENTS 'SHOULD BE EXEMPT FROM SOCIAL DISTANCING' Recovered coronavirus patients should be exempt from social distancing and self-isolation if they develop further symptoms, according to scientists advising the Government. Experts at the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) looked into evidence from top virologists who found people with Covid-19 antibodies are unlikely to become infected again in the short-term. It follows previous suggestions over the idea of immunity passports, which say someone has had the disease and therefore they cannot get it again. Scientists had said this would be "premature" because declining antibody levels may not mean that the body cannot fight off the virus a second time. But a Sage meeting last month chaired by Chief Scientific Adviser Sir Patrick Vallance and attended by England's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty decided there was enough evidence for a variation on the rules to some of those confirmed to have had coronavirus. According to the i newspaper, the minutes of the meeting said: "Sage advised that, based on current understanding, it would be premature to introduce immunity passports, but it advised that use of antibody positivity for short-term decisions may be possible." Advertisement Shell, which has 4,700 UK office workers, said it would start a phased return from the end of September. It came as a new report found 80 per cent of workers claimed they were more or equally productive at home as in the office. And more than six in ten surveyed by Equiem said they expected to work remotely from the office at least once a week once lockdown is lifted. The Government has admitted just one in five of its own 430,000 workforce has returned to the office meaning hundreds of thousands of civil servants are still working from home. Another study also published today suggested that schools could re-open safely but only under strict rules and with robust contact tracing. The research looked at how Covid-19 spread in schools in Australia, one of the only countries to keep its schools open during the pandemic. It found that outbreaks were not common in schools and children do not spread the coronavirus as much as adults do. Separate scientific research has found exactly the opposite. Schools in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are planned to return in September, while Scotland's first term begins at a slightly later date than usual on August 11. But as cases of Covid-19 rise in the UK, there are concerns school start-dates will be delayed. The easing of some lockdown restrictions were set back on August 1. Professor Chris Whitty, England's CMO, said on Friday the UK has probably reached a limit for how much of society can be opened up safely just weeks before schools are supposed to return. Today researchers at UCL working with a team at LSHTM revealed that, if schools do re-open and lockdown is gradually lifted with more people slowly returning to work, a second wave will occur. The secondary wave would result in the R rate the number of people each Covid-19 patient infects rising above the dreaded number of one. This could yield a secondary wave of infections 2-2.3 times the size of the first, which has so far killed around 46,201 people. The peak would come in December, or in February 2021 if schools re-open on just a part-time basis. Dr Jasmina Panovska-Griffiths, study author, said: 'Our results are reflective of a broader loosening of lockdown, rather than the effects of transmission within schools exclusively.' MATT HANCOCK DENIES PLANS FOR LOCKDOWN OF THE OVER-50s Matt Hancock has denied claims that over-50s will be targeted for a fresh lockdown as the Government was told that any new measures should be aimed more at young people. Officials have drawn up radical plans that could see millions of people asked to stay at home if a second wave of coronavirus infections takes hold. Under one option, people aged between 50 and 70 would get personalised risk ratings as part of a significant widening of the shielding programme. Asked about the report Mr Hancock told Sky News: We have paused the shielding programme because the number of infections is so low. The reports with respect to the over-50s are inaccurate and they are speculation. But we will always do whatever is necessary to keep people safe. However, neither he nor Number 10, who repeated his claim of inaccuracies later, were able to explain which parts of the report they believed were wrong. After a weekend when the young flouted distancing rules across the country, the proposals last night attracted a storm of protest. Critics warned that they failed to recognise the important contribution over-50s make to the economy and risked stigmatising older people in the workplace. Former government adviser Joan Bakewell said ministers needed first to tackle the problem of young people failing to socially distance. Advertisement The study, published today in The Lancet Child and Adolescent Health, assumed children were as infectious as adults. But the results remained true even when the team re-ran the model with the assumption that children and young people were 50 per cent as infectious as adults. Commenting on the study, Matt Keeling, professor of populations and disease at University of Warwick, said: 'In essence the problem is simple. 'Reopening schools is going to increase the R number so if we are to keep R below 1 and prevent a second wave, some other forms of control are necessary. 'The reopening of schools should clearly be a key priority for the UK, many children will have gone over 5 months without setting foot in a classroom. 'The key questions are how much impact will school reopening have on the epidemic and what can be done to mitigate this.' The study found a second wave could be prevented, however, if a robust testing and an adequate contact tracing system was in place. Both have come under intense scrutiny in the UK, with test and trace performance figures in England worsening last week. The research will heap pressure on Health Secretary Matt Hancock and Baroness Harding the head of the test and trace scheme to get the system up to scratch before children go back next month. The study said testing would need to be ramped up so between 59 per cent and 87 per cent of symptomatic patients are tested during the infectious period. It is not clear how many symptomatic patients in the UK are tested each day. But one of the study authors, Chris Bonell, professor of public health sociology at LSHTM, said: 'It looks from the ONS data like there are about 4,200 new infections per day. 'And it looks like from the testing data there are about 4,200 testing positive per week. So it looks like about one in seven (14 per cent). So, that's not good enough, basically.' The study said 75 per cent of individuals with symptomatic infection would need to be diagnosed and isolated if schools return full-time in September. It dips to 65 per cent if schools run on a part-time rota system. This is based on the contact tracing system reaching 68 per cent of people a combination of 75 per cent of positive Covid-19 cases and 90 per cent of their contacts. The NHS is currently reaching an overall standard of 50 per cent, Professor Bonell claims. 'Currently, test, trace, isolating (TTI) is not achieving the levels that we modelled. Looking at the NHS reports from the TTI system, it looks like it's about 50 per cent coverage.' SHOULD PUBS CLOSE FOR SCHOOLS TO OPEN? The study comes after one scientist suggested that pubs may need to shut to allow schools to reopen. Professor Graham Medley told the BBC on Sunday there may need to be a 'trade-off', with the reopening of schools seen as a 'priority' for children's wellbeing. Professor Medley, a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), said England could have to consider closing pubs in order to reopen schools next month. When asked about the chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty's prediction that the country was 'near the limits' of opening up society, the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine academic told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'I think that's quite possible. 'I think we're in a situation whereby most people think that opening schools is a priority for the health and wellbeing of children and that when we do that we are going to reconnect lots of households. 'And so actually, closing some of the other networks, some of the other activities may well be required to enable us to open schools. 'It might come down to a question of which do you trade off against each other and then that's a matter of prioritising, do we think pubs are more important than schools?' He claimed he thought it was 'highly unlikely' that restrictions imposed on the north-west of England last week would be 'the last intervention that has to be done regionally', adding: 'I fully expect there will have to be others in different places at different times.' Advertisement He added: 'The most recent data [shows] about 81 per cent of positives are interviewed, about 81 per cent of those report contacts and about 75 per cent of those contacts are reached so overall that equates to coverage of 50 per cent.' If only 40 per cent of contacts could be traced, under a more pessimistic tracing scenario, testing would need to increase to a higher 87 per cent if school returned full time. Professor Bonell said: 'Our study should not be used to keep schools shut because of a fear of a second wave but as a loud call to action to improve the infection control measures and test and trace system so we can get children back to school.' Professor Bonell suggested that other sectors will face new restrictions in September unless the coverage reached by NHS Test & Trace improves. He said: 'We're not giving specific recommendations about what sectors need to have restrictions imposed, but logically that is absolutely essential.' Professor Bonell added that safe mitigation measures must be in place before schools reopen for all pupils in all year groups in September. Professor Russell Viner, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, said the NHS and Government must be held to account over the test and trace strategy. He added that officials should be thinking carefully about what measures could be taken in September to allow schools to reopen safely. But he said that game-changing virus tests which provide results in 90 minutes provided real reasons for optimism. Business and Industry Minister Nadhim Zahawi yesterday said the tests, which will be rolled out next week, could be used to help schools stay open. It follows Professor Graham Medley, a top Government scientific adviser, suggesting on Sunday that pubs may need to shut when schools open. Another study published in the same Lancet journal today also suggests schools in the UK can re-open safely but only if stringent control measures are in place. Researchers identified all staff and children who attended a school or nursery in the Australian state of New South Wales while they had Covid-19. Overall, 12 children and 15 adults were found to have attended schools or nurseries while infectious between 25 January to 10 April, when term ended. All adults or the parents of children were interviewed at diagnosis to track who the cases had been in contact with during the time that they were infectious. The study said 75 per cent of individuals with symptomatic infection would need to be diagnosed and isolated if schools return full-time in September to avoid a second wave (graph on left, middle row). This is based on the contact tracing system reaching 68 per cent of people. The findings for a partial opening of school is shown on the right The study shows that even with contact tracing, testing needs to be ramped up in order to reduce cases and deaths. The top graphs show how deaths would increase if testing only reaches 18 per cent of symptomatic cases Once contacts were identified, they were told to self isolate and were tested if they showed symptoms, allowing the authors to calculate how many secondary transmissions were linked with each primary case. IS THE TEST AND TRACE SCHEME GETTING WORSE? Figures last week revealed some 4,242 people infected with coronavirus were referred to the test and trace scheme during the week of July 16-22. But just 2,809 (77 per cent) agreed to provide details of people they had come into close contact with recently, meaning thousands of potential patients went missed. A total of 646 with the virus could not be reached at all by the tracers, who phone, text and email someone up to 10 times a day to get hold of them. The contact tracing figures, released by the Department of Health, also found the programme failed to reach almost a fifth of people who tested positive for Covid-19 last week. Little over 81 per cent of infected people were actually tracked down by tracers marking the first time the system had caught more than 80 per cent of patients since it launched on May 28. One in four people who came into close contact with someone infected with coronavirus could not be reached by the NHS Test and Trace service. Only 75.1 per cent (13,974) of contacts were reached and asked to self-isolate. This was down from the 78.4 per cent reached in the previous week, and the 90.8 per cent reached in the first week of Test and Trace. Scientists have previously said eight in 10 Covid-19 sufferers need to be reached and their contacts isolated for the system to be effective. Advertisement The team showed that, of the 633 close contacts who were tested following symptoms, 18 were found to have Covid-19. It means that 1.2 per cent of all close contacts (1,448) got the coronavirus from a primary case. However, some asymptomatic or milder cases may have been missed seeing as testing was only of those with tell-tale signs. Further analysis of a subset of schools showed the transmission rate between staff (4.4 per cent) was much higher than between children (0.3 per cent), suggesting children do not spread the virus as much as adults. The attack rate from child to staff was one per cent for child-to-staff, compared to 1.5 per cent the other way around. The researchers, led by Professor Kristine Macartney also said the transmission rates may have been higher in areas where contact tracing systems and testing were not as rigorous. In a linked commentary discussing both articles, Professor John Edmunds, a leading authority on mathematical modelling of the spread of infectious diseases at LSHTM, said: 'Both studies give potential options for keeping schools open and show the clear importance of adequate contact tracing and testing.' The UCL study modelled six different scenarios of school reopening using baseline data about how the coronavirus spreads. Alongside school reopening, the model included the relaxation of measures across society, which they assumed would accompany one another. For each scenario, they estimated the number of new infections and deaths, as well as the effective reproduction number. As with any modelling study, a number of assumptions were made about the spread of the virus to measure the effects of lifting lockdown. For example, it assumed the test used by Public Health England is 100 per cent accurate however it is known this isn't the case. And the model assumes everyone tested gets their result within 24 hours, which official statistics show is not true either. In the UK, around three quarters of tests outside of hospitals are being returned in 24 hours, despite Prime Minister Boris Johnson setting a target of 100 per cent by the end of June. Dr Adam Kucharski, an associate professor in infectious disease epidemiology, LSHTM, said the model uses a 'very optimistic scenario about the speed and performance of testing'. WHY ARE MASKS NOT COMPULSORY IN SCHOOLS? In England, the Government has decided that face masks will not be necessary in schools. Its guidance for schools states that: 'Wearing a face covering or face mask in schools or other education settings is not recommended. 'Face coverings may be beneficial for short periods indoors where there is a risk of close social contact with people you do not usually meet and where social distancing and other measures cannot be maintained, for example on public transport or in some shops. 'This does not apply to schools or other education settings. 'Schools and other education or childcare settings should therefore not require staff, children and learners to wear face coverings. 'Changing habits, cleaning and hygiene are effective measures in controlling the spread of the virus.' Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said: 'If you're in a space with the same people repeatedly and for long periods of time, whether an office or a classroom, then a mask doesn't actually protect them.' Advertisement He added: 'In reality, there will be a trade off with speed and effectiveness even if a high proportion of people ill with COVID-19 are tested, it won't stop transmission if test results end up taking too long or infected contacts aren't traced before they become infectious.' It comes as Mr Hancock said that testing in schools will be expanded due to machines which can reveal if a person is infected within 90 minutes. He said there is currently survey testing in some schools but suggested the machines could be deployed to screen pupils even if they dont show symptoms. But the researchers warned that without improvements in testing, it will be absolutely essential to introduce other measures to mitigate the impact of schools opening. This could mean that pubs are forced to shut or greater restrictions are placed on meeting others indoors. The Prime Ministers official spokesman confirmed that all pupils will return full-time in September but acknowledged that outbreaks of coronavirus could force some schools to close. He said: Youve heard from the Prime Minister on many occasions his absolute commitment to getting children back into school in September and thats vital for their education and their development. We are planning for all pupils in all year groups to be in school full-time from the beginning of the autumn term. Evidence shows children are unlikely to get ill with the virus but it is still not clear how much they contribute to its spread. Yesterday new Australian research found there were low levels of coronavirus transmission in schools and nurseries. Figures collected from 15 schools and ten nurseries showed that although 27 children or teachers went to lessons while infectious, only an additional 18 people became infected. A Government spokesman said: We have the capacity to carry out more than 330,000 tests per day, growing to 500,000 per day by the end of October. Plans have been put in place to ensure schools can reopen safely. There have been numerous demonstrations across Britain since the dramatic rise of the Black Lives Matter movement in response to the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May. But the one that took place in Brixton over the weekend, to mark the 186th anniversary of the Abolition of Slavery, was different. It marked the debut appearance of Forever Family, a black rights protest group, on Londons streets. Their intent was undoubtedly peaceful, but many felt their appearance makeshift black uniforms and stab vests bearing the logo FF Force, while some had face masks and one a balaclava was reminiscent of a paramilitary organisation. The imagery was sinister, hostile even, as young men and women stood with raised fists in a move synonymous with the black rights movement. Forever Family says its aim is to achieve unity in the battle against racism, inequality and injustice and who would argue with that. Yet, to me, the atmosphere was one of intimidation that is out of place in our democratic society Their presence would not have been out of place in a dystopian land of revolutionary chaos and conflict, rather than the well-ordered streets of our capital. Forever Family says its aim is to achieve unity in the battle against racism, inequality and injustice and who would argue with that. Yet, to me, the atmosphere was one of intimidation that is out of place in our democratic society. Indeed, there have been no scenes like this on British soil since the outlawed IRA was operating in Northern Ireland at the peak of the Troubles, when its masked parades contributed to its culture of terror. Destructive But while the Brixton march was alarming, it is the inevitable consequence of the campaign by Black Lives Matter to promote an inflammatory brand of identity politics. Imported from America, this toxic ideology sees everything through the prism of race, based on a narrative where black people are the permanent victims of oppression, while white people are collectively guilty of perpetuating discrimination. Under this dogma, black people are encouraged to believe that Britain is so racist that their only hope is to organise their own resistance through groups like Forever Family. As a woman of African origin myself, I believe this is a highly destructive outlook. By fuelling discord, it undoes all the good work done over recent decades in building better race relations in Britain. Under this dogma, black people are encouraged to believe that Britain is so racist that their only hope is to organise their own resistance through groups like Forever Family It is a recipe for strife, rather than solidarity, putting the emphasis on what divides us instead of what unites us. More importantly, it is also the very antithesis of racial progress, which, in the famous words of Dr Martin Luther King, holds that people should be judged by the content of their character, not by the colour of their skin. And so, for the sake of our future harmony, I believe that their alienating doctrine must not be allowed to prevail. That is why I have established a new movement The Equiano Project in order to present an alternative vision; one that embodies the positive values of freedom, openness and dialogue rather than the relentlessly negative soundtrack of bullying, grievance and antagonism. The Project is named after Olaudah Equiano, an 18th-century African writer who was sold into slavery but, partly through his enterprise and wide range of talents, was eventually able to buy his freedom from his British masters. Equiano went on to become a key figure in the campaign for the abolition of slavery, as well as a successful author. Simplistic In contrast to the politically fashionable concentration on the dark side of black history, Equianos uplifting life and impressive achievements should be a source of inspiration to current generations. The Project holds its first meeting tonight an online debate about the need for a different, less simplistic approach to race to the one put forward by Black Lives Matter. Among the speakers are Trevor Phillips, the distinguished broadcaster, writer and former head of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, and Katharine Birbalsingh, the pioneering education reformer whose own superb leadership of a high-performing inner-city school refutes the politically correct notion that black pupils are doomed to fail because of institutional white racism. It is telling that since the launch of the Project was announced, I have come under attack from opposite ends of the political spectrum. Some far-Left authoritarians loathe any challenge to their binary conceit of black victimhood and white racism. Then there are the Neo-Nazis, who with equal ferocity want to protect their warped concept of white identity in Britain. It is ironic how much the two ideological camps with their closed minds and racial obsessions have in common. But that is precisely why I want to see change. The reality is that the hysteria fostered by Black Lives Matter has not only shattered the bonds of mutual trust in Britain, it has created a climate of fear, where traditional British liberties are now under unprecedented threat. Tolerance that most important of Enlightenment values is disappearing. In its place, a mood of witch-hunting McCarthyism has taken hold in civic life, where people feel they cannot speak out against the current orthodoxy. And so as history is rewritten, school curricula are decolonised, statues are pulled down and heretics sent off for re-education. Such a poisonous attitude is the very opposite of what our country needs. We should be overcoming differences, not entrenching them. To do otherwise ignores what I believe: that Britain is anything but a hotbed of prejudice. Of course, this country has its problems, but Britain has probably done more to foster good race relations than any other place on Earth. That record of integrating newcomers is exactly why so many newcomers, most of them from Asia, Africa and the Caribbean, want to settle here. And, ultimately, the fabric and history of this nation actually ensured this process, establishing the very freedoms that are now under attack from the race obsessives. After all, Britain is the land that pioneered the concept of equality before the law through Magna Carta, gave the world parliamentary democracy, developed a free Press and formulated the idea of policing by consent. We played a central role in the abolition of slavery and, unlike the U.S., never had any system of racial segregation yet another reason why Black Lives Matter is so wrong-headed to argue that the black experience here is anything like that in America. Such an exaggeration of disadvantage does young blacks no favours. If anything, it narrows their horizons, traps them in victimhood and treats them as second-class citizens. My Nigerian mother used to tell me: You can achieve whatever you want. Those words are far more likely to inspire a young black adult than a pithy placard railing against invented oppression. Nor does the Black Lives Matter ideology provide any practical solutions to the real problems that exist in modern Britain. All its howls about supposed racial injustice, police brutality and white supremacy will do nothing to lessen knife crime, promote stable family units or stop the formation of street gangs. To the self-proclaimed anti-racists, it is easier to pass the blame than face up to social responsibility. But the rest of us know that a different path must be forged. Hamish Blake has confessed that he misunderstood Victoria's new lockdown rules that were instated on Sunday evening to control the soaring COVID-19 cases. Detailing the hilarious faux pas on a post shared to his Instagram on Monday, the comedian explained that he ordered himself an air fryer because he thought the strict new regulations meant food delivery services wouldn't be open for the next six weeks. Soon after realising his mistake, the 38-year-old jokingly revealed he was planning on turning his house into a '6 week Fryer Festival' to justify his pricey purchase to his wife, Zoe Foster. 'Thought there'd be no food delivery!' Hamish Blake has confessed he misunderstood Victoria's new lockdown rules that were instated on Sunday evening to control COVID-19 Hamish shared a snap of him looking slightly puzzled, and began the accompanying statement acknowledging 'this is the look of a man who slightly misunderstood yesterdays Victorian lockdown order'. Explaining his previous plight, he said he misunderstood the rules to mean there 'would be no delivery food, so therefore no chips, for six weeks - so he bought an air fryer cos he heard they can make chips'. However, he explained that he 'didnt tell his wife, and now he has found out there WILL be delivery food, and he has lost his main argument for buying the air fryer, and hes waiting for her to find out he got it when it arrives on Friday or when she reads this. Faux pas: On Monday, the comedian explained that he ordered himself an air fryer because he thought the strict new regulations meant food delivery services wouldn't be open for the next six week 'It's also the look of a man who is quietly vowing to air fry the sh** out of anything and everything for the next six weeks in the hopes of being hailed Fry King and turning the house into a 6 week Fryer Festival to really justify the purchase. 'Its a pretty multi-layered look, I guess. #day1,' he concluded while teasing a social media documentation of his relationship with the air fryer over the coming weeks. While food delivery services will still be available, Melbourne is set to suffer a shock shutdown of most shops and services for six weeks, with thousands of jobs to be lost. 'I hope to be hailed Fry King!' Soon after realising his mistake, the 38-year-old jokingly revealed he was planning on turning his house into a '6 week Fryer Festival' to justify his pricey purchase to his wife, Zoe Foster Melbourne is gripped by Stage 4 lockdown with an 8pm curfew, schools shut down, weddings banned, and citizens restricted to a 5km radius from their home. Premier Daniel Andrews on Monday announced thousands more businesses would also have to shut down from Thursday as 429 more cases were diagnosed. Thirteen more Victorians also lost their lives overnight, bringing the state's total to 136 and Australia's to 221. (Natural News) Now we come to the real mission in the plandemic, the censorship, the banning of hydroxychloroquine and the silencing of Americas Frontline Doctors: Its all about global depopulation via a new vaccine thats designed to mass murder billions of human beings and sharply reduce the population of the human race on planet Earth. Why else do you think theyre making it mandatory while granting the vaccine companies complete legal immunity from all liability? Its because the vaccine is designed to kill human beings, not save them. Once people start dying, no one can sue the vaccine makers. Thats why they needed the legal immunity agreements in place before they launched the vaccine push. The global depopulation agenda isnt even a secret, by the way. Bill Gates openly talks about using vaccines to reduce the human population, and globalists openly admit they believe that if human populations arent sharply reduced, the planets biosphere will collapse due to carbon dioxide emissions, pollution and the frenzied consumption of natural resources. Whether or not you believe that, they (the globalists) believe it. And they believe they must kill 90% of the human population in order to save the other 10%. Thus, globalists who pursue global depopulation see themselves as heroes of humanity, not mass murderers. The global warming scam was the first effort to crush the economy and cause mass famine and death, but it failed Understand that the plandemic isnt the first effort to achieve global depopulation. Globalists first tried to crush human economies using the global warming scam, falsely claiming carbon dioxide was a deadly poison. They rigged all the global temperature numbers and fudged the fake science studies to try to push global warming later climate change to lock down global economies. But their efforts failed. Not enough people bought into the obvious fraud, and their fake science was easily exposed. The engineering and release of the coronavirus is simply the escalation of the same goal: To shut down global economies, cause mass famine and poverty, followed by an engineered culling of human populations. Where the global warming fraud failed, the COVID-19 plandemic succeeded. The lockdowns were weaponized and extended, crushing national economics and leading to what will now be a mass wave of homelessness, destitution, disease, famine, social unrest and possibly even nuclear war. But the real weapon in all this is the COVID-19 vaccine. Everything else was put in place merely to drive humanity to beg for it. The vaccine wont kill instantly, of course. The first wave of vaccines might even be deliberately made safe in order to unleash a wave of positive press and convince skeptics to go all-in and agree to be injected. But by the time the second and third rounds of injections are being shot into people around the world, the vaccines will be sufficiently weaponized to cause autoimmune disorders and mass death upon exposure to a subsequent influenza or coronavirus strain that will be deliberately released into the wild. Most people will die from a hyperinflammatory immune response. They will drown in the liquid in their own lungs, in other words, and many of those who survive will suffer permanent neurological damage that will make autism look like a walk in the park. Notably, those who die from the COVID-19 vaccine will include the very journalists who attack the whistleblowers who are warning this is coming. Being a Big Pharma whore who works for MSNBC, it turns out, doesnt grant you any special exemption from the vaccines youre pushing. You will suffer and die right alongside everyone else, drowning in the pain and fraud that characterizes the vaccine youve been pushing on others. One of the inevitable repercussions of the vaccine, in fact, will be that it will kill many of the propagandists who claimed it was safe. We call that karma. If you take the vaccine, you might win the Darwin award and get removed from the human gene pool Ultimately, the COVID-19 vaccine is an IQ test for humanity, and anyone stupid enough to take it is likely to be removed from the human gene pool, exactly as desired by globalists like Bill Gates. See, even globalists are tired of so many stupid people walking around on this planet, and theyve figured out a simple way to eliminate the obedient sheeple: Push a mandatory depopulation vaccine and see how many idiots line up to take it. Those who take the shot prove theyre too stupid to represent the future of the human race. As they die off over the next few years, they take their stupidity to the grave, thereby aiding the future of humanity by removing their own stupidity from it. The vaccine pushers themselves will be among those to self-cull and die, which is exactly the outcome they are bringing upon themselves. This will be the ultimate irony of vaccine lies: Those who push the lies will ultimately kill themselves with the very thing they claimed was perfectly safe. When pushers of medical violence end up killing themselves with their own toxic medicine, its actually a special kind of cosmic justice at work, by the way. We should not interfere with their desire to commit suicide by vaccine. The key is to make sure they dont take you with them. After all, most of the pro-vaccine zealots are demonic mass murderers who also enjoy chopping up living human babies via post-birth abortions. Theyve probably already killed some of their own offspring, come to think of it, and they seek to destroy as many lives as possible before they self-destruct. As is now obvious with the anti-police efforts of the radical Left, Democrats and progressives are now all-in with support for mass murder, rapes, arson, felony assaults, violent mobs, riots and mayhem. There isnt a criminal act they dont embrace, including pedophilia and the trafficking of baby body parts. These are the same people pushing vaccine mandates, of course, which tells you everything you need to know about vaccines. The real answer in all this is to let the lunatic Leftists take all the vaccines they want. When the enemy is in the process of destroying itself, try not to get in the way. If they murder their own children with vaccines, thats not much different from the fact that they routinely murder their own children with abortions, it turns out. They are murderers and baby body parts harvesters. At least with the coronavirus vaccine, we might be fortunate enough to see them murder themselves. How they will try to force you to take the coronavirus vaccine Naturally, every element of society will try to force you to take the vaccine injection so that the maximum genocide effect can be achieved by the globalists. They will tell you youre not allowed to go to work without the vaccine, or theyll deny you access to air travel privileges unless you can produce a vaccine passport of some kind. You might be denied access to retail stores, and local CPS kidnappers might threaten to take your children away if you dont get them vaccinated, too. Full-blown medical tyranny and police state violence will be deployed against anti-vaxxers, and they will be blamed for all future COVID-19 deaths. Speaking out against vaccines will become a criminal act, and you will be deplatformed from every social media platform, video site and search engine unless you agree to comply with the pro-vaccine propaganda. They will make you pay a huge price for refusing the vaccine. You will be made to suffer. But thats because the global genocide plan requires obedience. They have to convince people to consent to suicide-by-vaccine in order to make it work. If the sheeple wake up and start to mount any real resistance, there arent enough police forces or military forces in any society to round up all the masses and overtly kill them like the Nazis did. No, this Holocaust will be carried out with the consent of those being mass murdered. And if you refuse to grant them consent to murder you with a deadly vaccine, they will make your life a living hell. Or you could believe the fairy tale delusion that claims Big Pharma loves you and only wants to help humanity, while Bill Gates loves all the little black babies in the world If all this sounds like a bit too much for you to swallow, you could of course revert to the official fairy tale that claims Big Pharma vaccine manufacturers love humanity and only want to help save lives, and that Bill Gates and other globalists want to protect all the little black babies in the world, and that abortion is an act of motherly love, and that violent left-wing riots are a peaceful spiritual movement, and so on. If you smoke enough crack, you might even convince yourself that the coronavirus vaccines will magically be perfectly safe, even without adequate long-term safety testing. With enough drugs in your system, you could even tell yourself that Big Pharma cares about you personally, and their only goal is to help end human suffering, which is why they all conspired to ban any speech about hydroxychloroquine, somehow. But those who are lucid and awake know better. Big Pharma has zero interest in helping anyone other than their own shareholders. Vaccines are largely quack science, and almost none of them have ever been subjected to rigorous long-term clinical trials. The mad rush to market, combined with total legal immunity from all liability, is a perfect storm of mass vaccine injuries that will be desperately covered up by the complicit media and evil, treacherous tech giants who are all-in with Big Pharmas crimes against humanity. If you decide to take the coronavirus vaccine, you are doing exactly what the globalists want you to do: Engaging in medical suicide to remove yourself from planet Earth, surrendering the future of human civilization to the globalist elite who have known all along that the plandemic, the shutdowns and the vaccines were all part of a plan to exterminate billions of human beings. Have no doubt that Bill Gates wont be taking the same vaccine youre taking. His vaccine will be formulated to actually work (and not kill the patient). Your vaccine, on the other hand, is really just a kind of euthanasia shot disguised as a vaccine. So when the day comes that the first coronavirus vaccine is available to the public, drive by the long waiting lines and watch in awe as people line up to be exterminated en masse. You are watching the vaccine Holocaust play out in real time, but without all the gas chambers and government soldiers. Now, it seems, the globalists have figured out a way to get people to kill themselves with consent. No resistance. No uprising. No war. Just billions of human beings slipping quietly into death, while praising the rising value of their Big Pharma stock portfolios as they take their last breath and slide into death, oblivious to the fact that their saviors were actually their executioners. Mission accomplished, Bill Gates, you clever little anti-human bastard. Read VaccineWars.com to stay informed. By Nam Hyun-woo Lim Sung-ki, chairman and founder of Hanmi Pharmaceutical died of a chronic disease on Sunday. He was 80. He is recognized with his accomplishments in the Korean pharmaceutical industry, growing a small drug store to a mid-size enterprise logging more than 1 trillion won ($838 million) in annual sales. Lim was born in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, in 1940 and studied pharmacy at Chung-Ang University. His pharmaceutical career began in 1967, when he opened his namesake drug store, Lim Sung-ki Pharmacy, in Dongdaemun, Seoul. He established Hanmi Pharmaceutical in 1973. In its early stages, Hanmi Pharmaceutical focused on selling generic drugs and expanded its presence with incrementally modified drugs such as Amosartan. While growing his company, Lim had emphasized the significance of developing novel drugs, spending nearly 20 percent of annual sales for R&D every year. Last year, the company spent 209.7 billion won on R&D, which amounts to 18.8 percent of its annual sales income of 1.11 trillion won. Reportedly, Hanmi's accumulated R&D spending in the past 20 years amounts to 2 trillion won. The effort generated significant results. In 2015, the company signed seven license-out deals with global pharmaceutical titans including Eli Lilly, Boehringer Ingelheim, Sanofi and Janssen. The combined value of the deals reached 8 trillion won. To share the benefit with employees, the company donated 900,000 shares worth 110 billion won to 2,800 executives and employees in 2016. As a result of its past R&D efforts, Hanmi Group now stands as one of top 10 pharmaceutical companies in Korea, with its own subsidiaries, branches and offices in five overseas markets. Hanmi Science is the group's holding firm, controlling Hanmi Pharmaceutical, JVM, Hanmi Japan and a number of other units. Lim is survived by his wife, Song Young-sook, sons Hanmi Science CEO Chong-yoon and Hanmi Healthcare CEO Jong-hoon, and his daughter Hanmi Pharm Vice President Joo-hyun. Questions remain over the distribution of the late chairman's stakes in Hanmi. Lim's estate includes a 34.26 percent stake in Hanmi Science, while the firm's CEO and oldest son Chong-yoon only has 3.6 percent. Inheriting shares worth more than 3 billion won is subject to at least 50 percent tax. Hanmi Science's market cap stood at 3.33 trillion won as of 11:30 a.m., Monday. The federal government has donated N67 million worth of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to aid the fight against the coronavirus pandemic in Sao Tome and Principe. The Chairman of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, disclosed this on Monday during a briefing by the PTF in Abuja. I am happy to inform you that as ECOWAS champion in the containment of COVID-19 in the West African sub-region, Mr President made a donation of 67 million worth of PPEs and medical supplies to the government and people of Sao Tome and Principe, Mr Mustapha said. The SGF said that the donation followed a request by the government of Sao Tome, seeking aid to help the country effectively manage the pandemic which is ravaging the world. He said that medical equipment donated includes units of test kits, extraction kits, infrared thermometers, and other items of personal protective equipment to treat and test thousands in Sao Tome and Principe. Meanwhile, the PTF Chairman appreciated the group of COVID-19 survivors that have added their voices to the campaign against stigmatization and urged others to always remember that COVID-19 was not a death sentence, stressing that Nigerians need to support one another. Most importantly, lets wear our masks properly, stay at home, especially for those above 60 years, maintain social distancing and continue to take personal responsibility while we encourage others to do same, he said. (NAN) [Editor's note: This article was first published on Monday 3 August] This morning at half eight, David Lovenbury walked through the empty Newcastle city centre on his way to his office, situated by the Quayside, for the first time since Monday 16 March. In the almost 140 days since he was last at his desk the 51-year-old was furloughed from his role as a commercial director - it happened a couple of weeks after moving to remote working - but now he is back and ready for business. Lovenbury, who drove the 10 miles from his home in Whitley Bay rather than using public transport, tells The Independent he prefers being in the office to remote working and feels confident about safety in his workplace (they have installed hand sanitiser stations and rearranged furniture to support distancing). There was no pressure at all [to return], it was a mutual decision as the timing seemed appropriate, but that there were some back to school nerves as he drove in. He says for the rest of the week he will use the Metro system, rather than his car, to commute it feels safe, I have no reservations but he does feel the situation isn't yet back to normal. I just hope the city centre survives this, and pray the economy can bounce back. Newcastle is a vibrant, loud and cosmopolitan city and seeing it so eerily quiet [this morning] was heartbreaking. Recommended This is what it feels like to come out of shielding after four months Like Lovenbury, thousands of people across England were permitted to return to their offices on Monday 3 August. On 17 July, after months of telling people to work from home if possible, Boris Johnson said employers could bring staff back on 1 August. The prime minister said: It is not for the government to decide how employers should run their companies and whether they want their work forces in the office or not that is for companies. There has been some criticism of the change in policy; it did seem to directly contradict an announcement by the UKs chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance 24 hours earlier, when he said there was absolutely no reason to change the guidance on working from home. London mayor Sadiq Khan also said the government should not encourage people to return to their workplaces if it means overcrowding public transport. The new guidance even states that even those deemed extremely clinically vulnerable to the virus can be asked to return, a move which lead charities, including Macmillan, to warn that lifting the shielding programme on the same weekend is forcing cancer patients to choose between finances and their health. On 31 July it looked like Mr Johnson might retract the back-to-work pledge as he squeezed the brakes on a number of other easing measures. But he did not, leaving it to the discretion of individual companies to make the decision. "We both feel it is more dangerous than ever now to be going back to a communal office because of the sheer amount of people arriving on holiday... James White, 40, from Cornwall, was less enthused than Lovenbury about going back to his job at an architecture practice on Monday. His wife Amanda, 35, who was furloughed from her job at a furniture shop but has been working part time on her own SEO and social media consultancy during lockdown, said the couple both have mixed feelings about his return to the office. We are both nervous about him going back to work, she says. This is particularly because this week is the height of the summer holiday season in Newquay, where they live, so the amount of tourist footfall in town is high. We both feel it is more dangerous than ever now to be going back to a communal office because of the sheer amount of people arriving on holiday, she says. Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Show all 18 1 /18 Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jack Dodsley, 79, with a carer in PPE at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jackie Wilson, a healthcare assistant, wearing PPE before going into rooms Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jack Dodsley, 79, speaks to a carer at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Carers working at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A care worker wearing PPE opens a drink carton Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jack Dodsley, 79, sits with a carer Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jack Dodsley, 79, with a carer in PPE Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A care staff member wearing PPE Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A staff member at Newfield Nursing Home looks after a resident SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A carer wearing PPE uses a speaker Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A carer helps Jack Dodsley, 79, from his chair Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A carer wearing PPE helps Jack Dodsley, 79 Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A staff member at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A carer brings food to a resident at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jack Dodsley, 79, with a carer in PPE Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A staff member puts on PPE at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jackie Wilson, a healthcare assistant, puts on PPE before she enters a room SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A bench at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Both are worried that James might bring Covid-19 home to their 17-month-old son or to Amanda, who is asthmatic. Weve remained in lockdown since the start. Weve rarely visited shops and are managing with a food delivery every 7-10 days. We arent going to any play parks with our son, he is not back to nursery and weve not been into our local town [since March]. We did feel safe. Now I feel anxious that my husband will be mixing with people potentially not taking things as seriously. We cant control others, she explains. Of course there are only so many Zoom meetings you can do but there are still the pangs of anxiety, worry and guilt about potentially bringing a killer virus into the family when working from home is possible. The Whites arent the only people apprehensive about returning. In an exclusive focus group conducted with YouGov and The Independent office workers expressed their hope that remote working would continue post-pandemic, with many saying they did not want to return to office work five days a week. Several big businesses, including Facebook and Twitter, have already said they will be using the pandemic as an opportunity to encourage permanent remote working and the closure of large office spaces. "I was excited to get out of the house and get back to normality, but there was also the looming feeling of is it all back to normal now... Louise Joy, 30, a magazine editor from Milton Keynes, said she has also been unsure about how to feel about rejoining her small team (four people, including Joy) on Monday. I was ready for some sort of normality but I dont think Im ready to go back full time, she says. I didnt feel pressured by my boss, but by the job in general it became clear that there was a struggle with working from home and we all needed to get back to the office in one way or another. Her employee has provided a basket of masks, tissue, wipes and water bottles to use to maintain hygiene standards. Like Lovenbury she says that it felt like she was prepping for her first day of school on Sunday evening. I was excited to get out of the house and get back to normality, but there was also the looming feeling of 'is it all back to normal now'?. Data from the Office for National Statistics found shows almost half (47 per cent) of employed adults had been working remotely at home for some, or all, of lockdown. Now as people are encouraged to return to their normal workplaces by the government, while simultaneously the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in England rises again, only time will tell whether it was too soon. cCloud, the once-popular and massive IPTV linking service, has decided to shut down citing a combination of legal pressure and a shortage of development support, reports TorrentFreak. Promoted as the Popcorn Time for Live TV, cCloud was one of the first services that offered users access to premium IPTV streams for free through an easy to use interface. cCloud used to work by scraping third-party sources to find free streams, showing them in a single interface that could be accessed on the web and platforms such as Roku and Kodi. How Did cCloud Come Into Existence? The cCloud project was started by Bane who developed it as a tool for personal use when he could no longer afford expensive cable subscriptions. He decided to bring all pirate IPTV streams he could find into a single service. The moment this service was made public, it gained popularity leading to an increase in the number of users. A week after launch, the website already had some heavy traffic, likely because it was so easy to use. After two weeks it had already grown beyond what I ever imagined, Bane said. The torrent-based app Popcorn Time was in the news back then. Bane cleverly used this opportunity and started promoting his service as the Popcorn Time for Live TV. Takedowns And Legal Pressure The growing popularity of the service, as well as an increasing number of visitors, caught the attention of copyright holders. Unhappy with the service, they started sending DMCA notices to Bane demanding links to their content to be removed. It was scary when I got my first DMCA, Bane told TorrentFreak. Out of fear of being imprisoned, Bane pulled everything offline. However, he didnt feel it right to shut down the service permanently amid the high user demand. Since cCloud didnt host any copyrighted material and depended on third-party links, Bane brought it back after a week with a more detailed explanation of its working. This led to a decrease in the number of DMCA notices which in turn brought cCloud back on track. With help from volunteer developers, it kept growing and increasing making it one of the most-used apps on Kodi, Plex, and Roku. While the project kept expanding, there was always a threat of legal pressure. For instance, the Canadian lawsuit that was filed against TVAddons in 2017 notably named cCloud as an infringing service. A year later, the popular media player Roku also decided to ban the application, likely over copyright infringement concerns, which resulted in developers exiting the cCloud project. Exodus Of Developers After the TVAddons situation things kind of went downhill. Developers who were helping me with various platforms decided to leave for good, Bane recalls. So I was left all alone and had to manage all of the servers and the backend for each platform on my own. I tried to get help from developers and some tried to help but, once they realized how much work is involved to keep things running, they just gave up. Although the streaming link scrapers are automated, they are required to be frequently updated as publishers update them constantly, which meant keeping cCloud online with a one-man team was not possible. cCloud Bots scrapers have been running for years but they are not bulletproof. Just like any other scrapers, they break if the source changes or is updated, Bane says. Decision To Shut Down While cCloud worked, most of the time, it did consume a lot of time and effort. With the number of users decreasing, Bane decided to voluntarily shut down the service. Things have been running fine for years but sometimes you just have to let things go so I have now made the tough decision to let the project go, he says. While the official cCloud site remains online, the scrapers are no longer updated which means that the service is pretty much unusable now. Also, for the last months, many of the premium channel streams are not working. Most of the users want premium channels and those wont be there anymore. The sad reality is that cCloud is dead already, Bane notes. The main servers are set to expire next month and the developer has no plans to renew the server in November either. This means that cCloud will eventually dissolve. While Bane is upset about shutting down the service, he believes its for the best. cCloud served its purpose whilst proving a point. It may have also helped some big content providers although in a small way to offer IPTV services that are more common today. There currently are a lot of legal IPTV alternatives out there. This was not the option when I started the project five years ago. Today you have Philo, Hulu, YouTube TV, Fubo Tv and many more. In general, all of the big players have already stepped into the IPTV arena with affordable costs and stable streams, Bane concludes. Humanoid Promobot in Russia. Photo by Maxim Kimerling\TASS via Getty Images A humanoid robot is the first to work in a civil service office in Russia. The robot was made by Philadelphia-based Promobot. Previously, a Promobot was spotted around New York City surveying people about possible coronavirus symptoms before getting banned from a park. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Promobot's most recent robot sits firmly in uncanny valley, working as a civil servant in Perm, Russia. The humanoid robot can process documents and file requests into the local government information system. Back in February, the company gained attention after sending its robots around New York City and surveying passersby about possible COVID-19 symptoms. It asked people questions about symptoms, gave advice about avoiding the virus, and handed out face masks, and the company says it performed similar surveys in Mexico in March. Promobot was kicked out of Bryant Park in New York for lacking proper permits. Take a look at the new robot. According to Promobot, the robot's appearance was developed based on several thousand women in the Perm area to generate a robot the resembled the population. Humanoid Promobot in Russia. Photo by Maxim Kimerling\TASS via Getty Images It can show the "full spectrum of human emotions and facial expressions," according to Promobot, thanks to mechanical muscles that allow movement in the eyes, eyebrows, and lips. Humanoid Promobot in Russia. Photo by Maxim Kimerling\TASS via Getty Images Muscles under the robot's artificial skin allow more than 600 facial expressions. Humanoid Promobot in Russia. Photo by Maxim Kimerling\TASS via Getty Images The robot works in a government facility, answering questions previously handled by a person. Humanoid Promobot in Russia. Photo by Maxim Kimerling\TASS via Getty Images It's connected to hardware that can scan government documents like passports or birth certificates. Humanoid Promobot in Russia. Photo by Maxim Kimerling\TASS via Getty Images To use it, citizens can come up to the service desk and start speaking to the robot as they would a person. Story continues Humanoid Promobot. Promobot The robot can then react, produce the right documents, and scan signed versions into the government system. Humanoid Promobot. Promobot Right now, other workers are testing out the robot and giving feedback to perfect the service. Humanoid Promobot in Russia. Photo by Maxim Kimerling\TASS via Getty Images Promobot is best known for its five-foot-tall robot that wandered Bryant Park and Times Square back in March, giving out advice about avoiding the coronavirus. It was banned from the park for lacking the proper permits. Passers-by in Times Square interact with a Promobot robot that informs the public about the symptoms of coronavirus and how to prevent it from spreading, in this still frame obtained from video captured in New York City. Reuters Source: Business Insider Read the original article on Business Insider Namita Bajpai By Express News Service LUCKNOW: Ayodhya woke up to the vibes of 'Treta Yug' as the countdown for Bhoomi Pujan started with the commencement of rituals comprising the pooja of Gauri (Goddess Parvati) and Ganesh on Monday. Moreover, nine slabs of solid stones were also worshipped. These stones will be laid in the foundation of sanctum sanctorum of the proposed temple. The three-day rituals, which will culminate with the 'bhoomi pujan' to be performed by PM Narendra Modi on Wednesday, began on an auspicious note with the Ganesh Archana which is considered to be mandatory before starting any ritual in Sanatan system of worship. Meanwhile, UP CM Yogi Adityanath also visited the temple town to take stock of the preparations for August 5 ceremony. The CM visited both the Ram Janmabhoomi premises and Hanuman Garhi temple where PM is slated to go for Darshan ahead of bhoomi pujan ceremony. While interacting with media persons in the temple town, CM Yogi said that August 5 would go into the annals of history as one of the most glorious occasions. "Keeping in mind its significance, I have come here to take stock of preparations personally. The moment, when PM Modi will perform bhoomi pujan and lay the foundation of the construction of Ram temple translating the dream of 500 years into reality, will be historic not only for Ayodhya but entire world," said CM. The 'puja' began at 8 am with chanting of mantras by 21 priests from Ayodhya, Prayagraj and Varanasi led the rituals while 'Ramayana path' were held across all small and big temples in the town. "Ayodhya has woken up to 'Treta Yug' today. The only sounds that one hears in this holy city today is chanting of mantras, 'aartis' and 'Ramayana path' amid tolling of bells. This is the beginning of the three-day ritual that will culminate with 'bhumi pujan' and also mark the beginning of temple construction," said Mahant Satyendra, the head priest of Ram Janmabhoomi temple where Lord Ram is resting in a temporary pre-fabricated abode. Maharaj Kanhaiya Das of Sant Samiti said, "There could not be a more auspicious occasion than this. With the blessings of Lord Ganesh, the temple will be completed without any hindrance now." Meanwhile, Pandit Kalki Ram presented four sets of attire to be worn by Lord Ram during the three days of rituals and bhoomi pujan to Mahant Satrynra Das. The deity was made to wear white clothes on Monday, red on Tuesday and a cascading green rained with gems and stones on the day of Bhoomi Pujan on August 5. Hyderabads Shri Vallabh who has come to Ayodhya has taken a vow of 11000 spells of shankhnad (blowing conch shell) till Wednesday. On the other, betel leaves made of silver will be among the things to be used in the groundbreaking ceremony for the Ram temple in Uttar Pradeshs Ayodhya on August 5. Five betel leaves (paan) made of silver have been brought to Ayodhya by the members of the Chaurasiya community from Varanasi. Betel leaves are considered auspicious and are included in many pujas in Sanatan dharm. Nageshwar Chaurasia, president of Kashi Chaurasia Community, presented these betel leaves (paans) to members of the Vidwat Parishad, an organisation of intellectuals and scholars of Veda, Astrology, Paninian and Sanskrit Grammar. These scholars from Kashi reached Ayodhya on Monday. Three noted scholars of Astrology and Vyakaran (grammar) will supervise the rituals of Bhoomi pujan, the foundation stone-laying ceremony of Ram temple. The temple will be made from stones, without any iron and steel, the temple construction workshops supervisor had said last week. In her book 'The House That My Grandfather Built,' Russian photographer Xenia Nikolskaya talks about how traces of places, buildings and documents could influence already formulated memories "My mother had always wanted to repeat the 1953 journey to the mainland of the [then Soviet Union] that she had made with her parents, [for those] were the happiest memories of her life [In 2012], we followed that route together to see places she dreamt about and people she used to know. This is how Xenia Nikolaskaya explained the trip that inspired her recently issued photo book The House That My Grandfather Built, which serves as a homage to the memory of her maternal grandparents Greogiry Mikhaelovich Nikolaskaya, whose name she carries instead of that of her biological father, and Olga Sergeeenva Grancheva, whose strength was strong enough to defy the oppression that [Joseph] Stalin exercised throughout every day of his rule, Nikolaskaya said in an interview with Ahram Online this week. On 5 March 1953, Stalin died and Xenias mother who is also called Xenia and was 11 years old at the time joined her family on a return trip to the mainland, just out of Leningrad, to end close to two decades that the Nikolaskays had to spend in Siberia. Greogiry was a political prisoner, dubbed an enemy of the people for having had insisted on preaching at church under the USSR rule, and Olga as a highly awarded geologist who had found a way to join Greogiry by making use of her degree from Leningrad Universitys department of geology. Upon their return, due the money that Olga had saved and to the joint yearning of both Olga and Greogiry to have some privacy after having lived in the shared Gulag settlement in Kolyma, the couple decided to build one of the Finnish houses that were common for the time and place. This is the house that the elder Xenia and her daughter had lived for long, and it still serves as the summer house that brings them together every year. From that house, in 2012, the two Xenias took a plane to regain the terrain of the mothers childhood and the traces of the two grandparents that had passed away respectively in 1975 and 1982. The photo book of less 100 pages is predominantly pictures over text. There are photos of the Nikolaskaya family albums of Greogiry and Olga in Siberia in the 1930s and with their daughter during the 1940s. There are pictures of the house that grandfather built in black and white as well as in colour with the mother appearing as a child and later as an older lady. There are pictures of an old doll and an old tapestry that used to be in the church where Greogiry used to preach before being sent to the Gulag, and which, upon his return, he found at a consignment shop and chose to buy it and bring it home where it is still hanging on the wall of the same house. The new photos were taken during the retour trip that brought the mother, Xenia, back to a land that is only known for horrors, but that in her mind is only known for lovely childhood memories. I think the adults have gone out of their way to shield the children from the horrors of the surroundings, but I also think that the brains are very curious in the way they work to formulate the memories; I mean there was nothing particularly pretty [apart from the scenery] that we found when we got back, she said. It might be about the need of the mind to create a jolly picture of an otherwise unpleasant setting or it might be about ones yearning for ones childhood, she added. Putting a distance between oneself and ones past, the photo-author argued, might at times help create an opportunity for one to revisit the past with more neutral spectacles. But then again, she acknowledged, it might not work. After all, she said, her mother came back with no big revelations from this trip. Not when they were in Kolyma and not when they took the train back to the mainland for seven consecutive days had the mother reconsidered the very happy memories of her childhood that she always spoke to her daughter about. Still, the author-photographer argued that it is always important for people to try to find how things really were even if they continue to remember them differently. This, she said, is why it is very important to go through archives and old photos. When in Siberia, obviously, the two Xenias went to the archives and did a bit of digging. Photocopies of some of the documents that were found there appear in the book along with the little text. The text is a shared writing between Xenias own remarks and the translation of some pages from the memoires of her own grandfather that he typed to avoid the hand-writing difficulties that were imposed on him by the trembles of his parkinsonism. The memories have a very down-to-earth style, an almost telegraphic style about the horrors of the Gulag, with text about the many exestuations of political prisoners that would sound like a tractor machine. Apparently, these were not the things that haunted the memory of her mother about those years. Nor was she haunted by the fact that when she went to school. She had to remember that if she was asked if she liked her mother more than Stalin that she had to promptly reply that she loved Stalin more than her own mother. After all, the horrors of the times of Stalin were not something that people spoke of at all until 1985 when [Mikhalil]Gorbachev came to power; it was such a big relief in the 1960s when [Nikita] Khrushchev came to power, but still there was no way that the horrors of Stalin would be spoken of, the author-photographer said. Today, she added, there is still a new round of the tricks of the memory, as some people yearn for the years of the Soviet Union them being maybe under the spell of the [current political propaganda] or just under the pressure of [economic problems] that make them long for years when people had stable salaries. So, in many ways, she argued, people dont always remember things as they happened or that they happened at all. The photographer-author is dedicating the book to her mother with a very significant quote from Lawrence Durrell: Could anything as rich as memory be a cheat? The House That My Grandfather Built is Nikolaskayas second book. Her first, Dust, came out in 2012 and was about some of the beautiful, old and neglected pre-1952 buildings. Architecture, she argued, is like memories it has its way of telling a story in one way or in another. The architecture of the Third Reich at its time was perceived as a symbol of power with such big statement constructions; but today this is not the story they tell, she said. Architecture goes hand in hand with power; they are built and demolished upon a political decision but when they live, they could tell different stories to different people, she added. Both Dust and The House That My Grandfather Built are telling a bit about the stories of the endless cycles of hope and disappointment associated with political changes. They are both in English. Search Keywords: Short link: ASX-listed aged care operator Regis has been hit by an international cyber attack that has led to the release of sensitive personal data, adding to the woes of the company which is battling a coronavirus outbreak at one of its Melbourne centres. The $400 million operator told investors on Monday an "overseas third party" was responsible for an attack on its operations resulting in data being copied from its servers and publicly released. The incident has not disrupted its services, the company said. Regis Aged Care has been battling coronavirus outbreaks. Credit:Nine News / Twitter "The company is contacting parties whose personal data has been publicly released," Regis said in a statement. The operator's share price was down 3.4 per cent to $1.28 in late afternoon trading on Monday, pushing the stock down 12 per cent over the past month. Its not unusual to see articles questioning the Republicans Partys suitability as a vehicle for conservatives. But this article by David Azerrad questions whether conservatism is a suitable vehicle for the right. I dont agree with everything in Davids article and I wish he had defined conservatism in other than metaphoric and hyperbolic terms. However, I strongly recommend the article, and I mostly agree with passages like this one: The common enemy that justified an alliance with the free market fundamentalists is long gone. Today, libertarians actively side with our enemies: they promote open borders and empty prisons, and strengthen Chinas hand through their consumer-focused economic policies. Ours is primarily a conservatism of countries and borders, citizens and families, none of which can take root in the barren libertarian soil of atomized individuals and global markets. Theres also much that I agree with in this passage: As for our priorities, they are clear. We must confront the great threats of our time: unsustainable immigration levels and rapid demographic change; cratering fertility rates and collapsing families; the corrosive acids of neoliberalism and identity politics (in all their manifestations, from tech censorship to racial preferences); pathological white guilt; a political system largely unmoored from the consent of the governed; fiscal irresponsibility; and the emasculation of men through feminized education and various forms of soma that sap spiritedness (in particular pornography). In short, the entirety of the ruling classs ideology must be discredited. My kind of conservatism focuses on protecting America, individual Americans, and core American principles like free speech, religious freedom, free enterprise generally, and freedom from being discriminated against (or preferred) on the basis of race, gender, ethnicity, and the like. Protecting America means a strong defense, a strong policy to combat China, strong anti-terrorism policies, and enforcement of our immigration laws. Protecting individual Americans means supporting the police generally including the use of proactive policing approaches, and imposing stiff sentences on felons. For many, it also means protecting the unborn. And given the benefits strong families confer on individual Americans, it means family-friendly policies, as well. Protecting core American values means, among other things, firmly rejecting identity politics, as well as America-hating renditions of history. All of this is consistent with the conservatism of the past 40 years. Substitute the Soviet Union for China, and you have a largely Reaganite agenda. Conservatives subscribing to this platform could continue to disagree over questions like whether the income tax should be replaced by a national sales tax and, if not, what the marginal tax rates should be; whether particular trade deals should be supported; whether our low level troop commitments in Afghanistan and Syria should be maintained; and gay rights (where issues of religious freedom arent at stake). The agenda outlined above is nationalistic, to be sure. But Im old enough to remember when it enjoyed bipartisan support. Indeed, I would be old enough to remember this if I were 15 years younger. A strong defense and steadfast opposition to the leading Communist state didnt used to be very controversial. Neither did enforcing our immigration laws. In the 1990s, Joe Biden led the charge for tough on crime measures. Obsessive identity politics are a new blight. Anti-American renditions of history have been percolating for decades, but didnt become orthodox until fairly recently. So too with the assault on merit selection, free speech, and religious freedom (federal legislation protecting religious freedom, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, was enacted with the nearly unanimous support of both sides of the aisle in the 1990s). Most importantly, virtually all of the items in my agenda continue to enjoy majority support, I believe. But that support is weakening and, in some cases, might soon end, unless conservatives push back vigorously against the erosion. Italy was the mirror that Spain looked into during the coronavirus pandemic, as it provided an early image of the effects of the virus. Italy introduced confinement measures earlier on March 9 versus March 14 in Spain. It also has a higher official death count: 35,132 compared with 28,445 confirmed by the Spanish Health Ministry, although this newspaper has calculated that the real toll could be closer to 45,000. But ever since Italy began lifting restrictions in late May, it has been posting figures suggesting that the pandemic is more in check there than in Spain, where cases are surging. Recent data shows that there are 47 Covid-19 patients in Italian intensive care units, whereas there are 250 in Spains ICUs. Hospital admissions are significantly lower as well: 748 in Italy versus nearly 2,000 in Spain. And in Italy, an average of 200 new cases are being reported daily, without any sudden surges, whereas Spain is seeing in excess of 1,500 new cases every 24 hours. Imported cases Despite the moderately good news, Italian authorities are insisting on the need to be prudent, as some parts of the country are still experiencing significant transmission. Imported cases are their main concern right now, as most of the outbreaks have been caused by foreign nationals coming into Italy. A worker disinfects Piazza San Marco in Venice. Raskolnikov (EFE) When a new outbreak is identified in Italy, a quarantine is imposed on the building, the workplace and, if necessary, the entire neighborhood. Italy has also decided to maintain the obligation for self-isolation for all travelers from outside the EU and Schengen Area, and most recently it has added Romania and Bulgaria to the quarantine list. In response to a recent increase in cases among citizens of Bangladesh, arrivals from this country are now banned. For now at least, the Italian government is not contemplating restrictions against travelers from Spain. But it is monitoring events there with concern. Unlike Spain, where regional authorities reopened nightclubs and other nighttime venues weeks ago, Italy has postponed this move, which had originally been scheduled for late July. Now, Spanish authorities are considering whether to reintroduce restrictions on nightlife. Italy has also extended the governments emergency powers to October 15, partly due to concern over the situation in nearby countries such as France (1,377 new cases on Thursday) and Spain (3,092 new cases on Friday). The virus is still circulating, the international situation requires us to be alert, said Italys Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte. Face masks Italian virologists feel that the use of face masks may also be playing a role in containing the virus. According to statistics used by the scientific committee that is advising the government, around 85% of the population always wears a face covering, even if it is not mandatory. Those who fail to wear it in situations where it is compulsory face fines of up to 1,000, while infected individuals who break quarantine rules risk prison. In Spain, all regions except for the Canary Islands have now made face masks compulsory in all public places, whether indoors or outdoors. Madrid was the last region to join the list. Travelers from Italy arrive in Manises airport in Valencia. BIEL ALINO (EFE) But the scientific community is divided over the reasons behind Italys success story or even whether this success story is real at all. Some specialists believe that not enough testing is being done to obtain a complete picture of the real situation, or at least that authorities are not looking in the right places. Perhaps we are not testing the right people, noted the virologist Andrea Crisanti, one of Italys most respected experts. Crisanti is credited with managing to contain transmission in the Veneto region by recommending early extensive testing, even on people without symptoms, back when even the World Health Organization (WHO) was not recommending it. Crisanti now suggests that testing should be conducted among people who attend parties and other large gatherings where there is a lot of social interaction, sometimes without protection measures. He also recommends testing every passenger coming into Italy. Some regional governors, such as Enrico Rossi of Toscana, have embraced the idea and are now suggesting massive testing campaigns in popular spots such as seaside resorts and other tourist hotspots. English version by Susana Urra. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) A two-week modified enhanced community quarantine in Metro Manila will be manageable for the economic sector, but a possible extension will prove to have some serious effects, an adviser to President Rodrigo Duterte said Monday. Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion told CNN Philippines that the sector respects Dutertes decision to place the capital region under a stricter lockdown status, adding officials will make the best out of the protocol by improving the health care system in the country. However, he expressed hope that there will be no need for a longer extension, with local governments urged to implement localized lockdowns. Part of the plan really is to move towards a granularized lockdown, but in this case, because of the number of infections rising, I understand that we will have to take a pause, Concepcion said in an interview with The Source. Two weeks is not too long, we can manage that, but if it goes beyond two weeks, then it becomes a little bit more serious, he added. Duterte on Sunday announced that Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal will be shifting back to MECQ starting Tuesday partly heeding the call of frontliners who have sought for the strictest ECQ in Mega Manila. The administration has been wary of implementing the strictest lockdown policy in the capital region despite the surge in COVID-19 cases as it works to restart the economy by gradually allowing businesses to reopen. Concepcion, for his part, joined calls for the government to shift to effective granularized lockdowns, saying the move will let citizens coexist with the unpredictable virus. Moving forward, to co-exist with the virus, we have to allow a granularized type of lockdown and approach it from a data-driven approach by getting the source from DOH (Department of Health) as to the number of infections in each barangays, then well know what barangays to lockdown immediately, he said. READ: Difficult to go back to ECQ, DTI chief says amid medical communitys plea for stricter quarantine in Manila The medical communitys plea for a timeout came in the wake of the rapid rise of coronavirus infections in the country, which have now surpassed the 100,000 mark. Frontliners said a stricter quarantine will help the healthcare system and the workers themselves breathe, and will pave the way for the refinement of pandemic controls strategies. Private sector to pitch in in COVID-19 pooled testing While some industries are set to be locked down for the next two weeks, the private sector will meanwhile roll out initial "pooled" polymerase chain reaction or PCR testing programs in the metro before August 15. The sector will fund the pooled PCR tests that will be conducted in 16 cities and one municipality in the region, Concepcion said. Under the said approach, patients samples will be grouped into 10 and will undergo one PCR test a move officials labeled as more cost-efficient and speedy. Lawmakers who have pushed for the implementation of this protocol also argued it will accelerate the isolation procedures in the country. That will help increase the visibility to determine where the infections are. This will be a game-changer. It will speed up testing and make it cheaper, Concepcion said. A young man was repeatedly stabbed in a brawl outside a pub during a weekend of bloodshed that saw five other people shot. The victim, in his early twenties, was attacked near the Rose & Crown in Orpington, at about 7pm last night as families ate and drank in the hot weather. Police were called by paramedics, who took the man to a south London hospital, where he remained today. A Met spokesman said: His injuries are not believed to be life-threatening. Enquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances of the incident. No arrests have been made. Officers were at the scene of the stabbing today. Earlier in the weekend, two men, aged 30 and 31, were shot and stabbed after a fight in Mandeville Street, Hackney, at about 1.10am on Saturday. Detectives said two males who are the same age as the victims had been arrested on suspicion of possession of a firearm. Both were released under investigation. In a separate incident 30 minutes later, a man in his twenties was found with a gunshot wound in London Road, Croydon. Armed officers and paramedics attended and took him to hospital. No arrests have been made. At about 7pm on Friday, another two young men presented themselves at a south London hospital with gunshot injuries. Police had earlier been called to Akerman Road, Brixton, where they found damage to two parked vehicles but no trace of victims at that time. None of the victims is in a life-threatening condition in hospital. The Rose & Crown was contacted for comment. Anyone with information on any of the incidents is asked to contact police via 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. LONDON The government will act if the coronavirus spreads through London as it has done in other parts of Britain, junior business minister Nadhim Zahawi said on Monday. If we see the virus spreading in a particular way in London, as weve seen in Manchester and West Yorkshire where its spreading through people coming into another persons home, then we will discuss that and we will not hesitate to act," he told LBC radio. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A survey released in June to university students across North America, South America and Europe executed in 6 languages (English, Spanish, German, French, Portuguese and Italian) surfaced a number of critical insights concerning global virtual teaching and the recent transition away from campus classrooms. The survey is part of the "Excellence in Virtual Education" (EVE) project undertaken by the Three Amigos1, three professors at several major universities, and four of their students2. The goal of the EVE project is to develop a virtual educational experience that is better than that found in classrooms on campus. A critical initial step was to "learn from the learners"assessing student satisfaction with virtual classroom environments and, more importantly, performance and engagement levels compared with those in physical classrooms. An astounding 1,000 global students from 89 universities from around the world expressed their thoughts regarding the past, present and future of virtual education. "We were overwhelmed with the enthusiasm and passion that students expressed in their responses," said Hap Klopp, a Professor at Hult International Business School and founder and long-time CEO of The North Face. The challenges of the new virtual medium and the rapidity of the changeover forced by the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a mere 35 percent of respondents saying they 'liked' the shift to virtual teaching, leaving a vast majority who did not like this transition. Many complained that they had problems staying engaged and that classes were too long for a virtual environment. Others mentioned that new tools and platforms were needed to improve virtual education. The student respondents also expressed their belief that virtual teaching is significantly different from in-class learning, and, therefore, traditional classroom lectures often do not effectively transfer to virtual environments. The survey showed that, after the conversion to a virtual educational environment, out of the students who experienced a change: 79% reported lower overall performance and outcomes, and 59% reported lower test results. When asked about what could be improved in virtual teaching, respondents made two strong suggestions that instructors everywhere should hear: 1. More interactions: 75% wanted more personal interaction with professors and fellow students. Respondents pointed out that it was very important to learn by sharing ideas, knowledge, opinions, points of view, and experiences. In their experience, virtual education does not measure up to physical classroom education, so far. 2. More class projects: 65% said that in-class projects, especially group projects, were very valuable in virtual classes to recapture some of the vitality and socialization of the physical classroom. The EVE survey was constructed as a combination of multiple choice and open-ended questions. Based on insights conveyed in the 1,000 responses received, a second survey (V2) has been produced to provide more definitive and comprehensive definition of the overall elements needed to achieve the EVE projects goal of making virtual teaching better than in-class, on-campus teaching. V2 is being sent to a wider group of educational stakeholders in virtual teachinguniversity students, as well as professors and administrators, for the purpose of expanding on the points raised in the initial survey. It is written in six languages for recipients in North America, Latin America, and Europe. The EVE Project Team is collecting 10,000 additional responses via version 2 of the survey to obtain the requisite input to finalize the study. If interested in seeing the results of the V2 survey and the broader results of the EVE study when completed, click here to leave your name, email address, and your school affiliation. In addition to a summary of the responses, the EVE study will identify some of the best teaching methodologies and pedagogical practices for virtual teaching. Moreover, it will provide insights into some of the potential platforms, tools, methodologies, and technologies currently being piloted by the Three Amigos at Hult International Business School, San Francisco, California. For additional information, contact: Paola Ramos: [email protected] Visit the Three Amigos website here. 1 The Three Amigos are comprised of Hap Klopp, Carlos Baradello, and Paul Campbell, who presently co-teach at Hult International University in San Francisco, California. They have been co-teaching together in the areas of Global Innovation & Entrepreneurship, Intrapreneurship, Disruptive Innovations, and others for more than 7 years at both the graduate and undergraduate levels at various global universities. 2 The EVE Project Team is comprised of the Three Amigos and 4 business students at Hult International Business School (Paola Ramos, Francesco De Conto, Gabriela Rocha, Marwen Madani). SOURCE The Three Amigos Related Links https://amigos-3.com Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Gasgoo hereby compiled the first-half 2020 sales results and annual sales goals announced by ten mainstream Chinese automobile groups. Primarily bruised by the COVID-19 pandemic, none of them has achieved 50% of their sales targets. Only three of themBAIC Group, Changan Automobile and JAC Motorfulfilled over 40% of respective goals. Chery Holding features the lowest completion rate even though it has already reduced its target by 100,000 units. SAIC Motor's PV units post sweeping drops SAIC Motor sold 479,464 new vehicles in June, achieving a 2.77% year-on-year growth. This is also the first-time increase the Chinese biggest automaker gained in 2020. For the first half of the year, the automaker completed 34.2% of its 6-milliom-unit sales target by selling 2,049,116 vehicles in total. (Passat, photo source: SAIC Volkswagen) PV units witnessed sweeping drops in Jan.-Jun. sales. Two major joint venturesSAIC Volkswagen and SAIC-GMsaw their cumulative sales plunged 37.18% and 33.31% respectively to 577,385 units and 556,206 units. Besides, the sales of SAIC Motor PV and SAIC-GM-Wuling fell 22.52% and 28.69% from a year earlier. Apart from the impact of COVID-19, there were other factors leading to the 37.18% decrease in SAIC-Volkswagens H1 wholesales. The sales contributors of SAIC Volkswagen were still such models as the Lavid, the Tiguan, the Tharu and the new Santana. Although the joint venture put the Viloran onto the market in late May, it is rather difficult for the MPV model to bring a sales hike in the near term. BAIC Group fulfills 40% of 2020 sales target BAIC Group sold roughly 896,000 vehicles from January to June, completing 40% of its 2.26-million-unit sales goal, the automaker revealed at its mid-year operation and management conference. (Mercedes-Benz GLB SUV, photo source: Beijing Benz) Foton Motor, Beijing Benz, Fujian Benz and Beijing Benz accounted for over 94% of the group's H1 sales. According to the data offered by subsidiaries and the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), the sales of Beijing Benz and Fujian Benz totaled around 284,000 units, while Foton Motor and Beijing Hyundai sold about 325,000 units and 235,000 units respectively. However, the performances of BAIC's self-owned PV arms were comparatively gloomy. With only 3,008 units sold, BAIC BJEV suffered an 88.46% slump from the previous year. In the Jan.-Jun. period, the NEV unit saw its cumulative sales sharply dip 77.44% to 14,700 units. Dongfeng Motor's join ventures score growth in H1 sales Dongfeng Motor said via its WeChat account that the group's June sales climbed 9.77% year on year to 322,200 units, representing the third-month-in-a-row YoY growth. Its H1 sales amounted to 1.4 million units, versus 1.698 million vehicles sold during the year-ago period. (Sylphy, photo source: Dongfeng Nissan) Major joint ventures featured stable rebound with the pandemic ebbing in China. Dongfeng Nissan sold 107,700 vehicles (+9.7%) in June, achieving year-on-year growth for three consecutive months. Dongfeng Honda's June sales jumped 16.9% from a year ago to 77,400 units. Moreover, Dongfeng-Yueda-Kia sold 22,200 units last month, which were more than the year-ago level. The CV branch obtained a significant growth in the first half of the year. Dongfeng Motor announced that its CV sales rose 10% to 345,500 units for the first six months, of which 106,600 units were the medium-/heavy-duty trucks sold by Dongfeng Trucks, a year-over-year increase of 9.6%. Regardless of the sever impact of COVID-19 pandemic, Dongfeng Motor hasnt lowered its 2020 sales and profit goals. The automaker will strive to sell 3.75 million vehicles and gain not less than 40 billion yuan ($5,714,204,000) in both annual profit and operational cash flow. GAC Group fulfills 38.9% of annual sales goal GAC Group said its sales in June only edged down 1.26% from a year earlier to 186,587 units, while jumped 12.66% compared to May. The group sold a total of 824,579 new vehicles during the first two quarters, posting a 17.51% decrease, 3.79 percentage points lower than the decline in Jan.-May volume. As of June, GAC Group fulfilled 38.9% of its 2020 sales target. (Trumpchi GS4, photo source: GAC Motor) Amid the general downturn for the overall China's auto market, GAC Group failed to complete its 2.225-million-unit sales target set for 2019. Affected by the pandemic, it decided to reduce its 2020 sales growth rate target to 3% from 8%. In June, GAC Honda achieved all-time highs in both outputs and sales, said GAC Group. The joint venture saw its June wholesales leap 14.26% year over year to 83,293 units with four models recording sales of over 10,000 units. In the Jan.-Jun. period, it sold a total of 318,451 vehicles. The year-on-year growth in GAC Toyota's year-to-date wholesales returned to positive for the first time this year. By selling 320,888 vehicles so far this year, it is honored the biggest sales contributor to the entire group. Changan Automobile completes 43.5% of target Chongqing Changan Automobile Co., Ltd. (called Changan for short) saw its sales surged 38.11% from a year ago to 194,406 units in June, which made its year-to-date sales represent growth for the first time so far this year. By the end of June, the automaker has completed 43.5% of the 1.91-million-unit target it strives to achieve in 2020. (Ford Focus Active, photo source: Changan Ford) The increase in H1 sales should owe much to the robust jumps gained by Hefei Changan and Changan Ford. The Sino-U.S. joint venture boasted a 29.65% year-on-year growth with 97,448 vehicles sold. Changan said the sales of its self-owned PV brands climbed 6.64% over the prior-year period to 420,400 units for the first six months. Nevertheless, Changan Mazda saw its H1 sales drop 8.37% to 56,041 units. Geely Auto completes 38% of annual sales target With 530,446 units sold as of June, Geely Auto has completed 38% of its 1.41 million-unit annual sales goal. Pummeled by the pandemic, the automaker still determined not to change this target. Among vehicles sold between Jan. and Jun., there were 324,061 SUVs and 197,030 sedans. (Lynk & Co 02, photo source: Lynk & Co) The automaker still heavily relies on the Emgrand, the Boyue and Lynk & Co-branded vehicles in seizing market shares. Lynk & Co saw its June sales soar around roughly 53% to 13,214 units, hitting a new-high level for the past seven months. As of June, the brand has received year-on-year two-digit growth for three straight months. Great Wall Motor achieves 38.7% of 2020 sales goal For the first half of the year, GWM saw its sales dip 19.95% over a year ago to 395,097 units, fulfilling 38.7% of its 2020 sales goal. Except the Great Wall pickup, the other businesses units, including Haval, WEY and ORA, all posted plunge in H1 sales. The H1 sales of Haval-branded SUVs dwindled 25.69% to 262,216 units. Aside from the Haval H9 and M6, the other models all recorded year-on-year decrease of over 25%. (All-new Haval H6, photo source: Haval) With 121,771 units sold so far this year, the best-selling Haval H6 had a 33.28% plunge in H1 sales. An industry insider said that the Haval H6 is approaching a critical point of upgrading and changeover. Compared to the other models in the same segment, the Haval H6 based on the old platform features the weaker competitiveness due to its high fuel consumption. According to the automaker, the third-generation Haval H6 will go on sale in this year's third quarter. WEY, the SUV brand targeting premium market, saw its H1 sales plummet 43.18% to 26,639 units. Posting a year-on-year slump of 65.07%, the BEV-focused ORA was significantly outpaced by the overall NEV market that faced a 37.4% decline in H1 sales, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). Chery Holding's sales target completion rate only stands at 26.1% Chery Holding sold 46,189 new vehicles in June, a growth of 10.9% over a month ago. The company said it has gained month-on-month increase for the fourth month in a row. For the first half of the year, Chery Holding sold 235,248 vehicles, including 41,799 PVs, which were 42% more than the year-ago level. The group has decreased its 2020 sales target from 1 million to 900,000 units, Yin Tongyue, chairman of Chery Holding, revealed in May at this year's two sessions. It completed only 26.1% of the lowered sales goal during the first half of the year. (Tiggo 3X, photo source: Chery Automobile) To revive businesses depressed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Chery Holding said it spared no effort to stabilize production and increase operational efficiency by adopting measures like helping dealers relieve stress, grabbing the chance of governmental policies, innovating in marketing models and satisfying the post-pandemic consumers' demands. For instance, Chery Automobile provided a 60 million yuan ($8,571,306) worth of special fund for its dealerships. Jetour rolled out a series of policies, such as reducing interest on loans and offering housing and operation subsidies, to ease pressure for dealers. During the first two quarters, Chery Holding successively rolled out such new models as the new Tiggo 7, the new Tiggo 8, the Jetour X70M, the Jetour X70 Coupe and the Cowin Xuanjie, which are expected to further drive the groups' sales with the pandemic abating in China. BYD's H1 NEV sales more than halved over a year ago BYD sold a total of 158,628 new vehicles during the first two quarters, logging a 30.45% plunge over a year ago. The company has not announced its 2020 sales target. Taking the 2019 goal as a reference, BYD just finished 30.6% of the 520,000-unit target as of June. With 60,677 units sold in total, its NEV sector was hit by a year-over-year decrease of up to 58.34% for the first six months. (Tang DM, photo source: BYD) Part of the explanations for the NEV sales downturn is that consumers' purchasing power was somewhat curtailed due to their wait-and-see attitude towards the BYD Han, an all-new flagship NEV sedan model that hit the market on July 12, according to a senior analyst from Gasgoo Auto Research Institute (GARI). On the other hand, consumers have been distracted by other new products as automakers are scrambling to deploy NEV businesses and put NEV products onto the market, he added. JAC Motors boasts highest completion rate of 46.4% JAC Motors witnessed its Jan.-Jun. sales fall 10.96% over the year-ago period to 209,379 units. After six months of the year passed, the Hefei-based automaker completed 46.5% of its 2020 sales target, boasting the highest completion rate among automakers listed here. (JAC Shuailing Q3, photo source: JAC Motors) Its CV sales reached 142,587 units in the first half, edging up 1.86% year over year, versus the 29.81% slump in PV sales. Some market analysts reckoned that the release of the pent-up consumption demands, the promotion of infrastructure construction and the phase-out of China vehicles all resulted in the sales hikes in the H1 CV sales, especially truck sales. Compared to CV's blooming performance, JAC's PV unit was much eclipsed. The company said it only sold 66,792 PVs in the Jan.-Jun. period, a year-on-year decrease of 29.81%. Cookies op Tweakers Tweakers maakt gebruik van cookies Tweakers is onderdeel van DPG Media en maakt gebruik van cookies, JavaScript en vergelijkbare technologie om je onder andere een optimale gebruikerservaring te bieden. Functionele en analytische cookies die door Tweakers zelf geplaatst worden, worden gebruikt om de website goed te laten functioneren, bezoekersstatistieken bij te houden en a/b-testen uit te voeren. Ook kan Tweakers hiermee het gedrag van bezoekers vastleggen en analyseren. 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The WCO Security Project for West and Central Africa supported the delivery of a national Programme Global Shield (PGS) national training course for Central African Republic (CAR) from 6 to 8 July 2020. With travel restrictions resulting from the COVID 19 pandemic preventing WCO Experts from being able to join the training in person, they were able to support the delivery of the course virtually from WCO headquarters in Brussels. The training followed two regional PGS train the trainer workshops delivered by the Project in Ouidah, Benin in June and August 2019. Officials from CAR participated in that training, acquiring the skills and knowledge to in turn deliver the PGS training to their colleagues in CAR Customs. The CAR training course focused mainly on the material regularly used by criminals to manufacture Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), including chemical precursors and detonators. The training also covered risk assessment, customs controls, labeling and detection methods and the range of WCO tools and services. 11 CAR customs officers from different border crossings (airports, ports, land border crossings and mobile units) gathered in Bangui main customs office to participate in the training. They actively participated in the training and successfully completed polls conducted after each session. The implementation of PGS in CAR was also discussed during the training. This included the deployment of a Raman Spectrometer and disposable PGS Field Test Kits donated to the CAR Customs by the WCO with funding from the Government of Japan. This equipment allows officers to accurately identify precursor chemicals for IEDs in the field, without having to wait for laboratory testing. The WCO Experts provided the participants with access to presentations, documents, videos, PGS pocket guides and brochures and they have undertaken to share what they have learned with their colleagues. CAR Customs have also committed to delivering additional national training courses to further enhance their capacity to address the threat of terrorism. The U.K.'s plans to block further spikes in coronavirus allow for ministers to lock down London, Boris Johnson's spokesman said, as officials prepare for the resurgence of coronavirus in the months ahead. The so-called Contain Strategy, unveiled last month, "does set out the possibility of a power to restrict people's movement and potentially close down local transport networks," Prime Minister's spokesman James Slack told reporters on Monday when asked whether the government had war-gamed sealing off the capital. His remarks followed a report in the Sunday Times newspaper that ministers could curb travel in and out of the M25 highway encircling London and ban overnight stays in the city if there's a surge in cases. With cases of coronavirus ticking upwards again, Johnson is caught between the competing goals of suppressing the spread of the disease and re-opening the economy by getting people back to work. Last week ministers told more than 4 million people in Northern England they should no longer socialize in each other's homes and postponed the reopening of leisure businesses including casinos, bowling alleys and ice rinks. The strategy says ministers can use public health laws passed in 1984 to close businesses and venues, impose restrictions on the movement of people, prevent overnight stays away from home, limit the size of gatherings, and shut down local and national transport systems. At the same time, Johnson is pushing ahead with efforts to revive the stalled U.K. economy, which is facing a potentially devastating recession. He has revised guidance that people should work from home where possible, giving employers more discretion to recall their workers. A British Chambers of Commerce survey conducted last month, just before the prime minister urged workers to return to their offices, showed 62% of businesses expect all or some of their employees to be working remotely for the next year. The government's push to get people back into workplaces follows concerns that city-center businesses such as sandwich shops and other retailers will struggle to survive without the officer workers who use them. On Monday, a month-long government program to encourage people to return to restaurants began. The so-called Eat Out to Help Out program gives diners a 50% discount, worth as much as 10 pounds ($13) per person, on meals they eat in restaurants from Monday to Wednesday throughout August. More than 72,000 eating establishments, including branches of Pizza Express, Costa Coffee and Nando's, have signed up to the program, the Treasury said on Monday. It estimates the plan will cost the government 500 million pounds. The UKHospitality trade body, which represents restaurants, said 84% of businesses in the sector intended to take part in the Eat Out to Help Out initiative. TikTok owner ByteDance said on Monday that the company had initiated preliminary talks with a tech company to help it continue offering the short video app in the United States, a source said citing an internal company letter. President Donald Trump only agreed to allow Microsoft Corp to negotiate the acquisition of popular short-video app TikTok if it could secure a deal in 45 days, three people familiar with the matter said on Sunday. The move represents an about-face for Trump and prompted the U.S. tech giant to declare its interest in the blockbuster social media deal that ... An 18-year-old teenage New Jersey National Guard private recorded the moment he killed a 51-year-old father over an ongoing driving feud because he wanted to be TikTok famous, according to the dead man's lawyer. Zachary Latham, fatally stabbed and Tasered William 'Timmy' Durham Sr. in May after two years of confrontations over his alleged reckless driving on a residential road where they lived. Latham was charged with first-degree manslaughter after claiming his actions were in self-defense and the dead man's wife and two children have been charged with criminal trespass and aggravated or simple assault. But lawyers for Durham's family want the charges against the grieving family dropped as they claim Durham lured the family into the fatal confrontation and blame police for not doing anything about the matter earlier, noting Latham's history of trouble. Zachary Latham, 18, (left), fatally stabbed and Tasered William 'Timmy' Durham Sr. (right) in May after two years of confrontations over his alleged reckless driving on a residential road where they lived Lawyers for the dead man's family claim the father's death could've been avoided but police failed to file a complaint due to the pandemic. He is pictured boasting on TikTok about his car troubles in the neighborhood On May 4 Latham allegedly swerved his car into a bike ridden by the victim's 17-year-old son, prompting the family to later confront him. Lawyers claim Latham hit Mr. Durham who was a corrections officer then lured the family to follow him to his home. Latham then went inside to retrieve two knives and a Taser from his home in Vineland. The teenager's wife filmed the altercation that followed, allegedly telling the family: 'I promise you, you better back up, 'cause you're not gonna like what's coming out.' The clip was posted to Latham's TikTok profile but has since been deleted. 'Sarah was recording because it was her and Latham's intent to post these videos to TikTok and become TikTok famous,' according to a letter from the family's lawyers that was obtained by NJ.com. 'If Latham was in fear for his or Sarah's safety, they both would have retreated inside, called police and stayed there. They did not because their intent was to lure the Durhams there, attack them and record it for TikTok.' Latham has many videos on his profile where he shows off his cars and boasts about confrontations with locals. In one he argues with another woman about speeding. Latham had been arguing with the family for years over his alleged reckless driving in the neighborhood In a video before the killing he records Catherine Durham (left) arguing with him about his driving. A separate clip shows him involved in a physical altercation with 21-year-old William Durham (right) Lawyer claims he filmed the subsequent killing of husband and father Timothy Durham to get 'TikTok famous' In another video before the killing he records Catherine Durham arguing with him about his driving. He calls her 'Karen' in the clip from April and commenters encouraged him to go after her in the video which garnered millions of views. A separate clip shows him involved in a physical altercation with 21-year-old William Durham. 'I got a knife, dude,' Latham warns. He captioned the video: 'Karen's son found out the video went viral and tried taking me out of the car.' The lawyers also claim that he shared a post on April 23 where he held a gun and said 'that this is how you handle neighbors.' The post has been deleted. Latham even shared a video of a police officer confirming that he won't take any action even though he saw video evidence. It's unclear which incident he is addressing. The deceased father's legal team notes that a judge and several cops live in the area and knew about past trouble Latham had caused. Police cited the closure of courts for not being able to sign a complaint against him. Police said they would discuss cyber harassment with the prosecutor's office but the prosecutor said she was not contacted about the matter. The lawyers believed the correctional officer's death could have been avoided. Lawyers say Latham lured the Durhams (Catherine and Timothy pictured) to his home, then went inside to retrieve two knives and a Taser The teenager's wife, Sarah, filmed the altercation that followed, allegedly telling the family: 'I promise you, you better back up, 'cause you're not gonna like what's coming out' 'This tragedy was completely avoidable had the Vineland Police Department and the (Cumberland County Prosecutor's Office) taken action against Latham to stop him from terrorizing the Durham family and other neighbors in the months prior to Tim's murder,' they wrote in a letter to Cumberland County Prosecutor Jennifer Webb-McRae in June. 'Compounding this tragedy is the manner in which the Durham family has been treated as criminals themselves, when they are victims.' The lawyers want Latham charged with first-degree murder and want charges brought against Latham's wife and two friends they claim were involved. Latham who was living with his grandmother has been banned from the street while awaiting trial on August 20. He is emancipated at 17 years old and social media posts suggest his mother is deceased. He had a pretrail hearing in May but was released. Lawyers reference his charges of simple assault, terroristic threats and criminal mischief in an unrelated juvenile court matter in the weeks leading up to Durham's killing as a reason why he should not be free. 'They clearly see that he has a history of provoking incidents to get a reaction,' Diane M. Ruberton said. 'There is a lot of history with Latham that they know about that wasn't presented to the court at the detention hearing. 'In my opinion, those prior contacts (with police) show that he has a history of being untruthful with police and he has a history of violence and that he's dangerous. 'They can't deny them that right to file a complaint. The fact that the courts were shut down just means they have to make different accommodations.' Latham has been active on his TikTok account as recently as today. The deceased father's legal team notes that a judge and several cops live in the area and knew about past trouble Latham had caused. Latham even shared a video of a police officer confirming that he won't take any action even though he saw video evidence. It's unclear which incident he is addressing Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 16:37:27|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close WELLINGTON, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The New Zealand government has extended three Defense Force deployments to the Middle East and Africa by two years. "These deployments promote peace in the Middle East and Africa by protecting civilians and countering the spread of violent extremism," Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters said in a statement on Monday. "Developments in that part of the world can have a global impact, including on New Zealand's security and prosperity," Peters said. The three extended deployments include a four-person contingent in the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), where New Zealand has contributed since 2011. It has been extended to June 2022, the statement said. A 28-person contingent to the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) mission in Sinai, Egypt, where New Zealand has contributed since 1982, has been extended to September 2022, it said. An eight-person contingent in the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) in the Middle East, where New Zealand has contributed since 1954, has been extended to September 2022, the statement said. Enditem Advertisement . says Igbo presidency, a deceit, temporary By CHUKS EKE The General Overseer of Mount Zion Faith Global Liberation Ministries a.k.a By Fire By Fire, Nnewi, Anambra State, Bishop Abraham Udeh has again warned Ndigbo to go for Biafra which is a permanent structure than going for Igbo presidency which is a deceit and temporary. He explained that Biafra is permanent in the sense that once it is declared by the United Nations, it can no longer be reversed but if Ndigbo fight so hard and get a president of an Igbo extraction, there is a tendency of losing the presidential seat through a coup de tat, killing or impeaching the president without allowing him complete even the first tenure. Bishop Udeh who spoke to newsmen at his Cathedral church, Nnewi, weekend, shortly after a 21-day fasting and prayers for for tnhe nation, declared: My prophesy about the Nigerian President from the Igbo tribe is that an Igbo man might succeed to be elected Nigerian President in 2023 but the Igbo occupant of that seat would either be killed or overthrown by the military. Insisting that his prophesy must come to fulfilment, Bishop Udeh disclosed that having seen such a situation in the spiritual realm, he is now warning Igbo personalities warming up for the 2023 presidential election to have a rethink and rather channel the energy and resources towards the pursuit of Biafra actualization. He insisted that only Biafra independence or restructuring Nigeria into self-governing six geo-political zones would favour the Igbo and not Igbo presidency, adding that the only solution is to divide Nigeria into three or each of the existing six geo-political zones to be independent of the center. It is a sealed deal by the Fulani that an Igbo man will never be allowed to rule Nigeria. Do you know what will happen, according to the way it is revealed to me, an Igbo man after much pressure to rule may be allowed to become President. But shortly after that the issue of insecurity including Boko Haram insurgency and banditry will be intensified by those behind those criminalities in order to discredit the President of Igbo extraction. The military by that reason will strike. I dont see the Igbo man President surviving that military action, he stated. He said that the Fulani had already set agenda to be in control forever and described the Nigerian President of Igbo extraction as a deceit and scam. On the recent media report where the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB was quoted as supporting Igbo presidency, he said that if the IPOB had succumbed to Igbo presidency politics, the group was on its own and not representing the opinion of all its supporters. The Bishop warned the National Assembly members to rise up to their duties and stop pretending not to know that Nigerian masses were suffering. He said it was painful to observe that lawmakers were only after their personal aggrandizement while the people were left to suffer in abject poverty. On the foreign scene, he said he saw promoters of anti-Christ trying to battle Donald Trumps efforts to run his second tenure. He declared that God would never allow them to defeat Trump. I see Gods hand shaking the world of occultism, Islamic fundamentalists and all those against the Christians and I am of the opinion that America would run into trouble, if the country allowed any anti-Christ promoters to take over the reigns of government in that country. Outside America, he warned any international community that worked against Christians to make a U-turn or face the wrath of God so said the Lord. New Delhi: Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday said that illegal funds are being sent through 'hawala' and other channels to inimical forces in Kashmir Valley to incite protests. Rijiju made the statement in Rajya Sabha while replying to a written question. Rijiju's colleague, Minister of State for Home Hansraj Ahir also said that separatists and militants were receiving funds from foreign countries through 'hawala' and inward remittances. Speaking on the ongoing Indo-Pak border tensions, Rijiju said 24 suspected militants, who were trying to infiltrate into Jammu and Kashmir, were killed, while 78 attempts of infiltrations were foiled till October-end this year. Till October 2016, there were 201 incidents of infiltration from across the border into Jammu and Kashmir and 30 cases of infiltration into Punjab. Five of our BSF jawans and nine others got injured due to cross-border firing between September and October this year. Replying to another question, Ahir stressed that there was no information about espionage being carried out by Pakistan using pigeons. But some pigeons have been recovered with rubber tag with Pakistani telephone no/name of persons in the border areas. With Inputs from PTI For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Says Doyle: We brought them down here and planted the seeds just to see what would happen, every two weeks Id come by and put miracle grow on it and they just started growing like crazy. Im sure there are more examples, so if theres an Audrey aspect to all this (unlikely), well, that seed has already left the packet. The unsolicited packages themselves photos here, here, here, here, here, here, and many other links, the seeds are a thing come in manila or white envelopes from China Post, affixed with printed white labels bearing shipper and customs information[1]. The labels use similar but not identical layouts. They do not use the same fonts. Nor is the shipper/tracker information consistent. Many of the labels describe the package content, for customs, as jewelry. The seeds themselves come in various types of zip lock bags. There is no branding on the bags. No written material of any kind is included. Collectively, the packages have an artisanal air, as if they were put together by many small contractors. As for the seeds themselves, from Business Insider: We have identified 14 different species of seeds, including mustard, cabbage, morning glory, and some of the herbs like mint, sage, rosemary, lavender, then other seeds like hibiscus and roses, said Osama El-Lissy, a deputy administrator for the USDAs Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. This is just a subset of the samples we have collected so far, he said. (What about Doyle Crenshaws squash?) The operation, whatever it is, is of some scale. Other countries have received the seeds (hundreds of British gardeners). In this country, there is naturally no aggregated count, but residents in all 50 states are said to have received them, including Florida (631), Indiana (300), Kentucky (several), Louisiana (100), Maryland (~100), North Carolina (numerous), Ohio (150), and Virginia (900). Interestingly, theres a ton of local coverage on the China seeds, I imagine because mysterious seeds from China is a good human interest story; most of the national stories are driven by local reporting. For example, Ohios Whitehouse Police Department seems to have gotten out front early, so theyre cited all over the place. However, in a stunning example of effective and rapid governance, the USDA has issued guidance, USDA Investigates Packages of Unsolicited Seeds from China: USDA is aware that people across the country have received suspicious, unsolicited packages of seed that appear to be coming from China. USDAs Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is working closely with the Department of Homeland Securitys Customs and Border Protection, other federal agencies, and State departments of agriculture to investigate the situation. USDA urges anyone who receives an unsolicited package of seeds to immediately contact their State plant regulatory official or APHIS State plant health director. Please hold onto the seeds and packaging, including the mailing label, until someone from your State department of agriculture or APHIS contacts you with further instructions. Do not plant seeds from unknown origins [ffs]. USDA is committed to preventing the unlawful entry of prohibited seeds and protecting U.S. agriculture from invasive pests and noxious weeds. Visit the APHIS website to learn more about USDAs efforts to stop agricultural smuggling and promote trade compliance. And USDA put out an excellent and comprehensive FAQ, USDA Investigates Packages of Unsolicited Seeds: Seeks Help from Citizens to Collect Unsolicited Seeds Package (and I like Seeks Help from Citizens; we need more citizens language, as opposed to consumers language). Here, reader, is what you should do if you receive an unsolicited seed packet from China: What should I do if Ive received a package of seeds? It is important that we collect and test as many seeds as possible to determine whether these packets present a threat to U.S. agriculture or the environment. Anyone who receives an unsolicited package of seeds should follow these steps: Save the seeds and the package they came in, including the mailing label. Do not open the seed packets. Do not plant any of the seed. If the packets are already open, place all materials (seeds and packaging) into a zip lock bag and seal it. Place everything (seeds and any packaging, including the mailing label) in a mailing envelope. Please include your name, address, and phone number so that a State or Federal agriculture official can contact you for additional information. Contact your State plant regulatory official or APHIS State plant health director for instructions or where to send the package, to arrange a no-contact pick up, or to determine a convenient drop-off location. But I hear you ask Why? Why is some mysterious entity, presumably Chinese, sending unsolicited seed packets to people around the world? The USDAs answer, picked up by most other venues (CBS, NBC), is that the operation is a brushing scam: At this time, we dont have any evidence indicating this is something other than a brushing scam where people receive unsolicited items from a seller who then posts false customer reviews to boost sales. Here is a more extended explanation of brushing as it is practiced on Amazon. From the Boston Globe, This couple keeps getting mystery packages from Amazon they didnt order: Heres how two experts who used to work for Amazon, James Thomson and Chris McCabe, say it probably works: A seller trying to prop up a product would set up a phony e-mail account that would be used to establish an Amazon account. Then the seller would purchase merchandise with a gift card no identifying information there and send it to a random person, in this case the Gallivans. So brushing is not unknown. However, I think it is unknown on the scale of the Chinese seed operation. Then, the phantom seller, who controls the buyers e-mail account, writes glowing reviews of the product, thus boosting the Amazon ranking of the product. The key is to get something delivered somewhere , said Thomson, one of the business consultants who once worked for Amazon. Once a package is shipped and the recipient weighs in with a review, the recipient is deemed a verified buyer writing a verified review, to use Amazons parlance , and that is hugely important in the world of Amazon, Thomson said. Amazon highlights verified reviews. And it gives better display on its pages to those products that have a greater number of verified reviews, Thomson said. So now we are entering the world of e-commerce, a business lm not devious enough to be in. However, theres a central oddity in Thomson and McCabes account, at least with respect to our Chinese seeds story. Before examining it perhaps you can guess what it is Ill go into some other oddities, which it would be nice to have the reporting cover: 1) The security issue. How were the names and addresses of the recipients acquired? On the black market, I assume, but it would be nice to have more detail. 2) Cui bono? Assuming this is a big brushing operation, some seller must be rocketing up in the rankings, somewhere. Who and where? (Im assuming this is one operation for one customer.) 3) What is the seller selling? Seeds or garden supplies, or anything at all? 4) China says the labels are forged. South China Morning Post: On Tuesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a regular press briefing: China Post has asked the United States Postal Service to return this faked mail to China so China can investigate. Wang said information labels on the packages appeared to be forged, according to checks by Chinas postal service, adding that there were errors in the information attached to the packages. Leaving open the question of how China Post shipped packages[3] with forged labels. The packages were barcoded, after all. So now lets turn to the central oddity of the story. It is this: Why did the packages need to be shipped at all? To understand this, lets look at the workflow of the seller who is purchasing brushing from one or more contractors. There is, in fact, a world expert in brushing, Haitao Xu, who was the prime on E-commerce Reputation Manipulation: The Emergence of Reputation-Escalation-as-a-Service (PDF), which is a really neat article for those who would like the study criminally devious minds (brushing is illegal in China, but also very profitable[4]). From that article: The new Government has not had an ideal start, Children's Minister Roderic O'Gorman has said, adding that his Green Party colleagues need to work on their communication. On Thursday, Green TDs Neasa Hourigan and Joe O'Brien failed to back the Government on a bill relating to evictions and rent freezes. Mr O'Gorman said he has been assured by them that they will not vote against the Government again. "We need a united government to deliver on the programme for government and that programme was ratified by our party members," he told Newstalk's On The Record. "Seventy-six per cent in fav-our of it and there is a lot of really good things in it that our members support and I support, while there is stuff that Fianna Fail and Fine Gael members would find difficult. Mandate "There is stuff that my party members and I find difficult, but our party membership gave us a mandate to enter that coalition government. "We have to support the programme for government, and that means supporting the legislation that is provided. "I know in the last number of weeks we have had a government that was formed in the middle of a pandemic. "I know that the Government has had to have a lot to deal with this week, and I know that is part of the reason why we have had these breakdowns in communication internally within the party and we have to do much more to address that. "Going forward, I think it is absolutely essential that the entire Green Party and indeed all parties are supportive of the Government." On Saturday, Tanaiste and Fine Gael leader Leo Varadkar said the new Government got off to a "rocky start" and made "unforced errors". Mr O'Gorman said some of the Government's mistakes have overshadowed its achievements. "No, it hasn't been an ideal start, and the Government has made some mistakes," he said. "But I think we have rectified them, and while there have been mistakes there have been great successes, in particular with the success of the July stimulus plan." Mr O'Gorman said the Green Party will use the summer recess to work on the party's internal communication. "We could have done a better job as regards to our internal communication and we will be working on that over the summer break," he said. "We need to ensure our parliamentary party is better functioning and fully prepared to engage with legislation, engage with our backbenches, members and TDs." A pair of House Committees issued subpoenas Monday that would require testimony and depositions from top aides to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo including the senior advisor alleged to have walked his dog and performed other errands. House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Rep. Eliot Engel and House Oversight Committee chair Carolyn Maloney, both Democrats, fired off the subpoenas Monday as part of an ongoing probe into the firing of Inspector General Steve Linick. Pompeo asked President Trump to fire Linick, who was probing a variety of State Department matters, including allegations that aide Toni Porter walked Pompeo's dog and did other tasks while on the government payroll. He also was probing a Saudi arms sale and allegations regarding Pompeo's wife. Mike Pompeo is pictured with new puppy Mercer in a photo shared to Instagram. Two House panels have subpoenaed a quartet of State Department officials, including a senior advisor alleged to have walked Pompeo's dog 'The Administration continues to cover up the real reasons for Mr. Linick's firing by stonewalling the Committees' investigation and refusing to engage in good faith,' Engel and Maloney wrote, in a statement joined by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez (D-N.J.). 'That stonewalling has made today's subpoenas necessary,' they wrote. The aides the panels subpoenaed are Bulatao, the undersecretary of State for Management, Marik String, Acting State Department Legal Adviser, Michael Miller, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs, and Toni A. Porter, Senior Adviser. Pompeo's agency has resisted repeated attempts by the Democratic House to obtain information, in keeping general administration resistance to Democratic inquiries. Porter has been identified as the government official at the center of an inspector general's probe into whether the secretary of state had a taxpayer employee walk his dog and perform other errands. Longtime Mike Pompeo aide Toni Porter has been identified as the government employee whose role allegedly doing personal business for the secretary of state was being probed by an inspector general Brian J. Bulatao arrives for a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing in Dirksen Building on his nomination to be Undersecretary of State for management on July 18, 2018. He also followed Pompeo to the CIA Toni Porter serves as a senior advisor to Pompeo Trump announced in May that he was firing the inspector general, Steve Linick, pictured, an Obama administration appointee whose office was critical of what it saw as political bias in the State Department's management Two House Democratic-run committees subpoenaed the State Department aides The Kansas City Star reported Linick was investigating the role Porter, a senior advisor to Pompeo, played and 'whether she as a political appointee was conducting Pompeo's personal business on government time.' Bulatao attended West Point with Pompeo, then joined Pompeo at the CIA where he served as Chief Operating Officer. Politico reported that Linick told Congress Bulatao sought to push him off sensitive investigations. The IG also was investigating the administration's May 2019 emergency declaration to provide $8 billion in arms sales to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries despite a vote in Congress against it. Pompeo in June in a letter to Congress accused Linick of 'strange and erratic behavior' and of a 'failure to perform his duties over a series of many months.' Linick said he was not given a reason for why he was forced out. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 05:46:52|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- United Nations Security Council is expected to have a strong focus on counter-terrorism issues in August, according to the informal provisional program of work of the Council published on Monday. The Council will hold a ministerial-level open debate on "the linkages between terrorism and transnational organized crime" on Aug. 6, Dian Triansyah Djani, permanent representative of Indonesia to the United Nations and president of the Council for the month of August, said at a virtual press conference on the Council's program of work. There will also be a briefing on secretary-general's biannual strategic-level report on the threat posed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or Da'esh) on Aug. 24, the ambassador added. The Council's other open debate is "pandemics and the challenges to peacebuilding and sustaining peace." The likely briefers include Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, former Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Sarah Cliffe, director of New York University's Center on International Cooperation, according to the program of work. Several regular Middle East meetings are on the program of work as well. There will be the three monthly Syria meetings: open and closed videoconferences (VTCs) on the political and humanitarian situation and a closed VTC on the use of chemical weapons. The monthly meetings on developments in Yemen and on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian Question, are also planned in both open and closed format. In addition, the Council will meet for a briefing on recent developments in Iraq and on the two latest secretary-general's reports, on the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq and on the issue of missing Kuwaiti and third-country nationals and missing Kuwaiti property, including the national archives. Meetings in open and closed format are also planned ahead of adoptions to renew the UN missions in Lebanon and Somalia. An adoption is also expected to renew the Mali sanctions regime, as well as the mandate of its Panel of Experts. The Council will be briefed on the latest secretary-general's report on the UN Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Guinea-Bissau, as well as developments in the country following the post-electoral crisis earlier in the year. Council members may also participate in a "virtual visiting mission" to meet with key stakeholders in Somalia ahead of the adoption, according to the Security Council Report (SCR), whose mission is to advance the transparency and effectiveness of the Council. The Council will be watching developments in Burundi, Iran, Libya, Myanmar and Sudan, as well as those related to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, and additional meetings may be added as necessary, the SCR said. Indonesia, the fourth most populous country on earth after China, India, and the United States, has been elected four times as non-permanent member to the Security Council. Enditem Government-owned telco Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has launched a new prepaid plan at Rs 147. The plan comes in handy for users looking for data and calling benefits. BSNL has also increased the validity of some offers if users recharge between 1 to 31 August. Let's have a look at these plans and offers in detail. BSNL Rs 147 prepaid plan: BSNL Rs 147 prepaid plan brings with it 10GB of data spread over the validity of 30 days. A BSNL circular noted that the Rs 147 prepaid voucher offers calling benefits on any STD and local networks with a fair usage policy (FUP) limit of 250 minutes. The plan also gives BSNL tunes for 30 days. Users can activate the Rs 147 prepaid plan by sending an SMS STV COMBO147 to 123. The plan was posted on BSNL Chennai circular and first reported by Telecom Talk. BSNL has further extended the validity of two prepaid plans if customers recharge between the promotional period of August 1 to August 31. BSNL extends validity on Rs 247 prepaid plan: BSNL has extended the validity of Rs 247 plan to 36 days. Formerly, the plan came at a validity of 30 days. The Rs 247 prepaid plan gives customers 3GB daily data with calling local and STD calling benefits at a FUP limit of 250 minutes. The plan also gives access to Eros Now service along with complimentary BSNL tunes service within the validity period. BSNL extends validity on Rs 1999 annual prepaid plan: BSNL has additionally extended the validity of the annual prepaid of Rs 1999 plan by 74 days. The plan comes at the validity of 365 days. For customers who recharge between the promotional period of August 1 and August 31, the operator will increase the validity to 439 days. With the Rs 1999 prepaid plan, users get 3GB daily data and STD and local calling benefits at a FUP limit of 250 minutes. This plan, too, comes with the Eros Now bundled services within the validity period. BSNL 429 Digital India plan: BSNL Digital India plan at Rs 429 lets users browse up to 1GB high-speed data. The plan also offers unlimited STD and local voice calls for 81 days. This plan, too, is offering the Eros now services. The subscribers of the Rs 247 and Rs 429 prepaid plans will get a download link for Eros services through an SMS. This does not apply to users who subscribe to the plans through self-care SMS. BSNL also announced that it will withdraw multiple offers including Patanjali plans from July 31. The Rs 144 Patanjali plan that offered unlimited calls, 2GB data, and 100 SMS will be withdrawn. Patanjali prepaid plans of Rs 792 and 1584 that came at a validity of 180 and 365 days respectively are also being withdrawn. Other plans being withdrawn by the operator at vouchers at Rs 349, Rs Rs 447, and Rs 551. The development will first apply to Chennai and Tamil Nadu circles. An Australian doctor has revealed her plan for 'surviving' the next six weeks of lockdown as Victoria is gripped by its second wave of coronavirus. Dr Preeya Alexander, a general practitioner from Melbourne, said she's bracing herself after premier Daniel Andrews announced tough new stage four restrictions, including an 8pm curfew and a 5km travel radius. The GP has offered her guide to get through isolation - including daily walks, drinking alcohol mindfully three times a week and healthy eating - as health authorities attempt to limit movement across the state in an effort to minimise the spread of COVID-19. Dr Preeya Alexander (pictured) has revealed the exact 'battle' plan for 'surviving' the next six weeks of lockdown as Victoria is gripped by its second wave of coronavirus Dr Preeya Alexander (pictured with her doctor husband Willy), a general practitioner from Melbourne, said she's bracing herself tough new stage four restrictions Dr Preeya Alexander's plan for 'surviving' lockdown 1. Go on one hour daily walks outside 2. Cook healthy meals with no more than five ingredients: Dr Alexander urged Victorian residents to 'improvise' the ingredients they already have in their home to avoid racing back to the supermarket 3. Drink alcohol mindfully three times a week 4. Mental health checks: Dr Alexander suggested organising regular Zoom or FaceTime catchups with family and friends 5. Treat yourself to cake, chocolate or chips, within reason Advertisement 'We went for a walk after some anxiety-related chest tightness during the announcements and a loud cry afterwards to my mum on the phone and we planned hard how we will survive the next six weeks,' Dr Alexander said. 'It's going to be raw - there may be tears, rants, sh** days and good ones but we're all doing this together and we can do this.' The mother-of-two said she will prepare 'kid-friendly' meals from scratch with no more than five ingredients per serve. 'Meals will be veggie packed, and most of them five ingredients [maximum] because cooking multiple meals is not going to happen in lockdown,' she said. '[Our meals] will be realistic (and not fancy) - it's about you guys getting some ideas, survival, distraction and eating well in a heavy, heavy patch of life.' Dr Alexander urged Victorian residents to 'improvise' the ingredients they already have in their home to avoid racing back to the supermarket. 'Don't be strict on ingredients - we are in lockdown. Improvise, use whatever veggies you have for instance. If you don't have something, don't panic,' she said. Victoria recorded 671 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday (pictured). A Stage 4 lockdown will see nearly all shops close and high school students back to learning from home She admitted takeaway meals 'will occur', and she will treat herself to cake, chocolate, chilli chips and alcohol three times a week She admitted takeaway meals 'will occur', and she will treat herself to cake, chocolate, chilli chips and alcohol three times a week. 'Alcohol (three drinking days a week only for both brain and body in lockdown), chocolate and chilli chips - not selling "perfection" here (or anything actually) - it's about survival,' Dr Alexander said, with a laughing emoji. As studies show alcohol consumption tends to increase in lockdown, she said you should try to limit it by choosing just three days a week. For exercise, she will do an hour of walking outside her home every day. Dr Alexander told Victorian residents it's 'ok to feel overwhelmed right now' as she urged everyone to do 'mental health check ins' with family and friends. 'Honestly, we knew these level of restrictions were coming (they had to in order to get this under control) but words like "state of disaster" and "curfew" evoke anxiety,' she said. 'It is ok to feel c*** or overwhelmed - but talk to someone... on Zoom or FaceTime - reach out.' But theres no direct word from the top leadership about putting an end to the war of words in the Congress that continues to rage over why the party is where it is and who should be held accountable. The current battle is seen as setting the stage for August 10 when Sonia completes one year of interim presidentship, and questions are being raised about a leadership vacuum. ... 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. 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Digital Editor Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has clearly decided to launch an offensive on multiple fronts, taking advantage of what he clearly perceives as a geopolitical vacuum. From his recent call to Islamic prayer at the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, to his breaking of the arms embargo to back the Tripoli regime against the advance of General Khalifa Haftars Libyan National Army in the East, from continuing military presence inside Syria to refusal to stop drilling for oil and gas in waters off Cyprus, as well as actions in Africa, Erdogan is clearly in an aggressive mode. Is there a larger strategy behind all this, far more than as a diversion from domestic Turkish economic problems? In recent weeks the Erdogan government has made aggressive moves on multiple fronts that have led many to question their overall aims. In Libya Turkeys Erdogan has boldly made moves to give arms, soldiers and other support to the embattled Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli of Fayez Mustafa al-Sarraj. In December 2019, Erdogan signed a military cooperation pact with the UN-recognized and highly unstable Tripoli government to counter the offensive mounted by Gen. Haftars Libyan National Army, based in the oil-rich east of Libya. On June 7 the Cirkin, a Tanzanian-flagged cargo ship, sailed from Turkey to the Libyan port of Misrata. It was joined by three Turkish warships, leading France and others to believe it was smuggling arms to Tripoli to fight Haftar, a violation of the UN arms embargo. When a Greek (NATO) helicopter sought to board Cirkin to check if arms were being smuggled, the Turkish warships refused, leading a French (NATO) frigate, Courbet, part of a NATO maritime security operation, to approach the Cirkin. Turkish warship radar immediately light up the Courbet with its targeting radar forcing the Courbet to withdraw and the Cirkin landed in Libya. France has filed an official complaint with NATO about the Turkish (NATO) hostile actions. The details remain murky and chances are NATO will try to keep things quiet rather than force a rupture within the alliance. Significant to note is that Haftars military move on Tripoli to end the division of the country is backed by Russia, UAE and Jordan. Since the US-initiated Arab Spring series of destabilizations from Egypt to Tunisia to Libya and, so-far unsuccessfully, in Syria, Libya has since been ravaged by tribal wars following the assassination of Muammar al-Qaddafi in October, 2011. The most recent Turkish move in May enabled the GNA and Turkish-backed troops to destroy the LNAs air defenses in Watiya air base, including a Russian Pantsir-1 battery ad with support of Turkish troops, to take control of the key base. When Russia reportedly transferred six warplanes from Syria to Libya in response, Erdogan threatened to bring Turkish Air Force warplanes over to bomb Haftars troops. At the same time Erdogan has been in negotiations with Algeria to sign a defense pact with the Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli. GNA control of al-Watiya not only puts a stop to Haftars use of the facility to mount air raids on GNA forces in Tripoli. It also gives Turkey a strategic base for building up a military presence in Libya. Algerias newly-elected president Abdelmadjid Tebboune, unlike his predecessor, is significantly dependent on unofficial backing from the Algerian Muslim Brotherhood. Mass demonstrations in 2019 forced the anti-Muslim Brotherhood president , Abdelaziz Bouteflika, to resign. Another key ally of Erdogan in the region is Qatar, which was sanctioned by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Sunni states over Qatars support for the Muslim Brotherhood. The Qatari al-Jazeera TV has been called a Muslim Brotherhood mouthpiece. On the weekend of July 18, Erdogans Defense Minister Hulusi Akar met Qatari Emir, Prince Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani. They reportedly discussed moving Somali Jihadist fighters, trained in bases in Qatar, into Libya to take part in a Turkish planned major assault on Sirte. A recent Pentagon report estimated that Turkey has already sent between 3,500 and 3,800 paid Jihadist fighters to Libya from Syria to strengthen the GNAs army. The Israeli Debka.com notes the significance of the Turkish military moves with Tripoli and Algeria: If Erdogan succeeds in harnessing Algeria to the Libyan GNA, which is already tied to the Turkish chariot, he will be able to shift the balance of power in a broad, volatile region. His military gains in Libya already bring him into position to impact the security of its North African neighbors not least, Egypt as well as Mediterranean navigation between that continent and southern Europe and the offshore oil projects in between. Erdogan and the Muslim Brotherhood Much of the recent alliance strategy of the Erdogan regime since Turkey broke its peaceful relations with neighbor Syria in 2011 and began backing various Al Qaeda-linked terrorist groups to topple the Assad regime, makes more sense when the ties of Erdogan to the highly-secretive Muslim Brotherhood are understood. In an interview with Russia -24 TV in March, Syrian President Bashar al Assad stated openly that Erdogan was Muslim Brotherhood, who put the global agenda of that terrorist organization above that of his own country. Assad stated, At a point in time, the United States decided that secular governments in the region were no longer able to implement the plans and roles designated to themThey decided to replace these regimes with Muslim Brotherhood regimes that use religion to lead the publicThis process of replacement started with the so-called Arab Spring. Of course, at the time, the only Muslim Brotherhood-led country in the region was Turkey, through Erdogan himself and his Brotherhood affiliation. Erdogan had openly greeted the ascendency of Muslim Brotherhood Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, pledging five billions in aid. Then a Saudi-backed military coup ousted the Brotherhood and brought General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to power, much to the displeasure of the Obama Administration and Erdogan. Since then el-Sisi has imposed a severe ban on Muslim Brotherhood activism in Egypt, executing countless leaders and driving others into exile, many reportedly to Erdogans Turkey. Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain have also banned the MB, accusing them of trying to topple their Monarchies. This creates a massive geopolitical fault line across the Arab world. Similarly, until his recent ouster in April, 2019 after a 20-year rule, Sudanese strongman dictator, Omar al-Bashir, was said to also be a member of the Muslim Brotherhood. With those two major allies, Egypt and Sudan lost, Erdogan is clearly trying new flanks to widen his and the Brotherhoods influence globally. This explains his major effort to intervene into Libya on behalf of the Muslim Brotherhood-backed Tripoli GNA. The Turkish President has already sent Turkish troops to Libya to bolster Sarraj, along with drones, military vehicles, and thousands of Syrian mercenaries from Faylak al-Sham (The Syrian Legion), a Muslim Brotherhood affiliate. What is the MB? The Muslim Brotherhood is a freemason-like secret society with a public friendly facade and a hidden military Jihadist inner side. The MB officially renounced violence in the 1970s, but their decree had many loopholes. The Muslim Brotherhood or al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun, was created in British-ruled Egypt, then legally part of the ottoman Caliphate, in 1928 in the wake of the upheaval of World War I and the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire. It was allegedly created by an obscure Sunni Muslim school teacher named Hassan Al-Banna. Much like the Jesuit Order of the Catholic Church, the Brotherhood of Al-Banna concentrated on a special education of youth, presenting the outside world with a facade of charity and good works while concealing a deadly and ruthless inner agenda of power by force. From almost the outset, his secret society had the sole aim, no matter how difficult and long the task, to re-establish that Caliphate, to establish a new Islamic rule over not just Egypt but the entire Muslim world. Indoctrination included insistence on absolute obedience to the leadership; the accepting of Islam as a total system, as the final arbiter of life. Allah is our goal; The Prophet is our Leader; The Quran is our Constitution; Jihad is our Way; Death in the service of Allah is the loftiest of our wishes; Allah is Great; Allah is Great. This was the Credo of the MB established by Al-Banna. Later Al-Banna wrote, Victory can only come with the mastery of the Art of Death. A martyrs death fighting for establishment of the new Caliphate is the shortest and easiest step from this life to the life hereafter. Al-Bannas Brotherhood took early contact with Nazi Germany in the 1930s. The MB secret military arm, the Secret Apparatus (al-jihaz al-sirri), in effect, the assassination bureau was headed by Al-Bannas brother, Abd Al-Rahman Al-Banna. Nazi agents came from Germany to Egypt to help train the Special Section cadres and provide money as well. Both the Nazis and Al-Banna shared a deep anti-Jewish hatred and the Brotherhoods Jihad or Holy War was aimed in large part at Jews in Egypt and Palestine. Hassan Al-Banna introduced the idea of a special kind of death cult within Islam. This aspect of the Brotherhood became the wellspring later in the 1990s and after, for virtually all Sunni Islamic terrorist organizations, with the spread of Salafist Jihadism and the radical Islamic groups such as Al Qaeda or Hamas. In many respects, Al-Bannas Sunni Islamic death cult was a revival of the murderous Assassins Cult or Islamic hashshashin during the Holy Crusades in the Twelfth Century. Al-Banna termed it, the Art of Death (fann al-mawt) or Death is Art (al-mawt fann). He preached to his followers that it was a kind of saintly martyrdom to be devoutly honored, that it was based on the Quran. During World War II leading figures from the Muslim Brotherhood lived in Berlin and worked directly with SS head Himmler to create terror brigades to execute Jews and other enemies of the Reich. In the 1950s, after the war, the CIA discovered the effective anti-communist fervor of the Brotherhood and began a decades-long collaboration, initially supported by the Saudi Monarchy. Osama bin Laden was said to have initially been a devout Muslim Brotherhood member. This is the organization behind Erdogans military agenda in Libya and far beyond. It bodes ill for any illusions of diplomatic agreements to end the wars either in Syria, Iraq or Libya and beyond. F. William Engdahl is strategic risk consultant and lecturer, he holds a degree in politics from Princeton University and is a best-selling author on oil and geopolitics, exclusively for the online magazine New Eastern Outlook As Bernard Looney took to the stage in London in February to announce his plan to transform BP Plc for a low-carbon future, the U.K. capital confirmed its first case of Covid-19. The oil giants chief executive officer couldnt have known how the virus would shake the foundations of his industry: since the start of the pandemic, BP has said it will write off as much as $17.5 billion of fossil-fuel assets, slash 10,000 jobs and exit the petrochemicals business. And on Tuesday, it may announce the first dividend cut since the Macondo oil-spill disaster a decade ago. But despite the pain for shareholders and employees, the crisis is giving Looney the opportunity to accelerate the big changes needed to fulfill his vision. The global spread of coronavirus only reaffirms the need to reinvent our company, Looney now says. The pandemic has created a world that pumps less oil, gets more of its energy from renewable sources and emits less carbon dioxide -- exactly what he says BP should do. OIL CRASH: Oil and gas production jobs in Texas could hit bottom this fall This backdrop of battered demand presents a lot of challenges, but it also presents opportunity, said Luke Parker, vice president of corporate research for Wood Mackenzie Ltd. The measures BP has taken so far arent unique, either in the current slump or in the periodic downturns that have afflicted the industry over the decades. But theres a symbolism that wasnt there before. Quitting a core business like chemicals is a good way to show that the future looks different. Taking an ax to billions of dollars of oil and gas asset values demonstrates that youre a company that believes this transition is going to happen and that the world will be on a 2-degree path, Parker said. Most importantly, the company is widely expected to follow Royal Dutch Shell Plc this week by cutting its dividend, potentially freeing up cash to invest in clean energy. Difficult decisions like this have been made easier by the coronavirus crisis, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.s head of EMEA oil and gas, Christyan Malek. What youre seeing BP do is getting its house in order before announcing a detailed transformation plan in September, Malek said. BP have been putting the building blocks in place -- the impairments, the divestments. And we believe the dividend cut is the next building block. Reducing BPs $8 billion annual shareholder payout would address the biggest unanswered question about Looneys transition plan: Where is the money going to come from? Even before the coronavirus lockdowns crashed energy prices, BP was saddled with more debt than any of its peers. Its gearing -- the ratio of debt to equity -- is poised to rise as high as 48%, according to RBC Capital Markets. That would be by far the highest in the industry, and could lead to questions about its credit rating. FUEL FIX: Get our energy news in your inbox each weekday. While the measures Looney has taken so far may help him achieve BPs long-term goals, in the short-term shareholders appear unimpressed. The companys stock is down 42% this year, a steeper drop than the 37% decline in the Stoxx Europe 600 Oil & Gas index. Low-Carbon Spending Without a detailed plan of how BP is going to become a clean-energy giant, the cost of the transformation remains largely theoretical. Whats clear, is that at the very least the oil major will have to boost spending on low-carbon fuels significantly from the current $500 million a year to billions. The other route would be acquisitions, following on from its 130 million-pound ($170 million) purchase of U.K. car-charging company Chargemaster in 2018. Such assets typically have positive cash flow and can be integrated easily into oil majors portfolios, said Bruce Duguid, head of stewardship, EOS at Federated Hermes. As Looney, 49, reshapes BP, doubts linger about the strategy. Sitting in the audience of the great unveiling in February was former CEO John Browne, who tried to steer the company into renewables in the early 2000s with the ill-fated Beyond Petroleum campaign. We moved too soon, Looney said in a recent Instagram post. We lost money on much of what we had built up. Bob Dudley, Looneys immediate predecessor, has repeatedly cautioned against moving too fast into low-carbon fuels, saying the potential failure of new technologies could lead to financial ruin. The key to success will be keeping investors on board. Theres strong support for BPs overall change in direction, with shareholders voting overwhelmingly in favor of climate resolutions in 2019, according to Hermes Duguid. But it could be a painful journey, and theres a risk shareholders have a change of heart if Looney does cut the dividend. You can use the macroeconomic backdrop as a way to justify the means, but you still need the end result to work, said JPMorgans Malek. 2020 Bloomberg L.P. The NV-VPAC1 test has been successfully utilized for in vitro and in vivo diagnostics detecting multiple types of cancer. This agreement with GEM helps to secure the funding for continued growth and development of NuView's NV-VPAC1 portfolio... [as] we focus on moving our in vitro cancer diagnostics into the marketplace. NuView Life Sciences, Inc. announced that it has signed an agreement with GEM Global Yield LLC SCS, a Luxembourg-based private, alternative investment group. Under the accord, GEM agrees to purchase common shares from NuView on a firm commitment basis with an aggregate value of USD$90 million, upon NuView filing a Registration Statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The agreement provides NuView a 36-month drawdown period. NuView will use funds to complete a 600-patient in vitro double-blind clinical trial in accordance with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval process. NuView will also allocate funds for its in vivo diagnostics and Theranostic programs. NuView controls the timing and maximum amount of drawdown under this facility and has no minimum drawdown obligation. The NV-VPAC1(TM) test has been successfully utilized for in vitro and in vivo diagnostics detecting multiple types of cancer. In clinical studies, the test showed its ability to accurately detect cancer cells and their location not only inside the body, but outside as well, in voided biofluids, confirming the presence of shed cancer cells. NuView is confident the test has the potential for diagnosing a variety of cancers, transforming patient care. The GEM endorsement greatly expedites the process towards potential commercialization. "This agreement with GEM helps to secure the funding for continued growth and development of NuView's NV-VPAC1(TM) portfolio. As we focus on moving our in vitro cancer diagnostics into the marketplace, we can simultaneously restart our in vivo diagnostics and Theranostic programs forward, stated Paul Crowe, Chairman and CEO of NuView. About The GEM Group: Global Emerging Markets is a $3.4 billion, alternative investment group with operations in Paris, New York, and Los Angeles. GEM manages a diverse set of investment vehicles focused on emerging markets that provide the group and its investors with a diversified portfolio of asset classes that span the global private investing spectrum. Each investment vehicle has a different degree of operational control, risk-adjusted return, and liquidity profile. The family of funds and investment vehicles provide GEM and its partners with exposure to: Small-Mid Cap Management Buyouts, Private Investments in Public Equities and select venture investments. For more information: http://www.gemny.com About NuView Life Sciences, Inc.: NuView Life Sciences, located in Park City, UT, is an innovative, clinical stage, precision oncology company. NuViews mission is to change the way cancer is currently diagnosed and treated. The earlier cancer is identified, the better the treatment options are and the greater the chances for successful outcomes. To learn more about NuView Life Sciences, please visit http://www.nuviewlifesciences.com. Forward-Looking Statements: This release may contain forward-looking statements, as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 or by the SEC in its rules, regulations, and releases. These forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements of plans, objectives, expectations, or intentions. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions and actual results may differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements. You should not put undue reliance on any forward-looking statements in this communication. We do not have any intention or obligation to update forward-looking statements after the date of this communication, except as required by law. Los Angeles, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 08/03/2020 -- FantasticPetsGalore.com is a one stop pet store online featuring trendy supplies for all kinds of pets. Reptiles or mammals, canines or felines, the feathery friends or the bubble guppies, this store has got it all covered with the latest pet products. Their prices start at just $0.99 which makes it the most affordable online store for pet parents. Buying toys or feeding supplies need not be expensive. It doesn't have to be daunting either. Pet parents are often left confused by the ecommerce stores with their humongous product range and their confusing reviews. What makes a store like this special is that they do the homework on behalf of the shoppers and shortlist the products to help customers with speedy, efficient, quality and affordable shopping. Coming to the latest product range, shoppers can find the latest dog toys for their pooches. Rubber pin balls or flying discs, plush dog toys or chew toys, this site is a must visit to buy toys for pups and dogs that too within budget. Also featuring high end products such as the reptile incubator box priced at $269.99; there is nothing more breathtaking than the nature unfolding itself right in front of the eyes. For those who are looking for some great accessories for their turtle friends, check out the store for the floating basking platform priced at $17.99; and can be placed in a large aquarium or a reptile terrarium. Hamster, gerbils, mice, squirrels, chinchillas, rabbits or guinea pigs; they too need their share of playtime. The pet play molar toy set comes with 14 pcs of wooden toys for these small animals. They are called molar toys because these toys help improve the dental health of these tiny wonders. With the product range so varied and quality so high, customers will sure be impressed and make this store their one-stop shop for all things pets. First time shoppers can subscribe for the newsletter or follow the store on social media sites to stay tuned with all the latest releases, ongoing sales and more information. Great products, attractive prices, convenient shopping and safe transactions is what is guaranteed here for the pet parents. Browse for more products at FantasticPetsGalore.com About https://fantasticpetsgalore.com/ Fantastic Pets Galore is an online store that features trending pet products for dogs, cats, birds, fish, mice, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, mammals and the distant cousins of dinosaurs and dragons. Contact Website: https://fantasticpetsgalore.com Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 08:51:43|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close ROME, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- The 2019-20 Italian Serie A season concluded on Sunday as Genoa avoided relegation while Lecce return to Serie B, joining Brescia and SPAL. The focus of the last match day was the relegation battle between Genoa and Lecce, who placed 17th and 18th respectively with only one point separating the two sides. Genoa just needed a win to secure safety and they succeeded with a 3-0 home victory over Hellas Verona. The Grifone were up by three goals before the break, thanks to Toni Sanabria's brace and Cristian Romero's header. Despite being a player down in the second half, Genoa held firm to keep a clean sheet while Sofyan Amrabat and Francesco Cassata from each side saw red in the dying minutes. Genoa's victory made the result between Lecce and Parma meaningless as Lecce finished their Serie A campaign with a 4-3 home defeat. In Sunday's other Serie A matches, Fiorentina dominated SPAL 3-1, Udinese edged past Sassuolo 1-0, and Bologna shared the spoils with Torino at 1-1. Enditem Pakistani women make up almost 49 percent of the countrys population. Most face discrimination as a result of the patriarchal society of Pakistan. In a new interview with C.M. Rubin, Founder of CMRubinWorld, author and journalist Sanam Maher discusses the honor killing of Qandeel Baloch, Pakistans first ever social media celebrity, at the hands of her brother. Maher is the author of A Woman Like Her: The Story Behind the Honor Killing of a Social Media Star. Qandeel Balochs murder in 2016 became a global media sensation. Pakistani women refused to ignore it. Qandeel was different, says Maher. There was a sense of having known her as many of us engaged with her frequently online. She explains that women could not stay silent. The Global Gender Gap Index report of 2020 ranked Pakistan 151 out of a total of 153 countries, and a survey carried out by the Thomson Reuters Foundation ranked Pakistan as the sixth most dangerous country for women. Read the full article here Sanam Maher is a journalist based in Karachi, Pakistan. Maher is the Author of A Woman Like Her: The Story Behind the Honor Killing of a Social Media Star. CMRubinWorlds award-winning series, The Global Search for Education, brings together distinguished thought leaders in education and innovation from around the world to explore the key learning issues faced by most nations. The series has become a highly visible platform for global discourse on 21st century learning, offering a diverse range of innovative ideas which are presented by the series founder, C. M. Rubin, together with the worlds leading thinkers. For more information on CMRubinWorld Follow @CMRubinWorld on Twitter Contact Information: David Wine David(at)cmrubinworld(dot)com 'We all know that when the Babri Masjid was demolished, P V Narasimha Rao was prime minister.' 'He did not do anything to stop the demolition.' IMAGE: A Hindu priest walks past the Sarayu river in Ayodhya. Photograph: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters A centuries-old controversy will finally come to an end on August 5, 2020, when Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi performs the bhoomi puja at the site of the Ram Janambhoomi in Ayodhya. The 'Babri Masjid-Ram Janambhoomi' issue rocked the foundation of India's secular fabric. India's politics has never been the same since the shilanayas was first performed at the then disputed site in 1989. The Bharatiya Janata Party, which won only two seats in Parliament in 1984, rode the temple issue to power after adopting a resolution to build a grand temple will be built at the birthplace of Lord Ram in Ayodhya. Along with abrogating Article 370 and ushering in a Uniform Civil Code, Ayodhya became the third of the BJP's core issues. Author Hemant Sharma, who has witnessed the tumultuous events for the past 35 years and chronicled them in his book Ayodhya Ka Chashmadeed (An eyewitness to Ayodhya), believes that the Congress party should get more credit for the Ram temple than the BJP. "The BJP came into the picture in 1989 when, during their Palampur convention in Himachal Pradesh, they passed a resolution and adopted the demand for a Ram temple in Ayodhya as a part of their election manifesto," says Sharma. "They then had no idea that in such a less time they will be able to build the temple at the site which is disputed for 500 years," Sharma tells Rediff.com's Syed Firdaus Ashraf in the first part of the interview. Soon after Independence, then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru had told then President Dr Rajendra Prasad that, being the head of a secular State, the latter should not attend the Somnath temple's inauguration. Now, 73 years later, Prime Minister Modi is expected to lay the foundation stone of the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. >Is it a sign of how far right the Republic has travelled in these years? Two important events took place during the early years of Independence. First, the Somnath temple was reconstructed and another, on the intervening night of December 22-23, 1949, the idols of Ram, Sita and Lakshman were placed inside the Babri Masjid premises. If Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru was so concerned about India's secularism, then he should have got those idols removed right then. Moreover, Nehru should have taken a stance that the the President must not visit the Somnath temple because the President works on the advice of his ministers. On the Babri Masjid issue, Nehru wrote a letter to then Uttar Pradesh chief minister Gobind Ballabh Pant that he should follow his duties as the Constitutional head of the province. If you dig more into the past, you will find that whatever happened to the Babri Masjid was during Congress rule. On February 1, 1986, the Congress government in Uttar Pradesh gave an undertaking in court that if the locks of the Babri Masjid are opened, there won't be any law and order problem. At that time Rajiv Gandhi was prime minister and Vir Bahadur Singh was Congress chief minister of Uttar Pradesh. On November 1, 1989, the Allahabad high court allowed shilanyas on the 2.77 acre plot. Rajiv Gandhi sent Buta Singh, the then home minister, to Ayodhya who got an undertaking from the Faizabad district collector that the shilanyas will not take place inside the Babri Masjid premises. Then, during the 1989 general election, Rajiv Gandhi started his campaign from Ayodhya and declared that he will bring in 'Ram Rajya'. And we all know that when the Babri Masjid was demolished, P V Narasimha Rao was the prime minister. He did not do anything to stop the demolition. Therefore, the Congress is more responsible for the Ram Mandir than the BJP. The BJP came into the picture in 1989 when, during their Palampur convention in Himachal Pradesh, they passed a resolution and adopted the demand for a Ram temple as a part of their election manifesto. They then had no idea that in such less time, they will be able to build the temple at the site which was disputed for 500 years. But... (Interrupts) 500 years ago, the rule was 'might is right'. The Babri Masjid structure was not demolished for the first time in 1992. It was first demolished in 1855 and then in 1934. In 1934, all the three domes of Babri Masjid were demolished. The then British collector got them rebuilt with taxpayer money. Are you saying that Nehru should have got the Ram idols removed? I am only saying that if Nehru was honest, then he should have made an attempt to remove the idols. Why didn't he try? In the last 30 years, did you ever feel this problem could have been solved amicably? When Chandra Shekhar was PM for four months, a committee was formed compromising historians and archaeologists and Syed Shahabuddin (a prominent Muslim leader), had said that if the committee was able prove that a temple existed at the site, Muslims will give up their claim. Three meetings were held. The historians started coming out with facts, and evidence (of a temple) started emerging. The archaeological department dug out all the proof. The Supreme Court gave its judgment based on those evidence only. The trouble started when the Babri Masjid Action Committee withdrew and did not turn up for the fourth meeting. Unfortunately, the Chandra Shekhar government did not last long, but that attempt was very close as it was headed by Chandra Shekhar himself and BJP leader Bhairon Singh Shekhawat (who later became Vice-President). The Supreme Court too gave enough time and opportunities to resolve the issue amicably, but no one was ready to accept a workable solution. And the reason no one was ready to accept a solution was because the issue was ideological (on both sides). Dr Rafiq Zakaria, in his book Widening Divide/em>, says that Hindu-Muslim relations have never been the same after the Ram Janambhoomi movement. Do you agree? Yes, it has happened. The upper castes and the other backward castes were divided over the Mandal Commission in 1989. To overcome this divide, kamandal (a symbol of sadhus) was brought in by the other group (the BJP). After this, Hindu society united in such a way that all of them -- forwards, OBCs, Dalits -- came under the banner of Hindu dharma. This also translated into votes as the BJP, which won only two seats in 1984, went on to win over 300 seats and form the government in 2019. The party of the man who criticised Dr Rajendra Prasad for visiting the Somnath temple was reduced to just 50-odd seats in 2019. The bonhomie between Hindus and Muslims, which we saw prior to 1989, was never seen again and I don't think it is possible now. Muslim society, if they had sensed that this judgment would not go in their favour, should have given up their claim on the Babri Masjid and allowed the Hindus to build a temple. Had they done that, there would have been a strong unity between Hindus and Muslims. Even the Supreme Court judgment is not judicial justice, but is more like a political statement, by giving the disputed land to the Hindus while giving land for Babri Masjid at a distance. They worked out a formula. No one had asked for land for the Babri Masjid at some other place. There is a theory that Marxist historians spoiled the chances for an amicable solution. How far is this true as archaeologist K K Muhammad was the first one to say that the remnants of a temple were found below the Babri Masjid? Marxist historians have caused maximum damage to Hindu-Muslim relations. There was a possibility that you could argue whether this place is the Ram Janambhoomi or not. You could argue whether Ram was born in Ayodhya or not. (But) Marxist historians took the debate to another level by stating (that) Ram did not exist, that it is mythology and not history. Now if you ask for a birth certificate of Lord Ram, you are uniting different Hindu sections, who are all deeply religious. WASHINGTONMicrosoft Corp. said it is committed to trying to acquire the U.S. operations of the Chinese video-sharing app TikTok on terms required by the White House, after chief executive Satya Nadella spoke by phone with U.S. President Donald Trump about the possible deal. Microsoft, in a blog post Sunday, said it would move quickly to pursue discussions with TikTok parent Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., over a potential purchase and aims to complete the negotiations by Sept. 15. The statement, which was the software giants first confirmation it was interested in acquiring TikToks U.S. business, said the deal talks also entail the apps service in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. U.S. officials have expressed concerns that TikTok could pass on the data it collects from Americans to Chinas authoritarian government. TikTok has said it would never do so. Officials also worry that the app could be used to spread Chinese propaganda and that the platforms moderators are censoring content to appease Beijing. The company has said it is increasingly adapting its content policies to be tailored to local markets where it operates, including the U.S., and that Beijing doesnt dictate policies for those. The Wall Street Journal and other outlets Friday reported Microsofts interests in the deal. Soon after, Trump said he opposed a transaction and that he preferred to ban the app, temporarily pausing the talks between Microsoft and ByteDance and throwing uncertainty over the discussions. Microsoft appreciates the U.S. Governments and President Trumps personal involvement as it continues to develop strong security protections for the country, the company said in its statement. The Redmond, Wash.-based company said it would continue the dialogue with the U.S. government, including the president, as talks progress. It added that it would ensure the data of American TikTok users would be transferred to the U.S. where it would remain. Microsoft said that TikTok, under its ownership, would build on the popular user experience while adding privacy and security protections. Microsoft said it might open the purchase to other American investors to take a minority stake. The company also warned that discussions were preliminary and that there was no certainty that a transaction would be completed. Sen. Marco Rubio, who has been critical of TikTok, was among several Republican lawmakers to come out in favour of a Microsoft deal on Sunday. I was among the first to warn of danger posed by TikTok last year, he tweeted. As I have shared with POTUS & @WhiteHouse if the company & data can be purchased & secured by a trusted U.S. company that would be a positive & acceptable outcome. Read more about: Rajesh Kumar Thakur By Express News Service PATNA: In a late night unprecedented development held in connection with the sensational death case of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, Patna(Central) SP Vinay Tiwari was forcefully quarantined in Mumbai late Sunday night. The Bihar-cadre IPS officer had reached Mumbai same day by a flight following the directive of Bihar police to co-ordinate with the investigation, which is being carried out by a 4-member team of Patna police since July 27. ALSO READ| Sushant Singh Rajput death: Mumbai top cop briefs Uddhav on probe status Sharing this information through a tweet, Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey said that Tiwari was forcibly quarantined at around 11 pm on Mumbai. "He has gone there to lead the team investigating the SSR case. Now, he cannot get out of here", the DGP said in the tweet. IPS officer Binay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11pm today.He was not provided accommodation in the IPSMess despite request and was staying in a guest house in Goregaw pic.twitter.com/JUPFRpqiGE IPS Gupteshwar Pandey (@ips_gupteshwar) August 2, 2020 The DGP further said that Tiwari has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials and he was not provided accomodation in the IPS mess despite request. As a result of that, Tiwari is staying in a guest house at Goregaon in Mumbai. As soon as the message of this reached Patna, resentment against such highly objectionable treatment meted out to an IPS officer with forcible quarantine started brewing not only among the police fraternity but among general public also. According to sources,Pandey is learnt to have decided to hold a meeting over this development with his officials on Monday to chalk out a further plan. The Bihar police is gathering evidences in connection with Sushant's death that occured on June 14 in Mumbai after the late actor's father KK Singh lodged an FIR on July 25 in Patna. ALSO READ| Bihar Police to probe suicide of late actor Sushant Singh Rajput's former manager A team of four officers from Patna police was sent to Mumbai to start investigation-cum-clue gathering to take the fair investigation further. Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey, who is said to have wider experiences of having solved many mysterious cases of deaths throughout his career, had said on Sunday that his force competent enough to do a fair and transparent investigation into the case. He had said that an IPS officer was sent to co-ordinate with the team but this development has baffled the DGP as well as Bihar police fraternity to a great extent. Bihar Congress MLC Prem Chandra Mishra termed the incident of an IPS officer being forcibly quarantined in Mumbai as 'the most unfortunate'. A Territorial Army (TA) soldier went missing on Sunday (August 2) and his burnt vehicle was found in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Monday (August 3). According to police, the TA soldier has been abducted by terrorists and a massive manhunt has been launched to trace the missing soldier. It is learnt that the terrorists intercepted the vehicle of the TA soldier near Damhal Hanjipora in Kulgam. The soldier, a resident of Harmain area of Shopian district, was then abducted and his vehicle was set ablaze by the terrorists. A senior police officer confirmed the incident and said that searches have been launched to trace out the abducted soldier. Police and security forces are on job to find out the missing soldier," said the officer. Meanwhile, the family of TA soldier has appealed to the terrorists to release him. Sources said the family of the abducted TA soldier has been hit by a tragedy and is been anxiously waiting for his return. Patna, Aug 3 : The alleged suicide of actor Sushant Singh Rajput reverberated in the monsoon session of the Bihar assembly which met here on Monday. The MLAs of all the parties in one voice demanded the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the suicide case of Sushant Singh Rajput. Leader of Opposition in the assembly Tejashwi Yadav also demanded a fair inquiry into the matter. Raising the issue in the House, Neeraj Kumar Bablu, MLA and brother of late Sushant Singh Rajput, said that the Maharashtra Police is not cooperating with Bihar Police which has gone to Mumbai to probe the alleged suicide case. He said that the investigation would not be carried out properly in such a situation. He said, "The way in which Maharashtra Police misbehaved with Bihar Police is before the entire country." "The country has seen the way in which the Bihar police team was treated in Mumbai. When Bihar Police IPS officer Vinay Tiwari was sent to Mumbai for investigation, he was forcibly quarantined. It is clear that the investigation is not being done properly by Mumbai Police," he added. Bablu said that there should be a CBI inquiry into the matter. Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Yadav also supported MLA Bablu. He said that the RJD has been with Sushant Singh Rajput's family since the beginning. Yadav said that the Bihar government should take it seriously at the way Mumbai Police and the Maharashtra Government are mishandling the case. He also demanded CBI probe into the matter adding that the film city to be built in Rajgir should be named after Sushant Singh Rajput. The Congress and the JDU legislators present in the house also called for a CBI inquiry into the matter. Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Israeli Police Forcefully Disperse Protesters Outside PM's Residence By VOA News August 02, 2020 Israeli police used force to disperse protesters gathered outside the official residence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Sunday morning. Several thousand demonstrators had been rallying at the square in central Jerusalem since Saturday evening. The Jerusalem protest was one of the largest turnouts since demonstrations calling for Netanyahu to resign began. The anti-Netanyahu protests have been the largest in Israel since the 2011 demonstrations against the country's high cost of living. Smaller gatherings took place in the capital Tel Aviv and near Netanyahu's beach house in central Israel. Eventually, police forcefully cleared the square, carrying away protesters who were refusing to leave. There have been no reports of any arrests. Many Israelis believe that prime minister has mishandled the country's coronavirus crisis. Others say Netanyahu should not remain in office while on trial on corruption charges. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address NORTHAMPTON As part of their rollout of campus policy for the fall semester, Smith College says it will allow professors to independently determine their form of instruction. The Northampton colleges decision is being echoed by some other colleges, but whether reluctant teachers will be required to offer in-person instruction is an issue at many schools - and it carries the potential for contentious disputes as fall semester nears. More than 50 percent of American campuses plan some faculty and student presence on campus. A hybrid learning plan is standard for almost all except those, including the University of Massachusetts Amherst, that have made a virtually complete commitment to remote learning. What remains undefined at many schools is which subjects and which professors will be in the classroom, and which wont - often because even at schools that give teachers the choice, many instructors are still deciding or havent declared their plans. Smith College is putting its decision in the hands of individual faculty. Not every college is. Because faculty know best how students learn in their disciplines, they have the freedom to design their courses in the format they believe will best meet students needs under the current circumstances,' Smith president Kathleen McCartney said in a recent message to the college community. Smith has invited its first-year and sophomore students, and those graduating in January, the opportunity to live on campus in the fall. Juniors and seniors will be invited for the spring semester. If health conditions allow, the college will expand its invite for spring on-campus living. The current plan would allow all students a chance to live on campus for at least half the year. When campuses across the nation began planning to reopen campus, many did so with the apparent assumption that professors would be agreeable or at least willing. Some are, but others are nervous about health and safety, and many feel a professor with anxieties should not be forced. According to a report in Forbes magazine, some colleges and universities (will) allow faculty to move their classes online at their own discretion, while others require an application process with medical documentation. If denied, instructors may be forced to return to campus despite the health risks, take an unpaid leave of absence or quit their jobs. As a result, professors across the country have petitioned for the right to work remotely without having to prove their medical risk, the report said. This brings into play the interpretation of union contracts, almost all of which were written before negotiators could have imagined the unprecedented circumstances and concerns COVID-19 would create. Boston University created a policy where faculty could file a request to work remotely, but did not guarantee those requests would be granted, according to NBC News. Thats not uncommon around U.S. campuses. Many universities have expressed flexibility and compassion for their faculty and indicated that, if anything, they would err on the side of caution. But some faculty nationwide claim to be experiencing at least implied pressure to teach in-person. When I decided to go into teaching art history, I didnt think I was going into a life-threatening field, said Laura Crary, 62, who teaches at a college in South Carolina and told NBC News she might retire if forced to go back. Crary said she was a single parent who also cares for her own parents. She asked NBC not to reveal the name of her college - a telling sign in a climate where competing priorities can create anxiety and put professors and administrators at loggerheads. As teachers mull some difficult options and wrestle with school policy, tuition-paying families are raising issues of their own. Some want in-person options and some form of campus life in return for the cost. Others share the same health concerns as faculty - while the largest group, probably, simply awaits the outcome at their schools. Many schools are including first-year students on their reduced invitation list, perhaps to discourage them from abandoning their plans in favor of a gap year to wait out the coronavirus. Smith Colleges plan gives first campus choice to newer students, but the college has not attached a reason, other than to meet its goal of keeping campus population at about half its norm. Some faculty nationwide have stated they should not have to disclose personal health information to gain an exemption from in-person teaching. Others claim factors beyond health, such as child care, caring for other adults, and the burden of creating both in-person and remote curricula, are valid reasons to teach remotely. An underlying factor is simmering resentment at many schools by faculty that feel left out of college decision-making in general, and were not consulted when layoffs, furloughs, program cuts and other changes driven by COVID-19 were enacted by administrators. South Africa: Allegations of interference in Eskom pension fund appointment dismissed The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) has dismissed allegations of interference in the appointment of the chairperson of the Eskom pension and provident fund. A report by the Sunday Independent claimed that Public Enterprises Minister, Pravin Gordhan, revoked the appointment of the first black woman to be the chairperson of the Eskom pension and provident fund, and instead appointed Caroline Henry to the position. The department said the report is manufactured by an arrogant and destructive cabal employed to tarnish the reputation of all those fighting against corruption and to defend malfeasance. The choice and appointment of the pension fund chairperson is entirely the responsibility of Eskom. The allegations seek to tarnish the name of the Minister and sustain a narrative that has been propagated over several months by specific individuals that are entangled in SOE (State Owned Enterprises) corruption and state capture. The Sunday Independent ignored all the facts provided to its journalists by Eskom on the recruitment process, including the fact that the company ran the process with the help of an external recruitment firm. The process culminated in a final shortlist, from which Henry became the preferred candidate, the department said in a statement. According to Eskom, Mantuka Maisela had not made the shortlist. The department disputed the report that the Ministry intervened in the appointment of Maisela to the position. In fact, and in line with the process, the department said, it received a letter from the Eskom Board nominating Henry as the sole candidate, adding that this is a consideration for appointment by the Minister. Minister Gordhan approved the appointment of Henry based on the information before him and at no stage of the process did the DPE or the Minister contribute, suggest, or veto any names. The paper downplayed Eskoms responses to its questions regarding the situation regarding Maiselas candidature and instead chose to caricature Minister Gordhan in line with its deliberate distortion campaign, the department said. Before publishing, the department noted that the newspaper was informed by Eskom that Maisela had served on the Funds board for a continuous period of 16 years, a service that far exceeds the recommended period in terms of acceptable governance and protocols. The department called on all to provide the space to the Pension Fund Board to perform their work without being concocted narratives of political interference. We are committed to a genuine transformation agenda that seeks to reverse the wrongs of apartheid and the recent state capture atrocities. Competent and ethical leaders have been appointed to the Eskom Board and leadership layer under Minister Gordhan, the department said. According to the department, the Eskom executive leadership team is broken up to 70% African, 15% Coloured and 15% White. Transnet has a score of 81% African representativity in its executive management, almost half of those being African women. Distortions and other nefarious agendas simply fortify our resolve to improve the performance of these entities and simultaneously implement the Constitutions values of a non-racial, non-sexist South Africa. SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Chinese civil affairs departments nationwide helped 5,226 stranded individuals return home in the first half of 2020, according to statistics released by the Ministry of Civil Affairs. Meanwhile, assistance was provided on around 288,000 occasions between January and June amid a national campaign aimed to help the homeless and individuals with no means of supporting themselves, the ministry said. Moreover, the country has offered financial support to people in need. By the end of June, China had provided 14.62 billion yuan (about 2.09 billion U.S. dollars) in price subsidies to support people in poverty. In the first half of the year, a total of 3.396 million people were newly identified as people living on subsistence allowances or in extreme difficulty, and have benefited from the allowance scheme. From March to June, the allowances were increased, and orphans and unattended children were included in the allowance scheme for the first time, the ministry noted. Five people fined over breaches of Victoria's COVID-19 rules on the weekend were caught at a notorious King Street strip club celebrating the birthday of the venue's co-owner and director. More than 20 police officers entered Showgirls Bar 20 about 9.30pm on Saturday and discovered the gathering for Michael Trimble's 36th birthday less than a day before Melbourne was placed on stage four restrictions. Michael Trimble. All five people, including Mr Trimble and an exotic dancer, were issued with $1652 fines. Mr Trimble declined to comment when contacted by The Age, but his lawyer Sazz Nasimi insisted his client had not intended to host a party. Microsoft has confirmed that it will continue to hold discussions on potential TikTok purchase in the United States, following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald Trump. The announcement comes days after Trump announced that he would sign an executive order to ban Chinese app TikTok in the US. Microsoft, in its blog post, said that it is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the US. US-based tech giant The Redmond will hold talks with TikToks parent company ByteDance and will complete discussions by September 15 this year. The discussions with ByteDance will build upon a notification made by Microsoft and ByteDance to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The two companies have provided notice of their intent to explore a preliminary proposal that would involve a purchase of the TikTok service in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand and would result in Microsoft owning and operating TikTok in these markets. Microsoft also said that it might invite other American investors to participate on a minority basis in this purchase. The new structure will add security, privacy, and digital safety protections. Microsoft further said that the operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries. Microsoft will ensure that all private data of TikToks American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. If any data is currently stored or backed-up outside the US, Microsoft will take measures to ensure that the data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred. These discussions are preliminary and there can be no assurance that a transaction which involves Microsoft will proceed. We do not intend to provide further updates until there is a definitive outcome to our discussions, the blog post read. Azizi Developments, a leading private developer in the UAE, plans to invest over AED3.5bn ($952 million) in the next 2-3 years to construct 45 buildings comprising over 11,000 homes in Dubai. The projects include14 and 22 buildings in Riviera Phase 3 and 4 respectively, three Avenue buildings in MBR City, two projects in Dubai Healthcare City, and four projects in Al Furjan. This announcement comes in light of it having sold over 80 per cent of its current ongoing projects and inventory, and demand projected to surge, especially in MBR City, DHCC and Al Furjan the three most sought-after residential destinations in all of the UAE. The construction of the Al Furjan and Dubai Healthcare City projects, which will feature around 645 and 973 units respectively, Rivieras Phase 3, comprising approximately 3,700 units, Phase 4, with around 5,400 units, and the 423 Avenue units, will commence between August and December of this year. CEO of Azizi Developments, Farhad Azizi, said: Our launches are based on demand, which has been exceptional in MBR City, Dubai Healthcare City and Al Furjan. Our current stock across these up-and-coming locations is nearly sold out, which is why we are now planning further developments accordingly. The new communities will be unique in the lifestyles they grant residents they are a new type of product, and we will be reaching out to new markets with them. The AED3.5 billion will be spread out across several years, with more than 11,000 homes being developed. We are confident that this investment in Dubai, the most promising, forward-thinking and growth-inclined city in the world, is well placed, and look forward to further catalysing the emirates vision and development, he added. For the construction of the 45 buildings, Azizi will minimise vertical supplier structures by sourcing materials, such as concrete, steel and aluminium, locally. It will also continue to build its engineering team and construction methods, making the developer less contractor-dependent and taking efficiency and reliability to new heights. TradeArabia News Service (Natural News) Schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD), the second and 21st largest school districts in the United States, respectively, have announced that they will not be physically opening schools when the academic year starts as fears over the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) remain. The decision was announced on July 13, as many school districts across the country continue to remain skittish with restarting in-person learning the country continues to feel the crushing weight of the second wave of coronavirus infections. Some districts have decided to simply move back the start dates of their school years by up to several weeks. Others, like the LAUSD and the SDUSD, have opted to simply hold all their classes online for the upcoming academic year. LAUSDs academic year begins on August 18, while the school year for the SDUSD starts on August 31. Both have defied the wishes of President Donald Trump and Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, who have threatened to cut federal funding from school districts that do not physically open their facilities for in-person learning. Those countries that have managed to safely reopen schools have done so with declining infection rates and on-demand testing available. California has neither. The skyrocketing infection rates of the past few weeks make it clear the pandemic is not under control, said the two school districts in a joint statement. While the two school districts, which together account for around 750,000 students, have stated that they will rely on online instruction for much of the upcoming academic year, they have stated that they plan to return to in-person learning at some point, as soon as public health conditions allow. Watch this episode of Brighteon Conversations with Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, as he interviews Dr. Paul Cottrell, who warns about how the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic is being used by authorities, including in the United States, to push for more tyrannical and Orwellian policies that will keep people imprisoned long after the worst of the crisis is over through mandatory testing, face mask requirements, stay-at-home orders and vaccine mandates. Other school districts in California pledge to not reopen schools A growing number of school districts in California have stated in recent weeks that they will be unable to reopen school campuses in the fall, especially if the states coronavirus outbreak isnt handled with the level of efficiency necessary to make sure that children dont unwittingly fall victim to the virus. Among these school districts are Oakland Unified and San Bernardino City Unified, which have both committed to starting the new school year with online distance learning instead of holding physical classes. (Related: Coronavirus-enforced remote schooling hurts Americas most vulnerable students.) Unfortunately for advocates of reopening schools, this move is seen as very popular among school staff. In LAUSD, for example, a poll of the 35,000 members of the United Teachers of Los Angeles (UTLA), the main labor union representing non-administrative teaching staff in the district, showed that 83 percent of UTLA members agree with the LAUSDs decision to not physically reopen schools. Reopening schools will significantly increase the interaction between children and adults from different families, said Austin Beutner, superintendent of the LAUSD, who agreed with the districts decision to focus on remote learning. A 10-year old student might have a 30-year old teacher, a 50-year old bus driver or live with a 70-year old grandmother. All need to be protected. Theres a public health imperative to keep schools from becoming a Petri dish. Learn more about how various parts of American society are planning to deal with the coronavirus pandemic in the next few months at Pandemic.news. Sources include: WSJ.com EdSource.org UTLA.net In first-ever global assessment, scientists identify over 500 new dams planned within protected areas August 03,2020 | Source: WWF More than 500 dams are planned or under construction within protected areas, according to a new study published in Conservation Letters. These findings raise red flags as dams can have detrimental impacts on livelihoods of local communities such as fishing and floodplain farming, species movements, sediment flows to downstream deltas and floodplains, and other critical river functions. Thirty-three percent of all planned hydropower in the EU is in protected areas. For example, there are two hydropower projects threatening Natura 2000 sites in Romania: one in Defileul Jiului National Park and the other in Rastolita. Rivers are the lifeblood of ecosystems. Any policy that aims to conserve nature must prioritise the free flow of rivers, said Michele Thieme, lead author of the study and lead freshwater scientist at World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Protected areas are a fundamental strategy for conserving biodiversity and services to people, but their design and management to protect freshwater ecosystems must be improved. Freshwater biodiversity is declining dramatically. Populations of freshwater vertebrates (mammals, wetland birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish) have seen an 83% decline between 1970 and 2014. One of the primary drivers of this decline are dams and other water infrastructure that impact the natural habitats of freshwater species like Danube sturgeons, Danube salmon and other fish, river dolphins, otters, and tens of thousands of other species. There are instances of governments redefining the boundaries of protected areas, and activities permitted within them, to legalise the construction of a dam within an existing protected area. When regulations on protected areas are loosened in such a way, protected areas lose their ability to conserve ecosystems. In Romania, the government recently modified legislation to open up dam construction in all protected areas across the country. The sheer number of dams that are planned within protected areas is alarming, says Thieme. Government and industry policies must prevent the development of dams planned within these areas. The dams that already exist within protected areas should be prioritized for possible removal and the surrounding river systems should be restored. This study comes at a time when the adverse impacts of dams and reservoirs are clearer than ever. A 2019 paper published in Nature finds that over two-thirds of long rivers are impeded by dams and infrastructure. The paper also found that dams are one of the main factors in the 76% collapse in freshwater migratory fish populations since 1970. Dams fragment rivers and affect the diverse benefits that healthy rivers provide to people and nature across the globe. Monitored sturgeon populations have dramatically declined by 91% on average between 1970 and 2016, with exploitation, habitat degradation and change among the most commonly recorded threats. Mega-fish such as Beluga sturgeon (Huso huso), that used to reach record lengths of 7m are particularly vulnerable. Of the six sturgeon species previously present in the Danube Basin, two are already considered extinct. The new study also underscores the importance of avoiding harmful rollbacks to protected areas, including those that increase infrastructure development like dams. Rollbacks have been occurring even during the global pandemic, a time when the public cannot adequately participate in decision-making processes. Governments must stop these rollbacks, and can use economic recovery plans as an opportunity to invest in river restoration. The environmental opposition against new dams is growing. Some of the projects on larger rivers might be suspended such as those on the lower Drava, where the recently designated 5-country Mura-Drava-Danube Biosphere Reserve managed to change the narrative. A crowdfunding campaign with the support of WWF-Netherlands has enabled WWF-Ukraine to finance the removal of dams in Verkhovynskyi National Park, Ukraine that are blocking the migration of Danube salmon (Huchen huchen). So far, the extremely damaging plan of constructing a chain of hydropower stations on the Dniester in Ukraine is on hold. With the falling price of wind and solar, governments should explore other alternative renewable energy sources to fulfil energy needs beyond damming rivers. A 2019 report, Connected and Flowing, details how the world can meet climate targets and protect rivers by shifting a portion of projected future hydropower development toward increased investment in wind and solar generation and carefully siting new hydropower projects. 2020 WWF - World Wide Fund For Nature 1986 Panda Symbol WWF World Wide Fund For Nature (formerly World Wildlife Fund) Theme(s): Others. Dhaka, Aug 3 : Bangladesh marked the 159th birth anniversary of eminent scientist and philosopher Acharya Prafulla Chandra Ray. Ray was born in the village of Raruli-Katipara under Paikgachha upazila in Khulna on August 2, 1861. On Sunday, admirers paid their respects at a program held portrait in the village. The program had a limited capacity considering the prevailing coronavirus situation. Terming Ray as a social reformer, the attendees recalled the life and works of the genious scientist, philosopher and philanthropist. Following an education in Kolkata, Ray won a Gilchrist Scholarship to study in Britain in the 1880s, where he met Jagadish Chandra Bose and Satyaranjan Das. He was elected Vice-President of the University of Edinburgh Chemical Society in 1887. A year later, he returned to India. Ray was awarded the Hope Prize which allowed him to work on his research for a further period of one year after completion of his doctorate. His thesis was titled, "Conjugated Sulphates of the Copper-magnesium Group: A Study of Isomorphous Mixtures and Molecular Combinations". Nobel laureate William Ramsay congratulated him for his achievement. Investigators are still searching for a California mom who went missing after she set out on a 'pandemic road trip' to Joshua Tree National Park. Mother-of-one Erika Lloyd, 37, was last seen leaving her home in Walnut Creek on June 14, setting off on a seven-hour journey to her destination. Lloyd's parents last heard from their daughter on June 16 - the same day her black Honda Accord was found damaged and abandoned at the edge of the Joshua Tree National Park, near the town of Twentynine Palms. Mother-of-one Erika Lloyd, 37, was last seen leaving her home in Walnut Creek on June 14, intending to drive seven hours southeast to Joshua Tree National Park Lloyd's lack Honda Accord was found damaged and abandoned at the edge of the park near the town of Twentynine Palms (pictured) The front and back windscreens of Lloyd's black Honda Accord were smashed out, but police did not see any signs of foul play. Lloyd's parents - Wayne and Ruth - believe it's possible she was involved in a car accident and ended up injured. 'We don't know if she had some memory loss when she got hit by the airbag. Maybe she doesn't know who she is, we don't know, we aren't sure about her mental stage,' mom Ruth told KESQ on Tuesday. According to her family, Lloyd decided to take the road trip as she wanted a change of scenery amid the coronavirus lockdown. 'Being locked down for almost three months, not being able to work and trying to home school her son - it was starting to get to her,' Ruth stated. She added that her daughter may have also felt 'pressure' as she had no form of income. Lloyd decided to take the road trip as she wanted a change of scenery amid the coronavirus lockdown Lloyd's parents - Wayne and Ruth - believe it's possible she was involved in a car accident and ended up injured However, they do not believe she would have deliberately harmed herself, and are holding out hope that she will be found safe and well. 'We both feel like that she could still be out here, she could be with people, somebody could have taken her in,' Ruth stated. Park rangers were unable to confirm whether Lloyd had been camping in the park prior to the discovery of her car. 'When the vehicle was noticed inside of the campgrounds there was no camping equipment directly associated with or in the vicinity of it,' a park official stated. The massive park, which covers 1,235 square miles, is characterized by stark desert landscapes and rock formations. There are also several abandoned mines inside the park - prompting some to speculate that Lloyd accidentally fell into one and become trapped. The Lloyd family are now working with cave and mine expert, Doug Billings, who previously canvassed the park in the search for missing teenager Erin Corwin in 2014. Corwin, 19, was found several weeks after her disappearance at the bottom of a 100-foot mine shaft. Lloyd's 12-year-old son is constantly asking his grandparents as to his mother's whereabouts Some are speculating that Lloyd accidentally fell into an abandoned mine shaft and become trapped A former Marine by the name of Christopher Lee was found guilty of strangling Corwin before dumping her body down the abandoned mine. Meanwhile, police are appealing for anyone with information into Lloyd's disappearance to come forward. Her 12-year-old son is now in the care of her parents. They say he is constantly asking as to his mother's whereabouts. 'He says "Are you calling about my mom? Are you talking to people? ... So he misses her,' Ruth stated. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Rep. Max Rose announced Monday that he had made a list of 118 endorsements from former President Barack Obama that omitted some big Democratic names. Absent from the list published on Medium were some high-profile New York Democrats like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-the Bronx/Queens) and Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-Brooklyn). Obamas office did not respond to a request for comment on how he chose the candidates he endorsed, but in a statement the former president describes them as thoughtful, empathetic, and highly qualified Democrats. Together, these candidates will help us redeem our countrys promise by sticking up for working class people, restoring fairness and opportunity to our system, and fighting for the good of all Americans not just those at the top, Obama said. They make me optimistic not just about our partys chances in November, but about our countrys future long after that. Both Clarke and Ocasio-Cortez won their June primaries, and are facing Republican challengers in the November general election. Neither of their contests are considered to be as close as Roses race against Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis (R-East Shore/South Brooklyn). Rose (D-Staten Island/South Brooklyn) expressed gratitude to Obama for his endorsement, and praised his time in office. (President Obama) spent eight years speaking to our better angels and helping us forge a more perfect union. In President Obama, we had a leader in the White House who did not see blue states or red states, but the United States s omething our country desperately needs in this unprecedented hour, Rose said. I am honored to once again have President Obamas support as we fight for working families and those who have far too often been ripped off, left behind, or forgotten by the special interests in Washington, the freshman congressman said referencing Obamas 2018 endorsement of his candidacy. Malliotakis campaign had a different perspective on Obamas time in office. Its understandable why Barack Obama would endorse Max Rose for Congress; Max Rose has supported, time and again, the far left agenda pushed by President Obamas surrogates in Congress like sanctuary cities, releasing dangerous criminals from prison and the impeachment of President Trump, Malliotakis campaign spokesman Rob Ryan said. The voters of NY-11 have had enough of the Obama-Pelosi-Rose agenda and thats why theyll send Max Rose packing on Election Day, he continued. Rose said he supports sanctuary cities during a 2018 debate against former Rep. Dan Donovan. During Malliotakis 2017 mayoral run, she said she would continue the sanctuary city policy put in place by Mayor Ed Koch, but overhaul current policies that protect those who commit serious crimes. The assemblywomans congressional campaign has previously linked Rose to concerns about federal prisoner releases related to the COVID-19 pandemic. There has been bipartisan support for those sorts of releases, including from Attorney General William Barr. Rose changed his position on impeachment after the revelation of the Trump-Ukraine scandal, which ultimately led to the presidents impeachment in the House and acquittal in the Senate. Authorities say they have arrested a man sought in big-ticket burglaries days after he was able to elude a deputy during a high-speed chase. Kyle A. Pressnall, 34, of Pleasant Hill was being held Sunday in the Pike County Jail after his arrest Thursday on theft and burglary charges in Pike and Calhoun counties, according to the Pike County Sheriffs Department. Deputies first encountered Pressnall while serving a search warrant July 22 at a house in the 400 block of Mill Street in Milton. When law enforcement officials investigating burglary, theft and methamphetamine reports arrived at the house, Pressnall was seen leaving the residence, according to a sheriffs department report. Pressnall was being sought on a warrant accusing him of failing to appear at sentencing on a possession of a controlled substance charge, according to court records. Pressnall drove away and a deputy tried to get him to stop. A pursuit ensued, reaching speeds of more than 100 mph, according to a sheriffs department report, and the chase was called off near Panther Creek in Calhoun County because of safety concerns. Pressnalls car was later found in a field between Crooked Creek Road and Illinois Route 96 in Calhoun County. Pike and Calhoun County authorities said they suspected Pressnall in a series of thefts and burglaries in both counties. With assistance from residents and Illinois State Police air operations, law enforcement authorities continued to search for Pressnall and he was arrested at a house on Bee Creek in Pearl. Authorities said the charges accuse Pressnall of committing thefts in southern Pike County and northern Calhoun County and breaking into houses and sheds to take food, a firearm, fuel and such items as chainsaws and a Kubota RTV utility vehicle. Much of the property has been found at pawn shops in Jacksonville and Jerseyville in Illinois and Louisiana, Bowling Green and Mexico in Missouri, according to the sheriffs department. Authorities are working on recovering other items. Kazakh armed forces soldiers stand guard at a checkpoint in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, March 18, 2020. (Photo by Kalizhan Ospanov/Xinhua) NUR-SULTAN -- Cooperation between the armed forces of China and Kazakhstan is developing steadily in a healthy and reliable manner, which corresponds to the comprehensiveness and strategic importance of bilateral relations, Chinese Ambassador to Kazakhstan Zhang Xiao told Kazakh media on Saturday. On the occasion of the 93rd anniversary of the founding of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of China, the ambassador said the two sides have conducted military exchanges, competitions and training, and closely cooperated on the fight against terrorism, separatism and extremism, as well as "color revolutions" in the region. Their cooperation has protected the key interests of the two countries and contributed to the security, stability and prosperity of the region, said Zhang. Zhang said China is ready to work with Kazakhstan to fully implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and strengthen cooperation in the military sphere. Zhang added that on the global fronts, the PLA has participated in international peacekeeping and humanitarian rescue operations, and it has been promoting non-proliferation efforts and responding to global security challenges. As the COVID-19 pandemic rages, the PLA has exchanged epidemic prevention and control experience with and provided aid to the armed forces of over 20 countries, Zhang added. It is deeply disturbing that this flagrantly unconstitutional practice has been taking place in Illinois second largest county jail, said Sharlyn Grace, executive director of bond fund and member of the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice, in the Monday release. No one should be incarcerated for days before seeing a judge especially while they are presumed innocent. A weekend in jail can have serious impacts on a persons life and cause lasting negative effects. Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who completed 11 years in office on Tuesday, called Prime Minister Narendra Modi's move to demonetise the Rs 500/1000 notes a "risky" but "brave" decision. "Wherever I went I saw people supporting it. Such strong decision can be taken only by a leader who is determined and has the strength to strike positive change. "It was a risky but a very brave decision by the Prime Minister against corruption, fake currency and black money," he said to News Nation channel. Chouhan said those protesting against the decision were doing it for "no reasons and just for the sake of opposing it". Watch: 11 years of Shivraj Singh Chouhan Govt in MP; CM advocates for cashless economy and demonetisation "People have stood strongly behind this decision taken by the Prime Minister to demonetise the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes," he said. The chief minister said the central Indian state has initiated various schemes for creating entrepreneurs and business achievers. "I want entrepreneurs to come out from Madhya Pradesh and for which special schemes have been tailored by the state government. Venture funds have been created for supporting innovative business ideas in the state," he said. Speaking about women empowerment and providing opportunities to girls, Chouhan said his government has taken a number of steps in this regard. "I had seen girls not being treated at par with the boys as they were always considered as economic burden. So, when I came, I decided to check such social discrepancies and took the decision to run welfare schemes for them. "At a place where girls are not safe, one cannot talk about progress," he said recounting schemes like 'Ladli Laxmi Yojna' and 'Beti Bachao Yojna' among others started by Madhya Pradesh government. Talking about his personal life, the CM advised professionals to take out time for their families from their busy schedule. "I take out time at least twice in a year to move out with my family and at least once in two months to go out to a restaurant for having food with my family. "This keeps the family ties strong and acts as a mechanism to strike a positive chord between the family and the professional life and gives you the required strength to work for the people," he said. Congress MP Karti Chidambaram and Communist Party of India-Marxist politburo member Mohammed Salim were among the prominent politicians who tested positive for COVID-19 as a rapid spike in cases took the tally in the country to over 18 lakh on Monday. "I have just tested positive for #Covid. My symptoms are mild and as per medical advice I am under home quarantine. I would urge all those who have recently been in contact with me to follow medical protocol," Karti, who is the son of Congress leader P Chidambaram and represents Sivaganga Lok Sabha constituency, said. On Sunday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa and Uttar Pradesh state Bharatiya Janata Party president Swatantra Dev Singh had said that they have tested positive for coronavirus. IT and Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said he has gone into self-isolation for a few days as per protocol as he had met Shah on Saturday evening. "Friends! I'm absolutely fine. To follow protocol I hv isolated myself at home for few days as I had met Amit Shah Ji on Saturday evening for n official meeting. I'm working from home & following daily routine including Yoga & exercise. Also reading books & enjoying classical music," Prasad said on Twitter. Shah had on Sunday tweeted that he had tested for COVID-19 after showing initial symptoms. He said that his health was fine and he was getting admitted to a hospital on the advice of doctors. Earlier, Union Minister Babul Supriyo too had tweeted that he is going into self-isolation since he had met Shah a day before. CPI-M leader Mohammed Salim said that he has been hospitalised and was showing mild symptoms of coronavirus. "I have tested positive for Coronavirus with very mild symptoms but I got myself admitted into a hospital as per the advice of my attending doctor. This decision also aims at avoiding all kinds of risks of infection amongst my friends, family & neighbours," he tweeted. The 63-year-old former MP from Raiganj constituency has been admitted to a private hospital in Kolkata. The CPI said its Bihar state council secretary Satya Narayan, who had tested positive for COVID-19, passed away on Sunday. In a video message, Karnataka Chief Minister Yediyurappa, who was admitted to a hospital on Sunday night after testing positive for COVID-19, said there was no need for anyone to worry and he will soon get back to work after recovery. The Manipal Hospital where the 77-year-old leader is admitted said he was "doing well" and "clinically stable." While one of his daughters has also tested positive for COVID-19 and is admitted to the same private hospital, his son B Y Vijayendra said he was going for seven days of home quarantine as a precautionary measure. Contact tracing and sanitising activities have been carried out at the Chief Minister's home office and official residence, following which it emerged that at least six staffers have been confirmed with the infection, official sources said. Yediyurappa is the fourth member of his cabinet to contract the disease after Forest Minister Anand Singh, Tourism Minister C T Ravi and Agriculture Minister B C Patil. Karnataka governor Vajubhai Vala and Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai, whom the chief minister had met on July 31, have tested negative. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who has been in Chirayu Medical College and Hospital in Bhopal since July 25, will undergo further hospitalisation after a COVID-19 test conducted returned positive. A health bulletin from the hospital said, "CM's RT-PCR test for SARS-Cov-2 on 9th day was positive. His medical parameters are normal." MP Home Minister Narottam Mishra said the Chouhan will stay in hospital for now. Chouhan had tweeted on Sunday that he was healthy and not showing any symptoms of the infection, and had said he would be discharged if a sample collected for tests during the day returns negative. Four legislators -- Uttar Pradesh minister Kamal Rani, Bihar BJP MLC Sunil Kumar Singh, Trinamool MLA from West Bengal Tamonash Ghosh and Dravida Munnetra Kazagham legislator from Tamil Nadu J Anbazhagan have succumbed to COVID-19. In UP, Jal Shakti Minister Mahendra Singh, Jai Health Minister Pratap Singh, Rural Development Minister Rajendra Pratap Singh alias Moti Singh, Sainik Kalyan Minister Chetan Chauhan, Ayush Minister Dharam Singh Saini and Youth Development Minister Upendra Tiwari had tested positive for COVID-19. One of the worlds largest oil producers and exporters, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has just launched the first nuclear power plant in the Arab world. Touted as a major milestone for the UAE and its energy diversification, the project raises questions about the economic viability of an expensive nuclear power plant in one of the best spots for solar energy in the world. More importantly, the project also raises questions about the geopolitical implications of a nuclear facility in the restive Middle East region, where tensions increased after the assasination of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani earlier this year. Iran could trigger a nuclear arms race, experts say. The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) successfully started up on Saturday Unit 1 of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in Abu Dhabi, saying that the process was undertaken in line with regulatory requirements and the highest international standards for nuclear quality and safety. We are now another step closer to achieving our goal of supplying up to a quarter of our Nations electricity needs and powering its future growth with safe, reliable, and emissions-free electricity, said ENECs chief executive Mohamed Ibrahim Al Hammadi. With the start-up of the Barakah nuclear power plant, the UAE became the first country in the Arab world, and the 33rd nation globally, to develop a nuclear energy plant to generate electricity, helping the oil-rich emirates to move towards electrification of its energy sector and decarbonization of its electricity production, ENEC says. Related: U.S. Refiners Brace For Ugliest Losses In A Decade Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said that the agency supports the UAE and other countries that opt for introducing nuclear power, which plays a key role in achieving clean & affordable energy and in tackling #ClimateChange. While the UAE touts the safe and zero-emission electricity generation from nuclear power, some experts question the safety part of that claim because of the lack of additional (and costly) safety features in the South Korean technology that the UAE uses for its first nuclear power facility. Rising sea levels also pose risks for the coastal Barakah nuclear plant, while radioactive waste could endanger marine life in the Gulf, Paul Dorfman, Founder and Chair of the non-profit Nuclear Consulting Group, wrote in an overview of UAEs new reactors in December 2019. But the most concerning aspect of the first civil nuclear project in the Arab world is that it could spark a nuclear arms race and facilitate nuclear proliferation options for actors in the Gulf that choose to pursue it, experts warn. The tense geopolitical environment in the Gulf makes nuclear a more controversial issue in this region than elsewhere, as new nuclear power provides the capability to develop and make nuclear weapons, Dorfman said. Its worth noting that emergent back-channels exist which may facilitate Gulf states obtaining advanced nuclear fuel cycle enrichment technologies if the decision is made to pursue a military proliferation option, he noted. The simmering tensions between the Arab Gulf states led by the UAEs ally Saudi Arabia on the one hand, and Iran, on the other hand, is a concern for energy and nuclear power experts. Iran is already under U.S. sanctions because of its nuclear ambitions. In March 2018, Saudi Arabias Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told CBS in an interview that Saudi Arabia does not want to acquire any nuclear bomb, but without a doubt if Iran developed a nuclear bomb, we will follow suit as soon as possible. Related: COVID Pandemic Has Upended MLPs The UAE has an agreement with the United States in which the emirates have renounced any intention to develop domestic enrichment and reprocessing capabilities. For Gulf Arab rulers who fear that Washington is not a reliable long-term guardian, nuclear power generation may offer an alternate path to maintaining a US strategic interest in securing their regimes, Jim Krane, a Wallace S. Wilson Fellow for Energy Studies at Rice Universitys Baker Institute, wrote earlier this year. Last but not least, the UAE nuclear power plant raises questions about the economics of pursuing costly nuclear electricity generation while solar power generation could thrive in the region endowed with sunlight. Just last week, the Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC) announced the awarding of contracts to develop the worlds largest solar power plant of 2 gigawatts (GW) of capacity. According to Nuclear Consulting Groups Dorfman, new nuclear power generation can now only be built with very significant government subsidy, unlike renewables. Since new nuclear makes little apparent sense in the Gulf, which has some of the best solar energy resources in the world, the nature of the interest in nuclear may lie hidden in plain sight, he argues. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Experity Ventures, LLC (EV) is pleased to announce that it has closed on a structured credit facility for an initial $65 million and up to $100 million to support the growth plan for ProMed Capital. ProMed is a newly acquired portfolio company of Experity. Experity Ventures Founder and Chairman, Joseph Greco stated, "This structured facility comes on the heels of our recent acquisition of ProMed Capital and supports our plan of accelerated, organic and strategic growth for the company. We plan to be disciplined, yet opportunistic in expanding on ProMed's leadership position in an exciting and evolving space." Experity CEO, Ryan Silverman added, "We were able to conclude this transaction under very favorable terms with a partner that sees the value of our platform and is equally excited to help us realize our growth potential." About ProMed Founded in 2013, ProMed is a leading provider of medical receivable funding solutions. ProMed partners with healthcare providers, surgery centers and diagnostic and related facilities throughout the U.S. that provide patient care in exchange for medial liens (ML's) or medical letters of protection (MLOP's). The company predominately funds medical services for patients who have been injured as a result of a personal injury accident or event. Based in Las Vegas, NV, ProMed provides immediate reimbursement to doctors, surgeons, medical facilities and other professionals on behalf of patients while obtaining the healthcare provider's ML/MLOP against contingent future legal proceeds. Victims of personal injury can get access to the healthcare they need whether they have health insurance or not, and medical providers can enhance their practices and serve this patient population, while immediately improving cash flow and financial liquidity. For more information on ProMed, please visit www.promedcapital.com. About Experity Ventures Experity Ventures, founded in 2019, is the parent company for Nexify Capital and Nexify Solutions, MedSolve Financial Group, Thrivest Legal Funding, LLC / dba Thrivest Link and ProMed Capital. Nexify Capital has entered into several strategic financing and operational partnerships with legal funding companies in the United States. Nexify Solutions develops and markets best in class enterprise and workflow software for the legal funding marketplace, which is designed to automate pre-settlement funding from intake to decision analytics, to servicing and payoff, while offering full accounting and reporting capabilities. Thrivest is a direct to market pre-settlement legal funding company that has successfully provided thousands of non-recourse advances to individuals with pending litigation, predominately in personal injury cases. Experity has offices in Philadelphia, New York, Nevada and Florida. For more information on Experity, please visit www.experityventures.com or contact Ryan Silverman at [email protected], (267)-538-1517. SOURCE Experity Ventures, LLC Related Links http://www.promedcapital.com BANGALORE, India, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- INVIDI Technologies and Tata Elxsi today announced an expansion of their relationship to bring addressable television capabilities to pay TV operators in India, Asia-Pacific and MEA. INVIDI Edge is a market-leading combination of single view addressability across both OTT and linear TV audiences, providing a one-stop solution for pay TV operators and premium video publishers. INVIDI Edge supports all premium video distribution schemes: satellite, cable, IPTV, AVOD, OTT. INVIDI Edge, INVIDI's patented addressable television solution, is uniquely able to work in the satellite distribution environment on non-connected set top boxes, which in India represents the largest segment of pay TV boxes. With over 160 million subscribers, India is one of the world's largest pay TV markets. As linear advertising revenues remain under pressure due to the increasing shift of advertising spend to digital platforms, pay TV operators in emerging markets like India, Asia-Pacific and MEA regions can now offer their broadcast partners targeting and addressability, thus increasing revenue potential. Tata Elxsi has been at the forefront of enabling digital transformation for leading pay TV operators and media companies across the world, helping them develop, integrate and manage innovative services and applications that deliver new revenue streams and great viewer experience. "With seamless audience addressability across Linear TV and Digital OTT platforms, the INVIDI Edge Solution has been widely deployed in the North American and European markets. Tata Elxsi, with its deep technical expertise and domain knowledge in the broadcast and pay TV market, is an ideal partner to support and accelerate our deployments in these developing markets," says Prasad Sanagavarapu, INVIDI's Senior Vice President, Corporate Development, Emerging Markets. "Targeted and addressable advertising represents new untapped revenue streams for pay TV operators, especially in emerging markets. We see this Centre of Excellence as an organic and natural extension to our existing and successful five-year relationship. It will help combine the benefits of INVIDI's market-leading technology and Tata Elxsi's deep solutioning and integration expertise, with proximity and ease of post-deployment support to ensure operator success in India as well as the larger Asia Pacific and MEA regions," said Nitin Pai, Chief Marketing Officer & Chief Strategy Officer, at Tata Elxsi. ABOUT INVIDI Technologies INVIDI Technologies is a global technology company jointly owned by AT&T, Dish Network and WPP. Founded in 2003, INVIDI pioneered the development of addressable television, first in the United States and then globally in Europe, Latin America, Asia and Australia. INVIDI's proprietary technology is able to provide addressability on both local as well as programmer advertising inventory on all MVPDs (cable, satellite and telco) as well as via online television distribution. For additional information visit www.invidi.com About Tata Elxsi- www.tataelxsi.com Tata Elxsi is amongst the world's leading providers of design and technology services across industries including Automotive, Broadcast and Media, Healthcare, and Telecom. Tata Elxsi works with leading Pay TV operators and MSOs, content providers and studios to develop, deploy and manage innovative services and applications that create subscriber stickiness and drive revenue growth. This is backed by over 25 years of design and engineering experience and deep specialization in video and OTT engineering and service delivery and a global delivery presence. Media Contact: Tata Elxsi Hari Balan Corporate Communications +91 80 2297 9123 Email: [email protected] SOURCE Tata Elxsi Kim Jong-un, the dictator of North Korea, is pushing citizens who are residing or traveling to areas near the borders of China to sign an oath saying they will not try to get away as part of an increased effort to enforce the rule on internal defection and dissent. North Koreans have already been required to secure special permits in order to travel within the country. Now, people who wanted to travel near the borders of China will have to face a stricter policy before they can travel in the border areas if they have business to attend to or family events such as weddings or funerals, at present over 25 million residents of North Korea already need the special domestic travel permits, as reported by the Radio Free Asia's Korean Services. In a statement by a North Hamgyong province resident, since the early days of the month, people who acquired travel certificates in order to go to areas near the borders of China were required to submit a document with their fingerprint on it saying they will never leave North Korea, The New York Post reported. As articulated by the resident, back then, citizens were allowed to verbally proclaim that they have no intentions to leave the country, and obtain inter-provincial travel passes by only presenting a citizenship certificate and a character reference. And added that stamping of fingers to obtain travel certificates is not the problem, but having to process a number of added confirmation documents was unpleasant, and people traveling to boarders areas suffer being treated as potential defectors. The new regulation came out after the hermit kingdom executed a government campaign with a goal of dishonoring exiles of North Korea after several groups situated at South Korea floated propaganda leaflets against the Pyongyang across the borders using balloons. According to several reports, some residents failed to attend several important family events since they were not able to prepare the needed documents in advance. Read also: Taliban Support for Al Qaeda Terrorists Is Against US Agreement to Sever All Ties One source stated that people living near the border areas have always been treated as having the capacity to escape the country. A resident of Ryanggang province, located on the Chinese border, told the RFA they had to pass across checkpoints with ID cards being presented and up to five certifications with a written oath. Meanwhile, people who are related to those who ran away from the country while moving to the border area were subject to punishment, which included internal exile. Thirty families from Pyongyang earlier this month were deported to rural areas after people related to them who work overseas have been missing. According to Express Mail , as reported by the North's KCNA state news agency, this happened as strict quarantine measures due to the spread of coronavirus and district screenings, and also medical equipment and protective clothing were being supplied. The strict regulation came after Kim Jong-un proclaimed an emergency on Sunday after a person who escaped South Korea three years ago came back across the country's highly fortified demilitarized zone (DMZ) to Kaesong this month showing symptoms of the new coronavirus. Related article: China Using Coronavirus Pandemic as Cover Up to Silence, Detain Critics and Human Rights Violations? @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. On May 30, when activist Pharaoh Clark looked out on the first of many local demonstrations prompted by the killing of George Floyd, he worried about the possibility of clashes with counterdemonstrators, hecklers or white supremacists. He also worried about an inscrutable menace that lurks in any gathering nowadays, especially when people stand almost shoulder-to-shoulder and shout. He worried about the coronavirus. From Day 1, it felt like you could be a martyr for the cause, Clark said, recalling a crowd of several thousand people in downtown San Antonio that Saturday. Many wore masks but few maintained the recommended 6 feet of social distance. Bob Owen, Staff-photographer / San Antonio Express-News On ExpressNews.com: Live updates on COVID-19 in San Antonio There was a lot of shouting, passing of microphones, personal contact. We got serious about masks and hand sanitizer, but we all thought about the risk of infection every single day. Daily for the next two weeks, protesters rallied and marched for racial justice in San Antonio and other cities. The spread of COVID-19 in Bexar County accelerated during that time, and hospitalizations and intensive care admissions began a steep climb that only recently has leveled off. Public health officials say theres scant evidence the protests contributed significantly to the spike though they say the possibility cant be ruled out and extensive research would be needed to give a definitive answer. Health experts in New York, San Francisco and other major cities also have reported little sign of upticks in infection linked to the demonstrations. A recent study by the nonpartisan National Bureau of Economic Research compared countries where protests occurred to countries where they didnt and found no significant divergence in the (COVID-19) trends. Bob Owen / San Antonio Express-News On ExpressNews.com: The closest medicine gets to war 24 hours with an ambulance crew Yet experts say that in crowds of the size seen in San Antonio, 1 percent to 5 percent of participants likely would be infected without showing symptoms, thereby creating a risk of transmission. Bad idea at this time Concern over the spread of the virus and the burden on hospitals prompted Gov. Greg Abbott to pause his reopening of the economy in late June. On July 2, he prohibited indoor or outdoor gatherings of more than 10 people, with exceptions for religious services, summer camps and a few other activities. After weeks of hesitation and mixed signals, the governor also ordered Texans older than 10 to wear face coverings when in public. San Antonio and Bexar County already had imposed such restrictions. Josie Norris / Staff photographer On ExpressNews.com: Gov. Abbott issues mask order for most of Texas Where political protests fit into that equation is a delicate question, especially in a blue city such as San Antonio, where many elected leaders sympathize with the protesters cause. The issue isnt academic: Small racial justice protests have continued, and larger ones are planned. There is a constitutional right to free speech, but large gatherings are a bad idea at this time because of the widespread presence of the coronavirus in our community, Mayor Ron Nirenberg told the San Antonio Express-News. If you must demonstrate, wear a mask and maintain physical distance. Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff said he would highly recommend that groups not demonstrate for the time being. It would be horrible to let a large group meet right now, he said. Wolff suggested that in the event of a large protest, he would want strict enforcement of Abbotts July 2 order, which calls for fines up to $250 fine for those who do not wear face coverings in public. Now Playing: Animation shows spread of COVID-19 across Texas from March to April. Video: mySA Conflicting imperatives San Antonio epidemiologist Cherise Rohr-Allegrini has felt torn by the desire to protect both public health and the right to protest. As Pharaoh Clark marched May 30, so did Rohr-Allegrini, who said her belief that racism is a public health crisis demanded her presence. She brought her husband and two children, on their bikes, to a Black Lives Matter rally at Travis Park, which swelled into a massive march through downtown. On ExpressNews.com: George Floyd protest in S.A. starts peacefully, turns ugly A lot of public health people support these demonstrations because racism is a public health crisis that actually causes a lot of other serious problems, like high blood pressure and heart disease, said Rohr-Allegrini, a graduate of the Yale School of Public Health who is San Antonio program director for the Immunization Partnership, a Texas-based nonprofit. Do we wish they hadnt happened in the middle of a pandemic? Yes. But protests happen when they happen. You dont plan them six months out. Rohr-Allegrini watched the downtown crowds at three separate rallies and was pleased to see about 65 to 70 percent mask compliance and copious use of hand sanitizer. The leaders were constantly urging people to wear their masks, she said. So I actually had some hope that the marches could be done safely. Even little things, like everyone facing in one direction to hear a speaker that is far better than people mingling face-to-face in tight little groups. But none of that gave her great confidence that the demonstrations were not incubators for the virus. Like many of her colleagues, she was concerned that no matter how worthy the cause, the threat of mass infection was real. Perfect set-up On ExpressNews.com: COVID-19 by the numbers in San Antonio No less an authority than Dr. Anthony Fauci called the nationwide demonstrations in June the perfect set-up for spreading the virus. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said the marches could become superspreader events. Coronavirus expert Trevor Bedford of Seattles Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center said that each day of protests could result in 3,000 new cases, which in time could cause hundreds of deaths. Yet no outbreaks have been tied directly to the protests. Symptoms of COVID-19, if they appear at all, usually show up five to nine days after exposure, but sometimes as long as 14 days. In San Antonio, the largest demonstrations lasted through June 12. Rohr-Allegrini studied Metropolitan Health District data for June 2 through July 20 and found COVID-19 infections among Black people, the largest racial segment at the rallies, dropped sharply during that time. In the early months of the pandemic, Black people accounted for 10 to 12 percent of Bexar Countys COVID-19 cases, but in June and July, the figure fell as low as 5.2 percent, Rohr-Allegrini said. It now stands at 6 percent. Black people represent 8.6 percent of Bexar Countys population, the Census Bureau says. The crowds at the protests were multi-racial, but within the Black community at least, I feel fairly comfortable saying the protests did not lead to an increase in infection, she said. What Rohr-Allegrini saw instead was a surge in cases in the 20-to-40 age group, regardless of race. Public health experts cant know for certain who infected someone else without complex and expensive testing called molecular genotyping, which was used to trace many of the first cases of HIV-AIDS. But Metro Healths interviews with newly infected people strongly suggest the spike in the 20-to-40 age bracket stemmed from close contact with friends and family members at home and in bars and restaurants during the short-lived reopening of the Texas economy, Rohr-Allegrini said. We think the rise in young people infections is really just due to a collective letting down of our guards, she said. That apparently is the more likely cause than any political demonstration. People relaxed and started taking risks. On ExpressNews.com: COVID-19 spreads among San Antonios twentysomethings Dr. Jan Patterson, an infectious disease specialist at UT Health San Antonio, expressed a similar view. In the patients weve talked to, the exposure to infection seems to have come from Memorial Day, Mothers Day and Fathers Day, not any of the demonstrations, Patterson said. Masks matter That leaves the question of how the rallies could have avoided making a large, detectable contribution to the spread of the virus. The level of mask compliance mattered, said Dr. Catherine Troisi, associate professor of epidemiology at UT Health School of Public Health in Houston. But the biggest factor was that the protests were outside and in the sun. Between the air flow and the sunlight, we just know everything is safer outside when youre talking about transmitting a virus, said Troisi, who attended a Houston rally in June that drew an estimated 60,000 people. Weve seen no connection between the spikes (in infections) and the rallies, Troisi said. Since infections soared in San Antonio and throughout Texas during July, epidemiologists generally have shied away from blaming single events, locations or holidays. Patterson explained that making a precise scientific connection would be an expensive logistical ordeal for underfunded public health agencies. Youd have to trace all the people who went to the events and have willing participants for the study, she said. Youd have to track them for 14 days following the event. Thats definitely of interest to us, but just not feasible. San Antonio political leaders walked a fine line during the social justice demonstrations. They found themselves at a watershed moment in American history, when the killing of an unarmed Black man was propelling change in professional sports, higher education, state legislatures and corporate America. Yet they didnt want to appear to endorse mass gatherings during a pandemic simply because they agreed with the cause. So, they encouraged peaceful protests and constantly emphasized the importance of wearing masks. I think theres always a tendency among people who disagree to think that politics has been played by one side or the other, Nirenberg said. But Ive been consistent throughout. I base my decisions on whats best for public health. Patterson said: I absolutely understand the dilemma our leaders have. I think the mayor and the judge have been very proactive and have given good advice. I think their messaging has been consistent. The greater problem, Patterson said, has been a lack of consistent direction from the governor. When we started to reopen Texas, we did it without universal masking. And that got us into trouble, she said. I wouldnt blame that on our community. The Islamabad high court on Monday adjourned the hearing in the Kulbushan Jadhav case till September 3, saying India should be given a chance to appoint a lawyer to defend the former Indian Navy commander sentenced to death for alleged involvement in a spying case. While stipulating that the lawyer should be a Pakistan national, the court instructed the Pakistan government to allow Indian authorities to appoint the legal representative for Jadhav in the case. Attorney General Khalid Javed Khan told the media the court had asked that the Indian government once again be approached to engage a lawyer, who is entitled to practice in Pakistan. In answer to a question, Khan said that so far no option has been given to allow Indian lawyers to assist the Pakistani legal team. Also read| Obstructive and insincere: India roasts Pak after meeting Kulbhushan Jadhav The court said that another chance should be given to the Indian government and to Kulbushan Jadhav for arranging a lawyer. The offer to the lawyer will be made through Pakistans ministry of foreign affairs. The Pakistan government had approached the Islamabad high court on July 22 to appoint a legal representative for Jadhav. The move was made in the light of the International Court of Justices July 17, 2019, decision, following which the International Court of Justice (Review and Reconsideration) Ordinance, 2020, was enacted to implement the courts verdict. Pakistan had offered Jadhav consular access for a third time on July 17 after the second opportunity was not fully availed. India had accused Pakistan of blocking all avenues for an effective review of Jadhavs case and said it reserved its rights to avail of further remedies. Also read: Didnt get free access to Kulbhushan Jadhav: India slams Pakistan The external affairs ministry had accused Islamabad of systematically blocking access to the former naval officer, not providing documents related to his case and violating the International Court of Justices (ICJ) order for a review of his conviction. (Alliance News) - The following is a round-up of updates by London-listed companies, issued on Monday and not separately reported by Alliance News: Bluebird Merchant Ventures Ltd - Korea-focused gold development group - Notes joint venture partner Southern Gold's decision not to approve development of two South Korean projects. Bluebird respects but does not agreement with Southern Gold's view on the timing of county government approvals for the projects. Bluebird notes that all mining projects needs ancillary approvals and permissions and it it normal to seek these "once the project is underway". Under the joint venture agreement's terms, Southern Gold is effectively deemed to have offered to sell its 50% interest in the South Korean projects to Bluebird. "The [joint venture agreement] sets out a clear process that governs the path that may lead to Bluebird acquiring 100% of the South Korean projects within a reasonable period of time. Under the terms of the JVA, Bluebird has 45 days to present an offer to Southern Gold to acquire their interest. The company intends to make an offer to Southern Gold within the required period of time," says Blurbird. Metal Tiger PLC - natural resource opportunities investor with headquarters in London - Notes Southern Gold's announcement regarding the Gubong and Kochang joint venture projects with Bluebird. Metal Tiger owns an approximately 17% equity interest in Southern Gold. --------- Rockfire Resources PLC - Australia-focused gold and base metal exploration company - Announces that reverse circulation drilling completed in June at its Plateau gold deposit in North Queensland intersected among the highest gold grades so far in the top 200 metres from surface. For example, a shallow infill drill hole intersected 90 metres at 0.8 grams of gold per tonne of ore from surface. This hole, BPL034, returned lengthy silver values of 90 metres at 4.3 grammes of solver per tonne of ore from surface. A water bore, which was drilled to provide water for diamond drilling, returned 100 metres at 0.3 grams of gold per tonne of ore. Coca-Cola European Partners PLC - consumer goods company in western Europe and the world's largest Coca-Cola bottler by revenue - Says Independent Non-executive Director Javier Ferran wishes to step down once a replacement is found after the board of International Consolidated Airlines Group SA appointed him as its next chair. Ferran will take over as IAG chair in January 2021. Coca-Cola European Partners is seeking a successor. Independent Oil & Gas PLC - UK-focused gas development and production company - Awards engineering, procurement, construction, and installation contract for core project phase 1 platforms in the Southwark and Blythe gas fields in the UK Southern North Sea to HSM Offshore BV. HSM is a Dutch contractor and was paid almost entirely in the form of a lump sum and its work includes design, engineering, fabrication and installation of the production platforms. Bushveld Minerals Ltd - vanadium producer and energy storage provider with assets in South Africa - Notes Enerox Holdings Ltd's acquisition of a further 65% of Enerox GmbH's share capital. Enerox Holdings is an investment vehicle formed by an investor consortium that includes Bushveld Energy Ltd, Bushveld Minerals' 84% owned subsidiary. Journeo PLC - information systems and transport technical services company with headquarters in Ashby-De-La-Zouch - Renews framework contract with Abellio bus London, among the largest UK rail companies and operator of give rail franchises plus a major bus company in London. Journeo will keep providing CCTV and associated equipment for new Abello buses along with those transferred into their fleet through competitive tendering in London. The contract's anticipated three-year value is around GBP2 million and the framework includes another GBP1.2 million worth of on-vehicle technology solutions. Empire Metals Ltd - resource exploration and development company operating mainly in Georgia - Provides update on Artemis Resources Ltd's drilling programme at the Munni Munni palladium project in West Pilbara, Western Australia. Highlights include 6.5 metres at 1.68 grams of palladium per tonne of ore plus 0.14 grams of gold per tonne from 41 metres. Munni Munni is subject to a binding agreement between Empire and Artemis to acquire a 59% interest in Munni Munni Pty Ltd, an Artemis subsidiary and 70% beneficial owner of the project. On July 17, Artemis was served a writ of summons by the Western Australian supreme court filed by 30% joint venture owner Platina Resources Ltd. Platina alleges that Artemis has breached its heads of agreement for Minni Munni through its agreement with Empire. Artemis denies this claim. Zoetic International PLC - London-headquartered CBD and natural resources company - Says sale of Kansas nitrogen assets to Path Investments PLC incomplete as yet due to matters outside of either company's control. Zoetic's board "remains hopeful that matters will be concluded shortly". Both parties have agreed an extension to allow the transaction to complete and the delay is not expected to hurt Zoetic's financial performance. Ncondezi Energy Ltd - power development company with project in Mozambique - Submits transmission integration study to Electricidad de Mocambique for its integrated Ncondezi 300 megawatt coal fired power project and mine in Tete. The updated study is complete and has been submitted for review and evaluated a number of transmission connection options for the project, accounting for network changes since the last study. It will be used to provide approval on the project transmission option for connecting the project to the Mozambique grid. Creo Medical Group PLC - surgical endoscopy-focused medical device company - Announces that early experience of its Speedboat Inject device has shown it to be feasible for performing peroral endoscopic myotomy with a good safety profile. A video abstract has been published and was authorites by exports in the field including gastroenterologist and endoscopy export Amid Maydeo. "The main advantages of using Speedboat Inject were highlighted as reducing the risk of injury to the mucosa by the orientation of the hull and use of bipolar radiofrequency, which then aided quick tissue healing and resulted in quicker post-procedural recovery. Speedboat also reduced the overall procedure time, as no device changes were needed for bleeding vessels," explains Creo. BigDish PLC - Jersey-headquartered food technology platform for restaurants - Announces increase of around 500 new ventures to its BigDish platform wishing to amplify their participation in the UK government's Eat Out To Help Out initiative. The new venture are part of Mitchells & Buters PLC. TGI Friday's has also agreed to join BigDish, lifting the number of total restaurants to more than 1,850 from the 1,250 previously reported. Standard Life Investments Property Income Trust Ltd - Edinburgh-headquartered investment company - June 30 net asset value per share 79.6 pence per share, down 4.3% from March's 83.2p figures. This gives a NAV total return including dividends of negative 3.0% for the second quarter. Portfolio valuation down 2.5% like-for-like before capital expenditure. IPD/MSCI monthly index drops 3.6% in same period. Maintains quarterly dividend but a 60% of prior year level, equating to 0.714 pence per share. ADM Energy PLC - natural resources investing company with existing asset base in Nigeria - Successfully pre-qualifies in Nigerian government's 2020 marginal field bid round. ADM is participating as OilBank International Ltd's exclusive technical partner. The bid round includes 57 marginal fields and is the first since 2003 in the county. ADM and Oilbank have successfully pre-qualified for the second stage consisting of technical and commercial bid submission. Greatland Gold PLC - precious and base metals exploration and development company with projects in Western Australia and Tasmania - Lodges mining lease application for Havieron gold-copper deposit with Western Australian Deparment of Mines, Industry Regulation & Safety. Application covers the 12-block area within Havieron that is subject to a farm-in agreement between the company and Newcrest Mining Ltd. Syncona Ltd - healthcare company with headquarters in London - Says Freeline Therapeutics Holdings PLC portfolio company has filed amended registration statement with US Securities & Exchange Commission concerning a proposed initial public offering of American depositary shares. The registration statement includes a USD16.00 to USD18.00 per ADS indicative pricing range for the offering, would represent a GBP31.6 million to GBP58.2 million increase in the value of Syncona's current Freeline holding. The proposed offering amount is 7.4 million ADSs which would result in gross proceeds to Freeline of approximately USD125 million and does not includes the underwriter's option to buy additional ADSs. Syncona has expressed an interest in buying ADS's in the offering. By Anna Farley; annafarley@alliancenews.com Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved. SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule, which was carrying NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, safely returned to Earth in the afternoon of August 2, 11:48 a.m. PT. The spacecraft made a "splashdown" in the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Pensacola, Florida. This splashdown concludes the historic two-month mission at the International Space Station (ISS). It also signals the successful completion of the first-ever passenger flight to orbit, says The Verge. Crew Dragon aced the uncrewed Demo-1 test flight performed in March. Demon-2 or DM-2 aims to prove that SpaceX can transport people to space and safely return to Earth. Trip to and from the ISS Behnken and Hurley reached the ISS late in May. The two astronauts both launched inside the capsule from Cape Canaveral, Florida. They docked the ISS a day later. There were seven supposed splashdown sites in the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean for Crew Dragon. However, a spot off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, was selected. The weather was favorable enough to give calm waters for the astronauts to land. Crew Dragon undocked the ISS on Saturday at 4:35 p.m. PT and arrived on the afternoon of August 2. NASA TV released a live stream of the crew's return, broadcasting a follow-up news conference at 1:30 p.m. PT, Sunday. Recovery The GO Navigator, SpaceX recovery ship, was on location ready to retrieve the capsule, crew, and parachutes. Behnken and Hurley announced in a press conference that they have bags prepared if they feel seasick while waiting for the recovery crew. The two astronauts are reportedly doing well after splashdown. There was a reported tense in the reentry process that placed considerable heat and stress on the spacecraft. There were scorch marks on the capsule, testifying to the rigors of its return journey, according to CNET. There was also a reported delay in opening the Crew Dragon hatch on board GO Navigator. As shown in a Twitter post, the recovery crew had to purge toxic vapor fumes from around the capsule. @SpaceX engineers are doing a purge of vapor fumes around the Dragon Endeavour to ensure the safety of our #LaunchAmerica crew when they open the hatch. pic.twitter.com/MtzBKZj2ci NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 Straight from the splashdown site, Hurley and Behnken were taken to a medical facility on the ship for initial checkups. This checkup is standard return procedures. They are then to take a helicopter ride back to shore. NASA tweets, "To anybody who has touched Endeavour, you should take a moment to just cherish this day." Touching words from pic.twitter.com/0yKUWbD9Ed "To anybody who has touched Endeavour, you should take a moment to just cherish this day."Touching words from @Astro_Doug as @AstroBehnken is safely brought out of the spacecraft. #LaunchAmerica NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 Whether NASA and SpaceX will move forward with the first operational Crew Dragon mission depends on assessing the Demo-2 mission assessment. CNET notes that the safe return of the two astronauts opens a new future for the US spaceflight. It also fulfills the promise of NASA's Commercial Crew Program and its quest to end its dependence on Russian spacecraft to bring astronauts to the ISS. Read also: New Artificial Intelligence Can Determine The Orbits Of Far-Away Planets Faster Than Traditional Methods NASA Astronauts To Conduct 2 More Spacewalks This Month Spotted in Deep Space: Never Before Seen Four Mystery Objects With Himachal Pradesh restricting the entry of tourists, Morni the hill station of Panchkula has become the new haunt for holidaymakers. The hill station, which is just five hours from Delhi and 45 kilometres from Chandigarh, has seen a fourfold increase in footfall in the last few weeks. Whats more worrying is that the visitors are often seen roaming without masks and violating social distancing norms, putting themselves and others at risk for infection. This even as Panchkulas Covid count is rapidly increasing. During weekends, the roads leading to Morni remain abuzz with cars from Delhi, Punjab, Chandigarh, Haryana and even Uttarakhand. Youngsters speeding on two-wheelers without helmets or masks are a common sight. In view of the rush, police had barricaded the entry points to the hill station. A cop deputed at the Mandhna T-Point said: The number of vehicles has increased in the last few weeks. By noon, at least 50 vehicles cross this T-point. This is because Himachal Pradesh has made the process very cumbersome for tourists to enter their state. The Tikkar Tal Lake, which is a major tourist attraction, sees a huge rush. Guards at the parking lot say that at least 200 cars are parked here everyday. (Sant Arora/HT ) The Tikkar Tal Lake, which is a major attraction, sees at least 400 to 500 parked here everyday. When this correspondent visited the spot, groups of young men were seen freely drinking alcohol and dancing to loud music, undeterred by the police presence a few metres away. Some others were seen sitting in close proximity to each other, taking selfies and enjoying their meal and drinks. One such visitor was Gundeep Singh, who had come from Ludhiana with his friends. None of them were wearing masks. When asked, he said: We cant go to Himachal, so we planned a one day-trip to Morni. We will leave by evening. A family sitting under a shelter in Tikkar Taal without masks, unmindful of the risk they exposing themselves to amid the Covid-19 outbreak. (Sant Arora) A few steps ahead, two-three families were seen sitting having their meal under a single shelter. Amresh Khajuria from Mohali said, My son brought us here for a trip. This is the first time that we have explored this place and its beautiful. I would like to come here, again. Two youths, who introduced themselves as resident doctors from Maharishi Markandeshwar (Deemed to be University), Mullana, were seen enjoying the weather but without masks. Kishan Pal Joshi, the security guard at the parking, was the only one seen covering his face properly. He said: Earlier, we got around 20 to 30 visitors on weekdays and 50 to 60 more on weekends. But now, we have at least 150 to 200 cars parked here everyday and on weekends, the rush increases by 400-500 cars. When contacted, Panchkula civil surgeon Dr Jasjeet Kaur said, We will be soon picking up samples from tourist spots. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A study led by researchers at the University of Southampton, UK, has identified a novel short isoform of the full-length receptor that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) uses to gain entry to host cells. The short isoform of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), which the authors have called short ACE2, is expressed in the airway epithelium the main infection site for SARS-CoV-2. Lead authors Cornelia Blume, Claire L Jackson, and colleagues say that the short ACE2 is upregulated in response to stimulation with interferon (IFN)-beta and rhinovirus infection, but not SARS-CoV-2 infection. They also report that the binding site for the viral spike protein that SARS-CoV-2 requires for attachment to long ACE2 is absent on short ACE2 and that overall, the findings suggest this short isoform may play a role in host susceptibility to infection. The researchers say the findings may have significant implications for the development of treatments for COVID-19. A pre-print version of the paper is available on the server bioRxiv*, while the article undergoes peer review. Short ACE2 lacks most of Spike binding regions but contains TMPRSS2 and ADAM17 proteases site ACE2 protects against lung injury, although it is not clear how Since the COVID-19 outbreak first began in Wuhan, China, late last year, SARS-CoV-2 has spread at an unprecedented rate, infecting approximately 18 million people and causing around 690,000 deaths. Researchers around the world are racing to understand the underlying mechanisms of infection and disease to help identify the factors that influence susceptibility and potential therapeutic strategies. ACE2 is a transmembrane carboxypeptidase with several well-known functions. The key substrate of ACE2 is angiotensin II, an important component in the renin-angiotensin system, which regulates blood pressure. ACE2 is also involved in glucose homeostasis and pancreatic beta-cell function. Interestingly, ACE2 plays an important role in protection from acute lung injury, writes the team. Animal studies have shown that the expression of ACE2 is downregulated in acute lung injury and that ACE2 activation can protect against pulmonary hypertension. Although the molecular mechanism by which ACE2 protects against acute lung injury remains unclear, it is known that the carboxypeptidase function of ACE2 is required to confer this protection, say the researchers. The expression of ACE2 in human nasal epithelia and lung tissue is controlled by interferon-responsive promoters, and the activation of interferon-responsive genes is key to defending against viral infection. Studies have shown that exposure to both IFN and the influenza virus increases ACE2 expression in the airway. It has also been shown that multiciliated cells appear to be one of the main targets of SARS-CoV-2 infection, suggesting that cilia play an essential role, say Mennella and colleagues. However, despite the important role that ACE2 plays in SARS-CoV-2 infection, researchers still do not fully understand its expression, including how this is influenced by viral infection. The researchers identify a novel, short transcript of ACE2 Mennella and colleagues say that until now, the ACE2 gene had been thought to consist of 19 exons and to encode five transcripts, two of which encode the same ACE2 protein consisting of 805 amino acids. However, the researchers have identified a novel, short 11-exon transcript of ACE2 that is translated into an ACE2 isoform made up of 459 amino acids. The team found that unlike long ACE2, which is expressed in various tissues, this short ACE2 is only expressed in the airways, liver, and kidney. Expression of short ACE2 was highest in the primary respiratory epithelia, particularly in the nasal epithelium, where it was expressed at higher levels than long ACE2. In primary airway cells, short ACE2 was also upregulated in response to treatment with IFN-beta treatment and infection with respiratory rhinovirus, but not infection with SARS-CoV-2. We further show that the short transcript is an interferon-regulated gene and is more strongly induced by IFN-beta and viral infection than long ACE2, writes the team. The short isoform may be involved in regulating amino acid transport in the airway Modeling studies suggested that short ACE2 retains the transmembrane domain and collectrin domain of long ACE2, indicating that the short isoform may be involved in regulating amino acid transport in the airway, say Mennella and colleagues. The short form also retains the catalytic residues conferring carboxypeptidase function, suggesting that the short isoform may retain some catalytic activity, the team adds. The researchers also report that most of the key residues needed for binding of the spike protein are not present on the short isoform, and they do not think short ACE2 is a viral entry point for SARS-CoV-2. Mennella and colleagues say that although the function of short ACE2 is not yet clear, the data clearly show that this isoform is expressed in the airways, particularly in the ciliated cells of the nasal and bronchial epithelium. We hypothesize that this short isoform of ACE2 plays an important physiological role in the airway and, in addition, that it may influence host susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection, they write. The researchers say the findings could have significant consequences for the development of treatments designed to tackle COVID-19. Our discovery also has implications for the numerous studies reporting on ACE2 expression levels and differences in levels of expression along airways, across age groups and disease groups, including COVID-19 disease severity, they add. *Important Notice medRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, should not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information. Pugh advises boards of directors, general counsel, and chief compliance officers on government-initiated and internal investigations; litigation that stems from those investigations; and crisis management, often in cases that have a high-profile employment component. He has a long track record of leading False Claims Act investigations and trials involving whistleblower claims, as well as matters involving procurement and government program fraud, health care fraud, and regulatory inspection incidents. Pugh also helps clients navigate alleged executive or key employee misconduct in the workplace, incidents involving workplace violence, insider threats, and trade secrets disputes. He was recently inducted into the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel, and is a longtime member of the National and American Bar associations. Pugh is among a very small number of attorneys who have been appointed to serve as a monitor by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. His experience includes one of the largest monitorships to date involving racial discrimination and harassment. He was also the first monitor appointed by the Waterfront Commission of New York and New Jersey Harbors, overseeing a stevedore's efforts to root out organized crime. Pugh currently serves as an appointed deputy monitor in the gaming industry, overseeing a company's efforts to prevent, among other things, sexual harassment and discrimination. Pugh helped draft the American Bar Association's first set of standards for corporate monitors, and is a member of the International Association of Independent Corporate Monitors. "Preston's government prosecutorial background and his deep knowledge and expertise in complex investigations and civil False Claims Act matters align perfectly with our platform," said Philip T. Inglima, Crowell & Moring chair. "In addition, his experience as a monitor and the reputation he has established as a trusted advisor to corporations and institutions navigating high-stakes, sensitive matters will be of great benefit to our clients." Pugh served for a decade as part of the national faculty for the National Institute for Trial Advocacy and was previously an adjunct professor in appellate advocacy at Loyola University Chicago School of Law. He currently serves on the board of directors of JusticeAid, a non-profit organization that uses music and the arts to fund efforts to fight injustice and inequality and the Driving Force Group, a non-profit philanthropic advisory organization focused on social justice and race equity. Pugh earned his undergraduate degree from Cornell University and his law degree from New York University School of Law. He joins the firm from Miller & Chevalier. "I have worked alongside, and have been across the table from, Crowell & Moring lawyers for many years and have been consistently impressed with the firm's client commitment and advocacy and overall excellence," Pugh said. "I look forward to collaborating with my new colleagues to bring effective solutions and strategies to clients in this challenging business environment." His arrival coincides with that of partner Michael Shaheen, a former trial and investigations lawyer in the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Division Fraud Section, who recently joined the firm and complements Pugh's significant False Claims Act experience. Shaheen advises clients navigating all manner of enforcement actions involving health care and procurement fraud. About Crowell & Moring LLP Crowell & Moring LLP is an international law firm with approximately 550 lawyers representing clients in litigation and arbitration, regulatory, and transactional matters. The firm is internationally recognized for its representation of Fortune 500 companies in high-stakes litigation, as well as its ongoing commitment to pro bono service and diversity. The firm has offices in Washington, D.C., New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orange County, London, and Brussels. Media Contact: An Pham Senior Manager, Media, PR & Communications +1 202.508.8740 Email: [email protected] SOURCE Crowell & Moring LLP Related Links http://www.crowell.com CDC has updated isolation and quarantine recommendations for the public, and is revising the CDC website to reflect these changes. These recommendations do not apply to healthcare personnel and do not supersede state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules, and regulations. Viral tests are used to look for current infection A viral test checks specimens from your nose or your mouth to find out if you are currently infected with the virus that causes COVID-19. Viral tests can be performed in a laboratory, at a testing site, or at home or anywhere else. Two types of viral tests are used: nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) and antigen tests. Who should get tested The following people should get tested for COVID-19: Who does not need to be tested The following people who have been exposed to someone with COVID-19 do not need to get tested if they do not have COVID-19 symptoms: People who have tested positive for COVID-19 within the past 3 months and recovered, as long as they do not develop new symptoms, do not need to get tested. COVID-19 viral testing tool The COVID-19 Viral Testing Tool is an interactive web tool designed to help both healthcare providers and individuals understand COVID-19 testing options. This tool helps healthcare providers quickly access the most relevant, actionable information to determine what type(s) of COVID-19 testing they should recommend to patients. The tool helps individuals determine what type of test they should seek. After test results are in, the tool can help interpret test results and guide next steps. The online, mobile-friendly tool asks a series of questions, and provides recommended actions and resources based on the users responses. covid test icon Should I get tested? Decide when to get tested and learn how to understand your results with COVID-19 Viral Testing Tool. Get Started How to get a viral test Visit your state, tribal, local external icon , or territorial health departments website to look for the latest local information on testing. , or territorial health departments website to look for the latest local information on testing. Visit your healthcare or public health department clinic provider to get a self-collection kit or self-test. You and your healthcare provider might consider either self-collection kit or a self-test if you have symptoms of COVID-19 and cant get tested by a healthcare provider. Positive viral test house user light icon If you test positive for the virus that causes COVID-19, take the following steps to protect others regardless of your COVID-19 vaccination status: Isolate for at least 5 days. You can end isolation after 5 full days if you are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication and your other symptoms have improved (Loss of taste and smell may persist for weeks or months after recovery and need not delay the end of isolation). Day 0 is your first day of symptoms. You can also use a test-based strategy to end isolation. If you test positive for COVID-19 and never develop symptoms, isolate for at least 5 days and wear a well-fitting mask around others at home and in public for an additional 5 days. Day 0 is the day the sample was collected for a positive test result. Wear a well-fitting mask around others at home and in public for 5 additional days after the end of your 5-day isolation period. Take additional precautions on days 6-10, such as avoiding travel and situations where you will come in contact with individuals at high risk for severe disease. If you are unable to wear a mask when around others, you should continue to isolate for 10 days. Follow CDCs recommendations for isolation. Contact your healthcare provider as soon as possible if you are more likely to get very sick because of being an older adult or having underlying medical conditions or if your symptoms get worse. By Express News Service THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Traders in the Chalai and Palayam markets, who are part of the Kerala Vyapari Vyavasayi Ekopana Samithi (KVVES), have decided to stage protests on Tuesday against the indefinite closure of businesses in these markets as part of Covid-19 curbs. Representatives from Chalai market will protest at Killipalam junction, while representatives in the Palayam market will stage the protest at the market itself. KVVES general secretary S S Manoj and district president K S Radhakrishnan will inaugurate the protests at Palayam and Killppalam, respectively, at 10.30 am. The traders claimed that shops at the two markets were opened for business for a mere 25 days since March 25. KVVES also questioned the rationale behind announcing an entire ward as a containment zone when Covid cases are detected. Human Resources Director The case method has been the dominant teaching style for graduate business education for the last hundred years, first at Harvard Business School and thereafter at most elite B-schools. But lately, cases have come under fire for not keeping up with the times and for misrepresenting the times they do intend to reflect. Cases are under the microscope for several serious moral failures, accused by various critics of constructing mythical, heroic portrayals of leadership and privileging senior management views and managerialism, wrote critic Lila MacLellan last fall in Quartz. They have been said to exclude the voices of women, the poor, and labor, and to contain a flawed logic of translatability from one context to others. At Harvard Business School, where the vast majority of case studies are written and sold, Black American protagonists are badly underrepresented. Steven Rogers, who taught at HBS as a senior lecturer until last year, has noted that less than 1% of the case studies published by Harvard and used in business school and corporate classrooms around the world feature a Black protagonist (see Former Harvard Business School Prof Slams Dean For Schools Systematic Anti-Black Practices). Even worse, only two of the roughly 300 case studies taught to first-year MBA students in the required curriculum had an African-American protagonist. Bottom line: The case against cases is strong. Last fall, well before the reawakening of racial inequality fueled by the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Kellie McElhaney and Genevieve Smith were having their own struggles with the case method and their own epiphanies about its value to business education. McElhaney, founder of the Center for Equity, Gender and Leadership (EGAL) at the University of California-Berkeley and a teaching professor at the Haas School of Business, and Smith, associate director of EGAL, were looking for prototypes to inform a pair of cases they were writing, one on the pay gap at Gap Inc. and the other about the work culture at Boston Consulting Group. But there were no prototypes to be found. Story continues Later, discussing the white male slant of cases at an EGAL meeting, a board members comment stuck with McElhaney. One of our investors, who was an MBA student many years ago, said she couldnt remember any case in which there was anything other than white males, McElhaney tells Poets&Quants. And so we just started out by having somebody do a scan of cases out there that had at least some diverse protagonists. You think youre going to do a little job and then you realize its huge. CREATING THE EGAL CASE COMPENDIUM Kellie McElhaney. Haas photo The daunting scale of the problem was quickly apparent. Harvard publishes hundreds of cases annually; its directory of more than 19,000 is the source of an estimated 80% of cases used in B-schools globally. Case studies are also big business. In 2019, HBSs publishing arm made a record $262 million, more than a quarter of the schools total income, largely through publishing new cases. (That income has been curtailed in 2020 by the coronavirus pandemic.) The school publishes about 350 new cases every year to add to a stock of around 7,500; annually it sells millions of copies globally. Yet in all those cases, Smith, McElhaney, and EGAL Research Assistant Diana Chavez-Varela, who earned her bachelors in political economy from UC-Berkeley in 2019, estimate that only around 1% include a Black person as a protagonist, the same percentage founded by Rogers, and just 9% have a female protagonist. EGAL also found a common focus on lower-level employees, with more than half (55%) of the cases about diversity, equity, and inclusion centered on entry- and mid-level employees, and only 15% focused on senior leadership. Advancing women in the workplace, moreover, was a far more common theme than issues focused on race, ethnicity, or other identities. The majority of the primary authors (those listed first) are male, Smith and Chavez-Varela found: 55.35%. The majority of diverse protagonist case studies (67.91%) are male, too. I think we realized as we started this project, its not just around diverse protagonists, though that is obviously really important, Smith says. Theres different research that shows that having protagonists that reflect who you are increases confidence levels within the classroom, and just generally beyond the classroom as well. There really is a lack of cases that reflect the diversity, equity, and inclusion that are so real in businesses today. So that really spurred us to identify what cases do exist that we can help point faculty to, to fill some of these gaps within core courses, as well as other courses across Haas. The EGAL team wrote a report based on their findings, released this summer. But they went further. Collecting cases from more than 20 leading publishers, they created a master list of more than 400 cases with diverse protagonists. The EGAL Case Compendium is a spreadsheet with 215 cases with diverse protagonists and 215 cases specific to diversity, equity, and inclusion topics and its free for any Haas or other B-school instructors to use. YOU CANT BE WHAT YOU CANT SEE In a 2018 Financial Times story on criticism of the case method, Steven Shugin, a professor in marketing at the University of Floridas College of Business Administration, argued for replacing both the writing and Socratic-style teaching of cases with the scientific method arguing, in other words, for a method of rigorously testing theories rather than one based on historic events in a single company. Im not saying the case has no value but it is not generalizable, Shugin told the FT. So many cases highlighted the best companies of the 1980s like Kodak, which had gone out of business by the 1990s. He pointed to a series of HBS cases of innovative Enron financial transactions since superseded by ones on the ethics raised by its collapse. Teaching, he said, should keep students up with current thinking. Current thinking has come a long way in the areas of diversity and inclusion, McElhaney says. We can get really heady as academicians, but theres an adage that You cant be what you cant see. Its pretty straight-up social psychology, not really complicated, she says. So if were only ever showing white men in positions of power you cant be what you cant see. Here we are as a school, putting all these resources into trying to become more diverse, and yet our primary teaching tool is, in and of itself, not diverse. Its just kind of a straight-up problem. And Ill own this more as a professor. I have been a professor since 1997. And I have heard a proliferation of reasons why faculty wont try new things in the classroom or try new cases. And it is often because, they say, if its not broken, dont fix it. Or put another way, there is no better case. I think what we are trying to show is, its possible there is more than one option out there, something other than the one that youve been using for 10 years. As a professor who uses cases, I know that switching costs are high. It takes a lot of work on my end to learn the case, to teach it well, to make sure that it gets across the point Im trying to make. But I didnt want to let faculty off the hook for that sort of a simplistic response. LOWERING THE BAR? One of the biggest problems with outdated cases and case-writing is not a lack of representation but misrepresentation of under-represented minorities as well as women. The misrepresentation is more of a perpetuating of stereotypes, McElhaney says, such as always putting women in positions of HR or marketing or executive assistant. EGAL found that 84% of cases with diverse protagonists focused on HR and had primarily white women as protagonists. Some disciplines are nonexistent, Smith says, while stereotypical business roles and positions are predominant. There is one case around the rare African-American venture capitalist, and it was written by a white male author, she says. Or there was another case that kind of seemed to equate diversity to less quality, which perpetuates the narrative that diversity and inclusion initiatives mean youre going to be lowering the quality bar. Of the diverse protagonists cases, almost 70% of the authors were male, which again, is part of the issue in itself. And it reflects the lens thats being used. EGAL Research Assistant Diana Chavez-Varela, Associate Director Genevieve Smith, and Program Director Jennifer Wells (from left). Photo: Jim Block The EGAL Case Compendium, compiled with the help of a $5,000 Haas Culture grant, is already making an impact. About a week after it was published, McElhaney says, one of our top professors submitted an opportunity for two different cases that she would like to see written. Shes somebody whos been around for a long time and has a lot of clout. So that was pretty fast. No word from Harvard yet, but other members of the Haas School faculty are taking a strong interest, Smith says. One thing that were really interested in is, how can we make sure others are aware that it exists? Smith says. We were able to get a lot of different faculty at Haas that was able to see it, and some folks reaching out from the California Management Review as well. They have been interested in helping to financially support some cases so that we can continue to write, continue to add to the cases that exist. But we would love to be able to make sure it is more known by other schools and that it is a resource that they can draw from. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR STAKEHOLDERS: B-SCHOOLS, FACULTY, CASE PUBLISHERS In their report. Smith and Chavez-Varela included recommendations for faculty and case study publishers. Explore using cases with diverse protagonists and on DEI topics. Use EGALs Case Compendium to identify cases. We have created a survey tool for any faculty member (at Haas and beyond) to find cases appropriate for their particular context. We review this survey monthly and respond to faculty needs and requests. Consider writing and publishing more case studies with diverse protagonists particularly intersectional identities and for use in courses in the core curriculum. Consider writing and publishing on topics of DEI outside of Human Resource Management / Organizational Behavior and particularly across core curriculum courses. Ensure case study language used in the case and in the class discussion does not commodify / discriminate against certain identities, and/or perpetuate stereotypes and harmful norms. Engage with centers such as EGAL to write case studies or support research in case study development. For B-schools: Encourage and incentivize faculty to utilize case studies with diverse protagonists or case studies on DEI topics assuming the case(s) align with the course and their teaching goals. Support centers such as EGAL to write case studies that fill key gaps, and inform faculty of case study options. Educate case study authors/faculty on topics of power, privilege, discrimination, bias, and structural inequities and how they can manifest in their classroom discussions. Provide faculty and lecturers resources and educational opportunities to integrate DEI in the classroom. A barrier for faculty to use cases with diverse protagonists or on DEI-related topics is a lack of comfort on sensitive topics of diversity. For example, how can faculty facilitate tough conversations around identity when challenges are brought up from students? It was interesting that we essentially finished this and launched it right around when the Black Lives Matter protests were really taking off, Smith says. And it was announced to Haas faculty at a time that I think people in faculty were really starting to think about their cases for the fall and recognizing and realizing how big and important and critical it is to think about how were perpetuating issues in our own house, our own school. GETTING MORE & BETTER DIVERSE CASES WRITTEN Another challenge, not just at the Haas School but across graduate business education, is that faculty are cat-like, McElhaney says, and disinclined to use unproven or unknown cases. Case quality is also a sticking point. Were under no grand illusion that change is going to happen fast, she says. What we tried to do is take away some of the excuses that weve heard, so if somebody says, Well, there are no good cases, we can say, Maybe there are no great cases, but theres a better case from the one youre using, heres a compendium. Far and away our two biggest challenges are, one, there arent fantastic cases out there. So we do need to really throttle down to get it into the hands of powerful faculty. Academia has no corporate structure such that the CEO can say, Do this, and everybody has to do it. So we really need to figure out how to get it into the hands of power players inside of business schools. And every business school is different. At one business school it could be the dean, and another business school it could be the core faculty committee. But the second thing and the thing, I guess, that Im more interested in is how to get more cases written in rapid-fire succession. Because even diversity, as we thought of it yesterday, is different from diversity today. Right? If somebody asks me how I identify, I might say, white woman. Those are the first two things that come to my mind. But the younger generation now has like five things at once in terms of how they self-identify. And so theres a proliferation of multicultural diversity: youre not just hiring an Asian female, youre hiring a gender non-binary queer, first-in-family, child-of-immigrant Asian female. And so when we have all of these multiple identities its even more uncommon to find some of them reflected in the classroom. DONT MISS ANNUAL LGBTQ MBA CONFERENCE GOES VIRTUAL or MINORITIES AT THE TOP 25 U.S. MBA PROGRAMS The post At Berkeley Haas, The Hard Work To Balance B-School Cases Is Underway appeared first on Poets&Quants. RICHMOND, Mass. Berkshire HorseWorks Inc. has received $10,000 from the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund for Berkshire County to support the "Healers and Horses" Program. The program was created specifically to help local health-care workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic acclimate and reintegrate during and after their experiences dealing with the virus. The program's goal is to provide a safe platform where participants can identify, explore and process their feelings in a mutually supportive environment among other health-care workers and family. Exercises will address trauma, offer outlets for expression and develop positive coping skills healthcare workers can use while still in the midst of the crisis. Berkshire HorseWorks uses the Eagala Model of equine-assisted psychotherapy, which will be used in the "Healers and Horses" program. It integrates horses in ground-based, metaphorical activities and is facilitated by a licensed mental health professional and equine specialist. Evidence-based, experiential and strength-based, the highly effective modality can be an excellent complement to or replacement for traditional talk therapy when talk therapy is unsuccessful or with populations where communication is difficult, as with post-traumatic stress disorder. Participants in the program include staff from Volunteers in Medicine, who kicked off the program in July. Berkshire Health Systems Vice President of Human Resources Patrick Borek and Head of Wellness Maureen Daniels have partnered with Berkshire HorseWorks to select participants from different departments within their network. A combination of families and groups comprise the program, which includes five medical professionals and their families, plus Berkshire Medical Center's Satellite Emergency Facility in North Adams, Macony Pediatrics, and the Berkshire Health Systems Human Resources Department. At present, the "Healers and Horses" program is at capacity. "Obviously, we are all appreciative of the depth of health-care worker's commitment to our community," said Hayley Sumner, founder and executive director of Berkshire HorseWorks. "Now, with the funding from Berkshire United Way, Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation and partners, we're able to provide these critical services to those healthcare providers who need help themselves, to allow them to process the potential trauma associated with their work in an emotionally safe environment. Horses facilitate change, and they can really be a conduit to the healing process." The COVID-19 fund team has rapidly deployed funding and resources to address food insecurity, housing and homeless needs, health and mental health services, and emergency child care and youth services since mid-March when the fund was launched. Grant review has been paused to allow the organizations to assess longer-term needs. The Berkshire County COVID-19 Fund is a coalition of philanthropy and business partners from across the Berkshires created to support organizations on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. Other grantees have included 18 Degrees, Berkshire Community Diaper Project, and the Womens Fund of Western Massachusetts, who have provided meals and services to Berkshire County residents. Representatives from Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, Berkshire United Way, Northern Berkshire United Way and Williamstown Community Chest, as well as community members, were involved in the review process. "Our health-care workers are facing many challenges on the front lines of this pandemic and we know it is taking a toll on them physically, emotionally and mentally. We appreciate that Berkshire HorseWorks is offering this 'Healers and Horses' program to help essential workers process their feelings during this time," said Candace Winkler, president and CEO of Berkshire United Way. "We are happy that this program has come together to support our front-line workers," added Karen Vogel, director of community impact at Berkshire United Way. In addition to foundation funding, revenue earned from ancillary offerings such as Family Team Building, Yoga in the Paddocks, Hikes with Horses, Free-Range Donkey Play, Art at the Ranch, birthday parties, and Trail Ride experiences all help fund programming for those at-risk and without financial means. Berkshire HorseWorks offers the equine-assisted psychotherapy sessions for at-risk youth, veterans, inmates, families and individuals, and team building to local and global organizations. It is part of the Eagala network, a nonprofit organization developed in 1999 to address the need for resources, education and professionalism in the fields of equine-assisted psychotherapy learning. Actor Rhea Chakrabortys advocate refuted Bihar Polices claim that she was missing, and said till date she has not received any summons from them in connection with the case of actor-friend Sushant Singh Rajputs death. Sushants father lodged an FIR against Chakraborty last week for allegedly abetting his suicide. Bihar Police earlier said their team had failed to locate Chakraborty. However, her advocate Satish Maneshinde said in a statement on Monday, The contention of Bihar police that Rhea Chakraborty is missing is not correct. Till today, no notice or summons has been received by her from the Bihar police. Chakrabortys statement has already been recorded by the Mumbai Police, Maneshinde said. She has cooperated with the police as and when called, the statement said. Maneshinde in the statement reiterated that the Bihar Police do not have jurisdiction to probe the case and hence, Chakraborty has filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking transfer of the case to Mumbai. Rajput, 34, was found hanging at his apartment in suburban Bandra on June 14. Mumbai Police had registered an Accidental Death Report (ADR) and an investigation is underway in the case. Till now, the Mumbai Police have recorded statements of 56 people, including Rajputs sisters, Chakraborty and some other film personalities. A Bihar Police team is also in Mumbai for probing the abetment to suicide case on the basis of a complaint filed by the late actors father in Patna. Bexar County Sheriff's Office A 48-year-old man was arrested Saturday for threatening to shoot up Fort Hood in a Facebook post, according to an arrest affidavit. Police arrested Mario Eloy Pena at his San Antonio home after they were alerted by his wife, who lives in Texas, of the social media post, the affidavit said. Your browser does not support the video tag. Swedens Telia has sold its 12.25% stake in Afghanistans Roshan Telecom to the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development. The Swedish group revealed in 2016 that it was planning to sell up in Afghanistan, although evidently it had to wait to find the right buyer. The Aga Khan Fund is a majority stakeholder in Roshan Telecom. Terms of the agreement were not revealed. With this long-anticipated divestment, Telia has fully withdrawn from the market, in line with its strategy to exit the Eurasia region while strengthening its focus on the Baltic and Nordic regions. Since announcing this strategy in 2015, Telia has divested holdings in a total of seven markets in Eurasia: Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Nepal, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Telia seems to have broadened the strategys remit over the years. In June, it reached an agreement to divest its indirect holding in Turkeys Turkcell. China's Mars probe Tianwen-1 completes first mid-course correction Global Times By Cui Fandi Source: Global Times Published: 2020/8/2 20:13:40 Tianwen-1, China's first Mars probe, completed its first mid-course correction on Sunday, allowing it to continue heading toward the Red Planet precisely, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA). The administration said that the maneuver took place at 7 am after its 3000N engine was activated for 20 seconds. By the time of the mid-course correction, the probe had traveled approximately 230 hours. It was some 3 million kilometers away from Earth, with all systems reported as running normally, the administration said in a statement. "The first of many mid-course corrections ensures Tianwen-1's short-term stability on its orbit to Mars," commented Wang Yanan, chief editor of Aerospace Knowledge magazine. Several more mid-course corrections and deep-space maneuvers are expected to be made during the probe's 6-month-plus space journey before reaching Mars' orbit, in order to ensure a smooth journey to the Red Planet. Orbit correction of a Mars rover is similar to that of an automobile, Zhu Qinghua, a deputy chief technician with the probe's orbiter system was quoted in a report by China News Service as saying. But "the difference is we need to correct not only the flight direction, but also the flight speed and other variables." This is much harder given that there are no road markings to refer to, Zhu said in the report. "The inner logic of orbit correction of a Mars rover is similar to that of a self-driving car," explained Wang. The difference, however, lies in that spacecrafts have more complex orbits, the adjustment of which requires effort from both the probe itself and the scientists on the ground. China successfully launched its first Mars probe, Tianwen-1, via a Long March-5 Y4 carrier rocket from Wenchang Space Launch Center in South China's Hainan Province into planned orbit on July 23, marking the opening of the nation's planetary exploration program and heralding a new era in China's deep-space exploration China's Tianwen-1 Mars probe is expected to reach Mars' gravity field in February 2021, about seven months after the launch. Rover of the probe is scheduled to soft land on a suitable location in the southern part of Mars' Utopia Planitia around May 2021, report said. If it succeeds, Tianwen-1 will be the first Mars expedition to complete orbiting, landing and roving in a single mission in humanity's history. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Burmese python is a nonnative invasive species that threatens to destroy the natural wildlife of the south Florida Everglades ecosystem. A statement released Tuesday by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission announced a milestone in efforts to restore the Everglades. The FWC, working together with the South Florida Water Management District, under the direction of Gov. Ron DeSantis, have removed 5,000 invasive Burmese pythons from south Floridas Everglades. Weve learned through the Python Challenge that experience counts when finding and removing Burmese pythons, said FWC Commissioner Rodney Barreto. We cant win the battle alone. Its one team, one mission. We need the support of these experienced python hunters as well as the partnership with the South Florida Water Management District and the ongoing support of Gov. Ron DeSantis. Another win for the Everglades. This is what agencies like the South Florida Water Management District and the FWC, focused and working together, can accomplish, said SFWMD Governing Board Member Alligator Ron Bergeron. Every snake counts. Each invasive python eliminated represents hundreds of native Florida wildlife saved. With Gov. DeSantis continued leadership, Florida is doing more than it ever has to remove pythons from the Everglades and protect this ecosystem for generations to come. How did the Burmese python get established in Florida? Irresponsible pet owners are the reason Burmese pythons became established in Florida. Escaped or released pets have reproduced to what the United States Geological Survey estimates to be a population of tens of thousands of Burmese pythons in southern Florida. It is illegal to release nonnative species into the wild and can negatively impact Floridas native wildlife and habitat. The statement said pet owners can surrender nonnative or exotic pets without penalty through the FWCs Exotic Pet Amnesty Program.. Visit MyFWC.com/PetAmnesty for more information. How can the public help control nonnative invasive wildlife? The statement said sightings should be reported to the FWCs Exotic Species Hotline at 888-IveGot1 (888-483-4681), online at IveGot1.org or by using the free smartphone app IVEGOT1. Take a picture if possible and note the exact location of the sighting. Python Action Team and Python Elimination Program members respond to reports of large constrictors and other priority species to remove these harmful invaders from the wild. READ MORE: 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. The Hong Kong government's decision to postpone an election for the city's legislature for a year due to a surge in coronavirus cases may be unlawful, the city's bar association said. The news comes as China today announced the suspension of Hong Kong's extradition treaty with New Zealand a tit-for-tat retaliation after scrapping its agreements with Canada, Australia and the UK in escalating diplomatic tensions. It also comes after Beijing sent its first coronavirus testing team to Hong Kong, sparking fear that the Communist Party may extend its DNA surveillance to the semi-autonomous city. Hong Kong's Beijing-backed leader on Friday delayed the election for the Legislative Council, or Legco, for a year by invoking emergency legislation after the city had seen a spike in COVID-19 infections. Pictured, people wearing masks walk through a market in Hong Kong on July 30 The delay came after 12 pro-democracy candidates were disqualified from running for perceived subversive intentions and opposition to the security law. This file photo taken on November 24, 2019, shows people queuing to cast their vote in the Tseung Kwan O district Hong Kong's Beijing-backed leader on Friday delayed the ballot by invoking emergency legislation after the city had seen a spike in COVID-19 infections. The poll would have been the former British colony's first official vote since Beijing imposed a sweeping security law. The controversial decree aims at tackling what China broadly defines as secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces, with punishment of up to life in prison. Hong Kong's pro-Beijing Chief Executive Carrie Lam put off the election for the Legislative Council, or Legco, citing public health dangers in the Chinese-ruled city, but said there were political considerations. Hong Kong's pro-Beijing Chief Executive Carrie Lam (pictured on July 31) put off the election for the Legislative Council, or Legco, citing public health dangers in the Chinese-ruled city The daily number of new infections in Hong Kong had been in three digits for 12 days. Today, the figure dropped below 100 for the first time in the fresh spike. Rows of beds are seen at a makeshift hospital for COVID-19 patients set up at AsiaWorld-Expo on August 1 in Hong Kong Electoral rules in Hong Kong only allow votes to be postponed for 14 days, but colonial-era laws give the government broad powers in case of threats to public safety. The city reported 80 new coronavirus cases on Monday, dropping below 100 infections for the first time in 12 days. Local officials have reported around 3,500 coronavirus cases and 34 deaths since January, far lower than many other global metropolitan centres. But the daily number of new infections had been in three digits for nearly two weeks in a fresh spike. China's virus team to Hong Kong sparks surveillance fears Seven Chinese health officials arrived in Hong Kong on Sunday, the first members of a 60-person team that will carry out widespread COVID-19 testing in the territory as it races to halt a third wave of illness. The initiative marks the first time mainland health officials have assisted Hong Kong in its battle to control the epidemic. Members of the testing team, co-ordinated by the Chinese government, are mostly from public hospitals in Guangdong province, China's National Health Commission said. Pro-democracy district councillors protest outside the Hospital Authority headquarters in Hong Kong on August 2 against the governments decision to have mainland inspectors carry out coronavirus COVID-19 testing in Hong Kong A group of local Hong Kong councillors said on Sunday that some local residents fear China may use their presence as an opportunity to collect DNA samples for surveillance purposes. The territory's government denied the claims, saying virus testing would only be conducted in the city and samples would not be transported to the mainland. Hong Kong government leader Carrie Lam said on Saturday it had asked for help from Beijing due to the resurgence in cases. She said the government was studying whether everyone in Hong Kong could be tested, local broadcaster RTHK reported. Advertisement In a statement on Sunday, the Hong Kong Bar Association said the electoral law was more recent and more specific when it comes to public health hazards at election time and 'generally' should take precedence over older legislation. Invoking emergency legislation to delay the scheduled vote 'may turn out to be unlawful', it said. The delay came after 12 pro-democracy candidates had been disqualified from running for perceived subversive intentions and opposition to the security law, prompting questions among many about whether the pandemic was the real reason for the delay. The pro-democracy opposition was hoping to win a historic majority in the legislature after an overwhelming win in lower-level district council polls last year. Seven Chinese health officials arrived in Hong Kong on Sunday, the first members of a 60-person team that will carry out widespread COVID-19 testing in the territory. Pictured, medical staff work at a temporary coronavirus facility at the AsiaWorld Expo in Hong Kong on August 1 A group of local Hong Kong councillors said on Sunday that some local residents fear China may use their presence as an opportunity to collect DNA samples for surveillance purposes Lam said the local government was seeking help from the Chinese parliament's top decision-making body to resolve the legislative vacuum created by the expiring mandate of the Legco. The Hong Kong government 'is effectively inviting' Beijing 'to override the relevant provisions' of its mini-constitution and local laws 'to circumvent possible legal challenges', the Bar Association said. 'This is contrary to the principles of legality and legal certainty and degrades the rule of law in Hong Kong.' Washington has also condemned the postponement, with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo saying it was likely that 'Hong Kong will never again be able to vote - for anything or anyone'. President Donald Trump on Thursday raised the possibility of delaying the November 3 US presidential election, but the Constitution bestows that power on Congress, not the president. Canales brings to Nations more than 20 years' worth of combined experience in loan origination and branch leadership. Estevez has been originating loans in New Jersey for the last three years and learned the business from his father Esteban, who is joining his son's branch as Sales Manager. "Eric and Jose have a real rapport with their borrowers and they're very growth-minded," said Corey Caster, Executive Vice President of National Production. "We think, at Nations, the sky is the limit for these two." Estevez and Canales specialize in educating first-time home buyers on the path to homeownership and are experts in renovation loans as well. They remain committed to serving the Hispanic community and other minority communities in their area. "I'm blown away by the support from corporate here at Nations. The mission is growth, both on our end and at HQ," Canales said. "Everyone is so accessible, and I can see this partnership really enhancing our ability to help as many people as possible attain the American dream of homeownership." About Nations Lending Nations Lending Corporation is one of the fastest-growing mortgage lenders in the U.S. Headquartered in the Cleveland, Ohio area, it is licensed to lend in all 50 states and employs more than 800, combined, at corporate headquarters in the Cleveland, Ohio area and throughout more than 90 branches across the U.S. The company makes its mission of "home loans. made human." an integral part of its mortgage experience, offering tailored customer service and a variety of programs to suit any home buyer's needs: FHA, VA, Conventional, Jumbo, USDA, etc. Nations is an agency-direct lender with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae and retains mortgage servicing rights on 96 percent of the loans it originates. Inc. 5000 recognized Nations Lending as one of the fastest-growing privately held companies in the country in 2018, and the company was named a top-100 lender by National Mortgage Professional Magazine and Scotsman Guide in 2019. For more information, visit www.NationsLending.com. For more information contact: Nations Lending Corporation Cheryl Lieber 216-503-6828 [email protected] SOURCE Nations Lending Corporation Related Links https://nationslending.com/ Ex Lagos State Guber Candidate, Babatunde Gbademosi who was also recently in the news for attending Funke Akindeles husband birthday party during the pandemic is in the news again, this is for something very similar a face mask. The businessman had shared a photo of himself on twitter, when one of his followers noticed he had no face mask on. The follower tried to educate him about the importance of wearing one, which the ex-guber candidate defended, bt when the follower didn;t let him be, he had to cause him in his native language, Abi werey ni iyalaya eleyi ni. See the hot back to back convo below Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates MILWAUKEE, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Ademi & O'Reilly, LLP is investigating Jernigan (NYSE: JCAP) for possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of the law in connection with the sale to NexPoint. Click here to learn how to join the action: http://ademilaw.com/case/jernigan-capital-inc or call Guri Ademi toll-free at 866-264-3995. There is no cost or obligation to you. Ademi & O'Reilly, LLP alleges Jernigan's financial outlook is improving and yet shareholders will receive only $17.30 per share/unit. The merger agreement unreasonably limits competing bids for Jernigan by prohibiting solicitation of further bids, and imposing a termination penalty if Jernigan accepts a superior bid. Jernigan insiders will receive millions of dollars as part of change of control arrangements. We are investigating the conduct of Jernigan's board of directors, and whether they are (i) fulfilling their fiduciary duties to all shareholders, and (ii) obtaining a fair and reasonable price for Jernigan. If you own common stock in Jernigan and wish to obtain additional information, please contact Guri Ademi either at [email protected] or toll-free: 866-264-3995, or http://ademilaw.com/case/jernigan-capital-inc. We specialize in shareholder litigation involving buyouts, mergers, and individual shareholder rights throughout the country. For more information, please feel free to call us. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes. Contacts Ademi & O'Reilly, LLP Guri Ademi Toll Free: (866) 264-3995 Fax: (414) 482-8001 SOURCE Ademi & O'Reilly, LLP Related Links http://www.ademilaw.com "This exhibition introduces some much-needed laughs into 2020," said Associate Curator of Contemporary Art J Tyler Friedman. "But the works also show the serious side of comics as a medium for political protest and a platform for marginalized voices." The West Bend museum presents a comprehensive overview of comics in Wisconsin including underground comics (a.k.a. "comix") and the lively Madison scene including artwork by 2019 MacArthur "Genius" Grant recipient Lynda Barry, Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Creativity at the University of WisconsinMadison. The museum's Milwaukee venue, MOWA|DTN, located within Saint Kate-The Arts Hotel highlights politically-themed comics. The exhibited works include graphic novels, alternative newspapers from the 1970s, a comic book commissioned by the Wisconsin Department of Justice, and multi-page stories by Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's longtime (1967-1991) editorial cartoonist Bill Sanders. In connection with the exhibition, a fully illustrated 244-page catalogue aptly titled Wisconsin Funnies: Fifty Years of Comics articulates the national role of Wisconsin comics. The catalogue features essays by historian and culture critic James P. Danky and Madison-based graphic novel author and editor Paul Buhle. The catalogue features more than 150 comic illustrations by thirty-one comic artists including Ernie Bushmiller, Al Capp, Will Eisner, Harvey Kurtzman, Peter Poplaski, Steve Rude, and Bill Sanders. The Wisconsin Funnies exhibition catalogue will be available for purchase at both exhibition locations. Website: www.wisconsinart.org/comics Exhibition Sponsors Support for the exhibition provided by the Wisconsin Department of Tourism, National Endowment for the Arts, and The Wisconsin Humanities Council. ABOUT THE MUSEUM OF WISCONSIN ART The Museum of Wisconsin Art explores the art and culture of Wisconsin through rotating exhibitions and programs. Founded in 1961, MOWA is one of the top museums of regional art in the United States, with over 5,000 works of art by more than 350 artists. SOURCE Museum of Wisconsin Art (HealthDay)The COVID-19 pandemic is having an impact on the psychological health of patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), according to a study published online July 21 in Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders. Aleksandar Stojanov, M.D., from Clinical Center Nis in Serbia, and colleagues surveyed 95 patients with RRMS to assess psychological status before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The researchers found that the main concerns among patients were that someone they know could be infected with COVID-19 (78.5 percent) or could die from the infection (33.8 percent), as well as the lack of specific treatment options (25.8 percent). Regarding RRMS status, the main concerns were that their disease would be worse if they contract COVID-19 (36.4 percent), that they might experience some difficulties in drug availability (43.6 percent), and that they could not go to the hospital as usual (72.4 percent). Compared with healthy controls, results on all questionnaires were worse for RRMS patients. Additionally, for the Hamilton scales for the assessment of anxiety, there was a statistically significant difference between the prepandemic results and the results from April 2020. "Health care organizations need to provide professional therapeutic advice and psychosocial support for this population of patients during the pandemic," the authors write. Explore further Progressive MS linked to faster retinal atrophy than RRMS Copyright 2020 HealthDay. All rights reserved. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 17:15:31|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close MANILA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Philippines surged to 106,330 after the country's Department of Health (DOH) reported 3,226 new cases on Monday. The DOH said that the number of recoveries further rose to 65,821 after it reported that 275 more patients have survived the disease. The death toll also increased to 2,104 after 46 more patients have succumbed to the viral disease, the DOH added. Metro Manila topped the five regions or provinces with the highest number of daily confirmed COVID-19 cases reported on Monday with 1,541, followed by Cebu province, 503; Laguna province, 181; Rizal province, 158; and Cavite province, 129. Following Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's reimposition of stricter lockdown restrictions in Metro Manila and the adjacent provinces of Laguna, Cavite, Rizal, and Bulacan, the DOH announced on Monday that it will "lead a revitalized strategy with more focus on localized response and mitigation of disease transmission at the community level." "Recent data show that there is a significant increase in COVID-19 cases, with record-high numbers reported consecutively in the last four days, from the areas recently placed under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ)," the DOH said in a statement. According to the DOH, the data also show "that the increase is primarily driven by clusters within barangays (villages)." By focusing resources at the community level and shifting to this community-focused strategy, the DOH said the Philippine government agencies will address the rise in cases at the root through stricter enforcement of localized lockdowns and the implementation of the coordinated operations to defeat the epidemic (CODE) beginning August 3, 2020. "The CODE is a patient and community-focused response strategy with key elements incorporated from the prevent-detect-isolate-test-treat strategy," the DOH added. The DOH added it has monitored a total of 887 clusters of COVID-19 cases across the country. According to Philippine Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, the DOH monitored 741 clusters in communities, 57 in hospitals of health facilities, 26 in jails and 63 in other areas such as workplaces, accommodations and transportation. In Metro Manila alone, the DOH said 315 clusters of COVID-19 cases were monitored in the communities, hospitals, jails and other areas. Enditem MILFORD A proposed mixed-use development on the site of the former Smith Funeral Home returns to the Milford Planning and Zoning Board Aug. 4, and this time the board will have two designs to review. The board tabled the application at its July 20 meeting, in part to get a legal opinion from the city attorney regarding whether it can require a public hearing for a project that only needs site plan approval. The board also wanted time to review a proposal for shared parking and to request a traffic study for the project area. City Attorneys Jonathan D. Berchem and Debra Kelly provided their opinion in a July 30 memo to City Planner David B. Sulkis, and concluded that the board could conduct a public hearing, but with limitations. Metro 135 LLC, with Robert H. Smith Jr. as member, has submitted plans to construct and renovate buildings at 125-135 Broad St. to create a mixed-use property with three new mixed-use retail and office buildings, with a total of 77 apartments. Since these plans only require site plan approval, no public hearing is typically required. The 2.28-acre property in the Milford Center Design District is the location of the 6,690-square-foot former Smith Funeral Home, a 416-square-foot office building, and a garage. The plans call for retaining and renovating the funeral home building and the office building, but demolishing the industrial building and garage, and replacing them with three new mixed use retail and office buildings with 77 apartments. The 5,700-square-foot industrial building at the rear of the property has already been demolished. As part of the original application, Smith proposed a shared parking arrangement between the apartments and the retail/office components. The project requires 154 parking spaces, while only 120 would be provided with the intent that 34 spaces will be shared. Of the 120 spaces, five would be handicap accessible. This parking would be provided through a mixture of surface parking and parking under two mixed-used buildings at the rear. In the MCDD zone, the board has the discretion to agree to a finding of parking adequacy, which it has done on other projects in downtown. Traffic Engineer David G. Sullivan submitted a written assessment of the shared parking proposal on behalf of Metro 135, in which he said that office and residential parking demands do not peak at the same time. Sullivan noted that office parking peaks during the morning and afternoon, while residential parking typically peaks in the evening and overnight. Therefore, we feel that the 120 proposed parking spaces on the site will comfortably and reasonably accommodate the expected parking demand, Sullivan said in his report. On July 30, Metro 135 submitted an alternate plan with an underground parking garage located below the proposed surface level parking under the two rear buildings. This new garage along with the exterior surface parking would include 178 parking spaces, which is 17 more than the 161 required. The alternate plans increase the bedroom count, which boosts the residential parking requirements from 109 to 116 spaces, while the retail and commercial spaces remain at 45 spaces. The alternate project lists parking as 33 surface, 66 covered at grade, and 79 garaged. Hearing ruling In the legal opinion to the board, Berchem and Kelly wrote that both the state statutes and the Milford Zoning Regulations neither require norprohibit a public hearing for site plan review. They indicated that case law in Connecticut has found that conducting a public hearing on a site plan application is permissible, however different timelines apply. When a commission conducts a public hearing where one is not required by statute, it must render its decision on the application within sixty-five days of the receipt of the application, not sixty-five days from the completion of the hearing, wrote Berchem and Kelly. The commissions failure to act within this shorter time frame would trigger automatic approval of the application. They added an asterisk to this comment, noting that Gov. Ned Lamonts Executive Order of March 21, allows for up to a 90-day extension to typical land use deadlines for starting, finishing and deciding a zoning application. The governors order is in effect for the duration of the pandemics public health and civic preparedness emergency. With regard to the boards decision-making process, the city attorneys noted that the boards review of the application is limited to whether the plan complies with the application regulations, and note that the application calls for a mixed-use development in the MCDD zone - a use specifically permitted under Section 3.21.1.8 of the Milford Zoning Regulations. The boards Aug. 4 agenda states the board must vote on this application by Sept. 23. By comparison, the timeline is much longer for the application for a manufacturing facility at 132 Shelland St., which was also introduced at the boards July 20 meeting. The Shelland Street project has a required public hearing because it involves a special permit in addition to the site plan review. The board has to close that public hearing by Oct. 7 and vote on that project by Dec. 14. This public hearing continues on Aug. 4 because the boards meeting ran past 11 p.m. on July 20 and the public did not have the opportunity to comment. The board also is conducting a public hearing for a special permit with site plan review to convert an existing office and residential building at 158 Cherry St. to an all-residential building. Another public hearing is with regard to a previously approved affordable housing project at 526 Naugatuck Ave. The board included the condition that the project include solar panels and applicant is seeking to remove that requirement, due to the cost involved. The final public hearing is for a previously approved affordable housing project at 328 Meadowside Road. The applicant is seeking to convert four of the one-bedroom units into two-bedroom units. The former Smith Funeral Home was once the home of submarine designer Simon Lake, who used the now demolished buildings at the rear to design and build submarines and submersibles. In June, Winthrop and Bonnie Smith sold their funeral home business to Gregory F. Doyle Funeral Home of Devon. The Smith family had operated the business since 1886. The Smiths sold their cremation business to James T. Toohey & Son Funeral Home of Shelton. By day, Marcus Caster-Rupp plays Aeneas, the lead character in one of the biggest shows on TV; by night, hes Book!AeneasWouldNever, writer of fanfiction about the very show he stars in a fact that could destroy his career if the shows creative directors discover his secret. When April Whittier, a superfan of the show, is teased online for cosplaying another show character, Lavinia, Marcus invites April on a date and soon learns that the first woman to see beyond his carefully crafted public persona is also Unapologetic Lavinia Stan, a fandom member hes been corresponding with for more than two years as his online alter-ego. Unwilling to risk his livelihood, Marcus doesnt reveal their connection, which makes the reader wonder: Can a relationship founded on deception truly succeed? Its a romance; of course it can! The journey these two characters take to get there both individually and separately is where the magic happens: Its a path of self-discovery, healing and growth, punctuated by scorching chemistry, whip-smart dialogue and sidesplitting humor. Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. High Throughput Screening Market Size 2019 HTS Industry Analysis, Growth Segments, Leading Manufacturers, Phenomenal Growth and Business Boosting Strategies till 2025 Market Research Future published a research report on High Throughput Screening Market Research Report - Global Forecast till 2025 Market Overview, Segmentation, Progress, Regional analysis, key Trends, Major Players and Forecast to 2025. Global Wearable Sensors Market is likely to value of USD 13,460 million with a CAGR of 7.5% during the forecast period Competitive Landscape: Better integration of diverse plans in the global HTS Market and introduction of several strategic moves that encompasses mergers, acquisitions, tie-ups, and others are expected to inspire growth. Companies impacting the growth in the market are Danaher (US), Aurora Biomed Inc. (Canada), Tecan (Switzerland), PerkinElmer (US), Axxam (Italy), Hamilton (US), Corning (US), Merck Group (Germany), Beckman Coulter, Inc. (US), BioTek (US), Luminex Corporation (US), Agilent Technologies Inc. (US), and Roche (Switzerland). High-throughput screening (HTS) can be defined as a method that includes scientific experimentation needed for various drug discovery and deciding typical moves in the the fields of biology and chemistry. The procedure includes data processing/control software, liquid handling devices, robotics, and sensitive detectors. This allows the system to get into the procedure of conducting tests for millions of chemical, genetic, or pharmacological processes. The process has evolved as necessary to find active compounds, antibodies, or genes that can cover various biomolecular pathway. This process assists in the designing of various market process. The global market for high throughput screening is getting traction from high technological advancements in HTS and hike in expenditure for research and development. The government funding for the procedure is also providing better scope for growth. Segmental Analysis The global market for high throughput screening, by product & service, can be segmented into instruments, reagents & assay kits, consumables & accessories, and software and services. The reagents & assay kits segment can find growth with increasing demand from the diagnostic segment. By technology, the global market report on high throughput screening can be segmented into cell-based assays, Bioinformatics, 3D cell culture, 2D cell culture, perfusion cell culture, 3D cell culture, Ultra-high-throughput Screening, lab-on-a-chip (LOC), and Label-free Technology. The 3D cell culture segment includes scaffold-based technologies and scaffold-free technologies. The scaffold-based segment comprises hydrogels, inert matrix, and micropatterned surfaces. The scaffold-free technologies segment consists ultra-low binding plates, hanging-drop plates, microplate, and other scaffold-free technologies. By application, the global market for high throughput screening includes primary and secondary screening, toxicology assessment, target identification & validation, and others. The application segment is showing signs of fastest CAGR owing to its inclusion in the research and development sector. By end user, the global market for high throughput screening can be segmented into contract research organizations, academic & government institutes, pharmaceutical & biotechnology companies, and others. Global High Throughput Screening Market Research Report- https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/high-throughput-screening-market-1280 In October 2019, researchers at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute revealed that they have developed a machine-learning algorithm that would assist in the high throughput screening of epigenetic drugs. Related News Blood Glucose Monitoring Market - Global Forecast till 2023 Dercums Disease Market - Global Forecast till 2023 About Market Research Future: MRFR team have supreme objective to provide the optimum quality market research and intelligence services to our clients. Our market research studies by Components, Application, Logistics and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enable our clients to see more, know more, and do more, which help to answer all their most important questions. Contact: https://www.marketresearchfuture.com By AFP WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said Monday that Chinese-owned hugely popular video-sharing app TikTok will be "out of business" in the United States if not sold to a US firm by September 15. "I set a date of around September 15, at which point it's going to be out of business in the United States," he told reporters. "It'll close down on September 15th unless Microsoft or somebody else is able to buy it and work out a deal." Most New Jersey families say they have adequate technology for online learning, but about half still say they do not think remote learning had a positive effect on their children and would send them back to school this fall, according to a state survey. The Department of Education distributed an online survey to parents between June 2 and 8. Responses helped inform the reopening plan for schools, which mandates all districts have some form of in-person instruction as the coronavirus crisis continues. The survey asked parents about the effectiveness and accessibility of remote learning, if they feel safe sending their children back to school with face masks and social distancing in place and what access they have to various resources, like meals and tools to prevent online harassment. More than half of New Jersey parents 54% said they would send their children back to school. Eleven percent said they would not, and 35% said they had not decided. In early June, when the survey was conducted, the number of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations had fallen. Since then, the transmission rate has risen to its highest level in months. Just 14% of survey respondents said they were very confident remote learning had a positive effect on their child. Another 41% had moderate confidence and 45% had no confidence. Roughly a third of people said they felt no confidence that a mask mandate would make schools safer, while the other 63% felt moderate to strong confidence in masks. Only 4% said they did not have sufficient access to the internet, and 7% said they did not have enough or adequate devices for remote learning. The education department did not solicit information on geography, student age or demographics, and did not include any steps to verify respondents were parents in the New Jersey school system. It was sent to school districts and organizations in all 21 counties, who then passed it along to parents. The department also provided a link to the 13 questions on social media and its website. It did not say how many people responded to the survey. The decision to reopen schools has been met with criticism from teachers. Last week, three state lawmakers said they planned to introduce legislation that would require students and staff to continue to learn and teach from home during the new school year, with only special education and related services to take place in person. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Amanda Hoover may be reached at ahoover@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @amandahoovernj. By The Associated Press Aug. 03, 2020 | 12:27 PM | WASHINGTON President Donald Trump said Monday that he had fired the chair of the Tennessee Valley Authority, criticizing the federally owned corporation for hiring foreign workers. Trump told reporters at the White House that he was formally removing chair Skip Thompson and another member of the board, and he threatened to remove other board members if they continued to hire foreign labor. Thompson was appointed to the post by Trump. The TVA was created in 1933 to provide flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing and economic development to the Tennessee Valley, a region that was hard hit by the Great Depression. The region covers most of Tennessee and parts of Alabama, Mississippi and Kentucky as well as small sections of Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia. Trump also removed board member Richard Howorth, another presidential appointee. Trump also urged the TVA board to immediately hire a new chief executive officer who puts the interests of Americans first." According to the president, the current CEO, Jeff Lyash, earned $8 million a year. The new CEO must be paid no more than $500,000 a year, said Trump, who lacks the authority to remove the CEO. We want the TVA to take action on this immediately. ... Let this serve as a warning to any federally appointed board: If you betray American workers, you will hear two words: Youre fired. Trump said the authority was replacing many of its in-house technology workers with contractors who rely heavily on foreign workers under the H1-B visa program for highly skilled workers. All TVA employees are U.S. based citizens, said authority public information officer Jim Hopson. All jobs related to TVAs Information Technology department must be performed in the U.S. by individuals who may legally work in this country. As a federal corporation, TVAs Board members serve at the pleasure of the President, Hopson added. As Trump was meeting with workers who would shortly be laid off by the authority, he was passed a note from chief of staff Mark Meadows that said Lyash had called the White House and was promising to address the labor concerns. Some of the attendees, who are set to see their last paycheck at the end of the month, teared up as Trump read the message. Trump acknowledged that he was made aware of the issue after seeing a television ad that aired in prime time on Fox News and was produced by U.S. Tech Workers, a nonprofit that wants to limit visas given to foreign technology workers. The group, led by Kevin Lynn, criticized the TVA for furloughing its own workers and replacing them with contractors using foreign workers with H-1B visas. The ad, Lynn said, had an audience of one," aiming to persuade Trump to stop the TVA from outsourcing much of its information technology division. Trump made the announcement as he signed an executive order to require all federal agencies to complete an internal audit to prove they are not replacing qualified American workers with people from other countries. The White House said the order will help prevent federal agencies from unfairly replacing American workers with lower cost foreign labor. The order followed the TVAs announcement that it would outsource 20% of its technology jobs to companies based in foreign countries. TVAs action could cause more than 200 highly skilled American tech workers in Tennessee to lose their jobs to foreign workers hired on temporary work visas, according to the White House. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said the TVA doesn't get any taxpayer money and defended the CEO's salary, saying it is in the bottom fourth of what his counterparts earn at other big utilities. TVA may have shown poor judgment hiring foreign companies during a pandemic, but, on most counts, it does a very good job of producing large amounts of low-cost, reliable electricity. Residential electric rates are among the 25 percent lowest in the country, and industrial rates are among the lowest 10 percent, Alexander said in a statement. TVAs debt is the lowest in 30 years, its pension fund is stronger and TVA leads the country in new nuclear power plants. CLEVELAND, Ohio A woman who pleaded guilty to having her dogs attack a grocery store worker who was attempting to stop her from stealing has been sentenced to prison by a Summit County judge. Linda Snow, 65, of Norton, will spend four to six years in prison on a second-degree felony charge of felonious assault. Snows daughter, Jennifer Clark, 38, of Akron, was given a suspended three-year prison sentence after she pleaded guilty to charges of robbery and endangering children. Clark still must serve 90 days in jail and is on probation for three years. According to prosecutors, Snow and Clark took a cart full of food from Acme Fresh Market in Akrons Kenmore neighborhood on Aug. 16, 2019. When a 55-year-old Acme worker confronted Snow and Clark in the parking lot of the store, Snow opened a door to her vehicle, where she had three pit bulls, prosecutors say. Two of the dogs attacked and seriously injured the worker, who had to be hospitalized, prosecutors say. Snow and Clark then drove off with the dogs. Clarks 11-year-old son also was in the vehicle. This was a horrible incident, Summit County Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh said in a statement. The victim suffered significant physical injuries because of the attack. ... As a dog owner myself, I am appalled at how the dogs were used in this assault. Asian economies in general, including Vietnams, wont see high growth rates if other economies continue to struggle with the Covid-19 pandemic, experts have said. Vietnams economy is predicted to grow by 3 percent this year, the lowest growth rate in many years, according to The Aftershock, a report just released by Standard Chartered. The 3 percent growth rate is 0.3 percent lower than the growth rate also predicted by Standard Chartered three months before. Domestic economic activities have resumed, but Vietnams economy still bears negative impact from outside. Vietnam has joined more deeply into the global economy with the ratio of trade to GDP among the highest in Asia, which shows Vietnams heavy reliance on world demand. Therefore, as the US, the Euro-zone economies and G10 have fallen into recession because of Covid-19, bringing about a sharp fall in demand, the impact on Vietnams economy is certain. Chang Yong Rhee from IMF affirmed that Asian economies wont be able to grow if the whole world is still struggling with Covid-19, since the region heavily relies on the global supply chain. However, even if Vietnam grows by 3 percent only this year, this would still be satisfactory, if noting that IMF predicts a minus (-) 0.8 percent growth rate for emerging and developing economies in Asia, and a minus (-) 2 percent growth rate for ASEAN-5, or the five largest economies in Southeast Asia. According to the Vietnam Institute for Economic and Policy Research (VEPR), Vietnam was one of a few economies in the world which obtained a positive GDP growth rate in Q2 (0.36 percent), while the CPI decreased because of the petroleum price decreases. According to the Vietnam Institute for Economic and Policy Research (VEPR), Vietnam was one of a few economies in the world which obtained a positive GDP growth rate in Q2 (0.36 percent), while the CPI decreased because of the petroleum price decreases. Chidu Narayanan from Standard Chartered believes that Vietnams economy will recover in the second half of the year, with the major driving force coming from the inner strength of the economy, but warned that challenges from the worlds economy will partially slow down growth. He explained that Vietnam ranks second in ASEAN, just after Singapore, in terms of reliance on the global economy, and its ratio of trade to GDP is at 198 percent, with electronic exports accounting for a large proportion. The latest macroeconomy report shows that the production and service sector will continue recovering, thus helping fostering growth in the second half of the year. The production sector is expected to obtain 1.5 percent growth rate in 2020 and contribute to the general growth rate decreasing by 1.8 percentage point. Meanwhile, the contribution to GDP by the service sector is predicted to decrease from 2.8 percentage points in 2019 to 0.5 percentage point. VEPR has drawn up two scenarios for Vietnams economic growth 3.8 percent in the best scenario and 2.2 percent for the worst scenario. Le Ha VN Government urged to open economy to 17 partners The 17 economies determine 90 percent of Vietnams foreign investment, 80 percent of international trade and 80 percent of foreign travelers to Vietnam. As back to school plans are in the works so that students can learn this fall, there also came challenges for parents and teachers working to create more safe spaces for kids in the country. There are back to school plans that make kids learn in schools, some off-site, and some that require them to go through both. Any option can be a challenge for parents and care providers. The pressure that comes for kids to go back to school adds to the challenges that parents face, USA Today said in their report. School plans need reliable solutions, and care centers have to work on meeting coronavirus safety guidelines for children at often high costs. President and CEO of YMCA of Greater Cincinnati, Jorge Perez, said the education system is "in the midst of a tornado" that is COVID-19, and they are trying to teach despite it all. "It's not letting up," he said. Perez said they are in need of more funding, and they also have to work faster through it all. Fewer Options Create More Challenges for Parents With the option of in-person, on-site, and hybrid learning, parents have options. But as the virus is giving the country worse numbers by the day, some parents are getting limited options, reported Voice of America. Some schools have scrapped in-person classes entirely, at least to start the school year. Cities like Los Angeles, Washington, and Philadelphia have done this in the past week and as well as schools in parts of the South and Midwest. Some schools are thinking of having hybrid approaches so that students can still come to school at least a few days a week. Many parents are unhappy with either remote or in-person options. The coronavirus pandemic gave parents challenges and forced them to make a tough choice that could mean life or death for their children. There are many parents worried about how the back to school plans will work for their children. John Barrett is one of them. As much as he wants his daughter to learn from in-person elementary school in Atlanta, he planned to keep her safe in their home. Molly Ball is also sending his teenage sons to school in the same area this Monday, but this is a move that she feels regret over. Ball, a mother to two boys, believes it is healthy for a child to go back to school, but also wishes they weren't going to school for the fall. "It's very scary," she said. Health Experts Urge Caution On Saturday, health experts urged parents and communities to exercise caution and planning when they consider sending students back to school. The U.S. first saw this week how the COVID-19 pandemic could pose challenges for parents and teachers. Dr. Michael Saag from the University of Alabama at Birmingham said people have to consider the consequences. He said through virtual news channel KQ2 that there are consequences with the rates of infection that the U.S. faces. Dr. Saag also added that people should always ask the question, "Are we willing to live with the end result of the inevitable situation where teachers are going to become infected?" Want to read more? Check these out! New Study Suggests Younger Kids Might Be Greater COVID-19 Carriers Trump Urges Schools to Reopen to Help Boost the Economy Amid COVID-19 Surge 'I am Prepared to Get Sick': Florida Teachers Offered Free Living Wills as Schools Reopen It was a Manic Monday on D-Street as the Indian market slipped to a two-week low that saw S&P BSE Sensex tank more than 600 points and the Nifty50 slipping below its crucial support at 11,000. The S&P BSE Sensex ended 667 points lower at 36,939 on August 3, while the Nifty50 closed with losses of 181 points to 10,891. "Indian benchmark indices closed in the negative with losses, following mixed global cues. As virus cases continued to rise and with the uncertainty regarding rate actions by the RBI, markets succumbed to the momentum slowdown visible in the last couple of trading sessions," Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services told Moneycontrol. Financial stocks led the losses. Though momentum slowed down, stock-specific action was still happening, depending mainly on earnings results and commentary, he said. As long as the markets hold the current range, these downturns could be short-lived and should be utilised to accumulate quality stocks," Nair said. Sectorally, action was visible in consumer durables, healthcare, and metal stocks, while selling-pressure was visible in Bankex, finance, and energy space. The broader markets outperformed the benchmarks. The S&P BSE Midcap index was down 0.31 percent while the S&P BSE Smallcap index closed with gains of more than a percent. Here is a list of factors that could have weighed on markets: Weak global cues The Indian market woke up to muted global cues. World stocks began August cautiously as US lawmakers struggled to agree on a new stimulus plan following a global surge of COVID-19 cases, a Reuters report said. On July 31, Fitch Ratings cut the outlook on the United States triple-A rating to negative from stable, citing eroding credit strength and a ballooning deficit, said the report. Contraction in factory data The slowdown fears are here to stay as Indias factory slump deepened in July on renewed lockdown measures to contain surging coronavirus cases. The Nikkei Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index, compiled by IHS Markit, fell to 46.0 in July from 47.2 in June, below the 50-level separating growth from expansion for a fourth straight month and marking its longest spell of contraction since March 2009, said a Reuters report. A further decline in new orders and output signaled weakness in overall demand despite factories again cutting their prices, leading firms to reduce their workforces for the fourth month in a row, it said. Financials led the fall on D-Street Financial stocks led the fall on D-Street, with the NiftyBank registering a decline of more than 2 percent, while the S&P BSE Bankex was the top loser among sectoral indices on the BSE. The fall was mainly led by losses in RBL Bank, Kotak Bank, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and IndusInd Bank. This comes two days after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government was working with the Reserve Bank India (RBI) on the need for restructuring of loans to help industry tide over the impact of COVID-19. Also Read: Finance Ministry working with RBI on need for loan restructuring: Sitharaman Sitharaman said the ministry was working with RBI on the demand of the hospitality sector for extension of the moratorium, or restructuring of loans. The Bank Nifty continued its weakness for the fourth consecutive session and broke below its 50-days EMA on a closing basis, which was acting as key support for past two months. It corrected by around 2,200 points from 23,200 to 21,000 zones in the past nine trading sessions and has come close to its previous swing low of 21,000. The NiftyBank has been making lower top-lower bottom formation and resistances are gradually shifting lower, Chandan Taparia of Motilal Oswal Financial Services Limited said. Till it holds below the 21,600 zone, weakness can be seen towards 20,500 and 20,250 zones while on the upside, immediate hurdles are shifting to 21,600-21,800 zones, he added. Rising coronavirus cases India's count of known coronavirus cases surpassed 18 lakh on August 3, mirroring the trend of a rapid rise in infections in several parts of the globe. The United States is in a new phase of the novel coronavirus outbreak with infections extraordinarily widespread in rural areas as well as cities, said a Reuters report, quoting White House coronavirus experts. The coronavirus, which first appeared in China, has infected 4.6 million people in the United States and killed more than 155,000 Americans, according to a Reuters tally. The rise in cases remains to be the biggest risk for equity markets in the second half of 2020, say experts. Elongated COVID-19 led lockdown and casualties is the biggest risk in second half of 2020, Deepak Jasani- Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities told Moneycontrol. Atul Bhole, Senior Vice PresidentInvestments, DSP Investment Managers, said the worsening of the COVID curve could derail the recovery process and less than expected uplift in consumption post the initial pent-up demand was also a cause of concern. Profit booking at higher levels After two straight months of vertical gains in the benchmark indices, some bit of profit-taking was expected in August after the Nifty50 and S&P BSE Sensex rallied more 7 percent in the previous month. Profit-taking was seen in sectors that have run up in the recent past. The market has shown over 7 percent upward move in July. The market has extended its gain for the fourth consecutive month, forming a higher high, Rajesh Palviya, Head - Technical and Derivative Research, Axis Securities told Moneycontrol. The market has shown a strong run-up in the last three-four months. The index failed to cross the 11,300 level and witnessed profit-booking at a higher level, he said. India VIX moved up by 4.11 percent at 25.18 levels. The spike in volatility could cause some decline in the market. : The views and investment tips expressed by experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. Some Food Lion stores have also asked customers for exact change. We have been impacted by the coin shortage. Were asking customers to use exact change, or to use an alternate payment method such as a debit or credit card or Apple Pay, said Emma A. Inman, director of external communications at Food Lion. Dhakal has noticed more card transactions since the pandemic started. He said only about 30% of his customers used to pay with a debit or credit card when he took over the shop a year ago. Now about 80% of them use a digital transaction, he said. Many retailers and laundromats say they havent been impacted by the shortage. I have heard about it, but we are not having any problems, said Imsoon Yoon, owner of West Market Street Laundromat. Colleen Hodges, owner of Feeneys Frozen Yogurt shops in Greensboro and High Point said she has had no problems making change at her Greensboro store, even though many of her customers are older and tend to pay with cash. An employee at Bestway market on Walker Avenue said the store has had no problems. Handout After a nearly nine-month search, investigators found 7-year-old J.J. Vallowstill clad in red pajamas and tightly wrapped in black plasticin the backyard of doomsday author Chad Daybells Idaho home, a detective testified Monday. The little boys head, arms, and feet were bound in duct tape. Several feet away, authorities discovered a mass of burnt flesh and charred bone they later determined to be the remains of 17-year-old Tylee Ryan, in a pet cemetery on Daybells property, said Ray Hermosillo, a detective with the Rexburg Police Department. Hermosillo described the gruesome finding on the first day of a two-day preliminary hearing in Fremont County Courthouse, where prosecutors will sketch out their case against Daybell, 52, whos accused of hiding evidence when authorities began to investigate the disappearance of the two children of his second wife, Lori Vallow. The hearing comes nearly two months after authorities found the remains of Vallows children on Daybells Idaho property. Daybell and Vallow, who are members of a community of doomsday preppers and were married two weeks after Daybell was widowed, have not been charged in the deaths of the two children, whose bizarre missing-persons case has garnered national attention. Hermosillo described in graphic detail how authorities on June 9 found a small childs body in a shallow grave near a tree that had three large white flat rocks placed in a row with thin wood paneling underneath. As soon as we lifted the wood paneling out of the hole in Chad Daybells backyard, I could immediately smell the odor of a decomposing body, Hermosillo said. Later, the detective said that investigators found the burnt mass in a melted green bucket near the remains of a dog and a cat. J.J.s body was clad in a red pajama set and Sketcher socks. A white-and-blue blanket had been placed over him, the detective said, while duct tape tightly covered his head, arms, and feet. Hermosillo added a light plastic bag was also found on top of J.J.s head. Story continues His hands were folded about chest high. He had duct tape continuously wrapped from elbow, all the way around his arms over his hands, all the way to his right elbowseveral layers, tightly wrapped, Hermosillo said. He had a ball of duct tape over where his hands would be, Hermosillo added. His wrists were also bound by another layer of duct tape. His ankles were also bound with duct tape. Dressed in a white shirt and blue tie, Daybell sat quietly next to his attorney, John Prior, as Hermosillo answered questions from Madison County prosecutor Rob Wood. Family Says Bodies Found at Doomsday Home Are Missing Kids Daybell faces two felony counts of conspiracy to commit destruction, alteration, or concealment of evidence, and two felony counts of destruction, alteration, or concealment of evidence. Vallow, whose preliminary trial is set for next week, is being held on child desertion and other charges. Kay and Larry Woodcock, J.Js grandparents, were also present at the Monday hearing, telling reporters its showtime before walking past dozens of media outlets and several community members holding signs in support. J.J., 7, and Tylee, 17, had not been seen since September, although it wasnt until relatives asked police to check on them in late November that they were registered as missing. Hermosillo testified on Monday that he first began an investigation into Vallows children on Nov. 26, 2019, after the autistic 7-year-olds grandparents contacted police for a welfare check. Upon arrival, Hermosillo found Loris brother, Alex Cox, at the homewithout J.J. or Vallow. Hermosillo said after Cox refused to cooperate with authorities, the detective found Daybell near a second apartment, and he insisted he didnt really know Vallow, only meeting her a few times through her brother. I again found it suspicious because I knew they were married two weeks prior to my contact with Mr. Daybell, Hermosillo said. A few minutes later, Daybell gave up his wifes phone number, telling the detective he didnt initially provide it because he felt like I was accusing him of something, Hermosillo testified. Rexburg Police Department Detective David Stubbs also testified Monday, describing how he met Vallow twice on Nov. 26 as authorities performed a welfare check on her 7-year-old son. In body-camera footage played in court, Vallow can be heard telling Stubbs and another officer that this is a big mess and that J.J. is in Arizona with one of her friends, Melanie Gibb. Gibb, who testified on Monday, admitted she had initially lied to authorities about being with J.J after Vallow told her the 7-year-old was in danger. When Stubbs explained to Vallow they are concerned after getting a bad vibe, she begins a bizarre explanation about her family history, claiming that lots of stuff is going on and that she has had to move several times. One of my brothers is trying to kill me, Vallow says at one point, adding that Kay Woodcock has been trying to fight her for custody of her adoptive son since her husband, Charles Vallow, died. I just dont tell people where I am, Vallow said. As Vallow could be heard telling police that Woodcock does nothing but cause me trouble, the grandmother shook her head in court and looked at her husband in anger. When asked about the whereabouts of Tylee Ryan, Vallow told Stubbs her daughter was attending school at BYU-Idaho. On Monday, Wynn Hill, the dean of students at the university, testified there is no record the 17-year-old was enrolled at the university. Hermosillo said the suspicious nature of his meeting with Cox and Daybell prompted detectives to ultimately search three apartments rented to Vallow, Cox, and another family member, Melani Boudreaux. In one of the units, the detective said said, police found a suitcase inscribed with J.J.s name and a half-filled prescription bottle of pills for the 7-year-old. The other two units appeared to be empty. With Vallow and Daybell refusing to cooperate, Hermosillo said the investigation quickly expanded into a search for Tylee Ryan as well, after relatives said she had also gone missing. In January, after Vallow repeatedly lied about the kids whereabouts and then fled to Hawaii with her new husband, Hermosillo said the mother-of-two was served an order instructing her to return the two minors. He said there was no sign that J.J or Tylee were staying at the Hawaii home. Doomsday Stepdad Jailed After Human Remains Found on His Property Vallow was eventually arrested in Hawaii after failing to produce her children. After tracking the cellphone movements of Loris brother, authorities were able to locate the childrens remains on Daybells property on June 9. Hermosillo said Daybell was arrested less than three hours after they found the bodies. Rexburg Police Department The childrens disappearance brought scrutiny to the couples involvement in the prepper communityand to the deaths of Vallows and Daybells previous spouses. Last October, Daybells wife of 30 years, Tammy, died of unknown causes, after which the author of apocalyptic novels for a Mormon audience declined an autopsya move that raised eyebrows. He married Vallow weeks later. Vallows husband, Charles Vallow, was shot in Julysupposedly by her brother Alex Cox, who said he fired in self-defense during a domestic dispute. Cox was not charged and later died of natural causes. Court Docs Reveal How Police Found Bodies of Doomsday Moms Kids Charles Vallow had written in divorce and custody petitions that Lori had become obsessed with doomsday visions and had threatened his life. He said she believed she was reincarnated to lead people during the second coming of Jesus Christ in July 2020 and said that if he got in the way of her saving humanity, she would kill him, NBC News reported. Police have exhumed the body of Tammy Daybell, who was found dead at home. While her death was initially listed as natural, it has since been classified as suspicious; an autopsy report has not yet been released. The Idaho Attorney Generals Office in April took over an investigation into Daybell and Vallow in connection with Tammy's death. One court document in the case reveals potential charges could include conspiracy and murder, but no one has been charged. 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. People wait in line to vote in Georgia's Primary Election on June 9, 2020 in Atlanta, Ga. (Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images) Ransomware Feared as Possible Saboteur for November Election WASHINGTONFederal authorities say one of the gravest threats to the November election is a well-timed ransomware attack that could paralyze voting operations. The threat isnt just from foreign governments, but any fortune-seeking criminal. Ransomware attacks that target state and local governments have been on the rise, with cybercriminals seeking quick money by seizing data and holding it hostage until they get paid. The fear is that such attacks could affect voting systems directly or even indirectly, by infecting broader government networks that include electoral databases. Even if a ransomware attack fails to disrupt elections, it could nonetheless rattle confidence in the vote. On the spectrum of threats from the fantastical to the more probable, experts and officials say ransomware is a particularly realistic possibility because the attacks are already so pervasive and lucrative. The FBI and Department of Homeland Security have issued advisories to local governments, including recommendations for preventing attacks. From the standpoint of confidence in the system, I think it is much easier to disrupt a network and prevent it from operating than it is to change votes, Adam Hickey, a Justice Department deputy assistant attorney general, said in an interview. The scenario is relatively simple: Plant malware on multiple networks that affect voter registration databases and activate it just before an election. Or target vote-reporting and tabulation systems. With the 2020 election, election infrastructure has a target on its back, Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold said. We know that election infrastructure was attempted to be undermined in 2016, and we know the techniques are shifting. The number of attacks has escalated in recent years, with targets including Texas transportation agency and city computers in New Orleans. A December report by cybersecurity firm Emsisoft tracked attacks against at least 966 entities that interrupted 911 services, rendered medical records inaccessible, and hindered police background checks. Were seeing state and local entities targeted with ransomware on a near-daily basis, said Geoff Hale, a top election security official with Homeland Securitys Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Steps taken to improve the security of voter registration systems after the 2016 election could help governments fend off election-related ransomware attacks. Theyve also acted to ensure they can recover quickly in the event of an attack. Colorado, for example, stores redundant versions of its voter registration data at two separate secure locations so officials can easily shift operations. Backups are regular so the system can be quickly rebuilt if needed. Even so, ransomware is an added concern for local election officials already confronting staffing and budget constraints while preparing for a shift from in-person voting to absentee balloting. In West Virginia, state officials are more concerned about the cyber threat confronting its 55 county election offices than a direct attack on the statewide voter registration system. One-click from a county employee falling victim to a spearphishing attack could grant a hacker access to the county network and eventually to election systems. Im more worried that those people who are working extra hours and working more days, the temporary staff that may be brought in to help process the paperwork, that all this may create a certain malaise or fatigue when they are using tools like email, said David Tackett, chief information officer for the secretary of state. In states that rely heavily on in-person voting and use electronic systems to check in voters, a well-timed attack, particularly during early voting, could prevent officials from immediately verifying a voters eligibility, making paper backups critical. For states conducting elections entirely by mail, including Colorado, an attack near Election Day may have little effect on voting because ballots are sent early to all voters, with few votes cast in-person. But it could disrupt vote-tallying, forcing officials to process ballots by hand. In many states, local officials will face an influx of new ballot requests. That means theyll need constant access to voter data as they handle these requests. An attack could cause major disruptions. Hickey said he was unaware of ransomware attacks directly targeting election infrastructure. But local election offices are often connected to larger county networks and not properly insulated or protected. A criminal targeting a county or state may not even know what parts of the network they got into, Hickey said. But as the malware creeps along and spreads, what gets bricked is the entire networkand that includes but is not limited to election infrastructure. Even if election infrastructure isnt directly targeted, there would likely be immediate assumptions that it was, said Ron Bushar of the FireEye cybersecurity company. A February advisory issued by the FBI and obtained by The Associated Press recommends local governments separate election-related systems from county and state systems to ensure they arent affected in an unrelated attack. Thats how Louisianas election network survived multiple ransomware attacks: one occurred six days before the November election through an IT services company shared by the seven impacted counties. The second hit the state network a day after voting. At a January meeting of state officials, Louisianas secretary of state highlighted the attacks as a blueprint for how an adversary such as Russia could throw November into disarray. Jason Ingalls, whose security firm responded to the Louisiana attacks, said in an interview: You put me in charge of a platoon of Russian hackers and give me a couple of years to stage this and I could pull this off. By Eric Tucker & Christina A. Cassidy Laxman Pai, Opalesque Asia: Supported by the stock market recovery and growing investor interest in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues, sustainable strategy net inflows up 72% in Q2. Net inflows into sustainable strategies increased 72% in the quarter ended June 30 to USD 71.1 billion, said a study by Morningstar. A study of second-quarter flows for 3,432 global ESG open-end funds and exchange-traded funds showed that assets in sustainable strategies hit a record high of $1.06 trillion as of June 30, up 23% vs. the previous quarter. Europe continued to dominate the space, garnering 86% of the global inflows, while the United States took in 14.6%. European funds attracted $61.4 billion. The U.S. accounted for close to 14.6% of second-quarter 2020 inflows. Flows in the rest of the world were considerably lower, clocking in at only USD 0.26 billion for Canada, Australia, and New Zealand combined, while Asia reported outflows. Assets in sustainable funds hit a record high of USD 1,061.5 billion as of the end of June, up 23% from the previous quarter, the study revealed. Product development in the second quarter of 2020 stood strong, with 125 new offerings. The rate of new offerings has been holding steady for the last five quarters. Asset managers also continued to repurpose and rebrand conventional products into sustainable funds, with 40 such funds in Europe and three in the U.S. The flow data encompasses 3,432 open-end funds and ex...................... To view our full article Click here Paul Zacharia By Not everyone can win the occupancy of a 1,700 year-old basilica in the heart of Rome, situated upon the Palatine Hill, the first nucleus of the Roman Empire where once the palaces of the great Caesars stood. Keralas Syro-Malabar Church has just done it. Pope Francis has assigned to the Kerala Church the Santa Anastasia Minor basilica, one of the worlds oldest Christian places of worship, whose construction was started by Emperor Constantine in 325-326 CE and which is one of Palatines tourist attractions. The Syro-Malabar Church and its over-a-dozen fellow Christian Churches are all too familiar to Keralitesthey are never away from the news for reasons both right and wrong. For those not in the know: the Syro-Malabar Church (SMC) along with the Malankararepresents that wing of the Catholic Church (61% of Keralas total Christian population) which upholds a Syrian tradition as different from the Latin (meaning European). The Syrian tradition is linked to the earliest Christian traders from the Persian region who sought out Kerala for its spices circa the 1st to 3rd centuries onwards. (Popular faith holds that it was St. Thomas the apostle who first brought Christianity to Kerala in the 1st century, though it is historically unverified.) The Latin connection came via the Portuguese, following Vasco da Gamas arrival in Kozhikode in 1498 and the Portuguese colonisation of the western coast. Both Syrian and Latin rites owe allegiance to the Pope. In other words, the SMC, arguably one of the worlds oldest Christian congregations, is actually older than the hoary basilica assigned to it. The Pope took the stepresponding to a request from the Kerala Churchin order to provide the more than 7,000 members of the SMC diaspora in Rome a Malayalam-speaking spiritual hub. In a dog-eat-dog worldreligion least excluded from this merciless feastit is no mean achievement for a Church from an obscure corner of the world to find itself a seat on the Palatine. The SMC has every right to feel good. But when eyes turn inwards from the grand heights of the Palatine to the ground realities in Kerala, we see in the SMC a giant religious conglomerate mired in tragic moral and spiritual decay and reckless materialismof course a description that fits the bill of nearly every religious institution today. As a person born into the SMC but who chose to leave it, this writer has been an interested observer of the zigzag journey of the Church during the last several decades. The Church, without doubt, has made significant contributions to the Kerala society, of which the foremost would be the pioneering role it played in the spread of universal education and healthcare in the decades following Independence. In both instances, the Churchs was a modernising initiative. A spirit of Christian idealism led it. The proselytising urge was in check. In less than a decade after Independence, the wealth, political power and social influence of the Church had leapfrogged. Its formidable network of dedicated clergy, obedient laity and institutions of excellence functioned like a fine-tuned engine in the temperate communal climate of Kerala. The Churchs phenomenal growth was assisted in no small measure by the constitutional provisions of Minority Rights. However, simultaneously, a new force was gathering momentum in Kerala: Communism. Arguably the Kerala Churchs headlong fall into murky politics and the venality that goes with it began when it picked the Communist party as its chief enemy. Aided by Nairs and Muslims, the Church formulated and led the infamous Vimochana SamaramLiberation Strugglein 1958-59 against Keralas first Communist government (installed in April 1957). In July 1959, responding to the demand of the liberation struggle, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehrus government dismissed the government of chief minister E M S Namboodiripad using Article 356. Indira Gandhi was the then Congress President. The Church had tasted political blood. The corporatisation of the Church, which took place in the following decades, was inescapable considering the extensive diversification of its activities and the huge investments and assets in its control. But that introduced into the psyche of the Church a blatantly utilitarian, even brutal, value-system that certainly suited a world of buying and selling but not of the spiritespecially when your celebrated brand name is that of a young carpenter-turned-preacher by the name Jesus who perhaps didnt own a second pair of sandals or a change of clothes. The Western Churchs conversion from the spiritual to the materialistic took place over a thousand years ago when it crowned itself the kingmaker of Europe and its coffers were filled with untold wealth. The Kerala Church, in its own way, was following suit: the same shameful story, of course, of every other spiritual empire of today. What about the sex issues, people ask. There never was a time when sex wasnt a problem for the Church ever since celibacy became mandatory for the clergy and chastity for the nuns back in the Middle Ages. It isnt as if the Churchs 2,000-year-old fund of worldly wisdom doesnt know that both celibacy and chastity are losing games and man will be man and woman, woman, irrespective of the robes they wear. But the Church continues to take this formidable risk and face the consequences that are often painful because it absolutely cannot do without the cadres of the tens of thousands of dedicated, single-minded, full-time workersthe priests and nunswho have no other affiliations. They are its backbone. The Kerala Church has its share of scandals but sex is hardly the yardstick to judge its existential crisis, even though that hogs the headlines. The Kerala Churchsperhaps of the universal Churchs tooreal crisis is one of honesty. Its a crisis of preaching a message but losing it within oneself. Its true that living up to the ideals of the young carpenter is hardperhaps impossible. New times do call for new strategies. Charity begins with money in hand. But where do you draw the line? If profit displaces mercy, what happens to the message of the man on the cross? Isnt it best then to call oneself Church Inc.? Paul Zacharia Award-winning fiction writer (paulzacharia3@gmail.com) PARIS/LONDON, July 31 Europes been eating more fruit under lockdown, by all accounts. The problem is, it could struggle to find people to pick it. The regions growers are preparing for upcoming summer and autumn harvests of apples, pears and grapes, including those of the Champagne variety though they say they may have little to celebrate. Many fear there will be resurgent outbreaks of COVID-19 in parts of Europe like the current one in Spain leading to localized lockdowns and the risk they will be cut off from the migrant workers they have long relied on. We are worried, said Daniel Sauvaitre, head of a French apple and pear association and deputy head of fruit and vegetable federation Interfel. We had the manpower we needed for the thinning work in orchards, and the harvest looks pretty good. But we may very well have a country thats closing again. COVID-19 cases among agricultural workers, including on some fruit farms in southern France, are adding to concerns, with laborers often living in cramped conditions that make social distancing tough. This was highlighted when more than 70 workers who were picking and packing vegetables tested positive at a farm in England earlier this month. For some farmers, normally 1% of their workforce would be British, this year for some farmers it is between 20 to 30%, said Ali Capper, an apple and pear grower in central England who chairs the National Farmers Unions horticulture committee. In Portugal, berry farms turned to thousands of migrant workers from South Asia who were already in the country and lost jobs in tourism during the lockdown. There are now worries that it might be harder to recruit locally for the apple harvest in September as many workers have now returned to their previous jobs outside farming. Champagne Straits In France, the Champagne grape harvest looms large in the farm labor cycle, with producers taking in between 100,000 and 120,000 seasonal workers every year, of which 27% come from abroad, according to Christophe Pernet, chairman of champagne winemakers group SGV. Producers have been contacting universities and job centers to promote harvest work with a view to covering a shortage of foreign laborers if borders close again, he said. Champagne grape growers are in a quandary; demand has been dented owing to the collapse of restaurant and tourism activity, which has squeezed finances. But even if it picks up, they may be unable to capitalize as migrant labor is drying up. Big producers are likely to cut back on harvest volumes and take on fewer seasonal workers, said Richard Buxant, product manager at WiziFarm, a start-up that runs a job-matching website for farming. Earlier in the year, European fruit growers had managed to navigate spring harvests of crops such as strawberries, melons, peaches and cherries as they fell around the time when lockdowns were first introduced and farms had enough labor in hand. Locked-down shoppers across the world also embraced healthier eating, buying more fruit and vegetables and cutting spending on ready-made meals, according to a survey of nearly 11,000 people in 11 countries at the University of Antwerp. However much of the migrant labor has since left for home amid the pandemic. And even if growers can find local replacements, some complain that they are not as productive, adding to costs. And The Weather On top of such unprecedented problems, theres the more familiar, and perennial challenge for farming: the weather. Heavy rain and hailstones damaged some crops this year in Spain, the European Unions biggest fruit exporter. Joaquin Gomez, head of APOEXPA, an association of fruit producers and exporters in the southeastern Spanish region of Murcia, estimates local production fell 20% due to adverse weather, but demand and prices held up as households consumed more fruit during the lockdown. A campaign that in April we saw with much uncertainty has developed very normally,. Capper in England also expressed relief that, as least so far, the sectors worst fears have not yet been realized. At the end of March it was difficult to see a way through it but weve got there through a combination of chartered flights bringing in eastern Europeans and growers recruiting locally. Both have worked but there is a long way to go. The Chief of Staff of the President, Mrs Akosua Frema Osei-Opare, has stated that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has every part of the country and heart and has distributed resources and development evenly to every corner. "Akufo-Addo is one leader that thinks of everybody's interests. He looks at what will benefit the whole country. He doesn't think in a parochial manner. He looks at what will benefit the whole nation, she added. The Chief of Staff stated this when he addressed the press after he had gone through the voter registration process at the Abotsiman Presbyterian JHS, East Legon registration center in the Ayawaso West Wuogon Constituency in Accra. Mrs Osei-Opare who is the first female Chief of Staff was also the Member of Parliament for the constituency from 2005-2013 under the ticket of the New Patriotic Party (NPP). She cited government's flagship programmes such as the Free Senior High School (Free SHS), and said since its introduction it had increased intake in secondary schools and benefitted parents and students from every corner of the country. She mentioned the Nation Builders Corps (NABCO) programme, and explained that this had also benefited university graduates from all over the country and added the that recent decisions of government to give free water and electricity to the people of Ghana to cushion them during the COVID-19 pandemic were all indications that the President had a fatherly heart. Registration The Chief of Staff called on all Ghanaians who were qualified to register to take the opportunity of the few days left to register so that they would be able to cast their ballot come December 7 and that they should not to pay heed to naysayers. She said this was necessary because the 2020 election was a crucial exercise that would impact greatly on the development direction of the country and every Ghanaian must endeavor to participate in it. "I want to encourage everyone who is yet to register to come out and have a voice because if you don't have a voice, you may see something that you dont want to see," Mrs Osei-Opare stated. EC She commended the Electoral Commission (EC) and the registration officials for their professionalism and patriotism in the manner they have been going about the registration exercise. The Chief of Staff also visited several registration centres in the Ayawaso West Wuogon Constituency in the company of the New Patriotic Partys Parliamentary Candidate for the Constituency, Madam Lydia Alhassan. Source: Graphic.com.gh 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 Resist the war drive The trend of military build-up in our country has entered a new and dangerous stage. The signs are unmistakable: our government is preparing for war. A war which does not need to happen, and is not in our interests. A war which could lead to death and destruction on a scale great enough to threaten human life as we know it, for which there is no possible justification. But capitals hunger for it swells. The 2020 Defence Strategic Update released by the Australian Department of Defence on the 1st of July states: This security environment is markedly different from the relatively more benign one of even four years ago, with greater potential for military miscalculation. This could conceivably include state-on-state conflict that could engage the Australian Defence Force (ADF) where Australias interests are threatened. Accordingly, Defence must be better prepared for the prospect of high-intensity conflict. It is no secret that the Peoples Republic of China is being considered the potential military enemy here. The document states Strategic competition, primarily between the United States and China, will be the principal driver of strategic dynamics in our region, and specifically raises the possibility of high-intensity military conflict between the United States and China. Unsurprisingly but nonetheless disturbingly, the document promises that Australian Defence will continue to deepen Australias alliance with the United States. That the government has committed the outrageous sum of $270 billion to military spending, at a time when nearly every other sector of our society is in desperate need of funding, shows that this intention for war is becoming less hypothetical. The deepening severity and pervasiveness of anti-China propaganda over the past few years is also a sign that the government and ruling class are taking steps to preemptively win public support for this senseless war. All thats needed to kick it off is a Gulf of Tonkin incident. Or a USS Maine incident. Or a weapons of mass destruction-type incident. The fact that the US imperialists lie to start aggressive wars is so well known by this point that it has become cliche. We all know for a fact they lie. Yet our government is still perfectly happy to believe them and remain their firm ally! It is happy to have them whisper in their ear, for instance via trusted think tanks like the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, which openly receives funding from the US government and US arms manufacturers. Alternatively or in concert, the lie of Uyghur genocide or other claims of human rights abuses could be used to justify invasion. The outrageous likening of China to Nazi Germany, which informs and is informed by the construction of this myth, is a clear attempt to lay the ground for an ethical justification for initiating military conflict: one that is palatable both to those on the right and to those on the liberal left, who still retain some faith in the truthfulness of the information made most accessible to us, despite that we all know for a fact they lie. The Australian people are being bombarded with lies that perpetuate the belief that China is the aggressor. If it were known clearly by all that China is not the aggressor, then it would also be clear that, in fact, it is we who are and by we I am forced to mean the US and its allies. If China set up military bases in Mexico, Cuba, Haiti, or any other country in that region, and conducted military exercises in the Gulf of Mexico or off the coast of California, it would be considered by most to be obvious aggression. However, they have done no such thing whatsoever. The US on the other hand has military bases and facilities in Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Australia, amongst several others. The US Navy shamelessly conducts military exercises along the coast of China, even going so far as to repeatedly sail military vessels through the Strait of Taiwan and call it freedom of navigation operations. The main activity of the Chinese military (the Peoples Liberation Army) that is pointed to as aggressive is military exercises in the South China Sea. Yet the fact that the US and Australian navies also conduct military exercises there is seen as somehow different, blameless. This can only be justified by a sense of moral superiority that has no basis in fact. Chinas claim and activities in the South China Sea are often called expansionist, a use of the word which renders it meaningless. Regardless of anyones opinion on the claim, the fact is clear that this claim predates the founding of the Peoples Republic. Holding to the same claim (even reducing it by bilateral agreement with Vietnam in the early days of the Peoples Republic) cannot sensibly be considered expansionist. The Republic of China government of Taiwan even makes the same claim and conducts its own military exercises in the Sea. Yet it doesnt receive the same criticism in our media. At no point in the past four years that the Defence Strategic Update identifies as a period of heightening of tensions has the Chinese government openly threatened to invade another country. The US, meanwhile, has openly threatened to invade multiple countries, including DPR Korea, Venezuela and Iran, as well as engaging in combat in many others after having actually invaded them, including Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, in which Australian troops have also taken part. The US has also, unilaterally and without reasonable justification, initiated an attempt at economic warfare against China; a move destined to fail but with which the Australian government meekly and half-heartedly joined in, betraying the interests of the Australian people. The US imperialists are lying about China, and the Australian government is shamelessly following the US in its lies and aggression along the road to apocalypse. The Australian people deserve better allies and a better government, and we deserve independence and peace. We must fight back against the drive towards war at all costs. Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, speaks during a plenary meeting of the delegation of the People's Liberation Army and People's Armed Police Force at the third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing, capital of China, May 26, 2020. (Xinhua/Li Gang) BEIJING -- China's Army Day falls on Aug. 1. As the top commander, President Xi Jinping has been leading efforts to modernize national defense and the armed forces, and turn the People's Liberation Army (PLA) into world-class forces. To reach this goal, Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, has designed and carried out massive military reforms and directed military development through meetings, orders and instructions. In addition, Xi has reviewed troops, visited barracks, boarded armored vehicles and warships, and sent his regards to border patrol soldiers. The following are some highlights of such moments over the past few years: DRONE LAB Xi visited a laboratory for drone technology at the Aviation University of the Air Force when he inspected northeast China's Jilin Province in July 2020. He inspected teaching facilities for drone operating systems and learned about the training of drone operators. He stressed strengthening research into unmanned combat, enhancing drone education as a discipline, stepping up training in real combat conditions, and cultivating professionals who can use drones and take command in such warfare. Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), meets with representatives of the aircraft carrier unit and the manufacturer at a naval port in Sanya, south China's Hainan Province, Dec. 17, 2019. (Xinhua/Li Gang) AIRCRAFT CARRIER Xi attended the commissioning ceremony of China's first domestically built aircraft carrier, the Shandong, in December 2019 at a naval port in Sanya, south China's Hainan Province. Xi boarded the aircraft carrier and reviewed the guards of honor. He also inspected the onboard equipment and asked about the work and life of carrier-based aircraft pilots. Commending China's achievements in aircraft carrier construction, Xi encouraged the officers and soldiers to continue their efforts to make new contributions in the service of the Party and the people. TIAN'ANMEN SQUARE PARADE On Oct. 1, 2019, Xi reviewed the armed forces at Tian'anmen Square in central Beijing as a grand rally was held to mark the 70th founding anniversary of the People's Republic of China. The National Day parade was the first overall demonstration of Chinese armed forces after their comprehensive reform and restructuring in recent years. A total of 15,000 personnel, 580 pieces of armament and more than 160 aircraft in 15 foot formations, 32 armament formations and 12 echelons took part in the historic parade. Xi stressed that the PLA and the People's Armed Police Force should always preserve their nature, purpose and character as the forces of the people, resolutely safeguard China's sovereignty, security and development interests, and firmly uphold world peace. MULTINATIONAL NAVAL PARADE In April 2019, Xi reviewed a multinational fleet in the Yellow Sea as part of the activities to mark the 70th founding anniversary of the PLA Navy. Xi boarded the destroyer Xining, and reviewed 32 Chinese navy vessels and 39 aircraft, including China's first aircraft carrier the Liaoning and nuclear-powered submarines, as well as 18 visiting naval ships from 13 countries. In a group meeting with the heads of foreign delegations, Xi proposed building a maritime community with a shared future, and called for joint efforts to address common threats and challenges at sea and safeguard maritime peace and tranquility. The honor guard of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy stand in formation before a naval parade staged to mark the 70th founding anniversary of the PLA Navy at a pier in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, on April 23, 2019. (Xinhua/Li Gang) ELITE GROUND FORCE Inspecting a division of the PLA ground force in the Central Theater Command in January 2018, Xi boarded China's self-developed main battlefield 99A tank, known as the "king of land battles," and the Red Arrow-10 anti-tank missile launching vehicle to learn about armaments used in the army. He visited a reconnaissance company to watch training conducted by snipers, visited a simulation training center and met with officers of the division. He also visited the exhibition center detailing the division's history. Xi stressed building an elite combat force through real combat training, digitalization, innovation and reform. Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, reviews the armed forces as part of the commemorations to mark the 90th founding anniversary of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) at Zhurihe military training base in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, July 30, 2017. (Xinhua/Li Gang) FIELD PARADE Xi reviewed the armed forces in July 2017 as part of the commemorations to mark the 90th PLA founding anniversary. More than 12,000 service personnel took part in the parade at Zhurihe military training base in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Advanced weapons including stealth fighters and nuclear missiles were displayed. It was the first time for Xi to oversee such a large military parade in the field. Delivering a speech after the parade, Xi said China's need to build strong armed forces is greater than at any other time in history, as the Chinese nation is closer to the goal of great rejuvenation than ever. "The PLA has the confidence and capability to defeat all invading enemies and safeguard China's national sovereignty, security and development interests," said Xi. BORDER TROOPS In January 2014, Xi visited soldiers stationed on the Chinese-Mongolian border. Braving the cold, Xi met soldiers on a patrol mission and expressed his appreciation to them for working in the harsh weather to safeguard the country. He also stopped at a hilltop border post and inspected the garrison of a border troop company, where he joined officers and soldiers for lunch at their canteen. "I am very proud of our border troops. With you guarding the country's border, people feel safe and can concentrate on economic development, reform and opening-up," Xi said, stressing the great responsibility of border troops and urging them to work hard and perform their duties well. THE HAGUE:--- On Sunday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs tightened the travel advice for Sint Maarten to code orange (only necessary trips). The ministry decided not to recommend vacation trips to the island because of the increase in coronavirus infections. The ministry urges people not to travel to St. Maarten unless absolutely necessary. Travelers from Sint Maarten are advised to quarantine for a fortnight. Code yellow applies to Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao (note, security risks). More infections have been confirmed on Sint Maarten than in the other parts of the Caribbean part of the Dutch kingdom. It concerns 128 infections and fifteen deceased corona patients. Last week, Curacao issued negative travel advice for Sint Maarten. The virus has completely halted the tourism sector, an important source of income for Curacao, Aruba, and Sint Maarten. An emergency financial package must support the islands. However, an agreement on emergency support has not yet been successful because the islands do not agree with the conditions set by the Dutch cabinet. Mere moments into our conversation, chef and restaurateur Adrian Lipscombe perfectly sums up eggplant's reputation: "It's a really unique plant. Either you love it, or you hate it." Count me among the lovers, though I did have to grow into it. Because it can be tricky to cook perfectly, people may find it intimidating, says Lipscombe, a Wisconsin resident who recently launched the 40 Acres & A Mule Project to help Black farmers buy agricultural land. But there's no reason to be afraid of this versatile fruit (yes, it is fruit). Here are your keys to success. - Picking. In "The New Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone," cookbook author Deborah Madison offers this advice: "Regardless of variety or color, an eggplant should be smooth, firm, and taut. A glossy skin and a bright green stem indicate freshness. There should be good heft in the hand. If it's too light, the flesh may be spongy, seedy and bitter." The larger the eggplant, the seedier it may be. - Storing. Sharon Tyler Herbst and Ron Herbst in "The New Food Lover's Companion" suggest keeping eggplant in a cool dry place for a day or two, then moving it into the refrigerator vegetable bin for longer storage. Eggplant is ethylene sensitive, which means it should not be stored near ethylene producers, such as tomatoes, melons and stone fruit, which can hasten ripening or even rotting. - Varieties. Eggplant comes in many colors and sizes. Most of us routinely come across the large, dark purple globe eggplants and longer Asian varieties (Japanese tend to be darker and Chinese lighter). Shop at a farmers market or Asian market and you might find purple-and-white striped options, such as Indian or Fairy Tale; white, which come in multiple sizes; and the small, green, sphere-shaped Thai. Have a look at seedcatalogues to get an idea for the visual differentiation. "In terms of flavor, the lighter the hue, the more mild the eggplant - white eggplants being the most mild, followed by the pale green Thai fruits, magenta or purple and white striped varieties, then the dark purple globe eggplants," Madison says. Longer Asian varieties also skew mild and less seedy, with thinner skin. Despite outward appearances, you won't find much difference once you get to the flesh inside, so don't be afraid to experiment with or substitute varieties. - Prepping. In "Keys to Good Cooking: A Guide to Making the Best of Foods and Recipes," Harold McGee says, "bitterness is not common in modern eggplants," adding that if home cooks want to guard against it, however, they can salt eggplant before cooking. (Read more about the reasons for salting below.) Eggplant flesh darkens quickly, so if you're making something where appearance counts, don't let it sit out once cut. And whatever you do, if you're roasting or grilling a whole eggplant, do not forget to prick holes in it. (Ask me - or my grill - how I know.) - Cooking. "We need to be braver" with eggplant, Lipscombe says. Sure, we know and love eggplant Parm, but try stepping outside of your comfort zone. If you like fried green tomatoes, Lipscombe says, consider treating eggplant the same way, and maybe serve it with comeback sauce, too, a spicy Southern condiment that includes mayo, ketchup and hot sauce. Lipscombe says you should play around with how thick you cut the eggplant. Thinner pieces will be softer. Layer long planks in a vegetable sandwich or wrap them around a cheese and herb filling. Thicker pieces will be meatier with more chew, which make them a useful stand-in for meat. Madison says whole roasted eggplant can be torn into shreds. That made me want to try it in the same way folks have been experimenting with jackfruit, such as with barbecue or burritos. Pair eggplant with fellow summer produce, especially tomatoes and herbs. Ratatouille is a great example. Consider textural contrast. Eggplant leans soft, Lipscombe says, so add crunchy elements to the mix, including almonds and pomegranate seeds. As to cooking methods, Lipscombe says grilling is a favorite. Eggplant takes well to smoky flavors and high heat. When mashed, the grilled flesh is perfect for Middle Eastern baba ghanouj or Indian baingan bharta. In the absence of a grill, broiling can work wonders. Stir-frying, especially the longer varieties, is a great idea, as is pan-frying. Eggplant is, however, notorious for acting like a sponge when it comes to oil. To prevent that from happening, McGee suggests getting rid of some of its capacity to soak things up by briefly microwaving it or salting it in a colander until it wilts, followed by a rinse to get rid of the excess salt. If eggplant does take on too much oil, try heating it gently until the flesh shrinks, when some of the oil should be released, he says. Lipscombe suggests considering taking the salting step further by brining eggplant, which can also help you add more flavor through a bit of sugar and spices. Don't forget about braising, too. This is where eggplant's inherent ability to soak up liquid and flavors is a good thing. I'm a huge fan of eggplant Thai-style curries made with coconut milk. Ditto caponata. Advertisement Nearly 20million Britons plan to go on a staycation holiday in the UK this year, a poll found today amid fears over a fresh stampede of revellers to beauty spots as the country is set to be roasted by a ten-day heatwave. Tourists are expected to flock back to beaches across the country as temperatures up to 99F (37C) sweep in from central Europe by the end of the week amid a level two heat warning - following 71F (22C) highs today. A YouGov poll found 28 per cent of Britons plan to take a holiday in the UK this year - the equivalent of about 19million people - while only 9 per cent will go abroad and a further 49 per cent do not intend on holidaying. And the warm weather will concern local authorities in areas such as Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Sussex which can expect another huge influx of holidaymakers as people in the UK shun foreign trips to go on staycations. Beleaguered Cornish residents reported over the weekend how the popular county had turned into 'Benidorm on steroids' as floods of visitors left them too scared to leave their homes. Meanwhile Thanet District Council in Kent begged people to avoid four of the area's beaches - including the popular Margate's Main Sands - due to the number of visitors. And a drunken fight broke out on the seafront in Brighton on Saturday night as two women went toe-to-toe and others cheered and ignored social distancing. It comes as Britain's coronavirus infection rate continues to soar, with 744 people diagnosed with the virus yesterday - up from 771 yesterday and 880 on Friday. Crowds of holidaymakers and sunseekers flock to the busy beach at the Dorset seaside resort of Lyme Regis this morning A major 'African heat flare' is set to roast Britain in a ten-day heatwave sweeping across the country from the Continent over this week Holidaymakers and daytrippers make the most of the summer sun as they enjoy a day at the beach in Lyme Regis this morning The seaside resort of Lyme Regis in Dorset is once again busy today as daytrippers soak up the sunshine and warm weather The Sea Show performance at the Minack Theatre in Porthcurno near Lands End in Cornwall today Tourists pack into the coastal town of Bray in County Wicklow in the Republic of Ireland today Met Office forecaster Bonnie Diamond said: 'There will be a warm spell across the UK but at the moment this hot weather will be focused in the south-east of England. At the minute and with high confidence, we are expecting 34C (93F) to 36C (97F) by Friday and Saturday.' These high temperatures are the result of southerly winds moving from Europe and high pressure patterns that are set to kick in from around Thursday. Ms Diamond said: 'The pressure pattern is generally high, so in combination with the southerly winds and high pressure we get settled, sunny and hot weather.' It is due to come after a 'mixed start' to the week. Sunny spells and generally settled weather can be enjoyed across southern areas, but heavy rain is on the way for Northern Ireland and Scotland tomorrow. Ms Diamond added things then start to settle down from Wednesday with warm weather developing across the UK, 'but it is going to turn hot across the South East, where temperatures are going to be well into the 30Cs.'s These high temperatures could trigger some thunderstorms on Friday and Saturday. It comes after temperatures reached 100F (37.8C) in London at 2.41pm on Friday, making it the third hottest day ever recorded in the UK. The highest ever UK temperature, 101.7F (38.7C), was recorded in Cambridge University Botanic Garden on July 25, 2019. The second hottest day ever was a recorded at 101.3F (38.5C) in Faversham, Kent, on August 10, 2003. A YouGov poll found 28 per cent of Britons plan to take a holiday in the UK this year - the equivalent of about 19million people - while only 9 per cent will go abroad and a further 49 per cent do not intend on holidaying. People jump into the water in the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire today People enjoy making their way along the Long Walk in Windsor today as the warm weather continues for Britain People feed the ducks in the River Thames while visiting Windsor today to make the most of the warm temperatures A group of people go for a boat ride in Windsor today as the warm weather continues for much of the country People enjoysitting in the park in Windsor today as parts of Britain enjoy more sunshine and warm temperatures Over the weekend, street marshals were deployed in Cornwall as tourists poured down narrow streets and flouted social-distancing rules - despite clear warning signs in place. Cornwall Council slammed the 'ignorant' visitors who descended on beauty spots without their face masks, as Britons elsewhere appeared to ignore social distancing rules while gathering at bars. Pictured: Hero father who died after saving three of his children when they got caught in rip tide off Welsh beach as his 'devastated' partner pays tribute to him for 'bringing our babies back' A father-of-seven who died while rescuing three of his children when they got caught in a rip tide during a family trip to the seaside has been pictured. Jonathan 'Joff' Stevens, 36, was with the youngsters aged ten to 12 at Barmouth in North Wales when they began to struggle in the water yesterday lunchtime. The plasterer tried to pull the children to safety, and a major rescue operation was launched involving a lifeboat and Coastguard search and rescue helicopter. Jonathan Stevens is pictured with his partner Laura Burford and four of their children - including Lacey (bottom right) and Jack (bottom centre), whom he rescued yesterday Mr Stevens, from Telford, Shropshire, was then pulled from the water and flown to Gwynedd Hospital in Bangor in an air ambulance but died. Today, his heartbroken partner Laura Burford, who was back home 80 miles away when the tragedy happened, said he had died a hero while 'saving their babies'. She said: 'I am absolutely devastated to say that I have lost the complete love of my life. All seven of his beautiful kids have lost their dad. 'He died saving his kids' lives in the sea. There are no words to describe the pain. I will always be grateful to (him) for bringing our babies back. I love him, always have, and always will.' Advertisement Deputy leader Adam Paynter yesterday admitted there is fear in the coastal county for a rise in coronavirus cases as people travel to the region for their holidays. Speaking out about holidaymakers flocking to the country, where yesterday a man in his 40s died after being pulled from the sea, he told LBC: 'It is feeling quite busy, it's difficult to know exactly where it is numbers-wise. 'Many hotels and certainly bed-and-breakfasts either haven't opened or are seeing less visitors but then our campsites and caravans are seeing a lot more people using those sites so it is feeling busy when you're out in some of our towns.' Councillor Paynter also criticised 'ignorant' tourists who refuse to wear face masks during their visit to the south-west. He said: 'Clearly we've still got a very low number of cases of coronavirus but obviously residents want to keep it that way. 'I've heard two different incidents where people have been overheard saying: 'Well, I'm not going to wear a mask. I came down here to get away from all of that. 'I think that's pretty ignorant thinking that coronavirus doesn't exist down here. We did have 20 positive cases this week which was up 14 from the previous week.' He added: 'So it's something that local residents are concerned about because they've been sensible, they've behaved.' But locals in the county are among those preparing for another weekend of misery as the mercury looks set to rocket back up to at least 91F (33C). The Met Office told of an 'African heat flare' coming in from Thursday until mid-August, bringing 'drier, brighter and very warm' weather towards the end of the week and 'very hot conditions' in the South East. Weather Outlook forecaster Brian Gaze, said: 'August could rescue summer. He added: 'Computer models suggest a very warm or hot period from Thursday, lasting for as long as mid-month. 35C is possible again.' Senior forecaster at the Met Office Marco Petagna said: 'On Monday we are looking at a mixture of sun and showers with most of them looking like they will be in central and eastern parts of England. 'Any showers across Wales will dry away during the afternoon and we are looking at temperatures between 19 and 23C generally... the North of England should be slightly cooler.' He said there would be outbreaks of rain across the North West on Tuesday but that the South East should expect dry, sunny weather. Mr Petagna said the outlook for Wednesday would be similar, albeit a little breezier. He said: 'In the second half of the week the heat should build, especially on Friday and Saturday, and that we could see two, possibly three, days of hot weather. Ex-BBC and Met Office forecaster John Hammond of weathertrending added: 'The great news for millions on staycation is August looks kinder than summer so far. 'Plenty of fine weather is further ahead, with more potential for heat than for much of summer so far.' The Met Office's long range forecast read: 'For the following week, a fair amount of dry, bright warm weather looks likely for much of the UK with the possibility of some further very warm weather, especially in the South East.' Friday was the third hottest day since records began in 1910 reaching temperatures of 37.8C (100F). Forecasters have warned of outbreaks of rain from today, particularly in the North West, until Wednesday. Hot air balloons fly over South Bristol as part of a mass ascent today, with 43 balloon teams taking part this morning Hot air balloons take off today as part of the socially distanced alternative to the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta 2020 Hot air balloons take off in a mass ascent from Bristol for a Fiesta Flypast over the city this morning Hot air balloons form a heart shape as they prepare to take off in a mass ascent from Bristol this morning Bookmakers Ladbrokes slashed odds on August being the hottest ever to 4-7 on. Spokesman Alex Apati said: 'We're going to melt this month.' Man in his 40s dies after being pulled from the sea near beach in Cornwall A man in his 40s died after being pulled from the sea near a beach in west Cornwall over the weekend. Devon and Cornwall Police said it was contacted by the coastguard at 1.30pm on Saturday to reports a man had got into difficulty at Pedn Vounder Beach, near Porthcurno. Members of the public and medical staff were unable to revive him, police said. A Devon and Cornwall Police spokesman said: 'The next of kin have been informed and a file will be prepared for the coroner.' Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact police on 101 and quote log 594 of August 1. Advertisement A drunken fight broke out in Brighton, with one 'full scale' brawl spilling out of the packed Music Hall bar on the seafront on Saturday night. Security staff and passers-by jumped in to help break-up the women, who appeared to pull at each other's hair as they tumbled to the ground near the seafront. A witness said: 'It was very warm and large numbers of people had been drinking all afternoon, totally ignoring social distancing measures. 'Suddenly a minor disagreement erupted into a full-scale fight with the women trading blows. The fight then spilled over to another area with both women grappling and punching each other on the floor.' The witness added: 'Eventually the single security worker, who was not wearing a mask, managed to separate the pair.' Sussex Police did not intervene to enforce the social distancing measures pubs and bars have been ordered to abide by. The witness added: 'I think the hot weather and drink is a recipe for disaster when it comes to the Government's anti-Covid-19 policies.' Although scenes were much more peaceful on the streets of Soho, London, photographs yesterday showed large groups gathering to drink outside pubs and bars. Meanwhile, Bournemouth beach was typically busy as sunseekers flocked to top up their tans in the warm summer heat, as was Southend beach in Essex. Thanet District Council in Kent begged people to avoid four of the area's beaches, including Margate's Main Sands, due to the number of visitors. As temperatures hit 72F in Brighton this weekend, tempers boiled over when an argument between two women erupted into violence with bystanders cheering them on Tourists are expected to flock back to beaches (pictured, Brighton on Friday) across the country as temperatures up to 91F (33C) sweep in from central Europe by the end of the week - following 71F (22C) today Leader of the council Rick Everitt said: 'Early on, it became clear that they were going to reach levels of which we were concerned about.' Authorities are worried about keeping tourists safe in the water, as well as the potential spread of Covid-19 and maintaining social distancing. Mr Everitt said: 'The RNLI only have a certain capacity. RNLI rescues 14 friends from island after they were cut off by the tide Fourteen people had to be rescued from an island off the Norfolk coast when the tide cut them off. As the hot weather saw tourists flock to beaches, coastguards and the RNLI have seen a sharp increase in call-outs to assist those in trouble. After being paged by Humber Coastguard, Hunstanton RNLI and Hunstanton Coast Guard Rescue Team were called to Brancaster to save 14 trippers who had become stranded on Scolt Head Island. The party had walked to the island quarter of a mile out at low tide but did not realise their way back was under water. Hunstanton Coastguard said 'Once on scene, the team made sure all casualties did not attempt to cross the channel. 'Hunstanton Lifeboat made four trips across the channel with casualties. Words of advice given to all involved.' Advertisement 'They're on seven Thanet beaches this summer, which is slightly fewer than usual, and they're doing a great job where they are but they don't have unlimited resources to deal with people in the water.' The councillor added: 'If you have too many people on the beach, it just becomes unmanageable from that point of view.' Britons are scrambling for staycation spots with campsites, B&Bs and holiday cottages booking up fast as tens of thousands of foreign stays were put on hold amid fears over a second wave of coronavirus. Not a single pitch, campervan space or lodge at any of the top 20 campsites in Cornwall or top 15 in Dorset are available for a week's stay for two adults, as lockdown-weary holidaymakers flock to the areas to enjoy a summer break. Parks and campsites across Britain have seen a boom in bookings recently, with Haven, Butlin's, Center Parcs and Hoseasons being inundated - and cottage bookings swept up. Those looking for sun-soaked day trips have started taking advantage of the country's beauty spots already, with huge crowds flocking to seaside spots in Cornwall and Devon on Thursday - leaving car parks jam-packed. Some opted for a day out at Westgate Gardens in Canterbury while others enjoyed a trip to the seaside in Brighton. MailOnline surveyed the 20 best campsites in Cornwall according to campsites.co.uk and found the likes of Little Trevothan Camping & Caravan Park in Helston and Polruan Holidays in Fowey are full until the end of August. Others such as Trethem Mill Touring Park in Truro are fully booked until the end of September - but are having to run at reduced capacity of about 50 per cent to ensure they follow social distancing requirements. Further sites in the likes of Newquay, St Austell, Par, Looe, St Columb Major, Padstow, Whitecross, Mevagissey, Redruth, Bude, Perranporth, Camelford, Marazion and Bude are also fully booked for at least the next week. In Dorset, there was limited availability for next week at two of the 15 sites, in Owermoigne and Wareham. But the rest are booked up until at least August 16, with three in the county not taking bookings until September. Teenager, 18, dies while swimming at beauty spot An 18-year-old man died after getting into difficulty while swimming in a river on the UK's hottest day of the year, rescue services said. Emergency services were called to Linton Falls, on the River Wharfe, near Grassington, North Yorkshire, at around 7.44pm on Friday. Rescue teams attempted to resuscitate the man but he was pronounced dead at the scene, the Upper Wharfedale Fell Rescue Association (UWFRA) said. A spokesman for the UWFRA said: 'The team were called to an 18-year-old male in difficulty whilst swimming in the River Wharfe at Linton Falls. North Yorkshire Police, Yorkshire Ambulance Service and North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service were all on scene. 'The team co-ordinated the rescue with the fire service. CPR was administered by the rescue services but unfortunately the man was pronounced dead at the scene. Our thoughts are with all those affected by this incident.' The spokesman said 14 team members attended the two-and-a-half-hour rescue attempt. North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said three crews, from Grassington, Skipton and Lofthouse, and a water rescue team from Ripon were called to a report of a man in the water. Martyn Hughes, a watch manager with North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, tweeted: 'Despite frantic efforts by many, we were unable to save the young man. Thoughts very much with family and friends. Sadly another water-related death at one of our natural beauty spots.' And Grassington Fire Station wrote: 'The falls and river at Grassington through to Linton and Burnsall is beautiful, it can be tempting on hot days to take a dip, but please beware of the hidden dangers in moving cold water.' Advertisement Those hoping for a last-minute stay in a holiday hotspot last weekend found campsites for 150 a night or 200 a night for three-star hotels as demand soared. One four-star hotel on the beach in Newquay, Cornwall, came in at nearly 350 a night, while a one-bedroom cottage in the Cotswolds will set you back 280 a night. But some people are steering away from popular holiday destinations as the coronavirus infection rates appears to be on the rise again. A further eight people who tested positive for Covid-19 died in Britain yesterday while 744 people were diagnosed with the bug. The total number of confirmed deaths in hospitals, care homes and the wider community during the pandemic hit 46,201 following the rise. Figures released on Sunday are lower due to a delay in processing over the weekend. The cases recorded yesterday - as well as a further 771 yesterday and 880 on Friday - took the country's total to 304,695. Five people who tested positive for coronavirus died in England, with patients aged between 52 and 86 and with known underlying health conditions. Two of the patients died in the Midlands, one in the north east and Yorkshire, one in the North West and one in the south west. Wales reported a further three coronavirus deaths in care homes and hospitals and 37 more cases. Scotland reported no new deaths - although it points out that register offices are now generally closed at weekends. A total of 31 people tested positive for the bug. Northern Ireland stopped reporting its data on the virus at weekends so the daily figures for positive cases are for Britain only. It comes as an exclusive poll for MailOnline revealed yesterday a quarter of Britons are planning to alter their holiday plans in the wake of the decision to re-impose quarantine restrictions on Spain. Some 25 per cent said they were considering changes and more than a third said they were now less likely to book a foreign holiday at all amid fears other popular destinations could follow in having restrictions put in place. But the poll, conducted by Redfield and Wilton Strategies, also found more than two in five people backed how the Government handled last Saturday's announcement which came with just five hours' notice. The worries come as the government discusses whether lockdown restrictions were eased too early. One of the government's top scientific advisers warned 'further interventions' could be needed to get pupils back in classes next month - suggesting ministers decide between pubs or schools. Indigenous community members worried about COVID-19 staged a blockade at the entrance to Uluru because Parks Australia had continued to allow tourists in. Traditional owners in the Northern Territory blocked the entrance to Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park as a protest on Monday morning after 42 passengers arrived on a Jetstar flight from Brisbane at about 10am. NT Health officials said three of the passengers had arrived from areas declared as hotspots and were transported by bus to Alice Springs for the two week quarantine. Traditional owners in the Northern Territory blocked the entrance to Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park as a protest on Monday (pictured) after 42 passengers arrived on a Jetstar flight Pictures from the entrance to the national park show members of The Mutitjulu Community Aboriginal Corporation standing on the highway in protest with cars parked across the asphalt. 'We were told this flight would not be going ahead today after the NT declared Brisbane a COVID-19 hotspot on Friday,' general manager Glenn Irvine said. 'I watched most of the passengers enter Yulara this morning. This presents an egregious and totally unacceptable risk to the residents of Mutitjulu and the surrounding Lasseter region.' An email from Parks Australia seen by the NT News revealed the organisation had previously refused to close the national park. The email states Parks Australia's position is that allowing tourists into Uluru would be safer for the local Aboriginal community because there would be less chance of transmission out in the open. 'Closing the park now would result in visitors being confined in Yulara where the opportunity for contact with residents is much greater,' the email reads. Mr Irvine said traditional owners had been clear they did not want the visitors to enter the park and were left with no choice but to blockade the entrance after they were ignored. NT Chief Minister Michael Gunner said he respects traditional owner's views and said anyone arriving from a hotspot would need to go through mandatory quarantine. Parks Australia told Daily Mail Australia they agreed to close Uluru national park at 1pm on Monday and conduct talks with traditional owners. The blockade is no longer in place and the park closure would be reviewed on Tuesday afternoon. 'Parks Australia is committed to being part of a response that minimises the risk of COVID-19 to staff, visitors and residents within the Mutitjulu and Yulara communities and at Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park,' the department said. 'Stringent measures have already been put in place by the Northern Territory Government and Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia.' 'We are working with Mutitjulu Community Aboriginal Corporation, NT Government and Voyages to reach agreement on additional health and visitor screening within the Yulara township, at Ayers Rock Airport and departure points which complement measures already put in place in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.' Jetstar told Daily Mail Australia they are operating two flights between Brisbane and Uluru per week to deliver supplies and transport visitors. The airline added they were following federal and state guidelines. 'We advised all passengers including those from Brisbane, Ipswich and Logan areas they are subject to the travel restrictions that came into force on Saturday. Given these restrictions, we expect it will be largely outbound passengers and freight.' Tourists are no longer allowed to climb Uluru but can still walk around the base of the rock Page Content St. Maarten continues with plans to reopen today, August 1st, to the U.S. Market. Considering this, a decision has been made by Madam Prefete Sylvie Feucher to close the French-Dutch Border as per July 31st, at noon. The French-Dutch internal borders are being controlled; however, for work and other medical reasons, persons will be allowed to cross the border to French Saint Martin with proper documentation. This means U.S. visitors are not permitted entry to the French side of the island. Our U.S. visitors are therefore invited to enjoy the southern part of this unique two nation destination. St. Maarten assures that the health of the citizens and visitors is of top priority. Thus, the necessary precautionary measures have been put in place, allowing our visitors to experience and explore the various excursions, tours, restaurants, and food places safely. For the further information, the latest news on COVID-19 and Travel Restrictions, please visit www.vacationstmaarten.com and follow the link which takes you to www.stmaartenupdates.com. A top Federal Reserve official told CBS Sunday that a "really hard" four- to six-week lockdown could benefit the U.S. economy as Congress "has the resources to support those who are most hurting" during the coronavirus pandemic. Details: Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank president Neel Kashkari said a short lockdown "could get the case count down so that our testing and our contact tracing was actually enough to control it the way that it's happening in the Northeast right now." If that doesn't happen, "we just have this raging virus spreading throughout the country with flare-ups and local lockdowns for the next year or two," Kashkari said. He predicted that "many, many more" small and big businesses would file for bankruptcy, leading to a "much slower recovery for all of us," with businesses taking longer to rebuild and then to bring workers back in. Why it matters: As the country continues to grapple with the outbreak, the U.S. economy shrank at an annualized 32.9% rate in the second quarter the worst-ever contraction on records that date back to 1947, Axios' Courtenay Brown notes. Of note: Kashkari said the U.S. personal savings rate had "taken off." "Before the crisis, it was around 8%," he added. "Now it's around 20%." Americans who are still working and saving more enables more resources for Congress to support those who've been laid off, Kashkari explained. "Right now the U.S. can fund itself at very, very low rates. Congress should use this opportunity to support the American people and the American economy," he added. The big picture: Coronavirus cases began declining or holding steady in most states by the end of last month. However, two of the worst U.S. hot spots, California and Florida, have shown little improvement after weeks of deterioration. White House coronavirus task force coordinator Deborah Birx noted Sunday the U.S. has shifted into a new phase of the pandemic, after infections spread further into rural areas. Against this backdrop, lawmakers are conducting negotiations on the next stimulus bill, which have stalled amid a congressional deadlock. What they're saying: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told ABC's "This Week" Sunday, "There's obviously a need to support workers and support the economy. ... On the other hand, we have to be careful about not piling on enormous amount of debts for future generation." Per CNBC, President Trump said last week, "I really do believe a lot of the governors should be opening up states that are not opening." By the numbers: More than 154,800 people have died of COVID-19 and almost 4.7 million people have tested positive for the virus in the U.S., per Johns Hopkins. (Natural News) A coalition of hundreds of human rights activists and other organizations recently sent an open letter to U.S. Attorney General William Barr asking the U.S. Department of Justice to designate the Chinese Communist Party a transnational criminal organization, saying that their lethality and criminal sophistication demonstrates that this lawless CCP poses a clear and present danger to the health, security, and prosperity of America. The authors cite concerns about crimes that include broad intellectual property theft, human trafficking and the deliberate spread of the deadly coronavirus. The move comes as tensions between the U.S. and China continue to rise, with the U.S. closing the Chinese consulate in Houston and China closing the U.S. consulate in Chengdu in recent weeks. In making their case, they cited an executive order signed by President Trump in February 2017 that states the executive branchs policy is to strengthen enforcement of Federal law in order to thwart transnational criminal organizations and subsidiary organizations, including criminal gangs, cartels, racketeering organizations, and other groups engaged in illicit activities that present a threat to public safety and national security. Its easy to see how the CCP would qualify, given the executive order specifies activities like cybercrime, corruption, financial crimes, intellectual property theft, and fraud in its list of activities that transnational criminal organizations carry out. In their letter, they outline how the deadly synthetic drug Fentanyl, which is manufactured and distributed by the Chinese, has been killing American citizens in droves, with more than 31,000 Americans overdosing on such drugs in 2018 alone. Moreover, their handling of coronavirus is also criminal, and its staggering effects on the economy and public health of Americans and the rest of the world are undeniable. As we know, the CCP failed to warn the world about the virus and took steps to cover up its transmission and deadliness. So far, more than 140,000 people in the U.S. have died from the virus, and that number continues to climb at a significant rate. The letter was drafted by famed human rights lawyer Liz Yore with input from Hong Kong businessman and activist Elmer Yuen, the Committee on the Present Danger: China, and the non-profit Save the Persecuted Christians. Yuen has been actively seeking a legal basis to disarm the CCP and hopefully dissolve it so its many heinous acts can come to an end. Yore cited recent speeches by the administration that outline the CCPs crimes against humanity and illegal behavior in recent times. For example, the CCP obtained personal details on 383 million Marriott guests through a 2019 hack, along with that of 145 million Americans in the 2017 Equifax hack. The letter also pointed out that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a July 8 press conference that the CCP was responsible for spreading coronavirus. He also called out the CCP for holding Muslim Uyghurs in Xinjiang camps, where they are subjected to forced sterilizations and abortions, among other horrors. The China Tribunal found that they were also guilty of industrial-scale organ harvesting. What would the TCO designation accomplish? Yuen said that such a designation would give the CCPs crimes a collective name and draw greater attention to the problems. If other countries follow suit, it could have an even bigger impact. Moreover, the TCO designation would lead to a coordinated effort by country-wide law enforcement and federal agencies. It would trigger economic sanctions against the companies and banks that do business with the CCP and impose other types of sanctions and criminal penalties that could help curb their behavior. Yore said that while the Trump administration has already made some progress in educating the public on the CCPs ways, she thinks a criminal label would help wake the public up to what is really going on. Sources for this article include: TheEpochTimes.com FoxNews.com With the assistance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan, a charter flight from the People's Republic of China with 78 oxygen concentrators, each with a capacity of 10 liters has arrived in Bishkek, the press service of the Government reported, Trend reports via Kabar. The new units were purchased at the expense of the republican budget and transferred to the Ministry of Health, for distribution by region. Earlier, 1500 5-liter oxygen concentrators were delivered from China. In addition, last week 40 more units of 10-liter concentrators were delivered. Over 350 oxygen concentrators of the same volume are expected to arrive next week. In total, Kyrgyzstan has purchased 2,000 oxygen concentrators from the People's Republic of China. Marcie Bolt, License Partner and Broker of Engel & Volkers Melbourne Central and Engel & Volkers Melbourne Beachside Since I joined Engel & Volkers two years ago, converting my independent brokerage, I have seen a tremendously positive change in my business including increasing my average price point, decreasing my days on market and more. Engel & Volkers today announced its latest franchise expansion in East Central Florida with Engel & Volkers Melbourne Beachside; marking the companys third location in the region. Local market expert, Marcie Bolt will lead the new brokerage as License Partner and Broker. Bolt is already the License Partner of Engel & Volkers Melbourne Central. According to local vernacular, "beachside" encompasses the communities of Satellite Beach, Indian Harbour Beach, Indialantic, and Melbourne Beach. I am thrilled to expand our bespoke services to the beachside communities of Brevard County, said Bolt. Since I joined Engel & Volkers two years ago, converting my independent brokerage, I have seen a tremendously positive change in my business including increasing my average price point, decreasing my days on market and more. I look forward to sharing that growth with even more advisors and clients now. Engel & Volkers Melbourne Beachside will be located at 1165 N. Highway A1A, Suite A in Indialantic and is currently under renovation to transform into the Engel & Volkers shop concept. In the meantime, Bolt continues to actively recruit talented local professionals to join her team of advisors at both the Melbourne Central and Melbourne Beachside locations. A grand opening is tentatively planned for later this year. Bolt converted her previous independent brokerage, Tropic Coast Realty, to Engel & Volkers Melbourne Central in June 2018. She has been in the real estate industry for over 16 years and prior to that had a successful career in the food and beverage industry as the owner of a local-favorite restaurant. We are thrilled to expand our presence in East Central Florida with Marcie, said Timo Khammash, Managing Partner of Engel & Volkers Florida. While focus is typically on expanding into new markets throughout Florida, we highly value the relationships we have with our License Partners and are overjoyed at their achievements - especially if it allows them to grow and expand their own business to new heights. East Central Florida is locally referred to as the Space Coast. The region offers 72 miles of Atlantic Ocean beaches, astronomical attractions, world-famous surfing, endless outdoor activities, and unique natural wonders. Located in the Southern part of Florida's Space Coast, Indianaltic is a quintessential beach town known for its family-friendly charm. The median home value in Indialantic is $447,140, where a nearly 4-percent increase has been observed over the past year. In addition to Bolts two brokerages, there is a third location in the area, Engel & Volkers Melbourne Downtown owned by Ryan Fischer and Eric Mannes. Press contact: Linzee Werkmeister, Director, Public Relations & Franchise Support Email: Linzee.Werkmeister(at)evrealestate.com Tel: (239) 348-9000 About Engel & Volkers: Engel & Volkers is a global luxury real estate brand. Founded in Hamburg, Germany in 1977, Engel & Volkers draws on its rich European history to deliver a fresh approach to luxury real estate in the Americas with a focus on creating a bespoke, white-glove concierge client experience at every stage of the home buying or selling process for todays savvy homeowner. Engel & Volkers currently operates approximately 175 shop locations with more than 4,000 real estate advisors in the Americas, contributing to the brands global network of over 12,000 real estate professionals in more than 30 countries, offering both private and institutional clients a professionally tailored range of luxury services, including real estate, yachting and aviation. Committed to exceptional service, Engel & Volkers supports its advisors with an array of premium quality business services; marketing programs and platforms; as well as access to its global network of real estate professionals, property listings and market data. Each brokerage is independently owned and operated. For more information, visit evrealestate.com. About Engel & Volkers Florida: Engel & Volkers Florida is the Master License Partner of the global luxury real estate brand Engel & Volkers in the state of Florida. Recognized for uniquely recruiting, training and equipping some of the top professionals in the real estate industry, Engel & Volkers Floridas exclusive franchise model positions its license partners at the top of the premium market to gain market share and support their bottom line. The company represents franchise locations in: 30A Beaches, Belleair, Boca Raton, Bonita Springs-Estero, Cape Coral, Clermont, Delray Beach, Destin, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers Downtown, Gainesville, Islamorada, Jacksonville, Jacksonville Beach, Jupiter, Leesburg, Madeira Beach, Marco Island, Melbourne Beachside, Melbourne Central, Melbourne Downtown, Miami Coconut Grove, Olde Naples, Orlando Downtown, Orlando-Winter Park, Palm Beach, Palm Coast, St. Augustine, St. Pete, Stuart, Wellington, and Windermere. Engel & Volkers Florida is continuing to strategically strengthen and expand its presence in premium real estate markets across the state of Florida. If you would like to know more about the Engel & Volkers brand or how to join its global network, which is known for demonstrating competence, exclusivity and passion, feel free to call our corporate office, located at 633 Tamiami Trl N, Suite 201, Naples, FL 34102 USA. Tel: +1 239-348-9000. For more information about Engel & Volkers Florida, please visit florida.evrealestate.com Doctors insist that there is no drug for COVID cure as yet, and individuals were being treated on a case-to-case basis. The very thought of contracting COVID-19 and the possibility of social ostracism making people hit the panic button, quite a few with symptoms of the disease are resorting to self-medication, relying on peer advice and borrowed prescriptions, despite doctors warning against it. A teacher at a private institute in Barasat near Kolkata admitted that he refrained from undergoing a test despite symptoms of the viral disease, and instead collected a prescription from a friend, a COVID-19 survivor, and bought medicines. "Two of my neighbours were ostracised by locals after they tested positive for the disease. I did not want to go through the same. A friend of mine, who is a COVID survivor, shared his prescription with me after I told him that I have lost my sense of smell and taste. I got the medicines from a local pharmacy, and hopefully, I will be fine in a few days", the man in his early 50s said. Noted virologist Dr Amitabh Nandy said he recently received one such prescription on Whatsapp and insisted that most of these doing the rounds on social media are fake. Talking to PTI, Nandy stressed on the fact that there is no drug for COVID cure as yet, and individuals were being treated on a case-to-case basis. COVID psychosis or fear of the disease is probably spreading at a faster rate than the disease itself. People are governed by community members and relatives. They fail to understand that there cannot be a single protocol applicable for all. One biological unit (human) differs from another, the former consultant at the World Health Organisation said. Medical science in our country is not scientifically governed, he deplored. Without a diagnosis, medication can be harmful. Physical examination by doctors is necessary before writing a prescription. Unfortunately, the pandemic has not been handled well. There has been no mechanism to address peoples fears. And that's adding to the woes. Even pharmacies are selling medicines without proper verification, Nandy said. Many are sceptical about visiting government hospitals for COVID-19 tests, as is the case with a clerk at a civic body here, who said that hygiene is not maintained at some of these facilities. I have seen patients flouting social distancing norms at these hospitals. Also, the premises are not always very clean. I consulted a nurse, who is a relative, and she asked me to take certain medicines, after learning about the symptoms I have. I am doing better than before, she said. Dr Diptendra Sarkar, professor of surgery at state-run SSKM hospital, said self-medication is a reason why the mortality rate in Bengal is on the rise. Patients, who could have otherwise recovered without much ado, are rushing to doctors only when the situation has got out of hand. They are visiting doctors with respiratory distress after their self-medication attempts have failed. I have patients who have asked me if they should store hydroxychloroquine and steroids at home. People are carrying hydroxychloroquine pills in pockets. These medicines can have side-effects, he told PTI. Arup Sen, a senior manager at a top medical retail chain on Lindsay Street, admitted that his store executives are getting enquiries on immunity boosters, and medicines to treat COVID-19 symptoms. He said he has asked the executives not to entertain customers who do not furnish a proper prescription. Senior TMC leader and Rajya Sabha MP Santanu Sen, when approached, said those that have been hiding symptoms and not undergoing tests are doing a disservice to themselves and the society by putting everyone at risk. "People have been told to consult doctors even if they experience mild symptoms. The government has been conducting surveys to check on people and create awareness. Those not following guidelines and hiding symptoms or indulging in self-medication are causing harm to themselves as well as the society, he added. Lebanon is suffering its worst economic crisis in decades, marked by an unprecedented plunge of its currency, which has left nearly half of the population in poverty. The financial collapse has led to mass layoffs and salary cuts in a country already rocked since late 2019 by mass protests against a political system seen as corrupt and incompetent. Here are the key moments in the spiralling crisis. - Dollar shortages - Anxiety about a dollar shortage flares on September 29 last year when hundreds of people take to the streets of central Beirut to protest economic hardship. Among the worst hit are petrol station owners who need dollars to pay fuel suppliers. Media report that banks and exchange offices are limiting dollar sales for fear of running out. - Tax on WhatsApp - A government proposal to tax free online messaging apps such as WhatsApp, made on October 17, is the last straw. Thousands take to the streets in Beirut and other cities, some chanting "the people demand the fall of the regime". The government of prime minister Saad Hariri scraps the tax the same day, but protests grow over the next weeks, culminating in demonstrations gathering hundreds of thousands demanding an overhaul of the entire ruling class. - New government - On December 19 little-known academic Hassan Diab, who is backed by powerful Shiite movement Hezbollah, is named prime minister, replacing Hariri who resigned in late October under pressure from the street. Protesters immediately regroup to condemn the appointment which outrages members of the Sunni community. On January 21, 2020, a new government is unveiled, made up of a single political camp, the pro-Iranian Hezbollah and its allies, who have a parliamentary majority. Demonstrators respond by torching tyres and blocking several roads in mainly Sunni towns across the country. - Default - On March 7, Lebanon, whose debt burden has ballooned to nearly 170 percent of its gross domestic product, says it will default on a $1.2-billion Eurobond. On March 23 it says it will discontinue payments on all dollar-denominated Eurobonds. - Capital flight - On April 24, Diab says that banks have lost $5.7 billion (4.8 billion euros) in January and February in spite of restrictions on withdrawals and transfers abroad. According to official estimates, $2.3 billion were transferred out of the country last year. - Rescue plan - On April 30, after three nights of violent clashes in Tripoli, Diab says Lebanon will seek help from the International Monetary Fund, after the government approves a plan to rescue the economy. On May 13, Lebanon launches talks with the IMF. - Arrests - In May the president of the exchange offices' trades union Mahmud Mrad is arrested and the director of monetary operations at the central bank Mazen Hamdan charged with "manipulation of the national currency". - Currency collapse - From June 11-13, after the Lebanese pound hits a new low on the black market, protesters take to the streets after sundown, blocking roads, including in Beirut and Tripoli. On June 29, the director general of the finance ministry involved in the negotiations with the IMF resigns, citing deep disagreements over the management of the crisis. - Out of control - On July 10, the UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet warns that Lebanon's crisis is getting out of hand, calling for urgent internal reforms coupled with international support to prevent further mayhem. - 'Failed state' - On August 3, Foreign Minister Nassif Hitti resigns in protest at the government's mishandling of the crisis, including its unwillingness to initiate changes demanded by the IMF. He warns that Lebanon risks becoming a "failed state". He is replaced by Charbel Wahbe, a former ambassador and advisor to President Michel Aoun. Search Keywords: Short link: Indias drug controller on Monday gave approval to Pune-based vaccine manufacturer Serum Institute of India (SII) for conducting phase II and III clinical trials on the vaccine against the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca, according to the Union health ministry. The trials are likely to begin within the week, according to people aware of the matter. This would make the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine called Covishield the first one to enter phase II and III trials in India. Phase I human trials have started on two indigenously developed vaccines Bharat Biotech International Ltds Covaxin and Zydus Cadilas ZyCoV-D to assess their safety. The company has already bet big on the vaccine working investing up to $450 million in mass-producing the vaccine. SII declined to comment on the regulatory approval for it to conduct the trials. Four other vaccine candidates being supported by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) under the science ministry are in advanced stages of pre-clinical trials and are likely to enter human trials in another four to six weeks. Confirming the development, a senior official in the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) said: The subject expert committee that went through the data and protocol submitted for the trial was satisfied with the results, and based on their opinion the drugs controller permitted its trial in India. Click here for full Covid-19 coverage It was always understood that Indias drug regulator would approve the clinical trials once Oxford University, once, on July 20, Oxford University published research that showed that the initial trial results of the vaccine candidate were promising.The vaccine candidate is safe and induced an immune reaction against Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes the coronavirus disease, and protects healthy people from infection, it said in the journal The Lancet. Dr G C Khilnani, former head of the department of pulmonology at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, said: The Oxford vaccine is one of the most promising candidates so far and India being one of the largest vaccine manufacturers, this is a welcome move. A vaccine is needed and fast. We are nowhere close to controlling the infection. Now, the numbers have started going up in the tier-2 and tier-3 cities and every day we are seeing an increasing number of cases....There is a resurgence of cases in many places that had controlled the spread. So, we need a vaccine that is safe, effective and provides long-lasting immunity to go back to normal. The study whose results were published in The Lancet were conducted on 1,077 healthy adults aged 18-55 years with no history of Covid-19 in five UK hospitals between April 23 and May 21. The data that was published covered the first 56 days of the trials that are ongoing. By now, we have vaccinated about 10,000 people in the UK phase 3 trial at 19 sites, soon 4,000 people in Brazil and in a couple of weeks in South Africa will also be given the candidate vaccine. And most importantly, a trial in the United States will start in the next few weeks with 30,000 people. This is going to be over 50,000 people by the time we finish, said Prof. Adrian Hill at a symposium organised by the Indian Council of Medical Research on Thursday. He is the director of Oxfords Jenner Institute that is collaborating with the British-Swedish biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca. The vaccine is made from a weakened version of a common cold adenovirus taken from chimpanzees and genetically modified so that it cannot infect humans. To develop the vaccine, researchers added genetic material to the adenovirus from the Sars-CoV-2 virus surface protein, spike glycoprotein (S), which helps the virus to bind to ACE2 receptor to enter human cells and cause an infection. This was one of the first vaccine candidates to enter phase III trials in late May. And one of the reasons it was possible was because it is a type of vaccine that we already know a lot about. Over 60,000 people have already been vaccinated with investigational adenoviral vaccines. We were able to go ahead quickly because of that safety database on the vaccine platform, said Prof. Hill. Serum Institute of India, the worlds largest vaccine manufacturer by volume, is one of the nine global manufacturers of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. We do not know when we will get the results depending on the instance of the disease at various places , it can be next month or it can be six months. This is a lot of uncertainty for our manufacturers. And, we have taken a risk collectively to engage manufacturers in nine countries, Prof. Hill said. The company plans to start human clinical trials in India with about 5,000 participants. One billion doses of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine will be produced over the next one year. The vaccines will be for India and middle-and-low-income countries across the world, Adar Poonawalla, chief executive officer, SII, had earlier said. Dr Vinod Paul, who chairs one of the National Task Forces on Covid-19 management in India, said: India is one of the vaccine hubs globally, and wherever the Covid vaccine is developed we will take lead in its manufacturing. Vaccine is the ultimate solution to prevent Covid transmission even though India has managed to control the outbreak very well so far. To ensure that Phase III trials can start on vaccines that are in advanced preclinical or in early clinical stages, the department of biotechnology has already created five trial sites across the country and is working on preparing six more. Each of the trial sites will provide access to cohorts of 50,000 to 100,000 people . The sites are INCLEN Trust International, Haryana; KEM Vadu, Pune; Christian Medical College, Vellore; Society for Health Allied Research Education (SHARE), Hyderabad; and National Institute of Epidemiology, Tirunelveli.. At this moment, I am unsure whether these trial sites are part of the approval for SII. However, the sites are ready for SII or any other company to start Phase III trials immediately. This will, of course, be the first Phase III trial to happen in India. The other two indigenously developed vaccines one by Zydus Cadila that is supported by DBT are in Phase I and II. This would ideally take between 45 days to two months and a while for data analysis. Depending on the data, they will begin their Phase III trials soon after, said Dr Renu Swarup, secretary, DBT. The other two are undergoing merged phase 1 and II trials. The license agreement grants Grapefruit exclusive rights to Zylo's patented time-release Z-Pod technology in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The unique architecture of Grapefruit's Hourglass time-release delivery cream provides Grapefruit with the ability to formulate literally endless variations of its Hourglass product for both medical and recreational users. Grapefruit's Hourglass THC + Cannabinoid Topical Cream is the world's first and only known meaningfully effective THC+Cannabinoid-loaded transdermal cream that penetrates the five layers of human skin breaking through the dermal pathway to penetrate the human blood-brain barrier thereby successfully delivering beneficial cannabinoids throughout the human bloodstream and body in a predictable, steady dose over a targeted time period. LOS ANGELES and DESERT HOT SPRINGS, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 3, 2020 / Grapefruit USA, Inc. (OTCQB:GPFT) ("Grapefruit" or the "Company"), a fully licensed California-based cannabis company, announced today that it filed its Exclusive License and Supply Agreement with Zylo Therapeutics Inc. of Greenville, S.C. Form 8-K. The exclusive license agreement cements the Company's relationship with Zylo and provides Grapefruit with the IP platform to build novel and disruptive topical THC/cannabinoid medicinal and recreational cannabis products for every legalized state. In addition, the agreement grants the Company the territories of Canada and Mexico, significantly expanding the Company's potential market. Canada has a well-established legalized cannabis marketplace, and Mexico is anticipated to legalize medical cannabis in the near future. With respect to the filing of the Zylo-Grapefruit Exclusive License and Supply Agreement Form 8-K, Bradley J. Yourist, Grapefruit's CEO, stated, "Grapefruit's filing of the Zylo exclusive license agreement marks a momentous moment for the Company. Our current and future shareholders can now see for themselves the scope of our license rights which are reasonably extensive. Our licensing rights extend from the United States to Canada and Mexico. Grapefruit has a very good working relationship with Zylo's management which affords us the ability to expand our license rights into new countries as our market grows in the long term as more countries legalize cannabis for medical and recreational use. Grapefruit's new Hourglass topical delivery cream is a breakthrough technology because we can deliver our active ingredients, THC along with the full range of cannabinoids such as CBD, CBG and CBN, through the skin, and past the blood brain barrier over a predictable time-period which will fundamentally change the way cannabis users ingest THC and other cannabinoids for many physical, and other ailments." To learn more about Grapefruit's new sustained-release Hourglass THC + Cannabinoid Topical Delivery Cream, please watch this informational video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cU9MJMgH1w&feature=youtu.be and visit our website at: https://grapefruitblvd.com/grapefruits-patented-time-release-thc-patchless-patch-topical-cream/ To learn more about Grapefruit, please visit our website at: https://grapefruitblvd.com/investor-relations/ Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter About GRAPEFRUIT Grapefruit holds licenses in California to both manufacture and distribute cannabis products (see website at https://grapefruitblvd.com/). The Company's extraction lab produces high quality, cannabis-derived THC and full-spectrum distillates commonly known as "honey oil" and "crude oil" from cannabis flower and "trim". These distillates are base cannabis commodities and are the active ingredients in many cannabis products including infused edibles, tinctures, and creams, and are also used as the active ingredient in vaporization cartridges. Grapefruit also distributes branded cannabis and cannabis products to properly licensed cannabis product companies, including the Sugar Stoned line of cannabis and CBD-infused edibles (see https://sugarstoned.com/) and the breakthrough Hourglass sustained-release THC+Cannabinoid Topical Delivery Cream (see https://grapefruitblvd.com/grapefruits-patented-time-release-thc-patchless-patch-topical-cream/). Safe Harbor Statement Grapefruit cautions you that any statement included in this press release that is not a description of historical facts is a forward-looking statement. Many of these forward-looking statements contain the words "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "may" "intend," "expect" and similar expressions. Actual results, performance or achievements could differ materially from those contemplated, expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained herein. These forward-looking statements are based largely on the expectations of the company and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties inherent in Grapefruit's business, including, without limitation: the company may not ever obtain additional funds necessary to support its business development and growth plans; and the company may not ever achieve the market success to reach or sustain a profitable business. In addition, there are risks and uncertainties related to economic recession or terrorist actions, competition from much larger cannabis companies, unexpected costs and delays, potential product liability claims, and many other factors. More detailed information about Grapefruit and the risk factors that may affect the realization of forward-looking statements is set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K, its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q/A for the period ended March 31, 2020 and its Registration Statement on Form S-1/A. Such documents may be read free of charge on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. All forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement, and Grapefruit undertakes no obligation to revise or update this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. This caution is made under the safe harbor provisions of Section 21E of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investor Relations Contact: The Waypoint Refinery, LLC (845) 397-2956 Please be aware that our social media accounts and those of our public relations representatives can be used from time to time for additional material events. They can be found here: For Waypoint Refinery: Twitter: https://twitter.com/waypointthe?lang=en Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/waypointrefinery/ For Grapefruit USA: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Grapefruit-Boulevard-2304698596251925/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grapefruit_usa/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/grapefruitusa LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grapefruit-boulevard/ SOURCE: Grapefruit USA View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/600011/Grapefruit-USA-Inc-Files-Its-Zyl-Exclusive-License-8-K Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 23:59:07|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close DOHA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Qatari health ministry on Monday announced 215 new COVID-19 infections, raising the total number of confirmed cases in the Gulf state to 111,322, official Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported. Meanwhile, 223 more recovered from the virus, bringing the total recoveries to 108,002, while the death toll remained 177, according to a ministry statement quoted by QNA. A total of 502,792 people in Qatar have taken lab tests for COVID-19 so far. China and Qatar have offered mutual help during the fight against COVID-19 pandemic. On Feb. 21, five Qatar Airways cargo freighters flew to China carrying approximately 300 tonnes of medical supplies donated by the airline. On July 8, Chinese health officials and medical experts held a video conference with their Qatari counterparts to share experience and expertise in fighting COVID-19. Enditem Belarusian Presidential Candidate Tsikhanouskaya Says She Is Against Integration With Russia By RFE/RL August 02, 2020 Belarusian presidential candidate Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya said she is against forming a union state with Russia but called for maintaining good relations with Moscow. Tsikhanouskaya, an English translator who joined the presidential race after her husband, Syarhey Tsikhanouski, a popular vlogger, was arrested, made the comments in a lengthy interview published by the Russian news agency Lenta.Ru. "Personally, I am against deeper integration with Russia because Belarus is a sovereign nation. We want to be independent. We want to find friends and not enemies among other countries," she said. However, when asked if the country should instead seek to join the European Union or move closer to the West, she said it was a false choice. "Is it really necessary to choose?" she said, adding that Belarus should develop economic and political relations with all countries. Belarus is wedged between Russia and the European Union nations of Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia. The nation's economy is heavily dependent on cheap Russian oil and gas but has been growing its trade with the EU. Tsikhanouskaya, who speaks in Russian at her rallies, said that the Belarusian language should be promoted as part of the nation's cultural heritage but that citizens should not be forced to speak it if they feel more comfortable conversing in Russian. Tsikhanouskaya has attracted tens of thousands of people to her rallies over the last few weeks as more citizens grow tired of Alyaksandr Lukashenka, who has ruled Belarus since 1994. Belarus holds a presidential election on August 9. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/belarusian-presidential -candidate-tsikhanouskaya-says-she-is-against- integration-with-russia/30762686.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 GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- A plan to distribute $2 million to area schools for personal protective equipment was recently given initial approval by Kent County leaders. The Kent County COVID Relief Subcommittee in late July approved allocating that amount of the countys share of federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act dollars. In total, the county received $114.63 million in CARES Act funds. Kent County Commissioners Mandy Bolter, Stan Stek, Diane Jones, Emily Brieve, Roger Morgan, Jim Talen, Phil Skaggs and Robert Womack sit on the subcommittee. A distribution formula for the $2 million, as well as a full list of approved personal protective equipment material, will be presented and likely approved at the Kent County Board of Commissioners full meeting on Aug. 27. As schools consider how to reopen this fall, the safety and mental health of our children are the primary concerns of every parent I know, said Bolter, who chairs the county board of commissioners. By allocating this funding, we can be part of the solution to keep our kids and teachers as safe as possible and help to bring back some normalcy in this crazy time. The move comes as school districts across the state and country deliberate on the best method of educating youth during a pandemic. Some plan to offer solely in-person learning, others offer in-person with an option to attend school virtually. Still more are teaching all classes online. Kentwood Public Schools are starting the school year with two weeks of remote learning. Then, on Sept. 8, parents can choose whether they want their child to attend in-person classes or continue online. The superintendent of Kent Countys largest school district, Grand Rapids Public Schools, is recommending students be taught virtually until Oct. 21, which is the end of the first marking period. That length of time will give educators time to assess the online-only approach and potentially prepare for a return to in-person teaching or a hybrid teaching method, Superintendent Leadriane Roby said July 27. The Board of Education is expected to vote on the plan at its Aug. 10 meeting. Related: Grand Rapids superintendent recommends starting school year online-only Kent County has previously allocated CARES dollars to other aspects of the community impacted by COVID-19. That includes funding for business assistance, shelter assistance, non-profit assistance, a business personal protective equipment and more. Commissioners have allocated $25 million in CARES dollars to small businesses in the form of grants and technical assistance. The initiative is called the Kent County Small Business Recovery Program. For more data on COVID-19 in Michigan, visit https://www.mlive.com/coronavirus/data/ . Read more: Michigan shoppers improve mask compliance, based on MLive survey of 41 stores Whitmer and Trump have different ideas about if and how to reopen schools. But in Michigan, plans are ultimately local. Michigan coronavirus recoveries top 60,000 A British woman accused of killing her husband in Malaysia has been sentenced to 42 months in prison after she pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of culpable homicide. Prosecutors reduced the murder charge to murder without intent following appeals by the defence, her lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo said. Had Samantha Jones, 51, been found guilty of murder, she would have been sentenced to hang, as the country has a mandatory death sentence. I was scared, and he was so angry, Ms Kaur Deo quoted Ms Jones as saying in court. I miss him terribly. What I did that night was unintended. I tried to stop him, I did not know it would happen like this. Ms Jones was also fined 10,000 ringgit (1,816), her lawyer said. Ms Jones was charged after police found a bloody knife in the couples Malaysian resort home, where John William Jones, 62, was found dead with a stab wound in his chest on 18 October 2018. On Monday, police brought her to the courthouse in Alor Setar, in the northern state of Kedah, handcuffed and wearing a mask. Ms Jones, who is originally from Somerset, had confessed to stabbing her husband during an argument, police have said. Recommended British woman charged with murdering husband in Malaysia Her legal team had previously said she acted in self-defence following years of domestic abuse, according to the Mirror. The couple relocated to Langkawi island 11 years ago under Malaysia My Second Home, a scheme which grants foreign nationals a renewable 10-year visa. Nearly half of those on death row in Malaysia are foreigners, an Amnesty International report found in October. The country has previously backpedalled on plans to abolish the death penalty, but a moratorium on executions has been in place since 2018. By Tom Sims and Hans Seidenstuecker FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Commerzbank ignored the concerns of its top investor Cerberus on Monday by electing Hans-Joerg Vetter, the retired chief of a German regional bank, as its new chairman. Vetter, whose appointment helps fill a leadership vacuum at Germany's second largest lender, is expected to lead the search for a new chief executive at Commerzbank, whose shares have slumped around 60% since Cerberus bought its stake in 2017. Commerzbank was thrown into turmoil last month when CEO Martin Zielke and supervisory board chairman Stefan Schmittmann stepped down to give the 150-year-old lender a fresh start. However, Monday's move to appoint Vetter risks further antagonising activist U.S. private equity investor Cerberus, which holds a 5% stake and has led a vocal campaign for change. Cerberus, the second-largest investor in Commerzbank after the German government, sent a letter to the bank's supervisory board ahead of Monday's meeting about the vacant chair position. It said Cerberus had concerns about Vetter and that the investor had its own names to pitch, adding that the person selected as chair must help initiate and support a "necessary, far-reaching restructuring" at Commerzbank. "We have serious doubts that Hans-Joerg Vetter is the right person for this job or has the right experience for it," Cerberus said in the letter, a copy of which was seen by Reuters. A spokeswoman for Commerzbank declined to comment. "Cerberus has identified at least two candidates who have the required qualifications to fill the role of chairman and secure the confidence of all key stakeholders," Cerberus said, without naming them. Vetter is a former chief executive of Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg whose supporters say he has restructuring and retail banking experience from his time there and previously as CEO of Bankgesellschaft Berlin. Commerzbank has in recent months swung to a loss, halted its 2019 dividend plans, backtracked on selling Polish lender mBank and had its credit rating downgraded. (Reporting by Tom Sims and Hans Seidenstuecker; Editing by Michelle Martin, David Holmes and Alexander Smith) HOLDREGE A Phelps County deputy sheriff was found not guilty of child abuse Friday in Phelps County Court. According to court records, Jamie Tilson, 32, was found not guilty of child abuse and third-degree assault, both misdemeanors, during a six-person jury trial. The charges stemmed from a Sept. 3 incident in Holdrege, involving a teenage relative. According to the arrest affidavit, Tilson and the teen had a disagreement that escalated. The teen kicked a hole in the wall. Tilson reportedly tried to take away the teens phone. According to the affidavit the teen talked back and he went to slap the teen in the mouth. The teen ducked. Tilson then hit the teen in the eye hard enough to blacken it, according to the affidavit. The teen took a photo of the black eye and downloaded the photo to the social media app, TikTok. The teenager missed two days of school. Upon returning to school, a school aide asked about the swollen eye and the teen claimed to have fallen. A school nurse examined the eye, and decided the injury was inconsistent with what the teen had said. The aide called Nebraskas child abuse hotline. Charity helps Egyptian Christians launch businesses amid COVID-19 unemployment struggles Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment A United States-based Christian charity has provided microloans to help Christian families in Egypt launch businesses or bolster their already existing ones as the combination of religious persecution and COVID-19 has reportedly led to an 80% unemployment rate among Christians in Upper Egypt. International Christian Concern, a non-profit that runs several initiatives to assist persecuted Christians worldwide, developed the microloan program that is benefiting the lives of 52 Christians in Egypt through 13 different loans as part of its Hope House Program. Traditionally, the Hope House Program has focused on providing educational tutoring and child welfare to Christian children in Egypt, where Christians contend they are essentially treated as "third-class citizens." But with the economic impact of COVID-19 ravaging Christian communities, the program is also focused on providing financial support to the parents of the children it helps. Though the microloans are encouraged to be paid back, return payment is not required, according to ICC. The loans last for a year and are offered to anyone who has lost a job or has been discriminated against, Claire Evans, ICC regional manager for the Middle East, told The Christian Post. Even during COVID, theyve been able to maintain business which shows how important it is to have some sense of control of their livelihood. Under the conditions of COVID-19, ICC reports that many employers in Egypt have blamed Christians for the pandemic and isolated them from what few job opportunities exist. The average Christian income is $115 a month, as opposed to the national average of $313, according to ICC research. The government in Egypt does not actively work to stop the persecution of Christians and has rules that have made employment very difficult for them, according to ICC. The Hope House Program has provided long-term solutions and hope, Evans said. Egypt tries to restrict work and hide Christians in the background, Evans said. We want to make sure the help they ask for is helpful for their future. The business loans have been so successful, they end up as a contribution to the broader society. Microloans have led to tremendous success among those receiving them and the communities at large, Evans reports. According to her, one woman began a small rug business and has grown the business so much that she has since employed other persecuted Egyptians. Another citizen of Egypt facing financial hardship and persecution is a 54-year-old father of four named Bassam. He used the loan provided by the Hope House Program to improve the small grocery shop that hes owned for 13 years. This loan helped me to bring new products to my grocery shop, Bassam said a statement. Before getting the loan, I was not affording to buy three packages of soda. Now I can afford to buy 10 packages and sell them to the client in a short time. Also, now I can sell chilled meats at my shop. While business-related help is a bit of a new focus for the Hope House Program, the programs vision of aiding childrens education, health and freedom persists. This year, child labor has risen in Egypt by 20%, according to Evans. While business loans may directly help Egyptian adults, there is a trickle-down effect on children. If children have to work to keep their families alive, they are unable to be in school or to receive an education. We want kids to stay in school and dream big about what is possible as an adult, Evans explained. Theres no technology for remote education. These kids havent been to school since March and Egypt has no real strategy to fix it. The Hope House Program is known for its tutoring services in Egypt. Typically, children come to a Hope House facility to receive help with their studies as a group. With the ongoing COVID crisis, though, group tutoring has become impossible. Fortunately, Hope House staff can go from home to home to assist children and families. Evans mentioned a disheartening discovery amid the new protocol and circumstances of the Christian population in Egypt. Weve seen a lot of depression thats led to suicide, even in the kids, she said. Thats not normal in this culture. Theyre just facing persecution in one hand and a pandemic in the other. Its like theyre standing on the edge of a cliff. And Im glad we can go in to just hold their hands and walk them back from the edge. According to the ICC, 38% of the children in Egypt showed symptoms of anxiety and depression. Hope House doctors, as well as support staff, work with children and entire families to teach general safety, hygiene and personal boundaries. US State Secretary's accusation against China over illegal fishing groundless: embassy by Wang Qi August 03,2020 | Source: Global Times The Chinese Embassy in Ecuador and oceanography experts have called accusations from US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo false and groundless, after he smeared China for "illegal and unregulated over-fishing" near Ecuador in the East Pacific. Pompeo's recent remarks came after Western media reported on 260 China-flagged vessels fishing nearing Ecuador's Galapagos marine reserve, which was seen as causing environmental degradation. However, the fishing time, exact regions, fishing companies, and fishing equipment and other details remain unreported. The Galapagos Islands are a precious natural and cultural heritage for all mankind. Chinese fishing boats are currently operating normally and legally in waters outside the exclusive economic zone of the Galapagos, posing no threat to anyone, the Chinese Embassy in Ecuador said on Sunday, adding that China attaches great importance to the protection of the marine environment and resources. According to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, fishing in waters outside the exclusive economic zone does not impact the rights and interests of coastal states. Chinese fishing boats have neither violated Ecuador's sovereignty nor international law, Wang Yamin, a professor at Shandong University's School of Oceanography, told the Global Times on Monday. Deep-sea fishing is regulated by national governments and Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs), and there are strict regulations governing the number of ships, the method of operation, the species they catch, and conservation requirements, Wang said, noting that legal fishing in international waters is not the business of any country. Some observers believe that global pelagic fishing should be better regulated, and more should be done to address over-fishing in different countries. Officials from China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs previously disclosed that China has 170 ocean-going fishing companies and 2,600 vessels. Observers said the scale is still relatively small compared to some major fishing countries. The ministry enacted a new pelagic fishing regulation in March 2020, aimed at protecting marine fishery resources, strengthening ocean-going fishery supervision and management, and working with the international community to severely crack down on illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishery activities. The ministry said the new regulation has strict stipulations regarding vessel appearance, crew configurations, legal fishing certificates, accompanying supervisors, and pollution discharge. Individuals and companies that violate the regulation will be suspended or disqualified from pelagic fishing. Wang said there has been no evidence of any illegal activity by the Chinese fishing boats. If discovered, lawbreakers will certainly be punished by the Chinese government and Ecuador reserved the right to arrest the flotilla, he added. China is Ecuador's second largest trading partner, with major imports of crude oil, prawns, bananas and minerals, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry. The 40-year history of China-Ecuador relations has yielded fruitful results, and any attempt to sow discord is bound to be unpopular. The China-Ecuador relationship bears on the well-being of the peoples in the two countries, and should not become a tool used by individuals or political forces for their own selfish interests, said China's embassy in Ecuador Sunday. 2019 Global Times All Rights Reserved Theme(s): Fishing Craft, Gear and Fishing Methods. BEIRUT (Reuters) - A Hezbollah fighter was killed in an Israeli attack in Syria, the Iranian-backed Lebanese Shi'ite group's first declared casualty there since its leader warned last year that further killings of its members in Syria would face retaliation. Ali Kamel Mohsen, from south Lebanon, was killed by an Israeli air strike near Damascus airport, according to a death notice declaring him a martyr with the Islamic Resistance, a reference to Hezbollah, and which was confirmed by the group. It was an apparent reference to a strike on Monday night that Western intelligence sources said hit a major Iranian-backed ammunition depot on the edge of the Syrian capital. Syrian state media said air defences had intercepted a new Israeli "aggression" above the capital Damascus. Hezbollah has deployed fighters in Syria as part of Iranian-backed efforts to support President Bashar al-Assad in a conflict that spiralled out of protests against his rule in 2011. Following the killing of two Hezbollah members in Damascus last August, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the group's leader, vowed it would respond if Israel killed any more of its fighters in the country. (Reporting by Laila Bassam; Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Alex Richardson) Ali Mokdad, an epidemiologist at the University of Washington, has been trying to make sense of this summers COVID-19 surge. He says he can theorize only in a general way about why the virus spread and what to do about it. Yes, the new cases appear to be mainly young people, he said. Yes, they may be letting down their guard. Yes, it might make sense to close the bars. But as a global health expert at the universitys Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, he says he should be able provide much more nuanced answers. Why cant we figure out whats contributing to the recent spread? It is very simple, Mokdad said. No access to data. In a move seen as potentially obstructing access to COVID-19 information even more, the Trump administration last month ordered hospitals to stop sending data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and instead send it to a private data firm under contract with the Department of Health and Human Services, whose secretary reports directly to the White House. Skyrocketing cases, clashes among federal leaders and a hodgepodge of state data have left many Americans asking how the United States will get back to anything resembling normal life. The answer is straightforward, Mokdad and other epidemiologists say: wearing masks, social distancing, more testing and better data. Epidemiologists insist that standardizing the COVID-19 data states and localities publish is essential to helping people navigate their daily lives and enabling political leaders to make science-based decisions that the public can support. Its particularly critical now, they say, as parents, teachers and elected officials are deciding when to open schools and how to keep them open. This virus isnt disappearing, said Dr. William Schaffner, professor of preventive medicine and infectious diseases at Vanderbilt Universitys medical school. COVID will be here three years from now in some form. We hope we get a vaccine soon. But even when we do, people will need data to see the impact of vaccinations. State and local health officials say providing better data isnt so simple. Meager budgets, stodgy technology and disjointed state and local reporting systems make standardizing data an arduous undertaking. Its a nice idea, said Oscar Alleyne, chief of programs and services at the National Association of County and City Health Officials. But its not the highest priority in most jurisdictions right now. Local health departments are focused on whats in front of them, and thats the data they need to decide how to open schools without getting caught up in a whirlwind of amplifying disease. Still, epidemiologists point out that every other developed country battling the virus has been able to publish the kind of data average people and scientists need to track the course of the disease each day and pivot their individual behavior and public response accordingly. The nations lack of federal leadership has caused it to fall behind other countries in combating the virus, said Dr. Tom Frieden, former CDC chief, at a news briefing last month. He and other public health experts urged state and local health agencies to adopt a uniform system of reporting on testing, positive cases, hospitalizations and deaths, as well as on the effectiveness of contact tracing efforts and the percentage of people wearing masks. Separately, researchers at Stanford University and the University of California who are trying to determine what caused Californias COVID-19 surge, reported last month that the state had refused to release crucial data, citing privacy concerns and workload constraints. Detailed case and contact-tracing data from state and county health authorities, they said, could point to more effective, targeted approaches to slowing the pandemic. Without the data, the scientists said, little more can be done. For the states part, Janet Hamilton, executive director of the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists, said privacy protections and worries about publishing incomplete data are major concerns. Its a matter of trying to present data in ways that get people to make behavior changes, which usually happens when people are impacted personally or when they have local information, she said. We want to provide data as locally as possible without violating privacy rights or confusing people. But we know we have information gaps. For example, she said, in some communities where very little testing is available and, therefore, very few cases are reported, people could decide that they are not at risk, when they actually are. Measuring to manage Public health officials and advocates argued in a new report that without uniform data, the United States will continue to lag behind the rest of the world in fighting the pandemic. The groups included Friedens organization, Resolve to Save Lives, along with the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, the American Public Health Association, Trust for Americas Health and the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. People need to know what their local health departments are doing to contain the virus and hold them accountable, said Dr. Cyrus Shahpar, who directs the epidemics prevention team at Resolve to Save Lives, an initiative of Vital Strategies, in an interview with Stateline. Shahpar, who lives in California, said, If theres a bunch of fires outside, I want to know how many are contained. Right now, we know there are big fires everywhere. But we have no idea which ones are contained. We also need to compare cities and states. If Im in New York state, I need to know which states to restrict travel from. I also need to know which states and cities are safe to visit. An important piece of missing information, he said, is the lag time between collecting a test sample and getting the results. Is the delay the same in every ZIP code? Are poor neighborhoods and predominantly Black and brown neighborhoods experiencing greater testing delays? No states are providing that type of data, Shahpur said. Public health agencies need to tell the public what the local data means, Shahpur said. Five cases could be a crisis in a tiny rural town, while 50 could be manageable in a medium-sized city. The average person doesnt know that on their own, he said. Some states and cities have developed red, orange, yellow and green alert level systems that include a list of guidance for each age and demographic group at each risk level, Shahpur said. That type of graphic presentation can help guide businesses and residents as they plan their days, he said. To let people know how well their local health department is controlling the virus, cities and states should report the percentage of new cases arising from so-called community spread, outside of known transmission chains, said Dr. Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. How many new cases were already on their radar and how many werent? Thats really important, because if too many cases have unknown sources, the virus could be spiraling out of control, Adalja said. People need to know that. Only a handful of states do that. Oregons health department measures the success of contact tracing based on the percentage of new cases that are tied to a known source. Every day, the state posts those percentages on its COVID-19 dashboard. For most of July, the daily number of new cases rose in Oregon, as did the percentage of cases with no known source. As of July 28, more than 73% of new cases had no known source. The goal, according to the state, is that no more than 30% of new cases are without a known source. Virginia also tracks contact tracing by publishing the percentage of new cases and contacts the health department is able to reach within 24 hours of receiving test results. As of last week, the state reported reaching 75% of all new cases and 85% of their contacts the same day. Irrelevant data Far too often states provide numbers to show their success, when it really is not success at all, Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, said at the Resolve to Save Lives news briefing. Epidemiologists say many state and local websites provide numbers that can be misconstrued or that require people to do their own math to put them in context. For example, daily test totals mean nothing, Adalja said, unless the percentage of positive tests is provided along with the date the samples were taken. Those numbers should be parsed at the county or ZIP code level and presented as a number per capita so they can be compared among states, counties and cities. And while daily case counts may be useful, the trend is more revealing, he said. The daily number of hospital admissions is important data for epidemiologists but is not helpful for average people, Adalja said. They need to know how many COVID-19 patients are in their local hospital on any given day and whether the hospital is near capacity. They also need to know how many health care workers have tested positive for the virus and how many people are coming into emergency departments with flu-like symptoms. According to Friedens organization, states are providing only 40% of the data needed to fight the pandemic, with some states reporting less relevant data than others. No state is reporting data on testing delays, and few are reporting on contact tracing. Frieden said the nonprofit is working with states to help them provide more data, much of which he said they already have. Its no surprise we havent been able to get this virus under control, said Dr. Ali Khan, dean of the University of Nebraska Medical Centers public health school and a former CDC official. States dont have timely, complete, relevant or transparent data. And they lack the political will to develop it. That needs to change. This article was first posted to Stateline, an initiative of The Pew Charitable Trusts. Beer can make everything better, including postponed pub dates and canceled book toursat least Sam Weller thinks so. Weller, the Chicago-based authorized biographer of Ray Bradbury (Listen to the Echoes: The Ray Bradbury Interviews, 2017), and a former PW Midwest correspondent, was all set to embark upon a 10-city international tour for his debut collection of 20 modern Gothic horror stories, Dark Black (Hat & Beard Press) when the pub date was pushed back from May to July and then again to September 20 and the tour canceled although Weller ended up making some virtual appearances at some of the previously scheduled stops. No in-store appearances have been scheduled -- or re-scheduled to date. The books marketing campaign was not completely scrapped, thanks to Hop Butcher For the World. Even before the pandemic hit, the Chicago craft brewery had agreed to partner with Hat & Beard in Los Angeles on a cross-promotion of Hop Butchers product and Wellers book throughout the Chicagoland metro area by crafting a beer commemorating Dark Blacks release. Hop Butchers Dark Black is an Imperial Stout brewed with maple, cocoa, and sea salt. Approximately 350 cases of beer have been canned this week and are now available for sale in Chicagoland. The beers will be sold in four-packs of tall boy cans. Allow stout to assuage the feel of fear in your bones, a Hop Butcher advertisement for the beer declares. The label on every 16-ounce can features the book jacket art, along with Hat & Beards website address for drinkers to order signed copies directly from the publisher at a discount. According to Jeremiah Zimmer, Hop Butcher owner, he was immediately receptive to partnering with Hat & Beard Press because of the brewerys ongoing relationship with the books illustrator, Dan Grzecawho created an original image to accompany each story in Dark Black. Grzeca, a Chicago-based artist, created all of Hop Butchers beer cans and labels. The beer labels can only be described as colorful, irreverent, and exuberant, some of them reminiscent of Grateful Dead album covers. [Grzeca] had clued us in on what he was up to with Sam, Zimmer wrote in an email, And knowing how important this was to Dan, we immediately started talking about lining up a beer to accompany the release of the book. J.C. Gabel, Hat & Beard's publisher, insisted that Grzeca was indispensable in envisioning both the story collection's design and the beer's aromas, writing in an email, "Dan was the perfect visual artist counterpart for Sam Weller's first short story collection, and our first title for our literary imprint, Hat & Beard Editions. Once we settled in on the Day of the Dead-inspired cover, a nod to Malcolm Lowry's famous novel Under the Volcano, Grzeca had the vision for the beer. The title Dark Black seemed to almost predict deeply rich, pourable stout, which is what Jeremiah at Hop Butcher created." "The beer is the perfect companion to the title story in Dark Black," Weller noted in an email to PW after he picked up several cases of the beer at Hop Butcher on Thursday afternoon. "Set in the cold north Atlantic, the story follows a retired marine biologist who is convinced he saw the mythic sea-beast, the Kraken, when he was a young man. The beer has strong notes of maple and sea salt, ingredients perfectly suited to an oceanic tale. Hop Butcher makes some of the most artful beers around, and this one is a great addition to their arsenal. It is sweet, velvety and has a real kick." (Bloomberg Opinion) -- Lets get something clear upfront: Microsoft Corp.s purchase of TikTok isnt worth $50 billion. Thats my opinion. But then again, its not my money.(2) Some investors in its parent company, ByteDance Ltd., think its worth that much, according to a Reuters report last week. Good for them. Well soon find out its true value, and more importantly, that of Microsofts chief executive officer. After a weekend of speculation, the American software giant came out Monday morning, Beijing time, to confirm talks to buy the short-video sensation that boasts more than 100 million users in the U.S. alone. The opening line of the blog statement notably said: Following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald J. Trump. This came after after Trump had suggested that he may ban TikTok from the U.S. altogether. ByteDance, TikToks Beijing-based owner, wasnt mentioned until the third paragraph. I dont want to downplay the importance of founder Zhang Yiming or his executive team, who have done a fabulous job of building a powerhouse of an internet company, but this deal already transcends them. Nadella is the kingmaker now. The architect of Microsofts transformation from PC operating systems to cloud computing, hes already overseen some big deals. Within a year of taking over as CEO in 2014, he bought the Swedish games company behind Minecraft; later, he closed the $24 billion purchase of professional-network site LinkedIn Corp. An earlier idea to have TikTok, or at least the U.S. operations, spun off and bought by existing ByteDance investors looked good on paper. But it likely wouldnt have allayed U.S. concerns about data privacy and Chinese control given how opaque the ownership structure would be afterward. As my colleague Tae Kim wrote, a TikTok-Microsoft deal makes sense because it could allay antitrust concerns just days after four other tech CEOs were grilled by members of Congress. I also think it might solve the issue of data transparency by putting the U.S. operations of TikTok in the hands of a trusted, publicly listed American company. Story continues Microsoft thinks so, too, outlining how it would transfer and protect user data. The company "would ensure that all private data of TikToks American users is transferred to and remains in the United States, it said. Any such data currently stored outside the U.S. would be deleted from servers overseas, it continued. But first, Microsoft will need to convince the U.S. administration. The company indicated which buttons its pushing, mentioning in its statement before it even named ByteDance both the U.S. Treasury Department and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. Some U.S. lawmakers are already on board. Win-win, Senator Lindsey Graham wrote on Twitter. His fellow Republican John Cornyn and others looked ready to sign off, too. Its not really up to Congress, but their support adds important political momentum to the deal. Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal is among those more cautious, noting that such a transaction should not distract us from the need to crack down on insidious spying & surveillance by Chinese companies.Its quite likely other names will pop up as potential suitors, leaked by bankers or ByteDance insiders in the hope of building the illusion of a bidding war. But Microsoft has the credibility and strategy to get a deal past the real gatekeepers in Washington, leaving ByteDance with few other options. The onus is on Nadella to get it done, and quickly. Microsoft said it will complete discussions by Sept. 15. Now lets look at whats for sale. ByteDance itself had revenue of $17 billion last year with profits of $3 billion. But thats the entire company, with a stable of at least 20 apps including Douyin (the local version of TikTok) and news feed Toutiao. According to The Information, TikToks revenue last year was around $300 million globally thats less than 2% of an entire company which CB Insights lists as the worlds top unicorn at $140 billion in value. This year, TikTok is aiming for $500 million in sales in the U.S., The Information reports. According to Microsoft, its looking to buy operations in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Throw in a little extra for the three smaller markets and some upside, and were looking at maybe $700 million in annual revenue this year, $1 billion if were lucky. India and the U.K. were not mentioned. These are crucial omissions, given that Britain is also a key Five Eyes security partner and far larger than both New Zealand and Australia, while India is TikTok's largest potential market but was banned after a recent border clash. Facebook Inc. shares trade at 9.6 times sales and Twitter Inc. at 8.5 times sales. Sure, TikTok is growing more quickly, but so was Snap Inc., that once-hip social media app which had an initial public offering in 2017 and posted 590% revenue growth the year before it listed. Snap now trades at 16.5 times sales, and has yet to post an annual profit. The idea that TikTok without the U.K., India or dozens of other emerging markets is worth $50 billion today is fanciful. ByteDances leadership can be sure that Nadella knows it, too. He has a fiduciary duty to his own shareholders to squeeze TikToks owners as hard as possible. After finessing regulators and stroking egos to get this deal done, Microsoft will rightfully expect a big discount. The size of which will prove Nadellas worth and make this the deal of the decade. (1) For the record: I think the business Microsoft is bidding for is worth closer to $20 billion. That's not to say this will be the transaction price, though. This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners. Tim Culpan is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering technology. He previously covered technology for Bloomberg News. 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. A student at Central Bucks West High School told police that she felt threatened after a classmate called her a slur in a social media post. Then a former classmate responded, allegedly telling her he would show her what a "real" hate crime is. Read more When a former classmate at Central Bucks High School West was accused of hate speech after calling a Black teen a slur, Andrew Smith took to Snapchat to defend him. This is America, and u can speak your mind as long as its not a threat to someone elses life, and the hate crime was hypothetical and not directed at her, Smith, 19, wrote last week on the social media site, according to court documents. He didnt take his own advice, according to prosecutors. Hours later, Smith posted again, railing against the teen, after mutual acquaintances criticized his first response. Like, I can show you what a real hate crime is, Smith said in the video. Like, Ive got a gun, do you want me to? READ MORE: Teens from these elite Philly schools were trading sexist, racist texts. Their parents need to do better. | Jenice Armstrong Smith, of Chalfont, was charged late Friday with terroristic threats and harassment, court documents show. He remained in custody Monday at the county jail, in lieu of $200,000 bail. Bucks County District Attorney Matthew Weintraub said his office wanted to be deliberate in its investigation after learning of the alleged threat last week. Ive continued to personally keep the victims family informed throughout this investigation, he said. Weve been committed to seeking justice in this case from the very beginning. Hopefully, Mr. Smiths arrest will give the family some peace of mind. There was no indication Monday that Smith had hired an attorney. Smiths parents did not respond to a message left at their home. READ MORE: Temple has said it will review 2017 offensive social media posts by Inquirer editors son In an interview with police on Thursday, Smith admitted he had made the posts on Snapchat and said he does not own any firearms, according to the affidavit of probable cause for his arrest. He said he made the posts because he was angry that [the victims family] was trying to ruin the life of the original poster, the affidavit said. The post at the center of this dispute, made by another teen who does not face charges, called the victim by the N-word, derided her for her support of the Black Lives Matter movement, and said her political views make me wanna commit a black hate crime. After Smiths initial post defending the use of the slur against the teen, a friend of hers called Smith out for his racist post, the affidavit said. In response, Smith mocked the girls friend, who is also Black, telling him he is literally the whitest black person ever, according to court documents. READ MORE: Delawares top labor leader apologizes for anti-Asian coronavirus posts In a statement, Central Bucks School District Superintendent John J. Kopicki said he and his staff were incredibly disheartened by the incident and that the district condemns all forms of violence, inequity, and racism. We are actively investigating this situation and taking appropriate steps to ensure equity for all students and for the betterment of our community, Kopicki said. Central Bucks is committed to creating a community where everyone may feel safe to be exactly as they are by cultivating a culture of respect that allows us to learn and grow together through challenging circumstances. Governments in Sri Lanka have employed diverse repressive strategies against their political enemies and the general public when they proactively agitate for their rights to survive as human beings, or when they reactively rise up against the curtailment of such rights. by Dr Lionel Bopage Since independence in 1948, all Sri Lankan governments have presided over ever-increasing corrupt practices, failing to deliver a vibrant economy or a fair and just society. They have failed to improve the standard of living of the masses. It is worth remembering that during this period, three rebellions were launched by the youth of the country against the irrational mode of governance and they were brutally crushed. The dismal results are there for us to see an increasingly disempowered society, fragmented by narrow and selfish nationalistic interests. Governments in Sri Lanka have employed diverse repressive strategies against their political enemies and the general public when they proactively agitate for their rights to survive as human beings, or when they reactively rise up against the curtailment of such rights. The global experience shows that when such oppressive regimes or their accomplices acquire or are elected to power chances for justice, democracy, human rights and economic opportunities are diminished except for a select few. In power all they do is to corrupt the judicial and parliamentary process by obfuscation, ignoring their legislative responsibilities, and introduce repressive legislative and constitutional amendments, which disillusion the electorate who then elect the next lot in. This is unacceptable and we need to break this vicious cycle. Such regimes strengthen their domestic electoral and repressive positions by becoming apologists for and minions of authoritarian led countries of various hues, by supporting their transnational corporations, directly or indirectly, and by receiving military assistance and trainings from them. Clearly the Philippines, Saudi Arabia and the Congo provide ample evidence for such autocratic, extremist, and fascistic regimes. Last week in Sri Lanka, several main campaigners of the Rajapaksa team openly declared that they would like to get two thirds majority at the general elections on August 5 and make Sri Lanka an authoritarian state! The new normal would be a president for life, making ministerial appointments bypassing parliament, and herald in an administration run by a cohort of ex-military personnel, thus make parliament a mere talk shop. In fact, Sri Lanka has already gone some way ahead in this regard. The Australian government is also exposed on similar fronts like corruption, human rights violations and enaction of repressive legislation. And it continues to support corrupt and extreme right-wing governments all over the world. Australia has been reported to have covertly exporting arms to war-ravaged countries. It is alleged to have issued more than 80 weapons export permits to Sri Lanka, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Australia has exported a range of military hardware to the Philippines the Filipino regime of Duterte is said to be responsible for the deaths of more than ten thousand people in their war on drugs' campaign. One common theme that characterizes such repressive regimes is the existence of rulers and officers reliably accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity at the commanding levels of their security establishments. And Sri Lanka is exemplary in this regard. Locally, discrimination based on every socio-economic and political division, and repression of opposition by intimidation, incarceration, torture, killings, forced disappearances and massacres, will become more common place with the attendant evils lack of transparency, corruption, legal immunity, amongst others. Internationally, foreign interference in the internal affairs on a selective basis will intensify, with corruption reaching higher levels. Resources that belong to the people will be sold off to overseas transnationals who would profit from our indebted economy and vulnerable situation. The lack of the rule of law in the country is a result of not applying the law equally to all citizens. While law is enforced against the powerless and minority communities in a discriminatory manner, the regime turns a blind eye to some belonging to the majority community and faith sometimes threatening and abusing the officers who enforce the law. By suspending, transferring, punishing, sacking and arresting officers who have done their duty according to the law, the regime has provided incentives and moral support to those wanting to continue to force the skewed application of the rule of law. If re-elected, the Government devoid of consultative policy frameworks, will continue to function without a pragmatic vision for the future. Lack of leadership in guiding the country forward will destabilise the rule of law even further, while erosion of democratic rights will continue. Human rights abuses will be the new norm. Those battling for democracy and social justice will be branded enemies of people. They could even be subject to death and disappearance, if we believe what the present Defence Secretary once stated in public. Legislations will be introduced and strengthened to serve a few, while leaving many in abject poverty without a secure roof over their head. People on insecure employment, the underpaid and the overworked, will increase. Social justice and economic equality are essential for social progress and cannot be realised without challenging the existing inequalities of power and wealth. Only the involvement of the whole of society with a bottom-up engagement will address the prevailing issues that hinder social cohesion and equity. Then only the opportunity will arise to creating a rule-based society that will value individual life and treat everyone with dignity and respect. Inequalities can only be overcome by empowering people and ensuring that all will have a guaranteed minimum standard of living, well-being, and an equal opportunity to develop their full potential. There are maestros in deception scheming, wizards in misinformation, fake guardians, masterminds, and irrational fear mongers. They make use of the ignorance of the people to deceive them to follow the same old route. We need to cast our vote to get rid of those who lead such campaigns and those who support them. Similarly, we need to identify those candidates who are vulnerable and could be forced to become minions when cowed by their leaders to follow their parties into unacceptable coalitions and undemocratic and corrupt practices. We should not elect such spineless people as our representatives. And only we, the people, can apply pressure against the misleading diversions, and corrupt and anti-democratic measures. More importantly, a fair, just, and prosperous Sri Lanka cannot be achieved by electing authoritarians to power. No one can expect things to change by voting for those with a track record of deceit and corruption. They wish to continue the same old way with the existing system unchanged. Our youth deserve better, and their future must be brighter and fairer. We must, therefore, fairly and squarely reject the dishonest and corrupt candidates. Those who are concerned about the erosion of democracy and the worsening economic and inter-communal situation have the chance to cast their votes on August 5 to say enough is enough. Time has come to stand up, speak out, and speak up with your VOTE. At local level, you would know the candidates who have good character and known for serving the people in the area. Those who are not corrupt, not committed human rights violations, and not taken part in any criminal activities against people; those who have stood by people and their just demands regardless of their ethnicity or religious background; candidates capable of developing policies working consensually, offering alternative ways of involving in healthy political discourse. Elect them as your representatives. We need to have the courage and determination to undertake this important task. This is long overdue, and we need to change so that a decent and fairer society can emerge from this and coming generations. Identify good parties and groups that comprise candidates who have political backbone to stand up for just principles and say enough is enough. So, please go to the polls and cast your votes for such people and their parties at the earliest possible time on the election day. That way, you will avoid someone else casting your vote to elect somebody whom you would not want to be your representative. It is time to exercise that precious right once again wisely, responsibly and proudly. Your vote matters. Congress lawmaker Shashi Tharoor on Monday questioned why Union home minister Amit Shah, who tested positive for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) on Sunday, chose to go to a private hospital for treatment. Shah was admitted to Medanta Hospital in Gurugram in Haryana on Sunday afternoon after he tested positive for the viral disease. Wonder why our Home Minister, when ill, chose not to go to AIIMS but to a private hospital in a neighbouring state. Public institutions need the patronage of the powerful if they are to inspire public confidence, Tharoor, who represents Thiruvananthapuram in Lok Sabha, tweeted. Also read: Home minister Amit Shah tests Covid-19 positive, hospitalised The Congress leader was reacting to a tweet on the state-run All India Institute Of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi, which was established in 1956 when Jawaharlal Nehru was the prime minister. Amit Shah, who is the first Union cabinet minister to have tested positive for Covid-19, had announced the news on Twitter. He also requested those who came in his contact in the last few days to isolate themselves and get tested. After showing initial symptoms, I underwent a test for coronavirus and the report came out positive. My health is fine but I am being admitted to the hospital on the advice of doctors, he said. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Vinay Sahasrabuddhe and junior environment minister Babul Supriyo, who were among those who met Shah in last few days, have gone into isolation. Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has also said he has isolated himself as a precautionary measure after a meeting on Saturday with Shah. Also read: Ravi Shankar Prasad isolates himself after meeting Amit Shah Union home secretary Ajay Bhalla, who was attending regular meetings with Shah, few joint secretaries and the home ministers personal staff as well as security personnel deployed in his close proximity are also likely to be in isolation and undergo tests, government officials familiar with the matter said. Shah attended the cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last Wednesday, in which the government approved the new National Education Policy. However, social distancing was strictly followed at the cabinet meeting at the PMs residence, the officials cited above have said. Shah is learnt to have attended crucial meetings on security, party meetings and met several persons at his office during the last few days. Before the Union home minister, Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan tested positive for Covid-19 and then Karnatakas BS Yediyurappa also contracted the disease. Both the BJP leaders are also admitted at private hospitals in Bengaluru and Bhopal respectively. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 14:37:04|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close JALALABAD, Afghanistan, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- At least 13 civilians and three attackers were killed and 42 others wounded in a car bomb attack and gunfight in a prison in Afghanistan's eastern Nangarhar provincial capital Jalalabad, provincial government spokesman Attaullah Khogiani confirmed Monday. "Sporadic fighting between the security forces and gunmen continued throughout the night. The fighting is still ongoing inside the prison and a nearby building where gunmen took position," Khogiani said, adding that 13 civilians and three attackers have been killed and 42 wounded persons have been taken to hospital. According to the official, the security forces have foiled the attempts of some 700 inmates who were attempting to escape the jail. The attack took place on Sunday evening, the last day of the three-day Eid al-Adha ceasefire between the Afghan government and Taliban. The Taliban outfit has denied involvement in the deadly attack. Khogiani also told Xinhua that the attack started after "a terrorist detonated a car bomb at front gate of Nangarhar prison roughly at 06:30 p.m. local time Sunday in provincial capital Jalalabad city," destroying the front wall of the building, followed by gunfire between a group of assailants and prison guards. Fighting has been continuing, the official said, adding the security forces have been trying to control the situation with minimum casualties. The Islamic State (IS) group has reportedly claimed responsibility for the attack. More than 1,500 people, including 300 IS militants, have been languishing at the jail in Jalalabad city, 120 km east of Kabul. Enditem 'Back the Blue' gathering held in Overland Park A "Back the Blue" gathering was held in Overland Park on Saturday afternoon as locals showed their support for police officers. Smallish support for "the thin blue line" actually seems really nice and might include potato salad. Read more: Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 04:58:47|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close KHARTOUM, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia on Monday resumed a new round of talks on filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), according to Sudan's Irrigation and Water Resources Ministry. "The three parties agreed to continue the negotiations at the level of experts and to return to the talks at the ministerial level on Aug. 6," the ministry said in a statement. Yasir Abbas, Sudanese Irrigation and Water Resources Minister, said in a statement that it is important to sign an agreement among the three countries regarding the Nile Dam. Enditem Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 01:39:43|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Hasan Muhammad makes the fruit dish at a tropical park in Tartous, Syria, on July 28, 2020. (Photo by Hummam Sheikh Ali/Xinhua) by Hummam Sheikh Ali TARTOUS, Syria, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- For 36-year-old Hasan Muhammad, being a typical farmer didn't quench his thirst for a real change in his career, so he turned his farm into what he likes to describe as a "tropical cave" where bizarre tropical fruits exist. Located just outside the city of Tartous on the Syrian coast, various kinds of tropical fruits are planted in an eight-dunum land that was decorated by plants to become like a cave in the woods, which "teleport" the visitor from Syria to a tropical area. The visitors enter through a tube-like pathway of green leaves that leads to a small lake with water lilies floating over it. To the right, there is a bar-like table with different types of fruits festooning its front facade. To the left, wooden tables enshrouded by green leaves were set up for visitors to relax and order the fruit dish and cocktails. Throughout the park, bizarre trees are planted for people to walk through them on wooden pathways and watch the fruits on trees, which is part of a trip inside the "cave". This tropical cave, which is more like a tropical park, has become an attraction spot for curious Syrians where they can taste various kinds of tropical fruits and cocktails such as papaya and sour Topocho bananas. Muhammad told Xinhua his project started with a seed he planted in his farm back in 2013. At first, he was criticized by his family and friends, who told him he can never achieve what he was dreaming of. For him, it wasn't an easy task also, as he had to secure seeds of tropical fruits from friends and travelers in order to make his tropical cave. Additionally, he had to experiment with the seeds as not all of them could live in the climate on the Syrian coast and said he used to read and translate articles online that explain the seeds and how to take care of them. Muhammad said he has secured 92 different seeds since 2013 but so far succeeded 40 percent in making his dream project, which he says is his passion. He said that he started to benefit financially in 2018. "With the financial benefit, I was working to make a forest with a tropical environment to produce plants that are pleasing to the eye and water plants and birds," he told Xinhua. Driven by his love to explore and experiment with new things, Muhammad said he was pre-occupied with starting his project without even needing money at first. "I created all of this and made the decoration and took care of all the details, so I was far from crisis because I was busy creating this place that needed patience and planning, not money," he said. In order to introduce his project to the public, Muhammad used social media to promote his tropical cave. Now, his Facebook page has 30,000 followers and hundreds of check-ins. With all the success that he made on his own without any help, he said he still needs more time to decorate the place and bring more water to cool it off in the summer. He said it's still his dream project even though he might lose lots of his harvest in the winter when the climate doesn't suit the tropical fruits. Muhammad now is admired by his family members and friends and has fans who send him seeds from abroad to make his dream come true. If you thought the parking rates in Metro Manila are expensive, you have probably never seen the rates in other countries before. Japan, in particular, has very expensive parking rates especially at the center of Tokyo and Osaka. A 15-30 min parking period can already cost 100 yen (Php 47) and it only goes up from there. With space becoming ever harder to find, there is no doubt prices of parking will go up even more in the future. But what if there was another means of payment other than cash. At the new Nissan Pavilion, the automaker has developed a new way of paying for parking by using electricity. How do you pay using electricity? For starters, you need an electric car. According to Nissan, electric car owners can pay for parking by discharging energy from their car's battery pack while visiting the exhibition space in Yokohama. The electricity supplied by these electric vehicles will help power establishments at the Nissan Pavilion. One such example is the Nissan Chaya Cafe which operates on power supplied by Nissan Leaf EVs and solar energy. The Pavilion is a place where customers can see, feel, and be inspired by our near-future vision for society and mobility. As the world shifts to electric mobility, EVs will be integrated into society in ways that go beyond just transportation, said Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida. Nissan has been playing with the idea of EVs providing energy for some time now. In Japan, the Leaf has been used as mobile batteries that can supply energy in the event of a natural disaster. Meanwhile, the EV batteries can be repurposed and used to power homes or businesses such as the off-grid Chaya Cafe at the Nissan Pavillion. With Nissan now accepting electricity as a mode payment for parking at the Nissan Pavillion, the question now is will other establishments follow in their footsteps? Even though they might not be able to earn revenue from parking fees, they will be able to cut down on their electricity bill. Not having to pay parking fees might even be enough incentive for people to shift to EVs. (Newser) Microsoft confirmed Sunday it is in talks with Chinese company ByteDance to acquire the US arm of its popular video app TikTok and has discussed with President Trump his concerns about security and censorship surrounding such an acquisition. In a statement, Microsoft said it and ByteDance have provided notice of their intent to explore a deal resulting in Microsoft owning and operating the TikTok service in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, the AP reports. "Microsoft will move quickly to pursue discussions with TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, in a matter of weeks, and in any event completing these discussions no later than September 15, 2020," says a statement cited by NBC News. Trump, who on Friday said he would soon ban TikTok in the US and would not approve a Microsoft takeover, has talked with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, suggesting he may have reconsidered his stance on the takeover. story continues below Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns," the company's statement says. "It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury." TikTok also agreed to divest all of its operations in an attempt to salvage the Microsoft deal, and Microsoft said in its statement that it would "ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the United States, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred." Earlier Sunday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo again spoke out against TikTok and other Chinese apps. (Read more TikTok stories.) AKRON, Ohio A 1-year-old boy was fatally shot and two adults wounded Sunday night on Akrons East Side, according to police. The victims have not been publicly identified, according to the Summit County Medical Examiners Office. Officers responded around 9:30 p.m. Sunday to a shooting at a home on the 1200 block of 5th Avenue, according to a police report. Detectives believe the two adults a 48-year-old man and a 47-year-old woman were getting out of their car in the driveway when two unknown suspects shot them, police said. Paramedics brought the 1-year-old to Summa Akron City Hospital, where he died. The adults were also brought to a hospital for treatment to gunshot wounds on their lower extremities. Police described their injuries as not life-threatening. Investigators say a newer black or dark-colored Dodge Ram Pickup could possibly be involved. No description of a suspect is available, and the investigation is on-going, police said. Akron police on Monday released this image of a truck investigators believe may be connected to a shooting in which a 1-year-old was killed and two adults were wounded Sunday evening in East Akron. Anyone with information is asked to call Akron police detectives at 330-375-2490, Summit County Crimestoppers at 330-434-2677 or text TIPSCO with your tips to 274637. Tipsters can remain anonymous. CHICAGO Teachers and support staff at more than 35 school districts across the United States on Monday staged protests over plans to resume in-class instruction while COVID-19 is surging in many parts of the country. The protesters, who formed car caravans and attached signs and painted messages on their vehicles, demand schools hold off on August and September school resumptions until scientific data supports such a move. They want districts to wait until safety protocols such as lower class sizes and virus testing are established, and schools are staffed with an adequate number of counselors and nurses, according to a website set up for the demonstrations. On Twitter, the Milwaukee Teachers Education Association showed protesters making fake gravestones that said, Here lies a third grade student from Green Bay who caught COVID at school" and RIP Grandma caught COVID helping grand kids with homework." Deaths in the United States rose for a fourth week in a row to more than 8,500 people in the seven days ended Aug. 2, while the number of new cases fell for a second straight week, a Reuters analysis found https://graphics.reuters.com/HEALTH-CORONAVIRUS/USA-TRENDS/dgkvlgkrkpb. More than 155,000 people have died of COVID-19 related illness in the United States, the most in the world. Cases rose week-over-week in 20 states, including in Missouri, Montana and Oklahoma. Teachers also are demanding financial help for parents in need, including rent and mortgage assistance, a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures, and cash assistance. Many of these issues are at the center of a political tussle in Washington, where Democrats in Congress and Trump administration officials held talks on Monday and will resume on Tuesday to hammer out a coronavirus economic relief bill after missing a deadline to extend benefits to tens of millions of jobless Americans. Education employees in Chicago, Milwaukee and Philadelphia honked their horns in socially distanced car protests. Protesters rallied outside the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce building and in the Hartford, Connecticut, area, about 400 formed a car march that went by Governor Ned Lamonts home. I do not want to put my students or myself in harms way. I do not want to be an experiment," Andrea Parker, an elementary school teacher in Chicago, told reporters before a car protest. RE-ELECTION CAMPAIGN With Democratic candidate Joe Biden ahead of him in opinion polls, President Donald Trump has made school reopenings for classroom instruction part of his November re-election campaign. Cases up because of BIG Testing! Much of our Country is doing very well. Open the Schools!" the Republican Trump tweeted on Monday. While reported case numbers may be linked to more testing, the rise in hospitalizations and deaths have no connection to an increase in testing. On Sunday, Deborah Birx, the coordinator of Trumps coronavirus task force, said the United States is in a new phase of the outbreak with infections in rural areas as well as cities. States with high case counts should reconsider imposing some restrictions to push infections to a low baseline before the autumn flu season, the governments top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, said in an interview https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-fauci/fauci-says-states-seeing-surge-in-covid-19-cases-should-reconsider-some-lockdown-measures-idUSKCN24Z2DT with the Journal of the American Medical Association. Previously hard-hit, densely populated parts of New York and New Jersey reduced the spread of the virus with stiff social distancing and healthcare measures. On Monday, however, faced with more new cases linked to indoor events, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy reduced indoor limits to 25 people per room from 100. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said he would determine later this week based on the infection rate whether to reopen schools. California Governor Gavin Newsom, reporting that new cases, hospitalizations and intensive care unit admissions were all trending down, said it was too soon to make modifications on reopening schools, which are scheduled to begin the academic year with online learning from home. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor 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. Benchmark Holdings PLC - Sheffield, England-based aquaculture genetics, health and nutrition company - Announces sale of vaccine manufacturing facility at Braintreee, UK, to Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult for GBP16 million. Transaction forms part of a GBP100 million investment by the UK government to develop the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult Manufacturing Innovation Center to manufacture millions of doses of Covid-19 vaccines per month. Benchmark Chief Executive Trond Williksen said: "This is an important step in our strategy of becoming a streamlined, profitable business focused on our key areas of competency." Current stock price: 40.01 pence Year-to-date change: down 8.8% By Greg Roxburgh; gregroxburgh@alliancenews.com Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved. Exiled Lukashenka Challenger Said To Leave Moscow For Kyiv By Current Time August 02, 2020 A critic of Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka who last month fled the country along with his children after his and others' candidacies were rejected for next week's presidential election has reportedly left Russia for neighboring Ukraine. A spokesman for Valer Tsapkala said on August 2 that the 55-year-old politician and founder of a prominent high-tech park in Minsk -- who was seen by some as a serious challenger to the 26-year incumbent Lukashenka -- was on his way from Moscow to Kyiv. The spokesman, Alyaksey Urban, did not provide details or say why Tsapkala, who fled amid rumors of his imminent arrest, preferred the Ukrainian capital to Russia. The announcement comes seven days before Belarus's August 9 vote, which has already been marred by dubious disqualifications and an unprecedented scale of detentions and other persecution against a backdrop of a pandemic and pro-democracy protest. Add to that a fresh accusation by Lukashenka that Russian mercenaries were detained while purportedly trying to destabilize Belarus ahead of the election, and it shapes up as one of the most alarmingly volatile elections of Lukashenka's authoritarian tenure. More than 1,100 people have been arrested since campaigning began, including politicians, organizers, and journalists. Human rights groups and other critics have accused Belarusian authorities of fostering an atmosphere of "fear and intimidation" ahead of the vote, including by banning independent observers from polling stations and threatening to deploy troops to put down any protests. Officials have barred aspiring candidates like Tsapkala and popular vlogger Syarhey Tsikhanouski, whose wife, Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya, entered the race after her husband was jailed following his announcement that he would also seek the presidency. Many Belarusians have turned out to rally in support of Tsikhanouskaya amid mounting public opposition to Lukashenka's sixth term in office, with the biggest of the demonstrations attracting tens of thousands of people to Minsk's Park of Peoples Friendship on July 30. The Central Election Commission dismissed Tsapkala's application on July 14 after apparently rejecting around half of the 160,000 signatures that accompanied his application to run. Tsapkala appeared on Russian TV 10 days later to say he'd fled out of concern for his safety after prosecutors visited his children's school and "reliable sources" told him he was going to be arrested. Tsapkala's wife, Veranika, is reportedly still in Belarus. Veranika Tsapkala, along with Maryya Kalesnikava, a coordinator of the campaign of another excluded presidential aspirant, former Belgazprombank head Viktar Babaryka, joined forces to support Tsikhanouskaya, who unlike Tsapkala and Babaryka was registered as a presidential candidate. Tsikhanouskaya reportedly sent her two children to an EU member state out of concern for their safety after receiving threats ahead of election. Late last month, Tsapkala's sister-in-law reported being detained briefly for questioning in connection with accusations against Tsapkala by an obcure Turkish businessman that emerged after Tsapkala's attempt to get on the ballot. None of Lukashenka's five electoral victories has ever been regarded as free or democratic by Western standards, and the 65-year-old former Soviet cooperative-farm director routinely jails political opponents, shuts dissent out of state-dominated media, and uses the state apparatus to keep close tabs on and punish perceived rivals or dissenters. Belarusian authorities have tried to link Tsikhanouski and other jailed opposition politicians with a probe launched against 33 contractors from the private Russian military company Vagner who were detained and accused of trying to somehow affect the election. The Ukrainian Prosecutor-General's Office said on July 31 that Kyiv would ask Belarus to hand over 28 of the Vagner detainees on charges of fighting alongside Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine. It said nine Ukrainian citizens are among the 28, although Moscow disputed that status. Lukashenka said after a meeting with senior intelligence and investigative officials late on August 1 that while the Russians "are certainly guilty...these are soldiers. They were ordered [and] they went. We need to deal with those who ordered, who sent them here." Moscow, which has been frustrated at an inability to implement a joint union agreement signed decades ago with Minsk, has dismissed any suggestion of interference in the election. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/exiled- lukashenka-challenger-said-to-leave- moscow-for-kyiv/30762478.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 LOUISVILLE, Ky. A Kentucky State Police investigation into the fatal shooting of a Louisville barbecue cook during street protests against racism has been completed and handed over to prosecutors. Investigators turned over the findings in David McAtees May 31 shooting death to the Commonwealths Attorney in Louisville for review, said J. Michael Brown, secretary of the states executive Cabinet. Brown said the file would be shared with the FBI, which is conducting a separate investigation. Theres nothing to suggest, from the evidence collected so far, that theres any significant difference between the sequence of events and actions that were previously reported or captured on videos," Brown said during a governors news briefing Monday. Brown announced in June that bullet evidence showed that McAtee had been shot at his eatery by a National Guard member. McAtee had fired at least two rounds from his gun, Brown said. There were two guard members in the area and investigators could not determine which one fired the fatal bullet. Louisville officers were seen on a video distributed by police shooting pepper balls into the area where McAtee was cooking outdoors. But Brown has said he believes McAtee fired the first live round and that guard members returned fire. The National Guard was in Louisville to help enforce a curfew amid protests spurred by the deaths of George Floyd in Minnesota and Louisville native Breonna Taylor, both Black. Taylor was shot by Louisville detectives serving a warrant in her home in March. Floyd died May 25 in police custody in Minneapolis. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor Victoria is expected to record a further 429 cases of coronavirus and 13 new deaths on Monday, as the state introduces harsher lockdowns and a radical 8pm curfew. The latest figures were announced on Triple M on Monday morning, and follow a disastrous Sunday when authorities announced 671 new cases. Drastic new preventative measures were also introduced to stem the spread of the virus. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews declared a State of Disaster on Sunday, meaning Melbourne is under a police enforceable curfew of 8pm to 5am until at least September 13. Bourke Street in the heart of Melbourne resembled a ghost town on Sunday night as the tough new curfew kicked in at 8pm Australia's coronavirus outbreak is rapidly spiralling out of control because of the second wave of infections in Victoria Melburnians can only leave their homes between these hours for work, care-giving, medical reasons or on compassionate grounds. Some 4.9million residents have also been banned from travelling more than 5km from home to do their shopping - and only one person from each household can leave at any time. Regional Victorians have also had further restrictions imposed on their freedom as they re-entered stage three restrictions. Mr Andrews is expected to make an announcement later on Monday detailing which businesses will be deemed 'essential' and can continue to operate through the six-week lockdown. Shoppers queue into the distance outside a Costco in Melbourne to stock up ahead of Stage Four restrictions and a curfew on Sunday Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews declared a State of Disaster on Sunday, meaning Melbourne is under a police enforceable curfew of 8pm to 5am until at least September 13 The latest infection figures are significantly below the record figures identified last Thursday, when authorities announced a further 723 cases. Monday's anticipated diagnoses will also bring down the state's seven day average from 518 to 504. But Victoria is still scrambling to get the virus under control amid significant backlash from leading political commentators and members of the public. The draconian restrictions prompted The Project's Steve Price to claim Mr Andrews had 'totally let down' Victorians. 'Victorians today feeling totally let down by everyone from Premier Andrews and all his colleagues down,' Price said on Twitter. A body is removed from St Basil's Homes for the Aged in Fawkner, Melbourne following a COVID-19 outbreak Protective Service Officers patrol Swanston street before a citywide curfew was introduced in Melbourne 'While the rest of the nation returns to normal this state heads to a harsh lockdown destroying businesses... and causing death and despair... disgraceful failure.' The Australian economics editor Adam Creighton also hit out at the unprecedented increase in restrictions for Melbourne - calling them 'shameful' on social media. 'Shameful what's occurring in Victoria. Effective dictatorship declared. Devastating, destructive power of the state on full display. Respect for the individual clearly irrelevant. What's the point in being alive if you can't live?' he said. He referred to how the Swedish government - which kept restaurants and cafes open during lockdown - has handled the virus, noting their daily death rate had substantially fallen in recent months. The European country has however had more than 80,000 confirmed cases as well as 5,743 deaths - almost 30 times higher than Australia's 208 COVID-19 fatalities. More to come. Pictured: Empty trams cross in front of Flinders Street Station on Sunday. Melbourne residents are banned from leaving their homes between 8pm and 5am other than for a small number of essential reasons under an unprecedented night-time curfew London: Spain's former long-serving king has fled abroad amid allegations he may have inappropriately pocketed tens of millions of dollars from a secret offshore fund tied to Saudi Arabia. Juan Carlos, who spent 39 years on the throne before abdicating in 2014 following a series of highly embarrassing scandals, made the bombshell announcement in a letter to his son, King Felipe, released on Monday. The former king of Spain, Juan Carlos, has left to live in another country. Credit:AP The former monarch said his "well considered decision to move away from Spain" stemmed from the "public repercussions that certain past events in my private life are causing". The 82-year-old also told his son he was "guided by the conviction to provide the best service to Spaniards, its institutions and to you as King". 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 first astronaut trip to orbit by a private company parachuted to a safe conclusion in the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday. It was the first water landing by NASA astronauts since 1975, when the agencys crews were still flying to and from orbit in the Apollo modules used for the historic American moon missions. Riding in a capsule built and operated by SpaceX, the rocket company founded by Elon Musk, two NASA astronauts Robert L. Behnken and Douglas G. Hurley splashed down near Pensacola, Fla., on Sunday afternoon. The Crew Dragon capsule, suspended under ... Subterfuge and betrayal of youth aspirations led to wars in Sri Lanka View(s): The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), a Communist and Marxist-Leninist Party, was founded by Rohana Wijeweera around 1964. Rohana Wijeweeras father had been a political activist of the Communist Party of Sri Lanka (CPSL). During an election campaign in the 1960s he had been severely assaulted by thugs of the ruling UNP and as a consequence become paralysed. This had affected Young Rohana emotionally. Rohanas education had been in jeopardy as a result of his fathers incapacitation. The CPSL had risen to the occasion and arranged a scholarship for him to study medicine in the Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow. There, he had read the works of Karl Marx, Fredrich Engels and Lenin and become a committed Marxist. By this time the Communist Party in Sri Lanka had divided into two factions the Chinese faction and the Soviet faction. Rohana had broken from the CPSL which was aligned to USSR and joined the Maoist-aligned Ceylon Communist Party (CCP). It was then led by N. Shanmuganathan. After a visit to Sri Lanka, Rohana had not been permitted to return to the USSR due to his favour with the Maoist line. He could have renewed his visa if he toed the USSR line. But Rohana was made of harder stuff. Back in Sri Lanka, he felt that the Left movement (The Old Left) had failed to deliver and decided to start from scratch to suit the Sri Lanka working class. This was in contrast to most political parties which broke off from established parties. He found that the leaders of the Old Left were leading bourgeoisie lives. I refrain from commenting on the pros and cons of his political ideology, but he was able to increase political awareness of the working class. There were the famous five classes conducted by the indefatigable Rohana himself, and by 1971, the JVP had established itself as a political party to reckon with and offered an alternative to those disillusioned with politics of the other Left organisations. Majority of members and supporters at that time were the young adult group. The Government and its Left allies were alarmed at the political potential and the political challenge of the JVP, and levelled trumped up allegations against the fledging party and by way of subterfuge planned to suppress it. The JVPs intelligence sources were equal to the task and being wise to their sinister plans, started preparing to counter a violent eventuality that would ensue, and violence escalated din-dong. A senior former from a leading school in Kandy acquired the knowhow to manufacture bombs from a forensic book in the British Council Library and passed it on to his accomplices in the Peradeniya University and elsewhere. Victor Ivan a.k.a. Podi Athula received severe injury to his hand from an accidental explosion when demonstrating bomb manufacture. There were more accidental explosions in the Jayathilake Hall ceiling at the Peradeniya Campus and at Nelumdeniya. Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranayake had hitherto not taken the JVP threat seriously. She is reported to have scoffed at it saying, Can these juveniles raiding kadgu-puhulang (Cashew fruit) trees topple a government. With these accidental explosions, the government took the threat seriously and began to arrest and incarcerate JVP members. Rohana Wijeweera, too, was arrested. The suppression, however, drove the JVP to militancy and the Insurrection of 1971 that ensued. In 1987-1989 the JVP exploited the unpopularity of the arrival of the Indian Peace-Keeping Force and rose in revolt. It started with the killing of government party politicians and as it gathered momentum went on to kill supporters and sympathisers of other political parties, businessmen, Police and Armed Services personnel and finally families of police and Armed Services personnel. All and sundry obeyed a mere JVP chit and people handed over without resistance, whatever was demanded. Other criminals too cashed in on JVP name and committed robberies and a state of anarchy prevailed. At this stage, private citizens, public officials, politicians of different hues, Police and Armed Services personnel, all joined together into unofficial groups and annihilated the JVP leadership and many of its members. The JVP has since entered the democratic election process. The Eelam War In the 1956 Parliamentary Elections, the MEP-led by S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike (SWRD) promising to make Sinhala the only official language romped in with a thumping majority and introduced the Official Language Act making Sinhala the only Official Language. This was widely opposed by the Tamil people and the Federal Party led by S.J.V. Chelvanayakam threatened direct action. To appease the Tamil people, SWRD signed the Bandaranaike-Chelvanayakam Pact advocating the creation of Regional Councils as a means to giving a certain level of autonomy to the Tamil people. This pact was opposed by Sinhalese extremists and was eventually torn up by Prime Minister SWRD in May 1958. Later attempts by Prime Ministers of the UNP and the SLFP to pass similar legislation were opposed by the opposition party and incited the Sinhalese extremists. Realising the futility of pacts with Sinhalese-dominated governments, the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) comprising the Federal Party, the Tamil Congress and other Tamil groups, unanimously endorsed the now famous Vaddukoddai Resolution. This resolution articulated, inter alia, the view that the minority Sri Lankan Tamils needed separation from the rest of Sri Lanka to resolve their political problems, and resolved to, restore and reconstitute the State of Eelam in order to safeguard the very existence of the Tamil Nation in this country. The resolution also went on to state: This convention directs the Action Committee of the Tamil United Liberation Front to formulate a plan of action and launch without undue delay the struggle for winning the sovereignty and freedom of the Tamil Nation: and this convention calls upon the Tamil Nation in general and the Tamil Youth in particular to come forward and throw themselves fully into the sacred fight for freedom and to flinch not till the goal of a sovereign state of Eelam is reached. This led to the decades-long Eelam War waged by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) which ended only in May 2009 with the crushing of the LTTE by Government forces. But the communal problem is still simmering. It may be noted that the Prime Ministers of Sinhalese dominated SLFP and UNP governments agreed with the demands of the Tamil people accepting them as just and fair, but reneged on it due to political expediency. It is unfortunate that none of them has displayed statesmanship enough to contain the extremist elements and go through with a lasting solution. (The writer is a Retired Senior Superintendent of Police. He can be contacted at seneviratnetz@gmail.com) On the eve of Raksha Bandhan, Border Security Force (BSF) personnel deployed at the India-Pakistan international border near Ranbir Singh Pura in Jammu in celebrated the occasion with the locals on Sunday. Locals tied rakhis and gave the jawans face masks amid the COVID-19 pandemic. We are happy that we got a chance to celebrate Raksha Bandhan with the BSF jawans today. While we relax and go about our days, they make sure that we are safe and protected. Even in the middle of this pandemic, they continue to protect us, risking their lives so that we can get a good nights rest. We are very grateful to them, Banmeet, a resident told ANI. Jammu & Kashmir: Border Security Force (BSF) personnel deployed along the India-Pakistan international border, near RS Pura celebrate #RakshaBandhan with locals. pic.twitter.com/ks4trb3qWT ANI (@ANI) August 2, 2020 A jawan, who celebrated the festival, said that his heart was warmed as he was unable to go back home to celebrate with his family. We are very touched by this gesture because this year we havent been able to go home due to the pandemic and our posting. We all miss our families very dearly and celebrating rakhi with the locals reminded us of home, he said. Another jawan pledged that he would protect the young women as if they were his own sister, the same way he protects his country at the border. By PTI ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Defence Minister Pervez Khattak on Monday visited the Line of Control (LoC) where they were briefed by the Army about the latest situation, according to officials. The two ministers, accompanied by the Prime Minister's Special Assistant on National Security Moeed Yusuf, visited the Chiri Kot Sector. In a video message released before his LoC visit, Qureshi said he was visiting the LoC along with the Defence Minister to express solidarity with the Kashmiri people. The two ministers visited the Chiri Kot Sector where they were briefed by the Army about the latest situation of the LoC, officials said. India has firmly told Pakistan that the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has been, is and shall continue to be an integral part of India. Issues related to Jammu and Kashmir are an internal matter of India, the Ministry of External Affairs has reiterated. Pakistan has been unsuccessfully trying to drum up international support against India for withdrawing Jammu and Kashmir's special status on August 5 last year and bifurcating it into two union territories. India has categorically told the international community that the scrapping of Article 370 of the Constitution was its internal matter. It also advised Pakistan to accept the reality and stop all anti-India propaganda. B usiness minister Nadhim Zawahi has said it is "right" to allow a police investigation to take place before suspending a Tory MP accused of rape. The unnamed former minister was arrested on Saturday after a former parliamentary aide made allegations of rape, sexual assault and coercive control. The abuse is alleged to have taken place during a relationship. On Sunday the Conservative Whips' office said the MP, who is in his fifties, would not be suspended from the party while the police investigate the claims. Jess Phillips, Labours shadow minister for domestic violence and safeguarding, described the decision as shocking and said it sent a terrible message. Speaking to Sky News on Monday, business minister Nadhim Zahawi said it was a "very serious matter" and it's "only right" to allow the police to finish their investigation. Asked why the MP had not been stripped of the Tory whip, Mr Zahawi said: "These are very serious allegations. There is a police investigation. I don't know the details of that police investigation. "There's a victim here as well. It's right for us to wait until the police can do their investigation and you will be hearing from the chief whip as to what action will be taken. It's a very, very serious allegation." He added: "It's right that they are able to conclude their investigation." Mr Zahawi said he didn't want to "speculate" over the matter and it was "wrong to do so". "I think it's only right that the police get to complete their investigation and then you will hear from the chief whip and hopefully all these questions will be asked," he said. "I think it's completely wrong to go any further and I apologise, but I absolutely believe that sometimes, when the details are released, people will begin to understand why the chief chip or Conservative Party has acted in a particular way. "I think it's only right that we allow the police to finish that investigation." Jess Phillips: shocking that the MP has not been suspended following his arrest Ms Phillips told Times Radio on Sunday that the decision sent the "terrible message" that senior figures were still able to secure "protection" with their Westminster status. She added: "While pending a police investigation for a sexual crime, I think it is only right that the whip is withdrawn." But a spokesman for Government chief whip Mark Spencer said: "These are serious allegations and it is right that they are investigated fully. "The whip has not been suspended. This decision will be reviewed once the police investigation has been concluded." Robert Jenrick says Parliament 'needs to be' a safe space for young women The Metropolitan Police said they received allegations on Friday of sexual offences and assault relating to four incidents at addresses in London, including in Westminster, between July last year and January this year. A spokesman for the force said: "The Met has launched an investigation into the allegations." A man was arrested on Saturday on suspicion of rape and taken into custody at an east London police station, the force added. He has been released on bail to a date in mid-August. A Conservative Party spokeswoman said: "We take all allegations of this nature extremely seriously. "As this matter is now in the hands of the police it would be inappropriate to comment further." The investigation comes days after former Tory MP Charlie Elphicke was convicted at Southwark Crown Court in a separate case of sexually assaulting two women, one of whom was a parliamentary worker. Elphicke had the whip removed in November 2017 when the allegations first surfaced, but it was controversially restored before a confidence vote in Theresa Mays leadership the following year. However, when Elphicke was formally charged in July 2019, the party suspended him again on the same day. Tel Aviv: An Israeli court has ordered Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's older son to stop harassing three people helping to lead protests against his father after he tweeted their home addresses and mobile phone numbers. Judge Dorit Feinstein of the Jerusalem Magistrates Court also ordered Yair Netanyahu, to delete the tweet, which called on his more than 88,000 followers to demonstrate in front of the homes of the protest leaders. "I instruct him to refrain for the next six months from harassing the petitioners in every shape, way and form," Feinstein wrote in her decision on Sunday, Tel Aviv time. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, and son Yair, left, in January. Credit:AP The ruling came a day after large crowds of protesters across the country demanded Netanyahu's ouster, criticising his handling of the economic and health problems stemming from the coronavirus and arguing that he should not be permitted to serve as prime minister while under indictment on corruption charges. There is no doubt the Rio Rancho community would go to great lengths to protect our students. The same cant be said for the laws of New Mexico and that needs to be changed ASAP. Would-be school shooter Joshua Owen was able to walk free if he can be called free with his mental-health condition after the second time he was found incompetent to stand trial. Students and the rest of the community were traumatized, Owen was denied help and injustice was served. To say the least, results of this legal case go against all common sense. Owen was 16 years old when he went to Cleveland High School on Valentines Day 2019 with a handgun and unsuccessfully attempted to shoot three students. After being detained, he told officers he was hearing voices telling him to commit the shooting a similar statement to the one hed made 11 months before. He also had a to-do list indicating his intent to kill his ex-girlfriend and other people. Owen was charged with three counts of attempted murder, unlawful carrying of a deadly weapon on school premises and unlawful possession of a handgun by a person under 19. In June 2019, Owen was found incompetent to stand trial and was being held at the Bernalillo County Juvenile Detention Center. He was not receiving the mental-health treatment he needed. This goes against common sense and is the first instance where the system failed. This June, Owen was again found incompetent. University of New Mexico Hospital Childrens Psychiatric Center and the state Department of Healths Sequoyah Adolescent Treatment Facility fought vigorously in court against accepting him, saying they couldnt treat him. Owen cannot be treated to competence because there are no resources available. As a result, the judge dismissed the charges as per state law and released him with no conditions. This is where our legal system failed Owen and every citizen in Rio Rancho again. Owen clearly needs mental health-treatment. The concern about the safety of the community is very real, and his and his familys quality of life is diminished if he doesnt get help. Perhaps hes getting some sort of treatment, but perhaps not, and we have no way to know. His release, no doubt, affects the mental health of everyone whose lives were threatened that horrific day. Last week, the Observer talked to Owens ex-girlfriends mother, Lori Spina. Spina said her daughter is living her life, albeit with caution, since Owens release. We commend the Spina family for their courage and strength through this troubling news. Why has our judicial system chosen to not take responsibility for Owens mental health and let him go when he is clearly still a danger to society and himself? Adults who couldnt be treated to competency would be sent to the psychiatric hospital in Las Vegas, N.M., under state law. Why cant something similar be done for minors? If there are no resources in New Mexico, we need to develop them or form partnerships with surrounding states. With COVID-19, we have seen funding for mental health take a hit, but having the appropriate money and facilities is crucial to a thriving society. We were encouraged to learn that state Rep. Jason Harper has started looking for solutions to the gap in the law, and state Sen. Craig Brandt wants to fix the issue in next legislative session. Contact your legislators to ask them to change laws and prioritize mental-health resources. Visit nmlegis.gov to find who represents you. Below is a list of some legislators who represent Rio Rancho and the surrounding area: Efforts needed to win public support Key figures of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), the National Intelligence Service (NIS) and the Ministry of Justice got together at the National Assembly on Friday and agreed to expedite reform the spy agency, prosecution and police. The move came as part of the ruling camp's bid to carry out the much-touted reform as a primary task for the Moon Jae-in administration. During the 20th National Assembly, President Moon and his DPK attempted to complete the reform, citing the need to restructure the organizations to serve the citizens. The attempt however largely ended in failure amid fierce resistance from then main opposition Liberty Korea Party which has since changed its name to the current United Future Party (UFP). The DPK, now enjoying 176 seats of the 300-member Assembly, has been pressing for the reform. The participants including new NIS Director Park Jie-won, Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae and DPK floor leader Rep. Kim Tae-nyeon agreed on measures to deprive the institutions of excessive power to protect human rights among them. The spy agency will be prevented from interfering in domestic politics and redbaiting activities under the new name of "Foreign Security Intelligence Agency." The move is welcomed as the agency had been notorious for its wide involvement in domestic political affairs during past administrations. The reform device also features reducing the prosecution's investigative rights in six categories while separating the police apparatus into national police and provincial one. It draws attention as it is expected to prevent any particular institution from wielding extreme power while strengthening democratic controls and political neutrality. On the other hand, however, concern is growing that the measures, if passed through the Assembly as envisioned by the ruling camp, will likely overly expand the power of the police as they will have a wider scope of investigative rights with the contraction of power from the prosecution and the NIS. For one thing, the spy agency will stop investigating North Korea-related issues and hand them over to the police. It is welcome to see the institutions of power face reform given their past misdeeds of oppressing human rights while overlooking in-house misconduct. Also there is concern that Cheong Wa Dae and the ruling party have been attempting to tame the prosecution in their favor in the name of reform as seen in the recent dispute between Justice Minister Choo and prosecutor-general Yoon Seok-youl. Moon and his party need to consider how they can garner the people's support and consensus without unilaterally pushing for reforms of the law enforcement organizations. Apple has reportedly asked the landlords of its retail stores across the UK for huge rent reductions. As per the report, Apple has told landlords of its 38-store estate in the UK that it wants a rent reduction by 50 percent and a rent-free period to go along with it. In turn, the company is willing to extend the rent lease by a few years. The move has caused dismay among landlords of 38 Apple Stores across the U.K., with many of them having multiple years of lease still left in their contracts. The landlords are under no obligation to accept Apples proposal, though it is unclear what exactly happens if they reject the proposal. Apple is pushing for a rent reduction so as to bring the rents of its stores in line with other retailers who have managed to get their rents reduced due to the ongoing pandemic. However, unlike other retailers, Apple has seen an increase in demand for its products that the move comes amidst the company posting a record Q2 revenue of $59.7 billion. The company had noted during its earnings call that despite its retail stores being shut down, demand for its products via online channels was phenomenal. Our Take Apple Stores are highly profitable and they tend to push the footfall higher in malls and nearby regions. This is also the reason why many landlords try their best to keep Apple as their tenant for long periods of time as it helps in boosting the popularity of their place. While it makes sense for other retailers to ask for a rent reduction as their sales have dropped, Apple asking for a 50 percent rent reduction seems a bit unfair as the company has just posted a record-breaking quarter. [Via The Sunday Times Minneapolis police has advised people to give up their purses and cellphones if they are attacked as the city battles a surge in violent crime. The city's beleaguered police department which is struggling to cope with less officers and a huge increase in violent crime since the death of George Floyd - has issued a list telling residents how to protect themselves in the current climate. Some of the examples on the list include; 'carry only items you need and carry less cash; be prepared to give up your cellphone and purse or wallet; don't fight with the criminal; remember your safety is most important.' Minneapolis has been a focal point since the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis Police officer on May 25 which sparked major riots and unrest across the US. A protester (pictured) carries a US flag next to a burning building in Minneapolis during the fourth day of protests Minneapolis police are down at least 100 officers in the last two months more than 10% of the force. Over the past two months, 40 police officers have either resigned, been fired or are in the process of leaving. Another 75 officers have taken medical leave for post-traumatic stress disorder in the wake of the riots that followed Floyd's death. Residents in Minneapolis have complained that police are taking longer to respond to emergency calls as the police staffing shortage comes alongside the crime wave. A protester is sprayed with pepper spray by a Minneapolis Police officer during protests. The city has seen a dramatic surge in violent crimes in the city recently Minneapolis Police Department last week told residents 'be prepared to give up your cellphone' to stay safe in the city. (Pictured, Protesters demonstrate outside of a burning Minneapolis 3rd Police Precinct on May 28) According to Minneapolis Police Department records, gunfire incidents - which tie up multiple squads - soared in June and July this year, an increase of 224 per cent and 166 per cent respectively compared to 2019 Graphic showing an exponential increase in reports of gunfire in the city in the weeks of chaos following George Floyd's death on May 25 - and remain significantly higher compared to previous months The struggling Minneapolis Police Department last week offered a list to help people to navigate the city's recent surge in violent crimes. Some of the tips offered by police to prevent robberies include not to walk alone and to be 'hyper-aware' of your surroundings at all times. The list also suggests that residents carry less cash and are prepared to give up their cellphone and purse or wallet. Residents are also advised not to fight with the criminal to protect their safety. Tips offered by Minneapolis police to prevent robberies Don't walk alone; Be hyper-aware of your surroundings at all times, don't be distracted; Carry only items you need and carry less cash; Be prepared to give up your cellphone and purse or wallet; Have your keys already in your hand as you approach your vehicle; Don't fight with criminal, remember your safety is most important; Be a good witness, be prepared to tell police how many suspects, what age, height, complexion, hair and eye color and any other descriptive features, as well as any weapons they had, what they left in and what direction they went. Advertisement Since Floyd's death, some residents have complained of slow police responses and sometimes no response at all, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. One Minneapolis resident, Leslie Bowden, who lives in the area surrounding Floyds memorial - a long troubled neighbourhood that has been the site of several shootings in recent weeks - told the paper that she calls police as a last resort, mostly when she hears gunshots. She said: 'Police murdered a man in our neighborhood and then they just all fell out and left us alone to figure out our own as far as protecting our neighborhoods,' she said. 'You feel isolated, like youre in a war zone sometimes, but theres no one helping us.' An unnamed source told the paper that although the Minneapolis Police Department is funded to have 888 officers, it could lose about one-third of the force by the end of the year. The city has been a focal point of the Black Lives Matter movement since the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis Police officer on May 25. His death sparked major riots and unrest across and since then the city has been rocked with a dramatic increase in violent crime. Homicides, shootings and robberies in Minneapolis have all increased by double digits from last year. So far this year 288 people have been shot a total that exceeds all of 2019. There have also been 41 homicides in the city so far this year. In 2019, there were 48 homicides in Minneapolis in total. Though total reported crimes were down 31 per cent in June and 4 per cent by Julys end, gunfire incidents, which tie up multiple squads, soared during the same period. The Minneapolis City Council approved a proposal 12-0 last month to change the city charter to allow the police department to be abolished According to Minneapolis Police Department records, gunfire incidents increased 224 per cent and 166 per cent respectively compared to 2019. More recently, Minneapolis' South Side has been hit with a string of armed robberies and carjackings, which police say are the work of the same crew. In July alone, there have been 100 robberies and 20 carjackings in the Third Precinct - the city's largest precinct geographically. This comes as the Minneapolis City Council unanimously approved a proposal last month to change the city charter to allow the police department to be abolished. The amendment calls for a new 'department of community safety and violence prevention' that would offer 'a holistic, public health-oriented approach'. However, the 12-0 vote is just the first step in a process that faces significant bureaucratic obstacles to make the November ballot, where the city's voters would have the final say. A couple of decades ago, when she was living in Streeterville (then later Oak Park), when she was working as a Pulitzer Prize-winning national correspondent for the New York Times indeed, the first African-American woman to win a Pulitzer for journalism she was reporting on New York-based retailers moving onto Michigan Avenue. She arranged an interview with the manager of a boutique. When she arrived, late in the day, the showroom was empty. The manager entered the room frazzled and anxious, and his first reaction to me is I cant talk to you right now, Im waiting for a very important interview with the New York Times, I dont have time right now. I said, I think Im your interviewer, Isabel Wilkerson, New York Times. He said, And how do I know that? He asked for a business card. I was out of business cards. He asked for ID. I said I shouldnt have to show him this but I showed him a drivers license. He said, You have nothing with the Times on it? I said, Look, why would I be here? Im the only one here. He asked me to leave so he could get ready for his interview. Id never been accused of impersonating myself. Even years later, its hard processing the absurdity. She's holidaying with friends in the South of France. And Suki Waterhouse showed off another chic holiday look as she headed to the beach on Sunday. The British model, 28, flaunted her incredible figure in a very racy black swimsuit, adding a black and white striped shirt over the top. Model behaviour: Suki Waterhouse showed off another chic holiday look as she headed to the beach on Sunday during her holiday in the South of France Suki showed off her bronzed figure in the cut-out number, with the perilously high cut accentuating her long, toned legs. Going make-up free, Suki pulled her hair back into a top knot to keep cool in the sizzling temperatures and pulled on her matching cover up after enjoying an ocean swim. The model has jetted off to France with friends, leaving boyfriend of two years Robert Pattinson behind in London as he prepares to resume filming for his highly anticipated lead role in The Batman. The couple were first linked in July 2018 when they were spotted leaving a showing of Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again at the trendy Electric Cinema in Notting Hill. Wow: The British model, 28, flaunted her incredible figure in a very racy black swimsuit, adding a chic black and white striped shirt over the top They've been known to go on double dates with pals Taylor Swift and actor Joe Alwyn, and keep in touch with each other via FaceTime when their schedules keep them apart. Late last year the couple sparked engagement rumours, after it was reported that they would be spending the festive season at model Suki's family home in west London. The Mail On Sunday reported that Robert had lined up a trip to Iceland as a gift for the model turned actress. Girl's trip: The model has jetted off to France with friends, sharing sizzling updates on her Instagram page as she enjoys the sun But even more exciting was the talk among their friends that the actor may ask Suki's father Norman and mother Elizabeth for their daughter's hand in marriage. 'Suki and Robert are a great influence on each other, which is why he is spending Christmas with the Waterhouses,' a family friend revealed. 'Suki encourages him to be more relaxed and Robert keeps her grounded when she's feeling anxious. 'As they're spending Christmas together, it's the perfect opportunity for him to ask for Suki's hand. Lots of people, including Norman, are hoping that he pops the Gov. Gavin Newsom is finally waking up to a neglected crisis thats swamping Californias jobless benefits system. While unemployment claims soar, the states claim process hasnt caught up, meaning out-of-work residents are denied their entitled checks. Newsoms response promises to throw ample resources at the problem that he let stew for too long. Hes dispatching top executives, transferring workers to call-in lines and hiring 5,300 new employees to handle the crush. Its a hefty package, but also months overdue. Since March, more than 9 million people have applied for state relief that tops out at $450 per month. A separate dispute is playing out in Washington on continuing federal payments of another $600 per month. But as many as a million more applicants are still waiting, held back by clogged phones, dropped calls and unfinished paperwork. Through no fault of its own, this group is missing out on its money. State lawmakers are furious at the delays and notably unimpressed by Newsoms repair list. Theyre receiving complaint calls from fed-up applicants and are getting the brushoff treatment from the Employment Development Department at the center of the mess. After Newsom announced his fix-it plan Wednesday, Assemblyman David Chiu, a San Francisco Democrat, said, Unfortunately, this only scratches the surface of the disaster that is EDD. Added Cottie Petrie-Norris, an Irvine Democrat, Were done being patient. They spoke at a hearing where they and other legislators tore into department Director Sharon Hilliard over her agencys performance. Adding to the friction: Newsom unveiled his overhaul just a day before the lawmakers launched their inquiry to blunt the Legislatures impact. Since a recession a decade ago, the state jobless system has teetered. Its complex needs arent matched by adequate technology with a years-long overhaul still incomplete. When claims surge as they have this year, the department is overwhelmed. The numbers are three times the level from the recession a decade ago and 20 times the amount the department handled at the start of the year. The state has paid $50 billion in federal and state funds since March and hired extra workers, but its still behind. Phone lines are open just four hours a day for applicants, and callbacks to frustrated benefit seekers can take from four to six weeks, department head Hilliard acknowledged. As the pandemic-caused layoffs worsened, the department had just 100 people answering the public phone lines, she said. The governor is trusting in a playbook hes using to improve another problem-child state operation, the Department of Motor Vehicles. Hes deploying a strike team to improve service, upgrade tech support and come up with reimagining changes for the long term. Its a daunting challenge, and Newsom is leery of promising quick results, saying it will take 45 days to show progress. Thats a slow pace, especially as the economy continues to sink and more people hit the jobless rolls. Sacramento is failing to deliver. It allowed a crisis to worsen without taking sweeping steps needed to curb the damage. A fed-up state should expect swift results, not blackboard action plans from the governor. 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. Read the Fine Print to Know What a Biden Presidency Brings Commentary Everybody knows, and some people will even admit, that the next president of the United States will not be Joe Biden. This is true no matter who wins the election in November. As of Aug. 2, my money is on the reelection of Donald Trump. But I understand that isnt a certainty. For many reasonssome having to do with his astonishingly successful record these past 3 1/2 years (just think of what hes done with his judicial appointments, taxes, the regulatory environment, immigration, the fitness of our military, the economy), some having to do with the behavior of the DemocratsI think that Trump will win reelection. But a week, as Prime Minister Harold Wilson once observed, is a long time in politics. Many balls are in the air. We dont know where they will land. Where will the stock market be Nov. 3? What will be the unemployment rate and how will it have been trending? Those are critical numbers, but no ones crystal ball is sufficiently clairvoyant to give us the answers three months out. Moreover, given the stunning effervescence of our politics in 2020given, that is to say, the implacable hatred of Trump by the entitled class combined with the volatility wrought by such (un)natural disasters as the CCP virus and the scourge of Antifa and Black Lives Matter riotinganything is possible. All of that is by way of a disclaimer. Empty Vessel But why do I say that no matter who wins in November, Biden will not be president? Perhaps the best way of explaining that is to recall the fate of Achon, son of Amurath, in Evelyn Waughs novel Black Mischief. The aged Achon, chief of the chiefs of Sakuyu, lord of Wanda, and tyrant of the seas, was in fact the legitimate emperor of the fictional kingdom of Azania. But he had been safely confined to a cave the past 50 years. After various vicissitudesappalling to contemplate but amusing to read about in a novelAchon is set free. Alas, his long captivity has left him bent and senile. He dies upon coronation. Eight months sequestered in your basement is not quite the same thing as 50 years shackled to a rock in a sunless cave, but you take my point. Even if Biden were to win, it will not be he who governs as the next president of the United States. I wouldnt expect Biden, like Achon, to check out upon swearing in. No, the process would likely be a little more prolonged and circuitous. Victor Davis Hanson outlined some likely scenarios in his sobering essay Will 2021 Be 1984? The narrative that catapulted Biden to his present subterranean eminence centered on his supposed political moderateness compared to some of the more outlandish bijoux on offer, from the Soviet-loving Bernie Sanders to those queens of nastiness, Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren, all of them economic redistributionists with an imperfect appreciation of the distinction between meum and tuum. But what has made Biden palatable to the actual power brokers in the Democratic partyfar-left, woke commissars who combine a breathtaking arrogance with a deep hatred of Americawasnt his supposed moderateness. On the contrary, it was his empty vesselhood. Biden, in short, is the toxic suppository, the smooth and unguent capsule through which the enemies of democratic capitalism and traditional American values hope to insinuate their gospel of radical transformation into the tissues of American society. His bland non-entity, which given proper lighting can be packaged as moderateness, makes him the ideal super-spreader of the virus of collectivist sentiment. Comprehensive Approach In order to appreciate what the installation of that radical agenda would mean on the ground, I invite you to contemplate the draft Democratic party platform that was leaked a few days ago. As Joseph Simonson notes in his summary of the 80-page document, The party intends to circumvent Congress, turning instead to unelected bureaucrats of the administrative state to push through its woke, politically correct goals. The fine print is disquieting to say the least. Racial equity is a phrase that is repeated over and over again in this document. But what it means is the opposite of equity as traditionally understood, i.e., treating people the same regardless of their race. That, of course, was the ideal enunciated by Martin Luther King Jr. when he adjured us to judge people not by the color of their skin but on the content of their character. The new racism preached by sultans of social justice (what, you might wonder, does the adjective social add to the substantive justice?), that new racism, I say, inverts Kings ideal. Now we are encouraged to judge people solely by the color of their skin. And in case you didnt know, the code is: Black equals good, white equals bad. Accordingly, the draft platform insists that race-neutral policies are not sufficient to rectify race-based disparities. Ponder the force of the word comprehensive in the explanation of their alternative to race neutral policies: We will take a comprehensive approach to embed racial justice in every element of our governing agenda, including in jobs and job creation, workforce and economic development, small business and entrepreneurship, eliminating poverty and closing the racial wealth gap, promoting asset building and homeownership, education, health care, criminal justice reform, environmental justice, and voting rights. Comprehensive, eh? Another writer might have said totalitarian. On every contentious issueimmigration, defense spending, regulation, education, health care, taxes, housing policy, student debtthe Democratic platform calls for a huge increase in government intrusiveness and consequent loss of individual freedom. Naturally, the truly radical nature of this platform is somewhat concealed by bureaucratese and a clever deployment of uplifting abstractions. As Simonson notes, Much of the language in the document is a series of bait-and-switches with declarations beginning with promising language, only to be concluded by intersectional jargon and handouts for supposed victims of systemic racism. For most Americans, I believe, the draft Democratic platform is a terrifying document. Despite its sometimes anodyne language, it promises to remake America according to a thoroughgoing socialist agenda in which racialism, radical environmentalism, sexual exoticism, and globalist internationalism compete with anti-capitalist animus to destroy the country bequeathed to us by previous generations. Elie Wiesel was once asked what his experience of the Holocaust taught him. When people say they want to kill you, he said, believe them. Good advice. Roger Kimball is the editor and publisher of The New Criterion and publisher of Encounter Books. His most recent book is The Fortunes of Permanence: Culture and Anarchy in an Age of Amnesia. The views expressed herein are solely those of the author. As a nonpartisan public charity, The Epoch Times does not endorse these statements and takes no position on political candidates. Two fly-tippers who dumped rubbish in a field were forced to re-load their van when a farmer caught them in the act. James Johnston, from Glasgow, spotted the two men dumping planks of wood and other debris in his field and insisted that they remove it straight away. The men reloaded the debris into a van which is not currently taxed, according to the government's online tool. Two fly-tippers who dumped rubbish in a field were forced to re-load their van when a farmer caught them in the act in Scotland Mr Johnston moves over to the other side of the van and points his camera towards a large pile of debris (left). He states: 'All this has been dumped in the gate (right) of the field. It seems we now have to lock the gates every time we go through them' The video - which Mr Johnston originally released as a Facebook livestream - begins by showing the two men throwing rubbish into the back of a pick-up van In the clip, one man explains it's the pair's first time illegally dumping the debris - to which the farmer replies: 'Every time I ever catch someone it's the first time'. The video - which Mr Johnston originally released as a Facebook livestream - begins by showing the two men throwing rubbish into the back of a pick-up van. Mr Johnston states: 'Ladies and gentlemen of my Facebook Live, here's the two f****** cretins who have been dumping sh** in my fields.' The men reload the debris into a van which is not currently taxed, according to the government's online tool One of the men says something unintelligible to which Mr Johnston replies: 'Aye, every time I ever catch someone it's the first time.' He walks around to the back of the van and states: 'This is the van to look out for.' He reads out the number plate as the men continue to load the van and sarcastically adds: 'And guess what, it's their first time. Always the first f****** time.' Mr Johnston walks around to the front of the van and points his camera inside. Mr Johnston walks around to the front of the van and points his camera inside. A Coca-Cola can and a coffee cup can be seen in the front (left). A number plate reading 'bullet' is seen pressed up against the windscreen (right) In the clip, one man explains it's the pair's first time illegally dumping the debris - to which the farmer replies: 'Every time I ever catch someone it's the first time' Mr Johnston sent the clip (pictured) to ClearWaste - an app that allows users to report fly-tipping and find licensed waste removal options A Coca-Cola can and a coffee cup can be seen in the front before the farmer walks to the bonnet. A number plate reading 'bullet' is seen pressed up against the windscreen. He states: 'A bullet's what you should get.' He moves over to the other side of the van and points his camera towards a large pile of debris. He states: 'All this has been dumped in the gate of the field. It seems we now have to lock the gates every time we go through them.' He adds: 'Not to mention that two skip-loads were here.' Wheat farmer Andrew Ward was heartbroken to find this massive pile of waste dumped on a country lane at his farm in Leadenham, Lincolnshire Before ending the live stream, he states: 'Just as well the gates were locked.' Mr Johnston sent the clip to ClearWaste - an app that allows users to report fly-tipping and find licensed waste removal options. They shared it to their Facebook page with the caption: 'Farmer James Johnston caught fly-tippers in the act - and made them load it all back onto their truck.' ClearWaste creator Martin Montague said: 'We've seen a huge increase in reports of fly-tipping on our ClearWaste.com app and website since before lockdown - and it is often farmers who have to deal with it. 'If fly-tippers blocks a gateway to a field with a pile of rubbish then the farmer obviously can't get access their crops or livestock - and it costs them a fortune to clear it up. 'Fly-tipping is definitely still on the rise. Most council waste tips are open again but are operating at reduced capacity and some are of them booked up weeks in advance - you can't now just turn up at most of them. 'Many also no longer take building waste and lots of them won't now take any commercial waste. All this means many people aren't bothering and are instead be turning to unscrupulous and unlicensed traders they find on social media who may end up fly-tipping. 'Many local authorities are stretched and are struggling to remove piles of fly-tipped rubbish so it's building up and some people seem to think they might as well just add to it. 'Fly-tipping is disgraceful and just adds to the burden on our police, hard-pressed local council workers, not to mention the cost and inconvenience it causes farmers who are all working hard to keep the nation supplied.' Last month, a devastated farmer called for government action to stop the relentless blighting of England's green and pleasant land by fly-tippers. Wheat farmer Andrew Ward found at least three lorryloads of industrial waste abandoned on a road he uses to get to his fields in Leadenham, Lincolnshire. Fly-tipping in England surged by a staggering 300 per cent during lockdown as tips kept their gates bolted for almost three months, research by the universities of Southampton and Portsmouth showed. The Next Step stars Dani Verago and Molly Sanders as Cleo and Jude. (BBC iPlayer) The BBC has responded after a same-sex kiss aired on CBBC prompted a host of complaints from viewers. The scene in question, part of a storyline on long-running Canadian show The Next Step, saw characters Jude and Cleo, played by Molly Sanders and Dani Verago, realising their friendship had romantic elements and subsequently kissing. The scene made headlines last week with many media outlets referring to it as CBBCs first same-sex kiss, which is incorrect, according to the statement released by the BBC. Read more: Ofcom receives 280 complaints over racist language in BBC news report The statement, which was posted to the BBC websites complaints section, reads: The decision to include this moment was taken very carefully and with much consideration, and came about after CBBC and Boatrocker (the production company who make the show) acknowledged that the series could and should do more to reflect the lives of LGBTQ+ young people. This is an important part of our mission to make sure that every child feels like they belong, that they are safe, and that they can be who they want to be. We believe that the storyline, and the kiss, was handled with sensitivity and without sensationalism, following as it did the portrayal of Jude & Cleos developing relationship and Im afraid we do not agree that it was inappropriate for the audience age. The Next Step stars Dani Verago and Molly Sanders as Cleo and Jude. (BBC iPlayer) CBBC regularly portrays heterosexual young people dating, falling in love, and kissing, and it is an important way of showing children what respectful, kind and loving relationships look like. The statement went on to point out same-sex relationships on the channel are not new. Read more: Complaints over ITV2 airing of Contagion during coronavirus pandemic At Childrens BBC, we are proud to reflect all areas of childrens lives across our factual and fictional output, it said. Same-sex relationships have already featured in other CBBC shows such as Jamie Johnson, 4 O Clock Club, Dixie and Marrying Mum and Dad, and (contrary to what was reported in the press about The Next Step) the first same-sex kiss on CBBC was in fact in Byker Grove, many years ago. Story continues This moment in The Next Step is merely one story among a myriad of voices and experiences across our output. The BBC has stated it will not confirm how many complaints were made until the next biweekly complaints report. A rapist who abducted and held a young Japanese tourist captive for hours during a horrific ordeal is fighting for freedom, telling a court he just wants his life back. It's been almost two decades since Kym Spoehr, now 68, hit the woman on the head with a piece of wood and tied her to a tree before repeatedly raping her in Queensland's Noosa National Park on Christmas Day 2001. He fled the scene but was arrested in Coffs Harbour on the NSW mid-north coast three weeks later and extradited back to Queensland. Spoehr has appealed to Queensland Supreme Court for his unsupervised release. Appearing via videolink from Wolston Prison, Spoehr told the court he was suffering from untreated psychosis at the time of the rape, The Courier Mail reported. 'I screwed up badly and I paid a big price for it,' he said. Kym Spoehr served 14 years behind bars for the kidnapping, assault and rape of a Japanese woman held against her will in Noosa National Park (pictured) on the Sunshine Coast in 2001 'I've paid a high price for having a mental illness that got away from me on that day. I don't have a criminal mind.' Spoehr pleaded guilty to seven charges of rape, deprivation of liberty, torture and assault occasioning bodily harm and served 14 years sentence over the horrifying attack. He was released from prison in late 2017 on a strict supervision order. He was back behind bars within 14 months after he used a lump of wood to assault another offender in a secure prison housing unit where he was living. Spoehr argued he's not a danger to the community and just wants his life back. Two psychiatrists admitted the offence Spoehr is at most risk of committing is 'a rape on an adult female'. Dr Andrew Aboud told the court Spoehr living on his own would be the 'ideal scenario' if he's released on a supervision order. Spoehr was released from jail in 2017 but is currently in the high security Wolston Prison (pictured) after he assaulted another offender in a secure prison housing unit a year later He said Spoehr's horrific 2001 attack on the tourist occurred after he became angry at a man over money. He then took that anger out on the woman as she was the first person who encountered him during his moment of rage. Lawyers for the Attorney General are arguing for a five-year supervision order with strict conditions to minimise Spoehr's risk of reoffending. Justice Peter Applegarth told Spoehr he had not told the court about his living arrangements and support contacts if he is to be released from custody without a supervision order. Kym Spoehr has appealed to be released back into the community unsupervised (stock image) The judge also expressed concern Spoehr carried a 'rape kit' at the time of brutal attack. Spoehr denied it was a rape kit and that he had rope and duct tape to 'knock goannas'. 'I'm not the person a lot of people are trying to make me out,' he told the court. Justice Applegarth will make his decision at a later date. NEW YORK, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Starting today, McGraw Hill kicks off its nationwide call for nominations for the second annual ALEKS All-Star Educator Awards. The 2020 ALEKS All-Star Educator Awards will honor two K-12 teachers and two higher education instructors who have applied the ALEKS program to achieve exceptional results and improve their students' progress. For more than 20 years, McGraw Hill ALEKS has helped educators in math and chemistry to quickly and accurately zero in on exactly which topics students understand and which topics they need help with, empowering teachers to deliver the most effective instruction possible. Built on the theory of "knowledge spaces" from cognitive science, ALEKS (Assessment and LEarning in Knowledge Spaces) uses artificial intelligence to create personalized and dynamic learning paths for K-20 students based on their unique needs. To date, ALEKS has helped more than 20 million students at thousands of K-12 schools, colleges and universities throughout the world. McGraw Hill is accepting nominations for the ALEKS All-Star Educator Awards from August 3 through November 16, 2020 at mheonline.com/aleks-allstars. Nominees can be any educators who have demonstrated the following: Used ALEKS to reshape the way they interact with students in order to drive more effective teaching and learning. Measurably improved outcomes for students using a combination of ALEKS and other teaching techniques. Helped increase STEM success rates for all students. Gone above and beyond to help unlock the full potential of learners at their schools, using ALEKS. Implemented an innovative and unique teaching style using ALEKS. The winning educators will each receive a $1,000 donation from McGraw Hill to an education-focused non-profit or charity of their choice, as well as a $250 gift card and a collection of McGraw Hill Professional books. Winners will be announced in early January 2021. "We're inspired every day by the creative and innovative ways educators integrate ALEKS into their curricula to truly unlock the potential of their students and ensure a personalized approach to their education," said Simon Allen, McGraw Hill CEO. "This awards program is just one way we can honor those who work so hard to ensure each student has the opportunity and tools to succeed." About McGraw Hill McGraw Hill is a learning science company that delivers personalized learning experiences that help students, parents, educators and professionals drive results. Headquartered in New York City, McGraw Hill has offices across North America, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East and South America, and makes its learning solutions for PreK-12, higher education, professionals and others available in more than 75 languages. Visit us at mheducation.com or find us on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn or Twitter . Contact Tyler Reed McGraw Hill (646) 766-2951 [email protected] SOURCE McGraw Hill Azmin, PN's dreams to bring 'real' changes to Penang a pipe dream - PKR rep Former PKR deputy president Azmin Ali's aspirations of bringing "real" changes to Penang in the next general election is merely a pipe dream, says PKR's Bukit Tengah assemblyperson Gooi Hsiao Leung. This came after Azmin (above) said that it was time for the Permatang Pauh folk to experience a change after years of being represented by PKR president Anwar Ibrahim and his family. Azmin had also said that Perikatan Nasional (PN) has plans to bring about "real" changes in the DAP-led state. Gooi, in response, advised Azmin not to bring his personal vendetta to Permatang Pauh and Penang by attacking Anwars family. "You have already created enough havoc in PKR. "Secondly, Azmin Ali and PNs dream to bring 'real' changes to Penang in the next general election is just that, a pipe dream," he said. Gooi (above) said Azmin and his faction are living on borrowed time and would expire once a general election is called. "I am sure when the time comes, the people of Penang will know exactly how to deal with traitors and frogs," he said. Azmin and his supporters quit PKR on Feb 24 and joined forces with Bersatu, PAS, BN and GPS to oust the then Pakatan Harapan government in late February. Difficult to penetrate Anwar's stronghold Political analysts opined that it will be tall order for PN to make inroads into Anwar's stronghold. Universiti Sains Malaysia lecturer Sivamurugan Pandian said this is due to the solid relationship between the people in Permatang Pauh and Anwar's family. "It's difficult for PN to win this traditional seat... besides, there are rumours that Anwar will return to contest here in the next general election. "The voters here have a sentimental relationship with Anwar's family. They are not tied to issues," Sivamurugan told Malaysiakini. Awang Azman Awang Pawi of Universiti Malaya said that Azmin's remarks were only political rhetorics. Story continues "It's only political rhetorics. Everybody knows the seat is PKR's stronghold. "Besides, the incumbent MP Nurul Izzah has performed well in Permatang Pauh. "Nurul Izzah has no issues or controversy, unlike those who left PKR, to be used as arguments to defeat her," he said. Awang added that it's Azmin and his faction who would be defeated if they challenged Nurul Izzah (above) in the next general election. For the record, Anwar, who is now the Port Dickson MP, had won the Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat six times - in the 1982, 1986, 1990, 1995, and 2013 general elections - as well as in by-election in August 2008. His wife, Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, won Permatang Pauh in the 1999, 2004, and 2008 general elections, and in the 2015 by-election, which was held after Anwar was found guilty of sodomy and disqualified from holding the seat. In the previous 2018 general election, Wan Azizah moved to contest and won in Pandan. Her place was taken over by Nurul Izzah, who moved from Lembah Pantai. BS Yediyurappa Karnataka: Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said he has tested positive for Covid-19. "I have tested positive for coronavirus. Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self quarantine," the veteran BJP leader wrote on Twitter. Advertisement BS Yediyurappa The chief minister was taken to the Manipal hospital at the Old Airport Road here, sources said. Yediyurappa was in home quarantine a couple of weeks ago, after some staff members in his office-cum-residence were found infected with the virus. Subsequently, his Covid-19 test results were found to be negative. Advertisement However, his latest test results were positive. CoronavirusKarnataka has so far recorded close to 1.35 lakh Covid-19 cases, of which 74,590 are active. The disease has also claimed 2,496 lives due to the deadly virus. A 7-year-old boy who was shot while playing on his porch Saturday is fighting for his life, and police have one of three suspects in custody. Police say Zamar Jones was shot once in the head on the 200 block of Simpson Street around 7:40 p.m. Saturday, NBC 10 is reporting. Police say the driver of a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck extended his arm out of the drivers side window and opened fire on a group of people, Action News 6 ABC is reporting. As the driver fled, two men in the group opened fire on the pickup truck, reports indicate. The driver then crashed into a GMC Yukon, got out of the truck and into the Yukon, and drove off, reports indicate. Police found the Yukon abandoned on 64th Street. While police investigated the scene of the shooting, reports indicate the driver returned to retrieve his truck, and thats when police chased and arrested him. Police are still looking for the other two suspected shooters, according to reports. At least 16 bullet casings were found at the scene, according to reports. Zamar was struck in the shooting and is in extremely critical condition at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, according to reports. "He is still living, he is fighting for his life, he has not passed on," said Zamar's aunt, Makeeba McNeely, told Action News 6 ABC. Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw released a statement condemning the violence, saying Criminal acts such as this have no place in our communities, and we are committed to securing justice and promoting healing for all who are affected, according to reports. The suspects have not yet been named. The case remains under investigation. 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. NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Global Care Capital Inc. (CSE:HLTH, FRANKFURT:L6V1) (the Company or Global Care) a global investment company which engages in early stage investment opportunities in private and public companies, is pleased to provide a corporate update from CEO, Alex Somjen. For the period beginning April 1st, 2020 and ending June 30th, 2020, Global Cares portfolio companies, High Standard Health Care Ltd. (High Standard Health Care) and ViraxClear through its joint venture partner, Shanghai Biotechnology Devices Ltd. (ViraxClear), on a consolidated basis, generated approximately CDN$ 3.95 million in gross revenue with a gross margin of approximately 39% from the sale of High Standard Health Care PPE products, ViraxClear branded COVID-19 Rapid Antibody Test Kits (Test Kits) and ViraxCare branded PPE products. The Company cautions that revenue figures have not yet been audited and are based on reports prepared by High Standard Health Care and ViraxClear management. High Standard Health Care High Standard Health Care anticipates an increase in purchase order volume as several customers are running out of existing PPE and are requesting follow up quotes. There has been increased interest from school districts within New York State and High Standard Health Care continues to work on long term vendor agreements. There has been a high volume of requests for children sized masks which High Standard Health Care has direct access to and believes is a key differentiator. High Standard Health Care hopes to be in a position to announce multiple new partnerships with schools in the coming weeks as well as reorders from existing customers. We are excited about the growth prospects of our company over the next twelve months, shared Pat Gray, CEO of High Standard Health Care. Our main focus within our organization is and always has been customer service which we continue to see pay off. Maintaining strong relationships with our customers has always been our first priority and our customers have shown loyalty in return. Story continues ViraxClear ViraxClear has multiple high-quality sources of supply for its Test Kits and has been selling Test Kits B2B as well as B2C through its website www.viraxclear.com , across five continents. ViraxClear received approval for its Test Kits for the Chilean market from El Instituto de Salud Publica de Chile (ISP), through both its Innovita and Vazyme test kit suppliers. An LOI has been signed with Biosonda Biotecnologia (Biosonda) for the distribution of up to 3 million Test Kits for the Chilean market, valued at $17.25 million. Biosonda states that they have distributed the Test Kits they purchased to their network, submitted them for government trials and are gearing up for nationwide distribution through their own channels and via the government. ViraxClear signed a contract for distribution with well-known Philippines medical device distribution company Novarad Asia Pacific Company, following the Philippines Food and Drug Administration (PFDA) approval for the ViraxClear Test Kits. The terms are for an initial one million test kits which having been bought and distributed will convert to a nationwide exclusivity deal. The first two orders have been processed with intent for large-scale nationwide distribution. ViraxClear is progressing toward distribution deals to sell PCR testing machines and Test Kits across Africa and continues to turnover revenue through its online ecommerce platform www.viraxclear.com . ViraxClears PPE ecommerce platform, ViraxCare, sells high quality, branded PPE to individuals, globally through its website www.viraxcare.com . KN95 masks, 3 ply masks, nitrile gloves, infrared thermometers, pulse oximeters and wipes are just some of the medical equipment and PPE available on the ViraxCare website for direct sales. ViraxCare also offers bulk PPE and medical equipment purchases for businesses and organizations. ViraxClear is progressing the sales of its ViraxClear and ViraxCare brands, globally, with a view to imminently secure large Purchase Orders for their Test Kits, PCR Machines, PPE and detection devices and convert the deals it has been advancing over the last few months. ViraxClear is in discussions to form joint venture agreements with innovative technology companies to offer solutions to offices that extend beyond PPE provision, such as self-sanitising products and anti-viral cleaning solutions. ViraxClear has initiated discussions with procurement companies in the hospitality industry to provide both PPE and innovative technology for major hotel brands. ViraxClear has secured a high-quality supply chain of Test Kits and PPE, which we have branded and packaged, to stand out from the competition and establish ourselves as a credible long-term partner for our customers, shared James Foster, CEO of ViraxClear. We have nurtured multiple strategic relationships over the last few months, which we expect will materialize into sizeable sales. We have secured major distributors and vendors for our existing products. We are also very excited about the products we will bringing to market imminently via new partnerships. About High Standard Health Care High Standard Health Care is a leading global PPE provider assisting front line workers during the global pandemic. To date the company has procured respiratory masks, gowns, hand sanitizer, infrared thermometers, and face shields. To date High Standard Health Care customers, include hospitals, municipalities, long-term care facilities, fire departments and police departments. Website: https://www.highstandardhealthcare.com/ About ViraxClear ViraxClear focuses on commercializing novel products that address significant healthcare needs with a specific target on the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The companys main focus is marketing its ViraxClear Rapid IgM-IgG Combined Antibody Test. The ViraxClear Rapid IgM-IgG Combined Antibody Test for COVID-19 is a lateral flow immunoassay used to qualitatively detect both early and late marker IgG/IgM antibodies. ViraxCare is aimed at minimizing at-work risks by supplying PPE for employees and innovative products and devices which monitor potential viral outbreaks. Website: http://www.viraxclear.com Website: http://www.viraxcare.com info@viraxclear.com About Global Care Global Care Capital is a global investment company which specializes in providing early stage financing to private and public companies. The Company engages in new, early stage investment opportunities in previously underdeveloped assets and obtaining positions in early stage investment opportunities that adequately reflect the risk profile. Website: https://globalcarecapital.com/ GLOBAL CARE CAPITAL INC.: Company Contact: Alex Somjen, President & CEO 416-319-5744 info@globalcarecapital.com Neither the CSE nor its regulation services provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward-Looking Information: This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed forward-looking statements. The use of any of the words anticipate, continue, estimate, expect, may, will, would, project, should, believe and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. 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. These statements speak only as of the date of this News Release. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks including various risk factors discussed in the Companys disclosure documents which can be found under the Companys profile on www.sedar.com Editor: I am dismayed to see a long letter touting the Zelenko Protocol to treat COVID-19 in your July 26 paper. Perhaps a little fact-checking on your part would have been in order before deciding to publish this letter, since it has public-health consequences. According to Snopes (the internet fact-checking site): As has been noted elsewhere, combining hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin can cause serious problems for people with certain heart conditions. Though zinc appears to be an important factor in several immune functions, a potential mechanism for how it might work against viral infections is not well-understood. In an interview with Forward, Dr. Vladimir Zelenko acknowledged that his regimen was new and untested, and that it was too soon to assess its long-term effectiveness. He instead argued that the risks of waiting to verify its efficacy were greater. This is an assertion with which public-health officials largely disagree. Regardless, making an assertion in a blog post or in a YouTube interview that neither describes the study design nor provides the actual data used to reach a conclusion about efficacy cannot, in any way, be critically evaluated. As such, this claim is rated unproven. According to the New York Times, May 1: A federal prosecutor has opened a preliminary inquiry into whether an obscure New York doctor who won White House attention by claiming he could treat the coronavirus broke the law by falsely claiming that a hospital study of drugs he had promoted had won federal approval. The doctor, Vladimir Zelenko, wrongly claimed that the Food and Drug Administration had backed a study of a drug cocktail that he asserts is effective in treating COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. Through a mis-directed email, that claim came to the attention of Aaron Zelinsky, a federal prosecutor in Baltimore working on fraud cases arising out of the pandemic. The statements above might help Mr. McDaniel to answer his own question as to why making HCQ and AZ as easy to get as aspirin hasnt been done. Katherine Owre Rio Rancho Moscow raps US 'disinformation campaign' against Russian missile work Iran Press TV Sunday, 02 August 2020 8:25 AM Moscow has slammed the Pentagon for unleashing a "disinformation campaign" against the Russian missile defense program, saying the US is attempting to "discredit" Russia and justify its military buildup around the world. The Russian Foreign Ministry released a statement on Friday in response to an article by an unnamed Pentagon official published on the US Department of Defense's website, which claimed Russia's missile program along with that of China is becoming an element of great power competition. "We take this post as part of a targeted disinformation campaign seeking to discredit Russia. Clearly, there are unscrupulous attempts to ascribe to us some aggressive and dangerous plans, this time in missile defense," said the statement carried by the TASS news agency. "Unmistakably, this is about the United States trying to justify its own large-scale and expensive programs for creating and modernizing weapons and plans to build up its military presence around the world," the ministry added. The Pentagon, it said, was using the great power rivalry rhetoric to justify its military measures, which are in fact meant to achieve military superiority and undermine other states' national security. It criticized the US for stationing missile systems around the world and planning to deploy such weapons to the outer space as well. "In the context of missile defense at the doctrine level, the Pentagon has left open the possibility of delivering preventive 'disarming' strikes against other countries in order to destroy missiles before they are launched. Moreover, the United States claims these are defensive actions," the Russian Foreign Ministry added. The ministry warned that "changing the strategic balance of forces in the sphere of offensive weapons" would pose further risks to global security and create "dangerous conditions for stepping up a nuclear and space arms race." It said Moscow has put forward numerous initiatives designed to "establish cooperation in the anti-missile sphere" since the termination in June 2002, when the US withdrew from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM) that it had signed in 1972 with the then Soviet Union. The arms control treaty was meant to restrict the anti-ballistic missile (ABM) systems used in defending areas against ballistic missile-delivered nuclear weapons. "Washington and its allies have refused to move in this direction and are reluctant to take Russia's interests into account. So, the desire to shift onto us the responsibility for the situation created by the United States is at least unseemly," the ministry said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The College of New Jersey will offer only remote classes this fall, walking back an earlier, tentative plan to partially open the campus. In a letter to the college community, president Kathryn Foster said the uptick in the states coronavirus transmission rate led to the decision. A small number of students with extraordinary circumstances can live on campus, she said. The school will limit other in-person activities. TCNJ announced a flexible, partial reopening in June, but Foster said it would happen only if the state moved to stage 3 of its reopening plan. As COVID-19 cases have risen, Gov. Phil Murphy hit pause on lifting restrictions. And Murphy announced Monday a rollback on indoor gathering limits, capping them at 25 people instead of 100, or 25% of a buildings usual capacity. That came as the transmission rate of the virus jumped to 1.48, meaning each infected person passes the virus to at least one other person on average. In June, the transmission rate had dropped to .70, a sign the outbreak had decreased drastically since March and April. The TCNJ announcement comes nearly a month after Rutgers University announced it would stay mostly remote, offering in-person instruction for courses like arts and clinical work. Fosters letter said the university took into consideration rising cases locally and nationally, particularly among young people, when making the call to keep campus largely closed. For incoming freshmen, the college will offer virtual orientation, along with some in-person campus visits that follow social distancing protocols. Among the lessons from the spring and summer is that the TCNJ community, including families, alumni, and neighbors, possesses exceptional resilience and capacity to adapt, Foster said. In an environment in which no aspect of our lives and society has been untouched by the COVID-19 pandemic, I remain grateful for your intrepid response to disruption and the dauntless way you manage change. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Amanda Hoover may be reached at ahoover@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @amandahoovernj. External Article 3 August 2020 For the second time this month, the European Union extended its travel ban on Americans on Thursday, as COVID-19 infections continued to rise across the United States. The EU first started lifting its travel restrictions outside the bloc on July 1, welcoming visitors from 14 countries, including Canada, South Korea and Australia. The U.S. was left off that initial list, and the EU extended its ban on Americans visiting the bloc on July 16. The announcement, by the European Council, came after EU officials conducted their biweekly review of travel restrictions, examining coronavirus trends and containment measures in each country to determine whether to add or narrow the list of permitted travelers. The key measurement: The pandemic outbreak in a given country needs to be equally contained - or better - than in the EU. A routine cleaning of a storage well within MV Africa Star, a fishing vessel belonging to the Africa Star Fisheries Limited, has allegedly led to the death of a 27-year-old man, Elvis Otoo, at the Tema Fishing Harbour. The deceased, an employee of Jamens Limited, a vessel cleaning company, died when a supposed damaged pipe containing ammonia, a refrigerant for the tuna vessel, exploded and trapped him and a colleague, Enoch Teye, 32, in the process. Otoo was said to have had high exposure to the substance which he inhaled. He also had cuts on the body. According to an eyewitness, attempts by his colleagues to rescue him were unsuccessful. Teye, who managed to escape, sustained injuries and was rushed to the Narh-Bita Hospital in Tema where he is said to be receiving treatment while the body of the deceased has been deposited at the International Hospital Mortuary awaiting autopsy. Incident The Head of the Marine Police Unit at the Tema Port, Supt Joseph Antwi-Ababio, told the Daily Graphic yesterday that the incident occurred on Wednesday, July 29, 2020 at about 12:30 p.m. The vessel, he said, had returned from a voyage on Sunday, July 26, 2020 and began the processes to offload the tuna from the hatches (holding compartments) the following day. He said Otoo and Teye were tasked to commence the cleaning works in the hatch which had all of its tuna contents emptied, while other workers of African Star offloaded the rest of the tuna from other hatches of the vessel. Supt. Antwi-Ababio explained that the cleaning of the vessel was to enable it to go on another voyage when the entire contents were fully emptied. He said during the cleaning the gas leaked into the environment, creating an uncomfortable working environment within the fishing harbour. According to an eyewitness account, Otoo could not escape the scene as the substance, apart from causing eye sensation, also came with a pungent smell, Supt Antwi-Ababio stated. Evidence Tampering While some workers of the company had alleged that the Chinese owners of the vessel attempted to tamper with evidence of the damaged pipes, the Commander said a technical team from the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA) who visited the scene of the incident had tasked the owners to check whether there were any further leakages of the ammonia into other areas of the vessel. A proposal was also made for them to attempt to evacuate the ammonia from the other areas to its original holding base to prevent further leakage into the fishing harbour environment, he said. Supt Antwi-Ababio stated that the police had no evidence to the claims by the eyewitnesses since it was only the GMA officials who had the technical expertise to determine whether the vessel owners attempted to carry out any repair works on the damaged pipes. The Deputy Director in charge of Ship Inspections and Maritime Security at the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA), Captain Emmanuel Kofi Ankamah, who also confirmed the incident, said investigations were ongoing and that the Authority could only comment when they were able to establish the cause of the accident. Source: graphiconline.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 Chinese company Shanghai Zhizhen Intelligent Network Technology, also known as Xiao-i and specializing in artificial intelligence solutions, has filed a lawsuit against Apple, accusing it of patent infringement, Reuters reported. Xiao-i is demanding that Apple pay 10 billion yuan ($ 1.43 billion) in damages and stop producing, using, promising to sell, selling, and importing products that infringe on the patent, the Chinese company said on social media. Xiao-i claims that Apple's Siri voice recognition technology is infringing on a patent that the Chinese company applied for in 2004 and received in 2009. The lawsuit marks the continuation of the confrontation that began almost ten years ago. Shanghai Zhizhen first sued Apple in 2012 for patent infringement on voice recognition technology. KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Aug, 2020 ) :Managing Director (MD), Sindh Solid Waste Management Board (SSWMB), Kaushif Gulzar Shaikh on Monday said that the SSWMB has set up five alternative landfill sites besides its two permanent landfill sites in view of the Monsoon rains for properly depositing offal during Eid-ul-Azha in the metropolis. He said that these landfill sites have been established in district Korangi, Central, on islands in West and Malir district. Kaushif Gulzar Shaikh said that the board had also been assigned to lift offal, entrails and internal organs of sacrificed animals, from 85 collection points in the city. Talking to APP here, he said that the SSWMB was fundamentally working in three districts of Karachi to lift solid waste included district Malir, district South and district East. He said, 'Two landfill sites Jam Chakro and Gond Pass Sites are the permanent landfill sites', Kaushif said, adding that the makeshift sites had been established to avoid any filth during rains in the city. He said that the offal during these three days of Eid-ul-Azha had been estimated 1.079 million tons and the board was committed to perform its duty by collecting the animal waste from the designated collection points until its dumping at landfill sites. 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. By PTI KOLKATA: Several ATMs in West Bengal are running short of currency as private entities entrusted with the cash-filling task are operating with skeletal staff, sources said on Monday. Many lenders have outsourced the exercise to such entities, who are responsible for the maintenance and operation of ATMs in the state, they said. West Bengal convenor of All India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC) Sanjay Das said these private companies generally withdraw money from chests every Friday, since banks in the state are shut on Saturday and Sunday. "I visited two ATMs near my place on Monday morning, and both were dry. Many in the neighbourhood, too, complained about it. Today being Rakhi, I had planned a feast for my brother, but with the little cash I had, it could not materialise," said Ananya Dasgupta, a resident of Jadavpur. Owing to COVID-19 protocols and restrictions, these entities are operating with minuscule staff and are closed on weekends, resulting in delays in cash-filling, the sources said. "But, they are trying to refill cash in all the ATMs," Das said. He also said all on-site ATMs within bank premises have not gone dry, as cash-filling in such machines is taken care of by the lenders and not third parties. Subscriber content preview By MARK THIESSEN Associated Press Sgt. Seth LaCount/Alaska National Guard via AP [enlarge] Alaska Army National Guard soldiers used a CH-47 Chinook helicopter to removed an abandoned bus, popularized by the book and movie Into the Wild, out of its location in the Alaska backcountry in June. ANCHORAGE, Alaska An infamous bus appears headed to a new home at a museum in Fairbanks after being removed from Alaska's backcountry to deter people from making dangerous, sometimes deadly treks to visit the site where a young man documented his demise in 1992. . . . BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug.3 By Leman Zeynalova Trend: Bulgarian gas imports from Azerbaijan may be increased after 2025 when more Azerbaijani gas becomes available to EU customers via the second phase of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), Trend reports with reference to the the book titled The Southern Gas Corridor and its importance for South-East Europe. The authors believes that for a second phase to exist, namely the expansion of its capacity to 5 bcm/y, IGB needs to carry regasified LNG volumes from the Alexandroupolis FSRU project if it materializes or wait for post-Shah Deniz 2 gas from (most likely) Azerbaijan. The long-term future of these two projects is clearly intertwined, although IGB will be built on a stand-alone basis, simply to connect Bulgaria to TAP, reads the book. IGB project envisages the construction of a gas interconnector that will link the gas transmission systems of Greece and Bulgaria. The total length of the gas pipeline is 182.6 km, and its capacity for gas transmission is 3 billion cubic meters per year with the option to reach 5 billion cubic meters. The route of the gas pipeline is divided into 7 main lots, the shortest being 9.55 km long and the longest - 71.90 km. 106 km of the route in Bulgaria will be completed with automatic welding, and the remaining 45 km - by manual welding. The process of automatic welding of the pipes as part of the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) has already started, which will speed up the realization of the interconnector. Over 45 km of stringing on the route is completed, and the process continues both on Bulgarian and Greek territory. Two types of welding activities are performed for the purposes of the IGB project - manual and automatic. Over 10 km of the route is welded, and non-destructive control of the welds is being performed. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 3 Trend: The Azerbaijanis are well aware of Human Rights Watch organization and the organization's former director of the Middle East and North Africa division Sarah Leah Whitson, Trend reports. Both this organization and Sarah Whitson have always been 'notorious' for their biased position towards Azerbaijan. Although the name of the organization is translated as "guardian of human rights", its activity does not correspond with it. In other words, Human Rights Watch guided by double standards is acting in the opposite direction by violating human rights. Therefore, Human Rights Watchs reports are no longer taken seriously. The true intentions and activity of this "human rights" organization are known not only in Azerbaijan, but also in other countries. The issue has been recently highlighted by influential The Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal published an article criticizing the two-faced approach regarding illegal settlement in occupied territories demonstrated by Human Rights Watch, which regularly criticized the situation regarding the human rights in Azerbaijan. The author of the article is Eugene Kontorovich, professor at the US George Mason Universitys Scalia Law School and scholar at the Kohelet Policy Forum in Jerusalem. Kontorovich stressed that hypocritical attacks on Israel are common, but Sarah Leah Whitson takes them to a new level. As the Middle East and North Africa director of Human Rights Watch, she was one of the sharpest critics of the Jewish states presence in the West Bank, the article said. Yet elsewhere Ms. Whitson strongly supports settlements in occupied territories. The settlements Ms. Whitson supports are in Nagorno-Karabakh, an area that was within the borders of post-Soviet Azerbaijan until Armenia occupied the region after a protracted war, the article said. Since then, the Armenian leadership in Yerevan has actively encouraged the movement of settlers into the area. The United Nations, international courts and the US all consider it occupied Azerbaijani territory. The professor wrote that Ms. Whitson, who is from an Armenian family, served as master of ceremonies at a 2018 fundraiser for the Armenian National Committee of America, a pro-settler charity that views Karabakh as an integral part of the Armenian homeland. Even as Ms. Whitson led Human Rights Watchs campaign to boycott Israeli economic activity in the West Bank, she took to Twitter to promote Armenian wines, including from the occupied territories, the article said. Asked about the inconsistencies between her positions, Ms. Whitson responded by email: My personal support for Armenian diaspora organizations pertains to their charitable and educational work in Armenia and their efforts to advocate for recognition of the so-called Armenian Genocide. She specifically praised the group for helping Syrian Armenians who have resettled in Armenia; many or most such refugees have been resettled in the occupied territory, the article said. All abovementioned aspects show that by posing as a 'human rights defender', Whitson is in fact an egregious human rights violator, the article said. At the same time, this demonstrates her dual approach to the same issue. Given such a situation, any report and statement by Whitson or Human Rights Watch cannot be considered objective and reliable, the article said. As the organization that turns a blind eye to the expulsion of people from their lands and the illegal settlement of the occupied territories, it can in no way be considered a defender of human rights, the article said. Hundreds of parents gathered outside city hall and then marched to Queens Park on Monday afternoon, spending Ontarios Simcoe Day holiday demanding changes to the education system in addressing anti-Black racism. Kearie Daniel is one of the parents who organized the protest. If the government is serious about change for Black and Indigenous students, what we need is transformational change, she said. The march was organized by the Vaughan African Canadian Association, in collaboration with Parents of Black Children, of which Daniel is a founding member. She organized it, in part, to let the provinces Ministry of Education know that recently announced school reforms dont go far enough. The protesters are making a few main demands: an amendment to the Education Act and fully decolonized curriculum, with the experience of Black Canadians woven throughout all curriculums from kindergarten to Grade 12 the immediate destreaming of all grades accountability and training on teacher bias and racism As a Black parent with young children, Daniel has had experience with microaggressions emanating from deep-rooted systemic racism within the education system. Several times shes been called at the York Region Catholic elementary school her son attends over minor complaints from a teacher for instance, that her son wasnt standing in line properly; he was telling a funny story in class, which led the teacher to believe there was something wrong; he was being aggressive and had to be sent outside the class to cool off. This is a child who we had never had any behavioural problems with before, said Daniel, 39. She said that such incidents eventually piled up and caused her son anxiety. So he went from a child that loves school to a child that didnt want to go to school. Last month, Ontario announced plans to scrap the streaming system for Grade 9 students, which had long been denounced as unfairly affecting Black and low-income kids and further lowering their chances of continuing on to post-secondary education. The same announcement touted by Education Minister Stephen Lecce as an effort to give all the students a fair chance at success also put a stop to the practice of suspending kids from kindergarten to Grade 3, which disproportionately affect students from Black and low-income families. Black youth in the Toronto District School Board make up 11 per cent of the student population, but account for 33 per cent of suspensions and expulsions. That trend has been similar for a long time in Peel and York school boards. But parents like Daniel say the new changes are just a drop in an ocean of problems plaguing the education system. In one incident with her son, Daniel brought her mother to the meeting with the school principal. It was clear to her, Daniel said, that the principal was uncomfortable and not well equipped to properly deal with the issue of racism and equity she simply kept saying that things are better now. My mother was sitting there with her grandchild and she had done the same thing with me 30 years ago. Its the same conversation when they wanted to put me in the special education class, said Daniel. The group is also echoing recommendations from LAEN (Latinx, Afro-Latin-America, Abya Yala Education Network) that all schools across the province should be police-free and want to see school boards start collecting race-based data on student achievement and discipline, in an effort to hold schools and boards accountable for their commitment to equity. Protesters would also like to see the lack of Black representation across the Canadian education system addressed and are demanding increased hiring of Black teachers, guidance counsellors and administrative staff across the board. Claudette Rutherford, another parent who is part of the coalition demanding more change, is also a teacher in the York Region Catholic board and a proponent of ending streaming across the entire system, not just in Grade 9. Her sons courses were switched from academic to applied, and she was able to catch that and rectify it only because shes a teacher and was diligent with her sons selection. Rutherford said Black students are disproportionately affected by these measures because of subtle language used from an early age in their education journey, which shapes their understanding of what they are capable of accomplishing later in life. Curriculum reform needs to focus on Black and African material, not just in social science classes but in all subjects, she said. The conversation needs to include inherent bias, not just the fact that on paper we cant stream in one grade or one sector, she said. The protest, she says, is only part of whats needed to show Black students across the province that parents and teachers hear their complaints and are there to support them. I think the way to build students up is to teach them lessons about themselves and to teach other people about the success of Black people, so we can be seen as intellectual equals in all subject matters, said Rutherford. Correction August 4, 2020: This article has been edited to correct quotes by Claudette Rutherford. By John Burton Could the Korean Peninsula see a renewed nuclear crisis in 2021? The probable election of Joe Biden as the next U.S. president in November will be viewed as unfavorable by North Korea. Biden has historically adopted a tougher stance on North Korea than Donald Trump, whose conciliatory approach to Pyongyang has reduced tensions since early 2018. North Korea may be emboldened to resist further U.S. pressure on the nuclear issue if it receives increased support from Beijing as Sino-American relations continue to deteriorate. Meanwhile, a diplomatic breakthrough between Washington and Pyongyang on the nuclear issue before the November election appears unlikely. North Korea is pressing for the relaxation of sanctions before making any concessions on reducing its nuclear arsenal and there is almost no indication that the Trump administration is willing to do that. Biden will thus inherit a stalemate on the nuclear issue if he is inaugurated as the 46th U.S. president in January 2021. Biden's previous foreign policy track record as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and then vice president under Barack Obama suggests that he would adopt a hardline policy on North Korea. He is unlikely to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, as Trump has done, unless concessions have been made by Pyongyang. There is already bad blood between Biden and North Korea. Biden last year described Kim as a "murderous dictator," which caused the North Korea media to call Biden a "rabid dog" that ought to be "beaten to death." Biden would be expected to place increased emphasis on human rights abuses in North Korea, a subject that Trump has largely ignored. Biden is also likely to resume scaled-up joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises (COVID-19 permitting) and maintain current U.S. troop levels in South Korea. The strength of the national security hawks in Washington has already been apparent even during Trump's administration despite his conciliatory moves. Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have been effective in blocking any concessions on North Korea, such as sanctions relief, that Trump may have contemplated. Faced with a renewed hardline policy under the Biden administration, Pyongyang may decide to abandon its freeze on nuclear and long-range missile testing that it adopted in the later part of 2017. Frustrated about the lack of progress in talks with the U.S. there are indications that Kim Jong-un is already considering abandoning his "byeongjin" policy, which aims to balance North Korea's nuclear weapons program with economic development, and switching back to his father's "songun" (military-first) policy where nuclear weapons took precedence. The resumption of long-range missile tests could come even before the U.S. elections, with one date being suggested as Oct. 10 when North Korea celebrates the 75th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea. This would enforce Pyongyang's message that whoever is elected president, it will remain a nuclear power and either Trump or Biden must continue to engage North Korea. Any decision by North Korea to resume missile testing either before or after the U.S. election would also depend on whether Pyongyang receives covert or overt backing by China in confronting what they perceive as their common enemy, the U.S. And Biden is likely to pursue a tough line against China, a policy that is enjoying growing bipartisan support in the U.S. This would include shoring up U.S. defense commitments to South Korea and Japan. In conducting testing, though, North Korea runs the risk of discouraging the Biden administration from considering what appears to be the most realistic solution to the nuclear issue. This would be the freezing of the North's nuclear weapons program and a limited reduction of its warheads in return for diplomatic recognition and economic rewards. A hardline policy on North Korea by the Biden administration could also strain relations with Seoul under the current administration of President Moon Jae-in. Although Biden would most likely pursue a more conciliatory policy when it comes to defense cost-sharing, the Moon administration would be unhappy if the U.S. is seen as hampering Seoul's renewed outreach efforts to North Korea. Moon's recent appointments to the unification ministry and the National Intelligence Service signals that he wants to pursue a more independent course on North Korea by raising questions about the effectiveness of sanctions and emphasizing the need for "out of the box" solutions. Further complicating the situation are several "known unknowns" such as the state of the health of Kim Jong-un, who has dramatically reduced his public appearances this year. Another would be a surprise election victory by Trump, who would likely try to pursue a "grand bargain" with North Korea during his second term in office. This deal would be expected to include some degree of acceptance of North Korea's nuclear status and an easing of sanctions. John Burton (johnburtonft@yahoo.com), a former Korea correspondent for the Financial Times, is a Washington, D.C.-based journalist and consultant. Syracuse, N.Y. Its March 17 and the Brewster Inn, for decades a destination for fine dining dinners and leisurely Sunday brunches along Cazenovia Lake, is delivering family-sized portions of chicken tenders and meatloaf into waiting car windows. The March 16 shut down of dining rooms across New York due to the coronavirus pandemic forced all restaurants to reevaluate, if not fundamentally change, the way they served customers. The Brewster Inn, which opened as a restaurant in 1988, and other longtime restaurants in Central New York and beyond, had to ditch the formula that brought them success for decades and adapt in order to both feed their customers and keep their staff and the public safe. Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard caught up with the owners and managers at the Inn Between, Joeys and the Brewster Inn recently to discuss how the restaurants survived and how things have changed. The Inn Between The Inn Between, an 1880s farmhouse named for its location on Route 5 between Camillus and Elbridge, is a throwback. In a review, former Post-Standard restaurant critic Yolanda Wright described the crudites that start each meal at the Inn Between as old-fashioned. That was in 1998. Dinners at the Inn Between still start with crisp raw vegetables and dip, slices of homemade date nut bread and green salads with honey poppyseed dressing, just as they have for decades. For months now, those meals, however, were exclusively being packed to go. Nothing like this has happened before, said chef/owner Chris Cesta, who has led the kitchen at the Inn Between for more than 40 years. Christopher J. Cesta, chef/owner of The Inn Between Restaurant, 2290 State Route 5, Camillus. 2009 file photo. Michelle Gabel/The Post-StandardMichelle Gabel The mid-March closure coincided with Camillus Dining Days, when the Inn Between and other Camillus-area restaurant offer $25 multi-course dinners. Cesta said he decided to continue the promo price throughout the length of the dining room closure. Even now, more than six weeks after Central New York restaurants were allowed to reopen dining rooms at 50% capacity, the $25 takeout meals remain on the menu veggies and dip, breads, salad and dessert included, of course. It was very well received, Cesta said of the takeout menu. Takeout was the savor for us. At its peak, the restaurant did around 200 to 250 takeout dinners a week, though Cesta said that number was halved after restaurants reopened. Overall, business at the Inn Between dropped 70% compared to last year. Were considering this year a total loss, but well get through it, Cesta said. Cesta called his decision to finally reopen the Inn Between for dine-in customers at the end of July a leap of faith. Yet all were hopeful for the future because of the support they received from the community throughout. Cesta offered work to all his staff that wanted it. Most of his employees stayed on, even if that meant doing cleaning and maintenance around the 16-acre property. Some of the staff even did odd jobs for neighbors and longtime regular customers. Others helped with brush work at a nearby farm. The property has never looked this good, Cesta said with a laugh. When the shutdown began, Cesta thought it would last a few weeks. That turned into a month or two. They hoped to reopen the dining room for Easter. Then they shot for Mothers Day. That went by too. Some days you think of throwing in the towel, Cesta said. But the communitys support made it worthwhile. Cesta missed interacting with the guests and seeing the diners face-to-face, even if those faces are behind masks for now. The Inn Between has been host to countless birthdays, anniversaries and other life milestones. For Cesta, the friendships he shares with the diners is the biggest joy of running the restaurant. You become part of the community and they become part of you, he said. Joeys Joey's Italian Restaurant at 6594 Thompson Road near Carrier Circle. Joeys is a classic Italian-American restaurant in a city with no shortage of red sauce joints, but its gained a strong fan base since it opened near Carrier Circle in DeWitt in 1982. The signed pictures of athletes, actors, politicians and other celebrities that line the walls are all the proof you need. Business had been good to start the year until the pandemic hit. Its been devastating, said general manager Rick DeCuffa, whose brother is the chef/owner of the namesake restaurant. The DeCuffa brothers sat down the day dining rooms closed and talked about what they would do next. Ultimately, they decided to temporarily close the main restaurant downstairs and use Pronto Joeys, the more casual bistro upstairs, as the hub for the newly-centralized takeout operation. Most meals on the new takeout menu were around $15. Like so many other restaurants, Joeys added family sized meals, designed to feed four people for around $50. Cananas foster goes up in flames at Joey's Italian Restaurant. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com) Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracus The takeout was popular, but with its lower price point compared to a usual dine-in dinner at Joeys, it could only offset the losses so much. They missed graduations, holidays, parents weekends and other special occasions, though they were still able to donate 50 Easter dinners to first responders and their families. The tableside Caesar salads and flambeed desserts have been put on hold. Business dropped by more than half. Were still keeping our head above water, Rick DeCuffa said. Were working ten times harder with fewer employees to make it work. All three restaurants have since reopened to dine-in business. At Joeys, only the Pronto Joeys dining room, the downstairs bar/lounge area and a few outdoor tables are open. DeCuffa said it simply wouldnt be profitable to open the main lower-level dining room at this point. Most restaurants around Syracuse are currently doing more takeout than dine-in. DeCuffa said Joeys typically does just 4% of its business as takeout. Now, it does 60%. Hopefully we see a light at the end of the tunnelwe just hope it isnt a train, DeCuffa said. Brewster Inn Stephen Franks watched the news on TV for hours that Monday, in awe of what he was seeing. Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the Friday before (March 13) that restaurants would have to run at 50% capacity, so when the decision to shutter restaurant dining rooms came down that Monday evening, it was more of a question of when, not if. Franks and three partners purchased the Brewster Inn in 2017. All longtime employees, they had 50 years of experience working the Brewster prior to the sale. But little could prepare them for the changes theyd have to make next. They flipped the menu on its head and didnt know what the public would think. The kitchen began churning out meatloaf, chicken tenders, pasta and meatballs, roasted turkey and gravy and chicken francaiseall for less than $15 a portion, salad and bread included. The food needed to taste good, but also work for takeout. No matter what, fried calamari doesnt travel well, co-owner Caitlin Gambee said. A tiny grocery market in the front of the restaurant, where the Brewster sells meat, seafood, prepared foods, and accompaniments, suddenly became a lifeline for those who couldnt risk shopping in a supermarket. They stocked produce, eggs, flour, pasta and other kitchen staples, all available for curbside pickup. Being forced to step back from fine dining was humbling, Gambee said, as the focus of food moved from one of pleasure and celebration to one of necessity. Sometimes, chicken tenders fit the bill a little bit better, Gambee said. Lots of outdoor seating set up at the Brewster Inn in Cazenovia. July 31, 2020.Jacob Pucci At the Brewster Inn, the restaurants expansive lawn and lakefront location have made outdoor dining a lifesaver. Theyre doing three times as many dinners at the restaurant than to-go (with the exception of their Friday fish fry, when they do 150 to 200 takeout meals, compared to 50 takeout meals on an average night) but very few are actually being eaten indoors. Save for a few inside tables a night, customers are eating outside. They turned the bocce court into a dining area. The Brewster Inn offers dockside take-out on Cazenovia Lake.Courtesy of the Brewster Inn Theyre even doing around 15 dinners a night as dockside takeout for those boating on Cazenovia Lake. Right now, people dont want to eat inside, Franks said. That dependence on outdoor dining is a double-edged sword, however. Their business on any given day is dependent on the weather. If its raining, theyll get half as much business than they would on a clear night. Thanks to a hot, dry summer so far, business has been good. A sign along Route 20 in Cazenovia advertising the Brewster Inn's weekly Friday fish fry dinners.Jacob Pucci Things didnt go perfectly at first. Its March 20, the first night of the Brewster Inns new family-style takeout menu. With little time to prepare, the restaurant had to come up with a system to get food to waiting cars instead of to the tables. Its also fish fry night and word had spread. A line of cars backed up around the corner, down the block and onto Albany Street, past the Brae Loch Inn, waiting to pick up their food. Gambee said the system they devised was a big mess. Customers called in their orders and were given an approximate time for pickup. Some came before their assigned time, others came after. When customers arrived, servers went out, got their names and went back to the kitchen to find the order in a sea of tickets. Diners eating outside at the Brewster Inn while the sun sets over Cazenovia Lake.The Brewster Inn The wait lasted 90 minutes at times. Gambee and Franks said the crew was physically and emotionally drained. Worse, they ran out of food. At last, the final customers arrived to pick up their fried fish dinners. Gambee estimated they waited two hours for dinner and the kitchen was all out of fish. They gave them chicken tenders insteadthe only thing they had left. But the customers were regulars. They were just happy to see the restaurant open. Gambee remembers what the customers told them when they finally got their dinners. Youre doing it! Youre doing it! Jacob Pucci writes on food, restaurants and all things gastronomic across Central New York. Contact him by email at jpucci@syracuse.com. One more priest has tested positive for Covid-19 just two days before the grand ceremony for laying the foundation stone for the proposed Ram Temple is to be held. Confirming this, the 82-year-old head priest, Satyendra Das told Hindustan Times that he was a bit worried. Of course it is worrying, he said, speaking to HT on the phone. Prem Kumar Tiwari is part of the team that conducts the daily rituals here at the site. Just last week, another priest called Pradeep Das from the team had also tested positive and all those who were in contact with him were quarantined. Three fire officials who were posted at the temple site had also tested positive for the disease. We all stay in the same area in the mandir. I also have some other conditions and Im not a young man, he said. ALSO READ | Silver paan, gift from Varanasi, to be used in Ram temple ceremony on August 5 According to the trust officials, there were large numbers of temple priests and other workers who were tested for Covid-19, including the head priest himself. However, senior district officials played down the importance of todays developments. We have tested a large number of people and we are taking all precautions. I dont think this event has any risks at all, he said. We had all the major festivals- weve had Ram Navami celebrations in April, weve celebrated Eid, so why should we not be able to celebrate this, said Prakash Sharma, who works with the trust. However, Covid-19 fears have already caused others to drop out. Despite having been invited, Waqf Board Chairman Zafar Ahamad Farooquis spokesperson said that he wasnt feeling well since he returned from Ayodhya the previous day. Yes, the chairman has got an invite. However, he returned from Ayodhya yesterday where the land papers were handed over and since then he hasnt been feeling well. Its not Covid-19 possibly as he had surgery, but he wont be travelling, said Athar Hussain. Thousands of unlucky school leavers could be forced to put their party plans on hold as the Gold Coast mayor issues a grim warning ahead of Schoolies celebrations. Tens of thousands graduating Year 12 students are expected to flock to the glitter strip in mid-November for the end of year party. But Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate says the three-week event could be cancelled if the coronavirus crisis continues to escalate. He told the Courier Mail if chief medical officer Dr Jeannette Young says the event is too risky, it 'will be finished'. He suggested doing a Zoom party as an alternative. Tens of thousands graduating Year 12 students are expected to flock to the glitter strip in mid-November for the end of year party (Pictured: The event in 2019) The Gold Coast is home to the country's largest schoolies celebration but events are also held in Byron Bay, the Sunshine Coast, Airlie Beach and Lorne (Pictured: Students arriving to the event last year) 'Youre the technology people. Maybe you use Zoom or whatever it is, social media, to do Schoolies like that from home.' The state government overseas the safety of thousands of revellers who flood the Gold Coast for the event. And while there are no plans to shut down the popular event just yet, Child Safety and Youth Minister Di Farmer said the decision could change and would be based on expert health advice. 'Id call on all Queenslanders to do the right thing now and into the future including following health advice, maintaining social distancing and staying COVID safe.' Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate suggested doing a Zoom party instead The event sees thousands of students flock to the glitter strip to dance the night away Schoolies is a rite of passage for many school leavers across Australia which began in the late 1970s. The Gold Coast is home to the country's largest schoolies celebration but events are also held in Byron Bay, the Sunshine Coast, Airlie Beach and Lorne. South Pacific and Asian countries such as Bali and Vanuatu have grown increasingly popular in recent years as teenagers ditch overcrowded sites along Australia's east coast. But with international flights likely to remain off the cards until next year, those destinations are no longer an option. Telugu Desam Party national president N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday gave an ultimatum to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy to withdraw his three capitals idea within 48 hours or dissolve the state Legislative Assembly to seek fresh public mandate on his decision for trifurcation. Naidu reminded Reddy that he and his party leaders had promised the people of Andhra Pradesh in the 2019 election campaign that Amaravati would continue to be the only capital city and that it would be fully developed. After making that promise, the chief minister has no right to shift Amaravati Capital without the approval of all the 5 crore people of the state, he said. "If the people vote for and bring the YSRCP back to power in the re-election, then the TDP would humbly accept their mandate and it would not raise its dissenting voice again against the decision. If the CM does not receive a proper response, the TDP along with the other Opposition parties would intensify their agitation against the government in all possible ways, said Naidu. YS Jagan Mohan Reddy backstabbed and betrayed all the 5 crore people of the state by going ahead with his capital shifting without discussing or taking prior approval of the people. He himself repeatedly uttered the election slogan that he would never break his promises and that he would worship his party manifesto like the Bible, the Bhagavad Gita and the Quran. Having sworn on the holy books, the Chief Minister was now relentlessly breaking his promises without any conscience, he added. Meanwhile, TDP member Mareddy Ravindranath Reddy on Monday tendered his resignation from the Legislative Council, protesting the state government's decision to go ahead with three capitals plan. Ravi, alias B.Tech Ravi, said he has sent in his resignation to the Council Chairman M A Sharif. He was elected to the Council from the Kadapa Local Authorities Constituency in 2017 and had tenure till March 2023. Ravi is the first legislator to quit his post protesting the move to have three capitals for the state -- the Executive Capital in Visakhapatnam, Legislative in Amaravati and Judicial in Kurnool. On July 31 the state government notified the AP Decentralisation and Inclusive Development of All Regions Act,2020,and the AP Capital Region Development Authority (Repeal) Act, 2020, immediately after Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan gave his assent to the two controversial laws. The state Legislative Council did not clear the two Bills and had referred them to Select Committees for deeper examination but the committees never took shape. As per the provisions of the Constitution, the Governor gave assent to the two new laws, paving the way for the government to go ahead with its plans of having three capitals for the state. All opposition parties have been staunchly opposing the three capitals idea, demanding that Amaravati be continued as the full-fledged capital of the bifurcated state. With PTI inputs Former West Australian Labor MP Barry Urban wants his fraud trial to be heard by a judge alone due to past publicity painting him as a liar and destroying his credibility, his lawyer has argued. Barry Urban outside court after an earlier hearing. Credit:Phil Hickey Mr Urban, 51, was charged in September 2018 over allegations he forged two university degree documents and lied about serving as a police officer in the Balkans in his application to join the WA Police in 2005. The ex-politician is also charged with lying to a parliamentary privileges committee assigned to investigate the authenticity of his education and policing background. Mr Urban quit parliament minutes after the committee recommended he be expelled. His alleged offending came to light on the back of an article claiming Mr Urban had attended an ANZAC Day service in 2017 while wearing a fake international policing war medal he had bought online. Journalists in J&K are resisting a media policy that seeks to empower officials to certify what is 'fake news' The restrictions imposed on Kashmir media since the abrogation of Article 370 have made the media's task infinitely more difficult. (Representational image: PTI) Srinagar: Every day has been a struggle for journalists in Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) ever since the separatist campaign erupted in violence in 1989. But since August 5, 2019, media professionals in Kashmir have been caught up in a more complex situation. It began the night before J&K was stripped of its special status and split up into two Union Territories. A total communication blockade had been imposed before the abrogation of Article 370 was declared to the people of the state. It created utter chaos in both the Kashmir Valley and Jammu division. Most scribes couldnt file stories to their newspapers for a week, and news gathering became impossible. Due to the withdrawal of all means of communication and curbs on their movement, media persons were rendered ineffective. All the avenues through which a journalist reaches out to his/her readers, listeners or viewers were blocked. Though phone and internet services were restored gradually later, and prior to that a media facilitation centre was set up in Srinagar, high speed 4 G internet continues to be denied to subscribers in the UT. In this year of abrogation, much has changed in the life of a journalist. Apart from being subjected to harassment, humiliation, beatings and imprisonment, reporters are routinely called to police stations to explain their stories and reveal their sources. A couple of journalists including Asif Sultan, a reporter with a local news magazine, remain incarcerated after they were booked by the police under varied laws. In April FIRs were registered against three Kashmiri journalists. Two of them including photojournalist Masrat Zahra were booked under the harsh Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, which entails imprisonment up to seven years if proved guilty. Zahra and another journalist Gowhar Geelani were accused of posting on social media posts and photographs tantamount to glorifying the anti-national activities of terrorists and denting the image of law enforcing agencies besides causing disaffection against the country. A third journalist Peerzada Ashiq faced police action over his report in The Hindu and was called to two police stations in Srinagar and Anantnag to explain his position. Though such police actions have evoked widespread condemnation in media quarters in Kashmir, the rest of the country and abroad, several journalists interviewed by this correspondent said the reality for journalists in Kashmir is a ceaseless struggle. New media policy On June 2, the government came up with a new media policy that authorizes it to decide what is fake, unethical or anti-national news, and initiate legal action against the journalist or media organization concerned, including withdrawal of government advertisement support and sharing their information with security agencies. Justifying what the local media organizations perceive as an onslaught on freedom of the press, the 50-page policy document reads Jammu and Kashmir has significant law and order and security considerations. It has been fighting a proxy war supported and abetted from across the border and in such a situation, it is extremely important that the efforts of anti-social and anti-national elements to disturb peace are thwarted. Media persons have rejected the media policy and said the government does not want them to report the truth about Kashmir and the events and incidents unfolding on their beat objectively and candidly. Senior journalist and editor of Kashmir Images Bashir Manzar says, Who will sit in judgement on what is fake, unethical or anti national news? Another journalist said, We should not be expected to act as obedient stenographers to advance the government narrative. This media policy is unacceptable to us. Bashir Manzar said that if the government was serious about discouraging fake or unethical reportage it should constitute a committee of media experts to examine complaints against journalists or media organizations. This responsibility cant be assigned to a cop in a police station or a babu operating from a government office. The new media policy is an assault on freedom of expression and must be withdrawn, he said. Failure to vaccinate everyone will give rise to new variants, says UN chief Search on for COVID patients who gave false information in Lucknow India pti-PTI Lucknow, Aug 03: About 2,300 people, who tested positive for COVID-19 here, had given false information pertaining to their names, mobile numbers and addresses, a health official said on Monday. While 1,171 people out of those who gave false information have been tracked, a hunt is on for the others. " 2,290 people who had undergone COVID-19 tests at various private and government laboratories between July 23 and July 31 had given false names, mobile numbers and addresses. This came to the fore when our department could not contact them.We have informed the police about it," a senior health official said. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News 90% of recovered COVID-19 patients in Wuhan suffering from lung damage: Report These people are not only from Lucknow but other cities also who were tested in the state capital, he said. Lucknow Police Commissioner Sujit Pandey said that police immediately swung into action and "we have tracked 1,171 of these people and informed authorities and integrated COVID-19 command and control room." "Attempts are on to trace the remaining ones," Pandey said, adding that directives have been issued to hospitals and laboratories to verify mobile numbers before taking samples so that they remain under the vigil of the Health department. The state capital had witnessed 8,686 cases, which included 4.012 active cases, 4,559 patients who are discharged and 115 deaths till Sunday. While state minister Kamla Rani Varun died due to the virus, BJP state president Swatantra Dev Singh and minister Mahendra Singh tested positive for the virus on Sunday. The Vietnam Airlines Corporation (Vietnam Airlines) suffers losses of 4.03 trillion VND (172.72 million USD) in the second quarter of 2020. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi The COVID-19 pandemic has severely dragged down revenues of the Vietnam Airlines Corporation (Vietnam Airlines) and the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) in the second quarter of this year. Vietnam Airlines reported 6 trillion VND (257.1 million USD) in second-quarter revenue, down nearly 70 percent from the previous quarter, as a result of a month-long social distancing order in April and the ongoing suspension of international flights.The corporation suffered quarterly losses of 4.03 trillion VND (172.72 million USD), raising the total losses in the first half of the year to more than 6.64 trillion VND.In mid-July, the State-run firm estimated its revenue would halve to around 50 trillion VND and losses would mount to 13 trillion VND this year.Vietnam Airlines is seeking an urgent bailout of 12 trillion VND from the government to help it overcome difficulties.By the end of the second quarter, its asset totalled 66.69 trillion VND, a decline of 12.7 percent from the beginning of the year and its equity shrunk by more than 38 percent to close to 11.43 trillion VND.Meanwhile, ACV has recorded post-tax losses of over 365 billion VND from April to June as its revenues plunged 76.6 percent from the same period last year to over 1.04 trillion VND.A year earlier, the company enjoyed about 1.7 trillion VND in profit.The second-quarter losses have been offset by 1.55 trillion VND in first-quarter post-tax profit before the coronavirus hit the aviation industry. In the first half of 2020, the airport operator posted more than 1.19 trillion VND in post-tax profit.ACV projected that the number of air passengers would reduce by 41 percent year-on-year to 69.2 million in 2020 while the volume of cargoes going through 21 airports across Vietnam would fall 13 percent to 1.34 million tonnes. Chants of I Cant Breathe have echoed in streets in Albuquerque and across the country all summer after the killing of George Floyd in May at the hands of Minneapolis police. Floyds death has led to hundreds of demonstrations across the country, including in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, competing with the COVID-19 pandemic for headlines and news coverage. While it doesnt have the cadence for a chant, ending the legal doctrine of qualified immunity has become a cornerstone of the Black Lives Matter movement and many progressive Democrats this summer. The defense for public officials and employees of qualified immunity was created by the U.S. Supreme Court over the course of many decisions. It is now seen as a barrier to holding police officers accountable when they use excessive force. Even with qualified immunity used as a defense, civil rights and wrongful death lawsuits in police use-of-force cases in New Mexico courts have cost state and local governments millions of dollars over the last 20 years. Now the state Legislature is considering a state civil rights law that would specifically prohibit the defense of qualified immunity. The New Mexico Legislature considered taking up the issue during the special session in June but decided instead to create a State Civil Rights Commission to study the issue. The risk in putting it off is that the public passion for change dies down, said Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino, D-Albuquerque. Rep. Bill Rehm, R-Albuquerque, said a cooling off period might be a good idea. Without qualified immunity you expose all sorts of government employees to these lawsuits, said Rehm, a retired Bernalillo County Sheriffs Department captain. Teachers, social workers or any public employee loses that defense in court. It isnt just about police. Commissions task Legislators are aware that a state civil rights law abolishing qualified immunity would cover all government employees, not just law enforcement. Its complicated, Rep. Antonio Moe Maestas, D-Albuquerque, said. There are portions of other statutes that may have to be amended to bring them into line with whats proposed. Maestas said that is why the recommendations of the commission are important in guiding how the Legislature acts. The commission is required to make a report to the Legislature in mid-November. Colorado legislators passed a police reform law that included eliminating the defense of qualified immunity in state civil rights lawsuits following Floyds death and making police officers personally liable for up to $25,000 in a judgment. California already has a civil rights act and excludes qualified immunity as a defense for government employees named in lawsuits. Massachusetts is looking at amending its civil rights law to prohibit the defense of qualified immunity after the states highest court allowed the defense because it was not prohibited by statute. New Mexico does not have a civil rights law allowing public officials to be sued for violating someones rights under the state Constitution. The Legislature and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham agreed during Junes special legislative session to appoint the commission to study the issue and make recommendations to be considered during the 60-day session starting next January. Ortiz y Pino, who co-sponsored the legislation, said the six members appointed by the Legislature should be named this month. Lujan Grisham will name three of the nine commission members. They should give us a report before the start of the next session so we can act on it, Ortiz y Pino said. He said the commission will have to look at issues like liability insurance for state and local governments and whether individuals sued under the act would be responsible for a portion of any damages. Rehm said, We have no idea how much this is going to cost state and local governments. Lujan Grisham and the Legislature did take other steps in response to Floyds killing requiring all law enforcement officers to wear lapel cameras and requiring the Law Enforcement Academy Board to revoke the certification of any police officer guilty of unlawful use of force or threatening force, or an officer who fails to intervene to stop the use of unlawful force. Issue of police culture Legislators said they expect public employee unions and local governments to weigh in on the issue. State Fraternal Order of Police President Bob Martinez said law enforcement agencies wanted a seat at the table, and the commission must include at least one member experienced in law enforcement. We have concerns that need to be heard, Martinez said. No one in law enforcement condones what was done to George Floyd. He said that no one is opposed to holding police officers and public employees accountable, but police officers are highly regulated already. If you remove qualified immunity you are taking away one of the few protections they have. You may have people thinking twice before joining the police profession. Albuquerque attorney Luis Robles, who has defended police officers and local governments for 30 years, said, If the state chooses to go this route, it will cost money. Robles said removing qualified immunity as a defense gives plaintiffs a much friendlier standard. Albuquerque civil rights attorney Phil Davis, who has faced off with Robles in court, said, It also brings us to the issue of police culture, which not only protects good cops but also protects bad cops. If there is a change, the good cops wouldnt have to tolerate the bad cops. Steven Allen, director of Public Policy for the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico, said, A state civil rights act is not a utopian solution, but it is a huge step in the right direction. Second of a two-part series STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A West Brighton felon, whose brawl outside the Staten Island Courthouse two years ago helped set in motion a deadly chain of events, has been sentenced to two years behind bars for firing a gun on a Port Richmond street in an unrelated incident. Naquan Young was charged in the April 8, 2018 episode along with Isaiah Kelson, who earlier this year was convicted of murder in the unconnected slaying of Frances Williams, an innocent bystander, in New Brighton three months later on July 10, 2018. In the April incident, police said Young and Kelson fired several shots in the vicinity of Heberton and Post avenues at around 1 a.m. Nobody was struck, but police recovered several shell casings from the scene, according to an NYPD spokeswoman. The defendants fired loaded firearms in the direction of civilians in a residential neighborhood while other individuals were present at this location, an indictment said. Young was charged with attempted murder, attempted assault, criminal weapon possession, criminal firearm possession and reckless endangerment. In February, Young, then 22, pleaded guilty in state Supreme Court, St. George, to a reduced count of attempted second-degree criminal weapon possession to resolve his case. Besides two years prison time, Young was sentenced on Friday to 18 months post-release supervision. Defense lawyer Michael Cirigliano declined comment on the case. In February, Kelson, then 23, was convicted of murder and other charges stemming from the fatal shooting of Williams, 67, affectionately known as Miss Franny. He was sentenced to 35 years to life in prison. Prosecutors said Kelson and another man, who cooperated with authorities, were firing at a fleeing gang rival they spotted on the street. One of Kelsons bullets struck Williams, who was standing at a Jersey Street bus stop, prosecutors said. Prosecutors said Kelson and others, including fellow West Brighton residents and co-defendants Marquise Tart, 26, and Jaleel Hewitt, 27, sought to avenge their friend Robert Craigwell, 26, who was fatally mowed down by a van in St George, less than an hour before Williams was slain. Members of a rival New Brighton crew were in the van, said prosecutors. Tart and Hewitt were convicted of conspiracy and criminal facilitation for aiding in the revenge plot. They were not charged with murder. Craigwell was run down shortly after individuals in the two rival gangs had been fighting around the courthouse, said prosecutors. Young had been embroiled in one of those altercations, prosecutors said. In October 2018, Young pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of criminal contempt to resolve his case. That charge accused him of disturbing a court proceeding. As the brawls unfolded, court officers put the courthouse on lockdown and raced into the street after the combatants. In exchange for his top-count plea, Young was sentenced to a year behind bars. That sentence ran concurrently to a similar jail term he received for criminal firearm possession, a felony, arising from a May 2016 incident in Port Richmond. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 00:37:51|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close by Martina Fuchs GENEVA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Nigeria's candidate for the top job of the World Trade Organization (WTO) said fixing the Geneva-based body's dispute settlement system would be one of her priorities, if selected as the new chief of the WTO. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who is competing with seven other nominees for the position of director-general of the WTO, told Xinhua in a recent interview that her top priorities, if selected, would be preparing for the WTO's 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) in Kazakhstan in 2021, restoring the dispute settlement system, and updating the WTO's rule book. The WTO's dispute settlement body is currently paralyzed. The Appellate Body, considered as the supreme court for global trade disputes, is supposed to have seven judges and needs a minimum of three judges to function. The U.S. administration has been blocking new appointments for more than two years, with U.S. officials claiming that the court had gone beyond its remit. "I would be focusing, if I get the job, on the dispute settlement system. Because this is the fundamental pillar of the WTO," Okonjo-Iweala said. "If you have a rules-based organization, you must have a place where rules are arbitrated and that's what happens with the dispute settlement system. So restoring that will be a top priority as well." Nigeria nominated Okonjo-Iweala, an economist who twice served as Nigeria's finance minister and briefly acted as foreign minister and had a 25-year career at the World Bank, including as a managing director, for the post of WTO director-general in June. The candidate, who also sits on the board of Twitter and the Gavi Vaccine Alliance, said she was confident to win the selection process and that she would be a listener-in-chief as well as a tough negotiator. "I have strong political skills and negotiation skills. I think that's very much needed. I am a consensus-builder, and I'm a good listener too." The candidate showed her confidence to "find a way to unlock the seeming division" on the trade side, between China and the United States, underlining that finding areas of mutual interest and to build trust within the WTO trading system would be important. "Actually, if you listen to the two members, they have some things in common," Okonjo-Iweala added. "The dispute settlement system of the WTO is valued by both, they want it to reform, they don't want it to disappear." Okonjo-Iweala also noted that she hopes China will play the role of an economic growth engine in the current COVID-19 pandemic as it did during the 2008 global financial crisis. "I think the best thing China can do is to recover quickly. Because it's one of the engines of growth in the world and it's almost a quarter of world trade," she told Xinhua. "So if it recovers quickly, it means that it can help the rest of the world recover. So that's the role I would see for China." Roberto Azevedo, the incumbent WTO chief, announced in May that he will officially leave his post on Aug. 31, a year before his term expires. The second phase of the selection process in which the candidates "make themselves known to members" will end on Sept. 7, and then the General Council chairperson will consult with all WTO members before making the final decision. Enditem Microsoft also said that it will ensure that all private data of TikToks America users is transferred to and remains in the US. The word is out! Microsoft has finally confirmed that it is in with advanced talks with ByteDance to purchase TikToks US business. Microsoft in a blog post said that the Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has had a conversation with US President Donald Trump. Following the conversation, the company has decided to go ahead of with the discussions to purchase TikToks US business. Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury, the company said in a statement. Here are five important things you should know about the deal: -- Microsoft said that it will move quickly in pursuing discussions with ByteDance and these discussions will conclude by September 15, 2020. -- The company also said that while it is discussing the matter with ByteDance, it will also pursue discussions with the US government, including the president. -- The purchase by Microsoft will involve the service provided by TikTok in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Microsoft can invite other American investors to participate on a minority basis in the purchase. -- Microsoft also said that it will ensure that all private data of TikToks America users is transferred to and remains in the US. All the data that is saved on the servers outside will be transferred to servers within the country and deleted from the outside servers thereafter. -- Lastly, Microsoft said that these discussions are preliminary and that they may or may not result in a final deal. Japan's All Nippon Airways has resumed service to Taiwan, with the first round-trip flight landing in Taipei on Monday around midday. It was the first Taipei-Japan flight in three months, since routes were suspended in May due to the pandemic. Last month Japan''s government reached an agreement with Taiwan to reopen borders to business travelers. Pushing a cart with bags big and small, this Japanese expat in Taiwan is ready to fly home to attend to pressing business. Passenger It was sometime around last month. Around mid-July. We wanted to go back, but it happened to be a bad time. Passenger I am so relieved that today''s flight was not canceled. This means the rest of my arrangements can proceed smoothly. They''re decked out in protective gear, determined to catch this flight despite virus fears. Due to the COVID epidemic, Taiwan''s borders were sealed shut, with Japanese airlines suspending their flights. This is the first flight to Japan in the three months since May 8. Full biosafety protocols were in place, starting from partitions at the ticketing counter. Lin Shan-ting FTV reporter We''re here in the cabin of the plane. We saw that as soon as the plane landed, it was boarded by the entire cleaning crew, which is conducting a complete disinfection of the windows and seats. The cabin area was thoroughly disinfected before the flight. Even the flight attendants were out in force. Wearing gloves, they scrubbed away with alcohol pads, sanitizing surfaces like restroom door handles. It was to prevent virus spread and to put passengers at ease on the first day of Taiwan-Japan flights. Landing in Taipei amid rain and wind, the first round-trip ANA flight coincided with Tropical Storm Hagupit. Its arrival in Taiwan was scheduled for noon but delayed a half hour due to the storm. On Day 1, the carrier brought 50 arrivals and left with 100 passengers. ANA plans to operate two round-trip flights a week on this popular route, which previously saw 14 flights a week. It''s a small step toward easing border restrictions, with full service to resume only after the pandemic ends. T he UK's largest shopping centre owner Hammerson will go cap in hand to investors for money as the company looks to survive the coronavirus crisis. The owner of the Bullring centre in Birmingham today confirmed it is exploring a rights issue, which could raise as much as 600 million. Coronavrius has taken a huge toll on Hammersons already stretched finances and there are real fears that the company could be heading the same way as Intu, the owner of Manchesters Trafford Centre, which collapsed into administration in June. Hammersons two largest shareholders, Dutch pension fund APG Asset Management and South African investor Lighthouse Capital, are expected to support the rights issue. Hammerson is also in discussions with APG over the sale of a 50% stake in its European outlet business VIA Outlets. That the deal could fetch as much as 200 million. The company said the discussions were advanced but refused to say when it would close. In May private equity firm Orion pulled out of a deal to buy seven shopping parks for 400 million. Hammerson said: The company confirms that it is in advanced discussions on the terms of a possible disposal of its 50% interest in VIA Outlets to its joint venture partner APG. It is also considering a possible equity raise by way of a rights issue. But analysts at Liberum questioned whether the rights issue and disposal would be enough. Analyst Tom Musson said: Successful execution would remove a near-term covenant headache, but not solve the longer-term problem, in our view. We think raising 1.3 billion is more like the quantum needed to restore the balance sheet to a more comfortable level. The coronavius crisis has hit the landlord's revenues hard. The firm has only managed to gather a little over 30% of the rent due for the third quarter of the year. Many retailers, including Sir Philip Greens Arcadia have asked for a rent holiday where theyve withheld rents. The Bank of England has promised that Hammerson can access loans of up to 300 million under the Covid Corporate Finance Facility (CCFF). In June Intu, which owns the Trafford Centre in Manchester and the Metrocentre in Gateshead, fell into administration after talks with lenders failed. The business was 4.5 billion in debt. Hammerson and Intu came close to merging in 2018. US gov't reaches deal to buy vaccines amid soaring COVID-19 cases Global Times Source: Xinhua Published: 2020/8/2 15:12:14 The US government has reached a deal for the purchase of 100 million doses of vaccine as the country's COVID-19 cases have kept soaring and reached 4,620,419 as of Saturday evening. The Trump administration said on Friday it has reached an agreement with French drug maker Sanofi and British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline on the purchase of 100 million doses of an experimental coronavirus vaccine, according to media reports. The deal was made under the administration's Operation Warp Speed, which aims to accelerate the development process of COVID-19 vaccines. Earlier, an anonymous US security official alleged that Chinese government-linked hackers targeted US-based biotech company Moderna to steal data of vaccine development, according to a Reuters report. At a House subcommittee hearing on Friday, US top infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci said "No. I don't think so" when asked "do you believe China is still a threat today to the US vaccine research?" "What we do is really transparent. We publish it. We announce it," said Fauci. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin refuted the baseless accusation on Friday, saying "such allegations are pure slander. The international community can see through such vilifying ploys." "China is leading the world in COVID-19 vaccine research and development. We don't need to get ahead by theft and we have never done that," said Wang. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address (TNS) Maines top law enforcement officials attempted Thursday to demystify the workings of a secretive state police intelligence unit that has come under intense scrutiny following a whistleblower lawsuit alleging illegal spying on citizens and a data breach that exposed thousands of the agencys confidential intelligence reports.In a conference room in a low-slung government building in Augusta, managers of the Maine Information and Analysis Center presented an overview of the agencys duties, took extensive questions from the media and showed two examples of cases where the center provided assistance. The presentation was led by the agencys managers, Lt. Michael Johnston, Maj. Christopher Grotton and Sgt. Matthew Casavant. Their bosses, state police Col. John Cote and Public Safety Commissioner Michael Sauschuck, were in the audience, with Sauschuck occasionally answering questions.The media push comes after lawmakers and advocates around the state have called for the center to be defunded or abolished completely. Shifting societal attitudes about policing and surveillance are tied to the demands of the growing Black Lives Matter movement, which is calling for a wholesale rethinking of policing in a modern society.In May, a state police trooper filed a federal whistleblower lawsuit against the agency, alleging it has illegally collected information about innocent citizens, including political activists and gun owners, allegations the state has rebuffed.The criticism generated concern inside the state police that the public did not properly understand what the intelligence center does, Johnston said, leading to Thursdays media day, when reporters were permitted to tour the windowless room of cubicles and offices where personnel at the so-called fusion center do their work.I think one of the ways we help try to deal with that (concern) is be responsive and communicative and try to answer questions, Johnston said. The form and shape that takes are things like today. You try to shine a light on things. All we can do is try to answer questions and tell people what we do and how we do it. So I think it will be interesting, as a result of our efforts on things like today, to see what the outcome is.While Maines center and many others like it around the country were created to correct the intelligence-sharing failures that led in part to the attacks of Sept. 11, they have morphed into omnibus crime-fighting resources for local police departments. In June, a tranche of nearly 5 gigabytes of information from the Maine Information and Analysis Center spilled into public view following a hack of a vendor that provided web-hosting services for the agency, showing it collected information on racial-justice protesters and other people exercising their First Amendment rights.Lawmakers and Gov. Janet Mills are facing a gargantuan budget shortfall caused by the coronavirus pandemic, estimated to be $1.4 billion over the next three years, giving new urgency to the calls from advocates to defund some police services in favor of other state priorities.In his presentation and in follow-up questions, Johnston returned to the theme that officers and analysts at the center follow a strict rubric to evaluate whether the information theyve received or whether the assistance they are asked to provide are inside the boundaries of the law, and meet the strict legal standard of sufficient probable cause that a crime had been committed.The agency has no operational wing, meaning its members do not participate in on-the-ground police actions, and does not engage in any activity that requires judicial approval, such as serving or executing search warrants or pursuing subpoenas. The center also does not hold files on individual people; its database is incident-based, so its difficult to ascertain how many people are listed in its files.Their role is to support other agencies, Johnston said, by routing crime tips, running specialized information searches in government and for-profit databases, and by gathering open-source information that would be available to any person with social media accounts and an internet connection. Recently, that has included collecting information on demonstrations around the state in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, along with other groups exercising their First Amendment rights.But Johnston and others could not provide clear answers as to how the fusion center, which was created by gubernatorial order in 2006 and costs roughly $800,000 annually, including about $100,000 in federal grants, objectively measures its successes or determines its value to the state.Rep. Charlotte Warren, D-Hallowell, a persistent critic of the Maine Information and Analysis Center who attended the first hour of the tour, pressed Johnston to drill down: What service does the center provide that other agencies dont already do?Johnston, in his response, deferred to other agencies.I think that question is better asked of the people we partner with and we try to serve on a daily basis, the law enforcement agencies that utilize us, the public and private sector entities that we partner with, and say, If the MIAC went away tomorrow, what kind of hole will it create?' Johnston said. Will you be able to fill it from a statewide perspective? Do you have the resources? Do you have the capacity? Do you have those established infrastructure and relationships with those entities?'Most police agencies in Maine are made up of 10 people or less, Johnston said, and struggle to fill overnight shifts with part-time officers, let alone bring to bear the capabilities and expertise of the fusion center on their own cases.From a statewide perspective and the established relationships we have with our federal partners, I dont think theres anyone who can do what we can do, Johnston said.Johnston said they administer a survey to their partner agencies, but he did not have details about what the results show. Johnston also said the agency previously had the capability to track how many bulletins are opened by their recipients, but that data was not close at hand, either.After the meeting, Warren said she was unimpressed by Johnstons response, and that after so many meetings and briefings trying to understand the agencys role and function, she still cant figure out why they are necessary.It feels like Im trying to grab smoke, she said.By way of example of some of the work the agency performs, Johnston showed four videos depicting a man named Jeremy Rogers that were sent over Facebook to another person. In the first three, Rogers is visible handling and shooting various firearms ostensibly legal activities. But in the final video, Rogers, clad in a ski mask, loads and arms a rifle, and declares, Im tired of this (expletive), Im going to (expletive) Walmart.The threat came less than three weeks after an armed man entered a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, and opened fire, killing 23 people and wounding 23 more.Johnston said the center pushed out a bulletin for officers to be aware of Rogers and the threats he made Aug. 22, 2019, using it as an example of the assistance the agency provides and saying the center played a small role in the case.But federal court records paint a more detailed picture. The case against Rogers actually began the day before, on Aug. 21, in New York state. The person who received Rogers threatening video on Facebook immediately reported Rogers. That person also told police that Rogers recently moved to Rockland, Maine, according to a complaint filed by Jonathan Rich, an FBI agent and member of a local anti-terrorism task force in New England. Rogers was prohibited from possessing firearms because of a previous felony conviction, the complaint said, making his firearm possession a federal crime.The New York State Police then immediately called Rockland police and alerted them to the potential threat, and that night, Rockland police closed the local Walmart, the complaint reads.The bulletin that the Maine Information and Analysis Center sent to law enforcement was last modified about 12:30 a.m. Aug. 22, according to a copy of the PDF file that was released as part of the massive data hack. By 3 p.m. that day, Rogers was in custody, according to the federal complaint.The second case example Johnston provided depicted other Facebook activity, but in this instance, the mans face and identifying details were redacted because the case is ongoing. The Facebook posts show the man expressing a desire to have sex with his daughter. He then posted photos of two girls, sitting side by side.Johnston said the report of the concerning behavior led the center to reach out to law enforcement partners. Another agency was already working on the case, he said, and the man turned out to be a convicted sex offender. Elijah McClain was 23 years old when he died last August after being detained by Aurora, Colorado, police and given a shot of ketamine, a powerful anesthetic, by paramedics. Since George Floyd's death in May, McClain's case has received renewed attention. Stars, including Janelle Monae, Beanie Feldstein and Jonathan Van Ness, are lending their voices to a campaign, calling on officials to act. The video, released on Saturday and running through Aug. 23, honors the 23 years McClain lived. McClain died Aug. 30, 2019. "Elijah was a violinist who played for kittens across the street, just to keep them company -- a creative soul, planning to go to art school," Monae said. "Trust us when we say we won't settle for anything less than justice for Elijah McClain." PHOTO: Demonstrators carry placards as they walk down Sable Boulevard during a rally and march over the death of 23-year-old Elijah McClain, June 27, 2020, in Aurora, Colo. (David Zalubowski/AP) A spokesperson for Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, who appointed a special prosecutor to investigate McClain's case in June, told ABC News in a statement that the governor "agrees that Elijah McClain deserves justice." "Now more than ever, we must do everything within our power to foster public trust and confidence in law enforcement and the criminal justice system," his spokesperson said. "Thats why the governor signed sweeping bipartisan police reform legislation into law that has now established significant new accountability for officer-involved killings. Elijah McClain should be alive today, and we owe it to his family to do everything we can to ensure justice is served. Added Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman, "Elijah McClains death is a tragedy and my heart goes out to his family. To all of those who have reached out, please know that we hear you, and Elijahs death is a catalyst of change in our city." Coffman went on, "We have reformed critical police policies including banning the use of carotid control holds, created a Community-Police Task Forcecomprised of faith and community leaders, police and justice reform advocatesand commissioned an independent investigation led by a nationally-recognized attorney for civil rights and urban affairs. We must have the answers our community demands, city leadership needs, and most importantly, Elijahs family deserves." Story continues Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser's office stated that it "does not comment on pending investigations," and a representative for Aurora City Attorney Daniel Brotzman did not respond to ABC News' request for comment. Colorado health officials have opened an investigation into the use of ketamine following "numerous" complaints regarding "a ketamine administration in August 2019," according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, which didn't offer specifics about the investigation other than to say it's ongoing. City Attorney Daniel Brotzman and Attorney General Phil Weiser, who are called upon in the video to take action, did not reply to ABC News' request for comment. McClain was walking home from buying iced tea at a corner store on Aug. 24, 2019, when he was stopped by police, McClain's family attorney, Mari Newman, told ABC News. Police had received a call that McClain looked "sketchy" for wearing a ski mask, though the caller stated that nobody appeared to be in danger, according to a transcript of the call. When police approached McClain, he continued to walk despite being told to stop. A struggle followed, and officers put McClain in a carotid control hold, restricting the flow of blood to the brain from the carotid arteries, police said. Paramedics with the Aurora Fire Department also administered a shot of ketamine, which was protocol for "rapid tranquilization in order to minimize time struggling," according to officials. He later suffered a heart attack in an ambulance. The Adams County coroner said in McClain's autopsy report there was a "therapeutic level" of ketamine in his system, though Newman called the dose "excessive." "He weighed 140 pounds and the dosage he got was for somebody who was at least twice that weight," Newman said. District attorney Dave Young, who serves Adams and Broomfield Counties, has not pressed charges against the officers involved in McClain's arrest. In a June interview with ABC News, he said that he believes "a serious heart condition ... led to [McClain's] death." "My initial impression was that it was the ketamine that perhaps caused Mr. McClain's death," Young said. "And it wasn't until I received the forensic autopsy report that I learned that that in fact was not the cause of death." ABC News' Ella Torres and Clayton Sandell contributed to this report. Stars raise awareness of Elijah McClain's fatal arrest in new campaign originally appeared on goodmorningamerica.com LATEST Aug. 3, 8:30 a.m. The San Mateo County City Council will consider an emergency ordinance Tuesday that would impose fines for businesses and individuals who violate the state's public health orders. Those who refused to wear masks could be ticketed. Fees for individuals would be $100 for first offense, $200 for second and $500 for each additional violation. Businesses would be required to pay $250 to $3,000, depending on the severity of health risk. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 21:55:08|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TAIPEI, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Taiwan's manufacturing activity shifted from contraction to expansion in July, according to the latest purchasing managers index (PMI) reading by the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER) on Monday. The PMI for July increased by 6.9 percentage points month on month to 51.4 percent after staying in the contraction range for three months, the CIER press release said. A PMI above 50 suggests expansion, while below 50 means contraction. Among the five sub-indexes, new orders, production, and employment transformed from contraction to expansion in July, while supplier deliveries continued to expand and inventory levels remained in the contraction range, according to the CIER. The business outlook index for the next six months climbed by 5.2 percentage points to 49.3 percent, indicating an improving sentiment among manufacturers. However, CIER President Chang Chuang-chang said that it is too early to say that the Taiwan economy has returned to its normal track since the global economy remained gloomy. Local manufacturers have been cautious about the future development of the economy with fears of a second wave of COVID-19 outbreaks, Chang said. For the services sector, the non-manufacturing index (NMI) rose by 3.3 percentage points from the previous month to 57.3 percent in July, according to the CIER. Enditem Coronavirus is continuing its deadly spread in Syria, with Damascus and its countryside being the most heavily affected reports Shaam News. Social media has seen a remarkable spread of images of condolences letters in the regime-controlled areas especially in Damascus and its countryside amid great concerns about the coronavirus with the numbers of the elderly who are dying as a result of the spreading virus, and a regime that has been shrouding the real consequences of the pandemic. Pro-regime pages quoted the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine in Damascus, Nabog al-Awa, as saying that the coronavirus is spreading like wildfire in the country and no one was prepared for the rate at which it has been spreading, and the rate of infections among Syrians has become very frightening, namely 100 infections or inconclusive cases daily. Awa attributes this tremendous spread to, the absence of a health awareness culture among citizens as well as shirking the precautionary measures necessary for prevention namely wearing a face mask, committing to social distancing, hand washing and sterilization, which is what the regime has been preaching while also managing to overlook the bad state of health services in the country, amid the neglect that the health sector has been exhibiting. The pro-regime Ministry of Endowments has decided to suspend Friday prayers and congregations in mosques in Damascus and the Damascus countryside for 15 days effective tomorrow, as part of what it said were precautionary and preventive measures to address the pandemic. On Saturday, the regimes Ministry of Health recorded 23 new cases, bringing the number in the regime-controlled areas to 780, deaths to 43, recovering cases, 246, after the ministry announced the full recovery of nine cases. The ministry also revealed in a statement that the cases that were announced are those that have been confirmed by the PCR test, and that there are also asymptomatic cases. The ministry claimed that it does not have the capabilities to conduct exhaustive surveys in the governorates to gauge the gravity of the situation, and blamed the, unfair economic blockade imposed on the country that has affected the health sector in all its components. According to the ministrys statement, the current situation requires extreme caution and the highest level of precautions must be taken, especially for the elderly and those suffering from heart disease, diabetes and other chronic diseases. Earlier, the regimes director of the office of the dead in Damascus, Firas Ibrahim, said that the number of deaths resulting from the coronavirus or from similar cases has increased significantly since Jul. 10, 2020, revealing that the daily average death rate in Damascus is 40. A forensic pathologist spoke about the incorrectness of the burial procedures in regime-controlled areas. Sowt al-Asima had published a leaked recording of a Damascene doctor in which they say that the daily death rate in Damascus reached 25 deaths. The sources mentioned deliberate negligence on the part of the nursing staff, with talk of increasing numbers of deaths. The regimes Health Ministrys scenario did not change much, for it announced a death toll nearing 35 a day. This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author. In the small towns that dot the U.S.-Mexico border, theres a saying: Americans never remember, Mexicans never forget. One thing that wont be forgotten is the date Aug. 3, 2019. Its hard to believe that its been a whole year since this country broke the hearts of millions of Mexicans and Mexican Americans. In some respects, it feels like a decade. In other ways, it seems like only a matter of hours. It was on that ghastly day that a White supremacist named Patrick Crusius then a 21-year-old living in Allen, a mostly white suburb 30 miles north of Dallas allegedly tried to singlehandedly fend off a Hispanic invasion. In a manifesto declaring an intent to make America white again, Crusius allegedly vowed to save our country from the brink (of) destruction. According to the manifesto, this land of immigrants is being destroyed by immigration especially that of brown-skinned, Spanish-speaking people from Mexico. The manifesto called immigration detrimental to the future of America. Its not. Its merely unsettling to white people who are used to running everything and feel displaced. Apparently determined to keep his place, Crusius is accused of grabbing a high-powered rifle and driving at least eight hours to a midsize city on the U.S.-Mexico border. El Paso is our Ellis Island, and thus it is sacred ground. Tragically, the city is now also the location of perhaps the worst mass murder of Mexicans and Mexican Americans in U.S. history. The exact crime scene was the Walmart Supercenter in the Cielo Vista Mall. Not far from the U.S.-Mexico border, the shopping center is a destination spot for Mexican nationals who think everything is better in the United States if you can survive the trip. Police officers would later say that as they were taking Crusius into custody, without incident (ah, we see you, white privilege), the suspect blurted out that he wanted to kill as many Mexicans as possible. Crusius allegedly slaughtered 22 people that day. One of the two dozen people wounded later died of his injuries, raising the death toll to 23. He faces both federal and state charges. In El Paso, funeral parlors were overrun. It took several weeks to bury the dead. Juan Gabriels haunting ballad, Amor Eterno (Eternal Love) was played at so many gravesites that mourners memorized the words. The pain, sorrow, and rage extended far beyond the city limits. All across the country, millions of Mexican Americans doubled over from this body blow. Many of us hoped the silver lining to this tragedy would be that our fellow Americans would finally see us, even if the image was covered in blood. Caught between black and white, Latinos are often left out of TV news reports, newspaper stories, Hollywood movies, television shows, textbooks, etc. Stuck between the United States and Mexico, nearly 30 million Mexican Americans are left out of both countries narratives. This was Americas homework assignment after the El Paso massacre, to finally try to understand this population and show it the respect it deserves. But the country flaked, and nothing got turned in. Lady Liberty got an F. Then came the year of the apocalypse. Americans can be forgiven for wanting to forget 2020 ever happened. If the year were an order in a restaurant, youd send it back with a profane note to the chef. The year plays favorites. If youre white, chances are, youll be all right. If youre Latino, you better have your affairs in order. You say youre worried about police violence. We feel you. The Texas Rangers have been accused of lynching several hundred Mexicans from the mid 1800s to the early 1900s while doing the bidding of wealthy white landowners. Coronavirus on your mind? In some places, Latinos are three or four times more likely to get infected and die. Now immigration restrictionists are blaming the victims, insisting that Mexican immigrants are transporting the virus. In too many ways to count, for Americas largest, and most overlooked minority, 2020 has been horrid. But, for us, this horror movie actually began last August in El Paso. What stings most is the broken promise. Americas bargain was simple: If you work hard, play by the rules, blend into the mainstream, start businesses, raise good kids who enlist in the military, protest but refrain from rioting or looting, then this nation would pull you close and acknowledge you as one of her own. Now were hurting, and bleeding, and dying. And were still waiting. ruben@rubennavarrette.com On this episode of the Extra Spicy podcast, Simileoluwa Adebajo, owner of San Franciscos Eko Kitchen, speaks with hosts Soleil Ho and Justin Phillips just hours after her restaurant burned down in a major fire. She remains positive she can rebuild the citys first Nigerian restaurant and has launched a GoFundMe in support of her business as well as several others that lost property in the fire. She also talks about performative support for Black-owned restaurants by white folks amid the surging Black Lives Matter movement. Listen to the episode by clicking on the player above, and scroll down to read a transcript of Soleil and Justin's full conversation with Simileoluwa. Here is a full transcript of Soleil Ho and Justin Phillip's interview with Simileoluwa Adebajo, edited and condensed for clarity. The interview was conducted on July 28, 2020. Soleil: Let's just get the big elephant in the room out of the way. Tell us what happened today. Tell us about your day. So my day started off as usual, except for that I woke up late this morning, and so I was rushing to get into work because I was supposed to hand off meals that are going to a site for the homeless this morning. So I'm running towards my restaurant, or our catering commissary on 14th Street, and I see smoke coming from that direction. But I never anticipated in my mind that it was the kitchen that was actually coming from. So I was recording as I was walking up and I posted this on Twitter, telling people to be careful because the downtown area is kind of smokier. And then I get close enough to actually see where the smoke is coming from and I realize it's actually coming from my commissary. They had blocked off the entire perimeter of the block, so they didn't even want me to get through initially, and I had to convince one of the firefighters that, Okay, my business is actually in there. I just want to make sure that everything is okay. They let me through. That's when I saw it was literally burning to the ground. Soleil: Wow. I wouldn't even know what to do at that point. Yeah. I was very, very confused. I sat there, actually, for at least an hour just watching them, trying to get these flames under control, but I kind of realized at some point that watching this place burn to the ground wasn't going to help my mental health either, so I walked away. Justin: One of the interesting things that you said before we started recording was that your first thought wasn't about what you were losing in that moment, was it? The one thing I always try to think about is the fact that even though this is my life, there are billions of other people in the world and their lives matter as well. So I was walking up there thinking, I just hope nobody's hurt in this situation. So I'm grateful that that was this case. Soleil: I mean, it could be so much worse, right? Yes, it could be. Justin: Explain to us what that space was, because that wasn't the space where Eko Kitchen opened. What was that for you? Yeah, so the 14th Street location was actually where my business first launched out of. When Eko Kitchen launched in the summer of 2018, we were a delivery-only business. We were delivering to UberEats and Postmates out of that 14th Street location. And so that was where my business was born and we moved to the 11th Street restaurant, a year after the business was launched at 14th Street. This week, we were actually moving back to the 14th Street location because the restaurant space wasn't really being used. Because of COVID, nobody could dine there. So I had made the business decision that we didn't need to continue paying rent on that dining space since people couldn't technically sit there anymore. So this week, I had moved most of our inventory and our equipment from the restaurant to this 14th Street space, and so we probably lost about 80 percent of our inventory of our equipment in the fire because of that. Karl Mondon / Associated Press Soleil: And my impression, too, is that a lot of the inventory that you have isn't stuff that you could just pick up at a store here, right, or like Restaurant Depot? Yeah, yeah. That's the part that does give me a headache. I bring a lot of the stuff that we use at the restaurant from Nigeria, so I imported directly and then I have to go to SFO and sign paperwork with U.S. Customs and all that. So I lost a lot of inventory that will take me another six to eight weeks at least to replace. Soleil: Wow. So, what kind of stuff do you import from Nigeria? Organic unrefined palm oil, Nigerian honey beans, most of the spices we use at the restaurant like egusi, Cameroon pepper, smoked fish, Nigerian drinks and snacks as well. Soleil: Wow. Justin: What's the timeframe of rebuilding to where you were before? Especially during a pandemic... I imagine it's a whole lot harder to get these items. So since the pandemic began, we realized we can't fly things into the country anymore. I used to do air freight, and it would take literally one week for things to get from Nigeria to here when you put it on a plane. But since the pandemic hit, the U.S. Customs has been very clear about not allowing air freight air cargo anymore, so I have to put everything in shipping containers and it takes literally a minimum of eight weeks between Lagos and here. So it's going to be another eight weeks probably before I can get the full stock back. Soleil: Wow. Yeah. I'm curious if you have an impression of how the pandemic has affected Nigerian producers that you've relied on? Yeah, it's definitely affected them big time. Even when you talk about just the state of the Naira-Nigerian exchange rate before the pandemic, I think that the exchange rate for the Niara was somewhere around 369 Naira was one dollar, as of today. That growth rate is between April and now. The Naira is now at 470 Naira to one dollar, so it tells you a lot about the economy. Nigeria has really suffered due to the pandemic, and people having to stay home has slowed down businesses significantly. And even just getting the order to the shipper, because I have people on the ground in Nigeria who go to the market for me. So even just finding the supplies right now is so much harder because a lot of the people just stopped selling these things because there wasn't enough demand for them. So it's definitely going to be a challenge. But now where there's life, there's hope. Justin: You always have something positive to say, and I love that. On a personal note, how are your people back there, outside of business, just personal life? How are they handling what life is like down there? So while COVID is definitely spreading in Nigeria, but because the Nigerian government doesn't have the capacity to test. There's over 200 million people in Nigeria. The Nigerian government has probably done maybe 10,000 tests in total since this started, maybe, and that's just that's the capacity that they have right now. So there's so many people walking around in Nigeria right now with this illness. They tried to do a lockdown initially, but when it's a country where 80 percent of the population is living on less than a dollar a day. You can't tell people to stay at home because they will literally starve. People are living there hand-to-mouth. So the lockdown didn't work, and so we are seeing people passing away at alarming rates. And the doctors in the hospitals don't even understand COVID, so they're saying it's a new strain of malaria, but it's not a new strain of malaria. It's COVID-19. They've just never seen anything like it before. So it's definitely stressful, honestly, to watch. And I know that it's going to get worse progressively as the disease continues to spread more and more throughout the country. We just don't have the health and infrastructure to address a pandemic. Soleil: So many restaurateurs and caterers and folks have had to figure it out and just hit the ground running in some way in order to survive. Can you tell us a little bit about what you've been up to? Initially, when the pandemic hit in March, we went to like 38 percent of the revenue that we were usually doing. So very quickly, I realized that I couldn't keep my team on and I let everybody go. This was towards the end of March. And I told them, I'm going to call you back. I don't know how, but I'm going to figure something out. And I tried to instill some sense of hope in them, so it wasn't all gloom and doom. And a few weeks later, I got in touch with San Francisco New Deal, which is a nonprofit started by Lenore Estrada of Three Babes Bakery, and Emmett Shear, who is one of the co-founders of Twitch. And it's funny because I met Lenore over a year ago at a women's in entrepreneurship event, and I used to work for Twitch as a financial analyst before I started my restaurant, so it felt kind of serendipitous that the two of them had put that concept together and I signed up to be a part of the program. This program is amazing because they are addressing the issue of food insecurity in San Francisco on a weekly basis. We are sending meals to vulnerable populations, including the homeless, the elderly and those who are COVID-19-positive in the congregate hotel sites that the city has all over. So on a weekly basis, we send out probably around 600 meals to all these sites, and since the beginning of April, till now, I have cooked every single one of those meals by myself. This week was actually the week where I had just hired a team to take over those operations. I was just about to set this whole operation on autopilot and basically have everything kind of run itself. Because while I was doing this, it was so fulfilling. The work I've been doing in the past three months have been so fulfilling, because not only am I getting to continue sharing my food with the city, now I'm feeding these populations who actually need it. And so I was happy to be doing it. But obviously, me cooking 600 meals by myself on a weekly basis, I was starting to burn out, so I felt like,'Okay, now it's time to hire a team. I finally got the team in place and now this. But I don't think this is too huge of an obstacle. I feel like we'll move past this. Justin: So Simileoluwa, you moved here in 2016, right? Yes, I moved here in 2016. Justin: So now you're working with a nonprofit that addresses the needy communities in the city. Yes. Justin: I'm wondering, were you surprised by the amount of need in this city since you've been here? I feel like it's a shock. It was a shock for me when I moved here. Yeah. So it was a major shock for me moving to San Francisco and seeing the kind of poverty that was here. I feel like when you come from a country like Nigeria, obviously, you've experienced poverty and need on a large scale. But there's something about Nigeria where there's community and so people are never really destitute, if that makes any sense. When I moved to San Francisco and I saw people that are poor and literally homeless and laying on the streets, I feel like my first two months here, I used to give my money away to every homeless person that I saw, listen to everybody's story, try to help this person and try to see how I can connect with them. And over time, I realized that people here just become so numb to that. Because you lived here for so long, you just say, Oh, yeah, there are homeless people here. It's part of the problem. People even would ask me, Oh, you're from Nigeria, but you seem poor people before. Haven't you seen them? And I'm like, I have. But I've never experienced people literally being destitute to the point where they don't even have a meal to eat in a day. They don't have a roof over their heads. They're laying in the street starving. They don't have toilets to use. Public toilets should be a human right, yet somehow, in San Francisco we don't have those for the homeless. And so I felt that somehow, me being so connected and aware of the need within the community was also what led me to this opportunity working with this nonprofit, because if I wasn't even aware mentally that that was such a huge issue, I wouldn't even have known that that nonprofit was going to launch or was in existence. So I guess that awareness kind of went hand-in-hand with where my business is right now. Yeah, I think what you're saying is so interesting because in the U.S. I was raised here in New York City and our attitude towards people who are living through poverty is so bad. We blame them largely for the straits they find themselves in. And I would love to hear more about the sort of Nigerian attitude towards people who find themselves among the poor. How do people act? One thing I will say is, yeah, there's definitely poverty in Nigeria. But one of the examples I would give best is like in terms of people not even having a place to live, you hardly see that in Nigeria because you will see like these shanty structures that they'll build out of planks of wood or bamboo shoots or whatever. Maybe this is like a 200-square foot structure that they've built and 11 people are living inside this structure. They would rather band together, you know, like within the confines of whatever limited resources they have and help each other than you know, this person sleeping under the bridge here and this person sleeping in a doorway. Even among the homeless and the poor people in Nigeria, you see the community, and I don't know why it is in America that you see a lot of the homeless people here. And there is the issue of mental illness, which isn't a huge issue, I would say, with the poverty in Nigeria, but with San Francisco. That is the major overlying factor. That also leads us to understand that the city actually has to intervene on a lot of these cases because these people actually can't help themselves out of this situation they're in because they're just not mentally stable enough to do that. Justin: I knew one truth about the Bay Area before I moved here, and that was Black people weren't really around here. And over the years, they had been moving out, priced out or whatever the reason. But if you go around certain parts of the city, most of the homeless people that you'll see will be Black people. This shocks me so much. And I say this all the time. Most times I feel like I'm the only Black woman living in San Francisco. I get on the bus and everybody on the bus is avoiding the seat next to me. I go into a store that looks even remotely expensive and suddenly attendants are following you. You have all these situations and you think, Okay, there are actually other Black people in this city. And this brings me to another issue that came up with the nonprofit that is something that I constantly discuss with them. So the RFQ-885 is a program that the city of San Francisco has that is supposed to be feeding the elderly, and so there are a lot of older people who cannot leave their houses right now because of the coronavirus. But they need to get food. Now, the qualifications for this program are that you cannot be on any other governmental food assistance program, and the second qualification is that you cannot be living in a multi-generational household. So, do you know who that disqualifies entirely from this feeding program? All of the elderly, Black people in the city of San Francisco. This program that has millions of dollars of funding that should be able to feed all of the elderly communities here is currently only able to feed Asian and white elderly communities in the city. The Black communities have been excluded simply because of the fact that they're on some sort of governmental assistance or they live with their grandchildren. And I think that's so bizarre. These policies need to be reviewed because right now, more than ever, the Black community needs more assistance than other communities because we are dying at disproportionately higher rates than the other groups. Soleil: And that's why I'm saying, right in the US, we have such a punitive attitude towards people in need and they need things because they're bad people. And that's why we have to filter and put all this testing and have all of these hoops in order for people to jump through so they can get help. If you need help, you're in a much worse position to jump through a hoop. It doesn't make any sense. Justin: Simi, you bring up a couple of things that are inherently anti-Black when it comes to the city. That also leads us to talk about the Black Lives Matter movement. What has the reaction been for you in terms of operations... Do you see more white people coming in to buy food, are people honestly rushing out trying to support Black businesses? What have you seen? Soleil: Are they taking more out of reparations? What's happening? I would say there's been a lot of performative kinds of support for Black businesses. You see them on Twitter, on Instagram. They will tag you, repost your photo on the Instagram story. You're excited, right? These people are going to show up on Sunday to buy some food. But when it comes to Sunday, they are not there. I would say the first two or three weeks, we were getting tagged by hundreds of locals on a daily basis, just white people who are just discovering our businesses and just like reposting and tagging our content and saying, Oh, this picture of this food looks amazing and this looks amazing, and people reaching out to us. While I appreciate, obviously, the exposure, it was like, Okay, so now is this exposure actually going to convert into revenue from me? And in my case, it really didn't. The people that did show up were the people that have been coming to my business for months. So I would say maybe maybe this boosted my new customer acquisition by 10 percent, maybe 15 percent, but not in a huge way. I think a lot of other Black businesses will tell you similarly that there's been a lot of performative support. So on social media, you Iet your friends think that you're woke to the Black business and you're trying to support them, but it doesn't necessarily mean that you're actually going there and buying anything. That's the world we live in. Soleil: Yeah, I feel like you have a pretty reasoned approach to this, too, because you went viral when your restaurant launched. And I remember you telling Justin when he interviewed you that it didn't really shake out too much in the end. Yeah, yeah, yeah. The exposure does not always convert to revenue. So that's one thing I learned in life. Justin: Yeah. I wrote about this a while ago. The extent of support when it comes to white dollars stops at businesses that are too Black. Now I don't know how to quantify too Black. But I feel like a Nigerian restaurant might fit that category. Very Black. We've definitely even had some people that would come in in the past three to four weeks and because obviously of COVID, I've had to cut down on my menu because we're trying to run a tight ship here. Resources are limited, so we have to be smart. And so you'll have people who are new to the business now calling and saying, Okay, I saw this menu of yours online, then I want this. And I'm like, Okay, sorry. This is COVID. We have 4-item limited menu right now. We'll email you, or you can check on our website for this menu. And then the person is like, Well, why would you have this online? Sir, there is a pandemic! You would be shocked by how many people have called and literally flipped out on us in the past two months for saying that we are limiting our menu right now. And it's just like... Do you not understand that everybody is having to literally cut their cloth according to their size right now? Human beings, we all just need to learn to be more patient with one another, especially this year. Soleil: I know. I think it's the same people who, like, will rate a beach one star on Yelp because it has too much sand or it's too hot. It's like, what is your deal? Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more. Yeah. And re: the Black Lives Matter movement... My perspective with BLM is I don't like to speak too much because I feel as though my experience as a Nigerian American is very different from the experience that even an African-American has had in America. But also, I will speak to the extent that I'm a Black woman and whenever people of other backgrounds look at me, people of other racial groups look at me, they don't see a Nigerian American. They just see a Black woman. And so I get profiled a lot on that basis as well. And it's tiresome, especially because I grew up and lived most of my adult life in Nigeria. And so my identity was always a woman before being Black. So moving back to America as an adult, all of a sudden, I have to wear the Black Woman Persona. And Black women have been, you know, stereotyped into this corner of being strong. And the Black woman is angry and the Black woman is so many ridiculous stereotypes. Everybody is different. We are all different people. And so we have been put into this box because of the ideas that the rest of the country has or people have about Black people in general. I remember at the beginning of the whole BLM movement, right around Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor, I was running by myself. This was shortly after Ahmad Aubrey was shot and a car pulled up right by me as I was running. And I literally just like I ran into the bushes. I was so scared because I had watched that video and seen this happen to this man. Maybe this person that was pulling up next to me didn't actually mean me any harm. But I realized that this is how African Americans literally live every day, feeling like there's a target on their back. And this is unacceptable. As a country and as a people, we have to do better about not stereotyping, not profiling and not addressing just because of the color of our skin. It's not fair, and we don't deserve this anymore. Soleil: So along those lines, I'm curious about how you feel about the visibility of your business as a specifically Black-owned one in this context. What is of behind that? Or is that part of your marketing at this point? I would say it's part of my marketing. But also sometimes I feel as though if I had a different face to my business, it probably would have been more successful. Soleil: So like if you were a white guy selling Nigerian food? Exactly. 100 percent. I thought about it before, too. Like, maybe I can just like, disappear and then make it seem like a white guy bought my business and then see what happens? (laughs) Yeah, I've thought about that. Even when it comes to access to capital, when it comes to business expansion, when it comes to having just access to resources and a network of mentors, Black-owned and minority-owned businesses generally are just not getting the resources that they should be. So while I feel as though, yeah, maybe having a different face to my business would have led me in a different financial direction, being a Black owned business in this city has really brought to my attention the fact that there are not enough Black-owned businesses in San Francisco. It feels as though the Black community has been cordoned off to certain areas. I recently only discovered Bay Shore and Bayview and that huge block of what is supposed to be the projects of San Francisco. And that there are thousands of Black people living in this city, but they're just cordoned off to one zone of the city. And it tells you something about San Francisco and the way the city kind of places value on diversity. But, yeah, it's interesting. And I'm glad to also be kind of like a point of reference and a beacon of light. In the past six months, I've had so many African-American women in this city just send me a message or send me an email and say, I saw your restaurant. And this encouraged me to start sharing food with my community and start selling these meals out of my home. And that's enough for me that somebody saw me and that gave them enough courage to start because there should be more opportunities and more avenues for minority and Black-owned businesses in San Francisco. Justin: What your next steps are for the restaurant and what you have going on in San Francisco. So for my next steps with the restaurant is to continue with a focus mostly on feeding the community, I'm going to continue working with San Francisco New Deal on this project. I think it's important that we continue to feed these vulnerable populations because food insecurity was a problem before the pandemic. But now that the pandemic has hit, there's so many more people in need of food, and so it's important that we continue this mission and that this mission continues to remain funded. Right now, San Francisco New Deal has run out of the private funds that we had in the beginning. We had an initial endowment that was donated by some tech CEOs who are interested in obviously giving to the city, and we are running out of those funds. And those funds in particular were the funds that we're able to feed the Black community because the government funding disqualified them based on all the hoops and requirements. So I'm going to be continuing to work with them on making the meals and also raising funds for them so that we can continue to feed the Black community and focusing more on that, as opposed to my regular restaurant operations, because I'm learning that there's more fulfillment outside of the business for me anyways. In addition to that, I'm also launching a new business out of San Francisco within the next two months that also links back to Nigeria and my origins back home. It's going to be an organic skin and hair care business for everyone, but with ingredients and things coming straight from the motherland to fuel. I'm excited about the future, despite what the President says. Justin: There's nothing more disheartening than going to like Target or something to buy either lotion or a hair product specifically for Black hair and Black skin, and not being able to find a thing. Not because it's sold out, but straight up because they don't have it. Yeah. Yeah. Especially in San Francisco. When I moved here, I found out there is no Black hair care store in San Francisco. There is one store in the Fillmore that sells Black hair care products, but it is owned by an Asian couple. Hopefully with this new business I'll be able to bring Black hair and skin care to this city in a way where we have our own space for that. Soleil: So do you already have a name for that skin care hair care company? Yeah, it's gonna be called Ori. And ori in Yoruba language, which is my native tongue, means shea butter. Yeah, I'm excited. Soleil: I guess the last question would be if there are listeners who want to support your work or support you in any way, what should they do? Where would you draw them? So if you would like to support us, please go to SF New Deals website. You can donate to this organization to help us to continue feeding the Black community. We will most likely also set up a GoFundMe for my business and the three or four other businesses that were impacted within the fire. And you can donate to that to help us recover our things. That would be great. Justin: Well, awesome. Yeah, this was fun. Thanks for doing this. Yeah, this was great. I'm glad I did this. Mumbai, Aug 3 : Maharashtra continued to record a high daily Covid toll with 266 deaths on Monday, including a sudden shooting up of fatalities in the state's second capital Nagpur, even as the recovery rate improved further, health officials said. The state has recorded 8,968 new Covid cases, taking its tally to 450,196 and the death toll has risen to 15,842 - both highest in the country. Monday's figures amounted to a death roughly every 6 minutes and a stupendous 374 new cases every hour. The recovery rate increased for the seventh consecutive day, rising from 62.74 per cent to 63.76 per cent on Monday, while the current mortality rate stood at 3.52 per cent. The Health Department said that of the total cases till date, 147,018 are active. As many as 10,221 recovered patients returned home on Monday, taking the total number of discharged patients to 287,030. Of the total fatalities, Pune again notched the highest deaths, at 60, but Nagpur, with 50, abruptly shot up to the second position, pushing behind the traditional hotspot of Mumbai. Mumbai's deaths, meanwhile, declined to the sub-50 range for the fourth time in a week and with 46 fatalities, the city toll increased to 6,493 and the number of corona cases went up by 970 to touch 117,406 now. There were also 29 deaths in Thane, nine each in Kolhapur and Sangli, seven in Latur, six each in Nashik and Jalgaon, five each in Raigad, Solapur and Nanded, four in Nandurbar, three each in Palghar and Aurangabad, 2 each in Ahmednagar, Ratnagiri, Akola, Yavatmal, and Amravati, and one each in Dhule, Satara, Jalna, Osmanabad, Beed, and Washim, besides three from other states. The MMR (Thane division) saw its toll shooting up by 83 to 9,970, while 2,957 new cases took its tally to 249,111. Thane district cases have reached 97,343 with 2,703 fatalities to make it the state's worst-hit district after Mumbai. Pune district now has 96,669 cases, with the death toll increasing to 2,286. With 66 more fatalities, the Pune division's death toll has reached 2,965 and the case tally zoomed up with 2,185 new cases to reach 110,924. Nashik division has recorded 1,255 fatalities and 37,679 cases so far, Aurangabad division 625 deaths and 17,827 cases, Akola division 280 fatalities and 8,189 cases, Kolhapur division 284 deaths and 11,835 cases, Latur division 273 fatalities and 6,803 cases, and Nagpur division, which has so far less than 100 deaths, seeing its toll rise to 138 while the number of cases is 7,401 cases. Meanwhile, the number of people sent to home quarantine increased to 940,486, while those in institutional quarantine went down to 37,009. For Kim McDade, 58, of Highland Park, a Detroit suburb, the information coming from Ms. Tlaibs office on the coronavirus has been invaluable. Shes had a couple of town halls and she always calls or texts to let us know about those, said Ms. McDade. Its been very informative and she also shares the sites where we can get tested. Speaking on Saturday under a tarp held aloft by a group of supporters to shield her from a sudden downpour, Ms. Tlaib tied her criticisms of the president to local concerns about over-policing. Im not going to allow this impeached president to come into my community, she said to protesters attending a march organized by Detroit Will Breathe, a group started after the killing of George Floyd by the police. He thinks he can send these federal agents and troops into our community on our watch. To think that hes going to come in and do this to us. No. Ms. Tlaib caught the attention of Mr. Trump the day she was sworn into office in January 2019, when she used an expletive to say she would work to impeach him. She has been the target of the presidents wrath ever since, and her criticism of him won her national attention. But it also prompted Ms. Jones to jump into the race earlier this year. Its so important to me that we unify the district. Sixty percent of the district is African-American, but its not about race, its about bringing home the bacon, Ms. Jones said during a recent virtual town hall. The money we bring home is so important to me, and Im able to work with those who I dont always agree with. Ms. Jones, 60, has good name recognition in the district from her 15 years on the City Council, as well as the five weeks she served in Congress in 2018 after winning the special election, which was held to fill the remainder of Mr. Conyerss term after he retired amid accusations of sexual harassment from former staffers. This summer and fall thousands of people will volunteer to be research participants in Phase 3 trials of the U.S. governments five vaccine candidates aimed at minimizing the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of the governments effort, Operation Warp Speed, is to begin inoculating people in 2021, an ambitious schedule reflecting time is of the essence. As of Monday, the virus had infected 18 million people worldwide and killed nearly 689,000 in just nine months. The United States led all nations with 4.75 million COVID-19 cases and 157,000 deaths. To achieve its goal, the government is paying the biopharmaceutical industry for a remarkable effort to decrease vaccine development times from years to months. But it also raises concerns because the enrollment of research participants could favor speed over diligence of including those most at risk of dying from the disease. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports Black people, Hispanics, Latinos and Native Americans have suffered higher rates of severe illness and death than white people. The CDC also notes adults over 60 are at greater risk of death than younger people because of age-related conditions. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which regulates clinical trials of investigational agents, issued guidance in May, urging biopharmaceutical industry sponsors to include these at-risk population groups. The FDA guidance, however, is not a requirement. To encourage participation, drug makers and the U.S. government should commit to making the vaccines accessible and affordable to everyone and to ensuring at-risk people are among the first protected. The FDA also should require industry sponsors to report publicly and periodically during the trials on the demographics of the research participants enrolled in federally funded Phase 3 vaccine studies. Institutional review boards, which oversee clinical trials to ensure ethical treatment of research participants, could collect this information to ensure that racial, ethnic, gender and age disparities are minimized. Medical and scientific experts all recognize participation of the most at-risk groups is essential to ensure the vaccines will benefit them. However, minority groups traditionally are underrepresented in clinical trials, in part, because disparities in health care and past abuses in medical research on these minority groups have created mistrust. Senior citizens underlying illnesses, which make them more vulnerable, also make it risky for them to participate in trials of an unproven vaccine. It will take a concerted effort by industry sponsors to follow the FDA guidance. However, past practice doesnt bode well for success. In a 2019 report, the FDA found that participants in all clinical trials for approval of 48 new drugs were predominantly white. Houston is among the clinical trial sites for the vaccines. Its population is 22.5 percent Black, 44.8 percent Hispanic or Latino, 6.9 percent Asian, and 10.3 percent 65 and older. The challenge to engage these population groups should be embraced, and not sidelined for the sake of speeding vaccine candidates to market. Faced with this dangerous pandemic killing so many, participating in the vaccine trials would seem an easy choice, particularly for those most at risk. But the political divisiveness in America and racial disparities exposed by the virus have exacerbated suspicions and will require extra effort to overcome. Development of vaccines to end the coronavirus pandemic should be a 1969-style moon landing moment, bringing people together in an uplifting celebration of an extraordinary achievement. In the end, however, such success and pride of accomplishment in defeating COVID-19 will depend on proof that all people will have the opportunity to benefit. Marathi is the CEO and Lewis is the chief medical officer of 7 Hills Pharma, a Houston-based company developing a unique immunostimulant to improve the effectiveness of SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations. Tamara Sawicz, Director of Lifestyle at Vi at Lakeside Village in Lantana, Fla., has been honored with a 2020 Hero Award from Argentum, the leading national association exclusively dedicated to supporting companies operating professionally managed, resident-centered senior living communities and the older adults and families they serve. The Hero Awards, presented by Benchmark, recognize ideal representatives of people serving in the senior living field. Nominated by regional company executives and executive directors, these individuals to show the highest levels of excellence, caring, and dedication. Sawicz was honored for inspiring others, contributing to the community, and changing the lives of residents. In her nomination, Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Learning and Organizational Development Judy Whitcomb said: With an enthusiastic and genuinely friendly attitude, Tamara exudes a passion for delivering value and benefits to those she works for and with. With a background that ranges from television production to social work, Sawicz continually takes action to help residents realize their dreams whether it is helping veterans share their stories, enabling a resident to realize her life-long goal of publishing a book, or leading creative writing classes to share her love for writing and inspire others. A video project she created on veterans in her community was selected to be part of the Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives in Washington, D.C. We are so grateful for Tamaras dedication and the many everyday heroes who work to serve, protect, and care for residents in the best of times and the most challenging of times, said James Balda, Argentum president and CEO. All 2020 honorees are profiled in the July/August issue of Senior Living Executive magazine. About Vi Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Vi operates 10 continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) across the United States. With more than 30 years of experience as the owner and operator of residential communities for older adults, Vi continues to work toward providing quality environments, services and programs to enrich the lives of those they serve. In 2019, Vi was recognized by Great Place to Work and Fortune as one of the Best Workplaces for Aging Services and was ranked as one of Glassdoors Top 100 Best Places to Work. About Argentum Argentum is the leading national association exclusively dedicated to supporting companies operating professionally managed, resident-centered senior living communities and the older adults and families they serve. Since 1990, Argentum has advocated for choice, independence, dignity, and quality of life for all older adults. Argentum member companies operate senior living communities offering assisted living, independent living, continuing care, and memory care services. Along with its state partners, Argentums membership represents approximately 75 percent of the senior living industryan industry with a national economic impact of nearly a quarter of a trillion dollars and responsible for providing over 1.6 million jobs. These numbers will continue to grow as the U.S. population ages. Argentums programs and initiatives are driven by its membership. For more information about joining Argentum, please visit argentum.org/membership. Learn more at argentum.org. By Asma Hafiz, TwoCircles.net Srinagar: Anjali remembers the day before Kashmir was put under a military and communications lockdown on August 5 last year. It was a time of celebration for her community as they were looking forward to performing at weddings, which is one of the two main sources of livelihood for the trans community in Kashmir. The other being matchmaking. Support TwoCircles When the government of India imposed an unprecedented communication blockade and a strict security lockdown in Kashmir on August 5, 2019, and read down Article 370 the wedding season had just begun in Kashmir. During the lockdown, which lasted several months, the trans community could no longer attend weddings or fix marriages. While they were still struggling to come to terms with the loss incurred due to six months of shutdown and curfew following the abrogation of Article 370, the imposition of COVID-19 lockdown has added a new layer of struggle and uncertainty for this already marginalised community. We have been under lockdown since we were born. The pandemic created problems for those people who have a place in society. For us, there is no such place, Anjali told TwoCircles.net. Unlike most transgender people of the region, Anjali lives with her family. After surviving transphobia in school, Anjali took a break from studies and started to perform at weddings. To deal with gender dysphoria, she requires regular counselling services. Amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, she finds herself locked within the four walls of her room. Census of India had never considered the third gender while collecting data until the year 2011, they were given recognition for the first time. According to the 2011 Census, there are around 4137 transgenders in Jammu and Kashmir. Dr Aijaz Ahmad Bund is a social worker who runs an NGO Sonzal Welfare Trust, whose stated goal is to work for the welfare of LGBTQIA community of Kashmir. He started his journey in 2011. The organization has around 2500 beneficiaries. Aijaz believes that the downfall in the economy caused by the pandemic is going to have a devastating impact on the lives of marginalized communities. The lockdown has deprived the transgender community from accessing hormone therapies and counselling services. Due to the strain on healthcare facilities, the needs of the trans people have taken a backseat. The necessities of the trans community were never really a priority here. The lockdown has only added to their miseries as they struggle to make ends meet. During the lockdown, there were so many people on hormone treatment who faced difficulty. Either it was unavailable or unaffordable. I had to arrange it for them because you cannot ignore gender dysphoria. There are a lot of psychological issues, it can even give way to suicidal tendencies. All these treatments are available in hospitals outside Kashmir but, sadly, not here, Aijaz Bund told TwoCircles.net. As people are cancelling weddings due to pandemic, the trans community have been rendered jobless. The lockdown has exposed and enhanced the deep gashes of inequality prevalent in society. Many people find themselves homeless as paying rent has become difficult especially during this time. Aijaz has extended help by creating a platform where the members of the community assemble and help each other. He was infected with coronavirus while mobilizing people to offer support to the transgender community. However, he is adamant to continue fighting for the rights of the LGBTQIA community. Shabnum Subhan has hardly left her home since the implementation of lockdown due to coronavirus pandemic. Speaking with TwoCircles.net, she said, Today I left home for the first time and do you know how much I earned? Just 200 rupees. Tell me what am I supposed to do with this meagre amount? Discrimination against the transgender community is not new in Kashmir. A transgender visited my house one day and my mother washed the cup thrice in which he drank tea. From that moment, I knew what I wanted from my life, says Aijaz Bund. In 2011, Aijazs NGO started the struggle by taking up the case of the transgender community with the Social Welfare Department of Kashmir. They convinced them to formulate an intervention plan which they could not implement citing the reason it required a nod in the cabinet. And hence, it was not approved at that time. After two years, the NGO moved to the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) whose role is to give recommendations but it was unable to do so. The case dragged on for four long years and in the end, SHRC claimed they (NGO) had been approaching the wrong institution. In 2017, the NGO decided to file a PIL (Public Interest Litigation) in High Court. The PIL comprised all the components including social and civil rights such as health insurance, education, reservation. It built pressure on the Social Welfare Department who then came up with a policy that they submitted in the High Court. But it had a lot of loopholes. Firstly, the mere definition of transgender was misunderstood. It talked about setting up a board, conducting medical checkups. It was very repressive and we objected to that. After that, a lot of interim judgments were passed, some were very good judgments. It was for the first time that the state identified transgender as an idiosyncratic gender beyond the dichotomy of male and female. They added a third column for transgender in the applications of schools and jobs but the overall empowerment of the community is still pending, Aijaz said. Amid the ongoing lockdown, in the same PIL, the Social Welfare Department included the trans community in Integrated Social Security Scheme (ISSS), which makes them eligible for a monthly pension of 1000 rupees. Many beneficiaries are yet to avail this benefit because most of them have been disowned by their families and therefore are not able to submit documents that are mandatory to make use of this scheme. This 1000 rupees will not empower us. What we have been demanding is reservation in education and jobs because we believe that education can liberate us. We are not asking for anything big, just basic human rights, said Shabnum. Sonzal Welfare Trust also provides mental health services to the LGBTQIA community for free. Many clinical Psychologists do voluntary work for the organization. Bund himself is trained in LGBTQIA affirmative therapy. After lockdown, the NGO has been providing these services by video chat or phone. The bias against the LGBTQIA community is deeply rooted and even various mental health practitioners are unable to understand them. It is important to create a space where they feel wanted and understood. With certain relaxations in the lockdown, we are resuming our meetings while taking into consideration the norms of social distancing, says Dr Farah Shireen, who has a PhD in Clinical Psychology. Anjali looks forward to these sessions. She likes to read Urdu poetry and is an admirer of Urdu poet, Allama Iqbal. When I asked her how she would describe her life in a couplet, she said: Mai na puchugi tumse mera kya kasoor tha Ae meri zindagi ab tum se gila na raha Mujhe gairu nai rulaaya apnu ne kiye sitam Ae meri zindagi ab na koi gila raha (I will not ask you what was my mistake Oh my life, I have no complaints with you While strangers made me cry, I was oppressed by my own Oh my life, I have no complaints with you) A police spokeswoman, Sally Bown, said the marine unit was back on the lake about 8:40 a.m. after weighing whether conditions would allow for a safe search. She did not know how many officers were on the lake or whether there were divers going in the water. Kim Kardashian's good friend Jonathan Cheban was robbed at gun point over the weekend in New Jersey. The incident happened in the quiet, upscale suburban neighborhood of Englewood Cliffs on Sunday evening while the Keeping Up With The Kardashains star was with a friend. At one point his mother Galina had a gun pointed at her head before the mugger took Cheban's $250,000 Richard Mille watch, the star confirmed to DailyMail.com on Monday. 'It was frightening, I want the guys caught,' Cheban told DailyMail.com exclusively. Scary scene: Kim Kardashian's good friend Jonathan Cheban was robbed at gun point over the weekend in New Jersey. Seen in February His mother was involved too: At one point his mother Galina had a gun pointed at her head before the mugger took Cheban's $250,000 Richard Mille watch, the star confirmed to DailyMail.com on Monday. Seen in West Hollywood in 2018 'The mugger had a gun pointed at my mother's head,' Cheban tells DailyMail.com. 'There were two gunmen. It was frightening. It happened at 8:30 pm last night just as the sun was going down.' The 46-year-old reality TV star, who goes by the name FoodGod, reported the mugging to New Jersey police and he visited the police station on Monday to create sketches of the criminals with detectives. So far the criminals have not been caught. The incident started at 8:30 pm on Sunday when Jonathan and his mother were with a friend outside a home in a private driveway in the sleepy suburb known for its upscale homes, They are very close: Jonathan with his mother Galina at the Sienna Restaurant at Pink Elephant in East Hampton in 2013 So close to Manhattan: Englewood Cliffs is a sleepy suburb filled with mansions that is across the river from NYC. Here is a view from Englewood Cliffs looking at the George Washington Bridge Then a 'young man' came up to the trio and asked what time it was. Jonathan told his mother and friend to go inside the house. Then they noticed a second man with a gun in the street not far away. Before they knew it, the first man had a gun pointed at Galina's head and the perpetrator asked for money or jewelry. Cheban handed over his watch, a designer brand with a heavy price tag. Neighbors saw the incident and called police. She was robbed too: This comes almost four years after Kim, 39, was robbed at gunpoint inside her Paris hotel during fashion week. Seen in September 2019 in NYC On her series: Cheban is often seen on KUWTK. The gunmen barged their way into the room where Kim was with an assistant. The men eventually tied Kim up and locked her in a bathroom as they stole her jewelry. Kim has since said the robbery changed her life TMZ was first to report the news. This comes almost four years after Kim, 39, was robbed at gunpoint inside her Paris hotel, The Hotel Pourtales, during fashion week. The gunmen barged their way into the room where Kim was with an assistant. The men eventually tied Kim up and locked her in a bathroom as they stole her jewelry worth over $10M. Kim has since said the robbery changed her life and she often does not go out with big items on. It also turned her focus in life toward her family and charity. Amid a raging controversy over a Patna police teams visit to Mumbai to probe the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput, a Shiv Sena MP has accused the Bihar police of acting at the behest of the BJP. People can understand whats going on. Why did Bihar Police travel in BMW? They travelled in Jaguar. Whose vehicles were those? The BMW belonged to a BJP office-bearer. If Bihar Police travels in it, you can understand the politics, ANI quoted Shiv Senas Lok Sabha MP Arvind Sawant as saying. The Patna police team has drawn attention to itself travelling in luxury cars during its probe in Mumbai. The Maharashtra government has said it has no plans of handing over the probe to the CBI as the opposition BJP has been demanding. The Mumbai Police are probing into the matter in a very professional manner, Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmuklh told reporters in Mumbai. Earlier Monday, Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh said Rajputs family did not complain about any lapse in the investigation being carried by Mumbai Police into his death in June. Former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis questioned why the Patna police team was being obstructed from doing its duty. He particularly criticized the Maharashtra government for sending a Bihar police officer into quarantine on his arrival in Mumbai. Mumbai, Aug 3 : Mumbai-headquartered pharmaceutical company Wockhardt on Monday announced that it has entered into an agreement with the UK government to fill-finish millions of doses of Covid-19 vaccines. As per the terms of the agreement, the company has reserved manufacturing capacity to allow for the supply of multiple vaccines to the UK government in its fight against Covid-19, including AZD1222, the vaccine co-invented by the University of Oxford and its spin-out company, Vaccitech and licensed by AstraZeneca. The manufacturing will be undertaken at CP Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Wockhardt based in Wrexham, North Wales. "We are proud to be collaborating with the UK Government to make vaccines available and the arrangement brings in a huge sense of purpose and pride, it upholds our ongoing commitment to fight against such a pandemic of global human importance," Habil Khorakiwala, Chairman of Wockhardt, said in a statement. "As a global organisation, we are focussed and committed to assist in mitigating the worldwide impact of Covid-19." Following the announcement, shares of Wockhardt rose 10 per cent on close of Monday's trade. "Today we have secured additional capacity to manufacture millions of doses of multiple Covid-19 candidates, guaranteeing the supply of vaccines we need to protect people across the UK rapidly and in large numbers," said Alok Sharma, the UK's Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. In India, Pune's Serum Institute of India (SII) has received approval from the regulator to conduct clinical trials of Oxford University-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in the country. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) CALGARYPolice in Calgary are searching for the suspects in a jewelry store robbery at a shopping mall where they say the thieves were armed and used tear gas. Investigators say two masked men entered Sunridge Mall early Saturday afternoon and proceeded to Paris Jewellers. Once inside, police say the men deployed tear gas and pepper spray, before stealing several items of jewelry from the store. They allege that during the robbery, the men threatened the stores staff with firearms. The men then fled the mall in an SUV, and EMS arrived and treated members of the public who were suffering effects of the tear gas and pepper spray. One of the men wore a hoodie with the hood up and was wearing a surgical mask over his face, while the second man was wearing a motorcycle helmet. Police are asking anyone who may have cellphone video of the incident, or has information on the identity of the offenders, to contact them. Read more about: Moving is a big part of the military lifestyle. Some families move every few years, while others may move every year. But that does not mean that all military spouses are handling these moves without suffering mental health setbacks. While we all knew moving was in our future, the insurmountable stress and mental health effects that military spouses endure with every move cannot be ignored. Among the top stressful situations related to a permanent change of station (PCS) are: navigating a move alone, dealing with housing, and finding a new support system. When you add in the cost of moving, as reported by the Military Family Advisory Network, at an average of $5,000 per move, there's quite a bit to worry about. But all hope is not lost. There are great resources where military spouses can access help when the stress of moving becomes too much to bear. It's often helpful to chat with family and friends about your stress, anxieties and fears, but reaching out to a professional is sometimes warranted. Professionals can help you work through your feelings and find ways to develop healthy coping mechanisms and strategies for your current situation that will strengthen you as a person and equip you to handle your move. Military OneSource is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week to assist service members and families in crisis. Call 800-342-9647 Cohen Veterans Centers has expanded across the United States to help veterans and active-duty family members with mental health needs. Check out its website to see whether there is a location available near you. For faith-based assistance and guidance, contact your unit or Family Life Chaplain for help. If you are a working military spouse, many companies now provide access to confidential, short-term counseling through an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Your company's Human Resources contact should have that type of information, and it also would have been given to you during your onboarding and introduction of benefits at a new job. Military Family Life Counselors, who provide short-term counseling, are available on all installations. The Family Readiness Group contact person in your spouse's unit should have the name and number of the unit's assigned Family Life Counselor. However you are making it through your PCS season, know that you are not alone. Moving is always stressful, and uprooting your life is never easy. As military spouses, we are expected to persevere and put on a brave face; however, that is not always possible. When the stress becomes too much, be sure to reach out to a professional who can help you overcome the challenges that you are facing. Wendi Iacobello is an Army spouse, stay-at-home mom and writer. She believes that inner strength is developed through four pillars: fitness, faith, volunteerism and finding purpose. On her blog, Strength 4 Spouses, she inspires and empowers military spouses to find and develop their inner strength to build the resiliency needed for the ups and downs of life. Keep Up with the Ins and Outs of Military Life For the latest military news and tips on military family benefits and more, subscribe to Military.com and have the information you need delivered directly to your inbox. A lab at UW-Madisons Waisman Center is partnering with a North Carolina company to make an experimental COVID-19 vaccine for clinical trials, the university said Monday. Waisman Biomanufacturing plans to produce a COVID-19 vaccine for Heat Biologics for use in phase 1 and phase 2 clinical trials. Phase 1 trials could begin early next year, with UW-Madison a possible trial site. Heats vaccine, designed to stimulate an immune response from the bodys T cells, is meant to be used in combination with a traditional vaccine that promotes the production of antibodies, a different type of immune response. The Heat vaccine could help people with weakened immune systems, such as the elderly and people with certain chronic medical conditions, mount a more robust response against the coronavirus. In addition to its potential as a standalone COVID-19 vaccine, we believe this platform holds enormous promise in combination with other vaccines under development and in clinical trials by boosting the patients T-cell immunity, Jeff Wolf, CEO of Heat, based in Morrisville, North Carolina, said in a statement. At least 165 different COVID-19 vaccines are in development, 26 of them in various stages of human trials, according to the World Health Organization. Moderna and Pfizer recently started phase 3 trials, to involve 30,000 volunteers each, testing real vaccines against dummy shots in the final stage of experiments required before approval can be sought. Other companies plan to start such trials soon. Its not clear when any COVID-19 vaccine might be approved or available, and health officials say several may be needed to meet global demand. Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told Congress Friday that he is cautiously optimistic that we will have a vaccine by the end of this year and as we go into 2021. Two Madison-based companies are developing nasal spray vaccines against the coronavirus. FluGen, based on research by UW-Madison scientists Yoshihiro Kawaoka and Gabriele Neumann, is adapting its experimental flu vaccine to target COVID-19 and flu. The candidate, CoroFlu, is being developed with Bharat Biotech, in Hyderabad, India, and could enter a human trial in India by September, said FluGen CEO Paul Radspinner. Pan Genome Systems is developing a human COVID-19 vaccine adapted from an experimental immunization for another coronavirus that infects chickens. The human candidate is in mouse studies, said Adel Talaat, a UW-Madison microbiology professor and founder of the company. Heats vaccine will target the elderly and people with diseases such as heart conditions, severe obesity, diabetes, chronic kidney disease and liver disease. The vaccine will use a genetically engineered combination of a common protein found in human cells called gp96, along with viral proteins, a UW-Madison statement said. Waisman Biomanufacturing, established in 2001, has worked on other vaccine projects for HIV, Ebola, influenza, dengue fever, malaria and hand, foot and mouth disease. Heats technique has been adapted and tested in collaboration with researchers at the University of Miami in a number of studies funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense, including as a vaccine in animal models of Zika virus, malaria and HIV. Waisman Biomanufacturing has partnered with Heat on two cancer vaccines, one of which is in a phase 2 clinical trial. The other completed enrollment in a phase 2 trial. The facility, a clean lab that can produce batches of vaccine under the good manufacturing practices required for clinical approval, is located in the Waisman Center near UW Hospital. We operate collaboratively for novel phase 1 products while maintaining a high level of GMP compliance, said Brian Dattilo, the labs manager of business development. Waisman Biomanufacturing is also able to provide broader flexibility than larger contract manufacturers that have more rigid policies and are less flexible to the needs of smaller companies. COVID-19 in photos: How Wisconsin is managing the pandemic Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Vatican City, Aug 3 : Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI is reportedly seriously ill with shingles after returning to the Vatican from a trip to ermany where he was visiting his dying brother, media report said on Monday. Benedict, aged 93, is said to have become very frail and his voice is barely audible, the UK's Sun newspaper said in a report. He came to his native Bavaria in June to pay his ailing brother Georg Ratzinger a final visit. Ratzinger, aged 96, died shortly afterwards, German newspaper Passauer Neue Presse reported on Monday. It was Benedict's first trip outside Italy since 2013, the year he resigned the papacy. Benedict's "mind and memory are active but his voice is barely audible at the moment", Daily Mail quoted the retired Pope's German biographer, Peter Seewald as saying to the newspaper. Seewald said Benedict was optimistic when they spoke on Saturday, when he said he might pick up writing again if his strength returns. But his condition has since "become extremely fragile", the newspaper reported. Benedict XVI succeeded John Paul II on April 19, 2005. His papacy ended on February 28, 2013. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text tech2 News Staff Previously scheduled to launch at the Google I/O conference in May (which was called off due to the pandemic), Google will be launching the much-awaited smartphone today via an online event. The company has not given out any specific launch event timing as of now. Google Pixel 4a expected specifications As per a previous report, Google "accidentally" listed the Pixel 4a images on the Canadian version of Google Store. The listing appeared with the header "Nest Wi-Fi system" revealed a few interesting details about the Wi-Fi system using an image of the Google Pixel 4a. As per the leak, the Google Pixel 4a might come with a single selfie camera that sits in the top left corner of the display inside a punch-hole cutout. The smartphone is expected to have a square camera module on the rear that houses a single camera and a flash. The leaked image of the device also shows a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor. The Google Pixel 4a will be powered by a Snapdragon 730G chipset paired with 4 GB of RAM. It is likely to come in two variants 64 GB and 128 GB. It might sport a 5.81-inch OLED screen with FHD+ resolution and will have a 3,080 mAh battery under the hood. The smartphone is likely to be available in two colour options - 'Just Black' and Barely Blue'. Tipster Ishan Agrawal has shared a Pixel 4a poster that reveals that the smartphone might come with 5G connectivity but the 5G variant might launch later. Your first look at Googles 5G Pixel lineup, coming this fall. The one on the right is the Pixel 5 5G, judging by the Brushed Metal Frame. The Pixel 4a 5G may be a bigger phone (basically XL) than the standard #Pixel4a launching tomorrow. Thanks @samsungbloat for the info! pic.twitter.com/nWRbDB3vcU Ishan Agarwal (@ishanagarwal24) August 2, 2020 The tipster also revealed that the Pixel 5 will also come with 5G connectivity and might come with a "Brushed Metal Frame". In addition to this, the tipster had previously tweeted revealing the specifications and expected pricing of the smartphone. It is expected that 64 GB internal storage variant might be priced at $349 (approx Rs 26,100) in the US and is likely to be powered by Snapdragon 730G. I think most investors will agree that after all the decline in the stock markets and the recovery in the last few months, most TSX stocks are fairly valued right now. Investors have had the time to deal with the panic-fueled decisions to sell off holdings, the risks with each company, and how the businesses have responded to the situation. Some stocks are performing well. Naturally, high-quality blue-chip stocks are among the companies better off right now. Most defensive stocks are in safer territory right now, but there are a few stocks that are not making the best recovery. Suncor Energy (TSX:SU)(NYSE:SU) is among the companies that still have ground to make up. Despite the weakness of the energy sector, Warren Buffett continues to hold onto his shares of the Canadian energy giant. Should you consider adding the stock to your portfolio at its low valuation right now? Lets take a better look at the company. Suncor Energy The energy sector has taken massive hits this year. The industry was already in trouble due to the brewing oil price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia. The result was a precarious situation for oil producers across the board. While the situation resolved, the onset of the pandemic made things worse for energy companies. Oil prices have recovered to a higher value than they were before the pandemic, but companies are producing lower volumes of it due to a decrease in demand, and the recovery has been weak for companies like Suncor. Warren Buffett is still bullish on the energy sector. His recent move of acquiring assets from Dominion Energy proves that he believes that this industry can prove to be beneficial. If a vaccine that allows the world to return to relative normalcy can arrive, oil companies like Suncor will have a field day. It could see most of the lost demand return and allow energy companies to resume production on full capacity. It could increase the recovery effort for the sector and help the vertically integrated Suncor boost its revenue. Story continues At writing, Suncor is trading for 51% lower than its pre-pandemic pricing. It might be a concern to investors, but the company is busy navigating the health and oil crisis by decreasing its expenses. It scaled down its capital budget by almost 20% for 2020 to ride out the wave. The reduced spending will allow the company to generate higher cash flows in case of positive development with the global health crisis. Foolish takeaway When it comes to making the most of an adverse stock market environment, there is no one better to look up to than Warren Buffett himself. Hes known for investing in U.S. companies, and Suncor is one of two Canadian companies in his holdings. If the Oracle of Omaha did not believe in the recovery of the sector, he would have dumped the stocks like he finished his positions in airlines. Instead, he is holding onto the likes of Suncor. Trading for $21.89 per share at writing, Suncor could be a valuable addition to your investment portfolio. The post Warren Buffett Is Holding Onto This 1 TSX Stock for Dear Life appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada. More reading Fool contributor Adam Othman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Dominion Energy, Inc. The Motley Fools purpose is to help the world invest, better. Click here now for your free subscription to Take Stock, The Motley Fool Canadas free investing newsletter. Packed with stock ideas and investing advice, it is essential reading for anyone looking to build and grow their wealth in the years ahead. Motley Fool Canada 2020 She sought help from Arlington County, where she said employees just two weeks ago told her they sent a check to her landlord to cover her rent for April and May. But the landlord said he has not received it and has filed an eviction action against her a frightening prospect for an undocumented resident who worries that going to court could result in deportation. Thompson Creek employees flank CEO and President Rick Wuest in this photo from The Washington Post's 2019 celebration of Top Workplaces. Thompson Creek employees flank CEO and President Rick Wuest in this photo from The Washington Post's 2019 celebration of Top Workplaces. One of Thompson Creek's greatest strength is its diversity. Age, race, creed, orientation. All are welcome at the creek. One of Thompson Creek's greatest strength is its diversity. Age, race, creed, orientation. All are welcome at the creek. Lanham, Maryland, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lanham, MD, August 5,2020 Thompson Creek Window Company has been named one of The Washington Posts 2020 Top Workplaces in the Washington, D.C. area. Selection is based solely on employee feedback gathered through an anonymous third-party survey administered by research partner Energage, LLC, which measured several aspects of workplace culture, including alignment, execution, and connection. Now in its seventh year, The Posts Top Workplaces list continues to highlight the companies that are leaders in the Washington-area in terms of employee engagement and satisfaction, said Washington Post Top Workplaces editor Dion Haynes. We had a record number of employees participate in the survey this year, making it clear that these organizations have made cultivating an atmosphere of support and respect a priority. At Thompson Creek, our fun and engaging culture sets us apart and we are proud it has earned us a place among the Washington Posts Top Workplaces List. Rick Wuest, CEO of Thompson Creek Window Company said. Weve enjoyed many successes throughout the years and we owe them all to our greatest assetour employees. We are always looking for opportunities to improve our employee experience and our participation in the Top Workplace program is part of that process. Thompson Creek offers a modern work environment with many amenities where employees can grow their careers within the organization. Wuest added, In addition to offering a strong compensation package, we find that our employees cherish the opportunities to have fun together and to celebrate our achievements, too. Weve built a culture around competition, fun, family and success, and like-minded individuals fit well here. Story continues The full list along with additional content will run in print in a special Top Workplaces magazine on October 14 and will be available on The Posts site. The Washington Post will also host an awards ceremony in October to recognize the 200 top-ranked companies. As an essential business in the Mid-Atlantic, Thompson Creek is hiring during this time. To join this award-winning workplace, check out the career opportunities available at www.thompsoncreek.com/careers, and apply to the job openings best suited to you! ### About Thompson Creek Window Company Headquartered in Lanham, Maryland, Thompson Creek Window Company is a family-owned window manufacturer and installer of energy-efficient home improvement products. Celebrating 40 years in business, Thompson Creek has evolved into a leading exterior home improvement company in the United States. Employing a staff of nearly 500, Thompson Creek builds and installs top-quality replacement windows and doors, vinyl siding, roofing and clog-free gutter systems designed to deliver a House Proud feeling their customers. About The Washington Post The Washington Post is an award-winning news leader whose mission is to connect, inform, and enlighten local, national and global readers with trustworthy reporting, in-depth analysis and engaging opinions. It combines world-class journalism with the latest technology and tools so readers can interact with The Post anytime, anywhere. About Energage, LLC Headquartered in Exton, Pa., Energage (formerly known as WorkplaceDynamics) is a leading provider of technology-based employee engagement tools that help leaders to unlock potential, inspire performance, and achieve amazing results within their organizations. The research partner behind the Top Workplaces program, Energage has surveyed more than 47,000 organizations representing well over 16 million employees in the United States. Attachments CONTACT: Maura Satchell Thompson Creek Window Company 2408481254 msatchell@thompsoncreek.com Daniel Modell's electricity bills are higher than ever. In March, both he and his partner were forced to work remotely after COVID-19 lockdowns began. Modell, a creative director, lost income after his job made salary cuts due to pandemic-related budget cuts. Meanwhile, the couple's power bill grew higher with each month that passed. In June and July, it was up almost $150 from the same time last year. "You're not in your apartment during the day when you're at work, so there's no need to leave anything running," Modell said. "But suddenly you're in your own apartment for 24 hours a day and the electricity bills that you get are just absolutely astronomical." Americans are navigating many pandemic-related financial issues during the recession: job losses, restrictive rental agreements and slashed 401(k) contributions to name a few. Making matters worse, data suggests many are also seeing significant increases in their utility and electric bills due to remote work. LG Velvet review: The smartphone is sexy, the tech is cool, the camera could be improved Beating high energy costs: Tech can help trim your utility bills, which may be on the rise amid coronavirus shutdown It should come as little surprise that most of the additional cost is because people are spending more time at home, experts say. The pandemic is compelling energy customers to stay indoors more than usual during some of the hottest months of the year, which could drive up energy costs, according to Katie Allen, a savings expert at Pacific Gas and Electric Company in California. "There are more families at home this summer, and it looks there might be more at home going into the school year with remote learning," she added. Fluctuations in electricity bills are usually the result of changes in outdoor temperatures. Electric bills are typically lowest during the milder spring and fall months, when you don't have to run air conditioners or heaters. Story continues But with people spending more time at home, one-third of U.S. households will likely see electricity bills climb 10% to 15% higher this summer, according to data from the clean energy technology firm Arcadia. Households in metro areas will spend the most, between $2 and $37 more on utility bills this summer, Arcadia found. Joe Toscano's electricity bills are up about $20 per month since he's been working from home in Pittsburgh and is using the AC more often. His wife is also using more power to work from home. So is his daughter, who shifted to remote learning in March. "I'm using my computer nine to 10 hours a day; so is my wife and so is my daughter," Toscano said. "That's something that we weren't doing before." Ways to lower your electric bill If your electricity bills are mounting, there are things you can do to curb costs, but your approach should depend on where you live, experts say. People who live in deregulated energy states like Texas, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania and Ohio have a more savings options than others, according to Ben Kurland, Cofounder of the billl negotiating service BillFixers. "Those who live in deregulated markets should shop around to find the cheapest rate offered to them," Kurland said. "The default rate that you're paying is probably not the lowest rate that's available." Shop around and negotiate After seeing what's out there, you can either switch to a new company, or use that knowledge as leverage to negotiate with your current power provider, Kurland added. People who live in gas-regulated states like Mississippi, Alabama and Nevada don't have the freedom to go into the open energy market, since those states choose energy providers for them. If you live in a power-regulated state, you should call your electricity provider to ask about specials or deals you might qualify for, Kurland said. "They won't apply the discount you qualify for unless you get in touch with them," Kurland said. Working from home can drive up electricity costs. If you're unsure whether your state is regulated or deregulated, Arcadia published a full list that you can refer to. Use installment plans or bill relief programs You can also ask to pay your bill in installments, which most electricity companies allow, according to Barry Gross, CEO of BillCutterz, which negotiates rates with service providers to get better prices for clients. Beyond contacting your electrical company, there are other places to find energy bill relief. The government offers a Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program meant for people who need temporary help with their heating and cooling energy costs. There are also other COVID-19-related relief efforts designed to help families that run into financial trouble. For example, Solix Inc. is working with states to ensure people have access to critical services including electricity. Energy-efficient light bulbs, ACs, smart thermostats and other appliances could save you money over time, experts say. You can also reduce the brightness on your television, turn down the temperature in your refrigerator and unplug appliances that aren't in use. Many plug-in electronics use what experts call "vampire power," or leech energy even when they are shut off. "If you've got a million little electronics plugged in, they're all just sitting there doing nothing but chugging power," Kurland said. "And you're spending a couple of bucks on each of them every month." Using energy-efficient LED bulbs reduces your electric bill. Allen of PG&E says people should use window shades so that ACs don't have to run as hard. Air conditioning costs make up 40% of your electrical bill, she said. "Closing the shades in the afternoon to keep that extreme heat from coming into your home can help," Allen said. She also said people should try to limit how often they open the fridge because it uses more power to cool down after you let the cold air out. Follow Dalvin Brown on Twitter: @Dalvin_Brown. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: COVID drives up electricity bills, here's how to save money An artist has created an initiative supplying face masks to people in need across Australia, leaving her thousands of dollars out of pocket in order to help her community. Beth Crothers shared a photo of the fence of her Moorooka home in South Brisbane on Sunday with more than a dozen face masks pegged to it. 'Free face masks... Please take one,' a sign written in chalk on the fence read. Ms Crothers told Daily Mail Australia a total of 380 masks were collected on Sunday alone. Beth Crothers shared a photo of the fence of her Moorooka home in South Brisbane on Sunday with more than a dozen face masks pegged to it Melbourne Lord Mayor Sally Capp (pictured) was pictured giving the 'thumbs up' while wearing a mask created by the initiative The idea wasn't a one off. In fact, Ms Crothers and her 'perfect team of mums' have supplied more than 80,000 masks to Australians in need, hospitals, police and other organisations since the pandemic began. Her Masks4All campaign now has more than 4,000 indirect volunteers all across Australia, who are sewing or supplying masks for their communities. Ms Crothers lives south of the Brisbane river, in a region currently rocked by cases of community transmission after months of security. Three women allegedly lied on their border declaration passes when returning to Queensland from a trip to Melbourne last week, and two of them were diagnosed with COVID-19 a week later - after a full week of exposing the community. The Brisbane-based mother said she put the masks on the wall outside her home on Sunday because she knew there would be people in need within her community. 'Most went to people who were refugees, immunocompromised, older, on low income or commuters,' she explained. 'All were scared and all could no longer find face masks.' A 'mapotic' map was created, which is an interface for communities, individuals or companies to advertise their products Fans of the initiative uploaded photos wearing the masks online The cost of buying face masks in store has skyrocketed exponentially as a result of the crisis, and soaring demand makes them hard to come by. Ms Crothers' initiative is self-funded, and her team are each out-of-pocket by thousands of dollars, but she hopes more of the community will get on board to help others in need. 'We're all out thousands of dollars, but we can cry about the money when others are not crying about losing their loved ones,' she said. 'On our first weekend, we had requests for over 11,000 masks,' Ms Crothers revealed, adding that the demand was divided among just 10 volunteers. 'My studio was turned into a mask distribution hub.' All donors and volunteers can register their services on the Mapotic map to make it easier for people in need to search and find services within their local communities Since launching, the initiative now has its own website which directs people in need to their nearest volunteer or distribution centre. A 'mapotic' map was created, which is an interface for communities, individuals or companies to advertise their products. All donors and volunteers can register their services on the Mapotic map to make it easier for people in need to search and find services within their local communities. But for the less tech savvy or organised, Ms Crothers has encouraged people to make their own 'mask wall', like the one she created at the weekend. She is hoping to launch a 'Kindness Fence Project' in affiliation with the Kindness Pandemic Facebook group, to encourage people to help out where they can. Microsoft has confirmed on Sunday that it is continuing its discussions with Chinese tech company Bytedance about a possible purchase of its social media app TikTok in the U.S. and three other markets. In a blog post last August 2, 2020, Microsoft said that after a conversation between President Trump and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Microsoft is ready to push through with its discussions to explore the acquisition of TikTok in the U.S. Microsoft said it plans to move quickly with ByteDance and complete the talks no later than September 15, 2020. Microsoft is also looking forward to continuing its dialogue with the U.S. Government, including a discussion with President Trump, during the process. Read also: Twitter Bans Thousands of Accounts as the Platform Cracks Down on QAnon The confirmation comes after President Trump said that he does not support the possible deal between Microsoft and ByteDance and that he would ban TikTok from the United States. Microsoft said that discussions are still preliminary and that there no assurance a transaction will proceed. The discussion will build upon a prior notification provided by the two companies about their intent to explore a possible acquisition of Microsoft of TikTok in the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. Microsoft might invite American investors to participate in the purchase. Microsoft said that it would build the operating model for TikTok service to ensure transparency to its users, and governments in these markets have appropriate security oversight. Microsoft said it would make sure that all private data of American users gets transferred to and remains in the U.S. Microsoft will also ensure that any such data that is currently stored or backed-up outside the U.S. is deleted from the servers once it is transferred. Check this out: Apple and All iPhones and MacBooks to Completely Be Carbon Neutral by 2030 President Trump was reported to have agreed to allow Microsoft to continue with the discussions but he is giving the company only 45 days to secure the deal. Sources said that President Trump changed his mind following pressure from advisers and many of his Republican party mates. Tiktok plans to open a headquarters in the U.K. Meanwhile, the U.K. Government has approved TikTok's plans to relocate its headquarters in London and will be revealed within days, reports said. ByteDance, however, has yet to comment on the report. The move to establish its headquarters in London is said to be part of the attempt to distance the company from the Chinese government. The granting of the green light comes after the White House claimed that the Chinese government is able to access users' data, a claim that TikTok has repeatedly denied. TikTok, launched in 2017, is owned by Chinese company ByteDance. TikTok's popularity has grown since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Investors looking to take over the popular app is said to have valued TikTok at $50 billion. Read next: How Appy Pie AppMakr Helps You Create the Perfect Push Notifications Presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden has extended his vice-presidential search by as much as two weeks, intensifying the jockeying and lobbying between allies of the women who hope to join his White House. Even some longtime Biden allies worry that the process has become "messier than it should be," pitting women, especially Black women, against one another. The dynamic threatens to undermine Biden's effort to use the vice-presidential search to spotlight some of the party's brightest female stars during the highly public vetting process. And it's already providing President Donald Trump's campaign an opening to dig up dirt and launch attacks on potential rivals. "It's been relentless. It's been unfortunate. But I must say it's been predictable," said Donna Brazile, a former interim chair of the Democratic National Committee. "It's extremely disappointing, because many of these attacks . . . are being made by Democratic men who should know better." "I would hope that in this selection process, we are mindful that Black women - and women of color - deserve respect," she added. The increasing nastiness is fueled by a sense, even among Biden's closest advisers, that Biden is entering the final phase of the search without a clear favorite. Rather than a traditional "short list" of three candidates, people close to the process expect him to interview five or six finalists for the position. The delay has intensified currents that have been swirling for weeks, said several people interviewed. The resulting backbiting risks inflaming divisions within the party that complicated the 2016 campaign - but that Biden has worked to coalesce since locking down the nomination in the spring. A recent Politico report said former senator Chris Dodd, D-Conn., who is on Biden's vice-presidential vetting panel, told donors that Sen. Kamala Harris "had no remorse" for her attacks on Biden while on a debate stage. One donor implied to CNBC that Harris has too much "ambition." And longtime Biden friend Ed Rendell, a former Pennsylvania governor, told CNN that Harris can "rub people the wrong way." Some of the comments are being made by high-ranking Democrats pushing candidates such as Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., and more recently Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., making some worry that women of color are being forced to hinder one another. "It bugs me that people want to pit these two Black women against the other," said Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., a key Biden confidant, referring to the burgeoning Bass vs. Harris narrative. "Nobody is trying to pit Senator Elizabeth Warren against [Michigan Gov. Gretchen] Whitmer. And both of their names are being mentioned every day as being in the search." "It is messier than it should be because somebody is trying to create a story," Clyburn added. In recent days the negative attention has focused on Bass, who has gone out of her way to stress that she is unable to "envision" herself president. In 2008, former president Barack Obama told Biden to view the vice presidency as the "capstone" of his career, and Biden has said that he sees his relationship with Obama as a model. The Daily Caller published a piece about a 2010 speech Bass gave at the ribbon cutting for a new Scientology facility that opened in Los Angeles, in which she seemed to praise the organization. The Atlantic published a lengthy article examining her past visits to Cuba and warm words for former leader Fidel Castro, and how it could cost votes in the key state of Florida. The Trump campaign immediately seized on Bass's history with Cuba. "Joe Biden and Karen Bass Would Invite Castro's Communism into America," read a headline on a Trump campaign news release. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., in a call with reporters, warned that she'd be "the highest-ranking Castro sympathizer in the history of the United States government." Bass went on NBC News's "Meet the Press" on Sunday to show how she'd address those accusations, saying "I don't consider myself a Castro sympathizer." She characterized her position on Cuba as "really no different than the position of the Obama administration." She's also pushed back on the notion that she and Harris should be compared with each other. Bass and Harris spoke privately at a memorial service for the late congressman John Lewis last week. "It was good," Bass said of the conversation during a Friday interview on "The Breakfast Club." "She said 'We ain't doing that.' It was fine." Bass added: "I'm not the anti-Kamala." Biden's decision to eliminate men from the selection process has meant that many of the candidates who would traditionally be considered for this role, such as Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., are off the table. There's been no speculation about Andrew Cuomo, even as the New York governor's star rose during his daily coronavirus briefings. Vanquished contenders such as former Texas congressman Beto O'Rourke, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee or former South Bend, Ind., mayor Pete Buttigieg have also faded from the national conversation as the spotlight shifted to women. And many noted that the competition to become the second-most-powerful person in the country is always going to be fierce. "It's natural that it's competitive," said Sen. Robert Casey, D-Pa. "It's historic regardless of who he chooses, so that probably adds to the intensity of it." For her part, Harris allies have been lobbying the Biden team in public and in private. Racial justice lawyer Ben Crump, who represents the family of George Floyd, wrote an opinion article for CNN supporting her candidacy. Behind the scenes, powerful allies such as Glenda Baskin Glover, the head of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority and president of Tennessee State University, wrote a missive to Biden's vetting team, urging it to select Harris - a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Post. And Harris attempted to use the attacks on her "ambition" as a weapon. "There will be a resistance to your ambition," she said Friday during Black Girls Lead 2020, a virtual conference for young Black women. "There will be people who say to you, 'You are out of your lane,' because they are burdened by only having the capacity to see what has always been instead of what can be. But don't you let that burden you." She also received an assist from Biden campaign manager Jennifer O'Malley Dillion that came soon after Dodd's comment. "Ambitious women make history, change the world, and win," O'Malley Dillion said in a social media post. Biden's timeline for picking a vice president has slipped significantly. He initially said he would make the decision by Aug. 1, then said it would be the first week of August. Now the campaign is signaling that it probably will wait until the second week of August. In an interview, Clyburn said Biden has only told him that he will make up his mind "before the convention." In 2008 and 2012, vice presidential candidates were announced days before the convention. Clyburn also said he believes it would be a "plus" for Biden to select a Black woman, but he added the former vice president does not like being told what to do - and he provided some hint that he cannot endorse one of the candidates. "Of the 12 names out there, with one exception, I know all of them," Clyburn said in an interview with The Post. "There's one person that I don't know." Clyburn declined to say who on the list is unknown to him. (He made a similar comment on MSNBC last week, leading to speculation that he was throwing shade on former national security adviser Susan Rice, but Clyburn balked at that interpretation. "I know Susan Rice very, very well," Clyburn said.) He said he's trying to approach Biden carefully with his advice. "Ultimatums are not good," Clyburn said. "I'm not going to tell the vice president what he must do." He warned that pushing Biden too hard can backfire. "Nobody wants to be forced," Clyburn said. Others are taking a far different approach in the final days. The Rev. William Barber, a leader of the Poor People's Campaign, along with roughly 50 other leading Black clergy members sent an open letter to Biden's campaign Friday, "insisting" that he select a Black woman. "We are writing to caution the Democratic party that it takes Black enthusiasm, the key determinant for turnout, for granted at its own peril" according to the letter, which predicts that a Democratic ticket including a Black woman will result in Black turnout that exceeds Obama's numbers in that community. The decision will automatically elevate whichever woman is selected, either making history by installing her as the first female vice president or giving her a head start for the 2024 campaign should the ticket fail - which is a key reason that the stakes are so high. The Biden campaign has been tight-lipped about its contenders. But that has not stopped allies and friends from speculating. "If I had to bet my life on who would be the candidate, I'd still bet Harris," said Rendell, who is raising money for Biden and frequently talks to his top campaign officials. "She has the least negatives, she's the most polished. She's the person who can take on [Vice President Mike] Pence in a campaign debate." But he also made it clear how volatile the process has been. "The buzz the in the last three weeks - not this week - but the last few weeks, the buzz was Susan Rice," Rendell said Thursday. Her demeanor on television fueled the speculation, he said. "She was smiling on TV, something that she doesn't do all that readily," Rendell said. "She was actually somewhat charming on TV, something that she has not seemed to care about in the past." The interview process for these women has been unusually public. Nearly all of the women in contention have headlined a fundraiser with Biden and appeared during at least one virtual event with his wife, Jill - a strong signal that Biden will closely consult his wife as he makes his decision. The exchanges give each potential vice president some time to develop a rapport with Biden. On Friday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., headlined a grass-roots fundraiser for him, and at one point Biden apologized for going on too long. "No! Don't be sorry," Warren said. "I love everything you had to say." Microsoft said Sunday that it will continue talks to buy short-form video app TikTok after its chief executive spoke with President Donald Trump in a weekend of uncertainty clouding the future of the Chinese-owned app. Microsoft said in a blog post that chief executive Satya Nadella and Trump had spoken and that the company is committed to addressing Trump's concerns about the social media platform. Trump previously indicated that he was not in favor of a deal and said he planned to ban TikTok in the United States. The president had also been considering options over the past few days to force Beijing-based parent company ByteDance to divest in TikTok in the U.S. due to national security concerns, according to people familiar with the talks who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss them publicly. Microsoft confirmed that it will "move quickly" on discussions with ByteDance and said it has given the U.S. government notice of a possible acquisition of the U.S. assets of TikTok. This the first time Microsoft has confirmed that the company is in talks for Microsoft to purchase TikTok operations in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand. "This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections," the tech giant said in its post. TikTok and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. If it goes through, the acquisition could dramatically shift the Big Tech landscape, adding a legacy giant into the scramble for social media users' attention. Microsoft, currently valued at $1.55 trillion, is the third-most-valuable company in the world and is one of the few positioned to take on such a purchase. Microsoft was conspicuously absent from a landmark antitrust hearing on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, when Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google chief executives testified about their companies' power. Buying TikTok would put Microsoft in a powerful position to compete with Facebook and Google's YouTube, which operate dominant social media sites. Microsoft has focused mainly on enterprise software for the past decade, though it does own professional networking site LinkedIn. Its absence from the social media market could also make it more likely that regulators will allow Microsoft to buy TikTok. The purchase would solve an ongoing issue for Republicans and Trump, who has criticized TikTok as a prominent target in his crackdown against China during the novel coronavirus pandemic. The continuing discussions, which Microsoft said it expected to conclude by Sept. 15, hinged largely on buy-in from the Trump administration. Trump told reporters Friday night that he planned to ban the app in the U.S., and had earlier indicated that he would do so in retaliation for what he saw as China's role in spreading the coronavirus pandemic. "As far as TikTok is concerned, we're banning them from the United States," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday. But on Saturday morning, TikTok officials were still waging a public campaign to garner favor with officials and fans, and assured users in a TikTok video that the platform was "here for the long run." Passionate TikTok users took to the app all weekend to express their dismay and encourage their followers to find them on other social media sites. Late last week, Trump was considering two main options to change the ownership of TikTok. One was through a process led by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which began investigating an acquisition by ByteDance of Musical.ly in 2017. The president considered signing an order to divest the company on Friday, according to the people familiar with the talks. Trump also considered using a 2019 executive order to designate TikTok a national security threat and bar American companies and workers from doing business with it, the people said Friday. Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have been critical of TikTok's Chinese ownership, saying it's a threat to national security. Trump's threat to ban it prompted ByteDance to explore a sale, though the company would prefer to retain TikTok if possible, another person familiar with the talks, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak publicly, previously told The Washington Post. Microsoft said it informed the CFIUS of its TikTok discussions. The company also said it might bring in other American investors to take a minority stake in TikTok as part of the deal. Microsoft said on its blog that it would "ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the United States." Ensuring American data privacy has been a main crux of lawmakers' arguments against Chinese ownership of TikTok. TikTok has continually insisted that it already keeps U.S. user data stored in the country and that it does not hand over data to the Chinese government. TikTok, which has been downloaded more than 2 billion times, according to research firm Sensor Tower, lets users make short videos that show them dancing, cooking, pulling pranks or taking political stances. It is especially popular with teenage users, who have used the platform to take aim at Trump. That included earlier this summer, when teens encouraged each other to reserve tickets to Trump's June rally in Tulsa, Okla., hoping to inflate the expected number of attendees even though they never planned to show up. The Trump campaign said it had no impact on the event. The initial problem was a very stupid kind of overwork, Fleisher said in 1996, cautioning young pianists against following his path. I see kids still falling into this, and there are many reasons for it. The perfection that theyre bombarded with from recordings. The kind of sound a Horowitz produced, which is wonderful, but people dont realize that he had his technician work very hard on the piano, so the piano itself helped. So when kids go to an acoustically dead hall, and get a dead piano, and try to make these Horowitz kinds of sounds, they end up brutalizing themselves. All Ohmyhome's in-house agents have emerged as the top 100 agents with over almost 30,000 agents nation-wide, reinforcing Ohmyhome as the wave of the future in PropTech Industry in Singapore SINGAPORE - Media OutReach - 3 August 2020 - Singapore's unique one-top property solution Ohmyhome announced today that its in-house agents emerged amongst the top 1% for HDB flat resale transactions. This comes at a time when the nation has experienced a plunge in real estate transactions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Derived from the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) data, the ranking is based on the number of HDB resale transactions from 1 January 2020 to 8 July 2020. Over this 6-month period, Ohmyhome agents have transacted an average of 16 HDB resale flats per agent. Reinforcing their position at the forefront of the Proptech industry, one of Ohmyhome's top performing agents has also recently tapped on Ohmyhome's virtual viewing tools and closed a five-room HDB flat in Woodlands at a record-breaking price when the 1,291 sq ft unit changed hands for $410,888, within 4 days of its exclusivity contract with Ohmyhome. Despite the dampened market, Ohmyhome's proprietary technology in aggregation of buyers in the market enabled the company to match buyers to the property, fetching a higher selling price for the seller. This tops the previous highest record of $398,000 chalked up by a 1,291 sq ft, five-room flat in the same area, back in June 2017. Rhonda Wong, CEO and Co-founder of Ohmyhome, noted that the factors behind Ohmyhome's success include the strong culture of teamwork, which stems from the company's robust ecosystem and the team's unwavering commitment towards a common goal of seeing Ohmyhome's methods and speed of transacting become the norm globally. "At Ohmyhome, we strive together as a team, supporting one another. When you engage our agent service, you are also engaging the entire company that is dedicated to providing you with a seamless housing journey from transactions to renovations. It has always been part of Ohmyhome's DNA to be there for every step of the housing journey. Our agents being in the top 1% proves that Ohmyhome's strategy of being a tech-led property company, with a focus on 360-degree support for agents, is leading the charge to shape the future of the Proptech industry," Rhonda said. Thousands of Nigerians may lose their jobs amid the coronavirus pandemic as Shoprite plans exit from the country. NigerianEye repo... Thousands of Nigerians may lose their jobs amid the coronavirus pandemic as Shoprite plans exit from the country. NigerianEye reported earlier that Shoprite Holdings Limited, a South African company with hundreds of outlets in Nigeria and workers announced plans to discontinue its operations in Nigeria. The company stated this in its Operational and Voluntary Trading Update released on Monday, adding that the decision was due to the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. This decision has generated reactions from Nigerians on social media who expressed worry over the increase in unemployment rate. Some described the planned exit of Shoprite as a negative scorecard which may discourage international investors from Nigeria. Here are some comments gathered from Twitter: @Dammiedammie35 So Shoprite is leaving Nigeria, thousands of people will be without jobs now, other thousands depending on those peoples incomes, my new neighbor works with Shoprite in Ibadan and he has three kids, his wife is a private school teacher and havent worked in a while, so many people like that. @Sirleodasilva No economic plans, just vibes, copy and paste from other countries. This is what happens when the best minds are not the ones leading your country. The economic ignorance will kill businesses or their policies will do so. I just hope Shoprite jobs will not be all lost. @Olisinho_ The business is not closing down, another consortium will buy it and continue business but probably some jobs might be lost as there would be downsizing to hasten profitability and getting back on the right track. @Morris_Monye Cost of doing business is so high in Nigeria. You provide your own power, your own water etc. Costs just keeps getting higher and higher. The unfortunate thing about this Shoprite debacle is the huge loss to staff, contractors and supplier. An unfortunate domino effect. @Biyitheplug As Shoprite is leaving Nigeria, a lot of Shoprite workers will remain unemployed, most wont get a new job anytime soon, how will a married man feed his family? Only the strong hearted survives in this country to be honest. @BrainJDennia After 15 years Shoprite is leaving Nigeria following the footsteps of Mr Price. Over 3000 direct jobs and over 17000 indirect jobs will be lost. Nigeria is a destiny killer. @Ayobankole The Board of Africas biggest retailer, Shoprite, has announced plans to discontinue operations in Nigeria after 15 years in. While this may open up opportunities for local investors in that sector, it is a bad pointer to what Nigeria has become as an investment destination. @Wiseeyeq Shoprite is leaving Nigeria because Nigerians now have less disposable income to spend at their outlets than before. Poverty is creeping on us all while our Supreme Leader idles and his minions demand we live within our means @More_jnr Power is the major problem, diesel is so expensive and Shops like Shoprite has to run on Generator all through.It is very expensive. Mahatma Gandhi will be the first non-white person on British currency. The Royal Mint Advisory Committee, which recommends themes and designs for coins, has started work on a coin featuring the Indian independence leader. Gandhi was assassinated five months after the end of British rule in August 1947. Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who is of Indian origin, has offered his support to a campaign to help recognise the efforts of black and minority ethnic (BAME) people in shaping modern Britain. Mahatma Gandhi is set to become the first non-white person on British currency, as the Royal Mint Advisory Committee started work on a coin featuring the Indian independence leader In a letter to Zehra Zaidi, a former Tory candidate who leads the We Too Built Britain campaign, Mr Sunak said: 'Black, Asian and other ethnic minority communities have made a profound contribution to the shared history of the UK.' Gandhi will be the first BAME person to feature on British currency, although figures such as Walter Tull the Army's first black officer have featured on commemorative coins, but not legal tender. Miss Zaidi told The Sunday Telegraph: 'We welcome the Chancellor's support.' British Finance Minister Rishi Sunak wrote to the Royal Mint Advisory Committee (RMAC), asking them to pursue recognition of individuals from BAME communities on the UK's coinage, the UK Treasury said. A statement from the UK Treasury, emailed late on Saturday, said: 'RMAC is currently considering a coin to commemorate Gandhi.' The RMAC is an independent committee made up of experts who recommend themes and designs for coins to Britain's finance minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Rishi Sunak, who is of Indian origin, has offered his support to a campaign to help recognise the efforts of black and minority ethnic (BAME) people in shaping modern Britain. Gandhi, who was born in 1869, advocated for non-violence throughout his life and played a key role in India's struggle for independence. His birthday on October 2 is observed as the International Day of Non-Violence. Often referred to as India's 'father of the nation', he was assassinated by a Hindu radical on January 30, 1948, just a few months after he led India to freedom from British rule. Many organisations have taken initiatives to make investments to help the Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities and to support racial diversity. Some British institutions begun re-examining their past after being triggered by the death of a black man, George Floyd, in the United States in May. A Minneapolis police officer knelt on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes and his death has led to global protests against racism, colonialism and police brutality. KALAMAZOO, MI -- Voters filing absentee ballots and headline to the polls Tuesday, Aug. 4, will decide a number of primary contests and tax proposals in Kalamazoo County and across the state. Absentee and in-person votes will be tallied Tuesday in several contested primary races in Kalamazoo County, including for the 60th District state House seat, the 6th District in the U.S. House of Representatives, sheriff, county clerk and for six of the 11 county Board of Commissioners districts. Related: A guide to Kalamazoo-area candidates, tax proposals on Aug. 4 primary ballots Many voters have chosen to vote absentee for this election, amid the coronavirus pandemic. County clerks have encouraged voting absentee rather than in-person to slow the spread of COVID-19, though voters still can go cast a ballot at designated polling locations on Tuesday. Residents can also still obtain ballots or register to vote, through Election Day, by visiting their city or township clerks office. Ahead of Tuesdays primary election, here are seven key races to watch in Kalamazoo County: 60th District Representative in State Legislature Kalamazoo County Commissioners Stephanie Moore, left, and Julie Rogers, right, are Democrats seeking their party's nomination for the District 60 state House seat in the upcoming Aug. 4 primary election. (Photos provided by candidates) Two current members of the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners are running for the Democratic nomination for the District 60 seat in the Michigan House of Representatives. Commissioners Julie Rogers and Stephanie Moore will face off on Aug 4. The candidate who wins the primary will face off against the lone Republican candidate Gary Mitchell in Novembers general election. Related: 2 Kalamazoo County commissioners compete for Democratic nomination in state House race Rogers, 44, is a former board chairperson and is serving her fourth term on the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners. She serves as the vice president for the National Association of Counties (NACo) Health Steering Committee and sits on the Michigan Assoc. of Counties Board of Directors. She works as a physical therapist at Ascension Borgess. Moore, 48, is a former chairperson of the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners, and has served on that board for seven years. Prior to the county board, Moore served on the Kalamazoo City Commission for eight years. Rogers resigned as the boards chairperson on July 7. The newly elected board leadership said Rogers was asked to leave because of past behavior. Rogers denies the claim, calling the information released by fellow commissioners a politically motivated smear campaign. The 60th District seat, which is currently held by state Rep. Jon Hoadley, D-Kalamazoo, includes all of the city of Kalamazoo as well as portions of the city of Portage and Kalamazoo Township. 6th District U.S. Representative Republican primary Republicans Elena Oelke and Fred Upton will be on the Aug. 4 ballot for the 6th congressional district. In the Republican primary, U.S. Rep. Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, will face challenger Elena Oelke in the race for Michigans 6th District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Related: Businesswoman will challenge U.S. Rep. Fred Upton in Republican primary for Michigans 6th District Oelke is a self-employed real estate agent. According to her website, Oelke, 49, of St. Joseph, grew up in the Soviet Union and became an American citizen in 1998. As for the issues, Oelke cites several positions including being pro Second Amendment, opposed to red flag gun laws, pro education with more individual choices, against illegal immigration with incentives and supportive of border security. Upton, 67, R-St. Joseph, is running for an 18th consecutive term. He was first elected in 1986. Prior to his election to Congress, Upton worked for President Ronald Reagan in the Office of Management and Budget. According to his campaign website, Uptons focus remains on passing important legislation to encourage job creation, protect taxpayers, help our community and enhance the quality of life for everyone in Southwest Michigan and throughout our country. Michigans 6th congressional district encompasses Berrien, Cass, Kalamazoo, St. Joseph and Van Buren counties, plus most of Allegan County. 6th District U.S. Representative Democratic primary State Rep. Jon Hoadley and science teacher Jen Richardson will face off in the Democratic primary for the U.S. House District 6 seat on Aug. 4. On the other side of the aisle, state Rep. Jon Hoadley, D-Kalamazoo, and Jen Richardson, a research director and a science teacher at the Kalamazoo Area Math and Science Center, will face off for the Democratic nomination in the 6th District race. Related: Kalamazoo teacher and state lawmaker face off in U.S. District 6 Democratic primary Hoadley, first elected to represent the 60th state House district in 2014, is currently serving his third and final term in the Michigan House of Representatives. He serves as minority vice chair of the House Appropriations Committee, and is also a member of the National LGBTQ Task Force, National Caucus of Environmental Legislators, the American State Legislators for Gun Violence Prevention. Richardson is the research director and a science teacher at the Kalamazoo Area Math and Science Center. She has a bachelors degree in biology from Western Illinois University and a masters in education from California Coast University. The winner of the contest between the two Democrats on Tuesday will go on to face the winner of the Republican primary in the Nov. 3 general election. The congressional seat is currently held by U.S. Rep. Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, who is running for reelection and faces a challenge from fellow Republican Elena Oelke. Kalamazoo County 911 Proposal: Voters in Kalamazoo County will consider a countywide tax for the purpose of funding a central public safety communication system and 9-1-1 service system. Related: New 911 millage would fund Kalamazoo County consolidated dispatch through 2029 The tax, not to exceed 0.65 mills, or $0.65 on each $1,000 of taxable value, would be distributed to the Kalamazoo County Consolidated Dispatch Authority for countywide 911 facilities, functions and services as provided in the Kalamazoo County Emergency 911 Service System Plan. If approved, the millage would operate for 10 years and raise an estimated $6,111,513 in the first year. After more than three decades of planning, the consolidated dispatch authority went live in 2018, bringing together the City of Kalamazoo, the City of Portage, the County of Kalamazoo, the Charter Township of Kalamazoo and Western Michigan University. Representatives from each of the five entities signed an initial funding amendment in December 2017 to establish a five-year funding solution, totaling $21.5 million to be paid over a period from 2018 to 2023. There is no long-term funding solution currently in place, and if the millage proposal is approved by voters, Executive Director Jeff Troyer said it would replace the current short-term agreement effective immediately. The authority also receives additional funding by way of a 42-cent surcharge on phone bills. In addition to generally funding the operation, maintenance and expansion of the newly consolidated dispatch authority, Troyer said the tax would also provide funding to bring Portage Public Safetys police department onto the same centralized system. The department is the lone law enforcement agency in the county not currently on the consolidated system, the director told MLive. Kalamazoo County Sheriff: Kalamazoo County Sheriff's candidates Shannon Bagley, left, and Thomas Swafford, right, are set to square off in the Aug. 4 Republican primary election. (Courtesy photos) Looking to lead the countys sheriffs office are two Republicans and incumbent Sheriff Richard Fuller, a Democrat running for reelection in November. Republicans Thomas Swafford and Shannon Bagley will go head-to-head in August, seeking the GOP nomination for the office of Kalamazoo County sheriff. Related: Current deputy, former Kalamazoo police captain square off in GOP sheriff primary Bagley is a retired Kalamazoo Public Safety captain, and Swafford is a Kalamazoo County Sheriffs deputy. Swafford ran unsuccessfully as a Democrat in 2016, losing to Fuller in the primary. The incumbent secured 76% of the vote in that election. Bagley, 51, works as a police officer at Kalamazoo Valley Community College, according to biographical information submitted to the Vote411 voter guide. He has a bachelors degree in organization and resource management from Spring Arbor University, as well as an associates degree in criminal justice from KVCC. Swafford, 57, is a 10-year veteran deputy sheriff in Kalamazoo County, is a graduate of the Kirtland Regional Police Academy and is certified as a corrections officer, according to his submitted bio. Swaffords bio also said he has served as a volunteer reserve officer for local police agency. Fuller, who was first elected sheriff in Kalamazoo County in 2008, is running unopposed in Augusts Democratic primary. County Clerk / Register of Deeds Pictured (l-r) are Doreen Gardner, Sarah Joshi and Meredith Place. Doreen Gardner, Sarah O. Joshi and Meredith Place are all seeking the Democratic nomination for Kalamazoo County Clerk and Register of Deeds. The winner of the partys nomination after Tuesdays primary will go on to face lone Republican candidate Mona Lisa Watson in the November general election. Related: Three Democrats competing for Kalamazoo County Clerk and Register of Deeds nomination Doreen Gardner is a communication coordinator. She attended Moody Bible Institute, Cornerstone University and International Theological Institute. She lists 25 years of management at AT&T among her qualifications and experience for the office. Sarah O. Joshi is currently the deputy county clerk and elections specialist. For education, she lists a masters degree from Western Michigan University and a bachelors in public relations and journalism, also from Western Michigan University. She said she has proven skills in planning, management, and performance improvement, and a strong work ethic. Meredith Place is currently serving as commissioner representing the countys District 11, and works as a contract administrator at the Clerical Technical Union at Michigan State University. Place said she has a bachelors degree from the University of Iowa and has experience in local government and being accountable to voters. Current Kalamazoo County Clerk Tim Snow previously announced his retirement when his current term expires, explaining he would not seek reelection in 2020. Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners: The seventh race to watch in Kalamazoo County Tuesday will actually be six separate races. Six of the 11 seats on the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners have contested primaries on August ballots. The winners of each primary will advance and face any remaining opposition in Novembers upcoming general election. Tami Rey Tami Rey and Andrew D. Sellin are vying for the Democratic nomination to represent District 1. Related: Two Democrats running for District 1 seat on Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners The seat is currently occupied by Commissioner Stephanie Moore, who is running for state House rather than seeking reelection. No Republican candidate filed to run for the seat. Tami Rey serves as chairperson of the city of Kalamazoo Community Development Act Advisory Committee and recently worked as a property manager at Herman & Kittle, where she was a member of the public safety review and appeals board. Rey is a member of the ISAAC gun violence task force and has worked as a NAACP branch secretary. Sellin has worked as a machine operator at ARVCO Container Corporation since 2014. The countys 1st District includes a portion of the city of Kalamazoo as well as an eastern portion of Kalamazoo Township. Democrats Monteze Morales and Zac Bauer are campaigning for the District 2 seat on the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners. Democrats Monteze Morales and Zac Bauer are running for the District 2 Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners seat. Related: Kalamazoo Promise expert challenges newly appointed county commissioner for District 2 seat In October 2019, both Bauer and Morales interviewed for the open seat after a commissioner stepped down due to a move out of the district. Morales received one vote from the board. Bauer was appointed with six votes. No Republican candidate filed to run for the seat. Morales, 43, has worked as an educator for 20 years including her current position as program manager of Kalamazoo Promise Services at Kalamazoo Valley Community College. Bauer, 39, is a Navy veteran. He currently works as program officer focusing on affordable housing and economic development through nonprofit Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC). Previously, he worked as a law clerk for Zoetis Inc., a community investment manager of the Kalamazoo Community Foundation and was executive director of the Kalamazoo Gay Lesbian Resource Center. District 2 encompasses Milwood, Edison, Southside and some of the Vine neighborhoods of Kalamazoo. Democrats Jen Strebs and Mike Seals are campaigning for the District 4 seat on the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners. Democrats Jen Strebs and Mike Seals are campaigning for the District 4 seat on the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners. Related: Kalamazoo Township trustee challenges longstanding county commissioner for District 4 board seat Both Democrats will be on the Aug. 4 ballot, and primary voters will determine whether the incumbent or challenger is nominated to face Republican Andrew Smith in Novembers general election. Strebs, 43, has served on the townships board for three years. She also serves on the, regional water and wastewater commission and on the board of directors for Public Media Network. Previously, she served on the election commission in Kalamazoo Township. Strebs has also served in Kalamazoo County roles, on the ID advisory board and health equity task force. Seals, 59, has held the District 4 seat for 10 years, making him the longest serving commissioner currently on the board. He was recently appointed to a leadership role, as Vice Chairperson. He is the first Black man to hold that position. Seals is a retired lineman for Consumers Energy. For more about his experience and campaign, visit his Facebook page. Pictured are Veronica McKissack (left) and Chris Pomeroy (right) Democrats Veronica McKissack and Chris Pomeroy are facing off in the race for seat representing District 5 on the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners. Related: Social worker, union leader face off in Kalamazoo County Democratic primary for District 5 The winner of the upcoming Aug. 4 party primary will go on to face the lone Republican candidate for the seat, Valarie Cunningham, in Novembers general election. The seat is currently held by Commissioner Julie Rogers, who is running for the Democratic nomination in the District 60 state House race against fellow Commissioner Stephanie Moore. McKissack, 43, works as a clinical social worker at the Kalamazoo Psychiatric Hospital. She holds a bachelors degree in psychology and a masters degree in social work from Western Michigan University. Pomeroy, 48, is a labor organizer who currently serves as the director of organizing for Operating Engineers 324 union. Republicans Vince Carahaly and Jeff Heppler are vying for the District 6 seat on the Kalamazoo County board of commissioners. Vince Carahaly and Jeff Heppler are looking to secure the District 6 on the Kalamazoo County Commission for the Republican Party. Related: Business owner, police chief battle in Republican primary for Kalamazoo County Commission When Republican Ron Kendall resigned last August from the commission, Democrat Jen Aniano was appointed to serve out his term. Aniano is running unopposed for the Democratic Party nomination. The Republican nominee will face Aniano in November. Vince Carahaly founded The Alcott Center for Cognitive Enhancement and Jeff Heppler is the Augusta police chief and village manager. Heppler, 67, previously held the District 6 seat for 14 years until he left in 2016 to run for Kalamazoo County Sheriff. He has been the police chief for the Village of Augusta for 38 years and village manager for six years. He also cites being a fireman for 38 years and business owner for 32 years. He previously worked as the Galesburg Police Chief but was fired in 2017. It was a 4-3 vote and the reason cited was that he wasnt responsive to city needs. He sued, saying the firing was over alleged age and weight discrimination but the case was dismissed. Carahaly, 52, provides services to children with various learning disabilities and disorders at The Alcott Center for Cognitive Enhancement that he founded. He is currently chair of the four-county regional planning council and the vice-chair of the county planning commission. He was a finalist for the District 6 appointment in 2019. He shared that he has extensive private, public, and non-profit experience in many capacities. The countys 6th District commissioner is elected by and represents residents of Cooper, Richland and Ross townships. Republicans Dale Shugars, left, and Brian Kovacik, right, are squaring off in the Aug. 4 primary. The two are running for the GOP nomination for the District 9 seat on the Kalamazoo County Commission. (Courtesy photos) Brian Kovacik and Dale Shugars are set to square off for the GOP nomination in the race to represent District 9 on the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners. Related: Republicans square off for fourth time in Kalamazoo County board race The winner of the Aug. 4 Republican primary will face Democrat Keshia Dickason as all three look to fill the seat being vacated by Democrat Christine Morse, who is instead running for state House. Dickason is running unopposed in the Democratic primary. Shugars has defeated Kovacik in all three prior contests between the two. He went on to win the general election in 2014 and 2016, but lost to Morse in a closely contested race in 2018 after picking up 77% of the vote in the Republican primary. In addition to serving the District 9 county commissioner from 2014-2018, Shugars, 67, was a state senator for eight years, served in the state house for four years and sat on the Portage City Council for seven years. He is a graduate of Western Michigan University, where he majored in accountancy and policy. A registered CPA, he is self-employed and, according to his bio, performs management and consulting services. Kovacik, 55, is a sales consultant who works for a packaging supplies distributor. He studied secondary education at Kalamazoo Valley Community College and Western Michigan University. He has no political experience. The 9th District commissioner is elected by and represents residents of Texas Township as well as a southeast section of Oshtemo Township. Also on MLive: Review Grand Rapids area candidates, tax proposals on the Aug. 4 primary election ballot Learn about candidates, millages on Muskegon County primary ballot Tuesday Aug 3 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. The Times - Britain should prepare its courts for a flood of bankruptcies in the next few months and needs to liberalise its insolvency system to prevent viable businesses from going bust, senior American economist and policymaker Randall Kroszner has warned. https://bit.ly/3k7HdAW - The Bank of England has been warned against a big increase to its quantitative easing scheme by Lord King, the governor who started its money-printing programme more than a decade ago. https://bit.ly/2XjhZpA The Guardian - Northern Ireland is to be left out of the UK's green car emission restrictions from 1 January, resulting in "Great Britain-only" regulations for carmakers. https://bit.ly/2XhjlkI - Scottish Power, one of Britain's biggest wind power developers, has called on the government to scrap the limit on its next offshore wind subsidy auction to help power a green economic recovery, claiming it will not lead to a rise in energy bills. https://bit.ly/31d3IMd The Telegraph - British Airways expects the 183-million-pound ($239.75 million) fine for breaching data rules to be written down by almost 90 percent. https://bit.ly/3fmux5T - Butternut Box, an upmarket dog food company backed by the former boss of Sky Bet, is creating up to 500 new jobs at a new factory near Doncaster in England. https://bit.ly/3jYJK0x Sky News - The British government is preparing to name Keith Skeoch, the departing boss of Standard Life Aberdeen, as interim chair of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) following the sudden departure of Simon Dingemans in May. https://bit.ly/31b0Nns ($1 = 0.7633 pounds) (Compiled by Bengaluru newsroom) Bhopal/Jabalpur: Five police personnel, including an in-charge of a police station, was suspended on Monday after a murder accused allegedly died by suicide in the police custody in Madhya Pradeshs Narsinghpur district. According to police, the accused Narayan Singh (21), a resident of Chawarpatha village of the district, had attempted suicide at Bamori police outpost on Saturday. He was referred to Jabalpur medical college, where he died the following day. Suatala police station in-charge Ashok Dahiya, Barman police outpost in-charge OP Sharma, assistant sub-inspector (ASI) GS Rajput, constable Abhishek Pasi and woman constable Ruchi Shukla have been suspended on charges of dereliction of their duties, said Ajay Singh, superintendent of police (SP), Narsinghpur district. The SP said, A resident of Bandi Peethera village of the district, Parmal Ladiya (28), was killed allegedly by his brother-in-law Amar Singh, a resident of Chawarpatha village along with his wife Uma and son Narayan on July 29. On the complaint of the murder victims family, Amar, Uma, and Narayan were arrested by the police on Saturday. Amar has confessed to the crime. Amar, Uma, and Narayan were in police custody at Bamori outpost, when Narayan tried to kill himself, the SP said. Police have registered a first information report (FIR) on the suicide and a magisterial inquiry has been ordered in the matter of custodial death of the accused, the SP added. Kaosara A little girl with blue eyes has allegedly been rejected by her father because of her eye colour, it has been claimed. Alabi Rukayat Oyindamola shared the girls story on Facebook. She explained that she met the girls family when she travelled to Ilorin for the Eid break. She further claimed that the father rejected the girl and her late sister because of their blue eyes. Sharing photos of the girl, she wrote: Hello! I traveled to ilorin this Eid period and I saw this small girl she lives around my house(ilorin). Her name is Kaosara she is 8years of age, she is an indigen, she also has a junior sister Hassanat (kehinde). her taiwo is late due to lack of proper care and and rejection from the father because she has special qualities(her blue eyes). Her mothers name is Risiqot. Scores of civil society groups in Cambodia on Monday condemned the arrest of union leader Rong Chhun, demanding that the government release him and drop charges of incitement he faces over his criticism of the countrys handling of a border dispute with Vietnam. Rong Chhun was officially charged with incitement to commit a felony or cause social unrest under Article 495 of Cambodias Penal Code and jailed at Prey Sar Prison in Phnom Penh Saturday, a day after his arrest for claiming the government has allowed Vietnam to encroach on farmland along their shared border. His arrest and formal charging prompted protests over the weekend and again on Monday in front of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, where he faces two years in prison if convicted. The charge is a clear violation of the unionists right to freedom of expression, the 141 groups said in a joint statement, noting that hours before his arrest he had given an interview with RFAs Khmer Service denying that he had been spreading false information about alleged land loss along the border a week earlier. Rong Chhun, the outspoken president of the Cambodian Confederation of Unions (CCU) and a former member of the countrys National Election Committee, has been arrested twice beforeonce in October 2005 over comments he made about a border agreement with Vietnam, and again in January 2014 while calling for the release of demonstrators detained during protests over the 2013 national election. A member of the Cambodia Watchdog Council (CWC)an umbrella NGO of unions representing teachers, workers, farmers, and studentsRong Chhun last week had joined a group of more than 200 garment workers who gathered to submit a petition outside the home of Prime Minister Hun Sen to ask for his help following their factorys closure due to the coronavirus pandemic. After more than a decade of harassment by authorities, this latest arrest of a respected union leader is a direct threat to every Cambodian who exercises their constitutional right to freely express their beliefs without having to fear a midnight visit by police and years lost in prison, the groups said Monday. We call on the government and the court to uphold their obligations to guarantee freedom of expression under the constitution and international law and immediately drop all charges and release Rong Chhun. On July 20, Rong Chhun had visited Trapeang Phlong commune, in Tbong Khmum provinces Ponhea Kraek district, where Cambodians claimed recently placed border posts had caused them to lose land to neighboring Vietnam. The following day, he issued a statement on behalf of the Cambodia Watchdog Council in which he cited irregularities with the placement of border posts 114 to 119 that resulted in the loss of hundreds of hectares (one hectare = 2.5 acres) of ancestral land belonging to area farmers. On Friday, Cambodias official Cambodia Border Committee rejected Rong Chhuns claims that any farmers had lost land, saying his organization had disseminated fake news based on groundless accusations. Other calls for release The call to release Rong Chhun was joined on Monday by the Belgium-based International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and ITUC Asia-Pacific, whose Cambodian council is chaired by the union leader. The groups noted that his arrest took place against the background of his recent trade union activities and criticism of the governments response to the coronavirus. In one case, they said, Rong Chhun had recently demanded that the government release four members of the Cambodian Independent Teachers Association (CITA)which he formerly ledwho were detained for making comments on public health issues and teaching online during outbreak-related school closures. Rong Chhun as well as the trade unionists detained and sentenced for exercising their right to free expression must be released, the groups said in a statement. The ITUC and ITUC-AP urge the government of Cambodia to immediately drop all charges against Rong Chhun and the detained trade unionists, and to commit to respect fundamental rights and freedoms under the international human rights treaties. The banned opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) also condemned the arrest in an appeal for international pressure to secure Rong Chhuns unconditional and immediate release. Rong Chhun has not committed any crime, but has done what a labor and human rights leader should domeet the concerned farmers on their lands, talk about their grievances and stand up loudly for their rights based on the provided evidences, the party said in a statement. Hun Sens regime continues to use the law as a tool of absolute oppression of those who defend the rights of the citizens, it added. Coordinated international action is needed and those who oppress the Cambodian citizens and their rights should not go unpunished. Phil Robertson, Human Rights Watchs deputy Asia director, said the government wanted to find a way to legitimize arresting Rong Chhun, particularly after he wrote to Hun Sen last month calling on the government to proactively address issues that the European Union has said prompted it to end a preferential trade scheme with Cambodia. The EU in mid-February announced plans to suspend tariff-free access to its market under the Everything But Arms (EBA) scheme for around one-fifth of Cambodias exports, citing rollbacks on democracy and human rightsa move that would reinstate tariffs on garments and footwear beginning Aug. 12, unless it is overturned by the blocs governments or its parliament. Hun Sen has said that EU demands to maintain the EBA are unreasonable and an encroachment on Cambodias internal affairs. They were waiting, Im sure, for him to do something that then would justify them to arrest him, and its hard for them to arrest somebody for an EBA statement because, of course, they know that the European Union would get very angry, Robertson told RFA. So, I think they probably waited until he spoke about something else, and in this case the border issue is the thing he spoke about. I think their actions against him are not just about the border issue, but about all the things that Rong Chhun has been saying. Trust the government But ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP) spokesperson Sok Eysan defended Rong Chhuns arrest Monday and threatened to suppress any protests that lead to social unrest. Rong Chhun wants to be hero and now he has become onefor the unlawful insurgents, he said, referring to the CNRP. This is a political game they are creating. Even while the situation in Cambodia is good, he did something unlawful to get himself arrested to show foreigners that the Cambodian government will arrest people [and call it a human rights violation]. Sok Eysan rejected any claim that the government is afraid of Rong Chhun leading a demonstration as the EBA is withdrawn. Speaking to RFA on Monday, Kuy Pisey, vice president of the Cambodia Border Committee, urged the public to trust the government on its border demarcation work. Some dissenting people refuse to understand the issue, she said. We are trying to explain, like we did in response to Rong Chhuns statement, that our territory is not being lost [to Vietnam]. The CWC says that farmers are losing land because Cambodia is demarcating the border based on a 1985 treaty from Vietnams 1979-89 occupation of the country following its ouster of the Khmer Rouge regime. Unresolved border issues between Cambodia and Vietnam, former French colonies from the 1860s to 1954, have sparked incidents in the past, with the construction by Vietnam of military posts in contested areas quickly challenged by Cambodian authorities in Phnom Penh. A joint communique signed by Cambodia and Vietnam in 1995 stipulates that neither side can make any changes to border markers or allow cross-border cultivation or settlement pending the resolution of outstanding border issues. Reported by RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Sok Ry Sum. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. Childhood for me was busy. My parents, who immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong, rarely took time off work and spent their weekends chauffeuring my brother and me to our lessons. It was all they knew. In Asias cutthroat cities, many parents feel they have no choice but to spend a huge amount of their salaries to help their offspring stand out from the studious masses. We never went camping, or fishing, or whatever other Canadian families did for leisure. Our Saturday mornings consisted of three hours of Cantonese school. If one of us got a perfect score on our vocabulary test, we would get McDonalds for lunch as a treat. After that, wed head straight to two hours of piano lessons in a neighbouring Vancouver suburb. On Sunday mornings, we attended art class followed by tutoring in music theory, composition or music history. All those lessons were supposed to stimulate our growing brains. I always felt connected to Hong Kong as my birthplace and embraced its stereotypical work ethic. I cried when my brother brought home a report card that contained mostly Bs and a C. I didnt see anything wrong with being a so-called model minority. Sometimes strangers would say rude or mocking things to us, but racism was something to make peace with. Life would inevitably get better, after all, if we just kept working hard and didnt complain. Besides, I volunteered every week and started clubs at my school devoted to equality and human rights issues. That was part of the whole package of becoming an exemplary world citizen, I thought. It wouldnt be long before there was an ethnic minority prime minister, if we all just kept working hard! I was taught to brush off racism as a kind of flattery that it stemmed from people being jealous of Asians high rate of university admission and higher-than-average salary level in North America. Last year, I was working downtown and people would give me dirty looks or yell slurs at me on the street. Online, I was regularly getting a litany of abuse. My dad tried to comfort me by saying it was because I looked like an executive with my new job. It was a sign of success. This wishful thinking made sense to me, but now I see why its illogical in the face of hate crimes happening around the world against people of Asian appearance. In Vancouver, a man pushed a 92-year-old man with dementia to the ground outside a convenience store while yelling racist insults about COVID-19. In another incident, someone punched a woman of Asian descent near a bus stop downtown and walked away. Dakota Holmes, an Indigenous woman, was punched in the face and told to go back to Asia while she was walking her dog. A recent Angus Reid Institute poll found that almost 30 per cent of Chinese Canadians surveyed said they had been physically attacked since the COVID-19 crisis began, while 43 per cent said theyve been threatened or intimidated. Its a shock to the system for some of us a reminder that racism cant be outworked, outhustled, or out-run. Rightly so, many people are speaking up to say that Asian communities shouldnt stop at finally acknowledging that racism against Asians is a serious problem. Around the world, people are also organizing under the Asians for Black Lives banner. When police officer Derek Chauvin killed George Floyd, three other officers were present, including Tou Thao. Thaos participation in Floyds death has rightfully sparked calls for Asian communities to better address the ways in which anti-Blackness is embedded into many Asian cultures and societies. Oftentimes, this doesnt come in the form of overt acts of hate, but in our resounding silence on systemic issues affecting other minorities that cannot be solved by trying to play within the rules of white supremacy. Steven Zhou argued in an op-ed piece in the Star last week that a sense of superiority based on work ethic is prevalent among Chinese Canadians, and can lead to prejudice. In recent public discussions in Canada, weve mostly heard from Asian millennials referring to racism among our elders, and pledging to speak with our elders about their derision of people with darker skin. Although our aunties and uncles are more likely to say racist things out loud, younger people surely have biases, too. What can an Asian Canadian who has internalized the model minority myth do? Personally, I feel like Ive dug myself into a hole of work and volunteer commitments. My instinct is to sign up for more work on anti-Blackness and anti-Indigenous topics. As co-chair of a group that promotes the contributions of women and people of colour on China studies, I put together a resources list for China expert communities to fight anti-Black racism, and have been going through all the readings. Perhaps, part of the solution is to stop the endless activity. Im lucky to have multiple sources of income during the pandemic, but exhaustion skews judgement. Instead of writing this essay in a few hours, as I normally would, I asked my editor for more time to reflect on my complicity in social injustices. Its been long overdue. My biases are rooted in not only racism, but also classism and able-ism, where despite having a disability myself (ADHD), Ive assumed that most people in Canada have similar access to education and can overcome their challenges to pursue conventional success. When we speak of racism, its easy to think its a problem that other people have. The uncomfortable truth is that we all have unconscious biases that can grow into hate if we dont confront them within ourselves. The unraveling of the retail industry continues amid the pandemic as another national clothing retailer files for bankruptcy and plans to shutter more stores, including two in the Charleston area. The parent company of suit chains Jos. A. Bank and Men's Wearhouse filed to reorganize the business over the weekend, the latest in a string of merchants looking to resize their businesses as shopping habits shift. California-based Tailored Brands plans to shutter up to 500 stores and lay off 20 percent of its workers to reduce its debt load by about $630 million as the need for business attire tumbles in the new work-from-home environment. The company's Jos. A. Bank store on King Street in Charleston will go dark Wednesday, and the location in Azalea Station in Summerville is expected to close its doors Aug. 22. The Jos. A. Bank store in Mount Pleasant Towne Centre is expected to remain open. Tailored Brands also operates three Men's Wearhouse locations, at Mount Pleasant Towne Centre, Northwoods Mall in North Charleston and Outback Plaza in West Ashley. They are expected to remain open as well. The company, which also owns smaller brands Moores Clothing for Men and K&G Fashion Superstore, said overall sales were good during the first two months of the year, but the negative effects of the coronavirus on shopping patterns were too much to overcome. "Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its significant impact on our business, further actions are needed to help us strengthen our financial position so we can navigate our current realities," CEO Dinesh Lathi said. "It is always difficult to eliminate jobs and say farewell to our friends and colleagues," Lathi said. "While (the) announcement is a difficult one, we are confident these are the right next steps to protect our business and position us to more effectively compete in todays environment." Tailored Brands joins a growing list of retailers mostly clothing chains that have filed for protection in recent weeks, including Brooks Brothers, Neiman Marcus, J.C. Penney, J.Crew, Stage Stores and Ascena Group, the parent company of Ann Taylor, Loft and other brands. Ascena announced in July it will close 20 stores in South Carolina. They include 10 Justice stores, including one at Tanger Outlets in North Charleston; three Lane Bryant locations, including one at Wando Crossing Shopping Center in Mount Pleasant; and five Catherines shops, including one at Northwoods Marketplace Shopping Center on Rivers Avenue in North Charleston. The company, which could announce more closures if its unable to secure new leasing arrangements, also will close Ann Taylor Factory and Loft Outlet stores in Gaffney. The Loft store on King Street closed in mid-July. I know that publications run on advertisements, and the Times Union needs to sell space in order to bring news to the people. I get that. I also know that the Times Union can't possibly agree with every ad it prints, but some ads cross the line. As a reputable paper, the Times Union should take some responsibility for the accuracy of the ads printed. The Jewish Voice for Peaces recent ad distorted reality and is unlikely to bring peace. The photo in the ad seems to me to be a pathetic attempt to use (justified) public outrage over George Floyds murder in the United States to promote the Palestinian agenda of violence against Israel. The photo is from five years ago, and the child in the photo had, according to Israeli authorities, just attacked Israeli soldiers. In fact, his family was there, protesting as well. The photo seems like an Israeli soldier is just picking on an innocent Palestinian child, but that is far from the case. If Palestinians want the Israelis to leave their children alone, why don't they stop using their children as weapons? Esty Mendelowitz Our weekly roundup of books that should be on your radar. We love stories, and even in the age of Netflix-and-chill, there's nothing like a good book that promises a couple of hours of absorption whether curled up in bed, in your favourite coffeehouse, or that long (and tiresome) commute to work. Every week, we'll have a succinct pick of books, across diverse genres, that have been newly made available for your reading pleasure. Get them wherever you get your books the friendly neighbourhood bookseller, e-retail website, chain store and in whatever form you prefer. Happy reading! For more of our weekly book recommendations, click here. *** FICTION Mandu: The Romance of Roopmati and Baz Bahadur By Malathi Ramachandran Niyogi Books India | Rs 395 | 260 pages Author Malathi Ramachandrans novel, set in 16th century India, is inspired by the legend of the young sultan Baz Bahadur and the peasant girl Roopmati, who come together because of their love for classical music. Each night in the city of Mandu they sing together, and soon fall in love. But in Agra, Akbar is planning to capture Mandu. Will Baz be able to protect his capital, and the woman he loves? Read more about the book here. The Endgame By S Hussain Zaidi HarperCollins India | Rs 299 | 240 pages Crime reporter and author S Hussain Zaidis novel follows Shahwas Ali Mirza and Vikrant Singh. Three years ago, they had foiled a terrorist attempt to leak State secrets from a naval server in Lakshadweep. Now, BSF Special Director General Somesh Kumar, who they were tasked with protecting, is murdered. As they follow leads and dig deeper into the tangle, the whole team from Lakshadweep soon finds itself together for a new mission. Read more about the book here. The Family Saga: A Novel Set in The Time of Partition By Narendra Luther Niyogi Books India | Rs 350 | 236 pages Author and former civil servant Narendra Luthers novel follows Ram Lal Khanna, who has built up a lucrative business. One evening, their mansion is torched and daughter killed. Soon after, driven across the border, they start rebuilding their life. The novel traces the story of the family, from Lahore to Delhi and from Amritsar to Berkeley. Read more about the book here. MEMOIRS and BIOGRAPHIES Song of India By Ruskin Bond Penguin Random House India | Rs 299 | 128 pages Author Ruskin Bond details one year of his life in Song of India. As a 16-year-old, he is living with his stepfather and mother in Dehradun. Struggling to begin writing, he tries to journey to England. But as he prepares, the idea of saying goodbye to India looms large. From the longing for familiarity he felt to receiving his first money order and publishing his stories, Bond recalls his year as a teenager. Read more about the book here. Partap Singh Kairon: A Visionary By Gurinder Kairon, M Rajivlochan, Meeta Rajivlochan Rupa Publications | Rs 595 | 312 pages Partap Singh Kairons son Gurinder Kairon, IAS officer Meeta Rajivlochan and Panjab University professor M Rajivlochan come together to tell the story of the former Chief Minister of Punjab province. Sardar Partap Singh Kairon led Punjab following the Partition, steering it away from confusion and controlling divisive forces, and successfully getting people to work together. A leader with vision, the book also discusses his eventual assassination. Read more about the book here. NON-FICTION Intimations: Six Essays By Zadie Smith Penguin Random House | Rs 299 | 112 pages Author Zadie Smiths collection of essays, written during the early months of lockdown, explore ideas and questions prompted by this unprecedented situation. From What does it mean to submit to a new reality or to resist it? and How do we compare relative sufferings? to What is the ratio of contempt to compassion in a crisis? to When an unfamiliar world arrives, what does it reveal about the world that came before it?. Read more about the book here. Sway: Unravelling Unconscious Bias By Pragya Agarwal Bloomsbury | Rs 440 | 288 pages Behavioural and data scientist Dr Pragya Agarwals book discusses how ones unintentional biases affect the way we communicate and perceive the world. With research, statistics, and stories, it shows the effect of unconscious biases on day-to-day life. The book also discusses scientific theories about the same, and answers questions like Do our roots for prejudice lie in our evolutionary past? and What happens in our brains when we are biased?, among others. Read more about the book here. BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 3 Trend: Within a week after the call of the head of state, more than 50,000 young people turned to Azerbaijans State Service for Mobilization and Conscription, declaring their readiness to defend their homeland, MP of Azerbaijan Arzu Naghiyev told national Real TV channel, Trend reports. Naghiyev noted that this is an important indicator of the unity of the army and the people. Despite the fact that the Azerbaijani army is fully equipped and has a powerful staff potential, the young generation has once again demonstrated its readiness to defend the motherland, the MP said. The Azerbaijani army is further strengthening its power and increasing its battle effectiveness through military exercises. An example of this is the exercises held these days together with the Turkish Armed Forces, said Naghiyev. The MP noted that during the recent battles in the Tovuz direction of the border, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces gave an adequate rebuff in response to the planned provocation of Armenia, and ensured the security of the state border and civilians. "Azerbaijani soldier knows very well with whom and for what he is fighting, and that is what matters," Naghiyev added. A new version of the Great Game is unfolding in Afghanistan, the five Central Asia countries, as well as Nepal, India and Pakistan. As Washington and Delhi undertake a rapprochement, Beijing develops closer ties to Iran and Pakistan. Afghanistan too is in Chinas sight, but US influence remains strong. COVID-19 becomes part of the diplomatic game. Kabul (AsiaNews) Afghanistan and Central Asia, for years torn by wars and extremist violence, still active despite the recent peace agreement with the Taliban, are becoming a new battleground between the United States and China for global leadership. Billions of dollars in trade and new energy corridors that connect the region to South Asia and the Middle East, the worlds oil reserve, are at stake. The rivalry between Beijing and Washington entered a new phase following the mid-June border clash between Chinese and Indian troops in Ladakh, in the disputed region of Kashmir. Since then, diplomatic and security relations between the United States and India have grown considerably, with New Delhi oriented towards joining a strategic alliance with the US, Japan and Australia against China in the Indo-Pacific region. Expectedly, China has responded to the India-US rapprochement by strengthening its strategic partnership with Iran. The two countries are close to finalising a 25-year strategic cooperation agreement, which could dwarf even the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Both projects are part of Beijings Belt and Road Initiative, and mark a reshuffling of alliances. Fundamental realignments are taking place across the world at a challenging, transformative time in international affairs, said Maleeha Lodhi, former Pakistani ambassador to the UK, the US and the United Nations. With global power is shifting to the East, the world is witnessing a reordering of relationships. Recent diplomatic activity in Central and South Asia seem to confirm this, with both China and the United States getting more and more actively involved in the region. In a series of meetings with the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Afghanistan and the five Central Asian states as well as Taliban negotiators based in Qatar a US delegation sought to reinforce the message that Washington intends to remain the top geopolitical player in Afghanistan, on the basis of its continuing role as the countrys major financier. China, for its part, wants to boost its own strategic alliances by strengthening its access to the Middle East, via Central and South Asia. To this end, Beijing is using the novel coronavirus as a soft diplomacy tool, providing material and human resources to help countries affected by the pandemic. The one exception is India, which seems to be turning more and more towards the US to defend its economic, trade and strategic interests. In a four-way video conference on 27 July with the foreign ministers of Nepal and Afghanistan and Pakistans development minister, Chinas foreign minister Wang Yi proposed expanding their pandemic cooperation to establish a green corridor between them. He also did not exclude the prospect of including Afghanistan into the CPEC but remains cautious to avoid creating another point of friction with the Americans. Another project on Chinas agenda is the trans-Himalayan corridor, which would integrate Nepal into the Belt and Road plan via Tibet, Xinjiang and Gwadar, thus reducing Indias historic influenced over Nepal. This explains Beijings guarded endorsement of Pakistans proposal to extend the CPEC into Afghanistan. Overall, Developments such as closer China-Iran relations that promote regional stability, economic development as well as connectivity will be welcomed by Pakistan, said Lodhi, the former ambassador. We await details of whether Pakistan has a role to play in this regard. Seyed Mohammad Marandi, a professor of English literature and oriental studies at the University of Tehran, said it was natural for China and Iran to seek closer ties because they had enjoyed a conflict-free relationship based on Silk Route trade and civilisational exchanges for several millennia. This creates a natural convergence between nations to protect themselves against a great menace, the US, Marandi added. BALTIMORE, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- For nearly 20 years I have led the Southern Baptist Church and our Mary Harvin Transformation Center Community Development Corporation in East Baltimore with a divinely inspired vision to transform our church and community into the Kingdom of God, where people can find decent and affordable housing, be educated, work, and live, while worshiping God safely with their families. For the last three years we took our plans and pleas to make churches the hub of the solution for the forgotten neighborhoods of East Baltimore to all corners of Washington, D.C. While everyone took the time to listen, Senator Van Hollen (D-MD) got to work and acted," Hickman said. "Our fantastic senator introduced the bill that we suggested to advance our effort to make churches and nonprofits the delivery points for rebuilding neighborhoods nationwide." "The church, as a community stakeholder and trusted partner, has the responsibility to evolve our outreach and evangelism. We have always tried to restore the heart and soul of people through worship," Hickman noted. "We also have a second responsibility in neighborhoods where we worship that have experienced decades of neglect. Our responsibility is to rebuild properties, and streets, and parks in those neighborhoods so that people have a decent place to live, work, and worship near their church," Hickman explained. Combining those ingredients and integrating them is the missing link to solving the problems that we see today. To that end, Hickman has partnered with the community and neighboring churches to develop the East Baltimore Revitalization Plan, a grassroots Master Plan that was adopted by the City of Baltimore's Planning Department. Hickman's program now includes other churches and faith based organizations in each of the quadrants of Baltimore City to expedite change. While the Southern Baptist Church had some success with building affordable housing and making huge property and land acquisitions, there is always a funding gap in the most neglected neighborhoods where we pastor. "We are hopeful that his bill that we suggested to authorize and fund the financial gap and deliver the solutions through plans developed by churches, faith-based groups, and non-profits will be quickly acted on and included in the COVID recovery legislation," Hickman explained. If so, faith based institutions can integrate their work to restore people and rebuild neighborhoods and places to live and enjoy life around churches as an anchor. "We can do this for God's glory when this bill passes, because we will be able to fill the funding gaps. This is what I've been advocating and fighting for with the Trump Administration and Democrats and Republicans in Congress," Pastor Hickman concluded. Pastor Hickman was raised in Edmondson Village, an inner city community in West Baltimore and now pastoring in Broadway East, an inner city community in East Baltimore. He knows that there is no dearth of talent, energy, giftedness, intellect and initiative in the urban communities. But what Baltimore and other cities need besides fairer opportunities are a removal of the overwhelming obstacles, barriers and distractions that make it all but impossible but for a few exceptions to pursue and accomplish dreams, become gainfully employed, build families, strengthen communities, and make America better for all. The health and economic disparities in urban communities has suppressed both the monetary and moral values so severely that these distressed areas are impossible to be revitalized without the right public spending and gap financing that bolsters and compliments private investment and federal tax credit programs such as Opportunity Zone Tax Credits. "With this bill the faith based communities and non-profit partners that have local plans for their neighborhoods can lead, collaborate, and help to successfully transform our communities neighborhood by neighborhood. We can rid the blight, poverty, illness and violence that has plagued the forgotten and misunderstood citizens of not only East Baltimore, but all of our inner city communities across America," Hickman explains as his vision. "In Baltimore and cities across our nation, we know our local non-profits and faith-based neighborhood organizations serve as the heartbeat of their surrounding communities, bringing people together and helping those in need. These organizations are uniquely positioned to understand the economic hardships facing residents of our cities and how best to address them but are often overlooked in the federal grant process. This legislation opens the door for new partnerships and taps into the local expertise of these organizations in our work to strengthen urban areas and improve economic development initiatives. I'm proud to introduce this bill and to have worked with partners in Baltimore on this concept, and I will be pushing for Senate consideration of this important measure," said Senator Van Hollen. "The church, as a community stakeholder and trusted partner, has a responsibility to rebuild properties, streets, and parks in our neighborhoods so that people have a decent place to live, work, and worship near their church. For the last three years we took our plans and pleas to make churches the hub of the solution for the forgotten neighborhoods of East Baltimore to all corners of Washington, D.C. While everyone took the time to listen, Senator Van Hollen got to work and acted. We are hopeful that his bill will be quickly acted on and included in the COVID recovery legislation. If so, faith based institutions can integrate their work to restore people and rebuild neighborhoods and places to live and enjoy life around churches as an anchor," said Pastor Donte Hickman of the Southern Baptist Church. Media Contact: Pastor Donte Hickman [email protected] 443-248-3862 SOURCE Southern Baptist Church Related Links http://www.southernbaptistchurch.org Columbia-Greene Media has recently teamed up with the US Postal Service to provide same-day delivery of your local newspaper with your mail. Our expanded daily delivery of your local news reaches into the following areas: The District Registration Review Committee (DRRC) has disqualified Anthony Ayitey, the Assemblyman for Kwame Akura West Electoral Area in the Krachi East Constituency of the Oti Region, for alleged provision of false information during the voter registration process. By this verdict, Ayitey would not participate in the forthcoming general elections. The DRRC is made up of representatives of political parties, Ghana Education Service, Ghana Police Service, traditional leaders and the Electoral Commission and the deal with issues concerning the registration exercise. Mr Ayitey, a resident of Tumponja under Krachi Nchumuru District, had his eligibility challenged by Mr Kingsley Okonengye, a party agent of the New Patriotic Party, when he went to the Krachi East Constituency to register. Mr Bebako Mensah, the Chairman of the Committee, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that the Assemblyman in an attempt to prove his eligibility took members of the Committee to a residential address he provided at Dambai "Canna," which turned out to be false as nobody knew him at such an address. By the electoral laws, one can only be registered when he or she resided in a particular community over twelve months and nothing fewer warrants disqualification. Ayitey conceded the disqualification when contacted by the GNA and admitted he was challenged for unlawful registration and consequently banned. ---GNA The Supreme Court says there had been dozens of irregularities, but it approves the results of last months vote. Polands Supreme Court has approved the result of last months hotly-contested presidential election but said there had been dozens of irregularities. President Andrzej Duda, who is backed by the ruling populist right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party, narrowly won re-election on July 12 with 51 percent. His rival, Warsaw mayor Rafal Trzaskowski from the Civic Platform party, came a close second with 49 percent. The Supreme Court confirms the validity of the election of Andrzej Sebastian Duda to the Polish presidency, judge Ewa Stefanska said in her ruling on Monday. The opposition had asked for the result to be declared invalid, complaining in particular that the state television network TVP had favoured the incumbent. The Supreme Court received more than 5,800 complaints, mainly related to voter registration, failure to receive ballots in time and problems with voting abroad. It upheld only 93 of the complaints but said this was not sufficient to affect the final result of the vote. Duda is due to be formally sworn in on Thursday. Tarnished vote The election was originally scheduled for May at a time when Duda was riding high in the opinion polls, but it had to be delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic. Dudas support fell considerably also because of the fallout from the virus which is pushing Poland into its first recession since the end of communism in 1989. Observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europes (OSCE) Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights earlier said the vote was tarnished by biased coverage on public television. The incumbents campaign and coverage by the public broadcaster were marked by homophobic, xenophobic and anti-Semitic rhetoric, they also said in a statement. During the campaign, Duda railed against LGBT ideology and same-sex adoptions and accused his rival of failing to rule out Jewish wartime compensation claims which the government says should be addressed to Germany. (Natural News) Breitbart News has released data that it says shows that Google is deliberately working to interfere with the reelection of Trump in 2020 through purging Breitbart and other conservative websites from search results. (Article by Paul Smeaton republished from LifeSiteNews.com) The online conservative news site also says its organic traffic from Google search results is down 63% from the first half of 2016. Perhaps most striking of the evidence they present is that at the beginning of May, following Googles core search update, traffic to Breitbart from Google as a result of searches about Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden dropped overnight from tens of thousands a day to zero. Breitbart says it spoke with a professional analyst of search engine trends who has extensive experience working with Googles own tools for analyzing online search results who told them that in 25 years he has never experienced such a wholesale removal of rank and visibility on specific concepts on a site as I have seen being applied to Breitbart. The sheer fact that there are thousands of pages of Breitbart content that reference Biden that were ranking before May 6, that now have no rank or impressions on search is a sign of manipulation, not algorithmic devaluing, the source, who Breitbart says wished to remain anonymous, added. Dr. Robert Epstein, a researcher who has estimated that Google may have swung as many as 2.6 million votes to Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016, told Breitbart he believes that Google has placed them on a blacklist. For news websites large and small, Google in combination with its YouTube offshoot typically drives between 30 and 50 percent of the traffic to those sites, Epstein said. For the New York Times, the percentage is currently 39.3%. At the moment, Google is responsible for just 9 percent of Breitbarts traffic, and YouTube is sending a negligible amount, if any. Given the size of Breitbarts audience, this suggests to me that Breitbart is listed on one or more of Googles blacklists. In July 2018, Epstein told the U.S. Senate that he has identified nine different blacklists Google maintains to suppress information worldwide, encompassing Googles search results, autocomplete feature, Google Maps, YouTube searches, Google News, AdWords and AdSense, banned user accounts, and website quarantines. Those are the lists that Google denies having even under oath in Congressional hearings even though two of those blacklists were leaked from the company last year by whistleblower Zach Vorhies, Epstein told Breitbart. How many blacklists they actually maintain is unknown, but it wouldnt surprise me if its a hundred or more. During yesterdays antitrust hearing at the U.S. House of Representatives, Floridas Republican congressman Matt Gaetz drew an admission from Google CEO Sundar Pichai that the creation of lists of sites blocked from search results can involve a manual portion. Pichai initially insisted that Googles censorship tools are managed algorithmically and that the company doesnt manually tune search results. However, he subsequently said that if a website or actor is considered to be interfering in elections, then the company puts that site on a list in order to stop it appearing in online searches. There is either a manual component or there is not a manual component. Which is it? Gaetz pressed. For creating those lists, that process can involve a manual portion, Pichai responded. Breitbart also cites data from Alexa showing that conservative websites see a dramatically smaller percentage of their total traffic coming from Google searches compared with liberal mainstream media giants. But a Google spokeswoman told Breitbart that there is no validity whatsoever to these allegations of political bias. Our systems do not take political ideology into account, and we go to extraordinary lengths to build our products for everyone in an apolitical way, the spokeswoman said. Anyone can easily cherry-pick a range of conservative, progressive or non-political sites that have seen traffic changes over time. The improvements we make to Search undergo a rigorous testing process and are done to provide helpful information for the billions of queries we get every day. Earlier this week, LifeSiteNews joined with conservative media outlets around the United States in an open letter challenging the CEO of Googles parent company over the removal of conservative websites from online search results. During yesterdays antitrust hearing, Rep. Gaetz said that it really doesnt take Sherlock Holmes here to connect the dots and see what Googles doing. Gaetz cited the recent removal of conservative websites from Google search results, as well as leaked video from 2016 showing Googles co-founders and other top executives expressing their resolve to alter future elections after the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president. Gaetz questioned why anyone would believe Google when the company claims that it wont interfere in this years presidential election. Read more at: LifeSiteNews.com Fraudsters are using a gateway developed by Vodacom to steal millions in airtime from its subscribers often the poorest South Africans with virtually no risk of criminal charges. Last week, MyBroadband revealed that Vodacoms prepaid customers were targeted by rogue Wireless Application Service Providers (WASPs) which stole airtime from them on a mass scale. After this article was published, MyBroadband received numerous complaints from both prepaid and contract subscribers who said their airtime was stolen by WASPs. One industry player, who has been operating a WASP for over a decade, told MyBroadband that mobile operators are enabling this fraud and are well aware of it. No WASP can take a subscribers airtime without the operator fully knowing about it and enabling it, he said. Another industry player told MyBroadband they have been battling with Vodacom about fraudulent billing on 129 prepaid SIMs for a long time, without much success. Vodacom has always seen this as a revenue stream and have confirmed the theft despite the misery caused. Its criminal and should be thoroughly investigated, he said. He suggested that all mobile subscribers who have lost funds should be refunded and a penalty for allowing this fraud to occur should be levied. How much money is stolen from subscribers? Vodacom and other mobile operators have never released figures about how much money they make from premium-rated SMS and content subscriptions. They have also not released accurate figures on the amount of fraudulent billing which occurs on their networks. Two industry players previously told MyBroadband that billions in airtime have been stolen from mobile subscribers in South Africa over the last decade, but this cannot be verified. The closest to a real figure was revealed in Vodacoms Integrated report for the year ended 31 March 2019, where it said: Digital services represented 2.8% of service revenue, a 0.4ppts decrease, following a 41% decline in subscription-based content services revenue, as a result of our stringent policies to minimise content fraud. In the 2017/2018 financial year, digital services revenue was around R2.29 billion, which declined to approximately R2.11 billion in the 2018/2019 financial year. According to Vodacoms annual report, the R181-million decline was therefore mainly caused by limiting fraudulent content subscription services. This figure gives a rough estimate of the scale of the problem and shows that Vodacom knows just how much money was stolen from their subscribers each year. What Vodacom said about WASP fraud When MyBroadband asked Vodacom about WASP fraud and airtime theft, spokesperson Byron Kennedy said they have been effective in reducing fraudulent WASP activity on its network. Following numerous measures implemented in 2018, fraudulent WASP activity has decreased substantially, he said. What is inferred by this comment is that fraudulent WASP activity and airtime theft were far more rampant prior to the new measures imposed in 2018. This is of concern because Vodacom was aware of fraudulent WASPs stealing their subscribers airtime and they provided them with the tools to do it. Vodacom launched its WASP business model on 1 November 2002, and within months, 70 WASPs launched 103 SMS services. Initially, these WASPs had complete freedom to bill any Vodacom number they wanted, and it was not long before reports of fraudulent billing emerged. It was nearly impossible for Vodacom subscribers to block WASP billing or get their money back, which is why many simply threw their SIMs away and obtained a new number. It was the Wild West, where mobile subscribers were sitting ducks for rogue WASPs to steal money from. Vodacom was making so much money from premium-rated SMS and content subscription services that it did not want to interfere with this business model. However, after media pressure related to WASP billing in 2008, Vodacom started to comment on WASP fraud on its network. Here is what it said: 2009 This year, WASPA has instituted stricter measures to ensure fair business practice. These include the implementation of tighter rules, effective monitoring and control, and stricter sanctions against WASPs who breach the Code of Conduct. This year, WASPA has instituted stricter measures to ensure fair business practice. These include the implementation of tighter rules, effective monitoring and control, and stricter sanctions against WASPs who breach the Code of Conduct. 2010 Certain channels of communication such as SMS, MMS, USSD and the Internet can be used to perpetrate fraud against customers. Vodacom SA is a signatory to the Code of Conduct for Cellular Operators, which aims at preventing harmful behaviour by WASPs using the companys network. The company has teams of testers who review WASP services for quality and compliance. Certain channels of communication such as SMS, MMS, USSD and the Internet can be used to perpetrate fraud against customers. Vodacom SA is a signatory to the Code of Conduct for Cellular Operators, which aims at preventing harmful behaviour by WASPs using the companys network. The company has teams of testers who review WASP services for quality and compliance. 2012 Vodacom was the first network operator to launch double opt-in business rules to make customers fully aware of pricing and related information when using wireless application service provider (WASP) services. In the absence of a suitable technical solution, enforcing this standard has been difficult as the onus was on the WASP to comply. In response, we developed a way to enforce compliance and have taken full ownership of protecting our customers in this way. The reality is that fraudulent billing and airtime theft by rogue WASPs continued, and Vodacom subscribers collectively lost millions in airtime each month. The fact that Vodacom said fraudulent WASP activity had decreased substantially in 2018 means that it was significantly worse before that. This is 10 years after it said it was fighting unfair practices. Measures to stop fraudulent billing and airtime theft There are three measures which can help to prevent fraudulent billing or serve as a deterrent for this criminal activity. Block WASP billing by default. Refund all subscribers who have been billed by a WASP if they are found to be guilty of airtime theft. Lay criminal charges against WASPs which are found to be guilty of fraud. Vodacom is unwilling to implement any of these measures, however, which means there is virtually no risk for WASPs who steal money from Vodacom subscribers. If they are caught committing fraud using the gateways provided by Vodacom, the worst that can happen is that they must refund a small percentage of the money they have stolen and they will be banned. To make the situation worse, Vodacom does not even require all WASPs which bill its clients to be members of WASPA. Fraudulent WASPs can easily bypass the WASPA Code of Conduct and therefore avoid sanctions like fines or suspension by using Vodacoms Charge To Bill service. WASPA GM Ilonka Badenhorst confirmed they do not have jurisdiction over services where mobile operators do not require their partners to be members of the organisation. Here are the reasons Vodacom gave for not implementing the measures above to protect their subscribers: 1. Block WASP billing by default. Similar services around the world, such as Apple iStore and Google Play, are active by default and provide customers with the convenience of paying for content services and subscriptions without having to continuously re-enter credit card/payment details. Through the Vodacom payment platform, for example, customers can subscribe to the likes of Showmax, Deezer, and Office 365 in addition to hundreds of games, sport, and small business services. 2. Refund all subscribers who have been billed by a rogue WASP. We seek to ensure that affected customers are fully refunded on first contact with Customer Care. We pass the large majority of credits to customers, if not for all queries, as our standard practice is to refund the customer first and then investigate the query later. We have and will refund customers on a proactive basis. For instance, in 2018 we took a decision to make ex-gratia payments to customers simply on the basis that they had not made use of certain services. 3. Lay criminal charges against WASPs which are found to be guilty of fraud. In terms of the criminal process in South Africa, only the defrauded party is permitted to open a police case. Vodacom is fully committed to assisting relevant authorities in instances where customers open criminal cases. Kennedy added that they take a hard line in the event that a third-party contravenes any agreement they may have with Vodacom or the likes of WASPAs code of conduct. We have, and will continue to suspend and terminate the services of WASPs and their affiliate content aggregators and will continue to investigate reported transgressions and then ensure that we take appropriate action, he said. Vodacom making millions from legal and illegal WASP billing The reality is that Vodacom has been making millions from both legal and illegal WASP billing, and it is not prepared to lose out on this money. Mobile operators take a large chunk of the money from premium-SMS and content subscription services. If a subscriber is billed R1 for a premium-rated SMS, for example, the WASP gets anywhere between 3c and 15c of the price. The rest goes to the mobile operator. Refunds are nearly negligible when compared to total WASP billing. In 2018, for example, refunds related to fraudulent WASP activity on Vodacoms network only amounted to R6 million. Industry players told MyBroadband they have been trying to convince Vodacom to stop this blatant criminal activity, but without success. The sad reality, they said, is that the poorest South Africans, living in townships and rural parts of the country, are the worst affected. Vodacom has allowed rogue WASPs to steal airtime from the poorest South Africans for years, one industry player told MyBroadband. I hope they realise how devastating it is for someone who only has R10 per month to buy airtime. Now read: Vodacom prepaid customers hit by airtime theft President Donald Trump has agreed to give China's ByteDance 45 days to negotiate a sale of popular short-video app TikTok to Microsoft Corp, two people familiar with the matter said on Sunday. U.S. officials have said TikTok under its Chinese parent poses a national risk because of the personal data it handles. Trump said on Friday he was planning to ban TikTok in the United States after dismissing the idea of a sale to Microsoft. But following a discussion between Trump and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, the Redwood, Washington-based company said in a statement on Sunday ... Margaret Thatcher hated the UKs coal miners and especially their union. A series of brutal strikes divided the nation during her regime. But when the time came to deal with an overly expensive coal industry, she did not just lower the boom and walk away. She forced government owned electric companies to sign multiyear contracts to purchase coal. That gave coal mines an opportunity to improve productivity before contracts ended, and perhaps become competitive enough to save their businesses. And while they did become more efficient, natural gas suppliers became even more efficient than before, so coal could still not compete against gas. And so, despite their former clout, the UKs coal mines closed and a once vital industry became all but extinct. Now Poland faces a similar problem. Regions of the country depend heavily on well paying, unionized coal jobs. A large, new coal-fired power plant could not get financing as banks and other lenders have reduced commitments to environmentally dubious projects. The government, eager at least to placate miners, announced plans to build a coal storage facility. Keep mining coal that isnt immediately needed and put it in storage. This is the sort of strategy we might have expected the former communist regime to employ in order to meet arbitrary production targets. But ultimately the problem for Polands politicians isnt about coal, the environment or electricity production. The problem is simple. Some regions of the country would collapse economically without coal mining and the associated power generation industry jobs. That brings us to U.S. coal usage in electricity production, its principal use apart from steel production, which continues to decline. Vigorous support from the Trump administration has failed to offset coals deteriorating economics versus natural gas and renewables. Related: The Permian Could See Record Gas Production In 2021 Electricity is a commodity. Most commodities like wheat or cotton, for example, are not directly consumed themselves but serve as inputs or raw materials of production. Think about a term where the adjective boutique or bespoke would be inappropriate (boutique lead ingots for example is simply silly). And if product differentiation is difficult if not impossible the same is true for price differentiation. In commodity businesses the low-cost producer dominates. Coal-fired electricity in the US now costs more than alternative modes of production even before pricing in environmental externalities. As a result, coal mining is in a precipitous decline. The interesting thing for us is the contrast between the two conservative leaders, Thatcher and Trump. The latters staunch embrace of the coal miners and the mining industry as opposed to Prime Minister Thatchers more muscular approach. But despite the differences in policy, both leaders permitted an increasingly uneconomic industry to decline. We were expecting similar benign neglect of the coal industry from the likely Democratic presidential candidate Biden. Perhaps vague campaign promises regarding clean or improving coal technologies to appeal to coal-state voters. But nothing of any real energy policy substance. It appears we were wrong. Related: Why Energy Demand Is Plummeting In The U.S. The Biden camp seems ready to let competitive forces in the U.S. energy markets drive coal to extinction. As a result, their focus is on utilizing federal resources to assist/retrain miners and affected communities rather than subsidizing the mines and the industry in general. The Democratic party platform is effectively saying we need an alternative to coal so lets minimize the social harm. Why? Because the U.S. still employs roughly 50,000 coal miners earning wages and benefits of $4 billion and many of these miners work in regions that offer few alternatives to mining. One feature surprisingly absent from the Democrats environmental platform was a carbon tax. This would hasten the demise of coal as a boiler fuel in the U.S. rendering it even more economically uncompetitive. But interestingly, the higher the carbon tax the more attractive base load nuclear power becomes. Nuclear power seems to be a permanent recipient of modern day industrial welfare. So for this reason alone, we would not completely rule out a carbon tax. Admittedly, political platforms do not always turn into policy actions after the election. but the Biden energy plank, as we read it, seems more favorable to coal miners (the people) than to coal mines (the corporations). By Leonard Hyman and William Tilles More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: MONTREALA lively crowd gathered outside Francois Legaults office in downtown Montreal in mid-July to send a message to the Quebec premier: his government cannot force them to wear masks in indoor public spaces to fight the spread of COVID-19. Long live freedom without a mask, read one sign at the rally, which drew several dozen people. My body, my choice read another, alongside a drawing of a medical mask with a line across it. The anti-mask movement is not unique to Quebec, nor are masks the only source of conflict in the country when it comes to public health directives around the novel coronavirus. But the issue is one of several at the heart of a growing online movement of disinformation around the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. Researchers say conspiracy theories about COVID-19 are spreading at an alarming rate across the country and they warn misinformation shared online may lead to devastating consequences and push Canadians to shun important safety measures. I think that people should be enormously concerned, said Aengus Bridgman, a PhD candidate in political science at McGill University and co-author of a study published last month on COVID-19 misinformation and its impact on public health. The study found the more a person relies on social media to learn about COVID-19, the more likely they are to be exposed to misinformation and to believe it, and to disregard physical distancing and other public health guidelines. About 16 per cent of Canadians use social media as their primary source of information on the virus, Bridgman said in a recent interview. His research team surveyed nearly 2,500 people and examined 620,000 English-language Twitter accounts, but Bridgman said COVID-19 misinformation also spreads on other social media platforms, including Facebook, YouTube, Reddit, Instagram and Tumblr. For example, a Facebook group called Against mandatory mask-wearing in Quebec has over 22,000 members to date, while another group with a similar mission has nearly 21,000 members. The posts on these pages vary, from questioning the science behind wearing masks and lambasting Horacio Arruda, Quebecs public health director, for the mandatory mask rule, to accusing the World Health Organization of bias and Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates of creating the virus. Another study published in May at Carleton University indicated 46 per cent of Canadians believed at least one of four unfounded COVID-19 theories: the virus was engineered in a Chinese lab; the virus is being spread to cover up the effects of 5G wireless technology; drugs such as hydroxychloroquine can cure COVID-19 patients; or rinsing your nose with a saline solution can protect you from infection. Bridgman said the speed at which these conspiracy theories circulate online makes it difficult to verify where they originate. And while some right-wing groups in Canada are pushing these falsehoods, Bridgman said people across the political spectrum are vulnerable to them. This is a Canadian challenge, he explained. People across levels of education, across age groupings, across political ideas, all are susceptible to misinformation online. This is not a phenomenon that is unique to a particular community. Protests have taken place across Canada since the provinces put COVID-19 lockdown measures in place earlier this year, from Vancouver, to Toronto and Quebec City, where hundreds rallied at the provincial legislature July 26 against mandatory mask-wearing. Alexandre Barriere was among dozens of protesters denouncing the mask rule on July 19 outside Legaults Montreal office. He compared mask-wearing to a dog muzzle and said he didnt believe the COVID-19 pandemic exists. We live to be free. Were not in the world to be controlled like animals, the 29-year-old said in an interview. Another protester, 65-year-old Antonio Pietroniro, said the pandemic was bogus and warned that, after making masks mandatory, the government would force people to get vaccinated against the virus. Theyre going to say you have to take the vaccine even though it hasnt been proven to be safe, he said, echoing the anti-vaccination movement that has gained prominence in Canada, the U.S. and other countries in recent years. Alison Meek, a history professor at Western University, said there are similarities between COVID-19 conspiracy theories and the anti-vaccination movement. Misinformation intentionally spread about COVID-19, she added, is also comparable to the conspiracy theories that circulated in the 80s and 90s during the HIV/AIDS epidemic. When youre scared, when youre frustrated, you want someone easy to blame... We want to point to somebody and say, Aha! Youre the one theres a bad guy here that did it, as opposed to, this is just how these pandemics actually work, Meek said in an interview. Governments have had to adapt their public health directives to keep up with rapidly evolving science about the virus. Public uncertainty around the scientific process, combined with mounting frustrations with lockdown measures and a struggling economy has created a perfect storm in which conspiracy theories can flourish, Meek said. All of those things are coming together right now to make these conspiracy theories a real public health crisis thats getting more and more difficult to deal with. She said conspiracy theories need to be countered with facts and evidence, adding that people should be encouraged to think critically about where they are getting their information. Both she and Bridgman lauded social media companies such as Twitter and Facebook for removing videos and other posts that spread misinformation about COVID-19 but both academics also said more needs to be done. People are dying because of these conspiracy theories and weve got to stop them, Meek said. Weve got to somehow figure out how to challenge them. AccuWeather forecasters are warning chances of snow and other wintry weather to break out across portions of the eastern United States, just after a winter storm spent the weekend making a mess of places from the Tennessee Valley through the Southeast and up the Eastern Seaboard into New England. As schools scramble to finalize plans to start the new school year with coronavirus precautions, their circumstances were a frequent topic at a congressional hearing Friday on the countrys response to the pandemic. Members of the House Oversight and Reform Committees Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis pressed the nations top public health officials on whether the federal response to the illness had been adequate to contain it, and how continued spread would affect all sectors of public life, including education. The witnessesAnthony Fauci, the nations chief epidemiologist; Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and Admiral Brett Giroir, assistant secretary of health and human services as President Donald Trump continued to push for schools to reopen their buildings and after GOP senators proposed conditioning a majority of new federal relief aid on plans to do so. The push to reopen comes even as rates of the virus spike in some states, causing school administrators to revert to plans for remote learning. Heres what school leaders and educators need to know about the hearing. Do schools need more resources to reopen? House Minority Whip Steve Scalise, a Louisiana Republican and the ranking member of the committee, asked Redfield to elaborate on recent CDC guidance that stresses the importance of reopening school buildings . Redfield said its not an issue of public health vs. the economy. There are public health considerations on both sides, he said, stressing the ways schools address concerns about students mental health, reporting child abuse, and preventing suicide. Important context: Redfield recently told reporters that schools in hotspots, local areas where at least 5 percent of COVID-19 tests come back positive, may have to delay or modify reopening plans. Dozens of states have testing positivity rates above that threshold, but Redfield has stressed looking at more granular local data in making decisions. Education groups, teachers unions, and advocacy organizations have pressured Congress for additional relief funding targeted at schools, saying state and local budget cuts may force them to cut programs even as they take on additional expenses related to virus prevention. Scalise questioned if additional money was really necessary. He cited a recent federal watchdog report that found a very small portion of the education money allotted through the first relief bill , the CARES Act, had been spent. Any local school system that wants to claim they dont have the ability to do that, go straight to your governor. ...If you run out, give us a call, but right now there is money in your states account to buy masks, sanitizers, to safely reopen, he said. We explored why CARES Act funds are moving through the system relatively slowly in a few weeks ago. What we heard: Districts have until September 2021 to spend that money, and many are still submitting plans of how they will do so. Districts may also be spending their own funds now with the intent to seek reimbursement from CARES dollars later. Districts dont want to draw down all of their CARES money until they are certain about whether they will receive additional federal aid. Districts have waited to see if their states will direct them to follow a controversial rule by U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos that directs a portion of that aid to private school students. In response to Scalise, Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., said schools need more than supplies to keep students safe, noting that some lack the physical space to follow CDC guidelines on social distancing. Are testing lags too long? A key questions for school administrators contemplating reopening: Do children contract and spread the virus as quickly as adults? In response to questions from Waters, Fauci stressed that children are not immune from the virus, but that they have far fewer deleterious effects and are far less likely to require hospitalization when they contract it. Earlier this week, Fauci told an audience at the American Federation of Teachers virtual convention that there is little data about how children spread the virus to adults, and that schools will be part of the experiment as researchers gather more data on how they affect virus transmission. Democrats on the committee questioned whether current testing strategies are adequate to detect cases of the virus in the first place, a concern that has repeatedly surfaced in school reopening decisions. They cited wait times from a few days to as long as 16 days, longer than the 14-day incubation period of the virus. Public health officials have recommended that people with suspected exposure to the virus should self isolate until they receive test results, but long wait times make that more difficult, members stressed. We cannot expect to reopen the economy safely if the virus is spreading unchecked, Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., said. In addition to surge testing in heavily affected states like Arizona, federal officials are working to prioritize diagnostic testing for individuals, sending those tests to private labs that have been challenged by heavy demand, Giroir said. For surveillance testingin which broad populations, including students, are tested en masseofficials have sought to expand use of labs that dont require authorization by the Food and Drug Administration, like university research labs and veterinary labs, he said. That prioritization should help speed up wait times, Giroir said. Is resistance to reopening schools political? Republicans on the committee questioned whether schools had justification for keeping their buildings closed. Scalise held up a stack of guidance documents from the CDC about issues like masks and social distancing in schools, saying they provided adequate support for local decision-makers. You can do it and, in fact, you need to do it. To say you cannot do it is a cop out, Scalise said. This is America. We put a man on the moon. But some school administrators have said those guidelines lack specifics necessary to drive key decisions. And others have said they need clearer guideines about when to close classrooms and how to respond when students or teachers test positive. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said some teachers unions have resisted reopening schools while encouraging members to participate in protests, like those in Portland, Ore., which he blamed for the spread of COVID-19. Subcommittee Chairman Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., said CDC guidance encouraging school reopenings came after pressure from the White House. He said schools would not face such difficult questions about welcoming students back if President Donald Trump had adopted a more-effective federal strategy in the initial weeks of the crisis. It is clear that the administrations approach of deferring to the states, sidelining the experts and rushing to reopen has prolonged this crisis and led to thousands of preventable deaths, he said. Related: A researcher recently used Education Weeks data on school district closures to determine if there was a correlation between a regions political leanings and its decision to reopen buildings. Read more here. Photo: Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks as Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, right, listens during a House Select Subcommittee hearing on the Coronavirus Friday --Erin Scott/Pool via AP Follow us on Twitter @PoliticsK12 . And follow the Politics K-12 reporters @EvieBlad @Daarel and @AndrewUjifusa . A car wash on South Claiborne Avenue was robbed at gunpoint Sunday night, New Orleans police said. The robbery happened at Pelican Pointe Car Wash, 3710 S. Claiborne Ave., at 6:13 p.m. Sunday, NOPD said. A man with a handgun demanded that an employee empty the two outside cash machines, according to preliminary information from police. The employee complied, police said, and then the gunman fled. No other information was immediately available, including a description of the gunman. Anyone with information is asked to call Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111. Georgian police have arrested the son of former Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania for alleged assault on the grandson of entrepreneur Gogi Topadze in Tbilisi. Busa Zhvania was arrested after an incident in the home of the family of Levan Topadze, where the former allegedly stabbed the businessman's son a number of times, a police report said. The alleged perpetrator was arrested several hours later, with the injured Topadze taken to a hospital and operated. Zhvania was also reported to have been lightly wounded in the incident and was later taken to a clinic. Gogi Topadze said that Zhvania had entered their home at 5am on Sunday and stabbed his son four times. The entrepreneur also said Levan Topadze was unconscious after the surgery, Agenda.ge reported. 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. Mumbai Police was warned way back in February about the threat Sushant Singh Rajput's faced to his life but it failed to take note of it and did not act upon complaints against named persons a day after his death in June, said the late actor's father in a shocking revelation on August 3. Krishna Kishore Singh issued a video statement in which he narrated the sequence of developments that led to his lodging a complaint with Patna Police, after which it is on the lookout for the accused currently on the run. Singh had informed the Mumbai Police in February that his son Sushant faced a threat to his life but it did nothing. "When my son died on June 14, I requested them to take action against named persons. But nothing came of it even after 40 days. Left with no other option, I lodged a case at a police station here in Patna," he said. Patna police swung into action immediately, Singh remarked appreciatively and thanked Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and state minister Sanjay Jha who came forward to "stand for the truth". Singh, in his complaint based on which an FIR was lodged on July 25, accused actress Rhea Chakraborty and her family members of abetting his son's suicide, besides defrauding him of his money and subjecting him to blackmail. His decision to go public on the matter for the first time comes in the backdrop of alleged non-cooperation of Mumbai police with its Patna counterpart. Meanwhile, Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey said that a formal protest was being lodged with the municipal authorities in Mumbai who on Sunday forcibly quarantined the IPS officer heading the Special Investigating Team, hours after he arrived in the metropolis. Quarantining of Vinay Tiwari, the SP City (East), was not required, going by the Maharashtra government's own guidelines. The IG, Patna Zone, will be dashing off a protest letter to the Chairman of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, Pandey told reporters. The officer was on an official tour. He had visited Mumbai after writing a letter to DCP, Bandra, and having a telephonic talk. He had not visited the city furtively. He had applied for an accommodation at the IPS mess there which was not granted, though they do not wish to make it a bone of contention, the DGP said. Nonetheless, Pandey asserted that Tiwari could have been granted in accordance with the Maharashtra government's own guidelines for containing the spread of COVID 19, exemption from quarantine. The IGP will be writing the letter quoting the relevant provision. Pandey said what happened was not appropriate and this view was also expressed by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. However, when asked whether he considered an insult the quarantine stamp on Tiwari's hand, a video of which he had posted on his twitter handle late Sunday night, Pandey said, This is not something about which one should become emotional. The stamp is a standard procedure for those being quarantined. Asked about the contention of Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh that Bihar police ought to have lodged a zero FIR since it did not have the jurisdiction to investigate the case, Pandey refused to comment, saying the matter was sub-judice and all should wait for the Supreme Court order. A petition filed by Chakraborty, challenging the jurisdiction of Bihar police to probe the case and seeking its transfer to Mumbai, is scheduled for hearing on August 5. The Bihar government has decided to oppose her plea and roped in former Attorney General of India Mukul Rohatgi to appear on its behalf.. Marlene Cavalcanti, 40, has pleaded guilty to two felony counts of insurance fraud and identity theft after falsifying documents to receive an additional $10,590 on her workers compensation claim. Cavalcanti, employed as an executive assistant, reportedly fell at work and sustained injuries. As a result of her subsequent workers comp claim, Cavalcanti received more than $42,000 in total temporary disability payments in addition to her medical treatment. An investigation by the California Department of Insurance revealed that after being placed on disability, Cavalcanti ceased medical treatment and began working for another company. During this time, she reportedly submitted multiple fictitious doctors reports in an attempt to continue to receive disability payments from the workers comp insurance company. When confronted by detectives, Cavalcanti ultimately admitted to the fraudulent documents and forged doctors signatures. During the investigation, department detectives reportedly discovered Cavalcanti attempted to file a new workers comp claim at a different insurance company with her new employer. The new workers comp claim dates and injuries were similar and overlapped with her initial claim. The investigation by detectives prevented payment on this subsequent fraudulent claim and the insurance company incurred no loss. Cavalcanti is expected back in court Sept. 9 2020 for sentencing. The Marin County District Attorneys Office prosecuted the case. Topics California Workers' Compensation Fraud The Catholic grandson of a Presbyterian clergyman, John Hume was born to be a peacemaker. He briefly considered the priesthood but chose to study history and French instead, eventually becoming a teacher. The Troubles were just beginning when he came to prominence through the Civil Rights Movement. He described Bloody Sunday, when British soldiers shot 14 people dead in his native Derry, as "the worst day in my lifetime". The voice of moderate nationalism, Mr Hume sought Irish unity but by peaceful means. He co-founded the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) and led the party for 22 years. Fiercely criticised for secret talks with Gerry Adams, he said he did not care "two balls of roasted snow" what the sceptics thought. Having brought the Irish government on board, Washington helped him coax the British government to the negotiating table. The Northern Ireland peace process had begun and would culminate four years later in the historic Good Friday Agreement. The document bore a striking resemblance to a potential solution the visionary Mr Hume had scribbled on a piece of paper in 1975. He had reached out to his Unionist counterpart David Trimble and the two leaders were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace. Mr Hume donated his share of the prize fund - nearly 300,000 - to two charities back home. The former MP and MEP also received the Gandhi Peace Prize and Martin Luther King Award. The only winner of all three accolades, in 2010 Irish broadcaster RTE named him "Ireland's greatest" person. In a poll of viewers, he had beaten Michael Collins, James Connolly, Bono and former President Mary Robinson. Lauded at home and abroad for his peace-making, Pope Benedict made him a Knight Commander of the Papal Order of St. Gregory. In recent years, his wife Pat had spoken openly about his battle with a form of dementia. "Derry is a very dementia-friendly city. John can go for a walk. Every taxi in the city will stop for him. "People love John," she added. More tech news includes JBL launching JBL Tune 225 earbuds in India and WhatsApp launching Search the Web feature in select countries across the world. It was an eventful day in the world of tech today. On one hand, Google finally launched its much-awaited Pixel 4a smartphone. On the other hand, Microsoft confirmed that it is indeed in talks with ByteDance to acquire TikToks US business. In addition to this, WhatsApp rolled out Search the Web feature on WhatsApp Web, Android and iOS. Heres everything that happened in the world of tech today: Google Pixel 4a launched Google launched its budget Pixel 4a smartphone today. The Pixel 4a costs $349 for the 4G variant and $499 for the 5G variant. It will be available in India in October this year. Microsoft confirms TikTok acquisition talks Microsoft today confirmed that it is in talks with ByteDance to buy TikToks US business. The company said that the talks will conclude by September 15, 2020. WhatsApp pilots Search the Web feature WhatsApp today introduced Search the Web feature on its platform to enable users to verify the authenticity of a message by searching for it on the web. JBL Tune 225 earbuds launched in India JBL launched its Tune 225 TWS earbuds in India. The newly launched earphones are available at a price of 10,499 in India. Detectives on Sunday busted a gang of fraudsters posing as StarTimes and Safaricom employees operating within Nairobi city. The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said the gang normally parks their vehicles within notable busy spots in the city and displays a range of merchandise including electronic goods and laptops which they purport to be promoting or selling. According to police, the syndicate operates at Tea Room on Mfangano Street next to Sizzling Hotel and around Globe Cinema round-about. The gang lures members of the public that have used Safaricom lines for more than two years and StarTimes customers to be rewarded with new phones and other electronic items. According to the DCI, unsuspecting victims are then requested to register to win a prize by sending some amount through M-Pesa and in the process, the gang members master the victims M-Pesa PIN after which the fraudsters transfer their money in the pretense of activating their accounts. In other cases, victims are asked to hand over their identity cards for registration and in the process, the suspects note the year of birth. Police said since many Kenyans use their year of birth as their M-Pesa PIN , this makes it easy for fraudsters to wire money from their victims accounts. The detectives arrested John Ngethe Mwaura, who is said to be the gang leader; Timothy Njena Mwaura, whose vehicle is used by the suspected fraudsters; Kelvin Kamau Muturi, the syndicate driver. Also seized during the operation were Geoffrey Ngari Githui, Peter Gitau Kibe, the spy who monitors and alerts the gang of police presence and an employee identified as Benard Thuita Maina. Another member of the gang whose vehicle is used to display the items purported to be on sale is John Kamande Ndungu. The DCI said a number of victims have since recorded their statements with the police. Some of the victims include Anthony Njihia, who lost Sh54,000 to the fraudsters and John Okoth Odondi (Sh54,600). Israeli Prime Minister on Sunday railed at swelling protests against his rule, saying they were egged on by a biased media that distorts facts and cheers on the demonstrators. Netanyahu has faced a wave of protests in recent weeks, with demonstrators calling for the resignation of the long-serving leader, who is on trial for corruption charges. They've also panned his handling of the coronavirus crisis. Netanyahu has painted the protests as dens of anarchists and leftists" out to topple a strong right-wing leader. The protests have largely been peaceful. In some cases they have ended with clashes between demonstrators and police. In others, small gangs of Netanyahu supporters and individuals affiliated with far-right groups have assaulted demonstrators. In a six-minute rant at a meeting of his Cabinet, Netanyahu slammed the media for inflaming the protests and for misrepresenting incidents of violence against the protesters. There has never been such a distorted mobilization I wanted to say Soviet but it has already reached North Korean terms of the media in favor of the protests, he said. Netanyahu said the media ignored wild and unfettered incitement, including daily calls including the day before yesterday to murder the prime minister and his family. He said the protests were breeding grounds for the virus that were being allowed to take place with no limits, shutting down streets and neighborhoods. He said right-wing protests have not been given such free rein. He condemned violence from all sides at the start of his remarks before tearing into the media he has long viewed as hostile toward him. Also at the Cabinet meeting, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz, who is the country's alternate prime minister under a power-sharing deal, said the protests must be allowed to take place with demonstrators shielded from violence. The right to protest is the lifeblood of democracy and violence is the erosion of the foundation of democracy, he said. Netanyahu's tirade came as a court ruled that his son Yair Netanyahu must remove a tweet that published the names, addresses and phone numbers of prominent protesters and called for his followers to demonstrate outside their homes day and night. Protesters said they received threatening calls after the tweet. The court also decided he must refrain from harassing the protesters for six months. Turns out that in our 'democracy' you aren't allowed to protest outside the homes of anarchists who have called to for the prime minister's murder, tweeted Yair Netanyahu after the ruling. The 28-year-old has emerged as a driving force in a counterattack against his father's critics. Throughout the summer, thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets, calling for Netanyahu to resign, protesting his handling of the country's coronavirus crisis and saying he should not remain in office while on trial. Though Netanyahu has tried to play down the protests, the twice-a-week gatherings show no signs of slowing, and Saturday night's gathering drew more than 10,000 people. The rallies against Netanyahu are the largest has seen since 2011 protests over the country's high cost of living. After moving quickly to contain the virus last spring, many believe reopened its economy too quickly, leading to a surge in cases. The country is now coping with record levels of coronavirus, while unemployment has surged to over 20 per cent. Netanyahu faces charges of fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in a series of scandals involving wealthy associates and media moguls. He denies wrongdoing. (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.) By Ellen Moynihan, Brittany Kriegstein, Catherina Gioino and Wes Parnell, New York Daily News (TNS) New York The captain and owners of a popular Manhattan party boat were arrested for defying coronavirus social distancing mandates and going for a crowded booze cruise, officials said Sunday. The Liberty Belle, a four-story river boat that can hold up to 600 people, had just returned to Pier 36 in Lower Manhattan about 11:30 p.m. Saturday when officers from the New York City Sheriff's department broke up the 1920-themed party and made arrests. Officers arrested the boat's owners in charge of the party, Ronny Vargas and Alex Sauzo, and gave them desk appearance tickets to appear in court at a later date. They also arrested the captain, Joseph Spadaro of Staten Island, and issued him a summons, according to the Sheriff's department. The party set sail around 8:30 p.m. with over 170 revelers on board, many of whom excitedly posted pictures and videos of their onboard exploits to social media as they swilled Budweisers and Moet champagne. "So a packed Liberty Belle party boat just departed from Pier 36 on the LES waterfront with no apparent social distancing or mask requirement," an alarmed local group, The Resident Association of The Two Bridges Waterfront Tower, tweeted along with a pic of the boat with two crowded decks. "Who has jurisdiction over these floating nightclubs?" So a packed Liberty Belle party boat just departed from Pier 36 on the LES waterfront with no apparent social distancing or mask requirement. Who has jurisdiction over these floating nightclubs? @galeabrewer @CM_MargaretChin @yuhline @BrianKavanaghNY @NYPD7Pct pic.twitter.com/DVWXB3XrDz twobridgestower (@twobridgestower) August 2, 2020 Pictures and videos shared by Instagram influencer Ivana Kordic show dozens of partygoers dancing the night away with no face masks or social distancing despite signs on the boat warning people to stay six feet apart. A woman with the Instagram handle @svanukka, who called the cruise "surreal," posted a video of herself on the boat captioned, "Me being absolutely unreasonably awkward but my city and the music being absolutely reasonably perfect." The New York City Sheriff's department said they waited for the boat to return to Pier 36 after being tipped off by the office of Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer. Disciplinary actions or fines for the owners of the boat will be decided at their court date; the boat's captain was allowed to return the boat to its mooring place at Atlantic Basin in Red Hook, officials said. At Vargas' East New York, Brooklyn, home, his mother answered the door Sunday and professed ignorance. I dont know what happened he just called me and said he got in trouble, she said. Suazo, who lives in Floral Park, Long Island, couldn't be reached for comment. "He's a nice guy," said neighbor Justin Wasserman, 20, who was surprised to hear of the arrest. "When he first moved in he would talk about his business. I wouldn't have expected it." Along with defying social distancing guidelines, officers found liquor had been served on board despite the boat not having an active liquor license, officials said. The boat is operated by and leased out through Empire Cruises, a party boat service based out of Skyport Marina on the F.D.R. Drive. Company officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. State law updated June 26 requires that boats carrying passengers maintain a distance of six feet apart or masks must be on at all times to prevent the spread of coronavirus. No more than the maximum number of people who can safely maintain an appropriate social distance of six feet, inclusive of both crew and passengers, unless all are members of the same household, said the state law. If such distance cannot be maintained, acceptable face coverings must be worn at all times by all individuals on the vessel. Former Pope Benedict XVI is ill with shingles after returning to the Vatican from a visit to Germany, a newspaper citing his biographer has reported. The 93-year-old retired pontiff has become very frail and his voice is barely audible, author Peter Seewald told German daily Passauer Neue Presse. However, German-born Benedict met with Mr Seewald on Saturday and appeared optimistic, adding that he might pick up writing again if he regains his strength, according to the paper. Benedict visited his native Bavaria in June to pay his ailing brother Reverend Georg Ratzinger a final visit. Mr Ratzinger, aged 96, died shortly afterwards. It was Benedict's first trip outside Italy since 2013, the year he resigned the papacy. The retired pope has lived in a monastery in Vatican City since shortly after his retirement. Elected to the papacy in 2005 to succeed St John Paul II, the former Joseph Ratzinger was the first pontiff in 600 years to resign the post. He was succeeded by Pope Francis . live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More It's a big moment for any airline, to have its first wide-body operation. Like SpiceJet did on August 1, when it operated a charter flight bringing back home 269 Indians from Amsterdam. The airline aggressively marketed the event on social media, right from July 28, claiming it to be the first Indian low-cost carrier to operate a wide-body aircraft. It got bytes from scores of passengers who took the flight, and even Venu Rajamony, Indias Ambassador to the Netherlands. "SpiceJet is showing both innovation and aggression in going after new opportunities, and there is money to be made in these repatriation flights, especially if they can carry passengers both ways," Sanjiv Kapoor, the former COO of SpiceJet, said on Twitter. But then, the airline was also lampooned for its claims, leading to debates on Twitter between industry veterans. Kapoor, who was also the chief strategy and commercial officer at Vistara, says that as much as it was innovative, the marketing was also 'misleading.' Many industry executives claimed that SpiceJet may not be right in claiming the flight as its own. "If the flight was indeed SpiceJet's, why didn't the airline sell the tickets on its own website," asks a senior industry executive. According to reports, SpiceJet had wet-leased an Airbus A330 aircraft from Hi Fly, a Portuguese charter airline, to operate the flight. Industry regulator DGCA defines a wet lease as thus: A lease arrangement whereby a lessor provides an aircraft with entire crew to the lessee for a specified period or a defined number of flights. It's not just the aircraft and the crew. In most cases, a wet lease also comes with maintenance and insurance provided by the lessor. The lessee, or the airline, mostly spends just on fuel and gives pilots and the crew a daily allowance and accommodation. In a dry lease, on the other hand, the airline just gets the aircraft, and brings in everything else. What got the industry talk going was that the flight carried not SpiceJet's, but Hi Fly's code, a unique alphanumeric arrangement that each airline has. Hi Fly has two codes, each given by IATA - the industry organisation that represents airlines - and ICAO, a United Nations agency that influences aviation rules and regulations. Hi Fly's codes are 5K and HFY. SpiceJet's is SG. Moneycontrol asked SpiceJet the same. The airline replied with a detailed explanation: SpiceJet has applied for an A330 wet lease approval with the concerned authorities. While approvals from various departments, including security clearances, take time and follow the due process, there was a pressing need to repatriate a large number of Indians stranded in Amsterdam. Hence, a marketing arrangement was worked out to operate this flight. "SpiceJet negotiated with the lessor and arranged for the aircraft, coordinated with the local authorities in Amsterdam and Schiphol airport and the Indian community in Amsterdam and Indians residing in neighbouring European countries who wanted to come back home, got all the required flight permissions from Indian and Amsterdam authorities, arranged for grounding handling, on-board catering etc. "In short, there was an urgent requirement to bring our fellow citizen back home and SpiceJet stepped in to help, took the lead, coordinated with all stakeholders and ensured a seamless operation. We are pleased that with this charter flight we played a key role in getting our fellow Indians back home. The explanation tallies with what DGCA officials told Moneycontrol: "SpiceJet was given just in-principle approval to import the aircraft on wet lease. It is not permitted to operate the flight on SpiceJets code till the time it is imported and technical evaluations is done by DAW (DGCA's Airworthiness Directorate) and FSD (Flight Standards Directorate) before endorsement done on SpiceJet's AOC. Therefore, repatriation flight from Amsterdam couldn't have used SpiceJet code." That is right. SpiceJet is still in the process of getting the approvals for a wet lease. And industry officials concur that getting a wet lease approved can be a long drawn process. The Amsterdam-Bengaluru flight was more like a flight for which, apart from doing everything that it explained above, SpiceJet got the rights to market as its own. It's a practice that is common in the aviation world. "Delta Air Line, the American carrier, does it everyday," says a senior industry executive. The executive points out that the Amsterdam flight did carry a SG code on its domestic leg. From Bengaluru, the aircraft flew to Hyderabad. One more thing. When SpiceJet does get the approvals for its wet lease, it will be interesting to see how the airline uses the aircraft. And that is because a wet lease is about 40 percent more expensive than a dry lease, says an industry consultant. An expensive proposition, when one looks at the airline's financial condition. Under half (45%) of people in England report having a "broad understanding" of the current lockdown rules, compared to 90% across the UK during the strict lockdown period, finds UCL's COVID-19 Social Study. Levels in Scotland and Wales have also fallen but are higher than those in England, with reported levels of understanding at 75% and 61% respectively. Complete understanding has fallen even further, with only 14% of adults in England reporting understanding the rules completely as lockdown eased, compared to 18% in Wales and 27% in Scotland. Launched in the week before lockdown started, this ongoing study is funded by the Nuffield Foundation with additional support from Wellcome and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). It is the UK's largest study into how adults are feeling about the lockdown, government advice and overall wellbeing and mental health with over 70,000 participants who have been followed across the last 19 weeks. Access to healthcare has also fallen during the lockdown, with one in 10 people across the UK reporting being unable to see or speak with a GP about their physical health, one in 20 unable to speak to a professional about their mental health, and one in five not telling a GP about symptoms of an illness when they usually would have done (even when appointments to see GPs were available). Groups who faced the most barriers included younger adults, women, individuals from BAME backgrounds, and people with physical and mental health conditions. People with a diagnosed mental health condition were significantly more likely to have not spoken to a mental health professional when they usually would have done, with a fifth reported not being able to access professional mental health support during lockdown. Lead author, Dr. Daisy Fancourt (UCL Epidemiology & Health Care) said: "Our study shows that as lockdown measures have eased at different rates in each nation of the UK, levels of understanding around what is and isn't permissible have dropped, especially amongst younger adults. This could possibly reflect difficulties in applying the rules to more complex life scenarios amongst younger adults, or may be reflective of the different amounts of time spent following the news on COVID-19 amongst different age groups. The general drop-off in understanding could be due to unclear messaging from the government, or a reduction in interest and engagement from people, especially with the cessation of the daily Downing Street coronavirus briefing in late June." Depression and anxiety levels, life satisfaction, and happiness have all shown improvements across every socio-demographic subgroup examined, and loneliness levels have also decreased further, showing the first clear pattern of decrease in 19 weeks. However there has been little change in people reporting major or minor stress due to catching COVID-19, unemployment, finance, or getting food. Cheryl Lloyd, education program head at the Nuffield Foundation said: "With concerns growing over a second wave of COVID-19 it is concerning that many people in England report not understanding the current government guidance. As another Nuffield-funded study by the Reuters Institute has shown, people are less likely to access news about COVID-19 on a daily basis now that lockdown has eased. With the rules changing regularly, this may be a factor in the public not understanding the government guidance." The study team has also received support from Wellcome to launch an international network of longitudinal studies called the COVID-MINDS Network. Through the network, dozens of scientists and clinicians are coming together internationally to collate results from mental health studies running in countries around the world and compare findings. The initiative will support launching new mental health studies in other countries and show whether actions taken in specific countries are helping to protect mental health. Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak Cavanaugh said her proposal wasnt a feel-good bill but an important change that clarifies state job discrimination laws. It wont prevent an employer from adopting grooming standards, she said, but will allow someone whose hair texture or style is related to their race to use that to contest their firing, if they were being treated differently from other employees. In the end, she received 34 votes more than enough for passage to return the bill to second-round debate for amendments suggested by the Nebraska Attorney Generals Office as well as some colleagues. Final OK State lawmakers gave final approval to several bills before adjourning Monday, including: LB 1080, which requires schools to adopt policies that prohibit grooming of current or recent student for a sexual relationship by a teacher or school staff member. Such grooming would be prohibited for a year after a student left school. The bill grew out of a series of stories by The World-Herald. ATLANTA, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Vyne, a recognized market leader in health information exchange and electronic healthcare communication management, announced today a rebrand of its dental business. The Vyne Dental brand reflects the company's evolution into a complete revenue cycle management solutions provider. Vyne has historically served the dental market with its industry stalwart brand NEA, providing the HITRUST CSF Certified FastAttach solution and the Vyne Connect encrypted email platform. These products connect dental practice offices to hundreds of dental plans and payers nationwide. In 2019, Vyne was acquired by The Jordan Company, a middle-market private equity firm, initiating the company's evaluation of growth opportunities. Less than a year later, Vyne made a strategic investment in Renaissance Electronic Services, LLC, an Indianapolis-based technology company providing EDI products and services to dental practices across the country. The rebrand to Vyne Dental allows dental practices to partner with a single vendor for fully electronic management of dental claims, claim attachments, and encrypted email. Eliminating manual, disconnected processes and ensuring data continuity helps empower dental professionals to make processing claims easy, grow their businesses with predictable revenue, and work confidently in an ever-changing industry. The product portfolio under Vyne Dental includes Remote Lite claims processing, FastAttach electronic claims attachments, and Vyne Connect encrypted email. The company's website, logo, graphics, and communications have been updated in support of the rebrand. These Vyne Dental brand assets, along with a new website and messaging, convey the value of the integrated platform in a straightforward manner, with a focus on solving key problems today's practices face. "The Vyne Dental rebrand signifies the integration of the NEA and Renaissance Electronic Services brands into one that allows us to serve dental practices with a complete electronic revenue cycle management solution," said Vyne Dental president Robert Patrick. "Our platform helps eliminate manual, disconnected processes and data to simplify claims processing, attachments, and secure messages, which is essential to the success of today's dental practices." For more information on Vyne Dental, visit vynedental.com. About Vyne Vyne is a recognized industry leader in end-to-end health information exchange and electronic healthcare communication management. The company's robust technology platform facilitates the electronic capture, storage and submission of healthcare data in virtually any form voice, document, image, data, fax or electronic interface. Vyne's proven solutions connect disconnected data to close gaps in documentation and improve the continuum of care through a more complete and fully accessible patient record. For more information, visit vynecorp.com. 2020 Napa EA/MEDX, LLC. All rights reserved. Vyne logos, product and service names, including but not limited to, FastAttach mentioned herein are registered trademarks and are the property of Electronic Attachment, Inc., or their respective affiliated entities. All third-party trademarks and tradenames (including logos and icons) referenced are and remain the property of their respective owners. Press Contact: Scott E. Rupp 941-794-5137 https://millerrupp.com/ SOURCE Vyne Related Links http://vynedental.com Photo taken on May 29, 2020 shows the live broadcast of U.S. President Donald Trump speaking at a press conference at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States. (Xinhua/Liu Jie) A lot of questions have been raised lately about the US-China relations. Why are they at one of the "darkest hours"? How did they get here? By taking a closer look, one can find that the Trump administration has stepped up a B.L.A.M.E. game against China across the political spectrum, trumpeting a policy that is belligerent, lawless, arrogant, tainted with McCarthyism, and aiming for reelection. B for Belligerence The Trump administration is using an increasingly hostile tone against China. The State Department recently issued a statement on the South China Sea, abandoning its neutrality on the issue for the first time, and openly supported India's regional ambitions. The administration is now flexing military muscle at China's doorstep. In early July, two US Navy aircraft carriers were deployed in the South China Sea, and US surveillance aircraft entered the area at least 7 times within the second half of the month. The US is the real trouble-maker in the region, dangerously provoking hostile confrontation. L for Lawlessness The US ordered the abrupt closure of the Chinese consulate in Houston and broke into the premises in broad daylight. These unilateral actions are a flagrant violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, which obligates the US to facilitate or assist the sending state to acquire premises necessary for its mission. The administration also cares nothing about the fact that the premises are the Chinese government's property and should enjoy lawful protection under the US Constitution. It's sarcastic that those unlawful actions happen in a nation proud of its rule of law. A for Arrogance As COVID-19 rages across America, the rest of the world wonders how it has responded far worse than all the other major countries around the globe, and wasted every opportunity to defeat the virus. Former president Obama called the US handling of the pandemic "an absolute chaotic disaster". Trump seems too arrogant to admit this. He made up various false accusations against China and even called COVID-19 "Chinese virus", which have been widely confronted: The WHO has been warning against politicizing the pandemic; Recent Lancet editorial pointed out that scapegoating China is not constructive. M for McCarthyism US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo File photo: Xinhua Secretary Pompeo's recent speech at the Nixon Library illustrates the long shadow of McCarthyism to the full, an anti-Communism hysteria featuring wide investigations and baseless prosecutions. He intends to stir the Red Scare against the Chinese Communist Party, but fails to comprehend why a Harvard University survey has found lately that Chinese citizens' satisfaction with government is increasing virtually across the board. He delivered a rhetoric reminiscent of the Cold War, while no one would ever want to return to an era when international tension and hostility spilled into domestic arena. E for Election It is said that all politics is local in America. The Trump administration is obsessed with China only because it aims at reelection in November and thus pursues the B.L.A.M.E. policy for that purpose. The administration is under heavy fire for its handling of America's 3D disaster: disease, depression and demonstration. The US is leading the world in the numbers of COVID-19 confirmed cases and deaths, lagging behind China and Europe on economic recovery, while facing domestic unrest due to public resentment against police brutality and systematic racism. It is self-evident that the Blame China Game registers higher and higher on the Trump-o-meter only because Trump has failed the American people in so many ways that it seeks in a desperate attempt to shift the blame and to rally his base with a tough stance against China. A Policy Doomed to Failure It turns out that this B.L.A.M.E. policy doesn't work well as intended. A recent AP-NORC poll finds that 80% of Americans believe the country is headed in the wrong direction, an all-time high in its surveys. Let's hope this blame game will end in due time so that the US-China relations can head back to correct tracks and the world can regain its certainty, stability and prosperity. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 20:45:29|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks at a joint press conference with Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein (not in the picture) in Baghdad, Iraq, on July 19, 2020. (Xinhua) Foreign ministers of Iran and the United Arab Emirates agree to strengthen bilateral ties and reinforce cooperation amid the COVID-19 pandemic. TEHRAN, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif stressed the need to strengthen bilateral ties with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Press TV reported on Monday. Zarif said in a video conference with his UAE counterpart Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Sunday that "others may take advantage of the current situation to destabilize the region, but we (Iran and the UAE), as two neighbors, should think about regional stability." The COVID-19 pandemic was one of the subjects discussed, said Zarif, warning about "tough challenges and tougher choices ahead" for the Gulf region. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates, speaks at the UN headquarters in New York on Sept. 27, 2014. (Xinhua) For his part, the UAE minister highlighted the importance of reinforcing bilateral cooperation and holding regular consultations to "turn challenges into opportunities." The two officials also talked about collaboration on issues of common interests and regional developments, and expressed readiness to expand ties in different fields to advance those interests. Later in the day, Zarif assessed the talk as "a very substantive, frank and friendly video conversation" on Twitter. RICARDO B. BRAZZIELL, MBR / TNS Gov. Greg Abbott finally tried to offer clarity on when and how Texas schools may reopen in the fall in a letter released on Friday. In the letter, which was jointly issued by the governor, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and chairs of the legislatures education committees, Abbott said school boards are allowed to push back the 2020-21 start date past September. Theyre also allowed to start the school year with in-person instruction, distance-learning or a combination of both but can only do so for up to eight weeks, Abbott said. This is in line with previous guidance issued by the Texas Education Agency. I was (am) a teacher. Teaching has never been merely a job for me. It has been a part of my life, indeed it is the life itself. Let me tell you why. Students, for a teacher, are like children of her/him. A teacher dreams a future together with his students and then builds the path to those dreams together with them. Yet; my job, teaching, was taken away from me after I spent 15 years of my life with my students. My teaching license was canceled. You must be wondering why. You must be asking what crime I committed so they punished me. Believe or not, the only reason was that I was a dissident of the government. I was working in an educational institution which was shut down along with thousands of others. I am talking about the government in Turkey and the dire human rights violations conducted by them. However, the rest of this piece will not be about them. I want to tell you how losing all these impacted me, my life, my feelings, my motivation, my goals. As I mentioned earlier, teaching is not only a job, it is a life that I love to live in. When my daughter was in pre-K she participated in a discussion about professions. Her teacher asked all the kids about their parents jobs and what they did within those professions. My lovely daughters response was amusing. She told that her Mum is a teacher and a teacher loves her students more than her own kids. She told so because her Mum was spending not only daytime with students but also some nights at the dorm so that she could be more help with their lessons and even with problems in their lives. I passionately wanted my students, namely my girls (it was a school for only girls), to be powerful women in the future. Of course, various obstacles interfered with studying and working in a society in which women were partially, or sometimes completely, denied their free will. The will to resist and put up a fight was an inseparable part of me so that my students would get what they dream and what they deserve in the future. My vehement faith in the future success of my students, in the potential that they had to represent the women of my country and to better the situation of the future of women in Turkey motivated me to combat the stigmas of the region. Of course, this type of insistence occasionally meant taking risks. Yet, those risks never prevented me from the journey that I set out with my students. Nevertheless, a 15-year-life of teaching, a 15-year-part of my life was defied by my own countrys government just because they did not like the idea of being opposed. They targeted dissidents and found scapegoats to distract the people of Turkey so that a huge corruption was covered not to be probed. Not only teachers but also academics, journalists, judges, lawyers, doctors, housewives, businesspeople from different segments of the society were accused of unreasonable, arbitrary crimes. Half a million people have been investigated, hundreds of thousands of people have been jailed including pregnant women and mothers with babies. As a matter of fact I am among the lucky people that I could leave the country and settled in the USA. Now, I can advocate for those persecuted people, I can be a voice for the voiceless people in Turkey as both an academic and an activist. Of course, I miss teaching. There is not a single day that I do not think my students. I miss them a lot. But I do not let this feeling upset or demotivate me. On the contrary, each and every day I wake up, I think about all these and I remind myself what I must do for the rights of the people in Turkey, for the future of them, for women, for youth. As I said, teaching is not just a job, it is the life itself and wherever you are, in what circumstances you are you can always teach. I am committed to teach my daughters and the young people I mentor to be good people, to better the world, to respect, to fight for the good. Hafza Girdap is Executive Director and spokesperson, Advocates of Silenced Turkey. Gusinsky creditors' $109M claim against VGTRK and NTV to be heard on August 4 RAPSI 14:45 03/08/2020 MOSCOW, August 3 (RAPSI) The Moscow Commercial Court is to hear an 8 billion-ruble (about $109 million) claim of creditors of a company owned by ex-media tycoon Vladimir Gusinsky against All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company (VGTRK) and NTV TV company over broadcasts of several TV series, lawyer Timur Askhadulin representing interests of Panorama studios has told RAPSI. The court is to rule on the claims to return to Forward Film company the rights the lawyer alleges were withdrawn from it at a price twice below the market; moreover, even that money has not been paid in full, according to Askhadulin. The respondents are also to pay for the broadcasts of police television dramas they carried out to the lawful copyright holder; after that the media companies are to deal with Gusinsky on their own, the lawyer says. Gusinskys creditors allege that the deals on the transfer of exclusive copyright for the said series are to be ruled null and void, and those rights are to be returned to the bankruptcy estate of Forward Film; the insolvency case of the company is currently heard by the same Moscow Commercial Court. Earlier, the lawyer has said that Panorama studios filed several claims seeking to annul deals made by the debtor and their respective consequences in the Forward Film bankruptcy case. The respondents, according to Askhadulin, are Swiss company New Century Distribution GmbH and two Russian media companies; co-respondents are VGTRK, NTV, and Russias Ministry of Culture. Pakistan has played an important role in defusing tensions between arch-foes Saudi Arabia and Iran, Prime Minister Imran Khan has told Al Jazeera in an exclusive interview, saying his country prevented a military escalation from taking place in the volatile region. Khan said in the interview due to be broadcast on Wednesday that a military confrontation between the two regional powers constituted the worst possible scenario for the Middle East, adding that, despite the slow pace of results, Islamabads mediation efforts were continuing. Our mediation between Iran and Saudi Arabia has not stopped and we are making progress but slowly, Khan told Al Jazeera. We have done our best to avoid a military confrontation between Iran and Saudi Arabia, and our efforts have succeeded. Tensions have been rising between Riyadh and Tehran over myriad issues, including the war in Yemen where the kingdom is battling the Houthi rebel movement. Separately, Khan discussed his countrys long-standing dispute with neighbouring India and accused Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi of undermining the South Asian giants legacy of secularism. India fell under the control of an extremist ideology [propounded by] the RSS, Khan said, referring to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh organisation, to which Modi belongs and which critics accuse of fomenting anti-Muslim hatred. What Indias Muslims are facing resembles what happened during the extermination of Jews in Nazi Germany, he said. The organisation, whose origin dates back to the early 20th century and whose thinking is widely believed to underpin the ruling Bharatiya Janata Partys ideology, has long maintained that Hinduism is the basis of Indian nationalism. Khan, who assumed office in August 2018, said his country has exhausted all possible routes to peacefully resolve its dispute with its eastern neighbour but that economic interests ultimately prevented its efforts from bearing fruit. Khan also said Pakistan would maintain its neutral stance in the dispute between Saudi Arabia and Turkey [B.K. Bangash/AP Photo] On the issue of Kashmir, Khan said the Indian governments revocation of Article 370 in August 2019 turned the disputed region into an open-air prison. Article 370 was the basis of Kashmirs accession to the Indian union at a time when erstwhile princely states had the choice to join either India or Pakistan after their independence from British rule in 1947. The article, which came into effect in 1949, granted Indian-administered Kashmir special status, with the Muslim-majority region given jurisdiction to make its own laws in all matters except finance, defence, foreign affairs and communications. But many of those powers were gradually watered down by New Delhi. Within a year, Kashmir has been closed off and its economy destroyed, Khan said. Eight-hundred thousand Indian troops have imposed an open air-prison on Kashmiris. Khan also said Pakistan would maintain its neutral stance in the dispute between Saudi Arabia and Turkey, whose relationship has soured following the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the kingdoms consulate in Istanbul in October 2018. Asked about his absence from a Muslim summit held in Malaysia last year, Khan said he decided to not attend the meeting in order to preserve unity among Muslims, insisting that Islamabad viewed both Ankara and Riyadh which boycotted the event as reliable partners in several fields. Nasa Nasa astronauts have dropped into the sea after a pioneering SpaceX mission to the International Space Station. Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley became the first American astronauts to splashdown in 45 years when they landed in the capsule made by Elon Musk's space firm. The arrival in the Gulf of Mexico after having blazed through Earth's atmosphere, and being carried safely down by parachutes brought an end to a mission that is set to change space travel in the US. The mission began at the end of May, when the two astronauts took part in the first launch of astronauts from US soil in nearly a decade. The successful finish to the mission means that SpaceX's Dragon capsule in which the astronauts were carried up to space, docked with the ISS, and then safely came back down has passed the last of its tests, and will now go into regular use flying astronauts. "Thanks for flying @SpaceX." Current Location: Planet Earth A 2:48pm ET, @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug splashed down, marking the first splashdown of an American crew spacecraft in 45 years. #LaunchAmerica pic.twitter.com/zO3KlNwxU3 NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 "On behalf of the SpaceX and NASA teams, welcome back to Planet Earth. Thanks for flying SpaceX," SpaceX mission control said upon splashdown. For the return sequence, on-board thrusters and two sets of parachutes worked autonomously to slow the acorn-shaped capsule, bringing Behnken and Hurley's speed of 17,500 miles per hour in orbit down to 350 mph upon atmospheric reentry, and eventually 15 mph at splashdown. Story continues During reentry to Earth's atmosphere, the capsule's outer shell withstood temperatures as high as 3,500 Fahrenheit while Behnken and Hurley, wearing SpaceX's white flight suits strapped inside the cabin, experienced 85 Fahrenheit. The crew will spend up to an hour floating inside the capsule before joint recovery teams from SpaceX and NASA retrieve them for a helicopter trip ashore. There the duo will undergo medical checks ahead of a flight to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk's SpaceX became the first private company to send humans to orbit with the launch of Behnken and Hurley, who will have spent more than two months on the space station upon returning. The landmark mission, launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center on May 31, marked the first time the U.S. space agency launched humans from American soil since its shuttle program retired in 2011. Since then the United States has relied on Russia's space program to launch its astronauts to the space station. The last time an American crew splashed down into the ocean was in 1975, during an Apollo mission. Since then, astronauts have always landed on dry land. Additional reporting by agencies Read more Nasa launches mission to Mars in search of alien life By Express News Service VISAKHAPATNAM:The Visakha Institute of Medical Sciences (VIMS), which has been designated as a State Covid hospital, is plagued with a severe staff crunch. Just four nurses per shift take care of each block, which houses about 120 patients. The hospital has been catering to critical cases from four districts Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam and East Godavari, and presently has 390 patients and 540 beds with the needed infrastructure. However, the shortage of staff has been a cause for concern. There is an acute shortage of staff, but more cases are still being admitted, VIMS director Dr S Varaprasad told TNIE on Sunday, after videos emerged in which patients alleged they were not given proper care. Four nurses in a shift have to look after 120 patients. There are 10 doctors, who work in three shifts, and we are doing our best with the available staff, Dr Varaprasad said. He, however, did not elaborate on the exact number of nursing staff allocated to the institute. Reacting to a video that showed a woman in one of the wards lying unattended on the floor, the director said the doctors were doing all they can for the patients, despite the threat of Covid-19. He said the woman in the video fell down while returning from the washroom on Saturday night, and the staff soon attended to her, but before that, the other patients shot a video and sent it to the media. In a release issued later, the director said the woman is in the ICU and is in a stable condition. Stating that the government is providing quality medical care free of cost to all Covid-19 patients, the director said any complaints or grievances can be lodged with 104, which is monitored at the state level, or lodge complaints with the district control room (0891-2501255/56/57). In a video circulated online, patients complained that the medical services at the hospital were inadequate and many of them were facing severe hardships. They alleged doctors were not available even for emergencies. One patient died as there was no one to help despite the patients repeated cries for help. More than fear of the virus, it is the poor services at the hospital that is a cause for concern, they complained. One of the patients, in the video, said the sanitary condition at the hospital is poor, and there is a stench all around. The patients also said they were not given bed sheets, and the beds are not sanitised after a patient dies or gets discharged. The condition of the patients is pathetic, though the hospital has all the needed facilities and infrastructure. There are no doctors or nurses to attend to patients after 10 pm. It would be helpful if we were at least given a helpline to call for assistance in case of an emergency, the patient said. Meanwhile Visakhapatnam district collector V Vinay Chand clarified that a total of 100 nurses were deployed to VIMS for all shifts. Further recruitment of 213 nurses will be completed in a day and there would not be any shortage of nurses to take care of the patients at the hospital, he said. LO Jobs; Fraud, Retention, Legal Products; August Training and Events Remember a month ago, heading into the July 4th weekend, a resurgence of Covid-19 cases (which many officials attributed to large Memorial Day gatherings) resulted in mask-wearing mandates as well as rollbacks and delays in phased reopening plans. (Speaking of the virus, we wish loanDepots Anthony Hsieh a continued welcomed recovery from its impact.) Economic data has sure been a mix of positive and negative, with sentiment based on news of the virus. Potential new setbacks weighed on analysts outlooks for the coming months as economic activity is seen slowing again in the states with the highest new cases. It remains to be seen whether the V-shaped recovery will turn into a W-shaped recovery, or perhaps a sawtooth pattern. Recall that the minutes from the June 9-10 FOMC meeting showed Fed officials thought it necessary to keep monetary policy very accommodative until a full recovery is observed. Even more so given the high degree of uncertainty surrounding the risks posed by reopening and increasing coronavirus cases in many parts of the county. And by the way, be careful on Zoom calls. (Warning: rated R.) Broker and Lender Products Polunsky Beitel Green, LLP, Texas oldest law firm specializing in residential mortgage lending, is pleased to announce that Claire Barber has joined the firm as an associate attorney in the Houston office. In her new role, Barber will be responsible for representing and advising the firms clients on residential mortgage originations and providing practical guidance on industry regulatory matters. Barber will assume a leadership role in the Houston office, where she will further solidify the firms commitment to providing exemplary legal services to clients nationwide. We are proud to add Claire to our recognized team, as few attorneys in the mortgage industry possess her level of knowledge of origination and regulatory issues, said Polunsky Beitel Green founder Allan Polunsky. I am confident our firm and our clients will benefit tremendously from her skills and experience. Barber received her law degree from South Texas College of Law and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Baylor University. Email Claire here. Mortgage elephant in the room: Are your current customers STILL leaving to the competition? Ok, lender executive - this is for you: Whats the fastest and most predictable way to increase your sales BEYOND the current market? If you said BORROWER RETENTION, you are 100% correct. Your solution: The Attention to Retention Challenge. Starting August 17th, were sharing our expert secrets, and handing over the playbook on how to TRIPLE your retention rate without maxing out your overhead! Plus over $9,000 in bonuses. People are calling us crazy, and we might just be. In this EXCLUSIVE event, we are walking you through our proprietary process, and teaching you how to fish for yourself! Lender executives, were limited to 30 sign ups. Register now: www.salesboomerang.com/challenge. (Current customers need not register we got your back! Ask your CSM for details.) FundingShield CEO Ike Suri shared its Q2-2020 analytics. The risk of wire and title fraud in the closing and settlement space continues to grow due to fast moving changes in closing practices, work-from-home, and more due to COVID-19. Comparing Q1 vs Q2, 2020, we saw an alarming increase in fraud/risk exposure in CPL errors/issues of nearly 50%, 530% increase in CPL/Agent validation errors with title insurers, and nearly 135% increase in state licensing issues. Market vulnerabilities have aided fraudsters. Fundingshield helps prevent, identify and resolve these inefficiencies, threats and exposures in a timely manner so lenders can run their businesses without interruptions, reputational nightmares and/or losses. Fundingshields MISMO Certified inTech B2B & B2B2C solutions deliver transaction level coverage against wire & title fraud, settlement risk, closing agent compliance & cyber threats while reducing operating costs and improving asset quality. FundingShields user-centric plugnplay tools are scalable, pay-per-loan, secure, cloud-based and are integrated via APIS or LOS (Encompass) driving ROIs >200%. Housingwire TECH100 Winner for 2019 & 2020; contact Sales@Fundingshield.com. Events in August The California MBAs Mortgage Innovators Conference promises to be the cutting edge event for lenders looking for the perfect technology partners to enhance their business. Lenders can attend free (register, and your fees are refunded when you engage within the virtual platform) and anyone who registered by Friday, July 31st was entered to win a $500 Amazon gift card! FAMC Wholesales August 2020 Wholesale Customer Training Calendar offers a variety of training opportunities such as: Analyzing Appraisals, Faster Closings, Alert Latest Fraud and Scam Updates and Customer Experience & The Home Buying Journey, with Cultural Outreach. Genworth Mortgage Insurance provides complimentary webinar courses to help customers manage, protect, and grow their business, delivering you-centric solutions that matter. Stay informed on Industry Guidelines & Updates and ramp up staff New to the Industry. Check out our new tools created as a result of GSE guideline changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic and August webinars including Managing Your Pipeline, and the Latest Fraud and Scam Updates. View the full August Training Calendar here. Join Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC for a free webinar tomorrow, August 4th that'll give you basic training (or a refresher) on how to get and close more VA purchase, refinance and cash-out loans with Carrington, one of the nations top lenders for Veterans. There is still time to register for Arch MIs Housing Update Webinar on Wednesday, August 5th presented by Archs Global Chief Economist and HaMMR author, Dr. Ralph DeFranco. Register for CoAMPs August 12th Virtual Class: Wire Fraud and Cyber Crime with Peggy Pingel. The Michigan Mortgage Lenders Association Virtual Lending Conference is on August 13. Speakers include Bob Broeksmit, Christine Beckwith, Ben Anderson, Steve Richman, and Ginger Bell. Here is the event website, here is a demo on what a virtual conference will look like. The Mortgage Innovators Conference 2020 (August 17-18) will be the most engaging, immersive, and VALUE-PACKED virtual mortgage conference youll attend this year! In addition to exciting product demos and unique opportunities to network with mortgage industry pros from across the nation, youll also find new ways to build deeper connections with your borrowers, thanks to interactive topic-focused discussions on issues important to you. Registration is open, lenders can attend FREE (see site for details), and the first 500 attendees will receive a Conference Experience Kit! IMN's Single Family Rental Virtual Forum, taking place on August 18-19 is a full-fledged virtual event with 25+ panel sessions, an exhibit hall, networking/online chatting, and meeting rooms. Projecting 2,000+ guests including a whos who of the sector, sponsors and attendees will be able to network and schedule meetings with each other over the course of the two days. Calyx announced that New York Times Best Selling author, tech entrepreneur & business guru Josh Linkner will be the keynote speaker at the upcoming Calyx Vision 2020 virtual user conference. Linkners live presentation, Big Little Breakthroughs: How Small Everyday Innovations Drive Oversized Results, will stream on Tuesday, August 18, from 11am - 12pm CT. His session will explore the power of inventive thinking and creative problem solving in day-to-day situations and will provide attendees with fresh perspective, inspiration, practical tools, and actionable advice that can be quickly and easily implemented at all levels. Dont miss out, register today! From Maryland comes MMBBA upcoming events: Learn 3 Tangible Tips for Mortgage Marketing Digital and Traditional on August 12th with the author of TAG!, Matt Muscat. Register for the August 20th Zoom Meeting to hear David Stevens share his views on COVID and the mortgage market. August 27th is the date for this years PAC To School event. Register for this Virtual Happy Hour, hosted by Dave Meurer to raise money for the MMBBA PAC. Capital Markets Markets digested a mixed bag of economic releases and news to close last week. There was the expected weak GDP data, a resurgence of coronavirus cases on the East Coast, positive earnings from Big Tech, but terrible losses in oil and gas and disagreement in Washington on stimulus. The result was not much movement for MBS and Treasuries by Fridays end; the yield curve steepened, but the 10-year ended unchanged from its opening level. Aside from Q2 GDP contracting at its worst rate in decades, PCE Personal income declined more than expected in June, and Mays figure was revised downward. Personal spending increased, but not as much as expected and the PCE Price Index and core-PCE Price Index came in as expected. The report showed any minimal gain in wages and salaries due to the economy reopening were not enough to offset the decline in personal current transfer receipts, which that imbalance would only worsen without further government assistance. (Speaking of government assistance, Democrats and Republicans couldnt reach agreement by the weekend on the new stimulus package. If the $600-a-week supplemental benefits lapse for the roughly 30 million unemployed Americans on government assistance, that is roughly $72 billion per month in lost income. Not only would that impact August income figures, but it would eventually hit as a large decline to consumer spending. Interestingly, a Congressional Budget Office report found that the generous supplemental benefit was impeding a swifter labor market recovery, as people would spend if they found new work, but there is little incentive to with the supplemental benefit.) On Friday we also learned from the final July reading for the University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment that the Expectations Index (which dictates spending) fell back to a six-year low, and a July Chicago PMI well above expectations and back into expansionary territory. It was worse in Europe, where GDP figures from several leading economies were bad as the coronavirus has sent that economy into a recession. At home, the most recent data hint that the summers resurgence in COVID cases may have peaked. The seven-day moving average of new cases has fallen nearly 40 percent in Arizona over the past three weeks, 19 percent over the past two weeks in Texas and 14 percent in Florida over the past two weeks. On the flip side, New Jerseys coronavirus transmission rate jumped and Florida just broke another daily record for deaths The U.S. has pledged up to $2.1 billion for a Sanofi, Glaxo vaccine. This first week of Augusts calendar is highlighted by Fridays July employment report but has numerous first tier releases before then. The calendar kicks off later this morning with final July Markit manufacturing PMI and June construction spending. Fedspeak also resumes with St. Louis Bullard, Richmonds Barkin, and Chicagos Evans all offering public remarks today, while the RBA and BoE will be out with their latest monetary policy decisions on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively. Tomorrow sees just the sole release of June Factory Orders before things pick up Wednesday with the Weekly MBA Mortgage Index, the July ADP Employment Change and Junes Trade Balance. Thursday brings jobless claims and the ISM Non-Manufacturing Index, before the week closes with July payrolls, as well as June Wholesale Inventories and June Consumer Credit. With regards to MBS and in addition to daily averages of $4.8 billion in Fed support, which should flip to September settle, July prepayments will be released after the close on Thursday. The NY Fed Desk will conduct three FedTrade operations today, targeting up to $5 billion MBS starting with $753 million UMBS15 2 percent and 2.5 percent followed by $2.8 billion UMBS30 2 percent through 3 percent and $1.5 billion GNII 2 percent and 2.5 percent. We start August with Agency MBS prices down/worse slightly and the 10-year yielding .55 after closing last week at 0.54 percent. Employment Prime Choice Funding / PCF Wholesale is eagerly looking for a Compliance Officer, Underwriters, and Funders to join our winning team. These can be remote positions. Being an aggressively priced lender, we have the top comp plan and support. The company offers competitive compensation, outstanding benefits, great culture, and state-of-the-art technology. Please send your resume to Join Team PCF. Caliber Home Loans is recruiting top candidates in the mortgage industry for our Caliber Operations teams across all channels. We are offering enhanced sign-on bonuses and incentive plans for Underwriters, Processors and Closer/Funders. Looking to join a leader and make some serious money? We have approximately 500 open Operations positions available. If youre at the top of your game and have a passion for helping customers, we want to talk to you! Interested in one of our posted job opportunities? Please contact Jonathan Stanley for consideration. Interested in a sales opportunity at Caliber? Please Brian Miller for immediate consideration. Visit the Caliber Careers website for opportunities across the organization! What would you do with a $100,000 bonus? theLender has an amazing bonus opportunity for operations/fulfillment employees who are employed by theLender prior to December 31st, 2020. The bonus will be paid to ONE eligible employee who meets the requirements of the bonus program. Its that easy! And the good news is we are hiring across all departments! We currently have over 50 positions open and we want you to be part of our growing family. Send a confidential email to recruiting@theLender.com and come work for the very best in the industry. Click here for more information. AmeriCU, a division of Towne Mortgage, has been partnering with Credit Unions since 1993 to deliver outstanding mortgage experiences for their membership. What makes us unique is our direct relationship with our Credit Union (CU) partners. We are looking for experienced, bilingual loan officers who are custom service oriented in the Miami/Dade and Midwest territories. The ideal candidate is a self-sourced originator who has the ability to service partners as well as prospect new CU opportunities in Spanish & English. Would you like to join a thriving, competitive, and fun organization? Contact Ilene Lubin for Southeast region opportunities (Spanish speaking is a plus). Contact Erik Kelly for Midwest region opportunities. ESOPWHATS THAT? American Mortgage Network has the answers. Its not exactly a word you hear every day. Yet if you are an employee who wants to be heard in the company they work for, an ESOP is the way to go. An ESOP is an employee stock ownership plan that gives workers ownership interest in the company. Decisions are made by employees and they own the work they do. Its very different than just receiving stock options. American Mortgage Network is a perfect example. A year old, the company has been growing quickly. Today an AmNet team of 100 is on board to be part of a fast-growing corporate phenomenon. ESOPs are becoming more popular as an effective method of engagement and recruitment. Plus they offer job stability and help plan for retirement. There is no better strategy to improve performance. In todays economic environment, its a great way to address equality where everyone has a voice and shares in the success of a company. For more information, join us. The court also asked the man to give Rs 11,000 to the woman as part of a customary offering made by brothers to sisters on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan Indore: The Madhya Pradesh High Court has asked a married 26-year-old man, accused of molesting a woman, to get a ''rakhi'' tied by her on the day of Raksha Bandhan being celebrated on Monday. The court also asked the man to give Rs 11,000 to the woman as part of a customary offering made by brothers to sisters on the occasion and seek her blessings. The single bench of Justice Rohit Arya passed the order on 30 July while giving conditional bail to the accused, Vikram Bagri. In the order, the court said, "The applicant, along with his wife, shall visit the house of the complainant with rakhi thread/band on 3 August at 11 am with a box of sweets and request the complainant to tie the rakhi band to him with the promise to protect her to the best of his ability for all times to come." Bagri is accused of entering the 30-year-old woman's house in Ujjain, on 20 April, and was charged under section 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of the Indian Penal Code. "Bagri would tender Rs 11,000 to the complainant as a customary ritual usually offered by brothers to sisters on the occasion and shall also seek her blessings," the court said. Bagri has also been ordered to give Rs 5,000 to the complainant's son to buy clothes and sweets. The high court also directed Bagri to furnish personal bonds of Rs 50,000 and solvent surety of equal amount in the lower court for his release. NEWTOWN TOWNSHIP >> In the wake of several pedestrian fatalities, the Newtown Township Board of Supervisors is moving forward with a multi-pronged plan to improve safety along Sycamore Street, the townships downtown commercial corridor. At its Jan. 13 meeting, the board voted unanimously to follow the short term and long term recommendations of its traffic engineer, Derek Kennedy, who was... The coronavirus pandemic has allowed us to conduct an experiment on how government assistance is good for people and the economy. by Sonali Kolhatkar When Congress passed the CARES Act earlier this year, lawmakers gave some low-wage Americans who lost their jobs an income theyve been demanding for years: $600 a week, which works out to $15 an hour for a 40-hour workweek. Because the federal minimum wage is less than half that ratestuck there due to the intransigence of conservatives waging a class war against the poorthe coronavirus pandemic ironically gave the bottom rung of the American workforce a taste of what they could have had all along. So popular was this $600 in jobless benefits that even some Republicans who had voted against that provision in the CARES Act boasted about it to their constituents and failed to mention that like most of their GOP colleagues, they had initially opposed the provision. The main conservative argument against paying unemployed workers $600 a week is that employers who try to entice them back into the workforcewhether it is safe or notwill have to compete with the government payments. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said out loud, we dont want to make it more profitable to stay home than to go back to work. Think about that: the yearly salary equivalent of this supposedly generous benefit works out to just over $31,000 a year. If employers are unable to compete with such a low salary, there is something deeply wrong with our economy. In Los Angeles where I live, the amount does not even cover rent for a two-bedroom apartment. Still, so underpaid are American workers that the $600-a-week in benefits, in addition to the one-time stimulus checks of $1,200, buoyed the entire economy as people actually began spending the cash. By May of this year, spending was up by 8.2 percent after falling dramatically in the two months before. According to an Associated Press report in late June, The federal money has pumped nearly $20 billion a week into the economy and enabled many of the unemployed to stay afloat. According to one estimate, the benefits comprise 15 percent of all wages in the nation, and unemployed people are spending more than they did before the pandemic, while those who have jobs are spending less. At about the same time, spending by the richest Americans fell. Credit card use declined dramatically in the first half of the yeara trend that was directly attributed to the nations wealthiest people. Those businesses most dependent on selling pre-pandemic-era luxury goods and services to rich folks suffered the most. One study tracked the correlation, concluding that, Declines in high-income spending led to significant employment losses among low-income individuals working in the most affluent ZIP codes in the country. The broader conclusion from such a study is that the wages of the working poor are far too dependent on the luxury spending of the wealthiesta clear sign of the deep rot in the American economy as wealth and income inequality have continued to increase year after year. Had conservative lawmakers not stood in the way of increasing the federal minimum wage beyond $7.25 an hour, it is likely that the COVID-19 crisis would have had a lesser economic impact on the poorest Americans. Conservative talking points for years warned against an economic apocalypse resulting from a higher minimum wage, saying that corporations would cut jobsas if under the current status quo they are keeping on more workers than they actually need. Such notions have done deep damage to the economy. Perhaps what the economic elites are really terrified of is that Americans might get used to being paid at least $600 a week. White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow admitted that, Were paying people not to work. Its better than their salaries would get. Kudlow seems far more willing to give Americans one-time checks to entice them to return to their low-paying jobs rather than provide steady and relatively decent incomes for the long term. Kudlow and other wealthy elites have had an ever-increasing influence over the nations economic policy, and under Donald Trumps administration, that influence has deepened. Trump had justified his choices of various billionaires for top cabinet posts saying, I want people that made a fortune because now theyre negotiating with you. It should come as no surprise then that Trumps Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who is worth about $400 million, complained about jobless workers being overpaid. He said on Fox News, It wouldnt be fair to use taxpayer dollars to pay more people to sit home than they would get working and get a job. Mnuchin has no standing to defend taxpayers considering that he has sheltered his own income in offshore tax havens. In fact, Yale researchers found that the government assistance did not artificially depress employment rates and that it, neither encouraged layoffs during the pandemics onset nor deterred people from returning to work once businesses began reopening. What the relatively generous jobless benefits have done is to finally spark a national conversation about putting a floor on wages. Now that a portion of the workforce has experienced an income that amounts to $15 an hour, there will be a greater public appetite for boosting wages. Moreover, the pandemic has offered a chance for economists all over the world to study the effects of what has amounted to a large-scale experiment of the kind that proponents of a Universal Basic Income have wanted to conduct for years. Supporters of an economy based on consumerism ought to embrace the idea. If tax dollars ensure that the poorest Americans have a basic income, it is likely to stabilize consumer spending. Even some billionaires see value in the idea. Tilman Fertitta, a restaurateur and owner of the Houston Rockets, said, Youre going to see this economy go backwards when we cut out this $600 a week. One would imagine that President Trump, who has based his reelection strategy on a strong economy, would support such a policy. But the ideology that a basic income represents contradicts the relentless Republican attacks on government socialism. If the government were to rig the economy in favor of poor Americans instead of wealthy elites and corporations (as is now the case), it would open the door to popular programs such as Medicare for All, a Green New Deal, and of course an increase in the federal minimum wage. And that appears to be the biggest concern for the capitalist ideologues who are setting current policy. This article was produced by Economy for All, a project of the Independent Media Institute. Sonali Kolhatkar is the founder, host and executive producer of Rising Up With Sonali, a television and radio show that airs on Free Speech TV and Pacifica stations. But the bureau has largely disregarded one method it has to release inmates, a procedure that seems ideally suited for the coronavirus pandemic compassionate release. Part of bipartisan legislation passed in 2018, compassionate release was intended as a way to swiftly grant release to inmates who are terminally ill or for other extraordinary and compelling reasons. Yet even as it has released some prisoners to home confinement, the bureau routinely has opposed or not responded to requests for compassionate release. At least eight people have been reported dead and 21 were injured as a result of a massive vehicle pileup on a highway that was blamed on a forest fire in Brazil. Authorities in the southern state of Parana said the first accident on highway BR-277 occurred around 10:30pm Sunday when several cars stopped on the shoulder lane following a minor crash. A truck subsequently tried to avoid the vehicles and ran over four occupants, according to firefighters on the scene on the highway's 47-mile marker near the Rui Barbosa Avenue exit in the city of Sao Jose dos Pinhais. The collision sparked a chain reaction of crashes which involved 22 vehicles, including a police cruiser. Video uploaded to social media by motorists that drove by the deadly crash site showed several bodies lying on the ground. Authorities investigate the site of a tragic accident in Parana, Brazil, on Sunday night that left eight people dead and 21 injured. Firefighters confirmed that poor road visibility due to a fire on the side of the highway in Sao Jose dos Pinhais caused the massive pileup Witnesses said a truck (pictured) ran over four people that were standing next to a vehicle that had been involved in an earlier accident Authorities confirmed the accident was caused by poor visibility on the highway due to the level of smoke in the area after a roadside fire broke out. 'The fires on the edge of the highways, they can generate this type of situation on any highway in the state of Parana and Brazil,' Fire Brigade Colonel Samuel Prestes said. 'We are in a dry period. We have been warning this vehemently every day for the population to help us taking care of this situation. Our forest fire increased 78 per cent compared to last year.' Seven of the victims died at the accident scene and an eighth person was declared dead at Cajuru Hospital. The Institute of Forensic Medicine said the dead included five women and three men. Authorities in the southern Brazilian state of Parana have listed eight people dead, including five women, due to Sunday night's accident on a highway in the city of Sao Jose dos Pinhais Sunday night's tragic accident was caused by the poor driving conditions due to a roadside fire on a stretch of highway BR-277 in Sao Jose dos Pinhais, a city in the Brazilian southern state of Parana The tragic pileup involved 22 vehicles, including a truck and five motorcycles A police cruiser was one of 22 vehicles that were involved in Sunday night's tragic accident that left eight dead and 21 injured Leonardo Barros Castro told Brazilian news outlet Bem Parana that he was sitting in his vehicle with his hazard lights on when a number of vehicles crashed. 'I saw a motorcycle flying. They crashed because nobody was seeing anything because of the smoke,' Barros Castro said. 'We had to run out of the car in fear of death. It was a big scare.' Edson Antonio was with his family returning home and rear-ended a vehicle that was in front before another car slammed into his. 'I went down to see if they were all right in the other car, that's when the vehicles started to come and crash, Antonio told Bem Parana. 'I took the family and we ran out. It was a miracle that we were alive.' (HealthDay)Obesity is associated with an increased risk for intubation or death among hospitalized adults with COVID-19, with the association observed in adults younger than 65 years but not in older adults, according to a study published online July 29 in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Michaela R. Anderson, M.D., from the Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City, and colleagues examined whether obesity is associated with intubation or death, inflammation, cardiac injury, or fibrinolysis in COVID-19 in a retrospective cohort study. Data were included from 2,466 adults hospitalized with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection during a 45-day period. The researchers found that 22 percent of patients were intubated, 25 percent died, and 2 percent remained hospitalized during a median hospital length of stay of seven days. Patients with obesity had an increased risk for intubation or death compared with overweight patients, with the risk highest for class 3 obesity (hazard ratio, 1.6). The association was mainly seen for patients aged younger than 65 years and not in older patients. There was no association noted for body mass index with admission levels of biomarkers of inflammation, cardiac injury, or fibrinolysis. "Additional investigations should evaluate potential mechanisms linking obesity and respiratory failure in COVID-19, including the role of specific inflammatory cytokines, complement-mediated endothelial cell dysfunction and thrombosis, and chest wall mechanics," the authors write. Explore further COVID-19 death rate high for patients with thoracic cancer Copyright 2020 HealthDay. All rights reserved. On August 26, Vanessa Martinez will celebrate her 29th birthday in a hospital bed at the Gregorio Maranon hospital in Madrid. The scars of her tracheotomy are still visible, she can no longer see properly, and she has to relearn how to walk. Just a week ago they removed the tube they put in her bladder on April 22, when she was admitted into the intensive care unit (ICU) with Covid-19. She spent 69 days there. On June 29, Martinez was moved to a normal hospital ward, but she still has months of treatment ahead of her. Its one day after the next after the next, she says. I was irresponsible. Martinez never thought she would contract the coronavirus. Not even when a senior residence in Orpea de Algete, a municipality northeast of Madrid, called her in to work as a cleaner. She was later asked to be a nursing assistant. They told me that they needed people, that although I had no experience it was easy. I said yes despite the risk because I needed to work for my daughter, explains Martinez. Her eight-year-old girl Allison has Down syndrome and lives with her family back in Honduras. Martinez left that country in 2015 to work in Spain. The treatment for the medical complications [of Down syndrome] is very expensive, and I had no other choice. Vanessa Martinez will need months of rehab to be able to do everyday things like brush her hair or take a shower. Olmo Calvo The need to work and the belief that the Covid-19 wouldnt affect her were key factors. I wasnt careful. I was walking around without a mask. I was young, why would I get infected? And here I am, she says. Martinez was admitted into hospital on April 5, but she doesnt remember much about what happened. The day I arrived in a taxi to Gomez Ulla [hospital in Aluche], I had a fever and felt immensely tired. From there, I was taken in an ambulance to the Ifema field hospital. I dont remember anything more, she says. Leyre Perez, the infectious disease doctor who is treating her, helps with the dates: She was admitted into [Gregorio] Maranon hospital on April 17, they brought her here from Ifema because she was experiencing complications. She entered the ICU four days later and we brought her to a ward on June 29. It is one of the most serious and longest cases that the Gregorio Maranon hospital has treated. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the center has admitted 6,511 Covid-19 cases, 2,861 of them acute and 248 which were placed in intensive care. All serious cases require a long rehabilitation period. Perez explains that maintaining a patient asleep for such a long time requires strong sedation to relax all the muscles, and this leads to loss of muscle mass and many long-term health effects. The lungs are the worst affected, but the digestive and cardiovascular systems can also suffer, while nutritional deficiencies can affect organs like the eyes. And then there is the problem of recovering mobility. Vanessa Martinez will celebrate her 29th birthday at Gregorio Maranon hospital. Olmo Calvo When Martinez was placed in a normal hospital ward, she was no longer able to support the weight of her own head, which she now props up with a few pillows. She misses being able to have a shower. For three months, theyve been washing me with sponge baths, and until not long ago, I couldnt even go to the bathroom alone. They have been putting diapers on me Diapers, she says. Despite everything, Martinez manages a smile when Anabel Garcia, one of the nurses looking after her every day, appears at the door. Garcia says her job is to take care of Martinez by doing whatever it takes, and she admits it is not always an easy task. There have been very difficult phases, moments of anguish, because it is a very slow process. But it is also very gratifying when you see that they [patients] are making progress. She is making progress. Martinezs progress now largely depends on a room located on the ground floor of the hospital, which is tasked with rehabilitation. This area is one of eight specialties, including psychiatry, internal medicine and pulmonology, that make up the recovery program for Covid-19 patients who have been in intensive care. As well as Martinez, there are another 30 patients in the program. Olga Arroyo, is the head of the rehabilitation department, which covers physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy. She explains that Vanessa has neurological and neuropathic complications, as well as problems with the central nervous system, lack of balance, reflexes .... We have to reteach her all of that, taking into account the respiratory problems as well. The recovery period for these patients can be very long. Rehabilitation will easily take eight months, and there will still be health effects and they wont recover 100%, warns Arroyo. Vanessa Martinez has a tattoo with the message Life goes on. Olmo Calvo Ruben Juarez, one of the rehabilitation doctors, says the most important thing is to help patients how to relearn basic actions like sitting, standing, brushing their teeth, taking a shower and eating. They have to relearn how to do it, he explains while looking at Martinez as she tries to move her stiff feet using a walking frame. Martinezs physiotherapist, Cristina Munoz, holds her up. The specialist says her progress has been slow, but steps have been made: If she had strength in both arms she would already be able to comb her hair by herself, but at the moment only one arm can reach the head. The buttock is stronger and she is able to stand up by herself, although she still does not have enough strength in her pelvis and legs. Martinez cant maintain the effort for longer than 30 seconds. Its little by little, although I would like to run out of here right now. But I cant. I will have to go back to the room, she says, as she is eased back into the wheelchair. While they are placing her hands and feet in the chair, a tattoo is revealed on her left arm. It says: Life goes on. Martinez looks at the message and nods in agreement: And I am thankful for that. English version by Melissa Kitson. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will undergo further hospitalisation after a COVID-19 test conducted on the 9th day returned positive, health officials and a state minister said on Monday. Chouhan has been in Chirayu Medical College and Hospital in Bhopal since July 25 undergoing treatment for COVID-19. A health bulletin from Chirayu Hospital said, "CM's RT-PCR test for SARS-Cov-2 on 9th day was positive. His medical parameters are normal." MP Home Minister Narottam Mishra confirmed the development to reporters and said the CM will stay in hospital for now, adding that the state cabinet meeting scheduled for Tuesday would be a virtual one. Chouhan had tweeted on Sunday that he was healthy and not showing any symptoms of the infection, and had said he would be discharged if a sample collected for tests during the day returns negative. Chouhan also shared on Twitter a picture of a rakhi tied on him by nurse Saroj who is attending to him in the isolation ward. LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 3, 2020 / Cheapquotesautoinsurance.com (https://cheapquotesautoinsurance.com/) has launched a new blog post that presents several methods that can help seniors obtain cheaper car insurance rates. For more info and free quotes, please visit https://cheapquotesautoinsurance.com/5-useful-tips-for-the-seniors-looking-for-cheaper-car-insurance/. Age is one of the main factors used by car insurance companies in order to determine insurance premiums. Senior drivers are considered high-risk mostly based on their age or age-related conditions. For these reasons, seniors will pay much more on their insurance premiums. Senior that want to pay less on their insurance premiums should follow the next tips: Graduate a defensive driving course. Seniors that manage to graduate a defensive driving course will save a lot of money on car insurance. These diving courses are not expensive and seniors can take them in a classroom, or they can stream them online. Usually, these classes are specifically designed for seniors. Besides refreshing their driving skills, seniors will also lean how getting older and medication can affect their driving skills and how they can overcome age-related situations. Improve the safety of the vehicles. There is a huge market dedicated to various anti-theft devices. Ignition kill switches, alarms, steering wheel locks, and other devices will make a vehicle safer. But, before installing such a device, seniors should check if it's approved by their insurers. Drive a cheaper car. Seniors can save money on their insurance if they choose to insure a vehicle that is cheap and mass-produced. Slightly used SUV's, minivans, or crossovers that are already equipped with several safety features are among the cheapest cars to insure. Look for a UBI program. Usage-based insurance is getting more popular than ever. Seniors will only need a small telematics device that will be installed inside their vehicles. This device will record the driving behaviors of senior drivers. Based on how well they are driving, seniors can be eligible for cheaper insurance rates. Compare online quotes. Brokerage websites are the ideal places to do that. Seniors will only need to fill an online questionnaire with the correct data and get some quotes. 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CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing Company Person for contact Name: Gurgu C Phone Number: (818) 359-3898 Email: cgurgu@internetmarketingcompany.biz Website: https://cheapquotesautoinsurance.com/ SOURCE: Internet Marketing Company View source version on accesswire.com: https://www.accesswire.com/599993/How-To-Get-Better-Car-Insurance-Rates-For-Senior-Drivers The Sites fire has burned more than 500 acres in Colusa County, northwest of Sacramento. (Los Angeles Times) A wildfire that sprang up Sunday afternoon in Colusa County chewed through more than 500 acres as firefighters battled the blaze overnight. The Sites fire which started about 4:15 p.m. Sunday in the 3300 block of Sites Lodoga Road in Colusa County, roughly 80 miles northwest of Sacramento triggered evacuations in the area. But "crews made great progress working on containment lines overnight," and the blaze was 40% contained as of Monday morning after burning 540 acres, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. No structures have been damaged or destroyed, but 12 buildings are threatened by the blaze, officials said. "Today, crews will continue working to strengthen control lines," officials wrote in the latest incident update. Approximately 240 personnel are assigned to the fire. The cause remains under investigation, and evacuation orders remain in place around Sites Lodoga and Campground roads. The Sites fire is one of several blazing in California. The largest the Apple fire has burned 26,450 acres and forced significant evacuations in the Inland Empire. That fire was only 5% contained as of Monday morning. Another, the Pond fire in San Luis Obispo County, has scorched 2,005 acres and is 60% contained, according to Cal Fire. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 21:29:20|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- China on Monday firmly opposed U.S. threats against relevant Chinese tech companies, urging the U.S. side to stop politicizing economic issues and abusing the concept of national security. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reportedly said that the Trump administration planned to take action on what it saw as a broad array of national security risks presented by some Chinese software companies. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Monday that the U.S. side made the threats against relevant companies based on the presumption of guilt and without any evidence. Such moves would run counter to the principles of a free-market economy and violate the WTO principles of openness, transparency, and non-discrimination. They also revealed the U.S. hypocrisy in so-called "upholding fairness and freedoms" and its typical double standards, Wang said at a press briefing. "We call on those in the United States to heed the voices from the international community, provide an open, fair, just and non-discriminatory environment for market entities of other countries to invest and operate in the United States, stop politicizing trade and economic issues, and stop promoting discrimination and policies of exclusion through abusing the concept of national security," said Wang. Enditem New Delhi, Aug 3 : Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Chennai Super Kings have approached the IPL Governing Council for further clarity and the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) as the team prepares for the 13th edition of the league and they have been assured the same by Thursday. The IPL team has also been told that a meeting between the GC and the franchises will take place this week. Speaking to IANS, a CSK official said that the top management has already been in touch with the IPL GC after Sunday's meeting and has been promised the SOP for IPL teams in the next couple of days. In fact, the much-awaited meeting between the franchises and the IPL GC is also set to take place this week. "We had a word with the GC and have asked for further clarity. They have informed us that the SOP will take a couple of days more and it should be in by Thursday max. The meeting between the IPL GC and franchises is also being planned accordingly. We should have a full idea and all our doubts should be cleared by the end of the week," the official said. CSK was expected to be one of the first to fly to UAE. But the GC has made it clear that teams can travel to UAE after August 20. The official said that while there is no question of breaking the protocol, CSK will still look to be one of the first to head to UAE. "There's no question of breaking the given guideline. We are still looking at being one of the first to hit the ground running, but not before August 20. Let us wait and see what the IPL GC tells us during the meeting with us and we can take it forward accordingly. We will also decide on whether we have a short camp or not in India before leaving for UAE based on the meeting with the board. But chances are very less of a camp in India," the official explained. How will the players assemble and will the testing take place before they leave? The official said that M.S. Dhoni and boys will undergo their coronavirus test and reach Chennai and then the idea is to fly off within 48 hours from when the players and support staff assemble in the state capital. "Dhoni and the boys will get their test done and assemble in Chennai and we will look to fly off within 48 hours. At present, the idea is to get the players in and fly off as soon as we have the go-ahead," the official pointed. So has CSK started the visa process? "We are waiting for all the clearance of the government and once that comes in, we will start the visa process," the official said. Latest updates on IPL 2020 -- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed You are here: World Flash Israel's army said on Sunday its troops attacked a "terror squad" that attempted to plant explosive devices near the disputed border between Syria and Israel. A military spokesperson said in a statement that the incident took place late on Sunday night near the Alpha Line between Syria and Israel. "Soldiers thwarted an attempt to place improvised explosive devices (IEDs,)" the spokesperson said. The Israeli troops spotted a "terror squad" of four fighters placing explosive devices adjacent to the security fence, near an IDF post. In response, troops and an aircraft fired simultaneously towards the group. "A hit was identified," the statement read. The spokesperson did not say whether the fighters opened fire at the Israeli forces but said no injuries were reported among the Israeli forces. "The Northern Command maintains elevated readiness for various scenarios," the army said in the statement. "The IDF holds the Syrian regime responsible for all events on Syrian soil and will not tolerate any violation of Israeli sovereignty." Tensions along Israel's borders with Lebanon and Syria have been on the rise since a fighter with Hezbollah was killed in an apparent Israeli airstrike in Syria in July. Last Monday, Israel said it thwarted an infiltration attempt by Hezbollah. Hezbollah denied such an attempt took place. Wellsford Warkworth Car Club captain Anne Richardson trusts Matakana will enjoy hosting the rally. The Wellsford Warkworth branch of the Vintage Car Club of New Zealand will participate in the Daffodil Rally for Cancer for the fourth time on Sunday, August 30. The rally is open to anyone with a loved vehicle, whether or not they are Vintage Car Club members. Vehicles can include trucks and motorcycles as well as cars. Vehicles will begin assembling at Smales Farm in Takapuna at 10am. They will start departing around 11am, driving along the west coast to Matakana. Cars will arrive at the car park near Matakana School from 12.30pm onwards. Wellsford Warkworth car club captain Anne Richardson says formerly the rally finished at the Warkworth Wharf, but there were so many participating cars, it was getting too congested. We hope Matakana will enjoy having us, she says. It costs $10 to register a car in the rally. Everyone is invited to view the vehicles on arrival in Matakana and encouraged to bring cash for a bucket collection to support the Cancer Societys Daffodil Day fundraiser. Info: Paul Hodder, 4hodders@gmail.com, 027 473 350 Microsoft on Sunday confirmed that it has held talks with Chinese technology company ByteDance to acquire its trendy social app TikTok in the U.S. Microsoft said in a statement that it will keep working with the U.S. government on a deal and that it intends to conclude talks by September 15. If it were to complete the deal, Microsoft could simultaneously resolve a recent controversy in Washington and gain power in consumer technology. The statement comes two days after media outlets including CNBC reported that Microsoft was interested in acquiring the app, which is owned by Chinese company ByteDance. Soon after the reports emerged, President Trump said that he opposed the idea of Microsoft buying TikTok and that he would move to ban the app in the U.S. The two companies have looked at Microsoft buying TikTok in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and Microsoft might offer other American investors to get involved in the acquisition, Microsoft said, adding that its CEO, Satya Nadella, has spoken with Trump. The company did not disclose deal terms. "This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections," Microsoft said. "The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries." Fires in the Amazon rainforest increased 28 per cent in July from a year ago, a Brazilian state agency reveals. There were 6,803 fires in the Amazon last month, compared to 5,318 in the same month of 2019, the National Institute for Space Research (INPE) reported. As August traditionally marks the beginning of the fire season in the region, the rise is likely to continue, environmentalists warn. They fear Brazil could repeat the surge seen in fires in August a year ago, when 30,900 fires were recorded by INPE. Fire activity in the Amazon along with much of the rest of south America typically reaches its peak during the dry season between July and October each year. Forest fires can be caused by naturally occurring events including lightning strikes, but tend to be deliberately started by farmers to clear land for livestock or crops. Scroll down for video A freshly deforested area the Amazon rainforest. Although 6,803 is a three-year high for Amazonian fires in July, the figure pales in comparison to last year's peak of 30,900 fires in August a 12-year high for that month 'It's a terrible sign,' Ane Alencar, science director at Brazil's Amazon Environmental Research Institute (IPAM) told Reuters. 'We can expect that August will already be a difficult month and September will be worse yet.' Although 6,803 is a three-year high for July, the figure pales in comparison to last year's peak of 30,900 fires in August a 12-year high for that month. INPE previously reported that June 2020 was the 14th consecutive month where deforestation has increased in the Brazilian Amazon. The number of Amazon fires in June reached a 13-year high in June with 2,248 individual fires recorded by the government-backed agency. Carlos Rittl, senior fellow at the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies in Germany, told the Associated Press that trends in the Amazon are worrisome. 'The tendency is that this will be a more dry year than 2019 and this makes it easier for the fire to spread,' he said. The sharp increase in fires comes amid domestic and international concern over President Jair Bolsonaro's calls to clear land in Brazil's Amazon to drive economic development. Addressing those concerns, on July 16, the government banned burning in the Pantanal wetlands and the Amazon forest for four months. Bolsonaro also issued an order in May for the military to coordinate environmental actions in the Amazon. This file photo taken on August 24, 2019 shows a tree trunk burning in the Amazon rainforest, near Abuna, Rondonia state, Brazil Images taken by Greenpeace document vast swathes of Amazonian land that have already been razed Fire activity in the Amazon - along with much of the rest of south America - typically reaches its peak between July and October each year. Pictured, deforestation in a region of the Amazon rainforest that has been affected by fire, as seen in the August 2019 Fire numbers indicate the government's recent response is not being effective, according to experts, who point to the possibility that this year's dry season will be even more prone to fires than last year. The Brazilian President has been accused of undermining efforts to protect the forest by encouraging logging and mining efforts as well as cutting the funding to the Ministry of the Environment. A climate change sceptic, he has also facilitated farming and mining projects on protected land and indigenous reserves. Fires are being set deliberately to make room for agriculture to feed growing demand for timber, leather and beef from places like the UK. Burnt trees in the Amazon rainforest, near Abuna, Rondonia state, Brazil back in August 2019 Carlos Nobre, a researcher at the Advanced Studies Institute in the State University of Sao Paulo, said the deforestation index also has remained high this year until July, compared to the last couple of years. 'We can conclude, with data until the end of July, that the effectiveness of government actions to reduce fires and deforestation is low,' he said. Earlier this month, NASA said higher surface temperatures in the tropical North Atlantic Ocean in 2020 were drawing moisture away from the southern Amazon. 'As a result, the southern Amazon landscape becomes dry and flammable, making human-set fires used for agriculture and land clearing more prone to growing out of control and spreading,' the US space agency said. Roanoke mayoral candidate David Bowers acknowledged that the Black Lives Matter movement has awakened my consciousness, but he does not favor some of the groups efforts that include defunding local police departments. In a Zoom news conference with reporters on Monday, Bowers, a former Roanoke mayor running as an independent against Democratic incumbent Sherman Lea, also said that prior to the killing of George Floyd, I would have thought Black-white relations in Roanoke were pretty good. Floyds death on May 25 while in custody of police in Minneapolis sparked nationwide protests, including marches throughout Virginia and confrontations between protesters and police in Roanoke. Since then, demonstrators have called for structural changes to local policing and issues of race and economic equity in Roanoke. In a news conference billed as On Race Relations in Roanoke, Bowers said his three priorities in dealing with racial problems would be peace and harmony, law and order, and equal justice for all. He called for racial unity in the city. It doesnt sound right to me to say [to Black people] I hear you; that sounds paternalistic to me, Bowers said. Instead I would say This is us. This is about all of us. Bowers, a Democrat turned independent, touted his lifetime membership in the NAACP, as well as a 2007 award from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, as testaments to his support of African American residents and issues. However, Bowers said, I do not support Black Lives Matters activists agenda. I would not defund the police. I would refund the police. Protests swept the United States following Floyds death, including a large march in Roanoke on May 30 during which Roanoke police deployed pepper spray and pepper balls on some members of the crowd. Since then, a group called No Justice No Peace has frequently criticized police and demanded that Roanoke leaders cut funding for law enforcement and the Roanoke City Jail, remove school resource officers from public schools, and make other policing changes. So far, government and school officials have rebuffed calls to reduce public safety funding or eliminate officers from schools. Other changes have been approved, such as the city councils creation of a permanent Equity and Empowerment Advisory Board to deal with economic inequality. Other more symbolic acts have also occurred. Local artists banded together with city approval to paint the vivid End Racism Now mural along Campbell Avenue last month. The city council is moving forward with its plan to permanently remove the Robert E. Lee Confederate memorial from Lee Plaza, even though the granite monument is no longer standing after it was toppled July 23; a Roanoke man has been charged in the incident. The council will hold a public hearing on the memorials removal plan on Aug. 17. Roanokes mayoral and city council elections are Nov. 3, the same day as the presidential and congressional elections. Both Lea, Roanokes second African American mayor, and Bowers, who is white, have stressed their support for local law enforcement. Lea has said that he does not favor defunding local police, but is willing to reexamine the citys budget priorities when it comes to public safety. He was also part of a unanimous council vote to begin the process of removing the Lee memorial on July 6. 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 York: California's first major bushfire of the year grew to more than 8000 hectares over the weekend, destroying one home, forcing thousands to evacuate and sending up a plume of smoke so massive that it generated its own winds, authorities said. The so-called Apple fire in Riverside County burnt up steep and rugged hillsides, making it inaccessible to firefighting vehicles as it spread north and east toward the San Gorgonio Wilderness while continuing to threaten homes to the south. The Apple bushfire in Banning, California, on Saturday. Credit:AP The fire spread rapidly in the early hours of Sunday. The blaze was 5 per cent contained as of 7pm Sunday, Monday AEST, as 2200 fire personnel in the air and on the ground worked to douse it. Officials were unable to gauge the exact size of the blaze, but Lisa Cox, fire information officer for the San Bernardino National Forest, said that "there was significant growth and fire activity." The Umbrella Academy showrunner Steve Blackman says there could be spin-offs of the Netflix series, which began airing its second season on Netflix this past week. The series, which is based off Gerard Way's comic book series, centers around the Hargreeves family amid the backdrop of an oncoming apocalypse. Blackman, speaking with Digital Spy on Sunday, said Klaus, Ben or Diego Hargreeves (played by Robert Sheehan, Justin H. Min and David Castaneda, respectively) could make for intriguing characters to pivot off of for a new show. The latest: Umbrella Academy showrunner Steve Blackman says there could be spinoffs of the Netflix series. The cast includes: (L To R) Aidan Gallagher, Emmy Raver-Lampman, Robert Sheehan, Tom Hopper, David Castaneda and Ellen Page 'I think Klaus and Ben, or Klaus and Diego - any of those, to me, would be wonderful spin-offs,' Blackman said. 'I think you could do a limited series with them for four or six episodes, and it would be great. I think even Robert could do his own little thing about Klaus.' Blackman said that the cast and crew 'would all be up for it ... because we all love working together.' He added: 'Look, you never want to overdo something. But if theres an appetite for it, I mean ... we really get along well. 'None of us are from Toronto, where we shoot, so were all away from our real families, so were the family they get when theyre there. Its a nice group of people.' Cohesive: Blackman said that the cast and crew 'would all be up for it ... because we all love working together.' The cast was snapped in May of 2019 in LA Possibilities: David Castaneda and Robert Sheehan, seen last year in Toronto, both play roles that could be made into spin-offs Blackman was joined in the chat by Tom Hopper and Sheehan, who said his Klaus character could provide a good centerpiece for a spin-off show. 'Its a great source of creativity and to get to do more of that?' he said. 'Absolute-bots. Me and Mr. Hopper have unfinished business on screen. I think we have more to do, definitely, in Umbrella or a spin-off.' The actor said that he's 'loved this whole experience' of being on the show, which debuted last year on the streaming service. Catch it now: The Umbrella Academy's second season is now streaming on Netflix 'Getting to play Klaus, it doesnt feel like coming to work, really,' he said. 'Its really fun, and its about accessing that sort of trickster god energy. Its quite a natural innocence.' Hopper added, 'I love the dynamic between Klaus and Luther as well, because Luther is so by the book, and Klaus is the absolute opposite. So I feel that theres stuff to be experimented with there, much further.' The Umbrella Academy's second season is now streaming on Netflix. March for Our Lives has established partnerships with older organizations like the longstanding Brady Campaign as well as Black community-based groups like the Community Justice Action Fund. In April, March for Our Lives joined a number of other youth-led groups, including the Sunrise Movement and Justice Democrats, in writing a letter to Joseph R. Biden Jr.s campaign demanding action on a range of progressive policies. On Monday evening in El Paso, the local March for Our Lives chapter plans to convene a vigil at the site of last years massacre, with participation from other local groups. The next day, young organizers with the nearby Houston chapter will gather alongside representatives from racial-justice organizations and other activist groups to promote a City Council bill proposed by the council member Letitia Plummer that would reallocate funding away from the Houston Police Department and toward social programs. A year after the Parkland shooting, with Democrats enjoying a newly strengthened majority in the House, young adults remained more likely than older Americans to say that gun control legislation should be an immediate priority for Congress, with half of respondents under 30 saying so, according to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist College poll. In that survey, conducted in February 2019, two-thirds of those under 30 said that they prioritized strengthening gun laws over preserving the rights of firearm owners a heavier gun-control tilt than in any other age group. Young adults were also the only age group to have a majority unfavorable opinion of the National Rifle Association, according to the poll. When the massacre in El Paso took place, the Democratic presidential race was just beginning to heat up, and gun control again appeared poised to become a central focus. The presidential candidate Beto ORourke, who had spent six years representing El Paso in Congress, suspended his campaign and visited the site of the shooting. During a presidential debate a month later, he pledged to put in place a national gun registry and a mandatory buyback program for assault rifles, declaring: Hell, yes, were going to take your AR-15, your AK-47. But today, with a different youth-protest movement sweeping the country, millennials and young adults in Generation Z are more likely to explicitly name racial justice as their top political concern. A Fox News poll last month found that voters under 30 were three times as likely as those 45 and over to call race-related issues their No. 1 policy priority. Just three percent of the youngest voters named gun violence as their top concern. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 00:18:30|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close HONG KONG, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong residents have voiced support for the postponement of the 2020 Legislative Council (LegCo) election amid a grave COVID-19 epidemic situation in Hong Kong. Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Carrie Lam announced on Friday the decision to postpone for a year the election originally slated in September. As Hong Kong has reported more than 3,500 infections and 37 deaths, the election, if held as scheduled, will likely boost the risk of infection as the event could involve as many as 4.4 million registered voters and 34,000 election staff. "The postponement is for our health and safety," said a resident surnamed Ko, who is a safeguard of a residential block in Hong Kong Island. With hundreds of people entering and exiting every day, two dwellers in the area that Ko is responsible for have been infected with coronavirus, he said. "Not to mention the LegCo election. The risk will be very high as millions of voters will come to the streets." The government must have considered carefully and had no choice but to postpone the election, Ko said. "Both my wife and I support the government decision. Health and safety must come be the first priority." As the epidemic showed no signs of abating, the financial company that Chun, a clerk in Hong Kong, worked for, has encouraged its employees to work at home. From promotion campaigns to voting and ballot count, many activities of the election are likely to compound the spread of COVID-19, Chun said, stressing that the postponement is necessary to push Hong Kong economy back on track and ensure the safety of residents. Weighed on by the epidemic, the combined income of restaurants fell sharply by 25.9 percent year on year in the second quarter and retail sales declined 33.3 percent in the first half from a year ago, official data showed. Only after the epidemic is under control, people will go out to dine and shop and the catering and retail sectors and the wider economy will start to recover, a resident surnamed Lee said. "The HKSAR government is doing actively and wisely to cut transmission chains and avoid public gatherings." Wong Tai Sin District was one of the hardest-hit areas amid the latest wave of COVID-19 outbreak in Hong Kong. So Ka-Lok, a community organizer of Choi Hung Estate in the district, said there had been 22 confirmed cases in the community and he worried about the worsening epidemic situation. Given expected gatherings during the election, no one can guarantee that voters will not be infected, So said. As some voters currently stranded in the mainland or overseas can not return to Hong Kong, their rights would be damaged if the election was held as planned, he added. An organization named Hong Kong Community Anti-Coronavirus Link has collected more than 850,000 signatures online since last Friday to show support for the government decision to postpone the election for a year. Observers also believe the deferment is proper as the election, which will lead to frequent gatherings and dense crowds, can only be held after an effective mechanism to trace and cut transmission chains is put in place. With the one-year buffer period, Hong Kong will be able to build such a mechanism and focus on containing the COVID-19 spread and reviving the economy, observers said. Enditem Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 07:22:11|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A golden snub-nosed monkey is pictured with a villager who ever fed it at Maoping Village of Maoping Town in Yangxian County, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Aug. 2, 2020. A wild grown golden snub-nosed monkey, China's first-class protected species, has recently come by the village. The monkey found foods at villagers' homes by day and went back forest at night, seeming to be not afraid of people. Located in the southern foot of the Qinling Mountains, Yangxian County, where the village lies in, is home to many rare animal species including giant pandas, crested ibis, golden snub-nosed monkeys and takins. It's not rare to see those endangered animals appear at villages. Local people have formed a high sense of animal protection, living harmoniously with them. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) U S President Donald Trump has threatened to ban TikTok from the United States, warning the app poses a threat to national security because of its ties to China. TikToks fun, goofy videos and ease of use has made it immensely popular since being launched by its parent company, Bytedance Ltd, in 2017. Bytedance operates a similar but separate version of the app in China, known as Douyin. US tech giants like Facebook and Snapchat see TikTok as a competitive threat, with the platform attracting tens of millions of US users and hundreds of millions globally. But its Chinese ownership has raised concerns about the censorship of videos, including those critical of China's ruling Communist Party, and the potential for sharing user data with Chinese officials. TikTok says it does not censor videos and it would not give the Chinese government access to US user data. It claims all US user data is stored in the US, with a backup in Singapore. US officials appear unpersuaded, however. Mr Trump's threat to ban TikTok comes amid heightened tensions between his administration and the Chinese government / AFP via Getty Images So, here's what you need to know about the controversy: Why does Trump want to ban TikTok in the US? US officials have raised concerns that data collected by ByteDance via TikTok may end up being passed to the Chinese government. In August, Mr Trump signed executive orders that declared TikTok, which has about 100 million users in the US, and another Chinese app, WeChat, threats to national security. The White House said the video service was a security risk because the personal information of its millions of US users could be handed over to Chinese authorities. The developments came amid heightened tensions between Mr Trump's White House administration and the Chinese government over a number of issues, including trade disputes and Beijing's handling of the coronavirus pandemic. During his tenure as President, Mr Trump has overseen a broad security crackdown on Chinese companies, including telecom providers Huawei and ZTE. The White House has ordered that the US stop buying equipment from those providers to be used in US networks. Mr Trump has also tried to steer US allies away from Huawei over concerns the Chinese government has access to its data, which Huawei denies. Can the President really block the Chinese app? It is not clear precisely what authority Mr Trump has to ban TikTok. On Sunday, a US judge temporarily blocked one of the executive orders signed by Mr Trump, which would have banned TikTok from smartphone app stores in the country. The order was due to take effect at 11.59pm on Sunday. A more comprehensive ban remains scheduled for November, about a week after the US presidential election. The judge, Carl Nichols of the US District Court for the District of Columbia, did not agree to postpone the later ban. The ruling followed an emergency hearing on Sunday morning in which lawyers for TikTok argued that the administrations app store ban would infringe on the companys First Amendment rights and do irreparable harm to the business. How has TikTok responded? TikTok insists users' personal data cannot be accessed by Beijing and that it has no ties to the Communist Party. It is currently scrambling to firm up a deal tentatively struck a week ago in which it would partner with Oracle, a huge database-software company, and Walmart in an effort to win the blessing of both the Chinese and American governments. An earlier bid by Microsoft bid to take over TikTok's US operations was rejected by Chinese owner ByteDance. In the meantime, TikTok is fighting to keep the app available in the US and is suing the Mr Trump's government over the president's August 6 executive order, saying it was unlawful. So were resulting Commerce Department prohibitions that aim to kick TikTok out of US app stores and, in November, essentially shut it down in the US, it has claimed. The Chinese firm said the president did not have the authority to take these actions under the national security law he cited; that the ban violated TikToks First Amendment speech rights and Fifth Amendment due process rights; and that there was no authority for the restrictions because they were not based on a national emergency. The firm welcomed Sunday's legal intervention, and has vowed to keep defending its rights from Mr Trump's efforts to ban the app. "We're pleased that the court agreed with our legal arguments and issued an injunction preventing the implementation of the TikTok app ban," it said in a statement. In arguments to Judge Nichols, TikTok lawyer John Hall had argued that TikTok is more than an app, since it functions as a modern day version of a town square. If that prohibition goes into effect at midnight, the consequences immediately are grave, Mr Hall said. It would be no different than the government locking the doors to a public forum, roping off that town square, he added, saying this was a time when a free exchange of ideas is necessary heading into a polarised election. TikTok lawyers also argued that a ban on the app would affect the ability of tens of thousands of potential viewers and content creators to express themselves every month and would also hurt its ability to hire new talent. In addition, Mr Hall argued that a ban would prevent existing users from automatically receiving security updates, eroding national security. How to use TikTok Will the deal to sell TikTok's US operations succeed? Mr Trump has said he would approve a proposed deal involving Oracle and Walmart in which the firms could initially own a combined 20 per cent of a new US entity, TikTok Global. The president also said he could retract his approval if Oracle did not have total control. The two sides of the TikTok deal have however appeared at odds over the corporate structure of TikTok Global. ByteDance said last week it would still own 80 per cent of the US entity after a financing round. Meanwhile, Oracle put out a statement saying that Americans will be the majority and ByteDance will have no ownership in TikTok Global. Chinese media have criticised the deal as bullying and extortion, suggesting that the Chinese government is not happy with the arrangement. ByteDance said on Thursday it had applied for a Chinese technology export license after Beijing tightened control over exports last month in an effort to gain leverage over Washingtons attempt to force an outright sale of TikTok to US owners. Chinas foreign ministry has said the government will take necessary measures to safeguard its companies but gave no indication what steps it could take to affect TikToks fate in the United States. PARIS (AP) France has decided not to ratify an extradition agreement with Hong Kong after China's central government in Beijing imposed a new national security law on the city. The French Foreign Ministry's spokesperson said in a written statement on Monday that in light of the latest developments, France won't proceed with the ratification of the 2017 extradition agreement with Hong Kong as it stands. Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States suspended their extradition treaties with Hong Kong last month amid fears that the central Chinese government was infringing on the city's freedoms and local autonomy. Germany made a similar decision last week following the disqualification of 12 pro-democracy candidates from Hong Kong legislative elections and a subsequent decision to postpone the vote by one year. Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam cited a worsening coronavirus outbreak in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory in delaying the elections. China says the new security law is needed to combat terrorism and separatism and to prevent Hong Kong from becoming a base for undermining Chinese state power. Hong Kong, a former British colony, was handed over to Chinese control in 1997. - An amount of $310.14 million has been realised from the Petroleum Holding Fund in the first half of 2020 - The amount represents a $124.34 million drop from the amount realised in the same period in 2019 - The Bank of Ghana has been tasked with managing the fund in order to enhance transparency Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in Ghanas Petroleum Holding Fund (PHF) has earned $310.14 million in the first half of the year 2020, the Bank of Ghana (BoG) has reported. This represents a drop of $124.34 million when compared to the $434.48 million earned in the same period in 2019. According to the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, which established the PHF, the BoG is required to provide information on the performance and activities related to the Fund. Minister of Energy, John Peter Amewu Source: Pulse.ng Source: UGC READ ALSO: COVID-19 will lead to economic challenges in 2020 and beyond - Finance Minister A report by citibusinessnews.com.gh shows this measure was implemented to help promote transparency in the oil and gas sector. An amount of $169.50 million was allocated to the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) while the Ghana Heritage Fund received an allocation of US$50.85 million dollars and US$21.79 million dollars respectively between January and June this year. The BoG is of the view that despite its optimism about a possible rebound of Ghanas economy, there is a likelihood of a negative growth rate at a global level due to the outbreak of the coronavirus. In other news, there has been an increase in the use of Mobile Money (MoMo) transactions since January 2020, YEN.com.gh has learned. According to the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS) Half Year Performance report, the first half of the year 2020 recorded 240,192 transactions with respect to the movement of funds from bank accounts to MoMo wallets. This increased to 2.1 million in the first half of 2020, which was a 780% growth. READ ALSO: African Development Bank gives Ghana $69 million to combat COVID-19 Install our latest news app for Android and read the best news about Ghana! Want to be featured on YEN.com.gh? Send us a message on our page or on Instagram with your stories, photos, or videos. Source: YEN.com.gh KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Navy appeared reluctant to reinstate former Navy SEAL and Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens in 2019 until Vice President Mike Pence's office intervened, according to newly released documents. Greitens resigned as governor in 2018 amid several scandals, including campaign misconduct allegations and accusations that he took a compromising photo of a woman without her consent during a 2015 extramarital affair. The President of the Senate, Dr Ahmad Lawan, has felicitated the Deputy President of the Senate, Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege, on the occasion of his 57th birthday coming up on Aug. 3. Lawan, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Ola Awoniyi, on Sunday, rejoiced with Omo-Agege, his family, friends and political associates for the good health granted him by God. Omo-Agege's public life has been an inspirational story of courage, forthrightness and consistency in championing the causes of his people and the unity and progress of Nigeria. Since our election to presiding roles in the Ninth Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Omo-Agege has brought those qualities to bear on our onerous task of providing leadership for the execution of the legislative agenda of the august assembly. He has been steadfast and resolute in his commitment to the vision that we all share under that agenda. Our partnership and the unwavering cooperation of all our distinguished colleagues across party lines have made the journey of the past year smooth and fruitful in the service of the people of Nigeria, Lawan said. The senate president wished Omo-Agege, the Obarisi of Urhoboland, many more years of fruitful service to God and the country. (NAN) KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Police detained a man who allegedly threatened to set off an explosive device at a bank in Ukraine's capital and demanded to speak with journalists Monday. The man, identified as Sukhrob Karimov, a 32-year-old citizen of the Central Asian nation of Uzbekistan, entered a bank office in Kyiv and said he had explosives in his backpack, police said. He let all but one bank clerk go and told authorities to invite journalists to listen to him make a statement. Officers burst into a room in the bank while the man was talking to a journalist. Officials initially said after the suspect was detained that police found elements of an explosive device but later clarified that the suspect had been bluffing and no actual explosives were found. The incident follows a dramatic hostage-taking episode last month when an armed assailant seized 13 hostages on a bus in the western city of Lutsk and held them for more than 12 hours before surrendering to police. The assailant agreed to release the hostages following a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who agreed to post a video urging all Ukrainians to watch Earthlings, a 2005 American documentary exposing humanitys cruel exploitation of animals. A few days later in the city of Poltava, a criminal suspect brandishing a hand grenade forced a senior police officer to drive him for hours through the countryside. Other officers pursued the car, and the man eventually abandoned his hostage in the vehicle and fled into a forest. After a search that lasted more than a week, the man was tracked down Saturday. Authorities said the suspect was police while resisting arrest. Raksha Bandhan celebrations remained subdued this year as the rampaging coronavirus pandemic cast a shadow over the festivities, that celebrate the brother-sister bond, with people mostly preferring to stay at home. IMAGE: A nurse ties rakhi on the wrist of a patient on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, at CWG Village COVID-19 care centre near Akshardham, in New Delhi. Photograph: Manvender Vashist/PTI Photo People relied on homemade sweets and some rituals moved online, with siblings ordering rakhis and e-gifts for each other and meeting through video calls. "This is the first time that it has happened, but this is the need of the hour," said Rahul Bhardwaj, a resident of the national capital, who could not meet his sister who lives in a different city. "We need to keep ourselves safe and our loved ones safe too." IMAGE: On the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, a Corona warrior nurse and wife of Madhya Pradesh Cabinet Minister tied rakhi to Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan at a hospital in Bhopal. Saroj, a nurse deployed at the ward in which Chouhan has been admitted, tied a rakhi to the Chief Minister. Taking to Twitter, the Chief Minister said, "On the auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandhan, Sister Saroj, a Corona warrior posted in my ward in the hospital, tied a rakhi with great affection. I wish her a happy and happy life." Photograph: PTI Photo On Monday, India reported 52,972 coronavirus cases and 771 fatalities, taking the overall figures to 18,03,695 infections and 38,135 deaths, according to the health ministry data. There are 5,79,357 active cases, while the recoveries have increased to 11,86,203. "The festival was a bit different this year. I got homemade barfi for my brothers and did not buy anything from outside. We are also not going anywhere and just spending time with our family," said Shivani Rawat of Delhi. President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders greeted the people on the occasion. The President celebrated the festival with members of the nursing community at Rashtrapati Bhavan, describing them as saviours who are risking their own lives in the line of duty to save others. IMAGE: Women Congress MLAs of Rajasthan celebrated the festival of Raksha Bandhan by tying Rakhis on the wrist of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. Minister Mamta Bhupesh and legislators Shakuntala Rawat, Ganga Devi and others tied Rakhi on the wrist of the chief minister and offered him sweets. The festival was celebrated in Hotel Suryagarh in Jaisalmer where the MLAs have been made to stay to save them from the alleged bids to make them ditch the Gehlot government. Photograph: PTI Photo Naidu said he missed his "dear sister" Sushma Swaraj a lot on this Raksha Bandhan. Former External Affairs Minister Swaraj died on August 6 last year. Legendry singer Lata Mangeshkar shared a special audio message with the PM on the occasion, wishing him well. In his response, the PM said her message "filled me with immense inspiration and energy". Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who is in a hospital after testing positive for the coronavirus, tweeted, "Heartfelt greetings to the people of the country on the auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandhan." IMAGE: Women tie rakhi on Raksha Bandhan to a doctor, who reportedly helped residents during COVID-19 surge at the Dharavi slum, in Mumbai. Photograph: Shashank Parade/PTI Photo Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also wished everyone. His sister and the party's general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said she is proud to have a brother like Rahul Gandhi. "My best wishes to all the countrymen on Raksha Bandhan," she tweeted. But as people remained at home, with the fears of contracting the virus running deeper than ever, industry sources estimated severe losses to shopkeepers. "Sweets worth around Rs 10,000 crore were sold across the country on Raksha Bandhan last year. This figure is expected to come down to around Rs 5,000 crore this time," the director of the Federation of Sweets and Namkeen Manufacturers, Feroz H Naqvi, said on Sunday. IMAGE: Young women tie rakhis on the wrists of Border Security Force personnel at Inter National Border Octroi post in Suchetgarh, Jammu. Photograph: PTI Photo Samir Saha, a roadside vendor in In West Bengal's Shyambazar, said, "Last year, I had earned Rs 5,000 selling rakhis. This time, I managed to earn just Rs 1,000. The pandemic has hit us hard." Some people, however, celebrated the festival in symbolically unique ways. Animal lovers tied 'rakhis' to two elephants in Jalpaiguri district and vowed to protect them 'as many of them are dying in man-animal conflict'. In Odisha, acclaimed sand artiste Sudarsan Pattnaik created a mural on Puri beach as a tribute to COVID-19 warriors. "Let's celebrate this #RakshaBandhan with #CovidWarriors, those are working tirelessly day and night for us," he said in a Twitter post. IMAGE: President Ram Nath Kovind celebrates Raksha Bandhan with nurses of The Trained Nurses Association of India, Military Nursing Service and Presidents Estate Clinic. The president felicitated the nurses, saying they have been performing the role of front-line COVID warriors and their commitment to duty earns respect. Photograph: PTI Photo Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who is undergoing treatment for COVID-19 at a Bhopal hospital, shared on Twitter a picture of a rakhi tied on his wrist by nurse Saroj who is attending to him in the isolation ward. Tribal residents in Mumbai's forested Aarey Colony, a prominent green lung of Mumbai and the site of a metro car shed, vowed to protect trees by tying them 'rakhis' on the occasion. Swiss President Simonetta Sommaruga says every country in the world should have access to diagnostic tools, medicine and once available a vaccine to counter the coronavirus. We also want that equal freedom in Bangladesh. by Anwar A. Khan I have tried to gather some accumulation of knowledge through my lense poring on Switzerlands Corona-virus treatments. Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a country situated in the confluence of Western, Central, and Southern Europe. It is a landlocked country bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Its total area is 41,285 km2 (15,940 sq mi), and land area is 39,997 km2 (15,443 sq mi). The Swiss population is approximately 8.5 million and Zurich, Geneva and Basel where multiple international organisations are domiciled, such as, FIFA, the UN's second-largest Office, and the Bank for International Settlements and where the main international airports of Switzerland are. Swiss President Sommaruga Charity group Oxfam warns that a recession caused by Covid-19 could push an extra half a billion people into poverty - 8 percent of the world's population. Swiss President Simonetta Sommaruga says every country in the world should have access to diagnostic tools, medicine and once available a vaccine to counter the coronavirus. We also want that equal freedom in Bangladesh. Sommaruga outlined Switzerlands position latterly during a virtual donor conference organised by the European Union. In her video address, the Swiss leader stated that solidarity must go beyond addressing the health needs generated by the Covid-19 crisis. Keystone-SDA news agency quoted her as saying that "it is not enough to save part of humanity from the pandemic and then let it die of hunger and poverty." Switzerland, she noted, has already allocated CHF400 million (US$415 million) to support international efforts to tackle Covid-19. Another CHF18 million have been granted to the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Oslo-based Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) to accelerate the search for medicines. Switzerland will decide on additional funding in the coming weeks. Separately, about thirty humanitarian associations urged the Swiss government to boost efforts to combat the pandemic and its socio-economic consequences, especially in the poorest countries. They called on Bern to allocated 0.7% of gross domestic product (GDP) to development aid, instead of the current 0.5%. Their populations need to tackle their governments! That's how Switzerland became a democracy! In summer 1867, cholera spread through Zurich. By the time it had been stamped out, the canton was on the path to direct democracy! Now just imagine how "beneficial aid" would have been and the impact... Those undemocratic systems would have stayed and the populations servitude continued. Keep your feel-good charity for home, where your intervention is countered by votes and controls! Stop interfering in other countries! It holds off what needs to change and holds people down. (All so you can clap yourself on the back) Just one of many examples - The plague freed Europe! Not one CHF will ever reach the ones that need. It will all be syphoned away by the incapable and i-humane ANC with their racist communist policies. Swiss people say they are not even allowed to hand out food parcels privately, because the government wants to control every step of the way. There are hundreds of proven complaints that food is stolen by municipalities to give it to their own families or people close to the ANC and NOT to the people in need, absolutely despicable! It is not enough to save part of humanity from the pandemic and then let it die of hunger and poverty." Charity starts at home! Youve already donated 418 million CHF. Focus on the struggles your own citizens are experiencing as a result of the pandemic. You cant save everyone from themselves. And Switzerland is too small to financially champion for the entire third world. Running out of rice? Low on loo roll? In fact, Switzerland has enough to last for months, but stockists are putting in serious overtime to meet the demand. Like their peers in other parts of the world, shoppers in Switzerland began panic-buying in response to the threat of coronavirus. Images of empty shelves made the rounds on social media, with popular items selling out more quickly than the shops could replenish them replenish being the key word. There is no reason to panic over food, the governments delegate for national economic supply, Werner Meier, told journalists last week. The Swiss Retail Federation took out a full-page newspaper ad assuring the public that there was no shortage of food, drinks, pet supplies or other necessities. It called on shoppers to be sensible, Those who buy more than necessary may be leaving others empty-handed and our staff overworked at a time that is already very challenging. So how are workers in retail coping with the extra demands of people who are now at home for every meal some of them wary of extra trips to the grocery store or worried about self-quarantine? At its main distribution warehouse, major supermarket chain Migros has added five extra shifts per week and is moving 10,000 pallets of wares on its busiest days; 5,500 would be the norm. The customers were practically unpacking the trucks for us. Ive never experienced anything like it, logistics manager Thomas Gasser told the weekly Migros customer magazine. We have enough food that wasnt the problem. To compensate for the increase in demand, the central warehouse has been sending the stores at least a third more wares than they actually order to ward-off bare shelves. Pasta, for example, needs to be restocked two to four times as often as usual. Retailers arent the only ones with ample supplies. Switzerland maintains emergency stockpiles of staples like flour, rice, sugar and oil. According to the Economic Supply Act, the nation must have enough to last for three to six months in the event of a crisis. Switzerland produces about 60% of the food it needs to feed its population of 8.5 million. The rest is imported for example, Italy and Spain are key partners for fruits and vegetables. The supply chain here is still intact, according to Marcel Jampen of Swisscofel, the association for the Swiss fruit, vegetable and potato trade. There are in some cases too few trucks or longer waiting times to cross the Swiss border. And there are some shortages in terms of harvest workers, said Jampen, who is the head of Swisscofels international fruit and vegetable department. Despite the coronavirus crisis, domestic production and the import of everyday goods are secured, states the Federal Office for National Economic Supply on its website. It points out that thanks to the current reduction of imports from Asia, theres more logistical capacity at European ports and for the onward delivery to Switzerland. Cross-border train traffic is currently operating without any issue. For road traffic, there are lines at some border crossings, notes the office. To make it easier for retailers to cope with the increased demand for essential goods, the supply office and the Federal Roads Office have temporarily relaxed the regulations on Sunday and night-time trucking and unloading. But some workers in the industry dont feel so relaxed. I get an uneasy feeling when drivers from Italy pick up or drop-off goods. There are a lot of coronavirus cases there. I always keep a distance, said Ali Cekcu, a forklift operator working for Migros. So far there are no known cases of the new coronavirus being transmitted via foodstuffs, states the Federal Office of Public Health on its website. If you want to be quite sure, wash and heat foods properly. Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations says, The upheaval caused by the coronavirus, Covid-19, is all around us. And I know many are anxious, worried and confused. Thats absolutely natural. We are facing a health threat unlike any other in our lifetimes. Meanwhile, the virus is spreading, the danger is growing, and our health systems, economies and day-to-day lives are being severely tested. The most vulnerable are the most affected, particularly our elderly and those with pre-existing medical conditions, those without access to reliable health care, and those in poverty or living on the edge. On the 75th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, the Covid-19 pandemic poses a crucial moment for the international system. The social and economic fallout from the combination of the pandemic and slowing economies will affect most of us for some more months or years. But the spread of the virus will peak. I hope our economies in Bangladesh and elsewhere across the world will recover, but the time is a great factor here! Until then, we must act together to slow the spread of the virus and look after each other. This is a time for prudence, not panic. Science, not stigma. Facts, not fear. Even though the situation has been classified as a pandemic, it is one we can control. We can slow down transmissions, prevent infections and save lives, but that will take unprecedented personal, national and international action. Declare War On Virus Covid-19 is our common enemy. We must declare war on this virus. That means countries have a responsibility to gear up, step up and scale up. How? By implementing effective containment strategies; by activating and enhancing emergency response systems; by dramatically increasing testing capacity and care for patients; by readying hospitals, ensuring they have the space, supplies and needed personnel; and by developing life-saving medical interventions. All of us have a responsibility too, to follow medical advice and take simple, practical steps recommended by health authorities. ECONOMIC IMPACT In addition to being a public health crisis, the virus is infecting the global economy. The World Health Organization (WHO), which has its headquarters in Geneva, has a primary role of directing and coordinating international health within the UN system. WHO is continuously monitoring and responding to the outbreak! It provides daily global updates on COVID-19, how it spreads and how it is affecting people worldwide. It has also sent expert teams to help countries respond to the crisis. In Bangladesh and in many other countries, their endeavours are not seeable! And that is very sad!! WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called on countries to take a comprehensive approach to fighting the pandemic and to isolate, test and trace as many cases as possible. Financial markets have been hard hit by the uncertainty. Global supply chains have been disrupted. Investment and consumer demand have plunged with a real and rising risk of a global recession. UN economists estimate that the virus could cost the global economy at least US$1 trillion this year and perhaps far more. No country can do it alone. More than ever, governments must cooperate to revitalise economies, expand public investment, boost trade, and ensure targeted support for the people and communities most affected by the disease or more vulnerable to the negative economic impacts including women who often shoulder a disproportionate burden of care work. A pandemic drive home the essential interconnectedness of our human family. Preventing the further spread of Covid-19 is a shared responsibility for us all. The UN including the World Health Organization (WHO) - is fully mobilized as it is internationally reported. As part of our human family, we are working 24/7 with governments, providing international guidance, helping the world take on this threat, but the scepticism of their avouchment prevails everywhere all over the world. The UN and WHO say we are in this together and we will get through this, together. "This is my family. I found it, all on my own. It's little, and broken, but still good. Yeah, still good." The law, must be honest, just, reasonable, and according to the ways of the people. It must meet their needs, and speak plainly so that all men may know and understand what the law is. It is not to be made in any man's favour, but for the needs of all them who live in the lands across the world. No man shall judge (condemn) the law which the King has given and the country chosen; neither shall he (the King) take it back without the will of the people." A statesman is a politician who places himself at the service of the nation. A politician is a statesman who places the nation at his service. We expect the same service from politicians in Bangladesh. "There are all kinds of silences and each of them means a different thing. There is the silence that comes with morning in a forest, and this is different from the silence of a sleeping city. There is silence after a rainstorm, and before a rainstorm, and these are not the same. There is the silence of emptiness, the silence of fear, the silence of doubt. There is a certain silence that can emanate from a lifeless object as from a chair lately used, or from a piano with old dust upon its keys, or from anything that has answered to the need of a man, for pleasure or for work. This kind of silence can speak. Its voice may be melancholy, but it is not always so; for the chair may have been left by a laughing child or the last notes of the piano may have been raucous and gay. Whatever the mood or the circumstance, the essence of its quality may linger in the silence that follows. It is a soundless echo. Bangladesh also wants Covid-19 treatments to be accessible for all people all over the world. An international virus needs an international response. So, we will come through this together! -The End The writer is an independent political observer based in Dhaka, Bangladesh who writes on politics, political and human-centred figures, current and international affairs. Amid the ongoing tussle between Mumbai and Bihar police over the probe of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death, Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh on Monday (August 3) said that Mumbai police has started an investigation in this after filing an Accidental Death Report. Singh said that forensic experts and team of doctors have been consulted to help Mumbai police in the probe and the police is yet to reach a conclusion in this case. According to Singh, Mumbai police is probing the matter from both angle, including natural death as well as suspected death. Singh noted that Mumbai police has recorded the statements of Sushant's family members and they did not raise suspicion over the involvement of any third person in this matter. Referring to the probe started by Bihar police in this case, Commissioner Singh said that Mumbai police is studying the legality of Bihar police's action and is taking legal advice on this matter. He added that Bihar police should have transferred the case to Mumbai police after registering an FIR in Patna. Singh claimed that the probe of Mumbai police is going on in the right direction. He added that Sushant's sisters were also called to help the Mumbai police in the probe they did not join the investigation. Talking about the suicide of Sushant's former manager Disha Salian, Commissioner Singh said that Mumbai police is trying to find out if Disha was under duress. He added that the police is also examining the financial transactions of Sushant. According to Commissioner Singh, Rs 18 crore were present in Sushant's account and the police are probing the transaction details to find out more details. Singh said that Mumbai police have recorded the statements of 56 people in connection with this case. Commissioner Singh also said that police have also recovered the CCTV footage of June 13 and June 14 and they have not found any evidence a party was hosted at Sushant's residence before his death on June 14. Singh also said that Sushant used to search about Bipolar Disorder and Schizophrenia on Google. Sushant, a resident of Patna, reportedly died by suicide at his Bandra residence in Mumbai on June 14. Michigan named eighth-worst state to drive in To find the states with the most positive driving experiences, personal finance website WalletHub... Michigan sportsbooks end first year with $4 billion in wagers December saw revenue grow to $3.9 million per day from $3.6 million in November, yielding $22.6... - Surprisingly, the government has submitted court documents which seem to contract their position the smokers have a higher risk on contracting Covid-19 - A study submitted by the government found that smokers were significantly less affected by Covid-19 - Additionally, another piece of evidence suggests that the illegal purchasing of cigarettes increases the chance of infection PAY ATTENTION: Click See First under the Following tab to see Briefly.co.za News on your News Feed! The government is doubling down on its defence of the cigarette ban and has submitted a huge array of court documents, however, some of their own findings contradict what they are saying. The key point which has stood out is that the government has admitted that "smoking populations were less likely to be infected" with the virus. In another apparent contradiction, the government has said that purchasing cigarettes during lockdown poses a higher chance of contracting the virus compared to normal shopping. Briefly.co.za learned that the ban on cigarettes has been suggested as the cause for the higher risk as people buy from non-traditional sources. Despite this, the government is adamant that smoking cigarettes increases the chances of someone contracting Covid-19 according to News24. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has been at the centre of the cigarette ban during lockdown. Photo credit: @Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Bonang Matheba runs into ex-boyfriend D'Banj and reacts like a boss British American Tobacco South Africa (BATSA) is taking the government to court and insists that the ban on cigarettes is unconstitutional. The contradiction submitted by the government is contained in a scientific study on Covid-19 which was carried on using data from 140 patients in China. The issue is that in China over a quarter of the population smoke (27.7%) but only 3.4% of smokers developed sever Covid-19 symptoms, suggesting that smokers were less a risk. READ ALSO: Minnie Dlamini-Jones dragged on social media called out for being fake "128.1 This is a peer-reviewed journal. "128.2 This paper presented clinical characteristics of 140 patients with Covid-19. "128.3 The results showed more smokers among the severe than among the non-severe cases. Among severe patients (n=58), 3.4% were current smokers and 6.9% were former smokers. This is in contrast to non-severe patients (n=82) among which 0% were current smokers and 3.7% were former smokers." The second contradiction, the purchasing of cigarettes: "176.1 The percentage of participants who came into close contact with someone outside their home, by shaking hands, hugging or kissing, was significantly higher for those who were able to buy cigarettes during lockdown (26.2%) than those who were not (9.8%)." This evidence suggests that 26.2% on contact is from illegal cigarette purchases which has ballooned under lockdown. Earlier, Briefly.co.za reported that 3 high-ranking SANDF officials have become a topic of discussion online after Saffas saw them violating lockdown Level 3 rules. While smokers in the country are anxiously awaiting the government to lift the ban on the sale of tobacco products, the three officials were seen enjoying a smoke during Andrew Mlangeni's funeral. In other news, Briefly.co.za reported that the South African Police Service (SAPS) has conducted a series of lockdown operations in the Vhembe District. Colonel Mukwevho, led SAPS and other law enforcement members in a lockdown sweep in which Covid-19 restrictions were enforced in and around the Musina precinct. 6 people were arrested for being in possession of illegal cigarettes to the value of R480 000. Enjoyed reading our story? Download BRIEFLY's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major South African news! Source: Briefly News B ritons are already making the most out of Chancellor Rishi Sunak's Eat Out to Help Out scheme by scoring bargain breakfasts at McDonald's, Wetherspoons and Costa Coffee. Pubs, restaurants and cafes will offer half-price mid-week meals from today under the Government's bid to boost a hospitality sector devastated by the coronavirus pandemic. The meal deal will apply Monday to Wednesday in August, and includes major chains such as Nando's and Starbucks, as well as Michelin-starred restaurants including Tom Kerridge's The Hand and Flowers in Marlow. Diners were quick to make the most of the discount, with some scoring breakfasts for just 2. One Twitter user said: "Just got a McDonalds breakfast for 2. This eat out to help out deal isn't going to be good for my waistline." BBC presenter Jeremy Buxton praised the scheme after he paid half price for his family's breakfast. He said: "Loving the UK government Eat Out to Help Out offer - family breakfast at Manchester Airport was half price! Thanks Rishi Sunak." Another Twitter user said: "Had my plate of large breakfast with 50% at Wetherspoons! "What a time to enjoy food, with #SocialDistancing #EatOutToHelpOut stay safe." Hertford town councillor Jan Goodeve also thanked Mr Sunak for the discount on her breakfast at Tewin Bury Farm. Dorset councillor Jane Somper also started the day with a bargain coffee. She said: "A delicious Mocha to kickstart the day and with 50% off at @muffinbreakuk thanks to @GOVUK scheme." Another Twitter user wrote: "Trip north to see family & thanks to #EatOutToHelpOut its the first time Ive had a service station @StarbucksUK and not felt like someone had just absolutely mugged me off." The UK's 130bn hospitality industry is the country's third largest employer and represents nine per cent of all jobs. In his summer statement, Mr Sunak said: "To get customers back into restaurants, cafes and pubs, and protect the 1.8 million people who work in them, I can announce today that, for the month of August, we will give everyone in the country an Eat Out to Help Out discount." The scheme includes all food but only non-alcoholic drinks, and will apply to both adults and children. Those dining out will be able to enjoy a maximum discount of 10-per-head off a meal. For example, if a couple went out and spent 30 on food and soft drinks, they would each be able to take 7.50 per head off the meal, totalling a 15 discount equal to 50 per cent. But were that couple to spend 80, only a discount of 10 per head would apply 20 total despite this representing a discount of 25 per cent. The scheme has been hailed as a success by some restaurateurs. High-end steak restaurant, Hawksmoor, introduced a 20 rump steak and chips dish to its London, Manchester and Edinburgh venues. The discount will see diners pay just 10 a plate. Since announcing the deal, the restaurant founders have said they are booked up Monday to Wednesday throughout August. Elsewhere, Russell Nathan, senior partner at accountancy firm HW Fisher, said: "Our restaurants, pubs, shops and hotels are struggling. "This is a timely announcement from Government as businesses are in desperate need of a clear action plan. "It is vital we see the hospitality industry back up and running, and these measures announced will provide an essential lifeline for many UK businesses." Only restaurants that offer dine-in service will be eligible to register. This means there will be no discounts available for takeaway-only restaurants, mobile food vans or private catering services. There is no limit on how many times members of the public can get a discounted meal within the time restrictions provided, as long as they are visiting a restaurant that has registered for the scheme. It has not been confirmed whether the scheme will extend past August or not. Loading.... Londoners can find out which restaurants in the capital are taking part by entering a postcode the government's Eat Out to Help Out website. As the world awaits a COVID-19 vaccine, the next big advance in battling the pandemic could come from a class of biotech therapies widely used against cancer and other disorders -antibodies designed specifically to attack this new virus. Development of monoclonal antibodies to target the virus has been endorsed by leading scientists. Anthony Fauci, the top United States infectious diseases expert, called them almost a sure bet against COVID-19. When a virus gets past the bodys initial defences, a more specific response kicks in, triggering the production of cells that target the invader. These include antibodies that recognise and lock on to a virus, preventing the infection from spreading. Monoclonal antibodies grown in bioreactor vats are copies of these naturally-occurring proteins. Scientists are still working out the exact role of neutralising antibodies in recovery from COVID-19, but drugmakers are confident that the right antibodies or a combination can alter the course of the disease that has killed more than 690,000 people globally. Antibodies can block infectivity. That is a fact, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals executive Christos Kyratsous told Reuters news agency. Regeneron is testing a two-antibody cocktail, which it believes limits the ability of the virus to escape better than one, with data on its efficacy expected by late summer or early fall (from September). Protection will wane over time. Dosing is something we dont know yet, said Kyratsous. The US government in June awarded Regeneron a $450m supply contract. The company said it can immediately begin production at its US plant if regulators approve the treatment. Eli Lilly and Co, AstraZeneca, Amgen, and GlaxoSmithKline were cleared by the US government to pool manufacturing resources to scale up supplies if any of these drugs prove successful. Even with that unusual cooperation among rivals, manufacturing these medicines is complex and capacity is limited. There is also a debate over whether a single antibody will be powerful enough to stop COVID-19. AstraZeneca said it plans to start human trials of its dual-antibody combination within weeks. Lilly, which began human testing in June of two antibody candidates in separate trials, is focusing on a one-drug approach. If you need a higher dosage or more antibodies, fewer people can be treated, Lilly Chief Scientific Officer Dan Skovronsky said. Instant immunity Unlike vaccines, which activate the bodys own immune system, the effect of infused antibodies eventually dissipates. Still, drugmakers say monoclonal antibodies could temporarily prevent infection in at-risk people such as medical workers and the elderly. They could also be used as a therapeutic bridge until vaccines become widely available. In a prophylactic setting we think we may achieve coverage for up to six months, said Phil Pang, chief medical officer of Vir Biotechnology, which aims to start testing an antibody in non-hospitalised patients next month with partner GSK. The advantage of an antibody is that it is basically instant immunity, said Mark Brunswick, senior vice president at Sorrento Therapeutics, which aims to begin human trials next month of a single antibody candidate. Safety risks for monoclonal antibodies are considered low, but their cost can be quite high. These type of drugs for cancer can cost more than $100,000 a year. There is also concern that the coronavirus could become resistant to specific antibodies. Researchers are already at work on second-generation compounds with targets other than the crown-like spikes the virus uses to invade cells. We are trying to develop something that is complementary, Amgen research chief David Reese said. Amgen is working with Adaptive Biotechnologies Corp. Researchers in a recent paper published in the journal, Nature, said they had discovered several new, very potent, antibodies directed to an area where the virus attaches to human cells and to a region of the spike that has not attracted attention. To avoid development of resistance you want to target different sites, study author and Columbia University professor David Ho told Reuters. There are also questions about when in the course of the illness it might be best to employ these new weapons. Giving an antibody later on after infection might not be that helpful, said Florian Krammer, microbiology professor at New Yorks Icahn School of Medicine. Given early, they probably work well. NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / August 3, 2020 / A database is a collection of data stored together in a way that can be shared with multiple users and independent of applications. Nowadays, in the era of big data, data management is getting more and more attention and have already become an asset of great importance. Therefore, data security is also becoming increasingly significant and should be taken seriously. Despite the storage dependency of a single company could be satisfied by existing databases, they can hardly ensure the security during the collaborations between companies. Attack and alteration detection will become more difficult when attacks come from partners. Thus, we here present a blockchain-based database system that enables the cooperation of multiple companies and ensures the security of the database simultaneously. The demand for large-scale development of distributed business calls for the birth of a new generation of blockchain infrastructure, and PISR enterprise-level distributed database takes into account the optimal balance between efficiency, security and decentralization, allowing blockchain technology serve the real economy. Without millions of images and other types of labeled data, it is impossible to truly train large-scale deep learning networks. In other words, companies with large amounts of data can create various types of predictive models to "control", such as Facebook will be 50 million Human data is sold to Cambridge Analytica, which affects the US presidential election. In recent years, countries have frequently promulgated policies related to data security and privacy protection. In the future, the use of data will become more cautious. At the same time, data interaction and data fusion will also be a world trend, but due to industry competition, privacy and security, data ownership, and complicated administrative procedures, data cannot be developed and applied in compliance and effectively, often in the form of islands. It is difficult and costly to integrate scattered data. Story continues CyberVein solution CyberVein is a big-data service provider who interconnects the data that runs the world. The platform was founded in 2017 by the Singapore CV Technology Foundation. The big-data solution PISR (private, interlink, secure, robust) distributed database developed by CyberVein, focusing on enterprise-level "blockchain + big-data" customized services. What is a PISR enterprise-level database Current databases do not prevent malicious activities towards data. The possibility of an administrator or collaborator's attack should not be underestimated when sharing database information and cooperating with others. In other words, there is a problem with the database being altered or manipulated by the data administrator or malicious user on the distributed database. The PISR enterprise-level distributed database uses the blockchain to record the database status and operations in units of time, which not only makes the database credible, but also makes the blockchain a time machine that can be restored to the record on the chain at any time any database status. It creates better data management, through safe and reliable virtual machine operation and maintenance of user data, data is efficiently aggregated for upstream data, and data traceability and tracking are realized to ensure the reliability of data sources and outputs, and achieve cross-level, cross-departmental data sharing to improve the timeliness, diversity, stock and density of data to realize the commercial value of data, and truly solve the problems in data flow. While ensuring the flexibility and controllability of the system, the data is guaranteed to be authentic, traceable, and not tamperable. Increasing the utilization and consistency of data, as well as facilitating the development and maintenance of applications, improving the productivity and competitiveness of enterprises, and enabling enterprises to obtain greater economic benefits. Storage is only a function of the database, and the organization and management of the data is the core of the database. The CVT database can not only store, but also manage more efficiently, and realize the value of the data. It is an important driving force for the realization of enterprise informatization. Scalability Provide SDK, API, and smart contract, enterprise can quickly develop various business applications, supports multiple programming languages, and make the business development process more in line with enterprise-level software development practices Support flexible user account management function, adopt role and permission model to realize consortium database node management Supports flexible configuration modification of all nodes in the entire network at the same time, and maintains high consistency in data configuration. Stable and safe operating environment Optimize the transaction processing flow and communication flow to improve the processing power of nodes Realize efficient consensus, adopt plug-in design, support POC consensus algorithm With parallel computing architecture, it can be expanded in parallel to meet the needs of massive services Standardized governance methods Institutional identity authentication based on CAS, with node access control mechanism Provides a functional interface for supervisory audits, supports supervisory audit access, and supports comprehensive blockchain index monitoring to ensure operational quality Support gray scale upgrade of the entire network to ensure the maintainability of large-scale commercial networks How cybervein database could resolve medical problem CyberVein is also keen to be involved in this fight for epidemic prevention, offering some of our strengths that can help protecting the people. CyberVein's immutable database is built with improvements on the DAG technology, and the ledger is fractionally built as a network of independent yet interconnected Smart Contracts. The database allows large sums of structured data to be stored and processed by many participants in parallel. The database can prove to be very useful in this epidemic prevention, as each hospital can store patient data, diagnosis data and resource and supply data, sharing such data with other institutions to provide a overall picture of the situation. The research institutions can obtained the shared data to build a model for corona virus screening, increasing the speed of research and development, and the effectiveness of the screening technology. If the patients or hospitals do not wish to share sensitive data with others, CyberVein can help by using the federated learning technology, where model construction algorithms can be circulated around each node to improve the overall model with the local data available at each node. The final model can then be distributed to the participant to provide effective solutions, without having compromised any data privacy. There is a lot that the blockchain technology can do, especially when combined with other tools such as AI, IoT and Big Data. The epidemic outbreak in China has urged several parties to hasten the development of blockchain technology, and when the fight for epidemic prevention and elimination is over, this will surely become a big part of the momentum for blockchain application development. The blockchain technology will not be a one-time event that happens only in the current epidemic situation, but a lasting change that will continue to exist in the future. Media Contact CyberVein Customer Support Rachel Yu rachelyu@cybervein.org +8615598359310 SOURCE: CyberVein View source version on accesswire.com: https://www.accesswire.com/600016/PISR-Database-the-Next-Best-Marriage-Between-Blockchain-and-Big-data A Baton Rouge district judge who has been hospitalized since early July with the coronavirus will now face only one challenger in the Nov. 3 election. Dale Glover, a Baton Rouge lawyer, withdrew from the race Friday, a week after the Louisiana Supreme Court allowed the campaign manager for incapacitated state District Judge Richard "Chip" Moore to sign and file Moore's qualifying papers. Louisiana Supreme Court says coronavirus-stricken judge can skip election paperwork for now Campaign officials for an East Baton Rouge district judge incapacitated by the novel coronavirus filed paperwork Friday to place him on the No Glover had qualified, prior to the high court's ruling, to run for the Division N seat that Moore, 55, has held since 2005. Glover said in a statement he did not wish to run against a sitting judge. "I wish Judge Moore the best in his re-election bid. I have a long career ahead of me and look forward to future opportunities to serve the public," he said. Jennifer Moisant, a Baton Rouge lawyer, is Moores lone remaining opponent. The scoop on state politics in your inbox Get the Louisiana politics insider details once a week from us. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up Moore, who spent much of the past month on a ventilator at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, has been moved out of the intensive care unit. He is no longer on a ventilator. Richard 'Chip' Moore, well-known Baton Rouge judge, is on ventilator and fighting coronavirus Nineteenth Judicial District Court Judge Richard "Chip" Moore, who was hospitalized last week with the coronavirus, is now on a ventilator in Moore is a Republican. Moisant is a Democrat. The Supreme Court said Moore himself will have to sign his own qualifying paperwork by Nov. 2, which is the day before Election Day. Candidates are not required to appear in person when filing qualifying papers, but they are required to sign their own paperwork. The high court ruled July 24, which was the final day of the three-day qualifying period, that extraordinary circumstances should not disqualify Moore. They were also relieved to find they were aligned in their apartment tastes: After touring the space, they agreed that it was serviceable, but nothing special. The broker mentioned that he had another apartment nearby, a $2,500-a-month two-bedroom with a lofted mezzanine that had come back on the market after the landlord discovered the would-be tenants hadnt been paying rent at their previous apartment. As it was somewhat dubiously listed as a three-bedroom, it had never come up in their searches. They took to the space immediately. We liked that it had high ceilings and more character. If we entertained, we felt like wed be a little bit more proud of this apartment, Ms. Merritt said. And our bedrooms could not be farther apart its kind of like we have our own wings. We didnt want to share a wall, Mr. Daly said. And Ms. Merritt recalled that she once had one roommate that I could hear breathe, just breathe. That freaked me out, having no feeling of privacy. The only real downside was that the landlord wanted a June 20 move-in and wouldnt budge, which meant paying double rent for 10 days. That, and the bedrooms had no closets: Instead, there were small, wall-mounted open wardrobes a few rows of shelving with a rack below to hang clothing on. (Mr. Daly likes the feature; Ms. Merritt prefers garment racks.) They decided to go for it anyway. The mezzanine over the living room, laundry in the building and the shared backyard helped tip the scales. So far, things have gone fairly well, with a few minor glitches. The movers couldnt fit Mr. Dalys sofa up the building stairs, so he had to sell it in a hurry, as it was stuck in the lobby. The roommates ordered a new one from Overstock, but it took a while to arrive, so they spent most of the last month in their rooms, as common-space seating options were limited to the metal bar stools. New Delhi, Aug 3 : The government has restricted participation of companies from countries sharing a land border with India in the ongoing auction of coal mines for commercial extraction by the private sector. The Coal Ministry has issued a corrigendum to the tender document issued for commercial coal mining, bringing out the fact that though 100 per cent FDI, under the automatic route, is permitted in the new activity, investment proposals or bids from countries sharing a land border with India will only done through the government route. This would mean such proposals will first be vetted by the government before any participation is allowed. Also, proposals from companies, where the beneficial owner is situated in or is a citizen of any such country sharing a land border with India, will also have to go through the government route. Further, the tender document has clarified that a citizen of Pakistan or an entity incorporated in Pakistan can invest, only under the government route, in sectors/activities other than defence, space, atomic energy and sectors/activities prohibited for foreign investment. The Coal Ministry has issued the clarifications, so that investors know about their eligibility before placing the bid and are not caught unawares later. The government, through Press Note 3 of 2020 issued earlier, had put all investment from countries sharing a land border with India under the government approval route. The exercise was largely to check proliferation of Chinese companies in India's critical and sensitive sectors. Later, the border clashes between India and China in Ladakh created a ground where official agencies are looking at further measures to check investment and imports from the neighbouring country. In all, 41 mines with a total geological coal reserve of 17 billion tonnes are on offer under the first phase of commercial coal mine auctions. These include both large and small mines with peak rated capacities (PRC) ranging from 0.5 to 40 million tonne per annum (mtpa) of coal. The cumulative PRC of all mines is 225 mtpa. Of these, the Centre is withdrawing one mine of Bander in Maharashtra as it falls under an eco-sensitive zone and has also considered the Chhattisgarh government's request to replace four coal blocks marked for auction for commercial mining. The mines on offer are largely fully explored ones, meaning that these could be brought to production immediately. Moreover, four coming coal mines on offer are those which could provide inputs to the steel sector. The mines are located in five states since coal mines auctions started in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha. The commercial coal mining auctions are completely different from earlier regimes of restricted sectors, use and price. Now there are no such restrictions at all. The coal block auction has so far received good response from the investors with a lot of inquiries from both Indian and global mining, metal and energy companies. The Savannah Regional Womens Organizer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) , Hajia Mohammad Safia, has praised President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for finding lasting solution to the long-standing water crisis situation in Gonjaland. Last week, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo commissioned the Yapei Water Supply Project, in fulfilment of a 2nd September 2016, campaign promise hed made to the Yapeiwura, Alhassan Soale, and the people of Yapei, in the run-up to the December 2016 elections. The Yapei Water Supply System will serve eleven thousand, four hundred and forty-three (11,443) people, and has been constructed at a cost of five million, six hundred and sixty-five thousand, nine hundred and sixty-six Ghana cedis, forty-two pesewas (GH5,665,966.42), for which Ghana is grateful. Again, he cut the sod for the construction of the Damongo Water Supply Project in Damongo in the Savannah region. According to President Akufo-Addo,government secured a credit facility of forty-nine million United States dollars (US$49,000,000.00) from the UK Export Finance and Deutsche Bank AG to execute the project. The Water Supply System is projected to serve a population of some sixty-eight thousand people, with an expected average water demand of about eight thousand, eight hundred cubic metres per day. He disclosed that the construction of the Water Supply System is aimed at meeting the water demands for Damongo and its surrounding communities until 2040, in line with Government Policy. According to the Savannah Regional Womens Organiser of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the good people of the Savannah region will be forever grateful to President Akufo-Addo for cancelling the slogan Nchu me wuta" which means they have been tasty for a long time for water of which he has provided Gonjaland with potable drinking water. She indicated that the good people of Gonjaland had their brother former president John Dramani Mahama as president but he failed to provide them with potable water. women in the 21st century will not vote base on tribal, ethnic and religious sentiments but vote based on progressive benefits and developmental projects our communities have emerged. We will not vote based on the claim of our own son but vote for a result-oriented person. A leader who does not need the position to succeed or become better but to feel the pain and rejection of the people after elections and has the dream to raise a generation of full time employed members and highly motivated group ready and qualified to take over the helms of affairs from the old in not too distant future. 2020 is a year of Accountability . Hajia Safia called on the people of Gonjaland vote massively for the Nana Addo led administration to continue with the developmental projects in the Savannah region. President Akufo-Addo commissioned the Yapei Water Supply Project, in fulfilment of a 2nd September 2016, campaign promise he made to the Yapeiwura, Alhassan Soale, this means he is a promise keeper and deserves another four years to continue the good works in the region. In 2017, at least 65 women died of pregnancy-connected causes in Louisiana. Almost all of the deaths 80% to 100% could have been prevented, according to the states most comprehensive report of maternal deaths to date. The report was put together by Louisianas Pregnancy Associated Mortality Review committee, a group of health professionals who combed through medical records, autopsies, police reports, and local news clips to piece together how each pregnant woman died in the state. The federally funded committee is trying to determine how Louisiana, which in years past has had one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the U.S., could prevent more women from dying in the future. This report included any death of a pregnant woman up to a year after pregnancy, marking a significant shift in how maternal mortality is calculated within the state. 'Good signs': Louisiana makes improvements to stop women from dying in childbirth By the time providers were done with a patients scheduled C-section in 2019 at Natchitoches Regional Medical Center, a small rural hospital i Previously, only deaths directly related to the pregnancy such as hemorrhage during birth were counted, and the state only included those that happened during pregnancy or within 42 days of the end of pregnancy. We now know that its not just looking at what happens in the hospital, its also about what happens outside the hospital, said Dr. Veronica Gillespie, an OB-GYN and the medical director for the Louisiana Perinatal Quality Collaborative. The causes are not all medical. The report separated deaths into three main categories: pregnancy-related deaths, deaths that were not related and those that could not be determined as either. Pregnancy-related deaths are those tied directly to the pregnancy. Of the 15 pregnancy-related deaths the state reviewed, the top causes of those deaths were cardiovascular and coronary conditions. Eighty percent were preventable, the committee found. The state was unable to determine whether the death was related in nine cases. For those, the top cause was suicide. The committee found that all were considered preventable, defined as any chance the death could have been avoided by reasonable changes to patient, family, provider, facility, system or community factors. The 41 remaining deaths were pregnancy-associated, meaning it was not directly related to the pregnancy itself. Homicide and motor vehicle accidents were the top causes of those deaths, 90% of which were deemed preventable. 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 Louisiana's death rate for pregnant women is twice the average; homicide is a leading cause With a death rate for pregnant women that's twice the U.S. average, Louisiana is one of the country's most dangerous places to have a baby. No Even though it may not have been related to the pregnancy itself, there still may have been things concerning the pregnancy that contributed to the death even if it was something like a homicide, said Gillespie. There may need to be different education for our pregnant mothers about how to wear a seatbelt, about other issues we dont typically think about when educating our moms. The report also highlighted racial disparities in deaths, particularly in those directly related to pregnancy. For every white woman who died of a pregnancy-related cause, five black women died. Black women were also twice as likely to die of pregnancy-associated causes. While the new way of classifying maternal deaths offers a bigger scope of the problem, it makes it difficult to compare prior years to see if the states efforts to keep pregnant women alive during and after their pregnancy has improved. A previous report that measured only pregnancy-related deaths within 42 days found that 47 women died between 2011 and 2016. The more you look, the more you find, said Dr. Elliott Main, the medical director at the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative, who was not involved in the Louisiana review. So to compare years, you have to be sure that the data collection model was the same. Earlier this year, the CDC released the first maternal mortality report in over a decade, concluding that there were 17.4 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births, ranking the U.S. at 55th among all countries and the worst of wealthy nations. But the data did not include suicides and drug overdoses and only counted deaths up to 42 days after they occurred. In comparison, the new Louisiana review is much more comprehensive, offering a bigger-picture look at both maternal health and the health of the population of Louisiana, the authors said. Maternal and infant outcomes are a measure of your health quality as a society in general, said Gillespie. I think this is reflective of the things we need to look at in the non-pregnant population as well. Belimo Holding AG / Key word(s): Half Year Results Release of an ad hoc announcement pursuant to Art. 53 KR The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Hinwil (Switzerland), EMBARGOED UNTIL August 3, 2020, 07:00 a.m. CET Press Release of the Belimo Group Belimo: Delivering Strong Performance Thanks to High Product Availability In the face of an unprecedented crisis, Belimo managed remarkably well in the first half-year of 2020. The Company was able to maintain superior service levels and high product availability throughout the COVID-19-pandemic. Overall, sales in the first half-year of 2020 declined by 5.6 percent to CHF 335.5 million. In local currencies, the Company saw sales contract by 1.4 percent. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) decreased to CHF 55.4 million (2019: CHF 67.0 million). The EBIT margin amounted to 16.5 percent (18.9 percent), with adverse currency effects among the factors contributing to the margin decrease. The bottom line is a net income of CHF 41.2 million (CHF 53.3 million) and earnings per share of CHF 67.11 (CHF 86.60) were achieved. Belimo generated a free cash flow of CHF 38.8 million (CHF 26.0 million). Net liquidity was CHF 103.1 million at the end of June 2020, and the equity ratio was 79.7 percent. Tactical measures have been implemented to mitigate the short-term financial impact. Europe. Belimo registered strong sales in northern European countries in the first quarter, especially in Russia, Poland, and the United Kingdom as well as in Germany. Several factors contributed to this momentum, notably market share gains, as Belimo was able to maintain a stable supply chain throughout the crisis. In the second quarter, however, sales started to decline, primarily in Germany, Italy, France, the United Kingdom, and Spain. After the lockdown measures were eased, demand started recovering throughout Europe in June. Americas. Belimo registered a good first quarter for the US and Canada that outperformed the above-average first quarter of the previous year. Substantial volume in the OEM business from data centers contributed noticeably and continued to do so throughout the pandemic, partly compensating for COVID-19 related losses. Non-residential construction suffered from COVID-19 measures in regard to service and maintenance interventions in existing buildings that were kept to a minimum. It is only in June that construction sites have started to open amid an easing of government measures across most of the region. As a result, sales volumes showed an uptick towards the end of the first half of the year. Asia Pacific. HVAC construction output in the Asia Pacific market region started well in 2020 until the full lockdown over a prolonged Chinese New Year brought the Chinese market to a standstill. In February and March, the Chinese market rapidly focused on essential services such as hospitals, government infrastructure, and transportation projects as well as investments in data centers. Other governments were quick to follow the Chinese example with stimulus packages provided for public infrastructure. In April and May, major Chinese cities and second-tier cities went back to business as usual with the opening of construction sites. Belimo sales in China grew positively from April through June because of demand from healthcare, railway/metro stations, and data centers. In India and Malaysia, the lockdowns persisted. Net Sales by Market Regions in CHF 1,000 1st half 2020 % Growth in local currencies in % 1st half 2019 % Europe 166,026 49 2.3 170,251 48 Americas 130,353 39 -5.1 142,153 40 Asia Pacific 39,116 12 -3.5 42,826 12 Group 335,495 100 -1.4 355,229 100 Net Sales by Applications in CHF 1,000 1st half 2020 % Growth in local currencies in % 1st half 2019 % Air 187,184 56 -0.8 197,118 55 Water 148,311 44 -2.1 158,111 45 Total 335,495 100 -1.4 355,229 100 Outlook. Once measures related to the pandemic start to be eased, Belimo expects the business environment to normalize in the second half of 2020 and market conditions to generally improve. In Europe, Belimo is optimistic that sales will pick up during the summer months as the order backlog remains solid. In the Americas market region, Belimo anticipates pent-up demand for delayed projects to drive volume in the second half of the year. For the Asia Pacific market region, Belimo sees a robust project pipeline and expects further market share gains based on strategic growth initiatives. Overall, revenues in the second half of 2020 are expected to be on par with the previous year, provided that measures to combat the pandemic are further relaxed. Exchange rate fluctuations are likely to weigh on profitability. Despite the economic contraction, Belimo continues to allocate significant resources to its long-term strategic initiatives and related R&D activities. Key Figures of the Belimo Group in CHF 1,000 (unless indicated otherwise) 1st half 2020 1st half 2019 restated 1) Change in % Net sales 335,495 355,229 -5.6 Operating income (EBIT) in percent of net sales 55,417 16.5% 66,966 18.9% -17.2 Net income in percent of net sales 41,203 12.3% 53,255 15.0% -22.6 Cash flow from operating activities in percent of net sales 50,780 15.1% 52,979 14.9% -4.1 Free cash flow in percent of net sales 38,806 11.6% 25,974 7.3% 49.4 Earnings per share, in CHF 67.11 86.60 -22.5 Cash effective investments in property, plant and equipment and intangible assets 12,082 17,388 -30.5 Number of employees (FTEs, six-month average) 1,816 1,663 9.2 1) Restatement of non-current employee benefits The Belimo Group is a leading global manufacturer of innovative electrical actuator, valve, and sensor solutions for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. The Company reported sales of CHF 693 million in 2019 and has approximately 1,900 employees. Information about the Company and its products is available on the internet at www.belimo.com. The shares of BELIMO Holding AG have been traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange since 1995 (BEAN). Link to the Semiannual Report 2020: www.belimo.com/financial-reports Link to the definitions of Alternative Performance Measures: www.belimo.com/financial-summary Contact Dr. Markus Schurch, CFO Gerard Moinat, IRO +41 43 843 65 01 +41 43 843 63 80 Agenda Publication of Sales 2020 January 21, 2021 Publication of Annual Report 2020 / Media and Financial Analysts Conference March 8, 2021 Annual General Meeting 2021 March 29, 2021 End of ad hoc announcement MELBOURNE, Australia Wearing masks became compulsory in Australias second-largest city of Melbourne on Thursday as coronavirus hot spot Victoria state reported 403 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases and five deaths. The daily infection tally for the state was down from a record 484 posted Wednesday. Much of the spread is blamed on sick workers who do not take time off while they wait for coronavirus test results. The state government announced Thursday that workers who do not have sick leave will be eligible for a support payment of 300 Australian dollars while they await test results. A large majority of Melbourne residents appeared to be complying with the new face covering regulation. For the first week of the mask mandate, police will exercise discretion in imposing fines. ___ HERES WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE VIRUS OUTBREAK: Florida adds nearly 10,000 new coronavirus cases Brazil president still tests positive for virus Study: Nearly half of Spaniards gained weight during lockdown Californias confirmed coronavirus cases have topped 409,000, surpassing New York for most in the nation. However, California has nearly 8,000 deaths compared to New Yorks 32,000. The mayor of Washington, D.C., will issue an executive order making face masks mandatory outside the home. Mayor Muriel Bowser says the order will include possible fines for violations. A new poll finds very few Americans think schools should return to normal operations this fall, even as President Donald Trump pushes for a full reopening. The poll is from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs. ___ Follow APs pandemic coverage at http://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak ___ HERES WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING: BEIJING China continues to see newly confirmed coronavirus cases in its northwestern region of Xinjiang, with 18 reported Thursday. More than 50 people have been infected in Chinas latest outbreak focused on Xinjiangs regional capital and largest city of Urumqi. City leaders have restricted travel, locked down some communities and ordered widespread testing to contain the spread. Story continues An additional three confirmed cases brought from outside China were reported by the National Health Commission. China has reported a total of 83,729 cases of COVID-19, with 4,634 deaths. ___ SEOUL, South Korea -- South Korea has reported 59 new confirmed COVID-19 cases following a dual rise in local transmissions and imported infections. The figures by South Koreas Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday brought the national caseload to 13,938, including 297 deaths. The agency says 43 of the new cases were in the densely populated Seoul area, which has been at the center of a virus resurgence since late May. Authorities have struggled to trace transmissions and predict infection routes as people increasingly venture out in public. New clusters have been tied to office buildings, churches, live-in facilities and door-to-door salespeople. Officials say at least 20 cases were imported infections. South Korea mandates tests and enforces two-week quarantines on all people arriving from overseas. ___ SACRAMENTO, Calif. California will spend an additional $315 million on protective masks through a contract with a Chinese manufacturer. Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the deal with BYD on Wednesday as he touted Californias efforts to procure masks for health care and other essential workers. Newsom signed a $1 billion contract with BYD in April and the first masks began arriving last month after delays. Newsom said California will soon launch a competitive bidding process to try to get more masks at lower prices. But he also acknowledged the masks arent always getting to workers that need them and pledged a more aggressive state response. ___ BRASILIA, Brazil Brazils health ministry has reported a record 67,860 confirmed coronavirus cases over the last 24 hours. The previous mark for one day was 54,771, set June 19. The new high reported Wednesday comes as some regions of the South American nation are partially reopening for business while others that had previously controlled the spread of the virus are seeing increases. Brazil has counted more than 82,700 deaths from COVID-19 and 2.2 million confirmed infections. One of the infected is President Jair Bolsonaro, who said earlier Wednesday that he has tested positive for the virus for the third time in two weeks. ___ DALLAS Southwest Airlines will soon test thermal cameras to spot travelers who are running a fever, a symptom of COVID-19. The test will start in early August at Dallas Love Field and run one to three months. City and airline officials said Wednesday that in the first phase of the test, temperature readings wont be tied to individuals. Instead, the idea is to evaluate the cameras, where they should be placed, and how thermal screening could affect the flow of traffic at security checkpoints. Southwest says itll decide later on additional testing. ___ TALLAHASSEE, Fla. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says there is a strong need to reopen schools. He says keeping them closed will lead to depression, social isolation and a higher dropout rate. However, he adds that parents should be able to keep children at home if they fear the coronovirus. In an address on a state-run television channel Wednesday, DeSantis also said that if school districts want to delay opening, or allow teachers to work remotely, they should be allowed to do so. A Florida teachers union has filed a lawsuit seeking to block what it calls reckless and unsafe reopening of public schools for face-to-face instruction. The governor acknowledged there are worries about returning children to school, but added that it should also be asked how safe it is to keep schools closed. ___ PHOENIX -- Arizonas top education official says the states school districts should be empowered to reopen campuses for the new school year based on public health data instead of committing now to specific reopening dates. Superintendent of Public Instruction Kathy Hoffman says she has outlined her priorities to Gov. Doug Ducey. He is expected to announce the next steps for school reopenings this week. Ducey previously announced that schools would not reopen until Aug. 17, weeks after they normally open. Hoffman says schools need guarantees of full funding for distance learning. ___ WASHINGTON President Donald Trump is casting wide blame for a nationwide surge in coronavirus cases, pointing to racial justice protests, travelers from Mexico and young bar-goers. Holding his second briefing on the virus in as many days after a three-month hiatus, Trump sought on Wednesday to explain the rise in confirmed cases across the nations South, Southwest and West. Trump says cases among young Americans first started to rise shortly after demonstrations. He says the protests following the death of George Floyd presumably triggered a broader relaxation of mitigation efforts nationwide. He also says a substantial increase in travel around Memorial Day and summer vacations was also a driver of new cases. Further, he says, Young people closely congregating at bars and probably other places, maybe beaches, likely also led to new cases. Trump also blames travelers crossing the U.S.-Mexico border for spikes, saying cases in Mexico are surging. ___ WASHINGTON President Donald Trump says his administration is providing an additional $5 billion to nursing homes, which have borne a disproportionate share of the death toll in the coronavirus pandemic. Trump made the announcement Wednesday at the White House. He said the money is in addition to other actions, such as a push to facilitate testing of nursing home staff and a commitment to share inspection data on low performing nursing homes with state authorities. The White House move follows Democratic presidential candidate Joe Bidens recent unveiling of a family caregiver plan that aims to greatly expand and subsidize alternatives to institutional care for frail older adults. Both men are retooling their messages to seniors against a backdrop of eroding political support for Trump among older Americans. ___ COLUMBUS, Ohio Ohio, Indiana and Minnesota are the latest states to require residents statewide to wear masks because of the coronavirus pandemic. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz signed an executive order Wednesday requiring Minnesotans to wear a face covering in indoor businesses and indoor public settings. The order takes effect Saturday. Indiana will have a statewide face mask mandate starting Monday, Gov. Eric Holcomb said Wednesday. The order will apply to anyone ages 8 and older in any indoor public or business areas and at outdoor public spaces when sufficient distancing cant be maintained. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced the states mask requirement will be expanded statewide. It goes into effect Thursday evening for people 10 and older. He had resisted making the order statewide but said more counties are seeing increasing numbers. In Oregon, Gov. Kate Brown announced she is expanding the states mask order to also apply to children 5 years and older. She also decreased the capacity for bars, restaurants, churches and other indoor places from 250 people to 100. The new mandates go into effect Friday. Currently anyone who is 12 years or older must wear masks When we see the numbers rise, we must respond, Brown said. Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser said Wednesday she will issue an executive order making face masks mandatory outside homes an unprecedented step in the nations capital. ___ OKLAHOMA CITY Oklahomas largest public school district will delay the start of its school year by three weeks and have online learning until at least November. The Board of Education for Oklahoma City Public Schools voted to delay the start of the school year from Aug. 10 to Aug. 31. Superintendent Sean McDaniel says, The best education is when we have teachers and students face to face and we want to get there as quickly as we can. But we want to be safe and thoughtful about it. McDaniel says a recent study revealed nearly 30% of the districts 45,000 students were without either internet or computer access. But the district has used federal coronavirus relief funds to purchase 1,500 internet hot spots and will distribute computers to all students. ___ TOPEKA, Kan. Local school boards in Kansas will be able to reopen schools in mid-August if they want to, despite a surge in coronavirus cases in the state. The Republican-controlled State Board of Education rejected Democratic Gov. Laura Kellys plan to postpone the start of classes for three weeks until after Labor Day. The 10-member elected boards action leaves decisions about when to reopen to the states 286 local school boards. The GOP has an 8-2 majority on the board, and five Republicans voted against Kellys proposal, saying conditions with the virus differ across the state. ___ LAS VEGAS Las Vegas area schools wont resume classroom instruction when the semester starts next month. Clark County school trustees cited concerns of spreading the coronavirus and unanimously decided to begin the school year using online education. The vote came despite concerns about a shortage of laptops, lack of internet access for some students and the possibility of losing federal funds if schools dont open. District administrators considered two days of classroom attendance and three days of online instruction each week. But the superintendent says keeping the more than 350 schools closed a matter of health and safety. The schools chief in Seattle also has rejected returning students to the classroom. Public Schools Superintendent Denise Juneau announced Wednesday that shes recommending a fully remote learning model when school resumes in the fall. The school board is expected to vote on how to proceed at its next scheduled board meeting next month. ___ EAST LANSING, Mich. Michigan State University will reserve one dorm for students who test positive for the coronavirus. Students who test positive can move to Akers Hall or return home. The dorm can hold roughly 500 people, according to Kat Cooper, spokeswoman for Residential and Hospitality Services. Students, staff and visitors are required to wear masks on campus and maintain social distance. The fall term starts Sept. 2. ___ SANTIAGO, Chile Chiles government is letting its elderly out of the house after a four-month ban on people 75 and older in public. The government says the elderly will be allowed to leave their homes just for an hour three times a week. The age-based restriction was one of the strictest, though its not clear how much it helped. The South American nations hospital critical care units remain 82 percent occupied. The country of 19 million has recorded 336,000 confirmed infections of the coronavirus and 8,700 deaths. ___ GENEVA The head of emergencies at the World Health Organization says many people who develop moderate illness from COVID-19 face long-term health issues. Dr. Michael Ryan says an inflammatory process in air sacs and small blood vessels during coronavirus infection can cause the lungs to take a long time to regain normal function, along with the cardiovascular system. Fatigue, lower exercise tolerance and lower lung function, including in otherwise healthy young people, can result and take months to fully recover. At the mid-point of Mayor Guscioras term in office, Trenton continues to languish and suffer from the lack of pride and swagger that he promised to bring back to the Capital City. I have acknowledged previously, that a significant part of the problem is the Council, composed of too many loose cannons. Unfortunately, the Council is not going any place. In all likelihood most of the current members will seek re-election if they dont make a run for Mayor. Reed spends too much of his time on photo ops and picking-up litter and not enough time involved with managing the various departments and entities comprising municipal government. At least one former member of his administration feels that his laissez-faire approach to overseeing the day-to-day operations of government borders on being disengaged. There is a fine line between getting overly enmeshed in the intricacies of government and allowing line administrators to steer their own course without on-going direction, the Mayor does not appear to have mastered this balancing skill. During his campaign, Reed talked about the importance of taking care of the basics fixing the potholes, removing abandoned buildings, cleaning the parks and alleys, reducing crime, improving the education system and jump-starting the economic revitalization of Trenton. While there has been some progress in the first three items major improvements on the big three crime, education and economic development the results have been mixed at best. The number of shootings in Trenton is down-right scary. Neither, the City or Greater Trenton, the non-profit entity established in 2015 to spearhead the re-development of Trenton, has produced any major accomplishments on the economic development front other than tearing-down some abandoned buildings. The Mayor can point to the Councils rejecting designating Princetel as the redeveloper of one of the buildings in the Roebling Complex and the loss of a $4 million investment as a key setback. The Council can point to the poultry $85,000 that Princetel was willing to pay to acquire the property as a bad deal. Both are partially correct, but one failed project shouldnt be the end of all re-development efforts. Are there any other significant projects in the pipeline? One of the areas I thought Reed would excel at was working with the Murphy administration, especially Treasurer, Elizabeth Muoio, who along with Reed represented the 15th legislative district in the Assembly. During his campaign, Reed said, Christie was a very poor partner with the city of Trenton, particularly with the state building plan. He proposed to tear three buildings down. If you talk to an urban planner, they say put that downtown where it can foster more economic development, or put it near a transportation center. Hes done neither. I would urge Gov. Murphy to take a hard look at that. I think at the end of the day there will be more development if we can foster that by having those buildings downtown where it will be a win-win, both for the state and the city. The change in Administration did not result in a change in the location of three buildings that Reed and his supporters were upset about. This was in spite of the fact that it turns out that the building could have been moved because the bonds were secured by the rent payments, not the buildings location. Nor has Trenton seen a surge of additional revenue from the Murphy administration in spite of the fact that more than 50% of Trentons land is tax-exempt (28% is composed of State offices and parking lots). Through the efforts of Senator Turner, the City has done somewhat better under Murphy than under Christie, but has not reaped the windfall that I and others were looking or. I was hoping Trenton could become Albany under Governor Rockefeller. Further, there is no indication, on the political front, that Reed has the political clot to secure additional aid for Trenton especially in light of the pandemic. I would be remiss if I did not mention the Mayors performance during the coronavirus which has been mixed. He showed poor judgment in a conference call with Mercer County Executive Hughes and others in which he lost it and dropping multiple F-bombs pertaining to what he perceived as the County Executives lack of leadership during the crisis. If he had issues with County Executive he should have made them know been closed doors. Taking a page out of President and attacking others in the midst of a crisis is not an indicator of strong steady confident leadership. With regard to his imposing the corona-violence curfew, I have mixed feelings. While Im not opposed to mandating the folks get off the streets from 8 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. in an attempt to reduce murder and mayhem. However, Im not sure that an edict from the top, that is not the product of a discussion with Trentons religious and community leaders, is the best approach. The action seems to be another example of Reeds top-down rather than bottom-up approach to leadership. Further, I was not enamored with the Mayors comment when questioned about the crime figures provided by the Police Director Sheilah Coley that reflected a 144% decrease in crime during curfew hours but was really was only 51% (still a substantial reduction) when violent crime figures were included. Mayor Gusciora flippant explanation: If we got a decimal wrong, or the calculator didnt work, then I will take responsibility for it. I did not put my fingers on the calculator. I became a lawyer because I didnt like the sight of blood or math. When it comes to crime the most disconcerting figure is homicides and they are up dramatically. On July 17 the city recorded its 21st homicide. This compares with 21 murders in 2016, 23 in 2017, 16 in 2018, and 15 murders in 2019, according to New Jersey State Police statistics. At this juncture, Im hard-pressed to come up with a list of achievements that Reed could tout as reason voters should re-elect him. Sure, he could take credit for Trentons beautiful new high school that opened during his administration and which he supported in the legislature, but unless he can show that the dropout rate is decreasing and the graduation rate is increasing, he has not addressed Trentons most pressing problems. Unless Reed is able to accomplish a lot more on the crime, education, and economic development fronts in the second part of his term, he is going to be vulnerable to a challenge from a candidate with a demonstrated track record of accomplishment and who is considered a forceful effective leader. Facebook has branded a legal order to globally block a number of Brazilian accounts linked to the spread of political disinformation targeting the country's 2018 election as "extreme," claiming it poses a threat to freedom of expression outside the country. The tech giant is simultaneously complying with the block order -- beginning Saturday after it was fined by a Supreme Court judge for non-compliance -- citing the risk of criminal liability for a local employee were it not to do so. However it is appealing to the Supreme Court to try to overturn the order. A spokesperson for the tech giant sent us this statement on the matter: Facebook complied with the order of blocking these accounts in Brazil by restricting the ability for the target Pages and Profiles to be seen from IP locations in Brazil. People from IP locations in Brazil were not capable of seeing these Pages and Profiles even if the targets had changed their IP location. This new legal order is extreme, posing a threat to freedom of expression outside of Brazils jurisdiction and conflicting with laws and jurisdictions worldwide. Given the threat of criminal liability to a local employee, at this point we see no other alternative than complying with the decision by blocking the accounts globally, while we appeal to the Supreme Court. On Friday a judge ordered Facebook to pay a 1.92 million reais (~$367,000) fine for non compliance, per Reuters, which says the company had been facing further daily fines of 100,000 reais (~$19,000) had it not applied a global block. Before the fine was announced Facebook had said it would appeal the global block order, adding that while it respects the laws of countries where it operates "Brazilian law recognizes the limits of its jurisdiction." Reuters reports that the accounts in question were controlled by supporters of the Brazilian president, Jair Bolsonaro, and had been implicated in the spread of political disinformation during the country's 2018 election with the aim of boosting support for the right wing populist. Story continues Last month the news agency reported Facebook had suspended a network of social media accounts used to spread divisive political messages online, which the company had linked to employees of Bolsonaro and two of his sons. In a blog post at the time, Facebook's head of security policy, Nathaniel Gleicher, wrote: "Although the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities and coordination, our investigation found links to individuals associated with the Social Liberal Party and some of the employees of the offices of Anderson Moraes, Alana Passos, Eduardo Bolsonaro, Flavio Bolsonaro and Jair Bolsonaro." In all, Facebook said it removed 33 Facebook accounts, 14 Pages, 1 Group and 37 Instagram accounts that it identified as involved in the "coordinated inauthentic behavior." It also disclosed that around 883,000 accounts followed one or more of the offending Pages, the Group had around 350 accounts signed up, and 918,000 people followed one or more of the Instagram accounts. The political disops effort had spent around $1,500 on Facebook ads, paid for in Brazilian reais, per its account of the investigation. Facebook said it had identified a network of "clusters" of "connected activity," with those involved using duplicate and fake accounts to "evade enforcement, create fictitious personas posing as reporters, post content and manage Pages masquerading as news outlets." An example of removed content that was being spread by the disops network identified by Facebook (Image credit: Facebook) The network posted about "local news and events, including domestic politics and elections, political memes, criticism of the political opposition, media organizations and journalists," and, more recently, about the coronavirus pandemic, it added. In May a judge in Brazil had ordered Facebook to a block a number of accounts belonging to Bolsonaro supporters who had been implicated in the election meddling. But Facebook only applied the block in Brazil -- hence the court order for a global block. While the tech giant was willing to remove access to the inauthentic content locally, after it had identified a laundry list of policy contraventions, it's taking a "speech" stance over purging the fake content and associated accounts internationally -- arguing such an order risks overreach that could damage freedom of expression online. The unstated implication is authoritarian states or less progressive regimes could seek to use similar orders to force platforms to apply national laws which prohibit content that's legal and freely available elsewhere to force it to be taken down in another jurisdiction. That said, it's not entirely clear in this specific case why Facebook would not simply bring down its own banhammer on accounts that it has found to have so flagrantly violated its own policies on coordinated authentic behavior. But the company has at times treated political "speech" as somehow exempt from its usual content standards -- leading to operating policies that tie themselves in contradictory knots. Its blog post further notes that some of the content posted by the Brazilian election interference operation had previously been taken down for violating its Community Standards, including hate speech. Update: In follow-up comments after we queried the decision not to remove the content, Facebook told us that the particular accounts subject to the judicial order did not post content that it deemed had violated its community standards -- but had rather posted content deemed to be defamatory in Brazil. In such cases it says it applies local geoblocking as policy, subject to human rights due diligence and legal review. The company also said that the decision by Brazil's Supreme Court is unlike any other it's had applied to its business elsewhere, adding that it does not believe it's reasonable a court order in Brazil apply elsewhere or vice versa. The case doesn't just affect Facebook. In May, Twitter was also ordered to block a number of accounts linked to the probe into political disops. It's not clear what action Twitter is taking. We've reached out to the company for comment. Update II: Discussing the case with TechCrunch, Mireille Hildebrandt, a professor at the research group for Law, Science, Technology and Society at Vrije Universiteit Brussels in Belgium, told us: "The judgement is hugely important because Facebook is required to block accounts globally, based on their violating Brazilian laws against hate speech. Usually courts will shrink back from ordering global blocking as this may infringe upon the sovereignty of other states that may have other laws that should not be overruled by enforcement of Brazilian law. "The point here was that it would be too easy for the perpetrators to bypass the order by means of accounts outside of Brazil. The Court of Justice of the EU recently decided that the right to be forgotten (GDPR) does not necessarily require delisting of relevant content at the global level, precisely because this would imply extraterritorial jurisdiction." Hildebrandt went on to emphasize the importance of such rulings being "situated in their context". "Hate speech in a political context is often automated by way of bots and may have major impact on public interests such as democratic debate, reliability of information in the public sphere etc., whereas delisting of information about an individual person has entirely different consequences," she added. She also noted that the judge who issued the order, Alexandre de Moraes -- who has been investigating whether Bolsonaro's allies have been running a social network aimed at spreading threats and fake content targeted at Supreme Court justices -- has taken some controversial decisions before. As Time reported earlier this month, Moraes' probe is also "one of the main points of confrontation between Bolsonaro and the Supreme Court", with the president filed a lawsuit last month demanding that the Facebook accounts be unblocked. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The city Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) has released its August application schedule for exams. Open, competitive, computer-based tests are usually administered throughout each month for various positions. However, all Bureau of Exams testing events have been postponed until further notice. DCAS also said its Computer-Based Testing and Application Centers (CTAC), where exams are taken, are closed until further notice. DCAS continues to allow New York City residents to apply for exams. The August application period opens Aug. 5 for these exams: assistant plan examiner (buildings); city planner; estimator (general construction); lead abatement worker; masons helper. New York City employs hundreds of thousands of people in its 80 agencies. Taking a test is the way to get started in the hiring process for most of these positions. Application fees range from $40 to $101. For more information about registering for these and other tests, log onto the DCAS website. On Staten Island, the testing center is located at 135 Canal St., Stapleton. Additional testing centers are located at: 2 Lafayette St., Manhattan; 210 Joralemon St., Brooklyn; 118-35 Queens Blvd., Queens; 1932 Arthur Ave., the Bronx. After an exam is administered, it generally takes nine to 12 months for an eligible list of passers to be established from which agencies can hire from, according to DCAS. DCAS said on its website that all eligible lists which were originally scheduled to terminate between March 16, 2020, and Dec. 31, 2020, will be extended by one year. In addition, eligible lists for exams for police officer, police communications technician, traffic enforcement agent, and school safety agent, which are scheduled to terminate between Jan. 1, 2021, and Dec. 31, 2021, will also be extended by one year. Inquiries regarding the status of an eligible list can be e-mailed to the New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services at: LMAcustomerserviceunit@dcas.nyc.gov. FOLLOW ANNALISE KNUDSON ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Editorial board (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, August 4 2020 Religious institutions, including the Catholic Church, are not immune from sexual abuse cases involving leaders or those at the top of the hierarchy. When these happen, a settlement is difficult to reach as it may undermine not only their personal credibility but also that of the institution. Even if there is a will to solve a case, there is rarely a way, or at least it is a long and winding road to find a fair and just solution. In most cases, victims choose to remain silent as they are too afraid to speak about the unthinkable. In a religious society like Indonesia, clerics, clergymen and other faith leaders gain respect and protection from their congregations as a result of their roles as moral guides who lead their people to God. Last week The Jakarta Post published a series of articles addressing the issue of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church, which many may perceive as a taboo as it could undermine the Churchs authority. It was the second time that the Post collaborated with Tirto.id after our joint investigative report on sexual abuse on campuses last year. Our recent tandem effort followed a report published by a West Jakarta parish magazine last December about 56 cases of alleged sexual abuse within the Church community. 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 realme just announced its V5 5G smartphone in the new V series in China, as it had promised. It packs a 6.5-inch Full HD+ LCD screen with 90Hz refresh rate, 180Hz touch sampling rate, 90.7-screen-to-body ratio and a 16-megapixel camera inside the punch-hole. Powered by the latest Mediatek Dimensity 720 SoC with support for 5G SA/NSA, it packs up to 8GB of RAM, runs Android 10 with realme UI, features a 48-megapixel rear camera along with an 8-megapixel 119 ultra-wide sensor, a 2-megapixel 4cm macro camera and a 2-megapixel depth sensor. It has a side-mounted fingerprints scanner. In the Silver coloured version it has a large realme logo with a three-dimensional effect and the other colour variants feature new matte stitching design with asymmetrical aesthetics. It is equipped with a 5000mAh battery with 30W flash charge fast charging that lets you charge the phone from 0 to 100% in 65 minutes. realme V5 5G specifications 6.5-inch (1080 2400 pixels) Full HD+ 20:9 LCD screen with 90Hz refresh rate Octa Core MediaTek Dimensity 720 7nm processor (Dual 2GHz Cortex-A76 + Hexa 2GHz Cortex-A55 CPUs) with Mali-G57 MC3 GPU 6GB / 8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128GB (UFS 2.1) storage, expandable memory up to 256GB storage Android 10 with realme UI Hybrid Dual SIM (nano + nano / microSD) 48MP rear camera with f/1.8 aperture, LED flash, 8MP 119 ultra-wide angle lens with f/2.3 aperture, 2MP 4cm macro lens, 2MP depth sensor with f/2.4 aperture 16MP front-facing camera with f/2.1 aperture Side-mounted fingerprint sensor Dimensions: 162.275.19.1mm; Weight: 194g Splash resistant (p2i coating) 3.5mm audio jack, Linear speaker, Dolby Atmos, Hi-res audio 5G (SA/ NSA) / Dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz + 5GHz), Bluetooth 5, GPS/GLONASS/Beidou, USB Type-C 5000mAh (typical) / 4900mAh (minimum) battery with 30W flash charge fast charging The realme V5 comes in Silver, Green and Blue colours, is priced 1499 yuan (US$ 214 / Rs. 16,105 approx.) for the 6GB RAM with 128GB storage version and the 8GB RAM with 128GB storage version costs 1899 yuan (US$ 272 / Rs. 20,410 approx.). It is now available for order and goes on sale in China staring from August 7th. Source BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 3 By Jeila Aliyeva - Trend: Turkmenistans Dashoguz region harvested about 55,400 tons of potatoes, Trend reports with reference to Zolotoy Vek (Golden Age). In particular, the biggest volume of potatoes was harvested in region's Gurbansoltan Eje district - about 29,400 ton, on the farm named after N. Andalib about 11 tons, in the district named after S. A. Niyazov 10,500 tons, and in the Gerogly district - 1,400 tons. Reportedly, agriculture in Turkmenistan is developing rapidly. It is one of the most important sectors of the country's economy. The main types of agricultural crops grown on the territory of Turkmenistan are wheat, cotton, rice, sugar beet, fodder, vegetable and fruits. The development of agriculture is carried out on a scientific basis. Various types of agricultural crops are grown taking into account the agroecological characteristics of the country's regions. Special attention is paid to increasing the volume of products in Turkmenistan. As a result, in recent years, the country has increased the production of vegetables and fruit and berries and enlarged the area of perennial plants, vineyards and greenhouses. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @JeilaAliyeva Powers to ban movement in and out of coronavirus hotspots could be used to curb the spread of Covid-19, Downing Street said. Officials confirmed the measures which could include shutting down transport networks would be considered if needed to prevent a spike in cases. London Mayor Sadiq Khan hit out at totally unacceptable reports that the capital could be effectively cut off from the rest of England if there was a surge in cases there, but Downing Street insisted no specific plans for the UKs biggest city had been drawn up. Its unacceptable that the Govt is making serious plans for London without consulting democratically elected leaders. We can only control this virus if we work together. Govt must include local leaders, who understand their communities, in planning and decision making. Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan (@MayorofLondon) August 3, 2020 However, Number 10 acknowledged that measures to effectively ban travel around hotspots in England were part of the armoury to combat the disease. The Contain framework drawn up by officials in July sets out the possibility of putting in place restrictions on travel if there is an area that is particularly badly affected, the Prime Ministers official spokesman said. One of the steps within that potentially includes closing down local transport networks, the spokesman said. Its there, its contained in the document, its not a new thing we have informed the public and politicians of that being a potential action that we could take. But, to be clear, its not something that is specific to London or anywhere else. Measures could be brought in under the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 impose restrictions on gatherings limiting how many people can meet and whether they can travel in and out of an area to do so or shut down local or national transport systems. Our surprise is that such far-reaching contingency plans have been discussed and tested without the involvement or awareness of London's government London letter Regulations would be produced and approved by Parliament on a case-by-case basis. Mr Khan wrote to the Prime Minister following a Sunday Times report that Boris Johnson held a war game session with Chancellor Rishi Sunak to run through possible options in the event of a second wave in London, with one option effectively seeing the M25 acting as a barrier around the capital. The letter from the mayor and the chair of London Councils, Peter John, said: Our surprise is that such far-reaching contingency plans have been discussed and tested without the involvement or awareness of Londons government. This is clearly totally unacceptable and an affront to London and Londoners. The row came as a senior scientist criticised the way decisions about the response to coronavirus had been shrouded with secrecy. Sir Paul Nurse, the director of the Francis Crick Institute, said the Government should treat the public as adults in its communications over Covid-19. He told the BBCs Today programme: I think we need greater openness in the decision-making. It sometimes seems somewhat shrouded in secrecy. And not only that, but better communication of whats happening. Treat the public as adults. But the Prime Ministers spokesman said: We have been sharing data extensively with local authorities and local public health teams in order to help inform the decisions that they are taking on dealing with outbreaks. More broadly there has been regular publication of documents relating to Sages discussions and minutes of meetings. In other developments: A major incident was declared in Greater Manchester over rising Covid-19 infections. The World Health Organisation there may never be a silver bullet in the fight against the pandemic. Chancellor Rishi Sunaks meal-deal scheme aimed at encouraging people to go out more began. Trade unions criticised the Governments decision to press on with measures to get people back into the office on the first weekday since the guidance changed. Officials blamed rising demand and unexpected delays for problems in providing coronavirus testing for care home staff and residents. Two new tests which can detect coronavirus and flu and promise results in 90 minutes are to be rolled out in hospitals, care homes and laboratories. Expand Close (PA Graphics) Press Association Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp (PA Graphics) Concerns over a possible increase in cases has led to some experts warning that aspects of the national lockdown will have to be reimposed in order to allow schools to reopen in September. Professor Graham Medley, a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) said ministers might have to consider closing pubs in England in order for lessons to start again next month. Downing Street insisted that schools would reopen in England in September for all pupils in all year groups but local lockdowns could force some closures. Asked if the Prime Minister agreed with Prof Medleys assessment, the spokesman said: Our approach is a localised one where you would assess the situation on the ground and take whatever steps were required to slow the spread of the virus. More broadly we are committed to supporting the hospitality industry which has had a very tough time. Expand Close Chancellor Rishi Sunak places an Eat Out to Help Out sticker in the window of No 11 Downing Street (Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Chancellor Rishi Sunak places an Eat Out to Help Out sticker in the window of No 11 Downing Street (Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire) Part of that support is the Chancellors Eat Out to Help Out scheme, an offer of half-price meals from Monday to Wednesday during August in order to entice people back into restaurants and pubs which have seen their takings badly hit by the pandemic. The incentive will reduce bills by 50% for all eat-in meals at 72,000 participating establishments, including chains such as McDonalds, Nandos and Prezzo. The discount per person will be capped at 10 and does not apply to alcohol. LAKEWOOD, CO, July 31, 2020 /CNW/ - Energy Fuels Inc. (NYSE American: UUUU) (TSX: EFR) ("Energy Fuels" or the "Company") today reported its financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2020. The Company's quarterly report on Form 10-Q has been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and may be viewed on the Electronic Document Gathering and Retrieval System ("EDGAR") at www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml, on the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval ("SEDAR") at www.sedar.com, and on the Company's website at www.energyfuels.com. Unless noted otherwise, all dollar amounts are in U.S. dollars. Highlights: At June 30, 2020 , the Company had $28.3 million in cash and marketable securities, plus $24.7 million of concentrate inventory, including 575,000 pounds of uranium valued on our balance sheet at $23.05 per pound and 1,675,000 pounds of vanadium valued on our balance sheet at $5.11 per pound, both in the form of immediately marketable product. As of July 31, 2020 , the spot price of uranium was $32.35 per pound and the mid-point spot price of vanadium was $5.30 per pound, which places a current market value on our concentrate inventories of approximately $27.5 million . As a result of existing inventories and planned production, the Company expects to have between 640,000 and 690,000 pounds of finished uranium and 1.675 million pounds of finished vanadium in inventory at the end of 2020, assuming no change to production or sales guidance. , the Company had in cash and marketable securities, plus of concentrate inventory, including 575,000 pounds of uranium valued on our balance sheet at per pound and 1,675,000 pounds of vanadium valued on our balance sheet at per pound, both in the form of immediately marketable product. As of , the spot price of uranium was per pound and the mid-point spot price of vanadium was per pound, which places a current market value on our concentrate inventories of approximately . As a result of existing inventories and planned production, the Company expects to have between 640,000 and 690,000 pounds of finished uranium and 1.675 million pounds of finished vanadium in inventory at the end of 2020, assuming no change to production or sales guidance. The Company had an operating loss of $6.5 million during Q2-2020, versus a loss of $7.8 million in Q1-2020, narrowing the Company's quarter-on-quarter loss by 17%. during Q2-2020, versus a loss of in Q1-2020, narrowing the Company's quarter-on-quarter loss by 17%. The Company had working capital of $38.04 million at the end of Q2-2020, representing an increase of 8% over Q1-2020. at the end of Q2-2020, representing an increase of 8% over Q1-2020. On June 11, 2020 , the Company announced the partial cash redemption of its floating rate convertible unsecured subordinated debentures (the " Debentures "). On July 14, 2020 , the Company distributed Cdn$10,430,000 in cash to holders of the Debentures as of July 8, 2020 . This amount represents the redemption of one-half of the total Debentures outstanding, and as a result, the Company has only Cdn$10,430,000 ( US$7,780,780 , based on the US-Canada exchange rate on July 31, 2020 ) aggregate principal amount of the Debentures outstanding, which are due on December 31, 2020 . , the Company announced the partial cash redemption of its floating rate convertible unsecured subordinated debentures (the " "). On , the Company distributed in cash to holders of the Debentures as of . This amount represents the redemption of one-half of the total Debentures outstanding, and as a result, the Company has only ( , based on the US-Canada exchange rate on ) aggregate principal amount of the Debentures outstanding, which are due on . On April 13, 2020 , the Company announced its entry into the U.S. rare earth elements (" REE ") market. The Company believes its fully licensed and constructed White Mesa Mill (" Mill "), which is the only uranium mill operating in the U.S. today, can play a key role in bringing the REE supply chain back to the U.S. Many REE ores contain recoverable quantities of uranium, and the Mill has a 40-year history of responsibly processing ores for the recovery of uranium and other metals. On May 21, 2020 , the Company announced that it had entered into consulting agreements with two REE industry experts ( Constantine Karayannopoulos , then Chairman of Neo Performance Minerals (" Neo "), and Brock O'Kelley ) to aid in the development and implementation of commercial and technical REE strategies for the new U.S. REE program Energy Fuels is pursuing. On July 7, 2020 , Mr. Karayannopoulos was appointed President and CEO of Neo, positions he held previously with Neo. Neo is currently one of the World's leading producers of advanced industrial materials, including rare earth-based engineered products, for multiple global markets. As a result of his new executive roles with Neo, his consulting agreement with the Company will end on August 6, 2020 . On July 31, 2020 , the Company entered into a non-exclusive Letter of Intent with Neo, under which: (i) Mr. Karayannopoulos and other Neo personnel will continue to assist Energy Fuels in developing commercial and technical aspects of the Company's REE strategy, including the potential production of a rare earth oxide concentrate at the Mill that can be sold to REE separation facilities; and (ii) the Company and Neo will work together toward potentially creating a longer term mutually beneficial relationship, which may involve commitments to buy and sell all or a portion of the REE concentrate produced at the Mill or other commercial arrangements. , the Company announced its entry into the U.S. rare earth elements (" ") market. The Company believes its fully licensed and constructed White Mesa Mill (" "), which is the only uranium mill operating in the U.S. today, can play a key role in bringing the REE supply chain back to the U.S. Many REE ores contain recoverable quantities of uranium, and the Mill has a 40-year history of responsibly processing ores for the recovery of uranium and other metals. On , the Company announced that it had entered into consulting agreements with two REE industry experts ( , then Chairman of Neo Performance Minerals (" "), and ) to aid in the development and implementation of commercial and technical REE strategies for the new U.S. REE program Energy Fuels is pursuing. On , Mr. Karayannopoulos was appointed President and CEO of Neo, positions he held previously with Neo. Neo is currently one of the World's leading producers of advanced industrial materials, including rare earth-based engineered products, for multiple global markets. As a result of his new executive roles with Neo, his consulting agreement with the Company will end on . On , the Company entered into a non-exclusive Letter of Intent with Neo, under which: (i) Mr. Karayannopoulos and other Neo personnel will continue to assist Energy Fuels in developing commercial and technical aspects of the Company's REE strategy, including the potential production of a rare earth oxide concentrate at the Mill that can be sold to REE separation facilities; and (ii) the Company and Neo will work together toward potentially creating a longer term mutually beneficial relationship, which may involve commitments to buy and sell all or a portion of the REE concentrate produced at the Mill or other commercial arrangements. On April 23, 2020 , the U.S. Nuclear Fuel Working Group (" NFWG ") released its "Strategy to Restore American Nuclear Energy Leadership" (the " Report "). In the report, the U.S. government commits to reviving and strengthening the U.S. uranium mining industry. The Report provides a number of policy recommendations, including direct government purchases, supporting Department of Commerce efforts to extend the Russian Suspension Agreement (" RSA ") to prevent dumping of Russian uranium in the U.S. (and "the consideration of further lowering the cap on Russian imports under future RSA terms"), enabling the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to deny imports of fabricated nuclear fuel from Russia , and streamlining regulatory reform and land access for uranium. , the U.S. Nuclear Fuel Working Group (" ") released its "Strategy to Restore American Nuclear Energy Leadership" (the " "). In the report, the U.S. government commits to reviving and strengthening the U.S. uranium mining industry. The Report provides a number of policy recommendations, including direct government purchases, supporting Department of Commerce efforts to extend the Russian Suspension Agreement (" ") to prevent dumping of Russian uranium in the U.S. (and "the consideration of further lowering the cap on Russian imports under future RSA terms"), enabling the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to deny imports of fabricated nuclear fuel from , and streamlining regulatory reform and land access for uranium. On May 6, 2020 , the Company announced it had entered into an agreement to acquire Prompt Fission Neutron (PFN) borehole logging technology and equipment for total consideration of $500,000 cash, of which $150,000 was paid in Q2 2020 and the remainder was paid on closing of the acquisition, which occurred on July 31, 2020 . This acquisition gives the Company control over this important in situ recovery ("ISR") technology in the U.S. PFN is critical to successful uranium production from many ISR deposits, as it more accurately measures downhole in situ uranium ore grade versus traditional methods. Mark S. Chalmers, Energy Fuels' President and CEO, stated: "Energy Fuels continued to consolidate our position as the clear leader in U.S. uranium production in Q2-2020, and we made significant progress in diversifying into rare earth element production. "On the uranium front, we resumed limited uranium production at our White Mesa Mill in Blanding, Utah from alternate feed materials and pond returns, and we expect to produce between 125,000 and 175,000 pounds of uranium companywide in 2020. Assuming current production and sales guidance, we expect to continue to build and hold between 640,000 and 690,000 pounds of uncommitted uranium in inventory at the end of 2020. Uranium spot prices are up 30% so far this year, as COVID-related production suspensions at major global uranium mines have created a widening gap between supply and demand and a strong potential for higher prices in the future. This means a higher realizable value for our uranium inventory. There is also good progress being made on uranium in the U.S. government. Our allies in Congress and the Trump Administration are pushing hard to fund $150 million per year to create the U.S. uranium reserve. While progress with the U.S. government can be slow and uneven at times, there is bipartisan support for the creation of the uranium reserve, and we are optimistic this program will be funded and implemented. In addition, the U.S. government and Russia are negotiating an extension of the Russian Suspension Agreement, which is expected to lower imports of Russian uranium into the U.S. over the long-term. Energy Fuels is heavily engaged in this process, and we are encouraged that the U.S. Department of Commerce appears committed to negotiating an agreement that will provide concrete benefits to the U.S. uranium mining sector. Adding to our leverage to increasing uranium prices, Energy Fuels also now owns the PFN borehole logging technology that most U.S. ISR uranium producers will need to use in order to resume and expand production. Not only will we be able to utilize this technology to ramp up production from our own ISR facilities, we have also secured the ability to monetize this technology with other U.S. ISR producers. "Energy Fuels has also made significant strides in entering the rare earth market. There is a lot of interest in rare earths at the current time, and we believe Energy Fuels is more advanced than other companies in the U.S. with respect to producing a salable rare earth concentrate. We are currently performing test work, which we believe will be highly scalable and will allow us to produce a rare earth concentrate sooner, and at a significantly lower cost, than other U.S. initiatives garnering considerable attention right now. We have also engaged several rare earth industry experts to assist us in these endeavors, and we have entered into a non-exclusive Letter of Intent with Neo Performance Materials under which Neo will provide technical and commercial assistance to the Company, and both companies will work together toward potentially creating a longer term mutually beneficial relationship. We are moving very quickly on our rare earth initiative with an eye toward generating cash flow within the next 12 months. "Finally, Energy Fuels is focused on managing our balance sheet. As discussed above, we have significant product inventories providing immediate leverage to rising commodity prices. And we are proud to have the ability to address our existing debt on our own terms, and that we expect to be debt free by the end of 2020. Debt can be difficult for mid-sized and junior uranium miners to service, and extremely burdensome for developers and explorers. Debt can devastate shareholder value if projects or markets do not perform as expected. In contrast to many other uranium companies which are currently incurring substantial long-term debt, Energy Fuels shareholders will not be exposed to that risk." Selected Summary Financial Information: $000, except per share data Six months ended June 30, 2020 Six months ended June 30, 2019 Results of Operations: Total revenues $ 788 $ 4,741 Gross profit (loss) (718) (4,943) Net income (loss) attributable to the company (13,844) (21,439) Basic and diluted loss per share (0.12) (0.23) $000's As at June 30, 2020 As at December 31, 2019 Financial Position: Working capital $ 38,043 $ 20,534 Property, plant and equipment 24,742 26,203 Mineral properties 83,539 83,539 Total assets 188,125 175,720 Total long-term liabilities 23,251 22,475 Webcast on Wednesday, August 5, 2020 at 11:00 am ET (9:00 am MT) To join the webcast, please dial 1-888-664-6392 (toll free in the U.S. and Canada). The webcast slides can be accessed through the following link: Energy Fuels Q2-2020 Results Webcast Link A link to a recorded version of the proceedings will be available shortly after the webcast by calling 1-888-390-0541 (toll free in the U.S. and Canada) and entering the code 758012#. This recording will be available until August 19, 2020. Outlook Operations and Sales Outlook Overview In response to the Congressional appropriations for the creation of a U.S. uranium reserve, the potential extension of the Russian Suspension Agreement, and/or implementation of policy recommendations contained in the Working Group's report, the Company is evaluating activities aimed towards increasing uranium production at all or some of its production facilities, including the currently operating White Mesa Mill, the recently operating Nichols Ranch ISR Facility, and the Alta Mesa ISR Facility, La Sal Complex and Canyon Mine, which are all currently on standby, as market conditions may warrant. Subject to any actions the Company may take in response to U.S. government actions or market conditions, the Company plans to extract and/or recover limited amounts of uranium from its Nichols Ranch Project in 2020, which was placed on standby in the first quarter of 2020 due to the depletion of its existing wellfields. In addition, during 2020 the Company expects to recover uranium at the White Mesa Mill from in-circuit uranium inventories extracted from the recent vanadium Pond Return campaign, from Alternate Feed Materials and from other Pond Return activities. The vanadium Pond Return campaign conducted in 2019 was brought to a close in early 2020. Subject to any actions the Company may take in response to U.S. government actions, both ISR and conventional uranium recovery is expected to be maintained at reduced levels, as a result of current uranium market conditions, until such time when market conditions improve sufficiently. The Company is also seeking new sources of revenue, including new sources of Alternate Feed Materials and new fee processing opportunities at the White Mesa Mill that can be processed under existing market conditions (i.e., without reliance on current uranium sales prices), and is evaluating opportunities to potentially recover REEs at the White Mesa Mill. The Company will also continue its support of U.S. governmental activities to support the U.S. uranium mining industry and will evaluate additional acquisition and disposition opportunities that may arise. Extraction and Recovery Activities Overview During the six months ended June 30, 2020, the Company recovered approximately 83,000 pounds of U 3 O 8 , all of which were for the account of the Company. In the year ending December 31, 2020, the Company expects to recover a quantity of uranium within its previously published guidance of 125,000 to 175,000 pounds of U 3 O 8 . The Company also recovered approximately 67,000 pounds of high-purity vanadium pentoxide ("V 2 O 5 " or "black flake") during the six months ended June 30, 2020 from its vanadium Pond Return campaign, which was suspended during the first quarter of 2020. The Company has strategically opted not to enter into any uranium sales commitments for 2020. Therefore, subject to any actions the Company may take in response to U.S. government actions and general market conditions, all 2020 uranium production is expected to be added to existing inventories. All V 2 O 5 production is expected to be sold on the spot market if prices rise significantly above current levels, but otherwise maintained in inventory. ISR Activities During the six months ended June 30, 2020, the Company extracted and recovered approximately 6,000 pounds of U 3 O 8 from its Nichols Ranch Project, which was placed on standby during the first quarter of 2020, due to the depletion of its existing wellfields. This amount of uranium production falls within the Company's published guidance of approximately 6,000 pounds of U 3 O 8 from Nichols Ranch during the year ended December 31, 2020. As of June 30, 2020, the Nichols Ranch wellfields had nine header houses that previously extracted uranium, which are now depleted. The Company currently holds 34 fully-permitted, undeveloped wellfields at Nichols Ranch, including four additional wellfields at the Nichols Ranch wellfield, 22 wellfields at the adjacent Jane Dough wellfield, and eight wellfields at the Hank Project, which is fully permitted to be constructed as a satellite facility to the Nichols Ranch Plant. Subject to any actions the Company may take in response to U.S. government actions, the Company expects to continue to keep the Alta Mesa Project on standby until such time as improvements in uranium market conditions are observed or suitable sales contracts can be procured. Conventional Activities Conventional Extraction and Recovery Activities During the six months ended June 30, 2020, the Company produced 67,000 pounds of high-purity V 2 O 5 from its Mill Pond Return program and 77,000 pounds of uranium from Alternate Feed Materials. During 2020, the Company expects to recover approximately 120,000 to 170,000 pounds of U 3 O 8 at the White Mesa Mill from in-circuit uranium inventories extracted from the recent vanadium Pond Return campaign, from Alternate Feed Materials and from other Pond Return activities. In addition, there remains an estimated 1.5 to 3 million pounds of solubilized recoverable V 2 O 5 inventory remaining in the tailings management facility awaiting future recovery from Pond Return as market conditions may warrant, placing the company in a unique position to restart vanadium production quickly. The White Mesa Mill has historically operated on a campaign basis whereby uranium and/or vanadium recovery is scheduled as mill feed, cash needs, contract requirements, and/or market conditions may warrant. The Company currently expects that planned uranium production from Alternate Feed Materials, Pond Return, and the receipt of uranium-bearing materials from mine cleanup activities will keep the Mill in operation through all or most of 2020. The Company is also actively pursuing opportunities to process new and additional Alternate Feed Material sources and new and additional low-grade ore from third parties in connection with various uranium clean-up requirements. Successful results from these activities would allow the Mill to extend the current campaign through 2020 and beyond. In addition, if improvements in uranium market conditions are observed, or conventional mines are ramped up in response to U.S. government actions to support domestic uranium mining and/or recommendations of the Working Group, the Company would expect to be able to keep the Mill operating over a considerably longer period of time. Conventional Standby, Permitting and Evaluation Activities During the six months ended June 30, 2020, standby and environmental compliance activities occurred at the Canyon Project. Subject to any actions the Company may take in response to U.S. government actions and general market conditions, during 2020, the Company plans to continue carrying out engineering, metallurgical testing, procurement and construction management activities at its low cost Canyon Project. The Company is selectively advancing certain permits at its other major conventional uranium projects, such as the Roca Honda Project, a large, high-grade conventional project in New Mexico. The Company will also maintain required permits at the Company's conventional projects, including the Sheep Mountain Project, La Sal Complex, and Tony M, Whirlwind and Daneros mines. In addition, the Company will continue to evaluate the Bullfrog Property at its Henry Mountains Project. Expenditures for certain of these projects have been adjusted to coincide with expected dates of price recoveries based on the Company's forecasts. All of these projects serve as important pipeline assets for the Company's future conventional production capabilities, as market conditions warrant. Sales During the six months ended June 30, 2020, the Company completed no uranium sales. The Company currently has no remaining contracts, and therefore all existing uranium inventory and future production is fully unhedged to future uranium price increases. During the six months ended June 30, 2020, the Company did not complete the sale of any vanadium. The Company expects to continue to sell finished vanadium product, when justified, into the metallurgical industry, as well as other markets that demand a higher purity product, including the aerospace, chemical, and potentially the vanadium battery industries. The Company may also retain vanadium product in inventory for future sale, depending on vanadium spot prices and general market conditions. The Company also continues to pursue new sources of revenue, including additional Alternate Feed Materials and other sources of feed for the White Mesa Mill, in addition to evaluating the potential to recover REEs at the Mill. The Company's Plans in Response to U.S. Government Actions As stated above, in response to U.S. government actions to support domestic uranium mining, the Company is evaluating activities aimed towards increasing uranium production at all or some of its facilities, subject to general market conditions. No decisions on any project-specific actions have been made at this time. Continued Efforts to Minimize Costs The Company will continue to seek ways to minimize the costs of maintaining its critical properties in a state of readiness for potential improvements in market conditions, and is evaluating whether additional cost-cutting measures may be warranted at this time as a result of general market conditions. About Energy Fuels: Energy Fuels is a leading U.S.-based uranium mining company, supplying U 3 O 8 to major nuclear utilities. The Company also produces vanadium from certain of its projects, as market conditions warrant. Its corporate offices are in Lakewood, Colorado near Denver, and all of its assets and employees are in the United States. Energy Fuels holds three of America's key uranium production centers: the White Mesa Mill in Utah, the Nichols Ranch in-situ recovery ("ISR") Project in Wyoming, and the Alta Mesa ISR Project in Texas. The White Mesa Mill is the only conventional uranium mill operating in the U.S. today, has a licensed capacity of over 8 million pounds of U 3 O 8 per year, and has the ability to produce vanadium when market conditions warrant. The Nichols Ranch ISR Project is on standby and has a licensed capacity of 2 million pounds of U 3 O 8 per year. The Alta Mesa ISR Project is also on standby and has a licensed capacity of 1.5 million pounds of U 3 O 8 per year. In addition to the above production facilities, Energy Fuels also has one of the largest NI 43-101 compliant uranium resource portfolios in the U.S. and several uranium and uranium/vanadium mining projects on standby and in various stages of permitting and development. The primary trading market for Energy Fuels' common shares is the NYSE American under the trading symbol "UUUU," and the Company's common shares are also listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading symbol "EFR." Energy Fuels' website is www.energyfuels.com . Cautionary Notes: This news release contains certain "Forward Looking Information" and "Forward Looking Statements" within the meaning of applicable United States and Canadian securities legislation, which may include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: production and sales forecasts; costs of production; scalability, and the Company's ability and readiness to re-start or expand any of its existing projects to respond to any improvements in uranium market conditions or in response to any government actions to support U.S. uranium mining; any expectations regarding vanadium opportunities, the Company's program for the recovery of vanadium from pond solutions, remaining dissolved vanadium in tailings facility solutions, future production opportunities, or the Company's ability to sell any of its vanadium product at a premium to spot prices or otherwise; the ability of the Company to secure any new sources of alternate feed materials or other processing opportunities at the White Mesa Mill; expected timelines for the permitting and development of projects; the Company's expectations as to longer term fundamentals in the market and price projections; expectations to become or maintain its position as a leading uranium company in the United States; any expectation as to how the NFWG's recommendations may be implemented and the timing of implementation; any expectation with respect to timelines to production; any expectation that the Company may be able to sell its uranium and vanadium inventories at potentially higher prices in the future; any expectation that Congress will make the requested appropriations; any expectations as to the Company's ability to implement any additional cost-cutting measures; any expectation that the Company may have the opportunity to process uranium-bearing ores for the recovery of REEs, at all or on commercial terms; any expectation that the Company will be able to recover REEs and/or uranium from such ores on a commercial basis; and any expectation that the Company and Neo may create a longer term mutually beneficial relationship. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans," "expects," "does not expect," "is expected," "is likely," "budgets," "scheduled," "estimates," "forecasts," "intends," "anticipates," "does not anticipate," or "believes," or variations of such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results "may," "could," "would," "might" or "will be taken," "occur," "be achieved" or "have the potential to." All statements, other than statements of historical fact, herein are considered to be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements express or implied by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements include risks associated with: production and sales forecasts; costs of production; scalability, and the Company's ability and readiness to re-start or expand any of its existing projects to respond to any improvements in uranium market conditions or in response to any government actions to support U.S. uranium mining; any expectations regarding vanadium opportunities, the Company's program for the recovery of vanadium from pond solutions, remaining dissolved vanadium in tailings facility solutions, future production opportunities, or the Company's ability to sell any of its vanadium product at a premium to spot prices or otherwise; the ability of the Company to secure any new sources of alternate feed materials or other processing opportunities at the White Mesa Mill; expected timelines for the permitting and development of projects; the Company's expectations as to longer term fundamentals in the market and price projections; expectations to become or maintain its position as a leading uranium company in the United States; any expectation as to how the NFWG's recommendations may be implemented and the timing of implementation; any expectation with respect to timelines to production; any expectation that the Company may be able to sell its uranium and vanadium inventories at potentially higher prices in the future; any expectation that Congress will make the requested appropriations; any expectations as to the Company's ability to implement any additional cost-cutting measures; any expectation that the Company may have the opportunity to process uranium-bearing ores for the recovery of REEs, at all or on commercial terms; any expectation that the Company will be able to recover REEs and/or uranium from such ores on a commercial basis; any expectation that the Company and Neo may create a longer term mutually beneficial relationship; and the other factors described under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K, which is available for review on EDGAR at www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml, on SEDAR at www.sedar.com, and on the Company's website at www.energyfuels.com. Forward-looking statements contained herein are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company disclaims, other than as required by law, any obligation to update any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, results, future events, circumstances, or if management's estimates or opinions should change, or otherwise. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, the reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no obligation to update the information in this communication, except as otherwise required by law. It should further be noted that the NFWG's recommendations for direct government purchases of uranium are subject to appropriation by the Congress of the United States, and there can be no certainty of the outcome of the NFWG's recommendations. Therefore, the outcome of this process remains uncertain. SOURCE Energy Fuels Inc. For further information: Investor Inquiries: Energy Fuels Inc., Curtis Moore, VP - Marketing and Corporate Development, (303) 974-2140 or Toll free: (888) 864-2125, [email protected], www.energyfuels.com Related Links http://www.energyfuels.com Appointment 3 August 2020 Manish Gupta has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of TajSATS Air Catering Limited, Indian Hotels Company's (IHCL) joint venture with SATS, and India's market leader in airline catering, today. Manish is a consummate hotelier with over two decades of experience in multiple roles across various categories and sizes of hotels in India. His career with IHCL began when he moved to the iconic Taj Mahal Hotel, New Delhi as a restaurant manager. He quickly rose through the ranks to become General Manager of different hotels including the legendary Rambagh Palace. Manish will move to his current role from his previous position of being the Area Director - East & General Manager - Taj Bengal, looking after the Eastern India hotels, Bhutan and Nepal. He spearheaded the organization's growth in this fast growing part of the country. Manish is an Alumni of IIM Ahmedabad and Nan Yang University, Singapore, having completed a specialized General Manager's program. An avid traveller, he enjoys reading and playing badminton every morning. Bytedance's lip-syncing app TikTok claims $50 bn-plus valuation Chinas Bytedance is trying to make a fortune out of TikTok, which has hooked millions of young people across the world to dancing and lip-syncing video clips, as social media thrive on peoples fancies. Recent reports suggest that TikToks current valuation has, in fact, fallen to around 50 billion against its earlier valuation of over $100 billion. Bytedance is reportedly attempting distress sale of TikTok amidst obstacles in its major markets, including India and the United states. While India has banned the app that gets people share lip-syncing videos to pass time, US President Donald Trump sees Chinese state hand in the app and wants it banned. Trumps decision to crack down on the popular video-sharing app is more because of the suspicious nature of Chinese internet applications. US officials have said that TikTok could be a tool for Chinese intelligence - a claim ByteDance denies. Meanwhile, the coronavirus pandemic seems to have helped Bytedance increase the popularity of TikTok, especially with young audiences - an estimated one billion worldwide - who create and watch its short-form videos. And, as the Indian ban on the app approached, it has been growing even faster as the coronavirus pandemic pushed people physically away from each other, but into close contact online. While reports on Friday said Trump has proposed to impose a ban on TikTok, earlier media reports had suggested Trump would require that the apps US operations be divested from ByteDance. Trumps announcement drew criticism from some in the tech sector, including former Facebook chief security officer Alex Stamos, who questioned whether the move was spurred by national security concerns. A 100 per cent sale to an American company would have been considered a radical solution two weeks ago and, eventually, mitigates any reasonable data protection concerns, he wrote on Twitter. However, it now seems that prospective buyers are also wary of dealing with Chinese internet applications because of suspected state influence. Microsoft, which was in negotiations to buy the US operations of TikTok, seems to have developed cold feet and has put the plans on hold after President Donald Trump threatened to bar the social media app and came out against the sale, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. Before Mr. Trumps remarks, the two sides believed the broad strokes of a deal could be in place by Monday, the paper reported on a possible TikTok-Microsoft sale, citing unnamed sources. It also said Trumps threats and opposition to the deal had prompted TikTok to make further concessions, including adding up to 10,000 jobs in the US over the next three years. TikTok defended itself on Saturday, with its general manager for the US, Vanessa Pappas, telling users that the company was working to give them the safest app, amid US concerns over data security. Were not planning on going anywhere, Pappas said in a message released on the app. TikTok also has support from the American Civil Liberties Union spearheading a new movement called `Black lives matter, which cried foul over the possibility of a ban on the app. Banning an app that millions of Americans use to communicate with each other is a danger to free expression and is technologically impractical, said the ACLUs surveillance and cybersecurity counsel, Jennifer Granick. With any internet platform, we should be concerned about the risk that sensitive private data will be funneled to abusive governments, including our own, Granick said in a statement. But shutting one platform down, even if it were legally possible to do so, harms freedom of speech online and does nothing to resolve the broader problem of unjustified government surveillance. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) New Delhi, India Mon, August 3, 2020 08:57 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b174d3 2 World India,bootleg-liquor,death-toll Free The death toll from a toxic bootleg alcohol scandal in the north Indian state of Punjab rose to 98 Sunday, officials and reports said. Police have arrested 25 people so far over the worsening tragedy, which starting coming to light late last week, the Press Trust of India news agency said. Hundreds of people die every year in India from illegal alcohol made in backstreet distilleries which sells for as little as 10 rupees (13 US cents) a liter, affordable for even the poorest. The death toll from the illicit booze had risen to 75 in Punjab's Tarn Taran district after further investigation, the local administration's deputy commissioner Kulwant Singh said. "Several families refused to divulge details of deaths and a few even cremated them. We have come to this number after information gathering," Singh told AFP Sunday. A further 11 people had died in Gurdaspur district, a local official told AFP. PTI reported Saturday that toxic moonshine had also killed 12 in Amritsar. Relatives of the victims mourned on Sunday as the state opposition party called on the Punjab government to "curb liquor mafia in the state" in a series of tweets. Punjab state chief minister Amarinder Singh said Friday he had ordered a special inquiry into the deaths and "anyone found guilty will not be spared". In a separate incident, authorities in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh said on Friday that nine people had died after drinking alcohol-based sanitizer. Of the estimated five billion liters of alcohol drunk every year in India, around 40 percent is illegally produced, according to the International Spirits and Wine Association of India. Deaths are frequently reported, with bootleggers often found adding methanol -- a highly toxic form of alcohol sometimes used as an anti-freeze -- in their brews to increase its strength. If ingested, methanol can cause blindness, liver damage and death in larger concentrations. In 2015, more than 100 people died in a Mumbai slum died after drinking illegal moonshine. The First World War diaries of two soldiers which detail the chilling horror of the Battle of the Somme have been unearthed and are expected to fetch hundreds of pounds at auction. Gunner H Belshaw and Captain John Oliver Mark Ashley wrote their journals from the Western Front between April 1, 1916 right until the end of the conflict on November 11, 1918. The Battle of the Somme was the bloodiest battle of the First World War and lasted for 141 days. On the first day of the battle alone, more than 19,000 British soldiers were killed and 38,000 were wounded. The journals described the grim reality of trench warfare and were recently uncovered by experts at Hansons Auctioneers, in Etwall, Derbyshire, who believe the two artillerymen may have been related. The First World War diaries of two soldiers have been unearthed by experts at Hansons Auctioneers, in Etwall, Derbyshire The first diary is written in a Field Message Book by Belshaw, who was a member of the Royal Garrison Artillery The first diary is written in a Field Message Book by Belshaw, who was a member of the Royal Garrison Artillery. He offers extensive coverage of his day-to-day activities and includes notes relating to the fateful day of July 1, 1916 - the first day of the Battle of the Somme. The second diary, which belongs to Captain Ashley, of the Royal Garrison Artillery, begins on January 1, 1918. The diaries detail the chilling horror of the Battle Of The Somme and describe the grim reality of trench warfare Captain John Oliver Mark Ashley's entry for November 11, 1918, written in Teddington, London, says 'THE END OF THE WAR!' in block capitals It runs for the whole year and offers notes on Home Service as well as time on the Western Front. One entry, written for November 11, 1918, in Teddington, London, stated in block capitals 'THE END OF THE WAR!'. A Hansons spokesperson said: 'His account as an officer gives a different insight into the war compared to that of a private soldier.' The second diary, which belongs to Captain Ashley, of the Royal Garrison Artillery, begins on January 1, 1918 A Hansons spokesperson said that the lot also includes a large scrapbook brimming with photos, maps and papers belonging to Captain Ashley They added: 'The lot includes a large scrap book brimming with photos, maps and papers which belonged to Captain Ashley. 'It covers his post-First World War career in the Army, service in India before the Second World War and active service in Italy during the Second World War until December 1945 when he retired.' The war memorabilia will go under the hammer on August 7 in an online auction with an estimate of between 300 and 400. The Battle of the Somme began on July 1, 1916, and lasted until November 19, 1916. The British advanced seven miles but failed to break the German defence. The war memorabilia will go under the hammer on August 7 in an online auction with an estimate of between 300 and 400 Militaria expert Adrian Stevenson holds up the two diaries of the First World War servicemen SAS: Who Dares Wins star Ollie Ollerton has said he is embarking on a new path with no pain after it was confirmed that he will not return for the next series. The Channel 4 show, which pushes recruits to their mental and physical limits in a series of gruelling military-style tests, will continue without Ollerton and co-star Jay Morton as part of the instructor line-up. The broadcaster said Ollerton had stepped away from the role to focus on his fitness app, Battle Ready 360, but would continue to be associated with the Australian version of the programme. Ollerton has filmed five series of SAS: Who Dares wins, plus two series of the celebrity spin-off version. Morton will also leave the show after featuring in its most recent civilian and celebrity series, debuting as an undercover agent embedded within the recruits. Ollerton appeared to allude to the development on Instagram on Monday. In a post to his 348,000 followers, he said that comfort zones can be dangerous places to reside. Theres no real comfort, just habit that is comfortable to repeat. You sit within it going through the motions which can be like a life long tooth ache. A simple extraction pushes you into short term discomfort but in turn offers you a new path with no pain. Video of the Day A place where you have the bandwidth for creativity and development. Expand Close Ant Middleton and staff Jason Fox, Ollie Ollerton, Jay Morton and Mark Billingham (Channel 4/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Ant Middleton and staff Jason Fox, Ollie Ollerton, Jay Morton and Mark Billingham (Channel 4/PA) When this happens in your job, your relationship, your life, ask yourself if the internal messaging reflected your desire for its continuation. If it didnt then this is the death of something that didnt serve you well, and the subsequent start of something exciting and new. He concluded: Embrace it, exploit it, enjoy it. A Channel 4 spokeswoman said of his departure: Planning for series six of SAS: Who Dares Wins is under way, with strict safety measures and protocols in place to ensure a safe filming environment, in line with government advice. Now in its sixth year of filming, some changes have been made. Ollie Ollerton has stepped away from this series after a hugely successful seven series with the show to focus on his new fitness app, Battle Ready 360. Ollie continues to be associated with the SAS: Who Dares Wins brand as a DS (directing staff) for SAS: Who Dares Wins Australia. Ollie has made an exceptional contribution to SAS: Who Dares Wins and the expertise and experience he brought to the DS team has been much valued. We wish him great success with his future projects. She said of Morton: Jay joined the latest civilian series of SAS: Who Dares Wins, working undercover for the DS, before joining the team for the remainder of both the civilian and celebrity series. With his unique Special Forces experience he made a valuable contribution to the series. The statement added: We will be announcing the new line-up in due course. Ollerton, a former special forces soldier, has been an instructor on the show since it first aired in 2015, initially working alongside Ant Middleton and Jason Fox. He has published a number of books including Battle Ready and Break Point, about his experiences of depression and substance abuse, and launched a fitness app called Battle Ready 360. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said it is thought the attack was carried out by 20 to 30 men. He said the relatively small group was able to take over the sprawling complex because the men coordinated with prisoners inside. "They knew exactly where they were going," he said. The gunmen overpowered the prison guards, began dividing up prisoners and raided the complex's weapons stores, handing weapons out to some of the prisoners. Someone in Whitehall must have been watching the 1976 sci-fi movie Logan's Run, starring Michael York and Jenny Agutter. The film is set in a dystopian future where everyone is killed when they reach 30. It's the kind of radical, outside-the-box policy which would probably appeal to a blue-skies thinker like Dominic Cummings. Drop Dead. Protect The NHS. After all, practically no one under 30 is in mortal danger from Covid-19. But the risk increases exponentially the older you get. Maybe that's why ministers are considering a plan to quarantine everyone over the age of 50 in the event of a second wave this autumn. With the over-50s confined to barracks for ever, the chances of anyone catching coronavirus would be drastically curtailed. In time, the Government could whittle down the cut-off to 30, Logan's Run-style. That way, nobody would ever die of Covid and ministers could finally declare total victory over the virus. Of course, the very idea is rip-roaring bonkers. But we're told authoritatively it has been 'war-gamed' by Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak, along with locking down London by closing all the slip roads on the M25. Perhaps they intend to station armed guards on motorway bridges with the power to shoot anyone trying to escape. When the news of the over-50s lockdown leaked, ministers started backpedalling and insisting that it wasn't being 'actively considered'. But the fact that it was even being considered at all, actively or otherwise, is disturbing evidence of the madness and panic which has engulfed this Government since March. Ministers have been so spooked by the pandemic, they have lost all sense of proportion. How else would they even begin to entertain the notion that millions of people 50-plus should be put under house arrest indefinitely? Most of us were happy to give them the benefit of the doubt at the beginning because nobody, including the so-called 'experts', was quite certain of what precisely we were dealing with. Since then, however, the messages coming from Government have been increasingly incoherent and inconsistent. There appears to be no joined-up thinking at all. For weeks, this column has been highlighting the absurd contradictions for instance, Dishi Rishi subsidising hamburgers and pizzas, while at the same time increasing spending on gastric-band surgery to combat obesity. Ministers urge people in the private sector to get back to their desks, but cave in cravenly to the Civil Service and teaching unions who refuse to tell their members to go back to work, citing bogus 'safety' concerns. Yesterday was supposed to be the day Britain got back down to business. But office blocks and transport hubs were practically deserted, while restaurants and fast-food joints were doing a roaring trade knocking out half-price meal deals, courtesy of the Chancellor hosing them down with money we haven't got. For weeks, this column has been highlighting the absurd contradictions for instance, Dishi Rishi subsidising hamburgers and pizzas, while at the same time increasing spending on gastric-band surgery to combat obesity The suburbs are teeming with people spilling out of pubs and cafes, yet city centres still slumber, as if in permanent hibernation. As long as the Treasury continues to top up the salaries of some nine million people on furlough, there's no incentive for anyone to go back to the office. Perhaps it's time ministers and private employers followed the example of Charlie Mullins, the boss of Pimlico Plumbers, and started sacking anyone who refuses to return to work. Instead, they're considering a crazy scheme to force everyone over 50 to stay indoors, just to be on the safe side. Speaking as someone who won't see 60 again, let alone 50, I think I've probably been around long enough to work out for myself the inherent risks or otherwise of catching Covid. My Generation may well have sung along with The Who, hoping to die before we got old. But we're not all decrepit just yet. We may not be the full Miss Jean Brodie, but some of us still think we're in our prime. Yes, we are well aware, thank you, that the older we get, we're another day closer to death. And we realise that age increases the chance of succumbing to coronavirus. But the same goes for any illness, from heart disease to cancer none of which are currently being treated properly by Our Amazing NHS, which has all hands focused on the Covid pump. We certainly don't intend to shut the door and throw away the key until the Grim Reaper comes a-knocking. For ministers even to be contemplating locking down the over-50s is proof positive that this Government has lost the plot on an intergalactic level. It would be economic suicide, at a time when the country is already teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. The over-50s are substantial taxpayers, and relatively big spenders on everything from leisure to financial services. We are the backbone of Britain; the Bank of Mum and Dad; the carers for elderly relatives; babysitters for grandchildren. Many of us are running our own successful small businesses, creating wealth and much-needed employment. All this, the Government appears willing to put into deep freeze because of an irrational fear of a virus we are learning more about each day. That's not to diminish in any way the early impact of Covid or the devastating effect it has had on the frail elderly (by which I mean the over-85s) and those who are morbidly obese or afflicted with serious underlying health problems. Sorry to sound callous, but many of these people would have died sooner rather than later anyway. Looking at the international league table of new Covid infections yesterday, Britain is way down the list. Most of those contracting the virus now are asymptomatic. So why has the Government gone into another blue funk, cancelling at the last minute plans to reopen everything from beauty parlours to casinos and considering a ludicrous proposal to quarantine millions of allegedly vulnerable over-50s? From the outset, ministers have given too much credence to the 'science'. They have been unwilling to challenge the assertions of tunnel-vision experts like the Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty, who appears to have been our real, unelected Prime Minister these past few months. My fear all along has been that some of the more contentious decisions are based not on what is best for Britain, but what will protect individual politicians and their advisers when the inevitable public inquiry is held. Risk-aversion is the order of the day. There is no boldness, no willingness to trust us with detailed information so we can assess the dangers for themselves. Much of the nonsense coming out of Whitehall now seems to have been made up on the hoof, such as the stupid suggestion that if the schools are to reopen in September, then the pubs will have to shut. Why? Who is asking these questions within government? Nobody, from what I can gather. Covid has infantilised the nation. Policy is made in private, by unaccountable committees and scientists. They have been unwilling to challenge the assertions of tunnel-vision experts like the Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty, who appears to have been our real, unelected Prime Minister these past few months With most MPs content to stay home in their constituencies since March, Westminster has become a ghost town. There has been no proper scrutiny of the Government's handling of the crisis. And now, after the exertions of all those Zoom sessions, Parliament is in recess as MPs enjoy six weeks' paid holiday. The Commons should be recalled immediately. If it's safe for holidaymakers to sit cheek-by-jowl on aeroplanes, and for diners to enjoy cut-price piri-piri chicken and chips in state-subsidised restaurants, it should be safe enough for socially distanced MPs to reoccupy the green benches at Westminster. Politicians should be leading by example, not relaxing on the beaches while our increasingly erratic leaders tinker with deranged schemes such as placing everyone over 50 under house arrest. In the end, we're all going to die of something. We can't spend the rest of our lives trying to postpone the inevitable. Short of an effective vaccine, we will to have to learn to live with corona, in a grown-up fashion, for the forseeable future not keep stumbling from one emergency lockdown to another. Britain needs a serious plan to get us out of this catastrophic Covid-induced coma right now. Sometimes, its hard to just say no. Thankfully, this isnt one of those times. The question at hand is whether the administration of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham should sign off on a whopping $85,000-a-year pay increase approved by the Educational Retirement Board for chief investment officer Bob Jacksha. The governing board of the ERB, which oversees a $12 billion pension fund covering roughly 60,000 active educators and about 50,000 retirees, voted 4-1 last month to approve the raise for Jacksha hiking his salary from $265,000 to $350,000 per year. This, in a state where according to Census figures the median annual household income was $48,059 in 2018 with 19.5% of the population living in poverty. This, during a pandemic where hundreds of businesses are closed, many permanently, and more than 100,000 New Mexicans are certifying for unemployment benefits. At his new pay level, Jacksha would make more than triple the $110,000 annual salary for the governor and more than double the pay of Cabinet secretaries. Executive Director Jan Goodwin, no stranger to grossly inappropriate salary increases, argues the ERB simply cant afford to lose Jacksha, who has been chief investment officer since 2007, and points out he has outperformed the market index by $1.3 billion over a recent 10-year period. OK, but the funds average returns over the past five years have fallen short of its very own 7% investment target that must be met over time in order to hit long-term solvency goals. Translation: More hat-in-hand appeals to lawmakers for taxpayer dollars to shore up the pension fund are a sure thing. In fact, the states bond rating was downgraded in 2018 due largely to concerns over unfunded pension liabilities at ERB and PERA (the Public Employee Retirement Association.) Fortunately, it takes more than the ERB board where Deputy Public Education Secretary Adan Delgado cast the lone dissenting vote to approve this golden payday. The Department of Finance Administration also must sign off, and that agency reports to the governor, whose administration seems appropriately skeptical. Certainly its an eye-popping number, and all the more so given the fiscal straits everyone is in at this moment as a result of the pandemic, Lujan Grisham spokeswoman Nora Meyers Sackett said. It would seem to be out of line with the reality everyone is dealing with financially right now. Thank you. Theres precedent for refusing to approve an ERB raise. When the ERB board in 2018 approved big increases for executives including 46% for Goodwin, who currently makes $183,325 then-Gov. Susana Martinez refused to sign off on them. At the time, a spokeswoman for the DFA called the raises highly inappropriate and unjustified, and a teachers union representative deemed them tone-deaf. The ERB then wisely withdrew its plans. Lujan Grishams administration should add its own page in the responsible-government playbook. While hope clearly springs eternal at the top of the ERB food chain, this kind of increase especially when you consider the fund hasnt met the return goals it set for itself would be inappropriate at a time state government is under a hiring freeze, unemployment rolls have soared and hundreds of businesses have been shuttered. So just say no. This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers. 'We may not achieve what we achieved last year, but it is not as bad as it is made out to be.' The Centre is planning to have the first issue of government bonds meant for listing on global bond indices in the first half of the year, and such issues will be 10 per cent of outstanding government bonds, Economic Affairs Secretary Tarun Bajaj said. In an extensive interaction with Arup Roychoudhury, Bajaj also said the financial services secretary was examining a plan of bank recapitalisation, and the government was considering an urban version of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. You talked about V-shaped recovery next year. How do you justify that? Already demand is tapering off (July feedback from firms shows that) and the rural economy is showing signs of losing steam because the pandemic has spread to those areas. V-shaped recovery will come over a year. This year is a difficult one. I would say a lot of media reports have been anecdotal. I just looked at the revenue figures a little while ago. Some sectors may be tapering off, but others are seeing an improvement. Overall, the revenue figures that we are seeing are lower than last year's. But it is not as much a concern as the outside world makes it out to be. The revenue figures so far are not very alarming. Vehicle sales have picked up. An auto company chairman told me recently he had started a second shift and would soon start a third shift. Two-wheeler sales are picking up. Some sectors have still not picked up yet. There is not much footfall in malls, movie halls, and restaurants. Tourism is still being hit. We may not achieve what we achieved last year, but it is not as bad as it is made out to be. In rural India, rabi was very good, and kharif is also likely to be so. There are no crop diseases, and sowing is much more than last year. The monsoon has been good so far, and the reservoirs are at much higher levels. I don't know how much the pandemic is spreading to the villages, but it has spread to smaller towns. While we are fighting on the health front, we also have to take care of livelihoods. The finance minister and chief economic advisor have hinted at further measures. The CEA said a fiscal package was on the cards. What are the plans regarding a fiscal intervention and a demand push? We are already pushing infrastructure. The finance minister has met infra ministries and all central public sector undertakings regarding their capital expenditure commitments. I again reiterate we are ready to push in some more money, if needed, in the infrastructure sector if that has a multiplier effect. A rural push is also taking place. We are spending more money on the MGNREGS, we have these job schemes, and we have PM Kisan. The MGNREGS numbers have gone up, and we have pushed in some money through direct benefit transfer in rural areas and free ration has been provided to beneficiaries for another five months. No doubt, these steps will give a push to the rural economy. Is something being planned on urban jobs? An urban MGNREGA-type of plan is being discussed. But it is premature for me to say something on that. Something is in the works, and it is being done by the relevant ministries. This crisis has taught the issue of migrant workers in urban areas. So there will be certain policies to address that issue. Does the Centre now have a better understanding of what the economic damage will be? What are your estimates for the year, as well as the April-June quarter? We have our estimates, but we have also seen the estimates given by international organisations and rating agencies. I have the figures for each one of them. They range from about 3.1 per cent to 5.4-5.5 per cent contraction. And of late, some people have said the contraction will be much higher than this. Let me say that they are also changing their figures. So rather than I laying down a figure, we are watching how we can take the economy on the right path. What we achieve in terms of GDP depends on a lot of things -- whether the pandemic spreads more, or if a vaccine is successful in trials and is made available. Even if there is news on a successful vaccine, you will see so much more activity in the country. The RBI has said that banks's NPAs may surge to 14.7 per cent in a worst-case scenario. When can we hear something concrete on one-time asset restructuring? Isn't another round of recapitalisation necessary now? The issue of restructuring is more on the RBI's table. I think they are considering something on that front. The loan interest moratorium is till August. So closer to that I am sure there should be something. On recapitalisation, the RBI has talked to us about that as well. The financial services secretary is having a look, and will come to us as to what the plans are. Among all the measures announced for the Atmanirbhar Bharat package, the only one that has not yet been cleared by the Cabinet is the strategic sector. A Cabinet note is doing the rounds. What is the progress on that and what sectors can we expect to be part of it? I have given my comments on the draft Cabinet note. It will not be fair on my part to disclose information on that. This will be a forward-looking policy. A policy statement by the government should give some cheer to the market. Where are we on plans of listing on global bond indices? Under a fully accessible route, securities of 5, 10, and 30 years maturity have been identified. Five securities have been identified and they account for about 10 per cent of outstanding government securities. They would increase over time and will contribute to 60 per cent of the trading volumes in G-Secs. The RBI is working on it. One of them we are hoping to have soon. It might happen in the first half of the year. India had a trade surplus in June after 18 years. But experts are not enthused because imports have been falling at alarming rates, signifying lack of demand in the economy. How worried is the ministry? These are not normal times. Had something like this happened before the pandemic, it would have been great news. It is not only lack of demand but also a disruption in supply chains. So, I think once the supply chains restore, there will be better sense on this. And the other thing that you have to see is that oil and gold imports in terms of value have gone down. Oil prices are low and good levels of foreign exchange have also been a plus for us. Rating Action: Moody's assigns Aa2 rating to Alphabet's proposed new senior unsecured notes Global Credit Research - 03 Aug 2020 New York, August 03, 2020 -- Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") assigned an Aa2 rating to Alphabet Inc.'s (Alphabet) proposed multiple tranche senior unsecured debt offering, three of which are expected to be Sustainability bonds. Proceeds from the issuance will be used for general corporate purposes, which may include the repayment of outstanding debt, as well as eligible Green Projects and Social Projects. Assignments: ..Issuer: Alphabet Inc. ....Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Assigned Aa2 RATINGS RATIONALE Alphabet's Aa2 rating reflects the company's position as the world's leading Internet search engine and digital advertising facilitator through its varied Google and other properties, and its significant and growing positions in Cloud services, mobile operating systems, online video, consumer hardware and autonomous driving technology, among others. One of the company's biggest strengths is its ability to innovate, reinvent and sometimes disrupt, taking market share using organic and sometimes acquired technology and eventually monetizing its technology. Alphabet exhibits extremely strong cash flow capability and credit measures, consistent with, if not stronger than, its Aa2 debt ratings. With free cash flow generation of approximately $31 billion in FY 2019, about $121 billion of cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities as compared to reported debt of $4.0 billion, and management's conservative financial practices, Alphabet has broad financial flexibility to invest aggressively to acquire technology or internally develop new products and services. While Alphabet currently has very modest leverage (0.5x adjusted debt to EBITDA), the Aa2 rating factors in the possibility that, over time, debt could rise producing debt to EBITDA of up to about 1.0x (using Moody's standard adjustments). Story continues Alphabet's liquidity profile is impeccable. As of June 30, 2020, Alphabet had cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities of about $120 billion, which does not factor in the $6.5 billion provisional US tax liability on international accumulated earnings incurred as a result of the tax reform bill passed in December 2017. The $6.5 billion liability is to be paid over the next 6 years and we expect the company to maintain more than enough cash on the balance sheet to cover the liability. We expect management will continue to maintain very strong liquidity based on: (1) Alphabet's conservative financial philosophy; (2) its emphasis on maintaining significant financial after-tax cash balances to ensure its ability to quickly address competitive challenges and take advantage of opportunities; and (3) its significant and steady free cash generation. Alphabet has a $5 billion commercial paper program which is primarily backed by its cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities holdings. The company also has a $4 billion revolving credit facility due in 2023 that is currently undrawn. There were no outstanding borrowings under the company's commercial paper program at June 30, 2020. The credit facility has same day borrowing availability, it has no material adverse change clauses after the facility closing date, and it has no financial covenants. Following the repayment of the 3.625% notes due May 2021, Alphabet's next debt maturity is its revolving credit facility due July 2023. Alphabet's most significant social risks stem from regulatory challenges to the company's strong market positions and certain business practices, which is and has long been the primary concern and risk for Alphabet's credit standing. The company is exposed to heightened scrutiny by regulators with respect to privacy and data gathering and perceived anticompetitive behavior. These challenges could impede Alphabet's core segment expansion. The company has accrued over $9 billion in fines by the European Commission (EC) related to various decisions finding that Google infringed European competition law. The company has appealed the fines. Of increasing concern is the broad and bipartisan shift in tone from US regulators, lawmakers and presidential candidates regarding Big Tech. As a result, attorneys general from 50 U.S. States and territories announced a broad bipartisan investigation into potential antitrust law violations by Google. This investigation comes on top of separate antitrust investigations launched in June by the Justice Department (DOJ) into Google and other tech companies and the House Judiciary Committee into Big Tech more broadly. While there are no US federal government fines for civil monopolization violations, our most important fundamental concern is whether regulation or actions imposed on the company materially and permanently alter its business model such that its leading positions, business diversity and profitability are significantly constrained and reduced. Although highly unlikely in our view, the company's otherwise very strong credit profile could come under moderate pressure to the extent its operating profile and revenue stability are adversely impacted by such developments. Privacy regulation has taken center stage for companies such as Alphabet. The EU implemented a regulation in May 2018 called General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which regulates data protection and privacy for all individuals within the European Union and the European Economic Area. It also addresses the export of personal data outside the EU and European Economic Area (EEA) areas. At home, the California Consumer Privacy Act went into effect in 2020, protecting consumer privacy rights for residents of California. Though increasing regulation is a threat to existing and advancing data gathering business models, it also widens Alphabet's competitive moat as some newer competitors will find navigating the regulatory waters to be challenging and costly. We also note Alphabet's proactive work surrounding Sustainability, Safety & Security, and Data Privacy as a mitigating factor. Alphabet's exposure to governance risk is offset by the company's conservative financial policy. Alphabet has a split stock structure which affords outsized control to founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page. While the company's Class A and Class C shares have 1 vote per share and no votes per share, respectively, its Class B shares, predominantly owned by Mr. Brin and Mr. Page, are entitled to 10 votes per share. However, both founders are now in an advisory role and are not involved in day-to-day operations. More importantly, the company has a strong history of adhering to a conservative financial policy, underpinned by very low leverage, high cash balances and a capital allocation strategy that puts investment in innovation ahead of shareholder returns. The stable outlook reflects expectations that Alphabet will continue to maintain its very strong market position in search and display advertising on both desktop and now all-important mobile devices. The stable outlook also incorporates our expectation that Alphabet will continue to maintain a very liquid and mildly levered balance sheet. The outlook assumes that the company will take steps to successfully address regulatory challenges without material changes to the company's economic business model, and fund potential fines, if any, with internal sources of cash, without impacting credit metrics. FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS Over the medium-term, an upgrade could occur if: ** Management commits to maintaining financial policies that are consistent with a higher credit rating. We regard the company's current financial policies as very conservative, but the company has not publicly committed to sustaining these conservative metrics ** We deem legal and regulatory risks manageable in the context of a higher rating The ratings could face downward pressure if: ** There is deterioration or regulatory interference in the company's core business model that results in a material, sustained erosion in its very strong market positions, profitability or cash flow generation; or ** Management adopts more aggressive financial policies that materially weaken its very strong liquidity position and credit metrics. The principal methodology used in these ratings was Business and Consumer Service Industry published in October 2016 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1037985. Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology. Alphabet is the holding company for Google and its other subsidiaries and "Other Bets" and investments. Google is the world's leading Internet search engine, and it maintains an index of websites and other online content for users, advertisers, Google network members, and other content providers. Alphabet generated about 83% of its 2019 revenue from advertising and makes money from an advertiser when users click on an ad or view a video or display ad. About 84% of Google's advertising revenue is derived from its own websites (e.g. Google.com, YouTube.com), with the rest derived from thousands of third-party websites who want to place targeted advertisements on their websites. REGULATORY DISCLOSURES For further specification of Moody's key rating assumptions and sensitivity analysis, see the sections Methodology Assumptions and Sensitivity to Assumptions in the disclosure form. Moody's Rating Symbols and Definitions can be found at: https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_79004. For ratings issued on a program, series, category/class of debt or security this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the same series, category/class of debt, security or pursuant to a program for which the ratings are derived exclusively from existing ratings in accordance with Moody's rating practices. For ratings issued on a support provider, this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to the credit rating action on the support provider and in relation to each particular credit rating action for securities that derive their credit ratings from the support provider's credit rating. For provisional ratings, this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to the provisional rating assigned, and in relation to a definitive rating that may be assigned subsequent to the final issuance of the debt, in each case where the transaction structure and terms have not changed prior to the assignment of the definitive rating in a manner that would have affected the rating. For further information please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page for the respective issuer on www.moodys.com. For any affected securities or rated entities receiving direct credit support from the primary entity(ies) of this credit rating action, and whose ratings may change as a result of this credit rating action, the associated regulatory disclosures will be those of the guarantor entity. Exceptions to this approach exist for the following disclosures, if applicable to jurisdiction: Ancillary Services, Disclosure to rated entity, Disclosure from rated entity. The ratings have been disclosed to the rated entity or its designated agent(s) and issued with no amendment resulting from that disclosure. These ratings are solicited. Please refer to Moody's Policy for Designating and Assigning Unsolicited Credit Ratings available on its website www.moodys.com. Regulatory disclosures contained in this press release apply to the credit rating and, if applicable, the related rating outlook or rating review. Moody's general principles for assessing environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks in our credit analysis can be found at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1133569. The Global Scale Credit Rating on this Credit Rating Announcement was issued by one of Moody's affiliates outside the EU and is endorsed by Moody's Deutschland GmbH, An der Welle 5, Frankfurt am Main 60322, Germany, in accordance with Art.4 paragraph 3 of the Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 on Credit Rating Agencies. Further information on the EU endorsement status and on the Moody's office that issued the credit rating is available on www.moodys.com. Please see www.moodys.com for any updates on changes to the lead rating analyst and to the Moody's legal entity that has issued the rating. Please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for additional regulatory disclosures for each credit rating. Neil Begley Senior Vice President Corporate Finance Group Moody's Investors Service, Inc. 250 Greenwich Street New York, NY 10007 U.S.A. JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 Lenny J. Ajzenman Associate Managing Director Corporate Finance Group JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 Releasing Office: Moody's Investors Service, Inc. 250 Greenwich Street New York, NY 10007 U.S.A. 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Former Air Force base in Gettysburg on market for $4.5 M A former air force base near Gettysburg is up for sale. The base is listed as having 50 beds and 15 bathrooms on a 42-acre parcel of land. A wedding recently held at Matheson Bay Reserve. More couples are heading to parks, beaches and community halls to get hitched. Mahurangi celebrant Erin Sullivan says she has found ceremonies have become smaller and more couples are trying to cut down on costs, while having the ceremony in a place that is important to them. I recently was at a wedding at Cotterell Street Esplanade Reserve in Leigh which was just beautiful, Erin says. The beaches at Mangawhai, Omaha and Tawharanui are also popular. The average size is about 30 or 40 people, but I also have weddings of just a handful of people. The informal setting doesnt mean people dress down. Flowers, hairdressers, and attire all still very important. But alfresco weddings also have their challenges. People dont realise wearing four inch heels on grass puts stress on their legs. All I can do is watch as they sink into the grass during the ceremony. Puhoi Centennial Hall has had a rise in wedding bookings, with an average of two a month and people are booking a year in advance to secure a spot. Hall bookings manager Maria Williams says couples often have the ceremony at the nearby regional parks at Wenderholm and Mahurangi West and even Puhoi Domain, and hold the reception and dance at the hall. The historic features of the hall are a drawcard. The vintage-look is becoming popular, with lanterns and candles, dried flowers and pearls, which works great with the matai and kauri interior, Maria says. It costs $700 to rent the hall for a wedding, which has enabled the hall committee to do significant maintenance work in the community-run facility the roof of the hall was repaired last year, costing tens of thousands of dollars. The Whangateau Hall is almost booked up during the summer months. Hall committee member Lynette Penney says they are fundraising to help extend the hall boundary so the hall can cater for more people more comfortably. People arent allowed to drink in Whangateau Domain, so we need to extend the hall to give more room for celebrations. It costs $100 a day to hire the Auckland Council-owned hall, but the hall committee has to fundraise to complete any work. Rodney Local Board has allocated $2000 towards the work, which will be finished by June. General insurance companies, including standalone health insurers are reporting a 240 per cent jump in claims, for coronavirus disease treatment during the last month, a report by the Indian Express states. Figures compiled by General Insurance Council show that 71,423 people had claimed Rs 1,145.87 crore from insurance companies as of July last week, for Covid-19 treatment. However, only 20,965 people had made claims for Rs 323 crore on June 22. Coronavirus cases in the country have been rising, as the country's Covid-19 to 17.50 lakh with 54,735 cases being reported in a day, while the death toll rose to 37,364 with 853 people succumbing to the disease in a span of 24 hours, data updated at 8 am on Sunday showed. However, despite the hike in claims, the insurance penetration in the country still seems to be low, since the health insurance claims made till now are only 4.08 per cent from the total number of people who have caught the virus till now, IE reports. The average claim per person comes out to be Rs 1.60 lakh. Despite 37,000 coronavirus deaths, only 561 Covid-19 death claims have been made in Life Insurance Corporation (LIC), which total up to Rs 26.74 crore, the report states. In a statement on last Friday, LIC said it had always been proactive in settling death claims. The firm said that it treated death claims arising due to Covid-19 on par with other causes of death, adding that payments were being made on an urgent basis. Across the industry, the average amount of health cover is Rs 2 lakh. But since in the case of Covid-19, the entire family is at risk, the health insurance cover is in many cases, inadequate the cover treatment costs. Gopal V Kumar, consulting actuary, Radgo & Company told Indian Express that insurers were tracking the frequency and severity of Covid-19, and that it had been observed that over time, while the severity had come down, the frequency was on the rise. He said that fatality was another parameter to watch out for, as if there came out to be no vaccine, or it took time to develop, then there would be a requirement to increase the premium. Sources told IE that the 71,423 claims related to health insurance policies sold by general insurance or health insurance companies also include claims relating to Ayushman Bharat. This is especially true in states which have roped in general insurance companies for Ayushman Bharat, the report said. 'China was a relationship from which Mr Modi had expected the most it seems.' 'It showed in a string of summits, and somewhat breathless celebration of Xi Jinping.' 'It was hasty and simplistic,' observes Shekhar Gupta. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi with Xi Jinping, Cina's supreme leader, at the Shore Temple in Mamallapuram, October 11, 2019. Photograph: Press Information Bureau Let's first list all the things that have gone right for the Narendra Damodardas Modi government on strategic and foreign policy. The relationship with the US is on top of that list. As the Chinese turned nasty, the US is the only country in the world that spoke out loudly and unqualifiedly for India. Also, at this juncture, it did so in a purely non-transactional manner. That hasn't happened often in Indian strategic history. Not since the end of the Cold War more than three decades ago. It isn't even just the shared dislike of China. Beginning with Uri, the surgical strikes, Pulwama, Balakot, the Article 370 changes, and now to Ladakh, the American support has been quite evident and unconditional. It is not a relationship hyphenated either with Pakistan or China. We continue with good news. The larger regional allies, essentially in the Indo-Pacific, have held firm -- Japan and Australia, in particular, the two other members of the Quad. There, the shared threat of China is a binding factor. The unequivocal support, however, is heartening. Similarly, the Arabian powers have stayed firmly non-partisan in the big picture, unlike in the past when they leaned towards Pakistan. Saudi Arabia and the UAE, in particular, and meanwhile ties with Israel have become more productive. There is a problem in Turkey and Qatar, but it was always there, whatever the pretence. Both are essentially in cahoots with the Muslim Brotherhood and hostile to India, the latter only more sophisticated about it than the former. IMAGE: Modi with US President Donald J Trump arrive for a joint news conference in New Delhi, February 25, 2020. Photograph: Adnan Abidi/Reuters Has the relationship with Iran worsened, or improved? The last several days' headlines would indicate that the equation is going downhill. But, given that unlike China and Russia, India was not strong enough to risk American sanctions, there wasn't much choice available. To Iran, or India. Possibly, it is better to be pragmatic about Iran. Over the past many years, while the Arab powers have mostly stayed out of India's internal (Kashmir, communal relations) issues, Iran has interfered crudely. Overall, you might still be inclined to say, so far, so good. That is where bad news begins. Much of what hasn't gone right, paradoxically, is linked to what has. The relationship with America, for example. Despite Washington's responses so far, including the administration's spirited defence of India in Congressional hearings on human rights situations in Kashmir and the CAA/NRC controversy, the overall relationship has remained transactional at a low, 'small-deal' level. It hasn't been consummated like a 'big deal' strategic alliance. The reason is the Modi government's inability to break out of historic obsessions with reluctant embraces, multiple alliances, and that quaint, Indian notion of strategic autonomy. Even at the transactional level, Mr Modi's reluctance to sign even a tiny trade deal with Donald Trump underlines his inability to shed this chronic Indian diffidence. He happily went to Houston and chanted 'ab ki baar, Trump sarkar' and thereby endorsed his candidacy for re-election, never mind the context. But he wouldn't move on even a tiny trade deal. This, after so many commitments, promises and false hopes. Mr Trump flew all the way to India in the early coronavirus season on a short visit mostly looking for a tiny campaign win such as this. But for the Modi government, misplaced ideology and irrational fear of global trade continued to drive India's larger strategic interest. This minimalism left no area of the relationship, even military, untouched. In six years, India did buy a few small parcels of this and that from America. But no major acquisition, co-development or production started. None. It is a different matter that now, when the Chinese have rudely kicked the door open in Ladakh, you have C-17s and C-130s, Apaches, Chinooks, and M777 artillery to rely on. All of it has come from America, in retail purchases. Any of these could have been a larger, balance-shifting, co-production deal if the Modi government was willing to think big. We've come this far without mentioning Russia. This looks like an error if we remember, that when the stuff hit the fan in Ladakh, the first country Defence Minister Rajnath Singh went rushing to was Russia. The first two emergency orders, Su-30s and MiG-29s, too were placed there. Please note again, in tiny parcels. What this underlines is that 31 years after the end of the Cold War, through 25 years of steep economic growth and now six years under Mr Modi, India has not gotten over its military dependence on Russia. IMAGE: Modi with Russia's President Vladimir Putin, left, and Xi Jinping, right, at a meeting on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Osaka, Japan, June 28, 2019. Photograph: Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin/Reuters That counts as a failure, especially at a time when Russia has emerged to be China's loyal ally. Knowing India's dependence and vulnerabilities, lack of options and resources, it knows it can afford to play even low-level games with it. It has delivered S-400s to China, sold them subsequently to India, and may give them to Turkey as well. It isn't anybody's strategic ally except its own, and China's. A sounder foreign policy would have lessened this dependence, thereby improving India's leverage. China was a relationship from which Mr Modi had expected the most it seems. It showed in a string of summits, and somewhat breathless celebration of Xi Jinping. It was hasty and simplistic. To imagine that you could sway a Chinese strongman on personal buddy-ship was a sizeable error. India is now paying for it. Over-personalisation of diplomacy can work between two nations that are equal. Or if they are unequal, you are the stronger one. Diplomacy between two sizeable but unequal neighbours is not played successfully like jujitsu, where you use the adversary's strengths against him. There was also a definite misreading of Mr Xi's intentions, his powers, and the way in which the Chinese system works. While Mr Xi is the most powerful Chinese leader since Deng, as an individual, he might have less personal discretion over larger policy than a Modi. India's handling of him was immature, and since he kicked us in the shins in Doklam, the equation has shifted. It is now quite clear that he read Wuhan as Mr Modi pleading with him not to create more mischief and upset his prospects in the coming elections. In these exchanges, if you respect the other side, you'd know that the Chinese think, too. And they make their own assessment of your intentions, as you make of theirs. It doesn't even matter who was right or wrong. What matters is what you get at the end of the day. That, in one word, is Galwan. IMAGE: Army trucks move towards Ladakh on the Manali-Leh highway in Kullu, July 30, 2020. Photograph: ANI Photo After the misplaced ideological paranoia of trade and over-personalised diplomacy, the next big negative was the way the Modi-BJP electoral politics got caught in foreign policy. If Hindu-Muslim polarisation is your main vehicle of winning elections, then the 'othering' of the Muslim is essential. Never mind that it closes your options with Pakistan. But it also troubles your most reliable neighbour, Bangladesh. Mr Modi had started off well, sealing the border settlement with Bangladesh in the national interest which his party had not allowed the UPA to do. But then, the desperation to first win Assam, then West Bengal, ruined that start. You cannot be calling Bangladeshis infiltrators and termites and threaten to deport them, on the one hand, and whisper the opposite to Sheikh Hasina, on the other. You can be sure that after sealing Iran, Nepal, and Sri Lanka now, China will turn its attention to Dhaka. Wasn't there an important, zero-tariff trade deal in the works these last few weeks? Check. Objects in the mirror are closer than they seem. India is paying the price for the Modi-BJP electoral politics. Powerful leaders with huge popularity have many strengths. But they also have some weaknesses. One of these is sycophancy. If they begin to enjoy it, then history tells you how disastrous the results are, without an exception. India's strategic policy-making needs hard introspection, realism, and course correction. Not just in method and style, but in substance and fundamental politics. Especially at home. A polarised electorate might be good for a party. But a divided population is dangerous for a nation. By special arrangement with The Print Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com Copyright 2020 Albuquerque Journal Last December, Keri Piehl said she and many fellow Nob Hill merchants were surprised and confused by what they saw happening outside their doors: city parking enforcement employees issuing citations. People were like, Why am I getting a ticket?' Piehl, owner of Color Wheel Toys said. Thats because the city traditionally offers free parking in Nob Hill, Old Town and Downtown for about a month between Thanksgiving and Christmas. But in 2019 the city limited the free holiday parking benefit to seven days. Piehl said customers were so conditioned to ignoring meters in December that she felt compelled to warn them. She personally placed small notes on several parking meters to grab their attention and let them know 2019 was different. We just didnt want people to have a takeaway of visiting Nob Hill and finishing their enjoyable holiday trip with a ticket, said Piehl, who is on the board of Nob Hill Main Street. What Nob Hill merchants saw then was part of a larger trend of increased parking citations in Albuquerque. The city issued 33,321 parking citations in fiscal year 2020, up 35% from the previous year and 74% from two years ago. And the 2020 increase would likely have been even bigger if not for COVID-19. The city did not have parking enforcement staff in April or May due to the pandemic, but the crew had been busy just before the coronavirus arrived in New Mexico. In February, for example, the city issued 4,212 citations, nearly double the number in February 2019. The Parking Division finished the 2020 fiscal year with $300,000 more in revenue than expenses, according to a spokesman, though it had at one point in the year been on pace to finish with $1.1 million or about 25% more revenue than budgeted. Jacob Fox, who co-owns multiple Nob Hill businesses, said the districts paid parking and the citys aggressive enforcement runs counter to broader Central Avenue revitalization goals. He said he does not see the necessity of parking enforcement and would prefer it if the public could park for free in the area to give them an incentive to visit the citys urban center. At least until the demand requires some sort of control, so maybe not (free) forever, said Fox, whose businesses include Little Bear Coffee, And Stuff and a rum bar. But it doesnt make any sense to me to make parking not free both Downtown and Nob Hill. City Council President Pat Davis, who represents the Nob Hill area, said he and Downtown representative Isaac Benton last year requested the usual monthlong free parking period during the holidays, but the decision to shorten the period was ultimately up to Mayor Tim Kellers administration. Davis said he understands why some business owners may view parking enforcement as a potential deterrent for customers, especially when there is a push to bring people back to a corridor that has struggled in recent years. If there is community will to do away with it, he said, the city has a process for reviewing it. But he said businesses have in the past actually tended to ask for the opposite more regular patrols to prevent people from hogging the best parking spaces for hours on end. I think we have to just be careful that taking those meters away or not enforcing them at all has generally been problematic for businesses who want to have the most prime spaces right in front of their businesses available for customers and not for some other businessess employees, Davis said. The citys Parking Division monitors 1,680 parking meters and about 4,100 total parking spaces. It is financially self-supporting. It gets no money from the citys general fund and keeps any surplus for its own initiatives. The citation surge is the result of updated technology and adding three enforcement employees after what a spokesman said was years of understaffing. It previously lacked the staff to patrol full days during the week or Saturday shifts, said Johnny Chandler, a spokesman for the Department of Municipal Development, which includes parking. Nine of the divisions 39 current employees are authorized to issue citations, which range from $20 to $350. Enforcement, Chandler said, ensures businesses with on-street parking have spots for their customers and also contributes to community safety, such as helping keep fire lanes clear. The division listens to community feedback, he said. We regularly meet with business owners or neighborhood associations, Chandler wrote in emailed answers to Journal questions. Meter placement and enforcement are in places that are necessary. We are committed to providing a safe and fair parking experience. But Fermin Aguilar, who lives in the Albuquerque High Lofts at Central and Broadway, said enforcement is overzealous, officers are nitpicky and the policies are not user-friendly. He said he recently received a citation for parking on the street outside his building because the strip of pavement he chose was not painted as an official stall. The space was not otherwise problematic, he said, as it was not a fire zone or encroaching on a stop sign. Aguilar said he wanted to contest it, but that requires going to Metropolitan Court which he worried would be a long process that could add late fees to his citation if he was unsuccessful. They make it hard, said Aguilar, who said the system seems designed so that residents find it easier to just pay the citations than fight them. Aguilar said he ultimately paid the citation. By PTI JALALABAD: Militants affiliated with the Islamic State group stormed a prison in eastern Afghanistan in a daylong siege that left at least 39 people dead, including the assailants, and freed nearly 400 of their fighters before security forces restored order, a government official said Monday. The attack underscored that the Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan is still a formidable presence, and it highlighted the challenges ahead as US and NATO forces begin to withdraw following Washington's peace deal with the Taliban. The peace accord aims to recruit the Taliban to battle the militants from IS, which US officials have told The Associated Press is the Americans' biggest foe in Afghanistan. Both the Taliban and the IS affiliate are staunch rivals. At least 10 of the dead were IS militants involved in the assault to free their comrades from the prison in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, said Ajmal Omar, a provincial council member. The rest of the dead were believed to be prisoners, civilians and Afghan forces, although no official breakdown was given. Another 50 people were wounded in the attack that began Sunday when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives-packed vehicle at the entrance to the prison complex some 115 kilometers (70 miles) east of Kabul, Omar said. Other militants simultaneously stormed the prison and took up positions in nearby residential buildings. They fired on Afghan troops for several hours, even after the security forces retook the prison and began recapturing some of the inmates. Of the five prisoners killed by the militants, at least three were members of the Taliban, showing the tensions between the two factions. An AP photographer who went inside the prison, which houses about 1,500 inmates, said he saw the bodies of five of the attackers and at least four prisoners. Omar said about 430 prisoners stayed in their cells or hid during the siege. It was unclear Monday how may prisoners remained at large. One inmate, who gave his name as Azizullah, said he heard the powerful explosion, followed by the militants storming into the main prison block, shouting for their fighters and telling them to flee. "The aim of this attack was to rescue all Daesh members inside the prison, and unfortunately that included five or six senior Daesh people," Omar said, using an Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group, which is also known as ISIS. Among the prisoners who escaped was the group's shadow governor for neighbouring Kunar Province, he said. The Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan, known as IS in Khorasan Province, claimed responsibility for the attack. The militants have established a base in Nangarhar Province. Afghanistan has seen a recent surge in violence, with most attacks claimed by IS militants. US and Afghan forces "along with the Taliban" have pounded IS positions. While the group's strength might have been reduced, analysts say it is still able to stage such high-profile attacks such as the jailbreak. "Rumors of the demise of ISIS in Afghanistan are greatly exaggerated. It retains the capacity to carry out attacks, and it continues to gain new recruits ranging from disaffected former Taliban fighters to newly radicalized young Afghans," said Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Wilson Center. "The attack on the jail took place in terrain where ISIS has long had a deep presence, and it used tactics that the group has frequently deployed in Afghanistan," he said. "It amplifies, for Kabul and Washington and other NATO partners, just how serious the ISIS challenge remains. On Saturday, authorities said Afghan special forces killed a senior Islamic State commander near Jalalabad. The Taliban's political spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, told the AP that his group was not involved in the prison attack. We have a cease-fire and are not involved in any of these attacks anywhere in the country, he said. The Taliban had declared a three-day cease-fire starting Friday for the major Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. The cease-fire expired at midnight Sunday, although it wasn't immediately clear if it would be extended. The US reached the peace deal with the Taliban in February, but a second, crucial round of negotiations between the Taliban and the political leadership in Kabul has yet to begin. Washington has been pushing for an early start to intra-Afghan negotiations that have repeatedly been delayed since the Taliban accord was reached. While the Islamic State group has seen its so-called caliphate stretching across Iraq and Syria eliminated after years of fighting, the group has continued its attacks in Afghanistan. The extremists also have battled the Taliban, which was overthrown by the US in 2001 American-led invasion following the September 11 attacks. A United Nations report released last month estimated the membership of IS in Afghanistan at 2,200. While its leadership has been depleted, IS still counts among its leaders a Syrian national Abu Said Mohammad al-Khorasani. The report also said the monitoring team had received information that two senior Islamic State commanders, Abu Qutaibah and Abu Hajar al-Iraqi, had recently arrived in Afghanistan from the Middle East. Ayodhya Ram Mandir: Meet Chandrakant Sompura, the family behind designing temples for generations India oi-Madhuri Adnal New Delhi, Aug 03: For the Ahmedabad-based architects, the Supreme Court order, which cleared the way for the construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya, has been a long wait of three decades. As August 5 approaches, Chandrakant Sompura, 77, who comes from a family of temple architects that have designed over 200 such structures, including the Akshardham and Somnath temples of Gujarat, will now see their vision materialise in Ayodhya in the form of the Ram Mandir, whose construction is expected to start next month. Ayodhya Ram Mandir Temple Bhumi Pujan: Time, Date, Muhurat Sompura said that he was asked to prepare a design for the Ram temple by late leader of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), Ashok Singhal, around 30 years ago. He said designing the Ram temple was an uphill task 30 years back, as he had to prepare drawings using his footsteps as the unit of measurement. Chandrakant Sompura, is the grandson of Prabhashankar who had designed the Sompura Akshardham temple in Gandhinagar. The Ram Temple project is being handled by two of the youngest members of this clan, Nikhil (55) and Ashish (49), under the wings of their father Chandrakant (77), who now works from home due to his age. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News The temple has been modelled in keeping with the 'Nagara' style - one of the three primary architecture systems that govern temple construction in India, the others being Dravidian and Basar - and adheres to the principles of Vastu shastra. He made a grand design for the Ram Temple which was later approved by saints during the Allahabad Kumbh in the early 1990s. Why PM Modi will seek blessings of Lord Hanuman before laying foundation stone for Ram Mandir Based on his design, artisans have been working in several locations, carving the stones for the temple construction. According to Sompura, nearly 40 percent of the stone carvings have been completed and he is confident that the construction will be completed within 24 and 30 months after the foundation has been laid. Chandrakant's father Prabhakar Sompura, was the architect of the Somnath Temple in Gujarat and the temple in Mathura, the mythological birthplace of Lord Krishna. The 'bhoomi pujan' (ground-breaking) ceremony of the temple in Ayodhya is scheduled to be held on August 5, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to attend, as told by the members of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra, a trust formed to oversee its construction. Chandrakant Sompura who followed his father's footsteps has designed 131 temples, along with his son Ashish. This includes the Swami Narayan Temple in Gandhinagar, Ambaji Temple in Palanpur and several others. In November last year, the Supreme Court had paved the way for the construction of Ram temple by at the disputed site at Ayodhya, and directed the Centre to allot an alternative five-acre plot to the Sunni Waqf Board for building a new mosque at a "prominent" place in the holy town in Uttar Pradesh. MixOne Soundstage: Audience-Less Shows with a Festival Feel Sidelined from rock tours and festivals by the COVID-19 crisis, MixOne Sound put their gear, expertise, and storage space to use building a state-of-the-art soundstage designed to deliver festival-like livestreamed experiences with audience-less shows. Page 1 of 2 next Kevin Garcia of Orange County, California-based MixOne Sound, go-to live event production, staging, and video crew for Live Nation and a host of top rock acts and festivals, handled videography duties on what was, most likely, the last live show in Nevada before the state imposed COVID-19 social distancing restrictions in March. Working with Nebraska-based alternative rock band 311 on the bands annual 311 Day celebration (beginning March 11), MixOne Sound had done the first two shows of the three-day event when they got the call on March 13 that the state (along with the country) was shutting down. Given that the audience for the third show would be the same as for the first two, the band and crew received a special dispensation from the governor to do the third show, and with some reluctance they proceeded with the third-day gig. (After extensive contact tracing, Garcia reports that no spread of COVID cases resulted from the shows.) Following the 311 Day shows, Garcia was booked to join the band on a 50 shows in 50 states tour celebrating 311s 30th anniversary of being a band. Of course, not one of those 50 shows came to pass. Back in Orange County, Garcia and Bishop found themselves at loose ends, unsure of their next move. With no rock shows, music festivals, or in-person live events on the docket for the foreseeable future, the lifeblood of their livelihood had disappeared overnight. Spenser and I were sitting in our shop, which was just a warehouse for all our gear, Garcia recalls. Looking around at all the equipment, Garcia said, We could do a soundstage. Bishop replied, I dont like doing video unless youre here, and youre never here. Garcia answered, Well, Im home now. From that moment, the idea for MixOne Soundstagea state-of-the-art, fully operational venue where bands could deliver stream-first, audience-less performances for their fansbegan. Garcia said, We have an LED wall, we have all the audio and video gear, we already own it. We dont have to rent anything like a lot of places unfortunately do. Weve got our partners, Hudson Audio Works, in the same building. Its what we do. Lets do live streams. Lets build a soundstage. Thats gonna be the move. Booking Bands The first week of April, they began designing the soundstage. We built it, tore it down, built it, tore it down, and built it again, Garcia recalls. With the soundstage nearing completion, the next step was to start booking bands. Ive worked with almost every major rock band, Garcia says. Thats my niche. So I just started calling Atlantic Records, and Warner, and Elektra, and Sumarian and said, Hey, Ive got this spot. You already used me for video. Lets be a little more forward-thinking.'" Garcia lined up their first gig when he reached out to Andrew Jarrin of Roc Nation, the management firm owned by Beyonce and Jay-Z own. CHON, a band Jarrin rep'd, was looking for a way to promote their new record. With the soundstage not quite ready for primetime, Garcia packed up the gear, went to the band's house (Figure 1, below), and produced a five-cam multistream to five platforms from their living room. That was a nightmare--two Instagrams, one Facebook with a cross-post, and two YouTube. So I had five going up, which as you know is not fun. Figure 1. Producing a 5-camera multi-stream of CHON from the bands household Although the show wasnt a notch in the belt for the soundstage per se, it proved a key step forward nonetheless. That kind of sparked it, Garcia says, because that was the moment that legitimized it: MixOne can stream. The crew produced their first event on the soundstage with the band Fever 333 in the days after the killing of George Floyd. That livestreamed benefit show garnered 250,000 views that day, and raised north of $20,000 for the Minnesota fund with that band here, and that kind of put us on the map as, This is the spot to be. Following that show, MixOne Soundstage became an established building that people actually like will mention when they're talking about live streams in Southern California. Providing a Festival-Level Experience A key part of the soundstages appeal, in the context of the limited concert experiences available now, Garcia says, derives from the novelty of the living-room lockdown streams to Instagram and Facebook wearing off. People check out now, he says. They want to hear real quality. Theyre out of shows on Netflix or out of movies to watch all they have left is what entertainers can do their own. So the bands come here because our audio is run like a festival would be--you're getting real multi-track audio. Its not a room microphone. Its actual mics on every instrument. Our whole thing is, Imagine you were going to play a festival. Thats the experience the band gets. And the fan gets the closest experience to that possible through a screen.". But the challenge of delivering that experience doesnt end with the inherent limitations of delivering a concert or festival experience to a remote audience through a screen. Its also maintaining the sort of physical social distancing on site thats mandated by current restrictions. We have very limited crew in the physical space due to safety, Garcia concedes. "But theres a lighting guy out there. There's a monitor guy. Theres a camera guy. There's a jib in your face. Bands who perform in the space feel like theyre shooting a music video. MixOne is also working to deliver an engaging experience for fans, and live give and take with the bands. If were doing a true livestream, we have two 70-inch TVs out there that we can put comments on that the bands can see in what we'll call relative real time. It still takes about 45 seconds because of YouTube or Facebook. But if someones saying, Oh, this is my favorite song, or Oh my gosh, youre so hot, the band can get that interaction. Its not the same as getting the applause, but they know people are actually watching them. In my opinion, its one of the closest things to filling the void that there is at this time. Page 1 of 2 next Northern California Live Updates Week of August 3 This page covers general news updates weekly, in addition to the coverage of the CCP virus* outbreak in Northern California. For more news related to the CCP virus, see The Epoch Times special coverage of the CCP virus outbreak. Click here to see all the latest cases by county. Click here to see archived updates and here for the previous updates on the early CCP virus situation. Have any tips? Get in touch with us at sfbay@epochtimes.com August 7 The Yolo Habitat Conservation Plan wins a statewide award of excellence. Sonoma County will start issuing citations of $100 for individuals and up to $10,000 for businesses for not complying with health orders. August 6 California may release 17,600 inmates early due to COVID-19. Juan Tang, a former UC Davis researcher, is charged with visa fraud and making false statements. A lawsuit is filed against the city and county of San Francisco over Jeff Adachis autopsy report. He was a San Francisco Public Defender who died due to heart failure on Feb. 22, 2019. Russian Hills Francisco Park in San Francisco will open early 2021. Sacramento has announced the American River Parkway Bike Patrol, a volunteer bike patrol trained in first aid, CPR, and basic bicycle repair. August 5 California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) Chief Investment Officer suddenly resigned on August 5. Berkeley announces that Census workers will visit the homes of those who have not completed the Census yet. The City of Santa Clara is looking to hire a Public Safety Dispatcher II. San Mateo County will close certain park amenities. August 4 American Airlines will stop operations at the Oakland International Airport and plans to lay off hundreds of workers at the San Francisco International Airport. The U-Haul truck stolen on Aug. 1 from a Castro Valley family is found in Oakland. Chase Center received a Global Biorisk Advisory Councils (GBAC) STAR facility accreditation for cleaning, disinfection, and infectious disease prevention. The City of Santa Cruz will temporarily close parks and cancel programs this fall due to COVID-19, starting Aug. 7. San Jose Police Chief Eddie Garcia plans to retire in December. The mayor issues a statement. Santa Cruz County will start issuing citations to those violating health orders. Gov. Newsom releases a statement regarding the nine service members who passed away due to a vehicle accident near San Clemente Island. San Mateo County announces fines for not wearing a face covering. August 3 Thousands of San Jose students and residents will have access to high-speed internet by the start of the academic school year. A U-Haul truck filled with an East Bay familys belongings is stolen as they prepare for a move. The truck has Arizona license plates with the number AH54657. People with information are asked to contact the Alameda County Sheriffs Department at (510) 667-7721. *The Epoch Times refers to the novel coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, as the CCP virus because the Chinese Communist Partys coverup and mismanagement allowed the virus to spread throughout China and create a global pandemic. The Democratic chairs of the House Oversight and House Foreign Affairs committees announced subpoenas Monday for four State Department officials as part of their investigation into the firing of former Inspector General Steve Linick. Why it matters: The two committees, in addition to Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, are investigating whether Linick was fired because he was probing Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the State Department's attempts to bypass Congress to sell weapons to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Details: The subpoenas seek to compel depositions from undersecretary Brian Bulatao, legal adviser Marik String, deputy assistant secretary for political-military affairs Michael Miller, and senior adviser Toni Porter. The big picture: Linick told Congress in June he was conducting five investigations into Pompeo and the State Department before he was fired by Trump at Pompeo's recommendation. Linick testified that Bulatao, a longtime aide to Pompeo, "tried to bully" him into dropping his investigation into the arms sales. Linick was also probing allegations of misuse of staff by Pompeo an investigation that Pompeo claims he was unaware of. The other side: Pompeo has said Linick "wasnt performing a function in a way that we had tried to get him to" and has asked for an investigation into Linick and a "disturbing pattern of leaks." He has denied wrongdoing. What they're saying: House Foreign Affairs Chair Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), House Oversight Chair Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) and Senate Foreign Relations Ranking Member Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) revealed that former State Department official Charles Faulkner voluntarily testified about Linick's removal on June 24. Mr. Faulkners testimony depicts a small group of senior State Department officials determined to ignore legitimate humanitarian concerns among their ranks and on Capitol Hill in order to ram through more than $8 billion in arms sales to Gulf countries," the chairs wrote in a press release. "Mr. Faulkner testified that Congress had 'legitimate' concerns when it was holding up these sales on humanitarian grounds and that State Department officials werent surprised by the Saudis reckless use of U.S.-built weapons and the resulting loss of innocent life." "Nevertheless, the Departments senior leadership appeared determined to see the sales go forward." Go deeper: Pompeo says he wasn't aware ousted inspector general was investigating him 'Social distancing, wearing masks and hygiene should be practised more strictly.' 'People should not assemble in close spaces as the micro droplets may hang in the air and can last for a longer time.' IMAGE: Recovered patients at the CWG Village COVID care centre near Akshardham in New Delhi, July 23, 2020. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo From the scientific community to the medical community to the community as a whole, every adult on this planet is perplexed, nervous and scared about the coronavirus. Life in the times of the coronavirus is not the same as it was before it surfaced in Wuhan, China, and thereafter spread to every part of the planet. This is the new normal. Scientists and medical professionals are learning new things about the virus every day. Shobha Warrier/Rediff.com speaks to doctors and scientists about their experiences combating the coronavirus. IMAGE: A laboratory at the Serum Institute of India, the world's largest maker of vaccines, which is working on vaccines against the coronavirus. Photograph: Euan Rocha/Reuters Dr Rakesh Mishra, Director, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in Hyderabad, and his team discovered a new strain of the novel coronavirus, Clade A3i. The CCMB scientists found that A3i came not from China or Europe, but from South East Asia and this strain is responsible for around 41% of the cases in India. Dr Mishra lists what he has learnt about the coronavirus: We have observed that the virus is mutating not so fast and, as a result, the major clade all over the world remains to be a common one, which is A2a. The other major clade which is unique to South East Asia, A3i seems to be disappearing gradually. This is an encouraging trend for those who are developing the drugs and vaccines. The other major clade which is unique to South East Asia, A3i seems to be disappearing gradually. This is an encouraging trend for those who are developing the drugs and vaccines. There have been several reports including our own initial efforts, that found the virus can be detected in river bodies near the infected population or the sewage system in the cities, and this would give an indication of the infection load in the catchment areas. This knowledge would be very useful for the current as well as the future surveillance and monitoring of infectious diseases like COVID-19. This knowledge would be very useful for the current as well as the future surveillance and monitoring of infectious diseases like COVID-19. Recent studies have shown that COVID-19 can also be present in small droplets, <5 micron size, which does not necessarily mean that the virus is airborne. However, this means that the virus can stay in the areas for a much longer time than the bigger droplets, as was had thought earlier. This means that social distancing, wearing masks and hygiene should be practised more strictly. People should not assemble in close spaces as the micro droplets may hang in the air and can last for a longer time in such situations. IMAGE: Medics undergo a mock-drill to treat COVID-19 patients. Photograph: PTI Photo Dr Himanshu Reddy Dandu of the King George's Medical University in Lucknow led a team treating coronavirus patients. In the last three months, Dr Dandu says, the doctors treating covid patients have learnt a lot. In March, when we first started treating covid patients, it was all about keeping all the sick people on ventilators. As days pass by, we learnt that it was not necessary to put them all on ventilators, instead we need to only give them oxygen and make them rest. We understood that what we had to do was to maintain the oxygen level as much as possible so that the lung recovered slowly. This is the major learning we had on the treatment part of the infection. As days pass by, we learnt that it was not necessary to put them all on ventilators, instead we need to only give them oxygen and make them rest. We understood that what we had to do was to maintain the level as much as possible so that the lung recovered slowly. This is the major learning we had on the treatment part of the infection. We also understood now that most of the patients, that is 80% to 85% are asymptomatic or very mild symptomatic. When we spoke in March, though we knew that the mortality rate would be low, we thought all the covid patients would develop fever, breathlessness, etc. Now, we know that many of them do not have any fever; some develop mild diarrhoea or loss of smell, and most of them do not have any symptoms at all. The guideline initially was to test anyone with fever and sore throat, but now we understand that people may not have any of the symptoms, and still will have the coronavirus. When we spoke in March, though we knew that the mortality rate would be low, we thought all the covid patients would develop fever, breathlessness, etc. Now, we know that many of them do not have any fever; some develop mild diarrhoea or loss of smell, and most of them do not have any symptoms at all. The guideline initially was to test anyone with fever and sore throat, but now we understand that people may not have any of the symptoms, and still will have the coronavirus. Initially, there was some doubt about people developing antibodies and herd immunity. Now, I personally feel that people will develop herd immunity. For example, if you look at the countries which were severely affected in March and April, they have opened up now, like Spain, South Korea, Japan, Italy, etc. Even after opening up, the cases have not gone up exponentially, and it is under control. This shows these countries have developed herd immunity. If there was no herd immunity, cases would have gone up. So, looking at the epidemiology of the countries that are infected, we see that they have developed herd immunity. But how long this immunity will sustain, only time will tell. It is now learnt that the antibodies will work only for 3 to 4 months. Generally, viral immunity is based on T-cells, or the memory cells but we are not sure about the coronavirus patients developing memory cells yet. IMAGE: A worker from the Bharatiya Jain Sanghatana, a non-governmental organisation, wearing a 'Smart Helmet', a portable thermoscanner that can measure the temperature of people at a distance, screens residents in a slum in Mumbai, July 23, 2020. Photograph: Hemanshi Kamani/Reuters Dr Vaibhav Agavane, an epidemiologist who is currently a faculty member at the Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru, told me in March that even asymptomatic patents can spread the coronavirus. He lists what he has learnt about COVID-19: Asymptomatic cases - A high proportion (approximately 40% to 45%) of the people who are infected with the SARS-CoV-2 are likely to have no symptoms. For majority of the population which will contract the infection, it is going to be an asymptomatic infection or mild viral disease. cases - A high proportion (approximately 40% to 45%) of the people who are infected with the SARS-CoV-2 are likely to have no symptoms. For majority of the population which will contract the infection, it is going to be an asymptomatic infection or mild viral disease. Infectivity during pre-symptomatic phase: This fact has wider implication in our ability to control the pandemic. Those who get infected can infect others irrespective of whether they develop or not develop the symptoms. Thus, it is particularly important that we immediately isolate the identified cases and quarantine the contacts to further decrease the transmission. Getting this done is an uphill task but it is very important. Those who get infected can infect others irrespective of whether they develop or not develop the symptoms. Thus, it is particularly important that we immediately isolate the identified cases and quarantine the contacts to further decrease the transmission. Getting this done is an uphill task but it is very important. Secondary attack rate: The secondary attack rate is the proportion of household members of COVID-19 patients who develop the disease because they stay with them. This rate for SARS-CoV-2 is higher than that of the other viruses like SARS-CoV to which it is closely related. Overall, it is highly transmissible from one person to another. The good news is that taking preventive steps like the use of masks, protection of the eyes, keeping physical distance of preferably 2 metres, practicing hand hygiene are likely to decrease the probability of getting infected even in such a scenario. Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com At least 40 passengers and crew from a luxury cruise liner have tested positive for COVID-19 and the authorities are still trying to trace a number of passengers from two recent Arctic voyages, public health officials in Norway said on Sunday. Four crew members on the MS Roald Amundsen were hospitalized on Friday when the ship arrived at the port of Tromso, northern Norway, and later diagnosed with the coronavirus didease. Tests showed another 32 of the 158 staff were also infected. While the crew was quarantined on the ship, the 178 passengers who arrived on Friday were allowed to disembark before anyone had been diagnosed, triggering a complex operation to locate them in order to contain any potential spread. People cleaning the cruise ship. /Reuters "We expect that more infections will be found in connection to this outbreak," said Line Vold, a senior FHI executive, adding that the passengers have been told to self-isolate. The Hurtigruten line, owner of the MS Roald Amundsen as well as 15 other vessels, in mid-June became the first to return an oceangoing cruise ship to service following a three-month halt due to the pandemic. Asked later on Sunday whether the authorities had by now located and tested everyone potentially infected aboard the cruise liner, an FHI spokesman said: "Messages have been sent to all the passengers. We're now seeking to verify that the information has been received and understood." Four crew members on the MS Roald Amundsen were hospitalized on Friday when the ship arrived at the port of Tromso. /Reuters Among the infected crew, 32 were from the Philippines while the rest were of Norwegian, French and German nationality, operator Hurtigruten said. "We are working hard to contain this outbreak in order to limit the spread in the general population," Tromsoe municipality chief doctor Kathrine Kristoffersen told a news conference. At the start of coronavirus outbreak in early 2020, thousands of passengers became stranded on cruise vessels in the waters of Asia, the United States and elsewhere, leading operators to cancel journeys and triggering mass layoffs. (CGTN) A senior public health official has urged Brits to stick to social distancing rules amid hot weather to help keep a possible second wave of Covid-19 at bay. Fears have grown of a coronavirus resurgence after images emerged on social media appearing to show people flouting social distancing rules in several UK pubs and bars as temperatures soared over the weekend. Dr Meera Chand, incident director at Public Health England, said: Now more than ever it is vital that people continue to follow government advice on social distancing, wearing face coverings and practising good hand hygiene, in order to keep down the number of cases across England. The Government reminded Brits on Monday that "everybody needs to continue the social distancing guidance, although new restrictions on socialising have only been placed in certain parts of the country that have seen localised flare-ups. Social distancing guidelines in England say that people must keep two metres from others where possible, or one metre apart with mitigations such as face masks and more frequent hand washing. Dr Chand's comments come as a world health expert warned that London is at a "critical" time in its fight against coronavirus. Dr David Nabarro, European coronavirus envoy for the World Health Organisation, told the Standard that risk of a surge in Covid-19 infections in the capital was now extremely serious and urged Londoners to carry on taking restrictions seriously. New figures show the number of confirmed new cases and infection rate going up slightly in 22 of 33 London boroughs. Loading.... Dr Nabarro added: It really is a critical time now for us to be treating this virus with the upmost respect. Im not somebody who wants us to continue with lockdown, I want us not to have to continue with working from home, we need to be able as a society to be able to go to work, and also frankly to socialise. So the whole approach Im taking is one of saying lets come back to a normal working life but remember that its not normal as we knew it eight months ago, this is a new reality of living with the constant threat of this virus... its establishing a new way of behaviour that is compatible with holding the virus at bay. Business minister Nadhim Zadhawi did not rule out a local London lockdown in a BBC Breakfast appearance on Monday, while mayor Sadiq Khan slammed the Government for not including City Hall in a planning exercise for a lockdown inside the M25. People in Leicester city centre / PA Meanwhile Sage member Professor Graham Medley said pubs could be ordered to shut again to reduce the risk of Covid-19 transmission and allow schools to reopen. When asked if the Prime Minister agreed with this, Boris Johnson's official spokesman said: Our approach is a localised one where you would assess the situation on the ground and take whatever steps were required to slow the spread of the virus. Loading.... More broadly we are committed to supporting the hospitality industry which has had a very tough time. In Scotland, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said images showing the apparent lack of social distancing at packed pubs made me want to cry. She warned a cluster of new cases in Aberdeen is exactly what we feared when we reopened hospitality. Also on Monday, the director-general of the World Health Organisation warned there might never be a silver bullet treatment for the coronavirus pandemic. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus delivered a media briefing on Monday during which he said: We learn every day about this virus and Im pleased that the world has made progress in identifying treatments that can help people with the most serious forms of Covid-19 recover.. He went on: A number of vaccines are now in phase three clinical trials and we all hope to have a number of effective vaccines that can help prevent people from infection. However, theres no silver bullet at the moment and there might never be. For now, stopping outbreaks comes down to the basics of public health and disease control. Testing, isolating and treating patients, and tracing and quarantining their contacts. Do it all. She recently enjoyed a lavish family party for her 30th birthday in London. And with the dust settling on her milestone celebration Anna Vakili treated her Instagram fans to a series of scantily clad snaps after posing up a storm in blue lingerie on her hotel balcony in Monte Carlo. The Love Island star, 30, flaunted her curves in the cornflower blue thong and lacy balcony bra on Monday, captioning the images: 'Life's sweet baby.' Peachy: Anna Vakili, 30, treated her Instagram fans to a series of scantily clad snaps by posing up a storm in blue lingerie on her hotel balcony in Monte Carlo on Monday The pharmacist took the sultry snaps from her hotel balcony, offering her fans a stunning view of the French Riviera while she enjoyed a continental breakfast. Anna bundled her hair into a white towel turban and shot the camera a playful glance over her shoulder from behind her round-framed shades in the first picture. The reality star then posted an eye-popping rear view snap, as she gazed out over the idyllic location with her arms held aloft and her hands forming a pair of peace signs. Anna's luxury location is home of the Formula 1 Grand Prix, and the model shared a number of snaps and clips to her stories following Lewis Hamilton's win on Sunday. Cheeky: The Love Island star flaunted her killer curves and peachy posterior in the baby blue thong and lacy balcony bra, captioning the series 'Life's sweet baby.' Later on Monday, Anna hit Hotel de Paris' outdoor pool in a flesh-flashing powder blue bikini, including a halterneck top which barely contained the star's bountiful assets. The bikini top's chest band boasted a jingly silver bead detail, that continued on the swimsuit's tie-side briefs which showcased Anna's taut stomach. Brunette beauty Anna swept her chestnut tresses into a stylish bun, while sporting a pair of blue-tinted aviator shades and a glossy pink pout. Teasing: Anna's bikini top boasted a jingly silver bead detail, that continued on the swimsuit's tie-side briefs which showcased Anna's taut stomach Despite looking incredible in the poolside pic, the most eye-catching part of the post was Anna's mysterious caption. The media personality entitled the snap 'The only pictures my man takes for insta are my ones' suggesting that she may be enjoying her summer break with a new beau. Anna appeared on ITV2's hit show Love Island in 2019, but had little luck in the South African villa, as two days after coupling up with Jordan Hames, he made moves on India Reynolds. Stunning Anna has not been linked to any eligible partners since leaving the island, but her teasing post suggests the star may be seen stepping out with a new man very soon. Curiouser and Curiouser: Despite looking incredible in the poolside pic, the most eye-catching part of the post was Anna's mysterious caption Women's economic participation and female entrepreneurship are critical to economic growth and development as they contribute to poverty reduction and job creation. Although women make up 50% of the world's population, they have less access to resources and opportunities. Women's entrepreneurship is still significantly lower than that of men. Consequently, it has been identified as an enormous untapped source of economic growth. But that is changing thanks to women's economic empowerment interventions by governments, United Nations agencies and civil society, which have gained momentum in recent years, helping toward bridging the gender gap. One such initiative to help build women's resilience to global challenges and emerging crises was a virtual conference hosted earlier this month by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in partnership with UN Women, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Italian government . Held within the framework of the UNIDO project, Promoting Women's Empowerment (PWE) for inclusive and sustainable industrial development in the Middle East and North Africa region that is funded by the Italian government, the conference titled Women in Industry and Innovation tackled such topics as women's empowerment through information communications technology and in the circular economy. During interactive sessions held on July 15-17, 56 female leaders and entrepreneurs from Southern Europe and the Middle East and North Africa shared their stories of success that they hoped would inspire younger generations and open their eyes to the countless opportunities they too can harness to advance in their careers, said Monica Carco, senior industrial development officer and project manager of PWE, at UNIDO headquarters in Vienna. Among the speakers was Sana Afouaiz, a 26-year-old Moroccan social entrepreneur and women's rights advocate, who recounted how she started her activism as an adolescent growing up in Morocco's conservative southern coastal city of Agadir. I grew up with two options: Either I accept gender inequality, discrimination and misogyny and live with it as a norm or I rebel and do something about it, she told Al-Monitor. Afouaiz chose the latter. She started her own blog, telling the stories of the women and youth she encountered in her daily life in Morocco and during her travels to neighboring Arab countries. She covered issues considered taboo such as female genital mutilation, rampant in Egypt and Sudan, and women's virginity, often associated with family honor in traditional societies like Agadir. A girl must be delivered untouched to her husband; if she is not a virgin on her wedding night, she brings shame and dishonor to her family, Afouaiz said. In some countries like Iraq, new brides are taken to court by their future husbands and are forced to undergo humiliating virginity checks if their virginity is in doubt. She started campaigning against gender discriminatory laws, such as the law allowing rapists to escape prosecution by marrying their victims. While Morocco has since repealed the law it was among the first countries in the region to do so in 2014 the legislation remains in force in other Arab countries such as Kuwait, Bahrain, Syria, Libya and Algeria. Afouaiz believes that the root cause of discrimination against women is the mindset of the people in the region, still steeped in patriarchy. Misogyny is a global reality but in our region it is the mindset of the people that has made gender discrimination a norm the way women are perceived and the images that we see in our childhood, the messages that we hear about women and the ideas that we start to believe in at home, at school, in the media, in places of worship, and in cultural and social places. We grow up believing that those ideas are ultimate truths and this impacts the status of women in society, Afouaiz noted. Very often, women are the sustainers of this mindset. They themselves have internalized misogyny and dont realize how important it is for them to question those ideas, she added. Determined to change the situation for women in her country and others facing similar conditions, Afouaiz started working with various organizations that support women and advocate for their rights. But she soon discovered that despite the extensive resources and ambitious projects undertaken by those organizations, they fell short of meeting the needs of Arab women. To understand those needs better, she took one year off work and set off on a fact-finding mission, traveling across the region and interviewing hundreds of women, representatives of civil society, and local women's groups and organizations. A year later, in 2016, Afouaiz, 22 at the time, decided to establish her own social enterprise Womenpreneur a Brussels-based organization that promotes women's entrepreneurship as well as women's role in technology, innovation and society. In four years time, the organization has reached and supported more than 10,000 women through a variety of innovative experiences, entrepreneurial activities, mentorship sessions, leadership programs, technology education and networking events. Not surprisingly, starting her own social enterprise at such a young age was challenging and Afouaiz had to overcome a number of obstacles. I was not taken seriously at first and had to prove that I had something to contribute; gender issues are 'pink' issues not just in our region but also globally. Besides, I had to deal with complex issues such as the fact that gender discriminatory provisions are embedded in the legal framework so there was a great deal of lobbying and advocacy to be done, she recalled. She added, At Womenpreneur we offer solutions for women to empower them economically. Our ultimate objective is that through the economic independence of women, they will be able to question and examine the environment around them and to be fully independent in their minds because we believe that freedom begins in our minds. Thanks to the efforts of Womenpreneur and other similar initiatives, female entrepreneurship is on the rise in Morocco. In recent years, the Moroccan government has developed various initiatives to assist start-ups, including easing administrative procedures for entrepreneurs and setting up investment funds to support new small and medium enterprises. Still, Moroccan female entrepreneurs much like their counterparts elsewhere still face several challenges including access to funding, training and information to start and grow their businesses. Funding is the biggest challenge facing aspiring female entrepreneurs as some banks are reluctant to fund women's businesses, a former Moroccan minister of solidarity and family told Al-Arabiya some years ago. Stereotypes and cultural constraints are among other factors holding women back. Men are still perceived as the breadwinners in the family, and lack of education is the main barrier to female entrepreneurs starting businesses in the technology sector and the reason why they are opting instead for ventures in agriculture, handicrafts and small-scale service industries. Afouaiz is calling for a revolution of ideas to change the mindset and achieve greater gender equality in her country. Education is key, but the media also has an important role to play in conveying important messages about gender equality. To effect positive change, we need to work with all actors who have some influence in society such as lawmakers and clerics. The latter need to question and change the way they preach. Then there is the street and the way women are treated in public spaces, Afouaiz said. She added, We must also see more women in different fields and professions as seeing is believing. Young, ambitious women will want to emulate the success of those female role models. And while Afouaiz acknowledges that substantial steps have been taken toward gender parity in her country in the last decade, she insists there is still a lot of work to be done. According to the 2020 World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report, Morocco still ranks 143 out of 163 countries. According to USAID, Moroccan women remain underrepresented in elected office and have yet to reach their full economic potential. Morocco ranks 146 out of 153 countries in women's economic participation and opportunity. Moreover, female students leave school at a younger age than their male counterparts. And despite the legal advances in women's rights in recent years, the lack of effective implementation and loopholes in some of the laws such as the law to eliminate violence against women undermine the country's reputation as a progressive, open and tolerant society. In a major crackdown on Sunday night, the Ghaziabad police arrested seven members, including two foreign nationals, of a robbers gang which had allegedly looted a house in Sector 8, Chiranjeev Vihar, on July 27 and fled with cash and jewellery worth 13 lakh after holding hostage the family on gunpoint. The police said the suspects included three women who were tasked to conduct recce of the house before the gang gave way to the incident. The police identified the arrested suspects as Alam Salaam, Razzak Halim, Mohammad Raees, Rubel Sheikh, Sonia Khan, Nazma and Mukta (both single names). Razzak and Rubel are from Bangladesh and their documents will be verified, the police said. The police added the arrested suspects were staying in different areas of Delhi and Loni in Ghaziabad and many of them have criminal records. About six months ago, some of the gang members were lodged in a jail at Palwal, Haryana where they came in touch with an inmate who tipped them about the Ghaziabad house. The identity of the inmate is being kept secret pending investigation. The suspects then roped in their women relatives for conducting recces of the house and then robbed the house on July 27, said Kalanidhi Naithani, senior superintendent of police (SSP). The gang had held 11 family members, including children, hostage at gunpoint for three-and-a-half hours. The family later gave a complaint to the police and also mentioned the suspected role of one of their relatives. As of now, we have not established any role of their relative. The gang performed the robbery and some of their members are still on the run. We had traced them with the help of information gathered locally, electronic surveillance and other means. The suspect had come to Ghaziabad again on the night of August 2 and their movement came under the radar of the police teams near Lal Kuan, the SSP added. The police said the gang members gave them a chase, and some of them fled in an autorickshaw and others on a scooty. One of them had opened fire and was hit on the leg in retaliatory fire near Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Park in Kavi Nagar Industrial Area late Sunday night. The man was identified as Alam Salaam who was nabbed along with others, later on, the police said. We have recovered around 70% of the valuables looted on July 27. The family has also identified some of the robbers who were in the house that day, said Manish Mishra, superintendent of police (city). The family said that the recovered jewellery will be identified later on as the owner of the house, Kanchan Sharma, was not in town. After the arrests were made, we went to the police station and identified one of the robbers. My cousin Kanchan is not in Ghaziabad, and once she comes back will identify the jewellery, said Rohit Sharma, relative of Kanchan whose house was looted. WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump on Monday suggested that the U.S. Treasury should collect a portion of a sale of the social media company TikTok, though it was unclear under what authority the White House could demand such a payment. Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump reiterated that he wants TikTok to be forced to cease operations in the U.S. by about Sept. 15 if it is not sold to Microsoft or another U.S.-based company. If such a sale goes through, the president said, part of the proceeds should be paid to U.S. taxpayers as compensation for operating in America. "A very substantial portion of that price is going to have to come into the Treasury of the United States," Trump said of the potential TikTok sale. "The United States should be reimbursed or paid because without the United States they don't have anything." The president added: "It's a little bit like the landlord tenant. Without a lease, the tenant has nothing. So they pay what's called key money or they pay something." A Treasury Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A White House spokesman also did not immediately return a request for an explanation. The comments come as the president seeks to amplify pressure on TikTok. On Friday, Trump said he plans to ban the Chinese-owned company from the United States because of national security concerns. Peter Navarro, Trump's senior economic official, told Fox News on Monday that he was not sure whether it was "prudent" to allow Microsoft to make the deal with TikTok. "The question is, given China's civil-military infusion . . . can we trust any company that operates in China, has servers in China, has software in China, to protect your children?" Navarro told Fox News. Microsoft confirmed in a blog post Sunday that it is pursuing the acquisition of the U.S. division of TikTok after chief executive Satya Nadella spoke with Trump. Trump appeared to be open to Microsoft making the purchase, despite Navarro's comments, though he raised questions about the logistics of doing so. "The name is hot; the brand is hot - how do you do that if it's owned by two different companies?" Trump said. The U.S. government's Committee on Foreign Investment (CFIUS) began investigating an acquisition by Beijing-based ByteDance last year, after lawmakers asked the government to step in over national security concerns. ByteDance bought karaoke app Musical.ly in 2017 and merged it with TikTok, launching the app to mass popularity in the United States. The CFIUS is an interagency committee that reviews proposed takeovers involving a foreign buyer - and sometimes already completed takeovers - for national security risks. It ultimately recommends to the president whether deals should be blocked or unwound. Lawyers familiar with CFIUS reviews said the Treasury does typically collect money during the process, because companies are required to pay modest fees to cover the cost of the review. The fees are based on the size of the proposed transaction and cannot exceed $300,000. In its blog post this weekend, Microsoft said it had made a joint filing with ByteDance to the CFIUS outlining their deal talks. The CFIUS would need to sign off on the details of any transaction before it could go through. Microsoft and Trump have mentioned Sept. 15 as a deadline for concluding the talks. That probably stems from the 45-day clock the CFIUS typically sets to vet transactions, lawyers said. TikTok has confirmed the it is in preliminary conversations to sell the U.S. portion of the application. Microsoft also issued a statement about the importance of the sale of TikTok "providing proper economic benefits" to the U.S. and U.S. Treasury, comments that could be interpreted to mean future tax revenue. "Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President's concerns," the company said in a statement. "It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury." Trump has targeted TikTok for many months, and the president has intensified his attacks against the company this summer as he continues to blame China for its role in the novel coronavirus pandemic. Trump suggested in a television interview last month that a potential ban of TikTok would be in retaliation to the virus's spread. Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have supported a government crackdown on TikTok, though not everyone agrees on the best way to move forward. "A US company should buy TikTok so everyone can keep using it and your data is safe," Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., tweeted Monday. Banning TikTok in the U.S. - similar to what happened in India - would spark an uproar among its young American fans, who have already been posting videos for weeks urging the government to keep the app online and offering tips on how to access it even if it does get blocked. TikTok says it has 100 million U.S. users, and the app has been downloaded 2 billion times across the world, according to data from market research firm Sensor Tower. TikTok spokesperson Hilary McQuaide said in a statement Monday that the app is still focused on the long-term. "TikTok will be here for many years to come," she said. She did not comment specifically on the potential Microsoft deal or Trump's recent comments. The company has been positioning itself as a friend to the U.S. this year, emphasizing that it has 1,500 employees in the country and even hiring former Disney executive Kevin Mayer to serve as its U.S. chief executive. It continues to assert that it keeps all U.S. user data stored in the country and does not share customer information with the Chinese government, but its insistence has so far not convinced Trump or lawmakers that China could not get access to Americans' information if it tried. Microsoft said it would ensure that any private data about American users was transferred and stored in the U.S. if it takes over the company. On Saturday, after Trump told reporters again that he would work to ban the app, TikTok's general manager for the U.S. posted a video assuring users that TikTok is "here for the long run." "We're not planning on going anywhere," Vanessa Pappas said. Microsoft emerged as a suitor for TikTok, in part because it's one of the few tech giants that is not in the crosshairs of Trump, Congress or regulators. When a House subcommittee summoned top tech CEOs to a hearing last week to grill them on abusing their power to quash rivals, Microsoft was conspicuous by its absence. Other tech companies with large social-media business that might seem complementary to TikTok, such as Facebook or Google, could be hard-pressed to complete a deal because of that government scrutiny. And while TikTok may seem an unlikely acquisition target for Microsoft, whose core business is producing software and services for corporate customers, the start-up could benefit some of its businesses. TikTok has an emerging advertising business that could boost the multibillion-dollar ad operation that Microsoft runs through its Bing search service. Microsoft's Xbox gaming business is its largest consumer offering, and TikTok could fit as an adjacent business to that. Like three previous Microsoft acquisitions, Minecraft game maker Mojang, professional social network LinkedIn and software developer service GitHub, TikTok has developed a platform that used by a deeply engaged community. Microsoft has largely allowed each of those businesses to operate independently, something that seems likely if it ultimately acquires TikTok. And maybe most compelling for Microsoft is the massive trove of data that TikTok produces daily about which videos get shared by its users. That data could help inform artificial-intelligence technology that Microsoft is developing to train it to anticipate what might become popular. "This information is going to be useful to them. But the question is how are they going to use it responsibly," said Victoria Petrock, an analyst with the research firm eMarketer. Subscriber content preview By JOHN LEICESTER, ROD McGUIRK and ARNO PEDRAM Associated Press PARIS With no American visitors to show around the D-Day beaches or the Loire Valley's chateaux, and no work on the immediate horizon, Paris tour guide Linda Zenou frets about how she'll pay off a loan and continue to care for her ailing mother in the achingly lean months ahead. My situation is going to become completely inextricable, she said. We have nothing to live on. . . . Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ghina Ghaliya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 11:58 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b23a63 1 Politics omnibus-bill-on-job-creation,house-of-representatives,coronavirus,COVID-19,regional-administrations,regional-autonomy,RUU-cipta-kerja,RUU-cilaka Free The House of Representatives may not conclude the deliberation of the omnibus bill on job creation in August as it is still working through problems, including labor disputes and editorial issues. The House Legislation Body (Baleg) has resolved 3,172, or almost half, of 6,652 problems on the bills inventory problem list (DIM). A bill is usually passed into law if lawmakers and the government have resolved all problems on the list. Baleg chairman Supratman Andi Agtas told The Jakarta Post on Thursday that he was not sure the bill could be passed in August. "I can't be positive of that. It depends on the debate between the factions," he said. Supratman said Tuesday in a hearing with the government that among the unresolved problems were also 1,430 problems that required editorial revisions. The Gerindra Party politician explained that the body had grouped the 1,430 problems into five categories, among them were those with the term "license" that would be changed into business licensing to comply with the governments request. The term will be used in the articles that would hand over licensing authorities from local administrations to the central government. "If we could agree on them all, we would still have 2,050 problems, said Supratman. Read also: Jobs bill puts spotlight on graft in natural resources sector in Indonesia The jobs bill, which consists of 15 chapters and 174 articles laid out over 1,000 pages, seeks to revise 79 laws and more than 1,200 articles considered to be impeding efforts to attract investment. The government expects the House to deliberate the omnibus bill in August or early September to help economic recovery amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Both the government and the House have delayed discussions on articles related to labor in response to mounting pressure from workers unions over fears that the articles would lure investment at the expense of workers welfare. The ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the NasDem Party, both in President Joko Jokowi Widodos coalition, called on the government to remove labor provisions from the omnibus bill to smoothen the deliberation process. Hendrawan Supratikno of the PDI-P said lawmakers needed more time to resolve the bill, let alone labor issues. "Around 30 percent of the DIMs need to be discussed, including the difficult chapters, namely chapters four [labor], 10 [central government and investment] and 11 [public administration]," he said. We could conclude the deliberations this year but to finish by August would be too difficult. The body could also go back and discuss the resolved DIMs again should they need adjustments after the deliberation of remaining chapters. Willy Aditya of the NasDem Party, who is also the bodys deputy chairman, said the government and the House would continue the deliberations despite the dispute surrounding labor issues. However, NasDem still urged the government to drop labor provisions from the bill. He said labor provisions in the bill should instead be included in revisions to other laws, for example, revisions to the Labor Law or the Industrial Dispute Settlement Law. "The August target is too soon considering the remaining problems," he said. Achmad Baidowi of the United Development Party, who is also among the body's deputy chairs, said lawmakers would be careful in discussing the bill. "We at Baleg dont want to talk about the quantitative targets but the quality. That is our concern. Labor unions plan to hold weekly street rallies that will peak on Aug. 14, along with the opening of the Houses plenary session to oppose the bill. Confederation of Indonesian Trade Unions (KSPI) chairman Said Iqbal said several unions would hold a massive rally Aug. 14 in front of the House compound in Senayan, Central Jakarta, and the Office of the Coordinating Minister of Economy to call both the House and the government to stop the deliberation. "The number of protesters on Aug. 14 could reach tens of thousands of people. They will come from Banten and other parts of Java, he said. The unions will also hold simultaneous rallies in 20 provinces and 200 districts or cities. Bryan Callen, here in 2018, says he will take a leave of absence from his podcast. (Timothy Norris/Getty Images) Bryan Callen is vowing not to "lay low" as he faces allegations of sexual misconduct though he acknowledges that he will take a leave of absence from his podcast. In an impassioned video posted to his Instagram account Sunday, Callen categorically denied all the allegations. He said that despite advice to the contrary, he would not "post a statement and disappear" after four women told The Times that they had been mistreated by the comedian. One of the women, Katherine Fiore Tigerman, said that in 1999, Callen held her down on his bed as she pleaded "no" and raped her. One woman said he pinned her into a fitting room and kissed her against her will, another said he solicited oral sex in exchange for stage time, and the fourth said Callen told her that women have a "biological, primal desire to be raped." "I never thought in a million years that I'd be sitting here defending myself for something I did not do 21 years ago," Callen said, referring to Tigerman's allegation. He later added: "I have been characterized as someone that no one, no one who knows me not my friends, not my family, not my fans would ever recognize. And that's because that is not who I am. That is not something I could do those are not things that I would ever do. That is not how I ever lived my life." Callen added that he would "obviously" be taking a leave of absence from his podcast, "The Fighter and the Kid," which is cohosted by former UFC fighter Brendan Schaub. Colin Thomson, chief executive of Kast Media, the company that hosts the podcast, said he had no comment on the allegations. Callen's Instagram video comes after the 53-year-old said Friday the day The Times published its investigation that he would release a "special Saturday night edition" of his podcast to address the accusations. The podcast never materialized, and the idea was derided by some high-profile figures on Twitter, including "Black Monday" comedian Yassir Lester, who said, "LMAO WHAT?!? Youre addressing the rape allegations against you in a special edition of your podcast?!? He bout to LIE LIE." Story continues LMAO WHAT?!? Youre addressing the rape allegations against you in a special edition of your podcast?!? He bout to LIE LIE https://t.co/edmOWx3ySN Yassir Lester (@Yassir_Lester) August 1, 2020 Responding to Lester's tweet, Chrissy Teigen joked: "Where else would you get an honest, unbiased opinion than your own podcast." On Instagram, Callen said he believes that the #MeToo movement is important because "it gives women recourse against the abuse of power." But, he added, he also believes in due process and dislikes the idea that "social media and the press, alone, can act as judge, jury and executioner. "And I don't think that's good for anybody. And by the way, I don't know how to fix that. I don't think anybody in particular is even to blame. But when something like this happens, this is pretty much the only way you can defend yourself. So this is me standing up and saying that I have been falsely accused of terrible things that I did not do." Former President Barack Obama on Monday endorsed 118 candidates running for office in November, including 52 campaigning for the House and Senate. Why it matters: Obama consistently rates as one of the Democratic Party's most popular figures and is starting to campaign more aggressively after staying on the sidelines for much of the primary season. His first wave of endorsements is aimed at keeping the Democratic majority in the House and winning back the Senate, in addition to shaping state offices ahead of this year's redistricting. What he's saying: "Together, these candidates will help us redeem our countrys promise by sticking up for working class people, restoring fairness and opportunity to our system, and fighting for the good of all Americans not just those at the top. They make me optimistic not just about our partys chances in November, but about our countrys future long after that." Barack Obama in a Medium post Details: Obama's endorsements include Democratic challengers running for the Senate against Republican incumbents in Colorado, Iowa, Maine, North Carolina and South Carolina. He also heavily targeted Texas, which could be a presidential swing state in November, with a total of 27 endorsements in national and state House races. Obama is so far not endorsing Senate candidates in more conservative states like Montana, Kentucky and Georgia, the New York Times notes. What to watch: A second set of endorsements is planned for states whose primaries have yet to be held. Go deeper: The blue wave keeps growing With the Centre pushing for self-reliance in several industries, the Commerce Ministry is considering a proposal to increase customs duty on imported active pharmaceutical ingredients (API). "It is still at a very nascent stage of discussion. The department of pharmaceuticals has proposed a duty hike of around 25 percenton APIs. It's a steep hike that they are proposing, . We are still discussing it," a senior government official told Moneycontrol. APIs currently attract an import duty of 10 percent. The government has been holding discussions with stakeholders from the pharma industry and the suggestion to hike duty is part of the policy push towards an Atmanirbhar Bharat. "We have held talks with industry bodies and representatives. The feedback has been positive. But the issue is lack of capacity to manufacture in India," the official said. The industry has informed the government that a number of APIs can be produced here but there is no cost advantage as manufacturing capacity in India is smaller. "There has to be first provisions for large scale manufacturing. Otherwise it's difficult to compete as importing becomes cheaper," the official added. 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 Currently, India is dependent on China for nearly 70 percent of its drug imports. It is also heavily reliant on China for fermentation-based APIs, which reportedly aren't manufactured by other countries. The rising cost of APIs being imported is a major hurdle in the journey towards a self-reliant India as it has a negative impact on the cost of production as well as the margins of Indian firms. A note by the Ministry of Commence stated that between March and May there has been a 20 percent increase in prices due to the COVID-19 impact. A study was conducted last year in association with the Ministry of Commerce & Industry on strategies to reduce import dependence of APIs, key starting materials (KSMs) and intermediates, and a detailed project report was submitted to the government in January. The government sanctioned grants to states worth Rs 1,000 crore for each of the three mega bulk drug parks. In FY20, import of pharmaceutical products from China was worth $166.2 million but was one of the few items to post a growth of 12 percent. India has the third largest pharmaceutical industry in the world in terms of volumes, but is heavily dependent on China for APIs. In FY19, bilateral trade between China and India was worth $88 billion, with a trade deficit of $53.5 billion in Chinas favour, the widest India has with any country. The outbreak of the virus and its consequent economic damage and the recent standoff with China at the Ladakh border have put into sharp focus India's bilateral trade with China because of the country's import dependency in some sectors. China is one of Indias leading trade partners and constitutes 9 percent of Indias total exports and 18 percent of its total merchandise imports. OTTAWA, Aug. 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Health authorities in Canada echoed in the past that Coronavirus rates would likely decrease during the summer months, but according to Meladul Haq Ahmadzai, CEO of Taleam Systems and a global health researcher, those messages were simply wishful thinking and wrongly communicated without much support to the public. Coronavirus rates have been increasing in Canada. Ahmadzai says, At first, we saw the COVID-19 disease impacting seniors in retirement homes, but now we are starting to see a similar pattern with younger people. Taleam Systems has proudly supported medical clinics and hospitals with technology solutions. The business also provides computer services and custom-made computer health technology at reduced prices to businesses. Ahmadzai adds, the COVID-19 disease is not a global problem with much of Canadas border being closed instead it is a local problem within the country. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also pumped billions of dollars to keep the economy running, but politicians seem to be comfortable with the current pandemic, signals Ahmadzai. Ahmadzai explains, politicians seem to be fine with the Coronavirus situation in Canada, but they should keep in mind, the election season is due to come as well, and Mr. Trudeau has already dropped in the polls. Today, there are 117,000 COVID-19 transmission cases in Canada, and about 9,500 people have died from the disease so far. Taleam Systems provides computer services in Canada to health experts and small businesses since 2011. To learn more about Taleam Systems visit www.taleamsystems.com Media Contact: Meladul Haq Ahmadzai, CEO Phone: 613-521-9229 Email: melad@taleamsystems.com PHOENIX, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Flex Technology Group (FTG) was named a 2020 "HP Inc. Partner of the Year." The company's annual Partner of the Year Awards honor top-performing partners for exemplary achievements in growth and innovation. FTG was lauded in the sub-category of U.S. HP 2019 U.S. Supplies Reseller of the Year Award. Partner Awards Program Recognizes Achievements in Growth and Innovation HP's 2020 U.S. partner award winners were selected based on a variety of criteria, including strategic growth and innovation, and were given in the categories of Personal Systems, Print Hardware, and Supplies Across Distributors, National Solution Providers and Resellers. "Channel partners are the lifeblood of our business, and it's a pleasure to recognize the achievements of this year's partner award winners, each of whom have demonstrated exceptional growth through innovation and a true commitment to our mutual customers," said David Lary, vice president and general manager, U.S. Consumer and Supplies Channel Sales, HP Inc. "We congratulate Flex Technology Group on this well-deserved recognition and thank them for their continued partnership with HP." "We are honored to be recognized as HP Inc.'s Partner of the Year. Achieving this accolade as a national "Vendor Neutral" solutions provider proves that our business model in working with leading-edge office technology partners like HP and delivering unique results to our clients continues to be a huge success, even during unprecedented times. We hold in high regards our partnership with HP and look forward to our ongoing success together," said Frank Gaspari, CEO of Flex Technology Group. Flex Technology Group is a privately held corporation, headquartered in Mesa, Arizona, with offices across the U.S. Since their founding in 2015, they've achieved unparalleled growth within the office technology industry. FTG provides customized office technology solutions for national and leading-edge regional companies. They focus on print, document management, document production and workflow solutions, representing industry-leading suppliers such as HP, Canon, Ricoh, Konica Minolta, Lexmark, and various software solutions. They proudly service over 35,000 customers nationally. For additional information, please visit www.FlexTG.com. Related Images flex-technology-group-ftg-named-hp.jpg Flex Technology Group (FTG) Named "HP Inc. Partner of the Year" Partner Awards Program Recognizes Achievements in Growth and Innovation Related Links Flex Technology Group SOURCE Flex Technology Group Related Links http://www.FlexTG.com Harpreet Bajwa By Express News Service CHANDIGARH: The Covid-19 pandemic has put breaks on the flight of dreams of many students in Punjab to go abroad for higher education. While students are in a fix, this has come as an opportunity for the colleges and universities in the state to increase intake and also for the state government to prevent the drain of capital. Every year, 1.5 to 2 lakh students from Punjab go to Canada, Australia, the UK and other countries. This year, admissions were put on hold in the wake of the global pandemic. While most institutes are not open yet, some are offering online classes. Canada recently announced Visa Approval in Principle that allows students to apply for online classes.The UK is granting students Post-Study Work Visa if they are unable to attend physical classes. However, the response has been lukewarm in Punjab so far. Every year, around 50,000 students from Punjab used to head abroad between July and September. Foreign universities usually take admissions in the three sessions starting January, May or September. Students, already enrolled in courses abroad, are stuck as they cannot fly due to the Covid-19 restrictions. Paramjeet Singh, who has applied for Masters in Actuarial Sciences at Canadas University of Calgary, said: I am working in India and have applied for the Masters course in Canada. I am in a dilemma to go this year or wait for next year as the course is very demanding. The course fees are high. Even if I attend online classes, I pay the same amount. So, postponing for a year seems like a better option. The consultant said I can pay the fee and my course will start online. But I do not want to study online, as I will have to pay the same Rs 8.5 lakh fee and will not be able to attend classes physically. If I do the same course from a university in India, I will have to pay about Rs 1.50 lakh. Why spend more if you do not get practical knowledge? said Gurdeep Kaur, who had applied for a Masters course in Community Economic Development in Canada. Shamsher Singh Sandhu, Managing Director of Canadian Migration Lawyers, said, The students prefer to postpone their sessions because they want to attend physical classes. The reason is that their ultimate aim is to settle in that particular country. He said the cost factor was also a reason why the students, who have got admissions, are not keen to postpone their study visas. When they go abroad, they pay the tuition fees and have to bear living expenses as well. One has to pay Rs 7-8 lakh as tuition fees for diploma courses in Canada and another Rs 5-7 lakh as living expenses in the first year. For Australia, students have to shell out Rs 12-15 lakh for the first year, and for a degree course in the UK, they spend around Rs 17-18 lakh annually. The students are worried that if their papers are processed and they get their visas, then they have to pay their annual fees and will be able to only attend online classes. The massive exodus of students from Punjab not only means loss of human resources but also revenues. An estimated Rs 27,000 crore goes out of Punjab each year on account of student education. While some are thinking of deferring their plans, many may shelve the idea of studying abroad in the wake of the uncertainty due to the Covid situation and other factors including restrictive policies. Educational institutions in the state hope to gain from the situation and increase their student intake by 25-30% this year. Prof Navdeep Goyal, Member, Syndicate and Senate, and Chairman of Committee to Make Policy Decisions about Admissions in Panjab University, says, Admissions in rural and semi-rural colleges will increase. Last year, 30% seats were vacant. We expect these will be filled this year. Gurinder Singh, Secretary of Non-Government-Aided Colleges Management Federation, Punjab and Chandigarh expressed hope that parents will not send their children for studies abroad under the current circumstances. Dr Mehal Singh, Principal of Khalsa College, Amritsar, said they are expecting a 25% rise in admissions this year. He, however, reckoned that the trend will not last long. Punjab loses Rs 27,000 crore every year President Donald Trump on Monday launched another attack on mail-in voting, accusing Nevada of conducting an 'illegal late night coup' with its decision to embrace that option as Republicans fret Trump's salvos could hurt them at the ballot box in November. Lawmakers in Nevada on Sunday passed a bill to have November's vote be conducted by all mail-in ballots. The governor is expected to sign it, meaning Nevada will join several other states that have taken that option as a way to combat the coronavirus epidemic. Trump and Republicans have warned that such moves will lead to voter fraud despite repeated studies that show that is not the case. The president decried Nevada's move in a tweet Monday morning. The state is a critical one for November's election. 'In an illegal late night coup, Nevada's clubhouse Governor made it impossible for Republicans to win the state. Post Office could never handle the Traffic of Mail-In Votes without preparation. Using Covid to steal the state. See you in Court!,' he wrote. President Donald Trump railed against what he called an 'illegal late night coup' in Nevada after state decides to let vote be conducted all by mail-in Pundits warn Americans won't know if Trump or Joe Biden won on election night because of time it will take to count mail-in votes; election results could take a week or more The Republican Party has launched lawsuits in several states - including California - that are expanding their mail-in voting options in response to the pandemic. Seven states have decided to automatically mail ballots to voters without them having to request one. Five states already conduct elections by mail-in ballots. And many other states have allowed fear of the coronavirus to be used as a reason for requesting an absentee ballot. Trump has repeatedly slammed mail-in voting even as he defends absentee voting, which he used in Florida's presidential primary and plans to use in the general election. But Republicans are starting to worry that the president's attacks on mail-in ballots could keep their own voters from using that option in November, hurting them on election day. Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel and Trump advisers have warned the president he could hurt the GOP at the ballot box, urging him to encourage absentee voting, The Washington Post reported. The president spent Monday morning sending out a half a dozen tweets on the election, his approval rating and the coronavirus pandemic. He also claimed his visits to Texas and Florida last week showed strong support for his candidacy compared to rival Joe Biden. 'My visits last week to Texas and Frorida (sp) had massive numbers of cheering people gathered along the roads and highways, thousands and thousands, even bigger (by far) than the crowds of 2016. Saw no Biden supporters, and yet some in the Fake News said it was an equal number. Sad!,' he tweeted. But mail-in voting remains a top topic on the president's mind. Trump has complained on many occasions Democrats are using the coronavirus to steal the election by expanding mail-in voting options. But governors counter that mail-in voting is needed to prevent long lines at polling places. Additionally, most election workers tend to be retirees, who are more at risk for the virus due to their age. And studies show low cases of voter fraud in mail-in voting. 'The bottom line is that absentee and mail balloting are secure in America,' Wendy Weiser, the director of the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center, told CNN. 'Election officials, Republicans and Democrats alike, pretty much universally are confident in the system.' Meanwhile, pundits are warning it's unlikely Americans will know if Trump or Joe Biden is the winner on election night due to the many states using mail-in voting. At least 77 per cent of voters in November will be able to vote by mail, according to an analysis by The Washington Post. And many states allow a mail-in ballot to be counted as long as it's post marked by Election Day, meaning a final result may not be known for days after November 3. Already the New York primary election has been affected by mail-in voting as the state has yet to complete the count for several primary races that took place on June 23. And Pennsylvania's board of elections saw tens of thousands of ballots arrived in the week after the June 2 primary election, many which were counted after an order from the governor. The state expects the same scenario in November. 'I don't think it's penetrated enough in the average viewer's mind that there's not going to be an election night. The usual razzmatazz of a panel sitting around discussing election results that's dead,' Brandon Finnigan, the founder of Decision Desk HQ, told The New York Times. President Trump has stoked elections fears with his tweets and news interviews, leading Democrats to worry he will attempt to delegitimize the election. 'This president is going to try to indirectly steal the election by arguing that mail-in ballots dont work theyre not real, theyre not fair,' Biden told a virtual fundraiser last week. Trump warned on Friday the United States would face its 'biggest election disaster in history' with mail-in ballots being used this fall. 'This is going to be the biggest election disaster in history,' Trump predicted of the November contest, adding the results may never be known. 'You won't know the election result for weeks, months, maybe years after. Maybe you'll never know the election result. And that's what I'm concerned with. It'll be fixed. It'll be rigged,' he said at the White House during an event with police chiefs. 'Watch what happens,' he said. Trump has, of late, refused to say if he'll accept what happens in November. Asked by Axios' Jonathan Swan, in an interview to air Monday on HBO, the president wouldn't say if he would accept the will of the voters but did argue Hillary Clinton hadn't accepted the 2016 election. 'Hillary Clinton didn't accepted them. She's still never accepted them,' Trump said. Clinton formally conceded to President Trump in both a private phone call and in a public speech after the election. Trump has questioned the legitimacy of using mail-in ballots in November, an option many states are using to help combat the spread of the coronavirus. The president went as far to suggest postponing the election. Last week Trump doubled down on his threat to delay November's election, citing concerns mail-in voting could lead to a 'rigged' and 'crooked' result. The president, in a brief news conference at the White House on Thursday evening, said he didn't want to see the election delayed but also argued he didn't want to see mail-in ballots go missing, indicating his opposition to mail-in voting remains an issue in regards to the general election. President Donald Trump doubled down on his threat to delay November's election, citing concerns mail-in voting could lead to a 'rigged' and 'crooked' result President Trump said he was concerned that mail-in voting, which many states are considering as an alternative to in-person voting to help combat the spread of the coronavirus, could lead to miss ballots and a 'rigged' election Trump and some Republicans have pushed the unproven claim that mail-in voting leads to fraud and they've also questioned the ability of the U.S. Postal Service to get all the ballots delivered to the various state boards of election. 'We're asking for a lot of trouble,' Trump said. 'Do I want to see a date change? No. But I don't want to see a crooked election. This election will be the most rigged election in history.' More and more states are looking at mail-in voting options as a way to counter the coronavirus pandemic but Republicans believe that favors voting blocs that vote Democrats and are suing several states to stop the process. 'I don't want to delay,' Trump added. 'I want to have the election. But I also don't want to have to wait three months and then find out that the ballots are all missing and the election doesn't mean anything. That what's going to happen.' 'And everyone knows it,' he added. 'Smart people know. Stupid people may not know it. Some people don't want to talk about it. But they know it.' Meanwhile, the U.S. Postal Service is experiencing days-long backlogs of mail, sparking fears the problem could continue into November and affect the election. Additionally, an internal report from the postal service warned almost half the states are not providing adequate time for workers to deliver ballots ahead of the election. Several states affected are battleground ones that could decide if Trump or Biden is the next president and it's big cities - which are hot beds of Democratic voters - that will likely be most affected. U.S. Post Office is experiencing massive delays due to changes implemented by the post master general appointed by President Donald Trump - delays that could affect the election An internal report from the Postal Service warned there are 24 states with deadlines close enough to the election that do provide or at high risk for not giving the post office time to deliver ballots before the election Several states affected are battleground ones that could decide if Donald Trump or Joe Biden is the next president But the delays are the result of changes put in place by Trump fundraiser-turned-postmaster general Louis DeJoy, The Washington Post reported, leading to allegations of that the election is being undermined by politics. President Trump and his Republican allies have attacked the U.S. Post Office, saying the postal system cannot be trusted to deliver mail-in ballots to the various state boards of elections to be counted. The number of mail-in ballots is expected to be unusually high this year as states are expanding that voting option to help combat the spread of the coronavirus. The changes DeJoy implemented include prohibiting overtime pay, shutting down sorting machines early and requiring letter carriers to leave mail to avoid extra trips or late delivery on routes. His supporters say the moves are to cut costs and help the debt-ridden service make its way to the black. But postal workers told the newspaper that the changes have resulted in at least a two day delay in parts of the country along with bins and bins of unsorted, undelivered mail piling up in post offices. Additionally, many states use a postmark to determine whether or not a ballot meets the deadline to be counted and the delays in processing could affect them, meaning a ballot that was mailed in time still may not have the election day post mark that many states require in order for it to be counted. An internal report from the Postal Service warned there are 24 states with deadlines close enough to the election that do not provide or at high risk for not giving the post office time to deliver ballots before the election. The states include the battleground states of New Hampshire, Maine, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, and Ohio. 'Ballots requested less than seven days before an election are at a high risk of not being delivered, completed by voters, and returned to the election offices in time,' the report stated. Louis DeJoy is an American businessman and Republican Party fundraiser who was appointed in May 2020 by unanimous selection of the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service to serve as the 75th United States Postmaster General In Michigan, which is using expanded mail-in voting options for its August 4 primary and the general election, officials are encouraging voters to drop off their absentee ballot to their local clerks in person. 'This close to the primary, Michiganders should return their absentee ballots to their clerk's office directly, or submit them via their local ballot drop box, in order to ensure their vote is counted,' Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said in a statement last week. Benson became a target of Trump's wrath in May when she mailed absentee ballot applications to the state's 7.7 million registered voters. The president threatened to withhold federal funding from the state in return. Post office workers spoke of their fears about the November election. 'I'm actually terrified to see election season under the new procedure,' said Lori Cash, president of the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 183 in Western New York, told The Post. David Partenheimer, spokesman for the U.S. Postal Service, responded that the delays were temporary and would not impact the upcoming election. He called allegations DeJoy takes directions from President Trump are 'wholly misplaced and off-base' and pointed out the postmaster general is appointed by a bipartisan board of governors. Michigan Postal Workers Union President Michael Mize described to a local news outlet how workers were no longer allowed to stay late at their distribution centers until all of the mail for their route was sorted and ready to be sent out. 'Eventually this [is] going to cause long-term, large delays if we don't do something,' he said. He predicted big cities like Detroit and Grand Rapids would be most affected - areas that are heavy with Democratic voters. The winner of the presidential election would not be sworn into office until Wednesday, January 20, 2021, which would give almost three months for all ballots to be counted. In 2000, the winner of the George W. Bush and Al Gore contest was not declared until December 12 after numerous recounts in Florida and a ruling by the Supreme Court. Why it matters: Are you using the free version of CCleaner? If so, youll probably notice that Windows Defender is now flagging the junk file remover as a Potentially Unwanted Application (PUA) after Microsoft recently updated its antivirus program. CCleaner optimizes a system by removing unused and temporary files, thereby making it faster and freeing up storage space. It also features a registry scanner for invalid references. You can download CCleaner here and see similar alternatives. Back in 2017, Piriform, the UK-based firm behind CCleaner, was acquired by Avast for $1.3 billion, which has led to other programs being bundled in with the app, including Avast Free Antivirus, AVG Antivirus Free, Google Chrome and Google Toolbar. It seems Microsoft has taken exception to the bundling of these programs. In a new threat entry, the Redmond firm has classified CCleaner as a PUA. While the bundled applications themselves are legitimate, bundling of software, especially products from other providers, can result in unexpected software activity that can negatively impact user experiences, states the notice. While the CCleaner installers do provide an option to opt out, some users can easily inadvertently install these bundled applications. Microsoft previously stated that it does not support registry cleaners, advising that such programs should not be used. In Microsofts entry on how it identifies malware and potentially unwanted applications, it notes that PUAs are not malware but software must not make misleading claims about a devices health, files, or registry entries. Only the free version of CCleaner is being identified as a PUA as it contains the bundled software. Piriform told BleepingComputer that it is in talks with Microsoft to stop its program being flagged by Defender, which is also flagging other Piriform software such as Recuva. The regulator has put forward allegations against a total of six companies. Poland's anti-monopoly regulator UOKiK has imposed a hefty penalty on Russian energy giant Gazprom, worth almost PLN 213 million, which is approximately US$57 million, over the company's failure to cooperate in the investigation conducted in relation to the construction of Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. Such an obligation arises out of the European legislation on which the Polish Act on Competition and Consumer Protection is based. The penalty imposed on Gazprom is related to the proceedings conducted with regard to the creation of a consortium financing the construction of Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline without a required consent of the UOKIK President, the agency reported in a statement. Read alsoDenmark: Nord Stream 2 AG may use pipe-laying vessels with anchors The regulator has put forward allegations in this case against six companies: Gazprom from Russia, Engie Energy from Switzerland and four companies from Nederlands: Uniper, OMV, Shell, and Wintershall. In the course of proceedings, the agency "requested documents that are of significance to the case from Gazprom as well, however, the company refused to provide information that is important to the pending proceedings". Background: The thug was arrested by armed gardai after stealing a car in the city centre before crashing the vehicle in south Dublin A violent Dublin criminal has been charged after hijacking a car before smashing into another vehicle with a 10-month-old baby inside. The thug was arrested by armed gardai after stealing a car in the city centre before crashing the vehicle in south Dublin. He is well-known to gardai and has previously been arrested for aggravated burglary, dangerous driving and assault. He is expected to appear in court this morning. The incident began at around 8.15am on Saturday when a man driving a car was stopped at traffic lights on Capel Street. A man approached the driver and threatened him before forcing him out of the vehicle. The hijacker then sped off along the quays and southbound. At around 10am gardai were alerted to a car driving erratically along the Naas Road. A short time later the stolen car crashed into two other vehicles that were sitting in traffic on Walkinstown Avenue. Members of the Armed Support Unit (ASU) were nearby and arrested the suspect. Crashing A 10-month-old baby was in one of the vehicles that the reckless thug smashed into, but no injuries were reported. The 29-year-old was arrested as part of the investigation and taken to Store Street Garda station. He has since been charged in relation to the hijacking and dangerous driving and is due to appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice this morning. A source said it was extremely fortunate that no injuries were caused during the incident. "This could have been a lot worse, the hijacker was reported driving in an erratic manner across the city. "He was eventually arrested but not before crashing into two cars that were on the opposite side of the road. "A 10-month-old baby was also in the car but luckily wasn't injured, and neither was any of the other occupants. "He was arrested at the scene by the ASU, who were quick to respond to the incident," the source said. The Dublin man comes from a family who are well known to gardai and have convictions for a wide range of offences. He has almost 20 previous convictions for violent crime as well as robbery and drink driving. The suspect also recently received a fully suspended sentence after being convicted of stealing thousands of euro from an elderly pensioner who had just withdrawn the money from an ATM when he was robbed. The court heard that the OAP was targeted by the thug prior to the crime. A source said: "This man comes from a well-known family in south Dublin who local gardai would certainly be familiar with, to say the least." A Garda spokesman said investigations into the incident are ongoing. "Gardai have arrested a man in connection with the hijacking of a car that occurred on the morning of Saturday, August 1, 2020, in the Dublin 1 area. Exited "At approximately 8.15am, a car was stopped at traffic lights on Capel Street, Dublin 1, when a male approached and told the male driver to exit the vehicle. "The driver exited the car. The offending male took control of the vehicle and drove southbound on the quays," gardai said in a statement. "This car was then involved in a road traffic collision with two other vehicles on Walkinstown Avenue, Dublin 12, at approximately 10am. No injuries were reported. "The driver of the stolen vehicle, a man aged in his late 20s, was arrested at the scene and detained at Store Street Garda Station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984. "He has since been charged in relation to this incident and is due to appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice, Court 2, on August 3, 2020, at 10.30am," gardai added. Only evangelicals whove sold their soul to the devil' will vote for Biden: Robert Jeffress Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Pastor Robert Jeffress of First Baptist Dallas, staunch support of President Donald Trump, said on Friday that only evangelicals who have sold their soul to the devil will vote for presumptive Democratic Party presidential nominee Joe Biden in November. Speaking to Lou Dobbs on Fox Business, the 64-year-old megachurch pastor and frequent Fox News contributor was asked what he thought of the Biden campaigns attempt to appeal to voters of faith in the final days of the election. Jeffress, who has often engaged with the Trump White House and was a member of Trumps 2016 evangelical advisory council, said that theres not a snowballs chance of Joe Biden gaining any significant evangelical vote at all. The only evangelicals who are going to vote for Joe Biden are those who have sold their soul to the devil and accepted the Democrats barbaric position on abortion, Jeffress said. I mean, its so barbaric, Joe Biden believes in unrestricted abortion. He cant even get his own church, the Catholic Church, to stomach it. They have denied him communion because of that. Jeffress cited a recent Pew poll that suggests that 82% evangelicals are gonna vote for President Trump on Nov. 3. I think the numbers gonna be higher than that, he proclaimed. The poll found that while 82% of white evangelical Protestant registered voters plan to vote for or are leaning toward voting for Trump, 17% of white evangelical Protestant registered voters said they plan to vote for or will likely vote for Biden. In the 2016 presidential election, exit polls showed that 80% of white born-again or evangelical Christians voted for Trump. Meanwhile, 16% voted for Democrat nominee Hillary Clinton, a reduction from the 26% of white evangelicals who voted for Barack Obama in 2008 and the 21% who voted for him in 2012. We know there is a whole group of evangelicals that didnt tell pollsters they were going to vote for [Trump] in 2016. They didnt want to be badgered or bullied. Thats even more so this time, Jeffress said. People are being told that if [they] support President Trump, [they] are a racist. Nobody wants to be called that. So, they are not going to admit they are voting for President Trump on Nov. 3. The pastor predicted that on election day, there is going to be a tsunami-sized surprise of voters turning out to support our great President Donald Trump. A recent poll from the Cato Institute found that most Americans today feel the political climate prevents them from openly saying things they believe because others may find their beliefs offensive, including 77% of conservatives. In June, Vice President Mike Pence spoke at the annual Celebrate Freedom Sunday event at First Baptist Dallas. During the event, Jeffress praised the Trump administration for enacting the most pro-life, pre-religious liberty, pro-Israel, pro-conservative judiciary in the history of America. In July, more than 100 Christian pastors, academics and advocates called on the Democratic National Committee to recognize the inviolable human dignity of the child, before and after birth, as well as adopt a party platform thats friendlier to those who are pro-life. The list was signed by prominent progressive pastors and activists including Shane Claiborne of Red Letter Christians, Gabriel Salguero of the National Latino Evangelical Association and Baylor University professor George Yancey. The letter, organized by the activist group Democrats for Life, was also signed by the executive leadership team at the Transformation Church in South Carolina, a prominent multiethnic church led by Pastor Derwin Gray. We urge the Democratic Party to embrace policies that protect both women and children: legal protection for pre-born children, improved prenatal care for women in need, especially women of color, alternatives to abortion, and a comprehensive culture of life free from violence, poverty and racism, they wrote in a letter to the Democratic Platform Committee. The signatories urged the committee to reject a litmus test on pro-life people of faith seeking office in the Democratic Party. Crucially, we urge you to end the explicit support in your platform for abortion extremism, such as taxpayer-funded abortion in America and overseas, opposed by 60% and 76% of voters, the letter explains. Last year, Biden a former Delaware senator and vice president under Obama reversed his decades-long support for the Hyde Amendment. The measure has been in place since the 1970s and restricts federal funding of abortions. Just as Ive never attempted to impose my views on anyone else as to when life begins, I have never attempted to impose my view on who should pay for it, Biden said in June 2019. Last month, another prominent Christian conservative, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, refuted the argument made by some Never Trump Republicans that Biden may be a more acceptable candidate for Christians in 2020. This is [a] man running on a vision, not only of abortion-on-demand, but abortion right up until and perhaps after birth, Perkins stressed in a July 21 op-ed. To cap it off, for those Americans who do have a biblical or moral objection to abortion, he says they should still have to pay for them with their tax dollars. How does he square authentic faith with those radical positions? Steven Krueger, president of Catholic Democrats, warned last year that the far left wing of the party has had influence on a number of issues, particularly on the issue of abortion. He told The Associated Press that the far-left influence is not going to serve candidates well once theyre in the general election. And the problem is, its very difficult to kind of tack back to the middle once you take a stand on something as black and white as whether or not you want to repeal the restrictions on federal abortion funding, he added. Democrats for Life Executive Director Kristen Day said earlier this year that the Democrat Partys position on abortion is the most extreme she has ever seen. In a February press conference, Day stated that Democrats have lost their political advantages in southern states since 2010. During that time period, the Democratic Party moved away from safe, legal and rare to today, [supporting] abortion up to nine months for any reason, Day explained. Good morning. (This article is part of the California Today newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox.) My colleague Thomas Fuller traveled to Alturas to report on a county that had been mercifully isolated from the coronavirus until last week. Heres his dispatch: Evergreen forests surrounded by lumpy mountains and vast valleys filled with thousands of cattle. Residents of Modoc County, population 8,800, like to point out that social distancing was a way of life well before the coronavirus arrived in California. Alturas, the Modoc County seat, has a single red flashing traffic signal at the intersection of what maps show as major highways but are really just winding two-lane country roads. For five months, officials in Modoc had hoped that the countys isolation in the northeastern corner of the state would spare it from the virus. And until last week, when a couple in Alturas tested positive, Modoc had been the last county in California without any confirmed cases. 777 shootings New York so far in 2020: Getty Images New York City has recorded more shootings so far in 2020 than the whole of last year, authorities have confirmed. There were 777 shootings between January and 2 August 2020, compared with 776 in 2019, according to figures compiled by the New York Post, and later confirmed by New York Police department (NYPD). The milestone was reached when a man presented to Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx, north New York, with gunshot wounds on Saturday evening. It only gets worse from here, Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD sergeant and professor of criminal justice, told the Post. As the shootings continue, so will retaliation. Its a vicious cycle that the NYPD worked hard to mitigate, but that they are no longer able and in some cases willing to do. Several major cities across the US have seen a surge in violent crime in recent months amid the Covid-19 pandemic. While it is hard to pin down exactly why violent crime has risen, experts say, coronavirus lockdown restrictions, mass unemployment and rising anger at police brutality could be factors at play. I think its just a perfect storm of distress in America, Atlanta mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms, said earlier this month, following a weekend of violence. With the 2020 election looming, president Donald Trump has attempted to capitalise on the violence to boost his chances of remaining in the White House. He has accused Democrat controlled cities of being weak, suggesting that the crime wave is being fuelled by recent protests calling for greater race equality, and end to police brutality and reform of law enforcement. The president has also sent militarised federal agents to a number of cities in an attempt to quell unrest, against the wishes of local governors. In Portland, Oregon which has been at the centre of demonstrations in recent weeks - there were 15 deadly shootings or stabbing in July, according to the citys police bureau. Elsewhere, Chicago has seen a surge in violent crime. In the six months from January to June in 2020, 329 people have been killed in Chicago, according to Chicago Police Department figures. Story continues Some 246 people were killed in the same period last year, representing an increase of around 34 per cent, the figures state. Read more Riot police launch pre-dawn raid to clear Occupy City Hall protesters Nguetchewe buries victims of Saturday's twin suicide attack L'Oeil du Sahel Suspected Islamist suicide bombers killed at least 19 people in Nguetchewe, Mayo-Moskota Subdivision, Mayo-Tsanaga Division of Cameroons Far North Region on Saturday night in what appeared to be retaliation by Nigerian militant group Boko Haram for Cameroons leading role in a regional offensive against it. At least 16 people were injured in two simultaneous attacks at around 11:30 p.m. when several unidentified terrorists, including two suicide bombers, broke into Nguetchewe village to perpetrate acts of violence and atrocities, Cameroons Ministry of Defence said in a statement today. After assaulting the members of the local vigilante committee and other civilians, some who hid in makeshift shelters, two suicide bombers chased them and activated explosive charges, said Capitaine De Fregate Atonfack Guemo Cyrille Serge, Head of the Communication Division at Cameroons Ministry of Defence. The provisional human toll of this gruesome attack is as follows: 19 civilian deaths including the two suicide bombers; and 16 injured. The government states that the wounded were evacuated to the Adventist Hospital in Koza, while others were referred to the Regional Hospital in Maroua, Far North Region. From investigations carried out and exploitation of the witnesses of this tragedy, it is quite clear that it was a terrorist attack involving suicide bombers, Capitaine De Fregate Atonfack Guemo said but did not call out Boko Haram. The investigation opened by local administrative authorities and defence and security forces will determine the details of this despicable attack. Cameroon-Info.Net recalls that eleven persons died and 26 others were injured when jihadist fighters belonging to the Boko Haram group active in Nigeria launched an attack in the afternoon of Monday, January 6, 2020, in Fotokol. The bloody attack took place on the bridge over the River El Beid that links Fotokol, a locality in the Logone and Chari Division of Cameroons Far North Region, to Gambaru, a village in Nigeria. Saturdays twin-bombings appear to be the bloodiest Boko Haram attack in Cameroon since that of June 2019 in which 16 soldiers of the countrys defence forces were killed when the jihadist fighters attacked Darak, a locality in the Far North Region. Last years incident took place in the night of Sunday, June 9 to Monday, June 10, when 300 heavily armed fighters of the Boko Haram terrorist group attacked Darak in the Logone and Chari Division of the Far North Region, Beti Assomo Joseph, Cameroons Minister Delegate at the Presidency of the Republic in charge of Defence said in a statement at the time. During the said attack, a riposte by Cameroons Defence Forces attached to Sector No. 1 of the Multinational Joint Task Force of the Lake Chad Basin resulted in a fierce gun exchange that lasted for several hours. After taking control of the situation, the government said 16 soldiers were shot and killed, while eight others were injured. On the part of civilians, eight were killed and one wounded. The defence minister said 64 Boko Haram fighters were neutralized (killed), eight captured and many others wounded as they fled while three heavy-duty machines belonging to the assailants were destroyed in last years Darak attack. Boko Haram's decade-long uprising to establish a hardline Islamic state in Nigeria's northeast, which has killed more than 27,000 people and left 1.8 million homeless, spilled into neighboring Niger, Chad, and Cameroon. An anti-Boko Haram force combining soldiers from Chad, Cameroon, Niger, and Nigeria has since been set up but has failed to rout the group from the restive Lake Chad region. On Saturday, April 27, 2019, the same Jihadists from Nigeria's Boko Haram killed at least four people and badly wounded four others in an attack on Kofia, a Cameroonian island on Lake Chad, an official source had told AFP. The attackers also destroyed part of a military post and vandalized shops in the attack late Saturday, the source said, adding three civilians and one soldier were killed. The jihadist group has stepped up attacks in Cameroon and neighboring countries. Earlier in April, they were blamed for an attack that killed 11 civilians in the northern locality of Tcharkamari. A Burger King employee was fatally shot by a man whose female friend complained to him about a delay in her $40 order, Florida authorities said. The Orange County Sheriff's Office identified the shooter as 37-year-old Kelvis Rodriguez Tormes. Rodriguez Tormes is accused of killing 22-year-old Desmond Armond Joshua Jr, who had only recently begun working at the Orlando restaurant. Burger King employee, Desmond Armond Joshua Jr, 22, right, was fatally shot by Kelvis Rodriguez Tormes, 37, whose female friend complained to him about a delay in her $40 order, Florida authorities said The incident unfolded around 7.30pm Saturday night at a Burger King on the 7000 block of E. Colonial Drive. Joshua had gotten into a confrontation with a woman who was angry over the length of time it took for a drive-through food order to be completed. The woman was refunded $40 for the order but yelled that she was going to get 'her man' as she left the restaurant. It's unclear how long the woman had been waiting on her order and no other details about her confrontation with Joshua were released. The unidentified woman later came back with Rodriguez Tormes, authorities said. Rodriguez Tormes demanded that Joshua fight him before putting the employee in a chokehold, authorities said. The unidentified woman later came back with Rodriguez Tormes, authorities said. Rodriguez Tormes demanded that Joshua (pictured) fight him before putting the employee in a chokehold and later shooting him, authorities said Rodriguez Tormes has been charged with first-degree murder with a firearm, destruction of evidence and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The incident occurred at this Burger King location A witness pulled Rodriguez-Tormes off of Joshua and Rodriguez Tormes went to his truck for his gun. According to WKMG, Rodriguez Tormes told Joshua: 'You got two seconds before I shoot you.' After a scuffle, deputies say Joshua was shot in the parking lot. When authorities arrived, they found Joshua outside the restaurant suffering from a gunshot wound. He was rushed to a local hospital where he later died. Rodriguez Tormes has been charged with first-degree murder with a firearm, destruction of evidence and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. By PTI NEW DELHI: Political leaders, family members and relatives paid their last respects to Rajya Sabha member Amar Singh, who died in a Singapore hospital two days ago. Singh's body was brought to the national capital in a chartered aircraft on Sunday evening. The cremation is scheduled to take place at the Chhatarpur crematorium. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP Rajya Sabha member Jyotiraditya Scindia, and Jaya Prada who considered Singh her 'godfather', were among the first ones to pay floral tributes to the former Samajwadi Party leader at his Chhatarpur farmhouse. His wife Pankaja Singh and two daughters were present there. Due to COVID-19 protocols, Singh's last rites will be performed in the presence of a limited number of people. Singh, 64, had been undergoing treatment at a hospital in Singapore for six months and had earlier undergone a kidney transplant in 2013. Gunmen shot dead a journalist early on Sunday in the Mexican city of Iguala in the southwestern state of Guerrero, local authorities said, in what was at least the fourth murder of a reporter in the country this year, Reuters reported. Pablo Morrugares of news website PM Noticias had gone to dine in an Iguala restaurant in the company of a police bodyguard when the unidentified assailants opened fire on them after midnight, Guerrero state prosecutors said in a statement. The website also published an announcement about the killing on Facebook, as did the human rights commission of Guerrero. The motive for the shooting was not immediately clear. According to Reporters Without Borders, three other journalists had been killed in Mexico this year. Telstra is planning to deliver 5G services across 75 per cent of the population by June next year in a bid to build a decisive lead over its rivals and encourage more consumers to make the jump to the new technology. Telstra boss Andrew Penn told The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald that the telco's decision in March to bring forward $500 million of capital expenditure, originally planned for the second half of fiscal 2021, has already helped it offer 5G services to more Australians. Telstra CEO Andrew Penn. Credit:Joe Armao "This investment means we have been able to accelerate our roll out of 5G, while injecting much needed investment into the Australian economy at this time." Telstras 5G is already rolling out in 53 cities and regional towns across Australia and Mr Penn said that more than 10 million Australians now "live, work or pass through" the telco's 5G network footprint on a daily basis. Common market aim monopoly, war and fascism Australias rights are menaced This article originally appeared in The Tribune May, 1962. The Common Markets European Investment Bank is now actively promoting mergers of giant monopolies into internationalised super-monopolies. Room at the top, or at least on the second flight, is being reserved for key British industrial giants. As these monopolies operate strategic subsidiaries in Australia, of potent influence in the Australian economy, the implications for the Australian people will be grave. Pre-war cartels helped the German trusts to consolidate Fascist rule and submerge Europe in fire and blood from the Volga to the Ebro. The cartel associations with the nazis of the Two Hundred Families of France, of the De Wendels of Comite des Forges with the German steel magnates, of Vickers with Krupp, Imperial Chemicals and duPont with I G. Farbenindustrie, of Royal Dutch Shell chiefs with the Nazi party itself these yielded their mass graves and ruined cities. Now, instead of the patent-exchanging and .price-fixing cartels, the American and West German sponsors-in-chief of the Common Market propose that the cartel members should unite into single companies to cover particular industries. To curse the world with grave threats One of the chief duties of the Common Markets Investment Bank, the instrument of the European monopolists and their American investment partners, is to finance projects of interest to several member States. Colossal inter-State corporations, usually with the West Germans having the main influence under dollar patronage, are in process of formation, to curse the world with graver threats of Fascism and nuclear war. This internationalisation of monopolies is designed to make the Common Market irreversible. How can an industry in Britain or France be unscrambled from an international corporation, for nationalisation? For a Common Market automobile corporation, engine-building can be in the Rhineland, bodybuilding in France, assembly in Holland; the laboratories and raw materials sector for a chemicals industry in Italy, the final production stages in England. Of what use the British Labour Party publishing Signposts for the Sixties with proposals for nationalisation when its leader, Hugh Gaitskell, supports entry to a Common Market whose rules strictly forbid nationalisation? In the Common Market, according to Barbara Castle, Labour MP, British private firms would increasingly develop on European lines, through mergers and other commercial links. In such a situation the task of nationalisation would become, well-nigh impossible because of the difficulty of breaking up units which had become internationalised. It is one of the main aims of the Treaty to encourage this. Distressed areas The European Investment Bank super-monopolists cynically visualise distressed areas under the economic integration. Smaller coal mines and factories will close, inefficient, uneconomic and redundant industries will go to the wall; towns will become derelict. Mentioned among prospective ghost areas are Ulster and Scotland. The Investment Bank is supposed to plan help for future distressed areas. Barbara Castle went to Brussels to find out their plans, and wrote on return to London: It was freely admitted to me that the Community (Common Market) has no effective policy for dealing with the distressed areas nor have the individual governments. Governments are not free to set up new industries in distressed areas. If the British government ordered a firm to build its new factory in distressed Scotland, the community could stop the firm doing so in favour of transfer to Germany. Even if Trade Minister McEwen could hold Commonwealth Tariff Preference, he would sell no IXL marmalade, Vesteys camp pie or Penfolds wine in the Jarrows and Durhams of the future. Super fascist government Super-fascist government develops logically from super-monopolies. Market members parliaments nominate representatives to a Common Market Assembly, but the power-holding executive body is the Common Market Commission, composed of dictators from the super-monopolies. The Assembly, ironically enough, cannot replace this Commission in the near-impossible event of its dismissal, which can only be done by a two-thirds Assembly majority. The ruling Commission was thus described by Economic Lecturer H B Dickinson, University of Bristol: It is an irresponsible body of international bureaucrats. To whose opinions and interests is it likely to be favourable? Those of big business and the conservative-minded economists of the West German Wirthschaftwunder. The Commission will be far removed from the tramp of marching feet from Aldermaston, the clamour of unemployed riots and other democratic pressures. London School of Economics Political Science Lecturer, William Pickles, warns that the British government has frivolously dismissed the constitutional implications of the Common Market which mean surrender of national sovereignty and of the supremacy of Parliament the only constitution Britain has. There are under the Rome Treaty, says Economics Lecturer Dickinson, a number of subjects over which the national Parliaments will no longer have power to legislate: There will be no possibility of democratic parties forcing measures in these subjects through the machinery of the Common market because no suitable machinery exists. Democratic parties in the Common Market will suffer endless frustrations. Entry without an election For Britain to join the Common Market will ensure that, whatever party forms a government at Westminster, this country will be governed on sound Conservative principles. Is this why the present government is so concerned to hustle Britain in, without an election, without any consultation of the people? Once fascism is consolidated it dispenses with social democracy. What reforms can the British Labour Party, the French, Belgian, Dutch and Italian Right-wing Socialists and the warmongering German Social Democratic leaders offer to hold the victimised people in check? Social services must be uniform; the British workers will have to pay from their wages far heavier social insurance contributions in accord with Continental custom and Common Market rules. The dog, as one writer put it, will be fed with its own tail. Taxation in West Germany is lower for the rich and higher for the workers than even in Tory Britain; the Markets Department of Competition is now moving to harmonise taxation, both direct and indirect. Market bars nationalisation Not only does the Market bar nationalisation and State commercial monopolies; it also bars aids granted by states in any manner whatsoever which distort or threaten competition. Thus the market super-bureaucrats can block a subsidy to a vital national industry. Under the Common Market the British Labour Party and European Social Democrats cannot seek continued support by offering crumbs of social services, tax concessions and subsidies. The Common Market should be seen by all Australians, who will feel its impact catastrophically in trade and employment, as a new stage in monopolist organisation for war and fascism. The labour movement is marked down for destruction as a prelude to war, as in Italy in the 1920s and Germany in the 1930s. Syracuse, N.Y. -- A new movie filmed in Central New York is gaining fans thanks to Netflix. Banana Split, produced by the Liverpool-based American High, premiered on the streaming service last week and briefly shot up to the top 10 trending titles list on Netflix. Social media users have shared their reviews and reactions, celebrity news blog Nicki Swift called it the rom-com thats crushing it on Netflix right now, and E! News did an in-depth look at the cast featuring all your favorite up-and-comers. Banana Split is such a cute and underrated movie. 10/10 would recommend! Its on Netflix! Love, Beth. (@_bethmeetsworld) August 2, 2020 Banana Split (on Netflix now) is actually a pretty great coming of age movie. Surprisingly charming and missing the polish that makes these things feel so fake. It eludes a lot of tropes and has a fun, punchy screenplay. Hannah Marks co-wrote and stars, crushes both! Kevin Gehring (@OhhhhKevinG) July 31, 2020 i swear banana split should trend on twitter. its the first movie ive seen that glorifies a friendship over a relationship w a boy and i live for that Ella Rossi (@ellarossimusic) July 26, 2020 Hannah Marks' comedy BANANA SPLIT is finally on Netflix and I cannot say enough good things about it. You'll dig. pic.twitter.com/0jll6m1Fy3 Amy Nicholson (@TheAmyNicholson) July 28, 2020 The coming-of-age film follows two teenage girls who become best friends over a summer, despite an awkward issue: One of them is dating the others ex. Directed by Benjamin Kasulke, Banana Split stars Hannah Marks (The Amazing Spider-Man), Dylan Sprouse (Big Daddy, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody), Liana Liberato (Trust), Luke Spencer Roberts (Fear the Walking Dead), Addison Riecke (The Thundermans) and Jacob Batalon (Peter Parkers friend in Marvels Spider-Man and Avengers movies). Marks wrote the script with Joey Power. Scenes were filmed in December 2017 at Heids ice cream shop yes, a banana split is served there along with the Palace Theater in Eastwood, a private residence on Sedgwick Drive in Syracuse, a local bowling alley, and the former A.V. Zogg Middle School in Liverpool, now known as Syracuse Studios. Oddly, though, the movie is set in California; Sprouse, who played Adam Sandlers fake son in Big Daddy with his twin brother, said some outdoor scenes were shot in Los Angeles due to CNYs cold weather. Banana Split won the Special Jury Prize at the Independent Film Festival Of Boston, the Jury Prize for Best Comedy Feature at the Woods Hole Film Festival, and multiple awards at the 2019 Oceanside International Film Festival, including best picture. The film is currently certified fresh with an 88% on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie made its world premiere in 2018 and was originally released March 27, 2020, on digital/video-on-demand before arriving on Netflix. Three other American High movies shot in the Syracuse area were also released this past spring. Holly Slept Over and Looks That Kill are currently available on digital and VOD, while Big Time Adolescence, starring Pete Davidson, is streaming on Hulu. All are produced by American High founder Jeremy Garelick, known for directing The Wedding Ringer, writing The Break-Up, and uncredited writing work for The Hangover. The Binge, directed by Garelick and starring Vince Vaughn, will be the studios fifth release when it hits Hulu on Friday, Aug. 28. Other American High movies shot in Syracuse over the past two and a half years include Looks That Kill (starring Brandon Flynn), Sid is Dead (starring Joey Bragg and Mary Stuart Masterson) and The Ultimate Playlist of Noise (starring Keean Johnson and Madeline Brewer). American High plans to shoot its eighth movie soon after New York state announced film productions can resume with coronavirus restrictions. See more social media reactions to Banana Split': Banana Split on Netflix = 10/10!! Became an instant fave Jessica Danielle (@jflvme) August 2, 2020 For me, the measure of a really good movie is when you watch one and find yourself still thinking about it days later. About a week ago I watched BANANA SPLIT. The script was excellent, the acting was superb and Im still thinking about it. Jim Rosati (@rosati_jim) July 29, 2020 Banana Split on Netflix, it was sooo funny. tricia (@pgizzle312) August 3, 2020 Highly recommend Banana Split on Netflix pic.twitter.com/ZKmADcqAqN kitsune (@VelvetF0x) August 1, 2020 review of banana split on netflix: no 2 women that hot would be attracted to cole sprouse and thats why it was an lgbt film. the 2 female main characters were in love, no question, and i cant wait for the sequel where they kiss :) one of the gayest straight movies ive ever seen abigael (@itsabigaell) July 27, 2020 Movie Title: Banana Split Rating: 81% A rare 2020 release, Banana Split is a true charmer of a teen movie. W/ more realistic views on teen love triangles than most things to grace Netflix, co-writer/star Hannah Marks is a person to watch, & 27 y/o Dylan Sprouse adds intrigue. The Cinema Pundit (@thecinemapundit) August 2, 2020 @netflix I NEED A BANANA SPLIT 2 PLEASEEEEEEEE li daddy ti (@xtionnee) August 2, 2020 MORE: Regal Cinemas, AMC Theatres set new reopening dates for movie theaters Netflix film Father Soldier Son follows CNY military veterans heartbreak, hope over a decade Odd Man Rush, hockey movie filmed in CNY, set for release (see exclusive trailer) Gabriels Inferno, Part II: How to watch steamy new movie shot in Syracuse CNY film studio founder Jeremy Garelick named a Hollywood innovator Several Republican senators on Sunday backed a plan by China's ByteDance to divest the U.S. operations of TikTok after President Donald Trump said on Friday he had decided to ban the popular short-video app. Senator John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, said on Twitter that a divestment "and purchase by U.S. company is win-win." Senator Roger Wicker, a Republican who chairs the Commerce Committee, echoed Cornyn but added that "tight security measures need to be part of any deal in order to protect consumer data and ensure no foreign access." Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told ABC on Sunday that the Committee on Foreign Investment on the United States "agrees that TikTok cannot stay in the current format because it risks sending back information on 100 million Americans." Mnuchin said he and U.S. congressional leaders "all agree there has to be a change." He added that Trump could "either force a sale or the president can block the app using (International Emergency Economic Powers Ac)." U.S. officials have said TikTok under its Chinese parent poses a national risk because of the personal data it handles. Reuters reported on Saturday that ByteDance, in a bid to save a deal with the White House, agreed to divest the U.S. operations of TikTok completely. ByteDance was previously seeking to keep a minority stake in the U.S. business of TikTok, which the White House had rejected. Under the new proposed deal, ByteDance would exit completely and Microsoft Corp would take over TikTok in the United States, according to sources. Republican Senator Marco Rubio on Sunday said on Twitter "if the company & data can be purchased & secured by a trusted U.S. company that would be a positive & acceptable outcome." On Saturday, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said the "right answer" to address security concerns about TikTok would be to "have an American company like Microsoft take over TikTok. Win-win. Keeps competition alive and data out of the hands of the Chinese Communist Party." Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Fox News on Sunday that Trump "will take action in the coming days with respect to a broad array of national security risks that are presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party." Also read: Microsoft confirms talks seeking to buy US arm of TikTok The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) has clarified that no specific group was targeted in the voter registration exercise at Banda in the Bono region. There has been a report that the military placed registration restrictions on a section of the community in the Banda area after some people being conveyed in trucks were stopped. But a statement signed by the Director of Public Relations, GAF, Colonel E. Aggrey-Quashie, said no specific ethnic group was targeted in this regard. According to the statement, on July 30, 2020, the Bono Regional Security Council met representatives of the two main political parties NPP and NDC to deliberate on the peaceful conduct of the registration exercise. It said this was in the wake of the disturbances that resulted in the unfortunate demise of one person. The statement added that the agreement signed by Joe Danquah (NPP) and Ahmed Ibrahim (NDC MP Banda) and witnessed by the Regional Minister stated as follows: We the undersigned agreed today to maintain peace in the Banda District during the remaining days of the voters registration exercise and after, until the end of the 2020 general elections in December 2020. That the REGSEC will give the necessary security to the Banda Constituency and the entire Region, before, during and after the process of the 7th December Election. The REGSEC and the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders should meet the Chiefs to determine the boundaries of Banda. The two Parliamentary Candidates (Mr. Joe Danquah and Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim MP) should stop bussing people to the registration centres, if indeed they were ordinary residents; they should go there on their own volition. Political parties should educate their agents at the registration centres to fill challenge forms in challenging people whose citizenship or residency they doubted. That no physical violence should be used in preventing people from registering. That the two candidates should pledge their support to ensure peace in the Constituency by signing the Peace Agreement offered by REGSEC According to the statement, The security agencies were therefore available to support the REGSEC-brokered Agreement. No specific ethnic group was targeted in this regard. The general public is accordingly informed of these developments. ---Daily Guide Many fine performances populate this fascinating take on Arthurian myth. Gustaf Skarsgard is outstanding as Merlin, an intense, wine-loving wizard forced to wield his wits and charm rather than the magic he lost. Devon Terrell is wonderful as Arthur, a charismatic and courteous knight who instinctively allies himself with Nimue. Peter Mullan is chilling as the fanatical Father Carden; Shalom Brune-Franklin is impressive as Igraine; and Daniel Sharman terrifies as the Weeping Monk. Catherine Walker is especially excellent as Lenore, Nimues tough-minded mother who helps her beleaguered daughter remain strong and confident. Fuentess flashbacks to Nimues childhood offer a poignant context, showing how her lifetime of dealing with both earthly and otherworldly darkness made her the perfect warrior for Britains all-out spiritual war. The BBC series offers five seasons (2008 to 2012) of fantasy with excellent sets and strong scripts. Taking a fairy-tale approach, it creates a Camelot in which an authoritarian King Uther (Anthony Head) banishes magic, but a group of plucky resisters help Prince Arthur navigate the chaos his fathers policy produces. Colin Morgan is terrific as the charmingly awkward young Merlin. Hiding his sorcery by seeming naive and nervous, Merlin loyally serves a youthful Arthur (Bradley James) who is as short-tempered and vain as he is decent and honorable. A remarkable new character is the ex-sorcerer Gaius (Richard Wilson), a gentle court physician who joins an icy dragon (John Hurt) in advising Merlin. Katie McGrath is magnificent as Morgana, a royal ward who moves from being Merlins ally to his greatest rival. Angel Coulby is excellent as Guinevere, imagined as a good-hearted commoner whose ethics elevate Prince Arthur. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Yunindita Prasidya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 08:47 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b16b32 1 Business IDX,pharmaceutical-industry,stock-market,COVID-19-vaccine Free Pharmaceutical stocks have been soaring in the past few weeks as investors pin hopes on progress in developing possible COVID-19 vaccines. Pharma stocks recorded an upward rally on Wednesday morning in response to news of state-owned pharmaceutical company PT Bio Farma looking for volunteers to assist the clinical trial of a vaccine candidate developed in partnership with Chinese biopharmaceutical firm Sinovac Biotech. Some pharmaceutical companies have not only regained back the losses from this years historical market rout, which saw the benchmark Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) fall to its lowest point in eight years to 3,937.63, they have also reached their own record highs for prices in 2020. Read also: Pharma firms see drop in demand as people avoid visiting healthcare facilities Between July 13 and 24, PT Indofarma Persero shares (INAF) soared by 155 percent, reaching this years highest level at Rp 2,610 apiece on July 24. During the same period, PT Pyridam Farma shares (PYFA) increased by 86 percent while PT Phapros shares (PEHA) climbed by 58 percent. The stock market is now brimming with optimism over vaccines or medicine, Anugerah Mega Investama director Hans Kwee said during a webinar on Tuesday. Even with a concerted effort, the development of a COVID-19 vaccine would only happen in one to one-and-a-half years time, Hans added, noting that this was nevertheless significantly faster than the normal development time of 10 years. In response to the recent rally, the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) announced on July 23 that the movement of Indofarma and PT Kimia Farma stocks were within the range of unusual market activity, suggesting that investors take the irregular price movements as a cue to reexamine the companies performance and corporate actions. Following the IDX announcement, pharma stocks tumbled in subsequent days, with some reaching the IDXs auto-rejection limit of 7 percent. While PT Kalbe Farmas stocks fell a modest 2.26 percent on Tuesday against the previous trading day, PT Indofarma went down by 7 percent, PT Phapros by 6.95 percent and PT Pyridam Farma by 6.82 percent. Budi Frensidy, a stock market expert from the University of Indonesia, said that the rocketing share prices of pharmaceutical companies were an overreaction from the market, indicating they would inevitably go down. It is only natural [for share prices] to go down or hit the auto-rejection floor because, the fact is, the vaccines will only be traded or increase the companys sales around next year, Budi said during the same webinar, noting that it was common for investors to price in future cash flow. Read also: Kimia Farma upbeat about booking profit despite pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the net profit that publicly listed companies booked during this years first quarter. According to IDX data, the total net profit of 580 publicly listed companies went down 27.3 percent year-on-year (yoy) to Rp 72.77 trillion from Rp 100.03 trillion. Other ASEAN bourses recorded drops of between 30 and 41 percent. Most sectors in the IDX experienced a contraction, while some were more defensive, including the consumer goods sector, which houses pharma stocks. During the first three months of the year, the consumer goods sector's net profit grew 10.3 percent, the second-highest sectoral growth after the basic industry & chemical sector, which grew 65.2 percent. Mirae Asset Sekuritas Indonesia analyst Mimi Halimin is of the view that the second-quarter financial performance will likely be weak as the impact of the large-scale social restrictions will be more visible during the said period, as written in a report published on July 23. However, continuing the trend from the previous quarter, Mimi said that consumer companies under Mirae Asset coverage would see relatively more resilient demand, adding that specifically for PT Kalbe Farma, positive revenue growth in the second quarter was still underway despite possible slight contraction in net profit due to pressure on the margin. On May 27, PT Kalbe Farma signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop a potential COVID-19 vaccine with Genexine, Inc., a biotech company from South Korea. The impact on Kalbe Farmas financial performance will vary, depending on how fast the vaccine development is and whether Kalbe Farma will produce the vaccine locally or just import it and then distribute it into the market, Mimi wrote. Artha Sekuritas Indonesia vice president Frederik Rasali told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday that from a business perspective, there were other potential threats that might impact the performance of pharmaceutical companies once a vaccine is found. Read also: Indonesia teams up with global manufacturers in vaccine hunt For example, if there is a vaccine from another brand entering Indonesia with stronger capability and possibly a lower price, vaccine sales in several pharmaceutical companies are likely to slow down, Frederik said in a text message. Caution, by observing the reasonableness of price increases, is needed by investors, IDX development director Hasan Fawzi said during the webinar on Tuesday, in response to the trend of irregular movements among pharma stocks. He said the unusual market activity notification was an opportunity for investors to look for more information on the pharmaceutical companies and potential vaccine. The best decision from the investors must be based on correct and valid information about the prospects of pharmaceutical companies, he concluded. The CFD strives to serve every neighborhood with equal response and concern. We have no tolerance for any conduct that demeans any of our residents and visitors, all of whom we have taken a sworn oath to serve. I assure you we will rapidly get to the bottom of this and if found to be accurate, discipline and corrective action will be swift and just, Langfords statement read. Top officials of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government on Sunday said the postponement of the 2020 Legislative Council (LegCo) General Election of the HKSAR is well justified and in the public interest. Chief Executive of the HKSAR Carrie Lam on July 31 announced the postponement of the election, which was originally scheduled for Sept. 6, 2020, due to the current COVID-19 outbreak. Chief Secretary for Administration of the HKSAR government Matthew Cheung said in his blog on Sunday that it was a very difficult decision to postpone the election, but it was necessary to protect the public's health and to ensure the election to be conducted openly and fairly. Cheung said that the LegCo General Election is massive in scale with over three million voters likely to participate in the event, which would cause a very high risk of infection. Under the existing regulation to prohibit group gatherings, it would be difficult for candidates to carry out any meaningful rallying activities. Furthermore, a large number of voters are stranded in the Chinese mainland and overseas due to the epidemic, and would not be able to return to Hong Kong in view of the border control measures. Elderly voters may also refrain from voting amid the severe epidemic situation due to their higher risks of infection. If the election is held as scheduled, it will be difficult for the election to be a fair and open one. It may also undermine the safety of the voters, the candidates and their supporters as well as the polling staff, Cheung added. Cheung stressed that the current wave of the epidemic was likely to last for weeks or even longer, and there might also be a winter surge. He said the LegCo performs important and substantive functions and has an annual business cycle, and the preparation work and the voter registration exercise would take months before an election can be held, which makes it reasonable to postpone it for a year. Financial Secretary Paul Chan said in his blog that prevention and control of the epidemic are very important as they are related to people's health and lives and should not be hindered by political disputes. He urged everyone to put aside their differences and work together to contain the epidemic. Chan stressed that the HKSAR government's priority is to combat COVID-19, and at the same time, to ensure people's well-being and stabilize the economy. He believed that once the epidemic is brought under control in Hong Kong, the huge market of the mainland and the potential of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area will help Hong Kong's economy to fast recover. Tropical storm Sinlaku dumped heavy rain on 18 Thai provinces over the weekend. Flash floods killed at least two people and swept through hundreds of houses in northern Thailand, authorities said, after tropical storm Sinlaku dumped heavy rains on 18 provinces over the weekend. Muddy, waist-high waters poured into homes in rural areas on Sunday. Soldiers used small boats to rescue villagers and handed out aid packs in Loei, the worst-hit province. By Monday morning, residents in rubber boots were out clearing debris from the storm that uprooted trees, pulled down electricity poles and tore sheet roofs from some buildings. The flood came very fast, my family couldnt grab anything, said Rattiya Panich as she cleaned her house. Two people died, according to the interior ministry. Sinlaku also hit Laos and Vietnam, where it killed another two people on Sunday in the provinces of Hoa Binh and Quang Ninh, Voice of Vietnam (VOV) reported. Loei province suffered the most damage during flooding caused by tropical storm Sinlaku, according to the Thai Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department [Thai army handout/AFP] Authorities there warned that heavy rains might cause landslides and flash flooding in Vietnams northern mountainous provinces. Some parts will see up to 400mm of rainfall from Monday to Wednesday, the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority said. The storm was moving towards Myanmar on Monday, the Thai Meteorological Department said. Donald Trump gave a 15 September deadline for Microsoft or another very American company to buy TikTok or else the popular video app will shut down in the US. But the president also suggested that the US should receive a substantial portion of money in an acquisition deal because the US is making it possible for this deal to happen, he said. A deal must be arranged by mid-September when the Chinese app will be out of business in the US, he said. It cant be controlled for security reasons by China, the president said at the White House on Monday. Too big, too invasive. ... My personal opinion was youre probably better off buying the whole thing rather than 30 per cent of it. He argued that because the purchase would send money into China, the US should receive money in return, though its unclear how such an arrangement would work. The United States should be reimbursed or paid a substantial amount of money, because without the United States they dont have anything, he said. Administration officials and both Republican and Democrat lawmakers have argued that the app poses a national security threat by allegedly collecting user data and sharing it with Chinas government. On Sunday, secretary of state Mike Pompeo told Fox News that the administration is targeting a broad array of national security risks that are presented by software connected to China following the presidents threat on 31 July to ban the app. The company has denied the accusations, stressing that its user data is stored in the US with strict control on employee access and is not controlled directly by Bytedance, its parent company in Beijing. We are committed to protecting our users privacy and safety as we continue working to bring joy to families and meaningful careers to those who create on our platform, the company said in a statement. In a statement on Sunday, Microsoft announced that the company will move quickly to pursue discussions with TikToks parent company, ByteDance, in a matter of weeks, and in any event completing these discussions no later than 15 September. Microsoft said it would ensure that all private data of TikToks American users is transferred to and remains in the US and that any data that is currently stored or backed-up outside the country Microsoft would be deleted from servers after the transfer. US Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin also said on Sunday that the US Committee on Foreign Investment, which the secretary chairs, is reviewing the app, which counts roughly 80 million monthly users. I will say publicly that the entire committee agrees that TikTok cannot stay in the current format because it risks sending back information on 100 million Americans, he told ABC. It cannot exist as it does. The allegations against the company and the administrations combative response have underscored US-China tensions, which in recent weeks have heightened with the closure of Chinas consulate in Houston following spying accusations, sanctions against high-ranking Chinese officials, and a June speech in which Mr Pompeo appeared to urge Chinese people to unseat their government. China has also ordered the closure of a US consulate in Chengdu. Developed in Harlem, Barbershop Books is a community-based program that leverages the cultural significance of barbershops in Black communities. The initiative, which targets Black boys who are four to eight years old, increases boys' access to high quality children's books, and works to increase out-of-school time reading among young Black boys. The program also provides literacy training to participating barbers. Barbershop Books is currently active in 21 states including California, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Texas and Virginia. "The news-making events of 2020 have highlighted the systemic injustices and disadvantages faced by Black Americans. We believe that literacy is the great equalizer and it is imperative that we give every family the knowledge and resources they need to live with opportunity and dignity," said British A. Robinson, Barbara Bush Foundation President and CEO. "We are thrilled to partner with Barbershop Books to support its vital work to empower Black families and communities through literacy." Through this partnership, the Barbara Bush Foundation will help Barbershop Books launch new reading spaces and provide early literacy training to barbers in 10 barbershops in Baltimore, and will support 20 existing reading spaces in Detroit. The Foundation will also provide family literacy resources, including access to a free adult literacy app for parents and caregivers who wish to improve their own literacy skills without attending classes. According to the United States Department of Education, more than 85% of America's Black male fourth grade students are not proficient in reading. In an increasingly global and knowledge-based economy, poor reading skills among young Black boys today will produce Black men who are unprepared to compete in the workforce of tomorrow. Four key factors contribute to low reading proficiency among Black boys: 1) limited access to engaging reading material, 2) lack of Black men in Black boys' early reading experiences, 3) few culturally competent educators, and 4) educational systems that are unresponsive to Black boys' individual learning needs. Barbershop Books was founded in 2013 by Alvin Irby to increase out of school reading time among young Black boys. Irby is a nationally recognized speaker and award-winning social entrepreneur, as well as a cultural competency specialist and a thought leader in the field of early childhood education. "With libraries limited in the services they can provide and some form of distance learning becoming the new norm for young learners, we must think creatively and act courageously to ensure vulnerable children have the reading support they need outside of school," said Irby. "By increasing access to fun books and Black male reading role models, Barbershop Books endeavors to help create the type of early positive reading experiences that help Black boys to identify as readers and thus inspire them to read for fun." In support of this initiative, Penguin Young Readers has donated culturally relevant, age appropriate books to help participating children who have reduced access to community and school libraries during the COVID-19 crisis build their own home libraries. Among the titles provided by Penguin are selections from #1 New York Times bestselling author Brad Meltzer's Ordinary People Change the World series and other kid-friendly titles. "We admire the important work Barbershop Books is doing to support childhood literacy within Black communities and we are honored to partner with them and the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy on this important initiative," said Jen Loja, President, Penguin Young Readers. "We're so grateful to Penguin for their generous support of our commitment to Black communities," said Robinson. "Together, we are making an impact on the lives of Black children and their families one that is needed now more than ever that will last for years to come." About the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy: The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy has been the nation's leading advocate for family literacy for more than three decades. Established by former First Lady Barbara Bush in 1989, the Foundation is a public charity that envisions an America in which everyone can read, write, and comprehend in order to navigate the world with dignity. To learn more, visit www.BarbaraBush.org. About Penguin Young Readers: Penguin Young Readers is one of the leading children's book publishers in the United States. The company owns a wide range of imprints and trademarks, including Dial Books, Dutton, Kokila, Nancy Paulsen Books, Penguin Workshop, Philomel, Puffin, G. P. Putnam's Sons, Razorbill, Viking, and Frederick Warne. These imprints are home to such award-winning, New York Times- bestselling authors as, Laurie Halse Anderson, Max Brallier, Jan Brett, Eric Carle, Roald Dahl, Anna Dewdney, John Flanagan, John Green, Oliver Jeffers, Brad Meltzer, Ransom Riggs, Ruta Sepetys, Sabaa Tahir, Jacqueline Woodson, and dozens of other popular authors. Penguin Young Readers Group is also the proud publisher of perennial brand franchises such as The Little Engine That Could, the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys series, Peter Rabbit, Spot, the Classic Winnie the Pooh, the Very Hungry Caterpillar, Madeline, Mad Libs, the Last Kids on Earth, the Rangers Apprentice, and Who HQ among many others. Penguin Young Readers Group is a division of Penguin Random House LLC. About Barbershop Books: Barbershop Books is the debut program of Reading Holiday Project, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit literacy organization in New York City. Developed in Harlem, Barbershop Books is a community-based program that creates child-friendly reading spaces in barbershops and provides early literacy training to barbers across America. It leverages the cultural significance of barbershops in Black communities to increase boys' access to culturally relevant, age appropriate, and gender responsive children's books and to increase out-of-school time reading among young black boys. www.barbershopbooks.org SOURCE Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy Related Links barbarabush.org LOS ANGELES, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Covid-19 pandemic, coupled with the recent civil unrest, has created a tumultuous climate for unheralded change. Inspired with a vision for empowering communities of color while bridging the racial wealth gap, comedian/actor/producer and now FinTech entrepreneur, Brandon T. Jackson and Technology Pioneer Mark Bush, knew it was time to catalyze these chaotic energies in preparation for a brighter future. KingdomPay, the first Black owned and operated social mobile banking app, that serves as a digital wallet, streaming and texting platform, is their offering for the new, emerging landscape. Actor / FinTech entrepreneur, Brandon T. Jackson and Fintech pioneer Mark Bush, are launching KingdomPay, the first Black owned and operated social mobile banking app, that serves as a digital wallet, streaming and texting platform. KingdomPay is a revolutionary, next generation payment and lifestyle platform designed to galvanize the financially excluded while directly stimulating economic growth and spending in marginalized communities. KingdomPay is a revolutionary, next generation payment and lifestyle platform designed to galvanize the financially excluded while directly stimulating economic growth and spending in marginalized communities. The KingdomPay app launches this summer and boasts affordable, tech-driven personal financial and banking products, for everyone from the disadvantaged "unbanked and under banked" to the savvy cost-efficient consumer. While the popular mobile payment service, CashApp currently holds the lead market share in the FinTech app category for usage among African Americans, KingdomPay will boast a wider range of service deliverables, including integrated digital payments, the KingdomPay Mastercard, real time bank transfers, desk top applications, and online banking with printed transactions sheets. Most unique to KingdomPay is the "Cause 2 Fund" program where money can be funneled back into the community with a round up cents option. Mark Bush is a veteran in the field of tech innovation. His company, SongPro, pioneered the first African American owned portable digital multimedia device manufactured in history. The SongPro device entered the market in the early 2000's as a peripheral for Game Boy systems that enabled MP3 to play on the system. For Bush however, KingdomPay is more than just another new app creation. KingdomPay is a mission. Mark Bush has tragically experienced firsthand how economic disparity fuels injustice. A native of Chicago, raised in the Robert Taylor Homes inner city housing project, the Black Lives Matter Movement strikes a strong and sensitive personal chord with him, dating back to when he was three years old. As detailed in "Occupied Territory: Policing Black Chicago from Red Summer to Black Power" by Simon Balto, Bush's 23-year-old brother, Ralph, after being arrested for loitering and stealing a bottle of whiskey, was tortured and brutally beaten to death by five police officers inside the local 11th St. precinct station. For Bush, his brother Ralph Bush was George Floyd! "KingdomPay is a tangible fiscal opportunity to effect and instill social change in the Black community," cites Bush. "Right now, 97% of what the Black community spends goes outside of the Black community. With KingdomPay, we are positioning ourselves on the financial frontlines for economic recovery. I'm most proud of our 'Cause 2 Fund' program where the change from the user's spending can be redirected to community organizations and charities. By allocating financial resources to organizations of our choice, we get to directly impact our communities and create solid avenues for reform and restitution." Audiences know and love Brandon T. Jackson for starring roles that include films "Tropic Thunder," "Lottery Ticket," and "Percy Jackson & the Olympians," and as a cast member on the VH-1 show "Wild 'N Out" with Nick Cannon. Jackson is also the son of the renowned Bishop Wayne T. and Dr. Beverly Y. Jackson, founders of The Impact Network. The Impact Network is the largest and only African American founded independent, international, inspirational TV network broadcasting to over 88 million homes. Jackson's quest for KingdomPay is rooted in a deep commitment and devotion to uplifting the Black community, not only monetarily but spiritually. Jackson explains, "This is really a profound time for Black people. The world is finally acknowledging on a grand scale, our value. But perhaps more importantly, we as Black people are valuing ourselves. KingdomPay is a game changer in the digital wallet space. As Black businesses link into the KingdomPay platform, we are providing an unprecedented opportunity for Black consumers to support Black owned business. Our mantra is 'KingdomPay because Kingdom Pays!' I made a promise to God at the onset of my career, that if He granted me fame, I would build His Kingdom. I am happy to be fulfilling my destiny. Beyond just financial equity my mission is one of fostering spiritual equity as well." Internationally renowned social media influencer and community activist, Rizza Islam is KingdomPay's most vocal brand ambassador. His passion for KingdomPay has already paved inroads with generating excitement for the app. "This is what our people needed. Our ancestor's dream of having true freedom is finally being realized and I never thought it would be in my lifetime. I am honored to be a part of history but more so, our future." For more information and to stay updated on the release of KingdomPay, log on to the website at www.KingdomPay.com. Join the movement and follow KingdomPay on Instagram at @kingdompayofficial and on Facebook at @kingdompayofficial. View the KingdomPay promo at https://youtu.be/cZzyZVuGj9k. jazzmyne Public Relations 323-380-8819 e-mail: [email protected] web: www.jazzmynepr.com SOURCE KingdomPay Related Links http://kingdompay.com The cremation of former Samajwadi Party leader and Rajya Sabha Amar Singh will take place in Delhi at 11 AM on Monday (August 3). The mortal remains of Amar Singh, who died on Saturday (August 1) in Singapore due to kidney-related ailments, was brought to India on a special flight on Sunday (August 2). Singh's mortal remains reached New Delhi at around 6 pm and from there it was taken to his farmhouse at Chattarpur in Delhi. Sources said that Singh's relatives and close friends have reached Delhi to attend his funeral. It is learnt that Singh's wife Pankaja and his twin daughters were present at the hospital in Singapore when he breathed his last. Singh was facing some kidney-related ailments for thr last few months and was undergoing treatment at a hospital in Singapore. He had earlier undergone a kidney transplant in 2011. Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh paid last respects to Amar Singh at the latter's residence in Chhatarpur. Singh said that he knew Amar Singh for 24-25 years and called the late Rajya Sabha MP a 'friend of friends'. In March, Singh had posted a short video message on Twitter from the hospital bed in which he made an appeal to all his followers to support Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the fight against coronavirus. "Tiger Zinda Hai," he had written in his short message posted along with the video. Soon after his demise news broke out tributes and condolences messages started pouring. Several top political leaders and his Bollywood friends extended their condolences and expressed grief on Singh's death. PM Narendra Modi took to Twitter and said, ''Amar Singh Ji was an energetic public figure. In the last few decades, he witnessed some of the major political developments from close quarters. He was known for his friendships across many spheres of life. Saddened by his demise. Condolences to his friends & family. Om Shanti.'' A Derry man charged with causing criminal damage to six vehicles has been refused bail at the citys Magistrates Court. James Anthony Doherty, 25, of Capall Court has been charged with six counts of criminal damage, possession of an offensive weapon namely planks of wood with nails and disorderly behaviour. The alleged incident took place in Leafair Park on Saturday, August 1. Police objected to bail saying the defendant was already on court bail when he committed the new offences at the weekend. He also breached bail by being intoxicated. The incident was said to be similar to that for which he was already granted bail on July 1. A police officer told the court that Doherty has no regard for any bail conditions imposed by the court. Defence barrister Eoghan Devlin asked the how many statements had been made and what evidence was outstanding. A Public Prosecution Service (PPS) informed him that three victims statements and cost of damage to the vehicles had to be gathered. Mr Devlin said it was very concerning that there was not only a breach of bail but it appeared that new offences had been committed. The defence barrister believed that one of the witnesses knows the defendant and another was a police officer which amounts to a very strong case against him. Its not inevitable but very possible he will receive a custodial sentence, he added. With the best will in the world it is a case that could creep on, Mr Devlin said, but he is keen that it doesn't. He suggested very rigorous bail conditions could be imposed including a tag, stricter curfew and an order to sign at the police station. The defendant interjected via video link to say that he lost a family member. District Judge Barney McElholm said there are victims and he was given a chance on July 1 yet he goes out with alcohol again and commits serious offences. At the moment he is not fit to be out and about, it was completely and utterly inexplicable behaviour, he added. Bail was revoked on the original matter and refused in relation to the new offences. Mr Devlin informed the court that he might be in a position to provide an update towards the end of the week. The case was listed for a court hearing on Thursday, August 6. 03.08.2020 LISTEN The police are on the manhunt for two guarantors who allegedly filled forms for a Nigerian citizen to register in the ongoing voters registration exercise in Ghana. Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Jean Mensa, made this known to the media on Monday, August 3, 2020 during the Let The Citizen Know press conference. She recounted a Nigerian was arrested and sentenced on Wednesday, July 29, 2020, by the Kaneshie District Court to six months imprisonment with hard labor for attempting to register at the Swag Club House in the Ablekuma West District. According to the EC boss, foreigners who are caught trying to register will be prosecuted. She reiterated that foreigners are prohibited from taking part in the Registration Exercise. We have noticed disturbing reports since last week (phase 5) where Ghanaians who have registered will front for people of other nationalities to register. She said the incidents are being recorded largely in border towns but there are some in other places adding that it is a crime to guarantee for foreigners to register and vote. Again, if you are a guarantor it is incumbent on you to know the nationalities of the people you are guaranteeing for. An example is the Nigerian, who was arrested and sentenced on Wednesday, 29th July, 2020 by the Kaneshie District Court to six months imprisonment with hard labor for attempting to register at the Swag Club House in the Ablekuma West District, she said. The EC boss further noted that thw Police are searching for the two guarantors who filled the form to guarantee for him. We understand they are on the run. Nonetheless, their names are with the Police. We will also discuss with our Lawyers to know what actions the Commission can take against the two guarantors, she said. We also know of five Nigeriens who have made their first appearance at the same court for attempting to register and thus acquire the voters ID card. Political parties and activists of Political Parties should desist from encouraging foreigners to take part in the registration exercise. We are equally beseeching our registration officials to ensure that all those they attend to qualify to register under the 1992 Republican Constitution (Article 42) and CI 91(Regulation 1(1a)) . If you are a foreigner stay away from the registration centers, said Mrs. Mensa. ---Daily Guide Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani on Monday exchanged views on the evolving security situation in the region. They also discussed mutual bilateral interests. In a telephonic conversation, both the leaders exchanged greetings on the joyous festival of Eid-ul-Adha. President Ghani thanked PM Modi for the timely supply of food and medical assistance to meet Afghan requirement. The Prime Minister reiterated India's commitment to the people of Afghanistan in their quest for a peaceful, prosperous and inclusive Afghanistan. Americans who depend on social media platforms for their political news tend to be less likely to follow major news stories and also generally possess less political knowledge than other groups, according to analysis recently released by the Pew Research Center. Pews survey, which quizzed Americans on topics such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the upcoming presidential election, found that only eight percent of U.S. adults who get their political news primarily from social media platforms said theyre currently following news about the 2020 election very closely, the lowest share among the six media platforms analyzed. By comparison, levels of engagement for election news was about four times higher among those who get their political news mostly from cable TV (37 percent) or print media (33 percent). The only group to reveal comparably low levels of engagement were audiences who rely on local TV (11 percent). Moreover, less than a quarter (23 percent) of U.S. adults who get their political news from social media admitted theyre following news surrounding the COVID-19 crisis very closely. By contrast, the percentage of Americans who rely to cable TV, national network TV, news sites and apps or local TV all revealed higher levels of attention to coronavirus-related news (50 percent, 50 percent, 44 percent and 32 percent, respectively). The survey tested respondents political knowledge and asked 29 fact-based questions focusing on current events ranging from COVID-19 to the economy to President Trumps impeachment. Pews findings discovered that those who rely most on social media for political news were least likely, on average, to exhibit high political knowledge: only 17 percent of individuals who turn to social media fell into the high political knowledge category, while 45 percent of those who rely on news websites/apps, 42 percent of radio listeners and 41 percent of print readers earned this designation. Nearly 20 percent of U.S. adults say they get their political news primarily through social media. About one-in-five U.S. adults (18 percent) reported that social media is currently their main source for political news. Thats more than the number of Americans who said they get most of their political news from print (three percent), radio (eight percent), network TV (13 percent), local TV (16 percent) or cable TV (16 percent). According to Pews findings, news websites and apps are now the number-one sources a majority of Americans turn to for political news (25 percent). Finally, Pews analysis found that Americans who use social media for political news were less likely to express concern regarding the fake news phenomenon. While more than half (58 percent) of those who rely on cable TV expressed high levels of concern regarding fake news potential influence on the 2020 election, only a little more than a third (37 percent) of social media users reporting being concerned about it. Despite this, social media news users were more likely to have been exposed to false or unproven claims than other media audiences. About eight-in-ten (81 percent) have heard the conspiracy theory that COVID-19 pandemic was intentionally planned, higher than any other media audience. Altogether, more than two-thirds of social media news users (68 percent) admitted theyve encountered coronavirus-related misinformation. Pews analysis was based on data drawn from five separate surveys conducted between October 2019 and June 2020. Those surveys were conducted as part of the nonpartisan think tanks Election News Pathways project, an ongoing initiative that examines how Americans are getting their news in the months leading up to the 2020 election. YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. The Penitentiary Service has warned that any drones violating the prison boundaries and hovering above the correctional facilities in Armenia will be immediately destroyed. The warning comes after an attempted smuggling of narcotics on August 2 at the Artik prison, where a drone flew into the prisons territory and dropped a small container with substances resembling narcotics meant for an inmate. The content of the bag were sent for laboratory confirmation. Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan HOUSTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- ION Geophysical Corporation (NYSE: IO) today announced that it will release its second quarter 2020 financial results on Wednesday, August 5, 2020 after the market closes. In conjunction with the release, ION has scheduled a conference call, which will be broadcast live over the Internet, for Thursday, August 6 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time (9:00 a.m. Central Time). What: ION Second Quarter 2020 Earnings Conference Call When: Thursday, August 6, 2020 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time How: Live via phone - By dialing (877) 407-0672 and asking for the ION call a few minutes prior to the start time. Live over the Internet - by logging on to the web at the address below. Where: https://ir.iongeo.com. The webcast, which will be accompanied by a slide presentation, can be accessed from the ION home page or by clicking on the link listed above. For those who cannot listen to the live call, a telephonic replay will be available through August 20, 2020 and may be accessed by calling (877) 660-6853 using pass code 13698480#. Also, an archive of the webcast will be available shortly after the call on the company's website at https://ir.iongeo.com for approximately 12 months. About ION Leveraging innovative technologies, ION delivers powerful data-driven decision-making to offshore energy, ports and defense industries, enabling clients to optimize operations and deliver superior returns. Learn more at iongeo.com . Contacts ION (Investor relations) Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Mike Morrison, +1 281.879.3615 [email protected] SOURCE ION Geophysical Corporation Related Links https://www.iongeo.com Mumbai, Aug 3 : Setting all speculation to rest, Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh on Monday said there was no party at the home of Sushant Singh Raput on June 13, the day before he was found dead. "The Mumbai Police is investigating the case thoroughly, from all possible angles, including his family members, friends, doctors and others, besides the financial transactions details of Sushant's bank accounts," Singh said. To a query on the name of a prominent Maharashtra political personality being bandied around on social media, Singh categorically said that the investigations have not revealed any such thing. Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's Interior Minister Amit Shah has been admitted to hospital after catching the coronavirus, he said on Sunday, becoming the most senior politician in the country to test positive for the disease. Shah, a close aide to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, heads a ministry that has been at the forefront of managing the epidemic. India's coronavirus outbreak is the third worst in the world behind the United states and Brazil, with nearly 1.7 million confirmed cases and 36,500 deaths, according to a Reuters tally. "I request all of you who came in contact with me in the last few days to isolate yourselves and get tested," Shah said in a tweet. Shah, 55, said he had got himself tested after exhibiting initial symptoms of COVID-19. "My health is fine but I am being hospitalised on the advice of doctors," he added. An interior ministry spokesman said he was unable to immediately comment on when Shah had last met with Modi. Indian movie star Amitabh Bachchan, who was hospitalised on July 11 after being diagnosed with COVID-19, was discharged after his latest coronavirus test came back negative, his son Abhishek Bachchan tweeted https://twitter.com/juniorbachchan/status/1289882915598295040 on Sunday. (Reporting by Devjyot Ghoshal in New Delhi; Additional reporting by Maria Ponnezhath in Bengaluru; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani and John Stonestreet) "The Grab 'n Go Face Shields are produced in the United States and were designed with stability and comfort in mind," says Emina Muhamedagic, Eyewear & PPE Product Manager. "They include a foam band and provide anti-fog and splash protection without obstructing vision." In addition to these new face shields, TIDI can also offer customers the option to purchase optical-grade, anti-static TIDIShield Assemble 'n Go Full-Length Face Shields and Visors, shields and visors sold separately. "Throughout this pandemic, TIDI has sought to develop products that speak to our mission of 'Support Caregivers, Protect Patients,'" says Jennifer Jones, Vice President of Marketing. "By adding these full-length face shield options to our portfolio, we are able to give healthcare providers another level of support." In July, TIDI also launched its PPE Preparedness Program, TIDI Protect, to help ensure current and new customers have access to a consistent supply of PPE at a fixed cost during periods of increased demand. For healthcare professionals and facilities interested in learning more about TIDI's PPE products, call the TIDI Customer Service Team at 800-521-1314 or visit www.tidiproducts.com/PPE. TIDI Products has a history of providing forward-looking solutions to healthcare professionalssolutions that help reduce the risk of contamination and deliver the highest-quality patient care. The TIDI Products portfolio of brands includes Posey, C-Armor, Sterile-Z, PenBlade, TIDIShield, Grip-Lok, and Zero-Gravity. To learn more, visit www.tidiproducts.com. Media Contact: Catie Malooly, [email protected] SOURCE TIDI Products, LLC Related Links http://www.tidiproducts.com BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - Varian Medical Systems Inc. (VAR), a U.S. company active in the area of cancer research and therapy, said Sunday that it reached a deal to merge with German health group Siemens Healthineers AG (SMMNY.PK) in an all-cash transaction valued at $16.4 billion. As per the terms of the agreement, Siemens Healthineers will acquire all outstanding shares of Varian for $177.50 per share in cash, representing a premium of about 24% to the closing price of Varian's common stock on July 31, 2020. It expected that the transaction will close in the first half of calendar year 2021. Varian expects to continue to operate under the Varian name as an independent company within Siemens Healthineers following the completion of the transaction. Separately, Siemens (SIEGY.PK, SMAWF) said it welcomed the deal. The payment of the purchase price is to be enabled by mixed financing from the issuance of new Siemens Healthineers shares and the issuance of bonds by Siemens. The proceeds from the bonds are to be transferred within the Group to Siemens Healthineers under customary market conditions. Siemens said that its stake in Siemens Healthineers will decline to about 72 percent from 85 percent, due to the planned capital increase at Siemens Healthineers. Siemens will not participate in the planned capital increase. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de Belgium has banned non-essential travel to areas of France, Spain and elsewhere in Europe, imposing a quarantine and screening for anyone returning from the zones on the government's 'red list'. This comes after country saw a 78 percent increase in the number of cases of Covid-19 in the past week. The Belgian government on Saturday published a color-coded list of zones in European countries where the presence of the coronavirus is considered at a worryingly high level. Its citizens are banned from travelling to 'red' zones, except for reasons of absolute necessity and face mandatory quarantine and screening if they return from these areas. Citizens are urged increase vigilance when it comes to areas considered 'orange', where quarantine and screening are 'recommended' but not enforced. Green zones indicate that travel is permitted, however, from Saturday, any person returning to Belgium from abroad or who wishes to stay more than forty-eight hours in the country must complete an identification form, providing their contact details and the places where they have stayed during the fourteen last days. See the full list and details here In terms of France, the department of Mayenne (Pays de la Loire) is on the 'red' list, where at least 15 new clusters of Covid-19 have been identified. Wearing a mask in 69 towns of this department became mandatory on Monday. Elsewhere in France, several areas appear on the 'orange' list, including the Paris region (except the department of Seine-et-Marne), the Pays de la Loire, the Nord department, Haut-Rhin, Haute-Savoie, Meurthe-et-Moselle and the Vosges. Also on Belgium's 'red' list are the areas of Vaud, Valais, and Geneva in the Lake Geneva region in Switzerland. Spain is also concerned by the new restrictions, with mandatory quarantine and screening for people returning from regions such as Navarre, Aragon, Barcelona and Lerida in Catalonia. Story continues The Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also included on the 'red' list Bulgarian regions, several areas of Romania, the city of Leicester in the United Kingdom and any country outside the EU and Schengen zone. Belgium is facing a rebound of the coronavirus, particularly in the Antwerp region, where last week new restrictions came into force, such as wearing masks in all public places, and reducing authorized contacts and gatherings. A curfew has been declared from 11.30 p.m. to 6 a.m. in Antwerp. The country has reported over 68,000 cases and 9,841 deaths - the highest number of deaths from Covid-19 compared to its population, with 86 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants. London: The barrister who hired Malcolm Turnbull to act in the famous Spycatcher case says Australia's decision to copy parts of Britain's defamation law will reduce the country's "plaintiff bonanza," saying it halved libel cases in the UK when it was introduced. But David Hooper, QC, warned sky-high legal bills racked up through plaintiffs lodging defamation claims, as has been seen in the UK, could still serve to silence media and other organisations from investigative journalism and research. Johnny Depp at his High Court defamation trial in London. David Hooper, QC, said defamation laws were primarily used by celebrities. Credit:AP On Wednesday, NSW Attorney-General Mark Speakman became the country's first attorney-general to introduce the defamation changes to Parliament and the other states and territories will follow suit. The reforms include a new "serious harm" threshold to weed out trivial claims before a trial and a public interest defence aimed at protecting investigative reports, both of which are modelled on British law. Forrest T. Jones & Company, Inc. (FTJ) and Fidelity Security Life Insurance Company (FSL) have appointed Chayan Dasgupta as vice president overseeing information technology (IT). Dasgupta, who goes by CD, will provide strategic leadership as a member of the FTJ/FSL executive team and manage a department of nearly 50 IT professionals. He will report to Brad Jones, FTJ/FSL Vice President. Dasgupta joins FTJ/FSL after more than 12 years at Overland Solutions, a leading provider of underwriting support services in the property and casualty insurance field. Located in Overland Park, Overland Solutions was acquired in 2014 by EXL, a New York-based business process solutions company. Dasgupta was chief information officer at Overland Solutions before becoming vice president-technology under EXL. Before Overland Solutions and EXL, Dasgupta was senior program/product manager for Asurion, a provider of insurance, warranty and support services for consumer electronics and home appliances. Dasgupta also has been active in the community during his career in the Kansas City area. Some of those duties have included: being startup mentor at the Enterprise Center of Johnson County; commissioner of the Olathe Human Relations Council; board member of El Centro Inc.; and serving on the Cancer Advisory Board of St. Lukes Hospital of Kansas City. CD possesses a vast breadth of experience, marrying business needs with technical tools that enable the business to achieve its goals, said Jones, the FTJ/FSL Vice President. He has deep experience in insurance and is a people-first leader. CD joins a talented team amid great momentum for our operations. Our associates will enjoy working alongside him. With CD joining our team, I look to the future with confidence. FTJ and FSL are separate but affiliated companies under the same ownership. Founded in 1969, FSL provides life, health and interest-sensitive insurance products to brokers, third-party administrators and other distributors that market to employee groups, customers of financial institutions, and members of professional, trade and lifestyle associations. FTJ is an insurance agency and third-party administrator that administers insurance programs for more than 80 national associations and affinity groups. Family owned and formed in 1953, FTJ also is an insurance agency and third-party administrator providing insurance and investment services to educators in more than half of Missouris 524 school districts. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 23:05:43|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Spokesperson of China's BeiDou Navigation Satellite System Ran Chengqi(C) speaks during a press conference on the system held by the State Council Information Office in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 3, 2020. (Xinhua/Pan Xu) BEIJING, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- China's BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) has played a significant role in the country's flood-control operations, said BDS Spokesperson Ran Chengqi on Monday. The BDS system has helped the country fight against floods, assisting in deformation monitoring, early warning and resident transfer, Ran said at a press conference. Based on its constellation and ground stations, the BDS system can provide high-precision services with centimeter-level accuracy in real-time processing and millimeter-level accuracy in post-processing. With the help of the system and auxiliary equipment, debris flow can be predicted through real-time deformation monitoring to gain time for resident transfer and rescue. In Shimen County, central China's Hunan Province, the BDS-based monitoring system helped issue early warnings and relocate over 60 people threatened by a landslide, thus ensuring the safety of people's lives and property, according to Ran. Another distinctive function of the BDS system is short message communication, which allows users to send messages without the support of a mobile network. The short message communication capability of the BDS-3 system has been greatly improved. Users can send a message of 1,000 Chinese characters at one time, as well as pictures and voice messages, Ran said. The BDS system can also aid international search and rescue with its bidirectional communication services. Ships in need of rescue can receive a reply from the ground station after sending a distress signal, which is a more advanced method than those used previously. China will endeavor to provide legal and policy guarantees and create a sound, open environment for the development of the BDS system, according to Ran. The integration of BDS with emerging technologies, including 5G, mobile communications and big data, will be further promoted to create new business models and growth points, he added. Enditem Mainland to send nucleic acid test support to HKSAR People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 12:31, August 02, 2020 BEIJING, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese mainland has set up a batch of supportive teams that will head for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to carry out nucleic acid tests for COVID-19. Given the grave epidemic prevention and control situation in Hong Kong, the National Health Commission (NHC) assembled the teams at the request of the HKSAR government and under the deployment and command of the central government. Around 60 professionals were selected by the health commission of south China's Guangdong Province from over 20 public hospitals, and seven of them will leave for Hong Kong on Sunday to help with laboratory work, according to the NHC on Saturday. They will be the first batch of mainland professionals dispatched by the central government to support Hong Kong's fight against COVID-19. The NHC will continue to assemble mainland medical resources and send more support any time based on the requirements of the HKSAR in terms of battling the epidemic, it said. A supportive team on makeshift hospitals consisting of six experts has also been assembled by the NHC. All from Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, the experts boast experience and will provide technical support in transforming Hong Kong's AsiaWorld-Expo into a makeshift hospital for COVID-19 patients, the NHC said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Gov. Kate Brown recently negotiated an agreement with the Department of Homeland Security to remove federal agents in stages and have them replaced by Oregon State Police. The governor acknowledged that this might not be the end of the violence. I hope she is wrong. Portland is a beautiful and vibrant city with smart, progressive people, and I am hopeful we can come together to move beyond the unrest and refocus on critical issues. The Portland Police Bureau remains committed to protecting life and responding to events as appropriate. I am proud of our efforts in extreme circumstances few in the country have faced. During these events, our agency has responded to assaults, stabbings, shootings, people with guns and the stockpiling of explosives. Shooting off commercial-grade fireworks and mortars is not peaceful protest. We are fortunate that no one has been killed. There are those who say the Portland police have not done enough to quell violence. I ask them to come speak with our officers, who have been responding for two months to protests. They have served with professionalism, courage and resiliency through an extraordinary time. Many have been injured and some have received threats of violence to themselves or their families. They would prefer to return to regular patrol and investigative duties and see peace in our community. The voices of victims are not heard as well. Because of the protests, officers have not been able to respond to 911 calls or have been delayed for hours. Investigators cases lie on their desks as they work nights to process arrests. We have seen an alarming increase in shootings and homicides. We need to redirect our focus to preventing and solving these crimes that are taking a hugely disproportionate number of minority lives. I have said frequently that the Portland Police Bureau is committed to reform. We are a progressive agency and have demonstrated our willingness to change over the past eight years. Working with the Department of Justice, we have made significant changes to our policies and training. The Portland Police Bureaus policy on the use of deadly force is more restrictive than state and federal law. A missing man who was assumed to have been murdered five years ago in Britain has been found alive hiding out in terror in woodland, police revealed on Monday. Ricardas Puisys, 35, was last seen in Cambridgeshire in November 2015 and police launched a murder investigation amid reports he had been confronted by a crime gang that was exploiting him. There were genuine concerns Ricardas came to harm, Detective Chief Inspector Rob Hall said, calling his disappearance a five-year complete mystery. But the murder theory started unthreading when investigators got word of selfies of Puisys being posted on a secret Facebook account that had 69 followers, mostly his family members, police previously revealed. Cops stepped up the hunt and finally found the Lithuanian native living in undergrowth in local woods near Wisbech, said Hall, who is part of the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit. We now believe Ricardas made the decision to run away as he had been a victim of crime, having previously been subject to exploitation, Hall said. He was found on July 1, but it is only now being revealed so police could protect him and put safeguarding measures in place, the head investigator said. He is safe and we are working very closely with him to ensure he remains safe, but also to ensure he gets the support he needs after having lived through extremely difficult circumstances during the last five or more years, Hall said. The force is now investigating Puisys claims of being exploited without elaborating on the alleged crimes. Puisys was very well concealed after having deliberately hidden and having not spoken with anyone for some time, Hall said. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates New Delhi: Taking a strict action after reports of huge amount of money getting deposited in the Jan Dhan accounts, the Reserve Bank of India has decided to place certain limits on operations of Prime Ministers ambitious financial scheme Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna (PMJDY) , where specific bank notes have been deposited post November 9. To protect PMJDY account holders from money launders, RBI has notified a cap of a10,000 on cash withdrawals from such accounts in a month. Only the full KYC compliant account holders will be able to withdraw the amount of Rs 10,000 in a month. However, further withdrawals may be allowed within current applicable limits after ascertaining the genuineness of such withdrawals. To protect PMJDY account holders from money launders, RBI notifies a cap of a10,000 on cash withdrawals from PMJDY accounts in a month. pic.twitter.com/scrlgoS1xP Prasar Bharati (@prasarbharati) November 30, 2016 While Non-KYC compliant account holders will be allowed to withdraw Rs 5,000 a month from the amount deposited through Specific Bank Notes (SBN) within overall ceiling of Rs 10,000. FULL COVERAGE: BLACK MONEY CRACKDOWN For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. A police officer in Da Nang sets up barriers to isolate areas around hospitals where cases of Covid-19 have been detected, July 28, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Nguyen Dong. Da Nang should be considered a "dangerous Covid-19 epicenter" and placed under complete lockdown like Chinas Wuhan City, the HCMC Party chief has said. According to the World Health Organization, one of the criteria for a country to declare a national epidemic is having 10 cases for every million population. City Party Secretary Nguyen Thien Nhan told an online government meeting on Sunday: "In Vietnam, the ratio is currently 2.7 infections per million, and so, generally speaking, we are still safe. However, Da Nang is another story as it has gone far beyond that threshold." The city, which has a population of 1.1 million, has recorded 120 infections since local spread of Covid-19 was found again after more than three months on July 25. The disease has since spread to eight other cities and provinces, and includes 35 cases in Da Nangs neighboring Quang Nam Province, eight in HCMC, three each in Quang Ngai and Dak Lak, two in Hanoi, and one each in Thai Binh, Ha Nam and Dong Nai. "It is necessary to identify Da Nang as the especially dangerous epicenter," Nhan said. Da Nang began a 15-day period of social distancing on July 28, which requires people to stay at home and maintain a distance of at least two meters from each other in public. Public gatherings of more than two people are prohibited, except at offices, schools and hospitals. Since the Ministry of Health has said the outbreak in Da Nang has been going on "quietly" for more than one month now, and it is possible that many infected people have yet to show symptoms or be diagnosed, Nhan suggested that "Da Nang should apply the strictest measures to control the outbreak." The strictest measures seen internationally have been those applied in Wuhan, the capital of Chinas Hubei Province. Wuhan made headlines late last year and early this year as the place where, according to experts, the novel coronavirus first spread to humans. The city was placed under complete lockdown for two months from January 23 to March 22 and the populace was ordered to stay at home. At first each household was allowed to send one member out once a day for shopping, but later that was also stopped. Each family was given a file to fill its requirements, and authorities sent workers to collect them, shop and deliver the goods. The HCMC party chief also raised concerns about Da Nang's capability to isolate people having and suspected to have the disease. In HCMCs experience, it had to isolate 280 people every time an infection was confirmed, and this rate for Da Nang means it needs to isolate more than 30,000 people, and evidently it does not have the space for it, he pointed out. Da Nang should therefore quarantine people at home, he said. "The biggest challenge now is to make quarantining at home as effective as possible, and each person should have the responsibility to monitor others." The period from August 23 to 30 would be a "high-risk" phase, and without drastic measures Vietnam could reach the ratio of 10 infections per million people, and have 970 Covid-19 patients in hospitals compared to 242 now. Without aggressive methods during the next 30-day "golden" period, Vietnam could face a pandemic, with HCMC and Hanoi running the greatest risk because many people returned there from Da Nang between July 1 and 27, he said. The number of people traveling by air alone from Da Nang to HCMC in that period was 140,000, he said. Hanoi Chairman Nguyen Duc Chung said 84,000 people returned to the capital from Da Nang between July 7 and August 2. HCMC has reported eight Covid-19 cases linked to the Da Nang outbreak, and Hanoi two. Both cities have done mass testing of returnees, shut down non-essential businesses like bars and karaoke parlors and called off all festivals and religious gatherings. Da Nang Chairman Huynh Duc Tho said existing quarantine facilities are full and the city is considering using public places like schools for isolating people. Vietnam has had 621 Covid-19 cases, 242 of them active. Six people have died, all in the last four days after contracting the new coronavirus at hospitals in Da Nang. More than 103,000 people are in quarantine across the country. Countries taking an every nation for itself approach are likely to reduce vaccine access for other countries and drive up prices, leaving poorer nations especially in the lurch. The concern is that the world will see a repeat of the situation in the last pandemic, when rich nations purchased all the available supply of vaccines against the H1N1 flu virus in 2009-10. Who gets access to vaccines and how much they are willing to pay will have consequences for international relations in coming years, with vaccines potentially becoming leverage in political disputes. Beyond that, global health experts say, the pandemic will be controlled fastest if a future vaccine is deployed in the most efficient way possible -- with the first doses going to groups around the world that are at the highest risk, such as medical workers, nursing home staffers and the elderly, rather than to whole populations in the richest countries. James Maina Mwangi believes himself to be the smartest looking man in all of Africa, maybe even the world, and looking at his impeccably stylish outfits, its hard to disagree. When he came to Nairobi, in Kenya, James Maina Mwangi had only one shirt and people laughed at him because they knew his father, who was an honorable but poor freedom fighter. He asked God for something to make himself stand out, and he apparently got this flamboyant fashion style. Hes been using his brightly colored suits and accessories to stand out on the streets of the Kenyan capital ever since, and has even attracted international attention thanks to his outfits. Photos: James Maina Mwangi/Facebook Mwangi, who claims to own 160 suits, over 200 pairs of shoes, and 300 hats, as well as matching accessories like pens, socks and even smartphone covers, in colors ranging from neon green to saffron yellow, has had to invest in matching face masks as well, since the Covid-19 pandemic reached Africa. Photo: James Maina Mwangi/Facebook Although the dozens of custom face masks werent exactly cheap, the self-proclaimed smartest-looking man in Africa, maybe even the world, couldnt miss this opportunity to add to his already impressive wardrobe. Photo: James Maina Mwangi/Facebook After dropping out fo school at the age of 12, because his family couldnt afford to pay school fees, James Maina Mwangi makes a living as a Jack of all trades, and sometimes lends his colorful suits to members of his church. Photo: James Maina Mwangi/Facebook So where does someone get such colorful outfits anyway? Well, according to a Kenya Citizen TV news report, the 59-year-old dapper man has a faithful tailor who understands his vision, and also receives unique pieces from his admirers across the globe. Photo: James Maina Mwangi/Facebook A full outfit can cost anywhere from 10,000 Kenyan shillings ($92) to 80,000 shillings ($750). Photo: James Maina Mwangi/Facebook Mwangis attention-grabbing outfits are reminiscent of La Sape, the society of well dressed men and women that originated in the Congolese cities of Brazzaville and Kinshasa. 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. WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. The impact of COVID-19 on agriculture commodities, recent extreme heat and an outlook on agricultural futures will all be discussed in Purdue Extensions response to the United States Department of Agricultures August crop report. Traditionally held at the Indiana State Fair, the discussion will be held online in a free webinar from 1:30-2:30 p.m., (EDT) Aug. 12. Hosted by the Purdue University Center for Commercial Agriculture, the annual panel discussion will begin following the release of the USDA August Crop Production and World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) reports. Karen Plaut, the Glenn W. Sample Dean of Purdue Agriculture, will convene the panel of Purdue Extension experts and a representative from the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). Panelists will discuss the implications of the USDA Crop Production and WASDE reports for agricultural producers and agribusinesses. Panelists include Purdue agriculture economists James Mintert and Michael Langemeier, Purdue agronomists Bob Nielsen (corn) and Shaun Casteel (soybeans), Indiana State Climatologist Beth Hall and Marlo Johnson, regional director USDA, NASS. Viewers can submit questions for the panelists to Teresa Rogers at rogerstk@purdue.edu. More information and registration are found here. Registered participants can also sign up to receive a link to view a recording of the webinar at their convenience. Media are encouraged to attend. Media inquiries can be sent to Sarah Zahn at smithse@purdue.edu. Writer: Abby Leeds, mayer36@purdue.edu Source: Rick Foster, fosterre@purdue.edu Agricultural Communications: 765-494-8415; Maureen Manier, Department Head, mmanier@purdue.edu Agriculture News Page BLM Protesters, Opposition Clash in Yucaipa as Wildfire Rages YUCAIPA, Calif.As firefighters struggled to contain a raging wildfire in the hills above Yucaipa, California, on Aug. 1, another battle was raging on the streets below. Against the ominous backdrop of a towering plume of smoke, chaos erupted on Yucaipa Boulevard as Black Lives Matter (BLM) protesters blocked traffic, and police equipped with riot gear marched to separate about 80 protesters from more than 200 counterprotesters. The San Bernardino County Sheriffs Department ordered the crowd to disperse, calling the protest an unlawful assembly. Several protesters attacked a deputy, according to a statement by the Yucaipa Police Department. One of them dropped a loaded firearm, later recovered by deputies. A protester drove a car erratically down the boulevard, almost hitting police, while he and two other occupants yelled at counterprotesters. A total of nine protesters were arrested. We were going to do a peaceful caravan and march, Steph Marie Murphy, one of the protest organizers, told The Epoch Times amid the upheaval. The protest had absolutely not gone the way she had hoped or expected, she said. A police helicopter circled overhead, and a booming message over loudspeakers ordered people to leave or face arrest. Protest organizer Steph Marie Murphy stands in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times) An officer kneels on the ground beside a protester as he arrests the protester in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times) A protester is arrested in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times) Though Murphy is not an official BLM leader, she helped organize the protest in solidarity with BLM, she said. Murphy is from neighboring San Bernardino. The protest marked the second major clash between protesters and counterprotesters in Yucaipa, the first having occurred on June 1. Murphy said one of the reasons for the latest protest was to stand up against white supremacist attacks in Yucaipa on June 1. Response to Earlier Clash in Yucaipa This is about black and brown unity, Murphy said. What happened on June 1 was unacceptable. They came out here to protest for George Floyd, and they were trampled, they were harassed, they were beat up. Thats why we came out here. We didnt come out here to destroy the town or anything like that. We came out here to peacefully protest, to use our freedom of speech. Videos posted online show the June 1 clash between a dozen or so protesters and more than twice as many counterprotesters. Witnesses of those events also spoke to The Epoch Times, saying both protesters and counterprotesters threw punches. Two counterprotesters were wanted for questioning by police following that incident. One is shown in videos apparently threatening protesters with a Taser. Another appeared to beat protesters with a baton. Yucaipa residents, including City Councilman Bobby Duncan, had seen threatening social media posts suggesting looting and burning in Yucaipa on June 1. Duncan and others armed themselves and stood watch on the rooftops of local businesses. A group of counterprotesters also gathered in a parking lot across the street from the protest. Counterprotesters line the street alongside a Black Lives Matter demonstration in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (Brad Jones/The Epoch Times) People look on a Black Lives Matter protest in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times) No businesses were damaged, and no shots were fired, but the sight of fighting on the street alarmed many residents, while others say the show of strength might indeed have deterred looters and vandals. Murphy said social media posts preceding the June 1 protest were not credible threats and she was unaware of anyone planning to damage Yucaipa businesses. Regarding the fire raging on Aug. 1, Murphy said some have accused protesters of starting it. They claimed that we started the fire in Cherry Valley. That did not happen. We were literally all on group chat when that fire was going on, so theres no way. None of us are attacking anyone. As of Aug. 3, the so-called Apple Fire had encompassed more than 25,000 acres and the cause of the blaze remained under investigation. Smoke from the Apple Fire is seen from Yucaipa Boulevard in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (Brad Jones/The Epoch Times) Fire blazes in the background near Stater Bros., where many Black Lives Matter protesters parked their vehicles ahead of a demonstration in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times) The original flier for the Aug. 1 protest, called the Ride for Justice & Unity, stated it was seeking justice for victims of the attacks committed by white supremacists. Time to get involved! When they attack one of us, they will get all of us, it read. But Murphy said the protest was not about getting revenge. That flier was later replaced with one that had a softer tone. That is not what we are here for. Were not here to hurt anybody, she said, as police began to clear a way through counterprotesters for the protesters to reach their vehicles and depart. Like I said, Im not a part of the official movement. I promote peace. Were not Marxist. Were not arsonists. Were not racists. Were not looters. We are peaceful, and we are here to promote unity. Thats it. The Epoch Times reached out to official BLM leaders for comment, but did not receive a response. Murphy said she is tired of hearing Go back to your country. Were Americans, she said. What problem do they have with the Mexican flag? Were flying the American flag and the Mexican flag in unity. What is wrong with that? Abigail Gonzalez flies a flag at a staging area in Calimesa, Calif., preparing for a Black Lives Matter protest in nearby Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (Brad Jones/The Epoch Times) Abigail Gonzalez was at the June 1 protest, and she was preparing for the Aug. 1 protest at a staging area in Calimesa, across the county line in Riverside, when she told The Epoch Times, What they did to me and to the other protesters here in Yucaipa kept me mad and Ive just been out ever since. I think the police let us fall into a trap. They knew about it, and they havent been helpful with us since, she said. Gonzalez said more protests are coming to Yucaipa. Theres going to be an even bigger one, she said. Right now, its just to see how everything works out, how we organize and to bring attention to what happened on June 1, because people were hurt and theyre not being helped, she said. At the Protest During the Aug. 1 protest, one protester dressed in black and made up to look like a skeleton, perched atop a car holding a Santa Muerte idol, and chanted, Death to white supremacists. A protester chants Death to white supremacists in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times) A protester walks along Yucaipa Boulevard in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times) Another protester walked down the middle of the boulevard with a bullhorn, his speech full of expletives and repeatedly shouting to counterprotesters, Go back to Europe. This is not your land! Several counterprotesters called him a racist. But he continued, You have no culture. Youre a disgrace to your own European people. The protester also disparaged a black man, a counterprotester, over the megaphone. Local residents hold signs with messages responding to the Black Lives Matter protest in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (Brad Jones/The Epoch Times) A Yucaipa resident, who preferred not to be named, said BLM protesters had earlier cornered him. He had made a remark to the effect that, if they care about black lives, they should be against black women having abortions through Planned Parenthood. They all surround me threatening to beat me up, stop traffic in the streets And you know, our side doesnt want violence. All we want is to protect what is ours. Thats all we want to do. And, if theyre going to come to my town and tell me Im a racist, Im going to call them out for their hypocrisy right to their face. They dont [care] about black lives. All they care about is the destruction of this country, he said. Black Lives Matter and Defund Police signs were common among protesters, while counterprotesters waved signs saying All Lives Matter, Blue Lives Matter, and Defend America. One flag read, Dont Give Up The Ship. When counterprotesters sang the Star-Spangled Banner, BLM protesters took a knee on the other side of the boulevard. Counterprotesters stand along Yucaipa Boulevard as a protest in support of Black Lives Matter proceeds in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (Brad Jones/The Epoch Times) Residents Defend Yucaipa Yucaipa resident Christine Beamer supported Councilman Duncans efforts to protect local businesses on June 1, and she was among the counterprotesters on Aug. 1. Knowing that Duncan and others were watching over residents and businesses was reassuring, she said. I think its great. I felt safe. I felt good about my business. Christine Beamer stands among counterprotesters in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (Brad Jones/The Epoch Times) Im here to stand up for America, Beamer said, holding an American flag. I have lots of family and friends that fought for this country. Theres been lots of men who have died to hold up this flag, so if we all stand together, that protects our rights, our life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. Beamer comes from an immigrant family of Mexican and Polish descent. They came to the United States for better opportunities, she said. I live every day for that freedom, and I want it for our kids and our grandkids, she said. It really irritates me when they call everyone white supremacists, because Im a Mexican-Jewish business owner in Yucaipa, and Ive never had any problems, she said. Brock Knudsen of Yucaipa Strong Apparel, told The Epoch Times ahead of the protest that he was planning to attend. He makes Back the Blue T-shirts that support police and military veterans. Knudsen said he has received threats for speaking out in support of Yucaipa. He said loving his town doesnt make him racist. I dont stand for racism, he said. He said that after hearing there were threats to Yucaipa on June 1, I was actually at home worried, stressing, and taking care of my family. He got calls from people claiming protesters were going to vandalize homes that had American flags. Protesters march in support of Black Lives Matter, in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times) Police control a protest in support of Black Lives Matter in Yucaipa, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times) Im a proud American, Knudsen said. He said a wedge has been driven between people in the United States. I am a Trump supporter. I was an Obama supporter, he said. I support Trump and I love what hes done for the black community. I love what he has done for our economy. Knudsen views the protests as a way for leftwing groups to attack President Donald Trump after failing to impeach him. Nothing theyve done has worked, so you know what, Lets just have an uprising. Its a scary time, he said. Kathy Gillette, a former defense attorney who lives in Yucaipa, said that besides politics, one of the reasons the nation is so divided is that many Americans have abandoned the notion of taking personal responsibility. People are going out and blaming other people for their own problems. And you know what? I did not grow up rich. I grew up poor. I got myself two degrees, and I got myself out of the hole, she said. And no one paid for me. No one gave me reparations for being a poor Irish girl. I worked my butt off, and everybody needs to take personal responsibility. Gillette, who supports Blue Lives Matter, said Yucaipa is a town of hard-working people who want law and order. [People buy homes] here because they cant afford to buy down in L.A. or Orange County. They buy here for the peace and quiet of it. And, were workers. We all work, she said. The protest lasted about two hours. Police reported minor vandalism, with no injuries or damage to businesses. Mumbai: After coming to loggerheads with Mumbai police over investigation of actor Sushant Singh Rajput suicide, the Bihar police will now probe the suicide of his former manager Disha Salian. Salian had jumped to death from a Malad high-rise on June 8 and Rajput was also questioned in connection with the suicide then. The Bihar police has also sought help from the Mumbai police for investigation in Rajput suicide and have asked them to formally join the probe in case filed by the Bihar police against actor Rhea Chakraborty. The visiting team of Bihar police added that they will question all those who knew Rajput in a bid to ascertain the motive behind the actors suicide. The police will probe any possible connection between the two suicides. After several supposed skirmishes between the Bihar police and their counterparts in Mumbai over the investigation, the former has now asked the Mumbai police to join the investigation in the case against Chakraborty. Statement of the actors content manager Siddharth Pithani will also be recorded. He was staying with the actor for the last one year, said a police officer. The Bihar police have recorded statements of 10 people in connection with the suicide and they have also sought for the investigation details on forensic laboratory, inquest, post- mortem, and CCTV camera footage from Mumbai police. Rajput was found hanging in his suburban Bandra apartment on June 14. The Patna case was registered under various Indian Penal Code sections including 341 (wrongful restraint), 342 (wrongful confinement), 380 (theft in dwelling house), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and 306 (abetment of suicide). Sir David Attenborough at the launch of the COP26 UN Climate Summit, in February 2020 in London, England. (Photo by Jeremy Selwyn - WPA Pool/Getty Images) UK rapper Dave will join forces with natural history and broadcasting legend Sir David Attenborough in a new project. The unlikely collaboration, called Planet Earth: A Celebration, will bring a sequence of scenes together from the wildly successful Planet Earth II and Blue Planet II with new narration from Attenborough as well as a new score from composer Hans Zimmer. Talking about what BBC Director-General Tony Hall has labelled a spectacular treat for the viewers, Brit Award winning artist Dave said: Ive always been fan of powerful natural history documentaries. Rapper Dave accepts the Mastercard Album of The Year Award during The BRIT Awards 2020 in London. (Photo by Dave J Hogan/Getty Images) This is a programme where nature and music come together, so it was only right that I lent my talent, my time, and my attention to this project. It was a pleasure to work alongside Sir David Attenborough and Hans Zimmer. Hans Zimmer added: Working with David on so many of his magnificent programs celebrating nature and our planet has been a joy for me. Hans Zimmer speaks onstage during the AMC Networks portion of the Winter 2020 TCA Press Tour on January 16, 2020 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images) I am constantly inspired by what he is able to capture, and the collection of sequences featured in Planet Earth: A Celebration is truly special. It was an honour to once again work with David, Jacob Shea and the BBC Concert Orchestra to highlight these incredible stories once again. From Blue Planet II, viewers will once again see the surfing bottlenose dolphins on the East Cape of South Africa, catching the waves, playing and surfing near the shoreline. Of the well-loved scene, Attenborough said: As far as we can tell, they do so for the sheer joy of it. Sir David Attenborough addresses the UK Climate Assembly on January 25, 2020 in Birmingham, England. (Photo by Richard Stonehouse/Getty Images) It will also include a deadly battle between a common octopus and a pyjama shark in the kelp forests off the coast of southern Africa and bird-eating giant trevallies fish of the Indian Ocean. From Planet Earth II, fans can expect the Bafta-winning scene which saw hatchling marine iguanas attempting to escape a hunting mob of racer snakes in Fernandina, Galapagos. Reas more: David Attenborough 'Seven Worlds, One Planet' episode pulled from iPlayer over wrong animal noise Story continues We will also see a pride of hungry desert lions attempt to take down a giraffe several times their size in Namibia. Hall added: With brand new narration from the brilliant David Attenborough, a new score from Hans Zimmer and the team at Bleeding Fingers played by the BBC Concert Orchestra with Dave on the piano, this thrilling journey around the world promises to lift everyone's spirits. WAIPAHU, Hawaii, Aug. 3rd, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- It all started when Michilynn Yoro-Roque was 16 years old. Her best friend was about to leave for college and asked her if she'd like to be her replacement at her part time job. The role in question was to be an assistant at the local Kumon Center, and Michilynn's decision to say yes ultimately molded the next few years of her life. One year at the Kumon Center turned into two, which turned into three, and as time passed, Michilynn's passion for education grew. Upon returning from college, the owner and Instructor at her former Kumon Center pushed Michilynn to learn more about opening her own center. Michilynn followed that advice, and now as the new owner and Instructor of Kumon of Waipahu, she is excited to inspire local children to reach their full potential. "After years of college and training in education and management, I found myself wanting more than just a nine-to-five job," said Michilynn Yoro-Roque, owner and Instructor of Kumon of Waipahu. "A lot of my work ethic has been developed through Kumon and the support I've had in the classroom environment, and I can't wait to translate that to my students as well." When Michilynn reached out for more information on becoming a Kumon Franchisee, she was met with an extensive network of support. It was determined that her target location was available, which confirmed the fact that she'd be starting her new Kumon journey. Becoming a Kumon Franchisee is an attractive business opportunity for many aspiring entrepreneurs, as up to $36,000 in startup cost assistance is available to further assist new Instructors. Kumon is a supplemental education program that aims to unlock students' full potential by increasing academic independence, confidence, and study skills. Through daily worksheet study, students enrolled in Kumon often end up mastering material far beyond grade level. Learn more about the Kumon Method today. "My vision is for my Kumon Center to be a safe place of learning for students and to serve as a positive influence within the Waipahu community," said Yoro-Roque. "My approach to education focuses on developing the whole student not just improving basic academic skills." About Kumon Math & Reading Centers: Kumon is an after-school math and reading enrichment program that unlocks the potential of children, so they can achieve more on their own. As a comprehensive program, Kumon serves children in preschool through high school. The learning method uses an individualized approach that helps children develop a solid command of math and reading skills. Through daily practice and mastery of materials, students increase confidence, improve concentration, and develop better study skills. About the Kumon Franchise Business Kumon is an ideal small business for professionals. Kumon Franchisees must have a four-year college degree, be proficient in math and reading, have investment capital of $70,000 and a net worth of at least $150,000. Founded in 1958, Kumon has over four million students enrolled at nearly 25,000 learning centers in more than 50 countries and regions. SOURCE Kumon North America Related Links https://www.kumon.com The Ghanaian-German Centre for Jobs, Migration and Reintegration (GGC), in collaboration with the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations, has launched a flagship programme ICT Skills Training for students and job seekers to equip job seekers and students with job-ready transferrable ICT skills. This is intended to help their employability prospects and foster employment creation opportunities for the youth in the digital space. Targeted at job seeking graduates, tertiary students and Senior High School students who have a passion for ICT, the sessions would be held in Accra, Koforidua, Ho, Takoradi and Cape Coast from July to October 2020. The training, which will be offered for free, will require interested participants to pre-register online as each session will only accommodate 35 people. Participants will have the option of choosing to participate in any of the cities. The training package includes a minimum of 12 hours of hand-on training in Microsoft Word, Excel, Power Point, social media and general Internet usage. Participants will receive training manuals and certificates of participation after the training. Prospective participants are required to have completed tertiary or secondary school, must have an interest in ICT, must reside in the cities they choose and must have a reliable laptop. Senior National Programme Coordinator for Programme Migration and Development at the GGC, David Tette, reiterated the growing importance of ICT. Anchored on its three pillars career guidance, employment promotion and reintegration support services the GGC offers employment promotion services to job seekers in Ghana and counsels its clients on socioeconomic opportunities in Ghana. Since its inception in December 2017, the centre has counseled more than 12,000 individuals, offered more than 13,000 employment promotion measures and facilitated more than 1,000 persons into employment or supported in setting up a business. ---Daily Guide Microsoft has discussed plans to acquire the U.S operation of the famous TikTok app with President Donald Trump. The discussion happened on Sunday after the White House threatened to ban the huge popular Chinese-owned app. The software giant confirmed its talk with Chinese company ByteDance to acquire the U.S operations of TikTok and discussed with the president his concerns about the security and censorship of the acquisition. In a blog post, Microsoft said that there had been the following conversation between Satya Nadella, Microsoft CEO and President Donald Trump. The software giant said that it is prepared to continue discussing the matters regarding the purchase of TikTok in the United States. According to NPR, Microsoft's first public acknowledgment is that it is on a transaction of taking over TikTok and worth billions of dollars. The announcement trickled out on Friday. The company said, "Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the concerns of the president. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the U.S, including the United States Treasury." The purchase of TikTok could be a way to open up a vast user base of digitally savvy people for Microsoft, a $1.5 trillion worth company that also owns LinkedIn, Skype, and Xbox aside from its legacy Windows software products. Microsoft and ByteDance gave notice of their intent to explore the deal resulting in Microsoft owning and operating the TikTok service in the U.S, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, as per TIME. Microsoft said it expects a conclusion to those talks by September 15. Microsoft also ensures to keep all private data of TikTok's American users, and all data from servers outside the country deleted once the transfer is completed. Meanwhile, on Sunday, President Trump gave Microsoft Corp 45 days to negotiate the acquisition of TikTok, according to three people familiar with the matter. The proposed acquisition of TikTok would give Microsoft a rare opportunity to become one of the major competitors to social media giants like Snap Inc. and Facebook Inc. According to Yahoo News, the deadline was put to Microsoft and ByteDance by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States or CFIUS, which scrutinizes deals for potential national security risks. On Friday, the president said he is planning to ban TikTok because the application is owned by a Chinese and could impose national security risk because of the personal data it stores. However, Trump changed his mind after his advisers, and many in the Republican party expressed their opinions. The sources said, banning TikTok could isolate many young users ahead of the 2020 U.S presidential election in November and could trigger a wave of legal challenges. In the last two days, several prominent Republican lawmakers urged Trump to let Microsoft continue with the sale of TikTok. Check these out: Microsoft in Talks to Acquire TikTok What Exactly is Going on with TikTok? Here are Bunches of Details You Wouldn't Want to Miss Foreign Tech Company ByteDance Accuses Facebook of 'Plagiarism and Smear' Wits experts to speak at international symposium on climate and environmental factors in COVID-19 Symposium coincides with the publication of their article on environmental drivers and the potential seasonality of COVID-19. Three Wits experts in climate change have been invited to deliver presentations at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) virtual global symposium that will review the relationship between weather, climate and environmental factors and the spread of COVID-19. Professors Bob Scholes and Francois Engelbrecht of the Global Change Institute and Professor Jennifer Fitchett from the School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, will be part of the panel of experts that will be taking part in the symposium jointly hosted by the WMO and international science partners. Scholes and Engelbrecht will be presenting on simulations of COVID-19 in South Africa under seasonality, while Fitchett will discuss early research on COVID-19 and climate co-present a poster on ways on improving the stability of projections from models. Fitchett, Engelbrect and Scholes are also co-authors of an academic article entitled Winter is Coming: A southern Hemisphere Perspective of the Environmental Drivers of SARS-CoV-2 and the Potential Seasonality of COVID-19, published in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. This work is part of their involvement in the COVID-19 Environmental Reference Group (CERG) formed under the auspices of the Department of Science and Innovation. The coronavirus pandemic continues to spread globally, within a wide range of climates and seasonal and environmental settings. Environmental conditions are not the principle drivers of the first wave of the pandemic. Nonetheless, questions remain as to whether factors such as temperature, humidity, air quality and ultraviolet light influence the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the disease (COVID-19) that it causes. It is critical to understand whether meteorological, climatological and environmental factors promote the spread of the disease either outdoors or indoors. This is a pertinent scientific question that is the subject of numerous studies, said Professor Jurg Luterbacher, WMO Chief Scientist and Director of Science and Innovation. COVID-19 is likely to be prevalent beyond the initial pandemic phase for several years. Better understanding of whether it will be influenced by seasonal environmental and weather conditions, as is the case with many other respiratory viruses and diseases, will help inform public health policy and management of the disease in the coming months and years, said Dr Joy Shumake-Guillemot of the WMO/World Health Organization Joint Climate and Health Office. The disease originally manifested in the Northern Hemisphere in early to mid-winter, in places with temperate climates, and spread east and west in an initially quite narrow climate band. This could reflect a climate sensitivity, but could just as plausibly reflect trade and human movement patterns. Some countries currently facing the highest COVID-19 burdens are located in the tropics and subtropics. But there are also increasing case counts in some Southern Hemisphere countries as they move into winter. Whether this is a meteorologically driven phenomenon is yet to be determined. Similarly, there are concerns about a resurgence in the next Northern Hemisphere winter, but these speculations are based largely on experience with other respiratory diseases which peak in winter and not on firm knowledge of COVID-19 climate sensitivities. The e-symposium aims to create a forum to review and discuss existing studies in order to inform the state of knowledge that already exists and provide guidance for future research, according to Professor Ben Zaitchik, John Hopkins University and chair of the symposiums scientific committee. The symposium was initiated by a team of researchers from Johns Hopkins University, WMO and ACCESS programme in South Africa, and co-hosted by a wide range of scientific partners including the American Geophysical Union (AGU), U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, World Council Research Programme, SENAHMI Peru, International Science Council, Elsevier, FutureEarth, GeoHealth Community of Practice, the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology and the Pacific Science Association . More than 450 participants will consider some 100 contributions on the topic from researchers from around 20 countries. There will be several keynote presentations, and panels and breakout sessions on understanding dynamics, forecasts and projections, and actionable information. There will be a concluding statement on the outcomes and the future of research on this aspect of the COVID-19 pandemic. Symposium proceedings will be published by Elselvier OneHealth journal. The outcomes of the conference will also support the work of a newly established WMO Research Board Task Team on COVID-19 and climate and environmental factors, which will provide official scientific direction on the topic through 2021. The Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN) has moved against the payment of N25,000 for coronavirus test in Ogun state. The state had earlier fixed resumption of SS3 students for Tuesday, to allow them to prepare for the West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (WASSCE) slated to begin on August 17. Also, as part of the conditions for school resumption, the state government announced that COVID-19 and malaria tests are mandatory for returning boarding students. While the COVID-19 test is free for public secondary school students, their counterparts in private schools are required to pay N25,000. PREMIUM TIMES on Sunday reported how some of the parents took their demonstrations to the streets, faulting the decision of the government to ask them to pay. The dissatisfied parents on Sunday thronged the 250-bed MTR specialist hospital, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, the designated place for the pupils in Abeokuta after attempts to get their wards tested for free failed. Some parents who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES, on Sunday, described the fee as insensitive on the part of the state government. However, on Sunday evening, the Special Adviser on primary and secondary education, Ronke Soyombo, insisted that the government is not going back on its position. Opposition The SPN, one of the parties controversially deregistered by the electoral commission, INEC, condemned the payment, stating its full support for all preventive measures geared towards ensuring that pupils and all the workers in these schools are tested and certified before resumption. We are strongly opposed to a situation where the pupils, their parents or the workers, are being made to bear the brunt of the costs of these measures. The party, in the statement issued by its chairperson in the state, John Nicholas, posited that the state government must be prepared to bear the costs as part of its overall duties of adequately funding the public education sector, and the provision of other facilities that would make learning and teaching worthwhile. The SPN frowned against the discrimination of the state government against parents of private schools pupils. That the parents had to send their wards to private schools in the first instance, is a reflection of the failure of the government to adequately fund the state owned schools. According to the group, sending wards to private schools was not a choice freely made, but made possible by the worsening conditions of the public schools with inadequate facilities and poor learning conditions. Since COVID-19 infection is of public health importance, as the unfolding events have shown, the government would do well not to gamble with the health of the school pupils and the general public by not prioritizing profits over the health needs of the citizens. Other agitations The SPN also called for the implementation of the N30,000 minimum wage for workers in the state and the payment of backlogs of unpaid salaries and arrears. Till date, this same government has refused to implement the N30,000:00 new minimum wage approved by the federal government for the workers. Added to this, is his refusal to pay workers backlogs of unpaid salaries and allowances in the public service, including the education workers: MAPOLY, TASCE, SAPADE; healthcare workers OOUTH; and others! The road infrastructures across the state have completely collapsed, Mr Nicholas said on Monday. US Nationwide Empirical Survey Shows: No Corona Virus (CV) Epidemic NEWS PROVIDED BY "What's Right What's Left" Radio Ministry Aug. 3, 2020 MEDIA ADVISORY, Aug. 3, 2020 /Standard Newswire/ -- Deacon Brooks of "What's Right What's Left" Radio Ministry (WRWL), drove across America, over five weeks, March through April of 2020, interviewing DOZENS of Americans, from all walks of life, in DOZENS of jurisdictions, all across the Country. When asked, Guess how many said they knew someone who died of corona virus? You guessed it, Zero. "What's Right What's Left" is releasing complete findings at http://christiannewswire.com/images/CVSurvey072920.pdf WRWL is aware of no other news outlet which conducted a nationwide, empirical CV survey of this kind. Deacon Brooks has also tracked weekly percentages, for total US and World deaths attributed to CV -- over now eight months. The results? Through July of 2020, NO EPIDEMIC IN THE US. -- Deaths in US remain effectively Zero percent of US population (0.04%). NO PANDEMIC IN THE WORLD. -- Deaths worldwide remain effectively Zero percent of world population (0.007%). Click to view complete report. Deacon Brooks adds, "It is perhaps no surprise, the empirical survey matches so closely the reported percentages. There never was, nor can be, a broad CV emergency. Period. This is not a public health epidemic." SOURCE: "What's Right What's Left" Radio Ministry. CONTACT: Deacon Brooks, 440-338-1367, wrwlministries@gmail.com Press Release August 3, 2020 HONTIVEROS OFFERS ALTERNATIVE 'HEALTH-HEAVY' PLAN VS COVID-19 As Metro Manila reverts back to MECQ, senator says government should adopt a clearer strategy "Any lockdown is not effective on its own. Kailangang may kasamang malakas na health response." This was the remark of Senator Risa Hontiveros on Monday as she presented a more 'humane, inclusive and health-centric' plan to mitigate the pandemic and address the concerns of health workers, as novel coronavirus disease or COVID-19 cases surged past 100,000 this week and as Metro Manila and other 'hotspot' areas revert back to a modified enhanced community quarantine or MECQ. "It is clear that the government botched the previous months of the lockdown. Huwag natin hayaang masayang ulit ang dalawang linggong pagbabalik-MECQ," Hontiveros said. "Susunod ang mga Pilipino. Siguraduhin lang nating may maayos na plano," she added. In her privilege speech, the senator shared a "roadmap to recovery, a comprehensive package of recommendations for much-needed health and economic programs to save lives, prevent the country's healthcare system from being overwhelmed, and restore jobs and businesses lost due to the pandemic." Intensified health solutions "Imbes na militarismong tugon sa pandemya, mas kailangan ang medikal at makataong mga solusyon", Hontiveros said of her six-point package of recommendations to improve the country's healthcare response to the pandemic which includes the following: 1. Improve preemptive/preventive response - Activate epidemiology and surveillance units (ESUs) in local government units as required by law to improve monitoring and detection of cases, alongside expanded telemedicine and e-prescription programs to serve patients with non-COVID cases; 2. Genuine Mass Testing - Expand testing for COVID-19 cases faster and make it faster and more easily available to high-risk and densely populated communities. Tap local biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies to rapidly improve testing capacity in every region; 3. Strengthen health system and infrastructure - Prioritize efforts to protect and expand the ranks of frontliners. Establish 'hospital command centers' for better coordination among health facilities, and designate COVID-19 hospitals for critically-ill patients. Upgrade quarantine centers as 'mega-treatment' centers, and ensure capacity of health facilities in provinces; 4. Increase protection for vulnerable populations - Provide better access to testing and treatment to those most vulnerable to COVID-19 such as the elderly, pregnant women, and poor families. Likewise, health protections for workers must be improved; 5. Expand universal healthcare - Use mechanisms and programs in the existing Universal Healthcare Act to address pressing healthcare needs of Filipinos during pandemic, such as improving the process of designating licensed primary care providers who will serve patients at free/affordable rates; and 6. Greater transparency and accountability - Government spending on COVID-19 response should be subjected to audit and made more transparent. Mechanisms like the 'Citizen's Budget Tracker' should be harnessed. Corruption and incompetence by government officials should not be tolerated, and must be met with appropriate legal and administrative action. "Hindi na bago ang mga panawagang ito - these were our calls since Day 1 of the lockdown. We will continue to revert to a stricter lockdown unless the government adopts a more definite health strategy," Hontiveros urged. Expansion and extension of SAP Hontiveros also offered a four-point plan for economic recovery and restoration of the millions of jobs and businesses lost during the pandemic. Particularly, she pushed for the expansion and extension of the government social amelioration program or SAP to assist struggling households such as lower middle-class to poor families, solo parents and jeepney drivers. "Ngayong bumalik tayo sa mas striktong lockdown, kailangan ng ayuda sa lahat ng maaapektuhan, lalung-lalo na ang mga mawawalan pa ng trabaho at kita dahil sa dalawang linggong MECQ," she said. "We cannot heal as one pag may napag-iiwanan. We cannot heal as one pag may nakakalimutan," Hontiveros also said. Her other recommendations for economic recovery also include: 1. passage of the Balik-Trabahong Ligtas Bill that seeks to upgrade workplace protection for workers during the pandemic, including financial coverage for testing and treatment if they contract COVID-19; 2. assistance to micro and small enterprises to repair the economy; and 3. promotion of new drivers of economic growth such as information and communications technology (ICT), digital education, telemedicine, logistics and public services, agriculture, food manufacturing and urban-rural transport networks. "Kaya ng mga Pilipinong magtiis ngunit dapat kaya ng pamahalaang mamahala," Hontiveros said. "This is the strategy our people need and deserve. Hindi istratehiya ang pag-aantay lamang ng bakuna mula sa Tsina," she concluded. There will be a resistance to your ambition, she said Friday during Black Girls Lead 2020, a virtual conference for young Black women. There will be people who say to you, You are out of your lane, because they are burdened by only having the capacity to see what has always been instead of what can be. But dont you let that burden you. Microsoft added a dose of clarity to the reports of its impending TikTok purchase tonight, issuing a blog post that confirms its pursuing discussions with ByteDance. The company notes that CEO Satya Nadella discussed the matter with President Trump, and that it plans to solidify a deal no later than September 15th. The acquisition would mean Microsoft would own and operate TikTok in the US, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. The company also added that it may bring on other American investors as minority stakeholders. Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns, the company wrote. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury. If Microsoft can successfully negotiate a deal with ByteDance, the company says it will add world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections to the TikTok experience. And to be absolutely clear, theres a chance these discussions may fall apart. Thats true for any high-profile acquisition, but this deal is particularly strange since it seems to be coming at the behest of a President who has talked of banning TikTok. Still, Microsoft could add some stability to the mobile app in the US, where ByteDance has been criticized for having nebulous ties to the Chinese government. TikTok has vigorously pushed back against implications that it was under the thumb of China, and said that it would refuse any user data requests from the country. The acquisition could also be good news for Facebook, which is planning to release its own TikTok competitor soon. Microsoft also says its aiming to ensure transparency with TikTok users while also maintaining appropriate security oversight by the governments where its operating the service. Its unclear what the latter could amount to. Microsoft also claims itll keep private data from American TikTok users within the country, as well as make sure that their existing data outside of the US is deleted. The company doesnt plan to issue any additional updates until the TikTok deal is settled (or falls apart). By PTI MUMBAI: Actor Rhea Chakraborty's advocate on Monday refuted Bihar Polices claim that she was "missing", and said till date she has not received any summons from them in connection with the case of actor-friend Sushant Singh Rajput's death. The Bihar Police last week lodged an FIR against Chakraborty for allegedly abetting Rajput's suicide. The complaint was filed by Rajput's father KK Singh against Chakraborty and other members of her family. The Bihar Police earlier said their team had failed to locate Chakraborty. However, her advocate Satish Maneshinde in a statement said, "The contention of Bihar police that Rhea Chakraborty is missing is not correct. Till today, no notice or summons has been received by her from the Bihar police." ALSO READ | Sushant Singh Rajput had bipolar disorder, investigating all angles in the case: Mumbai police Chakraborty's statement has already been recorded by the Mumbai Police, Maneshinde said. "She has cooperated with the police as and when called, the statement said. Maneshinde in the statement reiterated that the Bihar Police do not have jurisdiction to probe the case and hence, Chakraborty has filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking transfer of the case to Mumbai." Rajput, 34, was found hanging at his apartment in suburban Bandra on June 14. Mumbai Police had registered an Accidental Death Report (ADR) and an investigation is underway in the case. Till now, the Mumbai Police have recorded statements of 56 people, including Rajput's sisters, Chakraborty and some other film personalities. A Bihar Police team is also in Mumbai for probing the 'abetment to suicide' case on the basis of a complaint filed by the late actor's father in Patna. Chris Oyakhilome of Christ Embassy > Chris Oyakhilome of Christ Embassy data-medium-file=https://i2.wp.com/www.pmnewsnigeria.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Chris-Oyakhilome.jpg?fit=510%2C319&ssl=1 data-large-file=https://i2.wp.com/www.pmnewsnigeria.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Chris-Oyakhilome.jpg?fit=504%2C315&ssl=1 class=wp-image-246130 src=https://onlinenigeria.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/its-a-shame-that-buhari-african-leaders-seek-medication-abroad-oyakhilome-1.jpg alt width=700 height=438 srcset=https://onlinenigeria.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/its-a-shame-that-buhari-african-leaders-seek-medication-abroad-oyakhilome-5.jpg 510w, https://onlinenigeria.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/its-a-shame-that-buhari-african-leaders-seek-medication-abroad-oyakhilome-6.jpg 504w, https://onlinenigeria.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/its-a-shame-that-buhari-african-leaders-seek-medication-abroad-oyakhilome-7.jpg 495w sizes=(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px data-recalc-dims=1> By Kazeem Ugbodaga Founder of Chris Embassy, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome has said it is a shame for African leaders, including President Muhammadu Buhari to be travelling to Europe and America to get medication when they are sick. Buhari and some African leaders had on several occasions travelled abroad to seek medication when they were sick. But Oyakhilome, in a broadcast to his members on Sunday described such act as a shame on African leaders to always seek help from abroad. Why cant Africa be allowed to produce their medication? How many years do you need somebody to help you. For how long can you be waiting? It will be a shame at this time of your life and history if vaccines have to be imported to Africa to help Africa. It is a shame and a failure on the part of the leaders. Your great grandfather was helped, your grandfather was helped, now you want to be helped. It is a shame, you ought to come up with your own vaccines, whatever medicine you need. It is a shame that leaders of Africa still have to travel to Europe and America to get medication when they get sick. You should be ashamed. At this time of your life, you should have grown up, What are all the universities you have built, what are they for? It is about time you started thinking, he said. Oyakhilome lamented the huge brain drains in Africa, without the leaders bothering about the consequences. Look at the brain drain, they take the best of Africa and take to Europe, Asia and China and you dont care, what kind of leadership that has no vision for the future? We need leaders in Africa that can think, leaders that have brains and some mind, and have a vision, he stated. He wondered when African leaders would put away childishness and still be depending on other countries for loans and others when they have enough. When will Africa put away childish things, Africa is old enough. Any nation in Africa that is still calling for help from another country, the leadership is a shame. You have more than enough resources to help your country. Why are you borrowing money from nations that dont have it? Europe dont have enough resources to borrow you money, neither does China, They are only borrowing you money they got from you, wake up, he said. Related An Indian Police Service (IPS) officer from Bihar, in Mumbai to probe the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, was forcibly quarantined by civic authorities, the eastern states police chief has alleged. Bihars director general of police (DGP) Gupteshwar Pandey tweeted the charge on Sunday. Vinay Tiwari, heading a Patna Police team which is in Mumbai to investigate an abetment to suicide case on the basis of a complaint filed by the late actors father in Patna, had reached the city earlier in the day. IPS officer Vinay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from Patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11 PM today, Pandey tweeted. IPS officer Binay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11pm today.He was not provided accommodation in the IPSMess despite request and was staying in a guest house in Goregaw pic.twitter.com/JUPFRpqiGE IPS Gupteshwar Pandey (@ips_gupteshwar) August 2, 2020 Watch | Sushant death: Bihar IPS officer who reached Mumbai forcibly quarantined Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said Tiwari has been quarantined as per the present guidelines for domestic arrivals at the Mumbai airport, according to news agency ANI. He was not provided accommodation in the IPS mess, despite request, and was staying in a Guest House in Goregaon, he said. Rajput, 34, was found dead in his Bandra apartment on June 14. Rajputs father lodged a police complaint against actor Rhea Chakraborty and her family members and the department registered a first information report (FIR) under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including abetment to suicide. Rajputs father alleged that Chakraborty and her family kept his son away from his family, handled his bank accounts and took away crores of rupees. His FIR mentioned that when she found Rajputs bank balance was depleting, she left his house on June 8 and took cash, jewellery and his medical reports along with her, and also blocked his mobile number. Rajput, according to him, had called his sister and told her that Chakraborty had threatened him that she would show the doctors receipts to the media and prove he was insane. Mumbai Police are also probing the death case and have so far recorded statements of nearly 40 people, including those from Rajputs family, his cook and people from the film industry that include filmmakers Mahesh Bhatt and Aditya Chopra, film critic Rajeev Masand, director Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Pandey had said earlier that Rajputs death shouldnt be turned into a Maharashtra versus Bihar battle amid reports that the police team from Patna is not being helped by the force in Mumbai. I am saying a simple thing that one should look at the sentiments of the countrys people. People say that he was a vibrant, enthusiastic and successful young man. They feel there is some kind of mystery if a man who had money and fame hangs himself, he had said in an interview to a Hindi television news channel on Saturday. That mystery must be probed and truth must come out. Why should anyone have any problem with that? Bihar Police have registered an FIR and started a probe, he added. He had also urged Chakraborty to join the investigation into the death of Rajput being conducted by Patna Police if she has nothing to hide. The four-member team had reached Mumbai on July 27 and began its probe. Heritage Minister Malcolm Noonan will meet with BirdWatch Ireland and other organisations to advance proposals to set up a wildlife crime unit. Meanwhile, a 5,000 reward has been offered for information leading to prosecution of those responsible for the 2019 poisoning of 23 buzzards on West Cork farmland. The reward has been put up by the Amica Projects, a registered animal welfare charity. Anyone with information is invited to come forward in confidence and help Amica Projects bring the perpetrator to justice. Green Party TD and Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform Malcolm Noonan said there is also a commitment in the programme for government to a comprehensively review the role, function and resourcing of the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), which has responsibility for protection and conservation of natural heritage. Deputy Noonan was responding in the Dail to Cork South West Fianna Fail TD Christopher OSullivan, who said no prosecutions had been brought in the West Cork case, and he understood investigators are no closer to bringing any prosecutions. Now more than ever, we need a dedicated wildlife crime investigation unit, because all of the fantastic work and citizen science we are doing, as well as the recreation of biodiversity, is worth nothing unless we can stamp out wildlife crimes. Also in the Dail, Tanaiste and Enterprise Minister Leo Varadkar has said evidence of wildlife crimes usually involves either a witness or a video. Without those, it is hard to secure a prosecution. He was responding to Cork South West Social Democrats TD Holly Cairns, who said very few investigations result in prosecutions. Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht Catherine Martin recently told the Dail there have been successful prosecutions in cases including persecution of badgers, illegal hunting of deer, illegal hunting of hares with packs of dogs, poisoning of raptor birds, and illegal hedge cutting and clearance of vegetation. From 2014 to date, there were 78 successful prosecutions. According to BirdWatch Ireland, the poisoning of the 23 buzzards on farmland between Bandon and Timoleague about seven months ago is the single largest poisoning of birds of prey in Ireland for decades, and the largest since legislation was amended to ban the use of poison meat baits in 2010. Former Heritage Minister Josepha Madigan had told the Dail in May the Garda had specifically asked her department not to raise the matter publicly, because they did not want to jeopardise the chances of a successful prosecution. That is why, even though the incident occurred in January, it only came to light recently, said Minister Madigan. She confirmed the NPWS view that the case is a deliberate poisoning of wildlife, and not related to any agricultural practices in the area, nor to the landowner who reported it. I am grateful to the landowner for alerting the NPWS to this very serious incident. Testing of carcases by the Regional Veterinary Laboratory in Cork confirmed that the cause of death was the insecticide Carbofuran, banned in Ireland since June 2009. While it is no longer legally available anywhere in Europe, it is known to be illegally procured and used by that minority of people who persecute wildlife, particularly birds of prey, said Minister Madigan. There were therefore two crimes, namely, the purchase of the substance and the deliberate poisoning in such a malicious act. Buzzards became extinct in Ireland in the late 19th century. Having re-established themselves in Northern Ireland in the 1930s, they have steadily colonised many counties in Ireland. Over the last six years, three people have been prosecuted by the NPWS for illegal poisoning of birds. The Minister said, The grey heron in Co Louth was the last one, in 2016, but there was also a case in 2014, where two defendants were poisoning birds in quarries in Waterford, and they were fined 8,000. In section 74 of the Wildlife Act 1976, one of the penalties on summary conviction is six months imprisonment. There is also a fine not exceeding 100,000 on indictment or two years imprisonment, or both. Capacity will be boosted at hospitals, care homes and laboratories starting from next week, the government said on Monday, comprising 5.8 million tests using DNA and 450,000 swab tests Millions of COVID-19 tests able to detect the virus within 90 minutes will be rolled out in Britain, the country's health minister said on Monday, after criticism there has not been enough testing especially in nursing homes. Last week, one of Britain's largest care home providers CareUK said the government is unable to meet its promise to regularly test staff and residents in care homes after problems were discovered with the kits currently being used. Capacity will be boosted at hospitals, care homes and laboratories starting from next week, the government said on Monday, comprising 5.8 million tests using DNA and 450,000 swab tests. Neither will need to be administered by a health professional. "The fact these tests can detect flu as well as COVID-19 will be hugely beneficial as we head into winter, so patients can follow the right advice to protect themselves and others," said health minister Matt Hancock. "We are on track to deliver half a million tests a day by the end of October but new technologies like these two will help us to accelerate that," he said. Separately, the publicly-funded National Health Service said it would be offering "COVID-friendly" treatments to cancer patients, including drugs that do not have a big impact on the immune system. Britain's healthcare system has come under severe strain during peaks in the country's COVID-19 outbreak, which has killed more than 46,000 people, the fourth highest toll in the world, according to a Reuters tally collated on Monday. Search Keywords: Short link: Were proud to showcase our world-class facilities on the beautiful island of St. Kitts and provide an in-depth look at what its like to be a student at UMHS. University of Medicine and Health Sciences (UMHS), a small, mission-driven medical school with a commitment to student support and a legacy of successful residency placements in the United States and Canada, today announced the launch of a new, fully-immersive virtual tour of its campus on St. Kitts, West Indies. Leveraging state-of-the-art technology, the tour provides a 360-degree walkthrough of the campus, lab tours, classroom visits, a welcome message from President Warren Ross, and interviews with students and faculty. Prospective students and their families are encouraged to visit https://www.umhs-sk.org/virtual-tour. The rollout comes at a time when interested students typically visit the campus, but are currently unable to plan in-person tours as a result of COVID-related travel restrictions. By utilizing the latest technology that provides an in-depth look at UMHS as filmed over a five day period pre-shutdown, visitors can now navigate the Caribbean campus, see lectures come to life, and hear firsthand about the UMHS experience at any time by going online. Were proud to showcase our world-class facilities on the beautiful island of St. Kitts and provide an in-depth look at what its like to be a student at UMHS, said Warren Ross, president of UMHS. UMHS has invested more than $100 million to build a state-of-the-art medical school, and combined with our robust student support services, including tutoring, mentoring and advising, weve created a program where the vast majority of our students go on to graduate and obtain a residency. We invite everyone to take a virtual tour to learn more about our school and what makes our program unique. The virtual tour is now live on the UMHS website and can be accessed by visiting https://www.umhs-sk.org/virtual-tour. About UMHS The University of Medicine and Health Sciences (UMHS), is a small, mission-driven medical school with a commitment to student support and a legacy of successful residency placements in the United States and Canada. UMHS was founded in 2007 by medical education pioneers Warren and Robert Ross to deliver a highly personalized school experience. Graduates of UMHS earn a Doctor of Medicine degree (MD) and qualify to practice medicine throughout the United States and Canada. Students begin their Basic Science studies in St. Kitts, West Indies, and complete their clinical training in the United States. With an unprecedented 96% student retention rate, the vast majority of students that begin their medical studies at UMHS go on to obtain residencies. For more information visit https://www.umhs-sk.org/. Gov. Phil Murphy on Friday partially vetoed a bill allowing towns and counties to borrow money to cope with lost revenue and increased costs during the pandemic. The bill ((A3971), passed by the state Assembly in May and the Senate on Thursday, would have permitted local governments to issue coronavirus relief bonds backed by property taxes to cover lost revenue and unforeseen expenses tied to the virus. They could have borrowed an amount equal to as much as 30% of the previous years budget with a repayment period of up to 10 years, though they could seek permission from the state to borrow more and with a longer repayment period. Local leaders say theyre already hurting for revenue. Fees from parking, permitting, licensing and hotel occupancies took a hit, said Michael Cerra, executive director of the New Jersey League of Municipalities. Additionally, theyre bracing for declines property tax collections as unemployment here hits a record high, 16.2%, and property tax appeals. In his conditional veto of the bill, Murphy said local governments should be permitted to borrow to offset their losses and expenses but within the confines of existing financing mechanism provided by the state. By incorporating into our existing local borrowing framework certain tailored modifications designed to meet local units emergent needs, we will be able to accomplish the goal of helping address local fiscal needs resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic while maintaining the protections of existing safeguards, which will help ensure that local borrowing is conducted efficiently and responsibly, he wrote. Hes recommended changes to local borrowing rules that would allow towns and counties to borrow for up to five years to pay coronavirus expenses and make up for revenue shortfalls. This will permit local units that verify the existence of COVID-19 related operational shortfalls to raise the associated costs in their budget over five years, or up to ten years if they can demonstrate to the Local Finance Board that repayment in five years would present a significant financial hardship, he said. Cerra said Sunday the league has significant concerns with the conditional veto and is still working through the recommendations. It appears to require the local governments to be operating at a deficit before they can issue any of these financial instruments, which is something you generally want to avoid, he said. We plan to go back to the governors office and sponsors with our thoughts. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Samantha Marcus may be reached at smarcus@njadvancemedia.com. Results of a private survey on Monday showed China's manufacturing activity expanded for the month of July the fastest pace in nearly a decade, according to records. The Caixin/Markit manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) came in at 52.8 for July, marking its third straight month of expansion. Companies registered the fast expansions in output and new orders since January 2011 amid reports of firmer customer demand, noted Caixin and IHS Markit in their report of the survey results. "As production and demand expanded, measures for purchases and stocks of purchased items both remained strong," said Wang Zhe, senior economist at Caixin Insight Group. Economists polled by Reuters had expected Caixin/Markit manufacturing PMI to come in at 51.3 for July as compared to 51.2 for June. PMI readings above 50 indicate expansion, while those below that signal contraction. PMI readings are sequential and indicate on-month expansion or contraction. China's manufacturing sector has been battered as factories were shut earlier in the year due to large-scale lockdowns to contain the coronavirus pandemic. Demand was also hit as the virus spread globally. The gauge for new export orders remained in contractionary territory for the seventh consecutive month in July. "Although the pace of the contraction slowed, overseas demand remained a drag on overall demand," Wang wrote in a report. While recently there was some resurgence of the virus in parts of China, supply and demand both improved, he added. "Overall, flare-ups of the epidemic in some regions did not hurt the improving trend of the manufacturing economy, which continued to recover as more epidemic control measures were lifted," said Wang. However, employment remained weak in July, he said. Former US President Bill Clinton with John Hume and his wife Pat as they walk along Peace Bridge in Derry city Former US President Bill Clinton today gave a passionate tribute to John Hume not only as a remarkable statesman and human being but a man whose enduring legacy of the Northern Ireland peace process has since helped heal political rifts across the globe. Speaking to broadcaster Philip Boucher-Hayes on RTE Radio Ones Drivetime programme this evening, Mr Clinton described Mr Hume as a remarkable man whose absence from the world stage in recent years after he was diagnosed with dementia has not gone unnoticed. He was a remarkable man who could have been very valuable to the world at full steam over the last two or three years when all over the world people were celebrating divisive characters people who treated their political opponents as less than human and had no respect for anybody else and seemed to be rewarded for it in certain circles, he said. John was the very opposite of that. He was a determined advocate for peace in Northern Ireland but he would deal with anyone who was duly elected and try to win them over, he said. Read More On a personal note, he said of Mr Hume, he became a friend. You couldnt help be friendly with him. It was easy because I shared his goals, we wanted to get to a peace agreement but I also appreciated the fact that he had fought too long and hard and still managed to be a real person with a real life. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close John Hume. PA Photo: Paul Faith John Hume and his wife Pat on their wedding day in 1960 John Hume at a civil rights protest in Derry in 1971. Albert Reynolds, Gerry Adams and John Hume celebrate the IRA ceasefire at Government buildings. 6/9/1994 WISDOM: John Hume with a young Bertie Ahern From left, Gerry Adams, Albert Reynolds and John Hume in 1994 after the announcement of the first IRA ceasefire Bishop Daly pictured with John Hume and Charles Haughey Photo: NPA/Independent collection Nelson Mandela with John Hume at the South African Embassy in Dublin in 2000 Former US President Bill Clinton with John Hume and his wife Pat as they walk along Peace Bridge in Derry city John Hume Charisma: John Hume was blessed with a tender heart and tough mind. John Hume receiving the Nobel Peace Prize Peter Robinson, Martin McGuinness, Bill Clinton and John Hume pictured in 2010 Picture: Pacemaker / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume. PA Photo: Paul Faith I just admired him and I liked him and he was good company, I loved being with him, he added. Along with crediting the former SDLP leader and Nobel Laureate for giving the children of Northern Ireland a peaceful future, he described Mr Hume as someone whose counsel he could rely when the US first got involved in the Northern Ireland peace process. And so I studied everything I could about his career and what he had done and how he had managed through the hard times and it convinced me that if the United States took the position of rigorously supporting a non-violent, peaceful solution to this that would save everybody we might actually be able to play a positive role and he was the image of that for me, he said. He added: Every time I saw him I felt this great tide of admiration and affection and enjoyment of his company but it also inspired me to just keep going, he said of the negotiations. I thought we need to do this. This is the face that the Irish present to the world and I always thought the North would always be better off getting along than continuing to fight and I still believe that. He also said that it was Mr Hume who encouraged him to take a leap of faith and when the US controversially issued former Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams a visa to visit the US. He was always above the fray in a way but he sure knew when to get involved. I took all that heat for giving Gerry Adams a visa, you remember, but he thought it was time, he said. Expand Close Bill Clinton and John Hume / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Bill Clinton and John Hume He (Hume) said I think its worth the risk. He said it may not work out but I think you ought to do it. Now, that had a real impact on me because at the time the then-British government was going crazy, my own State Department was against it and I thought, heres John Hume who has stood up for non-violence throughout the entire length of The Troubles, saying its time to take a leap of faith. Mr Clinton said that leap of faith not only ultimately led to the Good Friday Agreement, the model employed during the peace process, which he described as youre either going to share the future or treat it like a peace of pie to divide up has been a successful template used by the US in brokering peace in other trouble spots around the world. It was basically a roadmap that could be adapted virtually everywhere, he said. I thought this is what we ought to try to do, some version of this in all of these other troubled places around the world and I still believe that. Meanwhile, Senator George Mitchell, who acted as Special Envoy to Northern Ireland under the Clinton administration, described Mr Hume as one of Ireland's greatest ever people. Expand Close Peace process: George Mitchell was instrumental. Photo: Gareth Chaney/Collins / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Peace process: George Mitchell was instrumental. Photo: Gareth Chaney/Collins "John Hume was one of the greatest persons in Irish history, an advocate for and an architect of peace. He was rightly recognised as a fearless leader who devoted his life to the cause of peace in Northern Ireland," he said. "He was a close and dear friend to me. All who knew and admired him will miss him very much." Ayodhya, Aug 3 : As the countdown for the grand ceremony of 'Bhoomi Pujan' for the construction of the Ram temple began, Ayodhya District Magistrate Anuj Kumar Jha handed over the five acre land to the Sunni Waqf Board at Dhannipur village in Faizabad, as mandated by the Supreme Court in lieu of the Babri mosque. A delegation of the newly formed Masjid Trust -- Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation led by its president Zufar Faruqi and the Board's Chief Executive Officer Sayyad Mohammad Shoib met Ayodhya DM Anuj Kumar Jha at the latter's residence. Talking to IANS, Board CEO Shoib said, "Today the district magistrate formally handed over the possession of land for the mosque to the Trust members. He handed over the certified copy of revenue record (Khatauni)." The Supreme Court in its Ayodhya verdict of November 9, 2019, mandated a five acre plot to the Sunni Waqf Board at a prominent place in Ayodhya. In February 2020, the Uttar Pradesh government announced the allotment of land at Dhannipur village in Sadar Tahsil of Faizabad in District Ayodhya about 25 kilometers away from Ram Janmabhoomi. On July 29, 2020, the Sunni Waqf Board announced a nine-member trust that will take up the job of building the mosque, however the Board will include six more trustees later. Board CEO Shoib said the members of the trust will meet soon and and decide on the further course of action. HSBC Holdings is speeding up the shakeup of its global business and warning loan losses may reach $13 billion this year as it battles the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. The Asia-focused lender reported first-half profit that missed estimates after they more than halved to $5.6 billion because of higher loan losses. The bank said it was looking at further measures to boost performance, including investing more in Asia and cutting back in the US. We do need to take costs down, as a result of the revenue pressures from the coronavirus, said Chief ... Microsoft said Sunday it will continue talks to buy short-form video app TikTok after its chief executive spoke with President Donald Trump in a weekend of uncertainty clouding the future of the Chinese-owned app. Microsoft said in a blog post that chief executive Satya Nadella and Trump had spoken and that the company is committed to addressing Trump's concerns about the social media platform. Trump previously indicated that he was not in favor of a deal and said he planned to ban TikTok in the United States. He had also been considering options over the past few days to force Beijing-based parent company ByteDance to divest in TikTok in the U.S. due to national security concerns, according to people familiar with the talks who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss them publicly. Microsoft confirmed that it will "move quickly" on discussions with ByteDance and said it has given the U.S. government notice of a possible acquisition of the U.S. assets of TikTok. This the first time Microsoft has confirmed that the company is in talks for Microsoft to purchase TikTok operations in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand. "This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections," the tech giant said in its post. TikTok and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Buying TikTok would shift the tech landscape in the U.S. and put Microsoft in a powerful position to compete with Facebook and Google. Microsoft has focused mainly on enterprise software for the past decade, though it does own professional networking site LinkedIn. The continuing discussions, which Microsoft said it expected to conclude by Sept. 15, hinged largely on buy-in from the Trump administration. Trump told reporters Friday night that he planned to ban the app in the U.S., and had earlier indicated that he would do so in retaliation for what he saw as China's role in spreading the coronavirus pandemic. "As far as TikTok is concerned, we're banning them from the United States," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday. But on Saturday morning, TikTok officials were still waging a public campaign to garner favor with officials and fans, and assured users in a TikTok video that the platform was "here for the long run." READ MORE: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says President Trump will take broad action on Chinese software, including TikTok and WeChat Microsoft is one of the few U.S. tech giants in a position to buy the app, given its resources and the lack of a competing business. Microsoft said on its blog that it would "ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the United States." Ensuring American data privacy has been a main crux of lawmakers' arguments against Chinese ownership of TikTok. TikTok has continually insisted that it already keeps U.S. user data stored in the country and that it does not hand over data to the Chinese government. TikTok, which has been downloaded more than 2 billion times, according to research firm Sensor Tower, lets users make short videos that show them dancing, cooking, pulling pranks or taking political stances. It is especially popular with teenage users, who have used the platform to take aim at Trump. That included earlier this summer, when teens encouraged each other to reserve tickets to Trump's June rally in Tulsa, Okla., hoping to inflate the expected number of attendees even though they never planned to show up. The Trump campaign said it had no impact on the event. MISSION, Texas A Texas city commissioner was fatally shot in an exchange of gunfire with police and a sheriffs deputy who had responded to a domestic disturbance call at his home, authorities said. Officers who responded to the call late Thursday at Sullivan City Commissioner Gabriel Salinas home in Mission found his 39-year-old girlfriend with severe wounds caused by a knife or machete and her 4-year-old son with a head injury, said Robert Dominguez, the police chief in Mission, which sits along the Mexico border not far from Texas southern tip. They then encountered Salinas, 39, who opened fire, leading the officers to fire back, Dominguez said. Salinas barricaded himself inside the home and after several hours of failed attempts to contact him, officers sent in a robot that found him dead in a bedroom, the police chief said. As far as I know right now, it was not a self-inflicted gunshot wound. I think that he died as a result of being hit in the transfer of fire, with the two Mission officers and a Hidalgo County sheriffs deputy, Dominguez said. The woman was critically wounded but was expected to recover. Her son was treated and released, said Dominguez, who didnt immediately reply to a Saturday phone message seeking further information. He said an autopsy will determine whether Salinas was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Hidalgo County sheriffs officials also did not respond to Saturday requests for comment. The Texas Rangers are investigating the shooting. Texas Department of Public of Public Safety Sgt. Maria Montalvo said Saturday that the investigation was ongoing and referred other questions to Mission police. Dominguez said Salinas was arrested in September on a misdemeanor assault charge involving the same woman, but the charge was dismissed when the woman failed to pursue them. Even though Salinas lived in Mission, he could be a city commissioner in Sullivan City because Texas law allows the use of only a mailing address when filing for office. That the Congress is in a state of drift is among the countrys worst-kept secrets. But its state of affairs in Maharashtra, where it was born as the Indian National Congress in 1885, may be a good petri dish for analysing this gradual implosion in the party. Here, while the Congress is living out the contradiction of being in power, but not in authority, it is also riven with rising factionalism and has to contend with an elephant in the room its ally, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). With a perception that the Grand Old Party is gradually wilting away, the NCP, as Congress leaders fear, is moving in to mop up the pickings, and make inroads into the social base of the Congress, especially among Muslims and Dalits. Though the Congress is part of the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) regime under Uddhav Thackeray, its ministers complain that the government is seen as that of the NCP, which holds the cream portfolios, or at best, of the Shiv Sena-NCP. What is worse, they lament, is that the partys state or central leadership is unable to respond to the impending crisis, fiddling away like Nero while Rome burnt With the Shiv Sena and NCP seemingly drawing close, Congress leaders fear that the two may eventually join hands later in the day, leaving it out in the cold. Though a sense of memory in politics may be ephemeral, the NCP was born in 1999, as the culmination of a power struggle within the Congress, even though the two buried differences to form the government in Maharashtra soon after. As a chip of the old block, the NCP can up to an extent grow at the expense of the Congress, which despite its electoral debacles, retains some of its social footprint. NCP chief Sharad Pawars criticism about the Elgar Parishad investigations being transferred to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), and the Ram temple at Ayodhya being constructed during the coronavirus pandemic, may be aimed at these sections. Buddhist Dalits, or erstwhile Mahars, who form around 8% of the population, are upset at the gradual erosion of their clout in politics and the rise of political Hindutva. The Mahars converted to Buddhism with Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in 1956, and are the largest and most militant block among the Dalits in Maharashtra. As converts from Hinduism, they are seen as the challengers of political Hindutva, and hence, have clashed with the Shiv Sena in the past. The Muslims are also upset at the Congress being unable to articulate a strong response to the BJP and its majoritarian politics. As a Congress minister admits, the bulwark of their support were sections of the Muslims and Dalits, especially Buddhist Dalits and smaller OBCs, with the landed Marathas, especially those in the western Maharashtra belt, choosing to go with the NCP. However, instead of nurturing a fresh generation of leaders from these groups, the party has chosen to nominate Maratha leaders, who lack much of a mass base, for organisational or cabinet posts. Apart from the NCP, the Congress also has to contend with players like the All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), which have struck a chord with sections of the Muslim and up to an extent, Dalit youth. The Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) led by Dr Ambedkars grandson Prakash Ambedkar, was blamed for the rout of the Congress-NCP in eight Lok Sabha seats. The VBA had walked away with a section of Dalits, Muslims and smaller OBCs, which were earlier out of the power matrix. Its subsequent meltdown has seen the NCP, and not the Congress, move in for the kill. Two former VBA legislators are now in the NCP. As Congress leaders note, the Congress and NCP were never on the same page even between 1999 and 2014, when they shared power in the state and at the Centre (2004-2014). As the leader of a competing party, Pawar had always tried to chip away at the Congress vote-base or paint it into a corner politically. A line often repeated by a senior Congressman is about how contrary to political perception, it is the Congress, and not the BJP or Shiv Sena, which have been the NCPs enemy number one. Today, with Congress being unable to rise to the occasion despite being the principal opposition, Pawar, who is credited with bringing together the disparate parties in the MVA, is being seen as a major challenger to the BJP. Despite its pretensions of being a national party, the NCP has never managed to break the jinx and get double-digit Lok Sabha seats from Maharashtra or surpass its 2004 tally of 71 in the state assembly. Pawar may use the outreach to Muslims and Dalits for developing a larger social coalition to build on the partys traditional base of Marathas (kshatriyas) and Kunbis (tillers). The NCP has been restricted to largely the Western Maharashtra belt, with a bit presence elsewhere. Developing an incremental base, albeit at the cost of the Congress, may help spread its wings. While the Maratha-Kunbis, who also comprise the landed elite, are often at odds with smaller OBCs and Dalits, this social alliance may reduce some social friction between these groups. Even the most hard-bitten of Congress supporters admit that their party has lost its killing spirit, something that is a must when ranged against 24X7 politicians like Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah or even the old war horse Pawar. What is worse, in Maharashtra, it has ceded space to the NCP, allowing it to set or hijack the narrative. For instance, during the state assembly elections, when the BJP and Shiv Sena seemed poised to come to power again, the party had all but given up on its chances. However, a blistering, determined campaign by Pawar for his defection-ridden NCP that had saved the day for his ally. That leaders within the Congress have been ranged against each other in the government and organisation have led to major embarrassments. A series of missteps saw the party being forced to withdraw its second candidate to ensure an unopposed election to the legislative council in May. When the leadership deliberated the pros and cons of supporting a Shiv Sena-led regime, it was the specter of dissensions from the party that forced its hand on joining the government rather than extending outside support. Ironically, in the Lok Sabha polls held months earlier, it was a Shiv Sena defector, Suresh (Balu) Dhanorkar, who helped save face for the Congress, as the sole victor from Maharashtra, even as veterans like Sushilkumar Shinde and Ashok Chavan bit the dust. Dhanorkars nomination from Chandrapur, where he trounced then union minister of state for home Hansraj Ahir, came at the last minute, in the culmination of an intense feud in the party. But, lulled into complacency by power, which was as unexpected as the Biblical manna from heaven, the Congress may be lured into a sense of complacency like the frog in water that has been set to boil gradually. This is a far cry from the days where the Congress held almost undisputed sway in Maharashtra, striding the political area like a Colossus. As a senior Congressman from Vidarbha always noted, it is only the Congress or a break-away faction which can defeat the Congress in Maharashtra, much like the powerful Yadava clan of Lord Krishna, which destroyed itself in a fratricidal civil war. But, even as some of the strongest critics of the party admit, the Congress must get its act in place to survive and occupy the opposition space. Because nature abhors a vacuum, in which lies the great unknown. Los Angeles, Aug 3 : A fast-growing wildfire in Riverside County of Southern California forced around 8,000 local residents to be evacuated, the authorities said. The blaze, dubbed "Apple Fire," which started Friday night, has scorched 20,516 acres (83.1 square km), according to the latest information updated by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday. A total of 1,360 firefighters are battling on the scene, but they have been unable to contain any of it so far. The Apple Fire was first reported as two small fires near Cherry Valley, about 110 km east of Los Angeles downtown, and then spread very fast, fuelled by hot and dry conditions with low humidity levels and gusty winds. Six helicopters and six air tankers were assigned to launch so called "air attacks" against the fire, which is threatening 2,500 homes, local NBC news channel said, estimating 19,000 gallons of flame retardant were used on Saturday. Cal Fire's statewide fire map shows over a dozen wildfires are burning on Sunday. The Invisible Man The Invisible Man, directed by Australian filmmaker Leigh Whannell, is a psychological science fiction thriller very loosely based on H.G. Wells 1897 novel. The book has been adapted numerous times for film and television, the most famous version being James Whales elegant 1933 film, featuring Claude Rains. The recent film has been quite successful, in part due to the pandemics having prevented the opening of various blockbusters. On a $7 million budget, the movie has earned $131 million worldwide and is currently one of the most popular films of 2020. Its suspenseful qualities help explain its broader appeal, while its feeding on the #MeToo mood, becoming the latest entry in what one critic calls boom times for feminist revenge narratives, helps account for its success in certain narrower quarters. Elisabeth Moss in The Invisible Man (2020) As the movie opens, Cecilia (Elisabeth Moss) is lying in bed in the middle of the night. She tensely plucks an evidently disgusting and domineering male hand from her hip. Within the first minute or so, the audience has already been alerted to the general tenor of the film. Apparently terrified, Cecilia creeps through the massive labyrinth of a house, disables the alarm and scales a high concrete wall, all to escape her abusive boyfriend, Adrian Griffin (Oliver Jackson-CohenGriffin was the name of Wells original character), an optics engineer. Griffins high-tech glass prison-house overlooking the northern California coasta quasi-Alcatraztestifies to his extreme wealth. With the help of her sister Emily (Harriet Dyer), our heroine escapes to the safety of close friend James (Aldis Hodge), a police detective with a teenage daughter, Sydney (Storm Reid). Suffering from acute panic, Cecilia freezes at the thought of setting foot outside James home until Emily arrives with the news that Adrian has committed suicide. The beleaguered woman also learns, through an appointment with Adrians lawyer brother Tom (Michael Dorman), in whose office sits an urn with Adrians ashes, that she is the beneficiary of $5 million. The ensuing celebrations involve tippling champagne and setting up a bank account for Sydneys college fund. However, to no audience members great surprise, disturbing events begin to occur. Cecilia, a Bay area architect, discovers her work portfolio has been emptied when she arrives for a job interview. She faints, only to learn that she is full of drugs and pregnant. When bed covers are mysterious pulled off, fake emails sent out, footsteps appear in coffee groundsshe realizes Adrian has found a way to continue controlling her as an unseen, vengeful force. No one believes her suspicions and when corpses begin to mount, Cecilia is blamed. Aldis Hodge, Elisabeth Moss and Storm Reid in The Invisible Man (2020) In the end, needless to say, unbridled male villainy is no match for female power, strength and cunning. As noted, The Invisible Mans popularity is primarily attributable to its cliff-hanging elements. Moss adequately carries the film, although at times she chews up the scenery, perhaps to live up to a reputation for offering ultra-emotional performances. Hodge, Reid and Dyer are competent adjuncts. The movie makes use of conventional horror tropes, while Benjamin Wallfischs pounding score occasionally borders on the hysterical. The reality is that Cecilias relationship with Adrian is not truly a lifelike one, but largely a political construct-indictment. It does not appear that money is her motive, or low self-esteem her difficulty. So what is this apparently stable and rational middle-class woman doing with such a distillation of pure malice in the first place? The audience is asked to take for granted something that is neither proven nor convincing. It is fitting in such boom times for feminist revenge narratives as these that a policeman is the hero. These layers cant help themselves. The Invisible Man does not have anything even vaguely radical or oppositional about it. Cops, as anyone from the working class or the legions of current protesters knows, are in the first ranks of societys brutal physical abusers. Elisabeth Moss in The Invisible Man The plot is a fantastical rendition of the struggle currently under way within portions of the affluent petty bourgeoisie between male and female rivals. That struggle has nothing to do with social progress. Theres not even a pretense here. Variety put it this way: Cecilia is every woman whos ever had to fight to be heard because her ordeal wasnt visible. Many critics chime in along similar lines. The L. A. Times writes that it is a familiar story expertly retooled for an era of tech-bro sociopathy and #MeToo outrage Another critic asks What is it that makes us believe a womans story? If a woman is struck by an unseen hand, as Cecilia is, has it really happened? Wheres the proof? In an interview, Moss observes that the feeling of not being believed, not being heard or being scrutinized for believing something you know in your heart to be true is something I think on varying levels we can all identify with. When I start telling people what this movie was about and how it was being used as an analogy for gaslighting, I was really surprised by how many people would get this look in their eye. Its a commonality that I think deserves to be explored. It would probably not occur to anyone involved in the production of The Invisible Man that basing themselves on a circumstance that could not actually take place adds very little to their argument. The fantastic here serves a selfish, retrograde agenda. Filmmakers once adopted a more critical attitude. In a 1973 interview, for example, German filmmaker Rainer Werner Fassbinder explained: Im often irritated by all the talk about womens liberation. The world isnt a case of women against men, but of rich against poor, repressed against repressors. And there are just as many repressed men as there are repressed women. What a torrent of abuse would rain down on him today! Vivarium Vivarium is a science fiction movie directed by Lorcan Finnegan, from a story by Finnegan and Garret Shanley. It is an international co-production between Ireland, Denmark and Belgium. The film opens with images of cuckoo birds and their parasitical activities. There is a point being made: the common cuckoos trick other birds into raising their young by sneaking their eggs into other parents nests. They are basically looking for foster parents, in the words of one biologist. Vivarium Gemma (Imogen Poots), a kindergarten teacher, and Tom (Jesse Eisenberg), the schools groundskeeper, are a young couple in the market for a house. Dont get left behind, a friend warns, echoing the notion that home ownership is part of the American Dream. Gemma and Tom have an appointment with a bizarre, neatly dressed agent, Martin (Jonathan Aris), who leads them to a housing development called Yonder, comprising infinite rows of identical, sickly green houses. The pair soon learn there is no escaping the hellish subdivision. They end up being forced to raise a creepy, alien boy (Senan Jennings), who torments the duo until, as an even creepier alien adult (Eanna Hardwicke), he goes on to replace an expiring Martin. Tom and Gemma, having been coerced into an unearthly facsimile of parenthood, meet a fate similar to that of the cuckoo birds surrogates. A Latin word meaning place of life, a vivarium is also an enclosed area in which animals or plants are raised for observation and research. Superficially, the movie seems to be a boiler-plate attack on soulless suburbia that drains the life out of its inhabitants. Nothing new here. The question arises: is the movies central thrust just an attention-grabbing gimmick? Probably. But if one were to follow the logic of the movies premises, it would lead to the gloomy conclusion that official society allows guileless, in this case semi-bohemian, parents to raise children, before snatching them away at a certain age and making whatever it wants of them, i.e., cold, heartless, establishment automatons. But then again, its most likely just a gimmick. A young student receives medication for parasitic worms at a school in Vihiga County, Kenya, under an initiative created by the Evidence Action nongovernmental organization. New research led by Berkeley economist Edward Miguel has found that students who received deworming treatments for a longer period grew up to have higher incomes and higher standards of living. Credit: Evidence Action Children who receive sustained treatment against common parasitic infections grow up to achieve a higher standard of living, with long-lasting health and economic benefits extending to their communities, according to new findings from a research team led by a University of California, Berkeley, economist. The pioneering study, focused on Kenya and covering 20 years, found that children who receive a few extra years of deworming treatmentcosting as little as 50 cents a yeareventually have better jobs and higher incomes than those who got less treatment. "We found that, in Kenya, this modest investment led to significant improvements in the lives of infected individuals and for whole communities, and the benefits are long-lasting," said lead author Edward Miguel, a UC Berkeley development economist. "But parasitic infections remain prevalent in many low-income countries, and there's a resurgence in some poor, rural, low-income areas of the United States. Clearly, this research can serve as a guide to policymakers in much of the world." Co-author Michael Kremer, a Harvard University economist who shared the 2019 Nobel Prize in economics for developing novel ways to research poverty, added that the new findings provide an unanticipated warning about the COVID-19 pandemic: Students who lose a year or more of schooland school-based social servicessuffer lasting negative impact on their work and earning power. "These results show that school-based deworming can have an incredibly high rate of return," said Kremer. "In the current context of Kenya and other countries, many investments in health and education have been interrupted by COVID-19. Finding a way to resume them will be critical for the next generation of children." The new research was published today (Aug. 3, 2020) as a working paper by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). Miguel is the Oxfam Professor in Environmental and Resource Economics at UC Berkeley and faculty director of the Center for Effective Global Action (CEGA), a hub on campus for research on global development. One-fifth of the global population is infected According to the World Health Organization, about 1.5 billion peopleroughly 20% of the global populationare infected with the parasitic worms such as hookworm, roundworm and whipworm, which infect the intestines, and schistosomiasis, which infects the blood vessels. Globally, more than 868 million children are at risk, according to Evidence Action, a nongovernmental organization (NGO) that runs the Deworm the World Initiative. The risk is concentrated in warm, damp climates where low-income communities have poor sanitation. When infected people defecate in the open, the parasites' eggs contaminate the soil or fresh water; then, for example, the tiny worms might penetrate the feet of passersby and work their way up to the hosts' intestines. And, experts say, climate change may increase the potential for worm infections. With a greater incidence of heavy storms in some regions, floodwaters can carry the worms or their eggs to new locations, even into homes, raising the threat to humans. The health impacts can range from mild to severe, depending on the degree of infection. Children may experience stomach ailments and fatigue, which disrupt their concentration at school or keep them home. The infections cause nutritional deficiency and can lead to anemia, and also have been linked to impaired physical and mental development. In 1998, an NGO started the Primary School Deworming Project, using the schools in the Busia District (now Busia County) of Western Kenya as a focus of treatment efforts. Preliminary research found that infection rates were over 90%in effect, everyone in the district was infected. A young woman at a school in Vihiga County, Kenya, receives medication under the international Deworm the World initiative. When students suffer from parasitic worms, symptoms such as stomach pain and fatigue can disrupt their studies. If left untreated, the infection can impair physical and mental development and harm their long-term work and economic prospects. Credit: Evidence Action But because of the NGO's financial and administrative constraints, a decision was made to phase in the treatment: Students at 50 schools were selected to begin health education and deworming treatment in 1998 or 1999, while students at 25 other schools received the treatment starting in 2001. Miguel and Kremer evaluated the Kenyan program in 2004 and found a clear positive impact: School absenteeism was cut by at least 25%, with the greatest improvements among young students. Deworming "substantially improved" school attendance, even among untreated students, they found, because treatment reduced the prevalence of worm eggs in the area. Deworm the World was founded after the 2004 study by Miguel and Kremer, and subsequently governments in Kenya and globally adopted ambitious anti-worm programs, dramatically improving life for hundreds of millions of children. 'Measurable, meaningful improvements' The new research is based on treatment outcomes after 20 years, one of the longest study periods ever achieved for parasitic worm infections and interventions. The researchers tracked the former students as they grew up and transitioned to adult life, even those who moved within Kenya or migrated to other countries. They found that students who received two or three years of extra treatment in the early years of the program reported significant benefits as mature adults: Hourly earnings were higher by 13%. Consumer spending was 14% higher. Work hours in non-agricultural jobs, which usually pay more, were 9% higher. Overall, the small investment in deworming treatment produced an annualized 37% rate of return."You might assume that, in a program like this, for children, you would get some transient gain, but that people would eventually go back to the way they were," Miguel said. "But we're showing that, even 20 years later, there are measurable, meaningful improvements in the quality of life for these individuals." This has a direct bearing on poverty in a community, or a country. When hundreds of individuals in a community can be freed from infection, he explained, their improved health and education can help unlock the community's development potential. The impact of pioneering methodology One of the primary accomplishments of the research project has been its pioneering use of randomized controlled trials. While a variety of factors might ultimately contribute to an individual's health and success in adulthood, such trials allow the researchers to isolate the impact of a single factor. In effect, they can put parental support or educational success aside and look only at the effect of the deworming program. The Nobel Committee cited Kremer's development of such research techniques in awarding him the economics prize last year and specifically noted the team's work on deworming in Kenya. For Miguel, too, the prize was a profound affirmation of his work. Now, said Miguel, the researchers are moving toward new questions. They want to see if the benefits achieved by one generation in Kenya carry over to the next, and why men seem to benefit economically more than women. While deworming research has helped countries such as Kenya and India to achieve great human benefit, he added, the research evidence still must be carried to policymakers, medical workers and the public in many other low- and middle-income countries. But, like Kremer, Miguel said the COVID-19 pandemic confronts policymakers with an immediate challenge: In many low-income areas, schools are a center of social support where students receive meals and medical care, including deworming medication. If school is suspended, as it is currently in Kenya and many other countries, students may miss out on that support. "For these kids," Miguel said, "losing a couple of years of schooling can have really bad consequences. They need a response right now to find a way to deliver at least some of those services." Explore further Educational benefits of deworming children questioned by re-analysis of flagship study More information: Twenty Year Economic Impacts of Deworming (DOI): 10.3386/w27611 By Trend Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops 35 times, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijani Defense Ministry. Armenian armed forces were using large-caliber machine guns and sniper rifles. 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 the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts. The stock market could remain choppy in August after a stellar bull run over the past four months. Investors could witness high volatility as an uncertain economic outlook and rising COVID-19 present a significant threat. Meanwhile, the broader index could retract a bit due to the profit booking in stocks that have bounced back strongly from March lows. These times call for an investment in stocks that have been consistently increasing their dividends over the past several years to squeeze out safe and high yield. Here are three top dividend stocks to buy in August for reliable income that could continue to grow with you. Enbridge With a history of consistently increasing its dividends for the last 25 years, Enbridge (TSX:ENB)(NYSE:ENB) is a top dividend stock on the TSX. Further, its dividends have increased at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14% since 2008, which is encouraging. While lower mainline volumes amid a decline in oil prices have taken a toll on its stock, its dividends and high yield of 7.6% are safe. Investors should note that Enbridges adjusted EBITDA has consistently increased over the past several years and continues to support its earnings and distributable cash flows. In the first half of 2020, Enbridges adjusted EBITDA increased to $7.08 billion as compared to $6.98 billion in the first half of 2019. The companys diverse revenue streams and resilient businesses continue to drive its EBITDA and cash flows despite lower throughput in liquid mainline volumes. Investors should lap up Enbridge stock in August and hold for decades to benefit from strong dividend income and capital appreciation. Telus Similar to Enbridge, Telus (TSX:T)(NYSE:TU) is known for its long history of consistently increasing its dividends. The Canadian telecom giant has paid $13 billion in dividends since 2004. Moreover, through its multi-year dividend-growth program, Telus targets a semi-annual dividend increase that translates into an annual dividend growth of 7-10%. Story continues Earlier, the company said that it is deferring any dividend hike until the announcement of its third-quarter 2020 earnings. However, investors shouldnt panic much as its strong free cash flow generating capabilities should help the company to continue to pay higher dividends to its shareholders. Telus continues to add new revenue-generating units. Its net client additions climbed during the last reported quarter, while the mobile churn rate came down. Besides, the free cash flows jumped significantly compared to the prior-year quarter. Continued growth in its customer base, steady ARPU, low churn rate, and cost control measures should continue to support the companys bottom line, and, in turn, its payouts. Telus offers an attractive yield of 5%, which is safe, while its dividends are likely to increase in the future. Algonquin Power & Utilities Algonquin Power & Utilities (TSX:AQN)(NYSE:AQN) has increased its dividends for 10 years at an annualized rate of 10%. Its diversified utility and renewable assets ensure that its dividends are safe and growing. The companys predictable cash flows, rate-regulated business, and cost-reduction strategies imply that its attractive forward yield of 4.7% is very secure. Further, investors can expect decent growth in dividends in the coming years. Bottom line Theres nothing better to see dividends rolling into your account even amid a volatile market. By investing in these TSX Dividend Aristocrats, investors can be confident of generating steady passive income irrespective of where the stock market moves. The post 3 Dividend Aristocrats Im Buying in August appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada. More reading Fool contributor Sneha Nahata has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Enbridge. The Motley Fools purpose is to help the world invest, better. Click here now for your free subscription to Take Stock, The Motley Fool Canadas free investing newsletter. Packed with stock ideas and investing advice, it is essential reading for anyone looking to build and grow their wealth in the years ahead. Motley Fool Canada 2020 France on Monday said it was halting ratification of an extradition treaty with Hong Kong over Chinas controversial national security law for the city, just hours after Beijing suspended a similar pact with New Zealand. In light of the latest developments, France will not proceed as it stands with the ratification of the extradition agreement signed on May 4, 2017 between France and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the French foreign ministry said in a statement. Earlier in the day, China suspended Hong Kongs extradition treaty with New Zealand. France and New Zealand are the latest to join a string of Western powers including Canada, UK, Australia and Germany that suspended extradition treaties with Hong Kong since the controversial law was introduced in late June. China has already hit back by suspending Hong Kongs extradition treaties with Canada, Britain and Australia. New Zealands practices... grossly interfere in Chinas internal affairs, foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said while announcing Beijings decision to suspend any judicial cooperation with Wellington. Critics say the security law will erode civil liberties and human rights enjoyed by residents in the former British colony, which was returned to China in 1997. New Zealand has also tightened restrictions on military and dual-use exports to Hong Kong. China, Oz diplomats spar on twitter Chinese and Australian diplomats sparred on Twitter over Beijings actions in the South China Sea following Australias endorsement of a US statement that it would recognise virtually none of Chinas territorial claims there. Australia recently filed a memorandum with the United Nations saying the claims were without legal basis, plunging Canberra into the controversy that has drawn angry responses from Beijing. Australian High Commissioner Barry OFarrell tweeted on Thursday he told Indian external affairs minister S Jaishankar that Chinas moves were destabilising and could provoke escalation.Chinese ambassador Sun Weidong responded on Friday by accusing OFarrell of disregarding facts, writing: Its clear who safeguard peace&stability & destabilise&provoke escalations in the region. OFarrell shot back saying China should follow a 2016 international tribunal ruling that rejected most of Beijings claims. Three armed soldiers Friday forced their way into a family home in Highfields, Harare and heavily assaulted an 18-year-old male before forcefully taking US$12 and $50 from him as a bribe to stop the beatings NewZimbabwe.com has learnt. Tadiwa Gwatidzo said Friday his assailants were part of State security agents deployed to maintain peace in anticipation of a national anti-corruption demonstration the same day. Gwatidzo said when the soldiers came Friday, it was still in the early and he was still asleep when three soldiers kicked open his bedroom door after failing to catch two unidentified men they were chasing. "They started beating me up with a steel rod all over the body as demanding to know how much I had so that they stop the beatings," narrated. "I had US$12 and $50 on me which I put on the floor, which they quickly grabbed and forced me out of my room. All this time, they were beating me until we reached their truck and they left me," said an emotional Gwatidzo who stays with an aunt in Highfields' Western Triangle area. He suffered bruises all over his body. "If I could bewitch them, I would. I want revenge. There is no law that allows anyone to just get into people's homes like that and beat them up. If only I had the power to also beat them up I would. It was pure evil by people who are as old as my father. NewZimbabwe.com arrived at the family residence while neighbours were still consoling Gwatidzo. "They beat him up for no reason. I am worried because the government said we must stay at home but now they are coming into our homes and beating us up," said Nyaradzo Mandudzo, Gwatidzo's aunt. "The money taken from him was his grandmother's, instead of depending on the army for protection they have turned into our enemies and we do not even know where to flee to." Source: allafrica.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 BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 3 Trend: The number of coronavirus-infected patients undergoing treatment in hospitals in Azerbaijan has been reduced thanks to the strengthening quarantine measures, Head of the Disease Control and Prevention Department of the Management Union of Medical Territorial Units (TABIB) Yagut Garayeva said, Trend reports. "With the opening of new modular hospitals, the number of hospital beds in the country has increased," Garayeva noted. "An increase in cases of acute respiratory viral infection is traditionally expected in Azerbaijan in autumn-winter this year. We must be ready for this. Despite the fact that we are going to mitigate quarantine measures, masks should still be used, hygiene rules must be observed," she added. Douala, Aug 2 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 2nd Aug, 2020 ) :Fighters from the Boko Haram group killed at least 16 people in an attack on a camp for displaced people in northern Cameroon, an official said on Sunday. "The toll is currently 16 dead, it is clear that it was Boko Haram that was responsible," local mayor Mahamat Chetima Abba told AFP Sunday following overnight attack. Seriously ill coronavirus patients may have had treatment delayed because of an over-reliance by staff on a scoring system used in hospitals across England that can miss key warning signs, it has emerged. The Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB) said it believed there was a risk that patients who were struggling to get enough oxygen would not have their care escalated fast enough because staff could get false reassurance from bedside early warning scores used by nurses to help spot patients who are deteriorating. It also said many hospitals had redeployed inexperienced staff to care for Covid-19 patients, and those staff were often relying solely on early warning scores. The early warning scores use key observations from a patient such as pulse, blood pressure, breathing and temperature to produce an overall score of whether the patient is getting better or worse. A unique feature of Covid-19 is a phenomenon known as "silent hypoxemia" where patients, particularly the elderly, struggle to get enough oxygen but show no other signs they are struggling. This would mean their early warning score would not change, when in reality they were becoming critically ill. A previous investigation by HSIB in 2019 found that staff could be falsely reassured by early warning scores when working in a busy and complex environment. It also said the correct use of a warning score system depends on the clinical judgement of nursing staff. Issues such as the wider ward culture, workload and staffing shortages have an impact on how effective an early warning system can be. Dr Kevin Stewart, HSIBs medical director and a consultant physician at Hampshire Hospitals Trust, said: In one report that we received, a patients oxygen saturation significantly reduced within a period of half an hour, but this did not change their score, and escalation didnt happen in a timely way. He added: The virus meant that we had to completely reorganise the way we worked in a short space of time. This brought new risks to the fore. Many staff found themselves working in unfamiliar environments with unfamiliar equipment, looking after patients for whom they would not normally care, with colleagues with whom they would not normally work. They did a fantastic job in the circumstances but this sort of working can introduce new risks, especially when dealing with a new disease. In its latest report, HSIB, which investigates systemic safety risks in the NHS across England, said it was told that some NHS trusts were exclusively training reassigned staff in the use of early warning scores as a means to track deterioration in Covid-19 patients, without consideration of other markers of deterioration. It added: The availability of clinicians with the prerequisite clinical judgement expertise was limited. Staff who were less familiar with managing acute medical patients were sometimes falsely reassured by no change or additional change in early warning score. Some hospitals were also only using the early warning scores to stratify the risk to patients when they were admitted to hospital with suspected or confirmed coronavirus. It said ward staff have an over-reliance on early warning scores, which were being used in isolation from other indicators of deterioration. The Royal College of Physicians said it had published guidance in April warning staff that any increase in oxygen requirements should trigger an escalation to senior doctor. An NHS England spokesperson said: The NHS has been clear throughout the pandemic that clinical teams should not solely rely on national early warning scores for clinical decision making. NDCs Bono Regional Secretary, Dennis Yeboah Twumasi says he was threatened by military personnel stationed at Banda in the Bono Region during a confrontation over their refusal to allow some residents to participate in the ongoing voters registration exercise. He told NEAT FMs morning show Ghana Montie that the presence of the armed military men was intimidating and inhuman. I was nearly shot by the soldiers, he claimed after alleging that I know someone deployed the solders here for a special assignment. This follows a viral video of NDCs Chief Scribe, Johnson Asiedu Nketia seen angrily exchanging words with the soldiers who had blocked the road in Banda to stop busloads of people from accessing registration centres. It is unclear where the people were being bused from but they were stopped by some armed military men. Dennis Yeboah Twumasi who was at the scene has described as inappropriate the use of military personnel to intimidate some legitimate Ghanaians from registering on the basis that theyre foreigners being bused from border towns into Ghana. 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 * Dollar steadies, safe havens up after U.S. shuts China consulate * China to respond on Friday - Global Times Editor * Strong euro has dollar headed for largest weekly drop since June * Graphic: World FX rates in 2020 https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E By Tom Westbrook SINGAPORE, July 24 (Reuters) - The safe-haven yen advanced to a one-month high on Friday as deteriorating Sino-U.S. relations heightened investor anxiety, while a surging euro put the beleaguered dollar on track for its worst week in a month. China has said it "must" retaliate after the U.S. ordered its Houston consulate to shut this week, amid allegations of spying. The editor of China's Global Times said on Twitter that Beijing will announce countermeasures on Friday and ask one U.S. consulate to close. Earlier on Thursday U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Washington and its allies must use "more creative and assertive ways" to press the Chinese Communist Party to change its ways, calling it the "mission of our time." While trading volumes were lightened by a public holiday in Japan, the palpable tensions were enough to rouse the yen from a range it has kept for weeks. The yen rose 0.3% to 106.51, its strongest since late June. The Australian and New Zealand dollars were also off from multi-month highs and the Chinese yuan struggled for headway. "The general concern is that any escalation in U.S-China tensions is bad and is putting the trade deal at risk," said Kim Mundy, an FX analyst at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney. "If we see China retaliating today, our view is that Aussie and the other growth-linked commodity currencies can fall," she said, with a dip likely to shove the Aussie back in the 68 cent to 70 cent range it held for several weeks. The Australian dollar drifted higher to $0.7112, and is up about 1.7% for the week, but roughly 1% below a 15-month high touched on Wednesday. The New Zealand dollar was at $0.6641, just under a 7-month high of $0.6690 touched on Thursday. Story continues The safe-haven Swiss franc also hit a four-month peak of 0.9243 per dollar. Weaker-than-expected U.S. employment data had rattled U.S. markets overnight. FAREWELL, CHENGDU? Sino-U.S. ties have deteriorated over issues ranging from the novel coronavirus pandemic, which began in China, to Beijing trade and business practices, its territorial claims in the South China Sea and its clampdown on Hong Kong. A tit-for-tat consulate closure is shaping as among the most likely Chinese reply to the Houston consulate eviction. A source told Reuters on Wednesday that China was considering shutting the U.S. consulate in Wuhan. The Chinese yuan, a barometer of Sino-U.S. relations, fell overnight after the South China Morning Post reported that the U.S. consulate in Chengdu may be shuttered. The yuan last sat at 7.0058 per dollar. Other Asian currencies from the South Korean won to the Thai baht and Singapore dollar were also gently pressured. Elsewhere the tearaway euro remained a tower of strength since busting through chart resistance in the afterglow of Europe's leaders agreeing on a coronavirus rescue package. It has gained 1.6% this week, its best since late June, and 3.4% for the month so far to sit at $1.1615, just below a 21-month high hit overnight. Sterling hung on to early-week gains at $1.2749. Besides China's next move, investors are looking to a slew of Purchasing Managers Index figures due across Europe and the U.S. later on Friday for a read on economic recovery progress. Focus is also on the next U.S. fiscal rescue package, which is deadlocked in Congress while a month-end deadline looms as some unemployment benefits are due to expire. "The concern is that a failure to get this away will impact consumer sentiment at a time when U.S. data is starting to miss the mark," said Chris Weston, head of research at Melbourne brokerage Pepperstone. (Reporting by Tom Westbrook Editing by Shri Navaratnam) They've just enjoyed their first holiday abroad as a family of three. And, Millie Mackintosh, 31, was still in the mood for summer on Sunday, after landing back in the UK from Greece, as she cooed over baby Sienna, 12 weeks, during an al fresco lunch with husband Hugo Taylor, 34. The fresh-faced TV star looked stunning in a pretty yellow maxi dress as she treated herself to pasta and a glass of rose at a London eatery. Family time: Millie Mackintosh, 31, cooed over baby Sienna, 12 weeks, during an al fresco lunch with husband Hugo Taylor, 34, on Sunday, after landing back in the UK from Greece Millie showcased her summer style in a lemon hued tiered frock, which boasted loose short sleeves and a tie-waist. The new mum was make-up free for their outing, sporting a fresh tan from their recent getaway to Santorini. Millie wore her light brunette tresses sleek and straight and accessorised with hoop earrings and a pair of salmon pink sunglasses, while carrying her belongings in a basket bag. Hugo kept things casual, clad in khaki combats and an open light blue shirt worn over a plain white tee as he sipped on a glass of red wine. Loving life: The fresh-faced TV star looked stunning in a pretty yellow maxi dress for the outing Yummy! Millie treated herself to pasta and a glass of rose at a London eatery Chic: Millie showcased her summer style in a lemon hued tiered frock, which boasted loose short sleeves and a tie-waist Adorable: The proud parents couldn't help but smile at their little bundle of joy So in love: The new mum took every opportunity to give her daughter her love and affection Yum! The married couple sat outside and tucked into their lunch with Sienna next to them Fresh-faced Millie was au fait when it came to eating spaghetti at an Italian restaurant in London on Sunday. In an adorable mother-and-daughter bonding moment, it looked as though Millie was giving Sienna her first lesson on how to eat spaghetti, by twirling it with a fork on a spoon. During the meal Millie was seen stroking Sienna's feet, smiling adoringly at her daughter and blowing kisses her way. On leaving, Sienna copied her mother by putting her hand in the air just as Millie had done when waving for a taxi a few seconds before. Besotted: The couple smiled adoringly at their little girl who lay next to them in her pram Yummy mummy: Millie wore her tresses sleek and straight and accessorised with hoop earrings and a pair of salmon pink sunglasses, while carrying her belongings in a basket bag Fixated: Millie struggled to take her eyes off her darling daughter Protective mama: Millie kept at look out at what was going on around them as she doted on her daughter during lunch Precious moments: The new parents were clearly in a bubble of bliss with baby Sienna Tucking in: Millie enjoyed her bowl of pasta and washed it down with a glass of rose wine Millie recently revealed she's coming to terms with the physical changes to her body after welcoming daughter Sienna with husband Hugo in May. The former Made In Chelsea star embraced her postpartum figure as she posed in a swimsuit for a snap shared to her Instagram, which she captioned: 'I don't have a flat stomach and I'm okay with that.' Millie declared she wasn't let the pressures of being in the public eye affect her social media posts, as she penned: 'Wasn't going to post this because you can see the cellulite on my legs but who cares?' Happy mama: The MIC alum beamed with happiness as she enjoyed the family lunch Drink up: The new mum sipped on a glass of blush rose and stayed hydrated with still water The look of love: Millie smiled while stroking her daughter's tiny feet All eyes on you: Millie gazed at her baby as she strolled along pushing Sienna in her pram Sweet: The parents were clearly overcome with love for their daughter Speaking to Glamour earlier this month, Millie insisted the contrast between her pre and post pregnancy appearance is akin to looking at two completely different people. 'I've started walking every day, I've started doing a bit of strength training again and it's nice to feel like I'm just getting stronger,' Millie said of her post-partum exercise routine. 'I just don't like the term, 'getting my body back,' because I think it's a new body, it's different, you've given birth. So, it's not your old body anymore.' Keeping it healthy! Hugo opted to have a delicious looking salad Joyous: Millie lit up when Sienna became animated in her pram Taxi! Millie hailed down a taxi once they'd finished their food and emptied their glasses Adorable! Baby Sienna adorably followed suit, mimicking her mum's waving action CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As 90 degree heat waves sweep the country and people spend most of their time at home due to COVID-19, Americans are looking for ways to keep costs under control. New research conducted by Sense ( sense.com ) and SurveyMonkey shows that nearly all Americans (91 percent) are staying home more this summer due to work-at-home policies or camp and school closures. More than 3 out of 4 Americans (78 percent) say they're concerned that home energy costs will be higher than usual as a result, but only 6 out of 10 are taking steps to reduce their energy consumption. The survey showed that many Americans aren't taking simple steps that could reduce their home energy bills this summer, such as adjusting HVAC settings, taking advantage of energy savings programs offered by utilities or installing smart thermostats. And only a fraction of Americans know exactly how much their air conditioner is increasing their utility bill. Less than half (44 percent) plan to turn up their thermostat settings to keep a lid on costs, which is one of the simplest ways to reduce summer energy bills. Most people (90 percent) prefer to set their thermostats below 78 degrees, the temperature recommended by the US Department of Energy to stay comfortable while minimizing your utility bill. In fact, the most popular setting was a cool 68 to 72 degrees. The research shows that the most popular energy-saving measure will be to use fans as much as possible rather than air conditioning (55 percent), while about a third (35 percent) plan to turn off their AC entirely and open windows to stay cool. Turning off the AC and using a fan instead is a smart move because HVAC systems use so much more energy than an electric fan. A surprisingly small number of people are turning to smart home technology to reduce their energy costs. Only 24 percent have or plan to install a smart or programmable thermostat for the first time and only 10% plan to install a home energy monitor to see what's using energy in their home. Smart thermostats have demonstrated significant energy savings, and home energy monitors provide detailed insights into energy usage that can lead to savings of 9 percent or more. Nearly half (45 percent) of those surveyed didn't know if their utility offers rebates or free home assessments for smart thermostats or air conditioning upgrades. In fact, many utilities offer these kinds of incentives to residents. One of the biggest challenges for most consumers is simply knowing how much it costs to operate their air conditioning. Only 1 out of 5 Americans can estimate very accurately how much air conditioning contributes to their total utility costs. Another fifth of respondents (22 percent) believe their estimates are not at all accurate and the remainder could only estimate somewhat accurately. Said Sense CEO Mike Phillips, "Most people are in the dark when it comes to understanding how their home is using electricity and so they simply don't know how to reduce their bills effectively. There are many simple steps people can take that will have a big impact on their bills this summer, such as reducing your AC usage while staying comfortable, getting a home energy audit from your utility, or monitoring energy usage in real time." According to the experts at Sense, here are some proven techniques that will help people save money on their utility bills this summer. Switch from air conditioning to fans when outside temperatures and humidity are low. Don't run your HVAC's internal fan continuously. It uses about 500W and could add $60 to the average monthly bill. Also, the ducts in your attic and outside walls can fill with warm air, which you are then blowing back into your living space. and could add to the average monthly bill. Also, the ducts in your attic and outside walls can fill with warm air, which you are then blowing back into your living space. Try setting your HVAC at the highest comfortable setting, and use fans to create a cooling breeze. Clean HVAC filters and perform other maintenance regularly. Keeping your HVAC running efficiently will reduce electricity costs. regularly. Keeping your HVAC running efficiently will reduce electricity costs. Reduce energy use across your entire home. Turn off consumer electronics and other devices that stay on continuously. Always-on devices account for 23 percent of the average electric utility bill , costing $308 annually. Visit the Sense blog for more tips to reduce summer energy bills. Download the survey here . Survey Methodology The survey of 1362 Americans was conducted by SurveyMonkey Audience. About Sense Sense's mission is to make all homes intelligent by keeping people informed about what's happening in their homes, and helping to make homes safer, more efficient, and more reliable. Founded in 2013 by pioneers in speech recognition, Sense uses machine learning technology to provide real-time insights on device behavior, even for those devices that are not "smart." Customers rely on Sense for a wide range of uses including monitoring their home appliances, determining whether they left appliances running and identifying how to reduce their energy costs. Sense has received investments from two of the world's largest energy technology companies, Schneider Electric and Landis + Gyr. Sense is headquartered in Cambridge, Mass. To make sense of your energy, visit: https://sense.com . Media contact: [email protected] SOURCE Sense Related Links https://sense.com At least 104 people have died after consuming hooch or country-made illicit liquor in the three Majha districts of Tarn Taran, Amritsar and Gurdaspur since July 29. While 80 deaths have been reported from Tarn Taran city and its adjoining villages, Amritsars Muchhal village and Gurdaspurs Batala town have seen 12 deaths each so far. WHAT IS HOOCH Hooch is a spurious alcoholic preparation that can be harmful and fatal. Cases of hooch poisoning are common and have been reported from time to time in different parts of India. HOW ITS MADE Illicit liquor made by adding denatured alcohol is an unauthorised preparation, which is meant for industrial use not human consumption. Though the chemical analysis report of the material seized in raids from Amritsar, Tarn Taran and Gurdaspur districts is awaited, a check by the police and excise department shows denatured spirit used in the paint and hardware industry went into the making of the hooch. Denatured spirit is ethanol that has additives to make it poisonous, bad-tasting, foul-smelling, or nauseating to discourage recreational consumption. Ethanol is a clear, colourless liquid and the principal ingredient in alcoholic beverages such as beer, wine or brandy. Denatured spirit is also called methylated spirit (alcohol for general use that is unfit for drinking by the addition of 10% methanol). Due to the diversity of industrial use for denatured alcohol, hundreds of additives and denaturing methods have been used. Denatured spirit is also used as a solvent and as fuel for alcohol burners and camping stoves. A senior police official said the accused were mixing equal amounts of water and denatured spirit to produce illicit liquor. The spirit was being smuggled by them from Patiala and Zirakpur. Normally, the spirit is sent to factories and there is a proper way to prepare liquor by heating it at 150 degrees Celsius. The accused were not following the process and making illicit liquor by sitting in a room. WHAT WENT WRONG Preliminary probe suggests that the amount of water used was in lesser quantity than the denatured spirit, which may have proved fatal. Improper dilution of methanol from the spirit and the use of the drums for storing the spirit could have led to fatalities. It is reported that the drums were earlier used for storing pesticide. CONTENT OF THE SPIRIT Denatured spirit contains 70% to 99% ethanol and is most often denatured with at least 5% to 10% methanol, besides additives. Police are investigating how the accused were diluting the methanol from denatured spirit. However, the illicit liquor sold at wine shops contains only 50 to 70 degrees of alcohol strength. Most government-approved distilleries use extra neutral alcohol (ENA), the primary raw material for making alcoholic beverages. ENA contains 168 degrees of alcohol strength, but its strength is diluted to 50 to 75 degrees, according to the requirement in distilleries, by heating it at a certain temperature and adding water. WHY PEOPLE BUY HOOCH Illicit liquor or countrymade liquor or ghar di kadi sharaab is cheaper than liquor sold at shops. Country-made liquor is also made in distilleries. It is considered illicit when the makers sell it without paying excise duty. The poor prefer countrymade liquor as a bottle of two litres of illicit liquor can be bought for Rs 200 to Rs 250. However, the price of the cheapest brand of a liquor bottle (750ml) being sold in shops costs Rs 230. Moreover, one can buy a small glass or a peg for Rs 10 to Rs 30. HOW IT KILLS Denatured spirit is unfit for human consumption. Experts suspect less water was used while diluting the strength of denatured spirit. A senior police official said investigation suggested the presence of methanol in the liquor consumed by the victims. Many victims complained of blurring of vision before breathing their last. This is a key symptom of methanol consumption. Ranbir Singh of Rataul village, who became blind after consuming illicit liquor, says he lost his sight within hours. President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference in the James Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington on July 30, 2020. (Alex Wong/Getty Images) Trump Signs Hiring American Executive Order to Prioritize US Workers President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday that requires federal agencies to prioritize U.S. labor in federal contracts, ensure only American citizens are appointed to the competitive service, and stop employers from moving H-1B workers into jobs in a way that displaces U.S. workers. We believe jobs must be offered to American workers first, Trump said in a statement. The president signed the Hiring American order at a meeting of technology workers at the White House on Aug. 3, during which Trump announced that two members of the federally-owned Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) had been fired for actions that prompted the order. The White House said in a release that the Hiring American order follows a recent announcement by TVA that it plans to outsource 20 percent of its tech jobs to foreign countries. The statement said TVAs action could lead to over 200 highly-skilled American technology workers in Tennessee to lose their jobs to low-cost foreign workers hired on temporary work visas. TVAs decision is also expected to cost the local economy tens of millions of dollars over the next 5 years, the statement said, adding that Trumps action would combat employers misuse of H-1B visas, which were never intended to replace qualified American workers with low-cost foreign labor. Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday that he fired the chair of TVA, claiming the authority betrayed American workers. He said the TVA board must hire a new chief executive officer that puts the interests of Americans first. With the overarching aims of preventing harmful outsourcing and preserving jobs for the American people, the Aug. 3 Executive Order will require all federal agencies to complete an audit meant to ensure compliance with a requirement that only American citizens and nationals are appointed to the U.S. governments competitive service. The federal workforce consists of some two million civilian employees, with around two-thirds of them in competitive service, with the remainder in two other service classificationsthe excepted service and the Senior Executive Service, according to the Office of Personnel Management (pdf). The order also calls on the Department of Labor to finalize guidance to prevent employers of H-1B workers from moving them into other jobs in a way that displaces American workers. Trump has signed a number of executive orders in recent months that seek to prioritize American workers, including suspending the H-1B temporary work visa program at least through the end of the year. President Trump initiated reforms to the H-1B program to prioritize high-wage workers and close loopholes to ensure American workers are not displaced by low cost foreign labor, the White House said. The Hiring American order comes as the U.S. unemployment rate is above 10 percent, with some 30 million workers on unemployment rolls, and over 1.4 million people filing new jobless claims last week. Im sure my loyal readers, both of them, have plenty of questions about free Chinese mystery seeds. As the interim senior consumer services/Kudzilla correspondent, Im here to help. Q: Really, though, how bad can these free Chinese mystery seeds be? I mean, I heard about this ol boy, he traded a cow for some magic beans. His momma about tore his hind-end up when she found out. But lo and behold, they were magic and a vine grew right up to the sky. After that was a lot of fee-fi-fo-ing, giant-killing and such, but it worked out great. For the boy, not the giant. Answer: Thats the fairytale Jack and the Beanstalk. These seeds are real and could eventually do ecological and economic damage. Do not plant the seeds. Q: If I cant plant them, what in the Sam Hill am I going to do with them? Answer: According to a USA Today story, the USDA urged the public to contact their states plant regulatory official or states animal and plant health inspection service. Sushant Singh Rajput Case: Actor Had 18 Crores In His Account, Only 4.5 Crores Were Left By The End, Reveals Mumbai Police Commissioner President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky asks Economic Development, Trade, and Agriculture Minister Ihor Petrashko to report on the economic measures taken to help Ukrainians overcome the negative impact of coronavirus pandemic. In response, the minister said that the Government reimbursed two-thirds of the salaries to 358,000 people employed by 180,000 self-employed persons who have been on forced temporary leave and have lost their salaries as a result. The Government has also simplified the payment of unemployment benefits as much as possible, helping 510,000 Ukrainians receive them. In addition, the minister reported on the launch of the 5-7-9% lending program and compensation of tax rates to farmers, the press service of the Head of State informs after traditional Presidents conference call on preventing the spread of coronavirus disease COVID-19. The President said that he doubted that those programs significantly helped a large number of Ukrainians. "It sounds very nice. But many people have suffered, lost their jobs and went on forced leave. In general, people today get paid much less. The state must either provide opportunities to people [so that they can start their own business], or provide a job. The time has come when it is necessary to create many jobs. And the restart of state-owned enterprises and industry should play a strategic role in this," Zelensky said. Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal added that the Government spent billions to support business, saved hundreds of thousands of jobs and employed 240,000 people. The President also raised the issue of ensuring that Ukrainian scientists have the necessary equipment, laboratories, funding, and other things*(vague. Informal) , so that Ukraine has the opportunity to create medicines and vaccines. As reported, more than a thousand citizens of Ukraine received social benefits during the period of self-isolation. ol Rotimi Amaechi, minister of transportation, says there will be no development of infrastructure if Nigeria stops taking loans. Speak... Rotimi Amaechi, minister of transportation, says there will be no development of infrastructure if Nigeria stops taking loans. Speaking on the controversy around loans from China, the minister said the Buhari administration had to rely on loans when it took off in 2015 because there was no money on ground. A house of representatives panel had raised the alarm over clauses conceding Nigerias sovereignty to China in a loan agreement. The clause, described as lethal by the panel, is in article 8(1) of the commercial loan agreement between Nigeria and Export-Import Bank of China. Speaking at a programme on AIT, the minister said contracts signed with China do not cede the countrys sovereignty. He said the clause is only a diplomatic agreement between both parties to ensure payment is made accordingly. Whether it is the ministry of finance that signed it or the ministry of transportation, the issue is that nobody will give you loan free of charge. There must be an agreement and such agreement must contain some terms. That doesnt mean that you are signing away the sovereignty of the country; no country will sign out its sovereignty, he said. What clause 8 does is to say to you, I expect you to pay according to those terms we have agreed. If you dont pay, dont throw your immunity on me when I come to collect back the guarantee that was put forward, that is all. The minister said clause is a standard feature in every agreement to ensure the lending country receives its money. When we stop collecting the loans, then we stop developing because there was no money when we came into government; by the time we came, the money had been blown away, he said. What you do is, you give a sovereign guarantee and that guarantee is the immunity clause they are talking about. When we say I give you a sovereign guarantee and we get immunity clause, the immunity clause is that if tomorrow I am not able to pay you and you come to collect the items that we have agreed upon, these are items that I am putting down as guarantee. I can waive my immunity and say no you cant touch it, I am a sovereign country. So, they are saying if you are not able to pay, dont stop us from taking back those items that will make us recover our funds. Is China our father that will give us money for free? It is a standard clause in every agreement, whether it is America we signed it with, whether it is Britain, any country would want to know that they can recover their money. Dolby Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:DLB), might not be a large cap stock, but it led the NYSE gainers with a relatively large price hike in the past couple of weeks. With many analysts covering the mid-cap stock, we may expect any price-sensitive announcements have already been factored into the stocks share price. But what if there is still an opportunity to buy? Lets examine Dolby Laboratoriess valuation and outlook in more detail to determine if theres still a bargain opportunity. View our latest analysis for Dolby Laboratories Is Dolby Laboratories still cheap? According to my valuation model, the stock is currently overvalued by about 21%, trading at US$69.60 compared to my intrinsic value of $57.65. This means that the buying opportunity has probably disappeared for now. Furthermore, Dolby Laboratoriess share price also seems relatively stable compared to the rest of the market, as indicated by its low beta. If you believe the share price should eventually reach its true value, a low beta could suggest it is unlikely to rapidly do so anytime soon, and once its there, it may be hard to fall back down into an attractive buying range. Can we expect growth from Dolby Laboratories? Future outlook is an important aspect when youre looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so lets also take a look at the company's future expectations. With profit expected to grow by a double-digit 14% over the next couple of years, the outlook is positive for Dolby Laboratories. It looks like higher cash flow is on the cards for the stock, which should feed into a higher share valuation. What this means for you: Are you a shareholder? It seems like the market has well and truly priced in DLBs positive outlook, with shares trading above its fair value. However, this brings up another question is now the right time to sell? If you believe DLB should trade below its current price, selling high and buying it back up again when its price falls towards its real value can be profitable. But before you make this decision, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed. Story continues Are you a potential investor? If youve been keeping an eye on DLB for a while, now may not be the best time to enter into the stock. The price has surpassed its true value, which means theres no upside from mispricing. However, the optimistic prospect is encouraging for DLB, which means its worth diving deeper into other factors in order to take advantage of the next price drop. It can be quite valuable to consider what analysts expect for Dolby Laboratories from their most recent forecasts. At Simply Wall St, we have the analysts estimates which you can view by clicking here. If you are no longer interested in Dolby Laboratories, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential. 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com. A look at the shareholders of Lloyds Banking Group plc (LON:LLOY) can tell us which group is most powerful. Institutions often own shares in more established companies, while it's not unusual to see insiders own a fair bit of smaller companies. Companies that have been privatized tend to have low insider ownership. Lloyds Banking Group has a market capitalization of UK19b, so it's too big to fly under the radar. We'd expect to see both institutions and retail investors owning a portion of the company. In the chart below, we can see that institutions are noticeable on the share registry. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholder can tell us about Lloyds Banking Group. View our latest analysis for Lloyds Banking Group What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Lloyds Banking Group? Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices. We can see that Lloyds Banking Group does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone, since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Lloyds Banking Group, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too. Since institutional investors own more than half the issued stock, the board will likely have to pay attention to their preferences. Lloyds Banking Group is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is BlackRock, Inc. with 6.6% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 5.9% and 3.9% of the stock. Story continues After doing some more digging, we found that the top 22 have the combined ownership of 50% in the company, suggesting that no one share holder has significant control over the company. While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future. Insider Ownership Of Lloyds Banking Group The definition of company insiders can be subjective, and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO. Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances. Our most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of Lloyds Banking Group plc. Being so large, we would not expect insiders to own a large proportion of the stock. Collectively, they own UK35m of stock. It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying. General Public Ownership The general public holds a 17% stake in LLOY. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies. Next Steps: It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Lloyds Banking Group better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for Lloyds Banking Group that you should be aware of. If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com. Kabul/New Delhi, Aug 3 : Almost 24 hours after a group of at least 20 Islamic State (IS) terrorists attacked a prison in Afghanistan's Jalalabad city, 21 people, including students, have been killed and 43 injured in a fierce gun-battle which is still ongoing. Sources in Kabul said that the 21 people, including three attackers, were killed in the gunfight between the terrorists and the Afghan security forces in the Jalalabad prison and a nearby mall. The prison was breached from multiple points with a combination of Suicide Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Devices (SVBIEDs), rocket attacks and ground attackers. The IS attackers are wearing suicide vests, the sources said, adding that civilian homes in the vicinity were damaged by grenade and mortars. The attackers also entered residences and executed some civilians. Sources said the IS's foreign terrorists are involved in the attack on the prison in which 700 prisoners attempted to escape. Most of the prisoners were recaptured, police sources said. However, at least 50 escaped, the sources said, adding that the prison break attempt may be a reaction to the killing of Assadullah Orakzai, Pakistani-origin terrorist who was the IS- Khorasan Head of Intelligence. He was killed by the National Directorate of Security (NDS), the Afghan intelligence agency on Saturday in an operation near Jalalabad. The counter-terror operations in Jalalabad on Monday are going slowly to prevent killings of civilians and minimize the collateral damage, sources said. Last November, the Afghan and NATO coalition forces defeated the ISKP, forcing hundreds to surrender along with their families, with most of them being Pakistani nationals who had infiltrated, four years ago, into Nangarhar province through the Durand Line -the border which Afghanistan has disputed since it was drawn by the British in 1893. Nangarhar province was the centre of the ISKP activities in Afghanistan. Jalalabad, the fifth-largest city of Afghanistan, is about 80 miles from the capital Kabul. Earnings from taxation accounts for 70 per cent of the monthly statutory revenue allocation from the Federation Accounts, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has disclosed. The Executive Chairman of the agency, Muhammad Nami, said on Monday that with the negative impact of COVID-19 on other sources of revenue, tax has been keeping the Nigerian economy going. Mr Nami spoke on Monday in Abuja during an Africa Independent Television (AIT) programme, Kaakaki, as part of his national public enlightenment on voluntary tax compliance. During the FAAC meeting in July, the total amount shared among the three tiers of government federal, states and local was N696 billion. From this amount, only 30 per cent came from revenue generating-agencies like the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS). The remaining 70 per cent, which is almost N500 billion, came from tax revenues paid by the various tax payers, including stamp duty, Mr Nami said. He urged Nigerians and corporate organizations in the country to continue to fulfill their obligations by playing their taxes as and when due. Nobody wants to pay tax, even where it is clear payment of tax is necessary. There is never a time that is appropriate for somebody to pay taxes. What the federal, states and local governments share at the monthly federation accounts allocation committee (FAAC) meetings comes from the taxes paid, the FIRS Chairman said. Without the tax money, Mr Nami said there would be chaos and confusion everywhere in the country, as there would not be sufficient money to finance public projects. Looking at issues relating to COVID-19 and its impact on businesses, he said the countrys economic situation would have been worse if people were not paying taxes, as people are actually losing jobs. Noting that there was nothing new about stamp duty introduced in the country recently, Mr Nami said bankable Nigerians have been paying the duty on cheque books since the policy was introduced in 1939. The renewed focus on stamp duty via the recent launch of an inter-ministerial committee on the recovery of stamp duty from 2016 till date has started to yield dividends. Before now, remittance from stamps used to be an average of about N17 billion and N18 billion per year. Currently, it is in the region of N80 billion, he said. The FIRS boss disclosed that a commercial bank which has not been remitting stamp duty to the government before bought in about N1.2 billion in July alone. In recent weeks, controversy has trailed the decision by the tax agency to introduce the payment of six per cent stamp duty on all tenancy and lease agreements in the country. Beyond the stamp duty, other major sources of tax revenue available to the government include the value added tax (VAT), Companies Income Tax (CIT), and Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT). With declining oil revenue as a result of the impact of COVID-19 on the international crude oil market, Mr Nami said Nigeria is currently facing a serious economic crisis in terms of revenue accruing to the Federation. He said the only way to ensure that Nigerians were happy with the government was to ensure that the deductions from peoples hard-earned income were remitted accordingly to government coffers. MARAWARA, Afghanistan --- Maryam, an Afghan grandmother, is surrounded by her eight orphaned grandchildren inside their modest house in a remote village in eastern Afghanistan. As Muslims across the world celebrated the Eid al-Adha festival this past weekend, the 48-year-old spent most of her time visiting the graves of her three sons and trying to console their children. Maryams sons were killed in a suicide attack in Asadabad, capital of eastern Kunar Province, more than four years ago. Her only surviving son was also injured in the attack. Wearing a blue all-enveloping veil, Maryam told Radio Free Afghanistan she thought she would die of the agony from first learning about the killing of her three sons. She recalled how she felt on the morning of February 27, 2016 -- the day her three sons were killed. "It was a day from hell," she said. "I began hearing screams and felt as if the sky was falling and the ground beneath my feet was slipping away." That day began like any other for her four sons. Ihsanullah, Habibdullah, Roohullah, and Muhammad Jaffar left their house together as they often did. The three elder brothers made a living selling fritters, fries, and soups out of a makeshift shop on a busy square near government offices in nearby Asadabad while Jaffar attended a local school. But a suicide bomber riding a motorbike attempted to target the entrance of the governors compound, and the three elder brothers were killed in the blast, which killed other 16 Afghan civilians and injured 40 more. Jaffar survived the blast, but it crippled his right hand. The bomber struck before he could say goodbye to his elder brother as they were busy preparing food for the day. This tragedy has taught me that peace is the most precious gift, Maryam said. I now pray that other Afghans families must not experience the misery, suffering, and agony we are enduring. Her husband, Muhammad Azim, 52, says the tragedy has forced him to return to hard labor to feed his family. I am old and weak and have no skills, business or another stable source of income, he said. I have no choice but to accept my fate. Azims house stands atop a gray, rocky hill in Kunars rural district of Marawara. His three sons are buried across from his front yard. Across Afghanistan, graveyards are regularly filled with the victims of the seemingly endless war that began after a bloody communist coup in April 1978. In most Kunar graveyards Afghan soldiers, Taliban fighters, and their civilian victims are buried next to one another. Some are even members of the same extended families. Maryams family now hopes the Afghan government and the Taliban can find a way to make peace. Beginning on July 31, the two sides engaged in a three-day cease-fire to mark Eid al-Adha. It is not yet clear whether they will extend the armistice. The two sides are also expected to engage in peace negotiations stipulated in an initial peace agreement between the Taliban and the United States, which was signed in February. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan has documented some 3,458 civilian casualties during the first half of the current year. These include 1,282 killed and 2,176 injured. While the figures represent a drop in overall violence compared with the previous years, the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission says that on average 16 civilians have been killed or wounded daily across Afghanistan during the first six months of 2020. Such high levels of violence make Afghanistan one of the deadliest conflict zones in the world. Abubakar Siddique wrote this story based on Rohullah Anwaris reporting from Marawara, Afghanistan. The contractors death is at the center of military trials of the sailor and the two Marines, all members of the elite Marine Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC). It is one of several recent incidents that have raised concerns about the conduct of Americas elite combat forces, including an alleged sexual assault by a Navy SEAL in Iraq last summer, cocaine use, and the strangulation of a Green Beret soldier in Mali in 2017. Workers work on a new Volkswagen Crafter diesel engine EA 288 at the newly opened Volkswagen factory in Wrzesnia near Poznan By Alan Charlish WARSAW (Reuters) - Polish manufacturing recovered in July after a coronavirus lockdown was eased, a survey showed on Monday, but Hungary posted a more modest improvement and the Czech Republic did not return to growth, suggesting the region still faces challenges. Poland started easing its lockdown in May, and economic indicators for June provided some surprises to the upside. Retail sales and industrial output beat analysts' expectations as consumers returned to shops and factories resumed operations. "The PMI points to a further recovery in the Polish economy related to the gradual lifting of restrictions and the gradual resumption of activity by processing companies," said Krystian Jaworski, senior economist at Credit Agricole in Warsaw. In Poland, the IHS Markit Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for manufacturing rose to 52.8, the first time since October 2018 it has been above the 50.0 line that separates growth from contraction. In Hungary the PMI, which is published by The Association of Logistics, Purchasing and Inventory Management, rose to 50.8 in July from a revised 47.4 in June. "There is light at the end of the tunnel, but the recovery in industry will be slow and gradual," said Peter Virovacz, senior economist at ING in Hungary. Czech manufacturing PMI rose to 47.0 last month from 44.9 in June, returning to pre-pandemic levels with the slowest decline since March 2019. "Demand still has significant room for improvement after the collapse caused by the coronavirus," said Radomir Jac chief economist of Generali Investments CEE in Prague. The Czech Republic and Hungary have been affected by the difficulties facing the auto industry, which generates 4% to 6% of Hungary's gross domestic product and a tenth of the Czech Republic's. The Czech Exporters Association said last week the crisis had wiped out about three to four years of export growth. In a survey of companies released last week, the association found none expected revenue growth this year and 43% expected a drop of more than 20%. Story continues Sonia Buchholtz, an economist at employers group Confederation Lewiatan, also struck a note of caution regarding the Polish reading. "It is hardly surprising that we see improvement compared to the period of increased lockdown," she said. "If we have any form of lockdown it may be difficult for (companies) not to go bust." (Reporting by Alan Charlish and Anna Koper in Warsaw, Robert Muller and Jason Hovet in Prague, Anita Komuves and Krisztina Than in Budapest) The Egyptian ambassador in Amman is currently following up with Jordanian authorities to determine the circumstances surrounding the shooting Egypt said on Sunday that one of its nationals was shot dead in Jordan by a Jordanian citizen, the latest in a series of assaults on Egyptians in Arab countries. According to a statement by the Ministry of Manpower, 30-year-old Egyptian Amir Samir Ibrahim was shot by a Jordanian man in a neighbourhood in Amman. The ministry did not provide further details about the incident; however, it said that the shooter was arrested. The Egyptian ambassador in Amman is currently following up with Jordanian authorities to determine the circumstances surrounding the shooting, the statement said. The shooting in Jordan is the latest in a series of assaults against Egyptian expats in the Arab countries in the past few weeks. Last week, two Egyptian construction workers were shot dead by a Saudi citizen in an altercation at one of the Saudi mans construction projects. The assailant turned himself in to the police and confessed to committing the crime, authorities said. The shooting in Saudi Arabia came a few days after Kuwaiti authorities arrested a citizen for assaulting an Egyptian expat working as a cashier in a store in the Gulf country. A two-minute video has surfaced of the incident in Kuwait and has gone viral online. The video shows the Kuwaiti man slapping the Egyptian worker three times before several other store workers and customers intervened to stop the assault. The video sparked anger on social media among users who called on Egyptian authorities to take action. Egypt stressed that the latest incident in Kuwait was an isolated incident and does not represent the relations between the two countries. Egyptians living abroad are estimated at 13 million, according to earlier statements by Egypt's Emigration Minister Nabila Makram. Some 65 percent of Egyptian expats live in Arab countries, according to figures released by official statistics agency Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and Statistics (CAPMAS) in 2017. Search Keywords: Short link: A teenager who had been reported missing for nine days was found Saturday afternoon by a search and rescue team near the Cascade mountain range in King County, Washington. 18-year-old Gia Fudas car had run out of gas and she was reported missing on July 24. She was found west of Stevens Pass on U.S. Highway 2 Sgt. Ryan Abbott, spokesperson for the King County Sheriffs Office, told TIME. She was found safe, but largely incoherent, up a steep ravine and transported to a hospital. Fuda was last seen July 24. Surveillance video showed her at a coffee shop in the morning, according to the sheriffs department. That night, Fudas parents reported her missing and hundreds of volunteers helped search for her. undefined Authorities say they located Fuda just before they were about to start winding down their rescue efforts. Honestly, our search was starting to come to an end. We maybe had one more day, we were running out of resources, Abbott told TIME. So it was really getting down to the last day or so of searching. Authorities struggled to learn more information because the cellphone signal was dead in the area. They found her car, with her purse and wallet still inside. Finally, on Saturday, authorities say they decided to revisit an area of the mountains based on information about where her cellphone had last pinged. The search area was so large they were going to try one more area one more time just to make sure they didnt miss anything, Abbott says. Searchers located a notebook and then some clothing, Abbott told TIME. Eventually, he said they stumbled upon Gia sitting next to the creek. But she wasnt very responsive, Abbott says. We think the only water she had was the creek water so it was good she was able to find the creek. Jeff White, a family friend who was part of the search and rescue effort, told NBC-affiliated KING 5 that she lived off berries for the last eight days. We knew that this was the last day of the search and we were concerned that we werent going to find her and we were going to leave these mountains without her, he said. The biggest challenge was that authorities were searching across such a large area, Abbott says, and a helicopter used for the search found the brush and trees were too thick to see anything clearly on the ground. Its not an area thats easy to get to, he said. Abbott says the search and rescue detective on the case has been doing this job for a very long time and has found over 4,000 people This is only the second time hes found somebody alive after this many days. Samsung Electronics Co Ltd is forging a comeback in India's smartphone market with a new range of budget devices and a ramped-up online presence, aiming to recoup ground ceded to Chinese rivals such as Xiaomi Corp. Samsung, the only major non-Chinese player in the country, has already begun to gain ground, and a surge in anti-China sentiment in India following a border clash in June is expected to provide a fresh boost. Samsung jumped to the No. 2 spot with 26% market share in the second quarter behind Xiaomi's 29%, according to tech researcher Counterpoint, as the South Korean company's diverse and inhouse supply chain helped it avoid product delays suffered by rivals during coronavirus lockdowns. It was in third position with a 16% share in the previous quarter. Once the unrivalled leader in the world's second-biggest smartphone market, Samsung has over the past three years lost Indian customers to Chinese brands, whose devices are perceived as better value. But India still accounts for some $7.5 billion in annual retail smartphone revenues for Samsung, according to Counterpoint, making it the company's biggest market outside the United States. It has built what it has described as the world's largest mobile phone manufacturing plant on the outskirts of New Delhi, where it tests new devices and often assembles them for export. That manufacturing power, and Samsung's ability to source many components internally, is helping it gain ground amid the pandemic. Chinese smartphone brands Xiaomi and Oppo suffered local production hiccups and product delays due to COVID-19, but Samsung was able to keep delivering phones smoothly. Now it is building on the momentum. Samsung has launched seven new smartphones since June, three of them under 10,000 rupees ($133.63) including its cheapest Android offering at $75. "The COVID crisis has pushed people to use smartphones for everything from online education to digital payments to even connecting with friends on video calls. That's why these budget phones are focused on the mass market," said a source familiar with Samsung's strategy in India. In May, Samsung partnered with Facebook to train some 200,000 brick and mortar stores selling its phones to use social media for sales and marketing. It has also launched instalment-payment plans for customers and new incentive schemes, including one that gives student discounts on select devices. A spokesman for Samsung said the company was seeing high demand for its devices in India and expected its revenues to increase from last year. The company does not provide a breakdown of revenues from individual countries. TOUGH COMPETITION Competition from rivals such as Xiaomi, which is banking on a 'Made in India' image to beat the anti-China sentiment, remains stiff. A deal between India's Reliance Industries Ltd and Google to make a cheap Android phone could also pose a threat to Samsung's sales of lower-end devices. Anti-China sentiment is nothing new in India, where the Chinese have a reputation for cheaper products. Samsung, despite a better brand reputation, has struggled to woo price-sensitive Indian customers. But better low-end offerings and the new anti-China tide -New Delhi has banned 59 Chinese apps since the border skirmish and traders have called for a boycott of imported Chinese products - could help shift the market dynamics. "Samsung is India's No.2 smartphone brand after Apple by image," brand strategist Harish Bijoor said. "So a phone priced between 6,000 rupees to 15,000 rupees from Samsung is very well placed today to capture market share from Chinese rivals." The cheapest iPhone in India costs around 31,500 rupees, while the cheapest Xiaomi phone costs around 7,500 rupees. Ganesh Salvi, a private sector employee from Satara town in western Maharashtra state said he had bought a Chinese branded phone for his 16 year-old son's online classes last month, even though he dislikes buying Chinese products. "I believe Samsung mobiles are more durable than Chinese phones and I'd certainly prefer them if they had more smartphones below 10,000 rupees," Salvi said. Also read: Apple vendors, Samsung, propose Rs 11 lakh crore mobile phone production in India WASHINGTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Press Club will mark the anniversary of the abduction and detention of Award-winning journalist and Marine veteran Austin Tice on Friday, August 14 by unveiling a Freedom Clock that will display a dynamic record of the time Austin has been unjustly detained in Syria. The event will take place in the lobby of the Club by the staircase at noon, Aug. 14. Reservations are required for contact tracing reasons. Please email Lindsay Underwood at [email protected] to reserve. The Clock will be in the lobby of the Club which typically hosts 250,000 visitors a year for 2,000 events including the activities of the Club's 3,000 members. Just this month, visitors to the Club included: Mrs. Pence, VA Secretary Robert Wilkie, U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell and U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams. Visitors who view the clock will see seconds tick up adding to the record of unjust detention Tice has endured a record that will reach the 8-year mark this week. No journalist has been held as long as Tice, including Terry Anderson of the Associated Press, who was unjustly detained in Lebanon. Club President Michael Freedman will unveil the clock, make brief remarks, and renew the Club's call for Tice's release. The event will be webcast. Those expected to attend via webcast are Tice's parents Marc and Debra Tice of Houston. Austin Tice is one of the National Press Club's 2015 John Aubuchon Press Freedom Honorees and is a Press Club member. The National Press Club is The World's Leading Professional Organization For Journalists and represents more than 3,000 reporters, editors and professional communicators worldwide. The National Press Club Journalism Institute, a nonprofit affiliate of the Club, promotes an engaged global citizenry through an independent and free press, and equips journalists with skills and standards to inform the public in ways that inspire civic engagement. PRESS CONTACT: Lindsay Underwood for The National Press Club; [email protected], (202) 662-7561 SOURCE National Press Club Related Links http://press.org A lawsuit filed in federal court accuses Utah State University of unlawfully discriminating against and expelling a student with Down syndrome during her first term. Emily Arthur was in the Aggies Elevated program which offers students a mix of career exploration and independent living leading to a certificate, the Deseret News reported. The program is funded by a federal grant. The lawsuit filed in Utahs U.S. District Court seeks unspecified damages and injunctive relief. The lawsuit says as a result of the universitys intentional discrimination, Arthur was degraded, dehumanized and humiliated. University spokesperson Amanda DeRito said Utah State University typically doesnt comment on current litigation, but the lawsuit is troubling in its misrepresentation of facts and how it portrays the Aggies Elevated program. According to the lawsuit, Arthur was provisionally accepted into the program in 2018 and began participating in activities leading up to moving into student housing on the Logan campus. At no point, did anyone with the program inform Arthur or her parents that she was not ready or unqualified to participate, the lawsuit says. Arthur moved into her dorm and after starting a course, her mother received a text from a professors assistant who told her those providing instruction and assistance to the students did not know `what to do with Emily, the lawsuit says. They had never had a student with Down syndrome, asserted the professors assistant. Moreover, Arthurs parents were told that a second-year Aggies Elevated program member would be assigned as a dorm companion; a mentor would help her navigate the campus; there would be tutoring; and an iHome Google Mini installed in her dorm room to help her maintain a schedule, stay on task and dress appropriately for the weather, the lawsuit states. According to the lawsuit, none of those were provided. In late August, Arthurs mother was asked to meet with program officials, who told her her daughter was not ready for college and required that she abide by a behavior contract, which could result in expulsion, according to the lawsuit. Officials said Arthur failed to make it to class on time, and that she had been removed from a school dance for dancing inappropriately, the suit says. On Aug. 27, 2018, a teacher reported that Arthur fiddled with her bra strap during class and inadvertently exposed a little bit of skin and her bra, the lawsuit says. Her mother then received a call from officials who told her Emily was purportedly a danger to herself, was in danger of being dragged under a stairwell by a predator, and without notice removed her from the program, the lawsuit says. DeRito said the programs is one of the few such programs in the intermountain region to offer an inclusive residential living component, and it requires that its students have a level of independence appropriate to living on campus and interacting with peers. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Education Universities Professor Tim Spector, an epidemiologist at Kings College London, said the UK's mini coronavirus outbreaks are 'ripples' caused by a failure to completely flatten the first epidemic The UK's mini coronavirus outbreaks are just 'ripples' caused by the failure to completely flatten the first epidemic and not proof of a second wave, according to a top expert. Professor Tim Spector, an epidemiologist based at King's College London, shot down Boris Johnson and Health Secretary Matt Hancock's fears of a resurgence. He said climbing infections seen in parts of England, such as Greater Manchester, were simply ripples from the first wave, which killed more than 56,000 Britons. And Professor Spector blamed the flare-ups on decision to relax lockdown rules in England when 2,000 people were still catching the virus every day. For comparison, Scotland chose to drive down daily infections to double digits before allowing businesses and amenities to reopen as part of its coronavirus strategy. Professor Spector told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'Basically these [outbreaks in the north of England] are continuing ripples from the first wave. 'Unlike other countries, we didnt manage to get levels much below 2,000 cases a day [before easing lockdown], so were just seeing this increase.' Professor Spector is the brains behind KCL's Covid Symptom Tracking app, used by more than a million Britons, which has helped scientists map the UK's crisis and predict infection rates. He said data from his app did not support the theory that cases were spiking in Greater Manchester, and swathes of Lancashire and West Yorkshire - regions which saw some lockdown measures reintroduced last week amid rising cases. Professor Spector was asked if the north of England was truly experiencing spikes in cases, or whether the figures were being skewed by more testing. He said: 'Well its a bit of both. You have to understand how the testing system is working at the moment because there are lots of random on-the-spot testing. 'Public health officials suspect outbreaks then lots of testing is done in those particular regions, or factories or wherever it is. 'And those produce these rather sporadic reports that show certain areas popping up a lot, like whats happened in the Manchester areas. Our data havent shown any massive spikes, its just creeping up everywhere and the north has had twice as many cases as the south.' Professor Spector was not the only expert to question the Government's decision last week to put 4.5million people in the North West under tough new lockdown measures. Professor Carl Heneghan, director of Oxford University's Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine, also claimed this morning that Covid-19 cases aren't actually spiking despite government figures showing an upwards trend. Professor Carl Heneghan, director of Oxford University's Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine, claimed that cases aren't rising and that higher rates have been skewed by testing being ramped up BORIS COULD BAN TRAVEL IN AND OUT OF LOCKDOWN AREAS Boris Johnson could ban travel in and out of local lockdown areas under new plans that may see over-50s ordered to shield. The radical proposal is currently being discussed as Downing Street shakes up its crisis response in the wake of localised flare-ups. Ministers are understood to be keen to avoid another national lockdown and derail the economic recovery, which could take years. Whitehall bosses are now hammering out a 'flexible' strategy to restrict all movement in and out of target areas with high infection rates. It means that plans in March to seal off London to stem the spread of Covid-19 which ere shelved but could be revived as part of the new targeted approach. Officials have already been handed beefed-up powers giving them the ability to mandate such travel bans with police enforcement. It comes as officials have drawn up plans that could see millions of people asked to stay at home if a second wave of coronavirus infections takes hold. Under one option, people aged 50 to 70 would get personalised risk ratings as part of a significant widening of the shielding programme. Advertisement He said the rising infection rates are down to more people being tested and warned of inaccuracies in the data, telling the Daily Telegraph: 'The northern lockdown was a rash decision. 'Wheres the rise? By date of test through July theres no change if you factor in all the increased testing thats going on.' He warned there was a rise in detected cases because of more targeted testing in areas such as Oldham, the second-worst hit borough in the country with 55.2 cases for every 100,000 people in the past week. Statistics show almost 500 new cases of the coronavirus were being diagnosed in England every day at the start of July. But this jumped to around 750 by the end of the month, which Professor Heneghan argued was 'not a sudden jump'. Professor Heneghan added that the increase in the number of Covid-19 cases was likely down to an increase in pillar two testing. Pillar two tests include coronavirus swab tests given to the public through DIY kits sent in the post and at drive-through centres. Pillar one tests are ones that are given to NHS and care workers, as well as patients in hospital. Professor Heneghan pointed to data showing the number of pillar two tests carried out each day rose by 80 per cent over the course of July to around 80,000. But he said the number of cases spotted for every 100,000 of the tests is 'flat-lining' and that they are actually dropping for pillar one. Professor Heneghan said it was 'essential' to adjust for the number of tests being done, adding: 'Why is no-one checking this out at government level?' Explaining why cases aren't rising on his website, he wrote: 'Leicester and Oldham have seen significant increases in testing in a short time. 'Leicester, for example in the first two weeks of July did more tests than anywhere else in England: 15,122 tests completed in the two weeks up to 13th July.' He also questioned the accuracy of the data, saying differences in figures 'makes it difficult to make judgements as to what is happening on the ground'. For instance, Professor Heneghan wrote that England reported 576 cases on July 28 but the government only recorded 547. The Department of Health and Social Care says 'cases are reported when lab tests are completed and confirmed positive'. Explaining the figures, health chiefs say: 'Each day new cases are reported, but the dates they originate from cover the previous few days.' Figures Professor Heneghan analysed look at specimen dates when a person was tested for the virus, not when they swabbed positive. He added: 'Inaccuracies in the data and poor interpretation will often lead to errors in decisions about imposing restrictions.' Professor Heneghan cautioned that any interpretation of figures should account for 'fluctuations in the rates of testing'. Government data shows 753 people are being struck down with the life-threatening infection each day across Britain. In comparison, the rolling seven-day average of coronavirus cases had dropped to as as low as 546 at the start of July. It is not the first time Professor Heneghan has flagged inaccuracies in government data. Last month he and another statistician at Oxford, Dr Jason Oke, warned the official daily death toll was too high. The pair calculated fewer than 40 people are actually dying each day even though figures show the rolling seven-day average is still above 60. It emerged that the government was classing people as Covid-19 victims if they died of any cause any time after testing positive for the virus. This meant survivors would be added to the death toll, even if they were hit by a bus months after beating the life-threatening infection. The shocking discovery prompted Matt Hancock to announce an 'urgent' review into how Public Health England was counting the deaths. Professor Heneghan's claims come amid growing fears of a second wave, with data suggesting cases are on the rise. Boris Johnson last week announced he was 'squeezing the brake pedal' on lifting the coronavirus restrictions still throttling some sectors of UK business. He blamed a spike in cases, with separate figures suggesting 4,200 people are now catching the virus every day in England which has doubled since June. But the estimate from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) was based on just 59 people testing positive out of tens of thousands. Separate figures from the NHS show cases are declining in Blackburn, Bradford and Leicester, three of the country's worst-hit authorities. However, infection rates are rising in all but three boroughs of Greater Manchester and are quickly spiralling in Swindon. It comes as the government will start testing sewage to track coronavirus to stop local outbreaks. Environment Secretary George Eustice said the measure would give officials a 'head start' on tackling further outbreaks. Boris Johnson could also ban travel in and out of local lockdown areas under new plans that may see over-50s ordered to shield. The radical proposal is currently being discussed as Downing Street shakes up its crisis response in the wake of localised flare-ups. Ministers are understood to be keen to avoid another national lockdown and derail the economic recovery, which could take years. Israeli aircraft have attacked several military targets in Syria after munitions were fired towards the disputed Golan Heights region, the Israeli army has said. The Israel Defence Forces said in a statement that its helicopters struck Syrian armed forces observation posts and intelligence collection systems. Anti-tank guided missiles hit three outposts in Quneitra, southwest Syria, wounding two people, Syrian state news reported, quoting a military source. The strikes came hours after the Israeli military said fragments from an explosion on the Syrian side of the border had damaged a civilian building and a car in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which it seized from Syria in 1967 and later annexed. Tensions in the region have flared after an air strike in Damascus on Monday widely believed to have been carried out by Israel killed five foreign fighters, including a member of Hezbollah. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Speaking during the slain Hezbollah fighters funeral Sheikh Hassan Ezzedine a spokesperson for the powerful Iranian-backed Lebanese militia, vowed that its fight against Israel would continue. And with the group having promised to respond to the Israeli killing of any of its members following the death of two fighters in the Syrian capital last August, Israel said it had boosted its military presence along its northern borders with Lebanon and Syria this week. Also on Friday, the highest ranking US military officer, Mark Milley, travelled to an air base in southern Israel to meet with senior Israeli military and intelligence leaders, and held a video conference with prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israels alternate prime minister Benny Gantz said that during his talks with Mr Milley, the chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, he emphasised the need to continue the pressure on Iran and its proxies. Mr Gantz added that Israels military is prepared and ready for any scenario and any threat, and I do not suggest our enemies to test us. We have no interest in escalation, but we will do all that is necessary to protect Israeli citizens. Shortly after the blast on Friday morning, the IDF said that it was elevating its readiness to defend Israels northern border from all enemy threats with changes to troop deployment and enhanced field intelligence activity in the area. Shortly after its retaliatory strikes, the IDF tweeted: "We hold the Syrian regime responsible and will respond to any violation of Israeli sovereignty." Additional reporting by agencies Representative Image As many as 820 villages in 15 districts of Uttar Pradesh have been hit by floods and the district administrations have started all-out relief operations, a minister said on Monday. Of these 820 villages, 173 have lost road connectivity and the district administrations have deployed boats, according to Backward Class Welfare Minister Anil Rajbhar. He said it was due to the swelling waters in the Sarayu and Rapti rivers that led to the situation, adding that the problem had been aggravated with Nepal releasing over four lakh cusecs of water. Rajbhar said embankments had been hit at Tarabganj area of Gonda and in Sagri division of Azamgarh, and efforts were on to mend them. Two villages have been severely hit in Azamgarh and there are also reports of crop damage in 12 villages, according to the minister. He said 110 shelter homes had been set up, and foodgrain kits and food packets were being distributed. As many as 1,129 boats have been pressed into service and 92 animal sheds have also been set up. Rajbhar said Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had warned that there should not be any laxity in relief and rescue operations. Senior officials have been asked to visit the flood-hit areas and inform the control room if there is any problem. As many as 188 medical teams, 16 teams of the NDRF, SDRF and the state Provincial Armed Constabulary have been deployed. Home guards have been asked to remain prepared for deployment if the need arises, he added. The meteorological department has forecast rain and thundershowers at few places over the state in the next 24 hours, with heavy rains very likely at isolated places. In Lucknow, rain and thundershowers are very likely in some areas, it added. Butte police reports Nearby fire U.S. Forest Service personnel put out a quarter-acre fire started by a smoldering campfire Sunday in Roosevelt Drive. Wielding an ax At 7 p.m. Friday, officers were called to the 2500 block of Elm regarding a disturbance involving two men, one of whom had an ax. According to the victim, James William James, 53, of Butte approached him while he was in his garage. An argument ensued and James retrieved an ax. The victim then fled into the residence and called police. James was located in his trailer, which was parked in the yard, and placed under arrest. During the arrest, a small amount of marijuana was located on James and he also had a local warrant out for his arrest. He was jailed for felony assault with a weapon, misdemeanor possession of dangerous drugs, and a misdemeanor Butte City Court contempt warrant. Assault with weapon Police officers arrived at a trailer park on Browns Gulch Road at 3:30 a.m. Saturday to follow up on a domestic abuse call. Just as they arrived, Landon Ross Fry, 41, of Marshall, Texas was attempting to crawl under the trailer. Officers were able to talk Fry into crawling right back out. Fry, who had a handgun in the waist band of his pants, allegedly grabbed the female by the hair and tore hair from her head, strangled her to the point of losing consciousness, and threw the pistol at her. He then retrieved the pistol. Fry was jailed for felony assault with a weapon, felony partner or family member assault (strangulation), felony parole warrant out of Texas, and Texas PFMA. Mop used as weapon Another disturbance involving two men resulted in the arrest of David Asa Doyle, 29, of Butte. On Saturday morning, officers went to the 300 block of Silver Street to investigate a long argument between Doyle and another man, which led to Doyle hitting the other man with a mop as he was hiding in the shower. Doyle was jailed for felony partner or family member assault. Girls fighting At approximately 3 a.m. Saturday, officers responded to the area of the Emerson School on a report of a large group of juveniles gathering to watch two girls fight. Officers cited nine juveniles between the ages of 12 to 14. Deer rescued On Friday morning, a deer got stuck in the fence at Rocky Mountain RV, and had to be rescued. Once it was freed, the animal ran off. Under investigation Police are investigating a late Friday night alleged domestic abuse incident between a male and female in the Montana Tech dormitories. Love 3 Funny 7 Wow 4 Sad 5 Angry 8 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. China and other member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) share a bright future for cooperation in traditional medicine, given the long history of practicing traditional medicine and increasing government investment in healthcare in the countries, a Chinese official said in an interview. Acupuncture and medicinal herbs, along with other traditional medicine components, are widely accepted in SCO countries, laying a solid foundation for the popularization of traditional medicine, said Yu Wenming, head of China's National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine. He made the comments after an SCO online forum on traditional medicine on Thursday that brought together scholars, experts and politicians for discussions on traditional medicine and its role in fighting COVID-19. Yu said that traditional medicine is a valuable treasure trove of medical wisdom and national cultures and has been proven effective in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. "We should use this treasure to the greatest extent," he said, highlighting the significance of such cooperation to cultural and people-to-people exchanges between China and other SCO member states. As for existing cooperation, he said China has teamed up with other SCO countries and built several facilities for exchanges in traditional medicine. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, China has sent medical experts, including those in traditional Chinese medicine, to help SCO states fight the pandemic, Yu added. He called on SCO member states to value this national treasure and step up cooperation to improve the application of traditional medicine in preventing and treating common, frequently occurring and refractory illnesses, as well as emerging infectious diseases. Welcome to Limbe Archives As of January 1, 2021, FCFA 300,000 will compulsorily be paid by Limbe residents before any corpse is buried in their compounds. The burial fee was deliberated and adopted by councillors of the Limbe City Council during last months first ordinary session for 2020. Besides the FCFA 300,000 fee, the private land where such a corpse is to be buried must be fenced among other conditions that have to be met. I want to add that the FCFA 300,000 is not the only requirement for a Compound Burial, said Motanga Andrew Monjimba, Limbe City Mayor. From January 1, 2021, you must have a Building Permit for your compound and the compound must be fenced, there should be no well or stream passing about a minimum of 100 meters away from the fence. There was already existing law on Compound Burial, we only added FCFA 300,000 to discourage people from engaging the act. In his quest to discourage burials away from cemeteries, Motanga initially proposed that the burial tax be fixed at FCFA 500,000, but councillors during the July 23 session rejected the amount as being too high. Not even a plea from the Mayors of Limbe II and III for indigenes to be given a consideration could dampen Motangas resolve. In the end, 22 councillors voted that FCFA 300,000 be paid before corpses can be buried in places other than cemeteries. In any case, I want to start by saying that it was a decision after a very heated debate of the board, comprising of 30 City Councillors and three Ex-Officio members (the Subdivisional Council Mayors), Motanga told The SUN in an interview denying claims that he had forced his will on the councillors. Maybe people may think that they were influenced in one way or the other by the executive, No! Thats wrong. I cannot influence 33 people with the wrong idea. I put the idea no doubt, but the City Councillors saw it worth upholding and voted for it. In justifying the necessity for such a decision and why indigenes will not be given any consideration, Motanga said: We are in a city, no longer in villages. If any village is found in this city, it has to respect the norms of the city. With that in mind, we have to discourage Compound Burial, in one way or the other. Compound Burials were becoming so rampant; this town is called upon to develop, if not today, tomorrow. If we just continue issuing Compound Burials for free, its going to open a floodgate for almost everybody to go for it and our hands will remain tied to comply. But, lets not forget that these same Compound Burials which the Council may be giving today for free, tomorrow if there is a developmental project that falls in an area where there are graves, those concerned will only come out with the authorization which was issued by the Council for the burial! Believe me, you will be paying for exhumation or compensation for a grave not less than FCFA 1.5 million, minimum. Imagine that in line with such a project there are about ten graves! Where are we heading? We cannot live in a town where everywhere there are graves! The Council has done everything to be able to put a decent grave space at the Slaughter House. It is indeed getting full but we already have a piece of land for a new site. There FCFA 250,000 is paid for burial. We understand that not everybody can pay FCFA 250, 000, reason why there is another burial space behind the Catholic Mission, where FCFA 20,000 is the burial fee. So, everybody finds his/her place, let people not only look at the FCFA 300,000 but also let them look at the future of our city. Its a great city where people should try and visualize it in the next 50 yearsI will not be alive certainly but we want to leave this town in the hands of other people who will be able to see a great town, not a cemetery, tomorrow. The world is hungry for resources to power the green transition. As we increasingly look to solar, wind, geothermal and move towards decarbonization, consumption of minerals such as cobalt, lithium, and copper, which underpin them, is set to grow markedly. One study by the World Bank estimates that to meet this demand, cobalt production will need to grow by 450% from 2018 to 2050, in pursuit of keeping global average temperature rises below 2C. The mining of any material can give rise to complex environmental and social impacts. Cobalt, however, has attracted particular attention in recent years over concerns of unsafe working conditions and labour rights abuses associated with its production. New battery technologies are under development with reduced or zero cobalt content, but it is not yet determined how fast and by how much these technologies and circular economy innovations can decrease overall cobalt demand. Deep-sea mining has the potential to supply cobalt and other metals free from association with such social strife, and can reduce the raw material cost and carbon footprint of much-needed green technologies. On the other hand, concerned scientists have highlighted our limited knowledge of the deep-sea and its ecosystems. The potential impact of mining on deep-sea biodiversity, deep-sea habitats and fisheries are still being studied, and some experts have questioned the idea that environmental impacts of mining in the deep-sea can be mitigated in the same way as those on land. In the face of this uncertainty, the European Parliament, the prime ministers of Fiji, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and more than 80 organizations have called for a 10-year moratorium on deep-sea mining, until its potential impacts and their management methods are further investigated. A stark choice is fast approaching The world is facing a stark choice, whether to press ahead with mining the oceans floors, hoping that the benefits will outweigh the as-yet-unknown environmental costs, or whether to pause for research and better understanding of whats at stake. The International Seabed Authority was established to organize, regulate and control mining on the ocean floor beyond national boundaries. Its regulations determine environmental regulations, financial payment regime for benefit sharing and other standards and guidelines. The International Seabed Authority has already drafted exploitation regulations for deep-sea minerals, which will be decided upon at either its October 2020 assembly or its 2021 assembly. Once regulations are finalized and adopted by member states, seabed exploitation contracts could be issued for mining to begin. In parallel, countries that have mineral deposits in their exclusive economic zones, where the country has the unique right to use the marine resources, are also exploring mining techniques and forming their own regulations. Japan successfully trialled extraction of minerals from the deep-seabed as early as 2017, with the aim to reduce reliance on mineral imports. Cook Islands is also considering granting prospecting licenses in 2021 to diversify its economy from tourism. Governments and seabed mining companies have been exploring mineral content, measuring deep-sea environmental data and testing seabed extracting technologies for more than 30 years. Map showing deep-sea mineral deposits. Source: China Focus Manufacturing companies cannot afford to wait Automotive, electronics, battery, aviation and energy development companies have largely been silent in the deep-sea mining debate, up to now. But deep-sea mined cobalt could enter their supply chains within a decade. As was demonstrated to Apple, Google, Microsoft, Dell and Tesla in 2019, the ethical dimensions of companies raw material sourcing choices can have both reputational and legal consequences. That year, a federal class action lawsuit was brought against the five companies, over their alleged use of cobalt produced through child labour in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The ethical dimensions of deep-sea cobalt mining have the potential to be just as contentious, and could pose no less a legal and reputational risk for manufacturers. Meanwhile, automotive and electronics manufacturers are increasingly acknowledging the strategic importance of their cobalt sourcing decisions. Related: Gold Stocks Gear Up For A Big Autumn BMW, Tesla, Samsung SDI, SK Innovation have begun bypassing their suppliers of manufactured parts to sign direct sourcing contracts with mining companies that are traditionally many supply chain tiers removed from their procurement departments. For these manufacturers, access to a stable, ethical supply of cobalt is more important than ever. As they increasingly source metals directly, the need to be knowledgeable on environmental and social considerations of their various supply options also grows greater. Manufacturers that do not engage in the deep-sea mining debate now risk being taken by surprise by its implications in future years. A rare opportunity Seabed mineral reserves have been estimated to contain 94,000 tonnes of cobalt across several different regions about six times current land-based reserves. If responsible exploitation is possible, these new mineral sources have the potential to dramatically catalyse the low-carbon transition. If exploited irresponsibly, we risk incurring adverse and long-lasting impact on the species, habitats and ecosystems gifted to us by the ocean. A decision on whether and how to forge ahead is upon us. In order to ensure that we rise to the challenge of that decision, and decide wisely, all stakeholders, including the companies that are set to use this ocean-mined material, must be alert to this emerging debate, and engage with it fully. Those decisions made today on deep-sea mining are likely to have lasting effects on materials supply chains, the global mineral economy, the economies of some countries, the ocean ecosystem and our ability to tackle climate change as we look to the future. By Mining.com More Top Reads From Safehaven.com: LILLE, France French Prime Minister Jean Castex urged people not to let down their guard in the fight against COVID-19 on Monday, the day one of Frances biggest cities ordered people to wear masks outdoors in busy pedestrian streets. The virus is not on holiday, and neither are we," Castex said on a visit to Lille, where police on Monday gained the power to levy a 135 euro ($158.45) fine on anyone not observing the new rule. After strict lockdown measures pushed down infection rates, many European countries are now watching numbers creep back up, a consequence of easing restrictions to try to limit economic damage, and greater social mixing in the summer holiday season. In many countries, masks are already compulsory in shops and other enclosed public spaces. Now, officials in some place are mandating they also be worn outdoors in some circumstances. Romania is considering such a move. Greece will make mask-wearing compulsory on the decks of ferries sailing to its islands. The French city of Nice on Monday made wearing masks outdoors compulsory in many areas. In Lille, anyone moving around in central streets, pedestrianised areas, or parks, has to wear a mask, under the order by local authorities. On Monday, police officers on bicycles were enforcing the new rules as they patrolled the Grand Place, the historic market square at the centre of the city which is a magnet for tourists. A Reuters journalist saw police approach several people without masks and remind them of the rules, though none of them was fined. Maryse Lelievre, a retiree from Lille, had come out equipped with a white fabric mask. Its a little uncomfortable," she said. But you have to follow the rules." (Writing by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Christian Lowe; Editing by Andrew Heavens) Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor A Department of Homeland Security officer stands watch as fellow officers extinguish a fire lit by protesters behind the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse in Portland, Ore., on Sunday. Read more Says federal agents in Portland have been kidnapping and holding citizens without charges. U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, in an interview July 21 Democrats and civil libertarians have decried the Trump administrations response to unrest in Portland, Ore., in recent weeks. Federal agents have been criticized for beating and pepper-spraying a peaceful Navy veteran and shooting another man in the face with a nonlethal munition, fracturing his skull. When President Donald Trump threatened to send federal agents to Philadelphia, Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.) accused the officers in Portland of kidnapping and holding citizens without charges. We wondered whether Caseys description was accurate. Our analysis of this claim focuses on two detentions. A federal judge ruled one of them was unconstitutional, and a Trump administration official said agents lacked probable cause for the second. Legal experts say those seizures meet the common language definition of kidnapping, even as they stressed that the officers involved would never be charged. Federal agents dont typically patrol American cities. But in late June, Trump signed an executive order directing federal law enforcement agencies to send personnel to cities where monuments had become focal points for protests against systemic racism and police violence. A few days later, Homeland Security agents from Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement who didnt have proper training in riot control or mass demonstrations arrived in Portland to support officers of the Federal Protective Service, the division responsible for protecting federal buildings such as the citys Mark O. Hatfield courthouse, which had been vandalized. When Casey said protesters had been kidnapped, he was relying on news reports and legal documents that described two protesters who were picked up under irregular circumstances early July 15, said Natalie Adams, Caseys spokesperson. One is Mark Pettibone, who said he was seized near the courthouse by a group of armed agents traveling in an unmarked minivan. Pettibone told Oregon Public Broadcasting that as the van drove off, officers covered his eyes and restrained his hands. Pettibone said he was taken to a building he later learned was the federal courthouse, loaded into a cell, and read his Miranda rights. He was patted down and photographed, and his belongings were searched. Officers didnt tell him why he was being arrested, he said, and when he declined to answer questions without a lawyer, he was released without any record of an arrest. READ MORE: Fact-checking Mike Pences attacks against Joe Biden in his latest Pennsylvania campaign visit The details are outlined in a sworn statement and were corroborated by Connor OShea, a friend who was walking with Pettibone moments before he was picked up. The other incident was captured in a now-viral video. It shows a team of agents dressed in combat gear surrounding a peaceful protester, removing him from the street, and carrying him away in an unmarked van just like Pettibone. The protester in the video hasnt been identified. Legal experts said neither of these arrests was lawful because the officers lacked probable cause. When Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum sued the Trump administration, she argued that the agents who snatched Pettibone violated his Fourth and Fifth Amendments rights and that his detention constituted an unreasonable seizure. Michael Mosman, the federal judge who ruled on the case, agreed. Mosman wrote: There is no video of this arrest and no evidence relating to its legality other than Mr. Pettibones sworn statements. Defendants have not refuted the states allegation that Mr. Pettibones seizure lacked probable cause. I therefore assume, only for the purposes of this opinion, that this seizure was unlawful and constituted a violation of Mr. Pettibones rights under the Fourth and Fifth Amendments. Regarding the arrest depicted in the video, Mosman added: The video shows the seizure but does not show any context for what preceded it. It therefore does not speak to probable cause one way or another because it is equally plausible that the individual was an innocent bystander or that he had committed some criminal act just before officers seized him. READ MORE: Fact-checking Trump on rising murders in Philly | PolitiFact But when a Trump administration official was asked to describe the probable cause, he admitted the officers had none. Rather, the agents wanted to question the man about a crime he might have observed and believed they needed to move him to do so safely. Richard Kris Cline, deputy director of the Federal Protective Service, said at a news conference that as agents approached the man, they noticed that coming in their direction were violent demonstrators. This necessitated moving the man to an area that was safe for both the officers and the individual, Cline said. Cline went on to argue that the officers conduct was lawful because it was not actually an arrest, but rather a stop, which does not require probable cause. Cline is wrong. READ MORE: No, Joe Biden doesnt want to ban fracking or kill the Pennsylvania jobs it supports Forty years ago, the Supreme Court ruled in Dunaway v. New York that taking a suspect into custody, transporting him to a new location, and detaining him for questioning is indistinguishable from a traditional arrest. And for such an arrest to be lawful, probable cause is required. The court drew similar conclusions in Davis v. Mississippi and Hayes v. Florida. Harvard Law professor Andrew Crespo described the case law this way: Any one of these cases, standing alone, resolves the question at hand. Taken together, the conclusion is inescapable: When the agents put the man in the van, took him off the street, and brought him inside for questioning, they arrested him. Cline says they did so without probable cause. That means they violated the Constitution. So, can these two incidents be considered kidnapping? Rosenblum used the word kidnap in her petition for an injunction against future arrests involving protesters. Ordinarily, a person exercising his right to walk through the streets of Portland who is confronted by anonymous men in military-type fatigues and ordered into an unmarked van can reasonably assume that he is being kidnapped and is the victim of a crime, Rosenblum wrote. READ MORE: No, Trump didnt tell Americans infected with the coronavirus to drink bleach | PolitiFact Some legal experts didnt hesitate when asked if what happened was kidnapping. Apprehending a person by force and holding him or her in captivity without legal authority is the definition of kidnapping, said Erwin Chemerinsky, a constitutional law expert and the dean at Berkeley Law. That is exactly what was done to some who were apprehended in Portland. Former federal prosecutor Ken White said calling the detentions kidnapping is a mostly rhetorical question rather than a legal one because its unlikely the agents responsible would ever be charged. But he didnt dispute that some elements of the crime of kidnapping match what happened. The arrest could certainly be unlawful and in violation of the Fourth Amendment, which has consequences in any criminal case against the arrestee and potential civil consequences if the arrestee sues, he said. However, kidnapping is a different matter thats a criminal allegation against the cop. He continued: The crime of kidnapping usually has an element of wrongful intent so youd have to prove not just that the arrest was unlawful, but that the cop knew and intended it to be unlawful, which is difficult. George Washington University Laws Jonathan Turley said it was reckless for Casey to call the incidents kidnapping when the seizures were most likely false arrests, which can occur when an officer believes, even wrongly, that he had legal authority to detain someone. Our ruling Casey said federal agents in Portland have been kidnapping and holding citizens without charges. Its clear from Mosmans ruling and from Clines remarks that the two detentions in question were unconstitutional or false, and its not in dispute that the two men were briefly held without charges. The circumstances of these two detentions fit many elements of the crime of kidnapping. This is true even if the crime is never charged or proved beyond a reasonable doubt. For these reasons, we rate Caseys claim Mostly True. Our sources Twitter, Mayor Ted Wheeler @tedwheeler, July 20, 2020 CNN, A Navy veteran says he was beaten and pepper sprayed by authorities while attending his first protest in Portland, July 20, 2020 Oregon Public Broadcasting, Federal Officers Shoot Portland Protester In Head With Less Lethal Munitions, July 12, 2020 The Philadelphia Inquirer, Trump is threatening to send federal agents to Philly. Heres what you need to know, July 21, 2020 Opinion and order, U.S. District Judge Michael Mosman in Ellen Rosenblum v. John Does 1-10; United States Department of Homeland Security, filed July 24, 2020 The White House, Executive Order on Protecting American Monuments, Memorials, and Statues and Combating Recent Criminal Violence, June 26, 2020 U.S. Department of Homeland Security, DHS Announces New Task Force to Protect American Monuments, Memorials, and Statues, July 1, 2020 The New York Times, Federal Officers Deployed in Portland Didnt have Proper Training, D.H.S. Memo Said, July 18, 2020 Oregon Public Broadcasting, Federal Law Enforcement Use Unmarked Vehicles to Grab Protesters Off Portland Streets, July 16, 2020 Twitter, Hamed Aleaziz @Haleaziz, July 22, 2020 The Washington Post, It was like being preyed upon': Portland protesters say federal officers in unmarked vans are detaining them, July 17, 2020 Twitter, Matcha Chai @matcha_chai, July 15, 2020 Lawsuit, Ellen Rosenblum v. John Does 1-10; United States Department of Homeland Security, filed July 17, 2020 U.S. Customs and Border Protection YouTube, DHS/CBP Press Conference July 21, 2020, July 21, 2020 Lawfare, Unpacking DHSs Troubling Explanation of the Portland Van Video, July 25, 2020 Email interview, Erwin Chemerinsky, July 29, 2020 Email interview, Larry Tribe, July 29, 2020 Phone interview, Ken White, July 30, 2020 Phone interview, Bob Weisberg, July 31, 2020 Phone interview, Jonathan Turley, July 31, 2020 PolitiFact is a nonpartisan, fact-checking website operated by the nonprofit Poynter Institute for Media Studies. It's been said that Covid has really brought us all back to old-fashioned, more traditional, values and practices: we're talking to our neighbours, we're baking bread, we've discovered family time, and we're terrified and mildly aroused by menstrual periods. That is according to complaints made to the Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland (ASAI), with viewers calling a Tampax advert "crude", "embarrassing", "provocative" and "suggestive". Although obviously the ASAI could not uphold complaints that found the advertisement unsuitable for children, demeaning to women and containing sexual innuendo (because they were clearly untrue), it did vaguely concede that it had caused "widespread offence" and subsequently banned it. The advert was responding to research which showed that most tampon users experienced discomfort and attempted to troubleshoot the usual illustration young girls have shown each other for years: a closed fist and a tampon. Millennials are howling with outrage for our teenage selves: we have the alarming and disorienting image of the cross-section of our reproductive organs on the Tampax instruction leaflet branded on our consciousness forever. We didn't know stuff about periods, and there was no way of really finding out. We blame the patriarchy, the church, boomers. And when we see ads being banned it makes us feel protective of a younger generation, lest they turn out like us. But the kids are alright - Gen Z aren't learning about periods from textbooks and adverts. I'm not sure Gen Z even watch adverts, or adverts that we would recognise as adverts. They're on TikTok engaging with far more radical, educational, expressive discourse and dismantling the heteropatriarchy. They really don't care about a Tampax advert. They probably think we're cute for worrying. So I've tried to enjoy Catholic Ireland bouncing back to, of all things, banning a Tampax advert. I've just sat back and revelled in the delicious Catch-22 of how to actually write in to the ASAI about tampons being provocative without inadvertently admitting that you think there's something sexy about tampons and periods. Which is, presumably, the last thing anybody writing in to the ASAI would want to admit. ********* The pandemic has presented moral quandaries like never before; every day, it seems, we make life or death decisions and negotiate and renegotiate boundaries. Can I give my granny a quick hug? Am I alright to go to a socially-distanced birthday celebration? Should I fly across the world to shift Paul Mescal? The latter has been the thought experiment of the week, since Phoebe Bridgers appeared to fly from the US to meet Ireland's most eligible bachelor in Cork. Now, perhaps you're wondering who she is, or perhaps like me you've been pretending to know who she is since she became (suddenly, it seemed - as these things do) ubiquitous in cool young parts of the internet. Phoebe Bridgers is not, crucially, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, of Fleabag fame. Phoebe Bridgers is a 25-year-old musician from LA, of whom Mescal is a well-documented number one fan. He has said that her music helped him get into character for sad, sexy Connell - which tells you a lot about her music. Having just spent five frenetic hours stalking her on the internet, I can confirm that she's adorable. Their names were first said in the same sentence back in May, when relatable Bridgers tweeted "finished normal people and now I'm sad and horny oh wait" to which Mescal replied (in a very un-Connellish manner), "I'm officially dead". Reading the exchange, fans of both stars were officially dead, too: there was a lot to unpack. What was that "oh wait"? Did she mean she's always sad and horny (the millennial condition) or was she hinting at her unique position to be relieved of her frustration? Either way, the clock had started ticking on the inevitable moment that these two beautiful young people, mutually star-struck, would get to take their tops off for each other. Shortly after, the geniuses at Wonderland used the pretext of having featured them both separately in the same magazine for Paul and Phoebe to do an Instagram Live together where they 'interviewed' each other. It was essentially a first date and every one of its 26 minutes is as sublime and awkward and funny as any dialogue in Normal People: if you thought watching Marianne and Connell not admitting that they fancy each other was frustrating, try this. Paul opens with "what's the craic" and fixes his hair a lot and looks mortified. He apologises for being burnt and sweaty and red. Phoebe laughs. At one point she asks his shoe size and enters it into a US converter while he glugs water like a dying man. And then, last week, apropos of nothing, a cafe in Kinsale announced to the world that Phoebe and Paul were finally shifting - or "calling to our cafe this morning for breakfast". The rest of the world thinks this is pretty funny, and very Oirish - they think the Lemon Leaf Cafe must be very embarrassed at its innocence. But here we know that Paul Mescal doesn't patronise a small business without that small business putting it on social. Matt Damon leaving the country left a vacuum in Ireland which Paul flew back and filled: he's our new guy for posing with waitresses and hotel managers. Paul Mescal is a Michelin star; Paul Mescal is a coronavirus insurance policy. Paul Mescal and Phoebe Bridgers couldn't not have been outed by the Lemon Leaf Cafe, it was too good an opportunity to miss. It did attract attention for Phoebe's apparent failure to quarantine, Phoebe is Schrodinger's Yank: both a tourist and not a tourist. There was little of the venom that has been lavished upon American tourists in recent weeks: we told ourselves that we don't know for sure, that we can't make judgments. We ultimately welcomed her with open arms. Because who among us can say that we wouldn't fly across the world in a global pandemic to shift Paul Mescal? Let the first person who wouldn't risk their own lives and others' just to have a chance to see Paul's little shorts up close and personal cast the first stone. It's just as well that the Covid issue is there to create a little friction, because Phoebe and Paul are a completely unproblematic couple in basically every other way. This is a rare heterosexual celebrity romance that people of all orientations and persuasions feel invested in. When he was asked about 'The Breakfast', Paul's answer was: "Erm, I'd rather not talk about that. Sorry." Which is extremely dissatisfying until you imagine it delivered in the deliberate, pause-loaded, erotic manner of Connell. Who says the sequel is never as good? ******** And it emerged that Paul and Phoebe weren't the only stars around Kinsale that day: Keith Duffy and Brian McFadden were also there. Apparently, their car broke down. This fact added a certain poignancy to the Paul and Phoebe story, infusing it with a sense of fame's mortality. I like to imagine Mescal kept seeing them out in Kinsale out of the corner of his eye, and thought it was a manifestation of his fears and anxieties. Here was this young, beautiful couple with the world at their feet; and there, the nightmarish ghost of celebrity future - Boyzlife is not so much a band as a fable. A U.S. Marine amphibious assault vehicle takes part in a landing operation during a military at the Baltic Sea near Vilnius, Lithuania, on June 4, 2018. (Mindaugas Kulbis/ File/AP Photo) Authorities Identify Dead Marine, 8 Presumed Killed The Marine who died after an amphibious assault vehicle (AAV) mishap was named late Sunday as Lance Cpl. Guillermo Perez. Authorities also identified the seven Marines and one sailor who are presumed dead. After scouring more than 1,000 square nautical miles, the search efforts ended earlier Aug. 2. Those presumed dead are: Pfc. Bryan J. Baltierra of Corona, Calif. Lance Cpl. Marco A. Barranco of Montebello, Calif. Pfc. Evan A. Bath of Oak Creek, Wis. U.S. Navy Hospitalman Christopher Gnem of Stockton, Calif. Pfc. Jack Ryan Ostrovsky of Bend, Ore. Cpl. Wesley A. Rodd of Harris, Texas. Lance Cpl. Chase D. Sweetwood of Portland, Ore. Cpl. Cesar A. Villanueva of Riverside, Calif. All were part of Bravo Company. Lt. Gen. Karsten Heckl, who commands I Marine Expeditionary Force, in a statement expressed condolences to friends and family of the deceased. The U.S. flag was lowered to half-staff at Park Semper Fi in San Clemente, Calif., on July 31, 2020. (Paul Bersebach/The Orange County Register via AP) An aerial view of the coast and Pacific Ocean taken flying in to San Clemente Island, in San Diego on July 16, 2013. (Mindy Schauer/The Orange County Register via AP) To not have all of the answers right now is heartbreaking, he said. Our hearts break for their friends and families. We pray they find comfort during this difficult time. Two Marines were injured in the accident, which took place late Thursday off the coast of Southern California. A rifleman with the company was rushed to Scripps Memorial Hospital and is in critical condition. An AAV crew member with Mechanized Company was rushed to the hospital in critical condition but has since been upgraded to stable condition. The 16 service members were in the vehicle for a routine training exercise when it began taking on water before sinking. While the cause of the accident is investigated, all amphibious assault vehicle water operations are suspended, Gen. David Berger, the Marine Corps commandant, told reporters last week. Once we determine what the cause was then well make a second decision on whether we continue, he said. Lt. Gen. Joseph Osterman, the commanding general of I Marine Expeditionary Force, called the accident a very tragic situation. When the AAV began to take on water, they signaled to the rest of the unit that they were, in fact, taking on water, he said. Nearby ships responded to help the sinking ship, rescuing eight of the Marines. CPA members support locked out Woolworths warehouse workers in Wyong On Friday the 24th July, 550 workers at the Woolworths distribution centre in Wyong took strike action. These workers were supported by their union, the United Workers Union (UWU) to strike to remedy serious grievances with Woolworths. These grievances include unsafe work practices, rates of pay that are lower than that of warehouse workers employed by Woolworths in identical warehouses in Sydney, and to convert workers who have been stuck in casual positions for years to permanent positions. Woolworths retaliated by locking the workers out until Wednesday the following week in a move described by UWU as heartless. The UWU established a 24-hour picket outside the distribution centre. CPA members of UWU have been playing an important role in organising and supporting this picket to defend the interests of workers. Members of Central, Maritime, and Beloyannis branch visited the picket within a day of the lockout. The Maritime Branch donated $350 of required supplies, while other members brought cartons of food on arrival to the picket. For more coverage of the Wyong Woolworths strike, visit the CPA Facebook page for The Workers Weekly Guardians exclusive video report. (SCREENSHOT: Trust Yoga's website) SINGAPORE A yoga instructor from Trust Yoga has been placed on leave of absence after a former student alleged that she was sexually assaulted at the studio. Trust Yoga said in a statement on Monday (3 August) night that the instructor who was allegedly involved in the incident had agreed to be on leave following internal investigations, and that it is cooperating with the authorities in the matter. The alleged victim detailed in her Instagram story about the incident on 11 July, where she claimed that the male instructor had molested her while adjusting her position in an inverted forearm stand pose during her class at the studio. After the molest, the teacher had acted as if nothing untoward had happened and just continued teaching the class, the woman claimed. The teacher then left after the class ended. The student added that she was stunned and in shock after the incident. The next day, the alleged victim claimed to have gone to the yoga studio with her father to talk to Trusts owners. She claimed in her posts - uploaded three days ago - that the teacher was still conducting classes even after Trusts owners said they would take strict action. The woman has filed a police report, according to her posts. In its statement, Trust said that it takes allegations of sexual misconduct very seriously. As a yoga studio, we strive to provide a safe learning environment for all students, it added. The studio, which has two branches at Telok Ayer and Tampines, said that students who did not wish to be adjusted during classes may use a no adjustment card placed at the entrance of the class to convey his or her preference to the instructor. As additional safeguards, there are also CCTVs in place at our studio. We will further strengthen internal reporting mechanisms to ensure an optimal learning environment for our students. When contacted by Yahoo News Singapore earlier, one of Trusts instructors listed on its website, Shiou An, declined to comment, citing police investigations. Story continues The studios founder is listed as Manoj Deshwal, who is said to have been teaching yoga in Singapore since 2011 and holds a postgraduate degree in Physical Education and Yoga Science. When contacted, the alleged victim told Yahoo News Singapore that she is currently seeking legal advice. Stay in the know on-the-go: Join Yahoo Singapore's Telegram channel at http://t.me/YahooSingapore Other Singapore stories Up to 100 persons allowed in 12 places of worship from Friday: MCCY COVID-19: Monitoring devices for those serving SHNs outside of dedicated facilities from 10 Aug Singapore suicides rose in 2019, SOS to offer text-based counselling Man charged with cheating victims out of more than $98,000 in Haj tour scam Huntsville police say they have arrested a man in the disappearance of Sharon Michelle Copeland, a local woman who was found dead in Tennessee. Charles Shorty Price Preston, 29, was arrested and charged with murder today, the Huntsville Police Department announced today. Copelands remains were found in Tennessee last week, said Huntsville police Lt. Michael Johnson in a news release. At this time, Investigators have enough information to know that her death occurred in Huntsville but more work is needed to determine exact cause of death, Johnson said. Copeland, 49, was reported missing to the Huntsville Police Department last month. She was last seen in the area of Ivy Avenue Southwest. Sharon Michelle Copeland was reported missing in Huntsville, Ala. (Photo: Huntsville Police Department) Further information wasnt immediately available. Anyone with information is asked to call investigators directly at 256-924-1778 or the police department at 256-722-7100. Crime Stoppers can be reached at 53-CRIME. To settle a score with four men with whom he allegedly fought over giving right of way, a 25-year-old private tutor filed a false complaint at the Alipur police station on Saturday. The tutor alleged that the four men robbed him of 5 lakh, and diamond and gold jewellery worth several lakhs of rupees, after involving him in an altercation to make to look like a road rage incident. However, his plan failed and the tutor, identified as Pankaj Lakra, was arrested as his story fell flat when the police checked his movements of that day. They found that he mortgaged the jewellery he claimed the four men stole to a bank the same day. The police also identified and questioned the four men, who told them that it was actually the complainant who impersonated a Delhi Police inspector and thrashed two of them. We have arrested Lakra on charges of impersonation and filing a fake complaint, and registered a first information report (FIR). Lakra, while driving on the wrong side of the road, fought with the four men and assaulted two of them after claiming to be a police inspector. Lakra filed the false complaint only to take revenge from the four men, whom he did not even know, said deputy commissioner of police (outer-north) Gaurav Sharma. On Saturday evening, DCP Sharma said the Alipur police received a call regarding a robbery at a traffic signal near Singhola village in Alipur. A police team went there and met the caller, Lakra, who alleged that he was driving his i10 car when four occupants of a Santro car came driving from the wrong side and asked him to stop. Lakra said that when he did not stop and continued driving, the four men took a U-turn and intercepted his car, forcing him to stop. They fought over giving each other the right of way. Lakra alleged that two of them overpowered him from behind while the other two picked up his bag containing jewellery and 5 lakh from the rear seat. They also snatched his gold chain before fleeing, a police officer said, quoting Lakras complaint. A robbery case was registered and the police initially suspected the role of a gang that deliberately picks up a fight with commuters and them robs them. However, when Lakras allegations were verified, his cellphone details checked and his movements of the day examined, the police found some contradictions. His cellphone details revealed that he had already mortgaged the jewellery in a bank before the alleged robbery. Through the Santros registration number, we also found the four men whose statement confirmed that they were indeed victims. Accordingly, we interrogated Lakra who broke down and confessed to filing a false case. We arrested him, said DCP said. Lakras car, empty jewellery boxes and two receipts of the mortgaged jewellery were seized, the DCP added. Vietnam News Agency talks to Noel Servigon, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Philippines to ASEAN, about Vietnam's role in the bloc to mark the 25th anniversary (July 28) of the countrys entry. Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and President of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte and other ASEAN heads of states attended the bloc's summit in Philippines in 2017, the year marking the 50th founding anniversary of ASEAN. VNA/VNS Photo Thong Nhat At the age of 53, the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is showing its youth, dynamic, development and seduction. What has created the value and identity of ASEAN? What will be the place for the regional bloc in the 'Asian Century'? ASEAN has become one of the most important regional organisations in the world. An economic dynamo and a major player in the regions political-security architecture and the world, ASEAN has gone from strength to strength and has continuously adapted to rise to a myriad of challenges. A key aspect of ASEANs strength as a regional organisation is the powerful sense of community, one that has been carefully nurtured through the decades, threading across the 10 very diverse member states, particularly among ASEANs leaders and policy-makers. The triumph of co-operation and consensus over conflict continues to shape ASEANs achievements in a region that could have been so easily fraught with destabilising issues. This has brought about an ecosystem of peaceful co-existence in the region and underpins the concerted efforts of member states towards common aspirations across the economic, socio-cultural and political areas. As for ASEANs place in the future, we can already see its expanding sphere of influence outside the region. It has established a considerable convening power to bring many countries, including major powers, international and regional organisations to the table to collaborate on critical issues that have global consequences. How do you evaluate the role and the contribution of Vietnam after 25 years of joining ASEAN? The first time I visited Vietnam was in December 1998 when the country hosted for the first time an ASEAN Summit, just three years after it joined ASEAN. Then 18 years after, I became the Philippine Ambassador to Vietnam. I have seen the tremendous progress that Vietnam has achieved in that time. When ASEAN celebrated its Golden Year in 2017, it was heartwarming to witness the widespread enthusiasm exhibited at all levels of society in Vietnam. Since the Philippines was then the chair of ASEAN, I participated in all kinds of commemorative activities in different places in Vietnam. Indeed, from what I observed, the Vietnamese people hold their country's membership and engagement in the ASEAN community in the highest regard. Vietnam is an invaluable member of the ASEAN community of nations and has actively shepherded a number of important initiatives and led efforts that continue to enrich the ASEAN agenda and experience. The positive effects born during Vietnams Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2010 alone, with its theme 'Towards the ASEAN Community: From Vision to Action', continue to this very day, such as, to name a few, raising the profile of the Southeast Asian Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty in multilateral fora, strengthening the East Asia Summit with the inclusion of more non-ASEAN Member States as participating countries, leading discussions on efforts to restore and sustain the financial health of the region which was recovering from a financial crisis, promoting sustainable development, narrowing the development gap in ASEAN, fostering infrastructure development and ASEAN connectivity. As the Chair of ASEAN this year, what does Vietnam need to do to continue building the ASEAN Community? What are the difficulties and challenges ASEAN will have to overcome at this time? With the year 2020 comes the task of negotiating numerous successor Plans of Action with Dialogue Partners, as well as with the United Nations. The Philippines appreciates Vietnams leadership in ensuring these plans of action are finalised within the year and contributes to the further strengthening of ASEANs external relations while upholding the primacy of ASEAN centrality. This year, Vietnam also steers the efforts to conduct a comprehensive mid-term review of all community blueprints that guide economic, socio-cultural, and political policies. The outcomes of these reviews will ensure ASEAN's growth and development continue on the correct path to secure a better collective future for all peoples of ASEAN. This year has, of course, been marked by the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has touched every aspect of our lives. Vietnams leadership to manoeuvre ASEAN through this global crisis has been much appreciated as it entails leading discussions on, among others, the strengthening of existing mechanisms and the creation of new ones. Its remarkable success in containing the pandemic has served as a model not only in ASEAN but throughout the whole world. Our concerted efforts this year will help ensure that all member states emerge stronger and better equipped to respond and recover from future pandemics. As a participant in the meetings of the ASEAN Senior Officials and the Committee of Permanent Representatives to ASEAN since the start of this year, I wish continued success to their respective chairmen, Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung and Ambassador Tran Duc Binh. VNS From member to chair: 25 years of Vietnam in ASEAN Vietnam became the seventh member of the Association of Southeast Asian Association of Nations (ASEAN) on July 28, 1995, marking a milestone in the countrys integration into regional affairs as well as in regional co-operation. In Pics: PM Modi to inaugurate new campus of Classical Tamil institute in Chennai today India has everything needed to be hub for medical tourism: PM Modi Tamil Nadu CM calls 3 language formula 'painful' asks PM Modi to reconsider India oi-Deepika S Chennai, Aug 03: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palanisamy on Monday called the three-language formula in the new National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 is "painful and saddening" and said there will not be any deviation from the two-language policy being followed in the state. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News "Three-language formula in NEP is painful and saddening. I appeal to Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) to reconsider. Let the states implement as per the policy," the Chief Minister said in a statement. Smart India hackathon 2020: NEP will transform job seekers into job creators, says PM Modi Taking strong exception to the proposal for the three-language formula in the NEP, Chief Minister K Palanisamy after a chairing a meeting of Cabinet colleagues at the Secretariat here, said the state has been following the two-language policy for several decades and there will be no change in it. "Tamil Nadu will never allow the Centre's three-language policy. The state will continue with it's dual language policy (of Tamil and English)," the chief minister said. The minister also cited to the anti-Hindi agitation by Tamil Nadu students in 1965 when attempts were made by the Congress government to make Hindi the official language. Palanisamy said there will be no change to the two- language formula which the state had adopted decades ago. Teaching up to class 5 in mother tongue or regional language and lowering the stakes of board exams are part of the sweeping reforms in the new NEP unveiled last week. Thiruvananthapuram, August 03 : Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala on Monday slammed chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, saying that the chief ministers office abetting smuggling of gold had dented the states image. Speaking to a private news channel, Chennithala said that the chief minister had forfeited the right to continue in office. Wondering how chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan was left clueless about his offices alleged links to gold smuggling and anti-national activities, the opposition leader questioned Mr. Vijayans ability to govern the state when he could not even maintain control over his office. The chief minister had no answers to the questions posed by the opposition in connection with the gold smuggling case and the backdoor appointments in the government, he said. Instead, the chief minister had chosen to attack me saying I was asking these questions because of my peculiar mindset, charged Chennithala. The opposition leader reiterated the demand for a CBI probe into the gold smuggling through an air cargo consignment addressed to the UAE consulate. The NIA probe would only cover terror-related aspects of the crime. However, only a CBI probe would bring out the true facts behind the shady deals done by the chief minister and his former principal secretary M Sivasankar. The probe by chief secretary Vishwas Mehta against Mr. Sivasankar would not unearth anything. The chief ministers office perpetrated serious corruption and nepotism in the last four years. A comprehensive CBI probe was needed. The chief minister should order a CBI probe and tender his resignation, the opposition leader said. Chennithala also launched the speak up Kerala campaign demanding the chief ministers resignation and a CBI probe into the gold smuggling case. The opposition leader staged a sit-in at his official residence as part of the campaign. Senior leaders of the congress and the UDF took part in the campaign through video conferencing. STEPANAKERT. According to the information provided by the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Ministry of Health, four new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Artsakh, the Artsakh Information Headquarters reported. But 12 more COVID-19 patients have recovered. To date, the novel coronavirus has been diagnosed in 243 people in Artsakh, 179 of whom have recovered from the disease. A total of 63 people are currently receiving treatment, and 112 citizens are in isolation. Also, 151 samples were taken for testing purposes, and 6,095 samples have been tested to date. One of the front-runners of the COVID-19 vaccine race, giant pharmaceutical company Sanofi Aventis France (SASY.PA), has been charged with manslaughter over congenital disabilities linked to an epilepsy drug valproate, most commonly marketed as Depakine, among other trade names. Charged with Manslaughter and Fraud In a report by Reuters, the company has announced Monday, Augt, 3, in French newspaper Le Monde that French prosecutors have indicted them for manslaughter in a long-running case where they were also charged with fraud. Before the manslaughter charge, the French pharmaceutical company was already charged with aggravated fraud by 42 families that they have unintentionally injured because of the medication. Nevertheless, the company said in a statement that they have already respected all legal obligations with regards to Depakine and have denied all the charges. According to Arab News, Sanofi insists that they have already warned health officials of the risks of taking the epilepsy drug in the 1980s. They also disclosed that they had filed a legal challenge to the indictment. The news outlet also noted that under the French legal system, trials are not automatic after a charge as prosecutors could decide to drop the case due to lack of evidence. However, previous studies claimed that the drug valproate or Depakine has adverse effects on newborn babies. Read Also: Treatment-Resistant Cancer Might be Cured by 'Bispecific' Antibody; It Could Help T-Cells Attack Incurable Cancer Past Study Highlights the Drug's Effects The medication has been around since 1967, but it received a bad reputation after cases of women who took the medication during their pregnancy gave birth to newborn infants with disabilities, with a past study suggesting around 15,000 to 30,000 babies develop disabilities due to the drugs. The study also found that women who took the medication while pregnant increased the chances of 10% to 40% of giving birth to children with congenital malformations. The children were also more likely to have learning difficulties and autism. Since Sanofi has warned the proper health authorities of the risks of the medicine to pregnant women, a French court has ordered the state to pay thousands of euros for damages caused by the scandal, saying that officials should have ensured that pregnant women do not take the drug. The country's national compensation agency has already proposed 6.5 million euros or around $7.6 million package for Depakine victims. Furthermore, they have already received another 500 complaints. Front-runner in the COVID-19 Vaccine Race The pharma giant is one of the front-runners when it comes to creating the highly-anticipated COVID-19 vaccine that will stop the current pandemic and could hopefully bring the world back to normal after dozens of countries had to lock down their borders and demanded their people to stay inside and only to go out for essential runs to stores and pharmacies. The company has also secured the biggest COVID-19 vaccine deal with the U.S. government under President Donald J. Trump's regime. With a deal of $2.1 billion, Sanofi, along with British company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), will be supplying the US with 100 million doses of their experimental coronavirus vaccine once it passes the trials and is good to go. Read Also: Mysterious Seeds From China: USDA Reveals Over a Dozen Cryptic Plant Seeds Distributed Nationwide This article belongs to TechTimes. Written by: Nhx Tingson 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. NORRISTOWN Just days before a Maryland man allegedly fatally shot his ex-girlfriend at her Lower Moreland home, the woman testified in court that he physically restrained her and tore her dress during a previous domestic-related incident at his home, court papers revealed. Montgomery County prosecutors maintain the prior testimony of murder victim Jeanne Edwards in a Maryland courtroom last November should be admissible as evidence against William Tomas Torres when he stands trial in connection with Edwards death. The victim testified about the defendants use of physical force to prevent her from leaving, including throwing her possessions from her car onto the ground, holding her physically and tearing her dress, county Assistant District Attorney Brianna Ringwood and co-prosecutor Matthew Brittenburg wrote in pretrial court documents. These are the topics the Commonwealth now seeks to admit during the upcoming homicide trial. These controlling actions show his intent, motive, ill will and tell the complete story of their relationship, prosecutors argued. Defense lawyer Carrie Lynn Allman will have a chance to respond to the prosecutors request when Judge Cheryl L. Austin holds a hearing on the matter later this year. Torres, 62, of Elkton, Md., is awaiting trial on charges of first- and third-degree murder, simple assault, possession of a weapon and recklessly endangering another person in connection with the alleged Nov. 25, 2019, fatal shooting of Edwards, 57. Austin has set a tentative Nov. 9 trial date for Torres. The jury trial is expected to last about five days. In court papers, prosecutors said Edwards and Torres began dating in June 2018. During their relationship, Ms. Edwards family and friends observed him to be very controlling and jealous, Ringwood and Brittenburg alleged, adding Edwards ended the relationship in September 2019. Before the relationship ended, police were called to Torres Maryland residence on Sept. 22, 2019, for an alleged domestic-related incident during which Edwards reported a physical altercation with the defendant over her attempt to leave, according to prosecutors. During the alleged incident, Torres grabbed Edwards by both arms to try to restrain her, causing her dress to tear, according to court documents. At one point during the alleged altercation, Torres bent over and Edwards, in order to get him to stop his actions, used her knee to strike him in the forehead, causing a small cut above his eye, according to court papers. Torres, who appeared intoxicated and allegedly gave police conflicting accounts of his actions, subsequently was charged with assault by Maryland authorities, court papers indicate. Torres trial in connection with the incident occurred on Nov. 18, 2019, in Cecil County District Court in Maryland. Edwards testified during the trial at which Torres represented himself. Torres ultimately was acquitted of the assault-related charge, the Maryland court apparently finding that prosecutors there failed to provide sufficient evidence to support the charge, court papers revealed. While prosecutors want a jury to hear Edwards previous testimony, they want Austin to exclude the Maryland district courts conclusions about the evidence that was presented. A few days after the Maryland trial, on Nov. 25, Torres allegedly purchased a Winchester brand pump-action shotgun and ammunition from a firearms dealer in Havre de Grace, Md., according to court documents. After purchasing the firearm, Torres allegedly traveled to Edwards home in Lower Moreland. The local investigation began about 5:24 p.m. Nov. 25 when Lower Moreland police responded to Edwards residence in the 2300 block of Dale Road for a report of a shooting. Arriving officers found Edwards suffering from an apparent gunshot wound, and she was taken to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Edwards son told authorities he arrived home from work and heard a pop as he pulled into the driveway, according to the criminal complaint filed by county Detective Gregory Henry and Lower Moreland Detective Holly Halota. When he entered the house, the victims son saw Torres, who he knew as his mothers ex-boyfriend, standing in the doorway holding a shotgun pointed at him, according to the arrest affidavit. Torres told (the victims son) that his mother ruined his life. Torres then fled the house and (the victims son) called 911, Henry and Halota wrote in the criminal complaint. Limerick Township police arrested Torres a short time later at a private residence in that township. A woman who resided at the Limerick residence told detectives she knew Torres for about a month and was dating him, according to court papers. The woman said Torres arrived at her home about 6:30 p.m. and said, I need to tell you something, according to the arrest affidavit. Torres allegedly proceeded to tell the Limerick woman that he purchased a shotgun that day and drove to the home of his ex-girlfriend. Torres said he then shot his ex-girlfriend twice and was unsure if she made it,' detectives alleged in court papers. The Limerick woman contacted township police, who observed a shotgun inside Torres 2016 Mercedes Benz, which was parked in the driveway of the Limerick womans residence. During an autopsy, a forensic pathologist recovered shotgun pellets from the body of Edwards. The autopsy determined Edwards died as a result of multiple shotgun wounds to the torso, according to the criminal complaint. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle may struggle to launch careers in LA because powerful studio bosses see them as 'red-carpet fodder, not as a bankable item,' a royal biographer has claimed. The Duchess of Sussex, 38, who is currently living in the $18m (14.5 million) Beverly Hills mansion of mega-rich Hollywood actor/producer Tyler Perry with husband Prince Harry, 35, and their son Archie, hasn't yet received any offers of leading roles, according to Christopher Wilson. 'Crucially for Meghan, no studio seems to have stepped forward with the offer of a leading lady role, her hope and dream,' he said, speaking to The Express. 'If they had, we'd have heard about it. It would seem the all-powerful studio bosses look on the couple as red-carpet fodder, not as a bankable item.' Powerful studio bosses look at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as 'red-carpet fodder, not as a bankable item,' royal biographer Christopher Wilson has claimed. Pictured, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attend the Commonwealth Day Service 2020 on March 9, 2020 in London The royal biographer claimed that 'crucially for Meghan, no studio seems to have stepped forward with the offer of a leading lady role.' Pictured, the Duke and Duchess of Susses at 'The Lion King' film premiere in London on 14 July 2019 The couple tied the knot in a star-studded wedding at at Windsor Castle in May 2018 - before shocking the world when they announced they would be stepping back as senior royals in January. The royal biographer went on to say that the couple were a 'powerful force' in the UK, but claims Harry has since realised that things have changed. 'In Britain, they were a powerful force,' alleged the royal biographer. 'But when Harry walked away from royal duties he broke the magic thread which binds royalty to the people. 'It's taken a long time for the penny to drop, but Harry has discovered he is no king of the high seas but a castaway stranded on a desert island.' Prince Harry and Meghan Markle leaving St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle after their wedding on 19 May 2018 Prince Harry and Meghan holding their son Archie, meeting Archbishop Desmond Tutu at the Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation in Cape Town, South Africa on 25 September 2019 The comments come as royal experts claim Kate Middleton has been left reeling by the new bombshell biography about the Sussexes while conversations between Prince Harry and Prince William are now 'stilted and difficulted.' Finding Freedom, which is written by authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand and is released next week, lays bare a rift between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, and the rest of the Firm. Royal author Andrew Morton has revealed how Kate has been left 'devastated' by the feud enveloping the royal family, telling New Idea: 'Theres no doubt the rift between Harry and William has deeply affected Kate. It upsets her.' Meanwhile, Phil Dampier said the bombshell book would do 'little to heal the relationships' between the Duke and Prince William, 38, explaining: 'Im told that the pair are speaking at the moment, but the conversations are stilted and difficult.' By Bryan Wong Investing.com - Oil was down on Monday morning in Asia as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) moved to increase oil production. Brent oil futures slid 0.76% to $43.19 by 10:11 PM ET (3:11 AM GMT) and WTI futures also dropped 0.89% to $39.91. The production increase starting this month will see about 1.5 million barrels added to global supply per day. However, fuel demand has yet to recover due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which is affecting prices for the black liquid. Hiroyuki Kikukawa, general manager of research at Nissan (OTC:NSANY) Securities predicted prices will stay in the low $40s this week. Fears over a resurgence in the coronavirus cases are weighing on oil markets, Kikukawa told Reuters. Investors are worried about supply gluts as the OPEC+ is due to start reducing production cuts this month and a recovery in oil prices from record lows is expected to encourage U.S. shale producers to ramp up output. In the U.S., one of the largest oil consumers, California, recorded an increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases of more than the 14-day average yesterday. Victoria, Australias second most populous state, has also imposed new lockdown measures as COVID-19 infections surged, dampening investor hopes for fuel demand recovery. Related Articles Gold Opens Week At Record High Oil edges lower on oversupply concerns as OPEC+ set to raise output Gold Surges to Record as Week Opens With Spot Price Near $2,000 RICHMOND, Va., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), in association with VCU Health System, announced a partnership with Kallaco Health & Technology to support VCU's COVID-19 testing strategy for VCU students and employees. Kallaco is a comprehensive, integrated wellness company that offers customizable testing, training and technology solutions. VCU requires residential students to take a COVID-19 test and receive negative results prior to move-in and is working with Kallaco to mail test kits to residential students that they can take at home and mail back for analysis before move-in begins in August. In addition, VCU Health System will provide on-campus testing for symptomatic VCU students and employees, as well as prevalence testing for a portion of VCU asymptomatic students and employees in an effort to monitor the overall prevalence of COVID-19 in the VCU community. VCU students and employees who receive COVID-19 testing through VCU will have access to the Kallaco app where they can review their test results and monitor their daily health. "The partnership with Kallaco provides numerous benefits and opportunities that complement our own experience and expertise through this pandemic as an academic health system," said Melinda S. Hancock, CPA, FHFMA. Chief administrative and financial officer, VCU Health System. "Together we bring these to the University to provide the resources needed to return to campus." The partnership with Kallaco is in addition to VCU's extensive return-to-campus plan that also includes starter supply kits for every returning student and employee (face coverings, sanitizer, and disinfectant spray to supplement supplies they may already have), required online training related to safety protocols, and required daily attestations of health. "Kallaco is proud to partner with VCU and VCU Health along with tens-of-thousands of employees and students across universities and businesses with at-home COVID testing and other services," said John Spivey, Founder and CEO of Kallaco. "VCU and VCU Health have shown an outstanding commitment to creating the safest possible return for their students, faculty, and surrounding communities, and we are honored to assist in their efforts." VCU's return continues now in phases and they prepare for classes to begin on the Monroe Park Campus on Aug. 17. About VCU Virginia Commonwealth University is a major, urban public research university with national and international rankings in sponsored research. Located in downtown Richmond, VCU enrolls more than 30,000 students in 233 degree and certificate programs in the arts, sciences and humanities. Twenty-two of the programs are unique in Virginia, many of them crossing the disciplines of VCU's 11 schools and three colleges. The VCU Health brand represents the VCU health sciences academic programs, the VCU Massey Cancer Center and the VCU Health System, which comprises VCU Medical Center (the only academic medical center in the region), Community Memorial Hospital, Children's Hospital of Richmond at VCU, and MCV Physicians. For more, please visit www.vcu.edu and vcuhealth.org. About Kallaco Kallaco was inspired by the greek word Kala, meaning "good, well" along with -co which represents connection, community, confidence, and collaboration. Kallaco was created as a health management platform to provide employers, university, and healthcare administrators a connected health solution to manage the current challenges of today along with their organization's future health management. For more information visit www.kalla.co. Media Inquiries related to VCU and VCUHS: Michael R. Porter [email protected] Media Inquiries related to Kallaco: Amy Cheronis [email protected] SOURCE Kallaco KEY HIGHLIGHTS Serum Institute, Bharat Biotech, Zydus conducting clinical trials of potential COVID vaccines Regulatory streamlining ensures quick approvals, fast-track development Early 2021 a realistic target for made in India vaccine Developed nations firm up plans for vaccine procurement, administration, India waits With 18 lakh infections, India emerging as a global COVID-19 hotspot Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has given approval to Pune-based Serum Institute to conduct the second and third phases of clinical trials simultaneously of the potential COVID-19 vaccine Covishield developed by the Oxford University-AstraZeneca collaboration in the UK. This is the third vaccine candidate that has received approval for clinical trials from the DCGI in quick succession. Earlier approved ones, Covaxin and ZyCov-D, potential vaccines developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech and Ahmedabad-based Zydus Cadila respectively, are undergoing simultaneous Phase I and II clinical trials in various centres across the country at the moment. The companies are hoping that if everything goes well, they may be ready for the commercial launch of a COVID-19 vaccine in less than a year. ALSO READ: Coronavirus vaccine update: Search on for single-dose vaccine; Serum Institute gets approval for Phase 2, 3 trials ON FAST TRACK The speed at which all three vaccines have reached the clinical trial stage in India is unprecedented. The companies have been working overtime to zero in on the most promising vaccine candidate, and the regulator has wasted no time in granting necessary clearances. The permission to conduct simultaneous trials has also helped cut short time as, under normal conditions, approvals for each phase would have been only on the basis of the outcome of the previous phase of clinical trials. For instance, the first vaccine project to take off, the partnership project of Bharat Biotech International Ltd (BBIL) and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to develop Covaxin, started with ICMR's National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune isolating the COVID-19 virus in their lab early this year, in the very initial stages of the pandemic itself. It was handed over to BBIL to identify and develop a vaccine candidate, a whole virus inactivated vaccine. The company, which has the country's only BSL-3 (bio-safety level) containment facility in the private sector to conduct such research, came out with a potential vaccine candidate within the next two to three months. The research work happened 24x7, and pre-clinical tests carried out in animals showed the vaccine is safe and it produces anti-bodies. The results were submitted to the DCGI and got cleared to be taken to the next level - the clinical trials in human volunteers. The hospitals or clinical trial sites were identified, they were asked to get their protocols ready, volunteers recruited, to begin clinical trials. At the same time, BBIL sent samples of the vaccine candidate to Central Drugs Laboratory, Kasauli, where samples from every batch of vaccine - not just experimental vaccines, but even the ones that have obtained manufacturing licenses, gets tested for quality on a routine basis. The test results from Kasauli, which can take months depending on their workload, got prioritised and hence were completed within days. All the administrative procedures, which would have taken several years in a non-pandemic situation, thus got over within months. ZyCov-D development has also followed a similar fast track. Pankaj R Patel, chairman of Zydus Cadila, has publically acknowledged the support of National Biopharma Mission, BIRAC, Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, ICMR and DCGI in the development of ZyCoV-D vaccine candidate. Zydus launched its accelerated vaccine development programme for COVID-19 in February 2020. The first human dosing as part of the adaptive Phase I/ II human clinical trials of ZyCoV-D, a plasmid DNA vaccine, happened on July 15. The DNA vaccine platform, on which ZyCoV-D is developed, uses non-replicating and non-integrating plasmid carrying the gene of interest, making it safer to handle. Serum Institute, the production partner of Oxford University-AstraZeneca vaccine Covishield will also thank the regulator as the pre-clinical (based on studies of experimental animals) and Phase I clinical trial data generated outside India was considered while allowing the company to initiate the next levels (Phase II and III) of clinical trials in the country. Phase I clinical trial is conducted to demonstrate safety of the vaccine. Once that is done, a Phase II trial to prove the efficacy of the vaccine takes place. After that is also successfully done, comes the Phase III to demonstrate efficacy of the vaccine in larger number of volunteers across multiple sites. The actual involvement of human volunteers and drawing of blood samples in the first and second phases gets over within a month each. It was the pandemic situation, and the urgency to fast track clinical trials, that made DCGI permit clinical trial sites to carry out Phase I+II trials, which means to conduct the first and second phases of clinical trial in parallel. Assuming that all clinical trial sites start administering the vaccine doses to the volunteers according to the protocols approved by the DCGI today (in the case of Covaxin and ZyCoV-D its already on), within a month, the samples collected at all the sites during the clinical trials can be sent to a NABL-approved diagnostic laboratory for testing. By then the Principal Investigators would have observed whether the vaccine is safe or not to the volunteers by observing them and checking whether they are developing any adverse reaction or effects (Phase I results). The results of the second phase will indicate if the vaccine promoted development of antibodies. Depending on the urgency, the test results can come within 48 hours. The analysis of this data and preparation of final report by the clinical trial investigators for submission to the DCGI is the next step. This gathering of data, writing the reports and their submission, etc. to the DCGI can sometimes take months as the investigators involved are also busy medical professionals. ICMR had made an appeal to the investigators to prioritise these works and if it is heeded, reports can be prepared and submitted to the DCGI in a couple of weeks, instead of six months or more. The role of DCGI will then be to go through these reports and decide on the next regulatory step towards release of the vaccine for use. Depending on the data of the Phase II vaccine trials, DCGI can permit the third phase of clinical trials. In the case of Covishield, the results of Phase III clinical trials along with its Phase II results may see DCGI even giving marketing approval. If there are no delays in clearances and preparation of protocols, enrolments, tests and reports, and if the results are robust, India can hope for a vaccine within a year. READYING FOR THE LAUNCH Indian vaccine makers are not the only ones who are working on COVID-19 vaccines. In fact, the World Health Organisation (WHO) itself is spearheading the global efforts to initiate as many accelerated vaccine development projects as possible. As on July 31, 26 vaccine candidates (including Covishield, Covaxin and ZyCoV-D) are in Phase III or Phase II stage of clinical trials. Another 139 candidate vaccines are undergoing pre-clinical evaluation. Indian companies may not be the frontrunners, but there is nothing much to complain about when it comes to their preparedness to launch the product, once it is found to be successful. But what differentiates India from other countries, especially the developed world, is the absence of any financial commitment from the government towards securing the vaccine on a priority basis once the vaccine becomes a reality. Several developed nations have already committed billions of dollars to ensure the availability of vaccine. Deals are being signed with pharmaceutical companies like AstraZeneca and Pfizer to ensure that the vaccine doses are reaching their citizens in sufficient quantity. The US, which tops the list of COVID-19 infections with over 48 lakh cases, has made this commitment. India, where every day over 50,000 new cases are registered and is third in the global list of COVID-19 affected countries with over 18 lakh cases, is yet to make its plan clear. Any attempts to fast track the development will have to be matched with efforts to make the vaccine available at affordable costs. Serum Institute promoter Adar Poonawalla has said that the company's newly built COVID-19 vaccine production facility can set aside half of its production capacity for domestic use, but the government is yet to have its mass vaccination plans in place. Though the priority targets for vaccination - the vulnerable population like frontline healthcare workers, people with other health conditions, etc. - have been more or less spelt out. With COVID-19 cases increasing day by day, it is time for a vaccination plan. At least a blueprint that can suggest the way for the vaccine industry to firm up their India plans. ALSO READ: Anand Mahindra upbeat about market revival over Fauci's coronavirus vaccine assurance UPDATE (8/4): 854 new Pa. coronavirus cases push total over 115K; 23 more deaths reported For the first time since March, Pennsylvania has reported no new deaths from the coronavirus, holding the states COVID-19 death toll at 7,209. At the same time, the number of Pa. coronavirus cases increased by 565, according to the daily report from the state health department. The statewide case count is now up to 114,155. (Cant see the map? Click here.) Meanwhile, as Tropical Storm Isaias moves up the East Coast, threatening a few inches of rain and wind for eastern Pennsylvania, state authorities have issued hurricane-preparedness advice that accounts for the COVID-19 pandemic. And locally, Lehigh Valley residents will soon be able to get a coronavirus test at one a Walmart drive-thru site. Here are your Pennsylvania coronavirus updates for Aug. 3, 2020. No new COVID-19 deaths in Pa. The last time Pennsylvania had a day with no reported coronavirus deaths was March 22. At that time, there were 479 cases and two deaths known in Pennsylvania. Non-life-sustaining businesses had been ordered closed just a few days earlier. Data typically lags over the weekend, however. Single-digit death reports from the weekend have been offset by counts in the teens, 20s and 30s during the week over the last month, though the overall rate of deaths has been declining. (Cant see the chart? Click here.) Still, a day with no new COVID-19 deaths is noteworthy. This is encouraging, Pennsylvania Department of Health spokesperson Nate Wardle told lehighvalleylive.com, as is our recent decrease in mortality rate. We need people to understand that the mitigation steps in place are to help decrease the likelihood of exposure. Wearing a mask, social distancing, washing your hands, staying away from large gatherings, avoiding travel to hot spot states and staying home if you are sick will help us as we work to further decrease the number of cases in Pa., and keep our mortality rate low. As of Monday, Pennsylvania averaged 12 coronavirus deaths a day over the last seven days, down from 15 a week ago. Deaths have been reported in all but six of Pennsylvanias 67 counties. (Cant see the map? Click here.) Coronavirus in Pa. The 565 new positive coronavirus cases reported Monday are Pennsylvanias fewest since July 13, also a Monday, when reports are typically down. The states seven-day average of cases has now fallen five days in a row, from an average of 975 cases a day on Wednesday to 842 by Monday. (Cant see the chart? Click here.) The seven-day rate of positive tests to individual patients has fallen slightly to 5.6% on Monday, down from 5.9% a week ago. The state health department estimates that 76% of Pennsylvania coronavirus patients have recovered so far. (MORE: How to understand Pa. COVID-19 data with interactive charts) COVID-19 cases have increased among younger adults, but it is those 65 and older who are most often hospitalized or die from the infection. The health department says people aged 19 to 24 accounted for about 17% of COVID-19 cases last month in the northeast region, which includes the Lehigh Valley, compared to 6% in April. As of Monday, nursing home residents represented 17% of Pennsylvanias cases but 68% of deaths. (Cant see the table? Click here.) Coronavirus in the Lehigh Valley New coronavirus cases in the Lehigh Valley totaled single-digits in Mondays state health department report, again, coming off the weekend, when data usually lags. The two-county Lehigh Valley now totals 8,716 coronavirus cases and 625 deaths. That breaks down to: 4,853 cases and 335 deaths in Lehigh County , an increase of four new cases and no deaths in the last day. 3,863 cases and 290 deaths in Northampton County , an increase of three new cases and no deaths in the last day. (Cant see the chart? Click here.) A new drive-thru coronavirus testing location will open Wednesday at the Walmart Supercenter on Macarthur Road in Whitehall Township. The site will test up to 50 registered patients from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday, the state health department announced. Registration is required at least a day in advance. (MORE: Lehigh Valley Walmart part of new drive-thru COVID-19 testing sites in Pa.) The site is among nine new Walmart drive-thrus announced Monday and hundreds of testing sites around Pennsylvania. COVID-19 hurricane preparedness Pennsylvania is not a coastal state, but it is not immune from the effects of hurricanes. Case in point: Tropical Storm Isaias is expected to bring at least a couple inches of rain to eastern Pennsylvania, including the Lehigh Valley, through Tuesday. Ahead of this, Gov. Tom Wolf and Lehigh County last week issued separate advisories urging hurricane preparedness in the age of the coronavirus. Tropical Storm #Isaias is a reminder that disasters won't wait for #COVID19 to end. Now is the time to prepare: Make a plan for your family & consider the needs of those with disabilities. Sign up for local emergency alerts. Follow @NHC_Atlantic for storm updates. https://t.co/BsNTQlVpiW FEMA (@fema) August 3, 2020 The basic advice hasnt changed: Keep emergency kits with non-perishable food, bottled water, medication and any other necessities like baby supplies or pet food. Have a first-aid kit handy along with a flashlight and extra batteries. Make an emergency plan with your family, including how to stay in contact if separated. This year, however, households are told also to keep handy an extra clean mask or face shield for each family member. The governors office said face-coverings could be especially important during an evacuation, when risk of COVID-19 exposure increases. Storm or no, masks are still required in most public places except in specific circumstances. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com. Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Changes Made Good and Bad Changes Still Planned (TNS) Summit County, Ohio, Judge Elinore Marsh Stormer remembers watching the movie thriller "Mission Impossible" in the mid-'90s and thinking how nice it would be to communicate with multiple people at once, all in different locations.Fast forward to 2020 and Stormer and other judges in Summit County and across the country are doing this daily using videoconferencing applications like Zoom for hearings that were formerly held in person."It turns out that was actually a thing," said Stormer, a longtime judge who is now in Probate Court. "We were behind on the technology aspect at least in my court."Many other courts also lagged in adopting new technology and were forced to do so quickly when the pandemic hit and access to courthouses was severely limited. Now that local court officials have seen the potential, they expect to continue using it even after things return to normal."It opened our eyes to uses of technology we hadn't considered," said Rick Klinger, the Stow Municipal Court administrator. "It forced us to think about it and come up with solutions. They've turned out to be good short-term fixes and several of them long-term fixes."The new technology has presented some challenges, but court officials say it has also proved to be a way to make the lives of judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys and defendants much easier.Many local courts were awarded grants from the Ohio Supreme Court for technology upgrades such as new laptops, wiring, microphones and videoconferencing licenses. Additional updates are still in the works, including in Summit County, where improvements to the remote connection between correctional facilities and courts are being studied.Before Summit County residents can complete cases in domestic court, they must take a parenting class called Remember the Children.These classes were offered in person three days a week before the pandemic.With that option unavailable, the court developed a new approach: a webinar. This gave them the opportunity to update the material in the course, as well as add new video footage, with many people from the court assisting."It's been a good experience," said Judge Katarina Cook. "A lot of people presented and enjoyed creating something that will be for the benefit of the parents."The court will soon debut the webinar, with plans to offer it in person once a month for those who don't have a computer.In the Barberton Municipal Court, court officials used a grant to wire a second courtroom to be available for videoconferencing. Before this, only one courtroom had video capabilities. If a judge needed to video conference, he or she had to wait until the court was free."We doubled our capacity," said Judge Todd McKenney.Summit County Common Pleas Court recently started a pilot program that allows people on probation to check in via a smartphone app. The court is the first in Ohio to use this app.Amy Corrigall Jones, the court's administrative judge, said the early reception has been positive, with participants liking the convenience."It's a benefit to individuals who don't necessarily have the resources others do, such as transportation, employment issues and child care," she said.Probate court officials quickly learned about security issues involving videoconferencing when someone shared pornography during a hearing.After that, Stormer said, court officials made sure they were approving anyone who requested to attend a hearing.Cook said videoconferencing has worked well for the court, though she sees limitations to when it can or should be used, such as having someone in a disputed case testify."You don't know who's in the room," she said. "You don't know what they have in their lap, who they're communicating with or what papers they're looking at."Cook said she'd have no problem, though, with a guardian or expert who isn't affiliated with one side or the other testifying via video. She also thinks it could be a helpful option for a person who is elderly or ill.Barberton Judge Jill Flagg Lanzinger, who helps out in the autism community, has suggested using videoconferencing for people with autism to make their interaction with the court less traumatic."I agree with her," McKenney said. "We will keep that as an option."At the Summit County Juvenile Detention Center, family visits haven't been permitted during the pandemic, but youths have been given the chance to videoconference with their loved ones.Juvenile Judge Linda Tucci Teodosio said this has worked out well, especially because the youths can connect with whomever is available, rather than being restricted to only parents or guardians like they are with in-person visits."It really opens up the opportunity to have a broader visitation experience," she said.Jones said videoconferencing has had the added benefit of providing court staff with an up-close look at defendants' lives. She said court staff recently asked a specialty court participant to show the contents of his refrigerator."You see their lifestyle, who their support system is," she said. "That's something I never would have guessed would provide insight."The technology updates in Summit County's courts aren't done yet.Summit County Council recently voted to pay MCM Consulting Group, a Pennsylvania-based company, up to $145,189 to study changes that would improve the connection between local courts and the Summit County Jail and other area correction facilities.The money for the consultant came from the $94.4 million in Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act funds that Summit County received. This money also could be used for needed updates that are identified, with the funds required to be spent by the end of the year."We want to look at the ability to expand a virtual meeting environment," said Brian Nelsen, chief of staff for Summit County Executive Ilene Shapiro.Nelsen said this would have the added benefit of decreasing the need to transport prisoners, which would free up deputies and reduce safety concerns.Akron Municipal Court received a state grant for a new case management system that will replace the court's outdated, paper-reliant model. The new system is expected to offer options like reminders about court and probation appointments.Nicole Walker, the court's presiding/administrative judge, said the court is getting help with developing the new system from the National Center for State Courts. She hopes it will be completed by 2022.The court also received a grant to install two kiosks where people can print forms and request assistance. She said people who have a court appearance via videoconferencing but don't have a computer could do so at a kiosk.The court is looking at partnering with Community Legal Aid, possibly to staff a kiosk at the court or to house one of the kiosks at the agency."We're trying to figure out that piece now," Walker said. Workers of the La Palm Royal Beach Hotel in Accra have staged another demonstration over their conditions of service. This is the second time the workers are protesting in less than two weeks over salaries, end-of-Service benefits, and Tier 1 & Tier 2 insurance contributions, among other concerns. The workers say management failed to address their concerns the last time they protested despite assurances. Some of them who spoke to Citi News said some good staff of the company had resigned due to the supposed poor leadership style of the Managing Director, Abena Pokua Boaitey Amoah. Look at the professionals and the well-trained staff that we used to have. Most of them have left because of this woman (the MD). A lot of the persons who were good have all left because of her. Go to Labadi Beach Hotel, when you are there, you feel you are working, but we don't have that experience here and its just one person [creating such issues] and if we can get the person off, things are going to be better for the collective good of the company, some of the workers said. Earlier response from management The Principal Industrial Relations Officer for the Industrial Workers Union (ICU), Odelia Sowu, during an earlier demonstration, calmed tensions urging the workers to return to post as negotiations were ongoing to address all their concerns. We've started a very long haul in the area of our negotiations for the June salary and we appreciate the fact that today being the 27th of July we have not yet received our June salary. We want to acknowledge the fact that as employees, we are also having some challenges. You have families back at home that you need to care for and without salaries, it's becoming a challenge so, in view of this, we have taken a second look at the overall negotiation process. In 2018, the staff demonstrated against their Managing Director, Abena Pokua Boaitey Amoah, demanding her removal from office. The workers, among other things, also protested her refusal to implement new salary levels, which were supposed to take effect from January 1, 2018. ---citinewsroom By Express News Service HYDERABAD: A 55-year-old lawyer lodged a complaint with the Punjagutta police, accusing a private hospital of shifting him to a COVID-19 ward despite testing negative for the disease. He also alleged that the hospital charged him exorbitantly in the name of treatment. According to the police, Sridhar Singh, a resident of Vijay Nagar Colony, stated in his complaint that he got himself admitted to Deccan Hospital at Somajiguda on July 28 as he had a fever and was feeling weak. The next day, his samples were collected and sent for a COVID-19 test. "The test reports returned negative but the hospital management deliberately did not disclose this to me. Instead, they billed me Rs 3 lakh to Rs 6 lakh on the pretext of treating me. They kept me in the COVID ward," Singh said in his complaint. It was only on Sunday that the lawyer realised he does not have COVID-19 as he showed no symptoms. He asked the staff for his reports and test results, which mentioned that he had not contracted the disease at all. When Singh asked the staff as to why they put him in the COVID ward, they could not give him a satisfactory answer. He then approached the police and lodged a complaint against the hospital. Outside the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE). Signs of a resurgence in coronavirus cases in Vietnam unnerved investors who were hoping for a swift economic recovery from the crisis. Ha Noi - Vietnamese shares may continue to fall this week as a spike in fresh coronavirus cases fuelled concerns that the path to economic recovery could be hindered. The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) lost 0.34 per cent to end Friday at 798.39 points. It had lost a total of 3.7 per cent last week. An average of 310.4 million shares were traded on the HoSE during each session last week, worth VND4.9 trillion. On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index slumped 0.55 per cent to end Friday at 107.51 points. The northern market index had declined 1.7 per cent last week. An average of 48.7 million shares were traded on the HNX during each session last week, worth VND444 billion. Two women infected with COVID-19 were confirmed dead Sunday afternoon, bringing Vietnam's tally of COVID-19 casualties to five. Both patients suffering from underlying health conditions were diagnosed with COVID-19 on July 31. Vietnam has recorded 590 cases so far, 212 being active cases. Over 94,000 are in quarantine. According to Le Anh Tung, Market & Macro Strategist at KB Securities Vietnam, investors are quite sensitive to the COVID-19 movements. Signs of a resurgence in coronavirus cases in Vietnam unnerved investors who were hoping for a swift economic recovery from the crisis, he said. I am afraid that the main trend of the market in August is going down. The rapid spread of COVID-19 coupled with the complicated nature of the infection cases in major hospitals, makes the pandemic more complex than it was the first time. Therefore, the risks of another social distancing order may happen and the stock market will witness an additional deep decline, he said. But the market may rebound afterwards as investors still pinned hopes on drastic action of the Government in the fight against COVID-19, having their faith in the stock market again, Tung said. I think that the market may move sideways next week and the VN-Index is forecast to fluctuate in the price range of 745-800 points, said Nguyen The Minh, director of Analysis Division at Yuanta Vietnam Securities Co. As the short-term trend of the market is still down, the appropriate strategy for investors at present is to sell off and reduce their stock proportion. However, the cash flow still shows signs of different orientation and investors still have opportunities to seek profits in each specific industry group, he said. According to Tran Xuan Bach, a stock analyst at Bao Viet Securities Co, the VN-Index is forecast to continually oscillate between resistance 810-820 points and support 780 points next week. Q2 business result reporting season is gradually losing its impact on the market movement. The market will lack supporting information during the early weeks of August, therefore, the VN-Indexs movement will be driven mainly by news related to the COVID-19 pandemic, Bach said. Stock exposure should be maintained at below 25 per cent of the portfolio. Investors should only open buying positions at low proportion at support zone of 775-785 points, prioritising portfolio-existing positions, Bach said. With the market going down last week, almost all major sectors declined. Consumer services stocks such as Vietnam Airlines Group (HVN) slumped 10.9 per cent, Vietjet (VJC) lost 9 per cent and SCSC Cargo Service Corporation (SCS) was down 4.8 per cent. Oil and gas stocks also decreased, PetroViet Nam Coating JSC (PVB) decreasing 9.1 per cent, PetroVietnam Technical Services Corporation (PVS) falling 9.3 per cent, Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Company Limited (BSR) losing 7.8 per cent and PetroVietnam Oil Corporation (OIL) moving down 5.5 per cent. Banking stocks also saw a steep fall with Techcombank (TCB) down 6.9 per cent, Vietcombank (VCB) losing 5.7 per cent, HDBank (HDB) falling 5.3 per cent, Military Bank (MBB) and VPBank (VPB) both down 4.7 per cent. Fran Ruchalski, The Enterprise / The Enterprise Lamar State College Port Arthur will host free COVID-19 testing for employees and members of the public on August 4-6. Free testing for employees only will be available the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 4 from 8-11 a.m. WASHINGTON As President Donald Trump continues to push for schools to open in the fall amid the coronavirus, a battle over school reopenings in Maryland affects when his youngest son can attend school in person. Barron Trump's private school, where he is scheduled to begin high school Sept. 8, is located in the Maryland county where nonpublic schools were mandated to remain closed to in-person instruction through at least Oct. 1 in an order issued Friday. But on Monday, Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, blocked that order, allowing private schools to decide for themselves whether they will reopen, as long as they adhere to state and Centers for Disease Control Prevention guidelines about safe reopening. "This is a decision for schools and parents, not politicians," Hogan said in a statement on Friday expressing disagreement with the local order. Which states are reopening schools?: A mix of in-person attendance, remote learning and hybrid plans The Montgomery County, Maryland order issued Friday prohibited private and independent schools from reopening in person, including St. Andrews Episcopal School where 14-year-old Barron will be attending. Health officer Dr. Travis Gayles cited "increases in transmission rates for COVID-19 in the State of Maryland, the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Virginia, particularly in younger age groups" in a statement about the order. Hogan said that the Montgomery County order was "overly broad and inconsistent with the powers intended to be delegated to the county health officer." The county's executive Marc Elrich said Monday that the decision "was made with one concern in mind protecting the public health of our residents... we used data and science to guide us not politics." The president has repeatedly claimed that children pose less of a risk of spreading COVID-19, and that there are greater public health risks with keeping students out of school. He has downplayed the severity of case increases, attributing them to higher testing rates, though his own public health experts have disputed that as the sole reason. Story continues Health experts say that while children are at a decreased risk of contracting the virus and becoming seriously ill, they do spread it. A South Korean study found that children under 10 spread the virus less than adults do, but those between the ages of 10 and 19 spread the virus at least as well as adults. Should I send my child back to school?: This is the latest science on coronavirus and kids "They dont catch it easily, they dont bring it home easily. And if they do catch it, they get better fast," Trump said at a press briefing July 22. Some education professionals warn that children could transmit the virus to more vulnerable community members, including teachers. They have also said many schools are unprepared to safely reopen due to factors such as class sizes and difficulty enforcing social distancing among children. "It is critically important for our public health to open schools this fall," CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield said in a statement. Current CDC guidelines say schools should consider virtual learning if their community has "substantial, uncontrolled transmission." Last month, Trump suggested withholding federal funding from schools that do not reopen fully. He slightly softened his stance later in July when he said districts in coronavirus hot spots may need to "delay" their openings, and that it would be up to governors, but "every district should be actively making preparations to open." Now that we have witnessed it on a large scale basis, and firsthand, Virtual Learning has proven to be TERRIBLE compared to In School, or On Campus, Learning. Not even close! Schools must be open in the Fall. If not open, why would the Federal Government give Funding? It wont!!! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 10, 2020 Asked about sending his son and grandchildren back to school in person last month, Trump said he would be "comfortable" with it. White House counselor Kellyanne Conway said that it will be a "personal decision" made by the president and first lady and that she did not know what Barron's school had decided. St. Andrew's Episcopal has been developing plans for two potential learning models for the school year, according to its website: an entirely virtual model, and a hybrid between virtual and in-person instruction. "We are hopeful that in September most of our students will be able to return to on-campus learning and relationships," school administrators said in a letter to families. The school said it would inform families of a decision the week of Aug. 10. The hybrid model for grades 7-12 would consist of half the students learning from home and half in-person rotating each week. The White House has called for all schools to reopen for in-person instruction, with no requirements for part-time virtual learning. "The president has said unmistakably that he wants schools to open. And when he says open, he means open in full, kids being able to attend each and every day at their school," White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said July 16. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Barron Trump's school can open following Maryland Gov's order Not only in Armenia but all over the world, COVID-19 vaccination should be voluntary, Doctor of Medicine, Professor Henry Bakunts told a briefing on Monday. According to him, it takes years to develop a vaccine, and this is not a guarantee of success, as was the case, for example, with the Ebola vaccine, which was developed for 10 years but was unsuccessful. "The purpose of the vaccine is to awaken immunity, which should be the main weapon against the virus," he noted. Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president from Thane district, Avinash Jadhavs bail plea was rejected by the Thane court on Monday afternoon. The Kapurbawdi police had detained Jadhav and two other party members on Friday for staging a protest over non-payment of dues to the nursing staff at Thanes Covid hospital. Jadhavs bail application was rejected; we shall now appeal to the sessions court, said Rajendra Shirodkar, Jadhavs lawyer. There was heavy police security outside the court premises as MNS party workers and supporters had gathered in huge numbers in the vicinity. On Friday, he was given two days of police custody, now he has been given judicial custody and hence taken to Taloja prison. Moreover, Jadhav has been given an externment show cause notice for two years on Friday; this is for alleged constant protests during the pandemic. He was given externment notice from five districts including Thane, Palghar, Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Raigad. MNS had made allegations against the Thane Municipal Corporation on Sunday. Abhijit Panse, MNS, said, The company that has been given the responsibility of the Balkum Covid centre is Chembur-based and relatively new. Despite having a rule that three years experience in the medical field is mandatory this was not ensured while hiring this company. The PPE kits used within Thane are discarded ones from Mumbai. They also made allegations that the nursing staff were given transfer orders without payment of dues. Thane Municipal Commissioner responded to these allegations on Monday in a press conference, We have hired services of a company that is already associated with 20 other hospitals in Mumbai. Covid is a novel virus and it would be difficult to get a company with three years of experience in this field. The PPE kits are freshly made and have been tested by the medical staff at Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital in Kalwa before it was finalized for use. Moreover the nurses were recruited only for Covid duties and hence when their duties were finished they were transferred to other places, said Dr Vipin Sharma, Commissioner, Thane Municipal Corporation. Congress leader Digvijay Singh took on speculations around August 5, the date designated for the much-awaited mega 'bhoomi-pujan' ceremony for the grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya, urged PM Modi to defer the cermeony in context of the wide public perception and the norms of the Sanatan which are apparently viewing the date as 'inauspicious'. Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh on Monday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should defer the foundation stone laying ceremony for Ram temple from August 5 as it will be an inauspicious hour for the event. I request Modi Ji again that the inauspicious occasion of August 5 (for foundation stone laying ceremony for Ram temple) should be deferred. The construction of Ram temple is to begin after hundreds of years of struggle and PM Modi should leave his stubbornness that may cause an obstruction in the process, Digvijaya tweeted (translated from Hindi). digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) August 3, 2020 The Congress leader went on to claim that several BJP leaders were falling sick due to COVID-19 as the result of ignoring the norms of Sanatan Dharma. The results of ignoring the norms of Sanatan Dharma are all priests of Ram temple tested positive for COVID-19, death of UP Minister Kamal Rani Varun due to corona, UP BJP chief tested COVID-19 positive, Home Minister Amit Shah tested positive for COVID-19, Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan tested positive for COVID-19, Karnataka CM Yediyurappa tested positive for COVID-19, he added. Also read: Inside details of Commander Level meet: Disengagement at Pangong Tso discussed Also read: Mandir Bhumipoojan Anticipation: Yogi takes stock of preparedness at Ayodhya Lord Ram is the epicentre of faith for crores of Hindus and the PM should not play with norms and traditions of Sanatan Dharma established across thousands of years, he added. The Congress leader further questioned the urgency of holding the foundation stone laying event in times when COVID-19 spread is prevalent across the country. By laying the foundation stone for Ram temple at an inauspicious hour, how many people do you want to send to the hospital Modi Ji? Yogi Ji, please explain to Modi Ji. In your presence, why are the norms and traditions of Sanatan Dharma being broken? What is your compulsion that you are allowing this to happen? he contended. One more question arises. A minister of the Uttar Pradesh government died due to coronavirus. Union Home Minister tested positive for COVID-19 and Uttar Pradesh BJP chief also tested positive. In these circumstances, whether Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Indias Prime Minister should not be quarantined? Is being quarantined only mandated for common people? Not for Prime Minister and Chief Ministers? The time limit for quarantine is 14 days, he added. He further said that the entire cabinet should go into quarantine otherwise they will infect the residents of Ayodhya. These peoples religion is Hindutva and not Sanatan Dharma. hence they have nothing to do with Sanatan Dharmas traditions. They have broken all the norms. Now, Modi Ji will issue the muhurta and he will only lay the foundation stone, he tweeted. The Prime Minister is scheduled to lay the foundation stone of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on August 5. The construction of Ram temple will begin after the ceremony to lay the foundation stone in which Chief Ministers of several states, Ministers from the Union Cabinet and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat are also likely to participate. Also read: Under fire over quarantining Patna cop, BMC says followed norms: Nitish criticises move (Photo : Maxar/ASU/P. Rubin/NASA/JPL-Caltech) Artist's concept of the asteroid 16 Psyche, which is thought to be a stripped planetary core. (Photo : NASA) Predicting the UnpredictableThe Dynamics of DARTs Dive into an Asteroid A British mining company plans to launch an asteroid mining mission in 2027. That's according to an exclusive report by Daily Star, In its goal to push human progress further, the Asteroid Mining Corporation eyes to launch a mission to mine the Asteroid 1986DA, which is said to be worth 10 trillion or more than $13 trillion. According to a research published in Science Mag in 1991, Asteroid 1986DA created echoes that were "significantly more reflective than other radar-detected asteroids," which proves that the near-Earth object is composed of NiFe metal from the melting of a larger object that went through a catastrophic crash. The asteroid measures two kilometers in diameter and is believed to be a part of some iron meteorites. It appeared smooth but is extremely irregular at scales between 10 and 100 meters. After completing his dissertation entitled 'The Case for Asteroid Mining: Examining the economic and political benefits to be gained from mining in Space' at Liverpool Hope University where he studied International Relations and History, 25-year old Mitch Hunter-Scullion founded the asteroid mining in March 2016. He also aims to bring the Third Industrial Revolution with asteroids mining, which he regards as the "single greatest economic opportunity in human history." In May, Hunter-Scullion said at a lecture at the University of Oxford Doctoral Training Partnership that while Earth's resources are limited, the society has infinite demand. "Space Resources will allow for centuries of sustainable economic growth," he added. Hunter-Scullion also said that "the sky is not the limit" as the space resources industry may spawn boundless possibilities. As asteroids, which are also known as "flying gold mines" due to the high value of the metals it contains, Hunter-Scullion's company plans to launch a mission to mine them. On its website, the UK-based company said that it has "every intention of living among the first private citizens of Space." An asteroid worth $13 trillion Hunter-Scullion told Daily Star Online they have been working on classifying the most valuable asteroids as well as those "most viable candidates" for exploration. After weeks of study, Asteroid 1986DA came up and the company valued the materials that can be found in it at about $13 trillion. "An asteroid with a 1km diameter and in the upper 90th percentile for platinum composition would essentially be something like 9 or 10 trillion," the young CEO said. Hunter-Scullion seeks to find legal registration over mining of Asteroid 1986DA for a mission launching in 2027. Perhaps, the United States government can assist him with legal matters as American legislators passed a law in 2015 allowing private companies to join in the space mining industry. According to the law, US citizens are allowed to participate in the "commercial exploration and exploitation of space resources" that includes water and minerals as NASA supports research activities on space mining. Meanwhile, Luxembourg also passed its national space mining law, entitled Law of 20 July 2017 on the Exploration and Use of Space Resources. He also adds that the space mining industry has huge growth possibilities as there are billions of similar asteroids flying in space that can be used for mining. NASA previously estimated that the space mining industry could generate about $700 quintillion in revenue. However, Hunter-Scullion said that is "difficult to quantify the multitude of space resources, but he believes it is a huge industry that can even "get very much larger." According to the 2019 study by the Allied Market Research, the asteroid mining market could reach nearly $4 trillion by 2025 as various private and government missions are planned in the future. Numerous investors like capitalists, research directors, executive planners, and even government officials have expressed their interest in the project. Read also: Space Experts Will Use Ultraviolet Light to Solve Mysterious Stellar Eruptions 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The National Peace Council (NPC) on Monday inaugurated the National Monitoring Committee for the implementation of the Code of Conduct and Roadmap on political vigilantism. Members of the 10-member Committee, which is yet to choose a chairman, are Mr Vincent Azumah, West Africa Network for Peacebuilding, Dr Imurana Mohammed, National Commission for Civic Education, and Sheikh Aramiyaw Shaibu, Spokesperson of the National Chief Imam. Others are the Reverend Father Lazarus Anondee, Catholic Bishops Conference, Mr Fred Tetteh, Electoral Commission, Rev. Dr Cyril Fayose, Christian Council of Ghana, and Mr Jones Applerh, National Commission for Small Arms and Light Weapons. The rest are Mr Kwesi Jonah, Institute for Democratic Governance, Nana Kwabena Aborampah-Mensah, Ghana Centre for Democratic Development, and Maulvi Mohammed Bin Salih, Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission in Ghana. Nana Dr S. K. B. Asante, Board Member of the Peace Council, said the inauguration of the Committee was an important milestone. He said the nation had progressed from discussions of the problem through prescriptions for its solution and finally to the implementation of a mechanism for combating and eradicating political vigilantism. "We have to recognise that we have come a long way. We recall the appeal from President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to the two major political parties to dialogue together with a view to eradicating this scourge on the political landscape, he said. The decision to accept the role of the NPC, assisted by other stakeholders, as moderator of the dialogue, and the tortuous and difficult discussions from April 2019 to June 2020 finally resulted in the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) subscribing to the Roadmap and the Code of Conduct on the eradication of political vigilantism." "At this stage, the emphasis is not on the history or diagnosis of the problem but the implementation of the Code of Conduct, particularly in the light of the reported incidence of violence during the current voter registration exercise." Nana Dr Asante said the Implementation of the Code of Conduct, however, presupposes an appreciation of the norms stipulated in the Code of Conduct. The Code of Conduct, designed by the NPC, is one of the key deliverables of the dialogue between the NDC and the NPP and other stakeholders aimed at eradicating political vigilantism in Ghana. The inauguration was sponsorship by the Northern Sector Action on Awareness Centre (NORSAAC) in collaboration with STAR Ghana Foundation. Nana Dr Asante said the Code represented a consensus between the two parties that vigilantism was inimical to Ghana's democratic system and must be eradicated. Mr George Amoh, the Executive Secretary, NPC, urged political parties to ensure compliance with the Code of Conduct. Mr Jonah, on behalf of the Committee members, expressed gratitude to the Peace Council for the confidence reposed in them. He said the Code of Conduct was critical to ensuring peace in Ghana's democracy and protecting that enviable reputation in the West Africa sub-region. Source: GNA 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 Tom Reel /Staff file photo Twenty-two in-store H-E-B employees in San Antonio have tested positive for COVID-19 since July 22, according to the grocery store chain's website. In total, 108 employees tested positive for the disease in the Alamo City last month, down from the more than 120 who contracted the coronavirus in June. Getty Images En espanol | In past elections in some states, ballot initiatives were just as important or dramatic for voters as many of the races for elected office. This year? Not so much. Citizens likely will vote on fewer initiatives in November, in large part because of the coronavirus. But a number of states will still have measures to consider, including new rules for voting and legalization of marijuana. About half of U.S. states allow citizen initiatives; those that do require a certain number of signatures from registered voters for the measure to get on the ballot. With Americans being asked to maintain social distance during the COVID-19 pandemic, the kind of large gatherings like state fairs or campaign events where advocates traditionally collect signatures for their initiatives are either not happening or not well attended. Villages on the east coast of the Kamchatka peninsula, in the Russian Far-East are experiencing scenes that seem taken out of an Alfred Hitchkok movie. Only instead of birds invading their community, its billions of mosquitoes swirling into visible tornadoes. Villages like Ust-Kamchatsk are used to being invaded by large number of mosquitoes every summer, its normal for this insects to swarm near bodies of water, but this year its much worse than usual. Because of an unusually hot summer, the number of mosquitoes is much larger, making them an even bigger nuisance than they usually are. Window and door nets do little to keep the pesky buzzers out of peoples homes, as they seem to get in through the smallest of cracks, and going outside means dealing with large swarms of mosquitoes that seem to reach the sky when seen from afar. Photo: Komsomolskaya Pravda We have always had large numbers of mosquitoes here in the summer, and we always will, but there are just to many of them this year, Ust-Kamchatsk resident Maria Zubkova said. They get into every crack, even if there are nets on the windows, they still manage to get through. Videos of dozens of these mosquito tornadoes rising over villages on the east coast of Kamchatka have gone viral on Russian social media. They show these large whirlwinds visible from long distances, which wasnt the case in past years. Locals are used to mosquitoes and midges invading their villages for a few months every years, but few can remember such large numbers. Walking or driving through one of these living tornadoes will leave you covered in mosquitoes from head to toe, but experts say that people shouldnt fear getting stung by them. The tornadoes are part of the mosquitoes mating ritual, where tens maybe even hundreds of thousands of mosquitoes swarm around one or more females trying to secure a spot close to her. And since male mosquitoes dont sting, all you have to worry about is getting them off, as they can be very clingy. Kamchatka is home to over 100 species of midges and mosquitoes, and so far entomologists havent determined which ones are most active this year, but they assume that there are both blood-sucking species and harmless midges in these giant tornadoes. The mosquito tornadoes in Ust-Kamchatsk delight us this year. Look how elegantly they swarm. Its like aliens, like in a horror movie! one woman can be heard saying as she films the living columns rising over the Russian village. Things arent much better in nearby villages like Klyuchi and Kozyrevsk, where some say mosquitoes are so aggressive they can sting through jeans and leather jackets. US proposes house arrest for 'most dreaded' Taliban inmates to break deadlock in talks: Report Iran Press TV Sunday, 02 August 2020 7:13 AM The United States has reportedly proposed that the Taliban militants deemed dangerous be placed under house arrest following their release from Afghan jails as a solution to the stalemate that has delayed the intra-Afghan peace process. Citing senior official sources, Reuters reported Friday that Washington proposed that Kabul transfer Taliban prisoners to a facility, which would be under the surveillance of both the Afghan government and the militant group. The proposal was presented this week to the Afghan warring sides by top US diplomats, the sources said. The Afghan government is resisting freeing the final batch of some 5,000 prisoners whose release is demanded by the Taliban as a condition to start peace talks. Of the 400 Taliban prisoners left to be freed, over half stand accused of serious crimes, including killing thousands of civilians and planning attacks against foreign missions and government offices across the country. Along with Kabul, the US and its Western allies believe a number of the militants are too dangerous to walk free. "The Americans and their allies agree that it would be insane to let some of the most dreaded Taliban fighters walk out freely...the Afghan forces arrested them for conducting some of the most heinous crimes against humanity," said a senior Western diplomat in Kabul. President Ashraf Ghani has said the decision on the release of the Taliban prisoners accused of serious crimes should be made by Loya Jirga, a grand assembly of Afghan elders. Taliban sources and diplomats said the militant group was insistent on the freedom of the 400 militants on the list it has presented to Kabul. "The Taliban are adamant about their release, the only middle path is to get the Afghan government to hand these militants to the Taliban if they agree to put them in house arrest," Reuters quoted a diplomat in Kabul as saying. The intra-Afghan peace talks were initially planned to start in March in the Qatari capital, Doha, but the process has repeatedly been delayed amid the spat over the prisoners, with Taliban keeping up their attacks across the country. US Special Envoy Zalmay Khalilzad paid a visit to Kabul this week and pressed Taliban leaders and the president for "ongoing efforts to resolve the remaining issues ahead of intra-Afghan negotiations," including the prisoner release, the State Department said without elaborating. President Ghani and the Taliban have, however, both signaled that the negotiations could begin straight after the Muslim religious holiday of Eid al-Adha. The Taliban announced a three-day ceasefire starting on Friday for Eid holidays. In response, Ghani ordered the release of another 500 Taliban prisoners on Friday. He said they were not part of those "dangerous" prisoners demanded by the militants. The truce, which is the third official ceasefire in nearly 19 years of war, has raised hopes for peace talks to be start soon. Since Friday, there have been no reports of major clashes between the militants and government forces. In the southern province of Kandahar, where the Taliban control swathes of rural terrains, no fighting was reported. "There are no enemy movements or attacks by the Taliban," said Baheer Ahmad, spokesperson for the Kandahar governor. Spokesperson to the governor of the eastern province of Nangarhar also said that there have been "no reports of any terrorist attacks in the past two days since the ceasefire began." Nangarhar has been the scene of regular clashes between government forces and the Taliban. Ghani said last week that more than 3,500 Afghan troops and nearly 800 civilians had been killed since a peace deal was signed between the Taliban and the US in late February, in Doha. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Fashion District is slowly opening up with signage warning people about social distancing and wearing masks while shopping. Read more PREIT, owner of the former Gallery at Market East and other big malls, is trimming the salaries of its chief executive and chief financial officer while suspending dividend payments as part of a deal with its lenders to stave off default as the coronavirus pandemic continues to take its toll on the troubled company. The temporary 25% salary cut represents about a $38,000 reduction for chief executive Joseph C. Coradino. It comes after The Inquirer reported earlier this year that he had not joined other corporate leaders in taking a pay reduction to save cash during the health crisis, even as his company furloughed employees and received $4.5 million in relief money from the government. PREITs new deal with Wells Fargo Bank NA and other creditors, meanwhile, gives the company a reprieve until at least the end of August from the financial-performance benchmarks known as covenants that the company must meet to keep its loans in good standing as it seeks to renegotiate that debt, it said in a regulatory filing late Friday afternoon. During that respite, which was formalized through amendments to its agreements with lenders, PREIT is barred from making dividend payments to shareholders, the company said. PREIT continues to take action to navigate the challenging operating environment, including steps to enhance the companys liquidity, manage its debt obligations, and further strengthen its financial foundation, Heather Crowell, a PREIT vice president, said in a statement. The voluntary 25% pay reductions taken by PREITs CEO and CFO are part of this effort and underscore managements commitment to acting in the best interest of PREITs stakeholders and becoming stronger. Shares of Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust, PREITs full name, closed at $1.08 Monday in New York, down 8.5% from Friday. The Russell 3000 Index, which counts PREIT as a member, was up 0.9% over that time. Matt Frankel of Millionacres LLC, a real estate-focused division of finance website Motley Fool, attributed Mondays stock dip to the loss of the dividend payments, which prompted investors to flee the company. For people who were holding on to it ... to try to get income, it doesnt look like thats whats going to happen, he said. PREIT is the biggest mall owner in Philadelphia and its surrounding counties, with 4.7 million square feet of space under management in the region, according to market tracker CoStar Group. Its 21 malls in nine states include the former Gallery in Center City, now known as Fashion District Philadelphia; Willow Grove Park and the Plymouth Meeting Mall in Montgomery County; and the Cherry Hill Mall, Moorestown Mall, and Cumberland Mall in South Jersey. Even before all its properties were ordered closed in March to help stem the coronavirus, PREIT had been in a punishing, years-long struggle to revamp as shoppers increasingly migrate from shopping malls to e-commerce sites for everything from clothing to major appliances. As business losses from the pandemic mounted in May, PREIT was prompted to disclose substantial doubt about the companys ability to continue as a going concern if it was unsuccessful in its plans to raise cash through property sales and renegotiate its debt. All of its malls had reopened by July 3, when Fashion District Philadelphia resumed operation. It also announced in July that it had sold a portfolio of properties at its malls that are detached from its main structures, known as outparcels. Those sales have earned it a total of $27.8 million since February. The deal announced on Friday, meanwhile, buys PREIT some time to complete the debt talks with its banks, said analyst Frankel. It gives them some breathing room to negotiate, he said. It becomes less of an urgent situation. The deal runs from June 30 until Aug. 31 but can be extended until Sept. 30 if PREIT is successful in getting a new loan and has agreed on terms for permanent amendments to its existing loans before the end of August. Separately from the deal with its lenders, PREIT said in its disclosure on Friday that Coradino and chief financial officer Mario C. Ventresca Jr. would each have their base pay cut by 25% from July 27 until Sept. 30, a duration of 65 days. The salary cuts add PREIT to a roster of at least 600 companies on the Russell 3000 Index that have said they would reduce or defer executive compensation to help shore up their finances during the health crisis, according to Esgauge, a corporate-data firm. Coradinos 2020 base salary is $850,000, the same as it was in 2019 when the payment was part of a total compensation package worth $5.2 million, including stock awards, performance bonuses, and other earnings, the company has disclosed. A 25% reduction to Coradinos base pay for 65 days would cut $37,842 from his salary, according to Inquirer calculations. Any other additional compensation, which has yet to be determined for 2020, would not be affected by the reduction. But being largely stock-based, it will likely be lessened by the diminished value of company shares. Ventresca earned $1.2 million in 2019, including a base salary of $405,600. His 2020 base salary of $450,000 would be cut by $20,034 under the reduction. These cuts are symbolic, said Charles Elson, director of the Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware. Theyre trying to explain to their employee base that they are sharing in the pain of the company. ... The question is how they [the employees] will react if they actually do the math. When President Donald Trump took office, he passed down one key instruction on how to handle Latin America: Make Marco Rubio happy. Rubio, a Florida Republican and son of Cuban immigrants, had already built his political brand around vocal criticism of the regimes in Cuba and Venezuela, and to what he viewed as the Democrats policy of appeasement in the region. Trump didnt have much to say about Latin America, but he knew two things: He wanted to keep immigrants and asylum-seekers out of the United States, and he had to win Florida in 2020. And he viewed staying in the good graces of Rubio, whose hard-line stances have made him popular among Cuban and Venezuelan exiles and their descendants in and around Miami, as key to the latter. Nearly four years later, Rubios influence goes well beyond his formal job title of Florida senator. Empowered by Trump, hes now widely known in Washington and in Latin American capitals from Buenos Aires to Havana as a major force behind the presidents policies in the region. Rubio has effectively become secretary of State for Latin America, according to interviews with more than a dozen former White House and State Department officials and current Republican lawmakers, aides and analysts. The administration has learned to seek his blessing on key hires related to the region, and the president routinely solicits his input on new policy initiatives. Rubio rejects labels like virtual secretary of State for Latin America, an appellation bestowed on him last year by The New York Times. That implies we dont have a secretary of State and thats not accurate, he told POLITICO in an interview. If people mean it as a compliment, I dont mean to turn them off on it. But its not like the people Im working with or providing advice to need to be convinced to do these things. He describes his own role in humbler terms: to offer advice and nudge us in one direction or another in hiring and policy decisions. Story continues But with influence has come criticism. Rubio has become too powerful, his critics say ruthless in his efforts to control messaging and push out anyone with a role in Latin America policy who could be perceived as soft on Cuba or Venezuela, while too narrow in his focus on only a few countries in a region of more than 650 million people. Rubios influence has distorted policy, said Michael Shifter, president of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington-based think tank focused on Latin America, who criticized top officials singular focus on Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua. But this obsession with the three dictatorships doesnt mean you ignore everything else that is going on in the region, he added. Inside the administration, officials face a continual dilemma over just how much deference to pay the Florida senator. Rubio is either advantageous to you or an obstructor. Which do you choose? said a former administration official focused on Latin America. From the early days of the Trump administration, Rubio has had a direct line to the president when it comes to Cuba and Venezuela and occasionally Nicaragua, two former administration officials said. In February 2017, he organized a meeting between Trump and Lilian Tintori, wife of Venezuelan opposition politician and then-political prisoner Leopoldo Lopez, at the White House. The president did not inform National Security Council aides of the meeting and they did not find out until after it took place, according to two former administration officials. Trump tweeted out a photo of the encounter, marking Rubio as a voice who could not be ignored. We knew early on that on Latin America policy Trump wasnt taking cues from career officials. He was taking cues from harder-line Cuba folks in Miami, a former State official said. During peak times in Trumps crackdown on Cuba and Venezuelas governments, Rubio was briefed by the NSC at least once a week. And State officials have long been advised including under former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to always be quick in responding to inquiries from the Florida senators office. Youd never want Marco Rubio to find out like everyone else about a policy rollout, a former administration official said. In phone calls, Trump has often solicited Rubios views on NSC proposals related to Latin America, former administration officials said. On multiple occasions, Rubio came directly to NSC staffers with feedback on live policy options related to Cuba and Venezuela that they had not discussed with him or his staff directly. The president, they assumed, had shared the information with Rubio in their private conversations. Rubio is also close with Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, dating back to their days in Congress; Pompeo even endorsed Rubio during his run for president in 2016. The vice president has often heeded Rubios calls for certain action on Cuba and Venezuela. In 2018, at Rubios request, Pence used his speech at the Summit of the Americas in Peru to offer up the United States as the host country for the next one, which will take place in 2021, former administration officials said. (Pences office did not respond to a request for comment on the Summit request or their relationship.) Rubio argues hes simply providing guidance on issues the Trump administration already considers a priority, like increasing sanctions on Venezuelan officials and industries and rolling back Obama-era policy on Cuba. Sen. Marco Rubio says his job is to offer advice and nudge us in one direction or another. Its not like the people Im working with or providing advice to need to be convinced. Their instincts are there, their hearts are there and their minds are there, Rubio said. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, another prominent Florida Republican voice on Latin America, gave Trump full credit for his administrations work on Venezuela and Cuba. Its not either of us. Its not the secretary of State. Its him, Diaz-Balart said. Sen. Rubio and I are very fortunate that the president listens to us and calls us in on these issues. But other Rubio allies say he held the administration to a hard line. Rubio is seen in Cuba as the main person that opposes the Castro regime in the United States and the person that has the ear of the president, said Tomas Regalado, a former mayor of Miami and former head of Radio and TV Marti, the U.S.-funded broadcast network aimed at countering Cubas state-run media. If there was a moment when anybody in the administration said its time to give a second look to what were doing on Cuba, Rubio stopped that, said Regalado, who was recommended by Rubio for the TV Marti post. Some Latin America analysts say its natural administration officials would come to Rubio for guidance given that the Florida senator, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, is one of, if not the, lawmaker with the most knowledge on the region. But they point out that Rubio rarely, if ever, talks about Latin American countries that aren't Venezuela, Cuba or Nicaragua. For example, he has never met with Mexican Ambassador Martha Barcena, the Mexican Embassy confirmed, despite Mexico being the U.S.' southern neighbor and largest trading partner in 2019. In July, Rubio did not offer any kind of statement or tweet when Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador traveled to Washington his first trip out of Mexico in years to meet with Trump at the White House. Hes not making foreign policy. Its Florida electoral politics, and yes, hes successful in Florida. But frankly its a dereliction of his duty as chairman of the Western Hemisphere subcommittee to ignore the majority of the region, a conservative Latin America analyst said. Rubio also made clear when Lopez Obrador was elected in July 2018 that he had serious philosophical differences with the Mexican populist, but added that Mexico is an important partner of the United States. Last year, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing on U.S. policy in Mexico and Central America; Rubio did not attend. Multiple people involved in U.S.-Mexico relations said they have not seen Rubio express an interest in the bilateral relationship, instead letting the Department of Homeland Security, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the presidents aide and son-in-law Jared Kushner lead on the issue. Instead, Rubio has gotten involved in U.S.-Mexico affairs only when it relates to Florida, multiple aides and analysts said. Rubio and other Florida lawmakers have been pushing the Trump administration to address concerns from state growers that Mexico is harming them by selling seasonal produce to the U.S. at unfair prices. The administration is set to hold a virtual hearing with Florida producers next month. A person close to Rubio pushed back: The narrative is false. Rubio has held a subcommittee hearing on the U.S.-Mexico relationship, worked closely with the Trump administration during negotiations for the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal and raised concerns over human rights, organized crimes and drug trafficking with the administration, the person said. The subcommittee hearing took place in March 2017, however, and several people involved in the USMCA negotiations said Rubio was rarely involved in the negotiations other than on the issue of seasonal produce. Personnel is policy To maneuver his allies into top positions, Rubio has pushed out officials and aides who did not share his views on Cuba and Venezuela. In 2018, after a failed effort to install him at the State Department, he successfully placed his longtime friend Mauricio Claver-Carone into the White House as head of the Western Hemisphere Affairs at the NSC. Claver-Carone, who previously worked on Trumps transition team and led a political action committee that worked to preserve the U.S. embargo on Cuba, was an outspoken opponent of the Obama administrations efforts to normalize relations with Cuba. Unfortunately, the Obama administrations talking for the sake of talking is proving only to be a useful distraction in this country and the world that is allowing the Castro regime to strengthen its political and economic grip over the Cuban people and their future, Claver-Carone wrote in a piece for HuffPost in 2016. In June, Claver-Carone, who is considered by former administration officials, Rubio allies and Latin American analysts to have moved much decision-making power on Cuba and Venezuela policy from State to the NSC, was nominated to run the Inter-American Development Bank. Rubio also recommended Carlos Trujillo, another Cuban American who was formerly an attorney in Miami, to serve as U.S. ambassador to the Organization of American States in 2018, aides and Rubio allies said. Trujillo, whom multiple Latin America analysts call Little Marco, is now on track to be confirmed as the assistant secretary for the Western Hemisphere, the top Latin America position at the State Department. In early 2019, Rubio demanded that Senate Foreign Relations Chair Jim Risch replace Caleb McCarry, who had led Western Hemisphere affairs for the committee for six years, so he could put in his own former staffer for the role, three people familiar with the situation said. The sources described how McCarry, who served as a Cuba transition coordinator under George W. Bush, had spent his time in the committee caught in Rubios crosshairs because of his role in helping carry out former Chairman Sen. Bob Corkers policies, which were often at odds with Rubios approach. Corker visited Cuba and had a more measured approach to sanctions. One of the major tensions, the people familiar with McCarrys departure said, stemmed from McCarrys role in brokering the release of Joshua Holt, a U.S. citizen who was held in a Venezuelan prison for nearly two years without trial. Corker, with the help of McCarry, met in person with Nicolas Maduro, Venezuelas socialist leader, to make it happen. McCarry now serves as a counselor to the CEO of the International Development Finance Corp., a much lower-profile job. Rubio also pushed to ensure Francisco Paco Palmieri would not get confirmed for any position in the Trump administration, multiple people familiar said. Palmieri served as acting assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, the top State job on the region, for almost two years after being embraced by Tillerson when he took over the department in January 2017. He soon found himself caught between the secretary of State and Rubio, who clashed at Tillersons confirmation hearing. A former State official said Tillerson used Palmieri as a blocking agent since Rubio wanted his own pick in that role Claver-Carone. Palmieri, given his decades of experience in the foreign service, was perceived by Rubio as a deep stater, according to aides and former officials. Rubio also faulted Palmieri for not doing enough to tackle the mysterious sonic attacks that made U.S. diplomats ill in Cuba, and shared all those concerns with Pompeos staff. Palmieri was ultimately nominated to serve as ambassador to Honduras, but the nomination was tabled in 2019 by the Trump administration at Rubios request, multiple people familiar said. He is now a senior fellow at the Jackson Institute for Global Affairs at Yale University. And while Palmieri was in the acting role, Rubio could not get the State Department to support Claver-Carone for the permanent job, former officials said. The administration settled on Kimberly Breier, a longtime career official at State, as a compromise choice; she assumed the role in late 2018 with Kushners blessing, multiple people familiar with the situation said, and worked directly with Kushner on U.S.-Mexico issues. But Rubio ultimately prevailed. Breier resigned 10 months into the job, clearing the way for Trujillos nomination. At Trujillos confirmation hearing last month, Rubio praised him for working with allies at the OAS to coordinate sanctions against members of the Venezuelan regime. I know it took a lot of old-fashioned diplomatic work behind the scenes with our partner nations in the region. And I think, its in no small part, due to you, Rubio said. Im excited and very supportive of your nomination. Rubios office does not deny the Florida senators involvement in pushing out officials to make room for his picks. Sen. Rubio believes personnel is policy and hell continue to use his role in the Senate to advance U.S. policy, a spokesperson said. But critics of his approach say he has been far more successful in bending the U.S government to his way of thinking than in effecting change in Cuba and Venezuela. One person who seems to have grown skeptical of the strategy is Trump, who recently floated the idea of meeting with Maduro only to swiftly walk it back after an outcry on the right. At a news conference on Tuesday, Elliott Abrams, the State Departments special representative for Venezuela and a Rubio ally, defended the administrations attempts to oust the regime in Caracas. We have said from the beginning that we have one thing to discuss with Maduro, and that is the details of his departure, Abrams said. As for Cuba, where there are few signs that Trumps return to pressure has yielded the desired result, Rubio asks for patience. I never told anyone that you would do this and within 12 days this all comes falling down, Rubio said. But there will come a moment, I cant tell you when that day is, but it wont be in 30 years there will be a moment in which it will become apparent that Cuba needs to change direction. Daniel Lippman contributed to this report. I n one corner theres a campaign characterised by what insiders are calling intelligent humility, in the other, theres a scramble to gain a semblance of control. With 92 days to go until America elects its president, understated Joe Biden is polling ahead of Donald Trump and is winning in Florida, without which no Republican has won an election since Calvin Coolidge in 1924. But Bidens camp arent taking anything for granted, says Sarah Morgenthau, who served in the Obama administration and is one of hundreds of volunteers working unpaid on the Democratic campaign: Theres a new urgency to getting rid of Donald Trump after the pandemic. Last week, Trump floated the idea of postponing the November election, arguing that increased numbers of postal voters due to the pandemic could lead to fraud and an inaccurate result. Under the Constitution, the President does not have the authority to do so. Still, President Trump has a creative approach to the possible end of his presidency. Asked by Fox News if he would accept the result of the election, the President said: I have to see. Im not going to just say yes. Im not going to say no. If he does reject the result, House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said he would be fumigated out of the White House. Its as high stakes as that. But team Biden are staying strong. It is expected that he will announce Kamala Harris, a former contender for the Democratic nomination, as his Vice President this week. She is a tough, dedicated star of the Democratic party with a keen legacy of activism. Trumps biggest weakness is his hold on reality Biden is allowing that to play out Biden has gone from losing, in February, to winning, more rapidly than any campaign I can remember, says Jeff Hauser, executive director of The Revolving Door Project, a US not-for-profit. So how is Team Biden doing it and can they go all the way? Inner circle tactics Trumps biggest weakness is his hold on reality; Biden is allowing that to play out, says Hauser. They havent made any huge mistakes yet but that could be because they arent taking risks, which could have drawbacks. A pivotal question is how far to the Left will Biden go, especially when many of those loyal to Bernie Sanders, who failed to win the Democratic nomination, havent decided if they can bring themselves to vote for Biden. With this in mind, his campaign is consulting more than 100 experts on economic policy, most of them broadly Left-leaning. Ron Klain, who was Bidens chief of staff when he was vice president, has said hes never worked in a campaign with so many voices. The challenge is making everyone feel heard and valued while staying on track. Bidens inner circle are old friends, and many were also in Barack Obama and Hillary Clintons teams. Mike Donilon, 60, has worked with Biden since 1981 and is behind the message about this being a battle for the soul of America. He works with his brother Tom, Steve Ricchetti, who was Bidens chief of staff, and Ted Kaufman. Biden is loyal and inspires longstanding connections, says Hauser. Joe Biden / Getty Images file Those on the Left mistrust adviser Anita Dunn, an Obama alumna who is seen as Right-wing, and Lawrence Summers, who is pro-business. But there are younger team members too, including Yohannes Abraham, a former Obama official. Hes smart, says Hauser. Hes given time to thinking about what the progressive wing can learn. The team reflects the diversity of this country, says Morgenthau. This will be crucial in winning the Latino and African American vote. Theres a calmness to what Biden does, says Morgenthau. He didnt expect to be running at this time but understood he was the right person at the right time to restore morality to the country. Hes focusing on how he could change the lives of Americans. The same cant be said for Trump. Its a bold move to sack your campaign manager four months before an election but last week Brad Parscale was out, replaced by Bill Stepien, previously known for Bridgegate, when he shut roads to punish a mayor for not endorsing the governor he worked for, Chris Christie, for re-election. Donald Trump / Getty Images But that was six years ago. Now he is close to Trumps son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner. Their strategy for the last 100 days of the campaign is pledging to restore law and order and warning about Bidens housing regulations, saying he wants to kill the suburbs. The spin Biden is playing it straight, focusing on Trumps response to the pandemic. Trumps communications directors Tim Murtaugh and Ali Pardo are channelling their energy into undermining Biden, hoping it will have the same effect as their take-down of Clinton. Theyre spending more on advertising than they did the first time round, partly because lockdown makes rallies impossible. The tagline is We Remember and it brings up the skeletons in Bidens past such as his support of the 1994 crime bill, which led to increased incarceration among people of colour. The question is to what extent Steve Bannon is going to rejoin Trumps inner circle. He is sharp and can put concerns in front of swing voters online, Hauser says. Another familiar face is Hope Hicks, who returned in February after resigning two years ago, after testifying before Congress during the Russia investigation. She has been working as chief communications officer at Fox but has returned as counsellor to the President, focusing on policy. A lot of the job is keeping Trump in check, says Hauser. Hope Hicks departs the West Wing at the White House / REUTERS The money The Presidents national finance chairwoman is Kimberly Guilfoyle, a former Fox News host whose boyfriend is Trumps son Donald Jr. There has been tension between her team, many of whom have not worked in fundraising before, and longtime fundraiser Caroline Wren. Three members of the team have left in the past two months. Despite Trumps personal wealth, Bidens campaign has raised $30 million (23 million) more than the Presidents. The average donation is $40, paid online, and have more than $46 million in total. Plenty of celebrity supporters, such as Billie Jean King and Billy Porter, have put on fundraising events. The family Both teams have kept it in the family. Bidens right-hand woman is his younger sister, Valerie Biden Owens. She has a methodical mind and once ran his campaign for class president. Joe remembers everybody who voted for him. I remember everybody who didnt. Thats what a sisters for, she said. When she speaks about how her brother understands adversity, she speaks from experience. After Bidens wife and daughter died in a car accident in 1972, Biden Owens moved in and was a mother figure for his sons Hunter and Beau (who died aged 46 from brain cancer in 2015). She gave up her job as a teacher to run his Senate campaign and his bids to be president in 1988 and 2008. Trump has Kushner. Where the President is bombastic, his son-in-law has a quiet confidence. He is loyal and good at fighting talk about how Trump gets things done. He and wife Ivanka, Trumps oldest daughter, are still trying to appeal to the liberal New York voters with whom they once mixed. Ivanka has launched an initiative to help Americans find new jobs post-Covid. Loading.... For all we know, she and Jared might be first in the queue. @susannahbutter Alphabet's Google is buying a 6.6% stake in home security firm ADT for $450 million in a deal that will allow it to provide service to customers of its Nest home security devices. ADT shares skyrocketed following the announcement, and the stock was up as much as 97% in premarket trading. ADT said on Monday the companies will work to combine Nest products like cameras, thermostats, doorbells and alarm systems with ADT's installation, service and professional monitoring network. ADT expects to offer certain Google devices to its customers beginning this year and to expand the integration in 2021. Google will receive ADT shares of a newly created Class B common stock that will not have right to vote. Each company will commit an additional $150 million, to be used for co-marketing, product development, technology and employee training, ADT added. People walk while wearing protective masks as New York City moves into Phase 3 of reopening following restrictions imposed to curb the CCP virus pandemic, on July 14, 2020. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images) US Reports Smallest Daily CCP Virus Case Increase in 4 Weeks The United States on Aug. 2 counted more than 47,000 new CCP virus cases, which is the smallest daily increase in about four weeks, according to a report. Researchers with Johns Hopkins University provided the update, noting that about 4.67 million people in the United States have contracted the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus that emerged from Wuhan, China, late last year. The 47,511 new cases reported by The Wall Street Journal, which cited the universitys data, is the lowest number of cases since July 6, when about 44,900 were registered. A day before that, on Aug. 1, more than 58,000 cases of the virus were reported nationwide, and on July 31, about 67,000 cases were noted. California reported about 9,032 new cases, and Florida reported 7,084 cases on Aug. 1, according to the data. In the midst of the decline, White House CCP virus response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx told news outlets on Aug. 2 that the virus is more widespread than ever, recommending that some schools in higher-risk areas implement distance-learning methods, rather than having students return to in-person classes. What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread. Its into the rural as equal urban areas, she said in an interview with CNN. Americans should follow health care professionals recommendations, including practicing social distancing and wearing a protective mask, she reiterated. Coronavirus Response Coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx listens as President Donald Trump speaks during a coronavirus task force press briefing at the White House in Washington on April 18, 2020. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images) To everybody who lives in a rural area, you are not immune or protected from this virus, Birx told CNN. If youre in multi-generational households, and theres an outbreak in your rural area or in your city, you need to really consider wearing a mask at home, assuming that youre positive, if you have individuals in your households with comorbidities. More than 173,000 deaths in the United States are expected by Aug. 22 if public life proceeds largely unchanged, according to a report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). So far, more than 150,000 Americans have died, according to researchers. Its not super-spreading individuals, its super-spreading events, and we need to stop those. We definitely need to take more precautions, Birx added. Outside of the United States, several other countries have seen significant increases in cases. India reported more than 50,000 new cases of the virus for a fifth consecutive day. Brazil on Aug. 1 reported more than 45,000 cases of COVID-19 as well as 1,088 deaths, with the death toll rising to 93,563 and cases rising to about 2.7 million. South Africa, meanwhile, reported 10,000 new cases on Aug. 1, bringing the total to more than 503,000, according to the BBC. Australias Victoria state declared a state of disaster after reporting 429 new cases over the weekend. President Donald Trump, on Twitter, pointed to the Australian announcement to defend the U.S. response to the pandemic. Big China Virus breakouts all over the World, including nations which were thought to have done a great job. The Fake News doesnt report this. USA will be stronger than ever before, and soon, he wrote on Aug. 2. BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 2 By Ilkin Seyfaddini - Trend: Uzbekistan, along with Kazakhstan, is a key partner of Poland in the region of Central Asia, Press Office Director of Polands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Andrzej Fafara told Trend in an interview. "Significant demographic potential as well as political, economic and social reforms, initiated in 2016 by a change in the office of president, are factors that induce Warsaw to deepen contacts with Tashkent. Mutual interest in expanding cooperation were evidenced by two visits of Poland's Deputy Ministers of Foreign Affairs to Uzbekistan (2018, 2019), visit of the Secretary of the National Security Council of Uzbekistan Viktor Makhmudov to Warsaw and raising the status of head of the Uzbekistan diplomatic mission in Warsaw to the rank of Ambassador in 2019," noted Fafara. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland Jacek Czaputowicz maintains his willingness to pay a visit to Uzbekistan as soon as the COVID-19 pandemic situation makes it possible, he said. "Poland assesses positively the changes in Uzbekistan's internal policy that have taken place in the last four years. They were manifested, among others, by the adoption of the Development Strategy of Uzbekistan for the period from 2017 through 2021, providing for a comprehensive modernization of the country's economy and achieving sustainable economic growth. The program of reforms was recognized by 'The Economist', which declared Uzbekistan "the country of the year 2019" the country which was the most outstanding in the world in terms of the importance of introduced changes," Poland's MFA said. Fafara said Poland is convinced that the new approach of the Uzbekistans authorities to socio-economic issues will contribute to improving the standard of living of citizens, as well as a more complete fulfilling of the demographic, economic and political potential of the country. "We are interested in deepening contacts with Uzbekistan in all spheres in the field of political as well as economic, social and cultural cooperation and Uzbekistan is interested in deepening cooperation with Poland in many fields too, including trade, healthcare, social policy or education. Further priorities include good governance, agriculture, scientific collaboration as well as historical and cultural heritage," he said. "Moreover, Poland has recently engaged in Uzbekistan in establishment of institutional mechanisms for achieving gender equality and preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, initiating joint projects and allocating funds from Polish Aid to development assistance and humanitarian aid on an annual basis," said Fafara. Also, he noted the importance of the fruitful cooperation with the Uzbekistans authorities regarding the issues concerning cemeteries of the Polish soldiers from the General Wladyslaw Anders Army and promoting shared historical ties. Furthermore, Fafara noted that Poland consider the field of education as its main priority. "Poland, together with Latvia, served as the state-coordinator of the EU-Central Asia Education Platform (CAEP) in the period from 2015 through 2019. We are interested in continuing our commitment concerning education in the Central Asia region and look forward to the European Commission's proposals in this regard. Polish experts are also involved in the reform of the pre-school education system in Uzbekistan, particularly implementing Polish teaching methods and experience of alternative forms of early education," he pointed out. --- Follow author on Twitter: @seyfaddini BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 3 By Elchin Mehdiyev Trend: Italian specialists arrived in Azerbaijan as part of the fight against coronavirus, Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan, Head of Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration Hikmat Hajiyev said. Hajiyev made the remark at the briefing of the Operational Headquarters under the Azerbaijani Cabinet of Ministers, Trend reports on Aug. 3. Italian specialists will share their experience in combating the pandemic with their Azerbaijani counterparts, assistant to the president added. "Azerbaijani doctors will also share their experience gained in this sphere with Italian specialists," Hajiyev said. An expert group, which operated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, also intends to visit Azerbaijan one of these days. Dozens of Victorian state politicians will defy Melbournes strict stage four COVID-19 lockdown and the advice of health authorities on Tuesday to gather at Parliament House for several hours of debate and questions. More than 30 upper house MPs, including several country members who have travelled from regional Victoria, are expected to be at the scheduled session of the Parliament's upper house beginning at 12pm on Tuesday, despite advice from the Chief Health Officer to consider postponing. The MPs will sit together in the chamber for a one-day session as thousands of businesses across Victoria prepare to close their doors from 11.59pm on Wednesday under the tough new restrictions. Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton told parliamentary authorities on Monday that it would be prudent to consider delaying the return of Parliament until a new set of safety protocols could be put in place. She's a young and up-and-coming actress who's enjoyed success on Netflix and Hulu, and he's a Hollywood leading man who recently scored his first-ever Oscar for acting. And now, Joey King is set to team up with Brad Pitt, as she's is in talks to join his new film Bullet Train from Sony Pictures, Deadline reports. The film, based on the Japanese novel Maria Beetle by bestselling author Kotaro Isaka, follows five assassins aboard a high-tech, fast-moving train who soon discover 'their missions have something in common,' according to the film's IMDb synopsis. Ready for an action film: Joey King will be joining Brad Pitt in the new film Bullet Train, following five assassins aboard a fast-moving train who soon discover 'their missions have something in common'; King seen here in December 2019 Both Pitt, 56, and King, who just recently celebrated her 21st birthday, are slated to portray two of the hitmen, with Brad in a more primary role (named Ladybug, no less) and Joey in a featured or cameo appearance. Joey is the Emmy- and Golden Globe-nominated actress from Hulu's acclaimed limited series The Act from last year, as well as Netflix's successful teen rom-com franchise The Kissing Booth. The second installment in that franchise dropped on the streaming giant's platform late last month, following the popular 2018 first film following a shy high schooler (King) who faces her crush in a kissing booth. A third film, aptly titled Kissing Booth 3, is already slated for release next year. Golden boy: Bullet Train marks Pitt's first acting project since his Oscar win for his supporting turn as a stuntman in last year's Once Upon a Time In Hollywood; seen here in August 2019 Pucker up: Joey is the Emmy-nominated actress from Hulu's acclaimed limited series The Act from last year, as well as Netflix's successful teen rom-com franchise The Kissing Booth Brad, meanwhile, is coming off his glorious Oscar win for Supporting Actor for his turn as a stuntman in last year's Once Upon a Time In Hollywood from director Quentin Tarantino. Bullet Train marks Pitt's first acting project to officially get the green light since that film. The Thelma And Louise star is enjoying a stellar year professionally, as he also recently nabbed a Primetime Emmy nomination for playing Dr. Anthony Fauci on Saturday Night Live. On a roll: The Thelma And Louise star is enjoying a stellar year professionally, as he also recently nabbed an Emmy nomination for playing Dr. Anthony Fauci on Saturday Night Live Bullet Train is hoping to start production in Los Angeles this fall, but that is of course contingent on how and when film shoots will be allowed to happen amid the continued coronavirus pandemic, with California still among the states with the most confirmed cases. David Leitch, the stuntman-turned-director of Deadpool 2 and Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, is set to helm the thriller. Deadline also reports that the English version of the novel Maria Beetle will be published next year. More to come from her: Bullet Train is hoping to start production in Los Angeles this fall, with Joey in a featured or cameo appearance Frolicking in Kumasis Central Business District, and counting my blessings one after the other, something crossed my mind which I will not on any other day consider a mistake. The question, Can the teaming Ghanaian Youth arise and fight for the betterment of this beloved country? kept repeating in my mind. It is certainly a matter of to do or no to dot but should we decide to do, what would be the most suitable process to adopt to trigger this peaceful agenda. Already, we have lost it; a lot of steps have been missed already. The recent happening in Ghanas political landscape makes me believe so. Many a Ghanaian youth are wonted to cast politicians in the grimmest of bad light. How do we grow as a nation when those who hold public offices are subjected to innuendos and aspersions? This is not to say, politicians cant be criticised. I believe in dissenting views for without it, progress would be impaired. The Ghanaian populace has every right to criticise the Government/Politicians because in doing so, they are put on their toes but not when it smacks of sheer malice and a cancerous desire to undermine another persons work or authority. I also believe governance is an art... It has nothing to do with age.......The shrewdness of the person matters...his functionality matters...integrity matters...his track record matters.....Incompetence can be innate......You may have an agile body but still incompetent...Even made manifest in your appointments and delegations but the Youth must be civil in their criticism of people who hold public offices. It is disingenuous to think that all knowledge and intelligence rest with those not situated on the frontal edge of politics. You can say whatever you want to say but do not for once be deluded into thinking that those manning state enterprises are dummies and domes. You can censure and berate but not treacherous and abusive. The Youth must learn to treat people isolatedly... avoid sweeping generalisation...hearsay and tell-tales blot one's judgement on certain matters... The tag for 'A' invariably cannot be the tag for 'B'... People even within groups behave differently...There are group dynamics nonetheless...But often it is a continuum thing Indeed, all of us to muck in and help our nation regardless of our political affiliation. This is the best time- a well-calculated one. It is more of communal labour; a responsibility on our part to get on board in the development process. Yes, we deserve better, and we can also lead and lead well irrespective of one's political orientation and worldview. I have a strong belief, that the Youth can also bring something positive and innovative to the table. The table was mended for well-meaning citizens but not resting joint for the old. Those great leaders of yore we always count on started like this but with some spirit of gusto, patriotism and activism. Some of their decisions generated a lot of razzmatazz, but they didn't call for heaven to fall. They bide their time and acted tactfully to the betterment of our dear nation. They didn't force the horse to drink, but rather they persuaded it to take a sip. They created a path for us to follow. We are gradually fading out when it comes to policymaking. We are forced to be in the warm light only in an election year. Sadly, we have been added to the election machinery. We've been tagged as attacking dogs they (politicians) unleash when necessary. It seems we have nothing positive to bring on board. Ghana's problem is not only the corrupted minds of a menagerie of the populace but the Youths inordinate attachments to friendships and old boyism, double standards, subtle elitism of the critical mass to advance anything noteworthy. We suppress progress by taking sides in the national discourses even when it is for the progress of the nation. A lot of steps and lines have been missed. This is the time to sit and genuflect. We shouldn't wait for them (politicians) to turn the table. We should get involved and help change the fortunes of the nation. We can do better and go far than this. This is the time for us to rise in a very positive manner, devoid of hatred and politically induced kind of discrimination. We have the legitimate right to remould the state to suit the prosperous Ghana we have been yearning for. Let us all unite, to fight the small battles ahead. Devotion and dedication can help us win the war. In the voice of Dr Kwame Nkrumah, We are all involved. I believe Ghana will work, but I say this not without considerable apprehension... My father's generation let themselves away...The stratum before them lived no better... And my generation...the youth presently is not living any better....... Grey horizon. Thank you. Armenia counts on Russias support in its ongoing efforts to counter a serious threat to its national security emanating from neighboring Turkey, a senior Armenian official said over the weekend. Armen Grigorian, the secretary of the Armenian governments Security Council, reaffirmed Yerevans serious concerns over Turkeys vehement support for Azerbaijan shown during and after recent deadly clashes on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. Seeing that Azerbaijan is unable to keep the situation under control on its own, Turkey is trying to intervene, Grigorian told RFE/RLs Armenian service. I think that this poses a serious threat to the region. It is also a challenge to the regional security architecture. The regional security architecture has long been unchanged. Turkey is now trying to change it through its intervention. We are fully prepared and will take steps to minimize this [threat.] he said. We also have a lot of work to do in this direction with our strategic ally Russia in order to prevent such changes in the region. Asked about Moscows reaction to the Armenian concerns, Grigorian said: The July incidents [on the border] coincided with the coronavirus pandemic, and we have not yet been able to discuss the issue at a higher level. But these issues are on the agenda because they are about challenges facing the region and we need a common response to these challenges. Ankara has blamed Yerevan for the fighting that broke out at a western section of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border on July 12 and vowed to boost Turkish military support for Baku. In what appears to be a related development, Turkish and Azerbaijani troops began on July 29 joint military exercises in various parts of Azerbaijan. The Armenian Foreign Ministry expressed concern at the exercises before the Armenian military put some of its forces on high alert. Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan said on July 28 that Armenian army units as well as a Russian-Armenian military contingent are continuing to constantly monitor and analyze Turkish-Azerbaijani military activities with all reconnaissance means at their disposal. Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the Armenian-Azerbaijani flare-up during a phone conversation on July 27. According to the Kremlin, Putin stressed the importance of preventing any steps that could cause an escalation in tensions. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov similarly urged the Turks to exercise restraint. Russia is allied to Armenia and has thousands of troops stationed in the South Caucasus state. Emeritus Pope Benedict is serious ill after returning to the Vatican following a visit to Germany to see his dying brother. The retired pope, 93, is suffering from shingles and has become so weak that he cannot raise his voice, according to his German biographer. Benedict's 'mind and memory are active but his voice is barely audible at the moment,' author Peter Seewald told newspaper Passauer Neue Presse. Emeritus Pope Benedict, 93 (pictured in June), is serious ill with shingles and has become so weak that he cannot raise his voice, according to his biographer Seewald said Benedict was optimistic when the pair spoke on Saturday, when he said he might pick up writing again if his strength returns. But his condition has since 'become extremely fragile', the newspaper reported. Benedict came to his native Bavaria in June to pay his ailing brother Georg Ratzinger a final visit. Ratzinger, aged 96, died on June 29 after suffering a 'serious illness' which his church did not name. It was Benedict's first trip outside Italy since 2013, the year he resigned the papacy due to health concerns. Benedict had previously praised his elder brother for being a 'companion' and 'trustworthy guide' during his life. Benedict fell ill after returning to the Vatican from Germany, where he saw his dying brother Gerog for the final time (pictured together in 2006) Georg died on June 29 following a 'serious illness' (funeral, pictured). The Ratzingers had been close throughout their lives, with Benedict calling his elder sibling a 'trustworthy guide' The pair had been ordained together on the same day in 1951 after deciding from a young age that they would dedicate their lives to the church. Georg, who was an organist and choirmaster as well as a priest, confessed that he was 'disappointed' after hearing his brother had been made pope in April 2005 because it would mean they would see less of each-other. Benedict, who until his appointment had been theological enforcer to John Paul II, held the role until 2013, when he became the first to resign the title in 600 years. Since his resignation he has lived in a small, former monastery inside the Vatican. Despite writing several high-profile religious papers since his resignation, he has largely avoided the public eye. Stephenie Meyer announced the continuation of the Twilight saga in May and fans have been anxiously waiting. But the wait is almost over. Midnight Sun, which releases Tuesday, Aug. 4, will retell the iconic love story of Bella and Edward through the vampires point of view. Its a crazy time right now and I wasnt sure it was the right time to put this book out, Meyer said on Good Morning America. But some of you have been waiting for just so so long it didnt seem right to make you wait any more. Fans have expressed their excitement on social media. Midnight Sun tomorrow!!! So ready for all the teenage nostalgia Nelly (@nothingbutniall) August 3, 2020 me waiting for my midnight sun hardcover to arrive in the mail pic.twitter.com/SoKrq4NN4l una pendeja (@nshanice13) August 3, 2020 And for fans who cant wait another minute, heres how you can pre-order the book: New fans can also catch up on the series. For the full series, click here. Related Content: Some office workers at Hondas auto manufacturing plant in Marysville, Ohio, are being forced to work on assembly lines due to staff shortages related to COVID-19, according to local news station WOSU. The workers being sent to the assembly lines are rank-and-file clerical workers from accounting, purchasing, and research and development departments. According to information given to WOSU by an anonymous worker, Honda management began bringing office workers to the shop floor voluntarily but then required a certain number of workers from each department to report to the assembly lines. One reason for the shortage of assembly line workers is the spread of coronavirus, although the exact number of positive cases among Honda workers is unknown. Since the auto industry restarted production in the US in May, Honda, like other automakers, has not provided any information about COVID cases at its facilities. There is an ongoing surge of COVID-19 cases in Ohio, with a rolling 21-day average of 1,307 infections and 43 deaths. Honda Marysville (Source: Wikimedia Commons) An email sent to office clericals by an unnamed plant general manager said the need for office staff to work the lines was that many employees being on leave due to contracting COVID-19 or quarantining after exposure. An office worker who was called to work on the assembly line in Marysville spoke to the WOSU news outlet anonymously for fear of retaliation for expressing his concerns and has since been quoted repeatedly by local press outlets. I was not very happy about that because Ive really tried hard to socially distance and keep away from other people during this...So I felt like being forced to go in to the floor where I know people have had COVID and tested positive for it, I felt very uncomfortable with that. He said that workers were concerned about improper training, explaining that they were not trained until showing up to the assembly lines. He said they were also concerned about the increased risk of contracting COVID-19 due to close contact with other workers, estimating that each time a worker on the assembly line gets sick, they have been in contact with more than 40 other workers. Like autoworkers at the US-based Big Three plants across the US, workers at Honda and other foreign-based auto factories work under conditions where the virus can easily spread. Plants have poor ventilation and workers are crowded shoulder-to-shoulder on some assembly lines in various parts of the plant. Workers at other auto plants throughout the US report that the same measures are being employed across the industry to maintain profit levels. Happening often at several places Ive worked including my current employer...which is a UAW shop...manpower shortage and supply requirements for Jeep keep things running regardless of whos running the floor, a Fiat Chrysler Jeep worker wrote on Facebook in response to a post about the situation at Honda Marysville. One reason that manufacturing plants have utilized office workers to keep assembly lines running historically is to force them to act as strikebreakers when workers have taken action against corporations during contract negotiations. When I worked in a plant office at the Timken Co., the male office workers worked on the plant floor getting orders ready to ship following the union workers strike, a nurse wrote on Facebook after seeing the news report about Honda office workers. The Marysville Honda plant was the first foreign-based auto plant to open in the US in 1982, where it began production of the Honda Accord sedan. Today workers in the factory assemble its highly profitable Accord and CR-V SUV models as well as its premium line of Acura models. Its highly exploited workers assemble the cars, which sell from anywhere between $24,000 and $149,000, for starting wages at the poverty level of $16-21 per hour. The company began running ads on social media on July 31 for full-time production assembly positions at is Marysville and East Liberty, Ohio, plants with the promise of a meager $100 monthly attendance bonus for workers willing to risk their health and safety and the health and safety of their families. In contrast, Honda Motor Company reported $6.96 billion in gross profit globally for the first quarter of 2020, despite global production disruptions worldwide. Its US operations shut down in March, following the independent actions of US and Canadian autoworkers to protest unsafe working conditions in defiance of the unions and company management. In response to the announcement of the use of office workers to fulfill assembly jobs at Marysville, United Auto Workers spokesman Brian Rothenberg claimed that office workers at the Detroit auto companies would never be pulled to work on the factory floor, a claim which has no merit. His statements reflected an attempt to sell the services of the UAW to the corporations. First, we have unionized temp workers to fill in, in reference to the reserve army of super-exploited temporary and supplemental workers, who are paid below full-time wages and receive few benefits, a position which the UAW helped to implement in contracts it signed after the 2009 restructuring of the US auto industry and maintained in subsequent concessions contracts. He also referred to the reserves of unemployed auto workers that the UAW would help force back into unsafe conditions using economic blackmail. And if theres not enough of those, other people who are laid off from the nearby area, and then a larger area, and then a larger area, and call them back to work. In reality, conditions would be no better for Honda workers if the UAW were present in the plant. In UAW plants, safety conditions are just as bad, in spite of the UAWs joint labor-management promotion of bogus safety measures. As a result, workers have begun to form rank-and-file safety committees in opposition to the unions and company management At plants like Fords Dearborn, Michigan Truck Plant and Fiat Chryslers Jefferson North Assembly Plant, starting wages for workers are as low as those at Honda in Marysville. In 2003 workers at Marysville Honda rejected representation by the UAW, which was unable to convince the needed 65 percent of workers at the plant to sign cards in support unionization. The rejection of the UAW by rank-and-file Honda workers is a reflection of a rightful distrust in the unions after decades of betrayals. The UAW systematically isolates sections of workers from different plants in order to suppress any attempt by workers to unite in an independent, organized manner to oppose unsafe working conditions. In contrast to the efforts of corporate management to divide the working class, many workers realize that the restructuring of the economy brought on by the pandemic has brought previously isolated sections of the working class closer to one another in terms of their conditions. One worker wrote in response to the report on Honda, I'm a chemist. I worked for plants, in plants, and on plant trials, though my main job was in a central laboratory. We used to scramble to help plants with upsets, including on weekends and late nights. I get it. Im going to guess that some office workers are married to production workers, and the work-from-home partner has been handling child-care up until now. They could now both be in a bind. The World Socialist Web Site and the Socialist Equality Party call on all workers to form rank-and-file safety committees to fight back against unsafe working conditions and for the right to a safe and comfortable workplace. This includes not just autoworkers but teachers and other school employees who are facing a reckless drive by the political establishment to force the reopening of schools in the midst of the pandemic. This is a crucial component of the deadly back to work campaign by big business, which want children in the classroom so their parents will be free to return to the plants and offices, warehouses and transportation hubs. We urge autoworker who want to learn more about building rank-and-file safety committees to contact the WSWS Autoworker Newsletter. Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. A recent report published by Persistence Market Research prognosticates that the global market for aquaculture feed and pharmaceuticals would be valued at US $ 1,068.9 mn by 2025 registering a CAGR of 7.3% over 2017-2025 . The report, titled " Aquaculture Feed and Pharmaceutical Market : Global Industry Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 20172025," portrays that the cumulative revenue generated by the market is projected to increase 1.8X over the forecast period from 2017-2025 . Get Sample Copy of Report @ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/13387 Company Profiles Zoetis, Inc. Schouw & Co Ridley Corporation Ltd Merck & Co Inc Biomin Holding GmbH Aller Aqua A / S Nutriad Ltd. Alltech Inc. Next Feeds Ltd. Norel SA Cargill, Incorporated Beneo GmbH Skretting AS Novus International Inc. Growel Feeds Pvt. Ltd. Neovia Vietnam Evonik Industries AG Bayer AG Koninklijke DSM N.V Others. The paced development of new vaccines for aqua life and a rampant rise in the number of market players in this segment, especially in the developed countries like the U.S. and Canada, has augmented the global market for aquaculture feed and pharmaceuticals. The global aquaculture feed and pharmaceutical market is categorized in the report on the basis of product types into pharmaceuticals and biologics and medicated feed. Of these, the segment of pharmaceuticals and biologics is expected to be the dominating one in terms of revenue, registering a CAGR of 7.7% over 2017-2025 to outdo all other product types. Over the forecast period medicated feed is approximated to reach a CAGR of 6.6% in terms of revenue. On the front of market segmentation by species, shrimps and carps would fare the highest CAGR of 7.7% over 2017-2025. On a geographical footing, Asia Pacific is forecasted to exhibit the highest CGPA of 7.6% amongst all other regional markets including Latin America, North America, Europe, and Middle East and Africa (MEA). Inland aquaculture is the most distinct avenue for the industry in Asia pacific and 66.6% fish is produced inland. Get To Know Methodology of Report @ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/methodology/13387 The most prominent driver that has propelled the global market for aquaculture feed and pharmaceuticals is the growing demand for R&D in the field. This has further eased the entry of drugs, medicated feed, and vaccines in regional markets of developed nations like the United States of America and Canada. Owing to this, the aquaculture feed and pharmaceuticals industry has inorganically grown by liaising with key players. Moreover, if certain guidelines and compliance standards are met, there is no restriction on the use of extra-label drugs in the US, which could further fortify the market. Measures to immune fishes against diseases is also a substantially effectual driver. Alongside this, aquaculture has become a vital source of food for human consumption, because of which various government initiatives are aiming to rid aqua life of the menace of diseases. Access Full Report @ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/checkout/13387 The production of veterinary medicines and medicated feed is governed by different laws and policies across different countries. Each country is deemed to adhere to their production standards, which makes it difficult to forecast trends and estimate figures. Moreover, most veterinary treatments are relatively expensive, which discourage people from cultivating aquaculture. The instances of lack of proper treatment and inability to diagnose diseases is also a shortfall for the aquaculture feed and pharmaceuticals market. The growth of regional players in the market for aquaculture feed and pharmaceuticals has prompted the big companies to collaborate with them and reap the benefits of access to a larger set of consumers. There also lies an opportunity for market players to acquire regional players and thus optimize market share. The child fell out of the apartment window and was discovered on the sidewalk unresponsive, said Kellie Bartoli, a police spokeswoman. He was taken to Comer Childrens Hospital where he was listed in critical condition. By Deepak Chopra, MD Every person wakes up in the morning to join the struggle between truth and reality. Yet almost no one realizes that this is what they are doing. Life contains strugglesno one disagrees with that sad factbut what are we struggling against? The answers seem obvious. We struggle to stay healthy, make a living, maintain our relationships, and in general to keep our heads above water. Where does truth enter into this? Imagine someone sitting in a chair wearing state-of-the-art virtual reality gear. In the simulation bombarding his senses, he is racing in the Indy 500, running away from tigers in the jungle, or walking a tightrope. These are perilous adventures that he is immersed in, where survival itself is at stake. His body will exhibit all the signs of a stress response. But his experience is entirely fake, a construct by clever VR engineers. The truth is that he is sitting still in a chair, perfectly safe and sheltered from struggle. This imaginary setup is actually what occurs to all of us in daily life. We inhabit a virtual reality that is so powerful it blinds us to the truth. What we accept as real is mind-made, but when you are inside this spell/illusion/dream, your struggles totally envelop you. Even the words we speak encase us in limitation: the instant you say the word tree, you have shoved into a box an immensely complex living organism with thousands of cellular processes occurring every second. The minute you think of the tags that we apply to ourselves and other peopleage, race, gender, religion, political persuasion, nationality, income level, occupation, etc.you shove that person into a box. When life is relatively comfortable, we can afford to overlook the false position that mental constructs have placed us inall the prejudices, painful memories, fixed beliefs, personal disasters, failures, and wishful thinking that the mind is prey to. After thousands of years of philosophy, religion, and science, each field seeking to discover the truth, virtual reality remains in charge. Its shell has barely been cracked, which is why we dont perceive the struggle between truth and reality. Mind-made reality (the spell/illusion/dream) keeps the world going. Only on a side tangent will someone say something extraordinary like Know the truth, and the truth will set you free. But this can be ignored as a religious thought, and when the Persian mystical poet declares, God speaks in silence, everything else is a mistranslation, that can be dismissed as poetry or once again religion. Yet somehow, on the remote frontier where virtual reality and real reality meet, the truth is trying to contact us, and doing so all the time. The human mind has incredibly powerful tools at its disposal to keep virtual reality in place; we call these tools thinking, feeling, remembering, desiring, wishing, fearing, and dreaming. Against this armada, the truth (real reality) has only one tool: waking up. Waking up is the process of becoming more conscious. You cannot change what you arent aware of. In this case, becoming more aware is the truth. In every other aspect of life, there is something to discover and learn about; we spend every waking hour since birth using the minds tools to learn the skills it takes to survive, be accepted, take care of ourselves and our families, and so on. Desire constantly pushes us forward. But here are some bald facts about real reality: Nobody taught you to know. Knowing is built into consciousness. Without this innate knowing, you would be blind, deaf, and deprived of the other three senses, because the raw data that reaches you is meaningless unless you know how to interpret them. The most basic thing knowing tells us is that we exist. If existence and consciousness are tied to one another, then without a doubt, they are the foundation of reality. Behind the spell/illusion/dream of everyday reality, real reality simply exists, making everything else possible. You cant put awareness in a box (although you can scientifically measure how it operates); you cant stand outside it; you cant do without it. Before waking up happens, there is already a ratio between the things we do consciously and the things we do unconsciously. This is the primary evidence telling us that we are conscious beings. Blind prejudice, social conditioning, denial, ignorance, bad faith, habits, and the drama of pleasure and pain occupy the domain of unconscious life. Love, compassion, curiosity, creativity, insight, empathy, and inner growth occupy the domain of conscious life. Its obvious which domain contains the values we hold most precious. So we are not that far from waking up. Consciousness prevails in many areas of life, even though war, violence, crime, natural disasters, and other forms of bad news grab the headlines. If you want proof that consciousness is the basis of your own life, sit down and make a list. Write down everything that has been fulfilling in your life, and when you examine the list, you will discover that the values of consciousness lie behind every meaningful, fulfilling experience. You dont even have to accept the argument about virtual reality and the spell/illusion/dream. Once you see what you truly value, you will automatically want to be more conscious. The motivation to wake up is built into consciousness itself. Even the concept of truth struggling against reality is just an eye-catching phrase. Truth doesnt struggle against anything. It exists, and it knows. All we need to do is to realize this truth. When Plato wrote that we are like creatures living in a cave watching a shadow play on the caves walls, he came up with the simplest and most powerful metaphor for waking up. The shadow play is mesmerizing, but then you realize that shadows need light to project them. So you turn around to face the light, and when you do, you say, Aha, so thats how the shadow play works. From that moment of awakening, the shadows can never again hold you in their grip. DEEPAK CHOPRA MD, FACP, founder of The Chopra Foundation, a non-profit entity for research on well-being and humanitarianism, and Chopra Global, a modern-day health company at the intersection of science and spirituality, is a world-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine and personal transformation. Chopra is a Clinical Professor of Family Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, San Diego and serves as a senior scientist with Gallup Organization. He is the author of over 89 books translated into over forty-three languages, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. His 90th book, Metahuman: Unleashing Your Infinite Potential, unlocks the secrets to moving beyond our present limitations to access a field of infinite possibilities. TIME magazine has described Dr. Chopra as one of the top 100 heroes and icons of the century. Emmanuel Adeniji A healthcare assistant who admitted raping a 73-year-old woman with Alzheimers in an Irish nursing home has been given an 11-year sentence. The victim was attacked in her room in the early hours of 3 April, during the height of the Covid-19 lockdown. She was found in a distressed state later that morning by a staff member. Emmanuel Adeniji, of Royal Canal Court, Kilcock in County Kildare, had denied rape but later pleaded guilty after his DNA matched a sample from the victim. The 52-year-old worked in healthcare for 15 years before the attack and he had no previous convictions. The judge at Dublins Central Criminal Court described the rape as an egregious breach of trust by a qualified and experienced healthcare worker. The victims family told the court Adeniji had single-handedly destroyed our mams life. CCTV footage from the nursing home at the time of the rape showed Adeniji going in and coming out of the womans room at about 03:00 local time on 3 April. Later that morning, another staff member found the victim upset but coherent. Gardai (Irish police) were called and the woman was able to make a statement about the rape. She told officers she was in her room all the time as residents were locked in because of the virus. Adeniji was arrested 11 days later. The victims daughter told the Central Criminal Court that her family have been unable to hug her mother to comfort her since the attack. We always said we will dread the day she loses her memory, but now one day we hope she wakes up and doesnt remember, she added. The judge said the effect of the rape on the victim had been devastating with the woman experiencing feelings of depression, suicidal thoughts, nightmares and a lack of safety. He imposed an 11-year prison sentence on Adjeniji, with the final year suspended. Freedom Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram by Ed Morse provides informative model research for customers. When shopping for a new vehicle, many are overwhelmed by the abundance of makes and models, trim level options and features they have to choose between. With this in mind, the staff at Freedom Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram by Ed Morse has dedicated its efforts toward keeping shoppers informed about the makes and models available on its lot. Model research pages go into detail about each vehicles performance, notable technology and trim level options. They also provide imagery of each vehicle to help give the shopper a better understanding of the specs and features that set it apart from the competition. Freedom Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram by Ed Morse carries a wide selection of makes and models, as it offers new Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram vehicles, along with used inventory from a wider range of brands. Currently, the dealership has model research pages for the more common models on its lot, like the 2020 Dodge Journey, 2020 Jeep Renegade, 2020 Jeep Wrangler, 2020 Jeep Gladiator and 2020 Ram 1500, along with several other models. Individuals who are interested in stopping by Freedom Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram by Ed Morse to view its current inventory have unique shopping opportunities as a result of the current COVID-19 pandemic. The dealership offers at-home delivery for sales and service so shoppers can stay home during these uncertain times. Individuals interested in learning more about informative model research and shopping at Freedom Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram by Ed Morse can visit the dealerships website at https://www.freedomdodgechryslerjeepram.com. The dealership itself can be found at 815 E. Camp Wisdom Road in Duncanville. Inquiries can be directed to the dealership's friendly staff at 888-879-0189. Hundreds of maskless people showed up for the annual White Trash Bash in East Peoria over the weekend despite coronavirus cases on the rise in the state of Illinois, At least 200 boats were packing the Illinois River, about 150 miles southwest of Chicago, as part of an all-day party that essentially revolves around people drinking and socializing in large groups. None of the 500 partygoers were seen wearing face masks or observing social distancing measures despite authorities warning that cases of the disease in the area had been on the rise. The organizers noted online they were 'not experts' about the coronavirus and all but admitted that those concerned about catching the virus should stay home. 200 boats filled with people showed up for the 10th White Trash Bash in East Peoria, Illinois Kate Hawkins, Dakota Stramka and Tyler Allen Benson attended the all-day bash on Saturday At least 500 people are thought to have attended the all-day drinking bask on the Illinois River Police in East Peoria only began monitoring the event a few years ago when fights began to break out at the all-day drinking event. Pictured, some of the 200 boats that attended None of those gathered were seen to be wearing masks or sticking to any social distancing A conversation between participants and Facebook friends showed little concern for COVID Before the bash, authorities issued a warning ahead of the party telling people 'Covid 19 numbers are increasing in our area.' 'This event has the potential to expose everyone to the virus,' The Fon du Lac Park District Police Department wrote on Facebook. 'Please use common sense and social distancing.' 'We try to have people voluntarily social distance,' Director of Fon Du Lac Park District Mike Johnson told WMBD, 'but at the end of the day, the goal is to get through this event and get everyone home safe. 'This isn't a sanctioned event. We started having law enforcement present about five years ago because we will get a lot of fights on the beach,' Johnson said. 'It's the perfect element for a problem, you've got beautiful weather, a lot of alcohol and anywhere from 600-1000 people.' When asked whether he was concerned about catching coronavirus, Daniel Murphy, pictured, responded, 'Definitely not. Not at all.' Prior to the event, the local police urged people to use 'common sense'. Above, 2019 pictured Police were concerned about the spread of COVID-19 but admitted being a small force ,there was very little they could do. Director of Fon Du Lac Park District Mike Johnson is pictured The organizers noted they were 'not experts' about the coronavirus and all but admitted that those concerned about catching the virus should stay home The all-day party consists of drinking, socializing and partying as a large group Despite COVID-19 cases ramping up in Illinois, the yearly river party went ahead on Saturday It wasn't clear if those attending were sticking to their friends and family or mixing with others For those attending the event, it was clear that coronavirus was far from most people's mind. ''I'm just ready to tear it down! I thought we were going fishing, but I guess we're going there,' said Daniel Murphy to CentralIllinoisProud.com. 'It's going be a good time hanging with friends, having a good time.' Asked whether he was concerned about catching coronavirus, Murphy was clear: 'Definitely not. Not at all.' The state of Illinois has had more than 180,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus and suffered more than 7,5000 deaths according to the latest figures from the Illinois Department of Public Health. Perfect temperatures and ideal river levels meant a big turnout for the annual White Trash Bash Graham Ivan Clark, the 17-year-old Florida man accused of hacking Twitter on July 15, has more than $3 million worth of bitcoin assets. Clark's attorney David Weisbrod informed about the assets in a court hearing on Saturday, the Tampa Bay Times reported on Sunday. Clark has 300 bitcoin (currently worth about $3.35 million), said Weisbrod. Prosecutors said the bitcoin must be illegally obtained, given Clark's "conduct," referring to the Twitter hack. Weisbrod denied that claim, saying that Clark was the subject for a criminal investigation last year and at the time prosecutors seized about $15,000 in cash and 400 bitcoin from Clark. Prosecutors then declined to charge Clark at the time, said Weisbrod, and returned him the cash and 300 bitcoin. Weisbrod argued that it legitimizes that bitcoin. "I can think of no greater indication of legitimacy than law enforcement giving the money back," said Weisbrod. It is not clear why prosecutors returned only 300 bitcoin, and not all 400 bitcoin when they reportedly declined to charge Clark at the time. In Saturday's hearing, prosecutors set $725,000 bail for Clark, six times what he is accused of stealing through the Twitter hack. Clark was arrested on July 31 and is facing 30 felony charges to promote a bitcoin giveaway scam by hacking popular Twitter accounts. Prosecutors refer him as the "mastermind" behind the hack. Two other individuals 19-year-old U.K. resident Mason Sheppard and 22-year-old Florida resident Nima Fazeli have also been charged for their alleged participation in the hack. They are facing federal charges since they are adults, while Clark is facing state charges being a juvenile. Under Florida law, prosecutors would reportedly take 10% of the bail set Saturday, i.e. $72,500, to free Clark pending trial. 2020 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice. This election, votes from Indian-American communities across the US could be helpful for Trumps win, especially in battleground states President Donald Trump is handed an umbrella as he steps off of Marine One and heads toward Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base. (AP) Washington: US President Donald Trump has a key advantage in the battleground states that could re-elect him in November, his eldest son Donald Trump Jr has said, citing an op-ed which claims that 50 per cent of Indian-American voters in these states are moving away from the opposition Democratic Party towards his father. Seeking re-election for his second consecutive term, Trump, 74, is pitted against Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, 77, in the November 3 presidential elections. Most of the opinion polls show that Biden is several points ahead of Trump. Trump Jr, who is leading his father's 2020 re-election campaign, played a key role in the outreach to the Indian-American community in 2016, which he has continued during the last three-and-a-half years. A Key Advantage in Battleground States Could Secure 2020 for Trump, he tweeted on Sunday, along with an op-ed written by an ardent Trump supporter Al Mason in the latest issue of American Greatness news website. According to the article, Trump, a Republican, could find himself the recipient of tens of thousands of Indian-American votes across the United States. I have stirred the pot with my findings - and the air bubbles of appreciation by the Trump supporters and fear of the Democrats are floating around, Mason, one of the honorary co-chairs of the Trump Victory Finance Committee, told PTI after the tweet by Trump Jr. As the co-chairman of the Trump Victory Indian American Finance Committee, I have seen firsthand the results of grassroots polling efforts of Indian-American communities in each of these states, Mason wrote in his op-ed. Come November 3, 2020, Trump could find himself the recipient of tens of thousands of votes from Indian-American communities across the US, and in particular, in the battleground states, including Florida, Virginia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, that Trump needs most to secure his reelection, Mason said. Quite simply, the results show that as many as 50 per cent of potential Indian-American voters, the vast majority of whom traditionally have voted Democrats in presidential elections, will defect from the Democratic Party and vote for President Trump, he said. This mass defection could add tens of thousands of new Trump voters in key battleground states and could very well end up helping to secure the president's reelection, Mason said. In response to a question, Mason said that the Democrats have discussed similar findings at their town hall, attended by heavy weights like former US ambassador to India Richard Verma, Biden Unity Task Force Economic Policy Advisor Sonal Shah, former US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy and Center for the American Progress Action Fund CEO Neera Tanden. Some Indian-American leaders who were part of the Trump campaign in 2016, are threatened by the attention the community is giving to my findings. They fear their importance seems to have been lost. But they have nothing to fear - as I am not the leader of the Indian-American community, nor am I representing the community in any manner, form or shape, Mason said. Mason said he is helping to bring all the Indian-American leaders and groups of Trump supporters under one umbrella in support of Trump's re-election. My opinions are not the Trump campaign's talking points - but purely my findings and views, which I truly believe will be the outcome of the presidency on November 3rd, 2020-Trump Victory, he asserted. Referring to his survey, Mason wrote in the op-ed that Trump's support among Indian-Americans is the result of at least a year of aggressive outreach on the part of the president and his campaign to bolster the historic relationship between the United States and India, and to reach out to the Indian-American communities within the US on a more personal level. In September, nearly 50,000 Indian-Americans attended a packed rally in Houston co-headlined by President Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Dubbed 'Howdy Modi!', the event represented the largest rally ever held with a foreign leader in the US, he wrote. In my own conversations with colleagues and with friends, and in my research team's findings, one trend becomes overwhelmingly clear: Indian-Americans, perhaps for the first time ever, feel both acknowledged and respected by the president of the US. The president's historic support of the US-India relationship and the Trump campaign's sustained outreach to Indian-Americans at home has resulted in increased support and rising popularity among potential Indian-American voters, Mason added. Travellers arriving in Hungary from countries classified as yellow or red in terms of the severity of the coronavirus risk must pay for their PCR tests unless they stay in home quarantine for two weeks, the chief medical officer has said. Foreign nationals are not allowed to enter Hungary from red countries, only from yellow and green countries, Cecilia Muller said. In line with current regulations, inbound travellers from yellow and red countries must stay in home quarantine for two weeks, she said. A choice to get tested can be made and quarantine is not required once two consecutive negative results are produced, she added. Travellers must go through health checks at the border, and they are given a red sign stating their home quarantine requirement which they must place on the entrance of their home, she said. Those who wish to get exemption from home quarantine must submit a request to their local government office at a cost of 3,000 forints (EUR 8.5) and they will be given a notice stating that they can leave the quarantine to visit their chosen screening station, Muller said. People who arrive from yellow countries are allowed to leave home quarantine after the first negative PCR test but they are still obliged to get a second test done, she said. Those arriving from red countries must stay in home quarantine until the second negative PCR test result is available, she added. Travellers who can present at the border two negative PCR test results from tests conducted not more than five days before entry, with a minimum of 48 hours between the two tests, are exempt from the quarantine requirement, she added. Meanwhile, speaking at a separate press event, Muller highlighted the importance of preventing the emergence of coronavirus clusters across the country. The chief medical officer illustrated the process of contact tracing through the example of a smaller cluster in Mezokovesd, in north-eastern Hungary. Health authorities and police tracked down 334 people across 29 cities and towns in three counties linked to Covid-19 cases identified in Mezokovesd. A total of 43 of them tested positive but only 16 displayed symptoms of Covid-19 and five people had to be hospitalised. Of the 334 people, 260 have already been released from official home quarantine, she said. The last positive case was detected on July 23, so it can be said that the Mezokovesd outbreak has been thwarted, Muller said. Thanks to the way Hungary managed the first wave of the epidemic, the number of coronavirus cases in the country has been kept relatively low, she said. But the virus is still present, Muller warned, adding that responsible behaviour by the public could help prevent the emergence of virus clusters. MTI Photo: Gyorgy Varga The Sportswriter mare Kendra N teamed with driver Jordan Stratton to take advantage of a wild speed battle in the $17,200 mares pacing feature on the Sunday (Aug. 2) card at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, closing the best of all to take a mark of 1:51. Summer Charm went to the lead early and hit the quarter in :26. Favoured Bettor Joy N attempted to quarter-move but was given the cold shoulder by the pacesetter into a strong wind, and with Shecandance N keeping the pocket tight, the raging duel took the front of the field by the half in a punishing :53.2. Dibaba N, who had gapped behind the fast early fireworks, got in gear up the backstretch and swept the embattled front horses going to the 1:21 three-quarters, with Kendra N hot on her tail. Kendra N was left uncovered on the far turn but she had by far the most energy left late, winning by four-and-a-half lengths over a resurgent Summer Charm with Dibaba N third. Kendra N is now 5-3-1-1-$35,997 since being imported from New Zealand by trainer Peter Tritton and the Vonknoblauch Stable LLC, and she may be making her way to even higher company soon. If the feature race was hotly-contested early, the $14,000 distaff co-feature pace was a cavalry charge late, with the first seven separated by less than two lengths at the finish. The American Ideal mare Topville Angelina ground uncovered into a :56.1 last half to emerge most photogenic in 1:53.1 for driver George Napolitano Jr. and trainer-owner Gilbert Garcia-Herrera. (PHHA/Pocono) In the city he loved so much, among the people who loved him so much, the sense of sadness and loss was profound. John Hume's passion for Londonderry and its people knew no bounds. As news of his death broke early on Monday morning, it drew tributes from across Ireland and beyond. But the feeling of grief was at its greatest in Hume's home city, among his people. He will never be forgotten here, and on Monday some were calling for the city's Peace Bridge to be renamed in his honour. Walking through the streets of the city, people were reminiscing about this most treasured son of Derry. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next John Hume 1937 - 2020: A life in pictures Close John Hume playing with his children John Hume is carried aloft through Londonderry city centre after being returned as MP for Foyle in 1987 John Hume on his wedding day with wife Pat John Hume is detained by soldiers during a civil rights protest in Londonderry in August 1971. John Hume John Hume in thoughtful mood at the SDLP party conference in Newcastle in 1979 Bertie Ahern and John Hume as they took part in a press conference on the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in Belfast. Picture Charles McQuillan/Pacemaker. U2 star Bono is flanked by David Trimble and John Hume on stage during a special concert in Belfast to promote the Yes vote in the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement (Chris Bacon/PA) PA John Hume with his good friend, Senator Ted Kennedy, in the Bogside John Hume with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan John Hume and his wife Pat at the Foyle Arts Centre in Londonderry after hearing that he and David Trimble were to share the Nobel Peace Prize Photopress Belfast John Hume with party colleague Seamus Mallon John Hume and David Trimble with U2 frontman Bono celebrating the Good Friday Agreement The SDLP team led by leader John Hume arrives at Stormont in 1999 to start the process of selecting ministers for the devolved government John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast Hometown heroes: John Hume celebrates with Derry City players after their 2010 First Division win SPORTSFILE Former SDLP leader John Hume and Bill Clinton pictured in front of the Guildhall. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams (left) and SDLP leader John Hume (Chris Bacon/PA) PA John Hume worked with Ian Paisley PA SDLP leader John Hume with his wife Pat speak to the media after he and David Trimble won the Nobel Peace Prize (PA) PA John Hume in front of the Stormont Building in 2002 (Paul Faith/PA) John Hume with David Trimble (PA) PA Bill Clinton in front of the Guildhall with former SDLP leader John Hume and his wife Pat. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. SDLP Conference, St Columb's Hall, Derry 12th March 2016. SDLP Leader Colm Eastwood John Hume at the conclusion of the conference Photo:Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. File photo dated 19/10/2000 of the Dalai Lama (left) meeting with fellow Nobel peace laureate John Hume, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. Photo: Martin McCullough/PA Wire PA File photo dated 24/08/2014 of John Hume and his wife Pat, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. PA Photo.Photo: Niall Carson/PA Wire PA Handout File photo dated 12/04/2000 of Former South African President Nelson Mandela meeting John Hume at the South African Embassy in Dublin Photo: PA Wire PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume playing with his children Right across the community, there was great and genuine affection for what some described as Ireland's last great statesman. Taxi drivers waiting on their fares listened as John Hume's contribution to peace and the Good Friday Agreement was discussed on radio programmes. A book of condolence was opened in the Guildhall, which will allow people to pen their own tribute to Mr Hume and offer messages of condolences to his widow Pat, children and grandchildren, over the coming days. One of the first to sign it on Monday was SDLP leader and Foyle MP Colum Eastwood, who described his predecessor as "Ireland's Martin Luther King". He wrote poignantly: "Thank-you from a grateful generation." Expand Close Colum Eastwood signs a book of condolence yesterday Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Ey / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Colum Eastwood signs a book of condolence yesterday The mayor of Derry and Strabane, Brian Tierney, wrote that he was a "hero of Ireland". In the Guildhall Square, the memories shared by people were warm and varied. Pointing to the Peace Bridge across from the square, Ciaran O'Donnell suggested naming the landmark structure after John Hume, saying it would be a most fitting tribute. He said: "The Peace Bridge should have been called after him when it was first built but it is not too late to do that now. The three words go together - John, Hume and peace. Expand Close Ciaran ODonnell / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Ciaran ODonnell "I know he hadn't been well for a long time but it is devastating that John Hume has died. The things that man did for this city, what he did for the country, is beyond reproach and I wish we had more like it - it is as simple as that. "He always had a smile and a nod for everybody. He was a giant of a man who had real passion for this city - both the Waterside and the City side. "He had a passion for people and a passion for peace and he was the last great statesman." Graeme Service from Limavady said John Hume will be remembered with affection by both communities. He said: "John Hume was a good man who wanted to do the best for people and it didn't matter if you were a Protestant or a Catholic or anything else. "He wasn't overly successful in achieving everything he set out to do, but that wasn't through any fault of his own." Joe Gallagher said John Hume will always be remembered as a peacemaker. He said: "It is such a sad day for the city, it is a big loss for Derry. I met John a couple of times years ago when he was still involved in politics and he was such a gentleman. Expand Close Joe Gallagher / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Joe Gallagher "He loved Derry and he loved people and that came across when you talked to him. "He will always be remembered as a champion of civil rights and as a peacemaker and he will be sadly missed by everyone." Hume's legacy spread far beyond his home city. Donacha Keane, who is from west Cork on his first visit to Derry, said even in the part of Ireland farthest from Northern Ireland, John Hume was a name everyone knew. He said: "I have to say Derry is completely different to what I imagined and I suppose that had a lot to do with John Hume. Expand Close Donnacha Keane / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Donnacha Keane "I would only have been a teenager when the Troubles were going on and to be honest, it didn't mean much to us but even a teenager I was aware of John Hume and I think that was true of most people." While John Hume is recognised around the world as the architect of the peace process and as the broker of the Good Friday Agreement, in Derry, he is also recognised as the man who did so much to create job opportunities in one of the UK's unemployment black spots. Claire McElhinney said the people of the city have much to thank John Hume for. She said: "John Hume helped so many people in the city, he brought so much work and investment to Derry. He was a great advocated for Derry and brought large companies like Seagate here that has given employment to so many. Expand Close Claire McElhinney / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Claire McElhinney "I really don't think the city would not be what it is today without John Hume, we have so much to thank him for - his work in bringing peace, civil rights and jobs. "It is a sad day for Derry and one of the saddest things is that because of coronavirus he won't get the funeral he deserves but he will never be forgotten." Brigid McAteer said that while John Hume will be remembered far and wide for his contribution to peace, in his own city he will never be forgotten for establishing the credit union. "People in Derry take the credit union for granted but what few people know is that John Hume set up the credit union in Derry," she recalled. "This meant that for the first time, families like my own could get a loan. Banks didn't want to know people like us because my father was unemployed, same as the majority of men in this city 50 years ago, but the credit union would lend money to anybody who was a regular saver. "I heard an interview John Hume was giving years and years ago and whoever he was talking to asked him what he considered his greatest achievement and John said it was starting the credit union in Derry. "I just thought that showed the calibre of the man John Hume was, he cared so much about the ordinary working class man in the street. "Before his illness took a real hold of him, John would walk around these streets and everybody knew he wasn't well but they looked out for him, made sure he was okay." John Hume helped Derry's people through their most difficult days. In his latter days, its people looked after him. And now they will never forget him. There are plenty of beautiful people in Hollywood, but one particular actress took the world by storm after her first blockbuster movie premiere. Megan Fox stole fans hearts the moment she appeared on-screen, and shes been in the spotlight ever since. The star went from humble beginnings in the countryside to modeling contracts to Hollywood. She has three beautiful children and an exciting new romantic relationship. Its hard to remember that this beauty is just a regular person on the inside, with her own weird quirks and annoying habits. Megan Fox | Victor Chavez/Getty Images Megan Fox: One of Hollywoods hottest actresses Fox skyrocketed to stardom after her role in Transformers in 2007. Fans went crazy for the dark hair, bright blue eyes, and sultry stare. Soon her face was on every magazine, and she was even named Sexiest Woman in the World in the 2008 FHM poll, according to Mirror. Fox started out far from the glitz and glam of Hollywood. She was born and raised in rural Tennessee, then moved to Florida when she was 10, according to Biography. Fox took singing and dancing lessons since she was five years old, and began modeling at 13. After winning multiple awards for modeling, she decided to move to L.A. at just 16 years old. Over the next few years, Fox landed minor film roles and guest-starred on a few television shows. Her big break came in 2007, when she was cast as Mikaela Banes in Transformers. She was nominated for an MTV Movie Award for breakthrough performance. In 2009, Fox returned to the world of Optimus Prime and the Autobots in the blockbuster, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. 2014 found Fox sharing the big screen with everyones favorite heroes-in-a-half-shell, in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The movie received harsh reviews from critics, but there were no complaints from Foxs fans. Fox dabbled in sitcoms again in 2016, when she joined the hilarious cast of New Girl. Zooey Deschanel, the shows quirky, lovable lead, was on maternity leave when they brought Fox in to shake things up, according to The Atlantic. Viewers enjoyed the change of scenery. Whereas Deschanels Jess was wacky, cuddly, and affectionate, Foxs Reagan was sarcastic, distant, and pretty cold. She brought a new type of comedy to the series, and it worked pretty well. In 2019, Fox starred in three film rolesAbove the Shadows, Zeroville, and The Battle of Jangsari. Fox performed well in each film, across a variety of genres, but none were the blockbusters that she has starred in previously. Fans can catch Fox in her latest upcoming film, Rogue, this August. Why would Megan Fox make a bad roommate? RELATED: Megan Fox Had a Genuine Psychological Breakdown After the Premiere of Jennifers Body in 2009Heres Why An article from Bustle tackled an eye-opening subjectcelebrities and their bodily functions. This certainly isnt something you read about every day. We learned quite a few interesting bits of information. As it turns out, everything about Megan Fox isnt pretty. Namely, her housekeeping habits. Along with other Hollywood beauties like Anna Kendrick and Jennifer Lawrence, Fox revealed something that makes her seem a lot more down-to-earth. The actress says she is a horrible roommate. Apparently, she takes her clothes off and leaves them all over the floor (yeah, were assuming most of her fans wouldnt have a problem with that) and she forgets to the flush the toilet. Fox says her friends will tell her Megan, you totally pinched a loaf in my toilet and didnt flush. This information probably wont bother most of her fans. In fact, it might even make the actress more endearing. Were guessing that if Megan Fox asked to use your bathroom, you really wouldnt care what she left behind. Whats happening with Megan Fox right now? Fox hasnt been making headlines for her acting work lately, but she has made headlines for other reasons. The latest scoop on Fox is the steamy new relationship with her beau, Machine Gun Kelly. The two met while working on the set of their new film, Midnight in the Switchgrass. Fox also starred in MGKs latest music video, Bloody Valentine. The pair says they hit it off instantly, and MGK confirmed rumors when he tweeted a line from the song, Im calling you my girlfriend. What the f***. Fox was married to Brian Austin Green for 10 years, and they have three children together. Green seems supportive of her new relationship with MGK, saying that he trusts her judgment and the rapper sounds like a nice guy. Fox and MGK have not met each others children yet, but maybe thats coming one day in the future. Uzbekistan has allowed children to attend Muslim prayers again, ending a de facto ban first enforced under the countrys late first president, Islam Karimov. The countrys interior ministry said during the weekend that minors will be able to attend mosques accompanied by fathers, brothers and close relatives after restrictions on general worship imposed as a result of the coronavirus outbreak are lifted. While the video statement posted on the ministrys Telegram channel stressed there were no laws banning minors from attending mosques, a de facto ban was enforced under hardliner Karimov and persisted after his death in 2016. 200403074921162 According to a 2019 United States State Department report on religious freedom, police last year detained two bloggers who called for authorities to allow children to attend mosques, girls to wear hijabs and men to grow beards. Religion is a sensitive topic for Uzbekistans government, which remains strongly secular nearly three decades after the country gained independence from the Soviet Union. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has introduced several political and economic reforms while keeping the authoritarian government intact. Mirziyoyev served as prime minister under Karimov for more than 13 years and has continued to honour him in public despite reversing some of his most repressive policies. The Federal Ministry of Environment in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Education has begun decontaminating and disinfecting 19,000 unity schools in preparation for their resumption. The Minister of Environment, Dr. Mohammed Mahmood Abubakar while briefing newsmen in Kaduna said the collaborating ministries have put in place a sustainable system which will protect the health of learners and their caregivers at all educational levels. According to him, Starting with the Federal Government Colleges (Unity schools) and then some of the schools that will host the Senior School Certificate Examination, numbering about 19, 000, whereas the unity schools will be subjected to thorough decontamination/disinfection in the coming days immediately after the Eid-el-Kabir sallah break preparatory for their reopening on 4th August, 2020, our personnel will be mounting surveillance in some of the examination centers. This will include decontaminating examination halls at the end of every examination session. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates President Donald Trump, first lady Melania Trump and their son Barron Trump walk across the South Lawn before leaving the White House on board Marine One November 26, 2019 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan on Monday issued an emergency order to block the county where Barron Trump goes to school from banning private schools from opening for in-person instruction. On Friday, the Montgomery County, Maryland, health officer issued a mandate that ordered private schools remain closed for in-person learning until at least October 1. President Trump's son, Barron, attends the St. Andrew's Episcopal School in the Maryland county. "The blanket closure mandate imposed by Montgomery County was "overly broad and inconsistent with the powers intended to be delegated to the county health officer," Hogan said in a statement Monday. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan on Monday blocked a county's executive order that blocked private schools from opening to in-person instruction through the month of September. As Business Insider previously reported, Montgomery County health officer Dr. Travis Gayles issued an executive order on Friday that barred nonpublic schools in the county from opening to in-person classes before October 1. The county is home to St. Andrews Episcopal school, the private school where the president's son, Barron, attends classes. St. Andrews previously said it was considering starting the school year with either a virtual-only approach or a hybrid model that would combine online learning with in-person instruction. It hadn't yet made a decision before the county's Friday order, though it had planned to announce a decision on the week of August 10. In a statement Monday, Hogan said that public school leaders in the state had flexibility under state parameters when deciding whether to open their public schools for in-person classes. Montgomery County Public Schools announced in July its students will complete their first semester entirely online. "Private and parochial schools deserve the same opportunity and flexibility to make reopening decisions based on public health guidelines," Hogan said. "The blanket closure mandate imposed by Montgomery County was overly broad and inconsistent with the powers intended to be delegated to the county health officer. Story continues The Trump administration has repeatedly been adamant that schools school open in the fall for in-person instruction despite concerns over coronavirus transmission. "To be clear, Maryland's recovery continues to be based on a flexible, community-based approach that follows science, not politics," Hogan added. "As long as schools develop safe and detailed plans that follow CDC and state guidelines, they should be empowered to do what's best for their community." The order Hogan released on Monday revised his April 5 order that allowed local health officials to close individual facilities they considered unsafe. A spokesperson for Montgomery County did not immediately return Business Insider's request for comment. Hogan's emergency order Monday follows a Saturday tweet where he said he "strongly" disagreed with the county mandate on private schools. Read the original article on Business Insider Representative image live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Drugmaker Wockhardt on August 3 said it has entered into an agreement with the UK Government to fill finish COVID-19 vaccines. Fill finish means Wockhardt will receive the bulk vaccine from vaccine manufacturers such as AstraZeneca and fill it into vials at its plant before shipping it for vaccination. The manufacturing will be undertaken at CP Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Wockhardt based in Wrexham, North Wales. As per the terms of the agreement the company has reserved manufacturing capacity to allow for the supply of multiple vaccines to the UK Government in its fight against COVID-19, including AZD1222, the vaccine co-invented by the University of Oxford and its spinout company, Vaccitech and licensed by AstraZeneca. The company declined to provide financial value of the contract. 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 agreement is for 30 million doses, which can be expanded to 400 million doses in the UK. Habil Khorakiwala, Founder Chairman of Wockhardt said the company has total capacity in the UK and India to fill and finish one billion doses of vaccine. Khorakiwala said Wockhardt has offered its Aurangabad vaccine manufacturing facility to the Indian government. We are proud to be collaborating with the UK Government to make vaccines available and the arrangement brings in a huge sense of purpose and pride, it upholds our ongoing commitment to the fight against such a pandemic of global human importance, Khorakiwala said. Shares of Wockhardt surged 10 percent to hit their upper circuit at Rs 303.40 on the BSE in intraday trade after the vaccine partnership with the UK government. The World Health Organization, or WHO, warned on Monday that there might never be a silver bullet or an extraordinary solution like a perfect vaccine against COVID-19. WHO officials added that the road to normality would be long. And some countries would need to re-think how they deal with the health crisis. Johns Hopkins University estimates that, by August 3, more than 18 million people around the world had been infected with the disease and more than 690,000 had died. Also, some nations that thought they were over the worst of the crisis are experiencing a resurgence. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged nations to strongly enforce health measures. They include wearing face coverings, social distancing, hand-washing and testing. The message to people and governments is clear: Do it all,'" Tedros said from the United Nations agencys headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. He said face coverings should become a symbol of togetherness around the world. A number of vaccines are now in phase three trials and we all hope to have a number of effective vaccines that can help prevent people from infection. However, theres no silver bullet at the moment - and there might never be, he noted. Tedros said while the coronavirus is the biggest health emergency in almost 100 years, the international effort to find a vaccine is unlike anything seen before. The WHO chief also pointed to some concerns. We may not have a vaccine that may work, or its protection could be for just a few months, not more Until we finish the trials, we will not know. Dr. Mike Ryan is the WHOs head of emergencies. He said countries with high transmission rates, including Brazil and India, needed to prepare for a big fight: The way out is long, he said, noting success will require ongoing efforts. Some countries are really going to have to take a step back now and really take a look at how they are addressing the pandemic within their national borders, he added. WHO officials also said an early investigation team had completed its China mission. The mission, demanded by the United States, was to search and identify the start of the virus. The U.S. is the WHOs top donor and plans to leave the body next year. The U.S. government accuses the WHO of being too easy on China. A larger, WHO-led team of Chinese and international experts is planned next. But the timing and other details of that are unclear. Ryan said China had already given some information but some knowledge is still missing. I'm Jonathan Evans. Michael Shields and Emma Farge reported on this story for Reuters. Pete Musto adapted it for VOA Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story resurgence n. a growth or increase that occurs after a period without growth or increase symbol n. an action, object, or event that expresses or represents a particular idea or quality phase n. a part or step in a process transmission n. the act or process by which something is spread or passed from one person or thing to another address(ing) v. to deal with a matter, issue or problem pandemic n. an occurrence in which a disease spreads very quickly and affects a large number of people over a wide area or throughout the world We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. (Photo : Screenshot from: MrBeast Youtube Page ) [VIRAL] MrBeast Eats World's Largest Pizza Versus Record-Holder Eater in 30 Mins! (Photo : Screenshot from: MrBeast Youtube Page ) [VIRAL] MrBeast Eats World's Largest Pizza Versus Record-Holder Eater in 30 Mins! One of the most popular YouTubers in the stream right now has just been defeated in a challenge. Yup! MrBeast was defeated in a clean score in an eating contest. Here's the challenge: eat the world's largest pizza that weighs 18 lbs and defeat the record-holder competitive eater, Joey Chestnut. Though it's expected, here's what happened. MrBeast just got defeated! MrBeast, most famous for videos that show expensive items, has recently been defeated in a public eating challenge versus his competitor Joey Chestnut. On Saturday, Aug. 1, MrBeast uploaded a new video with the title,' I Ate the World's Largest Pizza.' Of course, as the title suggests, the video features the world's largest pepperoni pizza that weighs a total of 18 lbs. To make the challenge more exciting, the popular Youtuber even invited record-holder competitive eater Joey Chestnut. This professional eater has been recognized in America as one of the best competitive eaters. He recently snatched the record from the 13th Nathan's hotdog eating contest, with him swallowing up to 75 hotdogs in one seating. The challenge is simple: try to eat the entire nine lbs. of pizza in the fastest time possible. To make the challenge sounds fair, MrBeast brought two of his friends to eat alongside with him. In order to know how much they gained during the eating contest, they measure their weights first. Chestnut weighs 299 lbs. MrBeast and two of his friends weigh a total of 537 lbs. Who do you think will win between a Youtuber and a famous record-holder competitive eater in eating an entire nine lbs pizza? The answer is obvious. Here's what happened Spoiler alert: of course, Chestnut won during the contest. But it's not easy. At first 10 minutes of the video, Chestnut already sliced his way down to almost half of the whole pizza. Meanwhile, in MrBeast's team, Chris and Chandler did not do well in the first minutes of the video. At the time of over 20 minutes, everyone is tired and exhausted from eating too much pizza inside their mouths. MrBeast even tagged an additional four members of his team to finish the whole nine lbs of pizza. The Youtuber even offered a $100,000 to give to his friends, once they finished the pizza before Chestnut. Sadly, when 30 minutes came, the competition ended in a clean plate with Chestnut winning the competition. Obviously. Chestnut gained an additional 21 lbs for eating whole 9 lbs of pizza Chestnut's after-weight gained 21 lbs after finishing off the entire nine lbs of pizza. From his past weight of 299 lbs, Chestnut gained 250 lbs out of the 30 minutes eating of pizza. Who wants to eat pizza? Maybe not after this video. ALSO READ: Mysterious Seeds From China: USDA Reveals Over a Dozen Cryptic Plant Seeds Distributed Nationwide This article is owned by Tech Times Written by Jamie Pancho 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Conservative former Rep. Steve Stockman gets COVID-19 in prison while convicted murderer gets to leave By Rachel Alexander The government is letting all kinds of violent felons out early due to COVID-19, while keeping political prisoners at high risk for COVID-19 behind bars. Last week, an inmate serving an 84 years to life prison sentence for murder was released to parole in California due to COVID-19. Terebea Williams shot 23-year-old Kevin "John" Ruska Jr. in the abdomen in 2001, shoved his body into the trunk of a car and left him in a hotel room to die. In contrast, conservative former Congressman Steve Stockman of Texas has been prohibited from leaving, despite the fact he is in his 60s and has diabetes, hypertension, osteoporosis, asthma and more. Every single inmate over 60 who has diabetes in his federal prison in Beaumont, Texas has been allowed to leave for home arrest except him. Now hes contracted COVID-19. Stockman has found out that high-level bureaucrats within the Bureau of Corrections are the ones preventing him from leaving. He is trying to alert Attorney General William Barr to his situation. Barr specifically instructed federal prisons to release vulnerable inmates. They are not required to have served a certain percentage of their sentence. Stockman has served over two and a half years of a 10-year sentence. Barr also instructed prisons hard hit with COVID-19 to take priority in releasing those inmates. The outbreak spiked at Stockmans prison in July with 672 inmates infected. So there is absolutely no reason why Stockman should have been forced to remain and predictably contract the virus. The prison stopped filling his zinc prescription in February bizarre considering the pandemic was beginning when he would need it the most. Only after a local news channel aired a story about Stockmans situation at 10 p.m. Friday evening did the prison finally send him to the hospital. There they x-rayed his lungs, gave him an IV of antibiotic azithromycin and a prescription for azithromycin & hydroxychloroquine. Stockman was convicted of charity fraud for supposedly raising money for two conservative nonprofits on false pretenses. He didnt, he merely did not finish the objectives he was raising money for. The two donors were aware of this and did not have a problem with it. The case was so shaky it took four grand juries to finally indict him and cost taxpayers $15 to $20 million. It was full of lies, such as claiming Stockman spent the money he raised on frivolous items. Not one defense motion was sustained, and only two defense witnesses were permitted. This case set a terrifying precedent for nonprofits everywhere. Richard Viguerie, L. Brent Bozell III and Jenny Beth Martin, joined by 24 other prominent conservatives, filed an amicus curiae in his appeal expressing their deep concerns. And one of the key witnesses for the prosecution, Ben Wetmore, has subsequently said Stockman is innocent. He called it a show trial a real-life, Soviet-style prosecution. Former DOJ attorney Sidney Powell, who is now representing Michael Flynn, said It is highly likely [the Justice Department Public Integrity Section] targeted former Congressman Stockman and have been extremely and unreasonably harsh toward him because he was so outspoken in trying to hold Lois Lerner, the Clintons, and Obama accountable. Stockman was targeted by left-wing DOJ prosecutors in the Obama administration because he was an outspoken conservative who went after Hillary Clinton, Eric Holder and Lois Lerner. Just two weeks after he introduced a resolution calling for the arrest of Lois Lerner, the FBI showed up at his door. Politico called him Obamas No. 1 Needler in 2013. He was featured on the Drudge Report more than any other member of Congress in 2014. Conservatives who set out to make a difference learn the hard way that this makes them targets. And once the deep state comes after you with its deep pockets funding the prosecution, it is very difficult to fight back. A lot of people would have just caved in, pled guilty and taken the plea agreement knowing the odds were stacked against them. Not Stockman, so now hes paying for it. Not releasing Stockman while they released the rest of the diabetics over age 60 in his prison could be construed as an attempt to kill him. It is unknown whether he received the hydroxychloroquine in time to kill the virus, time will tell whether he lives or dies. He has symptoms including badly inflamed lungs causing breathing problems, weakness and fatigue. The last denial of Stockmans request came from the Home Confinement Committee of the Correctional Programs Division. He is asking people to contact the Division Director, Andre Matevousian at (202) 307-3198 and David Brewer, Acting Senior Deputy Assistant Director at (202) 353-3638. Friends are also hoping for a pardon from President Trump. Rachel Alexander and her brother Andrew are co-Editors of Intellectual Conservative. She has been published in the American Spectator, Townhall.com, Fox News, NewsMax, Accuracy in Media, The Americano, ParcBench, Enter Stage Right and other publications.mericano, ParcBench, Enter Stage Right and other publications. Home A demonstrator holds a card that reads "Black Lives Matter," outside of the Glynn County courthouse in Brunswick, Ga., on June 4, 2020. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images) Cubans in Louisville Denounce Black Lives Matter Mafia Tactics Cubans and other community members in Louisville, Kentucky, gathered on Aug. 2 to denounce tactics used by Black Lives Matter activists that some described as similar to methods of pressure used by the mafia. The activists should be ashamed of themselves, Fernando Martinez, a Cuban immigrant who owns La Bodeguita de Mima, said at the rally. Ahamara Brewster, leader of the Revolutionary Black Panther Party, attended in support of the Cuban American community. The list of demands is just unethical, she told reporters. Thats not how you handle business. If you want help from someone, theres a way of going about it, being diplomatic about it. But you dont threaten anybody. According to the list of demands, circulated by activists in July, business owners must increase the percentage of black people on their staff to 23 percent or more, purchase at least 23 percent of inventory from black retailers or donate 1.5 percent of new sales to Black Local Organizations, and implement diversity training. Business owners should also acknowledge black people were harmed when they were displaced because of changes in parts of downtown decades ago. Unless owners comply by Aug. 17, activists plan to post negative reviews and social media posts about them, according to WDRB, which published a photograph of the demands. Some businesses later posted so-called contracts that state their businesses played a part in the harm done to Clarksdales original residents, who were then denied job opportunities by the gentrifiers who destroyed their community. Lauren Justice, co-owner of Nouvelle Bar & Bottle, told the Louisville Courier-Journal in an email that she and other business owners are responsible for responding to the groups demands. As owners of Nouvelle, we realize we could and should have been doing more and we are trying to do better, she said. We know theres a lot more work to be done and that a long-term commitment is what it takes to make sustainable change. Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer speaks to a group gathered for a vigil in memory of Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Ky., on June 6, 2020. (Brett Carlsen/Getty Images) Black Lives Matter protesters march through downtown in Louisville, Ky., on June 5, 2020. (Brett Carlsen/Getty Images) Lisa Kahl-Hillerich, who owns Roxy Nell, told the paper she thinks her business is already inclusive and doesnt appreciate activists issuing demands without consulting with business owners. Black Lives Matter Louisville didnt immediately respond to a request by The Epoch Times for comment. The organization is not an official chapter of Black Lives Matter Global Network. As Martinez spoke on Aug. 2, some in the crowd held signs that said We left Cuba because of socialism. Be careful what you wish for. Martinez on Facebook last week compared the demands to mafia tactics. After Martinez spoke out, a group of protesters reportedly went to his restaurant. While there, one broke a flower pot. People calling him names havent taken the time to get to know him, Martinez said, adding, How can I be called a bigot and a racist when my family is black? When my son is gay? While Cubans oppose socialism because they escaped from an oppressive socialist country, they dont oppose the black community, the restaurant owner stressed. La Bodeguita is open to everybody, Martinez said. If youre gay, this is your home. If youre black, this is your home. If youre white, this is your home. If youre human, this is your home. Not everybody agreed with the comments at the rally. Sadiqa Reynolds, president and CEO of the Louisville Urban League, said on social media that she disagreed with Martinezs methods. Some business owners have responded to say, we understand your hurt but we were not part of a gentrification plan. We cant meet this demand but here you do have a point and we can improve, she wrote. We all must be a part of the solution. While we can appreciate disagreeing with the tactic or strategyto organize against the sentiment is unacceptable. Martinez seems to be aligned with a message that the BLM movement is a socialist danger threatening this nation, Reynolds added. Two of the Black Lives Matter movements founders have described themselves as trained Marxists, or adherents to the far-left ideology. I will not support a business owner who aligns the Black Lives Matter movement with the destruction of America or tells white people trying to be responsive to take their white guilt somewhere else, Reynolds said. With 52,972 cases recorded in 24 hours, India's Covid-19 caseload has surpassed the 18 lakh mark. Maharashtra continues to remain the worst affected state with nearly 4.5 lakh confirmed cases, followed by Tamil Nadu and Delhi. Indias COVID-19 tally crossed the 18 lakh mark with 52,972 positive cases and 771 deaths reported in the last 24 hours. The total COVID-19 cases stand at 18,03,696 including 5,79,357 active cases, 11,86,203 cured/discharged/migrated and 38,135 deaths, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Monday. As per the data provided by the Health Ministry, Maharashtra the worst affected state from the infection has a total of 1,48,843 active cases and 15,576 deaths. A total of 4,41,228 coronavirus cases have been recorded in the state up to Sunday. Tamil Nadu has reported a total of 56,998 active cases and 4,132 deaths. While Delhi has recorded 10,356 active cases, 1,23,317 recovered/discharged/migrated cases and 4,004 deaths. Also read: Rajnath, JP Nadda others wish HM shah a speedy recovery after he tests positive for Coronavirus Also read: Another BJP bigwig tests Covid positive: After Amit Shah, Ktaka CM BSY catches infection The COVID-19 samples tested across the country has crossed the 2 crore mark till August 2. The total number of COVID-19 samples tested up to August 2 is 2,02,02,858 including 3,81,027 tests that were conducted yesterday, said Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Monday. (ANI) Also read: UP Minister Kamal Rani Varun dies of Covid-19 President Donald Trump speaks to the media before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on July 31. President Donald Trump might not have to wait for Congress to pass his payroll tax cut. He may be able to do it on his own. Rather than waiting for lawmakers to come around to a payroll tax holiday, the president could order the Treasury Department to stop collecting the tax, according to an Aug. 2 op-ed in The Wall Street Journal. The opinion piece was authored by Stephen Moore, a member of the president's economic recovery task force, and Phil Kerpen, president of the Committee to Unleash Prosperity. At a White House press briefing Monday evening, the president said he does indeed have the power to unilaterally suspend the collection of payroll taxes. "I can do that also through an executive order," Trump said at the briefing, "so we'll be talking about that." The president added that his administration is "having a very good discussion" with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., about another coronavirus relief package. But Trump said it wasn't "fair" that the Democratic leaders "want to bail out cities and states that have been in trouble for years of bad management." Payroll taxes are the slice of employees' pay that's withheld to fund Social Security and Medicare. More from Personal Finance: Small businesses rehire staff but cut pay and hours Treasury canceling stimulus checks to dead recipients Coronavirus unemployment claims are worst in history The burden is shared by the worker and the employer: Each is responsible for a 6.2% levy that funds Social Security, plus a 1.45% tax that goes toward Medicare. While Social Security taxes are subject to a wage base limit of $137,700 in 2020, Medicare taxes continue to apply beyond that threshold. To get the payroll tax break a deferral, according to Moore and Kerpen the Trump administration would employ a section of the tax code that allows the Treasury Secretary to postpone certain tax-related deadlines in a federally declared disaster. Earlier this year, the administration used this same authority to delay the due date for 2019 federal income taxes. "Mr. Trump should instruct the Treasury to stop withholding payroll taxes," Moore and Kerpen wrote. KAMPALA The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), with support from the Swedish government, has announced its partnership with four Ugandan companies to develop and scale up digital solutions that address the challenges smallholder farmers in Uganda face. The funding will help the companies; Hamwe East Africa, Nilecom, Cabral Tech Limited and Quest Digital Finance Limited use their innovations to provide solutions to hundreds of farmers in the value addition chain. It will also help them develop, scale and apply tailor-made home-grown digital technologies to combat the systemic constraints in agriculture in Ugandas rural communities. The solutions, which will initially be applied in the North and West Nile regions of Uganda and Kiryandongo district, aim to unlock the systemic constraints in the agriculture sector with the ultimate goal of improving the productivity of smallholder farmers and consequently boosting the livelihoods of vulnerable families and communities. Supporting local innovators in Uganda is one of the ways in which UNCDF is working to foster an inclusive digital economy that leaves no one behind. Speaking to the media in Kampala, Chris Lukolyo the UNCDF Uganda Digital Lead explained that as the world is turning to digital solutions to address day-to-day challenges, millions of people in Uganda including smallholder farmers, women, youth and refugees are at risk of being left behind. By supporting Ugandan entrepreneurs to build solutions that address particular needs of vulnerable populations, we foster the growth of the digital ecosystem, improve life in these communities and enable excluded groups to become more active participants in the economy, he said. Hon Judith Nabakooba, the Minister of ICT and National Guidance appreciated the innovation and said it would go an extra mile to help most farmers improve their productivity in this digital era. The Ministry of ICT and National Guidance welcomes these innovations because driving the use of technology to increase productivity in agriculture is one of the objectives of the digital transformation agenda of the National Development Plan III, she said. According to Hon Vincent Ssempijja, the Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries the new opportunities that these digital solutions will provide to smallholder farmers will help address the problems of all farmers from the grass root level which will boost their productivity and earning levels. We are witnessing first-hand the role that digital solutions can play in ensuring continuity in sectors like agriculture where disruption of services directly impacts food security and human survival, he said. Inclusive innovation is one of the work streams of the UNCDF digital strategy Leaving No One Behind in the Digital Era envisioned to promote inclusive digital economies, specifically in least-developed countries (LDCs), in support of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In Uganda, the strategy aims to leverage technology to enable at least one million people access to, and usage of, impactful solutions in the sectors of finance, agriculture, health, education, and energy to improve their wellbeing. Related Continue Reading Kerala HC extends ban on public protests until August 31 in view of Covid outbreak WHO says there may never be a silver bullet for Covid-19 WHO says completes groundwork in China for virus origin probe UP reports 4,473 new Covid-19 cases, 50 death in last 24 hrs India is always important in terms of vaccines, says Korean Envoy The global Coronavirus (Covid-19)cases topped 18 million on Sunday, as various countries continued to see spike in infection. Six months after the UN health agency declared the coronavirus global emergency, it has killed more than 687,000 people across the world. The United States which has recorded the maximum number of confirmed cases, saw an increase of 58,947 on Sunday which took the total tally at 4,601,526 cases. Click here for full Covid-19 coverage In Brazil, the total Covid-19 death toll was up to over 94,000 after the country reported 540 new fatalities. Latin America is among the world's worst affected region. On Sunday after Argentina broke past 200,000 Covid-19 cases on Sunday and Colombia set a daily record, the infections tally surged past 5 million in the region. Meanwhile, in India, the number of people who have recovered from Covid-19 in India crossed the 1.1 million mark over the weekend. It was the highest number of recovery recorded yet in over two days. Follow the live updates here: U.S. President Donald Trump has changed his mind on plans to ban the popular app TikTok. And on Sunday (August 2), two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters Trump has also agreed to to give TikTok's Chinese parent 45 days to negotiate its sale to U.S. tech giant Microsoft. TikTok has emerged as a flashpoint in escalating U.S.-China tensions. U.S. officials say it poses a national security risk because of the personal data it handles. Trump had initially dismissed the idea of a Microsoft sale on Friday when he first said he would ban the app in the U.S. But following a discussion between Trump and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, the company said in a statement that it would continue negotiations to buy the app and that it aimed to reach a deal by Sept. 15. "We're looking at TikTok, we may be banning TikTok..." It was not immediately clear what pushed Trump to switch course. However, one of the sources who spoke to Reuters said several prominent Republican lawmakers have urged him to back selling TikTok to Microsoft. Banning the app would also alienate many young TikTok users ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November -- and would likely trigger a wave of legal challenges. Bytedance initially hoped ot keep a minority stake in the business. However, on Saturday Reuters reported that the company agreed to divest from TikTok's U.S. operations completely after the White House rejected that offer. Under the newly proposed deal, Microsoft said it also would take over TikTok's operations in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. And it says it would ensure that all private data belonging to TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. If Microsoft's TikTok bid were to succeed, it would become a major competitor to social media giants like Facebook and Snapchat. ByteDance and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A Manhattan prosecutor trying to get President Trumps tax returns told a judge Monday that he was justified in demanding them, citing public reports of extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization. Read more NEW YORK A New York City prosecutor fighting to get President Donald Trumps tax returns told a judge Monday he was justified in demanding them because of public reports of extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization. Manhattan District Attorney District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr. is seeking eight years of the Republican presidents personal and corporate tax records, but has disclosed little about what prompted him to request the records, other than part of the investigation related to payoffs to two women to keep them quiet about alleged affairs with Trump. In a court filing Monday, attorneys for Vance, a Democrat, said the president wasnt entitled to know the exact nature of the grand jury probe, which they called a complex financial investigation. They noted, though, that at the time the subpoena for the tax filings was issued to Trumps accountants, there were public allegations of possible criminal activity at the presidents company dating back over a decade. They cited several newspaper articles, including one in which the Washington Post examined allegations that Trump had a practice of sending financial statements to potential business partners and banks that inflated the worth of his projects by claiming they were bigger or more potentially lucrative than they actually were. Another article described congressional testimony by Trumps former lawyer, Michael Cohen, who said the president would overstate the value of his business interests to impress people or lenders, but then deflate the value of assets when trying to reduce his taxes. The attorneys also cited reports of past non-criminal investigations by New York regulators into whether the conduct described by Cohen amounted to bank or insurance fraud. These reports describe transactions involving individual and corporate actors based in New York County, but whose conduct at times extended beyond New Yorks borders. This possible criminal activity occurred within the applicable statutes of limitations, particularly if the transactions involved a continuing pattern of conduct, the lawyers said. Trump's legal team has argued that the subpoena for his tax filings was issued in bad faith and amounted to harassment of the president. Speaking to reporters later Monday, Trump called the district attorney's investigation another attempt by Democrats to damage him. This is just a continuation of the witch hunt. Its Democrat stuff. They failed with Mueller. They failed with everything. They failed with Congress. They failed at every stage of the game. This has been going on for three and a half, four years, Trump said, referring to special counsel Robert Muellers investigation of alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election. The Supreme Court last month rejected claims by Trumps lawyers that the president could not be criminally investigated while he was in office. Vance's lawyers urged U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero to swiftly reject Trump's further arguments that the subpoenas were improper, saying the baseless claims were threatening the investigation. Every day that goes by is another day Plaintiff effectively achieves the temporary absolute immunity that was rejected by this Court, the Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court, Vances lawyers said. Marrero has scheduled arguments to be fully submitted by mid-August. Vance sought the tax records in part for a probe of how Cohen arranged during the 2016 presidential race to keep the porn actress Stormy Daniels and model Karen McDougal from airing claims of extramarital affairs with Trump. Trump has denied the affairs. Cohen is serving the last two years of a three-year prison sentence in home confinement after pleading guilty to campaign finance violations, lying to Congress and tax crimes. He said he plans to publish a book critical of the president before the November election. If the court orders Trumps accounting firm to give his tax returns to the grand jury, they could be used in any criminal inquiry, but would not be released publicly. Grand jury documents are secret in New York. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 22:35:03|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close KIEV, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- A man who took a hostage and threatened to blow up a bank in downtown Kiev was captured alive, Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Anton Gerashchenko said on Monday. "The terrorist was captured alive. There was no explosion. Deminers are working on the spot. There will be a trial and a long prison sentence," Gerashchenko said on his Facebook page on Monday. Gerashchenko noted that the man's identity was established. According to preliminary information, he is a citizen of Uzbekistan, born in 1988. The man entered the Universal Bank branch in Kiev Monday at about 12:00 a.m. local time (1000 GMT) and said that he had explosives in his backpack. The employees of the branch left, but its head remained inside as a hostage. This is the third such incident that has occurred in Ukraine over the past two weeks. On July 21, 45-year-old Maksim Krivosh hijacked a bus with 13 hostages in Ukraine's western city of Lutsk, but released them after about 12 hours. Krivosh was detained by police. Two days later, in the Poltava region, a man suspected of stealing a car captured a high-ranking police officer. He released the hostage and spent more than a week on the run. On Aug. 1, the offender was shot dead during an arrest. Enditem Delhi BJP workers will also distribute 11 lakh earthen lamps among the people across the city that will be lighted on the evening of 5 August to mark the occasion Lighting of 11 lakh earthen lamps, a mega laser show, and live telecast of the groundbreaking ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya through LED screens across the city are some of the events being planned by the Delhi BJP to make the occasion "memorable". Delhi BJP president Adesh Gupta said on Monday that Lord Rama lives in the hearts of crores of people and the BJP has been at the forefront of the movement for construction of his temple in Ayodhya which is why it wants the occasion to be remembered by generations to come. "It is a matter of great pride and joy for us that after 500 years, the dream of Ram temple is going to be realised on 5 August. We have planned a series of events to make the 'bhoomi pujan' ceremony a memorable moment for everyone in Delhi," he told PTI. Many people would have loved to go to Ayodhya for the ceremony which is not possible now due to the coronavirus pandemic, Gupta said. Delhi BJP workers will distribute 11 lakh diyas (earthen lamps) among the people across the city on Tuesday, that will be lighted on the evening of August 5 to mark the occasion, he said. "A mega laser show is also being planned for the occasion at a prominent location in the city but it is yet to be finalised," said the Delhi BJP president. Giant LED screens are being installed at prominent places in all the 70 Assembly constituencies in Delhi, for people to watch live telecast of the ceremony. Party MPs, MLAs, Delhi BJP office bearers and other senior leaders will be present at these locations to watch the ceremony, he said. Social distancing norm and other COVID-19 protocols will be fully observed, he said. "Lord Rama is not only worshipped by crores of Hindus but he also symbolises cultural nationalism. So, bhoomi pujan for his grand temple at Ayodhya, thanks to the Supreme Court and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, assumes a huge significance for us as well as the society at large," Gupta stated. A 'Kavi Sammelan' titled "kaviyon Ki Sham, Ram Ke Naam" at the Delhi BJP office are part of the celebrations, he said. "The Kavi Sammelan will be dedicated to Lord Rama and many prominent Hindi poets will take part in it. The programme will be held at the Delhi BJP office at 4 pm on Tuesday and telecast live," he said. Community feasts will be organised by many party leaders and workers in different parts of the city on that day. Also, the municipal corporations have been instructed to ensure cleanliness around temples on the day, he added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February announced in Lok Sabha formation of a trust to construct Ram temple in Ayodhya, following the Supreme Court verdict in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case in November last year. The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust has invited the prime minister to lay the foundation stone of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. By Arjuna Ranawana COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa hopes to tighten his hold on the nation's fractious politics in an election on Wednesday that could elevate his brother and allow the two to change the constitution if they prevail. Rajapaksa, who claims credit for controlling the spread of the new coronavirus in the island nation, hopes to install his elder brother and former president - current caretaker Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa - in the post formally with an outright election victory. Voters in the tiny Indian Ocean nation of 21 million people will wear masks, carry their own pens to mark ballot papers and maintain physical distancing for the parliamentary polling that has twice been postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Votes will be counted on Thursday. Sri Lanka has reported 2,816 infections of the new coronavirus and 11 COVID-19 deaths as of Sunday. The totals are lower than in neighbouring south Asian countries, held in check by a strict lockdown since March. "We will make it safe for you to vote," said chief election commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya, urging people to vote without fear. The Rajapaksa brothers, who built their political careers as Sinhalese Buddhist nationalists, are best known for crushing Tamil separatists fighting for a separate homeland for their ethnic minority. The 26-year civil war ended under the elder Rajapaksa's presidency. Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who won the presidency in November, is not up for re-election in the parliamentary polls. Given the support the brothers enjoy among the Sinhalese majority, Mahinda is favoured to become prime minister over Sajith Premadasa, analysts say. Sri Lanka does not have a tradition of conducting political opinion polls. The opposition candidate is the son of Ranasinghe Premadasa, who was assassinated while president by a Tamil suicide bomber in 1993. The Rajapaksas want to return to the presidency powers that were diluted by previous governments as part of reforms to prevent abuses of power. Story continues "The majority community in Sri Lanka have (shown) that they have already decided they want the Rajapaksas back by voting Gotabaya Rajapaksa into the presidency," said Jayadeva Uyangoda, an independent political commentator. The question, he said, is whether they will get a big majority to make sweeping changes. The reforms created independent bodies, including judicial, human rights and police commissions to exercise powers that had been concentrated in the president. President Rajapaksa says he cannot implement his agenda of economic growth because of the curbs on his power. It is impossible to make any meaningful changes and implement the agenda that I presented to the people," he said last week. Restoring those powers would require amending the constitution, which in turn requires a two-thirds majority in parliament. (Reporting by Arjuna Ranawana; Writing by Sanjeev Miglani; Editing by William Mallard) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Norman Harsono (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 14:59 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b2d9cd 1 Business electricity-billing,PLN,government-relief-package,economic-recovery,PEN-pemulihan-ekonomi-nasional,COVID-19,pandemic Free The government has ordered state-owned electricity giant PLN to waive minimum monthly electricity fees for businesses, industries and public services to expedite Indonesias economic recovery. The fees will be waived for 400,000 such entities for power consumed between July and December. The deductions will be reflected in bills in the following month. The electricity giant will be compensated by the government with funds from the state budget. PLN and the government are drafting regulations to implement the relief scheme, which had been requested by businesses themselves, said Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry electrification director general Rida Mulyana on July 30. Some businesses told PLN and the government, Pak, I have no work right now. Its all closed. I'm using less than 40 hours of electricity. I just want to pay for 20 hours, Rida said during an online press briefing. Existing regulations require PLNs business, industrial and public service customers in or above the 1,300 volt-ampere (VA) category medium to big enterprises to pay for at least 40 hours of electricity each month, even if they do not make use of it. Read also: PLN to give small businesses free electricity for six months In comparison, similar customers within the 900VA category small enterprises have to pay a fixed rupiah amount per month. PLN will also waive these fees. Customers will only pay for the kilowatt hours (kWh) they use, said PLN spokesman Agung Murdifi in a statement on Jul. 30. Erasing electricity bill minimums is the third power-related relief scheme introduced by the government to protect Indonesians from the economic downturn resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. The government previously ordered PLN to waive or halve the power bills of Indonesias 24 million poorest households and to provide free electricity to 500,000 small businesses that fell in the lowest 450 VA category. For businesses and industries above the 450 VA category, fixed costs such as power bills have strained their finances as spending remained high while revenues fell, said Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) deputy chairman Bob Azam. Read also: Jokowi announces free electricity, discounts for households hardest hit by COVID-19 impacts He said hotels power bills made up roughly half of their fixed costs during the pandemic. The other half was from employee compensation. If we have more flexibility, maybe we can survive a little longer, he told The Jakarta Post. The relief program is expected to halve the entities combined six-month power bills, worth Rp 5.6 trillion ($385 million) with the minimums included, said Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartanto on Jul. 27. The government will compensate PLN for the Rp 3 trillion cut, 47 percent of which will go to 29,377 industrial customers, 43 percent to 565,994 businesses and 10 percent to 669,535 public service providers. Well prepare the Finance Ministerial decree immediately, said Airlangga, who also chairs the COVID-19 national economic recovery committee. Offering another perspective, Herman Ibrahim, country chairman of the Paris-based International Council on Large Electric Systems (CIGRE), said that electricity minimums were a problematic practice in general. The more common practice was including all of an electricity companys costs into its price per kWh, he said. Customers really dont want minimums, he told the Post. Its not just that theyd be more hesitant to join [PLN programs], but also, can they pay for such minimums? Three female employees of a Michigan Medical Examiners Office have been fired amid an investigation into allegations of a toxic work environment that included disturbing claims of sexual harassment and racism. The probe at the Macomb County Medical Examiners Office was spurred after one employee brought a cake into work that was decorated with a black penis on May 26 - the day after the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. Considered to be the final straw for one female worker, she officially filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Macomb County on July 18. The worker, who has not been named, also accused a supervisor and three colleagues of mocking black families who were inquiring about the deaths of their loved ones, hanging pornography up around the office and then bullying any women who protested about the lurid decorations. The employee who identified herself as a death investigator and person of color to the Detroit Free Press said the workplace misconduct had been going on for at least the last five years. I was livid furious actually, she told the outlet of the moment the graphic cake arrived at the office. All these cities are on fire for the Black Lives Matter movement, and here's my staff eating a black penis cake as a joke? That really pushed me over the edge. The probe was launched at the Macomb County Medical Examiners Office in May, resulting in the firing of three female employees with a fourth currently under investigation In her complaint to the EEOC, the worker said the office culture is tainted with racism toward people of color. This was not only ignored by managing personnel, but participated in by the supervising staff. Three female morgue workers were fired as part of the investigation last week. A fourth member of staff is currently under investigation, Macomb Countys Director of Human Resources, Andrew McKinnon said. We dont want anyone working in a place thats unwelcoming, unsafe and not inclusive, McKinnon added. Were supposed to set an example. When we hear these types of allegations, we take them seriously and we take quick action. McKinnon said that the three terminated employees were let go for being part of a sexual discriminatory workplace, not for racism, and that investigators have not been able to substantiate any allegations involving racism. In addition to the genital cake, the three workers were found to have selected images of penises as their screen savers, in addition to drawing them on sticky notes and printing them at work. Contrary to McKinnons claims, the death investigator says she witnessed numerous instances of blatant and over racist communications among a supervisor and other employees who are said to be part of the same workplace clique. The worker says she has overheard multiple racists and insensitive comments from staff when dealing with African American families who have come to the morgue to inquire about their loved ones. Three female morgue workers were fired as part of the investigation last week. A fourth member of staff is currently under investigation, Macomb Countys Director of Human Resources, Andrew McKinnon (above) said One of the questions she says she regularly heard when dealing with upset family members was Are they a black family? In one cited incident, the worker said the decomposed body of an African-American male had arrived at the morgue to be identified by his parents. However, the grieving family members had difficulty identifying the remains and were unsure it was their son. The death investigator recalled one of the morgue workers telling her: Show them a picture of his penis. Maybe they'll recognize him by that. In a second purported incident of apparent racism, a distraught family had been inside the morgue and damaged some doors in an unspecified act of emotion. When the death investigator called a supervisor to report the incident, the supervisor allegedly later called back and said, Are they black? ... They can break the doors and nothing will happen to them with everything going on, because they are black. They'll just say they were upset, according to the complaint. The death investigator said she was often given the responsibility of identifying the remains of African Americans whose families were considered hostile or difficult by other members of her team. When the families of the deceased would show up at the morgue, she claims she was told to Go deal with your people. The death investigator called the purported conduct and statements offensive and appalling in her complaint. She also said she was forced to work in a hostile environment where sex is often joked about, particularly where male genitalia is concerned. She says her colleagues had penis screen savers and often printed images of naked men to display them on their desks, along with penis-shaped confetti which was also scattered across counters and on the floor. The death investigator says she wasnt the first to complain, however nothing was ever done previously. One worker even filed a sexual harassment complaint against the Macomb County Morgue with the EEOC in 2016, making a similar allegation of a hostile workplace. That employee was fired after making the complaint, which is still pending. I have witnessed prior employees resign due to constant bullying and ridicule for 'not being onboard' with the office culture, the most recent complaint states. Within the past two years, the hostile work environment has progressively worsened and the harassment has amplified. One employee brought a cake to the office that was decorated with a black penis on May 26, the day after the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police The complainant says she could stand to allow the behavior to go unchecked no longer on May 26, the day after George Floyd died gasping for breath under the knee of Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin. On that date, the complainant says a staff member, who was not on duty, came into the officer to bring in a medium-sized cake decorated with a black penis. The cake was taken into the conference area, which also served as the office lunch room, where it was shared by morgue workers and supervisors, according to the complaint. The following day, the death investigator inquired to a supervisor as to why the offensive phallic cake was permitted but received no response. The following day, she says she was approached by the worker who made the cake and was asked, Did you try my cake? the Free Press reported. The investigator responded no, then asked if she herself had frosted the cake with a black penis. She began to laugh and stated, Yes, I did, the complaint says. Late the same day, the investigator was in the conference room when she noticed the cake was still on the counter, covered by a brown paper towel. The county and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission are still investigating the complaint She said she heard a secretary ask a supervisor about the cake: Is that really a black penis cake in the conference room?... That is not funny. The investigator said a number of others complained, however nothing was done. Instead she claimed more sexual images cropped up around the office, including a photo of a mans groin in a tight bathing suit and a balloon with a penis hand-drawn onto it. She further claims that in the past, anyone complaining about the unprofessional decorum was either viciously harassed or bullied into resigning. I have witnessed co-workers crying at their desks, crying in the parking lot, and crying in the bathroom of the building, the complaint states. Before making the complaint, the investigator said she tried to limit her exposure to the apparent hostility and harassment by switching to the night shift and moving desk. She told the Free Press she felt compelled to come forward because the behavior had become so egregious, so out of line and so brazenly conducted on a daily basis and nobody cared. The county and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission are still investigating the complaint. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 00:09:24|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TIRANA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The special court for corruption and organized crime (GJKKO) in Albania has accepted here on Tuesday the request of Special Structure of Anti-Corruption and Organized Crime (SPAK) to seize some 26 assets owned by TV station owner Ylli Ndroqi, who is suspected of being involved in criminal activities. According to an official press release from SPAK, Ndroqi (known as Xhemail Pasmaciu), owner of Albanian Ora News TV Station is suspected of involvement in drug trafficking and criminal organization. Properties and assets of Ndroqi and his family, SPAK declared, have an unjustified economic level, thus suspected they have been obtained as a result of his criminal activities in Albania, Turkey and Italy. The investigation was conducted in cooperation with General Directory of Albanian State Police and Interpol, SPAK said. As a result, SPAK has asked GJKKO to issue an order for the sequestration of 26 assets of Ndroqi, including land, vehicles, properties, shares in various companies. The companies where he was shareholder or owner will continue their economic activities, including Ora News TV station, but they will be administered by the agency for administration of sequestrated assets, read the press release. Meanwhile, in a statement for the local media, Ndroqi's lawyer declared that they will appeal against the decision of the court. According to his lawyer, the property and assets owned by Ndroqi are from legal sources and Ndroqi believes that this is a political attack against him. Enditem Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tri Indah Oktavianti (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 16:35 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b352f5 1 National COVID-19,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,women-rights,activist,sexual-violence,domestic-violence,domestic-abuse,RUU-PKS,domestic-worker,domestic-workers,domestic-workers-protection-bill Free The ongoing COVID-19 outbreak in Indonesia continues to disproportionately affect women, exacerbating gender inequalities that were already present in the country, womens rights activists say. The 40 organizations that belong to the Womens Awakening Alliance have gathered data on womens experiences nationwide and have found that the health crisis has intensified existing social and economic inequalities between men and women. The pandemic has exposed the fault lines on womens issues in a myriad of ways, Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) chairwoman Asfinawati said in a webinar on Sunday. Health care was one of these fault lines. Lusi Peilouw, an activist from Ambon, Maluku, said that some pregnant women had to pay more for maternal health care because hospitals required patients to undergo COVID-19 swab and rapid tests. Some women were even denied labor and delivery services by the hospital because their rapid test results came back positive, she added. The governments response to the pandemic has also brought unintended consequences for women. As large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) forced people to stay at home, some women found themselves trapped with abusive partners. The Jakarta chapter of the Legal Aid Foundation of the Indonesian Womens Association for Justice (LBH APIK Jakarta) alone received 366 reports of domestic violence between March 16 and June 30, an average of 110 reports a month. Read also: House in hot water as critics demand resumption of pro-women bills Some abusers are able to go free because the regional administration ended their imprisonment because of a lack of testing facilities, North Sulawesi activist Lily Djenaan said. As women face increased adversity during the pandemic, lawmakers have put womens issues on the back burner, stalling two long-awaited pieces of legislation: the sexual violence prevention bill and the domestic worker protection bill. The sexual violence prevention bill, first proposed in 2016, was removed from this years National Legislation Program (Prolegnas) priority list in July. Lawmakers called deliberation of the bill too complicated. Even before the pandemic, violence against women was rampant, Womens Institute (Institut Perempuan) founder Valentina Sagal said. The state should have prioritized the bill, especially during this pandemic. We need to have laws that show the governments presence in protecting the victims. The domestic worker protection bill, which has been under deliberation for even longer (16 years), remains stuck in the House of Representatives Legislative Body (Baleg). The country does not use a gender-responsive perspective to address the COVID-19 pandemic. Thats one problem among many others in this countrys COVID-19 response, Asfinawati said. Valentina echoed Asfinawatis sentiment. The state needs to include women in its handling of the COVID-19 crisis. Otherwise, the governments rhetoric of protecting the country will end up neglecting women, she said. The country is left to wonder, as the year begins, if the Government of the day and particul As a leader in workforce development in the Twin Cities, Summit Academy trains nearly 1,000 adults each year with marketable skills in healthcare, construction trades and information technology (IT), alongside a 10-week GED program. Students attend without paying any out-of-pocket tuition or student loans, and the NSIC will be a training center specifically for careers in IT and new technologies. "We've invested in North Minneapolis to support a strong quality of life for families in the neighborhood, and the Regional Acceleration Center is an important part of that investment," said Brian Cornell, Chairman and CEO of Target. "With its expertise in helping Black families and other residents overcome social and racial inequities, Summit Academy is an excellent community resource. We're proud to welcome them to the RAC and to work together to advance racial equity in our hometown." The NSIC will serve as a cornerstone of the Northside STEM District, which Summit Academy and other Northside organizations created, offering early learning and after-school programming. The Northside STEM District provides access to equipment and STEM experiences, in addition to increasing job opportunities and business connections for Black STEM professionals. "The North Star Innovation Center will be an inspiring and transformative place where Black men and women will build new opportunities for themselves and their families," said Summit Academy OIC's President & CEO Louis King. "Alongside Target and the Northside community, we're taking action against racial inequity. Thousands will have their lives changed at the North Star Innovation Center, as it's a tangible, real, concrete way for us to create a better future, where people of all races can do something to help themselves and to help others. This space will be a place where people demonstrate that the best social service program is a job." This partnership is the latest step in Target's longstanding commitment to its hometown and communities nationwide to address systemic issues. Target recently announced $10 million to advance social justice and support recovery efforts, and also pledged 10,000 hours of pro-bono consulting services for Black-, Indigenous- and people-of-color-owned small businesses in the Twin Cities to help them rebuild. In North Minneapolis specifically, Target has invested more than $11 million over the last decade, working with nearly 20 partners such as the Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ), Northside Economic Opportunity Network (NEON) and Metropolitan Economic Development Association (Meda) that work to create opportunities for the community and increase its economic vitality. The RAC is located at Penn and Plymouth in North Minneapolis and the NSIC will be open for Summit Academy's February enrollment. Interested individuals can apply here: https://www.saoic.org/ About Target Minneapolis-based Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) serves guests at nearly 1,900 stores and at Target.com. Since 1946, Target has given 5% of its profit to communities, which today equals millions of dollars a week. For the latest store count or for more information, visit Target.com/Pressroom . For a behind-the-scenes look at Target, visit Target.com/abullseyeview or follow @TargetNews on Twitter. To learn more about Target's commitment to racial equity and social justice, visit https://corporate.target.com/about/purpose-history/our-commitments/racial-equity-and-social-justice. About Summit Academy IOC Summit Academy OIC in North Minneapolis is a leader in workforce development in the Twin Cities, training nearly 1,000 adults each year with marketable skills in healthcare, construction trades and information technology (IT), alongside a 10-week GED program. Academy students attend without paying any out-of-pocket tuition or student loans and participate in 20-week training programs that prepare them for the workforce. To learn more about Summit Academy IOC's work in the community, visit https://www.saoic.org/. SOURCE Target Corporation While its Big Tech rivals were testifying in front of a congressional antitrust committee last week, Microsoft was negotiating what could be the largest and most politically perilous tech acquisition of 2020. The state of play: The hullabaloo surrounding Microsoft picking up TikTok has undergone a flurry of twists and turns over the weekend, as both the White House and the tech giant reacted in real time. Here's what happened: Reports emerged that Microsoft was in talks to buy the U.S. operations of TikTok from ByteDance, possibly with ByteDance retaining a minority stake. President Trump said he planned to ban TikTok for (still unspecified) national security concerns. We reported Saturday morning that Trump had a proposal "on his desk" whereby Microsoft would buy 100% of TikTok U.S. White House sources said internal factions were still battling out what Trump should do. Trump and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella spoke yesterday, following which Microsoft issued a fairly detailed statement of the deal parameters. Trump himself hasn't yet commented (that could change any moment), but Reuters reports that he's given ByteDance 45 days to strike a formal agreement. Before continuing: Yes, it is abnormal for a U.S. president to dictate the timeline (and maybe terms) of a U.S. company-led acquisition. It also remains unclear what mechanism Trump planned to use to block TikTok. This is not playing very well on Chinese social media, where ByteDance's CEO has been accused of betraying his country. Its less about this particular app and more about what this app can be used to leverage in the future, meaning new apps and possibly the collection of more sensitive data, a source familiar with the CFIUS process tells Axios' Ashley Gold. What comes next? Negotiation, and lots of it. Microsoft and ByteDance have not yet agreed on a price, per a source familiar with the situation. Microsoft said in its statement that its plans would be to own and operate TikTok in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Either that list will expand, or Microsoft and ByteDance will need to work out content sharing between the Microsoft-owned version of TikTok and whoever ends up owning the rest (particularly places like the U.K. and Japan). And obviously this would impact price. Microsoft will still need to prove to U.S. regulators (and to ByteDance) that it can basically reengineer the TikTok code, since the White House effectively wants new software in addition to a new mailing address. Microsoft also said it may invite other U.S. investors into the deal on a minority basis. Unclear if this would involve letting existing ByteDance backers like General Atlantic roll over their shares, but it does seem to indicate that Microsoft may plan to operate TikTok as an independent entity that can eventually go public on its own. A wildcard: Amazon. Ive got no intel that Amazon wants to buy TikTok, but Id be surprised if its not at least kicking the tires. Its the only other U.S. company with the cash, tech capacity, and lack of obvious antitrust issues that could get it done. Plus it has an obvious interest in social content, as evidenced by its Twitch purchase, and its involvement could help at least bid up the price for Microsoft. The bottom line: Microsofts market cap is up around $60 billion in early trading, which means it might have already paid off this deal. Go deeper: The owner of Mens Wearhouse and JoS. A. Bank, which once dominated the market for affordable mens suits, filed for bankruptcy protection late Sunday, as demand plummeted for its corporate clothing with the coronavirus pandemic keeping Americas office workers at home. The company, Tailored Brands, had about 1,400 stores and 18,000 employees. It had already announced plans in July to eliminate 20 percent of its corporate jobs and close up to 500 stores, and on Sunday said it planned to use the restructuring process to slash its debt by at least $630 million. Our enduring commitment to help customers look and feel their best will allow us to overcome the challenges of Covid-19, Dinesh Lathi, chief executive of Tailored Brands, said in a statement accompanying the filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. The apparel industry has been hit particularly hard by the pandemic, prompting bankruptcy filings from retailers like the Neiman Marcus Group, J. Crew and J.C. Penney. Lord & Taylor, once a major presence in Americas department stores, and its owner, Le Tote, filed for bankruptcy several hours before Tailored Brands on Sunday. The owner of Ann Taylor and Lane Bryant, Ascena Retail, which just a few years ago was one of the countrys largest retailers for affordable professional clothing for women, sought Chapter 11 protection on July 23. WATERLOO REGION An online fundraiser seeks to raise $15,000 for the Guatemalan family of a foreign farm worker found dead in a field on Erbs Road near St. Agatha. Luis Gabriel Cahuec Moran, 35, was a father of three from a small town in Guatemala the same town as the man who is accused of murdering him. Moran worked seasonally on Canadian farms to support his mother, wife and children. He has a daughter, 10, with kidney disease who needs medical care, says the organizer of the GoFundMe campaign. While working at a farm in B.C. Moran gave testimony to a government commission on wages for temporary migrant workers. He later relocated to seasonal work in Ontario. In Guatemala, Moran joined the volunteer fire brigade to serve his community, the fundraiser says. Financial support raised online is to be provided to his wife, to help care for their children and the victims mother, the organizer says. Cahuec Moran was killed July 29. Alex Lopez Noriega, also a migrant farm worker, is charged with first-degree murder. The men knew each other. As businesses continue to re-open, Express Employment Professionals is putting job seekers to work with its third annual interviewing event on Aug. 6National Interview Day. National Interview Day was first created by the staffing company and celebrated in 2018 as a new way to recruit and educate job seekers in a historically tight labor market. With temporary business closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic starting in March, Express is stepping up, now more than ever, to provide hope through employment. Participants are encouraged to visit ExpressPros.com/InterviewDay before Aug. 6 and complete an application to expedite the interview process. Applicants will then be contacted for interviews, possibly before Aug. 6, based on the type of work they are seeking, and as always with Express, will never be charged a fee. Hiring is ramping up across the country, and Express offices are doing everything they can to help rebuild the workforce, said Bill Stoller, Express CEO. We are excited to safely interview interested job seekers this National Interview Day in what has become the employment event of the year. To prepare for National Interview Day, job seekers should visit ExpressPros.com/GetAhead for free resources on everything from resume writing and interview tips to getting ahead in the job search. The Get Ahead: Ask a Recruiter Series features several Express experts sharing their first-hand knowledge of the hiring process and answering real questions from candidates. The page also contains helpful articles from the Express Job Journey blog about what a staffing company can do for you during a pandemic, phone interview tips and how to be productive while working from home. And for those just entering or soon to join the workforce, Express popular video-based series Job Genius is the perfect resource on which industries are hiring, career pathing, the importance of soft skills and more. Opportunities are available to get back to work, and our recruiters are ready with a variety of positions, Stoller said. No matter the circumstances, Express continues to strive toward putting a million people to work annually! If you would like to arrange for an interview with Bill Stoller to discuss this topic, please contact Sheena Karami, Director of Corporate Communications and PR, at (405) 717-5966. About Bill Stoller William H. "Bill" Stoller is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment Professionals. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, the international staffing company has more than 825 franchises in the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Since its inception, Express has put more than 8 million people to work worldwide. About Express Employment Professionals At Express Employment Professionals, were in the business of people. From job seekers to client companies, Express helps people thrive and businesses grow. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK, our international network of franchises offer localized staffing solutions to the communities they serve, employing 552,000 people across North America in 2019. For more information, visit http://www.ExpressPros.com. The computer mouse has been around, contributing to the growth and evolution of technology since the 1970s. Different variations and fuctionalities are made possible through this invention and it wouldn't have been possible without Bill English. Who is Bill English? William "Bill" English, aged 91, who worked behind-the-scenes on the invention of the computer mouse alongside Douglas Englebart, recently passed away last July 26, 2020 due to respiratory failure. Modern wired computer mouse wouldn't be the same without English and Englebart's design and co-invention, as Bill English took Englebart's concept and worked alongside him in the Stanford Research Institute in California. The pair built and brought to life what is known to be the first computer mouse in 1968. English also worked with Englebart in the conceptualization of 1968's "Mother of All Demos". A concept that many consider to be the framework for the modern marvels of technology such as the video call, online text editing, graphical user interface, and hypertext links. Of course, the most notable invention that the duo did is the concept and prototype of the modern computer, the one which utilizes the use of a computer mouse for navigation and selection throughout the interface. Stemming from its early days to the modern times, how has the computer mice evolved? Check out the list below. Evolution of the Mice through the Years First Patent Wooden mouse invention This wood encased mouse was first conceptualized by Douglas Englebart on 1964 and later on picked up by BIll English and the two worked together to an actual prototype. This is the first patented computer mouse with one key and very limited functionality. Ball Mouse Eight years after the first mouse was made by the duo, Bill English developed the ball mouse in 1972. This version of the computer mouse is what paved way for the idea of a modern, multi-directional mouse. An encased ball can be found in the body of the mouse that controls the movement in the interface. This mouse tends to pick-up dirt and lose its accuracy. Optical Mouse Steve Kirsch invented an optical mouse in 1981, converting from the traditional ball mechanism to an optic LED light, having the mouse follow the light as its movement or direction. This requires a mousepad to operate. Microsoft developed their own optic mouse in 1999 which does not require the need for a mouse pad. Apple Mouse Apple contributed a lot to upgrading the computer mouse throughout the years. From their 1998 upgrade of the mouse from the traditional connection to USB for their iMacs. Apple's other variations hid the traditional clickers, usually found in the face of the mouse, to the sides of the mouse in the year 2000. ALSO READ: Logitech Unveils G900 Chaos Spectrum Wireless Gaming Mouse Cordless Mouse The final and the common 21st century mouse invention is the introduction of the Cordless or Wireless mouse in 2001, known as the MouseMan. This paved the way for technological improvements later in the following years as 2008 introduced the wireless USB mouse that are marketed for the laptop or notebook, which was famous during the era. Computer mouse technology have evolved a whole lot, varying from the single key, single direction era, to the mechanical ball design which were used for a long time, even having met the generations of the development of the computer PC and different operating systems, down to the optical LED light mouse. Now, the public is given with the comfort of having cheap and reliable wireless computer mouse that can be used for different functionalities, depending on the needs and usage. ALSO READ: What Your Gaming PC Set Lacks: Best Mouse Pads on Amazon 2020 Watch the "Mother of All Demos" below: This article is owned by Tech Times Written by Isaiah Alonzo 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Raising the issue of actor Sushant Singh Rajputs death in Bihar Legislative Assembly on Monday, BJP MLA Niraj Kumar Singh, a relative of the deceased actor, demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav also supported his demand. Meanwhile, MLC Nutan Singh, wife of Niraj Kumar Singh, also raised the same demand in the Legislative Council. Singh had earlier said that the Maharashtra Police are just doing formality in the case of Rajputs death. An FIR has been registered in Patna, based on a complaint filed by Rajputs father KK Singh, against actor Rhea Chakraborty under several sections including abetment to suicide. A team of Bihar Police is in Mumbai to probe the matter. However, the Patna Superintendent of Police (SP) Vinay Tiwari, who is heading a police team from Patna in the case, was quarantined under what the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said was state government guidelines to prevent Covid-19 spread. Earlier today, Bihar Minister Sanjay Jha termed the forced quarantine of Tiwari in Mumbai as shameful and absolutely wrong and added that the state government will look into the matter and take action in this regard. The decrease applies to current policyholders at renewal, as well as new and returning clients. The cut comes after State Farms announcement in May that it was working to reduce rates in every state by an average of 11%. Once implemented, customers of the countrys largest auto insurer could save a total of $2.2 billion. Current State Farm driving data and claims experience show a considerable decline in miles driven and fewer accidents, said Robert Stewart, the firms senior vice-president. As a result, were looking for ways to continue supporting our Ohio customers while we monitor and adjust to trends. Will others follow? State Farms move may prompt other state insurers to follow suit, said Dean Fadel, president of the Ohio Insurance Institute. State Farm is the market share leader in Ohio, and sometimes what the market share leader does affects what others may decide to do, he told The Times-Reporter. However, James Lynch, chief actuary of the Insurance Information Institute, explained to The Times-Reporter that some insurers in the state have already offered rate cuts. Different insurance companies are taking different approaches to this, he said. Some are handling this as time passes by extending credits. Some other companies have done what State Farm is doing. Among these companies is State Auto Financial, which started slashing premiums at renewal by 5% in April. As the driving public gets back behind the wheel, we plan to build additional benefit of the slowdown into future rates, on a state-by-state basis, and based on frequency and severity trends at the local level, the insurer said in a statement. To the extent that lower miles driven or claims volume persists, we will take that favorability into account in future renewal rates. Some of this favorability may be offset by higher repair costs driven by more high-speed crashes and higher auto repair shop costs. The Central Regional Command of the Ghana Police Service says it has begun investigations into the stabbing incident where two Nigerian groups clashed at a local pub in Kasoa resulting in the death of an individual. One other person is battling for his life after the clash. Although details of what resulted in the clash are sketchy, Citi News sources say the two groups were fighting over a woman which resulted in the death of Marvis Wisdom and another Nigerian only known as blackie by his peers. Speaking to Citi News Central Regional Police PRO, DSP Irene Oppong indicated that those involved in the crime will be dealt with according to the law. On August 1, 2020, the Budumburam Police station had a complaint from a lady that his 26-year-old brother Marvis Wisdom has been beaten by some individuals and has been rushed to the hospital but has passed on. Subsequently, one other guy who was only identified as blackie was also killed at Kasoa CP which is believed to be related to the death of Marvin Wisdom and that some sympathizers of Wisdom might have attacked blackie who they believe was part of the guys who beat Wisdom, DSP Irene Oppong said. According to the Police, all perpetrators linked to the crime will be arrested and dealt with according to the law. Currently the case is under investigation and the perpetrators of the crime will be brought to book, DSP Irene Oppong said. ---citinewsroom MSNBCs PoliticsNation with Al Sharpton 07/25/2020 5:02 PM ET AL SHARPTON: Of course, the nations cities also continue to grapple with another threat worsened by this White House. As domestic cases of coronavirus topped 4 million this week with deaths nearing 200,000. The contrast is stark as ever between the administrations response to the virus where federal action has been undermined by Trump himself, and the national response largely left to the states. And the Presidents war on cities where mayors call for local control are being shouted down in the name of law and order. Joining me now, the Mayor of Seattle Jenny Durkan, who has warned the President to stay out of her city. Madam Mayor, it seems contradictory that the President told the local authorities and state authorities to handle the coronavirus, but he wants to come in your local city and handle what he deems as out of control protesters, though weve not seen that and seems to have taken the exact opposite view when it comes to people that have exercised their free speech. MAYOR JENNY DURKAN (D-SEATTLE): Reverend Sharpton, youre exactly right, and I think this is a dangerous political trend for a president who is growing more desperate. America needed his help. We still need his help with the coronavirus, but at every juncture, he makes decisions to make it worse and to not give us what we need to fight this virus. At the same time when people protest in the streets, he is militarizing federal law enforcement and literally invading cities. That is not what we need in America. Were seeing the shredding of our democracy in front of our eyes. SHARPTON: Now youve threatened to go to court. What would be the basis of your court challenge? DURKAN: We have, and I spoke with the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security, who had assured me that they were not going to surge agents into Seattle, and that he would call my chief of police and myself if that changed. Right after that we learned they had placed more agents here. They promised us they will keep them on federal property, but weve seen what has happened in Portland. That is escalated things, so we are prepared if necessary with the City of Seattle and state law enforcement and the state government and the Attorney General, if we need to, we will go to court to make sure that they cannot usurp our powers of our police. SHARPTON: Weve seen people go through the streets of Charlottesville, for example, screaming Jews will not replace us and fighting those anti-confederate statue protesters and the president called them good people on both sides. What is the difference here? Weve not seen violence here. Weve seen for the most part all of the George Floyd protest nationwide for weeks now peaceful. So how do you call one group of people and equate them as good people with nonviolent protesters, even when he said that statement we had seen one man run a car in and kill a young lady, that was an anti-confederate stature protestor. Are we looking at just raw bigotry here or raw politics or a combination of both? DURKAN: I think we are seeing a president whos decided he wants to politicize these protests. He cant give in to demands. He wont admit the systemic racism of America. Instead he wants to create division, he wants to create a law-and-order platform. And if youve seen what hes done, he has escalated the violence in Portland. Portland protests had almost got to the point where they were less and starting to work on solutions. The same in Seattle. But the actions of this president has escalated violence. And thats what we fear here. We want to move forward to make the changes we need to make, not just in policing, but in all our systems of government, and to invest into black communities and communities of color. But the President has a different agenda in mind and I think its very dangerous. You know, the Department of Homeland Security was formed after 9/11 in order to protect Americans and this president is using it to fight Americans. I think that should frighten everyone. SHARPTON: Using it to fight Americans. I think thats well put. And to use them to fight Americans that are standing up for American principles, saying that we want to see equal rights, we want to see equal distribution of services. And that is something that America has always claimed, if it is not lived up to it, but claimed to stand for. Why would the Department of Homeland Security be trying to come in and stop that on anyway in the field of that, or incite that into an explosive situation, as we saw in Portland? Your fellow mayor in Portland was teargassed the other night at one of those demonstrations. Even though the demonstrators dont necessarily agree with the mayor, he came out and was teargassed as he stood with them. This is, would be considered outrageous if it was anywhere else in the world by the American public it would be considered outrageous. DURKAN: Youre so right. I was the former United States Attorney under President Obama. So I was the chief federal law enforcement officer. And what were seeing today is absolutely unprecedented for federal law enforcement. The full combat fatigues night after night using tear gas, arresting people, spiriting them into unmarked vans, that is not the work of a law enforcement thats trying to keep the public safe. Its the work trying to intimidate the public. And, as the President said before, dominate the streets. Thats un-American. We need to move beyond that. We do not want to see that in Seattle. Were hoping very much that it doesnt. Ive asked everybody this weekend to please protest peacefully so that we dont give them the excuse to act like they had in Portland, and that we can move beyond this period of time. Protests are critical to our country. The top of your hour seeing John Lewis lie in state should remind us all that we have so far to go. He will cross that bridge for the last time, but we as a country have yet to begin to cross that bridge. Thats where we should be focused. How do we make our country better, not how do we sow division. SHARPTON: And youre correct. The weekend that we start a series of remembering John Lewis, it reminds us of how far we are yet to go as he goes over that bridge tomorrow for the last time, a bridge still named after a Klansman. The rituals preceding Ram temple's 'bhoomi pujan', scheduled to take place on Wednesday (August 5), started in Ayodhya on Monday (August 3) with 'Gauri Ganesh' puja. The three-day rituals will culminate with the 'bhoomi pujan' that will be performed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday. It is to be noted that Ganesh puja is considered auspicious for all major occasions in the Hindu religion. The 'puja' started at 8.a.m with chanting of mantras by 11 priests while 'Ramayana path' were held in various other temples. The 'Gauri Ganesh' puja was done by priests from Kashi, Kanchi and Delhi. In a related development, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya has received invitiation from Shri Ram Janambhoomi Teeth Kshetra Trust general secretary Champat Rai to attend the 'bhoomi pujan' ceremony on Wednesday. Maurya was closely involved in Ram temple movement. Meanwhile, Northern Railways has announced that the first phase of the new modern railway station in Ayodhya will be completed by June 2021. It is to be noted that the station will be built on the theme of Ram temple and will be equipped with all modern facilities. Northern Railways General Manager Rajiv Chaudhary said that in the first phase, the work of platform number 1,2, the work of verandah, stairs and passage and the construction of the premises will be completed. Chaudhary said that the construction of this station was approved in 2017-18 and it will cost about Rs 104 crore to build it. He said that the work of the first phase of Ayodhya station will be completed by June 2021. Credit: CC0 Public Domain The COVID-19 pandemic has led to severe financial stress for both hospitals and physician practices, raising serious concerns that many may either close or be purchased by larger organizations. Such consolidation is well-recognized to lead to higher prices. Whether it will lead to better quality of care is less clear. A new study published in the August Issue of Health Affairs, based on the first comprehensive national survey of physician practices, hospitals and health systems, found that larger, more integrated systems do not generally deliver better quality. "We looked at a broad range of quality measures and compared independent hospitals and practices with those owned by different kinds of health systems," said Elliott Fisher, MD, MPH, lead author and professor of medicine and health policy at Dartmouth. "In no case was ownership by larger, more complex health systems associated with better quality." Another key finding from the study was the remarkable degree of variation in quality scores across hospitals and physician practices, regardless of whether they were independent or owned by larger systems. "This degree of variation points to tremendous opportunities to improve the quality of care in both hospitals and practices," said Stephen Shortell, Ph.D., Professor of the Graduate School, University of California, Berkeley. "We must continue to put in place the incentives and programs needed to drive improvement." The research team assessed the degree to which hospitals and physician practices under several different ownership structuresincluding financial independence and financial integration with larger health systemsadopted care delivery and payment reforms intended to improve quality. They analyzed data from the National Survey of Healthcare Organizations and Systems, which included responses from 2,190 physician practices and 739 hospitals that were collected between June 2017 and August 2018. The surveys included questions about care for complex, high-need patients; participation in quality-focused payment programs; screening for clinical conditions and social needs; and use of registries and evidence-based guidelines. "The policy implications of this research are clear," said Carrie Colla, Ph.D., professor of health policy and clinical practice at Dartmouth, who worked as a policy advisor in Congress during a recent sabbatical. "With COVID-19 wreaking financial havoc on smaller healthcare organizations, policy makersboth at the federal and state levelsshould ensure that purchases of practices and hospitals adhere to current antitrust law. They should also consider financial support for those most threatened by the pandemic." Explore further Study examines prevalence of screening for social needs The pandemic continues to eat away at the nation's small businesses, and dozens of current and former CEOs are calling on Congress to do more to address it. In a letter published Monday and addressed to congressional leaders, a group of more than 100 high power executives emphasized the importance of small businesses in America. They also warned the House and Senate about the potential for a more disastrous economic fallout ahead if more relief isn't provided to small businesses. "We cannot stress enough the urgent need to act," the letter said. "By Labor Day, we foresee a wave of permanent closures if the right steps are not taken soon. Allowing small businesses to fail will turn temporary job losses into permanent ones." The business leaders said that by year-end, the domino effect on goods and services in the country "could be catastrophic." The letter was signed by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon and Dunkin' Brands CEO David Hoffmann. Leaders from Facebook, Costco, American Express and dozens of others joined in. Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz spearheaded the initiative. Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz. Facebook status: Ad boycott didn't dent tech titan's revenue growth amid pandemic Relief: DoorDash to match loans to Black-owned businesses It comes almost 6 months after the pandemic began rattling American companies after officials called for widespread lockdown orders across much of the country. As states have moved toward reopening in recent months, larger firms with cash to burn and more resources have had an easier time adjusting to the new normal. A long list of executives is warning Congress of "catastrophic" consequences for small businesses without more relief during the pandemic. Meanwhile, many small businesses have cratered due in part to rocky relief from the government's Paycheck Protection Program. The forgivable loans program was initially met with criticism over its delayed rollout and questionable terms before the Trump administration sent out a second round and extended the application deadline to August 8. Story continues Small business fallout: 60% of restaurants that closed due to pandemic won't reopen The business leaders that signed the letter to Congress are pushing for another round of PPP coronavirus aid for small businesses. They're also requesting additional help for the hardest-hit sectors. "To survive until a vaccine is widely available, millions of small businesses will require longer-term support from the federal government," the letter said. Follow Dalvin Brown on Twitter: @Dalvin_Brown. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: More than 100 CEOs to Congress: Do more to save small businesses The former Commons aide who accused a senior Tory MP of sexual assault has said she is 'devastated' he has not been suspended from the party. Chief Whip Mark Spencer is under mounting pressure to strip the ex-minister of the Conservative whip following his arrest on suspicion of rape. But last night it was confirmed the accused MP's position in the party would only be reviewed after Scotland Yard completes its police investigation. The alleged victim hit out at the party for not taking swift action and told The Times: 'It's insulting and shows they never cared.' A former parliamentary researcher in her twenties, she claims the ex-minister assaulted her and forced her to have sex. Last night it was confirmed the accused MP's position in the party would only be reviewed after Scotland Yard completes its police investigation (Houses of Parliament pictured) She also claims to have been left so traumatised by their relationship last year that she ended up in hospital. Her calls last night for the MP, who cannot be named, to be suspended from the party was echoed from figures on all sides of the political divide. Women within the Tory ranks are demanding the Party to take action after a former Conservative MP was last week convicted of sexual assault. An ex-Tory minister told the Daily Telegraph: 'I'm surprised the whip hasn't been removed considering what happened to Charlie Elphicke. I think the chief has a lot to answer for.' In a statement issued by his local association, its chairman said the MP disputed the allegations. The chairman of the association, who the Daily Mail has chosen not to name, said: '[The MP] has made us aware of allegations made against him. 'He denies these totally. And this association give him our 100 per cent support. 'Some of the officers of this association have known him for around 25 years and from our knowledge of him in a political and personal capacity we can't accept that there is any truth whatsoever in these accusations.' There was no sign yesterday of the MP at his home, where he was arrested on Saturday. Chief Whip Mark Spencer (pictured) is under mounting pressure to strip the ex-minister of the Conservative whip following his arrest on suspicion of rape The blinds were drawn at the detached property. Neighbours said he wasn't seen at the house often but would campaign in the area around the time of general elections. The Metropolitan Police said it had received allegations on Friday of sexual offences and assault relating to four separate incidents at addresses in London, including in Westminster, between July last year and January this year. A spokesman said: 'The Met has launched an investigation into the allegations.' A man in his 50s was arrested on suspicion of rape and was taken into custody at an east London police station, the force added. He was later released on bail to a date in mid-August. A spokesman for the Tory whips office said: 'These are serious allegations and it is right that they are investigated fully. The whip has not been suspended. This decision will be reviewed once the police investigation has been concluded.' In contrast, former Tory MP Charlie Elphicke had the whip removed when he was accused of sex offences by two women in 2017. He was convicted last week. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said he did not know the name of the MP involved, but added that he was 'confident' the party was taking the matter seriously. Case has echoes of Pestminster scandal that cost minister his job The arrest of a Tory MP over rape claims is the latest example of the culture of sexual exploitation at Westminster. It comes just days after former Tory MP Charlie Elphicke was convicted of sexually assaulting two women one of whom was a parliamentary worker. And it follows on from the 'Pestminster' scandal in 2017 which engulfed both Labour and the Tories and ended with Sir Michael Fallon resigning from his Cabinet role. Yesterday, MPs said there was still a toxic culture in Westminster. Chairman of the women and equalities select committee Caroline Nokes told Times Radio: 'It's a toxic atmosphere where you have very young people working in Parliament and those with power are a great deal older than them.' She added: 'I think it's really important that we change the culture.' Shadow minister for domestic violence Jess Phillips told Times Radio that the Me Too movement had shown that there was 'widespread sexual harassment across many institutions and Westminster is no different'. The Pestminster scandal unfolded with the circulation of a redacted list of Tory MPs reportedly acting inappropriately. Sir Michael resigned as defence secretary and former Labour MP Kelvin Hopkins was suspended over sexual misconduct allegations. Former first secretary of state Damian Green was sacked after porn allegations. Advertisement 'I've read the accusations in the newspapers this morning but I don't know more than you do in that respect,' the Cabinet minister told Times Radio. 'These are very serious allegations and they should be investigated. They're in the hands of the police, so I don't think I can comment any more than that. Asked whether he personally wanted to see the Tory whip removed from the MP under police investigation, Mr Jenrick said: 'We need to take allegations of this nature very seriously and I'm confident that the party is, and will do.' Labour said it was shocking that the MP in the new case had been allowed to stay in the party and said he would have been suspended in any other profession. Shadow safeguarding minister Jess Phillips has criticised the Tories for failing to suspend the whip from the MP in question, a move that would effectively eject him from the party. Speaking to Times Radio, the Labour MP said: 'It is very difficult to comment on the case itself, because it is quite rightly in front of the criminal justice system. 'But what I would say in this matter, is in any organisation - especially one like Members of Parliament who every day work with vulnerable people, young activists, members of staff - in any other organisation, were this police investigation to be going on, somebody would be suspended while the investigation was taking place.' Calling the lack of action 'shocking', Ms Phillips said it sent a 'terrible message' that senior figures were still able to secure 'protection' from their Westminster status. She added: 'While pending a police investigation for a sexual crime, I think it is only right that the whip is withdrawn.' Layla Moran, Liberal Democrat leadership candidate, said the MP should be suspended. 'Given the seriousness of these allegations and that suspension in a workplace or anywhere else is actually a neutral act it's a thing that you do in order to set off an investigation of your own, and allow other investigations to complete I would urge them to think again on that decision,' she said. A spokesman for Chief Whip Mr Spencer said: 'The Chief Whip takes all allegations of harassment and abuse extremely seriously and has strongly encouraged anybody who has approached him to contact the appropriate authorities, including Parliament's Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme, which can formally carry out independent and confidential investigations.' A Conservative Party spokesman said: 'We take all allegations of this nature extremely seriously. As this matter is now in the hands of the police it would be inappropriate to comment further.' Mazda North America Reports July 2020 Sales Results IRVINE, Calif. (Aug. 3, 2020) Mazda North American Operations (MNAO) today reported total July sales of 24,085 vehicles, an increase of 3.4 percent compared to July 2019. Year-to-date sales totaled 152,954 vehicles, a decrease of 5.5 percent compared to the same time last year. With 26 selling days in July, compared to 25 the year prior, the company posted a decrease of .6 percent on a Daily Selling Rate (DSR) basis. Sales Highlights Sales of the CX-30 reached an all-time high since the vehicle launched in November 2019, with 3,787 vehicles sold. The CX-9 saw its best July since 2011with 2,335 vehicles sold, an increase of 9.4 percent compared to July 2019. CPO sales totaled 6,910 vehicles in July, an increase of 25 percent compared to July 2019, and achieved a second-best all-time record. Mazda Motor de Mexico (MMdM) reported July sales of 2,524 vehicles, a decrease of 47.7 percent compared to July last year. Year-to-date sales decreased 30.3 percent, with 23,823 vehicles sold. Mazda North American Operations is headquartered in Irvine, California, and oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States and Mexico through approximately 620 dealers. Operations in Mexico are managed by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City. Afghan Prison Attack Leaves Several Dead, Dozens Injured August 02, 2020 An attack on a prison in Afghanistan has left several people dead and dozens wounded as violence continues unabated in the war-torn nation. Assailants on August 2 set off a car bomb outside a prison in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar and then proceeded to storm it, officials said. The gunmen exchanged fire as they entered the prison and a number of nearby buildings in the provincial capital, Jalalabad. At least three people were killed and 24 wounded, according to the AP. Some prisoners may have escaped. The fighting is ongoing, so the number of casualties could increase, officials said. The Taliban and the local affiliate of the Islamic State group are active in eastern Afghanistan. The Taliban denied responsibility. The attack occurred one day after Afghan special forces announced they had killed the intelligence chief of the Islamic State's Afghan headquarters in Jalalabad. It also comes during a mutually agreed three-day cease-fire between the Taliban and the Afghan government to mark the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha that began on July 31. The Taliban and the Afghan government have been unable to make progress on issues including prisoner releases since the United States reached an agreement with the Taliban in February that was seen as a first step toward an intra-Afghan deal. Under the U.S.-Taliban deal, Kabul was to release up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners in exchange for the militants freeing 1,000 government and military personnel. Reporting by dpa and AP Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/afghan-prison- attack-leaves-several-dead- dozens-injured/30762659.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 BY Padmavati, one of Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappas daughters, has tested positive for the coronavirus disease, a day after the senior BJP leader said he has contracted Covid-19. Yediyurappas daughter has been admitted to Manipal Hospital in the state capital of Bengaluru. The Bharatiya Janata Party leader is also in the same hospital. Padmavati in the hospital suite next to that of her fathers and is monitoring his treatment. The 77-year-old Yediyurappa had said on Twitter that he had tested positive for the viral disease. I have tested positive for coronavirus. Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self-quarantine, Yediyurappa tweeted. Manipal Hospital, according to ANI, said on Monday that Yediyurappa is stable and being monitored closely by doctors. Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa has been admitted to the hospital for observation. He is doing well, is clinically stable and will be monitored closely by our team, the Manipal Hospital said. Yediyurappa is the second chief minister in India to be infected by Sars-Cov-2, which causes the coronavirus disease. Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced on July 25 he had tested positive for Covid-19. Yediyurappas announcement on the social media platform also came hours after Union home minister Amit Shah said that he too had tested positive. Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit also tested positive on Sunday. Karnataka has reported 134,819 Covid-19 cases, including 74,590 active cases and 57,725 discharged patients. The state has also seen 2,496 deaths so far. Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami said on Monday that he is saddened by the three-language formula adopted by the central government in the recently-announced National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. We are saddened by the three-language formula introduced by the central government in National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Our state is already following two-language policy (of Tamil and English) for decades and there will be no changes in it, Palaniswami said after chairing a cabinet meeting in Chennai. I request Prime Minister to pay heed to the unanimous demand of the people of Tamil Nadu to reconsider the three language policy and allow states to make a decision as per their own policy, he further said. Palaniswamis statement comes in the backdrop of opposition to the NEP in Tamil Nadu on the grounds that the policy allegedly imposes Hindi and Sanskrit. The MK Stalin-led Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and many Opposition parties in Tamil Nadu have opposed the new education policy and want a review of the sweeping reforms it has proposed. Union education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank had said on Sunday that the Centre will not impose any language on any state through NEP. Nishank posted the clarification through a tweet in Tamil while replying to former Union minister from Tamil Nadu Pon Radhakrishnan. I once again like to insist that the Central government will not impose any language on any state, Nishank said. On Saturday, the DMK chief said the policy was an attempt at alleged imposition of Hindi and Sanskrit and vowed to fight against it by joining hands with like-minded political parties and chief ministers of other states. Puducherry chief minister V Narayanasamy has also termed the NEP as chaotic and said it has several unanswered questions. He claimed that the policy has no specific and clear direction on promoting employment and has also not clarified whether the financial responsibility to implement it would fall on the state governments. What is relevant for northern States cannot be taken as suitable for the southern states, Narayanasamy said. Charging the Centre with seeking to impose Sanskrit through NEP, he also said it was fomenting confusion. The family of a teenage boy who was stabbed in the chest in an attempted murder four years ago have said they feel a "sense of relief" that his attacker will have to serve the suspended six years of his sentence because of a series of violent incidents he committed while in prison. Father-of-one Michael Corbett (30), with an address in Raheny, had received a nine-year sentence with six years suspended for the attack on the 17-year-old at the Hellfire Club in the Dublin mountains on June 27, 2016 when he was before the courts in July 2018. The court heard Corbett had been suffering from paranoid schizophrenia at the time. His victim had received a four-inch stab wound to the chest while camping with friends. But last week Corbett was told the suspended section of that sentence was being reactivated after a series of violent incidents while in prison on other charges. Mr Justice Michael White said that a psychiatric report on Corbett showed that he is at risk of future violence. The court had previously heard that Corbett had assaulted other prisoners in Mountjoy Prison, including attacking one with a hot kettle. At the Central Criminal Court Mr Justice White activated the six-year suspended portion of the sentence, meaning Corbett will serve nine years starting from June 27, 2016, when he first went into custody in relation to the attempted murder. Abuse Mr Justice White said he had been given a comprehensive psychiatric report which detailed Corbett's substance abuse while in custody and his history of violence towards his carers and fellow inmates. Speaking after the six-year portion of the sentence was activated, the family of the teen who was stabbed said their main thoughts are with their son. "We are just happy that he is still alive," said his mother. "There is a sense of relief that he (Corbett) will remain in prison, not just so society will be safe, but we also hope that the time will be used by him and the prison system to get him any help he needs and try to rehabilitate him," she added. Mr Justice White said he was particularly concerned that the psychiatric report on Corbett stated he is at risk of not adhering to treatment for his psychotic illness when he is released. He said he had hoped to use the suspended sentence to manage Corbett's psychosis in a way that would be beneficial to him and to society. But, he said, that is no longer possible and he has "no choice but to activate the sentence of nine years for the attempted murder". Following the assault at the Hellfire Club, Corbett became an in-patient at the Central Mental Hospital. While there he attacked nurse Declan Curtin on October 6, 2016. Nurse Judge Melanie Greally at the Circuit Court imposed a five-year sentence on Corbett and suspended the final two-and-a-half years for 15 years on strict conditions. In July 2018, Corbett was released from the attempted murder sentence but he remained in custody for the assault on the nurse. He was due for release on that charge next month but at a previous hearing, counsel for the State Mr Fergal Foley BL detailed the acts of violence carried out by Corbett while in custody and asked for a psychiatric report to be furnished to the court. Dan Willkens has always made things. The 90-year-old Chevy Chase resident likes to create with his hands, likes to watch hard work lead to a finished product. Decades ago, in his career as a mechanical engineer in manufacturing, he used to say "you have to put something in the box." In his retirement he took up woodworking, making gifts for his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. It always felt good to produce something useful, something thoughtful, something sturdy. In late March, as the novel coronavirus pandemic took hold of the country and local hospitals faced a shortage of personal protective equipment, he saw an opportunity to make something new. Dan, who lives with his daughter Diane, announced the idea at the kitchen table one night. "They need masks," he said. "Why couldn't I make them?" Although Willkens had no experience with a machine, he had always been surrounded by sewing. His wife of 67 years, Marie, had been a home economics teacher and often made garments for their children. She died three years ago. "Right up until the end, she was sewing," Willkens said. Diane got him acquainted with a machine and together they looked up a guide to mask-making. Despite his inexperience, and his being left-handed on a standard machine, Willkens finished his first mask two days after his kitchen table announcement. By the end of the week he found a rhythm, looking comfortable with the machine and invigorated by his new hobby. Soon, it took over his days. He spent the entirety of this spring at the sewing machine, starting work after breakfast and going until dinner. Diane estimates her father spent the final months of his 89th year working 10 hours a day. "He loves to have a mission," she said. "He's very dedicated, he doesn't like to be idle and he thinks everyone needs to have a purpose." In that time, Willkens has more than 300 masks. Most of them have gone to Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, which has been accepting drop-off deliveries of PPE. Willkens said making those deliveries feels good but doesn't make his work special. It doesn't feel like an act of charity. It just feels right. "These masks for me were just putting something in the box," Willkens said. "I didn't want to sit around here doing nothing." Before long, summer had arrived and with it his 90th birthday. Originally he had planned to travel to Tennessee to see some of his 14 great-grandchildren. But as the national numbers of covid-19 cases and deaths continued to rise, he canceled those plans. "I sorely miss seeing those children," Willkens said. Thinking of ways to make the big day special, Diane remembered the drive-by birthday parades her neighbors held for their two young children. "We would just stand outside and watch and cry," she said. "They were so beautiful, it's a beautiful idea." Her friend posted on a local email list, asking for anybody who was free on July 25 and wanted to provide joy. They were to gather at a nearby community center and form a surprise birthday parade for Willkens. Diane also contacted the Montgomery County Police Department. Her daughter, Casey, got word to the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rescue Squad. On Saturday, all of Willkens's children were gathered wearing matching shirts that read "Aged to Perfection" with a picture of his face on it. They talked and celebrated, eventually shifting the gathering in the front lawn. Diane went to the community center to check on the parade. "I honestly thought they'd send one [police] car," Diane said. "They sent eight." The squad cars, lights flashing and sirens sounding, were joined by several rescue vehicles and more than 30 vehicles of friends, neighbors and strangers. Surrounded by his children, Willkens watched the parade go by, his arms waving and tears in his eyes. "It was unbelievable," Willkens said. "All of a sudden here comes this parade out of the clear blue sky. Just amazing." For a man who had spent the past four months trying to serve his community, the parade functioned both as a celebration and a thank you. To Diane, it confirmed her belief that "if you give joy, you get joy." To Willkens, it was simpler. "It means that people care," he said. "In spite of all the animosity and the things going on . . . people still care about people." I am dismayed by the ballot measures proposed for the fall election. On top of the states new corporate activity tax, Portlands extension of the 10-cents-a-gallon gas tax and the citys new high-earner income tax supporting the homeless, we now face a huge payroll tax from Metro for light rail, a big bill for work on Jefferson High School, a whopping new tax for Portland parks (including building new ones!) and another hit on Multnomah Countys high earners to fund preschools. All this without even addressing PERS, Oregons other pandemic. Without passing on the proposals merits, my alarm stems from the question: Why now? Do the people advocating these new taxes have any idea of the economic wreckage to come? The usual defense of new projects is that they create jobs. But for whom? With the prevailing wage clause in government contracts, we all know who will get the lions share of the proceeds. While theres usually a small set-aside for women and minorities, very little will go to those who need jobs the most. As The Oregonian/OregonLive has pointed out, our governor has not limited pay increases for state employees. Are state and local government officials living on a different planet? Perhaps the only recourse for the many of us with limited means and worse prospects ahead will be to make our stressful economic circumstances known at the polls. That would be very unlike Portland, but perhaps its time has come. Collier Brown, Portland The Republic's President, Michael D Higgins, said John Hume was someone who created 'a light of hope' in the 'most difficult of times'. Mr Higgins paid tribute to the legacy of the Derry politician who died earlier today at the age of 83. John Hume, through his words, his astute diplomacy and willingness to listen to what was often difficult to accept but was the view of the Other, transformed and remodelled politics in Ireland, and the search for peace, with a personal bravery and leadership, and with a steadfast informed by a steadfast belief in the principles and values of genuine democracy, he said. Johns deep commitment to these values and his practical demonstration of tolerance and social justice, oftentimes in the face of strong opposition and tangible threats to his person and his family, asserted the fundamental principles of democracy. He and those others who helped usher in a discourse that enabled a new era of civil rights and responsive government that few would have thought possible, have placed generations in their debt, have been a source of hope. Mr Higgins said the awarding of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize to John Hume brought great joy not only to his people in Derry, his colleagues in politics, particularly in the SDLP, but to a 'wider global set of colleagues and fellow advocates for peace abroad who held him in the greatest esteem and admiration'. Mar Uachtaran na hEireann, as President of Ireland, may I say how deeply grateful we all should be that we had such a person as John Hume to create a light of hope in the most difficult of times. It was Seamus Mallon, that other great statesman and courageous peace seeker and builder, who observed: Inside was a man who had something big to do. There is a greatness about his political life in what he did and what he helped to do. I would put him in the same breath as Parnell and Daniel O Connell. We are grieving in this difficult year 2020 for two great apostles and seekers of peace. Whatever the loss to all on this island, to his family his loss is greatest. To his wife Pat, his children, and all those who loved him, Sabina and I send our deepest sympathy. Siochan siorrai le a anam. On Monday's episode of Bachelor in Paradise, Ciarran Stott debuted his controversial new hairstyle. The British export opted for a number of braids, with his co-stars likening him to an 'American rapper'. The 26-year-old's hairstyle caused immense amusement in paradise, with Mary Viturino joking: 'But how is Ciarran's hair today? He looks like a white Snoop Dogg!' Woof! On Monday's episode of Bachelor in Paradise, Ciarran Stott (right) debuted his new hairstyle. The British export opted for a number of braids, with his co-stars likening him to an 'American rapper'. But some fans think he looked more like an Afghan Hound (left) Ciarran's ex girlfriend Renee Barrett chimed in sarcastically: 'He looks like a peanut.' Alisha Aitken-Radburn joked: 'So we've got Lil' Kim, we've got Lil' Bow Wow, we've got Lil' Wayne, now introducing Lil' Ciarran.' 'Lil' Ciarran dropping 'What's Hot In Paradise' - the hottest mix tape of BIP 2020!' she laughed. The 26-year-old's hairstyle caused amusement in paradise, with Mary Viturino joking: 'But how is Ciarran's hair today? He looks like a white Snoop Dogg!' Pictured with Kiki Morris Alisha Aitken-Radburn joked: 'So we've got Lil' Kim, we've got Lil' Bow Wow, we've got Lil' Wayne, now introducing Lil' Ciarran' She added: 'Lil' Ciarran dropping 'What's Hot In Paradise' - the hottest mix tape of BIP 2020!' And fans online were equally horrified by the hairdo, with one person comparing him to a long-haired dog. One fan Tweeted: OMG Ciarran's 'braids' are basically plaits that I'd do on an Afghan hound.' Another wrote: 'Can't take Ciarran seriously at the best of times, but especially not with those f**king braids dangling around his head'. Uncool? Many mocked the look, while others were concerned that the hairstyle was approaching cultural appropriation Someone else chimed in: 'Ciarran doesn't know about scalp sunburn when you've got braids in does he? Good'. Others were concerned that the hairstyle was approaching cultural appropriation. One person Tweeted: 'A white guy with braids being compared to black rappers is... not a good look for a show this white'. Another agreed: 'I'm too distracted by the audacity and the caucasity of Ciarran's braids'. A 36-year-old man has admitted stabbing a 'gifted' university student to death in a 'domestic incident'. Paul Crowther denied murder but pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter of 21-year-old Bethany Fields last September. Crowther, who appeared at Leeds Crown Court, spoke only to confirm his name and enter his pleas. He is accused of killing Bethany, an environmental geography student, in what police described as a 'domestic-related incident' in Huddersfield town centre. Jonathan Sharp, prosecuting, told the court he expected the Crown Prosecution Service to make a decision whether to accept Crowther's pleas within two weeks. Bethany Fields, 21, was killed in what police have described as a 'domestic-related incident' in Huddersfield last year A further court case has been scheduled for August 21 where Crowther will either stand trial or face sentencing. Mr Sharp said: 'This is a highly sensitive and emotional case. 'The Crown has received its second report and I ask for 14 days for the crown to make clear its position. 'At the moment, we have no intention to get any further reports.' Judge Tom Bayliss QC extended Crowther's custody and told him: 'You will be brought back before the court on August 21.' Bethany, from Leeds, West Yorkshire, was found seriously injured in Huddersfield, on September 12 last year. Emergency services rushed to the scene but she was tragically pronounced dead by paramedics. An inquest has heard she died after suffering numerous stab wounds. Bethany's relatives were in the public gallery during the brief hearing and told the judge they expected to be present when the case comes before the court again. Paul Crowther has denied murder but has pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter over the death A further court case has been scheduled for August 21 where Crowther will either stand trial or face sentencing In a statement released via the police after her death, her heartbroken family said: 'The life of Bethany, who was a beautiful, talented, ambitious, intelligent, kind, giving, and loving daughter, was tragically taken from her. 'A daughter, who any parent would have been proud of, much loved and respected by all; family, friends, work colleagues and fellow students. 'Bethany had a bright future ahead of her. 'She was studying Environmental Geography at university, travelling to Iceland to study the effects of glacial melts on the environment and to the Canary Islands to study volcanoes. 'She was musically gifted, starting on a music mentoring course and gradually during the holidays working at a studio. 'More recently, she worked with a charitable organisation for people with physical and learning difficulties. Through this, she brought much joy and pleasure into other people's lives. 'Bethany had a wonderfully pleasant nature, with a love of nature, plants and animals. 'She will be sadly missed, but never forgotten, forever in our hearts and thoughts.' ANN ARBOR, MI - University of Michigan students are being required to observe a 14-day period of enhanced social distancing at home before returning to campus for classes this fall, the university announced Monday. The letter to UM students on Aug. 3 states that, due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, returning students must monitor their health, reduce contact with others and follow guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, including: Taking their temperature two times a day and monitor for fever. Watching for cough, trouble breathing or additional COVID-19 symptoms. Staying home and avoiding contact with others outside their home -- including not going to work, school or social gatherings. Avoiding public transportation, taxis or ride-shares. Maintaining a physical distance from others (about six feet). Wearing a face covering when in public settings or while interacting with others outside of the home. Seeking medical attention if they develop a fever, other symptoms and/or test positive for COVID-19. Students moving into UM Housing, including residence halls and apartments, are expected to be tested for COVID-19 and cleared prior to their arrival in Ann Arbor, the university states. UM is partnering with Quest Diagnostics to provide testing kits, at no additional cost, directly to students to self-administer and mail back to Quest for analysis. Students who plan to live in on-campus housing will receive an email next week with additional information and instructions on testing. Students arriving from international locations will begin their 14-day period of enhanced social distancing when they arrive in their on- or off-campus residence. If a students arrival date overlaps with the start of classes, they are expected not to go to classes in person until the 14-day period is complete. New international students who plan to study in the United States for the fall term must choose some in-person or hybrid classes, and be enrolled full-time. They are not limited to a specific number of online credits, but their classes cannot be completely online, UM states. Most students will be able to choose whether to return to campus or remain at their permanent residence to study remotely, based on their choice of courses. Currently available data and registrations indicate approximately 70% of credits for undergraduates can be taken remotely this fall, while many hybrid courses also offer the option to attend remotely as well. Students who have already signed housing contracts will be allowed to cancel without penalty until Aug. 14, the university states. Students with housing contracts who study remotely in the fall semester can apply for housing in the winter semester if conditions allow, the university noted in amending its current rules. UM says its building a plan for evaluating students with suspected COVID-19 symptoms including testing when indicated, through University Health Services. The university will have support and space, both on and off campus, available for any student who develops symptoms or tests positive, and needs to quarantine or isolate safely. This includes meal delivery. The university is offering a combination of in-person, remote and hybrid classes this fall. In general, small classes will continue to meet in person, but larger lecture classes will be delivered remotely. UMs fall semester begins on Aug. 31, while move-in will take place starting Aug. 24. READ MORE: University of Michigan will offer in-person classes for fall semester 8 things to know about the University of Michigans plans for in-person classes in 2020-21 Investigation into former UM provost reveals long history of sexual misconduct Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 23:57:14|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close LONDON, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Calls for suspension of a lawmaker, who was accused of raping a young House of Commons (lower house of British Parliament) researcher, continued to grow in Britain, local media reported Monday. The name of the accused senior Conservative politician in his 50s is being kept secret while London's Metropolitan Police is conducting an investigation into the allegations. The alleged victim, who is in her 20s and worked as a parliamentary aide, made a formal complaint to police of rape and sexual assault at the end of last week. The lawmaker was taken into custody at a London police station on Saturday morning. He was accused of coercing the woman into having sex with him while they were in a relationship, and was later released on police bail until later this month. The ruling Conservative Party said it will not suspend the lawmaker while investigations are ongoing. Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Nadhim Zahawi, also Minister for Business and Industry, told the BBC Monday that Conservative Party's Chief Whip Mark Spencer will be waiting until the police have concluded their investigation to act. There were also calls on social media sites for the politician to be publicly named as well as suspended. The victim, who also cannot be named for legal reasons, told The Times newspaper Monday she was devastated that her alleged attacker was not suspended from the Conservative Party. The main opposition Labour Party said that it sent a terrible message that senior figures were able to secure protection through their Westminster status. Enditem A St. Catharines native and hip-hop artist is turning his music into a fundraiser for an organization that was there for him every step of the way while his mother battled bone cancer. Swish Styles, whose real name is R.J. Donaldson, with the help of his manager Will Dridge, is creating financial support for Hospice Niagara through a few channels. They are selling two T-Shirt designs out of The Jump Off on St. Paul Street in downtown St. Catharines for $30 apiece, with all proceeds going to Hospice Niagara. Swish and Dridge are also encouraging people to donate directly to Hospice Niagara, or to contact them through social media to co-ordinate a contribution. Money generated on streaming platforms for his track Hand Grenade, which is about the difficult time in his life, will be donated as well. Patricia Manuge Donaldson died at age 68 last June, six months after her diagnosis. The same week, Donaldson learned he was becoming a father. After his mothers death, he was left with the responsibility of making sure his grandmother could be looked after, because she was in poor health and Patricia was her primary caregiver. Hand Grenade, tells a story about everything he was dealing with at the time a flurry of emotions consisting of many highs and lows, he said in a recent interview. He wrote the song the week of his mothers funeral. It just came to me all at once everything that that was on my mind, how I was dealing with it, he said. Hospice Niagara was where Patricia spent her final two months and he is more than grateful for the care it provided. RELATED STORIES Niagara Region Hospice Niagara plans new music therapy program The highs came from knowing she was no longer suffering, and that Hospice Niagara was there for her until the end. The last few months she was struggling. She was a very good person and didnt deserve to go like that. Donaldson grew up in St. Catharines but now lives outside Toronto. The Jump Off is at 331 St. Paul St. Dear reader, what comes to your mind when you hear about the country Rwanda? Do you think about their recent economic growth and how the country is developing rapidly? Or Paul Kagame, their President comes to mind? For me and like many, anytime I hear about Rwanda it is an imagery of the gruesome massacre and the near apocalypse of innocent people who could have played several roles in building up Rwanda to match countries all over the world in terms of economic growth, infrastructural development and betterment of the entire African continent. This piece focuses on the Rwandan genocide which nearly wiped off an entire generation. This although difficult to deal with looking at how inhumane and appalling the situation was has become necessary for emotions and sentiments to be relegated to the background to address the issue as appropriate as my knowledge will permit. For clarity purposes sake, the writer is by no means trying to remind the good people of Rwanda and the rest of the world about this bizarre and most calamitous atrocity. Rwanda, a beautiful country known for its great valley and lakes shares its borders with Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. These countries have also seen some mayhems in the form of civil wars or political volatility which have put them in dark ages but their issues will be dealt with in a later piece. Rwanda freed itself from the shackles and chains of colonialism from Belgium when it gained its independence on 1st July 1962. The ordinary and reasonable man would have thought this period was the appropriate time for Rwandans to be united and correct all anomalies inflicted upon them as a result of this distasteful and shameful regime of imperialism but this was not meant to be. As heterogeneous as most African countries are, Rwanda is no exception as the country is divided into two main ethnic groups. The Hutus being in the majority ethnic group with an estimated 85% of the population and 14% being Tutsis who form the minority. History has it that when the Belgians ruled these people, they pitched camps with the Tutsis thus elevating the Tutsis above the Hutus who were in the majority. The Hutus are said to believe that the Tutsis are strangers and therefore do not belong to the country. More so, before independence, the Tutsis occupied most of the vital positions in the country as Rwanda before its independence, practised the monarchical system of governance and these monarchs were mostly Tutsis. In 1959, about 20,000 Tutsis were killed by Hutu extremists and leading thousands of them to flee to Uganda and other neighbouring countries. These killings became rampant when Rwanda gained its independence in 1962. After president Gregoire Kayibanda; Rwandas first president after independence who was a Hutu won the direct election which resulted in a representative government dominated by majority Hutus, they the Hutus thought they had had their person being at the helm of the countrys affairs as President and as such could behave recklessly. From my point of view, this was a bright opportunity for the President to have stamped his authority to ensure matters did not escalate but no, President Kayibanda danced to the barbaric tunes of his extremist Hutus resulting in the displacement and killing of many Tutsis. In 1973, the Tutsis will heave a sigh of relief as President Kayibandas government was toppled by Juvenal Habyarimana and his cohorts. With the seizure of power, many thought this was a perfect opportunity to see in action the Lex talionis. To wit, many expected Habyarimanas government to have ironed out their differences with the Hutus and see to it that the constant persecution of the Tutsis was brought to an end and also that all the Tutsis refugees in the neighbouring countries returned home but this was not the intention of the new government as the governments aim was intended at deepening the woes of the Tutsis. With the various host countries facing difficulties in harbouring these refugees coupled with the insatiable desire of the Tutsis to go back to their motherland, the situation became tough and complicated leading to the formation of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) a formidable force which later became the ruling party after the genocide. The RPF was first led by Fred Rwigyema who took some moderate number of RPF troops into the borders of Rwanda but died three days into the operation. At that time, Paul Kagame, the current President of Rwanda was in the United States of America furthering his military education and upon his return, took over as one of the leaders of the RPF. With the help of the RPF, Ugandans were able to overthrow the tyrant regime of Idi Amin and restored President Milton Obote who had fled to neighbouring Tanzania when Idi Amin seized power. Obote as fate will have it failed to treat the Rwandan refugees fairly as he also inflicted many wounds on them. In a bid to help matters for his people, Paul Kagame and his abled men joined forces with the current Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and ousted the government of Obote in 1985. Even with the overthrow of the Obotes government, the RPF and the refugees were not content as they desired, even more, to go back to their motherland Rwanda. In their quest of making a return journey home, the RPF released a series of attacks on the Rwandan government which will go on to bring sleepless nights and incubus to President Habyarimana and his government. The RPF had laid a stronghold of some parts of the country and moved gradually towards the capital Kigali. With their limited military resources, the gallant Kagame and his men defeated the French and Belgian troops which according to locals believed funded and continued to fund Habyarimanas government. The RPF thus became an irresistible and solid force to deal with. It is no surprise that they were able to defeat the Rwandan army and brought an end to the genocide. To ensure that the civil war came to an end, there was a peace agreement brokered between the Rwandan government and the RPF. This took place in Tanzania on 4th August. This agreement was known as the Arusha Peace Agreement or Arusha Negotiation. But as to whether this agreement will see the light of day, only God knew. The cold approach taken by the President in addressing the issue brings to the memory of a similar incident occurring in Nigeria during the Biafra War. A peace accord which was signed on the hills of Aburi in Ghana was stalled as the head of state General Yakubu Gowon, timidly and selfishly did not implement the peace deal but rather plunged his country into turmoil. Same did happen in Rwanda as the government was sluggish in executing the agreed-upon arbitration. The most unfortunate and regrettable incident occurred thus plunging the country into one of the deadliest and most inexplicable killings in human history. On 6th April 1994, President Juvenal Habyarimana's plane was shot close to the Kigali airport. Onboard that plane was the Head of state of Burundi, President Cyprien Ntaryamira, also a Hutu and others who were with them. Till date, there have been no concrete findings as to who shot at the Presidents plane. Some accused the RPF, but the RPF vehemently denied it. Others also asserted that it was the extremist Hutus who shot at the plane so there will be genuine grounds for them to perpetuate their mad atrocities. Others also opined that it was a coup d'etat because the armies were not pleased with his administration. The questions demanding truthful answers are: where was the world when these killings started? Where was the United Nations (UN)? Where was the conscience of these warlords? In one of the most powerful books which give many details about what transpired in Rwanda and as an account from an eyewitness is General Romeo Dellaires book Shake Hands with the Devil the Failure of Humanity in Rwanda ". He recounts how the incidents happened and how the most powerful countries like the United States of America and the United Kingdom sat aloof for these barbaric atrocities to happen. Even the UN that aims at providing international peace and security to the whole world including Rwanda went to sleep. He recounts that he had less the number of troops he required to combat this massacre when issues got out of hand. Begrudging anyone who tries to exonerate the US and the other countries for not providing the needed assistance when it mattered the most will be the least. It is believed that all the hegemonic countries had taken a clue from what had happened in Mogadishu the capital of Somalia on 3rd- 4th October 1993. The events of these days were very unfortunate as eighteen (18) American soldiers had been killed and were dragged on the streets of Mogadishu in a brave attempt to send a strong signal to the Western world to stop intervening in matters of the kind on the African continent. This warning seemed to have sunk deep in the heads and hearts of folks from the western world and informed their decisions about not intervening in matters of the sort in Africa. In a similar incident like what happened in Somalia, ten (10) Belgium troops were killed by Hutu extremists to send a strong signal to the world, and this triggered an immediate evacuation of all foreign nationals from Rwanda. French troops, as well as the Belgian troops, were also withdrawn from the mission. The UN hinted of closing the mission to leave the fate of the people in their own hands. By 10th April 1994, all foreign nationals were evacuated from Rwanda. In what will go down as one of the most horrendous calamities in the history of mankind, is what took place in Rwanda from April to July 1993 and within the space of 100 days saw about 800,000 people being exterminated and over half a million people fleeing into refugee camps or going into hiding for fear of losing their lives. Who caused what or who started what is inconsequential. What amazes many like myself is how the world looked on unconcerned for this barbaric act to proceed without the conscience of humans being brought to bear. It is still inconceivable what the Hutu extremists tried to achieve with their hatred towards the minority Tutsis. A question that comes to mind is whether the elimination of the minority Tutsis would have taken away the challenges of the Hutus. Could that have brought or put food on their table? Could that have developed the country? When I think of these callous leaders who masterminded and systematically orchestrated these unhallowed acts I cringe and wail. They rendered the most disservice thing to their country. However, the remnants of the genocide would see light at the end of the tunnel as three amazing and brave men contributed in ensuring ceasefire with the hope that genocide will be a thing of the past and never repeat itself in the history of the people of Rwanda. These three gallant men were General Romeo Dellaire, a Canadian officer who was the commander of the UN troops, Paul Kagame, the leader of the RPF who is the current President of Rwanda and a highly skilled Ghanaian military officer Brigadier General Henry Kwami Anyidoho who was the commander of the Ghanaian troops in Rwanda. The contribution of these great and courageous men can never be underestimated and overlooked in the history of the genocide. In concluding this piece, I must say that I feel very ashamed for all the shameful atrocities which have happened on this continent especially what happened in Rwanda. This is so because in the first place, how could we allow Satan to get hold of our hearts and minds? How could we be greedy and selfish like that? If we resort to these vicious and crazy styles of killings, how do we expect to develop? Was there nobody to have pointed out to them what happened in Nigeria about the Biafra War from 1967 to 1970? We make a mockery of ourselves if we engage in such kinds of senseless fights. Nobody can develop the continent for us. We are responsible for it and if we do not, posterity will hold us in judgement. As a continent with a rich culture of divergent celebrations, why don't we come together and learn from one another and grow? This is our motherland! Africa must unite and learn from its darkness of ethnic bigotry. It will not save us but will rather cripple our development. Imagine what 800,000 people could have contributed to the development of a country. However, that option was never explored but rather sending them to their early graves with many weeping and gnashing their teeth till the point of their horrific deaths remained the goal. This is the most barbaric and shameful incident that can happen to any country and a continent such as ours not to talk of the loss of properties and other essential stuff lost in the course of this unwarranted genocide. We must feel ashamed for all these insane and callous acts. I write as a patriotic citizen of Africa and I am through this medium calling for an end to any form of uncivilized incidents like this. Together we can develop but divided we will diminish. Africa must unite. Rwanda must rise again and say no to any ethnic pogrom. Rwanda must work again, and Africa must work again, YOUNG POSITIVIST a concerned citizen of Africa. AUTHOR: Sampson Boamah ([email protected]/0548690091/ Twitter: @Ypositivist) France said today that it is halting ratification of an extradition treaty with Hong Kong after Beijing introduced a controversial new security law in the former British colony. 'In light of the latest developments, France will not proceed as it stands with the ratification of the extradition agreement signed on May 4, 2017 between France and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region,' the French foreign ministry said in a statement. It said the national security law for Hong Kong was 'a change that compromises the inherited framework of the 1997 handover' to China from British rule. New Zealand, Canada, Britain, Australia and Germany have already suspended extradition treaties with Hong Kong since the security law was introduced in June. France is halting ratification of an extradition treaty with Hong Kong after Beijing introduced a controversial new security law It comes amid anger at alleged Chinese human rights abuses in Hong Kong, as well as against its Uighur Muslim population After Britain suspended its extradition treaty, China warned it would 'bear the consequences' of suspending its extradition treaty with Hong Kong. In July, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab announced the suspension of an extradition treaty with Hong Kong, amid anger at alleged Chinese human rights abuses in the region, as well as against its Uighur Muslim population. A spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in London said in a statement Beijing had expressed its concerns over the UK interfering in Hong Kong matters 'which are internal affairs of China'. The statement also warned that the UK will 'bear consequences'. Liu Xiaoming has been critical of Britain's suspension of the extradition treaty with Hong Kong in his role as China's ambassador to the UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab announced the suspension of an extradition treaty with Hong Kong The Chinese Embassy spokesman said: 'Now the UK side has gone even further down the wrong road in disregard of China's solemn position and repeated representations. 'It once again contravened international law and the basic norms governing international relations and blatantly interfered in China's internal affairs in an attempt to disrupt the implementation of the National Security Law for Hong Kong SAR and undermine the city's prosperity and stability. 'China urges the UK side to immediately stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs, which are China's internal affairs, in any form. 'The UK will bear the consequences if it insists on going down the wrong road.' Why is the UK suspending its extradition treaty with Hong Kong? China imposed a new national security law on Hong Kong at the end of June this year. The controversial legislation criminalises secession, subversion and collusion with foreign forces but also curtails rights to protest and freedom of speech. Crucially, the rules apply outside the borders of China. This has stoked fears Beijing could try to use the extradition mechanism to drag any overseas residents involved in pro-democracy activism back to Hong Kong. The UK does currently have an extradition treaty with Hong Kong but it does not have one with China. There are fears that people could be extradited back to Hong Kong to be unfairly punished. Canada and Australia have both already suspended their extradition arrangements with Hong Kong with the US currently considering whether to also follow suit. Advertisement The UK not only suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong but also slapped an arms embargo on the territory in response to China's national security law. Mr Raab said the measures were a 'reasonable and proportionate' response to the law imposed by Beijing a law Washington has joined in criticising. Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith told the BBC's Newsnight programme that many countries were concerned about the government in Beijing. He said: 'This is a problem for the free world right now, so France and Germany are having to make decisions. 'You've got other countries elsewhere in Europe and in the far east that are all worried about the dominance and the dependency that China is putting people into given the nature of its regime.' Writing in The Daily Telegraph, former Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper said countries like Britain 'must avoid a China-centric view' and called on Mr Johnson to help the UK 'assume a much greater role in global affairs than has been the case in many years'. Frosty relations between the US and China led to President Donald Trump's administration imposing sanctions on Huawei over security concerns a decision that played a major part in the UK Government's move last week to demand that the Chinese technology giant's equipment is stripped out of the country's burgeoning 5G network by 2027. Backbench Tories, including Commons Liaison Committee chairman Sir Bernard Jenkin, have been pressing for a tougher approach to Beijing, particularly in relation to its role in building nuclear power plants in Britain. The U-turn on Huawei a reversal of the announcement in January allowing it a limited 5G role has left China aggrieved. The Chinese ambassador to the UK, Liu Xiaoming, criticised the Government's approach in a combative BBC interview on Sunday, denouncing Britain for 'dancing to the tune' of the US and accusing Western countries of trying to foment a 'new cold war' with China. Prime Minister Boris Johnson will meet US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during a Downing Street summit on Tuesday Uighur men resing in front of a coffee bar in Kashgar, western Xinjiang. China denies abusing the Uighur population and says such accusations are slander But on Monday, Mr Raab took further action when he told MPs the extradition treaty with Hong Kong was being suspended 'immediately and indefinitely' because of concerns the security legislation could allow cases to be transferred to mainland China. An arms embargo with mainland China has been in place since 1989 and that will now be extended to Hong Kong because of the extra powers Beijing now has for the internal security of the territory. Mr Raab's actions came after Mr Johnson promised a 'tough' but 'calibrated' response to Beijing. In an interview before Mr Raab's announcement, the Prime Minister had promised to strike a balance in his approach to Beijing, resisting pressure from China hawks to take a hardline stance. 'I'm not going to be pushed into a position of becoming a knee-jerk Sinophobe on every issue, somebody who is automatically anti-China,' he said. 'But we do have serious concerns.' Shadow foreign secretary Lisa Nandy suggested the Government could take steps to bar Chinese Communist Party officials from the UK and called for a 'new era' in terms of the Britain's relationship with the country. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 22:05:16|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close HANOI, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam reported 22 new cases of COVID-19 infection on Monday, bringing its total confirmed cases to 642 with six deaths from the disease so far, according to its Ministry of Health. Vietnam's central city of Da Nang, the country's epicenter at the moment, reported 15 new cases aged from 20 to 78, while central provinces of Quang Nam and Quang Ngai confirmed seven new cases aged from 38 to 83, which are reportedly linked to Da Nang Hospital in Da Nang, the health ministry said. Among the 15 cases in Da Nang, 12 were reportedly in close contact with confirmed COVID-19 patients while the other three are linked to hospitals in the city, according to the ministry. The ministry confirmed on Sunday night that one more COVID-19 patient had died in the country, bringing the total death toll to six, noting that the 53-year-old female patient had underlying medical conditions. One more patient was given all-clear on Monday, raising the total cured cases in the country to 374 COVID-19, while there are nearly 103,300 people being quarantined and monitored in the country as of Monday, Vietnam News Agency reported. Local authorities of Da Nang placed a 14-day lockdown on its Le Son Nam village from last Sunday after three cases were reported in the village, Vietnam News Agency reported on Monday, noting that the village is home to 419 households with nearly 1,600 residents. The northern Ha Nam province, southern Dong Nai province as well as Quang Nam have decided to put streets where COVID-19 patients lived under lockdown as part of the efforts against the pandemic, the news agency reported. Enditem New York A federal judge in New York has rejected a Trump administration rule restricting paid sick leave and emergency family leave due to the coronavirus. Reuters reports U.S. District Judge Paul Oetken in Manhattan sided with New York Attorney General Letitia James, ruling the Department of Labor exceeded its authority in denying eligibility for benefits to several groups of workers, including health care providers. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act, adopted in March, made as many as 61 million employees eligible for up to two weeks of paid sick leave and 12 weeks of mostly paid emergency family leave if they couldnt work during the Covid-19 pandemic. However, the DOL allowed employers to deny paid leave during the Covid-19 pandemic if there was no work available due to the economy. Oetken also objected to a vastly overbroad definition of health care providers, which were specifically excluded in the rule, saying it would allow the federal government to block college professors, school librarians and cafeteria staff from obtaining benefits. The court acknowledges that the DOL labored under considerable pressure in promulgating the final rule, he wrote. But as much as this moment calls for flexibility and ingenuity, it also calls for renewed attention to the guardrails of our government. Here, DOL jumped the rail. This is a major victory for workers across New York and our entire nation, AG James said Monday on Twitter. Health care workers holding signs, protest over the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) during the coronavirus outbreak, outside a hospital in Cape Town, South Africa. As many African nations have emerged from strict lockdown measures over the month of July, coronavirus cases have accelerated across the continent, casting doubt over the prospect of an imminent economic recovery. The World Health Organization warned last week that Africa could be headed for a worse outbreak than the current numbers are suggesting, with total confirmed cases on the continent nearing 1 million and the true extent of the spread uncertain due to comparatively low levels of testing. South Africa, the continent's most industrialized economy, still accounts for more than half of all cases and the bulk of the recent rise in new infections, with more than 511,000 now confirmed. The surge has come despite President Cyril Ramaphosa having introduced some of the world's strictest lockdown measures in late March, which were intended to buy hospitals time and were gradually eased out of economic necessity. Figures released Monday showed South Africa's manufacturing PMI (purchasing managers' index) fell from 53.9 in June to 51.2 in July, cooling for the first time following two months of consecutive improvement from its April trough. Concerns that health systems may become overwhelmed have led to the reimplementation of restrictions in South Africa, Kenya and Botswana, with other countries likely to follow suit in the coming weeks, according to Capital Economics Chief Emerging Markets Economist William Jackson. The Gambia confirmed Monday that three government ministers had tested positive for Covid-19, days after President Adama Barrow went into self-isolation. "High frequency data show that this, combined with cautious household behavior and continued weakness in tourism sectors, has caused activity to level off," Jackson said in a note Friday. "All of this reinforces our view that Africa's economic recovery will be slow and bumpy." Im a passionate customer-centricity advocate and when I left the industry a few years ago, I felt like I was screaming from the top of the mountain asking for change in how we deal with customers, saying we needed to be more empathetic, Trott conceded. At the time, those calls felt like they were falling on deaf ears and so to be approached by a company that wanted that very essence was just a fabulous opportunity and Construct Services hasnt let me down since joining them in October of last year. Read more: CEO of insurance college on decline of industry knowledge With over 30-years in the Australian general insurance industry, Trott brings a wealth of knowledge, as well as a clear sense of how to improve the industrys management of claims and client experiences. Were focused on five main areas that are our strategic pillars: we want to become an employer of choice, we fully embrace customer-centricity, we drive operational excellence, we create opportunities through growth and were very future focused, he explained. Those five things are the pillars of whats going to drive us forward for the next three years. Construct Services has been around since 1989 so its had a 30-year history of being consistent and, to the best of my knowledge, were the only national insurance builder which focuses only on insurance. According to Trott, while hes observing other players diversify their markets to overseas, hes staying put and focusing on home soil. Construct Services is sticking to being the most trusted insurance builder in Australia, he claimed. Importantly were a fairly significant player in the direct market with a lot of residential repairs, but we also do commercial and corporate losses and major and complex stuff. Trott says he can identify where steps in the right direction have been made. However, he wants to place Construct Services at the forefront of brokers minds so that when their clients are in need of help, they know who to call. I hear and have heard for many years the frustrations of brokers - that its a bit of a lucky dip depending on which insurer the business is placed with, as to whether or not their clients are going to have a good claims experience or not. Now, I think that brokers have a lot more control over that. Read next: Were the only platform that can service any claim scenario What hasnt changed, however, in the way we have a successful claim outcome, particularly in the property space, is we make sure the insured customer is being treated with empathy and care, that the process is explained to them along with timeframes and managing their expectations and then having quality tradespeople that are fully insured. Theyve been fully briefed on what the job is, and you make sure that theyre delivering a quality repair thats what its about. Theres much greater recognition now that its all about the customer, its all about making sure that theyre being looked after when they need us the most and essentially the insurance builder is an extension of that point for the insurer and the broker. Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII) has been given a green light by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) for conducting the Phase 2 and 3 human clinical trials of the Covid-19 vaccine candidate developed by Oxford University, news agency PTI has reported. The news agency reported citing unnamed government officials as saying that the approval to SII was granted by Dr VG Somani late on Sunday after a thorough evaluation based on the recommendations of the Subject Expert Committee (SEC) on Covid-19. "The firm has to submit safety data, evaluated by the Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB), to the CDSCO before proceeding to Phase 3 clinical trials," a senior official was quoted as saying by PTI. "As per the study design, each subject will be administered two doses four weeks apart (first dose on day one and second dose on day 29) following which the safety and immunogenicity will be assessed at predefined intervals," the official said. Also read: Mask, social distancing will be crucial even after Covid-19 vaccine, says scientist SII, the world's largest vaccine maker, has signed an agreement to manufacture the potential vaccine developed by University of Oxfords Jenner Institute in collaboration with British-Swedish company AstraZeneca. Phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of the Oxford vaccine candidate is on in the United Kingdom, Phase 3 in Brazil and Phase 1 and 2 in South Africa. The officials, according to PTI, said Serum Institute had submitted a revised proposal on Wednesday after the SEC on July 28 had asked it to revise its protocol for the Phase 2 and 3 clinical trials besides seeking some additional information. Also read: Once successful, Covid-19 vaccine doses will be distributed by govt, says Serum Institute The panel had also recommended that the clinical trial sites which have been proposed for the study be distributed across India. The expert panel at the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) on Friday, as a rapid regulatory response, had recommended granting permission for phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of the potential vaccine, 'Covishield', on healthy adults in India. Serum Institute has said in its revised proposal that 1,600 people above 18 years of age will participate in the trials across 17 selected sites, including All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi, BJ Medical College in Pune, Rajendra Memorial Research Institute of Medical Sciences (RMRIMS) in Patna, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, AIIMS in Jodhpur, Nehru Hospital in Gorakhpur, Andhra Medical College in Visakhapatnam and JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research in Mysore. "According to the application, it would conduct an observer-blind, randomised controlled study to determine the safety and immunogenicity of 'Covishield' on healthy Indian adults," the official said. New Delhi, Aug 3 : You can now easily create a free Adobe Acrobat PDF from any Microsoft Office or image file simply by typing PDF.new into Chrome and uploading the desired file, thanks to a collaboration between Google and Adobe. One can also type Sign.new into the browser to create a PDF form that you can fill, sign, save, and send. If you have a massive PDF file that you just need to make manageable, one can type CompressPDF.new to reduce its file size for easy sending or sharing. All you need to do is drag and drop a document and watch it transform into a high-quality, professional-looking PDF, Adobe said in a blog post. And, if you want to easily create stand out social media content with Adobe Spark Post, just type Create.new into the browser and you are immediately taken into Spark where you can unleash your creative potential. One can start designing from thousands of templates, and choose from millions of images, icons, and stickers, in addition to your own logos, colours, and fonts. In addition to the .new shortcuts, Adobe is launching a plethora of free PDF actions this year -- giving everyone access to 20 free, super simple Acrobat online tools in 2020. Encouraging paid workers to employ the 'right kind' of respectful personal relationship with young people with disability will lift standards in the sector, experts say. With good quality relationships, children and young adults with cognitive disability feel "valued, respected and cared about" in their daily lives and, in turn, give carers more job satisfaction and self-respect, international researchers say in a new paper published in the international Disability & Society journal. The in-depth study of 42 pairs of Australian support workers and young people with disability, led by Flinders University Professor Sally Robinson, recommends a personal care system that focuses on high-quality personalised care which builds "self-esteem, confidence and self-respect" in the young person, as well as the support worker. The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) can provide increased flexibility by funding people with disability to choose their own care package. Lead researcher, Flinders Professor of Disability and Community Inclusion Sally Robinson, says there is a pressing need to be able to monitor and support relationships in a strategic and concerted way as support relationships move into increasingly devolved spaces of care under individualised funding policies such as the NDIS. "It's a significant and responsible relationship between paid carers and people with disability. It must be a mutually beneficial situation, and one the NDIS care packages can do well with proper guidelines," Professor Robinson says. "Caring is only part of the job; respect and valuing the person with disability - to help them realise their capabilities and other needs - must be enhanced by training and leadership from provider organisations employing support workers in our community. "Careful consideration needs to be given to personal care relationships and how the experience of mutual recognition shapes the identity of people with disability and the professional self-concept of support workers", she says. The "dire circumstances" of poor quality of care relationships has come under more scrutiny during COVID-19 social isolation, adds UNSW Sydney co-author Professor Karen Fisher. "This research found that supporting workers to value the contributions of people with disability in the same way as they treat other people is a protective mechanism for them both." ### The findings, 'Understanding paid support relationships: possibilities for mutual recognition between young people with disability and their support workers' (2020) by S Robinson, A Graham , KR Fisher, K Neale, L Davy, K Johnson and E Hall have been published in Disability & Society DOI: 10.1080/09687599.2020.1794797 See also, Feeling safe, avoiding harm: Safety priorities of children and young people with disability and high support needs (2020) S Robinson and A Graham published in Journal of Social and Personal Relationships (Sage) DOI: 10.1177/0265407520928581 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0265407520928581 Listen to Professor Robinson at a recent Flinders University BRAVE Minds lecture https://www.flinders.edu.au/research/brave-research-series/righting-the-wrongs Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 23:08:17|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BAGHDAD, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi Health Ministry recorded on Monday 2,735 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total nationwide infections to 131,886. It also reported 66 fatalities during the day, a figure that has been gradually decreasing over the past days, raising the death toll from the virus to 4,934. The ministry said that 2,225 more patients recovered, bringing the total number of recoveries to 94,111. The new cases were recorded after 13,647 testing kits were used across the country during the day, and a total of 1,042,806 tests have been carried out since the outbreak of the disease, according to the statement. Meanwhile, Salaman al-Ghreibawi, a member of the parliamentary health committee, said in a press release that logistic problems were found during the committee's visits to monitor the performance of hospitals in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. "We have noticed in some of the hospitals a clear shortage of oxygen and respirators, due to the inadequate allocations by the Ministry of Finance," al-Ghreibawi said. There is also a shortage in blood bags in some hospitals, al-Ghreibawi added. Since the outbreak of the coronavirus, Iraq has been taking measures to contain the pandemic. On July 26, Iraq's Higher Committee for Health and National Safety, headed by Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, decided to extend the weekly full curfew from July 30 to Aug. 9, including the Eid al-Adha holiday. China has been helping Iraq fight the COVID-19 pandemic. From March 7 to April 26, a Chinese team of seven medical experts spent 50 days in Iraq to help contain the disease, during which they helped build a PCR lab and install an advanced CT scanner in Baghdad. Since March 7, China has also sent three batches of medical aid to Iraq. Enditem ALBANY State Health Commissioner Howard Zucker said he will not release the number of New Yorkers who became infected with COVID-19 in a nursing home and later died at a hospital until he can be sure the figures are accurate. Zucker was pressed to release the data Monday during the first of two joint legislative hearings intended to examine the state's pandemic response in long-term care facilities. While the Cuomo administration has attempted to clear itself of primary blame for nursing home deaths after taking heat for a policy that required those facilities to admit coronavirus patients, its critics argue the state is in no position to exonerate itself until a complete accounting of virus-related nursing home deaths has taken place. The state's current tally of more than 6,400 nursing home deaths only counts residents who died at their nursing facilities not the ones who became sick enough to require hospitalization before they died. Many believe the number would be much higher if these included. "I know that you want a number and I wish I could give you the number today, but I need to be sure it's absolutely accurate," Zucker told Sen. James Skoufis, who was the first of many lawmakers to ask the commissioner for the data Monday. Sen. Gustavo Rivera, another Democratic lawmaker, pointed out that the state initially collected and reported data on hospital deaths of nursing home residents, but then stopped. He claimed no other state defines nursing home deaths in the narrow way that New York chose to and suggested this was intentional. "It seems, sir, that in this case you are choosing to define it differently so that you can look better and that is a problem," Rivera said. New York has come under considerable fire for a March 25 directive that instructed nursing homes they could not turn away virus patients, and that prohibited requirements that those patients test negative before being admitted. Critics contend this worsened outbreaks and may even have introduced the virus into facilities where Cuomo himself said the virus would spread like fire through dry grass. In response to the criticism, the state Department of Health conducted an analysis of nursing home deaths and concluded that asymptomatic staff members and not the states admission policy were the likely source of spread. Perplexed as to how the state could conclude that without a full accounting of nursing home deaths, lawmakers asked Zucker if his department plans to amend the report once the full count has been tallied and whether he thinks the conclusion would change as a result. I think the conclusion of the report will remain the same on that, he responded. Zucker said the state wants to be sure it isn't counting deaths twice before it releases the data. On several occasions, he told lawmakers, "We are in the middle of a pandemic" when explaining why the data wasn't ready yet. The state's self-exonerating analysis was released a month ago. "None of us is trying to castigate y'all here for the very difficult work that had to be done," Rivera said. "But it seems to me that patting ourselves on the back for victories is a little bit far-fetched considering that we have still more deaths than anyone else in the country both at nursing homes and in overall deaths." As Zucker was being questioned, Cuomo appeared at a news conference in New York City and levied a blistering attack on President Donald J. Trumps handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, calling it the worst government blunder in modern history. Cuomo compared the situation to the Vietnam War the last time Americans turned on their televisions and saw a daily death count, he noted. Shame on all of you, Cuomo said of the Trump administration. Monday's hearing which also covered issues of personal protective equipment availability, staffing and visitation restrictions was part of a series of sessions the Legislature is holding to examine the state's pandemic response. New York was once the epicenter of the disease in the U.S., but after months of lockdown the spread of the disease ebbed. It is, however, exploding in much of the rest of the country. Lawmakers are hoping that a review of the pandemic response will better equip the state as it prepares for a possible second wave of the virus this fall. On Monday, they were able to question stakeholders from across the industry about why they think nursing homes were hit so hard and what could be done differently going forward. Acquiring PPE was especially difficult early on, a number of speakers testified. Staffing was also an issue, as employees fell ill with the virus themselves. Richard Mollot, executive director of the Long Term Care Community Coalition, said theres plenty of blame to go around when it comes to the states nursing home deaths. State and federal regulators have allowed facilities to get away with inadequate staffing for years, he said, and it shows in inspection data. Earlier: Was short staffing to blame for Capital Region nursing home outbreaks? The most cited deficiency last year was failure to provide appropriate infection control protocols, he said. All this stuff is basic, Mollot continued. ... Its using basic common sense of washing your hands or changing your gloves when you go from caring for one patient to another. Its not brain surgery. But it really comes down to staffing, because if you have enough staff and the staff are trained, then they know to do that. They dont have to rush from one resident to another. They can stop and wash their hands. Lawmakers should pass a safe staffing law that would limit the number of patients direct-care staff could care for at a given time, he recommended. The state Health Department was ordered to study the issue last year and issue a report to the Legislature by the end of 2019. That report has yet to be issued, but Zucker on Monday said it is slated for release on Aug. 14. Visitation was also a major source of concern at Mondays hearing. Residents have gone months without seeing loved ones in person, and family members and advocates believe its having an impact on their physical and mental health. The state authorized visitation to resume this summer at nursing facilities that have gone 28 days without a COVID-19 case, so long as they implement strict safety protocols. Lawmakers said few have been able to meet that standard, and families are suffering as a result. People are literally dying of depression, said Assemblyman Billy Jones. Theyre lonesome. Their families are suffering through this. I hear heartbreaking stories every single day. Zucker said approximately 34 percent of nursing homes statewide have resumed some form of visitation, and said the state is working to get facilities access to technology that would encourage virtual visits. Lawmakers noted that many nursing home residents have physical and cognitive issues that prevent them from using virtual technology. They encouraged the state to loosen visitation restrictions by enforcing safety in other ways, such as requiring visitors to provide proof of a negative COVID test prior to a visit or allowing supervised outdoor visits. Zucker said he understands the pain that families are going through, noting that hes only seen his mother through a glass window four times since the pandemic began. I want to help, but I also do not want (the virus) to spread, he said. The reason it goes back to the visitors is they live in the community and work in the community, right? And I just dont want this to spread. I recognize it; I am really, really empathetic about it. But Im trying to tell you I am trying to balance two things. A second hearing on the state's nursing home response is scheduled for Aug. 10. Chris Bragg contributed reporting. 1. Constance Markievicz (Sinn Fein and Fianna Fail) Constance Markievicz was the first woman to be appointed to Cabinet, in 1919 Revolutionary and social campaigner was the first woman elected to parliament in Ireland or Britain in 1918. Among the world's first women cabinet members as labour minister from 1919 to 1922. It took until 1979 for Ireland to get a second woman government minister. 2. Kevin O'Higgins (Cumann na nGaedheal) A fearless hardline justice minister striving for State stability. He signed off on summary executions, including that of the best man at his own wedding, in an effort to end the Civil War during 1922-23. Faced down an army mutiny in 1924 but was murdered by IRA dissidents in 1927. 3. Donogh O'Malley (Fianna Fail) A rule-breaking politician who in late 1966 announced free secondary education and rural school transport, while extending the Leaving and Intermediate exams to technical schools. He radically changed Ireland socially, politically and economically. 4 . Noel Browne (Political nomad in five parties) Remembered positively as health minister (1948-51) who led the fight against tuberculosis, leading to its virtual eradication. Later research has shown others also deserve credit here. Less positively remembered for the Mother and Child scheme which was derailed by the consultant doctors and the Catholic bishops. 5. Garret FitzGerald (Fine Gael) Expand Close Garret FitzGerald / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Garret FitzGerald Later elected Taoiseach, he was the country's first foreign affairs minister (1973-77) after Ireland joined the then-European Economic Community. His commitment and communication skills in that forum helped establish Ireland's high ranking in Europe. 6. Barry Desmond (Labour) Had a very tough time as health minister in the recession years 1982-87. But he ended farcical contraception laws that required a marriage certificate and doctor's prescription and faced down the Catholic Church for the first time in the State's history. He also implemented ground-breaking tobacco controls. 7. Mary Harney (Progressive Democrats and Fianna Fail) Expand Close Mary Harney / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mary Harney The PD founder member drove fundamental tax reforms which stimulated job creation. She was courageous enough to wrestle with the health services and successfully launched the 'Fair Deal' for elderly care. First woman Tanaiste (1997-2006). 8. Bertie Ahern (Fianna Fail) Expand Close Ex-taoiseach Bertie Ahern / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Ex-taoiseach Bertie Ahern As labour affairs minister (1987-1991) he drove social partnership, fixed damaging strikes, and organised trade union reforms ending fragmentation. Later a successful but controversial Taoiseach. 9. Charlie Haughey (Fianna Fail) Expand Close Charles Haughey / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Charles Haughey Away from controversies which dominated his long career, he was a reforming justice minister (1961-64), changing succession and other laws. As finance minister (1966-1970), he developed innovative elderly schemes like free travel and established Aosdana for the arts. 10. Michael D Higgins (Labour) Expand Close President Higgins (Danny Lawson/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp President Higgins (Danny Lawson/PA) Our current President was the first arts and culture minister (1994-1997) to take a previously minor portfolio to huge success. A committed Irish speaker, he established TG4 and other achievements including film industry supports, a national network of theatre venues. Though local F&B businesses don't want social distancing to return in August, the experiences they had in April are helping them prepare. Owner of Tuong An Coffee earns from selling rice online. Phung Ngoc Bich, owner of Tuong An Coffee on Hanoi's Doi Can Street, used to pay 20 million VND (857 USD) per month to rent two shops to sell coffee and juice. The pandemic meant she was receiving fewer and fewer customers, making the rent unaffordable, so Bich scaled back and let go of the bigger premises and kept the smaller one of less than 10sq.m. Bich started selling rice and food via delivery during the first wave of the pandemic and it became a huge success. She told Vietnam News: I sell about more than 100 dishes per day, mostly at lunchtime. As for the smaller space and fewer customers due to the pandemic, I turned my shop to a takeaway. I save on both rent and staff. Though the pandemic and social distancing brought Bich a new kind of business, she is not looking forward to the possible return of social distancing after the resurgence of the virus. Her feelings are shared throughout the F&B business community, which has been plunged into uncertainty in recent days. 89's Presso, a beverage and snack shop in District 1, HCM City, has just recovered to half of its business before the new outbreak. Talking to the local media, an 89's Presso representative said: "We are quite worried because the business activities have just been reopened shortly." Hoang Tung, CEO of Pizza Home, who gained a reputation for selling special items for the pandemic such as pink pizza to support dragon fruit growers, said: It is likely that this industry will face the next crisis due to the new wave of COVID-19, however, the CEO saw positive sides. Tung said as purchasing power and trust in the Government's anti-pandemic efforts were strong, the economy recovered quickly, adding: "I think the businesses that have survived up to now have good strength and accumulation. The difficulties that the F&B industry has overcome will help firms find ways to overcome the next storm. According to the CEO, he plans to cut ineffective selling points, reduce production costs and rent rates, and increase sales through applications and new products, tailored to people's needs. Similar models are being used across the sector. Nam Khuat, owner of Kin Dee - Thai Gastropub in District 1, HCM City told local media: If the social distancing resumes, we will renegotiate the rent, reduce the number of full-time staff and reduce the number of part-time employees and move to a delivery model with menus to fit new needs and ensure quality takeaway." "Both employees and customers are accustomed to the pandemic so it's easier for the attitude of shopping from home. With a new situation, we will activate the preventive steps immediately," he said. Besides finding ways to get by, many F&B owners said they needed the support of management authorities. Nguyen Thanh Hang, owner of Hang Coffee on the capital's Quan Thanh Street told Vietnam News: They should announce the social distancing, if any, early so that we can prepare our business schedule. Since the first wave of the virus, Hang has been serving more online customers. She said: I opened the cafe as I love meeting people and talking to my customers but now there is no other choice. Like most other F&B business owners, Hang knew the risk of spreading the virus is huge with direct contact. I will try my best to serve my customers with distancing and waiting for the virus to be controlled./.VNA Vietnams food products used by famous foreign brands Vietnams food materials have been used to make excellent products of famous brands that are consumed all over the world. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Ashraf Ghani on Monday discussed the evolving security situation in the region against the backdrop of a spike in terrorist violence in Afghanistan. The two leaders had a phone conversation and exchanged greetings on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha. Ghani thanked Modi for timely supply of food and medical assistance to meet Afghanistans requirements, according to an official statement. The two leaders also exchanged views on the evolving security situation in the region and other areas of mutual bilateral interest, the statement said, adding Modi had reiterated Indias commitment to the Afghan people in their quest for a peaceful, prosperous and inclusive Afghanistan. The phone conversation coincided with a meeting in Kabul between Afghan National Security Adviser Hamdullah Mohib and Indian ambassador Vinay Kumar. Kumar spoke of Indias continued help for Afghanistan to counter the Covid-19 pandemic, and Mohib thanked India for its support and affirmed Afghanistans strong commitment to the bilateral partnership, the Afghan National Security Council said. The contacts between the two sides came a week after Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi chaired a virtual meeting with his counterparts from Afghanistan, Nepal and Pakistan and called for four-party cooperation, including on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Wang also said Kathmandu and Kabul should learn from China-Pakistan cooperation and the four countries should work together to extend CPEC to Afghanistan. The meeting, held against the backdrop of the China-India border standoff, was viewed warily in New Delhi. India also has serious concerns about the spike in terrorist violence in Afghanistan and the role being played by Pakistan in the Afghan peace process. Days after a report by a UN expert team monitoring the implementation of sanctions against banned terror groups and individuals said almost 6,500 Pakistani terrorists were present in Afghanistan, acting Afghan interior minister Masoud Andarabi said on Monday that the new leader of the Khorasan unit of Islamic State was a member of the Pakistan-based Haqqani Network. Shahab Almahajir, the newly appointed leader of Islamic State of Khorasan Province-ISKP is a Haqani member. Haqani & the Taliban carry out their terrorism on a daily basis across Afg & when their terrorist activities [do] not suit them politically they rebrand it under ISKP, Andarabi tweeted. The main threat for Ukraine is Russia and its political leaders, who will not accept the existence of an independent Ukraine and will try to return it under its control, Foreign Intelligence Service Chief Valeriy Kondratiuk has said. "The strategic goals of the political regime of Russia ... remain unchanged: the return of Ukraine to zone of its complete influence, the elimination of its national identity and independence, the establishment of external control over the processes taking place in our country, the termination of Ukraine's existence as a sovereign state," Kondratiuk said in an article appearing in the Kyiv-based ZN.UA (Zerkalo Nedeli) ezine. "The Kremlin will never accept the existence of an independent, unitary and West-oriented Ukraine, therefore, it will continue a hybrid war against the Ukrainian state," Kontratiuk said. According to intelligence, with the approach of local elections in Ukraine, Russia will return to the practice of active pressure and provocations in order not only to wreak havoc and undermine public confidence in state institutions, but also to form an opinion in the West about Ukraine's bankruptcy and the toxicity of cooperation with it. One of the elements of this plan is to implant the idea of the federalization of Ukraine as the only real possibility of resolving the conflict by peaceful political means, followed by the disintegration of Ukraine into small formations and their absorption by the Russian side. "The key to this strategy is holding elections in ORDLO. The Russian Federation insists on holding elections in the temporarily occupied territories without restoring control of the Ukrainian side over the corresponding section of the Ukrainian-Russian border and withdrawing all armed units controlled by Moscow," Kondratiuk said. Intelligence also predicts that, despite Ukraine's readiness for a peace process, in the near and medium term, along the demarcation line in Donbas, there will be a high probability of provocations from Russia-occupation forces. The father of six-month-old boy Beau Frank Bradshaw has been charged with murder and grievous bodily harm over the Queensland baby's death. Paramedics were called to a home in the central Queensland city of Mackay about 2pm on Tuesday, June 2, where the infant was found unresponsive. "You always made all your family Smile!" Beau Bradshaw's uncle Roland Mooney wrote in a tribute on Facebook. Credit:Facebook Beau was taken to Mackay Base Hospital and transferred to Townsville Hospital, where he died two days later. Detectives arrested the 24-year-old East Mackay man on Monday afternoon and he was charged at Mackay Police Station. He is due to appear to appear in Mackay Magistrates Court on Tuesday. Workers assemble Apple's Mac Pros at the Flextronics computer manufacturing facility in Austin, Texas, on Nov. 20, 2019. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images) US Manufacturing Soars to 15-Month High: ISM Manufacturing in the United States, as measured by a key business activity gauge, surged to a 15-month high in July, exceeding economists expectations. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) business survey, published Aug. 3, shows that its topline manufacturing activity indicator, called the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), surged to a reading of 54.2 in July. Readings above 50 indicate expansion, while those below mean contraction. The PMI signaled a continued rebuilding of economic activity in July and reached its highest level of expansion since March 2019, Timothy Fiore, chair of the ISM Manufacturing Business Survey Committee, said in a statement (pdf). Economists polled by Reuters predicted the manufacturing index would rise to 53.6 in July, so the higher-than-expected number is encouraging, particularly in light of Aprils 11-year low of 41.5. In July, manufacturing continued its recovery after the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic, Fiore said. Still, the slowing dynamics of month-over-month expansion in the manufacturing index, from 9.5 percentage point growth from May to June, compared to a 1.6 percentage point rise from June to July, fuel speculation about the sustainability of the economic recovery, especially in light of a recent surge in reported COVID-19 cases in parts of the country. Manufacturing is recovering from low levels and the outlook is uncertain, given the threat of repeated disruptions from virus outbreaks, Rubeela Farooqi, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, told The Associated Press. Another manufacturing sector gauge tapped by ISM in the survey is the New Orders measure, which soared to 61.5, up 5.1 percentage points from June. Orders starting to pick up. [An] increase of about 35 percent to 40 percent, a chemical product manufacturing executive said. Incoming orders are slow. This is usually our busiest time of the year, but production is reduced due to lack of demand. Additional layoffs expected, an executive at a furniture maker said. Another gauge, the production index, showed 4.8 percentage point growth from June to July, coming in at 62.1, the highest reading of all the ISM gauges. Manufacturing outlook has improved greatly in June, as business has resumed at nearly 100 percent. We have implemented a number of safeguards that are costing extra money, but we are running, an executive at a computer and electronics products maker said. Other executives were downbeat in their responses to the ISM survey, which asks business leaders if their companies are performing better compared to the previous month. Overall business remains down almost 70 percent, said an executive at a manufacturer of transportation equipment. We are hanging on to as many employees as possible, but we will have to lay off 30 percent or more for at least two to three months until September or October. While factory employment improved in July, it remained in contraction territory. The Employment index showed a reading of 44.3. While up by 2.2 percentage points from Junes reading of 42.1, it suggests a continued trend of manufacturers shedding jobs, though at a slowing rate. Manufacturing accounts for about 11 percent of the U.S. economy. A man has been arrested by detectives investigating the shooting of a Sunbury kebab shop owner who was ambushed as he returned home from a family friend's wedding. Grandfather Yusuf Kucukbas, the long-time owner of Cheeky Kebabs, was with his wife when he was shot outside their home in Belleview Drive just after 1am on February 8. Sunbury kebab shop owner Yusuf Kucukbas. Mr Kucukbas, 57, had just parked his car and was approaching his front door when he was blasted with a shotgun at close range by a masked gunman. He had surgery on his leg. In the week following the shooting, a man and a woman were charged. Last week the US Senate approved its version of the defense budget for fiscal 2021, which contains additional sanctions against Nord Stream 2. At the same time, the United States has stepped up pressure on European companies involved in the pipeline's construction. For the United States, as the most powerful geopolitical power, sanctions have long been a widely used tool to achieve their goals, German macroeconomics professor Wilfried Furman from Potsdam said in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza, speaking about US sanctions against Germany. Military interventions are always associated with the loss of life and, consequently, with human capital, as well as with extremely high costs (including political). President Trump has recognized this and is gradually withdrawing American troops from abroad, even from Afghanistan after 20 years and more than $ 3.5 trillion in costs for the United States alone (not to mention the costs of the 40 countries that took part in the operation, 180 thousand killed Afghan citizens and 5 million refugees). The military operation, the so-called nation-building and the belief that it is possible to instill Western values, relying on money and extreme military superiority, failed. The country is more likely to become a so-called failed state. Trump also acknowledged that an economic war with the help of sanctions would cost the United States much less, it is possible even without allies, and could also lead the target country to defeat. " According to Furman, the sanctions are becoming more specific and targeted: The aim of sanctions is to cause as much damage or loss as possible to the country subjected to them. At the same time, the sanctions should be designed in such a way that the damage to the country subjecting the sanctions is as small as possible and affects only those sectors and people who do not support or elect the current president. Sanctions could even lead to economic benefits for the United States if they result in high costs in competitive third countries and access to new markets for the United States. The most fortunate case for the US is probably the case when the sanctions extend to Russia and at the same time to Germany, which is considered to be an accomplice of the continuing large deficit in the current US trade balance. The European Energy Security Protection Bill, which was introduced to the US Senate in July 2020, is likely to become law as it is supported by both Republicans and Democrats. Meanwhile, Germany's reputation in the US has plummeted, and even the number of Americans learning German is decreasing, says Furman. "It seems that this auspicious occasion is the US sanctions against Nord Stream 2, with which President Trump wants to" protect "Europe from Russia." The expert named several possible consequences of the sanctions. First. For Russia, this is a sunken, lost investment of 10 billion euros and long-term losses from non-exported gas, not to mention reputational losses. Second. Germany will suffer losses in international competitiveness and therefore in exports, among others to the US, because Russian gas is much cheaper than any alternative. Third. It is expected that after the Americans neutralize Nord Stream 2, the export of LNG to Germany from the United States will begin (thus reducing the overall US current account deficit). This will be a bailout for the US oil exploration and production industry, which is facing bankruptcy despite higher prices. Increased environmental pollution is to be expected due to methane emitted during production and higher safety risks during transportation. Fourth. For other European countries, an increase in energy exports (especially for Norway) and relatively increasing competition within the EU with Germany, as well as (partly already nationalistic) satisfaction in relation to Russia (Poland, etc.). From a geopolitical point of view, it doesn't seem to matter to Western partners that the Nord Stream 2 pipeline is an economically necessary investment in the infrastructure that keeps Russia connected to the EU. This part of cross-border sustainable energy policy provides more security than any additional tank. In addition, the unfilled pipeline in the European direction is forcing Russia to cement, as an alternative, additional permanent low-cost energy supplies to China, which increases China's competitiveness vis-a-vis Europe and the United States. Blocking Nord Stream 2 does not meet the interests of a united Europe, but it may well be so for many prosperous nation states. " Wilfried Furman noted that the EU, Poland and Ukraine, as well as Denmark and Norway, did not miss any opportunity to slow down and prevent the construction of the pipeline: The planning of a Norwegian pipeline from the North Sea through Denmark to Poland is a new dimension. If there are supplies, then actively developing Poland (with the growth of the US presence, as well as with the involvement of interested German companies) will block the transit of Russian gas at the expense of the interests of Russia and Germany. The Norwegian Government Foundation is the largest in the world! " According to the expert, the US sanctions against Germany are so serious that every company that in any way supports the construction of the pipeline, up to catering companies, is threatened with direct sanctions. "As a new measure, it is likely that authorities and officials such as mayors will be threatened with personal sanctions, which exposes these people to pressures that could render them disloyal to their employer and German law." These sanctions would significantly expand the potential to destabilize the democratic constitutional German state. The federal government should then proceed with the construction of the pipeline even under such conditions - and at the same time turn to international organizations / courts for clarification (possibly with a cost of a billion euros in dispute). Otherwise, Berlin loses its political face. At the same time, the EU must support the German federal government, even despite its position on the pipeline, the expert believes. According to him, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the ruling coalition can, of course, file protests and objections, but they have lost too much political capital in the United States and are unlikely to be able to prevent a pipeline decision and capital flight: "If the United States, whose internal dynamics is supported By attracting mobile, well-educated youth from all countries to the country, if the parents of this very youth will be threatened with personal sanctions, the question arises whether American democracy is inherently democratic or power-nationalist. Does it still respect human rights, the right of peoples to self-determination and the sovereignty of recognized states? " Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 02:35:20|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close WASHINGTON, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Pentagon said on Monday that the United States and Poland had completed negotiations on the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), which would enable increased U.S. military presence in the central European country. "The EDCA will enable an increased enduring U.S. rotational presence of about 1,000 personnel, to include the forward elements of the U.S. Army's V Corps headquarters and a Division headquarters, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, and the infrastructure to support an armored brigade combat team and combat aviation brigade," U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said in a statement. "This is in addition to the 4,500 U.S. personnel already on rotation in Poland," he added. Notably, the EDCA negotiations were completed days after the Trump administration announced the repositioning plan for nearly 12,000 U.S. troops stationed in Germany. Among the U.S. troops that would be withdrawn from Germany, about 5,600 will be repositioned to other NATO countries, while the rest will be returned to the United States with some beginning rotational deployment back to Europe. The Pentagon reasoned that the objective of the redeployment plan was to strengthen NATO and enhance deterrence against Russia, however, President Donald Trump made it clear that the move was to punish Germany for its "delinquency" on military spending. Washington and Warsaw have been strengthening their security and diplomatic ties. The two countries are on the same page on multiple regional issues such as Iran nuclear issue, alleged Russia's threat as well as the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project. Poland, which joined NATO in 1999, has long sought the deployment of a permanent U.S. military force on its territory. Enditem Iran is seeing an "alarming" surge in cases, the countrys Health Ministry said Sunday, as it reported its highest one-day tally in more than three weeks. After registering 2,685 new cases in 24 hours on Sunday Irans worst infection count since July 8 health officials reported a slightly lower number on Monday. Health Ministry spokesperson Sima Sadat Lari said Iran registered 2,598 new infections and 215 new deaths. Sadly, since late June, daily infections have been on a rising trajectory in Qom in central Iran, Lari said. We are concerned that trivializing the situation and lax observance of health protocols may lead to a worsening of the outbreak in the province. Lari said the situation was alarming or red, the highest classification on the governments COVID-19 watch list, in 25 out of 31 provinces. She also warned Iranians not to travel to Mazandaran, a popular tourist destination bordering the Caspian Sea where the case count has more than quadrupled in the past six weeks. Since its initial outbreak in the holy city of Qom in February, Iran has confirmed 312,035 cases and 17,405 deaths. Experts say thats likely a vast undercount of whats considered the deadliest outbreak in the Middle East. A recent investigation by BBC Persian found that the death toll is likely three times what the government claims, with nearly 42,000 deaths. Iran slammed the report as politically motivated and said it has acted in a totally transparent way. Deputy Health Minister Iraj Harirchi warned last week, however, that the death toll is likely much higher than has been officially reported. His comments followed those of a member of Irans national coronavirus committee, who said as many as 18 million citizens around 20% of the entire population are estimated to have been infected. Iranian media outlets reported Saturday that celebrated film director Khosrow Sinai died of the virus at the age of 79. Sinai is among many high-profile Iranians to succumb to COVID-19, along with at least five members of Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and several prominent clerics. State news sources reported Monday that one person dies of coronavirus in Iran every seven minutes, according to Reuters. This story contains reporting from AFP. Advertisement Kano state Executive Council approves for the establishment of Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) Computer Based Testing Centres (CBTCs) in the five Emirates Councils as zonal offices and 44 local government areas in the state. The commissioner for Information, Malam Muhammadu Garba states this while addressing newsmen on the outcome of the councils weekly meeting held at the Africa House, Government House, Kano. He says the need for the increase in the number of CBTCs, is informed by the increasing demand and also to prevent a situation where candidates have to be sent to neighboring states of Bauchi, Kaduna, Jigawa, Katsina etc. to seat for JAMB Exams. Malam Garba also reveals that during its sitting, the council approved the establishment of the State Council on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to fast track the spread of ICT skills to the grassroots. The council, he says, would be co-chaired by the commissioner of Science, Technology and Innovation and that of local government, while the commissioners for Information, education, higher education as well as all the chairmen of the 44 local governments in the state will serve as members. The commissioner states that the council receives a proposal from a private developer to use the old Triumph Publishing Company complex to create a specialized Forex Market (Kasuwar yan chanji), the first of its kind in Nigeria and another one from Fari Properties Ltd. seeking to transform the abandoned Daula Hotel in the state capital into a residential The commissioner indicates that the council also received proposal for the construction of a multi-purpose ultra-modern shopping complex at the premises of Daula Hotel in the metropolitan area. Malam Garba recalls that a similar proposal was received last week from Mudatex for the construction of a shopping mall at Daula Hotel. An exhibition hall that has been converted into a makeshift treatment facility to treat patients of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is pictured in Hong Kong, China on Aug. 1, 2020. (Pak Yiu/Reuters) China Begins Mass COVID-19 Testing in Hong Kong, Raising Fears of DNA Surveillance Beijing is now directly intervening in Hong Kongs management of COVID-19, in what many Hong Kong residents fear is an attempt to exert control over the city under the guise of support. This past week, Chinese authorities announced its plan to send a 60-person team into Hong Kong, a former British colony that returned to Chinese rule in 1997, to assist the city in conducting widespread COVID-19 testing through nucleic acid tests. On Sunday, seven medical workers from mainland China first arrived and checked into Hong Kongs infamous Metropark Hotelthe same hotel where a 2003 SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) super-spreading event occurred involving a Chinese doctors one-night stay there. The SARS pandemic, which originated in China, eventually infected over 8,000 people, killing 774 of them. Seven medical workers sent from China check into Metropark Hotel Kowloon on Aug. 3, 2020. (Song Bilong/The Epoch Times) Meanwhile, COVID-19s spread has reached every corner of the globe. So far, over 18 million people are reported to have been infected, with 689,000 COVID-19 deaths recorded around the world. China Biomedical Group Involved in Hong Kong Testing A lab set up by Chinese gene sequencing and biomedical firm Beijing Genomics Institute (BGI) Group is among several mainland Chinese organizations that will conduct free new coronavirus tests for high-risk groups of more than 400,000 people in Hong Kong, according to a news report reposted on the companys website. Chinese state-run media Xinhua cited Yu Dewen, leader of the 60-member team from China, who said the Hong Kong branches of three mainland laboratories, including BGI, have the capacity to test 20,000 to 30,000 a day. With the support team joining hands with the mainland institutions, we can greatly increase testing capacity, he said in an Aug. 3 report. BGI Group did not respond to a request for comment. Two subsidiaries of BGI Group are currently blacklisted by the United States over their role in conducting genetic analyses used to further the repression of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. The ban bars their access to American goods and technology. According to a recent Axios report, BGI Group collected DNA samples from Uyghur and other Muslim ethnic groups in Chinas Xinjiang region, in circumstances where consent was likely impossible. These acts were contractually agreed upon in an agreement signed between BGIs chairman and local Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials in 2016, according to the report. Our concern is that there is widespread collection of DNA without legal protection and without telling people, Maya Wang, a researcher for Human Rights Watch, told Nature Science Journal. The human rights group authored a 2017 report about DNA surveillance in Xinjiang. The Chinese Government is building the worlds largest police-run DNA database in close cooperation with key industry partners across the globe, wrote the Australian Strategic Policy Institute in a report released in June. This program of mass DNA data collection violates Chinese domestic law and global human rights norms. And, when combined with other surveillance tools, it will increase the power of the Chinese state and further enable domestic repression in the name of stability maintenance and social control, it added. Hong Kong Residents Worried About CCP Surveillance Via DNA The news of widespread COVID-19 testing conducted by Chinese labs has evoked fear of Chinas plans for DNA surveillance in Hong Kong. A group of local Hong Kong district councilors voiced those concerns on Sunday. Neo Democrat Roy Tam, who staged a protest against the mainland doctors, said one of the reasons why theyre against testing under China is that Hongkongers are concerned about how the data will be handled among privacy concerns, RTHK reported. In the aforementioned reposted news report, BGIs Hong Kong lab director Wang Shihua assuaged public concerns of data being sent to the mainland, saying that personal information will not be collected and that only virus-positive samples would be sent to Hong Kongs health department. Other samples will be destroyed and will not be sent back to the Mainland. The public need not worry, according to the interview conducted by local media DotDot News. A statement released by the Hong Kong government also refuted allegations of DNA collection, stating such claims are absolutely unfounded, emphasizing that all of its anti-epidemic work completely complies with the requirements of the law. The statement also threatens criminal punishment for those voicing concerns about DNA collection. The Hong Kong SAR [special administrative region] Government condemned the acts of those deliberately spreading false rumors and attacking its anti-epidemic work. As to whether spreading untrue claims intentionally by certain individuals would constitute a criminal offense, relevant government departments will study the matter carefully and collect evidence for follow-up. Last week, Chief Executive Carrie Lam canceled the citys upcoming legislative elections, citing a recent uptick in COVID-19 cases. The move was criticized by governments and rights groups, who were concerned that Hongkongers were being denied their right to a free and fair election. This article has been updated with the latest information. A previous version of this article misstated how BGI Group was related to recent U.S. sanctions. The Epoch Times regrets the error. UP elections 2022: BJP likely to give 30 seats to allies BJP to celebrate Ram temple's 'bhumi pujan' by lighting diyas India pti-Madhuri Adnal Dehradun, Aug 03: The BJP will celebrate the foundation stone-laying of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on August 5 by lighting diyas in Uttarakhand. BJP workers throughout the state will light rows of earthen lamps at party offices as well as at their houses to celebrate the occasion, the state unit chief of the saffron party, Bansidhar Bhagat, told reporters here on Monday. 'Shiv Sena contributed Rs 1 crore for Ram temple in Ayodhya' However, the social-distancing norms in view of the coronavirus pandemic will have to be maintained everywhere during the celebrations, he said. Bhagat also appealed to people to celebrate the occasion by lighting lamps. J&K: Army says missing soldier likely abducted by terrorists| Oneindia News "Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be scripting a golden page in the history of India on August 5, when he will do the bhoomi pujan and lay the foundation stone for a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya," he said. Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat also described it as a significant moment. The chief minister's residence here will brighten up with the light of earthen lamps to celebrate the occasion, Rawat said. The Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipal Assembly has held its first ordinary meeting of the first session with a strong call on Assembly members to serve as agents of change against COVID-19 stigmatization. Mr Benjamin Kessie, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Tarkwa-Nsuaem, in his sessional address at Awhitieso, said the major challenge confronting the fight against the novel coronavirus was the continuous stigmatization of persons who contracted the virus. This, he said, was preventing citizens from seeking voluntary testing for the virus. "Landlords are evicting their tenants because they contracted the virus. People are not welcomed by society and their own families even after they have tested negative to the virus," he said. Mr Kessie entreated the Assembly members to frequently educate the citizenry in their respective electoral areas to help reverse the trend. Though the Municipality was declared an epicentre of COVID-19 in the Western Region, the Assembly was doing its best to curb the spread of the disease from the Municipality, he indicated. He said to lead the change towards the prevention of the disease, the Assembly has set up a separate COVID-19 account and had since deposited GH300,000.00. Touching on education, the MCE said the Education Directorate usually organized the Municipal mock examination with the sponsorship of the Assembly at the beginning of every year for Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) candidates. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic the mock examination was postponed and was currently being held following the re-opening of schools for final year BECE candidates, he added. On the school feeding programme, he announced that 27 schools in the Municipality had benefited from the programme, adding that 10,050 pupils were benefitting from the initiative against a target of 12, 842 for 2019. He said a total of 5,791 persons had registered to join the National Health Insurance Scheme as at the end of April this year. Out of the figure, 2,812 are males and 2,979 females. The data shows that about 60 per cent of the inhabitants in the municipality were covered under the Health Insurance Scheme, the MCE said. Mr Kessie stated that to ease the traffic situation in Tarkwa, Alimens-Cyanide and Brenuakyim-Bogrekrom link roads were constructed. "Bonsa-Benso and Kawerekwanano-Esuoso roads are currently under construction while approval has also been given for the dualisation of Agona Nkwanta-Tarkwa road, he hinted The MCE said the government through the Department of Urban Roads and in collaboration with the Member of Parliament for Tarkwa-Nsuaem constituency, has awarded the contract to Justmoh Construction Limited for the rehabilitation of the Tarkwa Senior High schools campus roads. He said the project, which commenced on November 2019, was scheduled to be completed by November this year. Mr Kessie assured the assembly members that an orientation and training programme would be organized for them to enhance their competence. ---GNA LIMERICK Sinn Fein TD Maurice Quinlivan has urged government and Transport Minister Eamon Ryan to bring forward a plan to tackle the aviation crisis. It comes amid massive fears at Shannon that Aer Lingus will cut its base at Limericks local airport. The flag carrier is seeking 500 redundancies, after travel was decimated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Mr Quinlivan, who is chair of the enterprise committee said: The governments handling of foreign travel advice to the public has been shambolic. We are checking people's social welfare status but not for Covid-19 in our airports. All the while, thousands of workers in the aviation industry are fearing for their positions, with the government yet to put a plan in place for the sector. Mr Quinlivan says pilots and cabin crew with Aer Lingus are worried its parent firm IAG might sacrifice Irelands national airline to keep its other firms afloat. Given that it doesnt appear that international travel will return to normal anytime soon, these fears are legitimate, and the government must act accordingly, he said, Workers in Aer Lingus at Shannon have been let down by successive administrations, with Fianna Fail, the Green Party, Fine Gael and Labour all party to the shameful sell-off of the national airline. We cannot afford to lose Aer Lingus. The government must listen to the legitimate concerns of pilots and staff at the airline and put a comprehensive plan in place to support the aviation sector. Connectivity is the life blood of the mid-west economy. This announcement will worry not just those directly threatened by this statement but also by businesses and the huge numbers employed across the Mid-West, Mr Quinlivan concluded. STOCKHOLM, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading in-game ad platform Adverty announces hires of Chief Commercial Officer Tobias Knutsson, Senior Director of Business Development Christian Atack and Senior Director of Sales Nicola Halpin to spearhead further growth. Adverty AB (publ), the leading in-game platform for advertisers, agencies and game publishers, has announced further expansion with three strategic hires, following the launch of its UK office earlier this year. Adverty delivers seamless advertising which connects brands and audiences through its revolutionary display advertising technology built for gaming. Its most recent hires include Tobias Knutsson who joins as CCO, Christian Atack joins the team as Senior Director of Business Development and Nicola Halpin, who joins as Senior Director of Sales. Based in Adverty's headquarter in Stockholm, Sweden, Tobias Knutsson takes on the role of Chief Commercial Officer for Adverty and will be responsible for driving revenue and overseeing sales in US, EMEA and APAC. With extensive experience in the digital media sector, Knutsson has held senior commercial roles within the Schibsted Group and most recently, as Swedish CEO at Strossle - a company specialised in native advertising which in 2018 was ranked by Deloitte as the second fastest growing tech company in Sweden. Meanwhile, Nicola Halpin has been engaged by Adverty as Senior Director of Sales, and will be focused on agency and brand sales for the EMEA market, reporting to Tobias Knutsson. Formerly head of agency sales at mobile advertising tech company, Taptica - which she successfully launched to the UK market in 2017 - Nicola has held a variety of senior roles at companies such as CBS Interactive, Carat, The Weather Channel and IDG Communications. Nicola will drive adoption of Adverty's digital advertising solutions through building strategic partnerships with global agencies in EMEA. Her 20 years of experience in advertising across a variety of platforms makes her an experienced networker and leader. Previously Head of Publisher Business Development EMEA at global mobile advertising platform, Mintegral, Christian has held senior business development roles at a number of other adtech companies including Taptica, Unity Technologies (Unity Ads) and Digital Turbine. He will be responsible for the continued global growth of publishers using Adverty's in-game ad platform for monetisation. Christian joins Adverty on September 1st. "We are delighted to welcome not one but three industry heavyweights into Adverty. Tobias is a well-known and respected C-suite leader who has exceptional experience of overseeing successful commercial teams. Nicola is a strategic business professional at the forefront of industry developments. I have no doubt that her strong agency background will help drive growth even further", says Niklas Bakos, CEO and founder, Adverty. "Meanwhile, almost every game developer knows Christian, and his broad international sales experience, account management expertise and business development acumen also make him a highly-prized new member of the team." Adverty works closely with agencies such as Dentsu Aegis Network and GroupM. The expansion of the business across EMEA follows ever-increasing numbers of advertisers looking for in-app advertising at scale, and for publishers who want to monetise their gaming inventory with unobtrusive brand advertising. "In-game brand advertising is currently experiencing a significant growth potential worldwide and it is an exciting time to be joining Adverty to lead the company's commercial division globally", says Tobias Knutsson, CCO, Adverty. "Leading media agencies are now starting to heavily look into and prioritise the gaming vertical as the media channel for the future", adds Nicki. "Adverty is an exceptional in-game advertising platform and I am delighted to be joining the team to bring this innovative company to a wider range of brands and agencies." "In-game advertising to date has been all about driving users to download and play new apps. Adverty, on the other hand, allows game publishers to keep their users while generating revenue through deeply integrated brand ads, and that I believe is the future of game monetisation", explains Christian. "This is such an exciting time to be joining the company." For further information, please contact: Niklas Bakos, CEO Phone: +46 703 66 96 46 E-mail: [email protected] This information is information that Adverty AB (publ) is obliged to disclose under the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was provided, through the contact of the above contact person, for publication on the 3rd of August 2020. Augment Partners AB, phone +46 8-505 65 172, act as certified advisor/mentor for the company at NGM Nordic SME. About Adverty Adverty, the leading in-game platform, delivers seamless advertising to connect brands and people through its revolutionary display advertising technology built for games. The platform offers true in-game ad inventory at scale and allows content creators to monetise the complete experience with unobtrusive, easy-to-integrate, immersive ads. Founded in 2016, Adverty has offices in Stockholm, London and Lviv and works with advertisers, agencies and developers to unlock audiences and gaming revenue streams. More information at www.adverty.com. This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com https://news.cision.com/adverty-ab/r/adverty-continues-expansion-of-uk-team-and-global-operations-with-three-senior-hires,c3163019 The following files are available for download: SOURCE Adverty AB Im confident in our firm and our abilities as attorneys and hope to contribute to the continued success of the firm for years to come. San Antonio based business law firm, Clausewitz Law Firm, is pleased to announce former Senior Associate, Shellie R. Reyes, as its new partner effective July 1, 2020. Shellie and I have worked together for several years, and she proved very early to be not only an excellent attorney, but also a critical contributing team member and emerging leader, stated Firm President, Tiffanie Clausewitz. I was thrilled when Shellie decided to make the leap and join me in starting a new firm last August. She has been instrumental to the firms successful launch, and her admittance as a partner and equity stakeholder is a reflection of her invaluable contributions and outstanding legal work. Ms. Reyes has a broad litigation practice representing individuals and companies in both State and Federal Court proceedings. In her practice, Ms. Reyes handles a wide variety of business and commercial disputes involving breach of contract, business torts, fiduciary duties, injunction litigation, real property rights, oil and gas, collection matters, deceptive trade practice, construction defects, and employment contracts. Ms. Reyes also litigates and counsels on business assets and entities involved in divorce proceedings. Ms. Reyes is an emerging leader in the legal field and community. In 2018, she was selected to participate in the Bexar County Womens Bar Foundations LEAD Academy, a select leadership program aimed at developing accomplished women attorneys into leaders in the legal field and their community. In 2019, Ms. Reyes was selected to participate in Cohort 4 of the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerces Latina Leadership Institute, a selective leadership program which prepares and advances women leaders into higher civic engagement roles on boards, commissions, and in public office on local, regional, and national levels. In a quote, Ms. Reyes stated, When Tiffanie recruited me to her new firm, I knew she was taking a chance on me. I am honored that she believed in me to help her on this new endeavor and becoming a partner really solidified that for me. Im confident in our firm and our abilities as attorneys and hope to contribute to the continued success of the firm for years to come. Currently, Ms. Reyes serves on the Latina Leadership Institutes Cohort 5 Steering Committee, on the Board of Directors for Project Transformation, on the Board of Directors for San Antonio Youth Literacy, and is a member of the executive board of the Family Law Section of the San Antonio Bar Association. Ms. Reyes has been recognized for her achievements in the legal field, named a Best Lawyer by Scene in S.A. Magazine in 2016, 2018, and 2019. In 2020, Ms. Reyes was also named as a Rising Star on Thompson Reuters Super Lawyers List for her Business Litigation practice. About the Clausewitz Law Firm: Clausewitz Law Firm, PLLC, is located at 2722 West Bitters Road, Suite 110, San Antonio, Texas 78248. President Tiffanie S. Clausewitz, along with Partner Shellie R. Reyes provide services in the areas of business litigation, corporate law, labor & employment, real estate, estate planning & probate, and family law. For more information about the Clausewitz Law Firm, PLLC, visit https://www.clausewitzlaw.com or call (210) 762-6422. Editor, Advertiser: We are just under a month away from planned school reopening in Connecticut. With two children enrolled in the New Canaan Public School System, we listened to the presentation last week from the superintendent and the team with intense interest. The superintendent did a good job providing material and talking about steps that are being put in place to make schools as safe as possible, and to provide a successful learning experience for all involved. Despite this well formulated plan, it is clear that we do have legitimate reluctance by some in the community to reopening schools. Yet, reopening as outlined by the superintendent for in-person learning on Aug. 31st may the best option, especially when we keep in mind a few key areas: The Town of New Canaan has done very well in terms of containing the virus and we should benefit from this hard work: The first selectman has provided very granular information regarding the number of active cases in New Canaan. I encourage you to look at https://www.newcanaan.info/Covid-19/data_725.pdf, which shows New Canaan has averaged around six cases per week over the last four weeks (and four cases per week between May 31 and July 25). For a town with 20,000 people that is a low number. In addition, New Canaan performed 3,200 tests in June alone (i.e. testing has been ramped up significantly compared with the early stages of this crisis.) The State of Connecticut is also doing well in terms of containing the virus: I encourage you to look at the official statistics for the state at https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/Coronavirus/CTDPHCOVID19summary7312020.pdf where it shows that the State confirmed 140 new cases over the last 24 hours from the more than 15,200 tests performed in the same period (a 0.9 percent positive ratio on the 0.43 percent of the total State population tested that day). One challenge we have with the current presentation of State statistics is that they do not show the number of recovered patients (i.e. what happened to the approximately 45,000 and growing number of people who tested positive but did not die from this disease?) If the state has a good tracking and tracing program in place we should know, in detail, and be shown statistically, the recovery status of all of these people. Most likely, a majority of these people have fully recovered, and are no longer quarantining or at risk. Hopefully, many are providing plasma to improve treatment outcomes for those who are getting the disease now. Being outdoors is much better than indoors to contain this virus: It is pretty clear from the data that the risk of transmission of the disease is higher in indoor environments compared with outdoor environments. In the Northeast we have another 3-plus months of decent weather in front of us. I am very glad to hear that the New Canaan Schools will incorporate the outdoors into classroom learning. This option will not be as available over the winter. Some may advocate for alternatives to in-person learning to start the academic year. But, lets look at the possible disadvantages of three alternatives to starting as planned: Delay opening: Unless we are expecting a very large shipment of vital PPE in early September, any advantage of delay is lost by reduced access to the outdoors, and spreading out the use of space in schools. We have had 5-plus months to plan for this, our community infection rate is very low, so it is very hard to see what we gain by another week or two delay. Vaccine: We can wait for a vaccine, but, best case, it is ready over the Winter and it will take time to distribute, (let alone) understand long term efficacy. It is unlikely that school aged children will be first in line to receive the vaccine based on outcomes of the disease, so if we wait for a vaccine we should expect school is virtual until spring 2021 at the earliest. Start virtual then move to in-person: We have seen that patience, especially with the younger population, is wearing thin (large, unmanaged parties), virtual learning at the start will only continue and perhaps increase this trend. In addition, it is more likely that the virus spread will increase in the community as Winter comes (indoor vs. outdoor spread and further reopening of the economy especially related to reopening New York City). Getting in-person learning going first, reinforcing public health messages about managing the disease now, will sync well with expected developments of the disease. Lastly, there are social disadvantages, especially for the youngest children, in having students meet their teacher for the first time, and start their educational experience, online. At least with the spring closure, teachers had taught their students for more than six months and knew them well. I hope we can agree to move forward with in-person school for those who would like or need it. Giacomo Landi You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close Under President Donald J. Trumps leadership, the U.S. Department of Commerce is working around the clock to grow our economy and support local efforts to keep businesses open and workers and customers safe during these challenging times. Today, as part of these efforts, the departments Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding $35.5 million in Recovery Assistance grants that will provide critical gap financing to small Pennsylvania companies adversely impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. The grants are a result of $1.5 billion in CARES Act funding allocated to EDA to help communities prevent, prepare, and respond to the coronavirus. Todays grant recipients are long-standing pillars in their communities that have worked with EDA under its Revolving Loan Funds (RLF) program. These RLF operators will provide credit quickly and efficiently to Pennsylvania small businesses to help them recover from the pandemic and create a more resilient, stronger economy for the future. RLF operators in Pennsylvania have supported a variety of economic development efforts across the state, from Pittsburghs South Side to Philadelphias Navy Yard. Their loans have helped bring clean water to neighborhoods in Lewisburg; assisted a world-class manufacturer with equipment purchases in Elk County; and enabled child-care services to continue in Wilkes-Barre. On July 1, while I was in Erie, I announced the Trump Administrations first EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance RLF award. The $5.4 million grant to the Northwest Pennsylvania Regional Planning and Development Commission is now providing loans to coronavirus-impacted small businesses in Clarion, Crawford, Erie, Forest, Lawrence, Mercer, Venango, and Warren counties. The Administration has since awarded tens of millions of EDA CARES Act dollars to RLF operators across the country. Providing capital to RLFs is one of several ways that EDA is assisting communities in Pennsylvania and throughout the country in responding to the pandemic. EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance funding also is being provided to regional Economic Development Districts to help them update their economic development plans. The goal is to create stronger local economies that can withstand any future shock similar to that of the pandemic. Some of these Economic Development Districts are seeking innovative financing opportunities for businesses and communities; others are identifying and mitigating gaps in broadband service; while others are assisting companies in getting connected with e-commerce platforms to cultivate new customers and generate online sales. In addition, EDAs CARES Act Recovery Assistance is supporting the agencys University Center partners, including Pennsylvania State Universitys Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program (PennTAP). Funds are allowing universities to provide additional technical assistance to more companies and communities adversely impacted by the current crisis. Combined with the Trump administrations efforts to cut taxes, eliminate useless and costly regulations, create jobs, and insist on free and fair trade, these CARES Act investments come at a critical time for putting Pennsylvania communities back on track and to flourish once again. The American economy is quickly recovering from the crisis thanks to the policies that President Trump has put in place, the long-term investments being made and the resilience and tenacity of hard-working Americans. The Trump administration stands resolute with the people of Pennsylvania. We will continue to support your local efforts to boost businesses and create jobs. Wilbur L. Ross Jr. has been serving as the 39th United States Secretary of Commerce since 2017. 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 former governor of Delta State, Emmanuel Uduaghan, on Monday said the allegation linking him with a Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) road contract in Port Harcourt, Rivers, was false. Mr Uduaghan, in statement in Warri, which was signed by his media assistant, Monoyo Edon, urged the public to disregard the allegation as reported by the media on Monday. According to the media report, the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, had in a letter linked two former Delta governors, James Ibori and Uduaghan, to various contracts awarded by the commission. The letter was said to have been addressed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila. Mr Uduaghan, an All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain in Delta, said he had reached out to the minister to immediately correct the falsehood. The former governor who served for two terms under the PDP before he defected to the APC, said he had never approached the commission for any contract. The publication states that the former governor was linked to the contract for the emergency repair of Close B, Alhaji Estate & Environs, Rumuodomaya, Port Harcourt, at a cost of N429m. READ ALSO: I want to state clearly that the said accusation is false. Uduaghan has never approached the NDDC for any contract whatsoever. It is even more ridiculous that the said contract is a road inside Port Harcourt town. The attention of the Minister of the Niger Delta, Sen. Akpabio, has been drawn to the publication and I hope he makes a correction, he said. (NAN) There have been multiple camera releases in the past couple of weeks. Imaging brands such as Canon, Sony and others introduced full-frame mirrorless cameras. If we talk about two of them that were really important for camera users -it is Canon EOS R5 and Sony a7S Mark III. Both these cameras draw the attention of professional photo-takers and videographers. While Canon's EOS R5 has an 8K RAW video recording feature, the Sony's a7S Mark III can record 4K videos at 60p. With such high-end video capabilities, it is common that cameras will come with thermal limitations. There have been reports that say Canon EOS R5 overheats when shooting 8K or even 4K videos. Canon itself has been transparent about the thermal limitation of its new mirrorless R5 camera. In fact, a new report by Canon Rumors suggests that Canon is delaying shipments of the EOS R5 and EOS R6 cameras due to overheating issues. On the other hand, at the product launch of Sony a7S Mark III, the company officially said that they have managed the airflow well to prevent overheating problems. Sony claimed that the a7S Mark III can shoot 4K videos at up to 60p resolution for over an hour, double the time of Canon EOS R5, without overheating. But as noted by Digital Camera World, one of the US-based YouTuber Dan Watson said that while shooting in the direct sunlight, the a7S Mark III became hotter first than Canon EOS R5. The Sony's a7S Mark III did shut off at 23 minutes, whereas the Canon EOS R5 made it to 33 minutes. Canon has acknowledged EOS R5 and EOS R6's overheating issues and introduced an additional RF mount adapter which works as a fan-driven cooling chamber to remove hot air from inside the image sensor compartment. But in the case of Sony a7S Mark III, the overheating problem seems confined to the YouTuber's tests. The United States just suffered its worst economic quarter in nearly 75 years. Its recovery from the depths of a pandemic-induced recession has stalled, as coronavirus deaths rise again across the country. President Donald Trump has what appears to be one final chance to cut a deal with Congress to ensure hard-hit workers and businesses do not collapse before the November election. He has shown little interest in taking it. With the election looming, President Trump is running short on time to get the economy back on track. Credit:AP Rather than push for a comprehensive plan that could win support from both Democrats and Republicans, Trump first embraced big-ticket items that Senate Republicans did not want and that would do little to help millions of struggling workers and businesses. That included a payroll tax cut and an expanded tax break for business lunches, along with $US1.75 billion ($2.5 billion) to rebuild the FBI's headquarters in Washington. A woman in Florida was upset that her Burger King order took too long, so according to the Orange County Sheriffs Office, she got a man to come to the restaurant and shoot one of the employees. According to a WKMG report, deputies found Desmond Armond Joshua, 22, suffering from a gunshot wound in the parking lot of an Orlando Burger King when they arrived just after 7:30 p.m. last Saturday. He was pronounced dead at an area hospital. A woman who was angry about the delay got out of her vehicle and began yelling that she was going to have her man come to the restaurant. Records show an employee refunded her $40 and asked her to leave, the report said. According to the report, deputies said the woman waited in the parking lot in her black sedan for a few minutes then drove away and returned with a white truck with a man identified as 37-year-old Kelvis Rodriguez-Tormes, who was demanding that Joshua fight him. According to the affidavit, a. witness intervened to stop the fight when Rodriguez-Tormes put Joshua in a headlock and started choking him, the report cited. According to WKMG, records show both Rodriguez-Tormes and the woman were interviewed after the shooting, and though their statements are mostly redacted, they indicate that Rodriguez-Tormes dismantled the gun used in the shooting and placed it in a location which cannot be located. WKMG reported that Rodriguez-Tormes is charged with first-degree murder with a firearm, destruction of evidence and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Video was recovered, the report said, as part of the investigation, showing Joshua in a physical altercation with a male who had him in a headlock, according to the affidavit. A witness said the drive-thru was backed up because the restaurant was busy that night, causing customers to have to wait longer than usual, per WKMG. After the witness pulled Rodriguez-Tormes off of Joshua, deputies said Rodriguez-Tormes then went to his truck and got the gun, telling Joshua, You got two seconds before I shoot you. Rodriguez-Tormes shot Joshua shortly thereafter, then fled in the white truck, deputies said. The black sedan fled also, WKMG reported. Officials said Joshua was rushed to a nearby hospital where he died. According to investigators, he had just started working at the Burger King a few days earlier, the report said. READ MORE: 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. Shweta Singh Kirti, the sister of the late Sushant Singh Rajput, shared priceless memories of their Raksha Bandhan celebrations as children. She shared a collage of throwback photos in which Sushants sisters were seen fussing over him and tying him rakhis. Happy Rakshabandhan mera sweet sa baby... bahut pyaar karte hain hum aapko jaan... aur hamesha karte rahenge... you were, you are and you will always be our PRIDE! @sushantsinghrajput #happyrakshabandhan, she captioned her Instagram post. Ankita Lokhande, Sushants ex-girlfriend, showered love on the post. Diiiiiiiii, she commented, followed by a heart emoji. Sushants eldest sister Neetu Singh, whom he affectionately addressed as Rani di, also penned an emotional note for him. Written in Hindi, the letter translates to, Today is your day. Today is our day. Today is rakhi. It is the first time in 35 years that the puja thal is decorated, the diya is lit, but I cannot perform aarti for you. I cannot tie the rakhi on your wrist. I cannot feed you sweets. I cannot kiss your forehead. I cannot hug you. When you were born life became brighter. You spread joy in your lifetime. But now that you arent here, I dont know what to do. I dont know how to live without you. I never thought Id see this day -- a day without you in it. We learned so much together. But how am I supposed to learn to live without you? You tell me. Forever yours, Rani di, it adds. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajputs sister Shweta says disgraceful as Patna IPS officer to lead probe forcibly quarantined in Mumbai Since Sushants death on June 14, Shweta has been sharing memories of him on social media. Last month, she shared her WhatsApp chat with him days before he died, and revealed that they were inseparable in school. Recently, she appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to support the family in getting justice for him. Dear Sir somehow my heart says you stand by the truth. We are from a very simple family. My brother had no Godfather when he was in Bollywood nor do we have anyone right now. My request to you is to immediately look into this case and make sure that everything is handled in a sanitized way and no evidence is tampered with. Expecting justice to prevail, she wrote in a letter shared on Instagram. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918 . Follow @htshowbiz for more Spains former monarch, King Juan Carlos I, says he is leaving Spain to live in another country amid a financial scandal. The royal familys website on Monday published a letter from Juan Carlos to his son, King Felipe VI, saying I am informing you of my considered decision to move, during this period, out of Spain. Juan Carlos, in the letter, says he made the decision against the backdrop of public repercussions of certain episodes of my past private life. He says he wants to ensure he doesnt make his sons role difficult, adding my legacy and my own dignity, demand that it should be so. He did not say which country he will be moving to. Juan Carloss lawyer, Javier Sanchez-Junco Mans, said in an emailed statement that the former king had asked him to make clear that even though he will be outside Spain he intends to be available to cooperate with the investigation. Spains prime minister recently said he found the developments about Juan Carlos -- including investigations in Spain and Switzerland -- disturbing. Since Spains Supreme Court opened its probe earlier this year, Spanish media outlets have published damaging testimony from a separate Swiss investigation into millions of euros (dollars) that were allegedly given to Juan Carlos by Saudi Arabias late King Abdullah. Juan Carlos allegedly then transferred a large amount to a former companion in what investigators are considering as a possible attempt to hide the money from authorities. The 82-year-old former king is credited with helping Spain peacefully restore democracy after the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975. But marred by scandals in the later years of his reign, Juan Carlos in 2014 abdicated in favor of his son Felipe VI, losing the inviolability protection Spains Constitution grants to the head of state. After media reports claimed Felipe was a beneficiary of an offshore account holding an alleged 65 million-euro gift ( $76 million) from Saudi Arabia to Juan Carlos, Felipe renounced any future personal inheritance he might receive from the former king. Felipe also stripped his father of his annual stipend of 194,232 euros ($228,000.) The royal house has denied that Felipe had any knowledge of his fathers alleged financial irregularities. A 32-year-old Polish national has been charged after gardai seized ecstasy and cocaine worth an estimated 600,000 during a search at a house in Leixlip, Co Kildare. At approximately 12:45pm on Saturday, following an intelligence led operation undertaken by the Leixlip Drugs Unit targeting the sale and supply of drugs in the Kildare, Laois and Offaly divisions, a search operation was conducted at a house in Louisa Park, Leixlip. During the course of the search Gardai seized approximately 520,000 of suspected MDMA, more commonly known as ecstasy. Przemyslaw Goska was later arrested at the scene by Gardai. During a follow-up search of the man's vehicle, approximately 80,000 of suspected cocaine was seized. Goska was detained at Leixlip Garda Station under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act and appeared before Dublin District Court yesterday. Garda Jason Tome from Leixlip garda station told judge John Campbell that Goska made no reply to four separate charges under the Misuse of Drugs Act. Goska was charged with possession of and possession with intent to supply both MDMA and cocaine. There was no application for bail, and Goska was remanded in custody to Cloverhill Prison to appear in court again on August 6 via video link. An application for legal aid was granted. By Associated Press NEW YORK: Presidential politics move fast. What we're watching heading into a new week on the 2020 campaign: Days to general election: 92 Days to first state offering early voting (North Carolina): 33 THE NARRATIVE With early voting fast approaching, both presidential camps are feverishly making final preparations for the post-summer sprint to Election Day as the coronavirus pandemic and related economic devastation show few signs of improving. Democrat Joe Biden is on the verge of picking a running mate, if he hasn't already, a decision that is likely the most significant of his decades-long political career. And President Donald Trump's team is fighting to settle on a campaign message as the Republican president himself takes dramatic steps to undermine the integrity of the election in case he loses. ALSO READ: Ransomware feared as possible saboteur for upcoming US election Never has an incumbent U.S. president so blatantly attacked the election process itself and done so little to try to fix it. Trump spent much of last week decrying the expected surge in mail voting during the pandemic, going so far as to suggest delaying the election date. While congressional leaders in both parties slapped down the idea, Trump did not back away from the shocking suggestion or his baseless claims that the 2020 election will be rigged against him. At the same time, the Trump administration has opposed any significant efforts in the latest coronavirus rescue package to protect and strengthen mail voting. But this week largely belongs to Biden, who is days away from announcing the winner of the veepstakes. The public and private jockeying among the prospective picks has intensified, but expect it to get even hotter before it's over. Beleaguered Republicans are praying for a flawed pick who would help make the 2020 contest a binary choice instead of a referendum on Trump. THE BIG QUESTIONS And the veepstakes winner is? A smart operative told us over the weekend that only an extremely small circle maybe three or four people truly knows Biden's thinking regarding his running mate, and those people aren't talking. That means much of what you see and hear in the coming days is likely a reflection of spinning by the supposed finalists and by Washington group think that may or may not be connected to reality. We know for sure that Biden will pick a woman, and he said he would make his decision this week, although his campaign has raised the possibility that a formal announcement wouldn't come until next week. The finalists are thought to include California Sen. Kamala Harris, former national security adviser Susan Rice, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and California Rep. Karen Bass, and it's always possible the choice will be someone else. Many establishment voices are urging Biden to go with Harris, a potential fundraising star who has already been vetted on the presidential stage and been elected statewide multiple times. Some Obama allies are pushing Rice, who has never run for public office but has an unrivaled command of global affairs and experience working at Biden's side. Many progressives are hoping for a more "exciting" pick such as Warren or Bass who could help energize the party's left flank. This marks the last major moment of the 2020 campaign truly under Biden's control. Will Trump do anything to strengthen vote by mail? Trump last week floated the idea of delaying the November election until the pandemic improves to a level where it's safer for most people to vote in person. To be clear, the election date will not be delayed. Republicans and Democrats in Congress, who would have to change federal law to move the election, have overwhelmingly rejected the idea. The question then becomes whether the Trump administration will do anything to address his concerns about mail voting. Experts say that the threat of major fraud is virtually nonexistent, but the postal service is legitimately overwhelmed and state elections officials struggled to count the explosion of mail ballots throughout the primary season, which delayed final results by weeks in some cases. This is a very foreseeable crisis. Yet so far, Trump seems far more willing to undermine voter confidence in the election than address serious concerns. Republicans have an opportunity to strengthen mail voting in the new coronavirus rescue package, but absent Trump's support, it's hard to imagine Trump's party doing much to address the issue. What's happening to the economy? Last month's optimism about the economy seems to be fading. The government released new numbers last week documenting a record drop for the nation's gross domestic product last quarter in addition to rising unemployment applications. At the same time, Republican governors, including staunch Trump allies like Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves, are openly contemplating rolling back reopening plans, if they haven't already, should coronavirus infections continue to strain their states' health care systems. This is bad news for Trump politically and bad news for millions of Americans whose livelihoods are at stake. To make matters worse, Congress failed to pass an economic relief package last week as enhanced unemployment benefits expired for nearly 30 million people. It's easy to imagine the loss of such income having a further chilling effect on an already shaky U.S. economy. The longer this economic pain lasts, the harder it will be for Trump to convince voters that he's better positioned than Biden to rebuild the economy. The coronavirus death toll, meanwhile, continues to surge. Will anyone see Trump's formal nomination? GOP officials said over the weekend that the vote to formally give Trump his party's 2020 presidential nomination will be conducted in private later this month. While Trump called off the public components of the convention in Florida last month because of the pandemic, more than 300 delegates are scheduled to gather in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Aug. 24 to make Trump the GOP standard-bearer once more. The moment is usually a highlight of the national presidential conventions, but a spokeswoman for the Republican National Convention said that the press would not be allowed to cover it because of health concerns. While Trump's nomination is assured, the decision to block coverage of the historic moment is curious. Nominating conventions are traditionally meant to be media bonanzas, as political parties seek to leverage the attention the events draw to spread their message to as many voters as possible. If the GOP decision stands an official later said the decision wasn't final it will be the first party nominating convention in modern history to be closed to reporters. THE FINAL THOUGHT One of Obama's top advisers, David Axelrod, said a presidential campaign is an "MRI of the soul." That's especially true for a first-time candidate. But most Americans know Biden from his long tenure. This time, it may be his running mate who gets even more scrutiny. The less time that person has spent on the national stage, the more likely of unforeseen controversy. Bass, who has never sought national or statewide office, faced tough questions on the Sunday morning talk show circuit about her decades-old travels to Cuba and, more recently, her warm description of its leader Fidel Castro after his death. As she's learning, that kind of thing doesn't play so well in Florida, a vital general election battleground. And that's before the video surfaced of Bass seeming to praise aspects of Scientology at a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Just two of Biden's finalists Harris and Warren have been vetted already under the bright lights of presidential politics. For everyone else, there is a real element of uncertainty. With every risk, however, there could be a reward. JERUSALEM Israeli troops ambushed four militants as they planted bombs along Israels boundary with Syria around midnight, the Israeli military said early Monday, amid heightened tensions along Israels frontiers. Late Monday, the military said its fighter jets, attack helicopters and aircraft had struck military targets in southern Syria belonging to the Syrian Armed Forces in response to the attempt to lay explosives the night before. The militants, whose identity or affiliation were not immediately known, were assumed to have been killed on the spot by a combination of ground and air fire, said Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, an army spokesman, adding that troops were scanning the area. No casualties were reported on the Israeli side of the lines, where special forces had been lying in wait, aided by observation teams and permanent cameras, after the military noticed irregular activity at night during the past week, Colonel Conricus said. Melissa Martin grew up in Cajun culture around the fishing town of Chauvin. Her professional life has been built around food, cooking at restaurants, catering gigs, relief efforts and more. She started a pop-up and developed it into a restaurant of the same name, Mosquito Supper Club (which is temporarily closed). She recently released a cookbook about her life in Cajun culture and food, Mosquito Supper Club Cajun Recipes From a Disappearing Bayou. Gambit: How did you come to write a cookbook? Melissa Martin: Part of the experience of coming to the restaurant is that I tell stories and try to talk to people about the reality in south Louisiana right now environmentally, culturally. We debunk Cajun myths and serve this food I grew up eating. I thought that was needed because I didnt feel great about the options when people would ask, Where can we get Cajun food in New Orleans? I would say, Nowhere. I grew up in a fishing village. I want people to understand where their food comes from. More than anything, my work has been about being able to support fishermen and farmers being able to serve the best ingredients I can. We broke the book down in seafood chapters so we can talk about the life of a fisherman, how shrimp get sold, how to get good shrimp. We do the same with local oysters. We talk about the problems in the industry and possible solutions. We talk about coastal erosion and the loss of bayou, both metaphorically and physically. With that comes loss of tradition and culture. I pay tribute to the women. They were the people who were cooking. They were in the kitchen. The women held together what to me is the center and the heart of Cajun culture, and that is the table and food. G: How do you think Cajun culture has been misrepresented? M: In New Orleans, its the tours getting on a bus and going out to feed marshmallows to alligators. You see the word Cajun on so many trinkets in shops on Bourbon Street. The term is being used interchangeably with Creole, which it shouldnt be. On a food level, everything is spicy. Well, thats not true either. Even Creole spice is false. I dont think it can be all bundled up together, but we do season our food. (In my hometown) people didnt get modern with their Cajun food. Theyre still cooking it the same way. Its sort of frozen in time. Maybe theres a faster technique for this or that, but its the same food thats passed down. G: How has the pandemic affected the restaurant? M: March 14 was last day as we knew it. Pre-COVID. We transitioned and cooked with Feed the Frontline. My sous chef did every one of those meals because she wanted to work by herself because of COVID. Then we cooked to-go food, until we could operate at 50% capacity. We opened our dining room until last Saturday, when we closed to take a break and to reassess. We were running at the speed of lightning, and trying on all these different hats all these different business models. And really, that just costs you a ton of money. We landed on this new business model which isnt family-style seating two seatings and just 12 people; and we spread them out all over the restaurant. What was Mosquito before will never be again. It used to be people seated family style, passing around platters of food. I cant see that happening again or when people will be happy doing that again. Best of New Orleans 2020: Vote Now Since 1986, Gambit readers have voted for the things they think make the New Orleans area sp Chennai: In the Rajiv Gandhi Assassination case convict Perarivalan (a) Arivus parole plea before Madras High Court, the Tamil Nadu government on Monday (August 3) expressed its contrary view. The convict's mother, Arputhammal, had moved the HC on humanitarian grounds citing her sons prevailing health conditions as many of his fellow jail inmates were testing COVID-19 positive. The High Court, however, adjourned the hearing till August 12th. Perarivalan was convicted in 1991 under the grounds of having provided two 9-volt batteries which were used in the bomb that killed Rajiv Gandhi, but it was later established that he merely procured the batteries without knowing about the conspiracy or what the batteries would be used for. Senior Advocate R Shunmugasundaram, Perarivalans counsel argued that he deserves parole on the health grounds, pointing out that the governments counter-affidavit too makes mention of the various ailments that the convict is suffering from. Senior Advocate A Natarajan, the State Public Prosecutor, however, opposing the same said that prisoners are entitled to leave only once in two years. It was added that Arivu had been last granted parole from November 2019 to January this year. Natarajan also emphasized that the pendency of the investigation of Rajiv Gandhi Assassination by MDMA is the reason behind the undue delay of the Governor's decision on the cabinet recommendation dated 09.09.2018 of the Tamil Nadu government. Multi-disciplinary Monitoring Agency The MDMA, a special wing of CBI, was appointed following the Jain Commission report to probe the larger conspiracy in the former Prime Ministers assassination case, which involved persons of other countries. Initially, the CBI had registered an FIR and which was subsequently tried as Calendar Case no. 3/92 against 26 accused including Arivu. A split trial case in Calendar Case No. 11/92 was pending against LTTE leader Prabhakaran and 2 others, wherein MDMA prayer for further investigation and the same was allowed in 2000. In 2013, Perarivalan prayed before the designated TADA Court, Chennai for effective monitoring of the pending probe, but this plea faced stiff opposition from the CBI, investigating the case. That case too was rejected and it was stated that Perarivalan did not have the locus to know the status of the pending MDMA investigation. In 2017, CBI officer Thiyagarajan had informed the Supreme Court about an error he had made while recording Perarivalans confession. Then too, the apex court mentioned that the progress of the MDMA investigation was not functioning satisfactorily, and the top court observed that Arivu could be released under Rule 161 by the state government. The state government recently informed that Governor Banwarilal Purohit is awaiting the final report of the MDMA, which is completely contrary to their earlier view of former CM J Jayalalithaa's decision to release 7 prisoners, including Perarivalan. NEW YORK The Yankees went from Big Maple, leave to Aaron Judge issuing a stay of their dominance. Judge crushed two home runs, including the go-ahead blast, as the Yankees beat Red Sox, 9-7, at Yankee Stadium on Sunday night. Introducing Yankees Insider: Get exclusive news, behind-the-scenes observations and the ability to text message directly with beat writers The 28-year-old star hammered a 468-foot, two-run blast off Boston reliever Matt Barnes with two outs in the eighth inning, snapping a 7-all tie. The Yankees went nuts in the dugout, and social distancing went straight out the window as Judge was treated to helmet slaps and high fives after he crossed the plate. He had also homered in the second frame. Hes hit six home runs in his last five games. His total blasts are tied with Alex Rodriguez for the most through the teams first eight games of a season. A-Rod did it in 2007 the year he won his third and final MVP. Zack Britton earned his third save of the year. Luke Voit also went deep. Buy Aaron Judge Yankees gear: Fanatics.com, MLBShop.com, Lids Judges heroics saved the Yankees from yet another dreadful start from James Paxton, who lasted only three inning and appears not even close to right after February lower back surgery. The Yankees are going to have to decide, and soon, whether he stays in the rotation. They have top pitching prospect Clarke Schmidt ready at the alternative training site. The Yankees won their sixth straight game to improve to a league-best 7-1. They swept their three-game set with the Red Sox, who remain in the American League East cellar at 3-7. The Yankees have won six straight games against Boston. Making it a game The Yankees had to play catch-up all night. They were down, 7-6, in the seventh because of Rafael Devers solo shot to the right-center field bleachers off Mike King. But in the eighth, DJ LeMahieu singled home Mike Tauchman. LeMahieu would then score on Judges go-ahead homer. In the fifth inning, Voit crushed a solo shot to left field, his third of the year. It locked things back at 6-all after Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts collected his third hit of the night with a bomb homer off reliever Mike King in the frames top half. It was Bogaerts third blast of 2020, too. They were down, 5-3, in the third inning, but run-scoring doubles from Gary Sanchez and Gio Urshela, who had three hits on the night, tied it back up. Judges three-run homer highlighted the second inning. It brought in Miguel Andujar and LeMahieu. The Yankees had the bases loaded in the first inning, but Luke Voit struck out swinging after working the count from 0-2 to 3-2. Paxton struggles Once again, Paxton was terrible, and his stuff was diminished. He surrendered five runs (three earned) on seven hits and four strikeouts. His fastball, which averaged 96 mph last year, was at 91.5 via Statcast. It topped out at 92.9 mph. Paxton was in trouble right away, though it wasnt just his fault. His outfield defense sank him, too. With two outs in the first inning, J.D. Martinez hit a long fly ball to the warning track. It fell a couple feet beyond Aaron Hicks, who appeared to lose sight of it somehow. Which was strange, because its a play Hicks makes 99.9% of the time. That set up Bogaerts to crush a home run to right-center field and give Boston a 2-0 lead. After a clean second inning, Paxton got roughed up in the third and had his defense fail him again. Hicks and Judge seemed to miscommunicate on a fly ball Kevin Pillar hit to the warning track. Someone should have caught it, but instead it bounced for a ground-rule double. Paxton couldnt believe it, shaking his head with his eyes wide. Then with one out, Bogaerts ripped a line drive to left field. Andujar, a converted third baseman making just his third career start at the position, simply booted the grounder. It got past him. Devers, who had singled, scored and Bogaerts wound up on third base. A Christian Vazquez single later and it was 5-3 Boston. Get Yankees text messages: Cut through the clutter of social media and text during games with beat writers and columnists. Plus, exclusive news and analysis every day. Sign up now. Please subscribe now and support the local journalism YOU rely on and trust. Brendan Kuty may be reached at bkuty@njadvancemedia.com. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here. The weekend yielded two more COVID-19 deaths in Montgomery County, bringing the countys total to 69. The two deaths, a Conroe man in his 20s and a Montgomery woman in her 80s, follow the countys deadliest week where officials with the Montgomery County Public Health District logged 13 deaths. To date, July was the county deadliest month with 31 deaths confirmed. According to public health officials, the number of cases increased to 6,291. Of those 2,316 are active, a decrease of 95 from Friday. Total hospitalizations, both county and non-county residents, decreased from 183 to 160 with 40 of those in critical care beds. Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough urged residents to continue taking necessary precautions. As we have seen a decreasing number of new cases from our highs a few weeks ago please don't let your guard down when it comes to practicing the CDC guidelines when in public, he stated on social media Monday. The CDC recommends the following measures in a public place: stay at least six feet from others at all times; wear a cloth face covering to help protect yourself and others; wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating, and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing; and bring hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol to use if soap and water are not available. For those needing to be testing, MCPHD has launched an online registration process for its voucher program for both symptomatic and asymptomatic. The testing is for Montgomery County residents only. To get a voucher, go to mchd-tx.org or mcphd-tx.org and click on the need to be tested link. Fill out the information. A voucher will be emailed. Once you have the voucher, make an appointment at your choice of testing center and get tested. The MCHD/MCPHD COVID-19 Call Center is open Monday-Friday, from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Call 936-523-5040. cdominguez@hcnonline.com In a unique Rakshabandhan ceremony, the Aarey Conservation Group members tied Rakhi to the trees in Aarey forest to show how grateful they were to nature for sustaining their lives. Adivasis from Khambacha Pada and Prajapur Pada were also present at the Aarey VIP Guest House to celebrate the forest.This was according to their official release. Aarey saw huge protests from the residents last year when Shiv Sena planned on cutting down 1000 trees. With deforestation threatening the natural surroundings, the residents went up in protest to prevent too much damage. Now these dame residents are coming together to appreciate the value of trees on this festival where the one protected thank the protector. Aarey Aarey saw huge protests from the residents last year when Shiv Sena planned on cutting down 1000 trees. With deforestation threatening the natural surroundings, the residents went up in protest to prevent too much damage. Now these dame residents are coming together to appreciate the value of trees on this festival where the one protected thank the protector. That is just the relationship we have with trees and that is what makes this relationship so good. Aarey The Aarey forest is the catchment area for important rivers - Mithi and Oshiwara. As Mumbai reels from the impact of COVID-19, this was an occasion where one could forget about all that and celebrate nature in its true form. Without trees, we cannot survive, and it is up to us to keep them alive as well. ANI This is a great initiative to show the way for the rest of the country and the world as well. Deforestation threatens our very existence and it's time we took a stand. Such gestures go a long way in the long run. The global death toll from the coronavirus is more than 690,000, with more than 18 million infections confirmed, causing mass disruptions as governments continue to try to slow the spread of the respiratory illness. Here's a roundup of COVID-19 developments in RFE/RL's broadcast regions. Central Asia A 101-year-old Kyrgyz man has recovered from COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus, Health Minister Ainura Akmatova has said. Akmatova said that the man, whose identity was not disclosed, was released from a hospital on August 3 along with a 80-year-old man, who also recovered from COVID-19. Akmatova also said that in the last 24 hours, 410 new coronavirus cases had been registered in the country, bringing the total number of the cases to 37,129, including 1,420 deaths. In Kazakhstan, dozens of vendors rallied in the capital, Nur-Sultan, on August 3, demanding that city authorities allow them to resume their activity at the Artyom shopping mall. Kazakhstan on July 29 extended its lockdown over the coronavirus for two more weeks until mid-August. The vendors have also rejected a 42,000-tenge ($100) relief sum offered by the government to compensate for the losses caused by the lockdown, saying it is insufficient. Health Minister Aleksei Tsoi had said that as of August 1, Kazakhstan would start adding patients who died of acute pneumonia -- which is on the rise in the country -- to the COVID-19 death toll statistics. However, on August 3, he gave the numbers separately, saying that the total number of registered coronavirus cases was 92,662, including 1,058 deaths, while the number of pneumonia cases registered in the country between January 1 and August 2 was 256,541, including 4,042 deaths. Tsoi added that last year, the number of pneumonia deaths in the country in the same period was 2,333, almost 50 percent less than this year. Serious concerns have been raised about the pneumonia data in Kazakhstan. From July 1 to July 8, Kazakhstan registered 56,809 cases of pneumonia -- on top of the confirmed cases of COVID-19. These pneumonia cases included "common" pneumonia -- viral (7,348) and bacterial (9,759) -- as well as 39,702 "unspecified" viral pneumonia cases that present a course of disease similar to COVID-19, according to the Health Ministry. RFE/RL's Coronavirus Crisis Archive Features and analysis, videos, and infographics explore how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the countries in our region. In neighboring Uzbekistan, the Employment and Labor Ministry said on August 3 that unemployment in Central Asia's most populous state had reached 13.2 percent since January. According to the ministry, the unemployment rise in the country of 32 million was caused by restrictions imposed to slow down the pandemic. Uzbek health authorities said that as of August 3, the number of coronavirus cases in the country was 25,828, including 155 deaths. In Tajikistan, health authorities said on August 3 that over the weekend, 86 new coronavirus cases were registered, bringing the total number to 7,495, of whom 61 people died. However, an investigative report by RFE/RLs Tajik Service in June revealed that the real number of lethal cases of COVID-19 in the country might be several hundred, including dozens of physicians and nurses who treated COVID-19 patients. Turkmenistan is the only county in the region that has not registered a single coronavirus case, but RFE/RL correspondents have reported that local hospitals have been overwhelmed with patients with pneumonia symptoms, some of whom, including medical personnel, have died. In Ashgabat, the capital, morgues release the bodies of people who officially died of pneumonia wrapped in plastic bags and covered with a chlorine-penetrated fabric, local residents who lost loved ones told RFE/RL. In some parts of the country, quarantine-like zones have been established, and some factories are being shut down, RFE/RL correspondents report. The leader of a World Health Organization mission, Catherine Smallwood, told a press conference in Ashgabat on July 15 that the mission had concerns about reports of pneumonia in the tightly controlled energy-rich country. Smallwood advised the Turkmen government to activate "critical public-health measures in Turkmenistan, as if COVID-19 was circulating." With reporting by RFE/RL's Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Turkmen, and Uzbek services, and Theconversation.com Naval frontline Su-24M bombers are being equipped with SVP-24 Gefest system which was tested by Russian aircraft in Syria. Su-24M of the 43rd naval air regiment in Crimea were the first to receive the system which allows unguided weapons to hit small targets. Experts believe the pilots will be able to interact with the Ground Forces, commandos and Airborne Forces, the Izvestia daily writes. Follow Navy Recognition on Google News at this link Sukhoi Su-24M of the Russian Air Force inflight. (Picture source: TASS) Defense Ministry sources said the naval aviation is equipping its Su-24M with modern navigational sights. SVP-24 Gefest helps attack both ground and sea targets. The sight increases strike precision of unguided weapons several times. The Black Sea fleet was the first to get the system early this year. The Baltic and Northern fleets will follow suit. Upgraded Su-24M of the Black Sea fleet will participate in Caucasus-2020 strategic exercise in September. Gefest was initially installed on bombers and attack aircraft of the Aerospace Forces. Naval aviation Commander Major-General Igor Kozhin said three year ago that the Navy would receive close to a hundred upgraded airplanes and helicopters by 2020, including SM-24M with Gefest. Bombers with SVP-24 excellently performed in Syria, he added. "Previously, Su-24M could considerably deviate from the target. The new equipment will increase bomb precision. The mission will be accomplished by fewer aircraft and smaller round of munitions. Another advantage is that air controllers can automatically provide guidance and computers will do the job without human interference," Gorbenko said. SVP-24 computer system was accepted into service in 2008. Its successful performance in Syria accelerated its introduction in the Aerospace Forces. Most Su-24M bombers in Syria were equipped with the sight. The Russian military praised SVP-24. The Defense Ministry said the system increased strike precision to the level of guided weapons. Su-24M hit precision increased over three times. Bombs deviate dozens of meters from the target if released from an altitude of six kilometers. The new system constantly monitors target and aircraft coordinates and calculates bomb release parameters. It automatically makes adjustments according to the wind, temperature and aircraft maneuvers. The command to fire is issued in exactly calculated time. There were cases when single unguided bombs destroyed pinpoint targets, such as buildings, tanks and vehicles. Besides Su-24M, SVP-24 is installed on Su-25SM3, long-range Tu-22M3 bombers and other aircraft. Some naval Su-33 have been equipped with the sights. SVP-24 interacts with Strelets reconnaissance and communication complex. Naval bombers with Gefest can directly interact with ground forces and commandos due to it. The 43rd naval air regiment in Crimea was the first to receive Su-24M with Gefest. Until 2014, Ukraine prohibited modernization of the regiment and it remained the last unit armed with outdated Su-24. They were replaced by Su-24M. The regiment received a squadron of multirole Su-30SM fighter jets. They can down air targets and strike at warships with guided weapons. The last Su-24 aircraft left the regiment in 2016. The rearmament with Su-24M with Gefest will increase combat effectiveness and firepower. It will be possible to integrate naval aircraft into modern control systems, the Izvestia said. South Africa has been asked to extradite former Cabinet Minister Walter Mzembi who skipped bail while on remand on charges of criminal abuse of duty and theft of trust funds involving US$847 000. Mzembi, who allegedly committed the offences when he was Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry and was spearheading Zimbabwes cohosting of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Conference in August 2013, is believed to be staying in South Africa since he skipped bail on the criminal charges some two years ago. The Government, through the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) is seeking the assistance of the South African authorities to bring Mzembi to a Zimbabwean court to answer allegations of stealing vehicles worth US$130 000, which had been donated for UNTWO General Assembly. Mzembi also stands accused of abusing his office by donating four public viewing screens worth US$200 000 to Zion Christian Church, United Family International Church and Prophetic Healing Deliverance Ministries in violation of the Public Finance Management Act. The screens were the property of the Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry and Mzembi is accused of showing favour to the three churches by giving them screens without the Treasurys concurrence. In another case, Mzembi and two others Susanna Makombe Kuhudzayi and Aaron Mushoriwa Dzingira received donations amounting to US$815 000 for UNTWO from Mbada Diamonds on behalf of the Government and converted US$517 360 to their own use. In a request for extradition, Acting Deputy Prosecutor-General Mr Nelson Mutsonziwa indicated thatMzembis prosecution will be solely in respect of these criminal abuse of office and theft charges. Mr Mutsonziwa, in an affidavit commissioned by chief law officer Mr Chris Mutangadura, assured the South African government that the criminal charges preferred against Mzembi were not political. He said Mzembi should simply be brought to court within reasonable time for justice to prevail. The accused will not be prosecuted for any offence other than theft, criminal abuse of duty as a public officer as defined in Section 174(1) of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23], based only upon the facts stated in this request. This request is not being pursued for political reasons or any ulterior purpose. Zimbabwe guarantees that Walter Mzembi will receive a fair trial in terms of the laws of Zimbabwe. The Republic of Zimbabwe also undertakes to render assistance to the Republic of South Africa in any criminal matter, reads part of the request. While there is no formal extradition agreement between South Africa and Zimbabwe, the National Prosecution Authority premised its request on the Extradition (Designated Countries) Order of 1990 which designated South Africa as one of the nations to which the Government can seek legal mutual assistance in extradition cases. South Africa and the Republic of Zimbabwe. According to the request, three warrants of arrest have since been issued against Mzembi in the pending cases and the prosecution of others who are in Zimbabwe was also stalled by the politicians absence. Walter Mzembi has three warrants of arrest issued against him by the Harare Magistrates Court. The first concerns a trial supposed to start on 29 November 2018. A mind is terrible thing to waste. Launched in 1972, that was the highly successful motto of an organization that provides college and university scholarships to Black Americans. The message is as powerful as it is simple: An education is life altering and everyone deserves the chance to get one. An advanced education is even more important today than it was 50 years ago, but for many in Canada the dream of getting an education followed by a good job is dying upon graduation from high school, through no fault of their own. Canadas so-called Dreamers undocumented immigrants who came here as children face menacing obstacles that are preventing them from attending post-secondary institutions in Ontario and across the country. As a Toronto Star investigation has revealed, in the eyes of Canadian colleges and universities, Dreamers are considered international students and therefore face hyperinflated tuition fees that effectively shuts them out of higher education. University tuition for Canadian residents is already out-of-reach for many working-class families at $6,000 to $7,000 a year, but it skyrockets up to $29,000 and even $57,000 per year for international students. Even at more affordable community colleges, domestic tuition can be $2,700 but the international rate is five times higher at $13,800. By not allowing (Dreamers) to study in post-secondary institutions, we are effectively punishing them for being here, Francisco Rico-Martinez, a counsellor at the FCJ Refugee Centre in Toronto said. To allow young people to go to elementary and secondary school and then close the door is not only unfair; it is cruel. Cruel and unnecessary. The Stars David Bruser profiled a number of Toronto Dreamers. They were bright students with promising futures but they descended into despair as they realized the grim reality of their futures low-paying, frequently dangerous and precarious jobs, with no security. Meanwhile, they watch their friends moving on with their promising lives. Im so much further away from my dreams, said one 23-year-old. Every September that comes around, when everybody is going off to school I feel like everybodys moving forward in their life except for me. I was always told that I can do such great things in life if I keep working hard. Im going nowhere. This heartbreaking reality for Dreamers, with possibly as many as 250,000 living in the GTA, doesnt have to be this way. The Canadian government offers Dreamers one chance at legitimacy, but it comes at a potentially steep cost to their families. Dreamers can apply for permanent residency on humanitarian and compassionate grounds but it comes with the risk of deportation for the applicant and thier parents or other relatives, who may also be undocumented. Youre taking somebody elses life in your hands. Disclosing my address means Im giving them my moms address ... They could just go and take her, said one 22-year-old applicant. But I knew I had to do it. If I did not, I would be stuck in this (limbo) forever. The federal government can fix this. It should create an amnesty program for Dreamers and the family members who brought them here. The other easy fix is for universities to charge Dreamers local tuition. In 2017, York University launched such a program and saw 25 students enrolled last fall. All Canadian universities and colleges should adopt similar programs. The bright young mind of a person who is established in Canada and wants to stay is exactly what Canada desires. To waste that mind, and to crush that dream, is a tragedy, especially when it will ultimately benefit us all. Recently I discussed my forty plus years of marriage with a young person. He said he couldnt imagine being with one person for that length of time. It caused me to think about the impact that television and the media is having on young people. No longer are long-term relationships modelled as the norm. Instead, as people change their careers, their hobbies or their opinions, they opt out of current relationships and into new ones where they hope to have more in common with their new partner. There is a lot of emotional pain and grief in this process which is never acknowledged. It causes people not to fully commit to a relationship as it may not be permanent and not worth investing in. It encourages self-protection and leads to selfishness. The possibility of a long-term relationship is diminished in this context because expectation is limited and people arent invested. Shared Experiences The advantages of being in a long-term relationship with one person isnt celebrated. Knowing someone over a long time and being able to relax in the security this brings is comforting. Being able to reminisce over shared events, milestones and holidays brings joy. Shared experiences can be laughed over or grieved over together. Its enriching to our lives to be able to say to our spouse, do you remember when we were young and ? Its enjoyable looking through photo albums and laughing at our clothes and hair fashion choices over the years. I remember reading the story of a couple whose marriage was in crisis, but during a conversation, a friend mentioned something which caused the couple to remember a funny incident from the earliest days of their marriage. Suddenly they both burst into laughter. The unfortunate friend had no idea why they were laughing. It was the turning point in the couples relationship and brought them back together. A history of shared experiences is powerful yet highly underrated. Challenges The challenge of long-term relationships is that over time, most people mature and their priorities change. What was important when they were young, may grow less important as they grow older. Perhaps they had strong political, theological or social ideals as a young person but time and history has mellowed their views, or perhaps life events and health challenges have changed them. How do you remain in relationship with someone who is different to the person you married? To maintain a long-term relationship requires focussing on what you have in common and making areas where you differ a lesser priority, while still allowing the other person freedom to pursue these interests. This requires tolerance. Couples wont always spend the entire weekend doing the same activities together but will have enough shared interests to maintain a healthy relationship. I notice that the older couples I know in long-term relationships, have shared interests but also individually they have their own hobbies. Yet, there is a vast variation. Some couples do many things together, while others only a few. All these couples enjoy the time they do spend together but arent so dependant on each other they cant be apart. Investing If we dont invest in our relationships now and make the necessary adjustments and sacrifices, we could find ourselves without an important other to share our life with. We may have had a lot of exciting and memorable experiences throughout our lives but if we have no one to share them with they will prove unrewarding. Good relationships take time, effort and sacrifice. There are occasions when we give up our first preference to share an experience with another and built a nest egg of memories that we can draw upon as we age. Condotel projects are mostly located in localities with tourism strengths. - Photo bnews.vn The condotel market has faced a gloomy period due to low absorption rate while inventory has been on the rise, experts said. Statistics from the HCM City Real Estate Association (HoREA) showed the country now has some 82,900 condotels with a total investment of VND100 trillion (US$4.3 billion), mostly located in localities with strong tourism markets like Ha Noi, HCM City, Da Nang, Thanh Hoa, Binh Dinh, Khanh Hoa, Binh Thuan and Ba Ria - Vung Tau. However, after five years of rapid growth, the condotel market now has a large inventory. Figures from real estate distributor DKRA Vietnam Company revealed big cities in Viet Nam are short of apartments while the absorption rate of condotels is low. Nearly 5,000 condotels from the central province of Thua Thien - Hue to Phu Quoc Island in Kien Giang Province have not been sold. In the second quarter of the year alone, the market had 158 new condotels from two projects on offer, but only 31 were sold, equivalent to 1 per cent in the same period last year. This meant purchasing power in the condotel market is at a very low rate, to the point of nearly being frozen. Even in localities which used to lead the market such as Binh Thuan, Phu Quoc and Ba Ria - Vung Tau, sales of condotels have also been very low at 30 per cent, 17 per cent and 4 per cent of the total estate transactions in the first half of the year. Nguyen Hoang, Director of the R&D Department of DKRA Vietnam, said the tourism property segment had been almost hibernating due to previous development consequences and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Without a change in conditions, this segment would remain hibernating for a long time. According to HoREA, the strong development of condotel projects and resort real estate over the past 10 years has met the surging need of the tourism with the growth of tourist arrivals in recent years, up to about 30 per cent a year for domestic tourists and about 15 per cent a year for international tourists. In 2019, the country's tourism industry served more than 85 million domestic tourists and some 18 million international tourists. There was a rapid development of condotel projects in recent years but with a lack of transparency, stability and sustainability, leading to oversupply in the segment, HoREA said. Many investors have been mobilising capital and selling condotels to be built in the future to customers and secondary investors, while the Government has not completed a legal framework for this type of real estate. However, to attract customers, investors often offer high profits, up to 10-12 per cent a year, even up to 15 per cent for 8-12 years, pushing risks onto customers. The tourism estate segment has not only faced difficulties of oversupply, an unclear legal framework and profits of investors not being guaranteed, it has been also hit by the pandemic. After showing signs of recovering in recent months, COVID-19 has recurred in some localities, especially in the major tourism market of Da Nang. This showed the tourism real estate market would likely continue to struggle. According to the latest Savills Vietnam market report, the real estate market for the first six months of this year has seen the worst performance ever due to the pandemic. Room occupancy had fallen to 32 per cent while room prices fell 13 per cent year-on-year to US$74 per room per night. The 5-star segment has been most heavily affected by its dependence on international visitors. According to the HCM City Department of Tourism, the number of international visitors in the city in the first half of the year fell by 69 per cent to 1.3 million. Legal framework needed The Ministry of Public Security has proposed not granting ownership certificates to allow condotels, tourist villas and officetels to be turned into residential projects. Earlier, some localities like Da Nang City and Ba Ria Vung Tau Province proposed changing land use purposes and issuing certificates of ownership for condotels, gradually legalising them into residential apartments. Le Hoang Chau, HoREAs chairman agreed with the ministry, saying if the Government allowed the conversion of condotels to residential apartments, infrastructure planning would be destroyed. This would also increase the pressure on urban infrastructure systems, especially to reduce the value of the whole area planned for tourism development, business services, trade as well as sustainable revenue sources for the Government, Chau said. He added that planning and adjustment had been strictly and synchronously stipulated in the Planning Law, the Land Law, the Construction Law, and the Urban Planning Law. However, in practice, there are areas that had been planned for tourism development but were no longer suitable, so they could be considered for adjusting land use purposes. However, the planning adjustment must comply with the law and be based on a scientific and practical basis as well as undergoing a strict approval process. Deputy head of the Department of Housing Management and Real Estate Market under the Ministry of Construction, Nguyen Manh Khoi said the ministry received many proposals from property developers to converse condotels into residential apartments. Lawyer Nguyen Duc Hong Son said the concern of the Ministry of Public Security in granting certificates to condotel and officetels was completely grounded as land for construction of such projects is commercial and service land, not residential. At this time, the only way forward would be to wait for the completion of the legal framework to adjust the type of tourist apartment. This means buyers would be assured their rights are protected and they aren't hurt by a lack of transparency, he added. AIICO Insurance Plc has reported a Gross Written Premium (GWP) of 31.9 billion as at June 2020, which signifies a 26 per cent increase, compared to N25.4 billion recorded in comparative period of 2019. A statement made available by the firm in Lagos on Monday said the growth was driven by sustained positive performance across the major lines of business of the Group. It said the groups shareholders funds increased by 9.39 per cent from N27.9 billion in 2019 to N30.5 billion. The statement said the growth is driven by the groups earnings for the period and its strong matching of long-term assets and liabilities, despite volatile yields along the yield curve. However, the Groups Profit Before Tax (PBT) reduced by 28 per cent to N2.17 billion, compared to N3.01 billion in the second quarter of 2019. The reduction was as a result of changes in product mix in the Retail Life business, due to changes in clients preferences. These product preferences were, however, impacted by the lower interest yield environment leading to a 71 per cent increase in the proportion of premiums that had to be transferred to life funds (shown as change in life fund), it said. Commenting, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) AIICO, Babatunde Fajemirokun, said other factors besides the companys operational resilience and strategic marketing within the period contributed to the successes recorded. Mr Fajemirokun mentioned its brand equity, advanced level of automation and business continuity plans as factors that enabled the company to quickly adjust its business model to meet the emerging demands of the low touch economy, triggered by the global pandemic. The strong committed relationship we have built with our customers continues to endear them to us for repeat business, new businesses and referrals, he said. He said as the local and global economies gradually recover from the impact of the pandemic, the firm will seize opportunities for continuous growth. The managing director noted that the response strategy included product innovation, technology-enabled operation and distribution models, coupled with unparalleled customer experience. READ ALSO: We remain optimistic that the second half of 2020 will be better. AIICOs profitable outcomes, amid general uncertainties, challenging macro-economic and highly competitive business environment, is a clear indication that it remains an insurer of choice and is well positioned for long-term market leadership, he said. AIICO Insurance is a leading composite insurer in Nigeria, with a track record of serving its clients for over 50 years. Founded in 1963, AIICO provides life and health insurance, general insurance and investment management services, as a means to create and protect wealth for individuals, families and corporate customers. (NAN) Traffic on some of Melbourne's busiest roads was almost 20 per cent higher in recent weeks than during Victoria's first coronavirus lockdown, exclusive new data shows. Melburnians were driving more in July under the second period of stage three restrictions during which new cases soared from 77 on July 1 to a daily peak of 753 on July 30 than they were under the first phase in March and April, two separate travel data sets reveal. Capital City Trail at Docklands is normally packed with cyclists. But on Monday morning it was empty. Credit:Jason South Traffic delays on Punt Road were 18 per cent worse on a weekend measured in July than when Melbourne was shut down for the first time in April, an analysis prepared for The Age by data mapping company HERE Technologies reveals. But this was still 12 per cent less than pre-COVID traffic in February, with overall traffic dropping significantly under both lockdown periods. Travel halved in July compared with normal traffic numbers and public transport use plunged by more than 80 per cent. JACKSON COUNTY., MI A man was killed late Sunday afternoon when he crossed the center line on U.S. 127 in Liberty Township and collided head on with a tanker truck, police said. Rescue crews were called at about 5 p.m. Aug. 2, to the area of Production Drive on U.S. 127 between Wetherby and Jefferson roads for a reported two-vehicle crash, according to the Jackson County Sheriffs Office. The driver, 22, of Albion, was heading south on U.S. 127 when he veered into the northbound lanes and was struck head on by a tanker truck headed north, police said. The man was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. The driver of the tanker truck appeared to be uninjured but was taken to Henry Ford Allegiance Heath to be checked out, police said. Alcohol does not appear to be a factor in the crash, which remains under investigation, police said. U.S. 127 was closed to all traffic in both directions for several hours while police investigated the crash. It was reopened shortly before 11 p.m., according to the Michigan Department of Transportation. More from The Jackson Citizen Patriot: Michigan senator tests positive for coronavirus Jackson County beach bar closed due to COVID-positive employee Jackson street fair draws hundreds to support Black-owned businesses As many will know, the Temora Aviation Museum (TAM), in Temora, Australia had to close for a while due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Thankfully, they are now open again, albeit with some restrictions. Despite these trying times, museum personnel have been able to devote their energies into several in-house restoration projects currently underway. We reported on these developments in June, but are happy to provide Julys update, which TAM has just published. We thought readers would enjoy reading the latest news: The Canberra restoration is progressing well. Next up is the final inspection of the recently-installed electrical installation for the starter system, along with a vibration analysis of engine with respect to the air frame. Both tasks require specialists from Victoria, so this may take a little time to arrange. However, once these jobs are finished, we will be looking at pilot availability for test flights! The engines are ready and awaiting reinstallation into the airframe, so another project that is going well! This fighter joined the RAAF in November, 1957, but had a checkered career in Australia, which included a wheels up landing while serving with 3 Squadron in February, 1959. The RAAF retired the type in 1971 and gifted A94-983, along with nine other examples, to the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) that December. She became FMI983 with the No.11 Squadron RMAF, but only remained operational until 1976, when Malaysia retired the type too. Interestingly, RAAF No.75 Squadron came to the aircrafts rescue, as they were stationed in Malaysia at RMAF Butterworth during that period and acquired the Sabre following its retirement. They quickly returned the aircraft back to flying condition, and returned her to Australia in 1978. The RAAF operated her in their Caribou and Historic Aircraft Section for a while until its disbandment in the late 1990s. TAM took over responsibility for maintaining and operating the aircraft in 2006. We know fans want to see the Sabre in the air again as do we however this take place until we resolve the effects of ejection seat issues. However, we continue to maintain the aircraft, and this recently included an engine run as part of the preservation cycle. The engine performed beautifully, despite not having run up since last year! If you missed the video, be sure to click HERE! While TAMs Warbirds Downunder air show event has had to be pushed until next year, since it involved aircraft and people visiting from further afield, there are still a couple of warbird flying displays involving the museums own aircraft taking place at Temora this year. These include the two Aircraft Showcase events; one scheduled for August 29th, and the other for the weekend of October 17/18. Each of these events is expected to include all of the museums serviceable aircraft: the Supermarine Spitfires, CA-13 Boomerang, Cessna O-2A, Gloster Meteor, Lockheed Hudson, Wirraway, Tiger Moth and Ryan STM-S2. Also, each event will be strictly limited to 450 visitors, and tickets are ONLY available via pre-event purchase, as no walk-up tickets will be available. Please make sure to check for availability well ahead of time by contacting the museum. 251 Shares Share A few days after my dad flew to Salt Lake City from California, he developed a small cough and fatigue, and then started getting fevers. At that time in late February and early March, we were only testing people who had come from high-risk countries (like China or Japan). After a confusing trip to urgent care and an overnight stay at the University of Utah emergency department, he subsequently tested positive for COVID-19, and was admitted to the hospital on a Friday. Everything happened quickly after that. By Saturday, he was in the ICU for increasing oxygen needs. By Sunday, he was on even more oxygen. By Monday, he was intubated. Being a doctor and the son My dad, Neal, recently retired from a long career in academics and private practice in dentistry. He is a native Midwesterner and a proud husband and father. Growing up in the 1950s and serving in the Air Force Reserves, he learned early on how to be tough and stoic. One of the first things I did when my dad was admitted was to deliver his cellphone and charger so my mom and I could talk to him. Like other health systems in the country, the University of Utah restricted visitors in March. It was hard to be apart from him. When you work in health care, you are very conscious of all the potential errors that can and often do occur. Ive been on the other side, where we say, The outside records arent there, or, The history we got was incomplete. Ive always told myself that if any of my family were seriously ill, I would be there. I would sit in their hospital room and never leave. I wanted to be there with him, even if he was sleeping. I also didnt want to hassle the nurse every hour, asking about his latest labs or vitals, so I called twice a day. I called the off-going nurse at 6:00 in the morning to hear about the night, and then called again at 6:00 in the evening before shift change. Many of my dads providers also called me in the afternoon after rounds. We didnt know if my dad would survive after he was intubated, so I made a point to FaceTime with him and my mom to talk about what he would want. Ive had hundreds of conversations over the years with patients about their goals of care. If your heart were to stop and you were to die, would you want us to try and bring you back to life with CPR? or What kind of restrictions in your daily life would you be comfortable with? But when it came to talking with my dad, I was like a medical student having the conversation for the first time. It was hard, awkward, and so painful to get through. We said our goodbyes, wrote down final messages for friends and family, and talked about what he would want at his funeral. Fortunately, my dad recovered after being on a ventilator for five days. The first days were touch and go, but after that, he stabilized and started to get better. He recovered, discharged, and is now staying with me. The experience has helped me break down what some have called the compassion wallthe barrier created by the extra precautions COVID-19 requires. 1. Help patients stay connected. I empathize with patients who dont have their families with them. I make sure that patients can communicate with their families and that they have a phone or an iPad and a charger. I recently had a patient who was recovering from COVID-19 after being very ill at another hospital. He hadnt been able to FaceTime with his wife and two kids until recently. We made sure he had an iPad available. 2. Answer their questions. Instead of saying, Do you have other questions? I ask, What other questions do you have? I ask this multiple times before I leave the room. I also make sure they have a pen and paper, or their cell phone, to write down additional questions after I leave. 3. Validate emotions to close the physical distance. When I see COVID patients, Im in full protective gear, including a face shield or a PAPR. When I see non-COVID patients, Im wearing an ear loop mask. No matter what kind of room it is, I have to do a lot of communicating. In light of the pandemic, I rely on my eyes and my body language, but even that is limited. I dont sit down like I usually do, I touch things minimally, and I dont shake hands. I stand six feet awayand its really awkward. I recently had a patient who became very emotional. Normally, I would sit down and be close, but I had to stand six feet away and just hand him a box of tissues. Given these precautions, I try to validate patients emotions by telling them that I recognize how scared they must feel. I spend time focusing on their emotions first, instead of diving straight into the medical details. I believe it is easier for patients to listen to the medical analysis if you address their emotions first. Then, I ask, What is your understanding of what is going on? Learning what a patient already understands about their care helps me tailor the conversation to their needs. 4. Share the decision-making One of the hard things about COVID is the unknown. We developed protocols and processes in the several weeks between my dad being hospitalized and my return to clinical service. But there are still unknowns. Ive adopted a mindset similar to other clinical decisions that dont have clear answers. I embrace shared decision-making. I tell them, Here are your options; here are the pros and cons of each. I say, I would recommend this, or I would prefer that. Ultimately, you have to be transparent and honest with what we know and what we dont know. Ryan D. Murphy is an internal medicine physician. Image credit: Shutterstock.com President Donald Trump has agreed to give Chinas ByteDance 45 days to negotiate the sale of TikTok to Microsoft, sources said Sunday. Microsoft Corp said on Sunday that it would continue discussions to acquire the popular short-video app from Chinese internet giant ByteDance. The president had threatened to ban TikTok as early as Saturday but is now said to be willing to 'allow' its sale if the app completely separates from China, Axios reports. Washington based tech giant Microsoft made the statement following a conversation between its CEO Satya Nadella and Trump. It said it would ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and will remain in the United States. Over the last several months, US officials have repeatedly said TikTok under its current Chinese parent company, Beijing-based software firm ByteDance, poses a national risk because of the personal data it handles. The White House and ByteDance did not immediately comment on the Microsoft statement Sunday. 'Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President's concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury,' Microsoft said in a statement. The Seattle based tech giant added that there was no certainty a deal - which could be worth billions of dollars - would be reached but that it was aiming to conclude the negotiations by September 15. ByteDance was previously seeking to keep a minority stake in the US business of TikTok, a proposal which the White House had rejected. Under the new proposed deal, ByteDance would exit completely and Microsoft Corp would take over TikTok in the United States, sources said Saturday. Donald Trump, pictured Saturday, had threatened to ban TikTok in the US. Microsoft confirmed Sunday it is in talks with Chinese company ByteDance to acquire the U.S. arm of its popular video app TikTok and has discussed with President Donald Trump his concerns about security and censorship surrounding such an acquisition Trump and CEO Satya Nadella, pictured, have spoken, the company said, and Microsoft was prepared to continue exploring the purchase of TikToks U.S. operations after their chat In a statement Sunday, Microsoft said: 'Following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald J. Trump, Microsoft is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the United States. It adds: 'The two companies have provided notice of their intent to explore a preliminary proposal that would involve a purchase of the TikTok service in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand and would result in Microsoft owning and operating TikTok in these markets. 'Among other measures, Microsoft would ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. Microsoft appreciates the U.S. Government's and President Trump's personal involvement as it continues to develop strong security protections for the country.' It was not immediately clear what changed Trumps mind. Banning TikTok would alienate many of its young users ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November, and would likely trigger a wave of legal challenges. Several prominent Republican lawmakers put out statements in the last two days urging Trump to back a sale of TikTok to Microsoft. The negotiations between ByteDance and Microsoft will be overseen by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), a U.S. government panel that has the right to block any agreement, according to the sources, who requested anonymity ahead of a White House announcement. TikTok's U.S. general manager, Vanessa Pappas, said Saturday: 'We're not planning on going anywhere' TikTok's U.S. general manager, Vanessa Pappas, said Saturday: 'We're not planning on going anywhere. When it comes to safety and security we're building the safest app because it's the right thing to do.' 'We are so proud of all the various communities who call TikTok home,' Pappas said, urging the app's millions of users to 'stand for TikTok.' Pappas claimed that the app employs 15,000 people in America, and plans to add an additional 10,000 jobs in the coming years. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said earlier on Sunday that the president will take action shortly on Chinese software companies that are feeding data directly to the Beijing government, posing a risk to U.S. national security. CAN TRUMP BAN TIKTOK? Earlier Sunday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo again raised the administration's warnings about social media platform. 'These Chinese software companies doing business in the United States, whether it's TikTok or WeChat there are countless more ... are feeding data directly to the Chinese Communist Party, their national security apparatus,' Pompeo said on Fox News Channel's 'Sunday Morning Futures.' 'Could be their facial recognition patterns. It could be information about their residence, their phone numbers, their friends, who they're connected to. Those those are the issues that President Trump has made clear we're going to take care of,' Pompeo said. A federal committee has been reviewing whether Trump could ban TikTok in the U.S. Its members agree that TikTok cannot remain in the U.S. in its current form because it 'risks sending back information on 100 million Americans,' Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said. 'We all agree there has to be a change ... everybody agrees it can't exist as it does,' Mnuchin said Sunday on ABC's 'This Week.' Advertisement 'President Trump has said 'enough' and we're going to fix it and so he will take action in the coming days with respect to a broad array of national security risks that are presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party,' Pompeo said on Fox News Channel's 'Sunday Morning Futures.' 'They're true privacy issues for the American people and for a long time, a long time the United States just said 'well goodness if we're having fun with it, or if a company can make money off of it, we're going to permit that to happen,' Pompeo said Sunday. ByteDance said it was willing to divest the US operations of TikTok to Microsoft in a bid to make a deal with the White House, two people familiar with the matter had told Reuters on Saturday. The Microsoft offer has gained some support from allies of the president, including Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. The senator on Saturday defended the president's decision to take action against the popular video-sharing app, which officials claim poses a national security risk because of the personal data it handles. Graham however, said he was in favor of an American company acquiring TikTok's U.S. operations, rather than banning the app completely. 'To fans and users of#TikTok. I understand your concerns. However President Trump is right to want to make sure that the Chinese Communist Party doesn't own TikTok and most importantly - all of your private data,' the senator tweeted. 'What's the right answer? Have an American company like Microsoft take over TikTok. Win-win. Keeps competition alive and data out of the hands of the Chinese Communist Party.' In a separate interview on Sunday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which reviews the national security implications of foreign business deals, is looking at the matter. WHAT DOES MICROSOFT STAND TO GAIN FROM BUYING THE US ARM OF TIKTOK? TikToks catchy videos and ease of use has made it popular, and it says it has tens of millions of users in the U.S. and hundreds of millions globally. Its parent company, ByteDance acquired Shanghai-based video app Musical.ly in a $1 billion deal in 2017 and relaunched it as TikTok the following year. In its statement, $1.5 trillion company Microsoft said it may invite other American investors to participate on a minority basis in the purchase of TikTok. Financial terms were undisclosed. ByteDance was valued at as much as $140 billion earlier this year. Any deal with Microsoft to buy TikTok could be worth billions of dollars. It could also expose the company, which already owns Xbox, LinkedIn and Skype, to tech savvy teens. Advertisement The number of American users has been estimated to be as high as 80 million a month - although because the company is not publicly traded, the estimate by outside analysts is impossible to verify. The platform took the world by storm in 2017, which allows users to create original videos that are shared in the app for millions to see. The move comes after Joe Biden's presidential campaign banned staffers from using the Chinese video sharing app, citing security and privacy concerns. In a memo on Monday, Biden's general counsel, Dana Remus, ordered staff members to delete TikTok from both their personal and work phones, and to 'refrain from downloading and using TikTok,' according to Bloomberg. Earlier this week TikTok pushed back at what it called 'maligning attacks' that call attention to the video app's Chinese connections - a coded reference to the inquiry. TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer said the attacks were 'disguised as patriotism and designed to put an end to our very presence in the U.S.' 'We are not political, we do not accept political advertising and have no agenda -- our only objective is to remain a vibrant, dynamic platform for everyone to enjoy,' Mayer said. 'TikTok has become the latest target, but we are not the enemy.' As relations between the United States and China deteriorate over trade, Hong Kong's autonomy, cyber security and the spread of the novel coronavirus, TikTok has emerged as a flashpoint in the dispute between the world's two largest economies. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday that the president will take action shortly on Chinese software companies that are feeding data directly to the Beijing government, posing a risk to U.S. national security ByteDance has been considering a range of options for TikTok amid U.S. pressure to relinquish control of the app, which allows users to create short videos with special effects and has become wildly popular with U.S. teenagers. HOW DOES TIKTOK WORK? Users post videos of themselves and broadcast them on the app Anyone can find these videos and post comments on them; it also allows you to message that person privately Some of the most popular videos are watched more than 10 million times Each TikTok video is generally 15 to 60 seconds long The videos are typically set to music, often showing the user dancing, doing a trick, or lip-syncing Advertisement ByteDance acquired Shanghai-based video app Musical.ly in a $1 billion deal in 2017 and relaunched it as TikTok the following year. ByteDance did not seek approval for the acquisition from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which reviews deals for potential national security risks. Reuters reported last year that CFIUS had opened an investigation into TikTok. Earlier this year, Chinese gaming company Beijing Kunlun Tech Co Ltd sold Grindr LLC, a popular gay dating app it bought in 2016, for $620 million after being ordered by CFIUS to divest. In 2018, CFIUS forced China's Ant Financial to scrap plans to buy MoneyGram International Inc over concerns about the safety of data that could identify U.S. citizens. ByteDance was valued at as much as $140 billion earlier this year when one of its shareholders, Cheetah Mobile, sold a small stake in a private deal, Reuters has reported. The startup's investors include Japan's SoftBank Group Corp. The bulk of ByteDance's revenue comes from advertising on apps under its Chinese operations including Douyin - a Chinese version of TikTok - and news aggregator app Jinri Toutiao, as well as video-streaming app Xigua and Pipixia, an app for jokes and humorous videos. PUNE, India, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Research Dive presents a new research report on the Global Geospatial Imagery Analytics Market which describes the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the current as well as upcoming growth of the market. This report is a complete research drafted by analysts by scrutinizing all the major factors such as regional market conditions, opportunities, market boomers and decliners, and size & scope of the market. Highlights of the Report: The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the global geospatial imagery analytics market in an optimistic manner. As per the report, the global geospatial imagery analytics market was valued at $2,290.0 million in 2019 and is projected to generate a revenue of $11,932.5 million by rising at a healthy growth rate of 23.4% by 2027. Download Sample Report [80 pages] https://www.researchdive.com/covid-19-insights/270/geospatial-imagery-analytics-market#myQueryForm In 2020, the market size had reached up to $3,479.6 million owing to the growing applications of geospatial imagery analytics in combating COVID-19 disease. Factors Boosting the Market Growth during COVID-19 Pandemic: Growing usage of geospatial imagery analytic solutions for tracking the global impact and spread of the COVID-19 disease is boosting the growth of the global geospatial imagery analytics market. Furthermore, geospatial imagery analytics is assisting healthcare centers in planning and preparing for the pandemic response. Owing to all these reasons the global geospatial imagery analytics market is undergoing remarkable growth during COVID-19 pandemic. Current Face of the Market Due to COVID-19: In the course of this chaos created by COVID-19, government bodies of different countries are focusing on the advancement of disaster management plans and policies by evaluating the data collected by GIS, and thus trying to abate the adverse effects of natural calamities such as earthquakes, pandemic, cyclones, and floods. Furthermore, numerous ventures are likely to adopt geospatial imagery analytics technologies for finding ways to help patrons during this pandemic situation. Moreover, a company called Planet has created advanced analytical feeds which are able to automatically identify roads and buildings in satellite imagery. These tools can help in recognizing zones that maybe be at the risk of getting exposed to the deadly infection. Future Scope of the Market: As per the report, the global geospatial imagery analytics market is estimated to experience incessant growth after the end of COVID-19 pandemic owing to a predicted increase in the adoption of geospatial imagery technologies by many businesses. Top Companies in Geospatial Imagery Analytics Market: L3Harris Technologies, Inc. RMSI Trimble Inc. Maxar Technologies Oracle and ALTERYX, INC. UrtheCast HEXAGON Microsoft TomTom International BV. And others are likely to bring in revolutionary developments and boost the market growth in the upcoming years. Inquire before buy to reveal, competitor landscape and business [email protected] https://www.researchdive.com/purchase-enquiry/270 Similar Reports: C-RAN Market: Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 20192026 Request to download sample report [75 pages] About Research Dive Research Dive is a market research firm based in Pune, India. Maintaining the integrity and authenticity of the services, the firm provides the services that are solely based on its exclusive data model, compelled by the 360-degree research methodology, which guarantees comprehensive and accurate analysis. With an unprecedented access to several paid data resources, team of expert researchers, and strict work ethic, the firm offers insights that are extremely precise and reliable. Scrutinizing relevant news releases, government publications, decades of trade data, and technical & white papers, Research dive deliver the required services to its clients well within the required timeframe. Its expertise is focused on examining niche markets, targeting its major driving factors, and spotting threatening hindrances. Complementarily, it also has a seamless collaboration with the major industry aficionado that further offers its research an edge. Contact: Mr. Abhishek Paliwal Research Dive 30 Wall St. 8th Floor, New York NY 10005 (P) +91-(788)-802-9103 (India) +1-(917)-444-1262 (US) Toll Free: 1-888-961-4454 E-mail: [email protected] Website: https://www.researchdive.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/research-dive/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/ResearchDive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Research-Dive-1385542314927521 SOURCE Research Dive Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 04:33:31|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Olgianna Melissinou makes a sandal in her store in downtown Athens, Greece, July 26, 2020. (Photo by Lefteris Partsalis/Xinhua) Olgianna is a third-generation shoemaker, as her grandfather started the family business in 1920 specializing in climbing boots and luxury shoes. In the 1950s her father Stavros took over the business and, shortly after, an interesting proposal came his way. Extremely common during the ancient Greek and Roman times, sandals have a celebrated, centuries-old history in Greece, documented by various artifacts unearthed by archaeologists. ATHENS, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- The first thing that welcomes the visitor to the tiny store of Olgianna Melissinos in the heart of Monastiraki, the old commercial district at the foothills of the Acropolis in the Greek capital, is the overpowering smell of genuine leather. Against the backdrop of finely made sandals, belts and bags, old photos and framed articles that cover the walls floor to ceiling, and a radio playing calm instrumental music in the background, Olgianna and her husband Christos work tirelessly -- but cheerfully -- behind their benches. Olgianna is a third-generation shoemaker, as her grandfather started the family business in 1920 specializing in climbing boots and luxury shoes. In the 1950s her father Stavros took over the business and, shortly after, an interesting proposal came his way. "At some point, a choreographer came by his shop and asked him to make ancient Greek-style sandals for a performance. He did so, he liked the venture and made a few extra pairs for sale in his store," Melissinos told Xinhua. Photo shows handmade miniature Greek sandals in store of third-generation shoemaker Olgianna Melissinou in downtown Athens, Greece, July 26, 2020. (Photo by Lefteris Partsalis/Xinhua) Extremely common during the ancient Greek and Roman times, sandals have a celebrated, centuries-old history in Greece, documented by various artifacts unearthed by archaeologists. But by the 1960s, when Melissinos took that order, the art of sandal making had almost died out, as open shoes were not popular or even considered socially unacceptable at the time. "His neighbors made fun of him. They told him 'no one is going to buy these things you make'. But he laughed and said 'never mind, someone will'." Artistic by nature, Melissinos, dubbed "the poet-sandal maker" because of his talent for poetry and playwriting, saw the project as a challenge to his creativity. "He started designing sandals on his own but also 'stealing' designs he saw on ancient statues, frescoes, depictions of ancient Greek sandals -- he studied a lot. And he started experimenting," Melissinos said. The first pair was sold in no time. "In a matter of a few years, this whole neighborhood changed and even those who were skeptical at the beginning started making sandals," she added. Greece experienced its first major tourism boom during that period and the liberal fashion trends of the time helped establish sandals as an iconic fashion item, a symbol of timeless simplicity and elegance, a shoe equally enjoyed by celebrities and hitchhikers, all basking in the Greek summer. Christos makes a sandal in store in downtown Athens, Greece, July 26, 2020. (Photo by Lefteris Partsalis/Xinhua) Nowadays, the sandal, in its countless variations, forms, materials and colors, remains the top go-to summer footwear. And the tiny store that was one of the first to make sandals again in modern Greek history is now featured in sophisticated travel guides and prestigious fashion magazines. But as Melissinos said, word of mouth is their biggest marketing weapon. According to the sandal maker, quality and craftsmanship make the difference. In her store, everything is handmade of genuine leather by Christos and herself: sandals, belts, wallets, handbags. They do not give the impression that they are in a rush. They take the time to care for every little detail, to think of aesthetics, to add that tiny touch that makes every handmade product in the world unique. Their customers can have the sandal of their choice fitted on their feet, they can ask for little tweaks or even different color straps to create a sandal as close to their needs and taste as possible. "There is a whole story behind this store proving that the shoes are made with talent and craft. There is an atmosphere, they adjust the shoes to your size, you can pick the colors. In 10 minutes, they can give you a totally personalized pair of sandals. It is a very nice souvenir from Athens," confirmed French traveler Diane Petit just after she had her own pair custom-fitted by Christos. "Approximately 70-80 percent of our orders are 'sur mesure,' because we also want to achieve the perfect fit... We want to have a personal relationship with our customers," Melissinos stressed. And just as the Melissinos family craftsmanship has passed down to the third generation, so has the loyalty of their customers. "I was very moved one time when I made small sandals for the great-grandchild of one of my father's customers. It really counts when you are being honest and straight with your customers. The loyalty and the love they show you can go a long way, for generations," the sandal maker explained. As most sectors of the Greek economy, small and medium-sized shoe making industries suffered a severe blow during the decade-long economic crisis. Several manufacturers were forced out of business or moved out of Greece to where labor was cheaper. It was a very difficult time for her business, Melissinos recalled, but she refused to compromise on the quality of her products in order to lower the prices. As she said, what kept the small business afloat was foreign customers, but also a shift in the mentality of Greeks. "We worked hard, and I believe that our customers --especially the Greeks -- rewarded us, because they also returned to the mentality of buying one top quality product rather than 10, which are not of good quality," she stressed, referring to a big part of Greek society that was prone to hyperconsumerism before the crisis. Of course, making unique, handmade products when trends in fashion are changing fast is not an easy task. It takes time, it costs more and has a small profit margin -- but for Melissinos it is a personal choice. "You have to love it and then you can make your clientele love it too," she explained. Melissinos is confident that handmade crafts not only are not dying but are being reinvented and highly appreciated by more and more people. "We have customers who tell us 'I was very happy that I kept these (sandals) for 10 or 15 years. We had a great time 'together' and they refer to all the places these sandals took them to, and how they connected emotionally with them," she said. Over the past years, more and more travelers have visited Melissinos's store with a travel guide in their hands. Tourists today are more sophisticated, they are looking for authentic experiences and products, they do not shop randomly, the sandal maker claimed. Olgianna Melissinou and her husband Christos stand in their store in downtown Athens, Greece, July 26, 2020. (Photo by Lefteris Partsalis/Xinhua) And lately, visitors from China have joined the store's most valued group of customers. "They are always on the lookout for good quality products. They even take more time to decide because this is something new to them. But once they trust you, they become your best customers. I think you have to gain their trust," Melissinos said. This year, the coronavirus pandemic has made things much more difficult for this small business. With approximately half of their customers coming from abroad, and with travel restrictions that are prone to change at any moment, Olgianna and Christos are faced with uncertainty. But combining art with technology, they run an e-shop that ships worldwide and are optimistic that they will be able to welcome their friends back in Athens soon. Dr Kerryn Phelps says everyone in New South Wales should be forced to wear a face mask and warned the state is at risk of a Victorian-style second wave. The former president of the Australian Medical Association told the ABC's Q&A program on Monday night face masks are one of the best weapons in the fight against COVID-19. 'We need to head towards them being compulsory,' Dr Phelps said. 'We need to anticipate that there will be a next wave in NSW. 'At the moment the numbers are relatively low, but there is nothing to say they will remain low.' Dr Kerryn Phelps told ABC's Q&A on Monday that NSW needs to head towards making face masks compulsory to fight off a second wave of COVID-19 Dr Phelps added: 'We know with aerosol transmission now, airborne transmission, wearing a mask is some of the best protection that you can have. 'You protect yourself, you protect others. There's been a nonsensical debate for months now which has been so frustrating because it has not been evidence-based about wearing masks. 'It is one of the single most responsible things that we can do as members of the community to protect each other.' Dr Phelps, who is a City of Sydney Councillor, said Australia needs to work towards eliminating coronavirus rather than the current suppression strategy. She pointed to how the nation had come close to elimination during the first wave, and said current approaches needed to be geared towards eradication. 'We need to think about elimination, we can do it, we got very close to it, we just need to hold the line,' she said. 'We need to get it to the point where we had no community transmission anywhere in Australia and then stop the virus from coming into the country.' Victoria's stage three restrictions are yet to yield results, forcing Premier Daniel Andrews to move to stage four this week People were pictured wearing face masks walk on a street in the central business district of Sydney on August 3 after the Premier's new recommendations that face masks be worn in certain public settings Healthcare workers wearing face shields and protective clothing test a woman for COVID-19 at a pop-up testing clinic in Rushcutters Bay on August 2, as the state attempts to fight off a second wave Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Sunday advised NSW residents to wear masks outside. She said mask usage would not be made mandatory, but revised current recommendations to address four specific circumstances. Masks should be worn by public-facing employees such as hospitality or supermarket workers, worshippers and residents of suburbs near COVID-19 clusters, as well as in situations where social distancing is impossible. 'We have been talking about masks for several weeks but obviously the persistent situation in Victoria gives us cause for alarm in terms of the potential for further seeding in NSW, and it is about risk mitigation strategy,' Ms Berejiklian said. 'We're going to the next stage of assessing what else and how else we can decrease the risk and break the current chain coming through NSW.' Australia all but defeated the virus in May and June, before cases skyrocketed on the back of Victoria's horror outbreak Professor Raina MacIntyre (pictured) has renewed calls on the government to mandate mask-wearing after images emerged of Sydneysiders packed along Bondi beach Hundreds soaked up the Sydney sunshine with beachside picnics at Bondi Beach on Sunday University of New South Wales professor of infectious diseases, Raina MacIntyre, has been calling on the government to mandate masks for weeks. 'Pre-emptive measures such as using face masks early should be used in NSW,' Professor MacIntyre told the Financial Review last month. CASES IN VICTORIA AND NEW SOUTH WALES ON MONDAY New South Wales has recorded 13 new cases including nine cases in the community and one from an unknown source Victoria has recorded 429 new cases with a 'double digit' overnight death toll. (A detailed breakdown is yet to be released) Queensland has recorded zero new cases after fears of an outbreak after two young women who travelled from Melbourne tested positive South Australia has reported two new cases Advertisement 'The earlier you use it, the more effective it will be. 'It may make the difference between not going the same route as Victoria.' The infectious disease expert renewed her pleas on Monday after hordes of Sydneysiders were spotted flouting social distancing rules over the weekend. Hundreds of people were pictured tightly packed along Bondi Beach on Sunday afternoon, as the state attempts to fight off a second wave. 'People are living their lives at the moment as if it's back to normal. We're not back to normal,' Professor MacIntyre told A Current Affair. 'We're in the middle of a pandemic and we don't want to go down the same route as Victoria. 'Even yesterday out and about in Sydney people aren't social distancing, so mandating [masks] might make a difference.' Professor MacIntyre said masks should be viewed as a tool to help retain freedom, rather than take it away, as they will help steer the state away from a lockdown. The concerning crowds in Bondi came on the same day was forced into stage four lockdown after 671 new cases and seven deaths were recorded in Victoria on Sunday. The state recorded 429 new cases on Monday with 13 fatalities. Hours before Victorian Premier Dan Andrews made the stage four order, dozens of Melburnians caused outrage online after a video emerged of masses gathering along St Kilda Beach. NSW recorded 13 new cases of coronavirus on Monday, including nine cases from the community and one from an unknown source. Bondi Beach was packed with Sydneysiders and tourists, some who showed little regard for 1.5m social distancing guidelines Kenitra (Morocco), 3 August 2020 (SPS) - Sahrawi civil prisoner, Abdelah Wali Ahmed Ramadan Al-Khafouni, decided to enter a warning hunger strike in a protest against the difficult detention conditions, according to the Association for the Protection of Sahrawi Prisoners. According to the same source, the Sahrawi civilian prisoner was poisoned in the Kenitra central prison, which resulted in severe vomiting and diarrhea, after eating a meal that did not conform to the appropriate health standards amid the complete lack of adequate health care at Kenitra central prison. It should be recalled that Sahrawi civilian prisoner Abdelah Wali Ahmed Ramadan Al-Khafouni, has been in the central prison of Kenitra, Morocco, serving an unfair sentence of life imprisonment, following unjust trial that lacked the guarantees and standards for a fair trial, which was staged in the Moroccan city of Sale, with the testimony of important international human rights organizations such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. (SPS) 062/SPS/T - Chief of Gonja, Yagbonwura Tuntumba Boresa Sulemana Jakpa, confers the title King of Promise Keepers on Akufo-Addo - He thanked President Akufo-Addo for all the development he has brought in Savannah Region - Akufo-Addo was in the Savannah Region to cut the sod for the construction of the Damongo Water Supply Project - Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in President Nana Akufo-Addo has been crowned King of Promise Keepers by the paramount chief of Gonja, Yagbonwura Tuntumba Boresa Sulemana Jakpa. The Overlord of Gonja made this known when the president toured some areas in northern Ghana last week. According to the Yagbonwura, he conferred the title on President Akufo-Addo because of what he has done for Ghana and the people of the Savannah Region. The Paramount Chief of Gonja, Yagbonwura Tuntumba Boresa Sulemana Jakpa. Source: Facebook/Nana Akufo-Addo Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Akufo-Addo hails Shatta Wale over Beyonce's Already video The people of the Republic see you as a man of hope with vision for acting swiftly and walking your talk. The chief further noted that Akufo-Addo's tenure as president is bridging the gaps and strongly developing and transforming the country. "Let me quickly prompt you that your boldness, affableness, dedication, determination, and call to duty in time touched the traditional authority of the Gonja Kingdom to give a new branding to your name, His Excellency Gariba Yenawura Wura." The Overlord also thanked Aufo-Addo for the creation of the Savanna Region. President Nana Akuf-Addo on Wednesday, July 29, 2020, paid a courtesy call on the Overlord of Gonja before he went ahead to cut the sod for the commencement of construction of the $49 million Damongo Water Supply Project. President Akufo-Addo cuts sod for the construction of the $49 million Damongo Water Supply Project. Source: Facebook/Nana Akufo-Addo. Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Ghanas COVID-19 active cases up to 3,655; total case count is 33,624 Mr. President, as you cut sod for works to begin to supply potable water to the Damongo township, I have the belief that it will extend to benefit the junction community, connecting to Busunu, Mempeasem, Dzornukuntu, Atsuvunyo and to Larabanga, the chief said. Yagbonwura Tuntumba Boresa Sulemana Jakpa further expressed his appreciation to the Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah, and to the Managing Director of Ghana Water Company Limited, Dr. Clifford Braimah for their tremendous contribution and bold steps in their resolve to find solution to the acute water challenge in the region. The Overlord of Gonja lastly, appealed to President Akufo-Addo to help construct more road network linkages and connections within the Region. YEN.com.gh earlier reported that Ghanaians will enjoy three more months of free water and electricity supply, Finance Minister, Kem Ofori-Atta, announced during the presentation of the mid-year budget to Parliament. According to the Minister, the free water will be enjoyed by all consumers and the free electricity will be enjoyed by lifeline consumers. This will bring it to six months that the water and electricity supplies have been subsidised to help consumers cope with the economic challenges arising from the novel coronavirus. Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page. READ ALSO: April Amanda Nutakor: Meet the young lady who made history with 3.84 GPA as a Law graduate from Legon Want to be featured on YEN.com.gh? Send us a message on our Facebook page or on Instagram with your stories, photos or videos. Source: YEN.com.gh More than six months after first hearing evidence, the jury in the Adrian Donohoe murder trial are expected to begin their deliberations this week. It is the prosecution's case that the accused, Aaron Brady (29), shot the detective dead during a robbery at Lordship credit union on January 25, 2013. Mr Brady denies this and says he was moving laundered diesel waste at the time. The lengthy trial has sat for 115 days, of which over 60 days were in the presence of the jury, and 132 witnesses have been called on behalf of the prosecution. Seven people, including the accused, were called as defence witnesses. Mr Justice Michael White has spent much of the past week summarising the large amount of evidence heard and told the jury he expects to finish his charge tomorrow. The jury will then become the sole judges of fact when they begin their deliberations. In his closing speech, senior counsel Lorcan Staines summarised the prosecution's case, which he said was an "overwhelmingly circumstantial" one, tied together with the admissions from the mouth of the accused wrapped in a litany of lies. He told the jury that the accused was a "skilled and practised liar" who told "big lies, little lies, clever lies and stupid lies". These, Mr Staines said, were all for the advantage of Aaron Brady. There was expert testimony and CCTV footage from three nights before the murder when the Volkswagen Passat used in the robbery was stolen in Clogherhead. Phone data also showed there was a silent period between the phones of the accused and Suspect A at this time. There was evidence that a car matching Suspect A's vehicle, a BMW 5 Series, was captured on CCTV on Clogherhead main street that morning. On the night of the robbery itself, the jury heard, the phones belonging to Mr Brady and three other suspects were all inactive an hour before and after the robbery. Mr Staines said that if this was an innocent occurrence, it would be an "extraordinary unusual and unlucky coincidence". The jury also heard of the lies Mr Brady told after the murder; when giving a false account of his movements to Sgt John Moroney the following day, when giving his voluntary statement to gardai 10 days later, and when giving evidence from the witness box. Mr Staines said there were also "other funny coincidences". Within weeks of the robbery, Mr Brady and three other suspects all left Ireland and travelled to "far-flung corners of the world". The accused, he said, settled in the Woodlawn area of the Bronx which he thought would be a safe haven, working in construction and playing GAA. "He came to believe he was beyond the long arm of the law. As time went by, his confidence grew and he wore the shooting of Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe like a badge of honour," Mr Staines said. There was evidence given by two witnesses living in the United States who told the court they heard Mr Brady make admissions. Molly Staunton said she was in Mr Brady's apartment when he was "ranting" about having murdered a cop in Ireland. Daniel Cahill, a barman who worked in the Bronx, told the trial about three interactions he had with Mr Brady in which the accused said he had shot a policeman in Ireland. The prosecutor said it would be "some string of unfortunate events" if this was all "a lie, bad luck and strange circumstances". Addressing the jury on behalf of his client, defence counsel Michael O'Higgins SC said the prosecution had not proven their case beyond reasonable doubt and described it as "highly sculpted", "editorialised" and "smoke and mirrors". He criticised the Garda investigation and said it was "beyond comprehension" that aspects of his client's account, in relation to him being at the diesel yard, were never checked. It is the defence's case that the accused was at the yard in Cullaville, Armagh, loading diesel waste cubes for around 90 minutes at the time of the robbery. Counsel also said that if the jury do find Mr Brady was one of the robbers, they have a number of verdicts open to them, including capital murder, murder and manslaughter. He said they can also find him guilty of robbery but not guilty in relation to the death of Adrian Donohoe. He pointed to the evidence of Det Gda Joe Ryan, who said the gunman with the shotgun was approximately 6'1". Aaron Brady, he said, has been measured at 5'7" to 5'9". Mr O'Higgins described the evidence of a silent period between the accused and other suspects around the time of the robbery as "flawed" and said that messaging services do not show up in data records. He also questioned why proceedings haven't commenced against two other named men, Suspect A and B, who the prosecution say were also involved. The jury were told that his client's lies do not make him guilty and that people lie for a wide range of reasons. The lies told by Mr Brady were to hide the fact he was involved in diesel-laundering activity, Mr O'Higgins said. Counsel said that key prosecution witness Daniel Cahill was not as he appears and was a person with a lot to gain. He said Molly Staunton's evidence swung from left to right like a pendulum and that she was not someone whose testimony could be relied upon. Mr O'Higgins also described Mary Ann Wade, the US agent who detained Daniel Cahill before he gave his statement to gardai, as an "extremely difficult" and "evasive" witness. Concluding his address, Mr Brady's senior counsel asked the jury if the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. "In my respectful submission, it has not," Mr O'Higgins said. The determination of the evidence is now left in the hands of the jury. Aaron Brady has pleaded not guilty to the capital murder of Adrian Donohoe (41), who was then a member of An Garda Siochana acting in the course of his duty, at Lordship Credit Union in Bellurgan, Dundalk, Co Louth, on January 25, 2013. The accused, of New Road in Crossmaglen, Co Armagh, also denies robbery of approximately 7,000 in cash and assorted cheques from Pat Bellew at the same location on the same date. Earlier, when Sheikh Hasina had visited Delhi, we paid her a visit at the Bangladesh High Commission in Delhi. On that day envoys from various countries came and congratulated her. Pakistan's Deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah told Sheikh Hasina that the Prime Minister had sent his best wishes. Even before coming to Delhi, Imran Khan spoke to her over the phone for about 15 minutes. So what's the big deal about this? This is general diplomacy. An Indian officer called me; he was unwilling to accept the development. His question was, "Alright, did you know that Sheikh Hasina was invited by Imran Khan to Islamabad?" I asked the officer how was I supposed to know what they had possibly discussed? Neither Sheikh Hasina nor Imran Khan had told me what they had spoken about. But extending an invitation to one's country is courtesy. I understood that Indian diplomats, officers and political leaders were concerned about Bangladesh. I feel that the times are changing. A country can have a strategic relationship with another. Today India's dispute with Pakistan is in extremes. In 1971, Bangladesh was formed after it fought its Liberation War against the Pakistan army. But that's something from 1971. This is 2020 and everything has changed. India is Pakistan's enemy but independent Bangladesh is democratic. Why should it carry this baggage from history? China, Afghanistan, Iran -- all want to maintain good relations with Dhaka. Everyone understands the geo-strategic importance of this small South Asian country. It isn't absurd for China-Pakistan-Russia to try to have good relations with Bangladesh. For India to do this, it needs to have proactive diplomacy. For this reason, the Prime Minister is sending Vikram Doraiswami to Dhaka as the High Commissioner. Harsh Vardhan Shringla was quite active as the High Commissioner in Dhaka. After Shringla, the importance of the Indian High Commissioner to Dhaka increased. His dedication towards Bangladesh was unprecedented. I've seen him as being very active since he was Joint Secretary responsible for Bangladesh and Smita Pant was a suitable junior officer. We would talk about Bangladesh at his ground floor office in South Block and you could see Shringla's eyes light up whenever a new idea came up. He is down to earth. I have never seen him as snobbish, indulging in lofty diplomatese. This person from Darjeeling has climbed up the ladder, going from Bangladesh to being Ambassador to the United States and is today Foreign Secretary. Due to Shringla, Dhaka's importance as a diplomatic posting has grown. In spite of being Tamil, he can speak a little Bengali. It is because his wife's mother is Bengali and she is comfortable speaking in Bengali. Let's discuss Vikram Doraiswami. He had earlier been India's High Commissioner in Afghanistan. He belongs to the Foreign Service batch of 1992. He was in charge of International Organizations and various summits. Today India has a lot of expectations from Vikram, in the same way Dhaka does too. This radiant young man of 45 years was the personal secretary of Dr Manmohan Singh. On Race Course Road, outside Manmohan Singh's chamber, in the tiny room where he used to sit and do the work as his personal secretary, I've seen how he had gathered experience in diplomacy from various countries. In our country, from Indira Gandhi to Rajiv, even during the era of P.V. Narasimha Rao, there would be only one personal secretary, and the person appointed would be a young IAS officer. After Atal Bihari Vajpayee became the Prime Minister, former IFS officer Brajesh Mishra became his principal secretary and National Security Advisor. He introduced the practice of appointing two personal secretaries to the Prime Minister. One, an IAS officer who would focus on the country's internal affairs, and maintain the channels of contact between the Cabinet, Chief Ministers and governors and the Prime Minister. The other, an IFS Officer. He would be the Prime Minister's liaison officer with foreign ministers and all other statesmen in the world. Although Shakti Sinha, an IAS officer, was with Vajpayee at the time, Ajay Bisaria of the Foreign Service became the other private secretary. Manmohan Singh did not discontinue this practice after coming to power. Of the two private secretaries, one was Vikram. But Vikram, who studied history at Delhi University, was first a journalist -- hence, in his DNA, there lies the espial quality of a journalist. After his training ended in 1994, he went to Hong Kong. He was the Third Secretary. During this time, he learnt the Chinese and the Mandarin language at the New Asia Yale-in-Asia language school of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. In 1996, he went to Beijing. He worked there for four years. Vikram became the Deputy Chief of Protocol in Delhi. Then, in New York, he became a Political Counselor in Indian Permanent High Commission to the United Nations. Later, in South Africa's Johannesburg he became the Consul General. After coming to Delhi, Vikram was in charge of SAARC for several years. In 2012, he was in charge of managing the BRICS summit. Vikram has achieved success wherever he has been. And today, when he is going to Dhaka, he is the favourite of Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar and Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla. Do you know why I am saying this? It's because if there is direct access to people at the top, the diplomat can easily make several decisions. The bureaucratic red tape is like a noose in all countries. Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally likes Vikram. And Vikram agrees with the philosophy of the team consisting of Modi, Jaishankar and Harsh Vardhan Shringla. Sheikh Hasina knows him as well. Therefore, it will be easier to fulfill the demands and resolve the issues relating to Bangladesh. Not like a big bully but by establishing a relationship based on equity. That is what Vikram Doraiswami wants. On March 3, 2020, Shringla took part in a programme of the Institute for International and Strategic Studies in Dhaka. There he stated: It is my great pleasure that I could come to Bangladesh, because Bangladesh is like my own city. I have a long-term relation with Dhaka and Bangladesh. That day Shringla gave an assurance that the Indian government was pressuring Myanmar to create a favourable environment for the return of Rohingyas to Myanmar. Shringla, quoting Nazrul, said: Let's divide ecstasy and misery equally, because in the era of globalization, happiness and sorrow recognise no boundaries and they appear at every door in the same way. It is against this backdrop that Vikram will be in Dhaka. May his journey to Dhaka be successful. (Jayanta Ghosal is a senior journalist. The views expressed are personal) --IANS ghosal/am Type address separated by commas Your Email: Assuming we survive until President Biden is in the White House, heres a little early contemplation instead of the Dorothy Parker quote weve all been asking daily: What fresh hell can this be? Things have been awfully tough for Trump lately. For the first time in his wretched life, he is being held accountable. Even his enabling minions and apologists can no longer provide him succor. Even worse, he has been exposed for what he really is: a tumor as a president and as a person. He is, I believe, also a loser as a real estate developer, his first major claim to fame in his campaign. The day will come when his finances are fully exposed and there is one comparison I will be seeking: daddy Freds money versus Donald Trumps actual current net worth. As for his presidential theme, it has consisted of one recurring phrase for four years: They have been very unfair to me. What an inspiration! Please vote blue all the way, please vote early, and together, lets remove this tumor from the soul of America and the world. W. Scott Parker III Greensboro By Ayano Shimizu, KYODO NEWS - Aug 3, 2020 - 12:29 | Arts, All, Japan A small gallery in the suburbs of Tokyo is trying to share with the rest of the world a series of paintings by a couple who witnessed the aftermath of the atomic bombing in Hiroshima 75 years ago. The 53-year-old museum that displays the works by the late Iri and Toshi Maruki, who were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1995, started an online fundraiser in June to create a short video introducing the Hiroshima Panels. Combining Japanese traditional and western painting techniques, the husband-and-wife artists spent more than 30 years creating a set of 15 large paintings depicting the horrors of the U.S. atomic bombings of the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War II. By posting the virtual-tour video on the internet, the Maruki Gallery for the Hiroshima Panels is hoping to broaden its fan base to include people from different ages and nationalities. Having already surpassed its initial goal of raising over $10,000, the gallery hopes introducing the panels to a wide range of people will allow it to strengthen its financial foundation and continue to pass on the historical artwork. "The paintings are on life-size panels and make it seem like the ruins are stretched right in front of the viewer," said Yukinori Okamura, the gallery's curator and managing director. "We want people from around the world to get to know the gallery. Even for those in Japan who have wanted to visit but couldn't, I hope the virtual tour will allow them to understand what kind of place this is and what we exhibit." The works, drawn on panels each standing 1.8 meters by 7.2 meters, are based on the Marukis' experience of going to Hiroshima just days after the Aug. 6, 1945, bombing and the scenes they reconstituted by gathering stories from survivors. The first panel was released in 1950. The gallery was built in 1967 by the couple in Higashimatsuyama, Saitama Prefecture, after the panels were exhibited around the country and overseas. The virtual tour of the gallery will be directed by visual artist and filmmaker Takashi Arai, whose photographs focusing on nuclear issues have been held in collections by the Smithsonian Institution and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, among others. According to Arai, the roughly 20 to 40-minute video is set to be a "half fictional" short film in which a multiracial protagonist visits the gallery and learns about the Marukis and their work. Contemporary artists who held exhibitions there and others related to the Hiroshima Panels will share their experience and thoughts. Scheduled for completion by the end of the year, Arai said he hopes the video will act as an "entrance" for those who have never heard of the paintings. "The museum has often been discussed in the context of anti-war and anti-nukes, but the film will focus on something different. The priority is to inform people that the Hiroshima Panels are displayed and how the gallery has protected them and grown," Arai said. "I want to send a message that the Marukis' work is relevant today, even though they have passed away," the 42-year-old said. Yumiko Iwasaki, a supporter of the gallery who has been helping out with fundraising, said she wants the virtual tour to attract people who can chip in to assist the museum. Since its opening, the gallery has depended largely on admission fees from visitors since it does not financially rely on public subsidies and corporations. But its location -- more than an hour from Tokyo -- has been a challenge for people to make more than an occasional visit. "We have always been focused on increasing the number of visitors. But we only have three staff, so we are all very exhausted," Okamura said. "The biggest challenge we face is how to continue to stabilize our financial base in the future. Gaining support from overseas is absolutely necessary for our survival." During the novel coronavirus pandemic this year, the gallery launched its first online project, an emergency relief fund to make up for the loss of revenue during its two-month closure. To the staff's surprise, it collected over 50 million yen ($472,000). The gallery exhibits 14 paintings of the Hiroshima Panels, with the final piece "Nagasaki" displayed at the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum in southwestern Japan. Among the paintings, "Ghosts," the first panel of the series made public five years after the end of the war, shows people walking with their arms extended in front of them after their clothes were burned off and skin peeled due to the bombing. The couples' artwork did not only focus on the Japanese as victims -- it also depicts the sufferings inflicted by the Japanese. "The Death of American Prisoners of War" shows American POWs who were assaulted by the Japanese after the bombing in Hiroshima, and "Crows" illustrates the discriminatory treatment of Korean victims. The Marukis also dealt with other war-related subjects, such as the Nanjing Massacre, the Auschwitz concentration camp, and the Battle of Okinawa, before Iri died in 1995 at the age of 94 and Toshi passed away in 2000 at 87. "We can never really understand the pain of the survivors by viewing the work, it is absolutely impossible. Nobody can imagine or feel the pain that the atomic bomb caused," Okamura, 46, said. "But even though we live in a different time, people are in pain or feeling hurt to some extent. Many people are mentally in a state of war even if they are not physically fighting in a war," he said. "I think that is why the (Marukis') work moves people." According to Okamura, the couple and their supporters exhibited the panels around Japan when reporting the effects of the bombings was restricted under the occupation of the Allied powers. Okamura said the panels served as a way to convey to the public the suffering caused by the bombings. In 2015, the Hiroshima Panels were flown to the United States and exhibited in Washington, New York and Boston. Peter Kuznick, a history professor at American University, who helped organize the exhibition at his university in the U.S. capital, recalled that many people who viewed the paintings were "moved to tears" and pinned high hopes for the virtual tour. "The gallery is not that accessible to most citizens or visitors and it is not nearly as well known as it should be. Virtual tours will allow so many more, including my students in the U.S., to experience the paintings," he said. "On one level, they (the Hiroshima Panels) are magnificent works of art. On another, they are profound and often terrifying statements about humanity," he said. "They are a testament to both human cruelty and human creativity, resilience, and the ability to survive even the most nightmarish of conditions," he said. While introducing the paintings virtually will allow the Marukis' work to gain recognition, Okamura and Kuznick agree that visiting the gallery and becoming absorbed in them still means the most. "The internet has the power to diminish physical distance. It is a huge merit for a gallery like ours where people had trouble coming," Okamura said. "At the same time, the paintings are a work of art. It is important for people to look at them with their own eyes." The latest round of corps commander level meet between Indian and Chinese army lasted for more than 10 hours. In the meeting, the Indian side discussed disengagement from Pangong Tso lake area by the Chinese troops. The fifth round of meeting between Corps Commanders of India and China ended at around 9:30 pm on Sunday. In the meeting which lasted for more than 10 hours, Indian side discussed disengagement from Pangong Tso lake area by the Chinese troops, sources said. The meeting took place at Moldo on the Chinese side of Line of Actual Control, according to sources. Earlier on July 30, India had said that some progress has been made in the disengagement of troops along the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh but it has not yet been completed and noted that it expected that the Chinese side will sincerely work for complete disengagement and de-escalation and full restoration of peace and tranquillity in the border areas at the earliest. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava had earlier said that the two sides held the 17th meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination last month and reviewed the situation in the India-China border areas along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Western sector. Also Read: Covid cases rise unabated in India: 52,000+ cases recorded with 24-hrs Also Read: Ayodhya Ram Mandir: Uma Bharti to skip groundbreaking as Covid precaution Indian and Chinese troops are engaged in a standoff along the Line of Actual Control since May. The tensions between the two neighbouring countries along the border escalated on June 15 face-off in Galwan valley leading to casualties on both sides. India and China have held multiple rounds of military and diplomatic talks to resolve the matter. Also Read: Raksha Bandhan 2020: President Kovind, PM Modi and other leaders extend wishes In Middle Ages, the island served as a refuge for saints and popes. Oleksandr Boguslayev bought it from the nine owner families. Gallinara island in Italy's Liguria was sold a few days ago for over EUR 10 million to a son of Ukraine's Vyacheslav Boguslayev, who had long been at the helm of Motor Sich, one of the world's leading manufacturers of aircraft, missile, and helicopter engines, Corriere della Serra reports. Motor Sich, after it abandoned its role of a traditional supplier to Russian aviation, ended up at the epicenter of an international diplomatic spat since in 2017 the Chinese Skyrizon Aviation took over 41% of the capital and then sealed the majority. Read alsoMedia: Chinese buyer of Ukraine's Motor Sich declares bankruptcy The U.S. has called out the deal, while a Ukrainian court has frozen the deal. Yet another appeal by Skyrizon was denied in March. But it is precisely with Bejing's investment that the shareholder managers, including the Boguslayevs, probably made money, the newspaper suggests. The island is a nature reserve rich in history, 1.5 kilometers off the coast between Albenga and Alassio, which belonged to the Church for centuries and then, for the last 150 years, to wealthy bankers and industrialists. In Middle Ages, the island served as a refuge for saints and popes. The buyer, Zaporizhia-born Oleksandr Boguslayev, 42, is a Ukrainian resident in the Principality but with citizenship of Grenada, the Caribbean island, the report reads. He bought it from the nine owner families. HSBC profits plunged more than 82 per cent as the bank warned 10billion worth of loans could turn sour this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. The London-headquartered lender, which makes most of its money in Asia, said pre-tax profits slid to just 824m in the three months to June 30, down from 4.7billion over the same period last year. This was much worse than the 1.9billion expected by analysts, and caused shares to slump 2.9 per cent, or 9.95p, to 332.25p their lowest level since March 2009 during the depths of the last financial crisis. Slump: The lender said pre-tax profits slid to just 824m in the three months to June 30 HSBC boss Noel Quinn said he was planning to 'accelerate' his shake-up of the bank in a cost-cutting drive which was already set to see 35,000 jobs axed globally by 2022. The brutal restructuring was initially put on hold during the pandemic, but chief financial officer Ewen Stevenson confirmed yesterday that 3,800 jobs had been cut since the beginning of the year. And in a worrying sign for office landlords and business districts around the world, Quinn added that the bank may need less office space in future as the pandemic pushed more staff to work from home. He said: 'I do think there's potential over the medium term to reflect on different ways of working, allowing people greater flexibility to work from home or in the office.' Prime Minister Boris Johnson has urged workers to return to their offices where possible as lockdown eases, to bring life to deserted business hotspots. But the majority of staff at HSBC and other major financial institutions have been working at home throughout the pandemic, and many firms are now wondering whether they need all of their towering skyscrapers in costly locations such as Canary Wharf and London's Square Mile. The pandemic has also been weighing on HSBC's loan book, as it thinks more borrowers will become unable to repay their loans due to job losses and the resulting economic downturn. It had already set aside 2.3billion to cover bad loans in the first three months of 2020, and ramped this up to 5.3billion in June as the extent of the damage began to emerge. HSBC warned the cost over the full year could be as high as 10billion. Its outlook for the UK was gloomy, as around 1billion of the expected losses were linked to the country. On top of the coronavirus troubles, HSBC has been dealing with a flare-up in tensions between the US and China. The bank angered MPs, customers and investors when it supported the controversial law imposed by China on Hong Kong in June. The national security law drastically reduces Hong Kong citizens' rights, and makes it a crime for anyone to criticise Beijing's Communist regime. Quinn yesterday denied the bank would be forced to choose between its operations in the West and its more profitable business in Asia. He said: 'Current tensions between China and the US inevitably create challenging situations for an organisation with HSBC's footprint.' And despite prominent pro-democracy protester Joshua Wong claiming he had faced increased questions from HSBC over his finances since the law was introduced, HSBC denied it was screening customers specifically to check whether they had pro-democracy links. Quinn insisted that the bank was simply complying with all laws in the jurisdictions it operates in, and refused to speculate on the possible impact which US sanctions on Chinese officials could have. By Jamie McGeever BRASILIA, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Brazilian manufacturing expanded in July at the fastest pace on record, a survey of purchasing managers' activity showed on Monday, roaring back to life from the depths of the COVID-19 crisis as new orders, confidence and hiring rebounded strongly. The highest level of new orders in over a decade and the strongest job growth in almost a year helped propel IHS Markit's headline Brazil manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) to 58.2 in July from 51.6 in June. That was the highest level since the index was first compiled in 2006, and appears to back up government and central bank officials' comments recently that the economy is recovering. A reading above 50.0 marks expansion in the sector, while a reading below signifies contraction. The record expansion in July went "a long way" to closing the "considerable" gap in production that opened up from pre-COVID levels, said Paul Smith, economics director at IHS Markit. Over 80% of panelists expect growth to be sustained over the coming months, he said. "The positive trends in both output and new orders is also helping to drive optimism about the future. That has helped encourage firms to rehire staff as plant operations are ramped up further," he said. Among the notable sub-index PMI readings for July, output jumped to a record 62.9 from 54.9, and new orders rose to 60.5 from 52.8, the highest since January 2010 and the second highest ever. The employment index rose to 52.3, above 50.0 for the first time in five months and the highest since September last year. Brazil's economy is expected to post its biggest annual downturn on record this year. The government's forecast is for a 4.7% fall, and central bank chief Roberto Campos Neto has said the bank's forecast of a 6.4% decline is too pessimistic. (Reporting by Jamie McGeever Editing by Chris Reese) One of the key suspects who participated in the lynching and murder of 90-year-old Akua Dentah at Kafaba in the Savannah Region, will be arraigned before a court today following her arrest last week. The key suspect who has been identified as Latifa Bumaye was arrested last week at Kejewul Bator, a fishing town along the Volta Lake. Latifa Bumaye was seen in the viral video on Social Media hitting the deceased after a soothsayer accused her of being a witch. Confirming her arrest to Citinews, Savannah Regional Police Commander, DCOP Enoch Adutwum Bediako said she was arrested on Monday at Kejewu, a small community along the Volta Lake. All she keeps saying is that she doesnt know what was happening to her. Our investigations are still ongoing but we will put her before the court today to seek remand as investigations continue. She has not been able to tell us where the priestess (another suspect) is. Meanwhile, the Ghana Police had already arrested 5 persons suspected to have taken part in the lynching of the 90-year-old woman. This comes after the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), James Oppong-Boanuh, dispatched homicide experts from the National Police headquarters to the Savannah region, to help search for the murderers of Madam Akua Denteh. The suspects have been handed over to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Savannah Regional Police Command at Damongo and are expected to be arraigned before the court. Source: ghanaweb.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 A retail worker at a luxury clothing store has narrowly escaped a conviction after sending a text to a co-worker threatening to drown her baby. Jessika Jane Drury, 22, sent the text on January 6 after she lost her job at a Tommy Hilfiger store in Queensland and believed her colleague was responsible. 'Watch your back c***, I'll put you in the ground and drown your baby,' the text read, according to The Courier Mail. Jessika Jane Drury (pictured), 22, sent the text on January 6 after she lost her job at a Tommy Hilfiger store in Queensland and believed her colleague was responsible Drury pleaded guilty to one count of using a carriage service to harass in Richlands Magistrates Court, southwest of Brisbane, on Monday. She had told police she was angry at the victim over losing her job when authorities were notified. Her defence lawyer Rhys Foster, said the offence had a 'trivial aspect' because it was one message with no follow-up and his client had no intention or ability to carry out the threat. He did, however, say his client acknowledged her text message to the victim was 'out of line' and that she has been diagnosed depression and anxiety. 'It was during a very emotional time for her when she had lost her job and had no other support from the community,' he said. The magistrate told Drury there was 'no trivial aspect' to the offence and she would be met with serious consequences should she find herself in a courtroom again. No conviction was recorded and Drury received a 12-month good behaviour bond. Ms Drury (pictured) had told police she was angry at the victim over losing her job when authorities were notified . LONDON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- In an interview with Business Insider, the CEO of St Kitts and Nevis' Citizenship by Investment (CBI) Unit, Les Khan, reiterated the importance of the country's CBI Programme particularly in light of the coronavirus pandemic which halted tourism on the islands. Despite international borders still being closed to visitors, the CBI Programme remains a trusted safety net for the dual islands' economy. Recently, the Government of St Kitts and Nevis announced a new limited-time offer for the Sustainable Growth Fund an investment option under the CBI Programme. Until January 15th, 2021, a family of up to four can acquire citizenship for US$150,000 instead of the previous US$195,000. With demand for second citizenship surging due to the travel restrictions, the CBI Unit are expecting revenue to also grow during this time. According to a recent government release, the SGF offer "will provide the resources to help us successfully fight COVID-19 and enhance the safety nets for those who have lost their jobs or income as a consequence." Similarly, in the Business Insider interview, Les Khan noted: "We expect that the CBI Programme will be a main driver for the next six months." Established in 1984, St Kitts and Nevis' Citizenship by Investment Programme is recognised as the Platinum Standard brand within the investor immigration industry. With over three decades of experience, the dual-island nation operates the world's longest-standing CBI Programme, remaining a top choice for foreign investors. The fastest investment option to qualify for St Kitts and Nevis citizenship is the Sustainable Growth Fund, which was introduced in 2018 by Prime Minister Timothy Harris. All applicants must successfully undergo due diligence checks. They can also opt for the Accelerated Application Process (AAP) which ensures issuance of citizenship within 60 days. St Kitts and Nevis is the only country to offer this option. [email protected] www.csglobalpartners.com SOURCE CS Global Partners Related Links http://www.csglobalpartners.com Ahead of the September 19, 2020 governorship election in Edo State, Comrade Philip Shaibu, Deputy Governor of the State has accused Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, former Governor and sacked All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman, of wanting to subvert laid down democratic tenets enshrined in the Nigeria Constitution by covertly seeking a third term in office as the Governor of Edo State, through the APC candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, who he has already told the World was a thief. Shaibu through a statement issued by Benjamin Atu, his Senior Special Assistant on Media said The truth is that Ize-Iyamu is merely a stooge. The real man seeking for the governorship position is Adams Oshiomhole who has perfected the plan to betray democracy by seeking a third term in office. The price that Oshiomhole will pay for projecting Ize-Iyamu is an outright rejection. Oshiomhole is displaying blind compassion with a specific pledge to return to the state on the path of backwardness with failed institutions where individuals will be more powerful than government institutions with an analogue system of operations. Technological development has since left Oshiomhole behind in the scheme of things. We need a new kind of politics and policies that reflect the best value of our people. Politics that focuses on bringing people together to work for the common good. We have displayed determination to end the culture of government that habitually failed to stimulate investment; provide massive employment for the youth and failed to reduce poverty and hardship in the land. The Deputy Governor on Sunday, in a press statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Media Mr Benjamin Atu said: Edo State has a choice to choose between policies of the heart by Governor Godwin Obaseki and policies of the head as currently been propagated by enemies of the State. The people of Edo State subscribed voluntarily to the the principle of Obaseki because they have seen these principles at work all over the State. We can not risk the future of Edo State with a mans shrunken aspirations. Good men can not be shunned away from politics while those who ought to be defending their integrity are parading themselves, as party candidates. He further maintained that Governor Godwin Obaseki is not talking rhetorics like Oshiomhole and his godson are doing. Our campaign is based on the affirmation of what we have done and still capable of doing, by drawing our strength from the masses to deal with all our vulnerabilities The incumbent administration inherited a backward State but we have grown our ways out from backwardness. Obaseki has bridged the yawning credibility gap between what was a promise and how it is performed and transformed into reality, he declared. (Newser) When Ricardas Puisys vanished in September 2015 shortly after authorities received a warning from a resident concerned about his safety, police in Cambridgeshire, England, feared the worst. A murder investigation was launched and a man was arrested and then released. It turns out there was no murder. Police now believe the now-40-year-old casual worker spent years living in a wooded area, the BBC reports. Police say the disappearance "was almost a complete mystery" until information they received in June led them to his hiding place near the town of Wisbech. They believe the Lithuanian national, who had last been seen leaving his workplace in a leek factory with a group of men, was hiding to escape people who had been exploiting him; officials had previously said "modern slavery" could have been an element in the case. story continues below Puisys was "found living in undergrowth, very well concealed after having deliberately hidden and having not spoken with anyone for some time," says police spokesman Rob Hall. He says Puisys is now receiving "the support he needs after having lived through extremely difficult circumstances during the last five or more years." Investigators say the citizen who contacted police in 2015 raised concerns that Puisys, who had no family and few friends in Britain, was being exploited and may have been forced to change addresses against his will, Cambridgeshire Live reports. They say the case took an "extraordinary twist" last year when a Facebook page was set up with the man's name, but investigators were still unable to verify that he was alive. (Read more United Kingdom stories.) For many visitors to the UK, shops such as Selfridges, Harrods and the Queen's grocer Fortnum & Mason are a quintessential part of Britain. But due to the pandemic the tourists who sustain the high end retail sector are gone, forcing bosses to make drastic decisions to protect their businesses. The feted return of workers to offices yesterday the first Monday in August also failed to materialise, and some companies will not bring staff back until next year. Tradition: For many visitors to the UK, shops such as Selfridges and Harrods are a quintessential part of Britain Haunting images showed the streets of business centres in once bustling cities such as Manchester, Bristol and London lying empty, leading business leaders to fear they will become ghost towns. In the last fortnight the dire situation has hit high-end shops. They continue to face huge rent bills and, from yesterday, contribute to the cost of any staff who remain on furlough, even as shopper numbers remain woefully low. Many bosses are not waiting for consumers to return and have taken drastic action. Burberry led the way announcing 500 job cuts as part of a 55m cost saving drive. It said sales in the three months to the end of June were 'severely impacted' by the drop in demand for luxury and as tourist numbers were likely to remain 'negligible'. Selfridges cut 450 jobs across its four department stores in Manchester, London and Birmingham, saying in a statement it was 'the toughest decision we have ever had to take'. Harrods is preparing to axe 670 staff, or one in seven of its 4,800 employees, due to the 'ongoing impacts' of the pandemic. Chief executive Michael Ward said social distancing was having 'a huge impact on our ability to trade', while 'the devastation in international travel has meant we have lost key customers'. Jobs in parts of the store that remain closed, such as beauty services and cafes, are thought to be most at risk. Fortnum & Mason is cutting around 50 hospitality jobs at King's Cross St Pancras station, and The Gallery restaurant in Mayfair, with bosses citing 'evolving consumer habits', while Harvey Nichols is also believed to have suffered a collapse in sales. Yesterday the Mail reported that Thomas Pink, owned by luxury group Louis Vuitton, was closing its flagship store in Jermyn Street. The move puts the future of its two remaining UK stores both at Heathrow airport in doubt. The timing of the job losses shows that the ending of lockdown, almost seven weeks ago, was not the silver bullet to recovery. Retailers are being forced to contend with the aftermath. Buttoned up: Shirt maker Thomas Pink is closing its flagship store Shoppers are still avoiding the High Street for all but essential items due to fear of the virus, and travel restrictions mean there are almost no tourists, with airline experts predicting depressed passenger numbers until at least 2023. Footfall is down 38 per cent year-on-year across all UK retail destinations, but this masks a much higher drop in the city centre areas where high-end shops are located. After a walk around some of central London's top shopping destinations, you could easily believe that the number of visitors is down 80 per cent or more in some tourist hotspots. Stores such as Harrods also rely on the theatre of the retail experience, which has been hammered by social distancing. Queues outside shops, as doormen or 'hosts' enforce social distancing, and the closure of areas such as cafes and beauty demonstrations, have taken the joy out of a day of retail therapy and many simply are not bothering. The roll call of well-known retailers, which sometimes charge enormous sums for their wares, shows that every portion of the economy has been hit. It is unimaginable that the likes of Harrods or Selfridges could disappear, but the pandemic has shown that the top-end of retail is not immune from the crisis affecting the wider High Street. As she announced the redundancies, the boss of Selfridges, Anne Pitcher, told her staff that 'how we work, shop and socialise is changing' as she promised to leave 'no stone unturned' in planning for changes to consumer behaviour. Independent retail expert Richard Hyman said: 'These companies have got to think beyond Covid, because now their model does not really work.' BOSTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- RENEW Energy Partners announced today that, together with private investment funds managed by Ares Infrastructure and Power ("AIP"), a strategy of Ares Management Corporation ("Ares"), they will acquire a portfolio of contracted energy efficiency and distributed power generation infrastructure projects serving the commercial, industrial, and institutional end markets. The investment will support RENEW's "energy-efficiency-as-a-service" business, which provides building owners and businesses with a turnkey solution for the design, construction, funding, and oversight of energy-efficiency retrofits. The retrofits include lighting, steam, building automation, and distributed power generation systems and provide immediate cost savings, as well as environmental and resiliency benefits, to the customer. Energy efficiency upgrades typically represent low-cost and readily deployable solutions to curb electricity usage and emissions from buildings and industrial processes. The industry is benefiting from tailwinds from businesses motivated by energy cost savings, increased resiliency, GHG footprint reduction, as well as regulatory requirements. "Energy efficiency is a high priority asset class to Ares and it is a key component of the energy transition. These projects will simultaneously help companies save on costs, increase resiliency, and meet their sustainability targets, a win-win value proposition that we are excited to support," said Keith Derman, Partner and Co-Head of Ares Infrastructure and Power. The portfolio adds to the more than 60 investments in the climate infrastructure market made by funds managed by AIP, which together represent over $2.5 billion of invested capital. "RENEW has been singularly focused on reducing climate emissions from Commercial, Industrial and Institutional buildings through innovative funding solutions since our inception in 2013. Ares' support will enable us to continue that mission and expand our reach and capabilities," said Charlie Lord, Principal of RENEW. About Ares Management Corporation Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) is a leading global alternative investment manager operating integrated businesses across Credit, Private Equity and Real Estate. Ares Management's investment groups collaborate to deliver innovative investment solutions and consistent and attractive investment returns for fund investors throughout market cycles. Ares Management's global platform had $149 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2020 with more than 1,250 employees operating across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. Please visit www.aresmgmt.com for additional information. About Ares Infrastructure and Power Ares Infrastructure and Power ("AIP") seeks to provide flexible capital for cash-generating assets across the climate infrastructure, natural gas generation, and energy transportation sectors. AIP leverages a broadly skilled and cohesive team with deep domain experience and has deployed over $8.5 billion of capital in over 140 investments and more than 200 different infrastructure and power assets and companies. About RENEW Energy Partners Renew Energy Partners provides turnkey solutions for funding, installing, and managing energy efficiency and on-site clean power generation projects. The company helps building owners reduce their carbon footprint and save money while making their buildings cleaner, nicer, and more resilient. With its energy-as-a-service model, energy upgrades and retrofits are funded by future savings and are at no cost to the building owner. Notable customers that represent RENEW's range and flexibility of solutions include YMCAs, United Health Services Hospitals Inc, Northrop Grumman, and the historic Waldorf Astoria Building in New York City. For more information, visit www.renewep.com. RENEW Media Contact : Michael Savage 888-938-6256 x 703 [email protected] www.RENEWEP.com SOURCE RENEW Energy Partners Related Links http://www.renewep.com New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday dismissed a petition seeking relaxation of the Rs 2.5 lakh withdrawal limit for marriages. The writ petition is dismissed, a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal said on the plea which had also termed as arbitrary the guidelines which seek detailed list of persons to whom the cash withdrawn will be paid for marriage and declaration from them that they do not have a bank account. The high court had on November 28 reserved its verdict on the plea saying, government has given relaxation wherever necessary on the demonetisation issue. Earlier, the Centre had opposed the plea saying the government has already given certain exemptions but some conditions were needed so that nobody can misuse it. We cannot have an unmeasured and uncanalised situation. We have given exemptions. For weddings, if we will not put conditions, anybody can get a marriage card printed and go to the bank to withdraw Rs 2.5 lakh, Additional Solicitor General Sanjay Jain, appearing for Centre, had told the bench. In his plea, petitioner Birender Sangwan had said the cap of Rs 2.5 lakh withdrawal for marriages should be relaxed as there were various customary donations which one gives during the wedding ceremony. Liberty must be given for marriages so that one can pay as per the customs. How can somebody give such an undertaking? As per the guidelines, even the priest who performs marriages has to give undertaking of not having a bank account. The parents of the bride and groom should be allowed to withdraw money from their accounts without such arbitrary conditions, it had said. The petitioners counsel had also told the bench that some kind of liberty should be given to the parents of the bride and the groom to withdraw money as per their requirements and the Rs 2.5 lakh cap should be relaxed. The Supreme Court is also hearing a batch of petitions against the demonetisation move announced on November 8. It is hearing the Centres plea seeking transfer of all petitions pending before various courts across the country to either the apex court or one high court. The hearing is scheduled on December 2. Last week, the Delhi High Court had made it clear that it will not go into the correctness of the demonetisation policy as the apex court is already seized of it. The observation had come while the high court was hearing a plea against the weekly withdrawal cap of Rs 24,000. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. The Islamabad High Court on Monday ordered the Pakistan government to give "another chance" to India to appoint a lawyer for death-row prisoner Kulbhushan Jadhav, Pakistani media reports said. Jadhav, the 50-year-old retired Indian Navy officer, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April 2017. India approached the International Court of Justice against Pakistan for denial of consular access to Jadhav and challenging the death sentence. The Hague-based ICJ ruled in July 2019 that Pakistan must undertake an "effective review and reconsideration" of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav and also to grant consular access to India without further delay. On Monday, a two-member bench comprising IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb heard a petition filed by the Pakistan government to appoint a lawyer for Jadhav. The Pakistan government, in the petition, asked the IHC to appoint a legal representative for Jadhav so that it can fulfil its responsibility to see to the implementation of the ICJ's decision. It also claimed that Jadhav refused to file a review petition or an application to reconsider the verdict against him by the military court. "Now that the matter is in the high court, why not give India another chance," Justice Minallah was quoted as saying by Geo News. The judge said that the Indian government or Jadhav may reconsider their decision pertaining to the review petition. "India and Kulbhushan Jadhav should once again be extended an offer to appoint a legal representative" for the death row prisoner, he added. Responding to the judge's remarks, Pakistan's Attorney General Khalid Javed Khan said an ordinance was issued to give an opportunity to India and Jadhav to file a review petition against the sentence. "We will contact India again through the Foreign Office," he said. The hearing was subsequently adjourned till September 3. The Pakistan government filed the review petition in the IHC on July 22. However, the main parties, including the government of India, were not consulted ahead of the filing of the application by the Ministry of Law and Justice under an ordinance which was enacted on May 20. Under the International Court of Justice Review and Reconsideration Ordinance 2020', which was enacted on May 20, a petition for the review of a military court's decision can be made to Islamabad High Court through an application within 60 days of its promulgation. The ordinance was approved by the parliament last week. In New Delhi, External affairs ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava last month said Pakistan has once again exposed its "farcical" approach by denying available legal remedies to Jadhav against his death sentence which is also in contravention of the ICJ verdict, and asserted that it will explore further options in the case. Srivastava said Pakistan has blocked all the avenues for an effective remedy available to India in the case, while noting that New Delhi has so far requested consular access to Jadhav for 12 times over the past one year. The MEA spokesperson said Pakistan is not only in violation of the judgment of ICJ, but also of its own ordinance. Many South Africans are worried about the available capacity at hospitals and clinics. On 9 July, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize himself warned about the possibility of a bed shortage in the country for critically-ill COVID-19 patients occurring by early August. The number of available ventilators in the healthcare system is another point of concern. In severe cases, the effects of the virus impede lung function, which means patients may require assistance for breathing provided by mechanical medical ventilators. In a presentation to Parliament on 10 April, then-acting director-general of the Health Department, Dr Anban Pillay, said there was an estimated 3,216 ventilators in the country, 2,105 of which were in the private sector. The expected need at the peak of the virus in September would be for 7,000 ventilators, of which government would have to procure a further 1,223 for the public sector, while the remaining shortfall would be acquired by the private sector. The fear over a potential shortage of these devices at healthcare facilities at present may lead some to attempt to acquire medical ventilators for their own private use. However, one of the worlds largest manufacturers of respiratory solutions for both in-hospital and out-of-hospital use Philips said this solution is not as feasible as some might believe. Sophisticated medical devices Philips produces a wide range of ventilators and respiratory equipment, including the recently-introduced Respironics E30 ventilator, a scaled-down emergency device specifically aimed for use in settings without the required life-support systems. A spokesperson from the company said it is important to understand that ventilators even those made for use in the home environment are not available as over-the-counter or non-prescription purchases. Philips explained that even qualified healthcare personnel required additional training for using ventilators. Although ventilators might seem straightforward in that it helps a patient breathe by assisting the lungs to inhale and exhale air, they are sophisticated medical devices, Philips noted. In addition to the medical qualification required to treat patients, physicians and clinicians receive in-depth training to use ventilators, the company said. It explained that as each respiratory disease or condition differs, they require clinicians to interpret patient-specific symptoms and indicators in order to prescribe the correct treatment. Therefore, all ventilator applications need to be guided by a clinician; they have to be prescribed to a patient, setup aligned to their condition, and unique indicators; and monitored by the clinician to respond to each patients changing condition. Like any other medical condition, Philips said. Unaffordable for most Another reason why it is inadvisable to try and acquire a ventilator for private home use without the necessary trained personnel at hand is the immense cost of a unit. According to information from medical device manufacturer Medtronic, ventilators can range in prices from $5,000 (R82,900) to $50,000 (R829,000). Premium ventilators used in hospital intensive care units (ICUs) typically cost no less than $25,000 (R414,500). According to the Washington Post, only around 20% of symptomatic COVID-19 patients require hospitalisation, and about 5% end up in the ICU. With only 0.1% of confirmed COVID-19 cases receiving ICU treatment in South Africa as of 24 July, its clear the vast majority of people who fall ill with COVID-19 will not require ventilator support. Its therefore illogical to spend such an obscene amount of money on a device that will most likely not be needed by the average patient. Additionally, the National Ventilator Project has started the production of 20,000 non-invasive CPAP ventilators. These can provide respiratory assistance to patients with severe symptoms, while the health system is focused on procuring more complex and invasive ventilators to supplement current devices used for critical cases. A cat was detained after it was accused of smuggling and trafficking drugs. However, the feline was recently reported to have escaped that advanced-security level prison in Sri Lanka. According to the latest report of The Daily Beast, the local media reports in Aruna confirmed that a cat, which was arrested after suspected of smuggling drugs to inmates, has escaped at Sri Lankan's high-security Welikada Prison. The animal was detained last week of July after the police officials caught it with two SIM cards, two grams of heroin, and a memory chip hidden in a plastic bag tied to its collar on the prison grounds. According to the police, the cat was well trained by the drug traffickers, who were also a part of the same cartel that was caught using an eagle to smuggle drugs in a suburb of Colombo. Also Read: This Viral 2009 Disinfectant from the Swine Flu Pandemic Has an Inspiring Message For Everyone The drug traffickers were also associated with the underworld crime boss, Angoda Lokka. However, the local media reported that Angoda died while hiding from the authorities in early July. Also Read: [VIRAL] Ever Seen a Life-Size Nintendo Switch? Here's How to Make One Police were able to arrest the man and woman, aged 30 and 19, who were caught illegally forging identity documents and cremating the body on Aug 2. How the feline escaped the advanced-security prison? It was also suggested that the police detained the cat in hopes of the feline to lead them to the smuggler's den, although there are no conditions yet for animal arrest under Sri Lankan Law. The report explained that the drug-smuggling cat was able to escape the high-security prison by scampering out of its holding room, then sneaking through a fence when the prison guards came in to give it food. The police also raided Lokka's farm previously, discovering bullets, an air-rifle, and the eagle that was recently caught delivering drugs. The local police authorities confirmed that an increasing number of people were trying to smuggle cellphones, chargers, and cellphones inside the prison, allegedly selling the goods within the prison system. Although the cat is not found yet, the authorities confirmed that they don't have the plan to look for the narco feline as of the moment. For more animal viral news, always keep your tabs open here at Tech Times. Also Read: [VIRAL] Adorable Clip Shows 3 Golden Retrievers Rescue a Bird from Drowning in the Pool This article is owned by TechTimes. Written by: Giuliano de Leon. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Tech giant says will build on the experience TikTok users love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections. Following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald J Trump, Microsoft is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the United States, the company said in a statement. With TikTok, Microsoft will be making its first foray into social media, a sphere that has grown as people seek to connect amid the restrictions imposed by the pandemic on physical interactions. (Photo | AFP) Washington: Microsoft announced Sunday it would continue talks to acquire the US operations of popular video-sharing app TikTok, after meeting with President Donald Trump who seemingly backed off his earlier threats to ban the Chinese-owned platform. Following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald J Trump, Microsoft is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the United States, the company said in a statement, acknowledging the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns over national security. Microsoft added that it would continue negotiations with ByteDance, TikToks Chinese parent company, with the intention of completing these discussions no later than September 15. The statement came after Trump on Friday said he would ban the app, which is especially popular with young audiences who create and watch its short-form videos and has an estimated one billion users worldwide. TikTok should be sold or blocked in the US, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told ABC earlier Sunday, while Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Fox News the president would take action in the coming days with respect to a broad array of national security risks that are presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party. TikTok denies it could be a tool for Chinese intelligence, with its US general manager Vanessa Pappas declaring Saturday: Were not planning on going anywhere. Biggest loser The United States would be the biggest loser if it banned TikTok, Daniel Castro, vice president of the think tank Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, said Saturday. All of its data centers are outside of China, and there is no evidence that it presents a national security threat. Trump said he would use an executive order to ban TikTok, or the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a law granting the president powers to regulate international trade in the face of an unusual and extraordinary threat from abroad to US foreign policy, national security or the economy. His threat has caused great concern for US TikTok users, particularly content creators who make money on the platform. Many of them have posted links to their Instagram or YouTube accounts so as not to lose followers if the platform is ultimately blocked. In its statement, Microsoft said it plans to build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections. Buying TikTok would give Microsoft a chance to break into the social networking market. The IT group currently owns the professional networking platform LinkedIn, and Teams, an internal messaging service for companies. Bizarre Pappas promised Saturday to create 10,000 US jobs at TikTok over the next three years, in addition to the 1,500 current employees. Dont fall for this, responded senior Trump aide Peter Navarro, a fierce China critic and a main architect of the trade war with Beijing. China has hired a whole bunch of American lobbyists. They put a puppet CEO in charge of that company, he told Fox News, referring to former Disney executive Kevin Mayer, who became the CEO of TikTok in May. On Friday evening Trump indicated he opposed a takeover of TikTok by an American company, a solution nevertheless agreed to by most of the involved parties, including ByteDance, according to The New York Times. This is getting bizarre. A 100 percent sale to an American company... mitigates any reasonable data protection concerns, tweeted Alex Stamos, a former Facebook head of security and a researcher at Stanford University. If the White House kills this (sale) we know this isnt about national security, he added. By Trend The volume of imports of Austrian products to Azerbaijan increased by 23 percent from $23.9 million to $29.4 million in the first five months of 2020, compared to the same period of 2019, Trend reports citing the statistical bulletin of the State Customs Committee (SCC) of Azerbaijan. The share of Austria in the total volume of Azerbaijans import also increased from 0.41 percent to 0.71 percent of the total volume, said the bulletin. From January through May 2020, foreign trade operations between Azerbaijan and Austria amounted to $151.6 million, which is 19.2 percent less compared to the same period of 2019. The export of Azerbaijani products to Austria in the reporting period amounted to $86.1 million, while a year earlier this indicator was equal to $117.4 million. "In the mentioned period, Austria purchased products from Azerbaijan by 36.4 percent less than in the same period of the previous year. Austria's share in total exports of Azerbaijan also decreased from 1.36 to 1.24 percent of the total volume," noted the report. In total, the ratio of export-import operations in foreign trade relations between the two countries in the reporting period shifted towards export. In the first five months of 2019, foreign trade relations were marked by a wide margin towards exports, and the ratio of export to import amounted to 75 and 25 percent respectively, the report added. The balance of foreign trade between the two countries for the reporting period was positive and amounted to $56.6 million. In total, the foreign trade turnover of Azerbaijan amounted to $11.1 billion in the reporting period, having shown a 22.9-percent drop over the year. The balance of foreign trade turnover increased by 0.9 percent on an annualized basis and remained positive, having surpassed $2.8 billion. M elbourne tightened its lockdown today ordering all non-essential shops to shut as Australias second city stepped up efforts to contain the resurgent coronavirus. Hours after it emerged from its first night curfew, Victorias state premier Daniel Andrews announced that retail and some manufacturing and administrative businesses would have to close from Wednesday night as part of a new six-week lockdown expected to hit 250,000 jobs, while schools will switch to remote learning. As heartbreaking as it is to close down places of employment... that is what we have to do in order to stop the spread of this wildly infectious virus, he told a news conference. Otherwise we are not in for six weeks of restrictions, well be in for a six-month stint. Production at meat processing plants will be cut by a third and workers while construction activities will also be scaled back. This is a very tough day, and there are many more of those to come before we get to the other side of this, Mr Andrews added. Victoria declared a state of disaster yesterday due to a surge in community transmissions, with a curfew imposed on Melbourne residents between 8pm and 5am. The state reported 429 new cases today, down from 671 new infections yesterday, but 13 more deaths was the second highest daily toll. In the United States, nearly 50,000 new cases and 478 deaths were reported today, bringing the total to more than 4.8 million including 158,000 fatalities. Earlier, one of the White Houses top medical advisers, Deborah Birx, warned the US was entering a new phase in its fight against the coronavirus. Australia's Victoria declares a 'state of disaster' due to coronavirus This epidemic right now is different and its more widespread, and its both rural and urban, she said. In Germany, where cases have been rising recently, health minister Jens Spahn announced mandatory testing of travellers returning from countries with a high risk of Covid-19 infection will start later this week. Polands health minister Lukasz Szumowski said police and health authorities would start checks in shops to see if people are following regulations to keep their mouths and noses covered. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 23:24:55|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. - - - - NEW YORK -- Global COVID-19 deaths surpassed 690,000 on Monday, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University. Total COVID-19 cases around the world rose to 18,109,901, according to the CSSE, with deaths reaching 690,055 as of 9:34 a.m. (1334 GMT). - - - - BAGHDAD -- The Iraqi Health Ministry recorded on Monday 2,735 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total nationwide infections to 131,886. It also reported 66 fatalities during the day, a figure that has been gradually decreasing over the past days, raising the death toll from the virus to 4,934. - - - - TASHKENT -- Uzbekistan has extended visas for all stranded foreign nationals until Nov. 1, the Uzbek state tourism committee said Monday. All air and rail links in and out of Uzbekistan have been canceled since March 16 due to the COVID-19 outbreak, and the country has since extended visas for foreigners several times. - - - - MINSK -- Belarus reported 99 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Monday, taking its total to 68,166, according to the country's health ministry. There have been 47 new recoveries in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 62,943, the ministry said. So far, 571 people have died of the disease in the country, including four over the past 24 hours, it said. - - - - MOGADISHU -- Somalia resumed international flights to and from the Horn of African nation on Monday after four months of disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The immigration department cautioned that strict health measures must be adhered to as the country reopens its airspace for international flights. - - - - YEREVAN -- Armenia on Monday reported 52 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, bringing its total to 39,102, according to the country's center for disease control. Data from the center showed that 111 more patients have recovered in the past day, bringing the total number of recoveries to 29,861. - - - - DALIAN -- The northeastern Chinese city of Dalian has preliminarily ruled out the possibility of the recent COVID-19 resurgence originating from domestic transmission, according to the local health commission. An epidemiological survey showed that the local outbreak since July 9 may have started from a seafood processing workshop in the Dalian Kaiyang World Seafood Co., Ltd., said Zhao Zuowei, director of the Health Commission of Dalian. - - - - LUSAKA -- The United Nations (UN) on Monday announced the closure of its office in Lusaka, the Zambian capital, after seven staff members tested positive for COVID-19. The UN said it has temporarily closed all its offices in the Zambian capital to visitors and personnel for a period of 14 days after seven staff members and dependents tested positive for COVID-19, a spokesperson said. Enditem Fifty years since declaring its sovereignty from the rest of the country, one of Australia's most well-known micronations is to be dissolved. The Principality of Hutt River will once again become part of the Commonwealth of Australia, according to 'Royal Hutt River Legion' Major Richard Ananda Barton. Prince Leonard Casley, the founder of Hutt River Province, with his wife Shirley. Credit:John Mokrzycki In an email sent on Monday morning, Sir Richard said it was "with much sorrow that I inform you that this will be the last Significant Days list I circulate". "His Highness, Prince Graeme, has informed me that the Government of the Principality of Hutt River has decided to dissolve the Principality, which will, once again, become part of the Commonwealth of Australia," he wrote. "In this challenging time, the wellness & safety of our clients and team is our top priority," said Teresa Duvall, President & CEO of Jewish Family Home Care. "Good communication with our clients and their families and healthcare providers continue to be a high priority." Teresa Duvall, President & CEO of Jewish Family Home Care, was recently featured in a question and answer-style story published by the South Florida Hospital News. The Q&A featured article discusses how the home healthcare organization is actively dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. With Florida seeing continual increases in the number of individuals testing positive for the virus, this news is more pertinent than ever. South Florida Hospital News is a monthly publication whose goal is to produce top quality healthcare journalism that focuses on the geographical area. It has a readership of over 32,000 healthcare professionals in the region, which includes Broward, Martin, Miami-Dade, Monroe, and Palm Beach Counties. Duvall is the founding CEO of Jewish Family Home Care (JFHC), having started the company in 2015. She has over 30 years of administrative experience in the home healthcare field and dedicates her life to improving the quality of others. The detailed Q&A with Duvall was a part of the South Florida Hospital News July 2020 issue. Among the worries that Duvall discussed in the article is the fact that the organizations clients have experienced challenges keeping up their strength. Our clients simply cannot be as active as they previously were, due to COVID-19 mandates and restrictions, Duvall explained. During the middle of the outbreak, JFHC experienced some difficulties finding enough personal protective equipment (PPE), although they had proactively stocked enough beforehand to ensure that everything still went smoothly until the supply chain resolved itself. JFHCs home health aides are continuing to encourage and assist seniors and their loved ones during the pandemic. Their top priority is the wellness and safety of their 600 plus elderly clients and team. For more information about Jewish Family Home Care and Teresa Duvalls interview featured in the South Florida Hospital Newss July 2020 issue, please visit the South Florida Hospital News website. More About Jewish Family Home Care, Inc. Even as one of Broward Countys largest home care agencies, each of Jewish Family Home Care caregivers operates with the hands-on touch of a family-managed, not-for-profit organization. Jewish Family Home Care provides a range of reliable and compassionate home care services for seniors, including companionship, personal care, light housekeeping, meal preparation, errands, and respite for family caregivers. For more information, call 954-908-5677 or visit https://www.jfcares.org/ to learn more about the personalized home care provider. The question of whether ancient life could have existed on Mars centres on the water that once flowed there, but new research published Monday suggests that many of the Red Planets valleys were gouged by icy glaciers not rivers. The study in Nature Geoscience, which comes amid a flurry of new Mars missions trying to discover if the now-barren planet ever hosted life, casts doubt on a dominant theory that the planet once had a warm, wet climate with abundant liquid water that sculpted the landscape. Researchers from Canada and the United States examined more than 10,000 Martian valleys and compared them to channels on Earth that were carved under glaciers. For the last 40 years, since Marss valleys were first discovered, the assumption was that rivers once flowed on Mars, eroding and originating all of these valleys, said lead author Anna Grau Galofre in a statement released by the University of British Columbia. But these formations come in a huge variety suggesting that many processes were at play to carve them, she added. Researchers found similarities between some Martian valleys and the subglacial channels of Devon Island, in the Canadian Arctic, which has been nicknamed Mars on Earth for its barren, freezing conditions and hosted NASA space training missions. The study authors said their findings suggest that some Martian valleys could have been formed some 3.8 billion years ago by meltwater beneath ice sheets, which they said would align with climate modelling predicting that the planet would have been much cooler in its ancient past. The findings demonstrate that only a fraction of valley networks match patterns typical of surface water erosion, which is in marked contrast to the conventional view, said co-author Mark Jellinek. Nature Geoscience noted that understanding climate conditions in the first billion years of Mars history is important in determining whether the planet was ever habitable. The study authors said that icy temperatures could in fact have better supported ancient life. A sheet of ice would lend more protection and stability of underlying water, as well as providing shelter from solar radiation in the absence of a magnetic field - something Mars once had, but which disappeared billions of years ago, the University of British Columbia statement said. The research comes after NASA launched its latest Mars rover, Perseverance, to look for signs of ancient microbial life on the Red Planet. If all goes to plan, Perseverance will reach Mars on February 18, 2021 and collect rock samples that could provide invaluable clues about whether there was ever past life on Mars. However, the retrieval and analysis is not expected before the 2030s. China has also launched its first Mars rover, which should arrive by May 2021. lc-klm/lc NEW DELHI The death toll from a toxic bootleg alcohol scandal in the north Indian state of Punjab rose to 98 Sunday, officials and reports said. Police have arrested 25 people so far over the worsening tragedy, which starting coming to light late last week, the Press Trust of India news agency said. Hundreds of people die every year in India from illegal alcohol made in backstreet distilleries which sells for as little as 10 rupees (13 US cents) a liter, affordable for even the poorest. The death toll from the illicit booze had risen to 75 in Punjab's Tarn Taran district after further investigation, the local administration's deputy commissioner Kulwant Singh said. "Several families refused to divulge details of deaths and a few even cremated them. We have come to this number after information gathering," Singh told AFP Sunday. A further 11 people had died in Gurdaspur district, a local official told AFP. PTI reported Saturday that toxic moonshine had also killed 12 in Amritsar. Relatives of the victims mourned on Sunday as the state opposition party called on the Punjab government to "curb liquor mafia in the state" in a series of tweets. Punjab state chief minister Amarinder Singh said Friday he had ordered a special inquiry into the deaths and "anyone found guilty will not be spared". In a separate incident, authorities in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh said on Friday that nine people had died after drinking alcohol-based sanitiser. Of the estimated five billion liters of alcohol drunk every year in India, around 40 percent is illegally produced, according to the International Spirits and Wine Association of India. Deaths are frequently reported, with bootleggers often found adding methanol -- a highly toxic form of alcohol sometimes used as an anti-freeze -- in their brews to increase its strength. If ingested, methanol can cause blindness, liver damage and death in larger concentrations. In 2015, more than 100 people died in a Mumbai slum died after drinking illegal moonshine. Mumbai, Aug 3 : Amid the mounting row over the move to shunt Bihar Police officer Vinay Tiwari to isolation, the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Monday said that he has been "quarantined as per existing norms in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic". Rushing to Mumbai in connection with the probe into the Sushant Singh Rajput case, Tiwari -- an IPS officer and Superintendent of Police, Patna Central -- is presently lodged in state police guest house in Goregaon. The BMC said the P/SouthWard administration received information of the officer arriving at the SRPF Group 8 guesthouse in Goregaon east and a BMC team went to meet him on Sunday evening. "Being a domestic air traveller, he needs to be guided for home quarantine as per the State government guidelines. Accordingly, the P/South ward team approached him at the said guest house late on Sunday evening," the official said. The official said that the BMC team explained to him the whole procedure for domestic air travellers, including "home quarantine", which is fixed by the State government notification dated 25 May, 2020 under number DMU/2020/CR. 92/DisM-1. "He has also been guided to apply to the competent authority of BMC for exemption in the home quarantine period as per the State government notification," the official said, with the prospects of Tiwari remaining isolated till around Aug. 15. Late on Sunday, Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey said that Tiwari was aforcibly quanratined' even before he could initiate the probe. "IPS officer Vinay Tiwari arrived in Mumbai today on official duty to lead his police team from Patna but he was forcibly quarantined by the BMC officers at around 11 p.m. Earlier, he was not given a place in the IPS mess when he said that he is staying in a guest house in Goregaon," Pandey tweeted last night. Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery THE GOAL: Back in February, before the novel coronavirus that would become known as COVID-19 even had a name, travel restrictions were considered draconian and frowned upon by the World Health Organization. But the global pandemic has now caused countries to close their borders and clamp down on travel on a level weve never seen before. Do these restrictions work? When do they work best? Whos done it right and how can we open up safely so we can travel again? THE TEAM: Kelley Lee of Simon Fraser University, an expert on globalization and the WHO, is working with researchers in Hong Kong, the United States and Australia to try to find answers to these questions in real time. THE TIMELINE: The project has almost $500,000 in funding for two years from the Canadian government. Researchers hope to raise a million in total and would like to do a second phase with computer modelling. Lee and her colleagues at the University of Hong Kong, the University of Sydney, and the University of Maryland, are all co-principal investigators. Theyve studied travel restrictions in previous outbreaks of Ebola and H1N1. But theyve never seen anything like this before. When the WHO declared COVID-19 a Public Health Emergency of International Concern in late January, the agency cautioned against travel restrictions and border closures. Lee and her team around the world watched with concern. The thinking at the time was that sweeping travel bans could be disastrous for individuals and economies, would unfairly stigmatize countries and encourage people to sneak in through risky backdoor routes. But days later, several countries, including the U.S., slammed their borders shut to Chinese nationals. In mid-March, President Donald Trump placed a travel ban on anyone arriving from the European Union. We were watching it play out and it started to get quite chaotic pretty quickly, Lee recalls. So we thought this was an important topic to study. Now, six months in, Lee and everyone else is living in a world where the Canada-U.S. border is closed and global travel is cut off like never before. In fact, shes changed her opinion, and now sees travel restrictions as a necessary tool in our arsenal in the pandemic. But we have to know when to do that, she says. They can be a very blunt instrument as peoples lives are really disrupted. A key part of the research will look at global co-ordination (or lack of it), as the pandemic spread. Countries are technically bound by the International Health Regulations treaty, which says they shouldnt impose trade and travel restrictions without evidence, must respect human rights, and should report to the WHO. But its unclear whether countries actually even reported to the WHO and followed international law. Its something the researchers will investigate. How are you doing this? Lee and her team are compiling a massive database with every country and the travel limitations theyve put in place for COVID-19, looking for patterns. Theyre also reviewing emerging evidence as it comes out, and interviewing policy-makers to see what has worked where and how. And theyll look at restrictions that private airlines and cruise ships (remember those?) put in place. Weve never had an event like this before where the whole world is restricting travel. So its hard to sort of tease it apart, she says. The pandemic and the measures that are being adopted are changing over time, were trying to keep up with studying what countries are doing, why theyre doing it, and what rationale. She sees Canada as a possible model. Its been a good global citizen, she says, adding officials waited as long as they could before clamping down on the borders, have tried to follow international law, and done reasonably well in terms of transmission. So what does this mean for me and my summer 2021 travel plans? The project is right at the centre of things because of course all of us want to travel again and all of us want to move about in the world, says Lee. So far some countries, like the U.K., have started to ease up a little bit. But then when another countrys case load spikes, as Spains has in recent weeks, theyve wanted to slam the door shut again. What will you do with your findings? The team will make all of their findings public as soon as possible in a series of planned papers. Opening and closing borders is like pushing levers, she says. If policy-makers can better understand when to best use them, this can hopefully be done in a more sophisticated, and co-ordinated way, instead of just a knee-jerk reaction out of fear. Its a huge natural experiment, she says. Im hoping that our team, basically, provides a more sophisticated approach to this subject. What are the challenges? Its been sometimes a hard sell to get funding and attention for this kind of research when so many other teams are focused on vaccines and treatments. It also may be challenging to get American policy-makers to speak openly about their decision-making process, because, as she points out, they havent done so well down there. But theyre not trying to judge. Were just really interested in their decision making, and their thinking, she says. So having researchers based in each country actually helps a great deal in terms of access. OK, but how can this be used once we get through COVID? At the first hint of a future pandemic, Lee says, the first thing people are going to reach for is border closures. It might be a totally different situation and this could have a horrendous impact on the world economy and peoples lives, she adds. So we want to make sure that we have a better way of doing it next time. COVID: Front-line thinkers is part of a regular series highlighting COVID-19 research in Canada. Interview with South China Sea think tank head shows three possibilities risking China-US military conflict Global Times By Liu Xuanzun and Guo Yuandan Source: Global Times Published: 2020/8/2 18:28:40 Last Updated: 2020/8/2 20:48:40 Editor's note: At 2:22 pm on Saturday, China's Army Day, think tank South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative (SCSPI) released the latest movement of US warships on its Weibo account, including the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier and USS America amphibious assault ship in the East China Sea. From July 15 to 30, SCSPI's Weibo account has released a total of 24 updates on the activity tracks of US warships and warplanes in regions including South China Sea and East China Sea. This has attracted wide domestic and foreign attention. In an exclusive interview with the Global Times reporters Liu Xuanzun and Guo Yuandan on Thursday, Hu Bo, director of SCSPI, introduced why the SCSPI platform releases the information to the public, and the characteristics of US military activities in the South China Sea. Intention of information release SCSPI is an open think tank and cooperative network of Chinese and foreign scholars aimed at comprehensively and objectively grasping the dynamics and news in the South China Sea by accurately probing the military, political, economic and environmental situation there. For the purpose of research, it has established its own system of monitoring maritime and aerial situation and is continuously tracking and releasing aircraft and vessel movements from countries within and outside of the region. Speaking on the original intention of releasing US military activities in the South China Sea, Hu said that, "We do not want to create big news. We just want to objectively present the data and often we take no position." "We mainly want to help experts who conduct research on the South China Sea, as well as the general public, to build a general knowledge, because, apart from militaries of China, US and some other countries, only very few people know what is really going on in the South China Sea that has been frequently appearing on media reports. This even includes most researchers," Hu said, noting that "When people have a general knowledge, their view and research on the South China Sea could become more rational, which should contribute to peace from a long run." Hu said an imbalance exists in terms of information disclosure in the South China Sea, as the US releases a lot more information, so the outside world only sees a South China Sea situation shaped by the US officials and think tanks. "Our information releases caught so much attention and this is another indication of the lack of South China Sea information," Hu said. According to data released by SCSPI, in July, the US military conducted 67 reconnaissance sorties in the South China Sea with large reconnaissance aircraft, ranging from multiple types of warplanes including P-8A and P-3C anti-submarine patrol aircraft. "Even so, what we have been able to monitor and release was only a tip of the iceberg," Hu said. SCSPI uses Automatic identification system (AIS) and Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) to track vessels and aircraft. Information in these two systems is open source commercial data, and accessible via multiple routes in China and abroad. "Our job is data mining. From the vast original data, we have set relevant parameters, so we can automatically gather data related to the South China Sea strategic situation, like those on warships, warplanes, public service vessels and fishing boats, and make statistics and analyses based on that," Hu said. Since the data sources and approaches are relatively simple, the data's accuracy, completeness and stability cannot match official data from internal systems of related countries, he said. "For instance, we can only track parts of trails by large reconnaissance aircraft, but not small ones. Neither can we track activities by aircraft carrier-based warplanes. And if warplanes do not open ADS-B transponder, we will be unable to track them." Characteristics of US military activities in South China Sea SCSPI's tracking data show that the US military has significantly increased large reconnaissance aircraft activities in July compared to May's 35 and June's 49. July's figure 67 is almost twice as many as May's. Reports show that since 2009, the US military has significantly enhanced the frequency of activities in the region by boosting the presence of surface vessels by more than 60 percent, reaching about 1,000 ship-days a year. In the air, it sends on average three to five warplanes to the South China Sea a day, most of them being reconnaissance aircraft, making a total of more than 1,500 sorties a year, almost twice as many as in 2009. In addition to this, US military activities have also become more pointed to China. US reconnaissance aircraft made intensive flights when the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) was conducting operations. During the PLA's drills in the Xisha Islands from July 1 to 5, the US conducted 15 reconnaissance aircraft operations in these five days. In July, US reconnaissance aircraft entered areas within 70 nautical miles of China's territorial sea baseline nine times, six times within 60 nautical miles, and in the closest event, only about 40 nautical miles away from China's territorial sea baseline. These kinds of close-up reconnaissance are obviously provocations, as "since the US military has all-round, advanced reconnaissance technologies, such a high frequency aerial reconnaissance and close distance would not be necessary if it just wants to gather intelligence on China," Hu said. Hu said "the reason behind the significantly increased US aerial reconnaissance in 2020 could be related to the COVID-19 outbreak. Since many US warships suffered from group infection events which resulted in a lack of warships, the US might have opted to enhance aviation reconnaissance." Hu pointed out that out of the strategic thinking of great power competition, the US is applying prejudice and judging others. It worries about China's presence in the South China Sea during the pandemic, so it increased military deployment. "US military deployments and activities in the South China Sea took 60 percent of its forward deployed forces troops in the Indo-Pacific region," Hu noted. Conflict on horizon? According to tracking data, the types of US aircraft that have appeared in the South China Sea have reached a rare level compared to other regions in the globe, as the E-8C battlefield command and surveillance aircraft and E-3B early warning aircraft are frequently appearing above waters near China, Hu said. On the other hand, with China's capabilities rapidly rising in the recent years, particularly its Navy and Air Force, the encounters between China and US military forces are becoming more frequent. Every day there are several encounters and thousands of them each year. Most of them are handled professionally and safely and only a small amount of them are risky, according to Hu. Hu said that there are mainly three kinds of risks. While the Chinese and US militaries have a series of codes including Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea to avoid risks, these rules are set up for literally unplanned encounters. In reality, many encounters are intentional: First, US warships frequently trespass into waters within 12 nautical miles of islands and reefs of China's Nansha Islands or territorial waters and inland waters of Xisha Islands, and China has to expel and intercept them, in which no guarantee could be made that no accident will occur during confrontation. Second, US warplanes' frequent aerial close-up reconnaissance operations are also very risky, and China is also expected to conduct correspondent measures including raising alert. The (Hainan Island) collision incident in 2001 is a direct result of US close-up reconnaissance. Third, both China and the US conduct all kinds of military training and exercises every year, and both sides usually would conduct reconnaissance and monitoring on each other. This is understandable on a military perspective, but frictions are bound to occur if distance is not well kept. In December 2013, when China's Liaoning aircraft carrier task group was training in the South China Sea, USS Cowpens cruiser sailed abnormally close and crossed into the Chinese flotilla, and a Chinese landing ship was left with no choice but to force the US ship to a stop. The closest distance was only 50 meters. In recent years, the US has been paying increasingly less attention to safe distance, and a crisis would very easily take place, according to Hu. "Given the current overall relations between China and the US, if any maritime or aerial accident takes place, the friction could likely not be effectively managed and result in an escalation. Therefore, the uncertain factors in Chinese and US militaries' interactions in the South China Sea are large, and the risks are becoming higher," Hu said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address We know we will see great things from Raquel. Szaferman Lakind is proud to welcome Raquel P. Catrocho to the firm. Raquel will join the firms Business Department focusing her work on estate planning and administration. Raquel graduated from Rutgers School of Law in School of Law in Camden, New Jersey in 2019 and is a member of the New Jersey State Bar Association. Prior to pursuing her career in law, Raquel worked in the corporate world. We are delighted to welcome Raquel Catrocho to Szaferman Lakind, Managing Partner Barry Szaferman expressed. She is a great addition to the Business Department and the firm. We know we will see great things from Raquel. Founded in 1977, Szaferman Lakind is a full-service, Martindale-Hubbell AV-Preeminent law firm that was listed among U.S. News & World Reports Best Law Firms from 2014 through 2020. Based in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, Szaferman Lakind has 35+ attorneys who provide legal representation to businesses, investors, professionals, families and individuals in several areas, among theedm family law, general and commercial litigation, personal injury, estate and business planning and business law. To contact Szaferman Lakind please call 609.275.0400 or visit http://www.szaferman.com. *The Best Lawyers in America list is issued by BL Rankings, LLC. A description of the selection methodologies can be found at bestlawyers.com/methodology. Szaferman Lakind was selected to Best Lawyers Best Law Firms list. The Best Law Firms list is issued by U.S. News & World Report. A description of the selection methodologies can be found at bestlawfirms.usnews.com/methodology.aspx No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey. Videos Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. As expected, Chinese users are now calling out the China-based company ByteDance for its further plans to sell their famous app, TikTok, to American investors. On their social media platform, Chinese users are currently calling ByteDance as a 'traitor' for partnering with United States investors. Chinese users aren't happy with ByteDance selling TikTok Weibo, China's biggest social media app, is now exchanging conversations about the plans of ByteDance to sell TikTok. Chinese users don't like the idea that American companies are looking for a partnership with the popular app. They even called ByteDance CEO and founder Zhang Yiming as 'traitor.' In a report from Tech Crunch, some people in China were said to be not in favor of the TikTok app to be sold in the United States. Due to this, they voiced out their complaints to the company. While cursing CEO Zhang for being an 'American apologist.' "Zhang Yiming used to praise the U.S. for allowing debate, unlike in China, where opinions are one-sided. Now he got a slap in the face, why doesn't he go argue with the U.S.?" said user that received over 3,000 likes. Microsoft eyes TikTok So far, Tech Times reported that Microsoft has been leading the path towards the TikTok sale. The Albuquerque-based tech company said that once the sale is over, it will ensure that American users' private data will all be transferred to the U.S. This is also what U.S. President Donald Trump wanted for the Chinese-based app. He clarified that he will not allow the app to continuously be used in the country if the Chinese company will still operate TikTok. "Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President's concerns," said the company. "It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury." Experts think ByteDance doesn't want the sale but refuse to fight Though Chinese users demand ByteDance to remove partnerships with American investors, it was different for Chinese startups and investors. Experts think that ByteDance was left with no choice but to sell the app or face losing the U.S. as their audience. "They are stuck between a rock and a hard place," said William Bao Bean, a general partner at Chinaccelerator, a cross-border accelerator backed by SOSV. "I think it's a good outcome for all sides. Microsoft, of course, benefits hugely from getting into social media. Bytedance gets a good payout, and Bytedance and the Chinese government are relatively friendly towards Microsoft," said AppInChina's Bishop. For now, ByteDance seemed to be continuing the deal. ALSO READ: POTUS Trump Says He Will Ban TikTok in the US as Soon as Saturday; App Faces New Challenge This article is owned by Tech Times. Written by Jamie Pancho 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A George Floyd hologram made an appearance in Birmingham over the weekend, with a projected image of the man killed by Minneapolis Police on May 25 hovering in Kelly Ingram Park, using the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church as a backdrop. Dont be surprised if you missed it, though. It happened on Saturday night, from 9 p.m. to 9:45 p.m., with no advance publicity. Even the pastor of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church wasnt aware of it. Its the first time Ive heard about it, the Rev. Arthur Price, pastor of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, said this afternoon when contacted by telephone. I didnt even know it happened. That was by design, organizers said. The demonstration in lights was a project of Change.org and the George Floyd Foundation, an organization founded by Floyds family members to promote racial justice. We made a decision at the last minute to do something quiet in Birmingham and not do a big reveal, said Alaina Curry, media manager for Change.org. The hologram is actually a projection on a mesh screen that creates the illusion of an image in lights floating in the air. It was projected with Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in the background because of the churchs symbolism as a headquarters of the civil rights movement in Birmingham, and the place where four little girls were killed when the church was bombed on Sept. 15, 1963. If youre looking straight at the church (from Kelly Ingram Park), you would have seen it, Curry said. Its not even clear if anyone besides the crew saw it. Where the church is, its a pretty quiet area, Curry said. I dont believe the crew got any reaction from anyone. That obscure presentation was to avoid any unpleasant or controversial scenes as have happened in other showings of the image. Birmingham was strictly symbolic, Curry said. We wanted to keep that one (in Birmingham) a little more quiet, she said. Weve had a little bit of opposition. Because of those experiences, and in protection of the crew, we wanted to keep it quiet, not create any type of tension, end it peacefully. Birmingham was the finale of a five-stop showing. It was unveiled to the Floyd family in Richmond, Va., in a private showing, followed by a public showing Tuesday at the site where a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee was removed. That was the first event of the launch, Curry said. Then the display moved to Asheville, N.C., on Wednesday and to the site of a former Confederate monument at Decatur Square in Atlanta on Friday before ending in Birmingham, she said. We wanted to give the symbolic shot, with the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in the background in Birmingham, she said. That was our main goal, to give the symbolism, rather than a public type of situation, Curry said. The George Floyd Hologram Memorial Project was the first major project of the George Floyd Foundation, which was started in June in Houston, she said. This was one of the first official initiatives, Curry said. It was an official partnership with his family. The event in Richmond, Va., set off tensions when an older white woman walking through the park used the N-word, followed by people at the scene shouting at her to leave. A video of Floyds death, with a police officer kneeling on his neck, set off nationwide protests of police brutality that have continued through the summer. Mumbai, Aug 3 : In a loaded hint, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut said "people living in glass houses shouldn't pelt stones", while commenting on the Sushant Singh Rajput case, here on Monday. "I was watching a Raaj Kumar film and just recalled his famed dialogue that "those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. I like Raaj Kumar. Nobody should point fingers," Raut said with a telling smile. The reference was to the legendary actor's immortal lines in the blockbuster musical film "Waqt" (1965) - "Jinke apne ghar sheeshe ke ho, Wo doosron par patthar nahi fenka karte". Comparing the Mumbai Police with the best like Scotland Yard, Raut said that "nobody can comment on the matter when the police probe is underway". "Let's have faith in the Mumbai Police. They are doing a good job, they are competent and are compared with Scotland Yard. The probe must continue in a free and fair manner," he urged, after a volley of questions on the Sushant case investigations. His comments came shortly after the Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh ruled out the involvement of any prominent state political personality in the case. Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery The recent Huawei Better World Summit set out to explore how ICT can be used to contain the spread of COVID-19 more effectively and boost post-pandemic economic recovery. The pandemic has changed the world around us, touching on every aspect of work and life. With a wide range of participants including telecom carriers, regulators, analysts, media, and partners from around the globe joining online, the Better World Summit delved into how ICT is creating new value in a wide range of fields, including telemedicine, remote education, teleworking, and public health services. During the Summit, Developing Telecoms had a virtual meeting with Wang Yifan, President, Service & Software Marketing & Solution Sales Department at Huawei. We started with an overview of Huaweis service and software business. WYF: Over the past 30 years, Huawei's service and software products have provided professional services for 1,500 networks of more than 300 telecom carriers worldwide. Currently, we maintain over 18 million network elements, handle over 200 major events every year, provide over 600,000 technical support events, and resolve over 1 million support tickets annually. Huawei provides assurance for internet services and voice calls for 3 billion people worldwide. DT: What impact has the COVID-19 pandemic had on telecom operators? WYF: During the COVID-19 epidemic, operators experienced rapid changes in traffic hotspot areas as many customers switched to working or studying from home rather than at offices and colleges. The movement of traffic from CBDs and college campuses to residential areas within a short time period has posed a big challenge for carrier networks. Fortunately, Huawei has the expertise to handle this. For example, after the Mexico earthquake in 2017, Huawei helped operators restore telecom services quickly in the disaster area. Huawei has also worked with operators for more than 15 years to provide reliable network assurance for the Hajj pilgrimage when more than 3 million Muslims visit Saudi Arabia every year. DT: What are the most important factors in providing reliable service assurance for operators? WYF: Huawei believes that it is only possible to ensure stable network operations if you deliver a reliable and professional service system on an open and agile digital platform. Huawei provides global operators with five services to keep their operations continuous. These are rigid maintenance services backed by a good rapport with customers, uninterrupted network operations, continuous spare parts supply and 24/7 Technical Assistance Centre (TAC) response. DT: Many telecom software and services vendors would claim to provide a similar level of support. What makes the services offered by Huawei different? WYF: There are five key factors to support the reliable services from Huawei. First, Huawei has well-established management systems, certified by a host of international standard organizations including ISO/TL/IEC/OHSAS and others. Second, Huawei has 22,000 frontline employees and 120,000 from partners across 170 countries and regions to provide on-site services in a timely manner. Third, Huawei has a comprehensive spare parts support system, including five global spare parts supply centres, nine global spare parts operation centres, and 16 global spare parts maintenance centres. These are critical to supporting operators, particularly in the most remote areas, and we do not believe other vendors can match the scale and reliability of this network. Fourth, Huawei has a three-level technical support system consisting of global Research and Development, GTAC/TAC, and project maintenance team. Finally, Huawei encapsulates and builds a large number of successful experience and knowledge assets accumulated over 30 years in the telecom industry on the platform together with models generated through machine learning. Moreover, Huawei opens its digital platform to customers and partners to continuously improve service quality and efficiency. DT: How important are open systems? WYF: Huawei Service and Software has been building its knowledge and machine learning models in the telecom industry on a digital platform that is open to the entire industry based on our more than 30 years experience. This platform is continuously evolving and the operators' teams and ecosystem partners are able to develop their own applications through this open platform to achieve business agility. DT: In what ways is this digital platform an open system? WYF: We believe that real value creation is based on the Experts + Engineers + Platform +Knowledge Assets + Ecosystem Partners" model, which is a truly open system. Huaweis digital platform provides open APIs that can be invoked by other systems and partners; it also provides an application development centre (ADC) that enables partners and operators' in-house teams to develop versatile Apps. DT: How much do developers contribute to the Huawei open system platform? WYF: Currently, Huawei has developed 80% of common applications (Apps), including network planning, construction, maintenance, optimization, and intelligent operation. The other 20% of customization requirements are met by our ecosystem partners. This open multi-ecosystem partnership platform will benefit the entire industry and continuously create value. DT: Are there other areas where Huawei Service and Software is creating value for operators? WYF: Huawei has developed AI applications such as a digital survey App which improves site survey efficiency by 30% and requires only consumer-level cameras. And in the environment and green energy area, which is of very great concern to operators, Huawei reduces operators energy consumption with innovative technology. The PowerStar solution saves 15% power consumption for wireless networks and 9% to 17% for data centre PUE optimization. DT: The Better World Summit sets out to explore the strategic foundations that ICT lays for a brighter, more prosperous future. How would you sum up the way in which software and service will contribute to this in the post COVID-19 world? WYF: Huawei Service and Software will rely on our professional and reliable global service team, an open and agile digital platform, powerful R&D innovation resources, and ecosystem partners to help the telecom industry achieve digital transformation during and following COVID-19. We believe in enabling business success through reliability, professionalism and agility and in working with telecom carriers and ecosystem partners to achieve sustainable development and win-win outcomes. Photo: Nicholas Nelson/EyeEm/Getty Images Crystal is 27 years old and one of the many people globally for whom staying at home during the pandemic didnt automatically mean safety. She considers herself lucky, though, that she escaped her abusive partner and the father of her three children just a few weeks before the coronavirus shutdowns, and has been living in shelters ever since. Since the beginning of the pandemic, advocates have worried about a drop-off in reports to hotlines and to the police, which could mean those in abusive situations dont feel safe to even call for help or that they think a shelter could be worse, given the risk of the virus. Meanwhile, people like Crystal, who did get out in time to rebuild their lives, face a devastated job market, closed government agencies, and homeschooling without access to their prior support networks. The interview that follows has been edited for length and clarity. What made me leave was that things were changing and they were getting worse. Our arguments were getting worse. I kept it a secret. We were together nine years, and that was going on for five of them. I have three kids two girls and one boy, and theyre 5, 4, and 3. The last argument that me and him had, thats where I decided we needed to get out. The next day, I woke up and took my daughter to school. He was like, You better come right back. And just the tone that he spoke to me I was scared and I decided right then and there. I crossed the street from the school and I called the police. And I waited about 15 minutes, and he was calling me like, Where are you? Where are you? Im coming to get you. Finally, the cops get there and see that I had marks on me. While I was speaking to them, giving them my report, my ex came out of nowhere. He was hostile and they arrested him. The woman cop that was there with me, she came back with me to the apartment so I could get my other two children to go back to a station to make my report while they processed him. I got a restraining order and for a few days we stayed with my godmother. Safe Horizons found a shelter for me that Friday, January 24. Wed been living in New Jersey and the shelter was in the city. Its a shelter for women with children where you live in your own apartment. I got in an Uber with a duffel bag, a suitcase, my three kids, and $800 in my pocket. I told my kids that I got an apartment and we were moving. My oldest, she was iffy about it, you know. But the other kids were really excited. Before all this, I worked in security. My operating site was at Blue Apron in Linden, New Jersey. I had to leave that job the same day I was placed in the shelter the commute wouldve been too much and I didnt have anyone to care for my kids while I was gone. Still, I had so much planned for myself. I was finally free. I was planning on going back to school, finding a part-time job, rediscovering who I am as an individual. Then the pandemic started. There were about 30 families living in the shelter. Three weeks in, we got an announcement that three families needed to be quarantined and to please keep your hands washed because the sick families came in contact with other people. I was scared to even get in the elevator or to breathe the air in the hallway. Security would leave anything the sick family needed by their door. But still, it was scary. I was pissed, like, How can you just leave them here? And then I didnt hear of anyone, you know, getting gravely ill because of it or anything like that. So there were people that came in contact, but were they infected? They never disclosed that. In April, I started putting in applications for apartments through the NYC Housing Connect website. It could take anywhere from two to ten months for someone to call you for an interview for an apartment. My housing director said honestly, because of the pandemic and NYCHAs shut down, its all been moving very slowly. Shes telling me, Dont count on that right now. I dont expect any updates from them anytime soon, but, you know, so far I am putting in my applications. In May I was transferred from the emergency domestic-violence shelter to a a second shelter, where you can live for up to six months until you find permanent housing. Im still here, waiting to hear from the apartments Ive applied to.Being unemployed has been difficult because Im used to working. At first it was like taking a vacation. But after all these months, the vacation is over. Since I left my job before the pandemic actually started, I qualified for the $1200 stimulus check plus the additional $500 per dependent, but wasnt eligible to receive the $600 enhanced unemployment. I really budget, but when the budget runs out all I have is $250 every two weeks of cash assistance. And I get $549 a month in food stamps. Surviving in NYC with $250 every other week just isnt enough, especially when you have multiple children to care for and no extra help. And even with the city reopening, theres still not enough jobs for people to apply to. The American people didnt ask to be out of work out, its a pandemic we couldnt avoid. Surviving in NYC with $250 every other week just isnt enough. Still, I worry about the safety of going back to work. I dont want to expose myself, I dont want to bring the virus home. Leaving your partner and being in a shelter, its almost as if youre on the run. If you just got away, youre fine. Quarantining is fine. Youre out of sight. I honestly feel safer because of the quarantine, and Id bet that anybody else who came in for shelter during the quarantine feels the same way. They feel even safer because you could have been forced to be home with your abuser. But even though youre feeling that sense of being safe, the thing is youre still scared, because youre like, Oh my God, I just left him, and what if he finds me? You go through all these thoughts because now youre sitting there quiet, and now youre just thinking about everything. Youre safe, but youre going a little stir-crazy in your thoughts. I allow my ex to see the kids at least once or twice a week for a few hours. We meet in a public place and the kids go from my shelter apartment to his mothers apartment. When he was first arrested, they charged him with harassment and false imprisonment and he had to pay a fine. But then when we went to court soon after, I dropped the restraining order, because if I didnt drop the restraining order then they were going to deport him. Hes not a citizen, and in the state of New Jersey, domestic violence is a deportable offense. Everybody knows what deportation means: Youre out and youre never coming back. I look at my kids and they love their dad so much. I was in danger, but thats still my kids father. If you are or have been the victim of partner abuse, please call 911 or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Additional reporting by Charlotte Klein. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 15:02:48|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close JAKARTA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Indonesian President Joko Widodo observed that people in the country have been increasingly worrying about the COVID-19 spread since the past few weeks. "The atmosphere since the past few weeks has showed that people have been worrying about COVID-19," the president told a virtual cabinet meeting at the State Palace here on Monday. "We know that until yesterday there have been more than 111,000 cases with 4.7 percent of the fatality rate and this mortality rate in Indonesia is 0.8 percent higher than the global death rate. This is what I think is our common homework," he said. However, based on the latest data, the president also pointed out that the recovery rate in Indonesia continued to increase to 61.9 percent. Given the fact of the public concern, Widodo called on authorities to pay a serious attention to the implementation of health protocols and public behaviors. Media reported last week that people have been worrying as offices especially in Indonesia's capital of Jakarta saw more COVID-19 clusters. The Indonesian COVID-19 Task Force recently said there had been a drastic increase of COVID-19 cases in offices in Jakarta. Enditem live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Mitsui & Co, IHH Healthcares largest shareholder, said it is committed to continue executing the turnaround plan for Fortis Healthcare, while exploring further investments in the Indian healthcare sector. IHH has grown successfully across Asia and we are therefore confident that it will grow its healthcare business in India, Koji Nagatomi, Mitsuis Executive Managing Officer and Country Chairperson in India, told Moneycontrol in an email interview. IHH will continue to execute the turnaround plan for Fortis and we hope to see the positive results continue and deliver a significant quantitative and qualitative improvement in the provision of healthcare services in India, Nagatomi said. Big player IHH Healthcare is one of the larger investors in the Indian private-hospital space, with controlling stakes in Global Hospitals and Continental Hospitals. The acquisition of Fortis, however, has been its single biggest bet in India. IHH Healthcare acquired a 31 percent stake in Fortis Healthcare in August 2018 by paying $1.1 billion in a bidding process overseen by an independent board. However, it couldn't make progress on its mandatory open offer to acquire a 26 percent stake due to a Supreme Court stay order. The apex court blocked the open offer on a plea filed by Japanese drugmaker Daiichi Sankyo, which is trying to enforce a Rs 3,500 crore arbitration award it won in a Singapore tribunal against Fortis erstwhile promoters, brothers Malvinder Singh and Shivinder Singh. Biggest shareholder in IHH Healthcare Three months after IHH Healthcares successful bid to acquire Fortis, its own shareholding underwent a significant change. Malaysian sovereign fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad, which was its largest shareholder, sold a 16 percent stake to existing investor Mitsui, making the Japanese trading company the biggest shareholder in IHH. Mitsui now has a 32.9 percent shareholding in IHH Healthcare. Although IHH is an independent management company, through Board representation, Mitsui acts as a steward and provides strategic guidance to IHH, enabling us to drive the growth of the largest hospital group in Asia, Nagatomi said. On reports about Mitsui reaching out to Daiichi Sankyo to insulate IHH Healthcare from the ongoing litigation, Nagatomi declined to comment, citing the litigation. As it is an ongoing litigation and this is a question for IHH/Fortis, we cannot comment, Nagatomi said. Mitsui's other current investments in the Indian healthcare and pharmaceuticals market include Keimed, one of the largest pharma distributors in India, in which it had invested in 2015, and GOQii, a smart preventive health platform, in which it invested in 2018. We view the Indian healthcare market as highly attractive particularly the private hospital sector, which accounts for 80 percent of the total healthcare market in India due to its significant growth rate of around 16-17 percent (CAGR), Nagatomi said. Other investments Nagatomi also said Mitsui's interests in India go beyond healthcare. India represents a very interesting market for Mitsui and one in which we have made investments across various industries, including F&B, renewable energy and electric vehicles, Nagatomi said. Mitsui employs over 13,000 people (including temporary staff) in India, with investments totalling more than JPY 34 billion as of March 31, 2020. We plan to continue to invest in Indias growth and development by taking a holistic approach across multiple sectors where we see growth opportunities due to social and industrial mega-trends, he added. Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa tested positive for Covid-19 on Sunday and has been admitted to a private hospital in Bengaluru. "I have tested positive for coronavirus. Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self quarantine," Yediyurappa announced on Twitter. His daughter, B Y Padmavati, has also tested positive for the disease, and has been admitted to Manipal Hospital. I have tested positive for coronavirus. Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self quarantine. B.S. Yediyurappa (@BSYBJP) August 2, 2020 Seventy-seven-year-old Yediyurappa has been admitted to the Manipal hospital, his office confirmed. The hospital said that the CM is clinically stable and is being monitored closely by its team of doctors. He has had a series of public engagements and meetings this past week, including the inauguration of the project work on the Bengaluru Bio-life-sciences Park on July 29, where entrepreneur Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw was present. He had also met Dr K Kasturirangan on Friday, to felicitate him for the New Education Policy (NEP) that the octogenarian scientist had drafted. The NEP was announced by the Central government only a few days ago. Dr Rangan, who had avoided most personal meetings in the last few months, had made an exception on Thursday by allowing the CM and the deputy CM Ashwathnarayan to visit him. Besides this, Yediyurappa has met Cabinet colleagues and Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala. Golden Globe winner Jamie Lee Curtis walked her beloved Maltese rescue dog, Runi, near her Spanish Colonial Revival mansion in Santa Monica on Sunday. The 61-year-old Knives Out star was not wearing a mask or face covering, which California Governor Gavin Newsom made mandatory for all public outings on June 18. As of Monday, there have been over 192K confirmed COVID-19 cases in Los Angeles County, which has lead to 4,693 deaths - according to Johns Hopkins University. Morning stroll: Golden Globe winner Jamie Lee Curtis walked her beloved Maltese rescue dog, Runi, near her Spanish Colonial Revival mansion in Santa Monica on Sunday California is spiking: The 61-year-old Knives Out star was not wearing a mask or face covering, which California Governor Gavin Newsom made mandatory for all public outings on June 18 Missing from Jamie's side were her two adult children - daughter Annie, 33; and son Thomas, 24 - from her 35-year marriage to British Baron and mockumentary filmmaker, Christopher Guest. On Monday at 10am PST, Curtis will officially launch her website My Hand In Yours, which vows to 'offer objects of comfort in times of crisis.' 100% of the proceeds of the objects - such as Anne Ricketts' bronze sculpture 'Together' - will benefit Children's Hospital Los Angeles. The second-generation Scream Queen - who boasts 3.6M social media followers - wrote: 'I hope you will support me as I try to support the heroes who are helping children every day.' 'Supporting the heroes': On Monday at 10am PST, Jamie will officially launch her website My Hand In Yours, which vows to 'offer objects of comfort in times of crisis' Charitable: 100% of the proceeds of the objects - such as Anne Ricketts' bronze sculpture 'Together' - will benefit Children's Hospital Los Angeles 'Welcome to Camp Cartwright!' Curtis also produced and narrated a scripted comedy-mystery podcast series called Letters From Camp, which launches this Tuesday on Audible Jamie also produced and narrated a scripted comedy-mystery podcast series called Letters From Camp, which launches this Tuesday on Audible. Curtis next resumes her role as Laurie Strode in David Gordon Green's postponed slasher sequel Halloween Kills, which finally hits US/UK theaters October 15, 2021. 'I am as disappointed as you are,' the Joe Biden supporter tweeted last month of the new release date. 'Mostly because the movie the David has created from the characters that John and Debra created is a masterpiece. Prescient and powerful. I promise you it will be worth the wait.' Finally hits US/UK theaters October 15, 2021! The second-generation Scream Queen next resumes her role as Laurie Strode in David Gordon Green's postponed slasher sequel Halloween Kills (pictured October 8) Jamie tweeted last month of the new release date: 'I am as disappointed as you are. Mostly because the movie the David has created from the characters that John and Debra created is a masterpiece. Prescient and powerful. I promise you it will be worth the wait' 'Let it burn!' The 12th installment of the horror film franchise also features original star Kyle Richards as well as Anthony Michael Hall and Judy Greer (L) The 12th installment of the horror film franchise also features original star Kyle Richards as well as Anthony Michael Hall and Judy Greer. 'If the first film was somewhat retelling the origin of [Michael] Myers and getting us up to speed with where Laurie had been all those years, then part two is about the outrage of Haddonfield,' Green told Total Film last week 'Mob Rules was our working title for the film. It's about a community that is united by outrage, and divided in how to deal with evil.' SAD starts first of its kind social media initiative to reach out virtually to people in each and every constituency - India's home minister tests positive - Two-thirds of Americans disapprove of Trump's handling of COVID-19: poll - Israel builds network of urban delivery drones - Virus testing professionals from Chinese mainland arrive in Hong Kong BEIJING, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. - - - - NEW DELHI -- India's senior leader and Home (Internal Security) Minister Amit Shah tested positive for COVID-19, he himself confirmed through a tweet on Sunday. He appealed to all those who came into his contact to test themselves for COVID-19. - - - - JERUSALEM -- Israel has launched a project to build a network of drones that deliver medicines and test samples to hospitals, pharmacies and laboratories all over the country amid the COVID-19 outbreak, as part of its examination of the national aerial regulation for urban cargo drones. Daniella Partem, leader of the inter-ministry drone project on behalf of the Israel Innovation Authority, told Xinhua that it is the first time the government has formed an official team to deal with drone regulation in Israel. Israeli medical staff work in the coronavirus department at Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov) in the central Israeli city of Tel Aviv on July 29, 2020. (Photo by Gil Cohen Magen/Xinhua) HONG KONG -- Seven virus testing professionals from the Chinese mainland arrived in Hong Kong on Sunday afternoon as the first batch of mainland supportive teams to help contain a worsening spread of COVID-19 in Hong Kong. The medical professionals, who will help with laboratory work here, are members of a 60-strong nucleic acid testing team established recently at the request of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government for assistance in the battle against the pandemic. - - - - MINSK -- Belarus reported 121 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Sunday, taking its total to 68,067, according to the country's health ministry. There have been 210 new recoveries in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 62,896, the ministry added. - - - - TBILISI -- Georgia confirmed six new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, bringing its total to 1,177. Three of the six new cases are imported, the country's center for disease control said. As of Sunday 955 of the 1,177 patients have recovered, while 17 others have died, the center said. A police officer interacts with children at Kuwait International Airport in Farwaniya Governorate, Kuwait, Aug. 1, 2020. (Photo by Asad/Xinhua) KUWAIT CITY -- Kuwait on Sunday reported 463 new COVID-19 cases and four more deaths, raising the tally of infections to 67,911 and the death toll to 457, the Health Ministry said in a statement. Currently, 8,241 patients are receiving treatment, including 129 in ICU, the statement added. - - - - ACCRA -- The number of people infected by the novel coronavirus in Ghana has increased to 37,014 as 787 new cases confirmed here early Sunday, Ghana Health Service (GHS) said. The GHS put the figure for recovered and discharged cases at 33,365, as 1,269 additional confirmed infected cases completed their treatment. People tour the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the United States, July 31, 2020. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua) WASHINGTON -- Only 34 percent of Americans approve of U.S. President Donald Trump's handling of the novel coronavirus pandemic, according to a new ABC News/Ipsos poll. The survey, whose results were released Friday, also found that the U.S. public broadly disapproves of the president's handling of other recent crises such as the nationwide protests following the death of African American George Floyd. 25 years ago: Croatia launches ethnic cleansing of Serbs Map based on data from the 1981 Yugoslav census showing, in blue, areas of Croatia with high concentrations of Serbs On August 4, 1995, the Croatian Army launched Operation Storm, one of the last major campaigns of the Bosnian War. It was orchestrated by Croatian President Franjo Tudjman against the Serbian-inhabited Krajina region, which in 1991, during the initial breakup of Yugoslavia, had declared its independence from Croatia. Beginning with a predawn bombardment of civilian population centers, the attack turned virtually every inhabitant of Krajinaas many as a quarter-million civiliansinto homeless refugees fleeing for their lives. United Nations observers described Serb villages in Krajina as a living hell, with 80 percent of homes torched and looted. Mass graves for the victims of the attack were discovered, and many trying to reach safety were shelled by artillery or stoned and beaten by mobs of Croat nationalists. From the outset of the civil wars provoked by the dismemberment of the former Yugoslavia, Washington had portrayed its own involvement as a disinterested defense of moral principles. Claiming to base its policy on human rights and the right to self-determination, it declared its opposition to ethnic cleansing and military aggression. Washington welcomed Croatias success. The US and Germany had been engaging in a huge buildup of the Croatian military, funneling an estimated $1.3 billion worth of weaponry into the country over the previous two yearsmuch of it taken from the stockpiles of the former German Democratic Republic and the ex-Soviet military forces withdrawn from eastern Germany. Other arms were brought in from CIA-connected traffickers. For three years the US government, backed by a ceaseless propaganda barrage from the media, claimed the defense of Bosnian sovereignty to be the main US objective in the former Yugoslavia. Washington had repeatedly torpedoed UN and European peace proposals on the grounds that they would reward Serb aggression. Bosnia served as a pawn in the drive by German and US imperialism to create a new relationship of forces in the region which would prove more favorable to their own economic and geopolitical objectives. Germany was seeking to re-forge its sphere of influence in Slovenia and Croatia, while solidifying its economic grip over the whole of Eastern Europe. Washingtons interests were bound up with maintaining military hegemony in Europe while simultaneously strengthening its strategic position in the Adriatic. In April 2011, the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia in The Hague found two Croatian military leaders, General Ante Gotovina and Assistant Interior Minister Mladen Markac, guilty of war crimes for their role in Operation Storm. A third defendant was acquitted. 50 years ago: Egypt-Israel War of Attrition ends On August 7, 1970, the governments of Egypt and Israel accepted a ceasefire agreement that brought an end to the War of Attrition stalemate along the Suez Canal. The war had begun following the 1967 Six-Day War after Israel invaded and occupied several significant Arab territories, including the Sinai Peninsula, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and the Golan Heights. The ceasefire plan was proposed by the US Secretary of State William P. Rogers and supported by the Stalinist bureaucracy in the Soviet Union. The agreement was strictly a ceasefire and did not offer a settlement of control over the Sinai Peninsula or any other territory. The agreement was a victory for Israel, which was able to hold onto the occupied territories. Egypts president Gamal Abdel Nasser initially opposed the agreement because it might legitimize Israels claim to the invaded land. However, in a recent diplomatic visit to Moscow, Nasser was pressured by the Stalinists into accepting the agreement, a move that was met with great hostility from the Arab masses. Large demonstrations against the ceasefire were held in Baghdad and Amman. In Jordan workers took a general strike action against the ceasefire. The opposition of workers to the ceasefire forced some leaders of other Arab countries to make empty remarks criticizing Nasser. But they took no serious political action and fell in line behind Nasser and Moscow. The Stalinist strategy was to undermine the Palestinian and other Arab guerilla movements who were also carrying out operations against the Israeli occupation. Regarding the agreement Pravda, the official newspaper of the Soviet Communist Party, wrote, In taking this peaceful initiative, extremist sentiments in the Arab world had to be overcome Great political courage was needed to launch criticism of these sentiments as President Nasser has done. What the Stalinists called political courage was the betrayal of the struggle by Arabs against the US-backed Israeli invasion. Nassers capitulation was an example of the bankruptcy of bourgeois nationalist politics. Nasser, often portrayed as the Middle Easts bulwark against imperialism, had become dependent on Soviet support and was powerless to resist the demands of Stalinism to crush any independent revolutionary movements in return for a temporary pause of the imperialist advance. Responding to the announcement of the ceasefire, the American Trotskyist newspaper The Bulletin wrote, There are only two roads for the Middle East. The workers and peasants either face betrayal through the United Nations and the intrigues of the Stalinists and bourgeois nationalists, or the struggle against Zionism and imperialism will be taken forward through a struggle for a socialist Middle East in which the rights of all minorities will be guaranteed. 75 years ago: US drops atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki Hiroshima before and after the dropping of the bomb On August 6 and 9, 1945, the United States military detonated nuclear bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, respectively, in the first wartime use of atomic weapons. The war crime resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands. Plans for the development of nuclear weapons had been underway for several years, centering on the activities of the US governments Manhattan Project. The deployment of the devices was preceded by the massive use of conventional bombs which were dropped on some 67 Japanese cities, largely after mid-1944. These aerial raids involved incendiary devices, dropped by the thousands of tons, which triggered massive firestorms in Japans densely populated cities. The firebombing of Tokyo in May 1945 had claimed up to 100,000 lives. By early 1945, it had become apparent that the Japanese regime had lost any ability to militarily repulse the Allies and that World War II in the Pacific was coming to a conclusion. The Japanese government increasingly lost its legitimacy, and amid fears of military catastrophe and domestic social opposition, it began discussing the terms of surrender in April and May 1945. The Soviet Union was about to join the war against Japan in Manchuria. Despite this, the US onslaught intensified. The August 6 attack on Hiroshima was carried out by the 393rd Bombardment Squadron of the US Air Force. In the morning, the Enola Gay, a B-29 bomber, set out from the island of Tinian, carrying a single nuclear device. The little boy bomb, containing some 64 kilograms of uranium-235, detonated around 1,900 feet above the city. Residents described a flash of light followed by a massive booming sound. Some 80,000 inhabitants were killed by the explosion and its immediate aftermath, including huge firestorms, while another 70,000 or more suffered injuries. The attack shocked the worlds population, but US President Harry Truman hailed providence for ensuring the US had first developed nuclear weapons. He warned of a further rain of ruin from the air, the like of which has never been seen on this earth. Three days later, a second nuclear device was detonated over Nagasaki. There were massive losses throughout the city, especially among its many industrial workers. Because of the scale of the destruction, the number of deaths is unknown, with estimates ranging from 39,000 to 80,000. Another 60,000 were injured. Thousands more would die from the effects of radiation over the following years. Within days, on August 14, the Japanese imperial government would issue a capitulation notice, leading to its surrender. The nuclear bombings were intended as a signal to US rivals, and the worlds population, that it would brook no challenge to its hegemony at the conclusion of the war. The attack was particularly intended as a threat to the Soviet Union, and a demonstration of what destruction the US military could inflict if the Stalinist regime obstructed its plans to construct a post-war order that advanced the limitless interests of American imperialism. 100 years: Soviets reject Allied truce terms with Poland Soviet delegates arrive for negotiations, August, 1920 On August 8, 1920, the Soviet republic refused to grant a 10-day truce to the nationalist Polish government in fighting outside Warsaw, on the conditions proposed by British and French imperialism. The Allied powers had been thrown into a crisis by the drive of the Red Army into Poland in response to the Polish invasion of Soviet territory in April. A conference of French and British premiers assumed a very warlike aspect, according to the Associated Press. The Soviet Red Army was a mere 36 miles from Warsaw, and the imperialist powers began to discuss resumption of a blockade of the Soviet Republic. They received assurances from American diplomats that the United States would support this action. The French also proposed sending troops into Poland and sought to mobilize Romanian and Czechoslovak forces for this purpose. Germany was warned that any effort to cooperate with the Bolsheviks would result in the occupation by Allied troops of the Ruhr Valley and other parts of Germany. The Red Army had begun to bombard fortifications on the outskirts of Warsaw and to make appeals to the Polish working class and peasanty to turn against the Pilsudski government. Over the next few days, the imperialist powers were forced to back down from intervention in the Polish-Soviet war by massive opposition from the working class. On August 9, the British Trades Union Congress issued a statement that the war being engineered against Soviet Russia on the issue of Poland would be an intolerable crime against humanity and warned the government that the whole industrial power of the organized workers will be used to defeat this war. Anti-war meetings were held by workers in Londonwhere former soldiers also participatedLiverpool, Glasgow and Manchester and calls were made for a general strike in the event of British participation in war against the Soviet Republic. Jason Prenderville had to be subdued by gardai A man threatened to break a garda's arm and had to be pepper sprayed when he became violent during an arrest, a court heard. Jason Prenderville (29) was punching and kicking out at gardai when they had to subdue him with batons. Judge Michael Walsh jailed him for eight months for public order offences in separate incidents. Prenderville, of no fixed address, had pleaded not guilty to public intoxication, threatening, abusive and insulting behaviour and garda obstruction. A garda told Dublin District Court he was walking by the Luas stop on St Stephen's Green last August 3. His attention was drawn to Prenderville because he made eye contact with him and quickly walked in the opposite direction. He then became abusive. Cursed "At one point, he threatened to knock me out and break my arm," the officer said. "He cursed quite a lot, telling me to eff off." The accused denied being threatening and abusive and said he did not threaten to break the garda's arm. "I wasn't cursing," he said. "I don't curse." Last February 1, a garda saw the accused on Grafton Street. He was struggling to stand and abusing members of the public. When approached, he became aggressive and screamed at gardai. When told he was being arrested, he put up "strong resistance" by punching and kicking out. Gardai had to use pepper spray and baton strikes to his lower leg. Prenderville claimed he was "minding my own business", had only had two pints and all he did was draw the attention of the gardai to a group of men arguing across the road. Judge Walsh found him guilty. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) trapped its first murder hornet in July, signaling an important step in the road to removing the invasive species before it seriously damages bee populations in North America. This is encouraging because it means we know that the traps work, Sven Spichiger, managing entomologist for the department, said in a WSDA release. But it also means we have work to do. The hornet was found in a WSDA trap in Whatcom County in Washington state. Researchers checked the bottle trap on July 14 and submitted its contents to the agencys entomology lab, the WSDA said. Later, the hornet was identified as the first captured in a trap. In total, the WSDA has confirmed five sightings of the insect. Asian giant hornets dubbed murder hornets for their voracious and violent appetites have scientists worried the invasive species could decimate vital bee populations across the United States if not properly contained. Since initial reports in early December, the WSDA has notified residents of multiple counties to be on the lookout for the giant hornets, which threaten honeybees and all the crops they pollinate, the Advance/SILive.com previously reported. The pest, which has queens that can grow over two inches long, has devastating mandibles that can decapitate one bee every 14 seconds, according to a New York Times report. After removing the head of the bee, the giant hornet returns the thorax to its nest to feed its young. Although not typically aggressive toward humans, the WSDA said, the hornet has a powerful sting that can pierce beekeeping suits. In Japan, hornets kill approximately 50 people a year, the Times reported. WSDA now plans to search for nests and place additional traps to capture live Asian Giant Hornet specimens. If they catch live hornets, the department will attempt to tag and track them back to their colony, the WSDA said. WSDA hopes to find and destroy the nest by mid-September before the colony would begin creating new reproducing queens and drones, the agency said in a release. Until that time, the colony will only contain the queen and worker Asian giant hornets. Destroying the nest before new queens emerge and mate will prevent the spread of this invasive pest. If a citizen scientist traps a live Asian giant hornet, they should call the WSDA Pest Program hotline at 1-800-443-6684. Because the number of Asian giant hornet workers increases as a colony develops, residents should be most likely to see an Asian giant hornet in August and September. If you think you have seen one, report it at agr.wa.gov/hornets. When did America start losing its war against the coronavirus? How did we find ourselves international pariahs, not even allowed to travel to Europe? Id suggest the turning point was on April 17, the day President Donald Trump tweeted LIBERATE MINNESOTA, followed by LIBERATE MICHIGAN and LIBERATE VIRGINIA. In so doing, he effectively declared White House support for protesters demanding an end to the lockdowns governors had instituted to bring COVID-19 under control. The Democratic governors Trump was targeting in those tweets stood firm. But Republican governors in Arizona, Florida, Texas and elsewhere soon lifted stay-at-home orders and ended many restrictions on business operations. They also, following Trumps lead, refused to require that people wear masks, and Texas and Arizona denied local governments the right to impose such requirements. They waved away warnings from health experts that premature and careless reopening could lead to a new wave of infections. And the virus came. The initial outbreak of COVID-19, centered on New York, should have taught us to be wary. Rising rates of infection can seem like a minor concern at first, especially if you dont have adequate testing, until they explode with terrifying speed. But neither Republican politicians nor the Trump administration was willing to heed that lesson. By the second week of June new COVID-19 cases were surging in Arizona and clearly on the rise in Texas. Yet the governors of both states dismissed calls for a pause in reopening, insisting that things were under control. And on June 16, the Wall Street Journal published an opinion piece by Vice President Mike Pence declaring there wasnt and wouldnt be a coronavirus second wave. Given the Trump administrations track record, this virtually guaranteed the wave was about to hit. And so it was. Over the past three weeks things have quickly gotten very grim. Hospitals in Arizona and Texas are in crisis. And, yes, it was the premature reopenings that did it, both directly and by sending a signal to individuals that the risk was past. But why did America bungle COVID-19 so badly? There has been a fair bit of commentary to the effect that our failed pandemic response was deeply rooted in American culture. We are, the argument goes, too libertarian, too distrustful of government, too unwilling to accept even slight inconveniences to protect others. And theres surely something to this. I dont think any other advanced country has a comparable number of people who respond with rage when asked to wear a mask in a supermarket. There definitely isnt any other advanced country where demonstrators against public health measures would wave guns around and invade state capitols. And the Republican Party is more or less unique among major Western political parties in its hostility to science in general. But what strikes me, when looking at Americas extraordinary pandemic failure, is how top-down it all was. Those anti-lockdown demonstrations werent spontaneous, grassroots affairs. Many were organized and coordinated by conservative political activists, some with close ties to the Trump campaign, and financed in part by right-wing billionaires. The main driving force behind reopening, as far as I can tell, was the administrations desire to have big job gains leading into November, so it could do what it knew how to do boast about economic success. In that case, however, why has Trump refused to wear a face mask or encourage others to do so? After all, wider use of masks would be one way to limit infections without shutting down the economy. Well, Trumps vanity has surely played a role. But its also true that masks remind people that we havent controlled the coronavirus and Trump wants people to forget that awkward fact. The irony is that Trumps willingness to trade deaths for jobs and political gain has backfired. Reopening did lead to large job increases in May and June, as around a third of the workers laid off as a result of the pandemic were rehired. But Trumps job approval and electoral prospects just kept sliding. And even in purely economic terms the rush to reopen is probably failing. The last official employment number was a snapshot from the second week of June; a variety of short-term indicators suggest growth slowed or even went into reverse soon afterward, especially in states where COVID-19 cases are spiking. Americas defeat at the hands of the coronavirus didnt happen because victory was impossible. Nor was it because we as a nation were incapable of responding. No, we lost because Trump and those around him decided it was in their political interests to let the virus run wild. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-02 22:39:22|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close An employee disinfects a closed mall in Mumbai, India, July 30, 2020. (Str/Xinhua) - India's home minister tests positive - Two-thirds of Americans disapprove of Trump's handling of COVID-19: poll - Israel builds network of urban delivery drones - Virus testing professionals from Chinese mainland arrive in Hong Kong BEIJING, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. - - - - NEW DELHI -- India's senior leader and Home (Internal Security) Minister Amit Shah tested positive for COVID-19, he himself confirmed through a tweet on Sunday. He appealed to all those who came into his contact to test themselves for COVID-19. - - - - JERUSALEM -- Israel has launched a project to build a network of drones that deliver medicines and test samples to hospitals, pharmacies and laboratories all over the country amid the COVID-19 outbreak, as part of its examination of the national aerial regulation for urban cargo drones. Daniella Partem, leader of the inter-ministry drone project on behalf of the Israel Innovation Authority, told Xinhua that it is the first time the government has formed an official team to deal with drone regulation in Israel. Israeli medical staff work in the coronavirus department at Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov) in the central Israeli city of Tel Aviv on July 29, 2020. (Photo by Gil Cohen Magen/Xinhua) HONG KONG -- Seven virus testing professionals from the Chinese mainland arrived in Hong Kong on Sunday afternoon as the first batch of mainland supportive teams to help contain a worsening spread of COVID-19 in Hong Kong. The medical professionals, who will help with laboratory work here, are members of a 60-strong nucleic acid testing team established recently at the request of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government for assistance in the battle against the pandemic. - - - - MINSK -- Belarus reported 121 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Sunday, taking its total to 68,067, according to the country's health ministry. There have been 210 new recoveries in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 62,896, the ministry added. - - - - TBILISI -- Georgia confirmed six new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, bringing its total to 1,177. Three of the six new cases are imported, the country's center for disease control said. As of Sunday 955 of the 1,177 patients have recovered, while 17 others have died, the center said. A police officer interacts with children at Kuwait International Airport in Farwaniya Governorate, Kuwait, Aug. 1, 2020. (Photo by Asad/Xinhua) KUWAIT CITY -- Kuwait on Sunday reported 463 new COVID-19 cases and four more deaths, raising the tally of infections to 67,911 and the death toll to 457, the Health Ministry said in a statement. Currently, 8,241 patients are receiving treatment, including 129 in ICU, the statement added. - - - - ACCRA -- The number of people infected by the novel coronavirus in Ghana has increased to 37,014 as 787 new cases confirmed here early Sunday, Ghana Health Service (GHS) said. The GHS put the figure for recovered and discharged cases at 33,365, as 1,269 additional confirmed infected cases completed their treatment. People tour the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the United States, July 31, 2020. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua) WASHINGTON -- Only 34 percent of Americans approve of U.S. President Donald Trump's handling of the novel coronavirus pandemic, according to a new ABC News/Ipsos poll. The survey, whose results were released Friday, also found that the U.S. public broadly disapproves of the president's handling of other recent crises such as the nationwide protests following the death of African American George Floyd. A Derry man accused of being the leader of an organised crime gang has been remanded into custody at the citys Magistrates Court. On July 30, the defendant was granted anonymity by the court because fourteen threat messages have been delivered to him in the past by republican paramilitaries. It is a year since he received the last one but the court was told that the threats have not been lifted. He has been charged with conspiracy to transfer criminal property namely money, conspiracy to conceal criminal property, being concerned in the supply of Class A drug cocaine, conspiracy to possess the same Class A drug with intent to supply and conspiracy to possess Class B drug cannabis with intent to supply. All offences are alleged to have taken place between March 25 and June 15 of this year. The court heard that there is a large amount of evidence connecting the defendant to serious criminality. During searches of his addresses on July 29 police were said to have discovered a Fort Transit van in a lockup with items found inside. According to the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) the accused was located at business premises in the city where a Land Rover and personal use steroids were seized. A PPS representative said a wealth of material was found on his mobile phone. It contains, he added, exchanges between the defendant and associates about substantial sums of money and the importation of drugs from the Republic of Ireland and Spain. The prosecution lawyer also said the phone contained reference to the purchase of a stash van a vehicle adapted to contain hidden compartments to store drugs. He objected to bail saying the defendant appears to be running an organised crime group and has a relevant previous conviction for which he received a suspended prison sentence. The PPS representative said there is a risk of reoffending and of obstructing justice. Other people linked to the same organised criminality were granted bail but the prosecution drew a distinction citing previous convictions and talking about substantial quantity of drugs. The court was told that phone messages detailed 60 jackets which the PPS believe to be 60kg batches of cannabis. Defence solicitor Ciaran Shiels said the offences are denied and there is no forensic link nor smoking gun. The case will likely take years to come to trial, he added, while referring to 1,200 arrests across Europe as part of Operation Venetic. This operation has focused on crime groups by attacking the use of encrypted communication called Encro devices on which individual members of crime groups co-ordinate their illegal activities. Many people are aware of the wholesale breach of the EncroChat platform which took place from March until June, Mr Shiels said. The defence solicitor argued that the lawfulness of the operation and admissibility of material has to be tested. His clients antecedents are very modest and he has nothing for dealing drugs, Mr Shiels told the court. The defendants wife could provide a cash surety of 2,000 and the defence lawyer believed that with very, very severe and strict conditions his client met the criteria for bail. Mr Shiels added: If he wasnt under fairly heavy police surveillance before yesterday he will know between now and his preliminary inquiry he will be one of the most highly monitored individuals in this city. District Judge John Meehan said the accused has a relevant conviction on his record and the point about how long it will take to go to trial has not yet been reached. Bail was refused and the defendant will appear before the court again on August 27. WASHINGTON President Donald Trump has blamed China for the coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing economic crisis, but as the White House looks to stabilize small businesses in the United States, the rescue effort has had an unintended beneficiary: Chinese companies. Millions of dollars of U.S. taxpayer money have flowed to China from the $660 billion Paycheck Protection Program that was created in March to be a lifeline for struggling small businesses in the United States. But because the economic relief legislation allowed U.S. subsidiaries of foreign firms to receive the loans, a substantial chunk of the money went to Americas biggest economic rival, a new analysis shows. According to a review of publicly available loan data by strategy consulting firm Horizon Advisory, $192 million to $419 million has gone to more than 125 companies that Chinese entities own or invest in. Many of the loans were quite sizable; at least 32 Chinese companies received loans worth more than $1 million, with those totaling as much as $180 million. The extent and nature of P.R.C.-owned, -invested and -connected entities among the P.P.P. loan recipients indicate that without appropriate policy guardrails, U.S. tax dollars intended for relief, recovery and growth of the U.S. economy and small businesses in particular risk supporting foreign competitors, namely China, wrote Emily de La Bruyere and Nathan Picarsic, the co-founders of Horizon Advisory, referring to the Peoples Republic of China. The report acknowledges that the participation of these companies in the lending program most likely saved an unspecified number of jobs based in the United States, but it also suggests that many of the businesses probably had access to other forms of capital from public or private markets to support their U.S. operations. The Treasury Department has estimated that the overall program has kept 50 million workers employed in the United States. The revelation that Chinese-backed companies were helped by U.S. tax dollars shows the deep ties that remain between American and Chinese businesses even as relations between the countries have deteriorated in recent months. Trump has regularly vented his anger at China and accused it of spreading a virus that has left the once-thriving U.S. economy in tatters. Its Chinas fault, he said Friday. China should be paying for it, and maybe they will. The virus has emboldened the administrations hawks in their calls for both punishing China and decoupling the worlds two largest economies, saying Beijing poses a national security threat. The administration in recent weeks has sanctioned Chinese officials accused of facilitating human rights violations in the Xinjiang region and banned more Chinese technology companies from buying U.S. technology and components. The White House is also nearing a decision that could force ByteDance, a Chinese firm, to sell the U.S. operations of social media app TikTok over national security concerns. As far as TikTok is concerned, were banning them from the United States, the president said Friday. But the administrations aggressive approach to China did not stop companies with ties to Beijing from benefiting from one of the main programs intended to prop up the U.S. economy. The Paycheck Protection Program, which was created as part of a $2.2 trillion relief package signed in March, was devised to help small businesses with fewer than 500 workers cover payrolls and overhead expenses while much of the economy was shuttered. When big publicly traded companies that had access to other forms of capital took out PPP loans, the Trump administration publicly shamed them and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin urged them to repay the money, saying they could face criminal liability if they did not qualify for the loans. But the rules of the program also allowed U.S. subsidiaries of foreign-owned companies to apply for and receive loans. The Horizon Advisory report, which analyzed public filings and loan data that was released by the Treasury Department in June, does not claim to be an exhaustive account of the more than 5 million loans that were initiated through the program. The data released by the Treasury Department, for instance, shared loan amounts in ranges only for businesses that borrowed more than $150,000, and information for private firms that took smaller loans was released only in aggregate. Among the companies highlighted in the report were Continental Aerospace Technologies, which received a loan of up to $10 million, and Aviage Systems, which received a loan of up to $350,000. The companies are owned by Aviation Industry Corp. of China, a state-owned conglomerate that the Department of Defense classified this year as a Chinese military company. HNA Group North America LLC and HNA Training Center NY, subsidiaries of Chinas HNA Group, both received loans of up to $1 million. HNA Group specializes in real estate, aviation and financial services transactions and is part of the Fortune Global 500. And BGI Americas Corp., which is a subsidiary of Chinese gene-testing giant BGI Group, took a loan of up to $1 million. The company, which is building a gene bank in Xinjiang, did return the money, however, after Axios reported on the loan. Larger loans went to businesses that spanned critical sectors such as pharmaceuticals, defense, advanced manufacturing, electric cars and information technology. In each case, the United States was indirectly funding the kinds of corporations whose owners the Trump administration regularly accuses of intellectual property theft. For example, Dendreon Pharmaceuticals, a California-based biotech company, received a loan worth $5 million to $10 million. It is owned by Nanjing Xinbai, a Chinese state-invested company whose controlling shareholder has close ties to the Communist Party. Money from the Paycheck Protection Program has also made its way to the financial technology sector. Citcon USA LLC, a Silicon Valley mobile payments firm, received $150,000 to $350,000 in loan money. ZhenFund is a major investor; the company connects U.S. companies to Chinese payment platforms such as Alipay and WeChat, which could also face restrictions from the Trump administration. Lawmakers and the Trump administration are in the process of negotiating how to recalibrate the small business lending program in an upcoming economic relief package. A provision of the bill proposed last week by Senate Republicans would make businesses that are partially owned by Chinese companies or that have a Chinese resident on the board of directors ineligible for the next round of loan money. It is uncertain whether such a provision might make it to a final bill. A Treasury spokeswoman noted that the Small Business Administration might review any of the loans administered through the program and deny forgiveness if it turned out that the borrower was not eligible or misrepresented their business in the loan application. The White House had no comment on the loans. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. The first 2020 issue of the journal by the Academy's Forest Research Institute is already online on a brand new and user-friendly website The scholarly publisher and technology provider Pensoft welcomes the open-access, peer-reviewed international journal in forest science concerning the Balkan Peninsula, Central and Southern Europe Silva Balcanica to its self-developed publishing platform ARPHA. Having become the latest addition to the lengthy portfolio of scholarly outlets dedicated to the fields of ecology and biology for Pensoft and ARPHA, Silva Balcanica is now offering a wide range of benefits and services to its readers, authors, reviewers and editors alike. Having already acquired its own glossy and user-friendly website provided by ARPHA, Silva Balcanica also takes advantage of the platform's signature fast-track, end-to-end publishing system. In addition, the published content enjoys automated export of data to aggregators, as well as web-service integrations with major global indexing and archiving databases. Ever since its inception in 2001, the journal by the Forest Research Institute at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (FRI-BAS), has been providing open access to the latest research in all aspects of forest ecosystems and landscapes of the Balkan Peninsula, and also Central and Southern Europe. Silva Balcanica invites scientific analysis of practical results, as well as investigations, in the forest sciences, including forest ecology; forest soil science; forest genetics, tree breeding and plantation forestry; biometry and sylviculture; forest economy and management; forest entomology and pathology; ecology and management of game fauna, urban forestry and green infrastructure. Constructive critique addressing scientific publications or events in the field of forestry and forest science are also accepted. In the first 2020 issue of Silva Balcanica, we can find a total of eight research papers, dealing with a range of various topics, including studies on local plant diversity, genetics, application of experimental designs for forestry research, ecosystem services, population dynamics, invasive pathogens and previously unknown populations of forest-dwelling insects. It brings together single-authored research contributions as well as international collaborative projects, with input from authors from Bulgaria, Greece, Northern Macedonia and Italy. "Silva Balcanica is an important scholarly outlet and also a remarkable example of international cooperation, inspired and maintained by curiosity, care and responsibility towards the unique, but fragile ecosystems this part of Europe hosts. This is why we take pride in having this particular journal joining our portfolio," comments Prof. Lyubomir Penev, CEO and founder of both Pensoft and ARPHA Platform. Silva Balcanica's Editorial Board says: "The Scientific Council of the Forest Research Institute at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences decided to begin publishing Silva Balcanica as an international series in 2001 and since 2014, Silva Balcanica has been published as an international journal. We are honored to have as members of our Editorial Advisory Board eminent European professors and researchers in forestry and related sciences that join our efforts in pursuit of high quality scientific publishing. We are confident that Silva Balcanica will unite the research of scientists and specialists in forestry from Southeastern, Central and Eastern Europe and beyond, and will help them in the processes of their European integration." ### Visit the new website of Silva Balcanica at https://silvabalcanica.pensoft.net. Additional information: About Pensoft: Pensoft is an independent academic publishing company, well-known worldwide for its innovations in the field of semantic publishing, as well as for its cutting-edge publishing tools and workflows. In 2013, Pensoft launched the first ever end to end XML-based authoring, reviewing and publishing workflow, as demonstrated by the Pensoft Writing Tool (PWT) and the Biodiversity Data Journal (BDJ), now upgraded to the ARPHA Publishing Platform. Flagship titles include: Research Ideas and Outcomes (RIO), One Ecosystem, ZooKeys, Biodiversity Data Journal, PhytoKeys, MycoKeys and many more. About ARPHA: ARPHA is the first end-to-end, narrative- and data-integrated publishing solution that supports the full life cycle of a manuscript, from authoring to reviewing, publishing and dissemination. ARPHA provides accomplished and streamlined production workflows that can be customized according to the journal's needs. The platform enables a variety of publishing models through a number of options for branding, production and revenue models to choose from. Contact: Prof. Lyubomir Penev, founder and CEO at ARPHA and Pensoft Email: penev@pensoft.net Prof. Georgi Georgiev, Editor-in-Chief at Silva Balcanica and Deputy Director at FRI-BAS Email: ggeorgiev.fri@gmail.com To make sure that happens in a responsible and safe way Hubbard said, plans are for classes to start at 8 a.m. spaced out in different classrooms. The law students will remain in the same classroom all morning with professors changing rooms. The building will be cleaned before upper classmen come in for afternoon and evening classes, he said. Not all of their classes will be in the classroom. Hubbard said since accepting the position he has been waking up early every morning thinking about the job and things he would like to accomplish. Hubbard said he would like to bring in more practicing lawyers as adjunct professors. He said he would also like to start a masters program in legal technology in which it would take a year to get a degree rather than the number it takes for a law degree. Hubbard said it would be a level above a paralegal. It would compare to the nurse practitioner in the medical field. They could do a lot of what a lawyer does now, he said. He wants to prepare people for the law of the 21st century. A major in legal technology would be one way to do this. Coupons cannot be combined with any other coupon, offer, sale or discount. Coupons are not applicable to prior orders. Coupons are subject to change without notice. One coupon redeemable per item per customer. Not redeemable for cash. Limited to stock on hand. (ANY OTHER USE CONSTITUTES FRAUD) Prices valid thru 8/9/2020 11:59 PM PT unless otherwise noted. CLICK ITEM FOR DETAILS. Pricing, promotions, and availability may vary by location and online and are subject to change. Descriptive, typographic, technical and photographic errors are subject to correction and TigerDirect Business shall have no liability for such errors. Copyright 2022 TigerDirect Business All Rights Reserved. TigerDirect Business is a registered trademark of TigerDirect Business. All others trademarks and copyrights mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners. If you conducted e-commerce transactions since the pandemic struck, you have probably been the target, or even a victim, of online fraud. Fraud prevention solutions firm Sift yesterday released a report focusing on a 109 percent increase in content abuse and growth of the fraud economy from January through May 2020. The report, titled Q2 2020 Digital Trust & Safety Index, concludes that this increase is likely connected to the global disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The study shows how fraudsters have used content to deceive and exploit consumers on e-commerce sites and within online communities. Counterfeit content has played a role in e-commerce for as long as digital businesses have existed. Scams, spam, fake reviews, and misinformation have evolved in tandem with online shopping, discussion forums, and social networks, the report acknowledges. Sifts analysis of abuse types shows that most of this fraud is financially motivated. Scams make up 46.8 percent of the content abuse that Sifts technology blocked. One of the most jarring findings includes the discovery of a fraud ring based in Russia where criminals executed a credit and debit card testing scheme through fake listings on an e-commerce marketplace. This increase in e-commerce fraud is representative of a concerning upward trend that both e-commerce providers and their customers must navigate, according to Hank Schless, Senior Manager, Security Solutions at Lookout. Malicious actors are taking advantage of an increasingly complex risk landscape, and now more than ever its important to evaluate and secure every potential risk vector across all channels, he told the E-Commerce Times. Pandemic Profitable for Fraudsters The revelations come from Sifts global network of 34,000 sites and apps. Researchers also surveyed over 1,000 consumers in June 2020. The report also details how content abuse is a critical part of the fraud supply chain, the interconnected ecosystem of fraud. Findings show from January to May 2020 digital e-commerce (subscriptions, apps) was hit by fraud at an exceptionally high rate. In the first five months of 2020, fraud scams, spams, and fake reviews occurred 123 percent more than in all of 2019. Coronavirus has affected virtually every business, and cybercrime is no different as it is a business a big one, according to Brendan OConnor, CEO and co-founder of AppOmni. A D V E R T I S E M E N T It is estimated that global cybercrime revenues exceed US$1 trillion annually. In challenging times like these, businesses must adapt, OConnor told the E-Commerce Times. Cybercriminals are capable of adapting quickly, and that is what they have done with coronavirus, he added. With people around the world staying home and maintaining social distance, there has been a huge increase in both remote work and e-commerce. It should come as no surprise to see malicious actors investing in attacks that target these trends, he said. Opportunity Mongers Since the majority of the population has shifted to working from home, malicious actors have been taking advantage of a massive increase in remote shopping, banking, and work. Their job is to scam unsuspecting victims, OConnor explained. Looking at e-commerce specifically, fraudsters can take advantage of both mobile and web channels to successfully carry out an attack. The situation is growing on two fronts. Cloud storage for business and online shopping for consumers. As critical business operations and data move to the cloud at record speed, attackers are targeting cloud applications like never before. With consumers everywhere increasing the amount of shopping they do online, attackers have naturally gone after online shoppers with sophisticated fraud campaigns, noted OConnor. These trends are unlikely to slow anytime soon, he observed. He predicts that we will continue to see more attacks targeting cloud applications for businesses and e-commerce sites for consumers. On mobile, global phishing encounters increased 37 percent during the first quarter of 2020. Many of these were attempts to steal personal data as consumers adjusted to a new normal of shopping exclusively from the web via their mobile devices, added Schless. On web platforms, theres been an increase in activities like Magecart that skim customers credit card data from the checkout page of a website by injecting malicious code into the page, he offered as another form of online fraud separate from the Sift research. Content Abuse Leads to Fraud Supply Chain Content abuse is not merely a standalone threat but a type of cybercriminal behavior that acts as a springboard for, and a bridge between, account takeover and payment fraud, contributing to what Sift calls the Fraud Supply Chain in its report. A D V E R T I S E M E N T Fraud doesnt happen in a vacuum, said Jason Tan, CEO of Sift. Our latest report illustrates how cybercriminals use different attack vectors to steal from consumers and businesses, often through more complex ways than merely buying stolen credit cards to make large purchases. Merchants must adopt a digital trust and safety strategy to protect across the entire user journey. That will combat the fraud supply chain. In turn, it will also help them protect and grow revenue, Tan explained. The fraud network involves three action patterns: Payment Fraud, Content Abuse, and Account Takeover. Content abuse is a means to an end. Fraudsters use it to commit payment fraud. They create a post, comment, email, or text message to disguise a malicious link or drive consumers to unsecured sites and media. The attack only works when people engage with that content and link by sharing it or by clicking on it themselves, the Sift report detailed. That produces two calculated results. The first action widens the pool of potential victims. The other action directly impacts the person who clicked. Cybercriminals make money by selling the data they steal on the Dark Web. The report describes this market as a fraudster flea market which is essentially an illicit mirror image of digital e-commerce. Card-Testing Fraud Ring Uncovered Sifts Data Science team identified a key card-testing scheme in early June 2020. Its one of the more covert ways content abuse fits back into the fraud supply chain. It occurs after login information, gift card details, or payment data has been stolen or bought. A group of 15 fraudsters in Russia with identical IP addresses (a fraud ring), who Sift named Bargain Bear, worked together to test dozens of credit cards and digital wallets by posting fraudulent content listings on an e-commerce marketplace. Sifts Data Science team uncovered sinister behavior on an e-commerce marketplace: a fraud ring using fake content listings to execute a classic card-testing scheme. Using these fake listings, they sold items to each other in order to vet stolen data, negotiating the costs of those items down so that the exchanges appeared more legitimate. This allowed Bargain Bear to test payment information in order to make much larger purchases thereafter. The attempted scam also sought to bolster the fraud rings legitimacy on the marketplace by having the buyer post positive, yet fake, reviews. Brand Loyalty Threatened The Digital Trust & Safety Index reveals the true cost of content fraud as brand abandonment. Content fraud decimates brand loyalty. Content abuse is typically financially motivated. The content is designed to facilitate scams making up nearly half of the attacks that were blocked. Slightly more than half (56 percent) of consumers surveyed reported that if they discovered that their personal information had been exposed as a result of a scam on a website, they would stop using the site or service and choose a different provider. Using the pandemic as cover, content scammers focused on ticketing sites. The ticketing and events space was hit the hardest by attempted content abuse since the start of 2020. Those sites also experienced record drops in event volume (down 84 percent from April 2019) as large gatherings of any kind became impossible. Research shows that fraudsters have maintained their focus on businesses struggling amid the pandemic. Caught in the Act Sifts research showed that a significant percentage of consumers recognized fake content and its consequences. Sifts survey showed that 67 percent of those polled believe they come across some type of fraudulent content or false information on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. That survey also showed that 94 percent of the responding consumers deem content to be suspicious based on conspicuous factors. These include pie-in-the-sky promises, multiple typos or grammatical errors, outlandish claims, or a lack of identity information from the person posting it. The Sift Digital Trust & Safety Index gives online merchants visibility into the covert economics that injure businesses. It also provides merchants with industry expertise to help businesses protect their customers without losing money or momentum. More COVID-19 Fraud Tactics Sift has tracked how fraud rates and event volumes are changing each week across multiple e-commerce verticals in response to the pandemic since March of 2020. The pandemic is causing acute effects within the economy that fraudsters are monetizing, according to Sifts research. These ploys directly victimize merchants as well as consumers. Criminal tactics include using text messages to encourage stockpiling of products and sowing fear about quarantine restrictions. Other tactics include emails sent to consumers to trick them into believing a vaccine exists and is being withheld, proffering fake treatments, and offering refunds to people whose plans were disrupted by travel bans. The fraud does not end there. Fraudsters manipulate social media posts to pose as medical representatives with access to tests and antiviral medications for a fee. New Delhi, Aug 3 : With the foundation stone-laying ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya slated to take place on August 5, retired judge Justice Manmohan Singh Liberhan, who investigated and identified the people involved in the demolition of the Babri Masjid, said he always had a feeling that a Ram temple would be built in Ayodhya. Speaking to IANS, two days before the Bhoomi Pujan ceremony, Justice Liberhan said "Personally, I have always had a feeling that a Ram temple will be built in Ayodhya." Former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao's government within 10 days of the Babri Masjid demolition set up a commission of inquiry headed by Justice Liberhan. He was a sitting judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Later, he was appointed Chief Justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court from where he retired on November 11, 2000. He headed the Liberhan Commission which took 17 years to complete its inquiry, which delved into all the facts and circumstances in connection with the events which took place at the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid site on December 6, 1992. The inquiry held several senior BJP leaders responsible for the demolition of the mosque. The report was submitted to then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on June 30, 2009. When queried why he had this feeling that Ram temple would be built at the disputed site, Justice Liberhan replied, "It is a personal feeling. I have no comments to offer on why I have had this feeling." He also emphasised that everybody should respect the judgment of the Supreme Court on the Ayodhya title dispute. When queried that many continue to criticise the apex court judgement on the matter, he replied, "The Supreme Court has given a verdict on the matter. People should respect it and there is no point in criticising the verdict." The Liberhan Commission had concluded that the demolition of the Babri Masjid was a planned attack, carried out by a specialised team of RSS cadre, which has been affirmed by the Supreme Court, in the recent Ayodhya title dispute judgment that termed it as a "calculated act." When queried on facing pressure while probing such a critical issue, Justice Liberhan replied, "I never faced any pressure." The Liberhan Commission had concluded, "It would be unsatisfactory to attribute these attacks (on the Masjid) to the average 'kar sevaks'. These were pre-planned attacks and had been demonstrably assigned to a 'specialised team of RSS cadre and was coordinated and guided by the effective leadership at the spot." In November 2019, a five-judge Supreme Court bench headed by then Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, in a unanimous judgment, granted the disputed land to Hindus for the construction of the Ram temple. (Sumit Saxena can be contacted at sumit.s@ians.in) Latest updates on Ayodhya Ram Temple Bhumi Pujan -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Luxembourg is the only at-risk country bordering Germany. A special rule regarding cross-border workers has now been introduced between the countries. The German government has ordered that every citizen returning from a designated risk zone will have to get tested and quarantine. An exception to this rule has now been initiated for Luxembourg, as to not decelerate traffic between both countries. The Robert Koch Institute declared the Grand Duchy an at-risk zone, since more than 50 out of 100,000 people have been infected with Covid-19 on a weekly basis. The institute emphasised recently that this decision would not be reversed. Nevertheless, the borders will remain open and no controls will be made. If a German citizen stays on Luxembourgish soil for more than 72 hours at a time, he or she will have to get tested upon returning and undergo quarantine measures. Saarland is relieved over the decision by Minister of Health Jens Spahn to continue its liberal regulation with Luxembourg, according to Tagesschau. Luxembourgish residents still need a negative test no older than two days when travelling to Germany. Jean Asselborn ought to be happy with the current situation. The minister of foreign affairs recently appeared on German television praising the country's handling of the crisis and the rigorous testing procedures. The Kwara State Government has announced August 5 for the resumption of students preparing for the secondary school certificate examinations. The government has also provided 65,000 face masks for senior secondary class three students as part of the governments efforts to flatten the curve of COVID-19 transmission in the state. On behalf of the Kwara State Government and His Excellency AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq I present these face masks to the Honourable Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, Hajia Bisola Ahmed, for onward distribution to our SS3 students as they prepare to resume academic activities. This is just the beginning as they will get more and more of our support, Kayode Alabi, the Deputy Governor and Chairman of the Kwara State Technical Committee on COVID-19, said on Monday. This is the first phase as we are also giving out sanitisers while the Ministry of Education, working with the committee and stakeholders in the sector, has been mandated to ensure that safety rules are adhered to, he added. Mrs Ahmed said the government is making every effort to ensure strict adherence to the preventive measures directed by the Federal Ministry of Education for the safety of students. Our SS3 students will resume this week, precisely on Wednesday. We have 65,000 face masks here which will be distributed to schools across the three senatorial districts of the state. The face masks are now being distributed through the All Nigeria Conference of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS). READ ALSO: We have spoken with the principals of the schools and they are ready to support the state government and we assure you that all the preventive measures, as directed by the Federal Ministry of Education, will be provided as the schools resume. She assured Kwarans that the face masks will get to the students across the state. The commissioner said only the SS 3 students are to resume on Wednesday for now, adding that other exit students would be communicated on their date of resumption ahead of their own examinations. As of the time of filing this report, Nigeria had 43,841 infections while 20,308 have recovered and have been discharged after treatment in the countrys 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). A total of 888 persons have died from the disease. Dagestans officials eventually acknowledged that the real number of coronavirus cases and deaths was probably much higher. And, in the process, Dagestan became a point of reference for questions on the overall tallies in Russia, which reports the worlds fourth-largest number of confirmed cases but a mortality rate that is about a fifth that of U.S. per capita figures, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Border guards operating in Tay Ninh province announced on August 2 they have apprehended a Nigerian national attempting to illegally transport drugs into Vietnam from Cambodia. Nigerian suspect at the border station Initial reports outline how the Nigerian suspect was caught in the process of his smuggling attempt at 20:00 on July 30 at the border area in Thuan Tay village of Loi Thuan commune in Ben Cau district. pon his arrest, he was caught carrying four kg of drugs while crossing the border into Vietnam.The drugs had been tightly wrapped inside a number of nylon bags and then hidden within his backpack. The drug trafficker was later identified as Ekwegbalu James Nzube, a Nigerian national currently living at a hotel on To Ky street in District 12 of Ho Chi Minh City. When questioned by police, Nzube confessed to being hired by a Nigerian friend who had tasked him with transporting the drugs haul from Cambodia into the country in exchange for a fee of US$2,000. At present, the case remains under further investigation. VOV Uncertainty looms large over Bihar assembly elections with a section of major political parties seeking deferment of the October-November polls as the Covid-19 pandemic is expected to assume a more virulent form and endanger lives. The Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), an ally of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar, has written to the Election Commission saying that conducting polls in October-November will be like pushing people towards death as the pandemic is likely to me more serious by that time. The LJP had responded to the opinion sought by the Election Commission on holding the polls. The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and other allies of the Grand Alliance have already raised suspicion before the Election Commission over holding elections in October-November given the exponential spread of the coronavirus infection in the state in the last one month. In fact, there are three streams of thought guiding different political parties over holding Bihar elections. The ruling Janata Dal (United) wants the elections to be conducted at all costs as per schedule as its continuance in power and survival will largely depend on holding the polls on time. Any delay will mean imposition of Presidents Rule in Bihar after November and thereby the administrative power will shift to the Governor and eventually to the Union home ministry i.e. Amit Shah, who will call the shots even in routine administrative matters. In that case, the elections will be delayed by a couple of more months and give a chance to the BJP to have its own way in Bihar in all administrative and policy matters even without consulting Nitish Kumar, if it wants to ignore him or if any such situation arises later. It will mean a lot as the Union home ministry will indirectly decide transfers and postings of administrative officials, including district election officers i.e. district magistrates, returning officers i.e. sub-divisional officers, block development officers and circle officers. If caste-based purging or scrutiny is done in such an exercise, it affects the poll outcomes to a great extent, say experienced political leaders. The BJP is non-committal on holding polls, saying that the call has to be taken by the Election Commission whether to conduct polls on time or defer it for couple of months in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. On its part, the BJP leadership says they are fully-geared up to face the polls and are confident of winning the elections hands down. They had already begun the exercise of holding virtual rallies with grassroots party workers, including the Sapta Rishis (Booth level seven-member committees) to panchayat, block district and state level functionaries addressed by different levels of leadership. The LJP is completely opposed to holding polls, saying it will endanger peoples lives as poll campaigns, despite all alertness, will be a cumbersome process, and social distancing norms, wearing of masks and other standard operating protocols cannot be guaranteed to be adhered to by the grassroots level party workers. Who will be responsible if the number of positive cases rises exponentially and deaths occur in substantial numbers in the run-up to the polls. Therefore, we want polls to be deferred and the entire focus should be on curbing the rise of positive cases in the state, said senior LJP leader and former Bihar minister Pashupati Kumar Paras. The opposition Grand Alliance, comprising the RJD, Congress, Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP), Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) and Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), have questioned the election process to be adopted saying it has chances of becoming super spreader of the infection. In a letter shot off to the Election Commission, they stopped short of asking for postponement of the elections but raised suspicion over conduct of the poll exercise when coronavirus is spreading fast in the state. They also expressed apprehensions over the ability to conduct of free and fair polls as it would be difficult to ensure full participation of people in the democratic process. Above all, what is important is to ensure that the entire poll exercise does not become a super-spreader event ultimately, said RLSP leader Upendra Kushwaha. In fact, the oppositions strategy in pleading postponement of polls is to deflect the blame of deaths due to coronavirus during electioneering and to put the entire onus of culpability on the ruling alliances lust for power when people are dying. While other political parties may have apprehensions about their poll prospects, the LJP, headed by Chirag Paswan, is on an aggressive mode on postponement of polls due to the reluctance of Nitish Kumar to consider the LJP for the 12 MLC seats from the Governors nomination quota, and a respectable number of seats in the upcoming elections. The LJP has staked its claim on at least two Governor quota seats, and 94 out of 243 assembly seats in the state. Chirag, of late, has been firing salvos against Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar from migrants issue to collapse of the newly constructed Sattarghat Bridge over river Gandak to failure of prohibition policy in the state to holding of elections amid pandemic. The founding president of the LJP and union minister Ram Vilas Paswan had also highlighted the fact that despite 15 years of good governance by Nitish Kumar, Bihar remained at the bottom on all development indices. During the lockdown, when there was a massive influx of migrants and students from other parts of the country, the LJP supremo had expressed disappointment over the state governments alleged lack of initiative while heaping praises on Yogi Adityanath. The relationship had further soured when it was speculated in the political circles that the JD(U) was reluctant to give away a respectable number of assembly seats to the LJP, commensurate with the standing of the party which had bagged six Lok Sabha seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The ruling JD(U) is watching the developments closely to see if the outbursts of the father-son duo is their own political aspirations for a larger share of seats or if they are acting on behalf of the BJP to put pressure on Nitish Kumar and defer the polls. As the no-poll chorus grows louder, Nitish Kumar has postponed the virtual rally on August 7, when he was expected to sound the poll bugle, in view of the coronavirus pandemic and floods. Senior leaders of the party had been busy for the past few weeks holding orientation workshops for grassroots workers. Only the Election Commission knows the fate of elections as it will depend largely upon the expected enormity of the coronavirus pandemic in next two months vis-a-vis the health infrastructure of Bihar. It will also be guided by the report of the three-member central team headed by Luv Agarwal that recently visited the state. All political parties are preparing to the best of their capabilities to face the polls in October-November. The din over Sushant Singh Rajput death case and the demand for a CBI probe is also part of the election strategy aimed at garnering Rajput votes and invoking Bihari pride. Sushants cousin Niraj Singh Babloo and sister-in-law Nutan Singh are BJP legislators in Bihar. RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav held a press conference with another actor-politician from Bihar, Shekhar Suman, seeking a CBI probe. The early August period is a decisive time to tamp down the outbreak, Phuc said, according to the governments website. Ho Chi Minh Citys disease control center forecasts the virus outbreak will continue rising and spread quickly, according to the agencys website. Vietnam is testing all residents of Danang, the city at the center of a coronavirus outbreak with 1.1 million people, Tuoi Tre newspaper reported. More than 1.4 million people had traveled to the coastal city since July 1, and returned to their home provinces and cities, while about 42,000 people had visited three hospitals where most of the infections occurred, the government said yesterday. The financial hub of Ho Chi Minh City recorded three cases after testing nearly 24,000 residents as of Monday out of 36,754 who said they visited Danang in the past month, its center of disease control said. Hanoi has quick-tested nearly 68,000 people who returned from Danang as of Sunday, according to the citys government, which said an estimated 83,937 of its residents had been in the coastal city since July 8. Officials in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have ordered bars to close and a suspension of large gatherings. The nations tally is now 621 cases, including 242 under treatment and six deaths, according to the health ministry. Bloomberg Irans Intelligence Ministry claims to have arrested a leader of an armed monarchist group inside Iran, though his family members deny he traveled there. The Intelligence Ministry statement claims Jamshid Sharmahd was arrested in a complex operation inside Iran. Sharmahd is the leader of the Kingdom Assembly of Iran, a California-based monarchist group that seeks to place Reza Pahlavi, the son of Mohammad Reza Pahvali, the last shah of Iran, on the throne. The group is often referred to as Tondar, which means thunder in Persian. Despite the groups ambitions of restoring the monarchy, Pahlavi is not involved in the groups activities. The group is allegedly responsible for the 2008 bombing of a Shiraz mosque in Fars province that killed 12 people and wounded 200. In 2010, two individuals, Mohammad Reza Ali Zamani and Arash Rahmanipour, were charged with being members of the group and were executed. Iranian state television aired the confessions of a blindfolded Sharmahd shortly after his arrest. Irans Intelligence Minister Mahmoud Alavi said Sharmahd received serious support from American and Israeli intelligence. Alavi also said Tondar is unlike other monarchist groups, which simply issued statements periodically, adding it is a violent group. The groups website makes references to charges from Irans government but doesnt deny them. The group did, however, refer to Sharmahd's arrest as an abduction. Alavi said the group was behind 27 planned attacks, many of them foiled by the Intelligence Ministry before they took place. He also criticized Interpol for allowing Sharmahd to travel around the world under his own name despite being wanted in Iran. Shortly after his arrest, Sharmahds family rejected the claim he was arrested in Iran. His family claimed he had traveled to Tajikistan. In a statement, Irans Intelligence Ministry seriously denied this news. The statement added that Tondar was also responsible for other bombings, including a bookstore in Tehran and former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeinis shrine. The arrest of Sharmahd and the questions regarding the location of his arrest reminded many Iran observers of the arrest of Rohollah Zam, who operated the opposition Telegram channel Amadnews. The channel became popular during Irans 2017-2018 protests by sharing news, which was sometimes unreliable. Zam was arrested in 2019. Iranian intelligence claimed Zam had traveled to Iraq. However, like Sharmahd, it is almost unbelievable that Zam would travel back to Iran after engaging in anti-government activities. Many believe that Zam was likely lured to Iraq and arrested there. Iran has a long history of seeking out dissidents and anti-government actors overseas. In the 1980s and 1990s, the government used assassinations to silence those they deemed threats. However, it seems the latest tactic has been to lure these actors to countries where Iran can operate more freely than it would be able to in a European country. Gambling giant Tabcorp will write down its wagering and media business by at least $1 billion - or a third of the divisions book value - after it was hit by COVID-19 shutdowns and lost ground to online bookmakers. The company told the market on Monday that it expects to report a net profit, excluding the non-cash goodwill impairment charges, for the 12 months to June 30 of $267 million to $273 million. That will be a decline of at least 31 per cent compared to last years net profit of $396 million. Tabcorp has written down the value of its wagering business by a third. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer Tabcorp's shares, which have fallen 22 per cent since the start of the year, closed the session on Monday 1.7 per cent weaker at $3.50. On August 3 last year, a total of 23 people became victims of the sixth deadliest shooting in the U.S. history. The victims' loved ones commemorate the event amid the coronavirus pandemic. The shooting has been described as the deadliest attack in Latinos in modern U.S history. Yolando Tinajero, sister of the El Paso shooting victim Arturo Benavides, found herself returning again and again in the makeshift memorial that was created to honor the victims of the El Paso shooting. Benavides was among the 23 victims that was shot by a reported white supremacist. Commemorating the massacre amid the coronavirus pandemic may be hard since there's no spontaneous hugs from strangers and gatherings. "When we would go and visit the memorial they had behind Walmart. There were strangers. There was a particular old lady there and she said, 'I hope they give this man the death penalty'," Tinajero was quoted in an El Paso Times report. Benavides was a retired city bus driver and was a U.S. veteran Army, who also served in the Texas Amy National Guard. Meanwhile, survivor of the El Paso shooting Adria Renee Gozales recalled what happened during the shooting incident. Gonzales said she was shopping with her mother when the first shots were heard. She was also credited to save the lives of people during the shooting. Gonzales admitted in an NPR interview that the event had affected her life. "Our psychologist, our therapist tells us, you know, you have to get out a little bit. And we do. But we sometimes are worried about, you know, who is going to attack us or who's going to judge us or what if this is going to happen again," she was quoted in a report. Gonzales said she was still trying to understand why the shooter did it. "I still don't understand why. Why so much hate against us? - because I know my people come, and they try to do their best and try to work and try to, you know, live a better life," she said. Anti-Latino Hate Crimes The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said in a 2019 Reuters report that the number of victims in anti-Latino hate crime increase by over 21 percent in 2018. The FBI added that the attacks overall are targeting people instead of property. The data corresponds with an ongoing debate over President Donad Trump's immigration policies, following the El Paso shooting. The suspected gunman told police that he was targeting Mexicans. Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, said attacks against Muslims increased around 2016 when terrorism was a concern. Now that immigration is on the list of issues, Latinos are being targeted. Justice for El Paso Shooting El Paso mass shooter Patrick Crusius was charged with federal hate crimes and firearms laws, according to an Aljazeera report. A year after the incident attorney Yvonne Rosales has to decide whether to push for a death penalty prosecution on the city's deadliest shooting incident. However, Rosales said she does not think that justice will come soon with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the complexity of the case, according to a Texas Tribune report. Rosales added that she must also consider whether the community, especially the victims' families should relive the tragedy twice by having two separate trials. Crusius has pleaded not guilty despite confessing that he was the gunman. Check these out: Federal Hate Crime Charges Filed in El Paso Shooting That Targeted Latinos El Paso, Texas Army Base Shooting Leaves 2 Dead: VA Hospital Shut Down Surge in Hate Crimes May be Linked to Immigration Policies Bollywood actor Koena Mitra has appealed to India's Prime Minister, President and Home Minister about the safety of citizens amid the latest developments in late actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death case investigation by Mumbai and Bihar Police officials. Mitra has reacted to reports of Mumbai Police's alleged "mishap" wherein they 'mistakenly deleted' the folder with details of Sushant's ex-manager Disha Salian's suicide case. On Sunday, Bihar Police sources revealed that police officers at Malvani Police station in Malad denied access to information collected in Salian's case claiming that the folder was inadvertently deleted from their laptop. Read | Sushant Singh case: Patna SP Vinay Tiwari 'forcibly quarantined' by BMC, says Bihar DGP The Bihar police officials in Mumbai had sought details of the death of celebrity manager Disha Salian, who fell from a high-rise in Malad on June 9, five days before Sushant passed away. As they reached the Malwani police station in Malad, they were reportedly told that they had accidentally deleted the file of the case details. On Saturday, veteran actor Simi Garewal also stated that Disha's death should also be investigated, as she felt it will help reveal the truth of Sushants death. Simi wrote, "#DishaSalian death must be investigated. Why was it ignored?? It will reveal the truth of the conspiracy linked to the murder of #SSR. #CBIforShushant MUST investigate. We demand the truth. We cant be stopped now." [sic] Read | Sushant's flatmate Samuel surfaces; says 'Siddharth Pithani closer to Rhea than me' The complaint filed by Sushant's father KK Singh mentions, "On June 8 night, Sushants secretary Disha committed suicide. Rhea had appointed her as Sushants secretary. Later, Rhea blocked Sushants number on her cell. Sushant was afraid that Rhea could have made him responsible for his managers suicide as she had threatened to frame him in the secretarys suicide case." Bihar Police filed an FIR on the basis of KK Singh's complaint. Read | The many warped inconsistencies in Sushant's so-called friend Sandip Ssingh's narrative The Bihar Police team, which is in Mumbai to investigate the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput, will now also probe the case of the alleged suicide of the actor's former manager Disha Salian, a police official said on Sunday. "We are going to investigate the suicide case of Sushant Singh Rajput's former manager Disha Salian, and will also question his friend Siddharth Pithani, who was staying with the actor for the past one year," Inspector General of Police (Patna zone) Sanjay Singh said. However, the Bihar police's top-cop who has arrived in Mumbai to lead the case has been forcibly quarantined following his arrival. Read | On Tape: Ambulance owner contradicts Siddharth Pithani's version on body, mystery grows Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 23:39:22|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close HONG KONG, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Carrie Lam said Monday that postponing the Legislative Council (LegCo) election is a hard choice and called for fewer conspiracy theories and divisions in society. There is no other choice but to put off the election due to the high risk of infection amid the grave epidemic situation, Lam said when meeting with Fan Hsu Lai-tai, former president of the LegCo, at the Government House. She cited risks listed in a letter from the chairman of the Electoral Affairs Commission, including involvement of millions of voters, social distancing hard to implement, and infection risks to voters and election staff. If the election is held as scheduled, it will be unfair to hundreds of thousands of voters who cannot exercise their right for being stranded outside of Hong Kong due to the epidemic, Lam said. Fan expressed support for the government decision and said that politics cannot override people's life. There are more countries that have postponed their elections than those have decided to stick to the schedule in the world, Fan said, adding that no one is deprived of the voting right because of the postponement. The Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council said earlier that the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, will at the earliest possible date decide on how to deal with the vacancy of the LegCo incurred due to the postponement. Fan believes that the NPC Standing Committee will deal with the issue properly and let more Hong Kong residents understand. Enditem DALLAS, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. (NYSE: J) today announced its financial results for the fiscal third quarter ended June 26, 2020. Q3 2020 Highlights: Gross revenue of $3.3 billion 1 grew 2.9% year-over-year; net revenue down 4% pro forma grew 2.9% year-over-year; net revenue down 4% pro forma EPS from continuing operations of $1.73 up significantly year over year up significantly year over year Adjusted EPS from continuing operations of $1.26 , including $0.05 in discrete tax benefits , including in discrete tax benefits Backlog increased $1.2 billion to $23.7 billion , up 5% year-over-year and up 4% on a pro forma basis to , up 5% year-over-year and up 4% on a pro forma basis Cash flow from operations and free cash flow well over $300M , increasing FY20 outlook to approaching $400M , increasing FY20 outlook to approaching Revised fiscal 2020 outlook represents improved year-over-year adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EPS growth Jacobs' Chair and CEO Steve Demetriou commented, "We have maintained focus on our top priority: keeping our people safe and ensuring business continuity for our customers. I am extremely proud of how our people have responded, not only to the COVID-19 pandemic, but also our company-wide support for social justice and global equality. We continue to align our culture around our values, particularly 'We live inclusion,' combined with our willingness to continuously learn and turn that learning into action and solutions. Our values based culture is a key competitive advantage for Jacobs that will foster growth over the coming years." Demetriou continued, "From a business standpoint, our ability to solve highly technical challenges across a diverse set of end markets, at scale, in virtual environments provides us with the ability to grow in a variety of economic scenarios. Our teams across the globe have demonstrated strong business acumen while delivering innovative solutions for customers in one of the most disruptive periods in history." Jacobs' President and CFO Kevin Berryman added, "The strategy we developed and have been executing since 2016 to build a company aligned to sustainable higher growth markets has proved its resilience during one of the most severe economic shocks in history. The highly recurring mission-critical nature of our work, combined with our ability to rapidly adjust virtually, enabled us to deliver solid earnings and strong free cash flow generation during this unprecedented pandemic. Given our ability to adapt in this new environment, we expect to continue to drive solid results for the remainder of fiscal 2020, further transforming Jacobs through technology-focused innovations that will enable profitable growth in fiscal 2021 and beyond." Financial Outlook The company now expects fiscal 2020 adjusted EBITDA of $1,000 million to $1,0502 million and adjusted EPS of $5.05 to $5.302 from its previous outlook of adjusted EBITDA of $950 million to $1,050 million and adjusted EPS of $4.80 to $5.30. Third Quarter Review Fiscal Q3 2020 Fiscal Q3 2019 Change Revenue $3.3 billion $3.2 billion $0.1 billion Net Revenue $2.7 billion $2.6 billion $0.1 billion GAAP Net Earnings from Continuing Operations $227 million $89 million $138 million GAAP Earnings Per Diluted Share (EPS) from Continuing Operations $1.73 $0.65 $1.08 Adjusted Net Earnings from Continuing Operations $165 million $193 million ($28 million) Adjusted EPS from Continuing Operations $1.26 $1.40 ($0.14) The company's adjusted net earnings from continuing operations and adjusted EPS from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2020 and fiscal 2019 exclude the adjustments set forth in the table below. For additional information regarding these adjustments and a reconciliation of adjusted net earnings and adjusted EPS to net (loss) earnings and EPS, respectively, as well as a reconciliation of net revenue to revenue, refer to the section entitled "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" at the end of this release. Fiscal Q3 2020 Fiscal Q3 2019 GAAP Net Earnings from Continuing Operations and Diluted Earnings Per Share (EPS) $227 million ($1.73 per share) $89 million ($0.65 per share) After-tax restructuring, transaction costs and other charges ($20.5 million and $106.5 million for the fiscal 2020 and 2019 periods, respectively before income taxes) $14 million ($0.11 per share) $80 million ($0.58 per share) Other adjustments include: (a) add-back of amortization of intangible assets of $23.1 million and $18.4 million in the 2020 and 2019 periods, respectively, (b) the allocation to discontinued operations of estimated stranded corporate costs of $2.0 million in the 2019 period that were reimbursed or otherwise eliminated in connection with the sale of the Energy, Chemicals and Resources ("ECR") business, (c) the reclassification of revenues under the Company's Transition Services Agreement (TSA) with Worley of $1.0 million and $14.1 million, included in other income for U.S. GAAP reporting purposes to SG&A and the exclusion of $0.1 million and $3.2 million in remaining unreimbursed costs associated with the TSA during the fiscal 2020 and 2019 periods, respectively (d) the removal of $(123.1) million in fair value adjustments related to our investment in Worley stock (net of Worley stock dividend) and certain foreign currency revaluations relating to the ECR sale in the 2020 period, (e) the allocation to discontinued operations of estimated interest expense amounts in 2019 related to long-term debt that was paid down in connection with the closing of the sale of the ECR business of $5.8 million, (f) other income tax adjustments of $1.5 million in the 2019 period and (g) associated income tax expense adjustments for the above pre-tax adjustment items. $(76) million ($(0.58) per share) $24 million ($0.17 per share) Adjusted Net Earnings from Continuing Operations and Adjusted EPS from Continuing Operations $165 million ($1.26 per share) $193 million ($1.40 per share) (note: earnings per share amounts may not add due to rounding) Fiscal third quarter 2020 adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations reflect an adjusted effective tax rate of 25%, excluding favorable discrete tax impacts of $6.7 million, or $0.05 per share. Jacobs is hosting a conference call at 12:00 P.M. ET on Monday August 3, 2020, which it is webcasting live at www.jacobs.com . About Jacobs At Jacobs, we're challenging today to reinvent tomorrow by solving the world's most critical problems for thriving cities, resilient environments, mission-critical outcomes, operational advancement, scientific discovery and cutting-edge manufacturing, turning abstract ideas into realities that transform the world for good. With $13 billion in annual revenue and a talent force of approximately 55,000, Jacobs provides a full spectrum of professional services including consulting, technical, scientific and project delivery for the government and private sectors. Visit jacobs.com and connect with Jacobs on LinkedIn , Twitter , Facebook and Instagram . Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking statements as such term is defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and such statements are intended to be covered by the safe harbor provided by the same. Statements made in this press release that are not based on historical fact are forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements we make concerning the potential continued effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business, financial condition and results of operations and our expectations as to our future growth, prospects, financial outlook and business strategy for fiscal 2020 or future fiscal years. Although such statements are based on management's current estimates and expectations, and currently available competitive, financial, and economic data, forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, and you should not place undue reliance on such statements as actual results may differ materially. We caution the reader that there are a variety of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from what is contained, projected or implied by our forward-looking statements. Such factors include the magnitude, timing, duration and ultimate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and any resulting economic downturn on our results, prospects and opportunities, the timeline for easing or removing "shelter-in-place", "stay-at-home", social distancing, travel restrictions and similar orders, measures or restrictions imposed by governments and health officials in response to the pandemic, or if such orders, measures or restrictions are re-imposed after being lifted or eased, including as a result of increases in cases of COVID-19; and the development, effectiveness and distribution of vaccines or treatments for COVID-19. The impact of such matters includes, but is not limited to, the possible reduction in demand for certain of our services and the delay or abandonment of ongoing or anticipated projects due to the financial condition of our clients and suppliers or to governmental budget constraints; the inability of our clients to meet their payment obligations in a timely manner or at all; potential issues and risks related to a significant portion of our employees working remotely; illness, travel restrictions and other workforce disruptions that could negatively affect our supply chain and our ability to timely and satisfactorily complete our clients' projects; difficulties associated with hiring additional employees or replacing any furloughed employees; increased volatility in the capital markets that may affect our ability to access sources of liquidity on acceptable pricing or borrowing terms or at all; and the inability of governments in certain of the countries in which we operate to effectively mitigate the financial or other impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on their economies and workforces and our operations therein. The foregoing factors and potential future developments are inherently uncertain, unpredictable and, in many cases, beyond our control. For a description of these and additional factors that may occur that could cause actual results to differ from our forward-looking statements see our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 27, 2019, and in particular the discussions contained under Item 1 - Business; Item 1A - Risk Factors; Item 3 - Legal Proceedings; and Item 7 - Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 26, 2020, and in particular the discussions contained under Part I, Item 2 - Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations; Part II, Item 1 - Legal Proceedings; and Part II, Item 1A - Risk Factors, as well as the Company's other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company is not under any duty to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this press release to conform to actual results, except as required by applicable law. Financial Highlights: Results of Operations (in thousands, except per-share data): For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended Unaudited June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 Revenues $ 3,260,057 $ 3,169,622 $ 10,047,286 $ 9,345,005 Direct cost of contracts (2,631,031) (2,543,488) (8,125,554) (7,533,511) Gross profit 629,026 626,134 1,921,732 1,811,494 Selling, general and administrative expenses (434,650) (536,180) (1,408,232) (1,505,731) Operating Profit 194,376 89,954 513,500 305,763 Other Income (Expense): Interest income 1,249 3,398 3,180 7,172 Interest expense (18,193) (18,978) (48,163) (73,727) Miscellaneous income (expense), net 126,249 19,025 (87,470) 58,211 Total other income (expense), net 109,305 3,445 (132,453) (8,344) Earnings from Continuing Operations Before Taxes 303,681 93,399 381,047 297,419 Income Tax (Expense) Benefit from Continuing Operations (67,674) 1,981 (75,041) (12,829) Net Earnings of the Group from Continuing Operations 236,007 95,380 306,006 284,590 Net Earnings of the Group from Discontinued Operations 18,043 435,684 125,511 438,837 Net Earnings of the Group 254,050 531,064 431,517 723,427 Net Earnings Attributable to Noncontrolling Interests from Continuing Operations (9,121) (6,015) (21,662) (15,578) Net Earnings Attributable to Jacobs from Continuing Operations 226,886 89,365 284,344 269,012 Net Earnings Attributable to Noncontrolling Interests from Discontinued Operations (607) (2,195) Net Earnings Attributable to Jacobs from Discontinued Operations 18,043 435,077 125,511 436,642 Net Earnings Attributable to Jacobs $ 244,929 $ 524,442 $ 409,855 $ 705,654 Net Earnings Per Share: Basic Net Earnings from Continuing Operations Per Share $ 1.74 $ 0.65 $ 2.15 $ 1.93 Basic Net Earnings from Discontinued Operations Per Share $ 0.14 $ 3.18 $ 0.95 $ 3.14 Basic Earnings Per Share $ 1.88 $ 3.83 $ 3.11 $ 5.07 Diluted Net Earnings from Continuing Operations Per Share $ 1.73 $ 0.65 $ 2.13 $ 1.92 Diluted Net Earnings from Discontinued Operations Per Share $ 0.14 $ 3.15 $ 0.94 $ 3.11 Diluted Earnings Per Share $ 1.87 $ 3.80 $ 3.08 $ 5.02 Segment Information (in thousands): Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended Unaudited June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 Revenues from External Customers: Critical Mission Solutions $ 1,211,143 $ 1,156,488 $ 3,636,978 $ 3,251,024 People & Places Solutions 2,048,914 2,013,134 6,410,308 6,093,981 Pass Through Revenue (578,717) (533,935) (1,921,863) (1,840,572) People & Places Solutions Net Revenue $ 1,470,197 $ 1,479,199 $ 4,488,445 $ 4,253,409 Total Revenue $ 3,260,057 $ 3,169,622 $ 10,047,286 $ 9,345,005 Net Revenue $ 2,681,340 $ 2,635,687 $ 8,125,423 $ 7,504,433 Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 Segment Operating Profit: Critical Mission Solutions $ 89,608 $ 76,306 $ 264,323 $ 222,289 People & Places Solutions 190,453 183,318 557,864 515,465 Total Segment Operating Profit 280,061 259,624 822,187 737,754 Other Corporate Expenses (1) (65,213) (64,525) (193,148) (185,674) Restructuring, Transaction and Other Charges (20,472) (105,145) (115,539) (246,317) Total U.S. GAAP Operating Profit 194,376 89,954 513,500 305,763 Total Other Income (Expense), net (2) 109,305 3,445 (132,453) (8,344) Earnings from Continuing Operations Before Taxes $ 303,681 $ 93,399 $ 381,047 $ 297,419 (1) Other corporate expenses include costs that were previously allocated to the ECR segment prior to discontinued operations presentation in connection with the ECR sale in the approximate amount of $2.0 million and $14.8 million for the three and nine month periods ended June 28, 2019, respectively. Other corporate expenses also include intangibles amortization of $23.1 million and $18.4 million for the three-month periods ended June 26, 2020 and June 28, 2019, respectively, and $67.1 million and $55.7 million for the nine months ended June 26, 2020 and June 28, 2019, respectively. (2) For the three and nine month periods ended June 26, 2020, includes revenues under the Company's TSA with Worley of $1.0 million and $15.2 million, respectively, $122.9 million and $(119.0) million in fair value adjustments related to our investment in Worley stock (net of Worley stock dividend) and certain foreign currency revaluations relating to the ECR sale, respectively, the amortization of deferred financing fees related to the acquisition of CH2M HILL Companies Ltd. ("CH2M") in December 2017 (the "CH2M acquisition") of $ million and $0.7 million, respectively, and the loss on settlement of the U.S. pension plan of $ million and $2.7 million respectively. For the three and nine month periods ended June 28, 2019, includes the amortization of deferred financing fees related to the CH2M acquisition of $0.5 million and $1.5 million, respectively, and the gain on settlement of the CH2M portion of the U.S. pension plan of $0.0 million and $34.6 million, respectively. Also includes revenues under the Company's TSA with Worley of $14.1 million for the three and nine month periods ended June 28, 2019, for which the related costs are included in SG&A. Other Operational Information (in thousands): Unaudited For the Nine Months Ended Continuing Operations June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 Depreciation (pre-tax) $ 66,994 $ 67,553 Amortization of Intangibles (pre- tax) $ 67,074 $ 55,732 Capital Expenditures $ 88,821 $ 97,466 Balance Sheet (in thousands): Unaudited June 26, 2020 September 27, 2019 ASSETS Current Assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 1,024,810 $ 631,068 Receivables and contract assets 3,153,664 2,840,209 Prepaid expenses and other 433,837 639,539 Current assets held for sale 952 Total current assets 4,612,311 4,111,768 Property, Equipment and Improvements, net 346,637 308,143 Other Noncurrent Assets: Goodwill 5,616,849 5,432,544 Intangibles, net 676,005 665,076 Miscellaneous 1,359,964 918,202 Noncurrent assets held for sale 26,978 Total other noncurrent assets 7,652,818 7,042,800 $ 12,611,766 $ 11,462,711 LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY Current Liabilities: Short-term debt $ $ 199,901 Accounts payable 1,049,224 1,072,645 Accrued liabilities 1,228,924 1,384,379 Contract liabilities 450,326 414,208 Current liabilities held for sale 2,573 Total current liabilities 2,728,474 3,073,706 Long-term Debt 2,155,166 1,201,245 Other Deferred Liabilities 1,843,132 1,419,005 Noncurrent Liabilities Held for Sale 97 Commitments and Contingencies Stockholders' Equity: Capital stock: Preferred stock, $1 par value, authorized - 1,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding - none Common stock, $1 par value, authorized - 240,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding - 130,180,415 shares and 132,879,395 shares as of June 26, 2020 and September 27, 2019, respectively 130,180 132,879 Additional paid-in capital 2,589,263 2,559,450 Retained earnings 4,028,062 3,939,174 Accumulated other comprehensive loss (911,692) (916,812) Total Jacobs stockholders' equity 5,835,813 5,714,691 Noncontrolling interests 49,181 53,967 Total Group stockholders' equity 5,884,994 5,768,658 $ 12,611,766 $ 11,462,711 Statement of Cash Flow (in thousands): For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended Unaudited June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 Cash Flows from Operating Activities: Net earnings attributable to the Group $ 254,050 $ 531,064 $ 431,517 $ 723,427 Adjustments to reconcile net earnings to net cash flows (used for) provided by operations: Depreciation and amortization: Property, equipment and improvements 22,276 25,851 66,994 69,663 Intangible assets 23,135 18,383 67,074 56,346 Gain on sale of ECR business (31,456) (917,697) (113,366) (917,697) Loss on disposal of other businesses and investments 9,608 9,608 (Gain) Loss on investment in equity securities (131,350) (2,175) 138,875 (2,175) Stock based compensation 12,373 18,425 36,208 47,341 Equity in earnings of operating ventures, net (1,924) (2,307) (1,689) (7,632) (Gain) Loss on disposals of assets, net (54) (1,732) (301) 1,998 (Gain) Loss on pension and retiree medical plan changes 2,651 (34,621) Deferred income taxes (10,967) 83,600 62,473 52,592 Changes in assets and liabilities, excluding the effects of businesses acquired: Receivables and contract assets, net of contract liabilities 78,070 211,996 (135,615) 17,146 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 28,679 (41,734) 19,902 5,999 Accounts payable 37,585 74,532 (115,080) 67,778 Accrued liabilities (25,296) (103,416) (78,863) (161,179) Other deferred liabilities 97,082 (80,707) (56,426) (129,468) Other, net 7,305 11,228 50,122 (19,439) Net cash provided by (used for) operating activities 359,508 (165,081) 374,476 (220,313) Cash Flows from Investing Activities: Additions to property and equipment (27,484) (45,190) (88,821) (106,670) Disposals of property and equipment and other assets 58 60 96 7,300 Capital contributions to equity investees (12,358) (3,904) Acquisitions of businesses, net of cash acquired (575,110) (286,534) (575,110) Disposals of investment in equity securities 64,708 64,708 (Payments) proceeds related to sales of businesses 2,796,734 (5,061) 2,796,734 Purchases of noncontrolling interests (1,113) Net cash (used for) provided by investing activities (27,426) 2,241,202 (392,678) 2,181,945 Cash Flows from Financing Activities: Net proceeds from borrowings (954,863) (1,895,959) 756,508 (1,200,388) Debt issuance costs (1,807) (3,741) Proceeds from issuances of common stock 9,873 20,198 28,793 46,143 Common stock repurchases (36,183) (285,822) (524,618) Taxes paid on vested restricted stock (2,913) (5,870) (27,655) (26,187) Cash dividends, including to noncontrolling interests (33,991) (25,867) (97,521) (82,257) Net cash (used for) provided by financing activities (981,894) (1,943,681) 372,496 (1,791,048) Effect of Exchange Rate Changes 18,743 15,164 39,448 34,300 Net (Decrease) increase in Cash and Cash Equivalents (631,069) 147,604 393,742 204,884 Cash and Cash Equivalents at the Beginning of the Period 1,655,879 850,638 631,068 793,358 Cash and Cash Equivalents at the End of the Period $ 1,024,810 $ 998,242 $ 1,024,810 $ 998,242 Backlog (in millions): June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 Critical Mission Solutions $ 9,066 $ 8,456 People & Places Solutions 14,608 14,011 Total $ 23,674 $ 22,467 Non-GAAP Financial Measures: In this press release, the Company has included certain non-GAAP financial measures as defined in Regulation G promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The non-GAAP financial measures included in this press release are net revenue, adjusted net earnings from continuing operations, adjusted EPS from continuing operations and adjusted EBITDA. Net revenue is calculated excluding pass-through revenue of the Company's People & Places Solutions segment from the Company's revenue from continuing operations. Adjusted net earnings from continuing operations and adjusted EPS from continuing operations are non-GAAP financial measures that are calculated by (i) excluding the costs related to the 2015 restructuring activities, which included involuntary terminations, the abandonment of certain leased offices, combining operational organizations and the co-location of employees into other existing offices; and charges associated with our Europe, U.K. and Middle East region, which included write-offs on contract accounts receivable and charges for statutory redundancy and severance costs; (ii) excluding costs and other charges associated with restructuring activities implemented in connection with the acquisitions of The KeyW Holding Corporation ("KeyW"), CH2M and John Wood Group nuclear business, the sale of the ECR business and other related cost reduction initiatives, which included involuntary terminations, costs associated with co-locating Jacobs, KeyW and CH2M offices, separating physical locations of ECR and continuing operations, costs and expenses of the Integration Management Office and Separation Management Office, including professional services and personnel costs, costs and charges associated with the divestiture of joint venture interests to resolve potential conflicts arising from the CH2M acquisition, expenses relating to certain commitments and contingencies relating to discontinued operations of the CH2M business, charges associated with certain operations in India, which included write-offs on contract accounts receivable and other accruals, and similar costs and expenses (collectively referred to as the "Restructuring and other charges"); (iii) excluding transaction costs and other charges incurred in connection with closing of the KeyW, CH2M and John Wood Group nuclear business acquisitions, and sale of the ECR business (to the extent incurred prior to the closing), including advisor fees, change in control payments, costs and expenses relating to the registration and listing of Jacobs stock issued in connection with the CH2M acquisition, and similar transaction costs and expenses (collectively referred to as "transaction costs"); (iv) adding back amortization of intangible assets; (v) allocating to discontinued operations estimated stranded corporate costs that will be reimbursed or otherwise eliminated in connection with the sale of the ECR business; (vi) the reclassification of revenue under the Company's transition services agreement (TSA) included in other income for U.S. GAAP reporting purposes to SG&A and the exclusion of remaining unreimbursed costs associated with the TSA; (vii) allocating to discontinued operations estimated interest expense relating to long-term debt that was paid down with the proceeds of the ECR sale; (viii) the removal of fair value adjustments and dividend income related to the Company's investment in Worley stock and certain foreign currency revaluations relating to ECR sale proceeds; (ix) the exclusion of a one-time favorable adjustment in the fiscal 2019 period associated with a reduction of deferred income taxes for permanently reinvested earnings from non-U.S. subsidiaries in connection with the sale of the ECR business; (x) excluding charges resulting from the revaluation of certain deferred tax assets/liabilities in connection with U.S. tax reform; (xi) adding back depreciation and amortization relating to the ECR business of the Company that was ceased as a result of the application of held-for-sale accounting; and (xii) other income tax adjustments. Adjustments to derive adjusted net earnings from continuing operations and adjusted EPS from continuing operations are calculated on an after-tax basis. We believe that net revenue, adjusted net earnings from continuing operations, adjusted EPS from continuing operations and adjusted EBITDA are useful to management, investors and other users of our financial information in evaluating the Company's operating results and understanding the Company's operating trends by excluding or adding back the effects of the items described above, the inclusion or exclusion of which can obscure underlying trends. Additionally, management uses such measures in its own evaluation of the Company's performance, particularly when comparing performance to past periods, and believes these measures are useful for investors because they facilitate a comparison of our financial results from period to period. For fiscal 2020 outlook, the Company calculated adjusted EBITDA by adding income tax expense, depreciation expense and interest expense, and deducting interest income from adjusted net earnings from continuing operations. The Company provides non-GAAP measures to supplement U.S. GAAP measures, as they provide additional insight into the Company's financial results. However, non-GAAP measures have limitations as analytical tools and should not be considered in isolation and are not in accordance with, or a substitute for, U.S. GAAP measures. In addition, other companies may define non-GAAP measures differently, which limits the ability of investors to compare non-GAAP measures of the Company to those used by our peer companies. The following tables reconcile the components and values of U.S. GAAP revenue, net earnings from continuing operations, EPS from continuing operations and revenue to the corresponding "adjusted" amounts. For the comparable periods presented below, such adjustments consist of amounts incurred in connection with the items described above. Amounts are shown in thousands, except for per-share data (note: earnings per share amounts may not add across due to rounding). Reconciliation of the adjusted EPS and adjusted EBITDA outlook for the full fiscal year to the most directly comparable GAAP measure is not available without unreasonable efforts because the Company cannot predict with sufficient certainty all the components required to provide such reconciliation (note: earnings per share amounts may not add across due to rounding). U.S. GAAP Reconciliation for the third quarter of fiscal 2020 and 2019 Three Months Ended June 26, 2020 Unaudited U.S. GAAP Effects of Restructuring, Transaction and Other Charges Other Adjustments (1) Adjusted Revenues $ 3,260,057 $ $ $ 3,260,057 Pass through revenue (578,717) (578,717) Net revenue 3,260,057 (578,717) 2,681,340 Direct cost of contracts (2,631,031) 1,841 578,717 (2,050,473) Gross profit 629,026 1,841 630,867 Selling, general and administrative expenses (434,650) 18,631 24,083 (391,936) Operating Profit 194,376 20,472 24,083 238,931 Total other income (expense), net 109,305 (123,971) (14,666) Earnings from Continuing Operations Before Taxes 303,681 20,472 (99,888) 224,265 Income Tax (Expense) Benefit from Continuing Operations (67,674) (6,351) 24,125 (49,900) Net Earnings of the Group from Continuing Operations 236,007 14,121 (75,763) 174,365 Net Earnings Attributable to Noncontrolling Interests from Continuing Operations (9,121) (9,121) Net Earnings Attributable to Jacobs from Continuing Operations 226,886 14,121 (75,763) 165,244 Net Earnings Attributable to Discontinued Operations 18,043 18,043 Net Earnings (Loss) attributable to Jacobs $ 244,929 $ 14,121 $ (75,763) $ 183,287 Diluted Net Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations Per Share $ 1.73 $ 0.11 $ (0.58) $ 1.26 Diluted Net Earnings from Discontinued Operations Per Share $ 0.14 $ $ $ 0.14 Diluted Earnings (Loss) Per Share $ 1.87 $ 0.11 $ (0.58) $ 1.40 Operating profit margin 6.0 % 8.9 % (1) Includes (a) the removal of pass through revenues and costs for the People & Places Solutions line of business for the calculation of operating profit margin as a percentage of net revenue of $578.7 million, (b) the removal of amortization of intangible assets of $23.1 million, (c) the reclassification of revenues under the Company's TSA of $1.0 million included in other income for U.S. GAAP reporting purposes to SG&A, (d) the removal of $(123.1) million in fair value adjustments related to our investment in Worley stock (net of Worley stock dividend) and certain foreign currency revaluations relating to the ECR sale and (e) associated income tax expense adjustments for the above pre-tax adjustment items. Three Months Ended June 28, 2019 Unaudited U.S. GAAP Effects of Restructuring, Transaction and Other Charges Other Adjustments (1) Adjusted Revenues $ 3,169,622 $ $ $ 3,169,622 Pass through revenue (533,935) (533,935) Net revenue 3,169,622 (533,935) 2,635,687 Direct cost of contracts (2,543,488) 2,481 533,935 (2,007,072) Gross profit 626,134 2,481 628,615 Selling, general and administrative expenses (536,180) 102,664 37,714 (395,802) Operating Profit 89,954 105,145 37,714 232,813 Total other income (expense), net 3,445 1,346 (8,362) (3,571) Earnings from Continuing Operations Before Taxes 93,399 106,491 29,352 229,242 Income Tax (Expense) Benefit from Continuing Operations 1,981 (26,183) (5,823) (30,025) Net Earnings of the Group from Continuing Operations 95,380 80,308 23,529 199,217 Net Earnings Attributable to Noncontrolling Interests from Continuing Operations (6,015) (6,015) Net Earnings from Continuing Operations attributable to Jacobs 89,365 80,308 23,529 193,202 Net Earnings (Loss) Attributable to Discontinued Operations 435,077 4,505 (7,823) 431,759 Net earnings attributable to Jacobs $ 524,442 $ 84,813 $ 15,706 $ 624,961 Diluted Net Earnings from Continuing Operations Per Share $ 0.65 $ 0.58 $ 0.17 $ 1.40 Diluted Net Earnings (Loss) from Discontinued Operations Per Share $ 3.15 $ 0.03 $ (0.06) $ 3.13 Diluted Earnings Per Share $ 3.80 $ 0.61 $ 0.11 $ 4.53 Operating profit margin 2.84 % 8.83 % (1) Includes after-tax CH2M transaction costs and adjustments of $0.4 million, after-tax transaction costs associated with the sale of our ECR line of business of $2.4 million and after-tax transaction costs associated with the acquisition of KeyW of $9.6 million. (2) Includes (a) the removal of pass through revenues and costs for the People & Places Solutions line of business for the calculation of operating profit margin as a percentage of net revenue of $533.9 million, (b) the removal of amortization of intangible assets of $18.4 million, (c) the allocation to discontinued operations of estimated stranded corporate costs of $2.0 million that would have been reimbursed under the TSA with Worley or otherwise eliminated from the ongoing operations in connection with the sale of the ECR business, (d) the allocation to discontinued operations of estimated interest expense for the full period related to long-term debt that was paid down as a result of the closing of the sale of the ECR business of $5.8 million, (e) the add-back of depreciation relating to the ECR business that was ceased as a result of the application of held-for-sale accounting of $2.6 million and (f) the reclassification of revenues under the TSA of $14.1 million included in other income for U.S. GAAP reporting purposes to SG&A and the exclusion of $3.2 million in remaining unreimbursed costs associated with this agreement, (g) other income tax adjustments of $1.5 million and (h) associated income tax expense adjustments for all the above pre-tax adjustment items. Nine Months Ended June 26, 2020 Unaudited U.S. GAAP Effects of Restructuring, Transaction and Other Charges Other Adjustments (1) Adjusted Revenues $ 10,047,286 $ $ $ 10,047,286 Pass through revenue (1,921,863) (1,921,863) Net revenue 10,047,286 (1,921,863) 8,125,423 Direct cost of contracts (8,125,554) 1,841 1,921,863 (6,201,850) Gross profit 1,921,732 1,841 1,923,573 Selling, general and administrative expenses (1,408,232) 113,698 82,962 (1,211,572) Operating Profit 513,500 115,539 82,962 712,001 Total other (expense) income, net (132,453) 2,799 103,720 (25,934) Earnings from Continuing Operations Before Taxes 381,047 118,338 186,682 686,067 Income Tax Expense from Continuing Operations (75,041) (31,133) (45,069) (151,243) Net Earnings of the Group from Continuing Operations 306,006 87,205 141,613 534,824 Net (Earnings) Loss Attributable to Noncontrolling Interests from Continuing Operations (21,662) (21,662) Net Earnings from Continuing Operations attributable to Jacobs 284,344 87,205 141,613 513,162 Net Earnings Attributable to Discontinued Operations 125,511 125,511 Net earnings attributable to Jacobs $ 409,855 $ 87,205 $ 141,613 $ 638,673 Diluted Net Earnings from Continuing Operations Per Share $ 2.13 $ 0.65 $ 1.06 $ 3.85 Diluted Net Earnings from Discontinued Operations Per Share $ 0.94 $ $ $ 0.94 Diluted Earnings Per Share $ 3.08 $ 0.65 $ 1.06 $ 4.80 Operating profit margin 5.11 % 8.76 % (1) Includes (a) the removal of pass through revenues and costs for the People & Places Solutions line of business for the calculation of operating profit margin as a percentage of net revenue of $1.9 billion, (b) the removal of amortization of intangible assets of $67.1 million, (c) the reclassification of revenues under the TSA of $15.2 million included in other income for U.S. GAAP reporting purposes to SG&A, (d) the removal of $118.8 million in fair value adjustments related to our investment in Worley stock (net of Worley stock dividend) and certain foreign currency revaluations relating to the ECR sale and (e) associated income tax expense adjustments for the above pre-tax adjustment items. Nine Months Ended June 28, 2019 Unaudited U.S. GAAP Effects of Restructuring, Transaction and Other Charges Other Adjustments (1) Adjusted Revenues $ 9,345,005 $ $ $ 9,345,005 Pass through revenue (1,840,572) (1,840,572) Net revenue 9,345,005 (1,840,572) 7,504,433 Direct cost of contracts (7,533,511) 1,969 1,840,572 (5,690,970) Gross profit 1,811,494 1,969 1,813,463 Selling, general and administrative expenses (1,505,731) 244,348 87,863 (1,173,520) Operating Profit 305,763 246,317 87,863 639,943 Total other (expense) income, net (8,344) (26,916) 28,109 (7,151) Earnings from Continuing Operations Before Taxes 297,419 219,401 115,972 632,792 Income Tax Expense from Continuing Operations (12,829) (47,952) (53,782) (114,563) Net Earnings of the Group from Continuing Operations 284,590 171,449 62,190 518,229 Net (Earnings) Loss Attributable to Noncontrolling Interests from Continuing Operations (15,578) (15,578) Net Earnings from Continuing Operations attributable to Jacobs 269,012 171,449 62,190 502,651 Net Earnings (Loss) Attributable to Discontinued Operations 436,642 8,361 (55,622) 389,381 Net earnings attributable to Jacobs $ 705,654 $ 179,810 $ 6,568 $ 892,032 Diluted Net Earnings from Continuing Operations Per Share $ 1.92 $ 1.22 $ 0.44 $ 3.58 Diluted Net Earnings (Loss) from Discontinued Operations Per Share $ 3.11 $ 0.06 $ (0.40) $ 2.77 Diluted Earnings Per Share $ 5.02 $ 1.28 $ 0.05 $ 6.35 Operating profit margin 3.27 % 8.53 % (1) Includes after-tax CH2M transaction costs and adjustments of $1.2 million, after-tax transaction costs associated with the sale of the ECR business of $8.9 million and after-tax transaction costs associated with the acquisition of KeyW of $9.6 million. (2) Includes (a) the removal of pass through revenues and costs for the People & Places Solutions line of business for the calculation of operating profit margin as a percentage of net revenue of $1.84 billion, (b) the removal of amortization of intangible assets of $55.7 million, (c) the allocation to discontinued operations of estimated stranded corporate costs of $14.8 million that will be reimbursed under the TSA with Worley or otherwise eliminated from the ongoing operations in connection with the sale of the ECR business, (d) the allocation to discontinued operations of estimated interest expense for the full period related to long-term debt that has been paid down as a result of the ECR sale of$42.3 million, (e) the exclusion of approximately $37.0 million in one-time favorable income tax adjustment associated with reduction of deferred income taxes for permanently reinvested earnings from non-U.S. subsidiaries in connection with the sale of the ECR business, (f) the add-back of charges resulting from the revaluation of certain deferred tax assets/liabilities in connection with U.S. tax reform from the first quarter of $11.0 million and other adjustments of $1.5 million, (g) the add-back of depreciation relating to the ECR business that was ceased as a result of the application of held-for-sale accounting of $17.3 million, (h) the reclassification of revenues under the TSA of $14.1 million included in other income for U.S. GAAP reporting purposes to SG&A and the exclusion of $3.2 million in remaining unreimbursed costs associated with this agreement and (i) associated income tax expense adjustments for all the above pre-tax adjustment items. Earnings Per Share: Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended Unaudited June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 June 26, 2020 June 28, 2019 Numerator for Basic and Diluted EPS: Net earnings attributable to Jacobs from continuing operations $ 226,886 $ 89,365 $ 284,344 $ 269,012 Net earnings from continuing operations allocated to participating securities (24) (105) (77) (444) Net earnings from continuing operations allocated to common stock for EPS calculation $ 226,862 $ 89,260 $ 284,267 $ 268,568 Net earnings attributable to Jacobs from discontinued operations $ 18,043 $ 435,077 $ 125,511 $ 436,642 Net earnings from discontinued operations allocated to participating securities (2) (513) (34) (720) Net earnings from discontinued operations allocated to common stock for EPS calculation $ 18,041 $ 434,564 $ 125,477 $ 435,922 Net earnings allocated to common stock for EPS calculation $ 244,903 $ 523,824 $ 409,744 $ 704,490 Denominator for Basic and Diluted EPS: Weighted average basic shares 130,229 136,772 131,995 139,263 Shares allocated to participating securities (14) (161) (36) (230) Shares used for calculating basic EPS attributable to common stock 130,215 136,611 131,959 139,033 Effect of dilutive securities: Stock compensation plans 1,048 1,212 1,188 1,206 Shares used for calculating diluted EPS attributable to common stock 131,263 137,823 133,147 140,239 Net Earnings Per Share: Basic Net Earnings from Continuing Operations Per Share $ 1.74 $ 0.65 $ 2.15 $ 1.93 Basic Net Earnings from Discontinued Operations Per Share $ 0.14 $ 3.18 $ 0.95 $ 3.14 Basic Earnings Per Share $ 1.88 $ 3.83 $ 3.11 $ 5.07 Diluted Net Earnings from Continuing Operations Per Share $ 1.73 $ 0.65 $ 2.13 $ 1.92 Diluted Net Earnings from Discontinued Operations Per Share $ 0.14 $ 3.15 $ 0.94 $ 3.11 Diluted Earnings Per Share $ 1.87 $ 3.80 $ 3.08 $ 5.02 Investors: Jonathan Doros, 214-583-8596 [email protected] Media: Marietta Hannigan, 214-920-8035 [email protected] 1 Reflects continuing operations as reported in accordance with GAAP. 2 Reconciliation of the adjusted EPS outlook and adjusted EBITDA outlook for the full fiscal year to the most directly comparable GAAP measure is not available without unreasonable efforts because the Company cannot predict with sufficient certainty all the components required to provide such reconciliation, including with respect to the costs and charges relating to transaction expenses, restructuring and integration to be incurred in fiscal 2020. SOURCE Jacobs Related Links http://www.jacobs.com The controversial White House nomination of retired Army Brig. Gen. Anthony Tata to the Pentagon's top policy post has been withdrawn. But he will stay at the Defense Department with an appointment that will allow him to avoid Senate confirmation. Tata withdrew from consideration for the Pentagon's No. 3 position as undersecretary of defense for policy, but will keep an appointed job with a new title that doesn't require Senate approval, according to a Pentagon statement to The Washington Post and CNN on Sunday night. Read Next: Marine Corps IDs 9 Troops Lost in Tragic AAV Accident In his new post, Tata, who had been serving since April as a senior adviser to Defense Secretary Mark Esper, will become "the official Performing the Duties of the Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Policy reporting to the Acting Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Dr. James Anderson," according to the Pentagon. In a statement, Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, condemned the move to keep Tata at the Pentagon as "an insult to our troops." "Clearly, President Trump wants people who will swear allegiance to him over the Constitution," Reed said. "His hand-picked candidate for this critical position was on the verge of potentially being rejected on the merits. This is a flagrant end run around the confirmation process." Tata had been scheduled for a confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee last week, but it was abruptly canceled as opposition mounted over his controversial Twitter posts and statements as a Fox News contributor, in which he has condemned Islam as the "most oppressive violent religion I know of" and called former President Barack Obama a "terrorist leader." In a statement on the hearing cancellation, Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, the committee chairman, said, "There are many Democrats and Republicans who didn't know enough about Anthony Tata to consider him for a very significant position at this time." The 60-year-old Tata had been nominated to replace John Rood as undersecretary for policy. Rood resigned in February after it was disclosed that he had warned against withholding military aid to Ukraine, a central issue in Trump's impeachment by the House and later acquittal by the Senate. Tata, a West Point graduate, served 28 years in the Army, including a tour in Afghanistan as deputy commander of the 10th Mountain Division, before retiring in 2009 under a cloud after an investigation by the Army's Inspector General alleged that he had had at least two extramarital affairs. -- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com. Related: Hearing Canceled for Controversial Pentagon Nominee Tata; Future in Doubt Stock Market News CCL Share Price - Carnival cancels more trips as Italys approval still pending 03-08-2020 01:00 Stock News headlines are gathered from financial news sources around the web. Views and opinions on each item are from their respective authors and website. They are not opinions of LiveCharts.co.uk TEHRAN, Iran, Aug. 3 Trend: Iran is controlling coronavirus spread and is surpassing the peak except for two provinces, said Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. "The Health Ministry's report from Mazandaran, Fars and Khuzestan provinces shows the situation has improved compared to previous week and people are following health protocols," said Rouhani, Trend reports citing IRNA. "It is important to resist both sanctions and coronavirus. The National Headquarter to Fight Coronavirus continues to provide report every Saturday, while the government will inaugurate new projects every Thursday related to support businesses and employment," the head of state said. The Health Ministry has announced 2,598 new cases of infection have been identified in last 24 hour and 215 people lost their lives. So far, over 312,000 people have been infected, and 17,405 people have already died. Meanwhile, over 270,200 have reportedly recovered from the disease. Earlier, the Health Ministry's spokesperson said Tehran, Mazandaran, Golestan , Fars, East Azerbaijan, Ardabil, Isfahan, Alborz, Ilam, Khorasan Razavi, Kerman, North Khorasan, Semnan, Lorestan and Hormozgan provinces are considered 'red' zones. Pair shoot at police unit mistaking it for a private vehicle Chetumal, Q.R. Two male subjects were arrested by police after mistaking their unit for a private vehicle. The arrests took place when the pair shot at the police unit, which was traveling without its flashing lights. In a statement, elements of the Quintana Roo police say while on a surveillance tour at Ucum-La Union, they were surprised when they were shot at. Repelling fire, police also began a search, which lead to their discovery of the pair behind a highway sign. The pair were arrested for firing at passing cars in an attempt to stop and rob them The detainees, 49-year-old Jesus N from the state of Guerrero and 19-year-old Eduardo N from Quintana Roo, were found with weapons and ammo. The pair were hiding along the highway shooting at passing vehicles in an attempt to stop and rob them. Editors note: This story has been updated with Mayor Ben Walshs response and the Common Councils actions. Syracuse, N.Y. The citys common councilors are pledging to stop all new spending starting today until Mayor Ben Walsh presents an amended budget that plugs a multimillion-dollar shortfall created by the coronavirus, according to Councilor-at-Large Tim Rudd. The councils moves at todays meeting put nearly $800,000 in spending on hold. That spending covers a range of things, from fire department equipment to water purity maintenance to computer work in the water department. It also includes a small purchase of land for the Creekwalk. We need a plan before we approve any additional spending, Rudd said this morning. If we dont have a plan, we dont know. As of 1:16 p.m., the Common Council did hold spending items on todays agenda. The council also postponed voting on an early retirement plan proposed by Walsh. The councils actions wont hold back any city workers paycheck. Instead, theyve frozen everyday spending on equipment, land, contracts and other items, Rudd said. In an email just before the common councils noon study session, Mayor Ben Walsh told Rudd he agreed with the spending freezes. The mayor said he plans to have an amended budget to share with the council before its Aug. 24 meeting. I agree that holding the expenditures youve identified at this time is consistent with our agreement to withdraw pre-authorizations for capital expenditures and open purchase orders, Walsh wrote in the email, which was reviewed by syracuse.com | The Post-Standard. We will alert the impacted department heads. Two weeks ago, the administration said it was facing a budget shortfall of $30 million. Chief Administrative Officer Frank Caliva said the city was exploring $25 million in cuts, and using another $5 million in reserves to plug the hole. (The citys approved budget is about $253 million.) Part of the citys plan also includes an early retirement program, which requires council approval. The council plans to put that on hold, too. Rudd said councilors have questions about the long-term financial costs of letting an expected 200 people retire early. In that same email, Walsh urged the council to act on the retirement plan. Rudd replied the council plans on holding it today but would readily hold a special meeting to vote once their questions are answered. After the councils vote, Walsh issued a statement that reiterated he agreed with the councils decisions on spending. But he doesnt support the decision about the retirement plan. Delaying action on the proposed Voluntary Retirement Incentive Program, however, complicates our ability to project potential cost savings before the councils next meeting, he wrote. The citys comments last month spurred Rudd and other councilors to start pushing for more details. Rudd is on a committee meant to plan for budget contingencies. He said that group hasnt met in a month. Rudd said he started asking for councilors support on Sunday. Today, all councilors supported the effort. Walsh and other government leaders facing budget crises are calling on Washington for more bailout money to avoid cuts to services and programs. When asked if revealing a budget plan without that federal aid would undercut that argument for help, Rudd pushed back. He said showing what city services are at stake would build urgency among residents and make an even better argument to Congress. But I also think the federal government is not going to bail anyone out, he added. Got a story idea or news tip youd like to share? Please contact me through email, Twitter, Facebook or at 315-470-2274. Story Highlights 36% want full-time in-person instruction; 28% want full-time remote learning More parents concerned about children catching the coronavirus A growing percentage of concerned parents want full-time remote learning WASHINGTON, D.C. -- As U.S. coronavirus infections and parents' concerns about their children catching COVID-19 have surged, parents' preferences for school attendance this year have shifted. In late May and early June, a majority of 56% of K-12 parents wanted full-time in-person school this fall. Now, 36% prefer this option. Meanwhile, 28% of parents, up from 7% in the prior survey, prefer full-time remote instruction. The remainder, 36%, favor a hybrid system of part in-person teaching and part distance learning. U.S. Parents Less Likely to Favor Full-Time In-Person Schooling This Fall In the fall, would you want your children's school to have full-time distance/remote learning, have a modified program where they attend school part time and do some distance/remote learning, or have your children attend school full time? May 25-Jun 8, 2020 Jul 13-27 , 2020 % % Full-time in-person school 56 36 Part-time in-person school with some distance learning 37 36 Full-time distance/remote learning 7 28 Based on parents of U.S. K-12 schoolchildren Gallup Panel The July 13-27 Gallup Panel survey results come as governors, school officials and parents decide how best to educate children amid the coronavirus pandemic. After nearly all U.S. schools relied on remote learning to finish the 2019-2020 school year, the Trump administration has insisted that all children should attend school in person this fall. But some larger school districts in COVID-19 hot spots have already decided they will have full-time remote learning in the fall, something President Donald Trump recently acknowledged may be necessary despite his administration's preferences. Organizations representing pediatricians, superintendents and teachers recently urged leaders to base decisions about reopening schools on the recommendations of local public health officials, educators and parents. When Gallup last asked this question in late May and early June, parents' preferences for full-time in-person schooling largely conformed with their experiences with remote learning at the end of the 2019-2020 school year. At that time, 56% said their children's distance learning was difficult for them, while 44% said it was easy. Parents' preferences for 2020-2021 schooling at that time were also largely shaped by their concern about their children getting the coronavirus. Now, more parents are concerned about their children getting the coronavirus, with 64% worried (up from 46%), including 27% who are "very worried" (up from 12%). More Parents Concerned About Their Children Catching the Coronavirus How worried are you that your children will get the coronavirus (COVID-19)? May 25-Jun 8, 2020 Jul 13-27 , 2020 % % Very worried 12 27 Somewhat worried 34 37 Not too worried 34 22 Not worried at all 20 14 Based on parents of U.S. K-12 schoolchildren Gallup Panel Parents who are not concerned about their children contracting the virus still widely favor in-person school, with 74% doing so, little changed from 79% at the end of the past school year. But almost as many parents who are concerned now favor full-time remote learning (42%) as favor the hybrid approach (44%). In the prior survey, a majority of concerned parents favored the hybrid approach, and only 12% preferred full-time distance learning. Concerned parents were disinclined in that survey to want full-time in-person schooling (29%), and are even less in favor of it now (15%). Preference for Fall Schooling Related to Concerns About Coronavirus May 25-Jun 8, 2020 Jul 13-27 , 2020 % % Worried children will get coronavirus Full-time in-person school 29 15 Part-time school with some distance learning 59 44 Full-time distance learning 12 42 Not worried children will get coronavirus Full-time in-person school 79 74 Part-time school with some distance learning 18 22 Full-time distance learning 2 4 Based on parents of U.S. K-12 schoolchildren Gallup Panel Thus, to a large degree, the shift away from in-person learning reflects the increased worry among parents since late May and early June, when U.S. coronavirus infections were much lower than today. Parents residing in the West (74%) are more worried about their children getting the coronavirus than parents in the Northeast (65%), South (62%) and Midwest (52%), with increases of between 14 and 25 percentage points since the prior survey in all regions. Western parents (27%) and those in the Northeast (27%) are least likely to favor full-time in-person instruction. Four in 10 parents in the South and 51% of those in the Midwest prefer their children attend full-time in-person school this fall. Thirty percent of Western parents want full-time remote learning, and 43% want a hybrid system. As with many aspects of the coronavirus pandemic, attitudes are shaped to a large degree by politics. Eighty-five percent of parents who identify as Democrats and 29% who identify as Republicans are worried about their child getting COVID-19. About two-thirds of Republican parents, versus 13% of Democrats, want full-time in-person instruction for their children this fall. Democratic parents are mostly divided in their preference between full-time remote learning and a modified system. Parent Concerns and Parent Preferences for Fall Schooling, by Party Republicans Independents Democrats % % % Concern about child getting COVID-19: Very worried 9 22 42 Somewhat worried 20 43 43 Not too worried 37 23 12 Not worried at all 33 12 3 Preference for fall schooling: Full-time in-person school 68 40 13 Part-time school with some distance learning 22 35 46 Full-time distance learning 11 25 41 Gallup Panel, July 13-27, 2020 In late May and early June, 10% of Democrats preferred full-time distance learning, with 33% opting for full-time in-person instruction and 57% for a hybrid approach. Republicans' preferences have changed less significantly since then, with more now wanting full-time remote learning than in the prior survey (11% vs. 3%, respectively) and fewer wanting full-time in-person teaching (68% vs. 82%). Also, in the prior survey, the majority of independents, 63%, wanted full-time in-person instruction, with 7% wanting full-time remote learning. Implications As students begin their school year, they will be doing so at a time of great uncertainty, as school leaders and parents attempt to balance student and teacher safety needs with student educational needs. With coronavirus infections on the rise in many parts of the country, the decisions have become even more difficult. The Centers for Disease Control recently released guidelines for how schools can safely administer in-person instruction. Those guidelines may be challenging to implement in practice and likely would require additional funding. Schools that opt for in-person instruction face the added challenge of devising plans for how to continue in-person instruction if students, teachers or their family members become infected with the coronavirus. School districts are likely to adopt different approaches depending on their area's circumstances. But regardless of what course they choose, they will need to be adaptable in the event that circumstances change. Learn more about how the Gallup Panel works. Gov. Phil Murphy will hold the first coronavirus press conference of the month at 1 p.m. Monday. The gathering at the Trenton War Memorials George Washington Ballroom will be streamed lived on the governors YouTube channel. Among the officials slated to join Murphy are state health commissioner Judy Persichilli, state epidemiologist Dr. Christina Tan and State Police Superintendent Colonel Pat Callahan. Homeland security director Jared Maples almost always attends, too, though he is never listed on the press releases issued by Murphys office. In addition to the usual coronavirus discussion, Murphy is also likely to discuss Tropical Storm Isaias, which is expected to batter the state on Tuesday with up to 6 inches of rain, winds gusts which might reach 75 mph, storm surge and potential flash flooding. About half of New Jersey is under a tropical storm warning. On Friday, Murphy lamented that the states rate of transmission had climbed to 1.35, the highest since early April. Look, the numbers are setting off alarms that we take very seriously. We may still be among the leaders in having lower case numbers and daily positivity rates, but we are standing in a very dangerous place. The alarms are going off, Murphy said Friday. The governor has often said that keeping the rate below 1 is one of the key metrics to allow re-openings of things such as indoor dining and potentially fitness centers. Though state officials havent updated the rate of transmission as of 8:30 a.m. Monday, the number of people hospitalized with the coronavirus or a suspected case climbed to 738 as of 10 p.m. Sunday. It was 703 in the previous 24-hour period after peaking at more than 8,000 in mid-April. There are 144 people receiving critical care in the states 71 hospitals, with 49 on ventilators. A day earlier those numbers were 123 and 41, respectively. Murphy has no other scheduled public appearances on Monday. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin N. Adri (The Jakarta Post) Samarinda, East Kalimantan Mon, August 3, 2020 19:49 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b47cf2 1 National rape,rape-case,East-Kalimantan,Samarinda,Dayak Free Women rights activists have called for authorities in East Kalimantan not to bow to pressure from local groups seeking to use Dayak customary law to settle the case of a man alleged to have raped his 18-year-old daughter. The activists, grouped under the Coalition of Justice for Women, demanded in a petition addressed to, among others, the top brass of the Samarinda Police, the East Kalimantan Police and the Samarinda Prosecutors Office, to bring the perpetrator, identified by the initials ORS, to the court for his crime. "The case should not be settled through customary law or be settled out of court," said Yuliwati, one of the activists who participated in the writing of the petition, which was published on change.org. ORS was arrested on July 26 in Samarinda, the provincial capital of East Kalimantan, for allegedly raping his daughter three times when his wife was out of town. The latest assault took place on July 25, according to the police. Citing the testimony of the victim, Samarinda Police detective chief Comr. Yuliansyah said ORS had forced his daughter to drink alcohol before sexually assaulting her. "The victim managed to escape from her house afterwards and got help from her neighbors who accompanied her to report the case to [the police]," Yuliansyah said. The police subsequently named ORS a rape suspect after collecting sufficient evidence, including the victim's physical examination results. The victim was also taken to a safe house. ORS a lawyer who is locally known as a leader of a Dayak community group denied all accusations. Read also: Surabaya student investigated for so-called sexual mummification of multiple victims Shortly after his arrest, a number of Dayak communities under the Alliance of East Kalimantan Mass Organization sent a request to the police for ORT's detention to be delayed and for the case to be settled through customary law instead. In general, Dayak customary law stipulates fines as punishment for those who are found to have committed violations, although the details usually differ in each subtribe. The fines range from a sum of money, animals such as pigs or buffalos to other goods such as porcelain plates or pots. In some cases, the violators of customary law are banished from their family or village. The form of punishment is usually decided through a customary trial that involves tribal elders and figures. However, Yulita, who has experience working with indigenous tribes in East and South Kalimantan, said fines were not sufficient to create a deterrent effect against sexual assault, especially if the perpetrator came from a well-off family. "Therefore, we oppose settling this rape case through customary law. Justice needs to be upheld and the perpetrator should be brought to court," Yulita told The Jakarta Post. Herdiansyah Hamzah, a criminal law expert from Mulawarman University in Samarinda, asserted that rape was a serious crime that carried a more than five-year prison sentence and, therefore, legal proceedings should be continued once the police begin their investigation. "In many instances, [criminal] cases can be settled through customary law at the same time, as the perpetrators go through legal proceedings in accordance with the existing [laws]," Herdiansyah said. (nal) New York: Nearly 20 countries, including two UN Security Council permanent members France and Great Britain have joined hands to celebrate issuing of the Diwali postage stamp by the US. The event co-hosted by the Permanent Missions of Belarus and India to the UN office along with the Permanent Observer Mission of the State of Palestine would attend the Diwali stamp dedication ceremony at the Trusteeship Council Chamber of the United Nations in New York on December 5, according to a media release. The event would also honour Ranju Batra, chairman of the Diwali Stamp project, who worked behind the scene for several years campaigning before the US Postal Service (USPS) to issue a stamp in honor of the festival of lights. It has become the number one best seller in the history of USPS. So far more than 170,000 Diwali stamps have been sold. Other countries that have joined the event as co-sponsors are Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Georgia, Germany, Honduras, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Moldova, Morocco, Panama, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Ukraine and Vietnam. On October 6, the stamp was launched here by the USPS, capping seven-year-long efforts by Indian-Americans and influential American lawmakers to commemorate the festival of lights. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. As China continues to face international backlash over its spectrum of activities, an unusual diaspora is emerging in Toronto including Indian, Tibetan, Vietnamese and Taiwanese who staged anti-China protests over the weekend. According to reports, the demonstration that took place on August 1 in Canada was organised by Canada and Hong Kong's link, Minority Rights Alliance of Bangladesh among others. While global scrutiny against the Asian superpower continues to grow more intense, the protesters were seen holding flags of the United States, Tibet and India along with occasional slogan-raising in support of India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. #WATCH An anti-China protest was organized by Canada-Hong Kong Link, Bangladesh Minority Rights Alliance, Indian, Tibetan, Vietnamese & Taiwanese diaspora in Toronto, Canada on August 1. pic.twitter.com/2KGGP7EeF1 ANI (@ANI) August 2, 2020 Read - China: New Satellite Navigation System Built By 2035 According to media reports, several demonstrators held placards that read slogans like fight for democracy, Help stop Uyghur Forced Labour raising issues of Chinas treatment of Uighur Muslims along with Asia superpowers development in Hong Kong. The recent controversial national security law that has been passed by China is opposed by several countries as they think it threatens the autonomy of the country. ANI quoted a protester saying that India the greatest democracy on the face of the Earth. India the shining light to the world. I want to thank Prime Minister Modi for setting an example to the world on how to confront evil China. Meanwhile, another demonstrator said that China has enhanced its control over Hong Kong with its new legislation. A protestor also said, We stand with people of Taiwan, Hong Kong, Vietnam and India. We stand with countries around the world which have been under its (Chinese) oppression. Now the Chinese regime is taking total control of Hong Kong people. Read - CAIT To Oppose IPL 2020 'tooth And Nail' After BCCI Retains China's Vivo As Sponsor Mike Pompeo slams China While the protest was staged in Canada, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo targetted the Asian superpower on August 2 and said that America is gravely concerned by the situation in Hong Kong. Pompeo not only noted the recent arrests of students in the former British colony but also mentioned Chinas illegal fishing in Ecuador. The relations between both superpowers remain at an all-time low over an array of issues from responding to coronavirus outbreak to Chinas territorial developments. According to Pompeo, China has consistently broken its promise of Hong Kongs freedom by its actions including the barring of anti-government candidates from upcoming legislative elections. We are gravely concerned by the arrests of four students in Hong Kong under the new National Security Law and by the disqualification of pro-democracy electoral candidates. Beijing continues to break its promises and eviscerate Hong Kongs autonomy. Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) August 2, 2020 Read - Vulnerable Eastern China Areas Evacuated Ahead Of Typhoon Read - Asian Shares Mixed On US-China Tensions, Wall Street Gains (With inputs from ANI) FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Hyundai Motor America reported total July sales of 57,677 units, a 1% increase compared with July 2019. Retail sales grew 4%, the third consecutive month of increasing retail sales. Fleet sales were down 32% and represented 7% of total volume. During the first six months of 2020, Hyundai increased its retail market share nearly a full point, the biggest gain in the industry. That trend is expected to continue after July industry sales are analyzed. Hyundai sold 53,555 retail units in July, with SUVs representing 67% of the total retail mix. Hyundai SUV retail sales grew 16%. Retail sales of the flagship SUV Palisade were up 87%, establishing a new overall and retail monthly sales record, surpassing the previous record set in June 2020. Retail sales were up across the Hyundai lineup: Santa Fe 9%, Kona 12%, Sonata 7% and Accent 7%. July Sales Summary Jul-20 Jul-19 2020 YTD 2019 YTD Hyundai 57,677 57,340 330,274 390,668 "Achieving an overall sales increase despite the ongoing pandemic is a tremendous accomplishment and speaks to the depth and quality of our product lineup and resiliency of our dealers," said Randy Parker, vice president, National Sales, Hyundai Motor America. "Our inventory levels are stable and customers are able to find the Hyundai vehicle that best suits their needs. Hyundai dealers have been outstanding partners in responding to the pandemic and helping put customers at ease. In a Hyundai survey of vehicle owners, 95% said adopting cleaning protocols is important and 87% of Hyundai owners surveyed that visited a dealership recognized Hyundai's Clean Assurance standards. There is still uncertainty in the economic conditions moving forward, but we will remain laser focused on the customer." July Product and Corporate Activities COVID-19 Testing Donations: Hyundai Hope On Wheels added to its COVID-19 support with a $100,000 donation to help open a drive-thru testing center in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Boyle Heights. To date, Hyundai Hope On Wheels has provided $4.4 million in support of 23 COVID-19 testing centers across the country and enabled more than 730,000 COVID-19 tests. Hyundai Hope On Wheels added to its COVID-19 support with a donation to help open a drive-thru testing center in the neighborhood of Boyle Heights. Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama Donations: Hyundai's U.S. manufacturing facility donated 20,000 face masks and 400 acrylic face shields in Montgomery. Hyundai's U.S. manufacturing facility donated 20,000 face masks and 400 acrylic face shields in Montgomery. Hyundai Highways: In a five-part video series, Hyundai embarks on some of the most scenic drives in America in the 258-mile range, zero-emissions Kona Electric. In a five-part video series, Hyundai embarks on some of the most scenic drives in America in the 258-mile range, zero-emissions Kona Electric. WardsAuto 10 Best User Experience: The well-equipped Sonata was named a 10 Best User Experience for its consumer-friendly driver-assist technologies. The well-equipped Sonata was named a 10 Best User Experience for its consumer-friendly driver-assist technologies. 2021 Palisade: An all-new, premium Calligraphy model is now available on the 2021 Palisade. An all-new, premium Calligraphy model is now available on the 2021 Palisade. 2021 Veloster N: The high-performance Veloster N now comes with an eight-speed wet dual-clutch transmission for the 2021 model year. Model Sales Vehicle Jul-20 Jul-19 2020 YTD 2019 YTD Accent 1,538 1,830 9,832 16,736 Elantra 9,283 11,579 57,733 96,550 Ioniq 1,826 2,891 7,264 10,490 Kona 7,077 6,377 37,844 43,466 Nexo 16 21 92 140 Palisade 8,404 4,464 44,859 4,847 Santa Fe 9,296 9,644 52,725 77,215 Sonata 6,834 6,976 37,123 54,108 Tucson 10,922 12,629 68,863 78,583 Veloster 861 929 5,148 8,533 Venue 1,620 0 8,791 0 Hyundai Motor America At Hyundai Motor America, we believe everyone deserves better. From the way we design and build our cars to the way we treat the people who drive them, making things better is at the heart of everything we do. Hyundai's technology-rich product lineup of cars, SUVs and alternative-powered electric and fuel cell vehicles is backed by Hyundai Assuranceour promise to create a better experience for customers. Hyundai vehicles are sold and serviced through more than 820 dealerships nationwide and nearly half of those sold in the U.S. are built at Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama. Hyundai Motor America is headquartered in Fountain Valley, California, and is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company of Korea. Please visit our media website at www.HyundaiNews.com Hyundai Motor America on Twitter | YouTube | Facebook | Instagram SOURCE Hyundai Motor America Related Links http://www.HyundaiNews.com The Costa del Sol suffered its highest temperatures this year on Sunday when thermometers went above 40 degrees Celsius in most areas. The highest reading at an official weather station was in Velez-Malaga with 45.7, while the Malaga Airport station gave a reading of 43 for much of the day. While the heatwave had affected most of Spain since Thursday, Malaga province was worst hit on Saturday and Sunday, with the warm Terral wind causing temperatures to rise. The weather agency Aemet raised its warning to red over the weekend. On Monday the severe weather warning had gone down to yellow, with highs forecast of 37C, while cooler highs in the low thirties were forecast for Tuesday, when there could be some rain. Aemet has not ruled out a new heatwave hitting Spain towards the end of the week. Thousands rushed to the coast on Sunday to escape the heat, with more than 20 beaches on the Costa del Sol starting to turn bathers away, having reached their total capacity according to Covid-19 precaution rules. Theodora Egyir needs your financial support 02.08.2020 LISTEN The Henry Djaba Memorial Foundation as part of its humanitarian duties has offered to support the 15-year-old Theodora Egyir, who has been suffering from breast hypertrophy to undergo a second time medical examination. A statement issued in Accra and signed by the Executive Director of the Henry Djaba Memorial Foundation, Dr. Otiko Afisah Djaba soliciting the support of Ghanaians to save the life of the little girl said, Theodora, started noticing swellings in both breasts medically known as "gigantomastia" or "breast hypertrophy" some years ago. Her breasts grew alarmingly weighing more than 15 kilograms at the time she was brought to the Foundation. The size of the breasts is disfiguring her stature, affecting her breathing and education. Theodora first underwent breast reduction surgery at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra two years ago with the help of the Henry Djaba Memorial Foundation and its partners the Charismatic Evangelistic Ministry (CEM) and the Methodist Church, Winneba. Unfortunately, her condition is re-occurring in spite of the surgery and therefore requires further and urgent medical attention again. Theodora and her parents live in Akwansa Kokodo, a village near Mankessim in the Ekumfi District of the Central Region. Mr. Kwame Egyir, a small peasant farmer with six children, is not in the position to finance the medical bills. The Henry Djaba Memorial Foundation on behalf of Theodora is therefore appealing for financial support to immediately cater for the cost of medical fees at the Plastic Surgery Department, medication and cost of transportation. Your generous donation and support for this cause is most welcomed. You may donate through our Mobile Account Number 0248510067. You can also contact us on 0241235199/0555754978, email us on [email protected] 15:34 | Lima, Aug. 3. "Once the crisis is over, and in accordance with the country's long history of fiscal responsibility, it is essential to establish an orderly, gradual and credible consolidation process for the non-financial public sector's fiscal deficit, which will allow preserving the sustainability of public finances," he expressed. The high-ranking official affirmed that this consolidation trajectory foresees an increase in permanent tax revenues that allows for a moderate expansion of public spending, so that an adequate provision of public goods and services remains in place. The Cabinet chief mentioned that the fiscal strengths accumulated after several years of disciplined management have been essential to launching one of the most important economic plans in the region and in the history of the country with the purpose of facing the pandemic. Fiscal rules Furthermore, the Prime Minister indicated that in the current context characterized by high uncertainty fiscal rules were exceptionally and temporarily suspended in response to the health and economic crises caused by COVID-19 "Thus, once the pandemic has been overcome, the public finances management will aim to drive fiscal aggregates towards a path of sustainability in the medium term," he stated. Cateriano also pointed out that this will make rebuilding the country's fiscal space possible in order to preserve the Peruvian State's response capacity to future adverse shocks, and to finance important reforms that increase the potential growth of the economy and the well-being of citizens Therefore, he said, it should be noted that the expected fiscal path will consider the dissipation of the transitory measures approved in the context of the crisis. From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report. The coronavirus pandemic has changed many things about everyday life. One big change is childcare or the lack of it. As many childcare providers closed as part of public safety measures, so did schools, offices and businesses. Social restrictions also tightened. This meant many older adults were unable to help watch or care for their grandchildren. This left working parents with a sudden, unexpected problem -- working from home with children who also had schoolwork to do. Many parents struggled to meet work demands while watching over their childs online studies at the same time. Even companies whose job it is to prepare for a pandemic were caught off guard or unprepared. The British drug-maker AstraZeneca spent years preparing for a health crisis. However, when it happened, the company was not prepared to help its employees work effectively at home with their children. The company asked its 8,300 employees about childcare and found that at least 1,100 needed help. Fiona Cicconi heads the companys human resources office. She noted that some employees said they were feeling worried about the work they had to do and about not getting it done. Several of those working parents are also responsible for trying to produce a vaccine for the disease COVID-19. So, AstraZeneca did many things to help its employees by helping their children. The company found about 80 teachers and paid them to organize classes online. It developed a computer software program to make planning the lessons easy. And it also found tutors for children needing one-on-one instruction. Other businesses around the world did similar things to help their employees work through the coronavirus health crisis. German business software company SAP provided online lessons for children of its workers. Those classes taught performing magic, dancing and learning to play a musical instrument. In Italy, tire maker Pirelli teamed up with Radiomamma.it to provide online education and fun activities for children. Classes in English, creativity and technology are among the most popular. However, not all parents have such support from their employer. Many are dealing with their own work, childcare and online learning on their own. I spoke with one woman about her ways of dealing with the situation. Mary Shelley is a director of information technology at the University of Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C. She says when her sons learning went online, she needed strategies to manage her 13-year-old sons education. During the spring, Shelley says, it seemed easy to keep her son thinking about schoolwork. At that time, nearly all U.S. students were at home and taking classes online. But now during the summer, her son is taking an online pre-Algebra class. However, the methods she used during the regular school year are still helping her now. Get up early and get organized. Shelley says the most important thing for her is this: wake up early and get herself organized first. I try to get up early and get myself organized for the day and figure out whats critical to get done for myself and my own work. Create a routine. Having a routine is important. A routine gives you set times for the things you need to do, such as waking, studying, taking breaks, eating and exercising. Create the routine with your child. When making that routine involve your child. Ask for the childs help. Let them give input, or ideas. This can help a child feel empowered. Shelley did this and says it gave her son ownership of the process. A child may be more willing to follow a routine if they helped to make it, or as our busy working mom says, craft it. I worked with him to try to craft a routine together to make sure that he has input on that as well. And I think that has helped him to take ownership of his work and of his day. Be ready to change your routine. After you set a routine, see how it works with your family. And be ready to change things. Shelley describes her process as trial-and-error. She tried some things with her son to see what worked. At first, the rule was her son had to finish all his schoolwork before playing any video games. But she found that he works better if his work is broken up into two smaller learning periods, instead of one big, long one. The one consistent thing, she adds, all work is done by dinner. The only thing that has been totally consistent is to everything done before dinner, and so that leaves his evening free and leaves us free from hassling him in the evenings. This helps Mary Shelley keep a balance between home life and work life. Experts say this balance is important as many of us continue to work from home. Experts also say that business leaders positions toward working from home could help lead to higher productivity and loyalty. However, they also say that working from home also can present challenges. When work and home are living so close together, parents must set boundaries. They must know when to clock out and leave their work for the day. And thats the Health & Lifestyle report. Im Anna Matteo. Anna Matteo wrote this story for Learning English with additional reporting from Reuters. Quiz - Managing Your Work, Your Child's Work Online Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story grandchildren n. the child of one's son or daughter strategy n. a careful plan or method for achieving a particular goal usually over a long period of time : the skill of making or carrying out plans to achieve a goal craft v. to make or produce (something) with care or skill input n. advice or opinions that help someone make a decision trial-and-error n. a finding out of the best way to reach a desired result or a correct solution by trying out one or more ways or means and by noting and eliminating errors or causes of failure consistent adj. always acting or behaving in the same way hassle v. to bother or annoy (someone) constantly or repeatedly boundary n. point or limit that indicates where two things become different clock out phrasal verb to record on a special card the time that one stops working By going after TikTok, the U.S. is expanding a fight against Beijing using Chinese-style restrictions on tech companies in a move that could potentially have enormous ramifications for the worlds biggest economies. The Trump administrations threat to ban ByteDance Ltd.s viral teen phenom and other Chinese-owned apps could significantly hamper their access global user data, which is an immensely valuable resource in a modern internet economy. Any U.S. decision, which Secretary of State Michael Pompeo said would come shortly, is likely to be followed by a similar pressure campaign that prompted some allies to ban Huawei Technologies Co. from 5G networks. Even if TikToks American operations are bought by Microsoft Corp., the episode is the culmination of a bifurcation of the internet that began when China walled off its own online sphere years ago, creating an alternate universe where Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. stood in for Facebook Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. It is also splitting many in the industry: Some decry the betrayal of values like free speech and capitalism, while others advocate doing whatever it takes to subdue a geopolitical rival and its pivotal tech industry. This sets a dangerous precedent for the U.S., said Samm Sacks, a fellow on cybersecurity policy and China digital economy at the New America think tank. We are moving down a path of techno-nationalism. Washingtons moves underscore how quickly the concept of an internet decoupling is becoming a reality even as the world is still figuring out its consequences. India showed the way when it banned dozens of Chinese mobile apps including TikTok and Tencents WeChat, while Australia and Japan are reportedly looking at similar options. At issue is who controls the data everything from private details like locations and emails to sophisticated mined information such as personal profiles and online behaviour. Like India, Washington worries that TikTok could be funneling that trove to Beijing, potentially undermining national security by building databases on its citizens. Worryingly for Beijing, its unclear where the U.S. would draw the line given the extent to which data is essential for companies these days. While Washingtons curbs against Huawei may have some grounds in terms of national security, the argument for banning TikTok is very weak, according to Yik Chan Chin, who researches global media and communications policy at the Xian Jiaotong-Liverpool University in Suzhou, a city near Shanghai. Its not a reasonable argument its like a blanket ban on Chinese companies, she said. How can Chinese companies ever do business in America? Careful what you wish for President Xi Jinping may have himself to blame. China has long championed cybersovereignty, shutting out services like Twitter, forcing foreign firms to secure local partners and distributors in areas from mobile games to cloud services, or curtailing investment in areas such as online banking. Microsoft Corp.s Bing and LinkedIn, which both censor content in China, remain the only major search engine and social network allowed to operate in China. We should respect every countrys own choice of their internet development path and management model, their internet public policy and the right to participate in managing international cyberspace, Xi told attendees at a high-profile internet conference in 2015. There should be no cyber-hegemony, no interfering in others internal affairs, no engaging, supporting or inciting cyber-activities that would harm the national security of other countries. Now its China that wants the world to embrace its companies and eschew overly broad interpretations of national security. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Monday the Trump administration has been stretching the concept of national security without any evidence and only based on presumption of guilt, and called for it to create an open, fair, just and non-discriminatory environment for businesses of all countries. Chinas past statements on cyber-sovereignty reflected its weakness at the time, and that view has evolved substantially since then, according to Zhao Ruiqi, vice director of School of Marxism at the Communication University of China in Beijing. Split the internet Trumps move is threatening to split the internet, and this is something the world should avoid, Zhao said. Countries should sit down and discuss the limits of national security when it comes to internet governance. While some of Trumps actions are regarded to be motivated by re-election considerations, others say going after TikTok has deeper significance. Already the worlds most valuable startup with a price tag potentially of $140 billion (U.S.), ByteDance and its best-known product epitomizes the can-do spirit of a generation of consumer tech companies that may follow Alibaba and Tencent. By hooking hundreds of millions of addicted youngsters from New Delhi to Denver, founder Zhang Yimings shown a cohort of entrepreneurs how a Chinese startup can make it to the big time and someday stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Americas largest corporations. Today, it serves some 1.5 billion monthly active users across a family of apps ranging from social media to games and education. TikTok symbolizes Chinese tech companies ability in algorithms, artificial intelligence and the ability to go viral and gain profits within a short period of time, said Wang Sixin, a professor at the Communication University of China. Now U.S. restrictions would force a contingent of up-and-coming stars in areas from gaming to livestreaming and media to reassess plans to expand globally just as they were starting to gain traction abroad. While TikTok is the first Chinese-made internet service to succeed globally, there are a host of others close behind. Among the most downloaded Chinese apps over the past 12 months in the U.S. are Joyy Inc. platforms Bigo and Likee and Alibabas AliExpress shopping app, according to Sensor Tower. TikTok rival Likee, which also stresses it operates from outside China, this year made the U.S. a top priority for its global expansion, with plans to pour more money and people into the region. Launched in May, short video company Kuaishous Zynn has topped U.S. app downloads at times. And WeChat used by more than a billion people worldwide is popular among the Chinese diaspora and U.S. executives with dealings in the worlds No. 2 economy. If the administration decides data is the key determinant, then even some of the worlds most popular games may get ensnared. Tencents Call of Duty: Mobile, co-created by Activision Blizzard Inc., PUBG Mobile and its Supercell subsidiarys Clash Royale are all popular with Americans. tech2 News Staff After spending two months at the space station, NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken have returned to Earth in a historic mission for the US. The Crew Dragon Demo-2 mission was a big deal for the United States the first successful test of a commercial crew program to shuttle astronauts to the space station from US soil, after a decade of relying on Russian rockets. The SpaceX's Crew Dragon Endeavour capsule autonomously undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) on Sunday, 2 August at 5.05 am IST (Saturday, 1 August at 7.35 pm EDT). Less than a day later, Endeavour along with its two occupants splashed down in a water landing in the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Florida on Monday, 3 August at 12.18 am IST (2 August at 2.48 pm) EDT. Recovery Endeavour and the crew onboard After undocking from the space station, they began gradually decreasing their orbital altitude overnight and woke up to recorded wake-up calls from their sons. "Good morning Dragon Endeavor," Hurley's son 10-year-old Jack said in a recorded message sent to the capsule. "I'm happy you went into space but I'm even happier that you're coming back home." Dont worry, you can sleep in tomorrow, said Behnkens six-year-old son Theo, who was promised a puppy after the flight. Hurry home so we can go get my dog. When they were getting ready to splashdown, the onboard thrusters and four Mark III parachutes autonomously slowed the capsule's velocity. It brought Behnken and Hurley's speed of 28,158 kph in orbit down to 563 kph upon reentry in the atmosphere, to an eventual 24 kph velocity at splashdown. As the capsule reentered Earth's atmosphere, its outer shell withstood temperatures of roughly 1, 926 degrees Celsius (3,500 Fahrenheit), while Behnken and Hurley experienced a comfortable 29 degrees Celsius (85 deg F) inside. Within a half-hour of splashdown, the crew capsule was hoisted aboard the SpaceX recovery ship GO Navigator. After preliminary medical check-ups, the astronauts were flown by helicopter to Pensacola and then to Houston "On behalf of the SpaceX and NASA teams, welcome back to Planet Earth. Thanks for flying SpaceX," SpaceX mission control said upon splashdown. "It was truly our honour and privilege," Hurley had radioed back. The recovery of the capsule was not without its drama. Once the capsule had splashed down in the ocean, private boats just made a beeline for it, according to NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. The boats got very close to the capsule, endangering a sensitive mission. Bridenstine promised to do a better job of keeping sightseers on pleasure boats safely away next time. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk rushed to Houston from SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California, to welcome them. Im not very religious, but I prayed for this one, he said. "No matter where you are on planet Earth, this is a good thing."@SpaceX CEO @ElonMusk reflects on the success of the #LaunchAmerica mission and what it means for commercial space capability: pic.twitter.com/qYjBRd2GPO NASA (@NASA) August 3, 2020 Hurley and Behnken made their first public appearance in Houston, Texas, during a media event after they had met their families. It took years to get here, we brought the capability back to America, and we came home safely to our families, and it took a lot of people a lot of time to make that happen, Behnken said. .@AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug have been lifted out of the water and are aboard the Go Navigator. Welcome home. #LaunchAmerica pic.twitter.com/gjqUcLMy8X NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 We are entering a new era of human spaceflight where NASA is no longer the purchaser, owner and operator of all the hardware. Were going to be a customer, one customer of many, Bridenstine said from Johnson Space Center in Houston. I would love to see a fleet of crew Dragons servicing not just the International Space Station but also commercial space stations. NASA and SpaceX teams will inspect the Crew Dragon Endeavour in SpaceXs Dragon Lair in Florida over the next few weeks. A thorough review will be conducted of all the data and performance of the spacecraft from the test flight. This review will take around six weeks to complete after which SpaceXs crew transportation system will be certified for regular flights carrying astronauts to and from the space station. "Five hours ago we were bobbing around in the Gulf of Mexico."@Astro_Doug reflects on the journey that took him and @AstroBehnken to the @Space_Station and back with the @Commercial_Crew program. #LaunchAmerica pic.twitter.com/E1zzeEunaa NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 According to Space.com, it would be a surprise if the data showed any anomalies since Demo-2 appears to have gone very smoothly, from liftoff to splashdown. Demo-2 was no ordinary mission The Crew Dragon Demo-2 mission to the space station was wrought with uncertainty, since it was the first time SpaceX was launching astronauts after being NASA's chosen commercial cargo-partner for more than a decade. Human spaceflight is incredibly difficult and expensive; the rockets need to be reliable and the capsule the astronauts will travel in, safe for human spaceflights. To date, only three countries Russia, the United States and China have achieved this feat. Secondly, this mission is important because this mission marked the first time in almost ten years that American astronauts were launched into space from American soil. With the Demo=2 mission, SpaceX also became the first private company to launch astronauts to space. With a successful crewed mission in its kitty once again, NASA has its eyes set on refining this capability to launch humans to the moon with its Artemis mission, planned for 2024/5. While this was just a test flight, a lot is riding on this mission for SpaceX most importantly, their commercial crew partnership with NASA. This test flight served as an end-to-end demonstration of SpaceXs ability to send a crew to space and back. This mission will also lay the groundwork for all of SpaceX's plans for future missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. Finally, the mission's success is also a signal that makes space tourism seems technologically possible. SpaceX is already signing up passengers for trips to space at $35 million a seat. Astronauts kept busy while in space While onboard, astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken worked on a number of science experiments separately and together. Hurley conducted the Droplet Formation Study, which evaluates water droplet formation and water flow. He also experimented with the use of different structures and containers to manage fluids and gases in the zero gravity environs of the space station. Behnken conducted four spacewalks with astronaut Chris Cassidy. Among other things, they upgraded two power channels, routed power and ethernet cables at the station, and removed the coverings in preparation for the arrival of the Nanoracks commercial airlock later in 2020. Hurley and Behnken also worked on the Electrolysis Measurement (EM) experiment, which looks at bubbles created using electrolysis and has implications for numerous electrochemical reactions and devices. They also contributed images to the Crew Earth Observations (CEO) study. CEO images help record how our planet is changing over time, from human-caused changes like urban growth and reservoir construction, natural events including hurricanes, floods, volcanic eruptions, etc. What does the future hold? Later this year, NASA and SpaceX will team up again for the first official flight in the Crew Dragon program Crew-1 to carry four astronauts to the ISS, with one female astronaut Shannon Walker, and one international astronaut Soichi Noguchi from Japan. NASA astronaut Michael Hopkins will act as Crew Dragon commander and Victor Glover will be the pilot. The Endeavour capsule will be reused in the second Crew mission that is supposed to take place next year. This mission will also include four astronauts and one of them has a special connection to Demo-2 Behnken his wife Megan McArthur who will also be part of the Commerical Crew Mission. The rest of the crew will include Shane Kimbrough who will act as the spacecraft commander, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide and European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Thomas Pesquet. "Of course, I'll have a lot of tips for her," Behnken said during a news conference while he was at the ISS. "A lot of them will be about how life on space station goes...but I'll definitely have some advice about living inside of Dragon and where best to pack all your personal items so that you can get to them conveniently." (Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp. and ByteDance Ltd., with about six weeks to work out a final deal for the software giant to buy TikToks operations in the U.S., have yet to agree on most terms, including what could be contentious negotiations over price. A Sept. 15 deadline was put in place at the insistence of the White House, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named because the talks between the companies and the Trump administration are private. Microsoft and ByteDance havent agreed on a price, terms, how Microsoft would pay for the unit, or how any technology sharing or transfer of assets of the video-sharing app would work, these people said. After discussions between U.S. President Donald Trump and Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella this weekend, the two companies now believe they have the blessing of the American government to proceed to more formal and specific talks, the people said. U.S. officials havent commented on timing for the decision. Talks began in July and involved Nadella, Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood and President and Chief Legal Officer Brad Smith, the people said. Erich Andersen, TikToks general counsel -- who spent 25 years at Microsoft, including working for Smith before joining TikTok this year -- was also involved in the conversations. At that point, ByteDance was facing an increasing likelihood of a ban on TikTok in the U.S. The Trump administration has threatened that step, and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. has been reviewing ByteDances 2017 purchase of Musical.ly, TikToks progenitor. Proposals by the company intended to assuage U.S. regulators concerns about TikTok had fallen short and the company was running out of time and options, one of the people said. Negotiations may be complicated on one side by ByteDance investors eager for a big payout for the popular app, and on the other by Microsoft viewing itself as a white knight to TikTok as time dwindles to avoid a ban. The Trump administration could also throw a wrench into the process at any point. Story continues Though Microsoft said in a blog post Sunday that it may invite other American investors to participate in the deal, the company doesnt necessarily need additional backers, one of the people familiar said. The main point of the statement was to note that any investors must be located in the U.S., two people said. Microsoft declined to comment beyond its statement. A spokeswoman for TikTok also declined to comment. 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. West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and a few other Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders from the state, who had met Union home minister Amit Shah in the past fortnight, said that they have quarantined themselves at home. Dhankhar tweeted that he underwent a coronavirus disease (Covid-19) test on July 24 that showed him negative. Shah tested Covid-19 positive on Sunday and is undergoing treatment at Medanta hospital in Gurugram. Met Shah on July 20. Went into self-quarantine after returning from Delhi. Tested Covid-19 negative on July 24. In good sound health. All parameters checked daily and in order, the governor tweeted after Shah was found to have contracted SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease. Dhankhar had met Shah on July 20 and discussed with him the worrisome situation in West Bengal. During the meeting, the governor had apprised the home minister about the prevailing law and order, political and Covid-19 situation in the Trinamool Congress-ruled state. I am in quarantine now and staying alone in my Delhi house. Till date, I have not developed any (Covid-19) symptoms, said Debasree Chaudhuri, minister of state (MoS), Women and Child Development (WCD), and a lawmaker, who represents north Bengals Raiganj constituency in Lok Sabha (LS). BJP LS lawmakers Saumitra Khan and Nisith Pramanik had met Shah a few days ago to apprise him about the Covid-19 situation in the state. We had maintained social distancing while meeting the union home minister. I am in home quarantine. I may undergo a Covid-19 test, said Khan. Rajya Sabha member Swapan Dasgupta and Union minister Babul Supriyo have also met Shah in the past fortnight. The Bono Regional Chairman of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) Kwame Baffoe a.k.a. Abronye DC is accusing NDCs Chief Scribe of bussing some aliens to his constituency to partake in the ongoing voters registration exercise. He claims Johnson Asiedu Nketia together with some NDC regional executives masterminded the move to let some unknown persons believed to be supporters of the NDC to register in Banda in the Bono Region. But they were refused entry to the town for the registration by military personnel stationed at Banda. In a viral video, Mr. Asiedu Nketia was seen indignantly exchanging words with the soldiers who had blocked the road to stop busloads of people from accessing registration centres. It is however uncleared where the people were being bused from but Abronye DC told NEAT FMs morning show Ghana Montie that they are non-residence of Banda. He vowed to resist any entry into the community by NDC bused supporters from Cote d'Ivoire to help rig the December polls. They [NDC] signed ECs agreement not to bus anyone from anywhere to register. So why are they doing contrary to that? I will not watch this happen, never! It will be something else if I meet him [Asiedu Nketia] during our usual checks in the community, he told host Kwesi Aboagye. 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 On Demand We have a new story every day on the front page of thephuketnews.com. Also like us on our Facebook page (facebook.com/thephuketnews) and be the first to watch all the new stories. Finally you can watch any segment, any time by going to thephuketnews.com/tv where all the stories are listed for you to enjoy. All our programs can be enjoyed in High Definition when watching on the internet. 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Six leading critics of the government in Lome were targeted by the hack in May 2019 that likely enabled attackers to inject spyware created by NSO Group onto the targets phones, as revealed by an investigation led by The Citizen Lab at University of Toronto. The spyware took advantage of a vulnerability in WhatsApp using the call functionality of the application. Even if the calls were not answered, a piece of spyware called Pegasus was installed onto the targets phone. Four of the Togolese targets have come forward, speaking to The Guardian and Le Monde newspapers, confirming the hack and revealing their identities. Benoit Alowonou, the bishop of Kpalime, in southwest Togo, was one of the targets. He is the president of the Conference of Bishops in Togo, and has previously been critical of President Faure Gnassingbe. Pierre Chanel Affognon, a priest and spokesperson for a civil society group called Hope for Togo, which aims to hold the government to account, was targeted by the spyware. Two opposition politicians were attacked by the hack: Elliott Ohin, a former foreign minister, who left government and previously headed up the opposition Union of Forces for Change party, and Raymond Houndjo, previously a mayoral candidate for Lome and member of the National Alliance for Change party. Coincidental? The timing of the attack coincided with widespread protests against Gnassingbe and the extension of term limits for the president. Gnassingbes family has ruled Togo for decades and Faure took over from his father EyademaGnassingbe in 2005. He faced down widespread protests in 2017 and 2018 calling for an end to his familys rule. The authorities used an internet shutdown to help the government survive the demonstrations. In May 2019, the government voted through a change to the countrys constitution potentially enabling Gnassingbe to remain in office in 2030. Story continues In February 2020, he secured his fourth term in office following elections that the opposition described as fraudulent, claiming victory for themselves. Ive got nothing to hide, Bishop Alowonou told the Le Monde newspaper, talking about the hack. But its seems clear that this type of software is dangerous for our freedom, for our democracy. This clear violation of our citizens freedoms is very serious, said Priest Affognon, speaking to Le Monde. The WhatsApp vulnerability enabling the spyware injection was subsequently fixed by its software engineers, with WhatsApp attributing the attacks to NSO Group, an Israeli spyware developer. The Citizen Lab worked with WhatsApp to investigate the attack and contacted those who had been targeted, looking at the digital threat to civil society. The Guardian newspaper reported that The Citizen Lab was not necessarily pointing the finger at the Togolese government for using NGO Group spyware, although the fact that the targets were all from the opposition was troubling. Rights group Amnesty International have been critical of the Togolese government and their excessive use of force, arbitrary arrests and detentions, torture and other ill-treatment, and impunity for human rights violations. Amnesty said the countrys new cyber criminality law restricts freedom of expression. President Donald Trump said Monday that he had fired the chair of the Tennessee Valley Authority claiming it has betrayed American workers. Trump told reporters at the White House that he was formally removing the authoritys chair of the board and another member of the board and threatened to remove other board members if they keep hiring foreign labor. The TVA is a federally owned corporation created in 1933 to provide flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing and economic development to the Tennessee Valley, a region that was hard hit by the Great Depression. The region covers most of Tennessee and parts of Alabama, Mississippi and Kentucky as well as small sections of Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia. He said the TVA board must immediately hire a new chief executive officer that puts the interests of Americans first. U.S. Tech Workers, a nonprofit that wants to limit visas given to foreign technology workers, took out an ad to persuade Trump to stop the TVA from outsourcing much of its information technology division. The group, led by Kevin Lynn, criticized the TVA for furloughing its own workers and replacing them with contractors using foreign workers with H-1B visas. Migrants: Tunisia won't tolerate traffickers, says president Saied visits ports of Sfax and Mahdia (ANSAmed) - TUNIS, 03 AGO - Tunisian President Kais Saied on Sunday said ''organizers of illegal maritime crossings, human traffickers, commit crimes that the State can't tolerate'', during a visit to the port of Sfax and Mahdia. The highest number of crossings towards Italy's coasts have departed from this region, where the president visited the headquarters of the regional coast guard. In a statement issued by the Tunisian presidency, Saied stressed the importance of the role undertaken by the coast guards in fighting irregular migration and reiterated his pledge to boost efforts to monitor the coast. However, according to the president, it is necessary to shed light on the real reasons behind the phenomenon, stressing the need for boosted cooperation between various countries to find new solutions to the problem of irregular migration, offering would-be migrants conditions that can convince them to remain in their home country. On a strictly operational level, the presidency of the government has recently given to the center of coordination of the coast guard of Mahdia, Sfax and Kerkennah a new aircraft to monitor the coast at night. (ANSAmed). Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) - A senator on Monday has filed a resolution seeking a probe into the national governments response to the pandemic, as the countrys healthcare system is severely challenged and obviously impaired. Senator Richard Gordon has filed Senate Resolution 483 asking the Senate Committee of the Whole to look into the state of the healthcare system amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The health care system of the Philippines has been dangerously stretched to its limit, read the resolution. It added that the Senate should listen to the frontliners "to find out what is wrong" so that government can "implement effective and science-based solutions" for a renewed fight against COVID-19. President Rodrigo Duterte decided to impose revert back Metro Manila and four other nearby provinces to modified enhanced community quarantine status following the call for a "timeout" by an overwhelmed medical community. The country registered more than 100,000 COVID-19 cases over the weekend. Gordon said that there is a need to reasses the current health situation of the country and develop new strategies before the quarantine protocols are eased again. Nagla-lockdown tayo, pero dapat pagbalik nakahanda na tayo gawin lahat in a very cogent way (We implement lockdowns, but we must make sure that we will be able to do things in a cogent way after), in that way so our economy can revive. If our frontliners die, then we cannot revive them and the economy cannot be revived, he said during the Senate plenary session. With the call for an inquiry, Gordon said member agencies of the Inter-Agency Task Force should submit a report on the status of the implementation of the expanded COVID-19 testing and present a master plan and road map to beat the pandemic. He also said doctors should be provided enough benefits, especially during this health crisis. Kapag nawala sila [doctor], guguho ang ating healthcare system. Kaya dapat pakinggan at alagaan natin sila, hindi yung susuhulan natin sila, said Gordon. Dapat bigyan sila ng benepisyo, maayos na gamit, at modernized na hospital. [Translation: If the doctors die, our healthcare system will break down. So we should listen to them and take care of them, and not as if were bribing them. We should give them benefits, new equipment, and modernized hospitals.] Moreover, the senator is hoping the economic stimulus bill or the second version of the Bayanihan Law will be able to increase the capacity of our economy. This is not the time to fix the blame on anyone. We are here to have effective solutions to improve the capacity of our healthcare systems and to protect our healthcare workers and our people, said Gordon. A farming union is urging sheep producers to market their lamb to ensure sustainable returns following months of volatile prices as a result of the pandemic. The Ulster Farmers Union (UFU) said lamb trade continued to stabilise with an increase in demand from processors. Demand had been strong thanks to reduced third country imports of lamb to the UK and the Islamic festival Eid al-Adha boosting prices. But despite those positives, prices were down 6p per kg on last week, the union explained. UFU beef and lamb chairman, Sam Chesney said lamb prices had been volatile this spring as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. But he said market conditions were beginning to improve as there was a 'strong demand', with religious festivals having an impact and helping the export trade to recover. Farmers should weigh their lambs regularly and sell them when they are at their prime," Mr Chesney said, "They must look at all options for increasing revenue." He added: "There is a strong demand for store lambs at present, and we are encouraging our farmers to sell lambs at the correct weight and fat cover in accordance with retailer specifications." Processors were paying up to 21kgs but some in the Republic of Ireland were paying between 21.5-22kgs, which left sheep producers killing locally at a disadvantage, he said. Our farmers have continued to overcome numerous obstacles to ensure that product continues to be moved off farm, reaching shop shelves so consumers can purchase food when needed without worrying about how it was produced or where it came from, Mr Chesney said. This will hasten the development of the COVID-19 vaccine The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has given approval to Serum Institute of India, Pune to conduct Phase II+III clinical trials of Oxford University-Astra Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine (COVISHIELD) in India. This will hasten the development of the COVID-19 vaccine. "We will begin with the trials for the vaccine in India. In addition, we will soon start manufacturing the vaccine in large volumes", said Adar Poonawalla, CEO, Serum Institute of India. Oxford and AstraZeneca are collaborating with clinical partners around the world as part of a global clinical programme to trial the Oxford vaccine. The global programme is made up of a Phase III trial in the US enrolling 30,000 patients, a paediatric study, as well as Phase III trials in low-to-middle income countries including Brazil and South Africa which are already underway. AstraZeneca remain committed to fulfilling their commitment for broad and equitable access to the vaccine, should late-stage clinical trials prove successful. So far, commitments to supply more than 2 billion doses of the vaccine have been agreed with the UK, US, Europes Inclusive Vaccines Alliance (IVA), the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness (CEPI), Gavi the Vaccine Alliance and Serum Institute of India. Belgium has classified several territories and countries as orange, including Luxembourg. Travellers returning from an orange zone are asked to self-quarantine upon their return to Belgium. Besides Luxembourg, several departments in France are also concerned, namely Nord, Pas-de-Calaid, Haut-Rhin and Haute-Savoie. So should a resident from Belgium stay at home for a 14-day period if driving through Luxembourg, or spending time there? The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed that that the answer is "no". If a traveller has spent less than 48 hours in an orange zone then they are not required to go into quarantine in Belgium. Thus, refuelling, shopping or day trips are not an issue. Note, however, that quarantine is still 'recommended' upon return. Editor: Steve Pearces latest comment blaming the Mayor Tim Keller administration for Albuquerques soaring crime rate is pathetic and laughable. Per the FBI, the crime rate in Albuquerque (cabq.gov/police/news/fbi-releases-crime-stats) during the Keller administration has dropped significantly in 2018, but per the statistics by CityRating.com (cityrating.com/crime-statistics/new-mexico/albuquerque.html) the crime rate had increased significantly, some might say soared, from 2012-16. Guess who was in office then? Steve Pearce and Susana Martinez. Does Steve not think people can actually fact-check him? Apparently not! A bit of advice, Steve: Look up what truth means in a dictionary. Just saying something to hopefully discredit the other party doesnt make it true. New Mexicans deserve better, much better than you. William Rehm Rio Rancho resident since 2005 Police in Golmud, Qinghai province, find belongings of the missing student, Huang Yumeng. [Photo/Chinanews.com] Police in Golmud, Qinghai province, said on Saturday that DNA testing has confirmed that bone tissue discovered in the Hoh Xil Nature Reserve belonged to a female college student who had been reported missing since early July. The Golmud public security bureau said police found an ID card, student card and other items belonging to the missing student, Huang Yumeng, in a depopulated area on the south side of the Qingshui River in the reserve. Police also discovered bone tissue at the site and confirmed Huang's death after comparing the tissue's DNA with that of her parents. Homicide was ruled out after preliminary investigation. "Our preliminary judgment is that the missing girl tried to commit suicide when she arrived in Hoh Xil," said Xie Wenlin, chairman of Lantian Emergency Rescue Center in the Haixi Mongolian-Tibetan autonomous prefecture in Qinghai. "Her belongings found at the site, including some of her clothes, had no blood on them. She might have taken sleeping pills to induce a coma. One of the main causes of her death might have been high-altitude hypoxia and the extreme cold weather at night in Hoh Xil." Hoh Xil, which covers 4.5 million hectares of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, has a large depopulated area, fierce wild animals and extreme weather that pose great danger to even experienced adventurers. Qinghai, Jiangsu and Sichuan provinces, as well as Tibet autonomous region, had sent more than 100 police officers to search for Huang, but looking for a single person in the area was like "looking for a needle in a haystack", according to police in Nanjing's Jiangning district in Jiangsu. The case is still under investigation, the Golmud police said. Huang, 24, was a senior at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics in Nanjing. She traveled to Golmud alone after failing to graduate this summer. She arrived in Golmud from Nanjing, about 2,700 kilometers away, on July 5 by train. She then took a taxi on July 7 to Hoh Xil and told the taxi driver that she would stay in a tent that she carried with her to the nature reserve. One of Huang's teachers reported her missing on July 8. Police later discovered that she had visited many tourist attractions in the area before July 13. Her ID card information was recorded at a toll station with no surveillance cameras on a road connecting Golmud to Tibet on that day. There had been no trace of her since then. In an open letter to the public on Saturday, Huang's father said that he and Huang's mother were devastated. "Children are gifts given to us by heaven," he said in the letter. "Cherish them, love them and protect them to stop similar tragedies from happening again." Photo 1 Taat CEO Setti Coscarella holding a Beyond Tobacco Original cigarette pack Taat CEO Setti Coscarella holding a Beyond Tobacco Original cigarette pack After resigning as a lead strategist at Philip Morris International, the worlds largest tobacco company, Setti Coscarella has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of Taat as it approaches the planned launch of Beyond Tobacco cigarettes. At Philip Morris, Coscarella led a commercialization team for its Reduced Risk Products (RRP) portfolio and launched a new business unit as well as several initiatives that transformed how RRPs are marketed in Canada. The Company believes that Coscarellas experience with RRPs is especially relevant to Beyond Tobacco given their substantially similar target markets. Over the course of this summer, Taat has announced many developments relating to Beyond Tobacco including positive results from initial retail market testing, a successful test production run, and agreements with two U.S. distributors. Taat anticipates that Mr. Coscarellas leadership can maximize the early-stage and long-term performance of Beyond Tobacco following its planned launch. LAS VEGAS and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TAAT LIFESTYLE & WELLNESS LTD. (CSE: TAAT) (OTC: TOBAF) (FRANKFURT: 2TP2) (the Company or Taat) is delighted to announce that it has appointed Setti Coscarella, who recently resigned as a lead strategist at Philip Morris International (Philip Morris), to lead Taat as its Chief Executive Officer as the Company prepares for the planned Q4 2020 launch of Beyond Tobacco cigarettes. Holding an MBA from the Schulich School of Business, Mr. Coscarellas professional experience includes analyst and investment banking roles at three of Canadas Big Five financial institutions, as well as positions in private equity and management consulting. Coscarella also co-founded The Gentlemens Expo (TGE), an annual consumer show in Toronto that attracts more than 25,000 attendees each year. During his tenure at Philip Morris, Coscarella led a commercialization team and was a lead strategist for Reduced Risk Products (RRP), an emerging category in the tobacco industry to provide alternatives for smokers to reduce their exposure to contents of traditional nicotine-based products that are known to be harmful. The Company believes that Mr. Coscarella is uniquely suited to the CEO role given his proven track record in finance, management, and entrepreneurship, as well as his familiarity with the tobacco industry from the perspective of its biggest player. Story continues In its June 22, 2020 press release, the Company announced it was planning on launching Beyond Tobacco cigarettes as a better-for-you alternative to tobacco cigarettes that contains no nicotine or tobacco. The intended value proposition of Beyond Tobacco cigarettes is to offer a user experience that closely resembles the experience of smoking a traditional cigarette, which the Company has sought to achieve with a traditional stick format and cigarette-style packaging that it expects to be familiar to smokers. A proprietary blend of tobacco flavouring and an enhanced volume of smoke exhaled are designed to make the experience of smoking a Beyond Tobacco cigarette substantially similar to that of smoking a tobacco cigarette. Each stick of Beyond Tobacco contains at least 50mg of cannabidiol (CBD, a non-psychoactive derivative of hemp), which has been shown to mitigate tobacco withdrawals and reduce dependency upon tobacco. Beyond Tobacco is to be offered in an Original variety as well as a Menthol variety. Mr. Coscarellas professional career began at Scotiabank, where he was a risk management analyst for commercial credit. In subsequent years, Coscarella pivoted to a financial analyst role at CIBC, and then to investment banking at TD Securities where he conducted research and built financial models relating to company valuations for M&A, IPOs, and secondary public offerings. Coscarella then founded the Toronto-based boutique advisory firm Severus where he provided management consulting services to mid-sized companies to assist with growth, structuring, and financing. Building upon his M&A experience, Coscarella was appointed director of corporate development for GL Capital Corp. (GLCC) where he administered the development of its investment portfolio consisting of assets to include real estate, operating companies, and equity in newly-launched startups. Coscarella centralized the back office functions of GLCCs companies to improve overall efficiency of operations. Coscarella also developed innovative commercialization efforts resulting in 30% year-over-year revenue growth. In 2012 Coscarella co-founded TGE, which quickly became regarded as a high-profile mens lifestyle consumer show in Toronto. Prior to the show being acquired by a large expo producer in 2016, Coscarella built a roster of more than 200 vendors and sponsors (including LOreal, Loblaws, Diageo, InBev, and OLG), and grew TGEs attendance from 3,000 in 2012 to 25,000 in 2016. In 2017, Coscarella joined Philip Morris in its Toronto office to lead a commercialization team for its RRP portfolio. In this capacity at Philip Morris, Coscarella rapidly ascended the ranks and began advising the senior executive team on innovative strategies for navigating the route into the Canadian market for the RRP category, which is one of Philip Morris fastest-growing categories globally. His leadership and execution led to the launch of numerous successful initiatives that collectively yielded a fivefold increase in leads and purchases for RRP. Between these initiatives and a new business unit created by Coscarella dedicated to the commercialization of RRP in Canadas challenging regulatory environment, Mr. Coscarella played a significant role in revolutionizing how RRP is marketed in Canada. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/0690a593-2440-4a2e-8b93-a7efb861cc78 The history of the Philip Morris global tobacco conglomerate dates back to 1847, when its founder opened a tobacco shop in London, England. Over time, Philip Morris expanded into numerous markets internationally. As of 2020 it is the worlds largest tobacco company with USD $79.82 billion annual revenue (20181) and the largest or second-largest market share position in several of more than 180 total markets served by Philip Morris. Well-known cigarette brands of Philip Morris include Marlboro (the #1 cigarette brand since 1972), L&M (4th best-selling cigarette outside of U.S. and China), Chesterfield, and its eponymous Philip Morris brand of cigarettes. Alongside competitors Altria, British American Tobacco, Imperial Brands, and Japan Tobacco International, Philip Morris is one of the five tobacco firms that comprise what is known as Big Tobacco. In the Companys June 29, 2020 press release, it detailed the results of its first phase of retail market testing in which test versions of Beyond Tobacco cigarettes were sold in more than 50 retail stores in Nevada and California. The sentiments of users consistently reflected the impression that the experience of smoking a Beyond Tobacco cigarette was comparable to that of a traditional cigarette with no significant experiential differences. During this research phase, more than 75% of participating retailers re-ordered Beyond Tobacco after their initial inventory sold out. The Company later announced that an intensive series of focus groups conducted by Nevadas largest consumer product testing firm will be conducted to obtain further insights prior to the planned launch of Beyond Tobacco. Additionally, in its July 20, 2020 press release the Company unveiled live-action footage of a full-scale test production run of Beyond Tobacco in its cigarette production facility. This test run confirmed initial production capacity estimations of one million sticks per day which, on an annualized basis, equates to 0.168% of the total amount of individual cigarettes sold domestically in 2018 according to data from the Federal Trade Commission2. With very few hurdles preceding the official launch of Beyond Tobacco, the Company believes the induction of Mr. Coscarella as its CEO is a timely development that can potentially maximize the performance of the anticipated product launch. Becoming CEO of Taat is an incredible opportunity for me, said Mr. Coscarella. For a matter of decades, public attitudes towards tobacco have consistently called for a less-risky alternative to traditional cigarettes. This is something that Philip Morris recognized with its attention to the RRP category, as well as its Unsmoke campaign. What appealed to me about Taat is how they have developed Beyond Tobacco to be a cigarette alternative that is designed to emulate a tobacco cigarette, but without any tobacco or nicotine. Other consumer product categories have had their legacy incumbents disrupted by innovations in delivering desirable alternatives for meat, dairy, sugar, and even beer and wine. Consumers seem to be embracing this approach to positive changes in which they keep their habits such as eating meat or drinking milk while quietly cutting out the things they wish to avoid, and I believe this trend can carry over to tobacco as well. Over one billion tobacco users worldwide3 have one thing in common; they are consuming nicotine, a drug that is effectively useless. The molecule in our tobacco-free and nicotine-free cigarettes is delivered in a near-identical format to legacy tobacco products, and I strongly believe that smokers would be eager to make the switch if presented with the option. The early-stage market research results for Beyond Tobacco reflect an extraordinary reception of the product among smokers, and I am very eager to be in the drivers seat of Taat as we approach the planned launch of Beyond Tobacco in Q4 2020. References 1 - http://media.corporate-ir.net/media_files/IROL/14/146476/PMI-FINALFILES/pdf/PMI_2018_CompleteForm10K.pdf (Page 14) 2 - Table 1B (Page 13) of the FTCs Cigarette Report for 2018 indicates that 216.9 billion cigarette units were sold domestically in 2018. Based on a projected production capacity of one million Beyond Tobacco sticks per day (365 million sticks per year), it is concluded that this annualized capacity equates to 0.168% of cigarette units sold domestically in the year 2018. https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/reports/federal-trade-commission-cigarette-report-2018-smokeless-tobacco-report-2018/p114508cigarettereport2018.pdf 3 - https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/tobacco On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Company, TAAT LIFESTYLE & WELLNESS LTD. Joel Dumaresq Joel Dumaresq, CEO and Director For further information, please contact: Jamie Frawley 1-833-TAAT-USA (1-833-822-8872) investor@taatusa.com About Taat Lifestyle & Wellness Ltd. Taat Herb Co., the flagship brand of Taat Lifestyle & Wellness, is an early-stage life sciences company based in Las Vegas, Nevada innovating nicotine-free and tobacco-free alternatives to traditional cigarettes. With a unique proprietary blend of all-natural ingredients and meticulous engineering of the user experience, Taat Beyond Tobacco cigarettes are designed to emulate every aspect of legacy tobacco products with no significant difference to the user. Taat Beyond Tobacco cigarettes provide benefits that include mitigation of tobacco withdrawals, and reduction of tobacco dependency. With an expert-led go-to-market strategy, the Company's objective is to position itself in the US $814 billion (2018)1 global tobacco industry to capitalize on the growing worldwide demand for better-for-you alternatives to traditional cigarettes. For more information, please visit http://taatusa.com . References 1 British American Tobacco - The Global Market Statement Regarding Effects of CBD on Smoking Cessation The Beckley/Exeter research program (University of Exeter) carried out a pilot study that found after several weeks following cannabidiol ("CBD") treatment, CBD helped tobacco smokers to reduce the amount of cigarettes smoked by as much as 40%. A follow-on study is planned, which will include a brain imaging component to examine the brain activity patterns underlying the probable therapeutic effects of CBD. Source: https://beckleyfoundation.org/cbd-for-smoking-cessation/ Link to Study: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S030646031300083X Forward Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Often, but not always, forward-looking information and information can be identified by the use of words such as plans, expects or does not expect, is expected, estimates, intends, anticipates or does not anticipate, or believes, or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, might or will be taken, occur, or be achieved. Forward-looking information in this news release includes statements regarding the potential launch of Taat hemp cigarettes, in addition to the following: Potential outcomes from the appointment of Setti Coscarella as the Companys Chief Executive Officer. The forward-looking information reflects managements current expectations based on information currently available and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause outcomes to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking information. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed timeframes or at all. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include: (i) adverse market conditions; (ii) changes to the growth and size of the tobacco and CBD markets; and (iii) other factors beyond the control of the Company. The Company operates in a rapidly evolving environment. New risk factors emerge from time to time, and it is impossible for the Companys management to predict all risk factors, nor can the Company assess the impact of all factors on Companys business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ from those contained in any forward-looking information. The forward-looking information included in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and the Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. The statements in this news release have not been evaluated by Health Canada or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. As each individual is different, the benefits, if any, of taking the Companys products will vary from person to person. No claims or guarantees can be made as to the effects of the Companys products on an individuals health and well-being. The Companys products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This news release may contain trademarked names of third-party entities (or their respective offerings with trademarked names) typically in reference to (i) relationships had by the Company with such third-party entities as referred to in this release and/or (ii) client/vendor/service provider parties whose relationship with the Company is/are referred to in this release. All rights to such trademarks are reserved by their respective owners or licensees. Statement Regarding Third-Party Investor Relations Firms Disclosures relating to investor relations firms retained by Taat Lifestyle & Wellness Ltd. can be found under the Company's profile on http://sedar.com . Every student in Connecticut should expect at least partial in-person schooling if the state maintains its current low COVID infection rate, according to a new series of metrics announced by Gov. Ned Lamont Monday. Lamont announced the metrics for school districts to use in determining how broadly they can open for in-person learning and if Connecticut caseloads continue trending at the current rate, every district in the state would fall into the lowest risk category. A low risk level fewer than 10 cases per 100,000 people favors more in-person learning for students. Connecticut is trending at 2 cases per 100,000 people over a seven-day rolling average. As long as were less than 10 cases, we figure thats a good reason why you can have your schools open for in-person learning, Lamont said, though he did not mandate that schools reopen. The state will provide county-by-county data on a weekly basis that indicates whether districts are in the low, moderate, or high risk category, based on seven-day rolling averages of cases per 100,000 people, and a secondary metric tracking the percentage of positive tests. That will allow our state Department of Education, local public health and the superintendents of schools in each of your local districts to make the call on the low, moderate, high category, whether its time to move from in-person to hybrid, or hybrid to stay at home, and well be able to give you that update on a very regular real time basis. Lamont was joined Monday by Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nations top infectious disease expert, who said the state is in a good position to reopen schools for in-person learning, but that preparedness to change course is essential. My approach is always, and Ill say it whether Im in Connecticut or in any other place, is that the default position should be to try as best as you possibly can, to try to open up the schools for in-person learning, Fauci said of the states metrics and reopen plan Its important for the children because of the psychological benefit, and in some places even for the nutrition of children who rely on the breakfast and the lunch in school for proper nutrition. No. 2, there are important negative downstream effects that are unintended but can occur of a ripple effect on the parents who have to dramatically modify their own work schedule when you keep children at home. Still, Fauci said the state should keep a close eye on its neighbors and trends across the country. Rhode Island, for example, is trending around 10 cases per 100,000 people, a rate that falls in the moderate-risk category for Connecticut, and would favor more hybrid learning models that incorporate more distance learning for students. There is a big however, Fauci said. And the however is that the primary consideration should always be the safety, the health and the welfare of the children as well as the teachers and the secondary effects for spreading with regard to the parents and other family members. If the infection rate is so low that theres very little chance of there being infection spread, then you should feel OK about doing it and making sure that you do the things that are necessary to prevent spread. But just because the state falls squarely in the low-risk band for reopening schools, that doesnt mean schools must reopen. That decision is still being left to local officials in each district. Along with the key metrics districts must pay attention to, the new directive from the state Department of Education, says there are other factors that play into whether schools should move from in-person to remote learning. Those include the amount of classroom space available for social distancing, whether classes of students can be kept together throughout the school day and how much ventilation there is to keep the air flowing. In late June, Lamont and Commissioner of Education Miguel Cardona announced their desire for Connecticut schools to fully open, five days a week in the fall. They gave school districts until July 24 to develop three reopening scenarios based on the level of COVID-19 cases that could exist in the fall. Even so, many districts leaders said the social distancing guidelines that encourage class sizes to remain small and to stick together throughout the school day are next to impossible to follow without limiting the number of students in the building at one time. Many local school district plans call for blended or approaches that would rotate students through school for in person learning on various days and weeks. The plans also acknowledge that some students - as many as half in districts like Bridgeport may choose to learn fully at home, at least at first. In addition, teachers across the state have come out strongly against a full return to school under current health conditions and without a vaccine. Teachers say schools are underfunded, undersized, understaffed and in many cases, poorly ventilated. Some worry students can be asymptomatic carriers of the virus. Many wonder why reopening plans dont call for testing of the virus or at least temperature checks. Late last month, Lamont and Cardona acknowledged that a full reopening would be unlikely, particularly at the high school level. Many district plans call for no more than 3 feet of space between students in classrooms, and that is with all bookcases and other classroom furniture removed. Fauci said Monday if schools dont have the room to keep students six feet apart they have to rely on face masks and good ventilation systems. Jeff Leake, president of the Connecticut Education Association, the largest teachers union in the state, said he didnt hear Fauci definitively say schools should open or stay closed. As unusual he is a thoughtful and informed individual, Leake said. I respect the guy. He brought up interesting points which will be part of our thinking about how to best open schools in the fall. Safety and following protocols that are uniform across school districts are important, Leake added. Compromising wont do it for teachers. Leake said. American Federation of Teachers-Connecticut are of the same mind. Educators are on the same page with Dr. Fauci on what should be the priority when it comes to reopening safely, said AFT Vice President Shellye Davis. They agree that nothing is more important than the health and the welfare of children, their teachers and school support staff. Davis said her members lack confidence in the guidelines state officials have put forward to make that possible and remain concerned that a full reopening will lead to another spike in cases. Indias home minister, and the second most important and powerful man in the country has contracted the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). Amit Shah tweeted out the information himself, and said that while his health is fine, he is being admitted to a hospital on the recommendation of doctors. He also asked everyone who met him in the past few days to get themselves tested. This writer wishes Shah a rapid recovery, but his infection is significant because it highlights both the prevalence of the disease in the Capital, and the risks involved in what would have been considered normal before the pandemic. First, almost one in four people in Delhi show antibodies to the coronavirus disease, according to a recent survey of all of Delhis 11 districts, indicating that they have been exposed to it in the past (and infected, perhaps without showing any symptoms at all). It also means that these people have immunity against the disease, at least in the short-term perhaps as long as their antibodies last, and maybe longer, according to Swedish research that shows that T-cells, which fight infected cells and have long memories, are there in roughly twice the number of people in whom antibodies are found. The fact that Shah has been infected points to the fact that the disease is all around us and that anyone could get infected at anytime. This is true for Mumbai as well, where another Amit (Amitabh Bachchan) was infected with the Sars-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19 (he was discharged from a hospital on Sunday), and where a limited sero survey (antibody test) in three of the citys 23 wards showed that around 40% of the people in the city have been exposed to the disease. Caveat: this survey is not as representative as the Delhi one. A high prevalence of antibodies in the population may be good from the perspective of building immunity (and achieving herd immunity, the level of infection in a population that makes it difficult for the virus to travel easily from one person to another), but it is still dangerous for the old, infirm, and those with comorbidities. Second, people who continue to go about their work, even if they take adequate precautions, stand a high chance of getting infected. Shah continued to meet people, and, with Delhis infections peaking in June, got involved in the Capitals fight against the disease even visiting the LNJP Hospital, Delhis main facility to treat Covid-19 patients. It isnt clear how Shah got infected contrary to what the health ministry continues to claim, the disease has been in community transmission mode for a few months now, so it is difficult to trace the chain of infection. Shah also attended a cabinet meeting last week the one in which the new National Education Policy was passed which means everyone else who attended that meeting needs to isolate themselves and also go in for a test. India is currently in a phase the government calls Unlock 3.0, referring to more activities being allowed (and the scrapping of a night-time curfew), but Shahs infection indicates that it isnt going to be business-as-usual anytime soon. Participating in social activities, for work or for pleasure, increases the risk of contracting the infection. Wearing masks (all the time one is outside or at work), and practising social distancing and hand hygiene is the only way to prevent being infected. Interestingly, gyms and public transport, including metros, in countries and cities where these are functioning, have so far not been linked to any major clusters of infection the first, according to a Norwegian study and the second, according to a recent article in the New York Times but this writer believes that visiting a gym or taking a metro will come with risks for at least some time. Those of us who can avoid the risk altogether through social isolation, WFH (work from home), video-conferencing should, and those of us who cannot (I suspect Shah belongs to this category), should take adequate precautions and hope the mathematics of chance is in our favour. On March 27, President Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act into law. The CARES Act included a number of measures meant to support Americans whose livelihoods were affected by the pandemic, including a one-time $1,200 stimulus check for many Americans, $600 per week in enhanced unemployment benefits and eviction protections for tenants who lived in housing with federally backed mortgages. The expanded unemployment that was keeping 30 million Americans disproportionately women and minorities afloat expired at the end of July, meaning things will quickly get worse for those who were already in danger of being unable to afford food and housing. The downstream effects are likely to be felt throughout the economy, which already posted its worst decline in history in the second quarter. How did the federal government fail to extend the benefits, despite their popularity in public polling? In May, Democrats in the House passed the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act. It included another round of stimulus checks and an extension of the enhanced unemployment at a rate of $600 per week through January 2021. The act also suspended interest payments on federally backed student loans, provided rental and mortgage assistance, and allowed hazard pay for essential workers. It also provided funding for the U.S. Postal Service, for local and state governments that have seen their tax revenues depleted with the slowed economy, for election planning and security, and for COVID-19 testing and tracing. President Trump immediately dismissed the legislation, and was particularly scornful of the funding for mail-in ballots, which he has denounced (without evidence) as a source of fraud. DOA, Trump said at the time. Dead on arrival. Of course, Nancy Pelosi knows that. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called it an unserious product from an unserious House majority. Im in discussion, we all are, with the administration. If we reach a decision along with the administration to move to another phase, thatll be the time to interact with the Democrats, McConnell told reporters. Were going to insist on doing narrowly targeted legislation if and when we do legislate again. Story continues President Trump at a meeting with U.S. tech workers in the White House on Monday. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo) In the two and a half months following those comments, the discussions between Senate Republicans and the White House havent resulted in a plan, even as the pandemic began to worsen across many areas of the country beginning in late June. Unemployment is extremely important. And we need to make sure, for those who are not able to recover their jobs, unemployment is adequate, McConnell told reporters. That is a different issue from whether we ought to pay people a bonus not to go back to work. And so I think that was a mistake. McConnell is among many Republican senators and conservative commentators who claim that expanded unemployment benefits, in some cases exceeding workers wages, discourage people from returning to their jobs. A study by Yale economists released last month found no evidence to support that idea. We find that the workers who experienced larger increases in UI generosity did not experience larger declines in employment when the benefits expansion went into effect, reads the study. Additionally, we find that workers facing larger expansions in UI benefits have returned to their previous jobs over time at similar rates as others. We find no evidence that more generous benefits disincentivized work either at the onset of the expansion or as firms looked to return to business over time. Unemployment is generally a problem of not enough jobs, not lazy workers. In May, there were roughly four unemployed Americans for every open job. Senate Majority Leader Senator Mitch McConnell. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images) A collateral benefit of expanded insurance is that workers arent forced back into jobs where conditions may be unsafe during the pandemic. McConnell insisted on including a liability shield that would protect employers, schools and hospitals from COVID-19-related claims, but last week the Washington Post reported that the White House was willing to make a deal without those provisions. Thats a question for Mitch McConnell. Thats his priority, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said Friday when asked if the administration would insist on a liability shield. This president is very keenly focused on unemployment insurance, she added, although in May Trump was against extending the unemployment benefits because he thought it was hurting the economic recovery. Last Monday, Senate Republicans proposed their own bill that dropped the weekly benefit to $200, with the intention to transition the amount to 70 percent of the recipients regular wages. The measure also included $1.8 billion for a new FBI building and more than $1 billion to purchase military aircraft. Trump, who has dropped his request for a payroll tax cut after GOP objections, called the bill sort of semi-irrelevant. It has met opposition from members of the GOP caucus who dont want to see any additional money spent. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said last week that Democrats could be flexible on the $600-per-week benefit, but other members of the caucus, including Pelosi, are holding firm on the demand. We have been for the $600, Pelosi said Sunday in an interview with ABC News. They [Republicans] have a $200 proposal, which does not meet the needs of Americas working families. And its a condescension, quite frankly, because theyre saying, really dont need it; theyre just staying home because they make more money at $600. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, following a meeting with White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on a COVID-19 relief bill on Saturday. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP) In negotiations last week, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin offered Democrats a one-week extension of the $600 benefits, but Pelosi rejected the deal, calling it worthless. We had a long discussion, and we just dont think they understand the gravity of the problem, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters after the meeting. The Democrats rejection of the one-week extension gave Republicans an opening to blame the other party for allowing the benefits to expire. The charge is belied by the fact that the House passed its broader extension bill months earlier. I think the Democrats are willing to allow the enhanced unemployment to expire; theyve made that very clear, Meadows said. So Im not very optimistic on anybody whos counting on enhanced unemployment to have any relief anytime soon. Very disappointed in [Schumer] for blocking the temporary extension of the $600 unemployment benefits. The Do Nothing Democrats are more interested in playing politics than in helping our deserving people, Trump tweeted. While negotiations on Capitol Hill continue, the Washington Post reported Monday morning that the White House is considering taking unilateral action, the details of which are unclear. Even if the benefits are extended soon, it may take weeks before most Americans start receiving them. Thumbnail cover photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images _____ Read more from Yahoo News: Provided A virtual Summer Play Lab featuring staged readings of newly commissioned theater pieces will be offered Friday, Aug. 7, through Sunday, Aug. 16, by the Ancram Opera House. Presented by their creators, the works in progress include Heather Christians None: A Practical Breviary, described as a new kind of cosmic gospel inspired by the Catholic divine offices; Mariah Ayscues Mother Hope, which delves into issues of social justice and mental illness in an era of pandemic; and Frank Boyds Live from Lodge #274: Auction Preview, a piece conceived as an Elks Club charity auction that explores the loss, reckoning and general strangeness of the current moment. Benchmarks traded sideways near the day's low in mid-morning trade. Weak domestic economic data and negative global cues weighed on sentiment. A surge in fresh coronavirus cases and intensifying US-China tensions also put pressure on stocks. At 11:27 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tumbled 406.58 points or 1.08% at 37,200.31. The Nifty 50 index was down 105.35 points or 0.95% at 10,968.10. The Nifty took a support at 10,950 level and traded above that level. The index was hovering around its 20 days simple moving average placed at 10,962.70. This level will act as a crucial support in near term. The broader market outperformed the benchmarks. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.45% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index was gained 1.09%. The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1244 shares rose and 1024 shares fell. A total of 152 shares were unchanged. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 958.64 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 442.73 crore in the Indian equity market on 31 July, provisional data showed. COVID-19 Update: Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 18,019,472 with 688,369 deaths. India reported 5,79,357 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 38,135 deaths while 11,86,203 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. July Auto sales: Escorts fell 2.34%. The tractor maker on Saturday (1 August) said it sold 5,322 tractors, registering a growth of 9.5% against 4,860 tractors sold in July 2019. Sequentially, however, tractor sales slumped 51% as against 10,851 units sold in June 2020. Hero MotoCorp fell 0.79%. The company said its month-on-month sales growth saw rapid recovery for the third consecutive month in July 2020 since operations resumed. Hero MotoCorp sold 514,509 units of motorcycles and scooters in July 2020, registering a sequential growth of 14% over 450,744 sold in June 2020. Sales fell 4% in July 2020 compared with 535,810 units sold in July 2019. The two-wheeler manufacturer said sales figures reached more than 95% of wholesale dispatch numbers of the corresponding month in the previous year (July 2019). More than 95% of Hero MotoCorp customer touch-points are currently operational. Maruti Suzuki declined 0.67%. The car major reported total sales of 108,064 units in July 2020, up 88.2% as against 57,428 units sold in June 2020. Annually, the total sales have fallen 1.1% from 109,264 units sold in July 2019. While total domestic sales rose 1.3% to 101,307 units, total exports sales have fallen 27% to 6,757 units in July 2020 over July 2019. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) rose 0.23%. M&M's total tractor sales during July 2020 were at 25,402 units, up by 27% from 19,992 units sold in the same period last year. It reported 36% decline in total automobile sales to 25,678 units in July 2020 from 40,142 units in July 2019. Sequentially, the total auto sales have jumped 32.6% as compared to 19,358 units sold in June 2020. TVS Motor Company gained 1.29%. The two-wheeler manufacturer registered a sales growth of 27% in July 2020 at 252,744 units compared with 198,387 units in June 2020. The total sales are, however, lower by 9.6% compared with 2,79,465 units sold in July 2019. Global Markets: Asian stocks were trading mixed on Monday as US lawmakers struggled to hammer out a new stimulus plan and a global surge of new coronavirus cases showed no sign of abating. A private survey released Monday showed China's manufacturing activity expanded in July. The Caixin/Markit manufacturing Purchasing Manager's Index came in at 52.8 for July as compared to 51.2 for June. Japan's economy shrank an annualised 2.2% in January-March, unchanged after a second revision, data from the Cabinet Office showed on Monday. On a quarter-on-quarter basis GDP shrank 0.6%, unchanged from the second preliminary reading. South Korea's manufacturing activity shrank at a much slower pace in July, signalling that a gradual recovery in demand is gaining momentum on easing lockdowns, although the resurgence in infections remained a risk. The IHS Markit purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 46.9 in July from 43.4 in June, marking the highest reading since January. But that was still below the 50 threshold that separates growth from contraction. On Friday, Fitch Ratings cut the outlook on the United States' triple-A rating to negative from stable, citing eroding credit strength and a ballooning deficit. The credit rating agency also said the future direction of U. S. fiscal policy depends in part on the November election and the resulting makeup of Congress, cautioning there is a risk policy gridlock could continue. Tensions between Washington and Beijing likely continued being watched by investors, with U. S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reportedly saying Sunday that US President Donald Trump is set to announce in the coming days new actions related to Chinese software companies viewed by his administration as a national security threat. On Friday, Trump reportedly said he will act soon to ban Chinese-owned video app TikTok from the US. Microsoft on Sunday confirmed it has held talks to buy TikTok in the US from Chinese tech firm ByteDance. In US, stocks wiped out earlier losses and closed higher on Friday as the biggest tech companies and market leaders soared after posting stellar quarterly results. Inspired by blowout earnings from tech heavyweights Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Google parent Alphabet, stocks rallied at the open, slipped into mostly negative territory during the session, and then recovered in the final hour. Shares of Apple roared 10.5% higher to a new all-time high, after the iPhone maker reported record profit, and announced a 4-for-1 stock split. Amazon, meanwhile, jumped 3.7% after delivering results that soared past forecasts for sales and earnings. Facebook shares rallied 8.2% as the social media giant easily topped expectations for earnings and revenue. Alphabet shares were down 3% after the Google parent met expectations despite a dip in advertising revenue. Consumer sentiment deteriorated amid a resurgence in new coronavirus cases. The final reading of the index of consumer sentiment stood at 72.5 in July, lower than the flash estimate of 73.2 early in the month and down from June's 78.1, the University of Michigan said Friday. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) General Motors Holden has dismissed the "conspiracy theory" that its departure from Australia had been in the works for a long time, telling a Senate inquiry that it has done everything it can to support the car dealers affected by its withdrawal. GM Holden's Australian chairman and managing director Kristian Aquilina told the inquiry on Monday the Holden brand required investments in product, technology and distribution which could not be justified for a market that represented just 1 per cent of its global vehicle sales. General Motors announced it was pulling the Holden brand out of Australia in February this year, leaving its network of 185 car dealership franchisees adrift. Kristian Aquilina, GM Holden Interim Chairman and Managing Director, appearing via videoconference during a Senate hearing on General Motors Holden Operations in Australia. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Mr Aquilina denied strategic board directions had been made over a very long period of time to exit the country after General Motors closed its factories in Australia, Korea, the UK, Thailand and South Africa. The pandemic may have changed peoples plans but its not slowing down the Kylie Jenner promo train, or that of her familys. Shes gearing up to launch a new line of skin care products and this past June, Kylie Cosmetics caused a frenzy when it dropped The Kendall Collection. But now, Jenner has some people on social media riled up over her Vogue cover, and not in a good way. Kylie Jenner | Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images Kylie Jenner is on the cover of Vogue Hong Kong Vogue Hong Kong devoted its August 2020 cover to Kylie Jenner with the tagline The Action Issue. The 22-year-old beauty brand owner is the star of a feature article that explores her experience growing up in a famous household and her entrepreneurial rise. Jenners interview with the publication also touches on todays social climate in America, the Kardashian-Jenner broods brushes with controversy, and how she gives back to the community. Further, her chat with Vogue Hong Kong highlights the ways she copes with fame and action when it comes to charitable causes. The latter is what bugged some fans. vogue babyyy thank you Vogue Hong Kong for this cover. @GregSwalesart pic.twitter.com/a6lH4RrYpU Kylie Jenner (@KylieJenner) August 2, 2020 RELATED: Kendall and Kylie Jenner Under Fire for Refusing to Pay Clothing Line Workers Amid Pandemic Why some fans arent feeling Kylie Jenners Vogue Hong Kong cover Though the August issue officially hits stands on Aug. 3, some social media users are already calling out what they see wrong with the Vogue Hong Kong piece. Particularly, the words Act Now and action arent sitting well with folks who believe Jenner isnt the proper candidate to be associated with social issues. Whats going on? Some fans are praising Jenners look and manicure on the cover, but some people are bringing up accusations that she uses sweatshop labor. Others are just calling her money-hungry and a non-activist. One person tweeted, Vogue Hong Kong has kylie jenner on their new ACTION ISSUE cover.. what a fu*kng joke. it shouldve been real activists in the city, with all the protest and craziness kylie jenner is who you think of? JOKE. Another added nice now can she pay her workers in Bangladesh. A handful of netizens are saying the song in one of Jenners Instagram posts about the Vogue shoot belongs to an artist she didnt credit: Sevdaliza. On Instagram, there are a few threads going, and commenters are writing things such as Ehhhhh not impressed and Funny how its the act now issue, but she hasnt said anything about the exploitation of Bangladeshi workers that produce her clothing and the makeup she sells. Whats behind the Jenner sweatshop allegations? Following a scathing Forbes article in May alleging that Jenner inflated her companys value, a new scandal emerged. Back in June, the Jenner sisters were accused of not paying garment workers in Bangladesh during the pandemic workers who were said produce items for their clothing line. When the story first went viral, Kylie Jenner turned comments off on her social media pages in response to the backlash. She and her representatives later denied the claims, stating that their brand does not do business with the parent company at the center of the controversy. Both Kendall and Kylie then released a formal statement via Instagram. Its not the first time the familys been caught up in unflattering publicity about their companies working conditions. Kylie Cosmetics weathered a storm in 2016 and a few this year. Its why some folks continue to disapprove of the youngest Jenner representing socially conscious issues. The Vogue Hong Kong spread hits stands on Aug. 3. Back-to-school outbreaks The school year is underway in some parts of the United States and were already seeing how fraught reopening classrooms can be: On Saturday, the superintendent of the Elwood Community School Corporation in Central Indiana sent a note thanking students and parents for a great first two days of school! But several staff members then tested positive, and the high school was forced to close its doors. Just hours into the first day of classes at Greenfield Central Junior High School, also in Indiana, the county health department notified the school that a student had tested positive. The student was isolated, and others who had been in proximity were forced to quarantine for two weeks. At a high school in Corinth, Miss., someone also tested positive during the first week back, and exposed students there were asked to stay home for 14 days. These scattered outbreaks are exactly what you would expect given the high levels of viral transmission in many U.S. states, as we reported on Friday. And there are surely many schools that opened without a hitch, at least so far. But over the next few weeks, we will undoubtedly see many more outbreaks and that could push districts teetering on the question of whether to allow in-person teaching right off the edge. In other school coronavirus developments: Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland issued an emergency order counteracting Montgomery Countys health department, which on Friday said that all private schools needed to start the year teaching remotely. Montgomery County is home to some of the nations most prestigious private schools, including St. Andrews Episcopal School, attended by Barron Trump, the presidents youngest child. Show us your coronavirus bills Debbie Krebs went to the hospital in March with lung pain and a cough, and a doctor swabbed her nose for the coronavirus. A week later, the laboratory called with her results: negative. But when the hospital bill arrived, the coronavirus test was missing. Without it, Ms. Krebs didnt qualify for protections Congress had put in place that barred insurers from charging patients for visits meant to diagnose the coronavirus. She was told she owed $1,980. By PTI WASHINGTON: In a huge blow to Indian IT professionals eyeing the US job market, President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order preventing federal agencies from contracting or subcontracting foreign workers -- mainly those on H-1B visa -- from hiring. The move came over a month after the Trump administration in June 23 suspended the H-1B visas along with other types of foreign work visas until the end of 2020 to protect American workers in a crucial election year. The new restrictions took effect from June 24. The H1B visa, most sought-after among Indian IT professionals, is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. The technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China. "Today I am signing an executive order to ensure that the federal government lives by a very simple rule, hire American," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office of the White House before signing the order against hiring H1B visa holders for federal contracts. Trump told reporters that his administration will not tolerate firing of hardworking Americans in the pursuit of cheap foreign labour. "As we speak, we're finalising the H-1B regulation so that no American workers be replaced ever again. H-1B should be used for top highly paid talent to create American jobs, not as inexpensive labour programmes and destroy American job," said the president who was surrounded across the Cabinet Room table with individuals campaigning against job outsourcing. Prominent among them were Sara Blackwell, founder and president of Florida-based Protect US Workers organisation; Jonathan Hicks, a software engineer in the Tennessee Valley Authority; and Kevin Lynn, founder of Pennsylvania-based US Tech Workers. The executive order requires all federal agencies to complete an internal audit and assess whether they are in compliance with the requirement that only US citizens and nationals are appointed to the competitive service. As a result, the Department of Labour will also finalise guidlines to prevent H-1B employers from moving H-1B workers to other employers' job sites to displace Americans workers. Trump's order follows the federally-owned Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) announcement that it will outsource 20 per cent of its technology jobs to companies based in foreign countries. TVA's action could cause more than 200 highly-skilled American tech workers in Tennessee to lose their jobs to low-wage, foreign workers hired on temporary work visas, the president said. Outsourcing hundreds of workers is especially detrimental in the middle of a pandemic, which has already cost millions of Americans their jobs, the White House said in a statement. Given the current climate of rampant intellectual property theft, outsourcing IT jobs that involve sensitive information could pose a national security risk, it said. According to the White House, Trump's actions will help combat employers' misuse of H-1B visas, which were never intended to replace qualified American workers with low-cost foreign labour. One of the participants present during the signing of the order told the president that as many as 70 per cent of the H-1B visa goes to people from India. Trump said he favours a merit-based immigration system that brings in high-skilled people that creates jobs inside the US and not take jobs of Americans. "We are going to be discussing very shortly an immigration bill, which covers this and many other things. It will be a very, very comprehensive bill. It's a word that some people love, and some people hate. But it'd be very comprehensive only in the sense that it covered just about everything. It will be based on merit. It will cover territory that nobody would have thought could have ever been agreed to," Trump said. The bill, he said, will be signed after the convention. "Immigration will be very merit based, but it'll be, it'll be great for the worker. And it'll be great for people coming into our country, but coming into our country legally and loving the country and wanting to help our country as opposed to people coming in. And they don't like our country," Trump said. The British royal family has been plagued by various controversies and scandals in the past few months, thanks to Prince Andrew. Two months before Prince Harry and Meghan Markle dropped their bombshell news of quitting the Firm, the Duke of York announced his resignation from public duties for the "foreseeable future" due to his association with the deceased American financier and convicted sex offender. In his official statement, Prince Andrew mentioned that his friendship with the billionaire New Yorker "has become a major disruption" to the institution and his charities. Despite stepping down from his roles, he is still under the scrutiny of the media due to the ongoing investigation on Epstein. Over the past years, since the scandal first broke in 2005, more revelations and personalities have been involved in the said investigation. Having said that, here are the three biggest revelations in the Prince Andrew-Epstein case. Prince Andrew and Virginia Roberts Giuffre In January 2015, Virginia Roberts Giuffre took legal action and accused Prince Andrew of having sex with her. According to her, when she was 17 years old, she was forced by Epstein to have sex with the Duke of York. As evidence, she provided photographs where she was with the disgraced royal and Epstein's close associate, Ghislaine Maxwell. Virginia mentioned that she first met Prince Andrew between 2001 and 2002 when Maxwell took her to the Tramp nightclub in London. Roberts then recalled the time when they returned to the British socialite's home and she asked Epstein to take a photo of her and the royal together. "Ghislaine tells me [after taking the photo], you're going to have to do for him what you do for Jeffrey. And it hit me-right after that photo was taken.... I was sexually abused by Prince Andrew for the first time," Virginia mentioned. Ghislaine Maxwell's Arrest Last month, the 58-year-old socialite was arrested by the FBI on multiple charges related to the serial sexual abuse of girls and young women concerning the ongoing Prince Andrew-Epstein case. It was reported that more than 20 armed police and agents have taken part in the secret operation, which led to the arrest of Maxwell at her secluded 156-acre property in Bradford, New Hampshire. She is currently in a federal jail in Brooklyn, New York. She is facing up to 35 years in prison if convicted of the cases filed against her. Based on previous revelations on the case, Maxwell allegedly sent the Duke of York secret messages about "furnishing him with young women." Ghislaine Maxwell Accused Prince Andrew of Having "Orgy with Under-Age Girls" Meanwhile, in the latest development in the Prince Andrew-Epstein case, the 60-year-old royal is being accused as the "powerful individual" that Maxwell mentioned to take part in "an orgy with numerous under-aged girls." Moreover, in the same court documents, Virginia claimed on oath that the Duke of York "would know a lot of the truth" about the Epstein case. With that said, she thought that he "may be valuable" with the ongoing investigation. Prince Andrew previously expressed his desire to cooperate with the investigation, but it was opposed by the U.S. federal prosecutors who said that he had refused to contribute and offered "zero cooperation." READ MORE: #FreeBritney Campaign a Conspiracy Theory? Britney Spears' Dad Thinks So! Those days are long gone when there would be cold wars and broken alliances over second lead offers. The concept of main lead, however, still exists but the door of opportunities for second fiddles aka sidekicks has become bigger! With content gaining precedence over big faces, the fate of every movie largely depends on a meaty script and memorable performances. A lot more on stake and every character gets the spotlight and some consequential moments to shine. Many talented actors have managed to make the most of such opportunities and have won us over with their superb performances. Its vital to celebrate such talented actors and their commendable performances that will remain etched in our memories for a really long time. Scroll! 1. Annu Kapoor as Dr Baldev Chaddha - Vicky Donor imdb Playing a doctor who is on a lookout for quality sperm for his barren clients, Annu Kapoor tickled our funny bones and how! Even though Ayushmann Khurrana played the lead, it was Dr Chaddha who made the movie more memorable. His constant sperm references and cheeky one-liners spiced up the film. To portray such a ballsy role also deserves a special mention, dont you think? 2. Sahil Vaid as JP - Dil Bechara hotstar We all know that Dil Bechara is a special film. Sushant Singh Rajput broke our hearts with his heart-wrenching performance in this movie. It struck a chord even more because this was his last film. While this movie was a love story revolving around Kizzie and Manny, it was Mannys friend Jagdish aka JP who bowled us over with his endearing antics and charm. Sahil Vaid previously impressed the audience with his roles in movies like Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania, Badrinath Ki Dulhania and Bank Chor among others. Not only is the mans comic timing impeccable but even his screen presence doesnt go unnoticed. 3. Varun Sharma as Radha/Choocha- Raabta/Fukrey twitter He became a household name after the release of mad-caper films Fukrey and Fukrey returns. Choocha was such a relatable character that most of us thought of him as our own buddy. There was so much innocence and sincerity in his acting that we fell in love with Varun Sharma. He lights up the screen every time no matter how lengthy his role is. Sharma-Pulkit Samrat has to be the most memorable jodi in the history of Indian cinema. Varun Sharma also played second fiddle to Sushant Singh Rajput in Raabta. Even though his role wasnt that long, he wooed us yet again with his coming timing. 4. Aparshakti Khurana as Abbas Sheikh in Luka Chuppi indian express Many times, comparisons have been drawn between Aparshakti and his elder brother Ayushmann Khurrana. However, the younger Khurana has no qualms about it. He is in his own happy space and loves doing the roles that are offered to him. A former RJ, Aparshakti made his debut in the world of films with Dangal. Since then, he has been a vital part of many projects which have not only become super hits but have also fetched him recognition. He played cameraman and best friend to Kartik Aaryan in Luka Chuppi who helps him in executing his live-in plan with his girlfriend. Apars coming timing is top-notch and he adds his own flavour to ever character that he plays onscreen. 5. Siddhant Chaturvedi as MC Sher in Gully Boy filmibeat Talk about conquering the film industry with the very first film! Siddhant Chaturvedi became a phenomenon after Gully Boy hit the silver screens. Playing MC Sher, a rapper and supporter of Ranveer Singh in the film, he was announced as the national crush. His positivity, swagger and finesse struck a chord with the audience and many filmmakers saw immense potential in him. He went on to bag the lead role in Bunty Aur Babli 2, a sequel to the 2005 super hit film Bunty Aur Babli 6. Lisa Haydon as Vijayalakshmi in Queen pinterest Accept it or not, Queen was a game changer movie. A stepping stone for the female-driven movies, Kangana won the day with her bold portrayal of a woman who is on the path of self-discovery after using a major setback to her advantage. In this journey, she meets Vijayalakshmi played by Lisa Haydon who shows her a new perspective towards life. Their bond was so endearing to watch that 7 years on, we still enact their memorable scenes. 7. Soham Majumdar as Dr Shiva in Kabir Singh twitter Yes, the movie garnered equal amounts of love and hate but that cannot cast a shadow over the camaraderie between Kabir Singh and his best friend Shiva. Not only was he a great friend to Kabir, he even took the pain to pull his buddy out of various situations. Kabir, in his haze neglected Shiva many times almost to the point of ill treating him but he stuck with him through thick and thin and with that he made a permanent place in our hearts. 8. Deepak Dobriyal as Pappi in Tanu Weds Manu/Tanu Weds Manu Returns official poster It wont be wrong to call Pappiji the MVP of Tanu Weds Manu franchise! Deepak Dobriyal is a phenomenal actor who has been a part of many big projects including Omkara, Maqbool and Delhi-6 but he got his due recognition with this very film. Playing a confidant, best friend and brother for another mother to Manu, he was the reason behind our fits of laughter. Most of us still use his dialogues in our daily lives. *It is a very good question, but your question hurt me!* 9. Abhishek Banerjee as Janna in Stree open magazine Jana was a laughter riot in this horror-comedy film. Playing one of the two close friends of Vicky aka Rajkummar Rao, he wooed us with his innocence and rib-tickling comedy. Even though he gets possessed by the spirit, Abhishek Banerjee made us cry tears of joy with his goofiness. Banerjee recently garnered a lot of praise for his role in Paatal Lok. 10. Arshad Warsi as Circuit in Munna Bhai MBBS/Lage Raho Munna Bhai twitter Munna Bhai is nothing without his punter Circuit. His partner in crime literally, Circuit turned out to be a turning point of Arshad Warsis career. From critical acclaim to awards, Warsis career got a new lease with this very character. Even though Munna Bhai was the lead, in no way can this movie be remembered without our very own Sarkeshwar. He was an entertaining right hand of Munna who supported him yet held his own fort. His style, dialogue delivery and comic timing was so on point that we can never get bored of re-watching these movie over and over again. 11. Uday Chopra as Ali in Dhoom series yrf My name is Ali sun zara manchali - If you sang this line instead of reading it then you my friend, are a true fan. A comic relief in an otherwise adrenaline pumping heist series, Uday Chopra entertained us with his Romeo-ness and craziness. The way he fell in love with every girl right after glancing her way and then envisioning their future marriage and kids was ridiculous yet hilarious on so many levels. His banter with Abhishek Bachchan made for a fun-watch. 12. Nawazuddin Siddiqui as Chand Nawab in Bajangi Bhaijaan twitter Inspired by real life, Nawazs character in Bajrangi Bhaijaan was heart touching. He played a journalist who goes out of the way to help Salman aka Bajrangi find Munnis parents in Pakistan. His character was both intelligent and innocent. Moving beyond the border and religion rivalry, he chose humanity over everything else. This was also an unusual jodi which worked wonders on the silver screen. Trust Nawaz to make every role his own. 13. Neha Dhupia as Maria in Tumhari Sulu pinterest I have always believed that Neha Dhupia is one of the most underutilized artists in the film industry. Her acting skills and screen power are so mesmerising that she makes an impression with just a scene. Playing Vidya Balan aka Sulus boss in the film, Maria was a supportive woman who did not look down upon her subordinates for being a certain way. She gave Sulu a golden opportunity and cheered for her success like a badass woman! Which ones are your favourites tell us in the comments section below? Australia's second-largest city Melbourne entered its first full day of tougher restrictions to contain the spread of a resurgent coronavirus on Monday, as residents braced for further announcements on business closures. With the state of Victoria already under a state of emergency, Premier Daniel Andrews on Sunday declared a "state of disaster", saying that measures were working but too slowly. "We must go harder. It's the only way we''ll get to the other side of this," he told reporters. On Sunday night, he imposed a nightly curfew for the state capital Melbourne as part of the country's harshest virus restrictions to date. The move was backed by the federal government, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison saying it was "regrettably necessary" to stop the spread of the pandemic. All non-essential businesses in Melbourne were also ordered to close. Retail shops, construction projects and manufacturing around the city would be curtailed, the state premier said on Monday. Under the new restrictions, a curfew from 8pm to 5am will be in place for six weeks, barring the city's nearly 5 million people from leaving their houses except for work or to receive or give care. Few people were out and about in the city centre on Monday morning, and traffic volumes thinned to half of what were already light flows, with police being given powers to ensure people are complying with public-health directions. Supermarkets will remain open along with restaurant takeaway and delivery services, but some businesses that previously had not been forced to close will be asked to shut down. Schools will move to remote learning from Wednesday. "This is devastating ... nobody wanted it to get to this," Treasurer Josh Frydenberg told 9News television. "There is only one way out and that is to stem the tide of new cases. This is a big kick in the guts to thousands of small businesses right across the state," he added. Story continues New Zealand travel corridor delayed The state of Victoria makes up about a quarter of the national economy. It was due to report another 429 cases on Monday, down from 671 infections on Sunday, local media said ahead of the release of official figures. While Australia has fared far better than many other countries in keeping the coronavirus from spreading, high numbers of community transmissions and cases of unknown origin have forced the new restrictions. In all, Australia has recorded more than 17,923 cases and 208 deaths. The Victoria outbreak has scuppered Australia's hopes for a quick economic rebound from the country's first recession in nearly three decades. The surge in new cases will also see an Australia-New Zealand travel bubble delayed indefinitely, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday. "Part of our criteria is anywhere we have quarantine-free travel, they have to be free of community transmission for a period of time 28 days," Ardern told New Zealand TV network Three. "That is going to take a long time for Australia ... so that will be on the back burner for some time," she added. Both countries had previously said international travel between the two could restart as soon as September. (FRANCE 24 with REUTERS) When Hillary Scholten decided to leave her job as a civil rights attorney to run for Congress, there was no question what her party affiliation would be. She had been a policy adviser in Barack Obamas Department of Justice, quit in protest of President Donald Trumps immigration policies and has long been a registered Democrat. After moving back to her home state of Michigan, she called up a local party strategist to discuss running. The two met for coffee and the strategist seemed impressed. Scholten had started her career fighting against housing discrimination on behalf of people living with HIV/AIDS, many of whom identified as LGBTQ. Later, she worked as an immigrant rights attorney at a local legal aid center. Her credentials on the progressive wing of the party were deep. The conversation took a turn, however, when Scholten started talking about her faith. Shes an evangelical Christian, and it was clear the strategist saw her overt Christianity as off-brand for a Democrat. Well just bury that, Scholten recalls him saying. She decided to run anyway, putting her in a small but apparently growing group: evangelical Christians running for office as Democrats. Democratic candidate for Michigan's 3rd congressional district Hillary Scholten calls supporters at her Grand Rapids, Mich. campaign office on Tuesday, July 16, 2019. While the religious affiliations of candidates arent tracked as closely as those of voters, Robb Ryerse, political director at Vote Common Good, a left-leaning organization trying to mobilize faith voters against the reelection of Donald Trump, estimated that there are roughly a dozen evangelicals running for political office as Democrats in 2020. In 2018, he estimated there were two or three. Christina Forrester, founder and executive director of Christian Democrats for America, said her organization has gotten around 100 calls from candidates wanting to run for offices up and down the ballot as openly Christian Democrats in the two years since the 2018 midterms. Between 2006 and 2018, she guesses she got less than 30. It has been a huge, huge spike, she said. Story continues If they succeed in winning over some fellow Christians, evangelicals like Scholten could help chip away at the Republican Partys hold on white religious voters, particularly in swing states like Michigan. Even a tiny shift in that vote could have huge consequences. In 2016, 81 percent of the states roughly 1.3 million evangelical Christians voted for Trump, who won there by less than 11,000 votes. But as they enter the fray, they face a challenge: getting their own party to pull the lever for someone running as a Christian. The fundamental fear that some Democrats have is, Are you trying to take the party back for Jesus?, said Ryerse. In Scholtens district, the stakes are high: A year ago, she jumped into the race for the open seat in the states 3rd Congressional District, which is currently held by Republican-turned-independent Justin Amash, who isnt seeking reelection. Long a conservative stronghold, Michigans 3rd district has become increasingly competitive in recent years, and Democrats see it as a potential flip in 2020. According to the campaigns polling, Scholten is in a dead heat with her likeliest Republican opponents, who face off in a primary Tuesday. In her case, she ignored the advice to bury her faith. Scholten is part of the Christian Reformed Church, a progressive evangelical denomination, and grew up, as she puts it, attending church "twice on Sundays and once on Wednesday. Though she believes in the separation of church and state, her religious background drives much of her civic activism. It was a big part of who I am and it continues to be to this day, Scholten says. But she also isnt running specifically as an evangelical: She thinks that word has become too politically loaded. She identifies, in public, simply as Christian. This new crop of candidates represents a brand of evangelicalism that looks less like the one espoused by leaders like Jerry Fallwell and Paula White, and more like that of former president Jimmy Carter, whose Christianity pointed him toward a more liberal strain of politics. He saw his faith as really about serving the poor, said Marie Griffith, director of center for religion and politics at Washington University in St. Louis. But in American politics, the white evangelical movement has been solidly associated with the Republican Party since at least the 1970s, when religious groups like Fallwells Moral Majority and Concerned Women for America entered the political fray, in part to oppose school desegregation and second wave feminism (and with it, sex education and the constitutional right to abortion). Ronald Reagan, a divorced former actor, seized on that agenda to siphon religious votes from Carter, a former Sunday school teacher whose personal faith ran deep. In 1980, Reagan proclaimed in a speech that religious America is awakening perhaps just in time for our countrys sake. White evangelical voters abandoned Carter in droves for the GOP, and that alliance has only solidified over time. (Black evangelicals, who have a long history of political engagement going back to the civil rights era, did not follow the same path; they overwhelmingly identify as Democrats, though dont always align with the party on social issues.) Three quarters of white evangelicals supported Donald Trump in 2016 and their support for him remains high. But his approval among this group has dipped in recent months. Its not clear that this will translate into more votes for Democratsdefectors could stay home or vote third partybut there are at least some signs of change. Forrester of Christian Democrats of America said that her organizations Facebook group has had a lot of evangelical converts join since the election. In the 2016 presidential election, 16 percent of white evangelicals voted for Hillary Clinton; in a recent survey, 17 percent said they would vote for Biden. That could bode well for the small but growing number of religious candidates embracing the more liberal evangelical tradition embodied by Carter. In Georgia, the Rev. Raphael Warnock, a pastor at the evangelical church where Martin Luther King Jr. once preached, is running for U.S. Senate as a Democrat. In Missouri, Christian pastor Cori Bush is running for Congress. In Colorado, evangelical immigrant rights activist Michelle Warren, having fallen just short of making the ballot in her U.S. Senate bid this year, is already planning another run. Often, these candidates have views that largely align with core progressive positions like a womans right to choose, marriage equality, action on climate change, immigrant rights and an expansion of the social safety net. Some have won high profile endorsements. Warnock was endorsed by Stacey Abrams and led the Democratic field in fundraising; Bush was endorsed by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez; and Scholten has the endorsement of Senator Elizabeth Warren and the progressive organization Emilys List. But the backing of Democratic heavyweights doesnt guarantee support from progressive voters, many of whom view religion with skepticism. In a 2019 poll, 44 percent of Democrats said churches and religious organizations "do more harm than good in American society." A large majority of Democrats said "liberals who are not religious" have too little or just the right amount of control over the party. Only 15 percent said they had too much. Last year, the Democratic Party passed a resolution explicitly embracing atheists after lobbying from secular groups. Some progressive voters interviewed for this story worry that overtly religious candidates, even Democrats, will inevitably blur the line, established by the First Amendment, between church and state. It needs to be utterly and completely separate, says Andrea Geralds, a pro-choice, hardcore constitutionalist from Michigan who does not live in Scholtens district. There is no middle ground for me. Even when candidates of faith say they unequivocally support the First Amendment, Geralds remains unconvinced. As far as I'm concerned, they're probably lying, she says. She is less distrustful when it comes to other faiths. When people say, Well, are you saying that about X religion? No, I'm saying it about evangelicals, because evangelicals are actively trying to harm people in my country. She says that if given the choice between a progressive evangelical candidate and a Republican, she would stay home. Wil Schweitzer, an independent in Georgia who believes abortion is a private matter and people who are LGBTQ deserve equal rights, is similarly skeptical about Warnocks senate run. When I see Reverend beside a name that is asking to be elected into a position of power, red flags go up, he says. He said he will not vote for Warnock in the states special general election this November. Like Scholten, some religious candidates have moved away from calling themselves evangelical because the label, as popularly understood, no longer aligns with their values. Pastor Bryan Berghoef, who is running in Michigan in the district next to Schoeltens, once considered himself evangelical but stopped identifying personally with the term a decade or so ago. He isnt surprised that some voters are uncomfortable. They've only seen the conservative, ugly side of it, he says. Berghoef is running in a red district that is more tolerant ofand arguably demandspolicy positions that could easily sink a candidate in states like California or New York. He is pro-choice, but believes that reducing the number of abortions, through progressive policies like expanding access to health care and providing a living wage, is an important goal (a once mainstream position that Bill Clinton described as abortion being safe, legal, and rare). Berghoef is popular among local Democrats, in part for his long record of advocating LGBTQ rights and racial justice. In November, he will face off against Republican Bill Huizenga, who is currently under investigation for ethics violations. Politically, religious candidates must walk a fine line between being true to their religious convictions, which can sometimes give rise to more centrist positions, particularly on social issues, and alienating a progressive base that has swung decidedly leftward. In 2018, Tabitha Isner, an ordained pastor and a Democrat, ran in a deep red district in Alabama. Isner is a member of the Christian Church (Disciplies of Christ), a progressive church that welcomes LGBTQ parishioners and clergy. But when Isner, who supports gay rights, was asked at a campaign event about a bakers right to refuse service to gay customers, she admitted that she wrestled with the question. I said, Well, this is hard, she recalls. I struggle with that as a person of faith, not because I would ever discriminate against gay people but because I understand the value of religious freedom. She was skewered for it in progressive circles. I lost five gay friends who just thought it was outrageous that I would try to empathize, Isner says. We have a real chip on our shoulder as a party about Christians. Of course, with a second Trump term on the line, the possibility of cutting into the presidents evangelical base could prove too hard to resist, even for Democratic voters skeptical of religion. Lori Goldman, founder of Fems for Dems, a political action committee in Michigan that seeks to elect progressives, said her organization would support any candidate whose policies align with progressive values, though she acknowledges deeply religious candidates give her pause. I get a bad taste in my mouth, she says. People have done the most egregious things in the name of religion since the beginning of time. For her part, Scholten talks about her faith openly on the campaign trail. I think that voters have a right to know the person who is representing them, she says. The local leader who expressed skepticism at first eventually came around, too. He said, You're a Christian mom who is a civil rights attorney and wants to run as a Democrat in western Michigan, Scholten recalls. This is either going to be the flip of the century, or we're going to go down in flames. Without a state Civil Rights Act, people who believe they were wronged by a state or local government official are limited to either filing in state court under the state Tort Claims Act or a civil rights claim in federal court. There are a lot of considerations in deciding which court to file a case involving police, local civil rights attorney Phillip Davis said. Do you want to bring a lawsuit against a Raton police officer in Raton? Would a jury worry about an award for damages increasing their taxes? On the other hand, state jury pools are chosen from everyone holding a drivers license, while federal jury pools are chosen from registered voters. Federal jury pools may be older and more conservative, Davis said. Unlike the federal Civil Rights Act, the state Tort Claims Act caps damages to $400,000 and medical damages in the same incident to $350,000. There are no punitive damages allowed under the act. In federal court, there are punitive damages allowed and there is no cap to damages a jury can award. In state court the attorneys fees come out of the jury award to the person bringing the lawsuit, usually one third of the jury award or settlement. In federal court awards of reasonable attorney fees are decided by the judge hearing the case and are not dependent on amount awarded by the jury. In a wrongful death case, for example, New Mexico law also recognizes comparative fault or shared negligence, so a jury can decide the person bringing the lawsuit was partially responsible for the wrongful actions of the public employee. The jury can reduce the award to the person bringing the lawsuit based on how responsible the plaintiff was in the incident that led to the lawsuit. Thats not the case in a federal civil rights lawsuit. Its complicated, but some attorneys like Shannon Kennedy and her firm take a hybrid approach by initially filing a lawsuit under the state Tort Claims Act to avoid a qualified immunity defense at an early stage in the case. That approach has led to large verdicts and settlements in police shooting cases, like the 2010 shooting death of Iraq war veteran Kenneth Ellis for almost $8 million and the 2014 shooting of homeless mentally ill camper James Boyd for $5 million. The legal process of gathering evidence like sworn testimony, getting police lapel camera video and police reports comes to a halt in federal court when the defendants file a motion to dismiss the lawsuit because of qualified immunity. That can tie up the case for years. After gathering evidence under the state Tort Claims Act, Kennedy can then amend the lawsuit to include individual claims against the police officers involved to include civil rights claims under federal law in state court. The federal claims effectively remove the monetary caps set by the Tort Claims Act. At that point, the defendants can remove the lawsuit to federal court or allow it to continue in state court. In either court the attorneys for the police officers can raise a qualified immunity defense. In some cases, like the shooting death of Elisha Lucero, 28, last year by Bernalillo County Sheriffs deputies, government attorneys and insurance companies settle the civil lawsuits without ever reaching the point where qualified immunity comes into play. Lucero had been exhibiting symptoms of psychosis since she had surgery to remove a brain tumor in 2018, according to the lawsuit filed by Kennedys firm. The family called the sheriffs office and when deputies responded to the call, they shot Lucero 21 times. She died at the scene. Sheriff Manny Gonzales said Lucero was charging deputies with a kitchen knife. The department does not use lapel cameras. Kennedy filed a wrongful death lawsuit in state court on behalf of Luceros family. In March, Bernalillo County settled the case less than two months after it was filed in state court for $4 million. Gonzales said he vehemently disagreed with the settlement. My last question to you all Tulsa, is can we have something? Can we have something? Youve taken everything, can we have something? Youve even taken my child. District 1 City Councilor Vanessa Hall-Harper said Monday morning she was saddened the gathering was necessary to protect the mural. She said efforts to remove the mural more than a month after it was painted are rooted in racism, not a legal question. This is just another way in which racism rears its ugly head, Hall-Harper said. And the sad part about it is we are using local ordinances and policies in order to do it. That is what systemic racism means. There is nothing wrong with this mural. It is art. It is a message. It is speaking to the lives and experiences of black people in this country. The Nigeria Governors Forum, NGF, on Monday expressed solidarity with Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State and the people of the state over Wednesdays attack by suspected Boko Haram insurgents in Baga. The governors expressed their solidarity in a letter issued by the Chairman of the forum and Governor Kayode Fayemi in Abuja. Mr Fayemi, while condemning the attack, expressed the forums solidarity to the governor to tackle the menace of insecurity. This is one unwarranted attack too many. It epitomizes our collective vulnerability and the fragility of the countrys security architecture. Although you emerged from this incident unscathed, we note with regret the injuries sustained by two members of the Civilian Joint Task Force and a Police Officer attached to your convoy and do accordingly pray for their quick recovery. Mr Governor, Forum members are resolutely behind you in your effort to rid Borno State of these dastardly and wicked agents of evil. READ ALSO: Mr Fayemi said the governors were appalled by the worsening security situation in the country generally, in spite of all the efforts of the government to end it. On our part, the NEC Sub-Committee on Security will be meeting tomorrow and rising from the resolutions thereof soon dialogue with Mr. President and the nations Security Chiefs to discuss this worrisome and rapidly degenerating situation. On a final note, Mr Governor, we thank God for always being merciful. (NAN) Deutsche Bank has launched an internal investigation into a transaction between one of its bankers and a company part-owned by Donald Trumps son-in-law, Jared Kushner. According to The New York Times, the investigation centres around a $1.5m-apartment on Park Avenue bought by Trump family banker Rosemary Vrablic and two other Deutsche Bank staff members. They bought the property from a company named Bergel 715, which a person familiar with Mr Kushners finances told the Times was part-owned by Mr Kushner at the time of the transaction. If this account of the transaction proves accurate, it could mean that Ms Vrablic had violated a standard policy of not doing business with clients. A spokesman for Mr Kushners business, Kushner Companies, told the Times that his boss has no involvement with the sales of the apartments and that he is not the managing partner of Bergel 715. The relationship between Deutsche Bank and the Trump family is close and complex. The bank has provided services to the family for many years despite Mr Trumps long history of bankruptcy and defaults, and has kept him on as a client even after repeated allegations of improper conduct involving both parties. The Trump familys financial conduct has previously raised alarm at Deutsche Bank. Last year, it came to light that the banks money laundering team had flagged several suspicious transactions that set off automatic systems designed to detect illegal activity. The team allegedly recommended that the transactions be flagged with the US treasury, only to be rebuffed by senior executives. At the time, Mr Trump attacked the reports as simply the work of a venal mainstream media, which he said has never been as corrupt and deranged as it is today. He also maintained that he doesnt need banks. Kushner Companies, meanwhile, called the reports completely made up and totally false. And even before Mr Trump became president, his relationship with Deutsche Bank fell under scrutiny thanks to his massive debts to the bank, which at the time was being fined by US regulators over its provision of toxic mortgages that played a role in the 2008 housing crash. There were concerns at the time that if elected, Mr Trump could intervene in the Deutsche Bank case with a view to protecting his own companies. The familys relationship with the bank later became a subject to the Mueller investigation. The special counsel specifically focused on a $285m loan that Deutsche Bank granted Mr Kushners company only a month before Mr Trump was elected and just as the bank was settling with state prosecutors over charges it had aided in a Russian money-laundering scheme. Today, the bank is fighting off subpoenas for various of Mr Trumps financial records, in particular his tax returns. The president sued to prevent his records from being turned over, but the Supreme Court ultimately ruled 7-2 that presidents are not immune from criminal investigation. More people test positive for coronavirus, Turkish media claims Egyptian troops in Syria, further regime strikes in Idleb and Israel pulls back from attacks. Catch up on everything that happened over the weekend. 1. Four new coronavirus cases have been recorded in rebel-held northwestern Syria, a local health laboratory said Sunday, pushing the number of infected cases to 35, according to Zaman al-Wasl. The Epidemiological Surveillance Laboratory said four of the 34 people who conducted Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests for COVID-19 returned positive results. Of the positive cases recorded on Saturday, one was in the al-Bab region, and three in the border town of al-Rai, north-east Aleppo. 2. The Turkish media reported this week that dozens of Egyptian military personnel arrived in Syria, despite no official statement from either Cairo or Damascus about such a deployment. According to Al-Masdar, the reports about the Egyptian military deploying to Syria are fabricated, pointing out that there would be no need for them to be in Syria at this time The news about the Egyptian military sending dozens of soldiers to Syria first surfaced in Turkish media, with newspapers close to the regime of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spreading the claims earlier this week. 3. The Syrian army continued to launch heavy strikes on the jihadist rebel positions in northwestern Syria this week, with their troops repeatedly striking the militant defenses in Idleb, Hama, and Lattakia, Al-Masdar reported. The Syrian army launched several strikes on the jihadist defenses near the key town of Kabani, which has long been under the control of the Turkistan Islamic Party and their allied militants. Following the attack on Kabani, the Syrian Arab Army launched several artillery shells and missiles towards the jihadist defenses in the al-Ghaab Plain of Hama and Jabal al-Zawiya region of southern Idleb. 4. On Saturday, the Israeli government sent a new message to Hezbollah in Lebanon via the United Nations, the Palestine-based Al-Hadath publication reported. Al-Hadath quoted Israeli sources as saying that, the occupation government has sent a message to Lebanese Hezbollah, through the United Nations, in which it said that it will refrain from targeting Hezbollah elements in Syria once and for all. The Al-Hadath sources said, Any attack by Hezbollah against Israeli targets will be matched by a strong and focused response against six sensitive targets belonging to the party. A slew of Vietnamese startups managed to secure millions of US dollars even in the midst of the rapidly escalating COVID-19 pandemic. Experts shared about the foreign investment in Vietnam's startup ecosystem at the Grab Ventures Ignite Bootcamp According to data compiled by Singapore-based DealStreetAsia, Vietnam witnessed a significant pickup in fundraising activities by way of deal count and value in the second quarter of 2020. Specifically, Tiki wrapped up a $130 million investment from private equity fund Northstar Group, making the e-commerce operator one of the top five funded startups in Southeast Asia in the period. Similarly, e-commerce solution company OnPoint has raised $8 million from South Korean, Japanese, and Vietnamese investors in its Series A funding. Meanwhile, Sapo, a multichannel management and sales platform, successfully raised funds from Smilegate Investment (South Korea) and Teko Ventures (Vietnam) to officially launch its additional port with the Tiki e-commerce platform. Vietnamese online recruitment company Transcendental Human Resources JSC received $34 million from Affirma Capital to expand its market share and build up its value-added services. Elsewhere, Vietnamese cinema chain Beta Media also received $8 million from Japanese private equity firm Daiwa PI Partners to accelerate its franchise business model. Commenting on this trend, Grab Vietnam managing director Nguyen Thai Hai Van said that the country is now a prospective investment hub for foreign investors, with the highest internet and smartphone penetration across the region. The talent pool in Vietnam is also young and resilient, increasingly educated with a growth mentality, and is more ready to adopt new tech and innovation. In terms of public policy, Vietnam has largely returned to normal and is making every effort to get the economy back on track during COVID-19, which has been a positive sign to the startup ecosystem. Thus, investors looking for a market in the region to invest in startups can still be attracted to Vietnam, Van said. She added that the pandemic has put unprecedented pressure on many startups, however, startups can win if they embrace changes. As an example, Grab recently kicked off Grab Ventures Ignite, an accelerator programme for early-stage startups in Vietnam with a focus on helping domestic startups thrive in the new normal. Tran Hai Linh, CEO of e-commerce platform Sendo, said much investment was drawn to nations in Southeast Asia several years ago, with Indonesia a big winner due to its well-generated economy and young population. Now, with an eager-to-learn generation, a fast-growing economy, and effective reactions from the government to the health crisis, the Vietnamese market can become the next attractive destination for investment in the next few years. Linh noted that most Vietnamese startups are raising funds between $1-10 million, with local incubators and Series A funds remaining quite active in the country despite the global issues. However, due to disruptions due to coronavirus, Vietnamese startups will need to wait from six months to a year to receive larger funds from overseas investors. To grab the opportunity, startups should step up and try new things. The key ability for them to win is to create a unique point. No success can be achieved by copying. Startups in Vietnam can exploit new fields which nobody has done before to be the next disruption to succeed, Linh added. There continues to be immense long-term potential for Vietnam tech, both for companies serving the domestic market as well as beyond. The US-headquartered venture capital firm and incubator 500 Startups invested in 19 new companies in 2019. It aims to reach the target of 80 companies invested cumulatively by early 2021. Eddie Thai, partner at 500 Startups, told VIR that the increase in investment activity was the natural result of Vietnams maturing ecosystem. For any digital economy, the first wave of successful companies would be in media, e-commerce, and payments. So its only natural that such companies would have reached sufficient scale to receive tens or hundreds of millions of dollars of investment, he said. Indeed, a substantial portion of the money invested last year went to e-commerce players Tiki and Sendo and payments players Momo and VNPay. However, Thai pointed out a couple of short-term risks for Vietnamese startups. First, obviously, there is economic risk due to COVID-19. Although Vietnam is doing a pretty good job of keeping people safe so far, it will still suffer major economic effects in the form of less trade, less tourism, less domestic consumption, and more, he said. Many tech startups will be affected by this as well. In addition, there is also a more direct impact of the virus: international investors have been cancelling or delaying trips to Vietnam. This means financing will be lower in the near term. VIR Truc Van Supporting start-ups to adapt to new normal Le Toan Thang, deputy director of the National Start-up Support Centre, talks on assisting Vietnamese start-ups in the post-COVID-19 recovery phase. IRGC Contradicts Iran's Intelligence Ministry On Arrest Of 'US-Based Terror Ringleader' Radio Farda August 02, 2020 Remarks made by Iranian Intelligence Minister Mahmoud Alavi and a report by IRGC-linked newspaper in Tehran have cast more doubt on the Ministry's claim about arresting the leader of "a US-based terrorist group." Alavi said on the Iranian state TV Saturday night that Jamshid Sharmahd was arrested in Iran. The remark was made after Persian-speaking media outside Iran accused the ministry of abducting Sharmahd in a neighboring country. The media referred to Iran 's track record of luring opposition figures to places such as Turkey, Iraq and the United Arab Emirates and abducting them before taking them to Iran. They referred to the abduction of Amad News Editor Rouhallah Zam as the latest example. He has been sentenced to death. Sharmahd is said to be the leader of a monarchist group called Tondar (Thunder). Meanwhile, Alavi told the Iranian state television that Sharmahd was supported by U.S. and Israeli intelligence agencies. However, he did not offer any proof for his claim. Alavi said that Sharmahd worked on the "6th floor of the FBI" building and Iran was aware of that! In a development that highlighted the rivalry between the Rouhani administration's Intelligence Ministry and the revolutionary guards' IRGC Intelligence Organization, IRGC-linked newspaper Javan in Tehran reported Sunday morning August 2 that Sharmahd was arrested in Tajikistan and was subsequently handed over to Iran. On Saturday August 1, Iranian official news agency IRNA quoted Iran's Intelligence Ministry as saying that it had arrested "the ringleader of a terrorist group known as Tondar which is based in the United States, and that Iran has dealt a "heavy and severe blow" to a terrorist group based in the U.S. Source: https://en.radiofarda.com/a/irgc-contradicts- iran-s-intelligence-ministry-on-arrest-of-us -based-terror-ringleader-/30762500.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 Oslo, 3 August 2020 Thin Film Electronics ASA ("Thinfilm" or the "Company"), a developer of ultrathin, flexible, and safe energy storage solutions for wearable devices and connected sensors, today announced multiple achievements in support of its strategy to manufacture premium microbattery products based on solid-state lithium battery ("SSLB") technology. Thinfilm can now confirm the successful completion of the accelerated consolidation of remaining SSLB process equipment in Thinfilm's San Jose, California facility, in line with the Company's plans announced 10 July 2020. The consolidated production environment enables Thinfilm control of the entire production process and eliminates the transfer of work-in-progress material between facilities. This streamlined approach gives Thinfilm complete control over the material processing environment to increase manufacturing consistency as well as operational flexibility. By reducing cycle times by 50% or more and increasing tool utilization, Thinfilm's consolidated manufacturing environment enables continued rapid development of SSLB technology and products. The Company expects these improvements to further reduce risks to manufacturing operations posed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, the Company has successfully completed and passed its recent quality system audit, thereby renewing Thinfilm's ISO 9001:2015 certification with an updated scope including the development, manufacturing, and sales of solid-state lithium batteries. Thinfilm's ISO 9001 certification, originally awarded in 2015, demonstrates the Company's commitment to quality in all aspects of its operations and enables the Company to satisfy customer requirements for a rigorous, audited quality management system. Thinfilm is now actively developing customer-ready samples to enable validation of key performance characteristics of the Company's SSLB technology in diverse applications, including wearable devices and connected sensors. These samples will also allow the Company and its ecosystem partners to evaluate Thinfilm SSLB performance together with partner technologies to jointly enable innovative rechargeable systems. Story continues Thinfilm is Energizing Innovation with ultrathin, flexible, and safe energy storage solutions for wearable devices, connected sensors, and beyond. Thinfilm's innovative solid-state lithium battery (SSLB) technology is uniquely positioned to enable the production of powerful, lightweight, and cost-effective rechargeable batteries for diverse applications. The company's state-of-the-art flexible electronics manufacturing facility, located in the heart of Silicon Valley, combines patented process technology and materials innovation with the scale of roll-to-roll production methods to bring the advantages of SSLB technology to established and expanding markets. Thin Film Electronics ASA is a publicly listed company in Norway with corporate headquarters in Oslo and global headquarters in San Jose, California. Contact: Kevin Barber - Chief Executive Officer E-mail: kevin.barber@thinfilmsystems.com This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act. A Huntsville city councilman can see how the struggle over the Confederate monument on the courthouse square will end. Its just a matter of when that ending takes place. This is something, in my opinion, that is inevitable, councilman Will Culver said Monday. It is going to happen. Its just a matter of time. Culvers comments, in discussing a resolution he sponsored last month at the Alabama League of Municipalities conference regarding historical monuments, was perhaps the bluntest assessment yet by an elected official about the future of the monument outside the Madison County Courthouse. Both the county commission, who has jurisdiction over the monument, and the Huntsville city council have passed resolutions calling for the monument to be relocated to city-owned Maple Hill Cemetery. Still, the monument stands outside the main entrance to the courthouse despite regular protests to take it down. Related: Madison County request to move Confederate statue rejected The county commission has been reluctant to move the monument, first erected in 1905, in violation of the 2017 law that prohibited any disturbance of a historical structure that has been in place more than 40 years. Should the commission opt to move the monument beyond the restrictions of the law, it would be fined $25,000. The cities of Birmingham and Mobile earlier this year paid the fine to remove Confederate monuments. A grassroots organization that routinely protests the presence of the monument, the Tennessee Valley Progressive Alliance, has said it has raised the money for the fine and has offered to pay it. Momentum, though, appears to be building for the legislature to override the 2017 law when it goes back into session in February. A bill by Juandalynn Givan, D-Birmingham, has been prefiled that would restore control of historical structures to local government rather than a state review committee. House Speaker Mac McCutcheon, R-Capshaw, told AL.com last week that bipartisan conversations were ongoing about overturning the monuments law. The resolution by the League of Municipalities, approved unanimously, would seem to be another push in that direction. According to its website, the league is a nonpartisan membership association of nearly 450 incorporated cities and towns that has advocated for those cities and towns since 1935. The leagues resolution asks the legislature to allow for local authority to relocate monuments covered in the (2017 law) to other areas, such as cemeteries or historical parks as local needs require. In the case of the monument in the Rocket City, the leagues resolution if passed by the legislature and signed into law by Gov. Kay Ivey would give the city of Huntsville authority to have it relocated. The city currently has no jurisdiction over the monument. Culver emphasized, however, that the city council and the county commission are working in lockstep on removing the monument. No one really understands a particular location in our state better than the people, the local leaders and state leaders in those particular areas, Culver said. This is why I made this motion for this resolution. We want it passed (by the legislature) because it puts the authority, if you will, back to where it belongs, which is within those local communities throughout the state. It doesnt mean every monument will be moved. There may be communities in the state that say we dont want our monument moved. It gives the people, the voting public, the power through their votes to elect people who share their views. Prasanta Mazumdar By Express News Service GUWAHATI: Curfew has been clamped in the Malugram area of Silchar town in Assams Cachar district following a clash between people from two communities. District Magistrate Keerthi Jalli said the curfew was clamped in areas under Malugram police outpost of the town as simmering tension prevailed and there was a likelihood of breach of public peace and tranquillity. Two groups indulged in pelting stones at each other at Ghoniwala area of Silchar town on Sunday evening. Assam Police, CRPF and other security personnel rushed to the area of the incident and brought the situation under control, the DM said. The police are investigating the cause of the incident during which shops of both communities were also vandalised. Reports suggest the trouble broke out when some people were putting up posters of the foundation stone-laying ceremony of Ram temple in Ayodhya. The authorities fanned out security personnel across localities to thwart any untoward incident. Superintendent of Police BL Meena said the situation was under control. It was a fight between two boys that snowballed into a group clash. Nobody was injured. An ambulance and two shops were attacked. The situation is under control, Meena told The New Indian Express. The SP said he had reached the spot within five minutes of being informed of the incident. We are investigating the incident. No arrest has been made so far. We want that nobody gives it a communal colour. We have asked all our police stations to be on alert. The two neighbouring districts of Hailakandi and Karimganj are also maintaining an alert, the SP said. He said the troops had been deployed as a confidence-building measure and to keep the criminal elements at bay. The district administration has convened a peace meeting with leaders from both communities. F rances seductive lifestyle has made it a favourite holiday home destination for generations thanks to its wondrous history, inspiring culture and fabulously diverse countryside. The French lifestyle is based around a celebration of lifes simple pleasures, a leisurely enjoyment of food and wine with family and friends pleasures that have extra resonance as we emerge from lockdown. From historic cities packed with thrilling architecture to rural landscapes of vines, sunflowers and lavender, from coasts on both the Atlantic and Mediterranean to celebrated Alpine resorts, France covers all the bases. Finding peaceful isolation is easy in a country twice the size of the UK, while excellent air, rail and road connections make it a convenient option. The property market has been remarkably busy since lockdown measures began to ease in France in Mid-May, says Jack Harris of Knight Frank. Travel restrictions mean that initially we witnessed a wave of domestic French appetite and now that has been followed by international buyers. There is definite pent-up demand resulting in a high number of enquiries and an encouraging number of transactions at all price points. Harris cites the French lifestyle as a major factor in Britons decisions to consider a French holiday home, along with the recent emphasis on working from home. As more people realise they can feasibly work remotely, they see they can use a holiday home more frequently than they initially anticipated, he adds. The increased desire for rural property is something that Jelena Cvjetkovic of Savills has also noted. The British love affair with France has not waned and we are seeing plenty of interest, notably in the southwest around the Dordogne, she says. Todays buyer is looking for something a little more rural but by no means remote with plenty of outdoor space and that all-important wifi. We anticipate buyers will choose to spend more time in their second homes, perhaps staying for longer periods of time rather than frequent shorter trips. Buying a home in France Amid Covid-19 Inspired to start house hunting? France is now open after its own lengthy and strict Covid-19 lockdown and as it is on the UK Governments list of safe travel corridors, there is no need to self-isolate either on arrival or return from a trip there. Eurostar and Eurotunnel are both operating regular services and BA, Air France, easyJet and Ryanair are flying from the UK to France. Since July 20, masks are compulsory in most public spaces. For the latest information, bookmark https://www.gouvernement.fr/info-coronavirus. Brexit Brexit should not affect the right to buy, sell or rent holiday homes in France for British passport holders. Throughout the transition period, France, along with all of the EU, has kept the same rules as pre-Brexit and anyone who becomes a resident in France before December 31, 2020 will keep all their current EU rights, pensions and healthcare. Anyone buying a holiday home in France and planning to stay less than three months a year should not see any change at all to the process after the transition period. It is possible, though not confirmed, that Britons who wish to stay for longer than six months at a time, for example, retirees, students and workers, might require a visa. So while it might be bureaucratically easier to buy property before Brexit is completed this coming New Years Eve, it will still be legal and a relatively straightforward process afterwards, just as it is for many non-EU citizens now. It is possible that non-EU residents may not be able to borrow as much for a mortgage as EU residents can though this has not been confirmed. But as Jack Harris from Knight Frank points out, mortgage rates are currently historically low across Europe, allowing buyers to stretch their budgets further. The Chairperson of the Covid-19 National Trust Fund, Justice Sophia Akuffo, has commended the use of homegrown talent in the construction of the countrys first infectious disease centre. The former Chief Justice was speaking after touring the Ghana Infectious Disease Centre, constructed under the auspices of the Ghana Covid-19 Private Sector Fund. Looking at the facility, the way its been laid out for total safety of the medical staff, total safety of the patients, total safety of the public it looks very comfortable. It looks very clean, she said. Its a very well thought out, a very humane installation that has been built and the beauty of it is that most of the inputs for the building and most of all the skills are Ghanaian. Its home grown. The Ghana Infectious Disease Centre was constructed with funding from private and public sector organisations, including the National Covid-19 Trust Fund, of which Madam Akuffo is chair. It was commissioned last week and is expected to start receiving its first batch of patients soon. The facility has spurred calls for a rethink of national development efforts for greater emphasis to be placed on the use of indigenous expertise and local inputs. We should have more of these, Justice Akuffo said. We have the professionals who are more than capable of doing this sort of work, initiating and innovating this new system. In a way Covid-19 has taught a lot and a lot of positives will come out of it. Justice Akufo urged Ghanaians to keep contributing both in cash and in kind to the national battle against Covid-19 so that we can continue to support the construction of such facilities; so that we can continue the medical fight against the pandemic. The Former Chief Justice was accompanied on her tour of the Ghana Infectious Disease Centre by members of the Covid-19 National Trust Fund, including the former Anglican Archbishop of Accra and Secretary to the Fund, Collins Asare. Liberian official clarifies employment concern of protesting seamen on controversial Chinese fishing vessels by Judoemue Kollie August 03,2020 | Source: Daily Observer Following two days of protest by several members of the Liberian Seamens Union, the Director General of the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority (NaFAA), Mrs. Emma Metieh Glassco, has clarified why the Government of Liberia (GOL) has not licensed the six controversial Chinese fishing vessels to operate in the countrys territorial waters. The controversial fishing vessels are currently at the Bong Mines fishing pier on the Bushrod Island in Monrovia. Recently aggrieved members of the Liberian Seamen Union angrily stormed the offices of the NaFAA on Bushrod Island to demand the licensing of the six Chinese Super trawlers in an attempt to provide them job opportunities. The angry Seamens Union members, who denied NaFAAs staff from entering their offices, alleged that the authorities of NaFAA have decided to deny the six vessels operations on Liberian waters. Licensing them, they said could take them from their current state of joblessness and restore their families livelihoods. However, according to Madam Glassco, the NaFAA cannot provide licenses for the vessels due to some technical reasons that will have to be addressed adequately before their registrations and subsequent licenses to fish in Liberian waters can be issued. The protesters seamen have claimed that after obtaining international certified training from the Regional Maritime University facilitated by the Liberian government through NaFAA, they have been denied opportunities to board European and other international tuna vessels fishing across the world. The six gigantic vessels that came to Liberia have larger fishing capacities and such vessels have never come to Liberia to fish. Also, their authorization from their flag state, which is the Peoples Republic of China, has expired. China as a flag state is needed to issue those vessels authorization to enable the vessels fish beyond Chinas Economic Exclusion Zone (EEZ) or in distance waters, she recently informed the aggrieved seamen. She added that Liberia, through NaFAA, has not received any authorization from the flag state, except a transit document from Mozambique to Liberia. However, that expired since June 26, 2020. According to her under these circumstances, the country cannot issue licenses to those vessels when the flag state has not authorized the vessels to operate on distance waters, adding that it will be a breach of international protocols. The NaFAA Boss indicated that, now that Liberia is a member of United Nations Port State Measures Agreement to deter and eliminate Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported fishing, the country also stands to be red carded as a non-compliant country if these giant trawlers which we have not seen before are licensed without proper due diligence. Mrs. Glassco recalled that Liberia is currently nursing a yellow card issued by the European Union and all efforts are being put in place to lift the yellow card, which Liberia got as a result of the illegal fishing activities during the previous government administration. Therefore, the licensing of these six Super Trawlers has to be in line with the United Nations Fish Stock Agreement, meaning licensing of additional vessels have to be based on the availability of resources. Liberia has secured funding to conduct a comprehensive stock assessment that may allow us license additional trawlers or even reducing the current licensed vessels. She further noted that most of the vessels operating in Liberian waters are not entering European Union ports due to the current yellow card issue. The NaFAA boss explained that the yellow card placed on Liberia is directly affecting the fisheries and Maritime Authorities. This, she said, is having negative effects on the Liberian economy. Liberia is the second largest open registry in the world and if cautions are not considered by this government through NaFAA, it could degenerate downward to the least position in the world because of the yellow card issued by the European Union, she explained. However, she said there exist possibilities for Liberian Seamen to board other international fishing vessels despite the lack of fishing a pier to contain bigger fishing vessels. She disclosed that six members of the Liberian seamen union will shortly depart Liberia for Ghana to board two international fishing vessels licensed by her entity. Given the current status of the six Chinese fishing vessels, she continued, NaFAA cannot issue them licenses because this might result to a red card from the EU, which could hamper chances of operating the entire national fisheries entity and later end the aspirations of the local seamen. Moreover, she indicated that as far as those vessels are concerned, Liberia cannot go contrary to Chapter 10 of the 2019 Fisheries and Aquaculture Management and Development Law and any international Laws or protocols because it risks red card from EU and this will also hamper the market, repelling international vessels from operating in Liberian waters. She concluded by saying discussions will continue with members of the Liberian Seamens Union to have them understand the decision government is taking through NaFAA, as issuing vessels fishing licenses has to do with technical procedures and adherence to international protocols. Liberian Observer Corporation Theme(s): Others. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Federal Judge Esther Salas released a statement Monday following the murder of her 20-year-old son and shooting of her husband inside the familys New Jersey home, recounting the tragedy and calling for legislation to further protect judges privacy. Salas recounted the tragedy that authorities have since linked to self-described anti-feminist lawyer Roy Den Hollander, who apparently killed himself following multiple attacks against people he considered enemies. RECOUNTING THE TRAGEDY Salas family was cleaning up after a weekend celebration for her son Daniel Marks 20th birthday, when the doorbell rang, Salas said. Daniel and I went downstairs to the basement and we were chatting, as we always do, and Daniel said mom, lets keep talking, I love talking to you, Mom, she said. It was at that exact moment that the doorbell rang, and Daniel looked at me and said, who is that? Within seconds, I heard the sound of bullets and someone screaming, No! She continued: I later learned that this monster, who had a FedEx package in his hand, opened fire, but Daniel being Daniel, protected his father and he took the shooters first bullet directly to the chest. The monster then turned his attention to my husband and began to shoot at my husband, one shot after another. Mark was shot three times: One bullet entered his right chest, the other his left abdomen, and the last one in the right forearm. Her husband, Mark Anderl, remained hospitalized Monday after multiple surgeries while the family makes preparations to bury their only child. CALLING FOR LEGISLATION Currently, many federal judges addresses and other information is available online to the public, while Salas said there also are companies that sell personal information of judges. She said her familys attacker had a complete dossier on her family. Now, more than ever, we need to identify a solution that keeps the lives of federal judges private, said Salas. I know this is a complicated issue, and I dont pretend to know or have all answers, but together we can find a way. ROY DEN HOLLANDER Roy Den Hollander, 72, had been diagnosed with cancer at the time of the incident. The self-described anti-feminist lawyer was known for misogynistic tirades and dozens of lawsuits he filed, some frivolous, the New York Times reported. Days before the attack on Salas family, he traveled by train to San Bernardino County, Calif., where he shot and killed a rival mens rights lawyer at the mans home, authorities said. Following the New Jersey incident, he was found in his car in upstate New York with what authorities said was a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head A list of more than a dozen possible targets found in the car included two New York judges, according to multiple news outlets. A man dressed as the Grim Reaper warns beachgoers in Mexico to return home (AFP or licensors) Mexico now ranks as the nation with the third-highest number of Covid-19 cases, with experts estimating the death toll could rise as high as seven million. By James Blears Mexico City The cases of Covid-19 keep rising and rising in Mexico. Friday set the single-day record so far, with 8,458 new cases. Fatalities have now overtaken the United Kingdom. Mexico has recorded 424,637 cases and 46,688 fatalities in the five months since the pandemic first hit Latin Americas second largest nation. Slightly over 7 percent of the cases are active, and there are 90,000 suspected cases, because the results are still not yet known. The Mexican Health Ministry says there were 198,000 cases in July, which adds up to 47 percent of the total tally. There are twelve countries which have a higher mortality rate than Mexico, but this is likely to change. Emergency situation Half of Mexicos 32 States are anchored on red alert emergency level status. This indicates maximum risk of infection. Health experts are warning that unless Mexico swiftly takes more effective measures, its death toll will rise to above seven million. Less than 7,300 Covid tests-per-million have been carried out on Mexicos population. Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez Gatell, whos the spokesman for the pandemic in Mexico, says its been particularly badly-hit, in part due to a high level of underlying illnesses, including diabetes and high blood pressure. A young family, including a baby and parents in their 20s, have tested positive to COVID-19 after returning from a trip to Melbourne - as 13 other cases are identified in New South Wales overnight. Local health authorities from Wagga Wagga in regional New South Wales revealed on Monday a family of four tested positive for the virus, but there is no further threat to the community because they self isolated immediately upon arriving in the state. The family unit includes a 52-year-old woman, her son and daughter-in-law, both in their 20s, and a baby. They are all reportedly in good health. No further contact tracing will be undertaken as authorities are confident the family followed self isolation protocols. They were not included in the official New South Wales COVID-19 tally on Monday, when Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced 13 new cases of the deadly respiratory infection. A bartender at Jah Bar Dee Why Beach poses for a photo in her face mask as the premier urges people to wear them in public Three of the new cases are in returned travellers in mandatory hotel quarantine, another is a recent arrival from Victoria, while eight are cases linked to known outbreaks. Just one of the new cases cannot be linked to a known source and is one of seven cases under investigation, NSW Health's Dr Jeremy McAnulty revealed on Monday. There are seven cases in New South Wales which are being actively investigated because NSW Health cannot establish a clear link to a previously known case. 'While most cases in the past week have been associated with local clusters and close contact with known cases, seven have not been linked to known cases,' NSW Health said in a statement. Authorities are concerned the untraceable cases could potentially lead to further community transmission. Contact tracers are unable to notify everyone who may have come into contact with the infected person. One of the new cases dined at the Apollo restaurant in Potts Point and another dined at Mounties in Mount Pritchard - both previously identified clusters, while another attended the Advanced Early Learning childcare centre at Merrylands, in Sydney's south-west. Patrons wearing face masks are seen using hand sanitiser and registering their check in details at The Bavarian restaurant at the Manly Wharf Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Monday admitted community transmission cases are always a 'cause for concern' but said authorities are doing everything they can to keep the situation from spiralling like it has in Victoria NSW Health has also contacted anyone who has attended a Fitness First in Rockdale and yoga studio in Bondi after two COVID-19 cases linked to the Apollo outbreak visited the facilities while potentially infectious. Any potential close contacts have been told to self isolate and get tested for the virus. St Brigid's Catholic Church in Marrickville, in Sydney's inner west, was also closed after two patrons attended a vigil on Saturday July 25 at 5pm before they were diagnosed with the virus. The couple were likely not infectious at the time of the visit, NSW Health reported. But the parish closed on Sunday to undergo deep cleaning as a 'precautionary measure'. Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Monday admitted community transmission cases are always a 'cause for concern' but said authorities are doing everything they can to keep the situation from spiralling like it has in Victoria. 'We are every day considering all of our options in terms of what we need to do to keep our community safe,' Ms Berejiklian said on Monday . NSW residents are being recommended to wear face masks in public as coronavirus case numbers continue to rise. Pictured: a shopper wears a face mask in Woolworths in Sydney on Friday New South Wales coronavirus clusters Thai Rock Wetherill Park: 101 Crossroads Hotel: 58 Bankstown Funeral/Mounties club: 35 Potts Point: 26 Advertisement But she admitted 'no border is impenetrable' and said the state's geographical proximity to Victoria put New South Wales most at risk. 'No matter how tough we are... our geographic proximity makes us the first line to have that seeding,' she said. Ms Berejiklian again reiterated the importance of wearing masks in public, and said she always carries one in her pocket. The announcement comes as Ms Berejiklian on Sunday urged people to wear face masks in public from Monday onwards. Ms Berejiklian said authorities would not make mask usage mandatory in NSW, but revised current recommendations to address four specific circumstances. Masks should be worn by public-facing employees such as hospitality or supermarket workers, worshippers and residents of suburbs near COVID-19 clusters, as well as in situations where social distancing is impossible. 'We have been talking about masks for several weeks but obviously the persistent situation in Victoria gives us cause for alarm in terms of the potential for further seeding in NSW, and it is about risk mitigation strategy,' Ms Berejiklian said. 'We're going to the next stage of assessing what else and how else we can decrease the risk and break the current chain coming through NSW.' Ms Berejiklian said she will be heeding the advice of health authorities in her daily life, calling wearing a mask 'the fourth line of defence'. 'I want to stress it is not compulsory, but it is a strong recommendation from NSW Health, given where we are in the pandemic, given the risk posed from Victoria and given the rate of community transmission in New South Wales,' she said. 'I myself, when I next go grocery shopping, will be wearing a mask.' A nurse takes a nasal swab from a patient at the Bondi Beach coronavirus drive-through testing facility on Thursday The latest case numbers - which exceed both Saturday and Sunday's figures - come after photographs surfaced of Sydneysiders ignoring health recommendations to cram in to Bondi Beach to watch the sunset this weekend. Hundreds flocked to the world-famous beach on Sunday to soak up the winter sunshine as New South Wales battles to avoid a Victoria-style second wave of coronavirus infections. The concerning crowds came on the same day Melbourne was forced into stage four lockdown after 671 new cases and seven deaths were recorded in Victoria on Sunday. Those unable to snare a park bench packed the grassy hill to enjoy the view in large congregations, as many more strolled along the promenade as the temperature reached 19C. Some revellers were in party mode as they enjoyed a few drinks with their mates. There appeared to be no police or council rangers ensuring restrictions were being obeyed. The beach is supposed to be restricted to 500 visitors at a time, according to the Waveley Council website. Very few face masks were seen, despite a plea on Sunday from NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian urging everyone to wear one in public settings. Hundreds soaked up the Sydney sunshine with beachside picnics at Bondi Beach on Sunday The carefree crowd appeared to have little concern about the new wave of infections that has hit Sydney Queensland has flagged a push for tightened national border loopholes after a returned overseas consulate staffer flew into the Sunshine Coast via Sydney, then drove to his home in Toowoomba to quarantine. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said she would raise the exemptions - which meant he did not need to enter the state's mandatory hotel system - at the next meeting of national cabinet. Under federal government travel restrictions, consular staff can return from overseas and then fly domestically to quarantine at home, rather than being directed into hotel accommodation for 14 days in the city they first landed. "I don't think the time is right now for those exemptions," Ms Palaszczuk told reporters in Brisbane. The leadership of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC) has said it stands by the Presiding Bishop of Perez Chapel International, Bishop Charles Agyinasare who has been threatened over his comments on national issues. In a statement signed by the President of the GPCC, Rev Prof Paul Frimpong-Manso, the Council said, The purpose of this statement is to declare our strong support for the Presiding Bishop, who is a long-standing member of the Council and who rose to occupy the very high position of First Vice-President of the Council. GPCC said its leadership has noted with concern, some of the reactions to Bishop Agyinasares pronouncements in the past one month, observing that some of these reactions have been in the form of insults, threats of harm, casting of innuendos, political branding etc., which the Council condemned as very unfortunate. We wish to recall that since the beginning of the month of July, the Presiding Bishop has been teaching on the theme: Building A Future After Covid-19. The purpose is to help build a foundation for youth development as the next generation to take over this nation. In doing this, the Presiding Bishop has been highlighting issues on the political landscape, the attitude of civil servants and the clergy front, which should not have been so and which could be done differently. He has also sought to draw examples from his personal life, including his marriage, his financial dealings to encourage the youth that in the midst of present-day promiscuity, it is possible to live a life of chastity and integrity, the statement noted. It added, We urge the press and the general public not to twist, distort, misrepresent, misreport or take out of context statements made by the Presiding Bishop and give them sensational headlines with the objective of giving the Presiding Bishop a political bad name in order to hang him. The Council also called on the two main political parties in Ghana to call their executives and members to order. As the nation enters the political campaign season, we wish to admonish the entire citizenry to do all we can to keep the political temperature at its lowest minimum and conduct all political activities with civility and decorum, the Council urged. It added, Lets make the campaign one of ideas, programmes for national development and peace and not one of the insults, casting of aspersions, character assassination, violence and any actions that will threaten the peace and stability of our dear motherland. The Council also wished Ghanaians peaceful campaigns and free, fair and transparent elections, which will produce a God-given leader and government for this nation. A week ago, Bishop Charles Agyinasare said he has been receiving threats and insults over the past few weeks that he has been calling out societal evils but said those things will not stop him from speaking his mind. In his virtual sermon on Sunday, 26 July 2020, titled: There is a cause for integrity and honesty, which was part of his Building after Covid-19 series, the Perez Chapel International founder said a lot of his friends and loved ones have called and pleaded with me to stop preaching what I am preaching on national transformation, adding: Most of them say Ghana is set in her ways and would not change. The Nations Prophet and Pastor, as Bishop Agyinasare is popularly called, said: Well, Jonah did not believe wicked Nineveh would change but when he declared Gods word, they repented and fasted in sackcloth and ashes. The word of God, he said, has the power to change people: it is a hammer that can break hardened hearts, it is a fire that can consume, it is like water that can wash the most sin covered soul, it like a light that can shine on the power of the worst of sinners. Bishop Agyinasare said his recent remarks on national issues and the attacks those comments have brought to him, have got some of his family and friends concerned to the extent that they are begging him to stop. Some of my loved ones said: These politicians and their supporters, hmmm; they are dangerous ohhh! they can do something against you. In his view, if thats how we see politicians now, is there not a cause for me to preach to change it? My amazement is whether it has come to the place in democratic Ghana, where I speak and people who are not happy (basically they disagree with me) and instead of they saying they disagree with me and stating their side, some of them issue threats, some insult me and people are saying: Charles, you must be afraid, beef up your security and dont sleep at home. Well, our senior politicians, Nana Akufo-Addo and John Mahama, that is how much your noble profession has been reduced to. It is being said and perceived that you and your fellows hire thugs to beat and even get people killed because they disagree with you. Meanwhile, the Akan name for democracy is Ka bi na me ka bi aman buo speak your mind and let me speak my mind kind of government, Bishop Agyinasare noted. He said if journalists like Ambassador Kabral Blay Amihere, Kweku Baako Jr., Kwesi Pratt, Ben Ephson, among others, went to jail, had to report regularly to the Bureau of National Investigations, had people follow them because they wrote and demanded free speech in the mid-1980s under a revolution, then is it not unfortunate that we could get it and in a democracy, we are being made to know that we are not free to talk anymore?. I am the last person who would want to insult or disrespect anyone, Bishop Agyinasare said. According to him, he is not the spokesperson for any political party but rather serves as Gods linguist. Source: Graphic.com.gh 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 Never before has the Mineral Area Community Elks Lodge 2583 had a student win three levels of the annual drug awareness essay contest. This year, West County Middle School seventh grader Ava Clifton earned first place in the local contest and advanced to the southeast district level consisting of 11 different lodges. She took first place there and proceeded to state competition. Clifton competed against other entries from 74 different lodges. She took first-place honors for the state of Missouri. Clifton earned $425 for winning the local, district and state levels of the essay contest. Its super hard to compete at the state level, said Joy Clarkson, and were very proud of Ava for winning first place. Clarkson is district chairman of the drug awareness program with the MAC Elks. The program includes the essay, poster and video contests. This years contest theme was Life does not rewind, choose life not drugs. Students in third through fifth grade may enter the poster contest. Entries are judged on originality, neatness, correct grammatical structure and closeness to the theme. The essay contest consists of entries in sixth through eighth grades which are judged on closeness to the theme, neatness, originality and correct grammatical structure. Individuals and groups of students in middle and high school may submit two- to five-minute entries in the video contest. Judges look for originality, positive messages, quality of the video, closeness to the theme, neatness, age and language appropriateness. This was our best year yet with participants, said Anna Kleiner, exalted ruler of the organization. The recent awards ceremony held at the Elks lodge was a celebration of the joint effort of parents, teachers, students and hard-working Elks members who make the contests possible each year. Winners of the poster contest were first announced. First place went to Kylie Walka of Arcadia Valley. She also took first place in the southeast district. Maddison Fisher took first place from North County Parkside and also second place in the district. Kaelyn Colyott won second place from North County Parkside and third place in the district. Jett Rehkop earned third place from and Dica Wallace took fourth place. Both are from North County Parkside. For the essay contest, winners included Ava Clifton, first place from West County, first in the Southeast district and first in the state of Missouri; Abby Kahn, second, from North County Intermediate and third place in district; Lillie Hammock, third place from West County; and Kaidyn Barton, fourth place from West County. In this years video contest, Mercedes Warden, Avery Johnson and Paige Crew took first place from Central and second place in the district competition. In addition to Clarkson and Kleiner, other Elks lodge members participating in the ceremony included Vickie Murray, past exalted ruler; Mike Blanton, leading knight; Jim Hahn, past exalted ruler and past state president of the Missouri Elks; Bud Clarkson, treasurer and Missouri Elks secretary; and Ben Flat, past exalted ruler. The drug awareness programs poster, essay and video contests for the Elks organization are held each fall. Pam Clifton is a contributing writer for the Daily Journal Love 3 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. Co-authors and PEACE Pack program developers - Flinders University experts Professor Phillip Slee and Dr Grace Skrzypiec - who lead the Flinders Centre for Student Wellbeing and Prevention of Violence (SWAPv). Credit: Flinders University Italian high schools have reported success with a South Australian program to help victims of bullying and aggression. The Preparation, Education, Action, Coping, Evaluation (PEACE) antibullying program, developed at Flinders University, has been adapted by several state education systems in Europe, with the intervention used in 22 Italian classes in a 2019-20 study. More than 550 students questioned about the program found it especially useful in giving victims of severe bullying support with their self-confidence and fewer experiences of aggression from other pupils, University of Bologna and Bolzano researchers say. It produced a significant and sustained reduction in bullying and significant improvements in student wellbeingalso taking pressure off teachers and the schools to manage and intervene with claims of bullying, they report in an international journal. "Despite the considerable efforts of schools to address bullying issues, much of the work undertaken in schools remains at the level of broadly based, and not necessarily research-informed interventions," concludes the lead author Professor Annalisa Guarini, from the University of Bologna. "Few teacher-delivered interventions have shown positive changes in the victims." The effectiveness of the program was analyzed through an observational study (pre/post-intervention), involving 551 Italian high school students who completed a questionnaire on bullying victimization, self-efficacy, and bystander behavior. Like other analysis in Australia, Malta and Greecein schools where the PEACE Pack program is also usedthe Italian study suggests it can be used to effectively intervene with bullying in schools by: increasing self-efficacy in bullied students raising the perception of classmates to be more likely to intervene when a bullying episode occurs reducing severe victimization. "Programs like the P.E.A.C.E. pack should be part of daily classroom activities, because they are effective and can be delivered entirely by teachers, representing a valid solution for schools with limited financial and time resources," the paper concludes. Co-authors and PEACE Pack program developersFlinders University experts Professor Phillip Slee and Dr. Grace Skrzypiecsay the translation and joint venture in Italy, which received support from the Italian Ministry of Education, was further validation of the program. "School bullying is a serious public issue and the negative consequences for the victims can have life-long consequences," the directors of Flinders Centre for Student Wellbeing and Prevention of Violence (SWAPv) say. "Supporting the responsibility of educators, as reported by the United Nations' Convention on the Rights of the Child, we have developed the PEACE pack program to protect children's quality of life and their rights to be educated in a safe environment, free from all forms of violence, victimization, harassment, and neglect." The research article, 'The P.E.A.C.E. pack program in Italian high schools: An intervention for victims of bullying' (2020) by A Guarini, L Menabo, D Menin, C Mameli, G Skrzypiec, P Slee and A Brighi has been published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17145162 The Flinders SWAPv joint research laboratory with the University of Bologna and Bolzano presented initial findings at an international conference in Italy last year. The Flinders PEACE pack is being translated for trials in Taiwan and Indonesia and negotiations with US and Indian education centers are continuing. Explore further Year 7 bullies can become victims More information: Annalisa Guarini et al, The P.E.A.C.E. Pack Program in Italian High Schools: An Intervention for Victims of Bullying, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2020). Annalisa Guarini et al, The P.E.A.C.E. Pack Program in Italian High Schools: An Intervention for Victims of Bullying,(2020). DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17145162 The outdoor mask rules taking effect Monday are on top of a nationwide decree last month requiring people to wear masks in all stores and other indoor public places Beach resorts along France's Atlantic coast, picturesque promenades on the Loire River, farmers markets in the Alps - they're among scores of spots around France where everyone is now required to wear a mask outdoors. The outdoor mask rules taking effect Monday are on top of a nationwide decree last month requiring people to wear masks in all stores and other indoor public places. Pressure is growing on the government to mandate outdoor mask use on a national level, too. France is seeing an uptick in coronavirus infections, with hundreds of new clusters in recent weeks, notably as young people gather at waterside cafes or dance parties and families get together for summer vacation. Several sites around France have started requiring masks outdoors in recent days. Starting Monday, 69 towns in the Mayenne region of western France imposed outdoor mask rules, as did parts of the northern city of Lille and coastal city of Biarritz in French Basque country. France has reported 7,000 new cases in the last week, after bringing the virus nearly under control with a strict two-month nationwide lockdown, and has confirmed 30,265 virus-related deaths since the pandemic began. Search Keywords: Short link: Oslo, Aug 3 : At least 41 passengers and crew on a Norwegian cruise ship have tested positive for Covid-19, officials said. Hundreds more passengers who travelled on the MS Roald Amundsen are in quarantine and awaiting test results, the company that owns the ship said, the BBC reported on Monday. The ship, which belongs to the Norwegian firm Hurtigruten, docked in the port of Tromso in northern Norway on Friday. Hurtigruten has halted all leisure cruises because of the outbreak. "This is a serious situation for everyone involved. We have not been good enough and we have made mistakes," said Chief Executive Daniel Skjeldamsaid in a statement on Monday. "A preliminary evaluation shows a breakdown in several of our internal procedures," he added. "The only responsible choice is to suspend all expedition sailings." Norway's government has announced it will stop all cruise ships with more than 100 people on board from disembarking passengers for at least 14 days. The police said they were investigating whether any laws had been broken prior to the outbreak on the Roald Amundsen. "We have found grounds to open a case," a police officer was quoted as saying by a media outlet. The MS Roald Amundsen had been on a week-long voyage to Svalbard in the Arctic, and was also reportedly scheduled to visit ports in England and Scotland in September. Four crew members were admitted to hospital on Friday with coronavirus symptoms, shortly after the ship docked in the Arctic port of Tromso, and they later tested positive for the virus. Another 32 crew members on board were found to be infected. The staff who tested positive included German, French and Filipino citizens. They were tested for the virus before leaving their home countries but did not quarantine before starting work on the ship, Hurtigruten said. Almost 180 passengers were allowed to depart the ship on Friday, leaving the authorities scrambling over the weekend to locate and test those who had been on board. All the passengers have now been contacted and told to self-isolate for 10 days, health officials said. Five passengers have so far tested positive out of 387 who had travelled on the ship since July 17. "We expect that more infections will be found in connection to this outbreak," said Line Vold, a health official. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 19:19:24|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close GENEVA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The World Health Organization (WHO) will launch a mask challenge this week with partners from around the world to encourage people to send in photos of themselves wearing a mask, the organization's Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced on Monday. "As well as hand sanitizer, I carry a mask with me all the time and use it when I'm in places where there are crowds," said Tedros at a virtual press conference from Geneva, noting "By wearing a mask, you're sending a powerful message to those around you that we're all in this together." According to the WHO chief, the mask has come to represent solidarity, as well as being one of the key tools to stop COVID-19. "Like the stagehands and HealthyAtHome challenges, we're going to be spreading further positive messages about how everyone has a role to play in breaking chains of transmission," he added. Enditem A test which detects changing levels of tumour fragments in the blood may be an easy, non-invasive and quick way to predict who will benefit from immunotherapy, a treatment option for advanced cancers. Although immunotherapy has been shown to shrink tumours and prolong survival for patients for whom other treatments have failed, about 20-30% of patients benefit from it. Clinicians don't yet know ahead of time who this subset of patients is. Understanding this is crucial, since immunotherapy can have severe side effects in a small percentage of patients, and knowing whether to begin or continue would be helpful for patients weighing different treatment options. A team of Princess Margaret Cancer Centre scientists and clinicians addressed this question with a novel study evaluating various cancer patients' response to a specific immunotherapy drug via a customized test based on each patient's tumour profile. They found that individual response to treatment can be predicted within weeks, based on increasing or decreasing levels of DNA fragments which are shed from the tumour into the blood. Genomic testing with powerful new technologies can detect the same genetic mutations in the fragments circulating in the blood as in the actual tumour. These fragments are called circulating DNA or ctDNA. Specifically, the study found that a decrease in these circulating tumour DNA fragments at six - seven weeks after treatment with the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab was associated with a beneficial response to the drug and longer survival. The study, "Personalized circulating tumor DNA analysis as a predictive biomarker in solid tumor patients treated with pembrolizumab", is published in Nature Cancer, August 3, 2020. Dr. Lillian Siu, a Senior Scientist and medical oncologist at the Princess Margaret, BMO Chair in Precision Cancer Genomics, and a co-senior author, noted that the study is one of the first studies across a broad spectrum of tumours to show that measuring levels of ctDNA could be useful as a predictor of who responds well to immunotherapy. "It's like a molecular CT scan that gives us a molecular dimension, an added layer of information to know whether a tumour is growing or not, " she says, "That's why this is so exciting. It helps to predict early on what may happen over time. "Although important, computerized tomography (CT) and other scans alone will not tell us what we need to know quickly or accurately enough." Dr. Scott Bratman, who is first author and a radiation oncologist and Senior Scientist at Princess Margaret and Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology and Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, points out that it may take many months to detect whether a tumour is shrinking with various imaging scans. "New next-generation sequencing technologies can detect and measure these tiny bits of cellular debris floating in the blood stream accurately and sensitively, allowing us to pinpoint quite quickly whether the cancer is active." The prospective study analyzed the change in ctDNA from 74 patients, with different types of advanced cancers, being treated with pembrolizumab. In order to customize or personalize the test, all the genes from the tumour biopsy tissue of each patient were sequenced or decoded at Princess Margaret, with specific attention to the mutations that occur in cancer. These cancer mutations ranged from dozens to tens of thousands of mutations per tissue sample, differing according to cancer type. Sixteen genetic mutations for each patient were then selected for a specific test to be developed and customized to detect personalized ctDNA of each patient via a simple blood sample. "When we looked at all 20,000 genes in each cancer, the range of mutations in different individuals was huge due to the many different cancer types in the study," says Dr. Trevor Pugh, a co-senior author, Senior Scientist at Princess Margaret and Associate Professor, Dept. of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, and Director of Genomics, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research. "The novelty is that, rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach, we designed a personalized blood test for each person based on their own cancer's mutation list." Of the 74 patients, 33 had a decrease in ctDNA levels from their original baseline levels to week six to seven after treatment with the drug. These patients had better treatment responses and longer survival. Even more striking was that all 12 patients who had clearance of the ctDNA to undetectable levels during treatment were still alive at a median follow-up of 25 months. Conversely, a rise in ctDNA levels was linked to a rapid disease progression in most patients, and poor survival. "Few studies have used a clinical biomarker across different types of cancers," says Dr. Siu, who is also the Clinical Lead for the Tumor Immunotherapy Program at the Princess Margaret and Professor of Medicine, University of Toronto, adding that "the observation that ctDNA clearance during treatment and its link to long-term survival is novel and provocative, suggesting that this biological marker can have broad clinical impact." Mr. Azim Jamal, 71, was part of the study, and one of the patients who benefited from immunotherapy. He was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2016, and received radiation and targeted molecular therapy. With limited response and the cancer spreading to his lungs, he then received immunotherapy over two years, beginning in 2017. As of July 2020, his disease is in remission, with no evidence of progression. "It was a last resort, but I said yes immediately," he says when asked if he would like to participate in the immunotherapy clinical trial. "I want to enjoy life, I want to see my grandchildren, participate in my community and church. And I also appreciate the opportunity to participate in important research that could help others." Serena Jamal-Esmail, his daughter who is also a nurse, says that seeing her father respond so well to the immunotherapy was "like a light...It had been so emotional, so scary. My kids will be able to remember their granddad. I can breathe again." The prospective study is part of a larger flagship clinical trial, INSPIRE, which has enrolled more than 100 patients with head and neck, breast, ovarian, melanoma and other advanced solid tumours. Launched at Princess Margaret in 2016, the trial follows and tests patients at various stages of their treatment to pembrolizumab, a commonly used type of immunotherapy. It also brings together researchers from many disciplines to investigate if specific genomic and immune biomarkers in patients may predict for response or resistance to the drug. ### Major support for the research was provided by: the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Terry Fox Research Institute, Gattuso-Slaight Personalized Cancer Fund, BMO Chair in Precision Cancer Genomics, Canada Research Chair in Translational Genomics, Canada Foundation for Innovation, Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation, and Merck for the study drug. The design and application of personalized ctDNA assays (tests) was conducted with blinding to clinical data by Natera (San Carlos, California). Competing Interests Dr. Scott Bratman is a co-inventor on a patent relating to mutation-based ctDNA detection technology that is unrelated to this work, and on patent applications relating to methylation-based ctDNA detection technology. He provides consulting for DNAMx Inc. About Princess Margaret Cancer Centre Princess Margaret Cancer Centre has achieved an international reputation as a global leader in the fight against cancer and delivering personalized cancer medicine. The Princess Margaret, one of the top five international cancer research centres, is a member of the University Health Network, which also includes Toronto General Hospital, Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute and the Michener Institute for Education at UHN. All are research hospitals affiliated with the University of Toronto. For more information: http://www.theprincessmargaret.ca For media inquiries, please contact: Alexandra Radkewycz Senior Public Affairs Advisor Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network Phone: 416-946-2846 Email: Alexandra.Radkewycz@uhn.ca Uyghur women who are forced to undergo birth control procedures in northwest Chinas Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) are rarely informed about their side effects, and regularly experience lifelong health complications they believe are related to the surgeries, according to sources in exile. Several Uyghur women who were required by authorities in the XUAR to have intrauterine devices (IUDs) implanted or undergo tubal ligation surgeries as part of family planning policies detailed their experiences to RFAs Uyghur Service. They described in recent interviews painful procedures that left them both physically and emotionally scarred, and suggested such measures are part of a bid by the government to eradicate their ethnic group. Their stories follow a June 29 report about a dramatic increase in recent years in the number of forced sterilizations and abortions targeting Uyghurs in the region, which the author, German researcher Adrian Zenz, said may amount to a government-led campaign of genocide under United Nations definitions. The population control measures include fines on Uyghur women with three or more children, mandatory pregnancy tests and examinations, and the forced implantation of IUDs or sterilization surgery, according to Zenz, a senior fellow in China Studies at the Washington-based Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation. China did not make a spokesperson available for comment on this report, but when Zenzs study on forced birth control came out in June, official media vilified him and said Beijing is considering suing him for libel, while the foreign ministry denounced him. The so-called allegation that millions of Uyghurs were detained was trumped up by an anti-China organization which receives significant financial support from the National Endowment for Democracy, and Adrian Zenz, a senior fellow in a research group on Xinjiang education and training centers set up by the US intelligence community, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on July 15. The uptick in forced population control policies, which the report said had led to an 84 percent birthrate reduction in two majority Uyghur prefectures between 2015 and 2018, occurred in tandem with Chinas campaign of mass incarceration of Uyghurs launched in the region in April 2017. Women who refuse to undergo the procedures are detained in a network of internment camps, believed to have held up to 1.8 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities. Recently, a source who asked not to be named out of fear of reprisal sent RFA photos of an IUD that had been surgically removed from her uterus 10 years after it was implanted because she experienced severe vaginal bleeding. The woman said she had been detained at a camp but was released after the bleeding became very serious. According to the source, doctors performed a four-and-a-half-hour surgery to remove the device and discovered that it had punctured her uterus, causing an injury they said would likely leave her sterile. A similar story was related by camp survivor Zumret Dawut, who last year testified about having undergone a permanent sterilization surgery at a United Nations event titled The Human Rights Crisis in Xinjiang, which was organized by the U.S. Department of State. Dawut, mother of three, told RFA that she was fitted several times with an IUD, which she described as T-shaped and wrapped with a wire. If the government does the insertion, its that kind of IUD, she said. You used to be able to get them removed if you could get a doctors permission for it. But then, starting in 2016, [the government] notified all the hospitals that they could not remove IUDs. Dawut said at that point, women seeking to have an IUD removed would need to obtain permission from five different government offices, including the Womens Association, the Office of Womens Affairs, and the Office of Family Planning, otherwise [doctors] wouldnt do it. Ive had several IUDs, but the experiences werent good, she said. They caused a lot of problems for me. I passed out, lost consciousness, several times after the insertions. Achieving their goal Gulgine, a Uyghur doctor and womens health specialist based in Istanbul, Turkey with more than 25 years of experience, told RFA that since she began running her health center in 2013, she had seen at least 200 Uyghur women fitted with IUDs, as well as some 80 Uyghur women who had been forcibly sterilized. There have been some cases in which women with IUDs have ended up with the IUD stuck in their uterine walls, she said. Ive also seen cases in which the women had no clue theyd been sterilized. Eighty percent of the [Uyghur] women Ive seen have had IUDs. Sixty percent have been sterilized For these reasons, Ive seen women who not only have physical injuries but who also have psychological problems. Gulgine said that IUDs are especially prevalent amongst women from the southern part of the XUAR, where Uyghurs live in greater numbers. The Chinese government widely forces these IUDs on Uyghur women in places in the south like the cities, towns, and villages of Kashgar (in Chinese, Kashi) [prefecture], she said. The longer the devices remain inserted, the greater the possibility of injury to the cervix, which can result in inflammation, swelling, discharge, or infection These kinds of IUDs are very low-quality, and after they are inserted there is a possibility that they will get stuck in a womans fallopian tube, making them even more difficult to remove down the line. Gulgine suggested that the Chinese government is unconcerned whether such devices inflict permanent damage on the women who are made to wear them. By causing injury to their reproductive systems, [the authorities] are achieving their goal of exterminating them, she said. Zumrat Dawut in Urumqi in October 2018. Credit: Zumret Dawut Tubal ligation While IUDs are the most common form of birth control used by authorities to implement family planning policies, tubal ligationin which the fallopian tubes are tied and sometimes cutis another favored method. In April 2018, Dawut was detained at an internment camp, where she was forced to recite Chinese propaganda, beaten for providing food to an ailing fellow prisoner, and injected with unknown drugs, according to her account at the U.N. event. While Dawut was released two months later after her Pakistani husband advocated on her behalf, she was forced to undergo a tubal ligation in exchange for the right to leave China for Pakistan, which she said was performed in a crude facility by doctors who did not provide her with information about how it would proceed, or what the risks and potential side effects were. In October [of 2018], it turned out my name was on some list that had come from higher upthere were around 200 names on the list, and they scheduled five of us to take for sterilization surgeries on a Monday, she said. There were women from other places there too. We waited in line for a long time. There werent people from any other ethnic group; all of us were Uyghur women ... [After the surgery], they had a car ready for me. They put me in the car and took me home. Dawut, who relocated to the U.S. from Pakistan in April last year, said that since the procedure, she has experienced negative side effects including a hormone imbalance, a total cessation in menstruation, and psychological trauma. She said she asked a Uyghur gynecologist whether it was possible to reverse the procedure, but was informed that while surgeons can untie fallopian tubes that have been blocked in most tubal ligations, Chinese government-ordered surgeries generally involve the cutting of the tubes, making it much more difficult to undo. So, given this, [it appears] they made it completely, irreversibly impossible [for those of us who underwent the surgery] to have more children, Dawut said. They want to get rid of us and take over our land. They want to eliminate us from this world. Long-standing methods While Chinas methods of birth control in the XUAR have received increased attention following the release of Zenzs report, they are by no means recent developments. In 2007, for example, family-planning offices in Xinjiang held a propaganda competition by the name of Birth less, get richer faster, in which they rewarded women who had fewer than three children or who elected to have tubal ligation surgeries performed. Peride Tursun, who fled the XUAR capital Urumqi for Turkey in 2016, told RFA she ran afoul of family-planning authorities in 1996, when she was pregnant with her third child, a son. Tursun, who was herself a former family planning official, said that she gave birth in secret but was fined and forced to have an IUD implanted by doctors who provided her little information about the procedure. They simply told me they were going to make it so I couldnt have another baby, said Tursun, now 55 years old. After she experienced heavy bleeding, she had the IUD removed by doctors at the XUAR Hospital of Traditional Medicine, who performed a sterilization surgery on her without her permission. I kept asking myself, Can we not just be responsible for ourselves?... I felt feelings of tragedy, like a kind of massacre was taking place, she said. Tursun said she has since had a dermal reconstruction surgery, which she suspects is related to the complications she experienced from her IUD and later sterilization. Meanwhile, Tursuns two older daughters remain in the XUAR and have been sent to internment camps, she said. The Chinese authorities used these horrible means to destroy my life, but I have my daughters and my grandchildren [to think about], she said. I might not have been able to protect myself, but it is my responsibility as a mother to do everything I can to protect them, Tursun added, calling on the international community to investigate and put an end to these policies. No choice RFA also spoke with Helchem Muhammad, 55, who has lived in Kayseri, Turkey, since 2014. Muhammad, who is originally from Aqsu (Akesu) city, said she first became a victim of Chinas birth-control policies in 1992, after giving birth to her fourth child. The family-planning authorities came to my house every day and were putting a lot of pressure on me, so finally I was forced to get [an IUD], she said. They said theyd fine me [otherwise] or that we [who didnt comply] would go to jail, and they scared us into getting them. Muhammad said she experienced severe bleeding for two months, after which the IUD fell out. A second IUD also caused bleeding and made her very sick. Even so, I had no choice but to get the IUD, she said, adding that treatment at hospitals and traditional medicine practices had done little to improve her health. Muhammad said that while the international media has been focusing on Chinas enforcement of birth control policies in the XUAR since 2015, the situation was already serious in the 1990s. You know, there were cases where doctors used injections to abort babies in the mothers eighth and ninth months of pregnancy and later, when they began inserting [IUDs], they all used this [T-shaped] type because its tough to get out, she said. They wont remove them just because we ask. They wont even remove them if we die. They want to kill us. Reported by Gulchehra Hoja for RFAs Uyghur Service. Translated by Elise Anderson. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. BEIJING/HONG KONG A potential shotgun wedding to Microsoft Corp for TikToks U.S. operations provoked an outcry on Chinese social media as well as criticism from a prominent Chinese investor in TikTok owner ByteDance. The U.S. tech giant formally declared its interest on Sunday after President Donald Trump, who has cited national security risks posed by the Chinese-owned short video app, reversed course on a planned ban and gave the two firms 45 days to come to a deal. The proposed acquisition of parts of TikTok, which boasts 100 million U.S. users, would offer Microsoft a rare opportunity to become a major competitor to social media giants such as Facebook Inc and Snap Inc . Microsoft which owns the social media network LinkedIn for professional workers, is also seeking to buy TikToks Canadian, Australian and New Zealand interests. ByteDance has not publicly confirmed the sale talks. But in an internal letter to staff on Monday seen by Reuters, the companys founder and CEO Zhang Yiming said the firm had started talks with a tech company it did not identify to clear the way for us to continue offering the TikTok app in the U.S." But clinching a deal - potentially worth billions of dollars and a lightning rod for crumbling U.S-China relations - that will satisfy all parties will be a tall order. A forced deal under Washingtons shotgun could open up for endless litigations if it should result (in) an unfavorable outcome to existing private shareholders," said Fred Hu, chairman of Primavera Capital Group, an investor in ByteDance and one of Chinas best known private equity groups. Hu said Microsoft was a credible buyer but questioned how selling large parts of TikToks operations at such an early stage of its growth could ever be a good deal for ByteDance. It absolutely makes no sense. Bytedance is an innocent victim of the mad politics and mad geopolitics. It is a sad outcome for Bytedance, for entrepreneurial capitalism, and for the future of global commerce," he said. Tech bankers in Asia said investment banks working on the deal would have to be careful not to antagonize Trump. This is not a standard M&A situationthis is hard to predict," said one senior banker with a U.S bank in Hong Kong, saying that it would be a question of how to structure a deal in a way that would keep Washington happy. Zhangs letter to staff also said ByteDance did not agree with the stance taken by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which scrutinizes deals for national security risks, that it must fully divest TikToks U.S. operations. We disagree with this CFIUS conclusion," the letter said but added: we understand the decision in the current macro environment." ByteDance did not respond to Reuters requests for comment. The Chinese government declined to comment specifically on the Washingtons move to force a sale of TikToks U.S. operations. The United States has been stretching the concept of national security", presuming that companies are guilty without evidence, Chinas foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a briefing after being asked about U.S. actions against Chinese software companies. The topic ByteDance has agreed to divest TikToks U.S. operations" was one of the most discussed subjects on Chinas Twitter-like Weibo platform on Monday, with over 920 million views. Some commentators criticized ByteDance, saying it has not shown as much backbone as Huawei Technologies [HWT.UL], also in the crosshairs of U.S.-China tensions and now on a U.S. trade blacklist. (ByteDance) kneeled down so fast that it didnt even wait for the Chinese government to retaliate," said one comment that was liked over 5,000 times. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor CHICO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 3, 2020 / AmeraMex International, Inc. (OTCQB:AMMX), a provider of heavy equipment for logistics companies, infrastructure construction and forestry conservation, announced that it has received and order totaling $50,000. A Taylor Forklift was converted into a hay squeeze for a commercial farmer in California. A hay squeeze is a cross between a forklift and a semi-truck. It can lift several bales of hay and transport them down a highway. The converted forklift will ship this month. AmeraMex CEO Lee Hamre will be hosting the Company's second quarter conference call scheduled its 2020 second quarter conference call, on Monday, August 10 at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time, 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The conference call dial-in number for both U.S. and international callers is 1.201.689.8560. Please dial in to the conference center five minutes before the call begins and ask the operator for the AmeraMex conference call. An audio replay of the call will be available from August 10, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time until August 24, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. The replay is accessible by dialing 1.412.317.6671 and entering pin number 13707920. About AmeraMex International AmeraMex International sells, leases and rents heavy equipment to companies within multiple industries including construction, logistics, mining, and lumber. AmeraMex, with a US and international customer base, has over 30 years of experience in heavy equipment sales and service. Follow AmeraMex on Twitter @ammx_intl and visit the AmeraMex website, www.AMMX.net or www.hamreequipment.com for additional corporate information, online heavy equipment inventory/ pricing and videos. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical facts included in this press release are forward-looking statements. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "plan," "potential," "continue" or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements include risks and uncertainties, and there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Investors are encouraged to review the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Investors should not place any undue reliance on forward-looking statements since they involve known and unknown, uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond the Company's control which could, and likely will, materially affect actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. Any forward-looking statement reflects the Company's current views with respect to future events and is subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to operations, results of operations, growth strategy and liquidity. The Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future. Story continues Investor and Media Relations McCloud Communications, LLC Marty Tullio, Managing Member Office: 949.632.1900 or Marty@McCloudCommunications.com SOURCE: AmeraMex International, Inc. View source version on accesswire.com: https://www.accesswire.com/599997/AmeraMex-International-Receives-50000-Equipment-Order Handout File photo dated 12/04/2000 of Former South African President Nelson Mandela meeting John Hume at the South African Embassy in Dublin Photo: PA Wire File photo dated 24/08/2014 of John Hume and his wife Pat, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. PA Photo.Photo: Niall Carson/PA Wire File photo dated 19/10/2000 of the Dalai Lama (left) meeting with fellow Nobel peace laureate John Hume, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. Photo: Martin McCullough/PA Wire Bill Clinton in front of the Guildhall with former SDLP leader John Hume and his wife Pat. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. SDLP leader John Hume with his wife Pat speak to the media after he and David Trimble won the Nobel Peace Prize (PA) Former SDLP leader John Hume and Bill Clinton pictured in front of the Guildhall. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim The SDLP team led by leader John Hume arrives at Stormont in 1999 to start the process of selecting ministers for the devolved government John Hume and his wife Pat at the Foyle Arts Centre in Londonderry after hearing that he and David Trimble were to share the Nobel Peace Prize U2 star Bono is flanked by David Trimble and John Hume on stage during a special concert in Belfast to promote the Yes vote in the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement (Chris Bacon/PA) Bertie Ahern and John Hume as they took part in a press conference on the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in Belfast. Picture Charles McQuillan/Pacemaker. John Hume in thoughtful mood at the SDLP party conference in Newcastle in 1979 John Hume is detained by soldiers during a civil rights protest in Londonderry in August 1971. John Hume is carried aloft through Londonderry city centre after being returned as MP for Foyle in 1987 First Minister Arlene Foster had led the tributes to former SDLP leader John Hume who died on Monday. Offering her condolences to Mr Hume's wife Pat, Mrs Foster said the former Nobel laureate was a "giant in Irish nationalism". She also paid tribute to Mr Hume's work as an MP, MEP and liaison with American politicians. "John left his unique mark in the House of Commons, Brussels and Washington," Mrs Foster said. "In our darkest days he recognised that violence was the wrong path and worked steadfastly to promote democratic politics." Read More Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill described Mr Hume as a "huge political figure in our society for many decades". "A leader who took risks that ultimately helped bring about peace, he will be sadly missed," the Sinn Fein vice-President said. "He was a leader who worked tirelessly for the community and his beloved Derry. "His work alongside Gerry Adams in the Hume-Adams talks were instrumental in creating the space for developing and progressing the peace process which led to the Good Friday Agreement." Former Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams praised Mr Hume for having the courage to speak to him, a move which brought widespread criticism. "Johns agreement to examine the potential of building an alternative to conflict was the mark of a political leader genuinely prepared to look at the bigger picture and to put the wider interests of society above narrow party politics," Mr Adams said. Over the many years of private conversation I got to know John well and we came to trust and respect each others opinions, and to accept that our common objective was to end conflict on the island of Ireland and create the conditions for a lasting peace with justice. John was very down to earth and easy to talk to. Our conversations were never combative. He listened attentively to my opinions while ably arguing his own views when we disagreed. I have many happy memories of my engagements with John. The Good Friday Agreement in 1998 twelve years after we first met was a landmark moment for both of us. But one of my favourite memories is of John and I standing in the White House during St Patricks Day celebrations in March 1995 singing the The town I loved so well to an appreciative and much bemused Irish-American audience. Johns contribution to Irish politics cannot be underestimated. When others talked endlessly about peace John grasped the challenge and helped make peace happen." Sinn Fein President Mary Lou McDonald said that Mr Hume was a "towering figure in Irish politics, who took decisions that were not popular in his own ranks in the pursuit of peace". "John leaves a lasting legacy and the international and national esteem in which he is held is immense," she said. Expand Close Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams (left) and SDLP leader John Hume (Chris Bacon/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams (left) and SDLP leader John Hume (Chris Bacon/PA) Former Ulster Unionist leader Lord Trimble, who was jointly awarded the Nobel peace prize along with Mr Hume, said he had always urged people to follow the peaceful path. He recalled an incident after the Nobel prize ceremony in Oslo when the hotel the SDLP and UUP were staying in suggested they relaxed in two separate rooms. "We didn't do that, we relaxed and in some sense celebrated the occasion jointly, and that for me spelt out the principle for how we were going to proceed in the years after that," he told BBC Radio Ulster's Nolan Show. "I will remember a lot of things about John, things that we did together, positions that we took, not always in agreement with each other, there was disagreement as well. "He was a major contributor to politics in Northern Ireland and particularly to the process that gave us an agreement that we are still working our way through. "That's hugely important and that's something that he will be remembered for in years to come." Expand Close John Hume with David Trimble (PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume with David Trimble (PA) President of Ireland Michael D Higgins said news of Mr Hume's death would sadden everyone who worked for peace in Northern Ireland. "John Hume, through his words, his astute diplomacy and willingness to listen to what was often difficult to accept but was the view of the Other, transformed and remodeled politics in Ireland, and the search for peace, with a personal bravery and leadership, and with a steadfast informed by a steadfast belief in the principles and values of genuine democracy," he said. "As President of Ireland, may I say how deeply grateful we all should be that we had such a person as John Hume to create a light of hope in the most difficult of times." Taoiseach Micheal Martin said it was "impossible to properly express the scale and significance of John Humes life.". "He was one of the towering figures of Irish public life of the last century. His vision and tenacity saved this country. We owe him and his wife Pat so much," the Fianna Fail leader said. Expand Close John Hume photographed in Derry for his 25th year in politics celebration. / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume photographed in Derry for his 25th year in politics celebration. UUP leader Steve Aiken said even Mr Hume's political opponents would have to admit his contribution to life in Northern Ireland was "unarguable". Throughout the long dark decades of the Troubles, John Hume consistently offered constitutionalism nationalism, a peaceful alternative to the violent republicanism of the IRA, which he recognised was utterly futile," the South Antrim MLA said. Mr Aiken paid tribute to Mr Hume's work alongside former UUP leader David Trimble in delivering the Good Friday Agreement. His efforts were rightly recognised with the award of the Nobel Peace Prize along with David Trimble. John Hume commanded respect in Washington, Dublin, London and Brussels, and in his long political career he was elected to Stormont, Westminster and the European Parliament," he said. Green Party leader Claire Bailey said that Mr Hume "made a huge contribution to our peace process and showed remarkable bravery at a time when violence was ripping through our communities". The Irish League of Credit Unions also paid tribute to its former president. "John Hume's sense of social justice, compassion for ordinary people, and his belief in the strength of the cooperative movement was, and is, an inspiration to everyone involved in the credit union movement on the island of Ireland today," a statement read. MOORESTOWN, N.J., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- McLean Packaging, a turnkey provider of rigid set boxes, folding cartons, corrugated displays, and thermoformed packaging solutions with emphasis on the beauty and personal care sectors, has contracted with national energy advisory firm 5 and ENGIE Resources LLC on a five-year energy agreement that supports the development of renewables. The deal supports McLean's zero-carbon transition and sustainability goals, which include sourcing 100% of its electricity from renewable resources. McLean Packaging's manufacturing footprint is robust the company has three production facilities across New Jersey and Pennsylvania totaling nearly half a million square feet making its commitment to 100% green energy substantial. McLean utilizes a lengthy lineup of sophisticated equipment including industrial printing presses, folder/gluers, thermoformers, rigid box converters, and more to meet its growing demands for concept-to-completion packaging solutions for customers in the beauty, personal care, confectionary, and other sectors. McLean's usage will be 100% matched by Green-e certified Renewable Energy Credits (RECs), as determined by the Center for Resource Solutions. The independently verified credits play a critical role in making green power possible for electricity consumers nationwide, by providing revenue to support new projects. The RECs in this agreement include offshore wind credits, representing environmental benefits equal to removing more than 6,500 gasoline-powered passenger cars from U.S. roads. "From installing more than 75,000 solar panels to utilizing paper products certified by the Forest Stewardship Council and Sustainable Forest Initiative, sustainability has been at the forefront of McLean Packaging's operations for years," said Jeff Besnick, Vice President of McLean Packaging. "As consumers continue to demand products that espouse eco-friendliness, we are proud to play our part in providing packaging with as small a carbon footprint as possible from power sourcing to materials." McLean also is committing to a program of perpetual progress in sustainability via expert consulting. 5's team will continue to provide market intelligence, account management services, and ongoing analysis to support McLean Packaging's commitment to environmental stewardship and energy cost control. ENGIE Resources brings a successful history of assisting clients in meeting sustainability goals through the use of clean, affordable, innovative, and resilient energy solutions. About McLean Packaging Established in 1961, McLean Packaging is a turnkey provider of packaging solutions for the beauty, personal care, confectionary, and other sectors. Comprising over 200 employees across three facilities totaling nearly 500,000 square feet, the company specializes in rigid set boxes, folding cartons, corrugated displays, and thermoformed solutions. Unlike many packaging solutions suppliers, McLean's continued investment in gluing, printing, and other ancillary infrastructure allows it to create packages entirely within its own organization a differentiator that yields efficiency, consistency, and streamlined customer collaboration. McLean Packaging is headquartered in Moorestown, NJ, with additional production facilities in Pennsauken, NJ and Nazareth, PA. For more information, visit www.McLeanPackaging.com. About 5 Founded in 2011, 5 comprises a team of energy innovators, commodity traders, analysts, engineers and former energy supplier executives. Together they serve a broad array of private and public sector clients throughout the United States and Mexico, providing strategic advice on energy-related matters including procurement, rate optimization, risk management, demand-side management, renewable power, and distributed generation. With an eye on growth, 5 has initiated a number of strategic acquisitions and partnerships and has been named to the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies in the U.S. for four consecutive years. The firm has also received numerous accolades and national awards for its corporate culture, leadership and innovation. For more information, please visit www.energyby5.com or call (972) 445-9584. Follow 5 on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. About ENGIE Resources ENGIE Resources LLC is a subsidiary of ENGIE North America Inc. and part of the international energy group ENGIE. As a leading electricity supplier to non-residential consumers in the United States, we deliver a combination of products and services, highly rated customer service, and financial strength that provides unique and compelling value to our customers. Now offering solar and other renewable energy options, demand response, and on-bill financing, we assure our customers that they can count on us to create effective, customized plans. Our in-house energy experts work with customers to understand their operations, tailoring products and services specific to their business and budget. For more about ENGIE Resources, visit www.engieresources.com. Follow ENGIE Resources on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. SOURCE McLean Packaging Related Links http://www.mcleanpackaging.com Just in time for peak-of-summer refreshment, Coca-Cola North America is introducing to some of its biggest fans, an exclusive first sip of its top innovation of 2021 - Coca-Cola With Coffee. The Coca-Cola Company announced in a press release today that Coca-Cola With Coffee will officially hit ready-to-drink coffee aisles nationwide in January 2021. The announcement said the new drink fuses the familiar, authentic taste of Coca-Cola with the rich, luxurious flavor of 100% Brazilian coffee. It will come in three signature flavors - Dark Blend, Vanilla and Caramel - and will be offered in 12-oz. cans, with 69 mg. of caffeine per 12-oz. serving. This is a truly unique hybrid innovation that will pioneer a new category were calling refreshment coffee, said Jaideep Kibe, vice president, Coca-Cola Trademark, Coca-Cola North America, who said the beverage is one of the companys most successfully tested innovations in recent years. Coca-Cola With Coffee is a product that is meant to be tried, he added. Because when you take that first sip, you realize theres nothing quite like it... It sips like a Coke and finishes like a coffee. How does one get an exclusive first sip before the official launch? Members of the companys beverage subscription service, the Coca-Cola Insiders Club, will be given the exclusive opportunity to get a sneak preview before the drinks official launch. The service, which launched in December 2019, is giving 2,000 Insiders the chance to sign up to receive some of Cokes newest drinks and surprise swag. How has the product been marketed? The companys announcement said the product was first piloted in 2018 in Japan. Currently its available in more than 30 markets around the world, including Australia, Brazil, Vietnam, Turkey and Italy, with each Coca-Cola With Coffee recipe and packaging mix tailored to meet local tastes. Using a lift and shift strategy, the company scales successful beverage innovations from market to market via an experimental, test-and-learn approach. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for us to be more disciplined in how we launch, validate, refine and scale up big bets like this, said Javier Meza, chief marketing officer for The Coca-Cola Companys sparkling beverage portfolio. Were excited to bring Coca-Cola With Coffee to the United States and apply learnings from so many markets that have gotten us to where we are today. In preliminary consumer testing, more than 80% of consumers who tried Coca-Cola With Coffee said they would buy it, Kibe said in the announcement. And in presentations with several of our major retailers and grocery chains, our customers would take a sip and immediately ask, When can we have this? This latest launch by Coca-Cola follows the recent rollouts of Coke Energy/Coke Energy Cherry, Cherry Vanilla Coke, Orange Vanilla Coke (and their zero-sugar counterparts). Peoples taste preferences and lifestyles are changing, so were evolving our portfolio to meet those needs, Meza said in the announcement. As a total beverage company, we are constantly listening to consumers and looking for ways to innovate and bring people more of the beverages they want. 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. Mark Kelly A service to help people facing challenges securing a job started in Warkworth last month. New Zealands largest free employment service, Workbridge, now has consultants available in the Warkworth Town Hall every Wednesday from 10am to 3pm. Consultant Mark Kelly says Workbridge can assist jobseekers who face specific barriers to employment such as those suffering from depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipoloar disorder or any kind of physical disability. Jobseekers must be aged between 16 and 64, not currently employed and be New Zealand citizens. Mr Kelly says Workbridge decided to come to Warkworth because of growth in the area and the fact that there is no other comparable service. Consultants can help clients with practicalities such as CV preparation, dressing appropriately for interviews and conducting mock interviews to build confidence. The aim is for them to have more confidence and interview as well as someone who does not have a challenge or barrier to employment, Mr Kelly says. Once a client has secured a job, Workbridge, which is funded by the Ministry of Social Development, provides 12 months of ongoing support phoning clients regularly to check how things are working out. Clients wishing to use the service are encouraged to register and make an appointment. This can be done by Freephone 0508 858 858 or online at workbridge.co.nz. Q. I am a social worker at a state facility for people with developmental disabilities. Most of the men I work with function at about 12 to 14 years of age. Im working with a gentleman who makes minimum wage and works six hours a day. He cant have more than $1,800 in the bank or he will not be eligible for health benefits, so he has to spend his money otherwise the state will take it. Im trying to find something he can buy that will still have value. He cant buy gold and he could buy a watch, but not more than one. Trying to help A. Were not sure if you have all the facts right here. Assuming youre talking about Medicaid eligibility, he is permitted to have non-countable assets not exceeding $2,000, said Shirley Whitenack, an estate planning attorney with Schenck, Price, Smith & King in Florham Park. If the gentleman manifested his disabilities prior to the age of 26, he can be the owner of an ABLE account, which is a tax-advantaged savings account for an individual with disabilities authorized by the enactment of the Stephen Beck Jr. Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2014, also known as the ABLE Act, she said. Such an account can be funded with up to $15,000 in 2020, she said. Employees who are not participating in employer retirement plans can make an additional contribution up to the lesser of the employees compensation for the tax year or $12,490 in 2020, Whitenack said. Assets in the account are excluded from Medicaid resource limits and balances of less than $100,000 are excluded from SSI asset limits, she said. The assets in an ABLE account can be used for Qualified Disability Expenses, which are any expenses that are related to the account owners disability that assists him or her in maintaining his or her health, independence or quality of life. Email your questions to Ask@NJMoneyHelp.com. Karin Price Mueller writes the Bamboozled column for NJ Advance Media and is the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com. Follow NJMoneyHelp on Twitter @NJMoneyHelp. Find NJMoneyHelp on Facebook. Sign up for NJMoneyHelp.coms weekly e-newsletter. Please register or log in to keep reading. No credit card required! Stay logged in to skip the surveys. In 1845, Congress set a national date for the election the Tuesday after the first Monday in November and that is when it has been ever since. In theory, Congress could choose to change this date, as well as the date set for the Electoral College to choose the president. But it is unimaginable that the House of Representatives would pass such a bill this year and I doubt even the Republican-controlled Senate would agree to such an unprecedented effort to manipulate the electoral process. Iran may have lied about its coronavirus death toll, with almost triple the number of people dying during the pandemic than reported. The Government's own records show almost 42,000 people had died of Covid-19 by July 20, compared to the 14,405 reported by the health ministry. And cases had reached 451,024 not the 278,827 officially reported by July 20. The stark numbers come from an anonymous source who leaked official documents to the BBC to 'shed light' on the truth. It shows that the first Covid-19 death was on January 22, almost a month before the first case was officially reported on February 19. Alongside China, Iran has previously been accused of fiddling its numbers to cover up the true scale of its coronavirus crisis. Although the number of cases had reportedly dipped since March, Iran has seen a surge in cases over the last few weeks. Yesterday health chiefs in the nation in the Middle East recorded 2,600 cases the highest daily toll for almost a month. The Iranian government's own records show almost 42,000 people had died of the coronavirus by July 20 against the 14,405 reported by the health ministry. The leaked data shows that cases and deaths rose at the same rate reported by the health ministry at the time The stark numbers come from an anonymous source who leaked official documents to the BBC to 'shed light' on the truth. Pictured: Muslims perform Eid al-Adha prayer in the capital Tehran on July 31 Iran has still been the worst-hit country in the Middle East during the coronavirus pandemic, based on its health ministry's data. It says there have been a total of 309,437 cases and 17,190 fatalities since Covid-19 first arrived in February. It suggests Iran has the 10th highest death toll, and the 26th highest death toll per million people. But Iran would shoot up to one of the worst five countries hit by the coronavirus, if the leaked data is proven to be true. Iranian doctors had reportedly been warning of Covid-19 as early as December 2019, when the coronavirus was first discovered in China. RECORD COVID-19 FIGURES REPORTED IN IRAN Iran is the country hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic in the Middle East, and Covid-19 infections and deaths have risen sharply since restrictions on movement began to be eased in mid-April. Health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari said on Sunday that 2,685 more people had tested positive for Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, the country's highest single-day count since July 8. According to Lari, the situation is 'concerning' in 25 out of Iran's 31 provinces. 'Sadly, since late June, daily infections have been on a rising trajectory' in Qom in central Iran, she said. 'We are concerned that trivialising the situation and lax observance of health protocols may lead to a worsening of the outbreak in the province.' Lari warned against travel to Mazandaran, a popular northern tourist resort at the vanguard of the outbreak where daily infections had more than quadrupled in the past six weeks. Official figures show a marked increase in deaths and infections since the end of June. Iran registered a record 235 deaths from the new coronavirus in the 24 hours up until Tuesday, July 28. President Hassan Rouhani urged Iranians last month to observe health protocols and practise social distancing during Muslim festivities which occurred last weekend. Advertisement It wasn't until February 19 when two cases were reported in Qom, a holy city in the north. Both were believed to been related to travel to China. According to the BBC, government documents shows the first Covid-19 death in the country was recorded on January 22. By the time officials had acknowledged the first two cases of the coronavirus, leaked data shows 52 people had already died. Tehran, the capital, has the highest number of deaths. Some 8,120 people have died after testing positive for the disease or having similar symptoms. For comparison, data from the health ministry says there have only been 5,000 cases diagnosed in the capital which is home to 8.7million people. The city of Qom 90 miles (145km) south-west of Tehran has been hit worse proportionally, with 1,419 deaths one Covid-19 death for every 1,000 people. The leaked data shows that cases and deaths rose at the same rate reported by the health ministry at the time. But the initial rise of deaths is far steeper than health ministry figures and by mid-March it was five times what was reported. The health ministry has said that the country's reports to the World Health Organization are 'transparent' and 'far from any deviations'. The source that sent the data to the BBC said they shared it in order to 'shed light on truth' and to end 'political games' over the epidemic. It includes details of daily admissions to hospitals across Iran, including names, age, gender, symptoms, date and length of periods spent in hospital, and underlying conditions patients might have. The huge gap in the figures suggests the Iranian government attempted to deliberately cover up the true size of the crisis, as opposed to there being a slight level of inaccurate counting seen in many countries. For example in the UK, there are doubts over the government's death tally of 46,201 because of the way deaths are counted, which is currently under investigation. But the total is thought to be inflated only by around 1,000. There have also been regular claims that China has not been transparent about exactly how bad the Covid-19 outbreak was there, which experts say influenced other countries. The health ministry has said that the country's reports to the World Health Organization are 'transparent' and 'far from any deviations'. Pictured, Muslims perform Eid al-Adha prayer Imamzadeh Panj Tan Tomb despite the announcement of the government banning the mass prayers due to coronavirus in Tehran on July 31 The source that sent the data to the BBC said they shared it in order to 'shed light on truth' and to end 'political games' over the epidemic. Pictured: A Muslim praying in Tehran, July 31 CHINA'S DEATH TOLL MAY BE 14 TIMES HIGHER A study claimed China's real coronavirus death toll could be 14 times higher than official statistics show. US researchers suggested China covered up the true size of its epidemic and used the activity of crematoriums in Wuhan to try and calculate accurate numbers. They found the city which is where the pandemic began in December may have been burning between 800 and 2,000 bodies every day by the second week of February, when the official death toll for the whole of China was only around 700. Reports of 86 Wuhan crematoriums operating 24 hours a day at full capacity raises suspicion that the number of people dying was more than just hundreds, they said. Funeral homes were also buying thousands of urns for ashes and the study suggests that, by March 23 when the UK went into lockdown around 36,000 people had died in Wuhan alone. The official number for all China at the time was 2,524. The study of crematorium operations in Wuhan was done by experts at the University of Washington, Ohio State University and US communications company AT&T. It was led by Dr Mai He, a pathologist at Washington, and was based mostly on media reports rather than scientific data. The study - published on medRxiv - was not reviewed by other scientists or published in a peer-reviewed journal, meaning experts haven't pointed out flaws in the methodology for Dr He and colleagues to amend. Advertisement China has reported relatively low numbers of cases and deaths 84,428 and 4,634 despite the virus emerging there weeks before it did in any other country and months before the crisis really hit Europe and America. The Chinese city of Wuhan was where the virus first took hold back in December, but since then various aspects of Beijing's information has been questioned and even discredited. One study suggested the true death toll was 14 times higher based on activity at crematoriums. Since the outbreak of the virus in Iran, many observers have expressed concern about the official numbers including political groups and doctors working on the front line. In the early days of the pandemic, anonymous physicians who spoke with the New York Times said they believed the first case of Covid in Iran was in December, in the city of Gorgan. They said in the coming weeks as the cases mounted and many of the patients started dying, hospital officials told staff 'to keep quiet'. And by the time the first cases were reported, there were 'hundreds' of ill patients in the hospital in Gorgan, and so many deaths 'that a local cemetery hired a backhoe to dig graves'. Doctors have told the BBC that the Iranian health ministry has been under pressure from security and intelligence bodies inside Iran to suppress numbers. Dr Pouladi, a pseudonym, said the ministry 'was in denial' and that the position of the security services 'was not to admit to the existence of coronavirus in Iran'. He added: 'Initially they did not have testing kits and when they got them, they weren't used widely enough.' It is believed officials downplayed the size of the outbreak in fear it would reduce the turnout to election vote on February 21. Dr Nouroldin Pirmoazzen, a former member of Iran's parliament who also was an official at the health ministry, said the Iranian government was 'anxious and fearful of the truth' when coronavirus hit Iran. He said: 'The government was afraid that the poor and the unemployed would take to the streets.' The country had already been battling difficult times before Covid-19 arrived, including that Iranian armed forces mistakenly fired missiles at a Ukrainian airliner only minutes after it had taken off from Tehran's international airport. All 176 people on board were killed, which didn't come to light for three days because authorities tried to cover it up. Data which has now been thrown into question suggests that Covid-19 cases reached their lowest by mid-May, but 800 people were still being diagnosed every day. Iran started to relax its restrictions in mid-April after the number of infections declined. A new peak of cases was reported on 4 June (3,574) and the country has struggled to drive infections down since then. Health ministry spokesman Sima Sadat Lari confirmed on Sunday that since late June daily infections have been on a 'rising trajectory'. Iran's chief epidemiologist at the country's health ministry, Mohammad-Mehdi Gouya, claimed the main reason for the rising numbers is because increased testing was identifying more people who have only mild symptoms. Many investors are still learning about the various metrics that can be useful when analysing a stock. This article is for those who would like to learn about Return On Equity (ROE). By way of learning-by-doing, we'll look at ROE to gain a better understanding of Boston Properties, Inc. (NYSE:BXP). Return on equity or ROE is a key measure used to assess how efficiently a company's management is utilizing the company's capital. In simpler terms, it measures the profitability of a company in relation to shareholder's equity. View our latest analysis for Boston Properties How Is ROE Calculated? The formula for ROE is: Return on Equity = Net Profit (from continuing operations) Shareholders' Equity So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Boston Properties is: 14% = US$1.2b US$8.5b (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2020). The 'return' is the income the business earned over the last year. So, this means that for every $1 of its shareholder's investments, the company generates a profit of $0.14. Does Boston Properties Have A Good Return On Equity? Arguably the easiest way to assess company's ROE is to compare it with the average in its industry. However, this method is only useful as a rough check, because companies do differ quite a bit within the same industry classification. As you can see in the graphic below, Boston Properties has a higher ROE than the average (5.4%) in the REITs industry. roe That is a good sign. Bear in mind, a high ROE doesn't always mean superior financial performance. Aside from changes in net income, a high ROE can also be the outcome of high debt relative to equity, which indicates risk. To know the 3 risks we have identified for Boston Properties visit our risks dashboard for free. Why You Should Consider Debt When Looking At ROE Most companies need money -- from somewhere -- to grow their profits. That cash can come from issuing shares, retained earnings, or debt. In the first two cases, the ROE will capture this use of capital to grow. In the latter case, the use of debt will improve the returns, but will not change the equity. Thus the use of debt can improve ROE, albeit along with extra risk in the case of stormy weather, metaphorically speaking. Story continues Combining Boston Properties' Debt And Its 14% Return On Equity Boston Properties does use a high amount of debt to increase returns. It has a debt to equity ratio of 1.53. While its ROE is pretty respectable, the amount of debt the company is carrying currently is not ideal. Debt does bring extra risk, so it's only really worthwhile when a company generates some decent returns from it. Summary Return on equity is one way we can compare its business quality of different companies. Companies that can achieve high returns on equity without too much debt are generally of good quality. If two companies have around the same level of debt to equity, and one has a higher ROE, I'd generally prefer the one with higher ROE. But ROE is just one piece of a bigger puzzle, since high quality businesses often trade on high multiples of earnings. Profit growth rates, versus the expectations reflected in the price of the stock, are a particularly important to consider. So you might want to check this FREE visualization of analyst forecasts for the company. If you would prefer 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. 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com. Sumi Sukanya Dutta By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has allowed the Serum Institute of India (SII) to conduct phase 2 and 3 human clinical trials of a potential Covid-19 vaccine developed by the Oxford University, UK, the Centre said on Monday. The SII has a manufacturing partnership with AstraZeneca which has got the licence for the vaccine. The experimental vaccine AZD1222, produced promising immune response in early-stage clinical trials, the Lancet announced two weeks ago, raising hopes that it could be available for public use by the end of the year. Sources said that on Sunday evening, the subject expert committee of the Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation green-signalled the trial after evaluating it thoroughly. As per the study design, each subject will be administered two doses of the vaccine 4 weeks apart (first dose on day 1 and the second dose on day 28) following which the safety and immunogenicity will be assessed at predefined intervals, sources said. They added that the biotechnology firm has to submit safety data, evaluated by the Data Safety Monitoring Board to the regulator before it can proceed to phase-3 of the clinical trial. Currently, phase 2, 3 clinical trials of the vaccine candidate developed by Oxford University is on in the United Kingdom and phase 3 clinical trial for the same vaccine candidate has started in Brazil. In South Africa, the vaccine is being assessed in phase 1 and 2 trials. This particular vaccine candidate uses a common cold virus or adenovirus, which has been weakened so that it cant cause any disease in humans, and is genetically modified to code for the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virusthe pathogen that causes Covid-19. The trial of the vaccine in India has been dubbed as especially significant as it is still unclear whether and how the different pre-existing immunity levels to the carrier adenovirus might impact the response to the vaccine. Lord & Taylor, known for its upscale fashions and extravagant holiday window displays, sought bankruptcy protection from creditors after a turnaround effort faltered amid the coronavirus pandemic. The oldest U.S. department store filed for Chapter 11 protection in Richmond, Virginia, on Sunday and will submit a reorganization plan with the court. The company, founded in Manhattan by two English immigrants in 1826, said it had about $137.9 million of debt obligations. Lord & Taylor's owner, fashion start-up Le Tote Inc., filed for Chapter 11 along with the retail chain. Le Tote bought the rights to the company's stores, brand and e-commerce site from Saks Fifth Avenue owner Hudson's Bay Co. for $71 million last year.The company, with 38 stores and 651 employees as of the filing, joins a burgeoning list of department-store casualties tied to the virus, which turned malls into ghost towns. Former fashion stalwarts like J. Crew Group and Neiman Marcus already filed for bankruptcy protection this year. Lord & Taylor closed all of its stores temporarily in March as governors ordered residents to shelter in place to combat the spreading virus. In court filings, company officials said they are slowly starting to reopen some stores and have recalled 400 employees. San Francisco-based Le Tote offers fashion-apparel rentals. Executives at the company have planned to cut the number of Lord & Taylor stores and target younger women with luxury try-on studios, beauty subscriptions and rental drop-off points.Under the deal with Hudson's Bay, the seller agreed to cover Lord & Taylor's rent for three years, saving Le Tote $58 million annually. Le Tote said in a court filing Sunday that its companies reported revenue of about $253.5 million in 2019. The economic body blows wrought by the Covid-19 pandemic pushed Le Tote into putting Lord & Taylor into Chapter 11, Ed Kremer, the company's chief restructuring officer, said Monday in court filings. Le Tote officials were grappling with "carrying the increased expenses associated with the acquisition, as well as the brick-and-mortar assets which were unusable for a substantial period of time," Kremer said in the filings. "These unprecedented market developments, compounded by lower-than-expected financial results, adversely impacted liquidity" and left the retailer drowning in debt, he added. Le Total officials cut a deal with lenders to allow them access to cash to fund an effort to sell the company and "maximize value for all stakeholders," Kremer added. The case is Le Tote Inc., 20-33332, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of Virginia (Richmond). Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 16:59:15|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- China's commerce ministry said Monday that it has started an anti-dumping investigation into polyphenylene ether imports from the United States. The probe was launched following a request by a domestic company, the Nantong Xingchen Synthetic Material Co. Ltd., on behalf of domestic producers of polyphenylene ether, the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement on its website. Polyphenylene ether is a polymer with good heat resistance, dimensional stability and mechanical properties. It is used in photovoltaic, electronics and automobile industries. The investigation is expected to end before August 3, 2021, but may be extended until February 3, 2022, the statement said. Enditem (Natural News) After the Wuhan coronavirus, central China is now facing its worst flooding season in thirty years as torrential rain on Sunday triggered the third flood peak of the Yangtze, the longest river in Asia and the countrys most important waterway. This years flooding has already affected 45 million people and caused 86 billion yuan ($12.3 billion) in economic losses, with authorities warning of more flood peaks soon. On Tuesday, July 28, water levels in the famous port city of Yueyang rose above the alert level. This means that an embankment breach could happen anytime soon, according to local officials. Dongting Lake, which borders the city and also serves as a flood basin for the Yangtze, has been above the alert stage for days. Similar alerts have been raised in Poyang Lake, the countrys largest freshwater lake located in the rivers drainage area, and the Huai River, a major tributary of the Yangtze. Despite being hard hit by heavy flooding since June this year, Beijings top officials have yet to visit the disaster areas. The Water Resources Ministry, in a statement, said that flood control and flood fighting situation is severe. Flooding came early This year, the monsoon season started earlier than normal in China, with intense rain and severe flooding battering the region since early June. Aside from the early monsoon season, state weather experts also reported heavier rainfall this year, an increase of 20 percent since 1961. Currently, the water levels of 433 rivers in the Yangtze flood basin are all above the flood control line, with 33 reaching record highs. On July 29, local officials warned that heavy rain could spark heavy flooding by the Huai, Yellow and Songhuajiang rivers. In particular, those living in the drainage areas of the Yellow and Huai rivers were asked to make emergency preparations in case of a disaster. According to an Epoch Times report, locals in towns in low-lying areas have been inundated, as officials discharge excess rainwater to protect cities. Often, these are done without giving residents advance notice, and further complicates efforts to determine actual damages and loss of life. In response, the Ministry of Emergency Management the state agency leading the disaster response had advised local governments in the region to ensure the safety of local dams, as [these] face the perils of landslides, caving in, water rushing out of pipes, and collapse. The agency also called for officials to arrange for people to patrol the dams 24 hours a day. Massive dams usefulness in question The punishing floods also raise questions about the efficiency of the Three Gorges Dam, the massive and controversial project designed to help tame the Yangtze. In the middle of the heaviest rainfall on record, officials have said that the worlds biggest hydroelectric plant has reduced flood peaks, deaths and evacuations, all of which helped boost the economy in the region. With the structure itself under scrutiny for being at risk of collapse, critics say that the dam isnt doing what its supposed to do. (Related: Is Chinas Three Gorges Dam, with many nuclear plants below it, about to crumble?) One of the major justifications for the Three Gorges Dam was flood control, but less than 20 years after its completion we have the highest floodwater in recorded history, explained David Shankman, a geography professor at the University of Alabama who studies Chinese floods. The fact is that it cannot prevent these severe events. Other critics, such as Chinese geologist Fan Xiao, expressed similar sentiments. The Three Gorges, in particular, can only partially intercept floods in the upper reaches, which arent prone to flooding to begin with. This makes it powerless to address flooding caused by rainfall in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze, he added. When people only consider using reservoirs to solve flood-control problems, they often overlook or even weaken the natural ability of rivers and their lakes to regulate floods. Sources include: TheEpochTimes.com HindustanTimes.com Multimedia.SCMP.com Reuters.com By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Suspended Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Tahir Hussain, an accused in Northeast Delhi communal riot cases, has allegedly admitted his role in the violence that took place in February. According to the interrogation report of the Delhi Police, Hussain has also admitted that he incited people to unleash violence. According to the report, Hussain said that he had met former JNU student Umar Khalid at Popular Front of India (PFI) office in Shaheen Bagh on January 8. According to Delhi Police report, the suspended AAP legislator was tasked to collect bottle, petrol, acid, and stones on the roof of his house. One of Hussain's acquaintance, Khalid Saifi was given the task to gather people on the streets for protest. "Khalid Saifi, along with his friend Ishrat Jahan, first started a dharna demonstration in Khureji on the lines of Shaheen Bagh. On February 4, in Abu Fazal Enclave, I met Khalid Saifi for planning the riots," Hussain has allegedly told the police during interrogation. Further interrogation has reportedly revealed that after meeting with Saifi, Hussain decided to provoke anti-CAA protesters. "On February 4, in Abu Fazal Enclave, I met Khalid Saifi for planning the riots. It was decided to provoke people sitting on the anti-CAA strike. Khalif Saifi said that something big has to be done at the time of Donald Trump's visit so that the government kneel," he allegedly told to the police. According to a chargesheet by Delhi Police, Hussain is one of the prime accused in the killing of IB staffer Ankit Sharma, whose body was recovered from a drain in Chand Bagh on February 26, during the violence in North East Delhi. "On February 24, according to our plan, I called several people and told them how to throw stones, petrol bombs, and acid bottles from my roof. I had shifted my family to another place. On 24 February 2020, at about 1:30 pm we started throwing stones," Hussain told the police, according to the report. A senior police official, privy to the probe, confirmed that Hussain had confessed his involvement in the riots. "Hussain's alleged role is registered in the police chargesheet. He has accepted his role in Northeast Delhi riots. Further investigation is going on," said the official. Satellite images compiled by Brazil's National Space Agency revealed on Saturday that there were 6,803 - a rise of 28 per cent, the BBC reported. Brasilia, Aug 2 (IANS) Official figures from Brazil have shown a big increase in the number of fires in the Amazon region in July compared with the same month last year, it was reported on Sunday. The latest figures raise concerns about a repeat of the huge wildfires that shocked the world in August and September last year. President Jair Bolsonaro has encouraged agricultural and mining activities in the Amazon. But under pressure from international investors in early July his government banned starting fires in the region. Bolsonaro has criticised Brazil's environmental enforcement agency, Ibama, for what he describes as excessive fines, and his first year in office saw a sharp drop in financial penalties being imposed for environmental violations. --IANS ksk/ Each rapid response team will consist of a doctor, a nurse, a nursing assistant and a driver, who will take them to the hotspot locations. Ayodhya, Aug 3 : The frontline leaders of the Ayodhya movement will not be present in the temple town on Wednesday when the much-awaited 'bhumi pujan' of the Ram temple takes place. While L.K. Advani and Dr Murli Manohar Joshi will attend the ceremony virtually, Uma Bharti has said that she would prefer to stay away from the function due to the pandemic. Swami Govind Giri said that these leaders were prone to the Covid-19 infection because of their age and it was in their larger interest that they do not attend the function physically. Reports said that former Chief Minister Kalyan Singh may also stay away from the 'bhumi pujan' ceremony for 'unexplained reasons'. A close aide of the former chief minister said that his office has not yet received the invitation from the Trust. Doubts about BJP leader Vinay Katiyar attending the ceremony also prevails as the leader did not confirm his presence at the ceremony. Latest updates on Ayodhya Ram Temple Bhumi Pujan (Natural News) A professor at the University of Arkansas (UA) was indicted by a federal grand jury in Arkansas on multiple charges of passport and wire fraud connected to his failure to disclose ties to China and Chinese companies. Malaysian-born Simon Saw-Teong Ang, 63, had been a professor and researcher at UA since 1988. In May, Ang was arrested on wire fraud charges and subsequently suspended from the university without pay. According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), Ang was indicted on 42 accounts of wire fraud and two counts of passport fraud. This is a hallmark of Chinas targeting of research and academic collaborations within the United States in order to obtain U.S. technology illegally, stated U.S. Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, in a press release issued by the DOJ on July 29. Ang failed to disclose payments from China while working with the university and federal agencies According to DOJ investigators, Ang had been receiving payments and other benefits from China while he was working as director of UAs High-Density Electronics Center. This was a position that would have required him to disclose any conflicts of interest or anything that might appear to be a conflict something he did not do. In addition to receiving payments from the Chinese government, Ang allegedly also held high-ranking positions in multiple Chinese companies. This was on top of actually being the part-owner of at least one, according to the federal indictment. Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) allege that Ang failed to disclose these conflicts not just to the university, but also to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the U.S. Air Force when he sent in research proposals to both. Beyond failing to disclose these conflicts of interest, however, Ang supposedly used his position to have researchers under his supervision conduct work on behalf of the Chinese companies that he was involved with. This was all while these researchers were being paid by the university and federal agencies. Should he be convicted, Ang faces up to 20 years in prison for each wire charge fraud and up to 10 years in prison for each count of passport fraud. Chinas Thousand Talents program strikes again Ang was recruited by China under its Thousand Talents program. In 2016, Ang had actually been recognized as a National Distinguished Expert under the program. On the surface, the program is supposedly meant to draw top scientists and experts from around the world to work on projects in China. Recently, however, it has drawn scrutiny from U.S. authorities who believe that its being used to facilitates the transfer of American intellectual property to China. Ang isnt the first university professor to be indicted for their involvement in the program this year. In June, a grand jury indicted Charles Lieber, former chair of Harvard Universitys department of chemistry. Like Ang, Lieber had also lied about his ties to China, denying his involvement in the program even as he continued to receive funding from the Department of Defense and the National Institutes of Health. During this time, Lieber allegedly abused his position at Harvard to enter into agreements with the Wuhan University of Technology (WUT). He had even helped establish a joint research lab at WUT using the Harvard name but without the latters consent. For this, he received a $1.5 million paycheck. On Tuesday, July 28, the DOJ announced new charges against Lieber. This time, he now faces two counts of failing to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts and two counts of subscribing a false income tax return. Both Lieber and Angs cases demonstrate the reach of the Thousand Talents program in attracting experts within U.S. academia into assisting China. That two well-established professors, both already holding significant positions, could be tempted by the promise of further accolades and financial compensation raises questions of whether other experts have been lured by it as well. Follow InvasionUSA.news for more on how China is trying to infiltrate American academia and steal its technology. Sources include: TheEpochTimes.com FoxNews.com 1 FoxNews.com 2 BEIJING, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Phoenix Tree Holdings Limited ("Danke" or the "Company") (NYSE: DNK), one of the largest co-living platforms in China with the fastest growth, introduced Danke Apartment 5.0, a new set of standardized interior design styles for its apartments that offer a more refined, stylish, functional, comfortable, safe, and eco-friendly living environment for residents. With the goal of providing a better home for each resident, new Danke apartments will follow the upgraded designs in terms of layout, furniture colors, and other interior details to meet the needs of residents for functionality, comfort, safety, and personalization. By incorporating suggestions collected from Danke residents, and continuing the characteristics of past design styles, Danke Apartment 5.0 provides six different interior design styles to offer residents more stylish and comfortable apartments. In terms of color, Danke Apartment 5.0 adopts the Morandi color palette in six subdued and muted color scheme options. The Morandi color palette originated with Italian painter Giorgio Morandi (1890-1964), who was famous for his still life paintings in subtle tonal colors. Danke selects different wallpaper colors to match the orientation of each apartment, to provide balanced and consistent lighting in every room, and to create a comfortable and calming space. For furniture and decorations, all items are chosen with the wall color palette in mind, to create a harmonious interior design. Danke's pursuit of living quality focuses on functionality. Addressing requests for larger storage space raised by residents in their feedback, the Danke Apartment 5.0 series incorporates many practical designs to maximize space. For example, the new design aims to create more storage space in bedrooms by adding additional shelves above wardrobes and desks. There is also a shared two-tier storage rack in the living room, to both rationally divide the common area and to meet each resident's storage needs in shared spaces. Moreover, grey curtains in bedrooms block external light and ensure a good night's sleep for residents. Safety and environmental protection are high priorities in Danke's design philosophy. All apartments feature wood-based panels with an E0 grade for formaldehyde emissions, which requires formaldehyde emissions of no more than 0.5 mg/L. It is one of the strictest formaldehyde emission standards both in China and internationally for wood-based panels. Selected apartments also adopt an intelligent ventilation system to further improve indoor air quality. Danke Apartment 5.0 also uses Stone Polymer Composite flooring, which is eco-friendly, sustainable, durable and waterproof. The material is sound absorbing, fire retardant, anti-slip, as well as moisture and mold resistant to achieve a safe and healthy environment. Furniture details such as softer beveled edges on tables and beds put resident safety first. By combining aesthetics and functionality, Danke Apartment 5.0 brings a more stylish, comfortable living environment, while enhancing the living quality and safety of Danke residents. Danke Apartment 5.0 will be applied to newly sourced apartments in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen. As a leading co-living platform in China, Danke pioneered an innovative ''new rental'' business model, which features centralization, standardization and an online experience to address the numerous pain points of both individual property owners and renters. Founded in 2015, Danke now operates in 13 major cities around the country and provides its young and well-educated residents with affordable, comfortable and stylish apartments. ABOUT DANKE Danke, one of the largest co-living platforms in China with the fastest growth, is redefining the residential rental market through technology and aims to help people live better. Empowered by data, technology, and a large-scale apartment network, Danke's vibrant and expanding ecosystem connects and benefits property owners, residents, and third-party service providers, and delivers quality and best-in-class services through an innovative "new rental" business model featuring centralization, standardization, and a seamless online experience. Danke was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in Beijing, China. For more information, please visit ir.danke.com. CONTACTS Danke PR Email: [email protected] Edmond Lococo ICR, Inc. Email: [email protected] Phone: +86 138-1079-1408 SOURCE Phoenix Tree Holdings Limited Related Links www.dankegongyu.com The government could be poised to seal off coronavirus-hit regions by imposing domestic travel bans, it emerged last night. The radical proposal is under discussion as Downing Street shakes up its crisis response in the wake of localised flare-ups. Keen to avoid another national lockdown and derail the economic recovery, a 'flexible' strategy to target areas with high infection rates are being hammered out in Whitehall. Ministers are apparently mooting the possibility of restricting movement to and from areas with high infection rates. The Times reports the notion of domestic travel bans has resurfaced in government in recent days, having initially been touted in the early stages of the pandemic when London bore the brunt of cases and was feared to be an epicentre. The plans to insulate the capital to stem the spread of Covid-19 were shelved, but could be revived as part of Boris Johnson's new targeted approach. Beefed-up powers have already handed ministers the ability to mandate such travel bans with police enforcement. The radical proposal is under discussion as Downing Street shakes up its crisis response in the wake of a localised flare-ups (Manchester pictured) The government could be poised to seal off coronavirus-hit regions with domestic travel bans, it emerged last night (Boris Johnson pictured) It comes as officials have drawn up plans that could see millions of people asked to stay at home if a second wave of coronavirus infections takes hold. Under one option, people aged between 50 and 70 would get personalised risk ratings as part of a significant widening of the shielding programme. But, after a weekend when the young flouted distancing rules across the country, the proposals last night attracted a storm of protest. Critics warned that they failed to recognise the important contribution over-50s make to the economy and risked stigmatising older people in the workplace. Rules? What rules? Youngsters pack together for afternoon drinks in central London Former government adviser Joan Bakewell said ministers needed first to tackle the problem of young people failing to socially distance. Baroness Bakewell, who was tsar for the elderly in the last Labour government, said: 'Certainly older people have to take care I have been taking great care myself but what is happening is that young people are not distancing and they are not wearing masks. The young have got to get their act together. 'Young people assume it is over and are not distancing themselves as they should. They know they should, they have been told they should, but they cannot be bothered. That is the crux.' The 87-year-old warned that it would be problematic to ask vast swathes of the population to stay at home again. She said: 'It is hard, I did 115 days of isolating, and it is tough and quite a commitment. To do it again is perhaps putting us under too much pressure.' Former Tory minister Ros Altmann branded the proposals 'dangerous and wrong', as she warned: 'Age 50 is not old, it isn't halfway through your adult life.' She told how that the coronavirus crisis was 'introducing into society a worrying element of ageism that we have worked very hard to try to overcome'. Baroness Altmann said: 'What we're talking about here is a group in society that is being potentially singled out for different treatment just on the basis of their age. 'It's not that the over-50s are somehow old and therefore at risk and the under-50s are young and therefore not at risk.' Labour peer Lord Foulkes said: 'It is both ageist and ill-thought-out. Some under-50s have underlying health conditions, while some over 50s are key to our economy.' Dame Esther Rantzen said people of the same age cannot be lumped together as being identical. But the 80-year-old said she would be prepared to stay at home to prevent another lockdown for all age groups. She said: 'Ferocious as I am in protecting older people's rights, I think that it would be sensible to make a distinction between people in the their 20s and people like me in our 80s. Youngsters fail to socially distance as they gather in Soho Square in the capital 'I don't want people in their 20s, 30s and 40s to be restricted in what they can do because of a desire to protect me. 'It is too high a price for the nation, it is too high a price for our young people to lock them down for my sake. I will lock myself down and if the Government make me because I'm 80, so be it.' Official figures show that almost three quarters of the 51,264 deaths in the UK involving coronavirus were people aged over 75, with much lower mortality rates amongst those younger. According to the Office for National Statistics, just 4,895 people aged 45 to 64 have died and 7,549 aged 65 to 74, compared to 16,586 in the 75 to 84 age bracket and 21,766 aged over 85. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick last night attempted to defuse the row as he insisted that talk about expanding the shielding programme was 'just speculation'. Sun, sea and strife: Two women tussle on the ground on the south coast, as tempers flare among the drinkers packed on to benches He added: 'You would expect the Government to be considering all of the range of options that might be available.' Mr Jenrick insisted that the proposals were not 'being actively considered', but failed to rule out them being adopted if there is a second wave. He, however, denied that ministers were planning to shut down pubs to help reduce infection rates ahead of the re-opening of schools in September. Let's not panic now we CAN deal with this virus, says Professor KAROL SIKORA Commentary by Professor Karol Sikora Hard to imagine now, but it was only a fortnight ago that Boris Johnson set today as the date when the nation should scrap the previous exhortation to 'work from home', and, where possible, get back to the office. So this week should have been the crucial point at which our national recovery began, when we slipped the shackles of Covid-19 and started to rebuild the economy. Instead, everything I've heard or read since last week and particularly over the weekend suggests the very opposite. Indeed, the incoherent messaging seems almost eerily designed to foster anew a pervasive sense of panic, fuelling fears that we are heading towards wide-scale partial lockdowns or even back to a total national lockdown. Thursday's announcement of new restrictions in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and East Lancashire followed by Friday's U-turn on lifting restrictions on bowling alleys, skating rinks, wedding receptions and some beauty salon procedures, followed loose talk of a 'second wave' of the coronavirus. Together they have created exactly the wrong atmosphere at a time when a sense of national renewal is desperately needed to get people off their sofas and into their workplaces. Most alarming of all, it is reported the Prime Minister and his Cabinet have been 'war-gaming' anti-Covid 'nuclear options' such as a re-imposition of a full quarantine regime for air passengers, draconian restrictions on London travel and even confining millions of the over-50s to their homes. This is despite the fact that the chances of an otherwise healthy 50-year-old suffering serious health consequences from infection are statistically very small. And that if you remove people over 50 from the workplace, either by order or by fear, you are effectively decapitating the workforce and condemning all of us to permanent economic impoverishment. Panic at this stage is not just foolish, but unnecessary. By most measures, things are going well. Hospital admissions for those with Covid-19 complications are flat, and so is the mortality rate. And far from being overwhelmed, the NHS is operating at only about 50 per cent capacity overall. The most sensible single measure the PM could take today would be to ban his Cabinet and Downing Street advisers from using the term 'second wave'. It is a dangerous phrase because it deters people from even thinking about a return to normal working which is the only way the economy can recover. It is also inaccurate: we are not witnessing a second wave or even the beginnings of one. We are seeing geographically separated, localised spikes. We also know why they are happening, and to whom. These postcode blips are overwhelmingly in communities where strong family values mean households are large, and often comprise three, or sometimes four, generations with all the attendant comings and goings. On the margins, there are other factors, including possibly a greater genetic susceptibility to the virus and a higher than average prevalence of conditions such as diabetes (a risk factor for Covid-19) in these communities. These spikes can be flattened by targeted measures, and the model for this is Leicester where rates began to decline rapidly after rigorous action was taken locally with full co-operation by all. We do know how to tackle coronavirus and we should have some confidence in our ability, yet national morale is once again plumbing the depths. For that I blame parts of the media and particularly the BBC for giving too much prominence to epidemiologists of a rather pessimistic stripe. This science tracks epidemics and models worst-case scenarios. The danger is it leaves out other considerations, such as the long-term economic consequences of mitigation efforts. Only the PM can really take rounded decisions about what level of risk is tolerable for the overall good of society. My area of expertise is cancer and in a normal year 360,000 cases are diagnosed in the UK. Due to the collapse of the NHS diagnostic network during the pandemic, and the fact that many people have been reluctant to visit GPs, we are running at roughly half that rate of diagnoses this summer. As a result, tens of thousands of people who might have survived their cancers with early diagnosis may die. I don't wish to depress or alarm anyone, but we cannot ignore that there are grave consequences to the excessive countermeasures being taken to control a virus which is statistically unlikely to kill anyone except the very old, and those at greater risk because of a pre-existing condition. And it is particularly stupid when a senior Government scientific adviser sees fit as Professor Graham Medley did to suggest that if schools are to reopen next month, then we might have to shut down pubs again in a 'trade off'. The two options are not related, and to attach a false connection is to spread alarm and confusion. It would be disastrous if hard-liners in the teaching unions were given yet more ammunition in their efforts to frustrate a return to school, which is essential not just for education's sake, but our children's mental well-being. Mr Johnson has had a bad seven days in his Covid-19 war. The nation cannot afford any further signs of a lack of grip or nerve. Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 3 : The day-long 'Speak up Kerala' Satyagraha that was inaugurated online by AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik, on Monday, demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan after "nepotism and corruption brought shame" to the state. "Pinarayi Vijayan is the Modi of Kerala. The voice of Kerala is going to get stronger and none can crush it, even though Vijayan will try to do it. The gold smuggling case and numerous other corruption scandals that have surfaced under Vijayan's watch have brought shame to the state," said Wasnik. "These protests cannot be crushed as this is 'Satyagraha' and truth will always triumph. We will force Vijayan to resign as he has failed in all respects. Just see what's happening on the Covid front, the stage is such that there is even a community spread. Just look at the way how rebuilding efforts in the aftermath of two floods have failed miserably. This 'Speak up campaign' has come at the right time. The Vijayan government has to resign," added Wasnik. The 'Speak up Kerala' campaign is the one where MLAs and MPs belonging to the UDF will sit either at their house or office, staging a day-long protest against the Vijayan government. The second phase will take place on August 10, when similar protests would be held in over 23,000 wards in the state. Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala who is sitting in protest as part of the campaign, in the state capital, said Vijayan is using the Covid pandemic as the opportunity to engage in corruption and nepotism and never before has Kerala's name and fame been shamed when the office of Vijayan has been 'caught' in the gold smuggling case. "The state Intelligence and the Vigilance have been reduced to mere onlookers. The partners in crime used the office of Vijayan. But he claims he was not aware, if so what was the Intelligence doing. Likewise, when the news surfaced, he remained silent and despite my request to order a vigilance probe, nothing has happened. In two days time, I, myself will approach the vigilance court seeking a probe," said Chennithala. Taking part in the protest from Delhi, Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha member and Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said that it was a shock to see that even the UAE Consulate was manipulated by those who engaged in gold smuggling. "I know that I had to lobby quite hard in the UAE to get this Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram and see what has happened. The name 'Speak up Kerala' is an apt one and I see it in two ways -- the entire state should speak up and also speak up for Kerala," said Tharoor. Senior UDF ally and veteran legislator P.J. Joseph of the Kerala Congress (Mani) speaking from his house in Idukki district said Chennithala has been up in arms bringing out numerous corruptions of the Vijayan government and the stage has come that each and every issue raised by him has now been proved right and it's now the talking point in Kerala. The gold smuggling case first surfaced when P.S. Sarith, a former employee of the UAE Consulate, here was arrested by the Customs on July 5 when he was facilitating smuggling of 30 kg gold in diplomatic baggage to Thiruvananthapuram from Dubai. It turned murkier when the name of Swapna Suresh, a former employee of the UAE Consulate, here and employed with the IT Department, surfaced and it turned the full circle when their links with M. Sivasankar, a senior IAS officer who held the dual post of secretary to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and was also the State IT secretary, were unearthed. Following the case Sivasankar was first removed from both the posts and later suspended from service. Editor's take: There have been talks of using suborbital rockets to accomplish rapid travel although lately, firms like Virgin have been leaning more towards supersonic jets to get the job done. One would suspect this is likely due to potential safety and cost concerns, or perhaps they're just looking to walk before they run. Virgin Galactic on Monday unveiled the initial design concept of its next-generation high speed aircraft. The proposed Mach 3 aircraft would travel at an altitude above 60,000 feet with accommodations for between nine and 19 people. Virgin said itll be able to incorporate custom cabin layouts to address customer needs, such as business and first class seating arrangements. The British spaceflight company said the crafts design will also help lead the way toward the use of state-of-the-art sustainable aviation fuel. To help realize that goal, Virgin is collaborating with Rolls-Royce on the project through the signing of a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). Rolls-Royce, if you didnt know, is much more than just a luxury automobile maker. Rolls-Royce Holdings is a multinational engineering company that has its hands in all sorts of ventures. As it just so happens, theyre the worlds second-largest maker of aircraft engines and even worked on the powerplant for the Concord, the supersonic passenger jet that debuted way back in 1969 and remained operational until 2003. Virgin earlier this year signed a Space Act Agreement with NASA to further expedite the development of high-speed technologies. The overall goal with both partnerships is simple to help get people from Point A to point B faster than what is currently possible with todays commercial aircraft. At least 29 people were killed in a raid on an Afghan prison claimed by the Islamic State group, officials said Monday, as the country waited to see if a government ceasefire with the Taliban would rupture after its formal expiration. Fighting finally ended at mid-afternoon at the jail in the eastern city of Jalalabad, where about 1,700 IS and Taliban inmates were being held. IS's news outlet Amaq said its fighters were behind the raid that had started with a suicide car bomb attack, and saw more than 1,000 inmates escape before most of them were recaptured. The attack was the most violent incident since the Taliban and Afghan security forces held a three-day ceasefire over the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha which ended Sunday. IS was not part of the truce which Afghan authorities hoped would pave the way for peace talks with the Taliban as early as this week. An AFP correspondent who toured the prison after the attack ended saw bodies of some attackers and inmates lying in the prison compound. The entrance to the jail was blown up by the initial car bomb attack. Several cells were burnt and damaged, while some had prisoners inside. The Nangarhar governor's spokesman Attaullah Khogyani told AFP that 29 people had died in the fighting. Officials said a total of 10 attackers were also killed. Meanwhile, the government accused the Taliban of violating the ceasefire 38 times over the three-day truce. Interior ministry spokesman Tareq Arian said the insurgents had killed 20 civilians and wounded 40 by "carrying out terrorist and offensive attacks as well as using landmines". The Taliban rejected his charges. Under a deal signed by the Taliban and the United States in February, the "intra-Afghan" talks were supposed to start in March. Talks however were delayed amid political infighting in Kabul, and as an agreed prisoner swap dragged on. - Prisoner release - Both Kabul and the Taliban have signalled they could be ready to start talks after Eid, and the Afghan government on Sunday offered to extend the ceasefire. The insurgents have not formally responded. The biggest hurdle to talks starting is a contentious prisoner swap stipulated under the US-Taliban deal. Under the exchange, Kabul is meant to free around 5,000 Taliban prisoners in return for 1,000 Afghan security personnel held captive by the insurgents. The National Security Council said Sunday that more than 4,900 inmates have been freed, and the Taliban last week said they had already met their side of the commitment. Afghan authorities, however, have refused to free about 400 Taliban inmates accused of serious crimes such as murder and even attacks against foreign countries. A gathering of Afghan elders will decide their fate on August 7 in Kabul, President Ashraf Ghani's spokesman said. Sediq Sediqqi said Washington had told Kabul that if it freed 4,600 Taliban prisoners the peace talks could begin. "We don't see any honesty and commitment from the Taliban for peace," Sediqqi told reporters. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, eager for a diplomatic win ahead of elections, discussed the prisoner issue by videoconference Monday with Taliban chief negotiator Mullah Baradar, insurgent spokesman Suhail Shaheen said. The US State Department would not comment. - Rumours Taliban regrouping - The rare respite from violence over Eid gave some Afghans the opportunity to safely visit relatives after long periods apart. "I managed to visit my village for the first time in two years," said Khalil Ahmad from volatile Uruzgan province. "There were many Taliban checkposts on the way, but they did not bother anyone." But in the northern province of Kunduz on Monday, any sense of calm felt short-lived. One resident, Atiqullah, who only uses one name, said that rumours were circulating that the Taliban were regrouping around Kunduz city. "Today, you see that familiar fear in people's faces again and I am more careful not to leave home today unless it's absolutely necessary," he told AFP. Sunday's raid on the prison came a day after Afghanistan's intelligence agency announced the killing of a top IS commander near Jalalabad. Nangarhar province has seen deadly IS attacks, including a suiicide bomb that killed 32 mourners at a funeral in May. The IS attacks continue despite officials claiming last year that the group had been defeated in Nangarhar. Afghan soldiers arrive during an attack on a prison in Jalalabad. At least 29 people have been killed in fighting at the jail, which houses 1,700 Islamic State and Taliban inmates Map of Afghanistan locating Jalalabad, where armed men stormed a prison in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday The attack claimed by the Islamic State group came at the end of a three-day Eid ceasefire between the Taliban and government forces A victim of the August 2, 2020 attack on the Jalalabad prison is carried to the hospital MINOT, N.D., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- IRET (NYSE: IRET) announced today its financial and operating results for the quarter ended June 30, 2020. The tables below show Net Income (Loss), Funds from Operations ("FFO"), and Core FFO, all on a per share basis, for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020; Same-Store Revenues, Expenses, and Net Operating Income ("NOI") over comparable periods; and Same-Store Weighted-Average Occupancy for the three months ended June 30, 2020, March 31, 2020, and June 30, 2019. Three Months Ended June 30, Six Months Ended June 30, Per Share 2020 2019 2020 2019 Net Income (Loss) - diluted $ (0.44) $ 0.11 $ (1.13) $ (0.43) FFO - diluted $ 0.93 $ 1.45 $ 1.58 $ 2.22 Core FFO - diluted $ 0.91 $ 1.00 $ 1.81 $ 1.77 Year-Over-Year Comparison Sequential Comparison YTD Comparison Same-Store Results Q2 2020 vs. Q2 2019 Q2 2020 vs. Q1 2020 2020 vs. 2019 Revenues 1.4 % (1.2) % 2.6 % Expenses 1.8 % (7.3) % 2.9 % NOI 1.1 % 3.4 % 2.4 % Three months ended Same-Store Results June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 June 30, 2019 Weighted Average Occupancy 94.6 % 95.4 % 94.3 % NOI, FFO, and Core FFO are non-GAAP financial measures. For more information on their usage and presentation, and a reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP measures, refer to "Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Reconciliations" below. Second Quarter 2020 Highlights Our Net Loss was $(0.44) per diluted share for the second quarter of 2020, compared to Net Income of $0.11 per diluted share for the same period of 2019; per diluted share for the second quarter of 2020, compared to Net Income of per diluted share for the same period of 2019; Core FFO increased 2.3% to $1.81 per diluted share for the six months ended June 30, 2020 , compared to $1.77 per diluted share for the same period of 2019; per diluted share for the six months ended , compared to per diluted share for the same period of 2019; Core FFO increased 1.1% to $0.91 per diluted share for the three months ended June 30, 2020 , compared to $0.90 for the three months ended March 31, 2020 ; per diluted share for the three months ended , compared to for the three months ended ; Total collections were 99.1% for the second quarter of 2020, compared to 99.6% for the same period of 2019; Same-store controllable expenses (which exclude taxes and insurance) decreased 4.3% for the second quarter of 2020 as compared to the same period of 2019, resulting in NOI growth of 1.1% for the second quarter of 2020 compared to the same period of 2019; Same-store NOI increased 3.4% for the three months ended June 30, 2020 , compared to the three months ended March 31, 2020 ; , compared to the three months ended ; We continued to strengthen our balance sheet by issuing approximately 624,000 common shares under our 2019 ATM Program for net proceeds of $44.8 million ; ; We announced that we will include Nashville as one of our target markets; and as one of our target markets; and We were recognized as a Minnesota Top Workplace for 2020 by the Minneapolis Star Tribune, which is based on several factors, including employee engagement, company leadership, pay, benefits, and workplace flexibility. Operations Update Our operating results for the month ended July 31, 2020, included the following: Total collections for same-store communities for the month ended July 31, 2020 were 99.0%. were 99.0%. We entered into eight deferrals agreements in July, representing 0.1% of revenue at all communities. As of July 31, 2020 , a total of approximately $40,000 remained outstanding under resident repayment plans. , a total of approximately remained outstanding under resident repayment plans. Physical occupancy for same-store communities as of July 31, 2020 was 95.2%, compared to 93.8% as of July 31, 2019 and 96.1% as of March 31, 2020 . Acquisitions and Dispositions During the quarter, we disposed of our sole remaining parcel of unimproved land for a total sale price of $1.3 million. We did not have any acquisitions during the quarter. Balance Sheet At the end of the second quarter, we had $239.7 million of total liquidity on our balance sheet, including $187.0 million available under our line of credit and cash and cash equivalents of $52.7 million. 2020 Financial Outlook On March 27, 2020 we issued a press release indicating that in light of the impact of COVID-19 on our business and results of operations, we were withdrawing our 2020 Financial Outlook. Given the ongoing impact of COVID-19, we are not providing an updated 2020 Financial Outlook at this time. Upcoming Events IRET is scheduled to participate in the BMO 2020 Real Assets Conference, which will be held virtually on September 2-3, 2020. COVID-19 Developments The COVID-19 pandemic, including the associated economic disruptions, has continued to impact our business and operations since March 2020. Our first priority continues to be the health and well-being of our residents, team members, and the communities we serve. In the second quarter, we began to implement a re-opening plan in the common spaces in our communities and offices while continuing to adhere to state and local guidelines. We are prepared to suspend re-opening plans in any markets in which an increase in COVID-19 cases and other factors make it unsafe to do so in accordance with state and local guidelines. COVID-19 continues to impact our residents, our team members, and the economy. The safety and health of people we serve and our team has remained our priority in these uncertain times. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to unfold, we acknowledge the potential effects on our financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows, including the following: reductions in economic activity and rising unemployment that potentially could impact our residents' ability to pay rent on a timely basis or their desire to seek lease deferment payment plans or rent reductions, which in turn could result in increases in our uncollectible receivables and reductions in rental income and reduce our NOI and cash flow; the potential financial impact of the pandemic on the credit market and our future compliance with financial covenants contained in our credit facility and other debt agreements; weaker economic conditions that could cause us to recognize impairment in the value of our tangible or intangible assets; and rising costs related to our COVID-19 response that could cause us to record loss contingencies and increased expenses. The extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic impacts our operations and those of our residents will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted with confidence, including the scope, severity, and duration of the pandemic, the actions taken to contain the pandemic or mitigate its impact, and the direct and indirect economic effects of the pandemic and containment measures, among others. For a more detailed description of the risks and uncertainties affecting our business, see the risk factors presented in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019, as updated under Item 1A of our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2020, and in our subsequent current and periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov. Quarterly Distributions Effective June 5, 2020, IRET's Board of Trustees declared a regular quarterly distribution of $0.70 per share/unit, which was paid on July 10, 2020, to common shareholders and unitholders of record on June 30, 2020. IRET has paid cash dividends to common shareholders and unitholders every quarter since its initial dividend payment in 1971. Effective June 5, 2020, IRET's Board of Trustees also declared a distribution of $0.4140625 per share on the 6.625% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares (NYSE: IRET-PC), which was paid on June 30, 2020, to holders of record on June 15, 2020. Series C preferred share distributions are cumulative and payable quarterly in arrears at an annual rate of $1.65625 per share. Earnings Call Live webcast and replay: http://ir.iretapartments.com Live Conference Call Conference Call Replay Tuesday, August 4, 2020, at 10:00 AM ET Replay available until August 18, 2020 USA Toll Free Number 1-877-509-9785 USA Toll Free Number 1-877-344-7529 International Toll Free Number 1-412-902-4132 International Toll Free Number 1-412-317-0088 Canada Toll Free Number 1-855-669-9657 Canada Toll Free Number 1-855-669-9658 Conference Number 10145476 Supplemental Information Supplemental Operating and Financial Data for the quarter ended June 30, 2020 included herein ("Supplemental Information"), is available in the Investors section on IRET's website at www.iretapartments.com or by calling Investor Relations at 701-837-7104. About IRET IRET is a real estate company focused on the ownership, management, acquisition, redevelopment, and development of apartment communities. As of June 30, 2020, we owned interests in 70 apartment communities consisting of 12,135 apartment homes. IRET's common shares and Series C preferred shares are publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE symbols: "IRET" and "IRET PC," respectively). Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements in this press release and the accompanying Supplemental Operating and Financial Data are based on our current expectations and assumptions, and are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results of operations, financial conditions, or plans expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Although we believe the expectations reflected in our forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurance that our expectations will be achieved. Such risks, uncertainties, and other factors that might cause such differences include, but are not limited to those risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and "Risk Factors" contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, in our subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, including the COVID-19 risk factors set forth in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2020, and in other public reports. We assume no obligation to update or supplement forward-looking statements that become untrue due to subsequent events. Investor Relations Contact Information Emily Miller Investor Relations Phone: 701-837-7104 E-mail: [email protected] Common Share Data (NYSE: IRET) 2nd Quarter 1st Quarter 4th Quarter 3rd Quarter 2nd Quarter 2020 2020 2019 2019 2019 High closing price $ 76.82 $ 84.68 $ 78.91 $ 74.67 $ 61.28 Low closing price $ 44.36 $ 52.55 $ 71.74 $ 59.22 $ 57.19 Average closing price $ 63.91 $ 71.62 $ 74.67 $ 66.83 $ 59.54 Closing price at end of quarter $ 70.49 $ 55.00 $ 72.50 $ 74.67 $ 58.67 Common share distributions annualized $ 2.80 $ 2.80 $ 2.80 $ 2.80 $ 2.80 Closing dividend yield annualized 4.0 % 5.1 % 3.9 % 3.8 % 4.8 % Closing common shares outstanding (thousands) 12,827 12,164 12,099 11,625 11,656 Closing limited partnership units outstanding (thousands) 1,022 1,044 1,058 1,223 1,224 Closing market value of outstanding common shares, plus imputed closing market value of outstanding limited partnership units (thousands) $ 976,216 $ 726,440 $ 953,883 $ 959,360 $ 755,670 IRET CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (unaudited) (in thousands) Three Months Ended Six Months Ended 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 6/30/2020 6/30/2019 REVENUE $ 43,910 $ 44,406 $ 45,777 $ 47,436 $ 46,934 $ 88,316 $ 92,542 EXPENSES Property operating expenses, excluding real estate taxes 12,360 13,468 14,018 14,485 13,942 25,828 28,746 Real estate taxes 5,410 5,465 4,835 5,425 5,574 10,875 10,806 Property management expense 1,345 1,554 1,634 1,553 1,445 2,899 2,999 Casualty loss 913 327 205 178 92 1,240 733 Depreciation/amortization 18,156 18,160 18,972 18,751 18,437 36,316 36,548 General and administrative expenses 3,202 3,428 3,647 3,448 3,549 6,630 7,355 TOTAL EXPENSES $ 41,386 $ 42,402 $ 43,311 $ 43,840 $ 43,039 $ 83,788 $ 87,187 Operating income (loss) 2,524 2,004 2,466 3,596 3,895 4,528 5,355 Interest expense (6,940) (6,911) (7,357) (7,694) (7,590) (13,851) (15,486) Loss on extinguishment of debt (17) (864) (1,087) (407) (17) (409) Interest and other income (loss) 538 (2,777) 702 498 468 (2,239) 892 Income (loss) before gain (loss) on sale of real estate and other investments, and gain (loss) on litigation settlement (3,895) (7,684) (5,053) (4,687) (3,634) (11,579) (9,648) Gain (loss) on sale of real estate and other investments (190) 57,850 39,105 615 (190) 669 Gain (loss) on litigation settlement 300 6,286 6,286 Net income (loss) $ (4,085) $ (7,684) $ 52,797 $ 34,718 $ 3,267 $ (11,769) $ (2,693) Dividends to preferred unitholders (160) (160) (160) (160) (160) (320) (217) Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest Operating Partnership 447 692 (4,202) (3,145) (148) 1,139 595 Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interests consolidated real estate entities (5) 145 223 183 154 140 730 Net income (loss) attributable to controlling interests (3,803) (7,007) 48,658 31,596 3,113 (10,810) (1,585) Dividends to preferred shareholders (1,609) (1,705) (1,705) (1,705) (1,706) (3,314) (3,411) Discount on redemption of preferred shares 25 273 298 NET INCOME (LOSS) AVAILABLE TO COMMON SHAREHOLDERS $ (5,387) $ (8,439) $ 46,953 $ 29,891 $ 1,407 $ (13,826) $ (4,996) Per Share Data - Basic Net earnings (loss) per common share basic $ (0.44) $ (0.69) $ 3.95 $ 2.57 $ 0.11 $ (1.13) $ (0.43) Per Share Data - Diluted Net earnings (loss) per common share diluted $ (0.44) $ (0.67) $ 3.89 $ 2.54 $ 0.11 $ (1.13) $ (0.43) IRET CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (unaudited) (in thousands) 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 ASSETS Real estate investments Property owned $ 1,694,033 $ 1,687,436 $ 1,643,078 $ 1,720,352 $ 1,663,539 Less accumulated depreciation (383,917) (366,307) (349,122) (370,492) (380,321) 1,310,116 1,321,129 1,293,956 1,349,860 1,283,218 Unimproved land 1,376 1,376 1,376 1,746 Mortgage loans receivable 10,961 16,775 16,140 10,140 10,140 Total real estate investments 1,321,077 1,339,280 1,311,472 1,361,376 1,295,104 Cash and cash equivalents 52,714 26,338 26,579 8,500 17,406 Restricted cash 2,535 2,344 19,538 3,339 4,672 Other assets 16,484 21,124 34,829 30,589 30,626 TOTAL ASSETS $ 1,392,810 $ 1,389,086 $ 1,392,418 $ 1,403,804 $ 1,347,808 LIABILITIES, MEZZANINE EQUITY, AND EQUITY LIABILITIES Accounts payable and accrued expenses $ 54,883 $ 52,337 $ 47,155 $ 40,546 $ 44,766 Revolving line of credit 63,000 83,000 50,079 103,143 177,939 Notes payable, net of loan costs 269,155 269,106 269,058 269,006 144,082 Mortgages payable, net of loan costs 323,705 328,367 329,664 360,886 370,461 TOTAL LIABILITIES $ 710,743 $ 732,810 $ 695,956 $ 773,581 $ 737,248 SERIES D PREFERRED UNITS $ 16,560 $ 16,560 $ 16,560 16,560 16,560 EQUITY Series C Preferred Shares of Beneficial Interest 93,579 96,046 99,456 99,456 99,456 Common Shares of Beneficial Interest 958,292 912,653 917,400 886,598 888,541 Accumulated distributions in excess of net income (421,515) (407,150) (390,196) (428,680) (450,433) Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) (18,139) (17,360) (7,607) (9,793) (7,598) Total shareholders' equity $ 612,217 $ 584,189 $ 619,053 $ 547,581 $ 529,966 Noncontrolling interests Operating Partnership 52,558 54,777 55,284 60,169 57,902 Noncontrolling interests consolidated real estate entities 732 750 5,565 5,913 6,132 Total equity $ 665,507 $ 639,716 $ 679,902 $ 613,663 $ 594,000 TOTAL LIABILITIES, MEZZANINE EQUITY, AND EQUITY $ 1,392,810 $ 1,389,086 $ 1,392,418 $ 1,403,804 $ 1,347,808 IRET NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES AND RECONCILIATIONS (unaudited) This release contains certain non-GAAP financial measures. The non-GAAP measures should not be considered a substitute for operating results determined in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP"). The definitions and calculations of these non-GAAP measures, as calculated by us, may not be comparable to non-GAAP measures reported by other REITs that do not define each of the non-GAAP measures exactly as we do. We provide certain information on a same-store and non-same-store basis. Same-store apartment communities are owned or in service for the entirety of the periods being compared, and, in the case of development properties, have achieved a target level of physical occupancy of 90%. On the first day of each calendar year, we determine the composition of our same-store pool for that year as well as adjust the previous year, which allows us to evaluate full period-over-period operating comparisons for existing apartment communities and their contribution to net income. We believe that measuring performance on a same-store basis is useful to investors because it enables evaluation of how a fixed pool of our communities are performing year-over-year. We use this measure to assess whether or not we have been successful in increasing NOI, renewing the leases on existing residents, controlling operating costs, and making prudent capital improvements. Reconciliation of Operating Income (Loss) to Net Operating Income Net operating income, or NOI, is a non-GAAP measure which we define as total real estate revenues less property operating expenses, including real estate taxes. We believe that NOI is an important supplemental measure of operating performance for real estate because it provides a measure of operations that is unaffected by depreciation, amortization, financing, property management overhead, casualty losses, and general and administrative expenses. NOI does not represent cash generated by operating activities in accordance with GAAP and should not be considered an alternative to net income, net income available for common shareholders, or cash flow from operating activities as a measure of financial performance. (in thousands, except percentages) Three Months Ended Sequential Year-Over-Year 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 6/30/2019 $ Change % Change $ Change % Change Operating income (loss) $ 2,524 $ 2,004 $ 3,895 $ 520 25.9 % $ (1,371) (35.2) % Adjustments: Property management expenses 1,345 1,554 1,445 (209) (13.4) % (100) (6.9) % Casualty loss 913 327 92 586 179.2 % 821 892.4 % Depreciation and amortization 18,156 18,160 18,437 (4) (281) (1.5) % General and administrative expenses 3,202 3,428 3,549 (226) (6.6) % (347) (9.8) % Net operating income $ 26,140 $ 25,473 $ 27,418 $ 667 2.6 % $ (1,278) (4.7) % Revenue Same-store $ 39,335 $ 39,820 $ 38,794 $ (485) (1.2) % $ 541 1.4 % Non-same-store 4,157 3,511 1,073 646 18.4 % 3,084 287.4 % Other properties and dispositions 418 1,075 7,067 (657) (61.1) % (6,649) (94.1) % Total 43,910 44,406 46,934 (496) (1.1) % (3,024) (6.4) % Property operating expenses, including real estate taxes Same-store 16,006 17,258 15,726 (1,252) (7.3) % 280 1.8 % Non-same-store 1,515 1,320 477 195 14.8 % 1,038 217.6 % Other properties and dispositions 249 355 3,313 (106) (29.9) % (3,064) (92.5) % Total 17,770 18,933 19,516 (1,163) (6.1) % (1,746) (8.9) % Net operating income Same-store 23,329 22,562 23,068 767 3.4 % 261 1.1 % Non-same-store 2,642 2,191 596 451 20.6 % 2,046 343.3 % Other properties and dispositions 169 720 3,754 (551) (76.5) % (3,585) (95.5) % Total $ 26,140 $ 25,473 $ 27,418 $ 667 2.6 % $ (1,278) (4.7) % Six Months Ended June 30, 2020 2019 $ Change % Change Operating income (loss) $ 4,528 $ 5,355 $ (827) (15.4) % Adjustments: Property management expenses 2,899 2,999 (100) (3.3) % Casualty loss 1,240 733 507 69.2 % Depreciation and amortization 36,316 36,548 (232) (0.6) % General and administrative expenses 6,630 7,355 (725) (9.9) % Net operating income $ 51,613 $ 52,990 $ (1,377) (2.6) % Revenue Same-store $ 79,155 $ 77,122 $ 2,033 2.6 % Non-same-store 7,668 1,484 6,184 416.7 % Other properties and dispositions 1,493 13,936 (12,443) (89.3) % Total 88,316 92,542 (4,226) (4.6) % Property operating expenses, including real estate taxes Same-store 33,264 32,327 937 2.9 % Non-same-store 2,835 647 2,188 338.2 % Other properties and dispositions 604 6,578 (5,974) (90.8) % Total 36,703 39,552 (2,849) (7.2) % Net operating income Same-store 45,891 44,795 1,096 2.4 % Non-same-store 4,833 837 3,996 477.4 % Other properties and dispositions 889 7,358 (6,469) (87.9) % Total $ 51,613 $ 52,990 $ (1,377) (2.6) % Same-Store Property Operating Expense Comparison (in thousands, except percentages) Three Months Ended June 30, Six Months Ended June 30, 2020 2019 $ Change % Change 2020 2019 $ Change % Change Controllable expenses On-site compensation(1) $ 4,240 $ 4,181 $ 59 1.4 % $ 8,859 $ 8,292 $ 567 6.8 % Repairs and maintenance 2,558 2,905 (347) (11.9) % 5,019 5,974 (955) (16.0) % Utilities 2,262 2,397 (135) (5.6) % 5,293 5,699 (406) (7.1) % Administrative and marketing 888 908 (20) (2.2) % 1,783 1,930 (147) (7.6) % Total $ 9,948 $ 10,391 $ (443) (4.3) % $ 20,954 $ 21,895 $ (941) (4.3) % Non-controllable expenses Real estate taxes $ 4,756 $ 4,456 $ 300 6.7 % $ 9,666 $ 8,740 $ 926 10.6 % Insurance 1,302 879 423 48.1 % 2,644 1,692 952 56.3 % Total $ 6,058 $ 5,335 $ 723 13.6 % $ 12,310 $ 10,432 $ 1,878 18.0 % Total $ 16,006 $ 15,726 $ 280 1.8 % $ 33,264 $ 32,327 $ 937 2.9 % (1) On-site compensation for administration, leasing, and maintenance personnel. Reconciliation of Net Income (Loss) Available to Common Shareholders to Funds From Operations and Core Funds From Operations We believe that FFO, which is a standard supplemental measure for equity real estate investment trusts, is helpful to investors in understanding our operating performance, primarily because its calculation does not assume that the value of real estate assets diminishes predictably over time, as implied by the historical cost convention of GAAP and the recording of depreciation. We use the definition of FFO adopted by the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, Inc. ("Nareit"). Nareit defines FFO as net income or loss calculated in accordance with GAAP, excluding: depreciation and amortization related to real estate; gains and losses from the sale of certain real estate assets; and impairment write-downs of certain real estate assets and investments in entities when the impairment is directly attributable to decreases in the value of depreciable real estate held by the entity. The exclusion in Nareit's definition of FFO of impairment write-downs and gains and losses from the sale of real estate assets helps to identify the operating results of the long-term assets that form the base of our investments, and assists management and investors in comparing those operating results between periods. Due to the limitations of the Nareit FFO definition, we have made certain interpretations in applying this definition. We believe that all such interpretations not specifically identified in the Nareit definition are consistent with this definition. Nareit's FFO White Paper 2018 Restatement clarified that impairment write-downs of land related to a REIT's main business are excluded from FFO and a REIT has the option to exclude impairment write-downs of assets that are incidental to its main business. While FFO is widely used by us as a primary performance metric, not all real estate companies use the same definition of FFO or calculate FFO in the same way. Accordingly, FFO presented here is not necessarily comparable to FFO presented by other real estate companies. FFO should not be considered as an alternative to net income or any other GAAP measurement of performance, but rather should be considered as an additional, supplemental measure. FFO also does not represent cash generated from operating activities in accordance with GAAP and is not necessarily indicative of sufficient cash flow to fund all of our needs or our ability to service indebtedness or make distributions. Core Funds from Operations ("Core FFO") is FFO as adjusted for non-routine items or items not considered core to our business operations. By further adjusting for items that are not considered part of our core business operations, we believe that Core FFO provides investors with additional information to compare our core operating and financial performance between periods. Core FFO should not be considered as an alternative to net income as an indication of financial performance, or as an alternative to cash flows from operations as a measure of liquidity, nor is it indicative of funds available to fund our cash needs, including our ability to make distributions to shareholders. Core FFO is a non-GAAP and non-standardized measure that may be calculated differently by other REITs and should not be considered a substitute for operating results determined in accordance with GAAP. (in thousands, except per share amounts) Three Months Ended Six Months Ended 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 6/30/2020 6/30/2019 Funds From Operations Net income (loss) available to common shareholders $ (5,387) $ (8,439) $ 46,953 $ 29,891 $ 1,407 $ (13,826) $ (4,996) Adjustments: Noncontrolling interests Operating Partnership (447) (692) 4,202 3,145 148 (1,139) (595) Depreciation and amortization 18,156 18,160 18,972 18,751 18,437 36,316 36,548 Less depreciation non real estate (88) (93) (88) (71) (79) (181) (164) Less depreciation partially owned entities (33) (282) (454) (452) (474) (315) (1,152) (Gain) loss on sale of real estate 190 (57,850) (39,105) (615) 190 (669) FFO applicable to common shares and Units $ 12,391 $ 8,654 $ 11,735 $ 12,159 $ 18,824 $ 21,045 $ 28,972 Adjustments to Core FFO: Loss on extinguishment of debt 17 864 1,087 407 17 409 Gain on litigation settlement (300) (6,286) (6,286) (Gain) loss on marketable securities (175) 3,553 (113) 3,378 Discount on redemption of preferred shares (25) (273) (298) Core FFO applicable to common shares and Units $ 12,208 $ 11,934 $ 12,486 $ 12,946 $ 12,945 $ 24,142 $ 23,095 Funds from operations applicable to common shares and Units $ 12,391 $ 8,654 $ 11,735 $ 12,159 $ 18,824 $ 21,045 $ 28,972 Dividends to preferred unitholders 160 160 160 160 160 320 217 Funds from operations applicable to common shares and Units - diluted $ 12,551 $ 8,814 $ 11,895 $ 12,319 $ 18,984 $ 21,365 $ 29,189 Core funds from operations applicable to common shares and Units $ 12,208 $ 11,934 $ 12,486 $ 12,946 $ 12,945 $ 24,142 $ 23,095 Dividends to preferred unitholders 160 160 160 160 160 320 217 Core funds from operations applicable to common shares and Units - diluted $ 12,368 $ 12,094 $ 12,646 $ 13,106 $ 13,105 $ 24,462 $ 23,312 Per Share Data Earnings (loss) per share and Unit - diluted $ (0.44) $ (0.67) $ 3.89 $ 2.54 $ 0.11 $ (1.13) $ (0.43) FFO per share and Unit - diluted $ 0.93 $ 0.66 $ 0.90 $ 0.93 $ 1.45 $ 1.58 $ 2.22 Core FFO per share and Unit - diluted $ 0.91 $ 0.90 $ 0.96 $ 0.99 $ 1.00 $ 1.81 $ 1.77 Weighted average shares and Units - diluted 13,558 13,401 13,188 13,087 13,197 13,482 13,220 Reconciliation of Net Income (Loss) Available to Common Shareholders to Adjusted EBITDA Adjusted EBITDA is earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, gain/loss on sale of real estate and other investments, impairment of real estate investments, gain/loss on extinguishment of debt, gain on litigation settlement, and gain/loss from involuntary conversion. We consider Adjusted EBITDA to be an appropriate supplemental performance measure because it permits investors to view income from operations without the effect of depreciation, the cost of debt, or non-operating gains and losses. Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure and should not be considered a substitute for operating results determined in accordance with GAAP. (in thousands) Three Months Ended Six Months Ended 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 6/30/2020 6/30/2019 Adjusted EBITDA Net income (loss) available to common shareholders $ (3,803) $ (7,007) $ 48,658 $ 31,596 $ 3,113 $ (10,810) $ (1,585) Adjustments: Dividends to preferred unitholders 160 160 160 160 160 320 217 Noncontrolling interests Operating Partnership (447) (692) 4,202 3,145 148 (1,139) (595) Income (loss) before noncontrolling interests Operating Partnership $ (4,090) $ (7,539) $ 53,020 $ 34,901 $ 3,421 $ (11,629) $ (1,963) Adjustments: Interest expense 6,926 6,764 7,112 7,448 7,343 13,690 14,901 Loss on extinguishment of debt 17 864 1,087 407 17 409 Depreciation/amortization related to real estate investments 18,123 17,878 18,518 18,299 17,963 36,001 35,396 Interest income (331) (597) (415) (402) (402) (928) (809) (Gain) loss on sale of real estate and other investments 190 (57,850) (39,105) (615) 190 (669) Gain on litigation settlement (300) (6,286) (6,286) (Gain) loss on marketable securities (175) 3,553 (113) 3,378 Adjusted EBITDA $ 20,660 $ 20,059 $ 21,136 $ 21,928 $ 21,831 $ 40,719 $ 40,979 IRET DEBT ANALYSIS (in thousands) Debt Maturity Schedule Annual Expirations Future Maturities of Debt Secured Fixed Debt Unsecured Fixed Debt(1) Unsecured Variable Debt Total Debt % of Total Debt Weighted Average Interest Rate(2) 2020 (remainder) $ 9,406 $ $ $ 9,406 1.4 % 4.85 % 2021 35,556 35,556 5.4 % 5.36 % 2022 33,987 50,000 13,000 96,987 14.7 % 3.28 % 2023 44,266 44,266 6.7 % 4.02 % 2024 70,000 70,000 10.7 % 3.62 % Thereafter 202,015 200,000 402,015 61.1 % 3.89 % Total debt $ 325,230 $ 320,000 $ 13,000 $ 658,230 100.0 % 3.87 % (1) Term loans have variable interest rates that are fixed with interest rate swaps and $50.0 million of our variable interest, line of credit is fixed with an interest rate swap. (2) Weighted average interest rate of debt that matures during the year, including the effect of interest rate swaps on the term loans and line of credit. 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 Debt Balances Outstanding Secured fixed rate $ 325,230 $ 329,988 $ 331,376 $ 362,731 $ 371,951 Unsecured fixed rate line of credit(1) 50,000 50,000 50,000 50,000 50,000 Secured line of credit(2) 15,000 Unsecured variable rate line of credit 13,000 33,000 79 53,143 112,939 Unsecured term loans 145,000 145,000 145,000 145,000 145,000 Unsecured senior notes 125,000 125,000 125,000 125,000 Debt total $ 658,230 $ 682,988 $ 651,455 $ 735,874 $ 694,890 Mortgage debt weighted average interest rate 4.01 % 4.01 % 4.02 % 4.15 % 4.37 % Lines of credit rate (rate with swap) 2.97 % 3.18 % 3.52 % 3.73 % 3.91 % Term loan rate (rate with swap) 4.12 % 4.13 % 4.19 % 4.14 % 4.14 % Senior notes rate 3.78 % 3.78 % 3.78 % 3.78 % (1) A portion of our primary line of credit is fixed through an interest rate swap. (2) Our revolving line of credit consists primarily of unsecured borrowings. A portion of the line was secured in connection with our acquisition of SouthFork Townhomes, under an agreement which allowed us to offer the seller tax protection upon purchase. IRET CAPITAL ANALYSIS (in thousands, except per share and unit amounts) Three Months Ended 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 Equity Capitalization Common shares outstanding 12,827 12,164 12,099 11,625 11,656 Operating partnership units outstanding 1,022 1,044 1,058 1,223 1,224 Total common shares and units outstanding 13,849 13,208 13,157 12,848 12,880 Market price per common share (closing price at end of period) $ 70.49 $ 55.00 $ 72.50 $ 74.67 $ 58.67 Equity capitalization-common shares and units $ 976,216 $ 726,440 $ 953,883 $ 959,360 $ 755,670 Recorded book value of preferred shares $ 93,579 $ 96,046 $ 99,456 $ 99,456 $ 99,456 Total equity capitalization $ 1,069,795 $ 822,486 $ 1,053,339 $ 1,058,816 $ 855,126 Series D Preferred Units $ 16,560 $ 16,560 $ 16,560 $ 16,560 $ 16,560 Debt Capitalization Total debt $ 658,230 $ 682,988 $ 651,455 $ 735,874 $ 694,889 Total capitalization $ 1,744,585 $ 1,522,034 $ 1,721,354 $ 1,811,250 $ 1,566,575 Total debt to total capitalization(1) 37.7 % 44.9 % 37.8 % 40.6 % 44.4 % (1) Total debt to total market capitalization is total debt from the balance sheet divided by the sum of total debt from the balance sheet, plus the market value of common shares and operating partnership units, and book value of Series C preferred shares and Series D preferred units outstanding at the end of the period. Three Months Ended Six Months Ended 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 6/30/2020 6/30/2019 Debt service coverage ratio(1) 2.48 x 2.42 x 2.39 x 2.26 x 2.24 x 2.45 x 2.04 x Adjusted EBITDA/Interest expense plus preferred distributions and principal amortization 2.05 x 1.97 x 1.98 x 1.90 x 1.88 x 2.01 x 1.73 x Net debt/Adjusted EBITDA(2) 7.33 x 8.18 x 7.19 x 8.29 x 7.76 x 7.44 x 8.27 x Net debt and preferred equity/Adjusted EBITDA(2) 8.66 x 9.59 x 8.56 x 9.62 x 9.09 x 8.86 x 9.48 x Distribution Data Common shares and Units outstanding at record date 13,849 13,208 13,157 12,848 12,914 13,849 12,914 Total common distribution declared $ 9,694 $ 9,245 $ 9,210 $ 8,994 $ 9,039 $ 18,939 $ 18,234 Common distribution per share and Unit $ 0.70 $ 0.70 $ 0.70 $ 0.70 $ 0.70 $ 1.40 $ 1.40 Payout ratio (Core FFO per share and unit basis) (3) 76.9 % 77.8 % 72.9 % 70.7 % 70.0 % 77.3 % 79.1 % (1) Debt service coverage ratio is computed by dividing Adjusted EBITDA by interest expense and principal amortization. This term is a non-GAAP measure and should not be considered a substitute for operating results determined in accordance with GAAP. Refer to the Adjusted EBITDA definition included within the Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Reconciliations section. (2) Net debt is the total debt balance less cash and cash equivalents and net tax deferred exchange proceeds (included within restricted cash). Adjusted EBITDA is annualized for periods less than one year. Net debt and adjusted EBITDA are non-GAAP measures and should not be considered a substitute for operating results determined in accordance with GAAP. Refer to the Adjusted EBITDA definition included within the Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Reconciliations section. (3) Payout ratio (Core FFO per share and unit basis) is the ratio of the current quarterly or annual distribution rate per common share and unit divided by quarterly or annual Core FFO per share and unit. This term is a non-GAAP measure and should not be considered a substitute for operating results determined in accordance with GAAP. IRET COVID-19 UPDATE (in thousands, except property data amounts and percentages) Collections by State Three Months Ended June 30, 2020 State Number of Communities Number of Homes % of Total Revenue Bad Debt(1) as % of Total Revenue Minnesota 32 5,438 48.7 % 1.1 % Colorado 3 992 12.4 % 1.2 % Nebraska 6 1,370 9.2 % 0.6 % North Dakota 19 3,112 21.5 % 0.2 % South Dakota 5 474 3.2 % 0.7 % Montana 5 749 5.0 % 2.3 % Total 70 12,135 100.0 % 0.9 % (1) Bad debt is reported as a reduction of revenue. Operating Statistics Month Ended Three Months Ended July 31, 2020 July 31, 2019 June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 June 30, 2019 Bad debt as a % of total revenue 1.0 % 0.6 % 0.9 % 0.2 % 0.4 % Percent of rent deferrals to total revenue 0.1 % N/A 0.5 % N/A N/A Same-Store Communities New lease rates 1.1 % 0.7 % (1.2) % (4.3) % 4.3 % Renewal rates 0.1 % 4.9 % 3.3 % 2.9 % 5.9 % Weighted average occupancy 94.3 % 93.1 % 94.6 % 95.4 % 94.3 % Physical occupancy, at end of period 95.2 % 93.8 % 94.8 % 96.1 % 94.0 % Liquidity and Near-Term Funding Obligations Liquidity Profile June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 Unsecured credit facility - committed $ 250,000 $ 250,000 Balance outstanding 63,000 83,000 Amount available on line of credit $ 187,000 $ 167,000 Cash and cash equivalents 52,714 26,338 Total liquidity $ 239,714 $ 193,338 Near-Term Funding Obligations Unfunded construction loan and mezzanine loan commitments - 2020 and 2021 $ 34,272 $ 38,479 2020 and 2021 Debt maturities 44,962 45,297 Total $ 79,234 $ 83,776 Ratio of liquidity to near-term funding obligations 3.0 2.3 IRET SAME-STORE SECOND QUARTER COMPARISONS (in thousands, except property data amounts and percentages) Apartment Homes Included Revenues Expenses NOI Regions Q2 2020 Q2 2019 % Change Q2 2020 Q2 2019 % Change Q2 2020 Q2 2019 % Change Minneapolis, MN 1,987 $ 9,068 $ 8,904 1.8 % $ 3,485 $ 3,636 (4.2) % $ 5,583 $ 5,268 6.0 % Rochester, MN 1,711 6,370 6,290 1.2 % 2,802 2,450 14.4 % 3,568 3,840 (7.1) % Denver, CO 664 3,701 3,780 (2.1) % 1,095 1,195 (8.4) % 2,606 2,585 0.8 % Grand Forks, ND 1,555 4,344 4,218 3.0 % 1,823 1,909 (4.5) % 2,521 2,309 9.2 % Omaha, NE 1,370 3,838 3,705 3.6 % 1,783 1,635 9.1 % 2,055 2,070 (0.7) % St. Cloud, MN 1,190 3,546 3,585 (1.1) % 1,524 1,525 (0.1) % 2,022 2,060 (1.8) % Bismarck, ND 845 2,766 2,671 3.6 % 1,053 1,031 2.1 % 1,713 1,640 4.5 % Billings, MT 749 2,139 2,125 0.7 % 838 752 11.4 % 1,301 1,373 (5.2) % Minot, ND 712 2,161 2,145 0.7 % 969 1,036 (6.5) % 1,192 1,109 7.5 % Rapid City, SD 474 1,402 1,371 2.3 % 634 557 13.8 % 768 814 (5.7) % Same-Store Total 11,257 $ 39,335 $ 38,794 1.4 % $ 16,006 $ 15,726 1.8 % $ 23,329 $ 23,068 1.1 % % of NOI Contribution Weighted Average Occupancy (1) Average Monthly Rental Rate (2) Average Monthly Revenue per Occupied Home (3) Regions Q2 2020 Q2 2019 Growth Q2 2020 Q2 2019 % Change Q2 2020 Q2 2019 % Change Minneapolis, MN 23.9 % 94.0 % 93.3 % 0.7 % $ 1,494 $ 1,471 1.6 % $ 1,619 $ 1,600 1.1 % Rochester, MN 15.3 % 95.3 % 95.4 % (0.1) % 1,248 1,233 1.2 % 1,303 1,285 1.3 % Denver, CO 11.2 % 92.9 % 94.5 % (1.6) % 1,827 1,828 (0.1) % 2,001 2,008 (0.5) % Grand Forks, ND 10.8 % 94.6 % 93.5 % 1.1 % 906 912 (0.7) % 985 967 1.9 % Omaha, NE 8.8 % 94.9 % 93.3 % 1.6 % 904 884 2.3 % 984 966 2.0 % St. Cloud, MN 8.7 % 93.7 % 95.4 % (1.7) % 955 951 0.4 % 1,060 1,053 0.6 % Bismarck, ND 7.3 % 96.2 % 93.6 % 2.6 % 1,053 1,044 0.9 % 1,134 1,126 1.0 % Billings, MT 5.6 % 94.4 % 95.6 % (1.2) % 944 924 2.2 % 1,008 989 1.9 % Minot, ND 5.1 % 97.0 % 95.0 % 2.0 % 992 1,000 (0.8) % 1,043 1,057 (1.3) % Rapid City, SD 3.3 % 94.3 % 95.0 % (0.7) % 966 945 2.2 % 1,046 1,015 3.0 % Same-Store Total 100.0 % 94.6 % 94.3 % 0.3 % $ 1,142 $ 1,132 0.9 % $ 1,232 $ 1,219 1.1 % (1) Weighted average occupancy is defined as the percentage resulting from dividing actual rental revenue by scheduled rent. (2) Average monthly rental rate is scheduled rent divided by the total number of apartment homes. Scheduled rental revenue represents the value of all apartment homes, with occupied apartment homes valued at contractual rates pursuant to leases and vacant apartment homes valued at estimated market rents. When calculating actual rents for occupied apartment homes and market rents for vacant homes, delinquencies and concessions are not taken into account. Market rates are determined using the currently offered effective rates on new leases at the community and are used as the starting point in determination of the market rates of vacant apartment homes. (3) Average monthly revenue per occupied home is defined as total rental revenues divided by the weighted average occupied apartment homes for the period. IRET SAME-STORE SEQUENTIAL QUARTER COMPARISONS (in thousands, except property data amounts and percentages) Apartment Homes Included Revenues Expenses NOI Regions Q2 2020 Q1 2020 % Change Q2 2020 Q1 2020 % Change Q2 2020 Q1 2020 % Change Minneapolis, MN 1,987 $ 9,068 $ 9,112 (0.5) % $ 3,485 $ 3,911 (10.9) % $ 5,583 $ 5,201 7.3 % Rochester, MN 1,711 6,370 6,539 (2.6) % 2,802 2,824 (0.7) % 3,568 3,715 (4.0) % Denver, CO 664 3,701 3,927 (5.8) % 1,095 1,258 (13.0) % 2,606 2,669 (2.4) % Grand Forks, ND 1,555 4,344 4,337 0.2 % 1,823 2,225 (18.1) % 2,521 2,112 19.4 % Omaha, NE 1,370 3,838 3,814 0.6 % 1,783 1,626 9.7 % 2,055 2,188 (6.1) % St. Cloud, MN 1,190 3,546 3,611 (1.8) % 1,524 1,756 (13.2) % 2,022 1,855 9.0 % Bismarck, ND 845 2,766 2,735 1.1 % 1,053 1,169 (9.9) % 1,713 1,566 9.4 % Billings, MT 749 2,139 2,179 (1.8) % 838 826 1.5 % 1,301 1,353 (3.8) % Minot, ND 712 2,161 2,125 1.7 % 969 1,011 (4.2) % 1,192 1,114 7.0 % Rapid City, SD 474 1,402 1,441 (2.7) % 634 652 (2.8) % 768 789 (2.7) % Same-Store Total 11,257 $ 39,335 $ 39,820 (1.2) % $ 16,006 $ 17,258 (7.3) % $ 23,329 $ 22,562 3.4 % % of NOI Contribution Weighted Average Occupancy Average Monthly Rental Rate Average Monthly Revenue per Occupied Home Regions Q2 2020 Q1 2020 Growth Q2 2020 Q1 2020 % Change Q2 2020 Q1 2020 % Change Minneapolis, MN 23.9 % 94.0 % 94.2 % (0.2) % $ 1,494 $ 1,485 0.6 % $ 1,619 $ 1,624 (0.3) % Rochester, MN 15.3 % 95.3 % 97.1 % (1.8) % 1,248 1,239 0.7 % 1,303 1,312 (0.8) % Denver, CO 11.2 % 92.9 % 95.1 % (2.2) % 1,827 1,845 (1.0) % 2,001 2,072 (3.6) % Grand Forks, ND 10.8 % 94.6 % 95.4 % (0.8) % 906 900 0.7 % 985 975 1.0 % Omaha, NE 8.8 % 94.9 % 94.3 % 0.6 % 904 893 1.2 % 984 984 St. Cloud, MN 8.7 % 93.7 % 94.9 % (1.2) % 955 945 1.1 % 1,060 1,066 (0.6) % Bismarck, ND 7.3 % 96.2 % 96.4 % (0.2) % 1,053 1,044 0.9 % 1,134 1,119 1.3 % Billings, MT 5.6 % 94.4 % 95.8 % (1.4) % 944 935 1.0 % 1,008 1,012 (0.4) % Minot, ND 5.1 % 97.0 % 95.1 % 1.9 % 992 990 0.2 % 1,043 1,046 (0.2) % Rapid City, SD 3.3 % 94.3 % 96.9 % (2.6) % 966 951 1.6 % 1,046 1,045 (0.1) % Same-Store Total 100.0 % 94.6 % 95.4 % (0.8) % $ 1,142 $ 1,135 0.6 % $ 1,232 $ 1,237 (0.4) % IRET SAME-STORE YEAR-TO-DATE COMPARISONS (in thousands, except property data amounts and percentages) Apartment Homes Included Revenues Expenses NOI Regions 2020 2019 % Change 2020 2019 % Change 2020 2019 % Change Minneapolis, MN 1,987 $ 18,180 $ 17,684 2.8 % $ 7,395 $ 7,275 1.6 % $ 10,785 $ 10,409 3.6 % Rochester, MN 1,711 12,908 12,516 3.1 % 5,625 4,905 14.7 % 7,283 7,611 (4.3) % Denver, CO 664 7,628 7,479 2.0 % 2,354 2,417 (2.6) % 5,274 5,062 4.2 % Grand Forks, ND 1,555 8,682 8,359 3.9 % 4,048 4,075 (0.7) % 4,634 4,284 8.2 % Omaha, NE 1,370 7,652 7,459 2.6 % 3,409 3,409 4,243 4,050 4.8 % St. Cloud, MN 1,190 7,157 7,059 1.4 % 3,281 3,333 (1.6) % 3,876 3,726 4.0 % Bismarck, ND 845 5,501 5,335 3.1 % 2,222 2,162 2.8 % 3,279 3,173 3.3 % Billings, MT 749 4,317 4,230 2.1 % 1,664 1,575 5.7 % 2,653 2,655 (0.1) % Minot, ND 712 4,287 4,263 0.6 % 1,980 2,043 (3.1) % 2,307 2,220 3.9 % Rapid City, SD 474 2,843 2,738 3.8 % 1,286 1,133 13.5 % 1,557 1,605 (3.0) % Same-Store Total 11,257 $ 79,155 $ 77,122 2.6 % $ 33,264 $ 32,327 2.9 % $ 45,891 $ 44,795 2.4 % % of NOI Contribution Weighted Average Occupancy Average Monthly Rental Rate Average Monthly Revenue per Occupied Home Regions 2020 2019 Growth 2020 2019 % Change 2020 2019 % Change Minneapolis, MN 23.6 % 94.1 % 94.1 % $ 1,490 $ 1,457 2.3 % $ 1,621 $ 1,577 2.8 % Rochester, MN 15.9 % 96.2 % 95.9 % 0.3 % 1,243 1,220 1.9 % 1,307 1,271 2.8 % Denver, CO 11.5 % 94.0 % 94.4 % (0.4) % 1,836 1,817 1.0 % 2,037 1,988 2.4 % Grand Forks, ND 10.1 % 95.0 % 93.7 % 1.3 % 903 907 (0.4) % 980 957 2.6 % Omaha, NE 9.2 % 94.6 % 94.3 % 0.3 % 898 879 2.2 % 984 963 2.3 % St. Cloud, MN 8.4 % 94.3 % 95.6 % (1.3) % 950 945 0.5 % 1,063 1,035 2.7 % Bismarck, ND 7.1 % 96.3 % 95.3 % 1.0 % 1,048 1,037 1.1 % 1,126 1,104 2.1 % Billings, MT 5.8 % 95.1 % 96.0 % (0.9) % 939 915 2.6 % 1,010 981 3.0 % Minot, ND 5.0 % 96.1 % 95.4 % 0.7 % 991 997 (0.6) % 1,044 1,046 (0.1) % Rapid City, SD 3.4 % 95.6 % 95.9 % (0.3) % 959 938 2.2 % 1,046 1,003 4.1 % Same-Store Total 100.0 % 95.0 % 94.9 % 0.1 % $ 1,139 $ 1,123 1.4 % $ 1,234 $ 1,204 2.5 % IRET PORTFOLIO SUMMARY(1) Three Months Ended 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 Number of Apartment Homes at Period End Same-Store 11,257 11,257 10,402 11,785 12,848 Non-Same-Store 878 878 1,551 1,551 1,127 All Communities 12,135 12,135 11,953 13,336 13,975 Average Monthly Rental Rate(2) Same-Store $ 1,142 $ 1,135 $ 1,085 $ 1,062 $ 1,028 Non-Same-Store 1,594 1,572 1,722 1,742 1,692 All Communities $ 1,175 $ 1,163 $ 1,168 $ 1,123 $ 1,081 Average Monthly Revenue per Occupied Apartment Home(3) Same-Store $ 1,232 $ 1,237 $ 1,169 $ 1,141 $ 1,101 Non-Same-Store 1,681 1,658 1,869 1,887 1,848 All Communities $ 1,264 $ 1,263 $ 1,260 $ 1,210 $ 1,161 Weighted Average Occupancy(4) Same-Store 94.6 % 95.4 % 94.0 % 93.3 % 94.3 % Non-Same-Store 93.9 % 93.3 % 93.0 % 94.2 % 94.8 % All Communities 94.5 % 95.2 % 93.8 % 93.4 % 94.4 % Operating Expenses as a % of Scheduled Rent Same-Store 41.5 % 45.0 % 43.5 % 43.0 % 42.8 % Non-Same-Store 36.1 % 37.0 % 33.8 % 38.1 % 37.4 % All Communities 41.0 % 44.3 % 41.6 % 42.3 % 42.2 % Capital Expenditures Total Capital Expenditures per Apartment Home Same-Store $ 262 $ 151 $ 427 $ 178 $ 192 (1) Previously reported amounts are not revised for changes in the composition of the same-store properties pool. (2) Average monthly rental rate is scheduled rent divided by the total number of apartment homes. Scheduled rental revenue represents the value of all apartment homes, with occupied apartment homes valued at contractual rates pursuant to leases and vacant apartment homes valued at estimated market rents. When calculating actual rents for occupied apartment homes and market rents for vacant homes, delinquencies and concessions are not taken into account. Market rates are determined using the currently offered effective rates on new leases at the community and are used as the starting point in determination of the market rates of vacant apartment homes. (3) Average monthly revenue per occupied home is defined as total rental revenues divided by the weighted average occupied apartment homes for the period. (4) Weighted average occupancy is the percentage resulting from dividing actual rental revenue by scheduled rent. We believe that weighted average occupancy is a meaningful measure of occupancy because it considers the value of each vacant unit at its estimated market rate. Weighted average occupancy may not completely reflect short-term trends in physical occupancy and our calculation of weighted average occupancy may not be comparable to that disclosed by other REITs. IRET CAPITAL EXPENDITURES ($ in thousands, except per home amounts) Three Months Ended Six Months Ended 6/30/2020 6/30/2019 6/30/2020 6/30/2019 Total Same-Store Apartment Homes 11,257 11,257 11,257 11,257 Turnover $ 893 $ 908 $ 1,580 $ 1,422 Furniture & Equipment 112 107 241 160 Building Interior 69 100 218 178 Building Exterior 1,505 394 2,219 603 Landscaping & Grounds 367 539 383 545 Capital Expenditures - Same-Store $ 2,946 $ 2,048 $ 4,641 $ 2,908 Capital Expenditures per Apartment Home - Same-Store $ 262 $ 182 $ 412 $ 258 Value Add $ 2,604 $ 701 $ 4,166 $ 989 Total Capital Spend - Same-Store $ 5,550 $ 2,749 $ 8,807 $ 3,897 Total Capital Spend per Apartment Home - Same-Store $ 493 $ 244 $ 782 $ 346 All Properties - Weighted Average Apartment Homes 12,135 13,975 12,074 13,975 Capital Expenditures $ 3,373 $ 2,571 $ 5,183 $ 3,727 Capital Expenditures per Apartment Home $ 277 $ 184 $ 429 $ 267 Value Add 4,165 747 6,196 1,119 Acquisition Capital(1) (943) 66 535 254 Total Capital Spend 6,595 3,384 11,914 5,100 Total Capital Spend per Apartment Home $ 544 $ 242 $ 987 $ 365 (1) Negative amounts consist of balances originally classified as acquisition capital and subsequently reclassified to capital expenditures. SOURCE IRET Related Links https://www.iretapartments.com Billionaire retailer Solomon Lew has hit out at the Victorian government over its new limits on retail trade in the state, accusing the Andrews government of not acting early enough and causing unnecessary damage to the economy. On Monday, the state government announced the majority of retailers across Melbourne would be forced either to shut down entirely or to switch to online-only orders as part of sweeping new rules for the state's stage-four coronavirus lockdown plans. Retail billionaire Solomon Lew has hit out at the Andrews government over its management of Victoria's lockdowns. Credit:Paul Jeffers Mr Lew, who operates stores such as Smiggle, Just Jeans, JayJays and Dotti under his Premier Investments business, said that, while the steps taken were the right choice, the government should have moved more quickly. "While this is the right step, acting sooner could have prevented a lot of illness and unnecessary deaths. Delaying has only placed further pressure on the rest of the country and the national economy," Mr Lew said. Suspended University of Queensland student Drew Pavlou has been banned from setting foot on any campuses and he has been automatically removed from his elected position in the UQ senate. In the past year, the 21-year-old organised a series of protests supporting the Hong Kong pro-democracy movement, highlighted the uninversity's links to China and criticised UQ's Confucius Institute. Suspended UQ student Drew Pavlou leaves Brisbane Magistrates Court last month after a hearing in the case he has brought against Brisbane's Chinese Consular-General Xu Jie. Credit:Toby Crockford The university sent him a series of emails on Monday outlining the conditions of his semester-long suspension, which spans from Monday, August 3, to Friday, November 13. "Security has been informed of your suspension and in accordance with the Student Misconduct & Integrity Policy you have been prohibited from the University of Queensland's land and sites for the duration of the suspension," one of the UQ emails to Mr Pavlou said. Maryland governor Larry Hogan issued an executive order Monday voiding Montgomery Countys order banning in-person schooling at non-public schools. Private and parochial schools deserve the same opportunity and flexibility to make reopening decisions based on public health guidelines, Hogan said in a statement. The blanket closure mandate imposed by Montgomery County was overly broad and inconsistent with the powers intended to be delegated to the county health officer. Montgomery Countys health officer Travis Gayles issued an order on Friday prohibiting non-public schools from from holding in-person instruction through at least Oct. 1, ignoring state and federal guidelines. Gayles, an unelected official who said he was acting as a designee for the state secretary of health under Hogans Declaration of Catastrophic Health Emergency, had declined to consider the extensive plans many schools had drafted to allow for safe reopenings. He cited increasing COVID-19 transmission rates in Washington, D.C., Virginia, and Maryland as the reason for the ban. However, Montgomery County has had a daily increase in cases of less than 1% every day since July 7, lower than the state increase, which was at least 1% for 12 of the past 21 days, Bethesda Magazine reported. The health officers decision had drawn sharp criticism from parents a private Facebook group called Open Montgomery County, MD Private Schools created on Saturday already had more than 3,600 members by Monday morning, according to Bethesda Magazine. Hogans latest order explicitly rescinds counties power to shutter schools without state permission, amending his previous order. To be clear, Marylands recovery continues to be based on a flexible, community-based approach that follows science, not politics, the governor said. As long as schools develop safe and detailed plans that follow CDC and state guidelines, they should be empowered to do whats best for their community. Story continues Local health departments still have the ability to close any individual facility deemed unsafe under an earlier emergency order issued on April 5. More from National Review Mumbai-headquartered pharmaceutical company Wockhardt on Monday announced that it has entered into an agreement with the UK government to fill-finish millions of doses of Covid-19 vaccines. As per the terms of the agreement, the company has reserved manufacturing capacity to allow for the supply of multiple vaccines to the UK government in its fight against Covid-19, including AZD1222, the vaccine co-invented by the University of Oxford and its spin-out company, Vaccitech and licensed by AstraZeneca. The manufacturing will be undertaken at CP Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Wockhardt based in Wrexham, North Wales. "We are proud to be collaborating with the UK Government to make vaccines available and the arrangement brings in a huge sense of purpose and pride, it upholds our ongoing commitment to fight against such a pandemic of global human importance," Habil Khorakiwala, Chairman of Wockhardt, said in a statement. "As a global organisation, we are focussed and committed to assist in mitigating the worldwide impact of Covid-19." Following the announcement, shares of Wockhardt rose 10 per cent on close of Monday's trade. "Today we have secured additional capacity to manufacture millions of doses of multiple Covid-19 candidates, guaranteeing the supply of vaccines we need to protect people across the UK rapidly and in large numbers," said Alok Sharma, the UK's Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. In India, Pune's Serum Institute of India (SII) has received approval from the regulator to conduct clinical trials of Oxford University-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in the country. We dont often hear much from the feds in Chicago. They dont hold regular news conferences to keep us apprised of what they are up to. They are so hush-hush that we forget they are here, sometimes working side by side with police to weed out criminals and make our city safe. Lebanon has appointed Charbel Wehbe as foreign minister after Nassif Hitti resigned from the position, saying the country risked becoming a failed state and the government showed a lack of reformist will. I participated in this government on the basis that I have one employer named Lebanon, and I found in my country many employers and conflicting interests, Hitti said in his resignation letter to Prime Minister Hassan Diab, made public on Monday. If they dont come together around the interests of the Lebanese people and save them, then the ship, God forbid, will sink with everyone on board. In his resignation letter, Hitti chided the absence of a vision for Lebanon as I believe in it as a free, independent and capable nation and the absence of a real will to achieve structural reforms which our national society asks for and the international community are calling on us to do. Lebanon today is sliding towards becoming a failed state, he wrote. The letter also implicitly criticised Hezbollah, a major backer of Diabs government, by calling for a need for Lebanon to strengthen its ties with the Arab community and be radiant in its Arab environment. Lebanons formerly strong ties with Arab nations, including Saudi Arabia, have been harmed by the growing role of the Iran-backed group in Lebanese politics and in regional conflicts, including the war In Yemen. Hours after Hitti resigned, President Michel Aoun and Diab signed a decree appointing Charbel Wehbe as the new foreign minister. Wehbe is a diplomatic affairs advisor to Aoun and was formerly the director of political affairs at the foreign ministry. Blow to the government Hittis resignation is the biggest blow yet to Diabs six-month-old government, which has struggled to make good on promises that it would implement wide-ranging reforms following massive anti-establishment protests last year. Though the veteran diplomat is the first member of Diabs cabinet to quit, the government has already seen two high-profile resignations from a team negotiating with the International Monetary Fund for a bailout. Both had cited the same lack of will to reform due to the interests of the countrys political-financial elite. 200724144140602 Last week, Hitti had expressed his frustration with the Diab government on a popular talk show, saying it was draining my professional and diplomatic credit. Diabs government has also faced repeated calls to resign. But he has defended staying in power by claiming a replacement would take a long time, which he said would amount to a crime against the Lebanese [people]. Diplomatic spat with France Hittis resignation follows a diplomatic mishap involving Diab and Lebanons strongest Western ally, France, after French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian visited Beirut last month. A few days after the visit, a tweet from Diabs official Twitter account said Le Drian brought nothing new and had a lack of knowledge of the path of government reforms. The international decision till now is not to help Lebanon, he posted. The tweet was later deleted. Diab also met a French embassy delegation and reportedly expressed his appreciation of Frances historical ties with Lebanon. Hitti was picked by Gebran Bassil, the former foreign minister and head of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), which has the single-biggest bloc in parliament and was founded by President Michel Aoun. Reports in local media have indicated that Hittis resignation was partially due to frustration over Bassils continued hold on key decisions at the ministry. Bassil was reportedly unhappy with Hittis decision to quit. An FPM source told Al Jazeera that Hittis decision to step down was his own, regardless of the partys position. He has his own reasons, the source said. His statement today was clear and shows that it had nothing to do with the talk that has come out. Kate Garraway has revealed she offered to donate her blood plasma to husband Derek Draper after they were both struck down with coronavirus. The Good Morning Britain recovered from COVID-19 but her husband has been in intensive care since March. Speaking on Monday's GMB, Kate explained she was keen to donate her blood plasma to Derek after her recovery - a procedure encouraged by the NHS and the government. Help: Kate Garraway has revealed she offered to donate her blood plasma to husband Derek Draper after they were both struck down with coronavirus While Derek is now free of coronavirus and came out of a coma last month, Kate told her GMB co-star Ben Shephard that she was wanted to help in any way she could when Derek's condition was at its most critical. 'Something I saw which intrigued me was this call out from the government for people to come forward to donate blood, so they can make use of blood plasma. Those who have had Covid and recovered,' she said. 'When Derek was very seriously affected by the virus - as in the virus was active, not as he is now - towards the end of April, I was looking for anything that might be able to help.' Kate said she spoke to her husband's doctors, explaining: 'I said to the doctors, "Could I donate my blood? I've had it, I seem to have recovered. Would antibodies that I have be helpful to him?"' Support: The Good Morning Britain recovered from COVID-19 but her husband has been in intensive care since March (pcitured together in December 2019) 'They said, "We are months away from being able to be confident that we could, in a sense, clean your blood enough to make sure that only the good antibodies were going in."' Kate added that Derek has since had plasma exchanged, explaining: 'We know plasma has been really helpful now. And more recently, Derek has had plasma exchanged, to try to support the cleaning up of the system.' Kate asked GMB's doctor Dr Amir Khan if the UK is in a position where people could donate blood to family members who have coronavirus, admitting 'for anybody who has a relative who is sick, it just feels like something you could do to help'. Recovered: Speaking on Monday's GMB, Kate explained she was keen to donate her blood plasma to Derek after her recovery - a procedure encouraged by the NHS and the government A timeline of Derek's coronavirus battle MARCH Kate revealed she and Prince Charles had got 'relatively close' at the Prince's Trust Awards on March 11 - Charles was diagnosed with coronavirus in mid-March. She said: 'Around the 29/30 March, I came home came in and said [to Derek] 'god you look ill.' 'He said he had a headache, numbness in his right hand, and was struggling to breathe, 'I rang Dr Hilary (Jones) and tried to get through, he talked to Derek. He said put me back on, I think you need to call an ambulance' Derek, 52, was taken into hospital on March 30 and remained in an unresponsive condition. APRIL Kate and her children isolated at home after she displayed 'mild symptoms'. Kate said: 'Derek remains in intensive care and is still very ill. I'm afraid it remains an excruciatingly worrying time. 'I'm afraid he is still in a deeply critical condition, but he is still here, which means there is hope.' MAY Kate said: 'The journey for me and my family seems to be far from over as every day my heart sinks as I learn new and devastating ways this virus has more battles for Derek to fight. 'But he is still HERE & so there is still hope.' That month, Kate and her family took part in the final clap for carers She said: 'I'll never give up on that because Derek's the love of my life but at the same time I have absolute uncertainty' JUNE On June 5, Kate revealed Derek is now free from coronavirus but continues to fight against the damage inflicted on his body JULY On July 5, Kate revealed Derek has woken from his coma but he remains in a serious yet critical condition. On July 8, she announced she would be returning to GMB, after being urged by doctors to 'get on with life' during Derek's recovery. She added that Derek had 'opened his eyes' after waking from his coma, but has been told his recovery could take years. On July 13, Kate returned to GMB for the first time since Derek was hospitalised. On July 28, Kate revealed she'd paid an 'extra emotional' first visit to Derek, and admitted she's 'frustrated' by his slow progress. Advertisement He said: 'Definitely. We all want to help people who are suffering from this virus. And convalescent plasma therapy, we are really encouraging people to come forward and donate plasma. Because we need more and more of it. Particularly if there is a risk of a second wave.' 'I really like this idea. It's one of these old-fashioned kinds of medical therapies that has come back. It was first used in the 1800s to treat children with diphtheria, and then again in the 1900s to treat Spanish flu.' 'The NHS and the government are really encouraging people who have tested positive for coronavirus, who have thought they'd had it in the past and perhaps have not had a test yet, to come forward and donate their plasma.' 'Their antibodies can be used in patients who are particularly unwell in hospital to help treat their infection.' Kate then asked: 'That's great now, but why wasn't it used before?' He admitted the evidence has 'always been there' but the technology and the donations 'haven't always been there', and he believes it 'should've been used earlier'. On Monday's show, Kate also revealed how her friend and fellow TV presenter Jeremy Kyle has helped her with childcare for her children Darcey, 14, and Billy, 11. Kate explained her children have gone to stay with Derek's parents this week, but admitted she has taken precautions as her in-laws have been shielding since March. 'My children have gone for the first time to stay away from home - they've gone to stay with Derek's mum and dad,' she said. 'Derek's mum and dad have been shielding since the beginning of March because they both feel vulnerable.' 'So this was a very big deal for them to have the children to stay, and also very important because they haven't seen their grandchildren in a while. Very important for Billie and Darcey because they haven't seen their grandparents as well.' She added that her children isolated over several days before they went to visit and she washed and sealed Darcey and Billy's clothes before they travelled on Sunday. Kate explained that she didn't want to travel with the children to their grandparents as she wanted to limit the people her in-laws have had contact with, so her friend Jeremy stepped in. 'It was thanks to Jeremy Kyle that they travelled up - big thanks to him. Because he said, "Listen, my driver has been isolating and has been keeping the car very clean so I'll take the children up." Very, very kind of him, thank you very much Jeremy.' Last week Kate revealed she paid an 'extra emotional' first visit to Derek, as he continues to slowly recover from COVID-19. The Good Morning Britain presenter, 53, also told Ben Shephard that it was 'lovely' to see her partner as (28 July) was his 53rd birthday, but she continues to be 'frustrated' by his slow progress. Kate told Ben: 'I did go and see Derek, he's had a tough couple of weeks, and it's just frustrating, it would have actually been his birthday today so I was extra emotional so I was thinking about the day he was born. She added: 'What the doctor said to me was, "Sometimes, Kate, a day when nothing has gone backwards is a positive".' Family: On Monday's show, Kate also revealed how her friend and fellow TV presenter Jeremy Kyle has helped her with childcare for her children Darcey, 14, and Billy, 11 As Ben agreed that Derek had 'a stable day,' Kate added: 'It's just I'm desperate for a step forward. It's always lovely to see him and so it's wonderful to have the chance to see him.' The presenter has been unable to visit her husband Derek due to strict measures in place in hospitals around the country during the coronavirus crisis, and has instead been 'seeing him' over FaceTime. Last Monday, Kate also spoke about the 'utterly terrifying' moment her tyre blew while she was driving with her family over the weekend. Helping hand: Kate explained that she didn't want to travel with the children for a visit to their grandparents over the weekend so Jeremy Kyle stepped in and offered his driver The Good Morning Britain presenter was left shaken following the incident, which occurred as she hurried back to see ailing husband Derek. Speaking to co-host Ben, Kate said: 'We were rushing back because we were conscious of getting back to London to check on Derek, and my mum and dad were coming for their first visit. 'You know people say God and the universe doesn't send you what you can't deal with. I would like to put a message out, I am at my limit, I am at my absolute limit now. If the universe could just give me a calm Monday!' Terrifying: Last Monday, Kate also spoke about the 'utterly terrifying' moment her tyre blew while she was driving with her family Referring to the accident, which happened while children Darcey, 14, and Billy, 11, were in the car, she added: 'It was the first time that I had been out with the kids in the car... 'Leaving London, going to meet some friends in Kent, in a socially distanced way at lovely Port Lympne Safari Park. 'On the way back we suddenly exploded. It's that moment where you think ''I cant control the car." 'All weird steering, bits of rubber flying everywhere. I dont know if it was smoke but looked like smoke it could be burning rubber. Touching: Derek has credited Kate for saving him from depression which started during his career as a political advisor and led to a nervous breakdown (pictured in 2006) 'I managed to pull over but it just happened to be on the section of the motorway where there wasnt a hard shoulder, there was a feeder road going off so I was nervous about people going on the inside.' Kate later admitted she had chosen to stay close to London for the sake of Derek, who remains in a critical condition at a local hospital. She said: 'We've been talking about travel plans all morning and the problems people are facing going to Spain and having to quarantine, but I made baby steps. 'This was the first time I was taking the kids out of London. Obviously wanting to stay local to Derek and taking it step by step.' Switch the Market flag Open the menu and switch the Market flag for targeted data from your country of choice. for targeted data from your country of choice. The New York Yankees have featured some of the most prolific home run hitters of all time: Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Reggie Jackson and Alex Rodriguez. But the team record for most consecutive games with a home run belongs to former captain Don Mattingly, who hit homers in eight straight games in 1987. That tied the all-time record set by the Pirates Dale Long in 1956. It was matched by the Mariners Ken Griffey, Jr. in 1993. Introducing Yankees Insider: Get exclusive news, behind-the-scenes observations and the ability to text message directly with beat writers By the end of the week, right fielder Aaron Judge could sit atop the list. Judge hit two home runs in Sundays 9-7 win over the Boston Red Sox. It marked the fifth straight game in which hes hit a home run (a feat not done on the Yankees since A-Rod in 2007). Mattingly is well aware that his record is within reach, especially with the proliferation of power hitters in todays game. In July of 2017, WFAN asked Mattingly if he thought the record would ever be broken. I kinda do, Mattingly said. It seems like theres enough guys that get close. Buy Aaron Judge Yankees gear: Fanatics.com, MLBShop.com, Lids During his 2017 conversation with WFAN, Judge was just emerging as a breakout star. He went on to win American League Rookie of the Year and was second in AL MVP voting after hitting a then-rookie record 52 home runs. Thats the kind of guy, Mattingly said. (One) whos hitting for average, getting good pitches to hit, and he can hit em out of anywhere. To me, if you get the right guy, theres no reason (it cant be broken). Its just a hot streak. And if theyve got a little power, then its something that can happen. Judge will look to extend his streak to six games on Monday when the Philadelphia Phillies visit Yankee Stadium. Get Yankees text messages: Cut through the clutter of social media and text during games with beat writers and columnists. Plus, exclusive news and analysis every day. Sign up now. Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription. Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here. Mumbai: The investigation in the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput is intensifying with each passing day. The recent developments in the case revealed that the actor's corpse was already on the bed when the ambulance team had reached the spot and the owner of the ambulance said that there's 'no foul play' involved in it. While talking to Zee Media, the ambulance owner Rahul Bandgar said that his team moved Sushant's dead body from the bed to the ambulance van. He said, "I was in my village when this happened on June 14, but I asked my brother Akshay, who is out of town at the moment, to take the ambulance to the spot." He added," The corpse was already lying on the bed and our team then took it to the ambulance. Since there was a problem in the stretcher of the ambulance, we had to call another ambulance." He expressed, "There is no foul play in it, why would we do that? He has passed away now and went to heaven. What would we get by doing all this?" Also read | After putting Patna City SP Binay Tiwari in home quarantine, BMC looking for other officers of Bihar police Meanwhile, Mumbai Police Commissioner Parambir Singh said that Mumbai police has started an investigation after filing an Accidental Death Report adding that the forensic experts and team of doctors have been consulted to help Mumbai police in the probe. According to Singh, Mumbai police is probing the matter from both angles - natural death as well as suspected death. Also read | Sushant Singh Rajput death case: Bihar CM Nitish Kumar condemns quarantine of IPS officer Binay Tiwari They have sparked recent rumours after a number of appearances together. And Maya Hawke, 22, and Tom Sturridge, 34, appeared to confirm their budding romance as they walked arm in arm and kissed during an outing on Sunday. The actor pair looked very cosy as they took a stroll through New York City before heading to dinner. New love: Maya Hawke, 22, and Tom Sturridge, 34, appeared to confirm their budding romance as they walked arm in arm in New York City on Sunday Stranger Things star Maya, the daughter of Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman, looked stunning in a floral dress and a straw hat. Meanwhile The Boat That Rocked star Tom, the ex of Sienna Miller cut a casual figure in a black t-shirt and jeans. The couple both donned colourful face masks as they stepped out, which they then pulled down as they embraced at the restaurant. Loved-up: The actor pair looked very cosy as enjoyed a smooch while sitting outside a restaurant Stylish: Stranger Things star Maya, the daughter of Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman, looked stunning in a floral dress and a straw hat Outing: Meanwhile The Boat That Rocked star Tom, the ex of Sienna Miller cut a casual figure in a black t-shirt and jeans Cautious: The couple both donned colourful face masks, with Tom in red and Maya in a bright green mask Tom has a daughter, Marlowe, eight, whom he shares with ex-fiancee Sienna Miller. She is said to be engaged to her new beau, Lucas Zwirner, 29. Since Stranger Things season four suspended filming in Atlanta back in mid-March, Maya has been quarantining in upstate New York spending time at both the homes of her famous parents amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Co-parenting: Tom has a daughter, Marlowe, eight, whom he shares with ex-fiancee Sienna Miller. She is said to be engaged to her new beau, Lucas Zwirner, 29 (pictured 2014) Delighted to be spending some quality time with her daughter, Uma, 49, posted a picture of herself giving Maya a haircut in April, she wrote on Instagram: 'Home hair cuts bring us back home. We are all finding our selves again.' Maya discussed her living situation in an interview with Nylon, and lamented losing her independence in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. 'I feel like the last three years of my life have been a dream and I'm just a kid again with my family,' she explained. Sweet: Since Stranger Things season four suspended filming in Atlanta back in mid-March, Maya has been quarantining in upstate New York with famous mother Uma, with the Kill Bill star giving her home haircuts Doting mother: Maya discussed her living situation in an interview with Nylon , and lamented losing her independence in the wake of the coronavirus crisis (pictured in January 2019) Maya added: 'I moved out and got my whole life together and became a person. And this disease is like, "Ha ha ha, just kidding! You're a kid, and you live with your parents."' In addition to Maya, Ethan Hawke and ex-wife Uma also share an 18-year-old son named Levon. Ethan and second wife Ryan, whom he married in 2009, have children Clementine, 12, and Indiana, nine, together. While Uma also has daughter Luna, eight. With six kids ranging from prekindergarten to 12th grade, life already was chaotic in Amanda Bryants home when a handful of Houston-area residents tested positive for the new coronavirus back in March. Several weeks later, after campuses in Huffman ISD and across Greater Houston were closed, it looked like a school supply store had exploded in her dining room. The kids would fight over pencils. The familys computers were shuffled between the bunch. Bryant had to figure out how to help her kids navigate no fewer than four online learning platforms, some of which would kick everyone else off because only one child could be logged in at a time. My phone was going off the hook. I had people calling me saying, Did you know your daughter didnt turn in her work? Bryant said. I felt like a secretary. I told myself we would not do this again. For many Houston-area parents, there may not be a choice. At least 14 districts in Greater Houston will start their school years online before Labor Day. Now, education leaders are trying to convince skeptical parents such as Bryant that distance learning this fall will be less headache-inducing than the virtual programs rolled out in spring. Some changes will be mandated by the Texas Education Agency. For schools to receive funding, for example, students learning remotely will need to complete work every weekday. Students working virtually also must be graded the same as those who are learning in actual school classrooms. Others came from the district level. Sample daily schedules released by Alvin and Pearland ISDs show students will spend their time like they would on a regular school day: logged in starting at first period and changing subjects throughout the day. Most of their core classes will be taught in real-time, with students watching and engaging with teachers through video meetings. Other courses, such as electives, will have students complete assignments on their own, without live instruction. Brett Coomer, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer In Katy and Clear Creek ISDs, the districts have branded their online platforms as programs of choice, similar to magnet programs. Students who opt to attend the Katy Virtual Academy and Clear Connections still will be tied to their home campus for testing, attendance and accountability purposes. It will look extremely different were sending that message out daily, said Elaina Polsen, a spokeswoman for Clear Creek ISD. What parents, students and teachers experienced this spring was our crisis response. This program is our strategic intent. Learning from spring Student, parent and teacher frustrations with the online end to the 2019-20 school year were similar across the Houston region. In many districts, individual teachers were able to choose which online systems they used, sometimes requiring students to access their work and lessons on different platforms for different classes. Students generally were allowed to turn in their work weekly instead of daily. While some teachers were responsive to emails and text messages, others seemed to drop off the face of the earth. The experience was a mixed bag for Maddox McMorris, a sophomore at Fort Bend ISDs Elkins High School. His stepmother, Kym, said some of his classes were engaging while others just assigned fluff work. One teacher went dark, save for a once-a-week posting of assignments. The McMorrises still are leaning toward choosing online instruction once in-person classes resume, but they worry similar issues will arise this fall. Brett Coomer, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer It is a sentiment Diana Sayavedra, deputy superintendent of curriculum and instruction in Fort Bend ISD, has heard a lot. Like other local districts, FBISD has ordered more laptops for students and has organized its online system. For consistency, teachers will be trained and told to use a standard folder organization on the districts online learning platform, Schoology. There will be a master schedule, so students days will mirror the days of those on campuses. Teachers will use a calendar feature to help students and parents keep track of assignments, and there will be specific parent-teacher communication protocols. It looks different, it sounds different, it feels different, but our commitment is the same: to educate our students, and for them to be able to engage in a meaningful and authentic learning process, Sayavedra said. Another change from the spring for some districts will be grading. Lee Courville, deputy superintendent for educational services in Dickinson ISD, said students were given one of four grades to finish last school year: one grade for students who did not complete any work once; one for those who did only a few assignments; one for those who consistently turned in average work; and one for students who consistently turned in exceptional work. Everyone will be back to A-to-F letter grades when schools in the Galveston County district reopen virtually on Aug. 24. However, in a departure from other districts, Courville said, Dickinson ISD students will have more independent time to finish assignments, a model known as asynchronous learning. Teachers still will livestream some or parts of lessons to their classes, and students will need to log in and complete work in order to be counted for attendance. However, lectures may not be live, and students can complete work at their own pace, rather than participating in live instruction. The most successful online school programs are those that give teachers more leeway, said Chris Dede, a professor of learning technologies and education innovation at Harvard University. Its districts saying to teachers, You know the students, you know what can and cant be accomplished at home. Use your strengths to have the children learn things important for their academic success whether its the next thing on curriculum standards or not, he said. Still, logistical challenges remain. Accessibility One of the challenges for teachers will be to make sure students do not try to cheat by looking at their cellphones or opening other windows on the laptops to find answers. Houston ISDs virtual learning system, HISD @ H.O.M.E., can alert teachers to potential cheating issues, said Yolanda Rodriguez, interim chief academic officer. Theres a feature that doesnt allow a screen to be idle for a certain amount of time, addressing the tendency for students use a phone to look up some information, Rodriguez said. Even with the changes, not all Houston-area students will be able to access online instruction. Districts have spent the summer months trying to amass enough laptops and mobile Wi-Fi hot spots for all the students who need them, but the scale of the problem simply is too large in some areas. Aldine ISD officials said they will be able to provide one laptop per family at the start of the year, which means that families with several kids likely will need to share the one device. Brett Coomer, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer KIPP Texas schools pushed back the virtual start of its school year in the hopes that additional laptops ordered over summer will arrive in time for the first day of classes. Houston ISD officials aimed to provide a laptop for every student, but Rodriguez said that likely will not happen by the time schools start virtually on Sept. 8. She said students who lack internet or technology access would be given paper work packets, contradicting TEA mandates that schools open to students who lack the technology to learn virtually. Even if families opt to send their children to in-person instruction when it becomes available, there always is the chance a campus outbreak could force all students to return to online classrooms for up to a week. Even when were back face to face, we may have to go back online, Sayavedra said. What we know is in 2020-21, online learning will be part of the landscape. Bryant, in Huffman ISD, said she is willing to give online learning another shot. One of her kids principals assured her only one platform would be used and promised the virtual learning will be much improved. She wants her kids to return to school as soon as they are able, but if that goal continues to get pushed back, or if she is not happy with the online program, she may pull them out altogether. Im sure theyre trying, I really do. I feel like theyre doing best they can with the restrictions theyre being given, Bryant said. But, realistically, this doesnt work for a lot of families. shelby.webb@chron.com Press release Paris, 3 August 2020 Orange announces the publication of its first half 2020 financial report. The report was filed with the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF) and submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and is available on the website of the Company at the following address: https://www.orange.com/en/Investors/Regulated-information About Orange Orange is one of the worlds leading telecommunications operators with sales of 42 billion euros in 2019 and 145,000 employees worldwide at 31 March 2020, including 85,000 employees in France. The Group has a total customer base of 253 million customers worldwide at 31 March 2020, including 208 million mobile customers and 21million fixed broadband customers. The Group is present in 26 countries. Orange is also a leading provider of global IT and telecommunication services to multinational companies, under the brand Orange Business Services. In December 2019, the Group presented its new "Engage 2025" strategic plan, which, guided by social and environmental accountability, aims to reinvent its operator model. While accelerating in growth areas and placing data and AI at the heart of its innovation model, the Group will be an attractive and responsible employer, adapted to emerging professions. Orange is listed on Euronext Paris (symbol ORA) and on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol ORAN). For more information on the internet and on your mobile: www.orange.com , www.orange-business.com or to follow us on Twitter: @presseorange and @orange. Orange and any other Orange product or service names included in this material are trademarks of Orange or Orange Brand Services Limited. Press contact: +33 1 44 44 93 93 Tom Wright; tom.wright@orange.com Olivier Emberger : olivier.emberger@orange.com Attachment San Francisco, Aug 3 : Microsoft has officially confirmed it is in talks to acquire the operations of video-sharing platform TikTok in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand markets following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald Trump. "Microsoft is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the United States," the tech giant said in a blog post late on Monday. "Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President's concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury," the company said. The official confirmation came after reports surfaced that Microsoft has halted its bid to buy the US operations of China-based TikTok after President Donald Trump vowed to ban the short-video making app that has over 80 million monthly users in the country. According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, a sale was thought close to agreement "but was put in doubt after the US president's warning". Microsoft said that it "will move quickly to pursue discussions with TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, in a matter of weeks, and in any event completing these discussions no later than September 15, 2020". During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the US government, including with the President. The discussions with ByteDance will build upon a notification made by Microsoft and ByteDance to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The two companies have provided notice of their intent to explore a preliminary proposal that would involve a purchase of the TikTok service in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand and would result in Microsoft owning and operating TikTok in these markets. Microsoft said it may invite other American investors to participate on a minority basis in this purchase. Microsoft said it would ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the US. "To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the United States, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred," it said. Trump said last week that he will ban the popular Chinese-owned video app TikTok from operating in the country through an executive order. Last week, TikTok unveiled a plan to offer creators $2 billion globally in the next three years. TikTok has denied any Chinese control over its operations. The move to ban TikTok comes at a time of heightened tensions between the Trump administration and the Chinese government over a number of issues, including trade disputes and Beijing's handling of the coronavirus pandemic. (Boston)--Deborah Lang, MD, associate professor of dermatology at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), has been awarded a two-year, $250,000 grant from the Harry J. Lloyd Charitable Trust to further her basic science research on the molecular and cellular biology of melanoma. Specifically, the award will support her project: Transcriptional Mechanisms underlying the shared and unique roles of YAP and TAZ in melanoma. The spread (metastasis) of melanoma is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality. The genes YAP and TAZ have been in implicated in cancer metastasis. However, the gene targets are not well defined and the mechanism of how these factors drive metastasis is poorly understood. Lang believes this research will help explain the role of these genes and their function in melanoma progression and may lead to new drugs to target metastatic melanoma. Lang was recruited from the University of Chicago in 2016. Her research is centered on studying processes that occur in normal pigment cells and stem cells and applying these findings toward melanoma. "The premise is that pathways that are essential for development (such as growth, survival and migration) are also important for melanoma progression (over-growth, inappropriate survival, and metastasis)," she explains. Lang's research goals are to discover innovative and effective treatments for melanoma by targeting innate pathways that occur during normal melanocyte development and stem cell maintenance. "We find that the normal molecular processes that regulate cellular differentiation, homeostasis, growth and migration of adult and immature melanocytes are corrupted during melanoma tumorigenesis, progression and metastasis. The discovery of these molecular pathways and knowledge on how they function will reveal new targets for future melanoma therapies," she adds. Lang received her BS degree in chemistry from Philadelphia University and her PhD in molecular pathobiology from Drexel University in Philadelphia. She performed her fellowship in molecular and developmental biology from the University of Pennsylvania. She has mentored more than 20 students and has served as an elected council member and plenary speaker of the Pan American Society for Pigment Cell Research. In 2003, The Harry J. Lloyd Charitable Trust established a melanoma advisory committee to assist the seven trustees in identifying and reviewing melanoma research grant requests. In 16 years the trust has provided 131 melanoma research grants totaling more than $16 million. ### Val Kilmer has opened up about overcoming speaking challenges following his battle with throat cancer. Kilmer, 60, underwent a tracheotomy as a result of the disease several years ago, and though communication has now become difficult, he insists it's just like any other challenge has he had to tackle. 'I'm doing great. I feel a lot better than I sound,' Val told Good Morning America in an interview which aired Monday. 'You have to figure out a way to communicate': Val Kilmer has opened up about overcoming speaking challenges following his battle with throat cancer 'It's just like any other language or dialect,' Val explained. 'You have to figure out a way to communicate that's no different than any other acting challenge but it's just a very unique set of circumstances.' Val previously told the morning show he 'healed quickly' from cancer, and now uses the tracheotomy to help him breathe due to the swelling of his throat glands. Val also discussed working with his daughter Mercedes Kilmer, 28, who is making her big screen debut in the upcoming thriller Paydirt, set for release August 7. In good spirits: 'I'm doing great. I feel a lot better than I sound,' Val told Good Morning America in an interview which aired Monday Health update: Val previously told the morning show he 'healed quickly' from cancer, and now uses the tracheotomy to help him breathe due to the swelling of his throat glands The film sees Kilmer play a retired sheriff tracking down a parolee searching for buried money. Mercedes plays his daughter, Jamie. Appearing in the interview virtually, Mercedes said she was proud to be in the film as it starred a disability actor - her father. 'I'm so proud to have been in this film and to have worked on this film like not just because my dad is my actual dad, but because I know you don't really lead with this but you do have now a disability with your voice, and it really meant a lot to me to be able to be involved in this film that centers a disabled actor, or an actor with a disability.' Family business: Kilmer stars opposite his daughter Mercedes Kilmer in the upcoming action film, Paydirt Art imitates life: Mercedes plays Kilmer's daughter Jamie in the film Paydirt is just one of numerous films Kilmer will be starring in in the coming years, including the highly-anticipated sequel, Top Gun: Maverick. Kilmer will be returning to his role of Iceman, but declined to share any details about the film during his GMA interview. 'All I can tell you about the film is that my hair is not the same length,' Kilmer said. 'Iceman has not become Ice Monk.' On top of his movie career, Kilmer has been back in the spotlight this last year with the release of his memoir, I'm Your Huckleberry, where he details his battle with cancer. 'It really meant a lot to me': Mercedes was proud to be working on a film starring a disabled actor - her father The Batman actor found himself single and out of money from losing land investments in 2015, living in a cottage in Malibu with the postman and local burrito man as his best friends. 'I was a weirdo beach bum and it was bliss then bliss turned to mayhem. I coughed up coagulated blood. I presumed this was the day of my death', Kilmer confesses in his memoir that chronicles his lost loves and lifelong spiritual journey. Kilmer describes how he called for an ambulance and crawled up the wooden stairs from his guesthouse to the Pacific Coast Highway so the ambulance could find him. Family affair: Mercedes is the daughter of the Top Gun actor and his ex-wife Joanne Whalley He woke up in a Santa Monica hospital after an emergency tracheotomy for throat cancer. His old lover Cher had him transferred to David Geffen's School of Medicine at UCLA where he underwent chemo and radiation over a two-month stay. A lifelong Christian Scientist following the beliefs of both of his parents, Kilmer wrote: 'I do not deny miraculous healing', Kilmer writes. Reflecting on the cancer that had caused his tongue to swell and block his lymph passages, requiring two tracheotomies, Kilmer said: 'The cancer miraculously healed much faster than any of the doctors predicted'. Now when he talks, he has to put a finger to the aperture in his throat to be understood. Open book: On top of his movie career, Kilmer has been back in the spotlight this last year with the release of his memoir, I'm Your Huckleberry, where he details his battle with cancer All crewmen of ships departing from Russia are required to submit a certificate showing they tested negative for the new coronavirus upon arriving in South Korea starting Monday, health authorities here said. The certificates must be issued within 48 hours prior to the departure. South Korea has been making it mandatory for all foreign arrivals from six countries Bangladesh, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, the Philippines and Uzbekistan to hand in the health certificates. The country has been considering adding Russia to the list but decided to apply the tough quarantine measure on only seafarers for the time being. "The decision came as there were only few Russians infected with COVID-19 who arrived here through airports," said Son Young-rae, a senior health official. "Most of the infected Russians were from ships." Infections traced to Russian ships docked in South Korean ports have increased recently, with the number of related cases hitting 92 from eight ships since June 22. South Korea began on-board COVID-19 tests on Russian ships arriving in the southern port city of Busan in late June. Starting last month, the tests were expanded to all ports nationwide. South Korea had reported 14,366 COVID-19 cases as of Sunday. The country's imported cases have recently risen due to infections among South Korean workers returning home from Iraq and Russian sailors, although locally transmitted cases have been showing clear signs of a slowdown. Imported cases, which hit a daily record high of 86 on July 25, have increased by double-digit numbers per day for more than a month. (Yonhap) Former US President Bill Clinton has led tributes from around the world to John Hume, saying his work to forge peace in Northern Ireland will be his lasting legacy. The ex-SDLP leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner passed away on Monday at the age of 83. He had been ill for some time. A towering figure in Irish politics, he is credited with laying the groundwork for the Good Friday Agreement. Mourned in his home city of Derry on Monday as a hero of Ireland, moving tributes came from presidents, prime ministers and Taoisigh, past and present. His funeral is to be held on Wednesday and his family have said it will follow coronavirus guidelines and asked those wanting to mark his death support a 'celebration of light for peace' by lighting a candle tonight at 9pm instead of lining the streets as his body is brought home. The family said they were "very grateful for the outpouring of love and support following the death of their beloved John". Mr Clinton said: "With his enduring sense of honour, he kept marching on against all odds towards a brighter future for all the children of Northern Ireland." Prime Minister Boris Johnson described Mr Hume as a "political giant", while Irish premier Micheal Martin said he was a "great hero and a true peacemaker". Former PM Tony Blair hailed Mr Hume's "epic" contribution to the peace process. A founding member of the party he went on to lead for 22 years, Mr Hume was a key part of the civil rights movement of the late 1960s. Read More Steadfast in his commitment to non-violence, his participation in secret talks with then Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams in the late 1980s and early 1990s was a catalyst for the peace process. It culminated in 1998 with the signing of the historic agreement which largely ended three decades of sectarian violence here. Along with Ulster Unionist Party leader David Trimble, now Lord Trimble, Mr Hume was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his contribution to stopping the bloodshed. In 2010, Mr Hume was named "Ireland's Greatest" in a poll by Irish state broadcaster RTE. His death comes six months after that of fellow Good Friday architect and long-time SDLP deputy leader Seamus Mallon. SDLP leader and Foyle MP Colum Eastwood described his predecessor as "Ireland's Martin Luther King". Read More Writing in a book of condolence in Derry on Monday, he added: "We live in the Ireland you imagined and built. Thank you from a grateful generation. Our leader always." However, the Hume legacy spread far beyond his native city, drawing tributes yesterday from around the world. Mr Clinton said: "Through his faith in principled compromise, and his ability to see his adversaries as human beings, John helped forge the peace that has held to this day." He added: "His legacy will live on in every generation of Northern Ireland's young people who make John's choice, to live free of the hatred and horror of sectarian violence." Mr Blair, another architect of the peace process, said: "John Hume was a political titan; a visionary who refused to believe the future had to be the same as the past. Expand Close John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim "His contribution to peace in Northern Ireland was epic and he will rightly be remembered for it. He was insistent it was possible, tireless in pursuit of it and endlessly creative in seeking ways of making it happen." In Northern Ireland, tributes were led by First Minister Arlene Foster, who recalled a "giant in Irish nationalism". "In our darkest days he recognised that violence was the wrong path and worked steadfastly to promote democratic politics," she said. Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill described Mr Hume as a "huge political figure in our society for many decades". "A leader who took risks that ultimately helped bring about peace, he will be sadly missed," she said. Lord Trimble said: "He was a politician who devoted his life to dealing with the situations that we have here." Taoiseach Micheal Martin said it was "impossible to properly express the scale and significance of John Hume's life". Tributes were also paid by the Irish rock band U2. In 1998, during the campaign for a Yes vote in the peace deal referendum, Mr Hume appeared on stage at the Waterfront Hall with Mr Trimble and U2's Bono, in what became a defining image of the time. On Monday night the band described him as "the greatest servant leader of them all", adding: "RIP John Hume". Mr Hume led the SDLP from 1979 until 2001, and was MP for Foyle from 1983 to 2005. He was also an MLA in the early years of the restored Assembly and an MEP from 1979 to 2004. He stepped down as SDLP leader in 2001 to be replaced by protege Mark Durkan. SDLP co-founder Austin Currie said "John Hume is the greatest Irishman since Parnell". The mayor of Derry and Strabane, Brian Tierney, said he was "a true son of Derry and a hero of Ireland", adding: "RIP Ireland's greatest". Mr Hume, who had dementia and in recent years had lived in a care home in Londonderry, died in the early hours of Monday morning His family said: "John was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a great-grandfather and a brother. He was very much loved, and his loss will be deeply felt by all his extended family. His funeral will take place in Derry tomorrow in a ceremony limited in size due to coronavirus restrictions. Jenkintown Road closed from Monday through May New York, Aug 3 : Google on Monday introduced the new affordable smartphone Pixel 4a starting at $349 for the lone 6GB+128GB model in the US that will arrive in India in October. The company said it will reveal the price for the Indian market closer to its launch, which will be available for purchase on Flipkart. Pixel 4a is now available for pre-order in the US on the Google Store and on Google Fi. It will be available to customers on August 20 through the Google Store, BestBuy.com, Amazon and more, as well as US carriers including Google Fi, U.S. Cellular and Verizon, the company said in a statement. The smartphone features a 5.8-inch OLED display and will come in 'Just Black' colour. The phone has a matte finish and includes Pixel's signature color pop power button in mint. Google is keeping the same camera module it used in the Pixel 3, 3A, and Pixel 4: Sony's 12MP IMX363. The rear camera supports HDR+ with dual exposure controls, Portrait Mode, Top Shot, Night Sight with astrophotography capabilities, and fused video stabilisation. There is also optical image stabilisation (OIS). For selfies, the phone has an 8MP camera sensor at the front, with an f/2.0 lens. The Pixel 4a is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G Mobile Platform, Titan M security module for on-device security, 6 GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. The smartphone houses a 3140mAh battery that supports 18W fast charging. Hamad Alkaabi, the country's representative to the IAEA, says that this is an Historic milestone for the nation with a vision set to deliver a new form of clean energy. Nuclear fission has begun in one of four reactors. Oil-rich UAE wants Barakah to meet a quarter of its energy needs. Qatar calls the plant a "flagrant threat to regional peace and environment. Abu Dhabi (AsiaNews/Agencies) Oil-rich United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Saturday announced the start-up of its Barakah nuclear power plant, a first for the Arab world. "UAE first nuclear reactor at the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant has achieved first criticality and successfully started up," tweeted Hamad Alkaabi, the country's representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency. "This is a historic milestone for the nation with a vision set to deliver a new form of clean energy for the nation," he added. Nuclear fission has begun in one of four reactors at the Barakah plant, which uses South Korean technology. The oil-rich UAE wants Barakah to meet a quarter of its energy needs, as it adopts more sustainable energy sources. However, some energy experts have questioned the power plants logic, arguing that solar power is cleaner, cheaper and makes more sense in a region beset by political tensions and terrorism. In 2019, Qatar called the Barakah plant a "flagrant threat to regional peace and environment. Scientists also highlighted the risk of radioactive pollution in the Gulf. The UAE Prime Minister and ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, tweeted that work at Barakah had "succeeded in loading nuclear fuel packages, carrying out comprehensive tests and successfully completing the operation. "Congratulations on realising this historic achievement in the energy sector & marking this milestone in the roadmap for sustainable development," Sheikh Al-Maktoum added. The UAE started loading fuel rods into the reactor at Barakah in February, after regulators gave the green light for the first of the plant's four reactors, opening the way for commercial operations. Located on the Gulf coast, west of Abu Dhabi, the plant had been due to go online in late 2017 but faced a number of delays that officials attributed to safety and regulatory requirements. The UAE has substantial oil and gas reserves, but with a power-hungry population of 10 million it has made huge investments in developing clean alternatives, including solar energy. The plant is a regional first. Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, has said it plans to build up to 16 nuclear reactors, but the project has yet to materialise. HEALTH AND SCIENCE Nations testing czar: Its time to move on from talk about hydroxychloroquine PUBLISHED SUN, AUG 2 202011:55 AM EDT UPDATED SUN, AUG 2 202011:56 AM EDT Adm. Brett Giroir, director of the U.S. coronavirus diagnostic testing, testifies during a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., June 30, 2020. Brett Giroir, the assistant secretary for health who coordinates the administrations coronavirus testing, said Sunday that there is no evidence that hydroxychloroquine is an effective treatment for COVID-19, despite President Donald Trumps repeated boosting of the drug over objections from experts. close dialog Stream live CNBC TV from around the world. START FREE TRIAL Invest Like A Pro In an interview on Meet the Press, Giroir did not specifically mention the president, but he made clear that the scientific consensus is that the drug does not help treat the disease. More from NBC News: Most physicians and prescribers are evidence-based and theyre not influenced by whatever is on Twitter or anything else. And the evidence just does not show hydroxychloroquine is effective right now, he said. We need to move on from that and talk about what is effective, he added, pointing to public hygiene measures like hand-washing and mask-wearing, as well as treatments like the drug remdesivir and steroids. At this point in time, there has been five randomized controlled, placebo controlled trials that do not show any benefit to hydroxychloroquine. So, at this point in time, we dont recommend that as a treatment. Since the early days of the pandemic, Trump has promoted his belief that hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malarial drug, could help treat the disease. In May, he said he took the unproven treatment for two weeks prophylactically. While the Food and Drug Administration briefly issued the drug an emergency use authorization that allowed it to be used as treatment for COVID-19, the FDA withdrew that authorization in June. In removing the authorization, it pointed to a large, randomized clinical trial in hospitalized patients that found these medicines showed no benefit for decreasing the likelihood of death or speeding recovery. Despite similar statements from public health officials, as well as an FDA warning against using the drug outside of a hospital setting because of a risk of serious heart problems, Trump has remained steadfast in boosting of the drug. Last week, Trump retweeted a video of a Houston-area doctor arguing in favor of using the drug and calling it a cure for coronavirus. Twitter removed the video calling it in violation of our COVID-19 misinformation policy and Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nations top infectious disease expert, said the video was spouting something that isnt true. But Trump defended his decision to share the video during a White House press briefing, saying, I happen to believe in it. He was later pressed to answer for the doctors past statements, which include blaming certain medical problems on demonic possession. She was on air along with many other doctors, Trump said. They were being fans of hydroxychloroquine, and I thought she was very impressive in the sense that from where she came, I dont know which country she comes from but she said that shes had tremendous success with hundreds of different patients, and I thought her voice was an important voice. But I know nothing about her. Mavin Producer and fan of BBNaija, Don Jazzy has criticised those slamming Erica for having sex with fellow housemate Kiddwaya. Eric... Mavin Producer and fan of BBNaija, Don Jazzy has criticised those slamming Erica for having sex with fellow housemate Kiddwaya. Erica and Kiddwaya were on Sunday night seen on television having sex under the duvet. Her action has since stirred reactions from fans as some described her as a lady without self control despite just a few weeks into the reality show. However, Don Jazzy, reacting on his Twitter page described those criticising Erica as hypocrites. Alongside a picture of Erica, Don Jazzy wrote: I like both your straight face, smiling face and moaning face sef. People that if they leave them they will use cucumber on national tv want to counsel somebody that fell for a fine rich boy. Hypocrites. Hiss. The Mavin Producer also addressing those describing Kiddwayas as a player said if he ends up disappointing Erica, life would move on. The Maharashtra government has reiterated its stand before the Bombay high court (HC) that it cannot allow street vendors and hawkers to resume their businesses because of the raging coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak. In an affidavit filed in HC, the state government has stated that street vendors and hawkers would not be allowed to resume businesses in containment zones and areas that are still under lockdown restrictions They will also not be allowed to resume businesses in other areas as well. these sectors (street vending and hawking) fall in unorganised sectors and it is very difficult, if any and if at all, imposed for conducting such businesses, said the affidavit filed by Kishor Nimbalkar, secretary, disaster management, relief, and rehabilitation department, Maharashtra. Huge manpower, including police and civic staff, would be required to ensure compliance of guidelines issued for the conduct of these businesses and the ground reality is that all these agencies are over-burdened and exhausted, it added. The affidavit is filed in reply to a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by activist Manoj Oswal (43) for a declaration that the imposition of the complete ban on the sale of products or food by street vendors to be illegal or unconstitutional and violative of the rights of the people to conduct legitimate business. In his petition, filed through advocate Ashish Verma, the Pune-based activist said the nationwide lockdown restrictions have led to serious issues for the survival of a vast section of the population, including street vendors and traders, who own small informal shops and vends, and the only possible relief for them is that if they are allowed conducting their daily business with reasonable restrictions. Oswal has termed the state governments stand as extremely high-handed and insensitive. The assumption that the street vendors can cause more Covid-19 infections than the store or shop owners is not supported by science or findings by any research, his petition stated Merely because these people are poor, they are being treated as more infectious and responsible for causing infections. This is a clear prejudice and nothing else, it added. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON East Timor: Hawke unrepentant This article originally appeared in The Workers Weekly Guardian August, 1985. Prime Minister Hawkes remarks on Indonesian TV have extended Australian recognition to Indonesias violent annexation of East Timor. Portugal, still recognised by the United Nations as the administering power of East Timor, has withdrawn its ambassador to Canberra. Despite this, Hawke seems unrepentant that, in the name of his government, he has sold out the East Timorese people who have suffered and died under ten years of Indonesian military rule. Hawke told an Indonesian interviewer in July that Australia recognised the sovereign authority of Indonesia over East Timor. He went on to describe the East Timorese as citizens of Indonesia. This goes beyond even the position of the former Fraser Liberal government. Fraser had previously not lifted a finger as the Indonesians massacred and starved the Timorese and shot Australian journalists reporting the facts but had not gone quite as far as Hawke in recognising Indonesian sovereignty. Hawke said his statement just acknowledged the fact of Indonesias exercising its control over East Timor. The statement shows the Prime Minister is prepared to entirely forget the Eat Timorese people and to rewrite ALP policy which expresses the ALPs continuing concern that East Timor was incorporated without East Timorese people having an adequate opportunity to express their wishes through an internationally supervised act of self-determination. It is scarcely three months since the governments Communications Minister Duffy took steps to prevent further radio contact between Australian supporters and Fretilin independence fighters inside Timor. This was in response to an Indonesian Embassy call. Since 1975, nine UN resolutions have supported East Timors independence. Indonesia has rejected calls for an internationally supervised act of self-determination, a demand which the Portuguese Government has repeatedly called on Indonesia to observe. Dr de Andrade, the Portuguese Ambassador, was recalled for consultations over Hawkes remarks. He said the offending statements could jeopardise the results of initiatives for a peaceful settlement. A former Portuguese Foreign Minister, Victor sa Machado, said Australias further support of Jakartas policies was lamentable. Some Lafayette parents are frustrated by what they perceive as a rushed return to school and feel boxed in by limited options as the district asks parents to commit their children to the Lafayette Online Academy two weeks before the start of school. On Wednesday, the Lafayette Parish School System announced it was asking parents who had applied for a slot in the Lafayette Online Academy to commit their children to the self-directed, online learning program by 4:30 p.m. Monday to allow time for staffing decisions. If they didnt, their application would be purged from the system, a district release said. Parents expressed frustration about the change online, writing in personal posts and parent Facebook groups they felt hemmed in by the request and felt like they were losing opportunities to decide what was best for their children. Some dont believe the virtual schools Edgenuity learning platform will provide a quality educational experience, while others are comfortable with the program but still question the rush to return to classes when more preparation would be valuable for everyone. Brandy Broussard Williams committed her 15-year-old daughter and 14-year-old son, a junior and freshman at Acadiana High, respectively, to the Lafayette Online Academy on Saturday. Williams said she sat her children down earlier in the summer and told them they would not be returning to in-person classes in the fall if the novel coronavirus was still a threat in the community. When the Lafayette Online Academy was advertised as an option, Williams decided to shift from a homeschooling plan to the virtual learning option. Roughly one-quarter to one-third of Acadiana students registering for virtual learning programs Acadiana school districts are seeing roughly one-quarter to one-third of their student populations enroll or pre-register for fully virtual le She said her children have used Edgenuity in the past for limited coursework and her eldest son, whos graduating from the Edward J. Sam Accelerated School of Lafayette, predominately used Edgenuity for his courses, so theyre comfortable with the platform. Williams works from home as a customer service representative for Waitr and will be able to monitor her childrens learning, but shes concerned about how responsive teachers in support roles will be when she cant help her kids navigate through the Common Core strategies. Shes also worried about ensuring her son, who has ADHD and oppositional defiance disorder (ODD), receives accommodations like the extended testing time hed receive during an in-person class. If the Lafayette Online Academy proves difficult for her children, the mother of three said shes going to pursue school system resources and private tutoring before sending her two youngest back to Acadiana High. Attending in-person classes right now is not an option because she doesnt feel confident the school system is prepared to handle virus safety protocols, she said. I think its going to be chaos, Williams said. I feel like adults arent complying with the policies, so how are we going to think kids will do that at school? We have adults now that are not wearing masks when they go out even though its mandatory to wear a mask now. Kids feed off grownups. If they see their parents are not doing it then theyre going to go to school and theyre going to say, I dont have to do it because my mom doesnt do it, or my dad doesnt do it. And then theyre putting my kids life in jeopardy, she said. The kids were opposed at first, she said. Her son is excited to learn the high school ropes and her daughter is ready to enjoy upperclassman privileges and continue with JROTC, but when she explained school wont be like it was in the past and spoke to them candidly about the dangers of the virus, they warmed to the idea, Williams said. Two family members tested positive for COVID-19 after encountering an infected person and both were asymptomatic. Its scary that you dont know who could be carrying the virus, she said. +7 Acadiana school systems face common challenges as school year draws near As the start of school edges closer, Acadiana school systems are working to tackle universal problems of student and staff safety, device avai Amanda Reeves said shes waiting until the last moment possible to confirm her youngest daughters spot in the Lafayette Online Academy. Reeves said shes shed countless tears and spent sleepless nights fretting over making the best decision for her children and shes holding out hope that circumstances will change before 4:30 p.m. Monday. Reeves eldest daughter, a 13-year-old at Scott Middle, was enrolling in the Lafayette Online Academy this year for personal reasons before the pandemic struck, but her youngest daughter is a fifth-grader in the magnet program at J. Wallace James Elementary and was planning to finish her elementary career there. The 10-year-old has been at J. Wallace James since kindergarten and loves the school, but her 13-year-old sister has asthma and the family doesnt want to risk the virus being brought into their home. Top stories in Acadiana in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up Reeves isnt confident the Edgenuity-based online program will work well for her daughter, but she was told if she pursued non-LPSS options, like homeschooling or a virtual charter school, her fifth-grader would lose her spot in the magnet academy. The mother of two said she feels like the district is bullying parents into choosing between bad options. Im beyond appalled at the lack of what feels like compassion and concern that the school board and LOA and everyone has now when all were trying to do is make the best decision for our kids, Reeves said. Reeves said she understands the districts need to plan but shes frustrated that options to transition between learning settings and make last minute changes are being reduced, when by the districts own admission, the facts are changing each day, she said. Communication and decision making at the school system need to be more transparent, Reeves said. +12 Wing additions at seven Lafayette schools slated to open to students this fall While most of school life screeched to a halt this spring because of the novel coronavirus pandemic, steady construction continued on wing add Rhonda Kim Gleason, a local education advocate and mother of three, is similarly frustrated and is working with Lafayette families to push back against the school systems plans and raise concerns about student, staff and community safety as well as inequities caused by the districts return plan. While people want a return to normalcy, thats not necessarily the best plan forward, she said. Having a business as usual attitude in a viral pandemic is embarrassing, Gleason said. Shes hopeful the school board will listen more closely to parent outcry and reconsider their reopening plans at the Aug. 12 board meeting. Gleason has a 16-year-old daughter whos a junior at Lafayette High and a 7-year-old daughter whos a second-grader at Myrtle Place Elementary. The Lafayette Online Academy may work well for her second-grader, who will still need French immersion supplements, but it will sorely underserve her 16-year-old, whos slated to take four AP courses and three gifted classes this year, she said. Some of the courses arent offered and those that are wont provide the rigorous discussion, critical thinking opportunities or engaging teaching methods that make advanced courses beneficial, she said. Theyre hoping to amend the districts proposed hybrid learning schedule so she could learn the same materials as her peers but not attend in-person classes. How that might work is up in the air and attendance requirements are one obvious hurdle, she said. Gleason has multiple sclerosis and a partially ablated immune system, and she and her children have adhered to a strict stay-at-home plan since the pandemic took hold of the community in March. Theyve stayed at home save bi-monthly trips to the grocery store, visits from home healthcare nurses for her MS treatments and the occasional distanced and masked visit with loved ones taking similar safety precautions. The longest Gleason has been in public was when she spoke at the July 22 school board meeting against the districts proposed reopening plan. I was not pleased to feel that I had to go and do thatI felt very uncomfortableAs an advocate I wanted to say something, knowing about my health situation, knowing about the inequity for my own kids and being an educator knowing about inequities that are occurring across the board for kids, she said. Gleason said shes fearful the school board is prioritizing economic concerns and the reopening of the economy over scientific evidence. While the school system surveyed parents to get input on their prospective plans, those answers were taken weeks ago and no longer reflect the current context of the virus reality in the community, she said. Gleason, Reeves and Williams said they believe the start date for school should be pushed back so virus case numbers can decline, teachers and other staff members can better prepare for new safety measures and the district can further resolve inequities facing students. Then, when school begins, they believe it should start 100% virtual, with students operating in a Phase 1 plan. It would be better for children and families, Gleason said. If all the kids arent being served, I believe theres a failure. I dont appreciate being on the receiving end of good fortune when other students are not being served I believe we need to reach out as advocates for one another because then more people will thrive she said. Lebanons Foreign Minister Nassif Hitti resigned today, saying the country lacks the will to implement the required reforms to lift it out of its economic crisis. Hitti said there is an absence of an effective will to achieve comprehensive structural reform, according to The Associated Press. Lebanon is in the middle of its worst economic crisis in decades. Lebanons currency has plummeted against the US dollar and unemployment is up. Last week, the leading international credit agency Moodys downgraded Lebanon credit score to the lowest rating it has, indicating probable default. Despite earlier success, COVID-19 cases have increased greatly in recent days, and protests against the government continue. Lebanon is seeking international help to get it out of the crisis, but the International Monetary Fund (IMF), France and others are reluctant to help without a clear pathway to reform. Hitti is the first member of the Cabinet to resign over the governments handling of the crisis. His decision to step down reflects continued frustration among some officials with Beiruts response to its fiscal issues. In late June, Alain Bifani, the long-serving director general of the Ministry of Finance, resigned. Bifani, who was a member of the government team negotiating with the IMF, said the government was in a state of denial at the time. Earlier in June, another member of the IMF negotiations team also resigned. Former adviser to Lebanese President Michael Aoun and diplomat Charbel Wehbe was appointed to replace Hitti as foreign minister on Monday by Aoun and Prime Minister Hassan Diab. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) The decision to place Metro Manila and four nearby provinces under modified enhanced community quarantine amid rising COVID-19 cases was tepidly received by a group of physicians. "We are not completely happy with the modified ECQ," Philippine College of Physicians Vice President Dr. Maricar Limpin told CNN Philippines on Monday. She added, "We are quite happy about it but not very happy. But we are still satisfied with the action of our President." Medical societies on August 1 made a public appeal to the government to place Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, and Metro Manila under the strictest enhanced community quarantine for 14 days to give medical workers a "timeout" to refine pandemic control strategies. Instead, President Rodrigo Duterte placed Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal under a two-week modified ECQ starting Tuesday. "We understand that imposing ECQ is a complex decision... health may just be one dimension especially for the economic expert, but remember that we need healthy people to reinvigorate our economy," she said. The administration has been wary of implementing the strictest ECQ in the capital region despite the surge in COVID-19 cases as it works to restart the economy by gradually allowing businesses to reopen. The countrys COVID-19 tally went past 103,000 on Sunday, with a record high increase in cases at over 5,000 more recorded. Metro Manila accounted for 2,737 of these newly announced cases. Over the past two weeks, the region logged over 12,000 new cases topping the list of regions nationwide, according to the Department of Healths COVID-19 tracker. The Philippine College of Physicians said that despite the "compromise" on the quarantine status, it is still ready to work with the government to recalibrate strategies to stop the pandemic from worsening. Philippine Nurses Association President Dr. Rosie de Leon also said there should ideally be a meeting between IATF members and medical leaders on the field. "'Yun po ang panawagan ng mga doctors natin, panawagan din po ng mga frontliners na magakroon po sana ng parang pag-uusap, titingnan po talaga ano ang real situtation, ano po ba ang real problem, at ito po ang ating sosolusyunan," she said. Healthcare workers revolting vs gov't? Limpin denied Duterte's claim that healthcare workers are trying to revolt against his administration by publicly airing their grievances instead of writing a letter to the authorities. "I think we were misunderstood by the government when they say that we are trying to demean the efforts of the government," the official said. In his speech late Sunday night, he even pointed out that the frontline healthcare workers raised their fists during the public Zoom briefing. "Next time, you can just ask for an audience. Pero huwag ho kayo mag-sigaw-sigaw ng revolution niyo. Alam mo, sa totoo, alam niyo hindi ninyo ako kilala talaga. Magsabi kayo revolution, then ngayon na. Go ahead. Try it. Sirain natin itong bayan. Patayin natin lahat ng may COVID," he dared the medical workers. [Translation: Next time just ask for a meeting. Do not go out there calling for a revolution. You don't seem to know me. When you say you want a revolution, I will tell you to go ahead. Let's do it against the interest of our countrymen. Let's kill all those with COVID.] Limpin defended her colleagues, saying they are simply showing the government the true situation on the ground. Case spike over the weekend triggered MECQ call Meanwhile, National Task Force on COVID-19 vice chairperson and Interior Secretary Eduardo Ano said the surge in cases last weekend that triggered the decision to revert to MECQ, not the letter of appeal from the medical community. Even wala pa yung letter na yan, patuloy sa bawat meeting ng IATF (Even before that letter came, its being discussed during the meeting of IATF), particularly sa NTF at meeting with President, we are always thinking of ways on how to take care of our health workers, Ano told CNN Philippines. It's not really the letter that triggered everything, it's part. Parang nakatulong din yun para bumilis (It helped to speed up things). Kasi naramdaman natin yung hirap and pagod ng ating health workers (Because we feel the difficulty and stress of our health workers). It is always the concern of the President. Plus, Bill's Message of the Day, who are the most admired people in America? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Sushant Singh Rajputs father has broken his silence on the matter for the first time. In a video message, which is now taking social media by a storm, Sushants father has claimed that he had informed Bandra police on Feb 25 that his son is in danger. As the tussle between Mumbai and Patna police continues, late actor Sushant Singh Rajputs father has finally broken his silence on the matter for the first time. In a video message, which is now taking social media by a storm, Sushants father has claimed that he had informed Bandra police on Feb 25 that his son is in danger and asked them to take action against people named in his complaint. But, even after 40 days of his demise, no action was taken. This is the reason he went ahead to file FIR in Patna. He further thanked Bihar CM and police force for their cooperation. The statement especially comes at a high point when the probe on Sushants case is getting murkier each passing day. Following the forceful home quarantine of Bihar Police officer, who had arrived in Mumbai to probe the case, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar earlier in the day that Bihar DGP will speak with the authorities in Maharashtra. Whatever happened with Vinay Tiwari is not right as it is not a political matter. Bihar Police is just doing its duty. BMC, on the other hand, defended its stance by citing state government guidelines. It said that the policeman was just asked to follow precautionary guidelines on domestic travel. Also Read: Only invitees should come, says Yogi Adityanath as Covid threat looms Ayodhya Also Read: AP government signs MOU with FMGG giants Reacting to the same, Bihar DGP responded that they examined the quarantine guidelines and it appears that the quarantine was not needed. The official went there after informing and requesting for accommodation and vehicle, not secretly. Emphasising that the cop could have been exempted from protocol, he further added that Patna IG would be writing to BMC chief on the matter. Also Read: Gyms to reopen on August 5: MHA issues guidelines Seattles Infectious Disease Research Institute (IDRI) today announced that an agreement has been reached, to amend and restate IDRIs license with Immune Design, a wholly owned subsidiary of Merck (known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada). Under the amendment, the parties have agreed to modify the licensed fields and indications under which Merck has the rights to use IDRI's Glycopyranosyl Lipid Adjuvant (GLA) technology (including the GLA and SLA adjuvants), in exchange for potential milestone and royalty payments. The amendment also permits IDRI to conduct research and development of GLA and SLA to treat cancer in low resource regions, itself or through collaborations and partnerships in this area in the future. This is an important milestone for IDRI with a premier global vaccine manufacturer, said IDRIs CEO Dr. Corey Casper. This represents an incredible opportunity for our adjuvants continued availability to people around the globe. IDRI is committed to sharing technology to ultimately create vaccine platforms and technologies to combat the worlds most devastating infectious diseases and cancers, with a special focus on those that affect women and children. Licensing agreements such as this permit other research organizations, universities, foundations and in this case, pharmaceutical companies, to utilize IDRIs intellectual property, adjuvants and specific processes/formulations, all with the goal of developing new solutions for treating infectious diseases and cancers. For more information about IDRI, visit http://www.idri.org. About IDRI As a nonprofit global health organization, IDRI (Infectious Disease Research Institute) takes a comprehensive approach to combat infectious diseases and cancer, combining the high-quality science of a research organization with the product development capabilities of a biotech company to create vaccines and therapeutics. IDRI combines passion for improving human health with the understanding that it is not just what our scientists know about disease, but what we do to change its course that will have the greatest impact. Founded in 1993, IDRI has 55 employees headquartered in Seattle with more than 100 partners/collaborators around the world. For more information, visit http://www.idri.org. President Donald Trump has vowed to take action against TikTok and other Chinese software considered to be national security risks (AP) US President Donald Trump plans to take action on a what he sees as a broad array of national security risks presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday. Mr Pompeos remarks came as Microsoft confirmed it was in talks to buy the US operations of TikTok, which has been a source of national security and censorship concerns for the Trump administration. These Chinese software companies doing business in the United States, whether its TikTok or WeChat there are countless more are feeding data directly to the Chinese Communist Party, their national security apparatus, Mr Pompeo told the Fox News Channel. Read More Could be their facial recognition patterns. It could be information about their residence, their phone numbers, their friends, who theyre connected to. Those those are the issues that President Trump has made clear were going to take care of, he said. Expand Close President Donald Trump is moving against Chinese software felt to be a national security risk (Patrick Semansky/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp President Donald Trump is moving against Chinese software felt to be a national security risk (Patrick Semansky/AP) TikToks US user data is stored in the US, with strict controls on employee access, and its biggest investors come from the US, the company said on Sunday. We are committed to protecting our users privacy and safety as we continue working to bring joy to families and meaningful careers to those who create on our platform, a TikTok spokesperson said. Mr Trump had said on Friday he would soon ban TikTok in the United States. A federal committee is reviewing whether that is possible, but its members agree TikTok can not remain in the US in its current form, because it risks sending back information on 100 million Americans, said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. We all agree there has to be a change everybody agrees it cant exist as it does, Mr Mnuchin told ABC TV. As speculation grew over a ban or sale of the social medias US business, TikTok posted a video on Saturday saying: Were not planning on going anywhere. Microsoft confirmed on Sunday night it is in talks with Chinese company ByteDance, which owns TikTok, to acquire the US arm of the popular video app. Microsoft also said it had discussed with Mr Trump his concerns about security and censorship surrounding such an acquisition. Expand Close Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says TikTok and other Chinese software vehicles raise concerns about facial recognition and other forms of data retrieval (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says TikTok and other Chinese software vehicles raise concerns about facial recognition and other forms of data retrieval (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool/AP) In a statement, Microsoft said it and ByteDance had provided notice of their intent to explore a deal resulting in Microsoft owning and operating the TikTok service in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The company said it expected those talks to conclude by September 15. Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury, the Microsoft statement said. TikToks catchy videos and ease of use has made it popular, and it says it has tens of millions of users in the US and hundreds of millions globally. Its parent company, Bytedance Ltd, launched TikTok in 2017. It bought Musical.ly, a video service popular with teens in the US and Europe, and combined the two. It has a similar service, Douyin, for users in China. But TikToks Chinese ownership has raised concern about the potential for sharing user data with Chinese officials as well as censorship of videos critical of the Chinese government. TikTok says it does not censor videos and it would not give the Chinese government access to US user data. Expand Close TikTok has become an internet sensation due to its catchy videos and ease of use (Ng Han Guan/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp TikTok has become an internet sensation due to its catchy videos and ease of use (Ng Han Guan/AP) The President, when he makes his decision, will make sure that everything we have done drives us as close to zero risk for the American people, Mr Pompeo said. Thats the mission set that he laid out for all of us when we get we began to evaluate this now several months back. Were closing in on a solution. And I think you will see the presidents announcement shortly. The debate over TikTok parallels a broader US security crackdown on Chinese companies, including telecom providers Huawei and ZTE. The Trump administration has ordered that the US stop buying equipment from those providers to be used in US networks. Mr Trump has also tried to steer allies away from Huawei over concerns the Chinese government has access to its data, which Huawei denies. Arbikie's Scottish potato vodka to go on sale in Canada Scottish sustainable distillery Arbikie has signed an agreement which will put its vodka on shelves in Canada. The family-owned, field-to-bottle distiller has agreed a distribution deal with Canadian drinks importer SGWS to put its Tattie Bogle Vodka - Scotland's first potato vodka - on sale in Toronto. The vodka is named after 'tattie bogles' - the ancient Scotch name for potato scarecrows which were once plentiful in the country's potato fields. Arbikie uses Maris Piper, Kind Edward and Cultra potato varieties grown on its family farm to make the spirit. Kirsty Black, master distiller at Arbikie, said: "The flavour profile of our vodkas is determined by the ingredients grown on the farm. With Tattie Bogle there are clear spice notes and creaminess in flavour." Arbikie director John Stirling said: "We are delighted to have agreed this landmark distribution deal. Our aim has always been to disrupt the vodka market by highlighting the importance of our base ingredients and how these impact on the flavour profile. "The growing desire for provenance and traceability of ingredients is very 'now' and this latest deal reflects this trend." Tattie Bogle Vodka is part of the Arbikie Distillery's family of sustainable spirits, including the world's first "climate positive" gin, Nadar Gin, and the world's only Scottish rye whisky. 3 August 2020 - Bethany Whymark Since the church launched its capital campaign in January, St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in The Woodlands has been raising the funds for a $16.1 million expansion plan that will start with a new chapel. By the end of next month, the church is expected to have its plans for the chapel submitted to The Woodlands Township. The Horizon campaign aims to raise $10 million to finish three construction projects and an outreach project to help rebuild Catholic churches that are part of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston that were impacted by Hurricane Harvey. The three construction projects are a $4.5 million new chapel, a $7 million multi-purpose building, and a $2 million welcome center and a $2.6 million outreach project. Altogether, the projects are estimated to cost $16.1 million, but St. Anthony plans on raising $10 million and financing $6.1 million through the archdiocese. The church raised half of its goal in the first 90 days, but when COVID-19 hit the fundraising slowed down. For the moment, fundraising for the rest of the $10 million is on hold until the economy settles. But the chapel project is moving forward now and the church hopes to break ground before the end of the year, said Stephen Lenahan, director of Development and Communications for St. Anthony. We started here in 1997 with 300 families at Oak Ridge High School, and since that time, in 23 years, weve grown from 300 families to over 7,500 families, Lenahan said of the churchs need for a new chapel. Even before coronavirus, it became a space issue just booking weddings, funerals, other liturgical events throughout the year. The church does have a small chapel already that sits about 50 people but it is used daily, which puts it mostly out of commission for events. The new chapel will seat 350 people and will primarily be used for daily mass, weddings, funerals, and any other liturgical celebration that doesnt need to be in the main church, which seats about 1,500. The chapel will be named Our Lady of the Angels after a chapel in Assisi, Italy, that Saint Francis thought he was called by God to rebuild. The chapel remains today and as an early Franciscan, Saint Anthony would have prayed and visited the chapel. Lenahan said the church is planning on an 11 to 12-month build, ideally opening the doors to the new chapel by Christmas of 2021. The chapel design was already approved by the township in a previous capital campaign but was added to this new campaign. Lenahan said the church hopes to be finished with the permitting process by the end of September. The architecture is going to be rich in Catholic tradition and art, Lenahan said. Its going to be a little bit different than our main sanctuary when you walk into it. In classic Catholic tradition, the church has been gifted 15 saint relics that will be housed in the new chapel. More information about the capital campaign can be found at ap-horizon-english.squarespace.com. jamie.swinnerton@chron.com A citizen of Uzbekistan who in Leonardo business center in Kyiv claimed that he had explosives in his backpack has been captured alive, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Anton Gerashchenko said. "The terrorist was captured alive. The explosion did not happen. Explosives technicians are working on the spot. Then the trial and a long prison sentence will be started," Gerashchenko wrote on his Facebook page on Monday. Ukraine's SBU State Security Service also announced a successful operation to capture the terrorist. "The operation was carried out successfully, the criminal was detained," SBU officer Serhiy Pun told reporters near the site of the operation. According to him, from the moment the information was received, an operational headquarters of the SBU and the National Police was created. The "Boomerang" police plan was activated, after which the SBU took over the leadership of the operation. "After carrying out certain measures, only one person remained in the room one hostage and the terrorist. According to preliminary information available at that time, the terrorist had a large bag and a briefcase, from which some wire was tied to his leg," Pun said. The representative of the SBU refrained from more detailed comments, citing the fact that all further comments will be given by official representatives of the services that directly carried out the operation. The press center of the SBU told the agency that a terrorist was detained byAlpha special forces unit members. Currently, the premises are being checked for explosive items, the press center said. As reported, at about noon Monday, a man entered the Universal Bank office in the Leonardo business center on the intersection of Volodymyrska and Khmelnytskoho streets in the center of Kyiv, said he had a bomb in his backpack and asked to call the police. The employees of the banking institution left the premises, and the department head remained voluntarily. According to preliminary information, the terrorist was a citizen of Uzbekistan, a native of Samarkand, Sukhrob Karimov, born in 1988. He demanded media access and live coverage to make a statement. The traffic on Volodymyrska Street was blocked on the section between Khmelnytskoho Street and Shevchenko Boulevard. Fifty-three more cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in Ireland, prompting speculation that the final phase of reopening the country may be delayed again. The five-day average has now risen from 44 to 47 cases. However, no more coronavirus-related deaths were announced and the source of transmission of more than 90% of the new cases is known. Of the new cases, 80% are under 45 years of age and 45 cases are associated with outbreaks or close contacts of a confirmed case. Only four cases have been spread through community transmission. Dublin has the most new cases at 25, followed by Laois with 19, and six in Kildare. Dr Ronan Glynn, acting chief medical officer, Department of Health, said: The source of transmission for over 90% of cases reported today has been identified. This is a positive development in light of the number of cases reported over the past few days. However, our five-day average for cases reported is now 47. We all need to continue to adopt a prevention mindset and continue making good choices to protect ourselves and others while trying to live safely with Covid-19." The Government is due to move to phase four the final phase of reopening the country on August 10. However, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly has refused to commit to reopening pubs next week. The minister said that protecting public health and keeping the reopening of schools on track is a priority. Funding Meanwhile, 106 towns and villages are to benefit immediately from 2.8m in funding to help communities adapt to a world changed by Covid-19. Street furniture; widening of walkways and footpaths; adapting community spaces for socially-distanced use; outdoor cinema screens and marquees to facilitate all-weather community events are some of the items to be funded. A total of 140,000 will fund projects in Cork city and county. Announcing the funding, Rural and Community Development Minister Heather Humphreys said: It is vitally important that we increase footfall in rural towns and villages by supporting them to adapt to this new normal as a result of Covid-19. "This funding will benefit communities by altering the streetscapes so that people can shop, work, and socialise safely." Meanwhile, random Covid-19 testing is to begin at airports because the "international situation is becoming more volatile," Health Minister Mr Donnelly announced on Sunday. The decision was broadly welcomed by Labours transport spokesperson Duncan Smith, who said that the testing regime should be further broadened to specifically target those travelling from high-risk countries. Police In Iran Complain Of Lacking Manpower To Enforce Hijab Rules Radio Farda August 02, 2020 The deputy commander of the Islamic Republic's law enforcement has complained that his forces are "really left single-handed" in policing "moral security" of the Iranian society. Meanwhile, Isfahan's governor has announced that he intends to award a residential unit to officers and volunteers in charge of "promotion of virtue and prevention of vice." The term, also known as "enjoining good and forbidding wrong," is a Quranic expression calling the faithful to propagate good deeds and condemn wrong-doing. However, the Quranic term does not say people have the right to "enforce" the recommendation. The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)-run Tasnim news agency cited the Deputy Commander of Iranian police Brigadier General Qassem Rezaei as saying on Thursday, July 30, the law enforcement forces have been left alone in maintaining moral security of the society. This claim can be disputed, since many so-called volunteers stop women in the streets and shame them to cover themselves more fully. The state has allowed "pious" Muslims to enforce its dress code. On the other hand, so many women flout the rules that perhaps the existing manpower is not enough to enforce hijab rules. In a meeting with the representative of the Islamic Republic's Supreme Leader, General Rezaei lambasted other state bodies for not cooperating with the police on that matter, adding, "Nobody is helping the police, save volunteers and the members of Baseej," (Basij - the IRGC's militia). Since the downfall of the pro-West Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi in 1979, the Islamic Republic has been struggling to force Iranian women to respect what it calls "Islamic dress code." While Iranian women were free to choose to wear a hijab during the Shah's reign, the Islamic Republic has done its utmost to force them to relent to compulsory hijab. To achieve this this, it has established select units to enforce compulsory hijab and other "Islamic ethics." The Gasht-e Ershad forces (literally the Guidance Patrol) are currently the principal agency tasked enforcing Iran's Islamic code of conduct in public. Nevertheless, on many occasions there have been clashes between the patrol officers and the people defending women accused of having a "loose hijab." In February last year, a group of Iranians attacked a morality police van in Tehran after the Guidance patrol agents detained two young girls for not "properly" covering their heads, local news outlets reported. The Islamic Republic government's official news agency, IRNA, reported on February 15, 2019, "Officers fired shots in the air to disperse the crowd who tore off one of the patrol's van doors." The group prevented the officers from driving the women away, IRNA added citing an unnamed law enforcement official. According to the police source, the standoff ended when the girls were released from the van. Video of the incident showed people honking their car horns in apparent protest. A man is heard shouting, "Let them go!" as a group of people surrounds the van. The sound of gunshots is then heard. Meanwhile, the Governor of Isfahan, Abbas Rezaei, has announced that he intends to present 24 residential units to those in charge of "enjoining good and forbidding wrong," provided they did not already own a house. This will simply encourage individuals to harass women on the streets and report on them to perhaps qualify for a free house. Out of choice or reluctance, all Iranian women wear hijab by law. Still, many resent the regulations related to completely they cover their heads and bodies. For the past four decades, Iranian women have been struggling to assert their freedom regarding hijab. "It's not only a question of wearing a headscarf. The question is also thousands of overt and undercover morality-police forces who ambush everywhere to catch you if your scarf is a little bit slipped away from your hairline," said a young lady from Tehran. Source: https://en.radiofarda.com/a/police-in -iran-complains-of-lacking-manpower-to- enforce-hijab-rules/30759436.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 In a tragedy, a man was shot dead by his close friend with a pistol in Lakhimpur, Uttar Pradesh. The accused was showing the victim the gun when he accidentally pulled the trigger. Police said the deceased, whose name is Vaibhav Shah, was out taking a walk with his friends after dinner. His friend Satyam Tiwari accidentally shot him while showing his gun. The bullet hit Shah in the stomach. He was taken to hospital, where they referred him to a better facility in Lucknow. He died on the way there. iStock Meanwhile, the police nabbed the accused who absconded after the incident. Kotwali SHO Ajay Mishra told TOI, The accused said that he was showing his country-made pistol to his friend when he was shot by an accidental fire. The SHO added that the interrogation of the accused is underway and they are yet to ascertain if there was any the killing was driven by any motive. Police are also scanning the areas CCTV footage to find out if it was an accidental fire or the accused shot his friend dead. Police said that the family of the victim has not filed a complaint in connection with his death. The post-mortem examination of the deceased youths body was done on Sunday. iStock In another incident, a 20-year-old student in Punjabs Jalandhar allegedly shot himself dead after his father chided him for not paying attention to studies despite scoring low marks. The deceased left a one-line suicide note, in which he wrote: Main bohot bura hoon (I am very bad). Two piles of mud in the parking lot of the defunct Chandralok Cinema in south Delhis Chittaranjan Park are the only discernible signs of the space serving as the workplace for idol makers over five months every year. The festive season is around the corner, but the customary idol makers are missing in action, as are their Ganesha idols many of which would have been receiving the final touches by this time of the year, if not for Covid-19. Beginning June every year, about a dozen idol makers from West Bengal would camp here for five months. No one has turned up this time, says Zulfikar Malik, the caretaker of the lonely parking lot. With the outbreak of the coronavirus disease forcing authorities to restrict public gatherings, most idol makers in the city returned to their hometowns during the lockdown. With the uncertainty surrounding upcoming festivals, and Delhi still recording an average of over 1,000 new cases of the infection every day, the idol makers who stayed back in the Capital face a dilemma to begin work for grand festivities or not. Also read: Durga Puja organisers frame norms on how to hold week-long festival amid Covid-19 I am making small Ganesha idols for people who want to put them up in their homes during Ganesh Chaturthi. But I dont know if I should make a few big ones for the pandals (stages), says 48-year-old Govind Nath, who has been making idols of deities at a shed in CR Park Kali Mandir for decades now. It takes Nath around a month to ready a 12-feet-tall idol. He says its easier when he works on several idols simultaneously. But he isnt sure if he should proceed with the plan when he has got no orders, and much still up in the air. Ganesh Chaturthi is due to be held on August 22, and Durga Puja will be celebrated between October 22 and 26. While religious places in the Capital were thrown open for the public in early June, the relaxation came with a host of rules such as maintaining a six-feet distance between each devotee, not touching idols and not making any offerings. Religious congregations are still not permitted, even under the Centres Unlock 3 guidelines. Meanwhile, enthusiasm has steadily dampened among idol makers and devotees. Sunil Pal, vice-president of CR Park Mela Ground Durga Puja Samiti says he doesnt expect the government to grant permission even for Durga Puja. Usually, we place orders for Mata idols by June-end, but this time we are yet to decide, Pal says. The Bengali-dominated south Delhi locality is the hub of Durga Puja festivities in Delhi every year. Even if they are permitted to set up pandals on a small scale, the association will settle for smaller idols that can be readied at short notice, Pal says. Idol makers say given the volume of idols required for Durga Puja every year, they begin work in June itself. But Kheta Ram, a 26-year-old idol maker in Tughlaqabad village in South Delhi says he is yet to begin work. I am not sure people will want to spend money on idols this time. Those organising pandals are unlikely to receive donations. So I have been postponing the work every day. I have lost the enthusiasm to pursue such hard work, he says. For Ganesh Chaturthi, there will be far fewer pandals in Delhi this year, says Mahendra Ladda, president of the 18-year-old Shri Gant Sewa Mandal Delhi, an association in Laxmi Nagar. There will be little work for the artisans this time, as celebrations will be muted, but our pandal will still go ahead with celebrations, even if it means shortening the period to three days instead of the usual 10, and having only the core members perform the puja, he says. He says pandals are usually set up a month before the celebrations, but everything is on hold this year. We have never missed the celebrations in the last 18 years, and the puja will be streamed online for the devotees this year, he added. While the association has already placed an order for a two-feet-tall statue, idol makers arent sure theyll be able to deliver large idols if orders are placed late. I had about 20 people working for me, who have all returned to their home towns and villages in Bengal. They dont want to come back, and even if some do, I dont know if I can pay them the usual wages, Govind Nath says. Working alone for now, Nath is readying a couple of large Ganesha and Durga idols each of them about half the usual size he prepares for CR Parks major pandals, but he isnt sure theyll find buyers. Nath and other idol makers had received a jolt early on in the lockdown itself. They had made Durga and Annapurna Devi idols for Ram Navami, but the lockdown was announced before they could be sold out for the festival on April 2. Not one of the 70 idols I had prepared were sold. Now I have packed them in plastic covers and stored them to sell during Durga Puja, and hope people will buy them for their homes. Ill be selling them for much less than usual, says Ram Rawat, an idol maker in Yamuna Pushta, near Akshardham Mandir. I am making just around 200 small Ganesha idols this time, says Rawat, who made 1,000 idols last year. Jerin Wilson and Karli Cheval after dining outdoors in what was the valet parking area at Fleming's Prime Steakhouse in Woodland Hills on July 17. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) The stop-start-stop mandates regarding doing business in Southern California represent a gut-punch to a coronavirus-weary business community. Businesses are closed. Theyre open. No, wait, theyre closed again, but restaurants can reopen if they serve diners outside with mask-wearing staff and socially distanced tables. Even those of us who must follow the orders are confused. During the coronavirus pandemic, a more measured approach to monitoring the safety of businesses is needed. Many business owners throughout California are hanging on by a thread financially and frustrated with the haphazard, uncoordinated reopening proclamations being made by local and state governments. This whack-a-mole approach to stemming a coronavirus spike by closing specific industry sectors including shopping malls, professional services and indoor dining is no way to do business. Governments need to provide safe, organized, methodical and long-term reopening criteria. Should we continue with on-again, off-again mandates, it could hasten any destruction of our economy. In addition, the pandemic is exacerbating economic and public health issues that include widespread unemployment and homelessness and depression. The business community recognizes it has a serious responsibility to try to ensure it is protecting employees and customers. After all, business owners who choose to be open during the pandemic are risking their own health as well as that of their workers. They understand the science that says operating indoors is not as safe as outdoors and that they need to take the necessary precautions when inside a business establishment. Mandated protocols Los Angeles County created to protect workers and patrons are being implemented by businesses, schools and houses of worship. Many business owners have gone to great expense to operate their businesses as safely as possible during the pandemic and they should be allowed to remain open. While COVID statistics the rising number of new cases and deaths are constantly updated, we hear relatively little during the pandemic about the economic health of our city, county or state except in broad strokes that dont accurately portray the devastation in readily understandable terms. Story continues Our economy cannot survive following an open one month, closed the next model. Businesses require stability and predictability, and the public needs confidence and certainty. Neither have what they need. For these reasons, business groups throughout Southern California recently formed the California Coalition for Safe Reopening, which consists of local chambers of commerce including the West Hollywood Chamber of Commerce I lead and business trade associations. Were advocating for safe, reasonable and predictable reopening plans that can help ensure the health of every resident, worker and customer while keeping businesses open and employees working. The coalition has proposed several steps for safe economic recovery, including a safe reopening task force that would work directly with state and local officials to look into long-term solutions for how an open economy can operate with coronavirus in our midst. Solutions might include establishing mandatory rapid testing for employees, recovery centers for any citizen who cannot safely shelter at home, and awarding COVID certifications to businesses that meet specific criteria for safe opening. Long-term solutions and programs might provide the confidence both businesses and the public need to make the retail environment thrive again. The checklist for certification completion could include COVID-safe training for all employees, instituting personal protective equipment supplies and protocols, reconfiguring spaces for safe seating, adding protective barriers, and making sure ventilation systems are working properly. Currently, the Los Angeles County Health Department repeatedly checks on businesses while cities code compliance divisions provide additional support to ensure new regulations are followed. A business that follows all protocols to the letter receives no guarantee that it can remain open when the city, county or state decides to shut-down businesses if COVID-19 spikes once again. A certification program could prevent that. Once a business is certified, counties, along with city partners, could recognize it as COVID safe within established parameters. This would allow businesses that have safe environments to remain open, force those certified safe to comply with the rules if they want to operate, and give the public confidence they are entering an establishment that is following the rules. If COVID spikes again, instead of government officials instituting broad, sweeping closures, only businesses that have not been certified would need to close until they too can earn their COVID safe certificate. The California Coalition for Safe Reopening is advocating for reasonable and predictable reopening plans in California that could help ensure the health of every resident, worker and customer in these uncertain times. We want government leaders to engage with business owners to implement viable policies to help keep the doors open. By working together, we can keep our economy going. Genevieve Morrill is president and CEO of the West Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, a member of the California Coalition for Safe Reopening. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) authorities issued a clarification on Monday and said that they have instructed Bihar-cadre Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Vinay Tiwari to apply for an exemption in home quarantine period because of the raging coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak in the city. The civic bodys clarification came after Bihar Police on Sunday night alleged that Tiwari was being forcibly quarantined by the BMC after he reached Mumbai on Sunday. Tiwari arrived in Mumbai on Sunday evening by a flight from Mumbai to oversee an investigation conducted by the Bihar Police into actor Sushant Singh Rajputs death on June 14. Even teleprompter could not take so many lies: Rahul's dig at PM Modis Davos speech Why PM Modi will seek blessings of Lord Hanuman before laying foundation stone for Ram Mandir India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Aug 03: Without Lord Hanuman, no work of Lord Ram can begin. Prime Minister, Narendra Modi will first stop over at a shrine dedicated to Lord Hanuman in Ayodhya before heading for the Bhumi Pujan for the Ram Temple. Without Lord Hanuman, no work of Lord Ram can begin. That is why Modi ji and Yogi ji are coming and will do a special puja at Hanumangarhi Temple. They will then lay the foundation for the construction of the Ram Temple at the Janmabhoomi Sthal with the blessings of Hanuman ji, Madhuvan Das of the Hanumangarhi Temple was quoted as saying by ANI. Ayodhya Ram Mandir Temple Bhumi Pujan: First look of invitation card Mahant Raju, the head priest of the Hanumangarhi said that they have been allocated 7 minutes for the Prime Minister's rituals at the Temple. PM Modi will be accompanied by vedic priests. There would be recitation of mantras and prayers would be held for the well-being of the PM and also to stop the spread of coronavirus. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News We have been given 7 minutes for the whole tour of the premises of which three minutes have been allotted for prayers, Das told ANI. The mantras will be recited after the arrival of the PM, he also said. The Prime Minister's Office has ordered that there will have to be social distancing norms followed. None will be allowed to touch the PM or serve prasad, he also said. Following this PM Modi will lay the foundation stone for the construction of the Ram Temple at Ayodhya. The Bhumi Pujan is being organised by the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Tirath Kshetra Trust. New Orleans, LA - A pilot study conducted by a team of LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine faculty has found that Snapchat is an effective tool to teach residents emergency radiology. The results are published online in Emergency Radiology available here. The team compared image analysis and interpretation by radiology residents using Snapchat on smartphones with conventional analysis on a single screen in the resident conference room. "All cases used were diagnoses considered to require emergent, non-routine communication on the order of minutes to the ordering health care provider," notes Bradley Spieler, MD, Vice Chairman of Research in the Department of Radiology at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine. "As such, these types of diagnoses demand prompt imaging recognition as they are considered critical findings which could result in death or significant illness if not acted upon expeditiously." The team chose Snapchat, a social media app allowing communication via video and digital images with text messaging functionality, not only because of its popularity with young adults, but most importantly because unlike other image based social media platforms, Snapchat allows for the timing of image visibility by users. The ability to specify the length of time an image is visible to a user (or trainee in this scenario) in rendering an image-based diagnosis creates an intriguing potential for innovation in radiologic curricula, particularly as it relates to assigning a metric to diagnostic performance. Over a four-week period, LSU Health New Orleans radiology residents, who are all millennials, were shown five emergent radiologic cases using Snapchat and five cases of similar content and duration on a classroom projector. All images depicted diagnoses requiring immediate communication to ordering physicians. Performance was scored 0-2 (0?=?complete miss, 1?=?major finding, but missed the diagnosis, 2?=?correct diagnosis) by two attending radiologists in consensus. "All residents performed better on Snapchat each week," says Dr. Spieler, who is also an Associate Professor of Radiology, Internal Medicine, Urology, & Cell Biology and Anatomy at LSU Health New Orleans. "Their accuracy rate was higher using Snapchat than a traditional classroom screen." The authors maintain that new challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic underscore the need to alter curricular landscapes through innovative teaching methods and connectivity with students and residents. Smartphones and mobile devices are used daily in hospitals in patient care. The comfort level with this technology is high, which simplifies its integration into graduate medical education. Radiology is a specialty particularly suited to visual social media platforms, and it is only natural that the technologically bound craft of radiology continues to push this medium in innovative ways. Spieler says, "We believe that the results from this pilot study could facilitate a promising and novel training method in enhancing recognition of imaging diagnoses, particularly those of life-threatening nature, which could be applied to the evolving landscape of distance learning." Other LSU Health New Orleans authors include Drs. Dane Mackey, Caitlin Henry, Raman Danrad, Carl Sabottke, Claude Pirtle, and Eric Wallace in Diagnostic Radiology; and Dr. Jason Mussell in Cell Biology and Anatomy. Dr. Catherine Batte in the Department of Physics & Astronomy at Louisiana State University also contributed. The authors conclude, "Our hope is that this investigation can aid in the promotion of active learning and lecture participation as well as to explore metrics for gauging diagnostic performance and pattern recognition in image-based curricula both within the classroom and in remote teaching formats. A larger sample size and more intricate study designs, for example, with the adjunct of eye tracking, may support the burgeoning role that handheld devices and imaged-based social media applications like Snapchat can play in learning at all levels of education especially in the context emergency radiology." ### LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans educates Louisiana's health care professionals. The state's flagship health sciences university, LSU Health New Orleans includes a School of Medicine with branch campuses in Baton Rouge and Lafayette, the state's only School of Dentistry, Louisiana's only public School of Public Health, and Schools of Allied Health Professions, Nursing, and Graduate Studies. LSU Health New Orleans faculty take care of patients in public and private hospitals and clinics throughout the region. In the vanguard of biosciences research in a number of areas in a worldwide arena, the LSU Health New Orleans research enterprise generates jobs and enormous economic impact. LSU Health New Orleans faculty have made lifesaving discoveries and continue to work to prevent, advance treatment, or cure disease. To learn more, visit http://www.lsuhsc.edu, http://www.twitter.com/LSUHealthNO, or http://www.facebook.com/LSUHSC. Instagram blogger Caitlin Fladager has hit out at her critics in a recent post. Fed up of being criticised for her clothing choice, she took at her haters and raised some pretty good points too! "'Your kids only wear clothes from Walmart, while you get dressed up a lot. Not a good look for you as a mom.' That statement is something I get a lot." her post began. "Yes, my kids clothes mostly come from Walmart, while I buy myself clothes from other stores. You know why? Because I am not constantly outgrowing them, like my kids are. I am not changing my mind daily about what colour I have randomly decided I dont want to wear ever again. I am not a kid." "I buy them cheaper clothes, because I refuse to be the mom who yells at them for spilling a drop of ice cream on a brand new shirt. I strive to be the mom who sees them spill, and says 'oh no big deal!'" "I strive to be the mom who sees them playing in the dirt, not caring that they are ruining a brand new outfit. I strive to be the mom who teaches them there is more to life than having nice, expensive clothes." "So yes, my kids mainly live in Walmart clothes. And they love it." "The dirt, the smiles, and the ice cream makes me way more happier than a photo of them dressed in clothes they hate, that they will outgrow in a week." "This right here, makes me so much happier." She definitely has a way with words, well said! You can read the full unedited post below... NEW HAVEN The head of a private college preparatory school said it has banned from campus a parent who repeatedly heckled commencement speakers as they discussed racial injustice during the schools drive-in graduation ceremony last week. Kai Bynum, head of Hopkins School, wrote in a letter to the school community that the parent who harassed our commencement speakers during Thursdays graduation has been banned from the campus. The announcement came after the Instagram account blackathopkins posted a story claiming a parent rolled down his window and yelled Get off the stage! while a faculty member was giving a speech during the commencement. The faculty member had said black people came here against their will and built much of this country against their will, as part of his commencement address before the parent made the remark, according to the Instagram post. The story claims the parent, who has not been identified, yelled the same phrase again after a student began to mention the civil unrest and need for racial equity in this country during his speech. That exchange was captured in a video and shared as part of the Instagram story. A voice can be heard interjecting during the student speakers remarks, but it is not clear from the audio what is shouted. The incident comes as the school is grappling with its own connections to slavery. The schools namesake, Edward Hopkins, whose estate became the private school, owned slaves. Amid nationwide protests following the death of George Floyd while being restrained by a white police officer in Minneapolis, former Hopkins students started a petition to spur change at the school. Bynum, the first Black person to lead Hopkins, wrote a letter to the school community on Friday to announce the investigation. Unfortunately, I must address the abhorrent behavior of one of the parent attendees last night, Bynum said. I received word this morning that a parent repeatedly heckled commencement speakers. Bynum said he and his colleagues strongly condemn the behavior, and said it is indicative of how much work we have left to do in bringing meaningful change to our institution and culture. Correction: This story has been updated to reflect former Hopkins students started a petition to spur change at the school. Federal Parliament was supposed to sit this week. The decision to cancel was taken a couple of weeks ago, on medical advice. The timing is coincidence, not conspiracy, but Scott Morrison will be relieved. He is starting to come under some political pressure for the first time in a long time. And this, when events in Victoria have turned darker still, with yesterdays declaration of a state of disaster. Years ago, John Howard learned too late that the Senate plays an important role: it had always managed to save him from disasters like WorkChoices, until it didnt. Illustration: Jim Pavlidis Credit: Similarly, governments have a tendency to see oppositions as petty politickers who fail to appreciate the enormous complexity of the governments grave responsibilities. But oppositions also have a role in helping governments - as early warning systems. This is the downside of Morrisons recent success in shutting Anthony Albanese out of public debate not just for Morrison, but for all of us. Sharks are thriving at the Kermadec Islands, but not the rest of New Zealand, amid global decline by Adam Smith August 03,2020 | Source: DTE A recent global assessment of shark populations at 371 coral reefs in 58 countries found no sharks at almost 20% of reefs and alarmingly low numbers at many others. The study, which involved over 100 scientists under the Global FinPrint project, gave New Zealand a good score card. But because it focused on coral reefs, it included only one region Rangitahua (Kermadec Islands), a pristine subtropical archipelago surrounded by New Zealands largest marine reserve. It is a different story around the main islands of New Zealand. Many coastal shark species may be in decline and less than half a per cent of territorial waters is protected by marine reserves. In New Zealand, there are more than a hundred species of sharks, rays and chimaeras. They belong to a group of fishes called chondrichthyans, which have skeletons of cartilage instead of bone. Some 55 per cent of New Zealands chondrichthyan species are listed as not threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Not so encouraging is the 32 per cent of species listed as data deficient, meaning we dont know the status of their populations. Most species (77 per cent) live in waters deeper than 200 metres. Seven species are fully protected under the Wildlife Act 1953. They are mostly large, migratory species such as the giant manta ray. Some are threatened with extinction according to the IUCN, including great white sharks, basking sharks, whale sharks and oceanic white tip sharks. Historically, basking sharks were caught as bycatch in New Zealand fisheries and seen in their hundreds in some inshore areas. Sightings of these giant plankton-feeders suddenly dried up over a decade ago. We dont know why. Eleven chondrichthyan species are fished commercially in New Zealand under the quota management system. Commercial fisheries for school shark, rig and elephant fish took off from the 1970s and now catch around 8,000 tonnes per year in total. Finning of sharks has been illegal throughout New Zealand since 2014. Most of New Zealands shark fisheries are considered sustainable. But a sustainable fishery can mean sustained at low levels and we must tread carefully. School shark was recently added to the critically endangered list after the collapse of fisheries in Australia and elsewhere, and theres a lot we dont know about the New Zealand population. Down To Earth 2020 Theme(s): Fisheries Resources. KYIV -- Ukrainian police have detained a man who held a woman hostage in a Kyiv bank for hours, threatening to detonate an explosive device that he said was in his backpack. Police managed to detain the man after allowing him to talk to journalists inside Kyiv's Universal Bank. Officials confirmed after the man was detained that he did in fact have explosives. Deputy Interior Minister Anton Herashchenko identified the perpetrator as Suhrob Karimov, a 32-year-old Uzbek citizen. The man said that he is "a holy spirit" and "ordered" to "arrest all presidents of the world." It was Ukraine's third hostage incident in recent weeks. In the first such incident, a man in Ukraines northwestern city of Lutsk on July 21 held 13 people hostage inside a bus with a firearm and explosives for 12 hours before he was apprehended by security forces. The perpetrator was later identified as 44-year-old Maksym Kryvosh, a native of the city of Dubno and a resident of Lutsk. According to the police, Kryvosh ranted against "the system" in his negotiations, called Ukraine's businesspeople and officials "terrorists," and demanded that people watch the 2005 documentary film Earthlings about the suffering endured by animals at farms, research labs, and other locations. In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy posted a short video on Facebook recommending that people watch the documentary. The video was removed from Facebook right after Kryvosh was detained. Nobody was hurt in the 12-hour ordeal. A few days later, a criminal suspect brandishing a hand grenade forced a senior police officer to drive him for hours through the countryside, chased by police. More than six hours after the pursuit began, the man left his hostage in the car and fled into a forest. Authorities located that suspect a week later and shot him dead on August 1, state media reported. With reporting by AP, Reuters, and dpa Meghan, Duchess of Sussex is no longer a senior member of the royal family, following her dramatic exit from the royal inner circle earlier this spring. Meghan along with her husband, Prince Harry, and their infant son, Archie Harrison is living in California while they plan their next steps. Now that Meghan and Prince Harry have distanced themselves from their former life, sources are coming out, revealing details about what really happened during Meghans time in the fold. According to a new book, Meghans relationship with Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge was very different from what has been reported in the media. The royal couples were dubbed the Fab Four Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images RELATED: Meghan Markle Wished Kate Middleton Would Have Reached Out to Her During Family and Press Drama When Meghan first met Prince Harrys family, reports were positive. There were claims that Meghan got along very well with Kate, and that she formed a special bond with Queen Elizabeth, Prince Harrys grandmother. As the days went on, the royals began to incorporate Meghan into more of their day-to-day activities, proving not only that Prince Harry was serious about his future with the actress, but that Meghan was determined to make her own mark within the family. After Meghan and Prince Harry got married in May 2018, they began working on special projects with Prince William and Kate, including their joint charity, The Royal Foundation. The media even dubbed the two couples the Fab Four. Sadly, the partnership was short-lived, and not only after they joined forces, the Fab Four disbanded, with Prince Harry and Meghan taking off on their own to work on different charity ventures. Meghan and Kates rumored feud Around the same time that the couples stopped working together, rumors started that Meghan and Kate were embroiled in a feud. Various tabloid reports claimed that Kates more restrained, calm personality clashed with Meghans more headstrong attitude. Other news stories stated that Meghan and Kate did what they could to avoid being in the same room, and even that their feud was causing friction between other members of the royal family. As the months wore on, it became evident that there was never any real feud between Meghan and Kate. Not only were the two women spotted attending events together, but new sources stated that the real problem was between Prince William and Prince Harry. It seemed as though, if anything, the media was dead set on portraying Meghan and Kate as bitter rivals, no matter what. A new source states Kate and Meghan were never friends These days, Prince Harry and Meghan are focused on doing their own thing and havent seen the rest of the royal family in months, apart from video calls. Still, a new book claims that the distance between the couples isnt due to any real negativity, but simply due to a lack of any real closeness between Kate and Meghan. The source states that far from being friendly, or even bitter rivals, the two women never got past the distant politeness of when they first met. In light of this new information, it seems as though the two women attending events together could have been their way of trying to further their relationship. Perhaps they tried to cultivate a real friendship, but couldnt find enough in common to make any real connection. After all, their life experiences couldnt have been more different, and forcing friendships rarely works. Still, there has been nothing to suggest that Meghan and Kate hold any ill will toward each other more than likely, they are handling the situation like mature adults. FALLS CHURCH, Va. A Libyan military commander who spent decades living in Virginia is now responding to two federal lawsuits accusing him of atrocities in his military campaigns. Khalifa Hifter leads the self-styled Libyan National Army. Once a lieutenant to Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, Hifter defected to the U.S. during the 1980s and spent many years living in northern Virginia. He is widely believed to have worked with the CIA during his time in exile. Hifter returned to Libya in 2011 after Gadhafis fall, and Hifters army gained control of the eastern part of that north African country. Last year he launched a campaign to take Tripoli, its capital. But his army suffered significant setbacks in recent months after the United-Nations-backed government opposing Hifter received military support from Turkey. Hifter has received Russian and Egyptian backing. Hifter initially failed to respond to the two lawsuits in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, accusing his army of indiscriminate killing of civilians and targeting political enemies. But in a July 31 letter, New York-based attorney Duncan Levin told the judge overseeing the lawsuits that Hifter wants to fight the suits. Gen. Hifter is now aware of these two cases, Levin wrote. If permitted by this Court, Gen. Hifter therefore intends to answer to the complaints. Levin did not immediately respond tho a phone call seeking comment Monday. Esam Omeish, president of the Libyan American Alliance, which has been supportive of the lawsuits against Hifter, said in a statement that (a)fter the recent defeats of Hifter in his war in Libya, Hifter realized that he needs an exit strategy and possibly a place to escape to, and that explains why he retained a law firm now after months of not answering the charges leveled against him. In each of the lawsuits filed against Hifter, the plaintiffs sought default judgment after Hifter initially failed to respond. In one of the cases, a federal magistrate has recommended dismissing the lawsuit. In the other one, though, the magistrate has recommended entering default judgment. The lawsuits allege that Hifter and his family purchased 17 properties in Virginia between 2014 and 2017, paying $8 million in cash. Faisal Gill, a lawyer for the plaintiffs in one of the cases, said Hifter finally got the message that we are serious about pursuing justice for the victims of his egregious and violent actions. Killing innocent civilians will not go unpunished. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor A total of 10,141 students in Kumasi are sitting for the 2020 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), the Ghana Education Service (GES) has announced. The figure comprises 5, 117 males and 5, 024 females, who would write the Examination over the next five weeks. The candidates are billed to write papers on about 60 subjects, covering General Arts, General Science, Business, Agricultural Science, Visual Arts, Home Economics and Technical Skills in the examination, which commenced officially on Monday, August 3. Mr David Oppong, the Metropolitan Director of Education, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), on the sidelines of a tour of some of the examination centres, said the examination was being written with strict adherence to all the COVID-19 safety protocols. Consequently, the students were expected to undergo a mandatory body temperature check, hand-washing and the use of hand sanitizers while wearing their nose masks, before being allowed entry into the various centres. Mr Oppong was happy with the sitting arrangements at the various centres as they conformed to the protocol on social distancing. Schools visited by the GESs delegation included Kumasi Wesley Girls, Serwaa Nyarko Girls and Kumasi Girls Senior High Schools (SHSs). Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Osei Assibey-Antwi, has also toured some of the centres to motivate the candidates as they take another step in their educational career. He extended the Assemblys best wishes to the candidates and urged them to stay focused on the task ahead. Source: GNA 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 Contactless transactions are up 500 per cent as consumers and merchants look for a fast and safe way to pay Contactless payments, where consumers simply tap their card or phone against the POS terminal to pay, have grown in popularity as consumers and merchants look for a fast, convenient, and safe way to pay. These benefits are more apparent than ever, as the COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges and merchants are looking for ways to serve their customers safely. Dang Tuyet Dung, Visa country manager for Vietnam and Laos, said, At Visa, were incredibly excited to be working with our partners in Vietnam to help bring this new payment technology to more consumers and businesses across the country. As the Vietnamese economy continues to grow, the demand for faster, smarter methods of payment will increase and contactless technology is just one of the ways in which were working to meet this need. At the end of June 2020, the number of Visa cards that have recorded at least one contactless transaction within the past three months grew by nearly 300 per cent compared to June 2019. Findings from the recent Visa Consumer Payment Attitudes study showed 37 per cent of Vietnamese consumers are now using contactless card payments while 42 per cent are currently using mobile contactless payments. Of those that do use contactless card payments, 85 per cent shared that they use them at least once a week. With contactless payments, consumers can tap to pay at checkout counters anywhere they see the contactless symbol without handing their cards to cashier staff. Contactless payments are secured with dynamic EMV Chip technology. The cards have a tiny antenna which can be read by POS terminals when they are 4cm away or less from the terminal. During the payment process, the card never needs to leave the cardholders hand, and it is extremely fast POS terminals can typically read a contactless card or device in less than half a second. Shoppers can even pay with their mobile phones, using PINs, passwords, or biometrics for extra security. This new technology offers benefits for both consumers and merchants. Given that it is a faster way to pay, it means that consumers do not have to wait in line for as long and they can have greater control over their card as it does not need to leave their hand. Merchants can benefit by serving more customers, reducing their cash handling costs, and providing a better customer payment experience. Contactless payments are already deployed at some of Vietnams biggest retailers and restaurant chains, including Lotte Mart, The Pizza Company, and BHD with promotional campaigns that seek to drive and normalise the use of digital payments. Visa has provided support to Starbucks in Vietnam to drive contactless activation, with Starbucks implementing swivel stands for terminals to give customers more control over transactions, and offering discounts to customers paying with Visa contactless. Half of Visa transactions at Starbucks Vietnam are now contactless. Similarly, Visa has also partnered with Saigon Co-op to offer a range of exciting prizes to cardholders using this payment technology at their outlets. We are incredibly glad to be working with some of the most well-loved businesses in Vietnam to offer consumers an even easier way to pay. We look forward to continuing this work with other businesses in the future, added Dang Tuyet Dung. A man and woman have been found dead in a car at a Dorset beauty spot. The bodies, which have not yet been identified, were discovered at Durlston Country Park by passers-by on Monday morning, who called 999. Emergency services rushed to the popular nature reserve but the pair were pronounced dead at the scene. A statement from Dorset Police said: We were called at 8.17 am on Monday 3rd August 2020 by the fire service to reports that two people had been found unresponsive in a car parked at Durlston Country Park on Lighthouse Road, Swanage. Officers have attended the incident, along with the ambulance service. The road leading to the country park has been closed and a cordon is in place. Very sadly the body of a man and a woman were found inside the vehicle. Enquiries are underway to identify the individuals, establish the circumstances of the deaths and inform their next of kin. "The coroner has been informed. JUNEAU, Alaska - A 71-year-old Kodiak man said he was mauled by a bear while running on a mountain trail over the weekend, Alaska State Troopers said. The troopers, in an online post, said the man, identified as Donald Zimmerman, contacted local police around 11:35 a.m. Sunday. He was met by authorities responding to his call about a half-mile from the road on a trail and taken to a hospital in stable condition, troopers said. Nathan Svoboda, an area wildlife biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, said it was his understanding the brown bear attacked Zimmerman from behind and left the scene before returning. Zimmermans use of a bear repellant spray when the animal returned quite possibly could have been the thing that saved his life. Svoboda said evidence suggested this was a defensive attack versus a predatory attack. Defensive attacks often are a matter of bad timing, wrong-place-at-the-wrong-time sort of thing, he said. The Kodiak Police Department asked residents Sunday to avoid Pillar Mountain trails near a gravel pit area, warning of an aggressive bear. Authorities searched the area but did not find the bear. Svoboda said signs warning people of the bear activity were posted in the area. The Central Regional Office of the National Population Council (NPC) says women and girls are the hardest hit by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Apart from disrupting the livelihood of women, it has impacted negatively on the access to reproductive health services and led to an increase in sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) against women and girls, it said. The statement was made at a stakeholder roundtable in Cape Coast to deliberate on the theme for the 'World Population Day' dubbed, putting the brakes on COVID-19; how to safeguard the health and rights of Women and Girls now. The day is celebrated on July 11 every year to create awareness and bring to the fore the importance and implication of population issues on human development. Mr Augustine Jongtey, the Regional Population Officer, noted that over 37 million girls worldwide lacked access to family planning services due to the impact of COVID-19 and that might lead to over seven million unintended pregnancies. He indicated that so far there were two million cases of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and by the year 2030, 13 million cases of Child marriages would have also been recorded. This is just to show that indeed Women and Girls are vulnerable to their abusers and they needed to be protected, he added. He stressed the need for the choices of Women and Girls on their rights to sexual and reproductive health care to be respected and protected regardless of COVID-19. Mr Jongtey said there was no doubt that the pandemic had led to an increase in domestic violence and SGBV with the majority of them having unpleasant experiences with their abusers during the lockdown period. For his Part, Mr Michael Tagoe, the Youth Programme Officer of the Planned Parenthood Association of Ghana (PPAG), indicated that the pandemic had increased the rate of SGBV, FGM, teenage pregnancy, unsafe abortions, child marriages and a host of others. These issues have arisen because of the closure of schools and the lockdown situations, he said, adding that the dependency ratio has grown worse with workers on stand by while others have been fired. The PPAG has organized Community outreach programmes to educate all on the preventive measures of the Virus and on how to protect oneself from unwanted pregnancies by delivering free family planning services, he added. Mrs Thywill Eyra Kpe, the Regional Director of the Department of Gender, also called on stakeholders to establish direct measures of compensation and economic empowerment for women, including financial assistance and delivery of basic goods and services because they were at higher risk of exposure to the infection during the period. Mrs Kpe said due to the closure of schools most children were in the care of their younger brothers and friends and they could take undue advantage of them. They called on parents to take extra care for their wards during these trying times. GNA In this photo provided by the New Jersey Office of the Governor, N.J. Gov. Phil Murphy signs the Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act Friday, April 12, 2019, at the New Jersey Statehouse. New Jersey was the seventh state to enact a law permitting terminally ill patients to seek life-ending medication. Nine states and Washington, D.C. now allow it, according to Compassion & Choices. Read more In its first report on New Jerseys year-old medical aid-in-dying law, the state said 12 terminally ill people used provisions of the law to take fatal doses of medication in 2019. The report, issued by the Office of the Chief State Medical Examiner, covered the five-month period between Aug. 1, 2019, when the law went into effect, and the end of the year. The law allows physicians to prescribe life-ending drugs after two meetings at least 15 days apart with patients who are likely to die within six months. According to the report, most of the patients took cocktails of multiple drugs. The law requires that patients take the medications themselves. One patient lived in Burlington County. No one in Camden or Gloucester Counties used the law. The patients ranged in age from 50 to 93. Half were men, and half were married. Eleven were white, and one was Asian. Nine had a bachelors degree or higher. Seven of the patients had cancer, and three had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS. Ten died at home. Compassion and Choices, a group that lobbies for medical aid-in-dying legislation, said last week that 42 large medical centers, hospitals, and hospices in New Jersey now have policies that allow their doctors to use the law. Stoney said he was acting under powers derived from a state of emergency that Northam had declared at the mayors request amid the unrest. The mayor contended that the statues posed a public safety threat because protesters were trying to pull them down. He also said they were a magnet for demonstrations, which could contribute to the spread of the novel coronavirus. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 19:46:00|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A woman wearing a face mask walks on a street in downtown Tehran, Iran, on Aug 2, 2020. Iran's coronavirus cases rose on Monday to 312,035 with the registration of 2,598 new infections over the past 24 hours. (Photo by Ahmad Halabisaz/Xinhua) TEHRAN, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Iran's coronavirus cases rose on Monday to 312,035 with the registration of 2,598 new infections over the past 24 hours. Sima Sadat Lari, spokeswoman for Iran's Ministry of Health and Medical Education, said at her daily briefing that out of the new cases in the past 24 hours, 1,304 have been hospitalized. COVID-19 has so far claimed the lives of 17,405 Iranians, up by 215 in the past 24 hours, she added. Besides, 270,228 patients have recovered and been discharged from hospitals while 4,104 remain in critical condition. According to Lari, 2,534,658 lab tests for COVID-19 have been carried out in Iran as of Monday. She said that 14 provinces are still in high-risk, while 12 others are on alert condition over the disease. Iran announced its first cases of COVID-19 on Feb. 19. Iran and China have offered mutual help in combating the COVID-19 pandemic. In mid-February, at the early stage of the coronavirus outbreak in China, Iran lit up the Tehran Azadi (Liberty) Tower to show its solidarity with China, and donated 3 million masks to China. In return, China has delivered several shipments of medical supplies to Iran. On Feb. 29, a five-member Chinese medical team visited Iran for a month-long mission to help Iran fight the pandemic. Enditem IRVING, Texas, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Darling Ingredients Inc. (NYSE: DAR) will hold a conference call and webcast on Thursday, August 6, 2020 to discuss the Company's second quarter 2020 financial results. The teleconference will begin at 9:00 a.m. ET and will be hosted by Mr. Randall Stuewe, CEO and Chairman of the Board, and Mr. Brad Phillips, EVP and Chief Financial Officer. Additionally, the Company will have a slide presentation available to augment management's formal remarks, which will be accessible via the investor relations section of the Company's website. The related press release will be issued after the market closes on August 5, 2020. Due to historically high call volume, the company is offering participants the opportunity to register in advance for the conference through the following link: http://dpregister.com/10146331 Registered participants will receive an email with a calendar reminder and a dial-in number and PIN that will allow them immediate access to the call on August 6, 2020 Participants who do not wish to pre-register for the call may dial in using 844-868-8847 (U.S. callers), or 412-317-6593 (international callers), and ask for the "Darling Ingredients" call. A replay will be available two hours after completion of the call through August 13, 2020. To access the replay, please dial 877-344-7529 (U.S. callers), 855-669-9658 (Canada) and 412-317-0088 (International callers) and reference passcode 10146331. The live webcast and archived replay also can be accessed on the Company's web site at http://ir.darlingii.com. About Darling Darling Ingredients Inc. is a global developer and producer of sustainable natural ingredients from edible and inedible bio-nutrients, creating a wide range of ingredients and customized specialty solutions for customers in the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, food, pet food, feed, industrial, fuel, bioenergy and fertilizer industries. With operations on five continents, the Company collects and transforms all aspects of animal by-product streams into useable and specialty ingredients, such as gelatin, edible fats, feed-grade fats, animal proteins and meals, plasma, pet food ingredients, organic fertilizers, yellow grease, fuel feedstocks, green energy, natural casings and hides. The Company also recovers and converts recycled oils (used cooking oil and animal fats) into valuable feed and fuel ingredients and collects and processes residual bakery products into feed ingredients. In addition, the Company provides environmental services, such as grease trap collection and disposal services to food service establishments and disposal services for waste solids from the wastewater treatment systems of industrial food processing plants. The Company sells its products domestically and internationally and operates within three industry segments: Feed Ingredients, Food Ingredients and Fuel Ingredients. For additional information, visit the Company's website at http://www.darlingii.com. For More Information, contact: 5601 N. MacArthur Blvd Jim Stark, VP, Investor Relations Irving, Texas 75038 [email protected] Phone: 972-281-4823 SOURCE Darling Ingredients Inc. Related Links http://www.darlingii.com Researchers from Texas Christian University, University of Arizona, University of Oregon, and Portland State University published a new paper in the Journal of Marketing that examines the effect of corporate activism on financial and other types of performance to empower managers with insights they can use to chart their company's course in today's marketplace. The study, forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing, is titled "Corporate Sociopolitical Activism and Firm Value" and is authored by Yashoda Bhagwat, Nooshin L. Warren, Joshua T. Beck, George F. Watson IV. In 2014, a group of concerned mothers demanded that Chipotle prohibit guns in its restaurants. The company agreed and uproar ensued among a divided customer base as strong opinions opposing and favoring the policy translated into boycotts and buycotts. Chipotle is not alone in its controversy. Other examples include when Nike famously took a stand in support of Black Lives Matter, Delta cut ties with the NRA, Target publicly supported transgender rights, Amazon stopped selling confederate flags, and J.C. Penney supported LGBTQ+ families. Corporations have historically avoided contentious issues, but many are now responding to growing expectations that they become advocates. These activities are called Corporate Sociopolitical Activism (CSA), defined as a firm's public demonstration (statements and/or actions) of support for--or opposition to--one side of a partisan sociopolitical issue. CSA reflects a shift. For decades, corporations have strived to be socially responsible (known as "CSR"), which involves broadly favored activities such as donating to charity or limiting pollution. Also, firms have lobbied to change laws in ways that favor their operations (known as corporate political activity [CPA]). Now some firms are going beyond these traditional, performance-enhancing activities to engage in CSA with unknown outcomes. The researchers investigate how customer and investor responses to CSA affect firm performance. Bhagwat explains that "We argue that CSA publicly signals a firm's sociopolitical values and increases uncertainty among investors for at least two reasons. First, CSA may deviate from the political values of key stakeholders--customers, employees, and state government legislators. Second, CSA signals a shift in a firm's strategic commitments. Firms focusing more on sociopolitical issues may divert resources (money, time, attention) from other more profit-oriented activities." Thus, CSA has a negative effect overall on a firm's stock return. However, the effect of CSA varies highly and can even be positive. To better understand the range of CSA outcomes, the study examines several contingency factors. First, it tested the extent to which CSA deviates from the political values of its stakeholders. Results indicate that highly misaligned CSA that deviates from the values of customers, employees, and state lawmakers results in a 2% stock decline, on average. Alternatively, highly aligned CSA can increase stock returns by nearly 1%, on average. Second, it examined how the implementation of CSA signals a firm's commitment to activism. Warren says that "The more strategically committed a firm seems to be, the more uncertain investors become. CSA that takes the form of an action (vs. a statement), is delivered by the CEO (vs. another executive), is motivated purely on moral terms (vs. rationalized as being good for business), or is conducted alone (vs. in a coalition with multiple other firms) signals stronger commitment and, ultimately, a more negative impact on a firm's near-term stock price." Importantly, the study also examines the impact of CSA on next-quarter and next-year sales growth. Findings are generally consistent with the stock return results and demonstrate the high potential of CSA. When CSA is aligned across stakeholders, it can result in an 8% increase in next-quarter sales growth and a 12% increase in next-year sales growth. This is presumably because well-aligned CSA works to strengthen relationships with customers, employees, and state lawmakers who fundamentally agree with the firm's stance. The researchers advise managers navigating these unchartered waters to: (1) pick CSA they feel confident supporting and that aligns with the values of key stakeholders; (2) prepare for a short-term stock drop, realizing that activism has the potential to hurt or enhance stock price and sales growth; and (3) persuade stakeholders that CSA serves the interests of society and the company because customers will reward CSA they believe in. Customers should be aware that their values matter and play a key role in whether activism is successful for firms. Investors should recognize sociopolitical activism as a new firm activity and that while it may risk backlash, it may also lead to tangible positive financial outcomes, particularly when aligned with customers. ### Full article and author contact information available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0022242920937000 About the Journal of Marketing The Journal of Marketing develops and disseminates knowledge about real-world marketing questions useful to scholars, educators, managers, policy makers, consumers, and other societal stakeholders around the world. Published by the American Marketing Association since its founding in 1936, JM has played a significant role in shaping the content and boundaries of the marketing discipline. Christine Moorman (T. Austin Finch, Sr. Professor of Business Administration at the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University) serves as the current Editor in Chief. https://www.ama.org/jm About the American Marketing Association (AMA) As the largest chapter-based marketing association in the world, the AMA is trusted by marketing and sales professionals to help them discover what's coming next in the industry. The AMA has a community of local chapters in more than 70 cities and 350 college campuses throughout North America. The AMA is home to award-winning content, PCM professional certification, premiere academic journals, and industry-leading training events and conferences. https://www.ama.org/ Compatible is normally too mild a word to describe Kris and Michael McBride of Conroe, but the couple were thrilled to hear it. Compatible meant that when the lab mixed test tubes of their blood, her proteins didnt rile his immune cells. Compatible meant that Kris could give Michael the kidney he needed. It was good luck, pure and simple. And in the two and a half years that Michael waited for a kidney, it would be the last good luck theyd see for a while. Their first transplant date was canceled because Michael needed triple-bypass surgery. Their second because Kris needed chemo for breast cancer. Then came COVID-19. Twice. Mr. Dynamic Kris met Michael in 1985 at a networking group for small-business owners. She did accounting; he owned a delivery service. She thought of him as Mr. Dynamic a guy not afraid of anything, even charging bulls. (Literally: At the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, he volunteered as a rodeo clown.) They started dating in 91, and were married in 95. Friends thought of them as a unit: KrisAndMichael, always together. In 2014, Michael had a stroke. It went through him, Kris says, like a lightning bolt, and the damage included his kidneys. At the beginning of 2018, when his kidney function dropped below 20 percent, his nephrologist referred him to Houston Methodists transplant center. At Methodist, per protocol, Kris and Michael were assigned to two transplant teams: donor and recipient. Usually, the donors team doesnt even talk to the recipients team. We have to protect the kidney donors, explains Hassan Ibrahim, Kris doctor, chief of kidney diseases at Houston Methodist. This is a surgery that they dont need. Ibrahim goes so far as to recommend a cooling-off period, so that donors dont rush into a surgery theyll regret. He makes sure they understand that their would-be recipient has other options, such as dialysis or going on the waiting list for a kidney. If they still want to go through with it, theyre put through a battery of tests, to make sure their health wont suffer. Kris team said that to be healthy enough to donate, shed have to lose weight. The next day, she enrolled in a Houston Methodist weight-loss program in the Woodlands. Six months later, shed lost 60 pounds. By December, Kris and Michael met their teams criteria to set a surgery date and began intensive pre-operation tests. Michaels heart test was one of the last. Kris dropped Michael off for the test and left, thinking it would take a long time. Only 30 minutes later, the office called to say it was done. That was easy! she thought. But when she pulled the hospital curtain back, her husband was pale and teary. No transplant for me, he said. The test had revealed a serious blockage. He needed a triple bypass. The blockage had been totally asymptomatic. Had the screening not uncovered it in time, Michael might have died. My life fell apart It took months for Michael to heal from the bypass. In June 2019, they were ready to try the transplant again. As part of pre-op testing, Kris had a mammogram. Two days later, the lab called with bad news. Kris oncologist told her not to worry, that theyd caught the cancer early, that it was only a few nodules, that they could fast-track Kris lumpectomy and radiation treatments. Kris called her transplant team: This will only delay us by a few months, right? No, they told her. Normal protocol dictated waiting a matter of years. One person told her five years; another, 10. My life fell apart, Kris remembers. I wasnt going to be able to donate, and without a new kidney, Michael wouldnt make it. He was steadily growing weaker. By August, his kidney function was around 8 or 9 percent. He felt terrible, had no energy, and, finally, went on dialysis: move hed delayed as long as he could. He chose peritoneal dialysis, a variety thats better for people who hope to receive a transplant but is extremely hard to live with. He had to stay hooked to the noisy machine for nine hours a night, seven nights a week, with a tether barely long enough to let him reach the bathroom. He slept in a chair, and even so, sometimes dislodged a needle or kinked a hose, setting off alarms. Friends and family stepped up to donate, but one after one, they failed the screenings. Cinco de Mayo On March 6, Kris phone rang. Her transplant team coordinator, Michelle Millender, said, Chris, I hope youre sitting down. Frustrated when yet another would-be donor failed the screening, Dr. Ibrahim had asked to review Kris file. Her cancer, he saw, wasnt a type that was likely to return or spread, and Kris was in great health. The risk to his patient seemed minimal, and the benefit to her life, great. Without letting Kris know, he took the matter to Methodists review committee. Millender was calling with the good news that the committee had agreed: Kris could donate the kidney Michael needed. They quickly set a date: May 5. Michael managed a joke. Cinco de Mayo! With that new kidney, I can have a margarita. It was not to be. COVID-19 arrived in Houston in mid-March. Shutdown orders allowed hospitals to do transplants, but Methodist opted to delay those involving live donors. Besides freeing up beds and staff in case of a potential surge in COVID-19 cases, doctors didnt know what to expect from the new coronavirus. They didnt want to put kidney donors and recipients at risk. In mid-May, when Methodist started transplants again, Kris and Michael were at the top of the list. Only a few last-minute tests stood in their way, and the McBrides didnt worry at all about the COVID-19 test. After all, they hardly went anywhere, didnt know anyone whod been infected and felt fine. But on April 29, Millender called Kris in tears. The COVID-19 test was positive. Kris suspected that the test had misfired, but a second test came back positive, too. For the next two weeks, while Kris quarantined at home, Michael left food outside her door. Somehow, he never caught the virus. They were cleared for surgery as soon as Kris got out of quarantine. And finally, on Friday, May 29 the third date in May that the McBrides hat attempted to schedule surgery everything went right. Michael at last received Kris kidney. Right on the operating table, as soon as the organ was hooked up, it started producing urine, says Dr. Ibrahim a sign of success. The following Wednesday, Michael was able to walk a mile. I didnt realize how bad Id felt before, he says. Kidney donation is usually far harder on the donor than on the recipient, but Kris breezed through it: only a little soreness, a few stitches, no pain that a Tylenol cant handle. I know Im supposed to feel bad, to be tired, but Im not, she says. Maybe Im so grateful, that overpowers it. lisa.gray@chron.com, twitter.com/LisaGray_HouTX Ontarios plans for an inquiry into the state of the provinces long-term care homes falls short of the hopes of advocacy groups. I think its just going to be a farce, said Betty Miller, founder of the Guardian Angels Program Niagara. Its just awful. I think its terrible that people have suffered the way they have. Miller said her group joined the call for a public inquiry into the state of long-term care homes that were hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, she said, the independent commission announced last week by the provincial government lacks the public involvement that organizations such as the Guardian Angels, opposition political parties and labour organizations wanted. Across Ontario, outbreaks of the virus have infected 5,887 residents at several of the 626 long-term care facilities across Ontario, with 1,844 deaths reported. In Niagara, 37 outbreaks of COVID-19 have been reported to date, mostly in long-term care homes. More than half the cases of the virus reported in the region were related to those outbreaks. There are currently outbreaks underway at four Niagara health-care facilities three of them long-term care homes. The provincial probe, led by Associate Chief Justice Frank Marrocco of Ontario Superior Court, with a full-time staff of 12, is to be totally independent, and is expected to submit a report by April 30, the province has said. Although the government has promised a transparent process, long-term care advocates remain concerned. What we needed was a real inquiry with everything transparent, and some of the advocacy groups getting involved and some of the families, Miller said. Now its just in secret. Its just terrible. Health-care unions Service Employees International Union, Canadian Union of Public Employees and Unifor shared similar concerns in a joint statement issued last week. A commission or public inquiry into long-term care has always been about one thing: justice for the families who lost their loved ones due to a failed response to the pandemic, the unions statement said. What was done, why was it done, and when was it done? Transparency into those answers can only come with without limits and interference from the provincial government and the long-term care industry. Miller said the province should expect to be inundated with complaints from people regarding the plans. They dont listen. They just do what they want to do, she said. A lot of people are very disappointed that this didnt effect the change that we were hoping it would have. Finally, its out in the open and the public knows. People are just shocked and amazed and discouraged about what has happened. And still to handle it this way is just unbelievable. Miller called it frustrating to have lobbied for improvements, and they just dont listen. Security review in J&K is message to Pak not to use Taliban win in Kashmir A year gone, abrogation of Article 370 has been the best boon for security forces India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Aug 03: It will be a year on August 05 since the abrogation of Article 370. On August 5 2019, the Indian Parliament abrogated the article that gave Jammu and Kashmir special status. In the past one year, Jammu and Kashmir has seen a considerable decline in the number of youth joining terror groups. While infiltrations or attempts to infiltrate into the Valley from J&K have remained high, terror groups operating in the Valley have suffered considerable losses. The Hizbul Mujahideen which held the most sway among the youth suffered the most losses. It lost over 55 terrorists, which included its commander, Riyaz Naikoo. The death of Naikoo was without a doubt the biggest loss for the outfit in the past one year. The Hizbul Mujahideen has found it hard to find a replacement since then. Abrogation of Article 370: Pak government issues guidelines for kinds of words to use The number of youth joining terror groups dropped by 40 per cent. The year only witnessed 67 youth taking to terror. The security forces also managed to eliminate a group known as the Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind. The members of this outfit had broken away from the Hizbul Mujahideen. The ideology of this outfit was catching on, but the elimination of its top leadership has ensured that the group became irrelevant. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News A report prepared by the Union Ministry shows that the number of terror incidents have decreased by 36 per cent since the abrogation of the Article. Between January to July 15 2019, there were 188 incidents that had been reported and for the same period this year, the number stood at 120. Between January to July 2019, the number of terrorists killed stood at 126, where as this year for the same period it was 136. In terms of grenade attacks last year the number was at 51 in comparison to 21 this year. Last year between January and July 75 security personnel were martyred when compared to the 35 this year. In terms of civilian deaths, the number stood at 23 last year when compared to 22 this year between January and July 15. In terms of IED attacks, there were six last year and just one between January and July 15 2020. In terms of terrorist deaths, 110 have been killed. The Hizbul Mujahideen lost 50 of its men, while the Lashkar-e-Tayiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad lost 20 each. 14 terrorists of the Ansar and ISJK were also killed. While the Hizbul Mujahideen lost Naikoo, the JeM lost its commander Qari Yasir. The Lashkar-e-Tayiba's top commander Haider was killed, while the Ansar lost Burhan Koka. Following the abrogation of Article 370, the security forces have busted 22 hideouts while seizing 190 weapons. 22 terrorists and 300 of their associates have been arrested. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the press from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington July 31, 2020. (Alex Wong/Getty Images) Trump Says GOP Will Sue to Halt Nevada Mail-in Voting and Ballot Harvesting President Donald Trump vowed Republicans would take legal action against sweeping changes in Nevada election law rushed through the Democrat-controlled legislature over the weekend. The changes would allow widespread voting-by-mail as well as so-called ballot harvesting in the upcoming Nov. 3 election. Nevada is considered a battleground state. The Silver State, which has 6 electoral votes out of the 270 required to elect the president, was hotly contested in 2016. In that years presidential election, Democrat Hillary Clinton won 47.9 percent of the popular vote in the state, besting Republican Donald Trump who won 45.4 percent, Ballotpedia reports. The last time a Republican carried the state was 2004. In an illegal late night coup, Nevadas clubhouse Governor made it impossible for Republicans to win the state, President Trump tweeted at 7:37 a.m. on Aug. 3. Post Office could never handle the Traffic of Mail-In Votes without preparation. Using Covid to steal the state. See you in Court! Trump actually wrote his message in a retweet of a tweet from the day before by Ronna McDaniel, who heads the Republican National Committee. McDaniel wrote on Twitter that the presidents supporters are out in force today protesting Nevada Dems attempts to ram through mass mail-in voting & ballot harvesting. Dems want to use the pandemic to destroy election integrity. Help us fight back and ProtectTheVote.com! On July 30, Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak, a Democrat, issued a formal proclamation calling the Nevada Legislature into a special session beginning at 9 a.m. on July 31 to, in the words of a press release, address significant policy issues that cannot wait until the regularly scheduled legislative session. One of the agenda items he listed was ensuring Nevadans can exercise their fundamental right to vote in a way that does not dangerously expose them to increased risk of COVID-19 infection. The legislative measure, known as AB4, passed the Assembly 29-12 on July 31, and the Senate 13-8 on Aug. 2. One provision in the bill allows the governor, not the secretary of state who normally administers the electoral process, to determine how polling places operate in an emergency. Republican Adam Paul Laxalt, former Nevada attorney general and co-chairman of the Trump campaign in the state, gave his take on Twitter Aug. 1 about what had transpired among state lawmakers in Carson City. Gov. Sisolak and the NV Dems called a special session with no public present and inside 24 hours are ramming through mail-in balloting and ballot harvesting. They are massively altering our election 97 days out entirely without the SecState. They are working to steal our election. Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske, a Republican, reportedly said on July 31 that she preferred returning to in-person balloting after some problems erupted during the states recent vote-by-mail primary election. That method of voting was challenged but a federal judge refused to intervene. She added she would need an extra $5 million to be appropriated to cover a second all-mail election. President Trump weighed in, retweeting Laxalts tweet early on Aug. 2, adding: This is outrageous. Must be met with immediate litigation! He added the Twitter user name @GOPChairwoman to his tweet, which corresponds to RNC chief McDaniel. During the Nevada primaries, Trump also tweeted his displeasure with voting-by-mail, writing May 20: State of Nevada thinks that they can send out illegal vote by mail ballots, creating a great Voter Fraud scenario for the State and the U.S. They cant! If they do, I think I can hold up funds to the State. Sorry, but you must not cheat in elections. AB4 now goes to the governor for his signature. Lawmakers shared their thoughts on the bill. No person should ever have to choose between their health and safety and their participation in democracy, said Assemblywoman Shannon Bilbray-Axelrod, a Democrat, as reported by the Nevada Independent. I am proud to support and vote for AB4, as it will go a long way to ensure that citizens of Nevada can participate in a safe manner. Republicans said there was no reason to rush the legislation and that it was inappropriate to make significant changes to election law during a special sitting of the legislature. I cannot even begin to try and predict what effect this will have on our state, and on our election process, said Assemblywoman Melissa Hardy, a Republican. This bill swings the pendulum to an extreme without having time to research its unintended consequences. Republicans claim that states like Democratic-controlled California and Nevada are enacting ballot harvesting laws, which allow organized workers or volunteers to collect absentee ballots from voters and deliver those ballots to a polling place, to make it easier for the votes of illegal aliens and those not interested in the political process to be cast. Democrats counter that they are trying to make sure that exercising democratic rights should be as easy as possible and that they want everyones vote to count. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ramadani Saputra (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, August 4 2020 This article is part of The Jakarta Posts "Forging the New Norm" series on how people are adjusting to the realities of COVID-19 in Indonesia. The Jakarta administration has decided to extend the transition phase of the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) to Aug.13 due to the persistent increase in new cases. Something has been missing from Brigitha Sesilyas life over the past few months. The COVID-19 health crisis, which has forced people to shelter at home to slow the diseases spread, has prevented her from going to the gym. Before the pandemic arrived in Jakarta, the 29-year-old news editor loved to work out at her fitness center three to five times a week. If I had a lot of free time, I would spend up to two and a half hours at the gym, joining a class and doing some weight training. Aside from that, I usually spent an hour to an hour and a half at the gym, Brigitha told The Jakarta Post recently. 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 HOUSTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- To mark the start of Black Business Month, Hello Alice has released "The Impact of COVID-19 on Black Business Owners" data report, uncovering the unique set of challenges that America's Black small business owners are facing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. In partnership with Black and Brown Founders, digitalundivided, and DivInc, the report urges enterprise companies, policy makers, and thought leaders to rethink what communities of color need, starting with examining accurate, abundant data. According to research conducted by Global Strategy Group, slightly more than one in five Black small business owners reported temporarily closing operations due to the pandemic. Analysis from Hello Alice's report shows that the economic damage is just beginning and will continue to intensify, specifically and disproportionately hurting Black-owned businesses. To better understand Black business owners' current needs and to identify opportunities to support, Hello Alice collected and compiled demographic information, funding requirements, and operational challenges from 28,985+ Black owners, who applied for COVID-19 Business for All Emergency Grants. The resulting data report highlights: 69% of Black applicants for COVID-19 Business for All Emergency Grants identify as women (and by percentage, Black women are the fastest growing group of entrepreneurs in the United States ). ). The overwhelming majority of Black business owners nearly three out of four reported they needed emergency funding immediately in order to survive the COVID-19 pandemic. 92% of Black applicants are calling on the government to step up and give them access to more emergency grants, ranging from $10 - $25k . For 37% of Black-owned businesses that applied for funding, this amount of funding would mean business survival after COVID-19. - . For 37% of Black-owned businesses that applied for funding, this amount of funding would mean business survival after COVID-19. 68% of Black applicants said that lost sales was their biggest hurdle during this time of social distancing. When owners were answering these questions, they did not anticipate COVID-19 affecting their businesses for more than four months. Additionally, the Payment Protection Program (PPP) was designed to help owners for only two and a half months. 36% of Black business owners stated that raising capital and finding a loan was their biggest challenge. "There is no question that the COVID-19 pandemic and economic plummet has ravaged America's Black-owned small businesses," said Darnell Bowen, Controller & Grants Program Director of Hello Alice. "By collecting the data and sharing this report, Hello Alice hopes to mobilize community members and lawmakers to continue to support and better serve the Black small business community." Since its inception, Hello Alice has been committed to promoting equal access for Black business owners, who make up 24% of the overall total platform community. In an effort to support Black owners through the unprecedented and unique challenges of COVID-19, Hello Alice provided owners the opportunity to apply for $10,000 COVID-19 Business for All Emergency Grants. Additionally, Hello Alice joined forces with the eBay Foundation, Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN), Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, PepsiCo, Salesforce Essentials, Silicon Valley Bank, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, UBS, and Verizon to launch the Black Owned Business Resource Center as an extension of the COVID-19 Business Resource Center . Through the Centers, business owners can connect with peers and experts to get the help they need in real time, including comprehensive access to financial support, crucial industry-specific resources, and step-by-step guides targeted at specific industries as they prepare to reopen. The report also looks beyond the data to uncover the significant equity gaps that Black small business owners experience. Case studies from the report take an in-depth look at the structural inequities amplified and exposed by COVID-19, such as the true extent of the racial wealth gap. Noted in the report, "talent and hard work are not enough to find financial success, yet those are the predominant messages we hear. Networks and support structures without bias need to be supported on a grand scale now." Hello Alice recommends the following actions based on their data: More loans and grants. Black business owners overwhelmingly requested access to funding in amounts between $10 ,000$50,000. ,000$50,000. Extend government programs. Demand for rent relief, tax deferrals, and tax waivers was a common theme. Targeted outreach. It's not enough to express support; industry-specific groups must actively reach out and include Black owners in their networks. Engage with the following organizations: Black and Brown Founders , digitalundivided , and divinc . The full "Impact of COVID-19 on Black Business Owners" data report is available here and at blackbiz.helloalice.com . Follow the online conversation on Twitter by using the hashtags #BusinessForAll and by following @helloalice . For media requests, please contact Sarah Wegrzynski at [email protected] . ABOUT HELLO ALICE Hello Alice is a free, multichannel platform that helps businesses launch and grow. With a community of more than 200,000 business owners in all 50 states and across the globe, Hello Alice is building the largest network of owners in the country while tracking data and trends to increase the success rate for entrepreneurs. Our partners include enterprise business services, government agencies, and institutions looking to serve small- and medium-business owners to ensure increased revenues and promote scale. Co-headquartered in Houston and San Francisco, and founded by Carolyn Rodz and Elizabeth Gore, we believe in business for all by providing access to all owners including women, people of color, veterans, and everyone with an entrepreneurial spirit. To learn more, visit www.helloalice.com, as well as Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Press Contact: Sarah Wegrzynski, Skai Blue Media [email protected] O: 215-625-7988 SOURCE Hello Alice Related Links http://www.helloalice.com PANAMA CITY The government of Panama said Monday it has proposed giving some Haitian migrants flights back to their homeland after frustrations boiled over at the remote camps where they are stuck. The camps in Panamas southern Darien province also house some Cuban and African migrants, but about 80% of the 2,000 migrants there are from Haiti. Public Safety Minister Juan Pino said Monday he offered improved medical services or repatriation flights to the migrants, who want to travel overland to the U.S. border but cannot do so because of coronavirus restrictions. Over the weekend the migrants protested conditions at the camp, setting afire tents and tossing rocks at Panamanian officials. Pino said some (migrant) representatives said yes, but it is one thing for them to say it and another for them to want to do it voluntarily, adding nobody can force someone to get on an airplane. Many migrants hike up through the jungles of Darien from South America, hoping to travel through Central American and Mexico. Many Haitians were already in South America after taking refuge there following Haitis 2010 earthquake. Economic downturns have motivated them to try to reach the United States. But some Central American countries have imposed border restrictions to halt the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor Officials said amid accelerated testing that approval would be expected this month far earlier than the end-of-the-year date suggested by Western regulators. Winning the global race would be a symbol of national pride. But critics say Russia has cut corners in research on other products, and the U.S., Canadian and British governments have accused Russian hackers of trying to steal vaccine research. Separately, the worlds largest vaccine maker, the Serum Institute is betting on a vaccine that is in trials with Oxford University scientists. The company plans to mass produce hundreds of millions of doses of the vaccine, which might not even work. But if it does, Adar Poonawalla, the chief executive of Serum, will have what everyone wants possibly in enormous quantities before anyone else. An American vaccine: Earlier in the year, officials set an ambitious October deadline for a publicly available vaccine. Now, some involved in the project say they fear political intervention to produce one ahead of Novembers election. Related: In Moscow, young Russians are partying again, seeking a return to normal life and willing to risk a coronavirus surge. We are people, not robots, and want to have a life, a bar patron (and doctor) said. WASHINGTON President Trumps choice to fill the Pentagons top policy job withdrew his name from consideration on Sunday after senators from both parties voiced opposition to the officials nomination, largely because of his history of inflammatory comments. But in an end run around the skeptical senators, the Trump administration appointed the official, Anthony J. Tata, a retired Army one-star general turned Fox News commentator, to a temporary senior position in the same Defense Department office that does not require Senate approval. A Pentagon representative said that Mr. Tata had formally withdrawn his nomination to be the under secretary of defense for policy and instead has been designated as the official performing the duties of the deputy under secretary of defense for policy. He will report to the acting under secretary, James H. Anderson, who is filling the job for which Mr. Tata was nominated. Senior congressional Democrats expressed outrage at what they said was a subterfuge that amounted to the White House and the Pentagon thumbing their noses at Congress. John (Jack) A. Bogardus Jr., age 92, former chairman, president and CEO of Alexander & Alexander insurance brokerage, passed away from complications of Alzheimers in Scottsdale, Arizona on June 28, according to his family. Bogardus spent his childhood in Scarsdale, N.Y. In 1945, he enlisted in the Navy and around the same time he met Mary Lela Wood. They were married on June 9, 1950 right before his graduation from Princeton University. The couple moved to New York City where he joined Alexander & Alexander Services, a multinational insurance brokerage. His early business career was interrupted by a two-year return stint to the Navy. His entire 45-year business career was spent with A&A where he rose to president, CEO and chairman. He helped build A&A into the worlds second largest insurance broker. It was bought by Aon Corp. for about $1.2 billion in 1997 in the biggest insurance merger up to that time. Wall Street Journal obituary: John Bogardus Led Insurance Broker Through Rough Patch A tribute published by the Wall Street Journal on July 30 John Bogardus Led Insurance Broker Through Rough Patch recalls that in the early 1980s A&A wanted to acquire British insurance broker Sedgwick Group but that deal fell apart. Bogardus then turned to acquiring Alexander Howden Group instead in 1982. But that did not turn out well. A&A discovered that Howden executives had diverted funds and spent lavishly on gifts and travel, costing A&A more than $300 million in write-offs and legal fees. He served as a director of the Insurance Brokers Association of New York and a director and chairman of the National Association of Insurance Brokers. He was also a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Insurance Committee, and a board member of the American Institute for Chartered Property, Casualty Underwriters and of the Insurance Institute of America. He retired as a director of A&A in 1995. In 2003, he published Spreading the Risks, a history of the insurance marketplace entitled Spreading the Risks, Insuring the American Experience. Former A&A CEO Traces the Roots of Insurance in New Book The book spans the marketplace starting with ancient Greek and Roman civilizations dating back to B.C. to its humble beginnings in Edward Lloyds Coffee House in the late 1600s, and finally to the 21st century, with the most catastrophic event thus far in history, the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Bogardus said he began writing the book with intentions of documenting the history of A&A. While he was researching and documenting its history, Bogardus took a new direction. I realized in doing my research that there was no book that you could find, no resource at all, which traced the history or even an overview of the way insurance developed and the way agents and brokers developed in this country, he said. Bogardus is survived by his wife of 70 years, Lela, their four children: John, Stephen, James and Janet, and a sister, Francis Bunny A. Lang along with seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Because of COVID-19, there are no memorial events currently planned. The family asks people to consider a donation to Alzheimers Research Foundation, their favorite charity, or plant a Memorial Trees in memory (visit Sympathy Store). Topics Agencies Leadership 03.08.2020 LISTEN The Government This woman stood up and started talking about pigs. At a pro-African conference hosted in Accra, last year, this woman, during the Q&A session stood up and passionatelya lump in her throat, tears in her eyesbegan speaking about pigs. Let me explain. I am listening to hera recording of her, as I write. She is a farmerover 600 pigs and 50,000 poultry kind of livestock farmer. She is an inventor; nothing in her farm goes to waste, she saysfrom these animals/fowls excrements, their bile, to their skin, everything has an economic purpose. Energy-wise: every waste possible (sewage, agricultural waste, etc.), she has converted to biogas. Beauty-wise: Mr. Chairman, see this lip gloss I am wearingmade from my pigs. These fake eyelashespigs. She wasnt exaggerating when she said, nothing in her farm was wasted. Shes got a plan. Mr. Speaker, I have written all these in a business plan. She wants an audience with policy-makers specifically, the Minister of, and the Minister of. I dont understand why Ia tax payer, a farmer and inventor, a woman who returns home from the farm each day with baby snakes in her bootscannot simply get a meeting with even one minister. Why should I have to be tossed about, made to make numerous trips to and fro my village and Accra, and never end up getting said meeting? (Disclaimer: I do not know what baby snakes are called. A massive ophidiophobe, I do not care to find out.) To keep her quiet, perhaps, the chairman of the session passes me his card to give to her. Handing it to her, she and I exchange a knowing look, for we knew how it would enda) she was not going get that meeting; b) should she even, it would amount to nothing. Her lipstick was pretty thoughcoral blush, I think. (Dont ask me what coral blush is. I heard it used in a movie to describe a lipstick, so I repeat it to sound in the loop, if you know what I mean.) A professor in the UK, a member of the Diaspora wanted to extend his knowledge and inventiveness of a cost effective and accessible means of providing potable drinking water to his home country, Ghana. He was to find after several attempts, navigating Kafkaesque bureaucracies, this same truth: it is mighty hard for a Ghanaian to be of direct help to their country, especially when governmental help or sometimes governmental ear is needed. He went back to his host country, his inventive spirit between his legs. An old landlord of mine, a borga, having come back home, did so with a dream. He too borga-ed his way right back to his host country, USA. I cannot understand how, a village boy like me, had to smuggle my way into someone elses country to be made. I find it silly that my own country couldnt make me; it had to take someone elses. I find it even harder to swallow that upon return, I am met with numerous, robust walls of resistance against my plans of contributing my quota to the nations growth; that to be helpful I need, sometimes, be corruptbe required to pay bribes here and there. This gentleman I know, seemed to have foreseen the coronavirus pandemic. He had somewhere mid-last year (2019) showed me a brilliant initiative of hisa virtual university system. One that seeks to provide a seamless solution to the issue of congestions in our lecture halls. One that would have been a ready and working solution to the distance learning COVID-19 has necessitated this year. He spent last year chasing governmental ears, to no avail. I may just have to remind him that with such foresightedness he has demonstrated, he can always have a profession in the prophecy industry. Prophet 1 could use a Prophet 2monopoly is never a good thing, even in our Christian faith. The Thief and the Child This is not necessarily a present political, governmental problem; this is an ongoing sociological issuea perception of self. The level of importance we attach to our capacities as a people is very low. We may cover this up with policies seeming to create an inclusive environment, but very often these policies ultimately end up lies, semi-lies, white lies. We encode them in catchy phrases, we pledge on them continentally and globally. In the UN, we avowed to, in, SDG 8 Promote inclusive economic growth; SDG 9: Promote inclusive industrialisation and foster innovation; SDG 16: Promoteinclusive societies for sustainable development Within the AU, we swore to Aspiration 1 of Agenda 2063 to create a prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development; in Aspiration 6, to build an Africa whose development is people-driven, relying on the potential of the African people That is a whole lot of swearing, yet what we have had in our Ghanaian context has been this: the populace calls the government thieves, they retort by calling the citizenry inactive, non-participatoryor at least, imply so. We may just have to, with a double-edged sword debunk both assertions, by firstwith this articleshowing that the private sector has, in fact, for years (to the best of their abilities, the education and training provided them, the business climate afforded them) been active and hungry to participate in national growth. We paint here a picture of the private sector running after the government offering their help, only to be met with indifference, and sometimes outright disregard. It is quite universal for a people to be dismissive of their governments, but for a government to be this dismissive of its peopleit is almost Ghana-specific. I hate stereotypes; this is not one. That sentence is not to be taken literally. It is not an indication of an innate, or biological flaw we alone possess, but rather a sociological one (again, not peculiar to us). I could have said Black-specific or African-specific, but that would be unfairly roping the entire Black or African race into our national conversation. So just as a citizen in the very cute, tiny Republic of Gambia may boldly say: The world is using Gambia as their only reference point, I too have chosen Ghana as my only reference point in this sense. And so I repeat: It is quite universal for a people to be dismissive of their governments, but for a government to be this dismissive of its people, it is almost Ghana-specific. Ghana, in this fast-paced, highly industrialised, highly globalised information age, does not have the option our White counterparts had centuries ago. We do not have the option of poaching human resources from other countries and continentsagainst their will, I might add, and subjecting them to gruesome, devilish, unpaid labourto build our country for us. Ghanas building can only and truly come from withinour manpower, and most importantly our brainpower. This is true in theory, and truer still in practice. Thats a given, yet unfortunately our behaviours towards our own selves have shown that we are, when it comes to actions, oblivious of this fact. Pop Quiz: Picture yourself in a position of powergovernmental power. You find awaiting you a queue, seeking audience with youbusiness initiatives, proposals they each carry. In this queue of Ghanaian men and women, sits a lone White man. Now, you have one meeting to spareyou have to rush off to a certain meeting as powerful people mostly do. Tell me: who, in this long queue of people, have you called to your office? By YAO AFRA YAO Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 22:43:47|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TASHKENT, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Monday it has approved a loan worth 100 million U.S. dollars to strengthen Uzbekistan's response to public health emergencies, including the COVID-19 pandemic. The ADB said its COVID-19 Emergency Response Project will help fund the country in increasing testing capacity for COVID-19 and related illnesses at 38 laboratories nationwide, refurbishing laboratories to ensure safe working conditions, as well as improving diagnosis and management of COVID-19 cases over the next two years. The latest loan is part of the ADB's comprehensive package of support to Uzbekistan, which also includes a loan of 500 million dollars approved in June to help the Uzbek government mitigate the adverse health and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, said the Manila-based bank. Uzbekistan has so far registered 26,066 COVID-19 infections, with 157 deaths and 16,838 recoveries. Enditem Do you know a Health Hero? The Daily Mail, in partnership with eBay and NHS Charities Together, wants you to nominate special people in the healthcare sector who have made a difference to your life, or to a loved ones life. The winner of the award will receive a 5,000 holiday. To make a nomination, fill in the form below. Here, Jo Waters tells the story of a nominee who goes the extra mile for mental health patients... Hayley McLellan is well known for being able to fix things. Last week, she repaired a patients washing machine by unblocking the filter, and helped another patients child with their homework to take the pressure off the parent, who suffers from depression. And shes not only a fixer: Hayley has also walked dogs, cleaned houses and cooked meals for patients too unwell to do these things for themselves. Shes even given up her own time to help patients move home literally packing and shifting the boxes. More recently, at the start of the pandemic, the 39-year-old stocked up on loo rolls to hand out to patients, delivered food parcels and collected prescriptions for people who were shielding. She loves baking and made home deliveries of her famous cheese and onion pies to vulnerable patients living on their own. Even at Christmas time, shell make five or six extra dinners to drop round to those who she knows will be alone, as well as giving them a small gift because they wont receive any others. Recently, Hayley accompanied another patient to several medical appointments for cancer investigations. The patient would only go if Hayley went with her, says Hayleys manager, Jennifer Mack. So touched were the womans family, they contacted the local mayor to express their gratitude And if she doesnt quite walk on water, Hayley certainly isnt one to let mere ice or snow get in the way of her work. Shes been known to drive out to a patients home and, finding the road impassable, put on her wellies and walk to their house to deliver essential prescriptions and food supplies. At the Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust, where shes worked for ten years as a mental health nurse, her dedication is legendary. Hayleys official role involves managing a team of community mental health nurses, co-ordinating the care of 500 patients who have severe and prolonged mental illnesses, arranging home visits and clinic appointments as well as directly supporting patients herself. But she does so much more than focus on mental wellbeing, as one of her patients, Amanda OBoyle, who has nominated Hayley for the Daily Mail Health Hero Awards, explains: She is always going out of her way to help others. Shes even picked me up before she started work to take me for procedures that Ive needed. Recently, Hayley accompanied another patient to several medical appointments for cancer investigations. The patient would only go if Hayley went with her, says Hayleys manager, Jennifer Mack. So touched were the womans family, they contacted the local mayor to express their gratitude. She is incredible, always looking after everyone, says Jennifer. She is very compassionate towards her patients and will often keep in contact with them for supportive chats long after they have finished being cared for in hospital. One gentleman calls her every Friday afternoon, even though hes no longer a patient, and she always makes time for him. She looks after the staff, too, buying flowers and chocolates for her team to show her appreciation for their hard work she treats them all like family. She has a very loud laugh and manages to boost everyones spirits, which has been particularly important during the pandemic, when weve all been under such pressure. Nothing is ever too much trouble for Hayley, who lives with husband Scott, 43, an IT technician, and their children Caitlan, 21, Casey, 19, and Kenzie, 12, in Bacup, Lancashire. Her commitment to her job is prodigious. She often stays late to get through mountains of paperwork, and frequently spends her days off dealing with emails and phone calls to keep on top of everything. Nothing is ever too much trouble for Hayley, who lives with husband Scott, 43, an IT technician, and their children Caitlan, 21, Casey, 19, and Kenzie, 12, in Bacup, Lancashire By way of explanation, Hayley says: Its not a clock-in, clock-out sort of job. As for all the extra help she offers patients: Ill do anything to keep their spirits up. If I can do something small to brighten someones day, I will. Such kindness has particular significance in what is arguably one of the most challenging sectors of the health service. The coronavirus pandemic has been hard for everyone, but particularly so for people with severe mental health problems, she explains. Perhaps the biggest issues have been the loneliness and the isolation, says Hayley. People havent been able to attend their usual support groups or see family, so they can feel very alone and that risks making their existing conditions worse. In order to avoid this, I have been popping round to check on people all the time [wearing protective personal equipment]. You cant leave depressed and suicidal people on their own for weeks on end they need human contact. In some cases, Ive just said: Come on, you need to get out for a walk, and accompanied them for a stroll in the fresh air if theyve been stuck indoors alone. That can make a real difference. And there are more and more people who need this kind of help. Why theres no such thing as time off for transplant medic By Lucy Elkins for the Daily Mail Dr Jacob Simmonds sighs as he reads a card sent from a patient to mark the ten-year anniversary of her heart transplant. Dr Simmonds, 44, a consultant cardiologist and transplant physician at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) in London, has received many similar cards over the years She uses the word lucky, yet she developed heart failure as a result of leukaemia not what most of us would call lucky, he says. But its being able to help children like her that makes me so thankful to be in this job. Dr Simmonds, 44, a consultant cardiologist and transplant physician at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) in London, has received many similar cards over the years. Its not hard to see why, given his extraordinary dedication to caring for seriously ill children, from newborns to teenagers. For Dr Simmonds, 12-hour days are standard, and he often interrupts family holidays with wife Emma, 42, a lawyer, and their children, aged nine and 11, to check on his young patients. Even when hes not meant to be working, Dr Simmonds can often be found on the wards, checking on children. Typically his patients have cardiomyopathy disease of the heart muscle leading to heart failure, and the most severely affected eventually require a heart transplant. The best part of my job is when a suitable donor organ is found, he says. Tragically, there are other children on the transplant waiting list who die. Determined to improve the outcome for these children, Dr Simmonds spends his evenings and weekends researching, collaborating with the Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge on a childrens version of heart in a box technology. This is where a donor heart has oxygenated blood pumped through it (rather than being kept cool), which increases the time that the organ can spend out of the body and means more hearts are available for transplant. On average, children wait 250 days for a donor heart at GOSH, but it can be three or four years. So far, since introducing the new technology this year, Dr Simmonds unit has done five transplants. Anna Hadley, 15, whod been on the waiting list for a donor heart for 20 months, was the first patient to benefit. Her father, Andrew, who is 49 and works in sales, cannot contain his gratitude. Anna owes Jacob her life, he says. In February 2018, the familys care was transferred from their local hospital in Worcester to GOSH, as one of only two centres in the country that deal with paediatric heart failure. The moment Anna met Dr Simmonds, she felt hope. He makes things seem like everything is going to be all right, she says. The Hadley family, who have nominated Dr Simmonds for a Health Hero award, say he made not only Anna, but all of them feel cared for. When we were at home waiting for the donor, he would ring to check on Anna and see how we were coping, says Andrew. If the family called the transplant nurses with a question, often it would be Jacob who would call back. And as Anna waited outside the operating theatre earlier this year, Dr Simmonds was at her side. He came in every one of the 15 days she spent in hospital afterwards to check on her, even though he wasnt working every day. Even now, he phones all the time to check on how Anna is. Dr Simmonds, who stays in touch with many former patients, isnt only on hand for families, but for colleagues, too. One of his roles is to mentor junior doctors, and he always gives them his mobile phone number to use, whether hes on call or not, rather than leaving them to worry about making a decision. Dr Craig Laurence, a heart failure and transplant fellow at GOSH who has worked with Dr Simmonds for a year, says: There arent many other consultants who would make that clear an offer. If that wasnt enough, Jacob does sponsored walks to fundraise for equipment as well as authoring more than 30 medical papers. His research work is making a big difference. Dr Laurence says the heart in a box adaptation could increase the number of transplants we do by 30 per cent it will be a game-changer. Dr Simmonds says he had dreamed of working at GOSH after seeing a TV programme about the hospital as a child. I was eight when I said Id like to work at Great Ormond Street, which is quite a dream for a young boy, he laughs. Advertisement As Hayley says: Were getting lots of new clients who are experiencing mental illness for the first time theyve lost their jobs, have money worries, their children are out of school or they have been bereaved. There are so many people suffering from anxiety and depression. Our team has had to work longer hours and weve all gone the extra mile. Hayley comes from a family of NHS workers her grandmother and several aunts and uncles were all nurses, and her mother was an NHS support worker. She says she never considered any other career. I cant imagine ever not being an NHS nurse its been my life since leaving college and I cant think of anything better, she says. I just love looking after people. She decided on mental health nursing from the start. One of my aunts was a mental health nurse, so I heard a lot about it from her and thought it was an area where I could really help. Some people want to patch up broken bones, but for me it was always about supporting people with mental health issues. To begin with, I saw it as a way of working with people who had drug and alcohol problems, as Ive seen the impact this can have on families. When I started training, I really enjoyed it and felt I had empathy with the patients. More recently, that instinctive empathy has been informed by her own personal experiences. A couple of years ago, Hayley herself developed severe anxiety. Like a lot of people, I had no obvious trigger for my anxiety it just came out of nowhere, she says. I was in a really dark place. I couldnt leave the house and was off work for three months. Im usually a very positive, bubbly, upbeat person, always laughing, so it shows anxiety and depression can happen to anyone. Luckily it passed, and I learnt how to deal with my anxiety by taking long walks every morning before work. I walk for two hours with my husband and my dog its very calming. But that experience has given me a greater understanding of what some of my patients are going through. I make no secret of the fact that I had problems myself, I think it helps, as patients see its possible to move forward. For me, there is nothing more rewarding than to see patients get better and for the families to say: Hes a different man now, thank you. Thats why I do this job. As for the cooking, the cleaning and the washing machine repairs, she says simply: I just regard it as part of the role. If youre a nurse, I believe you should help people in any way you can and make them feel looked after. Russia's Airborne Paratrooper Forces on Saturday celebrated their 90th anniversary in Moscow, with hundreds of soldiers gathered in the city's Gorky Park. While mass gatherings are still restricted in Moscow in efforts to contain the new coronavirus pandemic, authorities allowed the celebrations to take place. Some paratroopers spent the celebrations swimming into the park's main fountain, as per tradition. But there were fewer people in the park this year. "Last year it was much more fun," lamented one former soldier after taking a dip in the fountain. "Today it's sad." The airborne forces - known in Russia as VDV - were established in 1930. The German national flag is seen in front of the Reichstag building housing the German parliament Bundestag on Dec. 16, 2013. (John Macdougall/AFP via Getty Images) Germany on Frontline Against Chinese, Russian Influence: Report Germany is on the frontline of the Wests new Cold War against Chinese and Russian influences, a leading British think tank says. While Russia has been attempting to undermine public confidence in democratic institutions, China has been focusing mainly on economic assets, the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), a London-based defense think tank, has stated in its latest report. Germanys economic dependency on China is causing growing concerns in Berlin, the report stated, and the Chinese regimes behavior during the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic is speeding up the shift in German perception of bilateral relations. Staff are seen with a patient from Italy at the Corona Outpatient Clinic in the Dresden University Hospital in Dresden, Germany, on March 26, 2020. (Matthias Rietschel-Pool/Getty Images) Both China and Russia have been exploiting the vulnerabilities of Germanys devolved political structure, often circumventing Berlin to exert influence directly over regional governments, stated the report. Russian and Chinese involvement in, and potential infiltration of, Germanys society, politics, and its economy is a threat not just to Europes largest economy, but also to the continent itself and for wider Western democratic institutions. Shifting Perception Though many German business leaders continue to be extremely wary of criticizing the Chinese regime, Germanys economic relations with China are now being reappraised by many in business and politics. In particular, a number of Chinese takeovers of medium-sized companies, such as leading robot manufacturer Kuka, has led to a shift in position and in perceiving China as a strategic competitor. A robot serves beer at the booth of Kuka at the Hanover Fair in Hanover, Germany, on April 24, 2017. (Tobias Schwarz/AFP via Getty Images) While the export market remained strong, China increasingly began to be seen as a rival rather than an endless opportunity, stated the RUSI report. The regimes behavior during the CCP virus crisis has also raised eyebrows. The Chinese regime attempted to influence German public opinion on the origins of the virus, attempting to pressure German officials to publicly praise Beijings handling of the outbreak. Chinas increasing belligerence, as evidenced during the pandemic, the report stated, has focused German minds more determinedly on the disadvantages alongside the advantages of its business relationship with China. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang arrive for a presentation of self-driving cars at the defunct historic Tempelhof Airport in Berlin on July 10, 2018. (Fabrizio Bensch/AFP/Getty Images) European Divisions The report, written by John Kampfner, a senior associate fellow at RUSI, is part of a series of papers on Russian and Chinese activities in Europe. In her introduction to the series, RUSI Director-General Karin von Hippel analyzed Chinas strategic objective. The Chinese regime wants to ensure that Europe doesnt make common cause with the United States in circumscribing Chinas global room for maneuver, and to deflect any European criticism of Chinas human rights record, she wrote. European Parliament President David-Maria Sassoli stands next to Jewher Ilham, daughter of Ilham Tohti, Uyghur economist and human rights activist, holding a portrait of her father during the award ceremony for his 2019 EU Sakharov Prize next to at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, on Dec. 18, 2019. (Vincent Kessler/Reuters) Divisions within Europe have hindered the West from adopting a unified strategy and response, she said. For example, Chinas closer European friends, notably Greece, Hungary, and Portugal, have repeatedly blocked EU policy on China. But the pandemic has accelerated the learning curve and reinforced the growing concern about China, she wrote. Far too many countries now realize how overly dependent they have been on China for critical goods, often to their detriment. Cathy He contributed to this report. The 188 patent protects certain key aspects of Miller Mendel's eSOPH platform. Miller Mendel, Inc. asserted in a federal lawsuit filed October 9, 2018 , that Guardian Alliance Technologies' platform infringes on certain claims in Miller Mendel's 188 patent. The patent was granted to Tyler Miller, Miller Mendel's Founder, President and CEO on June 30, 2015 , and licensed exclusively to Miller Mendel, Inc. In response to the lawsuit filed by Miller Mendel's counsel, Guardian Alliance Technologies on October 10, 2019, filed an "Inter Partes Review ("IPR") with the USPTO PTAB, which is a procedure for challenging the validity of an already issued patent before the USPTO. On March 26, 2020, the USPTO PTAB judges issued a 22-page decision, denying Guardian Alliance Technologies' Inter Partes Review request. In response to the USPTO PTAB judges' decision, on April 27, 2020, Guardian Alliance Technologies filed a 24-page Request for Rehearing (or "appeal"), challenging the USPTO's decision, again. On page 7 of Guardian Alliance Technologies' Request for Rehearing, it alleges the three USPTO judges abused their discretion in ultimately denying Guardian Alliance Technologies' request for an Inter Partes Review of the 188 patent issued to Miller on June 30, 2015. In addition to filing for the rehearing, in an appeal-type effort against the USPTO PTAB judges, Guardian Alliance Technologies filed for a USPTO Precedential Opinion Panel (POP) review. The POP operates at the discretion of the Director of the USPTO to decide issues of 'exceptional importance' to the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (issues involving agency policy or procedure, etc.). POP members include the USPTO Director, the Commissioner for Patents and their Chief Judge. On June 16, 2020, in a 3-page decision, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Commissioner for Patents, and the Chief Administrative Patent Judge, also DENIED Guardian Alliance Technologies' request for Precedential Opinion Panel review. On July 27, 2020, in a 16-page decision, the PTAB again, also, DENIED Guardian Alliance Technologies' request on Rehearing of Decision on Institution, for several cited reasons. All the documents and decisions filed (to date) with the USPTO can be found by clicking here. IPR2020-00031. All the documents and decisions filed (to date) with the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma can be found by clicking here. Miller Mendel takes the protection of its intellectual property seriously. Miller Mendel has an obligation to protect its intellectual property, both for the interest of Miller Mendel, Inc and its clients currently using the eSOPH background investigation software system. ABOUT MILLER MENDEL Miller Mendel, Inc. ("MMI") creates, sells and supports its software technology solutions for local, state and federal public safety agencies, and is the holder of two patents (U.S. Patent No. 9070098 and U.S. Patent No. 10043188) related to the features of its flagship product, eSOPH. Our primary focus is to turn past practices used by city, county and state government into efficient and cost-effective electronic solutions. MMI is known for creating category leading systems and providing responsive, exceptional support to all our clients. We place great pride in straightforward and transparent operational practices that foster a high level of respect and praise from our government clients. Media Contact: Tyler Miller [email protected] SOURCE Miller Mendel, Inc Related Links http://www.millermendel.com Advertisement An extremely rare Lamborghini supercar that is one of only 11 of its kind in the world has sold in Britain for over 1.9million. The Miura SV was one of the most desirable cars on the planet when it was made in 1972 and just 147 left the Italian marque's factory - of which nine were right-hand drive. An Australian car collector was so desperate to own one he contacted Lamborghini and proposed converting two left-hand drive models. The company carried out the work meaning they have ended up building two more right-hand drive versions than they had originally intended. A rare Lamborghini supercar that is one of only 11 of its kind in the world (pictured) has sold in Britain for over 1.9million The Miura SV was one of the most desirable cars on the planet when it was made in 1972. Only 147 left the Italian marque's factory, of which only nine were right-hand drive An Australian car collector was so desperate to own one he contacted Lamborghini and proposed converting two left-hand drive models (pictured, the interior) The car spent nearly 40 years Down Under before it was shipped to Britain in 2010, when it was bought by the vendor. He has now sold it with Silverstone Auctions of Ashorne, Warwickshire, where it fetched 1,912,500. Managing Director of Silverstone Auctions Nick Whale said: 'We were delighted to offer this car in our flagship auction. 'The Miura is the original supercar which set the standard and this one is in a highly original condition which sets itself apart from others. 'It has been exceptionally well maintained and has a distinguished history, having spent the majority of its time forming part of significant private collections. Lamborghini carried out the work for the Australian man, meaning they ended up building two more right-hand drive versions than they had intended The car (pictured) spent nearly 40 years Down Under before it was shipped to Britain in 2010, when it was bought by the vendor. He sold it with Silverstone Auctions of Ashorne, Warwickshire, where it fetched 1,912,500 The car has a red body, gold bumpers and wheels and a simple black interior. It is powered by a four-litre V12 engine and has a top speed of 180mph. It remains in pristine condition and has just 32,000 miles on the clock 'Amazingly, being in right-hand drive there is more space and also more comfort, allowing for easier use of the close pedal configuration.' The car has a red body, gold bumpers and wheels and a simple black interior. It is powered by a four-litre V12 engine and has a top speed of 180mph. It remains in pristine condition and has just 32,000 miles on the clock. The Miura was named after a well-known and fighting bull breeder in Spain and shot to fame when it featured in the opening sequence of the original 1969 version of The Italian Job. A prototype of the supercar also won the prestigious Gran Turismo Trophy at Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in California in 2008. The Miura was named after a well-known and fighting bull breeder in Spain and shot to fame when it featured in the opening sequence of the original 1969 version of The Italian Job A prototype of the supercar also won the prestigious Gran Turismo Trophy at Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in California in 2008 European Union Sanctions Cyber Attackers For the first time the European Union has collectivley decided to impose restrictive measures against six individuals and three entities responsible for or involved in various cyber attacks. The EU targets, including two citizens from China and four from Russia, as well as three organisations, one each from China, North Korea and Russia. The attempted cyberattack were against the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and those publicly known as 'WannaCry', 'NotPetya', and 'Operation Cloud Hopper'. The sanctions imposed include a travel ban and an asset freeze. In addition, EU persons and entities are forbidden from making funds available to those listed. Sanctions are one of the options available to the EU to respond to malicious cyber activities directed against the EU or its member states, and this is the first time the EU has used this tool. The legal framework for targeted restrictive measures against cyber-attacks was adopted in May 2019 and recently renewed. Background The EU has scaled up its resilience and its ability to respond to cyber threats and malicious cyber activities in order to safeguard European security and interests. In June 2017, the EU stepped up its response by establishing a Framework for a Joint EU Diplomatic Response to Malicious Cyber Activities (the "cyber diplomacy toolbox"). The framework allows the EU and its member states to use all CFSP measures, including restrictive measures if necessary, to prevent, discourage, deter and respond to malicious cyber activities targeting the integrity and security of the EU and its member states. Targeted restrictive measures have a deterrent and dissuasive effect and should be distinguished from attribution of responsibility to a third state. Among those falling under the sanctions are four Russian nationals and the Main Center for Special Technologies that as the EU claims is part of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, Moscow has repeatedly warned the European Union against the practice of unilateral sanctions, which "are absolutely illegitimate from the point of view of international law." The Russian statement invites the European Union to step up a professional dialogue on problems in the information sphere or to use the existing United Nations and OSCE channels and mechanisms, saying There is no avoiding a conclusion that the European Union prefers the policy of unilateral pressure and restrictions to a serious conversation aiming at settling differences and enhancing mutual trust." Consilium: TASS: Bloomberg Law: CGTN: You Might Also Read: What Does The EU Cybersecurity Vote Mean To You?: Media release Gurit appoints new General Manager of Business Unit Wind Materials Zurich, August 3, 2020 - Gurit (SIX Swiss Exchange: GUR) is announcing the appointment of Dr. Ernst Lutz as General Manager of Business Unit Wind Materials and Member of the Executive Committee, effective September 1, 2020. Dr. Ernst Lutz brings with him strong technical knowhow and extensive leadership experience from a global business environment. He will report to Rudolf Hadorn, Chief Executive Officer of Gurit. Ernst Lutz is joining Gurit from Grundfos Holding A/S in Denmark, where he held the position of Group Executive Vice President of Business Development and Chief Technology Officer. Prior to this, he served in several international executive positions at Sulzer Ltd. Switzerland and at the Alcan Group. Ernst Lutz is a Swiss national and holds an Engineering Diploma from ETH Zurich where he graduated in Fluid Dynamics and Composite Mechanics. Moreover, he holds a Ph.D. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics as well as an MBA from the University of Zurich and University of New York at Albany. "The appointment of Ernst Lutz puts someone with a multinational business background and a solid connection to our Industry in charge of our Wind Materials Business Unit, and it is with great pleasure we welcome him to our team." states Rudolf Hadorn, Chief Executive Officer of Gurit. About Gurit The subsidiaries of Gurit Holding AG, Wattwil/Switzerland, (SIX Swiss Exchange: GUR) are specialized on the development and manufacture of advanced composite materials, composite tooling equipment and core kitting services. The product range comprises, structural core materials, fibre reinforced prepregs, formulated products such as adhesives, resins as well as structural composite engineering. Gurit supplies global growth markets such as the wind turbine industry, aerospace, marine, rail and many more. Gurit operates production sites and offices in Australia, Canada, China, Denmark, Ecuador, Germany, Indonesia, India, Italy, New Zealand, Poland, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom and the United States. www.gurit.com Gurit Group Communications Thomas Nauer Phone: +41 44 316 15 50 E-mail. thomas.nauer (at) gurit.com All trademarks used or mentioned in this release are protected by law. Forward-looking statements: To the extent that this announcement contains forward-looking statements, such statements are based on assumptions, planning and forecasts at the time ofpublication of this announcement. Forward-looking statements always involve uncertainties. Business and economic risks and developments, the conduct of competitors, political decisions and other factors may cause the actual results to be materially different from the assumptions, planning and forecasts at the time of publication of this announcement. Therefore, Gurit Holding AG does not assume any responsibility relating to forward-looking statements contained in this announcement. Our hearts are heavy with this news, and now more than ever, we ask the public for help. This little girls life was stripped from her in an act of senseless violence that will forever impact those who knew her, Kellogg said. Its only early August, but on Monday school was already out for VCE student Hannah Singh, possibly forever. But she is only leaving in the physical sense, because from Wednesday, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Victorian senior students will go back to remote learning. John Monash Science School student Hannah Singh, 17, is one of thousands of VCE students who had what might be their last day of class on campus on Monday, as they prepare to return to remote learning from Wednesday. Credit:Joe Armao Education Minister James Merlino said the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority was looking at introducing measures "to ensure fair, valid and reliable results'', as it did after the Black Saturday bushfires in 2009, and would ''have more to say in coming days''. "I am mindful of how disruptive this year has been for our VCE and VCAL students and we are doing all we can to support them,'' Mr Merlino said. A national popular vote would have eliminated that benefit. As the regions political leaders recognized, passage of a constitutional amendment instituting a national popular vote would have spawned strong legal and political pressures to enfranchise African-Americans. Even if those pressures could be resisted, an Alabama campaign pamphlet noted in 1914, with the Negro half of our people not voting, our voice in the national elections, which is now based upon total population, would then be based solely on our voting population and, therefore reduced by half. The political consequences of a national popular vote could simply not be countenanced. By the 1940s, many Southerners also came to believe that their disproportionate weight in presidential elections, thanks to the Electoral College, was a critical bulwark against mounting Northern pressures to enlarge the civil and political rights of African-Americans. In 1947 Charles Collinss Whither Solid South?, an influential states rights and segregationist treatise, implored Southerners to repel any attempt to do away with the College because it alone can enable the Southern States to preserve their rights within the Union. The book, which became must reading among the Dixiecrats who bolted from the Democratic Party in 1948, was highly praised and freely distributed by (among others) the Mississippi segregationist James Eastland, who served in the Senate from 1943 until 1978. Driven by such convictions, the white supremacist regimes of the South stood as a roadblock in the path of a national popular vote from the latter decades of the 19th century into the 1960s, when the Voting Rights Act and other measures compelled the region to enfranchise African-Americans. There was, of course, resistance to the idea of a national vote elsewhere in the country, but it was the Souths well-known adamance and the fact that Southern states alone could come close to blocking a constitutional amendment in Congress that kept the idea on the outskirts of public debate for decades. Numerous political leaders who personally favored a national popular vote, like Senator Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. of Massachusetts, a Republican, in the 1940s, concluded that such a reform had no realistic chance of success, and they shifted their advocacy to less sweeping measures. The politics of race and region also figured prominently in the stinging defeat of a national popular vote amendment in the Senate in 1970 the closest that the United States has come to transforming its presidential election system since 1821. Popular and elite support for the idea had mushroomed in the 1960s, leading in 1969 to the House of Representatives voting overwhelmingly in favor of a constitutional amendment that would have abolished the Electoral College. The proposal then got bogged down in the Senate during a year when regional tensions were high: two Southern nominees to the Supreme Court were rejected by the Senate, and the Voting Rights Act was renewed over the vocal opposition of Southern senators. Meanwhile, the national popular vote amendment was stalled in the Judiciary Committee, which was chaired by none other than Senator Eastland. When the amendment resolution finally came to the floor of the Senate in September 1970, thanks to the prodigious efforts of an Indiana senator, Birch Bayh, it was greeted by a filibuster led by segregationists Sam Ervin and Strom Thurmond (with an assist from the Nebraska Republican Roman Hruska). Although things were changing in the South, its political leaders remained steeped in the values and perspectives that had informed their hostility to the civil rights movement and the Voting Rights Act. The Electoral College, wrote Senator James Allen of Alabama in 1969, is one of the Souths few remaining political safeguards. Lets keep it. The incidents brought no casualties among the Ukrainian defenders. Ukraine has reported two enemy provocations on Sunday, August 2 as Russia's hybrid military forces twice violated the newly-agreed truce in Donbas, eastern Ukraine. "At first, enemy troops launched a grenade using an under-barrel launcher near the village of Pivdenne. In 15 minutes, they went for the same kind of provocation outside Krasnohorivka. Realizing the enemy's true insidious intentions and provocative tactics, the Ukrainian soldiers didn't return fire. There have been no casualties among our defenders," the press center of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation (JFO) said in a Facebook update as of 07:00 Kyiv time on August 3, 2020. Read alsoHead of Ukrainian intelligence believes Russia to go for another military incursion in Ukraine Since Monday midnight, no attacks by Russian Federation's armed formations have been recorded, the JFO HQ said. It is also noted 1,247 civilians arrived in the territory controlled by the Joint Forces through the Stanytsia Luhanska entry and exit checkpoint, as well as 739 civilians crossed in the opposite direction. The Maryinka and Novotroyitske checkpoints did not operate due to the occupiers' actions. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Mecca, Saudi Arabia Mon, August 3, 2020 09:43 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b1bbe8 2 World Saudi-Arabia,haj-pilgrimage,haj-pilgrims,haj,coronavirus,COVID-19,coronavirus-effect,COVID-19-infection,pandemic,SARS-CoV-2,virus-corona,novel-coronavirus Free Muslim pilgrims circled Islam's holiest site along socially distanced paths Sunday in the final ritual of the haj, the smallest in modern history as Saudi authorities sought to prevent a coronavirus outbreak. Only up to 10,000 Muslims took part in the haj, a far cry from the 2.5 million who took part in the five-day annual pilgrimage last year. Masked pilgrims threw pebbles at a wall symbolizing Satan in Mina, close to the holy city of Mecca, on the final day of haj, state media reported. Instead of gathering the pebbles themselves as in past years, they were handed them bagged and sterilized by haj authorities, to protect against the novel coronavirus. Pilgrims returned to the Grand Mosque in Mecca later Sunday to perform a final "tawaf", or circling of the Kaaba -- a cubic structure towards which Muslims around the world pray. Holding the ritual in the shadow of the pandemic required "double efforts" by Saudi authorities, King Salman said on Friday after being discharged from hospital following surgery to remove his gall bladder. "The haj this year was restricted to a very limited number of people from multiple nationalities, ensuring the ritual was completed despite the difficult circumstances," said the kingdom's 84-year-old ruler. Health authorities said no coronavirus cases were reported at the holy sites during the haj. The pilgrims, who were required to observe social distancing and subjected to regular temperature checks, will go into mandatory quarantine after the haj, authorities said. The ritual, one of the five pillars of Islam and a must for able-bodied Muslims at least once in their lifetime, is usually one of the world's largest religious gatherings. But local media said up to 10,000 people already residing in the kingdom were participating this year. The haj ministry had initially said around 1,000 pilgrims would be allowed. The haj typically costs thousands of dollars for pilgrims, who often save for years as well as endure long waiting lists for a chance to attend. But this year, the Saudi government is covering the expenses of all pilgrims, providing them with meals, hotel accommodation and health care, worshippers said. Mexico City: Mexican authorities have arrested Jose Antonio Yepez Ortiz, one of the country's most wanted criminals, whose reign helped transform one of Mexico's most peaceful states into its deadliest. Yepez Ortiz, known as "El Marro" - the Sledgehammer - was the leader of the Santa Rosa de Lima cartel, a group based in the central state of Guanajuato that has specialised in oil theft, stealing billions of dollars from the country's pipelines and refineries in recent years. As the group rose to prominence, Yepez Ortiz found himself cornered - pursued by both the Mexican government, which arrested his mother and sister, and the rival Jalisco New Generation cartel, which killed hundreds of his foot soldiers. Jose Antonio Yepez Ortiz, nicknamed "El Marro," (The Sledgehammer), reputed leader of the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel in Guanajuato, was arrested by Mexican forces on Sunday, August 2. Guanajuato state Governor Diego Sinhue Rodriguez Vallejo said the operation that led to Yepez Ortiz's detention Sunday morning was conducted by both state and federal law enforcement, and that a kidnapped business woman also had been freed. Authorities released a photo of Yepez Ortiz wearing a Puma windbreaker and jeans, flanked by soldiers and police. Mexico's minister of security and public safety, Alfonso Durazo, said Yepez Ortiz would be charged with oil theft and organised crime. Under Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the government has struggled to articulate a coherent security strategy, even as the homicide rate has soared. Lopez Obrador took office in 2018 after campaigning on a strategy he called abrazos, no balazos - "hugs, not bullets". He said he would discourage the young from pursuing criminal activity by investing in education, social programs and job development - suggesting that he would not wage war on the country's cartel leaders. A lot has been said about Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and Prince Harry. However, one thing cannot be disputed, the royal couple is absolutely smitten with one another. From their constant PDA at royal events to the statements the prince has put out in defense of his wife and her safety, their bond is unbreakable. When the pair met in London in the summer of 2016, no one, not even them could have anticipated what was to come. The pair had a whirlwind romance. They were engaged just a year later, marrying shortly thereafter. The couple went on to have their son Archie in May 2019 and exited the royal fold soon after. Despite it all, from the very beginning, the duo was clearly destined to be together. RELATED: This Is What Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Ate and Drank on Their First Date Inside Meghan Markle and Prince Harrys first date Weve known some of the details surrounding Meghan and Princ Harrys date for some time. However, Carolyn Durand and Omid Scobies new book Finding Freedom: Harry and Meghan and the Making of A Modern Family is giving us even more inside information. During the summer of 2016, the duchess was visiting London to do press for her TV series, Suits. Fashion designer Misha Nonoo, a mutual friend of the former actor and Prince Harrys convinced the pair to meet up on a blind date. They met at the exclusive Soho Houses Dean Street Townhouse. That very first date lasted three hours and the couple agreed to meet again the next day for dinner. It was magic from there. RELATED: Meghan Markles Relationship with Prince Harry Is Very Different Than Her First Marriage Prince Harry fell in love with Meghan Markle instantly Though he was late to their very first date, the prince was smitten as soon as he laid eyes on Meghan. Harry knew they would be together at that point, a friend shared. She was ticking every box fast. Meghan had to return to Toronto where Suits was filmed after their second date, but Prince Harry convinced her to go away with him to Botswana for their third date. In fact, the prince was the first one to say, I love you just three months into the relationship. A friend revealed in Finding Freedom, Almost immediately they were almost obsessed with each other. Three months into their relationship, a Meghan friend said, they had already begun swapping the words I love you. Harry said it first, apparently, but Meghan quickly reciprocated. From there it didnt take long for them to begin talking in non-oblique terms about their future. RELATED: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Just Reacted to That Iconic Rain Photo Meghan Markle was charmed by Prince Harrys adorable habit While Prince Harry was captivated by Meghans wit, intelligence, beauty, and desire to help others, the duchess was charmed by her now-husband in other ways. After that first date, Prince Harry texted Meghan immediately as she arrived back at her hotel. According to Finding Freedom via People, LONDON (dpa-AFX) - Drug makers Sanofi (SNYNF, SNY) and GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK.L, GSK) announced Monday that they are in advanced discussions with the European Commission for the supply of up to 300 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. The vaccine candidate, developed by Sanofi in partnership with GSK, is based on the recombinant protein-based technology used by Sanofi to produce an influenza vaccine, and GSK's established pandemic adjuvant technology. The companies said the doses for EU would be manufactured in European countries including France, Belgium, Germany and Italy. Sanofi, which leads the clinical development and registration of the COVID-19 vaccine, expects a Phase 1/2 study to start in September, followed by a Phase 3 study by the end of 2020. If the data are positive, regulatory approval could be achieved by the first half of 2021. In parallel, Sanofi and GSK are scaling up manufacturing of the antigen and adjuvant to produce up to one billion doses per year overall. GSK and Sanofi have been already selected by U.S. government's Operation Warp Speed to supply with 100 million doses of COVID-19 recombinant protein-based vaccine. The companies also signed agreement with the United States where they have a longstanding partnership with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Trump Wants Temporary Extension on Unemployment, Evictions: Adviser President Donald Trump is seeking immediate action on higher unemployment benefits and a moratorium on evictions while Congress members debate on a larger COVID-19 relief bill, said White House adviser Peter Navarro in a Monday interview. Navarro told CNN that policymakers should pass a more limited package over the coming days to buy more time. Republicans and Democrats are currently at an impasse over several measures, namely unemployment insurance, as most Democrats support extending the $600-per-week program that expired last week, and many Republicans do not. President Donald J. Trump is a working-class president, Navarro said, adding that he cares deeply about Americans who work with their hands who are currently unemployed. Our side was more than happy to [temporarily extend] unemployment benefits and a moratorium on evictions, he said. He then accused House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other Democrats of refusing to pass a temporary, short-term extension of those benefits. Who got hurt there? he asked. American workers and people with the threat of eviction. Trump over the weekend accused top Democrats of holding back the $1,200 to $3,400 (family of four) checks that were ready to be sent out. White House Trade and Manufacturing Policy Director Peter Navarro speaks during a briefing on the coronavirus pandemic in the press briefing room of the White House in Washington on March 27, 2020. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images) He added that they are also blocking desperately needed unemployment payments, which is so terrible, especially since they fully understand that it was not the workers fault that they are unemployed, its the fault of China. Last week, Senate Republicans unveiled a $200-per-week unemployment benefits program in the HEALS Act before replacing their wages up to 70 percent. Democrats said the amount isnt enough, while adding that the measure does not include funding for state and local governments. Pelosi on Monday said Democrats are seeking to keep the $600-per-week benefits while the jobless rate remains high. I think that the number, the $600, is related more to the unemployment rate. If the unemployment goes down, then that number can go down, she said. A building is on fire and they are deciding how much water they want to have in the bucket. Millions of people could have fallen into poverty without this $600, Pelosi said. One of the few things that Democrats and Republicans can agree on, according to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, is sending out $1,200 direct stimulus payments. Theres definitely areas of agreement, Mnuchin, who is the lead White House negotiator, told ABC News This Week on Sunday, adding that there is enormous bipartisan support for stimulus checks. Included in the HEALS Act proposed last week by Senate Republicans are payments of up to $1,200 for people earning $75,000 or less and $500 payments for children. Democrats, in the competing HEROES Act, proposed sending $1,200 stimulus payments for qualifying adults and children as well. The HEALS Act and HEROES Act are both intended to offset economic damage incurred in the midst of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic. As governors moved to curb the spread of the virus by shutting down businesses, tens of millions of people filed for unemployment insurance. There has been growing speculation that at the end of August, as the expanded unemployment benefits expire and a federal moratorium ended on July 25, that millions of people will be evicted from their rental properties. Russia says it is delivering its Avifavir medication against COVID-19 to 15 countries already. Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), which took part in the creation of the remedy, disclosed this to Russia-24 broadcaster in an interview. We can boast great achievements in this area, as the medication has been delivered to over 15 countries, Mr Dmitriev said. This is really important, as there are in fact only two international antiviral drugs that are delivered to a certain number of countries: The United States Remdesivir and the Russian Avifavir. Ninety per cent of the produced Remdesivir have been purchased by the U.S. So, it is no surprise that 15 countries purchase our medication, the RDIF CEO explained. Earlier on Monday, Kromis a joint venture of the RDIF and the ChemRar pharmaceutical company announced it had reached agreement on Avifavir deliveries to South Africa and seven countries in Latin America. Avifavir received a registration certificate of the Russian Ministry of Health in late May, becoming the worlds first favipiravir-based drug approved for treatment of COVID-19. (Sputnik/NAN) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Eric Randolph (Agence France-Presse) Paris, France Mon, August 3, 2020 10:00 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b1d146 2 Business European-Union,economic-contraction,COVID-19,France,Italy,Spain,Portugal,lockdown Free Devastating economic data poured in Friday as nations counted the cost of efforts to contain the coronavirus pandemic, even as fresh spikes forced countries including Britain to put the brakes on a return to normality. Six months after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global emergency, the novel coronavirus has infected more than 17 million people and killed nearly 674,000, according to an AFP tally. As global daily cases approach the 300,000 mark, the impact is being felt in every sphere of life, with elections postponed in Hong Kong the latest blow to its democracy activists and the annual Muslim hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia performed with radically reduced numbers. In a sign of the trade-offs being forced on governments, Britain imposed new lockdowns in several northern counties Friday, just as Western Europe announced historic economic slumps that would have been nightmare scenarios at the start of the year. France's economy contracted by 13.8 percent in the April-June quarter, mirroring similar devastation in Spain (18.5 percent), Portugal (14.1 percent) and Italy (12.4 percent). Europe as a whole saw gross domestic product (GDP) fall by 12.1 percent in the eurozone and by 11.9 percent across the Union bloc. "It is a shocking drop, but completely understandable as the economy was shut for a considerable period," noted Bert Colijn, senior economist at ING Bank. Meanwhile, in the United States the world's biggest economy and hardest-hit nation jobless Americans were bracing for an end to extra unemployment payments after Congress failed to reach a deal on extending benefits. It came just a day after the US posted a second-quarter GDP drop of 9.5 percent from the same period a year ago, the worst it had ever recorded. On Friday, the country recorded 1,442 new deaths, taking its overall death toll to 153,268. Billion-dollar pharma deals One sector that is not struggling is pharmaceuticals, as the world pins its hopes on the race for a vaccine. Pharma giants Sanofi and GSK announced they will receive up to US$2.1 billion from the US government to develop a COVID-19 vaccine. Sanofi has also struck a deal with the EU for 300 million doses if the treatment works. And the US-German pharma team-up of Pfizer and BioNTech signed a deal with Japan to provide 120 million doses of their vaccine contender. They kept the size of the deal under wraps, but the US government recently put the cost of 100 million doses from those firms at almost $2.0 billion. But many businesses are in freefall, with airline conglomerate IAG, the owner of British Airways, posting a first-half loss of 3.8 billion euros ($4.5 billion) and UK bank NatWest sliding into the red, while Dutch airline KLM and Swedish truck maker Scania each said they were shedding 5,000 jobs. Fresh lockdowns While strict European lockdowns were effective in bringing cases and deaths under control, an uptick in cases means the restrictions are far from over, even if they have become more localized and specific. Britain was the latest to impose new measures Friday, banning different households from meeting indoors across Greater Manchester, and parts of Lancashire and Yorkshire. With large Muslim populations in those areas, the ban was painfully timed, on the eve of the Eid-al-Adha festival. "We take this action with a heavy heart, but we can see increasing rates of COVID across Europe and are determined to do whatever is necessary to keep people safe," British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Twitter. Britain also delayed plans to reopen casinos, bowling alleys and skating rinks, due to begin on Saturday, while also putting off plans to resume indoor performances and increase stadium crowds. The sacred hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia has been held with 10,000 Muslim faithful allowed, instead of the roughly 2.5 million that attended last year. Pilgrims were brought in small batches into Mecca's Grand Mosque, walking along paths marked on the floor, in sharp contrast to the normal sea of humanity that swirls inside its walls. Germany added three northern Spanish regions to its list of high-risk destinations, including the tourist hotspots of Barcelona and the beaches of the Costa Brava, meaning anyone arriving from those areas will have to produce a negative coronavirus test or go into quarantine for 14 days. Denmark reversed its stance on face masks, recommending them on public transport, while Colombia hits 10,000 deaths. "The pandemic is a once-in-a-century health crisis, the effects of which will be felt for decades to come," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Friday at a meeting to assess the situation six months after declaring a global emergency. Tedros has warned that young people should take greater efforts to stop the spread of the disease, and a new study found that hundreds of children in the US state of Georgia had contracted the virus at a summer camp last month. Puducherry: Despite the government employees demand that their salaries for the current month be paid in cash, the Puducherry government has announced that the payment would be made as usual through banks. The Puducherry administration has announced that disbursement of salaries and allowances would continue through banks via ECS system, as there would be difficulty to arrange for payment through the departments in cash, a senior official of the Finance department told PTI in Puducherry on Tuesday. Pensioners too would get their amount for November only through banks, he said. As per the instructions from the Centre, disbursement of the salaries and allowances to all central government staff including those belonging to Group A category and the pensioners would be only through banks, he added. The confederation of Puducherry state government employees associations had urged the government to disburse the November months salaries in cash through the departments concerned till the situation became normal. The employees had contended that they would find it difficult to draw money from banks, that are already crowded with customers ever since demonetisation of Rs 1000 and Rs 500 notes was announced and most of the ATMs were also non-functional. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. (Newser) Singapore says some visitors and returning residents can now quarantine at their residence instead of in dedicated facilitiesbut they will be issued with electronic monitoring devices and face up to 6 months in prison if they remove them or tamper with them. Authorities say the devices, which use GPS and Bluetooth signals, will be given to arrivals from as-yet unspecified countries starting Aug. 11, reports Reuters. The devices will track people's movement and alert authorities if they leave their homes during the 14-day quarantine period. Authorities have promised that personal data collected by the devices will be tightly controlled, the Straits Times reports. Hong Kong and South Korea have also used electronic wristbands to monitor incoming travelers during the pandemic. (Read more Singapore stories.) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Marchio Irfan Gorbiano (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, August 4 2020 Papuan community leaders and activists have urged the central government to exercise wisdom and involve Papuans in reviewing the special autonomy (Otsus) status of Papua and West Papua as Jakarta plans to amend the Otsus Law. The law is the legal foundation for the Papua administration to manage its own political, cultural and economic affairs. It was enacted in 2001, before being revised in 2008 to grant West Papua similar special autonomy. It also stipulates the allocation of special autonomy funds from the central government -- set to stop in November 2021 -- to accelerate development in Indonesia's two easternmost provinces. 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 (Bloomberg) -- Oyo, the Indian hotel-booking startup backed by Masayoshi Sons SoftBank Group Corp., is merging its operations in Japan and appointing a new chief executive officer to oversee the combined entity. The reorganization involves Oyos hotel-booking and apartment-rental units coming together into a single company called Oyo Japan, to be led by Ryoma Yamamoto as CEO with Ryota Tanozaki as his deputy, both promoted from senior roles in the existing Oyo operations. Japan has been a focal point for Oyos international expansion due to Sons endorsement and association with the SoftBank brand name, which is ubiquitous in the country. The company operated Oyo Hotels and Oyo Life -- a simplified rental service for furnished apartments that removed the hassle of guarantors or security deposits -- as separate businesses in the country, but its aggressive growth plans were thwarted by the coronavirus outbreak along with operational challenges and upset hoteliers along the way. Read more: Masayoshi Sons Other Big Real Estate Bet Has Some Real Problems At the end of June, the startup slashed its regional presence by closing offices in provincial centers Sapporo, Sendai, Nagano, Hiroshima and Omiya. Tanozaki, chief business officer for Oyo Hotels at the time, said Oyo was also looking to downsize its Tokyo headquarters, which occupy two floors in an office building walking distance from the Imperial Palace. The moves are part of the companys ongoing effort to downsize internationally as it adapts to a much smaller tourism industry. Yamamoto, who oversaw Oyo Life, will assume responsibility for the merged business after Oyo Hotels Japan leader Prasun Choudhary resigned. 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. Summary Hepatitis C Tests (In Vitro Diagnostics) - Global Market Analysis and Forecast Model (COVID-19 market impact) is built to visualize quantitative market trends within In Vitro Diagnostics therapeutic area. New York, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Hepatitis C Tests (In Vitro Diagnostics) - Global Market Analysis and Forecast Model (COVID-19 market impact)" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05948864/?utm_source=GNW The model discusses in detail the impact of COVID-19 on Hepatitis C Tests market for the year 2020 and beyond.Hepatitis C is a viral infection caused by hepatitis C virus (HCV). Hepatitis C virus is a blood borne virus that causes liver disease and can cause acute and chronic hepatitis. Infection may be caused through injection drug use, transfusion of unscreened blood products, unsafe injection practices, sexual contact and from infected mother to her baby. Diagnosis of HCV infection can be done by screening for anti-HCV antibodies along with a serological test to confirm the viral infection.Nucleic acid test for HCV ribonucleic acid (RNA) is performed in case of positive test results for anti HCV antibodies to confirm chronic infection. Since there is no vaccine available for HCV infection, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends blood tests to screen patients that are at an increased risk of HCV infection and reducing the risk of HCV exposure in health care settings. Screening of pregnant women for HCV is standard of care in most countries and considered to be a cost-effective strategy for reducing the risk of transmission to the baby. The HCV tests include EIA, NAAT and multi parameter NAAT HCV tests. Each of the covered 39 countrys color-coded and fully-sourced market models are equipped with epidemiology based indications with procedure volumes.To increase the data transparency, the interactive excel deliverable covers installed base, new sales volumes, product usage, average selling prices, market size and company share/rank analysis (wherever available). Moreover, analyst comments with qualitative insight offer context for quantitative data. Key Inclusions of the market model are - Currently marketed Hepatitis C Tests and evolving competitive landscape - - Insightful review of the key industry trends. - Annualized total Hepatitis C Tests market revenue by segment and market outlooks from 2015-2030. - Granular data on total procedures, units, average selling prices and market values by segment. Global, Regional and Country level market specific insights - - Qualitative market specific information is available with global trends further broken down into regional trends. In addition analysts provide unique country specific insights on the market. - SWOT analysis for Hepatitis C Tests market. - Competitive dynamics insights and trends provided for Hepatitis C Tests market. Drive the understanding of the market by getting the veritable big picture including an overview of the healthcare system. In addition the Market Access segment allows you to delve deeper into market dynamics with information on reimbursement policies and the regulatory landscape. - Country specific overview of the healthcare system. - Country specific reimbursement policies. - Country specific medtech regulatory landscape. Robust methodologies and sources enable the model to provide extensive and accurate overview of the market.Demand and supply-side primary sources are integrated within the syndicated models, including Key Opinion Leaders. In addition, real world data sources are leveraged to determine market trends; these include government procedure databases, hospital purchasing databases, and proprietary online databases. Companies covered: Abbott Laboratories , Siemens Healthineers AG, F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd , Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics Inc , Hologic Inc and Others Countries covered: United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Brazil, China, India, Russia, Japan, Australia, Canada, Mexico, South Korea, Denmark, Ireland, Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Israel, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Taiwan, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Argentina and Chile. Scope This Market Model gives important, expert insight you wont find in any other source. The model illustrates qualitative and quantitative trends within the specified market. This model is required reading for - - CMO executives who must have deep understanding of the Hepatitis C Tests market place to make strategic planning and investment decisions. - Sourcing and procurement executives who must understand crucial components of the supply base in order to make decisions about supplier selection and management. - Private equity investors that need a deeper understanding of the market to identify and value potential investment targets. Reasons to Buy The model will enable you to - - Understand the impact of COVID-19 on Hepatitis C Tests market. - Develop and design your in-licensing and out-licensing strategies through a review of pipeline products and technologies, and by identifying the companies with the most robust pipeline. - Develop business strategies by understanding the trends shaping and driving Hepatitis C Tests. - Drive revenues by understanding the key trends, innovative products and technologies, market segments, and companies likely to impact the Hepatitis C Tests market in the future. - Formulate effective sales and marketing strategies by understanding the competitive landscape and by analysing the company share of market leaders. - Identify emerging players with potentially strong product portfolios and create effective counter-strategies to gain a competitive advantage. - Track device sales in the global and country-specific Hepatitis C Tests market from 2015-2030. - Organize your sales and marketing efforts by identifying the market categories and segments that present maximum opportunities for consolidations, investments and strategic partnerships. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05948864/?utm_source=GNW About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. __________________________ Story continues CONTACT: Clare: clare@reportlinker.com US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 New Delhi: On the auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandha today, every brother-sister in the country is immersed in celebrating the essence of with familial bond. This year, Raksha Bandhan is on August 3 and there is a particular time and muhurat for tying the thread of love and protection. In the times of active social media presence, we thought of compiling some beautiful Rakhi messages which you can share and send to your sister and near ones. If you are away from your brother or sister due to the deadly novel coronavirus pandemic, worry not and send these messages to celebrate the special day together: You and I make the naughtiest duo in the world. You have been my partner in crime and today, as we celebrate Raksha Bandhan, I would like to tell you that I am yet to buy a gift for you. And please do not expect one from me. I am still as stingy as I used to be. Sorry but please dont get ready to kill me now. Wear the same wide smile that makes me smile. Happy Raksha Bandhan to you and me - the best brother ever. ---- Dear Bhaiyya, Like a father, you protected me Like a mother, you took care of me And like a friend, stood by me through thick and thin. I cant fathom life without you. I am missing you a lot today. And I hope to be with you next year on Raksha Bandhan. Until then, keep smiling and keeping missing me. Love you Bhaiyya. ---- Maine aapko bahut tang kiya hai..par aapne bhi khoob ladayi ki hai mujhse. Aaj hum paas paas nahin hain phir bhi humare khatte meethe rishtey ki baat wohi hai. Aapko Raksha Bandhan ki dheron badhayi. Apni is choti behen ko kabhi na bhoolna. ---- Dear brother/sister. I love you with all my heart. I don't only love you, I live you. Best wishes and good health. Happy Raksha Bandhan. ---- This is to remind you that I have always got your back no matter what. Even though you are as strong as a rock but I will be there to protect you always. Love you! Happy Raksha Bandhan ---- Don't forget to wish a 'Happy Raksha Bandhan' to your loved ones. Let your brother or sister know how much you love them. Here's wishing our readers a very happy Raksha Bandhan! Jalandhar: The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has warned that locust groups in Pakistan and Rajasthan will move to areas alongside Punjab in the coming three days due winds flowing in the states direction. Ferozepur district has been put on the danger list, while Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Mansa, Moga and Tarn Taran districts are on the threat list of a locust attack that may harm vegetable crops and pulses, the FAO said. The district administrations of Amritsar, Fazilka, Ludhiana, Sangrur, Faridkot, Muktsar, Bathinda and Barnala have been advised to stay alert. The state agriculture department has asked district officials to alert farmers and prepare for a possible locust attack in the coming days. In its circular to Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, the FAO warned the state of an attack between August 1 and 6. Jalandhar district agriculture officer Surinder Singh said, We have formed WhatsApp a group of farmers and the deputy commissioner has set up committees at the sub-divisional level to take swift action. We will act in a specific area after the locust attack. Punjab was put on the threat list after the Regional Remote Sensing Centre (West) issued a warning in its weekly locust surveillance using geospatial technology, which monitors the weather and ecology to provide an early warning based on the survey and control results from the Locust Warning Organisation (LWO). The survey states that summer breeding is underway along both sides of the Indo-Pakistan border. In India, numerous adult groups and swarms are laying eggs over a wide area of Rajasthan between Jodhpur and Churu, while hatching and band formation from earlier laying has occurred further south from Phalodi to Gujarat. In Pakistan, hopper groups and bands are present in the Nagarparkar area in Tharparkar of southeast Sindh. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Trading for the week began on weak note as the key indices dropped sharply in early trade. At 9:28 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 282.09 points or 0.75% at 37,324.80. The Nifty 50 index was down 79.40 points or 0.72% at 10,994.05. The Nifty dropped below the psychological 11,000 level. Shares of Bandhan Bank dropped sharply on huge volume. Global surge of new coronavirus cases and rising US-China tensions weighed on sentiment. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.48%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.69%. The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, is positive. On the BSE, 924 shares rose and 729 shares fell. A total of 115 shares were unchanged. Macroeconomic data: India's infrastructure output contracted 15% in June from a year earlier, government data released on Friday showed, as a lockdown in response to COVID-19 weighed on economic activities. Infrastructure output, which comprises eight sectors including coal, crude oil and electricity and accounts for nearly 40% of industrial output, contracted 24.6% in the three months through June - the first quarter of the fiscal year - from a year earlier, the data showed. GST collections in July fell to Rs 87,422 crore from Rs 90,917 crore in June, according to a Finance Ministry statement. However, July collections are higher than Rs 62,009 crore in May and Rs 32,294 crore in April. Stocks in news: Tata Motors surged 6.55%. Tata Motors reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 8438 crore in Q1 June 2020, higher than net loss of Rs 3,698.34 crore in Q1 June 2019. Net sales in Q1 June 2020 stood at Rs 31,481.86 crore, falling 48% from Rs 60,830.16 posted in Q1 June 2019. The auto maker said that the nationwide lockdown resulted in the production and retailer shutdowns for major part of the quarter and heavily impacted the volumes. Negative operating leverage impacted the performance significantly. Maruti Suzuki India rose 1.89%. The company reported total sales of 108,064 units in July 2020, up 88.2% as against 57,428 units sold in June 2020. Annually, the total sales have fallen 1.1% from 109,264 units sold in July 2019. While total domestic sales rose 1.3% to 101,307 units, total exports sales have fallen 27% to 6,757 units in July 2020 over July 2019. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) rose 1.48%. M&M reported 36% decline in total automobile sales to 25,678 units in July 2020 from 40,142 units in July 2019. Sequentially, the total auto sales have jumped 32.6% as compared to 19,358 units sold in June 2020. While total domestic sales declined 35% year-on-year (YoY) to 24,211 units, total exports fell 45% YoY to 1,467 units in July 2020. UPL lost 6.13%. The company's consolidated net profit surged 93.3% to Rs 551 crore in Q1 June 2020 compared with Rs 285 crore in Q1 June 2019. Consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 7833 crore in Q1 June 2020, declining 1% compared with Rs 7906 crore in Q1 June 2019. Tata Chemicals fell 3.09% after the company reported a 67.2% drop in consolidated net profit to Rs 74.15 crore in Q1 June 2020 from Rs 226.33 crore posted in Q1 June 2019. Consolidated net sales for Q1 June 2020 stood at Rs 2,348.16 crore, falling 9% from Rs 2584.03 crore in Q1 June 2019. Bandhan Bank slumped 8.44% to Rs 316.10 on huge volume of 35.76 crore shares. The bank's promoters were to reportedly sell up to 20.9% equity stake in the bank through block deal today, 3 August 2020. Floor price for share sale in Bandhan Bank was set at Rs 311.10 per share. Godrej Agrovet advanced 2.25% after the company reported 16.46% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 88.51 crore on 8.56% fall in total income to Rs 1,572.02 crore in Q1 June 2020 over Q1 June 2019. Global Markets: Overseas, Asian stocks were trading mixed on Monday as U.S. lawmakers struggled to hammer out a new stimulus plan and a global surge of new coronavirus cases showed no sign of abating. A private survey released Monday showed China's manufacturing activity expanded in July. The Caixin/Markit manufacturing Purchasing Manager's Index came in at 52.8 for July as compared to 51.2 for June. Japan's economy shrank an annualised 2.2% in January-March, unchanged after a second revision, data from the Cabinet Office showed on Monday. On a quarter-on-quarter basis GDP shrank 0.6%, unchanged from the second preliminary reading. South Korea's manufacturing activity shrank at a much slower pace in July, signalling that a gradual recovery in demand is gaining momentum on easing lockdowns, although the resurgence in infections remained a risk. The IHS Markit purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 46.9 in July from 43.4 in June, marking the highest reading since January. But that was still below the 50 threshold that separates growth from contraction. On Friday, Fitch Ratings cut the outlook on the United States' triple-A rating to negative from stable, citing eroding credit strength and a ballooning deficit. The credit rating agency also said the future direction of U.S. fiscal policy depends in part on the November election and the resulting makeup of Congress, cautioning there is a risk policy gridlock could continue. Tensions between Washington and Beijing likely continued being watched by investors, with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reportedly saying Sunday that U.S. President Donald Trump is set to announce in the coming days new actions related to Chinese software companies viewed by his administration as a national security threat. On Friday, Trump reportedly said he will act soon to ban Chinese-owned video app TikTok from the U.S.. Microsoft on Sunday confirmed it has held talks to buy TikTok in the U.S. from Chinese tech firm ByteDance. In US, stocks wiped out earlier losses and closed higher on Friday as the biggest tech companies and market leaders soared after posting stellar quarterly results. Inspired by blowout earnings from tech heavyweights Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Google parent Alphabet, stocks rallied at the open, slipped into mostly negative territory during the session, and then recovered in the final hour. Shares of Apple roared 10.5% higher to a new all-time high, after the iPhone maker reported record profit, and announced a 4-for-1 stock split. Amazon, meanwhile, jumped 3.7% after delivering results that soared past forecasts for sales and earnings. Facebook shares rallied 8.2% as the social media giant easily topped expectations for earnings and revenue. Alphabet shares were down 3% after the Google parent met expectations despite a dip in advertising revenue. There was little sign of progress in talks between congressional Democrats, Republicans and the White House on a new coronavirus relief bill with expanded unemployment benefits due to expire Friday. Democrats rejected a White House proposal to temporarily extend the $600-a-week in added benefits, saying the Trump administration didn't understand the severity of the crisis. Consumer sentiment deteriorated amid a resurgence in new coronavirus cases. The final reading of the index of consumer sentiment stood at 72.5 in July, lower than the flash estimate of 73.2 early in the month and down from June's 78.1, the University of Michigan said Friday. Back home, key domestic benchmarks ended with modest losses on Friday, dragged by Reliance Industries and HDFC twins. Global cues were subdued following a record contraction in US gross domestic in the second quarter. The S&P BSE Sensex dropped 129.18 points or 0.34% at 37,606.89. The Nifty 50 index fell 28.70 points or 0.26% at 11,073.45. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 958.64 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 442.73 crore in the Indian equity market on 31 July, provisional data showed. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Married At First Sight star Michael Goonan and former girlfriend KC Osborne called it quits on their relationship early last month. And it appears the 28-year-old millionaire businessman has already healed his broken heart. On Friday night, the father-of-one was seen passionately kissing a mystery blonde at Press* Food and Wine in Adelaide. Over KC already? Married At First Sight star Michael Goonan (pictured) appears to have mended his broken heart after his breakup with KC Osborne last month. On Friday night he was spotted with a mystery blonde in Adelaide Michael looked sharp in a light blue blazer he wore over a white t-shirt and a pair of navy slacks. He finished off his smart ensemble with a brown pair of suede boots. His companion showed off her trim pins in a figure-hugging leather playsuit, which she left unzipped at the front to show off her racy black brassiere. A gift from Michael? The blonde beauty carried a monogrammed leather Louis Vuitton purse worth $1285 - possibly a gift from her new beau. Michael gifted his former partners KC and Stacey Hampton bags from the famed design house Looking sharp: Michael looked dapper in a light blue blazer he wore over a white t-shirt and a pair of navy slacks Having a ball: After they entered the venue, the pair moved outside of the bar with their drinks to talk Friendly: They were joined by other friends and Michael put his am around his new lady while they chatted She accessorised with a pair of black heels and wore a denim jacket which had a flower embroidered on one shoulder. The blonde beauty carried a monogrammed leather Louis Vuitton purse worth $1285, possibly a gift from her new beau. Michael gave his former partners KC and Stacey Hampton both bags from the famed design house. She wore her long locks out straight, allowing them to fall over her shoulders Her glamorous makeup palette included full coverage foundation, lashings of mascara and plenty of bronzer. Tender: Michael ran his hands through her luscious long blonde tresses Passionate: Michael then pulled her in for a big smooch Loved up! The pair couldn't keep their hands off each other What's so funny? The mystery date had Michael laughing and smiling despite his breakup After they entered the venue, the pair moved outside of the bar with their drinks, where his date had Michael in stitches. The pair also appeared to be joined by some friends who they happily chatted with. The couple then got very cosy with each other, before Micheal pulled her in for a big smooch, running his fingers through her luscious long tresses. Dressed up: Michael's date showed off her trim pins in a leather jumpsuit she left zipped low to show off her lacy black brassiere Out on the town: Michael, who lives in Melbourne, flew to Adelaide on July 16 and was required to spend two weeks in mandatory quarantine before his big night out Michael, who lives in Melbourne, flew to Adelaide on July 16 and was required to spend two weeks in mandatory quarantine before his big night out. His former girlfriend KC, 31, announced their split on July 4 on Instagram. Last week, the professional dancer told WHO magazine that his failed promises of changing his 'playboy' ways was a factor in their breakup. 'He sold me that dream of, "I would stop my playboy ways to have a girl like you, you're such a good girl,"' she said. Victor Betro has been appointed as the new General Manager of Aqabas prominent luxury hotel, Kempinski Hotel Aqaba Red Sea. He has moved from the Palm Island in Dubai to the aquatic city of Aqaba - Jordans only southern beachfront city located on the Red Sea Riviera. Betro started his career path with Hyatt International back in 2005 in the food and beverage team at Hyatt Regency Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, followed by a position in the same field at Grand Hyatt Dubai, UAE. Switching from operations to the role of Sales Manager at the Sheraton Al Nabil Hotel & Towers, Amman, Jordan he further broadened his experience and knowledge in the hospitality business. After two years as Food and Beverage Manager at Kempinski Hotel Aqaba Red Sea Jordan he moved in the same role to Kempinski Hotel Bahia, Marbella-Estepona in Spain where he was promoted to Executive Assistant Manager Food and Beverage. After a stint and the successful opening of Kempinski Summerland Hotel & Resort, Beirut, Lebanon as Executive Assistant Manager as well as the opening of Kempinski Hotel Muscat in Oman, he was promoted to Hotel Manager in 2018 at Emerald Palace Kempinski Dubai, located at the Palm Island. It is great to have Victors first General Manager appointment at the same property where he started his career with Kempinski back in 2011. He has proven to be a young energetic hotelier who takes ownership of his designated responsibilities and builds success through developing a brand-new Kempinski experience wherever he is assigned, says Wafik Youssef, Vice President Operations, Middle East & Africa. With his diverse experience and being a seasoned brand ambassador of Kempinski, we are confident that Victor will continue positioning Kempinski Hotel Aqaba Red Sea as the leading luxury hotel on the shores of the Red Sea, in Jordan. A Jordanian and Spanish national, Betro speaks fluent English in addition to his Arabic and Spanish mother tongues. He also holds a Diploma in Hotel Management Operations and a Bachelor of Business Administration from the Les Roches International School of Hotel Management in Switzerland. Having returned to Aqaba as General Manager of this wonderful Kempinski hotel, I am delighted to be part of the accomplished team of this prestigious property in my home country. This exquisite haven provides unparalleled getaways for travellers seeking luxury escapes crafted with memorable experiences. Despite the recent global challenges, I am confident that, along with the expert team of the hotel, we will overcome these interim circumstances and continue positioning our hotel as the leading place to stay when travelling to, commented Betro on his promotion.-- Tradearabia News Service live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More ICICI Direct's research report on United Spirits Q1FY21 volumes for United Spirits de-grew 49% mainly due to broad based decline in both Prestige & Above (P&A), Popular segments due to lockdown in April, May. P&A category volume fell 52% YoY while the Popular category de-grew 47%. P&A volumes declined owing to continued closure of on-premise outlets and drying up of social occasions for liquor consumption. Gross margin declined 570 bps to 41.7% with gross profit down 59% YoY to Rs 429 crore. At the EBITDA level, the company reported a loss of Rs 78 crore (I-direct estimate: loss of Rs 70 crore) compared to a profit of Rs 395 crore in Q1FY20. The company reported a loss before tax and exceptional item of Rs 182 crore vs. profit before tax and exceptional items of Rs 303 crore in Q1FY20. During Q1FY21, the company has accounted for Rs 75 crore as exceptional expense on account of Raising the Bar campaign, which aims to provide non-cash support to qualifying pubs, bars and restaurants serving alcohol in major cities. Consequently, the company reported loss before tax of Rs 257 crore. Tax write back to the tune of Rs 42 crore curtailed net loss for the quarter to Rs 215 crore (Q1FY20: profit of Rs 197 crore). Outlook The management remains cautiously optimistic on the resilience of the business and ability to adapt in the difficult situation. On the balance sheet front, the management has actively lowered debt even during a challenging FY20 and can reduce it further over next two years. Online ordering and home delivery channels can be structurally positive for the industry as it would enhance the reach and add new set of customers and expand the customer base over the longer term. We value the stock at ~43x FY22 EPS to arrive at a target price of Rs 670 with a BUY rating. For all recommendations report, click here Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies 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. Read More In a recent poll, almost 40% of Americans said they believe that Joe Biden, who won the Democrat party presidential primaries, has dementia. Democrats have denied this like crazy, even as they keep Joe locked in the basement, where he's spot-welded to a TelePrompter. Early Sunday morning, though, Dan Bongino dropped a bombshell: while the Democrats deny dementia in public, in private, they're grappling with the fact that not only is Biden suffering from dementia, but he's going downhill fast. Joe Biden has always suffered from foot-in-mouth disease. He's always been a liar and a plagiarist. Those, however, were personality and moral problems, not signs of a damaged brain. Lately, though, it's been apparent that something else is going on. Biden's having memory lapses, he's obviously confused a lot of the time, his impulse control is breaking down, and he struggles to maintain his focus even when he's on the TelePrompter: Joe Biden doesn't know what year it is or how censuses work. "You know, in the 2020 Census which is now 2 censuses ago, soon to be." pic.twitter.com/2l7qv4jbi6 Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) July 29, 2020 Teleprompter lessons with Joe Biden.pic.twitter.com/UgzC8kCOuu Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) July 30, 2020 Democrats tried to pass Biden's gaffes off as a "stutter," but we all know that it's not his tongue that's stumbling; it's his brain. They've also tried to avoid debates. Joe Lockhart, a CNN political analyst, said it's not fair to Biden to have to deal with Trump's inevitable lies. CNN political analyst @joelockhart tells @smerconish that Joe Biden shouldnt debate President Trump. Trump will take the truth and destroy it, and Biden will be in the position of correcting him over and over and over again. I don't think he should give him that platform. pic.twitter.com/4EOR4Q9Um7 CNN (@CNN) August 1, 2020 That's an amazing admission about Biden's incompetence. If Biden lacks the mental resources and funds of knowledge to tackle an American opponent in a presidential debate, how in the world is he going to deal with the bad actors around the world? He isn't, of course. He'll be "handled." All this dancing around works only if Biden is mentally stable enough at least to look presidential. Even that, though, is a problem. Enter Dan Bongino. Bongino is a former Secret Service agent and hugely popular conservative pundit, with a podcast, regular contributions on Fox News, and a curated news aggregation site. Through his past work and his current punditry, he has contacts everywhere. That's why it means something when Bongino tweets out that Biden's rate of mental decline is accelerating, forcing the Democrats to do something: Not a joke and not hyperbole - Im hearing from people close to the situation that Bidens cognitive decline is rapidly worsening and is becoming increasingly difficult to mask. The Democrats are going to have to make a decision soon. Dan Bongino (@dbongino) August 2, 2020 If Biden is forced to withdraw now, it would be logical to anoint Bernie Sanders as the Democrat presidential candidate. At a policy level, the effect would be minimal because Biden has already embraced Bernie Sanders's entire socialist platform. However, in terms of optics, Bernie Sanders would present serious problems for the Democrat party. When less radical Democrats looked at Biden, they saw the lingering remnants of an old-school Democrat. That allowed them to hope that while Biden might appeal to the more extreme base during the campaign, he would govern to the center. Blacks, too, saw something in Biden: Obama's shadow. Bernie, however, is an open socialist, which Democrats know repels mainstream Democrat voters. Additionally, mainstream minority voters never warmed up to Bernie. The next choice down the line would be Elizabeth Warren. She too is a hard socialist, though, and she has a very distant relationship with honesty. Blacks will also resent having her at the top of the ticket if Biden is knocked out. Theoretically, Democrats could use complicated party procedures to throw out the primaries and simply name someone to occupy the top of the ticket. However, as the problems with Biden's vice presidential pick have shown, there's serious factionalism going on behind the scenes. Monica Showalter looked at the top vice presidential candidates and dug into that problem: Whoever Biden picks is going to represent the triumph of the represented faction over the other rivals. If Biden goes for Bass, he wants to win the Bernie-ites. If Biden goes for Rice, it's back to Obamadom and being Obama's shadow. If Biden goes for Harris, it's the Hillaryworld hog wallow, which should provide for young Hunter Biden and the rest of the family, as well as bring in the California elites. None of the three women is very appealing: Bass is a communist, Rice has the stench of Benghazi trailing behind her, and Harris is a corrupt prosecutor try to appeal to a base that hates the police. Sometimes, it hurts to see people caught between a rock and a hard place. And at other times, you just want to buy some popcorn, sit back, and enjoy the show. Image: YouTube screen grab. A British woman who stabbed her husband to death at their tropical island home was today spared a death penalty. Samantha Jones, 51, broke down when she was told her charge of murder had been downgraded. Instead, the former insurance worker, originally from Somerset, pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of culpable homicide without intent for stabbing her husband, John Jones, 63, to death during a row at their home in Malaysia in October 2018. She was sentenced to 42 months in prison and charged nearly 2,000. A conviction for murder carries a mandatory death sentence by hanging. "She is very relieved having come to terms with what happened that night and for the court... to understand what happened that night. She didn't intend for this to happen," her lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo told reporters at the end of the hearing. Jones entered the courthouse in Alor Setar in the northern state of Kedah, wearing a mask and in handcuffs. She was charged nearly two years ago after police found a blood-stained kitchen knife in the couple's home where her husband was found dead on October 18, 2018. Police previously said she confessed she stabbed her husband in the chest during a heated argument. The couple moved to tropical Langkawi island 11 years ago under the Malaysia My Second Home program, which gives foreigners long-stay visas. Kaur said the couple, who had been married for 17 years, were devoted to each other but Jones was struggling with physical violence by her husband. "Unfortunately Samantha found herself at the receiving end of abuse. She supported John through various therapies to address certain problems that he had, none of which worked obviously, until that unfortunate night when things took a turn for the worst," he said. "She has accepted the fact that she needs to serve the sentence. She acknowledged the fact that a life is lost and I think she is looking forward to her own recovery because this was indeed a traumatising event for her." He added that Jones, who has spent 20 months in detention, could be released as early as the end of next year with one-third off the sentence for good behaviour. By PTI COLOMBO: Sri Lanka's election chief Mahinda Deshapriya said on Sunday that there is no threat of the coronavirus at polling centres as he asked voters to abide by health directives while voting in the parliamentary election on August 5. "Voters can cast their vote without any fear during the poll," Deshapriya, the Chairman of the National Election Commission, was quoted as saying by the News1st channel. He asked voters to abide by health directives at polling centres. Over 16 million voters are registered to vote on August 5 to elect a 225-member parliament for a 5-year term. ALSO READ | Sri Lanka's August 5 general elections to be the costliest ever The COVID-19 pandemic which forced the postponement of the polls date twice has also resulted in a change to the votes counting. The counting would take place only on the following morning - a departure from the practice of counting them from 8 pm on the election night. The decision was taken to comply with the health guidelines to maintain social distancing and employ other COVID-19 preventive measures. Deshapriya said that special security measures implemented at past elections will also be implemented together with new measures being introduced at the August 5 election. The health guidelines had also placed restrictions on campaigning for the election. The August 5 election is likely to be Deshapriya's last election as the Chairman of the National Election Commission. Deshapriya said that while the term of the National Election Commission ends in November, he hopes to take time off from September for personal reasons, the Colombo Gazette reported. "We (National Election Commission) have to go home on 13th of November 2020. I hope to take leave before that for some private work. So I may need to take time off from September 15," he said. Deshapriya said that he has been involved in elections for 37 years and that was more than enough. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on March 2 dissolved the Parliament, six months ahead of schedule, and called for snap polls on April 25. However, the election commission in mid-April postponed the elections by nearly two months to June 20 due to the coronavirus outbreak in the island nation. The commission in June informed the apex court that the polls cannot be held on June 20 because of the coronavirus pandemic and the new date was decided following a unanimous decision reached between the members of the commission. Sri Lanka's coronavirus tally currently stands at 2,816 with 11 deaths. In his 134-page affidavit on criminal contempt, advocate Prashant Bhushan has regretted only one thing -- that he did not notice the motor cycle was on a stand when he tweeted on CJI SA Bobde riding a Rs 50-lakh bike "without a helmet". Apart from this, the extensive affidavit by Bhushan, in response to the Supreme Court's notice of criminal contempt, has not even once mentioned "regret" or "apology" and rather stood firm on his assertions regarding last four CJIs and their alleged role in destruction of democratic values. "At the outset I admit that I did not notice that the bike was on a stand and therefore wearing a helmet was not required. I, therefore, regret that part of my tweet. However, I stand by the remaining part of what I have stated in my tweet," read his affidavit. He cited instances ranging from Sahara-Birla diary case to judge Loya death, from Kahiko Pul suicide case to medical admission scam, from Master of Roster controversy to NRC in Assam, from abrogation of Article 370 to Citizenship Amendment Act, to justify his statements regarding alleged failure by the judiciary. Bhushan also reproduced speeches delivered and opinions written by several sitting and retired judges such as Justices DY Chandrachud, Deepak Gupta, Madan B Lokur and AP Shah to corroborate that his concerns regarding stifling of dissent, majoritarianism and authoritarianism had been echoed by them also. The affidavit tried to explain three broad categories of Bhushan's assertions -- "democracy has been substantially destroyed during the last six years; by its acts of commissions and omissions, the Supreme Court has allowed the emasculation of our democracy; and the role played by the last four CJIs has been very critical in the above mentioned process. Bhushan substantiated his two contentious tweets from June that prompted the top court to issue a show-cause notice of criminal contempt against the activist-lawyer on July 24. Bhushan said his tweet about CJI Bobde riding a motorcycle was to underline his anguish at the non-physical functioning of the Supreme Court for last more than 3 months, with hardly any cases being effectively heard, which impeded access to justice. Besides, he added that Chief Justice is not the Court and a bona fide critique of the actions of the CJI cannot and do not scandalise the Court. "To assume and suggest that 'CJI is the SC, and SC is the CJI', is to undermine the institution of SC," stated the affidavit. His affidavit further said that his tweet about last four CJIs was his "bonafide impression" about them and it is his considered opinion that the apex court allowed destruction of democracy and such expression of opinion however "outspoken, disagreeable or unpalatable" can't constitute contempt. "This of course is my bonafide opinion which people can and may disagree with. In any healthy democracy, there needs to be a free and frank discussion about the role of any and every institution, especially an institution as critical as the Supreme Court," Bhushan told the court. A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra will hear the suo motu contempt case on August 5. After the hearing on July 24, Twitter Inc, which has also been a made a party to this case, has now disabled the two contentious tweets by Bhushan. In a time of great need where people are suffering from job losses and the need of food items, the South Texas Food Bank has been a great source of help for thousands of residents of Webb County and Laredo. Soon, it will also be hiring locally. In an attempt to ramp up their efforts in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the food bank is preparing to hire 20 workers for their efforts. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 18:04 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b3bf3c 1 News TripAdvisor,TripAdvisor-Travellers-Choice-Awards,travel,Lombok,Bali-tourism Free Bali has been recognized as one of the most popular destinations in the world, according to travel platform TripAdvisor Travelers Choice Awards of 2020. Winners of the awards are chosen based on the quantity and quality of user reviews and ratings, and are now honored as Travelers Choice Best of the Best, Trip Advisors top 1 percent of listings. This has been a tough year for our industry, but the global desire to go and explore, whether the destination is an hour away or across the world, remains strong, said TripAdvisor chief experience and brand officer Lindsay Nelson in a statement. The Travelers Choice program is one way that travelers and diners can benefit from the real-life experiences of other people so they can plan their perfect trip that meets their needs, budget and style. London ranks first on the popular destinations list, followed by Paris and Greece's Crete in second and third place respectively. Indonesias very own paradise ranked fourth and was noted for its stretch of fine white sand and lush jungle. Bali is a living postcard, an Indonesian paradise that feels like a fantasy, it said on the website. Read also: Bali named among top post-pandemic destinations TripAdvisor also recommended three attractions on the island, namely Kelingking Beach, the Sekumpul Waterfalls and Luhur Batukaru Temple. Bali reopened for domestic tourists on July 31, and international tourists will be welcomed on September 11. According to data on covid19.go.id, as of July 31, Bali has recorded 3,407 cases of COVID-19 with 2,876 recoveries and 48 deaths. The Travelers Choice Awards also recognized Padma Hotel in Bandung, West Java, as the number one family hotel in Asia, as well as Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara as the number six trending destination for its beaches, diving spots and hiking options. (car/wng) A new microchip that enables continuous monitoring of pH and chlorine levels in swimming pools will vastly improve water safety and hygiene for more than 2.7 million Australians as new research shows it can deliver consistent and accurate pool chemistry for reliable pool management. Developed by the University of South Australia using world-class fabrication capabilities, in partnership with electronics research and manufacturing company Tekelek Australia, the new 'lab-on-a-chip' technology, makes monitoring swimming pools more affordable, more reliable, and easy to install - even on existing pools. UniSA researcher and micro/nanofabrication expert, Associate Professor Craig Priest, says the microfluidic chip could be a vital addition to Australian swimming pools, particularly as COVID-19 makes people more aware of the importance of pool hygiene. "Pool chemistry keeps swimmers safe from viruses and bacteria, yet getting it right takes a lot of effort," Assoc Prof Priest says. "Backyard swimming pool management would be a lot easier with a continuous and automated water quality sensor that can reliably measure accurate chlorine and pH levels all summer. "The sensor that we've developed is essentially a 'lab-on-a-chip' - a network of microscopic pipes running through a credit card-sized chip. "The chip quickly and continuously does all the work of a chemistry laboratory using tiny amounts of chemical, without leaving the poolside. "For pool owners, this removes the arduous task of manually testing swimming pools and avoids overuse of pool chemicals, which saves time, money and, most importantly, the risk of infection from incorrect pool chemistry." In Australia, 2.7 million people (13 per cent of the population) live in a house with a swimming pool. Currently, existing pool monitoring systems - either wireless swimming pool sensors with expensive hardware or labour-intensive manual testing kits such as those purchased at hardware stores - are used to monitor the safety of chemicals in pools. But, as Assoc Prof Priest says, asking pool owners to be backyard chemists could turn summer fun into a health hazard. "Many of the domestic pools samples showed flaws in manual pool testing," Assoc Prof Priest says. "One family's swimming pool was seriously overdosed with chlorine, yet they had no idea. "Having just bought their home, they did a quick water check at the local pool shop and were told that there was 'enough' chlorine in the water but didn't show that there was actually too much. "A few weeks later, the chlorine levels dropped to zero, which not only highlighted a problem with the chlorinator, but also showed how quickly pool chemistry can become unsafe." The research tested samples from 12 swimming pools (nine domestic, two public and one outdoor public) with measures taken on multiple occasions. Every sample had its own ambient situation - frequent public use, high leaf matter, different chlorination methods - ensuring realistic sensor challenges. An over-dosage of chlorine can cause adverse health effects to the skin, eyes, and immune system, while under-dosage creates risks of infection for swimmers. Research partner, Stephen Thornton, Tekelek Australia says the new microchip has mass potential for both private and public swimming pools. "Right now, the need to stay healthy is paramount for us all, and while we generally feel safe in our own backyard, we must remember that all swimming pools need to be accurately and efficiently monitored to ensure water safety," Thornton says. "Partnering with UniSA has meant that we've been able to develop a product that truly meets the needs of the market, while also ensuring public health and safety." The research team is currently in the final stages of developing the microchip with industry and hopes to have it on the market soon. Kenya Power CEO Bernard Ngugi responds to questions from the public via Daily Nation. It has been announced that, because of Covid-19, Kenya Power intends to or has declared a force majeure (unforeseen circumstances that prevent fulfilling of a contract) so that it does not honour the contracts it has with independent power generators. For your customers, what does such a move mean? Julius Muia, Nairobi Force majeure is a clause provided in power purchase contracts as a standard practice and is applied when unforeseeable events such as the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic occur. Kenya Power invoked this clause taking cognisance of decreased electricity demand vis-a-vis supply owing to negative effects of the pandemic on our economy. We are currently in discussion with the electricity generation companies on the best way forward regarding this issue while honouring our contractual obligations. However, this has no impact on our endeavour to provide adequate and stable electricity to our customers. There is no doubt that the Last-Mile Connectivity programme was a noble idea. However, that your companys recent report attributed huge losses to the initiative lends credence to views that this is a major scandal involving well-connected former Kenya Power employees. What is your take on this? Komen Moris, Eldoret I want to agree that the programme is a success story. Kenya Power, as an implementing agent of the project, is committed to ensuring that the government achieves its ultimate goal of universal access by 2022. In implementing the project, contractors are procured through open tenders guided by the Public Procurement and Disposal Act 2015. They have strict project implementation timelines that are continuously monitored and enforced. In addition, construction works are closely supervised at different levels to ensure quality and efficient workmanship by an appointed independent consultants and project engineers. In cases where we have found fraudulent activity, appropriate action has been taken in accordance with company policies and the law. We encourage the public to report any suspicious activity by our employees, contractors and the general public that is meant to undermine implementation of the project or any of our other services. You can report by sending an email to [email protected] or to any of the investigative agencies. Kenya Power has over the years been recording declining profits and/or losses. This troubles me because the company is a near monopoly insofar as power distribution is concerned. Could the problem be your systems? Michael Kioko, Mombasa The company is ISO-certified and operates on internationally accepted processes, best practices and industry standards. As a listed company in the stock exchange, Kenya Power is governed as per the Capital Markets Authority guidelines and is subjected to annual audits. The current financial state of the company is attributable to aggressive investment over the past years in the network expansion, rise in operating costs, increased power purchase costs and slow growth in electricity demand among others. Kenya Power management team is fully seized of these issues and is working closely with key stakeholders to reverse the trend. It is over one year since the delivery of prepaid meters to customers was disrupted. How soon will the regular supply of meters resume? Dr Patrick Mbataru, Kenyatta University Our metering policy provides for both prepaid and post-paid options to meet customers preferences and also act to mitigate against operational risks. The company has not stopped connecting customers on prepaid meters. In fact, more than five million new customers have been connected on prepaid meters. Early this year, we experienced slight challenges in the supply of prepaid meters, a situation that has since been addressed. Why are there still so many complaints from Kenyans because of inflated power bills, and in the case of disputes, why does Kenya Power insist on payment of contentious bills before resolution of the dispute? Carey Yiembe, Mombasa Due to our vast footprint and increasing number of customers, we had previously experienced challenges reading some of our post-paid meters. To address this, we have increased our field presence and devolved our services further in the recent past. We have also introduced USSD*977# and an App (Download MyPower Kenya Power Self Service App) that empower our customers to read their meters and submit the readings to the company for accurate billing. With respect to contentious bills, we encourage customers to reach out to us with their meter readings. In case of errors, rebilling is done. Customer complaints on metering, bribes, favouritism and other issues persist and the whistleblowing platform does not and has never worked. What are you doing to change the sorry state? Raphael Obonyo, Nairobi As a company, we have adopted a zero corruption policy hence we do not tolerate corruption in any shape or form, whether perpetrated by employees or customers. In the last one year alone, the company has laid off more than 100 employees for engaging in fraud and other unethical practices. In collaboration with the investigating agencies, we have also arrested several fraudsters and arraigned them in court. We encourage anyone with a complaint about bribery or any other criminal activity to report it via [email protected] to enable us carry out investigations and take the necessary action. We are also rolling out a new structure based on the counties that has decentralised our services. This structure will see us streamline meter reading, inspection and revenue collection activities and ensure provision of quality power supply to customers. Kenya Power in 2019 retained Deloitte to audit its information technology (IT) systems. What were some of the findings of that audit insofar as billing is concerned? Daniel Kamau, Nairobi The audit identified a few gaps within our systems and processes, which some employees had exploited. In mitigation, the company upgraded its systems, including the billing system, to enhance data and information security. We also introduced new security layers and access protocols. Disciplinary action was also taken against those who were found culpable, with some of the implicated staff employment being terminated. How does Kenya Power ensure that the companies they sub-contract maintain the highest standard of professionalism and that their work is of the highest quality? Githuku Mungai, Nairobi Kenya Powers procurement process is guided by the Public Procurement and Disposal Act 2015. The company engages its suppliers/contractors through competitive bidding. All works, services and goods delivered by suppliers/contractors are closely supervised by the KPLC team to ensure that they are done according to the specified standards. Poor power transmission and an ageing distribution infrastructure will continue to keep our power bills high, despite increased production from cheap power sources such as the geothermal and wind. What is Kenya Power doing to mitigate this? Eric Kimani Njuguna, Ruiru Over the past five years, we have made substantive investments to revamp, expand and automate our network in order to reduce inherent system losses and ensure quality power supply that is accessible to all. The company is also investing in alternative supply lines and network undergrounding to offer redundancy and ensure supply reliability. The government through our sister company Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco) has been building new transmission lines in new areas and also increasing transmission capacity across the country. There have been suggestions that Kenya Power needs a direct competitor for it to improve on efficiency. What is your take on this? Francis Njuguna, Kibichoi The Energy Act 2019 allows for competition within the electricity sub-sector although efficiency is not a function of competition. Rather, it is the result of good business practice. As a company, we are continuously evaluating our operations with a view to enhancing our efficiency by embracing new technologies, investing in system automation and in re-engineering our process in line with the changing business environment and customer expectations. Why is the cost of connecting electricity still out of reach for many Kenyan households? Last month, I applied for electricity and I was informed that the cost of each pole is Sh83,000 and I need around five poles. What is the government doing to reduce these exorbitant costs? Seth Mwangani, Kakamega Kenya Power is the implementing agency for the Last Mile Connectivity Project which is funded by GOK. The project is on course across the country with a target to attain universal access to electricity by 2022. Customers identified for connection through the Last Mile Project are expected to pay a fee of Sh15,000. The project is being implemented in phases that do not cover all customers at the same time. For customers who would wish to be connected outside the project, quotations are issued that takes into consideration the material such as poles which cost on average Sh14,000 and not Sh83,000, labour and transport costs of the specific connection. The company always ensures that customers are connected at least cost and where possible encourage customers to apply for connection as a group so as to share the cost. Amid the poor financial performance, the impact of Covid-19 and the increasing reliance of Kenyans on alternative sources of energy, how will the company remain competitive and relevant? Dan Murugu, Nakuru Our core business is to sell power. The strategic positioning of the company in social economic development of the country and the emerging business environment post-Covid-19 offers a great opportunity for the companys financial growth and sustainability. Guided by the current corporate strategic plan, long-term business sustainability is of great importance. Several strategies and initiatives have been adopted internally as part of the companys financial recovery plan, which complement efforts by the shareholders and stakeholders in supporting the business turnaround strategies. The power lines from Gitugi Chiefs Camp (Gitugi Division, Mathioya Sub-County) to Kanoro Primary passes through our farms and some people were forced to cut down trees to pave way for the wayleave. Unfortunately, and despite making this sacrifice, there is a good number of people who cannot access power as the transformer is about two kilometres away. We have been told to get power, the affected individuals should meet the cost of transformer. Who is supposed to meet the cost of a transformer? Harrison Katto, Mathioya Our team will get in touch with Mr Katto to provide him with further guidance on how to resolve this issue. Project Mrangi Wongonyi in Taita Taveta County started over two years ago. When can we expect to have power? Bill Noti, Taita Taveta Yes, we do acknowledge that there have been procedural challenges with this project arising from the hand-over of the project from the implementing agency to Kenya Power. Nevertheless, I would wish to confirm that this has now been sorted out and we have connected Mr Noti. To Kenyans who come from areas where power outages is the order of the day and have to wait for days to be reconnected, what is Kenya Power doing to improve on the power stability so that they too can enjoy being your customers? David M. Kigo, Nairobi Our core business is to keep the lights on. Outages affect our sales and as such we have been investing in technologies, systems and networks that will ensure less or no outages. In fact, over the last few years, the company has deployed live line maintenance teams to support network maintenance work and reduce planned outages and system automation to facilitate network self-healing and reduce outage time. In addition, the company is focusing a lot in proactive network maintenance by undertaking transformer and trees maintenance (pruning/cutting down trees near power lines), system reinforcement and where necessary undergrounding of the network. As stated earlier, we have also deployed a new county structure that will increase our field presence thus enabling us to fast track resolution of customer issues as it increases accountability and efficiency. The structure will positively impact on the turnaround time in addressing outages as we now have dedicated teams to resolve such occurrences. maiden ceremony was for 88 Law students from the University of Ghana School of Law under the College of Humanities and 45 students from the universitys Medical and Dental School of the College of Health Sciences. The virtual congregation programme which was organised last Thursday, was necessitated by the prevailing national safety guidelines for meetings involving large numbers as a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the university explained. The university would also hold similar congregations for other graduands, comprising 14,295 students from different schools and colleges of the university. In all, the graduands comprise 964 students in non-degree programmes, 8,236 undergraduates, 4,668 postgraduate students and 427 PhD students. Rationale The Chancellor of the university, Professor Mary Chinery-Hesse, said although the graduands would have wished to converge on campus with friends and family, the event had to be redesigned in the wake of COVID-19 to safeguard the health of all stakeholders. She commended management of the university for the initiative to ensure continuity and the successful completion of the 2019/2020 academic year in the midst of the virus. The Chancellor further applauded the efforts of the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR), the West Africa Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens (WACCBIP) and all frontline health workers fighting the pandemic. She said the university was improving both physical and information technology (IT) infrastructure to facilitate effective teaching and learning in the prevailing circumstances. Online studies The Vice-Chancellor of the university, Professor Ebenezer Oduro Owusu, said following the directive issued by the President on March 15, this year for all educational institutions to close down until further notice, management rolled out an online teaching and learning programme to ensure that the Second Semester of the 2019-2020 academic year was completed successfully. We fully activated the UG Sakai Learning Management System and arranged with Vodafone Ghana to distribute limited data to enable faculty and students work off-campus. We also collaborated with telecommunications companies to whitelist all UG academic resources and created a help desk to provide technical support to faculty and students, he added. Prof. Owusu said: When on May 31, 2020, the President announced that the final-year tertiary level students could resume lectures, management met with stakeholders and decided to continue with the online teaching and learning programme for final and continuing students, while affording final-year students who wished to return to campus to use on-campus resources the opportunity to do so. Opportunities The Director of Public Prosecutions at the Attorney-Generals Office, Mrs Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa, who was the guest speaker, encouraged the graduands to make use of opportunities presented them, especially, as professionals in their respective areas of specialisation to make themselves, the university and the country proud. Ms Amanda Nutakor of the University of Ghana School of Law, delivered the valedictory address. The ceremony was broadcast on all the universitys social media handles. Source: Graphic.com.gh 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 Five soldiers killed and five others wounded in twin attacks on military convoy and on a camp. Twin attacks have left at least five soldiers dead in Mali, a Sahel country mired in a political crisis that has sparked international concern. Five soldiers were killed and five others wounded in an ambush on a military convoy and an artillery attack on a camp on Sunday, both attacks blamed on rebel fighters in central Mali, army and local sources said. The bloodshed came some six weeks after rebel fighters ambushed a military convoy, also in central Mali, killing 24 soldiers. Fighters unleashed a revolt in northern Mali in 2012 that has since spread to the centre of the poor country and to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger despite the presence of thousands of French and UN troops. The latest attacks came as President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita faces insistent calls to resign from an opposition angry over the brutal conflict as well as dire economic conditions and perceived corruption. Much of the current tension was sparked in April when the Constitutional Court tossed out 31 results from long-delayed parliamentary elections a move that benefitted Keitas party. The so-called June 5 Movement (M5-RFP) has continued to insist on Keitas departure, despite two mediation missions by the regional bloc ECOWAS that has suggested a new unity government and a resolution to the election quarrel. M5-RFP has said it would resume acts of civil disobedience on Monday after observing a truce for the Eid al-Adha festival, a key Muslim holiday that began on Friday. Continuing the crackdown on bootleggers, the police here recovered 50,000 litres of lahan, a viscous solution used to make illicit liquor, near the banks of Sutlej river on Sunday night. Police commissioner Rakesh Kumar Agrawal said during the action, the police also confiscated drums, plastic cans and utensils used for making illicit liquor. He said the area where this illegal business was going on was very difficult to approach, but police obtained pinpoint information and struck at the right time. Agrawal added that an FIR under the Excise Act has been registered at the Ladhowal police station. The accused have been identified as Rajjapur village residents Jogga Singh, Makahn Singh, Jagmeet Singh and Gurdeep Singh; AjitSingh, Raj Singh alias Kalu alias Kali, Satnam Singh, Babu, Nanak Singh, Sawarn Singh alias Babbi, Balbir Singh alias Billu, all residents of Bholewal Jadid village. He informed that in the last 48 hours, 519 cases under the Excise Act have been registered at the Ludhiana police commissionerate and 590 persons have been arrested. The police have recovered 40,779 litres of liquor and over 2.5 lakh litres of lahan. Between May 18 and August 1, a total of 270 FIRs under the Excise Act had been registered, 301 persons arrested, 2 lakh litres of lahan confiscated and destroyed, 1,612 litres of illicit liquor and 4,606 litres of English wine seized, the police commissioner stated, adding that a boat and divers have been pressed into service as part of the drive against bootleggers. He said such raids would continue in the coming days and no person would be allowed to make illicit liquor. The first wave of U.S combat troops invaded South Vietnam on March 8, 1965. The main reason for the American involvement in Vietnam was to prevent the spread of communism in Southeast Asia. It was a long and costly war that divided a nation. Why did it happen? What events led to this conflict that lasted almost twenty years and resulted in over 3 million deaths and many more casualties? Before and After WWII Vietnam is a Southeast Asian nation that was invaded by France in the mid-19th century. The French called it French Indochina and expanded its territories by conquering Cambodia, Annam, Laos, Tonkin, and Annam. A colonial government system was imposed, and the Vietnamese struggled against it. Japanese forces invaded Vietnam during World War II, around the time the Vietnamese political leader, Ho Chi Minh was gaining strength and popularity. He believed in Soviet and Chinese communism and founded Vietnams Communist Party. He also led the Vietnamese Independence League, better known as the Viet Minh. After World War II Japan withdrew from Vietnam, giving Ho Chi Minh the opportunity to take control. His forces took over the city of Hanoi and declared it the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. In 1949, France tried to set up the state of Vietnam and chose Saigon as the capital. The move was supported by their ally, Emperor Bao. Though both sides were pushing for a unified Vietnam, the French wanted to impose their western culture while Minh and his followers pushed for communism. This conflict ignited the First Indochina War, which took place from 1946 to 1954. By 1950, the U.S. considered Viet Minh a communist threat and brought in military assistance for France. In 1954, the Viet Minh attacked Dien Bien Phu valley, with help from Chinese forces. The French were defeated and pulled out of the region. That same year, their government signed the Geneva Accords. The Geneva Accords The Geneva Conference of 1954 produced the Geneva Accords, a set of documents including military agreements signed by Vietnamese, Cambodian, Laotian, and French representatives. The provisions included: A cease-fire line down the 17 th parallel, which divided Vietnam in half, with troops withdrawing within 300 days parallel, which divided Vietnam in half, with troops withdrawing within 300 days Communist groups and guerillas would both evacuate Cambodia and Laos Free elections would take place in Cambodia and Laos in 1955, with French troops remaining if requested The Agreement also provided for the Final Declaration, which specified that subsequent Vietnamese elections would be held under supervision, with the objective of reunifying the country. During these negotiations, it was decided to split Vietnam into its southern and northern halves. The south (capital city: Saigon) would stay non-communist, while the north (capital city: Hanoi) controlled by Ho Chi Minh, would be communist. The Domino Theory Dwight D. Eisenhower was one of 9 U.S Presidents (1953-1961) in office during the Cold War a period between 1947 1991 which saw great geopolitical tensions between the Soviet Union, the U.S and both their allies. Because both superpowers couldnt use their military powers to fight each other without mutual destruction, rather than an outward war, the two countries used espionage, propaganda, and psychological warfare. Eisenhower came up with the term The Domino Theory, when he stated that the fall of French Indochina to communists could start a domino effect in Southeast Asia, leading to the spread of communism. During a 1954 press conference, he stressed the importance of Vietnam to the U.S. economy. The Second Half of the 1950s In 1955, Ngo Dinh Diem emerged as the South Vietnamese leader. He was a Catholic nationalist, backed by the United States. Four years later, North Vietnam started building a supply route that went through Cambodia and Laos to South Vietnam. Its purpose was to support guerrilla attacks planned against the south. This supply route was called the Ho Chi Minh Trail. U.S. intervention in Vietnam began gradually, with military and political advisors, economic aid, and troops provided to South Vietnam. As this played out, there were ongoing tensions between China, the Soviet Union, and the U.S. In July of 1959, the first U.S. soldiers were attacked and killed when guerrilla soldiers raided their quarters in Saigon. The Early 1960s Ho Chi Minh was succeeded by Le Duan, who became head of North Vietnams communist party. By 1963, there were close to 16,000 U.S. military personnel stationed in Vietnam. South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem was assassinated by his own generals, a coup supported by the U.S and led by his successor, Duong Van Minh. In August of 1964, the North Vietnamese torpedoed two U.S. destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin. President Lyndon B. Johnson submitted the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution to Congress, which allowed him to take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States. At that point, there were over 23,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam. On March 8, 1965, the first major wave of U.S. combat troops arrived on the shores of Da Nang in South Vietnam. End of the War The war finally ended in 1973, when the U.S and their allies were defeated but lasted two more years between the South and North Vietnam. The country suffered millions of deaths and casualties. 12 million people became refugees, while the war destroyed the nations economy and infrastructure. Despite the defeat of the U.S, their fear that communism would spread across the Asian continent never happened. The Paris Peace Accords a treaty signed on January 27th, 1973 established a cease-fire as well as the terms of the removal of the American troops from Vietnam. On July 2nd, 1976 North and South Vietnam were finally unified under a communist government and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam was formally established. In response to China's deployment of more than 17,000 troops and armoured vehicles opposite Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) and Depsang plains in Ladakh, India has made heavy deployment of troops and tank regiments in the area to counter any misadventure by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) there. "We have done a very heavy deployment of troops and tanks in the DBO and Depsang plains area including the T-90 regiments which are part of an armoured division," government sources told ANI. 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 The sudden embrace of face masks to stop COVID-19 has been slammed as coming 'too slowly' after the science finally firmed up in favour of using them. Official health advice wearing masks in Australia has changed radically over recent months from 'don't bother' to not wearing one carrying a $200 fine in Victoria. New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian has announced mask wearing is now 'strongly recommended' in places where it's impossible to socially distance. This includes supermarkets, public transport and places of worship - the policy coming as virus-riddled Victoria made mask-wearing compulsory statewide. Widespread mask adoption comes as Melbourne plunges into Stage Four lockdown while a jittery NSW reported seven 'mystery cases' in the past week. But why did it take so long for Australians to be told to pop down to the chemist and pick up face masks in the first place? NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has stopped short of making masks compulsory but has ramped up her language, saying they are now 'strongly recommended' in places such as supermarkets Get used to it: The NSW Premier announced mask wearing would be 'strongly recommended' at grocery stores (left) and has no issue with workers being required to wear them (right) It seems extraordinary that months ago, at the start of the pandemic, the country's leading panel of top doctors, the Australian Healthcare Protection Principal Committee, actively discouraged Australians from wearing masks out into the community. In late February, before the first wave took off in earnest, Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy even urged people in Melbourne not to 'waste' surgical masks by wearing them, as there was little to no community transmission at the time. And on April 17, the powerful committee issued a statement saying it didn't recommend people wearing cloth or 'non medical' masks. 'The use of these masks has the potential to create more harm than good,' the advice warned. Health officials continued to reject mask use for weeks to come. Dr Murphy only changed his tune on masks about the end of May, suggesting they should be worn on public transport - with state premiers and even the Prime Minister now leading by example at the beginning of August. Scientists and government officials said the massive change is because Australia's situation, and our understanding of face masks and COVID-19 have changed dramatically. But a top disease doctor said we've moved too slowly. Why did it take so long for Australians to pick up masks? Australian officials had three major concerns about masks earlier this year according to University of Melbourne health expert Professor Tony Blakely. The first was that, back during the first wave, medical evidence for masks slowing the spread of coronavirus was initially 'uncertain'. Professor Blakely said: 'The evidence of masks wasn't as good as it is now, when we started this pandemic.' The second major worry was that there were fears masks wouldn't be worn correctly by the community, concerns that the epidemiologist described as 'legitimate'. Masked police officers in Victoria, where face-coverings are compulsory except for a few reasons, such as medical conditions Woolworths was ahead of the curve in announcing it would recommend customers wear masks to the supermarket chain's stores on Saturday, a day before the NSW government CASES IN VICTORIA AND NEW SOUTH WALES ON MONDAY New South Wales has recorded 13 new cases including nine cases in the community and one from an unknown source Victoria has recorded 429 new cases with a 'double digit' overnight death toll. (A detailed breakdown is yet to be released) Queensland has recorded zero new cases after fears of an outbreak after two young women who travelled from Melbourne tested positive South Australia has reported two new cases Advertisement But in the time since the pandemic began, Prof. Blakely said high-quality research has found masks can significantly cut transmission of the virus. However, the expert said Australia was at least three weeks too slow in embracing the findings of new research which was published at the end of May. 'There was intransigence and slowness to changing that (policy) on the evidence,' he said. 'Once you've said something, it's hard to back out of it'. The other major factor stopping widespread face covering recommendations were fears Australia didn't have a large enough supply of masks. 'We didn't have stockpiles of face masks and they were being protected,' Prof Blakely said. But that has now changed. Now there's plenty of masks and political pressure In announcing her new policy on Sunday, Ms Berejiklian said local companies are now manufacturing face masks and supply chains have been established. 'To date, supplies have been reasonable throughout the state,' she said. 'I am confident that whoever at this stage wants to get a mask can do so.' Ms Berejiklian's decision also comes after pressure from the state Opposition - which argues masks should be mandatory on public transport. Labor leader Jodi McKay has claimed credit for pushing the Premier toward masks in recent days. 'It's good the Premier is finally inching closer, led by Labor, businesses and the community, but her position is still confusing,' she tweeted. Melbourne's iconic Flinders St Station is totally deserted on Monday morning as the city enters a shutdown unprecedented in its history On Saturday, supermarket Woolworths and hardware giant Bunnings on Saturday urged customers to wear masks when attending their stores beginning today. Ms Berejiklian has maintained she is simply sharing the health advice of NSW officials, and claims the state can't be compared with others. Change in approach: Prime Minister Scott Morrison shared a selfie of himself wearing a mask at the weekend New South Wales has been on 'high alert' for a second wave for weeks. The change in approach to face masks has come from the very top. At the weekend, Prime Minister Scott Morrison shared a selfie of himself wearing a surgical mask on Instagram. Last week, Deputy Chief Medical Officer Michael Kidd penned an opinion piece urging Australians to consider wearing masks - in a giant leap from what his colleagues were saying months ago. 'Wearing masks is an important additional measure to help combat COVID-19,' Dr Kidd said. 'A mask can help to prevent the person wearing it from contracting COVID-19, and stop someone else from becoming infected. Commercially, the chemical 1,4 butanediol is sold primarily to businesses as a floor and electronics cleaner. But, around the world, there are people who ingest small amounts of the chemical as a recreational intoxicant or give it to others as a so-called date-rape drug. This illegal black-market use of the product, commonly known as BDO, has drawn only minimal attention from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. But a spokesman says it is readily available on the street. A lot of this is marketed on the black web, said Special Agent Sammy Parks, a DEA spokesman. We see in Europe it is being used a lot. It is being used more there than it is here. Many people use it when they are on probation and parole because it gets flushed from the body within 4 to 5 hours of being consumed. People addicted to meth are known to use BDO to come down from a high, Parks said. This is readily available in our streets but in very small micro amounts, he said. People will get a hold of a gallon of this and sell cap fulls for $40 each. They usually measure it in milligrams. The average dosage unit is between 1 and 3 milligrams. A lot of people use it as an experimental drug. BDO has drawn broader attention in Southeast Texas following the arrests last month of nine people in connection with what federal prosecutors say was a national distribution ring based in Nederland at Right Price Chemicals and Jakes Fireworks. A federal indictment says the defendants knowingly sold BDO to people for human consumption. The ringleaders face potentially decades in prison. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Englade says it accounted for 95 percent of Right Price Chemicals distribution. The attorney for the Daughtry family, who owns the company, contends that number is inflated. All defendants have pleaded not guilty. The charges accuse Right Price Chemicals owners and employees of allowing individuals to purchase BDO, which metabolizes into GHB once ingested. GHB is commonly used as a date-rape drug. Right Price allegedly distributed approximately 7,000 gallons of BDO over thousands of orders, generating $4.5 million in sales. Customers could buy BDO from Jakes Fireworks through internet orders and have the chemical shipped to their home, prosecutors say. Right Price is accused of distributing bulk quantities of BDO to midlevel dealers who, in turn, sold or distributed the chemical to users. Investigators claim to have linked the chemical sold by the Nederland company to one death in Virginia and another in Florida. During a detention hearing for Jake Daughtry, 34, Englade said autopsies showed the victims, a man and a woman, had BDO and GHB in their systems. Investigators allegedly traced containers of BDO from both cases to the Nederland business. Prosecutors say companies that sell BDO require purchasers to fill out a form asking them to name their business and the chemicals intended use. Daughtrys attorney, Dustin Galmor, showed the court that the chemical was available to buy online from Walmart and Amazon. Last week, a reporter was able to place an order for a 500 ml bottle of BDO from Amazon without being asked for any additional information before the order was confirmed. The reporter then canceled the order. During a recent detention hearing for Jake Daughtry, Englade said Right Price had a contract with Silver Fern Chemical to buy BDO by the drum. Federal agents who raided the business on July 15 found 32 empty 55-gallon drums. Special Agent Robert Wexler testified that agents were able to siphon a few liters from all of the drums. Galmor said each container of BDO sold by RPC had a warning label that stated the chemical was not for human consumption. He pointed to the companys website, where another warning was listed. The government claims emails and conversations between undercover agents show that Daughtry and other employees knew the chemical they were selling was being used for human consumption. The defense has compared the attenpt to prosecute the Daughtrys to suing Walmart after someone ate a Tidepod. chris.moore@beaumontenterprise.com twitter.com/chris_moore09 A former Coalition minister has slammed the federal government's handling of aged care and called for major structural change in a submission that exposes years of failure to help older Australians. One of Tony Abbott's own ministers after the 2013 election, Liberal Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, says the government has not had the political fortitude to fix the sector after spurning calls for action when it took power. Concetta Fierravanti-Wells. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen "The failure of the Abbott government to act at that critical time sowed the seeds of the predicament that the aged care sector is facing today," she writes in a submission to the aged care royal commission. She also names Prime Minister Scott Morrison as one of the social services ministers responsible for aged care in federal cabinet during the time she says the government squandered a chance for reform. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) Reservists of the Armed Forces of the Philippines may now have to render active service to help the government respond to the coronavirus pandemic. In his address to the nation on Sunday evening, President Rodrigo Duterte urged Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana to call for the mobilization of reservists in the middle of the crisis, alongside doctors and nurses. He even noted that his daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, will likely be the first to heed his call. Duterte-Carpio's appointment as army colonel was confirmed just this March. "You know my daughter, Inday Sara, kapag ako ang nag-mobilize, mauuna iyan. I will specifically point out to her as one of those who will answer," Duterte said. [Translation: You know my daughter, Inday Sara, once I call for them to mobilize, she will be the first to heed my call. I will specifically point to her as one of those who will answer.] The President's pronouncement came amid calls by the medical community for the return of Mega Manila under Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ), as the country faces surging COVID-19 cases and an overwhelmed healthcare system. Heeding to their plea, Duterte noted that he "fully understands" why health workers needed to ask for a time out, and asked them for more patience. "They have been in the front lines for months and are exhausted." Duterte then warned health workers against hinting about staging a "revolution," and assured that once requests are properly channeled, enough government personnel will be provided to assist them. "We will help you with government personnel..I can ask for soldiers to work 28 hours a day," he said. "We are not actually inutile. Next time, as a matter of courtesy...'wag ninyo ako pariringgan ng rebolusyon (don't hint about staging a revolution)." Lorenzana said during the meeting that they were also considering to activate medical reservists for two years to serve the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases. "We propose to beef up our Health Services Command to allow us to enlist at least 10,000 people composed of doctors, nurses, medical technologists, medical aide. This will become our medical reservists for any eventuality." Duterte also called on the police force, especially the female officers, to be ready for deployment. "Iyong mga pulis na babae, ibaba ninyo lahat (The female cops, all of them will have to be deployed), we will train them for just one or two days." Some celebrities and politicians previously joined the country's army reserve forces. Among them were Dingdong Dantes, who holds the rank of master sergeant; Matteo Guidicelli, who was promoted to army second lieutenant; and Gerald Anderson, who was conferred the rank of private. Actress and Batangas Rep. Vilma Santos carries the rank of lieutenant colonel of the Philippine Air Force reserve, while Davao Rep. Isidro Ungab holds the rank of colonel. Actor and Ormoc Mayor Richard Gomez has the rank of chief petty officer for the Navy, while his wife, Leyte Rep. Lucy Gomez is a master sergeant with the Marine reserves. On the Extra Spicy podcast this week, I got to tell my co-host Justin Phillips about a new-to-me food that my cousin texted me about: pho pizza, which just had a short run as a special at Dominos in Vietnam. From the photo, the pizza appears to be a riff on beef pho, topped with cooked slices of fatty beef, meatballs, basil and white onion slivers. It made me wonder whats all been going on over there in Vietnam, while the rest of us in the diaspora werent looking. Who knows what those crazy kids are up to these days! my cousin wrote. Were the old-fashioned ones. Considering the existence of Vietnamese pizza with fried tofu and fermented shrimp paste, theres some really novel stuff happening over there. In 2010, Dominos opened its first outlet in Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh City. The global press didnt cover it much; it wasnt as enthusiastic about the symbolism of that gesture as when McDonalds opened a store in Moscows Pushkin Square in 1990. Nevertheless, that Dominos opened during a period when the Obama administration was actively warming the relationship between the United States and Vietnam, and now the locals can enjoy the fruit of that labor: pho pizza. Pho on pizza isnt a brand new thing by any means. Every few years, somebody tries their hand at it. In 2018, a Melbourne shop called Stretched Pizza came up with a version called Un-Pho-Gettable (sigh) featuring a base of Sriracha sauce mixed with aromatic pho broth. And ZaLat Pizza, a shop in Dallas next to a pho shop by the same owner, is also known for running a version of pho pizza alongside pies topped with tandoori chicken and baked potato garnishes. That said, this is a path few have dared to tread. LiPo Ching / Special to The Chronicle Its easy to poo-poo this stuff and decry the departure as appropriation gone horribly wrong. Your gut might be telling you that pho should be noodles and fresh garnishes in a hot broth, damn the pretenders, and pizza should never intersect with it. Your arteries might be telling you that fast food is going to kill you, and theyre definitely right. That aside, Im going to play devils advocate here, and this isnt even because I particularly want to eat pho pizza. Isnt it exciting to see how classic dishes can evolve and surprise us? I think people who love food, the children of immigrants in particular, have a tendency to get caught up in authenticity fights because it feels like an existential battle. Sometimes, you want to be an expert on the perfect pho, the perfect chimichanga, the perfect tahdig, because part of your identity rides on that knowledge. God forbid you get called out for forgetting the asafoetida in your tadka. Talk about failing a pop quiz on your own culture. What complicates pho pizza even more is that everyone whos sold it out of a restaurant thus far has been Vietnamese themselves. The call is coming from inside the house! So thats why I like pho pizza or at least the theoretical implications of it. I like the disruptiveness of its existence and the humility it forces on those of us who might be overly invested in authenticity. It reminds me that food can be much more slippery, and more resilient, than we give it credit for. On the podcast Noah Berger / Special to The Chronicle 2019 For this weeks episode, Justin Phillips and I talk with Simileoluwa Adebajo, owner of Eko Kitchen. The wildest thing about the interview is that Adebajo hopped on the call with us literally hours after her business burned down in a major fire. Even though she was fresh off this devastating loss, she remained positive that she could rebuild. Since then, shes already launched a GoFundMe in support of her business as well as several others that lost property in the fire. Listen here. What Im eating I wrote an in-depth story about Basuku cheesecake, a milky confection that graced the newsletter back in June. Since then, the airy cake thats more triple-cream cheese than pastry has taken over its creators life, though in a good way. You can grab yourself a cake via KJ Orchards, Nightbird, Magnolia Mini Mart and Maum. Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more. In other dessert news, the carrot cake ($7) at Friends & Family in Oakland is well worth hustling for before it sells out. With a moist crumb and plenty of spice, its a soul-warming and by-the-book take on a classic recipe. I suggest pairing it with a halawa shot ($3) from Shawarmaji next door, a sippable concoction made from tahini, sweetened condensed milk, pistachios and sesame cotton candy. Recommended reading Youve gotta read this conversation between cookbook writers Yewande Komolafe and Priya Krishna about the whitewashing of recipe writing. I had to fight to not get the name of jollof rice changed to baked tomato pepper rice, says Komolafe. And I'm just like, nobody's going to know what that is. It's jollof rice. I don't know who calls it tomato baked rice. Reporter Tuck Woodstock sends an update from Portland, Ore., where protests against police violence have met even more violence at the hands of federal agents. Woodstock talks to an organizer behind Riot Ribs, a volunteer-run kitchen that offered up free food to protesters day in and day out. Esther Mobley has the inside look at Lola Wines, a winery that recently launched a new tasting room. Thats news in itself, but what really piqued my interest was winemaker Seth Cripes work as producer of bottarga one of the few in this country. Her description of his assertive, briny, toothsome bottarga paired with a glass of his Malvasia makes me want to zip over to Napa right now and try it. Bite Curious is a weekly newsletter from The Chronicles restaurant critic, Soleil Ho, delivered to inboxes on Monday mornings. Follow along on Twitter: @Hooleil Vietnam will continue to fulfill its international commitments so that it can take full advantage of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and recover its economy amid a resurgence of COVID-19 pandemic. Tuna fish to be exported to the EU market. Speaking at the forum on trade cooperation with EU partners on Friday, Hoang Quoc Vuong, deputy minister of Industry and Trade, said the trade deal, which takes effect on August 1, will open up many co-operation opportunities between Viet Nam and the EU. Viet Nam, as one of a few countries to maintain positive growth this year, will continue to strengthen the business environment and complete the legal framework for trade and investment, ensuring the legal rights of investors, in order to take full advantage of this historic trade pact. The Government has directed the Ministry of Industry and Trade and Vietnamese Trade Offices in the EU and the UK to continue to provide Vietnamese enterprises with market information, connect them with foreign partners, and solve any problems they face penetrating the EU market, he said. The graphic shows how the EU-Viet Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) is carried out. Source: Ministry of Industry and Trade In the last 18 years, two-way trade value between the EU and Viet Nam has increased more than 13 times from about US$4.1 billion in 2000 to $56.45 billion last year. Vietnamese exports to the EU last year reached almost $41.5 billion and imports from the EU were over $14.9 billion, he said. In the first five months of the year, 26 out of 27 EU countries invested in Viet Nam with 2,040 projects worth $21.66 billion, up $553 million compared to the same period last year, he added. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on activity in the first half of 2020, and the recovery is projected to be more gradual than previously forecasted. The period saw Vietnamese exports to the EU market suffer a decline of 8.8 per cent to $16.1 billion due to the pandemic impact. The markets that imported large volumes of Vietnamese goods during the period included Germany at $3.31 billion, down 0.2 per cent; the Netherlands at $3,178 billion, a fall of 1.8 per cent; Italy at $1,412 billion, a drop of 20.6 per cent; France at $1.5 billion, down 20 per cent; Spain at $963 million, a fall of 27.3 per cent; and Sweden at $556 million, a decline of 5.5 per cent. Jean-Jacques Bouflet, vice chairman of European Commerce of Chamber in Viet Nam (EuroCham), said the trade deal would boost Viet Nams exports to the EU, one of the largest and most lucrative markets in the world. With a population of more than 500 million and a combined GDP of over $15 trillion, accounting for 22 per cent of the worlds GDP, the EU is the largest exporter and importer in the world with annual trade of $3.8 trillion. Viet Nam has made huge progress over the last few decades in streamlining business conditions and modernising the legal framework to catch new investment and business opportunities, Bouflet noted, adding that the EVFTA is a strong vote of confidence in Viet Nam from the EU. He, however, said that the EU market is highly demanding so exporters must meet its food safety and hygiene standards and management procedures, and provide transparent information related to labour and the working environment. In addition, other markets in the EU to which Vietnamese goods have yet to gain entry include Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, Croatia, Luxembourg, Lithuania, Czech Republic, and Romania. Slow global growth In the latest report in June, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) forecasts that the global economy will suffer losses of $5.8 - 8.8 billion (equivalent to 6.4-9.7 per cent of the global GDP). The latest update from ADB on June 18 said developing economies in Asia will grow very little this year since preventive measures against COVID-19 have affected their economic activity while import demand has weakened. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts that the global economy is expected to grow at minus 4.9 per cent this year, the US at minus 8 per cent, the EU minus 10.2 per cent and China by only 1 per cent this year. The World Bank (WB) forecasts that the global economy this year will shrink by 5.2 per cent. The economies of developed countries will shrink by 7 per cent as domestic demand and supply, trade, and finance have been severely disrupted, and emerging and developing markets will decrease by 2.5 per cent this year. ADB forecasts that the economic growth of Viet Nam this year will be 4.1 per cent. This is 0.7 percentage points lower than its April estimate, but still the highest rate expected in Southeast Asia. Experts recommend Viet Nam continue to improve its production capacity and ability to participate in international trade so that it can take full advantage of the EVFTA. Vietnamese exporters should also pay more attention to rules of origin (RO), corporate social responsibility (CSR), sustainable development, and environmental protection, in addition to product quality and price. Under the EVFTA, the EU will immediately remove import duties for 85.6 per cent of tariff lines equivalent to 70.3 per cent of Viet Nams exports when the agreement comes into effect. After a seven-year period, 99.2 per cent of tariff lines equivalent to 99.7 per cent of Viet Nams exports will be eliminated. On its side, Viet Nam will cut 48.5 per cent of tariff lines equivalent to 64.5 per cent of EU exports to zero per cent right after the agreement takes effect. After seven years, 91.8 per cent of EU tariff lines will be eliminated. The forum, organised by the Ministry of Industry and EuroCham, connected participants online, allowing Vietnamese Trade Offices in the EU to directly interact and answer questions regarding market information and methods to use to approach and support local partners. VNS Handicrafts find it difficult to catch EVFTA train to $100 billion market The EU-Vietnam FTA (EVFTA) is expected to bring more opportunities to Vietnams enterprises to export products to the EU. However, it will be not easy for handicraft producers to obtain bigger market share there. Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment In todays woke culture, it is politically correct to expose white supremacy everywhere in our culture. But wouldnt it be ironic if the ones driving PC culture were actually white elites? According to a major study released in October 2018, most Americans share an aversion to PC culture, with certain groups of Americans demonstrating an extreme aversion to this toxic culture. (I just became aware of the study last week and found it extremely relevant, leading to this article.) The study was titled Hidden Tribes: A Study of Americas Polarized Landscape, and, as explained by Prof. Yascha Mounk in The Atlantic, the study was based on a nationally representative poll with 8,000 respondents, 30 one-hour interviews, and six focus groups conducted from December 2017 to September 2018. The Hidden Tribes report is 160 pages long, so I can only summarize some of the findings here. But, as outside groups (like Antifa) increasingly dominate the current protest-riot movement, its worth revisiting this study. Our goal will be to answer the questions: Who is bothered most by PC culture? Who is advocating for radical change? Who are the ones setting the tone for what is acceptable and what is not? According to the study, as of 2018, while 25 percent of Americans were traditional or devoted conservatives, only 8 percent were progressive activists. As for the 67 percent who did not fall into either of these categories, they were dubbed the exhausted majority. As Mounk wrote, Among the general population, a full 80 percent believe that political correctness is a problem in our country. Even young people are uncomfortable with it, including 74 percent ages 24 to 29, and 79 percent under age 24. On this particular issue, the woke are in a clear minority across all ages. Since the study was completed, the BLM movement has risen to greater prominence and the Democratic party as a whole has lurched further left, raising the bar all the more for political correctness. So, one might think that less Americans find the PC culture offensive, since much of the country is heading in a more PC direction. On the other hand, because that culture has become so extreme, finding its expression in the cancel culture, there is an increasing pushback even from very liberal circles. In the words of Bill Maher, addressing Bari Weiss, who recently resigned from the New York Times, Bari, the fact that you they call you a centrist or right-winger! I mean, if a hip, millennial, Jewish bisexual girl living in San Francisco is not a liberal ... who is these days? As Weiss explained, What cancel culture is about is not criticism. It is about punishment. It is about making a person radioactive. It is about taking away their job. And then, with tremendous insight, she said, Its not just about punishing the sinner, its not just about punishing the person for being insufficiently pure. Its about this sort of secondary boycott of people who would deign to speak to that person or appear on a platform with that person. And we see just very obviously where that kind of politics gets us. If conversation with people that we disagree with becomes impossible, what is the way that we solve conflict?... Its violence. Exactly. And if liberals like Maher and Weiss feel this way, how about the rest of America? How much larger and more exhausted is the exhausted majority today? Turning back to the study, Mounk noted that, Whites are ever so slightly less likely than average to believe that political correctness is a problem in the country: 79 percent of them share this sentiment. Instead, it is Asians (82 percent), Hispanics (87 percent), and American Indians (88 percent) who are most likely to oppose political correctness. Who would have guessed? Among all ethnicities surveyed, American Indians have the biggest problem with the PC culture. It appears that many woke people know what matters to these Native Americans more than they do themselves. As for African Americans, while they were not as strongly opposed to PC attitudes as the other groups listed, still, Three quarters of African Americans oppose political correctness. Who, then, is driving the narrative? Who, then, is pushing the PC ideas? Who, then, is creating the feeling that America, as a whole, has thoroughly embraced PC culture and that only a minority oppose it? Mounk summarizes the findings of the report: Compared with the rest of the (nationally representative) polling sample, progressive activists are much more likely to be rich, highly educated and white. They are nearly twice as likely as the average to make more than $100,000 a year. They are nearly three times as likely to have a postgraduate degree. And while 12 percent of the overall sample in the study is African American, only 3 percent of progressive activists are. With the exception of the small tribe of devoted conservatives, progressive activists are the most racially homogeneous group in the country. Put another way, these are the kinds of people, in other words, who are in charge of universities, edit the nations most important newspapers and magazines, and advise Democratic political candidates on their campaigns. I say that we expose this kind of white supremacy this, rich, highly-educated, elitist supremacy joining together as a nation to push back against a tiny minority attempting to impose its will on everyone else. Emergency student funding, including for basic needs, educational expenses and technology requirements necessitated by virtual learning. Certification funding to provide skill development for displaced members and students. Small business support, including training and assistance in gaining access to funding and resources to aid business reopening, employment and stabilization. Funding for community-based organizations that face increasing demands in meeting basic human needs due to the COVID-19 crisis. "In the midst of a global pandemic which disproportionately impacts communities of color in America, it is imperative to provide tangible support to the Black community," said Bruce Thompson, NBMBAA Interim President & CEO. "The related economic collapse has left our already-at-risk student and professional population even more vulnerable. NBMBAA is activating its 39-chapter nationwide network and scaling its resources to help address these urgent challenges." The National Black MBA is looking for support from corporations, foundations, and individuals for its COVID-19 Relief Fund. Please donate by visiting nbmbaa.org/donate. Contact Renee Foster at [email protected] or 404-260-0178 to learn more. Plans are well underway for the 2020 NBMBAA Conference & Career Fair: A Virtual Experience. This history making online event taking place September 23-25, 2020 will feature programming focused on students, professionals, and entrepreneurs. The three-day schedule includes keynote speeches, panels, and interactive workshops on a wide variety of highly relevant topics by leaders in business, public affairs, and media. It also includes the nation's largest diversity Career Fair with exciting opportunities offered by hundreds of corporate, academic, and not-for-profit partners. To register or learn more about the 2020 National Black MBA Association Conference & Career Fair: A Virtual Experience, visit www.nbmbaa.org/conference/. Sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities are still available please contact Tabitha Jenkins at [email protected] or 352-333-3468. About National Black MBA Association NBMBAA is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) professional member-based organization which leads in the creation of educational, career and wealth building opportunities for students, professionals and entrepreneurs. Representing more than 20,000 members in 39 professional chapters, 33 Leaders of Tomorrow chapters and over 500 corporate, academic and not-for-profit partners, the organization is dedicated to sponsoring initiatives and developing partnerships that create intellectual and economic wealth in the Black community through its five channels of engagement: career, education, entrepreneurship, leadership, and lifestyle. Visit us @ NBMBAA.org. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn @theblackmba. SOURCE National Black MBA Association Related Links https://nbmbaa.org Round One The August 4 election will narrow the contest for Washtenaw County Trial Court judge. by James Leonard From the August, 2020 issue In deep blue Ann Arbor, the August Democratic primary decides most local offices--even former Republican and independent Jane Lumm is running this year as a Democrat. But elections for judge are different. Three attorneys are competing for the 22nd Circuit Court seat being vacated by retiring judge David Swartz. The nonpartisan primary will eliminate one; the other two will meet again in the November general election. All the candidates are hopeful that restorative justice can provide an alternative to prison for some criminals. But they disagree on whether the justice system in Washtenaw County is systemically racist and, if so, what judges should do about it. Amy Reiser, forty-six, was born in Dearborn, grew up on Grosse Ile, and now lives in Dexter. An assistant Washington County prosecutor, Reiser is endorsed by a Michigan Court of Appeals judge, two local magistrates, a smattering of politicians and businesspeople, and her boss, retiring prosecutor Brian Mackie. "I've worked in Mackie's office since 2002," she explains. "I have, hands down, the most experience handling trials." Reiser recognizes that "Mackie's gotten a lot of criticism over the last few years. But it's hard for me to hear people criticize [him] because we've done a lot of good work for victims ... I think in this climate right now, that's being overlooked." Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Nick Roumel, sixty-three, says he's "just young enough to serve two terms if the voters are so willing." A principal at NachtLaw who lives in Ann Arbor, Roumel has endorsements from dozens of past and present elected officials, including both factions on Ann Arbor City Council, as well as five active and retired judges. He also has Michigan attorney general Dana Nessel. "Back in the early days when Dana was running, somebody told her to talk to me [because] I've got my finger on the pulse of local politics," he says. Early this year they met for lunch, and she volunteered her support. "She was ...continued below... The article incorrectly states that I have no judicial endorsements. I have the support of 8 judges and judicial officials listed on my web page. I have asked the Observer to correct this information, but will post this comment in the meantime. kind enough to join me in my virtual kickoff."fifty, ran in 2014 but lost to Julia Owdziej. Born and raised in Commack, New York, she lives in Ann Arbor and works as a senior litigator for Nessel.Van den Bergh didn't get her boss's endorsement, but she did get the backing of more than a dozen judges, including three of the seven current trial court judges: Carol Kuhnke, Tim Connors, and Pat Conlin."I've practiced in front of all of them," the former social worker explains, "but I think what really is the focus is that they have designated the seat a family court seat. It's so important that you have a passion for that kind of work, [and] I really am very committed to being with families long-term."All three candidates agree on the usefulness of restorative justice, which aims to replace punishment with programs to reconcile offenders with their victims and community. "It's just a waste of tremendous resources to be housing somebody in prison," Roumel says. "I'd like to give judges a little more discretion [so] that we can deviate from the [state sentencing] guidelines.""It is a good idea in certain circumstances," Reiser says. "A situation where an individual has embezzled from their employer due to a substance abuse issue [might] be a situation where you see the employee get into a substance abuse treatment program, [and] the employer comes together with that employee because they have a long relationship."But all agree that restorative justice won't work for everyone. "There're a few too-dangerous people out there--serial rapists and serial killers," says Van den Bergh. "But I think it's rare that somebody can't be rehabilitated and reenter society."The candidates' sharpest disagreement is on whether Washtenaw County's justice system is systemically racist--and, if so, what should be done about it."A judge needs to be aware of his or her own inherent biases in setting bail and doing sentencing," says Roumel. "The first thing that I would do to try to eliminate it [is] apply for a grant or have volunteers do court watching to report outcomes--is it a systemic bias or [are we] limping along with our inherent biases and we need to be educated about doing better?""Of course it is [systemically racist]." says Van den Bergh. "And it's not because I think Judge [Carol] Kuhnke is a racist or I'm a racist. But the bottom line is we all have implicit biases. I'm always going to be aware that I have implicit biases that I need to stay on top of.""I don't believe that the system is systemically racist," counters Reiser. "As a prosecutor I treat everyone that comes before me the same. The [law enforcement] officers that I've worked with are compassionate. I see Sheriff [Jerry] Clayton reaching out to the lower socioeconomic communities."Like the contest to replace Mackie ("A Pivotal Race for Prosecuting Attorney," July), the outcome may depend on whose views on this issue are closest to the voters.Though judges serve six-year terms, November's winner will likely be reelected until they turn seventy and are forbidden to run again. The judicial ballot doesn't include party affiliations, but it does identify incumbents--and voters return them to the bench by overwhelming margins.---[Originally published in August, 2020.]On July 29, 2020, Nick Roumel wrote: The Israeli army on Monday said it targeted a group of four people who had planted explosives along the border fence with Syria on the Golan Heights. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 17:31:54|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close CAIRO, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- At least eight people were killed and seven others injured late Sunday when a minibus crashed into a canal in Egypt's province of Giza, south of the capital Cairo, a medical source in Giza hospital told Xinhua on Monday. "The driver lost control of the vehicle's steering before it fell in Al-Mariotia canal in Giza," state-run Ahram newspaper quoted an official security source as saying. The minibus was transferring workers from a company at the desert road to their houses in Monufia province, it added. The medical source said that two of the wounded are in critical conditions. Initial investigations have attributed the accident to the driver's high speed. The prosecution ordered an immediate investigation of the accident. Egypt suffers a high rate of traffic accidents that kill thousands of people every year mostly due to the negligence of traffic rules and high speed. Enditem A 31-year-old man from Boston was killed Monday in a shooting that occurred in the area of King Street in Worcester, police said. Officers arrived at 38 King Street for a report of gunshots around 5:40 a.m., police said. After arriving, they found a man suffering from gunshot wounds. The victim was treated on scene and taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said. Police didnt publicly identify the victim, but authorities said he was not previously known to the Worcester Police Department. The death continues a month-long plaque of gun violence experienced in Worcester. Last week, Worcester police responded to a pair of reports of gunshots within 15 minutes of each others. A few days later on July 30, police responded to five reports of gunfire. Last Monday, Javier Moctezuma was arrested in connection with a July 3 shooting that left Davie Harmon dead and another person injured, police said. Two people were shot on Main Street on July 22, according to police. Earlier that week, on July 20, a 20-year-old man was shot near Pleasant and Piedmont streets. On July 10 one person was shot and two were arrested in an incident on Hope Avenue. On July 9, a man was shot on Mount Pleasant Street. And, a few days before that incident, a 24-year-old man was fatally shot on Almont Avenue. The incident on Aug. 3 remains under investigation. If you have information about this incident, please send an anonymous text to 274637 TIPWPD + your message or send an anonymous web based message at worcesterma.gov/police. Calls can also be made to the Worcester Police Detective Bureau at (508) 799-8651. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) talk with reporters in Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Aug. 3, 2020. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Amid Impasse, White House and Democrats Continue Talks on CCP Virus Relief White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Monday held a meeting for about two hours in Washington on a pandemic relief measure. Pelosi told CBS News that the meeting was productive, telling reporters afterward that were moving down the track, without elaborating. Schumer, meanwhile, added that there is a desire to get something done as soon as we can, although there are some issues that still need to be worked out. Were making some progress on certain issues, moving closer together, he told reporters while adding that there are a lot of issues that are still outstanding. Among the most contentious issues is whether to continue the federal unemployment benefits program of $600 per week, which expired last week. Republicans in the Senate proposed a $200-per-week and wage replacement program in their HEALS Act last week, but Democrats said its not enough. When asked Monday about the unemployment program, Schumer told reporters that Republicans are sticking to their position. And Pelosi told CNN earlier on Monday that the $600-per-week provision should be kept unless the joblessness rate declines. As the unemployment goes down, the number can go down, she said. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on the Senate floor Monday that Democrats are refusing to cooperate. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) talk with reporters in Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Aug. 3, 2020. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) The speaker of the House and Democratic leader continue to say our way or the highway, he said, referring to Pelosi and Schumer. At the White House, President Donald Trump said he considered issuing an executive order that would help those who are affected by the pandemic, such as a moratorium on evictions. I have a lot of powers with respect to executive orders and were looking at that very seriously right now, he said Monday, according to the Wall Street Journal. Meadows told CBS News on Sunday that he is not optimistic that a relief package will be passed in the very near future. Republicans have asserted that the $600-per-month benefits are creating a reason for people not to return back to work while Democrats have said it is needed to provide for families that are suffering during the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic. Democrats and Republicans are also at odds with providing more funding to cities and states amid the economic downturn. In the HEROES Act passed by House Democrats in May, they sought to provide $1 trillion in funding, while the HEALS Act provides none. They also have differing opinions on whether there should be liability protection for businesses, hospitals, and schools. Republicans support the measure and Democrats do not. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Power discoms in Delhi are witnessing a surge in residential rooftop solar power connections, with more than half of over 3,700 net metering connections installed in recent years falling under this category, officials said. The BSES discoms have so far energised over 2,700 solar net metering connections in the city, with the highest number of rooftop solar connections in the residential segment (1,526) followed by educational (581) and commercial (473) segments. An analysis of data shows that highest number of rooftop solar net metering connections is in domestic segment. In fact, rooftop solar connection is a big hit among the central government housing society (CGHS) segment wherein around 90 societies and apartment complexes have opted for it with a sanctioned load of over 5 MWp, he said. The Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) had issued regulations on net metering for renewable energy in September 2014. The regulations allow registered customers to install renewable energy systems and the discoms will allow connectivity of these systems to their network through net meters. A Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) spokesperson said the surge in domestic (residential) sector in this regard has been visible since 2017. The surge in domestic count can be observed since 2017, which is credited to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) subsidy scheme in Phase-I under which a customer is entitled to flat 30 per cent subsidy on solar plant cost, he said. The TPDDL has so far installed nearly 1,000 rooftop solar net metering connections. In 2019-20, a total of 374 rooftop solar net metering customers were added that included 245 in domestic category, a spokesperson said. A BSES spokesperson said the response to rooftop solar net metering has been incredibly encouraging and consumers across categories have warmed up to the concept in a big way. Warning against flying kites In view of the upcoming Raksha Bandhan and Independence Day celebrations, power discoms in Delhi have advised people not to fly kites near electricity installations, saying metal-coated manja thread may cause electrocution and tripping of the supply network. CHARLES TOWN, W.Va., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Potomac Bancshares, Inc. (the "Company") (OTC: PTBS), the one bank holding company for Bank of Charles Town (BCT), for the quarter ended June 30, 2020 earned $0.826 million or $0.20 per share compared to $0.818 million or $0.20 per share for the quarter ended June 30, 2019. Net income was $1.545 million or $0.37 per share for the six months of 2020 compared to $1.437 million or $0.35 per share for the same period in 2019, an increase of 7.5%. "The resilience and resourcefulness of our employees to help our customers and the communities we serve continues to be amazing during the COVID-19 pandemic," commented Alice P. Frazier, President and Chief Executive Officer. "The tireless effort to assist 538 businesses with the PPP loan program, creative solutions to remain open as an essential business, the adjustment of employees to shift and remote work all the while executing on our strategic initiatives to improve the digital experience significantly improved our customers' ability to transact business during this pandemic. In early July we returned our lobby hours to "normal", although foot traffic is significantly reduced in all offices. We will use this time to study our customers' behaviors and adjust accordingly." Frazier continued, "We are pleased to present our 2020 second quarter results which demonstrates the commitment of our employees during these challenging times. In addition, we crossed the $600 million mark in total assets reaching an all-time high." Total assets were $606.9 million , an increase of $96.4 million or 18.9% over June 30, 2019 . Total loans increased $85.9 million to $475.7 million , or 22% over June 30, 2019 . Excluding PPP loans, growth was $32.7 million , an 8.4% increase. Deposits and cash management accounts were $536.5 million , an increase of $88.6 million over 2019, or 19.8%. Excluding deposits from PPP loans, the increase was $73.0 million or 16%. , an increase of or 18.9% over . Total loans increased to , or 22% over . Excluding PPP loans, growth was , an 8.4% increase. Deposits and cash management accounts were , an increase of over 2019, or 19.8%. Excluding deposits from PPP loans, the increase was or 16%. Pre-provision pre-tax earnings for Q2 2020 increased $0.412 million to $1.569 million , or 36% over Q2 2019. For the first 6 months of 2020 pre-provision pre-tax earnings increased $0.843 million to $2.937 million or 40% over Q2 2019, reflective of continued execution on our strategic initiatives. to , or 36% over Q2 2019. For the first 6 months of 2020 pre-provision pre-tax earnings increased to or 40% over Q2 2019, reflective of continued execution on our strategic initiatives. Net interest margin dropped 0.26% during Q2 compared to Q1 2020. Factors impacting the margin included the 1.5% decrease in Federal Funds Rates, excess liquidity, which was mitigated by decreases in cost of funds. The liquidity position is strong with $106.6 million of cash and unencumbered securities and $163.5 million in secured borrowing capacity at June 30, 2020 . of cash and unencumbered securities and in secured borrowing capacity at . Non-interest income was flat as increases in secondary market mortgage income (42%) and other income (92%) were offset by decreases in trust and financial services (19%), and service charges on deposits (43%). Non-interest expense decreased $91 thousand in Q2 2020 compared to Q2 2019, or 2.1%. Increases in salary and benefits were offset by decreases in data processing costs, communications expense, advertising and public relations, and debit card expenses. Emphasis on third party contract renewals during Q4 2019 are providing significant savings in 2020. in Q2 2020 compared to Q2 2019, or 2.1%. Increases in salary and benefits were offset by decreases in data processing costs, communications expense, advertising and public relations, and debit card expenses. Emphasis on third party contract renewals during Q4 2019 are providing significant savings in 2020. The Tier 1 leverage capital ratio was 9.38% compared to 10.56% in Q2 2019 with the decrease attributable to growth in assets of $96.4 million . Paycheck Protection Program (PPP): As of June 30, 2020 , we have processed 538 PPP loans for a total of $54.5 million . Gross PPP origination fees averaged approximately 3.6% and will be recognized over the life of the loan. Loan Payment Deferrals, Non-Performing Assets and Allowance for Loan Losses Beginning late Q1 2020, the Company created financial relief programs due to the pandemic crisis for our customers including payment relief. Both commercial and consumer loans participating in the 90-day loan deferment program equaled 16.3% of the total loan portfolio, excluding PPP loans as of June 30, 2020 . The company continued to accrue interest on these loans. As of July 31, 2020 , approximately $27.6 million of loans began making payments reducing the amount of loans on payment deferment to 9.8% of total loans outstanding. While the reduction in deferred loans is encouraging, the path to economic recovery is uncertain which may cause further deferrals for certain loans. The Company has increased its efforts in credit risk management by segregating the deferred commercial loans into three categories (high, medium, and low risk) for in-depth monitoring and assessments. . The company continued to accrue interest on these loans. As of , approximately of loans began making payments reducing the amount of loans on payment deferment to 9.8% of total loans outstanding. While the reduction in deferred loans is encouraging, the path to economic recovery is uncertain which may cause further deferrals for certain loans. The Company has increased its efforts in credit risk management by segregating the deferred commercial loans into three categories (high, medium, and low risk) for in-depth monitoring and assessments. Non-performing assets as a percentage of total assets including other real estate owned (OREO) was 0.15% as of June 30, 2020 compared to 0.18% as of March 31, 2020 and 0.36% as of June 30, 2019 . There were no assets in OREO as of June 30, 2020 . compared to 0.18% as of and 0.36% as of . There were no assets in OREO as of . Net loan recoveries for the quarter were 0.012% compared to net loan recoveries in Q1 2020 of 0.011% and net recoveries of 0.013% in Q2 2019. Given the impact of the pandemic crisis, the provision for loan losses in Q2 2020 was $525 thousand , of which $375 thousand was due to Covid-19 adjustments to the qualitative factors within the Company's incurred loss model. This brings the allowance to loans (excluding PPP loans) to 1.12% as of June 30, 2020 . This is up from 1.00% as of March 31, 2020 . Evaluation remains ongoing as the company works closely with borrowers to mitigate risk and minimize future losses. At our July Board meeting, Potomac Bancshares, Inc. Board of Directors declared a $0.07 per share dividend payable to shareholders of record as of August 4, 2020 for payment on August 11, 2020. About the Company Founded in 1871, BCT - Bank of Charles Town, also known as The Community's Bank, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Potomac Bancshares, Inc. (OTC:PTBS). The Company conducts operations through its main office, an additional eight branch offices, and one loan production office. BCT's offices are in Jefferson and Berkeley Counties (WV), Washington County (MD), and Loudoun County (VA). The Bank provides various banking products and services including free access to over 55,000 ATMs through the Allpoint network plus online and mobile banking for individuals, businesses, and local governments. The Bank also offers commercial lines and term loans, residential and commercial construction, commercial real estate loans and agricultural loans. The Residential Lending division offers secondary market and portfolio mortgage loans, one-time close construction to perm loans, as well as home equity loans and lines of credit. For over 60 years, BCT Wealth Advisors has provided financial management, investment, trust, and estate services to its clients. In 2019, the Bank was named a "Best Bank To Work For" by American Banker. In 2018, Forbes named BCT a "Best In State Bank" for Maryland. The Company's shares are quoted on the OTC Pink Sheet marketplace under the symbol "PTBS." For more information about Potomac Bancshares, Inc., and the Bank, please visit our website at www.mybct.bank. Forward Looking Statements Certain statements made in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are statements that include projections, predictions, expectations, or beliefs about events or results or otherwise are not statements of historical facts, such as statements about the Company's growth strategy and deployment of capital. Although the Company believes that its expectations with respect to such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions within the bounds of its existing knowledge of its business and operations, there can be no assurance that actual results, performance or achievements of the Company will not differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS POTOMAC BANCSHARES, INC. Quarterly Financial Data Three Months Ended (Unaudited- dollars in thousands, except per share data) 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 Earnings Performance Interest and Dividend Income $5,297 $5,220 $5,193 $5,103 $5,005 Interest Expense 894 976 989 1,005 931 Net Interest Income 4,403 4,244 4,204 4,098 4,074 Provision For Loan Losses 525 466 132 90 110 Non-Interest Income 1,365 1,288 1,531 1,510 1,373 Non-Interest Expense 4,199 4,164 4,508 4,341 4,290 Income Before Income Tax Expense 1,044 902 1,095 1,177 1,047 Income Tax Expense 218 183 236 260 229 Net Income $826 $719 $859 $917 $818 Return On Average Equity 6.21% 5.51% 6.54% 7.07% 6.48% Return On Average Assets 0.57% 0.56% 0.66% 0.72% 0.66% Net Interest Margin ** 3.14% 3.40% 3.37% 3.35% 3.41% 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 Balance Sheet Highlights Total Assets $606,951 $540,615 $515,845 $505,040 $510,557 Investment Securities 48,785 49,218 50,604 42,906 46,602 Loans held for sale 770 4,103 2,034 3,269 938 Loans, Net of allowance 470,980 414,351 408,744 396,429 386,308 Deposits And Cash Management Accounts 536,492 472,395 451,790 442,246 447,917 Shareholders' Equity $53,602 $52,800 $51,922 $51,642 $51,022 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 Shareholders' Value (per share) Earnings Per Share, Basic $0.20 $0.17 $0.21 $0.22 $0.20 Earnings Per Share, Diluted 0.20 0.17 0.21 0.22 0.20 Cash Dividends Declared (per share) 0.07 0.07 0.07 0.07 0.07 Book Value At Period End (per share) $12.97 $12.77 $12.56 $12.49 $12.34 End of period number of shares outstanding 4,133,811 4,133,811 4,133,811 4,133,811 4,133,811 6/30/2020 3/31/2020 12/31/2019 9/30/2019 6/30/2019 Safety and Soundness Tier 1 Capital Ratio (Leverage Ratio)* 9.38% 10.42% 10.48% 10.56% 10.56% Non-Performing Assets As A Percentage Of Total Assets Including OREO 0.15% 0.18% 0.19% 0.24% 0.36% Allowance For Loan Losses As A Percentage Of Period End Loans 0.99% 1.00% 0.90% 0.90% 0.91% Ratio Of Net (Recoveries) Charge-Offs Annualized During The Period To Average Loans Outstanding During The Period -0.012% -0.011% 0.016% 0.041% -0.013% * The capital ratios presented are for Bank of Charles Town. When computing capital ratios, the net of unrealized holding gains (losses) on securities available for sale and the unfunded liability for pension and other post-retirement benefits, all computed net of tax, are added back to these shareholders' equity figures. ** The net interest margin presented is for the bank. FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS POTOMAC BANCSHARES, INC. Six Months Ended (Unaudited- dollars in thousands, except per share data) June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Earnings Performance Interest and Dividend Income $10,517 $9,779 Interest Expense 1,870 1,789 Net Interest Income 8,647 7,990 Provision For Loan Losses 991 252 Non-Interest Income 2,653 2,431 Non-Interest Expense 8,363 8,327 Income Before Income Tax Expense 1,946 1,842 Income Tax Expense 401 405 Net Income $1,545 $1,437 Return On Average Equity 5.86% 5.76% Return On Average Assets 0.56% 0.59% Net Interest Margin** 3.26% 3.40% June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Balance Sheet Highlights Total Assets $606,951 $510,557 Investment Securities 48,785 46,602 Loans held for sale 770 938 Loans, Net of allowance of $4,732 in 2020 and $3,551 in 2019 470,980 386,308 Deposits And Cash Management Accounts 536,492 447,917 Shareholders' Equity $53,602 $51,022 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Shareholders' Value (per share) Earnings Per Share, Basic $0.37 $0.35 Earnings Per Share, Diluted 0.37 0.35 Cash Dividends Declared (per share) 0.14 0.14 Book Value At Period End (per share) $12.97 $12.34 End of period number of shares outstanding 4,133,811 4,133,811 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Safety and Soundness Tier 1 Capital Ratio (Leverage Ratio)* 9.38% 10.56% Non-Performing Assets As A Percentage Of Total Assets Including OREO 0.15% 0.36% Allowance For Loan Losses As A Percentage Of Period End Loans 0.99% 0.91% Ratio Of Net Recoveries Annualized During The Period To Average Loans Outstanding During The Period -0.01% -0.02% * The capital ratios presented are for Bank of Charles Town. When computing capital ratios, the net of unrealized holding gains (losses) on securities available for sale and the unfunded liability for pension and other post-retirement benefits, all computed net of tax, are added back to these shareholders' equity figures. ** The net interest margin presented is for Bank. SOURCE Potomac Bancshares, Inc. Related Links http://www.mybct.com LAKEWOOD, Ohio -- The economic damage related to COVID-19 continues to mount for communities struggling with decreased revenue. Lakewood Mayor Meghan George said the citys major revenue source is income tax, which due to the pandemic business shutdown has resulted, through June, in general fund revenue being down roughly $4 million compared to last years collections. Were working hard to be back into the black before year end, but itll be a tough trudge, George said. Although (federal) CARES Act funding will help us -- $2.3 million with a projected $1.9 million to the general fund -- its not a silver bullet. With both the income tax deadline extended to July 15 and the property tax deadline moved to Aug. 13, our financial picture remains foggy. Well continue to gain more clarity as the year progresses. The mayor noted that a byproduct of the tax deadline extension is that it both pushes back and shortens the citys revenue collection cycle -- especially for income tax. With the month coming to a close, were optimistic July revenues will improve and that the overall revenue shortfall will improve dramatically by year end, while we also make the necessary sacrifices and adjustments to balance the 2020 budget, George said. That includes the city in late May reaching a deal with nearly 200 employees who agreed to take part in a voluntary furlough program. So far, George said that has saved the city roughly $320,000, including $200,000 in the general fund. The voluntary furloughs involve employees taking up to 20 hours a week through the end of the year. City workers are required to take at least a full shift per week, which cant result in overtime. In addition to the city implementing a training freeze, hiring freeze and postponement or cancellation of projects, overtime has been significantly scaled back, involving only police, fire and public works emergencies. George said that to date, overtime is down more than $368,000 compared to last year. Were also looking toward next year, realizing that the 2021 budget will be especially challenging, George said. This years unemployment will negatively affect next years income tax receipts. Read more news from the Sun Post Herald. The coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc on the retail industry. Lord & Taylor is seeking bankruptcy protection, as is the owner of Mens Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank. They are the latest of thousands of store closures forced by the arrival of COVID-19 has proved too much. Lord & Taylor, which began as a Manhattan dry goods store in 1824, was sold to the French rental clothing company Le Tote Inc. last year. Both filed for bankruptcy protection, separately, in the Eastern Court of Virginia on Sunday. Lord & Taylor said in a statement on its web site its looking for a buyer. The company last year, before the emergence of coronavirus, sold its 11-story flagship building on New Yorks Fifth Avenue which its owned for more than a century, according to The Associated Press. Tailored Brands, which owns Mens Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank stores, was struggling even before shelter-in-place orders smothered any demand for suits or ties. It wasnt alone. Last month, Brooks Brothers, the 200-year-old company that dressed nearly every U.S. president, filed for bankruptcy protection. Tailored Brands filed for Chapter 11 protection Sunday in the Southern District of Texas. Mens Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank stores, along with K&G Fashion Superstore and Moores Clothing for Men, all owned by Tailored, with continue to operate during restructuring. The company expects to reduce its funded debt by at least $630 million. The Associated Press contributed to this report. We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form NORTH CAROLINA Isaias returned to hurricane strength Monday night on its path along the East Coast from the Carolinas and ultimately to New England, the National Weather Service said. A tropical storm warning extended from Surf City, North Carolina, to Stonington, Maine, late Monday, while the Wilmington, North Carolina, area was under a hurricane warning. As Hurricane Isaias regained hurricane status in the Atlantic, forecasters said major flood damage and life-threatening wind damage is anticipated in North Carolina by Tuesday morning. At 11:10 p.m. Monday the National Hurricane Center said the storm made landfall near Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina, with estimated maximum sustained winds at 85 miles per hour. Isaias is expected to produce dangerous winds and storm surge as the category 1 hurricane passes over the state. Potential for wind from 74 to 110 mph the equivalent of a category 1 or 2 hurricane has increased. Shortly after 8 p.m. the storm was about 120 miles southwest of Wilmington. Current models from the National Hurricane Center show Isaias will travel slightly northeast from its Monday position off the coast of Florida and make landfall near the southeast edge of North Carolina. From there, it is forecast to continue up the coastline toward Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. Related: Hurricane Isaias Hits North Carolina Coast, Damage Reported The hurricane center predicts hurricane-force winds will first arrive in North Carolina around 8 p.m. Monday. Tropical storm conditions are expected to spread northward to portions of southern New England through Tuesday afternoon. Tropical storm conditions are possible across other portions of New England by early Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center said. Heavy rainfall will result in flash and urban flooding, some of which may be significant in the eastern Carolinas and the mid-Atlantic, through midweek along and near the path of Isaias across the East Coast of the United States. Story continues Got photos of Hurricane Isaias' damage? You can send them to payton.potter@patch.com As it stands, a hurricane warning has been issued for the area between South Santee River, South Carolina, and Surf City, North Carolina. In this area, winds of at least 74 mph can be expected. The NWS also issued a tornado watch for several counties near the North and South Carolina state line on Monday afternoon. The watch is set to expire at 2 a.m. The watch applies to Myrtle Beach and Pawleys Island in South Carolina and Clinton, Elizabethtown, Whiteville, Burgaw, Wilmington and Oak Island in North Carolina. A tornado watch has been issued for parts of North Carolina and South Carolina until 2 AM EDT pic.twitter.com/qFQ0zZX9S7 NWS Wilmington NC (@NWSWilmingtonNC) August 3, 2020 The National Weather Service said that watches and warnings are only estimations. Residents outside of these zones should remain aware of severe weather conditions as well. "Regardless of whether Isaias is a strong tropical storm or a hurricane, the impacts should be similar, and Isaias will cause high winds in the Carolinas and potentially in areas under tropical storm watches farther north," the weather service said in a recent news briefing. The weather service also warns that potentially deadly storm surges could occur along the East Coast from Florida to the Chesapeake Bay. Don't miss the latest weather updates from government officials in North Carolina. Sign up for Patch news alerts and newsletters for what you need to know daily. In addition to storm surges of up to 5 feet, people along the Eastern Seaboard are urged to prepare for very heavy rainfall between 3 and 6 inches, or up to 8 inches in some isolated regions. Rainfall is expected to lessen as the storm moves farther north. The NWS on Monday afternoon reported that eastern New York and western New England, from Connecticut to New Hampshire, will see between 2 and 4 inches of rain on average, with some areas receiving up to 6 inches. Western and northern Maine will see between 1 and 3 inches of rain on average. "Very heavy rainfall and life-threatening flash and urban flooding are threats along the storm's track through the Eastern Seaboard, along with minor to moderate river flooding," the NWS wrote. According to the report, normally dry areas near the coast are most at risk of floodwaters that move inland from the shoreline. Surges of 3 to 5 feet are possible between South Santee River, South Carolina, and Cape Fear, North Carolina. The NWS predicts storm surges of 2 to 4 feet are expected between Cape Fear, North Carolina, and the border to Virginia, including in Pamlico Sound, Albemarle Sound and the Neuse and Pamlico Rivers. Farther north, from the North Carolina-Virginia border to Martha's Vineyard could see storm surges of 1 to 3 feet. This region includes Chesapeake Bay, the Tidal Potomac River, Delaware Bay, Long Island Sound, Block Island Sound, Narragansett Bay, Buzzards Bay and Vineyard Sound. On Friday, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper also issued a state of emergency, unlocking access to extra resources should the storm cause damage in the Tar Heel State. "With the right protection and sheltering, we can keep people safe from the storm while at the same time trying to avoid making the pandemic worse," Cooper said Friday on Twitter. "A hurricane during a pandemic is double trouble. But the state has been carefully preparing for this scenario." In a news conference Monday, Cooper said emergency responders and rescuers from the U.S. Coast Guard the North Carolina National Guard along with health care workers, swift-water rescue teams, helicopters and high-water vehicles are standing by along the coast to help if needed. On Sunday, President Donald Trump declared a state of emergency in North Carolina and directed federal assistance to aid state and local response efforts in the Tar Heel State. The declaration activates the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate disaster relief efforts in North Carolina. Watches and Warnings The hurricane center Monday announced additional watches and warnings for areas ranging from South Carolina to Maine. Residents in these areas could experience heavy rain, strong storm surges and high wind. The NWS also reports occasional tornadoes are possible along the storm's path from eastern Virginia into southern New England. Storm Surge Warning Edisto Beach, South Carolina, to Cape Fear, North Carolina Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds, including the Neuse and Pamlico Rivers North Carolina's Oregon Inlet to the Virginia Border Storm Surge Watch From Cape Fear to the Oregon Inlet in North Carolina Hurricane Warning South Santee River, South Carolina, to Surf City, North Carolina Tropical Storm Warning Altamaha Sound, Georgia, to South Santee River, South Carolina Surf City, North Carolina, to Stonington, Maine Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds Chesapeake Bay Tidal Potomac River Delaware Bay Long Island and Long Island Sound Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, and Block Island Tropical Storm Watch From the mouth of the Merrimack River to Eastport, Maine Evacuations Franklin Township, voluntary A voluntary evacuation order has been issued for residents and visitors in Franklin Township, including south of Highway 411 from Harrells to Clear Run and south of Highway 41. The order takes effect at 4 p.m. Monday Oak Island, voluntary An evacuation order for nonresidents of Oak Island takes effect at 6 p.m. Sunday Caswell Beach, voluntary A voluntary evacuation order for nonresidents will take effect at 8 a.m. on Monday. Keep up with real time evacuation orders through the ReadyNC website. Sheltering Cooper on Monday explained the pandemic has added additional difficulties to hurricane prep as category one Hurricane Isaias approaches North Carolina. "Listen to local officials and follow evacuation orders when they're issued," Cooper said. "If you are told to evacuate, the most important thing is to get out of the danger zone. First, plan to stay with friends or family. If that doesnt work, a hotel is the next option if you can afford it." Officials asked that, should evacuation orders be issued, residents try to stay with friends and family members or in hotels rather than going to shelters. Cooper said shelters will be available if needed, but shelter workers will screen people for symptoms of the new coronavirus before they are permitted to enter. "If someone has COVID-19 or shows symptoms, they will be directed to a sheltering option for isolation or medical attention," the governor said. "Shelters will have PPE and will honor social distancing" North Carolina's Department of Public Safety reminds anyone who goes to a shelter to practice social distancing and good hygiene to help prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. Anyone staying in a shelter is urged to alert shelter staff immediately if he or she begins to feel sick, or if he or she feels sick when arriving at a shelter. A Local Look Kinston Don Hardy, mayor of Kinston, North Carolina, on Monday declared a local state of emergency in his own city; it took effect Monday morning. The declaration allows the mayor decision-making power in order more quickly access necessary equipment, volunteer workers, emergency supplies and public funds should the storm cause significant damage. STATE OF EMERGENCY DECLARED IN KINSTON, NORTH CAROLINAWHEREAS, in accordance with Chapter 2, article IV, Civil Emergencies, of the City of Kinston Code of Ordinances, Section 2-8 I thru 1-83 and Section 166A and 14-288.12 ofthe North Carolina General Statutes... pic.twitter.com/4yxwj65lyy Mayor Don Hardy (@MayorDonHardy1) August 3, 2020 Raleigh In preparing for the storm's arrival, nine members of the Raleigh Fire Department water rescue team were sent to Williamston on Sunday. According to a Facebook post from the city of Raleigh, the local water rescuers are members of a regional team that includes members from Wake EMS, Durham Fire and Chapel Hill Fire. Sampson, Harnett and Cumberland Counties A special weather statement issued by the NWS on Monday warned that a strong thunderstorm would cause strong winds across Sampson, Harnett and Cumberland Counties until 3:15 p.m. Monday. The storm was capable of producing winds of up to 50 miles per hour, the NWS warned. Residents in Lillington, Dunn, Angier, Godwin, Erwin, Eastover, Coats, Stedman, Wade and Falcon were encouraged to take shelter in a sturdy building. Debris was capable of causing danger as the storm passed through the area, possibly uprooting small trees and blowing around lightweight outdoor items such as potted plants, trash cans and lawn furniture. This article originally appeared on the Charlotte Patch Paterimos was killed Feb. 21 in the West Town neighborhood after getting into a dispute and coming to blows with Tansey. According to John Corbett, the Paterimos family attorney, Tansey left the bar and was later followed by Paterimos, who had left for a cigarette. The pair continued trading blows outside before Tansey pulled a box cutter and stabbed Paterimos in the back of the head, right ear, middle back, right collarbone and right arm, prosecutors said. (Natural News) A highly effective, three-part protocol for treating covid-19 patients is being censored by the social media giants and is being banned by entire states. The State of Ohio issued a directive banning hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) and chloroquine for treating covid-19 patients. These draconian measures are being laid out after a group of doctors came forward with evidence that HCQ works as both a prophylactic and a therapeutic, helping deliver zinc into cells, thereby strengthening the patients immune response to recover from the infection. UPDATE: Ohio has reportedly reversed its ban after a huge outcry against its initial an. This story explores the original motivations for why Ohio banned hydroxychloroquine in the first place. Ohio leaving patients helpless in the fight against covid-19 By banning HCQ and chloroquine, Ohio is complicit in crimes against humanity, forcing patients to suffer, and permitting thousands more needless deaths. The censorship and blockade of this sixty-five-year-old antiviral compound shows how desperate pharmaceutical companies and vaccine makers really are to keep mortality rates high, to instill greater fear, to push for multiple new restrictions on our lives and to force dependence on vaccinations and experimental gene therapies, administered multiple times a year, every year, for life. Pharmaceutical companies are putting their gain above the misery of covid-19 victims, withholding information on antiviral compounds that could save lives for a small price. The people who are in charge of Ohio are clearly puppets of these pharmaceutical companies. Their directive reads, prescriptions issued for chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine for prophylactic use related to COVID-19 or for the treatment of COVID19 are strictly prohibited. Furthermore, No prescription for chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine may be dispensed by a pharmacist or sold at retail by a licensed terminal distributor of dangerous drugs, including prescriptions for patients residing in Ohio dispensed or sold at retail by nonresident terminal distributors of dangerous drugs as defined in rule 4729:5-8-01 of the Administrative Code. Exceptions are made only when the prescription is reviewed by board approved clinical trials that the patient must enroll in. Studies show how HCQ and zinc help patient immune systems recover A study by Martin Scholz, Roland Derwand, and Vladimir Zelenko shows how this three-part treatment protocol can lower mortality rates and ease suffering from covid-19. Out of 335 covid-19 patients, 141 were treated with the three-part therapy and 208 were not treated because they did not meet the risk criteria. After four days of symptom onset, 141 patients received a five-day course of the triple therapy. Their outcomes were compared with 377 control patients with confirmed covid-19 infection who were left untreated. Only four of the treated patients (2.8%) were hospitalized compared to 58 of the untreated patients (15.4%). The patients who were given anti-viral medicine to help their immune system were 84 percent less likely to be hospitalized than those who did not receive treatment. Mortality occurred in one patient who was treated and in thirteen patients who were untreated. The researchers concluded, Risk stratification-based treatment of COVID-19 outpatients as early as possible after symptom onset with the used triple therapy, including the combination of zinc with low dose hydroxychloroquine, was associated with significantly less hospitalizations and 5 times less all-cause deaths. Their research has been replicated by other doctors around the world, including Dr. Stella Immanuel, a Houston, TX physician who successfully treated three hundred fifty patients with the protocol, a 100 percent success rate! Every official in Ohio who is making it extremely difficult to access this proven three-part treatment protocol, should be held accountable. The focus of all government and public health officials should be to get information and resources out to the public as quick as possible so Americans can conquer the virus and build herd immunity, but there continues to be a blackout on the strategies for strengthening individual immune responses. This crisis has become less a pandemic and more so a genocide. For more on treating patients immune systems, visit MedicineUncensored.com. Sources include: BigLeaguePolitics.com PrePrints.org The Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC), under the Govt. of Gujarat, has called for online applications from eligible and interested candidates for filling 137 vacancies to the post of Female Health Worker, Medical Officer, Pharmacist and Lab Technician through VMC Recruitment to be posted at Vadodara in Gujarat, India on a fulltime basis. The online application-cum-registration process towards the same started on July 30, 2020 and closes on August 8, 2020 by 11:59 pm. CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Posts Female Health Worker, Medical Officer, Pharmacist and Lab Technician Organisation Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VCM) Educational Qualification Secondary School Certificate (S.S.C.) or equivalent; possess an MBBS Degree; Bachelors Degree/Diploma in Pharmacy; Bachelors Degree in Chemistry, Microbiology, Biochemistry; Diploma in Lab Technician Experience Refer to the advertisement Job Responsibilities null Skills Required Desirable Job Location Vadodara Salary Scale In the range of Rs. 19,900 To Rs. 1,67,800 per month as per the designation. Industry Civic Body Application Start Date July 30, 2020 Application End Date August 8, 2020 VMC Recruitment: Age Criteria And Fees Desirous candidates applying for various posts through VMC Recruitment must have completed 18 years of age and not be more than 36 years, with relaxation (upper age limit) for SC/ST and OBC candidates as specified in the advertisement. For details regarding VMC Recruitment fee for various posts, refer to the official advertisements given at the end of the article. JKPSC Recruitment 2020 Notification For 900 Medical Officers, Apply Online From August 5 Onwards VMC Recruitment: Vacancy Details Post Name No. Of Vacancies Female Health Worker 77 Medical Officer 28 Pharmacist 20 Lab Technician 12 Total 137 VMC Recruitment: Educational Criteria And Eligibility Desirous candidates applying for various posts through VMC Recruitment must have passed Secondary School Certificate (S.S.C.) or equivalent; possess an MBBS Degree; Bachelor's Degree/Diploma in Pharmacy; Bachelor's Degree in Chemistry, Microbiology, Biochemistry; Diploma in Lab Technician from a recognised Board/University/Institute, and possess basic knowledge of computer as detailed in the notification. Candidates must have knowledge of Gujarati and/or Hindi language. VMC Recruitment: Selection And Pay Scale The selection of candidates for various posts through VMC Recruitment will be done through a Written Test/Skill Test and Interview. Candidates selected for various posts through VMC Recruitment will be paid emolument in the range of Rs. 19,900 To Rs. 1,67,800 per month as per the designation. VMC Recruitment For 160 Multi-Purpose Health Worker (MPHW) Posts, Apply Online Before August 8 VMC Recruitment: How To Apply Candidates applying for various posts through VMC Recruitment must register online on the official VMC website at https://vmc.gov.in/OnlineRecruitment/Recruitment.aspx and submit their applications on or before August 8, 2020 by 11:59 pm. Read the detailed notification about VMC Recruitment for various posts here https://vmc.gov.in/OnlineRecruitment/Recruitment.aspx Juan Carloss announcement comes after Spanish court opens investigation into his involvement in a Saudi rail contract. The former monarch of Spain, King Juan Carlos I, says he is leaving to live in another country, weeks after he was linked to an investigation into allegations of corruption. In June, Spains Supreme Court opened an investigation into Juan Carloss involvement with a high-speed rail contract in Saudi Arabia after Switzerlands La Tribune de Geneve newspaper reported he had received $100 million from Saudi Arabias late King Abdullah. Through his lawyer, Javier Sanchez-Junco, Juan Carlos, who is 82, has declined to comment on the allegations. Sanchez-Junco said in a brief statement on Monday that the former king had asked him to make clear that even though he will be outside Spain he intends to be available to cooperate with the investigation. It was not immediately clear whether Juan Carlos was still in Spain, but El Mundo newspaper reported that Juan Carlos had already left the country. I am informing you of my considered decision to move, during this period, out of Spain, Juan Carlos said in a letter to his son King Felipe published on the royal familys website on Monday. The former king said he made the decision against the backdrop of public repercussions of certain episodes of my past private life, adding that he wanted to ensure he does not make his sons role difficult. My legacy and my own dignity demand that it should be so, he said without specifying which country he will be moving to. King Felipe thanked Juan Carlos for his decision, underlining the historic importance that his fathers reign represents for democracy in Spain. He also reaffirmed the principles and values on which it (democracy) is based according to our Constitution and legal framework. A disturbing investigation Spains Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez recently said he found the developments about Juan Carlos, including investigations in Spain and Switzerland, disturbing. The 82-year-old former king is credited with helping Spain peacefully restore democracy after the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975. But marred by scandals in the later years of his reign, Juan Carlos in 2014 abdicated in favour of his son Felipe VI, losing the inviolability protection Spains constitution grants to the head of state. The Spanish Supreme Court announced in June the opening of an investigation to establish whether former King Juan Carlos has criminal responsibility in an alleged corruption case when Saudi Arabia entrusted the construction of the Mecca TGV to a Spanish consortium [Pierre-Philippe Marcou/AFP] After media reports claimed Felipe was a beneficiary of an offshore account holding an alleged 65 million-euro gift ($76 million) from Saudi Arabia to Juan Carlos, Felipe renounced any future personal inheritance he might receive from the former king. Felipe also stripped his father of his annual stipend of 194,232 euros ($228,000). The royal house has denied that Felipe had any knowledge of his fathers alleged financial irregularities. Judge Kristi Davis was sworn in Monday as Tennessees newest member of the Court of Appeals. She was appointed to the Court by Governor Bill Lee just over 60 days ago. Judge Davis, who has been a circuit court judge in the Sixth Judicial District in Knoxville since 2014, is the second female judge to serve on the Court of Appeals from the Eastern Division and the sixth woman to serve on the Court of Appeals. She fills the vacancy left by the retirement of the Honorable Charles D. Susano Jr. in April. Prior to her judicial career, she was a partner at the firm of Hodges, Doughty & Carson in Knoxville, where she practiced for 14 years. She is a graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law. We are excited to have Judge Davis join the Court of Appeals, Chief Judge D. Michael Swiney said. We are fortunate that her experience will enable her to hit the ground running, which is an important benefit to the people of Tennessee and the Court of Appeals. We look forward to Aug. 3 finally getting here. Officials said, "Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, Judge Davis journey to a seat on a state appellate court has been a bit different than usual. Customarily, after an extensive application and interview process, the governor appoints an appellate judge and the General Assembly has 60 days to confirm or reject that appointment. "This confirmation was complicated by the fact that the General Assembly was in recess for over two months this spring because of Covid-19. Once the legislature returned, a vote to confirm Judge Davis would have required her to appear on the August ballot. The ballots had already been mailed, however, and it would have cost $700,000 to send out additional ballots with just her name on them. In light of those costs, state legislators chose a different path. Under state law, if the General Assembly fails to reject the governor's appointee within sixty (60) consecutive calendar days, then the appointee shall be deemed confirmed as of the following calendar day (Tenn. Code Ann. 17-4-103 (West))." State Senator Mike Bell, the chairman of the Tennessee State Senate Judiciary Committee, explained the decision. After talking about it and realizing that especially in these times of crunched budgets $700,000 is not an insignificant amount of money, he said at a June 9 hearing. What we decided to do would be to allow the nominee to be confirmed basically by default by us not acting. That June 9 hearing of the State Senate Judiciary Committee was held to introduce Judge Davis to members and to allow them to ask questions of her via video. She was introduced at the hearing by Deputy to the Governor and Chief Counsel Lang Wiseman, who pointed out that this most recent group of nominees to the Court of Appeals had been exceptionally strong. He explained why Judge Davis rose to the top of the esteemed field. It was a host of things ranging from her professional reputation and standing to the level of support she received not only from her fellow judges and those that practice in front of her, but also from members of the legislature who spoke favorably about Judge Davis, he said. Deputy Wiseman went on to highlight Judge Davis body of work as a judge, and also pointed out that she was uniquely able to articulate the type of judicial philosophy and worldview that is important to the governor and frankly to all of us who value judges who are not there to make the law but to interpret the law. Judge Davis agreed with that assessment of her judicial philosophy during the hearing. I feel very strongly that our job as judges is simply to interpret the law that is made, she said. We are not to be activists. It is not our job to impose our policy [preferences] in the cases we decide, thats the job of the legislature. Ive told people that if I was interested in making law, this is not the job I would be in. I would be where you folks are. Her statements were greeted warmly by members of the Judicial Committee. You hear Judge Davis and you hear the passion, but also the knowledge she has, said State Senator Jon Lundberg, the 1st vice chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. We have been blessed to have several appointments from this governor. I think folks really see the kind of people he is putting on the bench and the qualifications that are absolutely stellar. Long before she conversed with members of the State Senate Judiciary Committee or even thought about joining one of the states highest courts, Judge Davis was a young girl growing up in the rural, northwest Knoxville community of Karns. Her parents both held full-time jobs, instilled in her an appreciation for hard work, and taught her the importance of giving back to the community. The first inkling of the direction her life would take came at Karns High School, where Judge Davis relished her time on the schools mock trial team. She helped craft opening statements, examined witnesses, handled objections and delivered closing arguments. I was able to see how trying a case worked from start to finish, she said. Thats the first time I ever really thought a career in the legal field was something I was interested in. She did not run to the bookstore and start buying law books just yet, though. When she entered the University of Tennessee-Knoxville as an undergraduate, she had her heart set on broadcast journalism. Television news was my initial goal, she said. Increasingly, though, the reality of a life in broadcasting began to sink in to her. She would have to start her career in a small market and then strive to move on to bigger and bigger markets. Although, she enjoyed her broadcasting major, she realized that career was not for her. So instead Judge Davis went directly to law school at the University of Tennessee College of Law. Aided by an intense love of reading, she thrived there, joining the Tennessee Law Review and the Jerome Prince National Evidence Moot Court Team. The moot court team was so good during her time on it, that they went to a national competition in New York City, where they placed second overall, but first in brief writing. As a law school student, she received the John D. Baugh Award for Excellence in Oral Advocacy, the Gunn, Ogden & Sullivan Award for Excellence in Brief Writing, and the E. Bruce & Mary Evelyn Foster Scholarship. After law school, a decision loomed. Judge Davis considered joining the JAG Corps, but home beckoned too loudly. Apparently, I have a problem with moving from here, she said happily. I had the opportunity to go to a different state for undergraduate, and then for law school. I had an opportunity after graduating from law school to go to the JAG Corps. There must be something about Knoxville because I have chosen to remain here though all these transitions. Instead of leaving, she stayed and became a clerk for Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Joseph M. Tipton. The next two years were formative. That experience was invaluable, she said. Just in terms of fine-tuning my legal writing skills and analytical skills. You come out of law school and think you know how to write, but having the opportunity to clerk for a judge really gave me an appreciation for how important your choice of words are. We would draft preliminary opinions for him and they would come back with red ink all over them. That was a little scary because I thought I could write, but it was just a matter of learning how to write in that style, in that voice, and understanding that the opinion you are writing, how is it going to be read in the future? Does it need to be read broadly or narrowly? The word choices you use can have an effect on that. Following her time as a clerk, Judge Davis joined Hodges, Doughty & Carson in Knoxville, where she specialized in civil litigation and became a partner in 2007. She handled all kinds of cases, from your standard slip and fall to something as complicated as commercial leases, as she put it. At times she wondered if she should focus her efforts on one specific area, but later she was glad she did not. Looking back I think that ended up being a good thing for me because I was exposed to so many different areas of the law, she said. I think having that broad background was particularly helpful for transitioning to the circuit court. In addition to her trial work, Judge Davis also eagerly delved into appellate argument while at Hodges, Doughty & Carson. Altogether, she argued 26 appeals before the Tennessee Court of Appeals, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals, the Tennessee Supreme Court, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Most of the people who tend to be litigators dont enjoy the appellate work it seems because it is more research and writing focused, and people who want to be in the courtroom want to be in the courtroom, she said. I really enjoy both of those things. I was lucky that all the folks in my office, if they ended up with something on appeal they would bring it to me. I love it. It is a contained world when you are dealing with an appeal. You have one case with specific issues, and you research those issues, and you write on them. I really enjoyed presenting the oral argument in front of the appellate court. It is a completely different style and skill. The tone is different, the delivery is different, the presentation is different. I was very glad to have the opportunity to do that much appellate work. While Judge Davis loved being a litigator, when a Circuit Court vacancy opened up in 2012 upon the retirement of Judge Wheeler A. Rosenbalm, she decided to go for it. It is not one of those things I had in the back of my mind for a long time, she said. It is not like when I was a litigator I was secretly saying to myself I really wish I were a judge. I cant say I never thought about it, but that was the first time the opportunity really presented itself. When the opportunity came up I thought it something I would enjoy. Indeed, one of her favorite parts about being an attorney had always been attending motion days in Circuit Court, which were held every other Friday. She loved going and listening to all the motions. I loved doing that because I loved listening to the arguments and thinking to myself, if I was in the judges position how would I have decided? Judge Davis said. Although she made it to the final three in the judicial selection process for Judge Rosenbalms seat in the bench, she was not chosen. Two years later, Judge Davis decided to try again for a seat on the Sixth Judicial District Circuit Court bench, but this time the state of affairs was different. This time she would have to campaign in a contested election for the seat of retiring Judge Dale Workman. Never in a million years did I ever dream I would run in a countywide campaign, Judge Davis remembered. That was an experience. It was incredibly time consuming. There were constant campaign events on top of her work as a full-time attorney and her role as the mother of two young children. It was a very difficult four to five-month period where I was trying to juggle all of it, she said. Of course, I knew nothing about political campaigns so I had to learn really quickly the lay of the land in terms of running for a political office. It was the most difficult thing I have ever done, but, in the end, it was really rewarding. It was rewarding not only for the resulther election to the benchbut also because of all the people she encountered along the way. There were so many folks I was able to meet and got to know that I never would have had the chance to had I not run for election, she said. On the bench, Judge Davis quickly picked up firsthand experience on the difference between serving as a judge and serving as a litigator. I think the primary difference is that obviously you move out of the role of advocate and into the role of decision maker, and thats a transition, thats different, she said. Decision-making Ive discovered is a skill, and advocacy is a different skill. Ultimately, you have to be comfortable with knowing that 50 percent of the time somebody is not going to be happy with the result. Judge Davis found that some aspects of her career as a litigator were invaluable in her new role as a judge. For instance, she drew value from time spent serving as both a defense attorney and a plaintiffs attorney. It was really important for me to have both of those perspectives and bring that to the table, she said. As a decision maker, I think that has been helpful. One of her favorite aspects of being a trial judge has been observing and appreciating the best efforts of talented attorneys who appear in her courtroom. I just enjoy good advocacy, Judge Davis said. Well-done briefs, good researching, good writing, good presentations in oral arguments, those are really enjoyable to me. Of course, it ultimately makes my job harder when you have two really good attorneys on both sides. Another favorite part of the job for Judge Davis has been presiding over adoption hearings. Those are such joyful moments when you play a small part in bringing a family together and helping to create a home for children, she said. I will miss that tremendously. Just like her move from attorney to circuit court judge, Judge Davis transition from the trial bench to the appellate bench is not one that she always saw coming. Once I became a circuit court judge I was in no hurry to move anywhere else, she said. When I took the job, I did not view it as a stepping stone to the Court of Appeals. I didnt look at it that way at all. I have loved this job tremendously. Im really sad about leaving. I will miss all of the people here. It has been an absolute joy and privilege. But the move makes sense for Judge Davis. Another one of the highlights of her job as a trial judge were the times when she had the opportunity to dig into the harder issues, she said. When I had to go research something on my own and write an opinion, I enjoy that process. There is a sense of accomplishment when you finish. A position on the Court of Appeals promises many opportunities to do precisely that in the coming years. It worked out because I have been a trial judge for six years, she said. I feel like I have done a lot and seen enough so that I can take what I learned and use it in the Court of Appeals. Just being able to do those things I enjoy the most on a regular basisthe research and the writingmade me interested in moving to the appellate level. Even with the often intense demands of her job, Judge Davis has always taken the time to participate in organizations, both professional and otherwise. She is very active in the Knoxville Bar Association, for instance, and is a member of the associations executive committee. She also just finished a term on the Tennessee Judicial Conferences executive committee. In addition, she is involved in the Executive Womens Association and the University of Tennessees Chancellors Associates program. She also served as a special judge on the Tennessee Supreme Court Workers Compensation Panel and on the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibilitys investigative panel. The bulk of her time not on the bench, though, is spent on family. Judge Davis has two children: Holly, a freshman, and Reid, a senior, at Knoxville Catholic High School. Judge Davis is an avid attendee of their sporting events. Her husband, Chris, is the administrator of elections for Knox County. Officially, Judge Davis last day as a circuit court judge is July 31. While she is sad to say goodbye to that court and the people in it, she is very much looking forward to the future. I think that we have been blessed here in Tennessee with a tremendous group of judges on the appellate level, she said. l am really honored to be able to be a part of this group of folks. They are hard-working, their opinions are good, and it is just an honor to be a part of the legal field in this way. To sell or not to sell -- that is the question ByteDance is facing in the US. The company is in quite a conundrum as it is, in a nutshell, either looking at a ban on its popular video sharing app TikTok or to sell it to Microsoft. The Satya Nadella-headed company is in talks with ByteDance to buy TikTok. The third side of this development is the Trump administration which fears that personal data of Americans could be turned over to China by the company. Reports of Microsoft's talks with ByteDance emerged on Saturday after Reuters reported that the company is looking to divest its US operations of TikTok after Trump said that he plans to ban the app. "We may be banning TikTok. We'll see what happens," said Trump to reporters on Friday. The report stated that ByteDance would exit completely and Microsoft would take over. Microsoft, which owns professional social media network LinkedIn, would be in charge of protecting all of TikTok's US user data. However, as per reports, President Donald Trump was not in favour of the acquisition -- in the beginning. "It's not the deal that you have been hearing about that they are going to buy and sell, and this and that - and Microsoft and another one. We're not an M&A country," he had said leaving Microsoft in the lurch. Also read: TikTok's loss is Instagram's gain; 55% influencers favour Facebook-owned platform after Chinese apps ban Following reports of Trump's disapproval, Wall Street Journal said that Microsoft paused their negotiations with ByteDance. However, something changed on Sunday. Microsoft said that the negotiations are back on after Satya Nadella spoke to Trump. "Following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald J Trump, Microsoft is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the United States," the company stated in a blog post. Microsoft said that it is committed to acquiring TikTok provided it successfully completes a security review. It said that the company will pursue discussions with ByteDance and would complete the talks no later than September 15. "During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States Government, including with the President," it said. "Among other measures, Microsoft would ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the United States, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred," it said. Also read: Chinese app ban: TikTok says ready to store data locally, denies breach of user privacy As per reports on Monday, Trump has given ByteDance 45 days to negotiate the sale of TikTok. The negotiations between ByteDance and Microsoft would be overseen by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US that has the power to block any agreement. Meanwhile, TikTok stars in the US were heartbroken to learn of the impending fate of their favourite app. Creators released emotional goodbyes, announcements on where else they can be followed, and some were outraged. Some even tried to appeal to Trump. TikTok US General Manager Vanessa Pappas in a TikTok video message put their fears to rest. "I just want to say thank you to millions of Americans who use TikTok every day, bringing their creativity and joy into our daily lives. We've heard your outpouring of support and we want to say thank you. We are not planning on going anywhere," she said. A message to the TikTok community. pic.twitter.com/UD3TR2HfEf a TikTok (@tiktok_us) August 1, 2020 THE DEAL Microsoft is planning to take over TikTok's operations in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The company might also invite other investors to acquire minority stakes in TikTok. It is still unclear how much Microsoft would pay for TikTok. According to Reuters, ByteDance's valuation of the app exceeded $50 billion. However, pressure to divest might lower the price tag. Microsoft might give ByteDance some transition time to develop technology specifically for TikTok as separating the app from the parent company's infrastructure and access would be one of the concerns if the deal follows through. Also read: Investors price TikTok at $50 billion in takeover bid Also read: TikTok could operate as an independent US firm: White House official For the medical director at one of the nations largest nursing home operators, the opportunity to open the facilities to pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Company to conduct research on a promising new coronavirus treatment was irresistible. After spending the past six months trying desperately to keep the deadly virus from invading their facilities, Dr. Mark Gloth said he believes he is finally getting a chance to strike back. Our hope is this is not going to just be a defense, but our best offense, said Gloth, the medical director for ProMedica Senior Care, which operates 222 senior facilities around the country. To not only hold back this virus, but hopefully conquer it. On Monday morning, Eli Lilly announced the start of a late-stage study on so-called monoclonal antibody treatment, a therapy the company hopes will offer short-term protection to residents and staff at nursing homes, arguably one of the most important frontlines of the pandemic. "We know from preclinical experimentation that the antibody has the potential to block transmission of the disease," said Dr. Dan Skovronsky, the chief scientific officer of Eli Lilly. "In other words, if we give it to an individual, we're testing to see whether they're now protected from getting infected with the virus. PHOTO: A U.S. flag flies over Eli Lilly & Co.'s headquarters in Indianapolis, Indiana, Sunday, April 15, 2007. (Tom Strickland/Bloomberg via Getty Images) (MORE: Coronavirus updates: WHO points to Vietnam as example of how to combat pandemic) Residents of nursing homes have accounted for more than 40 percent of the coronavirus deaths in the country since the outbreak began earlier this year, according to state figures reviewed by ABC News. In some states, including Maryland and Texas, the national guard has been deployed in strike teams to try and contain deadly outbreaks. Gloth called the potential for a new protective treatment both encouraging and exciting. Given by infusion, monoclonal antibodies are similar to the use of antibodies harvested from the blood of people who have already recovered from coronavirus. But unlike plasma, which relies on donors, monoclonal antibodies are manufactured as a pharmaceutical product, meaning they should be much easier to produce in large quantities. Story continues In order to see if they help protect the nations most vulnerable patients, Eli Lilly and ProMedica (formerly known as HCR ManorCare) have teamed up. Whenever one of the companys skilled nursing or assisted living facilities reports its first new positive test for COVID-19, the research team plans to deploy a mobile lab and medical team to that location to sign up nursing home residents and staff for the study. When word of the first coronavirus case at a ProMedica nursing home in Moline, Illinois, came late last week, Gloth said, it took the research team less than 24 hours to set up an infusion center in the dining hall, and they were doing the first infusions just a few hours later. PHOTO: A blood sample is tested at a coronavirus antibody rapid serological testing site on on July 26, 2020 in San Dimas, California. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images) (MORE: Trump considering unilateral action as stalemate over coronavirus relief continues) The infusions themselves take about an hour, with research teams conducting follow up checks on the recipients over the ensuing days and weeks. Some recipients receive the antibodies, while others are given a placebo typically just saline. Gloth said earlier phases of the trial suggest the risks to those receiving the treatment are minimal, and the treatments do not prevent them from receiving other COVID-19 care. At first, Gloth said, the flood of information about the trial was hard for some of the residents and their family members to digest, especially because they remain physically isolated from each other. Think about it, Gloth said. Youve got a loved one in a skilled nursing facility. Youve just found out theres been an exposure at the facility. And that theres a potential opportunity to be part of a study that may help. But you cant come in and sit by their side and hold their hand and talk to them about it. Thats been a difficult thing. Despite that, Gloth said the interest in participating, both among residents and staff, has been high. Eli Lilly said it hopes to enroll about 2,400 participants in the study. Gloth said that could ultimately involve introducing the antibody treatment at 20 to 30 of the companys facilities. Gloth remains hopeful the treatment will prove effective a first step in slowing down a virus that has left a grim toll in its wake, especially in the nations nursing homes. In our population, the frailest of the frail, thats critically important, he said. Anything we can have to take the offensive here is going to be really, really important for us. Nursing home leaders hope new antibody trials will put them on 'offense' against COVID-19 originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Hyderabad: Telangana state reported 983 new confirmed Covid-19 patients, taking the overall tally to 67,660. Fatalities from the disease increased to 551 with 11 more people succumbing to Covid-19. For the first time in the week-long period from July 26, Jayashankar-Bhupalapilli district, did not report a single case as per the Covid-19 bulletin issued on Sunday, for the 24-hour period ending at 8 pm on Saturday. The 24-hour span also saw 1,088 persons recovering from the disease leaving 18,547 active cases in the state. Of these, 12,001 were in home isolation. Of the rest of 6,546 patients, 2,397 were in government hospitals and the rest, 4,149 were admitted to private hospitals. Of the latest cases reported, the health department said 517 were from the GHMC limits, followed by 181 in Ranga Reddy district, 146 in Medchal-Malkjgiri, 138 in Warangal Urban, 131 in Nizamabad, 111 in Sangareddy, and 93 in Karimnagar district. Several other districts continued to report cases in double digits with only four Nirmal and Vikarabad (eight cases each), Kumrambheem-Asifabad with two, and Nagarkurnool with one case reporting cases in the single digits. The case fatality rate in the state was 0.81 per cent, while it was 2.13 per cent at the national level, it said. As many as 48,609 have people recovered from the infectious disease so far, while 18,500 were under treatment. The recovery rate was 71.8 per cent in the state, while it was 65.44 per cent in the country. The number of individuals in home/institutional isolation was 11,911. The number of asymptomatic cases (of those under home isolation) was 84 per cent, it said. The bulletin said 9,443 samples were tested on August 2. Cumulatively, 4,87,238 samples have been tested. Talking about age and gender wise COVID-19 positive details, it said 65.6 per cent were male, while 34.4 per cent were female. On comorbidities status among deaths, it said the percentage of deaths due to comorbidities was 53.87 per cent. The percentage of deaths due to COVID-19 was 46.13 per cent. The number of vacant isolation, oxygen and ICU beds was 11,085 and 2,184 and 1,302 respectively, the bulletin said. It said RT-PCR/CBNAAT/TRUENAT testing facilities in government were 16 and 23 in the private sector. It also said 320 rapid antigen testing centres have been set up by the government. The bulletin provided a list of laboratories, list of rapid antigen testing centres, details on the status of beds in government and private hospitals, the lists of containment zones in GHMC and in different districts. The bulletin said the government has made elaborate arrangements for treating COVID-19 patients and that sufficient beds are available in government hospitals. The call centre number for helpline, tele-medicine and grievances is 104. People can contact 9154170960 on WhatsApp for any grievances pertaining to private hospitals/laboratories, the bulletin added. Political leaders, family members and relatives paid their last respects to Rajya Sabha member Amar Singh, who died in a Singapore hospital two days ago. Singh's body was brought to the national capital in a chartered aircraft on Sunday evening. The cremation is scheduled to take place at the Chhatarpur crematorium. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP Rajya Sabha member Jyotiraditya Scindia, and Jaya Prada who considered Singh her 'godfather, were among the first ones to pay floral tributes to the former Samajwadi Party leader at his Chhatarpur farmhouse. His wife Pankaja Singh and two daughters were present there. Due to COVID-19 protocols, Singh's last rites will be performed in the presence of a limited number of people. Singh, 64, had been undergoing treatment at a hospital in Singapore for six months and had earlier undergone a kidney transplant in 2013. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 15:01:36|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close KUNMING, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- "Buza," a traditional handicraft of China's Bai ethnic group and often associated with mystic beliefs, has gained a new prominence among locals due to its modern attributes. The ethnic craftwork, made with fabric and thread, and stuffed with herbs and spices, usually represents images of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals, folklore of the Bai people, historical figures and other auspicious symbols. In 2009, Buza was listed as an intangible cultural heritage of southwest China's Yunnan Province. The unique cultural feature of Buza is that "each one implies some meaning and every meaning bears an auspicious significance," said 34-year-old Zhang Sidai, who runs a Buza store in Jianchuan County of Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan. Feeling committed to passing on this traditional heritage, Zhang also offers Buza-making experience programs in her store. During the Dragon Boat Festival, children in Jianchuan would wear a string of Buza on the chest as talismans. Traditionally, a string of Buza consists of three to eight trinkets, including a monkey, an embroidery ball and the Eight Diagrams, Zhang said. However, as the Buza strings are expensive to make and only a few are willing to buy them, the Buza strings could only go into the market once a year during the Dragon Boat Festival, said Yang Wantao, curator of a Jianchuan-based cultural center. Zhang, however, saw obstacles as opportunities. She was running a manicure parlor since 2006, and later in 2012, she started learning Buza-making techniques from elderly artisans. Zhang believed that the commodities should meet consumers' demands if she wants to promote this traditional handicraft. She initially designed a variety of daily necessities, such as cardholders, key chains and brooches, which gained much popularity among youths. Besides, some small decorative items suitable for cars and bedrooms managed to garner a lot of orders. In 2018, Zhang invested more than 100,000 yuan (about 14,300 U.S. dollars) to open the Buza experience store. "We have expanded both the time of wearing Buza and the space of using this traditional handicraft, thus opening a broader market for the craftwork," Zhang said. In Xinren Village of Jianchuan, Yang Yinmei is among many other village women who make Buza after completing their farm work. Just a few days back, they completed a large order of crafting 1,000 Buza trinkets. "The price of one piece ranges from less than 100 yuan to over 1,000 yuan, and more than 10 people are engaged with me in crafting Buza," Yang said. The handicraft has allowed many to earn extra cash. In recent years, the government and other organizations have been arranging Buza-making classes for many villagers like Yang so they could shake off poverty and lead a better life. After receiving feedback that many of her ornaments seemed quite juvenile to adults, Yang promptly made innovations, segregating the ornaments into kid-style and couple-style. She even made some Buza bracelets to cater to the market demands. "Though tradition should be preserved, at the same time evolution is also necessary to keep the handicraft alive," Yang said. Enditem Rating Action: Moody's upgrades Cheniere Corpus Christi Holdings to Baa3; outlook is stable Global Credit Research - 03 Aug 2020 Approximately US$5.75 Billion of Debt Securities Affected New York, August 03, 2020 -- Moody's Investors Service upgrades Cheniere Corpus Christi Holdings, LLC's (CCH) senior secured global notes to Baa3 from Ba1. Concurrent with the upgrade, the rating outlook is changed to stable from positive. RATINGS RATIONALE The rating upgrade to Baa3 reflects the near completion of construction activities at Corpus Christi Liquefaction, LLC (CCL), a three train 15 million ton per annum (MTPA) liquid natural gas (LNG) liquefaction facility, the demonstrated sustained, steady operating performance at CCL, and robust cash flows derived under seven 20-year Sale and Purchase Agreements (SPA) whose terms commenced in June 2019 for two of the SPAs and in May 2020 for the remaining five. Collectively, the seven SPA's will provide annual recurring fixed fees of approximately $1.4 billion over a multi-year period providing a strong underpinning for the project's investment grade credit profile. The upgrade acknowledges the recent repayment of convertible debt within the consolidated capital structure, including the repayment of $1.6 billion of convertible debt at CCH Holdco II LLC, an affiliate of CCH (the EIG Notes), funded by a borrowing at Cheniere Energy, Inc. (CEI), CCH's parent. While the convertible note repayment was funded in a non-credit accretive way, addressing the EIG Notes satisfies an overhang issue for CCH's credit profile. The rating however is constrained by CCH's significant leverage profile that is expected to remain in excess of $10 billion as free cash flow generated over the near-term is used to fund remaining construction costs at CCL and to retire holding company debt within CEI's corporate structure. CCH and CCL are wholly-owned subsidiaries of CEI. Construction of CCL Train 3 was approximately 84% complete as of March 31, 2020 with substantial completion anticipated in the first half of 2021. Remaining construction and owners costs are approximately $600 million and will be funded with free cash flow generated from Trains 1-2 and, if needed, equity contributed by CEI whose remaining equity commitment of approximately $350 million is supported by a letter of credit. Story continues The upgrade recognizes the demonstrated track record of CEI and its EPC contractor as collectively both parties have constructed and achieved commercial operations for seven LNG trains, including five trains at its affiliate Sabine Pass Liquefaction, LLC (Sabine Pass: Baa3, stable). CEI has successfully procured natural gas and loaded more than 1,100 LNG cargoes for export, reducing concerns around the company's ability to ramp-up the commercialization of Train 3 and to maintain safe operations. While Covid-19 related construction risks remain, this risk is largely mitigated by the percentage of construction completed, the low supply chain risk as the majority of the equipment and materials have been delivered to the site, and by the significant cushion that exists between the 2021 expected substantial completion date for Train 3 and the Guaranteed Substantial Completion Date under the EPC contract. Incremental revenue from an eighth SPA with an unrated global commodities entity is tied to the commercialization of Train 3. The scheduled start date for a ninth SPA with PetroChina Company Ltd. is 2023. CCH's annual fixed fees for Train 1-3 is approximately $1.8 billion. The current average weighted credit profile of CCH's nine contractual customers is in the mid-Baa rating range, an important rating consideration and a potential rating constraint. The rating upgrade considers the current reduced global demand for LNG owing to a combination of weak worldwide economic activity resulting from measures to contain the outbreak of Covid-19 and high storage inventory levels. As a result, there has been an increase in cargo cancellation notices from CCL's customers. Cargo cancellation notices are allowed as each SPA provides the customer with an option to elect to cancel cargoes within a predetermined advance notice period. In the case of a cargo cancellation, the cash flow effect is minimal because the customer is still required to pay the fixed fee with respect to the contracted volumes that are not delivered. To date, all counterparties that have provided a cargo cancellation notice have paid their required fixed fee. The Baa3 rating assumes that the contractual terms will continue to be honored and that the fixed fees will continue to be paid regardless of any future cargo cancellations that may occur. Because the required notice period for any cargo cancellation gives CEI ample time to respond, and coupled with its natural gas procurement strategy and sizeable scope, CEI has been able to manage CCL's gas procurement responsibilities with no meaningful economic loss. We currently forecast CCH to generate EBITDA of approximately $750 million in 2020 and in excess of $1.0 billion in 2021 and annually thereafter. Furthermore, we estimate annual interest costs at $500 million annually. With the majority of CCH's capital structure consisting of non-amortizing bonds with the exception of a term loan facility with modest amortization requirements beginning 2022 and two series of fully amortizing notes totaling about $1.2 billion with annual amortization requirements beginning 2027, CCH should generate significant free cash flow over the next several years. We anticipate CCH's free cash flow to be used in 2020 and 2021 to fund any remaining construction costs and to retire debt at CEI. As referenced, CEI recently borrowed a portion of its approximately $2.7 billion term loan to repay convertible debt within its consolidated capital structure, including $1.6 billion to repay the EIG Notes. The decision to repay the EIG Notes with holding company debt was a credit negative consideration as we had expected the EIG Notes to be satisfied with CEI equity. We recognize, however, that the repayment of the EIG Notes addresses our previous concerns around the EIG Notes potentially needing to be refinanced with incremental CCH debt, and we acknowledge ring fencing measures that provide a degree of credit insulation between CCH and CEI. Use of CCH's free cash flow beyond 2021 is dependent upon several factors, including an ability to commercialize Corpus Christi Stage 3, a 10 MTPA expansion project involving seven midscale liquefaction trains. CEI's policy relating to any expansion requires a number of conditions being satisfied before a Final Investment Decision (FID) can be reached. These FID conditions include a high degree of long-term contracts to support the investment, a lump sum turn key construction contract, and no greater than 50% debt financing. The ability to consummate new long-term contracts in the current market has material and multi-dimensioned challenges making the near-term viability of any expansion project uncertain. While the current scheduled debt amortization within CCH's capital structure is modest, its bond indenture requires CCH when issuing Replacement Senior Debt to demonstrate a Fixed Projected Debt Service Coverage Ratio (Fixed Projected DSCR) of at least 1.4x annually while amortizing all senior debt to zero over the remaining life of the SPA's. The Fixed Projected DSCR is calculated using contracted cash flows only and is measured when CCH issues Replacement Senior Debt. This provision serves to require CCH to reduce operating company indebtedness and supports the maintenance of an investment grade profile as it effectively means that the project must always have sufficient remaining contracted revenues over the contract life to repay all of its existing debt and related interest expense at a 1.4x Fixed Projected DSCR. CCH's senior secured bonds are guaranteed by CCL, which owns and operates the Corpus Christi Liquefaction facility and Cheniere Corpus Christi Pipeline, L.P (CCPL) and Corpus Christi Pipeline GP, LLC (CCP GP). Collectively, CCPL and CCP GP own and operate the Corpus Christi Pipeline. Substantially all of the assets and equity interests of CCH, CCL, CCPL and CCP GP have been pledged to bank and bond lenders. RATING OUTLOOK The stable outlook is supported by an expectation that CCH's near-term cash flow will be sufficient to cover remaining construction cost and that Train 3 achieves substantial completion in the first half of 2021. FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS What could change the rating up Material consolidated debt reduction or stronger than expected sustained cash flow such that project cash from operations to adjusted debt exceeds 15% on a recurring basis. What could change the rating down Unexpected delays or significant cost overruns relating to the remaining construction of Train 3, material deterioration in the credit profiles of its contractual offtakers or failure to generate the expected level of cash flow owing to operating related issues. The principal methodology used in these ratings was Generic Project Finance Methodology published in November 2019 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1194215. Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology. 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Moody's general principles for assessing environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks in our credit analysis can be found at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1133569. The Global Scale Credit Rating on this Credit Rating Announcement was issued by one of Moody's affiliates outside the EU and is endorsed by Moody's Deutschland GmbH, An der Welle 5, Frankfurt am Main 60322, Germany, in accordance with Art.4 paragraph 3 of the Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 on Credit Rating Agencies. Further information on the EU endorsement status and on the Moody's office that issued the credit rating is available on www.moodys.com. Please see www.moodys.com for any updates on changes to the lead rating analyst and to the Moody's legal entity that has issued the rating. Please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for additional regulatory disclosures for each credit rating. Scott Solomon VP - Senior Credit Officer Project Finance Group Moody's Investors Service, Inc. 250 Greenwich Street New York, NY 10007 U.S.A. JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 A.J. Sabatelle Associate Managing Director Project Finance Group JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 Releasing Office: Moody's Investors Service, Inc. 250 Greenwich Street New York, NY 10007 U.S.A. JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 2020 Moody's Corporation, Moody's Investors Service, Inc., Moody's Analytics, Inc. and/or their licensors and affiliates (collectively, "MOODY'S"). All rights reserved. CREDIT RATINGS ISSUED BY MOODY'S INVESTORS SERVICE, INC. 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Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) Section 144, which bars assembly of more than four persons, is in force in Gautam Buddh Nagar, where the pandemic has claimed 43 lives so far. Two people were arrested and nearly 1,100 vehicles issued challans across Noida and Greater Noida on Sunday over alleged violation of the curbs imposed due to the Covid-19 outbreak, Gautam Buddh Nagar police said. Also, eight vehicles were impounded till Sunday night for similar violations, the police said as security checks intensified in view of the lockdown-like curbs that began at 10 pm on Friday and will continue till 5 am on Monday. The restrictions are imposed as part of the state government's concerted efforts for screening and testing people for Covid-19 and to check the spread of other vector-borne diseases, according to officials. Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) Section 144, which bars assembly of more than four persons, is in force in Gautam Buddh Nagar, where the pandemic has claimed 43 lives so far, according to official figures. "One FIR was registered and two people arrested for violating the curbs. A total of 3,765 vehicles were checked across 200 barrier points in the district and challans issued to 1,094 of them," the police said in a statement. Altogether, 1,84,300 were collected in fines during the action, the police said. First Published Date: India restricts colour TV imports in move to boost 'Make in India The government has imposed restrictions on the import of colour television sets in a move aimed at boosting local production, is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modis call for `Aatmanirbhar Barat. The import of TVs in certain categories will now require a licence from the government A notification issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) on Thursday said that the import policy of colour television sets has been amended from "free" to "restricted". This means that the import of TVs in certain categories will now require a licence from the government. The change in import policy will adversely impact import colour TV sets of screen size up to 36 cm; television sets of screen size of 36 cm but not exceeding 54 cm; television sets of screen size of 54 cm but not exceeding 68 cm; television sets of screen size of 68 cm but not exceeding 74 cm; television sets of screen size of 74 cm but not exceeding 87 cm; television sets of screen size of 87 cm but not exceeding 105 cm; television sets of screen size exceeding 105 cm; and liquid crystal display television sets of screen size below 63 cm. "Actual user conditions would not be applicable for importers applying for an authorissation to import the goods 'restricted' in this notification. The procedure for grant of licence will be separately issued by DGFT," the notification said. Indian imports around 30 per cent of all TVs sold in the country and about 80-85 per cent TV components are also imported as there is no local manufacturing. India lacks component and panel display manufacturing plants that are needed to steadily support TV manufacturing. India imported colour TVs worth Rs7,120 crore in FY19, which fell 22.56 per cent to Rs5,514 crore in FY20, according to the Department of Commerce. However, the imports of certain categories of TVs had shot up dramatically by 52.86 per cent in FY19. China and Vietnam are the two nations that send the maximum colour television sets to India. The DGFT notification comes days after India imposed a ban on popular Chinese mobile applications. Indian manufacturers of colour TV sets welcomed the decision and assured consumers and the government that the decision will not lead to any price rise. Since a majorly of big brands in this segment has manufacturing set up in India, the decision will only impact those who engage in trading. The decision will boost investments and increase job opportunities in India, they point out. India imported colour television sets worth $781 million during the year ended 31 March, most of which came from Vietnam ($428 million) and China ($292 million). PM Narendra Modi has said that India needs to end its dependence on the import of gadgets, equipment, solar panels and technology from foreign countries. Earlier this month, union power minister RK Singh also announced India will not allow import of power equipment from China and Pakistan because of cybersecurity threats. India also, last week, restricted Chinese companies from participating in public procurement bids by India without approval from competent authorities citing security concerns. Simultaneously, the government has stepped up efforts to bring investments from abroad and boost manufacturing in India. The centre aims at increasing job opportunities and self-reliance by manufacturing everything which is possible to make in India. Various state governments are also in conversation with foreign firms and trying to lure them to invest in their respective states. London: I must have received half a dozen excited phone calls. "I hear you're on the list?!" they said, hardly able to contain their excitement. The list, as most people now know, is Jeffrey Epstein's "little black book", curated for him by socialite Ghislaine Maxwell and containing the names and addresses of who's who in both London and New York. It first emerged in 2012 (when Epstein's former housekeeper was arrested by the FBI while trying to sell it) and was published on gawker.com a few years later, along with the flight logs for his private jet, nicknamed the "Lolita Express", but it wasn't until a few months ago that everyone seems to have seen the full inventory. The likes of Bill Clinton, Donald Trump and Naomi Campbell rub shoulders with Prince Andrew, Tony Blair and former Conservative Party chairman Andrew Feldman. Not a single digit of a single address is missing. A circle around your entry is even more reason for uncontained excitement. We even have the honour of double entries: one for my husband and me and the other for my father-in-law, who was also friendly with Ghislaine back in the days when that was an acceptable thing to be. Ghislaine was in my husband's circle at Oxford and we knew many people in common. Many of our friends were in her inner set (though none will speak of her now). Ghislaine Maxwell, driven by Prince Andrew, leaves the wedding of a former girlfriend of the prince in September 2000. Credit:PA Ghislaine was like a sniffer dog: sharp, alert and with a nose that could detect any useful information. I was then an assistant producer at news magazine programme 60 Minutes with access to presidents and prime ministers; that caught her attention. I remember her as being quick-witted, attention-seeking and the complete darling of her set. She appeared at every party along with half a dozen of the then "It" girls whose main occupation seemed to be finding a wealthy man with a "house". Ghislaine's close female friends, however, were career-minded and independent as she clearly was. Many worked in the City. We all know what happened next. As the Ghislaine empire crumbled beneath her, she teleported herself to New York City and that's where it gets very interesting. I remember going to dinner parties with her brothers Kevin and Ian in the mid-'90s and thinking how downtrodden they looked (the hostesses were being kind as mostly everyone else had dumped them). While they hid away in shame and what looked like poverty, Ghislaine re-emerged, and how, with some of most connected people in Manhattan. Not only was she mixing with the very rich, but she seemed to be right in the middle of the action. In fact, she seemed to be directing traffic. Socialising was her clearly well-paid job: as the newly unsealed court documents reveal, Epstein urged Ghislaine to "go to parties, deal with it" even after she was sued by Virginia Roberts Giuffre in 2015. Former President Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings has threatened to deal with Professor Kwamena Ahwoi, a leading member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC). Rawlings Squeezes Bede Ziedeng's Testicles Prof. Kwamena Ahwoi is quoted as saying that Mr. Rawlings meted out a dangerous attack on a former member of the NDC Elections Committee named Bede Ziedeng. Prof. Ahwoi is said to have narrated in a book he's written that Bede Ziedeng was met with aggression by Mr. Rawlings for opposing the election of the late President John Evans Atta Mills as flagbearer of the party during the party's Congress in 2002. He said the former President loved Atta Mills that he squeezed the testicles of Bede Ziedeng during the Congress that was held at Trade Fair in Accra to the point that Mr. Ziedeng nearly died due to the vicious attack. According to a Ghanaweb publication, Prof. Ahwoi said ''Bede Ziedeng and others had formed a human shield to protect dignitaries going into the Trade Fair Site. As Rawlings was going in, the crowd moved closer to see him and cheer him on. This made it nearly impossible to see whatever was going on. So Rawlings took advantage of the situation. He held Bede Ziedengs testicles, squeezed them hard and left them in record time. This caused Bede Ziedeng to faint immediately. He was taken away and given attention until he recovered. An unperturbed Rawlings accessed the hall and the proceedings went on. Mr Ziedeng later reported Rawlings to some leading members of the NDC, including Prof Ahwoi. When Rawlings was confronted on the matter, he merely laughed it off. But the incident nearly led to Mr Ziedeng leaving the party for good''. Rawlings' Crimes Protected By 1992 Constitution In a publication by Ghanaian Times, Prof. Ahwoi, who was a Minister of Local Government and Rural Development in the PNDC regime, is also quoted as saying the indemnity clause in Ghana's constitution was to protect Rawlings from being prosecuted for his crimes. When soldiers stage coup detat, they know they have committed the crime of treason for which punishment is death, if you want those people to hand over smoothly, youd have to give them guarantees theyll not be molested, vilified, not even tried and maybe sentenced to death. If they should hand over, because they will not accept to commit suicide, which is what theyd be doing if they simply say okay were handing over so anytime a coup has taken place in any country, negotiations take place for guarantees of indemnity and immunity provided coup makers, that is the only way they will feel comfortable enough to agree to hand over. What most critics of indemnity clause do not understand is, not only does indemnity clause serve as surety to former President Rawlings; it protects all those who worked with him during those regimes...'', he stated. I'll Deal With Ahwoi But in a statement copied to Peacefmonline.com, former President Rawlings expressed his disgust over the account given by Prof. Ahwoi. According to him, he will ''soon deal with the callous agenda of bile by the likes of Kwamena Ahwoi, who are desperately seeking control of the NDC party''. He said this while commending Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II for refusing to condone wrongdoings of his Chiefs and also ensuring there is no stain on the Ashanti Kingdom. Read full statement below: OTUMFUO DESERVES COMMENDATION I want to take the opportunity to congratulate the Asantehene for the steps he has taken, to seriously protect the environment and also to thank him for tampering justice with mercy on Nana Bantamahene. We each have to learn to take a cue from the Asantehene and be bold and audacious in our defence of the environment, especially from thieves and crooks, who with impunity can collect parcels of land anywhere, anyhow and do as they wish against the public good and the sanctity of nature. Let me also express my gratitude to Togbe Afede XIV, President of the National House of Chiefs for taking the initiative to lead a delegation of the Volta Region House of Chiefs to the border areas in the region to ascertain things for themselves. Some of the unsightly things we see on the Internet do not speak well of us locally and internationally. Much as I find it tiring and tedious to be engaging in self defence when I have given my all, all these years, I will soon deal with the callous agenda of bile by the likes of Kwamena Ahwoi, who are desperately seeking control of the NDC party. The NDC could, should and has survived on the authority of the word but if care is not taken, it will collapse and drown as has been happening, on the word of those in authority. Issued By: Kobina Andoh Amoakwa (Communications Directorate) Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/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 Advertisement Queuing chaos struck again at Heathrow Airport on Sunday night as UK arrivals were forced to wait in long lines with no social distancing measures - while Border Force chiefs pointed the finger of blame at passengers for not filling in the right forms. Rows of face mask wearing passengers were last night seen queuing around the barriers of an escalator - in close proximity to each other - as they approached passport control at Heathrow's Terminal 5. One passenger described the situation as a 'total shambles' and said it took an hour and a half from stepping off the plane to the arrivals area. The queues mirrored similar scenes on Saturday, where hundreds of passengers were crammed into queues after just three officers were left to check passports. Saturday's scenes were branded dangerous by one leading Labour MP, while Heathrow Airport chiefs blamed the Border Force and called on officials to put more staff on at passport control. Border Force chiefs last night apologised for the delay but blamed passengers for not complying with the passenger locator forms as well as a number of big family groups, preventing them from using e-gates. Queuing chaos struck again at Heathrow Airport on Sunday night as UK arrivals were forced to wait in long lines with no social distancing measures Rows of face mask wearing passengers were on Sunday night seen queuing around the barriers of an escalator - in close proximity to each other - as they approached passport control at Heathrow's Terminal 5 The queues saw many people bunched together as they waited to get to passport control at Heathrow Terminal 5 arrivals The queues went around the barrier to an escalator near to one of the passport control areas, as passengers made their way towards the arrivals area Queues for departures on Monday were also busy at Terminal 5, though measures were in place to keep passengers apart Passengers queued at the bag drop for British Airways at Heathrow on Monday morning where queuing systems are in place Passenger locator forms must be filled in before passengers arrive in the UK and are used by the government to contact those who have travelled with someone who has developed Covid-19 symptoms. The are a legal requirement and those who refuse to fill one in can face a 100 fine. The latest queuing chaos took place around 11pm on Sunday night as passengers arrived back in the UK from international flights. What are passenger locator forms and what happens if you refuse to fill one out? Passenger locator forms must be filled in before passengers arrive in the UK. The service is free and is used by the government to contact those who have travelled with someone who has developed Covid-19 symptoms. Passengers need to show a completed form when you arrive at the UK border, either by printing a copy, or showing it on a phone. The forms are a legal requirement and those who refuse to fill them in could face a 100 fine. If a passenger needs to self-isolate the the government will use the information to contact them and to check that they are self-isolating. You do not need to complete the form if youre travelling from Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man and you were there for 14 days or more. You must complete this form before you arrive in the UK, though you cannot submit the form until 48 hours before youre due to arrive in the UK. Advertisement Passengers were seen joining a long queue which hugged a barrier around an escalator and towards passport control. Though passengers were all seen wearing a mask - which is now a legal requirement at airports - many appeared packed in together, seemingly in breach of social distancing rules. Photographs and video appear to show little or no social distancing or queuing measures in place as passengers queued for passport control at Terminal 5 - which along with Terminal 2 are currently the only two terminals open at Heathrow. One passenger said their flight from France arrived at around 10.30pm last night and that they did not reach arrivals until midnight, despite the flight being just two-thirds full. The passenger said that it was 'impossible to social distance in the queue' and fellow passengers had 'said how dangerous it was'. On Saturday, photographs and videos showed hundreds of passengers queuing up to wait at for passport control at Heathrow. The travellers, many with young families, even chanted 'we want more staff' as the lines in the 'poorly ventilated' room stretched for at least an hour. One passenger, Natalie Crane, 32, from Surrey, had arrived back from a holiday to Majorca with her husband, mother, and three young children when she was faced with a two-hour delay. She said: 'We queued with about 500 or 600 people; there was no social distancing, no ventilation - it would have been impossible to socially distance that many people in the room. It was just barbaric. While the central London airport's self service E-gates were operating, Natalie and dozens of other parents couldn't use them because of age restrictions on children, and had to see a border officer. 'After a while we found out there is only three people on the counters checking passports, so then everyone started chanting get more staff get more staff, this a disgrace. 10 minutes later all of a sudden you've got about 10 staff on. 'When we complained to one of the staff on the counters because he wasn't making people aware he was available, his response was 'don't go on holiday'.' 'There was no compassion from the staff whatsoever.' A spokesperson for Heathrow Airport told MailOnline that the queues were 'totally unacceptable', but that Border Force have forecasting systems to help avoid passenger queues on arrival. Chaotic scenes broke out at Heathrow's border gates as hundreds of passengers were crammed into queues after just three officers were left to check passports The travellers, many with young families, even chanted 'we want more staff' as the lines in the 'poorly ventilated' room stretched for at least an hour The spokesperson also called for the Border Force to 'sort out' its resourcing in order to prevent issues in arising again in the future. Emma Moore, Border Force Chief Operating Officer said: 'Border Force apologise for the extensive queues and delays that occurred at Heathrow Airport. We understand the significant inconvenience and discomfort this would have caused those affected. 'We are working with Heathrow Airport to ensure this does not happen again and social distancing measures are maintained while dealing with the increased number of passengers arriving at the airport. 'We would urge travellers to fill in their passenger locator forms before travelling to the UK to avoid any delays.' Nick Thomas Symonds, Labour's Shadow Home Secretary, described Saturday's scenes at Heathrow as 'unacceptable' and 'dangerous in the midst of a global pandemic'. Mr Symonds told MailOnline: 'These scenes at Heathrow Airport show that Border Force have been over-stretched, which is totally unacceptable. 'The Home Office needs to get a grip of this issue - it is a huge inconvenience for travellers, unfair on Border Force staff and frankly dangerous in the midst of a global pandemic.' STOCKHOLM, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- IRLAB announced today that the World Health Organization (WHO) has proposed the name pirepemat as the International Nonproprietary Name (INN) for the company's drug candidate IRL752, which is in development for decreasing the risk of falling in patients with Parkinson's disease. Given the drug candidate's unique mode of action, WHO concluded that IRL752 should not be incorporated into any existing INN stem in the classification system. IRL752 therefore has the potential to becoming a first-in-class treatment. The INN will identify the active pharmaceutical substance of IRL752 during its lifetime among healthcare professionals, scientists as well as patients worldwide. Gunnar Olsson, chairman of the board at IRLAB, comments: "IRL752 is the second drug candidate from our pipeline that in a short time has been considered to be unique enough to propose a new classification of the drug candidate and future drug. This is yet another confirmation of the innovative power of IRLAB and our research platform, ISP. This also supports our vision to develop novel and innovative drugs with the potential to not only improve but rather transform the treatment of Parkinson's disease. Our goal is to make a substantial difference for patients and their families with innovative novel therapies." Earlier this year, IRLAB received the unique INN mesdopetam for its drug candidate IRL790. Both pirepemat and mesdopetam indicate new INN stems. According to WHO regulations, a period of four months will now follow.If no major reason for objection is put forward, then the proposed INN will be formally approved. For more information Nicholas Waters, CEO Phone: +46-730-75-77-01 E-mail: nicholas.waters@irlab.se This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com https://news.cision.com/irlab-therapeutics-ab/r/irlab-s-irl752-is-proposed-pirepemat-as-a-unique-inn-by-who,c3163242 The following files are available for download: Relations between the United States and China have worsened over the last few years. The trade tariffs, the novel coronavirus, the Hong Kong security law, the closure of consulates, and Chinas expansionist mindset have all contributed to the downturn in the US-China relations. The growing anti-US sentiment in the worlds most populous country could hurt American businesses that have a strong presence in China. Here we take a look at the top 10 US companies with the highest revenue exposure to China. American businesses rely heavily on China Contrary to the popular perception, Apple (AAPL) generates only about 17% of its revenue from China. Boeing (BA), Caterpillar (CAT), General Motors (GM), Starbucks (SBUX), Nike (NKE), and Ford (F) are some other US companies with a strong presence in the country. But none of them get more than 25% of their revenue from China. Q2 2020 hedge fund letters, conferences and more It's the US chipmakers that have the highest revenue exposure to the country. The list below is based on data from Tijori Finance and includes only the S&P 500 constituents. Tijori has determined the revenue exposure to China based on Customer Ship-to Location. Some smaller companies could have a disproportionately large revenue from China. It is challenging to determine a company's exposure to the Middle Kingdom even if you look into the company filings and other company-reported data. That's because every company takes a different approach to reporting their international revenue and profit numbers. Many don't break out the China sales data. For example, Amazon (AMZN) lumps the non-US sales together. Some companies report sales data for China, other report for Greater China, yet others present sales for China including Hong Kong. Then there are some companies that lump the China and Taiwan sales together. US companies with the highest revenue exposure to China Topping the list is Wynn Resorts (WYNN), which operates three casinos in Macau. It also has two casinos in Las Vegas and another in Everett, Massachusetts. Wynn Resorts' Macau casinos account for 75.2% of its revenue. According to Tijori Finance, the Macau operations generate about 77.1% of its operating profits. Story continues Semiconductor giant Qualcomm (QCOM) is close behind with 66.6% revenue exposure. A large chunk of Qualcomm's shipments go to factories that assemble smartphones and other products. China is home to some of the world's largest smartphone vendors including Xiaomi, OnePlus, Oppo, Vivo, Lenovo and others, most of which use Qualcomm chips in their products. Micron Technology (MU) occupies the third spot with 57.1% revenue exposure to China. By comparison, the US accounts for merely 11.9% of its revenue. It is one of the world's leading makers of computer data storage solutions such as USB flash drives and NAND flash memory. Qualcomm is not the only semiconductor company in the top ten. Qorvo (QRVO) has 52% revenue exposure to China. It makes radio frequency systems that are used in wireless and broadband communications. Qorvo was created following the merger of TriQuint Semiconductor and RF Micro Devices. Broadcom gets close to 50% of its revenue from China, according to Tijori Finance. Broadcom is involved in designing, developing, and marketing semiconductor and infrastructure software products. Dallas-based technology giant Texas Instruments (TXN) is a leading manufacturer of semiconductors and a wide range of integrated circuits. It sells its products directly to electronics manufacturers, most of whom are concentrated in China. About 44.3% of Texas Instruments' revenue comes from China alone. Oxford, Massachusetts-based IPG Photonics (IPGP) is a leading maker of fiber lasers. It doesn't have a manufacturing facility in China, but the dragon is a huge market for the company. IPG Photonics has 43.1% revenue exposure to China. AMD is another chipmaker heavily exposed to the country. About 39% of its revenue comes from the Asian nation. The Santa Clara-based company manufactures motherboard chipsets, graphics processors, and microprocessors for both consumer and enterprise markets. Veeco Instruments (VECO) makes processing systems that are used to build semiconductors, photonics, and display technologies. Its revenue exposure to China is 35.8%. Maxim Integrated Products (MXIM) rounds up the top ten with 35.7% revenue exposure. It designs and manufactures analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits. In case you were wondering, Intel gets 26.5% of its revenue from China while Nvidia relies on the country for 23.9% of its revenue. By Vikas Shukla Video: Top 5 Stocks Among Hedge Funds At Insider Monkey we scour multiple sources to uncover the next great investment idea. We go through lists like the 10 most profitable companies in the world to pick the best large-cap stocks to buy. Even though we recommend positions in only a tiny fraction of the companies we analyze, we check out as many stocks as we can. We read hedge fund investor letters and listen to stock pitches at hedge fund conferences. If you want to find out the best healthcare stock to buy right now, you can watch our latest hedge fund manager interview here. You can subscribe to our free enewsletter below to receive our stories in your inbox: In our September issue, we sit down with Michaela Coel, the face of British television today, to talk about her game-changing series I May Destroy You, the daring, funny, shocking drama about abuse, consent and modern millennial life thats been hailed as the television drama of the year. Coel tells Gaylene Gould about finding her misfit voice and constructing the New World of TV. Also in this issue: Ashley Clark explores the vital, too often suppressed history of protest and activism in Black British Cinema; the editors of the pioneering Black Film Bulletin talk us through the publications history and future; the female cast and crew of the London-set drama Rocks on how they told their own story their own way; and Isaac Julien talks to Amy Taubin about his breakthrough feature Young Soul Rebels in a classic 1991 interview drawn from our archives. Plus regular features: Editorial Actions and words Rushes What happens now? Naomi Obeng talks to workers in and around UK film about racial inequality. Dream palaces: Rio Cinema, Dalston With the Rio hit hard by Covid-19 and its future in doubt, filmmaker John Akomfrah pays tribute to the community-led Hackney gem. Rising star: Fyzal Boulifa The 35-year-old British director making waves with his debut feature Lynn + Lucy. Obituaries Alex Ramon mourns Black British pioneer Earl Cameron. Nick James salutes the great Ennio Morricone. Film preservation Isabel Stevens reports on the threat facing Brazils film archive, the Cinemateca Brasileira. Report from Italy John Bleasdale explains why outdoor cinema in Rome has had a narrow escape. Preview Pamela Hutchinson looks forward to the best films and TV due out touch wood later this year. The numbers: indie cinemas and covid After a strong start, 2020 has been a record-breaking year for UK cinemas in all the wrong ways. But the situation is far from hopeless. By Charles Gant. Wide angle Primal screen: Black voices in silent cinema In a film industry that was not just white but often explicitly racist, Black writers, directors and stars still made their mark. By Pamela Hutchinson. Profile: Safe zone At a time when images of violence against Black people abound, JaTovia Gary does far more than analyse or repeat the problem. By Matthew Barrington. Reviews: Films of the month: Clemency The Traitor plus reviews of Alice Babyteeth Black Water: Abyss The Booksellers Bunuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles Da 5 Bloods How to Build a Girl The Invincibles Last and First Men Lynn + Lucy Make Up The Old Guard Scoob! The Vigil Wasp Network A White, White Day Television of the month I May Destroy You plus reviews of Dark: Season 3 Homecoming: Season 2 Perry Mason Sitting in Limbo Welcome to Chechnya Home cinema features Three Edgar Allen Poe Adaptations starring Bela Lugosi: Murders in the Rue Morgue / The Black Cat / The Raven Theres not much Poe left in Universals shockers, but theres all the insanity, murder and giant killer apes you could ever hope for. By Anne Billson. Lost and found: The Cruel Sea The first feature ever made in Kuwait can stand comparison with the great works of post-war Italian neorealism. By Andrew Nette. Archive television: The Count of Monte Cristo + The Man in the Iron Mask Robert Hanks revisits Richard Chamberlains mid-70s Dumas phase. plus reviews of Cisco Pike Criss Cross A Foreign Affair The Good Die Young Hiroshima Phase IV Scorsese Shorts Spring Night, Summer Night Story of a Love Affair 3D Rarities: II Films by Takeshi Kitano We Dont Need a Map Books: The Japanese Cinema Book edited by Hideaki Fujiki and Alastair Phillips (BFI Publishing/Bloomsbury) reviewed by Jasper Sharp Star Attractions edited by Tamar Jeffers McDonald and Lies Lanckman (University of Iowa Press) reviewed by Pamela Hutchinson Letters Endings: Bamboozled The unforgettable montage of clips that closes Spike Lees savage 2000 satire reveals the shameful history of racism at the movies. By Nels Abbey. Leading South African anti-apartheid activist Andrew Mlangeni has died at the age of 95. He was the last remaining survivor of the historic Rivonia Trial, which sentenced activists including Nelson Mandela to life imprisonment. Mr Mlangeni had been admitted to hospital in the capital Pretoria, with abdominal pains. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa paid tribute, saying his death signified the end of a generational history. Andrew Mlangeni (Themba Hadebe/AP) With his passing as the last remaining Rivonia triallist, BabMlangeni has indeed passed the baton to his compatriots to build the South Africa he fought to liberate and to reconstruct during our democratic dispensation, Mr Ramaphosa said. Mr Mlangeni spent 27 years in prison alongside Mr Mandela, Dennis Goldberg, Walter Sisulu and other activists who were sentenced for planning to overthrow the apartheid government. After his release, he served as a legislator in South Africas first democratic parliament from 1994. In his later years, he was chairman of the integrity committee of the ruling African National Congress party, which was responsible for investigating corruption allegations against its leaders. His passing sounds the last post on a courageous generation of South Africans who forfeited their freedom, careers, family lives and health so that we could all be free, the foundation of former South African archbishop Desmond Tutu and his wife Leah said in a statement. They also recalled Mr Mlangenis comment: I did not go to prison for 26 years for people to steal from the poor. NEW DELHI : India will focus on the complete disengagement of Chinese troops from the banks of the Pangong Tso lake and other friction points in Ladakh during a fresh round of military talks on Sunday to scale down tensions along their Line of Actual Control (LAC), a person familiar with the matter said. Senior commanders of the Indian and Chinese armies met at Moldo on Sunday, on the Chinese side of the LAC, he added. The Indian delegation was led by lieutenant general Harinder Singh, commander of the Leh-based 14 Corps, while the Chinese side was headed by major general Liu Lin, commander of the Peoples Liberation Armys South Xinjiang military region. A second person familiar with the matter said the focus of the Singh-Liu meet would be on finalizing a framework for a time-bound and verifiable" disengagement process from all the friction points like Pangong Tso and the Depsang plains. The two commanders would also talk about pulling back large numbers of troops and weapons from rear bases along the LAC, the person added. This was the fifth round of talks between the countries at the military level to defuse tensions following the massive troop buildup and multiple intrusions into Indian territory by the Chinese side along the LAC in early May, besides a violent clash on 15 June in the Galwan Valley that resulted in the first casualties along the border in 45 years. While the Indian army said 20 Indian soldiers, including their commanding officer, were killed, China has not yet made known the casualties on its side. Sundays talks also come against the backdrop of news reports that China had moved another battalion to an area adjacent to Lipulekh, which falls between India, Nepal and China. Lipulekh recently was shown as part of Nepal in a new map of the Himalayan country, raising tensions between New Delhi and Kathmandu. Previous rounds of senior military level talks between India and China took place on 6, 22 and 30 June, and 14 July. Last week, the Indian foreign ministry had said that disengagement of troops in eastern Ladakh was not yet complete, though some progress had been made, rejecting claims by China that front line forces of the two countries had completed" disengagement in most locations along the border. Srikanth Kondapalli, a professor of Chinese Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, said with the statements from China that they have not crossed the LAC with their present positions on the ground, the Chinese are presenting us with a fait accompli". This is not acceptable to us. We have said that they have to move back to positions they held in April." In the current circumstances, the Chinese are looking for a solution without pulling out," he added. Chinese troops are still present in the Depsang Plains region, Gogra or Patrolling Point 17A and the Fingers region along the Pangong Lake. Last month, India and China had started a mutual disengagement by creating a buffer zone along the LAC. India agreed to the buffer zones only to ensure that tensions dont get out of hand again," Kondapalli said, adding that India would insist the Chinese return to pre-May positions. Subscribe to Mint Newsletters * Enter a valid email * Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. The volume of 311 calls New York City received in a single day at the height of the pandemic. On average, the city takes 25,000 calls for assistance. ( Government Technology July 30, 2020) BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 3 By Jeila Aliyeva - Trend: A large volume of polymer was exported from Russia to Turkmenistan from January through May 2020, Trend reports citing the Eurasian Economic Commissions statistics. Russia was the only exporter of polymer products from the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) to Turkmenistan during the mentioned period. During first five months of 2020, Russia exported ethylene polymer to Turkmenistan in the amount of 205 kilograms for a total amount of $1,027 and polypropylene in the amount of 600 kilograms, for a total amount of $2,698. In addition, vinyl chloride polymers were exported from Russia to Turkmenistanin in the amount of 79,950 kilograms worth of $75,985. According to statistics, Russia exported acrylic polymers to Turkmenistan in the amount of 167,920 kilograms, for a total amount of $607,575. Furthermore, Russia and Kazakhstan exported polyacetals, polyesters and epoxy resins to Turkmenistan in the amount of 16,640 kilograms worth $50,064. The share of Kazakhstan in the total amount of the export volume of these products was $35,345, while Russias share stood at $14,719. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @JeilaAliyeva LOS ANGELESThe Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection (ASACP) has named Lions Den, MojoHost and Segpay as its Featured Sponsors for the month of August 2020. ASACPs monthly Featured Sponsors are among the industrys most respected companies and serve as examples of how responsible business practices, ethical operation and social awareness can help protect minors from accidental exposure to age-restricted materials online. According to ASACPs executive director Tim Henning, the association encourages all online companies and organizations to assume a leadership role in the fight to keep children out of and away from adult-oriented materials by sponsoring ASACP and its proven successes, including those that happen behind-the-scenes. The online industry continues to rapidly change, embracing new platforms and processes in response to evolving consumer demands, Henning said. This makes for significant challenges in regards to child safety in such a fast-evolving landscape where so many people are online in so many different ways. Under the best of circumstances, ASACPs resources are stretched to their limits, but the COVID crisis continues and continues to complicate our mission; especially on the travel front, where the real-life outreach to industry stakeholders that the association once relied upon has been dramatically curtailed, Henning explained. The industry is resilient, however, spawning virtual events that seek to fill the gap in real-world encountersbut this is not the same in terms of driving awareness and the vital fundraising we must do to make a positive difference in preserving the innocence of connected youth, so more must be done. This current situation makes the support that ASACP receives from its sponsors, such as Lions Den, MojoHost and Segpay, all the more important in continuing its 24-year-long record of success, and enabling its range of free child protection resources, including market-specific Best Practices and a Code of Ethics for online businesses, app publishers and operators of age-restricted websites. Among its most notable achievements, ASACPs RTA (Restricted To Adults) meta labeling system helps parents prevent their childrens access to countless adult-oriented webpages and mobile apps and is offered to all site and app publishers free of charge, as are all ASACP services including its CP Reporting Tipline, which has received and processed well over 1 million user reports to date, thanks to the generosity of the nonprofit associations sponsors and members. Lions Den An ASACP Title Sponsor that has supported the association since 2006, Lions Den is dedicated to providing the very best in adult merchandise, including a range of adult toys, magazines and DVDs, lingerie, massage oils and gifts for both bachelor and bachelorette parties, and more, through its retail stores and over the internet via LionsDen.com. Lions Den opened its first retail facility in Columbus, Ohio in 1971, and has since grown to more than 45 outlets throughout the country. By treating our customers with dignity and respect we have come to form a loyal relationship with our patrons, said a company spokesperson. Lions Den fully understands that human sexuality is a personal and sensitive matter [and] it is our goal to provide the most secure and safe environment for our customers to explore eroticism without any disconcertion and to protect children from exposure to products and services intended for adults only. MojoHost As a leading adult technology company, MojoHost has a history of supporting the industry, recognizing the vital work by ASACP when it became a sponsor a decade ago. The company specializes in adult website hosting with shared and dedicated hosting. Additional services include the MojoCDN content delivery network, MojoCloud storage and private cloud architecture, MojoShield web application firewall, MojoDomains service, and more. Founder and CEO Brad Mitchell serves on the association's Advisory Council and Executive Board and provides marketing resources. Keeping children away from age-restricted content fits in with his personal goals as a parent, even more than his role as a technology and thought leader. The Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection (ASACP) needs more industry support, stated Mitchell, who urged the community to step up. Now more than ever, I challenge business owners to pick a membership level that they can afford, and step up no matter how small. It truly helps the organization and goes towards a critical cause in the digital age. Segpay Since 2005, Segpay has helped high-risk businesses take payments quickly while implementing a compliance framework, and has supported ASACP since 2016 as a valued Corporate Sponsor. For her part, Segpay CEO Cathy Beardsley said the company is proud to work with the association to help carry out the mission of making the internet safer for children. As a mother of three myself, its an issue thats especially important to me and one that Segpay takes very seriously, Beardsley explained. Where our merchants dont already use age verification measures, we encourage them to take advantage of ASACPs Restricted To Adults labeling to help parents filter content that is not intended for children. Beardsley said the companys commitment to compliance dictates that it regularly reviews and checks its merchants content to identify, report and immediately shut down any child exploitation wherever it is found. ASACP plays a crucial role in facilitating this reporting and ensuring a trusted online environment that ultimately helps the adult industry become more accepted in mainstream society, Beardsley added. That is good for our business while helping to make the world a better place. The much-appreciated generosity of industry leaders such as Lions Den, MojoHost and Segpay enable ASACP to carry out its vital mission to protect todays constantly connected youth, Henning concluded. ASACPs Featured Sponsors demonstrate that despite the evolving challenges of the current marketplace and world beyond, proactive leadership and corporate responsibility continue to make a difference. To learn how a company can help protect itself by protecting children, email [email protected]. Right now, most Americans shop for health care blind. When shopping blind, it easy to get taken advantage of. The average family of four spends more than $28,000 per year on health care and coverage and prices are going up. Having the ability to choose care at transparent cash prices could result in potential savings of $11,000 per year for each family. Thats real income that Americans can spend on food, housing and savings. Recently. Economist Brian Blase teamed with YourUpdateTV to discuss the financial impact of healthcare price transparency. A video accompanying this announcement is available at: https://youtu.be/JDD1v1xvl_U The economic windfall would mean employers could create more jobs and increase salaries, as our health care system would stop demanding businesses pay their escalating insurance premiums. Together these economic gains would boost the nations economic growth and reignite the economy following the COVID-19 pandemic. The Healthcare PRICE Transparency Act, introduced June 30 by Senators Mike Braun of Indiana and Chuck Grassley of Iowa and co-sponsored by several others, promises to do just that. The bill would allow patients to know the cost of care beforehand and, more important, would allow them to shop and compare prices for both services and coverage. For more information, please visit PatientRightsAdvocate.org About Brian Blase: Brian Blase, PhD, is an economist and a key architect of President Trumps health policy agenda. Dr. Blase is driven to improve Americas health care system by empowering consumers, by injecting more competition into the system, and by permitting innovation to flourish. Dr. Blase served as the Special Assistant to the President at the White Houses National Economic Council from January 2017 through June 2019. In that capacity, Dr. Blase coordinated the Trump Administrations health policy agenda, developed legislative and regulatory strategies, and advised the President, the Director of the NEC, and other senior government officials. Most notably, he led the process to implement an Executive Order that President Trump signed in October 2017 that resulted in three final regulations to expand affordable health coverage options for employers and families and a comprehensive report, Reforming Americas Health Care System Through Choice and Competition. Story continues About YourUpdateTV: YourUpdateTV is a social media video portal for organizations to share their content, produced by award-winning video communications firm. Contact Details YourUpdateTV +1 212-736-2727 yourupdatetv@gmail.com Hong Kong: Decision to delay poll explained The Government today said its decision to postpone the 2020 Legislative Council General Election on public health grounds is reasonable, legal and in the public interest. It made the statement in response to comments made by the Hong Kong Bar Association. The Government said the health and well-being of all Hong Kong people is its overriding concern. Since July 1, more than 2,300 confirmed COVID-19 cases have been recorded, compared to a cumulative caseload of about 1,200 over the preceding six months. It emphasised the city is at a critical juncture in its battle against the virus and that if the situation is not handled resolutely, the current wave of infections could spiral out of control. In fact, the Electoral Affairs Commission wrote to the Chief Executive on July 28 expressing concerns over the public health risks of conducting the LegCo election, it said. To combat the virus spread, the Government has put in place the most stringent social distancing measures ever adopted since January. These measures have inevitably affected the normal operation of businesses and peoples daily activities. The associations doubts about the evidential basis of the Governments decision have overlooked these facts and concerns. The Government attaches importance to protecting the constitutional right of Hong Kong residents to participate in elections. It stated that with stringent social distancing measures in place, no meaningful electioneering activities could be conducted. These measures would also prevent candidates from putting across their manifesto to voters. Moreover, the strict boundary control measures make it virtually impossible for voters in the Mainland and overseas to return to cast their votes. The decision to postpone the election is, therefore, to protect public health and protect the voting rights of all registered voters. Regarding the duration of the postponement, the Government stated that the current wave of infections would likely last for at least several weeks or longer, adding that there may also be a winter surge later in the year. Postponing the election for 14 days under section 44 of the Legislative Council Ordinance (Cap 542), as suggested by the association, is not a practical solution to this unprecedented problem, it added. On invoking the Emergency Regulations Ordinance (Cap 241) to postpone the election, the Government stressed that it was the only viable option. It said the legal basis is sound, as the epidemic situation can be regarded as an occasion of public danger and emergency. In a free society like Hong Kong, citizens are free to raise legal challenges against policy decisions or existing legislation at any time. It will not be in the public interest if the Government refrains from making decisions or invoking legal powers under existing legislation due to the possible outcome of legal challenges. In the present case, it is key to note that the Court of Appeal upheld the constitutionality of the Emergency Regulations Ordinance in a judgment in April. The Government added that a pressing task following the postponement is to address the legislative vacuum that will emerge when the current LegCo term ends on September 30. The Chief Executive has sought the support and guidance of the Central Peoples Government and the State Council has already replied. The State Council expressed support for the decision to postpone the election and said it would make a submission to the National Peoples Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC), the highest organ of state power, for its decision. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is an inalienable part of the Peoples Republic of China. Under the Constitution of the Peoples Republic of China, the NPCSC has the authority to tackle this constitutional issue encountered by the Hong Kong SAR. The Government said it does not see how this is contrary to the principles of legality and legal certainty and degrades the rule of law in Hong Kong as alleged by the association. This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. BUCHAREST, Romania and SAN ANTONIO, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitdefender, a leading global cybersecurity company protecting over 500 million systems worldwide, today unveiled its new Service Operations organization and announced that Daniel Clayton has been appointed Vice President of Global Services and Support to lead this new team. The new Service Operations Organization integrates Bitdefender's Security Operations, responsible for monitoring and securing the customer; Customer Success Operations, responsible for understanding the customer and helping them achieve their goals; and Bitdefender Global Support Operations, responsible for technical support. Long a leader in cybersecurity technology and innovation, Bitdefender's appointment of Clayton continues the company's commitment to a customer-first experience. "Bitdefender aims to be a partner in solving customers' security challenges, marrying our technical excellence with a model that puts customers first," said Florin Talpes, CEO, Bitdefender. "With Daniel's deep experience leading highly technical services teams to achieve a common goal, he is ideally suited to provide customers with a more direct experience that supports their security challenges, enables them to make Bitdefender solutions more effective, and guides them with experienced professionals who serve as an extension of their security team." Bitdefender's new Global Services and Support team seeks to elevate and safeguard customer experience, by pairing Bitdefender's highly awarded technology platforms with high caliber, coordinated, and consistent customer service that enables reliability, efficiency, and consistency across all elements of security operations. Focused on helping customers meet security challenges head on, Bitdefender provides a holistic understanding of what is happening in the threat landscape as well as the technical ability and tools to mitigate threats and risks. Customers are enabled to get the most out of Bitdefender's products, operating easily, at maximum efficiency, to the maximum effect. During the next 12 months Bitdefender expects to implement an end to end approach to service delivery, centered on customers, which will enable Bitdefender to deliver, measure, and evolve industry-leading customer service. Addressing the opportunity to provide superior customer engagement, Clayton shares, "All companies face the challenge of increasingly complex and sophisticated threats coupled with the cybersecurity skills shortage, and SOCs struggle to keep up with the threats and technology. Companies need additional support to optimize their use of the security technology they've invested in and to close the gap to make those solutions more effective. Bitdefender has a deep bench of experienced technical professionals, and we're excited to bring their skills set to customers, addressing technical skill shortages, providing direct value, and offering a level of expertise and guidance that is unmatched." Clayton has more than 30 years of technical operations experience and deep experience leading highly technical teams to achieve a common goal. In his previous role as Senior Director, Managed Services Operations at Bitdefender Clayton was responsible for the creation, development, oversight and service-delivery of the Global Managed Services operation, as well as security operations strategy and the department's associated engineering and customer success support services. Clayton was also responsible for launching Bitdefender's Managed Detection and Response operations in San Antonio, the largest team and facilities investment ever made at Bitdefender, representing the company's commitment to create a true partnership with its customers. About Bitdefender Bitdefender is a global cybersecurity leader protecting over 500 million systems in more than 150 countries. Since 2001, Bitdefender innovation has consistently delivered award-winning security products and threat intelligence for the smart connected home, mobile users, modern businesses and their networks, devices, data centers and Cloud infrastructure. Today, Bitdefender is also the provider of choice, embedded in over 38% of the world's security solutions. Recognized by industry, respected by vendors and evangelized by customers, Bitdefender is the cybersecurity company you can trust and rely on. SOURCE Bitdefender Related Links https://www.bitdefender.com/ (Natural News) Seattle Chief of Police Carmen Best advised her citys business owners and residents that local police will not risk their personal safety to protect property after a ban issued by the city council of less lethal tools such as pepper spray for the purposes dispersing crowds to control rioters. (Article by Robert Kraychik republished from Breitbart.com) Best (pictured) issued her warning in a letter on Friday: Dear Business Owner and/or Resident: Please know that the Seattle Police Department is committed to addressing life safety incidents and calls for service, and responding to ongoing demonstrations and unrest in the city. Please also know that the City Council Ordinance 119805 Crowd Control Tool goes into effect this weekend on July 26, 020. This ordinance bans Seattle Police officers [from using] less lethal tools, including pepper spray that is commonly used to disperse crowds that have turned violent. Simply put, the legislation gives officers NO ability to safely intercede to preserve property in the midst of a large, violent crowd. It is important to bring to your attention that yesterday, I sent the City Council a letter ensuring them that as the Chief of Police, I have done my due diligence of informing them them numerous times of the foreseeable impact of this ordinance on upcoming events. The letter is attached for your reference. For these reasons, Seattle Police will have an adjusted deployment in response to any demonstrations this weekend as I will never ask our officers to risk their personal safety to protect property without the tools to do so in a safe way. Sincerely, Carmen Best Chief of Police The Washington Examiners Byron York shared Bests letter via Twitter: Seattle police send message to businesses, residents. There are riots. City council banned use of pepper spray, other crowd control agents. So now, we have 'NO ability to safely intercede to preserve property in the midst of a large, violent crowd.' Shorter: You're on your own. pic.twitter.com/ZLzg1VToeV Byron York (@ByronYork) July 27, 2020 Seattle police cannot manage demonstrations as we have in the past given the city councils banning of less-lethal tools, Best wrote on Thursday in a letter to the citys councilmembers. Seattle should expect more property destruction, arson, looting, and attempts to injure additional officers, predicted Best. In her letter to Seattles councilmembers, she added: Some have asked why officers are not arresting those engaging in criminal behavior, as officers do every day, and as they have in recent protests. If it is safe to do so, and even when it places their lives in danger, our officers always directly address criminal behavior. They do this, however, when they know they have the tools shown to allow the safe use of their policing powers. This Council ordinance denies them access to these tools that have been an essential part of their court-approved tactics. We have clear, court-mandated procedures for arresting individuals, grounded in the principles of deescalation. SPDs de-escalation principles are premised on the expectation, consistent with policy and best practices, that officers have the full array of approved tools. In large crowds, there is no safe way for officers to effect arrests when their colleagues do not have the tools necessary to protect them. As City Councils legislation goes into effect, it will create even more dangerous circumstances for our officers to intervene using what they have left riot shields and riot batons. For these reasons, SPD will have an adjusted deployment in response to any demonstrations this weekend. The Council legislation gives officers no ability to safely intercede to preserve property in the midst of a large, violent crowd. Allowing this behavior deeply troubles me, but I am duty-bound to follow the Council legislation once it is in effect. If the Council is prepared to suggest a different response or interpretation of the legislation, I stand ready to receive it. The Seattle Police Department has closed its counter services and precinct facilities indefinitely, ostensibly to mitigate the impact of COVID-19. Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan, a Democrat, described President Donald Trumps deployment of federal agents to the Emerald City as an escalation of violence. Read more at: Breitbart.com Representative Image The mid-day meals provided to students in government or aided schools should be supplemented by breakfast, the new National Education Policy (NEP) has proposed. The policy which was approved by the Union Cabinet earlier this week has noted that morning hours after a nutritious breakfast can be particularly productive for the study of cognitively more demanding subjects and hence recommended expansion of the mid-day meal scheme to include provisions for breakfast in schools. "Children are unable to learn optimally when they are undernourished or unwell. Hence, the nutrition and health (including mental health) of children will be addressed, through healthy meals and the introduction of well-trained social workers, counsellors, and community involvement into the schooling system," the policy said. "Furthermore, research shows that the morning hours after a nutritious breakfast can be particularly productive for the study of cognitively more demanding subjects and hence these hours may be leveraged by providing a simple but energizing breakfast in addition to mid-day meals," it added. In locations where hot meals are not possible, a simple but nutritious meal-- groundnuts or chana mixed with jaggery and local fruits may be provided. "All school children shall undergo regular health check-ups especially for 100 pc immunization in schools and health cards will be issued to monitor the same," the policy said. The revised policy has proposed that prior to the age of 5 every child will move to a "preparatory class" or "balavatika". "The learning in the preparatory class shall be based primarily on play-based learning with a focus on developing cognitive, affective, and psychomotor abilities and early literacy and numeracy. The mid-day meal programme shall also be extended to the preparatory Classes in primary schools. "Health check-ups and growth monitoring that are available in the anganwadi system shall also be made available to preparatory Class students of anganwadi as well as of primary schools," the policy document said. The National Programme of Mid-Day Meal in Schools, popularly known as the Mid-Day Meal Scheme (MDMS), is an on-going centrally-sponsored scheme which covers all school children studying in Classes 1 to 8 of government, government-aided schools, special training centres including 'Madarsas' supported under 'Samagra Shiksha'. "As per the provisions of National Food Security Act, 2013, children studying in classes 1 to 8 or within the age group of 6-14 years are entitled to one mid day meal free of charge, every day except on school holidays, in all schools run by local bodies, government and government aided schools so as to meet nutritional standards specified in the Act," a senior HRD Ministry official said. "However, some States and Union Territories provide additional items such as milk, egg and fruits to students from their own resources," the official added. At least 11.59 crore elementary school students are beneficiaries under the mid-day meal scheme of the Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry, while nearly 26 lakh cook-cum helpers are employed for the same. The Ministry also advised states during lockdown to provide mid-day meals or food security allowance to students till schools are closed due to the novel coronavirus outbreak. The NEP replaces the 34-year-old National Policy on Education framed in 1986 and is aimed at paving the way for transformational reforms in school and higher education systems to make India a global knowledge superpower. Shares is the leading weekly publication for retail investors. It is packed with investment ideas, news and educational material to help build and run portfolios and get more from your money. Shares puts on free Investor Events throughout the year across the country. They provide an opportunity for investors to learn more about companies on the stock market and hear from a range of investment experts including fund managers and Shares journalists. A top scientist has slammed the 'shroud of secrecy' around the government's coronavirus decisions - as civil servants rebel over Boris Johnson's call for people to return to offices. Sir Paul Nurse, chief of the Francis Crick Institute, raised concerns that crucial choices seemed to be made by a 'black box' in Whitehall with the results sometimes 'shambolic'. He insisted more transparency and scrutiny was needed to get the 'best results'. The intervention came as the government faces a fresh backlash about mixed messaging. Treasury subsidies for eating out at restaurants are launched today, and advice that everyone should work from home is being downgraded. However, there are also mounting rumours about tightening coronavirus rules in some areas, with fears of a looming second wave. Civil servants have complained they are being used as guinea pigs for the return to offices, with claims of more cases at the heart of government over the past fortnight. Sir Paul Nurse, chief of the Francis Crick Institute, raised concerns that crucial choices seemed to be made by a 'black box' in Whitehall with the results sometimes 'shambolic' Sir Paul, a geneticist and former president of the Royal Society, warned ministers that the decision-making process was too opaque. 'Decisions are too often shrouded in secrecy. They need challenge and we need processes to ensure that happens,' he said. 'If they are going to keep the trust of the nation, they need to make those discussions more public.' He added: 'It sometimes seems like a 'black box' made up of scientists, civil servants and politicians are coming up with the decisions. 'It needs to be more open. We need greater transparency, greater scrutiny and greater challenge to get the best results.' Despite mounting concern about a second wave forcing a delay to the next phase of lockdown easing, Mr Johnson said last week that it was safe for people to return to work. 'It is safe to go into a Covid-secure workplace; people should understand that,' he said. However, according to the Times, several senior figures in department have recently been forced to self-isolate. Risk assessments suggest most departments will not be able to operate offices at more than half capacity even in the Autumn. The current level of staff in workplaces is around a fifth. 'You can't experiment and virtue signal with people's health,' one Whitehall source told the newspaper. 'There will be a small increase in numbers hopefully that will see off ministers, and by the time we get further down the track it may be that they're back working from home again.' Despite mounting concern about a second wave forcing a delay to the next phase of lockdown easing, Boris Johnson said last week that it was safe for people to return to work Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA union, which represents senior mandarins, said: 'The majority of civil servants are currently working successfully from home, delivering vital public services. 'Ministers need to recognise this and allow the civil service to manage this transition, without pressure to virtue signal for a pattern of working that has already changed for good.' The PM's spokesman said: 'We have been sharing data extensively with local authorities and local public health teams in order to help inform the decisions that they are taking on dealing with outbreaks. 'More broadly there has been regular publication of documents relating to Sage's discussions and minutes of meetings. 'Both the chief scientific adviser and the chief medical officer, and their deputies, have answered questions extensively in public on this, both before Parliament and in briefings with journalists.' There is speculation that Mr Johnson could have to ban travel in and out of local lockdown areas, and order over-50s to shield. The radical proposal is under discussion as Downing Street shakes up its crisis response in the wake of localised flare-ups. Keen to avoid another national lockdown and derail the economic recovery, a 'flexible' strategy to restrict movement in and out of target areas with high infection rates are being hammered out in Whitehall. The notion of domestic travel bans has resurfaced in recent days, having initially been touted in the early stages of the pandemic when London bore the brunt of cases and was feared to be an epicentre. Belfast: John Hume, an architect of Northern Ireland's 1998 Good Friday Agreement who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in ending 30 years of sectarian violence, died on Monday at the age of 83. World leaders praised him as a "political titan", a visionary and a hero for the Irish people. A mural in the Bogside area of Londonderry depicts John Hume alongside Martin Luther King jnr, Mother Teresa and Nelson Mandela. Credit:AP A veteran civil rights campaigner credited with kick-starting peace negotiations in a British region convulsed by bloodshed in the early 1990s, Hume shared the Peace Prize with Northern Ireland's then-First Minister, David Trimble, of the Protestant Ulster Unionist Party. He died in a care home in his native Londonderry in the early hours of Monday, his family said in a statement. Philippine president orders restrictions in Manila, neighbouring provinces affecting as many as 25 million people. The Philippines will reimpose a stricter coronavirus lockdown in and around the capital for two weeks from Tuesday, President Rodrigo Duterte announced early on Monday, as the country struggles to contain infections that have jumped to more than 100,000 cases. Duterte has approved placing Metro Manila and nearby provinces such as Laguna, Cavite, Rizal and Bulacan under so-called Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ) until August 18, his spokesman Harry Roque told reporters. The lockdown will affect an estimated 25 million people, almost a quarter of the Philippines more than 100 million population. Some businesses and public transport are expected to be closed in the capital, which is currently under the less-restrictive General Community Quarantine classification. It is unclear if domestic flights from Manila are also affected, as in the previous lockdown of the countrys capital. Work and quarantine passes will also be required, as authorities seek to restrict movements. Some of the presidents allies have advised against a new lockdown saying it could cripple the already ailing economy. Dutertes move came after 80 local groups representing 80,000 doctors and a million nurses called for tighter controls, saying the country was losing the fight against the coronavirus. I have heard you. Dont lose hope. We are aware that you are tired, Duterte said in a late-night televised address that lasted early on Monday. The Philippines recorded 5,032 additional infections on Sunday, the countrys largest single-day increase, taking its confirmed coronavirus cases to 103,185. The death toll jumped by 20 to 2,059. It was the second-highest number of COVID-19 infections and deaths in Southeast Asia, behind Indonesia. Duterte also approved the hiring of 10,000 medical professionals to beef up the current workforce and additional benefits for healthcare workers treating COVID-19 patients, Roque said. But in his message early on Monday, the Philippine president also railed against the doctors who raised the alarms about about the situation of the countrys health system, daring them to declare a revolution. You really dont know me. You want to revolution? Then say it. Go ahead, try it. Well ruin everything. Well kill all those who are infected with COVID, he said in a tirade. Is that what you want? We can always end our existence in this manner. It was unclear how Duterte came up with the subject of a revolution, as the statement from the doctors did not mention about rising up against the government. In mid-March, Duterte imposed one of the worlds longest and strictest lockdowns in the capital and other provinces to curb the coronavirus spread. He began easing restrictions in June in an effort to revive the domestic economy, which is now facing its biggest contraction in more than three decades. Attorney Francis Malofiy (left) with his client Hanna "John" Ayoub in his garage in Chester where he stores a collection of classic cars. They claim Hertz has wrongly filed stolen-car reports against clients. Read more This story originally erred in saying that the renter of a Ford Mustang had returned the car before his arrest. In fact, he was arrested in the vehicle. The charges were later dropped. This article also includes updated statements from Hertz. John Ayoubs nightmare began when he rented a pickup truck from Hertz. By nightmares end, he had lost his tools, his business, his house, and his freedom. Ayoub, a South Jersey contractor, needed the Dodge Ram for work in March 2019. For each of the seven weeks that followed, he says, he called Hertz to extend his rental contract. He has phone records and recordings that document the calls. But as May drew to a close, Hertz reported the truck stolen and accused Ayoub of grand theft auto. Police arrested Ayoub at his home in Deptford and seized the pickup. The arrest sent him to jail for four months. The time behind bars left him broke. I have not been able to work, said Ayoub, 39. I take on odd jobs. I live with my parents. I dont even have a vehicle right now. Hertz claimed that it did not have a record of the rental extensions or that several of Ayoubs extensions were not approved. Ayoub has an e-receipt stating he paid Hertz $2,309.44 for the rental on May 29, 2019, after Hertz told him it planned to go to the police but before he was arrested. After learning of that payment, prosecutors in Delaware and New Jersey dropped the criminal case against him. Ayoub is among 20 former Hertz customers who have joined to sue the car-rental giant for allegedly filing false police reports. The suit, filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, also names the companys senior executives as defendants. Hertz vigorously disputes the complaints. We gave customers numerous opportunities to do the right thing and return the car before law enforcement got involved, a firm spokesperson said Hertz is not the only major rental company to file stolen-vehicle reports with police. In an interview, Walt Zaliski, a former security director for the Avis Budget rental company, said such reports were needed to combat fraud. In particular, he said that fraud was sometimes marked by a customers use of a debit card tied to a bank account. That way, the fraudsters limit their financial exposure. Theyll take it for two days and just not return it, he said. On the other hand, Zaliski said, Avis Budget did sometimes file improper police reports because of communications breakdowns among employees. Mistakes are made, he said. Hertz, founded in 1918, filed for bankruptcy in late May, seeking a judges permission to restructure its business and free itself from $19 billion in debt. The COVID-19 pandemic left Hertz with a mostly idle fleet of 700,000 cars. Whether the suit recovers any damages for the customers is up to the court. Hertz is obliged to pay off other creditors primarily carmakers first. Ayoubs lawyer, Francis A. Malofiy of Media, asserts that Hertz has wrongfully accused hundreds of its customers of stealing the cars they lawfully rented. The alleged victims are scattered across the nation Malofiys clients hail from California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. They are disproportionately Black, brown, or recent immigrants, Malofiy said. Ayoub, whose given first name is Hanna but prefers to use John, is American-born of Palestinian descent. Hertz settled a similar case with Malofiy in 2017. The lawyer believes that the company should have learned its lesson then. But Malofiy claims Hertz finds it less expensive to pay settlements than fix a computer tracking system that he says lands dozens of its customers in jail. They essentially use the police as a taxpayer-funded repo service, Malofiy said. Its cheaper for them to do it that way. Hertz cant un-ring the bell In his 2017 case, the rent-a-car behemoth had reported Kelly A. Grady of Delaware County for the alleged 2013 theft of a GMC Yukon. Grady was locked up for 12 days in Burlington County Jail, where, her lawsuit alleged, she was assaulted by another inmate. At the time of her arrest, her lawyer says, Grady already had paid Hertz $4,200 for the SUV rental. The jury awarded Grady at least $100,000 in compensatory damages as a victim of malicious prosecution. According to court records, Hertz settled the case rather than face a jury decision on any punitive damages for the companys conduct. Despite losing the case, Hertz has continued to file improper theft reports against other renters, said Malofiy, who earned some degree of fame for unsuccessfully suing Led Zeppelin for allegedly plagiarizing Stairway to Heaven. Hertz routinely files false or incomplete stolen-vehicle reports even after their customers had paid for the rentals in full, Malofiy said. The company has a broken computer system, and theyre not having corporate security personnel verify the thousands of theft reports it makes every year. The 20 plaintiffs in the Delaware case said that they presented evidence to the company documenting their payments, but that Hertz has refused to withdraw the stolen-vehicle reports. A Hertz spokesperson said that payments or even the eventual recovery of the car did not wipe away what it views as the original theft. Hertz cant un-ring the bell. The stolen-vehicle report was valid when it was made, the spokesperson said. Its up to law enforcement to decide what to do with the case. Establishing intent Industry experts say theft is fairly common in the world of rental cars, where an estimated 30,000 are stolen every year, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, a trade organization that combats fraud. People often rent cars but dont return them, the Hertz spokesperson said. In the industry, the term for this is theft by conversion. Prosecutors must determine whether a customer intended to steal the car. Many of the plaintiffs, such as Ayoub, were repeat Hertz customers. Most of Malofiys clients have evidence that they called Hertz several times either to extend their rental agreements or assure Hertz that they were returning the cars. Thats not something you do if you intend to steal a car, Malofiy said. Frank Scafidi is director of public affairs for the National Insurance Crime Bureau. A former deputy sheriff in Los Angeles and FBI agent, Scafidi said determining a customers intention is difficult. When I was a cop, I wouldnt take a stolen-vehicle report from a car-rental company unless I could find something to convince me it wasnt a late return, Scafidi said. Its hard to establish intent. Theres a lot of gray in that sky. In a statement to The Inquirer, Hertz said its lawyers have extensively reviewed the claims in the lawsuit filed by Malofiy and believe that the customers had every intention to steal the cars. The vast majority of the claims involve renters whose arrests resulted from their failure to return rented vehicles for weeks past their due date, in violation of the rental agreement and despite our repeated attempts to communicate with them about the status of the vehicle, Hertz said. Hertz says that when its staff determines that a car is overdue, it sends robocalls to the customer. Then it escalates to emails, personal phone calls, and certified letters. If it doesnt get a response, it hires a repossession company to find the car. If the repo servers dont find it, Hertz says, only then does it file a report with the police. The company spokesperson said there is not a systemic problem or some breakdown on a company-wide basis. He said that if overdue customers are involved in an accident, Hertz could be liable for damages. To cut the liability off, we report the car stolen, he said. No apology On occasion, Hertz reports some of its best customers. Brent Williams, 46, a salesman from Bethlehem, rented a Ford Mustang convertible in late 2007. He drove it for two months in the Florida Keys until he was arrested in 2008. Hertz disputed that he had paid. Williams returned to Florida a few weeks later to contest the charges. He had proof that he had paid $600 for every week he had had the car. But no lawyer from Hertz showed up at the court hearing, he said. I thought the matter had been dropped, Williams said. It never made any sense. How would you get a rental car if you didnt pay for it? I rented dozens of cars from Hertz. I spent tens of thousands of dollars with them. Williams was wrong. Although he had paid $5,569.09 in rental fees for the Mustang and had given Hertz his bank statements showing proof of payment, the warrant remained active. Eight years later, he was stopped in another car for a traffic violation by a state trooper near Allentown. The trooper discovered that there was an outstanding warrant for Williams in the theft of the Mustang. After his arrest near Allentown, police put me in jail, and I sat there for 30 days waiting for transport. That trip took 10 days to go from Pennsylvania to Florida, he said. They kept me shackled the entire time. Its almost like being kidnapped. When Williams arrived in Florida, he said he overheard the prosecutor say, I cant believe we just transported this guy. The charges were dropped, according to court records. Hertz made no apology. Triggering events Both Ayoub and Williams had used debit cards to secure their initial rentals. Both then extended their contracts by phone. None of Malofiys clients used conventional credit cards, which is more typical among car-rental customers. The triggering event is always an issue with the bank card, Malofiy said. They run a check to see if theres enough money on the card. Sometimes its just a simple glitch. A key problem, Malofiy said, is that Hertz deletes any records it may have of the rental extensions. A spokesperson for Hertz denied that the company intentionally purged any evidence that could absolve its customers. The spokesperson said the company has rented out millions of vehicles over the years and cant keep every voice recording, text, and email for every rental agreement. Malofiy said that should have been company procedure. We maintain significant documentation relevant to the law enforcement referral, including the rental contract, payment history, and a summary of communications with the customer, the spokesperson said. According to Hertzs contracts with customers, renters with payment disputes must settle them through arbitration. Hertz can escalate a case by filing a stolen-vehicle report, with the potential of involving police. There is no mention on the rental contract that a late car could lead to jail time. Hertz has no mechanism to withdraw a criminal referral because, the company spokesperson said, it has to maintain a relationship of integrity and responsibility with law enforcement Treated me like a criminal' From time to time, Hertzs relationships with the authorities have soured. In 2015, the regional airport in Louisville, Ky., put a limit on the number of theft accusations it would accept from Hertz, according to documents supplied by Malofiy. In 2016, Indianapolis Airport police also began to turn down Hertz complaints. Hertz said those issues were addressed. Sometimes, Hertz rents out cars it has already reported stolen. Brian Steinberg, 62, of Brigantine, N.J., was on vacation in Las Vegas in 2018 when he rented a Toyota Corolla from Hertz. The next morning Steinberg, a retired community college instructor, parked at the Flamingo Casino to pick up a pair of Wayne Newton show tickets. When he returned to his car, he found police waiting. I was detained for three hours, Steinberg said. They treated me like I was a criminal. Six days before Steinberg rented the Corolla, real car thieves had broken into a Hertz office in nearby Henderson, Nev., and made off with 25 sets of keys and five cars. A Hertz employee reported the Corolla stolen along with the others. It hadnt been taken. Apparently, staffers did not check all the rental bays. Steinberg had been given the Corolla. I was given no explanation, no apology, Steinberg said. How could a company this big, which claims to put customer service as its No. 1 priority, let this happen? In that case, Hertz made a human error, the company spokesperson said. But this wasnt an overdue rental. It was nothing like someone ignoring calls and emails. Is this some kind of joke?of Hertz said Shontrell Higgs ignored calls and emails. A nurse, Higgs was on her way to work in a rented Jeep Wrangler on April 9, 2019, when she was arrested by Miramar, Fla., police near her home. I said, Is this some kind of joke? This cant be stolen, I pay for this every week. She, too, had used a debit card to pay for the rental. Higgs gave the officer her record of calls and messages with Hertz. She texted with Hertz earlier that day to let them know she had extended her contract, was paid up, and would be returning the car April 10. A copy of that text is attached to the Delaware lawsuit. I showed [the officer] the text message from my phone, Higgs said in an interview with The Inquirer. He said it happens all the time. He showed me on the computer where Hertz issued the report on April 5 of it being stolen. Still, Higgs said, the officer said he had to take me. I was shocked. Then I started crying. I had clients I was supposed to see, a job where I was supposed to show up. Hertz maintains that Higgs had promised to return the Jeep by March 20.She didnt return the car as promised, the Hertz spokesperson said. Because she was on probation for an unrelated theft conviction, Higgs was held in jail for 37 days. Finally, Higgs said, she was forced to plead no contest to the stolen-vehicle charge so that she could return home to her two young children more quickly. She still served several more months. She tried to withdraw the plea last month, but a judge rejected her request. I get frustrated when I see that Hertz is claiming they are broke and bankrupt, she said, and are still filing false police reports. Rome, Aug 3 : The 2019-20 Italian Serie A season concluded with Genoa avoiding relegation while Lecce returning to Serie B, joining Brescia and SPAL. The focus of the last match day was the relegation battle between Genoa and Lecce, who were placed 17th and 18th respectively with only one point separating the two sides, reports Xinhua news agency. Genoa just needed a win to secure safety and they succeeded with a 3-0 home victory over Hellas Verona on Sunday. The Grifone were up by three goals before the break, thanks to Toni Sanabria's brace and Cristian Romero's header. Despite being a player down in the second half, Genoa held firm to keep a clean sheet while Sofyan Amrabat and Francesco Cassata from each side saw red in the dying minutes. Genoa's victory made the result between Lecce and Parma meaningless as Lecce finished their Serie A campaign with a 3-4 home defeat. In Sunday's other Serie A matches, Fiorentina dominated SPAL 3-1, Udinese edged past Sassuolo 1-0, and Bologna shared the spoils with Torino at 1-1. Africas biggest grocery retailer, Shoprite, has announced its exit from Nigeria, after 15 years. The South African Company, in a trading statement released on Monday said it had commenced a formal process to consider the potential sale of all or a majority stake in its supermarkets in Nigeria. The results for the year do not reflect any of our operations is Nigeria as it will be classified as discontinued operation. Any further updates will be provided to the market at the appropriate time, the statement read in part. Shoprite becomes the third South African retailer to leave the Nigerian market after Mr Price and Woolworths. A high-level engineer who specialized in evaluating earthquake and tsunami risks in Oregon was laid off from her position at the states geology agency earlier this month, potentially compromising some aspects of public safety. Yumei Wang, who worked for Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, also known as DOGAMI, for 26 years was told she would be laid off in early June, according to internal emails obtained by The Oregonian/OregonLive. Her position would not be refilled and her duties, which included work on the states resiliency program, would be discontinued. Created in 1937, the agency aims to help Oregonians understand the states geologic resources and hazards. The resiliency program was designed to plan for potential disasters, such as mapping evacuation routes for tsunamis. We have made the difficult decision to discontinue focused resiliency program work within DOGAMI, director Brad Avy wrote in a July 1 agency-wide email announcing the layoff. In an email four days later, Wang said that, while the loss of her job was personally painful, the loss of resiliency work at the agency could put the safety of Oregonians at risk. I am concerned that the proposed discontinuation of focused resiliency program work would not only leave DOGAMI incapable of fulfilling functions essential to its core mission, but would also be a detriment to public safety in Oregon, Wang wrote on July 5. The agency, which gets less than a third of its funding from the state and relies heavily on federal and local grants, has been on shaky financial footing for years. With future state funding dependent on an economy that has been racked by the coronavirus pandemic, some wonder if Oregons ability to prepare for the worst natural disasters is being undermined. As we lose personnel, we lose the skills and abilities required to fulfill our mission to bring in funds and to do the work, Wang wrote. Obviously, no one wants to go down that slippery slope. Wang did not respond to requests for an interview. A legacy of public safety The agency has two primary functions, both of which are important. The Geological Survey & Services program studies earthquakes, landslides, coastal erosion and other hazards and develops plans to reduce risk to the public. Many disaster plans in Oregon are based, at least in part, on DOGAMIs work, which is mostly funded through grants and state general fund dollars. The agency is also responsible for overseeing mining, which is funded entirely by fees. The agencys work on disaster planning took on increased significance in the mid-80s when geologists first began to understand the risk of a major quake along the Cascadia Subduction Zone. The zone, capable of producing an earthquake in excess of magnitude-9 along its 600-mile fault boundary off the Oregon coast, poses a risk beyond the shaking of the earth. A quake of that magnitude could precipitate a massive tsunami, up to 80 feet high, that would inundate coastal communities from Gold Beach in the south to Astoria on Oregons northern border. Roughly 40,000 people currently live in areas that could be overcome with water. The last time a major quake and tsunami struck the Oregon coast was in 1700 and its estimated that theres a 37% chance that a temblor in excess of magnitude-7.1 will occur again on the Cascadia Subduction Zone in the next 50 years. Wang spent a good deal of her time at DOGAMI modeling what would happen after a Cascadia quake and tsunami. She worked with with coastal communities to help them prepare for a large-scale disaster and the agency now hosts more than 75 tsunami inundation maps for communities large and small up and down the Oregon coast. It represented some of the work she was most proud of with the agency. In 2005, Wang helped create the Seismic Rehabilitation Grant Program, which offers funds to schools, hospitals, fire stations and other critical public safety facilities to retrofit buildings to withstand a powerful Cascadia quake. She helped promote vertical evacuation buildings along the Oregon coast so people in inundation zones would have places to run when tsunami sirens blared. Wang also played an integral role in the creation of the Oregon Resilience Plan, a 300-page report that laid out the risks posed by a major Cascadia quake, proposed ways to mitigate those risks and charted a path of policy and investment priorities for the next fifty years. Just this year, Wang co-authored a report on the resiliency of Oregons coastal hospitals, buildings that will be of life-and-death importance when a tsunami washes over the coast. An agency on shaky ground Like nearly everyone, from individual citizens to business owners to government entities, the coronavirus pandemic has created new and unforeseen financial problems for DOGAMI. But Oregons geologic agency had already faced budgetary issues for years. For the 2013-2015 budget cycle, $800,000 from the general fund. For 2017-2019 cycle, $650,000. Agencies needing more cash is unusual said John Terpening, a legislative analyst for the state who reviewed the budget proposal. Needing more cash twice in as many budget cycles is cause for concern. This type of thing should be very rare, he told The Oregonian/OregonLive in 2019. The governors office threatened to abolish the agency if it didnt get its fiscal house in order. Part of the problem stems from the sources of DOGAMIs funding. The agency gets 31% of its budget from the states general fund. Another 32% comes from federal grants. The rest is a mix of mining fees and a mix of local and county grants. That means the agency starts its budget cycle without knowing how much money it will have to spend, especially for its geologic functions. (The agency) starts the biennium without knowing how successful it will be in securing grant awards to meet its budgeted revenue, Avy said last year. This results in a less predictable funding structure for our Geological Survey and Services Program. When DOGAMI went over budget last year, the agency was forced to cut three natural resource specialist positions from its next budget. A few positions were added or changed to ensure the agency doesnt run into fiscal trouble again, Avy said, but the result was still a net loss of staff. Chris Goldfinger, a professor of geophysics and expert on the Cascadia Subduction Zone, said the funding structure of the agency presents real problems. Imagine being in a state agency where peoples salaries depend on outside grants, he said. When it doesnt work out perfectly they get a lot of flack for it. They dont get a lot of credit when it does. Now, with the pandemic upending future budgets, both from the general fund and from federal grants, the agency has had to make painful cuts yet again. Earlier this year, DOGAMI cut its Chief Information Officer position and reduced its Public Affairs Specialist from full-time to part-time. It also closed two field offices. But Wangs departure represents the agencys most high-profile loss. Hollowed out from the inside Goldfinger said hes watched in dismay as DOGAMI has lost personnel and the capacity to carry out their important work. As the agency that studies earthquakes and tsunamis, the news they bring to lawmakers is rarely good, Goldfinger said, and the risks they bring attention to often come with hefty price tags. Theyve been under attack for years and they are being hollowed out from inside, he said. (DOGAMI) is suffering the same fate as other state and federal agencies that are bearers of bad news. Avy said that, even with the loss of Wang, the agency will continue to prioritize public safety, assigning some of her most crucial roles to other people within DOGAMI. But Avy acknowledged that more cutbacks were likely and that each one reduces the agencys ability to protect the public. Each layoff directly affects the agencys ability to carry out its mission, he said. But Goldfinger pointed out that failing to provide funding for the agency that studies natural disasters does not lessen the risk they pose to the public. We live in a land that we recently found out we have these giant earthquakes. Its the science led by people at DOGAMi and federal agencies that have brought this to light, Goldfinger said. We cant shoot the messenger. Sticking our heads in the sand is not an option. -- Kale Williams; kwilliams@oregonian.com; 503-294-4048; @sfkale Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. Religious rituals got under way in Ayodhya on Monday, two days ahead of the groundbreaking ceremony for a temple at a spot where devotees believe Lord Ram was born. IMAGE: Sadhus visit the Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas workshop, ahead of the ground breaking ceremony of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. Photograph: PTI Photo Barricades are already in place in the temple town and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath issued an appeal, asking only those invited for Wednesday's 'bhoomi pujan' ceremony to come to Ayodhya. Adityanath spent hours reviewing the arrangements for the ceremony at the Ram Janmabhoomi, where the temple will be constructed following the go-ahead last year by the Supreme Court. Twelve priests on Monday conducted prayers dedicated to Lord Ganesh. This was to be followed by prayers to the deities of the dynasties of Lord Ram and goddess Sita. On Tuesday, prayers will be offered at Ayodhya's Hanumangarhi temple. Among the 175 people invited for the main ceremony are 135 `sants' belonging to that many spiritual traditions, the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra said in a series of tweets and a press conference. IMAGE: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath offers prayers to Lord Ram during his visit to Ram Janmabhoomi premises to take stock of preparedness for the ground breaking ceremony of the Ram Mandir, in Ayodhya. Photograph: PTI Photo The trust also noted 'certain practical difficulties' faced by some guests -- including religious figures in participating in the ceremony because of the coronavirus pandemic. Bharatiya Janata Party veteran Uma Bharti, a key figure in the Ram temple movement and an accused in the Babri mosque demolition case, said she will not attend because of concerns over catching the infection. The trust asked devotees to organise 'bhajans' and 'kirtans' in places outside Ayodhya as well, while keeping restrictions related to COVID-19 in mind. Among the people invited to the event is Iqbal Ansari, a litigant in the temple-mosque land dispute case. "I will certainly attend it. The dispute is over now after the court's verdict," said Ansari, 69. His father Hashim Ansari, the oldest litigant in the case, died n 2016. After that the son pursued the case in court. Mohammad Sharif, an Ayodhya-based social activist who also got the invitation, will not be able to attend as he is too old and ill, his family said. IMAGE: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath takes stock of preparations for the ground breaking ceremony of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. Photograph: PTI Photo On the dais, there will be just five people -- Narendra Modi, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat, trust chief Nritya Gopaldas Maharaj, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel and CM Yogi Adityanath. Left parties opposed the event, saying holding the ceremony with the 'involvement' of the Centre and the state government went against the Supreme Court verdict which directed the formation of a trust. In separate statements, both the Communist Party of India and Communist Party of India-Marxist also said the Supreme Court, while delivering the verdict, had condemned the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992. Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh too sounded a discordant note, asking Modi to defer the event as this was an "inauspicious" period. The former Madhya Pradesh chief minister cited a list of politicians who have been infected by coronavirus and said a Hindu seer he has spoken to also agreed about the time being "inauspicious" for beginning any good work. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who is among those struck by the disease, hit back. "Congress leaders who had rejected the existence of Lord Ram are today trying to fix the auspicious-inauspicious time for the construction of a temple in his name," he tweeted. IMAGE: A model of Ram temple displayed at Kar Sewak Puram in Ayodhya. Photograph: PTI Photo Yogi Adityanath called the event 'historic'. "It is not only a historic but also an emotional moment as after 500 years the Ram temple work will start. It will be the foundation of a new India," he said. "The COVID-19 protocol will be strictly followed at the event. As the prime minister will be here representing 135 crore people, I appeal that only those who have been invited should visit Ayodhya. The rest should remain at their respective places," Adityanath said. The ceremony will be broadcast live by Doordarshan. The chief minister urged people to light earthen lamps, decorate temples and recite the Ramayana in memory of those "who laid down their lives in the temple struggle". The mosque in Ayodhya was demolished in December 1992 by 'kar sevaks' who claimed an ancient Ram temple had stood on the same site. Last November, the apex court paved the way for the construction of a Ram temple at the site and directed the Centre to allot an alternative five-acre plot for building a new mosque in Ayodhya. Shoprite ShopRite Nigeria has reacted to the story making the rounds that it intends to close shop in Nigeria. Recall that Punch had today stated that the company had concluded plans to exit the country. However, Country Director for Chastex Consult, Ini Archibong, in a telephone conversation with Vanguard said they are not leaving. He said: Shoprite is not leaving Nigeria. We have only just opened to Nigerian investors which we have also been talking to just before now. We are not leaving, who leaves over a $30billion investment and close shop? It doesnt sound right. We only just given this opportunity to Nigeria investors to come in and also help drive our expansion plan in Nigeria. So we are not leaving. I have tried to say this as too many people as I can. There should be no panic at all and all of that. There is no truth in that report. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 00:49:01|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close COLOMBO, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- A cat, who was detained for transporting drugs into Sri Lanka's Welikada Prison, has escaped from a heavily guarded prison, days after it was caught by intelligence officers, local media reports said here Monday. The local Aruna newspaper, quoting prison officials said the cat was detected by prison guards last Saturday with nearly two grams of heroin, two SIM cards and a memory chip found in a small plastic bag tied around its neck. Investigations found that the cat was smuggling the drugs and banned items into the Welikada Prison located in Colombo. The cat was thereafter detained in a room in the Colombo Magazine Prison for further investigations but escaped some time on Sunday with authorities now launching a manhunt to catch the feline. Investigators believe the cat was used as a smuggler. Enditem The speaker of the Turkish parliament has congratulated his Tunisian counterpart Rached Ghannouchi after the legislature failed to unseat him from the presidency. Mustafa Sentop lauded Ghannouchi for accepting the motion, Webdo Tunis reports. A group of Tunisian lawmakers sought to remove the leader of the Ennahdha Islamist movement over several infringements. He is accused of promoting Turkey and dragging Tunisia into Turkeys military involvement in neighboring Libya. The anti-Ghannouchi activists failed to garner enough voices to achieve the move. They fulfilled 97, below the 133-mark necessary to implement the motion. The motion was rejected by 16 votes while 18 votes were cancelled and two were counted as white ballot. The Tunisian parliament counts 217 lawmakers. Chairman William J. Hansen stated, "Today we announce the retirement of David Heald as our President and CEO of Santa Cruz County Bank. David has navigated through several unprecedented challenges including the collapse of the real estate market in 2008 and most recently the current Covid-19 Pandemic. Throughout all of these challenges David's leadership has resulted in Santa Cruz County Bank being recognized nationally as a top performing community bank. We have been fortunate to have had David at the helm of Santa Cruz County Bank for the past fourteen years. David's banking knowledge and experience, from a career spanning 48 years , has been instrumental in the growth and success of the Bank." David Heald, Pres./CEO remarked, "I've had the privilege of working beside the most dedicated, committed and talented leadership team whom I hold in the highest esteem and owe an enormous amount of gratitude. Throughout my career I've been blessed with long close relationships I will cherish and keep forever. I will truly miss my Bank family, all of whom I am extremely proud. My years with Santa Cruz County Bank are the highlights of a long satisfying career in banking. Everyone in the community has been wonderful to me and we could not have built our Bank without the support of so many of you. I thank the Board of Directors for the opportunity and confidence in me to lead the organization for the last 14 years. It has been a most satisfying experience to build a locally and nationally highly ranked and respected community financial institution together. I look forward to continuing my community involvement." David Heald began his banking career in San Francisco in the Finance and Planning Department of a Canadian bank with a branch network in the United States immediately after receiving a Finance Degree from San Diego State University. In his 48 year banking career, David has been responsible for oversight of all lending functions, branch administration and compliance. David was asked to join the De Novo Bank in late 2003 as their Chief Credit Officer. David served as the Chief Credit Officer for two years prior to taking over the role of President and CEO in March of 2006. In his 16 years of service David has provided steady leadership and a well-executed strategic vision. Santa Cruz County Bank's growth and success, over the past several years, has been the direct result of David's execution of the bank's strategic vision. The organic growth over the past sixteen years, as well as the recent merger with Lighthouse Bank, has allowed Santa Cruz County Bank to become the largest community bank in the tri-county area. ABOUT SANTA CRUZ COUNTY BANK Santa Cruz County Bank was founded in 2004. It is a top-rated, locally-owned and operated, full-service community bank headquartered in Santa Cruz, California. The bank has seven branchesAptos, Capitola, Cupertino, Santa Cruz (2), Scotts Valley and Watsonville. Santa Cruz County Bank is distinguished from "big banks" by its relationship-based service, problem-solving focus, and direct access to decision makers. The bank is a leading SBA lender in Santa Cruz County and Silicon Valley, and a top USDA lender in the state of California. As a full-service bank, Santa Cruz County Bank offers competitive deposit and lending solutions for businesses and individuals; including business loans, lines of credit, commercial real estate financing, construction lending, agricultural loans, SBA and USDA government guaranteed loans, credit cards, merchant services, remote deposit capture, mobile and online banking, bill payment, and treasury management. True to its community roots, Santa Cruz County Bank has supported regional well-being by actively participating in and donating to local not-for-profit organizations. Santa Cruz County Bank stock is publicly traded on the OTC marketplace under the symbol SCZC. Stock purchase orders may be placed online, through a brokerage firm, or through Market Makers listed in the Investor Relations section of the bank's website. For more information about Santa Cruz County Bank, visit www.sccountybank.com . This release may contain forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Such risks and uncertainties may include but are not necessarily limited to fluctuations in interest rates, inflation, government regulations and general economic conditions, and competition within the business areas in which the Bank is conducting its operations, including the real estate market in California and other factors beyond the Bank's control. Such risks and uncertainties could cause results for subsequent interim periods or for the entire year to differ materially from those indicated. Readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements, which reflect management's view only as of the date hereof. The Bank undertakes no obligation to publicly revise these forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. SOURCE Santa Cruz County Bank Related Links http://www.sccountybank.com This originally appeared as part of our daily coronavirus newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. To paraphrase T.S. Eliot, the naming of viruses is a difficult matter, it isnt just one of your holiday games. A group of virologists are thinking about changing the way we name viruses, but some think that its not what we should be worried about in the middle of a pandemic. If you think about it, the many names of the coronavirus, and the disease that results from contracting it, has been a bit confusing. There have been more than a few shifts in terminology in the last few months: Coronavirus, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, not to mention all the colloquialisms. And then theres all the viral mutations, which also need names, or at least monikers of some sort. So the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (which is really a thing) is meeting later this year to try and standardize the naming process, as was reported in the journal Nature. Edward Holmes, a virologist at the University of Sydney in Australia said that while the idea is important, it can hardly be classed as urgent compared to a global pandemic. Not everyone agrees. This is the golden age of virus discovery. It is a good time to start organizing the deluge of viral genomes, Eric Delwart, a virologist at University of California, told Nature. At the moment, the only requirement is that the scientific name of a newly discovered virus be italicised in any published papers. The first word needs to be capitalized, too, as in Tomato yellow leaf curl Indonesia virus. A proposal published in December would restrict the names of new viruses to two words. If that system is implemented, it could force a change in the names of 6,500 viruses. But some virologists are none too happy with the timing. We believe that 2020, the year of COVID-19, is not an appropriate time to undertake a major change of naming virus species. Our members are stretched to the limit with other tasks, and many have not had time to properly consider this matter, according to a letter sent to the ICTV from the Australasian Virology Society in July. Researchers have correlated information on drugs, genes and diseases to identify potential candidates for psychiatric and neurological treatment; the methodology they developed will be used to search for drugs against COVID-19 Artificial intelligence can increase the effectiveness of drug repositioning or repurposing research, according to a study published in Translational Psychiatry. In the study, which was supported by Sao Paulo Research Foundation - FAPESP, Brazilian researchers correlated information on genes associated with psychiatric and neurological disorders and drugs approved for use in treating other diseases that might potentially inhibit or activate these genes. The study identified 63 drugs targeting 31 genes and potential candidates for testing against Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and autism. A total of 1,588 genes were correlated with 722 drugs. In addition to identifying these candidate drugs, the researchers also developed a novel drug screening approach that can be used in studies of other diseases. They then applied the novel methodology in another study with the aim of repurposing drugs to treat COVID-19. "We are producing much more knowledge than we can absorb. Scientific journals publish more than a million articles per year, so it is impossible to keep abreast of the literature in areas other than one's research interests," Helder Nakaya , principal investigator for the study, told. Nakaya is a professor at the University of Sao Paulo's School of Pharmaceutical Sciences (FCF-USP) in Brazil and a senior researcher at the Center for Research on Inflammatory Diseases (CRID), one of the Research, Innovation and Dissemination Centers (RIDCs ) funded by FAPESP. Novel approach: network medicine Drug development requires large amounts of time and money. Repurposing can be a vital shortcut because existing drugs have already passed the relevant safety tests. The usual approach is to study how drugs and diseases share molecular mechanisms. To make these correlations more effective, the researchers used a machine learning approach known as network medicine to investigate the molecular characteristics and mechanisms of psychiatric and neurological disorders. Network medicine is an emerging field that combines systems biology and network science to understand how genes interact in disease and health. "We organized and structured a network of knowledge about psychiatric and neurological disorders correlating with information about relevant drugs and genes," Nakaya explained. "Network medicine uses graph theory to analyze these complex interactions and suggest drugs that have never been tested for the treatment of certain diseases." The group used IBM Watson for Drug Discovery (WDD), as well as programs developed in their own laboratory, to mine information in millions of scientific articles published in the last 50 years and construct a network connecting knowledge about disorders, genes and drugs. "IBM WDD can read more than 20 million articles infinitely faster than a human being can. The computer used machine learning algorithms to make correlations based on the information in the articles, such as gene activation and inhibition by certain substances, and links between these processes and mental health problems," Nakaya said. "It is not magic. You do not just press a button to get results. It is hard to identify the associations that are significant." Tool to direct future studies The researchers found entirely novel candidates for drug repurposing studies. "The analysis revealed drugs never before described as alternatives for the treatment of psychiatric and neurological disorders. We hope other researchers will use the list produced by our research to begin testing in vitro, in animals, and in future clinical trials if all goes well to determine whether these drugs do in fact work against the indicated diseases," said Thomaz Luscher Dias, first author of the paper. The study was conducted as part of his PhD research, which was supported by the Ministry of Education's Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) and supervised by Nakaya. The drug repurposing process was made more effective by the combination of machine learning and network medicine. "Instead of screening 2,000 possible candidates and then testing to determine which of them could treat a disease, it is possible to use the results of our study to analyze a much smaller, more assertive list of probable candidates," Dias said. In a study to be published soon, the group led by Nakaya carried out laboratory experiments to test the effects of one of the drugs on the list when used to treat schizophrenia. "We have set up a research collaboration to determine whether treatment with this drug is effective. Experimental validations are fundamental to prove the utility of these analyses," he said. The researchers are also applying the methodology to search for correlations between drugs, genes and COVID-19. "In this case, we are using a large volume of information on infectious diseases caused by all types of virus, as well as the main problems relating to severe COVID-19, to look for associations and create networks linking genes and drugs that can be used to treat the disease. In the current crisis, it is essential to narrow the field of study. Network medicine can contribute help us focus in this way," he said. ### About Sao Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) The Sao Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) is a public institution with the mission of supporting scientific research in all fields of knowledge by awarding scholarships, fellowships and grants to investigators linked with higher education and research institutions in the State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. FAPESP is aware that the very best research can only be done by working with the best researchers internationally. Therefore, it has established partnerships with funding agencies, higher education, private companies, and research organizations in other countries known for the quality of their research and has been encouraging scientists funded by its grants to further develop their international collaboration. You can learn more about FAPESP at http://www.fapesp.br/en and visit FAPESP news agency at http://www.agencia.fapesp.br/en to keep updated with the latest scientific breakthroughs FAPESP helps achieve through its many programs, awards and research centers. You may also subscribe to FAPESP news agency at http://agencia.fapesp.br/subscribe. P olice have arrested a third man on suspicion of attempted murder after an NHS worker suffered serious injuries in a racially aggravated attack. The 21-year-old victim, who wishes only to be referred to as K or Kdogg, was walking to a bus stop after finishing work at Bristols Southmead Hospital at about 4.30pm on July 22. He was struck by a car and suffered serious injuries including a broken leg, nose and cheekbone. On Saturday morning, two 18-year-old men were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder in connection with the incident. The following day, a 22-year-old man was also arrested. All three have since been released under investigation. Superintendent Andy Bennett, of Avon and Somerset Police, said: The dedicated team investigating this incident are committed to carrying out a thorough investigation and I hope this third arrest provides further reassurance to the victim and the wider community about how seriously were treating this incident. The force said the attack is being treated as racially aggravated due to the racist language used by the occupants of the car that struck the 21-year-old hospital worker and musician. K whose stage name is Kdogg has been left unable to walk without crutches, only able to sleep sitting up in a chair and requiring regular hospital treatment for his injuries. His family are being supported by the charity Stand Against Racism & Inequality (Sari). Protesters march for NHS worker injured in racially aggravated hit-and-run On Sunday afternoon, protesters marched through Bristol holding placards in support of K and the Black Lives Matter movement. They later laid the banners at the spot where K was injured, where damage could be seen to a wall that was hit by the car. A fundraising page set up by Ks friend Simeon Mccarthy has received more than 45,000 in donations, and has been supported by the band Massive Attack. Diagnosed with breast cancer exactly 20 years after her last bout of it, Anne Nolan is both devastated and scared. Her sister Bernie famous, like Anne, for singing in The Nolans, and later appearing in The Bill died in 2013 aged only 52 after her breast cancer spread. Another sister, 61-year-old Linda, is now undergoing chemotherapy at the same time as Anne. After being successfully treated for breast cancer in 2006, Linda has liver cancer. Diagnosed with breast cancer exactly 20 years after her last bout of it, Anne Nolan is both devastated and scared. Another sister, 61-year-old Linda, is now undergoing chemotherapy at the same time as Anne Once famous as members of the joyful and wholesome singing group, a darker fame is stalking the Nolan clan. Anne, now 69, has been having chemotherapy after a lump which she found in April turned out to be malignant. She faces surgery and possibly radiotherapy, too, as her cancer was detected at stage three. She says: 'I'm not brave. I haven't been brave at all I've been crying and probably stressing my sisters and my daughters. 'I just haven't got any choice. Either I do it, take chemo, or face the consequences.' It's the news she has long dreaded and she has been having panic attacks and receiving therapy for anxiety. She told me: 'You fear that just one single cell is out there, somewhere, wherever in your body, and that it has escaped the treatment and will turn into a cancer that will kill you, even though you may have been in remission for years,' she says. Anne has had problems with lumps in her breasts for almost her whole adult life. 'The first time was when I was maybe 25 and I had a benign lump out with 12 stitches,' she says. 'It was only when the doctor said that the lump had been tested and was benign that I realised that it could have been cancerous. 'After that, I would have lumps aspirated with a needle [to take a biopsy] probably once or twice a year. I did say to the doctor: 'Must I really keep on doing this?' and she told me: 'Yes, because the one time you ignore a lump, then it will be cancer.' In 2000, that prediction came true. 'They had taken out two cysts which were benign and the doctor examined me and she found the cancer, which I had missed' recalls Anne. 'I had a lumpectomy, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. I did get quite ill, which was my own fault because I was doing a summer season in Blackpool at the time and I got a bit tired. I ended up in hospital for a week on antibiotics.' Anne recalls that it was hard telling her daughters, Amy and Alex, who were then aged 19 and 13. 'Apparently I told one of them when we were walking in the park and the other when she was in the bath,' she recalls. 'I think I broke it pretty abruptly. They knew I was having tests and they asked me how it had gone and I just said: 'I have cancer.' The Nolans are pictured above (from left to right) Linda, Coleen and Maureen, while Bernie and Anne are pictured in the front row 'One of my daughters burst out laughing when I told her because she thought I was joking, and I had to say, 'No, I'm serious', and in that instant she was crying.' She continues: 'I do remember that I had moments of pure despair with the cancer. I remember we would go out for a meal and everyone would be really happy sitting around the table, and then I would think, 'I have cancer', and it would be like a black cloud coming over you. I would just feel so scared. 'You feel really alone, even if there are lots of people with you who want to help.' She adds: 'I was watching Comic Relief and there was someone on the show who had lost three children. I don't think that there can be a greater pain. There is always someone worse off than you and it doesn't hurt to remind yourself of it. 'We have been through a bit. But there are families who have been through even more. You must not think about people who have been through nothing because then you aren't able to cope. 'People say, 'You are being brave', but you don't have a choice.' Her new diagnosis came after she and Linda returned from filming the TV series The Nolans Go Cruising, along with sisters Maureen and Coleen. As Linda told the Sun newspaper recently: 'On May 7, our sister Maureen called me at 10am to say that Anne's breast cancer had been confirmed. 'Then, half an hour later, my oncologist's secretary phoned me to say: 'We need you to have an MRI scan because we've seen something on your liver.' 'I couldn't tell anyone then because they were so obviously devastated about Anne.' Anne and Linda started chemotherapy at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Blackpool on the same day, June 5. Linda joked: 'Forget the Chemical Brothers, we've become the Chemo Sisters.' Maureen has moved in with Anne, who is divorced, to look after her, and Linda has gone to stay with their other sister, Denise. Anne remains hopeful of a full cure after a mastectomy or lumpectomy. The mother of two (Amy is now 39, and Alex, 32) and grandmother of three (to Amy's son Ryder, eight, and Alex's children Vinny, ten, and Nevaeh, five) says: 'I don't want to die. I love my life so much. 'I love my daughters, my grandchildren, my friends, all my family. I want to live for as long as I possibly can. 'I am scared of dying, as well. Even though I believe in God, I'm still scared.' Linda was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 and secondary cancer on her pelvis in 2017. She now has incurable liver cancer. The Nolans are pictured above on the Les Dawson Show. Anne, now 69, has been having chemotherapy after a lump which she found in April turned out to be malignant. She faces surgery and possibly radiotherapy, too, as her cancer was detected at stage three Linda hopes that the disease responds well to treatment and has been told she may live for another 15 or 20 years if it does. She says: 'I'll be 75 in 15 years time, and I would've had a great life. So that's why I'm again, for the third time, going to give it everything I've got.' The sisters are pulling together now, but there was a nuclear falling-out after four of the sisters Coleen, Maureen, Linda and Bernie took part in a 30th anniversary comeback tour, which excluded Anne and Denise. Anne furiously accused the siblings of 'stabbing her in the back', and said that they were 'dead' to her. However, within a year she had written to them all to make up, for the sake of the extended family, and she was reconciled with Bernie, Maureen and Denise long before Bernie became ill. She made up with Coleen just before Bernie died. The night before she passed away, all five sisters sang her favourite song, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, to her. Today, they are bonded as never before. Now mature women with children and grandchildren, Anne will not hear any suggestion of rifts or rivalries in the Nolans. She says: 'We are all very close, all very supportive. All of us. It is fantastic. Nothing will ever, ever come between us again, especially not something in showbusiness. I will never fall out with my sisters again, ever.' The fact that cancer has struck more than one sister has led to tests to see if there is a genetic link that's left them predisposed to the disease. Some years ago, Bernie and Linda were tested to see if they have mutations of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes, which are strongly linked to breast and ovarian cancer but they did not. Instead, they have been told that a 'rogue' gene was responsible. This gene, called CHEK2, usually repairs damage in the breast. However, a study published in The Lancet in 2002 suggested that a mutation in CHEK2 may account for some familial breast cancer susceptibility not caused by BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations (see panel, right). Anne says: 'It's horrible when it is breast cancer in a family of women. I have daughters and granddaughters, so it is a very real worry. They will take medical advice now. 'I have talked to my daughters about it and it is a big decision to take to have your breasts removed. And one of the possibilities of genetic testing is that you have your breasts removed and then you get cancer somewhere else.' She says having had cancer before, she always feared its return. 'I think that only people who have had cancer can probably realise what a grip the experience has on you. 'Every time anything is wrong with me, or is different, anything, no matter how small, I think: 'That's it, the cancer is back.' Anne adds: 'I've also started having anxiety attacks. That's got something to do with the pandemic. They say that when you're having chemotherapy, you can pick up any kind of infection it can be fatal. So I think that's been playing on my mind as well. 'This has broken me down a bit, to be honest. 'I think part of it is because I've not been able to see my daughters and grandchildren. I've not touched them, I've not been able to hug them or kiss them.' The tragic death of Bernie, who died three years after her diagnosis, leaving a daughter and husband, has been troubling both women. Linda who, like Anne, has lost her hair due to chemotherapy says: 'I look in the mirror now and I see Bernie, because I think we're so alike anyway and it just brings back all of her trauma and how sick she was.' Anne says: 'People talk about fighting cancer, but I think that is wrong, because it implies that people who have died didn't fight it. 'Well, Bernie fought and fought and fought until her last breath. 'We will never know the answers about why this has happened. Some people have a belief that there is fate, or a reason, or that things are meant to be. 'I think that must be a comfort when bad things happen. 'My own belief is that you can't sit around thinking: 'Why me?' or 'Why us?' 'The question is: 'Why not me? Why shouldn't it happen to us?' How likely are sisters to have same cancer? By Thea Jourdan for the Daily Mail The Nolans' story highlights the frightening way breast cancer can run in families. If your sister has breast cancer, you have a nearly 6.5 times higher-than-average risk of developing the disease between the ages of 20 and 40, and double the average risk after the age of 50, according to a major trial published in 2008. Most 'family' cases of breast cancer are linked to inherited mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes they account for around 2,250 (5 per cent) of the 55,000 new diagnoses in the UK each year. 'For women who have a faulty BRCA1 gene, the lifetime risk is a 60 per cent to 90 per cent chance of developing the disease,' says Louise Grimsdell, clinical nurse specialist at the charity Breast Cancer Now. The lifetime risk of a woman with a CHEK2 mutation developing breast cancer is up to 37 per cent, and they have a 50 per cent risk of passing the defective gene on to their daughters and sons [File photo] Without this mutation, the lifetime risk is just over 14 per cent. But in the case of the Nolan sisters, it is a different faulty gene that is involved. As Anne reveals in these pages (see main story), Linda has a mutation of CHEK2, a tumour suppressor gene, just as Bernie did. 'Most women with familial breast cancer do have faulty BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes, but a small proportion of women have other genetic mutations that we now know can also raise the risk,' says Charles Coombes, a professor of medical oncology at Imperial College London. It is thought that around 4 per cent of genetic breast cancer cases are linked to a faulty CHEK2 gene. The lifetime risk of a woman with a CHEK2 mutation developing breast cancer is up to 37 per cent, and they have a 50 per cent risk of passing the defective gene on to their daughters and sons. Men with a CHEK2 mutation may be at increased risk for breast and prostate cancers. In recent years, women have been screened for other known mutations, too, usually if they have a strong family history of breast cancer but test negative for BRCA1 and BRCA2. What isn't clear is what proportion of cases are linked to as-yet-unidentified 'family' genes, although the vast majority of breast cancer cases are not inherited. So far, scientists have found that mutations of the PALB2, CHEK2 and ATM genes all increase the risk of breast cancer, as well as BRCA1 and BRCA2, 'but there could well be more,' says Professor Coombes. Any mutation can pass on through families. CHEK2 mutations can lead to a higher risk of breast cancer, but also colorectal cancer and possibly others. Meanwhile, a review of the ATM gene, published in the journal Current Oncology in 2018, found that around 1 per cent to 2 per cent of adults in the U.S. had one mutation of this gene, which aids tissue repair, and women who carried this mutation had a 25 per cent greater risk of developing breast cancer. PALB2 mutations are also linked to increased risk of breast cancer. 'These genes are another part of the tissue repair machinery and can go awry,' says Professor Coombes. He hopes more women will be able to be tested for a wider range of mutations in the UK, not least because this could assist with treatment options. 'There is no gene therapy yet for breast cancer, but we do know certain drugs are more active in patients who have BRCA gene mutations,' he says. But inherited genes are only part of the picture. And it's not certain that women with these genes will develop breast cancer, says Jayant Vaidya, a professor of surgery and oncology at University College London. 'Even with the faulty BRCA genes, between 20 per cent and 30 per cent of women do not develop the disease; and women with CHEK2 mutations have a lower risk than that, somewhere below 50 per cent,' he says. Indeed, increasing age and being female are the two biggest risk factors for developing breast cancer, and there are lifestyle factors that can make a difference, too. Professor Vaidya adds: 'Hopefully in the future we will be able to combine multiple factors, including lifestyle and environmental, and determine a woman's actual risk.' Mikel Arteta has identified the three players he wants to bring in this summer as he looks to make his own stamp on the Arsenal squad he inherited from Unai Emery. The Gunners boss is looking to add a wealth of experience to the team and is intent on switching to a 4-3-3 system next season, as he continues implement his own style of play. According to The Times, Arteta has identified Philippe Coutinho, Atletico Madrid's Thomas Partey and Chelsea winger Willian as the men to help transform his side as they look to build on their FA Cup triumph. Philippe Coutinho is at the top of Mikel Arteta's Arsenal transfer wishlist this summer Arteta also wants to bring in Thomas Partey (left) and Chelsea winger Willian (right) With Coutinho now exiled by Barcelona, Arsenal could snap up the Brazilian this summer, with recent reports suggesting that the former Liverpool star could cost as little as 9million. A loan deal is also being mooted should Barcelona not receive an offer in the region of their valuation of the player. The Catalan giants are hoping to sell Coutinho permanently but are aware that clubs may not be able to part with a significant transfer fee in this current financial climate and could instead look to loan him out for another season - he joined Bayern on loan last August. In the centre of the park, Partey is being seen as the man to take over from Matteo Guendouzi after the Frenchman lost his place in the squad due to attitude issues. He was accused of taunting Brighton players over their wages during a Premier League clash. Arteta is wanting to switch to a 4-3-3 system next season and knows the men he needs for it Another veteran Arteta is keen on bringing in is Willian, whose current deal at Stamford Bridge is set to expire after Chelsea's second leg against Bayern Munich in the Champions League last-16 on August 8. While he remains locked in contract talks with the Blues over extending his stay at the club, Arsenal are one of the front-runners to land the Brazilian should he not be offered a new deal. He wants three years at Chelsea, who are only offering two. Arteta is also hoping to extend Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's stay at the Emirates by offering the Gabon striker a new 250,000-a-week deal. Aubameyangs current 180,000-a-week deal expires next summer but his contract includes a 12-month extension clause. Arsenal are set to offer Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (left) a new deal worth 250,000 a week It is reported that Arsenal must trigger the clause by December 31, which would then see his wages go up significantly. With bonus fees involved this could cost the club around 20m for one season, after which Aubameyang could still leave. Arsenal therefore want the matter resolved and will push for their FA Cup hero to sign on the dotted line with completely fresh terms taking him through until 2023. Speaking after the final, Arteta made it clear he wanted Aubameyang to stay, adding that he wanted to 'build his squad around him'. He told the BBC: 'He knows what I think about him. I think he wants to stay and it is just about getting the deal done. 'These moments will help him to realise and believe that we are on the right path and he is a big part of that. 'He is loved by everybody at the club. Hopefully he can continue with us.' However, sources insist Aubameyang is not prepared to be low-balled. He knows he could secure a more lucrative pay-day by leaving on a free transfer next year and wants a deal that acknowledges his position as the club's most important player. Asked on Saturday what he could reveal about his plans, Aubameyang replied: 'Nothing.' Meanwhile, any new arrivals coming in will see a number of first-team players being offloaded. Striker Alexandre Lacazette could be sold if a suitable offer is made for the Frenchman Sportsmail reported on Sunday night that Arteta is considering offloading as many as nine first-team players in order to raise funds for players this summer. Arteta knows he must sell players to generate the money required to land his first-choice transfer targets and he could even ship out Alexandre Lacazette or Hector Bellerin if a sizeable offer is made for either player. Sokratis, Guendouzi, Lucas Torreira, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Sead Kolasinac as well as Shkodran Mustafi and Rob Holding, who have played key roles for Arteta in recent weeks are also in the shop window. Arsenal want to sell Mesut Ozil, but their hopes of offloading the former Germany playmaker and his 350,000-a-week salary appear slim after his agent insisted Ozil would see out the final season of his contract. Details of grand Ram Temple ceremony at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh have been revealed two days before the event. The guest list includes very less names because of the coronavirus. Details of grand Ram Temple ceremony at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh have been revealed two days before the event. The guest list includes very less names because of the coronavirus. The invites mention Prime Minister Narendra Modi and three more names. On the stage, there will be five people namely, PM Modi, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Mahant Nritya Gopaldas. The image of the idol of Ram Lalla or infant Lord Ram can be seen on the invite. According to Champat Rai of the Ram Temple trust, there is a security code on every invitation that will work only once, if the guest exits the premises they will not be allowed back in. Also read: AP police to train 1 lakh women online to fight cybercrime Also read: Difficult to predict Covid-19 second wave in India: ICMR DG Invitations have been sent to about 175 people for the grand Bhumi Pujan, organized on Wednesday amidst the nations coronavirus fight. Only residents of Ayodhya are invited to the event. The first invite was sent to one of the Muslim litigants in the Ayodhya case, Iqbal Ansari, as per the news sources. He said that its Lord Rams wish. Padma Shri recipient Mohammad Sharif who was honored for cremating over 10,000 unclaimed bodies has also been invited. Some of the important faces of the Ram Temple campaign in the BJP like LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, and Uma Bharti will not be presented at the grand event organized by Yogi Adityanath. LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi were invited on the phone. They both will join the event virtually to observe coronavirus precautions. A 40kg silver brick is expected to be established by PM Modi for the symbolic start of the construction of a Ram Temple. After years of dispute, Ram Temple will be built over the 2.77-acre site. The Supreme Court passed the verdict in November that the site would be handed over for the building of a temple and an alternative five-acre site would be given to Muslims. Also read: SSR death probe: Sushants father ends silence, exposes Bandra polices laxity MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI When voters head to the polls or drop off their absentee ballots on Tuesday, Aug. 4, they will decide which primary candidates will advance to the general election on Nov. 3. Most races Tuesday will be partisan primaries, meaning voters will vote only for either Democratic or Republican candidates. Those offices include those at federal and state levels, including U.S. or state representatives; county-level elections for offices including county sheriff, drain commissioner and county board; as well as elections for lower-level local offices. Related: Heres whats on the ballot in Muskegon Countys Aug. 4 primary election The Muskegon County District Court judge race is nonpartisan, so voters from any party can vote under their ballots nonpartisan section. Of those four candidates running for the judicial seat, the two with the most votes Tuesday will move on to face off on the November ballot. Local ballots will also include several ballot questions related to renewing property tax millages for the Lakeshore Museum, Hackley Library and Muskegon Township, plus a proposed millage increase for the White Lake Community Library. In-person voting will take place from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., although many voters are expected to participate in Tuesdays primary by absentee ballot. Those ballots must be returned to township or city clerks offices by 8 p.m. on Tuesday night. Related: Learn about candidates, millages on Muskegon County primary ballot Tuesday Information on all state and federal races and many of Michigans county and local races are available at Vote411.org, an online voter guide created by the League of Women Voters. Ahead of Tuesdays primary election, here are five key races to watch in Muskegon County: 92nd House District in State Legislature Michael L. Haueisen, left, and Michael Del Percio, right, will face off on Aug. 4, 2020, in the 92nd Michigan House of Representatives Republican primary. The winner will face incumbent Democrat Terry Sabo (center) in the November general election. Two Republicans, Michael Del Percio and Michael L. Hauesien, are vying for the chance to unseat Terry Sabo, the Democrat currently holding the 92nd House District seat. The 92nd House District includes the cities of Muskegon, Muskegon Heights and North Muskegon and the townships of Muskegon, Laketon, Whitehall and Fruitland. Sabo, a former police officer and firefighter, has held the 92nd House seat since 2016. He does not have a primary opponent. Hauesien, 66, describes himself as an event specialist who works part-time in retail. He has attended some college and says he has experience dealing with both city and county commissions and from serving on the citys income tax review board. Del Percio, 74, is retired and holds a bachelors degree in electrical engineering. He said he managed major engineering projects for such companies as Intertherm Inc., Coin Acceptors, Frigidaire, White-Westinghouse, AB Electrolux and Siemens. Read more: Two Republicans vying for 92nd House seat in Muskegon County 60th District Court Judge Running in the Aug. 4, 2020, primary for 60th District judge in Muskegon County are, from left to right, Marc Curtis, Matthew Kacel, Jason D. Kolkema and Paula Baker Mathes. Four non-partisan candidates will be whittled down to two on their way to the November ballot, in the race to replace Muskegon County District Judge Harold F. Closz III who is not seeking re-election after more than 17 years on the bench. The candidates seeking the judicial seat are Marc Curtis, Matthew Kacel, Jason D. Kolkema and Paula Baker Mathes The top two vote-getters in the Aug. 4 primary will face off in the Nov. 3 general election for a term of six years. Muskegon County District Judge Maria Ladas Hoopes seat on the bench also is open, but she is the only registered candidate running for that position. District Court judges oversee civil lawsuits $25,000 and under, adult criminal misdemeanor cases punishable by up to one year in jail, civil infractions and traffic violations, landlord/tenant disputes, small claims and land contract forfeitures. They also handle felony arraignments and preliminary examinations to determine if there is enough evidence for trial in Circuit Court. Curtis is a criminal and family law attorney and staff attorney for the Fraternal Order of Police, with experience as an U.S. Army combat veteran, military police K-9 handler, former senior assistant prosecutor, law clerk for former state Attorney General Frank Kelly and private practice attorney for eight years. He has degrees from Michigan State University and Thomas M. Cooley Law School. Kacel is an attorney and president of Kacel & Associates, working for more than 10 years with appearances in 18 Michigan counties, including daily appearances in Muskegon County courtrooms and the U.S. District Court for Western Michigan. He is also a former clerk for former 55th District Judge Thomas Boyd in Ingham County and also worked as clerk for the Michigan Tax Tribunal and Legal Aid of South Central Michigan. Kacel holds a bachelors degree in public administration and public policy and a law degree from Michigan State University. Kolkema has been a general practice attorney for Kolkema Law PLC the last 6 years, and previously was a municipal defense attorney from 1999-2012 and a general practice attorney for David T. Bowen PC from 1996-99. He is a 1989 graduate of Fruitport High School and has a bachelors degree from Michigan State University and a law degree from the University of Detroit-Mercy. Baker Mathes is an attorney/public defender and has spent 26 years as a practicing lawyer, including as a prosecuting attorney, defense attorney and private practitioner. She is active in community organizations and has a bachelors degree from Tulane University and a law degree from Thomas M. Cooley Law School. Read more: Four running for open Muskegon County district judge seat Muskegon County Sheriff Muskegon County Sheriff Michael Poulin faces Democratic challenger Mirelda Sanchez Tokarczyk in the Aug. 4, 2020 primary election. Incumbent Sheriff Michael Poulin will face challenger Mirelda Sanchez Tokarczyk in the Democratic primary. The winner will go up against Republican Jason Hall, for a term that will last four years. Poulin, 54, of North Muskegon, has served as county sheriff since 2016. He has 33 years of law enforcement experience, including as SWAT commander, operations captain, jail administrator, investigations supervisor, training sergeant, crash investigator, grant coordinator and road patrol deputy. He has a bachelors degree in criminal justice from Grand Valley State University as well as advanced training through the FBI National Academy and is certified by the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards since 1987. Tokarczyk, 42, of Roosevelt Park, describes herself as a certified police officer and business owner. She has served as a police officer for Pentwater and Roosevelt Park and as a case manager and surveillance officer for the 60th District Sobriety Court. She also worked court security for the Muskegon County Sheriffs Department, and road patrol for the Mason County Sheriffs Department. She has been a teller for Shoreline Federal Credit Union, an Ottawa County Sheriff cadet and a Roosevelt Park City Council member from 2016-19. She attended the West Shore Police Academy, has an associate degree from Muskegon Community College and has been certified by the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards since 2004. Read more: Muskegon County Sheriff faces challenger in Democratic primary Muskegon County Drain Commissioner Muskegon County Drain Commissioner Brenda M. Moore faces a challenge from Tim DeMumbrum in the Aug. 4, 2020, Democratic primary. Incumbent Brenda M. Moore, who has served as county drain commissioner since 2013, will face off against Tim DeMumbrum in the Democratic primary, with the winner going up against Republican Chris Seastrom in November. The countys drain commissioner is responsible for maintaining more than 130 county drains to prevent flooding and protect property. They also oversee water quality, are responsible for controlling soil erosion and sedimentation and work with municipal storm water permits. Surface water systems, which are part of modern developments, are also placed under the jurisdiction of the drain commissioners office. Moore has 36 years of experience as a government staffer and consultant and is state certified in soil erosion control. She has a bachelors degree from Grand Valley State University and a masters degree from Michigan State University. Her studies were in fisheries, forestry, wildlife management and biology. DeMumbrum is vice president/director of surveying for Westshore Engineering Surveying and Environmental. He has held a professional surveyor license for more than 20 years. He has a bachelors degree in applied mathematics from Michigan State University and a bachelors degree in survey engineering from Ferris State University. Read more: Muskegon County drain commissioner faces challenger in Democratic primary Muskegon County Board of Commissioners District 3 Christopher Kaijala, Susie Hughes and L. Kip Smith, from left to right, are running in the Aug. 4, 2020, primaries for the district 3 seat on the Muskegon County Board of Commissioners. Hughes and Smith are running in the Democratic primary while Kaijala will face K.J. Hartell III in the Republican primary. Hartell did not provide a photograph. The race for Muskegons District 3 county commissioner seat, which encompasses Muskegon Township, will see Susie Hughes, the current chair of the Muskegon County board face L. Kip Smith in the Democratic primary. Separately, K.J. Hartell III and Christopher Kaijala will square off in the Republican primary. The winners of each primary will face off in the Nov. 3 general election, vying for a term of two years on the county board. Hughes, a Democrat, was first elected to the board of commissioners in 2013 and was named chair in 2019. A lifelong resident of Muskegon County, she also is chair of the Muskegon County Economic Development Commission and the West Michigan Shoreline Regional Development Commission, and was past chair of the Muskegon County Public Works Board. She also has experience serving on many boards and committees and as chair of the Muskegon Township Parks and Recreation. Smith, her Democratic challenger, is a retired corrections supervisor who also worked as a cross utilization agent for SkyWest Airlines. He has been a delegate, trustee and vice president of the Monroe Lenawee Central Labor Council AFL/CIO; board member and trustee of the Association of State Employees in Management; trustee and officer with the Michigan Corrections Association chapter; local steward, chief steward and vice president of SEIU/MCO 526M; precinct delegate for District 3 of Lenawee County and precinct delegate for District 3, Precinct 4 Muskegon County. He has an associate degree from Jackson Community College. Hartell, a Republican, is a 30-year resident and homeowner in the county, who spent 13 years managing a local business owned by a good friend and currently is unemployed. Kaijala, who is also seeking the Republican nomination, is an independent contractor and engineering consultant offering design, project management, quality improvement and modeling. He has a bachelors degree in chemical engineering from the University of Massachusetts. His experience includes project management and cost controls, team building and team leadership, engineering management, policy development, procedure writing, problem solving, budget management, contract negotiations, environmental and regulatory training, design and development of pollution control systems, environmental permit writing, permit calculations, permit auditing, process safety management training and quality systems and quality improvement services. Read more: Three trying to unseat Muskegon County board chair More local elections coverage on MLive: Learn about candidates, millages on Muskegon County primary ballot Tuesday Two Republicans vying for 92nd House seat in Muskegon County Muskegon County Sheriff faces challenger in Democratic primary Norton Shores Muskegon County commissioner faces primary challenger 10-year Muskegon County board veteran faces primary challenger Muskegon voters to decide on millage renewal of Hackley Public Library Commissioner representing eastern Muskegon County faces primary challenger Whitehall voters to decide millage for White Lake library Voters to choose new clerk for Muskegon Township Republican primary to decide commissioner for northeastern Muskegon County Norton Shores Muskegon County commissioner faces primary challenger IRGC spokesman: Enemies know that no step taken against Iran will go unanswered Iran Press TV Sunday, 02 August 2020 3:46 PM The spokesman for Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) says enemies of the Islamic Republic are well aware that no step taken against the country's national interests will go unanswered and will be met with suitable reactions. Brigadier General Ramezan Sharif made the remarks on Sunday, while addressing hostile media reports to the effect that the IRGC's recent naval drills, including targeting of a mock-up US aircraft carrier, were not successful. During IRGC's large-scale drills in Iran's southern waters, codenamed Payambar-e A'zam (The Great Prophet) 14, which ended on Thursday, the elite force staged "all-out and multilayered" strikes against the life-size replica of a Nimitz-class US aircraft carrier. The IRGC's servicemen began the episode by destroying the mock carrier's accompaniment with coast-to-sea fire. State television aired footage showing the damage caused to the model vessel following the operational juncture, and the IRGC commandos' rappelling onto it. Following the drills, some Western and anti-Iran media claimed that the goal of the IRGC forces was to totally destroy the mock-up carrier and that goal was not achieved during the said maneuver. Rejecting Iranian enemies' false reports about the naval drills, the IRGC spokesman said, "We need this mock-up carrier ... to exercise various scenarios and its destruction is not a prioritized goal in our operational plans for such drills. We are still planning to further use it in a variety of drills to test our equipment and systems and boost [our forces'] readiness for participation in a real [battle] field," he added. "As said before, in the war game designed for this maneuver, the goal was to destroy two accompaniments of the aircraft carrier, which was done appropriately. The goal was to hit the command bridge of the carrier ... and conducting heliborne operations on its deck. This [operation] has a special meaning, which has been well understood by defense and military experts, including Americans," the IRGC spokesman added. He said IRGC's large-scale naval maneuver was staged under special conditions that exist in the country, the region and the world, and proved that the enemy's arms embargo and economic sanctions have failed to have any impact on the country's forward march and the promotion of its military might as well as the enhancement of its deterrent power. "The hostile front has well understood that according to the defense doctrine of the [Iranian] Armed Forces, no move against Iran's national interests will go unanswered and will be faced with appropriate and firm reactions within the framework of [the principle of] aggressive deterrence," the IRGC spokesman said. General Sharif noted that the organizers of the IRGC's naval drills intended to convey to the neighboring countries the message of peace and [the necessity of the] protection of the regional security. He emphasized that the IRGC's aggressive scenarios in military exercises are directed toward hostile extra-regional countries possessing aircraft carriers who seek in their evil strategies to plunder regional nations' wealth through their illegitimate and destabilizing presence in the region and by fomenting state terrorism. Sharif emphasized that the terrorist and inhuman regime of the United States of America tops these extra-regional plundering countries that are present in the region. The IRGC chief commander Major General Hossein Salami said on Tuesday that Iran will never initiate any offensive, but assumes a fully offensive mode when it comes to tactical and operational performance. "We will never launch an offensive against any country," he said, adding that the corps' activities are completely "defensive" in nature on the strategic level. The commander, however, asserted, "We are fully offensive in [our] tactic and operation." The IRGC Navy Commander Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri also said on Wednesday that the Great Prophet drills simulate actual warzone engagement with real enemy forces and are meant to send across a message of warning to those potentially seeking to undermine the country's security. "These maneuvers have taken shape based on [the notion of] wargame and the strategies that we employ in the Persian Gulf and the country's [general] southern expanse," Tangsiri said. During the maneuvers that spanned the general area of Hormozgan Province, west of the strategic Hormuz Strait, and the Persian Gulf, the Corps staged "all-out and multi-layer" strikes against the life-size replica of a Nimitz-class US aircraft carrier. The IRGC's servicemen began the episode by destroying the mock carrier's accompaniment with coast-to-sea fire. State television aired footage showing the damage caused to the mock aircraft carrier following the operational juncture, and the IRGC commandos' rappelling onto the vessel. In an unprecedented move, the IRGC also fired ballistic missiles from underground launch facilities during the drills. The drills have been monitored by Iran's first military satellite Nour (Light)-1 that was launched by the Corps into orbit in April. Simultaneously, the satellite relayed a high-resolution vivid image of the al-Udeid Airbase in Qatar that is reportedly the largest United States' base in West Asia. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address If youre out of work and struggling, fearful that Congress wont come up with more help for you and millions of other Americans during the pandemic, then youre probably worried about where your next few meals will come from not whether you can deduct the full cost of them from your income taxes. And yet, there it is: In the Republican version of the next big relief package, a proposal to raise from 50% to 100% the deduction for business meals at restaurants. Sen. Tim Scott, Republican of South Carolina, added the proposal to get more executives into restaurants for Mad Men meals in the second half of the year. Nice idea, even somewhat logical assuming restaurants are open in the second half of the year and you could almost support it if Senate Republicans were willing to extend emergency food stamps and unemployment relief for hundreds of thousands of families. But theyre not. In fact, they propose just the opposite. Theyve got a tax break for the three-martini lunch and zero for additional food stamp benefits, says Sen. Chris Van Hollen, the Maryland Democrat. I hate to sound so dreary about Republicans, but you almost get the impression that they care more about subsidizing the wealthy than making sure families with little or no income, through no fault of their own, get to eat. The new relief package approved by House Democrats includes an additional $10 billion for food stamps. Says Van Hollens Democratic colleague, Sen. Ben Cardin: We should be negotiating how much, not whether, to provide additional nutrition assistance for our most vulnerable populations during a public health and economic crisis when need is at an unprecedented high. According to Michael Wilson, director of Maryland Hunger Solutions, some 600,000 Marylanders were receiving food stamps before the pandemic. The number shot up to 689,530 in April, he says, and thousands more have applied since then. The original pandemic relief package that came through Congress earlier this year provided an additional $15.5 billion for food stamps, known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. Story continues Congress also provided a $600 weekly benefit on top of regular unemployment benefits. With some 30 million Americans out of work, and no clear end to the coronavirus crisis, Democrats want to extend the unemployment relief. Republicans want to cut it back to $200 a week. People need help with rent. They need to pay their utility bills. And they need to eat. Definitely, food has been the top concern for the last three months, says Ann Johnson, community resource specialist with United Way of Central Marylands 211 helpline. Rent has been the second-to-top call, and weve seen a resurgence of calls from people asking about (coronavirus) testing. Johnson says the pandemic revealed a big need for home delivery of food to people who are vulnerable to the disease, felt unsafe in supermarkets or didnt have transportation to one. So United Way, the Maryland Department of Human Services, the Salvation Army and other organizations set up a delivery program. During the week of July 27, the 211 center took 576 food-related calls, about 40% of them for home delivery. Other callers wanted to know how to apply for food stamps. The Maryland Food Bank told us the best way to relieve pressure on them was to expand SNAP, says Van Hollen. Its the primary food assistance program for needy families. Carmen Del Guercio, the food banks CEO, says demand is running high with no end in sight. Distribution of food is up 85% over last year at this time, he says, and the food bank has been aggressively making purchases to keep ahead of need. Hes been consulting with public health experts and economists to plan for the future, the expectation being that the food bank will see increased demand well into 2021. The silver lining, Del Guercio says, has been a tremendous outpouring from people who wanted to help out. And hes not just talking about people who made financial donations, but about volunteers. Some of the food banks partner organizations had to close distribution operations because of the pandemic, but 220 new ones stepped up to fill in the gaps across the state. Other groups have taken up the cause of getting food to people during the pandemic. One is a grassroots organization called We-Our-Us, an anti-violence mens movement that has been quietly at work in the streets of Baltimore. The men take walks through city neighborhoods, spreading a message of nonviolence. But once the pandemic came, we had to restrategize, says Derek Hart, a retired Air Force chaplain and We-Our-Us member. We could no longer walk in large groups. So now the men give away fresh meat, produce, eggs and dairy products from refrigerated trailers. Hundreds of people come out for food each time, and the trailers are always emptied, Hart says, adding a few words that Republicans in Congress should contemplate: Its an awesome blessing to provide for people in need. ABOUT THE WRITER Dan Rodricks is a long-time columnist for The Baltimore Sun. 2020 The Baltimore Sun Visit The Baltimore Sun at www.baltimoresun.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. House and Senate leadership announced theyd be canceling in-person legislative activity this week after state Sen. Tom Barrett, R-Charlotte, tested positive for COVID-19. No voting or committee hearings will take place this week in either chamber. Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clark Lake, is encouraging all members of the Senate Republican caucus to get tested. The Senate will cancel committees and session for this week, August 3-7, to allow adequate time for execution of protocols and receipt of results for individuals who choose to be tested, he said in a statement. We all wish Senator Barrett a speedy recovery. House Speaker Lee Chatfield, R-Levering, said the House Business Office will remain available for any members or staff seeking resources for local testing options. The House has taken aggressive and comprehensive action to protect members and staff from COVID-19, he said. Our new procedures will remain in place to continue to protect representatives and staff. Barrett tested positive for COVID-19 after a routine medical screening required through his military service, according to a press release issued Sunday evening. Barrett, who is a Chief Warrant Officer 2 in the Michigan Army National Guard, underwent a test on Friday, July 31, which was required one week prior to leaving for a military training event. No significant symptoms are showing at this time, he said in the release, noting he will be self-isolating. I have done my best to make contact with those I have been around in the past couple weeks so that they may also seek medical advice, he said in a statement. I look forward to resuming my normal work schedule as quickly as possible. Barrett was in attendance at two legislative committee hearings in Lansing on Thursday, July 29. Barrett is the first Republican state legislator with a confirmed positive case of COVID-19. Rep. Karen Whitsett, D-Detroit, and Rep. Tyrone Carter, D-Detroit, also tested positive in April. State Rep. Isaac Robinson, D-Detroit, died on March 29. He was not tested for COVID-19 before his death, but multiple reports have linked his health issues to the coronavirus. Barrett has publicly criticized Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for her push for unilateral emergency powers during the COVID-19 pandemic. He sponsored Senate Bill 858, which would have amended Michigans Emergency Management Act of 1976, laying out deadlines for when some of Whitmers executive orders would end. Whitmer vetoed it on May 5. COVID-19 PREVENTION TIPS In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued executive orders requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while in public indoor and crowded outdoor spaces. See an explanation of what that means here. Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus. For more data on COVID-19 in Michigan, visit https://www.mlive.com/coronavirus/data/. Read more from MLive: Whitmer vetoes GOP-backed bill to house nursing home coronavirus patients in separate facilities Michigan Senate backs bill to stop placing coronavirus patients in nursing homes States handling of COVID in nursing homes worthy of critique, but GOP lawmakers miss mark, experts say Second Michigan legislator confirmed positive for coronavirus Whitmer vetoes bill that would have reopened some businesses sooner Legal hemp is coming to Myanmar, but dont bust out the celebratory spliffs just yet decriminalizing cannabis remains a pipe dream. A plan to legalize hemp production is in the works in the Pyithu Hluttaw, or House of Representatives, where its rural development committee is coordinating with the agriculture ministry to trial its use for a variety of commercial products. The committee is drafting the legislation necessary to legalize hemp. Committee chairman Yan Lin told the Myanmar Farmers Journal that research fields would be ready once the law is enacted. If the governments agricultural departments will grow it, and its followed by the farmers and companies, we can adopt it for research, but not yet for sale. Then we can try to find out which area is right for it. Besides, it will be ready to proceed once the law is granted. Otherwise, we have to wait until then, Lin said of plans for the current parliamentary session. The law does not differentiate between hemp and cannabis, and both remain illegal. Earlier this year, a Myanmar construction worker at a licensed, U.S.-owned hemp farm was sentenced to 20 years in prison after local police deemed it was producing cannabis. While legal hemp is often a stalking horse for decriminalizing cannabis, no one has raised that as a goal. Thailand remains the only nation in Southeast Asia to have partially decriminalized marijuana. Industrial hemp is a renewable resource that can be used for a variety of uses, particularly in textiles, as well as paper, food, cosmetics and more. According to the Myanmar Hemp Association, hemp can be grown three times a year in the uplands and inland regions, and in the delta regions during the rainy season. A variety of hemp species are mostly found in Kachin, Shan and Chin states. Related Yangon stoners blame dry spell on Rakhine conflict This article, Myanmar fast-tracks legal hemp but not for smoking, originally appeared on Coconuts, Asia's leading alternative media company. Mumbai: As police continue to investigate the mystery behind the late Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput's suicide case, IG Patna Sanjay Singh said that he was not satisfied with the statements given by Sushant's friend Siddarth and Dipesh. IG Sanjay Singh said that if Sushant's friends keep on changing their statements then strict action will be taken against them. The police team has also sent them notice under IPC 160. The SIT is also probing Sushant Singh's post mortem report. The Patna police will also be questioning Sushant's friend Sandeep in the matter. Meanwhile, the Mumbai police have asked the Bihar Police SIT team to share the file of Disha's murder case. Disha was Sushant's manager who died a few days before the actor's death. On Monday (August 3), Bihar police slammed Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on its decision to 'forcibly quarantine' IPS officer Vinay Tiwari, who reached Mumbai from Patna on Sunday (August 2) to probe a case related to the death of Bollywood actor. Bihar police said that Patna City Superintendent of Police Tiwari has been home quarantined by BMC in order to stop the Bihar police from probing Sushant's case and Tiwari's has been put in 'house arrest' and not in-home quarantine. Meanwhile, Patna Police is on a lookout for the key maker, who was called by Sushant's friend-roommate Sidharth Pithani to break open the door of the actor's room at around 12:30 pm - 12:45 pm on July 14. As per the police, the key maker has been identified and will soon be interrogated about the entire incident. Highlights Galaxy Note 20 series is all set to be launched on August 5. The first Galaxy Note phone was launched in October 2011. Samsung could launch as many as two new Note series devices this year. With the launch of the very first Galaxy Note smartphone, Samsung reinvented the smartphone game from the ground up. From that day back in October 2011, smartphones started getting bigger and more powerful. Smartphones, which till now had remained primarily communication devices, we're now starting to transition into full-fledged communication tools. There were multiple reasons behind this, but prime among them was Samsung's realisation that a large chunk of the smartphone buying crowd expected their phones to do a lot more than just help them communicate with the world. Instead, what they wanted from their phones was the ability to double up as pocket computers that could help them quickly take notes during meetings and sift through long documents on the go. As it turns out, the first Galaxy Note, and then its subsequent iterations launched every year, excelled at all this, and in the process also managed to bring a few extra features that have made the Galaxy Note series a firm fan favourite. With the launch of the Galaxy Note 20 barely days away, it's a good time to take a look at the legacy of the Galaxy Note series, and in the process also understand what we can expect from the Note 20 on August 5. Return of the S Pen Over the years, Samsung Galaxy Note has established itself as a powerful productivity device, and one of the biggest reasons for this is the S Pen, which debuted with the first Galaxy Note launched in 2011. The S Pen is the key feature of the Galaxy Note that promises a seamless transition between work and life. Considering how big a hit it has been with the fans, it will be safe to say the Galaxy Note 20 will also get an S Pen at the time of launch. Some of the major functionalities of the S Pen include Air actions that give you intuitive control with a wave of your hand. For example, moving the S Pen clockwise or counterclockwise can change the camera angle and capture a close-crop group shot or the whole scene. Users can also use the S Pen to turn up the sound by gesturing up or lower the sound by gesturing down -- all without touching the display or the volume keys on the phone. With the S Pen, users can also take down notes, which can then simply be tapped at and converted into readable text you can copy, paste, and share Flagship performance Galaxy Note series phones have always been the most powerful and premium devices in Samsung's galaxy of smartphones. For this, the previous generation Galaxy Note devices have used the powerful flagship grade processors, and advanced cameras. This is a formula that is expected to again be repeated with the Galaxy Note 20. The more premium of the two devices expected to be launched as part of the series, the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, has already been leaked a number of times, and much of its spec sheet has already been revealed. And it appears, this device will carry forward the legacy of the Note 20 series by bringing with itself only the most powerful hardware available in the market right now. Leaked renders of Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. OnLeaks has claimed in the past that the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra will bring a rather big display at 6.9-inches. This will be bigger than the one found on the Galaxy Note 10+ which came with a 6.8-inch display. Reports in the past have suggested that the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra could come with a 120Hz mode for faster refresh rates. Additionally, reports also claim the panel on the phone will be built using LTPO tech. This screen is built for power saving which could result in a Galaxy Note 20 with impressive battery life. As for the core specs of the device, we don't know much at the moment. However, it is said that outside the US Samsung will stick to its in-house flagship Exynos chips, with reports suggesting Samsung could use its Exynos 990 chip for Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra. Focus on cameras and battery Another big highlight of previous Galaxy Note devices has been their focus on cameras and the promise of long-lasting battery life. This could very well be the case again with the Galaxy Note 20 series, with the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra reported featuring a 108-megapixel primary lens, 12-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens, and 13-megapixel periscope lens. There will be laser autofocus on the device, however, Samsung could choose to not include a Time of Flight sensor in the module. For battery, the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra is tipped to get a battery pack that's between the 4500mAh-5000mAh mark. This paired with super fast wired and wireless charging and the promise of an energy-efficient LPTO technology-based display could make this Galaxy Note 20 Ultra possibly the best Note device to date when it comes to battery life. Rating Action: Moody's downgrades Noble Holding International's PDR to D-PD on bankruptcy filing Global Credit Research - 03 Aug 2020 New York, August 03, 2020 -- Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) downgraded Noble Holding International Limited's (Noble) Probability of Default Rating (PDR) to D-PD from Caa2-PD, Corporate Family Rating (CFR) to Ca from Caa2, senior unsecured notes rating to C from Caa3, senior guaranteed notes due 2026 rating to Caa3 from Caa1 and Speculative Grade Liquidity Rating to SGL-4 from SGL-3. The outlook remains negative. These actions follow the company's filing for voluntary chapter 11 protection in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. Moody's will withdraw all ratings for the company in the near future. Noble is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Noble Corporation plc, a publicly traded offshore drilling company. Downgrades: ..Issuer: Noble Holding International Limited .... Probability of Default Rating, Downgraded to D-PD from Caa2-PD .... Corporate Family Rating, Downgraded to Ca from Caa2 ....Gtd. Senior Unsecured Notes due 2026, Downgraded to Caa3 (LGD3) from Caa1 (LGD3) ....Senior Unsecured Notes, Downgraded to C (LGD5) from Caa3 (LGD5) .... Speculative Grade Liquidity Rating, Downgraded to SGL-4 from SGL-3 Outlook Actions: ..Issuer: Noble Holding International Limited ....Outlook, Remains Negative RATINGS RATIONALE The Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing has resulted in a downgrade of Noble's PDR to D-PD. Moody's also downgraded the company's CFR to Ca, senior unsecured notes rating to C and senior guaranteed notes rating to Caa3, reflecting Moody's view on the potential recoveries. Shortly following this rating action, Moody's will withdraw all Noble's ratings. Please refer to the Moody's Investors Service Policy for Withdrawal of Credit Ratings, available on its website, www.moodys.com. The principal methodology used in these ratings was Global Oilfield Services Industry Rating Methodology published in May 2017 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1062654. Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology. Story continues Noble Holding International Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Noble Corporation, a Cayman Island company (Noble-Cayman), which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Noble Corporation plc (Noble plc), a company incorporated under the laws of England and Wales, and a leading international offshore oil and gas drilling contractor. Noble Holding International Limited is the issuer of the of the company's rated debt, and therefore the CFR is assigned to that company. Noble Holding International Limited's senior notes are fully and unconditionally guaranteed by Noble-Cayman. REGULATORY DISCLOSURES For further specification of Moody's key rating assumptions and sensitivity analysis, see the sections Methodology Assumptions and Sensitivity to Assumptions in the disclosure form. Moody's Rating Symbols and Definitions can be found at: https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_79004. For ratings issued on a program, series, category/class of debt or security this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the same series, category/class of debt, security or pursuant to a program for which the ratings are derived exclusively from existing ratings in accordance with Moody's rating practices. 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Moody's general principles for assessing environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks in our credit analysis can be found at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1133569. The Global Scale Credit Rating on this Credit Rating Announcement was issued by one of Moody's affiliates outside the EU and is endorsed by Moody's Deutschland GmbH, An der Welle 5, Frankfurt am Main 60322, Germany, in accordance with Art.4 paragraph 3 of the Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 on Credit Rating Agencies. Further information on the EU endorsement status and on the Moody's office that issued the credit rating is available on www.moodys.com. Please see www.moodys.com for any updates on changes to the lead rating analyst and to the Moody's legal entity that has issued the rating. Please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for additional regulatory disclosures for each credit rating. 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The Block winners Karlie and Will Bethune have welcomed their first child, a baby girl, into the world. The pair announced the exciting news on their Instagram platform on Sunday afternoon, with a sweet snap of their 'gorgeous' girl, who they have named, Indigo Jade Kara Bethune. The new parents admitted the youngster's arrival was 'eventful' after Karlie was rushed to Mater Mothers' Hospital Brisbane the week prior and was diagnosed with Cholestasis - a condition which was potentially life-threatening to the baby, forcing doctors to perform an emergency caesarean. 'Our amazing princess!' The Block winners Karlie and Will Bethune have welcomed their first child, a baby girl, into the world Karlie and Will - who pocketed $815,000 after winning The Block in 2016 - couldn't resist gushing over the precious newborn as they shared their first sweet snap of her to Instagram. They wrote: 'Mum & Bub are safe and resting. She had quite the eventful entry into this world which we will be happy to share in the coming days. 'We are the happiest parents and think we are punching well above our weight with how gorgeous this girl is. Special thanks to our amazing friend @oliviajuicelifestyle for capturing our beautiful girl.' In an Instagram post shared just days before Indigo was born, the pair detailed their 'emotionally and draining' last week. 'Mum and Bub are resting': The doting parents gushed about their bundle of joy, saying they were 'punching well above our weight with how gorgeous this girl is' Karlie explained: 'We have had a few scares and just want to make sure our little girl arrives safe and sound. I had intensely itchy skin over the weekend (mainly on my hands and feet but also all over my body) and was laughing it off thinking it was just another silly pregnancy symptom. 'After googling to see how common it is for people, we came across the liver condition Cholestasis, which essentially causes extreme itchiness for mum but can be life threatening for baby. 'Obviously this scared us enough to present to the hospital in the middle of the night on Sunday and I had a whole bunch of testing and monitoring to check for Cholestasis and make sure our girl was okay. 'Scary': The new parents admitted the youngster's arrival was 'eventful' after Karlie was rushed to Mater Mothers' Hospital Brisbane the week prior and was diagnosed with Cholestasis 'The results came back much higher than the normal threshold and they were talking about not letting me go home and inducing me on Monday morning due to the high risks of Cholestasis this late in pregnancy (I.e. respiratory problems, stillbirth etc).' Brisbane-based Karlie continued: 'Thankfully they decided to do further testing and the results came back lower than the last one so I was allowed to go home under strict instructions to come back if I noticed decreased movements or if the itchiness didn't ease up. 'Unfortunately I have still been quite itchy (although little bugs movements have been great) so here we are back again in hospital doing further checks to make sure our little girl is safe and sound.' A few days later she gave birth to adorable little Indigo. The Manhattan District Attorney's office suggested for the first time Monday that it's investigating President Trump and his company for "alleged bank and insurance fraud," the New York Times first reported. The state of play: The disclosure was made in a filing in federal court that seeks to force accounting firm Mazars USA to comply with a subpoena for eight years of Trump's personal and corporate tax returns. The big picture: The revelation comes less than a month after the Supreme Court paved the way for District Attorney Cy Vance's subpoena, ruling that presidents cannot be immune from investigation. The filing suggests that Vance's investigation, which was believed to be examining hush money payments made by Trump's former fixer Michael Cohen during the 2016 election, is much broader in scope. Trump and his lawyers have denied any wrongdoing. What they're saying: "Plaintiff goes so far as to declare that these payments and these payments alone are what the 'grand jury claims to be investigating,' and thus the Mazars Subpoena is overbroad because it seeks documents dating back to 2011. But this Court is already aware that this assertion is fatally undermined by undisputed information in the public record," the district attorney's office writes in the filing. "See Vance, 395 F. Supp. 3d at 300 (the Office's investigation may result in 'a favorable outcome ... substantially related to[,]" among other things, 'alleged insurance and bank fraud by the Trump Organization and its officers')." "Although the Office bears no affirmative burden to justify the breadth of the Mazars Subpoena, and although Plaintiff is not entitled to know the scope and nature of the grand jury investigation, publicly available information itself establishes a satisfactory predicate for the Mazars Subpoena." Worth noting: The filing points to three media reports about "possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization" to support Vance's argument about the legitimacy of the subpoena. Washington Post: How Donald Trump inflated his net worth to lenders and investors Wall Street Journal: Michael Cohen Details Allegations of Trumps Role in Hush-Money Scheme Washington Post: After selling off his fathers properties, Trump embraced unorthodox strategies to expand his empire Read the filing via DocumentCloud: Ayodhya, Aug 3 : Lord Hanuman is said to be the protector of Ayodhya and Ram devotees. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, when he comes to Ayodhya on Wednesday for 'bhumi pujan', will first offer prayers at the Hanuman Garhi temple. According to Mahant Raju Das, chief priest of Hanuman Garhi temple, "The Prime Minister will offer prayers for about seven minutes at the Hanuman Garhi temple before he goes to the site for 'bhumi pujan'. A special puja has been arranged for him here. The 'bhumi pujan' rituals will actually begin at Hanuman Garhi from August 4. It is widely believed that before initiating any task, one must offer prayers to Lord Hanuman and seek his protection." The 'bhumi pujan' on Wednesday will be a culmination of a dispute that lasted for nearly 166 years. The controversy over the temple began in 1853. After the construction of the mosque, the Hindus alleged that the place where the mosque was built, was earlier the temple of Lord Ram, which had been demolished to construct the mosque. In 1885, this case reached the court for the first time when Mahant Raghubar Das filed an appeal in the Faizabad court for permission to build a Ram temple adjacent to the Babri Masjid. In 1859, the British government erected a wire fence to allow separate prayers to Muslims and Hindus in the inner and outer premises of the disputed land. A statue of Lord Rama was placed on this central site on December 23, 1949. After this, the Hindus started worshiping at the place regularly while Muslims stopped offering namaaz there. On January 16,1950, Gopal Singh Visharad filed an appeal in the Faizabad court, seeking special permission to worship Ram Lalla. A few months later, on December 5, 1950, Mahant Paramahansa Ram Chandra Das also filed a lawsuit to continue the Hindu prayers and keep the statue of Lord Rama in the disputed structure. Nine years later, on December 17,1959, the Nirmohi Akhara filed a lawsuit to transfer the disputed site and on December 18, 1961, the Sunni Waqf Board of Uttar Pradesh also filed a lawsuit, seeking ownership of the Babri Masjid and removal of idols from mosque premises. In 1984, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) started a campaign to open the locks of the disputed structure. A committee was also formed for the purpose. On February 1, 1986, the Faizabad district judge K.M. Pandey allowed Hindus to worship at the disputed site. The locks were reopened, but this angered some of the Muslim organizations and they formed the Babri Masjid Action Committee to protest. In 1989, the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) announced formal support to the VHP, thereby giving a new life to the temple movement. It was at this point that a massive movement for Ram temple began that, in the years to come, changed the complexion of national politics. On July 1, 1989, a fifth lawsuit was filed in the name of Lord Ramlala Virajaman. The then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, on November 9, 1989, allowed the 'shilanyas' (laying of foundation stone) near the disputed structure. As the temple movement gained momentum, in September 1990, the then BJP President, Lal Krishna Advani embarked on a Rath yatra from Somnath in Gujarat to Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh. Advani was arrested in Samastipur, Bihar by the Lalu Yadav government. In October 1991, the Kalyan Singh government in Uttar Pradesh acquired 2.77 acres of land near the disputed structure and gave it to Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas on lease. The Allahabad High Court, however, ordered that no permanent structure would be built there. The temple movement reached a crescendo on December 6, 1992 when thousands of 'kar sevaks' came together to Ayodhya and demolished the disputed structure, which led to communal riots across the country. This led to the dismissal of the BJP governments in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh after the demolition of the Babri mosque in 1992. The Liberhan Commission was formed a few days later to investigate those responsible for provoking the demolition of the mosque. In January 2002, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee started a Ayodhya department in his office. This department's job was to resolve the dispute between Hindus and Muslims. In April the same year, a three-judge bench began hearing on the ownership of the disputed site in Ayodhya. The Archaeological Survey of India started excavation in Ayodhya in 2003, under the instructions of the Allahabad High Court. The ASI claimed that there was evidence of the temple remains under the disputed structure, but the Muslims had different opinions about it. In September 2010, the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court delivered the historic verdict and divided the disputed land into three parts -- one part was given to the Ram temple, the other to Sunni Waqf Board and Nirmohi Akhara got the third. The High Court decision was challenged in Supreme Court and after efforts to amicably resolve the dispute failed, the apex court, on November 9, 2019, gave its verdict - the disputed land shall be given to Hindus for the construction of a temple and a separate plot of 5 acres would be given to Muslims in Ayodhya for the construction of a mosque. The court also asked the government to set up a Trust that would oversee temple construction. The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust was set up in February this year to initiate temple construction. Had it not been for the Corona pandemic and the national lockdown, the temple construction would have started in April on Ram Navami. The state government, meanwhile, has given five acres of land to Muslims in Dhannipur in Ayodhya. Latest updates on Ayodhya Ram Temple Bhumi Pujan -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text NOTE: The Press Council has not upheld a complaint about this article. Read the full adjudication here. The chief executive of the NSW government's troubled insurer icare has quit after it emerged he was stripped of a bonus for failing to properly declare his wife had been given a contract with the agency. John Nagle resigned late on Monday night after appearing before a sensational NSW upper house inquiry earlier in the day. Icare CEO John Nagle was sanctioned by the board in 2019. Credit:James Brickwood Mr Nagle and four icare senior officials were grilled for almost three hours about alleged mismanagement and underperformance, poor governance and conflict of interest issues. Parliament has passed the Accident Investigation and Prevention Bureau Bill, 2020 to boost air transport safety. The Bill, which was approved by Cabinet last month, seeks to, among other things, establish an autonomous Aircraft Accident Investigation and Prevention Bureau. When assented to by the President, it will boost confidence and safety in Ghana's air transport sector, and put the country a step further in achieving its vision of becoming an aviation hub of West Africa. The main funding source for the bureau is 1.5 percent of the Airport Passenger Service Charge (APSC), a levy which forms part of the cost of domestic and international air tickets. The Ghana Airports Company Limited, which receives the revenue from the APSC, is now required to give 1.5 percent to the new agency. In 2019, a little over GH521 million was realized in airport taxes. However, given the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on both domestic and international passenger throughput for this year, receipts are expected to fall to GH314.1 million. With the projected rebound of the industry post-COVID, the Bureau is expected to be well-resourced to carry out its mandate. The setting up of the Bureau is also in readiness for Ghana's upcoming International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) audit in 2021. Ghana in 2016 invested nearly $400 million to expand and modernize the Terminal 3 at the Kotoka International Airport. The terminal was completed in June 2018 and was opened to traffic three months later. This was part of a bigger plan to attract eight million tourists annually by 2027, with the view to making the country an aviation hub in the sub-region. Last year, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) rated Ghana's aviation safety as the best in Africa after a safety audit of the country's aviation sector. Ghana obtained Africa's highest score in Aviation Safety Oversight after it received the Effective Implementation rate of 89.89 per cent following the ICAO's conclusion of its Coordinated Validation Mission. The audit covered Ghana's safety oversight system on all eight ICAO critical elements, including primary aviation legislation, state operating regulations and state civil aviation system, safety functions and technical personnel qualification and training. MIAMI - It was 2014 and Venezuelas former treasurer Claudia Diaz was looking for a safe haven to store the unexplained wealth she had accumulated over the years. Then-president Hugo Chavez, who she once served as a nurse, had recently died and with the election of Nicolas Maduro, the nations politics and relations with the U.S. were in tumult. So Diaz allegedly turned to one of the oldest ways of moving vast sums of money anonymously: buying gold. In quick succession a shell company established in the Caribbean island nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines that she allegedly controlled purchased 250 gold bars valued at more than $9.5 million, according to court records from Liechtenstein obtained by The Associated Press. The bars, weighing a kilogram (2.2 pounds) each, were stored at a private vault in the tiny European principality available to Diaz and her son after his 18th birthday. A few years later, a nearly identical amount of bullion was sold by a representative of Diaz, with much of the proceeds deposited into a Swiss bank. Those transactions are now at the centre of an international criminal investigation into the network of shell companies and dodgy Swiss bankers that have helped turn Venezuela into one of the most corrupt countries in the world. While as much as $300 billion is estimated to have been raided from Venezuelas state coffers in two decades of socialist rule, investigators understanding of how the dirty money was laundered is still emerging. The physical transfer of heavy gold bars something previously unseen in court records underscore the creative lengths to which some Venezuelans have gone to hide their stolen wealth. With a reputation for secrecy and the worlds highest income per capita, the German-speaking microstate of Liechtenstein has long been a banking magnet for the worlds uber-rich. But like neighbouring Switzerland, with whom it shares a currency and customs union, its reputation as a freewheeling offshore financial centre has been rocked by scandal. Spurred by pressure from the U.S., which has indicted numerous Venezuelan officials and sanctioned Maduros government for financial crimes throughout the world, the two countries are now doing their utmost to expose corruption in Venezuela. Venezuela has become a virtual pariah, said Michael Levi, an expert on financial crimes in Europe and professor at Cardiff University in the U.K. Tight-lipped bankers were happy to take their money for years but now everybody is avoiding the country at all costs not just to protect their reputations but to avoid regulatory and even criminal penalties. Details of the investigation into Diaz and five alleged associates come from a 14-page legal assistance request sent Nov. 22, 2019, by a court in Liechtenstein and the response two weeks later by prosecutors in Geneva pledging co-operation. A translated copy of the petition, and the Swiss response, were provided separately to the AP by two people on the condition of anonymity because the probe is ongoing. The state court in Liechtenstein confirmed the authenticity of the request. Switzerlands Attorney Generals office said it transmitted the information in May but is not conducting any criminal proceedings at the moment. Diaz was virtually unknown until she and her husband, a former security adviser to Chavez, appeared in 2016 in a dump of secret financial documents known as the Panama Papers, which provided a rare look at how some of the worlds richest people hide their money. Authorities raided the couples Caracas home and seized what they described as a collection of luxury cars, artwork, and documents related to real estate holdings inside and out of Venezuela. Diaz, 46, was a former petty officer in Venezuelas navy who took care of an ailing Chavez before the Venezuelan leader died of cancer in 2013. In 2011, Chavez named her Venezuelas national treasurer. She was replaced when Chavezs successor Maduro was elected in 2013. Diaz and her husband, Adrian Velasquez, currently live in Madrid, where they were briefly arrested in 2018 on a Venezuelan warrant. In addition to the probe in Liechtenstein, the couple has been sanctioned in the U.S. for their alleged involvement in a $2.4 billion currency scheme and are identified as unnamed co-conspirators in a Miami federal indictment against Diazs predecessor as treasurer. Spanish prosecutors are also investigating their purchase of a $1.8 million apartment in Madrid. Ismael Oliver, the Madrid-based lawyer of both Diaz and her husband, said that his clients had no knowledge, official or otherwise, of the investigation by Liechtenstein. She radically denies having had any gold ingots or any bank account in Liechtenstein, Oliver said The gold bars allegedly belonging to Diaz represent just a small fraction of the total amount looted from Venezuela. But they stand as a powerful symbol of the boundless greed that fed a slew of intermediaries, from white-shoe boutique asset managers to some of Europes oldest banks. The gold bars were kept inside a private vault, number G1, at Liemeta AG that was leased by Diaz in 2014 for around 20,000 Swiss francs ($21,700) a year, according to the request by Judge Roger Beck of the court in Liechtenstein. Access to the vault was restricted to Diaz and her young son after his 18th birthday. But Diaz authorized a financier from a two-generation Swiss banking family to withdraw the vaults contents, which was allegedly done in two transactions in December 2014 and November 2015, according to Becks request. Diaz remains ensconced in Madrid. She insists that her considerable savings are the result of a lifetime of honest work and that she never once misappropriated state funds. She insists her legal problems all stem from her refusal to go along with what she considered Maduros illegal orders in the confusing aftermath of Chavezs death. For now, shes under no pressure to explain her wealth. Last year, Spains National Court blocked her extradition to Venezuela, deeming credible her fears that she could face torture if sent back home. ___ AP Writer Aritz Parra in Madrid, Jamey Keaten in Geneva and investigative researcher Randy Herschaft in New York contributed to this report. ___ Contact APs global investigative team at Investigative@ap.org. ___ Joshua Goodman on Twitter: www.twitter.com/APjoshgoodman Meme SDO Ntou'ou Ndong supervising sealing of shops in Kumba Screenshot from amateur video A seller at the Kumba Main Market has said far from disobeying state authority, they are forced to lock down their shops on Mondays and all other days as directed by armed separatists for fear of the unknown. She voiced out her worries to Chamberlain Ntouou Ndong, Senior Divisional Officer, SDO, for Meme Division Monday, August 3. The administrative officer was at the Kumba Main Market to supervise the City Councils sealing of shops that remained closed in respect of a routine Monday lockdown ordered by separatists seeking the independence of a country they call Ambazonia. Accompanied by security forces, Victor Nkele Ngoh, City Mayor of the Kumba City Council, KCC, today supervised the sealing of all unopened shops at the Kumba Main Market and its environs. Besides the fact that buyers hardly show up to buy on ghost town days, the seller who owns a makeshift table on which her produce is displayed said they are regularly victimized by armed separatists for obeying state authority. As you are saying that we should sell on ghost town days, know that those boys (armed separatists) attack us for doing so. The last time, they whipped me mercilessly and smashed the tomatoes I was selling, the seller told the SDO in tears as she struggled to display her goods with the hope of finding buyers. Do not worry. The problem is going to be solved now, the SDO replied as state forces guarded him. You are here today. You are selling. We are going to sell the whole day together, not so? I am here. Victor Nkele Ngoh said the decision to seal the shops is intended to punish traders who are respecting ghost towns imposed by separatist fighters and their promoters. He expects that todays action will serve as a deterrent to other business operators. To the City Mayor, the socio-political situation in Cameroons North West and South West Regions has nothing to do with traders and thus nothing explains their decision to keep their shops closed on a normal working day. Victor Nkele Ngoh says all those whose business premises and shops were sealed are expected to pay a fine of FCFA 25,000 before they can regain access into their shops. On whether the security of the traders and their businesses can be guaranteed, the City Mayor said the state has taken measures to provide security. He regretted that the continuous respect of lockdown and ghost town calls has been a huge setback to the revenue-generating potential of the City Council. It is not known if the City Mayor and his team of security, administrative and municipal officials will embark on a similar mission in other markets and business premises across Kumba. The Fiango Market and other business hubs in the city have for the most part remained closed, as business operators cite security concerns following threats from armed separatists. Kumba is the economic capital of Cameroons South West Region and also the administrative capital of the regions Meme Division. State forces have been battling to dislodge armed separatists who pitched their tent in Meme Division since the current crisis transformed into an armed conflict in 2017. Corporate demands by Common Law Lawyers and Anglophone Teachers led to protests in November 2016. The street demonstrations later morphed into ongoing running gun battles between state forces and armed separatist fighters in the predominantly English-speaking regions, leading to untold destruction of human lives, their habitats, and livelihoods. Steve McQueens new film, Lovers Rock, will have its world premiere when it opens the 58th New York Film Festival, which is still set to take place this fall with various COVID-19 safety precautions in place. Lovers Rock is one of five films in the Oscar-winning directors new Small Axe anthology, which will arrive in full on Amazon Prime Video in the U.S. and BBC One in the U.K. later this year. The films are set between the late-Sixties and mid-Eighties, and each one, per a press release, tells a different story involving Londons West Indian community, whose lives have been shaped by their own force of will despite rampant racism and discrimination. More from Rolling Stone The other four Small Axe films are Mangrove, Alex Wheatle, Education and Red, White and Blue. Both Mangrove and Red, White and Blue will also premiere at NYFF as part of its Main Slate (the rest of the festivals lineup will be announced in the coming weeks). Its an incredible honor and also very humbling to show three of my films at the New York Film Festival, McQueen said in a statement. Its especially meaningful for me at this particular time to share these stories as a black man of West Indian heritage. Im grateful to the NYFF for their generosity and wish everyone a safe and healthy festival. Lovers Rock tells the story of young love and music at a blues party in the early Eighties, and stars Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn in her screen debut opposite Michael Ward, who won BAFTAs Rising Star Award earlier this year. McQueen co-wrote the film with Courttia Newland. Mangrove, meanwhile, tells the true story of the Mangrove Nine, a group of black activists who were charged with inciting a riot at a 1970 protest, but ended up acquitted on all charges during a highly publicized trial that marked the first judicial acknowledgment of racially motivated behavior within the London police. The movie will star Letitia Wright, Shaun Parkes and Malachi Kirby, while McQueen co-wrote it with Alastair Siddons. Story continues Lastly, Red, White and Blue is based on another true story, this one of Leroy Logan, who joined the London police out of a desire to change their racist attitudes after watching two cops assault his father. John Boyega and Steve Toussaint will star with McQueen and Newland writing the script. The New York Film Festival is set to take place on September 25th through October 11th. Due to ongoing concerns over the spread of COVID-19, there will be a focus on outdoor and virtual screenings, with some indoor screenings possible under the guidance of health officials. The NYFF will set up two major drive-in theaters within New York City, one in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens, and the other at the Brooklyn Army Terminal. See where your favorite artists and songs rank on the Rolling Stone Charts. Sign up for Rolling Stones Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Donita Jose By Express News Service HYDERABAD: Timely teleconsultation by a doctor recently saved the life of a 62-year-old man, who was showing all the symptoms of COVID-19, in Sangareddy. This is being seen as one of the first success stories of home treatment and recovery of a patient suspected to have contracted the novel Coronavirus. The patient had developed a fever and was given the usual medication for it, but his condition did not improve. On day 10 of his illness, when he became breathless, Dr Vishnu Vardhan, a Civil Assistant Surgeon at the District Hospital, Sangareddy, snatched him from the jaws of death. "When my colleague had informed me that his father was breathless, I advised him to get a chest X-ray and high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) done. Both these scans showed opaqueness in the lungs. This was indicative of COVID-19 but the RT-PCR test result had returned negative. As the family is in Narayankhed, we decided to begin the treatment with steroids," Dr Vardhan said. Under close medical supervision of his son, who is also a doctor, the 62-year-old was administered steroid Methylprednisolone twice a day through IV. Within 48 hours the fever subsided and the patients breathing normalised. "His oxygen saturation level and other vitals also improved but his heartbeat showed some irregularities, indicating that the novel Coronavirus may have affected his heart. We could not be certain of this as the RT-PCR test result was negative. But we need to bear in mind that the margin of error of this test is 20 per cent," Dr Vardhan said. At this stage, the doctor and his colleague decided to shift the patient to a hospital where doctors continued with the same treatment for two days and then discharged him. Timely use of anti-viral drugs can save lives: Doctors "Timely use of anti-viral drugs such as Remdesivir and steroids such as Methylprednisolone can reduce the burden on patients. These drugs can prevent them from slipping into the ventilator stage, wherein the survival rate is just 15 per cent. The survival rate at the oxygen stage is much higher, 70 per cent," said Dr Kiran Madala, the HoD of Critical Care Medicine at the GMC Nizamabad. "If a patient is breathless and has medical reports - CT scans and X-rays - to support the condition, we prescribe oral steroids so that their condition improves immediately. We have done it for 15 patients so that their condition is manageable while they reach the hospital," Dr Vardhan added. By Express News Service BENGALURU: Hours after Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa tested positive for COVID-19 and was shifted to a hospital, his daughter BY Padmavathi too tested positive for the virus. In a statement, Manipal Hospital in Bengaluru, where the Chief Minister is currently undergoing treatment, said that his daughter too had tested positive and has been shifted to the hospital on Monday. The chief minister's family members have gone into quarantine. Thank you all for your messages and prayers. My father Shri B.S.Yediyurappa ji is doing fine and under observation of doctors who said there is no need to worry. As a precaution, i will observe home quarantine for next 7 days.#GetWellSoonBSY @BSYBJP Vijayendra Yeddyurappa (@BYVijayendra) August 3, 2020 "Thank you all for your messages and prayers. My father Shri BSYediyurappa ji is doing fine and under observation of doctors who said there is no need to worry. As a precaution, i will observe home quarantine for next 7 days. #GetWellSoonBSY @BSYBJP(SIC)" tweeted BY Vijayendra, Yediyurappa's youngest son on Monday morning. Leaders cutting across party lines have been wishing Yediyurappa a speedy recovery. In a tweet on late Sunday night, BS Yediyurappa had announced that he was asymptomatic but has been recommended hospitalisation. DETROIT -- Troopers with the Michigan State Police arrested four people Friday night after witnessing one of them open fire right in front of them. According to the MSP, two troopers were parked on the Lodge service drive and Taylor Street in Detroit around 10:35 p.m. Friday. While they were sitting there, the troopers saw a Ford Taurus approach the area with its lights off. One of the passengers exited the vehicle and began firing a gun in an unknown direction. The troopers turned on their lights, leading to the shooter jumping back into the car. The car then drove off as troopers began pursuing the vehicle as it traveled southbound on the M-10 service drive. The suspects eventually got caught in traffic on Bethune Street, allowing officers to stop the vehicle. One of the passengers tried to run away but was caught by troopers. The other three suspects were arrested on scene. Rounds recovered in the car and near the shooting site match the gun that was recovered. The suspected shooter admitted to police that he threw the gun out of the car when fleeing the scene. That gun was recovered with the help of an MSP canine. The suspected shooter is a convicted felon according to MSP. The department was unaware of any reports on injuries as a result of the shooting. Alameda County Sheriff's Office The Alameda County Sheriff's Office announced Monday an arrest has been made in the 32-year-old cold case murder of a baby in Castro Valley. The baby, dubbed Baby John Doe by law enforcement, was found by two juveniles walking along the creek on Madison Avenue in May 1988. Investigators determined the baby had been born alive and was subsequently killed. For decades, the identity of the baby was unknown, but in 2005, a DNA profile was developed. Police believed that profile belonged to the killer, who they also believed was the baby's mother. The Police are working to get the kingpin, Satnam Singh, alias Satta, extradited from Muscat, Oman, where he had fled after he was declared proclaimed offender in two smuggling cases, Director General of Police (DGP) Dinkar Gupta said on Sunday. Chandigarh, Aug 2 (IANS) As part of its crackdown against drugs, Punjab Police have busted another Pakistan-backed cross-border drugs and weapons smuggling racket, with the arrest of two smugglers and another BSF constable, posted along the Pakistan border in Tarn Taran district. He used a fake Passport and Aadhaar card issued in the name of Gurmeet Singh to escape, he said, adding that the accused had five cases of smuggling registered against him earlier. Satta's ill-gotten property, which he had purchased using drug money in the name of his family relative Maninder Kaur in Amritsar, has been frozen, he added. Jalandhar Rural Police, which unearthed the racket, had recovered a .30 Bore Pistol (made in China) along with five rounds and Rs 24.50 lakh as drug money from the three accused -- Surmail Singh, Gurjant Singh and BSF constable Rajendra Prashad of Rajasthan, said the DGP. Acting on a tip-off, the Jalandhar Rural Police on July 26 apprehended two smugglers, who were coming in a car from Delhi. On questioning, the duo identified themselves as Surmail Singh and Gurjant Singh. Surmail's further questioning led to the recovery of the arm and ammunitions and 35 gm of heroin. During further investigations, both the accused revealed they were working with a cross-border smuggler Satnam Singh in Taran Tarn district, who was closely linked with Pakistan-based smugglers for smuggling of heroin and weapons from Pakistan. They also disclosed that BSF constable Rajendra Prashad was also part of the smuggling racket. The BSF constable was posted at a border outpost at Chhina village in Tarn Taran. The DGP said he contacted his counterparts in the BSF and took the support of central agencies as well, for ensuring the arrest of the said BSF constable, who was apprehended by Punjab Police on July 28 from his residence in Rawala Mandi, where he was availing his leave. --IANS vg/pgh YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. The Ministry of Justice of Armenia has unveiled the bill on amending the Judicial Code and the Rules of Procedure of Parliament that envisage the creation of an Anti-Corruption Court. The bill has been published for public discussions. The specialized court will be composed of 25 judges, 5 of whom will exclusively examine cases concerning Stolen Asset Recovery cases. The legislative changes also propose the creation of an Appellate Anti-Corruption Court, composed of 10 judges. Apart from other regulations, the bill also suggests introducing integrity examinations for candidates for prosecutors. Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan Tesla CEO Elon Musk Business Insider/Samantha Lee A third Tesla car factory in the US is likely, Elon Musk said on a podcast released Monday. Tesla announced in July that its second US car factory would be in Austin, Texas. It's also building a Gigafactory in Europe, near Berlin, Germany, and operates one in Shanghai, China. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Tesla's potential third car factory in the United States would likely be within the Northeast, Elon Musk said in a new interview published Monday. The CEO told Automotive News in a podcast that "at some point there'll be a third Gigafactory, probably." Currently, Tesla is building new factories in Austin, Texas and Berlin, Germany to augment its production in Fremont, California and Shanghai, China. The company also makes battery components in Reno, Nevada and Buffalo, New York. "This is literally a spur of the moment rough guess, probably we'd start construction in four years-ish," Musk said. "That's just like my sort of stream-of-consciousness guess." As for moving Tesla's headquarters out of California a move Musk threatened at the height of coronavirus lockdowns that required Tesla to shutter its main US factory much remains to be decided. "There's no question that our headquarters will remain in California in the short term," Musk said. "Long term we'll have to see. Certainly the vast majority of the Tesla management and engineering staff is in California. So, that is certainly our headquarters for now and sometime into the future." Read the original article on Business Insider Large international study pinpoints impact of TP53 gene mutations on blood cancer severity Considered the "guardian of the genome," TP53 is the most commonly mutated gene in cancer. TP53's normal function is to detect DNA damage and prevent cells from passing this damage on to daughter cells. When TP53 is mutated, the protein made from this gene, called p53, can no longer perform this protective function, and the result can be cancer. Across many cancer types, mutations in TP53are associated with worse outcomes, like disease recurrence and shorter survival. As with all our genes, TP53 exists in duplicate in our cells. One copy we get from our mothers, the other we get from our fathers. Up until now, it has not been clear whether a mutation was needed in one or both copies of TP53 to affect cancer outcomes. A new study led by researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering definitively answers this question for a blood cancer called myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), a precursor to acute myeloid leukemia. "Our study is the first to assess the impact of having one versus two dysfunctional copies of TP53 on cancer outcomes," says molecular geneticist Elli Papaemmanuil, a member of MSK's Epidemiology and Biostatistics Department and the lead scientist on the study, published August 3 in the journal Nature Medicine. "From our results, it's clear that you need to lose function of both copies to see evidence of genome instability and a high-risk clinical phenotype in MDS." The consequences for cancer diagnosis and treatment are immediate and profound, she says. A Large, Definitive Study The study analyzed genetic and clinical data from 4,444 patients with MDS who were being treated at hospitals all over the world. Researchers from 25 centers in 12 countries were involved in the study, which was conducted under the aegis of the International Working Group for the Prognosis of MDS whose goal is to develop new international guidelines for the treatment of this disease. The findings were independently validated using data from the Japanese MDS working group led by Seishi Ogawa's team in Kyoto University. "Currently, the existing MDS guidelines do not consider genomic data such as TP53 and other acquired mutations when assessing a person's prognosis or determining appropriate treatment for this disease," says Peter Greenberg, Director of Stanford University's MDS Center, Chair of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Practice Guidelines Panel for MDS, and a co-author on the study. "That needs to change." Using new computational methods, the investigators found that about one-third of MDS patients had only one mutated copy of TP53. These patients had similar outcomes as patients who did not have a TP53 mutation -- a good response to treatment, low rates of disease progression, and better survival rates. On the other hand, the two-thirds of patients who had two mutated copies of TP53 had much worse outcomes, including treatment-resistant disease, rapid disease progression, and low overall survival. In fact, the researchers found that TP53 mutation status -- zero, one, or two mutated copies of the gene -- was the most important variable when predicting outcomes. "Our findings are of immediate clinical relevance to MDS patients," Dr. Papaemmanuil says. "Going forward, all MDS patients should have their TP53 status assessed at diagnosis." As for why it takes two "hits" to TP53 to see an effect on cancer outcomes, the study's first author Elsa Bernard, a postdoctoral scientist in the Papaemmanuil lab, speculates that one normal copy is enough to provide adequate protection against DNA damage. This would explain why having only one mutated copy was not associated with genome instability or any worse survival rates than having two normal copies. Given the frequency of TP53 mutations in cancer, these results make a case for examining the impact of one versus two mutations on other cancers as well. They also reveal the need for clinical trials designed specifically with these molecular differences in mind. "With the increasing adoption of molecular profiling at the time of cancer diagnosis, we need large, evidence-based studies to inform how to translate these molecular findings into optimal treatment strategies," Dr. Papaemmanuil says. ### Contributing centers: Karolinska Institute (Sweden), Dusseldorf MDS Registry (Germany), University of Pavia (Italy), La Fe University Hospital (Spain), Radboudumc Medical Center Nijmegen (The Netherlands), Amsterdam UMC (The Netherlands), Cochin Hospital (France), Chang Gung Memorial Hospital (Taiwan), Gruppo Romano Laziale MDS (Italy), University of Bologna (Italy), Medical University of Vienna (Austria), Hannover Medical School (Germany), University Hospital Dresden (Germany), Federal University of Ceara (Brazil), Institut Josep Carreras (Spain), Aou Careggi Hospital (Italy), Democritus University of Thrace (Greece), University of Oxford (United Kingdom), Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein (Brazil), Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (United States), Vanderbilt University (United States), Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion (Czech Republic), University Medicine Gottingen (Germany), Rete Ematologica Lombarda (Italy), Saint-Louis Hospital (France), Saint James's University Hospital (United Kingdom), Japanese Data Center for Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation (Japan), Nagasaki University (Japan), Tsukuba University (Japan), Gifu Municipal Hospital (Japan), Kobe City Medical Center General Hospital (Japan), Gifu University (Japan), Kyoto University (Japan), Chugoku Central Hospital (Japan), Chulalongkorn University (Thailand), NTT Medical Center Tokyo (Japan), Osaka Red Cross Hospital (Japan), Tokyo Medical University (Japan), Kurashiki Central Hospital (Japan), Sasebo City General Hospital (Japan). This study was supported in part by the Celgene Corporation, the MDS Foundation, Inc., Bloodwise, Austrian Science Fund, Italian MIUR-PRIN grants, Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro, 51000 project, the Francois Wallace Monahan Fellowship, the Josie Robertson Foundation, the European Hematology Association, American Society of Hematology, Gabrielle's Angels Foundation, V Foundation, Damon Runyon-Rachleff, the Geoffrey Beene Foundation, the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, and the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Dr. Papaemmanuil is a Josie Robertson-funded investigator at MSK. Drs. Papaemmanuil and Bernard have received research funding from Celgene. About Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK): As the world's oldest and largest private cancer center, Memorial Sloan Kettering has devoted more than 135 years to exceptional patient care, influential educational programs and innovative research to discover more effective strategies to prevent, control and, ultimately, cure cancer. MSK is home to more than 20,000 physicians, scientists, nurses and staff united by a relentless dedication to conquering cancer. Today, we are one of 51 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers, with state-of-the-art science and technology supporting groundbreaking clinical studies, personalized treatment, and compassionate care for our patients. We also train the next generation of clinical and scientific leaders in oncology through our continually evolving educational programs, here and around the world. Year after year, we are ranked among the top two cancer hospitals in the country, consistently recognized for our expertise in adult and pediatric oncology specialties. http://www. mskcc. org . This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Upcoming political events in the Bay Area. Events take place online unless otherwise noted: THURSDAY Atomic bombings anniversary: National live stream of events commemorating the 75th anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Hosted by #stillhere Coalition. Daylong events start at 8 a.m. More information is here. Reps. Barbara Lee and Eric Swalwell: East Bay Democrats hold a Facebook Live conversation on the coronavirus pandemic. 1:30 p.m. Join event here. Supervisor Matt Haney: A discussion with the San Francisco District Six supervisor. Hosted by Mannys. 6 p.m. More information is here. FRIDAY Battle for Portland: A discussion of protests in Portland and what the deployment of federal officers means for the city and the country, with journalist Robert Evans, who has covered conflicts in Iraq and Ukraine and reported on far-right groups in the U.S. Hosted by the Commonwealth Club. Noon. More information is here. SATURDAY Alcatraz and indigenous women: LaNada War Jack, member of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, scholar and one of the occupiers of Alcatraz Island in 1969-71, moderates a discussion on the role of indigenous women during and after the occupation. Organized by the San Francisco Public Library. 11 a.m. More information is here. Atomic bombings anniversary: An online event with survivors of the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, hosted by the Nihonmachi Outreach Committee of San Jose. 11 a.m. Registration required, space is limited. Registration and more information here. SUNDAY Atomic bombings anniversary: National live stream of events commemorating the 75th anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Hosted by #stillhere Coalition. 8 a.m. More information is here. Nuclear-free future: Prospects for connecting the movement to abolish nuclear weapons with other efforts to lead to environmental change and social justice. Hosted by City Lights Booksellers and San Francisco Bay Physicians for Social Responsibility. 3 p.m. More information is here. Virtual remembrance: Nichi Bei Foundation and Friends of Hibakusha host A Virtual Remembrance: 75 Years After the Atomic Bombings. 4 p.m. More information is here. TUESDAY Energy and communities: A discussion on how renewable-energy companies can offer diversity, equity and affordable energy. Panelists include Derrick Hollie, president of Reaching America, and Jacqueline Patterson, director of the NAACP Environmental and Climate Justice program. Hosted by the Commonwealth Club. 9:30 a.m. More information is here. Rep. Ro Khanna: Fremont Democrat holds a town hall meeting. Noon. Submit questions in advance here; join meeting here. Paul Begala: Political consultant and former Bill Clinton adviser on how the Democrats can win in November. Hosted by the Commonwealth Club. 12:30 p.m. More information is here. Shaun King: Civil rights activist and journalist in conversation with former San Francisco Supervisor Jane Kim. Hosted by the Commonwealth Club. 6 p.m. More information is here. AUG. 12 Dan Pfeiffer: Pod Save America co-host of Pod Save America on how Democrats can win the White House. Hosted by the Commonwealth Club. 6 p.m. More information is here. History of protest: Marke Bieschke, 48 Hills publisher and arts editor and author of Into the Streets: A Young Person's Visual History of Protest in the United States, in a discussion hosted by the San Francisco Public Library. 7 p.m. More information is here. AUG. 13 Jim Sciutto: CNN national security reporter on President Trumps foreign policy. Hosted by the Commonwealth Club. 3 p.m. More information is here. AUG. 18 Dr. Anthony Fauci: Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in conversation with Gloria Duffy, president and CEO of the Commonwealth Club. 11 a.m. More information is here. AUG. 19 Social media and digital democracy: Alex Stamos, director of the Stanford Internet Observatory and former chief security officer of Facebook, on the rapid shift in media consumption and how it affects elections and other elements of democracy. Hosted by the Commowealth Club. 6:30 p.m. More information is here. Unbreaking government: Can the U.S. fix its political and economic systems? A discussion with the authors of Presidents, Populism, and the Crisis of Democracy, University of Chicago political science department chair William Howell and Terry Moe, Stanford University political science professor and Hoover Institution fellow. Hosted by Keplers Books. 7 p.m. More information is here. AUG. 20 Gen Z: How to ensure Generation Z is engaged in civic life during political upheaval and the pandemic. Speakers include Sara Guillermo, chief program officer of IGNITE National; Amanda Little, executive director of Kidizenship; Generation Citizen CEO Scott Warren; and Amber Coleman-Mortley, social engagement director at iCivics. Hosted by the Commonwealth Club. 10 a.m. More information is here. AUG. 21 Shirley Chisholm documentary: A screening and discussion of Rep. Shirley Chisholms 1972 campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination, Chisholm 72: Unbought and Unbossed. Hosted by the Mechanics Institute. 6 p.m. More information is here. AUG. 22 Pandemic response: A look at how the nations economic response to the coronavirus pandemic has skewed toward maximizing profits. Speakers include St. Marys College economics Professor Jack Rasmus. Hosted by Speak Out Now. 4 p.m. More information is here. AUG. 25 Reagans legacy: Rick Perlstein, author of Reaganland, on how Ronald Reagan won the presidency and why the conservative strategy for gaining power works to this day. Hosted by the Commonwealth Club. Noon. More information is here. Corruption in America: Sarah Chayes, former Paris reporter for NPR and author of On Corruption In America And What Is at Stake, in a conversation hosted by the Commonwealth Club. 3:30 p.m. More information is here. AUG. 26 Womens suffrage centennial: Perspectives on how women can lead the country and further democratic values. Speakers include Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, Alameda County Supervisor Wilma Chan, She the People founder Aimee Allison, League of Women Voters of San Francisco president Alison Goh, suffrage historian Jennifer Helton and journalists Marisa Lagos of KQED and Elaine Elinson. Hosted by the League of Women Voters. 5 p.m. More information is here. Katie Hill: Former congresswoman and author of the new book She Will Rise: Becoming a Warrior in the Battle for True Equality, on her story. Hosted by the Commonwealth Club. 6 p.m. More information is here. To list an event, please email Chronicle politics editor Trapper Byrne at tbyrne@sfchronicle.com Trade Official Says Russian And Chinese Banks Refuse To Deal With Iran Radio Farda August 02, 2020 The chairman of the Iran-China Chamber of Commerce says Tehran has virtually no banking transactions with Russia and China. If someone with an Islamic Republic passport applies for banking services in these countries, he will be rejected. Speaking to the state-run Iran Labor News Agency (ILNA) on August 1, Majid Reza Hariri reiterated, "No bank is willing to cooperate with us, because we are suspected of money laundering. Therefore, along with U.S. sanctions, this has doubled the pressure on us." Hariri admitted that in addition to U.S. banking sanctions imposed on Iran, the Islamic Republic is also struggling with restrictions set by the international watchdog, Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Since the Islamic Republic has not fully adopted FATF recommendations, Hariri argued, the international body combating money laundering has in recent weeks "repeatedly" issued a circular to the world's banking system, warning about the risk of dealing with Tehran, and reminding that Iran's financial transactions should be severely controlled. FATF announced on February 21, 2020, that it had put Iran back on its blacklist. The decision came after more than three years of warnings from the Paris-based FATF urging Tehran to enact terrorist financing conventions. Foreign businesses have repeatedly stressed that Iran's compliance with FATF rules is vital if Tehran wants to attract investors, especially since the United States reimposed sanctions in 2018 after withdrawing from Tehran's 2015 nuclear deal world powers. Nevertheless, forces close to the Islamic Republic Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei have prevented Tehran from joining the FATF. Iran and North Korea are the only countries still on the FATF blacklist. To meet FATF's demands, President Hassan Rouhani presented four bills, (collectively known as the "Palermo Bills" in Iran) to the parliament in November 2017. Nonetheless, Rouhani has so far failed to pass the bills into law. Supporters of accepting FATF's conditions, including Rouhani's government, say joining the FATF and other international agreements on financial transparency and combating money laundering and terrorism-financing would reduce international pressure on Iran's already deteriorating economy. Commanders of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), Friday Prayer Leaders across Iran, and other figures appointed by Khamenei have repeatedly opposed the passage of UN-sponsored conventions. Source: https://en.radiofarda.com/a/trade-official -says-russian-and-chinese-banks-refuse -to-deal-with-iran/30762221.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 The Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta has disclosed that the COVID-19 National Trust Fund Act (CNTF) has utilized an amount of GH32,820,564.97 out of a total of GH53,911,249.87 that it had mobilised as at June 30, 2020. The Minister in the mid-year review of the Budget Statement and Economic Policy on July 23 said the amount was mobilised from individuals, churches, corporate bodies, staff of organisations, non-Governmental organisations, groups, and associations. He said: "As at 30th June, 2020, the CNTF had mobilised GH53,911,249.87 from individuals, churches, corporate bodies, staff of organisations, non-Governmental organisations, groups, and associations, among others. Out of this, an amount of GH32,820,564.97 has been utilised as at 30th June, 2020. Expenditure Shedding light on how the funds were expended, Mr Ofori-Atta also stated that the the Fund transferred GH10,257,360.00 into the COVID-19 Private Sector Fund for acquisition of PPEs and other medical items to resource the countrys frontline workers. He added that the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) was also supported with GH2,500,000.00 to enhance COVID-19-related public sensitisation. To improve decision making, the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER) was provided with an amount of GH 297,920.00 to conduct studies on the impact of the pandemic in 80 districts across the country, the Minister said. "Mr. Speaker, food items, vehicles, PPEs, and medical supplies were provided to 32 other key institutions. A significant quantity of the PPEs were distributed to the Ghana Health Service, the COVID-19 Care Management Team, and 5 health institutions to support the fight against the pandemic. "The Fund also distributed food items to the aged, vulnerable, and needy persons through Help Age Ghana, and 5 care homes and shelters. In addition, 10 saloon cars and two 2 pick-up vehicles were provided to 4 Treatment/Isolation Centres, 6 Laboratories and COVID-19 Care Management Teams to enhance surveillance, testing, contact tracing, and management of cases. To address the peculiar needs of Pantang Hospital, PPEs and one ventilator were also provided". About the CNTF To leverage other resources to fight the pandemic, the Government passed the COVID-19 National Trust Fund Act (CNTF), 2020 (Act 1013) in April 2020 to establish the Fund, and put in place a 7-member Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees is chaired by former Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo. The other members of the Board are Archbishop Justice Ofei Akrofi, Mr Jude Kofi Bucknor, Gifty Afenyi-Dadzie, Mrs Elsie Addo-Awadzie, Dr Ernest Ofori-Sarpong and Dr Tanko. Mr Collins Asare is the Secretary to the Board. Source: graphiconline.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 Demonstrators chant slogans and hold signs during a rally against Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outside his residence in Jerusalem. (AP) Tel Aviv: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday railed at swelling protests against his rule, saying they were egged on by a biased media that distorts facts and cheers on the demonstrators. Netanyahu has faced a wave of protests in recent weeks, with demonstrators calling for the resignation of the long-serving leader, who is on trial for corruption charges. Theyve also panned his handling of the coronavirus crisis. Netanyahu has painted the protests as dens of anarchists and leftists out to topple a strong right-wing leader. The protests have largely been peaceful. In some cases they have ended with clashes between demonstrators and police. In others, small gangs of Netanyahu supporters and individuals affiliated with far-right groups have assaulted demonstrators. In a six-minute rant at a meeting of his Cabinet, Netanyahu slammed the media for inflaming the protests and for misrepresenting incidents of violence against the protesters. There has never been such a distorted mobilization I wanted to say Soviet but it has already reached North Korean terms of the media in favor of the protests, he said. Netanyahu said the media ignored wild and unfettered incitement, including daily calls including the day before yesterday to murder the prime minister and his family. He said the protests were breeding grounds for the virus that were being allowed to take place with no limits, shutting down streets and neighborhoods. He said right-wing protests have not been given such free rein. He condemned violence from all sides at the start of his remarks before tearing into the media he has long viewed as hostile toward him. Also at the Cabinet meeting, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz, who is the countrys alternate prime minister under a power-sharing deal, said the protests must be allowed to take place with demonstrators shielded from violence. The right to protest is the lifeblood of democracy and violence is the erosion of the foundation of democracy, he said. Netanyahus tirade came as a Jerusalem court ruled that his son Yair Netanyahu must remove a tweet that published the names, addresses and phone numbers of prominent protesters and called for his followers to demonstrate outside their homes day and night. Protesters said they received threatening calls after the tweet. The court also decided he must refrain from harassing the protesters for six months. Turns out that in our democracy you arent allowed to protest outside the homes of anarchists who have called to for the prime ministers murder, tweeted Yair Netanyahu after the ruling. The 28-year-old has emerged as a driving force in a counterattack against his fathers critics. Throughout the summer, thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets, calling for Netanyahu to resign, protesting his handling of the countrys coronavirus crisis and saying he should not remain in office while on trial. Though Netanyahu has tried to play down the protests, the twice-a-week gatherings show no signs of slowing, and Saturday nights Jerusalem gathering drew more than 10,000 people. The rallies against Netanyahu are the largest Israel has seen since 2011 protests over the countrys high cost of living. After moving quickly to contain the virus last spring, many believe Israel reopened its economy too quickly, leading to a surge in cases. The country is now coping with record levels of coronavirus, while unemployment has surged to over 20%. Netanyahu faces charges of fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in a series of scandals involving wealthy associates and media moguls. He denies wrongdoing. CLEVELAND, Ohio After a month-long delay, Destination Cleveland this week is launching its Rediscover CLE campaign, designed to encourage residents to get out and support local businesses despite the continuing health pandemic. Destination Cleveland CEO David Gilbert acknowledged that there was no perfect time to launch the campaign, which will use advertising, social media, a resident-focused visitors guide and other avenues to encourage Clevelanders to explore the region in the coming months. The campaign launches as coronavirus cases in Ohio continue to increase, although new infections in Cuyahoga County have trended down in recent weeks. The timing feels as good as it can, said Gilbert. Were in such a challenging situation. The businesses that are open need the help and thats what were trying to do. The campaign is the second in a three-pronged effort by Destination Cleveland to help support the regions tourism economy. The first phase, launched in late May, was focused on the responsible reopening of local businesses, following the lifting of statewide stay-at-home orders. As part of that effort, Destination Cleveland spearheaded the Clean Committed program, in conjunction with local hospitals, which encourages businesses to adhere to numerous guidelines designed to keep employees and customers healthy and safe. Gilbert said more than 400 businesses are participating in the program, including hotels, restaurants, museums and other attractions (for a list of participants: thisiscleveland.com). Our intent is to keep it growing, said Gilbert. The approach weve taken will also be important as we start concentrating on inviting outsiders back to town. Pitching the region to out-of-towners will make up the third phase of the campaign, with a yet-to-be-determined start date. For now, the tourism agency is focusing on Greater Clevelanders, hoping to entice them to leave their homes and explore the city, with an emphasis on outdoor attractions. Among the ways the agency will do that: * A traditional advertising campaign, using digital, broadcast and other media to reach Northeast Ohioans. * A new visitors guide geared to locals, which includes information on outdoor venues, African-American cultural attractions, Cleveland neighborhoods and regional destinations. The guide is available at local retailers and online. * New passport themes on the Destination Cleveland mobile app, including itineraries focused on the urban outdoors, iconic sights, free in CLE and arts and culture. Destination Cleveland's new Resident Resource Guide. Gilbert said Destination Cleveland will spend about $75,000 on this phase of the campaign, although the agency has received numerous in-kind donations that increase the value of the effort. Destination Cleveland has suffered, too, during the pandemic, furloughing more than half its staff in March because of a dramatic reduction in county bed-tax revenue, the primary source of the agencys funding. Hotel occupancy figures for the region show that demand is still far below what it should be for this time of year. Occupancy in the Cleveland area for the week ending July 25 was 42.1%, down from 70% a year ago, according to figures provided by STR, a travel data firm. Gilbert said some visitors are trickling into the region, including travelers visiting friends and family. Hotels in suburban areas generally are doing better than those in the central city, as any uptick in convention and business travel is lagging behind leisure travel. Gilbert said he did not know when the agency would pivot from its campaign focused on residents to a broader message geared to outsiders. When the time is right and we dont know when that is we want to be ready to jump back in, he said. Destination Cleveland was poised to welcome a record number of visitors in 2020, before the pandemic brought an abrupt end to most travel worldwide. In 2018, the region welcomed a record 19.2 million visitors, according to Destination Cleveland. Visitors for 2020 are expected to be a fraction of that. Destination Cleveland had hoped to start its Rediscover CLE campaign in early July, but delayed the launch in part due to violent protests in Cleveland and elsewhere following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Gilbert said he thought it would send the wrong message to launch a visitor campaign in the midst of such a crisis. Since then, the agency has formed a task force to look at the issues of diversity, inclusion and systemic racism as they relate to the regions tourism infrastructure. Gilbert expects recommendations from the panel in the coming months. Several months into the global pandemic, there are five coronavirus vaccine options in late-stage testing. For Americans, this means we can expect access to a COVID-19 shot in the first half of next year. If you have seen some of the hospital bills associated with coronavirus, you may be concerned about the potential cost of a COVID shot. The Cost of a Flu Shot It is easy to think about the high cost of developing a vaccine. Oftentimes, millions, even billions, of dollars are spent to develop something effective. When it comes to developing a vaccine for COVID-19, however, it is fairly similar to creating a flu shot. People who get a flu shot every year know that the price of that vaccine typically lands around $40. Other vaccines, like the shot for shingles, can cost up to $300 for a series of two shots. So, how much will a coronavirus vaccine cost? How Much a Coronavirus Vaccine Will Cost Youre probably thinking the cost will land somewhere between $40 and $300. Believe it or not, the coronavirus vaccine will cost you $0 out of pocket (on the spot anyway). The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) plans to make the vaccine readily available and free to all American citizens. The price will be $0 regardless of your age, income, or health insurance. Patients seeking the vaccine will likely need to prepare for the fees associated with administering the shot. Your healthcare provider can provide information about the cost of in-office services. Typically, your insurance company will pay these fees. In the end, though, someone has to foot the bill for developing and distributing the coronavirus vaccine to millions of people. Of course, it will fall on the taxpayer. Anyone paying federal taxes will inadvertently also pay for the COVID-19 vaccine. How Much Will Your Taxes Increase? The HHS plans to purchase 100 million doses of a coronavirus vaccine at $19.50 per dose ($1.95 billion). If it was just this amount spread out across taxpayers in the U.S., your tax bill would only go up about $16 per year. But when all is said and done, youll pay more than that. Health and Human Services has already announced that it would provide hundreds of billions in funding to various companies to help support the development of a vaccine. Government agencies are also working on closing deals valued in the billions for other potential vaccine solutions. According to The Motley Fool, the overall cost to the taxpayer for a coronavirus vaccine will end up coming in around $51. So much for a no-cost vaccine. Read More YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. The Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), the second largest group in the European Parliament, has called on the European Union to impose sanctions on several Azerbaijani government officials. Given the gravity of the situation in Azerbaijan, we call on the Unions High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, to launch, without delay, an initiative to impose EU-wide targeted human rights sanctions on Azerbaijani officials responsible for the violent repression of the political opposition and civil society in the country, the S&D said. It is unacceptable that President Aliyev is using the COVID-19 pandemic and the recent spike in military tensions with Armenia as an excuse to wipe out what remains of the political opposition in the country, the statement said. Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan Ghislaine Maxwell has won a legal fight to keep secret 'highly intrusive' documents about her sex life - just hours before they were due to be released. The British socialite, 58, argued it could destroy her chances of a fair trial against charges she facilitated the late financier Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse of girls. Maxwell's deposition had been taken in April 2016 for a now-settled civil defamation lawsuit against her by Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who had accused Epstein of having kept her as a 'sex slave' with Maxwell's assistance. Maxwell made last ditch scrambles on Thursday urging the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to keep the deposition about her sex life sealed. Her lawyer argued that the potentially embarrassing details could make it 'difficult if not impossible' to find an impartial jury, out of the public eye. The appeals court delayed the release of the dossiers until at least September 22 when Maxwell's appeal will be heard on an expedited basis. Ghislaine Maxwell appears via video link during her arraignment hearing where she was denied bail for her role aiding Jeffrey Epstein to recruit and eventually abuse of minor girls, in Manhattan Federal Court, in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S. July 14, 2020 in this courtroom sketch Maxwell has pleaded not guilty to helping Epstein recruit and eventually abuse three girls from 1994 to 1997, and committing perjury by denying her involvement under oath. 'MAXWELL STRIPPED ME AND TOOK PART IN CONTINUOUS ORGIES' Ghislaine Maxwell undressed Virginia Roberts and told her to lick Jeffrey Epstein's nipples during their first meeting when she was just 15, newly-unsealed court documents have revealed. Roberts detailed the ordeal in testimony she gave to lawyers in 2011, which formed part of a 2015 libel case against Maxwell that has been kept secret until now. Roberts said Maxwell also stripped naked, instructed her to perform oral sex on Epstein while he fondled her, and then told her to 'straddle him sexually'. In separate testimony, Roberts also recounted 'continuous' orgies that Maxwell was involved in on Epstein's private Caribbean island with underage girls. Roberts said girls were routinely flown in via private jet to participate in sex sessions which happened all over the island. Asked to describe women she personally saw Maxwell have sexual contact with, she responded: 'There's so many, I don't know where you want me to start.' 'There were blondes, there were brunettes, there were redheads. They were all beautiful girls. I would say the ages ranged between 15 and 21,' she added. Advertisement She was arrested on July 2 and has been held in a Brooklyn jail after a judge denied bail, calling her a flight risk. Maxwell's trial is scheduled for next July. The release of Maxwell's deposition had been scheduled for today, pending the outcome of the appeal. Dozens of other documents from that case were however released late on Thursday, after the presiding judge concluded that the public had a right to see them. They included claims from Roberts that Bill Clinton visited Epstein's notorious island. She also speaks about Prince Andrew. Asked by her own lawyers in 2011 whether Andrew would have 'relevant information' in the case, she answered: 'Yes, he would know a lot of the truth. 'I don't know how much he'd be able to help you with, but seeing as he's in a lot of trouble himself these days I think he might, so I think he might be valuable.' The Duke of York, once a close friend of both Epstein and Maxwell, has strenuously denied any wrongdoing. Elsewhere in Robert's testimony, she claims that Maxwell undressed her and told her to lick Jeffrey Epstein's nipples during their first meeting when she was just 15. Roberts detailed the ordeal in testimony she gave to lawyers in 2011, which formed part of a 2015 libel case against Maxwell that has been kept secret until now. Roberts said Maxwell also stripped naked, instructed her to perform oral sex on Epstein while he fondled her, and then told her to 'straddle him sexually'. In separate testimony, Roberts also recounted 'continuous' orgies that Maxwell was involved in on Epstein's private Caribbean island with underage girls. Roberts said girls were routinely flown in via private jet to participate in sex sessions which happened all over the island. Asked to describe women she personally saw Maxwell have sexual contact with, she responded: 'There's so many, I don't know where you want me to start.' 'There were blondes, there were brunettes, there were redheads. They were all beautiful girls. I would say the ages ranged between 15 and 21,' she added. Prince Andrew alongside Epstein accuser Virginia Roberts and Ghislaine Maxwell in 2001 Little St James Island, in the Caribbean (pictured), was owned by Epstein and was where Roberts alleges the orgies took place 'YOU'RE INNOCENT, ACT LIKE IT', EPSTEIN TOLD MAXWELL Newly unsealed court documents reveal Jeffrey Epstein told Ghislaine Maxwell she had 'done nothing wrong' and to 'start acting like it' after she was sued by Virginia Roberts in 2015. Dozens of documents relating to the civil defamation lawsuit against Maxwell were publicly released on Thursday, hours after a district judge denied her last ditch attempt to keep them sealed. Among the trove of court papers was an email exchange between the pair in January 2015, in which Epstein advised her to carry on normally and insisted she had nothing to worry about. 'You have done nothing wrong and i woudl [sic] urge you to start acting like it,' the billionaire pedophile wrote. 'go outside, head high, not as an esacping [sic] convict. go to parties. deal with it', he added. Advertisement Maxwell participated in sex sessions with them by a pool, near the beachfront, in small huts and in Epstein's cabana, she alleged. 'One occasion stands out,' she said. 'Models were I think they were models were flown in. There were orgies held outside by the pool.' The women - 'beautiful, tall, some were blonde, some were sandy brown' - did not speak English, and conversed in a European language that Roberts guessed was Russian or Czech. Describing the sex session, she added: 'Ghislaine, myself, Jeffrey, another girl in this blue, outdoor I don't know what you want to call it. Cabana, that just a bed could fit in.' Roberts also alleges during the deposition that she was trafficked to Europe to have sex with powerful men, including Prince Andrew and attorney Alan Dershowitz. She said Maxwell and Epstein constantly reminded her of how powerful their friends were, so that she wouldn't betray them. 'Jeffrey did a lot more of that than she did. But she definitely made it aware that we shouldn't cross boundaries with them,' she said. Describing her first meeting with Epstein, she said: 'For the first hour, it was actually a real massage, maybe not an hour, maybe like 40 minutes or something. 'That's when he turned over on the other side to expose himself fully. 'So then Ghislaine told me that she wanted me to undress and began to take off my shirt and skirt, my white uniform from Mar-A-Lago, she also took off her shirt and got undressed, and so I was there with just my undies on, and she was completely bare... Ghislaine Maxwell had 'continuous' orgies on Jeffrey Epstein's private Caribbean island with girls as young as 15, accuser Virginia Roberts claims in newly-unsealed court documents CLINTON, GORE, CAMPBELL, KLUM: EPSTEIN'S 'GUESTS' REVEALED Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Naomi Campbell and Heidi Klum were among high-profile guests that Jeffrey Epstein entertained, Virginia Roberts claims. Clinton visited Little St James after his presidency ended because he 'owed Epstein a favor', Roberts told investigators in newly-unsealed testimony. Clinton has denied he ever visited the island. 'He never told me what favors they were. I never knew. I didn't know if he was serious,' she said. The former president stayed in Epstein's private villa where 'orgies were a constant thing,' she claims. Vice President Gore was also a guest on Epstein's plane, the Lolita Express, as were models Naomi Campbell and Heidi Klum, Roberts claimed. Orgies also took place on the jet, she alleges. There is no suggestion those mentioned were involved in orgies. 'There would be sexual conduct, there would be foreplay, there was a bed in there, so we could basically reenact exactly what was happening in the house,' she said. 'It would start off with massaging or we would start off with foreplay, sometimes it would lead to, you know, orgies.' Advertisement 'During all of this I'm like: "What's going on, how do I act, what do I say." I was so afraid of, not afraid or fearful for my life, but unsure of how all this started and wanting to obtain a profession, I was so afraid thinking about upsetting and disappointing them... 'I was expected to lick [Epstein's] nipples, instructed on how to do so by [Epstein] and give him oral sex while he wanted to fondle me, and then at the end, I was told by Ghislaine to get on top and straddle Jeffrey sexually... 'When we were done, we went and had a shower in the room and Jeffrey told me to wash him up and down...' Also included in the tranche of unsealed documents are flight logs from Epstein's private jets, police logs Palm Beach, Florida, where Epstein had a home, and email exchanges between Maxwell and Epstein himself. In one such correspondence from January 2015, Epstein writes: 'You have done nothing wrong and i woudl [sic] urge you to start acting like it. 'Go outside, head high, not as an esacping [sic] convict. go to parties. deal with it', he added. Epstein was found hanged at age 66 last August in a Manhattan jail, while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges for abusing women and girls in Manhattan and Florida from 2002 to 2005. He had also pleaded not guilty. In seeking to keep Maxwell's deposition sealed, her lawyers said in court papers on Thursday she had been promised confidentiality by Giuffre's lawyers and the presiding judge at the time, through an agreed-upon protective order, before answering many personal, sensitive and 'allegedly incriminatory' questions about her dealings with Epstein. They said further that Maxwell was blindsided when prosecutors quoted from the deposition in her indictment, and accusing Giuffre of leaking the deposition to the government. In a court filing on Friday, Giuffre's lawyers called Maxwell's appeal 'frivolous, and a transparent attempt to further delay the release of documents to which the public has a clear and unequivocal right to access.' Virginia Roberts Giuffre, centre, with attorneys David Boies, left, and Brad Edwards during a news conference outside Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse following a hearing in the Jeffrey Epstein case on Tuesday, August 27, 2019 in New York Court papers pertaining to a 2015 deposition civil defamation case against Maxwell included a January 2015 email Epstein sent to Maxwell insisting she had 'done nothing wrong' The lawyers also called the allegation Giuffre leaked the deposition 'completely and utterly false.' Friday's order also covers a second deposition by an unnamed Epstein accuser that Maxwell also wanted kept under seal. Other documents from Giuffre's lawsuit that quote or disclose information from the depositions also remain sealed. Lawyers for Maxwell said on July 10 in a court filing requesting bail in her criminal case that she had not been in contact with Epstein for 'more than a decade.' Maxwell is now battling prosecutors in her criminal case over the scope of a protective order intended to protect her right to a fair trial while ensuring the privacy of her accusers. The General Secretary of the largest opposition National Democratic Congress(NDC) has taken a swipe at the Ghana Armed Forces asking the military to act decisively against the alleged intimidation of some Ghanaians from registering in the ongoing voters registration exercise. Speaking on Ghana Kasa on Agoo TV/Kasapa 102.5 Fm, Mr Johnson Asiedu Nketiah said the Ghana Armed Forces'(GAF) Press Statment denying the widespread intimidation and restriction of some applicants is needless. I have heard that the military high command has issued a statement denying the happenings. That is unnecessary. They should rather be concerned about the security of this nation and ensure that the citizens of this country are not disenfranchised or blocked from registering, he told host Bonohene Baffuor Awuah. The Public Affairs Directorate of the Ghana Armed Forces in a reaction to the confrontation between the NDC scribe and the military in Banda said the military were detailed in the area to essentially support the REGSEC brokered agreement entered between the two main parliamentary candidates following some skirmishes. No specific ethnic group was targeted in this regard, a statement signed by the PRO, Colonel E. Aggrey Quashie said. But General Mosquito maintained that what is happening smacks of ethnic profiling, adding this is a condemnable international crime; similar thing is happening in Rohingya. Background The General Secretary of the opposition NDC party, Johnson Asiedu Nketia over the weekend clashed with military personnel stationed at Banda in the Bono Region over the soldiers refusal to allow some residents to register in the ongoing voters registration exercise. In a video available to Kasapafmonline.com, the NDC Scribe is seen angrily exchanging words with the soldiers who had blocked the road to stop busloads of people from accessing registration centres. It is unclear where the people were being bused from. The NDC has had cause to complain over what they say is the use of military personnel to intimidate some legitimate Ghanaians from registering on the basis that theyre foreigners being bused from border towns into Ghana. Meanwhile, former President John Dramani Mahama in a Facebook post on Saturday berated President Akufo-Addo for using Executive Power to foment ethnic discrimination and abuse. The road President Akufo-Addo is taking our beautiful country through, using the military and party thugs to stop people from exercising their right to register and vote in the upcoming December elections, is dangerous and unacceptable, the NDC Flagbearer said. ---kasapafmonline MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd August, 2020) The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and its Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine could do more to settle the crisis in Ukraine, Alexander Lukashevich, the Russian permanent representative to the organization, said on Sunday. "It already has done a lot, but it is important to keep in mind the task of facilitating the dialogue ... [OSCE] could be playing a more prominent role in the process of settlement and implementation of the Minsk agreements," Lukashevich, told the Kommersant newspaper. He added that Russia was neither planning to leave the OSCE nor call for excluding the United States. "No way! We are aiming to make the Americans realize that following the creation of CSCE/OSCE the pan-European process has reached a grand scale," the envoy said. Since April 2014, the Ukrainian government has been conducting a military operation against the self-declared republics of Donetsk and Luhansk. Prospects for peace have been discussed in various formats, including during the meetings of the contact group in Minsk, which, since September 2014, has already adopted three documents regulating steps to de-escalate the conflict. Coleen Nolan has broken her silence after her sisters Linda and Anne revealed they are both battling cancer. The sisters, who formed part of Irish pop group The Nolans, underwent chemotherapy together at Blackpool's Victoria Hospital last month after receiving the shock diagnoses. Speaking after her sisters revealed their illnesses, Coleen's management said on her Twitter account: 'They've beaten it before - they can beat it again. Speaking out: Coleen Nolan has broken her silence after her sisters Linda and Anne revealed they are both battling cancer 'Please keep them in your thoughts and well wishes X.' Anne, 69, found out she has stage three breast cancer shortly after the pair returned from filming a series of The Nolans Go Cruising with sisters Coleen and Maureen in March. She discovered the lump leading to her diagnosis in April, exactly 20 years after she was first found to have the disease in 2000. Optimistic: Speaking after her sisters revealed their illnesses, Coleen's management said on her Twitter account: 'They've beaten it before - they can beat it again' Battle: Anne, 69, has stage three breast cancer. She found the lump leading to her diagnosis in April, exactly 20 years after she was first found to have the disease in 2000 Her sister Linda, 61, found out she has incurable liver cancer days later. The pop star has also battled cancer before, after being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006, cellulitis and lymphoedema in her arm in 2007 and secondary cancer on her pelvis in 2017. The sisters have now both lost their hair after undergoing chemotherapy. But both Anne and Linda are determined to beat the disease which killed their sister Bernie in 2013. In it together: Nolan sisters Linda and Anne (pictured with Maureen Nolan) were diagnosed with the disease just days apart Mother-of-two Anne told the Sun: 'I don't want to die. I love my life so much. I love my daughters, my grandchildren, my friends, all my family. I want to live for as long as I possibly can.' Linda said she thought her scans 'would be just fine as they normally are', before her oncologist's office phoned her to say she needed an MRI scan when they found something on her liver. This was just half an hour after her sister Maureen had called her to deliver the news that Anne's breast cancer had returned. Close: The sisters, who formed part of Irish pop group The Nolans, endured a round of chemotherapy together at Blackpool's Victoria Hospital last month after receiving the devastating diagnoses. Pictured: Denise, Linda, Anne, Colleen, Bernadette and Maureen Nolan Fighting: Linda (left), 61, found out she has incurable liver cancer shortly after the pair returned from filming a series of The Nolans Go Cruising with sisters Coleen and Maureen in March 'I couldn't tell anyone then because they were so obviously devastated about Anne,' she said. 'I thought, 'I can't turn around now and say, 'Actually I've got it back as well'.'' After the sisters received their devastating diagnoses, Maureen moved in with Anne and Linda relocated to her sister Denise's home. The sisters had their first session of chemotherapy together on June 5, and will both have six rounds of the treatment in total. Pictured: Maureen, Bernie, Linda and Colleen Nolan as The Nolan Sisters in 1980 Anne, who was in hospital for 11 days amid her treatment, will then have either a mastectomy or lumpectomy, most likely followed by radiotherapy. Speaking of the moment they were diagnosed, Linda recalled: 'We laughed and we cried really, It's hysterical.' 'Forget the Chemical Brothers, we've become the Chemo Sisters,' she added. Scientists at Australia's national science agency, CSIRO have made headway in sustainable fashion--colored cotton. With their new discovery, it has the potential to transform the global textile industry, as reported by ABC Landline. The article goes on to say, that while cotton is renewable, recyclable and biodegradable, it still needs to be dyed, and the use of sometimes harmful chemical dyes is considered a blot on the industry's environmental copybook. The fashion industry plays a large role in the environment, and does more harm than good for the Earth. According to the UN Environment Program, the fashion industry produces 20% of global wastewater and 10 percent of global carbon emissions. Textile dyeing is the second largest polluter of water globally and it take around 2,000 gallons of water to make a typical pair of jeans. The scientists at CSIRO have been able to genetically modify cotton to make it naturally colored. Perhaps the most fascinating achievement in their research has been the team's work to breed naturally black cotton, which would replace black dyes. Black dyes are the most polluting of textile colors, according to ABC Landline. Colleen MacMillan leads the team of scientists in this discovery. "When we saw the results, it brought a tear to my eye because it was a very special moment," Dr MacMillan said in an interview with ABC. The scientists must now wait several months to see if the colorful plant tissue they have grows into colorful cotton, according to ABC. If everything goes as planned, it would significantly decrease the need for chemical dyes. This new development is a victory for sustainability in the fashion industry. America won't reap the benefits of this new discovery just yet, as Australia's cotton industry will be the major beneficiary. CSIRO stated that Australia has the highest cotton yields in the world, exporting $2.5 billion of cotton each year. But here in Houston, there are some designers who've already caught on to the sustainability wave. Nanci Olebe of Temporary creates and sells upcycled high-fashion streetwear. If they told us we could come back next week, we would be there, and I would be following all the guidelines like I was the last three weeks, Nichols said. If my staffers are going to be under a microscope that if they take a drink of water and remove their mask for a second, were gonna be penalized and be in the same boat, thats not something I want. US president Donald Trump is set to 'take action' on banning TikTok: AFP via Getty Images Donald Trump railed against mail-in ballots all day on Monday, claiming new legislation in Nevada would make a Republican win impossible while calling for New York to re-do several close congressional primary elections. The state has struggled to count mail-in and absentee ballots more than a month after Election Day. After Nancy Pelosi attacked Dr Deborah Birx for working with Trump, the coronavirus taskforce coordinator warned the US pandemic was now more widespread. That prompted Trump to lash out, calling Dr Birx pathetic, He defended the criticism, he had "a lot of respect for her" while also complaining the media was making him look bad. That look went from bad to worse after several investigations into people and companies in Trumps orbit were announced, including the Manhattan district attorney suggesting the Trump Organisation was under investigation for bank and insurance fraud. Trump called it another Democrat "witch hunt". Four senior aides, meanwhile, were issued subpoenas by the House over Trumps firing of State Department inspector general Steve Linick as Deutsch Bank launched an internal investigation into a transaction between one of its bankers and a company part-owned by Jared Kushner. And it was a wild day for TikTok as Trump set a deadline for the Chinese app to sell to a US company or be banned in the country. The company confirmed it may move its HQ, possibly to London, amid the fight with Trump as the president said any sale of the company should see a very large percentage go to the US Treasury. The incident stemmed from an alleged theft of two riding lawn mowers and a trailer from a Blains Farm and Fleet. Police found the SUV in which four suspects were riding, and the body camera video, obtained by the Tribune through a public information request, shows three men leaving the vehicle and being handcuffed without incident. Jerusalem, Israels capital and largest city, houses approximately 920,000 residents including 350,000 Arabs, who constitute 32% of the citys population. The civil status of most of the Arabs are residents, due to the controversial status of East Jerusalem in the international sphere and the controversy with the Palestinian Authority (PA), which views Jerusalem as its capital in a future peace agreement. Jerusalem is viewed as a poor city in general, but the situation of the Arabs in Jerusalem is worse than that of Arabs in the rest of the country. The incidence of poverty of the East Jerusalem Arabs reaches 78%, versus 50% among Israeli Arabs in general, and 25% among Jerusalems Jewish population. According to the Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research, the majority of the men and women in East Jerusalem's workforce earn minimum wage salaries. They are generally hired for nonprofessional work or for part-time work. The average salary of an Arab resident of East Jerusalem is almost 30% lower than the average wage in the Israeli economy. Two programs recently promoted by Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Leon are designed to address exactly this phenomenon. The two programs are interconnected and include employment in the educational, commercial and industrial spheres. Leon, who served in the past as head of the prime minister's office during Benjamin Netanyahus first term in office, is generally accepted by ultra-Orthodox populations as well as secular ones. Since he was elected in November 2018, he has been talking about the need to strengthen the Arab side of the city, mainly in regard to employment in the technological spheres. One example of this is his interview with the Calcalist newspaper in June 2019, in which Leon said, For example, there are tens of thousands of youths in the Arab population who can join the high-tech world. We only need to create the appropriate training courses for them. Some of the companies in the city are even willing to create these courses themselves, for their own needs. The program that Leon promoted is called Silicon Wadi (Arabic for "Silicon Valley"); he announced the beginning of its implementation in mid-June. According to the plan, in only a few years time, about 200,000 square meters (49 acres) will be developed for employment purposes with an emphasis on quality employment opportunities in the high-tech industry. An additional 50,000 square meters (12 acres) will be set aside for commerce, and another 50,000 square meters for the hotel/hospitality field. The entire project is part of a five-year government plan to develop East Jerusalem and narrow the social and economic gaps in the population. One of the main goals of the plan, which was accepted in 2018, is to narrow the gap between the employment rate of women in East Jerusalem (ages 25-64) to that of Arab women in the same age group in the rest of the country. In other words, the goal is that by 2023, the employment rate of Arab women in East Jerusalem will reach at least 75% of that of all Arab women in the country. The emphasis on women is important, because the participation of Arab women in the workforce currently only reaches 27% and that is one of the reasons for the problematic economic situation of most Arab families in which only the man works outside the home. The Jerusalem municipality set the following goals for the project: creating about 10,000 quality jobs in the citys eastern section; lowering the distrust between the population of East Jerusalem and the rest of the city, and the municipality and government; raising the employment rate of women in East Jerusalem; and strengthening the Israeli syllabi in East Jerusalem as the key to higher education and employment. The Jerusalem municipality informed Al-Monitor that they have also decided to found a college that will teach various high-tech subjects, in cooperation with high-tech companies in Israel, the PA and companies from the Arab world, mainly from the Persian Gulf states. Today, the territory designated for the project is an area of small industry, garages and collections of old cars. The municipality created a second plan to compensate those who use the site today. At the end of last month, the Jerusalem Local Planning and Building Committee approved the establishment of a site and defined employment area in the Issawiya neighborhood, situated close to the Hebrew Universitys Mount Scopus campus. As part of the program, about 90,000 square meters (22 acres) will be built for commerce, employment, light industry and handicrafts. A significant proportion of the area will be set aside for a Jerusalem industrial car repair center that will transfer from Wadi Joz to the Issawiya neighborhood. In addition to commercial areas, a pedestrian mall and promenade will be built to connect to the National Park on the Mount Scopus slope nearby. Leon told Al-Monitor that the plans are precedent-setting in scope as well as in financial investment and will improve the economy in Jerusalem in general and the eastern part of the city in particular. He promised to involve the countrys leading companies in order to cause a real revolution," and also create hope for the residents of the eastern parts of the city. Beyond the promises, Leon is trying to carry out plans in cooperation with the eastern residents of the city, and acquire their trust despite the thorny political-diplomatic situation. Israels security forces view Issawiya as a problematic neighborhood. This past year before the coronavirus pandemic there were several conflicts between the police and the residents. Leon has adopted several trust-building steps. For example, in February, he visited a hospitalized child who was inadvertently hit by a sponge grenade fired by the police. Malik Eissa lost his eye sight. But mainly, Leon passed legislation to freeze the demolition of houses that were built without permits, and advanced legislation for a master plan for neighborhoods that would include the necessary building permits that had gotten stuck in bureaucracy. In addition, Leon demands the Arab leaders to take action to stop the residents of East Jerusalem from hurling stones and firebombs at Israeli vehicles driving to the Ma'ale Adumin settlement. Mohammed Abed, resident of Issawiya, told Al-Monitor that the plans look good and Leons positive approach is laudable, but until he sees real proof on the ground, the burden of proof rests on the city council. We have received promises from 1967 until today most of which were never carried out. And until this very day, we suffer under the security forces that move around here all the time. If the economy improves like the mayor promises, if they stop destroying our houses and if the police stop running around provoking us, maybe then well start to believe. Leaders of the Arab neighborhoods in Jerusalem are in ongoing, direct contact with Leon. Meanwhile, the members of Leons own bureau admit that nothing will advance unless "we work together with them." (Newser) President Trump's son Barron won't be attending his private school in September after a COVID-19 directive from health officials, Business Insider reports. Travis Gayleshead of public health services in Montgomery County, Marylandissued a statement Friday that affects St. Andrew's Episcopal School, where Barron is set to enter the 9th grade. "Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have based our decisions on science and data," Gayles said. "At this point the data does not suggest that in-person instruction is safe for students or teachers." story continues below Gayles added that rising transmission rates of the coronavirus, especially in "younger age groups" in and around Maryland, prompted him to order the closure of private schools throughout September. The county's public school system, meanwhile, has announced that the entire first semester will be virtual-only. CNN notes that Gayles' announcement comes at a time when Trump's Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has called for all schools to open despite virus hot spots. For his part, Trump said Thursday that "indefinite school closures will inflict lasting harm to our nation's children. We must follow the science, get students safely back to school while protecting children, teachers, staff, and family." (Read more schools stories.) Amitabh Bachchan tested negative for the Novel Coronavirus and returned home on August 2, after being hospitalized for over three weeks. Amul paid tribute to the legendary actor in its most recent advertisement. In its latest topical ad, Amul featured Amitabh Bachchan with the title, 'AB beats C', referring to Big B battling the Coronavirus and returning home safely. Overwhelmed by this gesture, Amitabh shared the ad on his Instagram handle and thanked the company. He wrote as caption, "Thank you AMUL for continuously thinking of me in your unique poster campaigns." Amitabh and his son Abhishek Bachchan were both admitted to the Nanavati hospital in Mumbai on July 11, after testing positive for COVID-19. Soon after, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Aaradhya Bachchan also tested positive, however, Jaya Bachchan tested negative. The entire family received well-wishes from fans and celebrities alike. Abhishek continues to be hospitalized, whereas Aishwarya and Aaradhya got discharged on July 27, after being hospitalized on July 17. After returning home, Amitabh had taken to his blog to express gratitude to the staff of the Nanavati hospital, and sadness over Abhishek continuing to require medical care. "I have tested Covid- have been discharged. I am back home in solitary quarantine. Grace of the Almighty, blessings of Ma Babuji, prayers & duas of near & dear & friends fans EF.. and the excellent care and nursing at Nanavati made it possible for me to see this day," tweeted Amitabh. ALSO READ: Amitabh Bachchan Says He Is Relieved To Be Back From Hospital; Feels Bad For Son Abhishek ALSO READ: Amitabh Bachchan Replies To An Upset Woman Who Said She Lost Respect For Him! Teacher killed as storm fells tree onto school PHUKET: A 29-year-old teacher was killed after strong winds brought down a tree onto staff accommodation at a school in Kathu last night (Aug 2). weatheraccidentsdeath By Eakkapop Thongtub Monday 3 August 2020, 10:29AM Science teacher Thanachart Teanwattanakun, 29, was crushed to death as tree brought the roof and ceiling came down on him. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Science teacher Thanachart Teanwattanakun, 29, was crushed to death as tree brought the roof and ceiling came down on him. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Science teacher Thanachart Teanwattanakun, 29, was crushed to death as tree brought the roof and ceiling came down on him. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Science teacher Thanachart Teanwattanakun, 29, was crushed to death as tree brought the roof and ceiling came down on him. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Police and rescue workers were called to Thairatwithaya School at about 8:25pm, reported Lt Col Somchai Nuboon of the Kathu Police. Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew also present at the scene to oversee Kusoldharm rescue workers and Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) officers carry out the rescue and recovery operation. A large tree had fallen onto one of six staff houses at the school. In the bedroom of the house rescue workers found the body of science teacher Thanachart Teanwattanakun, 29, crushed to death as the ceiling came down on him. Siriporn Borna, a teacher staying in one of the other houses, told police that her husband heard a loud sound of the tree collapse and ran out to see what had happened. Her husband called out to Mr Thanachart, but heard no response, and so quickly called the DDPM emergency hotline 1669, Ms Siriporn said. Ms Siriporn also told police that a branch from the same tree had fallen on the house next to the one where Mr Thanachart was staying once before, but there no one was injured in that incident. Farooq Sahab suggested me to speak with Pakistan but I will speak to the youth: Amit Shah in Srinagar If normalcy to be brought in Kashmir, Article 370 has to be reinstated: Farooq Abdullah Farooq Abdullah calls for probe into exodus of Kashmiri Pandits India pti-PTI Jammu, Aug 02: Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah on Sunday demanded a probe by retired Supreme Court judges into the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the valley in early 1990s. Replying to questions during a webinar, Abdullah said he was of the firm belief that Kashmir is incomplete without Kashmiri Pandits and that he would support any mechanism to bring them back honourably. Nearly 60,000 Kashmiri Pandit families are registered as migrants after the onset of militancy in the Kashmir Valley in early 1990s. Omar Abdullah slams IPL it plans to retain Chinese sponsors while people boycott their products Abdullah, a member of Lok Sabha and president of the National Conference, chose to blame then former Governor Jagmohan for the exodus and said that he "took them away" on the false promise of ensuring their return within three months. LK Advani, MM Joshi to attend Ayodhya ceremony via video confrencing|Oneindia News During the webinar hosted by Jammu-based Epilogue News Network on the theme, "Discerning old order delineating new order a year after neutralization of Article 370 and abrogation of Article 35 A", Abdullah was asked whether he would support a genocide bill being floated by the Panun Kashmir, a Kashmiri Pandit organisation demanding a separate homeland for the migrants. He said he would have to go into the details of the bill first. Abdullah, a three-time chief minister, said, "A sincere and honest judge of Supreme Court, retired judge of Supreme Court, a team of judges...let them investigate and come out with their report. It will clear many minds around the globe, among the younger Kashmiri Pandits, that it was not Kashmiri Muslims who threw them out. There are still many Kashmiri Pandits who never left and they are living here." The National Conference leader narrated many instances where Muslims had stood by the Pandit community since 1947 and said "do you think we were happy when they (Kashmiri Pandits) were taken away," he said, adding "we always believe that Kashmir is never going to be complete unless the Hindu brethren come back and live in peace with all of us". Abdullah said he would continue to uphold his party's ideology of treating all the people, irrespective of their religious belief, equally. "My father never believed in two-nation theory. He never believed that Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists and all other religions are different. We believe all are the children of Adam and Eve. Everybody's needs are the same and so he worked hard for unity. We will continue to stand on the same path and to my last breath, I will work for the unity of all, he said. In December last year, the Panun Kashmir adopted the Panun Kashmir Prevention of Genocide and Atrocities Bill, highlighting its various demands including permanent rehabilitation based on principles of non-refoulement. Among other things, the bill recommends creation of a Board and a Commission to look into the aspects of cultural genocide and all the criminal aspects which include investigation, procedure of trial, fixing of responsibility for the crime of genocide, punishment to the perpetrators and compensation to the victims. CES, one of the worlds biggest technology conferences, will be an online event this coming January due to the coronavirus health crisis. The decision marks a change for event organizers, who said in May it would take place as a smaller, in-person gathering in Las Vegas, Nevada. The decision also creates additional problems for Las Vegas. Like other popular vacation destinations in the United States, the city is suffering economically. More than 170,000 people attended the four-day show this past January, shortly before COVID-19 began to spread across the country. In Nevada over the past two weeks, the average number of daily new coronavirus cases has increased 27 percent. The state is now listed sixth in the country for new cases of COVID-19 per capita. The crisis has affected major technology events around the world. Europes biggest consumer electronics trade event, Germanys IFA, usually runs for six days. Last year, nearly 25,000 people attended the event. This year, it will run half as long and there will be no public access to the event, which will take place in September. Web Summit, an event in Portugal that includes well-known heads of technology companies and famous people, will be online this time. Organizers aim to still hold a physical conference in Lisbon in December. But no final decision will be made until early October. Trade shows are a place where people meet members of the industry, try new devices or make sales. The Events Industry Council reports that they represent $2.5 trillion in worldwide spending. Much of that is likely to be lost if events go online. The Consumer Technology Association organizes CES. It had said in May that it planned to hold some events in Las Vegas next year. But Gary Shapiro, the groups CEO, said the groups thinking changed as COVID-19 cases rose sharply around the world. That makes it impossible to hold an indoor event in January 2021. It is also unknown whether employees of big technology companies will be permitted to travel by next January. For example, Google said this week that its employees should work from home until at least July 2021. The four-day online form of the CES show begins January 6. Im Pete Musto. Joseph Pisani reported on this story for the Associated Press. Pete Musto adapted it for VOA Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story conference(s) n. a formal meeting in which many people gather in order to talk about ideas or problems related to a particular topic, such as medicine or business, usually for several days destination(s) n. a place to which a person is going or something is being sent per capita adv. by or for each person consumer n. a person who buys goods and services access n. a way of getting near, at, or to something or someone We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. "We haven't made enough investment in education, in infrastructure, in partnerships in technology, we have a divided polity and an unsuccessful coronavirus effort." Campbell includes perceptions of the US military's capability as part of the concern. "Trump has tried to focus more on that. It is a component of a larger package." President Donald Trump and Chinas leader, Xi Jinping, at a bilateral meeting at the G20 summit in June 2019. Credit:The New York Times Second, Biden would rediscover a group of countries formerly known as US allies. The US stands at the centre of a network of alliances embracing some 40 nations. Trump has disparaged many of them while gratifying US rivals, notably Putin's Russia. "The second-most important ingredient in national strategy is a deeper set of engagements with allies and partners," says Campbell, currently chief of the Asia Group consultancy in Washington. "That's harder than most people think it takes a degree of humility, some listening, some shared responses, treating allies with respect, not in the manner Trump has dealt with Germany or other countries, removing US troops to punish them. Loading "We need a deeper set of strategic interactions with Japan, Australia, South Korea, India, Singapore, Vietnam, Great Britain, Germany and a few others. Not all but most of these share our values Vietnam is an autocracy and a purpose will be to animate conversations around promoting democracy, and the importance of human dignity." How would this affect US policy on China? "By reframing engagement and bringing more countries onside, construct a China narrative to change China's behaviour and its more egregious activities. There is a recognition that it will not be an easy challenge," Campbell says. How would that work in one of the hottest of contested theatres, the South China Sea, where Chinese forces press territorial claims that endanger half a dozen of its neighbours? Campbell knows the difficulties. During the Obama administration, he proposed to Chinese officials the idea of some basic rules to avoid escalating accidents into crises. The Chinese declined. Loading "They feared that would give US ships and planes greater impunity, that the US would feel like speeders with seatbelts." And Beijing didn't want to give the Americans seatbelts China wanted to maintain the element of risk for US ships and planes, says Campbell. "They had a different view of deterrence ours was our strength, theirs was uncertainty." And now? "There is a clear determination for the US to continue freedom of navigation operations and engagement in the area and wanting to bring other nations into this," which is exactly the policy that the Trump administration advanced recently. A Biden administration would want to negotiate "rules of the road with the Chinese military" in the South China Sea because current patterns of conduct "are dangerous and we'd want to figure out how to avoid crisis." But Beijing said no last time. What's changed? The power asymmetry has changed China now has more naval vessels in the Indo-Pacific than the US does, for instance. "The Chinese have been resistant till recently and they're more open to it now," says Campbell. "The Chinese realise that there's a hardening of positions on both sides." The risks of war by accident have risen. A President Biden would reject some of the Soviet-era Cold War tendencies that Trump has been showing, Campbell says. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's recent speeches "felt like he was trying to take the playbook from the former Soviet Union and I don't think that's a workable paradigm". Loading "There will be a degree of decoupling," or a severing of dealings with China, Campbell warns. "There will be a hard edge to engagement on tech. China's pattern of behaviour in tech and some other investment areas takes advantage of other partners. "We are going to have to look hard at the supply chain and reconsider some areas where we are too reliant on China. "There will also be other elements of policy to give us a better chance, long-term, of some stability with China on climate change, nuclear proliferation, the tail end of the pandemic, that will require a degree of co-ordination with China." Campbell has a long relationship with Australia. He says the US alliance is "in fine shape, and there's a whole bunch of stuff we can engage on there are broader opportunities in trade, and I'm ambitious about climate change. How Rafales will provide India an advantage in aerial combat over China India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Aug 03: The Rafale aircraft will give India a strategic advantage in case of any aerial combat with China in the mountainous Tibet region as the fleet will be able to use the terrain to its advantage, destroy enemy air defence and incapacitate the surface-to-air missiles, former Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal (retd) B S Dhanoa said on Sunday. Dhanoa, known as the architect of the Balakot strikes, said the Rafale jets along with S-400 missile systems will give the Indian Air Force a major combat edge in the entire region and that India's adversaries will think twice before starting a war with it. In case of Pakistan, he said the purpose of the S-400 and Rafale is to hit Pakistani aircraft inside Pakistani air space and not when they come inside Indian territory, adding the neighbouring country would not have responded on February 27 last year to the Balakot air strikes if India had the French-manufactured jets then. The Rafale touchdown: From a political dogfight to a celebratory welcome In an interview to PTI, Dhanoa said the Rafale, with its fantastic electronic warfare suite and manoeuvrability, will be able to use mountainous terrain in Tibet to its advantage and blind the enemy before India's strike aircraft penetrate hostile airspace to carry out their missions. The former Chief of Air Staff also said that the Rafales being supplied to the IAF are much more advanced than the ones being used by the French Air Force as India had asked for something "more" due to the requirement to operate in unique conditions like operations from Leh. Five Rafale jets out of 36 arrived in India last week at a time India is in the midst of a bitter border row with China in the high altitude eastern Ladakh region. "Rafale has got a fantastic Electronic Warfare (EW) suite (SPECTRA), fantastic weapons and therefore are capable of protecting themselves electronically besides being able to use the terrain to their advantage," Dhanoa said. "So they (Rafales) can play an important role in doing DEAD (Destruction of Enemy Air Defence) on the Surface-to-Air Missiles that the Chinese have put on Tibet. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News "Once you take out those surface to air missiles, then other aircraft like Su30, Jaguars, even Mig 21s can go out and drop the bombs on the Chinese forces. The strike aircraft carrying bombs can put tonnes and tonnes of bombs on the enemy troops, freely carrying out their mission. But if you do not do DEAD then you will suffer a lot of casualties," he said. The leading air forces globally carry out Suppression of Enemy Air Defence (SEAD) or DEAD using their top of the line aircraft or weapons before launching any major operation in hostile territories. As the Chief of Air Staff, Dhanoa had strongly defended the Rafale deal when the opposition parties ramped-up attack on the government alleging massive irregularities in the procurement. The top IAF brass led by Dhanoa played a key role in the implementation of the mega-deal. "Against China, there are big Himalayan mountains in between us which create a serious line of sight issues. You can put a missile with a range of 300-400 km on the ground in Tibet or in India. But it will only work within the line of sight," he said. He said the Rafales, with terrain following capability, will give India a major capability enhancement. Specifications and performance data of Rafale fighter jets "In air combat, the first thing that is important is information dominance, you get information and deny the enemy the information. The key role the Rafales will play in Tibet is information dominance and in the case of Pakistan, it is a major deterrent. Of course, there will be other roles too," he said. Asked about the comparison between the Rafales and J-20 fighter jets of China, he said the Chinese aircraft is not stealthy and presently, with its current engines, cannot supercruise, unlike the newly-acquired Indian fleet. In a beyond visual range (BVR) combat, he said Indian missiles are far superior to theirs. The French avionics onboard the Rafale is "far superior" than the Chinese systems in J-20s, he said. "Hence in a BVR environment the Rafales are superior to the J-20s," he added. "With the induction of the Rafales, we will have a tremendous jump in capability. That's why I called both (Rafale and S 400) of them game-changers. Both these platforms will give the IAF a tremendous capability jump. The Rafale in the air and S-400 on the ground. In October 2018, India signed a USD 5 billion deal to buy the S-400 air defence missile systems from Russia to bolster the IAF's air defence mechanism. The 'Triumf' interceptor-based missile system can destroy incoming hostile aircraft, missiles and even drones at ranges of up to 400 km. The delivery of the missile systems is scheduled to begin next year. "Both S-400 and Rafales are critical game-changers. Rafale is a deterrent. The purpose of deterrence is not to fight a war. Purpose of deterrence is to make the other person think twice before he starts a war or a skirmish with you," he said. He said the Pakistanis would not have responded on February 27 last year to India's Balakot strikes if India had the Rafale jets. In this context, he also mentioned an operation by the IAF to drop bombs on a Pakistani post along the LoC in Kel sector in 2002, and how Pakistani Air Force never dared to respond to it. "On August 2, 2002, we did the bombing of a Pakistani post as the Pakistanis had intruded about 600-700 metres inside the LoC in our area and set up a post. We bombed with four Mirage 2000s and after that, the Pakistanis never came back," Dhanoa said. "The Pakistanis never ever dreamt of bombing an Indian post in retaliation because we had Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missiles on Mirage 2000, MiG 29 and the Su-30 Ks and they did not have any BVR missiles on any of their fighters," he recalled. "They just kept quiet about it and just didn't acknowledge that something had happened and later on played it low key when the news did break in the international media! That is what is called deterrence," he added. Asked whether India should consider procuring two more squadrons of Rafales as it makes operational sense, Dhanoa called it a good idea and said that it will be the "cheapest option" of getting a 4.5 generation fighter into the air force. "We already have an infrastructure for two squadrons. We do not need additional infrastructure for the next two squadrons. They will come, in my assessment, at 60 to 70 per cent of the cost of the current ones," he said. "The cost of research and development for all India-specific enhancements have already been covered. The next two squadrons of Rafales will be the cheapest option of getting a 4.5 generation fighter into the air force," he added. Dhanoa, who retired as the IAF Chief on September 30 last year, said having two more squadrons of Rafales will give the force a lot of strength. "If you have 72-80 aircraft, it will match whatever F-16s the Pakistanis have got. It will be good for deterrence," he said adding it will make economic sense. Dhanoa also thanked all the people who stood by the Rafale deal, including the defence minister, the civil servants, the then defence secretary, the director-general (acquisition) and many others in the government. "You have to give them full marks because they stood by it despite many apprehensions. Normally everybody gets scared that this deal may be termed later as a scam and they may be hauled up by the investigation agencies after their retirement, or some other roving inquiry that may happen which may implicate them in the future. These people stood by it; we signed and executed the deal," he said. Dhanoa said the political leadership also stood their ground and did not dump the deal. "They were going into an election. You could have always opted for a soft option of setting up a committee. Everybody stood their ground. The national leadership, the bureaucracy. That is why you have the aircraft," he added. Dhanoa also expressed happiness that the first squadron of Rafales will be part of the Number 17 Squadron, also known as 'Golden Arrows', based in Ambala. "I am very happy...I was the last Commodore Commandant of 17 squadrons. It got number plated in March 2012. It stopped flying in December 2011. Having celebrated our Diamond Jubilee in October 2011. Last year the Squadron has been resurrected and this year aircraft have finally come to the Squadron," he said. "Golden Arrows have a very rich tradition. The Squadron has fought in all the wars. It participated in the Liberation of Goa, 1965 war, 1971 war, and it fought in Kargil," he added. Dhanoa commanded the squadron during the Kargil war. "In case, there is fighting in Eastern Ladakh, we will not miss it," the Air Chief Marshal (Retd.) said in a lighter vein. Since the COVID-19 pandemic made a major landfall in the country early this year, the Nigerian science community has paved some fitful but significantly innovative paths in the bid to join a global community of peers wrestling with answers to the conundrum posed by perhaps the most transmissible virus in the recent history of the world. From five corners of the countrys learning centres, virologists and molecular biologists have dived from different directions into the expansive world of COVID-19s imponderable puzzle. At the Redeemers University Ede; University of Ibadan; Federal University of Technology, Jigawa; the Nnamdi Azikiwe University in Awka, and two laboratories affiliated to the Ladoke Akintola University and Adeleke University in Ede, scientists have built local collaborative teams to engage the hydra-headed world of the new COVID-19 ecosystem. In a PREMIUM TIMES exploration of the meaning and dimension of these scientific explorations, Kolawole Oladipo, who leads a team of researchers at the Adeleke University, Ede, where words had gone out on a presumed vaccine discovery, cackled in a prolonged laugh on the phone, trying to tame the media narrative that suggested his research team had found a cure to COVID-19 by way of a vaccine. On June 19, The Guardian reported that Nigerian Universities Scientists Discover Vaccine for COVID-19, setting off a mild debate in the countrys health journalism ecosystem and unvoiced doubts in the virology community. We have a potential vaccine candidate which is different from a vaccine, Mr Oladipo, who holds a doctorate degree in medical virology, immunology and bioinformatics, told PREMIUM TIMES after a prolonged attempt to get him to speak to a reporter after The Guardian story which he claimed broke his trust in the genre of journalism that is in haste to publish rather than accurately inform. When you say vaccine, it means all authorities have confirmed it. The report in the media was misreported, which I have no authority over, Mr Oladipo said with a helpless tone, telling this reporter that they (the team) were queried because of the reports which said they had a vaccine which was wrong information, although he did not mention who or where the query came from. Vexatious as the GUARDIAN report was, it nevertheless highlighted a basic truth: the research received initial funding from Trinity Immunodeficient Laboratory and Helix Biogen Consult, Ogbomosho which was corroborated by Mr Oladipo. After trying out some selected processes of vaccine development, the researchers had been able to choose the best potential vaccine candidates for the SARS-CoV-2 and had made the possible latent vaccine constructs, the report read. After days of trying to rebuild the broken trust in journalism with Mr Oladipo, the team lead on the vaccine development and research at Adeleke University, was ready to speak to this reporter on the history of his work, how things are progressing, and on the fitful but unspoken efforts to mitigate on and provide both temporary, as well as lasting, solutions to the novel coronavirus pandemic in the Nigerian science community. We did not exactly set out to develop a vaccine I was on my way back from school we were just interested in and investigating why some strains of the virus are more pathogenic than the others in what we call comparative genomics analysis, Mr Oladipo began about the path that set him and his team on the vaccine route. At that time, we heard Senegal had developed a diagnostic kit. We knew we had the capacity to go into vaccine construct; a member of the teams PhD course work covered vaccine development; we have been training people on this and we asked ourselves why cant we not go into developing a vaccine?, The tone from Mr Oladipos voice, rising and dipping, gave a hint of fulfilment as he narrates how the team would spend 13 hours at the laboratory working 6 days a week . From Monday to Saturday, 8 a.m 8 p.m everyday; even a team member fell sick because of the stress, he spoke of how his 30-member team kept plodding on, seeking to etch a note on the global scientific scoreboard, even as he tried to negotiate a space for his kid, in the background, who was persistently demanding attention, I want to watch cartoon, I want to watch cartoon. Try as the researcher may, Mr Oladipo intoned, Nigeria does not support research and I doubt they will even after COVID-19, with heart-wrenching disappointment. This is the trenchant retort from many researchers that PREMIUM TIMES spoke to in its ongoing reporting of what is happening in the research corridors on Nigerian universities. At the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka, the COVID-related research has been halted because of lack of funds. Julius Oloke, professor of Microbiology and Biotechnology, coordinator of the group and veteran of many bruised encounters like this, is not daunted about the success in the vaccine development. According to him, By the way, this is not the first time our team is at the forefront of an innovative idea. The team has developed a few products that have been very useful for the existence of humanity. Adding context to the makeup of the team, the professor of Microbiology said the research team is made up of people from private and public enterprise with some team members in the United States of America. Some members of the team have been involved in the development of some products in the past, he said, adding, my team has done extensive work on different infectious diseases. We have a product in the market to our credit. Mr Oloke also spoke on the funding support from the private sector, the timeline of the vaccine development, and the general research backdrop of the country. It is normal to be sceptical about a new thing, Mr Oloke said about the current agnostic response to the vaccine work of his wards, adding It is when it is made available to the public and the efficacy is established that everyone will be convinced. This is not the first time we are introducing a novel product to the populace. As said earlier some members of our team are outside the country. Although the team still has a lot of work to do in ensuring the vaccine is available to the public in 17 months, Mr Oloke is sure it will protect people against COVID-19 infection and will be made available to citizens regardless of social class. It is true a lot of research has been done. The outcomes of these researches are not yet available to the public, he said. The data and findings of the researches conducted were still undergoing peer review as at the time of filing this report, but Mr Oladipo had remarked to PREMIUM TIMES that the comparative genomic analysis was done with data obtained from the Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID), a global science initiative and primary source for genomic data of influenza viruses and the novel coronavirus responsible for COVID-19. The research, Mr Oladipo said, is ongoing at Helix Biogen Laboratory in Ogbomosho which he owns in partnership with Trinity Immuno-deficient Laboratory, which was reported as a co-funder of the vaccine production, owned by Mr Oloke, the Vice-Chancellor of Precious CornerStone University, who was Mr Oladipos teacher and supervisor on his doctoral work. Dr. Kolawole Oladipo. [PHOTO CREDIT: Official Facebook page of Mr Oladipo] We are also using the same data from GSAID for the vaccine development, we adopted a method called Reverse Vaccinology, which is getting the genome of the organism and working on it, instead of the isolate which is the living/active virus which no one can work on except with permission from the government, Mr Oladipo said. This method, he said, is dependent on the type of vaccine being created. The group is creating a Protein Subunit Vaccine. Advertisements But the progress of this vaccine development, according to Mr Oladipo, hangs on a balance of the outcome of a meeting with the expert committee on COVID-19 set up by the Federal Ministry of Health scrutinising the integrity of the work they are doing. Asked how he rated the enthusiasm of the government team, Mr Oladipo simply said, The committee said they will throw their weight on the project. Responding to the question of possible alternative sponsors and funding pipes outside the government, a major challenge for the researchers now, Mr Oladipo sighed; paused; but when he resumed speaking, the pitched enthusiasm with which the conversation started had lost its redolence. We are just in the dark, we are just trying to shoot, he said with a manful gut, but promptly tempered the mood again saying paraventure we find [help] or we continue [along] with our own effort. However, Mr Oladipo told PREMIUM TIMES the vaccine development though in its early stage, is on an unvarying pace, currently in an early stage of animal trial and still looking to get permission from the ethical community as well as sourcing for funds. We are moving to the animal trial stage, which will require N100 million taking 3 to 4 months, we are looking for funders; we have been thriving on personal funds, he said, adding that, we plan to test on Mice, Rabbit and Monkeys; we have submitted our proposal for ethical approval to the Oyo State Ministry of Health. The team has initiated the cloning and expression of materials for the animal trial, with GenScript Biotech a world-leading biotech company providing life sciences services and products. When PREMIUM TIMES contacted the Oyo State Ministry of Health, Ayoola Adebisi, the Permanent Secretary, confirmed the ministry received a proposal from the vaccine research team, however, it has been passed to the directorate of planning research and statistics where the decision on it will be made. If anybody in Nigeria comes up with a vaccine that is scientifically proven, why not, if not; it is a plus to the citizens. Who will not like to provide a cure for the people? I am sure that whoever comes up with a vaccine will be a Nobel prize winner, Mr Adebisi remarked. We have seen how COVID-19 has shutdown activities everywhere, although we have seen some positive angle in Oyo State: we are building permanent isolation centres across the State and at the end of Covid-19, those centres will be used for something better, Mr Adebisi chimed in on what else the state government is doing at the moment. At the directorate of planning research and statistics, the director, Abbas Gbolahan, said the proposal at the time of filing this report was yet to be treated; we have the ethics review committee that will sit on the proposal and we have not met. We are likely to meet on Monday (August 3, 2020). World Health Organisation (WHO) Head-Quater in Geneva, Switzerland. Copyright : WHO/Pierre Virot Mr Oladipo would later mention that the WHO had contacted Mr Oloke and their effort has been documented and can be found on the WHOs website. This investigation was commissioned by the African Centre for Media Information Literacy (AFRICMIL) as part of its whistleblowing initiative under its Corruption Anonymous project supported by MacArthur Foundation. Published materials do not reflect the views of MacArthur Foundation. Two NASA astronauts aboard the SpaceX capsule completed a successful journey back from the International Space Station on Sunday, landing safely in the Gulf of Mexico to complete a historic two-month mission. The mission by NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley aboard SpaceXs Crew Dragon spacecraft marked the first time astronauts used the Gulf as a landing site as well as the first time a private company, billionaire Elon Musks SpaceX, launched astronauts into orbit. Today we really made history. We are entering a new era of human spaceflight, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstein said after the successful splashdown. SpaceX President and Chief Operating Officer Gwynne Shotwell expressed hope that the extraordinary mission will be the start of a new era of frequent space travel, including eventually to Mars. This is really just the beginning, Shotwell said. We are starting the journey of bringing people regularly to and from low Earth orbit, then onto the moon and then ultimately onto Mars. The mission is also the first launch of American astronauts into space since 2011, and the first water landing by NASA astronauts since 1975. The two astronauts parachuted into the water at 15 miles per hour just before 3 p.m. EST on Sunday. The astronauts received a lighthearted message from mission control as their journey came to a close: On behalf of the SpaceX and NASA teams, welcome back to planet Earth. Thank you for flying SpaceX. You should take a moment to just cherish this day, especially given all the things that have happened this year, Hurley told NASA and SpaceX after the successful landing. More from National Review NASAs latest mission to Mars pierced the clear blue sky over Florida last Thursday. On board: the rover Perseverance, packed with scientific instruments. And hidden among them, a tiny chunk of Australia. The Mars mission rocket lifting off from Cape Canaveral on Thursday. Credit:AP The five-millimetre by one-millimetre clump of red Western Australian earth is crucial to the workings of Perseverances laser spectrometer, which will scour the red planet for signs of life. It was chiselled from the Pilbara five years ago by University of Sydney geologist Associate Professor Patrice Rey and Dr Claire Mallard, who sent it to French colleagues working on the spectrometer and then forgot about it. The COVID-19 pandemic is a practice of biological warfare and a test for the domestic health system, President of the National Medical Chamber, Dr. Leonid Roshal said in an interview with Forbes. "When I analyze the current situation, I understand that this is a rehearsal for biological warfare," RG quoted Roshal as saying. "I am not saying that this virus was created by humans... but this is a test of the health system's strength, including the country's biological defense." Roshal praised the measures taken by the Russian President, the government, the health ministry, and other authorities, calling them correct and timely. According to Roshal, Russia managed to avoid the dire consequences of the pandemic due to the low population density. DETROIT, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Alfa, provider of Alfa Systems, the software platform that powers some of America's biggest names in automotive finance, has announced a new, preconfigured edition of its software solution - built exclusively for auto finance in the US. Alfa Start delivers the proven, class-leading Alfa Systems platform at entry-level cost for US-based auto finance operations of all sizes. Delivered quickly and cost-effectively, Alfa Start includes a preconfigured start position with predesigned process catalog and a suite of out-of-the-box integrations. Start customers also benefit from an always-on, cloud-native solution with fully managed infrastructure and regular upgrades. Alex Cooper, Associate Director at Alfa responsible for Start delivery in the US, said: "By choosing a preconfigured instance of Alfa Systems with business-ready core configuration, Alfa Start customers can be in live production with their new system in less than 24 weeks, quickly leveraging the functionality and performance for which Alfa Systems has become renowned." Simon Clark, Alfa's Head of Business Development, Americas, said: "Alfa Start allows any auto finance company to take full advantage of the proven Alfa Systems platform, which until now has been within reach only of larger, more established operators. Our optimized approach accelerates systems change, maximizes value and minimizes risk, and enables lean businesses to automate, innovate and challenge in the auto finance space. "Alfa Start is built on over a decade supporting the top providers at the forefront of auto finance in the US. This experience has been distilled into our predefined, best-practice parameters and processes, so Alfa Start represents a compelling proposition to take your business forward." Read more at alfasystems.com/start. Alfa Start is also available for equipment finance in the UK. Alfa expects to release further editions in 2021 and beyond. Notes for editors About Alfa Alfa has been delivering its software platform and consultancy services to the global asset and automotive finance industry since 1990. Our best-practice methodologies and specialized knowledge of auto finance mean that we deliver the largest system implementations and most complex business change projects. With an excellent delivery history over three decades in the industry, Alfa's track record is unrivalled. Recently launched, Alfa Start is the preconfigured edition of our class-leading technology platform, Alfa Systems, which is at the heart of some of the world's largest auto finance companies. Key to the business case for each implementation is Alfa Systems' ability to consolidate multiple client systems on a single platform. Alfa Systems supports both retail and corporate business for auto, equipment, wholesale and dealer finance on a multijurisdictional basis, including leases/loans, originations and servicing. An end-to-end solution with integrated workflow and automated processing using business rules, the opportunities that Alfa Systems presents to asset finance companies are clear and compelling. With over 30 current clients and 26 countries served, Alfa has offices all over Europe, Australasia and the Americas. For more information, visit alfasystems.com or find us on LinkedIn. SOURCE Alfa Financial Software In a state-sponsored hostile takeover, Microsoft Corporation announced late Sunday that it was moving forward with plans to acquire the mobile app TikTok from the China-based corporation ByteDance following a discussion with President Donald Trump. In a blog post, Microsoft said its CEO Satya Nadella spoke with the president and is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury. The post said the acquisition would be completed no later than September 15, 2020. The takeover would involve the absorption by Microsoft of the operations of the social media video sharing platform in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. According to Microsoft, the TikTok acquisition will be conducted with an unprecedent level of White House involvement. The statement says, During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States Government, including with the President. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Fox News "Sunday Morning Futures" discussing White House plan to ban the Chinese video sharing app TikTok Additionally, Microsoft is indicating that the new owners of the extremely popular app will operate TikTok under the direct supervision of the state security institutions within the countries where it will operate. The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries. The Microsoft announcement comes as no surprise, following the appearance of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on the Fox News Sunday Morning Futures earlier in the day. Pompeo said that President Donald Trump will take action in the coming days on mobile apps, including TikTok, as part of a growing White House offensive against China. Although he stopped short of saying precisely what the president was going to do, Pompeo claimed without any evidence that Chinese software companies doing business with the United States, whether its TikTok or WeChat are feeding data directly to the national security apparatus in China. In a statement clearly designed to whip up anti-Chinese sentiments, Pompeo added that Americans using TikTok were having their facial profiles and information about their residence, their phone numbers, their friends, who theyre connected to scraped by the Chinese government. He went on to say that these are true privacy issues for the American people and that President Trump has said, Enough, and we are going to fix it. Pompeo concluded, I promise you, the President when he makes this decision will make sure that everything we have done drives this as close to zero risk for the American people. The short-form video sharing platform has approximately 80 million users in the US, 800 million worldwide and has been downloaded 2.2 billion times. ByteDance has said that its servers are located in the US and Singapore, and tech experts have pointed out that TikTok gathers user data in a manner similar to other popular social media apps. That Pompeo is making hysterical and unsubstantiated statements is a demonstration of the desperate nature of the aggressive moves by the Trump White House against China. The administration is attempting to deflect the mass opposition to Trumps response to the coronavirus pandemic and the authoritarian police measures against protesters across the country in the intensifying anti-China campaign in order to prop up his collapsing reelection prospects. Meanwhile, it is well-known internationallyprimarily due to the exposures by the former national security contractor Edward Snowden in 2013that the US National Security Agency (NSA) is the number one electronic surveillance operation in the world, gathering data on every single person on earth and storing it in massive server farms such as the Utah Data Center. On Friday, Trump told reporters that he was going to act soon to ban TikTok. Speaking with reporters on board Air Force One on a flight back to Washington from Florida, he said, As far as TikTok is concerned, were banning them from the United States. He then called the ban a severance and said he had the authority to make the decision. I can do it with an executive order. However, news of Microsofts involvement in a forced divestiture of TikTok by ByteDance emerged before the weekend as it was revealed that the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS) was involved. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, CFIUS began its investigation into TikTok last year following concerns raised in Congress. The Treasury-led foreign-investment committee is made up of federal agencies and reviews deals involving foreign money to ensure they dont put the countrys national security at risk. No doubt a major consideration in the negotiations over TikTok is the fact that the company has recently valued at $150 billion with major investments from US equity firms Coatue Management and Sequoia Capital. Along with the huge US user base, the entanglement of the American financial elite with TikTok make an outright ban a double-edged sword for President Trump and, in the end, it appears that it will be much better to just steal the company from ByteDance under the auspices of national security concerns. An article in Forbes by Peter Cohen indicates the thinking among American business pirates. If that deal goes through for the roughly $5 billion, I estimate TikToks US operations are worth, you should buy Microsoft shares. ... the triple digit acceleration of TikToks user base could add oomph to Microsofts top line, Cohen wrote on Saturday. The role of the Democrats in the US seizure of TikTok exposes the fact that they have no fundamental differences with the Trump White House. Stephen Mnuchin, who heads CFIUS and has been leading the negotiations with Microsoft and the TikTok investors over the takeover, said on ABC News on Sunday that the view that there has to be a change is shared by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Democrat of California) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (Democrat of New York). Schumer began ringing alarm bells about TikTok last November in a letter to Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy over the US militarys use of TikTok to recruit young people. Schumer wrote, I urge you to assess the potential national security risks posed by China-owned technology companies before choosing to utilize certain platforms. Schumers campaign was echoed by Senator Marco Rubio (Republican of Florida), who took the issue to CFIUS, and Senator Josh Hawley (Republican of Missouri), who held a hearing on TikToks relationship with the Chinese government. In this particular instance, it is apparent that Pompeo and Trump have now borrowed a few lines from Schumer, who wrote another letter to Transportation Safety Administration Director David Pekoske in February that said, National security experts have raised concerns about TikToks collection and handling of user data, including user content and communications, IP addresses, location-related data, metadata, and other sensitive personal information. Schumer added, particularly when viewed in light of laws that compel Chinese companies to support and cooperate with intelligence work controlled by the Chinese Communist Party. Sorry, no valid subscriptions were found for this Publication. Please select from an option below to start a subscription. SUBSCRIBE TODAY! 24 Hour Access Dozens of cops from the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department are believed to have attended a secret party at a Hollywood bar despite the state of California surpassing more than 500,000 cases of coronavirus last week. The Friday night gathering at Sassafras Saloon was organized for 100 to 150 members of law enforcement, a source told CNN. Video from Knock LA showed how revelers 'threw a raucous, mask-optional party' at the North Vine Street. 'The bass was so loud it rattled the building,' according to the report. 'Songs such as Valentin Elizalde's 'Como Me Duele' and LMFAO's 'Shots' could be heard from the street.' Scroll down for videos The Friday night gathering at Sassafras Saloon (pictured) was organized for 100 to 150 members of law enforcement, a source told CNN. Video showed how revelers failed to practice social distancing inside the venue 'Several men we believe to be deputies identified themselves by name and verbally confirmed they were attending an LASD function,' Knock LA said We found out the LA's Sheriff's Department (@LASDHQ) was having a party tonight at @SassafrasHW in Hollywood. Several men we believe to be deputies identified themselves by name and verbally confirmed they were attending an LASD function. pic.twitter.com/OQRcPDvGlk Knock LA (@KnockDotLA) August 1, 2020 Footage shows numerous men arriving at the bar which has been closed since March 15 and walk in through the side entrance. A clip reveals how they simply gained entry by following the advice of a worker at the door to state their name and claim they have 'no temperature.' However temperature checks did not appear to be carried out to ensure attendees didn't have a fever. It's unclear what the occasion was but CNN reported that Lisa Strangis, a spokeswoman for 1933 Group, said it was to 'honor a group of first responders.' Knock LA reported that a chalk board next to the side entrance read 'Happy Birthday.' 'Several men we believe to be deputies identified themselves by name and verbally confirmed they were attending an LASD function,' Knock LA said in a caption for one video recorded after they were tipped off about the event. Despite video showing a party clearly taking place inside the venue, which faces out to Hollywood's popular Vine Street, LASD said they were not aware of it. Update: Knock can confirm it is in fact a party. pic.twitter.com/xBzfm4eOqW Knock LA (@KnockDotLA) August 1, 2020 'The bass was so loud it rattled the building,' Knock LA reported. Adding that songs such as LMFAO's 'Shots' could be heard from the street Party-goers entered without masks simply by stating they didn't have a temperature Despite video showing a party clearly taking place inside the venue, which faces out to Hollywood's popular Vine Street, LASD said they were not aware of it. LASD wrote in a Facebook post on Sunday: 'The persons identified in the video are not employees of the Sheriff's Department and this event was not hosted by the LASD. 'As soon as we became aware of allegations of deputies attending a party in violation of health orders, we initiated an inquiry in an attempt to validate the information or misinformation. If further details are discovered and action is warranted, we will take appropriate administrative action.' The bar's high-wattage sign remained off throughout the night. With California breaking grim COVID-19 records, 'gatherings of people who are not part of a single household or living unit are prohibited within the County of Los Angeles Public Health jurisdiction.' Bars, nightclubs and lounges are also among the 'higher-risk' businesses ordered closed by the Health Officer as they are places where more frequent and prolonged person-to-person contact is likely to take place. Establishments that serve food with alcoholic beverages are allowed to host outdoor dining. 'California currently allows restaurants and bars with full kitchens to allow patio service,' the bar's spokesperson said. 'Sassafras is a restaurant and bar with a full kitchen so we are eligible to operate under those conditions.' The bar's spokesperson declined to identify the party's host to CNN and denied 100 people were in attendance but wouldn't say how many were inside. She called it a 'wonderful way to celebrate first responders.' LASD wrote in a Facebook post on Sunday: 'The persons identified in the video are not employees of the Sheriff's Department and this event was not hosted by the LASD A spokesperson for Sassafras called the gathering a 'wonderful way to celebrate first responders' 'It's manageable with that size that we're comfortable with, given the premise of the conversation presented to the owners,' Strangis added. 'So they agreed to allow this at their venue.' The bar's 1933 Group also owns Harlowe, The Thirsty Crow, Bigfoot West, Bigfoot Lodge, La Cuevita, and Oldfield's & Idle Hour. One man claimed to CNN outside the bar that everybody was spaced out inside. 'Everybody's wearing things. Everybody's getting temperature checks,' the attendee said. 'Everybody is either family or works at the same place so that's why we don't have Covid concerns. 'They micro-group or whatever with each other and everyone's been tested and everything. That's why we all know that everyone in there is cool.' As of Monday morning, 696 LASD personnel had tested positive for coronavirus and 3,112 had been listed as 'impacted'. Of the impacted people, 648 were currently quarantined, 33 were high risk and 2,431 had returned to work. It comes as police in nearby West Hollywood have been issuing $300 violations for people caught without a mask. The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said it was investigating. 'We are investigating reports of a private indoor party and remind all businesses that have been ordered to close indoor operations that there are no exceptions,' the department stated. 'This is exactly the situation that puts our entire community at unnecessary risk.' As of Monday there were 512,175 coronavirus cases in California and 9,398 confirmed deaths. As of Monday there were 512,175 coronavirus cases in California and 9,398 confirmed deaths A surge in coronavirus cases is especially concerning at the moment as a ban on evictions was expected to be lifted as soon as August 14, meaning more Americans could lose shelter while people have been told to isolate. Locals notice the homeless encampment near the bar had been dismantled the day before the party The surge in coronavirus cases was especially worrying as a ban on evictions was expected to be lifted as soon as August 14, meaning more Americans could lose shelter as people have been told to isolate. Some Twitter users pointed out that an encampment of homeless people outside the Saloon bar was cleared the day before the party. 'Conveniently, a *massive* homeless encampment that had been in front o #Sassafras for months (started when COVID hit) was just cleared up YESTERDAY. So. Convenient,' the Twitter user commented. 'Also the staff at Vine St Deli & La Numero Uno asked for help for months (this was essentially on their doorstep) and received nothing. Then out of the blue yesterday....' The footage was taken by Ground Game which held a protest on Saturday at the Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs calling for the cancellation of rent and bringing awareness to the upcoming evictions. The evictions are expected to be carried out by the Sheriffs Department. 'I used to stay right in the bar, I never got any notice, they woke me up at 7 a.m., and told me that I had 15 minutes to get out of there or they were gonna bulldoze my whole place, my whole structure,' one displaced person told Knock LA. 'They did it, they bulldozed the whole thing. And now they're having a party. 'The only encampments they destroyed were a few of them across the street, mine, and my neighbors right next door. And then one block up, they're fine. They didn't touch that at all. It's crazy.' He continued: 'And that bar's been abandoned, and nobody's been there at all for two months. All of a sudden now tonight they're having a party, the day after they kicked me out. They were like, "yeah, they need this open now."' Merchandise from the ill-fated Fyre Festival has gone up for auction in a sale organised by the US government. Fyre-branded clothing, wristbands, and other souvenirs are currently up for sale to benefit the victims of festival organiser Billy McFarland, according to a release by the US Marshals. McFarland pleaded guilty in March 2018 to defrauding investors and a ticket vendor of more than $26m. He was sentenced in October of that year to six years in prison. The auction is taking place online through the auction vendor Gaston & Sheehan. There are 126 lots of minor assets such as hats, sweatshirts, T-shirts, tokens, and jogger sweatpants. The sale will end on 13 August. This Fyre Festival-branded clothing and other items that were seized from Billy McFarland were originally intended to be sold at the Fyre Festival itself but were kept by McFarland, with the intent to sell the items and use the funds to commit further criminal acts while he was on pre-trial release, US Marshal Ralph Sozio of the Southern District of New York said in a release. The proceeds from the sale of these items, all traceable to McFarlands $26m fraud, will go towards the victims of his crimes. McFarland was featured in the 2019 Hulu documentary Fyre Fraud about the festival and the ensuing debacle. According to the Bureau of Prisons' databse, he is currently held at a low-security facility in Ohio, with a planned release in 2023. BEIRUT Lebanon named the presidents diplomatic adviser as new foreign minister on Monday after Nassif Hitti quit the post, blaming a lack of political will to enact reforms to halt a financial meltdown which he warned could turn Lebanon into a failed state. Foreign donors have made clear there will be no aid until Beirut makes changes to tackle state waste and corruption - roots of the crisis, which poses the biggest threat to Lebanons stability since a 1975-1990 civil war. Given the absence of an effective will to achieve structural, comprehensive reform which our society and the international community have urged us to do, I have decided to resign," Hitti said in a statement. President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Hassan Diab accepted the resignation and appointed Charbel Wehbe, Aouns diplomatic adviser since 2017, as foreign minister, said two decrees read out by the cabinets secretary general. Wehbe, 67, is a former secretary general of the foreign ministry. Hitti, a former ambassador to the Arab League, was appointed in January when Diabs cabinet took office with the support of the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement and its allies. I took part in this government to work for one boss called Lebanon, then I found in my country multiple bosses and contradictory interests," Hitti said. If they do not come together in the interest of rescuing the Lebanese people, God forbid, the ship will sink with everyone on it." SIDELINED He also had differences with Diab and was frustrated at being sidelined, sources close to the ministry told Reuters. Diab appeared to criticise Frances foreign minister for tying aid to reforms and a deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) when visiting Beirut last month. A spokesperson for Diabs office told Reuters the cabinet was now focused on moving ahead with a forensic audit of the central bank and a wide range of other reforms". Talks with the IMF, which the heavily indebted state entered in May after a sovereign default, are on hold. Two members of Lebanons negotiating team have quit in protest at the handling of the crisis. Hopes of an IMF deal have been hamstrung by a row over the scale of vast financial losses between the government, the banking sector and lawmakers from the main parties. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor The effectiveness of SPRAVATO in preventing suicide or in reducing suicidal ideation or behavior has not been demonstrated. Use of SPRAVATO does not preclude the need for hospitalization if clinically warranted, even if patients experience improvement after an initial dose of SPRAVATO . SPRAVATO carries a Boxed Warning regarding a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) and the risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors. See below for Important Safety Information. SPRAVATO will be made available at REMS certified treatment centers. Janssen is working to responsibly educate and certify treatment centers in accordance with the REMS so healthcare providers can offer SPRAVATO to appropriate patients. Click to Tweet: #BREAKINGNEWS: FDA approves a new indication for @JanssenUS medicine for depressive symptom improvement in adults with major depression and suicidal behavior. Read full announcement here: https://ctt.ec/7yfjG+ Depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide and the condition most frequently associated with suicide.2 MDD is a serious disease that causes a significant, negative impact on the way people think, feel and act.3 Symptoms and severity vary by person and may include persistent feelings of sadness, hopelessness or tension; changes in sleep or appetite; difficulty concentrating or performing activities of daily living; lack of interest; and/or thoughts of harming themselves.3 "Many people who live with depression know all too well the feeling of desperation. If that major depression progresses to active suicidal thoughts, it's crushing, and they need options to help change the trajectory of their acute depressive episode," said Theresa Nguyen, Chief Program Officer, Mental Health America. "Traditional oral antidepressants need weeks or more to take effect, so the availability of a medicine that can begin providing relief within a day is potentially life changing." The sNDA approval is based on two identical Phase 3 clinical trials in which SPRAVATO plus comprehensive standard of care demonstrated a significant, rapid reduction of depressive symptoms within 24 hours, with some patients starting to respond as early as four hours. SPRAVATO plus comprehensive standard of care led to a 15.9 and 16.0 point decrease on the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), a tool used to assess severity of depressive symptoms, in the two trials at 24 hours after the first dose of study medication. This compared to a reduction of 12.0 and 12.2 points in the placebo plus comprehensive standard of care group. The comprehensive standard of care included initial hospitalization, a newly initiated or optimized oral antidepressant and twice-weekly treatment visits for four weeks, during which patients received SPRAVATO 84 mg or placebo nasal spray.4,5 Both the SPRAVATO and placebo groups continued to improve between four hours and 25 days, with 41 percent and 43 percent of the SPRAVATO plus comprehensive standard of care group achieving clinical remission of depression (minimal or no symptoms) compared with 34 percent and 27 percent in the placebo groups, by the end of the double-blind period, in the two trials, respectively.4,5 "It is astonishing to me that despite what we know about the risk of serious suicidal ideation in the context of major depression, patients with suicidal ideation have previously been excluded from nearly all studies examining antidepressant treatment efficacy. There is an immense need for high quality evidence showing effective and rapid antidepressant action in this population," said Gerard Sanacora,* Ph.D., M.D., Director, Yale Depression Research Program, Co-Director, Yale New Haven Hospital Interventional Psychiatry Service, and esketamine clinical trial investigator. "The clinical trials supporting this new indication provide compelling evidence that esketamine may offer clinicians a new way to provide support to patients quickly in the midst of an urgent depressive episode and help set them on the path to remission." In the two Phase 3 trials, improvement in the severity of suicidality at 24 hours was measured using a standardized global scale. The treatment difference between the two groups was not statistically significant on this key secondary endpoint. Both SPRAVATO and placebo in combination with comprehensive standard of care showed a similar reduction on this measure.4,5 The safety profile observed in the trials was consistent with previous studies of SPRAVATO in treatment-resistant depression (TRD), adding to the established body of safety and efficacy evidence. The most common side effects included dissociation (feeling disconnected from yourself, your thoughts, feelings, space and time), dizziness, sedation (sleepiness), increased blood pressure, hypoesthesia, vomiting, euphoric mood and vertigo.1 With this new indication, SPRAVATO can be prescribed to treat depressive symptoms in two MDD subpopulations of adults with high unmet need: TRD, which the FDA approved on March 5, 2019 , and , and MDD with acute suicidal ideation or behavior.1 A full course of treatment for the new indication is twice weekly for four weeks, after which evidence of therapeutic benefit should be evaluated to determine need for continued treatment. Please click here for the full Prescribing Information. "People living with major depression need more options to meet their most critical needs, and we're proud to help redefine how we treat ongoing and acutely worsening depressive symptoms," said Bill Martin, Global Therapeutic Area Head, Neuroscience, Janssen Research & Development, LLC. "SPRAVATO can now help patients with challenging to treat depression find significant and swift relief from debilitating depressive symptoms, offering those living with this serious mental health condition the possibility of a better future." Once SPRAVATO is determined as an appropriate treatment option, in accordance with the REMS, patients will be treated at a certified treatment center trained to administer the medicine and address their needs. Janssen will educate healthcare providers and payers on this updated label to ensure appropriate patients are evaluated and the full course of treatment is delivered in a safe, appropriate and controlled manner for patients to receive the maximum treatment benefit. For patients who need help getting started on SPRAVATO and staying on track, Janssen CarePath offers a comprehensive support program. Janssen CarePath provides information on insurance coverage, potential out-of-pocket costs and treatment support, and identifies options that may help make treatment more affordable, including the Janssen CarePath Savings Program for commercially insured patients who are eligible. Those who don't have commercial or private health insurance, or who aren't eligible for the Janssen CarePath Savings Program, can visit JanssenPrescriptionAssistance.com for more information about other resources that may help with their out-of-pocket medication costs. *Dr. Sanacora has received research support from Janssen and has served as a paid consultant to the company. About SPRAVATO SPRAVATO (esketamine) CIII nasal spray is a non-selective, non-competitive antagonist of the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor an ionotropic glutamate receptor. It has a novel mechanism of action, meaning it works differently than currently available therapies for major depressive disorder (MDD). SPRAVATO is approved in the United States, in conjunction with an oral antidepressant, to treat adults with treatment-resistant depression (TRD) and depressive symptoms in adults with MDD with acute suicidal ideation or behavior. SPRAVATO has been submitted for health authorities' review for TRD and adults with MDD who have current suicidal ideation with intent in other markets around the world, including Europe. The FDA granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation to esketamine nasal spray for TRD in November 2013 and for MDD with imminent risk for suicide in August 2016. About the SPRAVATO Risk Evaluation & Mitigation Strategy (REMS) A REMS program is in place to ensure the safety of all patients who are treated with SPRAVATO. SPRAVATO is available only through a restricted distribution program called the SPRAVATO REMS. The goals of the REMS are to mitigate the risks of serious adverse outcomes resulting from sedation and dissociation caused by SPRAVATO administration, and abuse and misuse of SPRAVATO, by: Ensuring SPRAVATO is only dispensed and administered to patients in medically supervised healthcare settings that monitor these patients is only dispensed and administered to patients in medically supervised healthcare settings that monitor these patients Ensuring pharmacies and healthcare settings that dispense SPRAVATO are REMS certified are REMS certified Ensuring each patient is informed about serious adverse outcomes from dissociation and sedation and the need for monitoring Enrolling all patients who receive treatment in an outpatient healthcare setting in a REMS registry to further characterize the risks and support safe use About the Phase 3 Studies4,5 ASPIRE I and ASPIRE II evaluated the efficacy and safety of SPRAVATO in addition to a comprehensive standard of care in adult patients with major depressive disorder who had active suicidal ideation with intent. This is the first global clinical program to study this severely ill patient population, who have been typically excluded from antidepressant clinical trials, addressing a great unmet need. Patients were defined as those with major depression and active suicidal thoughts with intent. Every patient was treated with a comprehensive standard of care in both trials to safely and ethically conduct the studies. The comprehensive standard of care included initial hospitalization, a newly initiated or optimized oral antidepressant and twice-weekly treatment visits for four weeks. The primary efficacy endpoint of the double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, multicenter studies was a reduction in depressive symptoms at 24 hours after the first dose, as measured by the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). The MADRS scale is a tool used to assess severity of depressive symptoms, allowing clinicians to evaluate 10 symptoms on a six-point scale to produce a total score of up to 60 points. A secondary efficacy endpoint measured improvement in severity of suicidality as measured by the revised Clinical Global Impression of Severity of Suicidality (CGI-SS-r), a seven-point scale developed by clinical experts that is a measure of the severity of suicidality as judged by the clinician's global impression. About the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson At Janssen, we're creating a future where disease is a thing of the past. We're the Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, working tirelessly to make that future a reality for patients everywhere by fighting sickness with science, improving access with ingenuity, and healing hopelessness with heart. We focus on areas of medicine where we can make the biggest difference: Cardiovascular & Metabolism, Immunology, Infectious Diseases & Vaccines, Neuroscience, Oncology, and Pulmonary Hypertension. Learn more at www.janssen.com. Follow us at www.twitter.com/JanssenUS. Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is one of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson. IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION What is SPRAVATO (esketamine) CIII nasal spray? SPRAVATO is a prescription medicine, used along with an antidepressant taken by mouth to treat: Adults with treatment-resistant depression (TRD) Depressive symptoms in adults with major depressive disorder (MDD) with suicidal thoughts or actions SPRAVATO is not for use as a medicine to prevent or relieve pain (anesthetic). It is not known if SPRAVATO is safe or effective as an anesthetic medicine. It is not known if SPRAVATO is safe and effective for use in preventing suicide or in reducing suicidal thoughts or actions. SPRAVATO is not for use in place of hospitalization if your healthcare provider determines that hospitalization is needed, even if improvement is experienced after the first dose of SPRAVATO. It is not known if SPRAVATO is safe and effective in children. What is the most important information I should know about SPRAVATO? SPRAVATO can cause serious side effects, including: Sedation and dissociation. SPRAVATO may cause sleepiness (sedation), fainting, dizziness, spinning sensation, anxiety, or feeling disconnected from yourself, your thoughts, feelings, space and time (dissociation). SPRAVATO may cause sleepiness (sedation), fainting, dizziness, spinning sensation, anxiety, or feeling disconnected from yourself, your thoughts, feelings, space and time (dissociation). Tell your healthcare provider right away if you feel like you cannot stay awake or if you feel like you are going to pass out. Your healthcare provider must monitor you for serious side effects for at least 2 hours after taking SPRAVATO . Your healthcare provider will decide when you are ready to leave the healthcare setting. . Your healthcare provider will decide when you are ready to leave the healthcare setting. Abuse and misuse. There is a risk for abuse and physical and psychological dependence with SPRAVATO treatment. Your healthcare provider should check you for signs of abuse and dependence before and during treatment with SPRAVATO . There is a risk for abuse and physical and psychological dependence with SPRAVATO treatment. Your healthcare provider should check you for signs of abuse and dependence before and during treatment with SPRAVATO . Tell your healthcare provider if you have ever abused or been dependent on alcohol, prescription medicines, or street drugs. Your healthcare provider can tell you more about the differences between physical and psychological dependence and drug addiction. SPRAVATO Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS). Because of the risks for sedation, dissociation, and abuse and misuse, SPRAVATO is only available through a restricted program called the SPRAVATO Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) Program. SPRAVATO can only be administered at healthcare settings certified in the SPRAVATO REMS Program. Patients treated in outpatient healthcare settings (e.g., medical offices and clinics) must be enrolled in the program. Increased risk of suicidal thoughts or actions. Antidepressant medicines may increase suicidal thoughts and actions in some people 24 years of age and younger, especially within the first few months of treatment or when the dose is changed. SPRAVATO is not for use in children. Antidepressant medicines may increase suicidal thoughts and actions in some people 24 years of age and younger, Depression and other serious mental illnesses are the most important causes of suicidal thoughts and actions. Some people may have a higher risk of having suicidal thoughts or actions. These include people who have (or have a family history of) depression or a history of suicidal thoughts or actions. How can I watch for and try to prevent suicidal thoughts and actions? Pay close attention to any changes, especially sudden changes, in mood, behavior, thoughts, or feelings, or if you develop suicidal thoughts or actions. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have any new or sudden changes in mood, behavior, thoughts, or feelings. Keep all follow-up visits with your healthcare provider as scheduled. Call your healthcare provider between visits as needed, especially if you have concerns about symptoms. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have any of the following symptoms, especially if they are new, worse, or worry you: Suicide attempts thoughts about suicide or dying worsening depression other unusual changes in behavior or mood Do not take SPRAVATO if you: have blood vessel (aneurysmal vascular) disease (including in the brain, chest, abdominal aorta, arms and legs) have an abnormal connection between your veins and arteries (arteriovenous malformation) have a history of bleeding in the brain are allergic to esketamine, ketamine, or any of the other ingredients in SPRAVATO. If you are not sure if you have any of the above conditions, talk to your healthcare provider before taking SPRAVATO. Before you take SPRAVATO, tell your healthcare provider about all of your medical conditions, including if you: have heart or brain problems, including: high blood pressure (hypertension) slow or fast heartbeats that cause shortness of breath, chest pain, lightheadedness, or fainting history of heart attack history of stroke heart valve disease or heart failure history of brain injury or any condition where there is increased pressure in the brain have liver problems have ever had a condition called "psychosis" (see, feel, or hear things that are not there, or believe in things that are not true). are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. SPRAVATO may harm your baby. You should not take SPRAVATO if you are pregnant. may harm your baby. You should not take SPRAVATO if you are pregnant. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you become pregnant during treatment with SPRAVATO . . If you are able to become pregnant, talk to your healthcare provider about methods to prevent pregnancy during treatment with SPRAVATO . . There is a pregnancy registry for women who are exposed to SPRAVATO during pregnancy. The purpose of the registry is to collect information about the health of women exposed to SPRAVATO and their baby. If you become pregnant during treatment with SPRAVATO , talk to your healthcare provider about registering with the National Pregnancy Registry for Antidepressants at 1-844-405-6185 or online at https://womensmentalhealth.org/clinical-and-research- programs/pregnancyregistry/antidepressants/. during pregnancy. The purpose of the registry is to collect information about the health of women exposed to SPRAVATO and their baby. If you become pregnant during treatment with SPRAVATO , talk to your healthcare provider about registering with the National Pregnancy Registry for Antidepressants at 1-844-405-6185 or online at https://womensmentalhealth.org/clinical-and-research- programs/pregnancyregistry/antidepressants/. are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. You should not breastfeed during treatment with SPRAVATO. Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines that you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins and herbal supplements. Taking SPRAVATO with certain medicine may cause side effects. Especially tell your healthcare provider if you take central nervous system (CNS) depressants, psychostimulants, or monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) medicines. Keep a list of them to show to your healthcare provider and pharmacist when you get a new medicine. How will I take SPRAVATO? You will take SPRAVATO nasal spray yourself, under the supervision of a healthcare provider in a healthcare setting. Your healthcare provider will show you how to use the SPRAVATO nasal spray device. nasal spray yourself, under the supervision of a healthcare provider in a healthcare setting. Your healthcare provider will show you how to use the SPRAVATO nasal spray device. Your healthcare provider will tell you how much SPRAVATO you will take and when you will take it. you will take and when you will take it. Follow your SPRAVATO treatment schedule exactly as your healthcare provider tells you to. treatment schedule exactly as your healthcare provider tells you to. During and after each use of the SPRAVATO nasal spray device, you will be checked by a healthcare provider who will decide when you are ready to leave the healthcare setting. nasal spray device, you will be checked by a healthcare provider who will decide when you are ready to leave the healthcare setting. You will need to plan for a caregiver or family member to drive you home after taking SPRAVATO . . If you miss a SPRAVATO treatment, your healthcare provider may change your dose and treatment schedule. treatment, your healthcare provider may change your dose and treatment schedule. Some people taking SPRAVATO get nausea and vomiting. You should not eat for at least 2 hours before taking SPRAVATO and not drink liquids at least 30 minutes before taking SPRAVATO . get nausea and vomiting. You should not eat for at least 2 hours before taking SPRAVATO and not drink liquids at least 30 minutes before taking SPRAVATO . If you take a nasal corticosteroid or nasal decongestant medicine take these medicines at least 1 hour before taking SPRAVATO. What should I avoid while taking SPRAVATO? Do not drive, operate machinery, or do anything where you need to be completely alert after taking SPRAVATO. Do not take part in these activities until the next day following a restful sleep. See "What is the most important information I should know about SPRAVATO?" What are the possible side effects of SPRAVATO? SPRAVATO may cause serious side effects including: See "What is the most important information I should know about SPRAVATO ?" Increased blood pressure. SPRAVATO can cause a temporary increase in your blood pressure that may last for about 4 hours after taking a dose. Your healthcare provider will check your blood pressure before taking SPRAVATO and for at least 2 hours after you take SPRAVATO . Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get chest pain, shortness of breath, sudden severe headache, change in vision, or seizures after taking SPRAVATO . SPRAVATO can cause a temporary increase in your blood pressure that may last for about 4 hours after taking a dose. Your healthcare provider will check your blood pressure before taking SPRAVATO and for at least 2 hours after you take SPRAVATO . Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get chest pain, shortness of breath, sudden severe headache, change in vision, or seizures after taking SPRAVATO . Problems with thinking clearly. Tell your healthcare provider if you have problems thinking or remembering. Tell your healthcare provider if you have problems thinking or remembering. Bladder problems. Tell your healthcare provider if you develop trouble urinating, such as a frequent or urgent need to urinate, pain when urinating, or urinating frequently at night. The most common side effects of SPRAVATO when used along with an antidepressant taken by mouth include: feeling disconnected from yourself, your thoughts, feelings and things around you dizziness nausea feeling sleepy decreased feeling of sensitivity (numbness) feeling anxious lack of energy increased blood pressure vomiting spinning sensation feeling drunk feeling very happy or excited If these common side effects occur, they usually happen right after taking SPRAVATO and go away the same day. These are not all the possible side effects of SPRAVATO. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088. Please see full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS, and Medication Guide for SPRAVATO and discuss any questions you may have with your healthcare provider. ### Cautions Concerning Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding SPRAVATO (esketamine) CIII nasal spray. The reader is cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations of future events. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or known or unknown risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results could vary materially from the expectations and projections of OPCO, any of the other Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies and/or Johnson & Johnson. Risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: challenges and uncertainties inherent in product research and development, including the uncertainty of clinical success and of obtaining regulatory approvals; uncertainty of commercial success; manufacturing difficulties and delays; competition, including technological advances, new products and patents attained by competitors; challenges to patents; product efficacy or safety concerns resulting in product recalls or regulatory action; changes in behavior and spending patterns of purchasers of health care products and services; changes to applicable laws and regulations, including global health care reforms; and trends toward health care cost containment. A further list and descriptions of these risks, uncertainties and other factors can be found in Johnson & Johnson's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 29, 2019, including in the sections captioned "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" and "Item 1A. Risk Factors," and in the company's most recently filed Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and the company's subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Copies of these filings are available online at www.sec.gov, www.jnj.com or on request from Johnson & Johnson. None of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies nor Johnson & Johnson undertakes to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information or future events or developments. ### REFERENCES 1 SPRAVATO [Prescribing Information]. Titusville, N.J., Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. July 2020. 2 World Health Organization. Media Centre: Depression. Available at: http://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/depression. Accessed July 21, 2020. 3 National Institute of Mental Health. Depression. Available at: https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/depression/index.shtml. Accessed July 21, 2020. 4 Dong-Jing Fu et al. J Clin Psych. 2020. 5 Dawn Ionescu, Carla Canuso, Dong-Jing Fu, et al. Esketamine nasal spray for rapid reduction of major depressive disorder symptoms in patients at imminent risk for suicide: ASPIRE-2 study. Presented at European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) Congress; September 2019; Copenhagen, Denmark. MEDIA CONTACT: Kaitlin Meiser +1-908-938-3209 [email protected] INVESTOR CONTACT: Jennifer McIntyre +1-732-524-3922 SOURCE Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson Related Links http://www.janssen.com Two hours of the original four-hour version premiered in January at the Sundance Film Festivals Indie Episodic slate. In 2018 and 2019 James and company filmed various Chicago mayoral candidates on the campaign trail, while weaving in an array of ordinary and extraordinary citizens. City So Real veers from a Bridgeport barbershop full of retired Chicago Police Department veterans, to the unexpectedly funny minutiae of contesting ballots, to the long shadow of the death of Laquan McDonald, culminating in the trial of CPD officer Jason Van Dyke. J.C. Penney is proposing a payment program that it argues will help it retain a large group that it refers to in court filings as key employees, but which would exclude top executives. The retailer sought approval from the Texas bankruptcy court overseeing its proceedings for a non-insider key employee retention program that would amount to roughly $47.7 million and cover more than 4,200 employees roughly 5 percent of its workforce, according to court filings on Thursday. More from WWD Such so-called KERP programs are a common feature of corporate bankruptcies, and prone to scrutiny as retailers in bankruptcy are also often simultaneously devising plans to close stores and let go of employees. J.C. Penney, which has a total of roughly 85,000 employees, had disclosed last month that it would be laying off 1,000 employees across corporate, field management and international positions. In an SEC filing in May, the retailer also announced plans to close a total of around 242 stores over the next two years. The company has begun the process of closing a group of more than 150 stores. The retailer described the proposed program as a continuation of the kind of bonuses it normally offered employees in addition to their base pay. Without such incentive payments, the company risked losing employees with institutional knowledge, according to a declaration filed by Ryan Beger, a consulting director at Willis Towers Watson US LLC, which Penneys had hired in April. Begers filing suggested the company believed that to be the case even during a pandemic that has led to record high unemployment rates 14.7 percent in April, the highest recorded in the U.S., according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and snowballing retail bankruptcies. Even in the current state of the economy, absent providing similar compensation programs that are customarily found in the competitive market and in the debtors historical practices, these employees may be more likely to leave debtors employ, he wrote in the filing. Story continues A court hearing on the issue is scheduled for Aug. 24. Its not clear which employee job categories would be covered under the KERP plan, or how the bonuses would be allocated among them, as the company is also seeking the courts permission to file under seal the list of program participants. The list contains commercial information including key employees job titles and levels and their proposed retention payments, according to J.C. Penneys filings. Such commercial information should be protected because it would give competitors a window into its operations and information that could be used to poach talent, the retailer argued. In particular, the debtors competitors could gain an unfair advantage if they knew the awards the debtors were providing employees at various ranks, the retailer said in a filing. The commercial information provided in the Non-Insider KERP Participant List could also enable the debtors competitors to lure the Non-Insider KERP Participants, whose services are critical to preserving and maximizing value of the debtors estates. Under the proposed plan, about $24.2 million of the retention payments would be due during the Chapter 11 proceedings, according to one of filings by J.C. Penney. The program participants would not include any so-called corporate insiders, which the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission describes as officers, directors and certain equity owners. The company did award its top executives some $9.9 million before its bankruptcy filing, according to an SEC filing in May. In particular, its chief executive officer Jill Soltau was granted a $4.5 million cash incentive award, while its chief financial officer, chief merchant and chief human resources officer were each granted $1 million. A representative for J.C. Penney declined to comment. James Corden replacing Ellen DeGeneres? Drama continues to swirl behind the scenes of The Ellen DeGeneres Show amid allegations of a toxic workplace and new accusations of sexual misconduct by show producers. Ellen DeGeneres has not been accused of any wrongdoing -- though some celebrities, including Brad Garrett and Lea Thompson, said shes well-known for mistreatment -- but the longtime TV host issued an apology to staff late last week. A new report from The Sun claims James Corden may replace DeGeneres on the daytime talk show and has been viewed by NBC as the long term successor even before the controversy emerged. This issue has fast tracked everything and made everyone look at the future today, an insider told the UK tabloid. James Corden was being eyed for Ellens job in the long term before any of this came to light. Its unclear if the British comedy star would continue his CBS hosting duties on The Late Late Show. Meanwhile, ET reports Ellen executive producer Andy Lassner insists nobody is going off the air and the show is currently expected to resume filming new episodes in September, despite an ongoing investigation. Sorry but it comes from the top @TheEllenShow Know more than one who were treated horribly by her. Common knowledge. DeGeneres Sends Emotional Apology to Staff - Variety https://t.co/D0uxOgyyre Brad Garrett (@RealBradGarrett) July 31, 2020 The Bachelorette recasting rumors Cosmopolitan reports rumors are flying around that The Bachelorette may be recasting for the upcoming season. Bachelor Nation blogger (and noted show spoiler) Reality Steve said he thinks theres serious validity to a Reddit claim that Clare Crawley is dropping out and refusing to continue filming after falling in love fast and hard for contestant Dale Moss, who won the first impression rose. Life & Style magazine reports she refused to come out of her room to film with other men after just 12 days on set, and Tayshia Adams is being considered to replace Crawley with the remaining guys because coronavirus safety protocols would delay filming an entirely new group of suitors. Drama! Rumor has it Clare fell so hard for her first impression rose recipient, she refused to come out of her room and continue dating the other men. (via @toofab)https://t.co/UiJvGrdWOl TMZ (@TMZ) August 2, 2020 MORE BUZZ: Rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine released from house arrest ( BB Bryan Callen taking leave from podcast after sexual misconduct allegations ( ET Country star Luke Combs marries longtime love Nicole Hocking ( E! Porno For Pyros reunite for Lollapalooza livestream ( RS Sean Penn marries girlfriend Leila George ( ET Good Burger stars Kenan Thompson, Kel Mitchell reunite virtually ( E! Disney Channel actress Ronni Hawk, 20, arrested for domestic violence ( TMZ Terry Crews publicly apologizes to Gabrielle Union again ( ET Deadliest Catch star Mahlon Reyes dies at 38 ( E! Buzz is a daily roundup of entertainment news from movies, TV, music and celebrity gossip. Former President Jerry John Rawlings has commended the Overlord of Ashanti Kingdom, Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II for protecting lands in the Ashanti Region from ''thieves and crooks''. A recent viral video captured the Asantehene rebuking the Chief of Bantama over a wrongdoing on his part. In a statement issued by the Communications Directorate of the Ex-President and copied to Peacefmonline.com, Mr. Rawlings thanked Otumfuo for his good works and further applauded him for tampering justice with mercy on the Bantama Chief. ''I want to take the opportunity to congratulate the Asantehene for the steps he has taken, to seriously protect the environment and also to thank him for tampering justice with mercy on Nana Bantamahene. "We each have to learn to take a cue from the Asantehene and be bold and audacious in our defence of the environment, especially from thieves and crooks, who with impunity can collect parcels of land anywhere, anyhow and do as they wish against the public good and the sanctity of nature," portions of the statement read. Read full statement below: OTUMFUO DESERVES COMMENDATION I want to take the opportunity to congratulate the Asantehene for the steps he has taken, to seriously protect the environment and also to thank him for tampering justice with mercy on Nana Bantamahene. We each have to learn to take a cue from the Asantehene and be bold and audacious in our defence of the environment, especially from thieves and crooks, who with impunity can collect parcels of land anywhere, anyhow and do as they wish against the public good and the sanctity of nature. Let me also express my gratitude to Togbe Afede XIV, President of the National House of Chiefs for taking the initiative to lead a delegation of the Volta Region House of Chiefs to the border areas in the region to ascertain things for themselves. Some of the unsightly things we see on the Internet do not speak well of us locally and internationally. Much as I find it tiring and tedious to be engaging in self defence when I have given my all, all these years, I will soon deal with the callous agenda of bile by the likes of Kwamena Ahwoi, who are desperately seeking control of the NDC party. The NDC could, should and has survived on the authority of the word but if care is not taken, it will collapse and drown as has been happening, on the word of those in authority. Issued By: Kobina Andoh Amoakwa (Communications Directorate) Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/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 Russian hackers are suspected of breaking in to the email account of the UK's former trade secretary Liam Fox to steal classified UK-US trade documents that were leaked in the run-up to the last general election, it has been reported. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has accused Russian actors of seeking to influence the vote by amplifying the stolen papers online. They were highlighted by then Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn who said they were evidence the Conservatives were preparing to sell the NHS to US pharmaceutical companies. Reuters, citing two anonymous sources, reported on Monday that Russian hackers are suspected of accessing Dr Foxs account multiple times between July 12th and October 21st last year. The account was said to have been the victim of a spear phishing message, where users are tricked into handing over their log-in details and password. Advertisement The Cabinet Office declined to comment because of the criminal investigation being led by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and instead defended the Governments IT systems. There is an ongoing criminal investigation into how the documents were acquired, and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this point, a Government spokeswoman said. But as you would expect, the Government has very robust systems in place to protect the IT systems of officials and staff. The spokeswoman did not answer questions on whether hackers had accessed a Government or personal email account, while an aide to Dr Fox declined to comment. An NCSC spokesman said: We have worked closely with political parties for several years on how to protect and defend against cyber attacks including publishing advice on our website. There is an ongoing criminal investigation and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage. Wuhan reports 3 imported COVID-19 cases Global Times Source: Global Times Published: 2020/8/2 15:09:03 The city of Wuhan in Central China's Hubei Province reported three imported COVID-19 cases on Sunday, all of them are Chinese nationals flying back from Moscow by chartered plane. All the people reported normal body temperatures when boarding the flight on Thursday. However, their infections were spotted during a customs health inspection, and were immediately sent to a local hospital for nucleic acid tests. Results showed that their nucleic acid test was positive. They have since been admitted to hospitals for isolated treatment. The newly confirmed cases had all shown symptoms of fever during their stay in Moscow. One of them had taken medicine at home before the flight, and the other two were hospitalized for isolated treatment in Moscow. Strict, "closed-cycle" management has been put into effect, with all close contacts of the new cases - including 198 passengers and 20 crew members who were also on board - put under centralized quarantine for medical examinations. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address But we all and or should have all known this from the beginning Austria officially confirmed this week that the British Governments allegation that Novichok, a Russian chemical warfare agent, was used in England by GRU, the Russian military intelligence service, in March 2018, was a British invention. Investigations in Vienna by four Austrian government ministries, the BVT intelligence agency, and by Austrian prosecutors have revealed that secret OPCW reports on the blood testing of Sergei and Yulia Skripal, copies of which were transferred to the Austrian government, did not reveal a Russian-made nerve agent. Two reports, published in Vienna this week by the OE media group and reporter Isabelle Daniel, reveal that the Financial Times publication of the cover-page of one of the OPCW reports exposed a barcode identifying the source of the leaked documents was the Austrian government. The Austrian Foreign Ministry and the Bundesamt fur Verfassungsschutz und Terrorismusbekampfung (BVT), the domestic intelligence agency equivalent to MI5 or FBI, have corroborated the authenticity of the documents. The Austrian disclosures also reveal that in London the Financial Times editor, Roula Khalaf, four of the newspapers reporters, and the management of the Japanese-owned company have fabricated a false and misleading version of the OPCW evidence and have covered up British government lying on the Skripal blood testing and the Novichok evidence. Source: Dances With Bears AUSTRIA CONFIRMS OPCW REPORT ON SKRIPAL FAKING BY THE BRITISH VIENNA EXPOSES FINANCIAL TIMES LIES AND COVER-UP But does anyone care? I do WtR Markets Watch Keep debt funds in the loop Under current volatile circumstances, it is important to invest carefully. In the last few months, debt funds which were once perceived as "safe funds", have seen huge outflows and volatility. This led to the closing down of six schemes by a prominent AMC. Read here to know how debt funds can help prevent erosion in gains, at a time when equity markets are in a state of turmoil. Big Story Home Minister Amit Shah gets COVID-19 Union Home Minister Amit Shah tested positive for COVID-19 on August 2. He broke the news on Twitter, with many coming to wish him a speedy recovering following the diagnosis. Here are the details. Your Money Understanding risk As financial instruments become more volatile under the current circumstances, the relationship between investment and risk can get hard to decipher. This is why as investors it's important to exercise more caution while choosing a scheme that works for you. Here is how you can find your right fit. Global Watch Stop and go, says Kuwait Kuwait has barred commercial flights to and from a list of countries, including India. This move is likely to affect the repatriation of Indians living in the country. Read more to find out other details about the move. Tech Tattle Boycott vs Bottomline A civil rights group started a boycott movement that encouraged advertisers to drop Facebook. #StopHateForProfit saw a 1,000 advertisers publically join out of the 8 million who currently use its services. Read more to find out if it worked in their favour. Startup Tales Restaurants ask for help Amid the COVID-19, restaurants have seen a drop in dine-in customers. As a result, restaurants have now begun negotiating with food delivery platforms and aggregators to reduce commissions. Restaurants presently pay 20 percent of order value as a commission on an average, here is what they're currently asking for. Tailpiece Mumbai says ladies first The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has installed traffic lights with female figures. This makes Mumbai the first city in the country to do this. Read here to know all about it. Melbourne house prices are expected to continue falling for another two years - as an escalation of the coronavirus crisis further erodes values in Australia's biggest cities. Almost a third, or seven, of the 24 economists surveyed by financial comparison website Finder predicted property prices in the Victorian capital wouldn't recover until 2022. Three-quarters or 18 out of those 24 experts predicted prices in Melbourne would keep falling until at least April 2021. Melbourne's median house price plunged in July for the fourth straight month, with real estate data group CoreLogic fearing new stage four lockdowns and curfews would discourage people from buying a home. Melbourne house prices are expected to continue falling for another two years with an escalation of the coronavirus crisis causing values to fall in Australia's biggest cities. Almost a third, or seven, of the 24 economists surveyed by financial comparison Finder predicted property prices in the Victorian capital wouldn't recover until 2022. Pictured is Flinders Street Station on August 2 as a new curfew was introduced in a bid to curb coronavirus Finder insights manager Graham Cooke said COVID-19 volatility was weighing down property values as rising unemployment killed a recovery that began a year ago. How COVID-19 is infecting house prices Sydney: DOWN 1 per cent to $1,002,107 Melbourne: DOWN 1.4 per cent to $793,548 Brisbane: DOWN 0.3 per cent $555,284 Adelaide: UP 0.1 per cent to $478,175 Perth: DOWN 0.6 per cent to $455,813 Hobart: DOWN 0.4 per cent to $514,392 Darwin: DOWN 0.2 per cent to $466,959 Canberra: UP 0.7 per cent to $718,443 Source: CoreLogic Home Value Index median house prices, July 2020 Advertisement 'It is clear that there is widespread uncertainty in the market as to what prices will be in the near future,' he said. Melbourne's median house price dived by 1.4 per cent in July - marking the fourth straight month of decline, CoreLogic data showed. Sydney's median house price last month dropped by one per cent, putting it just $2,107 above the psychological $1million mark as prices fell for the third month in a row. CoreLogic's head of research Tim Lawless said capital city real estate values would face more challenges from March as extended mortgage repayment holidays ended. 'Urgent sales are likely to become more common as we approach these milestones, which will test the market's resilience,' he said. New stage four lockdowns in Melbourne and a new 8pm to 5am curfew were also expected to hurt Australia's broader property market. 'Similarly, the recent concerns of a second wave of the virus and the potential for renewed border closures and stricter social distancing policies are likely to further push consumer sentiment down,' Mr Lawless said. 'This is likely to weigh on both home buying and selling activity more broadly.' For now, Mr Lawless said more expensive suburbs in Sydney and Melbourne were being harder hit as the COVID-19 crisis worsened. Sydney's median house price last month dropped by one per cent, putting it just $2,107 above the psychological $1million mark as prices fell for the third month in a row. Pictured is Bondi Beach 'Higher value markets tend to be more reactive to changes in the economic environment, having led both the upswing and the downturn over the previous cycle,' he said. Brisbane's median house prices slipped by 0.3 per cent, going backwards for the second straight month, as Perth's equivalent values fell by 0.6 per cent - the third month of decline. Hobart, Australia's best performing housing market until last year, last month suffered a 0.4 per cent. Bucking the trend, Canberra's median house price rose by 0.7 per cent as Adelaide's increased by 0.1 per cent. Economist Saul Eslake, the founder of Corinna Economic Advisory, predicted the Reserve Bank of Australia would leave interest rates on hold at a record-low of 0.25 per cent until 2023. President Donald Trump says the federal government should get a 'substantial portion' of the sales price of the US arm of TikTok and says he is on board with Microsoft wanting to purchase the popular social media app. Trump on Monday warned he will ban TikTok in the country if the US arm of the Chinese-owned video app isn't purchased by September 15. His comments on Monday came as Microsoft added $77 billion in market value less than 24 hours after confirming it was in talks to by the US portion of TikTok. Shares in Microsoft jumped nearly four percent on Monday, bringing the company's total market value to more than $1.6 trillion. During a White House meeting, Trump said he didn't mind if the US tech giant purchased the social media app after having a 'great conversation' with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Speaking of their conversation, Trump said: 'I did say that if you buy it, whatever the price is that goes to whoever owns it, because I guess it's China essentially... I said a very substantial portion of that price is going to have to come into the Treasury of the United States because we're making it possible for this deal to happen.' It was not clear how the government would receive part of the purchase price. Shares in Microsoft jumped nearly four percent on Monday, bringing the company's total market value to more than $1.6 trillion During a White House meeting, Trump said he didn't mind if the US tech giant purchased the social media app after having a 'great conversation' with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella He added it 'will close down on September 15 unless Microsoft or somebody else is able to buy it and work out a deal, an appropriate deal so the Treasury... of the United States gets a lot of money. He added that it might be easier if Microsoft buys all of TikTok rather than the 30 percent that would cover the US arm. 'It's a great asset but it's not a great asset in the United States unless they have the approval of the United States,' he said. The Treasury Department has not yet commented about how a payment would work. It is highly unusual for the government to receive financial compensation from private companies. It only typically happens during a financial crisis, for example, the government received warrants from airlines earlier this year in exchange for aid amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Trump, who last week threatened to ban TikTok over national security concerns, reversed course on Sunday and gave the two companies 45 days to reach a deal. He had said he was planning to ban TikTok, which is owned by Chinese internet giant ByteDance, amid concerns that its ownership represents a national security risk because of the personal data it handles. The proposed acquisition of TikTok, which boasts 100 millions American users, would offer Microsoft a rare opportunity to become a major competitor to social media giants such as Facebook Inc and Snap Inc. Microsoft also owns professional social media network LinkedIn. The about-face for Trump came after a discussion between him and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. The Washington-based tech giant said on Sunday it would continue negotiations to acquire TikTok from ByteDance and that it aimed to reach a deal by September 15. This is a deadline that was put to ByteDance and Microsoft by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which scrutinizes deals for potential national security risks, three sources told Reuters. Trump changed his mind following pressure from some of his advisers and many in his Republican party, one of the sources said. Banning TikTok would alienate many of its young users ahead of the US presidential election in November, and would likely trigger a wave of legal challenges. Several prominent Republican lawmakers put out statements in the last two days urging Trump to back a sale of TikTok to Microsoft. 'A win-win in the making,' Republican Senator Lindsey Graham tweeted in response to Trump's new stance on Sunday. The negotiations between ByteDance and Microsoft will be overseen by CFIUS, a US government panel that has the right to block any agreement, according to the sources. Microsoft cautioned in its statement that there is no certainty a deal will be reached. Microsoft added $77 billion in market value on Monday less than 24 hours after confirming it was in talks to buy the US arm of the popular Chinese-owned social media app TikTok WHAT DOES MICROSOFT STAND TO GAIN FROM BUYING THE US ARM OF TIKTOK? TikTok's catchy videos and ease of use has made it popular, and it says it has tens of millions of users in the U.S. and hundreds of millions globally. Its parent company, ByteDance acquired Shanghai-based video app Musical.ly in a $1 billion deal in 2017 and relaunched it as TikTok the following year. In its statement, $1.5 trillion company Microsoft said it may invite other American investors to participate on a minority basis in the purchase of TikTok. Financial terms were undisclosed. ByteDance was valued at as much as $140 billion earlier this year. Any deal with Microsoft to buy TikTok could be worth billions of dollars. It could also expose the company, which already owns Xbox, LinkedIn and Skype, to tech savvy teens. Advertisement 'Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President's concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury,' Microsoft's statement said. ByteDance and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Microsoft talks. In a statement issued late on Sunday that did not mention TikTok, ByteDance said it faced 'complex and unimaginable difficulties' in going global. As relations between the United States and China deteriorate over trade, Hong Kong's autonomy, cyber security and the spread of the novel coronavirus, TikTok has emerged as a flashpoint in the dispute between the world's two largest economies. State-backed newspaper China Daily on Monday called ByteDance the victim of a 'witch hunt' from the United States, and said Washington had not provided evidence to support its allegation that TikTok posed a threat to US national security. Under the proposed deal, Microsoft said it would take over TikTok's operations in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It said it would ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. Microsoft may invite other American investors to acquire minority stakes in TikTok, the company added. About 70 percent of the outside capital ByteDance has raised has come from the United States. It is not clear how much Microsoft could pay for TikTok. The proposed acquisition of TikTok, which boasts 100 millions American users, would offer Microsoft a rare opportunity to become a major competitor to social media giants such as Facebook Inc and Snap Inc HOW DOES TIKTOK WORK? Users post videos of themselves and broadcast them on the app Anyone can find these videos and post comments on them; it also allows you to message that person privately Some of the most popular videos are watched more than 10 million times Each TikTok video is generally 15 to 60 seconds long The videos are typically set to music, often showing the user dancing, doing a trick, or lip-syncing Advertisement Reuters reported last week that ByteDance's valuation expectations for the app exceeded $50 billion, although US pressure to divest it could lower that price tag. A key issue in the negotiations will be separating TikTok's technology from ByteDance's infrastructure and access, to alleviate US concerns about the integrity of personal data. ByteDance owns a Chinese short video app called Douyin that was based on the same code used for TikTok. One idea under consideration is to give Microsoft and ByteDance a transition period to develop technology for TikTok that will be completely separate from ByteDance, one of the sources said. Microsoft said it did not intend to provide further updates until there was a definitive outcome in the negotiations. The United States has been increasingly scrutinizing app developers over the personal data they handle, especially if some of it involves U.S. military or intelligence personnel. Ordering the divestment of TikTok would not be the first time the White House has taken action over such concerns. Earlier this year, Chinese gaming company Beijing Kunlun Tech Co Ltd sold Grindr LLC, a popular gay dating app it bought in 2016, for $620 million after being ordered by CFIUS to divest. In 2018, CFIUS forced China's Ant Financial to scrap plans to buy MoneyGram International Inc over concerns about the safety of data that could identify U.S. citizens. ByteDance was valued at as much as $140 billion earlier this year when one of its shareholders, Cheetah Mobile, sold a small stake in a private deal, Reuters has reported. The start-up's investors include Japan's SoftBank Group Corp. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Issam Ahmed (Agence France-Presse) Washington, United States Mon, August 3, 2020 11:06 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b20935 2 Science & Tech SpaceX,NASA,astronaut,space,united-states Free America's first crewed spaceship to fly to the International Space Station in nearly a decade returned safely to Earth on Sunday, splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico. The successful mission, carried out jointly by SpaceX and NASA, demonstrated that the United States has the capacity once more to send its astronauts to space and bring them back. The SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour splashed into the water off Pensacola, Florida at 2:48 pm (1848 GMT), trailed by its four main parachutes. It was the first water landing for a crewed US spaceship since the 1975 Apollo-Soyuz mission. "It's truly our honor and privilege," said pilot Doug Hurley, who was joined on the mission by commander Bob Behnken. "On behalf of the NASA and SpaceX teams, welcome back to planet Earth and thanks for flying SpaceX," replied SpaceX's Mike Heiman, to laughter in the control room. Said SpaceX founder Elon Musk after the astronauts were safely on land: "I'm not very religious but I prayed for this one." A number of civilian boats swarmed the landing zone as a recovery ship sped to the scorched capsule and hoisted it aboard with its crane. The hatch opening was briefly delayed as a team worked to stop a leak of rocket fuel vapor. Around an hour after splashdown, the astronauts exited the capsule and headed for shore on a helicopter. They were reunited with their families in Houston, where they walked off a plane -- in apparently good physical shape and upbeat spirits -- at a military base. Addressing a socially distanced welcome ceremony in a hangar, Behnken praised the SpaceX team behind the successful mission. "We definitely are old dogs and like some of our old tricks... (but) as we go forward to further activities, whether it's in lower orbit, to the moon or beyond, we need to figure out the best way to share what NASA knows with a contractor team and help them be as successful as possible." NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine also hailed collaboration with private companies. "We are entering a new era of human spaceflight, where NASA is no longer the purchaser, owner and operator of all the hardware," he told reporters. "This is really just the beginning: we are starting the journey of bringing people regularly to and from low Earth orbit, on to the Moon, and then ultimately on to Mars," added Gwynne Shotwell, president of SpaceX. Read also: SpaceX craft departs ISS for Earth Space autonomy President Donald Trump -- who had traveled to Florida for the capsule's launch two months ago -- hailed its safe return. "Thank you to all!" he tweeted. "Great to have NASA Astronauts return to Earth after very successful two month mission." The United States has had to rely on Russia for rides to space since the last Space Shuttle flew in 2011. The mission is also a huge win for Musk's SpaceX, which was founded in only 2002 but has leap-frogged its way past Boeing, its main competitor in the commercial space race. The US has paid the two companies a total of about $7 billion for their "space taxi" contracts, though aerospace giant Boeing's efforts have badly floundered. Atmospheric re-entry The Crew Dragon capsule performed several precisely choreographed sequences in order to return home safely. First, it jettisoned its "trunk" that contains its power, heat and other systems, which burned up in the atmosphere. Endeavour then fired its thrusters to maneuver itself into the proper orbit and trajectory for splashdown. As it re-entered the atmosphere at a speed of around 17,500 mph (28,000 kph), it experienced temperatures of 3,500 degrees Fahrenheit (1900 degrees Celsius). It deployed two sets of parachutes on its descent, bringing its speed down to a mere 15 mph as it hit the Gulf of Mexico. Read also: US astronauts enter space station in milestone mission Crew-1 The Endeavour's return marks only the beginning for the Crew Dragon as SpaceX and NASA look ahead to future missions. Endeavour will now undergo a six-week inspection to certify the vessel as worthy of future low-Earth orbit missions. The next mission -- dubbed "Crew-1" -- will involve a team of four: three NASA astronauts along with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency mission specialist Soichi Noguchi. Take-off is set for late September, and the crew are due to spend six months on the space station. Mr Samaraweera, please note that if you are willing to, attacking professionally competent and well-qualified officers is an ugly act. This is not a problem of the Sinhalese or any other ethnic group; it is a problem of the very existence of the country. Editorial The former head of State Intelligence Service of Sri Lanka has been the target of several baseless allegations. Some have called him a racist. Former Cabinet Minister Mangala Samaraweera has used his social media channel to teach the former intelligence chief how to carry out his duties. The Former minister states, IGP (Inspector General of Police ) must tell SDIG ( Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police ) Nilantha Jayawardena that the job of the police is not to count the ethnicity of students entering law college inflaming ethnic animosities but to fight crime and bring to book the drug barons and other criminals who have invaded key positions in the country . SDIG Nilantha Jayawardena ( File Photo) However, before Mr Samaraweera's criticism went public, some people used their social networks to make further invalid statements against former intelligence chief. It is noteworthy, to mention here that one of his coordinating secretaries were caught by the law enforcement agencies while carrying drugs when he was a cabinet minister. Mr Samaraweera has announced that he had resigned from parliamentary politics voluntarily. But by seeing some of his vacuous statements like the one above one could realize that it would have been better for the country if he had resigned from politics many years ago. The statement made by the head of the intelligence is based on an unusual development that took place at the Law College of Sri Lanka. However, some of the newspapers, in which his statement was reported, have taken off the essence of his message and carried out a half-cooked message. This is because most of the local media outfits are always tries to publish only the information that attracts the readers rather than the basic facts. This bad practice of journalism is not only diluted the essence of the true message but also socializes half-truth, as truth. The number of Muslim students who passed the Law Entrance Examination in 2010 has increased from 9 to 51 and 78 in 2011 and 2012 respectively. Nilantha Jayawardena testified at the Presidential Commission that this increase was unnatural. Muslim students have secured the first three places in the 2012 Law College Entrance Examination. Also, 6 out of the top 10 and 28 out of the top 50 were Muslim students and 20 Muslim students with adjacent exam numbers passed the exam, Mr Jayawardena has quoted a complaint that the police have received stating that this is more unusual than the previous pattern. It is the responsibility of the law enforcement agencies including the intelligence services to investigate such complaint. However, According to the media reports published in the past, Rauf Hakeem as well as Wijedasa Rajapaksa, both served as the Minister of Justice respectively, did their best to cover up this unusual development occurred in one of the major educational institutes in the country. Like many other political jesters, Mr Samaraweera too has captured Mr Jayewardene's statement on the surface and played his usual drama. It is understandable; Mr Samaraweera may not have been able to grasp the seriousness of this matter. This is because the subject of law and other theoretical subjects are different from fashion designing, which he has specialized. Therefore, he has (mis)understood Mr Jayewardene's statement as a childish statement and tried to advise Mr Jayawardenas superior on a subject he does not know. This is yet another attempt to underestimate the service of a professionally competent officer. We thought Mr Samaraweera is different from most of the other politicians who are doing everything but not politics. But, at last, Mr Samaraweera too proving he is no one but one among them. Isnt it important Mr Samaraweera to re-read the primary lessons of political dynamics before advising the intelligence services? Mr Samaraweera and others who represented his government sold good governance did their utmost to absolve themselves from responsibilities and place the blame for the Easter terrorist attacks on Mr Jayewardene. They have initiated a Parliamentary committee and appointed members who do not know about intelligence or national security to investigate the heinous crimes allegedly committed by Islamic extremists. It is a shameless subterfuge. As yet another step, Mr Samaraweera and his gang refer to the complaint about unusual development in the Law College is provoking racism. This is another practical application of the most obscene and hypocritical politics. In our understanding, the points made by Mr Jayewardene are significant. It is important to investigate them. Many similar cases have been reported in Western universities where some of the terrorist organizations used educational institutions in the West as tools to spread their hatred and extremist ideas. It was a covert project that was implemented with long-term objectives. The intelligence services in those countries have been investigated such deep social issues and substantiated the potential threats. In Sri Lanka, it is undeniable that the extremists have created and enforced their legal system and educational system while Mr Samaraweera and others, so-called the lovers of social coexisting singing the song of reconciliation in multiculturalism. Did Mr Samaraweera and his groups oppose when extremists in one ethnic ground are finding every reason to be excluded from common society instead of protecting and promoting inclusive society? Not! But, they did not leave any room to label all those who speak on the potential threats are as racists. As a result, the nation was severely divided. Will Mr Samarweera come out from the cage and loud for one law for everyone in the nation? Will he scream to abolish draconian laws implemented by some ethnic group to justify child marriage and undermine the rights of women? Will he launch another Sudu Nelum project to establish a single national education system is compulsory for every ethnic group in the country? Mr Samaraweera, please note that if you are willing to, attacking professionally competent and well-qualified officers is an ugly act. This is not a problem of the Sinhalese or any other ethnic group; it is a problem of the very existence of the country. It is a common responsibility to find a solution if there is any group of people who lie about living together during the daylight and throw every possible subterfuge to stay apart at night. To fulfil that responsibility, it is important to monitor the behaviour of society and its institutions. The empty arguments of politicians like Mr Samaraweera are maybe important for the dead world but certainly not for overcoming the prevailing social challenges. Mr Jayewardena's statements and the service he rendered can be attacked with various type of mocking arguments. They can also do everything they could to undermine his professional dignity. That is the nature of the so-called most educated people in Sri Lanka. But, none of these cowardly politicians or vile critics will take responsibility when the things he mentions affect society. Then the unarmed civilians will have to pay the price. BEIRUT Lebanons Foreign Minister Nassif Hitti resigned on Monday over what he described as lack of political will to reform as his nation wrestles with a financial crisis posing the biggest threat to stability since a 1975-1990 civil war. Foreign donors have made it clear there will be no aid until Beirut enacts long-stalled reforms to tackle state waste and corruption, root causes of the collapse. Talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have been put on hold amid a row over the scale of financial losses. Given the absence of an effective will to achieve structural, comprehensive reform which our society and the international community have urged us to do, I have decided to resign," Hitti said in a statement. I took part in this government to work for one boss called Lebanon, then I found in my country multiple bosses and contradicting interests," he said. If they do not come together in the interest of rescuing the Lebanese people, God forbid, the ship will sink with everyone on it." Hitti, a former Lebanese ambassador to the Arab League, was named foreign minister in January when Prime Minister Hassan Diab took office with the support of the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement and its allies. His decision to quit was also driven by differences with Diab, especially after a recent visit by Frances foreign minister, and frustration at being sidelined, sources close to the ministry earlier told Reuters. Diab appeared to criticise French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian for tying any aid to reforms and an IMF deal on his visit to Beirut last month. The state entered talks with the IMF in May after defaulting on its hefty foreign currency debt. But hopes of salvation through an IMF deal have been put on hold in the absence of reforms and amid differences between the government and banks over the financial losses. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director Park Jie-won attends a joint meeting at the National Assembly, July 30, a day after he was officially appointed to the position. Yonhap By Yi Whan-woo The country's new spy chief Park Jie-won has continued to be active on social media even after he was officially appointed to the job, July 29, fueling security concerns over exposing his location and activities at any given time. A veteran politician, Park has also been posting his thoughts on current affairs, which political analysts find inappropriate considering the nature of his job. "A spy chief is supposed to be out of public sight except for special circumstances and Park appears to be unaccustomed to this so far," Shin Yul, a political science professor at Myongji University, said Monday. The professor pointed out how Park mentioned his private schedule on Facebook, Sunday. He wrote he postponed his plans to visit victims of the recent heavy rain to instead go to church with his wife for a Sunday worship service. This came after he said he would refrain from posting on social media after he was nominated as director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS) by President Moon Jae-in, July 3. He then said keeping away from social media is "being faithful" as the nominee. "He can jeopardize his life by exposing his schedule impulsively," Shin said. "And he does not seem to be sensitive about the matter." The professor added that Park's additional comment on Sunday, in relation to victims of the torrential rains, was contrary to the nature of his job. In his Sunday Facebook post, Park wrote a message conveying his condolences to the victims of mass flooding and mudslides amid heavy downpour across the country. "Again, this is something very common to what a politician can do, but not for the NIS director," Shin said. "From now on, he should learn to keep his journal private." Park, 78, spent almost 30 years as a politician and government official, including serving as chief of staff to late President Kim Dae-jung. News Release Basel, August 03, 2020 HY 2020 impacted by Covid-19, Dufry accelerates re-opening and drives business re-organization Turnover reached CHF 1,586.9million impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, equal to -60.6% year-on-year organic growth, with resilient gross profit margin at 58.0%, adjusted operating cash flow of CHF -103.5 million, and equity free cash flow of CHF - 749.1 million Comprehensive action plan implemented including fix cost savings of CHF 469.7 million in first half 2020, targeted fix cost savings of around CHF 1 billion for full-year 2020, and strengthened financial structure with CHF 1,583.7 million pro-forma liquidity position as of June 30, 2020 [1] [1] Having aligned the organization to different full-year 2020 turnover scenarios, with an expected average monthly cash flow in second half 2020 of ~CHF +60 million in a -40% scenario, ~CHF +10 million in a -55% scenario, and ~CHF -60 million in a -70% scenario Current re-organization initiatives to reduce complexity and simplify decision-making, thus driving the company's profitability and preparing growth acceleration Passenger flows gradually returning since mid-June, resulting in -82.3% organic growth in July 2020 compared to same month of previous year Limited visibility on mid-term recovery trajectory, with industry forecasts of returning to 2019 levels from 2022 onwards Julian Diaz, CEO of Dufry Group, commented: "This is certainly a difficult time for both, the travel retail industry and our company. However, since mid-June we have started to see first signs towards a recovery, with travel resuming gradually and more than 1,000 of our shops globally in operation again at the end of July, based on our shop-by-shop re-opening plan. In the first half-year 2020, we have implemented a whole array of initiatives to adapt the company to the new market environment and safeguard its resilience going forward. These include measures to reduce costs at all levels, several activities to strengthen Dufry's financial structure, as well as a restructuring of the company and the implementation of a new simplified organization as per September 1, 2020. I am confident that we have taken the right initiatives and that they will help us to emerge from the crisis with a solid position. During the recovery and going forward the increased agility and faster decision making processes will allow us to adapt swiftly to the new and changing market requirements, drive sales and accelerate growth. By taking out one organizational level, the teams covering our global functions and the countries will increase efficiency and get closer to the market and our customers. I would also like to express my personal gratitude to our employees for their commitment during these difficult times. Without their strong support and dedication, the fast adaptation of the company and the changes applied would not have been possible. I also want to remember the colleagues we lost as a consequence of the pandemic and I wish a full recovery to our employees who were infected. We have taken all necessary steps to provide our employees with a safe working environment. Our health and safety protocols are an integral part of our stores globally to also protect our customers, while we continue to provide them with a first-class shopping experience. We see that passengers want to engage in travel retail as soon as airports and other locations are re-opening. We are looking forward to serving our customers globally with great service and attractive promotions. Our gratitude also goes to our shareholders, as well as all our business partners and stakeholders, who continue supporting the company on an ongoing basis and with renewed and strong relationships." FINANCIAL SUMMARY[2] During the first six months of the year, Dufry's performance was impacted by the unprecedented level of disruption of retail operations, globally driven by international travel restrictions implemented by governments worldwide and operational shut-downs of airports, cruise lines and other channels. In CHF million HY 2020 HY 2019 Var. Turnover 1,586.9 4,180.1 -62.0% Gross Profit Margin 58.0% 60.2% -2.20 (retail only: -0.6) Lease expenses -75.7 -633.8 -88.1% thereof MAG Relief 161.8 - - Personnel expenses -423.0 -618.6 -31.6% Other expenses, net -168.9 -281.2 -39.9% Depreciation, Amortization and Impairment -1,185.5 -858.4 38.1% Operating Profit (EBIT) -932.6 123.1 -1,055.7 Net profit to Equity Holders -903.2 -107.3 -795.9 Basic EPS -17.41 -2.15 -15.3 Adjusted Operating Profit (Adj. EBIT) -464.6 277.0 -741.6 Adjusted Operating cash flow -103.5 409.0 -512.5 Lease Payments, net -284.0 -598.2 -52.5% Capex -60.0 -125.3 -52.1% NWC Changes -473.9 -16.8 -457.1 Equity free cash flow -749.1 140.4 -889.5 Net Debt 3,659.4 3,291.3 11.2% TURNOVER Turnover in the first six months of 2020 reached CHF 1,586.9 million versus CHF 4,180.1 million in the same period in 2019, representing a decrease of -62.0%. Organic growth was -60.6%, with like-for-like performance reaching -57.6% due to the lower passenger traffic across most airports globally and contributions from net new concessions amounting to -3.0%. The translational FX effect in the period was -1.4% as a result of the strengthening of the Swiss Franc versus the main currencies USD, EUR, GPB. In regard to channels, 85.1% of net sales were generated at airports, a slight decline compared to HY 2019 (88.1%), whereas other channels have gained importance, especially railway stations, border, downtown and hotel shops. Product mix remained relatively stable with perfumes & cosmetics, food & confectionery and wine & spirits being the predominant categories. The duty-free vs. duty-paid split remained stable, representing 60.2% and 39.8% of net sales respectively. Turnover Growth HY '20 HY '19 Like for Like -57.6% -0.6% New concessions, net -3.0% 2.8% Organic Growth -60.6% 2.2% Change in Scope[3] 0.0% - Growth in constant FX -60.6% 2.2% FX Impact -1.4% -0.2% Reported Growth -62.0% 2.0% REGIONAL PERFORMANCE Europe & Africa Turnover in the region was CHF 558.9 million in the first six months of 2020 from CHF 1,725.5 million one year ago. Organic growth in the division reached -66.1% in the period. Performance was negative across most locations. Performance in Africa was negative as well but to a lesser degree. From mid-June 2020 onwards, travel restrictions were lifted or eased and intra-European travel, especially in Southern and Central Europe as well as the UK, started to resume. Asia-Pacific (APAC) & Middle East Turnover amounted to CHF 236.0 million in the first half of 2020, versus CHF 623.8 million in the same period in 2019. Organic growth reached -60.4% with China and South Korea being impacted especially during Q1 2020, but resuming domestic and bilateral travel in Q2. Other parts of Asia-Pacific and especially in the Middle East region were impacted mainly in the second quarter, and are still continuing to be impacted with a low level of open shops. North America Turnover reached CHF 392.2 million compared to CHF 954.5 million in the first half of 2019. Organic growth was -57.9% in the period with a slowdown in both sectors duty-free and duty-paid, but especially in duty-free, which is exposed to international flight schedules. Domestic travel, which accounts for around 85% of the US flight movements, started to resume, while the Canadian business was still impacted by international travel restrictions. The North American business started an initiative through its Hudson brand to rollout vending machines featuring health and safety products across 27 leading airports in North America. Central & South America Turnover was CHF 329.6 million in the first half of 2020 as compared to CHF 761.8 million one year earlier, with organic growth coming in at -55.6%. The division was the least impacted during the first semester, as most restrictions in the region only started in the second quarter. The cruise business, mainly part of Central & South America Division, performed in line with the overall division, despite cancellation of cruise itineraries as staff were still based on ships and high season would only have started later in the year. Domestic travel, as well as border shopping and international flights within the region remained possible at limited levels, whereas most international travel outside the region was restricted. The divisional turnover split saw Europe & Africa contributing 36%, APAC & Middle East 15%, North America 25% and Central & South America 21%. Global distribution centers accounted for 3% of HY 2020 net sales. Turnover, in CHF million HY 2020 HY 2019 Reported Growth Organic Growth Europe & Africa 558.9 1,725.5 -67.6% -66.1% Asia Pacific and Middle East 236.0 623.8 -62.2% -60.4% North America 392.2 954.5 -58.9% -57.9% Central and South America 329.6 761.8 -56.7% -55.6% Distribution Centers 70.2 114.5 -38.6% - Dufry Group 1,586.9 4,180.1 -62.0% -60.6% BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT With respect to business development, Dufry slowed down its refurbishment program to reduce its capital expenditures, without however, compromising on its re-opening and growth acceleration opportunities. Shops in London (UK), Athens, Thessaloniki (GR), Macau (CN), Los Angeles, New York (US) and Guayaquil (ECU), among others, were renewed, accounting for 6,350 m or 1.4% of overall retail space operated by Dufry. The company also continued expanding its operations and opening new shops, with most space increases executed during January and the first weeks of February. Important locations include Helsinki (FIN), Perth (AUS), Indianapolis (US), Calgary (CA) and Florianopolis, in the South of Brazil. The total gross retail space opened during the half-year 2020 accounted for 2,850 m or 0.6% of overall retail space operated by Dufry. Refurbished and newly opened shops engage customer interest, drive more footfall and improve profitability. FINANCIAL RESULTS Gross Profit margin (GPM) Gross Profit reached CHF 920.5 million in the first six months of 2020 compared to CHF 2,515.1 million in the previous year, with the Gross Profit margin declining by 220 base points and reaching 58.0% from 60.2% in the previous year. Margin was mainly affected by the turnover mix from the retail and whole-sale business. Retail-related gross profit margin was only 60 base points lower compared to full-year 2019 despite the sales decline during the second quarter. Gross profit margin remained resilient supported by the collaboration between Dufry and its suppliers and is expected to normalize with business recovery. Adjusted Operating Profit (Adjusted EBIT) Adjusted Operating Profit (adjusted EBIT) reached CHF -464.6 million in the first six months of 2020 versus CHF 277.0 million the same period of 2019. Lease expenses amounted to CHF -75.7 million in the first half of 2020 compared to CHF -633.8 million in HY 2019 (-88.1% compared to the same period last year). Expenses decreased due to the lower level of sales and due to Covid-19 related minimal guaranteed amounts (MAG) reliefs negotiated with airport authorities and landlords in the first semester. MAG reliefs refer to waiving of fixed rent components and implementing variable concession schemes instead, or to adjusting fixed MAGs to lower passenger numbers, scheduled flights and operating hours. Up to June 30, 2020, Dufry was able to close several agreements releasing partially or totally about CHF 161.8 millions of MAG. Meanwhile, the management remains in negotiations with other lessors reviewing the lease terms, in order to accommodate these according to the market circumstances beyond June 30, 2020 created by Covid-19. In relation to these on-going negotiations, Dufry has already received offers granting further MAG relieves in relation to the first half of 2020 for CHF 137.0 million, which, if and when such rent concessions are signed, will result in a de-recognition of lease obligations in the same amount. Personnel Expenses amounted to CHF -423.0 million in the half-year 2020 from CHF -618.6 million one year earlier, representing a decrease of CHF 195.6 million (-31.6% compared to the same period last year) driven by the efficiency program, which includes reducing costs at all levels, making use of government support schemes whenever possible, as well as the implementation of voluntary salary reduction schemes, also supported by Dufry's Global Executive Committee and Board of Directors. Personnel Expenses include CHF -62.7 million for restructuring and CHF 34.4 million from various government support schemes. Other Expenses net reached CHF -168.9 million in the first six months of 2020 versus CHF -281.2 million in the same period last year. The decrease by CHF 112.3 million (-39.9% compared to the same period last year) reflects the initiative to reduce as much as possible all operating expenses and other cost items. Depreciation, amortization and impairment amounted to CHF -1,185.5 million in HY 2020 versus CHF -858.4 million last year. The increase is related to the recognition of impairments on intangible assets due to the Covid-19 pandemic, when Dufry had to close the vast majority of its shops, impacting the turnover forecasted for the year. Net Profit Net Profit to Equity Holders reached CHF -903.2 million in the first six months of 2020 versus CHF -107.3 million in the same period last year. Financial Results (excluding Lease Interest and FX) amounted to CHF -72.3 million versus CHF -62.9 million in the previous period. Interest paid decreased due to the refinancing of senior note s in November 2019. These effects are partially offset by changes in margins for amended and new facilities, one-off expenses related to the different financing measures taken by Dufry in HY 2020, as well as lower interest income. Income tax reached CHF 40.4 million versus CHF -35.0 million last year. The tax income was mainly driven by the loss situation of most of our operations. Minorities were CHF 101.4 million for the HY 2020 versus CHF -21.2 million last year. Adjusted Net Profit reached CHF -582.2 million in the half-year 2020 versus CHF 65.7 million last year. The respective Adjusted Earnings per Share (EPS) was CHF -11.22 in the period versus 1.32 in the previous year. Cash Flow Cash flow metrics were also impacted by the lower level of sales. Adjusted operating cash flow reached CHF -103.5 million in the first six months of 2020 compared to the CHF 409.0 million in HY 2019. Net lease payments amounted to CHF -284.0 million versus CHF -598.2 million last year. Overall concession fees, i.e. variable components such as lease expenses and fixed components such as lease payments, were CHF -521.5 million, representing a reduction of 57.7% compared to HY 2019. The reduction was mainly driven by reliefs received from landlords and other operational closures for the period. Changes in working capital reached CHF -473.9 million in HY 2020, compared to CHF -16.8 million in HY 2019; changes in core working capital amounted to CHF -173.7 million compared to CHF 19.1 million in HY 2019. The main drivers for the variation were the decrease in trade payables, due to lower purchase levels and the 2019 comparative base, as well as other accounts payable due to a decrease in accrued concession fee payables. Inventories increased by CHF 30.1 million due to limited changes in inventory levels based on shop closures. Capex was significantly reduced from CHF 125.3 million in HY 2019 to CHF 60.0 million in HY 2020, as the company put Capex investment on hold as much as possible since March 2020. Equity Free Cash Flow stood at CHF -749.1 million in the first half-year 2020 compared to CHF 140.4 million in the previous year. Cash consumption during the first six months 2020 amounted to CHF 708.7 million. Cash outflow in Q1 was mainly attributable to concession fee payments, inventory build and tax, whereas in Q2 cash consumption could be significantly reduced. Dufry achieved overall fix cost savings of CHF 469.7 million in the half-year 2020. Net Debt and liquidity position In April, Dufry announced a comprehensive set of initiatives to strengthen its capital structure and liquidity position to support the company, thus allowing it to sustain a prolonged period of operational disruptions and reinforce its competitive positioning in the longer term: New 12-month committed credit facility of CHF 390 million with two 6-months extensions Access to CHF 142.6 million of different Covid-19-related government-backed loans (as of 31 July 2020) Successful placement of 5,000,000 new shares out of existing authorized capital, corresponding to 9.9% of Dufry's current issued share capital, and 500,000 treasury shares, generating gross proceeds of CHF 151.3 million Placement of CHF 350 million in senior bonds due 2023, conditionally convertible into shares, with maturity on May 4, 2023 Agreement with banks to waive the existing financial covenants of 4.5x net debt/adjusted operating cash flow (LTM/constant FX) until end of June 2021 and assign a higher leverage covenant of 5x net debt/adjusted operating cash flow (LTM/constant FX) for the September and December 2021 testing periods In addition, Dufry recommended to shareholders to cancel the 2020 dividend to reduce short-term cash outflows in this unprecedented situation; the motion was granted by the Annual General Meeting. In total, the new financing measures improved Dufry's liquidity position from CHF 1,258.5 million as of December 31, 2019 to CHF 1,583.7 million as of June 30, 2020 (pro-forma[4]). Net Debt amounted to CHF 3,659.4 million at the end of June 2020 compared to CHF 3,101.9 million at the end of December 2019. RE-ORGANIZATION In June, Dufry announced a re-organization and restructuring program to adapt its organization to the new business environment and to accelerate growth and support profitability during the recovery phase of the economic crisis and beyond. The re-organization includes the integration of headquarters and divisions, the simplification of the first management level and the introduction of a new, reduced Global Executive Committee to reflect the new reality of the business. The implementation is progressing in line with the plan, with the new organizational structure to become effective as of September 1, 2020, while the restructuring is expected to be completed by October 2020. Dufry expects restructuring related one-off costs of CHF 62.7 million, which were already provisioned in half-year 2020. OUTLOOK Giving the current context and the low visibility to provide business forecasts, the company had already withdrawn guidance for full-year 2020 in its Q1 Trading Update in May. Dufry has defined cost containment measures for different scenarios based on turnover development in 2020 and information made available by different associations and independent data providers of the travel retail and airline industry. The scenarios consider a -40%, -55%, and -70% turnover decline for full-year 2020 compared to full-year 2019, and are used to steer the company through a time of uncertainty and implement necessary action plans to reach required cost reductions, safeguard liquidity and re-open the business in a cash-preserving way. The scenarios do not represent a company guidance. In this context, Dufry implemented several measures to reduce cash outflows to a minimum, which are tightly controlled by a dedicated team at Group level. These initiatives include reductions in concession fees, personnel expenses and general expenses in line with the above mentioned turnover scenarios. As of today, Dufry expects to generate around CHF 1 billion in fix cost savings in full-year 2020, thereof CHF 299 million in MAG reliefs. In addition, actions are taken at Capex and working capital level, with expected cash savings of around CHF 160 million in the full-year 2020. During the re-opening in the second half 2020 and depending on the recovery trajectory, Dufry expects positive average monthly cash flow of around CHF +60 million in a -40% scenario and around CHF +10 million in a -55% scenario, and cash consumption of around CHF -60 million in a -70% scenario. Cash consumption is including personnel and operational expenses, working capital changes, capital expenditures, interest and other finance expenses, as well as tax payments. Since mid-June, travel restrictions have been increasingly lifted and domestic and international travel started to resume, especially in Asia, Europe, and the US. Dufry started to re-open its retail operations gradually, based on single-location productivity scenarios and in close cooperation with airport authorities and landlords. More than 1,000 of Dufry's 2,400 shops globally have opened up again, representing around 60% in sales capacity compared to full-year 2019, including key locations such as the UK, Spain, Switzerland, Mexico, US, Turkey, Russia, Hong Kong, India, Cambodia, South Korea and Kuwait. In the first four weeks of July (until July 26, 2020), organic growth reached -82.3% compared to the same period last year. At the end of August, Dufry expects to operate around 50% of shops, representing 70% of sales capacity. Based on sales progression and customer insights Dufry expects to be well positioned for the reopening and business recovery both from a commercial and operational perspective. Current re-organization initiatives are further strengthening the airport travel retail business and other channels, thus driving the company's profitability and preparing growth acceleration. For further information, please contact: Dr. Kristin Kohler Renzo Radice Global Head Investor Relations Phone: +41 61 266 44 22 Mobile: +41 79 563 18 09 Global Head Corporate Communications & Public Affairs Phone: +41 61 266 44 19 kristin.koehler@dufry.com renzo.radice@dufry.com Dufry Group - A leading global travel retailer Dufry AG (SIX: DUFN) is the leading global travel retailer operating over 2,400 duty-free and duty-paid shops in airports, cruise lines, seaports, railway stations and downtown tourist areas, in more than 420 locations in 65 countries across all six continents. The Company generated CHF 8.8bn sales in 2019, achieving a gross profit margin of 60.2% and an equity free cash flow of CHF 383 million by profitably operating 470,000 sqm of retail space. The Company, founded in 1865 and headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, is offering customers a first-class shopping experience, global brands a unique market access and landlords a reliable, value-enhancing partnership. Social Responsibility Dufry cares for children and supports social projects from SOS Kinderdorf in Brazil, Cambodia, Mexico, Morocco and Ivory Coast. SOS Children's Villages is an independent, non-political and non-demonstrational organization established for orphaned and destitute children all over the world. [1]Pro-forma liquidity as of June 30, 2020 including Covid-19 related government-backed loans granted until July 2020. [2] Adjusted results exclude exceptional expenses and income such as acquisitions and divestitures, impairments and amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets, as well as recurring solely IFRS 16 accounting-related items such as interest on lease obligations. Please see the details on pages I-IIof the Half-Year Results 2020 Financial Report and page 270 of the 2019 Annual Report. [3] No changes in overall retail space ("scope"), as positive contribution of the acquisitions of RegStaer Vnukovo (Russia) and the Brookstone airport stores (US), conducted in November and October 2019 respectively, offset by disposals. [4]Including all Covid-19-related government-backed loans granted until July 31, 2020, amounting to CHF 142.6 million. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 02:41:10|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close JERUSALEM, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that his plan to annex portions of the Israeli-occupied West Bank "isn't off the table" yet. "The issue of West Bank annexation resides with Washington," he told a meeting of his right-wing Likud faction. "It is not yet off the table. The option still remains," he said. Netanyahu set July 1 as the starting date for his controversial plan to annex the Jordan Valley, an area in the occupied West Bank. As the deadline slipped after the White House did not give a green light, Netanyahu said discussions with U.S. teams will continue. The Palestinians and most of the international community have condemned the plan and consider it a violation of international law. Enditem The Trump administrations 'testing czar' says its 'time to move on' from hydoxychloroquine after President Donald Trump returned to tout the drug as a possible cure for COVID-19. Brett Giroir, the nations assistant secretary for health who coordinates the administrations coronavirus testing, doubled down on Sunday that there is no evidence the antimalarial drug is an 'effective' treatment for virus. Giroir debunked new theories supporting hydroxychloroquine saying scientific experts agree its not a solution to the respiratory disease that has infected more than 4.6million and killed over 154,000. 'Most physicians and prescribers are evidence-based and theyre not influenced by whatever is on Twitter or anything else. And the evidence just does not show hydroxychloroquine is effective right now,' he said on Meet the Press on Sunday. Though he didn't name Trump it was a direct jab at the president who last week went on a Twitter spree praising the drug as a therapy for the virus. Assistant Secretary for Health Brett Giroir debunked new theories about hydroxychloroquine saying the drug is not 'effective' in treating COVID-19 during an interview on Meet the Press on Sunday When asked about the drug Giroir said it's time to 'move on' from debating the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine and the medical community agrees it's not effective in treating the virus 'At this point in time, there has been five randomized controlled, placebo controlled trials that do not show any benefit to hydroxychloroquine. So, at this point in time, we don't recommend that as a treatment,' he explained. 'Hydroxychloroquine, I cant recommend that,' he added. When pushed on the drug, Giroir said the public needs to stop focusing on it when there are other effective therapies already in place. 'We need to move on from that and talk about what is effective,' Giroir said. 'We know that if you get COVID-19 now your chances of dying are incredibly less than it is in April because our health care providers know how to treat it better. We have effective therapies like Remdesivir and steroids, promising therapy like immune plasma and a vaccine really on the horizon,' he added. Giroir touted effective measures as hand washing and wearing masks in public. He also noted that the use of steroids in treatment has reduced the virus mortality rate by 30 percent. Though Giroir didn't name the president directly, his comments squashed the president's endorsement of the drug. Just last week he went on a Twitter spree sharing posts supporting the antimalarial drug and a video of a doctor praising the drug as a 'cure' to the pandemic Mend Urgent Care workers wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) perform drive-up COVID-19 testing at Central City Value High School on July 31 in Los Angeles, California. Mend Urgent Care workers wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) perform drive-up COVID-19 testing at Central City Value High School on July 31 in Los Angeles, California A person is tested for the coronavirus Tuesday, July 28 at Cesar Chavez City Park in Phoenix In recent days President Trump has reignited his vocal support for hydroxychloroquine despite dissent from the medical community. Last week he retweeted a video of a controversial Houston-area doctor who argued that the drug was a 'cure' for the virus. Twitter removed the video calling it 'in violation of our COVID-19 misinformation policy.' Twitter also temporarily suspended the account of Donald Trump Jr for sharing the same clip. Dr. Anthony Fauci said the video was 'spouting something that isnt true.' Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, also condemned the president's assessment in a Fox News interview Thursday. 'We know in the randomized controlled trials to date and there's been several of them that there's not evidence that it [hydroxychloroquine] improves those patients' outcomes. Whether they have mild, moderate disease or whether they're seriously ill in the hospital,' she said. Trump defended sharing that clip during a White House press briefing on Wednesday saying, 'I happen to be a believer in hydroxy. I used it. I had no problem. I happen to be a believer. Many, many people agree with me.' Last week Trump retweeted two videos of Dr. Stella Immanuel speaking in front of the US Capitol where she claimed anti-malaria drug hydroxycloroquine is effective in treating COVID-19, despite other medical research disproving that In May he took the unproven treatment for two weeks claiming it helped keep the virus at bay. But as the pandemic continued, medical experts backed away from the anti-malarial. The Food and Drug administration briefly issued the drug an emergency use authorization, but withdrew that authorization in June. They removed it reasoning that clinical trial of hospitalized patients found the medicine showed no benefit for recovery or decreasing the likelihood of death. In May the World Health Organization stopped its hydroxychloroquine trial. The National Institutes for Health similarly halted their trial in June after determining it provided 'no benefit' in the patients studied. Description GIS 03 August 2020: The salvage team and the first tug, PSV Stanford Hawk, are currently in Mauritius since July 30 for the salvage exercise of the Wakashio Ship of the Okiyo Maritime Corporation / Nagashiki Shipping Co. Ltd, that has been grounded on 25 July 2020 at Pointe dEsny after having left China for Brazil with the last port of stop at Singapore. All crew members of the Wakashio Ship as well as the salvage team were subject to Covid test for which the results are negative. After clearance from the Prime Ministers Office to leave the Port as well as from the Ministry of Health and Wellness, for sanitary measures the salvage team will be allowed to leave Port-Louis for Pointe dEsny. These details were given on 31st July by the Minister of Environment, Solid waste Management and Climate change, Mr, Kavydass Ramano, during a joint press conference with the Minister of Blue Economy, Marine Resources, Fisheries and Shipping, Mr, Sudheer Maudhoo, in Port-Louis to shed light on the current situation regarding the salvage exercise to be conducted for the grounding of MV Wakashio at Pointe DEsny. He further stated that after clearance from the above-mentioned authorities , the PSV Standford Hawk will proceed to the casualty site at Pointe dEsny and the Salvage team led by Captain Lars Tesmar, will start an assessment of the works to be undertaken before proceeding to the salvage operation. Minister Ramano, reassured the population that following the incident, the National Environmental Laboratory (NEL) effected a first sampling exercise of coastal water quality on Sunday 26 July 2020, from Pointe dEsny to Blue Bay to assess the presence of oil and as at date no oil spill has been observed. He further pointed out that the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan was also activated on 26 July 2020 under the chairmanship of the Director of Environment and since then four meetings have been conducted to analyse and assess the situation. He added that a regular monitoring programme has been established and includes sites from Mahebourg to Blue Bay whereby indicative parameters such as, acidity, temperature, Dissolved Oxygen, Oil and Grease and Total Hydrocarbons are being analysed. Minister Ramano, also announced that 332 m booms have been deployed by the National Coast Guard at the entrance of the Blue Bay Marine Park by the Polyeco Society which is arranging for another 500m of fence booms alongside the front of the vessel as a precautionary measure . Moreover, he underlined that testing of sea water quality is being maintained on a daily basis by the NEL and that as at 31 July 2020 no presence of oil and grease was detected. NEL has collected seawater samples at 5 locations namely NCG post, Blue Bay public beach, Pointe dEsny beach, Pte Jerome and Mahebourg waterfront, he said. For his part, the Minister of Blue Economy, Marine Resources, Fisheries and Shipping, Mr, Sudheer Maudhoo spoke about the necessary and immediate actions being undertaken by his Ministry since the grounding of Wakashio among which, daily monitoring by a coordination committee to oversee the situation. He further stated that Rogers Shipping Ltd has been designated to represent the owners of Wakashio and the Salvage company which is the Smit Salvage Pty Ltd. In addition to the first tug the PSV Stanford Hawk which is already in Mauritius, he pointed out that a second tug from Fujairah will reach Mauritius on 03 August followed by a fourth tug on 10 August. He reassured the population as well as all the stakeholders that government is taking all necessary precautionary measures to prevent any kind of pollution at sea especially with the proximity of the Blue Bay Marine Park. He informed that an enquiry has already started to determine the cause of the grounding and that a first preliminary report of the findings is expected in 2 months and from there the ministry will proceed with the insurance claim. Regarding the 52 fishermen in the region that are affected by the situation, he added that his ministry will compile a list of all those concerned for insurance claim. At the end of June, ukrainian orthopaedic surgeons performed an operation to install the Most transpedicular spine stabilization system to 15-year-old Kirill from Kharkiv, who was diagnosed with stage four idiopathic scoliosis. My son was diagnosed with a severe form of scoliosis at the end of 2018. When the doctors said that Kirill needed an expensive operation using special equipment I was literally shocked, because I didnt know where to go and what to do. That amount of money was really huge for me, even more, I didnt know any specialists who would be able to perform the operation with high standards. Without the operation my son would have remained disabled for the whole life, told the boys mother Tamara. Later, she learned about the Renaissance Medico international charitable foundation, which was founded by ukrainian businessman Vladimir Manukian. The foundation supports scientific developments, the production of special medical equipment and also actively cooperates with the Kharkiv scientific enterprise Vostok-N, which has been producing fixation systems for replacing bone defects since 1997. Vostok-N also produces specialized systems for stabilization of the spine which called Most, this system is very effective for children, because it literally grows with them. The principle of the Most system is as follows: the child grows, his spine is gradually pulled up and pulls the sliding part of the metal rods due to the thread. With the help of the Renaissance Medico, Tamara ordered a special spinal stabilization system for Kirill and also raised money for the operation. The operation was successful and now Kirill is undergoing rehabilitation. Unfortunately, such operations are often required. The reasons can be very different: from congenital features to injuries. Therefore, knowing the urgency of the problem, Vostok-N developed special systems for stabilizing the spine. They have been used for several years now and have proven themselves excellent. Frankly speaking, it is a great pleasure to see how our developments help people return a full life, said Vladimir Manukian. He also added that Vostok-N together with Sytenko Institute of Spine and Joint Pathology created a number of other unique technologies that help people with severe disease of the musculoskeletal system. Renaissance Medico is trying to support the production of unique titanium implants, which are really needed in the field of cardiac surgery, oncology, prosthetics, neurosurgery, dentistry and even military surgery. We are working on improving our developments and expanding the areas in which they can be applied. No doubts, we would like to help everyone who applies to the Renaissance Medico. I can assure that we will not disregard any appeal and will do everything we can to help people, concluded Manukian. Hindutva leader Sambhaji Bhide on Monday said the idol of Lord Ram in the proposed temple at Ayodhya should have a moustache. The 'bhoomi pujan' of the Ram temple is scheduled to be held on Wednesday at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to be attend the ceremony. Talking to speaking to reporters in adjoining Sangli, he said, "I have asked Govind Giriji Maharaj (a trustee of the temple trust) that the statues of Ram, Laxman you are going to install should have a moustache. "If you are not rectifying the mistakes (of not having a moustache to idols of Lord Ram ) then for a devotee of Lord Ram like me, even if the temple is built, it would be of no use." Bhide said before starting the "bhoomi pujan" (ground-breaking) ceremony at the temple site, an image of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj should be worshipped. Bhide, who heads Shri Shivpratishthan Hindustan, appealed to people to celebrate the August 5 event of 'bhoomi pujan' for the temple on the lines of Diwali and Dussehra. Speaking about NCP chief Sharad Pawar's recent statement that some people think building a temple will help eradicate the COVID-19 pandemic, Bhide said the veteran politician is a respected figure and should not have made that statement. "In fact, he (Pawar) should go for the 'bhoomi pujan' ceremony even if he has not been invited. He will represent entire Maharashtra over there," Bhide said. live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More When SpiceJet declared its Q4 and full-year results last week, the focus quickly shifted on the auditors remark of significant doubt over the entity being a going concern. This was quickly followed by news of the Airports Authority of India pushing the airline on Cash & Carry mode before reversing the decision. This comes within days of the airline intimating the stock market about being designated carrier for the UK and USA. The continuation of a cap on fares and capacity, along with the lack of demand uptick puts a serious question mark on the industrys ability to continue as before, with more stress on airlines like SpiceJet who have accumulated losses. While airlines have looked at ways to reduce costs by Leave Without pay (LWP) and salary cuts, except SpiceJet, every airline is backed by a group which has interests in other businesses. While Air India is backed by the government, IndiGo is partly backed by InterGlobe group, Vistara and AirAsia India has a majority holding with the TATAs and GoAir is from the stable of Wadia group which has diverse interests. A unique airline promoter Even smaller airlines like Star Air and Trujet have promoter groups with diverse interests. That leaves only SpiceJetto not have a set of businesses at the back to fund or raise cash when the need arises. While this is worrisome, this could also act as a catalyst for a fight for survival. Worrisome facts SpiceJet has a cash balance of less than Rs 50 crore. This is a small percentage of what market leader IndiGo has on its books. The airline has also admitted that it has deferred some payment to various parties including vendors and expressed inability to determine all such cost and penalties. With a low cash balance and unclear revenue stream, the future does look bleak. In what could be a deja vu, the company has a negative net worth of Rs 1,579.2 crore as of March 31, 2020. Ironically, the company has nearly been there with a negative net worth of Rs 1,485 crore as at March 31, 2015 - the first quarter after it changed hands, coming out of the near-death experience in December 2014. However, the net worth could further decline by over Rs 700 crore if the Boeing compensation is left out. What could be the way out? If the airline has to take a path which doesnt end up as it did for Jet Airways, it would require sustained efforts to attract investors or raise cash. There have been airlines that have raised cash even during COVID times and have come out of administration! But this only solves half the problem. The other half is to reduce cash to ensure that the current levels of cash burn are taken care of and the airline doesnt land up in the same situation, again! Network re-jigs: With pressure on revenue and yields, the obvious area to focus on is the network. The airline has the approval to fly to 48 stations in India as per summer schedule, of which eight are such where there are only one or two departures a day. SpiceJet operates 113 aircraft in passenger service. Compare that to IndiGo which operates 250+ aircraft, to nearly 60 airports in the country with nine of them seeing one or two departures a day. The focus clearly should be on strengthening the presence and letting go of places where the airline has a limited presence. This helps in reducing costs, improving market presence and attracting more business. Focus on cargo: For every airline in the country, the competition from IndiGo is for real. With little to differentiate and IndiGos cost structure getting more and more difficult to match, the mantra could be diversification. The airline, only recently, started bifurcating revenue from cargo and passenger on its balance sheet. But there already is four-fold growth from freighter services in Q4-FY20 as compared to Q4-FY19. While the cargo revenue was less than a percent in Q4 last year, it stands over 2.5 percent in Q4 this year. The airline already claims it is the largest cargo operator in the country. Cargo comes with its own benefits. It doesnt complain about red-eye, needs no service and gives more revenue than what a passenger gives. However, IndiGo has tasted success in this lately and there is no reason to believe that IndiGo would not aggressively chase this segment and give Spicejet a run for its money. Shrink! With capacity capped and demand at new lows, the airline could look at returning planes and reducing liabilities. The airline has a mix of B737-700s/800s and 900s in addition to the Q400s. While the uncertainty over the B737 MAX continues, it would look at reducing the Boeing fleet and operating only the 800s for fleet commonality. Tail Note From the codeshare with Emirates to seaplanes and a hub at Ras Al Khaimah the airline has had grand plans but little has materialised. From March onwards, everything can be blamed on the pandemic but the past record does put questions on the ability of the airline to execute the grand plans! With the Boeing compensation already factored in and the market for sale and lease-back not being as attractive as before, there wont be a steady stream of revenue being generated from Sale & Leaseback when the delivery for the B737 MAX resumes. While Jet Airways monetised its frequent flier program at some point of time to raise cash, there isnt anything similar for SpiceJet. The going is definitely tough for the airline, but the next few quarters will tell is SpiceJet tough enough to get going. Another fall is definitely not what the Indian industry should look at, but the longer the COVID-19 crisis continues, the recovery for every airline in the country starts looking bleaker by the day. Various sectors in Hong Kong have shown support for the decision, made by the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) in Council, to postpone the 2020 Legislative Council (LegCo) election of the HKSAR. Chief Executive of the HKSAR Carrie Lam announced on Friday the postponement of the election, originally scheduled for Sept. 6, 2020, for one year due to the current COVID-19 outbreak. The Police Force Council Staff Associations of Hong Kong issued a statement, saying that in order to protect public health and ensure the orderly conduct of the election, the associations understand and support the HKSAR government in postponing the election. At this difficult time, the health of the public is the primary consideration, according to the associations, expressing the hope that everyone can work together to combat the COVID-19 outbreak so that the society can restore stability as soon as possible. The Government Employee Association of Hong Kong said in a statement that in the face of the pandemic, the HKSAR government must give priority to public health and public health. The LegCo election is a large-scale public event, which will increase the risk of transmission of the virus and pose a threat to public health. It is imperative to prevent and control the outbreak, especially to reduce social contact and reduce the risk of transmission. President of the Friends of Hong Kong Association Henry Tang Ying-yen said that it is important for the Hong Kong society to concentrate on combating the COVID-19 outbreak. Postponing the election can reduce the risk of transmitting the disease through group gathering. If the LegCo election, which involves millions of voters, is held as scheduled, it is unlikely that it can be held in a fair and just environment, while the risk of the public being infected will also be increased, Tang said, adding that the decision of the HKSAR government is an expression of responsibility. Lam Shuk Yee, honorary president of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, said the decision of the HKSAR government to postpone the election is legal, reasonable and necessary in the face of the severe situation of COVID-19. She believed that it is a sensible way to protect people's health, which will be understood by most people in Hong Kong. Pansy Ho, chairperson of the Hong Kong Federation of Women, expressed her understanding of the HKSAR government's decision to postpone the election as it prioritizes fighting the outbreak and safeguarding public health. Anthony Wu, former chairman of Hong Kong's Hospital Authority, said that Hong Kong has faced a new wave of outbreak since early July, and the number of new confirmed cases exceeded 100 each day, making it necessary to postpone the election. Raymond Tam Chi-yuen, former Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs of the HKSAR government, said that as the epidemic continues to be severe, the decision of the HKSAR government is understandable as it will safeguard the health and safety of the public. Vincent Lee Kwan-ho, a former independent non-executive director of the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited, said the postponement of the election is conducive to ensuring the safety and health of the public, as it avoids mass gatherings and reduces the risk of the spread of the virus. It also enables the HKSAR government and the society to focus their efforts and resources on the epidemic prevention and fight against the virus. It is an expression of responsibility for the health of the public, Lee added. Childcare providers are braced for plummeting attendance rates in the next six weeks that could send some centres to the wall as most families keep their children home. Parents and childcare providers remain in the dark about which specific categories of Melbourne workers will be permitted to put their children in care during the stage four lockdown, less than 48 hours before tough restrictions on attendance are to take effect. Narelle Lawton from Dawson Street Childrens Co-operative in Brunswick has welcomed the decision to restrict access to childcare. Credit:Eddie Jim Under Melbournes stage four restrictions, only vulnerable children and the children of permitted workers will be allowed to attend childcare centres from Thursday, with all other children in early education expected to stay home. The same curbs on attendance will apply to schoolchildren at all year levels from Wednesday. Melbournes COVID-19 second wave has led to a brutal disruption to the citys retail sector that industry experts believe will mean some businesses die, others thrive and there are permanent changes to how we shop. The state governments decision to close all non-essential stores for six weeks is expected to force already struggling businesses to the wall, but Australian Retailers Association chief Paul Zahra welcomed "significant concessions'' designed to preserve online trading. Australian Retailers Association chief executive Paul Zahra says the pandemic has brought forward years' worth of disruption. Credit:Eamon Gallagher There is no doubt COVID-19 has accelerated trends that were already occurring in the retail industry,'' the former David Jones boss said. "It has brought forward about a decades worth of change. Consumer behaviour, once it changes, is embedded. What we will see is this move to contactless shopping and shopping online. Those retailers that are doing that are going to survive this pandemic. Those that arent able to pivot will be left behind." CAIRO Russia Today quoted military sources July 27 as saying that the Egyptian army will acquire the Russian Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jet, a first for Egypt, after photos emerged of five of them heading to Egypt. Neither the Russian nor the Egyptian side has so far made any official comments on the alleged acquisition, while the United States objects to any such deals. According to Russia Today, The sources indicated that these heavy and long-range fighter jets would give the Egyptian army superiority in the regional sky, which is why the US strongly objected. Russias Top War website, which focuses on defense affairs, reported July 23 that the first batch of Su-35 fighters took off from the Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aviation Plant and headed to the European side of Russia, from where they will be delivered to Egypt. The report read, Photos of the first five Su-35 fighters built for the Egyptian Air Force appeared on the web, which made a stopover at Novosibirsk Tolmachevo Airport during a flight to the European part of Russia. As can be seen from the photographs, there are no identification marks on the planes, but the tail numbers on the keels are marked from 9210 to 9214. On March 18, 2019, the Egyptian Air Force inked a $2 billion deal to buy 24 Russian-made Su-35 fighter jets, including related equipment, according to Egypts State Information Service (SIS). SIS reported back then that the deal entered into force in late 2018, and the fighter jets will be handed over in 2020-2021. The jets will be added to the Egyptian Air Force's list of Russian-made weapons, including the Mikoyan MiG-29M, Ka-52 Alligator and S-300VM Antey-2500, according to SIS. Maj. Gen. Hamdi Bakhit, a member of the parliamentary Defense and National Security Committee, told Al-Monitor that the Sukhoi fighters are a major addition to the Egyptian Air Force in light of the present threats to the region. The Russian media reports on the handing over of fighters coincide with regional tensions, with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi announcing June 20 that the Egyptian armed forces' direct military intervention in Libya has acquired legitimacy. In January, the Turkish parliament approved the deployment of troops to Libya in support of the UN-recognized government in Tripoli led by Fayez al-Sarraj. Bakhit said the Su-35s are highly maneuverable and multi-role fighters that can attack remote ground and air targets, especially heavy concrete targets such as fortifications and runways. The Sukhoi Su-35 fighters are capable of speeds of 2,800 kilometers (1,700 miles) per hour over an altitude of 11 kilometers (seven miles), with a range of 4,500 kilometers (2,800 miles). Adding external fuel tanks will allow the fighters to travel even greater distance without having to refuel, though their in-flight refueling capabilities make them competitive with US F-35 fighter jets. According to Top Wars July 23 report, After receiving the first fighters, Egypt will become the second foreign buyer of the Su-35 after China, which received 24 aircrafts in 2016-2018. Maj. Gen. Nasr Salem, the former head of the Egyptian army's reconnaissance department and professor of strategic studies at the Nasser Higher Military Academy, told Al-Monitor by phone that the Egyptian acquisition of the Su-35 fighters, along with MiG-29Ms, Rafale fighters and F-16 Fighting Falcons, will ensure air control so as to protect Egyptian interests. Washington has objected to the Russian deal. The Wall Street Journal reported Nov. 14, 2019, that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Mark Esper warned Egyptian Defense Minister Sedki Sobhi of possible sanctions over Cairos purchase of Russian warplanes under the US CAATSA provision that bars the purchase of Russian military equipment. It added that such a deal would affect future defense deals between Cairo and Washington. Salem said that the United States cannot pressure Egypt to cancel the deal as Egypt has sought various sources of armament so that no country would have control over its decisions. Why doesnt the US supply Egypt with the F-35 fighters that it supplied Israel with, since it is objecting to the Russian Su-35 fighters deal? he asked, adding that Egypt's military seeks to acquire equipment equal to that owned by Israel. Bakhit said, Egypts national security is above anything else. If that requires that Egypt acquires the Su-35 fighters, then it should, and is free to decide on the matter. The US has given Israel the newest pieces of its arsenal, which are the F-35 fighters. Thus, the US is using double standards with Egypt when threatening sanctions. Advertisement A British seven-year-old has become the youngest person to reach the summit of an 11,000ft-tall mountain unaided after her daredevil family scaled the treacherous peak. Freya Houlding, seven, climbed Piz Badile - on the border of Switzerland and Italy - along with her mother Jessica, 41, and professional climber father Leo Houlding, 40, in just three days. Her three-year-old brother Jackson was carried up by his GP mother while Leo carried their supplies. The Houlding family from Cumbria began their climb on July 25th and took their time completing the route - spending one night in an alpine hut and another two in temporary campsites called bivouacs. The family reached the summit on the third day of hiking - on July 27. In 2004, British climbers Jules Cartwright, 29, and Julie Colver , 43, fell to their deaths while descending Piz Badile. But Mr Houlding didn't feel overly concerned as he said the climb they chose offers adventurers greater control over potential risks - including rockfall and bad weather. Three-year-old Jackson Houlding (pictured) has become the youngest person to get to the top of Piz Badile after he was carried up by his mother. His sister Freya managed it unaided and is herself the youngest to achieve the feat Freya Houlding, seven, (centre) climbed Piz Badile - on the border of Switzerland and Italy - along with her mother Jessica, 41, (left, with three-year-old Jackson on her back) and professional climber father Leo Houlding, 40, (right) in just four days Freya (wearing a green jacket) has become the youngest person to reach the summit of the 11,000ft-tall mountain unaided after her daredevil family scaled the treacherous peak Three-year-old Jackson was carried up by his GP mother (pictured) - making him the youngest person to proudly reach the top He has scaled some of the most dangerous peaks on Earth and his GP wife is an avid climber too. And now Freya has become the youngest person to climb the mountain without help, and Jackson the youngest person to get to the top - 153 years to the day since the peak was first climbed. Freya said: 'I found it really fun and really scary. I'm very proud.' Jackson said: 'It was really good, I enjoyed the bit I climbed on my own and the Haribo sweets.' Freya, seven, and three-year-old Jackson on their three day trip to climb Piz Badil on the border of Switzerland and Italy The Houlding family began their climb on July 25th and took their time completing the route - spending one night in an alpine hut and another two in temporary campsites called bivouacs. Pictured: Mr Houlding camping with Jackson Mr Houlding said: 'My daughter (left) climbed it all by herself, all the way, including all the hiking and everything - it was very impressive. She only just turned seven last week.' Right: Mrs Houlding with their son Jackson on her back Mr Houlding takes in the breathtaking views with his children on their three-day climb up the mountain Mr Houlding said: 'My wife Jess carried Jackson on her back (pictured) who weighs about 15kg, I carried all the camping equipment and food which weighed a bit more' Speaking from Bregaglia, Switzerland, Mr Houlding said: 'It's a super classic route, the best of it's grade in the world. 'What was exceptional was we did it with our seven year-old-daughter Freya and our three-year-old son Jackson. 'My daughter climbed it all by herself, all the way, including all the hiking and everything - it was very impressive. She only just turned seven last week. 'My wife Jess carried Jackson on her back who weighs about 15kg, I carried all the camping equipment and food which weighed a bit more. 'We've done quite a bit of stuff in the UK and Europe in previous years, but every summer the kids are bigger and more capable than the past year. Piz Badile is a mountain in the Bregaglia range and stands at 10,853ft and it's north face is considered one of the six great faces of the Alps. Pictured: Mrs Houlding climbing with Jackson on her back Mr Houlding, who is an ambassador for outdoor clothing and equipment brand Berghaus, continued: 'It's a proper rock climb, not a walk up a mountain, and one of the finest climbs of it's standard in the world.' Pictured: Mrs Houlding climbing with Jackson on her back 'We did Triglav in Slovenia, but this was a league above that in terms of grandeur and difficulty. 'If I was on my own, I could have run up it really quickly. I would do it in my hiking shoes without a rope, but for a normal team the guidebook time is about 8hrs on the climb, a two day round trip. 'We paced it out because it's a long walk up on the first day, and it's a really beautiful place. 'As you climb these peaks you go through different environments - you start in meadows with cow bells ringing, up through pine forests, then above the tree line into the Alpine realm of snow and rock 'Then at the top you're on a big pointy mountain and you can see for miles and miles, it has that big mountain feel - so we were in no rush. Mr Houlding (pictured with Freya) carried all the camping equipment and food up the mountain Mrs Houlding camping with Freya and Jackson. The family stayed overnight on the mountain three times before descending 'It's a walk in the park for me, that's why I went up with the kids - if needs be I could have carried them up on my own one at a time. 'Having your own children there, I was conscious that we were on a big adventure together but I never felt that we were in an unacceptable position and I never thought we were out of our depth.' Piz Badile is a mountain in the Bregaglia range and stands at 10,853ft and it's north face is considered one of the six great faces of the Alps. The first ascent was completed by W. A. B. Coolidge with guides Francois Devouassoud and Henri Devouassoud on July 27, 1867. The first ever ascent was made 153-years to the day before young Freya achieved the same feat. Mr Houlding, who is an ambassador for outdoor clothing and equipment brand Berghaus, continued: 'It's a proper rock climb, not a walk up a mountain, and one of the finest climbs of it's standard in the world. 'It's a 1,000m long knife edge ridge and you're using your hands the whole way, it's a really long rock climb. 'There's always danger in the mountains, there's hazards of fall, hazards of weather, hazards of rockfall. 'The benefits of being on a ridge is that the threat of rock fall is much lower, if you're on the face it's worse. 'These days mountain weather forecasts are so accurate you can mitigate that risk too. Mr Houlding added: 'Then right on the summit we stayed in a bivouac hut - it's a tiny metal shed, it was a spectacular spot with a huge drop from the front door' (pictured) 'For falling, it's the person who goes first at risk - so I led the whole climb. I'm a professional climber, the most experienced person goes first. 'In mountain activities there is more risk than in other activities, but we chose this climb because there is a lot less objective hazard - you can control the risks I just mentioned.' Mr Houlding began the trip at 39-years-old and ended it at 40, celebrating his 40th birthday on the summit of the mountain. He continued: 'We started down in the valley and it takes about five hours to get up to a beautiful mountain hut on the Swiss side. 'They're kind of like hotels, they provide you with a bed and food - it's a nice one, called the Sasc Fuca. We spent the night there. 'With an adult team you would normally go from there to the top of the mountain then down on to the Italian side, but because we were with the kids we had a short day from there to a bivouac site. 'We camped on a shoulder right below the start of the difficult climbing. It was a magnificent site. Then we did the big climb on the third day. 'Then right on the summit we stayed in a bivouac hut - it's a tiny metal shed, it was a spectacular spot with a huge drop from the front door. 'On the fourth day we woke up in that hut and it was my 40th birthday, we descended the other side. 'It took six abseils, then a long five hour walk through beautiful scenery to San Martino valley in Italy. Then we got a taxi back round to the camper van in Bregaglia.' Mrs Houlding said: 'It was great, we keep upping the level each year. It's a huge achievement, especially for my daughter. 'Now we're on our way to a multi-day trek across the highest mountains of Montenegro but it won't be as demanding as the Piz Badile.' Last year, Leo became the first Brit to climb the world's remotest mountain, Spectre, which is so isolated only ten people have ever seen it. Spectre is a jagged mountain peak in Antarctica, 450km south of the South Pole, and he battled Antarctic conditions for more than 2,000km to make the climb. Oil prices remain stable despite rising pressure over the last week. Economic data from the United States fueled bearish sentiment despite encouraging data from the EIA. The U.S. economy is expected to have shrunk by 32.9% in Q2-2020 according to a recent statement by the head of the U.S. Federal Reserve. The expectation of sluggish demand is weighing on the economic stimulus package proposal currently debated in the US congress. Furthermore, the impact of this economic stimulus remains questionable as the number of jobless people in the United States remains considerably high. The German economy, the largest in the eurozone, shrunk by 10.1% during the same period. The European Commission has revised down its forecast for the EU economies in 2020 from -7.4% to -8.3% while most economists are expecting a much deeper global recession this year and a slower recovery next year. These forecasts are not good news for oil demand forecasters as it means that transport fuels demand could take longer to recover than previously expected. Current prices arent high enough to restore U.S. production Currently Brent prices are holding within the $43-45 range due to alarming rise in COVID-19 cases globally, raising concerns of a 2nd wave and new lockdown measures. The United States death toll soared to more than 150 thousand deaths last week while Brazil and Australia set new records of deaths and infections. Generally, we have seen prices in July much higher than their levels in June, supported by both a fuel demand recovery and increasing economic activity after major lockdown measures in April. Brent averaged $43.44 in July, $0.44 higher than our forecast, while WTI averaged at $40.76, $2.76 above our forecast. Clearly, WTI contracts performed much better than Brent contracts. The spread between the two grades currently stands at an average of $2.65 for the month of August, compared with an average of $9.87 last April. Nonetheless, Brent and WTI 1-2 month spreads continue to be in contango which is a source of concern at a time when OPEC and its partners are set to gradually increase supply in August. It is evident that current prices are not high enough for U.S. drillers to bring back production. Related: Saudi Arabia May Be Forced To Cut Oil Prices Once Again Last week, the number of oil drilling rigs declined again by 1 rig to return to 180 active oil rigs. In the previous week, we have seen the first rebound in the US drilling activity by 1 rig, following 18 weeks of continuous decline from 683 rigs to 180 rigs. U.S. oil production continues to be unchanged at 11.1 million bbl/d for the 2nd consecutive week. Things may worsen for the U.S. oil industry in the case of a 2nd wave and prices can be expected to continue to be at this level or lower in Q3-2020. U.S. commercial crude inventories are seen to have peaked On the other hand, we are observing that U.S. commercial oil inventories have peaked at nearly 540 million barrels, and last week, a 10.6 million barrels decline was reported, which is the largest since the beginning of 2020. U.S. crude imports also declined by around 1 million bbl/d, and a moderate increase in exports by 0.218 million bbl/d may also have contributed to the decline in the inventories. Additionally, refinery runs rose by 0.39 million bbl/d, w/w, despite imposing lockdown measures in several U.S. states. The moderate increase in gasoline and distillates inventories by 0.7 million barrels and 0.5 million barrels, respectively, is an indication for moderately slumping demand. Furthermore, total petroleum products supplied in the United States remains around 17% y/y according to the EIAs four-week average numbers. Currently, traders expect demand to take longer to recover than previously expected, as the recent surge of COVID-19 in the U.S. crushed hopes of rapid recovery for gasoline and diesel. Last week, money managers reduced their net long positions by 20.90 million barrels w/w, for Brent contracts, and 15,82 million barrels w/w, for WTI contracts. Related: Currently inventories stand at 526 million barrels which is 89.4 million barrels higher than their level at the same time last year. The OPEC+ output cuts, which were implemented last May have had a strong effect, yet we expect inventories to approach their pre-crisis levels until Q2 2021. Demand recovery will be a major concern in August as COVID-19 cases resurface The next OPEC+ JMMC is expected to take place on the 18th of August, during which the cartel will review the latest market developments. In case of severe demand shocks, we expect OPEC+ to revise its current production policy and possibly recommend additional cuts. The odds of OPEC+ making additional cuts, however, remain very slim, and currently, it is more likely that OPEC+ will stick to its current production agreement. CMarkits expects oil markets to remain under pressure in August as new lockdown measures could significantly impact the crude demand picture. By Yousef Alshammari for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Virtual workshop on Decolonial Comparative Law Join us for a virtual workshop on Decolonial Comparative Law from 6 - 7 October co-hosted with the Wits School of Law and the Max Planck Institute in Hamburg CALS Director Prof Tshepo Madlingozi and Dr Emile Zitzke of the Wits School of Law are co-hosting a virtual workshop on Decolonial Comparative Law on 6 - 7 October along with Prof Ralf Michaels and Prof Lena Salaymeh of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law, Hamburg. Find out more here. Papers will not be formally presented and, instead, will be pre-circulated to all participants and engaged listeners. During the hour dedicated to each paper, the discussant will present a summary and critical engagement for 15 minutes. The remainder of the hour will be dedicated to questions and discussion. Workshop papers will be distributed to participants, discussants, and engaged listeners in early September 2020. Engaged listeners are asked to read all the papers and to attend or participate in every session. To register as an engaged listener, please email decolonial@mpipriv.de by 5 September 2020. This virtual workshop will take place via Zoom. You will receive login details one day before the event. It is not permissible to record any part of the workshop. By participating in this online workshop, you confirm that you have read and agree to be bound by Zooms Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, available here and here. The SARS-CoV-2 virus continues to spread in Spain. In the 40 days since the end of the state of alarm, the number of coronavirus cases has risen eightfold, jumping from 334 on June 20 to 2,789 between July 29 and 30. In a bid to curb contagion, several Spanish regions have reintroduced partial lockdown measures and placed restrictions on nighttime venues, which have been linked to several Covid-19 outbreaks. The latest measure was introduced on Saturday, when a court in Valladolid province authorized the order from the Castilla y Leon regional government to confine 10,000 residents of the towns of Iscar and Pedrajas de San Esteban for 14 days due to a surge in cases. Health Minister Salvador Illa used the words of his Italian counterpart, Robert Speranza, to describe the current situation: We are out of the storm, but we still havent arrived at a safe port. A woman walks in front of a truck tasked with disinfecting the streets of Iscar, which has been confined for 14 days due to a surge in Covid-19 cases. NACHO GALLEGO (EFE) During the peak of the pandemic in March and April, Spain recorded more than 8,000 new coronavirus infections a day despite the fact that only the most serious cases were being tested. Half of the 200,000 cases diagnosed up until May were admitted into hospital. Now, nearly 300,000 tests are being done every week in Spain double the number from three months ago. According to the latest figures released on Friday, more than 14,000 infections were detected in the previous seven days, and of this number, less than 10% were admitted into hospital. Whats more, 60% of cases are now asymptomatic a figure that was unknown three months ago due to the restrictions on testing. As a primary healthcare doctor explains: During the first few weeks [of the pandemic], people with mild symptoms were asked to self-isolate in their homes, but they did not receive PCR tests [the slowest but most reliable diagnostic tool]. On April 1, at the height of the pandemic, Spain recorded more than 950 coronavirus fatalities in one day. Now, the countrys 17 regions are reporting fewer than 10 daily deaths. The Health Ministry maintains that, according to its calculation, there are fewer than 10 deaths a week. During the peak of the pandemic, the intensive care units (ICUs) of hospitals in some regions (mainly Madrid and Catalonia) had to double and triple their capacity to deal with the number of Covid-19 patients, with nearly 3,000 patients in the ICU. Now, that figure has fallen to 250. At one point, there were more than 30,000 people hospitalized across Spain; today, there are only around 2,000. Now the detection of cases has improved a lot, there are more resources, we know what we are facing and we have certain measures to avoid transmission Epidemiologist Alberto Garcia-Basteiro Despite this, the spread of the coronavirus in three regions Catalonia, Aragon and Navarre is threatening to push Spain into another storm. On Friday, Aragon reported nearly 380 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the last 14 days, nearly double the incidence rate it recorded during the worst days of the pandemic. Catalonia also reported a worryingly high incidence rate 145 cases per 100,000 inhabitants but this is far from the 245 cases recorded during the first days of April. And in Navarre, the cumulative incidence rate has risen tenfold in one month, soaring to 144 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. This, however, is also well below the 336 cases it recorded at the worst moment of the health crisis. But according to Illa, there is no area with uncontrolled transmission. The most worrying outbreaks in Zaragoza and Barcelona are in the control phase, he told Spains Congress of Deputies last Thursday. Epidemiologist Alberto Garcia-Basteiro, a researcher at the Barcelona Global Health Institute, admits that the contagion rate in Aragon and Catalonia are worrying, but says drastic conclusions cannot be reached just by comparing the data from three months ago at the peak of the crisis. Now the detection of cases has improved a lot, there are more resources, we know what we are facing, and we have certain measures to avoid transmission, he says. If we had had the detection capacity and the level of alert that we have now, the curve of infections could possibly be completely different. The transmission that reflects the same cases diagnosed now and in April is very different. An intensive care doctor who works in a region which has seen a large spike in cases says that the situation is calm and under control for now. The hospital where he works went from having 300 Covid-19 patients, to having none in June. In recent days, admissions have begun to rise with a dozen cases in hospital wards and one in the ICU. The cases that are coming in are less serious than three months ago; the patients are younger, although we do have one who is over 80, says this source. We are better prepared, we have a better understanding of the medical treatment that has the most benefits for the patients, and we are not using the same personal protective equipment three days in a row, like we did before, meaning there is less risk of contagion among health workers. Lower fatality rate According to the latest epidemiological study from the Carlos III Health Institute, 35,482 Covid-19 cases were diagnosed between May 10 and July 19. Of this figure, only 7% (2,480 patients) required hospitalization. In this period, 228 people died from the virus, representing 0.65% of all cases. The overall case fatality rate in Spain, which compares the number of diagnosed cases (288,522) to the number of deaths where the victims tested positive for Covid-19 (28,455), is nearly 10% one of the highest in Europe. But epidemiologist Garcia-Basteiro believes the real figure is much lower, explaining that it has been distorted due to the lack of testing. We know that the fatality rate, if we are able to diagnose absolutely all cases, is relatively low. If we apply the case fatality rate only to serious cases, those which arrived in hospital during March and April, and those which were diagnosed, the rate will be higher, he says. Contagion hotspots Health Minister Illa says that most infections are happening in family gatherings and nighttime venues. Its very difficult in an indoor bar, in the middle of the night, to be wearing a mask, he explained. Un musico escupe alcohol al publico en una discoteca de Torremolinos Police have opened an investigation into a DJ caught on video spitting alcohol onto the crowd. In the southern region of Andalusia, police have opened an investigation into a DJ who was caught on video on Saturday taking a swig from a bottle of Jagermeister and then spitting over people dancing at a party in Torremolinos in Malaga. The province of Malaga currently has 14 coronavirus outbreaks and 130 cases, while Andalusia has 71 outbreaks and 856 infections. According to the Health Ministry, imported cases are not a significant risk. Between July 22 and 28, we have only detected 143 imported cases, said Illa. This represents 1% of the total. In the Madrid region, 7,000 cases have been detected since May 11 and the number of imported contagions is less than 100. For now, we dont have a problem, which does not mean to say we cant act tomorrow. Differences between the regions Madrid and the neighboring regions of Castilla-La Mancha and Castilla y Leon were three of the areas hardest hit by the coronavirus in Spain. Yet these regions have not seen the same dramatic spike in cases since the end of the state of alarm. The contagion rate has remained virtually unchanged in Castilla-La Mancha and Castilla y Leon, while Madrid has only recently reported a rise in infections. Even still, the 14-day cumulative incidence of coronavirus in Madrid 44.68 cases per 100,000 inhabitants is one fourth of the rate in Catalonia. Epidemiologist Garcia-Basteiro cannot explain why this is the case, but points out that face masks were more widely used in Madrid than in Catalonia, before the measure became mandatory in all public spaces. If 90% of those who live in Madrid are wearing a face mask and in Catalonia the percentage is lower, it is possible that the level of awareness, of respect for the recommended measures, explains some of the differences, but not all of them, he says. English version by Melissa Kitson. Metropolitan Transportation Authority police charged a 22-year-old Bridgeport man with assault after a spokesman said he attacked a conductor who asked him to move to a different car. Elijah Sampson was charged with felony assault on a public transit employee Saturday night, MTA spokesman Aaron Donovan said. A conductor on the Grand Central-bound train on the New Haven line saw Sampson in a car closed to the public shortly after 11 p.m., Donovan said. When she asked Sampson to move to a different car, he refused, Donovan said. The conductor had the trains engineer call for MTA police to meet the train at the next station. As the train was at the Fairfield Metro station, Sampson punched the conductor in the face around 30 times, according to Donovan. Sampson was arrested and the conductor was taken to Bridgeport Hospital for lacerations on her face and a swollen eye, Donovan said. This is a reprehensible attack on a Metro-North conductor who was simply doing her job. The MTA Police made a rapid arrest and now the justice system must hold this individual responsible to the fullest extent of the law, MTA Metro-North Railroad President Catherine Rinaldi said in a prepared statement. The fight delayed the train by 37 minutes, Donovan said. Some Azerbaijanis in Russia say they have received threats for refusing to attack Armenians. German Ananyants, Vice President of the Union of Armenians of Russia, stated this in a conversation with Armenian News-NEWS.am. According to him, these Russian Azerbaijanis received such threats from the Azerbaijani leadership. "It testifies to the organized nature of the attacks on Armenians. There is no information about new attacks on Armenians, anti-Armenian protests, or obstruction of [their] business and trade. But it is obvious that they are always trying to involve us in some processes. Thats why we call on our compatriots not to give in to provocations and not to commit any act of revenge," he added. To note, after the escalation of military tension on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border in July, clashes between Armenians and Azerbaijanis took place in various countriesincluding Russia. Against this backdrop, Armenian agricultural products were rejected in a Moscow market belonging to Azerbaijanis. Also, all Armenian goods were removed from the shopping centers also belonging to Azerbaijanis. But there are no such obstacles any longer. This page requires Javascript. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. With Sonia Gandhi set to complete her one-year tenure as interim Congress president on August 10, and the party showing no signs of putting in place a mechanism to elect its next leader, some sections of the party have started demanding that Rahul Gandhi return to the post he gave up in May 2019, owning responsibility for the partys rout in the general elections. The demands came in three meetings: the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting on June 23; at Sonia Gandhis deliberations with the partys Lok Sabha members on July 11; and during her interaction with the partys Rajya Sabha MPs on July 30. Also read: Proud to have such a brother: Priyankas emotional message for Rahul on Raksha Bandhan To be sure, not everyone in the party has made the demand or supported it. One Congress leader said on condition of anonymity that he sees it as the responsibility of Rahul Gandhi to assuage the concerns of both veterans and members of the young brigade because there is visible unease between the two groups over the leadership issue and their future in the party. His reference is to the long-simmering conflict between the partys old guard and its younger members -- which came to fore most recently during Sonia Gandhis meeting with Rajya Sabha MPs. While Sonia Gandhi is not keen to continue in the post, Rahul Gandhi has not shown any inclination to take up the responsibility. But circumstances can change any time, the leader added. The demand has also come from outside the Congress. Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar last week suggested that Rahul Gandhi should take up the Congress presidents post, start a conversation with party leaders and workers, and undertake a nationwide yatra to galvanise the Congress cadre and reconnect with the people who have moved away from the grand old party over the years. Pawars views were echoed by senior Congress leaders and Rajya Sabha members Digvijaya Singh and Partap Singh Bajwa. I agree. He (Rahul Gandhi) is different and wants to do politics differently. We should allow him to do so but then we also would like him to be more active in Parliament and more accessible to people. As advised by Sharad Pawar he should travel around India. Yatras are important to connect, Singh tweeted on Saturday. Bajwa said Rahul Gandhi should first become the Congress president and then tour the country. I request the Congress president to settle the leadership issue once and for all. The issue has to be tackled anyway otherwise we are ceding ground to the BJP every day. Bajwa said it was the relentless campaign carried out by Rahul Gandhi in Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh that ensured the partys victories in these states and even Gujarat, where he brought the Congress within the striking distance of ousting the BJP from power. One of the architects of the partys Madhya Pradesh win, Jyotiraditya Scindia has left the party for the BJP, after he was marginalised in the state and the partys central leadership chose not to intervene. Legislators allied with him resigned from the party too -- causing the collapse of the Kamal Nath government. More recently, Sachin Pilot, credited with having played a significant role in the partys win in Rajasthan, and lawmakers loyal to him have broken ranks with the party over differences with chief minister Ashok Gehlot, although they havent left the party. The development has left the Gehlot government with a wafer-thin majority. Experts said the clamour for Gandhis ascendancy to President once again highlights the fact that the party does not want to take the tougher route of holding elections and finding a new leader from outside the Nehru-Gandhi family. Hyderabad-based political analyst C Narasimha Rao said, Many Congress leaders do not want internal elections as they are comfortable with the nomination process and hence push for the easy route. Also, the Gandhi family does not want to give up the control of the party though some argue that it is the only binding force. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON President Donald Trump said TikTok will have to close its U.S. operations by Sept. 15 unless theres a deal to sell the social media networks American operations. He said that hes okay with the idea of Microsoft Corp. buying TikTok in the U.S. as the company has said its negotiating to do and that the federal government should be paid a substantial amount of money as part of the deal. I dont mind whether its Microsoft or someone else, a big company, a secure company, a very American company buys it, Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday. Itll close down on Sept. 15 unless Microsoft or somebody else is able to buy it and work out a deal, an appropriate deal, so the Treasury of the United States gets a lot of money. Trump set off a furious scramble over the fate of the Chinese-owned app on Friday, when he said he would ban the companys operations through an executive action on Saturday. But the weekend passed without any official move from the White House, after the president spoke with Microsoft chief executive officer Satya Nadella about his companys efforts to purchase the viral video application. Microsoft said in a blog post that it was aiming to complete a deal for TikToks operations in the U.S., as well as in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, no later than Sept. 15. The White House had insisted upon that deadline, according to people familiar with the matter. It could prove an uphill climb, with key details for the deal including price still not worked out, people familiar with the discussions said. Security concerns The White House has said its concerned that TikToks parent company, ByteDance Ltd., could be compelled to hand over American users data to Beijing or use the app to influence the 165 million Americans, and more than two billion users globally, who have downloaded it. And Trump has looked to ratchet up pressure on China ahead of Novembers election, frustrated by slow implementation of the trade pact inked earlier this year and the spread of the coronavirus for which he blames China. Teenagers opposed to the president have also used the app to disrupt the presidents campaign activities, including signing up for tickets to the presidents first rally since the beginning of the pandemic, in Tulsa. Attendance at the late June event was far below expectations, and Trump hasnt held another rally since. Microsoft pledge In its blog post, Microsoft pledged to add more security, privacy and digital safety protections to the TikTok app and ensure that all private data of Americans be transferred back to the U.S. and deleted from servers outside the country. The company also said it may invite other American investors to take minority stakes in the company. Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns, the company said. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury. Still, U.S. lawmakers and administration officials have favoured shutting down the application altogether to send a message to China after Beijing restricted American companies like Facebook Inc., Twitter Inc. and Alphabet Inc.s Google. White House adviser Peter Navarro on Monday said in a pair of interviews with CNN and Fox News that he wasnt sure Microsoft was the right company to buy TikToks U.S. operations, saying it had helped China construct its internet firewall. Should we trust any company that operates in China? Navarro told Fox News. Read more about: In a short clip released by the Israeli army, four figures are seen walking around rocky terrain, one of them picking something up and then putting it down. They are later seen walking across the land and then ducking right before an explosion engulfs them. Graeme Stenhouse who has appealed for band members to adhere to Covid guildlines Band parades are planned in 40 locations across Northern Ireland this weekend to mark the ending of the Siege of Derry. The annual commemorations are usually held in Londonderry, where the Apprentice Boys of Derry (ABOD) host hundreds of branches and bands. But this year's parade was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, a series of Apprentice Boys Clubs and bands have applied to the Parades Commission to hold local marches. Of the 72 applications received by the Parades Commission, 15 have been deemed "sensitive" with three of these "under consideration". Among the parades where the Commission identified sensitivities is at Coleraine where an application to parade in the town by the ABOD Killowen Branch was one of four sent to the Parades Commission for the same route at roughly the same time. While the Parades Commission ruled this parade could go ahead, it imposed conditions and noted: "The organisers of these four parades must be aware of the potential disruption their events may cause to the life of community in Coleraine, over an extended number of hours, from 7.30am to 2pm. "These parades may be perceived as more disruptive than parades which took place before the pandemic, reflecting fears about the spread of infection. "Organisers must take into account these potentially heightened community sensitivities, in the circumstances of the pandemic." Concerns about the spread of coronavirus factored in the Parades Commission's determination on three applications received from ABOD Rathfriland Branch for 30 people to march in the town - spaced at 10 minute intervals. This would see a total of 90 members marching along the route, however, the Parades Commission approved the applications on the grounds that there was an interval of around 18 minutes between the departure of each group of 30 people. The Governor of the Apprentice Boys, Graeme Stenhouse, appealed to all clubs and bands organising their own commemorations this year to adhere to Government guidelines on coronavirus. He said: "We have already written to branch clubs to say that if they want, they should have short parades and a wreath-laying ceremony at their local cenotaph, obviously sticking to the guideline issues by the Government. "It is very important that clubs adhere to the coronavirus control guidelines and in the same way as around the Twelfth, bands will do their own thing, separate from the clubs, but we reiterate our message that everyone stick to the current guidelines. "That message has already gone out from General Committee." Mr Stenhouse outlined the format this year's commemoration of the Relief of Derry will take in the city this weekend. He said it was in adherence to the restrictions around the number of people permitted to gather. "Next Friday night at midnight we will carry out our tradition of Firing the Cannon and 13 members of the Campsie Parent Club will be going around and touching the Gates," he added. "On Saturday morning, 30 Apprentice Boys will walk around the Walls of the City and then will have our usual wreath-laying ceremony at the War Memorial at the Diamond. "After that we will have a short religious service at the Siege Heroes' Mound in the grounds of the Cathedral. "There will be a number of bands holding small parades in Irish Street and Newbuildings on the day, which is up to them," he added. The ceremony is held each year, to commemorate the ending of the 105-day siege of the city in August 1689. The ending of the siege is known as the Relief of Derry. Proudly serving students online since 1999. Our purpose has always been to make certain that everyone has the very best opportunity to achieve an education. The Nebraska Colleges online expertise makes education attainable for students coast-to-coast. Peru State College, Nebraskas first college, is excited to announce a 20-year milestone in serving students 100 percent online. The Colleges early adaptation to online education in 1999 exemplifies the innovative backbone of a college founded more than 150 years ago and regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission since 1915. Offering fully online bachelor and masters degrees across business, psychology, criminal justice and education, Peru State College Online is nationally known for quality education at a premium value. In addition to enjoying one of the countrys lowest tuition rates, the Colleges online students benefit from career-driving, flexible programs, brought about by 20 years of online mastery. From its onset, online education aligned perfectly with our mission to provide access to higher education including students that cannot come to campus, said Dr. Dan Hanson, Peru State College president. Our purpose has always been to make certain that everyone has the very best opportunity to achieve an education. Online education proved to be a game-changer for many students in this regard. By lifting time and distance limitations, the College can best empower students juggling many priorities to realize their greatest potential and transform their lives. As many college students weigh options for safely persisting in their education this year and beyond, the appeal of online education has never been greater. Peru States online expertise makes it an ideal solution. The College accepts up to 90 credit hours in transfer credit and offers the same low tuition regardless of where you are in the country or world. Leveraging former learning and experience enables students to seamlessly continue their education online at Peru State, thereby reducing both cost and time to graduation. Hanson continues, Students find our online community to be highly engaged and connected. I encourage degree seekers, including transfers, to give us a good look, whether its to temporarily bridge the gap in their on-ground education, or start and stay with us to graduation. About 80 percent of Peru State College Online students transfer some sort of credit, whether its prior coursework, corporate or military training, or even life experience. Bottom line, if you are considering switching schools or beginning your online college education, Perus 20-year history of online excellence makes it a top choice for you. For information on a four-year online degree at Peru State College Online, visit online.peru.edu. About Peru State College Online Established in 1867 in Peru, Nebraska, Peru State College has served students online since 1999 with undergraduate and graduate degree programs in business, psychology, criminal justice and education. The College is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), and also holds continuing accreditation by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education. True to its mission to provide students of all backgrounds access to engaging educational experiences, the College offers students affordable tuition, 100 percent online convenience, and premium academic quality and support. Per-credit-hour tuition stands at less than $300 for undergraduate students and under $400 for graduate-level students. For additional information, visit online.peru.edu. Mumbai, Aug 3 : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis on Monday slammed the Maharashtra government for quarantining a Bihar IPS officer Vinay Tiwari, who arrived in Mumbai to probe the case of Bollywood actor's Sushant Singh Rajput death. "It is really very strange why the Maharashtra government is coming under unnecessary suspicion by not allowing Bihar Police to perform their duties. Instead of solving the mystery of Sushant's death, such behaviour will only result into huge public outcry and disbelief amongst the people about the investigation," Fadnavis, the former Maharashtra Chief Minister, said on Monday. His banker wife Amruta Fadnavis joined the cause with a tweet: "The manner in which Sushant death case is being handled -- I feel Mumbai has lost humanity and is no more safe live for innocent self -- respecting citizens", with hashtags #JusticeForSushantSinghRajput and #JusticeForDishaSalian. Fadnavis, the Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly, also pointed out that a medical team from Kerala had visited Mumbai, the Uttar Pradesh Police also came to probe the Vikas Dubey case, and a team from Bihar Police is already working in Mumbai since four days. "But none of them were quarantined, then why only an SP rank officer is treated differently," he wondered. Fadnavis and other BJP leaders, besides a section of Bollywood personalities have been clamouring that the Sushant case probe should be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation, but this has been categorically rejected by the state government several times. Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery Washingtons haphazard Middle East policies during the Trump administration have unnerved foreign policy experts from many sides of the ideological spectrum, from liberal interventionists, to progressives and restrainers. From the restrainer perspective, the Quincy Institutes recent report on the Middle East calls on the United States to end its misguided policy of domination and lead by example. (So) what would U.S. policy toward the Middle East look like in a potential Joe Biden administration? The interventionists argue that as a global superpower, the United States should continue to have a carefully calculated and large military footprint in the region, which could deter potential regional and external intruders. Restrainers and other noninterventionists maintain Washington should adopt an off-shore balancing strategy that excludes the continued deployment of American military might and ever-present temptation to wage or be dragged into regional wars. Diplomacy, economics, new regional alignments and the countrys moral standing are more effective tactics than endless wars. The Quincy Institutes report offers a clear, sustainable and well-articulated strategy for disengaging American military presence from the region and replacing it with robust diplomatic engagement using regional states as key players. While its fair to ask why we should continue engaging the region, the absence of nationally accepted strategic blueprint based on diplomacy could lead to local military conflicts, which could drag Washington back into that part of the world. Lets examine just one case. Israel/Palestine For decades, the international community has supported a two-state approach to the conflict based on United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338. The 1993 Oslo Accords and the creation of the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah emerged as an interim substitute for a Palestinian state, which was not what the U.N. Security Council resolutions had envisioned. The United States spent billions of dollars in military, technological and economic aid to Israel and Egypt and neighboring states for the sole purpose of keeping the so-called peace process alive. Now that the two-state paradigm has all but vanished, and with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus West Bank annexation plan looming, Washington has nothing to show for the hundreds of billions of dollars spent on this issue. The preponderance of American power and the threat to use it, according to interventionists, have prevented Israeli-Palestinian and other regional wars from breaking out. However, they disingenuously ignore that a series of Israeli-Lebanese and Israeli-Palestinian wars occurred during the peace process for decades. Despite the massive aid, Israeli politics is in a state of paralysis, the PA is on the verge of collapse, Jordans monarchy is precarious and Lebanon is in political and economic disarray. Restrainers, on the other hand, maintain the interventionist approach has failed because the United States got involved in several regional wars, directly and indirectly, which could be traced to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Not only did interventionists fail to produce a two-state solution, they tolerated and even encouraged the continued huge sales of American weaponry worth billions of dollars to the region. Its time to jettison interventionism and domination in favor of a more enduring collaborative diplomatic engagement. Reducing the military footprint does not equate with abandonment of the region or of American interests and security. U.S. diplomacy and soft power can play an effective role in directing the two peoples toward reconciliation and co-existence. Now that Israel is militarily capable of defending itself against any potential adversary, there no longer needs to be a sizable American military presence in the Eastern Mediterranean. Perhaps under the new paradigm, Israelis and Palestinians would begin a serious search for modalities of living together justly and equitably in a federative arrangement on the whole of Palestine. The way forward A Biden administration would need a noninterventionist grand strategy to help it situate America and the Middle East in a proper context for the next four years. The key elements include a renewed commitment to human rights, Arab-Iranian rapprochement, Israeli-Palestinian coexistence in mandatory Palestine, suspension of offensive military aid or massive arms sales to regional states especially those currently engaged in cross-border conflicts and rejection of jingoism, rabid nationalism and tyranny in favor of democratic governance. Most peoples in the region will welcome this nonbellicose paradigm. Autocrats will balk. European and NATO countries will happily welcome a renewed partnership with the United States in a post-Trump administration. Collaboration on both sides of the Atlantic will help the Middle East transition to a new environment of consistency, certainty, security and self-reliance. Emile Nakhleh is research professor and director of the Global and National Security Policy Institute at UNM and a former senior intelligence service officer at the CIA. A longer version was published on ResponsibleStatecraft.org. AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly four months after global boutique Swedish design and stationery brand kikki.K entered voluntary administration, U.S.-based lifestyle products company EC Design, parent company of Erin Condren, acquired the Australian-based brand on July 30, 2020 and plans to shepherd the organization through a restructuring process to preserve nearly 30 stores and 250 jobs. "We have long admired kikki.K for its unique design and functional products, and we are thrilled to welcome this incredible team into the EC Design family," said Tonia Misvaer, CEO of Erin Condren. "The beautiful Swedish design aesthetic that is signature to the kikki.K brand will remain and will now be more readily accessible to U.S. audiences." After nearly three years of devastating economic and environmental disasters impacted the brand in key markets in over 150 countries it services Brexit, Australian bushfires, COVID-19 kikki.K entered voluntary administration in March 2020. The Australian voluntary administration process, is similar to bankruptcy filings in the U.S., involves an insolvent company being evaluated by an independent party to assess all available options and generate the best outcome to move forward. "After learning of kikki.K's intention to enter voluntary administration, we knew we were in a unique position to step in and serve as stewards of the brand's renaissance," said Misvaer. "We look forward to working with everyone at kikki.K through this restructuring process and returning the brand to profitability. We invite all longtime kikki.K fans and Erin Condren loyalists to keep their eyes open for new designs, product offerings and creative endeavors as we bring even more beautiful, purposeful products to life." Following the acquisition kikki.K will retain its headquarters in Melbourne, Australia and Swedish-born founder Kristina Karlsson will remain in her current role as Creative Director with Co-Founder, Paul Lacy as CEO. "We are so excited about our partnership with EC Design. We're so happy that we've been able to preserve hundreds of jobs and be well set up to thrive again so we can continue making a difference in the world in small and big ways," said Kristina Karlsson, Founder of kikki.K. "With this partnership, the Erin Condren team will assist us in strengthening the kikki.K brand across the U.S. market and help grow our e-Commerce business. It also provides a great opportunity for Erin Condren to expand internationally in new growth markets that we know well, like Europe, Asia, Australia and many others. There is so much that we can learn from each other to continue doing what we both do best, and that's creating and sharing beautiful products that make a genuine positive impact on people's lives." About Erin Condren Erin Condren is a lifestyle brand known for creating fun and functional organization essentials for the home, office and everything in between. From high-quality planners and notebooks to custom organizers, desk accessories and more, each product is intentionally crafted to help customers achieve goals, reduce stress and lead more joyful, meaningful lives through organization. In a time when we could all use more motivation and inspiration, Erin Condren products offer customers around the world structure and custom organization solutions in uncertain times. The company was founded in 2005 by Erin Condren and has since grown into a leading brand in the organization space, with its signature LifePlanner having sold over 2 million copies worldwide, over 1 million followers on social media, 4 retail locations, and features in Good Housekeeping, Forbes, and the New York Times. The brand's bestsellers are available via ErinCondren.com, Erin Condren retail stores, and select retailers nationwide, including QVC, Amazon and more. About kikki.K kikki.K is a global Swedish design and stationery brand which was established in Australia in 2001 and has passionate customers in over 150 countries around the world. It was founded by Swedish-born Kristina 'kikki' Karlsson who combined her life passions with a love of Swedish design and a dream to do something meaningful. Through a unique offering of beautiful stationery and lifestyle pieces that bring sparks of joy to everyday life, kikki.K inspires and empowers people the world over to live their best life every day. Kristina is also an established author, her debut best-selling book 'Your Dream Life Starts Here' the first step of her "big crazy dream" to inspire and empower 101 million people around the world to write down three dreams and take action to make them a reality. SOURCE Erin Condren Related Links http://www.erincondren.com SDLP leader John Hume spent his entire political career working to try to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and turn it into a united Ireland. But he is best known for his efforts to secure peace and a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland which culminated in the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. Unionists unfairly accused him of riding on the back of the IRA campaign of violence. But he was unstinting in his opposition to the use of terrorism for any means and made several brave attempts to convince the republican movement that the campaign of violence should be ended. In 1985 he briefly met directly with the IRA to try to win a ceasefire, but failed and incurred the wrath of the Irish government. Three years later he engaged in unsuccessful talks with Gerry Adams, then president of the IRAs political wing, Sinn Fein, to try to gain not a ceasefire, but a permanent end to violence. In 1993 he again met Mr Adams several times and they drew up proposals which were passed to the Irish government saying they could form the basis for a lasting peace in Ireland. In 1997 his efforts were finally rewarded when in July the IRA announced the renewal of its 1994 ceasefire. Political talks ensued which eventually led to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. Unionist politicians viewed Mr Hume as just as dangerous to their cause as the IRA. Educated and eloquent, he enunciated the case of constitutional nationalism. Mr Hume articulated the feelings of the ever-growing Catholic middle-class and early on constructed a theory which changed little over the years that the heart of the Irish question lay not with the British but with the Ulster Protestants and that partition was not the cause of division but a symptom of it. A solution to the age-old problem could only be found with agreement from the Protestants. Their numbers gave them a veto and they could not be forced into any new arrangement against their will, he argued. Born in Derry in January 1937, the oldest of six children, Mr Hume came from the first generation to benefit from the 1944 Education Act and went to the local grammar school, St Columbs College. He went on to Maynooth College, the Catholic seminary near Dublin, to study French and modern history before returning to teach in his old school. In 1960 he married his wife Pat, had five children and continued to live in the republican Bogside area of Derry despite regular attacks on his home. His involvement in the 1960s with the Credit Union movement brought him into contact with the issues of the day, housing and anti-Catholic discrimination in a city where Protestants were in the minority but boundary gerrymandering gave them a Unionist majority on the local council. He first came to political prominence in the civil rights movement in 1968. He was present at the civil rights march in October that year which ended in disorder and set the spark to decades of violence. But his reputation for non-violence was established on the streets at a time others sought revolution and confrontation. Ironically, during his brief excursion into street politics, he was pulled in and questioned, as a non-violent demonstrator, by an enthusiastic Marines captain called Paddy Ashdown. The following year he was returned to the old Stormont parliament as MP for Foyle, unseating the then Nationalist leader Eddy McAteer. In 1970 he was one of the founding fathers of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) and soon emerged as its chief policymaker. He became leader in 1979. He was elected to the 1973-74 Northern Ireland Assembly and was head of the Department of Commerce in the ill-fated power-sharing executive in 1974. He was also elected to the 1982-86 Northern Ireland Convention. He was elected as one of Northern Irelands three MEPs in 1979 and made it to Westminster in 1983 when boundary changes created the new Foyle seat, the first time a non-Unionist had got a seat in parliament for Derry since the establishment of Northern Ireland. He was seen as the main architect of the Anglo-Irish Agreement signed between the British and Irish Governments in 1985 and which, much to Unionist fury, gave Dublin a say in the affairs of Northern Ireland. Mr Hume led his party in various talks with the British Government and other local parties during efforts to set up a devolved administration. Read More Nobel Peace Prize winner John Hume has died, family announce Following extensive and often heated discussions, the Good Friday Agreement was signed on April 10 1998. Devolved government followed with a local Assembly sitting at Stormont led by Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble. Many had expected Mr Hume to become deputy first minister as the leader of the then second largest party. But instead Seamus Mallon took on that role, amid rumours of a bad working relationship between Mr Hume and Mr Trimble. In 1998, Mr Hume won the Nobel Peace Prize, jointly with Mr Trimble. He built up a reputation as an international politician, winning the ear of the Irish government, European leaders and, possibly most important of all, the powerful Irish-American lobby. Within Europe he spearheaded economic initiatives which won Northern Ireland special financial aid, and fellow MEP and arch political foe, the Rev Ian Paisley, lined up in support. He was also a recipient of the Gandhi Peace Prize and the Martin Luther King Award. In the summer of 1999, Mr Hume was taken ill at a conference in Austria, and had to undergo a series of operations. He retired as leader of the SDLP in 2001, succeeded by fellow Derry man Mark Durkan. He announced his retirement from politics in 2004. His Foyle Westminster seat was successfully defended in 2005 by Mr Durkan. However Mr Humes party and the UUP suffered electorally since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, overtaken by Sinn Fein and the DUP. It was a sad moment for the SDLP in June 2017 when Mr Humes former seat in Foyle was lost to Sinn Fein. The party also lost South Down and South Belfast, leaving them without any MPs. That election temporarily signalled the end of Irish nationalism having a voice at Westminster, given Sinn Fein does not take its seats. In last Decembers election, the SDLP returned to the green benches of the Commons, when current leader Colum Eastwood regained the Foyle seat in a landslide win and party colleague Claire Hanna won back South Belfast. Mr Humes impact on politics has been recognised a number of times. In 2010 he was named Irelands Greatest in a public poll by Irish national broadcaster RTE. In 2012, Pope Benedict XVI made him a Knight Commander of the Papal Order of St Gregory the Great. Mr Hume, who was 83 in January, had been suffering from dementia for many years. In May 2018, he was too ill to attend a ceremony at Queens University in Belfast to mark the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Good Friday Agreement. Hong Kong denied plans to harvest residents' DNA as part of a China-backed coronavirus-testing blitz, as deep political mistrust further complicates the city's efforts to contain its worst outbreak ever. The Hong Kong government on Sunday welcomed Chinese government experts who are setting up a temporary laboratory to dramatically expand its ability to track a third wave of Covid-19 cases. The push quickly fanned suspicions that authorities would use the opportunity to collect DNA samples from residents, a tactic local law enforcement have recently employed in activist arrests, after widespread use by police in Xinjiang and elsewhere on the mainland. The Hong Kong government "solemnly clarified that this is absolutely unfounded," pledging in a statement that samples "will not be transported to the mainland for testing." The government blamed "certain individuals" for spreading the theory online and promised to look into "whether spreading untrue claims intentionally by certain individuals would constitute criminal offense." The controversy underscores mounting mistrust between the government and the local pro-democracy political opposition in the wake of a national security law imposed by China in June. Last week, the government barred a dozen pro-democracy candidates from campaigning for office and delayed local legislative elections planned for Sept. 6 for a year -- a move condemned by U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo as an attempt to crush dissent. State broadcaster CCTV reported on Saturday that all 7.5 million Hong Kong residents will receive free virus testing, without citing sources. The report also estimated the testing could be completed within "a few days," though no public information has been released on how the testing drive will be conducted. China's National Health Commission declined comment, while the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Hong Kong's appeal to mainland experts is aimed at achieving the widespread testing that helped underpin successful virus-eradication strategies in cities like Wuhan and Beijing. While there's so far been no suggestion that those campaigns are being used for DNA harvesting, they come at a time of increased international scrutiny on the collection and use of such data by Chinese law enforcement. China is "building the world's largest police-run DNA database," enrolling tens of millions of individuals with "no control over how their samples are collected, stored and used," the Australian Strategic Policy Institute said in a report released in June. Hong Kong's police have already begun collecting DNA samples from protesters arrested under the new national security law, a practice that lawyers described as a rare occurrence during last year's protests. Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong, who has said he wants to hire a bodyguard to protect himself from detention after being barred from running for office, compared the testing push to Beijing's efforts to track other groups suspected of secessionist tendencies such as the largely Muslim Uighur minority in Xinjiang. "Starting from today, #Beijing will send medical personnel from China to #HK for mass testing. Just like #nationalsecuritylaw legislation, the decision is unilaterally imposed without public consultation," Wong said on Twitter. "As China is paving ways to extend its surveillance systems to #Hongkong, it is worrying that HK might soon become Xinjiang." Purchases made via links on our site may earn us an affiliate commission The General Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketiah has called on the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) to immediately withdraw its armed officers from registration centres at Banda in the Bono region. This is despite the GAFs insistence that it has not deployed armed officers in the area. Videos circulating on social media had earlier shown a number of military personnel questioning registrants at a particular registration centre while preventing others from registering for the voters ID in the area. Asiedu Nketia said the presence of armed personnel has deterred a lot of people from registering for a voters ID card, a development he believes will disenfranchise a lot of Ghanaians in Banda. The problem we have is about ethnic profiling which this government is persistently doing, it threatens the peace of this country. When military men were dispatched to the Togo border, the government explained that they were there to prevent police from entering the country with COVID-19. Talking about the deployment in this area, targetting the same Ewe ethnic group, it is a very dangerous thing that is happening in this country. The National Democratic Congress flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama and the Adontenhene of Bongase Community in the Banda District of the Bono Region, Nana Yakubu have both condemned the deployment of military deployment into the community. While Mr Mahama described the actions of the government as dangerous in a statement, Nana Yakubu said these happenings are preventing some fisherfolk from participating in the registration exercise in the community thus generating tension in the town. ---citinewsroom Technavio has been monitoring the product lifecycle management (PLM) in consumer goods market and it is poised to grow by USD 2.02 billion during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 10% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200803005374/en/ Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) in Consumer Goods Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire) Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please request Free Sample Report on Covid-19 Impact Frequently Asked Questions- At what CAGR is the market projected to grow during the forecast period 2020-2024? Growing at a CAGR of over 10%, the market growth will accelerate during the forecast period of 2020-2024. What is the key factor driving the market? Increasing demand for PDRs is one of the key factors driving market growth. What are the top players in the market? ANSYS Inc., Aras Corp., Autodesk Inc., Dassault Systemes SE, HP Inc., International Business Machines Corp., Oracle Corp., PTC Inc., SAP SE, and Siemens AG. are some of the major market participants. Which region is expected to hold the highest market share in the market? North America What is the major trend for product lifecycle management (PLM) in consumer goods market? Increasing adoption of cloud-based PLM software is a major growth factor for the market. The market is moderately fragmented, and the degree of will accelerate during the forecast period. ANSYS Inc., Aras Corp., Autodesk Inc., Dassault Systemes SE, HP Inc., International Business Machines Corp., Oracle Corp., PTC Inc., SAP SE, and Siemens AG are some of the major market participants. The increasing demand for PDRs will offer immense growth opportunities. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in fast-growing segments, while maintaining their position in the slow-growing segments. Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) in Consumer Goods Market 2020-2024: Segmentation Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) in Consumer Goods Market is segmented as below: Deployment Professional Services On-premise Cloud Geography North America Europe APAC MEA South America To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download a free sample: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR40858 Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) in Consumer Goods Market 2020-2024: Scope Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our product lifecycle management (PLM) in consumer goods market report covers the following areas: Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) in Consumer Goods Market size Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) in Consumer Goods Market trends Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) in Consumer Goods Market analysis This study identifies increasing adoption of cloud-based PLM software as one of the prime reasons driving the product lifecycle management (PLM) in consumer goods market growth during the next few years. Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) in Consumer Goods Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the product lifecycle management (PLM) in consumer goods market, including some of the vendors such as ANSYS Inc., Aras Corp., Autodesk Inc., Dassault Systemes SE, HP Inc., International Business Machines Corp., Oracle Corp., PTC Inc., SAP SE, and Siemens AG. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the product lifecycle management (PLM) in consumer goods market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support. Register for a free trial today and gain instant access to 17,000+ market research reports. Technavio's SUBSCRIPTION platform Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) in Consumer Goods Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024 Detailed information on factors that will assist product lifecycle management (PLM) in consumer goods market growth during the next five years Estimation of the product lifecycle management (PLM) in consumer goods market size and its contribution to the parent market Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior The growth of the product lifecycle management (PLM) in consumer goods market Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of product lifecycle management (PLM) in consumer goods market vendors Table of Contents: PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT 2.1 Preface 2.2 Currency conversion rates for US$ PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE Market ecosystem Market characteristics Value chain analysis Market segmentation analysis PART 04: MARKET SIZING Market definition Market sizing 2019 Market outlook Market size and forecast 2019-2024 PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS Bargaining power of buyers Bargaining power of suppliers Threat of new entrants Threat of substitutes Threat of rivalry Market condition PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY DEPLOYMENT Market segmentation by deployment Comparison by deployment Professional services Market size and forecast 2019-2024 On-premise Market size and forecast 2019-2024 Cloud Market size and forecast 2019-2024 Market opportunity by deployment PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE Geographic segmentation Geographic comparison North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024 Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024 APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024 MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024 South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024 Key leading countries Market opportunity PART 09: DECISION FRAMEWORK PART 10: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES Market drivers Market challenges PART 11: MARKET TRENDS Increasing adoption of cloud-based PLM software Rise in number of strategic partnerships Introduction of PLM mobile applications PART 12: VENDOR LANDSCAPE Overview Landscape disruption Competitive scenario PART 13: VENDOR ANALYSIS Vendors covered Vendor classification Market positioning of vendors ANSYS Inc. Aras Corp. Autodesk Inc. Dassault Systemes SE HP Inc. International Business Machines Corp. Oracle Corp. PTC Inc. SAP SE Siemens AG PART 14: APPENDIX Research methodology List of abbreviations Definition of market positioning of vendors PART 15: EXPLORE TECHNAVIO About Us Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200803005374/en/ Contacts: Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: media@technavio.com Website: www.technavio.com/ HOUSTON, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Apache Corporation (NASDAQ: APA) today announced the commencement of tender offers (each, an Offer and, collectively, the Offers) to purchase up to $460,000,000 in aggregate purchase price (excluding accrued and unpaid interest, fees and expenses) (as such amount may be increased or eliminated by Apache pursuant to the terms of the Offers, the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price) of its outstanding notes listed in the table below. The terms and conditions of the Offers are set forth in Apaches Offer to Purchase, dated August 3, 2020 (the Offer to Purchase). The Offer to Purchase relates to seven separate Offers, one for each series of notes (each series, a Series of Notes, and such notes, collectively, the Notes). Apaches obligation to accept for purchase, and to pay for, Notes that are validly tendered and not validly withdrawn pursuant to each Offer is conditioned on the satisfaction or waiver by Apache of a number of conditions, including the receipt by Apache of the net proceeds from the issuance of not less than $1,000,000,000 in principal amount of indebtedness in one or more debt financing transactions on terms reasonably satisfactory to Apache (the Financing Condition). No Offer is conditioned on any minimum amount of Notes being tendered or the consummation of any other Offer. Notes CUSIP Numbers Principal Amount Outstanding Maximum Tender SubCap (principal amount) Acceptance Priority Level Tender Consideration(1)(2) Early Tender Premium(1) Total Consideration(1)(2)(3) 3.625% notes due 2021 037411 AX3 $ 292,587,000 N/A 1 $ 955.00 $ 50 $ 1,005.00 2.625% notes due 2023 037411 BD6 $ 180,763,000 N/A 2 $ 950.00 $ 50 $ 1,000.00 3.250% notes due 2022 037411 AZ8 $ 460,057,000 $ 220,000,000 3 $ 970.00 $ 50 $ 1,020.00 4.250% notes due 2044 037411 BC8 $ 706,417,000 N/A 4 $ 875.00 $ 50 $ 925.00 4.750% notes due 2043 037411 BA2 $ 1,306,622,000 $ 50,000,000 5 $ 915.00 $ 50 $ 965.00 5.100% notes due 2040 037411 AW5 $ 1,396,531,000 6 $ 920.00 $ 50 $ 970.00 5.250% notes due 2042 037411 AY1 $ 421,692,000 7 $ 920.00 $ 50 $ 970.00 (1) Per $1,000 principal amount of Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn and accepted for purchase. Story continues (2) Excludes accrued interest, which will be paid on Notes accepted for purchase as described herein. (3) Includes the Early Tender Premium (as defined in the Offer to Purchase) for Notes validly tendered at or prior to the Early Tender Deadline (and not validly withdrawn) and accepted for purchase. Each Offer will expire at 11:59 p.m., New York City time, on August 28, 2020, unless extended or earlier terminated (such time and date, as the same may be extended with respect to one or more Offers, the Expiration Date). Holders (as defined in the Offer to Purchase) of Notes must validly tender and not validly withdraw their Notes at or prior to 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on August 14, 2020 (such time and date, as the same may be extended with respect to one or more Offers, the Early Tender Deadline) in order to be eligible to receive the applicable Total Consideration, which includes the Early Tender Premium for the Notes of $50 per $1,000 principal amount of Notes tendered. Holders who validly tender their Notes after the Early Tender Deadline and at or prior to the Expiration Date will be eligible to receive only the applicable Tender Consideration, as set forth in the table above. In each case, such Holders will also be entitled to receive accrued and unpaid interest, if any, from the last interest payment date for the applicable Series of Notes up to, but not including, the applicable Settlement Date, if and when the applicable Notes are accepted for purchase. The Offers are open to all Holders of the Notes. Tendered Notes may be withdrawn at or prior to 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on August 14, 2020, by following the procedures described in the Offer to Purchase, but may not thereafter be validly withdrawn, except as provided for in the Offer to Purchase or required by applicable law. The maximum aggregate principal amount of Notes accepted for purchase in each Offer will be subject to the applicable aggregate principal amount of each Series indicated in the table above (with respect to each Offer, and subject to increase or elimination by Apache, the Maximum Tender SubCap and collectively, the Maximum Tender SubCaps). In addition, Apache will only accept for purchase (I) an aggregate principal amount of $220,000,000 (the First Maximum Tender SubCap) of 3.250% notes due 2022 (the First Maximum Tender SubCap Notes) and (II) a combined aggregate principal amount of $50,000,000 (the Second Maximum Tender SubCap) of (i) 4.750% notes due 2043 (the 2043 Notes), (ii) 5.100% notes due 2040 (the 2040 Notes), and (iii) 5.250% notes due 2042 (the 2042 Notes and, together with the 2043 Notes and the 2040 Notes, the Second Maximum Tender SubCap Notes). All Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn at or prior to the Early Tender Deadline having a higher Acceptance Priority Level will, subject to the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price and the Maximum Tender SubCaps, be accepted before any Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn at or prior to the Early Tender Deadline having a lower Acceptance Priority Level are accepted pursuant to the Offers, and all Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn after the Early Tender Deadline and at or prior to the Expiration Date having a higher Acceptance Priority Level will, subject to the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price and the Maximum Tender SubCaps, be accepted before any Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn after the Early Tender Deadline and at or prior to the Expiration Date having a lower Acceptance Priority Level are accepted pursuant to the Offers. However, Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn at or prior to the Early Tender Deadline will, subject to the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price and the Maximum Tender SubCaps, be accepted for purchase in priority to other Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn after the Early Tender Deadline and at or prior to the Expiration Date, even if such Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn after the Early Tender Deadline and at or prior to the Expiration Date have a higher Acceptance Priority Level than the Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn at or prior to the Early Tender Deadline. Subject to the Maximum Tender SubCaps, if the aggregate principal amount of Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn at or prior to the Early Tender Deadline equals or exceeds the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price, Holders of the Notes who validly tender and do not validly withdraw Notes after the Early Tender Deadline and at or prior to the Expiration Date will not have any such Notes accepted for payment regardless of the Acceptance Priority Level of such Notes, unless Apache increases the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price. If the aggregate principal amount of any Series of Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn at or prior to the Early Tender Deadline equals or exceeds the applicable Maximum Tender SubCap, if any, Apache will not accept for purchase any Notes of such Series that are tendered following the Early Tender Deadline, unless Apache increases such applicable Maximum Tender SubCap. There can be no assurance that any or all tendered Notes of a given Acceptance Priority Level will be accepted for purchase. If purchasing all the validly tendered and not validly withdrawn Notes of a given Acceptance Priority Level on the applicable Settlement Date would cause the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price or the applicable Maximum Tender SubCap to be exceeded on such Settlement Date, Apache will accept such Notes on a pro rata basis, to the extent any Notes of such Acceptance Priority Level are accepted for purchase, so as to not exceed the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price or the Maximum Tender SubCap, as applicable (with adjustments to avoid the purchase of Notes in a principal amount other than in the applicable minimum denomination requirements contained in the indentures governing the Notes and integral multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof). As such, there can be no assurance that any or all tendered Notes of a given Acceptance Priority Level will be accepted for purchase, even if validly tendered and not validly withdrawn prior to the Early Tender Deadline. Apache reserves the right, but is under no obligation, to increase or eliminate the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price or any Maximum Tender SubCap at any time without extending the applicable Withdrawal Deadline (as defined in the Offer to Purchase), subject to applicable law. As such, there can be no assurance that any or all tendered Notes of a given Acceptance Priority Level will be accepted for purchase, even if validly tendered and not validly withdrawn prior to the Early Tender Deadline. Apache reserves the right, but is under no obligation, at any time after the Early Tender Deadline and before the Expiration Date, to accept Notes that have been validly tendered and not validly withdrawn for purchase on a date determined at Apaches option (such date, if any, the Early Settlement Date). Apache currently expects the Early Settlement Date, if any, to occur on August 18, 2020. If Apache chooses to exercise its option to have an Early Settlement Date, Apache will purchase any remaining Notes that have been validly tendered and not validly withdrawn after the Early Tender Deadline and at or prior to the Expiration Date, subject to the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price, the Maximum Tender SubCaps, the application of the Acceptance Priority Levels, and all conditions to the Offers having been satisfied or waived by Apache, on the final settlement date (the Final Settlement Date, and each of the Early Settlement Date and the Final Settlement Date, a Settlement Date). The Final Settlement Date, if any, is expected to be September 1, 2020, unless extended by Apache. If Apache chooses not to exercise its option to have an Early Settlement Date, it will purchase all Notes that have been validly tendered and not validly withdrawn at or prior to the Expiration Date, subject to the Aggregate Maximum Purchase Price, the Maximum Tender SubCaps, the application of the Acceptance Priority Levels, and all conditions to the Offers having been satisfied or waived by Apache, on the Final Settlement Date. No tenders of Notes submitted after the Expiration Date will be valid. J.P. Morgan, BofA Securities and BMO Capital Markets are acting as Dealer Managers and D.F. King & Co., Inc. is acting as the Tender Agent and Information Agent for the Offers. Requests for documents may be directed to D.F. King & Co., Inc. at (800) 549-6697 or apache@dfking.com. Questions regarding the Offers may be directed to J.P. Morgan collect at (212) 834-3424 or toll-free at (866) 834-4666, BofA Securities at (980) 388-3646 or debt_advisory@bofa.com, or BMO Capital Markets collect at (212) 702-1840, toll-free at (833) 418-0762 or at LiabilityManagement@bmo.com. This announcement is for informational purposes only and is not an offer to purchase or sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase or sell, with respect to any securities, including in connection with the Financing Condition. The Offers to purchase the Notes are only being made pursuant to the terms of the Offer to Purchase. The Offers are not being made in any state or jurisdiction in which such Offers would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. None of Apache, the Dealer Managers, or the Tender Agent and Information Agent is making any recommendation as to whether or not Holders should tender their Notes in connection with the Offers. About Apache Apache Corporation is an oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States, Egypt and the United Kingdom and exploration activities offshore Suriname. Apache posts announcements, operational updates, investor information and press releases on its website, www.apachecorp.com. Cautionary Statements and Risk Factors That May Affect Future Results Certain information contained in this release is forward-looking information based on current expectations and plans that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of performance. Actual events or results may differ materially because of conditions in our markets or other factors. Moreover, Apache does not, nor does any other person, assume responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of those statements. Unless otherwise required by applicable securities laws, Apache disclaims any intention or obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this release. If Apache does update one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that it will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements. All of the forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by reference to the factors discussed under Risk Factors in the Offer to Purchase and under Forward-Looking Statements and Risk and Risk Factors in Apaches Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarterly periods ended March 31, 2020 and June 30, 2020 (each of which is incorporated by reference in the Offer to Purchase) and similar sections in any subsequent filings, which describe risks and factors that could cause results to differ materially from those projected in those forward-looking statements. Those risk factors may not be exhaustive. Apache operates in a continually changing business environment, and new risk factors emerge from time to time. Apache cannot predict these new risk factors or assess the impact, if any, of these new risk factors on Apaches businesses or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those described in any forward-looking statements. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as a prediction of actual results. Contacts Investor: (281) 302-2286 Gary Clark Media: (713) 296-7276 Castlen Kennedy Website: www.apachecorp.com APA-F PM announces paid pandemic leave. Source: Getty Victorians with no sick leave entitlements will be eligible for a new $1,500 per fortnight payment, the Prime Minister announced on Monday. Scott Morrison said that those who are required to self-isolate for 14 days due to the virus or become ill but arent entitled to sick leave or have exhausted it will be eligible for a $1,500 payment for the fortnight they are off. The Prime Minister said the payment would be made in the same way that disaster recovery payments were made, and Australians would be able to ring 1802 266 from Wednesday and make applications over the phone. For those who need to self-isolate as a result of an instruction by a public health officer - there is no economic reason for you to go to work, Morrison said. The announcement comes after Victoria entered its toughest restrictions yet, and the state recorded 429 Covid-19 cases and 13 more deaths on Monday. Today is a day where letting Victorians know that we are there to support you, Morrison said. And we will be there to support you with a $1,500 payment in the same way that others receive JobKeeper that, if you're put in that situation, you can have that support for that two-week period. In terms of costs, the state of Victoria will be footing the pandemic leave bill for all short-term visa-holders, while the Commonwealth will foot the bill for Australian residents and citizens. And, people can access the payment multiple times if necessary, Morrison confirmed. Hopefully that won't be too often, and hopefully people will only have to go through that on the single occasion, but we know that isn't always the case. As it stands, the payment is only available to Victorians, but the Prime Minister flagged this could change. This is a disaster payment, he said. If another state were to be in a position - and God forbid they were - that there was a disaster of the scale that we're seeing in Victoria, then a disaster payment of this nature would be entered into, but that would be done on the same basis of what will be established with Victoria. So this is to deal with a disaster. Story continues The Prime Minister confirmed there was no end-date to the payment, and it would be in place for as long as Victorias situation is considered disastrous. Weve left it open-ended at this point, he said. Once the pandemic disaster is, we hope, returned to the sort of situation you're seeing in other states currently, then that's when disaster payments traditionally are no longer applied. But we anticipate that this payment will be needed for some time, and it will be made available for as long as it's necessary. Are you a millennial or Gen Z-er interested in joining a community where you can learn how to take control of your money? Join us at The Broke Millennials Club on Facebook! NOLA Brewing Company announced it will open NOLA Pizza Co. this fall. It will focus on New York-style pies. It will take over the taproom spac Priyanka Gandhi posts emotional message for Rahul Gandhi on Raksha Bandhan India oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P New Delhi, Aug 03: Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi on Monday posted an emotional message on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan and said she has learnt "love and patience" from her brother and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Priyanka posted a picture with Rahul and said she is proud to have a brother like him. Taking to Twitter, Priyanka Gandhi said, "I have learned love, truth and patience from my brother while living together in every happiness and sorrow. I am proud to have such a brother. Heartiest greetings to all the countrymen for the holy festival #Rakshabandhan. #RakshaBandhan." Earlier, Rahul Gandhi extended Rakhi greetings on Twitter and posted a picture of him hugging his sister Priyanka. "Wishing every one a happy #RakshaBandhan," Gandhi had tweeted. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News High time Mehbooba Mufti is released, says Rahul Gandhi Meanwhile, leaders and politicians from across the country have been extending greetings on the auspicious, joyous festival of Raksha Bandhan today. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the wishes and blessings from country's Nari Shakti on the occasion have humbled him and infused him with inspiration and energy. Also, Union Home Minister Amit Shah greeted people on the festival of Raksha Bandhan. Shah is currently undergoing treatment in hospital as he tested positive for coronavirus. "Heartfelt greetings to the people of the country on the auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandhan," Shah tweeted in Hindi. On Sunday, the home minister said he had tested positive for COVID-19 and was getting admitted in a hospital following the advice of doctors. "I have done a coronavirus test after showing initial symptoms and I have tested positive. My health is fine but I am getting admitted to a hospital on the advice of doctors." For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, August 3, 2020, 13:28 [IST] Jammu: Combing operations on Wednesday resumed at the army camp in Nagrota, where seven defence personnel were killed in a terror attack, to flush out any remaining militants. Army Chief Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag is likely to visit the Nagrota Corps headquarter on Wednesday to review the situation. Combing operation resumed this morning at the camp. The area is to cleared, a senior Army officer said. Operation is on to see whether there is presence of any other militant in the area. We cannot take chances, he said. Jammu was rocked by two terror attacks yesterday in which 7 army personnel, including two Major-rank officers, were killed and eight other securitymen, including a BSF DIG, were injured, before six heavily-armed terrorists were eliminated in the separate fierce encounters. In one incident, a group of heavily-armed terrorists in police uniform stormed an army unit in Nagrota, about three kms from the Corps headquarters on the outskirts of Jammu city. Seven army personnel, including two officers, were killed in this attack before three terrorists were killed in an armed stand-off which also involved a hostage-like situation with 12 soldiers, two ladies and two children being held captive. All were rescued. Three terrorists were gunned down by BSF in Ramgarh area of Samba near the International Border after an encounter that lasted several hours and was followed by intense cross-border firing by Pakistani troops. Four security personnel, including BSF DIG, were injured in this incident. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. A UN-backed court is to deliver its judgement Friday on four suspected Hezbollah members tried in absentia for former Lebanese premier Rafic Hariri's murder in a 2005 Beirut car bombing. The Lebanese Shiite movement does not recognise the Netherlands-based Special Tribunal for Lebanon, denies all the accusations and has refused to hand over the accused. A massive bomb tore through Hariri's armoured convoy as he drove home for lunch on Valentine's Day 2005, killing him and 21 other people including seven of his bodyguards, as well as wounding 226 others. Here are those indicted: - Mustafa Badreddine - The alleged mastermind, Hezbollah commander Mustafa Badreddine is believed to have died in Syria in May 2016 while providing military support to the Damascus regime. The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) in July that year overturned its decision to try him in absentia, finding sufficient evidence to establish his death. Badreddine joined the Hezbollah movement newly created by Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards after Israel's invasion of Lebanon in 1982. He was jailed in Kuwait for attacks on the French and US embassies in 1983. His release was among the demands of Shiite militants who hijacked two airliners, before he was freed in the chaos caused by Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. - Salim Ayyash - Salim Ayyash, 56, has been accused of leading the team that carried out the bombing. His whereabouts, like the three others awaiting the verdict, remain unknown. Charges against Ayyash include "committing a terrorist act", "intentional homicide" of Hariri, "intentional homicide of 21 other people", and attempting to kill 226 more, according to the STL website. In a separate case, the tribunal in 2019 also charged him with terrorism and murder over three other deadly attacks on Lebanese politicians in 2004 and 2005. - Hussein Oneissi, Assad Sabra - Hussein Oneissi, 46, and Assad Sabra, 43, allegedly sent a fake video to the Al-Jazeera news channel claiming responsibility on behalf of a non-existent group. Oneissi and Sabra are accused of "being an accomplice to the felony of committing a terrorist act", as well as accomplices in the "intentional homicide" of Hariri, in the "intentional homicide of 21 other people", and in attempting to kill 226 more. The court in 2018 threw out a bid to acquit Oneissi, saying that while much of the evidence was circumstantial, it was still in theory sufficient to produce a conviction. Much of the prosecution case has relied on mobile phone records that allegedly show the suspects conducting surveillance of Hariri until minutes before the explosion. The defence has argued the evidence was "theoretical" and that the defendants had "no motive" to carry out the crime. - Hassan Merhi - Hassan Merhi, 54, is accused of general involvement in the plot. He is charged with the same crimes as Oneissi and Sabra. Search Keywords: Short link: BANNING, Calif. A wildfire in mountains east of Los Angeles that has forced thousands of people from their homes was sparked by a malfunctioning diesel vehicle, fire officials said Monday. The vehicle spewed burning carbon from its exhaust system, igniting several fires Friday on Oak Glen Road in Cherry Valley, and authorities were asking anyone who may have seen such a vehicle at the time to contact investigators, according to a statement from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The blaze in Riverside County, among several wildfires across California, had consumed nearly 42 square miles (more than 108 square kilometers) of dry brush and chaparral since it broke out Friday evening, fire officials said. As of Monday night, it was just 7% contained and the fire along with coronavirus precautions made for added stress at an evacuation center, said John Medina, an American Red Cross spokesman. Volunteers used to close contact with evacuees have had to adjust their approach during a time of social distancing, Medina said. I mean, thats part of the recovery of a disaster, is that you have to show warmth and love and caring. And thats hard when youre standing 6 feet away. So thats the biggest challenge, Medina told KESQ-TV. Bill Boehm helped his mother evacuate her home with her three horses and said the pandemic hasnt stopped people from coming together to assist each other. Everyone seemed to be wearing masks and such, so that type of precaution was still going on, Boehm told the news station. The blaze began as two adjacent fires in a rural area near the city of Beaumont, about 85 miles (137 kilometers) east of downtown Los Angeles. Flames raced along brushy ridge tops and came close to houses while firefighters attacked from the ground and air. By nightfall, the flames were burning into the San Gorgonio Wilderness, where the brush was becoming sparse and limited the fires intensity, according to Zach Behrens, a spokesman for the San Bernardino National Forest. Five buildings had been destroyed, including at least one home, authorities said. One firefighter was treated for an injury and returned to work. In Northern California, evacuations were ordered after a wildfire that sparked Sunday afternoon spread quickly and burned near homes near the East Park Reservoir in Colusa County. Complicating firefighters efforts were temperatures in the area north of Sacramento climbed to 98 degrees (37 Celsius) by Monday afternoon. The fire was 40% contained. On Californias central coast, a fire in San Luis Obispo County was 60% contained Monday after burning more than 2 square miles (6 square kilometers) of brush east of the community of Santa Margarita. Two structures were destroyed but officials said it was unclear whether they were homes. In Riverside County, officials allowed flames from the Apple Fire to run up the side of Mount San Gorgonio, an 11,000-foot (3,350-meter) peak, because it wasnt safe to let crews work in such steep, rugged terrain, said Lisa Cox, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service. Evacuation orders and advisories were issued for about 2,500 homes in mountain, canyon and foothill neighborhoods. Campgrounds and hiking trails were closed in the San Gorgonio Wilderness area of the San Bernardino National Forest. A smoke plume was visible for miles around and contributed to poor air quality. Firefighters fought the blaze in scorching weather. The temperature hit 111 degrees (44 Celsius) on Monday in nearby Palm Spring. Enter the hippie commune that exists in its own entirely beautiful idealistic world in the center of Copenhagen, the Danish capital city. If ever there was a place that epitomized the free-spirit of anarchists and hippies of decades long past, this city within a city is it. Freetown Christiania, also known as Christiania or Fristaden Christiania in Danish, is a residential community and commune of about 850 to 1,000 residents who all hold common values and share a somewhat offbeat lifestyle. It is located in the borough of Christianshavn in Copenhagen. Despite its seemingly idyllic and alternative existence, this community has been a hotbed of controversy since its creation. Origins But how exactly did this free-spirited community come to be? The area of Christiania consists of the former military barracks of Badsmandsstrde and parts of the city ramparts. These ramparts and the aforementioned borough of Christianshavnwhich was then a separate citywere chartered in 1617 by King Christian IV, who also claimed the beaches and islets in the area. Years later during a war known as the Second Northern War the area's ramparts would be further reinforced by Christian V, forming a solid ring of defence. As for the barracks of Badsmandsstrde in the same area, these housed the royal artillery regiment, the army materiel command, and various ammo labs and depots. They were no longer in much use after World War II, becoming fully abandoned between 1967 and 1971. It's from here that the story of Christiania really begins. After the military presence in the area faded, only a few watchmen remained to guard the area which was mainly trespassed by homeless people who wanted to use the empty buildings. In September of 1971, the inhabitants of a nearby residential area would break down the fences to take over the unused facilities as a playground for their children. Though it wasn't explicitly marked as such in the beginning, some would later argue that this was done as a form of protest against the government, which at the time struggled to provide suitable housing for its residents. Later that same month, Jacob Ludvigsen, a journalist, would officially write about and announce the area as the "forbidden city of the military." More importantly, Ludvigsen would emphasize the area as a free town and a place meant for settlers who wanted the chance to build a society from scratch. He would become instrumental in writing the free community's mission statement which talked of creating a self-run society where each individual had to contribute to the wellbeing of the community with the ultimate goal of being economically self-sustaining. From these humble beginnings, an entire community was born, as people from the hippie movement, squatters, anarchists, and collectivists all moved to the area to make it their own. Christiania is sympathetic towards drug addicts, and has a large marijuana market running from its main street. Image credit: Dreamer Company/Shutterstock A Free Community This community formed by these free-spirited radicals would come to be known for its progressive and liberal attitudes, and the artsy, whimsical nature of its districts. Meditation and yoga would become pervasive and the area would also spawn a theatrical group called Solvognen who staged performances in Christiania and throughout Denmark. It's also known for being open and supportive of drug addicts. Another key aspect of the community is its thriving LGBTQ+ community, with the Gay House existing since the 1970s as one of the commune's independent institutions. This building acts as a center for gay activism, parties, and theatre that is renowned throughout the queer Copenhagen community. And of course, no discussion of Christiania can go without mentioning its main artery, Pusher Street, or the Green Light District, where hash and marijuana are openly sold from permanent stands that line the area. No hard drugs are allowed, however, and there have been heated controversies and disagreement regarding the existence of this market. The result of this social experiment, along with the alternative atmosphere of the whole commune, Christiania ranks as the fourth largest tourist attraction in Copenhagen, drawing in half a million visitors annually. This is hardly surprising as it's a uniquely liberated Danish community and it's one that doesn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. Take a look around the supermarket when youre shopping, and its clear most people have gotten the message that they should be wearing a mask to help stem the spread of the coronavirus. Thats not to say everyones complying, which has allegedly led to recent violence in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey. But what about when youre outside, such as biking, jogging or running on the D&L Trail through the Lehigh Valley? Lauren Golden, trail and stewardship manager for the Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor, did a quick poll of coworkers who regularly use the trail about users wearing masks. At best, the unscientific glance suggested 40% of users have been wearing one, even though the trail is too narrow in spots for people to maintain 6 feet of distance from one another. When we are asked, we recommend a neck gaiter or scarf, as it can be pulled up quickly and then pulled back down when people are not around, Golden said by email from the Easton-based heritage corridor. Facial covering requirements in Pennsylvania and New Jersey include exceptions for when people are exercising. But both the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection say to be prepared to put a mask on. In state park guidance, the DCNR says: Wear a mask in the restrooms, buildings and outdoors if you cant keep six feet of distance from other people. The NJDEP meanwhile has launched a #MaskUp social media campaign urging its state park users to: Protect yourself and others from COVID-19. Wear a mask, especially within six feet of others, including on trails and paths and in parking lots. Download and post your own #MaskUp posters here:https://t.co/mD3nbOGpNe pic.twitter.com/vDt1de1488 New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (@NewJerseyDEP) July 30, 2020 In its mask guidance, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recognizes wearing a mask isnt always feasible as a way to stem the spread of the coronavirus. According to the CDC, Masks should not be worn by: Children younger than 2 years old. Anyone who has trouble breathing. Anyone who is unconscious, incapacitated, or otherwise unable to remove the mask without assistance. People should not wear masks while engaged in activities that may cause the mask to become wet, like when swimming at the beach or pool, the CDCs guidance continues. A wet mask may make it difficult to breathe. For activities like swimming, it is particularly important to maintain physical distance from others when in the water. People who are engaged in high intensity activities, like running, may not be able to wear a mask if it causes difficulty breathing. If unable to wear a mask, consider conducting the activity in a location with greater ventilation and air exchange (for instance, outdoors versus indoors) and where it is possible to maintain physical distance from others. The CDC goes on to say: Masks are a critical preventive measure and are most essential in times when social distancing is difficult. If masks cannot be used, make sure to take other measures to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spread, including social distancing, frequent hand washing, and cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched surfaces. When it comes to outdoor exercise, Pennsylvanias universal face coverings order delves deeper into the nuances of mask-versus-no-mask: If doing a solitary activity outside that is not likely to result in being within 6 feet of another person, you are not required to wear a face covering. Individuals should consider carrying a face covering in case they unexpectedly come in close contact with others. New Jerseys mask order says all individuals shall wear face coverings when it is not practicable for individuals in outdoor public spaces to socially distance and keep a six-foot distance from others, excluding immediate family members, caretakers, household members, or romantic partners ... . This requirement shall not apply when wearing a face covering would inhibit that individuals health, including when engaging in high intensity aerobic or anaerobic activities, when in the water, and in other situations where the presence of a mask would pose a risk to the individuals safety, or where the individual is under two years of age, New Jerseys order continues. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com. Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. John Hume, a moderate Roman Catholic politician who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his dogged and ultimately successful campaign to end decades of bloodshed in his native Northern Ireland, died on Monday in the northern city of Derry. He was 83. His death, at a nursing home, was announced by his family in a statement, which did not give the cause, though his wife, Pat Hume, had earlier acknowledged that he was struggling with dementia. It seems particularly apt for these strange and fearful days to remember the phrase that gave hope to John and so many of us through dark times: We shall overcome, his family said. Mr. Hume, a former French teacher who was known for a sharp wit but rarely for rhetorical flourishes, rose from hardscrabble beginnings to become the longtime leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party and a towering figure in the grinding and oft-thwarted drive to end 25 years of The Troubles, as Northern Irelands strife was known. The United States Harness Writers Association (USHWA) will host the next free harness racing handicapping contest on Scott Albergs Facebook page Saturday (Aug. 8) at the Meadowlands. The $1-million Hambletonian Trot final is the special race that contestants will be challenged to handicap and entry is free of charge. There is no purchase necessary to play. All you have to do is select the correct exacta. (first two official finishers in the race. Must submit their starting post position by number). USHWA is offering three prizes that will be given away. The prizes for this special contest are CASH Gift Cards! First place will receive a $100 gift card, second place a $75 gift card and third place a $50 gift card. And, as a special BONUS, if 500 people participate in the contest, www.3PercentDental.com will DOUBLE the cash prizes. Scott Alberg, the 2006 National Harness Handicapping Champion, who also has numerous other handicapping titles, has been a Standardbred owner in the past, and has agreed to partner with USHWA as the contests new title sponsor. To enter the free contest, fans must go to Scott Albergs Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/scott.alberg.3,, where the contest will be prominently displayed. Entries will be accepted beginning Thursday afternoon, August 6. Alberg, as he has done in the past, will run the contest. Participants have until 10:00 am Saturday morning to enter the contest. All rules and regulations will be posted for the contest. Anyone who is not on Facebook can still enter the contest by sending in their selections via email to [email protected]. Horseman and media communicator Rod Allums, Jr. has joined the USHWA/Scott Alberg contest and will host the Facebook Live Drawing to determine the contest winners at 6:45 pm Saturday at https://www.facebook.com/rod.allums. For more information check out Scott Albergs Facebook Page, USHWAs Facebook Page, Twitter and Instagram accounts or the new USHWA website at www.usharnesswriters.com. A list of prizes winners is available anytime from either Scott Albergs Facebook or via email at [email protected]. (USHWA) It is a well-known fact that the Airline industry has been one of the worst-affected corners in the investing space due to the coronavirus pandemic that diminished passenger revenues. The recently announced airline results for the June quarter bear testimony to the struggles of the industry participants. In fact, the coronavirus impact was more severe on the second quarter than on the March-quarter as the entire three-month period (April to June) bore the brunt of this meltdown in air-travel demand as opposed to only a single month (March) in the last reported quarter. Lets recapitulate the results of key airline stocks in the June quarter. Delta Air Lines DAL kicked off the second-quarter 2020 earnings season for the aviation industry on Jul 14. This Atlanta-based carrier suffered a wider-than-expected loss in the June quarter. Notably, passenger revenues slumped 94% year over year in the period to $678 million with enplaned passengers plummeting 93% due to low demand for air travel. With Delta making significant capacity cuts to compensate for the coronavirus-induced sharp decrease in traffic, capacity (measured in available seat miles) contracted 85%. However, the traffic decline (94%) was greater, deflating the load factor (percentage of seats filled by passengers) immensely to touch 34%, marking a steep plunge from 88% a year ago. Chicago-based United Airlines UAL fared no better, having reported wider-than-expected loss as well. Moreover, operating revenues slumped 87.1% year over year due to the 93.5% drop in passenger revenues. Further, consolidated load factor deteriorated 5290 percentage points to 33.1% as traffic decline was more than capacity contraction. Additionally, Dallas-based Southwest Airlines LUV was a victim of lackluster passenger revenues (down 87.2%) as it too reported a wider-than-estimated loss. Load factor came in at 31.4%, down 5500 basis points on a year-over-year basis. Passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM: a key measure of unit revenues) nosedived 71.3% to 3.94 cents. The story of another airline heavyweight American Airlines AAL was not dissimilar as it also posted a loss (excluding $3 from non-recurring items) of $7.82 per share, comparing unfavorably with the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $6.75. Story continues Like the other three airline majors, the massive 89.9% fall in passenger revenues was responsible for the sorry state of affairs at this currently Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) carrier. While consolidated traffic plummeted 88.5%, capacity contracted 76.4%. Consolidated load factor decreased 44.3 percentage points to 42.3%. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Other carriers like JetBlue Airways JBLU, Alaska Air Group ALK and Spirit Airlines SAVE too fared miserably in the June quarter due to shrinking passenger revenues. Despite the overall gloomy scenario, low fuel prices provided some relief. Moreover, with most of the fleet remaining grounded/under-utilized, fuel gallons consumed also decreased to lower the commoditys expenditure, thus aiding the bottom line in turn. Additionally, the focus of most airlines on operating cargo-only flights in the face of drained passenger revenues is praiseworthy. Evidently, cargo revenues surged 36.3% year over year at United Airlines in the June quarter. Any Relief in Sight? The million-dollar question after such a disappointing performance is whether the airline stocks can turn things around in their favor. The answer is unfortunately an emphatic no, at least in the remainder of the year. The spike in coronavirus cases in some parts of the United States negated the improvement in air-travel demand witnessed since late May. For example, Southwest Airlines expects operating revenues for August to decline 70-80% year over year as bookings decreased while trip cancellations increased. Moreover, the financial aid under the CARES act protects jobs at the airlines only through Sep 30, 2020. However, per a Reuters report, airlines are seeking a six-month extension of the payroll support program as the desired rebound in air travel is no way a near-term possibility. In fact, many airlines already warned of job cuts post the above date as they are faced with the problem of overstaffing due to depressed revenues. Per a CNBC report, United Airlines warned that it may have to furlough more pilots than the original plan of 2,250. In a bid to stay afloat during this unprecedented crisis, many leading carriers signed letters of intent pertaining to their share of the $25-billion federal loan under the CARES Act. Although the signing of the letters of intent does not mean that airlines are obligated to borrow loans, we expect them to avail of the same to bolster their liquidity position. In view of this grim situation, we dont expect the aviation stocks to be out of the woods anytime soon. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 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 Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) : Free Stock Analysis Report JetBlue Airways Corporation (JBLU) : Free Stock Analysis Report Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) : Free Stock Analysis Report United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) : Free Stock Analysis Report American Airlines Group Inc. (AAL) : Free Stock Analysis Report Alaska Air Group, Inc. (ALK) : Free Stock Analysis Report Spirit Airlines, Inc. (SAVE) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia's military rejected allegations on Wednesday by Papuan separatists that a father and son killed at the weekend in the country's easternmost province were civilians, insisting the victims were linked to an armed rebel group. The two adult men were carrying weapons when they were fatally shot by troops on Saturday near the district capital of Nduga, said Colonel Gusti Nyoman Suriastawa, a military spokesman, adding that a gun, cash, and a phone that belonged to a soldier were retrieved from their bodies. The military in a statement said the two men were linked to an armed separatist group led by Egianus Kogoya, a leader from the Free Papua Movement. "Why would they carry a pistol with them? Why would they snatch the weapons and a backpack belonging to the military?", Suriastawa said, insisting those killed were not civilians. Papua has been plagued by long-running separatist tensions since the former Dutch colony was incorporated into Indonesia after a U.N.-backed 1969 referendum called the Act of Free Choice, which has been widely criticised by human rights groups. Sebby Sambom, a spokesman for the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB), said the victims had no connection to the separatist movement. It followed a similar incident in February, when the army said it killed a 18-year-old Papuan separatist in a shootout. The TPNPB said was victim was a civilian and no gunfight happened. [nL4N2AJ1OL] Indonesian human rights lawyer Veronica Koman told Reuters the separatist label was irrelevant and the men should have been arrested. "That was just (an) express killing. Even if they were members of the TPNPB, they were supposed to be tried then served justice," she said. "Those were extrajudicial killings." Records by rights group Amnesty International showed the father and son were refugees among thousands who fled a military crackdown in 2018 in the Nduga area, in response to a separatist attack on a group of construction workers. (Reporting by Agustinus Beo Da Costa; Writing by Stanley Widianto; Editing by Kate Lamb and Martin Petty) Santa Teresa, an elegant rum estate established not far from Caracas, Venezuela, in 1796, is still going strong. Its Santa Teresa 1796 Solera Rum processed using the solera method, like sherry, and aged in bourbon oak barrels, whiskey oak barrels and French limousin oak barrels has a dark, brooding complexity best enjoyed in a snifter. The liquors bold character will also shine through in a drink like rum and pineapple. During the pandemic, Geoff Robinson, a company manager, enlisted bartenders to participate in designing a new Crafted Together Limited Edition label for the rum. The label is royal blue and gold with a subtle mosaic of images selected by about 25 bartenders in exquisite corpse fashion, with each participant nominating the next, and so forth. The company also donated $10,000 to the Bartender Emergency Assistance Program by the nonprofit United States Bartenders Guild. Santa Teresa 1796 Solera Rum, $48, reservebar.com. Follow NYT Food on Twitter and NYT Cooking on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest. Get regular updates from NYT Cooking, with recipe suggestions, cooking tips and shopping advice. BEIJING, July 31 (Xinhua) -- The general office of the Central Military Commission has issued a circular requiring the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the People's Armed Police Force (PAP) to earnestly study the newly published third volume of "Xi Jinping: The Governance of China." It is a long-term political task to thoroughly study and implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, read the circular. Stressing that the study should be carried out in a target-oriented, problem-oriented and result-oriented manner, the circular said the PLA and PAP, while implementing COVID-19 prevention and control measures on a regular basis, should deliver a solid performance in all areas of work, promote troop training and battle readiness, and resolutely accomplish all tasks assigned by the Party and the people. A man who travelled 14km to play Pokemon Go on his phone has been fined $1,652 for breaching strict lockdown restrictions in Melbourne. Victoria Police issued a total of 172 fines to individuals on Sunday who have been caught breaching the Chief Health Officer directions. The man was caught travelling from Sunshine in the city's east to Melbourne's CBD to play the popular game on his phone. He was caught and slapped with the hefty fine before being told to return home. A man who travelled 14km to play Pokemon Go on his phone has been fined $1,652 for breaching strict lockdown restrictions in Melbourne A group of police and soldiers patrol the Docklands area of Melbourne on Monday Of the 172 fines, 27 people were issued infringements for refusing to wear a mask while in public. Officers conducted 4,366 spot checks on Sunday and issued 22 infringements at vehicle checkpoints on main arterial roads. Another woman was fined after police approached her at Southern Cross Station and she confessed she was trying to travel to Bendigo. Two men were caught at a fast-food store in Hobsons Bay and admitted they had travelled from Altona after spending the night at a friend's house. A group of people were caught celebrating a birthday at a short-term rental in Point Cook and another man was fined after he tried to drive to his holiday home on the Surf Coast. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced stage four restrictions on Sunday as the state battles a second wave of the coronavirus outbreak. The state is expected to record 429 new cases and 13 deaths on Monday. A general view of empty streets at Bourke Street in Melbourne as lockdown is put in place The man was caught travelling from Sunshine in the city's east to Melbourne's CBD to play the popular game on his phone Victoria recorded 671 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday (pictured). A Stage 4 lockdown will see nearly all shops close and high school students back to learning from home Melbourne went into strict Stage Four lockdown from 6pm on Sunday until at least September 13, when it will be reevaluated. Melbourne residents will only be allowed to exercise for an hour a day and can't travel more than 5km from home for the purpose of shopping. Only one person from each household will be able to go to the shops each day. Metropolitan Melbourne will be under a nightly curfew, between the hours of 8pm to 5am, from Sunday night with some exemptions for those providing care and travelling to and from work. Regional Victoria will move to 'stage three' restrictions, with restaurants, cafes, bars, gyms and other businesses to shut from midnight on Wednesday. Pictured: Empty trams cross in front of Flinders Street Station on Sunday. Melbourne residents are banned from leaving their homes between 8pm and 5am other than for a small number of essential reasons under an unprecedented night-time curfew The premier flagged further announcements would be made about workplaces on Monday, including the closure of certain industries. 'I want to ensure all Victorians supermarkets, the butcher, the baker, food, beverage, groceries, those types of settings, there will be no impact there,' he said. Mr Andrews said the extremely tight restrictions was necessary to prevent to the lockdown dragging on until Christmas. 'Six weeks versus a slower strategy. A much, much slower strategy that takes up to six months,' he said. 'I'm not prepared to accept that or accept days and days and days of hundreds of cases and more and more death.' Those whove kept up with Little People, Big World know Matt and Amy Roloffs saga. The couple was together for nearly 30 years before calling it quits on their marriage. And they lived on Roloff Farms together through their entire relationship. Now, many questions remain regarding the longevity of the farm and who will take it over next. But Amy took fans back to the humble beginnings. She recently explained how she and Matt came to obtain Roloff Farms in the first place. Amy Roloff sold her half of Roloff Farms to Matt Roloff on Little People, Big World Matt and Amy Roloff attend the Discovery Upfront Presentation NY Talent Images | Thos Robinson/Getty Images for Discovery RELATED: LPBW: Matt and Amy Roloffs Business, Roloff Farms, Is Worth Nearly $2 Million When Matt and Amy divorced, it was a shock for both Amy and her fans. Amy explained in her memoir, A Little Me, that she found inappropriate texts and photos exchanged between Matt and a Roloff Farms manager who fans assume is Caryn Chandler. And after the divorce, Amy had a major decision to make regarding her future living situation since she lived on Roloff Farms. Ultimately, Amy chose to move off of the property and she found a place just 15 minutes away. She and her husband-to-be, Chris Marek, seem happier than ever as they start their new chapter together away from Matt. And reports claimed Amy was able to sell her half of Roloff Farms to Matt for $600,000. It seems the sale isnt as cut and dry as fans like to think, though. Matt explained to his Instagram followers that Amy still owns part of the north side of the farm despite the sale. He also reminded followers that she chose to move and was never forced off the property at any point. Matt is unsure of the fate of the farm Now that Amy has a home elsewhere, its just Matt taking care of the huge property. And fans are curious as to whats going to happen to the farm next. While theyd love for Matt to hold on to it, hes stated before that its getting tough to take care of all by himself. And theres a good chance he might end up selling the property to one of his sons. The ultimate scenario for me is that the twins would take over the farm and work together but nobody likes to run that pumpkin patch like I do, Matt explained to his Instagram Live audience. Aside from selling, it seems the fate of pumpkin season is also up in the air due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. We are in daily dissertation meetings about that and what would it look and really, really scratching our heads to figure out how would that work, he explained in an Instagram video on July 11. Were coming up with all kinds of alternative plans. It all comes up very expensive. Amy recently explained how she and Matt attained Roloff Farms in the first place With so much talk about the future of Roloff Farms, many fans may forget how Amy and Matt came to acquire the property in the first place. On July 1, Amy posted a short biographical video on YouTube. And it succinctly explains everything fans want to know. According to Amy, she and Matt were living in California when a job opportunity came up for Matt. We decided to move to Oregon, she noted in the video. We bought a 21-acre farm, and I chose to be a stay-at-home mom to raise our family. When Matt and Amy first moved, they only had the twins, Zach and Jeremy. But their family then grew after Amy had Molly and Jacob. After that, Amy noted they bought more property and added an additional 12 acres to our farm. Years later, we bought a 75-acre farm property right next door to make a total of 108 acres we both owned. While Amy no longer lives on the farm, she reflected on her time there in the video. The farm was a wonderful place to raise my kids, she added. There was always something to do or something new being built. And she then touched on the pumpkin patch that draws fans in to this day. Were glad Amy can still reflect fondly on her Roloff Farms memories but we know shes ready for a new chapter now. Hopefully, she can still be a part of some of the events on the farm going forward. Check out Showbiz Cheat Sheet on Facebook! COURTHOUSE CONSIDERS CLOSING KANSAS CITY!!! Record number of new infections in Jackson County renew talk of rolling back reopenings KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Jackson County recorded its highest number of new coronavirus infections last week. As a result, some legislators are calling for more action to stop the spread of COVID-19. Some believe only a regional approach can successfully slow down the virus. There were 605 new COVID-19 cases and four more deaths in [...] Lockdown Money Talk US 'should shut down for another four to six weeks to save economy' Neel Kashkari, head of Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank, advised lockdown He said on Sunday that a 4-6 week closure would be beneficial in the long term Kashkari also said that Congress can afford to spend money on COVID relief Republicans and Democrats are currently trying to agree a rescue package A top official at the Federal Reserve has recommended that the U.S. COVID Harsh Times Contd??? Nearly half of all furloughed workers now believe their temporary layoff will become permanent In April, roughly 2 in 10 households experiencing job loss considered their layoff permanent. Now, as states have stalled or reversed reopening plans and the coronavirus outbreak worsens, nearly half of unemployed workers think their job is not coming back. Right now we feature an important bit of Monday foreshadowing regarding the election countdown amid renewed public health warnings . . .Developing . . . 08/03/2020 Contacts for media: Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944 or Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu and Christine Gillette, 978-758-4664 or Christine_Gillette@uml.edu LOWELL, Mass. While K-12 schools across Massachusetts are looking at options for reopening this fall in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, a new report says public schools should also be looking at another important issue for their future: diversity. A team of researchers led by Jack Schneider, assistant professor in UMass Lowells College of Education, has just released a report that found the K-12 student population in Massachusetts has become more racially diverse over the last decade. Although the number of predominantly white schools has decreased, the research noted that this has also coincided with an uptick... in the number of intensely segregated schools in the Commonwealth. Perhaps not surprisingly, the vast majority of intensely segregated non-white schools are concentrated in larger urban districts like Boston and Springfield. At the same time, these districts are home to many of the most racially integrated schools in the region. Moreover, of the nine districts with intensely segregated non-white schools, six possess the districtwide demography to produce uniformly diverse schools. Thus, we are disturbed by the state of racial diversity in Massachusetts schools, but we also see a hopeful path forward, the report states. I was drawn to the topic because I care deeply about integration across our society and I believe the most promising way to realize that vision is through the schools, Schneider said of his work on the report. Looking at the present pandemic, I think it underscores the importance of integration in terms of ensuring the adequate distribution of resources. If the most politically and economically privileged families are in the same schools as those who are marginalized, their own self-interested advocacy will benefit those who need it most. Thats a fairly unromantic argument for integrated schools, but it also recognizes the reality that Americans have long used schools as a way of securing privileges that arent broadly distributed. The reports findings include students of color are disproportionately represented in the lowest-rated quintile of schools, as determined by the Massachusetts accountability system. Similarly, we find that schools in the lowest quintile are also considerably less white than the average school in the Commonwealth. At first blush, this might suggest that racially diverse schools are low-performing relative to their predominantly white counterparts. Yet, the existing research literature suggests otherwise (The Century Foundation, 2016; Hallinan, 1998; Mickelson & Nkomo, 2012; National Academy of Education, 2007; Orfield, 2004). Instead, it states that the explanation may be issues within the states accountability framework, which relies heavily on data from standardized tests. Insofar as standardized test scores often indicate more about demography than school quality, the existing accountability system may be promoting segregation by steering middle- and high-income white families toward predominantly white schools. The report looked at data from schools across Massachusetts and focused on nine districts more specifically, including Boston and Springfield. In addition to the findings, the report offers a number of possible solutions to the issues it uncovered, including looking at new means of measuring accountability in schools. Schneider, in addition to teaching at UMass Lowell, leads the Beyond Test Scores Project and co-hosts an education-focused podcast, Have You Heard. He is an authority on K-12 public education. The collaborators on the report include Peter Piazza of Penn States Center for Education and Civil Rights and Rachel White of Old Dominion, along with Ashley Carey, who is pursuing her Ph.D. in leadership in education at UMass Lowell. I come to this topic out of a concern about the racial division that characterizes American social life and, as we see daily, American politics, and I think that integrated schools hold a promise/potential for healing that division, said Piazza. And, in terms of its connection to COVID (and the racial justice crisis as well), I think it highlights that we shouldn't be trying to go back to normal, but should instead be seeking new policies that address the racial inequities that have been amplified by both crises. The same is true of the question about going back to school since resources typically follow white students, intensely segregated non-white schools may lack the infrastructure, safety gear, etc. required to open safely this fall, so another way the pandemic disproportionately affects communities of color. I am passionate about this work because I think the strength of the connection between civil rights and educational opportunity cannot be overstated, and it is imperative that work like this continues to inform conversations about the value of integrated schools to a diversifying nation. As our communities become increasingly diverse, schools that are integrated provide students with the opportunity to learn from, respect, and build up and support their peers in ways that will inform how they treat others in our diverse society once they are outside of school walls including how they think about advocating for and using their voice to uplift the underserved and historically marginalized through participation in democratic processes. As it relates to our current pandemic, the findings from the study emphasize the importance of integration of schools as it relates to equitable access and distribution of resources necessary to not only access necessary educational experiences, but also to live and thrive in American society, said White. At least 29 people were killed in a raid on an Afghan prison claimed by the Islamic State group, officials said Monday, as the country waited to see if a government ceasefire with the Taliban would rupture after its formal expiration. Fighting finally ended at mid-afternoon at the jail in the eastern city of Jalalabad, where about 1,700 IS and Taliban inmates were being held. IS's news outlet Amaq said its fighters were behind the raid that had started with a suicide car bomb attack, and saw more than 1,000 inmates escape before most of them were recaptured. The attack was the most violent incident since the Taliban and Afghan security forces held a three-day ceasefire over the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha which ended Sunday. IS was not part of the truce which Afghan authorities hoped would pave the way for peace talks with the Taliban as early as this week. An AFP correspondent who toured the prison after the attack ended saw bodies of some attackers and inmates lying in the prison compound. The entrance to the jail was blown up by the initial car bomb attack. Several cells were burnt and damaged, while some had prisoners inside. The Nangarhar governor's spokesman Attaullah Khogyani told AFP that 29 people had died in the fighting. Officials said a total of 10 attackers were also killed. Meanwhile, the government accused the Taliban of violating the ceasefire 38 times over the three-day truce. Interior ministry spokesman Tareq Arian said the insurgents had killed 20 civilians and wounded 40 by "carrying out terrorist and offensive attacks as well as using landmines". The Taliban rejected his charges. Under a deal signed by the Taliban and the United States in February, the "intra-Afghan" talks were supposed to start in March. Talks however were delayed amid political infighting in Kabul, and as an agreed prisoner swap dragged on. - Prisoner release - Both Kabul and the Taliban have signalled they could be ready to start talks after Eid, and the Afghan government on Sunday offered to extend the ceasefire. The insurgents have not formally responded. The biggest hurdle to talks starting is a contentious prisoner swap stipulated under the US-Taliban deal. Under the exchange, Kabul is meant to free around 5,000 Taliban prisoners in return for 1,000 Afghan security personnel held captive by the insurgents. The National Security Council said Sunday that more than 4,900 inmates have been freed, and the Taliban last week said they had already met their side of the commitment. Afghan authorities, however, have refused to free about 400 Taliban inmates accused of serious crimes such as murder and even attacks against foreign countries. A gathering of Afghan elders will decide their fate on August 7 in Kabul, President Ashraf Ghani's spokesman said. Sediq Sediqqi said Washington had told Kabul that if it freed 4,600 Taliban prisoners the peace talks could begin. "We don't see any honesty and commitment from the Taliban for peace," Sediqqi told reporters. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, eager for a diplomatic win ahead of elections, discussed the prisoner issue by videoconference Monday with Taliban chief negotiator Mullah Baradar, insurgent spokesman Suhail Shaheen said. The US State Department would not comment. - Rumours Taliban regrouping - The rare respite from violence over Eid gave some Afghans the opportunity to safely visit relatives after long periods apart. "I managed to visit my village for the first time in two years," said Khalil Ahmad from volatile Uruzgan province. "There were many Taliban checkposts on the way, but they did not bother anyone." But in the northern province of Kunduz on Monday, any sense of calm felt short-lived. One resident, Atiqullah, who only uses one name, said that rumours were circulating that the Taliban were regrouping around Kunduz city. "Today, you see that familiar fear in people's faces again and I am more careful not to leave home today unless it's absolutely necessary," he told AFP. Sunday's raid on the prison came a day after Afghanistan's intelligence agency announced the killing of a top IS commander near Jalalabad. Nangarhar province has seen deadly IS attacks, including a suiicide bomb that killed 32 mourners at a funeral in May. The IS attacks continue despite officials claiming last year that the group had been defeated in Nangarhar. New Delhi, Aug 3 : Hindus are urging "Yoga Peace Life", a London (United Kingdom) based apparel and accessories online company, for immediate withdrawal of some products, which they feel denigrate and trivialise sacred Hindu symbols and concepts. Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said that it was hurtful for the devotees to see the immensely revered Hinduism symbols/concepts juxtaposed with obscenity on some of the merchandise sold by this company. Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, indicated that it was highly inappropriate and insensitive for a business to push their products which were seemingly disrespecting and disparaging the deeply held belief system of a large segment of world population. Highly venerated "Om" was the mystical syllable containing the universe, which in Hinduism was used to introduce and conclude religious work; Rajan Zed stated. Zed further said that Namaste, whose usually understood meaning was-I bow the divine in you-besides being a customary Hindu greeting, was also an expression of reverence and veneration, and was used in worship also. Derived from Sanskrit, it found reference in world's oldest extant scripture Rig-Veda and other early Hindu texts. It was also displayed in ancient Hindu sculptures, and archaeological findings from as early as about 3000 BCE reportedly revealed figurines in Namaste posture. Inappropriate usage of Hindu concepts or symbols or deities or icons for commercial or other agenda was not okay as it hurt the faithful, Rajan Zed noted and urged "Yoga Peace Life" CEO to also offer a formal apology, besides withdrawing objectionable products. "Yoga Peace Life" should not be in the business of religious appropriation, sacrilege, and ridiculing entire communities; Zed emphasized. Hinduism was the oldest and third largest religion of the world with about 1.1 billion adherents and a rich philosophical thought and it should not be taken frivolously. Symbols/concepts of any faith, larger or smaller, should not be mishandled; Rajan Zed pointed out. Zed added that such denigration and trivialization of Hindu symbols/concepts was disturbing to the Hindus world over. Hindus were for free artistic expression and speech as much as anybody else if not more. But faith was something sacred and attempts at trivializing it hurt the followers. Products of "Yoga Peace Life", started in 2014, included t-shirts/apparel and accessories for men, women, kids, babies. (IANSlife can be contacted at ianslife@ians.in) Ayodhya, Aug 3 : Eight mosques and two 'Dargaahs' surrounding the Ram Janmabhoomi have been conveying a message of peaceful coexistence of the two communities in the temple town of Ayodhya where the Ram temple is to be built. These Muslim places of worship are located within 100-200 metres of the fortified area, where Azaan and Ramayana chants seamless blend to cement the syncretic culture of Ayodhya. Unlike the Babri masjid, where Namaz stopped after December 23, 1949, regular five-time prayers are offered at these centuries-old Islamic structures adjacent to Ram Janmabhoomi, which also includes a Shia mosque and Imambara and the Tehribazar Jogiyon ki Masjid, which as the name suggests was built by Hindu salvation seekers ('Jogis') more than 200 years ago. There are about eight mosques and two mausoleums adjacent to the 70-acre premises of Ram Janmabhoomi mandated by the Supreme Court for Ram temple. Proper Azaan and Namaaz are being offered in these mosques without any objection from local Hindus including the occasional 'Urs' at mausoleums adjacent to Ram Janambhoomi premises. These eight mosques - Masjid Dorahikuan, Masjid Mali Mandir ke Bagal, Masjid Kaziyana Achchan ke Bagal, Masjid Imambara, Masjid Riyaz ke Bagal, Masjid Badar Paanjitola, Masjid Madaar Shah, Masjid Tehribazar Jogiyon ki, and mosoleums of Khanqaahe Muzaffariya and Imambara. Talking to IANS, Haji Asad Ahmad, corporator of Ayodhya Nagar Nigam, who represents Ram Kot ward where Ram Janmabhoomi premises is situated, said, "it is the greatness of Ayodhya that mosques surrounding the Ram mandir are giving a strong message of communal harmony to the rest of the world." "We take out our 'Juloos' of Barawafaat that goes through the periphery of Ram Janmabhoomi, our all religious functions and rituals are respected by our fellow citizens," he said. Reacting over the mosques been situated adjacent to Ram Janmabhoomi premises, the chief priest of Ram Janmabhoomi temple Acharya Satyendra Das, said, "We were having dispute only with the structure that was connected with the name of Babar, we never had any disputes with rest of the mosques and mausoleums in Ayodhya and this is the town of communal harmony where both Hindus and Muslims live in peace." "Muslims offer their Namaaz we offer our Puja, the mosques adjacent to the premises of Ram Janmabhoomi will definitely strengthen the communal harmony and peace will prevail" said Das. "Both Hindus and Muslims accepted the Supreme Court verdict over Ram Janmabhoomi and we have no dispute with each other," he added. Sayyad Akhlaq Ahmad Latifi, the Sajjada Nasheen and Peer of 500-year-old mausoleum 'Khanqaahe Muzaffariya' adjacent to Ram Janmabhoomi premises, said "we are observing all our religious practices freely, we offer five-time prayers in the mosque at Khanqaah and hold yearly 'Urs'." "What a great scene that would be, that the a great 'Ram Mandir' surrounded by small mosques and mausoleums, all offering prayers according to their beliefs, this will be the true culture of India," said Mahant Yugal Kishore Sharan Shastri, chief priest of Saryi Kunj temple adjacent to Ram Janambhoomi. On the mosques and mausoleums arounf the premises of Ram Janmabhoomi, Triloki Nath Pandey, the decree holder of Ram Janambhoomi as 'fast friend of Ram Lalla' mandated by the Supreme Court in Ayodhya verdict, said , "We don't have any objection either with those mosques or any other mosques, we will not create any dispute on any place, Ayodhya must live in peace and communal harmony." Mahant Raju Das, priest of Hanumangarhi temple, said, "the presence of those mosques shows the harmony of Ayodhya, Ram Mandir will be constructed and there is no objection over the mosques or religious practices of Muslims." Sudan, between the two countries, says the project could endanger its own dams though it stands to benefit from the Ethiopian dam, including having access to cheap electricity and reduced flooding. The confluence of the Blue Nile and the White Nile near Khartoum forms the Nile River that then flows the length of Egypt and into the Mediterranean Sea. Ukraine is committed to the Minsk agreements and the Normandy format as platforms for resolving the situation in Donbas, but it has different scenarios for the development of the situation. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said this in an interview with Glavkom online media outlet. Kuleba commented on the statements by Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine - Minister for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories Oleksiy Reznikov on the revision of the Minsk agreements, which, in his opinion, are outdated. "The TCG meeting, which took place on July 22, and the result achieved there on the ceasefire regime, is precisely the result of our work on the implementation of Minsk, and not on its destruction, unlike the Russian side does," he said. The foreign minister explained that Reznikov is "brainstorming" the process of resolving the situation in Donbas on how to move forward if the current scenario does not work. Reznikov recently said in an interview with Focus magazine that Ukraine will ask Germany and France to support the revision of the Minsk agreements. At the same time, Reznikov wants to leave Minsk to resolve economic and humanitarian issues. However, Russia warns that the revision of the Minsk agreements will set back the settlement process in Donbas. Russia once again advocated a direct dialogue between Ukraine and the militants. ish An eight-year-old boy was critically injured after falling from a third-story window of an apartment building in Chicago over the weekend. Chicago police said officers were called to the city's Washington Park neighborhood Sunday night around 10.55pm. Authorities said the boy fell from a third-floor window of an apartment complex in the 5200-block of South Prairie Avenue. An eight-year-old boy was critically injured after falling from a third-story window of an apartment building (pictured) in Chicago over the weekend According to ABC 7, the child was found by a passerby on the sidewalk unresponsive. He was rushed to Comer Children's Hospital in critical condition. Footage from the scene showed police officers outside the apartment building, taping off the area. On Monday, police said they are investigating the incident as an accidental injury case. The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services is also investigating the incident. No other details about the incident have been released. Amy Brown (left) shot dead her friend after catching her in bed with fiance A mum, Amy Brown has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after she murdered her friend, Amanda Hill, 35 while celebrating her 36th birthday with her fiance Brandon Fayard. It was gathered that the tragic incident happened after Brown walked in on both of them in bed together. Mirror Online in a report on Sunday, 2nd August that Amy and her friends were celebrating her birthday in Prosser, Washington State back in February 9, 2018 when her fiance, Brandon told her he was going to bed, and then not long after, her friend Amanda went in to use the bathroom. After 20 minutes passed Amy Brown (pictured below) went in to see why her friend had taken too long only to find her fiance and friend in bed. Before the unfaithful day, Brown and Brandon ran a business together and also took care of her two boys from a previous relationship and three sons from Brandon. Meanwhile Brown had met her friend Amanda years earlier. Amanda who was also a mum quickly bonded with Amy Brown and they soon became good friends. According to the Mirror Online, after Brown caught her fiance and friend in bed together, an argument ensued which made Brown storm off to smoke and drink outside the house. As Brown was smoking downstairs, her friend, Amanda went to meet her. Not long afterwards, at around 12.45am, two loud gunshots could be heard. A horrified Brandon ran outside and found Brown cradling a bleeding Amanda in her arms. Amanda had been shot twice in the torso. Brandon called 911 but after frantic work by the emergency services, Amanda was declared dead. During police investigations, Brown admitted that shed shot and killed her friend but claimed it had been for self-defence because Amanda had attacked her. Brown described how she had found her friend and fiance in bed together and that after yelling and swearing at them, shed gone outside for a smoke and more drink. Brown then said as she was smoking, Amanda attacked her from behind. She knocked me on my face, and I turned around and she was trying to, like, choke me, Brown was recorded saying. She described Amanda having her hands on her face and neck. I felt like she was trying to choke me, she continued. According to Brown shed managed to break free and scramble over to her parked Cadillac Escalade car where she grabbed a .38-calibre revolver that was stashed in the door. I grabbed it and I pulled it out and I was like, Get off me, and she wouldnt get off of me so I fired, Brown admitted. I fired two shots and when I fired two shots, she [shouted], Amy, what the f***? Are you crazy? Then she noticed Amanda bleeding heavily. Brown insisted that when she realised what shed done, shed immediately put pressure on the wound and screamed for Brandon to call 911. And I kept the pressure on until police pulled me off of her, Brown said. Brown insisted that she had fired in self-defence but when asked whether she thought Amanda was going to harm her, or whether she felt like her life was in danger, she admitted she didnt feel like it was. Upon her revelations police asked her why did she deliberately get a gun, if she didnt feel as though Amanda was a threat to her. Amandas devastated family were left with a sad feeling that she had been killed and at the hands of a woman who was supposed to be her friend. At the trial this year, prosecutors charged her (pictured in court below) with murder saying that Brown had flown into a jealous rage when she found her fiance and friend in bed together and had shot Amanda twice in the torso in an act of anger. They accused Brown of Murder because admitted she didnt feel like her life was in danger when she reached for a gun and shot her friend twice. Amanda meanwhile continued to reiterate that she had retaliated in self-defence. In the end, the jury deliberated for less than three hours and in March 2020 Brown, now 38, was found guilty of second-degree murder. In June, she faced her sentencing. According to her lawyers, Browns act that night hadnt been planned and until then, she had been a law-abiding citizen. The judge has sentenced Brown to 15 years in prison. Wockhardt announces COVID-19 vaccine partnership with UK Govt Mumbai, Aug 3 (UNI) Pharma major, Wockhardt on Monday said that it has entered into an agreement with the UK Government to fill finish COVID-19 vaccines. The manufacturing will be undertaken at CP Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Wockhardt based in Wrexham, North Wales. As per the terms of the agreement the company has reserved manufacturing capacity to allow for the supply of multiple vaccines to the UK Government in its fight against COVID19, including AZD1222, the vaccine co-invented by the University of Oxford and its spinout company, Vaccitech and licensed by AstraZeneca. Dr Habil Khorakiwala, Founder Chairman of Wockhardt emphasised, "The pandemic of COVID-19 is a challenge for all and needs a concerted effort to overcome. We are proud to be collaborating with the UK Government to make vaccines available and the arrangement brings in a huge sense of purpose and pride, it upholds our ongoing commitment to fight against such a pandemic of global human importance. As a global organisation, we are focussed and committed to assist in mitigating the worldwide impact of COVID-19." Alok Sharma, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Government of U.K said, "Ensuring the UK has the capability to research, develop and manufacture a safe and effective vaccine is critical in our fight against coronavirus. "Today we have secured additional capacity to manufacture millions of doses of multiple Covid-19 candidates, guaranteeing the supply of vaccines we need to protect people across the UK rapidly and in large numbers." Speaking about the contract Ravi Limaye, Managing Director Wockhardt UK said, "We are immensely proud to have been selected to partner with the UK Government on this project. In doing so we are taking a lead role in the nation's fight against pandemic of COVID-19". "We have a sophisticated sterile manufacturing facility and a highly skilled workforce. We expect to start delivering the first doses of the vaccine later this year." He added. The government has reserved one fill and finish production line for its exclusive use for the next 18 months in order to guarantee the supply of vaccines required to fight COVID-19 in the UK. Dr Murtaza Khorakiwala, Managing Director and Global CEO of Wockhardt adds, "The arrangement with the UK Government for manufacturing vaccines for COVID-19 showcases our global strength in world class sterile injectable facilities and capacity. With four decades of expertise and experience behind us we are able to quickly scale to manufacture and assist in mitigating the worldwide impact of COVID-19." Kate Bingham, Chair of UK Vaccines Task Force said, "Never before have we needed to find and manufacture a vaccine at this speed and scale in order to protect the UK population. We have made significant progress in securing a diverse portfolio of potential vaccines and treatments for Covid-19, adding a fourth vaccine candidate from GSK and Sanofi last week. However, discovering a successful vaccine is only part of the solution, we also need to be able to manufacture it. Fill Finish is a critical step in the process to get the vaccine in a form to be given to patients. The agreement with Wockhardt will boost our capability to ensure that from the moment a successful vaccine is identified we will be able to produce the quantities of vaccine required, as quickly as possible, for the people who need it." UNI JS NV SB 1520 RICHMONDAmy Lynn Ferry normally spends early August buying take home folders, decorating pencil boxes stocked with supplies and making bookmarks for each of her first-grade students. This year, however, Ferry wont need to stock up on her usual school supplies for her students at Highland Springs Elementary School in Henrico County. The school year will start virtually. But the list of supplies her students will need to buy will be longer than usual since they wont have access to any of the communal classroom supplies. I think the cost will be higher based on what were asking for, Ferry said. I think itll be higher for families because its something that the schools put on families to provide. This years back-to-school shopping will be unusual. Sales should increase this year compared with one year ago, some experts say, largely because students will be buying more computers and other electronics for virtual learning. Parents likely will buy fewer traditional back-to-school clothing since many students will be learning virtually at home. But parents will be buying different school supplies than normal to compensate for the fact that students wont be able to use communal classroom supplies if they are learning from home. Most of those who are anticipating some portion of e-learning this year are planning to purchase items specifically for a virtual environment, said Katherine Cullen, senior director of industry and consumer insights for the National Retail Federation, the nations largest retail trade organization. This includes larger electronics, like laptops or desktops as well as speakers and headphones and other categories like desks, lamps and workbooks. Back-to-school spending nationally is expected to total $33.9 billion, up from $26.2 billion last year, according to the National Retail Federations annual survey. Families with children in elementary school through high school plan to spend an average of $789, while those with children in college plan to spend an average of $1,059. Much of the increase in spending is largely due to more parents buying computers and other electronics, with 63% of K-12 families in the survey saying they plan to buy those items, up from 54% last year. Deloittes annual back-to-school survey found spending likely will remain flat this year, with spending for K-12 students at about $529 per student and about $1,345 per college student. Spending also is shifting toward digital products over more traditional items, the Deloitte survey found. v v v Virginias sales tax-free weekend, from Aug. 7 through Aug. 9, should allow families to save some money. Consumers wont be paying sales tax on many items next weekend, including certain school supplies under $20 and clothing and shoes under $100. The tax exemption also applies to certain hurricane and emergency preparedness products, such as portable generators priced at $1,000 or less and gas-powered chain saws selling for less than $350. Also tax-free are Energy Star and WaterSense appliances priced at $2,500 or less. Tax-free items can be bought in stores, online and by phone. The tax-free period has been held annually in Virginia during the first weekend in August since 2006. Its usually a very big hit and a successful weekend. The sales tax holiday always lends itself to large and small retailers in terms of enhancing the foot traffic in their stores, said Jodi Roth, the director of government affairs for the Virginia Retail Federation. When customers are in the stores buying their school supplies, theyll also pick up other things. The tax-free weekend is advantageous for the consumer and the retailer, she said. Shoppers might save even more during that weekend as many retailers have opted to pick up the sales tax on items that arent on the list of allowable tax-exempt merchandise. But Roth doesnt expect this years tax-free weekend to be as successful as previous years, despite predictions for record-breaking back-to-school spending. The main reason is that the majority of school systems are doing virtual learning. For a lot of parents, there wont be a need to go out and buy those new school clothes and shoes and a lot of necessities needed for in-person learning, she said. For instance, Roth plans to spend less money than usual this back-to-school season. Her children, who are in high school and college, will need fewer supplies for virtual learning, she said. The majority of the work is going to be done on their laptop. There will be no turning in of work because that would mean physical contact. Paper wont be needed, she said. Even basic supplies that people normally have to purchase when going back to school wont be needed. High school students who rely on their laptop for most of their work anyway may have fewer supply needs. v v v Most elementary school students will be expected to purchase more supplies than usual, like those in Ferrys first-grade class at Highland Springs Elementary School. Parents of those students typically are asked to buy crayons, Lysol wipes, scissors, glue sticks, pencils and a journal, Ferry said. She provides the rest of her students supplies. This year, the first-grade school supply list includes a whiteboard, dry erase markers, a journal for each subject, foam counters, a pencil sharpener, a calendar, Play-Doh, a highlighter, a dry erase pocket for handwriting exercises, and headphones, in addition to the usual items. Back-to-school shopping, which is the second biggest retail season behind the December holidays, will be especially important this year as retailers recover from a difficult few months during the coronavirus pandemic. I think itll be [a] hard hit, in addition to the other hard hits businesses have been taking lately with COVID-19, with property damage and with customers not feeling comfortable shopping in person, Roth said. Virtual learning is just one more factor that is going to affect their bottom line significantly. v v v Technology retailers could see higher demand than usual with families shopping for different items this back-to-school season, Roth said. I dont really know that virtual learning is going to help many retailers, other than maybe the tech industry, where parents may want to [upgrade] their home learning center for their kids. Spending on electronics or computer-related equipment is expected to increase more than any other category, according to the National Retail Federations survey. Seventy-two percent of families whose children will be taking classes from home expect to buy computers, home furnishings or other supplies for virtual learning, the survey found. The back-to-school season already has looked different at Best Buy near Chesterfield Towne Center mall. The hot items this year are any products that will help with at-home learning or at-home teaching, said Matthew Early, the general manager of Best Buy on Koger Center Boulevard. People want to make sure their home networks are up and running and capable of supporting the number of devices that are on it, he said. Online learning will cause a bigger drain on peoples networks than usual, so people are asking for help with that. Many customers also are looking for webcams, an external mouse or keyboard and extra monitors. There seems to be a lot more people who need advice and help versus people who come in and know exactly what they want, Early said. They want anything that will help them have a better at-home learning or teaching experience. v v v Some families are delaying their usual back-to-school shopping for clothes and shoes. Back-to-school season normally is one of the busiest for Saxon Shoes in the Short Pump Town Center in western Henrico. So far, the store hasnt seen as much business as usual, said Gary Weiner, president and CEO of the family-owned Saxon Shoes, which also has a store in The Village at Spotsylvania Towne Centre in Fredericksburg. Weve had some foot traffic for kids shoes in the store these past few weeks and we do expect it to build as we get closer to school, we just dont think itll be what it has been in the past, Weiner said. He expects the store to see a pretty nice bump during the tax-free weekend. But he doesnt think Saxon Shoes will be as busy as usual because of virtual learning. Theres no real urgency to come in and get some new [shoes] for the back-to-school season because a lot of people just arent going back to school and others arent sure, he said. The store has been doing more of its business online lately, especially after being closed during the coronavirus pandemic. The National Retail Federations survey found 43% of consumers plan to do more of their back-to-school shopping online than usual because of COVID-19. Were trying to do a few things a little more digitally, even though in all honesty, we much prefer to fit childrens shoes in person to make sure they get the right size, Weiner said. When students and teachers eventually return to school for in-person classes, theyll need their usual school supplies and back-to-school wardrobe, he said. When Ferrys first-grade class resumes in-person classes possibly as soon as November, shell buy the pencil boxes and other supplies she usually needs for her classroom. I was walking out of Walmart the other day and I was looking at all of the buckets of crayons, glue and other school supplies and I thought, they should hold off and do this again in nine weeks, she said. ALMATY, Kazakhstan -- Police in Kazakhstan's largest city have detained an activist who was picketing the Chinese Consulate in protest to recent statements by Chinese Ambassador Zhang Xiao about Chinese-Kazakh military cooperation. Serik Azhibai protested in front of the Chinese Consulate building in Almaty on August 3 with a poster reading: "Ambassadors bring reconciliation, enemies bring discord! Get out of the country!" Before police took him away, Azhibai said his action was in protest to an interview Zhang gave Chinese media last week in which, according to Azhibai, who is fluent in Chinese, the envoy said that China and Kazakhstan would send troops to each other's territory to quash possible riots, if need be. "We are not a Chinese autonomous region. We are a sovereign state, an independent nation.... Neither China nor any other state has the right to interfere in other countries' internal affairs," Azhibai said. A city official who arrived at the scene called Azhibai's action illegal, although it is allowed to hold single-person pickets without advance permission from the local authorities. Azhibai was one of many Kazakhs who picketed the consulate in Almaty for many months demanding the release of their relatives and other ethnic Kazakhs being held in custody in China's northwestern Xinjiang region. In the interview in question, Ambassador Zhang said the Chinese and Kazakh armed forces "are decisively cracking down on the three evils," a Chinese media expression that refers to terrorism, extremism, and separatism. Zhang also said in the interview that the two neighbors oppose "colored revolutions" in the region. Anti-China protests in Kazakh towns and cities that have become frequent in recent years challenged China's growing presence in the economy of Kazakhstan and denounced widespread incarceration of the indigenous Turkic-speaking communities in Xinjiang, including Kazakhs and Uyghurs. In April, Kazakhstan sent a note of protest to Beijing over an article on a Chinese website claiming that Central Asia's largest economy was seeking to become part of China. In August 2018, the United Nations said an estimated 1 million Uyghurs and members of other indigenous ethnic groups in Xinjiang were being held in "counterextremism centers." The UN said millions more had been forced into so-called "reeducation camps." China denies that the facilities are internment camps, but people who have fled the province say that thousands of ethnic Kazakhs, Uyghurs, and other Muslims in Xinjiang are undergoing "political indoctrination" at a network of camps. Kazakhs are the second-largest Turkic-speaking indigenous community in Xinjiang after Uyghurs. The region is also home to ethnic Kyrgyz, Tajiks, and Hui, also known as Dungans. Han, China's largest ethnicity, is the second-largest community in Xinjiang. The United States has imposed sanctions on current and former Xinjiang officials over the ongoing abuse of rights of the region's indigenous ethnic groups. The logo of Spanish energy company "Naturgy" is seen in the door of its headquarters in Madrid By Inti Landauro MADRID (Reuters) - Spanish utility Naturgy on Wednesday reported a 14% drop in first-half core earnings on lower demand for gas and electricity as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, sparking a sharp drop in its shares. Naturgy's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation fell to 1.87 billion euros (1.70 billion pounds) in the first half from 2.18 billion euros a year earlier. Net profit fell 44% to 334 million euros. "These are clearly not good results, but clearly we are impacted by what is happening in the world and the coronavirus," Chief Executive Francisco Reynes told analysts during a call on Wednesday. The company said lower demand for gas and electricity during lockdowns in the first half had depressed prices, while weaker currencies in Latin America further eroded profitability. Shares were down 4.7% at 16.63 euros in mid-afternoon trading, making the company the blue chip IBEX 35 index's worst performer. Fellow Spanish energy firm Iberdrola, which also reported earnings on Wednesday, was down 1.1%. Naturgy is a major global buyer of liquefied natural gas (LNG), which was already experiencing oversupply even before the pandemic further dented demand for the super-chilled fuel. The company said it had already cancelled contracts for 20 TWh worth of gas as prices slump, and expects to keep this policy in the second half of the year. It still expects to achieve efficiencies worth 500 million euros, and targets 2020 core earnings, excluding exceptional items, of around 4 billion euros, down from 4.7 billion euros last year. The company said it would update the market on its business plan and financial guidance in autumn and reaffirm its commitment regarding dividends. It said its priority remains shareholder returns, although it has suspended its share buy-back program. (Reporting by Inti Landauro; Editing by Isla Binnie, Jose Elias Rodriguez and Jan Harvey) Ellen DeGeneres' wife Portia de Rossi is thanking fans for 'standing' with them amid claims the talk show star created a 'toxic' work environment rife with bullying, racism and sexual harassment. The Arrested Development actress, 47, shared a graphic that read 'I stand by Ellen' on social media Monday. She captioned the post: 'To all our fans....we see you. Thank you for your support.' By her side: Portia de Rossi thanked fans while speaking up in support of wife Ellen DeGeneres amid claims the talk show host fostered a 'toxic' workplace culture full of bullying, racism and sexual harassment. The couple are seen in January 2020 above Her hashtags continued to send a message, reading: #stopbotattacks, #IStandWithEllenDeGeneres, #IStandByEllen, and #IstandByEllenDeGeneres. Portia, who has been married to Ellen for 12 years, also added '#bekindtooneanother,' which is how DeGeneres closes every episode of her show. It was unclear what the reference to 'bot attacks' meant. Portia's short statement comes after Ellen wrote a substantial memo to her employees, saying that she and Warner Bros. are 'taking steps, together, to correct the issues.' Dozens of staff on The Ellen DeGeneres Show have claimed that racism, bullying and sexual harassment was rife at the Hollywood studio. Kindness counts: Portia, who has been married to Ellen for 12 years, also added '#bekindtooneanother,' which is how DeGeneres closes every episode of her show Keeping a low profile: DeGeneres was seen in Santa Monica on Saturday The show's parent company WarnerMedia last week launched an investigation after the employees went public with their grievances. Last month one current and ten former employees of the daytime chat show accused its three executive producers, Ed Glavin, Mary Connelly and Andy Lassner, of 'bullying.' The executive producers issued a statement saying: 'We are truly heartbroken and sorry to learn that even one person in our production family has had a negative experience.' Lassner also tweeted: 'Nobody is going off the air.' Jonathan Norman, a co-executive producer, is alleged to have 'groomed' a former employee by taking him to concerts and showering him with other gifts and perks before attempting to perform oral sex on him. Kevin Leman, the show's head writer and executive producer, is alleged to have solicited oral sex from an employee. Others say they witnessed Leman grope another colleague. Executive producers (left to right) Jonathan Norman, Kevin Lenman and Ed Glavin were accused by over 30 former employees of sexual misconduct And Ed Glavin, an executive producer, allegedly 'had a reputation for being handsy with women,' according to former employees. The former staffers told BuzzFeed News that they believe Ellen knew that several of her senior showrunners and producers were alleged to have committed sexual misconduct against junior-level employees. Leman and Norman have denied all allegations. Glavin has not addressed the claim publicly yet but is stepping down from his position, according to Variety. BULLYING, RACISM AND A 'TOXIC WORK ENVIRONMENT': THE ALLEGATIONS AGAINST ELLEN Ten former and one current member of Ellen's staff alleged they were bullied, fired for attending family funerals or taking sick leave, while one woman claimed to have walked off the job after facing comments about her race. 'That 'be kind' bulls*** only happens when the cameras are on. It's all for show,' one anonymous staff member said. Staff said they were told not to talk to DeGeneres herself while she was on set, and that the day-to-day running of the show was left to producers. The employees said they did not have first-hand experience of DeGeneres being unpleasant, but said she needs to take more responsibility for how her employees are treated. However, allegations have mounted from other sources against the host herself - sparked by a Twitter thread from comedian Kevin T. Porter Calling DeGeneres 'notoriously one of the meanest people alive', he asked people for 'the most insane stories you've heard about Ellen being mean'. The tweet received 2,600 replies and saw Porter give $600 to an LA foodbank, after promising to donate $2 for every legitimate mean story. Claims included that staff are required to chew gum before speaking to her because of her 'sensitive nose', and that she polices staff lunch orders and bans anyone from eating fish or meat. Separately, security worker Tom Majercak - who was assigned to be Ellen's bodyguard at the 2014 Oscars - said she was 'sly' and 'demeaning' to him. 'Ellen is the one person that I've been assigned to - and I've been assigned to quite a few celebrities - that has never taken the time to say hi to me,' he said. 'She's not the person she portrays to be that she's playing off of society.' Advertisement Warner Bros., the studio that runs the show, has declined to comment on the sexual harassment allegations, citing an ongoing internal investigation. Ellen said she was 'taking steps... to correct' issues with her employees in the staff-wide memo from last week. 'On day one of our show, I told everyone in our first meeting that The Ellen DeGeneres Show would be a place of happiness - no one would ever raise their voice, and everyone would be treated with respect. Obviously, something changed, and I am disappointed to learn that this has not been the case. And for that, I am sorry,' Ellen said in the memo. 'As we've grown exponentially, I've not been able to stay on top of everything and relied on others to do their jobs as they knew I'd want them done. Clearly some didn't,' she added. 'That will now change and I'm committed to ensuring this does not happen again.' But multiple staff members at the show tell DailyMail.com they are not buying Ellen's apology and are calling on her to call it quits. One staffer said, 'She's only addressing this now because the publicity is so bad for her and her BS brand of happiness and kindness. Ellen can throw everyone else under the bus, but the buck stops with her. 'Whenever she'd tell viewers to choose kindness, I'd throw up a little in my mouth because she always chose the opposite,' they added. Among the allegations was one made by a black woman who claimed she suffered a number of 'microaggressions,' her request for a raise was ignored and she was accused of 'walking around looking resentful and angry' after asking for staff members to undergo diversity and inclusion training. Another former employee alleged they were fired after taking medical leave for one month following a suicide attempt. Our source said: 'She was happy to put her name on the show, yet she let those three executive producers do whatever they wanted. The fish rots from the head and Ellen and the three of them are now rotting.' They also claimed Ellen and her executive producers will be on a 'witch hunt' now to find who spoke out against them. 'Don't think for a second that there won't be a witch hunt to find out who went public with the worst kept secret in television,' they said. 'Ellen is mean. She'll want vengeance for all of this coming out.' A popular claim that has circulated is that staff members were instructed not to speak to Ellen, and our source corroborated that claim. 'She kept herself isolated from the staff. You can't go up and talk to her, heck, you can't even get within a mile of her on the lot,' they said. Current employees are now calling on Ellen to call it quits. 'Warner Bros should cancel our show or swap her out for a fun celebrity host. Viewers have been fed lies for years. The Ellen you see on TV is disingenuous and inauthentic. She's a horrible person who has done nothing to support 99% of the people who work for her. 'Yet they won't cancel it as all they care about is money and the show is a cash cow. 'It's time for Ellen to leave TV. She's done enough damage. They should replace her with someone wonderful like Jen Aniston. She's always a dream when she comes by - gracious, kind and funny and we're actually allowed to look her in the eyes!!' A Wednesday report by Us Weekly claims the scandal is uniting staff behind-the-scenes. 'They've been calling and texting each other about the story,' a source claims to the publication. 'They're loving that the truth - which has been an open secret for years in the industry - is finally receiving more interest.' A source initially told Buzzfeed that the executive producers feel that 'everybody who works at The Ellen Show is lucky to work there: 'So if you have a problem, you should leave because we'll hire someone else because everybody wants to work here.'' Executive Producer Andy Lassner tweeted with confidence on Thursday that 'nobody is going off the air'. Our source said: 'Many of us have a theory that Ellen behaves this way as a mechanism to protect herself. She was so damaged when her sitcom was canceled after she came out that she chose to keep people at a distance in order not to get hurt should this show be canceled. Yet 17 seasons later it's still on the air and she's so powerful now she thought she could do whatever she wanted.' One staffer told DailyMail.com: 'Even though our show is crumbling around us, it's liberating for everything to come out into the open.' The Nigerian government has directed all schools to communicate their specific reopening dates to parents and students to avoid chaos. The government also said the 104 Unity Colleges are ready to open ahead of the August 4 reopening date for schools. According to a press statement by the spokesperson of the education ministry, Ben Gooong, on Monday, the Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, announced the development at the end of a meeting with commissioners of education of the 36 states. PREMIUM TIMES reported how the federal government released a comprehensive schedule for various national examinations for exit classes, including Junior Secondary School (JSS) 3 and Senior Secondary School (SSS) 3. The examinations are to hold from August 17 to November 18. These include the Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE) for SSS3 students conducted by the National Examination Council (NECO) which will start on October 5 and end on November 18. All schools should communicate their specific reopening dates to their parents and students in order to avoid chaos in the system, Mr Nwajiuba said. He said the commissioners have reported varying degrees of preparation and readiness for reopening between August 4 and 10 in all schools within their jurisdictions. READ ALSO: From today, the Honourable Minister of State for Education, Permanent Secretary and Directors will embark on an assessment tour of all Unity Colleges to ascertain and confirm the reports they have received from the pncipals of Unity Colleges, he said. He also said federal education quality assurance directors deployed to the states have been directed to monitor compliance in their respective states. Honourable Commissioners from the states were enjoined to embark on assessment tours in their jurisdictions to ascertain the level of preparations for reopening, he said. According to him, most schools will reopen on Tuesday while others will continue to fine tune their preparations in the coming days for reopening. The minister advised all returning students to undergo temperature checks before being admitted into their schools. All returning students are to undergo temperature checks among other protocols before being admitted into their schools,he said. According to OECD data, except for China (+11.5), other countries have experienced heavy losses: South Korea (-3.3), the US (-9.5), Germany (-10.1), France (-13.8), Spain (-18.5), Italy (-12.4). In OECD countries, unemployment is expected to reach 10 per cent by the end of 2020. Job recovery is not expected until the end of 2021. Pope Francis makes an appeal. Seoul (AsiaNews) According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), only China seems to have had positive growth in the second quarter of 2020. For a few dozen countries examined, growth was more or less negative, consequence of the novel coronavirus pandemic. The situation is especially bleak for unemployment, which may continue well into 2021. Yesterday the OECD released Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth data for the second quarter of this year for a group of 36 of the richest and most advanced countries, as well as six other: China, Russia, India, Indonesia, Brazil and South Africa. Among them, China shows an 11.5 per cent growth in April-June (in the previous quarter it was 6.8 per cent); South Korea was in the negative with a 3.3 per cent contraction. All the other economies have more consistent negative data: the US economy shrank by 9.5 per cent, Germanys by 10.1, Frances by 13.8, Spains by 18.5, and Italys by 12.4. However, the most devastating effect of the pandemic was on the job market with millions of people unable to work either due to the reduction in working hours or job loss. According to the OECD, many countries experienced 10 times fewer hours of work compared to the 2008 financial crisis. Millions were laid off, others had their hours reduced, whilst millions more lost their job for good. Among OECD countries, unemployment is expected to rise to 10 per cent by the end of 2020; in 2019 it was 5.9. The figure could go up further to 12 per cent if another COVID-19 wave occurs. Job recovery is not expected until the end of 2021. Yesterday, during the Angelus, Pope Francis expressed hope that "with the convergent commitment of all political and economic leaders, the labour market can be relaunched: without work, families and society cannot move forward. Let us pray for this, because it is and will be a post-pandemic problem. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 21:54:36|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close LUSAKA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations (UN) on Monday announced the closure of its office in Lusaka, the Zambian capital, after seven staff members tested positive for COVID-19. The UN said it has temporarily closed all its offices in the Zambian capital to visitors and personnel for a period of 14 days after seven staff members and dependents tested positive for COVID-19, a spokesperson said. The closure takes effect from August 3, 2020. Mark Maseko, the information officer, said the closure was meant to strengthen prevention measures against the virus in the workplace. The closure will also facilitate necessary additional preventive, protective and tracing measures following a rise in the number of UN family in order to mitigate and prevent contamination risks in its premises, he added. He added that the UN branch in Zambia has been working on a reduced physical footprint for all its premises since the activation of its business community plan in March this year in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. According to him, since the outbreak of the pandemic, all UN agencies continued their operations in support of Zambia's development and humanitarian priorities and in the implementation of the government COVID-19 multisectoral contingency and response plan, with many of its personnel working under partial or full-time telecommuting. Enditem The Indian army has categorically conveyed to Chinas PLA at the fifth round of military talks it will not compromise on Indias territorial integrity, and clearly said disengagement of troops from Pangong Tso and a few other friction points in eastern Ladakh should be completed at the earliest, people familiar with the developments said on Monday. Senior commanders of the two armies held intense negotiations for nearly 11 hours on Sunday at a designated meeting point in Moldo on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Also read: India-China expand border talks, to revisit patrolling protocol to avoid skirmishes The Indian delegation very clearly and firmly communicated to the Chinese side that restoration of status quo ante in all areas of eastern Ladakh was key for overall ties between the two countries, and that Beijing must ensure complete disengagement of its troops from the remaining friction points, according to the people familiar with the developments. It was also categorically conveyed that the Indian army will not compromise on the countrys territorial integrity, they said. The Chinese army has pulled back from Galwan Valley and certain other areas but the withdrawal of troops has not moved forward from the Finger Four and Eight areas in Pangong Tso as demanded by India. The mountain spurs in the area are referred to as Fingers. China also has not completed withdrawal of troops from Gogra areas. The focus of the Sunday talks was on finalising the modalities for further de-escalation, and disengagement of troops from various friction points, sources said, adding both sides were to discuss details of the negotiations with their respective military and political leadership. Also read: Finger Area in focus as India, China hold talks The sources said Army Chief Gen MM Naravane was given a detailed briefing about the talks on Monday morning which was subsequently followed by a discussion he held with senior military officials on the overall situation in eastern Ladakh. It is learnt that National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar were also apprised about the talks, and the entire military and strategic brass tasked to deal with the border row is deliberating on various aspects of the overall situation. The Indian delegation was led by Lt Gen Harinder Singh, the commander of the Leh-based 14 Corps, while the Chinese side was headed by Major General Liu Lin, commander of the South Xinjiang military region. The previous round of the Corps Commander-level talks took place on the Indian side of the LAC on July 14 and it lasted for nearly 15 hours. There was no official word on details of the meeting. The military talks took place 10 days after both sides held another round of diplomatic parleys on the border issue. After the diplomatic talks, the Ministry of External Affairs(MEA) said both sides agreed that an early and complete disengagement of the troops along the LAC in accordance with bilateral agreement and protocols was essential for the overall development of bilateral relations. Last week, India rebutted Chinas claim that the disengagement process was completed at most locations. There has been some progress made towards this objective but the disengagement process has as yet not been completed, MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said when asked about Chinas claim. In the last three weeks, India has significantly ramped up troops and weaponry in the areas around Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) and Depsang Valley in commensurate with deployment of troops by Chinas Peoples Liberation Army(PLA). During the military and diplomatic talks, India has also been demanding withdrawal of Chinese troops from Depsang, the area where they had intruded in 2013. The transgressions had created military and diplomatic tensions but was resolved after hectic rounds of negotiations following which the Chinese troops withdrew. India began sending reinforcements to Depsang and the areas around DBO in mid-May when tension between the two sides gradually escalated, and the deployment has been significantly ramped up with several thousand troops, tanks and artillery guns in the last two months, sources said. The formal process of disengagement of troops began on July 6, a day after a nearly two-hour telephonic conversation between NSA Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on ways to bring down tension in the face-off points. The first round of the Lt General talks was held on June 6 during which both sides finalised an agreement to disengage gradually from all the standoff points beginning with Galwan Valley. However, the situation deteriorated following the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15 in which 20 Indian Army personnel were killed as the two sides significantly bolstered their deployments in most areas along the LAC. The Chinese side also suffered casualties in the clashes but it is yet to give out the details. According to an American intelligence report, the number of casualties on the Chinese side was 35. The second round of military talks took place on June 22. At the third round of military talks on June 30, both sides agreed on an expeditious, phased and step wise de-escalation as a priority to end the standoff. Following the Galwan Valley incident, the government has given the armed forces full freedom to give a befitting response to any Chinese misadventure along the LAC. The Indian Air Force(IAF) has also moved air defence systems as well as a sizable number of its frontline combat jets and attack helicopters to several key air bases. ALTON Two Alton residents are facing burglary charges after police allegedly spotted their car parked at a condemned house. Charged are Jennifer H. McLagan, 32, and Chad T. Kopsie, 46. They are accused of entering a home in the 2700 block of Bostwick Street July 17 with the intent to commit a theft. Bail on each was set at $60,000. An officer was dispatched to the address to check out a red 2010 Ford Focus backed up to the house. There was tape over the license plate. While checking out the car, the officer allegedly saw McLagan carrying a box from the rear basement of the home to the red car. She claimed she was cleaning up the residence. The officer reported in a court document that, while talking to the female suspect, he heard a person later identified as Kopsie inside the house. The officer secured McLagan in a squad car and searched the house. Kopsie was found hiding on the roof, according to the sworn statement. The affidavit was submitted as part of a suit to take possession of the car believed used in the alleged burglary. McLagan has two pending charges of unlawful possession of methamphetamine. She has two misdemeanor convictions. Kopsie has a criminal record dating to 1995 when he was convicted of five counts of burglary and sentenced to five years in prison. He also has convictions for aggravated battery, probation violation, obstruction of justice and possession of methamphetamine. He has three pending felony charges of possession of meth, possession of a controlled substance and unauthorized certification of vehicle title. He also has four misdemeanor convictions. He is also wanted in Clinton County on a probation violation. The government is attempting to seize nearly $1 million worth of property in Nederland that federal prosecutors say is related to an alleged drug-trafficking and money-laundering operation, court documents show. Two houses and two commercial properties belonging to Jake Daughtry and his father, Joseph Daughtry, were raided on July 15, and nine people were arrested. An indictment unsealed that day alleges that Jakes Fireworks doubled as a front for selling drugs with and for Right Price Chemicals. Both businesses are owned by the Daughtry family. The indictment says Right Price Chemicals knowingly sold 1,4 butanediol, a cleaning chemical commonly known as BDO, for the purpose of human consumption. The Daughtrys and the others arrested have denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty. Court documents show the government is seeking criminal forfeiture on two single-family homes, one multifamily dwelling and the two businesses owned by the Daughtrys. That includes two next-door homes on Spurlock with a combined assessed value of nearly $400,000, according to Jefferson County Appraisal District records. Jake Daughtry, 34, bought one of the homes in December and the other in March, recent deed transfers show. Prosecutors also are seeking to seize property at 2565 Twin City Highway where Jakes Fireworks and Right Price Chemicals are located. That property is valued at $192,220, appraisal district records show. Also on the list of criminal forfeitures being pursued is Jakes RV Park, at the back of the property on Twin City Highway. The county has that property listed in Joseph Daughtry and Sandra Daughtrys name with an assessment of $360,268. Ryan Gertz, one of the Daughtrys attorneys, said prosecutors often go after property as substitute assets to pay for a possible money judgment if the prosecution wins the criminal case. He said even if the properties and cash are untainted by any criminal activity, the government can seize them to fulfill a money judgment. The government also is pursuing a civil forfeiture. In, lets call it, a normal drug-house case, they want to seize the cash, guns and drugs and have it forfeited criminally assuming the defendant doesnt win, Gertz said. In a normal crack-house case, there is not going to be any legitimate funds or property. In those situations, every dime coming in is going to be some form of illegitimate funds. The Daughtrys are very different. Even if the government can prove what they say they can prove, the Daughtrys have a ton of legitimate businesses and money from those businesses. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Englade told The Enterprise that the government is attempting to seize the property because of the possibility it was used to help launder money. A recent detention hearing for Jake Daughtry offered some insight into what the prosecution and defense might argue at a potential trial. Englade painted a picture of owners and employees who were well aware that customers were either consuming the BDO or reselling for consumption. BDO can be used recreationally or as a so-called date-rape drug. During approximately three hours of testimony, Special Agent Robert Wexler of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said emails showed the company acknowledging that people were consuming and becoming addicted to the BDO they were selling. Wexler alleged that emails between Jake Daughtry and co-defendant Jesse Hackett belittled complaints sent to them by family members of people who were addicted to BDO. Wexler said the emails referenced a significant number of such complaints. The agent also testified that BDO made up 95 percent of RPCs distribution and that no customers were businesses using the chemical for cleaning purposes. The DEA allegedly traced shipments of BDO to the University of Michigan in 2017 and 2018. A student who bought the chemical using his university email address is alleged to have distributed 9.6 liters to a fraternity house during that time frame. During that time, the fraternity house had nonfatal overdoses and a sexual assault. The fraternity has since been suspended, according to Wexlers testimony. The student was suspended for being intoxicated in class. U.S. Magistrate Judge Zach Hawthorne in Beaumont ruled against the prosecutions motion to detain Jesse Hackett and Jake Daughtry until the trial, currently scheduled for September. Gertz told The Enterprise that he would be floored if the criminal trial took place this year. A hearing on the civil side of the case is set for later this month. Were going to try and get those assets released that they have tied up as part of a civil forfeiture, Gertz said. Were going to get that freed up so they can use that money to pay for lawyers and experts and defend themselves. chris.moore@beaumontenterprise.com twitter.com/chris_moore09 The Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, has accused Nigerian soldiers of being responsible for the attack on his convoy last Wednesday in Baga, a town in Kukawa Local Government Area of the state. PREMIUM TIMES reported how Mr Zulum survived an ambush by suspected gunmen last Wednesday while on a trip to Monguno and Baga towns to distribute food to internally displaced persons (IDPs). Addressing the armys commanding officer in Mile 4 after the attack, Mr Zulum wondered why the army has not been able to secure Baga despite the number of troops deployed for over a year. You have been here for over one year now, there are 1,181 soldiers here; if you cannot take over Baga which is less than 5km from your base, then we should forget about Baga. I will inform the Chief of Army Staff to redeploy the men to other places that they can be useful, Mr Zulum was quoted by Channels TV as saying. But speaking a day after the attack, in another Channels Television video seen by PREMIUM TIMES, on Monday, Mr Zulum said what happened to him was a complete sabotage from the military. Zulum explaining Baga attack. pic.twitter.com/7czJxMR179 USMAN IBRAHIM (@USMOVIC) August 1, 2020 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js It is a complete sabotage I cannot end my interview without clearly stating what happened yesterday. As far as I am concerned, there was no Boko Haram yesterday (Wednesday). It was a serious shooting by the Nigerian armed forces while residing in Baga. The situation is very embarrassing. The governors statement underscores the disturbing security situation in Borno. His statement suggests either sabotage by some soldiers or poor communication between the soldiers in Mr Zulums convoy and those on the ground in Baga who shot at the convoy. The army has said it is investigating the attack. The Nigerian Army wants to reassure the general public that this will be interrogated with a view to forestalling future re-occurance, army spokesperson Sagir Musa said a day after the attack. In his Thursday speech, Mr Zulum said the failure of the military to take charge of Baga may lead to residents taking laws into their hands. Baga is important We shall organise the community to take destiny into their own hands so that we can occupy Baga. Thats important, he said. PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported how the Northern Governors Forum, through its chairman, Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State, described the attack as callous and reprehensible. Mr Lalongs statement was signed by his spokesperson, Makut Macham. The forum said the attack was to frustrate Borno governors efforts toward reducing the sufferings of IDPs who had been traumatised by terrorists. This regrettable attack shows the desperation by enemies of peace and humanity at large to jeopardise all efforts towards making life easier for victims of violence in the state over the years, it read. Borno is the state most affected by the Boko Haram insurgency in Northern Nigeria. The insurgency has claimed over 30,000 lives and displaced millions of others. TEWKSBURY, Mass., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- For first responders, particularly those in the chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosives (CBRNE) fields, the ability to assess a scene quickly and take action to determine if harmful elements, such as radiation, are present is necessary to protecting people on-site and providing proper management of a situation. To address this critical need, Thermo Fisher Scientific upgraded its Thermo Scientific RadEye PRD4/PRD-ER4 personal radiation detector. New capabilities significantly enhance the ability to detect harmful levels of radiation, providing first responders, CBRNE responders and military personnel with the ability to quickly and accurately make informed decisions regarding safety at the scene of operation. The combination of sensitive Cessium Iodide (CsI) detectors and Natural Background Rejection (NBR) in a single instrument reduces nuisance alarms, improves detection response times, increases reach back data quality and minimizes time spent on non-threat events. "Public safety professionals are often the first ones on the scene of an emergency where potentially hazardous materials are present. The ability to quickly and accurately assess a situation is invaluable. It allows for more effective situational awareness, and prevents others from being put in harm's way," said Erica Hirsch, vice president and general manager of the Field and Safety Instruments business at Thermo Fisher Scientific. "The new RadEye PRD4/PRD-ER4 is an essential upgrade to the RadEye suite of personal radiation detectors. And its easy-to-use form factor makes it a go-to resource for professionals regardless of skill level." The RadEye PRD4/PRD-ER4 can be easily calibrated in the field, enabling users to optimize the instruments based on their current environment. This mitigates downtime and the requirement for extra stock to accommodate costly turn-in and replacement. The instrument features a simple user interface and large screen which enables reliable analysis regardless of user skill level and expertise. For more information on Thermo Scientific's RadEye PRD4/PRD-ER4, please visit www.thermofisher.com/radeyeprd4 About Thermo Fisher Scientific Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is the world leader in serving science, with annual revenue exceeding $25 billion. Our Mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. Whether our customers are accelerating life sciences research, solving complex analytical challenges, improving patient diagnostics and therapies or increasing productivity in their laboratories, we are here to support them. Our global team of more than 75,000 colleagues delivers an unrivaled combination of innovative technologies, purchasing convenience and pharmaceutical services through our industry-leading brands, including Thermo Scientific, Applied Biosystems, Invitrogen, Fisher Scientific, Unity Lab Services and Patheon. For more information, please visit www.thermofisher.com. Media Contact Information: Nick Brown InkHouse for Thermo Fisher Scientific 401-595-7836 [email protected] Secondary Contact Information: Meredith Wilshere InkHouse for Thermo Fisher Scientific 516-318-2951 [email protected] SOURCE Thermo Fisher Scientific Related Links http://www.thermofisher.com Microsoft announced Sunday it would pursue discussions with TikToks parent company ByteDance "in a matter of weeks" about buying the app in the U.S. following conversations between President Trump and the tech giant's CEO Satya Nadella. Details: Microsoft said in a blog post the two firms are exploring a preliminary proposal that would see Microsoft buy the TikTok service in Canada, Australia and New Zealand as well as the U.S. "During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States Government, including with the President," the post noted. "Microsoft appreciates the U.S. Government's and President Trumps personal involvement as it continues to develop strong security protections for the country." Microsoft said it is committed to acquiring TikTok "subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits" to the U.S., including the Treasury. It may invite other American investors to participate on a minority basis in the potential purchase. Microsoft hopes to complete discussions "no later than September 15." Why it matters: Trump said Friday night that he planned to ban TikTok as India has done, over concerns that the app could be sharing U.S. user data with the Chinese government. Axios' Dan Primack reported Saturday that Trump had a "deal on his desk," whereby Microsoft would lead an acquisition of 100% of TikTok's U.S. operations. Republican sources told Axios earlier Sunday that Trump may allow Microsoft to make the purchase if there's "complete separation" from the original Beijing-based company. Of note: Microsoft said in its statement that, among other measures, it would "ensure that all private data of TikToks American users is transferred to and remains in the United States." "To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the United States, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred." Excerpt from Microsoft's statement Go deeper: What a Microsoft deal to buy TikTok would look like Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout. Early on September 23, 1866, Captain Alexander Unthanks cutter Bonneta crossed the Manukau Bar heading north to the Kaipara settlements. She carried a full cargo of goods, plus two passengers. A hard northeasterly gale was blowing. Bonneta safely crossed the Kaipara bar at 5pm, but about three miles from the South Head Pilot Station a heavy squall struck, throwing her on her beam ends and blowing her sails apart. A coastal cutter under full sail in the Manukau Harbour. Photo, Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections Two anchors were immediately dropped but in heavy surf and soft sand they dragged and Bonneta was driven ashore on her beam near the Well (Waionui Inlet). Next afternoon, crew and passengers arrived at the Pilot Station saying water was inside with everything floating about in the cabin. Other vessels arrived to salvage the cargo. Unfortunately, most of it was damaged by seawater and all attempts to refloat Bonneta failed. On October 6, the wreck was sold for 5. Her new owner sent men to strip the cutter, but they couldnt free her so she became a total loss. Some doubted accounts of the wreck. William Pettet, of Port Albert, wrote to the Weekly News: The squall which drove the Bonneta ashore did not send her on her beam, nor divest her of all sails; two anchors were not immediately lowered but only one. Every effort to get her off was not likely to succeed without lightening her of part of cargo. For three or four days that cargo was quite sound. Whose fault was it that when the Julia went to her six days after she grounded, to save a portion of it, it was found mostly damaged? A passengers account in the paper stated, If landsmen may be allowed an opinion on such matters, I should most decidedly say that it was solely the fault of the winds and waves. The passenger considered himself fortunate to escape with his life. Pettet responded, Some surprise has been expressed that a man who was in his bunk during the entire time should have been able to give such a circumstantial account of the wreck. Captain Unthank thought his critics unfair. In an October letter to Rev E.S. Brookes, of Wharehine, he wrote: You must have heard of my loss this vessel stood me in over 400 for fit out and repairs. I had also over 400 worth of goods of my own in her and only 100 insured. This being the first time I ever insured in my life. I can assure you sir that whatever may be said, and I hear a great deal of remarks, I have not saved 30 worth of my property, through trying to ease the uninsured poor people. I hear great talk among little tattling minds. In one mans opinion, Bonnetas fate proved that small cutters are not fit for the work. A moderate-sized steamer is required from Onehunga to the Pilot Station at Kaipara Heads. Two months later, the first steamer arrived at Port Albert. Lyn Johnston, Albertland Museum www.albertland.co.nz HOLYOKE Months apart and seemingly a world away, the 315 graduates from Holyoke High School North and Dean Campuses joined together Sunday afternoon for the long-awaited commencement. The Class of 2020 entered Robert Field under the strains of Pomp and Circumstance with faces covered in masks. COVID-19, at least for one afternoon, could not lessen the pride the graduates felt, a milestone not easily replicated on a Zoom conference call. Family and friends stayed in their cars in nearby parking lots and watched the proceedings on a giant screen. It was unlike any graduation before, an unwelcomed footnote in the schools histories. The graduation was live-streamed on YouTube while families watched the Jumbotron and tuned-in to an assigned FM station. One family member per graduate was allowed to watch from the stands. Class Marshals Jose Roman and Jennifer Espada led their masked classmates, school, and city officials into the stadium. The sounds of car horns and cheering could be heard from the parking lot. Former School Receiver Dr. Stephen Zrike was in attendance. He was joined by newly appointed Superintendent Dr. Albert Vazquez Matos, Mayor Alex Morse, School Committee Chair Mildred Lefebvre, and Dr. Stephen Mahony, the principal of both campuses. A plush Purple Knight blanket awaited each graduate as they took their seats. Mahoney welcomed the Class of 2020 and their families to the commencement, including supporters near and far. He praised the class for their persistence and being an inspiration to staff, teachers and the community. Mahoney asked the audience to keep their masks on throughout the graduation. Spectators and students adhered to social distancing guidelines. Zrike celebrated the talented, resilient, unforgettable, and most deserving Class of 2020. He said the seniors remain steadfast in holding a live graduation, regardless of the pandemic. Today, we celebrate so many accomplishments, he said. Sixty-percent of the class participated in dual-enrollment and early-college programs. The class also had the highest passing level in the schools history for the 10th grade MCAS English test and the lowest absentee rate. While these are noteworthy, its how you navigated the last three months of your high school careers, Zrike said. Following the murder of George Floyd, many of you participated and helped lead Holyokes peaceful and powerful protests. Dean Campus Student President Genesis Rodriguez said many of her classmates were upset and disappointed how their final months of high school turned out. She thanked her parents for encouraging her to do her best. As we all head out in different directions, remember the future belongs to those who believe in their dreams, Rodriguez said. So dream big and never lose sight of your goals. North Campus Student President Melina Garcia, who brought along her ukulele, said, I believe we can be the catalyst of true change in our world. Like it or not, were living in a very decisive time in history. The action taken in our present can radically change the course of our future. Garcia added that silence and complacency to hatred and inequality allow for cycles of injustices to exist without end. Morse said the Class of 2020 was committed to not leaving anyone behind and adamant in holding more traditional graduation. This year is different than most, but it will certainly make it unforgettable, he said. The mayor said the students proved time and time again how great, persistent and passionate in achieving their goals in an out of the classroom. He asked the students never to forget their Holyoke roots. Morse thanked parents for their patience during the pandemic. Dean Campus Valedictorian Jorge Gonzales said he tries to describe each day by a single word. I think the word for today should be success, he said. A National Honor Society Member, Gonzales said true success comes from the heart and not the head. Passion is what drives us all. Its what will deliver us to our destination, whether that be college, the military or the workforce, he said. As long as you like doing what you do, you will make it. North Campus Valedictorian John Jack Shea, defined the Class of 2020 as undoubtedly the supreme class of Holyoke High, the Empire Strikes Back of school years, an act impossible to follow or repeat. Heavy rains cut the speaking portion short. The ceremony immediately turned to handing out the diplomas. Unfazed, the graduates lined up and proudly accepted their diplomas. The downpour was a mere blip in an unforgettable year. Turkey condemned a new oil agreement between an American-based company and the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, according to a release Monday by the countrys Foreign Ministry. Turkey now joins Syria in criticizing the deal after a Syrian state media announcement on Sunday by the countrys Foreign Ministry called the deal illegal and accused the agreement of stealing Syrias crude. The oil deal as first reported by Al-Monitor was signed with Delta Crescent Energy LLC, a corporation in the state of Delaware. Sources with close knowledge of the deal told Al-Monitors Amberin Zaman that the agreement was made with the knowledge and encouragement of the White House. The region is not officially recognized as autonomous by any international state. Turkeys condemnation of the deal arrives only days after US Senator Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., spoke to Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Commander in Chief Mazlum Kobane to confirm the deal had taken place. The US-backed SDF is the largely Kurdish military force in the region. Graham and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo referred to the oil deal during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on July 30. Turkey said they deeply regretted the US support that disregards international law and violates territorial integrity. The efforts are considered within the scope of financing terrorism, the ministry claimed. By this step, the PKK/YPG terrorist organization has clearly demonstrated its ambition to advance its separatist agenda by seizing the natural resources of the Syrian people, read the statement. The natural resources of Syria belong to the Syrian people. The deal comes amid increasing US sanctions against Syria. A new wave of sanctions were imposed in July under the Caesar Act, legislation that sanctions the Syrian government, including Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and some members of his family, for alleged war crimes against the Syrian population. The agreement is to market oil in the territory controlled by the SDF and develop and modernize existing fields. The US government has also agreed to provide two modular refineries to the autonomous region's administration. Delivery of the refineries, however, may be impeded due to the coronavirus pandemic, sources told Al-Monitor. Eastern Libyan strongman Khalifa Hifter has vowed to fight Turkeys forces as the UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli is poised to press its counteroffensive against the key coastal city of Sirte with Ankaras military support. In an Eid al-Adha address to his forces over the weekend, Hifter who is launching an insurgency backed by Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, France and Russia likened Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogans military support for the GNA in Libya to colonial occupation, accusing Erdogan of coming to Libya in search of his ancestors legacy, Saudi Arabia-based Arab News reported. We tell him that we will translate the legacy of your ancestors with bullets, Hifter said, promising no mercy because they do not deserve mercy. Why It Matters: Hifter has vowed to resist the Tripoli-based governments counteroffensive in recent months, but his appeals to anti-colonial sentiment come as Saudi Arabia is seeking to unify Arab neighbors in support of the eastern Libyan commander. Turkeys military support, including armed drones, military advisers and Syrian mercenaries introduced to Libya, has helped the GNA turn back Hifters yearlong offensive against Tripoli in recent months. The United Nations-recognized GNA now threatens to take Sirte and central Libyas Jufra region, both stepping-stones to Tripoli regaining control over much of the countrys crude oil supply. Whats Next: Erdogan seems unconvinced by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisis threats to militarily intervene on Hifters behalf if the GNA presses the attack on Sirte or Jufra. And the US military is alleging that Russia has placed military hardware and possibly Wagner mercenaries outside of Sirte, suggesting the Kremlin is taking no chances on its gains so far. Despite a recent agreement between Turkey and Russia to work toward establishing a cease-fire in Libya, Ankara so far shows little sign of readiness to let Hifter off the hook despite a surge in civilian deaths as a result of the renewed fighting. The United Nations reported in June that several mass graves were found southeast of Tripoli after Hifters forces withdrew from the area. Hifter is a US citizen who was connected to the CIA in the 1980s. Know More: Al-Monitor examines the fissures that could open up in Libyas conflict if Turkey and the GNA press the attack on Sirte and if Sisi responds with a military incursion of his own. South Africa: President Ramaphosa vows to curb COVID-19 looting President Cyril Ramaphosa has vowed to nip in the bud alleged corruption in the procurement of much-needed goods and services in the fight against COVID-19. The President made the declaration on Monday in his weekly newsletter after the public was recently inundated with such allegations of personal protective equipment prices being inflated, food parcels being stockpiled as well as state resources being illegally diverted from the vulnerable and destitute. The funds being allegedly looted are part of the R500 billion relief package announced by government in March. COVID-19 in South Africa has already infected over 500 000 people, while claiming over 8 000 lives. Describing the apparently pillaging as heinous, he vowed that perpetrators would be dealt with decisively and harshly. Attempting to profit from a disaster that is claiming the lives of our people every day is the action of scavengers. It is like a pack of hyenas circling wounded prey, the President wrote. As we find ourselves in the grip of the greatest health emergency our country has faced in over a century, we are witnessing theft by individuals and companies with no conscience. The insidious behaviour was not limited to smaller companies but large corporates as well, said the President. Some have already been caught, investigated, found guilty and fined for excessive pricing. These stories have caused outrage among South Africans. They have opened up the wounds of the state capture era, where senior figures in society seemed to get away with corruption on a grand scale, President Ramaphosa said. This, he said, was threatening to undo the work done to disrupt and dismantle the networks that had infiltrated government, state companies and even our law enforcement agencies to loot public resources. We have rebuilt vital institutions like the National Prosecuting Authority, SA Revenue Service and the Hawks. Through the establishment of bodies like the Investigating Directorate in the NPA, we have strengthened the hand of law enforcement to investigate and prosecute these crimes. And through the establishment of the SIU Special Tribunal, we have increased our capacity to get back funds stolen from the state. Despite this, President Ramaphosa said it was clear more needed to be done to decisively curb the scourge. Just over a week ago, the President signed a proclamation authorising the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to investigate any unlawful or improper conduct in the procurement of goods and services during the national state of disaster. This is a broad remit that extends across all spheres of the state and provides for civil proceedings to recover misappropriated funds. Every six weeks, the President will receive interim reports on the cases at various stages of investigation and prosecution. When investigations yield evidence of criminality, they will be speedily referred for prosecution. Experience here and in many other countries shows that a multidisciplinary approach to tackling the commission of alleged criminality is needed for the fight against corruption to be successful. A broad range of investigative and prosecutorial capabilities need to be brought together under one roof, the President writes. Fusion centres that draw together different agencies for better information and intelligence sharing, to pool resources and to streamline operations are common practice in a number of countries. A special centre has been established that brings together the Financial Intelligence Centre, the Independent Police Investigative Directorate, National Prosecuting Authority, the Hawks, Crime Intelligence and the SAPS Detective Service, South African Revenue Service, Special Investigating Unit and the State Security Agency. The President said this will immensely strengthen governments response. These bodies are now working together not just to investigate individual allegations, but also establish linkages between patronage networks that are trying to hide their activities. Because of this cooperation, prosecutions should proceed more quickly and stand a better chance of success, the President wrote. President Ramaphosa added that government needs to, for example, look to extend the responsibility of its multi-disciplinary team of investigators and prosecutors beyond COVID-related crimes. We should use the current approaches and methods to dramatically strengthen the fight against corruption, he said. If, as public servants and political office-bearers, we claim to be serious about restoring public trust that has been severely eroded by corruption, we must avoid even the perception of conflicts of interest. If as public servants and political office-bearers we truly care about the public whose interests we claim to represent, we must allow ordinary members of the public who have interest in doing business with government a fair chance to bid for such business opportunities, instead of passing on inside information about opportunities to our families and friends. While there were regulations in place to discourage public servants from doing business with the state, declarations of interests in anyone bidding for state work, including whether anyone connected to the bid is employed by the state, this was clearly not enough, he said. While everyone in South Africa has a right to engage in business activities, we are faced with the real problem of families and friends of political office-bearers or public servants receiving contracts from the state, he said. Not all conduct of this sort is necessarily criminal, but it does contribute to a perception and a culture of nepotism, favouritism and abuse. And it undermines public confidence in the integrity of our institutions and processes. We are determined to finally deal with the entrenched patronage networks that enable government employees to bid for state contracts through their friends and relatives. This requires not only better laws and stronger enforcement, but also political will and social mobilisation. SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. In light of Gov. Tony Evers statewide order requiring individuals wear face coverings, Wisconsin elections officials are advising local clerks that donning a mask isnt a pre-requisite for voters looking to cast a ballot. While members of the states Elections Commission Thursday recommended voters wear face coverings, they noted Evers' mandate doesnt apply to them although poll workers and election observers are required to put on masks. Members voted 6-0 to clarify guidance from the body's staff that was sent to local election officials across the state in the hours after Evers announced his directive, which took effect Saturday. Prior to approval, Commissioner Dean Knudson, a Republican appointee, expressed concern that without clear direction from the body, individuals who choose not to wear a mask may be challenged when they should instead be just left alone about it. What my fear is if we arent very, very clear that the governors mandate does not apply at the polling place to voters that youre going to have voters that are harassing other individuals who are there trying to exercise their franchise, he said. Meanwhile, fellow Republican Commissioner Bob Spindell repeatedly stressed the need to specify election observers wear masks, noting the guidance particularly needs to go out to all the political parties who send officials to polling sites on Election Day to observe proceedings. In addition to those provisions, members opted to clarify that while voters can be asked to remove their face coverings to verify they resemble their photo ID, most voters likely wont have to do so. Such a practice appears to be explicitly allowed under one provision of Evers order, which notes exceptions to the order include instances where its necessary to confirm the individual's identity, including when entering a bank, credit union, or other financial institution. Chair Ann Jacobs, a Democratic appointee, noted it was important that not all voters be asked to remove their face coverings in order to protect poll workers. There are a lot of people who are very vulnerable right now, rightfully so, and I dont want the staff and the clerks and the people at the tables having to have every Tom, Dick and Harry whipping their masks off and breaking all over them if they can tell with their mask on that this is still the same person, she said. Locally, Madison City Clerk Maribeth Witzel-Behl emphasized that wearing a mask isnt a voter eligibility requirement, adding workers are unable to stop someone for voting on the basis that they are not wearing a mask. She added the city plans to make some masks available for voters but we have no way to predict how many voters there will be at the polls on Election Day, let alone how many people might not have a mask. Evers chief legal counsel echoed a similar sentient when asked at a Thursday news conference how the order applies to polling sites. People have a constitutional right to vote and we encourage everybody to wear masks, Ryan Nilsestuen said. Its not up to clerks to enforce this order; clerks jobs are to make sure that every vote is counted. Abigail Becker contributed to this report. Share your opinion on this topic by sending a letter to the editor to tctvoice@madison.com. Include your full name, hometown and phone number. Your name and town will be published. The phone number is for verification purposes only. Please keep your letter to 250 words or less. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 By PTI MUMBAI: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray is unlikely to visit Ayodhya for the bhoomi pujan for Ram temple construction there on August 5 owing to the serious COVID-19 situation in the Uttar Pradesh town, senior Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut indicated on Monday. "It is important that the PM is going. The chief minister (Thackeray) can go there anytime, Raut told reporters here while extending good wishes for the ceremony. The 'bhoomi pujan' of the Ram temple is scheduled to be held on Wednesday at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh and is expected to be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Raut reiterated the Shiv Senas contribution in the Ram temple construction campaign, and said the party has given Rs one crore for the purpose of building the temple. "The outbreak of COVID-19 in Ayodhya and surrounding areas is a matter of concern. Uttar Pradesh's minister Kamal Rani (Varun) lost life (due to the disease), while three other ministers are infected," Raut said. "I think as less people as possible should go there and the ceremony there be held. It is important that the PM is going. The chief minister (Thackeray) can go there anytime, the Rajya Sabha member said. Asked if Thackeray has not been invited for the ceremony, Raut said, Nobody is waiting for the invitation. He said the chief priest of the temple and security guards there have been quarantined. The Shiv Sena does not want to give a political angle to the issue (of party leaders not being invited), he said, adding that the situation in Ayodhya is serious and a kind of medical emergency is prevailing there". "And you (the media) are asking about who is going and all. As less number of people as possible should go there. We will go there later", Raut said, adding that even BJP veterans like L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi, who played key roles in the temple campaign, were unlikely to attend the ceremony due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The Shiv Sena had laid the foundation of the temple construction, he said. The temple construction would not be possible had the Babri mosque not been brought down, he said. The BJP, VHP and the Sangh Parivar accepted that it was the Shiv Sainiks (Shiv Sena workers) who had "pulled down the mosque", he said. "So, we had laid the road (of temple construction). We are happy that the temple is being built. And you have seen that Uddhav Thackerayji, our Shiv Sena has given Rs 1 crore fund for it," he added. The Babri mosque in Ayodhya was demolished on December 6, 1992 by 'kar sevaks' who claimed that an ancient Ram temple had stood on the same site. Advani and Joshi were leading the Ram temple movement at that time. In November last year, the Supreme Court paved the way for the construction of Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya, and directed the Centre to allot an alternative five-acre plot to the Sunni Waqf Board for building a new mosque at a "prominent" place in the holy town. Meanwhile, Raut refused to comment on queries pertaining to the case of actor Sushant Singh Rajputs death. "Mumbai Police are able. Trust should be reposed into them if they are investigating the case. Police of the world have faith in the Mumbai Police," the Shiv Sena leader said. "So, when the probe is on, the person who is not in the government and not related to it, like me, should not comment about the probe. It is not right, he added. Rajput, 34, was found hanging at his apartment in suburban Bandra on June 24. The Mumbai Police, who are probing Rajput's death, have so far recorded statements of nearly 40 people, including those from the actor's family, his cook and people from the film industry like filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, film critic Rajeev Masand, director-producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali and filmmaker Aditya Chopra. A Bihar Police team is probing a separate 'abetment to suicide' case on the basis of a complaint filed by the late actor's father in Patna last week. NASA's Aqua satellite obtained visible and water vapor imagery as Tropical Storm Isaias continued moving along the east coast of Florida. On Aug. 3, Warnings and Watches stretched from Florida to Maine. NASA Satellite View: Isaiah's Organization The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer or MODIS instrument that flies aboard NASA's Aqua satellite captured a visible image of Tropical Storm Isaias on Aug. 2 at 1:30 p.m. EDT. There was no visible eye in the storm at the time of the imagery. The satellite image was created using NASA's Worldview product at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. Water Vapor Imagery Shows Location of Heaviest Rain NASA's Aqua satellite passed over Isaias on Aug. 3 at 3:45 a.m. EDT (0745 UTC) when it was off the coast of northeastern Florida and found highest concentrations of water vapor and coldest cloud top temperatures were offshore and mostly north and northeast of the center. NHC noted, "Isaias continues to produce an area of vigorous convection near and to the northeast of its low-level center. Overnight radar data from Melbourne and Jacksonville have shown a transient mid-level eye feature that is located northeast of the low-level center." Coldest cloud top temperatures were as cold as or colder than minus 70 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 56.6 degrees Celsius) in those storms. Storms with cloud top temperatures that cold have the capability to produce heavy rainfall. Water vapor analysis of tropical cyclones tells forecasters how much potential a storm has to develop. Water vapor releases latent heat as it condenses into liquid. That liquid becomes clouds and thunderstorms that make up a tropical cyclone. Temperature is important when trying to understand how strong storms can be. The higher the cloud tops, the colder and stronger they are. The heavy rain potential in the storm is in the forecast as Isaias makes landfall and moves northeast along the U.S. East Coast. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) noted, "Heavy rainfall will result in flash and urban flooding, some of which may be significant in the eastern Carolinas and the mid-Atlantic, through midweek along and near the path of Isaias across the East Coast of the United States. Widespread minor to moderate river flooding is possible across portions of the Carolinas and the mid-Atlantic. Additionally, quick-responding rivers in the southern Appalachians and Northeast will be susceptible to minor river flooding." Warnings and Watches Posted All Along U.S. East Coast On Aug. 3, 2020, the National Hurricane Center posted watches and warnings along the U.S. East coast from Florida to Maine. A Storm Surge Warning is in effect for Edisto Beach, South Carolina to Cape Fear, North Carolina. A Storm Surge Watch is in effect for Cape Fear to Duck, North Carolina and the Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds. A Hurricane Warning is in effect for South Santee River, South Carolina to Surf City, North Carolina. A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for Flagler/Volusia County Line, Florida to South Santee River, South Carolina; north of Surf City, North Carolina to west of Watch Hill, Rhode Island; Chesapeake Bay south of North Beach; Tidal Potomac River south of Cobb Island; Delaware Bay; Long Island and Long Island Sound; Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds. A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for Watch Hill, Rhode Island to Stonington, Maine and for Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, and Block Island. Tropical Storm Isaias on Aug. 3 At 8 a.m. EDT (1200 UTC) on Aug. 3, the center of Tropical Storm Isaias was located by an Air Force Reserve reconnaissance aircraft and NOAA Doppler weather radars near latitude 30.2 degrees north and longitude 80.1 degrees west. That is about 100 miles (155 km) east-southeast of Jacksonville, Fla. and about 250 miles (400 km) south-southwest of Myrtle Beach, So. Carolina. The estimated minimum central pressure is 994 millibars. Isaias is moving toward the north near 13 mph (20 kph). A turn toward the north and north-northeast along with an increase in forward speed is expected later today and Tuesday, Aug. 4. Maximum sustained winds are near 70 mph (110 kph) with higher gusts. Some strengthening is anticipated today, and Isaias is forecast to regain hurricane strength before it reaches the coast of northeastern South Carolina or southern North Carolina tonight. Slow weakening is forecast after Isaias makes landfall in the Carolinas and moves across the U.S. mid-Atlantic region tonight and Tuesday. An 8 a.m. EDT Florida Observation on Aug. 3 During the 7 a.m. hour a wind gust to 40 mph (65 kph) was observed at the St, Augustine Pier, Florida, and a sustained wind of 34 mph (55 kph) and a gust to 40 mph (65 kph) were measured by a Weatherflow station at the Jacksonville Beach Pier, Florida. Isaias' Forecast and Track The NHC Discussion at 8 a.m. EDT on Aug. 3 noted that the vertical wind shear that has been plaguing Isaias is forecast to abate slightly today as the storm turns north-northeastward. All of the intensity models shows some slight strengthening during the next 12 hours, and the global models also indicate some deepening. As a result, the updated NHC intensity forecast calls for Isaias to regain hurricane status before the system moves over the coast of the Carolinas. The NHC noted, "On the forecast track, the center of Isaias will pass well east of the Georgia coast through this morning. The center of Isaias will then approach the coast of northeastern South Carolina and southern North Carolina within the hurricane warning area later today. The center will then move inland over eastern North Carolina tonight, and move along the coast of the mid-Atlantic states on Tuesday and into the northeastern United States by Tuesday night." ### About NASA's Worldview and Aqua Satellite NASA's Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) Worldview application provides the capability to interactively browse over 700 global, full-resolution satellite imagery layers and then download the underlying data. Many of the available imagery layers are updated within three hours of observation, essentially showing the entire Earth as it looks "right now." NASA's Aqua satellite is one in a fleet of NASA satellites that provide data for hurricane research. Tropical cyclones/hurricanes are the most powerful weather events on Earth. NASA's expertise in space and scientific exploration contributes to essential services provided to the American people by other federal agencies, such as hurricane weather forecasting. For updated forecasts, visit: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov By Rob Gutro NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Government Marketing University (GMarkU) today announced the opening of registration for the 2020 GAIN Conference, the world's largest gathering of government marketers. This year marks the conferences fifth event and first virtual event, which will take the form of four, two-hour modules on November 10, 12, 17 and 19. We have designed this years GAIN Conference to be virtual, interactive and modular especially for busy government marketers marketing and selling to the U.S. Public Sector," said Lou Anne Brossman, Government Marketing University founder and government marketing expert. "GAIN 2020 offers a rare chance for rising and seasoned government marketers to tackle the uncertainty and seize the opportunities ahead through active knowledge sharing." Federal and state and local government marketers, and students are all invited to attend and industry vendors are welcomed as sponsors. Each day is dedicated to a respective GMarkU tenet: growth, acceleration, innovation, and networking with government influencers and buyers. Special early-bird pricing is available through August 31 for industry ($195), government ($95) and free for students (with valid ID). Modular Virtual Format Features Esteemed Speakers, Interactive Panels and Training Workshops Highlights of this years event includes keynote sessions from esteemed industry speakers, interactive panel discussions with recognized experts and critical stakeholders in the government marketing community, training workshops and thought leadership. A detailed breakdown of the schedule is available below and online. GROW | Tuesday, November 10th | 10:00 a.m. thru noon EST Adam Vasquez, Market Inventor & Author of Toothfish, will share commentary on a new marketing model called, Market Invention, how it works, and real-life government case studies. GAINERs will walk away with knowledge about how to become a market leader, and why sales and marketing tactics alone are not enough. Vasquez will also explain how to shift the market to your favor, with a hopeful reminder that all market leaders began in last place. Story continues ACCELERATE | Thursday, November 12th | 1:00 p.m. thru 3:00 p.m. EST Tom Deierlein, Co-Founder & CEO, ThunderCat Technology and Industry Influencer will share insights and lessons learned from being in combat, and applied to his career in marketing, advertising research, and B2G Sales. GAINERs will learn from this seasoned government marketer as you build your FY 2021 marketing plans. INNOVATE | Tuesday, November 17th | 10:00 a.m. thru 12:30 p.m. EST (GAINER Awards) This session will feature an exciting guest speaker (to be announced) who will discuss the evolution of targeting and reaching the new normal government remote workforce. NETWORK | Thursday, November 19th | 1 p.m. thru 3 p.m. EST Emily Harman, Former Senior Executive Service and Director of the Department of the Navys Office of Small Business Programs, will discuss three key lessons learned from her 38-year career in the Navy, and how to translate your personal life experiences into authentic examples to grow your professional and personal network. Attendees (dubbed GAINERs) have access to all GAIN 2020 learning sessions over four days along with On Demand viewing options, Q&A opportunities with influential speakers, access to an interactive pre-GAIN 2020 community lounges, GAINER VIP private Facebook page (coming August 1st) and actionable templates and marketing resources exclusively available for GAIN 2020 attendees. Attendees who complete all sessions will receive a copy of Toothfish, and an official training certificate. For more information or to register, visit: https://thegainconference.com ### About Government Marketing University Government Marketing University (https://www.gmarku.com/) is an innovative learning platform that applies a collaborative, community-based approach toward knowledge sharing and skills development in the field of public sector marketing. Experts from all corners of the U.S. public sector marketplace a marketers, thought leaders, government, media and sales a are contributing their knowledge to this unique, content-rich platform. Government Marketing University offers training, research, certifications, mentoring, and community resources all in one place. Contact Details Duyen "Jen" Truong, Sage Communications (for Government Marketing University) +1 703-684-5645 dtruong@aboutsage.com Company Website https://thegainconference.com MELBOURNE/SINGAPORE, July 23 (Reuters) - Australia's Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) said on Thursday it plans to inspect Chevron's Gorgon liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant "as soon as possible" following calls by a trade union to shut the plant. "The Department ... is aware Chevron Australia discovered issues with propane kettles at its Gorgon LNG plant during routine maintenance and understands the company is investigating," the department's Director Dangerous Goods and Petroleum Safety Steve Emery said in a statement. "While DMIRS does not have any immediate concerns for worker safety, the department is taking the matter seriously and is in discussion with Chevron about the findings from its maintenance inspections and the assessment of the results to date." "The department will conduct a joint ... inspection of the LNG plant as soon as possible." The Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) has called for Chevron to shut down the Gorgon plant for immediate safety inspections by the government regulator, and for a report to be made public, it said in a statement on July 20. Cracks up to 1 metre long and 30 millimetres deep on between eight and 11 kettles on Train 2 have been discovered by the non-destructive testing team, AMWU said. "If multiple kettles are showing cracks in testing on Train 2, there is a high risk there are cracks in the vessels on other trains" and these would need to be replaced immediately, said Steve McCartney, AMWU's state secretary. "Chevron needs to put workers' safety first, and shut down for an independent investigation. If something goes wrong it would be catastrophic." Chevron said on Wednesday it is inspecting propane heat exchangers on Train 2 which has been shut for maintenance since May. (Reporting by Melanie Burton and Jessica Jaganathan Writing by Florence Tan Editing by Robert Birsel) One nonprofit at risk of closing is Vikara Village in Rockville, Md., which offers yoga and art programs for victims of trauma. It has shut down most of its activities since losing a contract with a hospital and a planned project with a middle school. The organization has also been notified that it will not receive grants it was expecting and has laid off all five of its paid instructors. Former Samajwadi Party leader and Rajya Sabha MP Amar Singh was cremated in Delhi at 11 AM on Monday (August 3). Singh's last rites were conducted by his twin daughters Drishti and Disha at Chhattarpur cremation ground. The mortal remains of Amar Singh, who died on Saturday (August 1) in Singapore due to kidney-related ailments, was brought to India on a special flight on Sunday (August 2). Singh's mortal remains reached New Delhi at around 6 pm and from there it was taken to his farmhouse at Chattarpur in Delhi. Sources said that Singh's relatives and close friends have reached Delhi to attend his funeral. It is learnt that Singh's wife Pankaja and his twin daughters were present at the hospital in Singapore when he breathed his last. It is to be noted that Singh had undergone a kidney transplant in 2011 and he was undergoing treatment for the last few months. Earlier on Monday, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh paid last respects to Amar Singh at the latter's residence in Chhatarpur. Singh said that he knew Amar Singh for 24-25 years and called the late Rajya Sabha MP a 'friend of friends'. Soon after his demise news broke out tributes and condolences messages started pouring. Several top political leaders and his Bollywood friends extended their condolences and expressed grief on Singh's death. PM Narendra Modi took to Twitter and said, ''Amar Singh Ji was an energetic public figure. In the last few decades, he witnessed some of the major political developments from close quarters. He was known for his friendships across many spheres of life. Saddened by his demise. Condolences to his friends & family. Om Shanti.'' Singh was born on January 27, 1956 at Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh. He completed in graduation from St. Xavier's college and done his Bachelor in Law from University College of Law, Kolkata Singh was elected to Rajya Sabha for the first time in 1996 and in November 2002 he was reelected to Rajya Sabha. Singh entered the Rajya Sabha for his third term in November 2008 and he became a member of Upper House of Parliament on July 2016. PlayStation is drawing a clearer line in the sand between its current and next-generation consoles than Microsoft is with the Xbox, leaving questions about which PlayStation 4 accessories will cross over and work with the PlayStation 5. Thats the central topic of a PlayStation blog published today that aims to clear up confusion about the role PS4 accessories like controllers, headsets, fight sticks, and other external devices will play in Sony's next-gen plans. In short, developers that launch a game for the PlayStation 5 can count on their players using one of Sonys new DualSense controllers to play. While the PlayStation 4s DualShock 4 controller is able to connect to the PlayStation 5, it cant be used to play PlayStation 5 games. The same is true for third-party PlayStation 4 controllers, with Sony saying that all of the above will work with supported PlayStation 4 games on PS5. This particular step makes sense given PlayStations focus on innovation so far with the PlayStation 5 hype cycle and PlayStation leaderships stance that a clear divide between console generations is a key part of its plans to evolve every part of the experience. Reiterating on that in the blog post, Sony notes that: we believe that PS5 games should take advantage of the new capabilities and features were bringing to the platform, including the features of DualSense wireless controller. As for other accessories, PlayStation Move controllers will cross into their third console generation and will be used to play supported PS VR games on the PlayStation 5. While theres a new PlayStation Camera being made for PS5, the PS4s PS Camera will be supported on PS5 via an official adaptor, provided free-of-charge to PS VR users through a not-yet-detailed process. Some of the more niche accessories, specialty peripherals such as officially licensed racing wheels, arcade sticks, and flight stick will work with both supported PS4 games and PS5 games as well. After a record-breaking month of fatalities linked to the coronavirus pandemic, California hit a grim milestone over the weekend: 500,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the most of any state. The overall increase in cases, now more than 516,000, comes as deaths surge. In July, California broke the single-day record for deaths five times, and three of those record-setting days occurred last week. Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday that the Central Valley has overtaken Imperial County as the state's hot spot. Eight Central Valley counties have seen hospitalization and infection rates that far outpace the rest of the state. "We dont want to see it go to where Imperial went," Newsom said. Nurse Jeanette Pimentel checks on COVID-19 patient Pedro Luera, who was airlifted from El Centro in Imperial County to Paradise Valley Hospital in National City. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) Over the last two weeks, California saw an average of 121 deaths per day, Newsom said. On Friday, the state reported 214 fatalities, 21% more than the previous record, set two days prior. Still, there are some early signs of hope, Newsom said. The number of people hospitalized statewide has fallen about 10% over two weeks, and admissions to intensive care units have fallen by 5%, he said. The share of positive COVID-19 tests has fallen to 7%, even as the state has significantly expanded its testing capacity, Newsom said. The rate of Californians testing positive is "not where it needs to be, and its still too high," he noted. "But again, its good to see this number trending down, not trending up." Newsom attributed the modest improvements to better adherence to mask rules and social distancing and new "very, very difficult" state rules that shut down bars and other industries. But two weeks of data heading in the right direction are not enough to instill confidence, he said. "We can quickly find ourselves back to where we were just a few weeks ago, a month ago, with significant increases if we do not maintain our vigilance, if we do not maintain our focus," Newsom said. "This virus is not going away. It's not just going to take Labor Day weekend off. It's not going to take Halloween off, the holidays off." Story continues About 97% of the state's residents live in a county that Newsom has flagged for high rates of disease transmission, high rates of positive tests or both. The 38 counties on the watchlist include every county in the Bay Area and in Southern California. L.A. County health officials Monday expressed optimism that community spread of the coronavirus has slowed, saying this may be due to fewer opportunities for transmission in high-risk settings. Officials said there were an average of 2,600 cases per day in the last week, down from a couple of weeks ago, when the daily count topped 3,000. On Monday, the Department of Public Health reported more than 1,600 new cases and 12 deaths, as well as 1,784 people hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19. The countys seven-day positivity rate, or the average number of positive test results among all those tested in that period, remained mostly flat during July hovering between 8% and 8.8%. The number of hospitalizations has been trending downward, officials said, noting that the current average of 2,000 hospitalizations is down from 2,200 in the middle of July. Officials cited bar closures and businesses shifting from indoor to outdoor operations several weeks ago for the gains. The key indicators that we closely monitor at Public Health are looking positive, and I want to give credit to a large number of our county residents who heeded our orders and took the personal, basic actions needed to slow this virus, Barbara Ferrer, director of L.A. County's Department of Public Health, said in a statement. But for our long-term success, we need to continue limiting the spread of COVID-19. We cant simply go back to life as we knew it before March. We unfortunately still have a long way to go; we must remain vigilant. Paramedic Derek Hughes at the Mercy Air ambulance base at Imperial County Airport. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) In Imperial County, a surge in COVID-19 cases earlier this summer left the county's two hospitals so overwhelmed that more than 650 patients were moved to healthcare facilities in other parts of the state, Newsom said. The number of new daily cases is now steadily falling. In the Central Valley, Kern County is seeing 1,370 positive cases per 100,000 residents, the most in the state, according to the Los Angeles Times coronavirus tracker. Kings, Merced, Colusa, Tulare, Stanislaus, Fresno and San Joaquin counties are all seeing more than 500 cases per 100,000 residents. The pandemic continues to disproportionately affect Black and Latino residents, and the disparity is widening. After adjusting for population, Latino residents are now 3.1 times more likely to test positive than white people. Three-quarters of California's COVID-19 victims have been older than 65, according to state data. But the share of younger people who are sickened and hospitalized is rising. The first child in California to die of complications from COVID-19 was a teenager in Fresno, officials said last week. "This is a sober reminder of how deadly this disease is, and how it can impact anybody," Newsom said. Tony Morris has died at the age of 57. (ITV News) Tony Morris, presenter of ITV's Granada Reports, has died at the age of 57. He passed away on Saturday 1 August at Bury Hospice with his two daughters Natalie and Rebecca by his side after being diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2019. Morris had fronted ITV's regional news programme in the North West for 17 years since joining in 2003. Read more: George Alagiah focusing on life amid cancer battle His daughter Natalie, a journalist, shared the sad news to Twitter on Monday in a joint message with her sister as they paid tribute to their father whom they described as "more than a parent". We lost our incredible dad on Saturday morning. He was more than a parent, he was also our best friend. We are utterly heartbroken, but so grateful for the time we had with him We will be offline with family for a while, but so appreciative of the lovely messages Nat & Becky x pic.twitter.com/ZH3u1HXAMe Natalie Morris (@Nmozz) August 3, 2020 "We lost our incredible dad on Saturday morning. He was more than a parent, he was also our best friend. We are utterly heartbroken, but so grateful for the time we had with him "We will be offline with family for a while, but so appreciative of the lovely messages. Nat & Becky x," they wrote alongside three family snaps. Morris' co-host Lucy Meacock, who presented with him throughout his time at Granada Reports, shared the tweeted and added: "It is with a broken heart I retweet this. Here's @CroneyITV remembering the Tony Morris that we in the office, and our viewers at home, knew and loved RIP Tony https://t.co/Zw8Tqbxgqf pic.twitter.com/AY35olWCOz ITV Granada Reports (@GranadaReports) August 3, 2020 "We will have a very special @GranadaReports tonight in tribute to our lovely friend and colleague. My thoughts are with his family and all who loved him x." Story continues ITV Granada Reports confirmed tributes would be made to the broadcaster on tonight's programme. Prior to joining ITV, Morris worked as a reporter on BBC Northwest Tonight. BBC North West sent "heartfelt condolences" to his daughters and the Granada Reports team. ITV News anchor Charlene White also paid tribute to presenter, writing: "Tony Morris was an utterly wonderful man, & brilliant journalist. Two attributes that his daughter @Nmozz has in bucketloads. So sorry for your loss Natalie, sending love to the family. Hell no doubt be missed by the whole @GranadaReports team & viewers." California Gov. Gavin Newsom said at his Monday press briefing more tests are being done, but the percentage of people testing positive is going down. The 14-day positivity rate is 7% compared to 7.5% a week ago. The positivity rate is an indicator tracked by officials and the World Health Organization recommends a state or region maintain a 5% positivity rate for at least two weeks before lifting shelter-at-home protocols. What's more, the average number of new cases across seven days is 7,764, compared to roughly 9,800 a week ago. The seven-day average is down 21.2% from last week. "That's some good news," the governor said. In the last two weeks, the number of COVID-19 patients has declined 10% and ICU admissions are down 5%. Newsom delivered these encouraging numbers with caution and emphasized the need to continue to follow the health order with vigilance. "One week does not make the kind of trend that generates headlines," said Newsom, noting that it will take another few weeks to feel "confident." He added that while the case surge may be subsiding, the death rate is rising with the 14-day average at 121 new deaths a day. Newsom said these are statewide numbers and they do not reflect the reality of the pandemic unfolding in the Central Valley where cases and hospitalizations are surging. The Central Valley is now the state's "biggest area of concern," Newsom said, as some other regions are seeing COVID numbers stabilize. In addition to the previously-announced $52 million in federal aid for the Central Valley, Newsom said he's also secured $6.5 million in philanthropic aid to help Central Valley residents in need pay for food, rent, utilities, and other supplies. Newsom cited the struggles of Imperial County in June when strike teams helped bring down COVID-19 transmissions in this region bordering Mexico. The positivity rate peaked in Imperial County at 30% and today it's at 11.2%. The approach implemented in Imperial County is now serving as a model for the state's response in the Central Valley. MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE: Sign up for 'The Daily' newsletter for the latest on coronavirus here. Solano County health chief: It may be impossible to get off state watch list Bay Area had avoided spikes until shutdown fatigue, early reopening and prison outbreak Does a plastic face shield protect you and others as well as a mask? You told us how your 2020 would look if COVID never happened 'If anyone gets sick, we're ruined': SF restaurant that hosted COVID wedding party speaks out OTTAWAThe Royal Canadian Air Force is being forced to fly its ancient search-and-rescue planes even longer as COVID-19 further delays the delivery of replacement aircraft. The Defence Department is playing down any significant impact on the militarys search-and-rescue operations from the new delay, which has left the first of 16 new Airbus-built CC-295s stranded in Spain for at least several more months. Jessica Lamirande, a department spokesperson, said a recent analysis conducted by the Air Force and procurement officials concluded the military has the necessary flexibility to keep flying its current search-and-rescue planes. Those planes include six Buffalo aircraft and seven older-model Hercules planes. Their primary role is to find and rescue Canadians stranded or in danger in places or situations where municipal or provincial authorities are unable to respond. Yet the planes are all around 50 years old and scheduled for retirement as maintenance requirements have grown and spare parts become harder to find. In 2014, officials had to get parts from a museum in Trenton in 2014 to fix a broken Hercules. Canadas auditor general also raised concerns about the state of the aircraft in a scathing report in 2013, noting the Buffalo aircraft were unavailable on 119 occasions in 2011. In five of those cases, no other airplane was available. Lamirande said the Buffalo and Hercules planes would be able to operate until the CC-295s are in the air, saying: We have the necessary flexibility to ensure continued and safe SAR coverage utilizing the existing capability. Although there are still schedule risks given the uncertainty of the pandemic situation, Canadians can rest assured that the Royal Canadian Air Force will continue to provide uninterrupted search-and-rescue services until we transition to the new capability. The federal government first started looking for new search-and-rescue planes in 2002, but the effort ground to a halt in 2007 after the Air Force was accused of rigging its requirements to favour an Italian-made plane. A new competition was eventually launched and saw Airbus selected in 2016 to build 16 new CC-295s for $2.4 billion, with the first plane to be delivered last December and flying rescue missions this year. Lamirande acknowledged the aircraft will remain in Spain until at least the early fall, saying the COVID-19 pandemic set back production as well as the militarys ability to travel to Spain to review the plane and ensure it meets the Air Forces requirements. We are and have been working closely with Airbus to develop and implement mitigation strategies that will ensure continued progress notwithstanding the situation, she said. The government receives about 10,000 distress calls a year. Most are handled by the provinces or territories, with police and volunteers tasked with responding. About 750 of the most high-risk calls are answered by the military. Military search-and-rescue personnel often use their specialized airplanes and helicopters to parachute or rappel into remote areas such as mountains, the high Arctic or one of Canadas three oceans to respond to plane crashes and sinking ships. The military considers search-and-rescue a no-fail mission, meaning it must be ready around the clock and respond when called upon to help because of the potentially deadly consequences. The day to celebrate the special bond between a brother and a sister is here. Every year Raksha Bandhan is celebrated with full vigour in the country as siblings tend to be a little less mean to each other that day. A bond which is full of fights, love, laughter and a whole lot of firsts lived together, Raksha bandha is surely one of the best festivals as sisters tie a rakhi on their brother's hand to thank them for protecting them throughout their lives and brothers in return give a gift to their sisters promising to do so year after year. So on the big day, we thought about listing out movies that have made this bond seem close to reality on the big screen. Sit back and scroll through... Director: Sooraj BarjatyaCast: Salman Khan, Tabu, Karisma Kapoor, Sonali Bendre, Mohnish Behl, NeelamIn this modern day interpretation of the Ramayana, Salman Khan played the sane voice in the midst of the storm. When his sister and her husband are tuned away by the husband's brother, it's he who welcomes them with open arms and even tries to broker peace between the families. The intelligence agency has named the main threats Ukraine is facing By Valeriy Kondratiuk, head of the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine A hybrid war, an armed conflict, Russia's aggressive policy towards internal socio-economic and political processes in Ukraine, attempts by Kremlin authorities to undermine support for our state at the international level these are the main threats Ukraine is facing, according to an assessment by the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine. Russian political regime's strategic goals, despite all cosmetic statements by the authorities in Moscow, remain unchanged: bringing Ukraine back into the orbit of total influence, eliminating its national identity and independence, establishing external control over the ongoing processes in the country, and ultimately terminating Ukraine as a sovereign state. Applying multi-vector hybrid tools and methods, the Russian government is trying to achieve gains in the military, political, economic, information, and cybersecurity domains, contributing to the emergence of social conflicts based on the issues of language and religion. Let's dwell on each dimension of external threats. Military threats Direct armed aggression against Ukraine has resulted in the temporary occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Among subjective factors were the weakness of the collective security systems and the favorable environment created in Ukraine for the operations of the "fifth column" of Russian supporters since the time Ukraine gained independence. Putin's regime went for the destruction of the entire system of international security and international law, which had been in place for decades. At the present stage of hybrid war, Russia has deployed a military grouping close to Ukraine borders, which includes two new armies and an army corps: the 20th Army has already been practically formed. It consists of a 24,000-strong pair of divisions. There's also a 45,000-strong 8th Army, including the 1st and 2nd army corps deployed in the temporarily occupied territories of Donbas; and the 22nd Army Corps as part of the Russian Navy's coastal forces consisting of 9,000 servicemen. These units will become fully operational in the near future. The Kremlin views its own army as a tool to satisfy foreign policy ambitions, so the order to invade another state is only a matter of time and opportunity for Moscow. Russia's strategic nuclear forces have been armed with the latest weapons by 83%, aerospace forces by 75%, airborne troops and naval forces by over 63%, and land forces by 50%. The availability of modern command and control facilities in the army stands at about 67%. Moscow is creating long-term threats, including through developing a new military base near the Ukraine borders (in Rostov, 60 km away from the border) to permanently host units of the newly formed 150th motorized rifle division. For the aims of political pressure on Ukraine and the West, the Kremlin intends to use the strategic military exercises Kavkaz-2020, where the scenario will be worked out of an offensive on the neighboring countries. The total number of troops involved in maneuvers scheduled for September this year will amount to at least 120,000, along with 3,000 armored combat vehicles, nearly 300 aircraft, 250 helicopters, 50 warships, and up to five submarines. A possible scenario for the exercise is also the use of troops to resolve the issue of freshwater supply to the temporarily occupied Crimea. Prior to annexation, mainland Ukraine covered up to 85% of Crimea's freshwater demand, so Russia's armed forces could potentially, under a far-fetched pretext, deploy deep into the territory of Ukraine's Kherson region in order to seize control over the dam of the North Crimean Canal. In general, Russia has already turned the peninsula into a solid military base with the infrastructure capable of storing nuclear weapons. Since 2016, Soviet infrastructure to store and operate nuclear weapons has been actively restored near Feodosia (the Feodosia-13 facility) and Balaklava (Sopka). The development transport infrastructure across the peninsula, as well as its integration into Russia's unified transport grid, is also aimed to achieve military goals. The adoption of a strategic decision to conduct in one form or another an offensive military operation against Ukraine (in particular in the area of the North Crimean Canal) is limited by the following factors: Falling prices on global oil and gas markets and decreasing revenues to the Russian budget; Moscow's hopes of exploiting COVID-19 to reset relations with the West; The upcoming local elections in Ukraine amid Moscow's hopes to strengthen the presence of pro-Russian forces in Ukrainian politics; The shifting of military resources toward the Turkish-Russian confrontation in Syria and Libya, as well as indirectly within the framework of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict; and Russia's local elections in September 2020, against the backdrop of Vladimir Putin's popular rating dropping to 23% and a heightened protest potential. The Kremlin is also being held back from ordering an offensive by the vicissitudes of the U.S. presidential campaign and the developments in the Donbas settlement talks in the Minsk and Normandy formats. At the same time, the United States shifting focus solely on its own internal problems along with the turns in the negotiation process which are "not in line with the Russian scenario" significantly increase Moscow's readiness to cross the "red line", yet another time. According to our estimates, the complex influence of these factors makes the scenario of military aggression against Ukraine in the fall of 2020 untimely for the Kremlin. However, the lessons of history prove that Russia has never respected the sovereign rights of other countries, and to them, a state border is merely a line on the map. We can recall the year of 1918 when Russia with its one hand signed a preliminary peace treaty with the Ukrainian State, and with its other hand unleashed a "civil" war in Ukraine through Bolshevik detachments who Russia falsely claimed were beyond its control. Our analysis shows that in the long term, Russian efforts in relation to Ukraine may transform into a large-scale military operation with the seizure of more Ukrainian territories. The following factors may contribute to this: - The need to divert public attention from a number of internal problems (a plunging popular rating of the Russian government due to the deteriorating standards of life, a rapid economic decline, a weakening of the power vertical, and the opposition of regional elites); - The need to address socio-economic problems in the temporarily occupied Crimea (water supply, failure of the tourist season); and - Our leading international partners focusing exclusively on their internal problems (complex electoral processes, radical escalation of social, demographic and economic issues, refugees, or terrorism). Another important dimension of Russia's hybrid aggression against Ukraine involves political threats We spot the attempts by Russian intelligence to carry out special operations to sow discord in the Ukrainian society and undermine foundations of the Ukrainian statehood. The bet is on systemically compromising the Ukrainian national idea and Western civilizational choice, demonstrating the "artificial nature of Ukrainian identity and state" (this discourse is being imposed on us both from the outside and from within). Moscow is actively manipulating the factor of the temporarily occupied territories, trying to portray as opposing parties the people of Ukraine and the "Kyiv authorities", who allegedly betrayed their election promises toward the long-sought peace in Donbas. Russia's political goal is to destabilize social and political life to such an extent that the Kremlin could raise the issue of the need for providing "humanitarian aid" and then cut off oxygen to Ukraine with its "fraternal" embrace. In fact, this is about attempts to incite a "war of all against all" on the territory of our state and, against this background, carrying out an act of political sabotage and/or military operation to topple the Ukrainian government in the medium term. The tools and methods applied by Russia widely vary, being of different shapes and beyond standard rules. Most often, Russian signature tools include provocations, the use of agents of influence, terror and political assassinations, which have taken place repeatedly both in Ukraine (assassinations of intelligence operative M. Shapoval and Russian politician D. Voronenkov in Kyiv, counterintelligence operative A. Kharaberyush in Mariupol, and others), and beyond. The latest examples were reported in Germany and Austria (the murders of Russian political fugitives Zelimkhan Khangoshvili in Berlin and Mamikhan Umarov on the outskirts of Vienna), which once again makes the civilized world consider if Russia has turned into a state sponsor of terrorism. The intelligence pays special attention to analyzing processes that are underway involving the self-styled authorities in the occupied Donbas. Recently, great shifts have taken place, primarily in the system of Russian supervision of certain territories. Following the resignation of Vladislav Surkov, "Russian world" ideologist K. Zatulin got access to the closest entourage of the "USSR 2.0" project's new handler Dmitry Kozak, whispering to his ear the idea to use the "Georgian or Moldovan model" as the core of the Russian strategy in the Ukrainian issue: "... to keep conducting long negotiations, to create such a model, if possible, similar to the Minsk agreements, so that Donbas would become in fact independent, formally part of Ukraine, and could influence the Ukrainian government policies. I hope that by this time the Americans will have grown weary of dealing with it, tired of throwing resources into this furnace, give up and overthrow some nationalist, and a more or less moderate regime will come. Wait for its evolution and build relations with it." Economic threats The Russian Federation seizes every opportunity to wage its trade and economic war against Ukraine. This is about financial pressure, energy blackmail, transit and transport blockade, ousting Ukrainian producers from traditional sales markets, compromising our enterprises on international markets, and penetrating Ukrainian markets with investment through front firms. Our intelligence says the Russian Federation has already prepared a "register" of the so-called weak points of Ukraine, through which they intend to inflict major damage on the country's economy. Domestic industry flagships, Ukrainian ports and transport infrastructure, enterprises of the fuel and energy complex and, of course, and defense enterprises occupy central spots in the lists. The Russian Federation is trying to disrupt Ukraine's dialogue with international financial institutions, conducting information campaigns in the EU, imposing on European audiences an opinion about the unreliability of our energy transmission system. Russian propaganda pays special attention to preventing the rise of foreign direct investment in our state, channeling to our partners distorted information about corruption risks and threats. So, on the eve of the next round of talks between Ukraine and the IMF, Russia through its diplomatic and other channels conveys to the high-ranking representatives of foreign banking and business circles information on the alleged misuse by Ukraine of credit funds, as well as technical and humanitarian aid. During official contacts of Russia's top leadership with Western leaders they also resort to spreading disinformation about the "economic decline" of our state "due to corruption" Russia is actively promoting the idea of an energy embargo on Ukraine through launching bypass gas routes, seeing as a final stage the completion of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline construction and termination of gas supply routes from Russia via Ukraine. Information threats Russia's attempts to dominate the Ukrainian information space we see among the prerequisites for building up aggression against Ukraine. The Kremlin plans to intensify its information and psychological warfare. To this end, social networks, targeted information operations, fake news, and disinformation campaigns are being actively employed. It is worth recalling manipulation of versions regarding flight MH17 downed by Russian invaders, allegations about Ukraine 'training terrorists for ISIS', and false information spins about the alleged use of Ukrainian territory to set up secret biological weapons research labs. We should also keep in mind the norm laid down in the updated version of Russia's constitution on the impossibility of alienating territories, as well as criminal liability for public calls to this end. From now on, anyone who says Crimea belongs to Ukraine could be prosecuted in Russia. The main element of destabilizing the Ukrainian society from within is manipulation of protest sentiments, built including on patriotic sentiments (among the most actively used ones are language and religious issues, claims of external control over Ukraine, including due to dependence on the IMF and other Western institutions and governments). The Kremlin spares no financial or human resources in this regard. Provocations are being inspired and widely covered in media involving attacks by alleged "nationalists" on "opposition" pro-Russian forces. False information is being spread internationally about Ukrainian mercenaries in conflict regions, participation of Ukrainians in mass unrest on foreign soil. The latest example of such a special information operation was related to protests in Serbia. The Kremlin has spread fake news about the involvement of "mercenaries from Ukraine" in protests in Belgrade sparked over people's discontent with new COVID-19 curfew rules. The activities of pro-Russian TV channels in Ukraine also require comprehensive assessment and response on the part of Ukrainian government. Threats emerging on religious grounds One of the forms of Kremlin pressure on our state is through promoting the idea of a "Russian Orthodox Church". While in possession of levers on the religious sphere, Russian special services use the ROC both as "hard" power (to inspire rallies that could easily turn into show-off clashes with law enforcement or provocateurs) and as "soft" power (influencing the minds of worshipers). To this end, Russia uses all techniques available to hinder the process of the formation of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, manipulating the feelings of Ukrainian believers and trying in every possible way to preserve its influence on them. Another special project pursued by the Kremlin involves its attempts to create and legalize paramilitary groups in Ukrainian regions within the framework of religious communities, taking up law enforcement functions. This is about the revival of the pro-Russian "Cossack" organizations, attempting to duplicate police functions on protecting public order at the local level. Such cases have already been recorded in Kyiv, Vinnytsia, and Zaporizhia regions. Escalation of regional tensions Russia has been trying to exploit Ukraine's historical conflicts with its neighbors to sow enmity between nations and benefit off consequences. The attempts to rewrite history the way it is seen in Moscow is one of the prerequisites for legitimizing the invasion of Ukraine. All threats arising around Ukraine at the regional level are in one way or another related to the destructive efforts on the part of Russia. A typical example is a historical legacy in relations with Hungary and Poland. On these issues, our countries managed to come to terms, but Russia is still out there, feeding chauvinism targeting Ukraine. At the same time, it's not only about clandestine efforts anymore they've been acting arrogantly in the open recently. The attempt by pranksters Vovan and Lexus to fool Polish President A. Duda and provoke him into speaking out on sensitive issues of Ukrainian-Polish relations (they offered that he "return Ukrainian territories ... Lviv and many others") is indicative. A few more examples: in 2016, the Polish Internal Security Agency detained Mateusz Piskorski, leader of the pro-Russian Smena party, over his cooperation with the Russian special services; in 2018, Polish law enforcement nabbed their own citizens members of the radical pro-Russian organization Falanga on charges of committing an arson attack on the office of the Hungarian Culture Society in Uzhgorod. The situation with Belarus is of a slightly different nature: the Kremlin has never abandoned its idea to absorb Belarus under the pretext of "unification". This poses a threat of the country being transformed it into a springboard for Russia to implement its aggressive policies against Ukraine. Employing all its levers, Moscow is trying to weaken Belarus as much as possible, remaining for Minsk a partner with no alternative. This poses a threat of the Belarus leadership changing its stance on the 'Ukrainian issue'. The latest example Belarusian security officials detained 32 militants with the Russian PMC Wagner, who arrived in Minsk to destabilize the country during the presidential election campaign in Belarus. Intelligence also analyzes the ongoing processes in Moldova (including in Transnistria) and Georgia (including in Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region), which the Kremlin uses as a testing ground for bringing pro-Russian forces to power and bringing Chisinau and Tbilisi back to its orbit of influence. In Georgia, Russia has been using all hybrid tools available (ranging from the "fifth column" and pro-Russian media to economic blackmail) to block attempts by the Georgian government to reintegrate territories, and also to prevent the emergence of NATO infrastructure on the Georgian Black Sea coast. In general, the developments in the South Caucasus, including recent events at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border point at Russia's continued efforts to manipulate regional conflicts, while hypocritically offering its peacemaking services. Cyberthreats Ukrainian intelligence pays special attention to countering threats in cyber domain. Cyber intervention in the safe operation of critical infrastructure in Ukraine, inspired by Russia, is yet another instrument of hybrid warfare targeting our country, as is armed aggression. Everyone remembers cyberattacks on Ukrainian energy companies (2015, the BlackEnergy malware), Ukrenergo's Pivnichna electric substation (2016), the attack exploiting office software vulnerabilities (2017, Petya ransomware), and the cyberattack on the President's Representative Office for the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (2020). Moscow's cybermilitarization threatens both Ukraine and other countries that the Russian Federation sees as its adversaries or competitors. This is not only about cyberattacks and gaining unauthorized access to information and telecommunication systems, but also about attempts to use social networks to manipulate public opinion and destabilize countries the so-called influence operations. Unauthorized interference in cyber domain was revealed, in particular, during the previous presidential campaign in the United States and people's votes across Europe (the Netherlands, UK). Among recent examples, Britain accused hackers controlled by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service of interfering in the 2019 parliamentary elections via the internet and of setting up leaks of British government documents. Also, the UK, the United States, and Canada have accused Russia of trying to steal data on the COVID-19 vaccine research. Cyberattacks on vaccine research companies have employed a variety of tools and techniques, including phishing and malware such as WellMess and WellMail. Western concerns have materialized into a concrete decision: the EU has for the first time ever introduced cyber-related sanctions, including on four Russian military intelligence operatives and entities, involved in the NotPetya cyberattacks and those on the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. In this context, the UK experience is undoubtedly of great interest to Ukraine. British Parliament has recently published a Russia report drawn by the Intelligence and Security Committee. The document addresses the facts of Russian interference in the UK's political processes and contains specific government recommendations on countering Russia's hostile efforts. These include granting special services broader powers to monitor Russian nationals' assets and activities within the country, creating a register of foreign agents of influence, and flexibly using sanctions instruments. Terror threats We are used to attributing terrorism to ISIS, Taliban, or Al-Qaeda. Also, as the U.S. Department of State puts it, Iran, North Korea, and South Sudan are designated as state sponsors of terrorism. At the same time, for Ukraine, against which Russia has been waging a hybrid war, including via terrorist tools, the Kremlin is Terrorist No. 1, responsible for over 13,000 Ukrainian deaths in Donbas. Examples of terrorist attacks include the downing by a Russian missile of a passenger jet flight MH17, the shelling of Mariupol and Kramatorsk, and terrorist attacks to assassinate Ukrainian security operatives. Conclusions According to SZR assessments, Russia's political regime remains the main external threat to Ukraine. The incumbent authorities in the Kremlin will never accept an independent, unitary, and western-oriented Ukraine, therefore they will pursue waging their hybrid war against the Ukrainian state. Meanwhile, recent developments testify to the formation of a common Western policy on the use of complex tools for deterring Russia, where sanctions will be among many elements involved (these approaches are similar to those applied during the Cold War). The issue of timely identification and adequate response to threats coming from Russia will increasingly dominate the agenda of both European and Ukrainian special services and politicians. How will the situation unfold? Russia intends to pursue its efforts to undermine Ukraine in order to achieve its ultimate goal to return our state to the "zone of Russian influence", using various levers to this end. Our intelligence says that with the approach of local elections in Ukraine, Russia will once again return to the practice of pro-active pressure and provocations. Their goal will be not only to wreak havoc and undermine public confidence in state institutions, but also to shape among the Western audiences the opinion about Ukraine being a "failed state", and, therefore, to make cooperation with Ukraine toxic for Western leaders. One of the elements in this context is to impose the idea of federalization of Ukraine as the only real possibility of resolving the conflict by peaceful political means. The Kremlin is convinced that, given the "civilizational and national diversity of Ukraine and the limited influence of the central government" (these are the definitions Moscow has been using), the transition to a federal form of government will activate the process of the Ukrainian State's disintegration into smaller parts, which will be easy to reintegrate into the "Russian world" in the future, with the exception of a single territory, which they refer to as "Galicia". The key point in this strategy is the holding of elections in the occupied areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The Russian Federation insists on holding elections in the temporarily occupied territories of eastern Ukraine without any prerequisites in place, namely, without Ukraine first restoring control over the relevant section of the Ukrainian-Russian border and without the withdrawal of all Moscow-controlled armed groups. This is the approach Kremlin emissaries are now trying to lobby at all negotiating platforms. No other options meet Russia's interests in ensuring total political control over Luhansk and Donetsk regions in the post-conflict period. According to our forecasts, despite Ukraine's readiness for the peace process, in the short and medium term, hostile provocations along the contact line are highly likely. Our data indicate that Russia-controlled armed groups have already received instructions from their Russian handlers to use the ceasefire agreements for provocations and search for ways to compromise Ukraine as a party that first violated the truce. THE WOODLANDS, Texas, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Newpark Resources, Inc. (NYSE: NR) ("Newpark" or the "Company") today announced results for its second quarter ended June 30, 2020. Total revenues for the second quarter of 2020 were $101.9 million compared to $164.6 million for the first quarter of 2020 and $216.4 million for the second quarter of 2019. Net loss for the second quarter of 2020 was $26.2 million, or ($0.29) per share, compared to net loss of $12.1 million, or ($0.14) per share, for the first quarter of 2020, and net income of $4.3 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2019. Second quarter 2020 results include the impact of the following: $8.3 million of pre-tax charges for write-downs of inventory in the Fluids Systems segment ( $6.5 million after-tax); of pre-tax charges for write-downs of inventory in the Fluids Systems segment ( after-tax); $2.8 million of pre-tax charges for severance costs ( $2.2 million after-tax), including $2.6 million in the Fluids Systems segment and $0.2 million in the Corporate office; of pre-tax charges for severance costs ( after-tax), including in the Fluids Systems segment and in the Corporate office; $0.8 million of pre-tax charges for facility closures and related exit costs in the Fluids Systems segment ( $0.6 million after-tax); and of pre-tax charges for facility closures and related exit costs in the Fluids Systems segment ( after-tax); and $1.3 million pre-tax ( $1.1 million after-tax) gain associated with the repurchase of $18.6 million of our convertible notes in the open market. Combined, the impact of the above items resulted in a $11.9 million increase in operating loss and an $8.2 million increase in net loss ($0.09 per share) for the second quarter of 2020. Paul Howes, Newpark's President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "The COVID-related shutdowns combined with the unprecedented market collapse over the past four months is unlike anything we've experienced before. In light of these market challenges and difficult working conditions, our highest priority has remained the health and safety of our global workforce. I am extremely proud of the performance of our entire organization in recent months, as we've swiftly executed actions from our strategic playbook aimed at rightsizing our organization in markets where longer-term softness is expected, aggressively managing our working capital to drive positive free cash flow generation, while continuing to safely support our customers. The impact of COVID is proving to be longer in duration and deeper than we originally anticipated, most notably within the EMEA region of Fluids Systems, where government-imposed restrictions on movements of personnel and products, along with ongoing uncertainty regarding the timing of COVID recovery are causing activity disruptions and project delays. Mats & Integrated Services has also experienced an elevated impact from COVID in the second quarter, with our Energy Infrastructure customers seeing delays in the issuance of governmental permits as well as supply chain and logistical restrictions, resulting in delays to planned projects. "We moved quickly to adjust our cost structure beginning in the first quarter, reducing our global workforce by 25% in the first half of the year, including a 50% reduction in the US land Fluids business. We've also continued our aggressive management of liquidity, eliminating all non-critical capital investments and driving reductions in working capital balances. Benefitting from these actions, we generated $21 million of free cash flow and reduced our total debt balance by $27 million in the second quarter," added Howes. "The Fluids Systems segment posted second quarter 2020 revenues of $75 million, reflecting a 44% sequential decline. With the combined impact of the oil and gas market collapse as well as COVID-related restrictions, revenues declined sharply in most major regions, with the exception of the Middle East, where revenues improved 9% sequentially. North America Fluids Systems revenues declined by $41 million sequentially, which included a $30 million reduction in US land markets and a $10 million decline in Canada. Outside of North America, revenues pulled back by $17 million sequentially to $29 million in the second quarter, reflecting a larger-than-anticipated impact from COVID restrictions combined with lower commodity prices. The impacts were felt to some extent across most of our international units, with Italy and North Africa contributing the majority of the decline. For the second quarter of 2020, 62% of Fluids Systems revenues were derived from international and offshore Gulf of Mexico markets. Howes continued, "In the Mats and Integrated Services business, the increasing COVID disruptions led to a $6 million sequential decline in rental and service revenues in the second quarter. Product sales increased modestly on a sequential basis to $5 million in the second quarter, although order activity continues to be negatively impacted by customer uncertainty. For the second quarter of 2020, approximately 70% of the Mats and Integrated Services revenue was derived from Energy Infrastructure and other non-E&P end-markets. "Despite the extremely challenging market conditions, we remain committed to driving positive free cash flow generation and reducing our debt, while taking the actions necessary to position the company to emerge as a leaner organization, less dependent upon the volatile US land E&P market," concluded Howes. Segment Results The Fluids Systems segment generated revenues of $74.7 million for the second quarter of 2020 compared to $132.8 million for the first quarter of 2020 and $172.5 million for the second quarter of 2019. Segment operating loss was $25.1 million for the second quarter of 2020 compared to an operating loss of $2.3 million for the first quarter of 2020 and operating income of $12.2 million for the second quarter of 2019. Operating loss for the second quarter of 2020 includes a total of $11.7 million of charges associated with inventory write-downs, severance costs, and facility exit costs. Operating loss for the first quarter of 2020 includes a total of $1.2 million of charges associated with inventory write-downs and severance costs. The Mats and Integrated Services segment generated revenues of $27.3 million for the second quarter of 2020 compared to $31.7 million for the first quarter of 2020 and $43.9 million for the second quarter of 2019. Segment operating income was $1.0 million for the second quarter of 2020 compared to $3.1 million for the first quarter of 2020 and $9.3 million for the second quarter of 2019. Repurchase of Convertible Notes due December 2021 During the second quarter of 2020, we repurchased $18.6 million of our Convertible Notes due December 2021 in the open market for a total cost of $15.3 million and recognized a $1.3 million gain on the extinguishment of debt. For the first half of 2020, we repurchased a total of $33.1 million of our Convertible Notes in the open market for a total cost of $29.1 million and recognized a $0.4 million gain on the extinguishment of debt. After giving effect to these repurchases, we had $66.9 million of Convertible Notes outstanding as of June 30, 2020. Conference Call Newpark has scheduled a conference call to discuss second quarter of 2020 results and its near-term operational outlook, which will be broadcast live over the Internet, on Tuesday, August 4, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time / 9:00 a.m. Central Time. To participate in the call, dial 412-902-0030 and ask for the Newpark Resources call at least 10 minutes prior to the start time, or access it live over the Internet at www.newpark.com. For those who cannot listen to the live call, a replay will be available through August 18, 2020 and may be accessed by dialing 201-612-7415 and using pass code 13706909#. Also, an archive of the webcast will be available shortly after the call at www.newpark.com for 90 days. Newpark Resources, Inc. is a worldwide provider of value-added fluids and chemistry solutions in the oilfield, and engineered worksite and access solutions used in various commercial markets. For more information, visit our website at www.newpark.com. This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. All statements other than statements of historical facts are forward-looking statements. Words such as "will," "may," "could," "would," "should," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," "expects," "plans," "intends," and similar expressions are intended to identify these forward-looking statements but are not the exclusive means of identifying them. These statements are not guarantees that our expectations will prove to be correct and involve a number of risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. Many factors, including those discussed more fully elsewhere in this release and in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by Newpark, particularly its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed May 6, 2020 as well as others, could cause actual plans or results to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these statements. These risk factors include, but are not limited to, risks related to the COVID-19 pandemic; the worldwide oil and natural gas industry; our customer concentration and reliance on the U.S. exploration and production market; our international operations; our ability to attract, retain and develop qualified leaders, key employees and skilled personnel; the availability of raw materials; our cost and continued availability of borrowed funds, including noncompliance with debt covenants; operating hazards present in the oil and natural gas industry and substantial liability claims, including catastrophic well incidents; our ability to execute our business strategy and make successful business acquisitions and capital investments; our market competition; our contracts that can be terminated or downsized by our customers without penalty; our product offering expansion; our compliance with environmental laws and regulations; our legal compliance; the inherent limitations of insurance coverage; income taxes; the potential impairments of goodwill and long-lived intangible assets; technological developments and intellectual property in our industry; severe weather, natural disasters, and seasonality; cybersecurity breaches or business system disruptions; and fluctuations in the market value of our publicly traded securities, including our ability to maintain compliance with the New York Stock Exchange's continued listing requirements. We assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by securities laws. Newpark's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission can be obtained at no charge at www.sec.gov , as well as through our website at www.newpark.com . Contacts: Gregg Piontek Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Newpark Resources, Inc. [email protected] 281-362-6800 Newpark Resources, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited) Three Months Ended Six Months Ended (In thousands, except per share data) June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 June 30, 2019 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Revenues $ 101,946 $ 164,550 $ 216,412 $ 266,496 $ 427,885 Cost of revenues 112,290 146,084 177,933 258,374 352,909 Selling, general and administrative expenses 20,937 24,696 28,037 45,633 58,779 Other operating income, net (742) (344) (472) (1,086) (396) Operating income (loss) (30,539) (5,886) 10,914 (36,425) 16,593 Foreign currency exchange (gain) loss 781 1,982 990 2,763 (72) Interest expense, net 2,912 3,201 3,523 6,113 7,179 (Gain) loss on extinguishment of debt (1,334) 915 (419) Income (loss) before income taxes (32,898) (11,984) 6,401 (44,882) 9,486 Provision (benefit) for income taxes (6,654) 164 2,095 (6,490) 3,898 Net income (loss) $ (26,244) $ (12,148) $ 4,306 $ (38,392) $ 5,588 Calculation of EPS: Net income (loss) - basic and diluted $ (26,244) $ (12,148) $ 4,306 $ (38,392) $ 5,588 Weighted average common shares outstanding - basic 89,981 89,645 89,806 89,813 89,958 Dilutive effect of stock options and restricted stock awards 1,900 2,082 Dilutive effect of Convertible Notes Weighted average common shares outstanding - diluted 89,981 89,645 91,706 89,813 92,040 Net income (loss) per common share - basic: $ (0.29) $ (0.14) $ 0.05 $ (0.43) $ 0.06 Net income (loss) per common share - diluted: $ (0.29) $ (0.14) $ 0.05 $ (0.43) $ 0.06 Newpark Resources, Inc. Operating Segment Results (Unaudited) Three Months Ended Six Months Ended (In thousands) June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 June 30, 2019 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Revenues Fluids systems $ 74,662 $ 132,805 $ 172,544 $ 207,467 $ 333,197 Mats and integrated services 27,284 31,745 43,868 59,029 94,688 Total revenues $ 101,946 $ 164,550 $ 216,412 $ 266,496 $ 427,885 Operating income (loss) (1) Fluids systems $ (25,059) $ (2,268) $ 12,184 $ (27,327) $ 16,058 Mats and integrated services 1,005 3,062 9,276 4,067 22,814 Corporate office (6,485) (6,680) (10,546) (13,165) (22,279) Total operating income (loss) $ (30,539) $ (5,886) $ 10,914 $ (36,425) $ 16,593 Segment operating margin Fluids systems (33.6) % (1.7) % 7.1 % (13.2) % 4.8 % Mats and integrated services 3.7 % 9.6 % 21.1 % 6.9 % 24.1 % (1) See table below for charges included. Operating results include the impact of the following pre-tax charges: Consolidated Three Months Ended Six Months Ended (In thousands) June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 June 30, 2019 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Inventory write-downs $ 8,269 $ 727 $ $ 8,996 $ Severance costs 2,824 697 333 3,521 868 Facility closures and related exit costs 800 800 Modification of retirement policy 3,953 $ 11,893 $ 1,424 $ 333 $ 13,317 $ 4,821 Fluids Systems Three Months Ended Six Months Ended (In thousands) June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 June 30, 2019 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Inventory write-downs $ 8,269 $ 727 $ $ 8,996 $ Severance costs 2,593 506 333 3,099 868 Facility closures and related exit costs 800 800 Modification of retirement policy 605 $ 11,662 $ 1,233 $ 333 $ 12,895 $ 1,473 Newpark Resources, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited) (In thousands, except share data) June 30, 2020 December 31, 2019 ASSETS Cash and cash equivalents $ 42,942 $ 48,672 Receivables, net 139,627 216,714 Inventories 177,973 196,897 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 20,657 16,526 Total current assets 381,199 478,809 Property, plant and equipment, net 297,234 310,409 Operating lease assets 33,524 32,009 Goodwill 42,094 42,332 Other intangible assets, net 26,907 29,677 Deferred tax assets 3,047 3,600 Other assets 3,040 3,243 Total assets $ 787,045 $ 900,079 LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY Current debt $ 10,519 $ 6,335 Accounts payable 52,364 79,777 Accrued liabilities 33,261 42,750 Total current liabilities 96,144 128,862 Long-term debt, less current portion 125,291 153,538 Noncurrent operating lease liabilities 27,392 26,946 Deferred tax liabilities 21,875 34,247 Other noncurrent liabilities 8,906 7,841 Total liabilities 279,608 351,434 Common stock, $0.01 par value (200,000,000 shares authorized and 107,429,802 and 106,696,719 shares issued, respectively) 1,074 1,067 Paid-in capital 623,269 620,626 Accumulated other comprehensive loss (73,308) (67,947) Retained earnings 93,292 134,119 Treasury stock, at cost (16,784,471 and 16,958,418 shares, respectively) (136,890) (139,220) Total stockholders' equity 507,437 548,645 Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $ 787,045 $ 900,079 Newpark Resources, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited) Six Months Ended June 30, (In thousands) 2020 2019 Cash flows from operating activities: Net income (loss) $ (38,392) $ 5,588 Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operations: Inventory impairments 8,996 Depreciation and amortization 22,915 23,070 Stock-based compensation expense 3,077 6,874 Provision for deferred income taxes (11,418) (1,514) Credit loss expense 726 789 Gain on sale of assets (2,163) (5,128) Gain on extinguishment of debt (419) Amortization of original issue discount and debt issuance costs 2,801 2,973 Change in assets and liabilities: Decrease in receivables 66,510 6,583 Decrease in inventories 7,512 3,868 Increase in other assets (5,294) (5,058) Increase (decrease) in accounts payable (26,577) 6,207 Decrease in accrued liabilities and other (3,261) (10,012) Net cash provided by operating activities 25,013 34,240 Cash flows from investing activities: Capital expenditures (10,655) (23,866) Proceeds from sale of property, plant and equipment 7,963 5,708 Net cash used in investing activities (2,692) (18,158) Cash flows from financing activities: Borrowings on lines of credit 117,068 135,952 Payments on lines of credit (116,207) (141,317) Purchases of Convertible Notes (29,124) Debt issuance costs (917) Proceeds from employee stock plans 1,090 Purchases of treasury stock (326) (17,365) Other financing activities 2,480 2,758 Net cash used in financing activities (26,109) (19,799) Effect of exchange rate changes on cash (2,713) (125) Net decrease in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash (6,501) (3,842) Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash at beginning of period 56,863 64,266 Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash at end of period $ 50,362 $ 60,424 Newpark Resources, Inc. Non-GAAP Reconciliations (Unaudited) To help understand the Company's financial performance, the Company has supplemented its financial results that it provides in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") with non-GAAP financial measures. Such financial measures include earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("EBITDA"), EBITDA Margin, Free Cash Flow, Net Debt, and the Ratio of Net Debt to Capital. We believe these non-GAAP financial measures are frequently used by investors, securities analysts and other parties in the evaluation of our performance and liquidity with that of other companies in our industry. Management uses these measures to evaluate our operating performance, liquidity and capital structure. In addition, our incentive compensation plan measures performance based on our consolidated EBITDA, along with other factors. The methods we use to produce these non-GAAP financial measures may differ from methods used by other companies. These measures should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. EBITDA and EBITDA Margin The following tables reconcile the Company's net income (loss) or segment operating income (loss) calculated in accordance with GAAP to the non-GAAP financial measure of EBITDA: Consolidated Three Months Ended Six Months Ended (In thousands) June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 June 30, 2019 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Net income (loss) (GAAP) (1) $ (26,244) $ (12,148) $ 4,306 $ (38,392) $ 5,588 Interest expense, net 2,912 3,201 3,523 6,113 7,179 Provision (benefit) for income taxes (6,654) 164 2,095 (6,490) 3,898 Depreciation and amortization 11,462 11,453 11,632 22,915 23,070 EBITDA (non-GAAP) (1) $ (18,524) $ 2,670 $ 21,556 $ (15,854) $ 39,735 (1) See table above for charges included. Newpark Resources, Inc. Non-GAAP Reconciliations (Continued) (Unaudited) Fluids Systems Three Months Ended Six Months Ended (In thousands) June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 June 30, 2019 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Operating income (loss) (GAAP) (1) $ (25,059) $ (2,268) $ 12,184 $ (27,327) $ 16,058 Depreciation and amortization 5,225 5,234 5,201 10,459 10,277 EBITDA (non-GAAP) (1) (19,834) 2,966 17,385 (16,868) 26,335 Revenues 74,662 132,805 172,544 207,467 333,197 Operating Margin (GAAP) (33.6) % (1.7) % 7.1 % (13.2) % 4.8 % EBITDA Margin (non-GAAP) (26.6) % 2.2 % 10.1 % (8.1) % 7.9 % (1) See table above for charges included. Mats and Integrated Services Three Months Ended Six Months Ended (In thousands) June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 June 30, 2019 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Operating income (GAAP) $ 1,005 $ 3,062 $ 9,276 $ 4,067 $ 22,814 Depreciation and amortization 5,157 5,168 5,409 10,325 10,774 EBITDA (non-GAAP) 6,162 8,230 14,685 14,392 33,588 Revenues 27,284 31,745 43,868 59,029 94,688 Operating Margin (GAAP) 3.7 % 9.6 % 21.1 % 6.9 % 24.1 % EBITDA Margin (non-GAAP) 22.6 % 25.9 % 33.5 % 24.4 % 35.5 % Newpark Resources, Inc. Non-GAAP Reconciliations (Continued) (Unaudited) Free Cash Flow The following table reconciles the Company's net cash provided by operating activities calculated in accordance with GAAP to the non-GAAP financial measure of the Company's free cash flow: Consolidated Three Months Ended Six Months Ended (In thousands) June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 June 30, 2019 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2019 Net cash provided by operating activities (GAAP) $ 20,625 $ 4,388 $ 31,971 $ 25,013 $ 34,240 Capital expenditures (4,006) (6,649) (6,399) (10,655) (23,866) Proceeds from sale of property, plant and equipment 4,290 3,673 3,937 7,963 5,708 Free Cash Flow (non-GAAP) $ 20,909 $ 1,412 $ 29,509 $ 22,321 $ 16,082 Ratio of Net Debt to Capital The following table reconciles the Company's ratio of total debt to capital calculated in accordance with GAAP to the non-GAAP financial measure of the Company's ratio of net debt to capital: (In thousands) June 30, 2020 December 31, 2019 Current debt $ 10,519 $ 6,335 Long-term debt, less current portion 125,291 153,538 Total Debt 135,810 159,873 Total stockholders' equity 507,437 548,645 Total Capital $ 643,247 $ 708,518 Ratio of Total Debt to Capital 21.1 % 22.6 % Total Debt $ 135,810 $ 159,873 Less: cash and cash equivalents (42,942) (48,672) Net Debt 92,868 111,201 Total stockholders' equity 507,437 548,645 Total Capital, Net of Cash $ 600,305 $ 659,846 Ratio of Net Debt to Capital 15.5 % 16.9 % SOURCE Newpark Resources, Inc. Related Links http://www.newpark.com The Supreme Court (SC) remained a mute spectator as communal riots ravaged north-east Delhi, advocate Prashant Bhushan said on Sunday in his counter-affidavit filed in response to the contempt of court case initiated against him by the top court for his tweets against the apex court and the Chief Justice of India (CJI), SA Bobde. Bhushan refused to apologise for his tweets stating that it fell within the domain of free speech and also cited the speeches on dissent made by sitting SC judges, Justices DY Chandrachud on February 15 and Deepak Gupta on February 24, when he was a sitting judge before retiring on May 6, to bolster his argument. Justice DY Chandrachud, while delivering the 15th PD Desai Memorial Lecture in the Gujarat high court on February 15, had expressed his anguish at the manner in which dissent was labelled as anti-national. Yet, a week later, when the Delhi riots were unleashed, with daily videos emerging of mobs tearing down and burning mosques, the police systematically destroying public CCTVs (closed-circuit TVs) and taking an active part in stone-throwing, the SC remained a mute spectator while the national capital burnt, the affidavit said. Also read: Prashant Bhushan, Arun Shourie and N Ram challenge Contempt of Courts Act in SC Bhushan had posted two tweets, one against the SC on June 27 and the second against CJI Bobde two days later. Both these tweets had led to the contempt of court case against him for which he was served notice by the SC on July 22. In his tweet on June 29, Bhushan had posted a photo of CJI Bobde sitting on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, which belonged to the son of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Sonba Musale. Bhushan said that the CJI was riding a motorcycle without a helmet or mask, when he was keeping the SC shut, due to raging coronavirus disease (Covid-19), denying justice to millions. He was referring to the fact that the SC was functioning in a restricted manner during lockdown restrictions due to Covid-19 and was hearing only a reduced number of cases via video-conference since March 24. Bhushan, in his affidavit, offered a limited apology for that part of the tweet, which said that the CJI was not wearing a helmet stating that he failed to notice that the bike was stationary and Bobde was not riding it but only sitting on it. At the outset, I admit that I did not notice that the bike was on a stand and, therefore, wearing a helmet was not required. I, therefore, regret that part of my tweet. However, I stand by the remaining part of what I have stated in my tweet, he said. Also read: SC seeks detailed response from Prashant Bhushan on contempt matter over his tweets Earlier on June 27, he had tweeted that the SCs role and four former CJIs in aiding the destruction of democracy will be taken note of by historians in the future. This tweet, he said in his affidavit, is his impression about the manner and functioning of the SC in the past 10 years and especially about the role the last four CJIs that has led to the apex court failing to check executive high-handedness. Such expression of opinion however outspoken, disagreeable or however unpalatable to some, cannot constitute contempt of court. This proposition has been laid down by several judgments of this court and in foreign jurisdictions such as Britain, USA (United States of America), and Canada, Bhushan contended. The stifling of dissent under the watch of the SC has not only been adversely commented upon by the courts retired judges, but even by the sitting ones during the tenure of the four CJIs, he added referring to the speeches by Justices Chandrachud and Gupta. In defence of his perception that the SC aided in the destruction of democracy, Bhushan referred to the press conference held by four SC judges Justices Jasti Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, Madan Lokur and Kurian Joseph in January 2018 against the manner in which cases were being assigned to select benches. So serious were the misgivings of the senior sitting judges that they (the four judges) felt compelled to disregard the code of judicial conduct to call a press conference and warn citizens of danger to democracy because of danger to a free judiciary, Bhushan further submitted. South Africa: State recovers funds lost through corrupt activities Eskom and the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) on Monday issued summons in the North Gauteng High Court to recover funds from former Eskom executives, former Board members, members of the Gupta family and their associates, as well as others. The funds were lost in a concerted effort corruptly to divert financial resources from Eskom, to improperly and illegally benefit the Gupta family and entities controlled by the said family and their associates during their 2015-16 acquisition of the operations of Optimum Coal Holdings Limited (OCH), a joint statement by Eskom and the SIU said. The delictual claim for damages that Eskom suffered relates to the recovery of approximately R3.8 billion in funds illegally diverted from Eskom to help the Gupta family and its associates to acquire the operations of OCH, which owned the Optimum Coal Mining (Pty) Ltd that supplied the Hendrina power station with coal. The further delictual claim for damages pertains to the payments that were unlawfully made to Trillian by Eskom Executives. The defendants are former Eskom employees Brian Molefe (Group Chief Executive Officer); Anoj Singh (Chief Financial Officer); Matshela Moses Koko (Group Executive: Generation and former Acting Group Chief Executive Officer); as well as Suzanne Margaret Daniels (Company Secretary and Group Legal Head). Eskom also seeks damages against non-executive directors Baldwin Ben Ngubane (Board Chairman); Chwayita Mabude (Board Member); Mark Vivian Pamensky (Board Member); Mosebenzi Zwane (former government minister of Mineral Resources); Salim Aziz Essa; Rajesh Tony Gupta; Atul Gupta and Ajay Gupta (collectively referred to as the Gupta Brothers). All of the former executives and Board members breached their fiduciary duty of care and good faith to Eskom, and acted in a concerted State Capture effort with the Gupta Brothers, Mosebenzi Zwane and Salim Aziz Essa to illegally divert funds from Eskom. The Gupta Brothers owned the majority shares in entities (Oakbay Investments Limited and Fidelity Enterprises Limited) that in turn owned the majority shares in Tegeta Resources and Exploration, the entities said in the statement. The Gupta Brothers are currently fugitives from justice in South Africa and are based in Dubai; as well as Salim Aziz Essa, who is also a fugitive from justice in South Africa and based in Dubai. These 12 defendants acted in a concerted effort whose objective was the corrupt, alternatively irregular, diversion of resources from Eskom. As a result of their actions in the acquisition of OCH during this period, Eskom suffered at least R3.8 billion in losses which it is legally obliged and morally burdened to recover, together with the interest thereon, the statement said. SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Marking the first US splashdown in 45 years, SpaceXs Crew Dragon astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley successfully landed in the Atlantic Ocean at 2:48 PM ET. This was the first crewed orbital flight using a private spacecraft to land back on Earth, as well as the first crewed spaceflight from the US since NASA retired the Space Shuttle in 2011. This is the last Crew Dragon test flight so, once SpaceX receives NASA certification, future flights will be regular missions carrying astronauts to the ISS. For NASA itself, its a major step forward for a Commercial Crew Program with lower costs. For SpaceX, its keeping a step ahead of private spaceflight competitors, like Boeing, and I creep closer to setting up a savings account to one day book a flight into space. Mat TikTok owner reportedly agrees to sell US stake to avoid ban Microsoft is apparently involved. Tiktok Its been a chaotic weekend for TikTok's Chinese owner, ByteDance. President Trump said he would ban TikTok outright over its Chinese links and rejected talk of allowing a sell-off. (Not that the leader of the US has bigger issues to contend with at this very moment in time.) A Reuters report claims that ByteDance agreed to sell its stake in the social networks US operations to avert the possible ban. The agreement would have Microsoft protect American user data, according to the report, but Microsoft wouldnt necessarily own TikTok. On Saturday, Microsoft told several news outlets it had paused talks with TikTok following Trumps suggestion he would ban the app, then we heard the tech companies were reportedly hoping to finish a deal by Monday. Microsoft followed up later, claiming its aiming to close the TikTok deal by September 15th. Whew. Continue reading. Chromebook users get three free months of Stadia Pro Try cloud gaming on a system practically made for it. Chromebook Google has introduced a new perk for Chromebook owners with a gaming itch to scratch: a free three-month trial of Stadia Pro. Youll need a system released June 2017 or later, and youll still have to buy games not included with membership, but this could be just the ticket if you want to see how Destiny 2 or PUBG plays on your Chrome OS portable. Pro, of course, offers a shifting line-up of free games to play. Last month, this included Crayta and West of Loathing, but Triple-A games have also been included since Stadias launch. Augusts bundle includes Metro 2033. Continue reading. Story continues Sponsored by StackCommerce StackCommerce The best weather app, Dark Sky, shuts down on Android Its now owned by Apple. Apple has shut down Dark Sky on Android and Wear OS, as promised, leaving users without the apps highly localized weather. Apple had initially planned to shutter these versions on July 1st, following its acquisition of Dark Sky in March, but offered a month-long extension right as service was due to end. Your Dark Sky subscription should already be canceled if you were paying $3 per year. The developers promised a full refund to members. Continue reading. The first US COVID-19 exposure notification apps could arrive within 'weeks' Canada's exposure notification app launched Friday. COVID-19 testing To help fight the spread of COVID-19, Apple and Google quickly developed exposure notification technology for Android and iOS that relied on Bluetooth technology in mobile phones. They initially released their platforms in May (via an update for iOS and Play Store services on Android), but so far, in the US, apps based on the technology have not rolled out widely. According to a Google blog post, apps based on their exposure notification systems have launched in 16 countries and regions, with Canada joining that count on Friday. For the US, Google says that 20 states and territories covering about 45 percent of the US population are exploring apps based on the systems, and the first ones should launch in the coming weeks. Continue reading. But wait, theres more... Google's latest Chrome extension shows detailed ad-tracking data Computer mouse co-inventor William English dies at 91 My latest lockdown workout is VR boxing Recommended Reading: The fear of TikTok 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: 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: 28:
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Rymans two operational villages, Weary Dunlop and Nellie Melba, have been in lockdown for the past four weeks with visiting restricted and full pandemic infection control measures in place. The village teams have been delivering groceries and essential supplies to residents and helping to ensure care residents can keep in touch over Zoom and by phone. The Victorian Government yesterday afternoon announced additional Level 4 lockdown restrictions. These restrictions mean work at our Nellie Melba, Burwood East and Aberfeldie construction sites will be significantly reduced over the next six weeks. The Government will provide additional guidance over the next few days, and the restrictions will come into force at midnight on Friday, August 7. Construction on our Highton and Ocean Grove villages, which are outside Metropolitan Melbourne and are not subject to the Level 4 lockdown restrictions, will be able to continue in the meantime. New residents can move into Weary Dunlop and Nellie Melba within the health guidelines. Sales appointments in person are restricted but can continue over Zoom, and our sales teams are working to keep all our prospective buyers up to date. At this early stage of the lockdown it is hard to predict what impact it may have on our previously communicated target of delivering 900 beds and units in the 2021 financial year. As previously communicated our annual shareholders meeting will be held in Christchurch on August 13. Source: Ryman Healthcare Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: 19th January 2022 Morning Report PaySauce Limited (NZX: PYS) Quarterly Market Update Dec 2021 FTX announced as naming rights sponsor of Australian Blockchain Week 2022 18th January 2022 Morning Report 17th January 2022 Morning Report Mosaic lands leading corporate trust expert as new partner 14th January 2022 Morning Report 13th January 2022 Morning Report Pictor's completes successful US clinical trials for unique COVID antibody testing 12th January 2022 Morning Report Jennifer Hawkins couldn't resist gushing over her 'little bestie' in a slew of new Instagram snaps posted on Monday. The former Miss Universe looked every inch the doting parent as she cuddled up to her nine-month-old daughter, Frankie Violet, who she welcomed in October. The 36-year-old was casually clad in a cropped baby blue jumper and black leggings as she snapped mirror series with her adorable companion. Precious: Jennifer Hawkins couldn't resist gushing over her 'little bestie' in a slew of new Instagram snaps posted on Monday Little Frankie looked super cute in her grey top, leopard print bottoms and cosy beanie. The mother and daughter duo appeared to be having a whale of a time, as was documented in the snaps. This comes after Jennifer revealed she is planning her transition to wean her baby off breastfeeding in the coming months. 'I currently breastfeed Frankie, but will move to toddler milk after her first birthday,' Jennifer told Daily Mail Australia. 'Little bestie!' The former Miss. Universe looked every inch the doting parent as she cuddled up to her nine-month-old daughter, Frankie Violet, who she welcomed in October Day off style: The 36-year-old was casually clad in a cropped baby blue jumper and black leggings as she snapped mirror series with her adorable companion In her first brand partnership as a new mother, Jennifer has signed on to be the new face of Bubs Australia, which was founded by fellow Sydney mum, Kristy Carr. The Australian icon is officially the first-ever global face of Bubs. 'As a new mother it was a huge decision what brand to choose and trust when I was introducing solids to Frankie,' Jennifer explained. The former Myer ambassador said she had already been using the brand's organic puree pouches and rusks with Frankie before being approached by the company to be their global ambassador. Changes: This comes after Jennifer revealed her plans to move on from breastfeeding her daughter Frankie Violet in October when the adorable bub turns one New role: In her first brand partnership as a new mother, Jennifer has signed on to be the new face of Bubs Australia , which was founded by fellow Sydney mum, Kristy Carr Jennifer said she initially discovered Bubs whilst researching the benefits of rice cereal and has been a fan of the brand's organic range ever since. 'The Bubs ethos of healthy nutrition and well-being perfectly aligns with my own values, which is why I am so happy and excited to take on this role!' she added. While her daughter is only nine-months-old now, she aims to start her on the brand's organic toddler milk when she has her first birthday in October. 'The Bubs ethos of healthy nutrition and well-being perfectly aligns with my own values': Jennifer initially discovered Bubs whilst researching the benefits of rice cereal Family life: Jennifer expressed her desire to start a family in September 2018, and welcomed baby Frankie in October 2019. Pictured with husband Jake Wall Jennifer expressed her desire to start a family in September 2018, following her departure from Myer after 12 years as the department store's ambassador. Speaking at her final runway show for the retailer, she told the Herald Sun: 'I'd love to have a family, it's taking the time to look ahead. I want to have the time to be able to do that.' Jennifer married property developer Jake in Bali, Indonesia in 2013, after eight years of dating. The pair broke with tradition and gave their daughter both her mother's maiden name, Hawkins, and her father's surname, Wall. The future is undoubtedly bright for "The Kissing Booth's" Joey King. The Netflix show unexpectedly became of the popular shows of the platform today - particularly because the cast has certainly done their job really well. Joey King certainly caught the eye of many, not just the viewers, but by several directors, producers and showrunners. Her biggest break just might be around the corner, as the Deadline reported that the actress is already in negotiations to star opposite Brad Pitt in the newest action thriller! If that truly happens, stardom can truly be hers. The movie is entitled "Bullet Train" by Sony Pictures. "Hobbs & Shaw" director David Leith is said to take on this project, directing as well as supervising the script. Zak Olkewicz will write the script. In fact, it appears that the movie is moving fast towards commencement, even if Hollywood is still feeling the brunt of the pandemic. This is a good sign, not just for the industry, but also for stars such as Joey King. The film might start shooting at fall in Los Angeles. It is expected that the movie will already have some fans even before it starts filming because it is largely based in a popular Japanese novel, entitled "Maria Bettle." This is by the best-selling author Kotaro Isaka. Kotaro iska. This is why executive producers of this project are Ryosuke Saegusa and Yuma Terada of CTB Inc., who respectively represent Isaka and the IP While the plot details for the movie are still hazy, fans can certainly refer to the book for some idea, even if the film adaptation deviates a little. According to sources, if King signs in, she and Brad Pitt will play two of the five assassins in this story. It will also be the most action-heavy role to date. If she does well, doors will certainly open up for her in the movie industry and in this genre. She is comparable to Emily Blunt, whose break can be considered "The Edge of Tomorrow." While 2020 has slowed down for many, it is likely to be one of the biggest years in King's life. Apart from her big summer hit "The Kissing Booth 2," a sequel of last year's "The Kissing Booth," she has" Kissing Booth 3" lined up. The film has already been shot, with King still being the main star. She will also star in the limited star "The Act" in Hulu. There is another project lined up for her with the streaming service, after striking a first-look deal with Hulu. Allegedly, she is the youngest to have achieved this - striking a deal with a streaming network. This goes without saying that she is a promising actress, and her career is going the right direction. Not only these, but she is also said to be headlining and excessively producing "A Spark of Light," by Sony Pictures. It's a limited series based on Jodi Piccoult's bestselling book. If she's not busy enough, she is also going to be producing and starting in "The In-Between," this time for Paramount Players. READ MORE: HBO Shows: 5 Emmy-Nominated Series You Should Watch Now More than 9.6 million people across South Asia have been affected by severe floods, with hundreds of thousands struggling to get food and medicine, officials and aid organisations said. About 550 people have died in India, Bangladesh and Nepal, while millions have been displaced from their homes since the flooding began last month, said the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). The organisation warned of a humanitarian crisis, saying that close to one third of Bangladesh has already been flooded, with more flooding expected in the coming weeks. It said 2.8 million people have been affected, and that more than one million are isolated. A family takes shelter on a boat near their partially submerged house in Assam, India (Anupam Nath/AP) In India, more than 6.8 million people have been affected by the flooding, mainly in the northern states of Assam, West Bengal, Bihar and Meghalaya bordering Bangladesh, the IFRC said, citing official figures. In Indias north-eastern state of Assam alone, some 2.5 million people were affected and at least 113 have died, authorities said. MS Manivannan, head of Assams Disaster Management Authority, said many rivers were still flowing above the danger level. More than 100 animals, mostly deer, have died in floods that have submerged Kaziranga National Park, 139 miles east of the state capital Gauhati. More rain is expected in the next few days. In Bangladesh, experts say this years monsoon is going to last longer than usual because more waters are expected to rush in from upstream India, which shares 53 common rivers with downstream Bangladesh. Arifuzzaman Bhuiyan, executive engineer at the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre, said floodwaters were not expected to start receding before the second week of August. A rhinoceros and calf wade through floodwater at the Pobitora wildlife sanctuary in Assam (Anupam Nath/AP) In Kurigram, one of the worst affected districts in northern Bangladesh, thousands of people took shelter at higher ground, leaving their homes and belongings behind. Many people are not having three meals a day, said Mizanur Rahman Soikat, a volunteer for the Bidyanondo Foundation, a local charity. Story continues The government and volunteer groups are trying to give them food and medicine, but it is getting harder to keep track of the affected people because of rising waters. Jagan Chapagain, secretary general of the IFRC, said South Asia could face a humanitarian crisis. People in Bangladesh, India and Nepal are sandwiched in a triple disaster of flooding, the coronavirus and an associated socioeconomic crisis of loss of livelihoods and jobs, he said. Flooding of farmlands and destruction of crops can push millions of people, already badly impacted by Covid-19, further into poverty. aniniu Laizer sold the 6.3kg Tanzanite stone at a trading event this morning A Tanzanian miner and father-of-30 who became an overnight millionaire by digging up huge gemstones worth 2.4million has found and sold another piece worth 1.5million. Saniniu Laizer made the sale at a trading event attended by hundreds this morning after discovering the 6.3kg Tanzanite stone. It follows the small-scale miner, finding two other chunks of the gemstone last month in one of the tanzanite mines in the north of the country, which are surrounded by a wall to control cross-border smuggling of the valuable mineral. Saniniu Laizer pictured last month holding up two of the precious gemstones. He has now found a third Tanzania stone weighing 6.5kg and sold it at a trading event this morning Locals were excited in the build-up to today's sale and other miners were surprised by Mr Laizer's fortunate finds but 'acknowledged perseverance may have something to do with it', according to the BBC's Aboubakar Famau. The 52-year-old, who has four wives and 30 children, previously vowed to use some of his earnings to build a school and a shopping mall in his community, adding that many locals can't afford to pay for their children's education. But Mr Laizer insisted that his lifestyle would not change and that he would continue to look after his herd of 2,000 cows. The first gemstone weighed 20lb while the second weighed 11lb, a mines ministry spokesperson said. Two of the Tanzanite gemstones previously sold by Laizer - the largest ever found, according to the Ministry of Mines - are pictured at a ceremony attended by senior government officials Last month, Laizer was pictured on Tanzanian television being presented with a large cheque, above, after the Bank of Tanzania bought the gemstones in a ceremony What is Tanzanite? The ultra-rare gemstone Tanzanite is only found in northern Tanzania. It is possibly the rarest mineral in the world, found in an area just 2.5 miles wide and 1.2 miles long at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro. The stones are priced depending on the rarity of their colour and clarity. Tanzanite slabs are often exported to India to be polished and transformed into decorative objects. Local geologists predict its supply could be depleted within 20 years, the BBC reported. The gemstone was named after its country of origin by Tiffany & Co. Advertisement Before Mr Laizer dug out the chunks last week, the largest Tanzanite stone recorded was seven pounds. Tanzanite is an ultra-rare gemstone found only in a small northern region of the East African nation. Last month, Mr Laizer was pictured on Tanzanian television being presented with a large cheque after the Bank of Tanzania bought the gemstones in a ceremony. President John Magufuli phoned to congratulate Laizer live on television. 'This is a confirmation that Tanzania is rich,' Magufuli earlier told minerals minister Doto Biteko. Tanzania last year set up trading centres around the country to allow artisanal miners to sell their gems and gold to the government. Artisanal miners are not officially employed by any mining companies and usually mine by hand. Magufuli inaugurated the wall around tanzanite mining concessions in northern Tanzania in April 2018, in an attempt to control illegal mining and trading activities. At the time he said 40 per cent of tanzanite produced there was being lost. The fire broke out in two flats at School Street Flats in the Liberties area. 3 units of Dublin Fire Brigade attended the scene including a turntable ladder. The fire was brought under control and put out. Firefighters searched the building and established no one had been injured. Last night, firefighters from Phibsborough and Tara St dealt with a fire in a multi storey building. 5 fire engines attended along with ambulances. No injuries reported. Always evacuate when you hear a fire alarm Call 999/112 and don't go back in#FireSafety pic.twitter.com/TtNKUvjEwZ Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) August 2, 2020 New Delhi: Senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, who has been regularly tweeting on Sushant Singh Rajput's death case, took to Twitter recently and wrote that Centre should intervene and ask for a report from Maharashtra Governor on the clash between Mumbai and Bihar police in Sushant's death case probe. Subramanian Swamy wrote: Centre as a custodian of the Constitution, should ask the Governor of Maharashtra for a report on the present ugly Mumbai-Patna clash of States Police, which may harm the cause of justice in the SSR mysterious death because of fudging that is going on to make it look a suicide. Centre as a custodian of the Constitution, should ask the Governor of Maharashtra for a report on the present ugly Mumbai-Patna clash of States Police, which may harm the cause of justice in the SSR mysterious death because of fudging that is going on to make it look a suicide. Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) August 3, 2020 Late actor's family has got immense support from fans and friends, shouting for justice. Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at his Bandra residence on June 14, 2020. Several political leaders, parties and fans have been pressing for a CBI inquiry into the case since many new developments have been unravelled. Bihar police have come into action and a parallel investigation along with Mumbai police is on track to come to a conclusion. CHICAGO, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Africa data center market size is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 12% during the period 20192025. Key Highlights Offered in the Report: Growing internet penetration and data traffic across the African continent to bring in cumulative data center investments of over $15 billion between 2020-2025. The all-flash arrays and hybrid storage array market are expected to grow at a CAGR of over 40% and 30%, respectively during the forecast period. Around $7 billion will be the cumulative investment on data center server infrastructure in Africa market during 2020-2025. Hyperscale colocation data center development by providers such as Teraco Data Environments and Africa Data Centres are laying a strong foundation for growth of Africa's digital economy. South Africa , Kenya , Nigeria , Morocco , and Egypt will be the major contributors to growth of Africa's data center. Key Offerings: Market Size & Forecast by Revenue | 20192025 Market Dynamics Leading trends, growth drivers, restraints, and investment opportunities Market Segmentation A detailed analysis by IT infrastructure, electrical infrastructure, mechanical infrastructure, general construction, tier standards, and geography Competitive Landscape List of 10 IT infrastructure providers, 8 construction service providers, 12 support infrastructure providers, and 11 data center investors Get your sample today! https://www.arizton.com/market-reports/africa-data-center-market Africa Data Center Market Segmentation The server market in Africa is expected to witness significant growth in the next few years due to investments from major cloud service providers in the region. It is likely to grow with the increase in the physical presence of SaaS providers. These expansions will increase the demand for servers and promote the procurement of high-performance infrastructure solutions. is expected to witness significant growth in the next few years due to investments from major cloud service providers in the region. It is likely to grow with the increase in the physical presence of SaaS providers. These expansions will increase the demand for servers and promote the procurement of high-performance infrastructure solutions. The generator market will continue to grow because of the continuous construction of large and mega facilities in Africa . The service providers are concerned with carbon emission, which is likely to increase the adoption of efficient generator systems. Recently, the adoption of Diesel Rotary Uninterruptible Power Supply (DRUPS) systems has grown since they combine both battery and flywheel UPS topology and a diesel generator to provide backup power during outages. . The service providers are concerned with carbon emission, which is likely to increase the adoption of efficient generator systems. Recently, the adoption of Diesel Rotary Uninterruptible Power Supply (DRUPS) systems has grown since they combine both battery and flywheel UPS topology and a diesel generator to provide backup power during outages. Data centers in Africa support the use of free cooling systems as they take advantage of cold nights and winter seasons in the region. This will lead to the adoption of free cooling chillers. Operators in the African region are still dependent on air-based cooling techniques. Africa Data Center Market by IT Infrastructure Server Infrastructure Storage Infrastructure Network Infrastructure Africa Data Center Market by Electrical Infrastructure UPS Systems Generators Transfer Switches & Switchgears PDUs Other Electrical Infrastructure Africa Data Center Market by Mechanical Infrastructure Cooling Systems CRAC & CRAH Units Chiller Units Cooling Towers & Dry Coolers Other Units Racks Other Mechanical Infrastructure Africa Data Center Market by General Construction Building Development Installation & Commissioning Services Building Designs Physical Security DCIM Africa Data Center Market by Tier Standard Tier I & Tier II Tier III Tier IV Africa Data Center Market Dynamics The data center market in Africa is growing significantly to fulfill the demand for internet services across major countries such as South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Morocco, and others. Over the last few years, internet users have significantly grown with increasing internet penetration. This is due to an increase in smartphone penetration and social media adoption across developing countries. The increasing demand for cloud services from enterprises and public cloud adoption has also increased data traffic across the region. Key Drivers and Trends fueling Market Growth: Availability of Renewable Energy Fuels Procurement Growth Increase in Adoption of All-flash Storage Solutions Cloud Adoption Fueling Data Center Investments Big Data & IoT Spending Fuel Data Center Growth Africa Data Center Market Geography The data center market in Egypt has witnessed significant growth over the past few years, with increased investments from colocation, telecommunication, and cloud service providers. Currently, there are ten operational colocation data centers in the country, with Cairo being the most preferred location for data center development, followed by Giza. In 2019, the market witnessed investments from Raya Data Center in the New Cairo facility. The market is likely to attract investments from telecom and cloud service providers. Get your sample today! https://www.arizton.com/market-reports/africa-data-center-market Africa Data Center Market by Geography South Africa Morocco Kenya Nigeria Other Countries Explore our data center knowledge base profile to know more about the industry. Read some of the top-selling reports: About Arizton: Arizton Advisory and Intelligence is an innovation and quality-driven firm, which offers cutting-edge research solutions to clients across the world. We excel in providing comprehensive market intelligence reports and advisory and consulting services. We offer comprehensive market research reports on industries such as consumer goods & retail technology, automotive and mobility, smart tech, healthcare, and life sciences, industrial machinery, chemicals and materials, IT and media, logistics and packaging. These reports contain detailed industry analysis, market size, share, growth drivers, and trend forecasts. Arizton comprises a team of exuberant and well-experienced analysts who have mastered in generating incisive reports. Our specialist analysts possess exemplary skills in market research. We train our team in advanced research practices, techniques, and ethics to outperform in fabricating impregnable research reports. Mail: [email protected] Call: +1-312-235-2040 +1-302-469-0707 SOURCE Arizton Advisory & Intelligence Young Australians have been warned they are not 'invincible' to the coronavirus after Victoria battles a deadly second wave and a 32-year-old Melbourne doctor tests positive. Infectious diseases experts say the doctor, who joins a growing number of patients in intensive care, is 'not an isolated case' and millennials should be prepared to follow the rules. Dr Sanjaya Senanayake, of Yarralumla, in the Australian Capital Territory, told 3AW Breakfast: 'We're worried in particular about young people not complying because they think they're invincible and immune to this. 'Young people can get sick'. Young Australians have been warned they are not 'invincible' to the coronavirus after Victoria battles a deadly second wave and a 32-year-old Melbourne doctor tests positive. Pictured: Crowds at an NRL match at the Sunshine Coast at Sunday Dr Sanjaya Senanayake, of Yarralumla, in the Australian Capital Territory, told 3AW Breakfast: 'We're worried in particular about young people not complying because they think they're invincible and immune to this. Pictured: Police arresting anti-masker protesters in Melbourne The warning comes as Victoria is set to record another 429 new cases and 13 deaths from COVID-19 despite the state's strict Level 4 style lockdown and 8pm curfew. Melbourne is under a police enforceable curfew of 8pm until 5am until at least September 13 - as the rest of Australia returns to business as usual. Locals can only leave their homes between these hours for work, care-giving, medical reasons or on compassionate grounds. Dr Senanayake said young people in Australia should look to the US as an example, as the number of 18 to 49-year-olds testing positive to COVID-19 outnumbers those over 50 in hospitals. Infectious diseases physician Dr Sanjaya Senanayake (pictured) said young adults had just as much chance at ending up in hospital as those aged over 50 He went on to say that it was essential for Australians to wear masks to slow the spread, especially of they wanted a 'normal' Christmas. 'People have to comply with restrictions,' he told 3AW Breakfast on Monday. 'There is evidence mask wearing is useful in reducing community transmission of this virus, so if everyone in areas of high community transmission wears a mask that will help.' People aged 15 to 34 years made up 31 per cent of all COVID-19 cases in Florida in June - up from 25 percent earlier in the month. Across the US, numbers rapidly climbed in states where bars, stores and restaurants reopened. Dr Senanayake's comments followed numbers rapidly climbing among young adults in the states in June, where bars, stores and restaurants reopened after lockdown. Pictured: Melburnians in the lead up to the new COVID-19 rules on Sunday Summer fraternity parties sparked outbreaks in Oxford, Mississippi; church activities, weddings and fitness classes seeded infections among those in their 20s to 40s in Oklahomoa City; and an outbreak tied to a brew pub spread to 34 people aged 18 to 23 years in East Lansing, Michigan. More than 4,600,500 people have been infected with COVID-19 in the US, and more than 154,000 have died. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Susan Njanji (Agence France-Presse) Johannesburg, South Africa Mon, August 3, 2020 07:35 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b10329 2 World South-Africa,coronavirus,COVID-19,COVID-19-death-toll,COVID-19-infection,pandemic,SARS-CoV-2,virus-corona,novel-coronavirus Free South Africa has now registered more than 500,000 cases of coronavirus, the health ministry announced Saturday, making it by far the hardest-hit country in Africa. The country has become the epicenter of the deadly pandemic on the continent, accounting for more than half of Africa's diagnosed infections. "Today South Africa has exceeded the half-a-million mark with a cumulative total of 503,290 confirmed COVID-19 cases recorded," Heath Minister Zweli Mkhize said in his daily update. More than a third of positive cases are in Gauteng province -- South Africa's financial hub. So far the number of fatalities stands at 8,153, although local researchers have recorded a jump of nearly 60 percent in the overall number of natural deaths in recent weeks, suggesting a far higher toll of coronavirus-related fatalities than officially recorded. An analysis by the respected South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) suggested an excess of 22,000 natural mortalities between May 6 and July 21 compared to same period in 2019 and 2018. President Cyril Ramaphosa said Saturday South Africa's case fatality rate stood at 1.6 percent -- "significantly lower than the global average". "While South Africa has the fifth highest number of total COVID-19 cases globally, we have only the 36th highest number of deaths as a proportion of the population," said Ramaphosa. Corruption investigations South Africa's case load has been rising rapidly in recent weeks. Health authorities have been expecting a surge in cases after the gradual loosening of a strict lockdown that was imposed on March 27, during the early stage of the pandemic. But the recovery rate has so far been a high 68 percent. South Africa has one of the best health care systems on the continent, but it has been rocked by alleged corruption in the supply of personal protective gear for health workers in public hospitals. Ramaphosa's spokeswoman Khusela Diko last week took leave pending a probe into her husband's alleged links to unlawful contracts for personal protective equipment. Diko and her husband have maintained their innocence, saying the contract was never finalized. The health minister for Gauteng province Bandile Masuke was sent on forced leave this week pending a probe into suspected graft in the purchase of protective equipment and other medical supplies. "It is unconscionable that there are people who may be using this health crisis to unlawfully enrich themselves," Ramaphosa said in his statement Saturday. South Africa has embarked on an aggressive testing and tracing exercise, conducting more than three million tests since the first case of the virus was recorded there in early March. President Akufo-Addo has unveiled the first Volkswagen vehicle to be assembled in Ghana, following the establishment of the VW assembly plant in Ghana. At the unveiling ceremony, held at the Kempinski Hotel, on Monday, 3rd August 2020, President Akufo-Addo expressed his delight at the decision taken by Volkswagen to assemble a number of its brands right here in Ghana, not only for domestic use but also for the West African market. It will be recalled that on Thursday, 30th August 2018, at the invitation of the President, the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, paid a brief visit to Ghana, where an agreement was reached between Government, Volkswagen and its Ghanaian partner for the assembly, and, ultimately, the production of VW vehicles in the country. According to President Akufo-Addo, there were many who expressed doubts about the feasibility of such an assembly plant being established in Ghana; and there were those who, for narrow, partisan considerations, described this announcement as nothing but a hoax, which would never see the light of day. Two years on, we have confounded the doubting Thomases, and I am happy to be here this morning to launch, officially, the first Volkswagen vehicle that has been assembled in our country. It is a good day for Mother Ghana, he added. VW's presence in Ghana, President Akufo-Addo noted, has been facilitated by the Government's bold move to develop the Ghana Automotive Development Policy, under the auspices of the Ministry of Trade and Industry, with generous fiscal incentives. It is gratifying to note that VW is going beyond the 'Beetle' to assemble in Ghana other brands, namely Tiguan, Teramont, Amarok, Caddy, Polo, and Passat. Volkswagen means 'The People's Car', so I am expectant that the brands being assembled in Ghana will not only be affordable but also be of the highest quality, he added. The President assured Volkswagen Ghana that Government will continue to support the company in diverse ways to ensure the sustainability and profitability of this venture in Ghana. To this end, he indicated that the Chief of Staff at the Office of the President, Hon. Akosua Frema Osei-Opare has issued, recently, a new directive to all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, and, indeed, to the Public Procurement Authority, to give first preference to the acquisition of locally assembled vehicles, when public funds are used to buy vehicles. Additionally, the Minister for Finance, in his excellent Mid-Year Budget Review Statement to Parliament, indicated that Government is going to establish an Automobile Industry Development Support Centre, which will, amongst others, co-ordinate the technical processes for licensing domestic vehicle assemblers and manufacturers, and monitor, also, their compliance with industry regulations and standards, he said. He continued, The Centre will also co-ordinate the implementation of an essential element of a viable automotive sector, that is the establishment of a Vehicle Financing Scheme, which will link financial institutions to individuals and groups interested in purchasing newly-assembled vehicles in Ghana. Furthermore, the Centre will carry out an Automotive Skills Enhancement Programme to provide requisite skills for the various categories of the value chain of the automobile industry. With the Chinese company, Sinotruk, already engaged in the assembly of trucks in Ghana, the President was hopeful that other global automobile companies, which have indicated their preparedness to set-up shop in Ghana, will soon follow the remarkable, pioneering example of Volkswagen. In developing the new automobile industry in Ghana, President Akufo-Addo reiterated the commitment of Government not to destroy the livelihoods of local stakeholders engaged in the industry value chain. I have engaged with representatives of the various stakeholder groupings, and given them the assurance that Government will introduce the necessary policy safeguards to protect their interests, and enable them, also, over time, to adapt to the new realities of the emerging automotive sector, he said. Additionally, Government, the President said, will continue to introduce appropriate incentives and support interventions to attract both foreign and local investments into the automotive assembly and manufacturing sector in Ghana. It is worth noting that, already, a Ghanaian owned company, the Kantanka Group, is in possession of a license to undertake auto-assembly operations in Ghana. I believe the development and modernisation of the industry present a win-win opportunity for both foreign and local companies engaged in the industry value chain, he said. The son of Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was ordered by an Israeli court on Sunday to stop harassing those leading protests against his fathers administration. Yair Netanyahu, the prime ministers older son and a former soldier in the Israeli Defense Forces spokespersons unit, tweeted a document with the names, addresses and telephone numbers of protest organizers and urged his 88,000 followers to demonstrate in front of their homes. The Jerusalem Magistrates Court instructed him to delete the tweet and refrain from harassing the petitioners in any form for the next six months. The decision added that he failed to rebuke calls for violence posted in response to his tweet. After Sundays ruling, Yair strongly criticized the courts decision. In one post, he wrote that there are separate laws for right-wingers and left-wingers, citing the petitioner Haim Shadmi who spoke about hurling firebombs at the prime ministers residence but was still allowed to protest near the site. Why it matters: The ruling comes amid large protests across the country, including thousands in front of the prime ministers residence in central Jerusalem, demanding his ouster in the wake of corruption allegations and his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Yair is no stranger to posting controversial social media posts. On July 27, he apologized after posting a picture of the Hindu goddess Durga with the face of Liat Ben-Ari, the lead attorney in criminal cases against his father, while her arms were raised giving the middle finger. And more than once this year, he has attacked women on Twitter by suggesting they achieved positions through means of bribery, including Israeli journalist Dana Weiss and a supporter of Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz. He has since apologized for the remarks after Weiss and Channel 12 threatened to file a defamation lawsuit. Whats next: Sundays demonstrations were among the largest in weeks of protests against the prime minister, and the twice-a-week gatherings are showing no signs of slowing. Prime Minister Netanyahu has downplayed the gatherings, On Saturday, his Likud party issued a statement accusing Israels private TV stations of providing free and endless publicity to the protesters and exaggerating their importance. His corruption trial was delayed earlier this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. Last month, a Jerusalem court decided to resume the trial in January with evidentiary hearings. Know more: Al-Monitors Israel Pulse Correspondent Rina Bassist examines the prime ministers condemnation of violence against anti-government demonstrators while opposing threats against him and his family. But other Republicans piled on. Dr. Birx, like Dr. Fauci, has been wrong much more than she has been right on COVID-19, & their destructive prescriptions have led to the devastation of countless American lives, Representative Andy Biggs, Republican of Arizona, wrote on Twitter. Dr. Birx had warned during an appearance on the CNN program State of the Union on Sunday that the United States was entering a new phase in its fight against the pandemic, and that rural communities would not be spared. It is extraordinarily widespread, she said. On Monday morning, shortly after Mr. Trump tweeted about her, Dr. Birx told governors on a weekly briefing call that a lack of masks at large gatherings in homes was a critical issue, pointing to spikes in many Southern states. Mr. Trump has also criticized Dr. Fauci, despite his claims that the two have a very good relationship. In a tweet on Saturday responding to news reports that Dr. Fauci had linked the recent surge in cases to inadequate lockdowns, Mr. Trump tweeted: Wrong! In a livestreamed conversation on Monday with Dr. Howard Bauchner, the editor in chief of The Journal of the American Medical Association, Dr. Fauci said that as communities around the country struggle to decide whether and how to reopen schools, scientists really need to be humble. There are significant gaps in knowledge about how likely children are to contract the coronavirus, become ill and transmit the disease, Dr. Fauci said. A recent study found that young children carried high levels of the virus in their noses and throats, for example, but did not prove they were contagious. A doctor working at the Trauma Care Centra, which is a designated Covid-19 facility in Bengaluru's Victoria Hospital, allegedly sexually harassed a coronavirus positive patient on July 25. According to a report in The Times of India, after a complaint was lodged by the hospital on Thursday, VV Puram police have registered a sexual harassment case against the unidentified medico. The report, citing sources, said that the doctor was touching her inappropriately on the night of the incident. The incident surfaced after the woman told about her experience to the Trauma Care Centre's nodal officer. The nodal officer then informed the hospital's administration. As per the police, the hospital authorities have not given adequate information about the alleged incident or the accused. RELATED NEWS Faulty Drug Used during Cataract Surgery at Govt-run Hosp in Bengaluru May Impair Vision of 24 Patients An officer told the publication that the hospital had informed the police that an internal probe is underway and the details would be given to them in a few days. Medical superintendent of Victoria Hospital Dr Ramesh Krishna K, told ToI that they have constituted a committee to probe the allegation and added that the committee would present its report in a couple of days. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters during a daily briefing that China hopes the US can stop its discriminatory policies China said on Monday it was firmly opposed to any U.S. actions against Chinese software companies, responding to remarks by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that Washington will take action shortly against Chinese firms feeding data to Beijing's government. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters during a daily briefing that China hopes the U.S. can stop its discriminatory policies. Search Keywords: Short link: The Eastern Regional Secretariat of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has said it will stand against any desperate attempt by the government to discredit the ongoing voter registration process in areas perceived as strongholds of the party. This follows what the NDC describes as the deployment of NPP thugs and hoodlums under the guise of National Security to intimidate citizens in areas perceived as strongholds of the NDC and prevent them from registering in the ongoing voter registration exercise. In a statement issued by the Eastern Regional NDC Secretariat, and signed by its Regional Secretary Cudjoe Adupko, the party noted that: A case in point is the deployment of these thugs to the New Mosque Registration centre at Anyinam Zongo in the Atiwa East Constituency under the supervision of the failed Member of Parliament, who doubles as a Deputy Minister of Finance. These thugs have besieged the centre with pick-ups belonging to the state, as some have GV registration number plates, and brandishing sophisticated weapons, and physically preventing Muslims from registering, the statement noted. The statement indicated that the thugs even went to the extent of openly insulting the Chief Imam when the revered religious leader engaged them in a discussion. Again, the District Commander and the MP forcibly retrieved the ID cards of a number of Voltarians, who had been registered unchallenged even though they are residents of the area and working in Anyinam. These and many others, such as intimidation and physically preventing settlers from voting in areas such as Abekwase and others, is unbecoming of the NPP in the constituency, the NDC complained. The Eastern Regional NDC Secretariat continued that it sees these as desperate actions by a failed and clueless government that has become aware of an inevitable defeat at the polls, hence deploying all manner of brute force just to suppress voter registration, and ultimately overturn the will of the people. The Regional Secretariat of the NDC further called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the MP for the area to, as a matter of urgency, return the ID cards of those registered voters, and withdraw these hoodlums from the constituency in order to avert a possible physical resistance by the angry youth of the area. The party also impressed upon the government to ensure that all the processes leading to the December 7 general elections are conducted in a peaceful, safe and transparent manner in order to guarantee a credible outcome worthy of acceptance by all parties. Sadly, the current President thinks otherwise, the NDC noted, adding: As a party led by H.E. John Dramani Mahama, we continuously subscribe to a peaceful electoral process. We, however, abhor any desperate attempt by this failed government to discredit the process and we will stand up to resist them with every strength of ours, the NDC vowed. It also urged its members and, indeed, all Ghanaians who are justifiably fed up with the cluelessness, thievery, corruption, insecurity, opulence and nepotism of this NPP government, to get out in their numbers to register and vote for change! ---classfmonline New Delhi: On the auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandha today, every brother-sister in the country is immersed in celebrating the essence of with familial bond. This year, Raksha Bandhan is on August 3 and there is a particular time and muhurat for tying the thread of love and protection. Raksha Bandhan Muhurat: Raksha Bandhan on Monday, August 3, 2020 Raksha Bandhan Thread Ceremony Time - 09:28 AM to 09:17 PM Duration - 11 Hours 49 Mins Aparahna Time Raksha Bandhan Muhurat - 01:48 PM to 04:29 PM Duration - 02 Hours 41 Mins Pradosh Time Raksha Bandhan Muhurat - 07:10 PM to 09:17 PM Duration - 02 Hours 07 Mins Raksha Bandhan Bhadra End Time - 09:28 AM Raksha Bandhan Bhadra Punchha - 05:16 AM to 06:28 AM Raksha Bandhan Bhadra Mukha - 06:28 AM to 08:28 AM Purnima Tithi Begins - 09:28 PM on Aug 02, 2020 Purnima Tithi Ends - 09:28 PM on Aug 03, 2020 (as per drikpanchang.com) Ritual of Raksha Bandhan: Sisters need to prepare the Rakhi ki thaali. You need a small diya, akshat (rice mixed with turmeric), kumkum, sweets and the Rakhi. Pray with your entire family. Offer a small pooja at your houses temple. After offering puja to God. Place a small wooden platform on the floor and put rangoli on all the four sides. Make your brother sit on the platform. Both of you must then pray for each others well being and long life. Apply a tilak with the kumkum on your brothers forehead. Then tie the Rakhi around his right wrist. Wave the arti place in a circular pattern in front of him. Put the akshat on his head. Offer the sweet to your brother. Humbly accept the gift that he has bought for you. The pattern of performing the ritual may vary from region-to-region, but the principles remain the same. Enjoy the beautiful estival to celebrate your bond with your sibling. Here's wishing everyone a very happy Raksha Bandhan! You are here: World Flash At least two civilians were killed and 24 other people wounded in a car bomb blast and ensuing gunfire outside a prison in Afghanistan's eastern Nangarhar province Sunday, a local official confirmed. The attack took place during a three-day Eid al-Adha ceasefire between the Afghan government and the Taliban. "Terrorists detonated a car bomb at front gate of Nangarhar prison roughly at 6:30 p.m. (local time), destroying the front wall of the building," provincial government spokesman Attahullah Khogiani told Xinhua. The spokesman added that a group of assailants engaged with the prison guards and tried to enter into the prison after the blast. "The security forces are responding to the attack and they are trying to foil the terrorist vicious plan to infiltrate into the prison building," he said. The exchange of fire continued as of 8:30 p.m. local time Sunday, according to witnesses. The details would be made public later as investigation was underway to find more facts about the incident and the casualties were likely to be changed, he added. The blast sent a column of thick smoke into the sky and triggered panic, the spokesman said. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far. The Islamic State (IS) group also has presence in the region, 120 km east of Kabul. The blast came as the Afghan security forces and Taliban militants were observing the Eid festival truce which is expected to end late Sunday. A platoon leader, the man and his fellow soldiers have been fighting against floods for three weeks in East Chinas Anhui province, which has been suffering from severe flooding since early July. Based in neighboring Jiangsu province, more than 1,000 officers from his troop arrived at Tongling city along the Yangtze River on July 11 over an urgent call for help. After 12 days of efforts, the flooding situation in Tongling had been brought under control and they were called again to Hefei, the provincial capital, as Chaohu Lake was still at risk for flooding. "I saw many houses and fields had been submerged by the floodwater in both Tongling and Hefei, and the critical situation reminds me of a scene etched into my mind," he said. Born in 1992, Jiang Ping experienced a desperate moment in 1998, when flooding hit his hometown in rural Zongyang county, governed by Anqing city at the time, but now by Tongling city. The floods hitting the southern parts of the country during that year were believed to be some of the worst seen since the founding of the Peoples Republic of China. One day in the summer, water flooded Jiangs village beside Pogang Lake, which connects with the Yangtze. "As most parts of my house -- a one-floor building with bricks and tiles -- were submerged by floodwater and the water kept rising, my father lifted me and my elder brother onto the roof," said Jiang. "Staying on the roof for nearly three hours, we were desperately concerned for our lives," he said. "As an officer took me into his arms, he tried to ease my panic, saying, Dont be afraid, we are here with you'," he recalled, adding that he would never forget the words. Jiang joined the PLA in 2010 after graduation from high school. "It had been my dream since that experience with the soldiers," he said. "As a new recruit, training had been very tiring. Every time when I wanted to give up, I gained strength from the childhood memory with the soldiers," he said. "Once while attending an exhibition of my troops history, I found it was exactly this troop who reached my village for flood relief in 1998," said Jiang, adding that he was surprised and moved to tears. Fresh off a weekend sweep of the Boston Red Sox, the Yankees will look to stay home Monday night when they play the Philadelphia Phillies at Yankee Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Introducing Yankees Insider: Get exclusive news, behind-the-scenes observations and the ability to text message directly with beat writers This is the first game in eight days for the Phillies, who had all of their games canceled last week due to COVID-19 concerns. The Yanks and Phillies are scheduled to play four make-up games this week, two at Yankee Stadium and then two in Philadelphia on Wednesday and Thursday nights. Heavy rain scheduled to hit New York on Tuesday could lead to the teams playing a doubleheader on Wednesday in which each team would be the home club for one game. The Yankees lineup excludes two regulars, as shortstop Gleyber Torres and first baseman Luke Voit arent starting. Gerrit Cole will be going for his third win in three starts for the Yanks. Here is the Yankees lineup: 1. DJ LeMahieu, 2B 2. Aaron Judge, RF 3. Aaron Hicks, CF 4. Giancarlo Stanton, DH 5. Mike Ford, 1B 6. Gio Urshela, 3B 7. Gary Sanchez, C 8. Brett Gardner, LF 9. Tyler Wade, SS Gerrit Cole, RHP And here is the Phillies lineup: 1. Andrew McCutchen, LF 2. Rhys Hoskins, 1B 3. Bryce Harper, R 4. J.T. Realmuto, C 5. Didi Gregorius, SS 6. Jean Segura, 3B 7. Jay Bruce, DH 8. Scott Kingery, 2B 9. Adam Haseley, CF Jake Arrieta, RHP Here are Yankees game notes via the teams media relations department: AT A GLANCE: Tonight the Yankees will play the first game of their rescheduled two-game series vs. Philadelphia. .. Yankees are 3-0 on their current five-game homestand after sweeping Boston. .. After this series, the Yankees will embark on a six-game, five-day road trip at Philadelphia (2G, Wed.-Thurs.) and Tampa Bay (4G, 8/7-9). ... Yankees have won six straight games. COMEBACK KIDS: The Yankees overcame four different deficits to win on Sunday: trailed 2-0 after the top of the first, trailed 5-3 after the top of the third, trailed 6-5 after the top of the fifth and trailed 7-6 after the top of the seventh. ... Four of the Yankees seven wins this season have been come-from-behind victories. ALL RISE: RF Aaron Judge has homered in a career high five straight games. ... Judge is the 10th Yankee to homer in at least five straight games and first to do so since Alex Rodriguez from 9/4-9/07 (also five straight). ... Only Don Mattingly (eight straight from 7/8-18/87), Roger Maris (six straight from 8/11-16/61) and Lou Gehrig (six straight from 8/28-9/1-31) had longer home run streaks for the Yankees. Five of Judges 6 homers this season have given the Yankees the lead. ... According to STATS, Judge is the first player in MLB history to have five go-ahead home runs in his teams first eight games of a season. Get Yankees text messages: Cut through the clutter of social media and text during games with beat writers and columnists. Plus, exclusive news and analysis every day. Sign up now. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Randy Miller may be reached at rmiller@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @RandyJMiller. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here. The number of people dying of the coronavirus in Pakistan has fallen to a single-digit figure for the first time in three months, officials said on August 2, calling the drop a hard-earned success thanks to strict social-distancing measures. The South Asian nation recorded only six deaths on August 1 and confirmed 553 new infections, the lowest levels since May, figures released on August 2 revealed. And of all the people who are being tested, less than 5 percent proved to be infected during the past three weeks, on average, compared with nearly 25 percent in June. In total, the country has recorded some 280,000 cases and confirmed nearly 6,000 deaths. So far, more than 80 percent of people infected with the disease have recovered. In June, the government adopted a policy of sealing off virus hotspots in major cities, after a nationwide lockdown for nearly two months. The authorities have now enforced a weeklong shutdown that runs until August 5, to prevent the virus from spreading during the Muslim festival of Eid Al-Adha that was celebrated on August 1. We believe our curve has flattened ... and it is a hard-earned success, said Asad Umar, the minister leading the nation's battle against the pandemic. Samsung jumped to the No. 2 spot with 26% market share in the second quarter behind Xiaomi's 29%. Samsung Electronics Co Ltd is forging a comeback in India's smartphone market with a new range of budget devices and a ramped-up online presence, aiming to recoup ground ceded to Chinese rivals such as Xiaomi Corp. Samsung, the only major non-Chinese player in the country, has already begun to gain ground, and a surge in anti-China sentiment in India following a border clash in June is expected to provide a fresh boost. Samsung jumped to the No. 2 spot with 26% market share in the second quarter behind Xiaomi's 29%, according to tech researcher Counterpoint, as the South Korean company's diverse and inhouse supply chain helped it avoid product delays suffered by rivals during coronavirus lockdowns. It was in third position with a 16% share in the previous quarter. Once the unrivalled leader in the world's second-biggest smartphone market, Samsung has over the past three years lost Indian customers to Chinese brands, whose devices are perceived as better value. But India still accounts for some $7.5 billion in annual retail smartphone revenues for Samsung, according to Counterpoint, making it the company's biggest market outside the United States. It has built what it has described as the world's largest mobile phone manufacturing plant on the outskirts of New Delhi, where it tests new devices and often assembles them for export. That manufacturing power, and Samsung's ability to source many components internally, is helping it gain ground amid the pandemic. Chinese smartphone brands Xiaomi and Oppo suffered local production hiccups and product delays due to COVID-19, but Samsung was able to keep delivering phones smoothly. Now it is building on the momentum. Samsung has launched seven new smartphones since June, three of them under 10,000 rupees ($133.63) including its cheapest Android offering at $75. "The COVID crisis has pushed people to use smartphones for everything from online education to digital payments to even connecting with friends on video calls. That's why these budget phones are focused on the mass market," said a source familiar with Samsung's strategy in India. In May, Samsung partnered with Facebook to train some 200,000 brick and mortar stores selling its phones to use social media for sales and marketing. It has also launched instalment-payment plans for customers and new incentive schemes, including one that gives student discounts on select devices. A spokesman for Samsung said the company was seeing high demand for its devices in India and expected its revenues to increase from last year. The company does not provide a breakdown of revenues from individual countries. TOUGH COMPETITION Competition from rivals such as Xiaomi, which is banking on a 'Made in India' image to beat the anti-China sentiment, remains stiff. A deal between India's Reliance Industries Ltd and Google to make a cheap Android phone could also pose a threat to Samsung's sales of lower-end devices. Anti-China sentiment is nothing new in India, where the Chinese have a reputation for cheaper products. Samsung, despite a better brand reputation, has struggled to woo price-sensitive Indian customers. But better low-end offerings and the new anti-China tide -New Delhi has banned 59 Chinese apps since the border skirmish and traders have called for a boycott of imported Chinese products - could help shift the market dynamics. "Samsung is India's No.2 smartphone brand after Apple by image," brand strategist Harish Bijoor said. "So a phone priced between 6,000 rupees to 15,000 rupees from Samsung is very well placed today to capture market share from Chinese rivals." The cheapest iPhone in India costs around 31,500 rupees, while the cheapest Xiaomi phone costs around 7,500 rupees. Ganesh Salvi, a private sector employee from Satara town in western Maharashtra state said he had bought a Chinese branded phone for his 16 year-old son's online classes last month, even though he dislikes buying Chinese products. "I believe Samsung mobiles are more durable than Chinese phones and I'd certainly prefer them if they had more smartphones below 10,000 rupees," Salvi said. Karti Chidambaram, the son of senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, represents Tamil Nadu's Sivaganga in the Lok Sabha Chennai: Lok Sabha MP Karti Chidambaram, the son of senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, on Monday said he has tested positive for COVID-19. "I have just tested positive for #Covid. My symptoms are mild and as per medical advice I am under home quarantine. I would urge all those who have recently been in contact with me to follow medical protocol," he said in a tweet. The Congress leader represents Sivaganga Lok Sabha segment from Tamil Nadu. The news comes after Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan blamed peoples 'complacency' for the sudden surge in the COVID 19 cases in the state and emphasised on the need to maintain physical distancing Meanwhile, Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa. who has been admitted to the hospital for observation, is doing well and is clinically stable, There are 5,79,357 active cases of coronavirus infection in the country at present while the recoveries have increased to 11,86,203. With inputs from PTI 03.08.2020 LISTEN The National Organizer for theopposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Hon. Joshua Hamidu Akamba has on Friday 30th July, 2020 visited some parts of Ellembelle to monitor the final phase of the voter registration exercise. The tour of the area begun in Cape coast, where he held a short meeting with Cape-coast North Executives to ascertain the challenges confronting them as far as the voter registration exercise is concerned. Whilst at Ellembelle, Hon. Akamba also utilised the opportunity to meet some branch executives which is made up of branch women organisers, branch organisers, and branch youth organisers of Ellembelle. He also met with the Zongo caucus who were mobilized by the former Minister of Energy, in the erstwhile Mahama-led government, Hon. Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah. Hon. Akamba was accompanied by the NDC Regional organiser for Western Region, Dr. Japhet Baidoo. In a brief address to the media, he expressed his disappointment in the NPP government for the harrasment and intimidation of people they believe are members of the opposition National Democratic Congress, ( NDC). He also observed that government has also intentionally placed huge military presence at the Elibo area and along the border areas just to intimidate people from coming out to register in their numbers. He added that harassment and intimidation will persist if Akufo-Addo remains the president of Ghana. "So Ghanaians must take the registration serious to register and vote out the heartless NPP come December 7." Researchers uncovered a disinformation campaign aimed at discrediting NATO via fake news content distributed through compromised news websites. Security experts from FireEye have uncovered a disinformation campaign aimed at discrediting NATO by spreading fake news content on compromised news websites. The operations have primarily targeted audiences in Lithuania, Latvia, and Poland with anti-North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) narratives, often leveraging website compromises or spoofed email accounts to disseminate fabricated content, including falsified correspondence from military officials reads the report published by FireEye. According to FireEye, the campaign tracked as GhostWriter, has been ongoing since at least March 2017 and is aligned with Russian security interests. We have dubbed this campaign Ghostwriter, based on its use of inauthentic personas posing as locals, journalists, and analysts within the target countries to post articles and op-eds referencing the fabrications as source material to a core set of third-party websites that publish user-generated content, continues the report. Unlike other disinformation campaigns, GhostWriter doesnt spread through social networks, instead, threat actors behind this campaign abused compromised content management systems (CMS) of news websites or spoofed email accounts to disseminate fake news. The attackers used to replace existing legitimate articles on the sites with the fake content, instead of creating new posts. The attackers were spreading fabricated content, including falsified news articles, quotes, correspondence, and other documents designed to appear as coming from military officials and political figures in the target countries. to manipulate content, spreading reports of falsified correspondence from military officials, fake quotes from political figures and more. According to the experts, the campaign primarily targeted audiences in specific states members of the alliance, including Lithuania, Latvia, and Poland. Ghostwriter operators focused on spreading fabricated quotes, such as a quote falsely attributed to the commander of the NATO eFP Battle Group that was used to push a narrative that 21 Canadian soldiers stationed in Latvia had been infected with COVID-19. Another piece of fabricated content was a letter presented as to be authored by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, which was written to bolster a narrative suggesting that the Atlantic alliance was planning to withdraw from Lithuania in response to the COVID-19 pandemic This falsified content has been referenced as source material in articles and op-eds authored by at least 14 inauthentic personas posing as locals, journalists, and analysts within those countries. continues the report. These articles and op-eds, primarily written in English, have been consistently published to a core set of third-party websites that appear to accept user-submitted content, most notably OpEdNews.com, BalticWord.com, and the pro-Russian site TheDuran.com, among others, as well as to suspected Ghostwriter-affiliated blogs. The report published by FireEye included details about tactics, techniques, and procedures used by threat actors behind the Ghostwriter and confirms that it could be part of a larger disinformation campaign orchestrated by a foreign government. Pierluigi Paganini (SecurityAffairs hacking, disinformation) Mass COVID-19 vaccination in Russia planned for October: health minister People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 12:30, August 02, 2020 MOSCOW, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- Russian Health Ministry is planning a mass vaccination campaign against the coronavirus for October, TASS news agency reported on Saturday, citing Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko. "We plan wider vaccination for October because we need to launch a new system of treatment gradually," Murashko said. The vaccination against the coronavirus is planned to be free of charge, he added. According to the minister, clinical trials of a coronavirus vaccine developed by the Gamaleya Scientific Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology were over. Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said in late July that he was hopeful that Russia will produce a reliable vaccine against COVID-19 by the fall. Russia registered 5,462 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, taking its total to 845,443, the country's COVID-19 response center said in a statement on Saturday. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address HALIFAXA tropical storm that has lashed parts of the eastern United States should be diminished in strength by the time it reaches eastern Canada, the Canadian Hurricane Centre says. Centre forecaster Chris Fogarty said that Isaias was on track to enter eastern Quebec through Maine late Tuesday into Wednesday. As it moves north of the Carolinas, the storm will be moving quite quickly and it will undergo transformation to post-tropical, Fogarty said in an interview Monday. That will mean some heavy rain Tuesday night and early Wednesday through eastern Quebec and some breezy moderately gusty winds across the Maritimes, but nothing of great concern. Wind gusts were expected to reach 50 to 60 kilometres an hour. Fogarty said parts of New Brunswick and western Nova Scotia would also likely experience some rain from the weather system a brief period of showers of three to four hours duration without a lot accumulation. Where the centre of it is moving inland across the U.S. its not staying out over the warm Gulf Stream, Fogarty said. So by the time it reaches Canada, it will be pretty much no different from a usual summertime low. He said there might be some thundershowers with the system, while areas in store for the heaviest of the rain could see minor street flooding. Quebecs Eastern Townships is the area most likely area to be affected, with up to 50 millimetres of rain a possibility. Isaias was expected to hit hurricane strength before making landfall in the Carolinas, where the U.S. National Hurricane Center had issued a hurricane warning. The storm was expected to strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane, with winds of 119 kilometres per hour or more. Isaias claimed two lives in the Caribbean and blew through the Bahamas, but stayed out to sea as it brushed past Florida over the weekend. Chinese state-run media has broadcast an ominous warning allegedly issued by a fighter jet to a US plane in disputed waters near the Taiwan Strait. In barely comprehensible English, an 'airman' says over the radio: 'This is China Naval Air Force on guard. You are approaching Chinese air domain, change your course immediately or you will be intercepted.' The pro-Beijing tabloid The People's Daily tweeted that the audio clip was recorded on July 23 when 'a US military plane was driven away by a Chinese jet.' The claim is highly dubious, particularly given that it purports to 'show' the incident, but the footage used alongside the audio clip appears to be stock. Beijing's propaganda machine has ratcheted up attacks on Washington in recent weeks amid increased tensions with the US and her allies over the disputed South China Sea. In barely comprehensible English, an 'airman' says over the radio: 'This is China Naval Air Force on guard. You are approaching Chinese air domain, change your course immediately or you will be intercepted.' The pro-Beijing tabloid The People's Daily tweeted that the audio clip was recorded on July 23 when 'a US military plane was driven away by a Chinese jet.' The claim is highly dubious, particularly given that it purports to 'show' the incident, but the footage used alongside the audio clip is blatantly stock. Beijing's propaganda machine has ratcheted up attacks on Washington in recent weeks amid increased tensions with the US and her allies over the disputed South China Sea. Last week US and Australian diplomats pledged to renew and strengthen a united front against China and what they termed Beijing's malign behavior throughout the region and beyond. The two sides - represented by U.S. Secretary of Mike Pompeo, U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Australian Defense Minister Linda Reynolds - on Tuesday accused China of violating international norms in the South China Sea and vowed to uphold freedom of navigation and the rule of the law as well as democratic freedoms in Hong Kong. Pompeo said the U.S. and Australia face 'immediate crises' that must be dealt with simultaneously. Those include the coronavirus and 'Chinese communist party ambitions,' particularly its 'malign activity in the Indo-Pacific region and indeed all around the world.' On Friday, Chinese and Australian diplomats sparred on Twitter over Beijing's actions after Canberra endorsed an earlier US statement that it would recognise virtually none of China's territorial claims in the South China Sea. Australia recently filed a memorandum with the United Nations saying the claims were 'without legal basis,' plunging Canberra into the controversy that has drawn angry responses from Beijing. Australian High Commissioner Barry O'Farrell tweeted Thursday that he told India's Minister of External Affairs that China's moves were 'destabilizing and could provoke escalation.' Chinese Ambassador Sun Weidong responded Friday by accusing O'Farrell of 'disregarding facts,' writing: 'It's clear who safeguard peace&stability & destabilize&provoke escalations in the region.' An F/A-18E Super Hornet, attached to the Dambusters of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 195, approaches the flight deck of the Navy's forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) during a drill in the South China Sea, 06 July 2020 Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) training ships JS Kashima and JS Shimayuki conduct a passing exercise (PASSEX) with the Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) during a drill in the South China Sea, 06 July 2020 O'Farrell shot back saying China should follow a 2016 international tribunal ruling that rejected most of Beijing's claims. China has denounced the ruling as 'illegal' and without any 'binding force.' O'Farrell's comments drew strong praise from internet users in India, where the public and politicians have called for a tougher line against China following a bloody clash along their disputed Himalayan border. China on Thursday said it had carried out aerial drills over the South China Sea. The exercises included nighttime takeoffs and landings and simulated long-range attacks, Defense Ministry spokesperson Ren Guoqiang said. Among the planes were H-6G and H-6K bombers, upgraded versions of aircraft long in use in China's military, Ren said. He said the exercises had been previously scheduled and were aimed at boosting pilot abilities to operate under all conditions, regardless of weather or time of day. It wasn't clear whether live bombs were used. China has built airstrips on many of its island holdings in the South China Sea, including man-made islands atop coral reefs. It isn't clear though whether it plans to permanently station aircraft there, where sand and salty air can do serious damage to air frames and sophisticated on-board equipment. Chinese ships, including the country's two aircraft carriers, conduct frequent operations in the area, sometimes to trail and occasionally harass ships from other countries. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has expressed helplessness in the face of China's seizure of Philippine-claimed territories in the waters. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has expressed helplessness in the face of China's seizure of Philippine-claimed territories in the waters In an annual address to the nation last Monday, Duterte said he 'cannot do anything' to counter those actions in the face of China's overwhelming military superiority. China has effectively taken possession of territories the Philippines claims and Manila's only option is to seek to cool tensions through dialogue, he said. Duterte has sought warmer ties with Beijing while downplaying long-standing relations with treaty ally the United States. However, the Philippines last month renewed its call for compliance with a 4-year-old arbitration ruling that invalidated China's vast claims in the disputed South China Sea on historical grounds. Authorities in a province-level city started locking down a residential area for two weeks at noon on Monday after a person living there was confirmed to catch COVID-19. The lockdown is now imposed on about 900 people of 182 households on Ho Van Dai Street, Quang Vinh Ward, Bien Hoa City, which is the capital of Dong Nai Province. The city is located around 35km to the northeast of Ho Chi Minh City. All residents had been informed of the lockdown before it was enforced, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper journalists reported from the scene. Health officers had also fumigated the neighborhood while checkpoints were already established. The shutdown will be in place for 14 days the advised incubation period of the novel coronavirus. Food will be supplied to the residents, who will be subject to health monitoring during the period. Any defiance will not be tolerated, the Bien Hoa Peoples Committee said. A COVID-19 patient has her residence on the street, said Nguyen Duy Tan, chief of office of the Bien Hoa Peoples Committee. Health workers will run temperature checks every day to detect the virus and prevent it from spreading to the outside community. Everyone should stay calm because were doing this to ensure public health, Tan said. We hope that all residents will abide by the epidemic prevention rules. Authorities have traced the patients contacts and tested them, Tan said, adding that at least 11 had their results return negative. Health workers fumigate Ho Van Dai Street, Quang Vinh Ward, Bien Hoa City, Dong Nai Province. Photo: Ha Mi / Tuoi Tre The Ministry of Health announced the patient, numbered 595, on Sunday. The 50-year-old patient, whose husband works in the oncology ward of the provincial general hospital in Dong Nai, visited her father at Da Nang Hospital, located in the namesake city on the central coast, on July 19. She came into contact with an undetected COVID-19 patient from July 20 to 27. The oncology ward has been isolated. A total of 174 locally-transmitted cases have been traced to Da Nang, many at Da Nang Hospital, since July 25, after 99 days of no documented community transmission of the virus in Vietnam. The Southeast Asian country has reported 621 cases as of Monday afternoon, with 373 recoveries and six deaths. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! First look of 'Most eligible bachelor' (Twitter) A couple of days ago, the makers of Most Eligible Bachelor, starring Akhil Akkineni and Pooja Hegde, released a new poster that shows Pooja tickling Akhils ears with her feet. While there were a few who lauded the films director Bhaskar for his creativity, fans of the Akkineni clan and other film buffs have strongly criticised the poster, calling it regressive. Some fans have also criticised Akhils sister-in-law Samantha for maintaining silence over the poster, in view of some earlier comments of hers. Movie goers who were looking forward to a cool and a stylish poster for Most Eligible Bachelor took to Twitter to express disappointment. Many said they were hurt by Poojas pose, and described the poster as deeply regressive and even degraded. Some of the tweets read: @yskanth Jul 29: Saw a poster of yet to be released #MostEligibleBachelor film. it is deeply regressive. @Jithu_Ane_Nenu Jul 29, 2020: Its deeply regressive L L #MostEligibleBachelor. @pobunl Jul 29: Endira idi .....We are condemn (sic) this #Most-EligibleBachelor. ARYA @Cult_Arya: Worst Look Of Akhil Till Date. Abhi Ram @AbhiRamaKrishn8: Very bad look sir ...were fully disappointed with this look...we expected a Super stylish romantic poster from u..but we didn't expected this type of degraded look ..Better stop hoping on this film and announce ur 5th film sir. RAGHAVA @raghava216: Isnt this regressive? Ur bhabhi may feel so.. since she once called this as regressive. Shanmukha rao chandaka @shanmukharaoch4: Kaalu theeyandi puja gaaru maa ayyagari meedha...memu hurt avthaam. Power @amnaresh_ht: Ayyagaru medha kaalu pedthava ...thei seyy. ... and so on. Fans question Sams silence Samantha, who is Akhils elder brother Naga Chaitanyas wife, had in 2014, described as regressive a poster of Mahesh Babus film, 1 Nenokkadine. The poster showed the films female lead Kriti Sanon crawling on the beach trying to touch Mahesh Babus feet from behind. Her comments had irked Maheshs fans who trolled her big time. Now, fans are reminding Samantha about her earlier comment, and have been asking her why she is maintaining silence over this new poster, and not calling it regressive too. Heres what Twitterati had to say on the issue: Aarya SaNju @AaryaSanju1: Haaa Ma hero AA Tho chesinapud matram m. Chupiyav.. Vera hero latho chesinapud matram.. China dress lu.. Legz chupinchadam legz lepadam ilantivi chey. Optimus-Prime @Stingbee4e: Hope @Samanthaprabhu2 And @Chinmayi dont deeply disturb now Tejtweetz @tejaknr1: Ekkada poinaru male supporters & akkeneni fans lets make some noise mana hero ni heroine kallutho ala touch cheyadam enti Age factor Some fans are even questioning the casting of Pooja as Akhils romantic pair, on the grounds that she is three years older to Akhil. (While Pooja is 29, Akhil is 26). Saikumar S @Saikuma43731381: Akhil age 26 and pooja age 29. Why did you select 3 years older actress for Akhil. there are so many young girls below 25 age are in our industry like anu Emmanuel, nivetha thamus mehreen etc (sic). Kartheek Bujii @Beedamkartheek2: Not suitable pair @hegdepooja and @AkhilAkkineni8 eddariki 3 years difference Akhil chinnapillavadu 3 years pedda pooja....khaleja combo laga undi... totally disappointed...@NabhaNatesh aithey super pair..... Anvitha@Aanvitha23 Unless pooja is playing a girl who is older than Akhil in the movie, this looks so odd... Meanwhile, filmmaker Tharun Bhascker Dhaassyam says the poster depicts a casual and modern way of life. Everybody has a voice and is putting it out; we just cannot zoom into every issue and thats the reason why several filmmakers are apprehensive and are refraining from putting out anything on social media, explains Tharun, adding that he needs to coin a new term for such criticism and trolls. He feels people are trying to have a discussion and debate on everything on social media. We have to tone down our moral policing, he says, adding that such comments would curb the freedom of filmmakers and affect them. MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) The premier of Australias hard-hit Victoria state has declared a disaster among sweeping new coronavirus restrictions across Melbourne and elsewhere from Sunday night. An evening curfew will be implemented across Melbourne from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. Premier Daniel Andrews says the state of disaster proclamation gave police greater power. He says 671 new coronavirus cases had been detected since Saturday, including seven deaths. It comes among a steadily increasing toll in both deaths and infections over the past six weeks in Victoria. If we dont make these changes, were not going to get through this, Andrews said. We need to do more. That is what these decisions are about. He said there would be more announcements about workplaces on Monday, including the closure of certain industries. I want to ensure all Victorians supermarkets, the butcher, the baker, food, beverage, groceries, those types of settings there will be no impact there, he said. Melbourne residents will only be allowed to shop and exercise within 5 kilometers (3 miles) of their homes. All students across the state will return to home-based learning and child care centers will be closed. The deaths in Victoria took the national toll to 208. Also Sunday, New South Wales confirmed its first coronavirus-related death in more than a month as authorities sought to suppress a number of growing clusters at a hotel and several restaurants in Sydney. In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region: Indias coronavirus caseload crossed 1.75 million with another spike of 54,735 in the past 24 hours. The new cases are down from 57,118 on Saturday. The Health Ministry on Sunday also reported 853 deaths for a total of 37,364. Randeep Guleria, a top government expert, said that New Delhi and Mumbai may have crossed their peak levels with declining trends. The month of July alone has accounted for more than 1.1 million cases in India. Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said the case fatality rate is progressively reducing and currently stands at 2.18%, one of the lowest globally. Out of the total active cases, only 0.28% are on ventilators, 1.61% need intensive care support and 2.32% oxygen support. Story continues Indian Home Minister Amit Shah says he has tested positive for the coronavirus and is getting admitted to a hospital on the advice of doctors. Shah, 55, tweeted on Sunday that his health is fine and requested those who had come in his contact to isolate themselves and get tested. Shah is No. 2 in Prime Minister Narendra Modis government. He has been visiting hospitals and holding meetings with top officials as part of the governments massive efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19 infections in the country. Coronavirus infections in the Philippines surged past 100,000 Sunday after medical groups declared that the country was waging a losing battle against the virus and asked the president to reimpose a lockdown in the capital. The Department of Health reported a record-high daily tally of 5,032, bringing the total confirmed cases in the country to 103,185, including more than 2,000 deaths. The Philippines has the second-most cases in Southeast Asia after Indonesia. President Rodrigo Duterte eased a tough virus lockdown in the capital, Manila, on June 1. After shopping malls and workplaces were partially reopened and limited public transport was allowed, infections spiked sharply with increased virus testing. More than 50,000 infections were reported in less than four weeks. Confirmed coronavirus cases are hovering at near record levels in Japan, raising worries the pandemic may be growing more difficult to control. The Tokyo government reported 292 new cases Sunday, about half in their 20s. Japan in total reported 1,540 cases on Saturday the second straight day the number was above 1,500. Nationwide cases for Sunday will be tallied at midnight. Numbers are usually fewer over the weekend because of fewer tests. Japan has avoided a total lockdown, encouraging business activity while urging people to wear masks, social distance and work from home. Vietnam reported three more deaths from the coronavirus on Sunday, raising the country's death toll to six, all in the last few days. The three women who died, aged 53, 84 and 85, were patients at a hospital in Da Nang, Vietnams most popular beach destination. An outbreak began at a Da Nang hospital a week ago and has spread to other parts of the country, including three of the largest cities, forcing authorities to reimpose virus restrictions. The health ministry also confirmed 32 new cases Sunday, including 16 in Da Nang and nine in neighboring Quang Nam province. Local transmissions were also recorded in Ho Chi Minh City and Quang Ngai, as well as Dong Nai and Ha Nam provinces for the first time. All of the new cases were traced back to Da Nang. South Korea has reported 30 additional case of the coronavirus, most of them associated with international arrivals. The cases announced Sunday by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention brought the national tally to 14,366 with 301 deaths. The agency says eight of the newly confirmed cases were locally infected while the rest came from overseas. South Korea has recently seen an uptick in imported cases, many of them South Korean construction workers airlifted out of virus-ravaged Iraq and crew members of Russia-flagged cargo ships docked in local ports. Health authorities have said imported cases are less threatening as they continue to enforce two-week quarantines on all people arriving from abroad. ___ Follow APs pandemic coverage at http://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak Getty Images Donald Trump could use emergency powers to extend his term in the White House, a senior Democrat has said, as fears grow that the president may attempt to hold onto office should he lose Novembers election. James Clyburn, the House majority whip, said he believes Trump has no intention of peacefully transferring power to presumptive Democratic candidate Joe Biden, who is well ahead in several major polls in the race for the Oval Office. I dont think he plans to leave the White House, Mr Clyburn, the Democrat Rep. for South Carolina, told CNN on Sunday. He doesnt plan to have fair and unfettered elections. I believe that he plans to install himself in some kind of emergency way to continue to hold onto office. Last week, Mr Trump floated the idea of delaying the upcoming election amid the coronavirus crisis, suggesting that the vote should be postponed until people can properly, securely and safely vote??? In a message posted on his Twitter page, the president also claimed the 2020 election could fall foul to voter fraud, with millions of Americans set to cast their ballots via postal services due to the coronavirus. But experts have since cast doubt on those claims, citing previous research showing that voter fraud in the US is extremely rare. Two studies by Arizona State University in 2012 and 2016 found only 10 cases of voter impersonation fraud nationwide from 2000-2012. The president has also repeatedly claimed, falsely, that he would have beaten former rival Hillary Clinton in the 2016 popular vote were it not for the millions of people who voted illegally. A subsequent analysis of 2016 voting data by The Washington Post found just four cases of voter fraud. Those four cases included three people who attempted to vote for Trump twice, according to the Post. Lawmakers across Capitol Hill including many prominent Republicans have slapped down the suggestion that the election could be delayed. Sen. Marco Rubio said he [Trump] can suggest whatever he wants. The law is what it is. Any move to delay the 2020 election would require an act of Congress meaning both the Senate and the House of Representatives, where the Democrats have a majority, would need to sign off on it. Story continues On Sunday, advisers shut down Mr Trumps suggestion that the vote could de be delayed and sought to portray a confident mood within the presidents re-election campaign team, despite dire polling readings. Were going to hold an election on 3 November and the president is going to win, Mr Trumps White House chief of staff Mark Meadows told CBS on Sunday. The president trails Mr Biden in a host of major polls, with data showing that he is behind in many of the states he must win to retain office. Mr Trumps team continues to play down the significance of polling, pointing out that Hilary Clinton was well ahead at a similar point in the 2016 race. But it is the scale of Mr Bidens lead over Mr Trump that has led experts to predict that Mr Biden will prevail in November contest. A number of polls including those by Emerson, YouGov, CNBC and The Hill give the Democrat politician a lead of seven points or more. Read more Donald Trump is the Mussolini to Putins Hitler, top Democrat says Authorities have arrested the mother of an unidentified baby boy found dead in Castro Valley 32 years ago, after connecting her to the crime using pioneering genetic genealogy that has helped crack dozens of cold cases nationwide in the past two years. Investigators were able to identify the mother of the newborn boy, who was known only as Baby John Doe, using genetic genealogy, a method of linking crime-scene DNA with public portals of ancestry information. The technique has surged in popularity since 2018, when it helped California law enforcement agencies nab the infamous Golden State Killer. Since then, genealogy-aided investigations have rippled throughout the nation, helping unearth new leads and solve cases that have baffled detectives for decades. Lesa Lopez, a 52-year-old woman from Salida (Stanislaus County), was taken into custody July 23, a week after detectives obtained a warrant for her arrest, according to the Alameda County Sheriffs Office. Prosecutors have since charged her with murder and alleged special circumstances involving use of a deadly weapon a ligature as well as causing great bodily injury. Lopez was being held Monday at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin on $2 million bail. Her next hearing is scheduled for Wednesday. We were very glad that we could identify a suspect in this case after so long, because that little boy, he never had an opportunity, said Pat Smyth, a detective with the Sheriffs Office. Baby John Doe stood out from other cold-case victims, who typically have a surviving parent, child or spouse seeking justice on their behalf, Smyth said. Here it was just the opposite, he said. The person who was supposed to be nurturing this child is now the one who is going to be responsible in his death. On May 15, 1988, two juveniles walking along old Madison Avenue north of Seaview Avenue found the body of the baby boy inside a bag, dumped among trees and bushes on an embankment, officials said. The Chronicles coverage described the baby as a 2- to 3-day-old, dark-haired Caucasian boy, who was born full term but not delivered in a hospital. The baby was wearing a light blue, adult-size shirt with a Garfield the Cat logo. The baby appeared to have been strangled, and the death was ruled a homicide. Investigators at that time contacted local hospitals, distributed press releases and conducted follow-up investigations in search of the mother, but the case went cold for the next three decades. In July 1988, approximately 200 people attended a funeral for the boy. The funeral was provided by the leaders of St. Leander Church in San Leandro, where the Rev. Robert Rein posthumously named the boy Richard Jayson Terrance Rein, in honor of the pastors and vicars at the church. Investigators made a major break in the case in 2005, when the sheriffs crime lab produced a female DNA profile from the scene where the baby was discovered. The profile was run through a national data bank of offenders, but produced no hits. Thirteen years would pass until a separate investigation transformed the world of cold cases. Until the 2018 arrest of Golden State Killer Joseph James DeAngelo, a Citrus Heights (Sacramento County) man in his 70s, genetic genealogy was a little-known tool typically used by hobbyists to build family trees. But by applying that logic to police work, linking the Golden State Killers DNA to distant relatives, investigators were at last able to put a name on the man believed to have committed 12 murders and at least 50 rapes across the state during the 1970s and 80s. In late June, DeAngelo pleaded guilty to 26 charges of murder and kidnapping while also admitting to numerous other crimes. A torrent of genealogy-aided investigations have followed DeAngelos arrest, many involving cases that went cold decades ago. In the Bay Area, Vallejo police recently solved the near half-century-old case of Naomi Sanders, a 57-year-old apartment manager who was raped and strangled in her home while she cooked dinner. The case was ultimately pinned on Robert Dale Edwards, who died in 1993 from a drug overdose. DNA evidence and genealogy research also led police to Roy Charles Waller, a 58-year-old UC Berkeley employee accused of sexually assaulting 10 women starting in 1991. Cold-case investigators for the Alameda County Sheriffs Office reopened the Baby John Doe case last summer and began using publicly available genealogy sites, which can allow members of the public and law enforcement to build family trees based on close genetic matches. 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. With the help of genetic genealogist Dr. Barbara Rae-Venter, and after cross-referencing the DNA profile with items found in Lopezs trash, investigators linked crime scene evidence to her, officials said. Lopez was 20 years old at the time of the babys death and lived in Castro Valley, authorities said. She allegedly told investigators she kept the pregnancy a secret from family and friends. Colleen Fitzpatrick, a genealogy expert who has worked with police on hundreds of cold cases, said Baby Doe cases represent a small portion of victims, as rape and other homicide investigations often take precedence. However, she said, the cases often strike a chord with investigators. Detectives would really, really like to solve them, said Fitzpatrick, who estimated that the company she founded, Identifinders International, has worked on about a half-dozen such cases. They put their heart in it they have children, they have empathy for the victims. Court documents state that Lopez admitted to investigators that she was the mother of the boy and made statements implicating herself in the crime. Lopez identified the area where she placed the victims body and admitted she acted alone, court records state. Smyth said the case was a tragedy for all those involved, adding that Lopez now has a family of her own. That was the difficult part, he said. Because we knew that there was going to be another family that was destroyed by this. Megan Cassidy is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: megan.cassidy@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @meganrcassidy Immunizing pregnant women with a potential vaccine against Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) could prevent the most common cause of pneumonia in their babies. Immunising pregnant women with a potential vaccine against RSV could prevent the most common cause of pneumonia in their babies. Professor Shabir A. Madhi of the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, is the lead author of a study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine on Thursday, 30 July 2020. The multinational, multicentre study reports on the first RSV vaccine to provide evidence that inmunisation of pregnant woman could protect young infants under six months old against severe RSV lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI). Wits Professor of Vaccinology is lead author of an article in NEJM today about vaccinating pregnant women against Respiratory Syncytial Virus. "Of particular interest is an analysis of the data by sub-populations, which suggests that the vaccine better protects infants born to women from low- and middle-income countries [LMICs], such as South Africa. These participants constituted more than two-thirds of those enrolled," says Madhi. The RSV vaccine administered in the study is a nanoparticle vaccine developed by Novavax (Maryland, USA). Although the vaccine did not fulfil the stringent criteria for licensure by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the study itself provides the first evidence that maternal vaccination could protect infants against RSV illness. "The Prepare Phase 3 clinical trial was highly instructive, demonstrating a maternal immunisation strategy is viable, and modulating RSV disease in this way could have beneficial long-term impacts", says Dr Gregory M. Glenn, President of Research and Development of Novavax. "We are continuing to explore options to move the programme forward and bring ResVax to market globally with commercial partners." Infants most vulnerable to respiratory viruses Covid-19 has dominated the news headlines recently to the point that concern for other infectious diseases, , many of which disproportionately affect those living in low- and middle-income countries such as South Africa, is significantly reduced. Babies and young children, who often suffer the greatest consequences of illness and death from respiratory pathogens, are fortunately and remarkably spared from severe Covid-19 illness. "However, children under five and particularly infants up to six months old are at greatest risk of developing lung infections [pneumonia] due to a multitude of other respiratory viruses and bacteria," says Madhi. A virus from the 1960s Respiratory Syncytial Virus was first discovered in the 1960s as a cause of lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) in childhood. In 2019, another large multicentre study reported that approximately one-third of pneumonia hospitalisations in infants are due to RSV. Globally, in children under five-years-old, there are 3.2 million hospitalisations for RSV LRTI in children younger than five-years-old. Of those hospitalised, 118 000 die. Additionally, 44% of the hospitalisations and 46% of the in-hospital deaths occurred in infants younger than six-months-old. In South Africa, approximately 178 000 to 443 000 children under five-years-old will develop RSV LRTI annually. Notably, approximately 45% of all severe RSV hospitalisations and deaths occur in infants under six months old. These episodes would be difficult to prevent by vaccinating the infant directly. Since its discovery 60 years ago, there have been multiple attempts to develop a vaccine against RSV, all of which have been unsuccessful. "Although it is disappointing that this vaccine will not be licenced based on the study results, it nevertheless paves the way for the development of this and/or other RSV vaccines for pregnant women to protect their infants against RSV during their first six months of life when they are most vulnerable to severe illness and death from RSV," says Madhi. About the RSV vaccine study In this study, 4 636 pregnant women at between 28 to 36 weeks' gestation were immunised with a single dose of an RSV vaccine, or a placebo, to induce an antibody response by the immune system to the RSV F-protein in the vaccine. Approximately half of these women were enrolled in South Africa. These maternal antibodies are then transferred naturally to the foetus during pregnancy and provide the first line of defence in protecting infants against RSV LRTI during the first 90 to 180 days of life. The study showed that vaccination during pregnancy was safe in the women and their infants. Key findings of this study show that infants born to women who received the RSV vaccine were 44% less likely to be hospitalised for RSV LRTI. Furthermore, these infants were 32% less likely to be hospitalised for pneumonia due to any cause in the first six months of their life. Vaccine better protects infants of mothers from LMICs An intriguing finding of the study is that when the analyses were stratified [a method of sampling from a population which can be partitioned into sub-populations] by country income status, the vaccine appeared to be more protective in infants born to women from LMICs, a grouping which constituted more than two-thirds of the enrolled study participants. In particular, infants through to six months of age born to RSV-vaccinated women from LMICs were 53% less likely to be hospitalised for RSV LRTI and 69% less likely to have severe hypoxemia [low blood oxygen] due to RSV LRTI than infants of LMIC woman who did not receive the vaccine. Furthermore, these infants born to vaccinated women were 39% and 59% respectively less likely to be hospitalised for all-cause LRTI and LRTI with severe hypoxemia. These data show the significant potential of an RSV vaccine for public health benefit in LMICs, which contribute more than 90% of all deaths from RSV and 50% of which occur outside health facilities. VIDA vaccines for Africa The South African leg of the RSV study was conducted by Madhi's Vaccines and Infectious Diseases Analytics Research Unit (VIDA) (which is the South African Medical Research Council [SAMRC]-affiliated unit formerly known as the Respiratory and Meningeal Pathogens Research Unit [RMPRU]) - as well as at other sites in South Africa. VIDA is in the School of Pathology in the top 100 globally ranked-Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (Wits). This RSV study adds to other key studies on life-saving vaccines undertaken by Madhi and his team at VIDA. Previous vaccine-related studies also published in high-impact prestigious journals include: The evaluation of seasonal influenza vaccine in pregnant women to protect the mother-infant dyad [couple] study (June 2016); The pneumococcal conjugate vaccine to protect against the leading cause of childhood pneumonia death study (July 2002); The study on the rotavirus vaccine, which protects against the leading cause of childhood diarrhoeal death (August 2013). These studies have informed World Health Organization policy on the use of these vaccines in National Public Immunisation programmes and have led to South Africa being the first country in Africa to introduce such vaccines to its public immunisation programme. Professor Shabir Madhi now leads Africa's first Covid-19 vaccine trial currently underway. ### (Newser) "Two weeks ago, my life as I knew it changed in an instant, and my family will never be the same." So starts an emotional nine-minute video released Monday by US District Judge Esther Salas, whose 20-year-old son, Daniel Anderl, her only child with husband Mark Anderl, was fatally gunned down on July 19 at their home in North Brunswick, NJ. Salas' husband was critically injured in the attack. In the video, Salas details how her family had a weekend-long birthday celebration for her son before the Sunday ambush, allowing him to have friends from Catholic University of America stay with them, following safety protocols during the pandemic. "The weekend was a glorious one," she says, tearing up. "It was filled with love and laughter and smiles." After his friends left on Sunday, Salas and Daniel set about cleaning up from the festivities. story continues below The two of them were in the basement, and Salas says, "We were chatting, as we always do. And Daniel said, 'Mom, let's keep talking. I love talking to you, Mom.'" Salas says it was "at that exact moment" when they heard the doorbell ring. She says Daniel sprinted upstairs, and she then heard gunshots and screaming. Salaswho says she later learned her son jumped in front of Mark Anderl to protect himsays more protections are needed for judges' privacy; she believes she was targeted by a "monster" due to her job: "My son's death cannot be in vain." NBC News notes nearly 4,500 threats and other "inappropriate" messages were sent to federal judiciary members in 2019. The gunman in Salas' case, Roy Den Hollander, 72, who posed as a FedEx driver, took his own life and was found dead hours after the attack. Per ABC News, authorities say he had other potential targets, including another judge. (Read more New Jersey stories.) The Indian Army has categorically conveyed to China's People's Liberation Army at the fifth round of military talks it will not compromise on India's territorial integrity, and clearly said disengagement of troops from Pangong Tso and a few other friction points in eastern Ladakh should be completed at the earliest, people familiar with the developments said on Monday. IMAGE: An Indian army convoy drives towards Leh in Gagangir, India. Since the recent clash, there has been few signs of a breakthrough. Photograph: Yawar Nazir/Getty Images Senior commanders of the two armies held intense negotiations for nearly 11 hours on Sunday at a designated meeting point in Moldo on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control. The Indian delegation very clearly and firmly communicated to the Chinese side that restoration of status quo ante in all areas of eastern Ladakh was key for overall ties between the two countries, and that Beijing must ensure complete disengagement of its troops from the remaining friction points, according to the people familiar with the developments. It was also categorically conveyed that the Indian Army will not compromise on the country's territorial integrity, they said. The Chinese army has pulled back from Galwan Valley and certain other areas but the withdrawal of troops has not moved forward from the Finger Four and Eight areas in Pangong Tso as demanded by India. The mountain spurs in the area are referred to as Fingers. China also has not completed withdrawal of troops from Gogra areas. The focus of the Sunday talks was on finalising the modalities for further de-escalation, and disengagement of troops from various friction points, sources said, adding both sides were to discuss details of the negotiations with their respective military and political leadership. The sources said Army Chief Gen MM Naravane was given a detailed briefing about the talks on Monday morning which was subsequently followed by a discussion he held with senior military officials on the overall situation in eastern Ladakh. It is learnt that National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar were also apprised about the talks, and the entire military and strategic brass tasked to deal with the border row is deliberating on various aspects of the overall situation. The Indian delegation was led by Lt Gen Harinder Singh, the commander of the Leh-based 14 Corps, while the Chinese side was headed by Major General Liu Lin, commander of the South Xinjiang military region. The previous round of the Corps Commander-level talks took place on the Indian side of the LAC on July 14 and it lasted for nearly 15 hours. There was no official word on details of the meeting. The military talks took place 10 days after both sides held another round of diplomatic parleys on the border issue. After the diplomatic talks, the ministry of external affairs said both sides agreed that an early and complete disengagement of the troops along the LAC in accordance with bilateral agreement and protocols was essential for the overall development of bilateral relations. Last week, India rebutted China's claim that the disengagement process was completed at most locations. "There has been some progress made towards this objective but the disengagement process has as yet not been completed," MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said when asked about China's claim. In the last three weeks, India has significantly ramped up troops and weaponry in the areas around Daulat Beg Oldi and Depsang Valley in commensurate with deployment of troops by China's People's Liberation Army. During the military and diplomatic talks, India has also been demanding withdrawal of Chinese troops from Depsang, the area where they had intruded in 2013. The transgressions had created military and diplomatic tensions but was resolved after hectic rounds of negotiations following which the Chinese troops withdrew. India began sending reinforcements to Depsang and the areas around DBO in mid-May when tension between the two sides gradually escalated, and the deployment has been significantly ramped up with several thousand troops, tanks and artillery guns in the last two months, sources said. The formal process of disengagement of troops began on July 6, a day after a nearly two-hour telephonic conversation between NSA Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on ways to bring down tension in the face-off points. The first round of the Lt General talks was held on June 6 during which both sides finalised an agreement to disengage gradually from all the standoff points beginning with Galwan Valley. However, the situation deteriorated following the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15 in which 20 Indian Army personnel were killed as the two sides significantly bolstered their deployments in most areas along the LAC. The Chinese side also suffered casualties in the clashes but it is yet to give out the details. According to an American intelligence report, the number of casualties on the Chinese side was 35. The second round of military talks took place on June 22. At the third round of military talks on June 30, both sides agreed on an "expeditious, phased and step wise" de-escalation as a "priority" to end the standoff. Following the Galwan Valley incident, the government has given the armed forces "full freedom" to give a "befitting" response to any Chinese misadventure along the LAC. The Indian Air Force has also moved air defence systems as well as a sizable number of its frontline combat jets and attack helicopters to several key air bases. The newly-elected president of the Australian Medical Association has warned Victorias hospitals are "rapidly getting to the point of significant crisis" as they begin struggling to find enough doctors and nurses to fill shifts. Perth orthopaedic surgeon Dr Omar Khorshid was elected to the high-profile role on Saturday, taking the reins from Melbourne GP Dr Tony Bartone, whose tenure in the position was extended for two months as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. The new president of the Australian Medical Association - Dr Omar Khorshid. In one of his first interviews in the position on Monday, Dr Khorshid said many doctors in Victoria were unhappy with perceived failures in the states public health response, which were now putting them at heightened risk of catching the disease and threatening their capacity to care for patients. Senior bureaucrats had warned that Victorias public health unit was the worst resourced in the country and had only 14 contact tracers by the time the pandemic took hold in March. Investors could be forced to give property funds six months' notice to make withdrawals, under plans to avoid managers bringing the shutters down whenever markets turn volatile. Investors saw a wave of fund suspensions when the Covid-19 crisis kicked off in March, having already experienced the same following the Brexit vote and the financial crash in 2008, trapping 12.5billion of cash. Property funds which are 'open ended', meaning they have unlimited shares that managers have to redeem on request, effectively shut up shop earlier this year, with all 11 currently suspended. This is because allowing investors to pull out their money immediately en-masse is an almost impossible task for funds invested in properties that must be sold to meet redemptions. THE PROPERTY FUNDS THAT ARE CURRENTLY SUSPENDED Name Launch Date Fund Size(m) Fund Size Date Aberdeen UK Property in GB** 29/11/2018 986.8 20/07/2020 Aviva Inv UK Property in GB 18/08/2017 401.6 30/06/2020 BMO UK Property TR in GB 28/06/2010 479.2 30/06/2020 Janus Henderson UK Property PAIF in GB 01/08/2012 1839.5 31/05/2020 Kames Property Income in GB 28/03/2014 432 30/06/2020 L&G UK Property in GB 28/02/2006 2870.3 30/06/2020 LF Canlife UK Property ACS in GB 02/07/2018 341.7 30/06/2020 M&G Property Portfolio TR in GB 03/08/2012 2204.9 30/06/2020 Royal London Property TR in GB 01/05/1991 389.3 30/06/2020 Standard Life Investments UK Real Estate in GB 22/12/2004 1597.7 30/06/2020 Threadneedle UK Property Authorised Investment TR in GB 13/05/2016 1025.2 30/06/2020 Source: AJ Bell Regulators have therefore proposed introducing a 180-day notice period to create more stability for such funds, which in normal times investors can buy and sell on a daily basis. Funds invested in shares can usually do this with little difficulty, with rare exceptions, such as the shock collapse of the Woodford Equity Income fund. But this structure puts managers in a bind when it comes to property, which is by its nature hard to sell fast - particularly in times of trouble, or if you want to get the best price. This forces them to bar withdrawals altogether if they can't stump up cash immediately. To avoid this risk, most investors prefer to gain exposure to commercial property by buying and selling shares in real estate investment trusts, or in 'closed ended' property investment trusts, which hold properties. They don't suffer the same liquidity problem because they issue a limited number of shares, which are constantly traded on the stock market. Investors who want to cash in must sell their shares and while these may fall to a discount compared to the value of the assets each share is entitled to, savers can opt to sell out at that level. Critics of open-ended property funds have questioned the need for them since REITs and investment trust options are readily available. Investors suffered a spate of fund suspensions due to the Covid-19 crisis, and following the Brexit vote and financial crash in 2008 But the Financial Conduct Authority appears to have chosen the half-way house of imposing long notice periods on investors instead. It is consulting on the plan until 3 November, and depending on the response it could introduce the new withdrawal rule early next year. 'Property fund suspensions have occurred with increasing frequency in recent years, including following Brexit and in the current coronavirus pandemic, says the FCA. 'Fund suspensions exist to protect investors in exceptional circumstances. However, the FCA has seen repeated suspensions of these funds over recent years for liquidity reasons, which suggests that there may be wider problems.' The FCA says it is concerned that the current structure of open-ended property funds could disadvantage some investors because it incentivises them to be the first to exit at times of stress. It points out that this can potentially harm those who stay behind if the fund is suspended or assets sold off rapidly, purely to meet liquidity demands. 'The proposed notice period would allow the manager to plan sales of property assets so that it could better meet redemptions that are requested,' it says. 'It would also enable greater efficiency within these products as fund managers would be able to allocate more of the fund to property and less to cash for unanticipated redemptions.' Critics of open-ended property funds have questioned the need for them since investment trusts are readily available The FCA believes its notice period proposal could 'potentially deliver a material increase in returns' for investors, by making funds operate in a more stable and sustainable way, with more assets invested in property and less in cash. Christopher Woolard, interim boss of the FCA, adds: 'We think that our proposals will help further our consumer protection objective by reducing the number of fund suspensions, preventing unsuitable purchases of funds, and by increasing product efficiency for fund managers.' Ryan Hughes, head of active portfolios at AJ Bell, says: 'The liquidity mismatch that can occur in open-ended funds has been in sharp focus since the Woodford debacle and property funds are where this problem most often rears its head. 'There is currently over 12.5billion of investors savings trapped in open-ended property funds that are suspended. 'The FCAs proposal to introduce a notice period for withdrawals from open-ended property funds is eminently sensible. 'It will ensure that property fund managers can manage their portfolios more effectively and give them time to sell properties in a controlled way in order to meet redemptions. 'Perhaps more importantly it should also change the way investors view property funds. 'Property should be seen as a long-term investment but daily trading on these funds has led to investors assuming they can get their money back whenever they want whereas in reality this has not been the case in many instances.' But he cautioned: 'Notice periods wont call a halt to all property fund suspensions because in times of severe market stress property managers still might not be able to sell properties quickly enough. 'There will still be the requirement from 30 September this year to suspend funds when there is uncertainty over the values of more than 20 per cent of the portfolio.' Charles Incledon, client director at Bowmore Asset Management, called for clarity over whether the notice periods mean property funds are excluded from stocks and shares Isas. 'At the moment the FCA does not know whether this will be the case. Clearly it would be very damaging if the new rules were to go ahead and HM Treasury subsequently barred property funds from Isas.' He adds: 'If these rule changes are made then a lot of financial advisers will just stop recommending open-ended property funds to their private clients. That will make it harder for those investors to diversify their portfolios. 'The issue of private investors being unaware that they might be locked into a property fund during an extreme economic event could be dealt with by much more rigorous risk warnings on those funds. 'The FCA says that they dont think that their proposals would necessarily prevent funds having to suspend dealings in times of severe market stress. In which case, would the end result justify such a draconian measure?' Adrian Lowcock, head of personal investing at Willis Owen, says: 'There is no doubt by putting a six-month notice on the funds they will become unappealing to many investors, especially in a time when investors are used to being able to access a growing range of investments with daily liquidity. 'Six months is a long time for any investment and the price you get 180 days later could be materially different from the one you expected. However, the notice period will help remove short term investors and would make the asset class less volatile and less susceptible to sell-offs. 'There will be some disruption, but there are alternatives and the change should present an opportunity for investment trusts and Exchange Traded Funds to come up with a proposition that works.' Lowcock says normally you get performance data on property funds even when they are suspended, but valuers are struggling to put prices on properties right now so it is not very useful. He adds that investment trusts holding property perform more like any other shares during crises, so it is hard to tell how the sector is doing from looking at them either. Also, properties are unique and it is difficult to draw true comparisons. BEAUMONT, Calif. A wildfire northwest of Palm Springs flared up Saturday, with evacuation orders for thousands of people as firefighters fought the blaze in triple-degree heat. An unspecified number of homes were in the path of the flames but were not in imminent danger, CalFire captain Fernando Herrera told the Riverside Press-Enterprise. The blaze, which began as two adjacent fires, was reported shortly before 5 p.m. Friday in Cherry Valley, an unincorporated area near the city of Beaumont in Riverside County. Flames leapt along brushy ridge tops and came close to homes while some 375 firefighters attacked it from the ground and air, authorities said. The blaze, dubbed the Apple Fire, doubled in size overnight and is over 18 square miles. About 7,800 people have been told to evacuate over 2,500 homes, according to fire officials. Hundreds of people in foothill neighborhoods north of Beaumont fell under mandatory evacuation orders. One home has been destroyed. Herrera said firefighters were having difficulty assessing the damage because the charred ground was too hot to walk on. The National Weather Service issued an excessive heat warning as Southern California found itself in the midst of a heat wave. The mercury hit 105 degrees (41 Celsius) in Palm Springs by Saturday afternoon. The weather service said dangerously hot conditions were expected to continue into evening because of high pressure over the region. About the photo: A brush fire burns a car at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, Calif., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. A wildfire northwest of Palm Springs flared up Saturday afternoon, prompting authorities to issue new evacuation orders as crews fought the blaze in triple-degree heat. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Are Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex heading on a trajectory toward obscurity? The Sussexes were desperate to leave the spotlight and the negative media attention they attracted when they were in the royal family, but one critic predicts that the couple may soon join the ranks of Z-list celebrities. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle | Chris Jackson WPA Pool/Getty Images Prince Harry and Meghan Markle exited the royal family In January, Prince Harry and Meghan made a shocking announcement that they planned to step back from their royal duties. They explained their intentions in an Instagram post that said, in part, After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution. We intend to step back as senior members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen. Queen Elizabeth acted swiftly to finalize the details, deciding that the couple would not be able to do a half-in/half-out arrangement as they hoped. RELATED: Queen Elizabeths Final Proposition About Prince Harry and Meghan Markles Exit Shocked the World and Was Ruthlessly Clear Prince Harry and Meghan Markle could become Z-listers The couple initially moved to Canada before making their way to Los Angeles, where they now live with their son Archie, far from the royal spotlight. With fewer public sightings of the couple, the media attention has dwindled and one royal critic believes the Sussexes will eventually dip to Z-list status. Graham Smith, the head of the anti-monarchy group Republic has his doubts about Prince Harry and Meghan maintaining their level of fame, telling Express he believes theyll fade into obscurity eventually. They will just go off and do their own thing, I suspect they will fade into some obscurity, he explained. Their interest factor is that they were the duke and duchess. I think the Americans will get rather tired of them and they will become Z-list celebrities. Despite the prediction that they wont enjoy as much attention moving forward, Smith notes, However, they do have plenty of wealth to keep themselves going for the rest of their lives. The Sussexes may not get the privacy theyre seeking Prince Harry and Meghans desire for a more peaceful life was the motivation for their drastic exit plan, but royal expert Katie Nicholl told ET that she believes the couple were sorely mistaken about their hopes for more privacy. One of the key issues for them is that they are in the spotlight, she explained. They attract a huge amount of attention and their concern has always been how they would balance their private lives with their public roles. Nicholl further shared, A lot of people might think that they have been naive in expecting a greater level of privacy in Los Angeles. America has different privacy rules to the U.K. Nicholl pointed out how, in Britain, there is a gentlemans agreement between the press and the palace that offers protection. So if the couple were papped, then the British newspapers agreed with the palace that they wouldnt use those paparazzi pictures, she explained. If they had gone to L.A. hoping for a quieter life, where they could duck out of the spotlight, they were sorely mistaken, Nicholl noted. I think the Sussexes have been a little bit naive to expect that they can move to Beverly Hills, where theres clearly huge media attention on them, and not be photographed by the paparazzi. Drilling Contract Awarded for Mt Stirling Gold Project Perth, Aug 3, 2020 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Torian Resources Limited ( ASX:TNR ) is pleased to announce the engagement of a drilling contractor Precision Exploration Drilling (PXD). PXD's expertise in RC drilling and its strong local knowledge of the area, having recently drilled for both Red 5 and Torian (H1 2020), will greatly assist with the Company's progression of the Mt Stirling Gold Camp.Highlights:- Drilling contract awarded to family run Precision Exploration Drilling- Programme to be kicked off in Q3 2020, with an initial 5,000m RC drilling campaign to continue to test the depth and strike of the current 1.45 g/t Au 33,900oz JORC inferred resource at Mt Stirling- Assays from Phase 1 drilling returned grades of up to (refer ASX release 9/6/20):o 4m @ 8.84 g/t (including 33.10 g/t over 1.0 m)o 24m @ 1.26 g/t (including 2.89 g/t over 7.0 m)- Phase 1 drilling has proven that the Mt Stirling Project is emerging as a potentially large gold system with ore grade Au now intercepted over 100m below prior drilling and extends over 1,000m strike- Mt Stirling drilling to be followed by a drilling campaign to test the extent of the 2.01 g/t Au 16,000oz Stirling Well JORC inferred resource- 8,000 - 10,000m drilling campaign at the Diorite Block to commence in Q4 2020, where recent sampling returned grades of up to 21 g/t gold and 9.59 g/t silver in and around the historic 73 g/t Diorite King mine (refer ASX release 27/7/20)- The Mt Stirling Gold Camp sits adjacent to RED 5's ( ASX:RED ) 4Moz King of the Hills mine and is located within the prolific Leonora Gold district in the Eastern Goldfields, host to St Barbara's ( ASX:SBM ) 4.8Moz Gwalia Mine and Saracen's ( ASX:SAR ) 3.8Moz Thunderbox Mine- Company well-funded from recently oversubscribed Rights IssueTorian Executive Director Mt Peretz Schapiro said, "We were very impressed with the work ethic of PXD during our most recent drilling campaign at Mt Stirling and are delighted to have secured their services once again for this exciting campaign. PXD is a professional outfit and we look forward to working with them on the Mt Stirling Gold Camp in 2020 and beyond.The focus of the upcoming campaign will be to build upon our previous drilling campaign at Mt Stirling, where we learned that the Mt Stirling resource does indeed continue at depth. We will look to further test this depth as well as the extent of the existing recourse.Particular focus will be to follow up on our previous significant intercepts in the hanging wall zone of 2m at 48 g/t and 4m at 8.84 g/t (refer ASX release 9/6/20).Drilling at Mt Stirling will be followed by a campaign at Stirling Well, where we will test the extent of the current JORC resource.Following the drilling campaign at the Stirling Block, drilling will commence at the Diorite Block where we are in the process of planning an 8,000 - 10,000m drilling campaign. The campaign's targets align with the recent results of rock chip and soil sampling which returned grades of up to 21 g/t Au in and around the historic 73 g/t Diorite King mine, as well as by a detailed exploration following the report prepared by independent geophysical consultants, Southern Geoscience Consultants (ASX announcements - 29 January 2020, 15 April 2020).We are excited by the coming campaigns, which are a testament to our commitment to systematically explore our tenements.The Company is in a strong financial position and we will keep the market updated on our exploration efforts."To view tables and figures, please visit:About Torian Resources Limited Torian Resources Ltd (ASX:TNR) is a gold exploration and development company with an extensive and strategic land holding comprising eight projects and over 400km2 of tenure in the Goldfields Region of Western Australia. Torian's flagship project, Zuleika, is located along the world-class Zuleika Shear. The Zuleika Shear is the fourth largest gold producing region in Australia and consistently produces some of the country's highest grade and lowest cost gold mines. Torian's Zuleika project lies north and partly along strike of several major gold deposits including Northern Star's (ASX:NST) 7.0Moz East Kundana Joint Venture and Evolutions (ASX:EVN) 1.8Moz Frogs Legs and White Foil deposits. Torian's other projects include the strategically located Mt Stirling and Malcolm Projects in the Leonora region (near Red 5's King of the Hills Project), where it recently completed updated Mineral Resource Estimates and preliminary scoping studies, and a suite of other projects in the Kalgoorlie region including Credo Well JV Zuleika JV, Bonnie Vale, Gibraltar and Mount Monger/Wombola. Despite an upsurge in coronavirus infections in Iran and a ban on weddings and large funerals, the country's famed gatherings of mourners during the Shi'ite month of Muharram will be held. The controversial decision was announced earlier this week by Iranian President Hassan Rohani amid speculation he would bend under pressure from hard-liners who oppose any limits on religious ceremonies or closing shrines due to the pandemic. Rohani, who said the Muharram commemorations "cannot be canceled," added that all gatherings must be held in line with health protocols. "We want to mourn and not infect the mourners of Imam Hussein," he said, suggesting that the gatherings that attract thousands will be limited, especially those held in closed spaces. Muharram -- the first month of the Islamic calendar -- honors the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad who was slain in a battle in Karbala in the year 680. Believers commemorate his death during religious rituals -- which include singing, passion plays, and chest beatings in mosques and on the street -- that reach a peak on the ninth and 10th day of Muharram, known as Tasua and Ashura. People are encouraged to cry or weep during the ceremonies to show their sadness. Rohanis announcement was met with criticism by health experts and others who worry that the gatherings that attract large crowds could spark another surge in infections. "This decision should be commended if it is possible to combine Muharram mourning and observance of health protocols, but unfortunately this is not possible," the editor of the conservative Jomhuri Eslami daily, Hojatoleslam Masih Mohajeri, wrote. Mohajeri added that in the name of religion, the life of citizens was being put in danger. Minoo Mohraz, a physician who specializes in infectious diseases and is a member of Iran's task force to combat the coronavirus, warned that Muharram gatherings would be "dangerous." "Those who have not been infected so far -- and the ban on gatherings had prevented them from being infected -- could contract [the virus] by holding these gatherings," Mohraz, who earlier this year tested positive for the coronavirus, said on July 26. "The coronavirus is only being transmitted in wedding ceremonies.... Otherwise during Muharram mourning, the virus stands in a corner, beats its chest and weeps," one Twitter user said in mocking the decision. Others insisted that Muharram commemorations must take place despite the pandemic, which has killed more than 16,500 people and infected some 300,000 in Iran. The Health Ministry has in recent weeks reported nearly 200 deaths on a daily basis, which marks an increase in fatalities compare to previous months. The official death toll on August 2 stood at 218 while 2,685 new cases were confirmed. 'Even If We Die' "We have some principles that we cannot give up at all, including mourning in Muharram," Qom-based Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi was quoted as saying on July 28 by the official news agency IRNA. He added that authorities should make sure that both people's religious concerns and health protocols are taken into consideration. Hard-line cleric Ahmad Khatami, a member of the Assembly of Experts, said on July 30 that mosques, shrines, and religious ceremonies had been involved in the lowest spread of the coronavirus while most cases have been transmitted within public transport and at weddings. He gave no statistics to support that claim. "This means religious people are leading in this field and respecting health protocols," Khatami said. "Even if we die, we will hold this year's Muharram ceremonies splendidly," Saeed Haddadian, a prominent eulogist, or "maddah," who performs for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was quoted as saying earlier this week by Iranian media. Some maddahs with large followings are believed to be receive generous fees for their performances, which help galvanize support for state policies. The country's anti-coronavirus task force announced some guidelines this week for the Muharram gatherings, including mourning ceremonies in closed spaces, which will be allowed only on specific days and at limited hours. In authorized places, mourning gatherings can take place only by observing certain rules, including reduced hours, respecting social-distancing protocols, and the use of masks, the task force said. Health Minister Saeed Namaki said on July 29 that Iran's Muharram ceremonies will be "a model" for Shi'ite Muslims in other countries. "We want to record in history that we commemorated Imam Hussein...and introduced a lasting and exemplary model to the world," Namaki said in a meeting with a group of eulogists and preachers. 'Millions More' Amid the debate about Muharram gatherings, many have also expressed concern about university entrance tests due to be held in late August. Mohraz, the physician, this week called on the government to delay the tests or hold them in an open space under tight social-distancing rules. "In closed spaces, the virus can be transmitted even with face masks," she said, warning that the pandemic had peaked in many cities and provinces, including the capital, Tehran. Millions more could become infected, she warned. The board of Iran's medical associations also warned in a letter on July 30 that the country's COVID-19 death toll could climb to 1,600 a day if mass gatherings -- including university entrance exams and Muharram ceremonies -- are allowed to be held. Iran has been struggling to contain the coronavirus pandemic since February, when the first cases -- two deaths -- were confirmed in the holy city of Qom. Restrictions imposed in February and March aimed at controlling the outbreak, the worst in the Middle East, were quickly eased amid concerns over the economy, which is already under immense pressure due to crippling U.S. sanctions imposed after Washington unilaterally exited the landmark 2015 nuclear deal Iran signed with six world powers. Deputy Health Minister Iraj Harirchi said on July 29 that 26 of the country's 31 provinces were facing dangerous or alarming levels of risk due to the coronavirus pandemic. "Seventy-two million live in provinces where an alarming situation exists," said Harirchi, who was infected but has since recovered from COVID-19. Sushant Singh Rajputs sister Priyanka Singh has shared a heartbreaking message in the memory of her late brother on Raksha Bandhan. She shared a happy black-and-white picture of the two flashing big smiles for the camera as they pose with a dog. She wrote along with it, Missing u immensely my soulmate @itsSSR; you will always be in my heart.... no words to describe the void. Earlier in morning, Sushants sister Shweta Singh Kirti had shared a collage of several throwback pictures from their Raksha Bandhan celebrations. One of the pictures show Sushant as a baby surrounded by his sisters, all older to him, as they receive their Raksha Bandhan gift from their mother on his behalf. Other pictures show them tying him rakhi one by one. She shared the photos on Instagram with a heartfelt note, Happy Rakshabandhan mera sweet sa baby... bahut pyaar karte hain hum aapko jaan... aur hamesha karte rahenge (Happy Rakshabandhan my sweet baby...we love you a lot and will keep loving always)... you were, you are and you will always be our PRIDE! @sushantsinghrajput #happyrakshabandhan. Shweta, on Saturday, had appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to look into the actors case. She posted a brief note on her social media handles, requesting the PM to look into the death case of her brother and ensure that there is no tampering with the evidences. We are from a very simple family. My brother had no Godfather when he was in Bollywood nor do we have anyone right now. My request to you is to immediately look into this case and make sure that everything is handled in a sanitised way and no evidences are tampered with. Expecting justice to prevail, she wrote. Also read: Rhea Chakraborty is not missing, she has not got summons from Bihar Police: lawyer Sushant, 34, was found dead at his Bandra residence. The actors untimely demise was followed by a high-profile investigation by Mumbai Police during which many big names from Bollywood, including filmmakers Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Aditya Chopra, recorded their statements. Over a month after the actors death, his father lodged a police complaint in Patna against his girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty, accusing her of abetting the suicide. (With PTI inputs) Follow @htshowbiz for more SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON M S Thanaraj By Express News Service TIRUCHY: Here is some news that will raise the morale of the police force bruised and battered by the negative image in the aftermath of two custodial deaths down South, a woman inspector is looked upon as guardian angel by destitutes in Tiruchy city. Going beyond her official responsibilities, Jothimani of the Serious Crimes Squad makes it a point to reach out to the underprivileged and those uncared for who have made Tiruchy roads their home. Sundays used to add to the helplessness of destitute people in the city, as there was total lockdown, not anymore. Since June, Jothimani has ensured that no one living on the streets goes hungry and distributed food to 160 to 300 people every Sunday. "They can manage on weekdays as many kindhearted people come forward to help them. But on Sundays, they go hungry as no one is around to help. I started the initiative of distributing lunch to destitute people in the city. After the first week and seeing the happiness in their eyes at getting something to eat, I decided to continue until lockdown is lifted," Jothimani told TNIE. She spends from her pocket to prepare the food for the poor. Keen on providing quality fare, she eats the food herself before distributing it to those on the streets. With permission from the Police Commissioner, she travels around the city distributing food and water bottles to the destitute. Apart from providing food, she has personally purchased masks and distributed them to the people. She said, "I appeal to the district administration to take necessary measures to accommodate these people in special homes for their well-being." Bangkok: Thailand's crown prince Maha Vajiralongkorn is set to become the country's next king after the cabinet formally recommended his name of parliament on Tuesday, paving the way for his endorsement after the death of revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej last month. "The NLA (National Legislative Assembly) has received the cabinet's resolution. The NLA will now invite the crown prince to accede to the throne and become the next king of Thailand," NLA president Pornpetch Wichitichoichai said. King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who was also known as King Rama IX, died here on October 13 this year at the age of 88, plunging Thailand into mourning. Tuesday's meeting put to rest the speculation over his succession when the junta made an announcement that the 63-year-old crown prince had asked at that time to delay his official proclamation so that he could mourn. The meeting was attended by 243 lawmakers out of 250 NLA members. At the end of the session, Pornpetch asked the attending lawmakers to stand up in a show of respect to "the new King". The meeting was held under the interim constitution under which the cabinet submits the heir's name for acknowledgment. The monarchy occupies a pivotal place in Thailand's political order. King Bhumibol Adulyadej had been seen as a unifying figure amid periods of political unrest, including during the most recent military coup in 2014. The leader of Thailand's Parliament, the National Legislative Assembly, is expected to meet with the crown prince in the next few days to formally invite him. Once the crown prince accepts, his succession would then be announced to the public, BBC reported. But it is still not clear when that will happen. Former prime minister Prem Tinsulanonda is currently standing in as regent. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 10:00:12|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BUENOS AIRES, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- Argentina will pursue a debt refinancing program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) if its current debt renegotiation with private creditors fails to lead to an agreement, Economy Minister Martin Guzman said on Sunday. To avoid defaulting on more than 66 billion U.S. dollars in foreign debt, Argentina's government has proposed some debt alleviation and a longer repayment schedule. So far, creditors have rejected Argentina's terms, but the country "does not have the capacity to offer more," Guzman told a local daily. "If there is no agreement, we will go ahead with the IMF on a new program. And we will talk to the private sector again in six or eight months, but with a deeper restructuring proposal," Guzman said. "We are evaluating all our options ... The reality is that there is no more in terms of what the country can pay year by year. We have made the maximum effort possible," Guzman said. Argentina's latest offer, submitted on July 6 to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, would see the country repay approximately 53.4 dollars of every 100 dollars of debt, following a one-year grace period before starting to make payments. Creditors made a counter offer, asking for 56 dollars of every 100 dollars of debt. However, "you have to understand what those three dollars mean. We are talking about billions of dollars in a situation of fragility and strong restrictions," said Guzman, warning that it would force the government to risk further financial instability. It is now up to creditors to decide whether to save the country from default, which would lead to a suspension of debt payments, said the minister. Argentina and the IMF agreed to a stand-by deal in mid-2018 for the release of around 56.7 billion dollars, of which the country has received about 44.1 billion dollars in disbursements. Enditem New Delhi: A September schedule is starting to look more likely for the much-awaited monsoon session of Parliament as the chances of safely starting proceedings in August appear to be thinning due to the continued rise in Covid-19 cases in India, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter. Indias top legislative authorities, including Rajya Sabha chairman M Venkaiah Naidu and Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla, are keeping a close watch on the status of the pandemic in the Capital and elsewhere to finalise the dates for the session. An improvement in Delhi in recent weeks offers a glimmer of hope, but greater progress in the Capitals fight against Covid-19, and some measure of control in other parts of the country may be needed to ensure suitable attendance by members, the people cited above indicated. Under the Indian Constitution, the duration between the end of one session and the start of the next cannot exceed six months. So, Parliament has a window till September 23 to start the monsoon session, after the budget session ended on March 23, two days before a 68-day national lockdown kicked in. Once the dates are finalised, officials involved in the planning of the session say they would require at least four weeks to put the arrangements in place. Monsoon session in August looks very tight. Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha secretariats have discussed a couple of seating options with the government. A final view on them is yet to be taken. Once the Union Cabinet decides, it will take about four weeks to put in place necessary arrangements, said an official who asked not to be named. Logistical issues are challenge because scheduling the session will require special Covid-19 arrangements -- from the seating of MPs to ensure social distancing , to the timing of the proceedings in the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha, which are likely to work in shifts to avoid crowding. The session may be a short one, with lawmakers spread across different buildings and attending hybrid mix of physical and digital proceedings. Theres not a heavy business to transact. The priority of the government is to clear the ordinances promulgated in the past few months and the Opposition might press for debates on the Covid pandemic and the Indo-China border conflict, said a second official involved in the preparations. Officials close to Naidu said the Rajya Sabha chairman had secured isolation-related relaxations for MPs travelling to Delhi to attend Parliament or parliamentary committee meetings. Naidu told the home ministry that government officials dont have to undergo isolation after travelling to other places. If they can be exempted from isolation for doing official duty, MPs too travelling on official duty should be given the same exemptions. The home ministry has agreed, a third official said. Giant screens to beam parliamentary proceedings, with engineers from the National Informatics Centre on call, and provisions for possible latency -- these are among the issues Naidu and Birla and their teams are discussing. 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DENVER The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday ruled that a Colorado man cannot be deported from the United States based on his drug conviction. Everett Johnson, a citizen of the Bahamas who became a permanent resident of the U.S. in 1977, pleaded guilty in 2016 to possessing a schedule II controlled substance in Colorado, The Denver Post reported. Based on the drug conviction, the Department of Homeland Security and the Board of Immigration Appeals sought Johnsons removal from the U.S. back to the Bahamas. Johnson, through his attorneys, petitioned the circuit court for a review of the deportation orders. The court ruled that because the Colorado Revised Statute used as a basis for deportation is overbroad and indivisible as to the identity of a particular controlled substance, Johnsons conviction cannot subject him to removal from the United States. A state drug conviction cannot qualify as a basis for removal if the state statutes elements are broader than the federal analogue, the court said. The Colorado statute criminalizes more substances than Section 802 of Title 21 in the federal Controlled Substances Act. More specifically, Johnson asserted that the Colorado statute was overbroad because it criminalized possessing a substance called morpholine a substance that the CSA does not criminalize, the ruling said. Fridays ruling will have broad implications and could affect hundreds of people in Colorado who face deportation on drug convictions, according to Hans Meyer, one of Johnsons lawyers. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani discussed the evolving security situation in the region and other areas of mutual and bilateral interest on Monday, the Prime Minister's Office said. During a phone call, the two also exchanged Eid-ul-Adha greetings. President Ghani thanked Prime Minister Modi for timely supply of food and medical assistance to meet Afghan requirement. Modi reiterated India's commitment to the people of Afghanistan in their quest for a peaceful, prosperous and inclusive Afghanistan, the PMO statement said. "The two leaders also exchanged views on the evolving security situation in the region and other areas of mutual, bilateral interest," it said. The phone call happened as reports said Afghan forces retook a prison in the country's east, a day after the Islamic State terrorist group attacked the facility in which at least 29 people were killed. Vietnam's health minister suggested that a new strain of coronavirus is behind its recent spike in cases. Each patient has been found to infect five to six people on average, he said, compared with a range of 1.8 to 2.2 before, Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long said Sunday. The strain appears to be new to Vietnam but has been seen in the British Isles and Bangladesh. Viruses mutate over time, but scientists that does not necessarily result in a virus becoming more contagious or dangerous. Vietnam's latest outbreak, first found in Da Nang on July 25, ended the country's 99-day streak of no new cases. Vietnam has said its health system could not handle a mass outbreak. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Medical specialists in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Friday working on blood samples collected for a coronavirus rapid test from people who recently returned from Da Nang. Getty Vietnam's health minister has blamed a more infectious strain of coronavirus for the country's recent spike in infections. Nguyen Thanh Long, the country's health minister, said on Sunday that those infected with the new strain have infected five to six people on average, Reuters reported. Those infected with the original strain of COVID-19, which arrived in Vietnam in late January, passed it to an average of 1.8 to 2.2 people, he said. Related video: What we know about immunity for the coronavirus While the strain is new to Vietnam, it has been seen before in Bangladesh, Britain, and Ireland, according to Vietnamese scientists. The latest cases, which were first found July 25, marked the end of a 99-day streak without any new cases. Residents waiting to be tested at a makeshift rapid testing center in Hanoi on Friday. Getty Since then, 204 new cases have been identified, mainly in the region surrounding the coastal city of Da Nang. Domestic tourists had flocked to Da Nang for their vacations, but 80,000 people were evacuated by plane last week after cases began to rise. At the time, health authorities said the infections looked to be caused by a different strain of the coronavirus, which Long said had not been seen in Vietnam before July 25, the BBC reported. A mutated coronavirus strain doesn't necessarily mean it's more contagious or dangerous Story continues There are multiple strains of the novel coronavirus; the original D614 strain was found in Wuhan, China, in December. Viruses mutate because of genetic errors over time. But mutations do not necessarily result in viruses becoming any more dangerous. There is also not enough evidence to say that mutated strains of the new coronavirus are more contagious than the original. A staff member assisting passengers as they lined up for temperature checks at Da Nang International Airport on July 27. HOANG KHANH/AFP via Getty Images However, Marc Choisy, a biomathematician from the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit in Hanoi, told the Associated Press that many of the new cases in Vietnam right now seem worse than prior ones. "One big difference I've noticed between this wave and the previous one is that the cases we have right now, a lot of them are severe," he said. Long said he could not confirm reports in local media that the new strain was more contagious or more dangerous than its predecessor. As of Monday morning, Vietnam had 621 confirmed infections and six deaths. The World Health Organization had previously singled out Vietnam for its efforts in containing the virus, but the spike in cases is a somber moment. Vietnam imposed a strict lockdown and travel ban early on, with the knowledge that the health system could not cope with a mass outbreak in mind. For example, all 10,000 residents of Son Loi, a town near Hanoi, were placed under lockdown for 21 days in February, despite there being only 16 confirmed cases in the whole of Vietnam at the time, the AP reported. Read the original article on Business Insider Containers are unloaded at Qingdao Port in Shandong province in March. [Photo by Yu Fangping/For China Daily] Chinese leaders have vowed to strengthen the country's economic opening-up drive, which is not in conflict with its recent emphasis on boosting domestic demand but will benefit the global economic recovery, analysts said. China will continue to be committed to reform and opening-up and efforts in that respect will be strengthened, according to a decision made at a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee on Thursday. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, presided over the meeting. The country's top leadership has on various occasions, including Thursday's meeting, reaffirmed the idea of a dual-cycle development pattern, meaning the country's growth will rely on both domestic and international economic developments, with the domestic cycle being the mainstay. Such a focus on domestic demand is rational due to the serious fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, which has dampened domestic economic activities and reduced international demand for Chinese products and services, analysts said. "In the new era, the domestic cycle is the main link, supported by the international cycle, and as the advantage of China's super-large domestic market is brought out and its domestic economy is revitalized, there would be new impetus for the country's overall growth," said Liang Haiming, chairman of the Guangzhou-based China Silk Road iValley Research Institute. The emphasis on domestic development does not mean China will withdraw from the international division of labor, nor does it mark its shift away from its opening-up orientation, said CITIC Securities in a research note. "It does not mean China will close its door," said Zhu Jianfang, chief economist at CITIC Securities. China will continue to open up its economy and be committed to ushering in more international companies to participate in the nation's high-quality development, contributing to the building of a new development pattern featuring both domestic and international cycles, said Liang, who is also dean of the Hainan University Belt and Road Research Institute. "China's reform and opening-up will be further strengthened in the future and the country will explore higher-level and more liberal opening-up policies," he said. Such policies would include the accelerated building of the free trade port in Hainan province, where a taxation management mechanism featuring low tariffs, low tax rates and simplified taxation procedures will be established to achieve the free flow of goods, personnel, capital and data, Liang said. They would also include efforts to accelerate implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative, encourage the signing of regional comprehensive economic partnership agreements and bilateral free trade negotiations with some of its trade partners, and explore the management model for pre-establishment national treatment and a negative list, he said. Pre-establishment national treatment means that foreign investors and their investments will be granted treatment no less favorable than that granted to domestic investors and their investments at the initial entrance stage of the investment. The financial sector would also be further opened to establish a highly accommodative, competition-based and inclusive system, Liang predicted. This year will be one when China will further expand its opening-up drive, said Wei Jianguo, vice-chairman of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges. "The negative list will be further shortened (to reduce areas forbidden for foreign investment) and China will release more reform and opening-up policies in the second half of this year," Wei told a recent forum. "China's pursuit of dual-cycle development has actually posed higher requirements for opening-up," said Shen Jianguang, vice-president and chief economist at JD Digits. "China's vast domestic market should be better utilized to further open up the economy and attract investment," he said. China's commitment to opening-up has been felt by international companies. Mark Dorn, president of Henkel Asia-Pacific, said that China's continuous opening-up creates a healthier and more competitive business environment and new opportunities for multinationals such as Henkel. "We see a series of favorable policies has been recently issued to support companies. we still hold a positive outlook toward the Chinese market in the long run," he said. Despite the recurrence of anti-globalization sentiment in some countries, China has maintained its commitment to opening-up after it successfully resumed work and production amid the many uncertainties posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. "China is an important link in the global industry and supply chains and the world's second-largest economy. Its rebound will help enhance global economic recovery," said Liang from Hainan University. Hume was seen as the principal architect behind the peace agreement ending sectarian violence in Northern Ireland. Politician John Hume, who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to end violence in his native Northern Ireland, has died at the age of 83, according to his family. The former lawmaker had dementia and suffered ill health for a number of years. The Catholic leader of the moderate Social Democratic and Labour Party, Hume was seen as the principal architect behind the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement. He shared the prize with David Trimble, the leader of the Protestant Ulster Unionist Party. Leaders of the two biggest parties in Northern Ireland at the time, were awarded for their efforts to end the sectarian violence that plagued the region for 30 years. Hume, a civil rights leader who joined the Northern Irish civil rights movement in the 1960s, saw nationalism as a declining force. He sought self-government for Northern Ireland with power divided among the groups forming it. Ireland is not a romantic dream; it is not a flag; it is 4.5 million people divided into two powerful traditions, Hume said. The solution will be found not on the basis of victory for either, but on the basis of agreement and a partnership between both. The real division of Ireland is not a line drawn on the map, but in the minds and hearts of its people, he said. The peace process While both Hume and Trimble credited the people of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, it was Humes diplomacy that gave impetus to the peace process. Hume won a breakthrough in Belfasts political landscape in 1993 by courting Gerry Adams, head of Sinn Fein, the political wing of the Irish Republican Army, in hopes of securing an IRA ceasefire. The IRA, a paramilitary organisation in Ireland, believed that the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland should together be an independent republic free from British rule. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday that John Hume was quite simply a political giant. He stood proudly in the tradition that was totally opposed to violence and committed to pursuing his objectives by exclusively peaceful and democratic means, Johnson said. With his passing we have lost a great man who did so much to help bring an end to the Troubles and build a better future for all. TikTok has stressed that its US user data is already stored on US-based servers and backed up in Singapore, and is therefore not subject to Chinese law as some US officials have feared. Technology giant Microsoft has said it will continue talks to purchase the popular Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok's American business after its India-born CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald Trump had a conversation. The statement from Microsoft came days after Trump said that he could use the emergency economic powers or an executive order to ban TikTok in the US over national security issues. Redmond-headquartered Microsoft, in a statement on Sunday, said that following a conversation between Nadella and Trump, it is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the US. Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President's concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury, the statement said. Microsoft will move quickly to pursue discussions with TikTok's parent company ByteDance in a matter of weeks and will complete these discussions in any event by September 15, it said. During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States government, including with the President, the company said. Trump recently threatened to ban the popular video-sharing app in the US after concerns were raised that it could be a national security risk. "As far as TikTok is concerned, we're banning them from the US," Trump told reporters on Friday. Microsoft said the discussions with ByteDance, TikTok's parent firm, will build upon a notification made by Microsoft and ByteDance to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). Microsoft added that "in any event" it would finish talking with ByteDance no later than September 15. The two companies have provided notice of their intent to explore a preliminary proposal that would involve a purchase of the TikTok service in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and would result in Microsoft owning and operating TikTok in these markets. Microsoft may also invite other American investors to participate on a minority basis in this purchase. This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections. The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries, Microsoft said. It said that among other measures, Microsoft would ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the US. To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the US, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred, it said. Microsoft said it appreciates the US government and Trump's personal involvement as it continues to develop strong security protections for the country. The technology giant said that the discussions are preliminary and there was no assurance that a transaction which involves Microsoft will proceed. We do not intend to provide further updates until there is a definitive outcome to our discussions, it said. India has banned as many as 106 Chinese apps, including TikTok, a move welcomed by both the Trump administration and the US lawmakers. US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Sunday said TikTok cannot stay in the current format in the US as it "risks sending back information on 100 million Americans". I've said publicly that it's under review. I will say publicly that the entire committee agrees that TikTok cannot stay in the current format because it risks sending back information on 100 million Americans," Mnuchin, who chairs the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US, told the ABC News. Mnuchin said he has spoken to several top American lawmakers and all agree that "there has to be a change". The president can either force a sale or the president can block the app using IEEPA (International Emergency Economic Powers Act). And I'm not going to comment on my specific discussions with the president, he said in response to a question. In recent weeks, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has accused TikTok of collecting personal information of Americans. TikTok has previously stressed that its US user data is already stored on US-based servers and backed up in Singapore, and is therefore not subject to Chinese law as some US officials have feared. Photograph: Reuters Statins are not particularly effective at reducing the risk of dying from heart disease, a study claims. Scientists analysed 35 studies into the effects of the drugs which lower 'bad' LDL cholesterol and found the pills have no consistent benefit. The research, published in the British Medical Journal, found three quarters of all trials reported no reduction in mortality among those who took the drugs. And half of all studies suggested that cholesterol-busting pills did not prevent heart attacks or strokes. The research flies in the face of decades of medical advice. Authors claimed doctors have overlooked evidence that suggests statins, which are routinely prescribed to people at risk of heart disease, are not effective. Scientists analysed 35 previous studies into the effects of drugs which lower 'bad' LDL cholesterol, finding that the pills have no consistent benefit Lead author Dr Robert DuBroff, from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, said that 'it seems intuitive and logical' to target LDL cholesterol because it is considered essential for the development of cardiovascular disease. But, they added: 'Considering that dozens of trials of LDL-cholesterol reduction have failed to demonstrate a consistent benefit, we should question the validity of this theory.' Around 8million people in Britain and 35million in the US take statins. They are thought to prevent heart attacks and strokes by lowering levels of LDL cholesterol in the blood. Statins are routinely prescribed to people thought to be at risk of heart disease, including those with diabetes, high blood pressure and over-75s. WHY ARE STATINS CONTROVERSIAL? Up to six million adults in Britain currently take statins to lower their cholesterol levels and thereby reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes. But many doctors and patients are worried about their long-term harms and they have been linked to diabetes, muscular pain and memory loss. Scores are uneasy with what they describe as the 'overmedicalisation' of the middle-aged, which sees statins doled out 'just in case' patients have heart problems in later life. Supporters on the other hand, including the health watchdog Nice, say the pills should be prescribed more widely to prevent thousands of early deaths. They are proven to help people who have suffered heart problems in the past. But experts say the thresholds may be too high, meaning benefits are outweighed by side effects for many people. Commonly reported side effects include headache, muscle pain and nausea, and statins can also increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, hepatitis, pancreatitis and vision problems or memory loss. Advertisement However, in the new study, scientists argue that widespread prescription of statins is not particularly effective at reducing death. If anything, they argue, the focus on cholesterol levels fails to identify many of those at high risk of heart disease while including those at low risk, who don't need treatment. The researchers systematically reviewed all published clinical trials comparing treatment with one of three types of cholesterol lowering drugs - statins, ezetimibe and PCSK9. Their analysis showed that over three quarters of all the trials reported no positive impact on risk of death and nearly half reported no positive impact on risk of future cardiovascular disease. The researchers claimed that doctors have overlooked evidence which suggests statins are not effective. Dr DuBroff said: 'In most fields of science the existence of contradictory evidence usually leads to a paradigm shift or modification of the theory in question, but in this case the contradictory evidence has been largely ignored, simply because it doesn't fit the prevailing paradigm.' However, the findings were criticized by several other experts who stressed that there is lots of evidence showing the health benefits of lowering cholesterol. Cardiologist Professor Robert Storey, from the University of Sheffield, said: 'There is a huge amount of evidence showing that LDL or "bad" cholesterol is responsible, to a large extent, for the build-up of fat in the blood vessels supplying the heart, brain and other parts of the body. 'People who have developed furring of these blood vessels) benefit greatly from treatment to lower cholesterol, such as statins, and this has contributed to a big fall in risk for patients who have had the most common types of heart attack and stroke. 'Where the evidence becomes less clear is for the use of cholesterol-lowering treatment in people who do not have any evidence of furring of the arteries. 'This is because people who do not have ongoing furring of the arteries will not benefit in a meaningful way from cholesterol treatments over the few years that it takes to do a clinical trial, although this does not mean that they won't benefit over a longer period of time if they are at higher risk of cardiovascular disease.' Alun Hughes, professor of cardiovascular physiology and pharmacology at UCL, said the authors had conducted 'flawed analysis of published data'. He added: 'In contrast to the authors' conclusion, I think there is convincing evidence that statins reduce total mortality and cardiovascular events.' Professor Sir Nilesh Samani, medical director at the British Heart Foundation, yesterday defended the use of statins. He said: Theres no question that statins save lives. As one of the most widely prescribed drugs in the UK, they have been subject to a huge amount of in-depth scientific research, which time and time again, has shown that theyre a safe and effective way to prevent deadly heart attacks and strokes. Flawed analysis of this vast evidence leads to unnecessary concern and confusion for patients, which can ultimately cost lives. If you have been prescribed statins you should continue to take them regularly, as prescribed. If you have any concerns you should discuss your medication with your GP. (Bloomberg Opinion) -- Intellectual property is a convenient fiction. It is a right enforced by state power and international agreements, one thats even more fragile than other forms of property rights since its not tangible. We choose to believe this fiction because we also believe that intellectual property adds to general welfare. It permits innovation and growth, and supports writers, artists, inventors and pharmaceutical companies. But crises upend beliefs and we are in a crisis at the moment. We should all hope the tradition of treating intellectual property as a real thing survives the pandemic. That hope must be especially keen among the companies most at risk if the myth breaks down: the pharma industry. Nothing is more likely to test this consensus than hints of profiteering off the war against Covid-19. A Financial Times report that the U.S.-based company Moderna Inc. has sought to price its vaccine candidate around $50-$60 per course, for example, has shaken public health establishments across the world. The story also suggested that while Moderna might offer developing countries a lower price, rich countries would get privileged access to the vaccine. Let me tell you the consequences if that happens and Modernas vaccine performs better than its cheaper competitors: The patent on the vaccine will be widely ignored. The consensus on intellectual property, painstakingly built up over time and spread worldwide over the past two decades, will be busted. I dont want to single out Moderna here. It doesnt have a single successful commercial drug, nor any other Phase 3 candidates; its need to make money off this vaccine is arguably acute. Larger drug companies are different. Yet Pfizer Inc.s CEO recently said that calls for companies not to consider making a profit on their Covid-19 vaccines were fanatic and radical. (AstraZeneca PLC and Johnson & Johnson have promised a not-for-profit effort on their Covid-19 vaccines, so Pfizer clearly has an odd definition of fanatic and radical.) Story continues If a vaccine proves too expensive or difficult to obtain, those who seek exorbitant profits off of it will be scrutinized far more closely than bankers were after the 2008 crash. Actions like those that have already allowed insiders to pocket $80 million will provoke public revulsion, even if those trades were pre-scheduled. Calls to regulate sectors that take for granted intellectual property protections will grow exponentially. Those demands wont be fanatical or radical, but mainstream. It will be hard enough to preserve the myth of intellectual property within rich countries. Once international capital flows are involved, itll be impossible. Cash-strapped governments around the world are not going to pay tens of billions for vaccines needed to save the lives of their citizens. Any attempts to collect using the traditional trading and legal architecture will be ignored and will indeed lead to those institutions being seen as discredited or even immoral. There is a lesson here that goes beyond the pandemic. If we are not sufficiently careful over the next decade, one likely economic future consists of tech lords, data czars and algorithm owners sitting in the U.S. or in China soaking up rents and payments from consumers in the rest of the world. That is simply unsustainable. Asian, African and even European governments will step in and prevent those streams of payments from being made. Global intellectual property requires the consent and enforcement of every state, not just one government. That consent will not be given if the capital flows involved appear to be one-way and permanent. A world without global intellectual property would be one of constant electronic warfare. State-backed hacking, such as China apparently tried with Moderna this week, would be a constant threat. Nor would companies enjoy a comfortable relationship with their own governments, who would see them less as engines of growth and more as storehouses of national wealth and security. The days before copyright were tough. When the Murano glassmakers industrial processes were considered state secrets in the Republic of Venice, the doges would kill any artisan who left the island. That isnt a world we want to live in. Its up to pharma companies and rich-country governments to ensure that were not forced to do so. The World Health Organization has asked those with relevant intellectual property to sign up to the Covid-19 Technology Access Pool, which will make vaccines broadly available across the world. Too few have. Perhaps, as some pharma companies have done, IP holders can make it clear they will only seek to profit from their vaccines once the pandemic is over. A little patience would serve them and the world well in the long run. This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners. Mihir Sharma is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He was a columnist for the Indian Express and the Business Standard, and he is the author of Restart: The Last Chance for the Indian Economy. 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. Former SDLP leader and Nobel peace prize winner John Hume has died aged 83. Here are some of his most memorable quotes. I never thought in terms of being a leader. I thought very simply in terms of helping people. When people are divided, the only solution is agreement. I grew up in Derry, of course, and it was Derry was the worst example of Northern Irelands discrimination. They believed that Britain was in Ireland defending their own interests, therefore the Irish had the right to use violence to put them out. My argument was that that type of thinking was out of date. Ireland is not a romantic dream; it is not a flag; it is 4.5 million people divided into two powerful traditions. The solution will be found not on the basis of victory for either, but on the basis of agreement and a partnership between both. The real division of Ireland is not a line drawn on the map, but in the minds and hearts of its people. I want to see Ireland as an example to men and women everywhere of what can be achieved by living for ideals, rather than fighting for them, and by viewing each and every person as worthy of respect and honour. I want to see an Ireland of partnership where we wage war on want and poverty, where we reach out to the marginalised and dispossessed, where we build together a future that can be as great as our dreams allow. NEW HAVEN The city aims to tackle a long-standing problem of dirt bike and ATV riders sometimes more than 100 at a time swarming city streets, terrorizing drivers and pedestrians. The tactic is this: An updated ordinance that increases the fine for those caught, up to a maximum of $2,000. This issue is one of the most frequent complaints that I get in every single neighborhood around the city, Mayor Justin Elicker said Monday. He said every resident, every senior, every child crossing the street deserves to be able to do that safely. Elicker said the ordinance amendment will give the city more tools to tackle the problem, which attracts riders from around the state and beyond Connecticut. Typically, the mayor said, those participating are not from New Haven. Elicker, speaking at a press conference in City Hall, said this is an issue around the state. Dirt bikes and ATVs cannot legally ride on the sidewalk or on any street. The ordinance continues to ban them completely from anyplace in the city, including all parks and schools. New Haven has a strict no-chase policy for safety reasons. The mayor said the riders do it because they can get away with it. I think we should not tolerate that, Elicker said. Police Chief Otoniel Reyes said oftentimes these individuals, who are engaging in reckless behavior, they want to be pursued. They are taunting the police to be pursued. He said this has pushed the city to be creative in how it tackles the problem. New Haven plans to do it by keeping it in-house through increased fines and accountability, rather than clogging the courts, Reyes said. He said they are looking for a deterrent that also does not criminalize behavior, particularly for young people. The chief said they would rather use other options than put the riders into the justice system. Drivers, passengers and owners, who knowingly allow the bikes to be operated illegally, will be subject to increased fines. The first offense will cost $1,000, up from $99; second offense is $1,500; and $2,000 after that. Other changes to the ordinance included the addition of ATVs to the list of banned motorized vehicles, said city Corporation Counsel Patricia King. Assistant Police Chief Karl Jacobson has been the point person on this issue, holding meetings in neighborhoods, talking with the dealers and gas station owners and sharing intelligence with other departments who may hear of meet-ups by the traveling riders. The dirt bikes and ATVs being operated illegally will be seized, which the Police Department has done previously. They can be auctioned off, but the city does not want to continue to see them in operation here or in other towns. They also can be destroyed. Jacobson said the city so far this year has seized an estimated 15 vehicles. Dirt bike and ATV dealers, under the proposed amended ordinance, will be required to post the ordinance in their facilities. One of the things we are trying to do is to put an onus on the individuals selling these bikes ... understanding obviously that ultimately it is the individual person buying these bikes to act appropriately, Reyes said. Gas stations will be prohibited from selling gasoline to the riders and must post signs to that effect. If they sell to illegal riders, the stations will be subject to $100 fine per rider. The updated ordinance adds a hearing process for those trying to get back their property. Reyes and Jacobson said the number of instances this year appears to be the same as last year, that the pandemic doesnt seem to have increased the behavior. New Haven, because it was able to seize bikes last year, has been contacted by other towns hoping to replicate that success. The ordinance was scheduled to be submitted to the Board of Alders Monday to begin the adoption process, which will take a public hearing at the committee level before it comes back to the full board, which can take more than a month. Around Connecticut, other communities also are keeping an eye on those riding illegally. At this point we do not have any proposals to eliminate ATVs, however we are watching New Haven closely, said Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton. We do not have any areas where you can ride. The liability is just too much. Middletown police Lt. Heather Desmond said dirt bikes and ATVs arent as much of an issue in Middletown as they are in other cities. When law enforcement does come across violators, she said, they usually find them in the more rural areas of the city. We usually figure out where they live and either issue a warning or ticket depending on the scenario, Desmond said. Microsoft has said it will 'move quickly' with talks to buy TikTok after President Trump gave his personal blessing to the firm's advances. The tech giant confirmed it was in discussions with Bytedance, the popular Chinese video-sharing app's parent company, after it emerged it could be banned in the US. On Friday the potential deal looked imperilled, when the US president told journalists he was opposed to an American firm taking TikTok over. Watching brief: Microsoft confirmed it was in discussions with Bytedance, TikTok's parent company, after it emerged it could be banned in the US But after Trump spoke with Microsoft boss Satya Nadella, the company said it would address his concerns and seek security clearances for any agreement struck. Microsoft said they 'will move quickly to pursue discussions with Bytedance in a matter of weeks' over buying TikTok. But Fred Hu, chairman of Primavera Capital Group, an investor in Bytedance and one of China's best known private equity groups, said a selling to Microsoft 'absolutely makes no sense'. The investor added: 'Bytedance is an innocent victim of the mad politics.' An official of Bihar police said on Tuesday that actress Rhea Chakraborty, against whom an abetment to suicide case has been registered in connection with Sushant Singh Rajput's death, was under their watch. The Bihar police also recorded the statement of film director, Rumi Jaffrey, in the case in Mumbai during the day, said an official. The four-member Bihar police team arrived in Mumbai on Wednesday to probe the abetment to suicide case registered against Chakraborty and others in Patna. On Saturday the team visited the Bandra police station in connection with the investigation. When asked whether Chakraborty would be interrogated, an official of the Bihar police said, "It is not required as of now. But she is under our watch." Another member of the visiting team said they have sent a notice to Chakraborty under relevant sections of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), asking her to cooperate with the police in the probe. He also said that the Mumbai police were cooperating with them in the investigation of the case. The team also recorded the statement of film director Rumi Jaffrey. Jaffrey, who was reportedly going to cast Sushant Singh Rajput and Rhea Chakraborty together, was quizzed for around four hours, said an official. They would be recording the statements of four-five more persons from the film industry, he said. Krishna Kumar Singh (74), Rajput's father, lodged a complaint against Chakraborty and six others including her family members in Patna on Tuesday. The case was registered under various IPC sections including 341 (wrongful restraint), 342 (wrongful confinement), 380 (theft in dwelling house), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and 306 (abetment of suicide). Singh accused Chakraborty, a budding TV and film actor, of having befriended his son in May 2019 with the intention of furthering her own career and exploiting him. Rajput was found hanging in his suburban Bandra apartment on June 14. A Mumbai police official said earlier in the day that the visiting team had recorded the statements of six persons as part of the probe. "Till now, the police team from Bihar has met the late actor's friends, colleagues and relatives. They have recorded the statements of six persons- Rajput's sister, who stays in Versova, former girlfriend Ankita Lokhande, a cook, his friends and colleagues," the official said. LOYALIST thug Collin Simms has been kicked out of the South East Antrim UDA. The convicted drug dealer and killer driver was summoned to a meeting last week in Carrickfergus where he was officially 'stood down'. Three of his UDA cronies were also read the riot act, but escaped being expelled from the terror gang. The final straw for South East Antrim UDA boss Gary Fisher was Simms throwing a party after being told he was no longer on police bail in connection with the murder of Glenn Quinn. The popular 48-year-old was beaten to death by UDA members at his Carrickfergus flat in January. The killing occurred just five days after terminally-ill Glenn (right) complained to family and friends that he had been assaulted by Simms, who at the time was the UDA's main enforcer in the town's Woodburn estate. The 41-year-old's expulsion from the gang which he joined as a teen caps a remarkable fall from grace. He had designs on replacing Clifford 'Trigger' Irons' as the UDA's Carrickfergus chief and taking control of the lucrative drugs trade. But he was kneecapped two years ago after being caught with his hands in the till, demanding extra cash from drug dealers who were already paying a tax to the terror gang. Simms was still used by the UDA to intimidate rivals in Carrickfergus, but that ended after his arrest in connection with the murder of Glenn Quinn - a killing he told Sunday Life that he had no part in. Expand Close Glenn Quinn / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Glenn Quinn Simms said: "I'm willing to do a lie detector test and also a drug test before it, so there cannot be any way anyone can twist or distort the truth." However, that was not enough to save him with Gary Fisher booting him out of the UDA and telling the Quinn family through intermediaries that Glenn's killers do not have its protection. Expand Close Gary Fisher / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Gary Fisher Loyalist sources say Simms' expulsion has left him vulnerable from the dozens of Carrickfergus families who he has targeted over the years. The grandfather was previously jailed for killing local woman Stephanie Horner in a car crash while high on drugs, and again for attacking a home during a loyalist feud in the town. Simms was also given a suspended prison sentence for having 350,000 of cannabis with intent to supply. A UDA source said: "Simms was UDA through and through. He won't know what to do now that he has been expelled. "Gary Fisher had enough of him, for years the South East Antrim UDA kept a low profile and were never in the media, but they're always in the papers now and it's all because of Simms. "He'll need to watch himself because he has bullied people for years and a lot of them have held a grudge. They know he hasn't the UDA's protection and is vulnerable." Meanwhile, a Carrickfergus man's friendship with South East Antrim UDA members was the reason why the UVF kneecapped him in the town last weekend. Expand Close Colin Armour / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Colin Armour Colin Armour, who is aged in his 20s, was blasted in the legs in a punishment shooting by appointment last Sunday evening. Loyalist sources say his association with UDA members was the reason for the attack. There is no suggestion that Armour is a member of the gang. The UVF has been increasingly active in Carrickfergus in recent months and was behind a May attempt to abduct local man Jason 'Jaffa' Cochrane. Two cars connected to the 40-year-old were also set on fire by the loyalist gang. (@ChaudhryMAli88) MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd August, 2020) The Gambian presidential office announced on Monday that the country's ministers of finance, energy and agriculture tested positive for COVID-19. Last week, the presidential office said that Gambian Vice President Isatou Touray tested positive for the disease. "The Office of the President informs the public that three Cabinet Ministers, Honourable Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs, Mambureh Njie and Honourable Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Fafa Sanyang, and Honourable Minister of Agriculture, Amie Fabureh have tested positive for COVID-19," the office wrote on Twitter. The office also stressed the need to wear face masks to prevent the spread of the infection. Gambia has so far reported 498 COVID-19 cases and nine related deaths. The country's authorities temporarily closed non-essential public places and banned social gatherings to combat the outbreak. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) Authorities said they will use the two-week lockdown of Metro Manila and nearby provinces to reassess COVID-19 response measures, saying government is "managing" local infections. "Nire-recalibrate at nire-reconstitute natin ang ating mga plano dahil ang ating plano is a rolling plan [We are recalibrating and reconstituting our plans because these are rolling plans]," National COVID-19 task force chief implementer Carlito Galvez, Jr. said, in line with the call made by health workers for the state to review its infection control mechanisms. Residents of Metro Manila, Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna, and Cavite will return to strict stay-at-home rules from August 4 to 18 as the government seeks to slow down COVID-19 infections. RELATED: Checkpoints set up, quarantine passes to be required again in Metro Manila and four other MECQ areas Department of Health Undersecretary and Spokesperson Maria Rosario Vergeire said the two-week timeout is meant to allow authorities to "manage" the situation, clarifying that they do not expect to flatten the curve through this strategy alone. She added that the agency will sit down with the Alliance of Healthcare Professionals this week for their inputs on the state's new anti-COVID-19 strategies, which they hope to finalize on Friday. Meanwhile, Galvez admitted that the Philippines is at a "critical" phase in battling the disease, saying the virus has become more infectious. He pointed out that the spike in cases is expected as the economy is reopened, alongside efforts to test more people. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque stressed anew that current parameters merited keeping these areas under the more relaxed general community quarantine, but the call made by frontliners spelled the difference. READ: Physicians' group 'not completely happy' with MECQ status for Metro Manila, four provinces For the next two weeks, government will tap medical teams from the regions and bring them here to man hospitals in the greater Manila area to allow frontliners here to rest and breathe after nearly five months of treating thousands of patients. Existing protocols will be reviewed, with a focus on active case finding on top of aggressive testing. Contact tracing rules have been upgraded to cover as much as 37 close contacts per positive patient to see if anyone develops symptoms. The Philippines reported 5,032 new cases on Sunday, bringing total infections to more than 103,000. Officials insist that reverting to MECQ was not an admission of failure. "Hindi po 'yan pag-amin... Nakikita natin na ang ating gobyerno is a listening government. May mga hinaing ang ating health workers at pinakinggan natin iyon," Galvez added. "Ginawa na rin natin ito sa Cebu." [Translation: That is not an admission of failure... We see that our government is a listening government. Our health workers aired their please and we responded. We also did this in Cebu.] The lockdown starts at midnight Tuesday, giving the public just a day to prepare for the return to lockdown. There were reports of long lines in grocery stores, but Malacanang called for calm and said there's no need to resort to panic buying with ample stocks available. RELATED: a Tributes have been paid to an Omagh man who died as a result of a quad bike accident on Sunday. The man was named locally as 35-year-old David Ballantine and it is understood his vehicle had collided with a bridge near his family farm on the Gorticashel Road around 7.45pm. He was taken from the scene to Altnagelvin Hospital where he later died of his injuries. A funeral notice described him as the dearly beloved husband of Diane and family, as well as the devoted son of Willie and Betty. Funeral details have yet to be announced and the house is strictly private, with any donations if desired to the Northern Ireland Air Ambulance. Ulster Unionist councillor Bert Wilson said he knew the family and that the accident had occurred at a bridge on a twisted section of the road. I know he would have helped his father quite a bit on the farm and had worked as a plasterer as well," he said. He will be badly missed and he would have been a great help to his parents around the farm, so it really is a disaster for them. A lot of the family would live in that area and its a very close knit community. Its very difficult news to get as he really was just in the prime of life. Sinn Fein MP for West Tyrone Orfhlaith Begley said the local community had been shocked by the sudden loss. The local community is in shock following the death of a 35-year-old man in a collision involving a quad bike on the Gorticashel Road in Omagh," she said. "Any death on our roads is one too many. My thoughts are with the family and friends of the man who has lost his life at this sad and tragic time. A statement from Greencastle GAA Club on social media said that members would like to offer our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of David Ballantine on his tragic passing. Our thoughts are with you all at this very difficult time. May he rest in perfect peace. The PSNI said on Monday that enquiries are ongoing and have appealed to anyone with information to call 101, quoting reference number 1776 for August 2. A number of tornados touched down Sunday evening in western Massachusetts and Connecticut. Damage was reported from towns situated along the path of the storm as violent winds snapped trees like twigs. Video footage showed residents taking cover in their homes and cars as the storms passed overheard. A number of tornadoes touched down in western Massachusetts and in Connecticut as a storm tore through the region on Sunday evening One resident was able to film the passing tornado from the safety of his car as it passed through his neighborhood Powerlines were downed and trees were snapped like twigs, strewn here across a railroad Previously firm trees were uprooted and the results captured on film and posted online Residents are pictured taking a look at the damage after a tornado passed close to their homes Stills shared on social media showed the damage the storm left behind with powerlines downed and trees flattened. Tornado warnings ended up being triggered in Berkshire County, Hampshire County and western Hampden County in Massachusetts along with northwestern Litchfield County in Connecticut. Damage was reported from towns in the path of the storm, with photos showing downed trees in communities. The National Weather Service issues a warning at 7:30pm for southwestern Hampshire County and northwestern Hampden County in western Massachusetts where residents were urged to take cover immediately. After the tornados were deemed to no longer be a risk, the storms continued with the area hit by several severe thunderstorms according to NBC News. After multiple tornadoes touched down Sunday evening in western Massachusetts and Connecticut, damage was reported from towns in the path of the storm. Photos showed downed trees in communities. Debris from nearby trees along with several in the distance are seen completely downed leaving a road and nearby railroad blocked This road was completely blocked after part of a tree was severed landing on the highway One resident was able to capture footage of the tornado passing by in the near distance Parts of a tree landed were seen to have landed on a building in rural Connecticut A reporter with NBC News in Connecticut, Matt Austin, tweeted pictures near Falls Village Other residents posted photos online as the storms passed through rural neighborhoods This article is part of Privacy in the Pandemic, a Future Tense series. One of the biggest winners of the pandemic has been Zoom, which is now enmeshed in workplaces and schools. But the transition to online classrooms and workspaces wasnt without its hiccups, particularly rampant Zoom bombing and criticism over the platforms lack of end-to-end encryption. With college students bracing for another semester of online learning, another fear has bubbled up: that professors can read any direct message sent on the platform, even between two students. The story goes that after recording a class, professors (or anyone who hosts a meeting) receive a transcript that includes all messages sent. In the spring, a tweet about one students horror story went viral. Advertisement I didnt know my professor could view my private convos on zoom pic.twitter.com/ntx6any5Kw Faith (@bryantfaith_) April 24, 2020 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Understandably, the prospect of professors perusing students private messages left people freaked. Advertisement But theres good news: This is just a rumor based on a misunderstanding. A Zoom host cannot read your private messages sent to other meeting participants. Zooms website states, Private messages between participants are not viewable by the host. I spoke to Zoom directly to get some clarification. If a person with recording privileges chooses to record a Zoom meeting to the cloud, in-meeting chats sent publicly (to everyone in the meeting) are saved, a Zoom spokesperson told me. If a person with recording privileges chooses to record a Zoom meeting locallythat is, to a computerthen chats sent publicly, as well as any private chat exchanges that the person recording participated in during the session, are saved. As has always been the case, a person who opts to record a meeting does not receive chat transcripts from private conversations that they did not participate in. Its probably still not a great idea to say something snarky about your professor (or boss!) to a friend via Zooms chat function, but thats just because its easy to accidentally send a message to the wrong person. (For another horror story, see this Dear Prudence letter. In it, the letter writer was forwarded a Zoom transcript in which two colleagues said terrible things about them. In that case, it seems likely that one of the mean colleagues was the host.) Advertisement Advertisement If you see tweets and Facebook posts that say otherwise, chalk it up to misinformation run wild. One widely circulated Facebook post read, Just a by the by: private messages sent to individual people during a Zoom meeting show up in the end-of-meeting transcript along with all other public messages. Tell your friends, save a life. According to PolitiFact, a nonprofit fact-checking website, Facebook flagged the post in question as false news. The lesson here? Please, do not believe everything you see on Zoom Memes for Self Quaranteens. Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society. For more of Slates news coverage, subscribe to What Next on Apple Podcasts or listen below. Ayodhya/Lucknow: Chief minister Yogi Adityanath reviewed preparations for the Ram temple foundation-laying ceremony in Ayodhya on Monday afternoon and cautioned people to strictly adhere to coronavirus protocols and social distancing guidelines. The state government also called upon people to celebrate ceremony on August 5 at home. Adityanath visited the Ram Janmabhoomi site and interacted with officials of the Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Tirath Kshetra Trust. He inspected the spot where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will perform bhumi pujan and the stage where the PM and other guests will sit. Later, he also went to the Hanuman Garhi temple. It is not only a historic but also an emotional moment as after 500 years the Ram temple work will start. It will be the foundation of a new India, he told reporters. He also urged people to follow Covid protocols. Covid-19 protocol will be strictly followed at the event. As the prime minister will be here representing 135 crore people, I appeal that only those who have been invited should visit Ayodhya. The rest should remain at their respective places, Adityanath said. In Lucknow, deputy chief minister Dinesh Sharma said only people who have received invitation for ceremony should visit Ayodhya on August 5 while the rest should stay at home and watch the event on television. He also recalled the contribution of the mahants, or head priests, of Gorakhnath Math, Digvijay Nath, Avaidyanath as well as the seers of Ayodhya -- Ram Chandra Paramhans, Nritya Gopal Das -- and former Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Ashok Singhal. Police said security arrangements had been tightened across the city. We are continuously keeping a watch across the VIP routes via drones. There are no movement restrictions for the people residing in Ayodhya. I urge people not to step outdoors to contain Covid-19. We will not let outsiders enter the city, said Deepak Kumar, deputy director general of police, Ayodhya. The senior police official also said that more than five people will not be allowed to gather at a place but shops can open in the town. A 4-year-old Danvers girl drowned Sunday in a river near her home, according to police. Police responded to River Drive just after noon Sunday and conducted a search for the girl, who had been reported missing after apparently wandering from her home. An officer found the girl submerged along the river bank, removed her from the water with no signs of life and immediately provided CPR, police said. Danvers firefighters and Atlantic Ambulance arrived and began additional medical care. #PressRelease Danvers Police Respond to Fatal Drowning On August 2, 2020 at approx. 1216 hr, Danvers officers were... Posted by Danvers Police Department (Official) on Sunday, August 2, 2020 The victim was transported to Beverly Hospital as CPR continued, police said in a statement. Unfortunately, after many extensive efforts to save her, she was later pronounced deceased. Police withheld the childs name for the familys privacy. Danvers detectives and state police in the District Attorneys office are investigating. The Danvers Police Department would like to extend out our deepest condolences to her family, police said. They will be in our thoughts and prayers. 1. Yes. Too many kids are staying home. They need a virtual learning option to keep up. 2. Yes. Teachers are out sick and subs cant handle the load. Online learning is needed. 3. No. Its too late in the school year to make a wholesale switch in teaching platforms. 4.No. Many parents arent in a position to stay home while their kids learn virtually. 5. Unsure. It may seem like a good idea from a health standpoint, but it has shortcomings. Vote View Results History is written by the victors and as such its not always accurate. From popular myths and legends to half-truths and propagandas, our past has been told and retold so many times the facts can sometimes get lost. Here are five common misconceptions we all fell for at one time or another. The truth after all, shall set us free. 5. Fiddling Nero A popular misconception about the Roman times centers around Emperor Nero fiddling while the city of Rome burned down. For one thing, the fiddle wasnt invented until the 11th century. And secondly, historians believe the man who ruled the empire from 54 to 68 AD, was 35 miles away at a villa in Antium at the time. Upon learning of the devastating fire, he rushed back and organized relief efforts. 4. Roman Vomitoriums The folklore surrounding the ancient civilizations is extensive. One of them are Roman vomitoriums: designated rooms where the wealthy would purge their food so they could gorge themselves on even more food. The real story behind the word is much more mundane. In Latin vomitorium (vomitoria in plural) means to spew forth and so in ancient Roman architecture, vomitoria were exit/entrance doors to stadiums and amphitheaters, so dubbed as they literally spewed hundreds into the streets. 3. The Invention of the Radio The invention of the radio, for which Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi is often credited, was actually made by Nikola Tesla. The true story behind this landmark invention is a complicated one. Tesla, a Serbian American scientist, created the induction, called "Tesla coil" in 1891. This device proved to be an essential component in transmitting and receiving radio transmissions. In 1985, however, before the scientist could further test his invention, a fire broke out in his lab and destroyed the apparatus. That same year Marconi, Teslas Italian counterpart, proved the feasibility of radio communication. Both men applied for patents in wireless technology within a year of each other; Marconi in 1896 in England, Tesla in 1897 in the U.S. In 1940, the Supreme court of the U.S overthrew Marconis patent in favor of Teslas, establishing him as the rightful creator. 2. The Great Wall of China Although an impressive landmark, the Great Wall of China cannot be seen from space. This false notion dates all the way back to the 1938 publication of Richard Halliburton's Second Book of Marvels. As a travel writer and adventurer Halliburton made the claim that China's Great Wall was the only man-made object visible from space. This claim has been disproven many times over the years, but the myth persists regardless. 1. Christ's Birth Date Although Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 25th, the actual date remains unknown. Most historians believe it to be in spring, closer to Easter, than in winter. The reason why Christmas is celebrated on December 25th is said to be because of an old pagan holiday celebrating the winter solstice and the beginning of a new solar cycle. The festivities lasted from the 17th to the 25th of December and were a merry time where families and friends met, ate, and exchanged gifts. When the Roman Emperor Constantine I converted to Christianity, the church adopted December 25th as the birth of Christ to facilitate his subjects transition into the new religion. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Uma Bharti has appealed the senior officials of Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas of Ayodhya and Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to remove her name from the list of invitees for the foundation ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on August 5. Taking to Twitter, Bharti said that she is concerned about the health of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and others who will be attending the mega event at Ayodhya, amid the coronavirus pandemic. The BJP leader further said that she is also concerned after hearing that Union Home Minister Amit Shah and few others from the party have also tested positive for Covid-19. Bharti, who was a former Union Minister, has said that she will leave for Ayodhya from Bhopal today. "...there is a possibility that I might come in contact with an infected person. In such a situation, I have decided to maintain a distance from Prime Minister Modi and other attendees. I will be at the banks of river Saryu. I will offer prayers to Ram Lalla once the event is over and everyone leave the site," she tweeted in Hindi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to reach Ayodhya at around 11 a.m. on August 5 and he is likely to stay there for around three hours. Modi will first offer prayers at Hanuman Garhi and then visit the pre-fabricated temple at Manas Bhawan where the idol of Lord Ram is presently kept. He will then proceed to the Ram Janmabhoomi for the 'bhumi pujan'. A small stage is being set up at the event venue from where the Prime Minister will address the saints. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat will also share the stage with the Prime Minister. Meanwhile, strict security arrangements have been beefed up in Ayodhya. The local administration have been asked to implement strict coronavirus safety protocols. It is to be noted that a priest and 16 police officers on duty in Ayodhya had tested positive for the coronavirus recently. W hile foodies were pretty overjoyed to hear the Chancellor announce the Eat Out to Help Out scheme earlier this month, it also prompted some very important questions. Should you spend your free tenner on getting a cheap dinner even cheaper, or use it to eat somewhere usually just out of budget? And is it financially viable or even within the constraints of your belt buckle to eat out three times a day, three days in a row, for three weeks of the month? While the latter is a personal choice, the quandary of where to eat can be soothed by finding out which restaurants are helping you make the most out of your newfound pocket money. To be clear, the deal the government is offering is that all signed-up restaurants can offer a 50 per cent discount on food and soft drinks up to the value of 10, on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays in August. Many restaurants are getting involved but not all to check out some of our favourite partakers, read our guide here. Eat Out to Help Out scheme explained Some restaurants across the capital are not only signed up, but are also putting on special menus, offering additional discounts or even doing away with the schemes 10 cap altogether. From a Michelin-starred meal for 12 to free glasses of wine, heres where to find the best Eat Out to Help Out deals in London restaurants. Dishoom The celebrated Indian restaurant inspired by old Bombay-style Irani cafes will be doing away with the 10 cap altogether at its Kensington, King's Cross, Carnaby and Shoreditch locations. This means diners will get a full 50 per cent off their meal on the designated days (with the exception of alcoholic drinks), no matter what the bill comes to. W8, W1, N1, E2, dishoom.com Hawksmoor A 300g rump steak, a portion of beef dripping chips and a sauce of your choice would usually set you back 30 at the superlative steak chain. Hawksmoor are offering the dish for 20 on the Eat Out to Help Out days at its open restaurants in Borough, Spitalfields, Seven Dials and Air Street, meaning itll cost 10 to diners. SE1, E1, WC2, W1, thehawksmoor.com The Cheese Bar, Pick & Cheese Both The Cheese Bar and its sibling restaurant Pick & Cheese will offer all-you-can-eat deals in conjunction with Eat Out to Help Out. The Camden restaurant will serve bottomless raclette on Wednesdays for 18 (9 to diners), while Pick & Cheese will reopen on August 7 inside Seven Dials Market, and will allow diners to choose as many British cheese dishes as they like from their conveyor belt for just 20 per person (10 to diners) on Monday nights. NW1, WC2, thecheesebar.com The Quality Chop House For every day of August, the longstanding Clerkenwell restaurant will run a special 20 lunch menu of signature dishes: a pork chop with confit potatoes for your main, followed by olive oil ice cream for dessert. Those dining on Tuesday or Wednesday can get it for 10 with the Eat Out to Help Out discount. 88-94 Farringdon Road, EC1R 3EA, thequalitychophouse.com Social Eating House Jason Athertons Soho restaurant Social Eating House is offering two prix fixe menus on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, available at lunchtime or from 6-6.30pm. Two courses will be listed as 22, while three will cost 28 this means diners can enjoy a Michelin-starred meal this month for as little as 12. 58 Poland Street, W1F 7NR, socialeatinghouse.com Smokestak David Carters barbecue restaurant is serving a 4For10 menu on Eat Out to Help Out days, offering diners four dishes for 20 (10 to the customer). Diners can enjoy a starter, a signature meat dish or a bun, a side and a scoop of gelato, with dishes including Smokestaks signature beef brisket with pickled chillies. 35 Sclater Street, E1 6LB, smokestak.co.uk D&D London All open restaurants run by the D&D group are offering special set menus on Eat Out to Help Out days, priced at either 25, 30 or 40, with diners then able to take off another 10. Restaurants involved include Francesco Mazzeis Radici (25 menu), First Dates restaurant Paternoster Chop House (30 menu) and Le Pont de la Tour (40 menu), which comes with a spectacular view of Tower Bridge. Various locations, danddlondon.com Murger Han The Xian restaurants in Euston and Mayfair are offering diners a four-course meal deal for just 20 on the Eat Out to Help Out days (10 to the customer). This means customers can get a starter, any noodle dish, an ice cream mochi dessert and a soft drink for a tenner. NW1, W1, murgerhan.com Manteca David Carters collaboration restaurant with Chris Leach is also offering a four-dish deal on the Eat Out to Help Out days. Each diner at the Italian restaurant can get house-baked focaccia, two pasta dishes, and a scoop of either gelato or sorbet for just 20, 10 with the discount. 58-59 Great Marlborough Street, W1F 7JY, mantecarestaurant.co.uk Boxpark The governments Eat Out to Help Out discount only applies to soft drinks, but street food market group Boxpark is also offering 50 per cent off alcoholic drinks on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays in August. More than 40 food across its Shoreditch, Croydon and Wembley locations will also be applying the discount to food. E1, HA9, CR0, boxpark.co.uk Aqua Shard, Aqua Kyoto, Hutong Not only will the Aqua Restaurant Group be taking part in the Eat Out to Help Out scheme, but itll be adding on a little gift. Tables booked on the designated days at Aqua Shard, Hutong or Aqua Kyoto will also be offered 10 off any bottle of wine priced at more than 40. W1, two locations in SE1, aquashard.co.uk Bala Baya Chef Eran Tibi has created a special Taste of Tel Aviv menu, available to diners at the London Bridge restaurant on the designated days for 20, 10 after the discount has been applied. Guests can choose two of their favourite Bala Baya dishes, and also receive the restaurants pita and a dip on the side. Arch 25, Old Union Yard Arches, 229 Union Street, SE1 0LR, balabaya.co.uk Yum Bun The street food hotspot specialising in filled rice buns will reopen at Kerbs Seven Dials Market on August 7, and will allow diners to purchase a yum cha picnic set for 20 per person (10 to the customer). The menu will include a selection of the restaurants signature dishes, designed to share at the table. 24-25 Earlham Street, WC2H 9LD, sevendialsmarket.com Nandos The peri-peri chicken chain hit headlines this week, when it became clear that a conjunction of dropping VAT and adding the Eat Out to Help Out discount meant fans could get some big discounts in August a quarter chicken, for example, is on offer on the designated days for just 1.85. Nandos has, however, only reopened four London restaurants for dine-in so far: Westfield London, Bromley, Beckton and Park Royal. E6, BR2, W3, W12, nandos.co.uk Boparan Restaurant Group The restaurant group that owns Carluccios, Slim Chickens, FishWorks, Giraffe and Eds Diner will be doing away with the Chancellors 10 cap at any of the aforementioned chains, meaning diners will get 50 per cent off their entire order of food and soft drinks. Carluccios, FishWorks and Giraffe will also offer 10 off a bottle of wine. Various locations, boparanrestaurantgroup.co.uk Bills The all-day dining chain will be putting on set menus for the Eat Out to Help Out days, and will also throw in a free glass of wine when you order one of them. Choose from either the All Day Set Menu (two courses for 15.50 or three courses for 19.95) or the Incredible Menu (two courses for 19.95 or three courses for 24.95) and get a complimentary glass of red or white wine included. With the discount applied, that means you can enjoy a meal with wine for as little as 7.75. Various locations, bills-website.co.uk To see all restaurants participating in the Eat Out to Help Out scheme, check out the interactive map below: Loading.... Map provided by Esri UK A consultancy firm set up by "absentee TD" Dara Murphy to handle payments from his Brussels-based job while he continued to earn around 145,000 a year in the Dail made a profit of over 60,000 last year. Newly filed accounts for Epecon Limited show the company recorded profits of 60,438 during the 12 months to the end of June 2019 - during which time Mr Murphy was also a Fine Gael TD. The firm had a cash pile of 128,533 at the end of this period, and had accumulated profits of 86,703 since it was established in September 2017, when the former minister landed a job as campaign director with the European People's Party (EPP). Mr Murphy was branded an "absentee TD" by then-opposition leader Micheal Martin after it emerged he had the lowest attendance of all 158 TDs, and had not spoken in the Dail for almost two years. The position as campaign director with the EPP for the 2019 European Parliament elections reportedly came with a remuneration package worth 10,000 a month. Meanwhile, Mr Murphy continued to earn a salary of around 94,000 per annum as a TD, along with an annual allowance of 51,600. He qualified for the maximum level of allowance by attending Leinster House on at least 120 days each year. During the 12-month period covered by Epecon's latest accounts, he spoke just once at a committee hearing and asked only two parliamentary questions. He clocked in at the Houses of the Oireachtas on 41 sitting days and 74 non-sitting days. As the controversy over his dual roles heightened in December 2019, the former European affairs minister resigned from the Dail and took up a job in the cabinet of Bulgarian European Commissioner Mariya Gabriel, which reportedly came with a salary of 150,000 a year. However, he left the job after just seven months, moving to another position within the European Commission. In a statement announcing his resignation from the Dail, Mr Murphy said he would "of course" co-operate with any statutory procedure that may be initiated. However, the Dail's internal ethics committee said it could not pursue complaints relating to a member once they had resigned after it was asked by Fianna Fail TD Michael Moynihan to investigate. The Standards in Public Office Commission also said it cannot investigate concerns relating to former TDs. Mr Murphy did not respond to a request for comment. MICHIGAN All registered voters in Michigan can vote by mail, and in 2020, with increased concerns surrounding the coronavirus pandemic, record numbers of Michiganders may do just that. But there are some things you will need to know if you opt to vote by mail. For starters, voters have until 8 p.m. to return their completed ballot to their local clerk's office. This can be done in person or by mail. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday. Voters can see what their ballot will look like here by entering their county, jurisdiction and precinct information. To ensure you do not invalidate your ballot, be sure to only vote for one party on the partisan section of your ballot. Applying For An Absentee Ballot Registered voters can apply for an absentee ballot in many ways. You can do so online by going here, but note that the deadline to apply for an absentee ballot for the Aug. 4 election has already past. Registered voters can also mail in their application after signing it. You can find your respective clerk's mailing address here. When doing this, voters can even mark a box adding them to a list to vote absentee ahead of every election, if they so choose. For some clerks, drop boxes may be available for people to drop off their ballots. Contact your local clerk to see if that is an option here. Anyone Can Vote Absentee A law passed in 2018 allows anyone in Michigan who is registered to vote to vote absentee without providing a reason. If you're wondering if you're registered to vote, you can check the status of that information here. If you've already sent in your absentee ballot and you're wondering where it is at, you can track the ballot here. Delayed Results? Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson has previously said that there is expected to be an unprecedented amount of mail-in voting due to the coronavirus pandemic. A state law mandating that absentee ballots cannot be counted until Election Day could mean the final vote tallies may not be ready for days following Tuesday's election, The Detroit Free Press reported. State law mandates that state election officials in Michigan cannot open absentee ballot envelopes until the morning of Election Day. This article originally appeared on the Detroit Patch Congressman Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) at the Cannon Building on Capitol Hill in Washington on May 16, 2018. (Larry French/Getty Images for SiriusXM) Kansas Representative Demands Planned Parenthood Return $80 Million in PPP Loans Files bill that would ban abortion providers from program Rep. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) wants Congress to ban abortion providers from receiving Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and to require Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) offices to return the $80 million they received under the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus economic relief initiative. We want legislation that specifically demands that Planned Parenthood give the money back for several reasons, including the Hyde Amendment, Marshall told The Epoch Times on Aug. 3. Also, they are a large association, this program was meant for businesses with 500 or fewer employees while they employee 16,000 people, and they have $2 billion in assets. This loan was not meant for them. Marshalls proposalthe Abortion Provider Loan Elimination Actwould extend the Hyde Amendment, which bans federal funding to groups that terminate unborn babies lives as a medical procedure, to the loans program. The Hyde Amendment was first adopted by Congress in 1976 and was named for then-Rep. Henry Hyde (R-Ill.). The measure has to be attached to specific appropriation bills and in recent years has only been added to those funding federal health care programs. Congress didnt apply the Hyde provision to the loans program when it approved it as part of the $3 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security Act (CARES). We believe it should be. Those of us who believe in life and regard the sanctity of life think it should have been. But these were federal funds and they were used as forgivable loans to abortion providers, Marshall told The Epoch Times. Marshalls proposal currently has 23 co-sponsors, all Republicans. The proposal also has been endorsed by the Susan B. Anthony List, National Right to Life Committee, and the Family Research Council. We even sent a letter to the SBA [Small Business Administration] saying, Do not give money to Planned Parenthood, and despite our letter telling them not to, they went ahead and did it, he said. Marshall was referring to an April 30 letter that he and 93 Republican Senate and House colleagues sent to Jovita Carranza, administrator of the Small Business Administration, encouraging her to not extend the loans to PPFA or any of its local affiliates. They noted that the CARES measure gave the administration wide latitude in defining eligibility for the loans to ensure they went to small businesses with 500 or fewer employees. Under these rules, PPFA, and each of its affiliates, should be deemed affiliated due to their common management, and thereby disqualified from PPP loans based on their aggregated size of around 16,000 employees nationwide, the letter stated. Several PPFA affiliates, however, applied for and received loans totaling $80 million. We actually think there was fraud in what they did, it was very fraudulent, and they should be prosecuted as well, Marshall said. The good news is the Paycheck Protection Program was the most successful federal program we ever saw rolled out. But we were in such a hurry to save jobs that we had to do it quickly. In Kansas, it saved over 500,000 jobs, but we knew the opportunities for fraud and for gray areas would happen. Typically, when we have called out companies that took the money but shouldnt have, they returned the money, but there are still some out there hanging on to it, including Planned Parenthood. Marshall said the Department of the Treasurys special inspector general for pandemic recovery is conducting a broad investigation of how the PPP program is being administered. The $670 billion program has been lauded for enabling hundreds of thousands of small businesses to maintain payrolls during the nationwide lockdown launched in March to cope with the CCP virus, which is also known as the novel coronavirus. Rep. Susie Lee (D-Nev.) reportedly lobbied the administration to allow casinos to receive the loans despite the fact her husbands company is in the casino business. I expect the inspector general to investigate any case that is gray. Im not saying that was right or wrong, but it certainly needs to be investigated, Marshall said of the Lee case. Individuals connected to companies that received the loans have contributed $52 million to candidates and advocacy groups so far in the 2020 campaign cycle, according to OpenSecrets.org. Among those individuals were dozens of attorneys supporting former Vice President Joe Biden and who work for large law firms in Texas and New York that specialize in class-action litigation against Fortune 500 corporations. Contact Mark Tapscott at Mark.Tapscott@epochtimes.nyc. She said there is an increased need for Matthew 25's services and donations, both food, and money, will be a blessing. The upcoming fundraiser is the result of a collaboration of northern Iredell County churches. The churches are hosting a North Iredell Movie Night at Fiddlers Grove in Union Grove Friday. Remember the Titans will be shown around 9 p.m. but activities start at 6:30 p.m. when food trucks will be set up. Admission is canned food donations to Matthew 25. Folks are encouraged to bring chairs and social distancing should be practiced. Howell said non-perishable foods and money are what the ministry needs the most. Monetary donations, in particular, make a big difference, she said. Right now, we are purchasing the food, she said. So monetary donations will mean the ministry has more purchasing power, and in turn, can help more people. This will give us the opportunity to help people with their electric bills, Howell said. Other items the ministry needs that are in short supply include diapers, both for babies and adults and wipes. Feminine hygiene products are also something the ministry could use, Howell said. 03.08.2020 LISTEN The Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC) has described as unfortunate what it says are threats and media attacks hurled at the Presiding Bishop of Perez Chapel International, Bishop Charles Agyinasare over his recent teachings on national transformation. In a statement signed by its President Rev Prof Paul Frimpong-Manso, the GPCC said its leadership is concerned about some of the responses to Bishop Agyinasares recent pronouncements. Some of these reactions, in the form of insults, threats of harm, casting of innuendos, political branding etc., are to say the least, very unfortunate, the statement condemned. We wish to recall that since the beginning of the month of July, the Presiding Bishop has been teaching on the theme: Building A Future After COVID-19, explaining: The purpose is to help build a foundation for youth development as the next generation to take over this nation. In doing this, the Presiding Bishop has been highlighting issues on the political landscape, the attitude of civil servants and the clergy front, which should not have been so and which could be done differently. He has also sought to draw examples from his personal life, including his marriage and his financial dealings to encourage the youth that in the midst of present day promiscuity, it is possible to live a life of chastity and integrity. The purpose of this statement is to declare our strong support for the Presiding Bishop, who is a long-standing member of the Council and who rose to occupy the very high position of First Vice-President of the Council, the statement noted. The GPCC urged the press and the general public not to twist, distort, misrepresent, misreport or take out of context, statements made by the Presiding Bishop and give them sensational headlines with the objective of giving the Presiding Bishop a political bad name in order to hang him. The Council called on the leaders of the main political parties to call their executives and members to order, adding: As the nation enters the political campaign season, we wish to admonish the entire citizenry to do all we can to keep the political temperature at its lowest minimum and conduct all political activities with civility and decorum. Lets make the campaign one of ideas, programmes for national development and peace and not one of insults, casting of aspersions, character assassination, violence and any actions that will threaten the peace and stability of our dear motherland. We wish all Ghanaians peaceful campaigns and a free, fair and transparent elections which will produce a God-given leader and government for this nation, the statement added. A week ago, Bishop Charles Agyinasare said he has been receiving threats and insults over the past few weeks that he has been calling out societal evils but said those things will not stop him from speaking his mind. In his virtual sermon on Sunday, 26 July 2020, titled: There is a cause for integrity and honesty, which was part of his Building after COVID-19 series, the Perez Chapel International founder said a lot of his friends and loved ones have called and pleaded with me to stop preaching what I am preaching on national transformation, adding: Most of them say Ghana is set in her ways and would not change. The Nations Prophet and Pastor, as Bishop Agyinasare is popularly called, said: Well, Jonah did not believe wicked Nineveh would change but when he declared Gods word, they repented and fasted in sackcloth and ashes. The word of God, he said, has the power to change people: it is a hammer that can break hardened hearts, it is a fire that can consume, it is like water that can wash the most sin covered soul, it like a light that can shine on the power of the worst of sinners. Bishop Agyinasare said his recent remarks on national issues and the attacks those comments have brought to him, have got some of his family and friends concerned to the extent that they are begging him to stop. Some of my loved ones said: These politicians and their supporters, hmmm; they are dangerous ohhh! they can do something against you. In his view, if thats how we see politicians now, is there not a cause for me to preach to change it? My amazement is whether it has come to the place in democratic Ghana, where I speak and people who are not happy (basically they disagree with me) and instead of they saying they disagree with me and stating their side, some of them issue threats, some insult me and people are saying: Charles, you must be afraid, beef up your security and dont sleep at home. Well, our senior politicians, H.E Nana Akufo-Addo and H.E John Dramani Mahama, that is how much your noble profession has been reduced to. It is being said and perceived that you and your fellows hire thugs to beat and even get people killed because they disagree with you. Meanwhile, the Akan name for democracy is Ka bi na me ka bi aman buo speak your mind and let me speak my mind kind of government, Bishop Agyinasare noted. He said if journalists like Ambassador Kabral Blay Amihere, Kweku Baako Jr., Kwesi Pratt, Ben Ephson, among others, went to jail, had to report regularly to the Bureau of National Investigations, had people follow them because they wrote and demanded free speech in the mid-1980s under a revolution, then is it not unfortunate that we could get it and in a democracy, we are being made to know that we are not free to talk anymore?. Bishop Agyinasare said leaders must be honoured, and, so, is there not a cause to tell our populace to intercede for our rulers instead of insulting them, as written in 1 Timothy 2:1 and 2: Therefore, I exhort, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men; 2, For kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence Also, he said Acts 23:5 quotes the Apostle Paul as saying: You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people. Is there not a cause to tell our politicians to stop teaching our populace that it is OK to insult our opponents, including elders instead of addressing issues? Bishop Agyinasare asked, especially as 1 Peter 2:17 says: Honour all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king. Clarifying why he used certain adjectives recently in reference to journalists and the clergy regarding their silence on societal ills, Bishop Agyinasare said: Some said: Bishop, you used insulting language when you used [the phrase] dumb dogs. No sir, no madam. The scripture said: His watchmen have become dumb dogs. I used it in reference to our journalists and pastors who must warn us as dogs do. Isaiah 56:10, he quoted, says: His watchmen are blind, they are all ignorant; they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber. I was also accused of insulting by using attack dogs. Well, because our common language is English, I took a word from the Merriam Websters dictionary, which explains attack dogs as persons noted for harsh, personal and usually public verbal attacks against others. E.g. a political attack dog. I am the last person who would want to insult or disrespect anyone, Bishop Agyinasare said. According to him, he is not the spokesperson for any political party but rather serves as Gods linguist. If I were an NPP spokesman, then NDC people would say they may do something against me. If I were an NDC spokesperson, then NPP people would want to do something against me. However, I am an ambassador of heaven with the authority of heaven behind me. That is the only reason why I could go to Pakistan, a 94% Muslim country to hold gospel campaigns at a time they were burning churches. That is why I sponsored my first gospel campaign in a Hindu stronghold, Chengham in Tamil Nadu state in 1993, he said. In October 2000, Bishop Agyinasare recalled, when I was invited to then-president Laurent Gbagbos inauguration, I did not give a congratulatory message but a message from the Lord to warn the incoming government to watch out against corruption, immorality and how their judges should be fair otherwise, they wont last. When they did not heed, everything I warned them of came to pass and the rest is history. Also, he said, God sent me to Togo when Faure Gnassingbe was voted in the first time and people were unhappy that after his father had ruled for 38 years, he had also come to power. Some were willing the country burnt down and people were fleeing the country. God told me to take a message to Togo. People advised me that: Bishop, it is not safe, but I went as Gods servant and that nation was stabilised. I am glad to announce that I would not die until I have finished or completed my assignment on earth here or till the rapture takes me home, he declared. Bishop Agyinasare said his utterances are of a prophet of God to this nation and not as the Presiding Bishop of Perez Chapel International. The true prophets of old did not speak what the people wanted to hear but what God wanted the people to hear, noting: This nation is not just about NPP or NDC. Are we satisfied with the direction of this nation? If we are not, is there not a cause to do something about it? How can we allow politicians who are not even 10% of our population to determine everything in this country? Is there not a cause to talk? Even in our sports, the politicians tell the sportspeople what to do and they interfere so much so that when NPP is in power and the Black Stars are playing, NDC would be praying that they would lose because when they win, the NPP would take the glory and vice-versa. Is there not a cause to talk? Even the CEOs of our major hospitals are determined by politicians and not doctors, so, we keep going round and round. Is there not a cause? We build things with the taxpayers money and it is not used because it is not my government who built it and we go to borrow extra money to come and build another one and we end up with the IMF/World Bank with our cup in our hands to beg and take more loans to finance our budgets, and is there not a cause for someone to say we should change?, he asked. He continued: The oil money for the next 30 years has been used to take loans by both NDC and NPP. The politicians we elected to manage our resources are selling the birthright of this nation and we must all keep quiet? Is there not a cause to tell our politicians to stop the reckless spending? Every four years when we are getting to elections, it is like this country is going to burn. Just [a] registration of voters, people are being stabbed and guns are being shot in public. Yet, nobody is expected to say the fact that election must not be between life and death. In the last five years, he noted, England has held three general elections: 7th May 2015, 8th June 2017 and 12th December 2019. No one felt England was going to burn and it was not a do-or-die [affair]. General elections must not be a life-and-death affair, he noted. Touching on the involvement of civil servants in politics, Bishop Agyinasare said the Civil Service Act, as enforced in the Civil and Local Government vs Attorney General and others 2016, says: When someone is in the civil service and wants to contest a partys primaries, they are supposed to resign and go and contest. However, our politicians dont respect that anymore. Instead, they use their government staff as their campaign team and they and their staff are paid by the government of Ghana, which makes such a person very compromised. Is there not a cause to change it so our civil service is not politicised? Turning his attention to his fellow clergy, Bishop Agyinasare said: Mr pastor, where is your integrity if the ladies who come to seek prayer from you, you take advantage of them by having sex with them like Elis children [did]. Your sin would find you out. Is there not a cause to tell pastors who go to juju men, fetish or mallams for mojoss to do church, to go and join them as a fetish priest or mallam and stop pretending they are Christian clergy. Like Kofi Kinaata sings: Papa sofo gye wa hom. On the issue of land disputes, Bishop Agyinasare asked: Is there not a cause to tell those businessmen who follow land guards to take by force the lands of the poor [to stop it?]. Can you imagine your end and what you are bringing upon your children? Is there not a cause to tell some of our chiefs who sell a land to you, and sell it to two other people so we keep having land problems, to stop that? Our governments are not making it any easier. They encourage corruption at the registry by not passing a simple law. To register a land in Accra, it can take you five year- plus. Heads of families in Accra sell land to you and when they finish spending the money frivolously, they make other relatives in the same family to get another judgement and come to you to buy the land again, he condemned. As far as his public pronouncements on national issues are concerned, Bishop Agyinasare said he is not about to stop at all. Some have said: Bishop, dont talk, let the ecumenical bodies like Christian Council or Ghana, Pentecostal & Charismatic Council or National Association of Christian and Charismatic Churches to talk so that it is not only you. Well, they may not have been inspired by God to speak on these things. Is there not a cause for me to talk about the ills of our society? Precious one, it is like fire shut in my bones, he said, quoting Jeremiah 20:9: Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak anymore in his name. But His word was in my heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, and I could not. Bishop Agyinasare said his intentions are non-political. I am not a politician and not aspiring to be one. The world is my parish and I am called to reach the world for Christ, adding: England was changed by the preaching of John Wesley when it was in filth; he preached till people thought cleanliness is next to godliness was in the Bible. In another example, he said: Scotland was saved from bloodshed under Bloody Mary, queen of the Scots, by the preaching and praying of John Knox from 1555 to 1579. The queen said: I am not so much afraid of the soldiers of Scotland like I am of the prayers of John Knox. One man standing beside his grave said: Here lies a man who neither flattered nor feared any human being. Citing yet another example, Bishop Agyinasare noted that Mary Slessor went to Calabar, Nigeria, a city where heads were being cut off at pleasure and twins were being slaughtered at birth because they were a curse. When people discouraged her that she was a woman and men were even afraid to go to Calabar, she said: One with God is a majority. She went and transformed Nigeria by helping put a stop to the slaughtering of twins. Rather than urging him to stop his pronouncements, Bishop Agyinasare asked his friends, family and the Christian community to pray for me. What I need from you is your prayers that I would have boldness and utterance to speak the truth, quoting Ephesians 6:18 and 19, which say: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints. 19: And for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel. Bishop Agyinasare said his wife has been supportive in that regard. I thank God for a supportive wife. In the midst of all the noise, Vivian says: I know my husband; if God says he must speak, then I would pray for him than stop him. Pray for me also that I would be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men, since, according to him, Precious one, it means if you thought I was going to stop, then I want you to know that I am just warming up to the glory of God. I am on a divine assignment for national transformation and let me ask you: is there not a cause for national transformation? There is so much not right about this country and we must start somewhere to talk about it, so, we can change it. I am talking and I challenge you to join me in this cause. If anyone asks you why you are talking these days about societal ills, ask them: Is there not a cause? ---starrfmonline The positive rate of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) the percentage of people testing positive out of those tested has come down by at least 50% between July 15 and August 1, even though there has been a 63% surge in the number of cases during the corresponding period. The positivity rate, which was 15.17% on July 15 had dipped to 7.75% on August 1, indicates the extent of the viral outbreak, according to state the health department. The declining positivity rate, said officials, was due to increased testing of swab samples. Bihar, of late, has been able to ramp up its daily testing to more than 3.5 times since July 15, when it had tested 10,052 samples, as compared to 35,619 on August 1. The state has tested 6,12,415 samples to date. Bihars positivity rate has declined since July 27, when it was 14.53% and 14,236 tests were carried out on that day. The turnaround happened after Pratyaya Amrit replaced Uday Singh Kumawat, as the state principal secretary, health, on July 27. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who was sore with Kumawats performance, had also chided him earlier. When Delhi can do 38,000 tests per day, why cant Bihar? the angry CM is said to have fumed during a review meeting on the management of Covid-19 and floods that ravaged the state and had asked Kumawat to quit if he could not take care of the health department. Kumawat was unavailable for his comment. The decline in positivity rate has been possible because we have been able to ramp up our daily testing across the state. I am still not satisfied with what has been achieved. I would like to get it down to less than 5%, said Amrit. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), a positivity rate of less than 5% for two weeks indicates that an epidemic is under control, he said, stressing on the CMs mantra for increased daily testing. Dr. Tanmay Mahapatra, a Bihar-based epidemiologist, who had had a stint of research in the United States of America (USA) on infectious disease epidemiology, however, cautioned that the declining positivity alone was not enough. Declining positivity may be a good sign in the sense that daily testing is being conducted more. Declining positivity, along with improving recovery (64% as on Sunday), and reducing the spread of the virus are all a good sign, he said. Test positivity may decrease due to many factors. The strengthening healthcare system to handle the upsurge, coupled with syndromic surveillance and home isolation are the need of the hour, he added. Bihar reported 2,762 Covid cases on Sunday, as the tally climbed to 57,270, including 322 deaths. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The removal of the remains of the late John Hume, along with the cortege, will leave Moville, Co Donegal, to the Cathedral of Saint Eugene, Derry, for 5pm on Tuesday evening with the Funeral Mass taking place at 11.30am on Wednesday. Fr Paul Farren, Administrator of the Cathedral, will be the celebrant for the Mass and he will preach the homily. Bishop Donal McKeown, Bishop of Derry, will preside at the Mass and say the final words. In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, and in accordance with public health guidance, social distancing will be strictly observed within the cathedral and on its grounds. The Funeral Mass will be broadcast at 11.30am on RTE One and also televised on RTE News Now, and on its online and digital platforms. In addition, the Mass will be live-streamed on the St Eugenes Cathedral webcam. Meanwhile an online Book of Condolence has been opened in memory of Mr Hume. The Book of Condolence can be signed online at - https://bit.ly/39V2vgz. It and has been organised by Derry City and Strabane District Council. Derry's Mayor, Brian Tierney, paid tribute to the Nobel Laureate and former leader of the SDLP who died on Monday aged 83. I have so many memories of John Hume and the enduring role he played in Irish politics over the years, said the Mayor. Its impossible to appreciate the full extent of Johns role in shaping the place we live in today. As a young man John fought against discrimination and injustice in his role at the forefront of the Civil Rights movement, lending a strong voice to the nationalist population. A natural leader, his charisma, his intellect and his great sense of optimism and faith fuelled his vocation to bring about a better future for those in greatest need. Its fitting that John Hume was awarded three of the greatest accolades in the international campaign for Peace the Martin Luther King Award, the Ghandi Peace Award and the Nobel Prize for Peace. "He absolutely reviled the use of physical force, and was undaunted in his criticism of those who used it, advocating for peace through some of the most awful tragedies of the Troubles, despite the risk to his own life. His philosophy was always that politics was the alternative to war and he upheld that belief throughout his life." They are facing a fine or deportation; criminal cases may be opened against them. A joint inspection by Estonia's Health Board and the Police and Border Guard Board has revealed that seasonal workers who arrived by a charter plane from Ukraine on July 21 violated the self-isolation rules 46 times. The authorities suspect 17 people of working while they should be self-isolating, the ERR news portal reported. Read alsoUkrainian city in COVID-19 red zone refuses to toughen lockdown rules "This is irresponsible behavior as it could do serious harm to businesses and all people if we start reimposing [coronavirus-related] restrictions," Interior Minister Mart Helme said. He says that those who violated the self-isolation rules and their employers should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. "COVID-19 is becoming active again, and we must do everything to reduce its spread. Therefore, violators of the self-isolation rules should be held accountable," he said. The condition for the entry of the Ukrainians into Estonia was the employer's obligation to organize their self-isolation, the Estonian Interior Ministry's press service said. The Police and Border Guard Board may impose various sanctions on foreigners arriving in Estonia if they violate the self-isolation rules. "[Such] a foreigner could be deported from Estonia, an employer may be fined up to EUR 32,000 or a criminal case could be opened for the spread of infectious diseases. The state should not tolerate such violations and irresponsible behavior," Helme said. The Police and Border Guard Board is actively working on this case. The Health Board also has leverage, it can impose a fine of up to EUR 9,600 and initiate an action for the violation of the quarantine rules. "I expect the Health Department to take tough measures on this case," the minister said. On July 21, a charter plane with 145 Ukrainians on board arrived in Estonia; they were obliged to spend 14 days in self-isolation. Qazi Shibli, the editor of news portal The Kashmiriyat, was detained at Shergarh police station in Srinagar on July 31 following a lengthy interrogation by the cyber police. The International Federation of Journalist (IFJ) and its Indian affiliate, the Indian Journalists Union (IJU) condemns the harassment and detainment of Qazi Shibli and urge authorities to immediately release the journalist and editor. Jammu and Kashmir police in Srinagar summoned Shibli on July 30, asking him to present himself to the cyber division on July 31 for questioning. After the interrogation, Shibli was transferred to the Shergarh police station. His relatives waited nearly eight hours outside the cyber cell, but Shibli was not released. No reason has been given for his detention. Prior to the police summoning, Shibli had received threats from callers from unknown numbers for his news reports, including reports on local police officials. Journalists and the media fraternity have condemned his arrest and have taken to Twitter with the hashtags #journalismIsNotACrime and #ReleaseQaziShibli. This is not the first time Shibli has been targeted by authorities. He was arrested in July 2019 under the draconian Public Safety Act and imprisoned for more nine months following his news reports revealing the additional deployment of government forces in Kashmir ahead of revocation of Jammu and Kashmirs special status and the extended communications shutdown in August 5, 2019. He was imprisoned in Bareilly Jail in Uttar Pradesh. Earlier this year Fahad Shah, editor of news portal Kashmir Walla, was summoned by Srinagar cyber police station on May 20. The police in Srinagar have also filed separate investigations or FIRs against Kashmiri photojournalist Masrat Zahra and journalist Gowhar Geelani on April 18 and April 21 respectively. And, cyber police in Srinagar questioned journalist Peerzada Ashiq on April 19 in relation to the journalists news articles. The IJU president Geetartha Pathak said: We demand immediate release of Qazi Shibli , the editor of the news website The Kashmiriyat . Authorities must allow independent journalists to do their work. The IFJ said: The IFJ condemn the series of attacks and ongoing harassment of journalists in India, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir. IFJ calls for the immediate release of Qazi Shibli and demand that authorities stop persecuting journalists for doing their jobs. NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. - Coastal shops and restaurants closed early, power began to flicker at oceanfront hotels and even the most adventurous of beachgoers abandoned the sand Monday night as newly restrengthened Hurricane Isaias sped toward the Carolinas. The U.S. National Hurricane Center warned oceanside home dwellers to brace for storm surge up to 5 feet (1.5 metres) and up to 8 inches (20 centimetres) of rain in spots, as Isaias moved up the coast. The Carolinas werent the only states at risk. All those rains could produce flash flooding across portions of the eastern Carolinas and mid-Atlantic, and even in the northeast U.S., said Daniel Brown, senior hurricane specialist at the U.S. National Hurricane Center. A tropical storm warning extended all the way up to Maine, where flash flooding was possible in some areas on Wednesday. The centre also warned of possible tornadoes in North Carolina on Monday night and early Tuesday, and from eastern Virginia to southern New England later Tuesday. Isaias (pronounced ees-ah-EE-ahs) was upgraded again from a tropical storm to a Category 1 hurricane at 11 p.m. EDT. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 85 miles (137 kph) and was centred about 40 miles (64 kilometres) east northeast of Myrtle Beach. It was moving north northeast at 22 mph (35 kph). The Hurricane Center said it expected the storm to make landfall early Tuesday near southern North Carolina. Isaias killed two people in the Caribbean and roughed up the Bahamas but remained at sea as it brushed past Florida over the weekend, providing some welcome relief to emergency managers who had to accommodate mask-wearing evacuees in storm shelters. The centre of Isaias remained well offshore as it passed Georgias coast on Monday. President Donald Trump on Monday described Isaias as very serious. Storm surge and inland flooding are possible and everyone needs to remain vigilant until it passes, Trump said. Authorities in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, ordered swimmers out of the water to avoid rough surf and strong rip currents. By nightfall, power began to flicker at beachfront hotels as Isaias crossed the last bit of warm water on its path toward the U.S. mainland. Still, on this part of the South Carolina and North Carolina coasts that has been affected to varying degrees by seven tropical storms or hurricanes since 2014, residents werent panicking. Its just going to be a lot of wind and high tide, said Mike Fuller, who has lived along the coast for more than a decade. As the storm neared the shore, a gauge on a pier in Myrtle Beach recorded its third highest water level since it was set up in 1976. Only Hurricane Hugo in 1989 and Hurricane Matthew in 2016 pushed more salt water inland. Oceanfront streets throughout the area flooded as the sea ended up nearly 10 feet (3 metres) above low tide. Up the coast in southern North Carolina, high winds from Isaias inner core knocked down trees and power lines, blocking roads. No major damage was initially reported. Shops and restaurants appeared quieter than usual for a summertime Monday in North Myrtle Beach, but locals blamed COVID-19 more than Isaias. No businesses were boarding up their windows, although some moved outside furniture inside. Wayne Stanley and his family came to the city over the weekend from Julian, North Carolina. Hes never experienced a hurricane, but said he never considered cancelling his familys weeklong vacation either. I was pretty scared to start off with, Stanley said Monday. Then we thought maybe its not going to be that bad. Officials in frequently flooded Charleston, South Carolina, handed out sandbags and opened parking garages so residents on the low-lying peninsula could stow their cars above ground. Forecasters had warned earlier of possible major flooding, but the storm passed faster than expected and only about a dozen streets were flooded. Farther up the coast into North Carolina, the hurricane centre predicted storm surges of 3 to 5 feet (0.9 to 1.5 metres) when Isaias moves onshore. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper warned residents on Monday that the storm could be dangerous regardless of its strength. He urged those evacuating to turn to shelters as a last resort, citing coronavirus risks and the need to operate shelters at reduced capacity to allow for social distancing. Whether its labeled a tropical storm or a hurricane, you should take this storm seriously, and make sure your family is ready, Cooper said. Ferry operators wrapped up evacuations from Ocracoke Island in North Carolinas Outer Banks on Monday, moving more than 3,500 people and 1,700 vehicles off the island over four days. Island officials were taking no chances after taking a beating less than a year ago from Hurricane Dorian. Evacuation orders also have been issued for Hatteras Island north of Ocracoke. Morgan Stewart said many evacuating residents had come into the store where she works in the inland community of Kinston to buy tarps, batteries, flashlights and other supplies. You can tell theyre worried, said Stewart, who saw cars parked on higher ground over the weekend as she secured her boat at a marina. Since forming last week, Isaias has been buffeted by competing forces both trying to kill and strengthen it, said University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy. Of all the places it could be, it found the warmest water it could, which fuels storm development, McNoldy said. And yet it is struggling. Thats because dry air kept working its way into the storm at low and mid-levels, which chokes storms. Isaias passage near Florida over the weekend was particularly unwelcome to authorities already dealing with surging coronavirus caseloads. The storm brought heavy rain and flooding to the state, forcing authorities to close outdoor virus testing sights, as well as beaches and parks. Officials lashed signs to palm trees so they wouldnt blow away. About 150 people had to keep masks on while sheltering in Palm Beach County, which had a voluntary evacuation order for people living in homes that cant withstand dangerous winds, said emergency management spokeswoman Lisa De La Rionda. ___ This story has been edited to correct the spelling of Isaias in the third paragraph from the bottom. ___ Associated Press reporters Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia; Jeffrey Collins and Michelle Liu in Columbia, South Carolina; Sophia Tulp in Atlanta; and AP Science Writer Seth Borenstein in Kensington, Maryland, contributed to this report. Venezuelan opposition leader and self-proclaimed acting president Juan Guaido delivers a press conference at the headquarters of the Accion Democratica (Democratic Action) party in Caracas on June 17, 2020. (Federico Parra/AFP via Getty Images) Venezuelan Coalition Opposed to Maduro Rejects December Vote CARACAS, VenezuelaA coalition of political parties in Venezuela led by interim president Juan Guaido said on Aug. 2 that it wont participate in congressional elections called by officials loyal to regime leader Nicolas Maduro. A group of 27 opposition parties rejected the Dec. 6 election as fraud. The vote would determine control of the National Assembly, led by Guaido, and the only branch of Venezuelas government that Maduro doesnt control. We will fight together to choose the fate of our country, Guaido tweeted on Aug. 2. Now we must mobilize our majority that desires to live with dignity. Together were going to beat the regime! The coalition has invited Venezuelans to unite behind a fresh push against what they call Maduros dictatorship. It has also asked for international help in the campaign against Maduro. Maduro didnt immediately respond on Aug. 2 to the oppositions decision, but hes said that it is important for his allies to win back control of the National Assembly. He has accused opposition leaders who control the congress of being manipulated by the United States. Venezuela is in a political and economic crisis, during which roughly 5 million people have fled the nation in recent years. The once-wealthy oil nation lacks basic goods, including a reliable supply of gasoline and a decent health care system, which is especially fragile as the coronavirus surges. The opposition coalition rejected the December election, citing unfair conditions orchestrated by Maduro. They said 30 opposition lawmakers have been stripped of immunity guaranteed by law, while dozens more have been driven into exile and five are currently in jail. The Supreme Courtloyal to Madurorecently appointed a new elections commission, including three members who have been sanctioned by the U.S. and Canada, without the participation of the opposition-led congress, as the law requires. The court also took over three leading opposition parties, appointing new leaders the opposition accuses of conspiring to support Maduro. Opposition leaders say they will only participate in an election if there are a fairly seated election commission and qualified national and international observers overseeing all aspects of the voting process. While Guaido launched a campaign to oust Maduro early in 2019, the socialist president still has control over the military and other major institutions. Maduro also has international support from Russia, China, Iran, and Cuba. It remains unclear how Guaido, following the election, would maintain his legitimacy as Venezuelas interim president, a position he claimed under the constitution in early 2019 from his position as head of the National Assembly. President Donald Trump was among the first of more than 50 nations to support Guaido. His administration has hit Maduro with stiff sanctions designed to isolate him, while Trumps confidence in Guaido appears to be fading. However, Elliott Abrams, Trumps special representative for Venezuela, said recently that the U.S. continues to support Guaido, and the administration will impose more pressure on Maduro. The opposition leaders denied in their statement that they were abstaining from the upcoming congressional election. Were not abstaining, the statement said. Theres no abstaining when they call something that doesnt qualify as an election. By Scott Smith Many Worlds, the newest Phoenix-based sneaker store, is announcing its grand opening for August 8th at 11 a.m. The store, located at 4524 N. 7th Street, is centrally located in Phoenix and will carry more than 500 exclusive sneakers at any given time, offering selections for all ages and styles. Many Worlds will occupy 1,500 square feet and have a maximum occupancy of 50 people. Separating itself from other sneaker stores in the area, the store will provide Arizona with its first professional sneaker drop-off cleaning service. The storefront will include an infinity mirror that will be any sneaker lovers photo opp dream and with the launch of its own Many Worlds clothing line customers will have first dibs to purchase the merchandise in-store. The stores owner, Steve Grear, came up with the name of the store while listening to a podcast on the Many Worlds Theory of quantum mechanics which, in short, states that many worlds exist in parallel in the same space and time as our own. The sneaker connoisseur naturally began thinking about popular shoes, and how they exist in so many different lives around the world. The idea stuck with him and Many Worlds sneaker store was born. This has been a long time coming, said Grear, the 43-year-old Arizona native. We have postponed the grand opening multiple times already so now that we are actually opening, its super exciting. Grear is also the owner and creator of the ultimate shoe cleaner, Reshoevn8r. Over the last decade, hes been recognized for having one of the top shoe cleaning solutions, featuring his patented sneaker laundry kit aimed at creating an easier and more efficient shoe cleaning experience. For Grear, featuring this sneaker drop-off cleaning service inside of Many Worlds was a no brainer and clear game changer. Many Worlds has widened the gap between the competition not only with its unique store setup but with its intentional proximity to Reshoevn8rs corporate office, where its YouTube studio is. Fans of the Reshoevn8r brand which has more than a million YouTube subscribers will have the opportunity to meet brand ambassador Vick Almighty and possibly get a tour of the building. Many worlds will not only be a home for sneaker lovers to grab new kicks, revamp old favorites, but in due course become go-to spot for the shoe industry on the West Coast. It is important to note Many Worlds will be abiding by social distancing guidelines and require all customers to wear masks upon entering. It will allow 10 customers at a time and provide hand sanitizer for their use as well. ### About Many Worlds Many Worlds is based in Phoenix, Arizona and is set to open in August 2020. Many Worlds is owned by Steve Grear, the owner and creator of Reshoevn8r. Many Worlds will feature exclusive sneakers, its own clothing line, offer drop-off shoe cleaning services and will serve as a location for future, local events and charity drives for the community. Protesters in Mali are planning to go to the streets again this week as opponents continue to demand the resignation of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. Tensions are growing after the opposition in Mali rejected a plan by West African leaders to end the countrys political crisis. Streets were mostly quiet early Monday in Bamako, the capital, aside from a call from opposition activists for people to resume acts of civil disobedience and block the main roads to paralyze the country. Youth leaders within the so-called June 5 opposition Movement, known as M5-RFP, have asked their supporters to demonstrate peacefully to again demand President Ibrahim Boubacar Keitas resignation. Adama Ben Diarra is one of leaders of the June 5 movement. He explains that the only option that should prevail in Mali is President Keitas departure. He said that Africas destiny is at stake in Mali and when the Malian people act accordingly, it will teach a lesson to all African leaders, with repercussions all across the continent. Organizers say the protests have not fully resumed because a strategic meeting with senior leaders of the June 5 Movement is not scheduled until Tuesday indicating to observers a diversity of opinions or disagreements within the movement. Those criticizing the movement point to what they see as a lack of unified leadership despite a common goal. The movement gathers civil society, political parties, and other groups behind one motto: IBKs resignation. Choguel Maiga is a former minister. He is now the chair the June 5 strategic committee. Maiga told VOA that religious leaders, civil society, youth, political parties and unions have one thing in common: they are afraid of the future. He says they are rallying together and the mobilization will grow bigger. Is being fed up with the president enough to offer a political alternative for Malis future? Many analysts worry that legitimate demands for reforms, good governance and transparency would not be addressed even with a regime change. Young Malians are eager for economic opportunities and peace in a country that has been battling jihadist insurrection for more than nine years. These dreams echo similar aspirations seen in other African nations recently. Adama Ben Diarra of the June 5 Movement said youth organizations in Mali are close to their counterparts in Senegal (Y en a marre), in Burkina Faso (Balai citoyen) or DRC (Filimbi and Lucha). They share the same views on poor governance but, to him, there is no governance at all in Mali. He said that is why he wants to demonstrate until what he calls the final victory. In another development which shows the dire security situation in the country, Mali's army suffered new losses in twin attacks Sunday that left at least five soldiers dead. The bloodshed came almost six weeks after jihadists ambushed a military convoy, also in central Mali, killing 24 soldiers. When COVID-19 forced Wisconsin business shutdowns in mid-March, restaurateur Mike Roscioli knew he had to be prepared to re-open weeks later. To do so, he had to sanitize the restaurant, Masons Eatery & Pub, 7000 74th Place, and assure patrons that it was safe to enter when they could open for full indoor service. It was harder than he thought. The first order of business was to sanitize. However, the problem was we could not get sanitizing supplies anywhere, Roscioli said. We wanted to use an antimicrobial spray, but we couldnt get it. It was almost impossible to get supplies then because no one had them. So, after weeks of fruitlessly searching, Roscioli, who knew the restaurant business quite well, was about to enter a business he knew nothing about. He and Mitch Contesco decided to launch their own sanitizing business, a solution that also would help other restaurant owners and businesses. After much study, they learned of Germinator Mobile Sanitizing and Disinfecting, an Atlanta-based company with franchises across the country. They decided to buy in. We studied all the different processes and companies that offered sanitizing services. We were finally convinced this would be the best business option for us, he said. First franchise in state Germinator Kenosha is the companys first Wisconsin franchise. Jeff Gill, company founder and chief executive officer, said he had an interest in Wisconsin, especially Kenosha County, which offered growth potential. He thought the pair would be good franchise owners who could expand the business. Established in 2015, Germinator now has 20 franchises. Gill said Germinator uses a two-step disinfection, sanitizing process with fully-protected technicians who use electrostatic sprayers. The chemicals and process were developed with the approval of a scientific board of virologists and epidemiologists. Roscioli knew it was risky going into a business they knew nothing about. Before they could start, he and Contesco had to undergo an intensive five-day study via Zoom. They learned about the chemicals and machinery they would use and the importance of wearing the white antiviral protection suits. Getting its wings Roscioli and Contesco opened Germinator Kenosha a month ago. The fledgling company is getting its wings, looking to build a client base of commercial and resident customers. We did not want to be a cleaning service. We did not want to be janitors who would go in to clean the place. We just wanted to sanitize, he said. Its first client was Rosciolis restaurant. It took an hour and a half to thoroughly sanitize using a two-step disinfecting process that includes an application of a proprietary invisible coating, a shield that seals and protects. We sanitized everything so it would be ready to open, he said. We wanted it to be a place where people would feel safe to come to. Currently, the local franchise operates out of an office in the restaurant and has four employees including the owners. It soon will offer a third patented step, a chemical monitoring system, that will involve swabbing to measure microscopic contamination. The test produces results within 15 seconds, according to the company. The swab test will be done in 30 days after the first two steps. They hope to eventually add hospitals, hotels, schools, day care centers, athletic and senior care facilities as clients. They hope to also add as a client the 14-screen Cinemark Tinseltown movie complex that sits behind their operation. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 The business news you need Get the latest local business news delivered FREE to your inbox weekly. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. At top, the Princeton Senior Resource Center enjoys a holiday party in December 2019; below, seniors gather for a Zoom class with the Center, which has shifted all its programming online due to the coronavirus. But for many seniors, technology has proven a barrier. Read more Family gatherings on Zoom and FaceTime. Online orders from grocery stores and pharmacies. Telehealth appointments with physicians. These have been lifesavers for many older adults staying at home during the coronavirus pandemic. But an unprecedented shift to virtual interactions has a downside: Large numbers of seniors are unable to participate. Among them are older adults with dementia (14% of those 71 and older), hearing loss (nearly two-thirds of those 70 and older), and impaired vision (13.5% of those 65 and older) who can have a hard time using digital devices and programs designed without their needs in mind. (Think small icons, difficult-to-read typefaces, inadequate captioning among the hurdles.) Many older adults with limited financial resources also may not be able to afford devices or the associated internet service fees. (Half of seniors living alone and 23% of those in two-member households are unable to afford basic necessities.) Others are not adept at using technology and lack the assistance to learn. During the pandemic, which has hit older adults especially hard, this divide between technology haves and have-nots has serious consequences. READ MORE: No internet. No backup plan: What happens to seniors raising grandkids in the pandemic? Older adults in the haves group have more access to virtual social interactions and telehealth services, and more opportunities to secure essential supplies online. Meanwhile, the have-nots are at greater risk of social isolation, forgoing medical care and being without food or other necessary items. Charlotte Yeh, chief medical officer for AARP Services, observed difficulties associated with technology this year when trying to remotely teach her 92-year-old father how to use an iPhone. She lives in Boston; her father lives in Pittsburgh. Yehs mother had always handled communication for the couple, but she was in a nursing home after being hospitalized for pneumonia. Because of the pandemic, the home had closed to visitors. To talk to her and other family members, Yehs father had to resort to technology. But various impairments got in the way: Yehs father is blind in one eye, with severe hearing loss and a cochlear implant, and he had trouble hearing conversations over the iPhone. And it was more difficult than Yeh expected to find an easy-to-use iPhone app that accurately translates speech into captions. Often, family members would try to arrange Zoom meetings. For these, Yehs father used a computer but still had problems because he could not read the very small captions on Zoom. A tech-savvy granddaughter solved that problem by connecting a tablet with a separate transcription program. READ MORE: Isolation is linked to decline for seniors. That makes social distancing a frightening prospect. When Yehs mother, who was 90, came home in early April, physicians treating her for metastatic lung cancer wanted to arrange telehealth visits. But this could not occur by cellphone (the screen was too small) or her computer (too hard to move it around). Physicians could examine lesions around the older womans mouth only when a tablet was held at just the right angle, with a phones flashlight aimed at it for extra light. It was like a three-ring circus, Yeh said. Her family had the resources needed to solve these problems; many do not, she noted. Yehs mother passed away in July; her father is now living alone, making him more dependent on technology than ever. When SCAN Health Plan, a Medicare Advantage plan with 215,000 members in California, surveyed its most vulnerable members after the pandemic hit, it discovered that about one-third did not have access to the technology needed for a telehealth appointment. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services had expanded the use of telehealth in March. Other barriers also stood in the way of serving SCANs members remotely. Many people needed translation services, which are difficult to arrange for telehealth visits. We realized language barriers are a big thing, said Eve Gelb, SCANs senior vice president of health care services. READ MORE: Why Internet access is a super determinant of health | Expert Opinion Nearly 40% of the plans members have vision issues that interfere with their ability to use digital devices; 28% have a clinically significant hearing impairment. We need to target interventions to help these people, Gelb said. SCAN is considering sending community health workers into the homes of vulnerable members to help them conduct telehealth visits. Also, it may give members easy-to-use devices, with essential functions already set up, to keep at home, Gelb said. Landmark Health serves a highly vulnerable group of 42,000 people in 14 states, bringing services into patients homes. Its average patient is nearly 80 years old, with eight medical conditions. After the first few weeks of the pandemic, Landmark halted in-person visits to homes because personal protective equipment, or PPE, was in short supply. Instead, Landmark tried to deliver care remotely. It soon discovered that fewer than 25% of patients had appropriate technology and knew how to use it, according to Nick Loporcaro, the chief executive officer. Telehealth is not the panacea, especially for this population, he said. Landmark plans to experiment with what he calls facilitated telehealth: nonmedical staff members bringing devices to patients homes and managing telehealth visits. (It now has enough PPE to make this possible.) And it, too, is looking at technology that it can give to members. ASK US: Do you have a question about the coronavirus and how it affects your health, work and life? Ask our reporters. One alternative gaining attention is GrandPad, a tablet loaded with senior-friendly apps designed for adults 75 and older. In July, the National PACE Association, whose members run programs providing comprehensive services to frail seniors who live at home, announced a partnership with GrandPad to encourage adoption of this technology. Everyone is scrambling to move to this new remote care model and looking for options, said Scott Lien, the companys co-founder and chief executive officer. PACE Southeast Michigan purchased 125 GrandPads for highly vulnerable members after closing five centers in March where seniors receive services. The devices have been remarkably successful in facilitating video-streamed social and telehealth interactions and allowing nurses and social workers to address emerging needs, said Roger Anderson, senior director of operational support and innovation. Another alternative is technology from iN2L (an acronym for Its Never Too Late), a company that specializes in serving people with dementia. In Florida, under a new program sponsored by the states Department of Elder Affairs, iN2L tablets loaded with dementia-specific content have been distributed to 300 nursing homes and assisted living centers. The goal is to help seniors with cognitive impairment connect virtually with friends and family and engage in online activities that ease social isolation, said Sam Fazio, senior director of quality care and psychosocial research at the Alzheimers Association, a partner in the effort. But because of budget constraints, only two tablets are being sent to each long-term care community. Families report it can be difficult to schedule adequate time with loved ones when only a few devices are available. This happened to Maitely Weismanns 77-year-old mother after she moved into a short-staffed Los Angeles memory care facility in March. After seeing how hard it was to connect, Weismann, who lives in Los Angeles, gave her mother an iPad and hired an aide to ensure that mother and daughter were able to talk each night. READ MORE: With COVID-19 restrictions, I worry I may never see my elderly mom again | Opinion Without the aides assistance, Weismanns mother would end up accidentally pausing the video or turning off the device. She probably wanted to reach out and touch me, and when she touched the screen it would go blank and shed panic, Weismann said. Whats needed going forward? Laurie Orlov, founder of the blog Aging in Place Technology Watch, said nursing homes, assisted living centers and senior communities need to install communitywide Wi-Fi services something that many lack. We need to enable Zoom get-togethers. We need the ability to put voice technology in individual rooms, so people can access Amazon Alexa or Google products, she said. We need more group activities that enable multiple residents to communicate with each other virtually. And we need vendors to bundle connectivity, devices, training and service in packages designed for older adults. Kaiser Health News is a nonprofit news service covering health issues. It is an editorially independent program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, which is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente. ALBANY - As the Black Lives Matter movement picks up momentum, racial justice advocates say more must be done to address the mass incarceration of people of color in New York. Advocates and lawmakers say the criminal justice reforms passed in June were a great start, but some items left unaddressed would go further in supporting and providing dignity to Black and Hispanic lives. It moved the needle on progress on the way that law enforcement interacts with Black and brown people, and people generally in our community, Assemblywoman Carmen De La Rosa, D-Manhattan, said. On the other side of the coin, interactions with law enforcement has led to the disproportionate incarceration of Black and brown people. As we look to legalize marijuana or look to change the way in which the criminal justice system interacts in our courts, like bail reform, there is still the other piece of the puzzle - those still lingering behind bars. De La Rosa and advocates say repealing 50-a, the section of Civil Rights Law that has largely kept police misconduct records secret, banning choke holds, keeping incarcerated parents closer to children and banning U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from courts are good steps forward. But the criminal justice system remains a key sector for advocates in addressing systemic racism due to the disproportionate number of Black and Hispanic people incarcerated and the many ramifications incarceration and having a record has for the individual as well as family members. The disproportionate number of people of color incarcerated is often linked back to the war on drugs declared in the 1970s, in which law enforcement techniques included racial profiling, stop and frisk and drug sweeps in minority neighborhoods. But strained relationships between minority communities and law enforcement also can be traced back to slavery and interactions during the Civil Rights movement. During a visit to a state prison, De La Rosa said she was hit with a ton of bricks seeing how many Black men were incarcerated. For me, thats a symptom of a larger problem - over policing and over incarceration, and thats happening on the backs of brown and Black lives, she said. Marvin Mayfield, state organizer for the Center for Community Alternatives, said state legislators missed the mark by not acting on bills that would give timely elder parole, stop solitary confinement and protect transsexual people of color from discrimination. This is legislation that will protect all New Yorkers, even the most vulnerable who are incarcerated, and stop harassment of Black and trans people walking to the subway, he said. Recently, public focus has been on police brutality, but thats just a front end of a system that has been designed to oppress and harass people of color. Jared Trujillo, president of the Association of Legal Aid Attorneys and part of the Walking While Trans Coalition, said the reality is there are a lot of criminal justice reforms that the Legislature needed to address yesterday. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. Passing the Walking While Trans bill - which would repeal a loitering law known as "walking while trans" due to the way police officers can stop transgender women of color and arrest them for baseless reasons like walking down the street in certain clothing - would dismantle the unconstitutional law that pulls women of color into the criminal justice system, Trujillo said. Were really just trying to get them to correct injustices within the criminal legal system that the Legislature, in and of itself, created, he said. There are a couple bills that the Justice Road Map Coalition is really prioritizing that the Legislature really needs to pass the second they go into session. The coalition also calls for an end to solitary confinement in jails and prison and fair and timely parole opportunities for elderly inmates. Proponents of the measures say a mindset shift may be necessary, with a recognition that incarcerated people should be treated with dignity and the system should seek to transform lives. We have to shift away resources from the current systems of policing and move those resources to community investments that actually create a stable community like education, affordable housing, quality health care, Mayfield said. Washington has unveiled its plan this week to withdraw 11,900 troops out of Germany, as part of a sweeping troop re-organization that has brought condemnation from both parties in the U.S. Congress, as well as from European allies. Among the U.S. troops that would be withdrawn, about 5,600 will be repositioned to other North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries, while the rest will return to the United States with some beginning rotational deployment back to Europe, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper told a news briefing. The Pentagon chief claimed that the redeployment, which could begin within weeks, will strengthen NATO, enhance deterrence against Russia and improve U.S. strategic flexibility. Observers, however, cannot help but notice a widening rift between the two allies across the Atlantic Ocean, who have been experiencing unprecedented discords for the past few years, making some believe that a kind of structural change is taking place in their partnership. The Berlin Central Train Station is illuminated with light of EU theme in Berlin, capital of Germany, on May 7, 2019. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi) WORSENING TIES Ever since Donald Trump assumed U.S. presidency and made "America First" his administration's motto, Europeans have had to get used to the president's casual willingness to risk decades-old alliances and rip up international agreements. From the Iran nuclear issue, the termination of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty and U.S. Middle East policies, to climate change and trade disputes, Washington has gone its own way without consulting its partners in advance and undermined Europe's security and economic interests, let alone the U.S. withdrawal from several international organizations. The key framework for NATO, the traditional transatlantic alliance, has also been put in doubt as Trump called the military alliance "obsolete." Earlier in July, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo sent fresh warnings of possible sanctions to companies involved in the Russia-Germany pipeline program and the second line of the Turk Stream. But German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas quickly rejected the threats and accused Washington of its extraterritorial sanctions. A bicyclist is seen near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, capital of Germany, March 28, 2020. (Photo by Binh Truong/Xinhua) The COVID-19 pandemic has split the two sides further. The United States seized a mask shipment bound for Europe. It also attempted to secure exclusive American rights to a vaccine under development in Germany, not to mention the two sides' different attitudes towards the World Health Organization. The ties between Europe and the United States now seem to be further worsening after the troops withdrawal plan. "We don't want to be the suckers anymore," Trump told reporters at a White House briefing on Wednesday, reiterating his contention that NATO allies are taking advantage of the U.S. generosity. Photo taken on Feb. 12, 2020 shows the NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. (Xinhua/Zhang Cheng) Esper said at a Pentagon briefing that the move would boost U.S. strategic interests, and prepare the military for "a new era of great power competition." On the other side, Germany, serving as a key hub in NATO military presence in Europe's geological heart, considers U.S. troops critical to its security and that of West Europe. Therefore, Berlin is angry that Washington made the decision without consulting its ally and used it as a punishment of Germany's incompliance on the NATO defense budget goal. "Europe's most important partner is the United States. Of course, I am aware that working with America is currently more difficult than we would like," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on May 27 at the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung when she was introducing the foreign and security policies during Germany's current half-year EU Council Presidency. People vote at a polling site during the New York 2020 primary elections in Brooklyn borough of New York, the United States, June 23, 2020. (Photo by Michael Nagle/Xinhua) STRUCTURAL CHANGES Following Esper's announcement of the armed forces' withdrawal plan, Peter Beyer, the German government's transatlantic coordinator, said the reduction of American troops in Germany is "not in Germany's nor NATO's security interests, and also makes no geopolitical sense for the United States. "Great cold between the United States and Europe," French newspaper Le Monde titled an editorial on June 20, saying that Europe is aware of the deteriorating transatlantic relations, and they have to act. Josep Borrell, the European Union High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, told the Wall Street Journal earlier that Washington's attacks on Europe have materially damaged the transatlantic relationship, adding that Europe should recognize that the situation will not return to the past. "Those in Europe who are now betting everything on a change in the White House should be prepared for the fact that even in that case it will not be as comfortable as it once was," Maas told Rheinische Post on Monday. Photo taken on July 7, 2020 shows the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., the United States. (Xinhua/Liu Jie) "U.S. foreign and security policy has changed, and not just since Trump became president," Maas said, who earlier noted that the transatlantic partnership has "structural changes." Some observers believe that the structural changes may refer to U.S. withdrawal from global affairs and waiver of responsibilities, considering that over the past century the United States has touted its global leadership in many global crises. In some observers' views, the COVID-19 pandemic is probably the first global crisis in more than a century where no one is even looking to the United States for leadership. It, together with other contributing factors such as the troops withdrawal, has brought U.S.-Europe divisions into focus and prompted calls for a rethinking of the transatlantic relationship with regard to the new circumstances. "We grew up in the certain knowledge that the United States wanted to be a world power. Should the U.S. now wish to withdraw from that role of its own free will, we would have to reflect on that very deeply," Merkel told media in late June. A pipe transporting jet fuel offloaded from barges in seen at Kinder Morgan's Westridge Terminal on Burrard Inlet in Burnaby By Stephanie Kelly, Koustav Samanta and Bozorgmehr Sharafedin NEW YORK/SINGAPORE/LONDON (Reuters) - For a faint moment, energy traders had an inkling that demand for jet fuel, the worst-hit product in fuel markets due to the coronavirus pandemic, might stage a bit of a rebound. The number of flights increased in the United States in early July, making some traders optimistic. That spurred a bevy of shipments of jet fuel to the U.S. West Coast from locales in Asia. But with a resurgence in coronavirus cases, passenger air traffic has pulled back. Commercial aviation was easily the hardest-hit of the major transport sectors when coronavirus hit, given the close proximity of passengers in an air-conditioned space where viruses can spread. International flights remain down more than 80% from year-ago levels, Rystad Energy said. In Europe, traders were hopeful that the summer vacation season would increase demand for jet fuel. But stocks recently hit a record high despite subdued imports to the region and high exports as more countries impose border restrictions to control the new wave of the pandemic. Stocks had set new records in July at 984,000 tonnes in a fifth weekly consecutive rise, according to data from Dutch consultancy Insights Global. They slightly fell last week to 937,000 tonnes. Exports westward have come largely from countries such as South Korea, Japan and India. That has decreased jet fuel and kerosene floating storage in Asia to 1.1 million barrels from four million barrels in early May, according to Vortexa. The rising stocks in Europe and the low demand in summer encouraged many traders to look into export options. The United States was one of the main destinations in June and July, according to Kpler. But air travel in the United States also has not recovered. Activity rebounded around the July 4 U.S. holiday, but has since stalled, Standard Chartered said Wednesday. The week-over-week rolling seven-day average for passenger number growth in the United States fell below zero in mid-July for the first time since April 20, the company said. Story continues Jet fuel imports to the United States in July increased to 190,000 barrels per day, still 45,000 bpd under year-ago levels, but up 33,000 barrels per day versus June, according to data intelligence firm Kpler. Much of that went to the U.S. West Coast, which at times relies on imports, given its lack of connectedness to other markets in the country, Kpler's Reid l'Anson said. "Airlines might have been marginally more active in the region than initial expectations, prompting the need for some international jet volumes." Meanwhile, while the imports of most products from East of Suez to Europe fell in July according to Kpler data, imports of jet fuel remained stable versus June. However, shippers have grown so pessimistic about near-term demand that some vessels are now taking longer routes to arrive in Europe at the end of summer. (GRAPHIC: Scheduled flights edge higher in July https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/editorcharts/rlgvdnxgrvo/index.html) (Reporting by Stephanie Kelly in New York, Bozorgmehr Sharafedin in London and Koustav Samanta in Singapore; Editing by Dan Grebler) A Harris County Marine is among nine troops whose loss is being mourned following a training accident last Thursday off the California coast. Military officials identified the man as Cpl. Wesley A. Rodd, 23. He was a rifleman with Bravo Company, Battalion Landing Team 1/4 with the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, which is based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. We are praying for a miracle, Jamie Rodd, his wife, wrote Monday in a Facebook post. They have still not been found. "I know all of us in the USMC family are extremely saddened following the announcement of the end of [search-and-rescue] operations," tweeted Gen. David Berger, the commandant of the Marine Corps. "This difficult decision was made after all resources were exhausted. Our prayers continue to be with the family and friends of the 8 Marines and one Sailor we lost." A New Braunfels Marine, Lance Cpl. Guillermo Perez, 20, was killed in the incident. The Associated Press said Perezs body was the only one so far found. One of Perezs sisters, Bobbie Medelez, wrote on her Facebook page, These next few days will be the hardest I cant tell you how much this is gonna hurt me & has hurt me I dont know how to take in all this I dont know how to stop all this hurt. Each of the service members was 23 or younger. Their presumed deaths were marked after the military service shifted from search-and-rescue operations to a recovery mission off San Clemente Island, a Navy-owned training area. During a routine training session , an amphibious assault vehicle started taking on water near the island and sank Thursday night, the I Marine Expeditionary Force tweeted Friday. Of the 16 service members on board, seven Marines were rescued and another Marine Perez was pronounced dead on scene. After 40 hours of search and rescue efforts by Coast Guard and Navy helicopters, ships and water-craft, officials called off the efforts Saturday and wrote in a statement that seven Marines and the sailor were presumed dead. A recovery mission will continue indefinitely in an effort to find any bodies. Previous amphibious assault vehicle mishaps have occurred during waterborne operations, but both mishaps resulted in one fatality, wrote Marine Corps spokesperson 1st Lieutenant Brian Tuthill in an email. A GoFundMe page was created Sunday for the Rodd family and has already garnered over $27,000. We are still praying he is found safe and have not given up hope, the post said. Rodds Facebook page suggests he went to Cy-Fair High School in Cypress. Posts from May also show that Rodd and his wife, Jamie, recently became parents. Rodds family requested privacy at this time, and did not respond to the Chronicle for comment. Our thoughts and prayers have been, and will continue to be with our Marines and Sailors families during this difficult time, said Col. Christopher Bronzi, 15th MEU Commanding Officer in a news release. The news release stated that the search had included more than 1,000 square nautical miles. It is not yet known why the mishap occurred, but the incident is currently under investigation. In a Friday press conference, Lt. Gen. Joseph Osterman said the vehicle sank in several hundred feet, at a depth too deep for divers. The incident marks the deadliest at sea for the Marine Corps since 12 service members died when two CH-53E helicopters collided off the coast of Hawaii on Jan. 14, 2016, spawning a multiday search for survivors. The Marines said Perez was a rifleman with Bravo Company, Battalion Landing Team 1/4, 15th MEU, but provided no other information Monday. Medelez, his sister, wrote a tearful Facebook post several days ago in which she addressed her brother, saying, PLEASE someone wake me up from all this I told you brother! I told you what this would do to me ... its even worst than I could even think to imagine.... No more random calls or texts from you ... no more hugs or trips to whataburger when u would be home Sig Christenson and Chronicle wire services contributed to this report. currie.engel@chron.com Three teenagers are among the nine service members who died after their amphibious assault vehicle sank in deep water during a training exercise off the coast of Southern California last week. Only one of the nine victims bodies was found, despite an intense days-long search that covered 1,000 nautical miles and involved helicopters and a Navy destroyer, the US Marine Corps said. Lance Cpl. Guillermo S. Perez, 20, of Texas, was found dead close to the scene near San Clemente Island where the vehicle sank at around 5:45pm on Thursday. The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit announced on Sunday that the others, from California, Texas, Wisconsin and Oregon, are all presumed dead. Privates Bryan J. Baltierra, 18, of California, Evan Bath, 19, of Wisconsin, and Lance Corporal Chase D. Sweetwood, 19, of Oregon have been identified as the youngest of the victims. Their fellow Marines Lance Cpl. Marco A. Barranco, 21, of California, Pfc. Jack Ryan Ostrovsky, 21, of Oregon, Cpl. Wesley A. Rodd, 23, of Texas, and Cpl. Cesar A. Villanueva, 21, of California, are also presumed dead. One sailor, US Navy Hospitalman Christopher Gnem, 22, of California, is also believed to have died. (Pictured left to right) Privates Bryan J. Baltierra, 18, of California, Evan Bath, 19, of Wisconsin, and Lance Corporal Chase D. Sweetwood, 19, of Oregon were identified as the youngest of the victims Only one of the victim's bodies was recovered: Lance Cpl. Guillermo S. Perez, 20, of Texas, who was pronounced dead at the scene Pfc. Jack Ryan Ostrovsky, 21, of Oregon (left) and Cpl. Cesar A. Villanueva, 21, of California (right), are also presumed dead The oldest victim of the incident was revealed to be 23-year-old Cpl. Wesley Rodd of Texas. He recently became a father, family members revealed Victim Lance Cpl. Marco A. Barranco, 21, is shown left. One sailor, US Navy Hospitalman Christopher Gnem, 22, of California (right), is also believed to have died Literally every asset we have available was mobilized in the search for seven Marines and a Navy corpsman, Lt. Gen. Joseph Osterman, commander of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, said Friday. They were among a crew of 16 aboard an amphibious assault vehicle that was heading back to a Navy ship Thursday evening after a routine training exercise when it began taking on water about a half-mile from Navy-owned San Clemente Island, near San Diego. Other assault vehicles quickly responded but couldn't stop the 26-ton, tank-like vehicle from quickly sinking, Osterman said. Its believed the vehicle sank some 600-feet all the way to the bottom of the ocean floor. That was too deep for divers, and Navy and Coast Guard were discussing ways to reach the sunken vehicle to get a view inside it, Osterman said. The oldest victim, 23-year-old Corporal Rodd, recently became a father, family members told Stars and Stripes. Lance Corporal Chase Sweetwood turned 19 during the search. His birthday was on Friday, the day after the accident that would take his life, family members said on GoFundMe. Chase was one of the good ones in this life, and he was taken far too soon, his aunt Niki Stockdale wrote. Baltierra was also just 18 at the time of his death, though the Marine Corps initially listed him as older. His family say they were notified of his death during a home visit on Saturday. My family and I pray for the other victims and families involved in this horrific accident,' wrote his sister, Natalie Baltierra. 'With all our hearts, we love you, Bryan, and you will always be here with us. Search and rescue efforts were underway with support from the Navy and Coast Guard following the Assault Amphibious Vehicle accident. The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit is seen during training on Monday The vehicle took on water at around 5.45pm while 15 Marines and one sailor were inside near San Clemente Island in Los Angeles County. The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit is seen during training on Monday Rifleman Wesley Rodd is pictured holding his newborn son with partner just weeks before his death Lance Corporal Chase Sweetwood turned 19 during the search. His birthday was on Friday, the day after the accident that would take his life, family members said on GoFundMe Seaman Gnem, meanwhile, was planning to get married next year, his girlfriend revealed. I lost the love of my life. The most purest and sweetest soul Ive ever met. My absolute best friend in the whole world and my reason to live, Gnems girlfriend Savannah Henne wrote to Facebook, calling him her soul mate. Seven other Marines were rescued from the water; two were in critical condition at a hospital after sustaining unspecified injuries, authorities said. One of the injured survivors was identified on GoFundMe as Dallas Truxal, 22, of Indiana. In a Sunday update, his aunt, Catrina Parsons-Tomamichel wrote that he was now in a stable condition and alert and asking when he can get back to work. All the Marines were attached to the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, based at nearby Camp Pendleton. They were all wearing combat gear, including body armor, and flotation vests, according to Osterman. The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit tweeted early Sunday that the rescue operation had become a recovery mission, following a 40-hour search that yielded no signs of life. 'Keep our 15thMEU families in your thoughts and prayers,' the Marines said on Twitter. 'I know all of us in the USMC family are extremely saddened following the announcement of the end of SAR operations,' added General David H. Berger, 38th Commandant of the United States Marine Corps in comments he tweeted following the announcement. 'This difficult decision was made after all resources were exhausted.' Baltierra was also just 18 at the time of his death, though the Marine Corps initially listed him as older. His family say they were notified of his death during a home visit on Saturday Seaman Gnem, meanwhile, was planning to get married next year, his girlfriend Savannah Henne (right) revealed Lance Cpl. Guillermo S. Perez has been remembered by friends on social media, who say his presence will be 'sorely missed' The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit tweeted early Sunday that the rescue operation was now a recovery mission after 40 hours of searching. A helicopter is pictured during the search General David H. Berger, 38th Commandant of the United States Marine Corps, tweeted it was a 'difficult decision' to call off the search for the missing service members Survivor: One of the injured survivors was identified on GoFundMe as Dallas Truxal, 22, of Indiana. In a Sunday update, his aunt, Catrina Parsons-Tomamichel wrote that he was now in a stable condition and alert and asking when he can get back to work. The vehicle, known as an AAV but nicknamed an amtrac, for amphibious tractor is used to take Marines and their gear from Navy ships to land. The sunken craft, one of 13 involved in the exercise, was designed to be naturally buoyant and had three water-tight hatches and two large troop hatches The vehicles have been used since 1972, and continually refurbished. Marine Corps officials said Friday they did not know the age or other details of the one that sank. The Marine Corps commandant, Gen. David Berger, suspended waterborne operations of more than 800 amphibious assault vehicles across the branch until the cause of the accident is determined. This is the third time in recent years that Camp Pendleton Marines have been injured or died in amphibious assault vehicles during training exercises. In 2017, 14 Marines and one Navy sailor were hospitalized after their vehicle hit a natural gas line, igniting a fire that engulfed the landing craft at Camp Pendleton. In 2011, a Marine died when an amphibious assault vehicle in a training exercise sank offshore of the camp. Of the recently released mainstream Jammu and Kashmir leaders, none has publicly called for restoring Article 370. Their silence has not gone unnoticed. On 5 August, 2019, hours before the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced its decision to revoke Jammu and Kashmir's special status and bifurcate it into two Union Territories, a number of the Valley's mainstream leaders were taken into preventative custody. Later, some were detained under the the Public Safety Act (PSA). But despite many mainstream politicos recently being released (with the notable exception of Mehbooba Mufti) and doing the media rounds, none of them has publicly called for restoring Article 370. Their silence has not gone unnoticed. "The Indian government has resumed the process of putting messages across through its followers whose ideology and conviction will never change despite humiliating them in public circles," one journalist, who did not wish to be named, stated. "India has kept its trump cards ready to quell resistance and reduce the pressure from the international community, which has raised alarm about the potential human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir. A new generation of mainstream leaders is being groomed to run the political show for the next century." It may matter little how much the words of the pro-India Kashmiri leaders move rest of India, but special attention must be paid to what the 12 million people of Jammu and Kashmir think. Hafeez-ud-Din, a longtime National Conference activist and staunch supporter of Omar Abdullah, speaking of party leadership said a few months ago, "Let them release Farooq and Omar. If we don't shake the walls of Parliament, I'll change my name." Omar, who was released from detention on 24 March, recently penned a column in Indian Express saying he would not contest elections until full statehood is restored. Omar, who has been taking heat from both his party workers and other politicos in the Valley for diluting the demand to restore Article 370, later clarified that he and his party would challenge the revocation of Article 370 in court. At the mention of Omar and his recent column, Hafeez-ud-Din remained silent for a moment. "In exchange for their release, our leaders have reiterated their commitment to strengthen the Hindutva mission in Kashmir. It is not the fault of those who repeatedly sell their faith, conscience and honour, but those of us that have become committed sinners by following them and their plans." "We have to atone for our sins, and then devise a strategy to fight our own battle. We relied on India at the behest of our leadership. In return, they stabbed us in 1947 and they are doing so again and again." A question on whether he'd consider joining the Hurriyat drew an angry response. "Whom would I follow in the Hurriyat? Who is the genuine article? Mr Syed Ali Shah Geelani, on whom the Pakistani establishment bestowed their Nishan-e-Imtiaz? Does Mr Geelani, or any other Hurriyat leader, even know who gives a statement on their behalf or where it comes from?" "Kashmir is leaderless and directionless. We have only the Almighty and then a few remote controls, including China. We have to learn how to navigate our own struggle, which might be a long and grueling journey but at least there will be no fear of disgrace and disregard. The spirit of freedom is our stimulus and we will continue our struggle in the same gusto," an overwhelmed Hafeez-ud-Din said before breaking down. The pro-India Kashmiri leaders also have to be disheartened about the lack of protests against their detention (other than a small section of loyalists). Instead, most on social media argued that Kashmiris wanted independence and not the restoration of Article 370, which was the baby of the political mainstream and his little resonance for the majority. Pro-India leaders have often accused the Hurriyat as being the cause of the agitation and insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir. As the Hurriyat leadership has been in jail or under house arrest for the past few years, some of the common people who consider themselves activists of the 'freedom movement' have resorted to strikes and protests. This is a reality that the mainstream leadership which has tried every tactic ostensibly at the direction of New Delhi (see Afzal Guru), to stymie the 'freedom' camp has denied. Note how not a single leader has mentioned the case of jailed separatist Yasin Malik or his deteriorating health. Ghaffar Ansari, a Pattan resident, said, "If the pro-India leaders want to complain, they should complain to their 'masters in Delhi' and not those deprived due to political gambling since the Partition." According to well-known international historian and journalist Peter Hanridge, "There are only two options left for Kashmiris: fight for total independence or integrate fully with India like the rest of the states. Any leader who talks of restoration of statehood, Article 370 or 35A is playing political gimmicks with poor people again. There is no middle ground left. Kashmiris must unite and reject such political sell-outs or risk ceding power to such individuals and their descendants for the next hundred years in exchange for hollow slogans." Deborah Birx, the physician overseeing the White House coronavirus response, warned Sunday that the United States had entered a "new phase" of the pandemic and urged people to take extreme health precautions as infections and deaths rise sharply throughout the county. "I want to be very clear what we're seeing today is different from March and April," Birx told CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday, noting that cases were increasing in rural and urban areas. "It is extraordinarily widespread." Asked about an estimate from former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb that virus deaths could top 300,000 by the end of the year, Birx said "anything is possible." She said such an outcome would be far less likely if people practiced social distancing and avoided large gatherings. The Republican National Committee said no final decision has been made about whether President Donald Trump's renomination will be held in private at the GOP convention, contradicting previous reports that restrictions on crowd size during the coronavirus pandemic would prevent members of the press from attending. Two RNC officials insisted Sunday that they are still working through the logistics and press coverage options, a break with a statement reportedly made by a GOP convention spokesperson the previous day. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin made clear in separate interviews Sunday that they remain far apart on a coronavirus relief deal that would restore expired unemployment benefits for millions of Americans. Pelosi said the administration continued to resist a public health strategy to attack the virus. Mnuchin defended the administration's response and said Democrats' demand for $1 trillion in new state and local aid was a non-starter. Tropical Storm Isaias is closing in on Florida as the state grapples with soaring coronavirus infections, hospitalizations and deaths. The storm will unleash strong wind gusts, heavy rain and possibly storm surge flooding along its eastern shores from south to north through Sunday night. At least four schools - Corinth High School in Mississippi, Greenfield Central Junior High School in Indiana and two schools in Indiana's Greater Clark County Schools district - reported that a student had tested positive for the coronavirus during the first week back in session, forcing people who had been in contact with them to self-quarantine. Birx has faced mounting criticism over her handling of the coronavirus response following a New York Times report last month stating that her optimistic outlook on the pandemic's trajectory helped justify reopening decisions that preceded new outbreaks. In a Sunday morning interview, ABC News's Martha Raddatz asked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., whether she had confidence in Birx. "I think the president is spreading disinformation about the virus, and she is his appointee," Pelosi said. "So I don't have confidence there, no." Birx defended her decisions. "I have tremendous respect for the speaker. I have tremendous respect for her long dedication to the American people," she told CNN. "It was unfortunate the New York Times wrote this article without speaking to me. ... I have never been Pollyannaish or nonscientific or non-data driven." Birx's remarks came after another week of grim signs that the country's pandemic response was failing. The seven-day average for new coronavirus-related deaths rose in nearly half of U.S. states over the past week, pushing the national death toll past 150,000 and prompting health experts to warn that the trend was unlikely to reverse anytime soon. Numerous states have reported record daily fatalities in recent days, including California, which reported 219 on Saturday, according to tracking by The Washington Post. Florida reported a record 257 deaths on Friday, and seven-day averages for new deaths reached new highs in states across the South, West and Midwest. Nationwide, the daily coronavirus death toll exceeded 1,000 for the sixth day in a row on Saturday, according to The Post's data. The 1,198 new fatalities marked the most that officials have counted on a Saturday, when death reports tend to be lower than those tallied midweek, since May 9. Birx and Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious-disease expert, have warned 20 states in the Sun Belt, the Midwest and the Pacific Northwest that the virus spread is accelerating within their borders. Mitigation efforts have helped in some places, Birx said, but people need to practice strict social distancing and wear masks. She also raised concerns about the virus spreading within multigenerational households, urging people in those settings to "really consider" wearing masks inside their homes. With the new academic year starting soon in many communities, Birx also suggested that schools avoid in-person instruction in places where infections are rising - a departure from recent demands by Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos that schools fully reopen in the fall. "We need to stop the cases," Birx said. "If you have high caseload and active community spread - just like we're asking people not to go to bars, not to have household parties, not to create large spreading events, we're asking people to distance-learn at this moment so we can get this epidemic under control." The increase in deaths has trailed a massive surge in coronavirus cases by several weeks, as health experts predicted when infections started trending upward in June. The time lag was greater than in the pandemic's early months, when deaths followed infections more closely. Experts say the change may be because many of the new outbreaks have started among young, healthy adults who passed the virus to older, more vulnerable people and because expanded testing has allowed health workers to identify cases closer to the time of infection. "Overall, what this tells us is that now that deaths have started to increase, we can expect them to increase for several more weeks," Ellie Murray, an epidemiologist at Boston University, told The Post. "We cannot afford to pretend everything is fine and heading back to normal." The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's most recent analysis of pandemic fatalities shows weekly reports of new deaths increasing over the next month, with 5,000 to 11,000 new deaths projected in the third week of August. The national death toll could climb to more than 168,000 by that time, with a high estimate of 182,000, according to the CDC's review. Amid the rising deaths, Trump on Sunday struck an optimistic note, tweeting, "USA will be stronger than ever before, and soon!" Trump and other prominent Republicans have continued to promote the drug hydroxychloroquine as a silver-bullet solution to covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, despite evidence that it does not help patients recover. Last week, he tweeted then deleted a viral video of a doctor falsely claiming that the drug was a "cure for covid." Twitter removed various versions of the video, saying they violated its covid-19 misinformation policy. Asked about hydroxychloroquine on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday, Adm. Brett Giroir, the official in charge of the administration's testing efforts, stressed that the drug was not an effective treatment. "At this point in time, there has been five randomized controlled, placebo controlled trials that do not show any benefit to hydroxychloroquine," Giroir said. "So, at this point in time, we don't recommend that as a treatment. There's no evidence to show that it is." - - - The Washington Post's Eli Rosenberg, Felicia Sonmez, Joseph Marks and Jacqueline Dupree contributed to this report. The Government's social protection support policy has struggled to prevent vulnerable people from falling into poverty and to protect those already poor from descending deeper into poverty due to COVID-19 pandemic, a survey has found. A fruit vendor in Hanoi. COVID-19 pandemic and its negative impacts make informal workers like her face more difficulties to make a living. VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Tung The survey was run by the United Nations Development Programme, UN Women and the Centre for Analysis and Forecast under the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences (CAF/VASS) to assess the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on vulnerable households, especially those of ethnic minorities and internal migrant and informal workers. The telephone survey conducted in April and May this year got responses from 930 vulnerable households and 935 household businesses, micro small and medium-sized enterprises in 58 out of 63 provinces across Vietnam. The survey's findings were included in the report 'COVID-19 Socio-economic Impact on Vulnerable households and Enterprises: a gender-sensitive assessment' that was released last week. Under Vietnams social protection support packages targeting vulnerable groups, financial support was given to people for three months from April to June. Regular social assistance beneficiaries and people who contributed to the nation including veterans were eligible for VND500,000/person per month; poor and near-poor people VND250,000/person per month, workers with temporarily suspended labour contracts without salaries VND1.8 million/person per month; informal workers who lost their jobs without labour contracts and who lacked social insurance VND1 million/person per month; and affected household businesses with annual revenue less than VND100 million VND1 million/month. According to the Ministry of Labour, Invalid and Social Affairs, by June 18, the cash transfers have been made to 98.7 per cent of regular social assistance beneficiaries, 109.8 per cent of those who contributed to the nation (more were found eligible than the initial estimate) and 72.1 per cent of poor and near-poor households. In sharp contrast, only 1.14 per cent of eligible workers with temporarily suspended labour contracts received support. Just 0.24 per cent of workers who had their contracts terminated and were not eligible for unemployment insurance benefits were aided, with the figure being 0.6 per cent among workers without labour contracts and social insurance that lost their jobs. As for household businesses with annual revenues of less than VND100 million that suspended operations due to the pandemic, just 1.28 per cent got the cash. If the Governments social protection package was delivered on time, for example, if monthly cash transfers were made in April and May and reached all the originally intended groups, the national income poverty rate could have been as little as 17.2 per cent and 9.9 per cent instead of 26.7 per cent and 15.8 per cent if no cash transfers were made in the two months, said Director of CAF/VASS Nguyen Thang. The report shows COVID-19 has caused income to decline substantially across vulnerable households and workers, resulting in a surge in transient income poverty and pushing chronically poor households further into income poverty. The highest decline in household income due to COVID-19 was recorded in April, with the average income of surveyed households in the month only 29.7 per cent of the December 2019 level. The figure increased to 51.1 per cent in May. The average income of surveyed households declined by more than 70 per cent in April and 49 per cent in May, compared to December 2019. Transient poverty was a challenge for poverty-targeting of social protection support to lessen the negative impacts of the pandemic, Thang said. The rapid change in the poverty situation resulted in the social protection support package missing many households and people that became poor and near-poor since the pandemic's outbreak, notably the vulnerable (lower middle income) households in rural areas, he added. The report also identified several groups left out of or under-served by the Government social protection support package, both by policy design and implementation. For examples, families of young workers, especially those with small children, single mothers and/or single bread-winners, those without savings and with house rent burdens, families with members suffering from serious illnesses and under treatment in specialised hospitals, with people with disabilities and the elderly. These families by design were not eligible for the social protection package even though many of them lost jobs and income and became poor/near-poor. Complex rules and procedures in identifying and verifying eligibility prevented several groups from accessing the package. These groups include formal workers that lost jobs or had their hours or wages cut but were not eligible for unemployment insurance benefits, informal workers that lost their job or experienced income reductions and affected enterprises that had insufficient resources to pay their workers. People also found barriers to accessing Government support, such as the requirements for applications for support for laid-off workers to be submitted by their employer, or applications for support for internal migrant workers to be certified at both the original and destination places of migrant workers. Caitlin Wiesen, Resident Representative of UNDP in Vietnam, said the actions of the Government of Vietnam and the innovation of the Vietnamese people had been key to Vietnams initial success in containing the COVID-19 pandemic and in limiting its negative socio-economic impacts. I believe that similar anticipatory approaches and innovations will play a critical role in helping Vietnamese enterprises and people achieve a bold, sustainable, resilient and gender-sensitive recovery, she said. Elisa Fernandez, UN Women Vietnam Head of Office, said the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic were not equal among different groups of people, nor between women and men. COVID-19 may be more lethal for men, but the socio-economic impacts of the pandemic are hitting women the hardest and exacerbating existing social and economic inequalities. "A recent study by McKinsey shows that at the global level, womens jobs are 1.8 times more vulnerable to this crisis than mens jobs. "Women make up 39 per cent of global employment but account for 54 per cent of overall job losses, Fernandez said. If gender differences in the economic impacts COVID-19, including the burden of care and risk of gender-based violence, are not addressed adequately, it could have a serious impact on women's ability to fully participate in the economy in the longer term. Gender-responsive recovery measures should include strengthening childcare support and respond services, enable womens access to new sources of employment, reskilling opportunities, and access to credit for women-lead business, Fernandez said. Thang from CAF said a top priority was to assist people and communities vulnerable to extreme poverty because of the pandemic. The impact of lost employment and earnings is felt most deeply by the poor. Government action should help those people who have the smallest margin of safety, for whom the loss of income for a few months is catastrophic, he said. He emphasised the need to speed up public work programmes that would help generate jobs and incomes as well as cash transfers to protect the livelihood of vulnerable people and boost domestic demand. He also suggested expanding regular social assistance - cash transfer - targeting categories such as people with disabilities and their carer, children under 6 and elderly aged from 60 to 79, pregnant women or considering the expansion to single-parents working in informal sectors. A residence-based system of social protection, which excludes internal migrant workers, should be changed to the one based on national citizenship, for example through the digitalisation of registration and verification of eligibility to the application of digital payment tools. VNS Covid-19 plunges Vietnams ethnic minority households into poverty: UNDP The coronavirus pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on vulnerable households in Vietnam, especially those belonging to ethnic minority people, migrant and informal workers, Dont confuse accountability with blatant racism. So what took the city so long to spend a few dollars supporting African American businesses? (The Journal) editorial of July 15 clearly speaks to the belatedness of financial support for the African American community while other ethnic communities have enjoyed rich and full-throated financial support for years. Suddenly, there are questions that have never been asked before, which, on the surface, would suggest actual interest in accountability but beneath the surface merely beg the question, why just us? More disturbingly, however, is the messenger in this great debate over a paltry and albeit belated sum of money. (Albuquerque City Councilor) Trudy Jones saw her opportunity to show the city just how ugly she can be. Jones, while pretending to demand accountability, chose to pepper her remarks with (paternalistic comments) like, every question out there that anyone would ask before they loan their child money isnt there. She also questioned the ability of (recipients) to even operate businesses and suggested that (those) business owners should go through training before even doing business. Let me remind Jones that one of the Black business owners in attendance at the June 29 session is not only a former successful banker but also led a banking association. What the public deserves to know is that Jones needs to own up to her very obvious racist remarks. What the public deserves to know is that no matter how you phrase it, African Americans are always required to clear a higher bar than anyone else when it comes to partaking in even a small piece of the proverbial American pie. In the face of the newly discovered realities about old and longstanding institutional racism across this country and yes, in this city, any efforts to heal and bring people together during these troubling times should be met with full support. Anyone who sinks so low as to speak blatant racism as a basis for objections to support the African American business community should not be welcomed in our government, and Trudy Jones has demonstrated a total departure from decency. (The Journal) can offer up a smoke screen and suggest Jones was simply demanding accountability, but her words suggest otherwise. Trudy Jones needs to resign immediately. Amsterdam, 3 August 2020 Heineken N.V. (EURONEXT: HEIA; OTCQX: HEINY) announces: KEY HIGHLIGHTS Net revenue (beia) organic growth -16.4%; net revenue (beia) per hectolitre -3.6% Consolidated beer volume -11.5% Heineken volume -2.5% Operating profit (beia) organic growth -52.5% Net profit (beia) 227 million, -75.8% organically Diluted EPS (beia) 0.39 (2019: 1.84). CEO STATEMENT Dolf van den Brink, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board, commented: The first half of 2020 was defined by unprecedented challenges and I am very proud of our employees all around the world who are adapting quickly to new emerging realities while taking care of each other, our customers and our communities. The Heineken brand once again demonstrated its strength with double digit growth in 14 markets and continued momentum of Heineken 0.0. Our bottom-line was disproportionately impacted due to the decline in the European on-trade, as well as temporary government restrictions on our activities in Mexico and South Africa. We have taken mitigating actions and will further intensify our focus on costs. HEINEKEN has entered the crisis with a strong financial position, a diversified global footprint, great brands, superior consumer and customer intimacy and highly dedicated and talented teams. Moving forward and as markets recover, we will leverage these unique strengths to chart our next growth chapter." FINANCIAL SUMMARY1 IFRS Measures million Total growth BEIA Measures million Organic growth2 Revenue 11,156 -18.0 % Revenue (beia) 11,156 -15.5 % Net revenue 9,243 -19.2 % Net revenue (beia) 9,243 -16.4 % Operating profit 85 -94.8 % Operating profit (beia) 827 -52.5 % Operating profit (beia) margin 8.9 % Net profit -297 -131.7 % Net profit (beia) 227 -75.8 % Diluted EPS (in ) -0.52 -131.5 % Diluted EPS (beia) (in ) 0.39 -78.6 % Free operating cash flow -809 Net debt / EBITDA (beia)3 3.5x 1 Consolidated figures are used throughout this report, unless otherwise stated; please refer to the Glossary for an explanation of non-GAAP measures and other terms used throughout this report. Story continues 2 Organic growth shown, except for Diluted EPS (beia) which is total growth. 3 Includes acquisitions and excludes disposals on a 12 month pro-forma basis. In the first half of 2020, HEINEKENs markets and businesses were materially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the unprecedented nature of the situation, HEINEKEN has increased its disclosures. There are no changes vs the announcement of 16 July. UPDATE ON OUR RESPONSE TO COVID-19 Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, we have been adhering to three guiding principles. First, the health, safety and trust of our people is of paramount importance. Second, we do everything we can to safeguard the continuity of our business and protect the appeal of our brands. This includes supporting the business continuity of our customers and suppliers. And, third, we offer our support to communities that are most impacted by the pandemic. In view of those principles, on 8 April 2020, we outlined our commitment to our people, customers, suppliers and communities in which we operate. Significant efforts have been made within the organisation to support our employees in doing their jobs safely, by working from home where possible, and applying the standard COVID-19 preventive measures, including physical distancing, personal hygiene and disinfection protocols and providing sufficient personal protective equipment. In addition, to provide some security for our employees in these trying times, we have committed to not carry out structural lay-offs as a consequence of COVID-19 in 2020. We have supported our on-trade customers across all regions with advice and tools to safely reopen, helping them set up home delivery and on-line businesses and supporting them financially, for example by waiving rental payments. Our Back the Bars initiative was launched to support on-trade customers in 21 countries and has raised over 10 million. We continued to pay all suppliers on time and have also provided advanced payments to suppliers who were heavily impacted by COVID-19. Pandemic relief totalling over 23 million has been deployed to front-line medical facilities, including donations of water, non-alcoholic beverages, hand sanitiser and monetary contributions. TOP-LINE PERFORMANCE Top-line performance was materially impacted as multiple countries took far-reaching measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 including restricted movement of populations, outlet closures and mandatory lockdown of production facilities. At this moment, none of our breweries are closed due to government restrictions. Net revenue (beia) declined 16.4% organically driven by a 13.4% decline in total consolidated volume and a 3.6% decline in net revenue (beia) per hectolitre due to adverse channel, product and country mix effects. The underlying price mix on a constant geographic basis was down 1.3%. Consolidated beer volume declined 11.5% organically. As expected, the impact of the COVID-19 crisis deepened in the second quarter when beer volume declined 19.4%. After a low point in April, volume started to gradually recover into June as lockdowns were lifted around the world and customers restored depleted inventories. Premium volume declined high-single digits, outperforming the rest of the portfolio, mainly driven by the resilience of Heineken. Consolidated beer volume (in mhl) 2Q20 2Q19 Organic growth HY20 HY19 Organic growth Heineken N.V. 51.0 63.4 -19.4 % 102.6 116.1 -11.5 % Africa Middle East & Eastern Europe 8.7 11.4 -23.9 % 18.1 21.6 -15.9 % Americas 15.3 20.9 -26.8 % 34.6 40.7 -15.0 % Asia Pacific 6.5 7.7 -13.6 % 13.9 15.1 -4.7 % Europe 20.5 23.4 -12.5 % 35.9 38.7 -8.1 % Heineken volume declined 9.0% in the second quarter to close the first half with a 2.5% decline. Heineken is the most trusted international beer brand and is outperforming the overall category. The brand grew double digits in 14 markets including Brazil, China, the UK, Poland, Germany, Ivory Coast and South Korea. Heineken 0.0 grew double digits with growth across all regions and particular strength in the US, Mexico and South Africa. Following a pause, some of our global sponsorship platforms are resuming activities for the second half of the year. Heineken volume (in mhl) 2Q20 Organic growth HY20 Organic growth Total 9.7 -9.0 % 19.1 -2.5 % Africa Middle East & Eastern Europe 1.1 -37.0 % 2.4 -26.0 % Americas 3.4 6.1 % 7.1 15.1 % Asia Pacific 1.2 -9.5 % 2.7 -7.3 % Europe 4.0 -8.5 % 6.9 -4.9 % The international brand portfolio declined high-single digits. Amstel declined in the low-teens driven mainly by Spain and South Africa partially offset by continued strong growth in Brazil. Sol declined in the mid-twenties driven by Mexico. Tiger declined mid-single digits with sharp declines in Singapore, Cambodia and Malaysia and a small decline in Vietnam. In contrast, Desperados grew in the mid-teens, driven by France, Poland and the Netherlands. Cider volume declined in the high-teens to 2.1 million hectolitres. Volume declined in the mid-twenties outside the UK, mainly driven by South Africa. New cider markets Russia, Mexico and Vietnam grew in the high-teens. In the UK, volume declined in the low-teens driven by pub closures. Low & No-Alcohol (LONO) volume declined high-single digits to 6.3 million hectolitres. The no-alcohol portfolio declined mid-single digits, with strong growth of Heineken 0.0. Our LONO portfolios grew in more than 20 markets, particularly the US, the UK, Egypt and Singapore. Digitalisation accelerated throughout the crisis as consumers changed shopping patterns and customers adapted to the lockdowns. As a result, our e-commerce platforms showed strong growth: Beerwulf, our business-to-consumer platform in Europe, had more than 3 million visitors, half of them new. Online sales of our home-draught systems like the Sub and Blade have more than doubled during the lockdown. Six 2 Go, our business-to-consumer platform in Mexico, received ten times the number of orders in the first six months of 2020 versus the full year of 2019. Our business-to-business digital platforms are operational in 24 markets. At the end of 2019, we were connected to more than 60 thousand customers in traditional channels representing more than 1 billion of net revenue. We expect to more than double the number of customers connected this year. OPERATING PROFIT PERFORMANCE Operating profit was materially impacted by the revenue decline, incremental expenses and impairments due to the COVID-19 crisis, partially offset through mitigation actions. Operating profit (beia) declined 52.5% organically, with lower profit in all regions. Operating profit declined 94.8%. 84% of the organic operating profit decline was driven by Europe, Mexico and South Africa. The operational deleverage was amplified by the volume decline in the on-trade in Europe. Regarding the on-trade business in Europe, HEINEKEN has a vertically integrated business model, including wholesale in several markets as well as pubs in the UK, which provides close proximity to customers and consumers enabling a broader range of products, better service and deeper insight into our customer and consumer base. While this is a long-term competitive advantage with typically higher variable profits, it also requires a higher fixed cost structure and explains a disproportionate short-term drag on profit. At the end of July, we estimate 90% of outlets in Europe have reopened. In Mexico, beer volume contracted in the mid-twenties as our operations were suspended in April and May. In June, we resumed sales and customers began rebuilding inventories. In July, we observed an increase in market restrictions including alcohol sales bans in some states and on-trade restrictions. In South Africa, total volume declined in the forties, due to a ban on the sale, distribution and production of alcohol from late March to end of May. After sales resumed in June, a new ban on alcohol sales was implemented mid-July. Input costs per hectolitre increased by about 10% with the combined negative impact of channel and product mix and transactional currency effects, despite lower commodity prices. Other incremental expenses included higher depreciations, credit losses, safety & protection equipment, donations and other forms of support to our customers and communities. In March, we implemented cost mitigating actions that resulted in a net organic reduction of half a billion of other expenses (beia) in the first half. This excludes the effects on input costs, goods for resale, transport and depreciation. For more details, please refer to pages 14 and 15. BREWING A BETTER WORLD During the first half of 2020, we continued to advance our sustainable development commitments. Despite the significant drop in volumes, key water efficiency and local sourcing metrics were stable and we increased our energy from renewable sources to 21% (2019: 19%) driven by Mexico and Vietnam. We also joined the Water Resilience Coalition, which was launched in March this year, pledging a commitment to collective action and net positive water impact by 2050. Given the circumstances, we transformed our #EnjoyResponsibly campaign temporarily to #SocialiseResponsibly. We have redirected part of our 10% Heineken media investments from responsible consumption to socialise responsibly campaigns. The new Heineken Back to the Bars campaign called #SocialiseResponsibly to keep bars open is meant to celebrate the return to the bars whilst reminding consumers to embrace social distancing and other safety measures. For more details on our Brewing a Better World programmes and definitions, please refer to our 2019 Annual Report. EXCEPTIONAL ITEMS AND IMPAIRMENTS The impact of exceptional items and amortization of acquisition-related intangibles (eia) was 742 million (2019: 133 million) on operating profit and 524 million (2019: 118 million) on net profit. This included impairments of 548 million in tangible and intangible assets. The impact of the crisis in developing economies precipitated the need for these impairments. In total, cash generating units representing 3 billion in fixed assets were identified for impairment tests resulting in the impairments in Papua New Guinea (196 million), Jamaica (138 million) and various other smaller impairment charges. For more details on the exceptional items and impairments, please refer to pages 30 to 32. NET PROFIT AND LOSS Net profit (beia) decreased by 75.8% organically to 227 million (2019: 1,054 million). The decrease was higher than the decline in operating profit (beia) due to higher net finance expenses, higher non-deductible interest expenses and other tax effects and the lower relative decline in minority interest. Net loss after exceptional items and amortisation of acquisition-related intangibles was 297 million (2019: 936 million gain). CASH FLOW PERFORMANCE Free operating cash flow amounted to an outflow of 809 million (2019: 578 million inflow) mainly due to lower cash flow from operating activities and an increase in working capital driven by the change in payables. Cash outflow related to the purchase of property, plant and equipment (PP&E) amounted to 1,064 million (2019: 1,005 million), including payments for PP&E additions executed in 2019. The additions to PP&E executed in 2020 amounted to 484 million (2019: 760 million), a reduction of 36% as all non-committed CAPEX was suspended from late March, unless necessary for safety or business continuity. FINANCING UPDATE HEINEKEN entered the crisis with a strong balance sheet and an undrawn committed revolving credit facility of 3.5 billion that matures in May 2024 and does not contain financial covenants. In recent months, HEINEKEN has successfully secured 3 billion in additional financing by issuing new bonds. HEINEKEN is well prepared to meet its financial commitments, including the 1 billion bond maturing on 4 August 2020. As a measure of prudence, HEINEKEN announced it will deviate from its dividend policy and will not pay an interim dividend following its half-year results. TRANSLATIONAL CURRENCY CALCULATED IMPACT Since the latest update on 12 February 2020 a number of currencies have depreciated significantly versus the Euro, especially the Mexican Peso, Brazilian Real and South African Rand. However, given the uncertainty in profit estimations for this year it is not possible to provide a reliable estimate of the translational currency impact. OUTLOOK FOR FY 2020 The COVID-19 pandemic constitutes a major negative macroeconomic development and as such it is having a significant impact on HEINEKEN's markets and on its business in 2020. On 8 April, HEINEKEN withdrew all guidance for 2020 given the lack of visibility on the end date of the pandemic and the duration of its impact. Although we observe a gradual recovery since the trough in April across most markets, the situation continues to be volatile and uncertain. As a consequence, HEINEKEN is only able to share directional information for the remainder of the year. Product and channel mix is expected to continue to adversely impact results, especially in Europe, as the on-trade continues to be more affected than the off-trade. As a consequence, input costs per hectolitre are expected to continue to be significantly higher than last year. We have taken mitigating actions and will further intensify our focus on costs, balancing the reduction of discretionary expenses with providing sufficient support behind our brands and route to market. Non-committed supply chain CAPEX will continue to be suspended, while commercial CAPEX will resume if and when required to support our current and future top-line growth. Significant uncertainty remains on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, including risks related to containment measures, supply chain continuity, cyber-security incidents and macro economic downturn in general. Given the circumstances, we expect to continue to provide incremental disclosures of the material effects of the COVID-19 crisis on our markets and businesses. The next update will come with our third quarter trading update. ENQUIRIES Media Investors Tim van der Zanden Jose Federico Castillo Martinez Director of Global Communication Investor Relations Director Michael Fuchs Janine Ackermann / Robin Achten Financial Communications Manager Investor Relations Manager / Senior Analyst E-mail: pressoffice@heineken.com E-mail: investors@heineken.com Tel: +31-20-5239355 Tel: +31-20-5239590 INVESTOR CALENDAR HEINEKEN N.V. Trading Update for Q3 2020 28 October 2020 Full Year 2020 Results 10 February 2021 CONFERENCE CALL DETAILS HEINEKEN will host an analyst and investor conference call in relation to its 2020 HY results today at 10:00 CET/ 9:00 GMT. The call will be audio cast live via the companys website: www.theheinekencompany.com . An audio replay service will also be made available after the conference call at the above web address. Analysts and investors can dial-in using the following telephone numbers: United Kingdom (Local): 020 3936 2999 Netherlands (Local): 085 888 7233 USA: 1 646 664 1960 All other locations: +44 20 3936 2999 Participation password for all countries: 239940 Editorial information: HEINEKEN is the world's most international brewer. It is the leading developer and marketer of premium beer and cider brands. Led by the Heineken brand, the Group has a portfolio of more than 300 international, regional, local and specialty beers and ciders. We are committed to innovation, long-term brand investment, disciplined sales execution and focused cost management. Through "Brewing a Better World", sustainability is embedded in the business. HEINEKEN has a well-balanced geographic footprint with leadership positions in both developed and developing markets. We employ over 85,000 employees and operate breweries, malteries, cider plants and other production facilities in more than 70 countries. Heineken N.V. and Heineken Holding N.V. shares trade on the Euronext in Amsterdam. Prices for the ordinary shares may be accessed on Bloomberg under the symbols HEIA NA and HEIO NA and on Reuters under HEIN.AS and HEIO.AS. HEINEKEN has two sponsored level 1 American Depositary Receipt (ADR) programmes: Heineken N.V. (OTCQX: HEINY) and Heineken Holding N.V. (OTCQX: HKHHY). Most recent information is available on HEINEKEN's website: www.theHEINEKENcompany.com and follow us on Twitter via @HEINEKENCorp. Market Abuse Regulation This press release contains price-sensitive information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation. Disclaimer: This press release contains forward-looking statements with regard to the financial position and results of HEINEKENs activities. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. Many of these risks and uncertainties relate to factors that are beyond HEINEKENs ability to control or estimate precisely, such as future market and economic conditions, developments in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and related government measures, the behaviour of other market participants, changes in consumer preferences, the ability to successfully integrate acquired businesses and achieve anticipated synergies, costs of raw materials, interest-rate and exchange-rate fluctuations, changes in tax rates, changes in law, change in pension costs, the actions of government regulators and weather conditions. These and other risk factors are detailed in HEINEKENs publicly filed annual reports. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only of the date of this press release. HEINEKEN does not undertake any obligation to update these forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Market share estimates contained in this press release are based on outside sources, such as specialised research institutes, in combination with management estimates. Attachment Appointment 3 August 2020 California native Spivey brings over 14 years of luxury hotel sales management to her role as National Sales Manager for the Allegretto Vineyard Resort. A proven results-oriented sales professional with a can-do spirit, Spivey first started her hospitality career as the Sales Manager for Larkspur Hotels & Restaurants in Los Gatos, California, before heading up sales efforts for such esteemed properties as Hotel Los Gatos and the Monterey Plaza Hotel & Spa. Most recently, she worked as the sole National Sales Manager for Ventana Big Sur, where she was responsible for new business development, revenue strategy and managing all territories both nationally and internationally. As the National Sales Manager for the Allegretto Vineyard Resort, Spivey will work to grow the property's corporate and group clientele while developing and maintaining key relationships and sales initiatives. Only part of the snitches in Arlington County, Loposser wrote. If yall want to try to destroy businesses via the health department, we will make sure your name, email, phone numbers and addresses are well known to activists who want to peacefully protest you. Native Sun News Today Columnist In the midst of the worst heath outbreak in the world since before I was born, and in the midst of the national confusion about it (the COVID-19 pandemic), we who try to keep up on Indian news get an immediate release memo from the U. S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs in Washington, D. C. Heads up! Rear Admiral Michael Weahkee of New Mexico takes office as the new director of IHS at the Department of Health and Services. So, what do we do in the meantime? We witness the reality of the Pine Ridge Reservation Tribal Council in South Dakota putting its Sioux Nation on lockdown. The Navajo Nation people face endemic illness, tribal lands all across the country are desecrated as we try to survive. We cover our faces with protective masks and wash our hands and read in the local white- community-run newspaper that this worrisome action by the tribal nation is criticized because the tribal government at Pine Ridge also ordered a non-tribal teacher at a tribal school tested positive for the Cov19 virus off the reservation and told to leave immediately. She was officially banished because she tested positive for the virus after an unauthorized off-reservation trip during lock-down. We make our appointments at the Sioux San and hope for the best, hearing nothing from the powers that be who told us they were ready to take down 19 buildings from the centuries old campus of IHS. The banishment of the Pine Ridge teacher is just another reason why business will not invest in the reservation, says an off-reservation opinion maker in the local newspaper. Television crews give sympathetic interviews to the ousted church-school worker, and other business leaders worry that the city will lose money if the shut out continues. Gun and liquor store owners pressure the mayor to call their businesses essential,so that they wont be harmed by the shut-downs which by now has become pervasive. They are ESSENTIAL, dont you know! There is a brewery (small business) on every corner hoping for a bail-out from the feds. This is a movement in this red state backed by Trumpers which is, they say, a large voting bloc. Kind of like the White Clay booze sellers,I guess. Elizabeth Cook-Lynn. Courtesy photo While the racial slaps toward Indians re-instating the very old law of banishment are nothing new, and there is no accounting for the ignorance, the public must examine such opinions and know that they are supportive of the white supremacy political agenda promoting fear of the wrong enemy. The truth is, to protect the Oyate, the reluctant Tribal Council has not claimed violence, animosity, nationality nor religion, only humanity. It has acted in defense of its people against the white mans need to take care of his own economics, i.e., production and profits, as well as far too many bleeding hearts church people who claim to be well meaning. In light of former deadly colonial behavior ( a hundred years of genocide and oppression, not to mention small pox and war), tribes usually try not to measure themselves against the universe nor what white folks in neighboring towns think, but rather they try to measure themselves against their own human experiences and the racist actions of their colonists. They remember the diseases brought to these shores by historical invasion when thousands died amidst theft and hatred. To keep themselves selves blocked off from others is not a vindictive act. But this kind of ugly response to it is another racist opinion based in the ignorance of a white population that has long denied the reality of the struggle facing Indian nations in America to protect themselves and their property as well as their children. For some who know the Lakota-Dakota (Sioux) myths about how to protect the people, it is recognized that scourges are known to come and go and that for that reason, the people live wisely in a dangerous world. Councils of Elders often make hard but defensive decisions. Banishment is not unheard of in the Indian world. It is a long-practiced official act to protect the tribe. Admittedly, it flies in the face of Americas mottos and fantasies about bring me your poor. Professor Elizabeth Cook-Lynn writes a column for The Native Sun News Today, in Rapid City, South Dakota, She is a retired professor of Native Studies and has taught at Eastern Washington University, University of California-Davis and Arizona State University. She is a member of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe in Fort Thompson, South Dakota. Copyright permission Native Sun News Today Join the Conversation Federal Judge Calls for Greater Privacy Protections After Deadly Attack on Her Family U.S. District Judge Esther Salas is calling for greater privacy safeguards for federal judges in her first public remarks following a deadly shooting attack that took her sons life and injured her husband. In an emotional video released on Aug. 3, Salas spoke about the pain she and her family have been experiencing since the horrific July 19 shooting, in which a gunman, who posed as a FedEx delivery man, turned up at the front door of the federal judges New Jersey home and shot dead her 20-year-old son, Daniel, and wounded her husband, defense lawyer Mark Anderl. The FBI identified the suspect as Roy Den Hollander, a well-known attorney who has filed cases involving mens rights and has a case pending before Salas. Authorities say Hollander later took his own life in upstate New York. My family has experienced a pain that no one should ever have to endure, Salas said in the video statement. And I am here asking everyone to help me ensure that no one ever has to experience this kind of pain. We may not be able to stop something like this from happening again, but we can make it hard for those who target us to track us down. Salas said the gunman had compiled a complete dossier of personal information of her and her family, including details on where they lived and the church they attended. She said such personal information is currently easily obtainable, and the lack of safeguards to protect it is unacceptable. Law enforcement officials outside the home of federal judge Esther Salas in North Brunswick, N.J., on July 20, 2020. (Eduardo Munoz/Reuters) Currently, federal judges addresses and other information is readily available on the internet. In addition, there are companies that will sell your personal details that can be leveraged for nefarious purposes, Salas said. My sons death cannot be in vain, which is why I am begging those in power to do something to help my brothers and sisters on the bench. Salas said that by raising her concerns, she hopes to initiate a national dialogue to find a solution that would afford greater safeguards to protect the personal information of federal judges. Let me be clear and tell you firsthandthis is a matter of life and death. And we cant just sit back and wait for another tragedy to strike, she said. Salas was in the basement of her home at the time of the attack, and wasnt injured. She said that her family was just cleaning the house after a weekend of celebrating her sons 20th birthday when they heard the doorbell. Daniel went to get the door, and within seconds, Salas heard the sound of gunfire. She later learned that Daniel had protected his father when the gunman opened fire, taking a bullet to his chest, Salas said. The gunman then turned his attention to Anderl and shot him three timesin the chest, abdomen, and forearm. While my husband is still in the hospital recovering from multiple surgeries, we are living every parents worst nightmaremaking preparations to bury our only child, Daniel, Salas said. Salas believes she was targeted over her role as a federal judge. The judge, sitting in Newark, New Jersey, was nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed in 2011. Prior to that, she served as a U.S. Magistrate judge in New Jersey, after working as an assistant public defender for several years. Her highest-profile case in recent years was the financial fraud case involving husband-and-wife Real Housewives of New Jersey reality TV stars Teresa and Joe Giudice, whom Salas sentenced to prison for crimes that included bankruptcy fraud and tax evasion. Salas staggered their sentences so that one of them could be available to care for their four children. In 2017, she barred federal prosecutors from seeking the death penalty against an alleged gang leader charged in several Newark slayings, ruling the mans intellectual disability made him ineligible for capital punishment. Salas later sentenced the man to 45 years in prison. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Members of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) detain a man who threatened to blow up a bomb in a bank branch, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Aug. 3, 2020. (The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine/Handout via Reuters) Ukraine Police Detain Man Who Took Hostage in Kyiv Bank KYIVPolice detained a man who took a hostage in a bank in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Monday, deputy interior minister Anton Gerashchenko said. The hostage was released unharmed. Gerashchenko wrote on Facebook that the man had entered the bank at midday, told employees he had a bomb in his backpack and asked them to call police. Police officers stand guard outside a building where an unidentified man reportedly threatens to blow up a bomb in a bank branch, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Aug. 3, 2020. (Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters) Employees of the banking institution left the office while the head of the branch remained there (as hostage), Gerashchenko said. He said the hostage taker was a citizen of Uzbekistan but gave no indication of his motive. Later Gerashchenko told local television that the man demanded to give interviews to journalists. Police allowed several reporters to talk to the hostage taker before storming the building. In an encounter broadcast live on Ukraines 112.ua television channel the man was heard to claim to be a holy spirit and criticized the authorities, saying President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had not delivered on his promises. A view show a building where an unidentified man reportedly threatens to blow up a bomb in a bank branch, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Aug. 3, 2020. (Gleb Garanich /Reuters) The terrorist was captured alive. The explosion did not happen. Explosives technicians are working on site, Gerashchenko wrote after the storming. It was Ukraines third hostage incident in recent weeks. Last month, an armed man was arrested after holding 13 people captive on a bus for hours before freeing them. On July 23 another man took a senior police officer hostage in the central Ukrainian city of Poltava before being shot dead by police on Saturday. The hostage was unharmed. By Pavel Polityuk, Natalia Zinets, and Sergei Karazy (Adds more details of incident) MOSCOW, Aug 3 (Reuters) - A fire broke out briefly due to a short circuit at Norilsk Nickel's power station in the Arctic on Monday, killing one worker, the company said in a statement. Environmental security at Nornickel's Arctic assets has been in focus since 21,000 tonnes of fuel leaked from a tank at its other power plant near Norilsk on May 29, followed by a series of smaller incidents. Nornickel is the world's largest producer of palladium and one of the biggest for nickel. The company said the fire, in a closed switchgear, only covered six square metres and had been extinguished. It was investigating the incident which had not affected either power supply to the city or production assets, it said. (Reporting by Polina Devitt; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne) The Cook County jail in Chicago, where CDC responders helped contain an outbreak of COVID-19 this spring. resize icon View Larger Close The Cook County jail in Chicago, where CDC responders helped contain an outbreak of COVID-19 this spring. Its hard enough to fight COVID-19 when its spreading throughout a community. Its more complicated when it reaches into an institution like a jail, where measures like social distancing are tougher to institute. And when an outbreak is happening in one of the largest jails in the country, things can be trickier still. Thats where Lieutenant Commander Paige Armstrong, an officer in the US Public Health Service, found herself in mid-April, helping the Chicago Department of Public Health contain an outbreak of COVID-19 in the Cook County jail. A physician, medical epidemiologist, and veteran of CDCs response to the 2015-2016 Zika virus outbreak, Paige led the CDC team to help jail administrators and medical staff get COVID-19 under control. The jail campus covers eight city blocks and houses people in 13 different buildings, and each building has unique characteristics, she says. Its as though youre trying to control an outbreak in 13 different settings, with the added element of staff moving between them. At that time, the jail held more than 4,000 people awaiting court dates, trial, or serving post-conviction sentences. And Chicago was one of the pandemics early US hot spots, so the disease was spreading widely outside the walls. The Cook County Sheriffs Office had taken steps to fight the outbreak inside by conducting extensive testing, reducing cells to single occupancy, and quarantining the entire unit when a person who was incarcerated tested positive. The CDC team started by trying to figure out whether prevention and control measures were working and what else might be needed. They worked with city, county, and state health departments, the sheriffs office, and the company that provided medical services at the jail. They tracked building-by-building data on cases, hospitalizations, and deaths among staff and people in custody, looking for trends and emerging clusters of illness. Stopping an outbreak of COVID-19 requires a lot of coordination and effort from everyone, Paige Armstrong says. resize icon View Larger Close Stopping an outbreak of COVID-19 requires a lot of coordination and effort from everyone, Paige Armstrong says. We found that the interventions were effectively reducing new cases, but that didnt mean the work was done, Paige says. It meant these resource-intensive efforts to quarantine, isolate, screen, socially distance, and enhance cleaning and disinfection of frequently touched surfaces needed to continue. And when you consider the size of the jail, you realize that requires a lot of coordination and effort from everyone. In Chicago, those measures gradually started to bear fruit. Each day, the number of units placed on quarantine declined, until one day there were none. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, she says. We had turned a corner. Chicago was Paiges second deployment for the COVID-19 response. She also helped repatriate cruise ship passengers when they were quarantined at an airbase outside Atlanta. When shes not deployed for emergency responses, Paige specializes in stopping tickborne rickettsial diseases. She traces her interest in public health back to high school in New Haven, Connecticut. A summer trip visiting relatives in Ecuador made her want to work alongside communities and to give back, she says. I grew up in a family that valued community service, she says. Her mother is a teacher, her father an EMT and volunteer firefighter. At 14, she volunteered with an aid organization that built latrines and installed cooking stoves that diverted smoke outside of homes in Mexicothe first of many trips where she worked on sanitation and health projects in Latin America. As a student at Johns Hopkins University, she volunteered as a Spanish interpreter in free clinics in Baltimore. She returned to Connecticut for medical school and specialized in emergency medicine at George Washington University in Washington, DC. Ive always enjoyed working with populations who have slightly higher needs or challenges accessing healthcare, she says. Its been rewarding in the sense that I can appreciate the impact and make a difference. That led her to CDC, after a mentor recommended she apply for the Epidemic Intelligence Service the disease detectives who pursue outbreaks of illness. After her two-year fellowship with EIS, she joined the agency full-time in 2017. No one thing and no one person does it all, she says. But together, we can make a difference. Both Horry and Georgetown counties reported zero coronavirus-related deaths on Monday, while also seeing a dip in daily COVID-19 reported cases. Horry County posted 45 new cases, bringing its total to 8,147. Meanwhile, Georgetown added 18 cases and now has a total of 1,306. South Carolina reported 1,105 new confirmed cases and 11 new deaths, increasing the state total to 92,404 and 1,721, respectively. The 11 deaths came from Aiken, Bamberg, Calhoun, Charleston, Chester, Dorchester, Florence, Newberry, Orangeburg, Richland, and Spartanburg. Seven deaths are still being investigated by officials in Aiken, Anderson, Charleston, Greenville and Spartanburg. For hospitals, state health officials said they are still working on creating a new process for gathering inpatient bed availability and occupancy from each hospital in the state. They said a new system will be coming soon. Out of the 1,401 patients hospitalized, 366 were in ICU and 224 on ventilators. For anyone looking to get tested, there is planned drive-thru coronavirus testing on Aug.4 at Precious Blood of Christ Church at 1633 Waverly Road in Pawleys Island. The testing will take place from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. For more mobile testing sites, check out the DHEC website. Rate per 100K Georgetown: 2,086 Horry: 2,300 Percent of deaths vs. state total Horry: 7.4% Georgetown: 1% Probable cases Georgetown: 1 Horry: 27 Probable Deaths Georgetown: 1 Horry: 2 (Photo : USDA APHIS) The mysterious packages received were labeled from China Post. Random houses around the US have received mysterious packages from China late last month, containing random objects like cheap jewelry, socks, and mysterious plant seeds, which the Department of Agriculture has finally identified. USDA Identifies Seeds Mysterious Packages In a report by the Daily Mail, USDA said they had identified more than a dozen of these plant seeds included in the mysterious package. "We have identified 14 different species of seeds, including mustard, cabbage, morning glory and some herbs, like mint, sage, rosemary, lavender, and then other seeds like hibiscus and roses," Osama El-Lissy from the USDA's Animal and Plant Head Inspection Service (APHIS) said. "This is just a subset of the samples we've collected so far." Besides APHIS, the Homeland Security's Customs and Border Protection, along with other agencies, are already investigating the incident and have deemed the packages as part of an apparent scam. Photos uploaded by the department show that the packages were labeled from China Post, which operates from the official postal service of China. Read Also: New Study Shows Small Crustaceans That Can Fragment Plastics Into Pieces Smaller Than Cells DO NOT Plant the Seeds USDA is still checking all the seed contents from the Chinese package in search of something that could be of threat to the country's security, the environment, or agriculture. The department has also said that as of now, they don't have enough evidence indicating that this is more than just a "brushing scam" wherein people would receive packages from a particular seller, who will then create false reviews to boost their sales. As with their initial warning, the authorities and the USDA remain adamant that people who received these plant seeds should not be planted. They also asked all the recipients of the said package to report and bring the seed packages. Experts fear that these seeds may be invasive and could destroy and/or overtake native plant and insect species once they grow and thrive. If you receive such a package, USDA and Better Business Bureau recommend contacting APHIS or your local state plant regulatory official and keep the packaging, especially the labeling, intact and wait for further instructions. Never open the packet of the seeds, much more plant them or throw them. Labeling Forged? China's foreign ministry is also working to investigate this apparent brushing scam, and in a briefing last week, July 28, Wang Wengbin, the spokesperson for the ministry said that the address labels for the packages were forged and that China Post is asking USPS to send the parcels to China for investigation, according to a report by CNN. Nevertheless, USPS has declined to provide further comment, although they did say they are aware of the packages and are currently working with local, federal, and state partners. Despite being deemed a brushing scam, the authorities are yet to catch the culprit behind the packages and their intentions. The parcels have been delivered in random houses across 50 states in the US, but it seems like the scam has also reached Canada as the Canadian Food Inspection Agency is also currently investigating similar reports in the country. Read Also: Twitter Hack: This 17-Year-Old Teen Just Used His Phone to Crack Accounts of Bezos, Gates, Musk, and More This article is owned by TechTimes Written by: Nhx Tingson 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The mystery of a washed-up 15-feet long seabeast is unravelling after experts had their say on the seemingly unidentifiable creature. Dubbed the Ainsdale Anomaly, the stinking remains were spotted on a Merseyside beach last Wednesday and have sparked debate as far away as New Zealand. Some people thought it was a cow, a horse, a donkey or a walrus, and some even suggested it was a wooly mammoth or a crash-landed alien. But experts believe the creature is in fact the decayed remains of a cetacean, a grouping of animals that includes whales, dolphins and porpoises. An unidentifiable creature was spotted washed up on a Merseyside beach in Liverpool last Wednesday. Dubbed the Ainsdale Anomaly, the stinking remains were spotted on a Merseyside beach Marine biologist Jack Thomson, a lecturer at the University of Liverpool, examined images of the creature and could see why people thought of equine species. 'I have to admit this is a tough one,' he said. 'Initially I thought it may have been a horse as there are some parts which seem very hoof-like. 'However, given its size - I've seen a report saying it's approximately 15ft long - and some of the features (in one photo I can see resemblance to a skull) it is probably is a cetacean of some sort.' It's a view shared by Natural England, the public body which manages the Ainsdale Sand Dunes National Nature Reserve. Stephen Ayliffe, a senior advisor at Natural England, said: 'We can confirm that an animal in a poorly decomposed state has washed up on Ainsdale beach. Experts believe the creature is in fact the decayed remains of a cetacean, a grouping of animals that includes whales, dolphins and porpoises 'Whilst the identification of the animal is unconfirmed it appears to be a species of whale. 'We are working with an animal removal company to have the animal's remains removed from the beach as soon as possible.' Images of the mysterious remains have been published across the globe, prompting many different suggestions as to their true nature. But even those who saw the remains up close weren't too sure. 'It's very bizarre,' said one man. 'It's like a mishmash of different things in one. 'It's 15 feet long, it has flippers, it's furry and it seems to have another creature attached, possibly via an umbilical cord, so it could have been giving birth. 'It was almost like a whale that had eaten a horse that had eaten a dolphin.' The man, who asked to remain anonymous, shared photos of the seabeast with the Ainsdale community Facebook page. And while plenty of people had suggestions, nobody could identify it for sure. One local woman, who filmed the strange creature, said: 'It's been called the Ainsdale Anomaly. 'My first assumption was it was a whale of some kind. 'Some people think it's a cow or a horse. I honestly have no idea. My favourite theory is that it was a wooly mammoth or a crash-landed alien. 'It almost looked like an elephant too.' The 32-year-old, who wished to remain nameless, said the remains smelled so bad they almost made her ill. Baffled locals speculated that it is a woolly mammoth, a walrus, a whale, a cow, a horse, a donkey - even an alien! 'I didn't get too close because there were lots of flies and it stank,' she said. 'I made the mistake of going downwind as I worked my way around it and I nearly threw up. 'It was badly decomposed. It looked like there were three big mounds of bodily areas, all slightly different and unidentifiable to me. 'To me the body looked quite twisted with flaps of skin here and there. 'There was no identifiable head, which was strange - possibly it was underneath. 'What I believe to be rib bones were sticking out the top side of it. It looked like there was a large spine and it seemed to me that the vertebrae were showing through the skin.' A brief police pursuit ended in tragedy early Sunday when a Harris County Sheriffs Office deputy struck and killed a 40-year-old father working his second job as an Uber driver, according to authorities and the mans family. Bismark Asare was driving a 2014 Honda Accord in the 18200 block of the Katy Freeway service road with a 27-year-old passenger at the time of the crash. The deputy had been chasing a Chrysler 300 with two occupants, only identified as a woman and a 17-year-old boy. The chase lasted roughly three minutes and hit speeds up to 90 mph, authorities said. The death of Asare, who primarily worked as a respiratory therapist in Houston, left family members angry at the sheriffs office for what they felt was a reckless chase. The police need to reform their policy and stop killing innocent family members, said his wife Beatrice Bruce. He didnt have any criminal record. He was innocent and doing what he was supposed to do to take care of his family. The offices pursuit policy was not immediately available Sunday. Sheriffs office spokesman Jason Spencer said the deputy engaged in the pursuit because he believed a passenger in the suspects car was in danger. This is just a tragic situation that you can trace back to the actions of a driver who refused to stop for a deputy who was attempting to make a traffic stop, he said. And it was the driver of that vehicle that made the decision to put peoples lives in danger and ultimately resulted in the life (of Asare). It remained unclear late Sunday whether the female suspect or the 17-year-old boy was driving the Chrysler at the time of the chase, Spencer said. The chase started around 1:30 a.m. when the deputy spotted the 17-year-old arguing with a woman in a parking lot on Fry Road and the Katy Freeway. The two got into the Chrysler, and driver then sped up to 90 mph with the deputy following them, authorities said. The driver kept going even as the deputy tried pulling over the vehicle. Minutes into the chase, the suspect veered around Asares vehicle to avoid crashing on the service road, but the deputy rear-ended the ride-share car instead, officials said. The patrol vehicle careened off the road and hit a line of trees. Asares vehicle came to rest in the median. He was pronounced dead at a hospital, while his passenger was hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries. The deputy was also taken to a hospital and released later in the day. Meanwhile, the suspects also crashed and bolted across the four lanes of traffic to escape. An off-duty deputy working security at Texas Children's Hospital found the boy, who was not immediately identified, and took him into custody. He was transported to a hospital. Deputies were still searching for the woman who was with him. They believe she fled in another vehicle, possibly a black and white Jeep. Major Jesse Razo said alcohol was likely a factor in the crash and that the 17-year-old was out on bond for an unspecified felony. Sean Teare, head of the Harris County District Attorney's Office Vehicular Crimes Division, said investigators will look into how the teen accessed alcohol whether it was through a business or at a home. Bruce, Asares wife, said the couple originally arrived in Houston from Ghana in 2011. They have a 7-year-old daughter. Asare was a pious man who never drank or smoked, she said. Bruces sister, Nancy Bentum, said the family is waiting to get specific details about the crash from the sheriffs office. She said her main concern is whether authorities tended to Asare immediately following the collision. The family wants his death to prevent similar tragedies in the future. Regardless of how you are chasing somebody your speed limit has to reduce, Bentum said, adding that only the innocent person died. nicole.hensley@chron.com julian.gill@chron.com The year 2020 will not go down as one of the more upbeat times in American history. Aside from being stuck at home thanks to COVID-19; weve canceled countless plans and watched ongoing protests morph into violent rioting. More recently, we spent most of July sweltering under a relentless heat wave. And just in the past week or so, thanks again to the pandemic, weve confronted the grim news that most schools are not going to resume in-person teaching this fall and we learned that nearly one-third of the entire American economy was completely wiped out in the second quarter of the year. With the continuing onslaught of bad and depressing events and our now monotonous homebound routines, it is no wonder many Americans are feeling browbeaten and convinced that our best days are behind us. But we are willing to bet that sense of ennui does not apply to anyone in the American space industry. For those good people, the year has been full of positive news surrounding space exploration, and exciting and promising events that affect where we are today and where we are going tomorrow. St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital named Sheryl Simonton of Tulsa the winner of its 14th annual Dream Home Giveaway. Each year, St. Jude hosts the event, offering a local family a chance to win their dream home by purchasing a $100 ticket, which goes toward funding childrens cancer treatment. On Sunday, Aug. 2, the hospital held a drawing at the home, located in Stone Canyons Deer Run development in Owasso, and picked Simonton as the lucky winner. Taylor Johnson Lingle, regional manager for ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude, said she was happy to see everyone come together for another successful year. The campaign is amazing because it helps families right here in our community who are fighting childhood cancer, and it changes the life of the winner, Lingle said. This year, the campaign raised a record amount, $1.2 million, and sold out earlier than ever. Its truly amazing. The $560,000, 3,186-square-foot modern farmhouse residence comes with four bedrooms and three bathrooms, complete with a spacious kitchen, an enlarged master shower, an expanded game room, a front porch, a side car entry and more. Vero Beach, Fla. Bands of heavy rain from Isaias lashed Florida's east coast Sunday, with the tropical storm strengthening slightly in the evening on its way up the Eastern seaboard. Officials dealing with surging cases of the coronavirus in Florida kept a close watch on the storm that was weakened from a hurricane to a tropical storm Saturday afternoon, but still brought heavy rain and flooding to Florida's Atlantic coast. The National Hurricane Center advised at 5 p.m. Sunday that the storm was about 65 miles off the east coast of Central Florida, and about 410 miles south of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It was strengthening slightly with sustained winds just under a Category 1 hurricane, taking a north-northwest path, according to the center. "Don't be fooled by the downgrade," Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned at a news conference after the storm spent hours roughing up the Bahamas. Upper-level winds took much of the strength out of Isaias, said Stacy Stewart, senior hurricane specialist at the hurricane center in Miami. "We were expecting a hurricane to develop and it didn't," Stewart said Sunday. "It's a tale of two storms. If you live on the west side of the storm, you didn't get much. If you live east of the storm, there's a lot of nasty weather there." Authorities closed beaches, parks and virus testing sites, lashing signs to palm trees so they wouldn't blow away. DeSantis said the state is anticipating power outages and asked residents to have a week's supply of water, food and medicine on hand. Officials wrestled with how to prepare shelters where people can seek refuge from the storm if necessary, while also safely social distancing to prevent the spread of the virus. Sunday, before crawling back up to 70 mph a few hours later, the hurricane center said. Models show NYC in path Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. New York City area residents should be prepared for heavy winds and rain from Isaias on Tuesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. The storm was off the Florida coast Sunday and while it had weakened to a tropical storm, it could batter much of the East Coast this week as the system is forecast to track up or just off the Atlantic seaboard. Cuomo said models project it will move over the New York City area, including Long Island and parts of the Hudson Valley, as early as Monday night but primarily on Tuesday. Some areas could see up to 3 inches of rain and 50 mph gusts, he told reporters during a phone briefing Sunday. The governor said people living in flood-prone areas should be getting ready for the storm. The state was making sure generators, pumps and high- water vehicles were ready, he said. "We're preparing. Local governments should be preparing," Cuomo said. Ministers were last night accused of an appalling breach of the debt owed to Afghan interpreters who served alongside British soldiers during the 13-year war. A cross-party group of MPs urged the Defence Secretary and Home Secretary to give sanctuary to the heroes and their families without delay. In a letter seen by the Daily Mail, the 15 MPs said those who put their lives at risk for the UK must be allowed to live in it. Dr Julian Lewis, chairman of the Intelligence and Security committee and champion for the Afghan translators, is among those who have signed the letter. Honour: Former Prime Minister David Cameron meets a translator in Kabul, 2011 There are believed to be 150 interpreters remaining who are desperate for sanctuary but who have been denied a visa. This newspapers award-winning Betrayal of the Brave campaign has reported how ministers pledged to let in 50 interpreters under a policy announced two years ago. But only two plus their families have so far been allowed into the UK under the revised scheme because officials got the figures wrong. The specific criteria for a visa was so narrow that it only included translators who had served in Helmand for more than a year and had been made redundant. In another scandal, interpreters already in the UK under a previous scheme were told by the Home Office their wives and children could join them in March 2019. But more than a year later none of those women have been given visas. The Home Office has previously said that although it is committed to the immigration rule change, it is a complex operation involving many public bodies. Last month Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and Home Secretary Priti Patel promised to work out a better deal for those left behind. MPs said last night that they must implement changes immediately. The letter states: These failures represent an appalling breach of the debt the UK owes to the interpreters who served in Afghanistan. Those who have put their lives at risk for our country must be allowed to live in it. They must not be left to live in fear of reprisals for their service, nor must they be cruelly separated from their families. We urge you to put this right without further delay. The letter was coordinated by Liberal Democrat defence spokesman Jamie Stone MP and signed by 14 others. Rafi Hottak, once the supervisor of UK translators who now campaigns on behalf of his former colleagues wanting sanctuary in Britain, says he estimates there are between 120-150 interpreters still in Afghanistan needing help. Above: Afghan Interpreter 'Shaffy' who worked for the British Army on the front lines in Helmand, and once translated for David Cameron during a visit in 2011 It noted that it had been more than seven years since the late Lord Ashdown highlighted the debt of honour the UK owes those who risked their lives to help our troops. MPs referred to the Daily Mail report that it had been two years since the then-Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson expanded the policy towards interpreters. Under the new rules, interpreters could come to the UK if they had served in Helmand in the years before 2012 and were made redundant. MPs noted that two years later just two had qualified. The group also cited another report by the Daily Mail about how the Government had failed to uphold its promise to let in the wives and children of interpreters already in Britain. Mr Stone said: How can ministers sleep at night knowing they have left them at the mercy of the Taliban? Interpreters denied sanctuary welcomed the letter. Latif, 36, who worked with the SAS on the frontline, said: I ask the Government to listen to the MPs. A Government spokesman said: The Home Secretary and Defence Secretary are committed to ensuring a fair system for the resettlement of Afghan interpreters and met last week to resolve outstanding issues. Majority State-owned lender Permanent TSB (PTSB) is in advanced talks with the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) to create a new loan fund for small businesses. It is understood the talks are focused on PTSB gaining access to SBCI's Future Growth Loan Scheme, which funds capital expenditure and business investment through low-cost seven- to 10-year loans, secured with an 80pc guarantee from the European Union. The guarantee means the cost of credit is cheaper for businesses. Loans available under that scheme can range from 25,000 to 3m. Tanaiste and Business Minister Leo Varadkar last week announced the expansion of the SBCI scheme from 300m to 500m. AIB, Bank of Ireland and Ulster Bank already manage applications from borrowers to the fund and SBCI had said it was in talks with three more lenders - understood to include PTSB. The bank, which is due to announce financial results tomorrow, declined to comment yesterday. However, new PTSB CEO Eamonn Crowley has already said he is targeting a push into the SME market, focused on smaller owner enterprises. He told journalists when he was appointed CEO in June that the SME market was under-served, and said he had a particular eye on deepening relationships with mortgage customers who also own their own business. PTSB more than doubled its SME lending book last year, from 21m to 47m, but it remains a minor player in the sector where its stated ambition is to increase lending to around a quarter of a billion by 2023. PTSB is due to announce financial results for the first half of the year tomorrow, when the focus will be on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Analysts at Davy have forecast the bank to announce a loss after tax of 26m for the first six months of this year, largely a result of impairment charges that will be based on the bank's estimates of the likely losses that will result from the pandemic, including an anticipated increase in bad loans. Around 10,000 of the bank's customers have availed of Covid-related payment breaks during the period, mainly mortgage customers. PTSB will be the first of the three State-backed banks to announce results this year, followed by Bank of Ireland on Wednesday and AIB on Thursday. The three banks in which taxpayers still hold significant stakes will write off a combined 2bn as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak, analysts have warned. Davy has estimated combined losses at the three banks will hit more than 580m in the first half of this year. Ulster Bank last week reported an operating loss of 276m for the six months to June. The scale of likely losses, expected to continue into the second half of the year, is the worst hit to the banks since the global financial crisis. The expectations that Australias September quarter GDP would show the nascent signs of an economy climbing out of recession must now surely be dashed in the wake of Victorias stage-four lockdowns. The Andrews governments decision to move to a stage-four lockdown, which is necessary from a health perspective, will be devastating for a large section of the economy. While NSW may not catch the COVID-19 bug, it will feel some of the symptoms of Melbournes economic malaise. The $185 billion deficit that 10 days ago federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg forecast for 2020/21 now looks wildly optimistic. Frydenberg said Treasury would be redoing its economic update, delivered last month, in light of the new restrictions on Victorian business. Meanwhile, the share price reaction from the four big Australian banks on Monday said it all. They, more than any other industry, provide a bellwether for the economy and all four of the big players were hit hard on Monday morning. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Jacques Lemieux (Agence France-Presse) Montreal, Canada Mon, August 3, 2020 08:07 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b128d6 2 News Montreal,Canada,pandemic,coronavirus,COVID-19,tourism Free Stripped of the crowds of visitors that usually flock to its sights, from the Grand Prix to its renowned festivals, Montreal is trying to reinvent itself during the coronavirus pandemic and salvage what is left of its summer. The city is spending heavily and sponsoring dozens of artistic shows in an effort to lure visitors. But despite its best efforts, the damage is all too obvious. "Look at the terraces here, they are all empty, it's incredible," said Sam Namour, owner of an Inuit art gallery in Old Montreal, pointing to the deserted cafes on Jacques Cartier Square. Over the past 40 years, Namour has greeted thousands of visitors to his gallery, including former presidents Bill Clinton of the US and Jacques Chirac of France. But on this hot summer's day, not a single person has entered his establishment since he opened up three hours earlier. Around 11 million tourists visit the city in a normal year, 80 percent of them from outside Quebec province, spending some Can$4 billion (USD$3 billion), said Yves Lalumiere, head of the city's tourism board. With half of Canada's 9,000 coronavirus deaths, Montreal and its surroundings have been hard hit by the pandemic. The city has had to cancel major cultural events that in the past drew in hundreds of thousands of visitors, including its world-renowned jazz festival. Read also: Mannequins do double duty in a chic restaurant in virus-hit Montreal 'Little ghost town' "A million tourists, tops" are expected this year, said Lalumiere, saying 90 percent of the revenue from that sector is at risk. Visitors have to quarantine for 14 days when they arrive in Canada, so tourists coming from abroad, mostly from France and the United States, are rare this year. "Old Montreal is dead this year," said Namour. "In summer, Jacques Cartier Square is always full, you can't see the ground because there are so many people there," said Nadia Bilodeau, who runs an Italian restaurant next door to Namour's gallery. This year, though, it is "like a little ghost town," she said, looking out at the restaurant's empty terrace. The business owners are just about making ends meet with support from the state. Even visitors from other parts of Quebec province are few and far between. "The Quebecois are scared of coming to Montreal," said Michel Archambault, professor of urban studies and tourism at Quebec University. William Foster Friesen was the rare tourist in sight on a recent day, passing through for a few hours on his way from a trip to the Gaspesie region to his home of Toronto. "I've never seen Montreal so empty," he said. Read also: In Canada, art lovers head to drive-in for safe Van Gogh show Petanque in the street The same scenes are being played out in the city center, whose 400,000 workers have been largely absent since mid-March, most of them now working from home. The city's beating heart endures, however, though energy has shifted to its outlying residential areas. Dozens of miles of commercial streets have been made pedestrian-only, with water jets installed for young and old to play in, and courts set up in the street for the outdoor bowling game known as petanque. The city is shelling out Can$400,000 in an effort to lure Montrealers back to the center, putting on 200 artistic shows in squares over the rest of the summer. But for some, it is too little, too late. "A drop in the ocean!" said Archambault. WATERLOO REGION Critics were fuming Sunday over the anti-racism town hall sessions hosted last week by Waterloo regional council. Speakers trashed the sessions Sunday during an online town hall held for University of Waterloo students who tuned in to learn about calls to strip Waterloo Regional Police of $29 million in funding. Sundays event drew up to 43 participants who heard Lang Ncube explain the call to redirect those funds to other community programs. This is a movement people are invested in, said Ncube, community development co-ordinator for an advocacy group called the African, Caribbean and Black Network of Waterloo Region. She said it is about taking money away from police who inflict violence on Black people, and spending it instead on community programs and social services that aim to help solve the root causes of crime. Ncube understands some people are troubled by the word defund but the intent is not to abolish police. Defunding is simply reinvesting, she said. Some people hear the word defunding and automatically, panic bells are ringing. Students asked online about campus policing and were told the impact of defunding is uncertain. They asked why the demand is to defund by $29 million and were told thats the increase in police spending in the past three years. Regional government came under fire Sunday as critics said it was wrong to ask Black people to share personal stories of racism in online sessions held Thursday and Friday. Critics argue it is hurtful and wrong-headed to disregard evidence and ask people to put their trauma on display to prove that racism is real. I think it started on a sour note, Ncube said of the regional governments efforts. She said it was not set up to be a safe space, stressing she is speaking for herself. It was not set up to have meaningful conversation. UW student Safyya Cisse said she has seen anti-racism efforts on campus that are also misguided. She likened them to gaslighting students by trying to call into question long-standing evidence of racism. I think were way past that, said Cisse, president of the University of Waterloo African Student Association. Regional Chair Karen Redman and some Waterloo city councillors were among those watching the student town hall. Thomas Schafer has taken over as the Chairman of the Board at Skoda Auto. In this position, he succeeds Bernhard Maier, who is handing over the office to his successor after almost five years at the helm. Thomas Schafer will assume the role of Chairman of the Board at Skoda Auto on 3 August 2020. The qualified mechanical engineer began his career in the automotive industry at Daimler AG in 1991. He held various management positions in the areas of production and quality management in Germany, the USA and South Africa until 2002. From 2002 to 2005, he was a founding member of DaimlerChrysler Malaysia as Board Member for Technology, where he expanded and restructured the companys sales, production, and supplier base. At Daimler AG in Germany, Schafer was responsible for vehicle deliveries, customer centres and the global xKD business in emerging markets between 2005 and 2012. In addition to establishing new plants, he was also responsible for planning and strategy and international logistics for all foreign plants. In 2011, his main tasks included managing the Mercedes-Benz plant construction project in cooperation with BAIC in China. In May 2012, Schafer moved to Volkswagen AG, where he initially headed the Groups International Production and was responsible for xKD projects and negotiations on new production sites. Since 2015, he has served as Chairman and Managing Director of Volkswagen Group South Africa, responsible for the development of the Group brands in the sub-Saharan Africa region. Throughout his five-year tenure, he consistently promoted the expansion of the sales network, increased dealer profitability and led the Group brands Volkswagen, Audi and VW Commercial Vehicles to the current record market share of 23.5 per cent. Under the leadership of Thomas Schafer, the Volkswagen Group has significantly developed and strengthened its position in sub-Saharan Africa. Building new production sites, entering into new cooperation agreements with importers and developing mobility concepts for Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda and Ghana have also contributed to this. Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India) A Fox News article implied that a shooting in Portland was related to protests against police violence and systemic racism, and other conservative media followed suit. The problem? The shooting happened 5 miles away from demonstrations. Just after 11 p.m. on Friday night, Portland police responded to the 600 block of Northeast 87th Avenue to find the woman had been shot in the arm and more than 150 shots fired in the area. The woman was taken to a hospital with what police said were non-life-threatening injuries. Police said at least eight occupied apartments and seven vehicles were struck by bullets, but no other injuries were reported. That same night, a couple of thousand protesters gathered in downtown for the 65th straight night of protests in Portland against systemic racism and police violence after the killing of George Floyd. The Multnomah County Justice Center, the frequent focal point of protests, is about 5 miles from where the shooting took place in Montavilla. Portland sees 150-round shooting at apartment building, as crowds continue violent clashes with police, blared the headline from Fox News on Sunday. Fox News is one of the right-wing news organizations that have painted Portland as a city under siege as the protests continue. More than 150 rounds were fired and one woman was shot in Portland on Friday night while protesters on Saturday some of whom appeared to impersonate press threw glass bottles and shined lasers at city police officers sent to quell the nighttime unrest witnessed for more than two months straight, reads the story, written by Danielle Wallace. Friday night the Portland protests were markedly more peaceful, and federal officials were no longer standing guard or employing tear gas on demonstrators. On Saturday night, police and protesters on the east side of the river did clash. That interaction took place outside the Multnomah County Sheriffs Office on East Burnside Street, about 2.5 miles away from Fridays shooting. The Fox News story acknowledged it was not immediately clear whether the shooting was linked to demonstrations, but presented no evidence to suggest they are. We have no information to suggest that this shooting was in any way related to protests, Sgt. Kevin Allen, a spokesperson for the Portland Police Bureau, said Sunday evening. While the protests have required significant resources, PPB officers continue to respond to calls for service, including shootings. Portland did see a spike in shooting and homicides in July. Last month, 15 people were murdered, the most killings in one month in more than thirty years, officials said. On July 30, there had been a total of 63 shootings so far that month compared to 28 in July 2019, according to the Portland Police Bureau. That number does not include Fridays shooting, which happened on the final day of the month. Homicides, assaults, burglaries and vandalism are all up this year compared to last year, police numbers show, but total person-to-person and property crimes are still down from previous years. A resident of the apartment building where the shooting occurred, interviewed by KPTV and quoted in the Fox News story, attributed the uptick to the dissolution of the Gun Violence Reduction Team in July as a result of budget cuts to police units that have targeted a disproportionate number of black people in traffic stops. But a 2020 increase in shootings predates the teams disbanding. The officers were placed elsewhere, including on the bureaus patrol unit, where they continue to investigate shootings. What was really lost was the follow-up piece, picking up video, contacting people, Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell on Thursday. -- Lizzy Acker 503-221-8052, lacker@oregonian.com, @lizzzyacker Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. Just days ago civil servants were urged to return to the office by the Government but far from leading by example, the number back at their desks in Whitehall has plummeted further. MPs called on staff to show the way for the rest of Britain last week after a Mail investigation revealed ministerial offices were like ghost towns with only a fraction of staff turning up. But despite Boris Johnson stepping in to reassure employees it was safe to go back, the number of people arriving at ministerial offices yesterday morning was down by up to a third on last week. It comes after health officials investigated a coronavirus outbreak at the Cabinet Office and Home Office last week (file photo of Lunar House, which houses a division of the Home Office) The largest drop was at the 800,000-square-foot Home Office headquarters where only 94 staff arrived 50 fewer than last Wednesday. Meanwhile only one per cent of the Department for Educations London workforce were observed entering its seven-floor offices, which held up to 2,000 staff before lockdown. The two dozen seen arriving yesterday was down from 34 last Thursday. Offices are understood to be running at a reduced capacity of 30 per cent. But just 112 people were counted going in to work at a 100-year-old Government building that would normally house thousands of staff from five ministries, including the Treasury. Last week the average was 140. Treasury staff, who must book a space 48 hours in advance if they want to go in, have reportedly been assured they will get two months notice before any collective return to work. Only the Department for Work and Pensions, which has space for around 1,700 workers, saw a slight uptick in staff turning up to work from 31 last Thursday to 33 yesterday. It comes after health officials investigated a coronavirus outbreak at the Cabinet Office and Home Office last week. Workers are reportedly being reassured privately by some department bosses that they will be able to continue working from home this month and only need to come in if they want to. Just 112 people were counted going in to work at a 100-year-old Government building that would normally house thousands of staff from five ministries (file photo of HM Treasury) There are growing fears city centre shops and eateries which rely on custom from office workers face ruin if more employees are not encouraged to return. Last week Alex Chisholm, second-in-command at the Civil Service, told departments it was time to change the default that civil servants should work from home and accelerate the return to the workplace from August. Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA union representing civil servants, said the Government should not be using officials to virtue-signal to the private sector. A Government spokesman said: We are consulting closely with employees on ending the default that civil servants should work from home and have ensured workplaces are Covid-secure so civil servants can return safely. She travelled to Turkey for a relaxing getaway with her family. But things quickly turned to disaster for Katie Price as she broke both her ankles while on holiday with her new boyfriend, Carl Woods, and her children Junior, 15, and Princess, 13. The reality star, 42, shared a clip of her trip to hospital on Monday as she writhed in agony and she cried out 'it f***ing hurts' and 'someone help me' as medics tended to her injured feet. Agony: Katie Price posted a video on Monday of her experience at the hospital in Turkey as she fractured both ankles by jumping off a wall at a theme park on her holiday She was rushed to A&E in Turkey last week for emergency surgery after doctors realised the extent of her horrific injuries. The TV personality had to spend a night in hospital after fracturing both ankles after she jumped off a wall at the holiday theme park, Land Of Legends. Katie posted a video online from her stint in hospital as she got her feet bandaged up by medical staff and she cried out from the horrendous pain. Unbearable: The reality TV star, 42, squirmed from the pain and shed tears as the medical staff tended to her feet and wrapped them in bandages As the doctor attempted to reposition her broken leg, the former glamour model yelled out 'help, ouch, It's hurting me,' and pleaded with staff to operate on her. The journey to recovery will be a long road for Katie as she won't be able to walk for three to six months. According to doctors, she will need pins in her feet which will undoubtedly be another agonising experience. Soldier on: Katie decided to stay for the rest of her holiday for the sake of her children, Junior, 15, and Princess, 13, and has been getting around with the help of a mobility scooter Katie thought she might have to cut her holiday short to head home with her Love Island beau, Carl Woods. However, she decided to endure the pain and ride it out in Turkey for the sake of her children so that they could enjoy the rest of their holiday. Junior, 15, and Princess, 13, have been pushing her around in a wheelchair so that she can still enjoy her remaining days abroad. Meanwhile her eldest child, Harvey, 18, is currently in the UK after he was sent to intensive care last month after suffering from breathing difficulties. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 10:17:40|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close MONTEVIDEO, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- Users of WeChat, China's messaging, social media and payment app, can now browse and buy Uruguayan and other Latin American goods at the touch of a button, from regional spirits to gemstones. "We target Chinese audience with an interest in Latin America, who want to consume new and different types of products," Martin Perez, a partner in e-commerce site Latin American Style (Estilo Latinoamericano), told Xinhua. On his travels to China, Perez, a consultant, noted there was no online venue specifically designed to showcase Latin American products, so he decided to set up one. To achieve the goal, they spent two years. The effort paid off with a pioneering venture on China's premier social networking app. Latin American Style chose to break into the market with WeChat, the multipurpose app that has over 1.15 billion users, but the idea is to eventually expand to China's e-commerce giants. "Right now, we are one of the first Uruguayan enterprises in China. In e-commerce, we are the only one," he said. Perez's partner, economist Ruben Alvarez, recalled that when Perez proposed the idea, "the first thing that came to my mind was that China is a huge opportunity." Their site, which went online on June 21, offers an access to Chinese consumers for small Latin American companies and producers. Meanwhile, consumers in China can browse a variety of items, including violet amethysts mined in northern Uruguay and the local firewater grappamiel, a blend of spirits sweetened with honey. A brand called Serrana has already won buyers who placed orders for more bottles. Coming soon are beef jerky snacks from Ecuador, wines from Argentina and apparel from young Uruguayan designers. The goods arrive at a warehouse in Shenzhen, and from there they can be shipped to any part of China within a maximum of 72 hours. Thanks to the partnership between WeChat and Latin American Style, the distance between China and Latin America has gotten much smaller. Enditem A jointly developed device by the Healthcare Technology Innovation Centre (HTIC) of Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-M) and healthcare startup Helyxon is now helping doctors in several hospitals to monitor Covid-19 patients remotely. Called as OXY2, the device has already reached over 2,000 patients in public and private hospitals, and at homes, with another 5,000 devices in the pipeline, IIT Madras said on Monday. It does clinically accurate continuous monitoring of four critical parameters -- temperature, oxygen saturation, respiratory rate and heart rate. "There are several attempts to reposition consumer-type devices like wrist bands and wearables as medical devices. But doctors and hospitals are clear that they can only accept devices with accuracy on par with dedicated patient monitors since these are the patient's vital physiological parameters," Mohanasankar Sivaprakasam, Professor at IIT Madras, said in a statement. "As a result, the key technical challenge is to engineer the device so that it meets the standards of a medical patient monitor, and yet costs one-tenth and can easily be fitted and used without any training," Sivaprakasam added. According to the institute, the device is completely self-contained, portable, wireless and can be clipped on to a patient's finger and data is streamed to a mobile phone or central monitoring system. The temperature is measured at the armpit and blood oxygen level and other parameters at the finger itself. The device is reusable and has a lifetime of over a year. The devices can be used by the hospitals and doctors for patient management beyond Covid-19, the institute said. The core technology was validated by a year-long multi-centric study at various Chennai-based medical institutions for the accuracy and performance with reference to current standards. Cost of the device ranges from Rs 2,500-10,000 depending on the configuration and parameters. "It is more than a monitoring device. Based on feedback from doctors and hospital management, deployment of OXY2 reduces overall load, stress and anxiety in the healthcare system, saves hospital beds for severe cases, and increases confidence for patients at home," said Vijai Shankar Raja, Founder and MD of Helyxon. By Tom Sims and Norma Galeana FRANKFURT/LOS ANGELES, Aug 3 (Reuters) - - While millions of U.S. workers thrown into unemployment by the coronavirus pandemic fret about feeding their families, idled German airline purser Marco Todte is mainly concerned about his next vacation. Todte, 41, hasn't flown for work since April. But Germany's state-subsidized "Kurzarbeit" furlough scheme and a top-up from employer Lufthansa means he is getting 90% of his regular income and has the cash to explore what few leisure options there are in an economy still emerging from lockdown. "It is hard to go to the cinema or to go out in the evenings. I had planned on a cruise but that was cancelled," Todte complained. "Its not a question of money - more a question of what there is to do with it." That's a problem that Juan Ruiz, a 56-year-old billing agent who lost his job at a Los Angeles forklift company in March when he contracted COVID-19, would love to have. The failure of Congress to agree on replacing the $600-a-week extra unemployment benefit before its expiry on Friday means his family's finances are now in jeopardy. Ruiz used his first benefit cheques to pay down his debts but still has a mortgage to cover and says the new proposal of just $200-a-week on the table when talks resume on Monday is nowhere near enough. "We have a lot of bills, we need to pay the house, taxes, everything," Ruiz, still struggling with his breathing as a result of the disease, told Reuters at his home. "We desperately need that help." Nothing illustrates the contrasting economic responses of the United States and Europe to the pandemic more clearly than how they are dealing with the devastation it has brought to their jobs markets. The extra U.S. weekly benefit was an attempt to cushion the short-term blow to households as over 30 million people became jobless. It is based on the assumption that they will be able to return to the workforce as soon as the economy recovers. Story continues The European approach, building on schemes like "Kurzarbeit" already in existence, has been to use costly state subsidies to keep workers on company payrolls with wages near regular levels even when they work part-time or not at all. At the most generous end of the spectrum, the Dutch "NOW" programme retains workers on 100% of their income even when they work zero hours. For those laid off, the baseline Dutch dole programme is worth around $1,000 a month. WHEN TO WIND DOWN? Advocates of furloughs argue that, by maintaining the link between worker and employer, they make it easier for a company to ramp up activity quickly when demand returns. Critics say they keep many non-viable jobs alive when it would be better for them to be replaced by new positions in healthier sectors. The recent resurgence of new coronavirus cases in the United States and Europe has raised fresh questions about the timing of any recovery and how long either approach can be maintained. But for now, it is clear the European way is alleviating more pain. By the end of May, an estimated 45 million workers in Britain and the four largest euro zone economies - Germany, France, Italy and Spain - were registered in furlough schemes. For the euro zone, that has kept the jobless rate at just under 8%, barely a point higher than its pre-lockdown level. That approach has been lauded by the European Central Bank (ECB) for supporting consumer morale and buffering household income, seen by many economists as key to the recovery. Data on Friday showed French consumer spending for example shot back to its pre-pandemic level in June even as the overall economy shrank by 13.8% in the second quarter. Consumer morale in Germany is also strong. "(The system) stabilizes the income of households so that they still consume," said Sebastian Link, labour expert at the Ifo economic institute, which estimates some 42% of German firms still had workers on Kurzarbeit in July. June data show consumer spending in the United States has held up but households have had to bite into savings as income levels have fallen. The wealth squeeze will only get worse if the expiring jobless benefit is not replaced. While the immediate challenge for U.S. policymakers is to come up with new support to ensure millions are not thrown into poverty, European governments face hard questions about how long they can sustain their furloughs. Britain is planning from October to wind down its scheme, which has supported 9.5 million jobs at a cost of $41 billion so far, despite predictions that would cause unemployment to more than double to 10% by year-end. Brian Coulton, chief economist at Fitch Ratings, said he expected other job subsidy schemes across Europe to be removed gradually, with the timing dependent on a recovery which in turn could be threatened by future spikes in infections. "A lot of it was predicated on this being short-term. If the recovery process is slower then it becomes tricky," he said. (Reporting by Tom Sims and Norma Galeana; Additional reporting by Toby Sterling in Amsterdam; Writing and additional reporting by Mark John in London; Editing by Hugh Lawson) Web Toolbar by Wibiya A lot has been written about the world-famous 1947 UFO crash in Roswell, New Mexico. The most common theory about this incident states that this was an actual extraterrestrial craft that ended up crashing in the middle of the desert. For decades, the United States government has repeatedly refused to provide information about the issue; however, this seems to have changed in the last few days. And the disclosed information could actually be quite shocking In a very interesting article posted on Exopolitics.org, renowned Australian researcher Dr Michael Salla explains that Trumps government is preparing to reveal the incident as time-travelling future humans. Dr Salla comments that according to new information from Secret Space Program Insider Corey Goode, Trump was told that the Roswell UFO Crash involved time-traveling humans from the future. Mr Goode, who has been disclosing secret information for years, told Dr Salla that Roswell was not an alien event. Instead, he claims, the vast majority of UFO sightings throughout history are from our own craft operating in the future and creating a temporal butterfly effect. One of the most important points mentioned by Mr Goode is that there is an ongoing conflict between two groups of future humans, which has severely affected our reality. One is more of the Wing Maker type of future where AI controls a very small population on Earth, Mr Goode told Dr Salla in an interview. There is another group fighting to preserve the timeline by stopping the manipulation of timelines so that they all collapse into the proper one, he continued. From this point of view, Roswell incident seems to be paramount. It shows us that future humans finally found a way to travel through time, and they could modify timelines whenever they wanted. This fact explains a lot of things happening today. Finally, in the opinion of Dr Salla, the hypothesis of time-travelling humans is only a small part of the full disclosure, since right now our society is not still prepared it. The explanation that Roswell involved time traveling future humans who arranged for the crash to occur to speed up our technological development certainly sounds plausible, he affirmed. Nevertheless, we need to keep in mind that even such a significant disclosure would still be a limited hangout designed to punt the full truth far into the future, he asserted. Draw your own conclusions NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says Victoria's tough new restrictions will help the state curb community transmission of COVID-19 but she is prepared to further tighten border rules if necessary. NSW reported 17 new coronavirus cases on Monday, with contact tracers discovering that infectious cases attended a Bondi yoga studio and a Fitness First gym in Rockdale. Premier Gladys Berejiklian at Seven Hills High School on Monday. Credit:Nick Moir Ms Berejiklian said the stage four restrictions in Victoria would help restrict the number of people crossing the border. Victoria is expected to record 429 new cases on Monday. She has said community transmission remains a concern in NSW, indicating the government was prepared to make further changes to border rules if needed. RESTON, Va., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Leidos (NYSE: LDOS), a FORTUNE 500 science and technology leader, today announced the appointment of Elizabeth (Liz) Porter to Health Group President, effective immediately. Porter will report to Chairman and CEO Roger Krone. The Health Group is a $2 billion, 7,500-person business with deep technology and life sciences expertise that transforms patient care, as well as provider and payer operations. As group president, Porter will have responsibility for all Health Group activities, including new business growth, technology development and thought leadership. "Our strong bench of talent is one of many things that makes Leidos great and we are thrilled to add Liz to our executive team," said Krone. "Through her experience leading operations for the Civil Group, and recently as acting president of the Health Group, Liz has demonstrated a track record of driving our business and generating growth. As the health market continues to expand and evolve, we are fortunate to leverage her expertise going forward." Liz Porter has been serving as acting group president since March 9 and previously served as operation manager for the Civil Group's Federal Energy & Environment business. Her experience spans critical infrastructure system engineering and technology, business development, and program management including several leadership roles at Lockheed Martin. She is a graduate of Villanova University with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, and earned her MBA from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. Liz is a proud military spouse and serves on the Industrial Advisory Board to the Engineering Department at Villanova University. She also serves on the board of the American Red Cross of the National Capital Region and is a member of the Healthcare Leadership Council. About Leidos Leidos is a Fortune 500 information technology, engineering, and science solutions and services leader working to solve the world's toughest challenges in the defense, intelligence, homeland security, civil, and health markets. The company's 37,000 employees support vital missions for government and commercial customers. Headquartered in Reston, Va., Leidos reported annual revenues of approximately $11.09 billion for the fiscal year ended January 3, 2020. For more information, visit www.leidos.com. Statements in this announcement, other than historical data and information, constitute forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause our actual results, performance, achievements, or industry results to be very different from the results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Some of these factors include, but are not limited to, the risk factors set forth in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ended January 3, 2020, and other such filings that Leidos makes with the SEC from time to time. Due to such uncertainties and risks, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. SOURCE Leidos Related Links http://www.leidos.com An aristocrat and an interior designer are locked in a bitter court battle over claims the refurbishment of an 11.5 million Notting Hill mansion was botched. In papers filed in the high court, Lord James Russell claims designer Lucinda Sanford let the project run more than a year past the completion date and more than 1 million over budget. As reported in the Evening Standard, Lord Russell accuses contractors working for Mrs Sanfords company - Lucinda Sanford Ltd (LSL) - of putting his family at risk with their exceptionally poor performance. Lord and Lady James Russell, pictured here, claim interior designer Lucinda Sanford botched the refurbishment of their 11.5 million home in Notting Hill, London. Ms Sanford claims the couple's indecision was behind the overrunning of the project which started in 2015 Couple argue workers left the house vulnerable to intruders because they left doors and windows open In the court papers, the familys barrister William Webb argued that the Russells were forced to move in before the project was complete in October 2017. They claim their son was found with an open bleach bottle and that workmen left dangerous tools lying round the 11.5 million property in Notting Hill. They also argue workers left the house vulnerable to intruders because they left doors and windows open. The papers state that Lord Russell claims he was forced to terminate the contract with LSL, who has worked for the royal family, and hire another company to complete the work. Lord James Russell is the third son of the 14th Duke of Bedford whose family seat is Woburn Abbey and hired LSL in the summer of 2015. However, LSL insists the blame lies with the Russells and their insistence at being involved in every matter of layout and design, no matter how minor. Interior designer Lucinda Sanford claims Lord and Lady Russell's indecision caused issues The court papers detail instances where LSL claim Lord Russells wife - former American model Dawn Alexander - sometimes changed her mind once jobs had been finished. The designer also argues that the couple failed to control their children who regularly entered construction areas and even fired Nerf guns at workers, they claim. LSLs barrister Isabel Hitching QC said the couple gave contradictory views to workers and had not voiced any major concerns over the standard, quality or time frame of the works. Lord Russell had reportedly recommended the company to Lord Russells mother, the Dowager, Duchess of Bedford, according to LSL. The company says that by October 2017 Lord Russell began not paying invoices and terminated the contract in March 2018. Lord Russell is suing to recover 1 million as well as 376,731 in damaged while LSL is demanding 863,436 in alleged unpaid invoices. When the COVID-19 pandemic started to pose difficulties for local and state officials, Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem knew it was important for meetings to remain accessible even if they could not be held in the same way. "A pandemic is not an excuse to close up all of our government meetings, Stenehjem said. Fortunately, with technology they don't have to be." Stenehjem kept this in mind when forming the guidance around meeting requirements across North Dakota during the pandemic. The guidance was amended March 30 to reflect the waiving under Executive Order 2020-16 of the requirement that each meeting should have a physical location that is accessible to the public. Following this guidance, local officials across the state have been implementing new measures to open meetings such as social distancing and remote meeting conditions like live-casting meetings or holding them on Zoom. Bismarck Mayor Steve Bakken said while he finds it easier to meet with city staff in person, the technical aspect of figuring out remote conditions was the only hurdle to overcome. "The ability to work remotely and from a safe manner, from an informational perspective, has been absolutely enjoyable, Bakken said. The virtual aspect gives people a lot more flexibility. I've heard nothing but positive (feedback) from that." Some local bodies, such as the Grand Forks City Council, had already begun implementing virtual components for meeting access. Dana Sande, the councils president, said the city will continue to stream meetings live on Facebook as well as on the GFTV 2 station. "This actually has been a very easy transition for us because we've been doing it for a long time, Sande said. I think people have continued to have the accessibility they'd had in the past, just not necessarily in person." While many continue to utilize virtual components, some governing bodies are also returning to meeting in person when possible while implementing social distancing. The Hillsboro City Commission has begun opting for larger spaces such as the Main Street Community Center for meetings to allow for more distance between those who attend. Hillsboro City Council President Terry Sando said virtual meetings the council held on Microsoft Teams might have led to more community attendance because of the ease of joining at home, but they lengthened the process of voting on items and might have intimidated community members who wanted to give input. There might be that hesitance of coming up on the computer, Sando said. When youre sitting out in the audience, its more of a free-flowing forum. Journalists across North Dakota have continued covering local meetings, whether they are held virtually or in person. North Dakota Newspaper Association attorney Jack McDonald said having the ability to cover meetings virtually will help the press in the long run. The whole idea of open meetings in the first place is to keep the public informed of whats going on, McDonald said. Broadcasting meetings allows citizens to observe and the press to report, he said. If you held closed meetings, the press couldnt come. Neal Shipman, editor of the McKenzie County Farmer, said part of the importance of covering open meetings is hearing the full story of what goes into city and county decisions, aside from what is later included in the minutes. "That's the value of having the media attending these meetings Shipman said. It becomes the eyes and ears of the community." Jason Nordmark, editor of the Turtle Mountain Star in Rolla, said while the initial social distancing and preparation for COVID-19 at local meetings had an eerie feel and the topic quickly dominated most coverage, local officials have been helpful with facilitating coverage during this time. Everybodys been really cooperative with everything were trying to cover, Nordmark said. Rather than talking about taxes and property values or what's going on with the city police, we've been talking about COVID just like everybody else." Cole Short, journalist for the Hillsboro Banner, said city council and school board meetings moving online has changed typical coverage in some ways, such as having to call back after virtual meetings for follow-up questions instead of having the ability to ask them in person. Now as Hillsboro City Commission meetings return to being held in person, Short said aside from the addition of masks and social distancing, covering meetings has returned mostly to normal. Overall, I think all our public bodies did their best in terms of trying to get meetings online and accessible to not only us as a media organization but to the general public as well, Short said. The work that city officials are doing should be public. It's important for the public to know what's going on. As regulations ease and local governing bodies across North Dakota continue to implement safety measures while holding public meetings, Stenehjem maintains that keeping meetings fully accessible is necessary during the pandemic. "We have a longstanding tradition in North Dakota that's enshrined in our constitution that all of our governing meetings are open and accessible to the public," Stenehjem said. "I treat that as something of paramount importance." Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 The NAACP and the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky have filed a lawsuit alleging use of force and intimidation by Louisville police against protesters. The lawsuit alleges use of tear gas, pepper balls and batons against protesters as well as mass arrests in recent weeks. Protests over the shooting of Breonna Taylor by Louisville police erupted downtown in late May, leading to continuing clashes with law enforcement. The lawsuit was filed Thursday in federal court on behalf of state Rep. Attica Scott, D-Louisville, and several others and names as defendants the metro government, Mayor Greg Fischer, police officials and several officers. Scott previously filed a complaint that she was pushed by an officer and hit with tear gas during a downtown protest. The plaintiffs seek to have the use of crowd control weaponry banned from being used on peaceful protesters as well as monetary damages. The complaint raises very important issues as we, as a city and a nation, work through the complexities of balancing personal and public safety with a persons First Amendment right to protest, said Jean Porter, a spokeswoman for Mayor Greg Fischer. Well work with the Jefferson County Attorneys office on any further response. The police department referred requests for comment to the county attorneys office. The complaint was filed late Thursday afternoon and we are reviewing it on behalf of our clients, said Josh Abner, spokesman for Jefferson County Attorney Mike OConnell. Our response will be filed with the court. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Law Enforcement A leading representative group for Indian in the UK has issued a warning against dubious educational agents operating unregulated in India, as it hosted its first free virtual session to help university applicants from India address concerns ahead of the new academic year in September. The National Indian and Alumni Union UK (NISAU-UK) said its "#AskNISAU" session over the weekend attracted a virtual audience of over 2,000 prospective students, with queries ranging from job prospects to the coronavirus lockdown impact on have increasingly been complaining about receiving misleading/biased information from educational agents, a sector that remains unregulated in India. Notably, NISAU had previously called on the Indian government to appropriately regulate this sector, the group said in a statement. To address students' ambiguities and apprehensions with credible information in an unbiased manner, NISAU organised the UK's first-ever session where current students, recent graduates and domain experts responded to students' queries live in a virtual #AskNISAU session broadcast live on Facebook and Instagram, it said. The session for Indian students hoping to begin their courses from September or in the future covered an overview of the UK's new points-based visa system applicable from January 2021, including the new post-study or Graduate Route visa, which allows overseas students the chance to stay on and find a job in the UK for a period of two to three years at the end of their degree course. The Indian diaspora is a true asset, which must be cherished, nurtured and effectively deployed to shape India's future but it all starts with empowering our youth with the right information that can enable sound decision-making in the first important step of their careers, said Sanam Arora, chairperson of NISAU UK, which will next conduct a pre-departure briefing at the end of August for students from India who have chosen to commence their studies in the UK from September 2020. The group had recently conducted a survey of Indian students to assess the impact of the coronavirus pandemic lockdown on the higher education sector and found that nearly half of Indian students with an admission offer to a UK university from September 2020 were unsure whether to accept. However, 45 per cent had accepted their offers and intended to carry on with their education in the UK as planned and only 5 per cent chose to defer their offers to the next academic year. The findings coincide with wider findings of the UK's Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), which found that amid an overall spike in university applications for the year, most applicants from India were planning to start a course from the autumn semester, which begins next month. We are still receiving a lot of queries from students who will be arriving in the UK for the coming academic year. They also want to understand if courses are to be conducted online, would they be entitled to a reduction in fees, said Amit Tiwari, President of the Indian National Students Association (INSA) UK, which has been active during the lockdown to help Indian students in Britain with travel updates and health concerns. We request the authorities in the UK to provide complete clarity on key questions ahead of the academic year. We are in touch with various universities, but they all have differing approaches and are dependent on the government for some of the answers, he said. Meanwhile, university representatives in Britain have been encouraging students to connect with their individual universities as the concept of a blended teaching model both online and face-to-face is likely to be the format followed by most amid localised coronavirus lockdowns expected in the coming months. The UK Home Office has also offered some crucial concessions for overseas students, including an off-shore eligibility criteria for post-study work visas for the new academic year as long students arrive in the UK by April 2021. With the introduction of the UK's Graduate Route, a post-study work opportunity, we saw a significant spike in student interest in the UK from students around the world, including significant interest from India, said Stephanie Harris, Head of Engagement at Universities UK (UUKi). We therefore welcomed the UK's recent announcement that PhD students will be eligible to apply to stay in the UK to work or look for work for three years after graduation, and we hope this will be a strong signal to Indian students that the UK welcomes them and students from around the world, she said. According to official UK statistics, Indian student numbers have been on an upward swing in recent years. Earlier this year, the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS) found that over 37,500 Indian students received a Tier 4 (Study) visa in 2019, which marks a 93 per cent increase from the previous year and the largest number of visas issued in the Tier 4 category to Indians over the last eight years. (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.) Housing secretary Robert Jenrick has insisted talk of extending shielding to over-50s in the winter is just speculation, as the government faces a backlash over possible plans aimed at averting a second coronavirus wave. Reports on Sunday suggested elderly and vulnerable people could be told to stay at home again under new shielding proposals drawn up by the Cabinet Office. People aged between 50 and 70 may also be given personalised risk ratings, according to the Sunday Times, in a move that would add to the 2.2 million who were deemed most vulnerable during the spring peak. Mr Jenrick, asked about whether new age-related measures were likely, told Times Radio: This is just speculation. You would expect the government to be considering all of the range of options that might be available. Thats not something that is being actively considered. His comments came following criticism from some Conservatives over the mooted plan, details of which emerged only hours after the government ended shielding for the elderly and vulnerable. Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, treasurer of the 1922 committee of Tory backbenchers, told the Daily Telegraph lowering the age for shielding would impact some of the most experienced parts of the workforce, who tend to be in the more senior positions and therefore running businesses and organisations. I think it would look very odd, and for some companies it would look very difficult, he added. Mr Jenrick also said there was no plan, as far as Im aware to bring in travel restrictions on Londoners could stay as part of efforts to stop any increased transmission rate in the capital spreading to the rest of the country. It had been suggested that, should the R infection rate escalate in the capital, the M25 would act as a travel border for London residents and people would be banned from staying overnight night at houses other than their own. The proposals were reportedly put forward after Boris Johnson asked officials to draft plans to prevent a second wave without another national lockdown. The Times reported the prime minister held a war game session with chancellor Rishi Sunak on Wednesday to run through possible options for a shutdown of the UK economy as Covid-19 cases rise. CRAWFORD COUNTY, MI A 22-year-old Michigan has been charged with sex crimes for an alleged inappropriate relationship with a young teen who he met through Facebook. The suspect also allegedly stole money from the victims grandmother, police said. James Dominic Gross of Lincoln was arrested on July 30. The minor girl, between the ages of 13 and 15, told her grandmother about the inappropriate relationship with a man she had met on Facebook and the theft of money out of the grandmothers bank account, police said. This led the grandmother to contact Michigan State Police Houghton Lake Post on July 21. Gross is accused of engaging in sexual penetration with the girl, and of persuading her to take her grandmothers debit card and give it to him, police said. The suspect allegedly made three withdraws from the grandmothers account totaling nearly $500. The suspect was using an alias on Facebook; he was identified with the help of an MSP Forensic Analyst; police said. The investigation led to an arrest warrant being issued for Gross. The MSP 7th District Fugitive Team was called to assist in locating and arresting Gross. On July 30, the fugitive team located Gross at an address on Higginson Court in Lincoln where he was arrested without incident, police said. Gross has been arraigned on three counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct which involves sexual penetration with a person 13 to 15 years old, and three counts using a financial transaction device without consent. He is lodged at Crawford County Jail. Criminal sexual conduct in the third degree is a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than 15 years. READ MORE: Suspect arrested in death of pro poker player found burned at Michigan park Boy, 4, shoots 5-year-old sister in head; parents charged Yes, Matthew Stafford has tested positive for COVID-19 Suspect caught shooting gun right in front of parked MSP troopers, 4 arrested following pursuit Man killed in head-on crash with tanker truck on U.S. 127 near Jackson New Delhi, Aug 3 : The ongoing war of words between Mumbai Police and Bihar Police took a turn for the worse on Monday after Bihar Director General of Police (DGP) Gupteshwar Pandey questioned the Mumbai Police as to why they did not investigate the money trail while probing the suicide of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput. "In the past four years, around Rs 50 crore was credited to the bank account of Sushant Singh Rajput but surprisingly all of it was withdrawn. In one year, Rs 17 crore was credited to his account, out of which Rs 15 crore was withdrawn. Isn't this a crucial point to be investigated? We are not going to sit quite. We will question them(Mumbai Police) as to why such leads are hushed up," a visibly perturbed DGP told the media. Earlier on Sunday, the Bihar Police chief had reacted strongly when his subordinate Vinay Tiwari, an SP rank officer, was quarantined by the Mumbai municipal authorities. "Instead of sharing evidence or handing over the postmortem and forensic reports of Sushant, they (Mumbai) have almost house arrested our SP. I have not seen such non-cooperation by any other state police. If the Mumbai Police are sincere in their approach, they should share the investigation with us," said Pandey, considered as one of the most outspoken serving top cops. On Sushant's girlfriend Rhea Chakaraborty's role in the suicide case, the DGP said that she is an accused in the FIR registered by the deceased's father in Patna. "Let me remind everyone that Rhea is an accused. We are collecting evidence against her. Once sufficient evidence is collected by our police, we will arrest her. But of course we will be transparent in our investigation. Our police officers are in Mumbai not to hush up any lead, but to dig out more facts and evidence," senior IPS officer Pandey told a prominent Hindi news channel. Meanwhile, senior Shiv Sena leader and MP Sanjay Raut said that if Mumbai Police are compelled to take "gyan" from Bihar Police, then they better shut their office. Reacting to Raut's statement, DGP Pandey said that he did not want to get involved in the ongoing politics over the suicide case, but "if they (Mumbai Police) are so competent in policing, then why haven't they found any breakthrough in the case so far". Why are the police not investigating the financial angle? Why are they silent on this front," the police chief asked, adding, "I am not raising these questions based on any presumption. We have documentary evidence for all the financial aspects of this case." With Bihar Police raising questions over the investigation into Sushant's case by the Mumbai Police, Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh spoke to the media in a bid to clear the air. The commissioner revealed that as of now, the statements of 56 witnesses have been recorded. He also ruled out any alleged party being thrown at the actor's residence in Bandra the night before he committed suicide on June 14. Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery Scientists led by NTU Singapore identify new catalysts for more efficient water splitting A team of scientists led by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have discovered the parameters that determine the efficiency of a class of low-cost catalysts called spinel oxides - a discovery that breaks a bottleneck in the extraction of hydrogen from water through electrolysis, the process of splitting water with electricity. A major challenge of this process lies in the energy loss as the chemical reactions involved in water electrolysis take place, driving up the cost to produce hydrogen through this method. Catalysts are therefore necessary to speed up these chemical reactions. Spinel oxides, which are typically made of cheap transition metals, have garnered interest in recent years as a stable, low-cost catalyst that could overcome this challenge, but the design of high-performing spinel oxides has been hampered by the lack of understanding of how they work. Now, NTU Singapore's Associate Professor Jason Xu Zhichuan and his team have made two important advances. They have unravelled, at the atomic scale, how spinel oxides work to speed up water electrolysis. Primed with that new understanding, the team then used machine learning to select new spinel oxides with increased catalytic activity, making water electrolysis more efficient. These findings bring the team a step closer to making water splitting a suitable approach for large-scale manufacture of hydrogen gas, which has been highlighted by the Energy Market Authority as one possible low-carbon alternative for reducing Singapore's carbon footprint as it targets to halve its peak greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. This is in line with global trends - the European Union, for instance, recently unveiled its "hydrogen strategy" as an important part of the solution to meet the 2050 climate neutrality goal of the European Green Deal. Associate Professor Xu of the NTU School of Materials Sciences and Engineering said: "To improve the performance of spinel oxides, we need a deeper understanding of how they work as catalysts to make water electrolysis more efficient. Now, by identifying the parameters that make spinel oxides good catalysts for this process, we can create new, better spinel oxides based on these parameters, bringing us one step closer to a hydrogen-powered economy." The findings were published in scientific journal Nature Catalysis in July. A step closer to a hydrogen-fuelled economy Extracting hydrogen from water electrolysis, when powered by renewable energy sources such as wind or solar energy, is an attractive approach to produce hydrogen fuel, which has the potential to replace fossil fuels used in power plants, transport, and the process of bunkering. Hydrogen is also attractive as a viable alternative to traditional energy storage options such as lithium ion batteries, which gradually lose their charge over time. The water electrolysis process takes place in an electrolyser, where two main chemical reactions take place as water is split: one results in hydrogen production, while the other leads to oxygen production, and the two gases are kept separate by a membrane. Assoc Prof Xu, who is also part of NTU's Energy Research Institute, said the main bottleneck lies in the chemical reaction that leads to oxygen generation from the other side known as the oxygen revolution reaction. He said: "The oxygen evolution reaction is critical to the efficiency of devices that split water to produce hydrogen fuel, but it is also a sluggish chemical reaction that lowers the overall energy conversion efficiency. This is why we need catalysts such as metal oxides to speed things up." While precious metal oxides have proven to be state-of-the-art catalysts that reduce energy consumption and enhance energy conversion efficiency, their scarcity, high cost and poor durability have limited their application at large scale. Spinel oxides, with their low cost and availability in abundance, could become a viable alternative if they were designed with the right parameters, such as the type of transition metal in the spinel oxide, to increase catalytic activity, said Assoc Prof Xu. Based on key parameters that the team had identified, the team trained a machine learning model with a dataset of over 300 spinel oxides in order to screen and predict the efficiency of any spinel oxide catalyst in a matter of seconds. Using this method, the team found that a new oxide comprising manganese and aluminium was predicted to show superior catalytic activity. This was validated experimentally. Assoc Prof Xu said: "While the ability to design highly efficient catalysts greatly pushes forward the technique of water electrolysis in hydrogen production, there are two other major bottlenecks we have to look at before widespread adoption of this technique is possible. Firstly, we have to improve the membrane in such alkaline electrolysers to support long-term hydrogen production. "When that's done, then we can work with our engineering colleagues to see how we can put all of these upgrades into an electrolyser that can function on an industrial level." ### The NTU-led team was supported by researchers from institutes in Beijing and Hong Kong, in addition to those from Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) and National University of Singapore. The work is funded by the Ministry of Education and the National Research Foundation. Note to Editors: Paper 'Covalency competition dominates the water oxidation structure-activity relationship on spinel oxides' published in Nature Catalysis 3, 554-563 (July 2020). https:/ / doi. org/ 10. 1038/ s41929-020-0465-6 Media contact: Foo Jie Ying Manager, Corporate Communications Office Nanyang Technological University Email: jieying@ntu.edu.sg About Nanyang Technological University, Singapore A research-intensive public university, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) has 33,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students in the Engineering, Business, Science, Humanities, Arts, & Social Sciences, and Graduate colleges. It also has a medical school, the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, set up jointly with Imperial College London. NTU is also home to world-class autonomous institutes - the National Institute of Education, S Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Earth Observatory of Singapore, and Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering - and various leading research centres such as the Nanyang Environment & Water Research Institute (NEWRI) and Energy Research Institute @ NTU (ERI@N). Ranked amongst the world's top universities by QS, NTU has also been named the world's top young university for the past seven years. The University's main campus is frequently listed among the Top 15 most beautiful university campuses in the world and it has 57 Green Mark-certified (equivalent to LEED-certified) building projects, of which 95% are certified Green Mark Platinum. Apart from its main campus, NTU also has a campus in Singapore's healthcare district. For more information, visit http://www. ntu. edu. sg . This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. KEY FACTS 2:35 p.m.: The World Health Organization says an advance team looking into the origins of the COVID-19 outbreak has concluded its mission in China, 7:15 a.m.: The federal governments COVID-19 contact tracing app is facing criticism for its download requirements 7:01 a.m.: Researchers say conspiracy theories about COVID-19 are spreading at an alarming rate across Canada The latest coronavirus news from Canada and around the world Monday. This file will be updated throughout the day. Web links to longer stories if available. 7:20 p.m.: Ontarios plan to reopen schools without reducing class sizes for elementary students in the age of COVID-19 is disappointing and disturbing, says one Toronto parent. Kelly Iggers, who works as a teacher-librarian for the Toronto District School Board, said it is nearly impossible to practise physical distancing in already overcrowded classrooms. On Saturday, she started a petition calling on the Ontario government to reduce class sizes. By Monday evening, more than 65,000 people had signed it. Iggers fears the lack of physical distancing in schools will lead to coronavirus outbreaks in the wider community. Premier Doug Ford and Education Minister Stephen Lecce last week announced the plan for a full-time return to school for elementary students across the province this fall, and a part-time class schedule for secondary students in larger school boards. They also announced mandatory face masks for students starting in Grade 4, and said the province will spend $309 million on personal protective equipment for educators, additional staffing and cleaning supplies. But reducing class sizes for elementary students was not part of the plan. 7:11 p.m.: Seven St. Louis Cardinals players and six staff members have tested positive for COVID-19, causing Major League Baseball to postpone the teams four-game series at Detroit. The series was to have been played at Comerica Park from Tuesday through Thursday. You think about how quickly something like this can spread, Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said. Until it touches you, you sometimes might not believe it, but needless to say we know this is very real and we know it moves quickly and it moves silently, but it can infect a lot of people fast. The Cardinals situation comes after the Miami Marlins had an outbreak in their travelling party that sidelined half their players, raising concerns about the viability of this pandemic-shortened season. 6:06 p.m.: Gov. Gavin Newsom said California appears to be getting a grip on a resurgence of the coronavirus, though he warned the state is a long way from reopening some of the businesses it shuttered for a second time last month because of rising infections and hospitalizations. The average weekly number of positive tests is down by a fifth, to 7,764 from its peak of nearly 9,900 a week ago. The seven-day rate of tests coming back positive statewide had peaked at nearly eight per cent late last month but has fallen to 6.1 per cent, he said Monday, though the rate remains much higher in some hard-hit counties. Its not where it needs to be, it is still too high, but again it is good to see this number trending down, not trending up, Newsom said. The improvements are encouraging signs, but one week does not make the kind of trend that gives us confidence to try to generate headlines, Newsom said. 4:06 p.m.: The latest numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Canada as of 4:05 p.m. on Aug. 3: There are 117,031 confirmed cases in Canada. Quebec: 59,722 confirmed (including 5,683 deaths, 50,886 resolved) Ontario: 39,449 confirmed (including 2,778 deaths, 35,539 resolved) (Note: the Star publishes its own tally of deaths in Ontario based on data from public health units.) Alberta: 10,843 confirmed (including 196 deaths, 9,261 resolved) British Columbia: 3,641 confirmed (including 195 deaths, 3,168 resolved) Saskatchewan: 1,359 confirmed (including 18 deaths, 1,089 resolved) Nova Scotia: 1,071 confirmed (including 64 deaths, 1,005 resolved) Manitoba: 428 confirmed (including 8 deaths, 337 resolved), 14 presumptive Newfoundland and Labrador: 266 confirmed (including 3 deaths, 259 resolved) New Brunswick: 170 confirmed (including 2 deaths, 166 resolved) Prince Edward Island: 36 confirmed (including 36 resolved) Yukon: 14 confirmed (including 11 resolved) Repatriated Canadians: 13 confirmed (including 13 resolved) Northwest Territories: 5 confirmed (including 5 resolved) Nunavut: No confirmed cases Total: 117,031 (14 presumptive, 117,017 confirmed including 8,947 deaths, 101,775 resolved) 3:16 p.m.: A survey commissioned by Quebec health authorities on attitudes and behaviours around COVID-19 has found that nearly one-quarter of respondents believe the novel coronavirus was created in a laboratory. The Institut national de Sante Publique the provinces independent public health institute published the results Monday of online polls conducted earlier this year. While one-third of respondents felt the pandemic was being exaggerated in the media, a growing number also said they wear a mask because it helps protect others. The poll also mentioned conspiracy theories surrounding COVID-19, finding that nearly 35 per cent of Quebecers believe the provincial government is hiding important information about the virus. Twenty-three per cent of those polled in June said the virus was made in a lab, an equal number said they were unsure, and 54 per cent disagreed with the statement. The online survey, which cannot be assigned a margin of error because online polls are not considered random samples, involved 1,000 adult Quebecers between March 21 and May 31, with an additional 2,000 adults surveyed during a three-day period in June. 2:41 p.m.: The Royal Canadian Air Force is being forced to fly its ancient search-and-rescue planes even longer as COVID-19 further delays the delivery of replacement aircraft. The Defence Department is playing down any significant impact on the militarys search-and-rescue operations from the new delay, which has left the first of 16 new Airbus-built CC-295s stranded in Spain for at least several more months. Jessica Lamirande, a department spokesperson, said a recent analysis conducted by the Air Force and procurement officials concluded the military has the necessary flexibility to keep flying its current search-and-rescue planes. Those planes include six Buffalo aircraft and seven older-model Hercules planes. Their primary role is to find and rescue Canadians stranded or in danger in places or situations where municipal or provincial authorities are unable to respond. Yet the planes are all around 50 years old and scheduled for retirement as maintenance requirements have grown and spare parts become harder to find. In 2014, officials had to get parts from a museum in Trenton, Ont., in 2014 to fix a broken Hercules. 2:38 p.m.: The federal Liberals have given companies more than $5.8 billion in COVID-19-related contracts for personal protective gear and medical supplies. The latest figures provided by the government also show that about two-fifths of the total contracts awarded as of July 16 have gone to domestic suppliers, some of them having retooled operations to provide needed masks, gowns, gloves and ventilators. But many details of the companies involved and the amounts of their contracts are being kept from public view. 2:35 p.m.: The World Health Organization said Monday an advance team looking into the origins of the COVID-19 outbreak has concluded its mission in China, and the UN health agency is preparing the deployment of a larger group of experts to the suspected outbreak zone. WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the international team will deploy to Wuhan, the city where the pandemic is believed to have erupted late last year. Tedros said terms of reference have been drawn up by the WHO and China, but he did not specify. The WHO advance team that travelled to China has now concluded their mission to lay the groundwork for further joint efforts to identify the virus origins, he told a news conference. Epidemiological studies will begin in Wuhan to identify the potential source of infection of the early cases. He said evidence and hypothesis generated from the work would lay the ground for further, longer-term studies. 12:15 p.m.: The latest numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Canada as of 12:13 p.m. on August 3, 2020: There are 117,007 confirmed cases in Canada. Quebec: 59,722 confirmed (including 5,683 deaths, 50,886 resolved) Ontario: 39,449 confirmed (including 2,778 deaths, 35,539 resolved) Alberta: 10,843 confirmed (including 196 deaths, 9,261 resolved) British Columbia: 3,641 confirmed (including 195 deaths, 3,168 resolved) Saskatchewan: 1,342 confirmed (including 18 deaths, 1,070 resolved) Nova Scotia: 1,071 confirmed (including 64 deaths, 1,005 resolved) Manitoba: 421 confirmed (including 8 deaths, 337 resolved), 14 presumptive Newfoundland and Labrador: 266 confirmed (including 3 deaths, 259 resolved) New Brunswick: 170 confirmed (including 2 deaths, 166 resolved) Prince Edward Island: 36 confirmed (including 36 resolved) Yukon: 14 confirmed (including 11 resolved) Repatriated Canadians: 13 confirmed (including 13 resolved) Northwest Territories: 5 confirmed (including 5 resolved) Nunavut: No confirmed cases Total: 117,007 (14 presumptive, 116,993 confirmed including 8,947 deaths, 101,756 resolved) 11:35 a.m.: Quebec is reporting another 123 new cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours as well as two more deaths. Hospitalizations remained stable today at 172, while the number of people in intensive care increased by one to 18. The new figures come as the number of people allowed to gather in the province jumps significantly Monday, from 50 people to 250. The measure applies only to public venues such as theatres, concert halls, houses of worship and indoor amateur sporting events, and stipulates that measures such as physical distancing and mask-wearing must be respected as much as possible. The maximum number of people allowed at private gatherings in homes remains at 10. Quebec has recorded 59,722 infections since the pandemic began, with 5,683 deaths. 11:25 a.m.: A Norwegian cruise ship line halted all trips and apologized Monday for procedural errors after a coronavirus outbreak on one ship infected at least five passengers and 36 crew members. Health authorities fear the ship also could have spread the virus to dozens of towns and villages along Norways western coast. The confirmed virus cases from the MS Roald Amundsen raise new questions about safety on all cruise ships during a pandemic even as the devastated cruise ship industry is pressing to resume sailings after chaotically shutting down in March. The Hurtigruten cruise line was one of the first companies to resume sailing during the pandemic, starting cruises to Norway out of northern Germany in June with a single ship, then adding cruises in July to the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. The 41 people on the MS Roald Amundsen who tested positive have been admitted to the University Hospital of North Norway in Tromsoe, north of the Arctic Circle, where the ship currently is docked. The cruise line said it suspended the ship and two others MS Fridtjof Nansen and MS Spitsbergen from operating for an indefinite period. 11:15 a.m.: The U.S. reported more than 47,000 new coronavirus cases, the smallest daily increase in almost four weeks, despite signs of an uptick in new infections in some northeast and Midwest states. Total coronavirus cases worldwide surpassed 18 million Monday, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, with the U.S. accounting for more than a quarter of the tally. The U.S. death toll was approaching 155,000. California reported 9,032 new cases for Saturday, higher than the previous day but down from its peak of more than 12,000 cases on July 21, according to the California Department of Health. The state has the highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the country, according to Johns Hopkins. Florida, another hard-hit state, reported 7,084 new cases among residents, with more than 481,000 cases counted there since the start of the pandemic, according to the Florida Department of Health. The state closed some state-supported testing centres through Tuesday because of the now Tropical Storm Isaias. 10:39 a.m.: Danish organizers say the Tour de France start due to take place in Copenhagen next year has been moved to 2022 to avoid being held in the same month as the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics and the European Championship soccer tournament. Copenhagen Mayor Frank Jensen says the move means the three-stage Tour start in his city will now be planned for July 1-3, 2022, adding that he hopes the coronavirus pandemic will have passed by then. The 2021 Tour was scheduled set to start on July 2. The Tours French organizers have yet to announce a replacement city for Copenhagen, although there have been reports that the three-week event could start from the French region of Brittany in 2021. This years Tour, which was supposed to start in June, will now be held Aug. 29-Sept. 20 starting in Nice. 7:15 a.m.: The federal governments COVID-19 contact tracing app is facing criticism for its download requirements, which restrict some Canadians from accessing and using the app. The app requires users to have Apple or Android phones made in the last five years, and a relatively new operating system. Christopher Parsons, a senior research associate at Citizen Lab, part of the Munk School of Global Affairs and Policy, says that makes the app inaccessible for older Canadians and other marginalized groups. The worst affected by (the pandemic) are Black, Indigenous, people of colour, people who often have a lower socio-economic bracket. Whos not going to be able to install the application? That same group ... thats a problem, he said. Parsons says criticism should be directed at the federal government, not those who designed the app. 7:01 a.m.: Researchers say conspiracy theories about COVID-19 are spreading at an alarming rate across the country and they warn misinformation shared online may lead to devastating consequences and push Canadians to shun important safety measures. I think that people should be enormously concerned, said Aengus Bridgman, a PhD candidate in political science at McGill University and co-author of a study published last month on COVID-19 misinformation and its impact on public health. The study found the more a person relies on social media to learn about COVID-19, the more likely they are to be exposed to misinformation and to believe it, and to disregard physical distancing and other public health guidelines. About 16 per cent of Canadians use social media as their primary source of information on the virus, Bridgman said in a recent interview. 5:33 a.m.: Girls mastermind Lena Dunham has shared her Covid Story in a lengthy Instagram post detailing her experience battling the virus as someone who suffers from chronic illness. On Friday, the writer, actress and producer revealed she tested positive for COVID-19 in March after being reluctant to add her voice to a noisy landscape on such a challenging topic. Her early symptoms included achy joints, a high fever and crushing fatigue. Seeing the carelessness with which so many in the United States are treating social distancing ... I feel compelled to be honest about the impact this illness has had on me, in the hopes that personal stories allow us to see the humanity in what can feel like abstract situations, she wrote. Suddenly my body simply... revolted. The nerves in my feet burned and muscles wouldnt seem to do their job. My hands were numb. I couldnt tolerate loud noises. I couldnt sleep but I couldnt wake up. I lost my sense of taste and smell. A hacking cough, like a metronome keeping time. Inability to breathe after simple tasks like getting a glass of water. Random red rashes. A pounding headache right between my eyes. It felt like I was a complex machine that had been unplugged and then had my wires rerouted into the wrong inputs. This went on for 21 days ... that blended together like a rave gone wrong. Click here to read more coverage from Sunday T he alleged victim of a former Tory minister arrested on suspicion of raping a former parliamentary aide said she was "devastated" by the Conservative Party's decision not to suspend him. The MP, who has not been named, is alleged to have assaulted a woman and forced her to have sex. The abuse allegedly took place during a relationship. A spokesperson for the Conservative whips' office confirmed on Sunday that the MP will not be suspended while police investigate the rape allegations. Last night the alleged victim told the Times of her disappointment that the Conservative Party would not be taking immediate action. Its insulting and shows they never cared, she said. The former researcher, who cannot be identified, told the Times that she first raised the allegations with the chief whip Mark Spencer in April. Jess Phillips: shocking that the MP has not been suspended following his arrest She accused Mr Spencer of evading questions about when he would suspend the whip from the MP. I felt like he did not take me seriously or recognise the severity of what had happened," she said. According to the Times, Mr Spencer did not believe a sexual assault had been reported during the conversation, but has acknowledged that she reported abusive behaviour and threats. Labours safeguarding spokeswoman Jess Phillips has said it was shocking that the MP had not been suspended following his arrest. She said the decision sent a terrible message that senior figures were still able to secure protection from their Westminster status. But what I would say in this matter, is in any organisation especially one like Members of Parliament who every day work with vulnerable people, young activists, members of staff in any other organisation, were this police investigation to be going on, somebody would be suspended while the investigation was taking place, she told Times Radio. While pending a police investigation for a sexual crime, I think it is only right that the whip is withdrawn. Douglas Ross, who is standing for the Scottish Conservative leadership, described the rape allegations as extremely serious. These are extremely serious allegations and they have to be investigated thoroughly," he said. The unnamed MP, in his fifties, was arrested on Saturday after the Metropolitan Police received allegations from a former parliamentary worker of four separate incidents at London addresses between July last year and January. He has now been released on bail to return on a date in mid-August. Comments from two of Indias top bankers on extending loans in a tough market caught public attention in the week gone by. State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman Rajnish Kumar is of the view that this is the best time to lend but Uday Kotak, Chief Executive Officer of Kotak Mahindra Bank, says his bank would be very cautious in giving new loans. In an interview to Bloomberg Quint, Kumar said: In a situation like this, prudence is something you have to exercise, but for lending, this is the best time. If you give a loan to someone at this time, most likely it will not go wrong. Kotak, in a post-result conference call, said his bank would very seriously screen its lending and only approve loans that involve the right risks. So, what do we have here? One banker is open to scaling up lending, saying this is the best time, the other is reluctant to give new loans because he thinks risks are very high. Both are very senior bankers and well respected in industry circles. One thinks this is the best time to lend, while the other warns he will be extremely cautious in offering new loans. Who is right here? Before arriving at an answer, lets look at the numbers on loan growth and non-performing assets (NPAs) of these two banks. In the April-June quarter, State Bank of India showed improvement in asset quality. Gross NPA ratio at 5.44 percent is lower than 6.15 percent in the preceding quarter. In a COVID-hit quarter, SBI has actually shrunk by 1.54 percent since March. Thats no surprise though. Since March, business activities have come to a standstill. Most banks have seen a decline in their corporate loan growth, some even in retail loans. In SBIs case, too, lack of demand in corporate loans has dragged overall growth in advances. But, the catch here is moratorium loans. About 9.5 percent of the bank's loan book was under moratorium at the end of June-quarter. The bank had a total provision of Rs 3,000 crore COVID-19 moratorium at the end of the quarter. One senior banking analyst told Moneycontrol he was not happy with the amount set aside to cover likely COVID-19 losses. Considering the loan book size, SBI should have made much higher provision, the analyst said. I tend to agree with him on this. SBI seems to have taken a view that COVID will pass without inflicting major pain to banks. That could be, at best, an optimistic assessment. The decline in NPA ratios is somewhat irrelevant given that the moratorium scheme is in effect till August. We will review the numbers in the third quarter, when borrowers start repayments. Take a look at Kotaks numbers. The bank has seen some deterioration in asset quality in the April-June quarter. Gross NPAs rose to 2.7 percent of the total advances as on June 30 compared with 2.25 percent in March. There are signs of stress building up. The bank made a COVID provision of Rs 616 crore in Q1 and Rs 650 crore in the previous quarter. COVID-related provisions as of June 30, 2020, stand at Rs1,266 crore (0.62 percent of net advances). Kotak shrank its loan book significantly, about 7 percent since the March quarter. The portion of moratorium loans has fallen to 9.65 percent from 26 percent in April. Kotak has given extremely cautious guidance, saying there is a high level of uncertainty regarding the time required for life and business to get back to normal. The extent to which COVID-19 pandemic will impact its operations and financial results depends on future developments, which are highly uncertain, it has said. Banking regulator, the Reserve Bank of India, has cautioned about a significant spike in gross NPAs by next year assuming a worst-case scenarioabout 14.7 percent of total loans by March, 2021 for less than 9 percent as of now. The coronavirus pandemic has impacted business activities across sectors and caused major income losses. According to a recent estimate by Nomura, Indias gross domestic product (GDP ) is likely to contract by 6.1 percent in FY21. The real heat of the slowdown induced by COVID-19 is not being felt on the banking industry yet on account of the RBI's moratorium scheme, which remains in place till August 31. It is in this context that the head of the country's top bank says that this is the best time to lend and while the CEO of a leading private bank thinks the opposite. Should banks listen to the SBI Chairman and loosen their purse strings, believing this as the "best time" to lend or should they be extremely cautious while giving new loansas Kotak suggests? Whos right and whos wrong? There is no need to hazard a guess. We will have the answer a few quarters down the line. Overnight reports from Jacksonville police: Jeremy T. Greenwood, 27, of 109 E. Sixth St., New Berlin, was arrested at 12:39 a.m. Monday on a charge of driving while license is suspended after a traffic stop in the 200 block of Richards Street. He was also cited on a charge of operating an uninsured vehicle. A passenger in his car, William J. Sanders, 30, of 219 Prairie St., Franklin, was arrested on a possession of a stolen firearm charge. Someone used a ladder to climb onto the roof of a house in the 300 block of South Kosciusko Street about 10:30 p.m. Sunday, according to the homeowner. The person left before police arrived. A 2-foot-long log was thrown through the back door of a house in the 600 block of South Church Street between Thursday and Sunday, according to a report filed at 3:56 p.m. Sunday. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 23:12:55|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close MOSCOW, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Russian Defense Ministry said Monday that the volunteers testing a vaccine against COVID-19 coronavirus had proved to be immune to the virus after the tests. "The research results showed clearly that all volunteers had a clear immune response resulting from vaccination," the ministry's Zvezda broadcasting service reported. An immune response is a reaction that occurs within an organism for the purpose of defending against foreign invaders. Zvezda said that the final medical examination of volunteers conducted earlier on Monday in the Main Military Clinical Hospital of the Defense Ministry was conducted by the ministry jointly with the Russian National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology. On the 42nd day after the first vaccination, the volunteers returned to the hospital and underwent an in-depth medical examination and diagnosis, it said. The available data showed the safety and good tolerability of the vaccine, Zvezda said. This is one of the two vaccines against the coronavirus that had "the greatest prospects," Russian Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova said Wednesday. She said that the registration of the vaccine is planned for this month and production is due to start in September. The other one, developed by the Russian State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology Vektor, is supposed to be registered in September with production in October, she said. On Saturday, Russia's Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said that Russia was preparing a mass vaccination campaign against COVID-19 for October. As of Monday, Russia registered 5,394 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, taking its total to 856,264. Enditem Hes known as the painters photographer, a founding member of Martin Sharps iconic Yellow House arts collective and author of the definitive book of photographic portraits of 20th Century Australian artists. The cover of Greg Weights 2004 publication features John Olsen lying in a rusty bath, holding paint brushes and a dirty paint rag - a reference to Jacques-Louis Davids 1793 painting, The Death of Marat. Olsen called it the Weight moment - the ability to encapsulate each artist in context, their individuality and their environment. Greg Weight at his home in Clovelly. Credit:Dean Sewell Weight, who lives in Clovelly, was born in Manly and had his first exhibition of portraits at Manly Art Gallery & Museum in 1995. So, in December 2019, when he got a call from Katherine Roberts, the gallerys senior curator, asking if he could photograph 29 influential visual artists who live on Sydneys Northern Beaches to mark its 90th anniversary, Weight agreed. Then came COVID-19. Fortunately, Weight had made a rapid start. - Mr Jonathan Gustav Adomah, the Headmaster of Mawuli Senior High School, has urged the candidates in this years West Africa Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (WASSCE) to avoid examination malpractices. He said such misconducts could land them into trouble and end their academic pursuit. Mr Adomah said all the 689 students, made up of 378 boys and 302 girls, were in good health and fully prepared for the examination. There are five visually impaired students, who are also ready for the examination, he said. There was strict adherence to the health safety protocols of social distancing in the examination halls with candidates also fully masked. At the Mawuko Girls Senior High School, one candidate out of the 565 candidates registered for the examination was absent due to health challenges. Madam Ernestina Peniana, the Headmistress of the School, said the candidates were in good condition and fully prepared. She urged them not to indulge in any malpractice. Madam Regina Koffie, the Headmistress of OLA Senior High School, said a total of 702 candidates were taking part in the examination. She said all the candidates were in good spirit, and optimistic they would excel. Madam Koffie asked the candidates to abide by the rules and regulations governing the conduct of the examination. The 2020 WASSCE commenced on Monday, August 3, with the integrated science paper. There was strict adherence to the health safety protocols in all the schools visited by the Ghana News Agency. Source: GNA 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 MILPITAS, Calif. and TOKYO, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Nanosys Inc., and NAGASE & CO., LTD. have announced the commencement of a worldwide sales distribution agreement. Under the agreement, NAGASE is exclusively authorized to distribute Nanosys Quantum Dot materials for various applications worldwide. Nanosys, The Quantum Dot Company, is the undisputed leader in manufacturing, market share and innovation for the use of these unique materials in display products worldwide. According to DSCC's Annual Quantum Dot Display Technology & Market Outlook report, Quantum Dot display panel shipments are expected to grow from 10.6 million units in 2020 to 28 million units by 2024, a 27.5% compound annual growth rate. NAGASE Group is a global leader in advanced materials distribution with over 7,000 employees and a close relationship with all major display manufacturing companies. Together, Nanosys and NAGASE will accelerate growth of the Quantum Dot market. "NAGASE's large, globally distributed professional sales force is a key enabler for the future growth of Nanosys. We are convinced that NAGASE will be able to significantly contribute to reaching our goal of rapidly ramping the sale of quantum dot materials from historic double-digit growth to an even more accelerated pace," said Russell Kempt, Nanosys' Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Marketing. "Having one of the largest, most capable, customer facing distributors working with Nanosys will be a significant advantage going forward." Takeshi Takada, General Manager of the Electronics Department from NAGASE further commented: "We are honored to introduce Nanosys' cutting edge Quantum Dot display solutions to our customers. Nanosys provides an innovative break-through solution for all players who seek to achieve improved color performance, brightness and added value to their display product offerings. We are also looking forward to enabling new uses of quantum dot materials in other applications and industries through this new partnership." About Nanosys Nanosys, Inc. is the leader in developing and delivering state-of-the-art heavy metal free quantum dot technology to the display industry. As of 2020, industry leading consumer electronics brands have shipped more than 20 million devices from tablets to monitors and TVs based on Nanosys' proprietary quantum dot technology. Founded in 2001, the company is headquartered in Silicon Valley, California where it operates the world's largest quantum dot nanomaterials fab. Nanosys currently owns or has exclusive license rights to more than 470 issued and pending patents worldwide. For more information, visit http://www.nanosysinc.com/ . About Nagase NAGASE & CO., LTD. is a chemical trading firm, founded in Kyoto, Japan in 1832. The NAGASE Group began as a specialized sales agent of securing exclusive contracts to sell industry-leading products from around the world in Japan. Over the years, the company has leveraged its technology and information gathering expertise-as well as its global network-to transform its business into a hybrid model offering superior manufacturing, processing and R&D function as well as trading company services. The Electronics Department provides unique products, services, and precision processing materials for the electronics industry. These products, services, and materials include formulated epoxy resins, photolithography materials, optical materials, polymide film, OLED Materials, flame-resistant insulation/thermal conductive sheets, functional coatings, chemical management equipment, and semiconductor equipment. This department answers the needs of both Japanese and overseas markets, focusing on high-value-added products produced by Group manufacturing companies, integrating trading company functions and group manufacturing functions. The company is listed at the Tokyo Stock Exchanges (#8012). More information is accessible at www.nagase.co.jp/english. SOURCE Nanosys Related Links http://www.nanosysinc.com Seasoned broadcaster and news anchor at the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), Selikem Acolatse Apaloo has resigned. The ace broadcaster has been with the state broadcaster for 13 years, having served as a reporter, news anchor, producer, editor, host and commentator. In her resignation letter, Ms Apaloo said: I wish to announce my resignation from the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). I appreciate GBC for giving me the opportunity to be a part of public service broadcasting with such a national mandate. For me, it has been an honour serving God and country. She added I thank the GBC for offering me this platform since 2007 when I joined the Corporation as a national service person. I continue to maintain a cordial relationship with GBC, one that has existed for almost 13 years of working at both the radio and television divisions of GBC as a reporter, news anchor, producer, editor, host and commentator. She pledged that I will continue to serve Ghana as a freelance journalist, gender advocate and humanitarian. God bless you all." Ms Apaloo's resignation letter: I wish to announce my resignation from the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). I appreciate GBC for giving me the opportunity to be a part of public service broadcasting with such a national mandate. For me, it has been an honour serving God and country. I thank the GBC for offering me this platform since 2007 when I joined the Corporation as a national service person. I continue to maintain a cordial relationship with GBC, one that has existed for almost 13 years of working at both the radio and television divisions of GBC as a reporter, news anchor, producer, editor, host and commentator. I also wish to appreciate all who have encouraged and inspired me at the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation to do more to bring out my best. To the audience of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, and resource persons who contributed to Women's Voice especially, I am eternally grateful. I will continue to serve Ghana as a freelance journalist, gender advocate and humanitarian. God bless you all." Selikem Acolatse Apaloo Source: Graphiconline.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 Friday was the third hottest day in the UK since records began in 1910 reaching temperatures of 37.8C (100F) Advertisement Those who invested in fans and paddling pools to cope with last weeks sweltering heat may have made a sound investment as temperatures are set to soar later this week. While the start of this week is due to be cooler, with rain spreading across the country from the North West, the sun is expected to return by Thursday. And forecasters have predicted temperatures will rise to more than 30C (86F) by Friday and are expected to last through the weekend. It is hoped next weekend marks the beginning of more prolonged sunny conditions, following a summer which has so far failed to materialise. Forecasts have indicated the possibility of some further very warm weather, especially in the South East. As beauty spots and tourist destinations were flooded with sun seekers, pub patrons spilled out on to the pavements in central London, making the most of the new outdoor seating areas which have taken over the streets. Sun-seekers pour onto a packed beach at Bournemouth today as the South continues to enjoy warm and dry weather Crowds of people gather in Soho Square in London despite fears that a second wave of coronavirus could be spreading through Europe People walk towards the water with lilos on Barry Island beach in Wales, enjoying the sun before temperatures cool down at the start of this week At Broadstairs in Kent, hordes of people flooded onto the beach to take in the sea air and enjoy the sunny weather Friday was the third hottest day since records began in 1910 reaching temperatures of 37.8C (100F). Forecasters have warned of outbreaks of rain from today, particularly in the North West, until Wednesday. The outlook is due to improve again by next weekend, with the possibility of two or three days of hot weather which could see temperatures back above 30C (86F). Marco Petagna, senior forecaster at the Met Office, said: On Monday we are looking at a mixture of sun and showers with most of them looking like they will be in central and eastern parts of England. Any showers across Wales will dry away during the afternoon and we are looking at temperatures between 19 and 23C generally... the North of England should be slightly cooler. Two women fighting with each other outside some bars on the seafront in Brighton on Saturday night. The women and many members of the crowd were not maintaining social distancing Floods of people enjoy the cool waters at a beach in Southend-on-Sea today as temperatures continue to rise in the South He said there would be outbreaks of rain across the North West on Tuesday but that the South East should expect dry, sunny weather. Mr Petagna said the outlook for Wednesday would be similar, albeit a little breezier. He said: In the second half of the week the heat should build, especially on Friday and Saturday, and that we could see two, possibly three, days of hot weather. The Met Offices long range forecast read: For the following week, a fair amount of dry, bright warm weather looks likely for much of the UK with the possibility of some further very warm weather, especially in the South East. A humourous theory about Ciarran Stott's bizarre new haircut is gathering steam online, as fans desperately try to explain why the Bachelor in Paradise star would swap his signature blond locks for a short pink 'do. On Sunday night, a Twitter user jokingly suggested that Ciarran was actually being punished by staff at his local barbershop. While this 'revenge haircut' theory is certainly amusing, it appears to be false. What was he thinking? A joke theory about Ciarran Stott's bizarre new haircut is gathering steam online, as fans desperately try to explain why the Bachelor in Paradise star would swap his signature blond locks for a short pink 'do Far from being unpopular at his local barbershop in Fitzroy, the business proudly shared photos to Instagram of Ciarran's fresh cut last week. The former Army rifleman, 26, sat smiling in the salon chair as a hairdresser proudly captured him from every angle. 'Aussie's next Bachelor. @ciarranstott got himself a makeover and it FIRE,' they wrote. Mr Popular? On Sunday night, a Twitter user jokingly suggested that Ciarran was actually being punished by staff at his local barbershop Happy chappy! While this 'revenge haircut' theory is certainly amusing, it appears to be false. Far from being unpopular at his local barbershop in Fitzroy, the business proudly shared photos to Instagram of Ciarran's fresh cut last week It comes after Ciarran was brutally trolled for his dramatic new look, with many fans saying he finally had a haircut to match his 'repulsive' personality. 'I know it's not all about looks but this guy is very unattractive. I do not see what everyone sees in him. Just watch Bachelor in Paradise to see what sort of morals he has (nil). Now that hair is just vile!' one viewer commented on Facebook. Another added: 'Gross! Never understood what women saw in him anyway, but now he's got the ridiculous circus look to go with his repulsive clown personality!' Several fans joked that Ciarran was 'trying to disguise himself' with his new hairstyle, after being portrayed as a 'f**kboy' villain on Paradise this year. Think pink: The eye-popping hairdo features a blunt fringe, which sits high on Ciarran's forehead, shaved sides, and a bald back, which frames his neck tattoos Harsh verdicts: It comes after Ciarran was brutally trolled for his dramatic new look, with many fans saying he finally had a haircut to match his 'repulsive' personality Blond ambition: Ciarran, 26, was known for his long, blond hair on The Bachelorette. He has a similar style on Bachelor in Paradise, which was filmed last year and is currently airing on TV Despite being a fan favourite on last year's season of The Bachelorette, viewers have turned on the reality star during his latest appearance on Bachelor in Paradise. He has been blasted for his 'possessive' and 'hypocritical' behaviour on the show, after reacting angrily when his ex Renee Barrett went on a date with Matt Whyatt. The Englishman has also been criticised for bed-hopping, having pursued Abbie Chatfield, Jessica Brody and Kiki Morris in quick succession. Bad boy: Despite being a fan favourite on last year's season of The Bachelorette, viewers have turned on the reality star during his latest appearance on Bachelor in Paradise This is worth repeating: Despite many breaches, none has yet risen to the level of a concerted assault designed to bring daily life to a halt. But the experts could also be wrong. It may be that a mass attack on the United States or some other major target is just a matter of time. What would such an attack look like and feel like? We now have a crude standard of comparison: the coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent shutdown of major parts of the economy and society. Beneath this mask there is more than flesh. Beneath this mask there is an idea, Mr. Creedy, and ideas are bulletproof, anarchist V tells corrupt politician Creedy as a pandemic ravages Europe in the 2005 film V for Vendetta. In 2020, the world is not as dystopian as in the film, but COVID-19 rages and people everywhere have gone behind masks, for their safety and that of others. Ideas, however, remain bulletproof and people are letting their masks do the talking in this new world order. Lips are hidden, not sealed in public at least. And so face covers are being used to express dissent, humour, political leanings, personal aesthetics and make other varied points through words, choice of print and even fabric. Masks communicate a lot about ones personality, the same way clothes we wear say a lot about us, said Mandeep Arora, managing director of UBON, a manufacturer of PPE equipment and safety gear. Pet lovers are choosing masks with animal prints. Also, people are engraving their pets picture on their masks to show love towards their pet. Masks with messages are also catching the fancy of youngsters. Hardcore Bollywood fans are choosing mask with their favorite dialogues, Arora, whose company also makes masks, told PTI. The bewildering array of masks include customised ones for fashionistas with thread work, sequences, stickers and glitter. From going to the chemist to buy a utilitarian mask to scanning online sites, markets and high-end shops, masks have evolved over the months to become an extension of peoples personalities -- quirky, intense or maybe just boring. Using masks to express uniqueness makes it easier to wear them, added Divesh Mehta of clothing brand Wear Your Opinion (WYO). Mask is covering an essential part of our unique identity, our face. Wearing a mask to protect ourselves is still new for most of us. Having a design/graphic/slogan express your uniqueness, a trait of your personality makes it a bit easier to wear a mask, Mehta told PTI in an email. With its main focus on the 17-35 year age group that prefers printed masks over plains, WYO has sold over two lakh masks, 70 per cent of which are printed ones. Slogans inspired by movies or popular memes like Bulati Hai Magar Jaane Ka Nahi have been working well. We create designs and styles which are social commentary on current situations. Mixing pop culture statements with the current situation creates designs that remain in trend for a longer time. While we add humour to our masks, we also send subliminal messages, asking people to follow quarantine, keep distance and overall be cautious. So, it is a mix of Humour + Safety + Positive Information., Mehta added. Mask users agree with the industry experts. When the safety measure against the coronavirus pandemic covers the most important tool for expression, adapting it to convey emotions and send a point across is sometimes the only way forward. Donning her black and white ikat print mask, Pune-based communication expert Anupriya Sharma said sends the message to the world that normal is boring and I will do this my way. A few thousand kilometers away, Delhi University student Akshay Gautams face mask reads Bilkul ricks nahi lene ka, a dialogue from 2000 Hindi comedy film Hera Pheri, since he wants to say it is no time to fool around but with a touch of pop culture reference. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19, conventional means of protest and showing dissent like holding marches and organising sit-ins have become restricted to social media. India went into lockdown in March. When anti-CAA protesters at Delhis Shaheen Bagh and several such protest sites across the country were told to stay indoors to maintain social distancing, graffiti that was critical of the government was also removed over the next few weeks. Human rights watchdog Amnesty International India stepped in with masks to to start an #UnGagDissent campaign. When the pandemic took over, even as peaceful protests halted across the country, the government continued its relentless crackdown on dissenters. All symbols of peaceful resistance were removed, protest sites were cleared of graffiti and peaceful protesters were arrested and thrown behind bars using repressive laws like Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and sedition, Avinash Kumar, executive director, Amnesty International India, told PTI. Hoping to ensure that focus remains on curbing the virus and not the voices, Amnesty started the social media campaign on July 27 with support from voices such as filmmakers Anurag Kashyap, Anubhav Sinha and Hansal Mehta, actors Konkona Sen Sharma and Ali Fazal and activists Harsh Mander and Meena Kandasamy and Ali Fazal. Konkona, for instance, donned a mask that read naqab me bhi inquilaab, hum bolenge (revolt behind masks, we will speak out), a wordplay on Faiz Ahmed Faizs famous poet Hum Dekhenge. Kumar added that the campaign was born out of the idea of using the mask as a tool for protest. We wanted to send a message that the pandemic cannot be an excuse to take away our human rights. The mask is not a gag. We will wear it to protect ourselves and others around us, but we will not let it stop us from speaking up for our rights. We wanted to inspire people to continue the fight for their rights from their homes, Kumar said. (This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.) Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter ATLANTA (Aug. 3, 2020) The Carter Center commends the Guyana Elections Commission and Chairperson Claudette Singh for finalizing the results of the 2020 election. It extends its congratulations to President Irfaan Ali as he assumes Guyanas highest office and applauds former President David Grangers statesmanship in recognizing GECOMs declaration of results. The Center now calls on all political parties to work together to facilitate a smooth transition from one government to another. The Guyanese people have shown great patience throughout this protracted process, and they deserve a government that represents all Guyanese and that works collaboratively to move the country forward. The 2020 election was a true test of Guyanas democracy, highlighting deep divides that persist in Guyanese society and the ways that the current political and electoral systems reinforce these divisions. It is critical that key leaders in Guyana now reach across the divide and work to ensure that fundamental electoral and constitutional reforms are completed as an urgent priority, well before the next election. Guyanas political leaders spoke of these ideals during the campaign period, and the Center calls on them now to work together to realize them. An inclusive reform process with civil society leaders playing a key role, and with strong support from the international community will be essential. The Center urges the new government to move quickly to begin this process and stands ready to assist in these efforts and advance Guyanas vast potential. ### Contact: In Atlanta, Soyia Ellison, soyia.ellison@cartercenter.org Waging Peace. Fighting Disease. Building Hope. A not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, The Carter Center has helped to improve life for people in over 80 countries by resolving conflicts; advancing democracy, human rights, and economic opportunity; preventing diseases; and improving mental health care. The Carter Center was founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, in partnership with Emory University, to advance peace and health worldwide. Southeast Asian startups, especially e-commerce and fintech companies, have witnessed a significant increase in investment between April and June. Particularly, the total value of investment deals in Southeast Asia jumped 91 per cent to $2.7 billion while the number of transactions rose by 59 per cent to 184, which is higher than the 116 transactions in the same period last year. Data from newswire DealStreetAsia also revealed that since the mid-2010s, Southeast Asia's startup funding boom has been led by Singapore's Grab and Indonesia's Gojek the two prominent unicorns focusing on ride-hailing and food-ordering services. In this years first quarter, these two big guns alone successfully raised more than $2 billion, making up around 70 per cent of the regional inflows into startups. E-commerce startups are considered to be the most appealing, attracting $691 million, followed by the sectors of logistics ($360 million) and fintech ($496 million). Indonesian e-commerce unicorn Tokopedia was named as the largest capital raiser of funds in the second quarter in the region with $500 million from Temasek Holdings. Vietnamese e-commerce platform Tiki also secured $130 million from private equity fund Northstar Group. Previously, the local market was looking at two high-calibre developments with the potential mergers and acquisitions (M&A) deal between Tiki and Sendo another e-commerce player based in Vietnam. Unfortunately, the two sides have blown the retreat on the deal after allegedly failing to convince shareholders. This decision came just after the two sides in early June submitted a request for authorisation for the deal to the Vietnam e-Commerce and Digital Economy Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, as reported by VIR. Tran Ngoc Thai Son, CEO and founder of Tiki, had proposed a few relief measures to support e-commerce and tech companies tide over the COVID-19 crisis, including Vietnamese authorities loosening the IPO rules to help firms like Tiki access more public capital. Since demand for online shopping has picked up, logistics and delivery companies also received much attention from deep-pocketed investors, as seen in the case of Singapores Ninja Van and Indonesias Kargo Technologies pulling in $279 million and $31 million, respectively. On the other hand, hefty sums also found their way to fintech, as investors still believe in the immense opportunities in this lucrative segment. According to Nikkei Asia Review, Voyager Innovations, the company behind Filipino mobile payment app Paymaya, raised $120 million in April from existing shareholders, including US private equity fund KKR and Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings. The funding round, its first since 2018, gave the company additional financial muscle to compete with domestic rival Mynt, which is backed by Alibaba Group Holding. In May, Singapore-backed Validus, the leading SMEs financing platform, secured more than $14 million in its ongoing Series B+ funding round which was led by Vertex Growth Fund and Kuok Groups Orion Fund. Validus is now expanding its footprint in Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, and potentially Thailand in the latter half of this year. In the six months through June, Paymaya reported a 150 per cent on-year increase in transaction volume, helped by mobile payments and remittances. In Myanmar, Digital Money Myanmar, known for its Wave Money brand, announced in May that China's Ant Financial Group, operator of Alipay, will invest $73.5 million in the company. Meanwhile, Thailand-based fintech firm SYNQA, formerly known as Omise Holdings, has gained $80 million in Series C funding led by some high-profile names such as Toyota Financial Services, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and SPARX Group. Just a few days ago, Traveloka Southeast Asias largest online travel app that also operates in Vietnam has bagged $250 million to bolster its operations in these challenging times. Our business in Vietnam has returned to 100 per cent pre-COVID-19 level and in Thailand has surpassed 50 per cent pre-COVID-level, Traveloka co-founder & CEO Ferry Unardi said in a statement. He noted that both Indonesia and Malaysia were also seeing strong week-to-week improvement, cited by Reuters. VIR Nhat Minh Start-up dreams go from paper to reality As a founder and chairman of the BestB business ecosystem as well as founder and CEO of Flower Farm, 32-year-old Pham Anh Cuong is a brand specialist and all-round start-up fanatic. Almost after a month of accusing them and then imposing a ban for "hurting the country's national sentiment", the Nepal government on Sunday started airing all Indian news channels in the country. Issuing a statement, Sudeep Acharya, Managing Director, Dish Home, Nepal, said that Nepal has started airing all Indian news channels which were banned earlier. 'We have started airing all Indian news channels' Nepal on July 9 stopped the transmission of all Indian private news channels except Doordarshan, accusing them of airing reports hurting the country's national sentiment. In a statement, Nepal government spokesperson Yuvaraj Khatiwada had urged all not to disseminate news that infringes sovereignty and self-respect of Nepalis. 'Reports hurting Nepal's national sentiment' People familiar with the development said the Nepalese embassy in New Delhi apprised its views to the Indian government over coverage of Nepal's political developments by the Indian channels. "We have stopped the distribution of all Indian news channels except Doordarshan," Dinesh Subedi, the chairman of Multi-System Operator (MSO), foreign channel distributor had said. "We have halted distribution of India's private news channels as they have aired news reports hurting Nepal's national sentiment," he added. The development came after some Indian channels aired reports critical of Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli and his government. However, the Nepal government did not officially announce halting the telecast of the Indian news channels. READ | 'Mahabharat' shooting location: Umargam, Nepal & other places where the 2013 show was shot India-Nepal ties under strain The India-Nepal bilateral ties came under strain after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated an 80-km-long strategically crucial road connecting the Lipulekh pass with Dharchula in Uttarakhand on May 8. Nepal reacted sharply to the inauguration of the road claiming that it passed through Nepalese territory. India rejected the claim asserting that the road lies completely within its territory. READ | Nepal to send India its 'updated map' with Kalapani, Lipulekh, Limpiyadhura Later, Nepal updated the country's political map through a Constitutional amendment, incorporating three strategically important Indian areas. India termed as "untenable" the "artificial enlargement" of the territorial claims by Nepal. India has handed over a diplomatic note to Nepal over the map issue, Nepalese media reports said. The strained ties are said to have as much to do with political compulsions of Nepal PM Oli and instability within his own party as with any real issues between the two countries. READ | 'Gurkha agreement legacy of past': Nepal calls for revision of pact with India & UK READ | Norwegian Diplomat lauds India and Nepal's efforts to save tigers from extinction (With agency inputs) NEW HAVEN, Conn., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Pope Francis recognized the Knights of Columbus for the fraternal order's efforts to build a "fraternal, just and equitable world," on the eve of the Knights' 138th annual convention. For the first time in its 138-year history, the Knights of Columbus will not meet in person for its annual supreme convention. Instead, this important meeting will be held virtually Aug. 4-6, with members tuning in across the world to key convention events broadcast from New Haven, Connecticut. This virtual convention, necessitated by the ongoing COVID-19 health crisis, is not the only historic aspect of this year's event. The 2020 convention will also celebrate the upcoming beatification of the Knights' founder, Venerable Father Michael McGivney. In recognition of the unique and important time in which the convention is being held, Pope Francis extended his well-wishes to the Knights of Columbus through a letter from Vatican Secretariat of State Archbishop Pietro Parolin, dated July 14, 2020. The message acknowledged the meeting's theme, "Knights of Fraternity," and the Order's work during the pandemic, saying, "The theme of the Convention Knights of Columbus: Knights of Fraternity is a timely reminder of the vision that guided the foundation of your Order. In these days, your Order has provided charitable support on the local, national and international level to individuals and communities suffering because of the pandemic or otherwise often forgotten or marginalized." The letter added that "His Holiness is grateful for these and for the many other countless ways in which the Knights of Columbus continue to bear prophetic witness to God's dream for a more fraternal, just and equitable world in which all are recognized as neighbors and no one is left behind." Additionally, the papal message included the Holy Father's appreciation for the Knights' work on behalf of persecuted Christians, the unborn and all those are marginalized because of the pandemic or other circumstances, as well as his confidence that the beatification of Father McGivney "will be a stimulus for Knights to deepen their commitment to live as missionary disciples in charity, unity and fraternity." The letter continued, saying that Pope Francis "is confident that Father McGivney's heroic virtues and example of faith will inspire you to seek each day in prayer the wisdom and strength to practice 'a fraternal love capable of seeing the sacred grandeur of our neighbor, of finding God in every human being' (Evangelii Gaudium, 92). As a parish priest, your Founder knew well and wished to impress on his flock the urgency of the Gospel mandate, 'Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me' (Mt 25:40)." 2020 Knights of Columbus Supreme Convention Public Events The full papal message will be read aloud during the convention's opening Mass on Tuesday, Aug. 4, at 6:30 p.m. (EDT), which will be celebrated by Archbishop Leonard P. Blair of the Archdiocese of Hartford at St. Mary's Church in New Haven. St. Mary's is where Father McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus in 1882 and where his remains are interred. Following the Mass at 8 p.m. (EDT), Supreme Knight Carl Anderson will deliver his annual report, highlighting the achievements from the past fraternal year and new initiatives for the Order. On Aug. 5 at 2 p.m. (EDT), an annual memorial Mass will be offered for all deceased Knights of Columbus and their families. During Mass, Supreme Secretary Michael O'Connor will read the Order's necrology, sharing the names of Knights of Columbus leaders who died since the last convention. This includes Past Supreme Knight Virgil Dechant, who passed away on Feb. 15, 2020, and was the Order's longest-serving supreme knight, holding office from 1977 to 2000. Finally, at 3:30 p.m. on Aug. 5, an awards session that recognizes the outstanding service of our Knights and their families to their parishes and communities will be held. All of these events will be shown on kofc.org/convention. In addition, broadcast coverage of some events will be provided by EWTN, Canada's Salt + Light Television and the CatholicTV Network. About the Knights of Columbus The Knights of Columbus is one of the world's leading fraternal and service organizations with 2 million members in more than 16,000 parish-based councils. During the past year, Knights around the world donated more than 77 million service hours and $187 million for worthy causes in their communities. The organization also provides financial services to groups and individuals, resulting in more than $112 billion of life insurance in force, and through its money management firm, Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors, it invests in accord with Catholic social teachings. From helping children in need, to providing wheelchairs for the disabled, to helping stock food banks, to offering top-rated and affordable insurance products to its members, the Knights of Columbus has supported families and communities for more than 138 years. SOURCE Knights of Columbus Related Links www.kofc.org Bandhan Bank share price fell in early trade today after its main promoter Bandhan Financial Holdings sold 337.4 million shares in the Indian lender. Shares were worth Rs 10,500 crore changed hands in a block deal in early trade today. The floor price is about 10 per cent lower than Bandhan Bank's Friday closing price of Rs 345.25. Share price of Bandhan Bank lost 8.43% or Rs 29 to Rs 316 compared to the previous close of Rs 345.25 on BSE. The large cap stock opened lower at Rs 321 on BSE. Market capitalisation of the lender fell to Rs 50,893 crore. Total 3,566 shares changed hands amounting to turnover of Rs 11,181 crore today. Bandhan Bank promoter to sell stake worth Rs 10,500 crore via block deal The share has lost 32.12% in last one year and fallen 37.78% since the beginning of this year. The stock has fallen after 2 days of consecutive gain. On NSE, the stock was trading 8.35% or Rs 28.80 lower at Rs 316.30 compared to the previous close of Rs 345.10. It opened at Rs 320.85 on Nifty. Bandhan Financial Holdings Limited (BFHL or NOFHC) which owns 60.95 per cent stake in the lender, is expected to offload about 20.95 per cent stake in Bandhan Bank. The share sale is a part of the lender's effort to lower promoter shareholding to meet the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) regulatory norms. According to RBI's new bank licensing norms, banks have to lower the promoter holding to 40 per cent within three years from the date of commencement of business. The Kolkata-based private sector lender started operations as a universal bank on August 22, 2018. Bandhan Bank, which transformed itself from a micro-finance lender to a universal bank, has two types of banking outlets -- bank branches catering to general banking customers and Banking Units (BU) that cater to micro banking customers. Stocks in news: Maruti, Hero MotoCorp, M&M, Bandhan Bank, Cadila Share Market News Live: Sensex down 300 points, Nifty at 11,025; IndusInd Bank, Kotak Bank top losers Very near the center of Alabama stands a landmark known to anyone who has ever driven along Interstate 65. Known as the Big Peach, the iconic oversized fruit is actually a 500,000-gallon water tower in Chilton County, the states largest producer of peaches. While it seems it must have always been there marking Exit 212, the 120-foot high Big Peach was built in 1992, 11 years after the water tower that inspired it. The original peach tower in Gaffney, S.C., which produces more peaches than Georgia, is known locally as the Peachoid. The Gaffney tower, built in 1981, holds 1 million gallons of water, according to the website RoadsideAmerica.com. Both of the steel-and-concrete towers were constructed by the Chicago Bridge and Iron Co., according to NPR. Because of the colors and curves of the peaches, which were once painted to highlight clefts like those on the fruits, both towers have been likened to looking like rear ends. The Big Peachs cleft was toned down with paint. Local authorities saw Gaffneys peach tower and, hoping to create a tourist draw and county symbol, a committee of local business people began fundraising efforts. Several places in the area are named for the landmark, such as Peach Tower Road and Peach Tower Industrial Park. People traveling down the interstate to the beach often stop at Easterlings (formerly Headleys) Big Peach where they can get fresh peaches, homemade peach ice cream and more. Headleys began as a small stand in the 1960s and had to move its location slightly in 1992 to make room for construction of the Big Peach Tower, according to story in the Clanton Advertiser. At nearby Exit 205, visitors can visit Peach Park, which opened in 1980 with a restaurant and gift shop, the Encyclopedia of Alabama says. The peach water tower in Chilton County is a favorite landmark visible from Interstate 65. (AL.com File/Tamika Moore) The Encyclopedia of Alabama says, This striking symbol of Alabamas peach industry demonstrates to passersby that while Georgia might be the peach state, Chilton is the peach county in Alabama. The Clanton and Gaffney towers have become tourist draws, luring motorists from the interstates for a selfie or two. The Gaffney peach gained even more fame in 2013 when it became part of a storyline on the popular show House of Cards. The popularity of the Peachoid also led to more vandalism so, in 2018, Gaffney officials erected a barbed-wire fence around its base, according to the Charlotte Observer. In 2010, both water towers were photographed by Carol M. Highsmith for a Library of Congress project cataloging the nations quirky landmarks and historic homes. Women informal workers, who are the only earning members of the family, are demanding immediate attention to their issues of unemployment and financial instability. Mumbai: Saroj Sindala, a 40-year-old single mother from Shastri Nagar in Santacruz area, who works as a cleaner in a private company and as a house agent, is debt-ridden since the lockdown and is trying hard to meet the daily needs of her two children. We didnt receive any help from the government. How much will a single-mother do? asks Saroj who wants her daughter to study medicine and is now worried of the required admission fee. Similarly, 39-year-old Arti Netke, also a single mother, lost her job due to the lockdown. Arti is a domestic worker and used to earn around Rs.10, 000 after working at four houses. With no other income-source, no bank-account to avail any kind of financial aid, Arti is already facing a financial crisis at home; a situation she has to solely take care of while ensuring her son received good education. While some women did receive salary from their employers, many of them were just cut-off by their employers. Sheela Parab, who used to work as a masseuse for babies and earn Rs.20, 000 per month, also lost her job once the lockdown was imposed. In her case, she is aware of the fact that she will now have to take up some other job as her employers have clearly asked her to discontinue. Government talked about employment cards for domestic workers, a raise in our salaries and many other things, but nothing happened. Now, at least give us some opportunity to work, says Sheela. As the Maharashtra government extended the lockdown in the state till August 31, survival gets tougher for women informal workers who are the only earning members of the family. They demand from the government, immediate attention to their issues and expect measures to tackle the job problem and to avail a regular monthly income. With the US election 100 days away, more Americans say the country is heading in the wrong direction than at any previous point in Donald Trumps presidency. A new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Centre for Public Affairs Research also finds Mr Trumps approval for his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic falling to a new low, with just 32% of Americans supportive of his approach. Even Mr Trumps standing on the economy, long the high watermark for the president, has fallen over the past few months after appearing ascendant earlier this year. Those political headwinds have sparked a sudden summer shift in the White House and the Trump campaign. After spending months playing down the pandemic and largely ignoring the viruss resurgence in several states, Mr Trump is now warning that the situation is likely to get worse before it gets better. After repeatedly minimising the importance of wearing masks to limit the spread of the virus, Mr Trump is now urging Americans to wear them. And after insisting he would press forward with a large campaign convention in August, the president has announced he is scrapping those plans. The AP-NORC poll shows eight in 10 Americans say the country is heading in the wrong direction. That is more than at any point since Mr Trump took office. The poll also finds just 38% of Americans say the national economy is good, down from 67% in January, before the pandemic upended most aspects of everyday life. Democratic candidate Joe Bidens campaign is eager to keep the final months of the campaign focused squarely on Mr Trump, confident that the former vice president can emerge victorious if the contest is a referendum on whether the current commander in chief has succeeded during his four years in office. Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden (AP/Andrew Harnik) Kate Bedingfield, Mr Bidens deputy campaign manager, said: People are sick and tired of a government that is divided and broken and unable to get things done. What people feel like theyre getting from Trump right now is a hodgepodge mess of self-interested political talk. Story continues The past few months have proved to be beneficial for Mr Bidens campaign. He managed to swiftly consolidate the Democratic Party in ways Hillary Clinton, the partys 2016 nominee, struggled to do. Mr Bidens fundraising, a weakness for him in the contest to become the Democratic nominee, has surged, allowing his campaign to build an infrastructure and start spending on adverts in both traditional battleground states and more aspirational targets, including Texas and Georgia. Mr Biden has also benefited from Mr Trump landing on the wrong side of the public in his initial reactions to the pandemic. For example, three in four Americans back requiring people to wear masks in public, which Mr Trump initially dismissed. Another pandemic test for the president lies ahead in August and September, as Mr Trump and his administration aggressively try to sell a sceptical public on reopening schools. The poll finds that about a third of Americans are opposed entirely to the idea, while close to half say major adjustments to instruction will be required. (PA Graphics) The limitations the pandemic has placed on the candidates ability to travel and hold large rallies have also played more to Mr Bidens strengths. While Mr Trump relishes headlining rallies at packed arenas, Mr Biden is less adept in those settings. He has instead spent the past several months delivering speeches to small groups of invited guests and journalists within driving distance of his home in Delaware, and holding virtual events with supporters and donors. Mr Trump argues that shows Mr Biden does not have the stamina for a full-blown campaign; Mr Bidens advisers say voters want to see their leaders abide by the same public health guidelines they are urging others to follow. Democrats have been buoyed by public polls finding Mr Biden ahead of Mr Trump both nationally and in some battleground states by a comfortable margin. However, Mr Bidens advisers warn that they expect the race to tighten in the final stretch before polling day as more Republicans who may be dissatisfied with Mr Trumps job performance gravitate back to their partys leader. Overall, 38% of Americans approve of the presidents job performance well within the narrow range that Mr Trumps approval ratings have stayed throughout this presidency, but down slightly from earlier this year before the pandemic. Most Republicans 81% approve of Mr Trumps job performance, but just 68% of Republicans support his handling of the pandemic. The Deputy Minister of Health, Dr Bernard Okoe Boye, the Leader of Risk Communication for COVID-19, Dr Da Costa Aboagye and the Presidential advisor on health, Dr Anthony Nsiah Asare, this week toured some registration centres in Greater Accra, Central and Ashanti Regions to monitor compliance of the safety protocols. In the Greater Accra Region, the Deputy Minister of Health monitored the registration exercise at various centres including Ledzokuku Constituency. He supported citizens with facemasks to strengthen their compliance with COVID-19 safety protocols. Dr Okoe Boye noted that we are all in this COVID thing together and surviving it demands that we hold each other. The facemasks save lives; kindly wear as much as possible he advised. In Central and Ashanti Regions, a team led by Dr Aboagye Da Costa toured various centres including the University of Cape Coast, Abura, Effutu and other centres whilst in Ashanti Region, some registration centres at Kumawu, Besoro, Bodomasi and Agogo were toured. He observed high compliance levels and smooth processes across these centres. Dr Da Costa also shared facemasks to citizens and interacted with health officials posted by the Ghana Health Service to support the registration exercise. He further interacted with EC officials and urged them to always make sure citizens going through the registration exercise comply fully with all the safety measures to curb the spread of the virus. The Presidential Advisor on Health and a member of the task force, Dr Anthony Nsiah-Asare also visited some registration centres in the Atwima Kwanwomma Constituency in the Ashanti Region to interact with registrants, distribute masks and snacks. He encouraged the registrants to adhere to the COVID-19 preventive measures, especially wearing of face masks. His visit was also to observe the level of compliance with safety protocols and adherence. 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 (Newser) "Are you still not hearing us," John Holmes asked rhetorically during an interview Sunday. Last week, his son was told he could not take part in the procession at his high school graduation in Pennsylvania unless he took off his Black Lives Matter mask. School officials offered Dean Holmes another mask, but he didn't want it, the York Daily Record reports. He didn't want to remove the mask he was wearing, either, but with his classmates filing into church for the ceremony, he handed it to the principal and joined them. "I sat through the rest of the ceremony very upset," Dean said. "It felt like another time York Catholic was trying to put me down, kind of make me feel smaller. Because in the past, there have been issues, tooof them trying to make me smaller, make me feel less like an individual. But this was graduation." story continues below York Catholic High School answered John Holmes' complaint by saying that school tradition permits no written messages at the ceremony. "Any graduate wearing a cap, gown, or mask with any message would have been asked to remove it," the statement said, per the Daily Record. It's hard to see what harm wearing a Black Lives Matter mask would have done, the head of the state's Human Relations Commission said, though the school is entitled to set dress codes. Maybe this would have been the time to make an exception. "It's a very transformative moment," Chad Dion Lassiter said. "It's a moment in which some of the traditional norms may have to go by the wayside temporarily or need to be revamped altogether." Dean Holmes, who will attend New York University in the fall, is worried that this is how he'll remember the ceremony. "You only get one high school graduation," he said. "I wish that mine didn't play out like this." (A fast-food employee was fired for wearing a Black Lives Matter mask.) photo copyright Air Methods photo copyright Air Methods BERKSHIRE, England, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AAR (NYSE: AIR) subsidiary Airinmar, the top global independent provider of component repair cycle management and aircraft warranty solutions, signed a new services agreement with the worlds largest civilian helicopter operator, Air Methods. Airinmars services will include the identification, claim, recovery and reporting of rotorcraft/aircraft component warranty. Airinmar will compliment Air Methods existing processes and apply its proven procedures, support systems and skilled technical staff. With this partnership, Air Methods will also benefit from Airinmars value engineering of costs associated with the repair process, including price quotes from suppliers and service vendors. Based on the data analyses and findings, Airinmar identifies cost reductions, as well as process improvements. Airinmars reputation for effective warranty management, value engineering and ability to customize solutions for our unique fleet makes this partnership important in helping us execute on our operational goals, said Jay Mahen, Air Methods VP of Supply Chain. By complementing our team with these cost control services, we will be continuing to optimize our supply chain to provide safe and reliable lifesaving emergency air medical care 24/7/365. We are proud to be providing tailored cost control services to the worlds largest civilian helicopter operator, said Matt Davies, Airinmar General Manager. Our service will fit efficiently within Air Methods operation at over 300 locations and assist in the reduction of its annual component repair costs. For more information on Airinmars industry-leading warranty solutions, click here . # # # About AAR AAR is a global aerospace and defense aftermarket solutions company with operations in over 20 countries. Headquartered in the Chicago area, AAR supports commercial and government customers through two operating segments: Aviation Services and Expeditionary Services. AARs Aviation Services include Parts Supply; OEM Solutions; Integrated Solutions; and Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) Services. AARs Expeditionary Services include Mobility Systems and Composite Manufacturing operations. Additional information can be found at www.aarcorp.com. Story continues About Airinmar Airinmar has supported airlines, MROs, OEMs, helicopter operators and military programs for more than 35 years through the delivery of its tailored component repair and warranty management support services, which deliver reduced repair expenditure, improved component availability and enhance operational efficiencies. Airinmar is a subsidiary of global aviation aftermarket leader AAR (NYSE: AIR). About Air Methods Corporation Air Methods (www.airmethods.com) is the leading air medical service, delivering lifesaving care to more than 70,000 people every year. With nearly 40 years of air medical experience, Air Methods is the preferred partner for hospitals and one of the largest community-based providers of air medical services. United Rotorcraft is the Companys products division specializing in the design and manufacture of aeromedical and aerospace technology. Air Methods fleet of owned, leased or maintained aircraft features more than 450 helicopters and fixed wing aircraft This press release contains certain statements relating to future results, which are forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may also be identified because they contain words such as anticipate, believe, continue, could, estimate, expect, intend, likely, may, might, plan, potential, predict, project, seek, should, target, will, would, or similar expressions and the negatives of those terms. These forward-looking statements are based on beliefs of Company management, as well as assumptions and estimates based on information currently available to the Company, and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical results or those anticipated, including those factors discussed under Item 1A, entitled Risk Factors, included in the Companys Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2020. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize adversely, or should underlying assumptions or estimates prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described. These events and uncertainties are difficult or impossible to predict accurately and many are beyond the Companys control. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such statements or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events. For additional information, see the comments included in AARs filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Attachment CONTACT: Daniela Pietsch AAR Corp +1 630 227 5100 editor@aarcorp.com The Lowcountry's first aquatic center with an Olympic-size pool is open to swimmers, but it'll be some time before the state-of-the-art facility is used to its fullest capacity. The 53,000-square-foot North Charleston Aquatic Center, capable of hosting national and state competitions, recently opened with restrictions amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The center, which has been open about two weeks, is available only for lap swimming, allowing only two swimmers per lane. North Charleston, in partnership with Dorchester District 2, held a formal ribbon cutting for the $22.5 million center last week. Officials spaced themselves out and wore masks at the event, which was not publicly announced due to concerns with crowding amid the pandemic. The aquatic center is on city-owned land adjacent to Fort Dorchester High School. It contains a 50-meter, 10-lane pool, with spectator seating to accommodate 1,000 guests. There's also a 25-yard therapeutic pool, locker rooms, administrative offices and community meeting space. Mayor Keith Summey said the facility not only offers a controlled environmental for youths to learn to swim year-round but also provides the city with a venue suitable for high school and college swimming competitions. Large-scale events at the aquatic center will have an economic impact on North Charleston. Swimming competitions at the center, which is partly funded by North Charleston accommodations taxes, will draw large crowds who will spend money in the city, Summey said. "It gives us ability to go out and recruit high school tournaments and bring people in for competition sports," Summey said. The site will serve three high schools, which will use it for practices and meets. The center is also being considered as a space for lessons for elementary students, who would take swimming as part of physical education, said Dorchester District 2 spokeswoman Pat Raynor. The city plans to work with the school district to provide swim lessons specifically for African American children, as well, Summey said. Reports show a disproportionate number of children who die from drowning are young Black males. Summey said the city has helped with the Lowcountry Aquatic Project Swimming program, which provides water safety and swimming instruction to kindergartners and first graders in Charleston County Title 1 schools. The aquatic center has been in the works for years. It dates to 2012, when the property the aquatic center now occupies went up for sale. Recognizing the site's strategic importance near a growing high school, city officials purchased the land, City Councilman Ron Brinson said. The school agreed to partner with North Charleston after the city pitched the idea of a larger facility than one being considered by the school district at the time. Part of the aquatic center project included creating a new access road to Fort Dorchester High School, providing commuters with a second option for entering and exiting the school. City officials also spoke to the complexities of structuring funding from different governmental agencies. The school district contributed $7.5 million, which comes from a bond referendum approved by voters in 2012. City officials said the project is a good example of governments working together, putting aside special desires to serve the region. The center's price tag grew between $3 million to $4 million over the years due to several additions, including safe poolside flooring and two extra lanes to the main pool, Summey said. Adjustments also had to be made to ensure the center could handle condensation, the mayor said. He said the center is money well spent. If youre going to do something, you need to do it first class," Summey said. "It costs a little more to do it the right way. Like all other aspects of the city, the center has been making adjustments due to COVID-19. Pool safety signs posted inside instruct people to practice social distancing, wash their hands, cover coughs and sneezes, avoid touching your face and refrain from entering if you're feeling sick. Water fountain use is also prohibited, and the concession stand has not yet been opened due to coronavirus concerns. Summey said the facility would see full use once the country as a whole feels there's a control mechanism in place to slow down the virus' spread. He said he thinks the facility will begin to see increased activity by early next year. Provided Pursuant to Article L.233-8 II of the Code de commerce (French Commercial Code) and Article 223-16 of the Reglement generalde l'Autorite des marches financiers (General Regulation of the French Financial Market Authority) Regulatory News: CARREFOUR (Paris:CA): Date Total number of issued shares Real number of voting rights (excluding treasury shares) Theoretical number of voting rights (including treasury shares)* 31 July 2020 817 623 840 1 029 300 775 1 038 758 314 *Pursuant to article 223-11 of the Reglement General de l'Autorite des marches financiers. CARREFOUR French societe anonyme with a share capital of 2 044 059 600 Registered office: 93 avenue de Paris 91300 Massy France Registered at the Commercial and Companies Registry under number 652 014 051 View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200803005442/en/ Contacts: CARREFOUR Portland Riots Read-out: August 2 Release Date: August 2, 2020 Bottom line: After weeks of rioting and nightly attacks on federal officers and property, activity in the vicinity of the Mark O. Hatfield Federal Courthouse continues in an overall trend of diminishing violence as a result of the increased cooperation between state and federal law enforcement. In stark contrast to the intense weekend violence in Portland over the past two months, protests around federal property remained generally peaceful, with minor incidents of malicious activity and vandalism. Elsewhere in the city, however, Portland Police Bureau (PPB) were forced to declare an unlawful assembly outside of their Southeast Precinct. Following Wednesdays announcement of a cooperation agreement between DHS and Oregons governor, Oregon State Police (OSP) stepped in to assist operations protecting the Hatfield Federal Courthouse. Saturday evening marked the third night of federal and state law enforcement cooperation on the ground. While the violence is receding, DHS will remain faithful to its mission to protect federal property and personnel; the Departments enhanced presence on the ground will remain for the time being until it determines that the courthouse and other federal property are safe. The past 24 hours: By around 9:08 p.m. local time, approximately 150 protesters reported in the area of Lownsdale Square and Chapman Square (downtown) two city parks that rioters previously used as staging areas that were cleaned out by PPB earlier in the week. Around 9:12 p.m. local time, OSP reported a small crowd forming at the Multnomah County Sheriffs office building in the PPB southeast, located on the other side of the Willamette River from the courthouse. By 9:32 p.m. local time, approximately 150 protesters were reported at the MCSO building. PPB later reported that officers had heard chants, indicating that the crowd wanted to enter the building and burn it down. At 9:50 p.m. local time, after warning the crowd to stay off the property, Portland PD announced an unlawful assembly at their Southeast Precinct. By around 10:45 p.m. local time, there were approximately 600 to 700 protesters in the area of the Hatfield Courthouse and Edith Green Federal Building, spread throughout Lownsdale Square, Chapman Square, Terry Schrunk Plaza, and the surrounding streets in the area. During this time, local media reported that rioters started to remove fencing in the parks installed while it was being cleared out earlier in the week. At around 11:50 p.m. local time an individual was seen open carrying a modern sporting rifle commonly known as an AR-15 near the courthouse. Minutes later, another was observed walking between the Hatfield Courthouse and Edith Green Federal Building with a Molotov Cocktail. Neither weapon was employed during the course of the night. At 12:38 a.m. there were approximately 200 protesters reported outside the Hatfield Courthouse. By 1:05 a.m. local time, most of the crowds left both sides of the Edith Green Federal Building. At around 1:19 a.m. local time, a group of rioters set a fire at the Hatfield Courthouse's garage port door. Minutes later, FPS and OPS personnel put the fire out and afterwards returned inside the Hatfield Courthouse. Sometime during the course of the evening, an unknown number of rioters shot paintballs at courthouse security cameras. Others blocked the vehicle entrance to the Edith Green Federal Building and threw bottles at the windows. DHS officers conducted zero arrests and reported zero new injuries during the course of the evening. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Mike Zak The Foundation is truly Dave Thomas legacy, said Zak. I cant think of a better way to honor my friend than to serve in this role and encourage others to support the Foundations commitment to finding permanent, loving homes for children waiting to be adopted from foster care. The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, a national non-profit public charity, today welcomed Mike Zak as a member of its board of trustees, serving a three-year term. Zak is the owner of The Wenzak Companies, a Wendys franchise organization, which owns 35 restaurants in Illinois, Indiana and Iowa. The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption is truly Dave Thomas legacy, said Zak. As a Wendys franchise owner who had the honor of knowing Dave personally, I cant think of a better way to honor my friend than to serve in this role and encourage others to support the Foundations commitment to finding permanent, loving homes for children waiting to be adopted from foster care. Mike joined Wendys in 1985 as a Regional Training Director. After working for the company for 10 years, he became a franchise owner and was honored as Franchisee of the Year in 2016. Mike currently serves as chairman of the new Wendys Franchise Association. Mike has been a passionate leader in rallying franchise owners across the Wendys system to support the Foundations mission, said Mary Schell, Chief Public Affairs Officer for The Wendys Company and chair of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoptions board of trustees. I look forward to working with Mike to grow the Foundations impact in the years ahead. Through its signature program, Wendys Wonderful Kids, the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption provides funding to adoption agencies to hire recruiters who implement an evidence-based, child-focused recruitment model. A rigorous, five-year evaluation revealed that the model is up to three times more effective at serving children who have been in foster care the longest, including teenagers, children with special needs and siblings. To date, more than 475 Wendys Wonderful Kids recruiters have found adoptive homes for more than 9,500 children in foster care across North America. Im grateful for Mikes service on the board at a time when advancing the Foundations mission is more important than ever, said Rita Soronen, President & CEO of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. He will provide valuable leadership in helping the Foundation to serve significantly more children waiting in foster care, all of whom need our help right now. Mike and his family live in Grapevine, Texas. About the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption is a national nonprofit public charity dedicated exclusively to finding permanent homes for the more than 155,000 children waiting in North Americas foster care systems. Created by Wendys founder Dave Thomas, who was adopted, the Foundation implements evidence-based, results-driven national service programs, foster care adoption awareness campaigns and innovative grantmaking. To learn more, visit davethomasfoundation.org. US president Donald Trump has scrapped plans for a four-night Republican National Convention celebration in Florida that had been set to draw more than 10,000 people to a pandemic hot spot to mark his renomination. Mr Trump had already moved the conventions public events out of North Carolina because of virus concerns. But the spiking virus shifted south, too, and the planned gathering in Jacksonville increasingly appeared to be both a health and political risk. Mr Trump and his advisers feared that going forward with big parties and infomercial programming in Florida would ultimately backfire on the president. Its a different world, and it will be for a little while, Mr Trump said, explaining his decision during at a White House briefings. To have a big convention is not the right time. President Donald Trump gestures towards a screen displaying a graphic on the coronavirus outbreak (Evan Vucci/AP) A small subset of Republican delegates will still formally renominate Mr Trump on August 24 in Charlotte, North Carolina, at an event scheduled to last just four hours. Mr Trump had decided last month to shift the ceremonial portions of the Republican convention to Florida because of a dispute with North Carolinas Democratic leaders over holding an indoor gathering with throngs of supporters taking a pass on face masks. But his plans for a grand gathering in Florida starting shrinking almost as quickly as the move was announced, as virus cases spiked in the state and other parts of the country. Mr Trump said he plans to deliver an acceptance speech in an alternate form, potentially online. Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien said the campaign will still provide exciting, informative, and enthusiastic programming so Republicans can celebrate the re-nomination of President Trump and Vice President Pence. Mr Trump said thousands of his supporters and delegates wanted to attend the events in Florida, but I just felt it was wrong to gather them in a virus hot spot. Story continues Some of them would have faced quarantine requirements when they returned to their home states from the convention. We didnt want to take any chances, he added. We have to be vigilant. We have to be careful, and we have to set an example. President Trump is focused on leading the American people during this unprecedented crisis, and his number one priority in this decision was the safety of the people of Jacksonville, the convention attendees, and all of the American people. Ronna McDaniel (@GOPChairwoman) July 23, 2020 Democrats will hold an almost entirely virtual convention August 17-20 in Milwaukee using live broadcasts and online streaming, according to party officials. Joe Biden plans to accept the presidential nomination in person, but it remains to be seen whether there will be a significant in-person audience. The Biden campaign did not immediately respond to messages on Thursday seeking comment on Mr Trumps announcement. In recent weeks, Trump aides and allies have encouraged the president to consider calling off the convention, advising him it was not worth going forward with the event if the focus would be on the pandemic. Mr Trump acknowledged that consideration, saying, I could see the media saying, Oh, this is very unsafe. After a three-month hiatus, Mr Trump has stepped back to the forefront of the governments handling of the virus with regular briefings aiming to stanch an erosion of support in public and private polls that has followed the surge in new virus cases. Mr Trump said he did not cancel the event at the request of local officials, but the Jacksonville City Council was set to meet on Friday to discuss safety concerns around the convention. Joint statement from Mayor Lenny Curry and Sheriff Mike Williams: pic.twitter.com/4E55XeOos3 City of Jacksonville (COJ) (@CityofJax) July 23, 2020 Jacksonville mayor Lenny Curry, who is a former chair of the Florida Republican Party, said he appreciated Mr Trump putting health and public safety first. I know this was a difficult decision and just demonstrates and reaffirms once again his commitment to Jacksonville, the state of Florida and the people of the United States of America, he said. Im grateful for him and his leadership, and this was the right way to move forward. Joe Gruters, current chair of the Florida Republican Party and a state senator from Sarasota, called it a selfless move that he cancelled. Having our home-state candidate was going to be a really big deal for Florida, but listen, he had it right, Mr Gruters said. At the end of the day, its about safety. More than 10,000 people were expected in Jacksonville already a fraction of the number that would attend a normal convention. Only 336 delegates will be allowed to participate in Charlotte under extraordinary procedures approved last month by the Republican National Committee. The balance of the more than 2,500 delegates will vote by proxy. Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout is returning to the club on Monday following the birth of his son Beckham on Thursday. The three-time American League MVP will meet the team in Seattle and return to the lineup on Tuesday when the Angels begin a three-game series with the Mariners, according L.A. general manager Billy Eppler. Introducing Yankees Insider: Get exclusive news, behind-the-scenes observations and the ability to text message directly with beat writers Trout, a Millville, N.J. native, left the Angels Thursday when he was placed on MLBs paternity list. That was the same day his wife Jessica gave birth three days before her due date. Beckham Aaron Trout (yes, his initials spell the word bat), checked in at seven pounds, 10 ounces and measured 20.75 inches. Our greatest gift from above we are so in love! Meet our sweet boy, Beckham Aaron Trout July 30, 2020 5:10pm 7lb 10oz 20.75in pic.twitter.com/yn2wqndT1U Mike Trout (@MikeTrout) August 1, 2020 Trout had considered opting out of the coronavirus-shortened 2020 MLB season out of concern for his family. According to MLB.com, Eppler said Trout will not have to be quarantined after attending the birth of his child because he will be tested while he is gone. Angels manager Joe Maddon said hes looking forward to Trouts return. Per MLB.com: Ive already written things down to put him in the lineup for tomorrow, and thatd be so nice to be able to do that and get really close to the lineup we thought wed have coming out of the second camp. I dont have that 100 percent, but I have anticipated him playing tomorrow. The Angels are desperate for Trout to return. The club has lost four of its last five games to fall in the American League West basement. Get Yankees text messages: Cut through the clutter of social media and text during games with beat writers and columnists. Plus, exclusive news and analysis every day. Sign up now. Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription. Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here. In Florida, the states Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services said it received at least 1,209 reports from residents who said they found unsolicited packages in their mailboxes. Some of the packages were imprinted with Chinese characters and the words China Post. Some packages were labeled as jewelry. Firefighters and water-dropping aircraft are fighting a blaze in southern Greece that has forced evacuations and a night-long battle to save seaside homes. The Fire Service said the blaze outside the southern city of Corinth had been contained and that there was no active front early on Thursday. But more than 250 firefighters, four planes and four helicopters were putting out flames as winds were expected to pick up later in the day. A fire burns near the village of Galataki, near Corinth (Petros Giannakouris/AP) Several seaside areas were evacuated late on Wednesday in an area that has many summer homes and is popular with retirees. Most evacuated residents were taken by bus to nearby beaches and no injuries were reported. The fire burned farmland as well as pine and olive trees and gutted or seriously damaged around 10 homes, local officials said. PHILIPSBURG:--- On Friday, July 31st the House of Parliament unanimously approved the proposal for the reinstatement of article 28a of the National Ordinance Spatial Development Plan presented by the Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment & Infrastructure, Mr. Egbert Doran. Minister Doran presented the proposal for the reinstatement of article 28a of the National Ordinance Spatial Development Plan to Parliament. The main purpose of the aforementioned National Ordinance is to allow the Government to establish development plans, commonly referred to as zoning plans, to better manage and guide the spatial development of the Country. In 1993, the Ordinance was established as the Island Ordinance on Spatial Development Planning (A.B 1993, no. 13) and has since been reformed into a National Ordinance of Country Sint Maarten (AB 2013 GT no. 144). The National Ordinance formerly included provisions, which required Governments approval for private subdivision plans, that are referred to as Planning Permits, as well as provisions for the Government to approve reputed civil works permits (Dutch: aanlegvergunning), for various types of civil works. In 2012, the aforementioned provisions expired. This proposal for the reinstatement of article 28a has been pending for a period of time. The initial advice to propose the reinstatement dates back to the year 2013. In January 2016, the proposal had been submitted to the Parliament. Based on discussions held in the Central Committee meeting, Members of Parliament required clearer guidelines concerning the manner in which the provisions would be applied. The Government made an amendment to the original proposal to stipulate that the requirement to obtain a civil works permit will be concerning profound or major works. This new proposal presented by Minister Doran is aimed at the reinstatement of the requirements for a civil works permit, which will allow the Minister to review the planned works prior to approval. This will ensure that the works will not cause undesirable and irreversible damage to the environment and are executed with concern to the environment. The intention of the reinstatement is not to obstruct any developments. Therefore, persons will require prior approval by the Minister for the following works and projects: The excavation, raising, leveling or explosion of the ground; The construction of road and other pavements; Works and projects that impact the water management and the ground water level; The clearing of trees or other cultivation; The demolition of structures; The filling of water. A proposed amendment was presented by Members of Parliament R. Peterson, M. Gumbs and R. Brison and was approved by Parliament. After much deliberations, the Members of Parliament unanimously approved the reinstatement of article 28a with 14 votes in favor. In his closing statements, Minister Doran expressed his appreciation and thanked the Honorable Members of Parliament for supporting the Ordinance unanimously as well as thanking the persons who have worked on the reinstatement of the article since 2016 and the Department of Policy at the Ministry of VROMI. Fordlover88 BHPian Join Date: Dec 2019 Location: WB-08 Posts: 146 Thanked: 820 Times View My Garage Road-trip to Baranti & Garh Panchkot, West Bengal Ford Ecosport: Myself & Subham Mahindra XUV 500: Dhritiman,Sohom & respective families. Swift Dzire- Mr. Saikat,Mr. Sayantan,Abhishek & respective families. Hyundai i10- Mr. Anish, Mr. Sounak & respective families. Ford Freestyle- Saptarshi aka Choom Choom had to drop out at last minute due to some family situation but he assured that he would join us next day which he did.Dr. Geetin along with his wife would directly come to baranti from Bankura in their Baleno. Day 1: I was scheduled to leave from home at 6:30 in the morning but got delayed due to some health issues. Left home at 7:30,picked up subham & joined others at Dankuni toll. Our destination for the day was Baranti Eco Tourism Resort which we had prebooked. Google was showing us the shortest route through raniganj, mejia but we decided to take the longer route via asansol,neamatpur as i knew the road conditions in this route were very good throughout. We halted for breakfast at Hotel Nabanna near singur on NH2. Food here was good & hygienic. We filled our tummies and proceeded towards baranti in a convoy. Forgot to take a picture of restaurant. Attaching a past picture of the same.That's Bhpian Mi2n's Tuv300 along with my beast. Delicious Breakfast Happy faces After crossing durgapur we came to know that Anish da had a minor accident in his i10. Thankfully they were alright but front bumper has damaged.All of us waited for them to arrive. They arrived after sometime and said that a lorry had switched lanes all of a sudden while they were trying to overtake. In this process the bumper & headlights were damaged. We decided to get the car checked at nearest hyundai service centre at asansol. The car was thoroghly checked up. They said bumper replacement will take some time considering insurance and other formalities. It was not possible for Anish da to leave the car there & he preferred to get it repaired in Kolkata. So we enquired whether it's safe to drive in this condition or not. They adjusted the bumper & did a few mechanical works & we were good to go now. Baranti was 25 odd kms from here & we reached there in one hour. In the meanwhile Dr. Geetin had arrived there & he ordered our meals in advance as we were very hungry. We freshened ourselves, had our lunch & explored the resort post lunch. We got a surprise visitor Bratin who was nearby & exploring this region with his family. He was in his Baleno Few pictures of the resort Evening was well spent gossiping, chit chatting & pulling each other's legs.The weather was quite cold so we had bonfire & chicken barbeque as well. We had our dinner & retired for the day. We are a close knit group of friends & we call ourselves "Petuk On Wheels"(Petuk is a Bengali word for Foodie). Every year we try to have a drive to nearby weekend destination for a day or two & spend quality time together. Last year our destination was Baranti which is 250 odd kms from Kolkata. Baranti is a small tribal village in the Santuri (community development block) in the Raghunathpur subdivision of the Purulia district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is situated beside Baranti Lake. This is a growing, but quiet, tourist spot. We had a convoy of 5 cars from kolkata as follows:Ford Ecosport: Myself & SubhamMahindra XUV 500: Dhritiman,Sohom & respective families.Swift Dzire- Mr. Saikat,Mr. Sayantan,Abhishek & respective families.Hyundai i10- Mr. Anish, Mr. Sounak & respective families.Ford Freestyle- Saptarshi aka ChoomChoom had to drop out at last minute due to some family situation but he assured that he would join us next day which he did.Dr. Geetin along with his wife would directly come to baranti from Bankura in their Baleno.: I was scheduled to leave from home at 6:30 in the morning but got delayed due to some health issues. Left home at 7:30,picked up subham & joined others at Dankuni toll. Our destination for the day was Baranti Eco Tourism Resort which we had prebooked. Google was showing us the shortest route through raniganj, mejia but we decided to take the longer route via asansol,neamatpur as i knew the road conditions in this route were very good throughout.We halted for breakfast at Hotel Nabanna near singur on NH2. Food here was good & hygienic. We filled our tummies and proceeded towards baranti in a convoy.Forgot to take a picture of restaurant. Attaching a past picture of the same.That's Bhpian Mi2n's Tuv300 along with my beast.Delicious BreakfastHappy facesAfter crossing durgapur we came to know that Anish da had a minor accident in his i10. Thankfully they were alright but front bumper has damaged.All of us waited for them to arrive. They arrived after sometime and said that a lorry had switched lanes all of a sudden while they were trying to overtake. In this process the bumper & headlights were damaged. We decided to get the car checked at nearest hyundai service centre at asansol. The car was thoroghly checked up. They said bumper replacement will take some time considering insurance and other formalities. It was not possible for Anish da to leave the car there & he preferred to get it repaired in Kolkata. So we enquired whether it's safe to drive in this condition or not. They adjusted the bumper & did a few mechanical works & we were good to go now. Baranti was 25 odd kms from here & we reached there in one hour. In the meanwhile Dr. Geetin had arrived there & he ordered our meals in advance as we were very hungry. We freshened ourselves, had our lunch & explored the resort post lunch. We got a surprise visitor Bratin who was nearby & exploring this region with his family. He was in his BalenoFew pictures of the resortEvening was well spent gossiping, chit chatting & pulling each other's legs.The weather was quite cold so we had bonfire & chicken barbeque as well.We had our dinner & retired for the day. Teenage revellers have been told they should consider using online platforms to celebrate Schoolies week as the coronavirus pandemic puts the event in doubt. The Queensland government has not yet revealed plans to shut it down, with the fate of school-leaver celebrations across the state hinging on the advice of health authorities. Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate said the green light will depend on whether the contagion is under control in late November when festivities are due to kick off. But in the case of cancellation, Mr Tate suggested high school graduates party together from home over 'Zoom' or 'social media'. Year 12 graduates gearing up to celebrate Schoolies Week in the Gold Coast during have been told to consider partying via online platforms instead. School leavers are pictured in the Gold Coast during Schoolies Week last year 'If (chief medical officer) Dr Jeannette Young says its not on, its finished,' Cr Tate told the Gold Coast Bulletin. 'Youre the technology people. Maybe you use Zoom or whatever it is, social media, to do Schoolies like that from home. 'Together with police and volunteers, weve got that plan and we can roll it out. But the ultimate decision will be from the chief health officer.' Each year, thousands of Australian Year 12 graduates flock to the Gold Coast, home to the country's largest Schoolies celebration. While the government does not organise the 'organic event', it oversees safety measures in the city as it hosts the festival. Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate (pictured) has suggested school leavers party with each other at home via Zoom should Schoolies Week be cancelled COVID-19 has already claimed other large events due to take place later this year, including Queensland's largest sporting event, the Gold Coast 600. Child Safety and Youth Minister Di Farmer said the plan for the 2020 Safer Schoolies Gold Coast Response would be decided based on expert health advice. While uncertainty remains, Schoolies.com, a booking site for Schoolies along Australia's east coast and abroad, says 'at this stage its business as usual for 2020 Schoolies'. 'There are currently no restrictions that have been put in place by government over the dates of your holiday that will restrict you from celebrating Schoolies with your friends,' the website reads. However, school leavers who book with the website are offered a 'full refund' if government restrictions prevent them from checking in to accommodation before February 28 next year. Events for the three-week graduation festival in Australia are also held in Byron Bay, the Sunshine Coast, Airlie Beach and Lorne. The 2020 Schoolies Week is scheduled from November 21 until December 12. Recent Executive Management Team Changes Have Been Made Eric Shindledecker Eric Shindledecker, Executive Vice-President & Managing Director of Guess & Co. Corporation Eric Shindledecker, Executive Vice-President & Managing Director of Guess & Co. Corporation Michelle Stewart Michelle Stewart, Deputy Chairman, Chief Operating Officer & Chief Financial Officer of Guess & Co. Corporation Michelle Stewart, Deputy Chairman, Chief Operating Officer & Chief Financial Officer of Guess & Co. Corporation Jerry D. Guess Jerry D. Guess, Founder, Chairman, CEO & President of Guess & Co. Corporation Jerry D. Guess, Founder, Chairman, CEO & President of Guess & Co. Corporation Mandy L. Hall Mandy L. Hall, Senior Executive Vice-President, Chief Corporate Officer, Global Managing Director, Secretary & Treasurer of Guess & Co. Corporation Mandy L. Hall, Senior Executive Vice-President, Chief Corporate Officer, Global Managing Director, Secretary & Treasurer of Guess & Co. Corporation MIAMI, Aug. 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Guess & Co. Corporation has made changes to the executive management team. The Company announced the following changes following effective immediately. Jerry D. Guess, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer & President Jerry D. Guess, founder of Guess & Co. Corporation, remains chairman of the Board of Directors and chief executive officer and president. Mr. Guess became chairman and chief executive officer in January of 2019 and was appointed president in November of 2019. Michelle Stewart, Deputy Chairman, Chief Operating Officer & Chief Financial Officer Michelle Stewart remains deputy chairman, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Guess & Co. Corporation. She returned to the Company in February of 2019 following a brief retirement. Ms. Stewart became deputy chairman in February of 2019 and became the permanent chief operating officer and permanent chief financial officer following the re-alignment of management. Mandy L. Hall, Senior Executive Vice-President, Chief Corporate Officer, Global Managing Director, Secretary & Treasurer Mandy L. Hall has been appointed senior executive vice-president, chief corporate officer, global managing director, secretary and treasurer of Guess & Co. Corporation. She joined the company in March of 2020. Ms. Hall became senior executive vice-president in May of 2020. She assumed the role of chief corporate officer, global managing director, deputy secretary and deputy treasurer in June of 2020. She was appointed secretary and treasurer in July of 2020. Story continues Eric Shindledecker, Executive Vice-President & Managing Director Eric Shindledecker remains executive vice-president of Guess & Co. Corporation. He previously served as business development officer. In March of 2020, Mr. Shindledecker assumed the role of managing director. He is executive vice-president and managing director of Guess & Co. Corporation. About Guess & Co. Corporation Guess & Co. Corporation is an emerging global stewardship solutions company with energy, health care, technology and real estate businesses. We partner with communities, companies and governments to improve the welfare of people. Guess & Co. Corporation is a registered contractor with the U.S. Government to provide solutions to federal government agencies and members of our company have active top-secret/SCI clearances. We are based in Miami, Florida and have over 20 subsidiaries. Guess & Co. Corporation was founded in August of 2017. The management team of Guess & Co. Corporation has over 50 years of combined experience. Photos accompanying this announcement are available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/5d855e59-5dca-4fae-9b57-37110b867411 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/7aab76e9-d0cc-4eec-abb9-befaa94f59a8 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c8a0e310-7671-4a35-8393-6b4420066ed8 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/02a78cf2-71c9-42f6-9201-c820b762450f CONTACT: Media Contact: Media Relations media@guessandcocorporation.com First things first: The restaurants that are converting parking spaces to dining patios in cities across the Bay Area arent focused on aesthetics. With local governments blessing, theyre trying to survive the coronavirus-ravaged times in which we live. But as the parklet-like nooks proliferate there probably are at least 100 in San Francisco alone were seeing an ad hoc transformation of such commercial strips as Chestnut Street in the Marina, Valencia Street in the Mission and Green Street in North Beach. Some are elaborate constructions. Others have a flimsy, spur-of-the-moment air. Your table might be on a wooden platform, a carpet of artificial grass or stark, unadorned asphalt. Many have plastic or wooden partitions between widely spaced tables. Some how shall I be polite about this take a dangerously lax approach to the need for safe social distance. In a strange way, this is urban design for the pandemic age. Which means theres a genuine need for basic standards that businesses should aspire to, no matter how ad hoc the tools. Otherwise, blocks could end up looking so cluttered and desperate that potential patrons wont want to visit once the novelty wears off. And by the way, dont call them parklets: Those scaled-down public spaces allowed under San Franciscos parklet program must be open to everyone, not just paying customers. Real parklets also have higher structural standards, since theyre intended to last. These nooks, at least for now, are only permitted to be place through December. Which makes the newcomers shared spaces platforms, according to city bureaucrats. Thats not nearly as catchy as in Philadelphia, which has a similar program but uses the term Streetery. Yes! Let a thousand streeteries bloom. Especially ones that keep these six simple features in mind. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Involve the neighborhood: One of San Franciscos most delightful platforms is at the Front Porch on a quiet block of 29th Street in the Mission. Its a floridly funky melange with knickknacks, like toy rocking chairs, perched atop plywood walls etched in lacy patterns. The inspiration is a festive balcony in New Orleans French Quarter, according to restaurant owner Josie White, but its also a tribute to the blocks communal spirit. A handyman living to the left did the structural work in his garage. The neighbor to the right, an architect, helped out on design and revved up his laser cutter for the plywood etchings. Compare this with the outdoor dining available on weekends at the Progress on Fillmore Street near Geary Boulevard. It extends the length of three parking spaces and is painted jet-black, about 7 feet high with corrugated fiberglass on top and individual cells for each group of diners. Good for business, maybe, but a visual rebuff to everyone else. Paul Chinn / The Chronicle Security can be stylish: Lets be blunt: Some of these impromptu interventions are accidents waiting to happen. Padlocking a few bicycle racks together wont repel a car whose driver turns the corner too sharply. But theres no reason to feel insecure on Fourth Street in Berkeley, where property owner Denny Abrams dug into his pockets to purchase plastic Jersey barriers that each hold 1,100 pounds of water. Theres flooring to keep things level with the sidewalk, and each of the four faux parklets for Fourth Street restaurants includes a customized paint job by West Berkeley artist Constance Scott. I thought it through How can I do this really fast and what does a parklet need? explained Abrams, who made it a point to select a barrier with an elegant taper at the top. He estimates that each platform cost around $9,000, but sees the expense as a worthwhile investment in the Fourth Street retail scene he helped created in the 1980s. Theres a real appreciation for anything that creates a more humane street, Abrams said. Especially when, as a diner, you dont need to be on your guard. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle DIY is A-OK: Some restaurateurs purchase preassembled fence panels for their enclosures. Others find more inventive solutions like the 22 wine barrels that frame the outdoor seating for Luchos, an affable lunch spot on Ocean Avenue in San Franciscos Lakeside. When co-owner Kelly Barbieri spotted the barrels on Craigslist for $50 each, she placed her order at once. Filled each one with water and voila a sturdy improvisation that catches the eye. The barrels are pretty cool, right? asks Barbieri, who owns the restaurant with Luciano Romero. Having outdoor seating definitely is helping right now. You see similar moves elsewhere. Etcetera Wine Bar on Valencia Street fashioned its outer wall from wood pallets. On Irving Street in the Sunset, Taco Shop at Underdogs bought blue storage barrels and then wrapped reed mats around them. Making do and looking good. Whats not to like? 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. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Show some spirit: The posts that support the platform wall alongside Sotto Mare on Green Street in North Beach are accented with the colors of the Italian flag. Lolo, a determinedly festive spot on Valencia Street in the Mission, adorns its trellised fencing with kitschy neon-green brooms. Farmhouse, hidden away on a leafy block of Florida Street, goes further. The Thai eatery takes advantage of perpendicular parking spaces to place its socially distanced tables underneath a tall communal tent, framed by planters draped with colorful pennants. Im not saying this is high design, but it celebrates the moment, which in 2020 is as good as it gets. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Look like you care: Im of two minds about Cotognas outdoor dining gantlet on Pacific Avenue in Jackson Square it extends the length of six parking spaces, with tall wood walls as well as tables against the edge of the brick building. Walking between the two long lines of walled-in tables, you feel as if youre in a privatized space. That said, the butcher-block-like tables have a friendly heft. The walls use horizontal planks of salvaged sugar pine with a bit of space between each board. Heck, the sizable planters between the widely spaced tables not only offer structural support, they hold olive trees. The materials cost a bit more, Im sure, but theyre fitting for a place where family meals start at $120. Add the handsome street trees, and this transitional landscape feels almost urbane. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Dont fence us in: Too many of the first wave of appropriated parking spaces were fenced off, literally 6-foot-high enclosures using ready-made sections that probably were purchased at Home Depot. Viewed from a car, they hide the sidewalk and look ominous. For pedestrians, the sense of being boxed in can make it feel intrusive to be on a public sidewalk. Not only that, taggers have begun to leave their late-night marks on the fort-like facades. Im not the only person put off: Newly released city guidelines for dining platforms say that solid walls facing the street lane shouldnt be more than 42 inches high. Restaurateurs adding space along Chestnut Street already got the message the ones that dont use open woodwork keep things short enough so that diners heads are visible. As with so much during this pandemic, we learn as we go along. John King is The San Francisco Chronicles urban design critic. Email: jking@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @johnkingsfchron Maharashtra on Monday breached the 450,000 mark in confirmed Covid-19 cases with 8,968 new infections taking the states tally to 450,196. The state recorded 266 deaths on Monday, pushing the death toll to 15,842. It reported that 10,221 patients were discharged on Monday, taking the tally of the recovered people to 287,030. The number of active cases in the state stood at 147,018. Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday reiterated that the state government will set up permanent hospitals for infectious diseases in the state. Last week, Thackeray sought the support of the Central government to set up a permanent infectious disease hospital and research facility near Mumbai. He put forth the demand, while interacting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union health minister Harsh Vardhan at the virtual launch of Covid-19 testing facilities in Noida, Mumbai and Kolkata. Mumbai, meanwhile, continued with the trend of clocking fewer cases on the first two days of the week. On Monday, it recorded 970 new infections, taking its tally to 117,406. With 46 fatalities reported in the city, Mumbais toll due to the infectious disease stood at 6,493. Mumbai now has 20,528 active cases. Though the absolute number reported on Monday is lower than the previous days, the positivity rate saw a significant rise from the numbers reported on Sunday. As per the state health departments data, 43,022 samples were tested, On Monday, the positivity rate jumped by 5.19 percentage points in comparison to the previous day though the absolute numbers were lower. The number of samples tested on Monday was 43,022, of which 8,968 were positive, which is a positivity rate of 20.84%. On Sunday, 60,758 samples were tested and 9,509 came out positive, which was a positivity rate of 15.65%. The overall positivity rate of the state stood at 19.58%. Maharashtra is the most affected state by the Covid-19 outbreak and has the second-highest case fatality rate (CFR) in the state after Gujarat. The volume of the outbreak and the absence of robust health infrastructure in the state has prompted the state government to set up makeshift facilities and subsequently plan permanent infrastructure. While speaking at the commissioning of a 371-bed dedicated Covid-19 facility in Mira-Bhayander, Thackeray said that along with development work, the state will focus on strengthening public health infrastructure There is an urgent need to set up permanent dedicated infectious hospitals across the state to overcome an epidemic in the future and the state government is making efforts for this, Thackeray said, who inaugurated the two dedicated Covid facilities in Bhayander east on Monday afternoon through video conferencing. The CM also assured that there will not be a dearth of funds for the municipal corporations in the state in the battle against Covid-19. Thackeray also inaugurated a 200-bed dedicated Covid facility in Mahad, Raigad district. The CM said that the facility will help rural areas in the surrounding areas. Thane and Raigad districts have 32,191 and 4,872 active cases. The CM called for increased coordination between agencies and government machinery to tackle the outbreak and to control the death rate. To stop the spread of Covid-19, coordination between the government machinery is crucial. With erecting quarantine facilities, tracing, testing and tracking should be done. The state machinery should work even harder to control the CFR, he said. Meanwhile, Pune district is expected to cross 1 lakh total confirmed cases by Tuesday as the tally on Monday stood at 96,669. As per the data, 43% or 41,664 of the total cases in the district are active cases. On Monday, Pune city reported 796 new infections and 40 deaths. Pune district reported 231 new cases and nine fatalities, while Pimpri-Chinchwad reported 731 new infections and 13 deaths. The infection in the rural and semi-urban areas of the state continued to spread at a brisk pace. With festivals, including Ganeshotsav, approaching, the state health department is anticipating a rise in the number of cases across rural areas. On Monday, Nashik city reported 323 new infections, taking citys tally to 10,559. Solapur district, another hotspot in the state, saw 202 new infections, taking tally to 4562. Kolhapur district recorded 395 new cases, taking its tally to 5,196. Sangli-Miraj reported 365 new cases, pushing its tally to 1,881. Aurangabad city reported 237 cases pushing its tally to 10,609. Nagpur city reported 176 new cases, which took the citys tally to 3,850, while the district reported 108 new cases. Hingoli reported 100 cases, while Nanded district and Nanded city reported 123 and 103 new cases, respectively. Latur, Amravati city and Gondia reported 76, 63 and 61 new cases. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Facing Backlash, University No Longer Requires Students to Wear Device That Monitors Vital Signs Oakland University in Ohio has withdrawn a controversial policy that requires any student returning to live on campus this fall to wear a device that will monitor their vital signs. Under Oakland Universitys original reopening plan, all students who live in residence halls must wear a BioButton, a coin-sized device that would help the university track potential cases of COVID-19. According to BioIntelliSense, the company that develops the technology, BioButton can monitor respiratory rate, heart rate, temperature, body position, sleep, and activity state with medical-grade accuracy. In order to lower the risk of virus outbreaks on campus a BioButton screening tool is being used, the university wrote in a now-retracted message on its website. It provides additional information for health screening. The button will be used in conjunction with the daily health assessment to determine if you are able to participate in campus activities. The individual data will remain private to the wearer and is not shared with others. Despite the universitys promise not to share the collected information, the BioButton mandate raised controversy among students who felt uncomfortable being continuously tracked. An online petition, which called on the university administrators to make the BioButton optional, quickly gained over 2,500 supporting signatures from members of the campus community and the general public. A large portion of students feel that this in violation of their privacy and some students have stated that their rejections of this idea come from a religious basis, the petition read. Moreover, the new idea (evidently a large adjustment) was not mentioned but instead put further into the website for individuals to stumble across. Masks and socially distancing are understandable and per CDC guidelines but this seems like a large overreach in terms of student and staff privacy, the petition added. In response, Oakland University backed down on its plan, saying on its official Facebook page that wearing of the tracker is no longer mandatory. The use of location-tracking smartphone applications and vital sign monitoring devices amid the pandemic remain controversial due to concerns of privacy violation. Tech giants Apple and Google in early April rolled out their Bluetooth-based contact tracing application, saying it would help public health authorities contain the spread of the CCP virus by identifying who might have become infected with the virus early. Civil liberties groups, notably the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), have been pushing back against the application since its release. As part of the nearly unprecedented societal response to COVID-19, such apps raise difficult questions about privacy, efficacy, and responsible engineering of technology to advance public health, the EFF wrote in a statement. Above all, we should not trust any applicationno matter how well-designedto solve this crisis or answer all of these questions. The two outfits were instrumental in mobilising protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in Assam last December During the January anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests in Kerala, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) attempted to hold public meetings to explain the new law. This found shopkeepers of several districts in the state pulled down their shutters, forcing the saffron party to reschedule meetings owing to the absence of a crowd. Taking into account this tactic, applied particularly in the Muslim-dominated northern districts of Kerala, the Sangh Parivar has now started scaling up its supermarkets under the Akshayasree Mission, a network of self-help groups established by Sangh's co-operative movement, The Indian Express reported. "There were already a few stores under the Akshayasree Mission; the new ones have been opened as a response to the boycott of the BJPs pro-CAA campaign. These outlets have been launched spontaneously by workers wherever they were boycotted," said R V Babu, state general secretary of the Hindu Aikya Vedi, a Sangh Parivar outfit in the state. According to the report, about six years ago, the Akshayasree Mission had only 24 outlets. However, post the anti-CAA protests, 10 more supermarkets have been opened while registration for another 40 stores has been completed. "Because of their boycott, in certain towns, we had to plan the meeting over more than one day. The fringe elements that forced the shops to shut didnt want people to hear the BJP. There were campaigns, instigating people not to buy from shops owned by Hindus. The new supermarkets are meant to counter these boycotts," a source in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) told the newspaper. "We ventured into establishing Akshayasree shops six years ago to promote swadeshi products. But the boycott of the CAA campaign has given us a fresh momentum. Had it not been for Covid, we would have launched 100 supermarkets by the end of the year," P K Madhusudhanan, chairman of the Grameen Samrudhi Society under the Akshayasree Mission said. MBA students at NYU Stern are protesting a 3.5% hike in tuition during the pandemic and asking for discounts of 5% to 10% due to the shift toward remote instruction. Stern photo MBA students at New York Universitys Stern School of Business are urging the school to reverse a decision to increase their annual tuition by 3.5% and instead grant a 5% to 10% discount as classes move online during the pandemic. The petition requesting a freeze of Sterns $76,780 annual tuition, up from $74,184 a year earlier, has been signed by more than 300 students. Raising tuition during this time period feels wrong, according to the statement signed The NYU Stern MBA Class of 2021. The letter was written by Matthew Korinek, a former EY manager in the companys financial services advisory who is in the Class of 2021. It was posted to Twitter by Stern second-year MBA Avik Banerjee who is doing his summer internship with Bain & Co. and reports that more than 300 students have signed the petition. It feels like a gut punch during a long, never-ending dream. We are asking that the university reverse that decision and do their best to provide additional financial support to the students. The petition with the demands is not the first and likely will not be the last as an increasing number of MBA students at elite business schools are growing frustrated over a confluence of issues related to the outbreak of COVID-19. Many international students, who have been unable to gain student visas to come to the U.S., are angry that their schools are not granting deferrals and forcing them to attend online classes or drop out. Most students are unhappy that most of their classes, even at schools that have declared they are moving to hybrid formats of both in-person and online classes, will be virtual. STERNS MBA PROGRAM IS AMONG THE MOST EXPENSIVE IN THE WORLD And then there are the demands for tuition discounts for remote instruction (see The Student Revolt Over MBA Tuition For Online Classes) at a large number of schools, including the University of Pennsylvanias Wharton School and Stanfords Graduate School of Business. While some schools have refunded some fees to MBA students in the spring, no school has yet to discount their tuition, arguing that the pandemic has only increased their costs. NYU Sterns MBA program is among the most expensive in the world, given its location in New York City where the cost of living is high. NYU Sterns latest 3.5% increase in tuition follows a 3.5% increase in 2019. Only four other business schoolsWharton, Columbia, MIT, and Dartmouthcharged more for tuition last year. Story continues But tuition is hardly the full cost of any program. An analysis of total costs, including room and board and fees, at top 25 MBA programs by Poets&Quants showed that NYU Stern had the second-highest price tag of an MBA in the world at $233,022 behind only MITs Sloan School of Management which was at $237,636 (see The Total Cost To Attend A Top 25 MBA Program Keeps Rising). Stern now estimates the annual costs of its MBA program at $119,251, making the total cost of the two-year program more than $238,000. As members of the MBA class, we are both trying to stay afloat during this time and are left wondering what jobs will be available when we graduate in the spring of 2021, according to the letter. Several of us were forced to take unpaid internships this summer, thankfully buoyed by the generosity of Stern alumni who filled the large gap otherwise left behind. Networking opportunities will almost certainly remain remote this coming fall, as the university has already informed us there will be no events with more than 50 individuals present. Some of us are registered for classes that are only online and will again be attempting to learn over Zoom. Many of us are in home countries abroad and will be forced to comply with a schedule of events from the other side of the world. None of this is the universitys fault. However, the university can and should take action to support the students in this unprecedented time. STUDENTS ACCUSE STERN OF TAKING A UNIQUELY STRONG STANCE ON RAISING TUITION Second-year Stern MBA Matthew Korinek wrote the letter requesting a reversal of the schools MBA tuition increase The students note that they have been told tuition rates are set in the budget for the upcoming year before the outbreak of the pandemic. Nonetheless, they are asking the administration to reverse the decision and, at a minimum, freeze tuition for the 2020-2021 academic year. Additionally, we would like to request the university to consider providing a minor tuition reduction (5-10%), according to the letter. This would be in line with certain other MBA programs that have not just kept tuition flat, but have found creative ways to give back to their students. The petition claims that Stern is taking an unusually aggressive stance on tuition, perhaps referring to the decisions by Harvard Business School and the University of Chicagos Booth School of Business to freeze their tuition last year (see HBS & Chicago Booth Hold The Line On Tuition Increases). From reviewing tuition at peer institutions, NYU Stern stands out as taking a particularly aggressive stance on tuition, according to the letter. Many of the other programs ranked in the U.S. News & World Report top ten are seemingly not raising tuition for 2020-2021. By taking a uniquely strong stance on raising tuition, against the interest of the students, we believe NYU Stern risks damaging its reputation and ranking, losing out on potential applicants and losing out on future alumni donations. THE PRODUCT WE ARE RECEIVING IS NOT THE SAME QUALITY WE INITIALLY SIGNED UP FOR The letter goes on to explain what the students believe they will be missing when classes resume this fall. The MBA experience is at its core a transaction. Students are paying for a degree, a career transition, travel, education, networking, and an immersive experience. Unfortunately, COVID-19 has taken away much of that. And it has dramatically changed what is left. We understand there is no way to change it, but the product we are receiving is not the same quality we initially signed up forOnline education is not the same as what you can get in-person. Learning in a remote environment is emphatically more difficult and students do not gain the same education. Many studies have been published about the ZOOM fatigue, and that is very real during three-hour classes or six-to nine-hour days. We will not get to see many of our classmates again this year. Some of us are not able to gain entry back to the United States. Some of us expect to be remote all year. Networking will be different, and we will not build the same relationships as MBA classes elsewhere in the past have built. Lastly, we have expectations that the job market will be more competitive for lower pay than we have seen in recent years. Research has shown that students who graduate during a recession will earn less than those who do not. It will take us at least 10 to 15 years to make up that gap, if we can make it up at all. This will most likely impact all business schools, can companies are lowing costs and hiring fewer graduates. It is a byproduct of the current, environment, but still a reality we may face. Poets&Quants could not reach a spokesperson for NYU Stern for comment on the petition. DONT MISS: The Student Revolt Over MBA Tuition For Online Classes or P&Q Survey: A Third Of MBA Admits May Defer, While 43% Want Tuition Lowered If Classes Are Online The post NYU Stern Students Protest MBA Tuition Hike During COVID appeared first on Poets&Quants. Joshua Lowman, 37, is accused of sexually assaulting two women while giving them massages at a Florida parlor back in January. This photograph was shared on attorney Adam Horowitz's website A male massage therapist is being sued by two women who claim they were sexually assaulted while receiving rubdowns at a Florida parlor. Joshua Lowman, 37, is accused of touching the women's bare breasts and genital areas after they booked in for treatments at the Hand and Stone Massage and Facial Spa in Fort Myers on January 4. The pair also allege Lowman 'thrust his genitals into their hands' during their massages, Naples Daily News reports. The two women subsequently filed incident reports with the Lee County Sheriff's Office. Officers interviewed Lowman at the time, but found 'no probable cause a crime was committed'. The pair then sought legal counsel from attorney Adam Horowitz. The two women have now filed separate suits against Lowman, demanding a jury trial and damages of $1 million each. 'There was a lot of back and forth with Hand and Stone, but we couldn't come to an agreement,' Horowitz told Napes Daily News, explaining the women were left with no option but to sue. Horowitz uncovered that Lowman had been the subject of a similar complaint back in July 2018, when he was working at the Massage Luxe in Naples. The alleged incidents took place at the at the Hand and Stone Massage and Facial Spa in Fort Myers (pictured) According to an administrative complaint filed with the State of Florida Board of Massage Therapy, Lowman was accused of assaulting a woman named only as 'C.L.' 'On or about July 25 2018, C.L. represented to Respondent [Lowman] at Massage Luxe for a massage. During the course of the massage, Respondent touched and/or caressed C.L's inner thigh... vaginal area over her underwear... and her breasts,' the report reads. Last Tuesday, the Florida Department of Health issued an emergency restriction on Lowman's massage license. Under the restrictions, he is prohibited from practicing massage therapy on women. Hand and Stone Massage and Facial Spa did not disclose whether Lowman is still employed at the Fort Myers franchise when they were contacted by the Naples Daily News. The feud between the Somali president and prime minister was revived as the prime minister was removed from his office. Parliament voted almost unanimously (170-8) to oust Hassan Ali Khaire from his post as prime minister, a job he was appointed to by the president in 2017. That appointment had to be approved by parliament and could be reversed at any time with a vote of no-confidence. Khaire was ousted because he was unable to organize national elections or control al Shabaab violence. Not mentioned was the massive and continuing corruption or the efforts by Turkey, Qatar and the UAE to buy control of some coastal assets. A further complication is that Qatar and Turkey are allies of Iran. Turkey provides some aid, mainly military training for the Somali army. Qatar is believed to provide aid in the form of bribes for specific politicians. This eliminates the more normal payment method whereby money is provided as foreign aid and most of it is stolen by politicians. The U.S. alone has seen over a billion dollars worth of aid disappear like that. This latest political misfire is not going to encourage the Americans to increase aid and will likely lead to less U.S. aid. Most other aid donors have backed away from Somalia, where so little of aid given reaches those it was intended for. Now there are rumors that Turkey will begin using its training facility and connections throughout the Somali military to recruit mercenaries for the Turkish Libyan invasion force. Rumors are still rumors, even in Somalia but dirty business and massive corruption are a fact. The bad guys in this latest upheaval are the Somali president (since early 2017) Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed and clan politics. The president, a Somali exile with American citizenship, came to power with a lot of popular support, especially in the security forces. That was because Mohamed promised more vigorous action against al Shabaab. Mohamed had credibility in this area because he was perceived as fighting corruption for years and made progress in reducing the incidence of corrupt officials (often senior officers) stealing payroll and other money meant for the soldiers and police. Note that this can be interpreted as rearranging the list of who gets what when the stolen foreign aid is distributed. Thats an old Somali tradition. The new president and prime minister in 2017 were another well paid (by donor nations, especially the U.S.) effort to make some progress with the corruption. In 2017 this was seen as crucial because many traditional aid donors were reluctant (or simply refusing) to send aid, even for a catastrophic drought. The donors would only relent if the Somali government made a convincing effort to curb the theft of foreign aid. After numerous tries over the last two decades donors are abandoning Somalia. For over a decade Somalia has been rated as the most corrupt nation in the world and that assessment is clearly justified. The current crisis actually began in June when the National Independent Electoral Commission told parliament that it was impossible to hold elections for parliament and a new president as scheduled on November 27. That current presidential term expires on February 8th, 2021. The delay was blamed on the usual suspects; political deadlocks, poor security (bandits and Islamic terrorists), bad weather (floods this time) and covid19. To assure a minimum level of legitimacy, the six million eligible Somali voters must be registered biometrically, which requires special equipment that has not yet been obtained because the Electoral Commission does not have enough money and needs at least $70 million to set up 5,000 polling stations and carry out the biometric registration. More time is also required but it is not going to be enough. None of this is a surprise. The first parliamentary elections finally took place in 2016 and the new legislature was installed at the end of 2016. This was supposed to have taken place months earlier but did not because too many of the current politicians regard elections as a threat to their income (from corruption). Some foreign donors correctly saw the delays as a ploy so the interim government could stay in power longer and steal more aid money. This led to threats to halt aid if elections for parliament and president were not held. That worked, sort of, and the electoral process lurches forward, if only to keep the free money coming. The presidential election (or selection, by the parliament) was supposed to take place by the end of January 2017 but took a lot longer. Part of the problem was political with many of the clans (tribes) maintaining armed militias and refusing to abide by a one man, one vote system. That is, some clans demand more (foreign aid and other resources) than their numbers justify. A compromise was worked out to accommodate that. In effect the new parliament was created by a selection rather than a national election. The national parliament has 275 members who were elected by 14,025 voters selected by 135 clan elders. The 54 members of the upper house of parliament are selected by local (state or regional) assemblies. A Western style election (in which all adult citizens can vote) was not expected until the early 2020s, if ever. The current president was selected by the 2016 parliament and that means all manner of deals were made in return for support of one candidate or another. The major aid donors quietly made it clear that if the new government did not curb the rampant theft of foreign aid, there will be a lot less of it and thus the new president is expected to be more effective in curbing corruption. The current government did not do much to reduce the corruption and foreign aid declined. Somalia has a hard time pleading poverty because so much foreign aid gets stolen by Somalis before it can reach the people who need it and whose desperate plight caused foreign donors to donate in the first place. The failed, so far, election preparations can be expected to continue failing with or without additional time and money. No one wants to admit that Somalia is a failed state, but fewer and fewer donors want to keep sending aid to Somalia only to find that most, or all of it was stolen. There are many other needy areas where most of the aid gets to those who need it. Somalia has seen growing prosperity over the last decade since al Shabaab was defeated (but not destroyed) and lost control of all but a few rural areas. Al Shabaab now spends most of its time going full gangster because some bills must be paid. The rest of the time al Shabaab does the Holy Warrior thing to intimidate civilians in areas it controls and keep the government off balance. For Somalia its business as usual as it has been for centuries. But now theres Internet and cell phones, but those two innovations have not made any fundamental changes in Somalia, at least not yet. August 1, 2020: There is still concern about the covid19 coronavirus epidemic, mainly because it favors older victims, meaning it could kill key political, military and terrorist leaders. The virus is more often fatal to older people and most leaders were older and felt vulnerable. In early April the Somali Minister of Justice died of covid19. He was brought the capital a week earlier and taken to the only hospital in the country that can treat covid19. Tests showed that he was infected, and he was isolated. This was the second covid19 death in Somalia. The first victim was a 58-year-old man who had not been outside the country and died four days before the Finance Minister. In March the government announced that one of four Somalis who had just returned from China had covid19. This was the first such case known to be in Somalia. If covid19 gets loose in Somalia the local health system wont be of much help because the local health system is largely non-existent. So far about 3,200 Somali covid19 cases have been confirmed and 93 Somalis have died from the virus. That comes to 202 confirmed cases per million population and six confirmed covid19 deaths per million. There has been no widespread quarantines or restrictions on movement. Most Somalis still live in rural villages that get few outside visitors. But several million Somalis live in cities, refugee camps or large towns. In those urban areas there are many epidemic diseases and covid19 is not considered as much of a threat as existing threats like cholera, infections and a lack of antibiotics or the annual influenza. In the West there are easy cures available for all that but in Somalia a lot of curable conditions are incurable threats. Covid19 is another incurable condition and not as nasty as many other Somalis deal with daily. Nevertheless, al Shabaab has warned its members and supporters to take precautions to avoid transmission of the virus to other Holy Warriors. Despite that official policy many local al Shabaab leaders still allow crowded assemblies in mosques, military training or religious schools. In Kenya there are 409 infections per million and seven deaths. Ethiopia has 162 cases per million and three deaths. Most of Africa is showing low rates of infection and death because health care throughout Africa is unable to handle, much less count, something like this. July 25, 2020: Parliament removed the prime minister Hassan Ali Khaire from office. The vote of no-confidence was 170-8. Khaire, a refugee with Norwegian citizenship, was one of many exiles who came back to assist. Confidence was lost because Khaire was unable to organize national elections or control al Shabaab violence. Not mentioned was the massive and continuing corruption. After the prime minister was removed Internet service in Mogadishu was cut for 31 hours. There were some Internet shutdowns in other parts of the country but most of it was in the capital. Apparently, the government ordered the Internet blackout and told Internet providers to plead ignorance of why the Internet was down. Since the government can quickly put an Internet provider out of business, the Internet companies follow orders. July 16, 2020: Off the north coast Somalia warships from Japan, South Korea and Spain took part in two days of naval exercises. The ships are part of the anti-piracy patrol. Pirate activity is way down and some nations have their anti-piracy ships spend of their time watching the coast of nearby Yemen (where some pirates have been operating) and the entrance to the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, where there has been a lot of arms smuggling (to Shia rebels in northwest Yemen) by Iran. July 13, 2020: In Mogadishu al Shabaab used a suicide car bomber to attack the convoy containing the head of the Somali military. The attack failed when security personnel spotted the suicide car bomber and fired on him. That led to the explosives detonating before reaching the convoy. A civilian bystander was killed, along with the suicide bomber and few other people in the area wounded. July 12, 2020: In the north an Egyptian diplomatic delegation visited Somaliland and offered diplomatic recognition, investment and the establishment of a small military base to look after Egyptian interests (like the nearby entrance to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal) in the area. Somaliland officials agreed to consider the offer. So did neighbors Ethiopia and Kenya who both criticized the Egyptian moved. The UAE and Turkey have been trying to establish similar deals in Somalia (including separatist Puntland and Somaliland). July 8, 2020: In Mogadishu a roadside bomb was used against a police vehicle, leaving two policemen dead and two nearby civilians wounded. July 4, 2020: In Baidoa (250 kilometers southwest of Mogadishu) al Shabaab set off a bomb outside a restaurant, killing five and wounding ten. In Mogadishu an al Shabaab suicide car bomber sought to reach a police facility inside the port area but was stopped by alert police and detonated short of the goal. Two policemen and five civilians were wounded. When close to half the companies in Australia have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") above 16x, you may consider FSA Group Limited (ASX:FSA) as an attractive investment with its 7.8x P/E ratio. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the reduced P/E. We'd have to say that with no tangible growth over the last year, FSA Group's earnings have been unimpressive. It might be that many expect the uninspiring earnings performance to accelerate to the downside, which has repressed the P/E. If not, then existing shareholders may be feeling optimistic about the future direction of the share price. See our latest analysis for FSA Group pe Although there are no analyst estimates available for FSA Group, take a look at this free data-rich visualisation to see how the company stacks up on earnings, revenue and cash flow. How Is FSA Group's Growth Trending? In order to justify its P/E ratio, FSA Group would need to produce sluggish growth that's trailing the market. Taking a look back first, we see that there was hardly any earnings per share growth to speak of for the company over the past year. Fortunately, a few good years before that means that it was still able to grow EPS by 17% in total over the last three years. So it appears to us that the company has had a mixed result in terms of growing earnings over that time. In contrast to the company, the rest of the market is expected to decline by 0.3% over the next year, which puts the company's recent medium-term positive growth rates in a good light for now. In light of this, it's quite peculiar that FSA Group's P/E sits below the majority of other companies. Apparently some shareholders believe the recent performance has exceeded its limits and have been accepting significantly lower selling prices. What We Can Learn From FSA Group's P/E? The price-to-earnings ratio's power isn't primarily as a valuation instrument but rather to gauge current investor sentiment and future expectations. Story continues We've established that FSA Group currently trades on a much lower than expected P/E since its recent three-year earnings growth is beating forecasts for a struggling market. There could be some major unobserved threats to earnings preventing the P/E ratio from matching this positive performance. One major risk is whether its earnings trajectory can keep outperforming under these tough market conditions. It appears many are indeed anticipating earnings instability, because this relative performance should normally provide a boost to the share price. Having said that, be aware FSA Group is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those is a bit concerning. If these risks are making you reconsider your opinion on FSA Group, explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there. 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com. ASUNCION, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Latin America broke through 5 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Monday, a Reuters tally showed, underscoring the region's position as the area of the world hardest hit by the novel coronavirus pandemic. The region, which topped 200,000 deaths on Saturday, has struggled to stall the spread of the virus, with infections picking up pace in many countries even as governments look to ease lockdowns and revive economic growth. (Reporting by Daniela Desantis; Writing Adam Jourdan) Queensland police will conduct a compliance "blitz" for people in home quarantine after issues with residents in other states not being home when they should have been. The announcement from Commissioner Katarina Carroll comes as police approach a milestone in border restriction enforcement, with almost 1000 people turned around on the Gold Coast. Ms Carroll said the push would see normal checks done during an audit this week followed with "personal visits" to ensure "100 per cent" compliance. "We have seen in other areas that compliance has not been good in this area," she told reporters on Monday. Its been a bloody couple of weeks for the states largest city. At least 16 shootings unfolded in Newark from July 20 to July 31, officials confirmed Monday. Then two more shootings occurred Sunday, which resulted in at least three people shot and a 10-year-old girl injured. In a statement, Mayor Ras Baraka said the violence will not be tolerated and must be stopped. Now more than ever, we need the help of every resident, every community group, and every resource, to fight against what appears to be one of our toughest adversaries, Baraka said. There were three violent incidents Sunday two shootings and a fatal stabbing that left two people dead. Newark resident Victorino Garcia, 36, was stabbed to death on Taylor Street around 2:41 a.m. Then just before 4 p.m., 28 rounds were fired on the 200 block of 6th Avenue West, officials said. Two men were shot and are in stable condition and a 10-year-old girl was injured. Officials said the child was not shot, but appeared to be hit with a ricocheting projectile. And just after 6:30 p.m., a man was fatally shot on 14th Avenue, according to a statement from the Essex County Prosecutors Office. Detectives are still working to identify the victim. In addition to those incidents, Newark resident Rashidah Sutton-Bryant, 21, was killed the night of July 26 at the Bradley Court housing complex on North Munn Avenue. The particularly violent stretch in Newark comes at a time when major cities across the country, including New York City, are experiencing an uptick in shootings. In a statement, the Newark Anti-Violence Coalition said it wholeheartedly condemns the recent round of shootings that have taken place in the last few weeks. Most disturbing is that many of these shootings have been drive-bys, or in a similar indiscriminate fashion where shooters have shot into crowds of people, the statement said. Put the guns down. Go home. Love and appreciate your families and your community. Despite the spike in shootings, homicides in Newark have been down for the past four years, Baraka said. The city has seen a 28% reduction in fatal shooting victims as of July 26 compared to 2019, according to statistics provided by the Newark Police Department. In May, there were four fatal shootings, compared to seven the previous year. But in July, there have been five as of July 26, compared to just one in July 2019. Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said its common for the city to see more shootings during the summer. During the summer months, we generally see an uptick in violence, Ambrose said in a statement announcing the arrests of 16 people for gun crimes and three shooting arrests. We have had five years in a row of fewer victims of violence. Its sad, the amount of illegal guns that get into the wrong hands. Imagine if New Jersey didnt have one of the toughest gun laws in the country. Statewide, there had been 100 fatal shooting victims this year as of July 15, a 19% increase from the same time last year, according to Col. Patrick Callahan, the acting superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. Were certainly concerned about it, Callahan said at a coronavirus media briefing in Trenton that same day. Were seeing way too many shootings, and the likelihood of it continuing through the warm summer months gives us a tremendous amount of concern. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Global passenger traffic declined by 91.3% year-over-year in May as a result of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, according to new data released by Airports Council International (ACI) World, the trade association of the worlds airports. This is slightly above the worst decline of global passenger numbers in the history of the aviation industry of -94.4% which was recorded the previous month in April. Global passenger traffic continued its dramatic decline, falling more than 10 percentage points compared to the prior month to -52.5% for the first five months of 2020. The 12-month rolling average for the global industry is also continuing with the downward trend and recorded -19.3% by the end of May. As in previous months, the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on the air freight industry was not as significant in May when compared to the passenger market. Global air freight volumes posted slightly better results in May compared to April with a decline of -17.9% compared to May 2019 resulting in a -12.8% drop for the first five months of 2020. The global 12-month rolling average continued to move further into negative territory at -6.7% by the end of the month. After a devastating month of April for the aviation industry when global air travel came to a virtual halt, data for May revealed a tiny sign of a recovery driven by the domestic markets in China and the United States, ACI World Director General Luis Felipe de Oliveira said. In the Asia-Pacific and North American regions, there were signs for optimism with the data showing some early improvement in domestic passenger traffic, but international traffic continued to be practically non-existent in May. As in previous months, global air freight volumes have not been affected to the same extent as passenger traffic and showed signs of a slight upward curve but, with most of the passenger fleet still grounded, capacity was dramatically reduced. Airports are important engines of growth and the recovery of this sector will be a significant driver of the global economic recovery. But this will only be sustained if passengers, staff, and the public have confidence in air travel. ACIs recently launched Airport Health Accreditation programme will help to restore this passenger confidence, assisting airports by assessing new health measures and procedures introduced as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Passenger traffic Besides North America and Asia-Pacific, all other regional markets posted declines higher than -95% of their global passenger traffic. The start of a slow recovery of the domestic traffic helped North America and Asia-Pacific to post slightly better figures with decreases of -90.3% and -82.5% respectively. International passenger traffic continues to be virtually halted with all regions recording decline above -98% for a second consecutive month. Global international and domestic markets posted unprecedented declines for a second month in a row, falling by -98.6% and -85.3%, respectively. The 12-month rolling average for the international segment was recorded at -20.2% and the domestic segment at -18.5%. Domestic passenger markets remain severely affected by the ongoing crisis, but North America and Asia-Pacific have shown signs of a slow recovery. Decline are however still significant. North America posting a -88.8% decline while Asia Pacific recorded a -73.2% drop in domestic passengers. Other regions all recorded declines above -90% in May. Air freight The Covid-19 outbreak continues to heavily impact all major freight markets except for North America, but small gains started to emerge in May when compared to the previous month. Globally, air freight volumes were reduced by almost a fifth in May, with a drop of -17.9% compared to May 2019. Substantial losses were recorded in Africa (-38.3%), Latin America-Caribbean (-34.6%), and Middle East (-38.2%) while Asia-Pacific (-21.5%) and Europe (-18.7%) recorded lesser but still sizeable volume losses. North America, recorded a less significant drop of 4.6% in total freight volumes alleviated by a robust domestic freight market that recorded an increase of +0.1% compared to a substantial loss of -11.0% for its International freight market. The international air freight markets negative trend has soothed in May with a loss of -19.6% compared to the previous months decrease of -26.4%. Domestic freight volumes followed a similar path and posted a slight improvement to 13.6% in May compared to -13.8% in April. Year-to-date air freight figures for May, as well as the 12-month rolling average, continued their negative trend and are now at -12.3% and 6.7%, respectively. TradeArabia News Service Juan Carlos saved his son Felipe, a difficult decision. The retired king said Monday night in a brief letter that he will leave Spain. The allegations of corruption against him had increased in the past few weeks, the political pressure on Felipe to escape his father's residence and the king's title, to preserve the Spanish monarchy from further damage. Almost daily new details about Juan Carlos were known to have exploited his position as a Monarch, in order to enrich themselves. It comes to bribery and tax evasion in the millions. Hans-Christian Roler Political correspondent for the Iberian Peninsula and the Maghreb, with its headquarters in Madrid. F. A. Z. With the words: "your Majesty, dear Felipe" starts from the king's house on the evening of published Writing: "With the same zeal to serve Spain, has inspired my reign, and in view of the public impact of certain events of the past to live on my private, I would like to Express to you my full willingness to facilitate the exercise of their functions to contribute," writes Juan Carlos. to identify A gift of 65 million euros He plays, among other things, on the announcement of the Supreme court in Madrid, against him because of alleged kickbacks for the construction of the high-speed line from Medina to Mecca by a Spanish consortium of companies. According to the findings of the Swiss Prosecutor's office of the Saudi king Abdullah in 2008 should be transferred to the Geneva account of a Foundation of the king's $ 100 million. The sum of remained, apparently, is not long in the account. In the course of the Swiss investigation of the lawyer of the German business had Sayn wife Corinna to-Wittgenstein confirmed that they have received in 2012 an "unsolicited gift" from Juan Carlos, was transferred from the Geneva account. Of the then reigning Monarch have to make it up to you to show that the German, which he once described as his "intimate friend", have him standing in the health of difficult times beige. In press a total of 65 million euros will be called reports. The Spanish investigations concern only the period after 2014, when Juan Carlos had abdicated the throne, and thus his immunity from prosecution lost. In Madrid, the claims of government politicians, king Felipe should distance themselves even more from his father, who had retired a year ago from the Public increased. Even Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez expressed himself in this sense. In March, Felipe had already announced to forego his inheritance. In addition, he eluded his father, the annual appanage in the amount of almost 200,000. Felipe's position was becoming more and more difficult, because many Spaniards revere, Juan Carlos because of its important role in the development of democracy after the years of the Franco dictatorship. Updated Date: 03 August 2020, 18:19 Vodafone's heat-detection camera captures a person walking into an office building. Vodafone As employers around the world figure out how best to return workers to the office, tech companies are hoping that gadgets and software could help the process. The coronavirus pandemic and resulting lockdowns have left offices around the world empty. And while there's been lots of talk about the benefits of flexible working, there are still some workers who want to experience life in the office again. But to do that, companies need to make sure they have strict health and safety regimes in place. Tech firms big and small have been developing everything from wearable devices to thermal imaging cameras to help businesses equip their office spaces for the future. Distancing Tharsus, a U.K.-based robotics group, is mostly known for designing robotics and automation systems for firms like online retailer Ocado and telecommunications firm BT. In response to the Covid-19 outbreak, the firm developed wearables for workers to wear around their necks to help with distancing themselves from colleagues. The hardware which looks like a futuristic smart necklace sends out alerts to wearers every time they come into close proximity with another worker. Tharsus is looking to roll the technology out in a number of workplace environments, including offices, warehouses and canteens. U.K. robotics firm Tharsus has created wearable technology that alerts workers when they're too close to each other. Tharsus The tech is currently being trialed at the Manufacturing Technology Centre, an independent research institute based in Coventry, England. The facility houses manufacturing titans such as Rolls-Royce, Airbus, Siemens and General Motors. "Bump is like traffic lights, which improve safety and at the same time improve capacity," Tharsus CEO Brian Palmer told CNBC. "Analysis of Bump traffic data enables the volume of people in the workplace to increase, safely." It's somewhat evocative of contact-tracing apps, another tool that companies and governments have been considering as part of their reopening plans. These apps rely on Bluetooth or location data to notify users if they may have been exposed to the virus. Consulting giant PwC, for instance, developed an app for corporate clients to track employees who come into close contact and alert human resources staff if they may be at risk of coming down with the virus. The app has been tested in the company's Shanghai office. However, contact-tracing apps have faced criticism from privacy advocates concerned they could be too invasive. Officials and experts have also said the apps deployed so far haven't yet been a "game changer" in tackling the coronavirus pandemic. U.K. robotics firm Tharsus has created wearable technology that alerts workers when they're too close to each other. Tharsus While different from contact tracing, Tharsus' solution is similar in that it aims to measure proximity. Bump relies on radio frequencies to send out signals to users if they get too close to each other. As far as privacy is concerned, Palmer said the tech was compliant with EU privacy laws and that data wouldn't be shared with third parties. "We designed Bump with this in mind and to ensure wearers don't need to sacrifice data privacy," he said. "All data is available to an individual business and their team members alike. Everyone can see who collected data, when and why." "Other app-based solutions only notify users if social distancing fails 'after the event' i.e. after they have been exposed to risk," he said. "Bump provides real-time protection from the risk in the first place." Temperature screening Meanwhile, thermal imaging cameras have also been suggested as a potential way of helping bring staff back to the office. The cameras use infrared technology to detect radiating heat from a person and then estimate their body temperature. British telecommunications firm Vodafone is deploying heat detection cameras made by surveillance tech maker Digital Barriers. The cameras are currently in use at the training ground of English rugby club Wasps, however Vodafone said they will also be used in offices, typically by an entrance or reception area. Vodafone's thermal imaging camera positioned by the entrance of an office building. Vodafone "The device uses both thermal and HD cameras to deliver reliable, real-time body temperature screening accurate to within +/- 0.3 degrees Celsius and can screen up to 100 people every minute," said Anne Sheehan, director of Vodafone Business U.K. Responding to concerns over whether the cameras could infringe workers' privacy, Vodafone said its cameras are a "temperature screening solution only." "The data it gathers is only relevant at that particular point in time," said Sheehan. "The device doesn't include technologies such as facial recognition and it cannot be used as a tracking device." But like much tech being proposed to return life to some level of normality, health officials have cast doubt on the use of thermal cameras in trying to screen people for potential virus cases. The World Health Organization for instance has said temperature screening alone "may not be very effective." And while some tech companies are figuring out ways of detecting symptoms and regulating exposure to the virus, others are seeking to eradicate it. UV lights from Signify pictured in an office site. The Dutch firm claims its lights can be used against the novel coronavirus that causes Covid-19. Signify Take ultraviolet lights, which have previously been used to kill bacteria, for instance. Some firms, such as Dutch lighting maker Signify, are hoping the technology can be applied to the novel coronavirus that causes Covid-19. The World Health Organization has warned people not to use UV lights on their skin due to the dangerous levels of radiation that they emit. But Signify aims to use the lights to disinfect surfaces in offices and other settings like schools and restrooms. And science may be on the company's side. Signify tested its own UV lights with researchers at Boston University, who found that exposure of the virus to UV light helps eradicate it. Signify is now ramping up production of the lights. Communicating One trend the pandemic has accelerated is the use of software to communicate and collaborate remotely. Platforms like Zoom, Slack and Microsoft Teams have seen a surge in demand with entire workforces forced to adapt to telecommuting. Cisco's Webex video-conferencing app saw a record 324 million users attend virtual meetings in March. "There's been a seismic change in the last few months in terms of working," Chintan Patel, Cisco's chief technologist in the U.K., told CNBC. "It goes without saying that what's taken place has been incredible." The Cisco Webex app logo is displayed on a smartphone with a computer model of the COVID-19 coronavirus in the background. Rafael Henrique | SOPA Images | LightRocket via Getty Images The question for these platforms is whether they can continue this momentum as shelter-in-place measures ease and businesses start to reopen. Executives said there would be a continued need for such services as businesses adopt a "hybrid" approach of keeping staff at home while some employees return to the office. Patel said touchless technology such as voice-activated intelligent assistants could help with holding virtual meetings from the office. Cisco's video technology is also capable of measuring how many people are in a meeting, he said, adding this was compliant with EU privacy laws. Still, it could be some time before a majority of office workers are back in the office. Many large tech companies are now offering workers greater flexibility over their working situations due to Covid-19 Twitter has gone so far as to let employees work from home "forever." According to a YouGov study commissioned by identity management software firm Okta, just 29% of European workers surveyed between April and May wanted to go back to the office full-time. That figure fell to as low as 24% in Britain. Meanwhile, 55% of workers felt they were equipped with the necessary hardware for working at home, while 56% said they had the appropriate software. YouGov surveyed over 6,000 people across the U.K., Germany, France and the Netherlands. "If you really have to bring everyone to a meeting together, something extraordinary will have to happen," Julien Codorniou, vice president of Facebook's Workplace app a rival to Slack and Teams told CNBC. "I hope the office will be a place for more meaningful interactions." Commuting Finally, there's the issue of how workers will get to the office. It's easy to see why many people in big cities like London and New York might be anxious about the idea of taking public transport, potentially being packed in like sardines on a busy bus or subway. And driving in such areas can be far from ideal. Several start-ups are hoping to convince authorities and consumers that two-wheel electric vehicles like scooters and bikes might be able to solve this problem. In the U.K. that's particularly relevant, since the government has recently made it legal to ride e-scooters on roads. A number of trials are getting underway across the country. Electric scooters from Swedish start-up Voi pictured in London. Voi Guyana's opposition candidate was sworn in as president on Sunday, hours after being declared winner of the disputed March 2 general election in the oil-rich, cash-poor South American nation. Irfaan Ali, 40, of the People's Progressive Party (PPP) was named the top vote-getter by Guyana Elections Commission chief Claudette Singh 154 days after the poll, following a recount, court battles and allegations of fraud. Outgoing leader David Granger, 74, said his coalition "respects the lawful consequences of the 'declaration'" by the elections commission, but also said claims of electoral fraud and other irregularities would be taken to the High Court. Granger appealed to his supporters to be peaceful. Ali called for national unity in this former British colony whose population is almost evenly split among ethnic lines, with descendants of Indian indentured laborers supporting the PPP and descendants of African slaves backing Granger's coalition. "There is only one future and that future requires a united Guyana, that future requires a strong Guyana," Ali said. The election in Guyana, a country of 750,000 bordered by Brazil, Venezuela and Suriname, was being watched more closely than might ordinarily be the case because the winner will be in control of a coming oil boom. Last December, ExxonMobil began commercial exploitation of a huge 2016 oil discovery off the coast, and production is expected to grow from 52,000 barrels per day to 750,000 from 2025. The declaration of Ali, a former housing minister, as winner brings to an end five months of court cases by Granger's Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change (ANPU-AFC) over results from a national vote recount, after international observers said initial results in Guyana's most densely populated electoral district had been inflated in favor of the incumbent. International parties including the Organization of American States (OAS), Caribbean Community (CARICOM), European Union, US, Britain and Canada had called for recount figures to be used to declare the winner. On July 1, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had said Guyana needed to "get on with" a transition of power, and two weeks later imposed visa sanctions on members of Granger's administration "responsible for, or complicit in, undermining democracy in Guyana." Under Guyana's proportional representation electoral system, the PPP won 33 of the 65 seats in the National Assembly with 233,336 votes. The APNU-AFC earned 31 seats with 217,920 votes. The World Health Organization (WHO), has cautioned that a simple and extremely effective solution for the new coronavirus may not be actualized, in spite of speediness to discover efficient vaccines. WHO charged the government and citizenry to continue doing the needful like wearing face masks in public, keeping physical distance intact, conducting body tests when required. Although there exists no direct and simple solution to the pandemic yet and there never may be. WHO Director General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, stated that it will be helpful if more vaccines could be created, so as to help prevent people from getting infected with the virus. At the moment, stopping outbreaks is now contingent upon foundation of public health and control of diseases, all has to be done, he said. Since its outbreak in Wuhan, China, a tally coming from official sources gathered by AFP, explained that the novel coronavirus has killed about 690,000 people, and at the same time, about 18.1million persons have been infected since December last year. Director Tedros said that the United Nations health agency before now sent an epidemiologist on July 10 to Beijing to take a progressive step into the planned enquiry of how the virus made its way into humans. The assembled team from WHO, has gone and have completed their proposed mission of laying foundation for further investigation into identifying the Genesis of the virus, he stated. WHO and Chinese professionals has compiled the reference to be used in the study and programme of how they are going to work, stating also that evidences and theory gotten from the work will do a lot to help further studies that will be conducted in future. Chinese officials however stated that the virus came out from a market in the city, where live and wild animals are bought from. A brief fire outbreak at one of Russian multi-metal miner Nornickels Arctic power plants resulted in one worker's death, the company said on Monday August 3. Fastmarkets understands that the fire, caused by a short circuit, was confined to 6 square meters and was extinguished quickly, having no material impact on production at the plant. The fire is the latest in a line of incidents at the companys facilities. The company is currently contesting a $2.1 billion fine, the largest in Russias history, for a 21,000-tonne fuel spill into Arctic waterways in Siberia on May 29. The spill was the first of three environmental incidents to befall the miner. The company reported the overflow of clarified industrial water at its Talnahk concentrator in Siberia on June 28 while another subsidiary, Norilsk-Transgaz in Krasnoyarsk, suffered a second fuel spill on July 12. Major shareholder Russian aluminium producer UC Rusal, which holds a 27.82% stake in the company, subsequently made a public call for new Nornickel leadership in a press release on July 14. The statement called into question the competence of Nornickels management and suggested the company move its headquarters to Siberia to better handle operations there. As a result, Nornickel has announced multiple personnel changes at the corporate level and the introduction of a standalone environmental department but did not go so far as to fuel the relocation of its headquarters to Norilsk itself. The miner has already invested an estimated $150 million in clean-up costs for the first fuel spill, 90% of which has been retrieved from Arctic waters, according to Nornickel. The company made a further announcement on June 19 that it would invest $193 million to improve safety across its plants over an 18-month period. With a menu spanning more than 60 Mexican and Tex-Mex dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner, Agave Azul has opened in Tobin Hill at the longtime home of Saigon Express on McCullough Avenue. Co-owner Paola Roldan said she opened Agave Azul to honor her father and co-owner, Ismael J. Roldan, whos been in the restaurant business for more than 40 years. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Reuters) Geneva, Switzerland/Brussels, Belgium Mon, August 3, 2020 15:30 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b2f396 2 Business WTO,leadership,leader,Trade,global-trade Free Eight candidates from Mexico to Moldova are bidding to become the next director-general of the World Trade Organization to replace Roberto Azevedo, who steps down at the end of August. Challenges The next chief would broker international trade talks in the face of widening US-China conflict, protectionism increased by the COVID-19 pandemic and pressure to reform trade rules. US President Donald Trump's "America First" policies have upended the global trading order and presented an existential threat to the WTO. Trump has called the institution "broken" and "horrible". Washington has blocked appointments to the WTO's Appellate Body that settles trade disputes, which now no longer has the minimum number of judges to convene. How the director-general is chosen The candidates have been given two months to campaign until September 7. Normally this would involve trips to national capitals, but with the pandemic much of that is being done in a virtual format. The next phase involves whittling down the field, initially to five then two, before a final decision is taken. The WTO is a members-driven organization with decisions reached by consensus among 164 countries. Three WTO ambassadors who chair leading committees will lead the process, seeking to establish which candidates have the widest support. In so-called "confessionals", members will tell this "troika" their preferences, without ranking them and without vetoes in a process expected to last two months. The first phase will be on Sept 7-16. Voting on the next director-general is seen only as a last resort if consensus cannot be reached. The process does not always work smoothly. In 1999, former New Zealand prime minister Mike Moore and Thailand's Supachai Panitchpakdi divided WTO members, with a compromise finally found to give each a term, shortened to three years from four. Azevedo's term will finish before his replacement takes office, but WTO members failed to agree on a temporary caretaker director-general, meaning the four deputies will stay on in their current roles. More soft than hard power The Marrakesh Agreement that established the WTO in 1995 does not give a detailed description of the director-general role. The responsibilities should be "exclusively international in character". The incoming chief would be expected to appoint four new deputies, present budget proposals, and chair the trade negotiations committee which oversees multilateral accords such as on fishing subsidies. The director-general can also intervene in trade disputes, in very rare cases offering mediation, more often by appointing people to adjudicating panels when parties cannot agree. Otherwise, the director-general does not forge global trade policy, but is meant to act as a neutral broker: part administrator, part peacemaker. (Photo : Handout via REUTERS) Graham Ivan Clark, 17, poses for a booking photo at Hillsborough County Jail in Tampa, Florida, U.S. July 31, 2020. Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office (Photo : REUTERS/Thomas White) The Twitter application is seen on a phone screen August 3, 2017 The July 15 massive Twitter hack now has primary suspects behind the hacking incident. Three suspects were arrested, with ages 17 up to 22 years old. One British national and two Americans. Investigators now file a report to extradite the suspect in order to be detained in the United States, wherein Twitter was founded. Who's the 'mastermind' behind the Twitter Hack? The U.S. Department of Justice finally released the profiles of the suspects behind the massive Twitter hack that happened on July 15. Al Jazeera reported that two teenagers and one 22-year-old British guys were charged with the hacking of more than 100 Twitter accounts including the popular ones like tech billionaires Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and Jeff Bezos; Hollywood personalities husband and wife, Kanye and Kim Kardashian-West; and well-known politicians like Presidential candidate Joe Biden and former U.S President Barack Obama. The names of the suspects are Mason Sheppard, 19--which was from the U.K., Nima Fazeli, 22, from Florida and the so-called mastermind of the Twitter hack named Graham Ivan Clark, 17. Clark, which was called to be the mastermind, behind the hacking was arrested on 30 charges. The cases against them may detain them up to 45 years in prison. The 17-year-old hacker is now under state custody. Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren said that the Florida laws see Clark as an adult, thus, enabling the state to prosecute him under state rather than the federal law. How did the hack start? Two days after the attack, the New York Times exclusively made a report, explaining how the young hackers were able to breach inside the 'secured' Twitter system. It was also the first time that the speculations about Russian hackers were debunked. "The interviews indicate that the attack was not the work of a single country like Russia or a sophisticated group of hackers. Instead, it was done by a group of young people - one of whom says he lives at home with his mother," said on New York Times. As reported via Daily Mail UK, though Clark was the mastermind. His friends like Sheppard and Fazeli also shared the same crime. Sheppard who is 19 years old will be charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and the intentional access of a protected computer. Meanwhile, Fazeli will be charged with aiding and abetting the intentional access of a protected computer. Investigation reveals that they only use a phone to send fake emails unto the Twitter employees. The Florida investigators strongly said that they will not let go of the case as "This was a massive fraud orchestrated right here in our own backyard, and we won't stand for that." The young teens claimed nearly $100,000 due to the hacking. Which means the case may get worse soon. This article is owned by Tech Times. Visit other websites here at: www.techtimes.com Written by: Jamie Pancho 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Kanye West, Caitlyn Jenner Transgender, Caitlyn Jenner has spoken out about Kanye West following his recent Twitter meltdown and Presidential bid. Appearing on Mondays episode of Good Morning Britain, Caitlyn admitted she has not seen or spoken to the rapper for some time since hes now based in Wyoming, but insisted he has always been a kind and loving human being. When asked her about Kanyes bid to become President, Caitlyn said: Honestly, I dont know. Since all of this has come down, Ive kind of just watched it go down. Hes living in Wyoming. Well, honestly I dont know. Since all of this has come down, I have just kind of watched it just like everybody else. I havent had a chance [to speak to him], he is living up in Wyoming most of the time, Caitlyn, speaking from her Malibu home, explained. Reacting to speculation that she could be Kanyes VP on the presidential ticket, the 70-year-old said it was a joke. She said: So, I just wish him the best. I made that as a joke about being his VP when he announced that. But I hope for the best for him. Hes a really good guy. The only thing I can talk about is really how he treated me through everything and he has been the most kind, loving human being and so good to me throughout the years and especially going through everything Ive been going through in the last five years. Hes been such a good friend. She added He has been extremely supportive. Kanye has got a big heart hes a good person. Caitlyns comments come a day after Kanye, 43, was seen on the tarmac at a local airport in Cody, Wyoming on Sunday, boarding a private jet with son Saint, four. The Billionaire rapper made headlines after his presidential campaign rally on July 19th in which he broke down in tears as he revealed how he encouraged Kim to abort their first child, North. West also took to Twitter rant in a series of Tweets, denouncing both his wife and his mother-in-law Kris Jenner. In one tweet, Kanye said he had been planning to divorce Kim after he met with rapper Meek Mill for Prison reform. On July 27, the couple reunited after the reality star flew down to Wyoming for marriage crisis talks with the troubled rapper over his behavior. The Shiv Sena has contributed Rs 1 crore for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya ahead of the bhoomi pujan scheduled for August 5 as announced by Maharashtra Chief Minister and the party president Uddhav Thackeray earlier this year, the party said on Monday. The amount was transferred to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trusts bank account via real-time gross settlement (RTGS) on July 27, the Sena said on Twitter. It also shared the July 27 letter written by Thackeray to the chairman of the Trust, saying the said amount had been transferred that day. The Senas clarification came amidst reports quoting Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, chairman of the trust, as saying that no money was received from the saffron party as promised. Thackeray had announced the monetary contribution on March 7 this year during his visit to Ayodhya to commemorate 100 days in office as the chief minister. I had during my Ayodhya tour resolved to contribute Rs 1 crore on behalf of the Shiv Sena. This amount has been transferred via RTGS to Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trusts bank account in Ayodhya on July 27, Thackeray said in the letter. Hailing the upcoming ground-breaking ceremony, Thackeray stated crores of Hindus across the world have been waiting for this historic moment for years. Earlier in the day, Sena MP Sanjay Raut hinted that Thackeray may not visit Ayodhya owing to the serious Covid-19 situation in the Uttar Pradesh town. An Atlanta-bound Delta flight returned to its gate after two passengers refused to wear masks which is against the airlines policy since the COVID-19 pandemic started. In an email to People, the airline stated that one of its aircraft returned to the gate due to a couple of customers allegedly refusing to wear masks when instructed by the crew. Delta announced its requirement for passengers to wear face masks on its flights from July 20 due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, passengers with health conditions or disabilities that prevent them from wearing a mask will be asked to complete a medical consultation by phone from the airport. The consultation is with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Centers service STAT-MD, which is Deltas medical support contractor. It is not clear if the two passengers were removed but the aircraft left after a short delay, according to Delta. Delta customers and employees are required to wear a face mask, states Deltas website. Or appropriate cloth face covering over their nose and mouth throughout their travel, aligning with best practice guidelines from the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]. The airlines CEO, Ed Bastian, has been looking to improve the safety of flying during the crisis since March when he released a statement on the companys website stating the importance of health and safety during the pandemic. It is safe to travel, but always make sure you are taking the necessary steps to ensure your health and that of our customers and our people. The CDC has important guidelines available, so please follow all necessary precautions. Bastian said to People that his airline has banned over 100 people because they refused to wear a mask "You cannot board a Delta plane unless you have a mask on,'' said Bastian in an interview with Today. "If you board the plane and you insist on not wearing your mask, we will insist that you don't fly Delta into the future." Delta said that it is doubling down on safety commitments ensuring customers wear their masks as required We are making sure customers are aware of and acknowledge this requirement by adding even more digital notifications, signage and announcements starting before you leave home and across your journey with us, the statement said. Chicago-based United Airlines also said passengers not heeding the mask requirement will lose their travel privileges on the carrier for a duration of time to be determined pending a comprehensive incident review. The United Airlines policy took effect on June 17. Every reputable health institution says wearing a mask is one of the most effective things people can do to protect others from contracting COVID-19, especially in places like an aircraft where social distancing is a challenge, said Uniteds Chief Customer Officer Toby Enqvist. We have been requiring our customers to wear masks onboard United aircraft since May 4 and we have been pleased that the overwhelming majority of passengers readily comply with our policy. MADRID, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- ACON Investments, L.L.C. and its affiliates ("ACON") have completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Sola de Antequera S.A. ("Alsur" or the "Company"). Alsur is a producer, processor and distributor of premium preserved and canned vegetables in Spain and the United States under the "Alsur" brand and private label brands in partnership with some of the largest retailers in each country. Founded in Spain by the Jimenez Family of Antequera in 1988, the Company subsequently developed production and processing capabilities in Peru to serve the U.S. market. Alsur has longstanding relationships with top retailers and wholesalers across Spain and the U.S., with revenues divided equally between the two regions. The Company's production and packaging facilities are located in Antequera (Spain), Arequipa (Peru) and Cusco (Peru). This transaction will integrate the various subsidiaries of the Company, which previously operated independently, into one multinational holding company. The Jimenez Family, together with Mario Mustafa Aguinaga, the Companys business partner in Peru, will retain a significant minority stake in Alsur. The future strategy of the Company will focus on expanding its geographic footprint within Spain and at the same time continuing to drive sales into the U.S., where demand has continued to grow over the recent years. In Spain, the Company has an extensive product portfolio led by baby broad beans, artichokes, asparagus and peppers, all sold in various formats. In Peru, Alsur is one of the leading exporters of artichokes with an opportunity to develop new product lines using its existing land bank and processing facilities. The Company's strategy will be led by Jorge Manas Avisbal, CEO, who joined the Company in connection with ACONs acquisition. Prior to joining Alsur, Mr. Manas spent 15 years as the Commercial Director of the Angel Camacho Group, one of Spains largest exporters of canned olives and fruit jams (La Vieja Fabrica). Previously, Mr. Manas held several key positions at Danone, Faccsa Group (branded meat) and Grupo Muela (olive oil). Mr. Manas has extensive experience throughout the branded foods value chain including product sourcing, brand development, distribution and sales, both domestic and export. Mr. Manas highlights, "Mr. Jose Jimenez and his family have built a legacy on very solid foundations that include the sourcing of premium high-quality products, a strong brand and long-standing relationships with loyal customers; all of which we intend to expand and enhance. I am very excited about joining Alsur and its shareholders to lead this Company." Mr. Marcos Semmler, Managing Partner of ACON Southern Europe, commented, "We are looking forward to working closely with Jorge Manas, Mario Mustafa and the Jimenez Family to further expand Alsur's value proposition of high-quality, innovative and easy-to-serve vegetable products for consumption in households across Europe and the United States, which are increasingly focused on healthy living." Consistent with ACON's strategy of investing in medium-sized businesses in the United States, Latin America and Europe, this will be the fourth investment that has leveraged its presence in Madrid. ACON's Madrid-based team is managing and has deployed over 140 million since 2018. Other ACON portfolio companies in Spain include Contenur, a manufacturer of large format containers for the waste management industry, and Germaine de Capuccini, a leading cosmetics brand that exports to 80 countries. As part of this transaction, ACON has partnered with Quarza Inversiones, a Madrid-based private investment vehicle. Greenhill & Co. acted as the buy-side advisor. Hogan Lovells acted as legal counsel to ACON. The shareholders of Alsur were exclusively advised by BBVA as M&A advisor, KPMG and Cuatrecasas, as legal counsel. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. About the Equity Sponsor ACON Investments, L.L.C. is a Washington, DC-based international private equity investment firm that manages private equity funds and special purpose partnerships that make investments in the United States, Latin America and Europe. Founded in 1996, ACON has responsibility for managing approximately $5.6 billion of capital. ACON has professionals in Washington, DC, Mexico City, Sao Paulo and Bogota. For more information, visit www.aconinvestments.com. Contacts Marcos Semmler ACON Investments, L.L.C. +34 629 183 763 Midhat Pawlak ACON Investments, L.L.C. +1 (202) 386-9767 SOURCE ACON Investments, L.L.C. Related Links http://www.aconinvestments.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Mardika Parama (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 14:07 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b2c445 1 Business Bank-Rakyat-Indonesia,MSME,loan-disbursement,loan-restructure,PEN-pemulihan-ekonomi-nasional,COVID-19 Free State-owned Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) has restructured 2.88 million loans to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) worth Rp 179.17 trillion (US$12.35 billion), a bank executive has said. BRI president director Sunarso said on July 29 that the company had also granted Rp 24 trillion in loans to MSMEs that had been greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The loans were disbursed to 565,000 MSMEs and sourced from the governments national economic recovery (PEN) fund. The government placed a total of Rp 30 trillion into the Association of State-Owned Banks (Himbara) on June 24, of which BRI received Rp 10 trillion. Our goal is to leverage Rp 30 trillion in loans over three months to boost the economic strength of MSMEs and keep our economic engine running, Sunarso said in a statement. Small and medium enterprises, which provide more than half of the countrys gross domestic product (GDP), have been hit severely by the pandemic as Indonesias economic growth slowed to 2.97 percent in the first quarter of 2020. The government has allocated Rp 123.46 trillion of the total Rp 695.2 trillion in COVID-19 response funding to aid small businesses and cooperatives during the ongoing global health crisis. It previously channeled Rp 11.84 trillion of the programs budget to MSMEs in the form of debt restructuring funds, investment funds for cooperatives through the Revolving Fund Management Agency (LPDB) and microcredit program (KUR) interest subsidies. Of the Rp 24 trillion in loans disbursed by BRI, Rp 18 trillion has been channeled to micro-businesses while Rp 4.8 trillion has been given to small businesses, according to the banks micro-business division head, Made Antara Jaya, on July 30. We are providing additional capital to MSMEs, which have been affected by the pandemic but are still financially resilient, Made said. The state-owned bank has also provided an additional Rp 752.2 billion in interest subsidies to 5.2 million KUR and non-KUR accounts. State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) deputy minister Kartika Tiko Wirjoatmodjo previously said that state-owned banks had collectively disbursed Rp 43.5 trillion in working capital loans from the fund provided by the government. The figure was 145 percent of the total Rp 30 trillion provided by the government in June, which was intended to be channeled into loans to shield businesses from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Finance Minister Sri Mulyani recently said the government was working on a plan to transfer working capital directly to MSMEs that had yet to receive access to financing from banks. The government has also disbursed credit insurance premiums worth Rp 5 trillion to state-owned credit insurers PT Jaminan Kredit Indonesia (Jamkrindo) and PT Asuransi Kredit Indonesia (Askrindo) to guarantee working capital loans of Rp 100 trillion and help MSMEs survive the pandemic. Kashmir: The BSF on Wednesday said that the terrorists who had infiltrated in Ramgarh area of Samba near the International Border on Tuesday entered through a small tunnel in the border area. Infiltration happened through a small tunnel in border area, as of now no technology to detect tunnel, BSF DG KK Sharma was quoted as saying by ANI. In ensuing ceasefire violations after surgical strikes, over 15 Pak rangers killed, over 10 terrorists neutralised. We have made a concerted effort to modernise our border fences, he added. Three terrorists were gunned down by BSF in Samba on Tuesday after an encounter that lasted several hours and was followed by intense cross-border firing by Pakistani troops. Four security personnel, including BSF DIG, were injured in this incident. ALSO READ | Samba Infiltration bid: BSF DIG among 4 injured in IED blast Here is what all BSF DG KK Sharma said: #We will take up the Samba infiltration bid and tunnel issue with our Pakistani counterparts #We are making efforts to fill the unfenced gaps using technology #A part of Bangladesh border is unfenced including water bodies so humanly not possible for me to put manpower in such areas #Introduced 45 min Yoga session for our Jawans, supervised by Baba Ramdev,average weight of Jawans is now coming down WATCH Video | Nagrota terror attack: Army releases list of martyrs #Post surgical strikes, we started op called Operation Rustom as we anticipated problems wont be confined to LoC,will affect IB too #Our jawans are attached with cashless schemes and their families also #In ensuing ceasefire violations after surgical strikes, over 15 Pak rangers killed, over 10 terrorists neutralised #Since surgical strikes, more than 15 Pak rangers killed and more than 10 militants neutralised,many Pak border outposts destroyed #Infiltration happened through a small tunnel in border area,as of now no technology to detect tunnel #We have made a concerted effort to modernise our border fences For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. A farm worker, 40, who was feared to have been murdered five years ago has been found alive living in Cambridgeshire woods, it was revealed today. Ricardas Puisys, who is from Lithuania, made what police described as a 'very well concealed' home for himself in deep undergrowth off a residential street in Wisbech. The 40-year-old had gone missing in September 2015 from his work at a leek farm 20 miles away in Chatteris with detectives fearing he had been murdered. Concerns for his safety had been raised the previous month when it was suggested he was being exploited, and a murder investigation was launched in November 2015. A 31-year-old man from Wisbech was arrested in December 2015 on suspicion of murder and taken into custody, but later released with no further action. Ricardas Puisys, 40, was discovered by police last month after going missing five years ago A tent in the woodland where Mr Puisys was found alive after being missing for five years. The 40-year-old had gone missing in September 2015 from his work at a leek farm Two areas of woods have been regularly used by Eastern Europeans living in in an array of tents and makeshift shelters in recent years. It is believed other men sleeping living rough in the two areas either did not know of his existence or were seemingly unaware that he was supposed to be dead. Residents of the street today spoke of their anger about rough sleepers and gangs of street drinkers congregating in the woods and causing a nuisance. One group who had lived in woodland owned by the National Trust were successfully evicted last year, leaving behind piles of of debris which had to be cleaned up by council workers. Concerns for him had first been raised in August 2015 when a local resident told police they suspected he was being exploited and was being forced to move between addresses within Wisbech. Police spoke to Mr Puisys at his home but he told them he was fine. He was known to have left work at the Nightlayer Leek Company in Chatteris on September 26, 2015 and then joined a group of Lithuanian men in the evening. The alarm was raised when he failed to turn up for a shift two days later and his identification badge was found in a park. Cambridgeshire Police finally discovered Mr Puisys living in the woods off Harecroft Road on July 1, but delayed announcing that he had been found until today so they could ensure he was in a place of safety. They announced today that they believe he had effectively been a victim of 'modern slavery'. He was found by police in a location in woods nearby a cluster of houses in Wisbech (above) Keith Dorman, 59, who lives in Harecroft Road said he had battled to get one group of campers evicted last year from the National Trust woods opposite his bungalow. He said: 'It was awful when they were here and it took almost a whole year to get them kicked off. They were defecating in the woods and leaving all their rubbish piled up. 'Mothers used to walk through the woods with their children, but these guys would be exposing themselves and urinating. It was very unpleasant. 'They were living in tents and shelters, and chopping down the trees for firewood and building materials. They were p***ed most of the time. 'It started off as one or two of them, but the numbers grew. At one stage there was a dozen of them sitting around drinking together. It was like a party.' Mr Puisys had gone missing in September 2015 from his work at a food production company Evidence of a camping area in one of the two areas of woodland in Wisbech, which are both known to have been used by rough sleepers and street drinkers He added: 'I followed one guy who was staggering to a local shop to buy booze and he fell over three times on the way. 'I told the shopkeeper that he should not be serving someone in that state and he replied that he would be threatened if he refused to sell them alcohol.' 'I got in touch with the police first, but they said they couldn't do anything because they were not committing an offence. 'Then I got in touch with Fenland Council and a local councillor, but they could not do much because the land was owned by the National Trust. 'The councillor told me they were all in work, but I said that was irrelevant. He also said that they had been offered alternative accommodation, but didn't want it as they were happy living rent free.' A photograph of a much younger Mr Puisys issued by Cambridgeshire Police around the time of his disappearance in 2015 Mr Dorman also said he phoned the National Trust 'four or five times' and was initially told it would be 'too expensive to do anything about' but carried on pursuing them, before 'getting through to someone in authority' who told him they were in the process of getting a court order. 'Finally the police arrived mob handed and they were all booted off. Three vans from Fenland Council turned up the next day and they sent over a day cleaning up all the mess. 'There were old beds, sleeping bags, empty food containers, bottles and cans and all kinds of rubbish.' Mr Dorman said he had seen men living rough in the second area of woods in the road, and even sleeping under a tarpaulin stretched over a ditch on the side of the road. He said: 'It is common to see these sights in Wisbech. There is hardly any area of woods or common land in the town were people have not been rough sleeping. 'Others have tried to return to the woods since the eviction last year. I found one guy there and I made it plain to him that he had to leave, and he went off somewhere else.' Another resident who asked not to be named added: 'It was a real problem last year. People living in the woods were causing a nuisance, particularly with the stench from their camp fires. 'They were all working because I was told that they would be picked up vans each day and taken to jobs. But they preferred living rough so they did not have to pay rent and had more money to spend on drink.' A general view of Harecroft Road in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire. Mr Puisys was discovered by police in a 'very well concealed' location in woods nearby a cluster of houses Mr Puisys worked at Nightlayer Leek Company in Chatteris, Cambridgeshire, on September 26, 2015 and this was the last confirmed and corroborated sighting of him alive and well A general view of Harecroft Road in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire. Officers said they decided not to publicly announce that had found him alive until today to protect him At the time he went missing, Mr Puisys did not have a car or close family in the UK and spoke little English. He was still presumed dead in August 2018 when a Facebook profile was found with his name, picture and 69 friends, all of whom were his friends and relatives. Investigations found a phone number linked to the account but detectives could not trace the owner, and police discovered the page was being managed from Wisbech. Detective Chief Inspector Rob Hall said today: 'For almost five years Ricardas' disappearance has been a complete mystery. That was until we received information at the end of June which led us to finding him. Mr Hall said there had been 'genuine concerns' that he had come to harm on the evening he was last seen. A general view of Harecroft Road in Wisbech. Keith Dorman, 59, who lives on the road said he had battled to get one group of campers evicted last year from the National Trust woods Wisbech in Cambridgeshire. Concerns for Mr Puisys had first been raised in August 2015 when a local resident told police they suspected he was being exploited Harecroft Road in Wisbech. Police said an investigation into potential exploitation had been launched and a team of detectives were now working their way through various inquiries Mr Hall went on: 'He did not return to work on September 28, 2015 as expected, but we now believe Ricardas made the decision to run away as he had been a victim of crime, having previously been subject to exploitation. 'A team of investigators worked tirelessly following up a number of inquiries, none leading to the discovery of Ricardas. That was until we received information that Ricardas may have been alive and still in the Wisbech area. 'Following a search of wooded area in Harecroft Road, Ricardas was eventually found living in undergrowth, very well concealed after having deliberately hidden and having not spoken with anyone for some time.' Officers said they decided not to publicly announce that had found him alive until today to protect him and put safeguarding measures in place. Mr Hall added: 'He is safe and we are working very closely with him to ensure he remains safe, but also to ensure he gets the support he needs after having lived through extremely difficult circumstances during the last five or more years.' Police said an investigation into potential exploitation had been launched and a team of detectives were now working their way through various inquiries. Students read their school work in Arlene Lebowitz's third-grade class during summer school July 2, 2003 in Chicago, Illinois. Tim Boyle/Getty Images Community leaders in Illinois called for history classes in state schools to stop until a " suitable alternative" is established to represent minority groups in the curriculum. Democratic State Representative LaShawn K. Ford said "current history teachings lead to a racist society and overlook the contributions of women and minorities," according to NBC Chicago. The state representative is calling for schools to discard history books "that unfairly communicate our history." Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. Local officials and community leaders in Illinois called to cease history classes in state schools until new methods are developed to highlight marginalized groups. In a Sunday news conference in Evanston, Illinois, Democratic State Representative LaShawn K. Ford said "current history teachings lead to a racist society and overlook the contributions of women and minorities," according to NBC Chicago. "It costs us as a society in the long run forever when we don't understand our brothers and sisters that we live, work, and play with," Ford said. Ford is sponsoring a bill that promotes the teaching of Black history including the civil rights movement and pre-enslavement history in every public elementary and high school. First submitted in February, the text of the bill proposes implementing a curriculum that will help students grasp the social, cultural, political and economic events and contributions in Black history that would "constitute an affirmation by students of their commitment to respect the dignity of all races and peoples and of forever eschew every form of discrimination in their lives and careers." In a press release received by the outlet before Sunday's event, the state representative called for the "abolishment of history classes" and demanded that the Illinois State Board of Education "take immediate action by removing current history books and curriculum practices that unfairly communicate our history" until "appropriate alternatives are developed." Story continues Ford said that until an inclusive alternative is established, the schools should shift their focus on teaching students civics and democratic processes. Evanston's mayor, Steve Hagerty, didn't back the abolishment of history classes but said schools should focus on the history of minority groups. "As Mayor, I am not comfortable speaking on education, curriculum, and whether history lessons should be suspended. This is not my area," he said in the press release. "Personally, I support House Bill 4954 because I am interested in learning more and believe the history of Black people should be taught to all children and include all groups, Women, LatinX, and Native Indians who helped to build America." Evanston activist, Meleika Gardner, shared Ford's concerns. Gardner is a board member of WE WILL, a non-profit organization that aids community members, especially women and children, to get active in local legislation. "The miseducation of our children must stop," she said in the press release."It is urgent that it comes to an end as we witness our current climate become more hostile. Miseducation has fed and continues to feed systemic racism for generations. If Black History continues to be devalued and taught incorrectly, then it will call for further action," she said. In a Facebook post, Gardner thanked Mayor Hagerty for his support for the proposed changes in the school system. "Thank you, Mayor Steve Hagerty for supporting Bill Hb4954 and your words yesterday in regards to the true history of Black being taught to all children to help end systemic racism," she said. Gardner told Insider that Black children being taught their history in school and learning about their contributions to areas such as technology, medicine, and architecture would give them a sense of self-worth. Additionally, Gardner argued that the new curriculum would promote better relations amongst all children, not only Black students. "It would just start to chip away at that systematic racism because people would be more educated about who everybody is and where they come from," she said. Expanded Coverage Module: black-lives-matter-module Read the original article on Insider Dr Stephen Hagan, who succeeded in having the Coon cheese brand scrapped, now wants Pauls to rename its Smarter White milk An indigenous rights activist who succeeded in having the Coon cheese brand scrapped wants Pauls to consider renaming its 'Smarter White' milk. In July, Dr Stephen Hagan convinced Canadian dairy giant Saputo to axe an 85-year-old moniker, named after American cheese ripening pioneer Edward William Coon, because of its racist connotations. The former diplomat and academic, who now works as a social justice consultant, has suggested Pauls's French parent company Lactalis consider replacing the 'Smarter White' label, which has been used to sell low-fat milk since 2002. 'Aboriginal people are saying that there's an inference that it's for smart, white people, not for smart, black people,' Dr Hagan told Daily Mail Australia. 'There's a lot of Aboriginal people who take offence, who don't drink that milk because of the interference that it's 'smarter white'.' Dr Hagan said 'these enlightened times' of the Black Lives Matter movement meant a name change was 'worthy of consideration'. Dr Hagan said the Smarter White brand, which dates back to 2002, was offensive to Aboriginal people because it implied white people were more intelligent The soy milk drinker said lots of Aboriginal people had raised the matter with him. 'I recall having conversations with people who don't buy that because of the connotation 'white people are smart',' he said. 'A lot of people have raised it with me: they asked the question about the Smarter White milk - 'Why couldn't it just be Smarter Milk? Why does it need to put the 'white' in there?' 'If enough people want to bring it to my attention, I'm happy to write a letter to the owners of Pauls and say, 'Look, will you consider changing the name?'.' Pauls's French owner Lactalis declined to comment. 'Unfortunately we're unable to make any further comment,' a spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia. Dr Hagan last month convinced Canadian dairy giant Saputo to axe an 85-year-old moniker, named after American cheese ripening pioneer Edward William Coon, because of its racist connotations Indigenous Alice Springs town councillor Jacinta Price described the call to rename Smarter White milk as 'utter nonsense' Indigenous Alice Springs town councillor Jacinta Price described the call to rename Smarter White milk as 'utter nonsense'. 'I don't know a single Indigenous Australian who is offended at all by milk being called 'Smarter White',' she told Daily Mail Australia. 'Indigenous Australian have far greater issues to be concerned with than the name of a brand of cheese named after its founder or what's written on a carton of milk.' Ms Price, who ran as a Country Liberal Party candidate at last year's federal election, said affluent activists 'whose lives are easy' were inventing issues to feel like victims instead of addressing family violence and sexual abuse in Aboriginal communities. 'I'd advise anyone who chooses to be offended by such a ridiculous proposition to assess their priorities,' she said. 'The victim mentality is unhealthy and completely unhelpful in attempting to address the real issues.' Peter Russell-Clarke, a former ABC-TV chef who fronted Coon commercials during the early 1990s, slammed Saputo's decision last month to kill off the cheese name that debuted in 1935 under Kraft and the Fred Walker food company New South Wales One Nation leader Mark Latham described the campaign as idiotic and pondered as to whether cows would have to be killed for producing white milk. Hours earlier, New South Wales One Nation leader Mark Latham has posted an image of a popular Pauls diary product to make a dig at left-wing cancel culture activists 'Kill all the cows for producing white milk? When he invents black milk he'll be smarter too.' Hours earlier, Mr Latham has posted an image of a popular Pauls diary product to take a dig at left-wing, cancel culture activists. 'Surprised the mob haven't cancelled my favourite milk,' he said on Facebook. 'Evidence of the inconsistencies and hypocrisy of cancel culture where evil snowflakes randomly select their next victim.' Mr Latham, a former federal Labor leader, isn't the only critic of corporate political correctness. Peter Russell-Clarke, a former ABC-TV chef who fronted Coon commercials during the early 1990s, last month slammed Saputo's decision to kill off the cheese name that debuted in 1935 under Kraft and the Fred Walker food company. 'I think it's ridiculous,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'Are we going to change the name of the raccoon, do you think? 'Should we cut off the beaks of cockatoos to make sure the black beaks aren't offensive to the white of the cockatoo?' Russell-Clarke said Coon's owners should be more concerned about maintaining the quality of their cheese than ditching an 85-year-old name to 'suit the whim of the time'. The 84-year-old former host of ABC-TV's 1980s Come and Get It program has a grandson of African heritage and said ditching the Coon cheese brand would do nothing to address racism. JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- GuideWell Connect, an innovative marketing, sales and consumer-engagement company in the health care industry, earned one gold and two bronze Stevie awards in The 18th Annual American Business Awards competition for developing live branded events for the leading health insurer in Florida. The Stevie Awards are the world's premier business awards. They were created in 2002 to honor and generate public recognition of the achievements and positive contributions of organizations and working professionals worldwide. "These awards are a result of relentless teamwork within GuideWell Connect and a strong relationship and understanding of our health insurance partner," said Rafael Vasquez, vice president of channels for GuideWell Connect. "They demonstrate that our consumer engagement experiences are first-class within the industry. We are grateful to receive this recognition and I couldn't be prouder of our team." GuideWell Connect won the awards for the following three events: Branded Utility of the Year GuideWell Connect was named a gold level winner for developing the Blue For You (BFY) interactive experience; a mobile center that enables the health insurer to bring services and care to communities in need that don't have a local center within a 10-mile radius. BFY is a full-service mobile center that offers sales, service, care education, health screenings and vaccinations. The Blue for You health expos launched during the Open Enrollment Period and traveled to five events across Florida, engaging with over 22,000 people in local communities. Branded Experience of the Year Consumer GuideWell Connect was named a bronze level winner for developing the Bolts and Blue Faceoff Against Hunger events to address food insecurity, a social driver of health and a key focus area for the insurer's corporate social responsibility initiatives. Through a long-standing partnership between the health care company, Tampa Bay Lightning and Feeding Tampa Bay, the three organizations provided tools and products to help Tampa Bay residents prepare healthy meals. In between cooking demonstrations guests played interactive games, indulged in healthy snacks, had their faces painted, received no cost flu shots and health screenings and spoke with a representative regarding their SNAP (food stamp) benefits. Participants also received recipe cards, ingredients and cooking supplies to bring home to prepare their own healthy meals. The events were held in the University and Sulphur Springs communitiestwo underserved areas in Tampa Bay. Engaged Community of the Year One year after Hurricane Michael made landfall in Florida's Panhandle as a Category 5 storm, GuideWell Connect's client commemorated the day by helping the community of Lynn Haven remember what they had been through and celebrate how far they had come. The state's leading health insurer, which made an initial investment of $500,000 to support immediate relief and recovery efforts following the storm, offered free health screenings, zero cost flu shots and local resource support. The Lynn Haven One Year After Hurricane Michael event also included several art projects and interactive exercises focused on mental health support. More than 5,000 people attended the event. GuideWell Connect also produced a video interview with a longtime resident of Lynn Haven who was a prime example of resilience. In the video, a local resident explained that he was unable to get his medication at the local pharmacy, which was destroyed by the storm, and unable to use his medical equipment because he had lost electricity. In response his health insurance company stepped in to help him get access to the care he needed. GuideWell Connect received a bronze award for this event. The STEVIE awards will be presented during a virtual awards ceremony on Wednesday, August 5 at 2pm ET. About GuideWell Connect A wholly owned subsidiary of the GuideWell Mutual Holding Corporation ("GuideWell"), GuideWell Connect is a leading marketing services company advancing consumerism in health care. The company provides clients with the support they need to connect with their customers through member engagement programs, database marketing, e-commerce, and retail strategies and capabilities. For more information visit www.GuideWellConnect.com. SOURCE GuideWell Russias Investigative Committee reports half-year results sledcom.ru 10:27 03/08/2020 Alexander Bastrykin, Chairman of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, shared information on the results of his department this year. He spoke about the most high-profile and significant investigations of recent times, about urgent problems and their solution by the investigating authorities. In an interview with Rossiyskaya Gazeta, the Investigative Committee's head Alexander Bastrykin spoke about new trends in the work of the investigation and summed up the interim results of the first six months of 2020. According to his data, 832,377 crimes were registered in five months of this year, which is 0.4% less than last year. 40,000 criminal cases were sent to the courts, in which 44,000 people were accused. At the same time, the number of cases referred to the court with a petition to impose a judicial fine on the accused increased by 17% we should note that this is direct evidence of the humanization of punishment. Violent crime has been significantly reduced. For instance, the number of murders decreased by 2.2% and the number of cases of deliberate infliction of grievous bodily harm, which resulted in the death of the victims, decreased by 7.6%. Special attention was paid to crime prevention. For 43,000 criminal cases, the reasons and conditions that led to the commission of crimes were established, and suggestions on their elimination were submitted. More than 14,000 officials were brought to disciplinary responsibility for them, Bastrykin said. During the same period, more than 3600 crimes from previous years were solved, including 399 murders, 263 crimes against sexual freedom and personal inviolability, which is especially important in connection with the new ethical demands of society. When investigating such crimes, we actively use unique expert technologies. Among them, DNA screening of the persons being checked, information and analytical studies of electronic databases of vehicles and mobile communication operators, he stated. The most dangerous crimes Among the most dangerous crimes combatted by investigators, Bastrykin singled out official powers abuse and corruption (including those in the country's defense-industrial complex), extremist crimes, and terrorism. In addition, the Investigative Committee is now paying more attention to the prompt suppression of criminal acts that violate the rights and interests of minors, the labor rights of citizens. At the same time, the Committee's chairperson named economic crimes among the most dangerous for the state at the moment. As an illustration of a serious threat to the Russian economy and society, which the investigators managed to uncover and suppress, Bastrykin mentioned illegal activity around PAO Togliattiazot (TOAZ). The Investigative Committee's head noted that at TOAZ for two decades, major thefts of the company's assets were carried out, and funds were withdrawn abroad, which posed a threat to economic activity. A systemically structured criminal community was identified that operated from 1997 to 2018. It comprised of the heads of the enterprise and other persons, including foreigners. Each group specialized in a licensed type of activity, be it banking, legal, registration or appraisal activities. All this helped to implement criminal schemes and significantly complicated the disclosure of crimes. At the moment, a number of cases are being investigated, for which a total damage of 50 billion rubles (over $680 million at the current exchange rate) has been identified; in addition, the fact of tax evasion in the amount of one billion rubles has been identified. The investigation identified the involvement of 15 people in these crimes, Bastrykin said. RAPSI covers this process in detail. Note that the investigation of a criminal case against the management and majority shareholders of TOAZ, one of the world's top ten ammonia producers, is one of the longest investigations of crimes in the economic sphere in Russia. The case was opened in December 2012. On July 5, 2019, co-owners of Togliattiazot Vladimir Makhlai and Sergey Makhlai, their Swiss partner Andreas Zivy, and other defendants were sentenced to 8-9 years in a general regime colony for fraud committed by an organized group on an especially large scale (Article 159.4 of the Criminal Code of Russia). Since the defendants are abroad, the verdict was passed in absentia. Prevention of damage to the state In his interview, Bastrykin said that the investigation seized the property of the accused, including the stolen assets of the enterprise, as well as money. For example, the investigation attached about 300 land plots in the Samara Region worth about a billion rubles owned by one of the defendants in the criminal case, said the head of the head of Russia's Investigative Committee. Why Bastrykin chose this case to illustrate the particular danger to state interests becomes clear if we recall just two episodes from the multivolume case. For example, in the period from 2009 to 2012, the Turkish company Yildiz Entegre Agac Sanaye Ve Tigaret A.S. alone purchased 11.5 tons of ammonia from Nitrochem at a price of $ 282 per ton, whereas TOAZ received $ 171 per ton of it from a Swiss intermediary. Thus, the trade margin amounted to over 64%, despite the fact that in the mineral fertilizers and chemicals industry it rarely exceeds 5.5% and is around 3% on average worldwide. This is just one example of a fraudulent scheme, by which Togliattiazot used to sell ammonia and urea at a reduced cost to foreign partners through the Zivys companies Ameropa and Nitrochem Distribution AG. The damage to the enterprise at that time was estimated at $550 million. It is also worth noting another, more obvious, fact of damage to the state inflicted by the Mahlais. According to the decisions of arbitration courts that entered into force, by understating the taxable base when conducting illegal transactions in the period from 2008 to 2012, the total amount of taxes unpaid by the enterprise amounted to 2.5 billion rubles. In addition to financial damage to the state, the TOAZ management tried to exert a corrupt influence on state institutions (which Bastrykin sees as one of the most dangerous crimes). The Investigative Committee's chair spoke about one of them in an interview. In 2015, the former head of the management board of Togliattikhimbank Alexander Popov attempted to bribe a judge of the Supreme Court through intermediaries in order to overturn the decision of the arbitration courts that had recognized the Tax Service's claims to TOAZ on tax arrears as legal. He followed Sergei Makhlais instructions. Popov's illegal actions were suppressed by law enforcement officers. He was charged with attempted bribe-giving in the amount of at least $1.2 million. In the near future, the materials of the criminal case will be forwarded to the accused and his defense lawyer for familiarization, Bastrykin said. Optimization of intradepartmental and international contacts One of the distinguishing features of the TOAZ trial is its duration, which may well become a record. Experts note that the defense chose the tactic of deliberate delaying of the process from the very beginning. In particular, the defendants lawyers constantly filed claims and motions, and shortly before the completion of the trial, one of the defenders suddenly demanded that about ten foreign citizens be summoned to court. It should be noted that the changes in the work of the investigating authorities that occurred over the previous six months could serve as a preventive measure to delay the investigation, if similar methods of influence were applied to it. Today, it is not a problem at all to organize online communication with foreign citizens. We are constantly improving our work and streamlining the management system. In a way, the coronavirus has encouraged us to use a more efficient meeting format. We hold weekly meetings with all heads of territorial investigative bodies using video conference calls. We also practice personal online communications with citizens, Bastrykin said. Thus, in recent months, the Investigative Committee has carried out many activities to digitize work, including simplification of online communication, which contributes to the improvement of the quality and efficiency of work. In the long term, such innovations can simplify and increase the efficiency of communication with foreign contacts. This task is extremely important due to the need to organize a joint investigation and extradition of the accused who have taken refuge abroad, as well as the return of their stolen property. There are many examples when we were able to bring back not only the defendants in criminal cases, such as Alexey Kuznetsov, but also to have them compensate the damage, Bastrykin noted in this regard. In addition, as an example, the official cited the investigation into the brothers Alexey and Dmitry Ananyevs. Those accused of embezzlement of more than 87 billion rubles ($1.2 billion at the current exchange rate) belonging to PJSC Promsvyazbank have withdrawn the funds entrusted to them from the country's financial turnover into Cypriot companies (more than 57.3 billion rubles and more than $500 million). At the moment, most of the accomplices of the Ananyevs bankers have been identified. Interpol of Russia is helping to resolve the issue of their extradition for criminal prosecution in our country. In cooperation with the Federal Security Bureau, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Rosfinmonitoring, the property of the Ananyevs brothers has been identified, which has already been arrested. Compensation of the damage caused to the injured party is currently more than 15% of the amount stolen, Bastrykin said. At the same time, the property of the defendants amounting to more than 10 billion rubles was found in foreign countries. Currently, the work is underway to organize its seizure. Totally, thanks to the work of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, in the first quarter of 2020 alone, it was possible to compensate more than 12 billion rubles to the state and the injured. The property of the accused worth of more than 10.5 billion rubles was arrested. Ninety-eight persons with a special legal status were brought to criminal responsibility, Bastrykin noted. In his new role, Nihiser aims to create deeper alignment between corporate's capabilities and the needs and expectations of Code Ninjas' franchisees. This undertaking will include optimizing multiple business features, such as: programmatic and curriculum development; onsite and virtual-learning opportunities; and training for operators at Code Ninjas' centers aptly named Dojos. By garnering franchisee insights, Nihiser believes it will help Code Ninjas reinforce its already strong support system and create a clearer path to Dojo success as the franchise enters its next growth phase. "My intent is to team up with owners to further drive student engagement and results while growing each and every center's economic opportunities," said Nihiser. "Strong success at individual Code Ninjas Dojos translates into a strong global franchise system, and we have an opportunity to gain essential insights from our franchisees. We will transform this feedback into action plans that promote even greater success for all franchise and corporate stakeholders." Prior to Code Ninjas, Nihiser was COO of Brain Balance Achievement Centers, where he developed a company-wide turnaround strategy that increased franchisee satisfaction, reorganized headquarters staff to improve training and operations support and successfully led initiatives to expand program offerings. Before that, Nihiser's journey in franchising began over a decade ago as a general manager of an individual School of Rock location. He climbed the ladder at School of Rock, moving into operations and development roles before becoming vice president of franchise operations. There, Nihiser was responsible for supporting the opening and operations of domestic and international locations systemwide. Nihiser is optimistic that his previous experience in the franchising space will help stimulate Code Ninjas' growth worldwide. "Code Ninjas has a substantial head start in the brick-and-mortar coding education space," said Nihiser. "With a system of determined and passionate franchise owners and corporate staff that believe ardently in Code Ninjas mission, our work will result in better problem-solving and critical thinking skills for the ninjas that enter our Dojos. Building these STEM-related skillsets at a young age equips Code Ninjas students with valuable tools to navigate today's increasingly tech-centric world." Code Ninjas teaches kids to code by building their own video games in an inspiring, creative, and safe environment. With a robust, nine-belt curriculum inspired by martial arts, Code Ninjas ensures kids have fun while parents see results. For more information about Code Ninjas or to learn more about franchising opportunities, please visit codeninjas.com. ABOUT CODE NINJAS Founded in 2016, Code Ninjas is the world's largest and fastest-growing coding franchise with hundreds of locations across the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. At Code Ninjas, kids learn to code while building their own video games. They gain problem-solving, critical-thinking and STEM skills in a fun, safe and inspiring environment. Kids have fun, parents see results. For more information, visit codeninjas.com. SOURCE Code Ninjas Related Links https://www.codeninjas.com The Ellembelle constituency Chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress, Alex Kwame Mahama says he will resign from his position if his party's incumbent Member of Parliament, Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah fails to obtain 70 percent of the votes in the upcoming parliamentary contest. The Chairman who was speaking to Citi News at Ampain in the constituency said Kofi Buahs performance has been remarkable. He cited the Ghana Gas and ENI plants, roads, employment and the numerous social intervention programmes the constituency has benefitted from as a few of the projects Kofi Buah has lobbied for the area which to him warrants another victor for the legislator. Honestly speaking, if we get anything less done 70 percent, I will resign as the Chairman of the party. Our target is 80 percent but if he goes less than 70 percent then I will put down my shoes and go away. This is because, without Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah, the Ghana Gas plant would have been moved to a different constituency. But through his effort as the Energy Minister, he managed to get Ghana Gas in Ellembelle. Again, it is through his effort that we got ENI and when you go around Ellembelle, it is only a few towns that you would not see a tarred road as about 80 percent of the town roads are seeing tarring. And he is still working on it. So there has been a total change since his election as compared to Freddie Blay who spent twelve years as MP in Ellembelle. The Ellembelle MP, Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah speaking to Citi News said he would win the elections on just comparing his last four years performance against the DCE, Kwasi Bonzoh, who is the NPP candidate. Ellembele MP, Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah If I'm comparing my last four years record with the previous one, thus 2012-2016 and to 2020, we have 18 schools in Ellembelle and many toilet facilities. But how many have we gotten in the last four years if you ask the communities? How many roads? All of a sudden with four months to election, all that our DCE and the NPP are doing here is cutting-sod. I'm sorry, it's is too late. It is not going to wash. All they are counting on is that the MP has been there for 12 years, so let's change him. However, the people of Ellembelle are saying that they have seen what goes on here. Thats how come anytime the NDC is in power we see a complete transformation? How come ENI which is the biggest investment ever in Ghana is in Ellembelle? What about, gas plant and all the roads you see and their impact on the people? We haven't finished the job, we still have a lot to do. The NPP Parliamentary candidate, Kwasi Bonzoh who has suffered two earlier defeats to Mr. Buah, believes his performance as a DCE has already convinced the constituents for a change this time. I have been a DCE for three years and he has been an MP for 12 years, so there is enough basis for comparison, and that is what the people are doing. The cry in the District is that whatever Buah couldn't do in 12 years, Bonzoh has been able to do it in three years. In the previous elections, I was only fighting to unseat an incumbent MP who was also a cabinet Minister. What is different in this election is that, in the last three years with my performance as a DCE for Ellembelle, everybody in the district attests to my capabilities. If you listen around, the only message is that it is time for a change in Ellembelle as they have seen that I'm ready to represent them as MP. You can talk about the massive infrastructure development that is going on in this district. In the last three years, there have been several demonstrations over poor roads that the previous regime left to deteriorate. The Essiama-Nkroful-Teleku-Bokazu road is been done. The 6.5 kilometre road that leads to Kwame Nkrumah's hometown, the first President of Ghana. For eight years the road was neglected to deteriorate and currently there is massive road works ongoing. We are fixing it into an asphaltic concrete. That is not the only road we are talking about, we are also talking about the 21-kilometre Asasetre-Akropong road to Gwira-Banso. This is a very significant road that serves a huge Cocoa growing area in our district which for two decades has not seen major rehabilitation. Incidentally, those are the areas where the MP was recording a lot of his votes, the DCE added. ---citinewsroom Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussexs decision to exit the royal family was a shock to many, but their need to escape the negative media scrutiny drove their search for a more private life. Was the risk of leaving everything behind worth it? One royal expert believes Prince Harry has become anxious since their exit. Prince Harry | Paul Edwards WPA Pool/Getty Images Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their surprising plan In January, Prince Harry and Meghan shared their plan to take a step back from their royal duties. The couple struggled with life in the spotlight and hoped to split their time between the UK and North America. Queen Elizabeth, however, while supporting their wishes, was not keen to provide a half-in/half-out option and approved their official exit for March 31. At the time, the queen released a statement, explaining, Following many months of conversations and more recent discussions, I am pleased that together we have found a constructive and supportive way forward for my grandson and his family. Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved members of my family. I recognise the challenges they have experienced as a result of intense scrutiny over the last two years and support their wish for a more independent life. The statement continued, I want to thank them for all their dedicated work across this country, the Commonwealth and beyond, and am particularly proud of how Meghan has so quickly become one of the family. It is my whole familys hope that todays agreement allows them to start building a happy and peaceful new life. RELATED: Queen Elizabeths Final Proposition About Prince Harry and Meghan Markles Exit Shocked the World and Was Ruthlessly Clear Prince Harry is reportedly anxious since their exit While Prince Harry remarked after the queens decision that he and Meghan felt that leaving their royal duties was their only option, there has been plenty of speculation about whether they made the right decision. One source claims that Prince Harry has become anxious and worried about leaving the royal family and moving to Los Angeles. The insider told Express, I get a strong sense Harry is becoming anxious about the situation theyve found themselves in. Prince Harry is nervous about their post-exit life While the source didnt make any further claims about how Harry and Meghan are adjusting to their new chapter, royal expert Katie Nicholl explained to ET that Prince Harry may be struggling with the adjustment. He has the added pressure of now having to forge a new life for himself in a country without an infrastructure, and without the level of support that he enjoyed when he was a prince of England, Nicholl explained. She added, I think there is a great sense of trepidation for Prince Harry. As much as he is optimistic about the future, I think hes nervous about the future as well. I think he is apprehensive. He doesnt have the same support, he doesnt have the same infrastructure, Nicholl noted. He doesnt have a clear plan ahead of him. And I think it is probably quite daunting for him. Israel says its soldiers spotted four people near a frontier outpost overnight and destroyed them with air support. The Israeli army has said it targeted a group of four people who had planted explosives along the border fence with Syria on the occupied Golan Heights. Soldiers spotted the group near a frontier outpost overnight and, backed by air support, fired simultaneously towards the squad of four terrorists, a hit was identified, the military said on Monday. An Israeli army spokesman said it was too soon to say if the squad belonged to any organisation, but that Israel held the Syrian regime accountable. There was no immediate comment from Syria. Spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus said there were no Israeli casualties from the attack in the southern part of the Golan Heights. Israeli soldiers man a position on a road leading to the Syrian border, near the location where the army said it killed four men laying explosives [Jalaa Marey/AFP] Israeli military also released a video on Twitter, purportedly showing the incident. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in a 1967 war and later annexed it in a move that was not recognised by the international community. This is the moment when four terrorists attempted to plant explosives near the security fence between #Israel and #Syria last night and the moment we stopped them. We will continue to defend Israel's borders from all enemy threats. pic.twitter.com/bQPGPiJFlg Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) August 3, 2020 Tensions high Tensions have risen in recent weeks along the Israel-Syria frontier after a fighter belonging the Iran-backed Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah was killed in an apparent Israeli air attack on the outskirts of Damascus. Israel has since boosted the number of forces on its northern front, where it borders Lebanon and Syria. Al Jazeeras Harry Fawcett, reporting from occupied West Jerusalem, said it was unclear whether the incident on the Syria border was a Hezbollah retaliation to the recent attack or an unrelated incident. Hezbollah says it will still avenge the fighter who was killed last month, he said, adding that the response would be presumably coming from the Lebanese territory according to the groups statements. 200723094358204 Conricus told reporters the army had noticed irregular activity in the border area for about a week and had a commando team waiting there in ambush. Several Israeli media outlets reported that the moves were made in response to a perceived heightened threat from Hezbollah, which has a significant presence in Syria. The army said a search of the area was being carried out. Last month, Israeli army helicopters struck military targets in southern Syria in retaliation for earlier munitions fire towards Israel. Bengaluru, Aug 3 : Allaying fears about his health after testing Covid positive, an upbeat Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Monday assured people that there was "nothing to worry about" and he would be discharged from the hospital soon. "There is nothing to worry about. I will be discharged soon and start work," said Yediyurappa in Kannada in a video message played in all the local news channels across the state. Yediyurappa, 77, and his daughter B.Y. Padmavati who also tested positive, are under treatment at a private hospital here though they are asymptomatic with mild symptoms of the virus. Assuring the people that he was doing fine, the Chief Minister said doctors had conducted required tests and observed no complications. "I will recover soon. I am in touch with all officials since Sunday to ensure that the government works are not affected. I also spoke to senior officials earlier in the day," he said. Yediyurappa also thanked BJP President J.P. Nadda, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, former Prime Minister and JD-S supremo H.D. Deve Gowda, his son and former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, opposition Congress leader Siddaramaih and seers of mutts for praying for his speedy recovery. He also urged people to wear masks and maintain social distancing to prevent the spread of the disease. In a related development, state Home Minister Basavar Bommai and new Bengaluru City Police Commissioner Kamal Pant have decided to undergo self-quarantine, as they in contact with Yediyurappa on Friday and Saturday. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text ALMOST 70 people have complained to the environmental watchdog over the smells allegedly emanating from the Limerick gasworks site. As revealed by the Limerick Leader last month, residents are up in arms over what has been described as whats been described as an offensive gassy odour. And the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has confirmed this week that its had 69 complaints about the site since November. It comes as Gas Networks Ireland continues its clearing of the site in OCurry Street to make it ready for commercial redevelopment in the years to come. Its emerged the EPA is now working with the HSE to assess whether a public health concern in the area. It comes after Derrick Amrein who runs the Chisel and Oak social enterprise opposite the site, pulled the shutters down on his warehouse due to the issues he was having. He complained of getting awful headaches, an upset stomach and diarrhoea. Its anticipated Gas Networks Ireland will complete its three-year clean-up of the site by the end of this month. Over the last year, polluted soils have been excavated and stabilised, while before this, any tar remaining from the vast site was pumped out from deep underground. The EPA did tell national newspapers that volatile substances were being monitored, but concentrations of these were below established standards for the protection of human health. The body did put Gas Networks Ireland on notice at the site, however. For its part, Gas Networks Ireland said emissions at the site is not toxic, and pledged to minimise the impact of its works. " " The Type 61 Main Battle Tank was the first armored vehicle designed and built in post-war Japan. See more tank pictures. 2007 Publications International, Ltd. In 1950, five years after the end of World War II, Japan began to rearm, using, among other developments, the Type 61 Main Battle Tank. The threat motivating rearmament in a country severely shocked by the loss of the Great East Asian War was the traditional threat from the west, the Soviet Union. The terms and conditions of rearmament, however, were far different from those of the period 1870 to 1945, when Japan had lifted itself by its bootstraps from a backward, nontechnical nation to a major world power with imperial ambitions. Now rearmament was directed toward defensive rather than offensive operations. Advertisement Tank Image Gallery At first, the United States supplied M-4 Shermans and M-24 Chaffees to the new Japanese Self Defense Forces. These were soon considered obsolete and too heavy. Consequently, the Japanese Self Defense Forces sought a light --less than 40 tons -- and highly mobile tank. They also wanted a tank that could be built in Japan to help revive the country's shattered industrial base. The first design, the STA-1, and its three predecessors emphasized these qualities and were even lighter than the Swiss 36.5 ton Panzer 61, a medium tank mounting a 105 millimeter main gun. The STA-3 design was adopted, and production of the Type 61 tank began in 1961. Initially, it weighed 34.5 tons and mounted a 90mm main gun similar to that used on the American M-48 Patton. A total of 564 Type 61s are believed to have been produced, but actual production figures are classified. In its final configuration, the Type 61 weighed 38.5 tons. The Type 61's engine was built by Mitsubishi-Nippon Heavy Industries, Ltd., which was reorganized and renamed after the war. The V-12 air-cooled diesel engine displaced 29.6 liters and produced 600 horsepower. This engine continued the Japanese practice of mounting air-cooled diesel engines in armored vehicles, a practice that began in 1934 with the Type 89B Medium Tank. The Type 61's design is conventional. The hull is of welded construction and is divided into three compartments, driving in the front, fighting in the center, and engine in the rear. The commander and gunner sit in the turret on the right, the loader in the turret on the left. The driver sits in the front of the hull on the right-hand side. The turret is cast in one piece and resembles the American M-47 with its large overhanging bustle. Armor is rather light for a Main Battle Tank: only 2.5 inches maximum on the turret face, 1.8 inches on the glacis down to a minimum of .6 inch on the hull rear. The 90mm gun is fitted with a T-style muzzle brake and a fume extractor to keep breech gases out of the tank. The gun fires armor-piercing capped and high-explosive ammunition. Secondary armament is based on the American pattern: A 7.62mm NATO machine gun mounted co-axially with the main gun and a .50 caliber machine gun mounted on the turret top for antiaircraft use. No nuclear-biological-chemical (NBC) protection is fitted, although there is provision for storing NBC protective clothing and respirators. An armored bridge-laying vehicle (Type 67), armored engineer vehicle (Type 67), armored recovery vehicle (Type 70), and a Type 61 training tank have also been designed and built. The Type 61 tank was never exported. Continue to the next page to learn the specifications of the Type 61 Main Battle Tank. For more information about tanks and the military, see: Member of Parliament (MP) for Ayensuano constituency, Samuel Ayeh-Paye, has dismissed reports of governments involvement in the alleged leaked WASSCE papers. According to him, government has nothing to do with the examination leakage. WAEC is an independent body under West Africa Examination Council which has nothing to with the government." Hon. Ayeh-Paye also advised final year students to concentrate on their studies and not on the fake leaked question papers. Speaking on UTV's Adekye Nsroma programme, he stated that the leaked questions, known in Ghanaian parlance as Apor are not reliable. If indeed the papers were leaked, WEAC still have other alternatives to come out with new questions different from the leaked one for the students to write. So, there is no cause for alarm. Yes, it is true that the government expects the children to pass and that is why it has introduced the Free SHS programme, giving them free books and other materials that will help their studies." Concentrate on what you have been taught in school because that is what WEAC is going to base questions on . . . I will urge the students to study hard rather than relying on 'Apor', he said. Source: Josephine Acheampomaa/[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 Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 06:34:43|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close RIGA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- After two months of sharp downturn, Latvia's industrial output is picking up again and nearing last year's volumes, the latest statistics showed. According to the data released on Monday by the national statistics office, in June this year, Latvia's industrial output slipped by just 0.3 percent from the respective period last year, while manufacturing slowed by 2.3 percent year-on-year. This represents a significant improvement in comparison with April and May when industrial production in Latvia fell by more than 7 percent due to the coronavirus crisis. Moreover, most recent figures even suggested that in July industrial output might show slight growth against the same month in 2019. The Latvian Economics Ministry cautioned, however, that the negative effects of the pandemic will not disappear in the following months. "The negative impact from the coronavirus is still being felt in manufacturing. Perspectives for the manufacturing sector, just like the economy in general, are uncertain. The pandemic is seriously affecting the global and Latvian economy, but the scale of this impact is hard to estimate," the Economics Ministry said. The ministry noted that, unlike in May when the chemical industry was the only manufacturing segment showing growth, in June positive trends were recorded in several industries like food production, wood processing, manufacture of electric equipment and printing. Enditem Late actor Sushant Singh Rajput, who was found hanging at his Bandra residence on June 14, had googled several words related to death and mental disorder towards the end, said Mumbai police on Monday. Sushant searched for words like "painless death", "schizophrenia" and "bipolar disorder" on Google, according to Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh. In his last few hours, he is also reported to have done searches on his own name. While interacting with the press on Monday, commissioner Singh revealed that these details have emerged from his mobile phone and laptop. To a query, Singh said that Sushant was "emotionally upset" after the death of his ex-manager Disha Salian, and was even seeing 5 to 6 doctors. "When he saw his name being linked with Disha Salian's death on social media, he was emotionally disturbed. He had met her only once and he had even asked his advocate who she was," Singh told media persons. He pointed out that Sushant was very conscious' about what was appearing on social media. Sharing the information, celebrity photographer Viral Bhayani posted on Instagram: "Commissioner Param Bir Singh today revealed few things to the press. Sushant would search for articles and his name on Google to find out what was being written about him. He would also search for "painless death", "schizophrenia" and "bipolar disorder". During the press conference, the Mumbai Police Commissioner also said, "All bank statements from January 2019 to June 2020 have been analysed. There were around Rs 14.5 crore credit in the account. The top cop also mentioned that there is a fixed deposit of 4 crores too." Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh also said there was no party at the home of Sushant Singh Rajput on June 13, the day before the Bollywood actor was found dead at his apartment. To a query on the name of a prominent Maharashtra political personality being bandied around on social media, Singh categorically said that the investigations have not revealed any such thing. Mumbai Police, who are probing the case of Rajput's death, have so far recorded statements of nearly 40 people, including those from the actor's family, his cook and people from the film industry like filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, director-producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali and filmmaker Aditya Chopra. The Bihar Police team is probing a separate 'abetment to suicide' case on the basis of a complaint filed by the late actor's father, KK Singh in Patna last week, against Rajput's actor friend Rhea Chakraborty and six others, including her family members, for alleged abetment to suicide. Note: This news piece may be triggering. If you or someone you know needs help, call any of these helplines: Aasra (Mumbai) 022-27546669, Sneha (Chennai) 044-24640050, Sumaitri (Delhi) 011-23389090, Cooj (Goa) 0832- 2252525, Jeevan (Jamshedpur) 065-76453841, Pratheeksha (Kochi) 048-42448830, Maithri (Kochi) 0484-2540530, Roshni (Hyderabad) 040-66202000, Lifeline 033-64643267 (Kolkata). One in ten Britons are breaking face-mask rules on trains and buses - but just 285 passengers have been fined, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said today. The Cabinet minister wrote on Twitter that the compliance rate is 90 per cent as he urged people to 'help keep each other safe' during the coronavirus pandemic. Passengers caught not complying risk being fined 100 and removed from services. Face coverings on public transport became mandatory in England on June 15 in a bid to slow the spread of the virus. One in ten Britons are breaking face-mask rules on trains and buses, with Transport Secretary Grant Shapps writing on Twitter that the compliance rate is 90 per cent (file photo) Scotland followed seven days later, while Northern Ireland and Wales introduced the rule on July 16 and 27 respectively. Mr Shapps said figures from British Transport Police, the police force for the railways, and Transport for London show 285 passengers have been issued with penalty notices for non-compliance. Meanwhile, 6,275 have been asked to leave the transport network and 80,294 have been reminded of the rules. The UK Government says face coverings, which can be a scarf, piece of cloth or mask, are 'marginally beneficial as a precautionary measure'. Thousands of face masks were handed out to Tube and train passengers across England after it became compulsory to wear them on all forms of public transport to reduce coronavirus infection rates. Those with certain health conditions, disabled people and children aged under 11 are exempt from wearing them on public transport. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps tweeted that Transport for London and British Transport Police have reminded 80, 294 passengers to wear a face covering and asked 6,275 to leave Mr Shapps, pictured above in Hertfordshire, said while the rules would be mandatory and 'ultimately' people could be fined, he did not believe they would need much enforcement Announcing the rules in June, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the 'challenges' for the network were 'increasing' as more people go back to work and schools and shops reopen. 'We are doing what many other countries have asked transport users to do,' he said. 'The evidence is that wearing face coverings offers some, albeit limited protection.' Mr Shapps said while the rules would be mandatory and 'ultimately' people could be fined, he did not believe they would need much enforcement. 'Wearing a face covering helps protect others,' he said. 'Why wouldn't people want to do the right thing? We are all desperate to get rid of coronavirus.' Since then, masks have been made compulsory in shops - a rule Boris Johnson said could remain in force even until next summer. Tanzania banned Kenyas national airline from entering the country effective Saturday, in the latest move in a deepening row triggered by Tanzanias controversial handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Tanzania said Kenya Airways flights were being banned on a reciprocal basis after Kenya decided against including Tanzania in a list of countries whose passengers would be permitted to enter Kenya when commercial flights resumed on 1 August. Tanzania has noted its exclusion in the list of countries whose people will be allowed to travel into Kenya, Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority director-general Hamza Johari said in a letter sent to Kenya Airways on Friday. The Tanzanian government has decided to nullify its approval for Kenya Airways flights between Nairobi and Dar/Kilimanjaro/Zanzibar effective August 1, 2020 until further notice, Johari wrote. This letter also rescinds all previous arrangements that permit KQ flights into the United Republic of Tanzania. Kenya Airways chief executive Allan Kilavuka said Saturday he was saddened by the letter and hoped the situation would soon be resolved. Tanzania has taken a controversially relaxed approach to tackling the coronavirus pandemic and began reopening the country two months ago. President John Magufulis refusal to impose lockdowns or social distancing measures, and to halt the release of figures on infections since late April, has made him a regional outlier and caused concern among Tanzanias neighbours and the World Health Organization. Magufuli declared Tanzania free of coronavirus in June, thanking God and the prayers of citizens for the diseases defeat disease. The diplomatic spat between Kenya and Tanzania erupted soon after the outbreak of the pandemic in East Africa, when Kenya blocked Tanzanian truck drivers from entering the country, fearing they would spread the disease. Source: BBC 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 A team of researchers from the Marine Biological Laboratory, Harvard University and St. Marys College of Maryland has demonstrated efficient gene knockout in the longfin inshore squid (Doryteuthis pealeii) using CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing system. This is a critical first step toward the ability to knock out and knock in genes in cephalopods to address a host of biological questions, said study senior author Dr. Joshua Rosenthal, a researcher at the Marine Biological Laboratory. Cephalopods (squid, octopus and cuttlefish) have the largest brain of all invertebrates, a distributed nervous system capable of instantaneous camouflage and sophisticated behaviors, a unique body plan, and the ability to extensively recode their own genetic information within messenger RNA, along with other distinctive features. These open many avenues for study and have applications in a wide range of fields, from evolution and development, to medicine, robotics, materials science, and artificial intelligence. The ability to knock out a gene to test its function is an important step in developing cephalopods as genetically tractable organisms for biological research, augmenting the handful of species that currently dominate genetic studies, such as fruit flies, zebrafish, and mice. It is also a necessary step toward having the capacity to knock in genes that facilitate research, such as genes that encode fluorescent proteins that can be imaged to track neural activity or other dynamic processes. Dr. Rosenthal and colleagues used CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing to knock out a pigmentation gene in embryos of the longfin inshore squid, which eliminated pigmentation in the eye and in chromatophores (skin cells) with high efficiency. CRISPR-Cas9 worked really well in Doryteuthis pealeii; it was surprisingly efficient, Dr. Rosenthal said. Much more challenging was delivering the CRISPR-Cas system into the one-celled squid embryo, which is surrounded by an exceedingly tough outer layer, and then raising the embryo through hatching. The team developed micro-scissors to clip the eggs surface and a beveled quartz needle to deliver the CRISPR-Cas9 reagents through the clip. Ommochromes, the pigments found in squid retinas and chromatophores, are derivatives of tryptophan, and the first committed step in their synthesis is normally catalyzed by tryptophan 2,3 dioxygenase (TDO), the scientists said. Knocking out TDO in squid embryos efficiently eliminated pigmentation. By precisely timing CRISPR-Cas9 delivery during early development, the degree of pigmentation could be finely controlled. The results were published in the journal Current Biology. _____ Karen Crawford et al. Highly Efficient Knockout of a Squid Pigmentation Gene. Current Biology, published online July 30, 2020; doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.06.099 Agartala: Tripuras West district administration authorities have served an order asking a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator to be quarantined for two weeks from Monday because he had paid an unauthorised visit to a coronavirus disease (Covid-19) Care Centre and put himself at high risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease, as he exposed himself to the patients there. Sudip Roy Barman, the BJP lawmaker and former state health minister, visited the Covid-19 Care Centre set up at Bhagat Singh Youth hostel in West district on Sunday wearing personal protective equipment (PPE). However within a few hours, Dr. Sandeep Namdeo Mahatme, district magistrate (DM), West district, served him a notice asking him to remain in an institutional quarantine for seven days and followed by home quarantine for another seven days. In reply to the notice, Roy Barman alleged that a conspiracy was hatched to malign him. He said he visited the centre after taking all precautionary measures and to get a sense about the alleged infrastructure inadequacy at the emergency healthcare facility. He said he watched a video on social media, where a pregnant Covid-19 patient could be seen and heard complaining of lack of doctors visit to the centre. Later, speaking to the reporters on Monday, he said that he would not opt for quarantine until he is found to have contracted the viral infection. Earlier on July 28, the state government had issued a notice, stating that home quarantine is permissible in case of mild or asymptomatic Covid-19 patients. Tripura has reported 5,392 Covid-19 cases, of whom 3,605 patients have recovered from their viral infection. So far, 24 people have died due to the viral infection and two Covid-19 patients died by suicide. Lucy Worsley, historian and television presenter, photographed at the FT Weekend Oxford Literary Festival on April 9, 2016 in Oxford, England. (Photo by David Levenson/Getty Images) BBC history presenter Lucy Worsley has apologised after she faced a backlash for using the n-word in a programme broadcast over the weekend. In a segment in American Historys Biggest Fibs With Lucy Worsley, which originally aired last year, Worsley quotes former US president Abraham Lincolns eventual assassin John Wilkes Booth as using the n-word. But following a backlash on social media after the programme was repeated on BBC Two on Saturday, Worsley has apologised for using the slur. Read more: BBC reporter used n-word in report on unprovoked racist attack on UK healthcare worker The 46-year-old replied to a Twitter user: Youre right, @therealpetraamp, it wasnt acceptable and I apologise. Youre right, @therealpetraamp, it wasnt acceptable and I apologise. Lucy Worsley (@Lucy_Worsley) August 2, 2020 The scene has also been addressed by the BBC, with a spokesperson stating: This is a history programme about the American Civil War and features contributions from a number of African American scholars. Content information about the nature of the film was given before the programme started, and presenter Lucy Worsley gave a clear warning to the audience before quoting John Wilkes Booth as the term clearly has the potential to cause offence. Lucy Worsley at the Bafta awards in 2019. (Keith Mayhew/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) A separate use of the n-word by a BBC reporter in a news item also caused uproar last week. A news segment featuring presenter Fiona Lamdin about a racially motivated attack on a black man saw the reporter use the word quoting the attacker. Read more: JLS star Aston Merrygold campaigning against 'disease of racism' after troll targets son The segment led to 280 Ofcom complaints. A BBC spokesperson said: This was a story about a shocking unprovoked attack on a young black man. His family told the BBC about the racist language used by the attackers and wanted to see the full facts made public. A warning was given before this was reported. We are no longer running this version of the report but are continuing to pursue the story. WASHINGTON Congressional Democrat and Trump administration officials will resume talks aimed at hammering out a coronavirus relief bill on Monday afternoon, after missing a vital deadline to extend relief benefits to tens of millions of jobless Americans. Top Democrats in Congress and top representatives of President Donald Trump were due to meet at 1 p.m. EDT (1700 GMT) in the U.S. Capitol, according to a House aide familiar with the arrangements. Negotiators reported some progress over the weekend. But the two sides remained far apart, with top Republican lawmakers on the sidelines of the negotiations. After passing more than $3 trillion in relief legislation early in the crisis, Congress last week missed a Friday deadline to extend the $600 per week in enhanced unemployment payments that have played a key role in propping up the U.S. economy. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows have taken the lead in talks, after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell last week unveiled a $1 trillion Republican proposal that met immediate resistance from some of his fellow Senate Republicans. The extension of enhanced federal unemployment benefits has proved to be a major stumbling block in the talks, and a top Federal Reserve official warned that failure to secure some form of extension would result in a weaker economy. Hours before the talks were due to resume, Pelosi made it clear that she would not go along with Republican proposals to slash the weekly $600 unemployment benefit. No," Pelosi told CNN. Youre not saying to the American people: We have more infections, we have more deaths, we have more unemployment, we have more hunger and now were going to cut your benefit. Thats just not going to happen." Trump wants to see immediate progress on extending unemployment benefits and protections against eviction, White House adviser Peter Navarro told Fox News. The administration is also considering options for possible unilateral actions if no relief deal is reached, the Washington Post reported. Democrats are also continuing to press for about $1 trillion in aid to state and local governments. The White House and congressional Republicans want to trim the weekly jobless aid, and have rejected as too costly the state and local assistance package that was included in legislation passed by the Democratic-led House in May. Republicans favoring a reduction in the unemployment aid have said it is a disincentive for people to work. However, Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert Kaplan said on Monday that economic data does not show the $600-a-week benefit hurts the overall job market. While it may have made it hard for certain individual businesses to hire, it has helped create jobs, because it has helped bolster consumer spending, so the net effect still has probably been positive for the economy for employment," Kaplan told Bloomberg TV. Pelosi, the nations top elected Democrat, on Sunday accused the White House and Trumps fellow Republicans on Capitol Hill of thinking too small to confront a health crisis. We must defeat this virus," she said. And thats one of the points that we still have not come to any agreement on." Meadows said on Sunday he was not optimistic a deal could be reached quickly on broad legislation, and he once again called on Democrats to sign onto a week-long extension of enhanced jobless benefits to buy time for more talks. We continue to see really a stonewalling of any piecemeal type of legislation that happens on Capitol Hill," he told CBS Face the Nation." Hopefully, that will change in the coming days." There are some areas where lawmakers and the Trump administration may be able to come together quickly. Both Republicans and Democrats want to renew a moratorium on evictions, which had spared Americans the stress of being left homeless while out of work because of the pandemic. The moratorium expired on July 24. Likewise, there is broad support for another round of direct payments to taxpayers. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor People queue for a Covid-19 test in Manila - Ezra Acayan/Getty Images The Philippines is to reinstate a stricter lockdown on its capital, Manila, from Tuesday after warnings from medical groups over the weekend that hospitals are losing the battle against the coronavirus. Rodrigo Duterte, the Philippine president, apologised as the number of Covid-19 cases breached 100,000 and he reintroduced a modified enhanced community quarantine that will restrict the operations of non-essential businesses and only allow people to leave home for work or to buy food. "We're doing our very best. Sorry, Manila," said Mr Duterte during a televised broadcast late on Sunday evening. The 103,185 case count and 2,059 death toll is second only to Indonesia in Southeast Asia, despite bringing the economy to its knees by previously imposing one of the longest and strictest quarantine periods in the world, from March 15 to June 1. The fresh measures, which will include the need for quarantine passes in the city of some 12 million and see churches close their doors again, were renewed after a call from 80 groups representing 80,000 doctors and a million nurses, who asked for a time out to regroup their coronavirus strategies. Medical workers say they are burning out - Rolex Dela Pena/EPA-EFE We have witnessed a consistent rise in [the] number of infections and this, among other scenarios, prompts us to act now and act fast, the organisations said, according to the Manila Times. Medical workers were feeling burned out, they added, telling the government that the countrys healthcare system has been overwhelmed and that we are waging a losing battle against Covid-19. Dr Maria Encarnita Limpin, vice president of the Philippine College of Physicians warned that if the infection toll continued to escalate, the health care system, which was the last line of defence in the fight against the pandemic, would fail. "I have heard you. Don't lose hope. We are aware that you are tired," Mr Duterte responded late on Sunday, after the Philippines recorded 5,032 additional infections, the country's largest single-day increase. Story continues Mr Duterte has also approved the hiring of 10,000 medical professionals to beef up the current workforce and additional benefits for healthcare workers treating Covid-19 patients. But he stopped short of reintroducing the previous hard lockdown that banned anyone aged below 21 or over 60 from going out, imposed a 10pm-5am curfew, and shut down all offices as well as public transport. The measures were devastating for the poorest communities and the economy of the country of 107 million is now facing its biggest contraction in more than three decades. On Monday, the Philippine College of Physicians clarified that their call for a return to a stricter quarantine was not a cry for revolt, reported The Philippine Star. In an open letter Dr Mario Panaligan, the PCP president, said that Duterte's "quick response on the matter was highly appreciated" and that help that the president had offered the medical community would "go a long way." John Humes contribution to peace building in Northern Ireland has been hailed across the political spectrum on both sides of the Irish Sea. Unionist and nationalists in the region were united in praise for his efforts to end decades of sectarian conflict, while British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Taoiseach Micheal Martin voiced similar tributes on behalf of the UK and Irish governments. In Mr Humes beloved home town of Derry, current SDLP leader Colum Eastwood, who now holds the Foyle Westminster seat his political hero occupied for 22 years, said the island of Ireland had lost one of its greatest figures. John Hume was quite simply a political giant. He stood proudly in the tradition that was totally opposed to violence and committed to pursuing his objectives by exclusively peaceful and democratic means. Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) August 3, 2020 In the days ahead, Ireland will be united in mourning his loss, he said. However, amidst that national mourning, it is equally true that the marking of Johns death also opens up a space to reflect on, and celebrate, the magnitude of his life. Read More Man who dreamed of Irish unity laid groundwork for peace deal As part of that reflection of Johns work, never has the beatitude rung truer blessed be the peacemakers. The life of John Hume will forever be a blessing upon this island since Ireland is now blessed by the peace he gifted to us all. It is the greatest legacy a political leader can bestow upon his country. Saddened to hear of the death of John Hume. A huge political figure in our society for many decades. A leader who took risks that ultimately helped bring about peace. He will be sadly missed. My thoughts are with Pat and his family circle and with his @SDLPlive family. Michelle ONeill (@moneillsf) August 3, 2020 Stormont First Minister Arlene Foster said Mr Hume was a giant figure in the life of Irish nationalism and wider Northern Ireland. For many of my generation, he was a constant throughout our lives, said the DUP leader. Whilst we disagreed politically, I always admired his steadfast abhorrence of violence, regardless from where it came. Whilst he was recognised across the world, there can be no doubt however that his loss will be most keenly felt in his home city. My thoughts and prayers are with Johns family and friends at this difficult time. We think especially of his wife Pat, his children and grandchildren. I hope they take some comfort from the peace he helped to create. Sincere condolences to Pat & the wider Hume family. A giant in Irish nationalism, John left his unique mark in the House of Commons, Brussels & Washington. In our darkest days he recognised that violence was the wrong path & worked steadfastly to promote democratic politics. pic.twitter.com/Ctkdfxa4Au Arlene Foster #ProudofNI. (@ArleneFosterUK) August 3, 2020 Sinn Fein deputy First Minister Michelle ONeill expressed her sadness. John Hume was a hugely important figure in our political history and a driving force in the Good Friday Agreement, she said. He was a man of vision and committed to bringing about equal rights for all. John leaves behind a legacy of power sharing and peace. Former Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble, who was jointly awarded the Nobel peace prize along with Mr Hume, said he left an enduring legacy. RIP Pathfinder - John Hume. Changemaker & Peacemaker. Principle, logic, stickability. Engine for change, anchor for stability & torch for progress. Respect difference, assert rights affirm democracy. Europe #EU#GFA was his blueprint & for much more#ThankYouJohnHume pic.twitter.com/q9Aqfwv2gG Mark Durkan (@markdurkan) August 3, 2020 He was a major contributor to politics in Northern Ireland and particularly to the process that gave us an agreement that we are still working our way through, he said. Thats hugely important and thats something that he will be remembered for in years to come. Former UK prime minister John Major praised Mr Humes efforts to win peace. Few others invested such time and energy to this search and few sought to change entrenched attitudes with such fierce determination, he said. Those whose communities have been transformed into peaceful neighbourhoods may wish to pay tribute to one of the most fervent warriors for peace. He has earned himself an honoured place in Irish history. Tainiste Leo Varadkar also paid tribute to Mr Hume. Any attempt to summarise John Humes contribution to the people of the island of Ireland is sure to fall short, he said. He was a once-in-a-generation leader whose vision for peace was only surpassed by his hard work in making that vision a reality. President Michael D Higgins said that Mr Hume "transformed and remodelled politics in Ireland". All of those who sought and worked for peace on our island of Ireland, and in the hearts of all, will have been deeply saddened by the passing of John Hume, Nobel Peace Laureate and Statesman," he said. "John Hume, through his words, his astute diplomacy and willingness to listen to what was often difficult to accept but was the view of the Other, transformed and remodelled politics in Ireland, and the search for peace, with a personal bravery and leadership informed by a steadfast belief in the principles and values of genuine democracy." BOSTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Workable, the world's leading hiring platform, released its New World of Work survey report . The report focused on the changes in the work environment, the subsequent major shifts, and the new challenges going forward in response to COVID-19. "Whether it's a catalyst or the direct cause, COVID-19 is pushing us towards a new world of working and living," said Workable CEO Nikos Moraitakis. "What that will look like, and when it'll happen, we're not entirely sure yet. But this study will push the conversation as we work towards a new and very different future." A total of 356 business and HR leaders from numerous industries completed the 30-question survey. Major findings include: Remote work is the big paradigm shift Tech adoption is the top priority when shifting to remote Employee engagement and remote hiring/onboarding are major concerns going forward Additional insights include: The spread of COVID-19 forced 62.6% of businesses to move fully to a remote-first environment. Another 32.3% moved part of their operations to remote. 56.5% plan to make remote permanent for some of their workforce going forward. 68% of those going remote did it without disruption because they had technology in place. And 46.1% will prioritize tech when going remote in future. 7 in 10 education workers said they could go remote but technology isn't in place for it. go remote but technology isn't in place for it. Candidate engagement/evaluation/onboarding will be major pain points, more so in remote. Executives worry more about productivity while employees are more concerned about engagement. Even in the open-ended answers, there was no clear solution to navigate this new world of work. It presents fresh challenges that require a new way of thinking. In short, COVID-19 is forcing us to evolve. We now must figure out how to do it. Nikos outlines his thoughts here . Background: Workable is the world's leading hiring platform. Since 2012, more than 20,000 employers worldwide have used Workable's recruitment tools, processes, and automation to hire over 1 million candidates. Backed by award-winning customer support, Workable is headquartered in Boston, with offices in Athens and London. SOURCE Workable Related Links http://workable.com 'Tricked': Liam Fox. (AFP via Getty Images) A Conservative former minister was tricked into handing over his email password to suspected Russian hackers who stole classified documents in an apparent attempt to influence last years general election, according to a report. Reuters has reported US-UK trade documents were taken from an email account of former international trade secretary Liam Fox ahead of the election. Sources said Foxs account was targeted using spear phishing, a hacking method which tricks the target into handing over their password and login details. Fox was international trade secretary until 24 July last year, when he was sacked by Boris Johnson. The report said the email account was hacked multiple times between 12 July and 21 October. The trade documents were leaked online and eventually used by then-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in the election campaign. At an event on 27 November, he used them to claim the NHS was on the table as part of the governments negotiations. The documents, having been taken from Fox's account, were leaked online and eventually used by Jeremy Corbyn during the general election campaign. (Dominic Lipinski/PA Images via Getty Images) Rob Pritchard, founder of The Cyber Security Expert consultancy and former deputy head of the UK Cyber Security Operations Centre, said questions need to be asked about which email account was hacked. He told Yahoo News UK: We dont know if this was a personal account or not. I would expect, with the Department for International Trade, a government account to have some extra defences for phishing. Pritchard said theres a good chance the documents could have been stolen from Foxs personal account. This website asked Downing Street which account was targeted, but the government didnt answer. A spokesman said: There is an ongoing criminal investigation into how the documents were acquired, and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this point. Liam Fox was international trade secretary between 2016 and 2019. (Barcroft Media via Getty Images) But as you would expect, the government has very robust systems in place to protect the IT systems of officials and staff." Fox, currently a backbencher in parliament, is running to be director-general of the World Trade Organization. Story continues What is spear phishing? Its some sort of hook to drive you to a fake login page, Pritchard explained. Its typically the kind of thing that says somebody tried to log in to your account, please click here to reset your password. Youre taken to a page that looks real, you enter your user name and password and then youve handed over your details to the malicious actors. He went on: They have got harder to do, because there are technical defences, which is why it comes back down to where [which email account] this actually happened. I would imagine the [government] would have two-factor authentication in place, which means you dont just have the username and password to log in to the email. You get a text with a code, or something like that. However, he added: Some of those methods are better than others, and certainly if you are targeted by Russia, then perhaps they did circumvent two-factor authentication. Without knowing more detail, its impossible to tell. Hallmarks of state-backed operation Sources told Reuters the attack bore the hallmarks of a state-backed operation. The revelation comes two weeks after the release of a House of Commons report addressing Russias influence on UK politics. It said the UK is clearly a target for Russian disinformation campaigns and political influence operations and must therefore equip itself to counter such efforts. The UK, the report added, is one of Russias top intelligence targets behind only the US and NATO. TikTok will reportedly open a London HQ in a move approved by ministers risking a major row with Donald Trump over the Chinese app. The investment is set to be unveiled next week by ByteDance, who own the popular social media platform, as reported by The Sun. However the move risks opening up a rift with the US who have accused the company of passing personal data to Chinese government. US President Trump said on Friday he would soon ban TikTok in the United States, and critics have claimed users' personal data could be at risk. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday that Trump would take action on what he sees as a broad array of national security risks presented by firms connected to the Chinese government. Conservative MP Bob Seely told MailOnline this morning the UK needs to 'reset' our relationship with China and warned of 'covert' influence from the communist state in the UK. He said: 'Clearly we need to continue to attract jobs to the UK, but we need to be careful that China does not start playing us off against the US and other allies. US President Trump said on Friday he would soon ban TikTok in the United States US President Trump said on Friday he would soon ban TikTok in the United States 'This is another example of why we need a reset in our relationship with China that supports trade whilst building up barriers to malign and covert China state influence in the UK. 'We also need much clearer investment rules, especially regards to firms that have significant issues over data privacy.' What is TikTok? TikTok is a Chinese social media app where users can live stream, create short videos and music videos and Gifs with a host of functions. TikTok's tagline is 'Make every second count'. It was the most downloaded app in the US in 2018 and the world's fourth most downloaded app in 2018, ahead of Instagram and Snapchat. In 2019, it became the second-most downloaded app globally behind Whatsapp. TikTok is known in China as Douyin where it was launched in 2016 and then made more widely available around the world in 2017. Douyin is still the version of the app used in China, available to download separately to TikTok. Most children use the app to film themselves lip-syncing to chart hits. It offers users a raft if colourful modification and editing tools including overlaying music, sound, animated stickers, filters and augmented reality (AR) for creating short videos. The Beijing based social network has more than 500 million active users and the company is now worth more than $75 billion (58 billion). Advertisement TikTok's US user data is stored in the US, with strict controls on employee access, and its biggest investors come from the US, the company said on Sunday. Mr Pompeo said: 'These Chinese software companies doing business in the United States, whether it's TikTok or WeChat - there are countless more ... are feeding data directly to the Chinese Communist Party, their national security apparatus,' Mr Pompeo told the Fox News Channel. 'Could be their facial recognition patterns. It could be information about their residence, their phone numbers, their friends, who they're connected to. Those - those are the issues that President Trump has made clear we're going to take care of,' he said. As speculation grew over a ban or sale of the social media's US business, TikTok posted a video on Saturday saying: 'We're not planning on going anywhere.' 'We are committed to protecting our users' privacy and safety as we continue working to bring joy to families and meaningful careers to those who create on our platform,' a TikTok spokesperson said. Microsoft confirmed on Sunday night it is in talks with Chinese company ByteDance, which owns TikTok, to acquire the US arm of the popular video app. Microsoft also said it had discussed with Mr Trump his concerns about security and censorship surrounding such an acquisition. In a statement, Microsoft said it and ByteDance had provided notice of their intent to explore a deal resulting in Microsoft owning and operating the TikTok service in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. President Donald Trump is understood to have agreed to give Chinas ByteDance 45 days to negotiate the sale of TikTok to Microsoft, sources said. 'Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President's concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury,' the Microsoft statement said. Its parent company, Bytedance Ltd, launched TikTok in 2017. It bought Musical.ly, a video service popular with teens in the US and Europe, and combined the two. It has a similar service, Douyin, for users in China. But TikTok's Chinese ownership has raised concern about the potential for sharing user data with Chinese officials as well as censorship of videos critical of the Chinese government. TikTok says it does not censor videos and it would not give the Chinese government access to US user data. The TikTok office in Culver City. US President Trump has said he would ban the company from the US 'The President, when he makes his decision, will make sure that everything we have done drives us as close to zero risk for the American people,' Mr Pompeo said. 'That's the mission set that he laid out for all of us when we get - we began to evaluate this now several months back. We're closing in on a solution. And I think you will see the president's announcement shortly.' The debate over TikTok parallels a broader US security crackdown on Chinese companies, including telecom providers Huawei and ZTE. HOW DOES TIKTOK WORK? Users post videos of themselves and broadcast them on the app Anyone can find these videos and post comments on them; it also allows you to message that person privately Some of the most popular videos are watched more than 10 million times Each TikTok video is generally 15 to 60 seconds long The videos are typically set to music, often showing the user dancing, doing a trick, or lip-syncing Advertisement The Trump administration has ordered that the US stop buying equipment from those providers to be used in US networks. Mr Trump has also tried to steer allies away from Huawei over concerns the Chinese government has access to its data, which Huawei denies. Earlier this week TikTok pushed back at what it called 'maligning attacks' that call attention to the video app's Chinese connections. TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer said the attacks were 'disguised as patriotism and designed to put an end to our very presence in the U.S.' 'We are not political, we do not accept political advertising and have no agenda -- our only objective is to remain a vibrant, dynamic platform for everyone to enjoy,' Mayer said. 'TikTok has become the latest target, but we are not the enemy.' I'We're not planning on going anywhere,' said Vanessa Pappas in a video address on TikTok. 'When it comes to safety and security we're building the safest app because it's the right thing to do.' 'We are so proud of all the various communities who call TikTok home,' Pappas said, urging the app's millions of users to 'stand for TikTok.' Pappas claimed that the app employs 15,000 people in America, and plans to add an additional 10,000 jobs in the coming years. 'We're not planning on going anywhere,' said Vanessa Pappas, US general manager of TikTok, in a video address on the service As relations between the United States and China deteriorate over trade, Hong Kong's autonomy, cyber security and the spread of the novel coronavirus, TikTok has emerged as a flashpoint in the dispute between the world's two largest economies. It comes as a leading expert said the banning of the app in Australia is 'inevitable'. Professor Clive Hamilton told Daily Mail Australia the Communist Party uses the app to keep tabs on anyone who criticises the totalitarian regime. He fears that users' personal data is likely being sent to Beijing. 'Chinese authorities are already monitoring TikTok usage particularly for people who are of interest,' he said. 'That creates a real problem for freedom of expression and for the protection of intrusion from the Chinese State.' The Australian Defence Force already banned its personnel from downloading the app on their phone earlier this year and it now appears likely a blanket ban will go into action for all Australians. 'I expect the Australian government to take a lot of interest in TikTok and the way the Chinese regime is using TikTok to monitor people in the west,' Prof Hamilton said. 'I think it is only a matter of time before western governments realise the extent of surveillance that Beijing has undertaken through social media platforms including TikTok. 'I think the banning of TikTok is inevitable.' Trump gives TikTok 45 days to negotiate sale of its US arm to Microsoft after his total ban threat and tells Seattle tech giant's CEO he will only 'allow' purchase if app totally splits from China by Lauren Fruen for DailyMail.com President Donald Trump has agreed to give Chinas ByteDance 45 days to negotiate the sale of TikTok to Microsoft, sources said Sunday. Microsoft Corp said on Sunday that it would continue discussions to acquire the popular short-video app from Chinese internet giant ByteDance. The president had threatened to ban TikTok as early as Saturday but is now said to be willing to 'allow' its sale if the app completely separates from China, Axios reports. Washington based tech giant Microsoft made the statement following a conversation between its CEO Satya Nadella and Trump. It said it would ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and will remain in the United States. Over the last several months, US officials have repeatedly said TikTok under its current Chinese parent company, Beijing-based software firm ByteDance, poses a national risk because of the personal data it handles. The White House and ByteDance did not immediately comment on the Microsoft statement Sunday. Donald Trump, pictured Saturday, had threatened to ban TikTok in the US. Microsoft confirmed Sunday it is in talks with Chinese company ByteDance to acquire the U.S. arm of its popular video app TikTok and has discussed with President Donald Trump his concerns about security and censorship surrounding such an acquisition 'Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President's concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury,' Microsoft said in a statement. The Seattle based tech giant added that there was no certainty a deal - which could be worth billions of dollars - would be reached but that it was aiming to conclude the negotiations by September 15. ByteDance was previously seeking to keep a minority stake in the US business of TikTok, a proposal which the White House had rejected. Under the new proposed deal, ByteDance would exit completely and Microsoft Corp would take over TikTok in the United States, sources said Saturday. In a statement Sunday, Microsoft said: 'Following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald J. Trump, Microsoft is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the United States. Trump and CEO Satya Nadella, pictured, have spoken, the company said, and Microsoft was prepared to continue exploring the purchase of TikToks U.S. operations after their chat It adds: 'The two companies have provided notice of their intent to explore a preliminary proposal that would involve a purchase of the TikTok service in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand and would result in Microsoft owning and operating TikTok in these markets. 'Among other measures, Microsoft would ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. Microsoft appreciates the U.S. Government's and President Trump's personal involvement as it continues to develop strong security protections for the country.' It was not immediately clear what changed Trumps mind. Banning TikTok would alienate many of its young users ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November, and would likely trigger a wave of legal challenges. Several prominent Republican lawmakers put out statements in the last two days urging Trump to back a sale of TikTok to Microsoft. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday that the president will take action shortly on Chinese software companies that are feeding data directly to the Beijing government, posing a risk to U.S. national security The negotiations between ByteDance and Microsoft will be overseen by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), a U.S. government panel that has the right to block any agreement, according to the sources, who requested anonymity ahead of a White House announcement. TikTok's U.S. general manager, Vanessa Pappas, said Saturday: 'We're not planning on going anywhere. When it comes to safety and security we're building the safest app because it's the right thing to do.' 'We are so proud of all the various communities who call TikTok home,' Pappas said, urging the app's millions of users to 'stand for TikTok.' Pappas claimed that the app employs 15,000 people in America, and plans to add an additional 10,000 jobs in the coming years. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said earlier on Sunday that the president will take action shortly on Chinese software companies that are feeding data directly to the Beijing government, posing a risk to U.S. national security. 'President Trump has said 'enough' and we're going to fix it and so he will take action in the coming days with respect to a broad array of national security risks that are presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party,' Pompeo said on Fox News Channel's 'Sunday Morning Futures.' 'They're true privacy issues for the American people and for a long time, a long time the United States just said 'well goodness if we're having fun with it, or if a company can make money off of it, we're going to permit that to happen,' Pompeo said Sunday. ByteDance said it was willing to divest the US operations of TikTok to Microsoft in a bid to make a deal with the White House, two people familiar with the matter had told Reuters on Saturday. The Microsoft offer has gained some support from allies of the president, including Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. The senator on Saturday defended the president's decision to take action against the popular video-sharing app, which officials claim poses a national security risk because of the personal data it handles. Graham however, said he was in favor of an American company acquiring TikTok's U.S. operations, rather than banning the app completely. 'To fans and users of#TikTok. I understand your concerns. However President Trump is right to want to make sure that the Chinese Communist Party doesn't own TikTok and most importantly - all of your private data,' the senator tweeted. 'What's the right answer? Have an American company like Microsoft take over TikTok. Win-win. Keeps competition alive and data out of the hands of the Chinese Communist Party.' In a separate interview on Sunday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which reviews the national security implications of foreign business deals, is looking at the matter. The number of American users has been estimated to be as high as 80 million a month - although because the company is not publicly traded, the estimate by outside analysts is impossible to verify. The platform took the world by storm in 2017, which allows users to create original videos that are shared in the app for millions to see. The move comes after Joe Biden's presidential campaign banned staffers from using the Chinese video sharing app, citing security and privacy concerns. In a memo on Monday, Biden's general counsel, Dana Remus, ordered staff members to delete TikTok from both their personal and work phones, and to 'refrain from downloading and using TikTok,' according to Bloomberg. Earlier this week TikTok pushed back at what it called 'maligning attacks' that call attention to the video app's Chinese connections - a coded reference to the inquiry. TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer said the attacks were 'disguised as patriotism and designed to put an end to our very presence in the U.S.' 'We are not political, we do not accept political advertising and have no agenda -- our only objective is to remain a vibrant, dynamic platform for everyone to enjoy,' Mayer said. 'TikTok has become the latest target, but we are not the enemy.' As relations between the United States and China deteriorate over trade, Hong Kong's autonomy, cyber security and the spread of the novel coronavirus, TikTok has emerged as a flashpoint in the dispute between the world's two largest economies. ByteDance has been considering a range of options for TikTok amid U.S. pressure to relinquish control of the app, which allows users to create short videos with special effects and has become wildly popular with U.S. teenagers. ByteDance did not seek approval for the acquisition from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which reviews deals for potential national security risks. Reuters reported last year that CFIUS had opened an investigation into TikTok. Earlier this year, Chinese gaming company Beijing Kunlun Tech Co Ltd sold Grindr LLC, a popular gay dating app it bought in 2016, for $620 million after being ordered by CFIUS to divest. In 2018, CFIUS forced China's Ant Financial to scrap plans to buy MoneyGram International Inc over concerns about the safety of data that could identify U.S. citizens. ByteDance was valued at as much as $140 billion earlier this year when one of its shareholders, Cheetah Mobile, sold a small stake in a private deal, Reuters has reported. The startup's investors include Japan's SoftBank Group Corp. The bulk of ByteDance's revenue comes from advertising on apps under its Chinese operations including Douyin - a Chinese version of TikTok - and news aggregator app Jinri Toutiao, as well as video-streaming app Xigua and Pipixia, an app for jokes and humorous videos. The US-China trade conflict benefited Vietnams industrial property market in 2019 as manufacturers began shifting production to alternative markets. Average asking rents for industrial land in Vietnam increased by as much as 10%, with some industrial parks reporting rent growth of up to 40% year-on-year, CBRE said. Vietnam Jones Lang Lasalle Company (JLL Vietnam) said land prices in the industrial property segment have reached new levels even though the disease has impacted the land lease process. COVID-19 has caused temporary difficulties for upcoming business plans, but with a long-term investment strategy, industrial real estate in Vietnam is still very attractive. In the second quarter of this year, JLL Vietnam recorded rising land prices with an average of US$106 per sq.m for a lease cycle, up 9.7% compared to the same period last year for the southern industrial property market. Meanwhile, the rent price of ready-built factories was still stable at US$3.5-5 per sq.m per month, because the contract is only short term for 3-5 years and tenants are also susceptible to the pandemic's impact. Although there are some barriers to entry, including a shortage of industrial land in prime locations and a lack of infrastructure in key areas, Vietnams manufacturing industry and industrial real estate market stand to benefit from the rapid changes in global trade and supply chains, as long as trade with developed countries remains a key growth driver, according to CBRE. Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh has censured the demand to transfer the Sushant Singh Rajput case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) from the Mumbai Police. He also questioned the jurisdiction of the Bihar Police in the case. Deshmukh wrote on Twitter, @MumbaiPolice already began investigating allegations about @itsSSRs unfortunate alleged suicide. Even if Bihar Police registered an offence in Patna, under Ch. 12 & 13 of the #CrPC it has to be investigated,inquired & tried by police & courts within whose jurisdiction the offence is committed. I condemn the demand for the @itsSSR case to be handed to #CBI. The case is now being politcised for political gains. #MaharashtraPolice is inquiring into the case professionally & are competent in digging out the truth, leaving no stone unturned! Sushant died on June 14 and the Mumbai Police are investigating the case. However, last month, the late actors father KK Singh filed an FIR with the Patna Police against Sushants girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and her family for alleged abetment to suicide. A four-member team of Bihar Police arrived in Mumbai to launch their own probe. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajputs sister Shweta says disgraceful as Patna IPS officer to lead probe forcibly quarantined in Mumbai There has also been an increasing demand to transfer the case to the CBI. Responding to this, Deshmukh had said last month that he does not see the need for it as the Mumbai Police was competent enough to take charge of the investigation. I have the tweets and the campaign. But I dont think that a CBI probe is required. The Mumbai Police is competent enough to handle such cases and they are investigating every aspect of the case including professional rivalry. As of now, we do not see any foul play. Details of the investigation will be shared once it is completed, he had said. Meanwhile, Vinay Tiwari, the Patna (Central) SP who arrived in Mumbai on Sunday to lead the investigation, has been forcibly quarantined by Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials, according to Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey. Sushants sister Shweta Singh Kirti expressed shock at the development and called it disgraceful. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918 . Follow @htshowbiz for more A new federal court filing Monday from the Manhattan district attorney suggests the prosecutors office may be investigating President Trump and his company for bank and insurance fraud. The filing, from District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., argues that Trumps accountants must comply with a subpoena to turn over eight years of corporate and personal tax returns, citing undisputed news reports from last year about Trumps business practices The filing did not offer specific details about what the investigation is probing, but the reports in question claimed that Trump may have inflated his net worth and the value of his properties when providing information to lenders and insurers. Trumps attorneys have rejected accusations that he did anything that conflicts with the law. The filing stated that, these reports describe transactions involving individual and corporate actors based in New York County, but whose conduct at times extended beyond New Yorks borders. At the time the Mazars Subpoena was issued, there were public allegations of possible criminal activity at Plaintiffs New York County-based Trump Organization dating back over a decade, the prosecutors office wrote. The district attorneys office is seeking the records from Trumps accounting firm, Mazars USA, as part of a criminal investigation that involves hush-money payments to two women who claim to have had affairs with Trump. The accounting firm has said it will comply with the order. Trumps legal team and the Justice Department have argued that the president is immune from investigation while he is in office. Last month, the Supreme Court ruled 7-2 against Trump, rejecting the presidents claim of immunity. In 2016, Trump attracted harsh criticism when he became the first president in decades who declined to publicly release his tax returns during the campaign season, saying he was under audit by the IRS. More from National Review To the Editor: Re Chinas Troubling Nuclear Buildup (Op-Ed, July 31): I agree with James Anderson, acting under secretary of defense for policy, on the importance of arms control agreements and including other nuclear powers in arms talks. Reducing the number of nuclear weapons in the world is a worthwhile goal that enhances international security. However, the United States and Russia account for 90 percent of the worlds nuclear weapons. Ending the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty and the limits it imposes on the worlds two largest nuclear arsenals is no way to advance nonproliferation. Likewise, the treatys limitations on nuclear weapons and its irreplaceable monitoring and verification regime are vital to arms control. The United States should demonstrate global leadership by renewing New Start, which President Vladimir Putin has already agreed to do. At the same time, we can begin holding multilateral arms control discussions with other nuclear powers. I support including China and other nuclear powers in future talks and agreements, but that should happen apart from an immediate extension of New Start. A Dunkin employee has been accused of spitting in an Illinois State Troopers coffee, according to a report from CNN. The trooper, based out of Chicago, stopped at a Dunkin and bought a large black coffee last Thursday evening. When he removed the lid to let it cool, he saw what he described as a large, thick piece of mucus floating on the top of his brew. It was later confirmed to be saliva, police said. The employee 25-year-old Vincent J. Sessler was charged on Friday with disorderly conduct, reckless conduct and battery to a peace officer, according to Illinois State Police. A Dunkin' employee was arrested Friday after an Illinois State Trooper bought a large black coffee and found "a large, thick piece of mucus which was later confirmed to be saliva" in his coffee, police say https://t.co/A8s2WjCuLC CNN (@CNN) August 2, 2020 "This is outrageous and disgusting. The men and women of the Illinois State Police put their heart and soul into protecting the lives and rights of all people in this state every day," ISP director Brendan F. Kelly said in a statement. "They deserve better than this insulting and dangerous treatment. For their safety, ISP officers and employees will be prohibited from patronizing this location." Soon after, Dunkin looked into the incident and Sessler was terminated from his job, a Dunkin spokesperson told CNN. "The type of behavior reported to us is inconsistent with the brand's values," the spokesperson said. "Dunkin' has a deep appreciation for police officers who work tirelessly to keep our communities safe, and the franchise owner has reached out directly to the officer to apologize for the experience." Sessler is in custody at the Chicago Police Departments 8th District and the investigation is ongoing. 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. Read more: Bertie Ahern and John Hume as they took part in a press conference on the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in Belfast. Picture Charles McQuillan/Pacemaker. My friend John Hume had a very simple view: You have to talk to your enemy. Doing that creates huge risk for democratic governments but if you want to make progress, you have to accept that the status quo cant remain untouched. Read More Today Ireland is at peace, largely because of a man who stayed going when it seemed everyone had turned against him. Johns perseverance was ultimately rewarded with a stable peace process and thankfully global recognition of his role in Irish history. Over a glass of white win he used to often remind me that he was the only man to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize (1998), the Martin Luther King Jnr Nonviolent Peace Prize (1999) and the Gandhi Peace Prize (2001). John got millions of awards. He would be able to recount all of them but those three were the ones he would always go back to. My first memories of John were after I was elected in 1977. He used to drift into the Dail and was regularly caller to the Members Bar. I started getting friendly with him in the early 80s after I became Fianna Fail assistant whip. We would meet with the SDLP to discuss events and he struck me as a great character. Always nice, on top of his game, giving advice and opinions on how things should be handled. Read More Hed spend days in Leinster House briefing people on the latest crisis in the North and every party would have an open door for him, regardless of who was in government or opposition. John was unquestionably the big link in the bad years between north and south. In those days the only thing in the news was the Troubles. John was always to see if there was a way to find an agreement. During the early 1980s he spent a lot of time working on the New Ireland Forum. Veronica Guerin was actually secretary to the forum and I remember many a cup of tea was had with Veronica and John during that. Expand Close Dick Spring, Irish Labour Party leader, Charles Haughey TD, Fianna Fail leader, Taoiseach Dr Garret FitzGerald and John Hume, leader of the SDLP, at the first meeting of the Northern Ireland Forum in Dublin in 1984 / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Dick Spring, Irish Labour Party leader, Charles Haughey TD, Fianna Fail leader, Taoiseach Dr Garret FitzGerald and John Hume, leader of the SDLP, at the first meeting of the Northern Ireland Forum in Dublin in 1984 We had a difference of opinions over the Anglo Irish Agreement (1985) but it never hurt our personal relationship. And even when everyone turned against him, he kept going. There was a point where it seemed like he was doing it on his own. People will remember the Sunday Independent was famously critical of his willingness to engage with Sinn Fein and the IRA in the early 1990s. A story many people might not know is that years later Aengus Fanning, the late editor, rang me because he wanted to make up with John. I arranged so that the three of us could meet in Fagans in Drumcondra. It turned into a great day of conversation. Everything was made up, not so much with an apology but with friendly chats. Myself and John used to often go to Fagans when I was Taoiseach. The Derry bus would drop him off across the road at my office, St Lukes, and Id get one of my drivers to drop him back into town for the bus back afterwards. The lads in there would make a big fuss out of him and it was always great fun. Although one day I remember there was a conversation about the decommissioning of arms and somebody else brought up Charlie Haughey and the importation of arms. John got a bit confused and started telling them off, saying I never imported arms. He was very upset when the IRA ceasefire broke down in 1996. He had invested so much into that period. And then the cards came tumbling down with Canary Wharf. At that stage it had gone the very top of the hill and it all came rolling back down. I had to go to him and tell him we couldn't continue the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation gig in Dublin Castle. The sad thing about that is that forum which Albert Reynold set up in 1992 never came back again. Expand Close Seamus Mallon (left) and John Hume (Barry Batchelor/PA) PA Archive/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Seamus Mallon (left) and John Hume (Barry Batchelor/PA) But eventually we got to the Good Friday Agreement. The only thing he really wanted to see was the all-island vote. He said this was a way of taking away the IRAs argument that they had a mandate from the first Dail in 1918. If the Good Friday Agreement was put to the full island and passed then the IRA's mandate ceased. I backed him on that to make sure it happened. Tony Blair couldn't understand why I wanted it because we were talking about trying to overwrite something from 1918. That all-island vote made so much sense in the end. All the awards rightly followed as people understood the courage and commitment it took to deliver lasting peace. As the conflict raged in Northern Ireland, through sheer willpower the name of John Hume became synonymous around the world with the refusal to yield to those forces of hatred, of death, and destruction. Having said that one of the things he was most proud of, and really felt was so important in his life was the Credit Union movement. He because president of the League of Credit Unions at just 26. He travelled all over Ireland setting up branches and that actually gave him a huge fell for the south. If I didnt mention that hed come back and haunt me. Now he sits up there with the best of them. Himself and Seamus Mallon who died just over six months ago. Every person on this island, nationalist, unionist or whatever, owes John Hume a great debt of gratitude for delivering democracy, freedom and human rights through methods many said were naive. He gave us peace in our time, may he now rest in peace. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 03:38:28|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- A possible humanitarian disaster is feared involving about 125,000 people in and around the Libyan city of Sirte should the mobilization of troops nearby lead to hostilities, a UN spokesman said on Monday. Farhan Haq, the deputy spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, told correspondents in a virtual briefing that the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported the civilians in and around the central coastal city remain "at great risk" in the face of violence. Last month, the spokesman for Guterres, Stephane Dujarric, appealed for a ceasefire around strategic Sirte because of the military build-up "rather than adding oil to the fire." Libya also is suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic with 3,837 cases and 83 deaths reported, Haq said. Most of the cases are in the western and southern parts of the country of about 6.8 million people. Capacity for testing, tracing and treating people remains extremely low across the country and continues to be concentrated in Tripoli and eastern Benghazi. Health authorities in Tripoli have dispatched a shipment of 20,000 swabs to Sebha in response to the severe shortages of swabs for testing in the south, he said. The UN and its humanitarian partners are at the forefront supporting national authorities with its COVID-19 response, particularly in the provision of health supplies and personal protective equipment, the spokesman said. More than 243,000 people have been reached by the UN and other organizations with humanitarian assistance since the beginning of the year across Libya, including 66,000 internally displaced people and 58,000 migrants and refugees, OCHA said. In addition to hostilities and the pandemic, Libya also is faced with migrants, refugees and asylum seekers attempting to cross the Mediterranean from its shores, at great risk to their lives. This year, more than 6,700 migrants and refugees were intercepted at sea and returned to Libya, including women and children. Fuel shortages and electricity cuts of more than 18 hours a day are exacerbating poor living conditions for many across the country, Haq said. Health facilities have also suffered from electricity cuts, forcing some to temporarily suspend operations. Most of the western part of the country is controlled by the UN- and internationally-recognized government based in the traditional capital of Tripoli while much of the east falls under the banner of the self-styled Libyan National Army. Enditem The Islamic State group on Sunday claimed responsibility for a complex attack by a suicide car bomber and multiple gunmen against a prison in eastern Afghanistan, which Afghan officials said killed at least three people and injured 24 others. The hours long gun battle between Afghan security forces and insurgents in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, was still ongoing Sunday evening, and casualties were likely to rise, according to Attaullah Khogyani, spokesman for the provincial governor. Tariq Arian, spokesman for the Interior Ministry, said at least three people were killed, while Zahir Adil, the spokesman for the provincial Health Ministry, provided the figure of 24 wounded. The Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan, known as IS in Khorasan province, claimed responsibility for the attack. The IS affiliate is headquartered in Nangarhar province. Sunday's attack comes a day after the Afghan intelligence agency said a senior IS commander was killed by Afghan special forces near Jalalabad. The Taliban's political spokesman Suhail Shaheen told The Associated Press, "We have a cease-fire and are not involved in any of these attacks anywhere in the country," but said he was not aware of the details of the Jalalabad attack. The Taliban declared a three-day cease-fire starting Friday for the major Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. The Taliban had also denied involvement in a suicide bombing in the eastern Logar province late Thursday, which killed at least nine people and wounded at least 40, authorities said. Afghanistan has seen a recent spike in violence, with most attacks claimed by the local IS affiliate. A United Nations report last month estimated there are around 2,200 IS members in Afghanistan, and that while the group is in "territorial retreat" and its leadership has been depleted, it "remains capable of carrying out high-profile attacks in various parts of the country, including Kabul." Efforts to get peace talks underway between the Taliban and the Kabul government have stalled after the Taliban and the US signed a deal in February, seen as a blueprint to ending Afghanistan's decades of war. That deal was struck to allow the US to end its 19-year involvement in Afghanistan, and calls on the Taliban to guarantee its territory will not be used by terrorist groups. The deal is also expected to guarantee the Taliban's all-out participation in the fight against IS. Still, a United Nations report last week said Afghanistan saw a 13% drop in the number of civilians killed and wounded in violence across the country in the first six months of the year, compared to the same period last year. The report credited the drop in casualties in part to the reduction of operations by international forces which now only act when called upon and in support of the Afghan forces and also to a decrease in the number of attacks by IS. The report said the UN had recorded 17 attacks by IS that caused civilian casualties during the first six months of 2020, down from 97 attacks in the same period last year. Overall, the UN said 1,282 people were killed in violence in the first six months of 2020 in Afghanistan and 2,176 were wounded. LAS VEGAS, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- SME, FMA, AWS, PMA and CCAI, FABTECH event partners, have announced that FABTECH, scheduled for November 18-20 in Las Vegas, has been cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. "The metal forming, fabricating, welding, and finishing industries are vital to manufacturing and to the economy, and FABTECH is proud to serve the companies and professionals of these industries," said Ed Youdell, President and CEO of Fabricators & Manufacturers Association, International. "It's important that FABTECH is executed to a standard worthy of the industry's expectations; while we looked for viable alternatives, unfortunately we simply do not have a path forward in 2020." "We explored every option to find a way to produce this event in 2020," said Sandra Bouckley, executive director and CEO of SME. "Unfortunately, COVID-19 has created an environment that makes it impossible to hold the event. Our top concern is always the safety of our exhibitors, attendees, speakers, sponsors, and employees, along with supplier partners and venue staff. While we didn't want to have to make this decision, we have found that we have no choice." FABTECH is the premier event for the metal fabricating industry. Since its debut in 1981, FABTECH has grown from a regional trade show into North America's largest and most authoritative event for metal forming, fabricating, welding and finishing. Event partners were quick to reassure the community that they are evaluating other options to serve the industry. "FABTECH has long been a key element of AWS' efforts to support and advance the welding community," said Gary Konarska, CEO of the American Welding Society. "We look forward to continuing to work with our FABTECH event partners to identify new and enhanced ways both online and physical to connect the FABTECH community, share knowledge about the latest industry products and developments, and help companies move their business forward. FABTECH will return as a face-to-face event in 2021, with FABTECH Mexico taking place May 4-6 in Monterrey, and FABTECH Chicago taking place September 13-16 at McCormick Place. More than 1,700 exhibiting companies and more than 48,000 attendees are expected to participate in FABTECH Chicago. About FABTECH FABTECH is largest metal forming, fabricating, welding and finishing event. The event provides a convenient, one-stop-shop" venue where you can meet with world-class suppliers, see the latest industry products and developments, and find the tools to improve productivity and increase profits. FABTECH is organized by event partners SME, AWS, FMA, PMA and CCAI. Together, these associations bring unmatched technical proficiency and industry insight to FABTECH. Read more about FABTECH's event partners here. SOURCE SME Related Links http://www.sme.org Malaysia's Paul Teoh found his first taste of WSOP gold after shipping Event #47: $1,000 Short Deck No Limit Hold'em for $88,202 and a a WSOP gold bracelet at GGPoker. Teoh's WSOP experience prior to this year consisted of trips to the WSOP Europe in 2018 and 2019 at King's Resort where he managed five cashes in bracelet events in three different poker variants. His last final cash coincidentally came in a short-deck event where he finished in 10th place in the 2019 WSOPE Event #13: 2,500 No Limit Short Deck Hold'em for 8,322 ($9,256). Teoh has had an amazing run thus far during the WSOP at GGPoker as this was his third final table appearance. It wasn't easy for Teoh to win the bracelet as he faced an especially competitive final table which included the likes of a very hungry Mike Watson. Many of Watson's peers consider him to be one of the best tournament players to never win a WSOP bracelet but, unfortunately, he will have to wait for his chance as today was Teoh's day. Watson has impressively amassed more than $12 million in live cashes according to The Hendon Mob to go along with another $6 million in online tournament cashes according to PocketFives where he is currently ranked in sixth place in the world. 2020 GGPoker WSOP Event #47 $1,000 Short Deck No Limit Hold'em Final Table Results Place Player Country Prize 1 Paul Teoh Malaysia $82,202 2 Michelle "hu4trollzz" Shah United States $60,254 3 Mike Watson Canada $44,166 4 Andrei "iosif stalin" Konopelko Belarus $32,373 5 Joseph "MrWheatToast" Orsino United States $23,730 6 Jose Luis "IQUI22" Maslhia Argentina $17,394 7 Mykhailo "remand" Krasnytskyi Ukraine $12,750 8 Boon Heng "CowBaby" Siong Singapore $9,345 9 Shota "shorta222" Nakanishi Japan $6,850 Event #47 Action The day began with players starting off with a huge stack of 300,000 in chips and blinds increasing every 20 minutes. Late registration was closed after three hours when it was announced that the tournament attracted a field of 487 players to generate a $462,560 prize pool. After a little more than four hours of total play, the bubble burst once Gennaro "G4m3ov3r" Proscia hit the rail. The remaining 71 players were each guaranteed at least a min-cash of $2,152. GGPoker Ambassador and six-time WSOP bracelet winner Daniel Negreanu just missed cashing. Although he failed to pad his bankroll he did fare better than fellow Ambassador Felipe Ramos who decided not to re-enter near the end of late registration after he busted his first and only bullet. Among those to cash but miss the final table included Dustin "JohnSmiley1" Dirksen (12th - $5,167), Dzmitry Urbanovich (22nd - $3,334), WSOP bracelet winner Danny Tang (29th - $2,679), Dario Sammartino (36th - $2,679), Dan "oiltrader" Shak (38th - $2,679), Jens "Tankanza" Lakemeier (55th - $2,152), and Manig Loeser (64th - $2,152). Final Table Action The final table was reached after nearly 7 1/2 hours of play and it took more than three hours for the final table to play out. Federico "Poch0Loc0" Anselmi bubbled the final table in 10th place for $5,167 after his ace-queen couldn't hold up against the ten-eight held by Jose Luis "IQUI22" Maslhia. Watson entered the final table with the chip lead with Andrei "iosif stalin" Konopelko and Teoh not too far behind. It took nearly an hour for any eliminations to take place at the final table during which time Konopelko took the chip lead. Then four eliminations took place within a span of about 10 minutes. The first two eliminations took place on the same hand when Konopelko's ace-jack got there against the ace-queen suited held by Boon Heng "CowBaby" Siong (eighth - $9,345) and the big slick held by Shota "shorta222" Nakanishi (ninth - $6,850). Mykhailo "remand" Krasnytskyi was the next to go in seventh place for $12,450. Krasnytskyi's ace-ten didn't improve against Watson's ace-queen suited and Konopelko's big slick. Watson won the hand to narrow the gap between him and Konopelko for the chip lead. Jose Luis "IQUI22" Maslhia gave up most of his stack when his big slick ran into rockets held by Michelle "hu4trollzz" Shah. The rest of his stack then went to Teoh and he hit the rail in sixth place for $17,394. Shortly after, Teoh took the chip lead before it quickly headed back to Konopelko. A bit of time passed before Joseph "MrWheatToast" Orsino hit the rail in fifth place for $23,730 when his king-queen suited didn't get there against Watson's ace-jack suited. The action was fast and furious. Although no eliminations took place for a bit of time, the lead exchanged many times with each player having it at least once until Konopelko eventually hit the rail in fourth place for $32,373. Konopelko got it in good with ace-queen against Shah's king-queen. But Shah hit a straight on the board and it was Konopelko's run fell short of a podium finish. A short while later, Teoh won a big hand against Shah. Teoh flopped two pair with ten-eight and improved to a full house on the river when he got a big call by Shah with ace-jack for two pair. Teoh already had more than half the chips in play when he eliminated Watson in third place for $44,166. Watson got it in good with jacks against Teoh's tens but Teoh hit a straight and Watson fell short of getting his first WSOP bracelet. Heads-Up Action Teoh entered heads-up play with a 4:1 chip advantage against Shah. He extended it to a 6:1 chip advantage before the final hand took place. Teoh called a three-bet shove with queen-jack and was up against the ace-jack held by Shah. Shah was ahead when the chips were committed but luck was on Teoh's side after a queen hit a flop and eventually had two pair after the river. Although Shah did fall short of a bracelet, she will still go home with an impressive runner prize of $60,254. Congrats to Paul Teoh for winning his first bracelet and the $82,202 top prize! Ride-share services in Melbourne will be restricted under stage four measures forcing the industry heavyweights Uber and DiDi to diversify into delivery services in a bid to claw back revenue. Under the tighter restrictions introduced by the Victorian state government, ride-share and taxis operations would be restricted and only available to support access to permitted services and provide transport for permitted workers. The restrictions will come into place on midnight Wednesday and the Andrews government is yet to define the permitted services and the permitted workers. Ride share services are being restricted in Victoria. Credit:Shutterstock Use of ridesharing services had already fallen steeply as a result of COVID-19 and the latest restrictions and 8pm curfew have emptied Melbourne's roads. In partnership with Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Wadhwani Foundation In a major initiative to encourage and enable holistic progress in the incubator ecosystem across the country, NITI Aayogs Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), has launched AIM iCREST an Incubator Capabilities enhancement program for a Robust Ecosystem focused on creating high performing Startups. This is a first of its kind initiative for advancing innovation at scale in India. AIM has joined hands with Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Wadhwani Foundation - organizations that can lend credible support and expertise in the entrepreneurship and innovation space. AIM iCREST, as the name suggests, has been designed to enable the incubation ecosystem and act as a growth hack for AIMs Atal and Established incubators across the country. Under the initiative, the AIMs incubators are set to be upscaled and provided requisite support to foster the incubation enterprise economy, that will help them to significantly enhance their performance. This will be complemented by providing training to entrepreneurs, through technology driven processes and platforms. The program aims at going beyond incubator capacity building. Given the current pandemic crisis, the effort will focus on supporting start-up entrepreneurs in knowledge creation and dissemination as well as in developing robust and active networks. Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, sharing his views said, We firmly believe that the Indian startup ecosystem has evolved into truly world-class movement. NITI Aayog shall play the role of a catalyst in making it happen. India has a great opportunity in its inherent innovative mindset to capture global markets while creating disruptive solutions for the challenges within the country. In order to facilitate an AtmaNirbhar ecosystem that is capable of nurturing such disruptive startups, AIM, NITI Aayog is enabling this partnership with Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Wadhwani Foundation. We are positive it will propel our portfolio to become #WorldClassIncubators and reach greater heights. (TNS) - One morning, Amy Rosen woke up with body aches and a throbbing head. When she couldnt shake the feeling, she went to urgent care to get swabbed for COVID-19 and paid $45 to get quick results. Two days later, her test result came back positive.In the next two weeks, Rosen got nasal and saliva tests another six times at drive-thrus, walk-ups and again at urgent care all in a quest for a negative result to resume her normal life.As the virus infects Floridians at a record pace, wait times at test sites and long turnarounds for results have people like Rosen taking multiple tests at multiple sites. Desperate for an accurate diagnosis, they strategize, and even pay, to get faster test results.You really cant wait for results to get tested again, Rosen said, a Plantation mother of two teenagers. A positive is kind of a stigma. You need those negatives for validation, to prove you are OK to be out and about.By now, testing is easy to access in South Florida, and for the most part, it is free. There are mobile units and walk-up clinics, government-run drive-thrus and pop-ups in parking lots. Many testing sites are appointment-only and booked days or weeks into the future. Some walk-ups have lines that wrap around the building or loop through the parking lot.Getting swabbed is the first step. After the specimen collection, another waiting game begins with some backlogged labs taking as many as 10 to 12 days to deliver results. And, in all the chaos, people with time, money or both are navigating where and when to go, and how to get results quickly.Motivation varies: Sometimes a Floridian feels achy or has a cough and wants to know if they have the virus. Sometimes a curious test taker wants to know if he or she has the virus without symptoms. Then there are people who lack trust in a result. In other instances, someone previously positive is seeking a negative result or two of them to go back to work or emerge from self-isolation.Tomasina Bakers motivation is paying her bills. A worker at a long-term care facility from Hollywood, Baker swabbed her mouth during her shift and learned she was positive. I had no symptoms so I didnt really trust the results, she said. To be able to resume her weekend shifts, Baker needed two negative test results, her employer told her.Bakers game plan: Pay a co-pay for an ER visit and get a quick result from Memorial Hospital. That resulted in a negative in 48 hours. A few days later, she woke up at 5 a.m. and went to a free walk-up in Miramar and waited in line. A week later she had a second negative. Now, she will take another test at her workplace to be extra cautious.I think everyone should be tested frequently because the virus is still out there, she said.In large part, the testing madness has been driven by wait times. As demand for COVID-19 tests continues to rise in hard-hit Florida, the wait times for test results has grown longer, which has led to desperation and a scramble for shortcuts.Jeff Berke of Fort Lauderdale is on that quest, motivated by his desire to be around family. Initially, Berke drove to Holiday Park in Fort Lauderdale to get tested out of curiosity. Five days later he received a text message saying he was positive. After a week, he returned to Holiday Park, but a new company had taken over the process and handed him an oral swab to do himself in his car. With oral testing, I have heard stories of it not being accurate, he said. So to better learn his true status, he went the next day to CVS for another test, a self-administered nasal swab. This one would be with Quest and they told me I would have to wait 7 to 10 days.Berke said hes not sure whether hes done with testing. I really want to make sure I get two negative tests. My mom is 86 years old and my brother in law has a compromised immune system. I need to know its OK to be around them.In South Florida, community spread has taken hold and many national labs processing hundreds of thousands of tests a day are struggling to keep up with the increased demand for coronavirus tests -- from Florida and other states.When seeking testing, Michael Rosen realized the lab is more important than the test site. Rosen waited 12 days to get a negative test result from a Coral Springs walk-up site that used Quest Laboratories to process the swabs. Then, he used a strategy.Because his co-worker tested positive, he wanted another test, but he also wanted faster results. So he searched for smaller sites that use smaller labs that advertised shorter wait times. He has taken two tests in city parks that use Real Diagnostics to process results. Each time he waited less than an hour to get swabbed and received results in four days -- both positive. He just took another test in a city park that uses the same lab, eager to end his three weeks of self-isolation at home. Im really hoping this last test is negative. A lot of people dont want to be around you unless you are negative.Other South Floridians learned of a different shortcut. But by paying cash at a private lab, results come back faster. Mike Ross said his Miami lab processes thousands of specimens a day for private businesses, community organizations and individuals. He understands why people seek options to cut their wait times. People want peace of mind or they dont want to wait in line and they are willing to pay for that, Ross said.Lab24 has a swab site in Boca Raton and one in Miami where people can walk up, pay cash ($150 to $180) and get results in 24 hours. Private insurance will cover the cost if someone has symptoms, he said. Ross sees no downside in testing multiple times. Its a complex test. Our scientists have to manually read each report to ensure accuracy.Ross said Lab24 checks for multiple markers, which means it picks up positives more often than some other labs. We sometimes have the same person showing up multiple times. We have a hard time saying no.Some South Florida employers have hired private labs to test all their workers, picking up the expense for fast results. When workers come back positive, the serial testing begins.One HR manager has discovered: Some employees are so anxious to get cleared before their paid leave expires that they get tested multiple times, going to private labs, drive-thrus or their doctors office, and they dont always wait for the result of the first before getting another test in their efforts to get a negative result. But we have stopped asking for negative results because we knew this was going on, and now we are following the new CDC guidelines.On July 22, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its guidelines for when someone can stop isolating at home and return to work. Rather than requiring two negative tests 24 hours apart to return to work, someone can go back after 20 days have passed since the first symptom, or 10 days after the first positive test for those without symptoms. And, 24 hours must pass since someones last fever.The government is trying to come up with science-based guidance to relieve the pressure to get repeated testing, said Terry Adirim, \u200eSenior Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs at \u200eFlorida Atlantic University.Meanwhile, test site directors say be aware while test shopping that the most accurate test to learn if you are infected is the PCR diagnostic test used at most government-run sites. An antibody test offers quick results but only shows past exposure to the virus.You can go to Hard Rock today, Tamiami on Thursday and Marlins Park on Friday. Its not like we have an electronic medical record, said Eneida Roldan, clinical director of the FIU/Youth Fairgrounds testing site. But different tests use different platforms ... its important that you understand the result you are getting.Some health officials have said the more people are tested who dont need to be, the harder it is for people who need to get results back.Dr. Jennifer Goldman, chief of primary care for Memorial Healthcare System and medical director of the CB Smith Park community COVID-19 test site, said, If someone thinks they have been exposed to someone positive and wants to get tested, they should do so.But if you get tested, behave like you are positive and quarantine at home until you get the result, Goldman said.One of the things we do see is people are focused on getting tested multiple times, but while waiting for results they are going into the community, not knowing if they are positive for coronavirus, Goldman said.Jared Moskowitz, director of Floridas Division of Emergency Management, said the state is aware of test forum shopping.We want people to get tested who feel they need to get tested, he saidBut because of the demand, long lab processing time has become a national problem, he said. We want to make sure people who are 65 and older, first responders and people who have been exposed or have symptoms get their results as quickly as possible.To address on-site wait times, Moskowitz said the state has opened designated lanes at eight sites for people who have symptoms to self swab. In addition, the state is pivoting from using national laboratories to process tests to three smaller companies that promise results in 72 hours. It will soon open sites offering antigen tests that produce results in 15 minutes. While faster, that type of test is slightly less accurate than the more common diagnostic tests.Long waits should no longer be an issue, Moskowitz said.Health reporter Cindy Krischer Goodman can be reached at cgoodman@sunsentinel.com, 954-304-5908 Twitter and Instagram @cindykgoodman2020 the Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)Visit the Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) at www.sun-sentinel.comDistributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. FILE PHOTO: A 3D-printed Facebook logo is seen placed on a keyboard in this illustration By Patpicha Tanakasempipat BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's digital minister has threatened legal action against Facebook and accused the social media giant of not complying with government requests to restrict content deemed illegal, including perceived insults to the country's monarchy. The latest threat came after Facebook's auto-translation tool mistranslated a message in a Thai broadcaster's post live-streaming King Maha Vajiralongkorn's birthday ceremony last week. Facebook has apologised and temporarily disabled English-to-Thai auto-translation. The incident sparked a flurry of complaints by Puttipong Punnakanta, Thailand's Minister of Digital Economy and Society, that Facebook was not responding fast enough to the Thai government's requests to restrict content. He also vowed stronger action against the company. He did not elaborate. Thailand has a tough law prohibiting insults against the monarchy. In recent years, authorities have filed court orders along with requests to social media platforms to restrict or remove perceived royal insults and other illegal content, including national security threats and copyright violations. "When we use Thai laws to order removals or restrictions of content and don't receive cooperation in some cases, we might need to use Section 27 of the Computer Crime Act which makes it a crime to not follow court orders," Puttipong said on Sunday. He was referring to an article of the cybercrime law that says failure to observe a court order can result in a fine of up to 200,000 baht ($6,408) and an additional 5,000 baht ($160) per day until the order is observed. Puttipong said, however, that he would not go as far as to ban Facebook because many Thai businesses relied on it to drive sales. Facebook did not directly comment on the minister's threat when contacted on Monday. A spokeswoman repeated an apology over the royal birthday mistranslation. Facebook has said it processes requests from the Thai government the same as any other government. After reviewing requests, Facebook may block the content from being seen by users in that country if locally unlawful. (Reporting by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by Martin Petty) New Delhi: After nearly 500 years, historical wrong is being repaired with the Bhoomi Pujan ceremony of Ram Temple in Ayodhya on August 5, and the preparations for the historic occasion have been completed. Related to faith and emotions of crores of Indians, the Ram temple is coming to reality after the struggle of about 25 generations. The DNA analysis today revolves around the Ram Mandir movement and other aspects that led to the fulfillment of this dream in modern India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will participate in the Bhoomi Pujan ceremony. During the era of Mughal emperor Babur, the Babri Masjid was built after desecrating the Ram temple in the year 1528. After the Mughal rule, the British also ruled India for almost 200 years, and then in independent India, 73 years also passed but the dream of crore remained unfulfilled. The Ram Mandir movement that started in 1990 later became a mass movement and with the Supreme Court decision in November 2019, the issue has been permanently resolved. Several people associated with the movement lost hope that the controversial issue would find a solution in their lifetime because of ongoing politics in the name of this Madir and Masjid. In independent India, this will be the second occasion when a grand temple will be rebuilt. The Somnath temple in Gujarat was rebuilt soon after independence. The then President, Dr Rajendra Prasad, had inaugurated Somnath temple, and now Prime Minister Narendra Modi will participate in the Bhoomi Pujan ceremony of Ram Temple in Ayodhya. The questions are being raised as to what will happen if the Ram temple is built. It will not only restore faith and authority but will also add to India's soft power. Faith in Lord Rama is not limited to India, but people in many countries across the world have faith in him. This is the reason that holy soil, bricks, and holy water from rivers are being brought from countries for the construction of Ram temple. In Southeast Asia, countries like Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia, Malaysia associate them with Lord Ram, while folk songs based on the themes of the Ramayana and Ramlila are staged in countries such as Sri Lanka and Myanmar. Several places in Myanmar are named after Ram, while Ramkatha is still practised in Malaysia, where Muslims still associate the names of Lord Rama and Lakshmana with their names. The tradition of ruling the country keeping charan Paduka (footsteps) of Lord Rama is still followed in Thailand, whose ruling dynasty calls them to be the descendants of Lors Rama. Ramayana is still recited at many places in Cambodia. Apart from this, about 30 million Indian diasporas living in different parts of the world. Most of these people believe and worship Lord Rama. It is said that wherever Indians go, they carry their culture along and spread it to outside countries. The construction of Ram temple will give a new sense of pride to these overseas Indians in their religion and culture. This grand Ram temple of Lord Ram will also add to India's soft power and is expected to boost tourism India as crores will visit the place. This will also add a new chapter to India's history, which will be divided into two parts. One will be pre-Ram temple era and the second part will belong to the post-Ram temple period. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was closely associated with the Ram Mandir movement. He was also part of the famous Rath Yatra started in 1990 by senior BJP leader LK Advani from Somnath to Ayodhya. The responsibility of this rath yatra was with Narendra Modi, who was then organization secretary of the Gujarat BJP. Sri Ramjanmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has invited only 175 guests in the Bhoomi Pujan ceremony for the Ram temple in Ayodhya on August 5. The esteemed gathering will attend the historic occasion when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will perform the ceremony. PM Modi will worship 9 shilas (stones), associated with Ram temple movement during 1989-90, to be placed during the Bhoomi Pujan. One of these shilas will be kept in the sanctum sanctorum, while the rest will be placed in other places of the temple. According to the Trust's general secretary, Champat Rai, 175 eminent guests, including 135 seers belonging to as many spiritual traditions, would be present at the programme. Some eminent citizens of the temple town have also been invited. Salil Singhal, the nephew of late VHP leader Ashok Singhal, will be the "yajmaan" (ritual patron) at the ceremony. Hindu seers from Nepal have also been invited as Janakpur has relations with Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Ayodhya, Rai added. Soil and water from 2000 different holy places across the country have reached Ayodhya. The holy water is being brought from 100 rivers, including key rivers like Ganga, Yamuna, Narmada, Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri, Indus, Brahmaputra, Jhelum, Sutlej, Ravi, and Vyas. The water and soil from the pond of the Sikh shrine Golden Temple will also be used in the Bhoomi Poojan. The soils from the courtyards of all the Jyotirlingas have already reached Ayodhya, along with water and soil from Kailash Mansarovar. Ahead of the Bhoomi Pujan ceremony, Ram Archana will start on August 4 at 8:30 am in the Ram Janmabhoomi campus in which Lord Rama, King Dasharatha, Queen Kaushalya will be worshiped for about 5:30 hours along with those who helped Lord Ram in his fight against Lanka King Ravana. 'Gauri Ganesh' puja was performed on Monday at 8 am amid chanting of mantras by 11 priests from Kashi, Kanchi, and Delhi. 'Ramayana path' was also organised in various other temples of Ayodhya. Preparations have also been made to decorate Ramlalla for the three-day ritual of Bhoomi Poojan. Every day Ramlalla will be dressed up in different colors to suit the planets and constellations. These clothes have already been handed over to Acharya Satendra Das. On Wednesday, Ramlalla will wear green clothes, while an extra set of saffron cloth has also been kept ready. The entire holy city is painted in yellow colour before the Bhoomi Pujan. The walls of different places have also been ornamented with beautiful paintings related to the life of Lor Rama. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 15:44:42|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close HANOI, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), which measures the economic health of the country's manufacturing sector, dipped back below the 50.0 no-change mark in July, posting 47.6 from 51.1 in June, a report compiled by the London-based global information provider IHS Markit revealed on Monday. The Vietnamese manufacturing sector saw declines in output and new orders as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to impact business conditions. Employment decreased again while purchasing activity was reduced, said the report. July data pointed to a modest reduction in manufacturing output, after a return to growth had been registered in the previous month. Respondents indicated that the COVID-19 pandemic continued to impact operations, with new orders reportedly lower. In line with the picture for output, new orders fell following a rise in June. Total new order was undermined by a sharp contraction in new export orders, linked to restrictions on travel and falling demand in export markets due to COVID-19. Despite a drop of output in July, firms remained confident in the 12-month outlook for production. Sentiment was down only slightly from that seen in the previous month. According to respondents, expected improvements in market demand and new orders were behind the positive outlook for output, read the report. "The data highlight the impact that the COVID-19 epidemic continues to have on the economy, with new export orders particularly hard to come by given travel restrictions and continuing outbreaks in a number of export markets," Andrew Harker, economics director at IHS Markit commented on the survey results. A PMI reading above 50 indicates an expansion of the manufacturing sector compared to the previous month; below 50 represents a contraction; while 50 indicates no change. Enditem Afghan government frees over 300 Taliban prisoners in Eid ceasefire deal Iran Press TV Sunday, 02 August 2020 5:28 PM The Afghan government says a further 300 Taliban prisoners have been released since Friday as part of a deal, taking the total number of militants freed so far to just over 4,900. The Office of the National Security Council (ONSC) said in a statement Sunday that the government released 317 more Taliban prisoners from Parwan and other provincial prisons, bringing the total to 4,917. The latest batch of the Taliban inmates were part of the 500 Taliban prisoners ordered free by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Friday in a gesture of goodwill. The Taliban announced a surprise ceasefire during the three-day Muslim Eid al-Adha festival that started on Friday. The Afghan government welcomed and reciprocated the move with President Ghani pledging to wrap-up the troubled prisoner swap with the Taliban and urging them to get ready for talks in a week. The truce, which is the third official ceasefire in nearly 19 years of war, has raised hopes for peace talks to be start soon. Since Friday, there have been no reports of major clashes between the militants and government forces. Both President Ashraf Ghani and the Taliban have signaled that protracted peace negotiations could begin once Eid-al Adha is over. The Taliban and the US in February signed a deal that slated Afghan peace talks to begin in March, but discussions were delayed by disagreements over terms of a prisoner swap. The deal, which sets the stage for the withdrawal of all US-led foreign forces from Afghanistan, required Kabul to free some 5,000 Taliban prisoners in exchange for 1,000 Afghan security personnel held by the Taliban. The Taliban said they have already fulfilled their side of the exchange. Authorities, however, have refused to free hundreds of inmates accused of serious crimes that the militant group had requested for release. President Ghani has said the decision on the release of the Taliban prisoners accused of serious crimes should be made by Loya Jirga, a grand assembly of Afghan elders. Official data shows that bombings and other assaults by the Taliban have surged 70 percent since the militant group signed a deal with the United States. Ghani said last week that more than 3,500 Afghan troops and nearly 800 civilians had been killed since a peace deal was signed between the Taliban and the US in late February, in Doha. The United States led a military coalition of its allies in 2001 to invade Afghanistan to topple a Taliban regime, believing it was harboring the al-Qaeda terrorist group. The militants now control or hold influence over more Afghan territory than at any point since that time and have carried out near-daily attacks against US-led foreign forces and Afghan military outposts throughout the country. Over 100,000 people have been killed or injured since 2009, when the UN mission in Afghanistan began documenting casualties. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Milla Handley was the first woman winemaker to open a winery in her own name in California. Through her Handley Cellars, she helped put Mendocino Countys Anderson Valley on the fine-wine region map and inspired a new generation of female wine producers. Handley died on July 25, about two weeks after a COVID-19 diagnosis. She was 68. She was independent, she was strong and she liked to do things for herself, said Randy Schock, the current winemaker at Handley Cellars. But she also had a playful side and never took things too seriously. I still have visions of her standing on a railing, holding a five-gallon bucket, watching the tank geyser over, and even in a moment like that she could still laugh. She established Handley Cellars in Philo, the so-called deep end of Anderson Valley the cooler, northernmost reaches of the valley. Handley had an early hunch that grape varieties like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay would thrive here. Her initial planting, in the mid-1980s, also included Gewurztraminer, which would become one of the valleys signature wines. If youve ever enjoyed a California Gewurztraminer, you can thank Handley for proving the grapes viability. Handley was born in San Francisco in 1951 and grew up in Los Altos. She was a competitive equestrian and decided to attend UC Davis for college because she could board her horse there. After trying out art and veterinary science majors, she switched to a discipline that combines art with science: enology. When she graduated in 1975, Handley was among the first female graduates from the universitys fermentation science department. She got a job at Chateau St. Jean in Sonoma County, and then at Edmeades in Anderson Valley, at the time a sleepy, little-known wine region. Though it was still early in her career, Handley decided to start her own winery in 1982, settling on a site nearby, in Philo. Anderson Valley wines were still unproven, but Handley must have gotten a sense during her time at Edmeades of this lands potential. Brant Ward / The Chronicle 2009 The Handley Estate Vineyard was first planted in 1986, and many of the Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Gewurztraminer vines from that era remain at the 29-acre site. In 1999, Handleys late husband, Rex Scott McClellan, planted a 7-acre vineyard at higher elevation, now known as the RSM Vineyard and the source of some of Handley Cellars best Pinot Noirs. She was a champion of the Anderson Valley, which over the course of her career transformed from an unknown entity into one of Californias premier winegrowing areas. And she provided a model for sustainable farming: In 2005, the Handley Estate Vineyard was the first in Anderson Valley to become certified organic through the California Certified Organic Farmers. She was a mentor to many young winemakers in the area, said Schock, and was always offering help to other wineries when they needed it. He could recall Hans Kobler, the former owner of nearby Lazy Creek Vineyards, showing up to Handley Cellars with a bag of fresh peaches to trade in exchange for laboratory tests of his wines. Handley prized consistency in her wines, Schock added. Soon after he started at the winery in 2004, he was pushing for changes to the winemaking that would result in wines of the richer, opulent style that was then in vogue: buying more new oak barrels, picking the Pinot Noir grapes a little riper. She said, Look, this is Handley; this is our style. Were not chasing trends. We make our own thing, and were proud of it, Schock remembers. She had that stubborn side, but that was also her strength. When Schock became head winemaker in 2012, Handley pulled him aside and told him: Remember, its just grapes. She could be flippant that way, he said. What that really meant to me was: Dont stress about this. A lot of this is out of our control, and its nature. Its about agriculture, food, people. That really in a lot of ways sums up who Milla was. Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more. Mason Trinca / Special to The Chronicle 2018 The Handley Cellars tasting room has always been one of the most charming stops in Anderson Valley. Its one of the final destinations in the valley, before the main artery, Highway 128, bottoms out near the Pacific Ocean. Not only are tastings free, but the space is also a showcase for Handleys eclectic collection of folk art. A visit there feels like it transports you to a different time. Handley retired from the business in 2017. Her daughter, Milla Louisa Lulu McClellan, is now the owner and president of Handley Cellars. She is survived by daughters Megan Handley Warren and Lulu McClellan; sister Julie Handley; and son-in-law Scott Peterson. A memorial service will be held at a later, undetermined date. Instead of flowers, the family would prefer donations in the name of Milla Handley to the Anderson Valley Senior Center. Esther Mobley is The San Francisco Chronicles wine critic. Email: emobley@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Esther_mobley Instagram: @esthermob The Bigamist: A love story: a gripping family tale of love in the face of unexpected situations and never-ending trials. The Bigamist: A love story is the creation of published author Jim Mitcham, a deacon in his Baptist church and greeter at the door of the church every Sunday morning. He spends much of his day now driving for Lyft and enjoys meeting and having great conversations with his riders. Mitcham shares, The Bigamist is a family story told of my grandfather, several greats back, who served in the Confederate Army. He was reported killed in the Battle of Antietam in Maryland, though he was only wounded and spent the rest of the war in a Yankee prison camp in Chicago. When he returned home, he discovered his wife, who had thought him dead, had remarried for protection of herself and the children. The results and the remainder of the story have been created through my imagination. I hope you enjoy reading this story half as much as I did writing it. Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Jim Mitchams new book is a brilliant creation filled with a captivating narrative that journeys through ones life and the tribulations they face. Born of a story that has been running in the family for years, this will surely interest and inspire everyone. View a synopsis of The Bigamist: A love story on YouTube. Consumers can purchase The Bigamist: A love story at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble. For additional information or inquiries about The Bigamist: A love story, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919. The latest addition to the long list of people who believe that beloved actor Sushant Singh Rajput did not die of suicide is his choreographer friend Ganesh Hiwarkar. Ganesh Hiwarkar claims that Sushant Singh Rajput couldn't die of suicide because the actor had talked Ganesh out of taking his own life. According to a report in Times of India, Ganesh Hiwarkar states how Sushant Singh Rajput saved him. "When my girlfriend broke up with me, I was so depressed that I wanted to commit suicide, it was Sushant who sat with me for many hours explaining that I should take the step. He even spoke to my friend," said Ganesh Hiwarkar. "As far as I knew him, he could never be depressed about career, personal relationships, or financial issues," Hiwarkar insisted. "In Sushant's life there was no such thing as 'failure', he would immediately forget and focus on the future. I cannot believe that he would commit suicide due to career, relationship, or financial reasons. I suspect murder," concluded Ganesh Hiwarkar. This is the second close friend after Ankita Lokhande who has claimed that Sushant Singh Rajput could never take his own life. However, we need to trust the investigation and pray that Sushant Singh Rajput is served justice. This also makes the call for a CB inquiry louder. (If you know anyone battling with depression or other mental health issues, please reach out to someone who can help. AASRA Foundation: 022 2754 6669 Samaritans Mumbai: +91 84229 84528 / +91 84229 84529 / +91 84229 84530 Sanjivini Society for Mental Health: +911124311918). Jane Seymour, hair wrapped in a towel, is saying goodbye to her character's family as they leave for work and school in the morning. It's a scene from a new Australian film, the drama Ruby's Choice, that is both straightforward and exceptional at the same time. Jane Seymour on the set of Australian film Ruby's Choice which is shooting at Windsor. Credit:Nick Moir Director Michael Budd, who was inspired to become a filmmaker after spending almost 300 days as Laurence Fishburne's body double while shooting the Matrix trilogy in Sydney, is still watching his actors closely and calling "cut" from behind a monitor. But all around them, at a historic house at Windsor on Sydney's outskirts, are signs of the challenge of shooting a film during a pandemic. graham clark twitter hacker Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office Graham Clark, the 17-year-old charged with orchestrating a massive Twitter hack last month, reportedly has a history of scamming people with Bitcoin. Clark faces 30 felony charges in Florida, where he is accused of taking over dozens of verified Twitter accounts, including those of Barack Obama, Bill Gates, and Kim Kardashian, to trick people into handing over money. Legal records show that Clark was previously suspected of being involved in the theft of $856,000 at age 16 but was never charged. He also reportedly built a reputation in Minecraft communities as a grifter who would frequently scam people out of their money. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. New details are surfacing about the 17-year-old accused of "masterminding" last month's massive Twitter hack and they reveal a pattern of scams dating back years. Last year, Graham Ivan Clark was the subject of a criminal investigation in which Florida prosecutors seized $15,000 and 400 Bitcoin, his lawyer said. Prosecutors ultimately did not charge Clark last year and returned the cash and 300 Bitcoin to him, worth over $3 million. The victim in that case told The New York Times that prosecutors didn't charge Clark at the time because he was still a minor. In the years before that, Clark reportedly built a reputation as a frequent scammer online, including in the online video game Minecraft. Clark's former friends told The New York Times that he would regularly demand money in exchange for in-game items, only to keep the items for himself after receiving payment. Social media posts from Clark's now-deleted Instagram account, @error, reportedly showed Clark posing with designer sneakers and a Rolex watch in recent months. Clark faces 30 felony charges in Tampa, Florida, for his purported involvement in the Twitter hack, which compromised more than 100 accounts, including those belonging to Barack Obama, Bill Gates, and Kim Kardashian, and posted messages encouraging people to send Bitcoin to a scammer's address. Story continues Clark's bail has been set at $725,000, the Tampa Bay Times reported Sunday. Clark is accused of collaborating with others on the Twitter hack Mason Sheppard, 19, who lives in the United Kingdom and goes by "Chaewon," and Nima Fazeli, 22, of Orlando, Florida, who goes by "Rolex," were both arrested in connection with the hack, the Department of Justice said. Read the original article on Business Insider The father of Jeffrey Epstein's 'secret' British girlfriend has admitted that her family knew she had dated the disgraced paedophile. Shelley Anne Lewis, 43, was in a relationship for three years with Epstein when Prince Andrew is accused of sleeping with sex trafficked teenager Virginia Roberts. The Manchester-born 'spiritual entrepreneur', who is believed to have taken scores on flights on Epstein's 'Lolita Express' private jet, could now be approached by prosecutors to find out what she knows. Shelley Anne Lewis (left), 43, was in a relationship for three years with Epstein when Prince Andrew is accused of sleeping with sex trafficked teenager Virginia Roberts The blonde entrepreneur has been named in court papers in the US relating to Ghislaine Maxwell (pictured with Jeffrey Epstein) that were unsealed by a Manhattan court last week Asked by MailOnline if the family knew of her relationship with Epstein, her father Brian Lewis, 71, said: 'It is a difficult question to answer. 'As a young girl we knew she was seeing someone in New York. 'So yes we did'. Speaking at the family's sprawling million-pound plus cottage near affluent Knutsford, Cheshire the retired businessman added: 'Now everything has gone mental. It is just getting crazy'. One neighbour said: 'It's shocking that she's caught up with Epstein. The family are very nice and will be horrified to be linked to that man.' Virginia Roberts claims she had sex three times with Prince Andrew (pictured) when she was a teenager after meeting him on a trip to London with Epstein and Maxwell in 2001 Ms Lewis could be set to be asked for help by prosecutors in the case against Ghislaine Maxwell, 58, the British socialite who denies procuring girls for Epstein and faces trial in the United States next July. There is no suggestion that Ms Lewis was aware of or took part in any criminality. She grew up in the Cheshire countryside and once worked in the contemporary art department of Christie's auction house in New York. There aged 22 she started dating Epstein in 1999 when he was a 46-year-old businessman until 2002. Ms Lewis, who divides her time between London and New York, has so far been unavailable for comment but in previous interviews she has described how she was helped by a 'mentor' in New York who 'was so original in all his thought processes that he couldn't even see the box.' She now runs a firm that hosts yoga retreats in America and previously owned companies offering 'lifestyle guru' courses to clients. Mrs Roberts claims she had sex three times with Prince Andrew three times when she was a teenager> He vehemently denies the claim The blonde entrepreneur has been named in court papers in the US relating to Ghislaine Maxwell that were unsealed by a Manhattan court last week. 'Shelley' was named in an email from Maxwell to Epstein. Mrs Roberts claims she had sex three times with Prince Andrew three times when she was a teenager after meeting him on a trip to London with Epstein and Maxwell in 2001. He vehemently denies the claim. Maxwell is in custody in the US charged with trafficking minors for her former partner Epstein. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dzulfiqar Fathur Rahman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 18:42 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b3e4c6 1 Business tourism,first-semester,2020,June,Statistics-Indonesia,BPS,COVID-19,pandemic Free The number of foreign tourists arriving on Indonesias shores plummeted 59.96 percent to 3.09 million in the first half of the year as the COVID-19 pandemic brought tourism to its knees, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) reported Monday. In June, foreign visitor numbers were down 88.82 percent year-on-year (yoy) to around 160,300. The month-to-month figures also fell 2.06 percent, marking a return to a downward trend after a brief uptick in May that suggested a sign of recovery. The recovery may take quite a long time, Suhariyanto, the head of BPS, said in a virtual presser on Monday. Despite having yet to bring the coronavirus under control, Indonesia is seeking to speed up the recovery of tourism by reopening Bali, a world-renowned tourist destination. Domestic travelers could visit Bali from July 31 and international visitors will be permitted starting from Sept. 11. With more than 82,000 visitors, Timor Leste accounted for around half of all foreign arrivals in June, followed by Malaysia with around 62,760 visitors and China with more than 2,000 visitors. We are still seeing a negative year-on-year change in all foreign tourist [arrivals], said Suhariyanto. There was an uptick, but things are still far from normal, so we still need to work hard to attract foreign tourists to Indonesia. The key is the end of the pandemic and compliance with health protocols. With most domestic and international travel having ceased, the occupancy rate of star hotels across Indonesia remained low at 19.70 percent in June, a drop of 32.57 percentage points from June of 2019. The occupancy rate is not only about foreign tourists, but also about domestic tourists and business trips, said the BPS head. The pandemic has cost the hotel and restaurant industry almost Rp 70 trillion (US$4.76 billion) and the aviation and tour industry Rp 15 trillion, according to data compiled last month by the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI). Most entry points to Indonesia continued to record declines in foreign arrivals in June, with a few exceptions like Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Banten, which saw a 130.13 percent monthly increase, and Juanda International Airport in East Java, which saw a 708.33 percent monthly increase, following the relaxation of large-scale social restrictions. Read also: ASEAN hotel associations endorse travel bubble My friend John Hume had a very simple view: You have to talk to your enemy. Doing that creates huge risk for democratic governments but if you want to make progress, you have to accept that the status quo cant remain untouched. Read More Today Ireland is at peace, largely because of a man who stayed going when it seemed everyone had turned against him. Johns perseverance was ultimately rewarded with a stable peace process and thankfully global recognition of his role in Irish history. Over a glass of white wine he used to often remind me that he was the only man to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize (1998), the Martin Luther King Jnr Nonviolent Peace Prize (1999) and the Gandhi Peace Prize (2001). John got millions of awards. He would be able to recount all of them but those three were the ones he would always go back to. My first memories of John were after I was elected in 1977. He used to drift into the Dail and was regularly caller to the Members Bar. I started getting friendly with him in the early 80s after I became Fianna Fail assistant whip. We would meet with the SDLP to discuss events and he struck me as a great character. Always nice, on top of his game, giving advice and opinions on how things should be handled. Hed spend days in Leinster House briefing people on the latest crisis in the North and every party would have an open door for him, regardless of who was in government or opposition. John was unquestionably the big link in the bad years between north and south. In those days the only thing in the news was the Troubles. Today Ireland is at peace, largely because of a man who stayed going when it seemed everyone had turned against him John was always to see if there was a way to find an agreement. During the early 1980s he spent a lot of time working on the New Ireland Forum. Veronica Guerin was actually secretary to the forum and I remember many a cup of tea was had with Veronica and John during that. We had a difference of opinions over the Anglo Irish Agreement (1985) but it never hurt our personal relationship. And even when everyone turned against him, he kept going. There was a point where it seemed like he was doing it on his own. People will remember the Sunday Independent was famously critical of his willingness to engage with Sinn Fein and the IRA in the early 1990s. A story many people might not know is that years later Aengus Fanning, the late editor, rang me because he wanted to make up with John. I arranged so that the three of us could meet in Fagans in Drumcondra. It turned into a great day of conversation. Everything was made up, not so much with an apology but with friendly chats. Read More Myself and John used to often go to Fagans when I was Taoiseach. The Derry bus would drop him off across the road at my office, St Lukes, and Id get one of my drivers to drop him back into town for the bus back afterwards. The lads in there would make a big fuss out of him and it was always great fun. Although one day I remember there was a conversation about the decommissioning of arms and somebody else brought up Charlie Haughey and the importation of arms. John got a bit confused and started telling them off, saying I never imported arms. He was very upset when the IRA ceasefire broke down in 1996. He had invested so much into that period. And then the cards came tumbling down with Canary Wharf. At that stage it had gone the very top of the hill and it all came rolling back down. I had to go to him and tell him we couldn't continue the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation gig in Dublin Castle. The sad thing about that is that forum which Albert Reynold set up in 1992 never came back again. But eventually we got to the Good Friday Agreement. The only thing he really wanted to see was the all-island vote. He said this was a way of taking away the IRAs argument that they had a mandate from the first Dail in 1918. If the Good Friday Agreement was put to the full island and passed then the IRA's mandate ceased. I backed him on that to make sure it happened. Tony Blair couldn't understand why I wanted it because we were talking about trying to overwrite something from 1918. That all-island vote made so much sense in the end. All the awards rightly followed as people understood the courage and commitment it took to deliver lasting peace. As the conflict raged in Northern Ireland, through sheer willpower the name of John Hume became synonymous around the world with the refusal to yield to those forces of hatred, of death, and destruction. Having said that one of the things he was most proud of, and really felt was so important in his life was the Credit Union movement. He because president of the League of Credit Unions at just 26. He travelled all over Ireland setting up branches and that actually gave him a huge fell for the south. If I didnt mention that hed come back and haunt me. Now he sits up there with the best of them. Himself and Seamus Mallon who died just over six months ago. Every person on this island, nationalist, unionist or whatever, owes John Hume a great debt of gratitude for delivering democracy, freedom and human rights through methods many said were naive. He gave us peace in our time, may he now rest in peace. Politics have infused the debate over school reopenings in Maryland and across the country. While Hogan has been willing to counter the presidents message on dealing with the pandemic, the governor has also long been an advocate of parochial schools. A lifelong Catholic who attended a private high school, one of Hogans signature education policies is a voucher program, known as BOOST, that gives scholarships to private school students. Donald Trump and his company may be the subject of New York prosecutors deeper inquiry into possible bank fraud, according to new court filings. District attorney Cyrus Vance is seeking to dismiss the presidents lawsuit that aims to shield him from disclosing his financial records. He called the lawsuit baseless and claimed it utterly failed to prove a bad faith argument that was previously made to the court. Mr Vances district court filings point to undisputed news reports about the presidents businesses and his wealth that would justify a legal basis for a subpoena to probe those records, but the office did not identify the explicit focus of its investigation. In 2019, the office subpoenaed the presidents accounting firm Mazars USA for eight years of personal and business tax filings which the president has refused to make public following a criminal investigation into hush money payments arranged by the presidents former attorney Michael Cohen in an attempt to quash accusations from adult film star Stormy Daniels, who alleged having an affair with the president. The presidents legal team has argued that the president has an executive immunity from complying with the subpoena in a state-level criminal case, an argument that the US Supreme Court rejected last month and deferred to a lower court. Mr Vance rejected the presidents conspiratorial assertion that the district attorneys subpoenas similarity with subpoenas issued by Congress means it was issued in bad faith. The Mazars subpoena seeks information about potential financial misconduct that has been publicly reported, and in part adopts language from one of the congressional subpoenas, the office wrote in a memorandum attached to its motion. As Congress has asserted, its subpoena was seeking information relating to those same public allegations for Congress own legislative purposes ... It makes perfect sense that the subpoenas seek the same information, as they both relate to public reports about the same potentially improper conduct. In his February 2019 testimony to Congress, Cohen alleged that the president had inflated his total assets when it served his purposes ... and deflated his assets to reduce his real estate taxes. Asked explicitly by New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez whether the president ever provided inflated assets to an insurance company, Cohen answered affirmatively. In its filing on Monday, the district attorneys office said public allegations of possible criminal activity at [the presidents] New York County-based Trump Organisation ... describe transactions involving individual and corporate actors based in New York County, but whose conduct at times extended beyond New Yorks borders. Following public reports of possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the company, there was nothing improper or even particularly unusual about the subpoena, the filings said. The district attorneys office also rejected the presidents claims that the subpoena arrived at a time when ... Democrats had become increasingly dismayed over their ongoing failure to get their hands on the long-sought after documents. From this assertion, [the president] would apparently have the court infer that the office is colluding with news reporters and unspecified Democrats to make the requested records public, according to the filing. Those records, if obtained, arent likely to become public unless attached to a criminal court filings as part of a trial. The Marine Corps wants to field an improved version of the shoulder-fired M72 Light Anti-tank Weapon (LAW) that features a reduced flash and backblast signature that's less detectable than an M9 pistol when fired at night from inside enclosed structures. The Army recently released a request for proposal on behalf of the Marines for the M72 LAW Fire from Enclosure (FFE) munition, according to a news release from Marine Corps Systems Command. Read Next: Navy Surface Warfare Officers Can Now Order Special Jackets Approved Just for Them The M72 LAW FFE is a compact, lightweight, single-shot rocket system that features an improved launcher, enhanced in-line trigger mechanism and improved sling design. "It is a shoulder-fired rocket that you can fire from inside an enclosure, room or bunker," Richard Dooley, a project officer for Maneuver Ammunition and Missile Programs with Systems Command's Program Manager for Ammunition, said in the release. The highly effective M72, which fires a 66mm rocket, has been in use since the Vietnam War, but its backblast has created problems when firing from inside enclosed structures. More recent and improved versions of the M72-series LAWs were produced in the 1990s and include the M72A4, M72A5, M72A6 and M72A7. The improved FFE capability, which the Corps hopes to field in fiscal 2022, will create a reduced noise and flash signature so Marines can maintain a covered and concealed position and reduce the chance of enemy detection, according to the release. The M72 FFE will have two configurations: the M72A8 anti-armor and the M72A10 multi-purpose, anti-structure munition, according to the release. The anti-armor warhead improves armor penetration, while the multi-purpose warhead gives Marines the added capability of an anti-structure round capable of eliminating hardened structures, such as buildings. "The M72A10 incorporates an advanced warhead design with a multipurpose explosive and a self-discriminating fuse that operates in either fast- or delay-mode based on target construction," Dooley said. "These advancements enable Marines to engage various targets, such as structures, bunkers and enemy personnel." Marine officials described the new FFE as one of the "most lethal, dependable and flexible munitions available in the world today." "The new LAW FFE is a true fire-from-an-enclosure capability unlike anything the Marine Corps has ever seen," Warren Clare, the program manager for ammunition at Systems Command. "It will become a force multiplier." -- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com. Related: Here's How the Marine Corps Is Fielding its New 40mm Grenade Launchers (TNS) The fired former director of Kentuckys unemployment office told a panel of lawmakers Tuesday that officials at the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet failed to quickly respond to reports of a data breach in the states unemployment system in April.Muncie McNamara a non-merit staffer who donated to and volunteered for Beshears campaign and was hired to run the unemployment office in December was fired in May after months of backlogs in the states unemployment system as a record number of Kentuckians filed jobless claims because of COVID-19.His testimony comes as the state still struggles to process the staggering amount of jobs claims and after reports of a second data breach Monday that officials said did not put anyones financial information at risk.McNamara said officials did nothing about an unemployment data breach that allowed some people who logged onto the system to see other peoples sensitive information for at least a day.The April 23rd one was the one that got everyones attention, McNamara said. But I was made aware of a possible data breach the day before that.McNamara said he forwarded an email expressing concerns to the head of IT and Josh Benton, then the deputy secretary of the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet, and did not get a response.An Open Records Request asking for emails alerting Benton of a data breach did not turn up an email from McNamara to Benton. It did, however, produce an email from April 23rd with the subject line Holy Cow Security Issue.In the email thread, which alerted unemployment office administrators at 9:17 a.m. on April 23 of the data breach, a staffer named Jennifer Combs indicated that this wasnt the first time the problem had occurred.Someone in Slack said this is not the first time this has happened and they have just told them to delete the documents. However, that doesnt feel right to just delete them and move on especially if this is a repeat issue, Combs wrote.Another email showed the technology office had fixed the issue by 1:11 a.m. on April 24.When asked about the referenced Slack message in June, J.T. Henderson, a spokesman at the Cabinet for Education and Workforce Development, said the only verifiable claims came on April 23.We do know there were no verifiable reports of similar issues prior to April 23, Henderson said.However, the cabinet notified anyone who may have been exposed, which was 53,029 people who filed claims between March 1 and April 23.We believe the number of people whose information was actually viewed is low, but we cannot definitively state how many peoples information was exposed. Almost two months later, we have seen zero instances of peoples information being compromised, Henderson said in June.Rep. Savannah Maddox, R-Dry Ridge, said the breach was evidence that the administration must work to restore public trust.Generally speaking, this whole situation has added insult to injury in so much we have so many folks across the commonwealth who have waited great lengths of time to receive their unemployment benefits, Maddox said.Sen. Karen Berg, D-Louisville, however, took issue with the fact that McNamara didnt do more to draw attention to the data breach.In my world, had I been aware of a data breach in my system and went home that day without knowing that the system had been shut down, I would have been committing a crime, Berg said. She was cut off by Rep. Russell Webber, R-Shepherdsville, the chairman of the Joint Interim Committee on Economic Development.Webber stressed before the testimony that McNamara was testifying as part of a fact-finding mission and that it was not political. Berg, who was recently sworn into office after winning a special election, was the only Democratic lawmaker allowed to question McNamara. A new clue has emerged in the infamous DB Cooper plane hijacking case after a scientist discovered that part of the criminal's $200,000 ransom money, which was buried on the riverbank near his drop zone, had been submerged in water several months after he landed. In November 1971, a non-descript man identifying himself as Dan DB Cooper bought a $20 ticket for a Northwest Orient flight from Portland to Seattle. During the flight, he gave a note to a flight attendant, telling them he had a bomb, and demanded a $200,000 ransom and a parachute. After securing both, and freeing his hostages, he parachuted from the plane, never to be seen again. The only clue to what happened happened to Cooper was discovered `nine years later in 1980. A young boy camping with his family on Tena Bar stretch of the Columbia River, northwest of Vancouver, discovered $6,000 of Cooper's ransom money bound-together by elastatic bands, while they dug a fire pit on the riverbank. The discovery led the FBI to believe that the money had washed down river, 18 miles from Cooper's drop zone, and been buried in the sand. The money is also one of the only clues to what happened to Cooper who disappeared after pulling of the middair heist. But now scientist Tom Kaye, armed with an electron microscope, has thrown doubt on the theory after he discovered that seasonal specific diatoms or tiny deposits of algae - present on the money showed that the cash had been submerged in the water several months after the hijacking, before being buried. One of the few clues ever recovered in the case came in 1980, when a young boy camping with his family on Tena Bar stretch of the Columbia River, northwest of Vancouver, dug a fire pit and uncovered $6,000 bound together by elastic bands The find suggests that the money was safely stored somewhere dry for months after the landing before it was moved. Suddenly, the light bulb came on and we wondered if we could use these different species of diatoms that we found on the Cooper bills a long time ago to determine when the money got wet and when the money landed on [Tena Bar], Kaye told King5. The scientist, first examined the ransom cash 12 years ago at the request of the Seattle FBI, but he only recently turned his attention to diatoms, said the diatoms he found on the cash upon examination are a spring species. They bloom in the spring. They do not bloom in November when Cooper jumped, Kaye said. According to Kaye, the discovery is significant because it indicates that the money ended up in the river months after Cooper jumped from the rear door of a Boeing 727 over Ariel, Washington. Armed with an electron microscope and a new theory, Tom Kaye believes hes unearthed new evidence from the bills which may help to contradict a number of theories held by law enforcement in the Cooper case In November 1971, a non-descript man identifying himself as Dan DB Cooper bought a $20 ticket for a Northwest Orient flight from Portland to Seattle, later demanding $200,000 ransom and a parachute in what would become one of the most infamous cold cases of all time At the time the cash was discovered, geologist Leonard Palmer investigated the site and proposed the Washougal Washdown Theory, claiming the money likely fell into a stream near Ariel during the jump, and, over a period of time, washed into the Columbia River upstream of the Tena Bar location where it was eventually found. But Kaye said his discovery has debunked Palmers analysis. The money was not floating in the water for a year, otherwise we would have seen diatoms from the full range of the year. We only saw them from the spring the springtime bloom. So, this puts a very narrow range on when the money got wet and was subsequently buried on Tena bar, Kaye told King5. In his report, Kaye said the evidence suggests the money was actually submerged in the water sometime between May and June, before banking in Tena Bar. Kaye said his discovery also discredited theories that Cooper or one of his accomplices attempted to bury some of the money near to the river at a later date to cause a distraction. The scientist said the diatoms he found on the cash upon examination are a spring species FBI agents scour the sand of a beach of the Columbia River, searching for additional money or clues on February 13, 1980, nine years into the D.B. Cooper skyjacking case in Vancouver, Wash According to Kaye, the discovery is significant because it indicates that the money ended up in the river months after Cooper jumped from the rear door of a Boeing 727 over Ariel, Washington (pictured: two exhibits showing the algae are depicted above) The finding may debunk previous theories but also raises more questions; how the money came to be in the water months after Coopers daring jump and how it was able to escape from the Columbia River mostly intact, with rubber bands still holding together three stacks of $20 bills together. When asked about the lingering questions, Kaye told King 5 with a wry smile that Cooper is still messing with us. The mysterious cold case continues to baffle authorities almost half a century after DB Cooper first boarded Flight #305 pn November 24, 1971. Cooper described as being a man in his mid-forties told a stewardess shortly after take-off that he had a bomb in his briefcase and a note for the pilot. Included in the letter was a demand from the quiet hijacker, ordering the pilot to communicate with authorities on the ground to bring him $200,000 in cash (equivalent of $1.2 million now) and four parachutes in exchange for the lives of the 36 passengers aboard the aircraft. When the flight landed in Seattle, Cooper successfully traded the hostages for the cash with the FBI, ordering the Northwest pilot to take off once more in the direction of Mexico City. Cooper instructed the pilot to fly the plane under 10,000 feet and at a speed lower than 200 knots. Somewhere between Seattle and Reno just after 8pm, Cooper lowered the rear steps and jumped out the back of the plane using one of the parachutes swindled from authorities and the cash clasped in his grasp. The pilots later landed safely, but the man the press would later dub DB Cooper disappeared without a trace in the night leaving his identity and fate to become the subject of folklore and prompting one of the longest and most exhaustive investigations in FBI history. That extensive search for the hijacker ended in 2016, when the FBI closed the case unsolved, having investigated thousands of possible suspects and countless false leads. On November 24, 1971, DB Cooper described as being a man in his mid-forties boarded Flight #305 (above), telling a stewardess shortly after take-off that he had a bomb in his briefcase and a note for the pilot Little came of the FBIs suspicions of Rackstraw, but Thomas Colbert officially pointed the finger of blame at him in June last year, wielding a letter sent to the Portland Oregonian newspaper at the time, revealed him to be Cooper Cooper would be around 90-years-old now if he survived the jump, which many FBI agents believe he did not. Cold case expert and author Thomas J Colbert spoke to DailyMail.com last year when he claimed to have identified Cooper as Robert Rackshaw, military vet with a murky past riddled by murder accusations and con-artistry. Rackstraw was a veteran with extensive military training, serving in the National Guard, the Reserve, the Army and served in one of the most decorated combat divisions in the US Army, the 1st Calvary Division, in Vietnam in 1969. He was first considered as a suspect seven years after the hijacking in 1978, with investigators saying so many things about him seemed to match the description of Cooper. Rackstraw was interviewed about his link to the case in 1979, where he was asked explicitly to state whether he was or wasnt DB Cooper. With a wry smile visible across his face, he told the KNBC reporter, Uh, Im afraid of heights. The reported added that his parachute training in the military means he couldve been DB Cooper. Could have been, could have been, Rackstraw responded. Norway will stop all cruise ships with more than 100 people on board from disembarking at Norwegian ports in the wake of the outbreak of COVID-19 on a Hurtigruten cruise ship, the Norwegian Health Minister said on Monday. The new rules will initially apply for 14 days, Bent Hoie said. They will not apply to domestic or international ferry traffic. Norway has ferry connections to Germany and Denmark, among others. The MS Roald Amundsen moored in Tromso, Norway. Credit:AP The announcement came after Norwegian cruise line Hurtigruten halted all cruises until further notice following an outbreak of COVID-19 on one of its vessels. At least 41 passengers and crew from the MS Roald Amundsen have so far tested positive for coronavirus, while hundreds more have been told to self-isolate for 10 days. One area in which we lag behind other countries is our uncovered gutters. This glaring feature of our nation's capital is not commensurate with its status and the earlier we reverse the better for us. It is worrying that so many years after independence we have not thought it wise to consider having our gutters covered. Our asphalting efforts would be meaningless when on the side of shining streets gaping gutters, sometimes with heaps of night soil, behold us. Besides being an eyesore, open gutters create an important opportunity for the many residents, especially the slums of Accra, to dump their household garbage into them. As for the accompanying nuisance, such as flooding and others, we are not oblivious to them. Last week, the subject cropped up when Works and Housing Minister Samuel Tawiah Atta-Akyea told Parliament that covered gutters have the potential of addressing Accra's drainage challenge. When he did, we said bingo and simultaneously heaved a sigh of relief that at last and perhaps something positive was in the pipeline for this ugly picture of the facade of our country, Accra. The issue of uncovered gutters has hardly come up in national conversations which we usually do as a country in the aftermath of rainy season floods in the nation's capital. During such conversations, all manner of suggestions are put forth but none of which is implemented. It is our hope and prayer that the minister will attract a lot of following in this direction. Being her pet subject, Her Excellency Gina Ama Blay before taking up her appointment as Ghana's envoy to Germany continued to stress the importance of covering gutters in Accra. She must be exhilarated by the possibility that the covering of our gutters is gradually being dragged to the front burners. As we continue to tout our wonderful country's tourist attractions to foreigners and considering how much goes into the state kitty through tourism-generated foreign exchange, it makes sense to invest so money into the covering of our gutters. Amazingly, as we pointed out sometime ago, the Francophone countries have covered gutters; Ghana has a contrary feature. We inherited uncovered gutters from independence. We can hardly conjecture why the colonial authorities did not find it necessary to have the gutters they ordered to be constructed covered. There certainly cannot be any good reason why the status quo has remained besides perhaps ignorance about the importance of having covered gutters. We wish to encourage the Works and Housing Minister to start the process of having gutters in Accra covered because the nation's capital for its age deserves a better picture than uncovered drainage which provides a safe place for household garbage, disease-bearing rodents and mosquitoes. ---Daily Guide YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. An incident took place between Armenians and Azerbaijanis in the evening of August 1 in Toronto, the Armenian Embassy in Canada said in a statement. The embassy condemns in the strongest terms the Azerbaijani sides policy on making provocations and inciting incidents, the Armenian embassy said, calling on Armenians to be vigilant and not yield to provocations. The embassy did not elaborate. Brawls and scuffles between Armenian and Azerbaijani protesters have been reported around the world, notably in Russia, the US and the UK, after the latest Azerbaijani military attacks in Armenia from July 12 to 20. In most of the incidents, Azerbaijani demonstrators would carry out physical attacks and hate crimes on Armenians in different settings and places. Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan Black women have historically won majority-Black districts, but many now are running in mostly white or mixed districts. Joyce Elliott, an Arkansas state senator who is seeking a seat in the United States Congress in November, was the second Black student to attend her local public high school; the first was her older sister. If elected in November, she will be the first Black lawmaker in Congress from Arkansas, ever. On the campaign trail in June, Elliott attended a demonstration against racism in White County, which is more than 90 percent white, and spoke to attendees in the shadow of a Confederate monument. The November election is a chance to change our history, she told the Reuters news agency in an interview afterwards. I really decided I needed to run because I could see a pathway to winning. As the US grapples with a deadly coronavirus pandemic that has disproportionately sickened and killed Black Americans and recent upheaval over police brutality, a record number of Black women are running for Congress. Elliott is one of at least 122 Black or multi-racial Black women who filed to run for congressional seats in this years election; this figure has increased steadily since 2012, when it was 48, according to the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP). NEW from CAWP! The gains women made in the 2018 election were unprecedentedand incomplete. Find out what changed in 2018, the barriers that persist, and the changes that are already influencing 2020 in CAWP's report, Unfinished Business.https://t.co/fopkYYmmih pic.twitter.com/yjumHi72we CAWP (@CAWP_RU) October 10, 2019 As primary season draws to a close, nearly 60 Black women are still in the running, according to Collective PAC. People are becoming more comfortable with seeing different kinds of people in Congress. You dont know what it looks like to have powerful Black women in Congress until you see powerful Black women in Congress, said Pam Keith, a Navy veteran and lawyer who is running in the Democratic primary for a Florida congressional seat. Black women make up nearly 8 percent of the US population, but 4.3 percent of Congress, according to a report by the CAWP and Higher Heights for America, a political action committee that seeks to elect more progressive Black women to elected office. They are underrepresented in statewide executives jobs and among mayors as well, according to the report. But Black women voters showed the highest participation rate of any group in the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections. Historically, Black women have been more likely to win in majority-Black districts, but many are running this cycle in majority-white or mixed districts, some of which had previously voted for Republicans. Were going to flip this seat from red to blue, said North Carolinas Patricia Timmons-Goodson, the first Black judge to serve on the state Supreme Court and a former member of the US Civil Rights Commission. We have a candidate that knows and understands the district and its people, said Timmons-Goodson, who is running for a seat in Congress. Several of the eight Black women congressional candidates Reuters spoke to said they relate to voters better than their often wealthier opponents, because they, too, have lived through financial hardships. We almost lost our house a couple of times. We ran into financial difficulties when I was first starting my business, said Jeannine Lee Lake, a former journalist who is running for Congress from Indiana against US Vice President Mike Pences brother, Greg Pence, an incumbent business executive who reported millions in assets last election cycle. The coronavirus crisis has also highlighted the importance of issues these women are running on improving healthcare, creating better jobs and improving access to broadband internet. It really has just amplified and co-signed what I was already talking about with voters, such as the importance of agriculture and expanding Medicaid, said Alabamas Adia McClellan Winfrey, who holds a doctorate in psychology and is chair of the Talladega County Democratic Party. Ohio candidate Desiree Tims returned home in 2019 after a stint in Washington, DC, as a congressional aide and White House intern, intending to work at a law firm and pay down her student loan debt. "As a country, we must acknowledge that gun violence is now a public health crisis within a public health crisis."- @TimsDesireehttps://t.co/ZL9rziEa9p ESSENCE (@Essence) July 28, 2020 But she decided to run after watching people come together to bag clothes, share food and provide shelter following a rash of tornadoes that tore across the state, with little support from the federal government. After coming back from Washington, DC, what I saw was the community doing the work, but their tax dollars not working for them, Tims said. Kimberly Walker, a veteran and former corrections officer from Florida running for Congress, says the solution to that discrepancy is clear. We need to have more people, average, everyday American citizens who are there fighting for average, everyday American citizens, she said. We can get even bigger savings if we eat here. (Getty Images) The governments Eat Out to Help Out scheme has now officially launched, with Brits being encouraged to dine out at restaurants and receive a discount throughout August. The UK government started the initiative in a bid to kickstart the economy after the coronavirus lockdown. Diners will be able to get a 50% discount, up to the value of 10 per head, per meal at restaurants enrolled in the scheme from Monday to Wednesday each week in August. But some restaurants are going above and beyond for their customers and are offering even bigger discounts to those willing to venture out for a post-lockdown meal. Read more: Two in five people with lung condition will shield until coronavirus vaccine Burger King Burger lovers will rejoice at this hack from the fast-food chain, which allows you to pick up its flagship Whopper burger for just 1 as opposed to 4.49. In order to get the deal, you have to be signed up to (and order on) the app. The app discount means you can get the Whopper for 1.99 from Monday to Wednesday. This, combined with the governments scheme, means you can get your hands on the famous burger for just 1. This offer will run for the first two weeks of August and will be replaced with a new, but similar, discount in the latter half of the month. Read more: Coronavirus first identified six months ago: A look at the next six months Burger King is selling its signature burger for just 1. (Getty Images) Dishoom City-dwellers who fancy a discounted meal at one of the most sought-after Indian restaurants will be pleased to hear that theres no cap on its half-price offering. From Monday to Wednesday, the Bombay-style restaurant will offer 50% off on all food and soft drinks no matter what the price of the bill. The offer is available at all Dishoom locations, including Kensington, Kings Cross, Carnaby and Shoreditch in London, as well as at its Manchester, Edinburgh and Birmingham restaurants. Famed for its queues (it usually has a no bookings policy) the group is now allowing diners to book their tables, too. No queues and half price food? Were sold. Story continues Krispy Kreme Many Krispy Kreme stores are taking part in the scheme. (Getty Images) Krispy Kremes doughnut dozen boxes are available for half price throughout August even though theyre worth 10.45 each. If you were swerving Krispy Kreme assuming that the delicious dozen boxes wouldnt be available as part of the deal, its time to circle back get your hands on the saving. Its worth noting that not all Krispy Kreme outlets are taking part in the deal, though. An up-to-date list of all participating stores can be found on the website. Read more: Hearing problems emerging as a coronavirus complication Hawksmoor The high-end steak restaurant with locations in London, Edinburgh and Manchester is boasting the best steak and chips in Britain for 10 during August. The restaurant group has lowered its price of steak and chips from 30 to 20 in order to make the offer worthwhile for diners. It has reported receiving 5,500 bookings in six hours since releasing its offer, so steak lovers will need to get in there quickly to make the most of the Monday to Wednesday discount. Stonegate Pubs Stonegate Pubs account for more than 700 pubs around the country and has created its own version of the Eat Out to Help Out scheme, which started two weeks early in mid-July. Diners can get 50% off their meals, tea and coffee with no 10 per person cap from Monday to Wednesday. Customers have been taking advantage of the offer for two weeks now and can order via an app to cut down on face-to-face contact when dining out. Costa This Costa hack will help you save money on your daily flat white. (Getty Images) Coffee connoisseurs will be able to pick up a filter coffee on the go for as little as 32p (instead of 1) during August. If you are in the market for something a bit fancier, a 2.70 flat white will now cost 1.06 on the selected days and you would be right in noticing that these discounts are above the 50% Eat Out to Help Out ones on offer. The bigger discounts are available to everybody willing to bring in their own reusable cup. Can you use vouchers and discount cards with the scheme? One of the biggest questions asked about the scheme pertains to other discount cards and vouchers and if they could be used in conjunction with the scheme. The answer is yes, they can be. Any discounts that the restaurants are already offering can be used in conjunction with the offer, the press secretary to the financial secretary to the Treasury, Daniel Lapedus, has confirmed. A full list of all restaurants, pubs, bars and cafes taking part on the scheme can be found here. Riot police try to clear away people gathered in the Central district of downtown Hong Kong on May 27, 2020, (Anthony Wallace/AFP via Getty Images) France Halts Ratification of Hong Kong Extradition Treaty France has decided not to ratify its 2017 extradition agreement with Hong Kong after Beijing imposed a draconian national security law on the territory, the French Foreign Ministry said on Monday. As the minister for Europe and foreign affairs recently reiterated, the national security law in Hong Kong is a change that compromises the inherited framework of the 1997 handover, said a Foreign Ministry spokesperson. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian speaks to the media after meeting Germany Foreign Minister Heiko Maas in Berlin, Germany, on June 19, 2020. (Bernd von Jutrczenka/Getty Images) It calls into question the one country, two systems principle and the respect for Hong Kongs high degree of autonomy and related fundamental freedoms, the spokesperson said. This law also directly affects our citizens and our companies. In light of the most recent developments, as things stand, France will not ratify the extradition agreement signed on May 4, 2017, between France and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, said the ministry. The national security law, which went into effect on June 30, criminalizes individuals for any acts of subversion, secession, and collusion with foreign forces against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) regime, with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. Riot police detain a group of people during a protest in the Causeway Bay district of Hong Kong on May 27, 2020. (Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images) Following the introduction of the national security law, all members of the Five Eyes alliancethe United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealandsuspended their extradition treaties with Hong Kong. On July 28, EU foreign ministers decided to review the implications of the national security legislation on the operation of Member States extradition and other relevant agreements with Hong Kong. On July 31, Germany suspended its extradition agreement with Hong Kong. The French Foreign Ministry also voiced Pariss concerns over the Hong Kong governments decision to postpone the legislative elections. Agnes Chow, Anthony Wong Yiu Ming, Tiffany Yuen Ka-wai, Denise Ho Wan See, Lester Shum, Eddie Chu, Joshua Wong, and Gregory Wong pose for photo at a campaigning during primary elections aimed for selecting democracy candidates in Hong Kong on July 11, 2020. (Tyrone Siu/Reuters) France underscores the vital importance of holding the elections as swiftly as possible under conditions that will allow sincere democratic expression, in accordance with the rights and freedoms guaranteed by Hong Kongs Basic Law, the ministry said. And in an unprecedented move, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced on July 31 that the 2020 Hong Kong Legislative Council election has been postponed for a year, citing a local surge in CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus cases as the reason. The postponement trails a mass disqualification a day earlier of key pro-democracy candidates, who were deemed unfit to uphold Hong Kong Basic Law or loyalty to Hong Kongs government under the Chinese regime. Isabel van Brugen and Yinyin Liao contributed to this report. 'The chief minister has said on the floor of the House that he knows everything (about the criminal-politician mafia).' 'If you know about this nexus, why aren't you acting against them?' 'Ask him why is he so helpless.' IMAGE: Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh at Parliament House in New Delhi. Photograph: Subhav Shukla/PTI Photo Congress MP Shamsher Singh Dullo has been demanding a probe by a sitting high court judge or the Central Bureau of Investigation against allegations of a police-politician-criminal nexus in Punjab. Dullo has been raising this issue with Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh since March. While the Singh government appointed a three-member special investigation team under state Resources Minister Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria, Dullo feels nothing will come out of it because Sarkaria himself is a liquor contractor. Ask him about the Punjab CM's response to his letter, Dullo says "Agar koi response hota to aaj yeh logon ka katl-e-aam na hota (If he had acted on my request there would be no open massacre of people today)", referring to the deaths of 98 people in a spurious liquor tragedy. "If the government had acted against these mafias, then we would not have had to see this day." On July 30, Dullo -- a member of the Rajya Sabha -- had raised the issue with Congress President Sonia Gandhi at a video conference she called with the Congress's Rajya Sabha MPs. "I spoke what I had to. Let's see what happens. She has to take a decision," the 73-year-old MP tells Prasanna D Zore/Rediff.com. A month ago you had demanded a probe either by a sitting high court judge or by the CBI to expose the illegal liquor mafia in Punjab. Now you have almost 98 deaths across Punjab because of consumption of spurious liquor. Why do you want a probe by a sitting high court judge or by the CBI and not by a Punjab police special investigation team? Don't you trust your own government conducting a free and fair probe? I have been requesting the chief minister for a probe into the illegal manufacturing of liquor, smuggling and bootlegging. The Punjab police had busted six illegal distilleries some months ago. They were selling spurious liquor, such poison in every small village in Punjab. Several people have been dying in the state after consuming this poisonous alcohol. But no action has been taken against anybody involved in this racket. Why no action has yet been taken against the manufacturers and distributors of such illegal liquor is Punjab's biggest mystery today. What was Captain Amarinder Singh's response to your letter? Agar koi response hota to aaj yeh logon ka katl-e-aam na hota (If he had acted on my request there would be no massacre of people today). If the government had acted against these mafias, then we would not have had to see this day. Are you suggesting that Captain Amarinder Singh is not acting against the liquor mafia in Punjab? Please understand that there is an open nexus between police-politicians-smugglers-and-the mafia in Punjab. All these elements are in it together. Those in the party (Congress), possibly from the Opposition too... but the nexus cannot be ignored now. Now is the time for the Punjab government to act or else people will stop having faith in the party (Congress). There are so many mafias in Punjab and all of them are well-rooted. Be it the liquor mafia, mining mafia, land mafia, they are all ruling the state. There is a mafia raj in Punjab. Are these mafias more powerful than a popularly elected chief minister? The question is not that. The chief minister also is the excise and taxation minister, home minister (according to the Punjab government Web site Captain Amarinder Singh holds 22 portfolios); the police is under his jurisdiction; so is the excise administration. Lekin yeh aankhe moond kar ke baithe hai (and yet Captain Amarinder Singh is ignoring such deaths and not acting against those involved in these departments). These mafias are poisoning Punjab. You are casting aspersions against the chief minister of your own party! If I am a true Congressman, then I would never support those in the party out to ruin the party and its image. Shamsher Singh Dullo is not with the mafia! These people (those who have connections with the liquor mafia) are those who have defected to the Congress from other parties and who have assumed important positions now. We were blaming the Akalis (the principal Opposition party in Punjab, the Shiromani Akali Dal), but what is happening now? People voted the Congress to power to take on such mafias. But we are not doing what we promised. Do you think the people of Punjab are not seeing what is happening now in the state? I am speaking against the mafia and their supporters because I want to save the party in the state. I am a true Congressman and I will never bow down to those who are out to destroy it. These defectors will come and go, but loyalists will always stay with the party. Are you now blaming the defectors for running the mafia-raj in Punjab? The chief minister publicly says he knows everything (about the criminal-politician mafia). If you know about this nexus, why aren't you acting against them? He has said that in the House (the Punjab assembly). If you know about this nexus, then why are you so helpless? Why do you think is the CM so helpless? The Punjab police has busted two illegal distilleries in Patiala. Captain Amarinder Singh is an MLA from Patiala and his wife is an MP from here. You can ask the CM why he is so helpless against the liquor mafia. The Punjab CM had appointed a three-member SIT under Resources Minister Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria to investigate the liquor mafia? What has come out of it? Sarkaria to aap sharab ka thekedar hai (Sarkaria is himself a liquor contractor). The minister himself has been a liquor contractor for many, many, years. Yeh kya action lenge? (What action will they take?) Do you expect a fair, independent and impartial enquiry with such people at the helm of this SIT? I had openly and repeatedly raised these issues during meetings of all MPs and MLAs of Punjab. But still this (the hooch tragedy that has till now killed 98 people) has happened. Do you believe that the probe either by the CBI or a high court judge would be fair and impartial? A SIT (usually) comprises IAS and IPS officers or by a sitting high court judge. This is the first time that an SIT is headed by a politician, and a minister at that. Have you seen such SITs in any other state? Have you brought this issue to the notice of Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi? I have told this to Madam (Sonia Gandhi) during a video conference with her (on July 30; when she had called this meeting of all Congress Rajya Sabha MPs) that Punjab is being ruled by the mafia. So even the Congress president knows about this, but yet there is no action against the mafia raj in the state? I did tell her. I have also written letters to her saying the same. What was her reaction? How would I know her reaction during a video conference? I spoke what I had to. Let's see what happens. She has to take a decision. Taurangas mayor labelled one of his councillors a softc**k and spineless coward in an increasingly bitter feud among the leadership of the countrys fifth largest city. Mayor Tenby Powell says he had considered resigning, but pulled back, over an increasingly toxic stoush with councillors, the full extent of which has been revealed in a Stuff Official Information Act request for emails and texts around a push to oust former deputy mayor Larry Baldock in June. The mayor was called arrogant and a narcissist by councillors, while others say they are sick of the plotting and scheming going on behind closed doors. The messages also revealed Powell was considering resigning as he became concerned about threats to his family, in what he called an effort to run him out of town. I think theres no doubt Ive lost the community, he wrote. And while we have great support from biz and iwi leaders, the messages Im now getting are vicious and threatening. While Im up for this level of hate, my family didnt sign up for this. Im going to make a decision by 1700 Sunday. Powell is not alone in considering leaving the council amid the toxicity and salty language. New councillor Jako Arbie said in messages to fellow councillors, I regret getting into politics, its not my jam. There are messages saying Arbie was going to make an announcement at some point. The infighting left Tauranga close to its second by-election within its first year sitting. Emails reveal six councillors Kelvin Clout, John Robson, Bill Grainger, Dawn Kiddie, Steve Morris and Andrew Hollis banded together and signed a requisition letter to chief executive Marty Grenfell withdrawing support from deputy mayor Larry Baldock. They said Baldock stifled debate and had screamed at staff and councillors to shut up. In a statement to Stuff, Powell says he had to give [resigning] some consideration as part of a number of options" as the information was released, but he is now "committed to seeing out the term". Powell says the community should be upset with the manner elected members have conducted themselves of late. I think the community can feel disappointed in some personal comments by elected members, including myself. I also say democracy has not been served well in recent months, and we have to make sure we are responsible for that. He says he had to console family members who were being abused and considered sending his family home to Auckland at one point for safety. Matt Shand/Stuff. A driver has relived the earth-shattering moment he woke from a coma to learn his pregnant girlfriend and their unborn daughter died in a horror car crash that he miraculously survived. Maddie Morgan, 21, died when the Nissan Skyline she was travelling in was torn in half in a horror head-on-crash east of Perth on May 15 Jack Bryant, 23, was placed into an induced coma after his Nissan Skyline was struck by a Ford Falcon at an intersection east of Perth on May 15. When he woke a day-and-a-half later at the Royal Perth Hospital, he was told the devastating news his girlfriend Maddie Morgan, 21, and their unborn daughter, who they planned to call Lucy, had not survive the crash. 'The first thing I do remember was seeing two of the police women that informed me about what happened,' he told The West Australian. 'You dont believe it at all. All the cliche things you can think of. It must be a dream, you are trying to wake yourself up. 'Its just the biggest empty feeling you can imagine.' Three months later, the car detailer is sharing his story in the hope it will encourage drivers to stay safe on roads. He urged motorists to do the right thing and avoid taking risks, warning they are not worth the potential consequences. Jack Bryant, 23, lost his heavily pregnant girlfriend Maddie Morgan, 21, (pictured together) and their unborn daughter when their Nissan Skyline was struck by another vehicle east of Perth on May 15 Miss Morgan was less than three weeks away from giving birth to a daughter, who the couple planned to call Lucy Mr Bryant's Skyline split in two when it was hit by the Falcon at the corner of the Great Eastern Highway and Homestead Road in Mahogany Creek at about 7.45pm. Miss Morgan, who was the front seat passenger, was rushed to Midland Hospital where baby Lucy was delivered. Both died a short time later. Mr Bryant was taken to Royal Perth Hospital with serious head injuries, a ruptured spleen, half a dozen broken ribs, collapsed lungs and a chip in his spine. He was discharged six days later. The 23-year-old Ford driver and his 19-year-old passenger were also rushed to hospital with serious injuries. A third female teenage passenger was miraculously unharmed in the accident. Police will allege the driver was speeding above the 80km/h limit at the time of the crash. The Skyline split in two when it was hit by the Falcon (pictured) at the corner of the Great Eastern Highway and Homestead Road in Mahogany Creek at about 7.45pm The Nissan Skyline (pictured) was split in half and debris was strewn across the intersection at the corner of the Great Eastern Highway and Homestead Road in Mahogany Creek Shortly after the crash, friends flocked to social media to pay tribute to Miss Morgan, who was described as a 'shining light'. 'Rest in Peace Maddie...you will be missed you beautiful girl. I'm so sorry this happened to you,' Kala Kinley said. 'So horrible, rest in peace Maddie, was shocked when your son told us about it, both close mates of him. Condolences to the family and all friends,' wrote Mirelle Veenhoven-van Gemeren. 'So very sad such a tragedy! RIP. Young life cut so very short. Condolences to all family and friends,' Petrina Tennent added. Durante Rentals announced the appointment of Liam J. Harrington as their new President. In this expanded role, Liam will be responsible for day-to-day operations, sales, marketing, technology, and finance. Prior to this promotion, Liam had served as Durante Rentals Chief Operating Officer since May 2019. I want to first thank Anthony Durante and our Board of Directors for this promotion. I also realize that this opportunity would not have been possible without the dedication and support of our employees. I look forward to working with everyone on the team even more in my new position, said Liam. Liam continued, Over the past ten years, I have been fortunate enough to work with some of the best executives, both inside and outside of the equipment rental industry. My management style emulates what I have learned from these exceptional leaders. Since joining Durante Rentals last year, Liam has quickly gained the respect of our employees, executive team and investors by quickly improving our operations and demonstrating his passion for the company, said CEO Anthony Durante. His engaging management style and drive to improve all aspects of the company has helped evolve the culture of Durante Rentals. Our employees have flourished under his management. Anthony continued, Liam and I make excellent partners. Our different background and experience are complementary and bring out the best in one another. I look forward to working with Liam for many years to come, Anthony concluded. Liam has over nine years of experience in the construction equipment rental industry and previously worked at two of the largest rental companies currently in the top 10 on the RER 100. Before joining Durante Rentals (#87 on the RER 100), Liam spent three years as a senior vice president at a $15 billion transportation and logistics company. Liam has a B.A. in Economics from Stony Brook University, an M.B.A. in Finance from The Ohio State University and a M.S. in Financial Mathematics from the University of Chicago. About Durante Rentals Since 2009, Durante Rentals has been the most dependable name in construction equipment rentals. With locations throughout New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, Durante Rentals geographic footprint continues to expand throughout the tri-state area. Durante rents, sells, and services equipment to a wide range of customers - from highway, bridge, stadium, and home builder contractors - to movie studios, art galleries, municipalities and sporting venues. For more information about Durante Rentals, visit http://www.duranterentals.com or call 1-800-DURANTE. Contact: Adam A. Zunic Durante Rentals, LLC azunic@duranterentals.com 1-800-DURANTE (800-387-2683) http://www.duranterentals.com Editor's note: This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity. Adopting remote work company-wide was a tall order during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, says Nirva Fereshetian, CIO at Boston-based architecture and interior design firm CBT Architects. But supporting a hybrid workforce will be an even bigger challenge as staffers look to return to the office. Like most CIOs, Fereshetian had to ensure that employees remained connected as working from home became a necessity earlier this year as the pandemic worsened. That meant access to cloud apps, including Zoom and Microsoft Teams previously used ad-hoc across the firm's U.S. and international operations became crucial to productivity. Use of collaboration apps also soared, proving their importance for team communication and productivity. As CBT Architects prepares for the eventual return of staff to its offices, the challenge will be to support workers whether they are at their desk, at home, or anywhere else. It means rethinking the design of physical meeting rooms, adapting workplace processes and investing in digital tools to bridge the gap with remote staff. One focus will be on creating collaboration spaces, with meeting rooms fitted with smart office technology that eliminates the need to touch devices. CBT Architects CBT Architects CIO Nirva Fereshetian. Fereshetian talked about how the company has fared so far, and what comes next. What were your priorities for workplace collaboration and digital productivity prior to the pandemic? What are some of the tools you've used to connect employees? "In the past couple of years, the focus has been on going digital, transforming into digital content collaboration, [and] moving to the cloud, for better access and better collaboration. We put this into action in the last three months more than we've ever done. "For example, we have had Skype and Teams and all those collaborative technologies for a while, but [they weren't] being used effectively. We had lots of office meetings, lots of conference rooms ... in our offices and in our clients' offices. But the process has completely transformed now. "We work in a highly collaborative industry; we build buildings with multiple partners, multiple designers, multiple consultants, sometimes multiple clients. It needs all these tools and digital methodologies. We were using them, but not in this extreme extent: now every project and every meeting is really in the digital context. "As many people have said, I think that two years [of digital transformation] kind of got accelerated in two months." To what degree was remote work supported before? "We have an office, a small office, in Abu Dhabi that we work with collaboratively. We also use our systems to collaborate with many other consultants, clients and different partners from all over the world. Many of our projects have some international partnerships in them. The majority of our employees were in our Boston headquarters. Ten percent were remote, mostly people who had either part-time schedules or had reasons to work from home. We used [collaboration tools] for those situations, not really as a remote workforce. "Largely, we will have transformed from one office in Boston and a small office in Abu Dhabi to have as many offices as we have employees now. This is a completely different landscape to what we had before. A lot of things that we paid for to optimize our office, now we're transforming to pay to optimize our employees' [internet] bandwidth and other things that are coming through. It's because all of those locations are offices now for us." What steps were taken as staff were forced to work remotely? You already had some collaboration applications deployed in the cloud did you need to take other steps to support staff? "A lot of it was in place [already]; we had to invest in [employee] learning curves. Many people didn't use some of these technologies because they didn't need to. We really invested time and effort in pushing and accelerating the learning of these technologies. Skype or Teams or Zoom meetings were set up by others [previously]. Now every single person needs to use those and be aware of how to make it work on their mobile device or their cell phone. "Some of the simpler things of how to share your content and how to participate in those things didn't come easily for certain groups of staff who [were] used to either physically meeting in offices or other people doing the setup for them." Adopting new ways of working is a challenge in the best of times, but you had to do so quickly. What was your strategy to deal with this change? "This is was an opportunity for adoption, and change management is really the key component of technology, not necessarily whether we put Zoom or Teams or Skype or whatever other technologies in place. The bigger challenge is adoption and making sure that the change is timely. "We would have discussions about how remote working would work for us. [The architecture industry] is a very hands-on collaborative industry. It's not so much sales people or software developers, it's really designers and collaborators working very closely on a project. And how would that work when people were remote? Those discussions happened on a daily basis in our offices. "This opportunity where there was an awful, forced change because of a significant event was the driving force to really push adoption. It was a desperate need that accelerated usage, because changing any office is a challenge. Usually a major change happens when you're up against a really stressful condition or a major event. We would have never been able to say, Hey, in order to experiment this, let's all go home, nobody come to the office. It was an eye-opening experience to get momentum and [show] reasons as to why these things were in place in the first place. "Theres no going back to where we were. Wherever we're going to go next, it looks [like] a very different place, physically as well as digitally. We're thinking beyond these key months, thinking of the larger picture of how that looks and feels as we start a hybrid [workforce] situation and ultimately, probably remain like that for the future." What were the strategy successes around increasing remote work? And is there anything you would have done differently, or experiences you learned from? "In some instances, there are productivity gains because we're cutting commuting time, we're increasing family time, all of that. But on the other hand, there were also productivity losses due to the other circumstances we are all in. The challenge was to keep working remotely, not in ordinary conditions but working remotely in pandemic conditions where families are all struggling. "The major success is the heightened communications that [have] happened since we've closed the office. We've had so many office-wide meetings, so many group meetings, and so many events online that people have attended due to the fact that there's less activity in our life outside of work and getting out of the house is limited. "Certainly, messaging from management has been great: I think management has been in contact with everybody. "We are a business that had so many physical events happening in our offices, and so many opportunities for people to meet and learn what's going on in the office. But we didn't have attendance levels as heightened as we have now, as they may be in other meetings and so on. Many employees have better interaction with our management, feel closer, feel like there's better transparency. "The failure..., whatever the digital aspects we have tried to mimic, there is no replacement for the human experience. There are struggles in terms of knowing how to on-board people in this circumstance. "Also mentoring, especially for junior staff. A lot of it would happen, kind of accidentally or as we have open office floors, floor plans, we have project teams sitting together, in order for people to hear the conversation, be aware and be part of it. Thats missing now. Unless it's a meeting you're invited to, you don't have a [view] of all that was happening. "Those are things we really need to think through as we go back, or specifically in the hybrid going back." As you move on from remote working, what are the challenges around managing a hybrid workforce? "However many challenges we have overcome in the current [fully remote] situation, the more challenging part is the hybrid situation we're approaching and trying to implement. "Everybody being online was kind of easy. We knew everybody was around, we knew everybody was reachable, and we knew everybody was totally connected. "The next step of how we should manage the hybrid [workforce], where some of us will be in the office and others will be remote it's a completely new way of thinking and requires a new way of implementing digital processes to try to respond to that. The idea of going to the office for your desk space is kind of getting eliminated, for example. "We're looking very hard to see: why are we going to the office not only for ourselves, but also trying to help our clients ... figure out what is the need for the physical space and why are we going to office? The majority of it is not just for desk space anymore, but for collaboration spaces, conference rooms. "We're trying to boost those and redesign them, not only with touchless technology to respond to the current [situation], but after COVID to have rooms that are fully equipped to emulate the digital and the physical hybrid meetings that we're going to have going forward. "The first thing we're trying to do is mainly try to set up touchless technologies where the room gets activated when someone goes in with their device, in terms of lights and screen projection and controlling the many aspects of the room to start the meeting. Above and beyond that, many of the tools like Teams and something called Teams Together respond to some of our current needs. We are incorporating additional cameras and additional projections to make sure that the people who are remotely connected feel physically connected in the room as well. "We have to figure out how to incorporate people who are not physically in the room seamlessly, if there's any sidebar conversation. You have to be really careful when you're in a mixed meeting mode that whatever is happening in the room is relayed to the people who are digitally attached. We don't have that need at this time because everyone is virtual. But when we go to the hybrid situation, we are preparing some of our rooms to effectively be collaborating spaces with physical and virtual attendees." As staffers return to the office, how do you ensure that conversations take place digitally, too? Will this require a change to workplace processes to bridge the gap between digital and physical environments? "We're looking actively and using additional collaboration tools. We have started using multiple products. One is Miro, one is Mural. Those are online collaboration tools where you have a large canvas and large spaces where content is put in for brainstorming sessions, voting, getting a real sense of what everyone's input is. "For example, generally in a meeting whether it's Teams or Zoom or whatever, one person's desktop is shared, and you have to switch back and forth to show different things on different people's desktops. With these collaborative solutions ..., you don't really need to share each persons screen; they can just put content in there with no switching back and forth on your device. "We are trying to figure out what are the best ways of building upon the current digital communication setups that we already have and enhancing those. "Markups, for example, are a very important aspect of our process. Usually someone printed [a design draft] and a couple of senior people will be marking up on those to make changes. Now, we're only in a virtual environment and one of the challenges we've tried to solve is how to make that process completely digitized. The blank boards and the canvas are there, so people who are reviewing are able to mark up. "It is something we constantly try to enhance, because a lot of things were happening when people sit next to your desk and show you on the screen and comment and review. Translating that into a completely digital process is one of the examples of how a process needs to change." Will the shift to a hybrid remote workforce have any other impact? "I think theres a complete paradigm shift in who we were and who we are going to be. The important part is not only how to survive these few months, but also what the business outcome is on the other end, when COVID-19 is no longer an issue. I think the business model will be very different, as we have all had a complete transformation in terms of digital capabilities. The outlook on what digital transformation was delivering in the last few years has completely changed." The upcoming parliamentary elections in Sri Lanka can help President Gotabaya Rajapaksa further tighten his grip over the government with an outright victory. Rajapaksa elder brother and former President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, is currently serving as caretaker Prime Minister and an election win will boost his position into a formal one. The elections will be held on August 5 and the counting is scheduled for August 6. The Sri Lankan Parliament consists of 225 lawmakers who are elected through the proportional representation system for five-year terms. UNP leader and former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe will contest from Colombo, which is one of the 22 multi-member electoral districts of Sri Lanka. Colombo sends 19 out the 225 legislators to the Parliament. The United National Front (UNF), the current opposition, has the most number of seats in the Parliament but the loss in Presidential elections forced Ranil Wickremesinghe to resign from the Prime Ministerial post and Mahinda Rajapaksa, Gotabayas elder brother, was sworn-in as the Prime Minister. Wickremesinghe has maintained that there will not be any changes to the electorates and all members will contest from their respective constituencies. Read: India, Sri Lanka Express Commitment To Enhance Bilateral Defence Ties Read: Colombo Port Workers In Sri Lanka Stop Work Against Privatisation Of ECT Social distancing measures The parliamentary elections have twice been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic and the scheduled poll will be conducted with social distancing measures. The voters have to wear masks and carry their own pens to mark ballot papers for choosing the desired candidate. Chief Election Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya has urged voters to vote without fear, saying they will make it safe for people to vote. In late 2018, Sri Lanka went through a constitutional crisis when the power equations kept shifting. The then President Maithripala Sirisena appointed Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Prime Minister but the Supreme Court declared the move unconstitutional. A no-confidence motion was moved against Rajapaksa which threw the country into deeper crisis. The apex court had also overturned Sirisenas decision to dissolve the parliament and ordered a stay on the snap elections. Read: Sri Lankan Port Workers End Protest Over Alleged 'Indian Pressure' After Talks With PM Rajapaksa Read: PM Modi, Rajapaksa Agree To Accelerate Indian-assisted Development Projects In Sri Lanka (Image: AP) A Catholic priest who told congregants 'not to be afraid' of COVID-19 has tested positive for the virus. Monsignor Charles Pope, 58, of Holy Comforter St. Cyprian Church in Washington, D.C. was rushed to the hospital July 27 with high fever. A rapid diagnostic test subsequently confirmed that he contracted the disease. The news prompted the D.C. health department to share a letter ordering worshippers and church workers to self-quarantine for 14 days if they had come into contact with Pope prior to his diagnosis. The Washington Post reports that around 250 people were in close contact with Pope in the two days before he fell ill - including parishioners who received Holy Communion from the priest at five separate services. Pope has since been released from hospital and is recovering at his private residence. Monsignor Charles Pope, 58, of Holy Comforter St. Cyprian Church in Washington, D.C. was rushed to hospital July 27 where he tested positive for COVID-19 Just nine days before he tested positive to COVID-19, Pope penned an article for The National Catholic Register titled: 'Coronavirus Stalks in the Darkness, But Do Not Be Afraid'. In his piece, Post admitted that COVID-19 was 'severe', but stated: 'We have quarantined the healthy along with the sick, the resilient along with the vulnerable.' 'We have shut down our economy, depriving many of their livelihoods and of the dignity that comes from working, from using their talents and from providing for their families,' he wrote. Pope went on to stay that 'years ago, there were many dangerous illnesses to be afraid of' and 'it takes courage to live'. 'People of that time had courage,' he remarked. 250 staff and congregants at Holy Comforter St. Cyprian Church in Washington, D.C. (pictured) have been ordered to self-isolate for 14 days On Saturday, Pope shared a video to YouTube saying he had never encouraged his congregants to flout social distancing orders or mask-wearing. 'When I say, 'Do not be afraid,' that is not to say, 'Be reckless'. There's a middle ground between fear and recklessness, and that's prudence,' he stated. Pope added that he always complied with mask-wearing guidelines and 'Whenever I was told to wear a mask, I always did'. He added that he always donned a face covering when interacting with worshippers one-on-one, and sanitized his hands before Holy Communion. Despite his diagnosis, Pope says he stands by his article. 'I wonder, when will be the endgame? 'When will it be safe enough to play in the park again? That still remains my concern, even after having contracted this,' he stated in his YouTube clip. The nation's capital reported 69 new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, taking the total to 12,313. In all, 586 D.C. residents have died from the contagious virus. Just nine days before he tested positive to COVID-19, Pope penned an article for The National Catholic Register titled: 'Coronavirus Stalks in the Darkness, But Do Not Be Afraid' She went public with her hunky beau Brandon Myers during a romantic Ibiza getaway last week. And Gabby Allen showed off her incredible flexibility as she performed a handstand and the splits during her never-ending Spanish holiday on Sunday. The former Love Island star, 28, showed off her peachy posterior and muscular back as she expertly switched into different positions. Wow: Gabby Allen showed off her incredible flexibility as she performed a handstand and the splits during her never-ending Spanish holiday on Sunday The fitness fanatic donned a skimpy yellow bikini and white thong briefs as she showed off her strength poolside for the Instagram video. The reality star wore her blonde tresses in two sweet braids and flaunted an impressive tan after her near month-long holiday on the White Isle. Her new beau Brandon, 23, was quick to show his appreciation for the post, commenting: 'Dat back' along with a starry-eyed emoji. Gabby went public with Brandon last week after initially denying romance rumours. Flexible! The former Love Island star, 28, donned a skimpy yellow bikini and white thong briefs as she showed off her strength poolside for the Instagram video Larking around: The fitness fanatic showed off her peachy posterior and muscly back as she expertly switched into different positions The reality TV personality was spotted in the throes of a passionate smooch with her boyfriend last Thursday, as they packed on the PDA during a trip to the beach. The couple face a 14-day quarantine when they returns to the UK as the government pulled its air bridge with the holiday hot spot following a spike in COVID-19 cases. Last month, Gabby insisted Brandon was a 'really good friend' but nothing more following relationship speculation. They were first reported to be dating in May, when the Ex On The Beach hunk posted a flirty comment under one of her scantily-clad bikini snaps. She told OK!: 'No. We've known each other for a long time. He's the loveliest person and a really good friend of mine, but that's all it is. 'Someone must have seen him comment on a picture on my social media, and automatically assumed he's my boyfriend.' Their romantic holiday comes after her ex Marcel Somerville revealed that he is expecting his first child with influencer girlfriend Rebecca Vieira. Marcel and Gabby appeared on the 2017 season of the ITV2 dating show Love Island, in which they placed fourth. Gabby was previously dating Rak-Su star Myles Stephenson until August 2019, when she accused him of cheating on her. She also dumped her Love Island beau Marcel in February 2018 when she discovered he'd been unfaithful. The National Lottery Authority (NLA) is optimistic the issuance of license for digital and online gaming will rake in the much needed revenue towards national development. At a presentation of certificate to KGL Technology Limited to operate digital and online gaming, Togbe Francis Nyonyo, the Board Chairman of the NLA, demanded quality service for the newly licensed firm. He urged the leadership of the company to operate within the laws, terms and conditions of the licence granted it by paying wins promptly and ensuring that the standards in the gaming industry are applied. Kofi Osei-Ameyaw, the Director-General of the NLA, on his part, expressed optimism about the innovations being undertaken by the NLA, especially the recent online and digital gaming arrangement with KGL Technology Limited. Speaking during the presentation of a licence to the company, he lauded the management for its patience and perseverance as the time-consuming diligence was undertaken prior to the granting of the licence. The customer-centric and competitiveness attributes of the KGL for him makes him optimistic about the future of the innovation that has popped up in the gaming industry. Each of the board members of the NLA encouraged the Executive Chairman and representatives of KGL Technology Limited to operate within the terms and conditions of the licence granted them. The Executive Chairman of KGL Technology Limited, Alex Dadey, on behalf of the company, pledged the selfless commitment of the company to the NLA and the Government of Ghana. According to him, the company would operate within the laws, terms and conditions of the licence. KGL will work to the collective benefits of the Government of Ghana, NLA, staking public and all stakeholders of the lottery industry, he added. ----Daily Guide WASHINGTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The ABLE National Resource Center (ABLE NRC) announced today the launch of its 2020 #ABLEtoSave campaign. #ABLEtoSave is a month-long grassroots education and informational campaign about Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) accounts. The primary goals of #ABLEtoSave are to increase awareness about ABLE accounts and to accelerate the number of eligible individuals with disabilities who are experiencing the benefits of opening, saving and investing in ABLE accounts across the country. The ABLE National Resource Center is founded and managed by National Disability Institute. "#ABLEtoSave month is an opportunity for the eight million eligible people with disabilities, and their family members and supporters, to learn how ABLE accounts can improve their quality of life through increased financial stability," said Miranda Kennedy, Director, ABLE National Resource Center. "This year's campaign will include an ABLE to Save podcast series featuring leaders in the public and private sectors, as well as ABLE account owners and their family members discussing how ABLE accounts are an effective savings tool to help meet the short- and long-term savings goals of people with disabilities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, ABLE accounts offer people with disabilities and their families the opportunity to build a financial resource and exercise financial flexibility when many programs and services they count on are being cut or reduced." A new activity for this year is an online #ABLEtoSave Scavenger Hunt which will give participants the opportunity to win ABLE account gift cards each Monday, Wednesday and Friday, from August 3rd through August 28th. Clues will be given on the ABLE NRC Facebook and Twitter accounts with the answers to be found on the ABLE NRC website: www.ablenrc.org. Correct answers will be entered into a drawing and three winners will be chosen on each day of the #ABLEtoSave Scavenger Hunt. For more information, visit the #ABLEtoSave Campaign webpage. Throughout the month of August, ABLE NRC will provide sample messaging, social media posts and other resources to all campaign participants. The campaign is expected to have widespread participation from ABLE programs, major national disability groups, financial institutions and other stakeholders. An #ABLEtoSave Toolkit includes a logo, sample social media posts and additional outreach materials. ABLE accounts are tax-advantaged savings accounts that have the potential to significantly increase the independence and quality of life of individuals with disabilities. This includes both individuals with disabilities who receive public benefits and those who do not receive public benefits. ABLE accounts will not jeopardize benefits such as Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and many other benefits. Since the passage of the Stephen Beck, Jr. Achieving a Better Life Experience Act in December 2014, 44 ABLE programs have launched (many of which are nationwide programs). As of the end of March 2020, more than 63,000 individuals with disabilities from across the country have opened ABLE accounts and more than $380 million is under management in those accounts. The average savings in an ABLE account is more than $6,000. The #ABLEtoSave Awareness Campaign is made possible through the generous support of Prudential , TIAA , CalABLE , ABLENow , ABLEAmerica, Texas ABLE and Gift of College for donating the Gift of Independence gift cards for the #ABLEtoSave Scavenger Hunt. About ABLE National Resource Center ABLE National Resource Center (ABLE NRC) is the leading, comprehensive source of objective, independent information about federal and state-related ABLE programs and activities, including guidance on tax-advantaged ABLE savings accounts. Founded and managed by National Disability Institute (NDI), ABLE NRC's goal is to provide consistent, reliable information concerning the benefits of an ABLE account. In addition, ABLE NRC aims to educate individuals with disabilities and their families, state government and legislatures, financial service companies and financial planners and attorneys - who focus on trust and estate planning about ABLE's potential positive impact on the lives of millions of Americans with disabilities. Visit www.ablenrc.org for more information. Follow us on Facebook:@theABLENRC or on Twitter: @theABLENRC. Contact: Kathy Brannigan, National Disability Institute (202) 296-5393 / [email protected] SOURCE ABLE National Resource Center Related Links https://www.ablenrc.org Amid reports of infighting in the BJP unit of West Bengal, the party's state president, Dilip Ghosh, on Monday asserted that all was well in the organisation, and charged the with spreading canards against the saffron camp. The senior BJP leader also said that a section of media was trying to mislead the people of the state with "false" information about his party. "The and a section of the news media are trying to spread canards against the state unit (of the BJP) to create confusion among the cadres and malign the image of the party. "I want to make it very clear that reports of dispute in the party are untrue. We are united and will fight together to defeat the in next elections," Ghosh said during a press meet here. Speculation is rife that some BJP leaders may switch over to the TMC, ahead of the 2021 assembly polls. Last week, former MLA Biplab Mitra quit the saffron camp to return to the state's ruling party. Media reports also suggested that a few leaders in the unit of the BJP are unhappy with the state leadership. The reports claimed that differences had cropped up between Ghosh and a section of state leaders, who had moved to the BJP from the TMC over the last few years, during an organisational meeting in New Delhi. Ghosh, however, rebuffed the reports as "baseless and completely bereft of truth". "The BJP is growing from strength to strength and will continue to expand its base. We are not bothered about such rumours," he said. Asked about the buzz doing the rounds that he might resign from the post of the BJP state president, the Medinipur MP said, "These are politically motivated rumours. I don't believe in running away from the field. I have full confidence in my party and my abilities." Senior BJP leader Mukul Roy, who had moved to the saffron camp from the TMC in 2017, also recently dismissed reports of his discord with other members of the party as "malicious and misleading". "I am with the BJP and will continue to remain with the BJP," Roy had said, scotching speculations of him returning to the TMC. (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.) More than 27 million people in the Philippines -- about a quarter of the population -- will go back into lockdown Tuesday after overwhelmed health workers warned the country was losing the battle against the coronavirus. Since the beginning of June, when much of the country emerged from one of the world's longest stay-at-home orders, confirmed infections in the archipelago have increased fivefold, surging past 100,000. The new restrictions announced by President Rodrigo Duterte late Sunday apply to the capital Manila and four surrounding provinces on the main island of Luzon. For the next two weeks, public transport, including the ubiquitous jeepney minibuses, will be halted and domestic flights grounded to try and slow the spread of the virus, which has killed more than 2,000 people in the country. People have been ordered to stay home unless they need to buy essential goods or exercise outdoors. Only a limited number of businesses will be allowed to operate and restaurants will be permitted to do take-aways only. "We really fell short. Nobody anticipated this," Duterte said, as he rejected calls for the Health Minister Francisco Duque to be sacked. "Nobody expected that thousands will get sick on a single day." The move comes after 80 medical associations representing tens of thousands of doctors on Saturday called for Duterte to tighten virus restrictions as hospitals, unable to cope with the influx of patients, turned people away. On Monday, they welcomed Duterte's decision, saying it will give medical workers breathing room and buy time for the system to handle the surge. The Philippines announced a record 5,032 new infections on Sunday. More than 5,000 medical workers have contracted the virus -- including 500 in the past week, health department figures show. A total of 38 have died so far. - Grim trajectory - The government has blamed poor compliance with virus restrictions for the sharp increase in infections which have been concentrated in Manila and the central city of Cebu. In a bid to curb rampant local transmission, police have been deployed to force people who have tested positive for the virus and cannot self-isolate at home into government-run quarantine facilities. Researchers from the University of the Philippines project the total number of infections to top 200,000 by the end of August. Despite the grim trajectory, Duterte has been reluctant to reimpose a lockdown after the previous stay-at-home order took a heavy toll on the economy and threw millions out of work. Data to be released on Thursday is expected to show the economy tumbled into recession in the first half. JOYCE NALTCHAYAN/AFP via Getty John Hume (left) and former President Bill Clinton in 2000 John Hume, the quiet man whose lifelong dedication to non-violence forged peace in Ireland, has died. He was 83. According to his family, Hume died Monday morning after a brief illness in the Owen Mor nursing home in his beloved hometown of Derry, in Northern Ireland. Directly inspired by the 1960s civil rights movement in the U.S., Hume who shared the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize with David Trimble played an integral role in bringing Ireland's disparate, warring sides together following 100-years of animosity and a bloody conflict known as "The Troubles," which tore the six counties of Northern Ireland apart from 1968 to 1998. "He was a visionary who refused to believe the future had to be the same as the past," Britain's former Prime Minister Tony Blair said in a tribute to Hume on Monday. Former President Bill Clinton added in his own statement: "Hillary and I are deeply saddened by the passing of our friend John Hume, who fought his long war for peace in Northern Ireland." "His chosen weapons: an unshakeable commitment to nonviolence, persistence, kindness and love. With his enduring sense of honor, he kept marching on against all odds towards a brighter future for all the children of Northern Ireland," Clinton continued. "I'll never forget our night in Derry in 1995, with the town square and blocks around full of hopeful faces, walking with him across the Peace Bridge nearly 20 years later, and all of the moments we shared in between." Through his faith in principled compromise, and his ability to see his adversaries as human beings, John Hume helped forge the peace that has held to this day. My full statement on my friend's passing here: https://t.co/JZ42lwYWFR Bill Clinton (@BillClinton) August 3, 2020 Paul Mcerlane/AP/Shutterstock John Hume (right) with former British Prime Minster Tony Blair, center, and David Trimble Story continues Hume was born an Irish Catholic in Derry in 1937 and went on to become the leader of Ulster's SDLP (Social Democratic and Labor Party) in 1979. Engaging with Protestant leader Trimble in the 1980s, Hume helped to forge common ground across the deep religious and political schisms which riddled Northern Ireland, ultimately convincing the IRA's political wing, Sinn Fein, to sit down at the negotiating table. This eventually led to the 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement which for the first time gave the Irish government in Dublin a limited say in the affairs of British-controlled Northern Ireland. Having played a key role in the negotiations, Hume went on to enjoy influence and popularity in the U.S., associating with Presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton as well as lawmakers like John Lewis, Ted Kennedy and Tip O'Neill. Kevin Wisniewski/Shutterstock From left: Gerry Adams, Sen. Ted Kennedy and John Hume In the 1990s, Hume's talks with Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams also paved the way for another historic milestone: an IRA ceasefire. Thanks to the intervention of then-President Clinton, Sen. George Mitchell later became involved as a peace negotiator. Mitchell, however, always cited Hume and Trimble as the twin force in the long peace process. Without Mr. Hume, there would have been no peace process without Mr. Trimble, no agreement," Mitchell said shortly after the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1988, which brought decades of bloodshed in Northern Ireland to an end following around 3,500 deaths. Later that year, Hume and Trimble shared the Nobel Peace Prize. In making its selection, the committee wrote "John Hume has throughout been the clearest and most consistent of Northern Ireland's political leaders in his work for a peaceful solution. The foundations of the peace agreement ... reflect principles which he has stood for." Micheline Pelletier/Sygma via Getty David Trimble (left) and John Hume with the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize For his role in creating a peace that has lasted more than 30 years, Hume received the Martin Luther King Peace Award in 1999, the Legion of Honor in 1999 and the Gandhi International Peace Prize in 2001. He was also made Knight Commander of the Order of Saint Gregory the Great by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's 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 "John was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a great grandfather and a brother. He was very much loved, and his loss will be deeply felt by all his extended family," his relatives said in a statement after his death this week, according to The Irish Times. "It seems particularly apt for these strange and fearful days to remember the phrase that gave hope to John and so many of us through dark times: we shall overcome." A RELATIVE of UVF commander Winkie Irvine has been ordered to leave Belfast's Shankill Road by the terror gang after being accused of a vicious assault on a teenager. Raymond 'Rainbow' Carlisle is understood to be hiding out in the Divis area of west Belfast with a female friend after being told he is no longer welcome in the loyalist heartland. The mother of his alleged victim went public last week, accusing him of a sickening attack on her son. She posted images of his wounds, including a fractured nose and hand, head cuts and a swollen jaw, online. Carlisle denies being involved in the assault, but that was not enough to prevent the UVF from ordering him off the Shankill despite his family connections to senior figures in the organisation. Woodvale 'B Company' commander Irvine (left) is understood to have told fellow loyalists of his "disgust" at the incident. Carlisle's mum Alberta is Irvine's sister. Alberta's first husband was Brian Robinson, the UVF assassin shot dead by undercover soldiers in 1989 seconds after murdering innocent Catholic Paddy McKenna. Expand Close Winkie Irvine / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Winkie Irvine Writing on social media, the teenage assault victim's mum described how her family was living in fear. "This is what Raymond Carlisle, a 27-year-old man, did... I know (my son) is no angel, but in this situation he was," she said. "(He) has a broken nose, fractured hand, head wounds that have led to concussion and a jaw so sore he cannot eat and it hurts to chew." Expand Close The teen was left badly injured / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The teen was left badly injured The Facebook post led to almost 200 comments of support and was shared more than 1,000 times, with other Shankill residents telling how they too had been tortured by Carlisle. Because of his family's UVF connections Carlisle, who has a significant criminal record, has been given a bye-ball by the terror gang, but the latest claims seem to have been the final straw. A UVF source told us: "The UVF cannot be seen to protect Rainbow after this. He has been ordered off the (Shankill) road and told not to come back. It doesn't matter who he is related to, he is finished." In 2014 Carlisle was famously accused by a judge of being "up to no good" when he was filmed carrying a suspected petrol bomb during a riot. He was fined and bound over to keep the peace when it could not be proven beyond reasonable doubt that he had a firebomb in his possession. Judge Amanda Brady said: "Having watched the CCTV footage, it's clear that the defendant was up to no good that particular night. "It clearly shows him holding something aloft. It shows him running up the steps and it shows him before that discarding what turns out to be a balaclava and pair of gloves." Two years ago Carlisle was at the centre of a violent love triangle row between two girlfriends that led to one, Samantha Goldring, being jailed for four years for assaulting her rival with a hammer and leaving the woman blind in one eye. cbarnes@sundaylife.co.uk Washington: There might never be a "silver bullet" treatment for coronavirus, the director-general of the World Health Organisation said. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Monday: "A number of vaccines are now in phase three clinical trials and we all hope to have a number of effective vaccines that can help prevent people from infection. No 'silver bullet': Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the World Health Organisation. Credit:AP "However, there's no silver bullet at the moment and there might never be." His remarks came following a meeting of the WHO-convened emergency committee of international experts on Friday. He also said that wearing a face mask sent a message of solidarity as he urged countries to continue with the "basics" of public health to bring the pandemic to an end. I love the founders and their relatable approach to making life a little easier. And then, of course, the product! I mean it works, like for real...no bullsh*t! I use them all. I can recover, get focused, and sleep like a baby with just three bottles of joy.-Oliver Hudson More Labs, the science-backed brand behind liver detox shot Morning Recovery, is now in business with Oliver Hudson, the voice behind the podcasts, Sibling Revelry, with sister Kate Hudson and Daddy Issues with Joe Buck. This is Hudsons first official equity partnership with the brand. Within this role, Hudson will work directly with the More Labs team on creative ideation, marketing, and will be instrumental in helping More Labs grow their community of badass humans who are looking for solutions to help them work and play smarter. After being sold on the health benefits and the companys live smarter, do more mission, Hudson was eager to join forces. When asked why he decided to partner with More Labs, Hudson shared, For many reasons! Number one, I love the founders and their relatable approach to making life a little easier. And then, of course, the product! I mean it works, like for real... no bullsh*t! I use them all. I can recover, get focused, and sleep like a baby with just three bottles of joy. The news comes after More Labs has secured placements at major retail chains such as CVS Pharmacy, Walmart, Whole Foods Market, Circle K, and 7-Eleven, and expanded from a single product (Morning Recovery) to a suite of functional solutions. The transition from a single product to a full lineup of biohacking beverages has been driven by customer demand for products that solve a variety of daily stressors, including dehydration, lack of focus, and sleep. More Labs founder & CEO Sisun Lee went on to share, What started as a master plan to end rough mornings after drinking back in 2017 has turned into something more. More Labs offers solutions to modern-day problems that slow you down. Whether its through our recovery formula Morning Recovery, our nootropic productivity drink Liquid Focus, our natural sleep shot Dream Well, or our electrolyte hydration powders, Aqua+, we make things to help you outsmart your system, so you can squeeze the most out of your days and the most out of your life. More Labs takes a forthright and cheeky approach to their marketing. Brand videos (https://youtu.be/Y2cj_0ItK7M) by the companys in-house content studio explain the process behind each product with science and wit. Lee noted, We like to get our point across with a tongue-in-cheek tone that implies a sense of fun as well as trust. A partnership with Oliver Hudson felt like a naturally good fit. The More Labs team plans to create a series of content pieces with Hudson as the star. Even though our customers span across different generations from Millennials to Gen Xers, the pain points were solving are universal and we like to use humor to provide a sense of relief, said Lee. About More Labs: Founded by Sisun Lee, More Labs launched with its flagship product Morning Recovery back in July 2017. After reaching 1000% of their initial goal in a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo and raking in $3 million in revenue in the first six months, they have been scaling ever since. More Labs wants to create a mission-driven community that encourages people to maximize every moment and get more out of life. The liver-boosting drink, Morning Recovery, is scientifically engineered to help outsmart rough mornings after drinking. You can find a link to the doctor-led clinical study on the companys website. The nootropic productivity drink, Liquid Focus, uses clinically-proven ingredients designed to help stimulate focus, provide smooth energy, and boost motivation while decreasing stress. Dream Well, the natural sleep shot, helps detox caffeine and relax your mind so you can fall asleep faster and get better rest. They recently launched the Lifehack Pack which includes all three functional beverages in one variety pack. More Labs products are currently available in over 10,000 retail stores nationwide and online from the companys website or Amazon. For more information, please visit https://www.morelabs.com/. The National Education Policy (NEP) is a game-changer. It is the third policy on education after 1968 and 1986, and paves the way for transformational reform. It comes at an opportune time for the country to be able to reap the benefits of its demographic dividend by 2030 and aligns with the move towards a knowledge-based economy. There are five major aspects of the policy that can potentially transform school education: Focus on foundational learning, universal access to pre-primary education, key-stage assessments to measure learning outcomes, integration of technology in education, and an enabling environment for the private school sector. Prioritising foundational learning by Class 3 is a huge step towards addressing a critical gap in childrens ability to read with meaning and solve basic arithmetic problems. These critical gateway skills help students learn more meaningfully in higher classes and enable critical thinking and problem-solving. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in May that a national mission on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) will be launched later this year. This will give an impetus to the policys vision of universal acquisition of foundational skills by 2025. To ensure that we are set up for success on achieving FLN, a few things must be taken into account. There has to be clear goal-setting a common understanding of well-defined indicators to measure foundational skills such as word recognition and oral reading fluency (ORF). For instance, Peru uses ORF as a learning indicator for literacy, and it is clearly understood by all stakeholders: Students have to fluently read 60 words-per-minute by the end of Class 2 and 90 words-per-minute by the end of Class 3. The government should consider adopting a similar model. Spreading awareness about the importance of FLN such that the community, especially parents, are mobilised to proactively participate in their childrens learning journey too will be a key contributing factor to the missions success. Here, it is important to ask how the government intends to ensure that private school students do not get left behind in pursuing the FLN mission. Pre-primary schooling in the early years of a child is the building block to acquiring FLN skills. The policys emphasis on ensuring school readiness and making pre-primary education accessible to every child is welcome. The curricular and pedagogical structure has been reconfigured from 10+2 to 5+3+3+4 to take young children into the schooling fold. Children between three-eight years of age will be part of the foundational stage, eight-11 years will undertake preparatory schooling, 11-14 years will attend middle school, and 14-18 will attend secondary classes. The new framework accounts for a childs growth trajectory in terms of her cognitive and psycho-social development. The policy also calls for the creation of a Performance Assessment Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development (PARAKH), a national-level assessment centre that will set the standards, norms and guidelines for student evaluations across school boards. This is an important provision given that large-scale learning assessments are increasingly being used as an important marker for progress made by Indias education system. While Niti Aayog and the ministry of human resource development use it to rank states based on learning outcomes, multilateral organisations like the World Bank and Unesco use it for global benchmarking. Another win is that key-stage assessments will be held for students in Classes 3, 5, and 8 with a focus on learning outcomes. This encourages analytical thinking, moves away from rote learning, and opens up a window for remediation for students who might need additional help. These key-stage assessments will also become an indicator for parents to measure and compare learning across schools. This is an especially important move since in the absence of such an indicator, parents wanting to enrol children in private schools have thus far chosen schools based on proxies for learning such as school infrastructure or English medium. Reformed board examinations for Classes 10 and 12 with low stakes, and based on conceptual understanding and experiential learning is also an important reform. Education Technology (EdTech) can help children learn at their own pace, a compelling factor given that learning levels of students vary significantly within each class. Establishing the National Educational Technology Forum (NETF), as suggested in the policy, can drive the adoption, implementation, and use of EdTech in schools and homes alike. The key to driving the uptake of EdTech will lie in developing contextually appropriate solutions in vernacular languages that are also cost-effective. Another important provision in the policy is the assessment and accreditation of private schools. Nearly one in two children attends private schools in India because their parents believe that these will provide a better learning environment. But learning levels require urgent attention. This particular provision will perhaps help in easing regulations and create an enabling environment for private schools so that they can focus on improving student learning. We should consider bringing the private school sector into the formal economy; with 120 million enrolled students, it deserves more support. Todays primary school students will join Indias workforce in 2030, and the policy can play a huge role in making them productive and empowered citizens. Successful implementation of the FLN mission has the potential to make India an economic powerhouse. But efficient implementation in states will be crucial to achieving the goals and targets. The Centre, state governments, philanthropists, non-profit as well as for-profit organisations working in the sector, educators, and parents must all work together. Ashish Dhawan is founder and chairman of Central Square Foundation The views expressed are personal Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido takes part in a news conference after Venezuela's pro-government supreme court replaced the leaders of two key opposition parties, months ahead of legislative elections in Caracas (Reuters) - Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido's U.S. envoy pledged on Thursday to investigate the possibility that Cuba is reselling oil and fuel the South American country ships to its political ally under favorable terms. Carlos Vecchio, whom Guaido named his ambassador to Washington after being recognized as Venezuela's rightful president by dozens of countries, said President Nicolas Maduro's government was "getting nothing back" from its shipments to Cuba. Guaido, the speaker of the opposition-held National Assembly, argues Maduro's 2018 re-election was a sham. OPEC-member Venezuela, whose oil exports have been crippled by U.S. sanctions meant to pressure Maduro to resign, sent 14.1 million barrels of oil to Cuba between January and June, according to Refinitiv Eikon data and internal documents from state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela [PDVSA.UL], known as PDVSA. "Cuba doesn't need that amount of oil," Vecchio told reporters. "Probably part of that will be resold." Washington has sanctioned vessels that transport Venezuelan oil to Cuba, arguing in exchange Havana sends security and intelligence assistance to help prop up Maduro, who has overseen a six-year economic collapse. Neither PDVSA nor Venezuela's oil ministry responded to requests for comment. Maduro calls Guaido a U.S. puppet and blames sanctions for the country's woes. Late former President Hugo Chavez, Maduro's mentor, said the shipments were payment for Cuban doctors who provided health services in Venezuela. The Cuban government did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Vecchio said the oil sent to Cuba should instead be given to an international organization like the United Nations or Red Cross in exchange for humanitarian goods, but said an Iraq-style oil-for-food program - which some Venezuelan politicians have called for - would likely not work with Maduro in power. "We need to give those resources to international organizations to provide humanitarian assistance in an impartial manner," he said. (Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York; Additional reporting by Sarah Marsh in Havana and Marianna Parraga in Mexico City; Editing by Richard Chang) NEW YORK, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Construction Accounting Software Market Research Report by Function (Accounts Payable & Receivable, Audit Reporting, General Ledger, Job Costing, and Payroll), by End-User (Builders & Contractors, Construction Managers, and Engineers & Architects), by Deployment - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19 Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05913942/?utm_source=PRN The Global Construction Accounting Software Market is expected to grow from USD 515.74 Million in 2019 to USD 884.81 Million by the end of 2025 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 9.41%. Market Segmentation & Coverage: This research report categorizes the Construction Accounting Software to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub-markets: Based on Function, the Construction Accounting Software Market studied across Accounts Payable & Receivable, Audit Reporting, General Ledger, Job Costing, Payroll, and Subcontracting. Based on End-User, the Construction Accounting Software Market studied across Builders & Contractors, Construction Managers, and Engineers & Architects. Based on Deployment, the Construction Accounting Software Market studied across On-Cloud and On-Premise. Based on Geography, the Construction Accounting Software Market studied across Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East & Africa. The Americas region surveyed across Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and United States. The Asia-Pacific region surveyed across Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand. The Europe, Middle East & Africa region surveyed across France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom. Company Usability Profiles: The report deeply explores the recent significant developments by the leading vendors and innovation profiles in the Global Construction Accounting Software Market including Builder TREND, CMiC, ComputerEase Construction Software, ConstructConnect, Inc., Deltek, Inc, Foundation Software, Inc., FreshBooks, Jonas Construction Software Inc., Penta Technologies, Inc., QuickBooks Enterprise, Sage Group PLC, and Viewpoint Inc.. FPNV Positioning Matrix: The FPNV Positioning Matrix evaluates and categorizes the vendors in the Construction Accounting Software Market on the basis of Business Strategy (Business Growth, Industry Coverage, Financial Viability, and Channel Support) and Product Satisfaction (Value for Money, Ease of Use, Product Features, and Customer Support) that aids businesses in better decision making and understanding the competitive landscape. Competitive Strategic Window: The Competitive Strategic Window analyses the competitive landscape in terms of markets, applications, and geographies. The Competitive Strategic Window helps the vendor define an alignment or fit between their capabilities and opportunities for future growth prospects. During a forecast period, it defines the optimal or favorable fit for the vendors to adopt successive merger and acquisition strategies, geography expansion, research & development, and new product introduction strategies to execute further business expansion and growth. Cumulative Impact of COVID-19: COVID-19 is an incomparable global public health emergency that has affected almost every industry, so for and, the long-term effects projected to impact the industry growth during the forecast period. Our ongoing research amplifies our research framework to ensure the inclusion of underlaying COVID-19 issues and potential paths forward. The report is delivering insights on COVID-19 considering the changes in consumer behavior and demand, purchasing patterns, re-routing of the supply chain, dynamics of current market forces, and the significant interventions of governments. The updated study provides insights, analysis, estimations, and forecast, considering the COVID-19 impact on the market. The report provides insights on the following pointers: 1. Market Penetration: Provides comprehensive information on the market offered by the key players 2. Market Development: Provides in-depth information about lucrative emerging markets and analyzes the markets 3. Market Diversification: Provides detailed information about new product launches, untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments 4. Competitive Assessment & Intelligence: Provides an exhaustive assessment of market shares, strategies, products, and manufacturing capabilities of the leading players 5. Product Development & Innovation: Provides intelligent insights on future technologies, R&D activities, and new product developments The report answers questions such as: 1. What is the market size and forecast of the Global Construction Accounting Software Market? 2. What are the inhibiting factors and impact of COVID-19 shaping the Global Construction Accounting Software Market during the forecast period? 3. Which are the products/segments/applications/areas to invest in over the forecast period in the Global Construction Accounting Software Market? 4. What is the competitive strategic window for opportunities in the Global Construction Accounting Software Market? 5. What are the technology trends and regulatory frameworks in the Global Construction Accounting Software Market? 6. What are the modes and strategic moves considered suitable for entering the Global Construction Accounting Software Market? Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05913942/?utm_source=PRN About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links www.reportlinker.com Celebrations held to mark 149th anniv. of Canada's foundation 2016-07-03 09:56 People attend the Canada Day celebration in Vancouver, Canada, July 1, 2016. Celebrations were held across the country to mark the 149th anniversary of Canada's foundation. In pics: Swans in Qinghai Lake, NW China 2016-02-28 10:14 Swans are seen in the Qinghai Lake in northwest China's Qinghai Province, Feb. 27, 2016. Beautiful cherry blossoms in Kunming 2014-02-24 09:19 Visitors enjoy themselves under cherry blossoms at Yuantongshan Park in Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan province. Wanfenglin in Guizhou 2014-02-22 09:01 Wanfenglin, meaning a forest of ten thousand peaks, is a national geological park and also a tourism attraction. The West Lake in my eyes 2014-02-21 15:00 The West Lake is a wonderful place, it make humanity and geography get together. West Lake in Yunnan province 2014-02-21 10:23 Photo taken on Feb 19, 2014 shows the scenery of the West Lake of the Eryuan county, Dali city, southwest China's Yunnan province. People enjoy hot spring in Xingtai 2014-02-07 14:49 Photo taken on Feb. 5, 2014 shows people soaking in a hot spring at a tourist resort in Xingtai, north China's Hebei province. People view black-headed gulls at Dianchi Lake 2014-02-07 14:03 Many local citizens come to the levee to view black-headed gulls on Thursday, the last day of the the seven-day break for Spring Festival, or the Chinese Lunar New Year. Sunset scenery in Sanya 2014-02-02 10:46 Photo taken on Feb 1, 2014 shows the sunset scenery in Sanya, south China's Hainan province. Tourists spend Spring Festival vacation in Sanya 2014-02-01 11:00 Tourists enjoy themselves on a beach in Sanya, south China's Hainan province, Jan 31, 2014. A great number of tourists came to Hainan to celebrate the Chinese Spring Festival. Birch trees enhance winter landscape 2013-11-21 10:34 Birch tree grows along the wide expanse of mountain areas and riverbanks, and during the autumn and winter seasons its pure color serves as one of nature's best decorations. Gabrielle Lurie/Special to The Chronicle Covenant in what the winery elegantly dubs Berkeleys drinks district (much better than wine ghetto, and an apt nod to the breweries in the neighborhood) makes an almost dizzying number of wines. They are kosher, but that doesnt matter unless you keep kosher or are on the hunt for kosher bottles for, say, a Jewish holiday (see Inside info below). All you need to know about Covenant wines is that they are extremely good. The winerys small but efficient warehouse space is full of barrels stacked frighteningly high. Tasting (which requires an appointment, well worth making) happens around an inviting, oversize table in a comfy room glassed off at one end. Former leaders of the State Archives and Records and Sydney Living Museums have accused the Berejiklian government of pre-empting a parliamentary inquiry investigating controversial plans to amalgamate the two bodies. State Archives and Sydney Living Museums executive director Adam Lindsay last week informed staff of changes to roles, titles, and responsibilities in management across both authorities. Mr Lindsay has also appointed a creative agency, The Royals, to undertake "brand positioning" of the two entities. Sarah Gregory, supervising archivist at the NSW State Archives. Credit:Kate Geraghty Members of the upper house's Social Issues Committee, chaired by Liberal Shayne Mallard, visited the Museum of Sydney, the Western Sydney Records Centre and Elizabeth Farm on Monday, with the committee expected to report back on the proposed merger in October. More than 100 civilians including women and children were killed by ground fighting, explosive remnants and airstrikes in Libya between April and June, an increase of 65 per cent from the first three months of the year, the United Nations said Wednesday. The UN Support Mission in Libya said in a report that more than 250 civilians were wounded during the period. That was an increase of 276 per cent from the first quarter. Most of the casualties were in Libya's western region, which has been the scene of fighting between the east-based forces of military commander Khalifa Hifter and an array of militias loosely allied with the weak UN-supported government in the capital, Tripoli, the report said. Libya was plunged into chaos when a NATO-backed uprising in 2011 toppled longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi, who was later killed. The county has since split between rival east- and west-based administrations, each backed by armed groups and foreign governments. Hifter's self-styled army launched an offensive in April 2019 trying to capture Tripoli. But his campaign collapsed last month when the Tripoli-allied militias, with Turkish support, gained the upper hand, driving his forces from the outskirts of Tripoli and other western towns. Hifter is supported by Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Russia. Turkey, a bitter rival of Egypt and the UAE in a broader regional struggle over political Islam, is the main patron of the Tripoli forces, which are also backed by the wealthy Gulf state Qatar. The UN mission said it documented 85 non-combatant dead and over 230 wounded in western Libya, or 89 per cent of the total civilian causalities. At least 22 were killed and a dozen wounded in central Libya, while only two were wounded in the eastern side of the oil-rich county, it said. Hifter's forces were responsible for 80% of the causalities, or 75 dead and 212 wounded, the report said. Tripoli-allied forces killed around three dozen civilians and wounded around 50 others, it said. The remaining civilian casualties could not be attributed to a specific party to the conflict. Ground fighting killed 69 civilians and wounded 195, while more than two dozen people were killed and at least 14 wounded by airstrikes, the report said. The UN mission said 17 of the slain civilians, including four women and four children, were hit by a Turkish drone strike June 3 during an attack by Tripoli-allied forces on the western town of Qasr Bin Ghashir, south of Tripoli. The strike also wounded 14 civilians. As Hifter's forces withdrew from Tripoli's southern suburbs last month, they left behind mines and improvised explosive devices and booby traps that killed two civilians and wounded 41, the report said. The report also documented nine attacks on schools, nine assaults on health care facilities and one attack on an ambulance during the second quarter. The mission blamed Hifter's forces for seven of those attacks. Tripoli's Khadra hospital, which was designated to receive Covid-19 patients, was hit on four different occasions by rockets, the report said. Two days after talking with western Libya officials, US charge d'affaires in Libya Joshua Harris met Wednesday with eastern Libyan lawmakers and military officials in Benghazi as he seeks to avert a battle over the strategic coastal city of Sirte, which sits near the country's main oil-export terminals and fields, and to enable Libya's national oil company to resume oil production from facilities closed by Hitter's forces. Turkish-backed forces allied with the UN-supported government in Tripoli are mobilizing on the edges of Sirte and have vowed to retake the Mediterranean city along with the inland Jufra airbase from Hifter. Egypt, a Hifter allay, has threatened to sent troops into Libya if Sirte is attacked. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 16:56:29|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close VIENNA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) daily basket price stood at 43.02 U.S. dollars a barrel on Friday, compared with 42.99 dollars per barrel on Thursday, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations released Monday. Also known as the OPEC reference basket of crude oil, the OPEC basket, a weighted average of oil prices from different OPEC members around the world, is used as an important benchmark for crude oil prices. Enditem Hours after actor Sushant Singh Rajputs father released a video statement saying he had informed Mumbai Police in February that his sons life is in danger, the family has released screengrabs of WhatsApp messages to bolster their claim. In the messages that were reportedly exchanged between Sushants family and senior officials in Mumbai Police, it was alleged that Sushants girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty had taken him to a resort, and isolated him from his family, reported India Today. According to the news channel, Sushants brother-in-law OP Singh sent messages to a police officer. A message sent on February 19 mentions that wife keeps worrying about his well-being. More messages were exchanged on February 25 to which the Mumbai police official had replied, Noted sir. One of the messages by the sender read, ... Just after couple of days of association, she moved in at Sushants place. On the pretext of curing him of depression, she and her family took him to a resort near airport and kept him there for three months together. Since then, they are managing him and his business affairs. He is downhill since then. More chats hint at how the family was worried that Sushant may be in danger and had told the official, Budha, his DCE classmate who stays with him. Hell get you the background. The idea is that he should not be hurt for being all by himself there. It further read, When the matter went out of hand, Sushant called up my wife to be rescued. He stayed with us 2-3 days. went back fine citing his shooting commitments. He is downhill again with reports of Rhea firing all Sushants loyal team members and putting her own stooges. Another message read, His third sister, a Delhi-based lawyer, who used to be with him and visit him frequently is panicky that he has surrendered to a manipulative group of people and his life is at risk. In a video message shared on Monday, Sushants father KK Singh said, On February 25, I informed Bandra Police that the life of my son Sushant is in danger. He died on June 14 and I asked them to act against people named in my Feb 25 complaint. No action has been taken even 40 days after his death. So, I filed FIR in Patna. Patna Police swung into action. But the accused is running away(on the loose). Patna Police should be given help. I thank Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his colleague Sanjay Jha who gave support to the truth in this hour of grief, he said. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajputs father releases video appeal: Alerted Mumbai Police in February my sons life in danger The Mumbai Police said in a statement in this regard, Today KK Singh, father of late Sushant Singh Rajput has released a statement saying that the family had made a written complaint to Bandra Police on 25th February It must be clarified that no such written complaint has been addressed to Bandra Police Station on that date. However, one OP Singh IPS, the brother in law of late Sushant Singh Rajput, had sent some WhatsApp messages to the then DCP Zone 9 regarding this matter. The then DCP Zone 9 had called OP Singh and requested him that a written complaint is mandatory for any enquiry or action. However, Singh wanted this to be resolved informally to which the then DCP Zone 9 clearly told him that it was not possible. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918 Follow @htshowbiz for more SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Joe Biden has delayed naming his vice presidential pick by two weeks amid worries the process has become a mess that has pitted women against woman. Biden said last week he would announce his running mate the first week of August but that appears unlikely to happen this week as he hasn't narrowed down his pick amid pressure to name a black woman. But now that's been moved back by two weeks, The Washington Post reported, amid worries from Biden supporters that the process has become 'messier than it should be,' pitting women - and especially black women - against one another. The delay indicates there is no clear favorite among Biden or his allies to be his running mate. Joe Biden has delayed naming his vice presidential pick by two weeks after saying he would name the person the first week in August Final contenders for the vice presidential spot on the Democratic ticket include Senator Kamala Harris, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Former National Security Adviser Susan Rice and Congresswoman Karen Bass The former vice president is reportedly going to speak to five or six contenders instead of having the traditional short list of three names. And allies of all the contenders are lobbying the former vice president and his campaign to pick the running mate of their choice. The presumptive Democratic nominee joked last week he would have to escape the TV camera crews that are parked outside of his Wilmington, Delaware, home so he could meet his pick without being caught. 'I'm going to try to figure out how to trick you all so we can meet in person. I've got crews outside my house. I don't think it matters actually. What I said is I'm going to have a choice in the first week in August, and I promise I'll let you know when I do,' he said at a press conference on Tuesday. At least nearly a dozen women have been named as potential partners for Biden after he vowed to put a woman on the ticket with him. But, in the wake of the demonstrations that sprung up after the death of George Floyd, pressure has increased for him to name a black woman. And, with that pressure, came an increased scrutiny on the potential female candidates with reports California Senator Kamala Harris is too 'ambitious' to be picked and pressure on Congresswoman Karen Bass to explain her past praise for Scientology and Fidel Castro. 'It's been relentless. It's been unfortunate. But I must say it's been predictable,' Donna Brazile, a former interim chair of the Democratic National Committee, told The Post. 'It's extremely disappointing, because many of these attacks . . . are being made by Democratic men who should know better.' 'I would hope that in this selection process, we are mindful that Black women and women of color deserve respect,' she noted. The finalists are thought to include Harris, former national security adviser Susan Rice, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Karen Bass. And, of course, the pick could end being someone else. Harris and Warren have already gone through some level of national vetting thanks to their presidential campaigns. Warren, a favorite of the progressives, would appease the left flank of the party if she joined the ticket but she is white when the pressure is on Biden to pick a black woman. Harris has strong qualifications for the job but a report in Politico last week saw several Biden allies question how loyal the California senator would be to Biden given her attack on Biden in the July 2019 primary debate when she questioned his opposition to a busing program in the 1970s that she used to attend a better school. Those Biden allies - both on the record and without using their names - indicated their concern Harris would be more consumed with a future presidential bid of her own. Harris pushed back at the talk of her 'ambition.' 'There will be a resistance to your ambition,' she told young black women on Friday during a Black Girls Lead 2020 conference. 'There will be people who say to you, 'You are out of your lane,' because they are burdened by only having the capacity to see what has always been instead of what can be. But don't you let that burden you.' And she was defended by Biden's campaign manager, Jennifer OMalley Dillon, who tweeted: 'Ambitious women make history, change the world, and win.' Biden is said to be comfortable with Rice, who worked with him in the Obama administration, and is said to envision with her the kind of partnership he had with Obama. While she is an expert on foreign policy, she has no previous political experience. The former vice president is said to want a running mate who would have a similar relationship with him that he enjoyed with President Barack Obama. Bass took the Sunday shows this weekend to push back on comments she made in 2016 praising Fidel Castro and calling his death a loss to the Cuban people. She told 'Fox News Sunday' her perspective on the late Cuban dictator was 'developed over time' and that she now understood that the Castro government 'was a brutal regime.' She said she would not make similar comments again. Bass also had to defend remarks she made in 2010 praising the Church of Scientology. She spoke at Scientology ceremony when she was in the California state assembly. 'Back in 2010, I attended the event knowing I was going to address a group of people with beliefs very different than my own, and spoke briefly about things I think most of us agree with, and on those things respect for different views, equality, and fighting oppression my views have not changed,' she wrote on Twitter. 'Since then, published first-hand accounts in books, interviews and documentaries have exposed this group.' She also noted she worships at First New Christian Fellowship Baptist Church in South LA. Bass, who serves as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, has a lot of support among Congressional Democrats, who have voiced that to Biden and his surrogates. She has also privately reassured Biden allies she has no interest in the top spot and would be a loyal lieutenant, The New York Times reported. Biden, if he wins in November, would be 78 years old on inauguration day, meaning his choice of a running mate could be of even greater consequence. U.S. health care chiefs are drawing up essential guidance on who will be first to receive the coronavirus vaccine once it is developed in the coming months. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that 12 million of the most critical health, national security and other essential workers be first in line. 110 million people deemed to be at high risk from the coronavirus would be next on the list. They include those over the age of 65 who live in long-term care facilities, or those of any age who are in poor health - or who also are deemed essential workers. The general population would come later leaving 205 million other people completely exposed and having to wait their turn. U.S. health authorities hope by late next month to have some draft guidance on how to ration initial doses, but it's a vexing decision Who will be first in line to be vaccinated against coronavirus? Health workers will be first in line to be vaccinated Those most vulnerable to the targeted infection are a high priority: It includes 12 million critical health, national security and essential workers 110 million people at high risk from the coronavirus: This includes those over 65 who live in long-term care facilities, or those of any age who are in poor health, or who also are deemed essential workers Those living where the outbreak is currently worst will also be a priority Volunteers taking part in the final stage trials of vaccine testing who receive dummy shots will be given the real thing once an injection is created The remaining general U.S. population of 205 million other people would come later Advertisement U.S. health authorities hope to have some draft guidance set up by late next month on how to ration initial doses. 'Not everybodys going to like the answer,' Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, recently told one of the advisory groups the government asked to help decide. 'There will be many people who feel that they should have been at the top of the list.' Traditionally, first in line for a scarce vaccine are health workers and the people most vulnerable to the targeted infection. But Collins tossed new ideas into the mix: Consider geography and give priority to people where an outbreak is hitting hardest. 12 million of the most critical health workers would be first in line to receive jabs followed by the 110 million people deemed to be at high risk from the coronavirus And don't forget volunteers in the final stage of vaccine testing who get dummy shots, the comparison group needed to tell if the real shots truly work. 'We owe them ... some special priority,' Collins said. Huge studies this summer aim to prove which of several experimental COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. Moderna Inc. and Pfizer Inc. began tests last week that eventually will include 30,000 volunteers each; in the next few months, equally large calls for volunteers will go out to test shots made by AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Novavax. And some vaccines made in China are in smaller late-stage studies in other countries. For all the promises of the U.S. stockpiling millions of doses, the hard truth: Even if a vaccine is declared safe and effective by year's end, there won't be enough for everyone who wants it right away -- especially as most potential vaccines require two doses. Huge studies this summer aim to prove which of several experimental COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. Moderna Inc, left. In the next few months, equally large calls for volunteers will go out to test shots made by Johnson & Johnson along with other companies It's a global dilemma. The World Health Organization is grappling with the same who-goes-first question as it tries to ensure vaccines are fairly distributed to poor countries - decisions made even harder as wealthy nations corner the market for the first doses. In the U.S., the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a group established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is supposed to recommend who to vaccinate and when -- advice that the government almost always follows. But a COVID-19 vaccine decision is so tricky that this time around, ethicists and vaccine experts from the National Academy of Medicine, chartered by Congress to advise the government, are being asked to weigh in, too. Setting priorities will require 'creative, moral common sense,' said Bill Foege, who devised the vaccination strategy that led to global eradication of smallpox. Foege is co-leading the academy's deliberations, calling it 'both this opportunity and this burden.' With vaccine misinformation abounding and fears that politics might intrude, CDC Director Robert Redfield said the public must see vaccine allocation as 'equitable, fair and transparent.' The CDC's vaccine advisers wanted to know who's really essential. 'I wouldn't consider myself a critical health care worker,' admitted Dr. Peter Szilagyi, a pediatrician at the University of California, Los Angeles. The risks for health workers today are far different than in the pandemic's early days. Health workers in COVID-19 treatment units often are the best protected; others may be more at risk, committee members noted. There will be inevitable questions over who is 'essential' and who is more important such as a poultry plant worker or schoolteachers. There would be additional questions should the vaccine not work as well among vulnerable populations compared to younger, healthier people Older people's immune systems often don't rev up as well to flu vaccine. With Black, Latino and Native American populations disproportionately hit by the coronavirus, failing to address that diversity means 'whatever comes out of our group will be looked at very suspiciously,' said ACIP chairman Dr. Jose Romero, Arkansas interim health secretary. Consider the urban poor who live in crowded conditions, have less access to health care and can't work from home like more privileged Americans, added Dr. Sharon Frey of St. Louis University. It may be worth vaccinating entire families rather than trying to single out just one high-risk person in a household, says Dr. Henry Bernstein of Northwell Health. During the 2009 swine flu pandemic, families waited in long lines in parking lots and at health departments to be vaccinated. Such scenes would need to be avoided this time around Whoever gets to go first, a mass vaccination campaign while people are supposed to be keeping their distance is a tall order. During the 2009 swine flu pandemic, families waited in long lines in parking lots and at health departments when their turn came up, crowding that authorities know they must avoid this time around. Operation Warp Speed, the Trump administration's effort to speed vaccine manufacturing and distribution, is working out how to rapidly transport the right number of doses to wherever vaccinations are set to occur. Drive-through vaccinations, pop-up clinics and other innovative ideas are all on the table, said CDCs Dr. Nancy Messonnier. As soon as a vaccine is declared effective, 'we want to be able the next day, frankly, to start these programs,' Messonnier said. 'It's a long road.' Microsoft yesterday announced that it will end its Cortana voice assistants support for Android and iOS devices. The services will end in 2021 via an update. Moreover, Cortana support for Harman Kardon Invoke smart speaker, and first-generation Surface Headphones will also end in 2021. Microsoft explains that it plans to shift its AI voice assistant experience exclusively for Microsoft 365 apps. The website reads, As we make this shift toward a transformational AI-powered assistant experience in Microsoft 365, we need to adjust our focus areas of innovation and development to give our customers assistance where they need it most. As a result, we are making changes to some U.S. consumer-centric features and functionalities with lower usage. Original Cortana offered features like smart home and music control. Microsoft is ending Cortana support for Android and iOS in the hope to better complement its existing software. Besides, third-party Cortana skills will be denounced on September 7, 2020. The support for Android and iOS is expected to end somewhere in Q1 of 2021. Advertisement Integrated Cortana feature with Windows 10 is termed as the reason behind the replacement The newly updated Windows 10 offers several integrated Cortana features for Outlook mobile and Teams app. And with this users can manage calendar, emails, and meetings pretty easily with revamped integration of Cortana with Windows 10. Besides, the Harman Kardon Invoke speaker owners would be receive a $50 gift card as compensation. Additionally, we are offering the opportunity to receive one Microsoft $50 gift card per active Invoke to the owner of the latest U.S.-based Microsoft account used to set up an Invoke speaker that sent a voice request to the Cortana service after July 31, 2019, and prior to this announcement, the announcement reads. Besides, the owners of the first-generation Surface Headphones will also be compensated with a $25 gift card. While well be removing support for the previous version of Cortana in the first version of Surface Headphones, youll still be able to use both versions of Surface Headphones, as well as the new Surface Earbuds, to tap into Cortana via Outlook mobile to manage your inbox and schedule with the Play My Emails feature, adds the post. Advertisement It is evident that Cortana could not receive the same level of traction as Google Assistant or Alexa. However, this also does not mean the Cortana will be gone for good. But it will no longer a competition for Siri or Alexa voice assistants. Meanwhile, users of Invoke speakers can head here and users of Surface Headphones can head here for more information. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday (August 3) condemned Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) decision to 'forcibly quarantine' IPS officer Binay Tiwari, who reached Mumbai from Patna on Sunday (August 2) to probe a case related to the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, and said that Bihar police is only carrying out its duty by probing this matter. Asseting that there is no politics in the decision taken by Bihar police to send a team to Mumbai to probe actor Sushant's death, CM Kumar said that Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey will talk to Mumbai police over this matter. "Whatever happened to him is not right. It is not political, Bihar Police is carrying out its duty. Our DGP will speak to them," CM Kumar told ANI. Bihar Minister Sanjay Jha also slammed the BMC and said that the decision to place Patna City SP Tiwari in qurantine is shameful. He added that Bihar police will take some concrete step in this matter on Monday. Meanwhile the BMC has justified its decision and has blamed the media for misreporting the facts. "The P/South Administration received information stating that the said officer arrived in SRPF group 8 Guesthouse, Goregaon (East). Being a domestic air traveller, he needs to be guided for home quarantine as per the State Government Guidelines. Accordingly P/South ward team approached him at the said guesthouse yesterday evening (2nd August 2020). Team explained him whole procedure for domestic air traveller, including home quarantine, which is fixed by the State Government Notification dated 25th May, 2020. He has also been guided to apply to the competent authority of MCGM for exemption in the home quarantine period as per the State Government Notification," said the BMC in a statement. Sushant, a resident of Patna, reportedly died by suicide at his Bandra residence in Mumbai on June 14. LawToolBox Meeting Dashboard "When the Coronavirus hit, we shifted resources to deliver state-of-the-art solutions to help attorneys, legal aid, court reporters and courts get back to work" LawToolBox announces an easy button in Outlook and Microsoft Teams enabling LawToolBox users to create their own custom templates to quickly construct virtual meetings for any business activity they routinely perform. For example, with a few clicks legal professionals can send out customized meeting invites for client intake, working sessions with clients and witnesses, Rule 26(f) meetings to confer with opposing counsel, depositions, arbitrations, ADR or settlement conferences, court hearings, and even trials. Courts, court reporters, mediators, agencies and law firms are not just looking for a short-term patch for video meetings, but they are looking for a way to leverage Microsoft Teams because many of them already own it, and they trust the hardened Microsoft security platform to protect their data. The virtual meeting module that LawToolBox has added to its suite of products transforms Teams into a customized solution for legal by empowering users to create meeting templates, to assign roles to attendees so that the attendee list for breakout rooms can be automatically constructed, and to automate the creation of a Teams channel to save and organize meeting transcripts, videos, communications, and files. LawToolBox users assign "roles" to meeting attendees in the case or matter (such as attorney, witness, party, or judge) and LawToolBox uses these roles to automatically build attendee lists with a single click. LawToolBox then automatically hosts these virtual meetings in a Microsoft Teams channel where they can be recorded and automatically transcribed. Meeting organizers use LawToolBox to email every attendee a custom meeting dashboard with links to only those meetings they should join (so external users dont need any special software). For example, a judges dashboard will have links to join a hearing and a sidebar breakout room, but attorneys on the case get invites to those same rooms plus a links to join a private breakout rooms to meet with their clients. LawToolBox also enables secure file sharing with external attendees. Before or during a virtual meeting, the organizer can use LawToolBox to invite any attendee to safely upload exhibits and important documents to a SharePoint site that LawToolBox has automatically created. In seconds, an attorney can give clients secure access to share private files, or the court can ask a witness to provide a new piece of evidence. The meeting organizer can use the custom templates described above to automatically construct meeting details and attendee lists using roles to create the breakout room in seconds. And because these meetings are built on top of Microsoft Teams, they can be configured to protect privacy, to guard against accidental disclosure of confidential information, and to leverage Microsoft security: external attendees admitted from waiting rooms and do not have access to internal chat 7x7 gallery view with pop-out meetings, separate from Teams application organizers can mute all, remove one/all participants, end meeting, turn off video, turn on focus LawToolBox virtual meetings and external file-sharing do NOT require guest access files, chat, recordings, transcripts only accessible internally unless organizer shares externally all meeting content stays inside the clients Office 365 tenant schedule Microsoft Live Event to enable the public viewing via live stream works with all versions of Office 365 - organizer can add call-in plan for minimal cost Judges can use custom backgrounds of their courtroom to help attendees understand everyones roles at a glance. Backgrounds of witnesses can be blurred so that their privacy is protected, and attorneys can watch an entire juries facial expressions as testimony is delivered. "When the Coronavirus hit, we shifted resources to deliver state-of-the-art solutions to help attorneys, legal aid, court reporters and courts get back to work, to create smart workplaces online, and to thrive together regardless of what the future throws at us," says Carol Lynn Grow, COO of LawToolBox. People are nervous and still don't know when or if they will return to the office or courtroom, but LawToolBox users will be positioned to excel in any new paradigm that the future brings. LawToolBox makes it easy to learn with daily webinars and the option to get started by enabling LawToolBox with one-month pilots, and Microsoft makes it easy to fast-track purchasing by allowing courts and legal departments to add LawToolBox to their monthly Microsoft invoice. When Microsoft launches Breakout Rooms for education and other use cases in the 4th Quarter of 2020, LawToolBox will host daily webinars demonstrating how LawToolBox incorporates additional breakout room functionality along with LawToolBox breakout room custom templates and role-based dashboard reports for each attendee. President Donald Trump met with coronavirus task force chief Dr. Deborah Birx Monday in the Oval Office after tweeting online that she 'hit us' with public comments on the coronavirus in an exchange he termed 'pathetic.' The president fielded a question about the online attack Monday against yet another member of his coronavirus team, after earlier sparring with Dr. Anthony Fauci. 'I think we are doing very well,' Trump said, praising his administration's coronavirus response, even as the the task force chief warned the pandemic was entering a 'new phase.' 'I told Dr. Birx i think we are doing very well. She was in my office a little while ago. Shes a person i have a lot of respect for,' Trump said. 'I told Dr. Birx i think we are doing very well,' President Donald Trump said, after slamming Dr. Deborah Birx online Then the president once again ripped House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who herself blasted Birx for having 'enabled' the president in the administration's coronavirus response. 'I think Nancy Pelosi has treated her very badly,' Trump said. 'Very, very badly. Very nasty. And I'm just referring to the fact that I thought that really they should say the job we have done whether it is on ventilators or testing,' Trump said, pointing to U.S. testing figures. Trump then declined to answer a question on whether he disagreed with Dr. Birx's recent comments on the coronavirus. Trump also vented that the media doesn't write about other countries struggling with the virus, despite numerous media reports about challenges in other nations. 'I don't read about the other countries,' Trump said, 'countries that thought they were over it.' Trump said he met with Dr. Birx in his office Monday, but would not respond to a question of whether he disagreed with her assessments about the coronavirus Trump spoke publicly hours after he went after Pelosi Monday mornign for her blasts at Birx then accused his own coronavirus task for chief of taking the bait by highlighting the spread of the disease. The president's language, fired off on Twitter after the public clash, follows intense scrutiny of his relationship with infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci as his administration seeks to get a handle on the coronavirus crisis. It appears to be his first public attack on Birx, who like Fauci has a prestigious medical background. It came after Birx told the nation the coronavirus has become 'extraordinarily widespread' across the country. The U.S. is approaching 5 million infections and has about a quarter of the world's total. 'So Crazy Nancy Pelosi said horrible things about Dr. Deborah Birx, going after her because she was too positive on the very good job we are doing on combatting the China Virus, including Vaccines & Therapeutics,' Trump wrote Monday morning. 'In order to counter Nancy, Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!' he wrote. His tweet did not make entirely clear whether it was Pelosi's high-profile criticism or Birx's efforts at self-defense, that he considered pathetic. Dr. Deborah Birx (right), a White House coronavirus task force coordinator, appeared on CNN on Sunday and warned that the US has entered a 'new phase' in the COVID-19 pandemic Trump accused Dr. Deborah Birx of having 'hit us' in self-defense after she shared information about the spread of the coronavirus Birx, who has become a prominent face of the administration's response amid occasional distance between Trump and Fauci, warned that the US has entered a 'new phase' in the ongoing struggle against the COVID-19 pandemic. That followed Pelosi saying she had 'no confidence' in the health advisor's counsel. Pelosi stood by her criticism in an interview with CNN Monday morning, harkening back to Trump's infamous coronavirus briefing where he spoke about injecting light into the body and injecting disinfectants into the body while task force members looked on. 'I don't have confidence in anyone who stands there while the President says swallow Lysol and it's going to cure your virus,' Pelosi Monday, in a blast at Trump's statement about injecting disinfectants at a White House briefing where Birx looked on 'I don't have confidence in anyone who stands there while the President says swallow Lysol and it's going to cure your virus,' Pelosi said. Asked to expand, she added: 'I think that she has enabled' Trump, Pelosi said. She said the Trump administration 'has not had a strategic plan' for the virus. During his April 24th briefing as the coronavirus raged, Trump looked repeatedly at a seated Birx while he made his comments. Birx sat nearly expressionless at the side of the briefing room while Trump riffed about an 'injection inside or almost a cleaning ... it sounds interesting to me.' Tensions appeared to brew this week between top government officials and public health experts as Pelosi admonished Birx for reportedly aiding Trump in spreading coronavirus disinformation. 'Deborah Birx is the worst. Wow, what horrible hands youre in,' said Pelosi, according to Politico. And Pelosi doubled down on her statement on Sunday, telling ABC's This Week: 'I think the president has been spreading disinformation about the virus and she is his appointee so, I don't have confidence there, no.' But the White House coronavirus task force coordinator continued to offer health guidance during an interview on CNN's State of the Union on Sunday that acknowledged the virus has not been contained. 'What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread. It's into the rural as equal urban areas,' said Birx. 'And that is why we keep saying, no matter where you live in America, you need to wear a mask and socially distance, do the personal hygiene pieces.' Birx also expressed her admiration for Pelosi. 'I have tremendous respect for the Speaker. And I have tremendous respect for her long dedication to the American people,' she said. Indeed, the coronavirus has reached the farthest corners of the United States as hot spots erupted in states like California, Florida and Kansas. Dr. Deborah Birx says, "we are in a new phase" of the coronavirus pandemic adding, "This epidemic right now is different and it's ... more widespread and it's both rural and urban" #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/w09X9GrhL0 CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) August 2, 2020 This week, America surpassed another grim milestone to record 4,620,419 confirmed infections and a growing death toll of 154,361. Several states are scrambling to lower infections rates, create a feasible education plan for the upcoming school year and navigate a pandemic that has been criticized for having 'a lack of national leadership.' According to a chart displayed by CNN, Dr. Birx is currently monitoring 20 of the 50 states for their coronavirus infections levels. She is a lead member of the coronavirus task force along with Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Birx did not seem too concerned about House Speaker Pelosi's lack of confidence in her advice. Asked about Pelosi's comment during her CNN interview, Birx said she had great respect for Pelosi and attributed the criticism to a New York Times article on the White House pandemic response that described Birx as having embraced overly optimistic assessments on the virus. JUST IN: I think the president has been spreading disinformation about the virus and she is his appointee so, I dont have confidence there, no, Speaker Pelosi tells @MarthaRaddatz when asked is she has confidence in Dr. Deborah Birx. https://t.co/HNQgCe39RN pic.twitter.com/ZDZYAjr0cJ This Week (@ThisWeekABC) August 2, 2020 House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (pictured) said on ABC's 'This Week' that she does not have confidence in Dr. Birx's public health advice 'This was not a pollyannish view. I've never been called pollyannish, or non-scientific, or non-data driven,' Birx said. 'I will stake my 40-year career on those fundamental principles of using data to implement better programs and save lives.' Birx then pushed back on a misconception that the virus only inundated urban landscapes, like the former epicenter New York City, and not other rural regions. 'To everybody who lives in a rural area, you are not immune or protected from this virus,' said Birx. 'If you're in multi-generational households, and there's an outbreak in your rural area or in your city, you need to really consider wearing a mask at home, assuming that you're positive, if you have individuals in your households with comorbidities. 'This epidemic right now is different and it's more widespread and it's both rural and urban.' The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recently published an ensemble forecast that estimates more than 173,000 Americans will die of coronavirus by August 22. Dr. Birx reminded Americans living in rural areas that they are not immune from COVID-19 and should follow public heath guidelines And former US Food and Drug Administrator Dr. Scott Gottlieb told viewers on CNBC in June that coronavirus-related deaths could reach 300,000 by the end of the year. Birx did not give a projection for the thousands of potential deaths Americans could face before the year's end, but she did acknowledge that it will depend on Midwestern and Southern states to slow down the spread. 'It's not super spreading individuals, it's super spreading events and we need to stop those. We definitely need to take more precautions,' she told CNN. Birx added that each of the 50 states need 'dramatically tailored' pandemic plans that include 'set of recommendations based on what we are seeing at the community level, what we are seeing relevant to the hospitals.' Part of the Trump administration's largest critiques of his muddled pandemic response was that the federal government left much of the slack to state and local officials. Pictured: a graphic shared by CNN showed the 20 states that were being monitored by the coronavirus task force because of case increases State governors were given power to decide how to manage lockdown orders, oversaw the reopening of businesses and will decided if in-person schooling will be allowed in the next few weeks. Last moth, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti blamed the Trump administration for not taking a more active role in unifying the country's pandemic response. 'I think a lot of things went wrong. We've seen no national leadership,' said Garcetti on CNN's State of the Union in July. 'We've had to stand up testing centers on our own, we've had to do so much that is outside of our lane because of the lack of national leadership - but I also think some people are just exhausted.' During Sunday's interview, Birx was asked if schools in states with a five per cent positivity rate should rely on distance learning. President Trump has launched an aggressive campaign to reopen schools in the fall to help jump start the country's economy, despite cases rising across the nation and parents concerned over a lack of attainable plans. 'If you have high case load and active community spread, just like we are asking people not to go to bars, not to have household parties, not to create large spreading events, we are asking people to distance learn at this moment so we can get this epidemic under control,' said Birx. The Trump administration has gained a consistent stream of scrutiny for its pandemic response over the last six months, with recent conversations about the next coronavirus relief bill among them. Pelosi said during her 'This Week' interview that Trump was to blame for the deadlocked negotiations. 'He's the one who is standing in the way of that,' she said. 'We have been for the $600, they have a $200 proposal, which does not meet the needs of America's working families.' Pelosi acknowledged that Saturday's discussions were 'productive in terms of moving things forward,' but an agreement has not been reached. Pelosi: 'We have been for the $600, they have a $200 proposal, which does not meet the needs of America's working families' 'Well the fact is we will be close to an agreement, when we have an agreement,' Pelosi said. The $600 weekly federal unemployment benefit is at the center of the discussions, with Republicans proposing $200 per week and Democrats fighting to stay at $600. 'The amount of money that is given as an enhancement for unemployment insurance should relate to the rate of unemployment,' said Pelosi. 'So when that goes down, then you can consider something less than the $600, but in this agreement it's $600.' Another controversial point is the President's praise for hydroxychloroquine. Just last week, social media giants Facebook, Twitter and YouTube removed a video shared by Trump that promotes unproven claims that the drug hydroxychloroquine can treat or cure the virus. There is no current medically-proven cure for the virus. The clip, which was originally posted by the right-wing news site Breitbart, featured four people who identified themselves as doctors speaking in front of the Supreme Court building. One was Stella Immanuel, who claims to be a physician in Houston, and said hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug often touted by Trump, was a cure for COVID-19. Hydroxychloroquine was first introduced to the public as a potential 'game-changer' by Trump in March - just as the virus overtook the country with quickly rising cases and deaths. Nancy Pelosi has alleged that President Trump (pictured) has spread coronavirus disinformation during his pandemic response President Trump has continued to promote hydroxychloroquine as a cure for COVID-19, despite it being unproven to do so Trump reportedly felt so strongly about the unproven drug that he began taking it himself and was set to finish his prescription in May. 'I'm taking it - hydroxychloroquine. Right now yeah. A couple of weeks ago, started taking it,' he told reporters at the White House at the time. In addition touting the drug while it was still unproven, Trump faced backlash over a series of incorrect statements he made in reference to it. Trump on at least one occasion declared the FDA 'feels good about it' and claimed they approved the drug. 'I'm not a doctor. But I have common sense,' said Trump in April. 'The FDA feels good about it. As you know, they've approved it, they gave it a rapid approval, and the reason [is] because it's been out there for a long time, and they know the side effects and they also know the potential.' Although the agency did permit emergency authorization at the beginning of the crisis, they have since rescinded the authorization and have yet to approve of it. Trump has also tried to boost hydroxychloroquine's popularity by saying it was a popular choice among medical staff and responders on the front lines. 'You'd be surprised at how many people are taking it, especially the frontline workers, he said. The next day he claimed the drug 'is used by thousands and thousands of frontline workers.' Dr. Bob Wachter, the chair of the University of California, San Francisco's department of medicine, told Factcheck.org that he didn't know 'any clinician' taking hydroxychloroquine to prevent the coronavirus. SMITHTOWN, NY The Smithtown Central School District announced its proposed coronavirus reopening plan for the 2020-21 school year. The plan covers information on the potential learning models, as well as safety measures being taken by the district. Smithtown schools will implement a hybrid model, which consists of in-person and remote learning, as long as Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state permit them to reopen. If in-person is not allowed, the district will use a fully-remote model. Under the hybrid option, all students would be grouped with the following method: Group 1: All students with last names that begin with A through K Group 2: All students with last names that begin with L through Z Group 1 will attend school in-person every Monday and Tuesday, as well as on alternating Wednesdays. Group 2 will attend school in-person every Thursday and Friday, as well as on alternating Wednesdays. Both groups will receive remote instruction on days they don't physically attend class. Parents/guardians can choose not to send their child/children to school, even if buildings use the hybrid model. In that case, students will receive remote instruction every day. "To be clear, the health and safety of our students, our staff, and their families is our top priority," the Smithtown School District wrote in its reopening plan. "We have developed a plan that intends to ensure that students and employees feel comfortable and safe returning to school campuses." It is possible the district may need to alternate between in-person and remote learning throughout the year due to recommendations and guidance from its partnering agencies and stay-at-home orders from Cuomo, officials said. The level of infection, the spread of the coronavirus, and response to the disease in the community will be at the forefront of the district's decision-making as it prepares to open its schools, officials said. More than 150 district stakeholders, including students, teachers, parents, administrators, nurses, local health care providers, staff members, and union representatives, provided input for the reopening plan. Story continues The development of this plan was guided by and grounded in the following guiding principles: Safeguarding the health and safety of students and staff Providing the opportunity for all students to access education in the fall Monitoring schools, students, and staff. When necessary, modifying schedules to appropriately contain COVID-19 spread Emphasizing equity, access, and support to the students and communities that are emerging from this historic disruption Fostering strong two-way communication with partners, such as families, educators, and staff Factoring into decision making the challenges to the physical safety, social emotional well-being, and the mental health needs of our students caused by school closure Considering and supporting diversity in our schools and school district as we provide education is essential Staff who worked the summer received training, and all staff will be trained again in September. Students will be trained on hand hygiene, respiratory hygiene, social distancing, face covering requirements, and all related COVID-19 school safety protocols before they return to school. All members of the school community, including students, staff and visitors, will be required to wear face coverings and practice social distancing. Acceptable face coverings include surgical masks, cloth masks, balaclava or bandannas and must completely cover the mouth and nose. Plastic face shields alone are not acceptable. Exceptions to the face covering requirement will be possible with the right documents. Everyone will be required to wear a face covering at all times when entering and exiting district facilities, while walking in hallways, when working within 6 feet of others and in shared spaces such as common areas, break room, restrooms, etc. Tightly confined spaces will be occupied by only one person at a time, unless all occupants are wearing face coverings, the district said. If an area is occupied by more than one person, the district will restrict occupancy to under 50 percent of maximum capacity. Classrooms and other instructional areas will be reconfigured to allow for social distancing. The district suggests people to use their own face coverings, but masks and other personal protective equipment will be available if needed. Mandatory health screenings, including temperature checks, of students, faculty, staff, and, where applicable, contractors, vendors, and visitors will be required before entry into any district facility. Anyone entering a building must complete a medical screening questionnaire, which is accessible through the district website. A QR code sign is posted at all main entrances, providing a direct link to the survey using a mobile device. In an effort to minimize exposure, members of the school community are asked to conduct temperature checks at home before they leave for school. Students will need to wear a face mask in order to ride a school bus. If they don't have one, they'll be issued one; they won't be denied transportation. "The Smithtown Central School District is committed to reopening our schools in a manner that provides for the safety, health, and security of both students and staff," it wrote. "When the 2020-2021 school year begins, on-campus school will look much different than previous years due to COVID-19 and the health and safety measures that continue to evolve." Click here to read the full Smithtown Central School District coronavirus reopening plan. Earlier this month, Cuomo announced that New York schools can reopen only if coronavirus infection rates fall below strict benchmarks to be set in early August. The "formula" Cuomo spelled out allows school openings in regions that are in phase four and have an infection rate under 5 percent. An "emergency" stop to openings will take place if infections rise above 9 percent, he said. A full decision on openings is expected to be made within the week. This article originally appeared on the Smithtown Patch IONIA COUNTY, MI A woman accused of drunken driving in a crash that killed a Michigan State Police trooper was ordered held without bond at her arraignment Monday, Aug. 3, in Ionia County District Court. Thomasina Shani Jones, 28, of Montezuma Creek, Utah, was denied bond by Judge Raymond Voet in the July 10 crash that killed Trooper Caleb Starr, 33. The trooper, who died Friday, July 31, was assigned to the Lakeview post. He left a wife, Rachael, and their girls, ages 5 and 2. Jones, who was seriously injured in the crash, was arrested Monday at a home in Ionia, police said. She is charged with second-degree murder, operating with a high blood-alcohol content with a prior conviction, operating while license is suspended, revoked or denied, causing death, and third-offense operating while intoxicated. Ionia attorney Walter Downes, who was appointed to represent Jones, said he had yet to talk to her and declined to comment. A probable-cause conference is set for Aug. 17. The crash happened around 10 p.m. near Saranac. Jones was headed east on Grand River Avenue, west of Nash Highway, when her vehicle crossed the center line and struck the troopers oncoming patrol vehicle head-on. Starr joined the state police in September 2018. Funeral services are pending. Read more: Kalamazoo man, 30, identified as victim in fatal Sunday shooting Boy, 4, shoots 5-year-old sister in head; parents charged Man killed in head-on crash with tanker truck on U.S. 127 near Jackson The first session of the Government was held on August 3 under the chairmanship of Artsakh President Arayik Haroutyunyan. The participants discussed the issue of making amendments to the law On the state budget of the Republic of Artsakh for 2020, which was presented to the members of the government by Minister of Finance Vahram Baghdasaryan. He noted that the project was developed taking into account some provisions of the President's program for 2020-2025, according to which it is envisaged to increase state budget expenditures in 2020 by 14.810 million drams, and revenues by 5.100 million drams, which is due to the amount of the budget loan received from Armenia. As a result of the changes, the state budget of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic for 2020, according to the president's instruction, will amount to 126 billion 49 million 399.2 thousand drams in terms of revenues, and 135 billion 650 million 717.7 thousand drams in terms of expenditures. The deficit will amount to 9 billion 601 million 318.5 thousand drams, which will be financed at the expense of borrowed funds. The government approved the draft law, which, according to the established procedure, was sent for discussion to the parliament. Speaking about the effective implementation of the programs under discussion, the President highlighted the need for close cooperation with the state bodies of Armenia, as well as the conscientious attitude of officials in every link of the state management system, discipline, equality of all before the law and maintaining a harmonious atmosphere in work collectives. He warned that those officials whose work and behavior would be contrary to these principles will be relieved of their posts. The head of state also noted the importance of preserving the atmosphere of internal stability formed in the republic, which will allow the implementation of the most important tasks facing the Republic: ensuring security and socio-economic development. In this context, the President called on the opposition forces to engage only in constructive criticism and not to take steps that violate this stability. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday expressed his firm opposition to the implementation of the three-language policy as envisioned in the National Education Policy 2020, saying it would hurt sentiments in a state that has rallied against the imposition of languages in the past. Palaniswami, in a statement, said the three-language idea will not be put into action in Tamil Nadu and has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to enable states to modify the Education policy to suit their own sentiments. Tamil Nadu government said the state will continue with its two-language formula. In a statement, Palaniswami said, The three-language formula in NEP is saddening and painful. Prime Minister should reconsider the proposed three-language formula and allow states to implement it as per their policy. The decision to oppose NEP was taken in a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Palaniswamy with the State School Education Minister KA Sengottaiyan. Opposition parties in the state had already opposed NEP2020. DMK President MK Stalin said the three-language policy is the Centre's attempt at the imposition of Hindi and Sanksrit and added that he would join hands with like-minded parties and take this fight forward. In a letter to party workers, MK Stalin said: This is an attack on the federal structure being underscored by the Constitution of India. DMK led a campaign against the draft education policy in August 2019, particularly against the three-language formula. In fact, the Centre revised its own draft after Tamil Nadus staunch criticism of the provisions that it said attempted to lodge learning of Hindi in non-Hindi speaking states. The revision was seen as a victory for the DMKs campaign. Ahead of the state elections in 2021, the DMK is scouting for an issue with which it can go all out against the BJP and its local ally, the AIADMK. The contentious provisions of the National Education Policy appear to be an issue that the DMK will likely use to pin down the AIADMK, particularly over issues on which it is in agreement with the BJP. However, with today's strongly-worded statement against the National Education Policy, the AIADMK has signalled that it would not stray too much from its own Dravidian roots. LONDON BRITAIN Students enrolled in the Avon Grove School District wont have the opportunity to return to their public classrooms for the fall academic term. On Thursday, the Avon Grove School Board unanimously voted 9-0 in favor of keeping public classrooms closed when instruction resumes on Aug. 31. Instead of returning to elementary, middle and high schools, the district is mandating that students continue to learn online, a process that first began on March 16 after Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf shut down all schools statewide following President Donald Trump issuing a national emergency on March 13 in an attempt to mitigate COVID-19 exposure across America. As of July, nationwide there is a 99 percent recovery rate from novel coronavirus, according to the White House. The CDC reports that of the people hospitalized for COVID-19 since March, more than 90 percent of people had at least one reported underlying medical condition. As of press time, there have been 349 deaths in Chester County related to COVID-19 since March. More than 80 percent of these deaths have taken place inside assisted living facilities for senior citizens, as previously reported. In many places, American society is mandating children wear masks despite having healthy, strong immune systems and still developing lungs. On Monday, neighboring New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy declared that all students must wear masks when returning to school in the fall. The Avon Grove Charter School Board of Trustees hasnt made its decision yet on what to do next, with its board members split in both directions as of press time. During a special meeting, the charter school board will vote on Tuesday, Aug. 4, on how to proceed. Their choice is to either to allow students to return for in-school instruction this fall, or to follow the path of the Avon Grove School District in favor of many more months of online learning only. The special board meeting for Avon Grove Charter School begins at 5 p.m. and will be streamed live to the public. As for Avon Grove School District, the creation of a Learning Plan to help guide parents is now underway with updates anticipated to be released to the public on Friday. As of June, there were 5,064 students enrolled in the Avon Grove School District. The district serves the municipalities of London Britain, Franklin, Penn, New London and London Grove townships as well as the boroughs of Avondale and West Grove. Christopher Marchese, superintendent of schools for Avon Grove, was unavailable to answer questions from the Daily Local News as of press time on Monday evening. Marchese issued a public statement on July 31 following the July 30 board meeting. The decision was made to reopen our schools in an online format for all students, Marchese said. This was a very difficult determination for our administrative team and the Board of School Directors. We empathize with our families who have been trying to create a sense of normalcy and certainty in these very challenging and unpredictable times. He said the district was confident that the (Avon Grove online) Academy will provide a positive and supportive learning environment for all of our students. Over the next few weeks, the District and building principals will be sharing more specific and detailed information regarding the Academy and our reopening plans. The board decided that Avon Groves online Academy will begin the school year one week later than originally planned if the board had agreed to allow for in-class instruction. School, via online classes, will now begin the week of Aug. 31 for Avon Grove students. The last day of school was also pushed back a week by the board, with the district declaring June 9 now as the last student day of the 2020-21 academic year. Marchese said, All along, our intention has been to create a learning environment for students and staff that is not only safe, but also meets the high expectations of the Avon Grove community. The public may access the Avon Grove Charter School Board of Trustees meeting via live stream beginning 5 p.m. Aug. 4 by visiting http://bit.ly/agcslive. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Sunday said the revelation of obnoxious clauses in the agreements entered by the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration with their Chinese lenders in the $500 million loan, has vindicated the Partys stand that the APC has been secretly mortgaging the sovereignty of our nation to benefit its selfish leaders. PDP, in a statement signed by Kola Ologbondiyan National Publicity Secretary, said its investigation showed that the mortgaging of our nations sovereignty to foreign lenders, including the exposed $500 million loan from China, has been with the active connivance of the APC as a party, even when such is against our national interest. PDP said: The PDP strongly rejects the attempts by the Buhari administration to justify this reprehensible pawning of our sovereignty to a foreign interest. Nigerians can recall that our party had on May 28, 2020 alerted that the Buhari administration and the APC had placed our nation on the international auction market with accumulation of foreign loans under nebulous terms. The PDP declares that the APC agenda offends our corporate existence as a nation and grossly violates the fundamentals of our constitution as a self-governing state, which grant no space for any form of takeover of any of our national interests by foreigners, under any condition whatsoever. Moreover, such mortgaging of our sovereignty in a loan agreement is in further violation of the oath of office of the President to protect the interest of the sovereignty of our nation. This gambling with our sovereignty amounts to an unpardonable treachery against our nation and the future of our generations yet unborn particularly given the level of incompetence, corruption, treasury looting, as well as betrayal of public trust by officials of the APC administration, which President Buhari had also confirmed. The PDP is further irked by the arrogance being displayed by some officials of the Buhari administration who, rather than being remorseful, are daring Nigerians and the National Assembly over the matter. The attitude of government officials including the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, who instead of taking steps to reassure Nigerians, is referring to ceding of control and ownership of assets in the event of default, further raises questions regarding the reliability of the current administration. The PDP holds that the demand for such toxic terms by the Chinese lenders underscores the loss of confidence by the international community in the Buhari administration, whose corruption has made it so untrustworthy that lenders now demand that we cede our sovereignty as condition. As a pan Nigerian party, the PDP declares that our sovereignty as a nation remains non-negotiable. Nigerians reject such sovereignty-pawning clause and are not ready to mortgage any parts of our country under any guise whatsoever. In that regard, the PDP charges the APC administration to retrace its step and halt every action regarding the administration of the loan until all toxic clauses are deleted from the agreement. The PDP also calls on the National Assembly to review all foreign loan agreements entered into by the APC administration and take further urgent steps to retrieve our nation from the international auction. Intrastate travel is not propping up the states tourism economy as much as hoped, with Tourism Council WA lamenting a 26 per cent loss across the school holidays compared to last year. Despite Premier Mark McGowan and Tourism Minister Paul Papalia extolling the dramatic takeup of cheap flights to the Kimberley and a surge in people travelling in their own backyards, the shortfall is still being keenly felt. The north west suffered a 73 per cent downturn on normal school holiday trade, says Tourism Council WA. Business activity in the states North West was down 73 per cent in June and July, and Perth also saw a decline of 62 per cent, due to a lack of interstate and international travellers. Only the South West had improved figures with a 6 per cent boost on last year, which showed West Australians favoured "self-drive destinations and low-cost, self-contained accommodation options", according to the councils chief executive Evan Hall. The government has launched a new awareness campaign warning travellers at UK ports and airports of the dangers of bringing African swine fever. The campaign aims to safeguard the UKs pig industry by targeting anyone who has the potential to introduce the virus to the UK. It includes a new poster campaign which will be introduced throughout the summer to raise awareness of the disease and the risks of bringing back contaminated products. Border Force officers enforce controls at the border on illegal meat by searching freight, passengers and luggage and will seize and destroy illegally imported meat products, Defra said. The National Pig Association (NPA) welcomed the launch of the campaign, calling it an 'important step' in combating ASF. The announcement comes after ASF DNA was detected in a sausage seized by officials in Northern Ireland last June, as part of a 300kg seizure of illegally imported meat. Lord Gardiner, Defra's minister for security said: While there has never been an outbreak of African swine fever in the UK, we are not complacent and already have robust measures in place to protect against animal disease outbreaks. This poster campaign at UK airports and ports adds to the strict control measures we have put in place to ensure that no live pigs, wild boar or pork products from affected areas reach the UK. It is essential all tourists and holidaymakers do not bring to the UK any pork products to protect the UKs high biosecurity, he said. Christine Middlemiss, the UK's Chief Veterinary Officer said keeping African swine fever out of the UK was one of her top priorities "As we have seen around the world, its impact on pig farmers and the wider pork industry has been devastating," she said. The virus survives incredibly well in pork meat and can survive for months in smoked, dried and cured meats and likely years in frozen meat. That is why it is crucial that anyone travelling from affected regions takes this advice seriously in order to ensure that there is no spread of the disease to animals in the UK. The government has estimated that a reasonable worst-case scenario ASF outbreak could cost the United Kingdom 90 million. But the NPA's chief executive, Dr Zoe Davies said: "We believe the figure would be much higher and that is why we need to mobilise every available resource and effort to help prevent such a catastrophe. ASF has spread widely across Asia including China and Vietnam and parts of Central and Eastern Europe, with also been reported throughout Sub Saharan Africa. The disease has resulted in the loss of over 800,000 pigs and wild boar in Europe and an estimated four million pigs in Asia, causing global pork prices to rise. A Japanese beetle survives being eaten by a frog more than 90 per cent of the time by squeezing out of its predator's rectum. Incredible footage shows a small aquatic beetle being squeezed from the rear end of the black-spotted frog nearly two hours after being eaten in lab experiments. Out of 15 experiments with the Regimbartia attenuata beetle species, 14 escaped from the frog's rectum unharmed and started scuttling around the glass tank. Japanese researchers fed 13 other beetle species to the frog, all of which did not survive, meaning R. attenuata may promote frog excretion to facilitate its escape unharmed. This study claims to be the first to report the successful escape of prey insects from the vent of a predator. Scroll down for video (a) An adult of the aquatic beetle Regimbartia attenuata. (b) The potential predator, the black-spotted frog (Pelophylax nigromaculatus). (c) R. attenuata escaping from the vent of the black-spotted frog 'Of the beetles excreted by frogs, 94.4 per cent survived for at least 2 weeks following excretion,' Dr Shinji Sugiura, an ecologist at Kobe University, told MailOnline 'Therefore, the costs of escaping from inside frogs may be lower than we expected.' After excretion, some of the frogs did not know that the beetles were still alive, while others attacked the beetles again, he said. Many frog species lack teeth and are unable to kill prey before swallowing it, relying on their digestive systems to break down its food. I just ate you! Out of 15 experiments with the Regimbartia attenuata beetle species, 14 escaped from the frog's rectum unharmed and started scuttling around the glass tank After excretion, some of the frogs did not know that the beetles were still alive, while others attacked the beetles again. Here, the beetle is seen crawling fearlessly toward the eye line of the frog after excretion But animals such as beetles can evolve to develop techniques that see their survival through a digestive tract, taking advantage of the fact they are not initially crushed to death by teeth. To investigate the defences of insects against frogs, Dr Sugiura provided various species of frog with different insect species to feed on in lab conditions. Adult beetles with a body length of between 0.14 to 0.19 inches were fed to juvenile and adult frogs, ranging from 0.8 inches to 2.9 inches in a glass tank. Each species has a different habitat for example, R. attenuata prefers open wetlands such as paddy fields, which the black-spotted frog (Pelophylax nigromaculatus) also inhabits. All the beetles were easily swallowed by the frogs however, 93.3 per cent of the R. attenuata beetles, or 14 our of 15, were excreted within six hours after being swallowed and survived the journey. Time required for the passage of R. and other beetles through the black-spotted frog (Pelophylax nigromaculatus), from swallowing to excretion The single R. attenuata beetle that did not survive from the black-spotted frog was excreted as faeces more than 24 hours after being swallowed. These observations indicate that swallowed R. attenuata beetles move toward the frog vent through the digestive system. Because the frog's sphincter muscle pressure keeps the vent closed, the tiny beetles are unable to exit through the vent without inducing the frog to open it. Therefore, R. attenuata may stimulate the frog's gut to promote excretion. Survival in the extreme pH and anaerobic conditions of the predator digestive tract depends on the speed of passage and activity of the prey. This 'lethal environment' may impose selective pressures on the beetle's evolution to devise quick and active escape tactics over time. To investigate further, beetle legs were experimentally xed with sticky wax before they were eaten. All of the treated beetles were killed in the frogs digestive system and nally excreted more than 24 hours after consumption. Therefore, swallowed beetles likely used their legs to move through the digestive tract toward the frog vent, hastening their excretion by the frogs, Dr Sugiura said. The same behaviour was observed when R. attenuata was swallowed by four other frog species the Daruma pond frog, Japanese wrinkled frog, Japanese rice frog and the Japanese tree frog. Success rates of the escape of Regimbartia attenuata from five frog species. From left, black-spotted frog (Pelophylax nigromaculatus), Daruma pond frog (Pelophylax porosus), Japanese wrinkled frog (Glandirana rugosa), Japanese rice frog (Fejervarya kawamurai) and the Japanese tree frog (Hyla japonica) The escape success rates were 66.7 per cent from Daruma pond frog, 75 per cent from Japanese wrinkled frog, 87.5 per cent from Japanese rice frog and 100 per cent from Japanese tree frog. Although the highest successful escape rates were from the Japanese tree frog, which was the smallest frog species in the study, the highest number of successful escapes were from the back ends of the black-spotted frog (Pelophylax nigromaculatus). 'R. attenuate may more frequently escape from small-sized frogs because the digestive systems of small frogs are shorter than those of large frogs,' Dr Sugiura said. 'Further experiments are needed to test this hypothesis.' The study has been published in Current Biology. The state Labor Party government in Victoria announced yesterday that in response to spiralling coronavirus infections, it was imposing a state of disaster for at least six weeks across the state, including a curfew between 8 p.m. and 5 a.m. for Melbourne, Victorias capital. Sweeping Stage 4 measures in Melbourne include a five-kilometre limit on peoples movements, additional restrictions on leaving ones residence, a shift to online learning for school students, restrictions on access to kindergartens and child care centres, a ban on weddings and maximum participation of five people in religious services, and a ban on all sporting and recreational activities. Restaurants and pubs are takeaway only, and some other services have been restricted, with food courts, beauty salons, and saunas among the venues closed. Further restrictions were due to be announced today, including the possible closure of some workplaces and new restrictions on selected industries. Victorias Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton characterised the measures as shock and awe. Regional Victoria has been placed under the somewhat less restrictive Stage 3, which does not involve a curfew or travel limits, but restricts the permissible reasons for leaving residences. Throughout the state, wearing masks or face coverings in public is mandatory. The unprecedented measures imposed represent an indictment of the federal Liberal-National government of Prime Minister Scott Morrison and the Victorian Labor government of Premier Daniel Andrews. The Australian ruling class failed to take the necessary preventive measures from the beginning of the pandemic, did not invest the public health resources required for mass testing and contact tracing, and throughout the emergency prioritised the demands of business over the safety of the population. In April, Morrison and every state premier, Labor and Liberal, rejected epidemiological advice on how coronavirus infections could be eliminated. They instead insisted that a safe level of infection could be managed, and in May began to lift the limited restrictions that had been put in place. The outcome has been a public health disaster. Yesterday Andrews effectively acknowledged that authorities had lost control over coronavirus community transmission. On Sunday, the state recorded its second-highest daily total of 671 new cases, together with seven deaths, taking Victorias COVID-19 death toll to 153. Today another 429 cases were reported. In neighbouring New South Wales, infections are much lower but appear to trending upward. Today 13 new infections were reported, and Premier Gladys Berejiklian called for residents to be on extra high alert. There are 760 active COVID-19 cases in Victoria that Andrews described as mystery infectionshealth authorities are investigating the cases but still have no idea where and how people caught the virus. An unknown number of other cases remain undetected. Only around 20,000 to 35,000 daily tests have been done in Victoria over the past two months, though the state has a population of 6.4 million. At no point in the pandemic have preparations been made to test every resident of Melbourne, as has been done in other cities internationally, for example in Wuhan, China and Danang, Vietnam. Medical scientists have demanded greater transparency with testing and infection data in Victoria. University of Melbourne epidemiologist John Mathews told the Age: The first question is what data do the government actually have? Because they havent really told us. Many tests are being sent interstate due to inadequate infrastructure in Victoria. Mathews added that he believed delays in processing tests are a significant factor in the coronavirus spread. Mary-Louise McLaws, professor of epidemiology at the University of New South Wales and adviser to the World Health Organisation, called for public investment in screening clinics and laboratories, including hiring more trained staff, so that people with COVID-19 symptoms did not have to wait days for test results. A state of disaster has been declared only once before, at the beginning of this year during the bushfire crisis. That only applied, however, for several days, and to affected parts of regional Victoria. The latest declaration gives the government and the police powers far beyond those of the existing state of emergency, though that remains in place. Under the Emergency Management Act, in a state of disaster the government can suspend any act of parliament or regulation deemed to inhibit response to or recovery from the disaster and issue directions that prevail over any legislation or law. All government agencies are subject to directives from the emergency services minister. Police and emergency services personnel have the authority to order evacuations and seize property. No explanation was provided for the need for the virtually unlimited powers handed to the police and other authorised officers. Police Minister Lisa Neville yesterday declared that police would prohibit all protests. The state Labor government, like its counterparts throughout Australia, has sought to avoid placing any restrictions on the activities of corporations amid the pandemic. This is despite the fact that 80 percent of all coronavirus infections in Melbourne have occurred within workplaces. Low-wage and highly-casualised industries are among the worst affected. This includes the aged care sector, the meatworks industry and warehouses, where workers have been kept on the job by governments with the assistance of the trade unions. The working class is beginning to take action in response. Around 45 meat workers at the JBS abattoir in Brooklyn, a western suburb of Melbourne, organised a stopwork meeting last Tuesday to discuss safety provisions in the plant. The following day, 35 workers at the Spotless commercial laundry in South Dandenong, another suburb, refused to turn up for their shifts, following an outbreak of COVID-19 at the facility. Earlier today, about 240 warehouse workers at the Woolworths Liquor Distribution Centre in Laverton, western Melbourne, took strike action. A worker tested positive on Friday, but the grocery corporate giant refused to close the warehouse and instead attempted to maintain normal operations. Such initiatives need to be taken forward by other sections of workers, with the organisation of rank-and-file action and safety committees, completely independent of the pro-corporate unions, now a life and death question. These committees, democratically controlled by workers themselves should formulate, oversee and enforce safety and workplace standards. Where conditions are violated, there must be a stoppage of work. Bill Gates said Joe Biden "may want more expert advice" if he becomes the next president. Getty Images for Global Citizen, Mark Makela/Getty Images I asked Bill Gates what he thought Joe Biden, if elected, should do about the coronavirus on January 21, his first day in office. Gates said Biden should listen to the experts more, encourage mask wearing, stay in the World Health Organization, and fix the painfully slow US coronavirus testing system. "You really have to view the pandemic as a problem that you're willing to talk about," Gates said. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Bill Gates doesn't skip a beat when imagining how the US might approach the coronavirus pandemic differently if the country were to elect a new president this November. "If he wins, what do you think Joe Biden should do about the coronavirus, on January 21st?" I asked Gates, during our recent interview. It's hard to know what the state of the pandemic will be at that date roughly six months away and with winter flu season in full swing, "so it'll have be based on the context at that point," Gates said, acknowledging that "the fall could be tough," as more people move indoors, and return to school and work. Related: How Bill Gates and Warren Buffett are changing the world Still, the billionaire philanthropist seemed to audibly brighten at the hypothetical scenario. He said that he imagined Biden would "want more expert advice" about what to do during the pandemic, versus Trump who, in 2018, disbanded the unit inside the National Security Council devoted to fighting such global public health threats. "He'll appoint, we hope, strong people," Gates said of Biden. "There are lots of people who are involved in the global response to Ebola and smallpox and polio, who would love to help out the US bring this thing to a close." Two of the biggest problems that Gates identified in the country's current coronavirus response are the testing system, which often does not get results back fast enough to be useful, and the fact that "the US is the worst of the rich countries, in terms of mask usage." Story continues Those are both sticking points that Gates expects Biden might better address. "He's been good on mask-wearing," Gates said. "He understands the inequities of the current testing system." Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden stops in front of his childhood home on July 9, 2020 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Spencer Platt/Getty Images Gates's philanthropic Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is also the second largest funder of the World Health Organization, after the US. So, when President Trump announced his intention to leave the WHO earlier this year, Gates showed his support for the global health organization his foundation spends more than $200 million on every year on Twitter, saying "the world needs WHO now more than ever." "He'll probably choose not to leave the WHO," Gates said of Biden. "Since that's where all the data is, and that's how countries coordinate with each other." Finally, if he is elected, Gates hopes that Biden might bring a touch more humility to the Oval Office. "You really have to view the pandemic as a problem that you're willing to talk about," Gates said. "Willing to admit we've made some mistakes, and that we're going to keep learning, and let the voice of the CDC and experts like Dr. Fauci not be restricted, in terms of allowing them to speak to the public, and not be drowned out by whatever treatments you have a personal thought about." Read the original article on Business Insider DOVER, Del., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Signalytics, an Amazon PPC agency that specializes in Amazon SEO tools for FBA brands, has recently hired Miss Alabama contestant and Miss Mobile Bay winner, Kailee Montes, as the company's Brand Advocate and Social Media Manager. For more information about Amazon PPC management, visit: https://www.signalytics.ai/ Signalytics Logo Kailee Montes Montes is a great fit for Signalytics and brings many valuable skills to the team, having earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and Music and Minors in Law and Design with many scholastic honors including Graduated Summa Cum Laude, recipient of the Hope and Zell Miller Scholarship for Academic Excellence, recipient of the Dean's scholarship, recipient of Roger Breland School of Music scholarship, N.A.T.S.Outstanding Vocal Talent Scholarship, Dean's List 2016, 2017 and 2018 and Vice-President of Sigma Tau Delta 2018-19. With extensive knowledge and experience in English and strong values in the importance of literacy, Montes intends to apply her skill set to represent the company well. "I am a literacy advocate and volunteer instructor with the Alabama Library Board as well as a part time Ballet, Tap and Jazz instructor. As a designer and crafter, creativity is a part of my daily life." Highly ambitious, Montes has authored a children's book titled 'The Cherry Tree Adventure'. She also spent four summers doing overseas missions in Paraguay, visited over 30 countries and spent time in Guatemala working for a non-profit organization that takes care of orphaned children. Signalytics states its mission is to help e-commerce business owners scale their brands, "We do this by maximizing their visibility through organic keyword rank and paid media channels." With a focus on scaling brands with SEO tools, the company adds extra value to clients in the way of running and managing rebate campaigns for clients, bringing in social signals from Facebook, Instagram and even TikTok, all areas where Montes will be a huge asset to the company. For those interested in learning more about Signalytics and its Amazon PPC sellers service, please visit the company's official website . Signalytics is a software service that provides eCommerce sellers with keyword ranking and advertising optimization. Its mission is to help eCommerce business owners scale their brands by maximizing their visibility through organic keyword rank and paid media channels. Spokesperson: Anthony Lee Phone: +16265090006 Email: [email protected] SOURCE Signalytics Thousands of drivers busted using their mobile phones behind the wheel are exploiting a loophole to avoid losing demerits points, while the government nets millions of extra dollars in revenue. Between March and June this year about 43,000 Sydney motorists were caught on their phones, but eight per cent were linked to company-owned cars. If businesses can not identify the driver the $349 fine is increased to $1,745, but the offender avoids the five demerit point hit. The cameras generated an additional $19 million in revenue for the NSW government from March until June - a figure that would be significantly smaller if all fined drivers were nominated. A 'loophole' in the mobile phone detection cameras system allows vehicles linked to business take a larger fine over nominating the guilty driver so the offender is not hit with demerit points. Pictured are drivers caught by the cameras Labor's shadow minister for roads John Graham told The Sydney Morning Herald the government needed the extra revenue and was hesitant to address the issue. 'This loophole is leaving dangerous drivers on our roads. Some of these thousands of drivers should no longer have a licence,' Mr Graham said. 'There is a conspiracy of silence about this behaviour because the government needs the money.' Mr Graham estimated the $1,745 fines had collected nearly $6million during the time period. The mobile phone detection cameras generated an additional $19 million in revenue for the NSW government between March and June. Pictured are the cameras in NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance said he was aware of the issue. 'This matter is under consideration as part of the statutory review of the Road Transport Act 2013,' he said. Mr Constance noted that while the existing regulations allowed drivers to escape demerit points if caught on camera, police officers gave no such exemptions. Mobile phone detection cameras were first rolled out in Sydney early last year on a trial basis before the government started issuing fines in March 2020. Labor's shadow minister for roads John Graham said the government was hesitant to fix the issue due to the extra millions it was making The camera fines have given a huge boost the NSW government's bottom line, recording $26 million in total fines for mobile phones in the last financial year. The figure compares to $10 million the previous financial year when the fines were given out exclusively by police officers. Victoria and Queensland have rolled out their own mobile phone detection camera programs, with each featuring an initial trail period that will only issue warnings to drivers rather than fines. Other states in Australia are expected to implement the technology in time. Facebook on Monday agreed to lease all the office space in the mammoth 107-year-old James A. Farley Building in Midtown Manhattan, cementing New York City as a growing global technology hub and reaffirming a major corporations commitment to an office-centric urban culture despite the pandemic. With the 730,000-square-foot lease, Facebook has acquired more than 2.2 million square feet of office space in the city for thousands of employees in less than a year, all of it on Manhattans West Side between Pennsylvania Station and the Hudson River. Apple, Amazon and Google all lease space in the same area, an emerging tech corridor. The timing of the deals announcement was somewhat of a surprise because Facebook, which had expressed interest in the Farley Building for months, has given most of its employees the option of working from home during the pandemic. Even after the pandemic subsides, Facebook has said that within the next 10 years up to half of its roughly 52,200 employees across the country would work from home. New Yorks economy has been cratered by the outbreak, and even as the virus has been contained and the city is slowly reopening, many companies have told their employees not to return to their offices until early next year if not later. Prior to todays game, the Giants designated right-handed reliever Jandel Gustave for assignment, per Maria Guardado of MLB.com (Twitter link). The move cleared roster space for the addition of fellow right-hander Andrew Triggs, whose contract was selected. Additionally, Rule V draftee Dany Jimenez cleared waivers and was returned to the Blue Jays organization after being designated earlier in the week, per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). The hard-throwing Gustave was once a relief prospect of note in the Astros system, but his most extensive MLB action came last season with the Giants. He tossed 24.1 innings of 2.96 ERA ball, but mediocre strikeout (14.1%) and walk (9.1%) rates suggested that strong run prevention was unlikely to continue. He hadnt been on the Giants active roster this season. Triggs got off to an inauspicious start to his SF tenure this afternoon, allowing three runs on three walks while recording just one out in a loss to the Rangers. Nevertheless, the 31-year-old once looked like a solid back-end starter, flashing solid strikeout and ground ball tendencies across the bay with the As between 2016 and 2018. Jimenezs time as a Giant comes to an end after just two appearances (in which he walked three of eight batters faced). The 26-year-old returns to the Toronto organization, where he neednt occupy a 40-man roster spot. Kendall Jenner is the oldest daughter of Kris and Caitlyn Jenner and is one of the most successful supermodels in the world. Given her slim frame, beautiful looks and statuesque height, there's no doubt that the "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" star is excellent at what she does. Despite having only 135 million Instagram followers, Kendall Jenner is reportedly being paid $611,000 for sponsored posts. In terms of IG wealth, Buzzbingo reported that Kendall Jenner has an Insta-Income of $15.9 million, as she is ranked one in terms of top earners with 26 ad posts, while her sister Kylie, though earning $1.27 million per post, has only an Insta-Income of $3.8 million. Ever wonder why Kendall Jenner is one of the most-followed people on IG? It's all because of her incredibly sexy and sultry snaps. Here are the top five sexy posts Kendall Jenner has posted on her Instagram. Last week, Kendall Jenner opened her doors to Architectural Digest, giving her millions of fans a glimpse of what the inside of her relaxing Los Angeles home. Aside from showing off where her hard-earned money went, Kendall Jenner also shared an Instagram picture of her recent Chanel shoot published in Chaos SixtyNine magazine. The 24-year-old went topless on the 5th Posterbook edition of the magazine dedicated to the French luxury brand. Kendall was dressed in only sexy lingerie, gloves and puts her supermodel legs on display. Nobody could ever break the lockdown orders of each state, not even the wealthiest celebrities. Missing the beach, and the beautiful places around the world, Kendall Jenner posted a throwback pic on her IG when she was in The Bahamas with her sisters. The vacation was said to have taken place in February, where she and her sister Kylie Jenner were seen creating some hot photoshoots while under the sun while playing with the waves. This Instagram post has only one picture of Kendall Jenner wearing a cute printed bikini, but her 135 million followers were also graced with another photo where she wore a lovely green two-piece. Kendall Jenner showed her IG followers some cheeky display in a throwback photo when she went out as a Victoria's Secret Angel for a Halloween caption. Who could ever forget that moment when Kendall, Kylie Jenner, Kim, Khloe, and Kourtney Kardashian were all dressed up as Victoria's Secret Angels in 2018? In the saucy throwback picture, the Vogue cover girl showed off her peachy behind as she looks over her shoulder. The wings even give the entire image that sultry effect. Kendall Jenner always makes waves when she poses nude for the camera. In an IG post in July 2019, Kendall Jenner is always so confident posting pictures of herself for everyone to see. And it's not even surprising because the brunette beauty has one of the best-looking bodies out there. This specific photo for a brand just proved that the 5 ft. 10 served straight fire. Kendall is just gorgeous. The model was hanging out in Greece with her best friends, and it seemed like Kendall Jenner packed some eye-catching bikinis for her trip. Kendall Jenner shared a snap on her Instagram with a mirror shot of her disposable camera, showing off her toned body and the cheeky yellow bikini. The previous months before that vacation, she was spotted in a silver bikini, but the brighter yellow one impacted her millions of fans. Just look at how perfect the bikini and her body looks. READ MORE: Top 7 Highlights on The Michelle Obama Podcast Featuring Former POTUS Barack Obama Borsa Italiana non ha responsabilita per il contenuto del sito a cui sta per accedere e non ha responsabilita per le informazioni contenute. Accedendo a questo link, Borsa Italiana non intende sollecitare acquisti o offerte in alcun paese da parte di nessuno. Sarai automaticamente diretto al link in cinque secondi. Authorities predicted that the latest restrictions in country's biggest cities would cost around 250,000 jobs Workers push trolleys past an empty shop in Melbournes central business district on August 3, 2020 after the state announced new restrictions as the city battles fresh outbreaks of the COVID-19 coronavirus. (AFP) Canberra: Victoria state, Australias coronavirus hot spot, announced on Monday that businesses will be closed and scaled down in a bid to curb the spread of the virus. Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews said nonessential businesses will close starting late Wednesday in Melbourne, Australias second-largest city. The new restrictions followed Andrews on Sunday declaring a disaster in Melbourne and introducing an evening curfew for six weeks. Andrews predicted the latest restrictions would cost 250,000 jobs. Victoria announced on Monday 429 new infections and 13 more deaths overnight. Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said the infection rate would continue at 400 or 500 new COVID-19 cases a day without the new restrictions. Industries that will have to close on-site operations for six weeks include most retail and manufacturing. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Monday that workers in Victoria state will be entitled to a 1,500 Australian dollar ($1,060) payment if they are required to self-isolate for 14 days and they dont have paid sick leave. Bryan Callen Photo: Santiago Felipe/Getty Images A little over a month after comedian Chris DElia was accused of sexual misconduct, one of his closest friends is also at the center of allegations. According to a new report from the L.A. Times, four women have gone on the record to accuse comedian and The Goldbergs star Bryan Callen of sexual assault and misconduct. The allegations span back to 1999, when former MADtv cast member Kathryn Fiore Tigerman alleges Callen raped her. Tigerman told the Times that she watched the allegations against DElia play out last month, and when Callens name began to be mentioned she felt relief and thought, Oh, Im not by myself in this. I finally feel powerful against him. And if I can give that feeling to somebody else, that would be great. Like Tigerman, three other women shared their allegations against Callen in detail with the Times. A former American Apparel employee named Rachel Green accused Callen of pinning her against a dressing-room wall in 1999 and kissing her, which she immediately reported to her co-workers. Claire Ganshert, who was an aspiring actress when she met Callen in 2012 when she was 23 and working at a New York coffee shop, said she had a four-year affair with Callen while he was married, and that he told her in 2016 that women have a biological, primal desire to be raped. A comedian named Tiffany King also alleged that, in 2017, Callen tried to pressure her to give him oral sex in exchange for stage time and money at a time when he knew that she was struggling financially. It was so humiliating. He was somebody I looked up to as a comedian who had control over something I loved, King told the Times. If it had been another woman, she could have done it and killed herself the next day because she felt so horrible. In a statement to the Times, Callen denied all of the allegations. Let me be very clear: I have never raped, forced myself upon any woman nor offered to trade stage time for sex. EVER, his statement read. I know the truth. And I can only hold my head up high, remain true to myself, my family, my audience and know that I will not allow the cancel culture to subvert what I know and as importantly, what they know, is the truth. Callen accused Ganshert of mud-slinging in order to get her name in the press. Ganshert told the Times that what Callen did to her when she was young was more in the gray area, adding, I think that story is relatable. I am not a victim but Im standing up for that 23-year-old girl by saying that a 45-year-old man should have known better. Update, August 3: Callen has changed course on his initial decision to address the allegations in detail on his podcast, instead announcing in an Instagram post on August 2 that he is taking a leave of absence from the podcast, The Fighter and the Kid, which he co-hosts with former UFC fighter Brendan Schaub. In the video, Callen again denied the allegations from the L.A. Times report and said he will not lay low or post a stale statement. I never thought in a million years that Id be sitting here defending myself for something I did not do 21 years ago. So this is me saying that I categorically and absolutely deny all the allegations against me, Callen said. I have been characterized as someone that no one, no one who knows me not my friends, not my family, not my fans would ever recognize. And thats because thats not who I am. Callen added that its not a video about cancel culture and that the Me Too movement is one of the most important movements of my lifetime, but that social media and the press alone can act as judge, jury, and executioner. Watch the full clip below. BBVA USA BBVA USA, in partnership with Google, will allow customers next year to open accounts without visiting a branch, allowing the bank to expand beyond its seven-state footprint. Javier Rodriguez Soler, the bank's chief executive, said the move was a way reach more customers. "This collaboration with Google is fully aligned with this effort -- even more so in today's world where the ability to conduct your financial life in a digital manner, from account opening to transacting to understanding financial health, is an imperative." Regional Manipur police foil relay-hunger strike of VDF personnel Photo of VDF personnel staging relay-hunger strike which was foiled shortly after it commenced in Imphal on Sunday. Correspondent IMPHAL, Aug 2 | Publish Date: 8/2/2020 1:24:36 PM IST A relay hunger strike staged by VDF (Village Defence Force) personnel in violation of the ongoing stringent COVID-19 lockdown and curfew was foiled by police in Imphals Kwakeithel on Sunday. The VDF personnel were on cease work (arm and pen down) strike since July 16 under the aegis of All Manipur VDF Welfare Association (AMVWA). Among others, the VDF personnel are demanding hike in their monthly honorarium and regularisation of their service. They demanded that their monthly honorarium should be 75% of the pay scale of a police constable. Due to the failure of the state government to address their demands, and also alleging that their demands are ignored, the VDF personnel began the relay hunger strike today at Kwakeithel Bazar. On the first day of the strike, leaders of the district units of the association along with central leaders of the association staged the relay-hunger strike. The protest was dispersed by a team of Imphal West district police reportedly on the charge of violating the SOP (Standard Operating Procedures) of the ongoing lockdown. The central committee of AMVWA strongly condemned the police action while alleging that they were compelled to organize the strike after the state government failed to address their demands. AMVWA (central committee) general secretary Ch Sanjit alleged that the state government is adamant to their demands despite their cease work strike for more than a fortnight. We decided to launch the relay hunger strike after the state government remained deaf despite the cease work strike for more than half a month, he said. He also announced that earlier planned relay-hunger strikes till their demands are met, have been postponed indefinitely, in view of the COVID-19 crisis. However, they will continue the gun down and pen down strike. Besides, they will also continue to stage sit-in-protest in their respective posts across the state, he added. We will not retreat until our demands are addressed, he said. A total of 10,050 VDF personnel have been on active duty since 2009. They have been assisting the police in maintaining law and order. Even as they were assigned duties almost similar to police personnel and the extra work due to the COVID-19 outbreak, they were ill-paid, they alleged. Currently, they are paid Rs 7,500 with Rs 2,000 as ration money per month even though the state cabinet had approved an increment of monthly salary of VDF to Rs 9,500 and ration money to Rs 2,000. The striking association alleged that even though arms and ammunition were issued to them after imparting basic knowledge of firearms, safety, handling and others, they are deprived from receiving Arms Allowance which the police department provides to police personnel. The VDF personnel claim that they have been performing the same duty like police/Manipur Rifles/ Indian Reserve Battalion throughout the day. Gabriel Paun has been living in hiding for three years. It took the environmental defender a year to prepare for a new existence that would, he hoped, save his life. For weeks, he was effectively on the run, using only cash so he could not be traced. Five years ago, he had been investigating the construction of a hydropower plant and alleged illegal logging on the protected Raul Alb river when he says he was attacked by a group of men sent by a private forestry company. A group of six guys came and started to punch me, really hard kicks with the intention to kill, he tells The Independent. He managed to escape but was severely injured, with broken ribs. Its something that I try really hard to forget. After this attack I had nightmares that I was living in the mountains, and they would come every morning at the same time, while I was enjoying my coffee, and they would kill me. Paun, 43, is a leading Romanian environmentalist and land defender. One of his earliest and fondest memories is going on a trip with his father to the countrys vast, idyllic forests to hear the sound of wolves. The wolf howling did not scare me, but made me very excited, he says. I cant describe in words what kind of feeling goes through your body and how you get shivers under your skin when you hear that. This was an experience my father offered to me, but then he passed away when I was six. So I was alone in this journey. Gabriel Paun (Naomi Larsson/The Independent) Paun has been involved in environmental activism since he was a child, setting up the NGO Agent Green in 2009 to protect the countrys vast virgin forest from destructive logging. Romania contains half of Europes remaining old-growth and primeval forests, home to endangered brown bear and wolf populations. The forests are also vital carbon sinks and are more resilient to stresses caused by climate change. But logging both legal and illegal is decimating them. Although most of the old-growth forests are in protected areas, 72 per cent of the destruction takes place in areas with that status. Greenpeace Romania estimates that three hectares of forest are lost every hour, amounting to some 349,000 hectares over the last two decades. Half of the wood taken from Romanias forests comes from unaccounted sources, according to the National Forestry Inventory, in an illegal logging trade thats worth an estimated 1bn. Organised crime syndicates are at the heart of it, but timber theft is common in rural areas, the logging business being one of the main sources of income for much of the population. The trade makes it an international issue Romanias biggest wood processor is Austrian, the Schweighofer Group, which is under suspicion of involvement in illegal logging. In February, the European Commission launched legal action against Romania for its continuous failure to protect its natural forests. Paun suggests the lines between legal and illegal have become increasingly blurred. I wouldnt even call it illegal logging any more because there is plenty of legal logging which is so aggressive, so destructive, that we are losing the last primary and old-growth forests, he says. But for those on the front line, the fight has become deadly. Last autumn, two park rangers were murdered in Romania. Raducu Gorcioaia, 50, was found dead in his car, close to an illegal logging site in the Pascani forest district in September. A month later, Liviu Pop was responding to a tip-off about illegal logging when he was shot dead. Colleagues of Liviu Pop (pictured) pay tribute after he was shot dead in northern Romania (AFP via Getty Images) The Romanian forestry union has recorded the deaths of four other rangers and over 650 incidents of physical assaults and death threats against rangers in the last few years. Paun says he fears for his life and was forced to go into hiding. Intimidation comes from all sides. In 2016 he was the victim of a targeted cyberattack that wiped seven years of work and personal data. Then, a woman came into his life who was too good to be true, and she was found to be taking on a fake identity, targeting Paun because of his work. He has discovered cameras and listening devices in his home. His mother has also been intimidated. Im facing threats in all possible ways. Paun is single and says he cant have a family of his own. They would be too much at risk. It is an increasingly volatile time for Romanias environmental activists. This year is the first time that Romania has featured on the Global Witness database, an annual record of the killings of land activists and wildlife defenders around the world. The number of murders of people defending the environment reached its highest yet in 2019, with a global total of 212, up from 164 deaths in 2018. On average, four were killed a week. Countless more have been threatened, detained and silenced in attempts by illegal organisations, industry and governments to stop communities from protecting their land. This is the highest figure ever at a time when were facing increasing climate breakdown, says Chris Madden, a spokesperson at Global Witness. These are people on the spine of the climate crisis who need to be protected and listened to if we have the hope of addressing it. In 2019, Colombia topped the Philippines with the highest death rate of land defenders, with 64 activists killed. Half of all reported killings took place in these two countries. Global Witness expects the true death toll to be much higher, with many incidents going unreported. In the first two weeks of this year alone, at least 10 human rights and environmental defenders were killed in Colombia. Angelica Ortiz is from a Wayuu indigenous community in La Guajira, northern Colombia. She is part of the local activist group, Fuerza de Mujeres Wayuu, leading protests against mining and agribusiness projects. Ortiz and the other activists in Fuerza de Mujeres have faced ongoing intimidation six death threats in 2019 alone for their work defending their community and land. She believes the threats come from paramilitary groups that continue to control rural areas. Colombia is in a crisis for defenders and social leaders. We thought that the peace process would be a solution for Colombia, but unfortunately it hasnt been like that, she says. The difference is men are killed, women are violated. Women are castigated for their bodies. They are violated sexually for defending their rights Angelica Ortiz, activist One of the major fights for the group is the coal-mining project El Cerrejon. The largest open-pit coal mine in Latin America diverted water from a stream that the Wayuu indigenous communities relied on for clean water, and displaced many communities. When the Fuerza de Mujeres began campaigning nationally and internationally for greater protections of their land and rights, they started receiving death threats. For a time, Ortiz was forced to leave her community, and her children. That was frightening and I still dont feel safe. Being a protector requires that sacrifice. She is aware of her own vulnerability as a woman the number of female defenders killed almost doubled in 2019 compared with the year before. The difference is men are killed, women are violated. Women are castigated for their bodies. They are violated sexually for defending their rights. Many of Ortizs colleagues have suffered sexual violence, and says they were told by their attackers that the violation was to shut them up, to stop them defending their land and rights. I know various cases, she says. She is far beyond shock at the commonality of these violent acts. These are the risks women face in daily life. Women are also more likely than men to face verbal abuse, smear campaigns and surveillance, according to Global Witness. Globally, mining and agribusiness were the biggest industries driving attacks against defenders and activists. The logging industry saw a steep rise, with 85 per cent more attacks worldwide recorded since 2018 against defenders opposing the industry. These are people on the spine of the climate crisis who need to be protected and listened to if we have the hope of addressing it Chris Madden, Global Witness Yet activists fear that the global pandemic has had severe repercussions for the protection of the environment. Since curfews were imposed in Colombia in March, six defenders have been killed in separate attacks. Quarantine measures have made it difficult for those facing threats to file complaints to the authorities. Meanwhile, lockdowns have allowed organisations to use this time to continue exploiting the land. In June, Paun hired a helicopter to monitor the Bucova forest in the southwest of the country. I went to this area where there have been some threats before. I discovered that a lot of new forest roads have been built during the lockdown in places where there has never been a forest road before. Quarantines certainly did not lessen the dangers that activists face. And as the world begins to open up, these threats will become more visible again. It is scary, says Paun, but I have to tell you that I have never thought for a second to stop what Im doing, because I would be already dead inside if I did that. Amazon could soon have another problem on its hands. According to Bloomberg, New York attorney general Letitia James is partnering with her counterpart in California and the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the online retailer. Bloomberg reports the three agencies will work together to interview witnesses over the next couple of weeks. We knew the FTC and attorney general of California were investigating Amazon before today's report. But the addition of New York's AG and the fact it's working together with the two other agencies represents an escalation. According to Diana Moss, the president of the American Antitrust Institute, the move could also be the prelude to significant antitrust action. "This appears to be taking the shape of what could be a major collaborative antitrust investigation," she told Bloomberg. "This happens in big cases where the feds have a stake in enforcing the law and when states are interested in protecting their constituents." The joint investigation follows last week's big tech antitrust hearing in which House representatives asked Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos about the company's alleged misuse of third-party seller data. Bezos told the House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee he couldn't be sure the company had avoided misusing that information. "We have a policy against using seller-specific data to aid our private label business, but I can't guarantee you that policy has never been violated," he told the panel. The issue has also drawn the scrutiny of the European Commission, which reportedly plans to file antitrust charges against the company soon. Gold was trading higher in India on August 3, tracking positive trends in international spot prices that hit a record high on a softer US dollar and fears for the global economy in the face of surging coronavirus cases lifted the demand for the safe-haven metal. On the Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX), October gold contracts were trading higher by 0.07 percent at Rs 53,485 per 10 gram at 0920 hours. September futures for silver were trading 1 percent higher at Rs 65,543 per kg. Spot gold rose to $1,976.47 per ounce, after hitting a record high of $1,984.66 in early Asian trade. The coronavirus has infected 4.6 million people in the United States and more than 17.96 million people globally, a Reuters report said. Gold and silver extended gains in the previous week. Gold prices reached a new lifetime high in the international and domestic markets, with silver following gold. Gold gained around 3.50 percent and futures settled at $1,971.20 per troy ounce. Silver settled at $24.62 per troy ounce, gaining around 6 percent. Gold & Silver Rates Gold Rate in Mumbai 10g of 24K gold in Mumbai 10g of 22K gold in Mumbai View more Silver Rate in Mumbai 10g silver in Mumbai 1kg silver in Mumbai View more Show On MCX, October gold contract gained around 5.50 percent and settled at Rs 53,828 per 10 gram and silver gained 6.14 percent and September future settled at Rs 64,984 per kilogram. Experts are of the view that after a strong rally in July, profit-taking is possible during the week but the overall trend of both precious metals is still positive and the buy-on-dip strategy will work. Gold prices reached record highs in international markets and inched closer to $2000 per troy ounce mark. July was the best month for gold in eight years as prices gained more than 11 percent, Manoj Jain, Director (Head - Commodity & Currency Research) at Prithvi Finmart told Moneycontrol. Concerns have also been raised about the US dollars status as the worlds reserve currency of choice as it gets closer to its biggest monthly drop in almost a decade. The US dollar is often seen by investors as a rival safe-haven asset to gold, and its decline makes dollar-priced gold cheaper for holders of other currencies, he said. Jain is of the view that if MCX gold sustains above 53,800, it could test 54,100-54,400 levels. If silver sustains above 65,000, it could test 65,800-66,500 levels, with 63,900 acting as a major support on a closing basis. Track live gold price here Trading Strategy Expert: Sriram Iyer, Senior Research Analyst at Reliance Securities International gold prices settled sharply higher on July 31, shaking off their first losing day in 10 sessions a day earlier as investors, wary of growing economic troubles around the globe, sought exposure to the perceived safe-haven asset. Silver also ended with modest gains on July 31. Technically, the MCX October gold contract had a volatile session, where it traded in the 53,000-53,700 range as corrected after hitting an all-time high. It ended above 53,300, indicating that volatility will continue in the coming sessions. Resistance holds at 53,750-54,050 level and support is at 53,100-52,850 levels. MCX September silver contract traded in the 63,344-65,679 range with more than 3 percent gains. Prices are likely to trade on high volatility and may move in the 63,000-65,500 range in the coming session. : The views and investment tips expressed by experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. NEW YORK and LONDON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. ("Oppenheimer"), a leading investment bank, wealth manager, and a subsidiary of Oppenheimer Holdings (NYSE: OPY), today announced the continued build-out of the leadership team within the Financial Institutions Group (FIG) of its investment banking business. The appointment of Joseph Lovell as Managing Director and Head of Asset Management, as well as Philippe Jacquemard as Managing Director and Head of European Insurance, are expected to accelerate FIG's ongoing robust growth. This follows the establishment of US coverage with the hiring of Managing Directors Leslie Fenton and Ritendra Roy. Together, Mr. Lovell and Mr. Jacquemard bring more than 40 years of collective mergers & acquisitions (M&A) and capital raising experience for the Financial Institutions sector. Mr. Lovell, who is based in New York, will report directly to Gilbert Dychiao, Managing Director and Head of the Financial Institutions Group. Headquartered in London, Mr. Jacquemard will report dually to both Mr. Dychiao and Max Lami, Chief Executive and Head of Investment Banking, Europe. Mr. Dychiao said, "In today's extremely volatile markets, only the most nimble firms can excel at advising clients on complex public and private transactions needed to capture strategic and financial opportunities for long-term success. Joseph Lovell and Philippe Jacquemard's decision to join FIG's leadership team strengthens our Group's ability to deliver a wide array of investment banking solutions to businesses across the financial services space, including mergers and acquisitions (M&A), capital raising, and advisory solutions for leading global financial institutions." Mr. Lami commented, "Oppenheimer has earned a reputation for excellence in financial services investment banking based on the experience of our senior professionals, our track record and the strength of our platform. Europe is a key area of growth for the firm, and the ongoing build-out of our senior bench with the addition of Philippe Jacquemard positions our team for continued leadership in capital raising and M&A on a global basis." This most recent expansion of our FIG's senior team aligns with the Group's broader strategy across Oppenheimer's investment banking business, which emphasizes deep sector experience across key growth industries. In July, the firm announced that Jarl Berntzen joined the Global Technology franchise as a Managing Director. In June, the firm announced the acquisition of Brandis Tallman, a San Francisco-based investment bank specializing in public finance for California issuers. Most recently, Mr. Lovell was Managing Director, Head of Asset and Wealth Management, for FIG at Perella Weinberg Partners. Mr. Jacquemard previously served as Managing Director at Fenchurch Advisory Partners. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. (Oppenheimer), a principal subsidiary of Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. (OPY on the New York Stock Exchange), and its affiliates provide a full range of wealth management, securities brokerage and investment banking services to high-net-worth individuals, families, corporate executives, local governments, businesses and institutions. For more information, please visit www.oppenheimer.com. Media Contact: Joseph Kuo / Michael Dugan Haven Tower Group LLC 424 317 4851 or 424 317 4852 [email protected] or [email protected] SOURCE Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Related Links https://www.oppenheimer.com Egypt reported 157 new coronavirus infections on Monday, the health ministry said, the lowest figure since 14 April. The new cases bring the total infection tally to 94,640 since the outbreak began in mid-February. The country registered 23 new deaths on Monday, bringing the total number of deaths from the virus to 4,888, the ministry said. Egypt's daily tally of new coronavirus infections and daily death toll both have continued to decline in recent weeks despite the recent lifting of lockdown measures in the country. Monday's statement said 1,611 patients have been discharged from hospitals after recovering from the virus, taking the total number of recoveries to 44,066. Egypt resumed regular international flights and reopened tourist resorts to foreigners on July 1 after restrictions to curb the pandemic brought the vital tourism industry to a near standstill. The country has also allowed more businesses to reopen, including restaurants, coffee shops and gyms, in a bid to keep the economy running. Search Keywords: Short link: Advertisement The German government condemned what it said were 'unacceptable' violations of coronavirus restrictions today after protestors took to the streets of Berlin over the weekend. Tens of thousands of people - many with no masks - took to the streets to protest Germany's coronavirus restrictions on Saturday in a demonstration that insisted 'the end of the pandemic' has arrived. Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer said: 'The images we saw this weekend were unacceptable.' She added that protesters who failed to wear masks or respect social distancing rules had 'exploited their right to demonstrate' and were 'in no way justified'. The protests came as authorities voice increasing concerns about an uptick in new infections. A dense crowd marched through downtown Berlin from the Brandenburg Gate ahead of a rally on a wide boulevard that runs through the city's Tiergarten park. Protesters who came from across the country held up homemade signs with slogans like 'Corona, false alarm,' 'We are being forced to wear a muzzle,' 'Natural defense instead of vaccination' and 'We are the second wave.' People attend a demonstration initiated by the initiative 'Querdenken-711', with the slogan 'the end of the pandemic - the day of freedom to protest current measurements that aim to curb the spreading of Coronavirus in Berlin Participants hold a banner reading 'Health is more than the absence of illness' as they take part in the demonstration in front of the Brandenburg Gate Police estimated around 17,000 people took part in the protest with Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer saying the scene was 'unacceptable' Demonstrators hold banners reading 'Stop! It is enough! Enough is enough' as they are seen clearly not social distancing Demonstrators held banners during a protest against the government's restrictions amid the coroanvirus pandemic. Police used bullhorns to chide participants to adhere to social distancing rules and to wear masks, apparently with little success They chanted, 'We're here and we're loud, because we are being robbed of our freedom!' Police used bullhorns to chide participants to adhere to social distancing rules and to wear masks, apparently with little success. They tweeted that they were preparing a criminal complaint against the rally's organizers for failing to enforce hygiene rules. Police estimated that about 17,000 people turned up to the march, and demonstrators were kept apart from counterprotesters, some chanting 'Nazis out!' A demonstrator wearing a black bird mask is seen at the protest on Saturday Thousands of people gathered at the protest and were seen without face masks Demonstrators waved banners and wore masks during the protest in Berlin Leaders pleaded with Germans this week to observe the distancing and mask rules and, amid concern about residents bringing home infections from summer trips abroad, introduced free tests for people entering the country Woman stage a counter protest during a demonstration A demonstrator stands next to a sign reading 'We need a Corona investigation committee' A counter-protester holds a sign reading 'Never Again' and depicting Thuringia's regional leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party A woman carries a sign reading 'End of the Corona dictaturship' as she attends the demonstration Demonstrators hold a banner reading 'Nobody has the right to obey' during the protests. A senior ally of Angela Merkel said earlier this week that a second wave of coronavirus has already hit Germany and that they are seeing new clusters of infections every day Protests against anti-virus restrictions in Germany have long drawn a variety of attendees, including conspiracy theorists and right-wing populists. Unlike the U.S., Brazil and Britain, Germany's government has been praised worldwide for its management of the pandemic. The country's death toll - just over 9,150 people out of more than 210,670 confirmed virus cases as of August 1 - is five times less than Britain's, which has a smaller population. In the 24 hours to July 31 there were 870 new infections. The German government has been easing lockdown measures since late April but social distancing rules remain in place, as does a requirement to wear masks on public transit and in shops. But officials have been warning against complacency as the number of new Covid-19 cases crept up recently. They pleaded with Germans this week to observe the distancing and mask rules and, amid concern about residents bringing home infections from summer trips abroad, introduced free tests for people entering the country. A senior ally of Angela Merkel said earlier this week that a second wave of coronavirus has already hit Germany and that they are seeing new clusters of infections every day. A counter-protester holds a sign reading 'we are many. Berlin against Nazis' Demonstrators waved banners in the air and clapped their hands together as they marched through the streets A demonstrator holds a heart-shaped banner reading 'Love is the answer' during a protest Officials have been warning against complacency as the number of new Covid-19 cases crept up recently as people are seen at the protest without masks Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer said that protesters who failed to wear masks or respect social distancing rules had 'exploited their right to demonstrate' and were 'in no way justified' A demonstrator waves a banner reading 'Freedom' in front of the Brandenburg Gate Counter-protesters wear face masks and hold signs during the Berlin protest. The German government has been easing lockdown measures since late April but social distancing rules remain in place, as does a requirement to wear masks on public transit and in shops Germany has plans to make coronavirus tests mandatory for travellers returning from high-risk areas, as fears rise that summer travel could spark a new surge in infections A senior ally of Angela Merkel said earlier this week that a second wave of coronavirus has already hit Germany and that they are seeing new clusters of infections every day Germany's national disease control center registered 955 new cases on Friday 31, a high figure by recent standards. 'Thousands of #covidiots are celebrating themselves in Berlin as `the second wave,' without distancing, without masks,' tweeted Saskia Esken, a co-leader of the Social Democrats, the junior party in Germany's governing coalition. 'They are not just endangering our health, they are endangering our success against the pandemic and for the revival of the economy, education and society. Irresponsible!' Germany will also make coronavirus tests mandatory for travellers returning from high-risk areas, as fears rise that summer travel could spark a new surge in infections. It was also reported that Germany is carrying out coronavirus checks at airports and is considering making them compulsory to fend off a second wave of Covid-19. Munich, Dortmund and Duesseldorf are among the airports which are screening travellers when they return from overseas, and Angela Merkel's health minister is discussing plans to enforce them nationwide. Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja, on Monday, frowned at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for filing a late amended charge against a former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke. During the court session on Monday, the EFCC lawyer, Bala Sanga, informed the court that the anti-graft agency had filed an amended charge against Mr Adoke. He said the discovery of additional pieces of evidence necessitated the amendment of the charges filed on July 17. Dissatisfied, Justice Ekwo said the EFCC had more than one month from the last adjourned date to amend and file charges against the defendants. He said the case ought to be given speedy dispensation considering the fact that it was filed in 2017. The judge said: From June 17 to July 17, you did nothing. That means you had one month and you didnt file the amended charge. Just few days to the trial, you filed an amended charge. A few days to when trial is to commence. Although you have freedom to amend your charge up to the time of judgement, I do not appreciate a situation where things are not done on time. This is a 2017 matter and I was thinking I could fast track it but now the prosecution has come up with an amendment, he said. I do not have the amended charges in the court file so I cant say anything about the amended charge. Mr Sanga apologised to the court for the lateness in filing the charges. He begged the court for a stand down to enable him put things in order. However, Justice Ekwo refused the request for a stand-down and adjourned the matter to August 4, for continuation of trial. The EFCC, had on February 10 arraigned Mr Adoke and a businessman, Aliyu Abubakar, on seven counts. Mr Adoke had six counts while Mr Abubakar had one count. The duo are also standing trial alongside others at the FCT High Court in Gwagwalada in Abuja, in respect of the Malabu oil transaction. The two defendants pleaded not guilty to the seven-count charge when read to them. According to the anti-graft agency, the duo in September 2013, made payments (in naira and dollar), of about N300 million into the former AGFs accounts. This is in violation of various provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, EFCC said. Upon a petition by the anti-graft agency against the first trial judge, Binta Nyako in 2018, she recused herself from the case. Subsequently, the case was transferred to Justice Ekwo and the accused persons were re-arraigned on June 17. Following the amendment, the charges have now been increased to 14 count-charge. Background The EFCC had been pursuing Mr Adoke for his alleged role in the controversial transfer of Nigerias OPL 245 oil field. PREMIUM TIMES reported how almost half of the $1.1 billion paid by Shell and Eni in the controversial OPL 245 deal brokered by Mr Adoke and some other officials of the Goodluck Jonathan administration ended in accounts controlled by Mr Abubakar. The oil multinationals paid the money through the Nigerian government to Malabu, a company then controlled by Dan Etete, a former petroleum minister who is on the run. 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 Abubakar. The EFCC alleges that Mr Abubakar distributed the money to some top officials of Shell and Eni as well as some officials of the Jonathan administration. Shell, Eni, and their officials are already being prosecuted in Italy for the scandal. Mr Adoke has denied any wrongdoing and said the actions taken in respect of the transfer of the block were based on the instructions of former President Jonathan and in the best interest of Nigeria. Advertisements In 2015, the former minister went on a self-imposed exile outside Nigeria. He eventually travelled to Dubai where he was arrested by Interpol on the prompting of the EFCC. Upon his return to Nigeria, he was arrested at the Abuja airport and handed over to the EFCC on December 19, 2019. Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. Bharat Book Bureau Provides the Trending Market Research Report on Global Steel Fibre Market Size study, by Type (Hooked Steel Fiber, Straight Steel Fiber, Crimped Steel Fiber, Deformed Steel Fiber, Others), by Manufacturing Process (Cut Wire/ Cold Drawn, Slit Sheet, Melt Extract, Others), by Application (Concrete Reinforcement, Composite Reinforcement, Refractories, Others) and Regional Forecasts 2020-2027under Construction Category. The report offers a collection of superior market research, market analysis, competitive intelligence and Market reports. Global Steel Fibre Market is valued approximately at USD 37.6 billion in 2019 and is anticipated to grow with a CAGR of more than 6.10% over the forecast period 2020-2027. Steel fibre is a metal reinforcement with concrete which is used as an alternative for the provision of welding fabrics or conventional steel bar applications. Steel fibre enhances the strength of the material and shift the material property from brittle to being more ductile. Some of the benefits of steel fiber are longer useful work life, less maintenance cost, high impact resistance, and stronger joints. Steel fibres are also affordable substitute to fill the crack positions in the walls or floor of the building. Further, steel fibre enables load bearing and high resistance which enhances its use in the construction sector. Request a free sample copy Steel Fibre Market Report @ https://www.bharatbook.com/marketreports/sample/reports/2099556 It is highly used in tunnel construction due to its property to provide additional strength, less permeability and less shrinkage cracking. Steel fibres are used across various verticals such as chemical, pharmaceuticals, aircraft and aerospace, measurement instruments, etc. Due to rise in industrialization Global steel fibres market observes and inclination. Rapid urbanization and infrastructure development are the major factors which are driving the growth of the market. In 2018, as per United Nations 55% of the world's population reside in urban areas which is estimated to increase up to approximately 68% by 2050. The emergence of various economics and innovative cost reduction processes create tremendous market opportunities during the forecasted period. However higher operating cost and high margins of new market players are the restraining factors for the market growth over the forecast period of 2020-2027. The regional analysis of global Steel Fibre market is considered for the key regions such as Asia Pacific, North America, Europe, Latin America and Rest of the World. North America is the fastest growing due to presence of major market players in the regions. Whereas, Asia-Pacific is also anticipated to exhibit highest growth rate / CAGR over the forecast period 2020-2027. Factors such as rise in industrialization and emergence of economies such as India, China and Japan would create lucrative growth prospects for the Steel Fibre market across Asia-Pacific region. Major market player included in this report are: Green Steel Solana S.r.l. (Italy) ArcelorMittal S.A. (Luxemburg) Zhejiang Boean Metal Products (China) Sika AG (Switzerland) N.V. Bekaert S.A. (Belgium) Fibrometals SRL (Romania) Nippon Seisen Co., Ltd. (Japan) Hunan Sunshine Steel Fiber Co., Ltd. (China) Spajic doo (US) IntraMicron, Inc. (US) The objective of the study is to define market sizes of different segments & countries in recent years and to forecast the values to the coming eight years. The report is designed to incorporate both qualitative and quantitative aspects of the industry within each of the regions and countries involved in the study. Furthermore, the report also caters the detailed information about the crucial aspects such as driving factors & challenges which will define the future growth of the market. Additionally, the report shall also incorporate available opportunities in micro markets for stakeholders to invest along with the detailed analysis of competitive landscape and product offerings of key players. The detailed segments and sub-segment of the market are explained below: By Type: Hooked Steel Fiber Straight Steel Fiber Crimped Steel Fiber Deformed Steel Fiber Others By Manufacturing Process: Cut Wire/ Cold Drawn Slit Sheet Melt Extract Others By Application: Concrete Reinforcement Composite Reinforcement Refractories Others By Region: North America U.S. Canada Europe UK Germany France Spain Italy ROE Asia Pacific China India Japan Australia South Korea RoAPAC Latin America Brazil Mexico Rest of the World Furthermore, years considered for the study are as follows: Historical year - 2017, 2018 Base year - 2019 Forecast period - 2020 to 2027 Target Audience of the Global Steel Fiber Market in Market Study: Key Consulting Companies & Advisors Large, medium-sized, and small enterprises Venture capitalists Value-Added Resellers (VARs) Third-party knowledge providers Investment bankers Investors Browse our full report with Table of Content: https://www.bharatbook.com/marketreports/global-steel-fibre-market-size-study-by-type-hooked-steel-fiber-straight-steel-fiber-crimped-steel-fiber-deformed- s / 2099556 About Bharat Book Bureau: Bharat Book is Your One-Stop-Shop with an exhaustive coverage of 4,80,000 reports and insights that includes latest Market Study, Market Trends & Analysis, Forecasts Customized Intelligence, Newsletters and Online Databases. Overall a comprehensive coverage of major industries with a further segmentation of 100+ subsectors. Contact us at: Bharat Book Bureau Tel: +91 22 27810772/27810773 Email: poonam@bharatbook.com Website: www.bharatbook.com Chicago, IL, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Associa Chicagoland and Associa Arizona recently partnered to host a series of virtual events to engage their clients and provide an outlet for continued health and wellness. The first event, a yoga webinar led by Carrie Temkin, walked through a sequence of yoga poses that taught participants to embrace a sense of calm amidst the feeling of stress, anxiety, and tiredness. Ms. Temkin is a certified yoga instructor with over eight years of experience at Total Body Yoga. During the virtual session, she instructed participants in using breath and movement to explore balance, building strength, and gaining flexibility. The second webinar event was a dinner and dessert cooking demo with Marti Sullivan from Sweet Basil Gourmetware & Cooking School and chef Terri Milligan from Chef Milligans Culinary classroom. Together, the culinary professionals demonstrated how to prepare an entree of balsamic maple-glazed salmon with jeweled Moroccan couscous, followed by a key lime mousse parfait for dessert. Ms. Sullivan opened Sweet Basil Gourmetware & Cooking School in 1993, specializing in hands-on cooking classes. In addition, the business is open for lunch through the Sweet Basil Market Cafe and sells over 9,000 different culinary products, merchandise, and gifts. Ms. Milligans wide-ranging culinary career has included owning a catering firm and The Inn at Kristofers, working as a cooking class instructor and food writer, heading her culinary YouTube channel, and getting featured on the Food Network and Wisconsin Public Radio. Associa Chicagoland knows that as the COVID-19 health crisis continues, communities are looking for unique ways to safely connect while engaging in new and exciting opportunities, stated Stephanie Skelley, Associa Chicagoland president. By partnering with the Associa Arizona team, we were able to offer our clients a chance to engage in a fun, creative outlet with participants from across the U.S. Events like these help people fight feelings of isolation and embrace a sense of community. Story continues With more than 200 branch offices across North America, Associa delivers unsurpassed management and lifestyle services to nearly five million residents worldwide. Our 10,000+ team members lead the industry with unrivaled education, expertise and trailblazing innovation. For more than 40 years, Associa has provided solutions designed to help communities achieve their vision. To learn more, visit www.associaonline.com. Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/associa Subscribe to the Blog: https://hub.associaonline.com/ Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/associa Join us on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/associa Attachment CONTACT: Ashley Cantwell Associa 214-272-4107 acantwell@associaonline.com In the book, The River at the Centre of the World, Simon Winchester wrote, In 1788 the Emperor Qianlong had nine iron oxen forged and submerged in the rising river. The act, he declared, should propitiate the guardians of the stream since, according to the cumbersome cosmology of the day, the sea submits to iron, the ox belongs to the earth, and so a herd of oxen should be able to suppress a flood. But it didn't and the floods of the summer of 1788 were devastatingand records from later times consistently show that prayer has rarely managed to halt or slow a rising Chinese river. Much has changed in China in the last 300 years but flooding across the Yangtze continues to wreak havoc. The river is called Chang Jiang (or long river) within the country and lives up to its name as it is the third-longest in the world. Chinese history is filled with stories of the floods and efforts by rulers of guard against them. In 1931, the floods resulted in the death of 2 million people and affected over one-tenth of the population. This was the main reason behind the Communist Partys fixation with building thousands of dams to tame the rivers. In more recent history, heavy rains over two months in 1998 led to floods which resulted in the deaths of 3000 people, and a further 223 million were affected. This years flooding however is supposed to be worse than previous instances. Already, 37 million people have been affected and 86 billion yuan has been lost due to the damage of property. CGTN reported that the water level of 433 rivers is above the flood control line, with 33 of them reaching record highs. The Three Gorges Dam saw the third wave of floodwaters of the year crossing warning levels leading to worries about what would happen if the colossal structure is compromised. The Ministry of Emergency Response downgraded the emergency level to Level III (the second-lowest response for flood control) but at the same time, the Ministry of Water Resources reported that the floods across the country continue to be severe. According to a report by the Ministry of Water Resources, China has the highest number of reservoirs, the highest number of dams and the highest number of ultra-high dams in the whole world. This is because it receives more rainfall than most countries and its riversChang Jiang/Yangtze and the Huang He/Yellow Riverare more prone to flooding. If Nehru considered dams the temples of modern India, they were even more highly regarded in China. However, the recent flooding shows that building dams is not enough to control the flooding and may have costs that far outweigh the benefits. In Anhui, government authorities blew up a dam in the Chu tributary to ease flood pressures. The Three Gorges Dam, which is the largest in the world, is one such example where mega infrastructure projects do not live up to their function. It is not just the big dams that are problematic. Over the last couple of years, China has been exploring more nature-based solutions to tackle flooding. It has carried out flood-plain restoration, and tree planting in small pockets. However, problems in implementations along with continual reclamation of land for agriculture prevent any meaningful change. Over the last couple of years, initiatives like sponge-cities designed by Yu Kongjian have aimed at using urban planning to retain and store water. While these are slowly gaining traction, they are not mainstream enough to make a sizeable impact. Further, Chinas increasing urbanisation has meant that city-systems are not resilient enough to withstand the damages caused by floods. Every year, Indian states face severe flooding (such as Assam right now) and have to contend with huge damages to life and property. While the Chinese have not arrived at policy solutions to tackle the problem either, it would do India well to learn from the follies of mega-projects and look to nature-based solutions to solve its problems. Climate change affects the monsoons all over Asia and perhaps here India and China can share their search for answers. Two other members of the Niles Police Department, Joseph Paglia and Michael White, died on the day of the July 18 crash, and Lazo received the serious injuries from which he later died. Their motorcycles were hit by a vehicle that crossed over into their lane of traffic on a state highway just south of Kerrville, Texas, a town 65 miles northwest of San Antonio, authorities said. BERLIN (AP) Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI has fallen ill after his return from a trip to his native Bavaria to visit his brother, who died a month ago, a German newspaper reported Monday. The daily Passauer Neue Presse quoted Peter Seewald, a biographer of the retired pontiff, as saying that the 93-year-old has been suffering from a facial infection since his return to Rome. Seewald, who has published several book-length interviews with Benedict, handed over a copy of the biography to the former pontiff on Saturday, the newspaper reported. He described Benedict as being optimistic and talking about possibly writing himself if his strength picks up, though he said that Benedict is physically very frail. The Vatican press office downplayed the severity of Benedicts condition, citing his longtime secretary, Monsignor Georg Gaenswein, in a statement released to the media. According to Gaenswein, the emeritus popes health condition doesn't create particular concern, except that for a 93-year-old man who is getting over the most acute phase of a painful, but not serious illness. In June, Benedict made a four-day visit to the Bavarian city of Regensburg to see his ailing brother. It was his first trip out of Italy since he resigned as pope in 2013. His brother, the Rev. Georg Ratzinger, died on July 1 at age 96. Benedict has lived at a monastery in the Vatican City since shortly after his retirement. Elected to the papacy in 2005 to succeed St. John Paul II, the former Joseph Ratzinger was the first pontiff in 600 years to resign the post. He was succeeded by Pope Francis. Advertisement Restaurants were tonight heaving with customers dining out on discounts after the government launched its half-price meals scheme to breathe life back into the beleaguered hospitality industry. Rishi Sunak's Eat Out To Help Out programme, which gives people 10 per head off their bill, drew crowds to both high-end venues and fast-food outlets alike. More than 90 chains including McDonald's, Nando's, Pizza Express and Costa Coffee are among the 72,000 eateries taking part in the scheme, which allows them claim back the lost money from the Treasury. The aim of the 500million enterprise is to drive footfall into income-starved restaurants which were forced to shutter during lockdown and jump-start the economic recovery. And pictures of busy restaurants across the UK tonight suggested diners were taking advantage of the slashed food prices. London's vibrant West End was packed with diners sitting al freso at socially distanced tables on the road while eating and drinking - although the government is not covering the cost of alcohol. It followed huge queues throughout the day outside participating restaurants, which can be pinpointed by a useful government search tool. Restaurateurs today lined up to praise the scheme after burning through funds during the three-month lockdown. Mark Selby, the chief executive and co-founder of Mexican chain Wahaca, hailed the 'shot of adrenaline' for the restaurant industry. 'It's certainly not returning to pre-Covid levels but it's definitely looking up from the last couple of weeks we've seen,' he told Sky News. Will Beckett, co-founder of the Hawksmoor group of steakhouses, said his London restaurants were fully booked on the days of the offer and has had to open another. He told the Evening Standard: 'We have had 15,000 bookings for the 13 days. We weren't planning to open Air Street [near Piccadilly Circus] on Mondays and Tuesdays, but we changed our minds and now we have 300 covers a night booked in.' Yet obesity campaigners have warned of the effect on the nation's waistlines and questioned how it marries up with the government's war on flab. The Eat Out to Help Out scheme was also launched as: Greater Manchester declared a major incident over rising infections as residents were told to stay calm; Covid-19 cases doubled in Manchester last week and are rising - but young people are still flocking to pubs; Doctors will give tailored advice this autumn to anyone over 50 who is obese, overweight or in ill health; Two tests which can detect coronavirus and flu - and promise results in 90 minutes - are to be rolled out; There were rumours over tightening coronavirus rules in parts of the UK amid fears of a looming second wave; Officials will start testing sewage to track Covid-19 and could ban domestic travel to stop local outbreaks; Lockdown rules were eased further in Wales, where 30 people can now meet outside while social distancing; Francis Crick Institute director Sir Paul Nurse said the Government needed to 'treat the public as adults'. Restaurants were tonight heaving with customers dining out on discounts after the government launched its half-price meals scheme (Kingly Street, London, pictured) People queue outside the Dishoom restaurant in Kings Cross, on the first day the Eat Out to Help Out scheme Pictures of busy restaurants across the UK tonight suggested diners were taking advantage of the slashed food prices London's vibrant West End was packed with diners sitting at socially distanced tables while eating and drinking - although the government is not bankrolling customers' alcohol People queue outside the Nando's restaurant in Reading on the day 'Eat Out To Help Out' scheme is launched TODAY with 50% off meals at half of UK's restaurants, Reading, 3rd August 20202 People queue outside a McDonald's branch in Reading today on the first day of the Eat Out To Help Out scheme Some people returned to the same venue twice in one day. Eduardo Feliz, 42, from the Dominican Republic, visited McDonald's in Waterloo Station for a Big Mac Meal, 20 chicken nuggets and a McFlurry ice cream. He said: 'I bought more food because it's half-price. All of this was just 4.49. I'm very happy.' Faisal Awqata, 45, tucked into a heavily-discounted feast at Nando's in Southwark, south London, with four colleagues. He said: 'There is only one thing better than Nando's and that's free Nando's. I am the biggest advocate of this scheme, I have ordered so much food. 'The group has ordered more than 60 between the five of us and we have approximately 35 off. 'This is the first time for most of us working in the office to have lunch together since we have been working from home.' Company director Danny Walsh, 41, visited a Wetherspoon pub in Farringdon, central London, twice in one day. He said: 'I paid 3.30 for a large English breakfast. It's unbelievable.' But there is growing evidence that overweight people would be at risk if coronavirus resurges. National Obesity Forum chairman Tam Fry said: 'It beggars belief that Downing St announced on the same day last month that people could pig out on half-price burgers, fried chicken and pizzas whilst telling them that junk food TV advertisements and supermarket promotions are to be banned.' Business and Industry Minister Nadhim Zahawi insisted the scheme did not clash with the Government's anti-obesity drive. He said: 'Restaurants are still being asked to think about the food they serve, how healthy it is.' Rishi Sunak's Eat Out To Help Out programme, which gives people 10 per head off their bill, drew crowds to both high-end venues and fast-food outlets alike Diners in Kingly Street, on the first day of the Eat Out to Help Out scheme which offers diners 50 per cent off meals to help boost restaurants and pubs post-lockdown But Lubeck Sredojevic, who has owned the Boulevard restaurant in Croydon, South London, since 1999, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'I have more bookings than I normally have for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. 'But my Friday, Saturday and Sunday are worse. It will definitely affect the weekend and we won't have as many people as we normally have.' Customers taking advantage of the scheme today tucked into an assortment of burgers, chips and pizzas, insisting that they were looking forward to eating more of the same over the coming month. Burger chain Five Guys was doing a roaring trade at its branch in Chiswick, West London, with almost all the outdoor tables occupied. Graham Ferris, 36, a finance manager who was on his lunchbreak, told MailOnline: 'I wouldn't normally eat something like this for lunch, but it was too good an opportunity to miss. I thought I'd come to Five Guys and tuck into a juicy burger, courtesy of the Government.' Mr Ferris had ordered a bacon and cheeseburger, fries and a soft drink, paying 8 instead of 16, once the Government discount was applied. He added: 'It's not the healthiest option, I admit it, but it was just too tempting. I think a lot of people are going to be choosing food like this while the scheme lasts, and that's probably not good for the health of the nation.' Paul Cavlon, 45, was tucking into a cheeseburger with chips, washed down with a fizzy soft drink, paying 6 instead of 12. He said: 'Normally at lunchtime I either get a salad or sandwich from the supermarket and I wouldn't come to Five Guys because it's quite expensive. But I've got myself a real bargain today. 'This scheme is a bit odd because I think a lot of people, especially youngsters, will be going to fast food places. But at the same time the Government is saying that it wants us to lose weight and get fit. Doesn't quite make sense.' Five Guys manager Tanvir Ahmed added: 'This is the busiest we've been on a Monday lunchtime for quite a while. Until today, most of our trade was takeaway but this Government scheme has really brought the customers back. I hope it continues.' A queue had formed outside Pizza Express in Chiswick, with customers attracted by the Government discount and the prospect of free dough balls, which the restaurant chain is giving away in an attempt to lure them back. A waiter serves pizzas as diners sit at tables outside a restaurant in London today as the new scheme gets underway Diners sit at tables in a closed-off road in Manchester today, allowing restaurants to increase their outdoor seating area Diners share a meal at a restaurant in London today on the first day of UK Government's Eat Out to Help Out scheme People walk past diners on the street in Chinatown in London today on the opening day of Eat Out to Help Out scheme A sign is pictured outside a restaurant on the opening day of Eat Out to Help Out scheme in London's Chinatown today Diner sit at a TGI Fridays restaurant in London today as the Government's Eat Out to Help Out scheme gets underway Rhys Waite, 28 was tucking into a large Pollo ad Astra pizza and his complimentary dough balls. It cost him 6.50 with the discount, as opposed to 13 for the pizza. He said: 'This is fantastic. I've just texted a friend to say that I'm having this great pizza with a discount thanks to the Government. That's the only reason why I'm here because I wouldn't normally spend so much on my lunch. 'I plan to eat out every day while this scheme is on. I'm going for a pub lunch tomorrow with my sister and to a burger place in the evening with a friend. There is a danger that people are going to indulge themselves in some comfort eating, but we've all had such a miserable time of it lately, you can't blame them if they do.' Cathy Cronin, 58 who was having lunch with a friend, said: 'We're here because the pizzas are cheaper and plan to go to a lot of other places too. It's good for the businesses and the customers. 'My worry is that people will flock to fast food places but there is a wide range of restaurants offering this discount and I think people need to choose wisely and go for some of those that are offering healthier options.' Diners enjoy a lunchtime meal at a restaurant in London today as the new discount scheme begins across Britain Diners eat outside the Ivy Market Grill in London today as the Government kick-starts its August meals out scheme People queue outside a Wagamama branch in Reading today as the Eat Out To Help Out scheme begins across Britain Zoe (left) and Caron Cornish (right) prepare to enjoy their meal at Franco Manco in Bristol today as part of the new scheme People gather at St Nicholas Market in Bristol for lunch on the first day of the Government's new scheme People gather at Bristol Harbourside for lunch on the first day of the Governments Eat Out to Help Out today Sam Jones, 31, delivered a thumbs up to the Eat Out to Help Out initiative as he tucked into a smoked salmon bagel at Bagel Bite in Ealing, West London. He was accompanied by his sister Skye and her friend Kirsty, both 16, revealing that they had decided to eat out for breakfast because of the new scheme. His food, plus three bottles of water would have normally cost him 16.50 but Mr Jones paid only 8.25, describing it as a 'lockdown bargain.' He told MailOnline: 'This is a great initiative and I'm probably going to eat out on the days when it applies for the rest of the month. 'People will be encouraged to go out more and it's going to lift everybody's spirits. The Government need to encourage people to start spending more and get them out and about and this is a very good way of doing this.' Ms Stronge added: 'I'm going to go to Nando's with my friends later, which is our favourite eating out place. A lot of young people are going to be really happy. It's not often the Government makes things cheaper.' Diners sit at tables outside a restaurant in London today as the Government's Eat Out to Help out scheme gets underway Waiters serve customers their food and cutlery as diners sit at tables outside a restaurant in London today A server takes a customer's order as diners sit at tables outside a restaurant in London today to make the most of the discount A server wearing a face mask takes a customer's order as diners sit at tables outside a restaurant in London today People queue to get into a Greene King pub today as they make the most of the Eat Out to Help Out scheme Rhys Waite, 28 was tucking into a large Pollo ad Astra pizza and his complimentary dough balls at Pizza Express in Chiswick, West London. It cost him 6.50 with the discount, as opposed to 13 for the pizza Burger chain Five Guys was doing a roaring trade at its branch in Chiswick, West London, today with almost all the outdoor tables occupied (From left) Skye Jones, 31, her brother Sam Jones, 16, and her friend Kirsty Stronge, 16, at Bagel Bite in Ealing, West London, this morning. The trio said they had decided to eat out for breakfast because of the new scheme. The food, plus three bottles of water would have normally cost him 16.50 but Mr Jones paid only 8.25, describing it as a 'lockdown bargain' Ravinder Taneja (left), 39, decided to have his breakfast at the Subway in Ealing, West London, because of the new scheme. He paid 3.13 for an Italian bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich with coffee, which would normally have cost him 6.16. Razwan Hussain (right), 38, owner of Bagel Bite in Ealing, revealed that business was down 70 per cent compared to this time last year and that the Government's scheme could provide a real boost to the restaurant and takeaway trade. A waitress serves breakfast at Maggie's cafe in London today on the opening day of Eat Out to Help Out scheme A cardboard cut out of Boris Johnson stands behind a sign promoting the scheme at Spaghetti House in London today Chancellor Rishi Sunak, pictured at a Wagamama branch on July 8, has launched the scheme Razwan Hussain, 38, owner of Bagel Bite, revealed that business was down 70 per cent compared to this time last year and that the Government's scheme could provide a real boost to the restaurant and takeaway trade. He told MailOnline: 'It's been very hard, and we've been struggling to make ends meet. This is a very good move by the Government because it will encourage people to eat out more. I'm expecting it to get a lot busier as more people find out about this scheme. 'We've not had much good news lately so it's nice to see the Government doing something that benefits the customers and the business owners. It's a win, win for everybody.' Ravinder Taneja, 39, said that he had decided to have his breakfast in Subway in Ealing because of the new scheme. He paid 3.13 for an Italian bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich with coffee, which would normally have cost him 6.16. He beamed: 'I'm going to take my family out tonight to eat. I think this is a wonderful scheme. I don't normally eat out for breakfast but given that it's much cheaper now, I thought it would be stupid not to. 'I must admit, I was expecting restaurants and cafes to be much busier but it's still very early and I think as more people find out about the scheme, you'll see a huge increase in people eating out.' As the Eat Out to Help Out scheme launched today, Natalie Woodhouse from Doncaster added: 'I'm going out for breakfast to Costa with my best friend Jayne - half price, you can't refuse, can you?' Q&A: When is Eat Out to Help Out on and do I need a voucher? When is it available? It runs every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from August 3 to 31. What is it? A 50 per cent discount when you eat in up to a maximum saving of 10 per diner. The business reclaims the value of the saving from government. What establishments can take part? Restaurants, cafes, bars or pubs; work and school canteens; food halls. What are the restrictions? No discount on alcoholic drinks or service charges. Do I need a voucher? No. The discount will be automatically applied by the participating outlet. The saving can be used alongside other offers and discounts. How do I find participating outlets? Treasury has set up a postcode finder that will list outlets offering a scheme within a two mile radius - here What about chain restaurants? Ninety businesses have registered to take part in the scheme, including McDonald's, Burger King, and KFC; burger chains such as GBK, Five Guys, Honest Burgers; coffee shops such as Costa, Starbucks, Pret a Manger, Caffe Nero; pub chains such as Wetherspoon, Fullers, Greene King, Mitchells & Butlers; restaurant chains such as Wagamama, Pizza Hut, Pizza Express, TGI Fridays, Cote Brasserie, Franco Manca. Advertisement A third Twitter user said: 'Yay, it's gonna be so cheap. McDonald's for breakfast menu, TGI for lunch then Nando's for dinner. What's great is I can basically go through the menus at all the places I like for like 50 per cent the cost!' Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced the scheme that is designed to boost the hospitality industry in his summer economic update last month. The discount means that a 50 restaurant bill for a family of four would be reduced to 25. A couple spending 60 would only have to pay 40. Soft drinks and food will be included in the deal although alcohol will not. Meals must be consumed on the premises so takeaways will be not discounted. There has been some criticism that the government is providing a taxpayer-funded subsidy for fast food at the same time as urging the nation to lose weight. The move is designed to increase confidence among the public and encourage people to visit restaurateurs, many of whom were badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic, particularly during the lockdown months when much of their business was put on hold. But critics have aimed fire at the interventionist plan and said fast-food outlets serving unhealthy products should have been banned from participating due to fears the subsidised costs could fuel obesity. It also attracted controversy once it emerged that Mr Sunak had to make a ministerial order to enact the policy after HM Revenue and Customs chief executive Jim Harra said there was 'uncertainty surrounding the value for money of this proposal'. Around 80 per cent of hospitality firms stopped trading in April, with 1.4 million workers furloughed - the highest of any sector - according to Government data. Many of the outlets that have reopened have been forced to operate with fewer covers to comply with social distancing rules, while also having in some cases to introduce screens and one-way systems as part of efforts to make their premises Covid-secure. Saturday Kitchen regular and Michelin-starred chef Jason Atherton said: 'I hope it will encourage people to enjoy high end dining, in a relaxed and affordable way. Instead of enjoying a select number of places, you can afford to indulge in a number more while supporting the restaurants and kitchens who have been dormant the past few months. 'It means I and my chefs are back in the kitchen doing exactly what we love and we hope it helps kick start the economy.' In Suffolk, Unruly Pig owner Brendan Padfield says: 'I've certainly noticed a significant increase in calls as a result of the scheme. As my daughter calls him Dishy Rishi, well, Dishy is my hero!' And Piers Baker, owner of the Sun Inn, in Dedham, Suffolk, has joined the scheme, but remains uncertain about the benefits for his business. He said: 'It will probably benefit large chain restaurants, but I can't see it working for us, though I acknowledge that it's a good creative measure.' Which chains and restaurant groups are registered for the Eat Out To Help Out scheme? Atalian Servest Atlas Hotels Bakers + Baristas Bannatyne Health Club Bar + Grills Bill's Black Sheep Coffee Blue Diamond Boparan Restaurant Group Brains Brewdog Burger King Buzz Bingo CH&CO Caffe Nero Center Parcs Coffee#1 Company of Cooks The Cornish Bakery Costa Coffee Crussh Cote Brasserie D&D London David Lloyd Clubs Deep Blue Fish & Chips Dobbies Garden Centres Euro Garages Everyman Five Guys Franco Manca Fullers G1 GAIL's Bakeries Giggling Squid Gourmet Burger Kitchen Greene King Grosvenor Casinos Hall & Woodhouse Haven Hollywood Bowl Honest Burgers Hydes JD Wetherspoon JW Lees Joe & The Juice Joseph Holt Jurys Inn KFC Kew Green Hotels Leon Restaurants MacDonald Hotels Marston's McDonald's McMullen Mecca Mitchells & Butlers Morrisons - Cafe and Barista Bar New World Trading Company Park Holidays Patisserie Valerie Pho Pizza Express Pizza Hut Pret A Manger Prezzo Punch Revolution Bars Group Raj Douth Raj Gate Roadchef Selfridges & Co Shepherd Neame Ltd Spice Garden St Austell Brewery Starbucks TGI Fridays Team Sport Tenpin The Ivy Collection The National Trust Tony Macaroni Tortilla Turtle Bay Vacherin Village Hotels Viva Italia Wagamama Wasabi Wildwood YO Sushi Youngs Advertisement Business and Industry Minister Nadhim Zahawi told BBC Breakfast: 'People want to support great local restaurants, great independent restaurants, and of course their favourite restaurant chains as well. I think it will make a huge difference.' He added: 'This is a huge support from Rushi Sunak, the Chancellor, and this Government. So, I'm looking forward to going out and using the Eat Out to Help Out scheme to make sure me and my family enjoy a nice meal over those few days.' Asked if he will be having a half price meal, Mr Zahawi said: 'I'll be going out and helping those restaurants in Stratford-on-Avon, in London, wherever I can, of course. I think it's the right thing to do.' And asked if you could choose to pay full price, he replied: 'It's worth all of us going out and if the Government is supporting the sector, why not? 'We should all absolutely make sure that we go out and enjoy that restaurant.' Mr Zahawi pointed out that it is capped at 10 per person. He also told Sky News: 'I've got a family of five. We're going to go out and grab something nice, hopefully after work this evening.' Asked about how the scheme sits alongside the Government's new obesity crackdown, Mr Zahawi said: 'I think the two things aren't contradictory at all. Restaurants are still being asked to think about the food they serve, how healthy it is...' He said he is of heavier build and has tried to be careful what he eats during lockdown, and has been looking at the calories in his food. 'I think that's a good thing and I think restaurants will step up and do the right thing also by following the rules because we all need to get healthier,' he said. Mr Zahawi was also asked if the Government is encouraging people in areas with high infection rates to use the scheme. He said: 'First of all, the way we are reacting to the virus is deliberately through local responses. 'Why? Because through Test and Trace we can see how the virus is behaving, and we know that the greatest ability for the virus to infect people is when people visit other people indoors in people's homes, hence why the action in Manchester, before that in Leicester, which as we took that action people quite rightly questioned it, but actually it's worked and now we can ease the restrictions on Leicester. 'I hope we'll be able to do the same thing in Manchester if people quite rightly, I think, do the right thing and follow the guidelines,' he told the Today programme. Pressed on whether people in Oldham or Kirklees should feel free to use the scheme, he said: 'Well I would say check the local guidelines. But actually, if you're going to sit outdoors and support your local restaurant within the rules, so no more than six people or two families, then you should be able to support those restaurants, rightly so.' Mr Zahawi said again that infection rates are spiking 'because of people entering other people's homes'. Mr Sunak said last night: 'Our Eat Out to Help Out scheme's number one aim is to help protect the jobs of 1.8 million chefs, waiters and restaurateurs by boosting demand and getting customers through the door. 'More than 72,000 establishments will be serving discounted meals across the country, with the government paying half the bill. 'The industry is a vital ingredient to our economy and it's been hit hard by coronavirus, so enjoy summer safely by showing your favourite places your support - we'll pay half.' No vouchers are required for those booking tables, with the participating establishment deducting 50 per cent from the bill and charging the discount to the Treasury. Officials said there had been more than 3.3 million hits on the Eat Out to Help Out restaurant finder website since it started up last week, giving an indication of the demand for the month-long saver scheme. But Munira Wilson MP, the Liberal Democrat health spokeswoman, said the Chancellor should have prevented diners from using the discount to buy junk food. The start of the scheme comes only a week after Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled the Government's obesity crackdown. 'We all recognise the need to support the high street through the pandemic, but the Government should have been more discerning with this scheme,' said Ms Wilson. ** Are you going out for a half-price meal today? Please email your photos with your location and name to: pictures@mailonline.co.uk ** Advertisement 'Obesity is already an immense challenge for people and the NHS, but the latest research suggests it also contributes to the deadliness of coronavirus. 'With a number of fast-food chains signing up to the scheme, it seems clear that public health did not factor into the Government's decision. 'The Government must put public health first and exclude from the scheme meals and drinks proven to contribute to obesity. We cannot afford to risk lives as we reopen the economy.' The new scheme has also faced criticism from politicians in northern areas who say it is unhelpful in newly locked-down parts of Lancashire and Greater Manchester. The Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, described the scheme as a mistake, saying the government should not be subsidising meals out without releasing funds for low-paid workers to take time off to self-isolate. Writing in the Sunday Mirror, he said: 'National lockdown was eased too soon and encouraging people back to the pub on Super Saturday was a big mistake as is the Eat Out to Help Out scheme. Madison Dock (centre) from Johnstone, Renfrewshire, sits outside intu Braehead in Glasgow where diners will be able to enjoy half-price meals, at participating restaurants from today 'We shouldn't spend taxpayers' money on subsidizing meals out but not support the low-paid to take time off work to protect their health.' The Treasury previously said 130,000 businesses were eligible to sign up for the scheme. How you could get a further 5 off your meal out with an Amex card American Express is giving customers 5 cashback for spending 10 or more in small shops, which can can be used in conjunction with the Government's Eat Out To Help Out scheme. It means you could buy a meal costing 20, get 10 off at the restaurant through the Government discount, then a further 5 cashback via Amex - meaning you pay just 5 for the meal. A couple using two different Amex cards could split the bill, so they could both get 5 cashback as long as they each spend at least 10 on their card. Under the scheme, you can qualify for the 5 cashback up to ten times - meaning up to 50 is available to each customer. You can use the offer only once at each retailer. The cashback is being funded by Amex, not the store. Amex has signed up thousands of small businesses across the UK for the deal, including family-run butchers, clothes shops and hair salons in addition to pubs and restaurants. It says it wants to help small firms struggling to survive the pandemic. Advertisement A Treasury spokesman said: 'The Eat Out To Help Out scheme is designed to help protect the jobs of the 1.8 million hard-working people employed by restaurants, cafes and pubs across the UK. 'We've worked with the hospitality industry and the devolved administrations to put in place guidelines so people are able to enjoy summer safely in Covid-secure establishments.' Commenting on the initiative, Will Hawkley, UK head of leisure at KPMG, said: 'There's no question that the hospitality sector has been hit particularly hard by the nation's lockdown, but recovery since social distancing measures have eased hasn't been easy either. 'While some restaurant doors have reopened, consumers still struggle to shake off the words of caution that previously told them in no uncertain terms to remain at home. What's more, the messaging on where and when to wear masks is still confusing and does not build consumer confidence the key issue hindering any recovery for the sector. 'The Chancellor's 'Eat Out to Help Out' scheme was certainly a creative way for the government to encourage consumers to go out again. Who would have thought even six months ago that the government would be paying consumers to eat out in pubs and restaurants, and what is not to love about getting part of your bill paid? 'Having said that, the initiative needs to be viewed alongside the ebb and flow of the pandemic. We're already starting to see local restrictions coming back into effect, and that's not going to help consumer confidence. 'As we look ahead to August, we will no doubt see busy pub gardens in the suburbs. However, worries around what will happen in city centres or during the winter when the nights draw in and the weather gets colder, still remain.' Wetherspoon said more than 700 of its outlets will offer a selection of meals, with a drink, at a lower price than the equivalent from Tesco. It is offering a 1.60 breakfast including a free-range egg, back bacon rasher, Lincolnshire sausage, a hash brown and Heinz baked beans. Bill's Restaurant and Bar in Soho, London, which is also involved in the scheme from today The Ivy Restaurant in London, one of the participating restaurants where diners will be able to enjoy half-price meals from today as the Government begins its Eat Out to Help Out scheme When this is combined with coffee and free refills it adds up to 2.24. The chain claims that a ready meal equivalent from Tesco would be 2.33. How can a restaurant join the scheme? Those who have already registered are good to go from today, but those who haven't can still sign up until the end of the month. The main requirement is that this is an 'eat in' scheme, so you must sell food to be eaten on site and you must have, or share, a dining area for customers. It means popular takeaway chains such as Domino's are not taking part, and you won't get the discount at drive-thru branches of chains such as McDonald's. The size of the eat-in area is not given, so some places with only a couple of tables could offer the discount, but this would only be available to the customers sat at those tables. You couldn't get the discount if they were full and you needed to take your food away. Restaurant bosses need to keep the records for each day they have used the scheme, including the total number of diners and total amount of discount given. They then make a claim seven days after the date of registration August 7 at the earliest. HMRC then gives out a claim reference number and (all going to plan) the claim amount goes into the registered bank account in five days. Businesses will still need to pay VAT based on the full amount of the customer's bill before the scheme discount is applied. Advertisement There is a larger breakfast that will cost 1.75, which includes a free-range egg, back bacon rasher, Lincolnshire sausage, two hash browns, Heinz baked beans, tomato, toast and butter. Other deals it claims are cheaper than Tesco include 2.75 for an 11-inch Margherita pizza and Pepsi Max, and 2.37 for a deli deal, comprising a Southern-fried chicken and smoky chipotle mayo wrap, with chips and Remedy Kombucha raspberry lemonade. Under the scheme, the company's pubs will sell coffee for 65p and a classic burger with soft drink for 2.50. Children's meals, where choices include spaghetti Bolognese and five-bean chilli, with each meal including a drink and a banana or a fruit snack, will cost just 2.08. In Scotland, at least 3,766 outlets have signed up, though this figure does not include chains which have more than 26 premises. Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said: 'Eat out to help out is a fantastic scheme which will help Scotland's hospitality businesses get back on their feet. 'I am very pleased that 3,766 Scottish restaurants, bars and cafes have signed up. 'This is a great opportunity for people in Scotland to get together with friends and family in a safe environment and get up to 50% off their bill. 'The UK Government is doing all it can to drive our economic recovery, and we want to see all sectors of our economy open again where it is safe to do so.' Meanwhile, a study suggests there is a risk that participants will use the saving to pile their plates with high calorie foods weighed down with sugar, fat and salt. It was conducted by weight loss experts Noom, which said: 'Britons could unwittingly consume an entire day's calories in one meal through the scheme.' Researchers said: 'Guests visiting their local Nando's can normally order Chicken Butterfly, chips and coleslaw, which totalling 1,080 calories, for 10.30. 'However, with the government's scheme, they can add peri-peri nuts and carrot cake, which would bring the order total to just 8.85 but a whopping 2,610 calories. Chancellor Rishi Sunak was in Northallerton, North Yorkshire, on Saturday to promote the Eat Out to Help Out scheme Toby Carvery in Langley, Slough, one of the participating restaurants in Eat Out to Help Out 'That would put this single meal over the NHS daily recommended intake by over 100 calories.' What are the new deals at Wetherspoon pubs? 1.60 for breakfast including a free-range egg, back bacon rasher, Lincolnshire sausage, a hash brown and Heinz baked beans 2.75 for an 11-inch Margherita pizza and Pepsi Max 2.37 for a a Southern-fried chicken and smoky chipotle mayo wrap, with chips and Remedy Kombucha raspberry lemonade 2.50 classic burger with soft drink 2.08 for a children's meal such as spaghetti Bolognese and five-bean chilli, with a drink and a banana or a fruit snack 65p for coffee with free refills Advertisement The Eat Out to Help Out scheme follows hot on the heels of the Government's obesity strategy announcement and a call from Mr Johnson for people to lose five pounds in weight. It includes controls on junk food advertising, the sale of chocolates, crisps and sweets at checkouts. It also wants food businesses to display calories on menus. Chief of Psychology at Noom, which encourages lifestyle changes, Andreas Michaelides, said people do not have to give up treats, but rather take care of their wider diet. 'It can be tricky to choose healthier options when eating out, especially with such an enticing offer from the UK Government,' he said. 'While lockdown has impacted all of our day-to-day routines, it also offers the unique opportunity to develop new habits for our new normal, including cooking meals from scratch at home, where we have greater control over ingredients and portions. 'The goal is not to remove all indulgences, but to approach them mindfully and with purpose.' Professor of public health nutrition at Teesside University, Amelia Lake, said: 'Offering subsidies on food which is particularly associated with being less healthy completely contradicts the other message around reducing obesity. 'On one hand we are hearing that tackling obesity is an urgent public health challenge, but on the other we are seeing actions that we know do not help us reduce obesity. There needs to be clear messaging and joined up action.' ** Are you going out for a half-price meal today? Please email your photos with your location and name to: pictures@mailonline.co.uk ** Loaded rifle magazines and Molotov cocktails found at a park in Portland, Ore., on July 26, 2020. (Portland Police Department via AP) Shootings Spike in Portland Following Elimination of Gun Violence Reduction Team Shootings spiked in Portland, Oregon, in July after the disbanding of a team that was focused on reducing gun violence. The city saw 99 shootings through July , compared to 28 in July of 2019, according to police officials. Detectives are investigating 22 deaths, 15 of which occurred in July, police officials said last week. Thats very concerning. I mean, to know that many people have been killed in such a short period of time, Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell said at a recent virtual press conference. Since the Gun Violence Reduction Team was disbanded on July 1, Lovell has repeatedly linked it with the struggle to police the city. The loss forced us into a position where we have to really look at what resources we can bring to bear, absent that structure that we had with the Gun Violence Reduction Team, he said. The 34-member team was disbanded on orders from Mayor Ted Wheeler, a Democrat who also is police commissioner. The City Council, which includes Wheeler, shifted the $5.7 million that typically funded the team to street response and the city budget. Wheelers move was one of many outlined in an action plan that he said would increase police accountability and lead to investment in black and brown communities. The plan says dissolving the team will be part of a fundamental reshaping of the police approach to reducing gun violence. In a press conference on July 13 about the rise in homicides, Wheeler said the city had seen an unprecedented escalation of gun violence. In the first 12 days of the month, officials witnessed a more than 380 percent spike in such violence, compared to the same time period in 2019. Portland police officers pursue a crowd of about 200 after forcing the group to disperse from a law enforcement precinct in Portland, Ore., late on Aug. 1, 2020. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images) Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler poses for a photo in Portland, Ore., on Aug. 5, 2019. (Craig Mitchelldyer/AP Photo) This is the city where we live. Portlanders, our neighbors, are being hurt by this violence. Theyre being killed. The violence and the loss of life are unacceptable, he said. Efforts to solve the crimes by police were happening alongside the Office of Violence Prevention working with community stakeholders, including victims and their families, to try to prevent violence, the mayor and police commissioner said. Calling it a time of great challenge, Wheeler said he was confident the public safety threat could be addressed. Weve had to re-resource our folks because of the loss of the Gun Violence Prevention Team, Police Chief Lovell said at the same briefing. In a podcast the next day, Lovell said the decision to disband the team had alarmed him. The loss of the gun violence reduction team, in particular, has a diminishing effect on how were able to investigate shootings, which is some of the most important crimes that we investigate, he said in a podcast released by the police. The work the team did was being handled by patrol, while detectives were doing follow-up calls and investigation. It remains to be seen what those numbers are going to trend to, but Im fearful that that will have a negative impact on communities of color, especially, he said. The police chief emphasized at the time that he wasnt sure what was causing the spike in violence. Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, a Democrat who oversees the citys fire department, said the police bureau still has enough manpower to deal with crime. I dont think its a staffing issue, and no matter how often they say theyre overworked and underpaid, the reality is that Portland police have for a long time decided what they will investigate and what they wont, Hardesty told KATU. A 2018 city audit (pdf) motivated Hardesty to help push to disband the team. Auditors found that officers on the gun violence reduction team stopped more black people than white people. As part of the national debate about what historical figures should be honored in the public square, the U.S. House voted 305-113 to remove from the U.S. Capitol various statues of people who voluntarily served the Confederacy. It was a bipartisan vote on July 22, with 72 Republicans, including Rep. Rodney Davis, R-Taylorville, joining with 232 Democrats and one independent in supporting removal. All votes against the measure came from Republicans, with only one of the five GOP House members from Illinois among them: Rep. Darin LaHood, R-Peoria. Davis and LaHood, whose districts combine to take in all of Springfield, both show great pride in their link to Abraham Lincoln. Davis gave a floor speech keying on that link. John Rauber, spokesman for LaHood, said the congressman "is proud to represent Abraham Lincoln's district in Congress," and is no supporter of the Confederacy. Rauber noted that LaHood supports changing the names of military bases named for Confederate generals. As for the statues, Rauber said on behalf of LaHood, "The law provides authority to the states to select which statues represent them in the U.S. Capitol. Congress should work with the states, hold hearings, and change the current law if necessary to allow states to select new individuals to represent them. ..." In addition to removal of statues, the bill, H.R. 7573, calls for replacement of a bust of Roger Brooke Taney in the Old Supreme Court Chamber in the Capitol with a bust of Thurgood Marshall. Taney was a chief justice of the court and wrote the majority opinion in the Dred Scott case in 1857 -- a ruling that upheld slavery and said no Black people could be U.S. citizens. Marshall was the first Black Supreme Court justice, serving from 1967 to 1991. Among statues the legislation says should be removed are those of John C. Calhoun of South Carolina, an early U.S. vice president who called slavery a "positive good" and led the south toward secession before his 1850 death; and Charles Aycock, a North Carolina governor from 1901 to 1905 who a commission at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found had "condoned the use of violence to terrorize Black voters and their white allies." In his floor speech, Davis noted that his 13th Congressional District is home to Lincoln's home and tomb and the Old State Capitol, where Lincoln spoke out against slavery. "While we cannot erase our past ... we should do everything we can to learn from it instead," Davis said. "The statues in the U.S. Capitol represent to visitors throughout the world what we stand for as a nation. I support this important discussion about which statues belong ... and also the goal of this legislation." Davis noted in his comments that some of the statues were donated by states nearly a century ago. "Many states are already working to remove them," Davis said. "While I support their removal, I believe the better route would have been to have some more hearings." But he added, "Today is about coming together as an institution. ... Our country right now is facing a very difficult time and Abraham Lincoln's spirit of unity is desperately needed." He said people need to come together, and he hopes the bipartisan vote is seen as "a shining example to the rest of the country that we can do it together." U.S. Rep. John Shimkus, R-Collinsville, who represented part of Springfield before redistricting a decade ago, also voted for the bill -- but said he struggled to determine which way to go. "While not without limits, Congress has generally given states broad discretion with their respective allotment of two statues in the U.S. Capitol," Shimkus said in a statement. "On the other hand, the U.S. Capitol is a federal building that was even used as a hospital for Union troops during the Civil War. Ultimately, I decided that refusing to honor Confederate leaders in the Capitol is no more erasing them from history than refusing to name a church after Judas Iscariot is erasing him from the Bible. Honoring and remembering are two different actions; traitors should only be remembered in the context of history, not honored in our present day." On June 19 -- the Juneteenth holiday marking an announcement of the end of slavery -- Shimkus, a West Point graduate, also posted on Facebook in favor or renaming several military bases. While he trained at Fort Benning, named for Confederate Gen. Henry Benning, he thinks names of such bases should be changed, instead of honoring "traitors who took up arms in defense of slavery and betrayed our constitution, our Republic, and our flag by serving in the Confederate Army." The bill concerning statues at the Capitol has not yet made it through the Senate or to President Donald Trump. Trump has opposed renaming military bases and has said Confederate statues elsewhere represent the country's heritage. No date change Davis is the top Republican on the House Administration Committee, and while he, as LaHood, are honorary co-chairs of Trump's re-election in Illinois, Davis did use Twitter to say he didn't agree with the idea Trump floated Thursday to potentially delay the Nov. 3 election. "There will be no delay" in the election," Davis tweeted. "Congress sets the election date, and it should not be changed. It will be held on November 3rd, as planned and required by law." The official Davis Twitter account often gets a handful of likes and retweets. This one got, as of Friday, 3,700 retweets and more than 13,000 likes. There were also more than 600 comments -- the bad and the good. Gov. Pritzker warns of a possible 'reversal' as COVID-19 numbers rise in Illinois Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Wealthy countries have already locked up more than a billion doses of coronavirus vaccines, raising worries that the rest of the world will be at the back of the queue in the global effort to defeat the pathogen. Moves by the US and the UK to secure supplies from Sanofi and partner GlaxoSmithKline, and another pact between Japan and Pfizer, are the latest in a string of agreements. The EU has also been aggressive in obtaining shots, well before anyone knows whether they will work. Although international groups and a number of nations are promising to make vaccines affordable and accessible to all, doses will likely struggle to keep up with demand in a world of roughly 7.8bn people. The possibility that wealthier countries will monopolise supply, a scenario that played out in the 2009 swine flu pandemic, has fuelled concerns among poor nations and health advocates. The US, Britain, EU, and Japan have so far secured about 1.3bn doses of potential Covid immunisations, according to London-based analytics firm Airfinity. Options to snap up more supplies or pending deals would add about 1.5bn doses to that total, its figures show. Two Doses Even if you have an optimistic assessment of the scientific progress, theres still not enough vaccines for the world, according to Rasmus Bech Hansen, Airfinitys chief executive officer. "Whats also important to consider is that most of the vaccines may require two doses," he said. A few frontrunners, such as the University of Oxford and partner AstraZeneca and a Pfizer-BioNTech collaboration, are already in final-stage studies, fuelling hopes that a weapon to fight Covid will be available soon. But developers must still clear a number of hurdles, and worldwide supply may not reach 1bn doses until the first quarter of 2022, Airfinity forecasts. Read More Conservatives wait for police probe before deciding on suspension for rape-accused MP Investing in production capacity all over the world is seen as one of the keys to solving the dilemma, and pharma companies are starting to outline plans to deploy shots widely. The World Health Organization, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance are working together to bring about equitable and broad access. They outlined an $18bn (15.25bn) plan in June to roll out shots and secure 2bn doses by the end of 2021. The initiative, known as Covax, aims to give governments an opportunity to hedge the risk of backing unsuccessful candidates and give other nations with limited finances access to shots that would be otherwise unaffordable. Countries would need to strike a series of different agreements with vaccine makers to raise their chances of getting supplies, as some shots will not succeed a situation that could lead to bidding battles and inefficiencies, Seth Berkley, Gavis CEO, said in an interview. The thing we worry about most is getting a tangle of deals, he said. Some 78 nations have expressed interest in joining Covax, he said. In addition, more than 90 low- and middle-income countries and economies will be able to access Covid vaccines through a Gavi-led programme, the group said. AstraZeneca in June became the first manufacturer to sign up to Gavis programme, committing 300m doses, and Pfizer and BioNTech signalled interest in potentially supplying Covax. Brazil, the nation with the second-highest number of coronavirus cases, also reached an agreement to secure doses of the Oxford vaccine with AstraZeneca. -Bloomberg Since the days of painting on cave walls, people have been representing information through figures and images. Nowadays, data visualization experts know that presenting information visually helps people better understand complicated data. The problem is that data visualizations can also leave you with the wrong idea whether the images are sloppily made or intentionally misleading. Take for example the bar graph presented at an April 6 press briefing by members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force. Its titled COVID-19 testing in the U.S. and illustrates almost 2 million coronavirus tests completed up to that point. President Trump used the graph to support his assertion that testing was going up at a rapid rate. Based on this graphic many viewers likely took away the same conclusion but it is incorrect. The graph shows the total cumulative number of tests performed over months, not the number of new tests each day. When you graph the number of new tests by date, you can see the number of COVID-19 tests performed between March and April did increase through time, but not rapidly. This instance is one of many when important information was not properly understood or well communicated. As a researcher of hazard and risk communication, I think a lot about how people interpret the charts, graphs and maps they encounter daily. Whether they show COVID-19 cases, global warming trends, high-risk tsunami zones, or utility usage, being able to correctly assess and interpret figures allows you to make informed decisions. Unfortunately, not all figures are created equal. If you can spot a figures pitfalls you can avoid the bad ones. Consider the following three key questions the next time you see a graph, map or other data visual so you can confidently decide what to do with that new nugget of information. What is this figure trying to tell me? Start by reading the title, looking at the labels and checking the caption. If these are not available be very wary. Labels will be on the horizontal and vertical axes on graphs or in a legend on maps. People often overlook them, but this information is crucial for putting everything you see in the visualization into context. Look at the units of measure are they in days or years, Celsius or Fahrenheit, counts, age, or what? Are they evenly spaced along the axis? Many of the recent COVID-19 cumulative case graphs use a logarithmic scale, where the the intervals along the vertical axis are not equally spaced. This creates confusion for people unfamiliar with this format. A March 12 broadcast of The Rachel Maddow Show included a graph with unlabeled numbers and a tricky horizontal axis. For instance, a graph from The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC, showed coronavirus cases in the United States between Jan. 21 and March 11. The x-axis units on the horizontal are time (in a month-day format) and the y-axis units on the vertical are presumably cumulative case counts, though it does not specify. The main issue with this graph is that the time periods between consecutive dates are uneven. In a revised graph, with dates properly spaced through time, and coronavirus diagnoses plotted as a line graph, you can see more clearly what exponential growth in the rate of infection really looks like. It took the first 30 days to add 33 cases, but only the last four to add 584 cases. What may seem like a slight difference could help people understand how quickly exponential growth can go sky high and maybe change how they perceive the importance of curbing it. How are color, shape, size and perspective used? Color plays an important role in how people interpret information. Color choices can make you notice particular patterns or draw your eye to certain aspects of a graphic. Oregon landslide susceptibility. Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries Consider two maps depicting landslide susceptibility, which are exactly the same except for reversed color schemes. Your eye may be be drawn to darker shades, intuitively seeing those areas as at higher risk. After looking at the legend, which color order do you think best represents the information? By paying attention to how color is used, you can better understand how it influences what stands out to you and what you perceive. Shape, size and orientation of features can also influence how you interpret a figure. What industries employ Coloradans? Hemispheres Pie charts, like this one showing employment breakdown for a region, are notoriously difficult to parse. Notice how hard it is to pull out which employment category is highest or how they rank. The pie charts wedges are not organized by size, there are too many categories (11!), the 3D perspective distorts the wedge sizes, and some wedges are separate from others making size comparisons almost impossible. A bar chart is a better option for an informative display and helps show which industries people are employed in. Where do the data come from? Survey posted on Lou Dobbs Tonight, requesting viewers vote on Twitter about Trumps performance. Fox Business Network The source of data matters in terms of quality and reliability. This is especially true for partisan or politicized data. If the data are collected from a group that isnt a good approximation of the population as a whole, then it may be biased. For example, on March 18, Fox Business Network host Lou Dobbs polled his audience with the question How would you grade President Trumps leadership in the nations fight against the Wuhan Virus? #LDTPoll: How would you grade President Trumps leadership in the nation's fight against the Wuhan Virus... superb, great or very good? #KAG2020 #AmericaFirst #Dobbs Lou Dobbs (@LouDobbs) March 18, 2020 Imagine if only Republicans were asked this question and how the results would compare if only Democrats were asked. In this case, respondents were part of a self-selecting group who already chose to watch Dobbs show. The poll can only tell you about that groups opinions, not people in the U.S. generally, for instance. [Get facts about coronavirus and the latest research. Sign up for The Conversations newsletter.] Then consider that Dobbs provided only positive responses in his multiple choice options superb, great or very good and it is clear that this data has a bias. Spotting bias and improper data collection methods allows you to decide which information is trustworthy. Think through what you see During this pandemic, information is emerging hour by hour. Media consumers are inundated with facts, charts, graphs and maps every day. If you can take a moment to ask yourself a few questions about what you see in these data visualizations, you may walk away with a completely different conclusion than you might have had at first glance. Carson MacPherson-Krutsky receives funding from The National Science Foundation. She is the co-owner of HazardReady, LLC. MADRID - Speculation over the whereabouts and future of former monarch Juan Carlos gripped Spain on Tuesday, a day after the man who served as king for almost four decades announced he was leaving the country for an unspecified destination amid a growing financial scandal. In a letter published on the royal familys website on Monday, Juan Carlos told his son King Felipe VI he was moving outside Spain due to the public repercussions of certain episodes of my past private life. Juan Carlos, 82, is the target of official investigations in Spain and Switzerland, into possible financial wrongdoing. His bombshell announcement took most Spaniards by surprise. Neither the royal family nor the government disclosed where the former king was going. Juan Carlos appeared to be physically and figuratively distancing himself from the rest of the family to avoid causing any further damage to its reputation. Daily newspaper ABC reported Tuesday that Juan Carlos left Spain on Sunday and flew via Porto, in neighbouring Portugal, to the Dominican Republic. The daily La Vanguardia also said he was in the Caribbean country, but only temporarily. But El Confidencial newspaper reported that Juan Carlos could still be in Portugal, where he spent part of his childhood, or in France or Italy, where he has family and friends. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Tuesday he had no information on Juan Carlos whereabouts. He declined to say whether he knew about the royal plans before they were announced, saying relations between the prime minister and the head of state are discreet and confidential. Nevertheless, Sanchez told a news conference he has total respect for the decision taken by the royal family to distance itself from suspected questionable and reprehensible conduct by a member of the household suggesting the decision was made by the king, not his disgraced father. Sanchez called the path being taken by the royal family appropriate. He added that during the coronavirus pandemic, which hit Spain particularly hard, Spain needs stability and robust institutions. Juan Carlos assumed the throne in November 1975 as King Juan Carlos I, and is credited with helping Spain peacefully restore democracy after the death of dictator Francisco Franco that year. But marred by scandals in the later years of his reign, Juan Carlos in 2014 abdicated in favour of his son Felipe, losing the immunity from prosecution the Spanish Constitution grants to the head of state. Spains king has a mostly ceremonial role. Executive power lies with the elected parliamentary government. The royal household appears to be trying to free Felipe from having close to him an uncomfortable figure who might tarnish the crowns prestige, University of Barcelona constitutional law professor Xavier Arbos said. Choosing August, when many people are on vacation, for the announcement about Juan Carloss departure was convenient timing, he told The Associated Press. Arbos saw the former kings absence from Spain posing no problem for prosecutors. Juan Carlos has said he will continue to co-operate in the investigation, llaborate and there are no warrants out for his arrest, the professor said. The scandals swirling around Juan Carlos have provided ammunition for those wanting to abolish the monarchy. The left-wing party that is the junior partner in Spains coalition government, Unidas Podemos, promptly called for a public debate on switching to a republic government system. There is no reason at all to keep supporting a monarchy which doesnt possess minimum ethical standards, the party said in a statement late Monday. But the Socialist party, which leads the government under Sanchez, has given no sign of pursuing that path and declared its support for Felipe. Even so, the prime minister recently said he found the developments about Juan Carlos disturbing. In downtown Madrid, opinions were divided. I think it is really bad that we let him go, insurance worker Sara Fernandez, 38, said. He should have to stay here, return the money and do prison time, like all Spaniards when you break the law. But janitor Mar Verdugo, 55, urged caution. We are judging him without any evidence, so when there is a sentence we will see if he has done right or wrong, she said. Juan Carloss lawyer, Javier Sanchez-Junco Mans, said in an emailed statement that the former king had asked him to make clear that even though he will be outside Spain he intends to be available to co-operate with the investigation. Juan Carlos cannot be tried for alleged crimes he committed while he was on the throne due to royal immunity. However, he could potentially stand trial for acts committed after 2014. A statement from Spains general prosecutors office in June said it was investigating whether Juan Carlos received millions of dollars in kickbacks from Saudi Arabia during the construction of a high-speed railway there by a Spanish consortium. Since then, Spanish media outlets have published damaging testimony from a separate Swiss investigation into millions of euros (dollars) that were allegedly given to Juan Carlos by Saudi Arabias late King Abdullah. Juan Carlos allegedly then transferred a large amount to a former companion in what investigators are considering as a possible attempt to hide the money from authorities. The companion, Corinna Larsen, is a Danish-German businesswoman long linked by Spanish media to the former king. Spanish prosecutors have asked her to provide testimony in the case in September via videolink from London. ___ Hatton reported from Lisbon, Portugal. Alicia Leon and Iain Sullivan in Madrid contributed. Read more about: Priest tells lector to stop wearing BLM T-shirt; archdiocese defends dress code Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment The priest of a Roman Catholic Church in New Jersey is being criticized by a local activist group after he asked a lector to refrain from wearing a Black Lives Matter T-shirt during mass. Two weeks ago, Rev. Brian Needles, the pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church in South Orange, New Jersey, sent a letter to the lector, 68-year-old Tom Morris. According to a copy of the letter shared online by the SOMA Black Parents Workshop, Needles explained to Morris that several people complained about his attire at mass. The religious leader asked Morris to refrain from wearing the shirt when lectoring and said that he prefers males wear a collared shirt when they lector. A t-shirt, incredibly enough, can be a real source of division and distraction, the letter declared. We live in such a contentious society already and I dont want a t-shirt worn at Mass to become a source of distraction or bad feelings in our parish, Needles added. When the word of God is proclaimed, nothing, including a slogan on a shirt, should distract listeners from the fruitful hearing of the scriptures. Needles stressed that nobody in their right mind disagrees with the idea that the lives of Black people matter and that they deserve respect and legal protection. However, Needles pointed out that many people have concerns about the Black Lives Matter 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization due to its agenda that is very controversial, to say the least. Morris shared the letter with the SOMA Black Parents Workshops Facebook page. The Black Parents Workshop is an organization that advocates against racial discrimination in schools and the community. BPW Director Walter Fields wrote in a Facebook post in which he shared Needles letter that Needles request rings of the same denial that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. called out in his Letter From a Birmingham Jail to white pastors in that community. Since when does taking a stand on justice offend the Scriptures or the teachings of the Church? Fields asked. In response to the criticism, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark defended Needles request. The archdiocese explained in a statement shared with The Christian Post that Needles was merely seeking to enforce the archdiocesan dress code for lectors. Celebrants who serve in the role of Lector who have volunteered to serve on the altar and read from the scriptures are required to follow the archdiocesan dress code, which is communicated during their training, the statement reads. The policy requires celebrants and lay ministers to refrain from wearing t-shirts as well as any clothing that draws attention to the individual and distracts from the word of God. This is to ensure that the assemblys attention is focused on scripture and not on the individual proclaiming it. As for lay parishioners who would like to wear a Black Lives Matter T-shirt to mass, the archdiocese states that they are free to wear clothing that promotes causes and movements. However, the archdiocese encourages the faithful to use their discretion to ensure that their attire is appropriate for a house of worship. The debate in the Catholic Church and across Christianity over whether to embrace or denounce the Black Lives Matter movement has become contentious in the weeks following the death of George Floyd on Memorial Day. For example, earlier this summer, a Catholic priest was suspended for describing Black Lives Matter and Antifa protesters as maggots and parasites. Meanwhile, a Mississippi pastor was fired by his churchs board for endorsing the Black Lives Matter movement. In an interview with The Village Green of Maplewood and South Orange, Morris made it clear that he would not comply with Needles request to refrain from wearing the T-shirt. I wont stop. Im committed. I will not back down, Morris was quoted as saying. The Village Green reported that since receiving the letter from Needles, Morris has elected to attend daily mass at St. Marys Catholic Church in Newark. The church is described by Morris as a more progressive parish. The death toll from poisoning linked to toxic liquor in Indias northern state of Punjab rose to 105 on Monday even as police carried out a crackdown on the illicit alcohol trade in the region. Poor farmers and workers fell ill after drinking the alcohol across three districts, and the first deaths were reported last Wednesday. The toll soared from 21 on Friday, after families reported deaths to administration officials over the weekend, in what has become the countrys worst bootleg alcohol incident this year. Eighty people died in the Tarn Taran district over the past five days, senior official Kulwant Singh said. Twenty-five deaths were confirmed in nearby Amritsar and Batala, state police said. In a crackdown, police conducted dozens of raids across villages to arrest 30 bootleggers and smashed illegal distilleries while seizing thousands of litres of tainted liquor. Initial investigations revealed the liquor contained methanol, which can cause blindness and death when consumed in large amounts. The Punjab government has suspended seven excise officials and six police officials even as opposition parties accused ruling party leaders of patronising (the) spurious liquor trade. About 1,000 people die in India each year after consuming illegally distilled alcohol, government data shows. The liquor is usually made with poor-quality ingredients and sometimes mixed with industrial alcohol and toxic substances. A total of 151 people, mostly tea-plantation workers, died after drinking toxic alcohol last year in one of the worst cases of liquor poisoning in India in recent years. (dpa/NAN) Does he still make movies ? ?? Reply Thread Link Yes, Netflix Exclusives! His first movie that came out this year was one of their most watched films so obviously a sequel is in the works. Reply Parent Thread Link I think he's supposed to be playing Hulk Hogan in something. ....ugh Reply Parent Thread Link Good for the sharks, and I mean that genuinely. Humans have been consistently shit towards marine ecosystems. Also, has his brother fell into complete irrelevance? Reply Thread Link He looks delicious in that wetsuit Reply Thread Link I know he's scientifically perfect but when I look at him I feel nothing idk what it is, but I feel the same about Brad Pitt and a lot of people think he's hot. I think if they're too "perfect" looking I'm not interested. ugly is interesting! don't be shy add just a dash Reply Parent Thread Link I love Chris but specifically in Ghostbusters tbh, he plays funny well and the glasses make it Reply Parent Thread Expand Link He's handsome but not cute. I need cute. Reply Parent Thread Link I didnt like blondes for almost my entire life, or dudes without tattoos. So me finding him and Chris Evans handsome is different for me. I understand. Reply Parent Thread Link same, I find him boring to look at. maybe it's because he's too good looking that there's no personality in his features? idk but it's the same for me for a lot of ~perfect men. Reply Parent Thread Link I only find him attractive as Thor (long haired Thor specifically) other than that he does literally NOTHING for me. Same as Cavill. I now at least find him attractive as Geralt (clearly I have a type lmao) but remain uncaring about him in any other capactiy. He just doesn't do it for me. Reply Parent Thread Link Right. I love me a pretty boy. Reply Parent Thread Link and tall Reply Parent Thread Link I know at least in our area there have been more attacks/sightings because people bait them so theyll have sharks for the tourists to swim with Reply Thread Link Nope to swimming with Sharks. Everytime I hear about attacks from marine mammals I think it's fair game since we are the ones "trespassing" Reply Thread Link Yeah that will go well Reply Thread Link Shark and whale documentaries are my favorite animal nature docs to watch. As well as killer waves. Find it calming. Reply Thread Link yay sharks! Reply Thread Link Killer whales >>>> Sharks But Shark Week is on next week and I can't wait! Reply Thread Link they did a 5 week "Shark Fest" on the national geographic channel last month. I'm guessing this is gonna be their big draw for next years event. Reply Parent Thread Link but can he be naked? Reply Thread Link we saw some sharks scuba diving in Thailand(not dangerous to humans), and my friend used up 1 hour of air in 1 minutes Reply Thread Link That would have been me. Reply Parent Thread Link do your thing, sharkss Reply Thread Link South Africa retail giant, Shoprite, has announced the commencement of a formal process to discontinue its operation in Nigeria. Shoprite Holdings Limited made the announcement on Monday in its operational and voluntary trading update for the year ended on June 28, 2020. The multi-national retail group, which announced a 6.4 per cent increase (R156.9billion) in total sales of merchandise for the outgoing year despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, announced that it took the decision to discontinue its Nigeria operation following approaches from various potential investors, and in line with our re-evaluation of the groups operating model in Nigeria. The Board has decided to initiate a formal process to consider the potential sale of all, or a majority stake, in Retail Supermarkets Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Shoprite International Limited. As such, Retail Supermarkets Nigeria Limited may be classified as a discontinued operation when Shoprite reports its results for the year. Any further updates will be provided to the market at the appropriate time, the report stated. While the companys total sales of merchandise may be on the rise, it is struggling outside South Africa. According to the report, the non-South Africa supermarket operation of the company, excluding Nigeria, contributed a paltry 11.6 per cent to the group sales. Its non-South Africa sales also declined by 1.4 per cent in the year under review. The company blamed this decline on the lockdown announced in several African countries due to the coronavirus pandemic. Second half constant currency sales growth of 6.3% was significantly impacted by lockdown regulations across the 14 African countries in which we trade. Lockdown restrictions pertaining to store closures; social distancing; transport restrictions; the movement of people; trading hours; workforce limitations and trade in alcohol impacted various regions to differing degrees at different times. Shoprite opened its first store in Nigeria in December 2005 and now has a total of 26 stores across eight states in the country including Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The company also claim to have employed more than 2,000 people in Nigeria, of which 99 per cent of them are Nigerians. Shoprite also claimed to have built more relationships with over 300 Nigeria suppliers, small businesses and farmers. 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 Wildfire evacuees used to be able to count on sheltering at their local high schools or rec centers. But those fleeing the Apple fire in Riverside County are finding out that the coronavirus has eliminated that option. Socially distancing wouldn't be possible had the American Red Cross set up dozens of cots in the gym of Beaumont High School. Instead, volunteers are trying to place evacuees in hotel rooms, which the Red Cross books and pays for. "We're gonna need a place to sleep tonight," said Richard Dixon, 93, as he and his wife, Barbara, sat down to fill out an application. The Cherry Valley couple were among the 7,800-plus people ordered to evacuate as the Apple fire has spread over 20,516 acres since Friday afternoon. Cal Fire Capt. Chris Bruno said more than 1,200 firefighters from across the state were battling the blaze, which was at 12% containment as of Sunday afternoon. But he said the Apple fire had a lot of potential to get bigger because of the high temperatures, low humidity and fuel beds -- the dried vegetation on hillsides. "The western-facing slopes dries out that fuel bed, and then that is just primed for the wildland fires," Bruno said. View of the Apple fire from the h.s. in Beaumont, where the Am Red Cross has set up a covid-era evacuation center. pic.twitter.com/5wJIIcIJSf Josie Huang (@josie_huang) August 2, 2020 As of Sunday afternoon, the American Red Cross had helped just under 40 people -- a tiny sliver of the estimated 7,800 people displaced since Friday evening by the fire, the region's largest so far this year. But word had begun to spread on social media that the Red Cross was offering rooms to evacuees. Marcella Mejia of Banning came by the high school after seeing the information on Facebook. She needs rooms for herself, her husband and their three children. Firefighters had knocked on their door Friday night telling them to evacuate. The family quickly gathered their two dogs and 15 chickens and transported them to a friend's home. They've stayed with friends for the past two nights. "We were told when we moved to Banning that it was a very high-risk area for fires," Mejia said. "But you never imagine this happening." Rooms were not always immediately available. Chris Ellsworth, the Red Cross volunteer leading operations at the high school, said that other evacuees were independently looking for rooms, as were departments responding to the Apple fire, such as the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. "You have a number of different groups of people looking for the same set of limited resources," Ellsworth said. Richard and Barbara Dixon socially distanced in the Beaumont High School gym as they waited for their hotel assignment. (Josie Huang/LAist) Richard and Barbara Dixon had gotten a hotel room through the Red Cross on Friday, but it was for only one night. When they didn't see the Red Cross in the high school parking lot on Saturday, they found another room on their own. The couple then realized the Red Cross had moved operations indoors and came by on Sunday for help. The couple was asked to review a list of coronavirus symptoms and make note if they had any. "Muscle pain, fatigue, loss of taste or smell, nausea," Richard Dixon intoned. "No. No problem." The couple asked to wait for their hotel assignment in the gym. A volunteer led the Dixons to the stands and asked them to socially distance from others. The couple, misunderstanding the instruction, gamely sat apart from each other as he mustered a laugh: "What you gotta do, you gotta do." A s is always the case whenever she decides to drop a new project, Beyonce's visual album Black Is King was the main musical event over the weekend. And rightly so: Queen Bey returned with another majestic piece of art, proving that her skill as a filmmaker is just as sharp as her songwriting. Read our full review here. Still, aside from all that, plenty of good stuff sprung up from other sources over the last few days as well, ranging from long-awaited comeback singles to politically charged protest tracks. Here is the new music you might have missed. Billie Eilish My Future Back with her first new track since delivering her take on the Bond theme all the way back in February, the 18-year-old has dropped My Future. Its a winning return, with a slow-burning build-up giving way to a sly, funky groove. The Go-Gos Club Zero Arriving 19 years after the Go-Go's last released new music (God Bless The Go-Gos in 2001, which came after a 17-year wait for a new album), Club Zero is here. Its a punky, energetic return, showing that the rockers still have it after all this time. Travis Barker and Run The Jewels Forever Rap duo Run The Jewels and Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker have teamed up for this fiery track. Its not the first time theyve collaborated, coming together for All Due Respect in 2014. The beat is heavy and the lyrics are sharp nothing less would be expected. Sam Smith My Oasis feat. Burna Boy Sam Smith has enlisted the help of Nigerian star Burna Boy for this brooding single. This track has been a beautiful release of emotions for me during this time, Smith said. Ive been a fan of Burna Boy for years now and am so happy to have a tune with him. Jorja Smith By Any Means This heartfelt, simmering new track was inspired by going to the Black Lives Matter protests, Jorja Smith said, and leaving thinking, what can I do to keep this conversation going? Its not just a post on social media, its life. The song will appear on Roc Nations upcoming Reprise compilation, the proceeds of which will go to victims of police brutality, hate crimes and civil rights violations. Lahore, Aug 3 : Pakistan's Punjab province, the second worst-hit in the country due to the coronavirus pandemic, has lifted a lockdown amid a continued fall in the number of positive cases, it was reported on Monday. The lockdown was imposed till August 5 across the province ahead of Eid-ul-Adha in a bid to contain the spread of coronavirus, reports The Express Tribune. But it was lifted on Sunday, a day ahead of the given date. In a notification, the provincial health department said all business except those which fall in "negative list" will be allowed to operate from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday to Friday The new directives came into effect on Monday. Punjab has reported 24 new cases of the coronavirus and four more fatalities, according to the government's COVID-19 portal. This has taken the total cases in the province to 93,197 while the death toll has risen to 2,148. More than 82,000 people have recovered from the virus in the province so far. Pakistan has so far recorded a total of 279,966 cases, with 5,982 deaths. Colorado oil company QEP Resources is breaking a six-month hiatus as it plans to make a return to the Permian Basin of West Texas. The company is seeking permits from the Railroad Commission of Texas to develop 14 new horizontal wells on state-owned lands in Andrews County. Located off State Highway 176, the wells target the Spraberry field at depths ranging from 9,100 to 9,950 feet. QEP began drilling the Permian in 2010 and now holds nearly 80,000 acres of oil leases in Andrews and Martin counties. The company filed for 70 drilling permits in 2019 and has filed for 29 so far this year. Like other drillers in the region, QEP scaled back drilling because of the industry downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The 14 permits filed over the past week mark the first batch since late January. Drilling Down: Haynesville Shale overtakes Eagle Ford Shale Permian Basin More Information Top 10 Texas Drillers (July 22 through 28) QEP Resources 14 Concho Resources 9 Double Eagle Development 7 EOG Resources 6 Pioneer Natural Resources 6 Trinity Resources 6 Endeavor Energy Resources 5 WPX Energy 4 Centennial Resource Development 3 Rockcliff Energy 3 Source: Railroad Commission of Texas See More Collapse Fort Worth oil company Double Eagle Development, which hosted President Donald Trump during his July 29 visit to one of its drilling sites near Midland, plans to drill seven horizontal wells split between four leases in Midland County. The wells target the Spraberry field at depths ranging from 9,000 to 9,500 feet. Eagle Ford Shale After three months of silence, Tulsa oil company Trinity Operating filed for permits to drill six horizontal wells in the western end of the Eagle Ford Shale. Located on its Cenizo A lease in Zavala County, the wells target the Briscoe Ranch field of the Eagle Ford formation to a depth of 8,000 feet. Fuel Fix: Get energy news sent directly to your inbox Haynesville Shale Houston oil company Rockcliff Energy plans to drill three natural gas wells in East Texas. Located on three leases in Panola County, the horizontal wells target the Carthage field of the Haynesville formation to a depth of 13,000 feet. Barnett Shale The Barnett Shale has now gone five weeks without a horizontal drilling permit filing, but Streetman-based Ephraim Trust plans to drill a new vertical well in Hill County. The well targets the Mount Calm field to a vertical depth of 1,000 feet. More: Read the latest oil and gas news from HoustonChronicle.com Conventionals Fort Worth oil company C&B Exploration plans to drill a new vertical well on its Pearl lease in Nueces County. Located about 3.8 miles west of Driscoll, the well targets the Agua Dulce field to a depth of 7,200 feet. President Donald Trump went after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi Monday for her blasts at Dr. Deborah Birx then accused his own coronavirus task for chief of taking the bait by highlighting the spread of the disease. The president's language, fired off on Twitter after the public clash, follows intense scrutiny of his relationship with infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci as his administration seeks to get a handle on the coronavirus crisis. It appears to be his first public attack on Birx, who like Fauci has a prestigious medical background. It came after Birx told the nation the coronavirus has become 'extraordinarily widespread' across the country. 'So Crazy Nancy Pelosi said horrible things about Dr. Deborah Birx, going after her because she was too positive on the very good job we are doing on combatting the China Virus, including Vaccines & Therapeutics,' Trump wrote Monday morning. 'In order to counter Nancy, Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!' he wrote. His tweet did not make entirely clear whether it was Pelosi's high-profile criticism or Birx's efforts at self-defense, that he considered pathetic. Dr. Deborah Birx (right), a White House coronavirus task force coordinator, appeared on CNN on Sunday and warned that the US has entered a 'new phase' in the COVID-19 pandemic Trump accused Dr. Deborah Birx of having 'hit us' in self-defense after she shared information about the spread of the coronavirus Birx, who has become a prominent face of the administration's response amid occasional distance between Trump and Fauci, warned that the US has entered a 'new phase' in the ongoing struggle against the COVID-19 pandemic. That followed Pelosi saying she had 'no confidence' in the health advisor's counsel. Pelosi stood by her criticism in an interview with CNN Monday morning, harkening back to Trump's infamous coronavirus briefing where he spoke about injecting light into the body and injecting disinfectants into the body while task force members looked on. 'I don't have confidence in anyone who stands there while the President says swallow Lysol and it's going to cure your virus,' Pelosi Monday, in a blast at Trump's statement about injecting disinfectants at a White House briefing where Birx looked on 'I don't have confidence in anyone who stands there while the President says swallow Lysol and it's going to cure your virus,' Pelosi said. Asked to expand, she added: 'I think that she has enabled' Trump, Pelosi said. She said the Trump administration 'has not had a strategic plan' for the virus. During his April 24th briefing as the coronavirus raged, Trump looked repeatedly at a seated Birx while he made his comments. Birx sat nearly expressionless at the side of the briefing room while Trump riffed about an 'injection inside or almost a cleaning ... it sounds interesting to me.' Tensions appeared to brew this week between top government officials and public health experts as Pelosi admonished Birx for reportedly aiding Trump in spreading coronavirus disinformation. 'Deborah Birx is the worst. Wow, what horrible hands youre in,' said Pelosi, according to Politico. And Pelosi doubled down on her statement on Sunday, telling ABC's This Week: 'I think the president has been spreading disinformation about the virus and she is his appointee so, I don't have confidence there, no.' But the White House coronavirus task force coordinator continued to offer health guidance during an interview on CNN's State of the Union on Sunday that acknowledged the virus has not been contained. 'What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread. It's into the rural as equal urban areas,' said Birx. 'And that is why we keep saying, no matter where you live in America, you need to wear a mask and socially distance, do the personal hygiene pieces.' Birx also expressed her admiration for Pelosi. 'I have tremendous respect for the Speaker. And I have tremendous respect for her long dedication to the American people,' she said. Indeed, the coronavirus has reached the farthest corners of the United States as hot spots erupted in states like California, Florida and Kansas. Dr. Deborah Birx says, "we are in a new phase" of the coronavirus pandemic adding, "This epidemic right now is different and it's ... more widespread and it's both rural and urban" #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/w09X9GrhL0 CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) August 2, 2020 This week, America surpassed another grim milestone to record 4,620,419 confirmed infections and a growing death toll of 154,361. Several states are scrambling to lower infections rates, create a feasible education plan for the upcoming school year and navigate a pandemic that has been criticized for having 'a lack of national leadership.' According to a chart displayed by CNN, Dr. Birx is currently monitoring 20 of the 50 states for their coronavirus infections levels. She is a lead member of the coronavirus task force along with Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Birx did not seem too concerned about House Speaker Pelosi's lack of confidence in her advice. Asked about Pelosi's comment during her CNN interview, Birx said she had great respect for Pelosi and attributed the criticism to a New York Times article on the White House pandemic response that described Birx as having embraced overly optimistic assessments on the virus. JUST IN: I think the president has been spreading disinformation about the virus and she is his appointee so, I dont have confidence there, no, Speaker Pelosi tells @MarthaRaddatz when asked is she has confidence in Dr. Deborah Birx. https://t.co/HNQgCe39RN pic.twitter.com/ZDZYAjr0cJ This Week (@ThisWeekABC) August 2, 2020 House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (pictured) said on ABC's 'This Week' that she does not have confidence in Dr. Birx's public health advice 'This was not a pollyannish view. I've never been called pollyannish, or non-scientific, or non-data driven,' Birx said. 'I will stake my 40-year career on those fundamental principles of using data to implement better programs and save lives.' Birx then pushed back on a misconception that the virus only inundated urban landscapes, like the former epicenter New York City, and not other rural regions. 'To everybody who lives in a rural area, you are not immune or protected from this virus,' said Birx. 'If you're in multi-generational households, and there's an outbreak in your rural area or in your city, you need to really consider wearing a mask at home, assuming that you're positive, if you have individuals in your households with comorbidities. 'This epidemic right now is different and it's more widespread and it's both rural and urban.' The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recently published an ensemble forecast that estimates more than 173,000 Americans will die of coronavirus by August 22. Dr. Birx reminded Americans living in rural areas that they are not immune from COVID-19 and should follow public heath guidelines And former US Food and Drug Administrator Dr. Scott Gottlieb told viewers on CNBC in June that coronavirus-related deaths could reach 300,000 by the end of the year. Birx did not give a projection for the thousands of potential deaths Americans could face before the year's end, but she did acknowledge that it will depend on Midwestern and Southern states to slow down the spread. 'It's not super spreading individuals, it's super spreading events and we need to stop those. We definitely need to take more precautions,' she told CNN. Birx added that each of the 50 states need 'dramatically tailored' pandemic plans that include 'set of recommendations based on what we are seeing at the community level, what we are seeing relevant to the hospitals.' Part of the Trump administration's largest critiques of his muddled pandemic response was that the federal government left much of the slack to state and local officials. Pictured: a graphic shared by CNN showed the 20 states that were being monitored by the coronavirus task force because of case increases State governors were given power to decide how to manage lockdown orders, oversaw the reopening of businesses and will decided if in-person schooling will be allowed in the next few weeks. Last moth, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti blamed the Trump administration for not taking a more active role in unifying the country's pandemic response. 'I think a lot of things went wrong. We've seen no national leadership,' said Garcetti on CNN's State of the Union in July. 'We've had to stand up testing centers on our own, we've had to do so much that is outside of our lane because of the lack of national leadership - but I also think some people are just exhausted.' During Sunday's interview, Birx was asked if schools in states with a five per cent positivity rate should rely on distance learning. President Trump has launched an aggressive campaign to reopen schools in the fall to help jump start the country's economy, despite cases rising across the nation and parents concerned over a lack of attainable plans. 'If you have high case load and active community spread, just like we are asking people not to go to bars, not to have household parties, not to create large spreading events, we are asking people to distance learn at this moment so we can get this epidemic under control,' said Birx. The Trump administration has gained a consistent stream of scrutiny for its pandemic response over the last six months, with recent conversations about the next coronavirus relief bill among them. Pelosi said during her 'This Week' interview that Trump was to blame for the deadlocked negotiations. 'He's the one who is standing in the way of that,' she said. 'We have been for the $600, they have a $200 proposal, which does not meet the needs of America's working families.' Pelosi acknowledged that Saturday's discussions were 'productive in terms of moving things forward,' but an agreement has not been reached. Pelosi: 'We have been for the $600, they have a $200 proposal, which does not meet the needs of America's working families' 'Well the fact is we will be close to an agreement, when we have an agreement,' Pelosi said. The $600 weekly federal unemployment benefit is at the center of the discussions, with Republicans proposing $200 per week and Democrats fighting to stay at $600. 'The amount of money that is given as an enhancement for unemployment insurance should relate to the rate of unemployment,' said Pelosi. 'So when that goes down, then you can consider something less than the $600, but in this agreement it's $600.' Another controversial point is the President's praise for hydroxychloroquine. Just last week, social media giants Facebook, Twitter and YouTube removed a video shared by Trump that promotes unproven claims that the drug hydroxychloroquine can treat or cure the virus. There is no current medically-proven cure for the virus. The clip, which was originally posted by the right-wing news site Breitbart, featured four people who identified themselves as doctors speaking in front of the Supreme Court building. One was Stella Immanuel, who claims to be a physician in Houston, and said hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug often touted by Trump, was a cure for COVID-19. Hydroxychloroquine was first introduced to the public as a potential 'game-changer' by Trump in March - just as the virus overtook the country with quickly rising cases and deaths. Nancy Pelosi has alleged that President Trump (pictured) has spread coronavirus disinformation during his pandemic response President Trump has continued to promote hydroxychloroquine as a cure for COVID-19, despite it being unproven to do so Trump reportedly felt so strongly about the unproven drug that he began taking it himself and was set to finish his prescription in May. 'I'm taking it - hydroxychloroquine. Right now yeah. A couple of weeks ago, started taking it,' he told reporters at the White House at the time. In addition touting the drug while it was still unproven, Trump faced backlash over a series of incorrect statements he made in reference to it. Trump on at least one occasion declared the FDA 'feels good about it' and claimed they approved the drug. 'I'm not a doctor. But I have common sense,' said Trump in April. 'The FDA feels good about it. As you know, they've approved it, they gave it a rapid approval, and the reason [is] because it's been out there for a long time, and they know the side effects and they also know the potential.' Although the agency did permit emergency authorization at the beginning of the crisis, they have since rescinded the authorization and have yet to approve of it. Trump has also tried to boost hydroxychloroquine's popularity by saying it was a popular choice among medical staff and responders on the front lines. 'You'd be surprised at how many people are taking it, especially the frontline workers, he said. The next day he claimed the drug 'is used by thousands and thousands of frontline workers.' Dr. Bob Wachter, the chair of the University of California, San Francisco's department of medicine, told Factcheck.org that he didn't know 'any clinician' taking hydroxychloroquine to prevent the coronavirus. A man has been hit with a $1,000 fine after he was caught hosting a massive house party but told police he was not worried because coronavirus was 'just a flu'. New South Wales Police issued a total of 16 penalty infringement notices to people over the weekend who were caught breaching COVID-19 Public Health Orders. Officers were called to a house party at Mullumbimby Creek on the northern NSW coast about 2.45am on Saturday. When they arrived at the Melaleuca Drive property police found a large number of people inside and outside the house, with social distancing being ignored. A man has been hit with a $1,000 fine after he was caught hosting a massive house party but told police he was not worried because coronavirus was 'just a flu' (NSW Police at Sydney Airport) Healthcare workers wearing face shields and protective clothing test a woman for COVID-19 at a pop-up testing clinic in Rushcutters Bay on Monday 'The 53-year-old male resident told police he was aware there were too many attendees but wasn't worried because he believes Coronavirus is just a flu,' NSW Police said. The man was slapped with the fine and the group was forced to disperse. Police issued nine people with $9,000 in fines following indoor gatherings at East Jindabyne and Maroubra that were found breaching the 20-person rule. On Friday officers were patrolling Hyde Park in Sydney's CBD while monitoring a group who gathered for an 'unauthorised public assembly'. The group exceeded 20 people at 11am and were told to move-on before formal directions were issued to each person. 'After the spokesman refused to comply with directions and attempted to incite the rest of the group, he was arrested,' NSW Police said. 'He then refused to provide his details and was subsequently taken to Day Street Police Station.' The 47-year-old spokesperson was identified and issued a $1,000 fine. Another unauthorised public assembly was found at Camperdown in Sydney's inner-west about 11.30am Friday, with 40 people in attendance. New South Wales Police issued a total of 16 penalty infringement notices to people over the weekend who were caught breaching COVID-19 Public Health Orders (NSW Police in Sydney) Patrons wearing face masks are seen using hand sanitiser and registering their check in details at The Bavarian restaurant at the Manly Wharf Police issued a formal direction under the Public Health Act but two men, aged 34 and 38, failed to comply and were each hit with a fine. A woman at a Liverpool hotel in the city's west was visited by police on Friday just after 12pm, who found she provided 'false compassionate reasons' on her permit to enter the state. The woman was fined and told she had to return back to Victoria immediately as her permit was invalid. A licensed venue in Crescent Head was found to be full at 7.30pm on Friday, with the business failing to adhere to its COVID-safe plan. 'While conducting the walk-through, the officers noted that the premises was full, but only nine names were recorded on the register,' NSW Police said. 'Further, tables and chairs had not been removed to ensure physical distancing and it was not being observed.' Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Monday admitted community transmission cases are always a 'cause for concern' but said authorities are doing everything they can to keep the situation from spiralling like it has in Victoria NSW residents are being recommended to wear face masks in public as coronavirus case numbers continue to rise. Pictured: a shopper wears a face mask in Woolworths in Sydney on Friday A 50-year-old male licensee was issued with a $1000 fine. Officers stopped a 24-year-old woman as she was driving in Springdale on Saturday morning and discovered she was disqualified from driving and was in breach of isolation requirements. She had returned from Victoria on July 20 and was told to self-isolate for 14 days but was instead hit with a $1,000 fine. NSW recorded 13 new COVID-19 cases in the 24 hours to 8pm on Sunday - four of which were returned travellers from overseas or Victoria and one with no known source. Three of the new cases are in returned travellers in mandatory hotel quarantine, another is a recent arrival from Victoria, while eight are cases linked to known outbreaks. Just one of the new cases cannot be linked to a known source and is one of seven cases under investigation, NSW Health's Dr Jeremy McAnulty revealed on Monday. There are seven cases in New South Wales which are being actively investigated because NSW Health cannot establish a clear link to a previously known case. Another four cases were announced from the weekend - a family of four, including a baby, from Wagga Wagga in the Riverina region that recently returned home from Melbourne and went into self-isolation. A court in Yerevan on Monday refused to allow a law-enforcement agency to arrest the citys former deputy mayor indicted in an ongoing criminal investigation into Ruben Hayrapetian, a wealthy businessman linked to Armenias former leadership. Earlier this year, the Special Investigative Service (SIS) accused Hayrapetian of illegally privatizing in 2014 municipal land at a knockdown price. It claimed that he paid only 169 million drams ($350 million) to buy, through intermediaries, a plot worth 800 million drams. The SIS said at the weekend that then Deputy Mayor Vahe Nikoyan arranged the transaction through a bogus auction. It charged Nikoyan and one of his former aides with abuse of power and forgery before asking the district court to sanction their pre-trial arrest. The court rejected both arrest warrants. Nikoyan denied the accusations leveled against him but declined to comment further when contacted by RFE/RLs Armenian service. A member of the former ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK), Nikoyan served as deputy mayor from 2012-2018. He and Yerevans HHK-affiliated former Mayor Taron Markarian resigned shortly after the 2018 Velvet Revolution. Nikoyan subsequently turned down an offer to become an adviser to Hayk Marukian, the citys new mayor linked to Armenias current government. Hayrapetian, who is also an HHK member, left Armenia for Russia in March more than a month before being indicted in a separate inquiry conducted by the Investigative Committee. The committee claims that the tycoon, his son and four other persons kidnapped and repeatedly beat up in 2016 the chief manager of a Hayrapetian-owned resort who allegedly misused more than 52 million drams ($108,000) borrowed from a commercial bank. The tycoon rejects all charges brought against him as politically motivated. He claims to be unable to return to Armenia because of the coronavirus pandemic. In late May, a Yerevan court agreed to issue an arrest warrant for Hayrapetian and four other suspects. The investigators launched an international hunt for Hayrapetian shortly afterwards. One of Hayrapetians lawyers, Amram Makinian, said last week that Russian law-enforcement bodies have formally decided to stop hunting for him. The decision means that he is unlikely to be extradited to Armenia. The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) regrets to announce the demise of its former Group Managing Director (GMD), Dr. Joseph Thlama Dawha. Dr. Dawha, died after a brief illness, NNPC Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Dr. Kennie Obateru stated in a release today. The release said NNPC Group Managing Director, Mallam Mele Kyari, expressed shock over the sudden death of Dr. Dawha who was the 16th Group Managing Director of the corporation. Mallam Kyari said that NNPC family gravely mourned the death of the former GMD, who he noted, provided astute leadership and made immense contributions to the progress of corporation. He described Dr. Dawhas death as a great loss to not only NNPC but also Nigeria as a whole. Dr. Dawha was GMD of NNPC between August, 2014 to August, 2015. Dr. Kennie Obateru Group General Manager Group Public Affairs Division Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation. 3rd August, 2020. With three different currencies in circulation and few controls, residents in northwestern Syria are struggle to keep up with the changing prices and values writes Enab Baladi. Omar Salloum, from the town of Haysh in the northern countryside of Idleb, believes that conducting transactions using the Syrian pound is better than using other currencies, after the region adopted the Turkish lira and the American dollar in the region. This was due to the exploitation by traders and exchange shops of what Salloum described as helpless individuals. Confusion hits residents of northwestern Syria when trying to make a decision to buy or exchange currency, as some merchants and exchange shops have been taking advantage of the fact they have been dealing with three different currencies, amid the absence of supervision by the local authorities. What has been going on? The owner of an exchange shop in Idleb, who spoke on condition of anonymity, answered Enab Baladis questions, commenting on the behavior of his fellow exchange shop owners and merchants. According to the source, the citizen is losing in two ways: the first is when the Syrian pound is exchanged into the Turkish lira. At that time the exchange shop owner determines the exchange rate without looking at official numbers or being supervised. The second way is while purchasing goods from merchants, who set the prices based on fluctuations in the exchange rate of the US dollar or Turkish lira, and again make sure their margin of profit is large. According to the website Syrian Pound Today, the exchange rate of the Turkish lira is 305 Syrian pounds for purchase and 321 for sale, while the exchange rate of the US dollar is 2,140 Syrian pounds for purchase and 2,240 for sale. However, these exchange rates are not regulated or consistent in the market, and with the absence of official pricing, the differences are based on the merchants whim. The same exchange shop owner appealed to the authorities that manage the region, most notably the Salvation Government, to completely stop circulating the Turkish lira in the market, or alternatively to adopt a clear process for pricing the goods in a way that limits volatility and the whims of merchants and exchange shop owners, who are now controlling the market. How to get rid of this dilemma? Researcher and lecturer in finance and banking, Manhal al-Othman, told Enab Baladi that the motive behind dealing with the Turkish lira or the US dollar was the fluctuations in commodity prices due to the fluctuation of the exchange rate of the Syrian pound, whose value hit an all-time low. However, when the local authorities introduced dealing with the Turkish lira, they did not enforce a binding regulatory mechanism on merchants and exchange shops, nor put banking rules in place to regulate the circulation of the currency. Some merchants and residents still use the Syrian pound to measure the value of goods and commodities, which is all the more confusing amid the reigning situation, according to Othman. According to Othman, the local authorities are heading to increased dependence on the Turkish lira and to impose binding decisions and executive mechanisms to compel citizens to use it as an alternative to the Syrian pound, along with the US dollar, with the lira to be used for smaller deals, and the US dollar for big deals. According to Othman, among the most important measures that must be taken by the Salvation Government operating in Idleb and the Interim Government operating in the Aleppo countryside are the formation of a cash council whose tasks would be to regulate prices and the amount of money being circulated, in addition to paving the way for imposing the use of the Turkish lira. In other words, giving the process one to two months before making the full switch, in coordination with the security authorities in the region. The so-called Salvation Government had identified several steps to halt the economic decline in the region, on Jun. 10, 2020, during a meeting of the Shura Council (the Consultative Council), including working to adopt the Turkish currency instead of the Syrian pound as soon as possible. As for the Syrian Interim Government, its president, Abdul Rahman Mustafa, announced that the government would hold meetings with Turkish officials in order to rectify the deterioration of the Syrian pound and pump the Turkish currency into the northern countryside of Aleppo. Mustafa tweeted out on Jun. 10, 2020, that the government had taken the first steps to pump the Turkish lira into the opposition-controlled north and that this measure will be followed by more steps. On Jun. 12, 2020, quantities of Turkish currency began to arrive in Idleb, northern Syria, coinciding with the confirmation by the Salvation Government that the salaries of employees will be disbursed in Turkish liras. Much ink has been spilled regarding the Turkish lira in the Syrian north in recent months, in an attempt to determine its pros and cons. However, after the Syrian pound took a record dive the exchange rate of the US dollar against the pound was 3,000 on Jun. 8, 2020, the governments of northern Syria (the Salvation Government in Idleb and the Interim Government in rural Aleppo) began searching for alternatives to the Syrian pound. This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author. China's central bank will ramp up efforts to offer financial support for enterprises and ensure employment. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) has stepped up measures including strengthening counter-cyclical policies, keeping liquidity reasonable and deferring loan and interest repayments for micro, small and medium firms, PBOC governor Yi Gang said at a recent symposium. Having learned about the implementation of supportive policies and difficulties of enterprises, Yi called for innovation in financial services, and better protecting market entities and meeting their new financing demands. In the meantime, preferential policies must be implemented fully to underpin employment and development of the real economy, Yi said. In view of the current financing problems of small and micro enterprises, Yi urged departments of the PBOC to conduct in-depth research and improve the relevance and effectiveness of monetary and credit policies. Abbie Chatfield has blasted the 'toxic male culture' on Bachelor in Paradise following Sunday night's Bula Banquet episode. Admitting to having had some wines, Abbie chose to give her honest verdict of Matt Whyatt and Timm Hanly's explosive 'bro code' fight in a 'drunk recap' at 3:30am. 'Tonight was really upsetting. While tipsy I was yelling out at the TV,' Abbie, 25, began her threat of 'drunk thoughts' on her Instagram Stories. Scroll down for video Calling them out! On Sunday, Abbie Chatfield blasted 'toxic male culture' on Bachelor in Paradise after Timm Hanly (right) fought with Matt Wyhatt over breaking 'bro code' when he started dating Ciarran Stott's (left) ex, Renee Barrett on show Tensions flared quickly during the Snday's episode, as Matt confronted Timm for 'stirring up' drama when he started dating Ciarran Stott's ex, Renee Barrett. Abbie was not impressed by Timm and Ciarran's stance that Matt couldn't date Renee due to the 'bro code'. 'There are certain people in Paradise who are acting as though they have ownership on certain people,' she said. 'While you're allowed to feel your feelings, you can't stop other people from being happy.' Abbie said she thought 'bro code' was 'redundant' and considers dating a friend's ex perfectly acceptable as long as both parties are 'open and honest' about it. 'Certain people in Paradise are acting as though they have ownership on people': Abbie was not impressed by Timm and Ciarran's stance that Matt couldn't date Renee due to 'bro code' 'I think Matt and Renee have done an amazing job,' Abbie applauded the on-screen duo for being 'calm, reasonable and fair'. During the episode, Matt, 28, accused Timm, 27, of 'isolating' him from his co-stars by labeling him 'a dog that everyone hates' for dating his mate Ciarran's ex Renee. 'I know I have friends here, and the fact that he said that everyone here thinks I'm a dog and hates me, it's Timm trying to isolate me,' Matt said. 'I think Matt and Renee (both pictured) have done an amazing job': Abbie considers dating a friend's ex perfectly acceptable as long as both parties are 'open and honest' about it A fiery exchange ensued when Timm approached Matt, asking why he's 'coming at him'. Accusing him of spreading that he's a 'dog' and a 'rat', Matt said: 'I don't care what your opinion is about me. I'll accept that and not talk to you. 'Don't speak for the rest of the group. You've been pulling people aside since you got here.' Drama! During the episode, Matt, 28, accused Timm, 27, of 'isolating' him from his co-stars by labeling him as 'a dog that everyone hates' after he started dating his mate Ciarran's ex Renee During a previous episode, viewers were left outraged after Timm labelled Matt a 'snake' for dating Renee, with fans accusing the male star of double standards as his friend Ciarran has romanced multiple women on the series. So far, Ciarran, 26, has hooked up with Jessica Brody, Abbie Chatfield and Kiki Morris on Bachelor In Paradise. Bachelor In Paradise continues Monday from 7.30pm on Channel 10 The claim: (The Texas Education Agency) is allowing online learning with attendance stipulations but will not fund school districts if they do not open their schools If schools do not open and are not funded there will be no more teachers or school at all. Facebook post from Wilmer Hutchins Elementary School in North Texas. The statement which has since been deleted was posted on Facebook as education officials in Texas grapple with how to safely open schools this fall, while the state continues to report relatively high numbers of coronavirus infections and fatalities. PolitiFact ruling: Half True. While schools do stand to lose funding if they do not follow state guidelines when it comes to reopening their doors, districts have some flexibility in holding virtual school at the beginning of the year. That flexibility was expanded after the Facebook post was published. But if a school were to lose its state funding, it would not necessarily shutter its doors. Discussion: About PolitiFact PolitiFact is a fact-checking project to help you sort out fact from fiction in politics. Truth-O-Meter ratings are determined by a panel of three editors. The burden of proof is on the speaker, and PolitiFact rates statements based on the information known at the time the statement is made. See More Collapse With the exception of charter schools, public school districts are funded through a combination of local property taxes and state money. The state guarantees a certain amount of money per student to each district every year. Depending on how much the districts local property taxes cover, the state contributes additional funds to ensure each district has a certain amount of funding per child. The number of students that are factored into this calculation comes from average daily attendance for that year, which each district reports to the state. Schools also receive a minor funding allotment per day for students who need extra support, including low-income students and those with disabilities. This means schools with lower attendance rates receive less state funding. The state education agency released its first set of guidelines for the fall semester in early July, detailing requirements for districts in response to the pandemic. The TEA released updated guidelines on July 17 after pushback from some parents and school districts. The guidelines say that public schools must open classrooms for any family wanting a student to learn in person in order to keep all state funding, even in places where the bulk of learning is happening online. Under the guidelines, if every family at one school opted for online learning this fall, the school would still receive state funding even if the building is not physically open. But if even one family at a school wants a child to receive in-person instruction, that request must be accommodated in order for the school to maintain its state funding. This rule does not apply during the first three weeks of school, when districts have the option to limit in-person instruction. The second set of guidelines, which were released well after the Facebook post was made and deleted, said schools could remain virtual for four weeks with the option of extending to eight weeks with a vote from their local school board. Even with this delay, schools are required to provide on-campus instruction for students who do not have access to broadband internet or computers at home to complete their learning virtually. The latest guidelines also say that the state will not reduce funding to a school that is following the guidelines due to lack of attendance for the first 12 weeks of the school year. Instead, schools that are following the guidelines but struggling to maintain attendance numbers will receive funding based on either a three-year average attendance or an attendance projection. Virtual learning options There are two formats that virtual learning can take that still count toward student attendance: virtual class with teachers in real time (called synchronous learning) or a pre-approved plan involving tasks completed on a students own time (called asynchronous learning). Schools have the option to use either format or a combination for students learning virtually. For students opting to learn in real-time over apps like Zoom, teachers must teach for a certain number of minutes in order for it to count as a full day of school for attendance purposes. The number of minutes depends on the students age, and this style of learning is limited to students in third grade and above. For students learning on their own time, attendance will be based on an approved learning plan and will be measured through daily progress such as check-ins with teachers or the completion of assignments. This is the only virtual option available for students in prekindergarten through second grade, who the state decided are too young to participate in a synchronous learning program. For schools that offer both kinds of virtual learning, students can be considered present for the day for participating in either type of online learning or a combination. It is not clear yet how many families might choose remote learning versus in-person learning for the fall, and schools may opt to ask parents to commit to one option or the other ahead of the start of classes. Schools can also require that families that select online learning stick with that option for the rest of the grading period, which is usually six to nine weeks. The TEA guidelines acknowledge that some schools may need to pause in-person classes due to positive COVID-19 cases in schools. Schools without remote learning options available that are ordered to close under these circumstances will not receive funding for the closed days, unless those days are made up later. The Facebook post also claims that if schools do not open they will essentially close completely. There has been nothing in TEA guidelines or other communications that has suggested that schools that lose funding will stop operating. Rather, without state funding, districts would most likely have to reduce staff and cut certain programs, according to Clay Robison of the Texas State Teachers Association. Some districts are in worse shape than other districts. There are some districts out there who will hurt worse than others but its going to hurt everyone, he said. If they enact that penalty to cut off even part of state funding its going to hurt districts and they are going to have to make some cuts. Chinese State Councilor Wang Yong has called for all-out efforts in flood control and post-disaster recovery to ensure the safety of people's lives and property. Wang, also head of the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters, made the remarks during an inspection to east China's Anhui Province for flood control and disaster relief works in the region. Noting that risks and hidden dangers are rising as high water levels in rivers, lakes and reservoirs are threatening flood control infrastructure across the country, Wang stressed efforts to closely monitor the flood condition, strictly guard against safety risks and prepare for typhoons and heavy rainfalls, so as to prevent major disasters and casualties. He also asked local authorities to enhance support for the flood victims in terms of epidemic control, life assistance, production, hygiene and compensation to restore production and life orders as quickly as possible. Authorities should make sure that those who have shaken off poverty will not fall back to poverty due to the disasters, to secure a victory in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and winning the battle against poverty, said Wang. CalPERS Chief Investment Officer Ben Meng has filed demonstrably false financial disclosure documents, flouting the requirements of the California Fair Political Practices Commission. As a result, not only has Meng committed perjury, but CalPERS failure to review or require Meng to correct these documents points to a major compliance failure, since CalPERS has, or should have, records that would show that Mengs financial disclosures were incomplete.1 Recall that this lapse follows CalPERS having had a huge spike in personal trading violations, which it has yet to explain adequately, let alone describe what it will do to prevent abuses like that from recurring. Poor controls are a disaster in the making for a financial institution, as the Wells Fargo fake account train wreck illustrates. To make this sorry situation worse, CalPERS delayed releasing the Forms 700s until it became clear theyd be published regardless, suggesting that they were fully aware of this and potentially other lapses, yet refused to correct them.2 As we will also discuss, even the properly completed sections of Mengs forms raise concerns, since they show that he has financial conflicts of interest with respect to private equity and has had an appetite for highly speculative instruments. The latter worrisomely may explain Mengs appetite for risk now. Readers may recall that CalPERS has announced, with great fanfare, its plan to meet its 7% return target. It amounts to putting the available casino chips on the more risk numbers and then borrowing from the house to buy more chips to increase the size of the wager.3 Finally, this abuse by CalPERS top investment executive occurred just as CalPERS has been successfully moving forward legislation, AB 2473, to have its private debt investments, an area it intends to expand, exempt from Public Records Act disclosure. That means Meng could approve private debt deals that would benefit him or other CalPERS executives and the public would have no way of knowing. This bill has not yet gotten all the way through the legislature, so it is still possible it could be held back for badly-needed further review. Background: The Importance and Legal Status of the Financial Disclosure Form 700 Under Marcie Frost, CalPERS consistently failed to comply with its own transparency policy, which is to publish promptly all of the the personal financial disclosure forms known as Form 700 filed by board members and executives annually with the Fair Political Practices Commission. Form 700s are required of all public officials to show investments in their jurisdiction so as to present potential conflicts of interest. These are public records whether or not CalPERS posts them on its website as required by its own policy. The fact that CalPERS started foot dragging, posting them only after getting complaints, is a departure from its practice under previous CEOs. Needless to say, it creates the appearance that CalPERS was hiding something, meaning trying to protect an executive or board member. That concern looks to be well founded. After getting inquiries as well as a Public Records Act request from your humble blogger, CalPERS eventually put the 2019 Forms 700 on its site. As we will explain, the Forms 700 by Chief Investment Officer Ben Meng as of when he assumed office and for the full year 2019 taken together show that Meng has made many false statements. This means he has engaged in a felony. As you can see on first page of the Form 700, the respondent avows (emphasis original): I have used all reasonable diligence in preparing this statement. I have reviewed this statement and to the best of my knowledge the information contained herein and in any attached schedules is true and complete. I acknowledge this is a public document. I certify under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that the foregoing is true and correct. Perjury is a felony in California. And Meng has no excuse that he does know how to fill out this document. First, he was a Form 700 filer during his previous stint at CalPERS. Second, CalPERS staff sends multiple e-mails to Form 700 filers offering to help if they have any questions. This false declaration does not merely reflect poorly on Mengs integrity and competence. The forms also show that Meng has investments in private equity funds Ares (one of the five involved in the Fred Buenrostro bribery scandal), Blackstone, and Carlyle. As we will document shortly, CalPERS has made significant investments in Blackstone and Carlyle funds, raising the question of whether Meng recused himself (we have put in a Public Records Act request that should provide an answer) But first, let us explain why Mengs forms are false declarations. Mengs Felonious Forms We have embedded Mengs Form 700 filings at the end of this post. Note that the first one, dated January 31 2019, is as of Meng assuming office on January 2, 2019. This document is meant to show all relevant financial holdings on that date; the filers is not required to provide any history of his investments. You will see filers are not required to provide the exact dollar amounts of their positions, merely the size category each falls in. The annual form requires more information. Filers are required to list the name of any assets they held during the year if the position is worth more than $2000 at any point in the year, not just at year end. If they disposed of an asset, they must list the date of sale. If they bought and sold an asset during the the year, they are required to list that and provide the date of purchase and/or sale. If you compare the two forms, you can see on Mengs initial Form 700, under Schedule A-1, which is Stocks, Bonds, and Other Investments Meng lists 46 holdings as of January 2, 2019. His form for the full year shows only 22 holdings. As we show below, Meng disposed of at least 23 positions without providing the date of sale as required. And Meng cant pretend that he didnt understand that he was to list any security he held during the year and provide the sale date, since he did so with one investment:4 Note also that Meng more often than not refers to the same investment differently across the two forms, impeding comparison. For instance, Ares Capital is ARCC CAPITAL CORP. (ARCC) in Mengs initial filing and Ares Capital Corp in his 2019 annual filing; Open Joint Stock Company Gazprom (OGZPY) in the initial filing becomes PJSC Gazprom in the annual. And Meng did not use ticker symbols consistently even in his initial filing, witness Johnson & Johnson in Mengs initial filing. Meng also has two entries for GLD in his initial filing, one as SPDR GOLD SHARES (GLD), at the top of page 7 of the pdf, and SPDR GOLD TR GOLD SHS (GLD) at the bottom of page 8. Are these listed separately, with different names despite the same ticker because they are held at different brokerage firms? If so, does CalPERS have access to both sets of records? And do these apparently separate holdings add up to more than $100,000, which would have required them to show that higher total? As you will see in the tally below, this is not Mengs only duplicate item. Anyone in finance will tell you that this level of sloppiness is troubling. An error as minor as the omission of a period in the name of a secured loan in a contract can vitiate the security interest in that loan.5 More generally, financial services professionals fetishize the consistent use of legal names (or defined terms as substitutes) for among other reasons, accurate entry in databases to prevent back office errors, particularly in trades.6 Here are the names of the securities in Mengs initial filing that are missing in his 2019 annual filing. If you take the trouble to go through them, some of the initial filing names were two different securities name variants but with the same ticker symbol. The difference in names suggests Meng held the same security when he joined in two different accounts. This raises the question as to whether he failed to aggregate the total, creating a misleading impression (i.e., that he owned less than $100,000 in GLD when he in fact held more). In all cases where Meng showed two holdings of the same security at the start of 2019, he had either apparently sold it or corrected his reporting to show it as a single position in his full year 2019 filing. Here are the securities that were on Mengs start of 2019 report that disappeared entirely from his account for the full year: Agriculture Bank of China (ACGBY) Alcatel Lucent Sponsored Adr. Cesca Therapeutics Inc. China Construction Bank (CICHY) CMS Energy Corp (CMS) Fidelity California Municipal Fund (FCFXX) Fidelity Cash Reserves (FDRXX) General Electric Company (GE) Industrial & Comm. Bank of China Ltd. (IDCBY) IPATH SP 500 VIX SHORT TERM (vxx) ISHARE TRUST MSCI EMERGING MARKETS FUND (EEM) (listed twice) iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index (EEM) iShares MSCI Europe Financials ETF (EUFN) iShares Select Dividend (DVY) PDR INDEX SHS FDS EURO STOXX 50 ETF (FEZ) (listed twice) ProShares UltraShort Barclays 20+ Yr Treasury (TBT) Sonic Foundry SPDR EURO STOXX 50 ETF (FEZ) SPDR GOLD TR GOLD SHS (GLD)7 SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) Vicor Technologies, Inc. So 23 positions listed on Mengs initial Form 700, 21 representing separate securities, 2 as either a duplicate listing or a separate position in the same instrument, vanished when their disposition was required by law to have been accounted.8 Here are the companies with two entries with the same ticker, which appeared as only one (yet again different) name for the full year 2019. We show the ticker when listed and then the name presented in the full year 2019 report: (CMAKY) China Mingsheng Bank (SNP) China Petroleum & Chemical Corp (FXI) iShares China Large-Cap ETF And some telling details: Mengs initial Form 700 shows two highly speculative, as in day-trader-level speculative positions: the ProShares UltraShort Barclays 20+ Yr Treasury (TBT) and IPATH SP 500 VIX SHORT TERM (vxx). Both securities get the equivalent of investor black box warning. As this video explains, a levered ETF is suitable only for intra-day trading due to its high level of volatility drag. See here for another discussion. In keeping, the Barclays description of the instrument flag that the 2x feature only works for a single day: ProShares returns over periods other than one day will likely differ in amount and possibly direction from the target return for the same period. These effects may be more pronounced in funds with larger or inverse multiples and in funds with volatile benchmarks. The VIX ETF also has volatility drag, albeit not as severe. The point is that these instruments make sense only in very limited circumstances, and tend to be used/overused by individuals who love trading action. Their inclusion in Mengs portfolio are deeply troubling signs that of an appetite for risk for adrenalines sake. Mengs Private Equity Conflict of Interest Meng holds positions in three private equity fund managers: Ares, Blackstone, and Carlyle, despite or maybe because the industry has continued to extract high fees even as net results to investors like CalPERS continues to fall. CalPERS lost 5.1% in private equity last year, worse than the SP 500 and worse than CalPERS own public equity portfolio. No less than the Financial Times has decried the industrys fee grifting as the real Money Heist'. These investments create a general conflict of interest against Meng building up capabilities in house to make private equity investments in house to cut out fees and costs that CalPERS has estimated at 7% per year. That is the course of action recommended by CalPERS own private equity expert, Dr. Ashby Monk, as well as others. But if CalPERS were to announce such a move, it would have as dramatic an impact as former CIO Ted Eliopoulos 2014 decision to get CalPERS out of hedge funds. This legitimated and accelerated an exit that was already under way. In other words, Meng has put himself in and continues to remain in a position where doing the right thing by beneficiaries would hurt his personal balance sheet. CalPERS has also made large commitments to Blackstone and Carlyle funds since Meng became Chief Investment Officer. We have put in a Public Records Act request to obtain records of Mengs recusals. Since recusals have to be documented to have legal force, failure of or refusal by CalPERS to provide evidence that Meng had recused himself would be compelling evidence that Meng had failed to do so. Recall that Meng joined at the start of January 2019. See this entry from CalPERS Private Equity Program Fund Performance Review: The relevant columns are the two just to the right of the name. 2019 is the vintage year meaning when fund closed. $328,239,616 is the size of CalPERS commitment. CalPERS under Meng also committed $1 billion to Blackstone this year, as you can see on page 2 of this June 2020 presentation for the quarter ended March 31, 2020: CalPERS Trust Us Private Debt Bill CalPERS is sponsoring Assembly Bill 2473 (Cooper), changing current law to exempt Private Loans made by a Public Investment Fund from the California Public Records Act (CPRA). The bill is currently before the Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment, and Retirement. These Private Loans are a new and untested investment strategy which has not been commonly used for the investment of money held in trust to fund public pension obligations. These loans only have the potential to yield high interest if they are made to borrowers with a high risk of default or even bankruptcy. This bill was pitched by CalPERS staff as the only way that they can hit their 7-percent return target, but it contains sweeping secrecy provisions far beyond what might be seen as necessary to negotiate Private Loan deals. People are starting to wake-up and smell the coffee about CalPERS placing assets at risk by using leverage to engage in speculation. Pasadena City Manager Steve Mermell recently told Pasadena Now that he and the Pasadena City Council are opposed to the strategy now that theyve seen the details: I am concerned that in its efforts to achieve greater returns, CalPERS is taking on additional risk, by shifting more investments to private equity and more alarmingly, borrowing money to invest, Mermell told Pasadena Now. While the strategy may get results, just like gambling, the downside risks are too great and its the taxpayer that will end up footing the bill. Assemblymember Marc Levine (D-Marin) cast the sole vote opposing AB 2473. Assemblymember Levine went on the record with Ben Christoper of CalMatters, frankly stating: Its hypocritical for Democrats in the Legislature to allow CalPERS to hide the critical information about investments and investors while seeking disclosure from the president on his investments. Can you look more dopey than that? History also shows that these officials are right to be worried. CalPERS has pitched its bill as necessary for it to be able to get into banking. In the early 20th century, most states set up private banks for similar purposes. They all turned into cesspools of corruption. The only one that remains, North Dakotas private bank, is not a direct lender but a bankers bank, buying participations of in-state loans that it deems prudent. Finally, its cheeky for CalPERS to act as if it needs extra protection from Public Records Act inquires when it already routinely flouts the law. For instance, CalPERS has refused to provide copies of the resignation letters of recent high-level departures that are widely believed to have been forced out: Elisabeth Bourqui, Ron Legnado, and Paul Mouchakka. The First Amendment Coalition explains how case law makes these missives public records save for very limited, truly personal information, which would in most cases at most require that part of the letter be redacted. CalPERS has also refuse to let board members see these letters. So what is Marcie Frost trying to hide? * * * Speaking of Marcie Frost, who is responsible for this abject compliance failure? Narrowly, it is Frost. As the CEO, all CalPERS bucks stop at her desk, including whether to keep Meng on as Chief Investment Officer. Specifically, Marlene Timberlake DAdamo is the Chief Compliance Officer. Timberlake reports to Frost. Timberlake oversees Personal Trading Policy. Compliance has (or should have) records that showed incompleteness of Meng Form 700; if Compliance have those records, thats a red alarm event. But the Board clearly cant be bothered with compliance or even basic honesty. Longstanding former Board President Rob Feckner, who is still wields disproportionate influence, and his successor, Priya Mathur, both backed the former CEO, now imprisoned felon Fred Buenrostro, up to the end. And neither attempted to explain or apologize for the damage done by their dogged defense. Mathur supported Frost when she held onto flagrant resume fabricator and perjurer Charles Asubonten. This board has gone even further into dereliction of duty by delegating more investment authority to staff, with no checks and balances, when under the law, the board cannot delegate its responsibility. In particular, Lisa Middleton campaigned for the board even though its schedule conflicted with her board schedule at the Palm Springs city council, so she personally pressed for even less oversight in the form of shorter and less frequent board meetings, with CalPERS staff presenting a schedule that obligingly opened up her conflicted days. Since when is a self-created scheduling conflict more important than protecting CalPERS beneficiaries and taxpayers? Only when it allows CalPERS staff to evade supervision and a capture a board member. In keeping, Middleton, who is the co-chair of Risk and Audit, even voted against discussing CalPERS audits in closed session. Middleton is so any anti-transparency she does not want the board to discuss CalPERS internal audits! No other public agency in the state treat every internal audit as confidential. But Lisa Middleton is merely General Counsel Matt Jacobs cats paw. It is Matt Jacobs who has decided that he is in the business of protecting CalPERS executives and board members from embarrassment and accountability, as opposed to executing his sworn duties and protecting beneficiaries and taxpayers. One of Jacobs pet practices it to treat every internal CalPERS document as attorney client privileged when dragging a member of the legal department into a discussion does not confer privilege. There are boatloads of precedent showing that privilege exists only when a lawyer is providing legal advice, not when participating in discussions of mere political and business matters. Oh, and when this bad practice become institutionalized? When former CEO Anne Stausboll, herself an attorney and hence knew when Jacobs was way out on a limb legally, retired and was replaced by high school graduate Marcie Frost.9 CalPERS board and executives apparently lack the survival instincts to recognize that they cant escape accountability for much longer. When Mengs risky gambles fail to work out, they will be the ones holding the bag. The stunning spectacle of Kentuckys Republican attorney general Daniel Cameron suing Henry Kravis and Steve Schwarzman, two of the biggest Republican party funders, personally, along with their firms. shows that governments left holding public pension fund empty bags can and will turn on responsible parties. It wont be long before deeply-in-the-pension-hole states like Illinois and New Jersey start looking hard at suing pension boards and officers, both to collect on their D&O policies and to pressure them to get at misbehaving big fee fund managers on behalf of taxpayers. Oh, and as weve pointed out, the CalPERS D&O policies for board members are legally unenforceable. For board members who arent judgement proof to continue to act like potted plants is tantamount to buying personal bankruptcy futures. Not that they dont deserve it. _____ 1 The Forms 700 are filed with CalPERS, which keeps a copy and forwards the original to the Fair Political Practices Commission. 2 Meng could easily have filed an amended form. 3 This is not an exaggeration, as we explained in detail here: CalPERS Plans to Blow Its Brains Out: Seeks to Increase Risk by Boosting Private Equity, Private Debt, and Leveraging the Entire Fund. CalPERS plans to leverage its entire portfolio and invest more in private equity and add investments in private debt. CalPERS has given inconsistent answers as to how the borrowed funds will be deployed, but it has given the impression that they will go disproportionately to private equity and private debt. Note that other major investors, like German pension funds, use portfolio-level leverage to compensate for not investing in private equity, as to create a higher overall risk level than they can achieve with public securities, and not in addition to private equity and debt investments. 4 The observant may have noticed that Mengs initial form, as of when he assumed office, did not have the ACQUIRED or DISPOSED items with the year filled in, while his annual form for 2019 did. That is how the Fair Political Practices blank form reads, with the year supplied, presumably as a reminder that activity prior to the current year does not need to be reported. 5 Not making this up. My lawyer saw this happen in a case by one of her partners. The name in the contract was not the same as the name as in the UCC filings, and the difference really was all of a period. It still meant the parties to the contract were unable to go after the collateral. 6 Treating CalPERS as having financial professionals in its ranks regularly looks like a fact not in evidence. 7 If we are to accept Mengs filings on their face, as noted above, he had two separate holdings of GLD and disposed of one. Clearly other facts might hold. 8 It is in theory possible that all of these holdings fell so far in value that they were below the $2,000 minimum reporting threshold. Needless to say, that would not speak well of Mengs investment acumen. 9 There are many accomplished individuals who have graduated only from high school but have sought actively to acquire knowledge and/or technical skills on their own. Frost is not one of them. Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Monday said that the Ram Temple was not merely ''one more temple'' but was aimed at establishing the 'Ram Rajya'' in the country, where there was 'equality' and ''social harmony''. ''We believe that this massive effort is not only to build one more Temple...this campaign is for establishing Ram Rajya,'' central working president of VHP Alok Kumar said. In a statement here, Kumar said that the construction of the Temple was ''embroiled in the hurdles created by various governments, the manipulations by political forces and the long delays in the Courts''. For latest updates on Ayodhya Ram temple, click here ''We hope that in about three years, the devotees may be able to worship Ramlala in the sanctum sanctorum of the grand Temple,'' he added. ''The Ram Rajya will have a harmonious society based on equality, where every person will be treated with dignity...everyone will be assured food, clothing and shelter along with education and gainful vocations...the family values will be respected,'' he said. Kumar said that Lord Rama, during his wanderings in the forests, had seen the havoc caused by the terrorists' demonic activities and unsuitable alien culture. He had vowed to end the terrorists from the earth. VHP would also work for the development of the cow and its progeny, cow-based products and organic agriculture. For this purpose, the VHP would strengthen the training infrastructure for Gau-Palaks and farmers, he said. Regulatory News: Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (LN:PSHD) (NA:PSH) ("PSH") today announced that it has purchased, through PSH's agent, Jefferies International Limited ("Jefferies"), the following number of PSH's Public Shares of no par value (ISIN Code: GG00BPFJTF46) (the "Shares"): Trading Venue: London Stock Exchange Ticker: PSH Date of Purchase: 3 August 2020 Number of Public Shares purchased: 28,705 Shares Highest Price Paid Per Share: 1,900 pence 24.77 USD Lowest Price Paid Per Share: 1,870 pence 24.38 USD Average Price Paid Per Share: 1,885 pence 24.58 USD Ticker: PSHD Date of Purchase: 3 August 2020 Number of Public Shares purchased: 11,385 Shares Highest Price Paid Per Share: 24.50 USD Lowest Price Paid Per Share: 24.45 USD Average Price Paid Per Share: 24.48 USD Trading Venue: Euronext Amsterdam Ticker: PSH Date of Purchase: 3 August 2020 Number of Public Shares purchased: 24,173 Shares Highest Price Paid Per Share: 24.75 USD Lowest Price Paid Per Share: 24.35 USD Average Price Paid Per Share: 24.49 USD PSH will hold these Public Shares in Treasury. The net asset value per Public Share related to this buyback is 36.12 USD 27.60 GBP which was calculated as of 31 July 2020 (the "Relevant NAV"). After giving effect to the above buyback, PSH has 194,220,605 Public Shares outstanding, or 200,195,501 Public Shares calculated on a fully diluted basis (assuming that all Management Shares had been converted into Public Shares at the Relevant NAV). Excluded from the shares outstanding are 16,736,145 Public Shares held in Treasury. The prices per Public Share were calculated by Jefferies. The number of PSH Management Shares and the one special voting share (held by PS Holdings Independent Voting Company Limited) have not been affected. About Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (LN:PSHD) (NA:PSH) is an investment holding company structured as a closed-ended fund that makes concentrated investments principally in North American companies. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200803005793/en/ Contacts: Media Contact Camarco Ed Gascoigne-Pees Hazel Stevenson +44 020 3757 4989, media-pershingsquareholdings@camarco.co.uk Businesses across sectors are facing a slowdown and uncertainty due to the effects of the pandemic. During periods of uncertainty, individuals prefer to increase savings and create liquidity to meet unforeseen expenses. Inflows into equity mutual funds and SIPs may taper off further in the current environment, Sameer Kaul, CEO & MD at TrustPlutus Wealth Managers (India) said in an interview to Moneycontrol's Sunil Shankar Matkar. Edited excerpt: Q: What are your thoughts on geopolitical tensions - US-China and also India-China? Will both really hit Indian economic growth or is it just a sentimental effect? The emergence of geopolitical tensions did initially unnerve the markets. Geopolitical events can have an adverse effect on economic growth. However, the tensions are de-escalating and the current global liquidity supply should help India attract FIIs flows. Having said that, there are, as Mr. Roubini says White Swan events that the market needs to confront in the coming months with a possible resurgence in the infections, the US presidential elections and continuing geopolitical issues revolving around China, United States, Iran, Russia and North Korea. Q: Banking sector is expected to be hit by asset quality stress once the moratorium gets lifted from September onwards. But do you really think it is a big concern and as a result one should avoid the complete sector for investment? Also what are your thoughts on NBFC? In a recent speech, the RBI governor, Shaktikanta Das, stated that the economic impact of the pandemic may result in higher non-performing assets (NPAs) and capital erosion of banks. He also emphasized on the importance of recapitalization of both public sector banks and private banks. The NBFC sector is also facing its own set of challenges such as low disbursements, low investor confidence, higher funding costs and an increase in NPAs. That said, BFSI is one of the key sectors in the economy and meaningful economic growth is difficult without the participation of the BFSI sector. Rather than avoid the sector, one should look at allocating to some high quality institutions as part of their investment portfolio. Q: If a person at the age of 30 wants to build a portfolio of Rs 10 lakh, what should the proportion of investment in each segment which can balance the portfolio and what should he/she avoid while building a portfolio? The asset allocation of a client depends on his/her risk tolerance and also on the time horizon of investment. For a long term time horizon, the portfolio should be diversified between Equity (Domestic and International equities), Debt (Long and Short Term Debt) and Gold. In the absence of a risk profile, given the information in the question that the investor age is 30 years, we could suggest an allocation of 60 percent to equities, 30 percent to debt and 10 percent to Gold. Investments in equities can be in the form of direct equities, mutual funds, PMS' while investments in Debt can be through Mutual funds or by directly purchasing bonds issued by corporates. Investments in Gold can be through Gold ETFs or Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGBs). Q: Market rally was so sharp that benchmark indices shot up 50 percent from its March lows and the trend indicated that every dip has been being bought. Are you convinced with the rally given the rising COVID infections and expected weakness in the economy, or is the market pricing in something well in advance? Markets are always forward-looking, rather than looking in the rear view mirror. The market's performance over the past six months has been testimony to this fact. The economy looked largely unaffected during the early days of COVID-19 in March, when the number of confirmed cases were also lower. But the equity market, corrected significantly during that period. The skepticism in the market regarding the economic slowdown might be a bitter reality but the market seems to have already factored in the worst and is optimistically looking for a recovery in growth. The market rally has also been aided by the ample liquidity which has been provided by central banks and governments globally through various stimulus measures. Q: RBI policy meeting will be held in first week of August. What are your expectations from the policy and will the RBI cut rates further? The MPC has cumulatively cut the policy repo rate by 115 basis points over last two meetings. We expect the MPC to cut rates by 25 basis points in the forthcoming monetary policy review. This will be done mainly to focus on economy growth revival post the effects of the pandemic. Q: DIIs so far have been net sellers in July and MFs too. Do you expect the significant fall in inflows into equity funds in July and SIP to moderate further, why? Businesses across sectors are facing a slowdown and uncertainty due to the effects of the pandemic. During periods of uncertainty, individuals prefer to increase savings and create liquidity to meet unforeseen event. Inflows into equity mutual funds and SIPs may taper off further in the current environment given the uncertainty around jobs and possible salary cuts across sectors. : The views and investment tips expressed by investment expert on Moneycontrol.com are his own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. A regional body of the Church of the Brethren split late last month over the issue of homosexuality. This is the first official rift in a long-expected division of the Pietistic-Anabaptist denomination historically known as Dunkers. Nineteen of 42 churches withdrew from the Southeastern District Conference during an annual meeting in Jonesborough, Tennessee on July 25, according to the denominations official news site. The departing congregations want the Brethren to exercise more authority over ministers and congregations that deviate from the churchs official positions on human sexuality. The Church of the Brethren does not affirm LGBT ministers, unless they are committed to celibacy, nor does it allow ministers to perform same-sex wedding ceremonies. However, about 40 of the denominations roughly 1,000 congregations belong to the Supportive Communities Network, organized by the Brethren Mennonite Council for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Interests, and they have not been punished or expelled. One of the distinctives of the historic peace church has been its refusal to punish dissenters. The Brethren traditionally claim there should be no force in religion. Before the Tennessee meeting closed, moderator Steven Abe led the remaining churches in a blessing for the withdrawing churches and the withdrawing churches in a blessing for the remaining churches. The southeastern district, which includes Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee, and parts of North Carolina and Virginia, is one of 24 in the US. The majority of the churches that decided to leave are in East Tennessee and western North Carolina. Some are expected to join the Covenant Brethren Church, which was formed as a haven for potentially departing churches in 2019 with a statement about failure of the denomination to stand strong on biblical authority and address the homosexual issue. The Church of the Brethrens official statement about same-sex marriage dates to 1983, saying that covenantal relationships between homosexual persons are not acceptable. The statement also committed the Brethren to challenging openly the widespread fear, hatred, and harassment of homosexual persons and advocating the right of homosexuals to jobs, housing, and legal justice. It was reaffirmed in 2011. In 2017, though, the churchs annual conference recognized a lesbian couple co-pastoring a congregation in Pacific Northwest District, prompting talks of a split and a debate about the authority of the national organization to enforce the doctrinal standard. A faction of church leaders pushed for new policies allowing for tougher enforcement in 2018. The problem is that our denomination is being perceived as becoming a pro-homosexual denomination by default, Atlantic Northeast District representative Jim Myer said at the time. Not by a decision wed made, but by a default by not standing on the decision that we have made. Opponents warned that the solution could be more divisive than the problem. If you have a big hammer for same-sex marriage, the same big hammer is for women in ministry. The same big hammer is for church property matters, annual conference moderator Carol Sheppard told the Mennonite World Review. We sit in the middle, not making everyone perfectly happy but attempting to live with one another and prioritizing that. The enforcement proposals did not pass. Instead, the church launched a denomination-wide conversation called the Compelling Vision Process, which organized small discussion groups to consider the question, What compels you to follow Jesus? At a national young adult conference, the top answers to the question were: Jesuss love for us, community, discipleship, the life of Jesus, transformation, and Gods acceptance of all. At the 2019 annual conference, the adults top answers were salvation, Jesuss love for us, discipleship, and Jesuss love for others. The annual conference intends to produce a vision statement for all the churches, based on the two years of conversations. The statement is supposed to unify the Brethren and present the churches with a clear visionnotwithstanding ongoing disagreements and doctrinal diversitygoing forward. The articulation of the statement was scheduled for this year, but has been postponed to the 2021 meeting because of the pandemic. Critics say the process does nothing to address the elephant in the room. According to Brethren general secretary David Steele, the process was never supposed to be about homosexuality. It was intended to move the conversation above that to matters of faith and vision and where the church ought to be. Steele said the churchs response to division and controversy ought to be continuing conversation and prayer and reading Scripture together. For the dissenting Brethren, thats not good enough. You cant do outreach and mission work when your foundation is crumbling with a major issue thats sitting there, said Grover Duling, temporary head of the Covenant Brethren Church. I hope and pray that theres a miraculous healing that hasnt been present in the 40 years weve been trying to find our way around this huge divisive issue. The vast majority of countries on Ireland's 'green list' have seen a rise in Covid-19 infections since travel restrictions were lifted. Amid an alarming surge in cases of the coronavirus around the world, ministers are to consider even tougher rules around foreign travel rather than any relaxation of the current regime. Read More Thirteen of the 15 destinations selected by the Government as safe to travel to on July 22 are now seeing the number of cases rise again, as is Ireland. New figures from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) show that the four destinations on the green list most likely to be considered as holiday hotspots for Irish tourists are now considered far more at risk than two weeks ago. Cyprus recorded 9.9 cases of the virus per 100,000 of the population, while Malta has seen a massive 34.6 cases per 100,000. Italy is at 6 cases per 100,000, while Greece is at 5.6 per 100,000. In Ireland, where the number of cases of the infection is also on the rise, the rate per 100,000 is 7.3. This has caused concern for medics and the Government which must decide tomorrow whether to allow pubs to reopen on August 10. Cabinet ministers will this week discuss random testing of passengers at Irish airports in a bid to reduce the number of cases being imported. The green list is not likely to be extended. This means travellers from most countries into Ireland must continue to quarantine for 14 days after arrival. Globally, cases of Covid-19 are on the rise. The government of the Australian state of Victoria declared an official state of disaster and imposed new lockdown restrictions yesterday. As of last night, Melbourne was under a stage-four lockdown. The city has a night-time curfew between 8pm and 5am in a bid to crack down on illegal gatherings. And in the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson is considering new lockdown measures for London. Government ministers here will resume discussions on plans for a scheme of Covid-19 testing at airports when they meet again tomorrow. However, a well-placed source said it is most unlikely this already minimal green list will be expanded as a result of airport testing. The developments and trends are all going in the other direction right now. We dont expect a significant relaxation here, the source told the Irish Independent. Health Minister Stephen Donnelly yesterday said the Government is introducing random testing of passengers at Irish airports. Were introducing random testing at the airports and an increased public health presence, and we are examining other options, as well, for further restrictions on non-essential travel. The international situation is becoming more volatile, were looking at what has been happening in the United States and Latin America and even closer to home Spain, Germany, France and parts of England and Australia. Were taking a cautious approach and were continuing to take a cautious approach. The Department of Health announced 53 more confirmed cases of Covid-19 yesterday, bringing the national total so far to 26,162 cases. There were no deaths reported yesterday. Some 45 of the new cases are associated with outbreaks or close contacts of a confirmed case, while four have been identified as community transmissions. Dublin saw 25 of the new cases, while there were 19 in Laois, six in Kildare and the remaining three were spread across two other counties. Of the cases recorded, 27 are men and 26 are women, and 80pc are aged under 45, showing a continuing trend of younger people being affected. Acting chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn said the source of transmission for more than 90pc of the cases had been identified. This is a positive development in light of the number of cases reported over the past few days. However, our five-day average for cases reported is now 47. We all need to continue to adopt a prevention mindset and continue making good choices to protect ourselves and others while trying to live safely with Covid-19. People are still susceptible, this virus has not changed. Meanwhile, on the issue of reopening wet pubs on August 10, Mr Donnelly said the Government will make a decision based on advice from the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet). The Cabinet is to decide whether the country can proceed to phase four, which will allow pubs that do not serve food to reopen and for gatherings of more than 50 people. Mr Donnelly said he did not want to pre-judge what Nphet advises, and the Government is focused on reopening schools. I dont want to make any comments on that because that is something for Nphet to come to me with a view on on Tuesday, but it is certainly the case that decisions could be made if Nphet deemed necessary in order to keep the opening of schools on track, he said. I dont want to prejudge what Nphet may decide. Certainly, the number-one focus is getting the schools reopened. Sushant Singh Rajputs father alleged on Monday that the Mumbai Police were warned about threat to the actors in February but they failed to take note of it and also did not act on complaints after his death on June 14. Krishna Kishore Singh, who issued a video statement, recounted the sequence of events that led to his lodging a complaint with the police in Patna. I had told the Mumbai Police in February that my son Sushant faced a threat to his life but it did nothing. When my son died on June 14, I requested them to take action against named persons. But nothing came of it even after 40 days. Left with no other option, I lodged a case at a police station here in Patna, Singh said. Patna police swung into action immediately, Singh said. He thanked chief minister Nitish Kumar and state minister Sanjay Jha who came forward to stand for the truth. Singh, in his complaint on which an FIR was lodged on July 25, accused actress Rhea Chakraborty and her family members of abetting his sons suicide, besides defrauding him of his money and subjecting him to blackmail. In a press note, the Mumbai Police rejected the claim by Rajputs father and said they did not receive any written complaint about threat to the actors life. Back in Bihar, the demand for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe resonated in the state assembly on Monday. The demand was first raised by Neeraj Kumar Singh Bablu, a BJP legislator and Rajputs cousin, when members were allowed to speak on the subject by speaker Vijay Kumar Chaudhary after the passage of 12 bills by the House, which assembled for a truncated, day-long monsoon session. The demand was backed by leader of the opposition Tejashwi Yadav, Congress legislature party leader Sadanand Singh, and Raju Tiwari, an MLA of Ram Vilas Paswans LJP, among others. 'Independent' observation based on lies in Xinjiang unaccepted Global Times Source: Global Times Published: 2020/8/2 23:28:40 China will not accept so-called independent observation of human rights in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region as it is only some countries' trick to crack down against countries who are different from theirs and it will not bring justice but only indulge those rumor-mongers, the Chinese Embassy in France said Sunday in response to France's recent suggestion of a UN-led observer mission to evaluate the treatment of the Uygurs in Xinjiang. In a BBC interview with a Uygur woman named Zumrat Dawut [in July], the latter claimed she was "detained in re-education camp" and "her father died recently from unclear reason during detention by the Xinjiang government." But the fact is she never studied in any vocational education and training center in Xinjiang and her father stayed with the family until he died on October 12, 2019 of heart disease, according to the embassy. She also claimed she was forced to undergo a hysterectomy. But the fact is that she gave birth to a third child at a hospital in Urumqi in Xinjiang in 2013, and the hospital gave her a Caesarean section and tubal ligation and never removed her uterus, the embassy said. What Zumrat Dawut said are all lies and one of her brothers has publicly called on her to stop telling lies, the embassy noted. After the report, France joined the US and the UK in criticizing China over the human rights of Uygurs in Xinjiang. On July 28, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian called for a UN-led observer mission to evaluate the treatment of the group, media reported. A so-called "international independent observation" based on lies will not lead to justice but indulgence and encouragement to rumor-mongers, the embassy said in a statement released on its website. Those people care nothing about the human rights of Uygurs but only aim to defame and smear China and make trouble for China, the embassy noted. Such tricks can be found everywhere in history. What would your country do if some people faked a rumor about your country and called for an "international independent observation" based on it? You may accept one such investigation, but what if rumor-mongers make up 10 or 100 more lies and call for investigations, read the embassy's statement. We propose an investigation into these rumors and lies rather than into China, the embassy said. The embassy stressed that China welcomes foreigners to visit and learn about the real Xinjiang and always holds an open attitude to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet's visit to Xinjiang, welcoming her to make equal communication without making presuppositions rather than conducting a so-called observation as China is not guilty. Since 2018, more than 1,000 diplomats, international organization officials, journalists and religious leaders have visited Xinjiang and admitted that what they saw in the region is absolutely different from what Western media depicted. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) has refuted allegations of intimidation and prevention of eligible persons from registering in the ongoing voter registration in the residents of Banda Constituency. According to GAF, there is no iota of truth in the reports. The GAF further denied targeting any particular tribe and admonished the public to disregard those stories. The General Secretary of the NDC, Mr. Johnson Asiedu Nketiah has been seen in a video on social media complaining about the presence of the military in the Banda area and arguing that soldiers were not supposed to be part of the registration process. Some reports have suggested the military was preventing non-residents and people deemed not to be Ghanaians from registering in the area. But a statement issued and signed by Colonel E. Aggrey Quashie, Director of Public Relations explained that the Militarys presence in the constituency is an agreement between both the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and New Patriotic Party (NPP) to provide security in the area. Following the reported allegation of registration restrictions being placed on a section of the community in the Banda area by the military, it has become necessary to situate the issue in context and set the record straight. The military wishes to state that on 30th July 2020, the Bono Regional Security Council met representatives of the two main political parties NPP and NDC to deliberate on the peaceful conduct of the registration exercise. This was in the wake of the disturbances that resulted in the unfortunate demise of one person. The Agreement signed by Mr. Joe Danquah (NPP) and Hon Ahmed Ibrahim (NDC MP Banda) and witnessed by the Hon. Regional Minister stated as follows We the undersigned agreed today to maintain peace in the Banda District during the remaining days of the voter's registration exercise and after until the end of the 2020 general elections December 2020, the statement read. The full details of the Agreement were as follows: That the REGSEC will give the necessary security to the Banda Constituency and the entire Region, before, during, and after the process of the 7th December Election. The REGSEC and the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders should meet the Chiefs to determine the boundaries of Banda. The two Parliamentary Candidates (Mr. Joe Danquah and Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim MP) should stop bussing people to the registration centres, if indeed they were ordinary residents; they should go there on their own volition. Political parties should educate their agents at the registration centres to fill challenge forms in challenging people whose citizenship or residency they doubted. That no physical violence should be used in preventing people from registering. That the two candidates should pledge their support to ensure peace in the Constituency by signing the Peace Agreement offered by REGSEC. Read the full statement below; Source: Josephine Acheampomaa/[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 Raksha Bandhan is meant to be a day of love and camaraderie where loved ones offer protection to their family and friends. But for Delhi-based historian Rana Safvi, the last few years of the festival have been nothing but full of pestilential abuse and trolling. All for a mistake that she never committed. While Rakhi festivities remained low key this year due to the coronavirus, misinformation and divisiveness on the internet peaked. It all began when a Twitter account called 'True Indology' that is known for making controversial statements on the microblogging site mounted an attack on historian Rana Safvi about an old article that appeared in the Hindustan Times in December 2018 following the release of her book 'City of My Heart'. The tweet referred to Safvi as an "eminent historian" who was spreading "blatant lies" about the origin of Raksha Bandhan. This "eminent historian" declares that Mughals invented Rakhi in 18th century. Such blatant lies contradict every available primary source. Anyone having elementary knowledge would laugh at these factually incorrect lies. But in India such authors are promoted by establishment pic.twitter.com/r6A4lJgscz True Indology (@TIinExile) August 3, 2020 The article was titled, "How Mughal Delhi Gave Birth to Raksha Bandhan" and delved into a story about Mughal emperor Alamgir II in 1759 who was ambushed and killed by his wazir Gazhi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung - III. The story goes that the wazir lured the king to the Jama Masjid in Feroz Shah Kotla, killed him, and threw his body into the river. A Hindu woman found the body of the emperor floating along the river the next day and retrieved it. The woman allegedly guarded Alamgir's body until his coterie arrived and he was buried in Humayun's tomb. To honour the woman, the emperor's successor declared the woman his sister. From then on, on the festival of Raksha Bandhan - which the Mughal referred to as Salona - the Hindu woman would come to the Mughal court to tie a Rakhi to the Mughal king and receive gifts in return. This account first appeared in a book called Bazm-e-Akhir written by a Mughal courtier Munshi Faizuddin in 1885. Safvi translated the book in 2018 and the Hindustan Times article was published soon after. The article, however, misquoted Safvi in the headline and the blurb which read, "not many know that Raksha Bandhan is actually a Mughal festival that originated in the heart of Delhi". "It was an error on the part of the publisher. The headline and the blurb was not written by me. The Mughals did not "bring" Raksha Bandhan to India, they embraced the festival. If anything, the story only highlights how Hindu traditions were often embraced by Mughal rulers," Safvi tells News18 in a phone conversation. The historian clarified that when the 2018 article came out with the misrepresenting headline, she instantly wrote to the editor of the paper and had a correction issued. The paper ran a corrected version of the story with a fresh headline a blurb, "How the Mughal Court Embraced Raksha Bandhan". The corrected blurb read, "Shah alam II began the practice of celebrating Salona (Raksha Bandhan) to honour a Hindu woman". Despite the correction, trolls have not left Safvi alone and have for the second year dug up the erroneous article to malign Safvi. Trolls called her a liar and a fraud and also made communal attacks on her. Mughals, in fact, became one of the top trends on Twitter in Delhi. "I know why they do it. On social media, I always highlight instances of communal harmony, of the shared culture between Hindus and Muslims in India which dates back to hundreds of years. This irritates many far-right sections on the internet who have made it their agenda to spread fake news and malign intellectuals and scholars," Safvi said. This is not the only issue that Safvi is trolled for on the internet. A few days ago when the Masjid Mubarak Begum built-in 1822 was damaged by lightning and heavy rain in Delhi, Safvi was trolled for sharing the story of its namesake courtesan Mubarak Begum in whose honour the mosque was built. Many blamed her for being in approval of the speculated forced conversions of Hindu girls into Islam that took place in the Mughal era and would continue to this day if it remained unchecked. "They think I want to convert everyone and everything to Islam including history," the historian chuckles. But the problem of lack of safeguards against trolls on social media is not just one faced by Safvi alone. Several academics, especially women, who are unafraid to raise their voice against misinformation and abuse are repeatedly targeted by trolls on Twitter. Professor Audrey Truschke who authored 'Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King' is often at the receiving end of vitriolic trolling and misinformation campaigns on Twitter. Unlike Truschke, however, who is always on the front foot when it comes to dealing with trolls, Safvi has so far taken a softer stance. Until now. "So far I used to just clarify the misinformation, if any, and let the trolls continue with whatever they are doing. But now it's getting out of hand," a concerned Safvi said. China now deploys PLA battalion near Uttarakhand's Lipulekh Pass Peoples Republic of China (PRC) continued its border provocation with fresh deployment of a PLA battalion near Uttarakhands Lipulekh Pass, in a signal that it has no intention of ending the border dispute anytime soon. Lipulekh Pass is a tri-junction between India, Nepal and China situated atop the Kalapani Valley and the deployment coincides the Nepal governments release of a revised official map which has included Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh, and Kalapani areas as its territory. Meanwhile, China is buying time in the name of disengagement and maintaining peace along the LAC through diplomatic and military talks in order to strenghten its position along the LAC. A report in the Hindustan Times said China has amassed troops across the LAC at Lipulekh Pass, parts of North Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. Lipulekh Pass has been in the news from the past few months after defence minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated an 80-km road to which Nepal objected and released a revised map showing Lipulekh, Limpiyadhura, and Kalapani as its territory. The new road will connect the Lipulekh pass in Uttarakhand with Kailash Mansarovar route in China. Indian Army commanders say Chinese troops have bolstered strength in the depth areas, and are pushing infrastructure projects on the Chinese side, while augmenting presence on its side of the LAC elsewhere also. Chinas new move seems to be in coordination with Nepals Oli government which changed its political map adding the Kalapani area, including Lipulekh, which lies close to the tri-junction of India-China-Nepal. At Lipulekh Pass, PLA has moved a battalion - approximately a 1,000 soldiers - at some distance from the border. It is a signal that the Chinese troops are prepared, a second army officer said. He added that India has matched the strength of the PLA troops and is keeping a close watch on Nepal in context of its recent border claims. The situation on the Line of Actual Control remains dynamic with the PLA trying to emphasise its presence beyond Ladakh by building infrastructure on their side of the LAC, the top military commander quoted above said. In Ladakh and elsewhere, the Indian Army is getting set for a long haul through the winter irrespective of how the disengagement and de-escalation efforts work out. New Delhi, meanwhile, is looking for emergency purchases of high-altitude clothing and snow tent and has sounded out its embassies in the US, Russia and Europe to locate manufacturers. In case of difficulty in locating fresh supplies, there is a plan B to divert stocks from locations such as Thoise, the base station for soldiers deployed in Siachen Glacier. Although the PLA has disengaged from patrolling points 14 (Galwan), 15-16 (Hot Springs), some of the troops are still on forward location at patrolling point 17 A (Gogra) and withdrawal from all contested finger features is a distance away at the Pangong Tso. US astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, who flew to the International Space Station in SpaceX's new Crew Dragon, splashed down in the capsule in the Gulf of Mexico on August 2 after a two-month voyage that was NASA's first crewed mission from home soil in nine years. Behnken and Hurley undocked from the station on Saturday and returned home to land in the waves off Florida's Pensacola coast on schedule at 2.48 pm ET following a 21-hour overnight journey aboard Crew Dragon "Endeavor." The successful splashdown was a final key test of whether Elon Musk's spacecraft can transport astronauts to and from orbit -- a feat no private company has accomplished before. "On behalf of the SpaceX and NASA teams, welcome back to Planet Earth. Thanks for flying SpaceX," SpaceX mission control said upon splashdown. For the return sequence, on-board thrusters and two sets of parachutes worked autonomously to slow the acorn-shaped capsule, bringing Behnken and Hurley's speed of 17,500 miles per hour in orbit down to 350 mph upon atmospheric reentry, and eventually 15 mph at splashdown. During reentry to Earth's atmosphere, the capsule's outer shell withstood temperatures as high as 3,500 Fahrenheit while Behnken and Hurley, wearing SpaceX's white flight suits strapped inside the cabin, experienced 85 Fahrenheit. The crew will spend up to an hour floating inside the capsule before joint recovery teams from SpaceX and NASA retrieve them for a helicopter trip ashore. There they will undergo medical checks ahead of a flight to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Billionaire entrepreneur Musk's SpaceX became the first private company to send humans to orbit with the launch of Behnken and Hurley, who have spent more than two months on the space station. The landmark mission, launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center on May 31, marked the first time the U.S. space agency launched humans from American soil since its shuttle program retired in 2011. Since then the United States has relied on Russia's space program to launch its astronauts to the space station. Behnken and Hurley's homecoming was also the first crewed splashdown in an American capsule in 45 years. The pair undocked from the space station late on Saturday and began gradually decreasing their orbital altitude overnight, awaking Sunday morning to recorded wake-up calls from their sons. "Good morning Dragon Endeavor," Hurley's son said in a recorded message sent to the capsule. "I'm happy you went into space but I'm even happier that you're coming back home." NASA officials have said Crew Dragon, a pod with seven astronaut seats, was in a "very healthy" condition while docked at the space station, where astronauts conducted tests and monitored how the spacecraft performs in space. NASA, aiming to galvanize a commercial space marketplace, awarded nearly $8 billion to SpaceX and Boeing Co collectively in 2014 to develop dueling space capsules, experimenting with a contract model that allows the space agency to buy astronaut seats from the two companies. "Great to have NASA Astronauts return to Earth after very successful two month mission," President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter. "Thank you to all!" Publicans may be left out in the cold again, after the Health Minister failed to confirm all pubs will be allowed to reopen on August 10. Minister Stephen Donnelly refused to be drawn on the reopening of all pubs, saying the State's priority was to open up schools at the end of August and start of September. So-called 'wet' pubs, those that don't serve food, had been due to trade again as part of Phase 4 of the reopening of the economy after lockdown but a decision will now not be made until next week. Minister Donnelly told RTE's This Week programme: "I don't want to make any comments on that because that is something for Nphet (National Public Health Emergency Team) to come to me with a view on Tuesday. "But it is certainly the case that decisions could be made if Nphet deemed necessary in order to keep the opening of schools on track. Nightlife "We have closely followed public health advice, both the previous government and this Government, and that has served the country very well. "So, I don't want to prejudge what Nphet may decide. "Certainly, the number one focus is getting the schools reopened." The health minister added that he is sympathetic to publicans, however nightlife had led to an increase in the infection rate in other countries. "I asked exactly this question to the public health officials and what they said was, the international experience shows that when the pubs reopen the number of new cases goes up," he said. "What they found was that this doesn't seem to be the case with restaurants, for example, which is why they advised that restaurants could open with all of these with the restrictions in place. "So the public health officials are concerned about what has happened in other countries. "But the publicans are in a very, very difficult position, and I have huge sympathy with them and the Government has huge sympathy with them." Nphet will provide its recommendations to the Government tomorrow against a backdrop of rising cases in Ireland, in recent days. Wayne Harding, owner of the Village Inn, in Slane, Co Kildare, told the Herald: "There's only 15 pubs in Temple Bar and there are 3,000 pubs across the country, village pubs without high density some in the countryside with picnic tables and outdoor facilities. "It's no longer the case that one date fits all. I can't see, considering the rising cases, how Temple Bar pubs can reopen on August 10 but loads of pubs in the country could open. "How can one pub open because they sell food and another not? Does food mean you won't catch this disease? "We feel we can operate safely as any pub already open has. We closed in March because of the threat to our healthcare system and to keep the fatalities down. "Now they are potentially looking at extending the closure because the priority is to open the schools. "I support both keeping frontline staff safe and I have children going to school and I want the schools to reopen. "But If I start selling pizza in the morning, I can open - it's ludicrous." Meanwhile, in the UK it emerged that pubs may have to close once again, to assist with the reopening of schools. A number of cases has been linked back to pubs in the UK. Alabama college students will face a new normal when they return to campus that will include mandatory testing for coronavirus, as well as required and encouraged use of technology to slow the outbreak. In addition to requirements that students test negative for the virus before returning to campus, students at many Alabama colleges will be required to report online whether they are feeling common symptoms of COVID-19, and will be strongly encouraged to use an exposure notification app, which will alert them if they have been in close proximity to someone who later tests positive for the virus. University of Alabama System officials say the comprehensive re-entry program called GuideSafe, will greatly reduce the risk of outbreaks on college campuses this fall. UA Chancellor Finis St. John said during a Monday press conference with Alabama State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris and officials at the University of Alabama at Birmingham who designed GuideSafe, that colleges can reopen safely, but it will require cooperation from students, parents and faculty. These people have worked for months to provide a platform for school to be safe this fall, St. John said. I believe the result of that is that we have the most comprehensive, most advanced system in the country. Now, it depends on our parents, our students, our faculty and our staff to do their part, we will be asking more of students and staff in fact, this semester than we ever had. Program includes testing, symptom tracker, contact tracing app Students will be required to test negative before arriving on campus and to use a symptom tracker called Healthcheck periodically while classes are in session. Students will complete a brief survey about whether they are feeling symptoms commonly associated with the coronavirus the first time they use Healthcheck, and will be sent reminders to follow up afterwords. Follow-up surveys take less than 20 seconds, the team says. For students who do not complete their Healthcheck surveys at intervals determined by each participating school, notifications will be sent to the student health center for follow-up. For employees who do not complete the survey, notifications will be sent to their supervisor. The students and employees are also being highly encouraged to download and use a exposure notification or contact tracing app on their phones, which uses Bluetooth signals to detect other phones within close proximity. If a person later reports that they have tested positive for the coronavirus, the app will send an alert to the mobile devices that were in close proximity to that persons phone for more than 15 minutes during the previous several days. Officials believe that can be a tool used to stop outbreaks earlier and let people know if they should get tested for the virus before they begin feeling symptoms. While the contact tracing app is not mandatory, it is being highly encouraged for student use. Harris said the app could be invaluable to the Alabama Department of Public Health, as it attempts to trace contacts of people who have tested positive for the virus. Students at most campuses will also be required to wear face masks in public settings even if Alabamas statewide mask order is allowed to expire at the end of August. App pilot now available The contact tracing app is now available for download as a pilot for people who have a .edu email address, said UAB informatics professor Sue Feldman. The pilot testing is available to the first 10,000 people who register on each platform, Google and Apple. Feldman said the state chose to use Google and Apples framework to develop its contact tracing app due to privacy concerns with other apps. Alabamas app does not store user identifying information or location data. The app only records unique identifier numbers of other devices that come into close proximity. The app will then anonymously inform users of any possible exposure without disclosing the time or location when the exposure took place. Feldman also said the terms of the states agreement with Google and Apple prevents the universities from requiring students use the app, but it is being strongly encouraged. The app was developed by the ADPH, UAB and Birmingham-based tech startup MotionMobs. After the one-month pilot program, the app will be available for the general public through the Google and Apple app stores. Yes, testing really is mandatory for most students Almost all of the roughly 200,000 students who plan to attend college or university classes in Alabama will be required to test negative for coronavirus before returning to campus, St. John said. The program is believed to be the largest testing initiative for college students in the country. St. John said COVID-19 testing would be required at the three UA System campuses, in Tuscaloosa, Birmingham and Huntsville, and at many other colleges and universities across the state. Testing before you return is mandatory, St. John said. You will not be allowed to move into on-campus residences or register for classes until you can show you have tested negative. Auburn University has also announced it will require a negative test for students to return to campus. System officials had said for weeks that students would likely be required to test negative before returning to campus, but St. John made that clear for the three UA System campuses. He spoke on Monday in an online press conference with university officials and Dr. Scott Harris, Alabama State Health Officer. The testing is being funded by $30 million in coronavirus relief funds allocated to Alabama by the federal CARES Act. On July 25, UA System officials unveiled a plan to offer testing for every college student in the state at no cost to the student. The program was made available to every public and private two- or four-year college in the state, and organizers said more than 50 schools are participating in the program. Students at participating schools will receive an email at their official .edu email address urging them to make an appointment and get tested at one of 13 sites across Alabama. Out-of-state students will be sent a kit to collect their own samples and mail it back to the lab for testing. The costs of the testing and processing are covered by the CARES Act funds. Our ability to test every student returning to campus is essential in helping us maintain a safe environment, said Dr. Selwyn Vickers, dean of the UAB School of Medicine. Through this partnership with Governor Ivey and the state of Alabama, we have the ability to make testing available across the UA System and to all public and private colleges and universities statewide. Each college or university will can decide whether to require testing for students, but St. John said most participating schools are doing so. Its important for students to access these resources now, and make arrangements to have your test, because it will be required, he said. A senior judge has been nominated by his colleagues as another candidate to replace one of the three members of Armenias Constitutional Court who were controversially dismissed in June. The nominee, Yervand Khundkarian, has headed the Court of Cassation, the countrys highest body of criminal and administrative justice, for the last two years. His candidacy was backed by 145 of 195 Armenian judges who gathered and voted in Yerevan at the weekend. The vote resulted from constitutional changes passed by the Armenian parliament in June. They call for the gradual resignation of seven of the Constitutional Courts nine justices installed before April 2018. Three of them are to resign with immediate effect. Also, Hrayr Tovmasian must quit as court chairman but remain a judge. Tovmasian and the ousted judges have refused to step down, saying that their removal is illegal and politically motivated. They have appealed to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to have them reinstated. Under Armenian law, the government, a general assembly of judges of all courts and the president of the republic must each field one candidate to fill the three high court vacancies. The parliament controlled by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinians My Step bloc will then vote to confirm or reject them. The government picked its candidate on July 23. President Armen Sarkissian has yet to name his nominee. Some lawyers and human rights criticized the judges decision to choose Khundkarian, saying that he took the bench in 2001 and must have therefore been loyal to Armenias former governments. One of those lawyers, Nina Karapetian, claimed that this fact alone runs counter to the stated purpose of judicial reforms initiated by the current authorities. The authorities say that their persistent efforts to get rid of Constitutional Court members installed by the former regimes are part of the reforms. Critics maintain, however, that Pashinian is simply seeking to take control of the court. Alexey Sukoyan, one of the judges who voted to nominate Khundkarian for the Constitutional Court, defended the 47-year-old with whom he had worked in the same court in the 2000s. I consider him a good specialist and a very honest person, he said. Sukoyan also said that Khundkarian has specialized in civil law and never dealt with politically charges cases. We worked in parallel with the former authorities and were not one of their components, he told RFE/RLs Armenian service. Khundkarian made headlines in 2004 when he served as an economic court judge and ruled against the independent TV station A1+ controversially pulled off the air in 2002. A1+ took legal action in a bid to win another broadcasting license. The current governments pick for the Constitutional Court, Vahram Avetisian, has also caused controversy. In a joint petition issued late last month, several dozen supporters of former President Levon Ter-Petrosian and relatives of protesters killed during the 2008 post-election unrest in Yerevan urged the government to withdraw the nomination. They said, in particular, that Avetisians father Davit upheld prison sentences handed to opposition members and supporters when he served as a senior Court of Cassation judge from 2008-2016. Avetisian, who is a senior law professor at Yerevan State University (YSU), has dismissed the objections to his candidacy, saying that they are fuelled by individuals motivated by their parochial and factional interests. Gutting the WHO, the only instrument of global cooperation during a pandemic, is a road to disaster. by Prabir Purkayastha Microbes do not recognize borders. We are all safe only when everybody is safe. In a pandemic, to attack the only body we have for global cooperation endangers everyone. That is why the U.S. withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) is dangerous not only for the United States, but for all of the world. Trumps decision to withdraw from the WHO is a continuation of his wielding a wrecking ball to the international framework of treaties and organizations. Whether it is arms control, climate change, trade or the WHO, the United States sees these agreements and institutions as fetters on its hegemonic powers to shape the world. Trump may express this pathology in its most ugly form, but the disease runs far deeper. Trumps excuse for withdrawing from the WHO is that it did not do its job well on the COVID-19 epidemic and was soft on China. Condemning Trumps move, Devi Sridhar, professor of global public health at the University of Edinburgh and adviser to the Scottish government, tweeted, Donald Trumps withdrawal of U.S. from the WHO ignores the key role the agency plays in outbreak prevention and response. Not only for COVID, but also for polio, malaria, TB, plague, yellow fever, cholera, Zika virus, and neglected tropical diseases. She also pointed out that it is because of such international agreements that the WHO received information from China on the novel pathogen on December 30, 2019, and declared the highest alarm bell the world hasa Public Health Emergency of International Concernon January 30, 2020. Trump is trying to pass the buck to the WHO for his administrations abject failure to prepare the United States for the COVID-19 pandemic and its handling of the epidemic. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) could not even prepare a proper test kit for two months for detecting SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease. China, Germany and South Korea, to name a few, all had working test kits well before the CDC. One of these, Berlins Charite hospital test kit, has been supplied by the WHO to more than 120 countries. The WHO had delivered this test kit to 57 countries well before the CDCwith an annual budget almost three times WHOs (the CDCs annual budget is about $6.8 billion against the WHOs two-year budget for 2020-2021 of about $4.8 billion)could get its test kits to work. The United States has a bipartisan unity on its being the sole global hegemon. Its wars of invasionfrom Korea to Vietnam, Afghanistan to Iraqhave had bipartisan support. Its right wing, which in any other part of the world would be regarded as the loony right, believes that it can impose its will on the world through unilateral action: using military force and economic sanctions. The other side, the more globalist rightthere is no left or centrist forces in the U.S. leadership of either partybelieves that this hegemony can be exercised more easily with a combination of using the global institutions from within and unilateral action outside. What Does the WHO Do, and What Are the Risks to the World of a U.S. Pullout? Almost all countries have reposed their faith in the WHO as the only international instrument we have in fighting pandemics and infectious diseases. So the U.S. action will inflict some financial damage to the WHO, but it is not a threat to its existence or mandate. The WHO has an annual budget of about $2.2-2.4 billion (its two-year budget for 2018-19 is $4.4 billion, and its two-year budget for 2020-21 is $4.8 billion). According to the WHO, about 80 percent of its budget is funded by voluntary contributions made by member countries as well as organizations including philanthropic foundations and the private sector. The remaining 20 percent is covered by what are called assessed contributions of countries. The assessed contribution of the United States is about $120 million for the year 2020. Based on the Congressional Research Services figures for U.S. voluntary contributions to the WHO from 2012 to 2018 (data is not available for 2019-2020, it says), it is my estimate that the U.S. voluntary contribution to the WHO for 2020 is about $320 million, and that, along with its assessed contribution of $120 million, is about 20 percent of the WHOs current $2.2-2.4 billion annual budget. Because the assessed contributions are too low to fund the WHO on their own, voluntary contributions from countries and private funders have become the major component of its budget. Consequently, the WHO has become progressively more dependent on private interest groups and country interests that then dominate its agenda. After the United States and the UK, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is the third biggest contributor to the WHOs total budget. Compared to its mandate of health for all, and fighting disease and epidemics across the world, it is a measly budget. Just put the WHO budget numbers in perspectiveas I mentioned above, the U.S. CDCs annual budget is roughly three times bigger than that of the WHO. The WHO also has no powers over sovereign countries, and has to work with governments. Even with these constraints, the WHO has had remarkable success in eradicating smallpox, bringing down the number of polio infections from the scourge they once were to todays small numbers, and interventions in other infectious diseases. Controlling the Ebola epidemic required multi-country and multi-agency cooperation that would not have been possible without the WHOs intervention (albeit its efforts had some critics). It is the only agency with technical competence, drawn from different regions, that can coordinate the efforts of different countries and their agencies. Sure, we can criticize the WHO for its mistakes, initially on not advising the wearing of masks and not emphasizing the role of airborne fine droplets or aerosols in closed spaces. However, it raised the flag of pandemic early, it came out with clear recommendations on testing and tracking, and its multidisciplinary team worked with China to control the epidemic there, figuring out information essential to combat the virus and sharing it with the world. A WHO report released on February 24 based on its collaboration with China made other countries aware that controlling the spread of COVID-19 required a more stringent protocol that is more like that of SARS than the flu. As a result, policy changes were made in countries like New Zealand. Countries who had experienced the 2003 SARS outbreak, such as Vietnam and South Korea, were already following SARS protocol of using masks, extensive testing and isolating those infected. Vietnam, in spite of a shared border with China, has controlled the epidemic completely and has not reported a single COVID-19 death. Why is the WHOs coordinating role so important? Unlike human populations, microbes have no borders. They travel not only locally through water and air, but also, in an interconnected world like ours, via passengers traveling by air, water or land. They infect animals and birds, both domesticated and in the wild. That is why quarantining the infected and isolating countries from others is only a short-term measure. The only long-term way to fight epidemics is either to eradicate it completely or to confine it to small pockets of outbreaks, through vaccines and other public health measures. This battle cannot be won by one country. That is why gutting the WHO, the only competent public health instrument of global cooperation we have, is a road to disaster. While there have been many warnings that a new pandemic was inevitable, the flu virus was thought to be the major threat. Its ability to mutate rapidly, using reservoirs of domesticated animalschickens and pigsand migratory birds, has been recognized as a long-term pandemic threat. The memory of the 1918 influenza epidemic lent credit to the seriousness of the flu threat. The WHO has created a global network and infrastructure that can monitor flu outbreaks all over the world. Its Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS), functioning for more than 65 years, identifies novel influenza viruses and other respiratory pathogens and provides vital information for the upcoming seasons likely flu strains and vaccine composition recommendations. The GISRS is the only global platform that allows countries to share virus strains so that they can receive vaccines through the WHOs programs at concessional rates, and not at the prohibitively expensive market rates for the poorer countries. Which countries benefit from such a virus sharing platform? The bulk of influenza vaccines are used in the United States and western Europe. The United States uses more flu vaccine than any other country. Meanwhile, nearly 50 percent of the global populationAfrica, West Asia, South Asia, and southeastern Asiauses only 5 percent of the worlds flu vaccines, even though the bulk of flu samples come from these countries. Walking out of the WHO leaves at risk not only the global flu program, but also our ability to fight a new influenza pandemic that can rival the one in 1918. At that time it killed an estimated 50-100 million people (15-20 million of those casualties were in British India alone). Since the worlds population was about one-fourth of our current numbers, this would mean a casualty of 200-400 million by todays count, even without factoring in the effects of modern travels ability to speed up the spread of contagions. No matter where a disease begins, stopping the spread at the source before it becomes a pandemic also protects the populations of other countries. Why then would the United States pull out when it is the net beneficiary of the WHOs disease monitoring and prevention program? The right wing opposes public health policies in favor of individual-centric, privatized health care, with Big Pharma mopping up huge profits from life-saving medicines. This remains the case now, even though a pandemic can only be successfully fought at the global level. Public health yields immeasurable profits for society, but not for private hospitals or Big Pharma. The WHO, with its warts and all, still stands for global cooperation and fostering public health policies, and is the only instrument we have for global cooperation. It is hated by the right wing precisely for these reasons. The right-wing friends of TrumpJair Bolsonaro, Boris Johnson and Narendra Modido not criticize the United States for quitting the WHO, even though their countries need the WHO as much as the rest of the world. The attitude that every person must be for themselves, and every country for itself, is a part of their worldview as well. This article was produced in partnership by Newsclick and Globetrotter, a project of the Independent Media Institute. Prabir Purkayastha is the founding editor of Newsclick.in, a digital media platform. He is an activist for science and the free software movement. Iran's foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said in a tweet that it was 'a very substantive, frank and friendly video conversation" on COVID-19 as well as "bilateral, regional and global situations' The foreign ministers of longstanding regional foes Iran and the United Arab Emirates agreed on Sunday that they would strive to cooperate during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a video call during which they also exchanged greetings for the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan told his Iranian counterpart that strengthening bilateral cooperation was important element in tackling the coronavirus, UAE state news agency WAM said. Iran's foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said in a tweet that it was "a very substantive, frank and friendly video conversation" on COVID-19 as well as "bilateral, regional and global situations." "We agreed to continue dialogue on theme of hopeespecially as region faces tough challenges, and tougher choices ahead," he wrote. Shia Muslim Iran has long been at odds with U.S. Gulf Sunni Arab allies the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Tensions between Iran and the United States have been on the rise since 2018, when U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with six powers and reimposed sanctions. Washington blamed a series of attacks against oil interests in the Gulf last year on Iran, while the UAE did not publicly hold a particular country responsible. The two ministers held a telephone call in March in which Sheikh Abdullah expressed the UAE's support for Iran during the coronavirus outbreak. Search Keywords: Short link: Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam speaks at the meeting (Photo: VNA) Hanoi Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, head of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, on August 2 stressed that those who fail to make health declarations and follow quarantine regulations must be handled strictly. Speaking at a meeting of the committee on August 2, Dam called on each resident and all-level authorities to take responsibility for the pandemic combat, and stay vigilant.He ordered tightening COVID-19 prevention and control measures in medical, army and police sectors, and reviewing medical check-ups and treatment in hospitals, with attention paid to departments with patients in critical conditions.Apart from the main hospitals inwhere the outbreak began, response efforts will be expanded in communities in the city as well as nearby province of Quang Nam, Dam requested.He urged all people to use Bluezone, a Bluetooth-based app that helps determine if a person has come into contact with a COVID-19 patient, and the nCOVI app for health declaration and monitoring.As for provinces with the high risk of transmission, Dam asked the Ministry of Education and Training to coordinate with the Ministry of Health in reviewing regulations, prioritising the organisation of the high school graduation exams.The health ministry reported that as 9am on August 2, Vietnam had recorded 590patients, including 323 imported cases, and five deaths. Of the total cases, 373 have recovered.Since July 25, the country has reported 144 cases in seven cities and provinces, including 105 in Da Nang, 25 in Quang Nam, one in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak, eight in Ho Chi Minh City, two in central Quang Ngai province, two in Hanoi and one in Thai Binh.Apart from imported cases, all of the new cases are linked to the outbreak in hospitals in Da Nang.Speaking at the meeting, Acting Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long said it is expected to take longer time to cope with this outbreak as compared with the previous ones, as it is taking place more rapidly and complicatedly.Statistics from the health ministry also unveiled that from July 1-29, about 1.4 million people returned from Da Nang or visited medical facilities nationwide. Meanwhile, 800,000 people have been to the three hospitals involved in the outbreak in Da Nang, including 46,000 coming for health check-up and treatment.More cases are likely to be detected in Da Nang and other localities across the country in the time ahead, Long warned.Participants at the meeting agreed to propose the classification of localities based on three levels of risks, in order to impose suitable measures, with Da Nang and Quang Nam in the group of high risks. A radical men's rights attorney and self-described "anti-feminist" is the primary suspect in the murder of a California lawyer who represented a group suing to include women in the draft, as well as the killing of the son of a federal judge considering a different draft registration case. New York attorney Roy Den Hollander, 72, died July 20 of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after allegedly shooting and killing 20-year-old Daniel Anderl, son of Judge Esther Salas, at his family's home in New Jersey. Den Hollander was later implicated in the July 11 killing of Marc Angelucci, 52, who served as vice president of the National Coalition for Men and was representing the organization in a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Selective Service System's male-only registration requirement. Read Next: Marine Corps IDs 9 Troops Killed in Tragic AAV Accident Angelucci argued the case in March before the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans. The three-judge panel has not yet released its opinion but, immediately following the procedures, Angelucci appeared optimistic about the outcome, saying he thought it "went well." According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, Den Hollander traveled to California on July 7 and rented a car. On July 11, he drove to Angelucci's home in Crestline and is thought to have gunned down the attorney in broad daylight. Den Hollander immediately fled California by train and, nine days later, again opened fire -- at Salas' home. Posing as a FedEx delivery man, he fatally shot her son, a rising junior at Catholic University in Washington, D.C., on his birthday weekend, and seriously wounded her husband, Mark Anderl. Salas is the presiding judge in a case brought in 2015 by a female teenager -- represented by Den Hollander -- against the Selective Service System, charging that the male-only registration requirement violated her civil rights. According to the suit, the decision barring women from registration is "irrational and arbitrary given the current status of women in the military and society." Den Hollander was a member of the National Coalition for Men until he was kicked out of the group in 2015 for making threatening remarks, according to Harry Crouch, the organization's president. Crouch told CNN that Den Hollander was angry that he was not representing the organization alongside Angelucci in the lawsuit over the draft. "[Den Hollander] was upset that it wasn't his case, primarily," Crouch told CNN in a phone interview. "He was very upset and threatened to come to California and kick my ass." Military.com reached out to Crouch, but he did not return the call by publication time. In the case National Coalition for Men v. Selective Service System, a U.S. district court judge agreed with the plaintiffs in the case in February 2019, ruling that the male-only draft is unconstitutional and that it discriminates against men on the basis of sex, in violation of the Fifth Amendment's equal protection clause. Judge Gray Miller of the Southern District of Texas disagreed with the government's arguments that the Military Selective Service Act, confirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1981, was constitutional in excluding women because, at the time of its drafting, women were restricted from combat. Miller noted that the Defense Department lifted gender-based restrictions on military service, including combat roles, in 2015. He also disagreed with the government's position that drafting women would be an administrative burden on the system. But in crafting his decision, Miller stopped short of ordering the Selective Service System to start registering women. The government, which had asked the judge to wait until a national commission studying the issue reached a recommendation, appealed. The commission released its recommendations in late March, concluding that women should be included in registering with the system within 30 days of turning 18. The commission also proposed draft legislation for Congress to consider changing the law. Members of the House Armed Services Committee considered the measure in July, but ultimately it was withdrawn from consideration for procedural reasons. Angelucci joined the National Coalition for Men while attending UCLA Law School after a friend was denied domestic violence services because he was male. In 2008, he won an appellate case in California that declared it unconstitutional to exclude male victims of domestic violence from victim services paid for by the state. "Marc Angelucci was truly beloved, with a personality that had a magnetism that many of his friends and colleagues found to be truly magical," his colleagues at NCFM said in a release. Salas posted a video Monday on YouTube about the loss of her only child during a "glorious weekend filled with love, laughter and smiles," and she decried the ease with which criminals like Den Hollander can access personal information, including addresses, on the Internet. She called Den Hollander a "sick and depraved human being." "This monster who had a FedEx package in his hand opened fire, but Daniel -- being Daniel -- protected his father and took the shooter's first bullet directly to his chest. The monster then began shooting my husband one shot after another," Salas said. "Now more than ever, we need to identify a solution that keeps the lives of federal judges private. ... It's a matter of life and death." -- Patricia Kime can be reached at patricia.kime@monster.com. Follow her on Twitter @patriciakime. Related: After 110 Years of Aviation, Navy Gets Its First Black Female Fighter Pilot The Mount Olivet Methodist Church in Dansoman has adopted new measures of absorbing about five hundred congregants following the Governments directives to help fight against COVID-19 pandemic. Easing the restrictions on the number of congregants to worship at a time in Churches, the Government directed that as from August 1, 2020, churches could worship to full capacity, if all the protocols were in place. Additionally, the length of worship should be between one to two hours per service. In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Very Reverend Isaac Kweku Sam, Superintendent Minister of the Methodist Church, Dansoman Circuit, explained that the current capacity of five hundred members per service was a decision taken by the leaders in collaboration with the Churchs medical team to ensure the safety of the congregants. The Minister said, the Church would extend the number of congregants in due course, adding that, they would adhere to Governments restrictions and protocols to combat the COVID- 19 pandemic. Mr Emmanuel Calvin Cann, Society Steward of the Mount Olivet Methodist Church, said the Church had provided Veronica buckets with soap and water and sanitizers, which were the basic requirement to stop the spread of COVID-19. He noted that every congregant is to wear a nose mask and have their temperatures checked before entering the church auditorium. Mr Cann said the Church was resolute to help combat the disease, whilst ensuring the safety of the congregants. He said the congregants practice social distancing by sitting apart from each other, adding that the Churchs auditorium was disinfected after every service. Source: GNA 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 Solar Park project is the largest single-site solar power plant in the Middle East. It comprises both photovoltaic and concentrated solar power technologies and will boast a total capacity of around 5GW once complete. The two groups have been cooperated with each other in the 700MW Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) project and the 250MW PV solar power project, which are the fourth phase of the Solar Park. Shanghai Electric Group worked with ACWA Power for bidding the tender of the latest phase of 900MW and finally won. The global solar power industry is booming in the recent years. Marked by this new phase of partnership, Shanghai Electric Group has cemented its expansion in new energy sector in the Middle East and is expected to expand eventually across the globe. "ACWA Power and Shanghai Electric are both acknowledged as important participators in the global energy field. The contract signing of 900MW Solar Park project is another milestone along the journey of the pair's cooperation. I hope the upcoming plant will be another benchmark in the region as well as worldwide," said Zheng at the ceremony. Abunayyan said at the event that since the inception of the partnership in 2008, ACWA Power and Shanghai Electric Group have made quite a lot of breakthroughs, demonstrating to the world that the Group is a reliable and trusted partner. "As we move swiftly forward with implementation, the signing of the EPC contract between ACWA Power and Shanghai Electric for the fifth phase of the Solar Park project represents a crucial milestone of the cooperation between the two companies," said Abunayyan. He added that to the latest project, the Group will bring more pioneering technologies and create larger value than before. The Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park will be a key pillar in fulfilling Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 to increase the share of clean energy in Dubai's total power output to 75 per cent by 2050. The project sets the benchmark for the rest of the world through leveraging the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model and carrying forward large-scale, cost-competitive projects. For more information, visit www.shanghai-electric.com SOURCE Shanghai Electric Related Links www.shanghai-electric.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tri Indah Oktavianti (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 18:59 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b3f43e 1 Politics COVID-19,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,Jokowi,Cabinet-ministers,cabinet-meeting,cabinet,state-budget Free President Joko Jokowi Widodo has once again expressed his disappointment in his Cabinet over its poor utilization of funds allocated for the countrys COVID-19 response. Only around Rp 141 trillion has been spent, or 20 percent from the provided budget. That is a very small amount, Jokowi said prior to a limited Cabinet meeting on Monday. This shows that ministries and government institutions still do not have a sense of urgency. Officials are still fixated on their day-to-day duties. He said each minister should plan their budgets in detail, so that crisis management can be done quickly. He went on to say that his administration encouraged the Family Welfare Movement (PKK) a state-sponsored organization comprising community leaders and officials wives to disseminate information on the importance of complying with health protocols, especially the importance of wearing masks, to neighborhood communities. Jokowi also said the Cabinet should be concerned about the country's high COVID-19 fatality rate. The countrys fatality rate is 4.7 percent, or 0.8 [percentage points] higher than the global fatality rate. This is something we should all work on, he said. According to the official government count, Indonesia has recorded 113,134 cases and 5,302 deaths as of Monday. Tom Decosimo has done the citizens of District Two a great favor in proudly self-identifying as a Republican. Even if you are a staunch Republican, you can no longer in good faith support him to be a member of the Hamilton County Board of Education because he has told us his party ideologies will get in the way of the very job he wants you to elect him to. The reason our state codified the fact these school board elections should be non-partisan is so that people, regardless of political affiliation, could put that platform aside and be an advocate for our public school system. Decosimo has told us he is unwilling to do that on billboards and mailers. We have a built-in system of political checks and balances in our current system because the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners are already representing your political beliefs. The School Boards job is to unashamedly advocate for public schools, to dream in an aspirational way, and to listen to professional educators and procure resources on behalf of the public schools. When the board put forth a budget back in June of 2019, the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners voted it down along party lines with only Republicans voting against it. The school board went to work and put together a budget the commission could approve. The system worked and your advocates on the school board negotiated the best budget they could with the partisan commission. How can a self-described Republican advocate for our public schools? In short, they cannot and still be a Republican. In Tennessee, Republicans support education savings accounts, it is part of their platform. Mr. Decosimo s brother is helping Bill Lee advocate for ways to steer money that would otherwise go to public schools into private schools. You cannot be a good proponent of public schools and support less funding for those schools. Voting for a Republican who is unwilling to put aside the party platform to be on the school board is like welcoming the fox into the hen house with open doors. In a recent poll, more than 90 percent of black people said they view the Republican party as racist. Blacks make up 44 percent of the student population of Hamilton County Schools. Whether the perception is warranted or not, it is important to note. When state law would have allowed Decosimo to put his party affiliation aside, he chose to alienate a large number of the student body by proclaiming it proudly. Add this to the fact that Decosimo will not support equality when asked in the school board debates, and one has to wonder what his agenda is. The Hamilton County Board of Education is no place for political ideologies. The Hamilton Board of Education must be made of people who are zealous advocates of public school and seek to procure as many resources as possible for our teachers and students. It is no place for a political ideologue who is not even willing to run a non-partisan race. Decosimo should run for the County Commission where he can promote his agenda when Marco Perez and the other members of the Hamilton County Board of Education put forth zealous advocacy for our public schools. At a time in our country where our fault lines are more visible than ever, let us take a stand, progressive or conservative, Democrat or Republican and deny national politics a seat on the Hamilton County Board of Education. It is the one place we can show the next generation that partisanship is not as important as their futures. Lets elect non-partisan, values-oriented Marco Perez on Thursday. Brad Schumpert JALALABAD, Afghanistan A gunbattle between Islamic State fighters and Afghan security forces raged at a prison in the eastern city of Jalalabad on Monday, with at least 24 people killed after the militants overnight assault led to a mass jailbreak. The attack began on Sunday evening with car bomb detonated at the entrance to the prison, and there were numerous other blasts heard as the IS gunmen opened fire on security guards. Some 30 militants involved in the attack on the prison, where some 2,000 prisoners were held, according to Sohrab Qaderi, a lawmaker in the capital of Nangarhar province. Three militants were killed during the initial attack and gunbattle overnight, while at least 21 civilians and members of security forces died in the fighting, and 43 were wounded, Attaullah Khugyani, a spokesman for the governor said. Police were forced to divert manpower to recapture escaped prisoners amid the chaos, and by noon on Monday around 1,000 had been caught, Qaderi said, without elaborating on how many were still at large. Afghan special forces arrived to support police, according to officials, and civilians were being evacuated from areas surrounding the prison, where Taliban and IS prisoners were being held along with ordinary criminals. Meanwhile the city was in lockdown. The whole city of Jalalabad is under curfew, shops are closed," Qaderi said. Jalalabad is completely empty." IS claimed responsibility for the attack, which came a day after the Afghan intelligence agency said special forces had killed a senior commander of the group near Jalalabad, the provincial capital of Nangarhar. Some 130 kilometres (80 miles) east of Kabul, Jalalabad lies on the highway leading to the Khyber Pass and the Pakistani city of Peshawar. A United Nations report last month estimated there are around 2,200 IS members in Afghanistan, and that while the group is in territorial retreat and its leadership has been depleted, it remains capable of carrying out high-profile attacks. (Additional reporting by Abdul Qadir Sediqi, Writing by Rupam Jain and Charlotte Greenfield, Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore) Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor Kolkata, Aug 3 : The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) West Bengal unit has appealed to the Mamata Banerjee-led state government to withdraw the statewide lockdown on August 5, the day on which the 'Bhoomi Pujan' for the proposed Ram temple is scheduled in Ayodhya. "Earlier also the dates were changed four times. There is no harm if it is changed once more. It's a historic occasion and a proud day for all of us. We have urged the West Bengal government to reconsider and withdraw its decision of enforcing a lockdown on August," said BJP's state President Dilip Ghosh. He said the people of Bengal are already saddened by the pandemic and the state government should not increase their burden any further. "The state government should not create an environment in which people can't celebrate the occasion of Bhoomi Pujan," Ghosh said. Earlier, the state government had declared a statewide lockdown on seven non-consecutive days in August. The first lockdown of the month is slated to be enforced on Wednesday (August 5). The state BJP also urged people to play conch shells and ring bells to celebrate the occasion on August 5. In the evening, it requested people to light up earthen lamps or diyas at every home to mark the celebration. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Extra 22.7m to help adult social care sector maintain vital services in what continues to be challenging circumstances This article is old - Published: Monday, Aug 3rd, 2020 An extra 22.7m to help adult social care providers meet the additional costs caused by the Covid-19 pandemic has been announced. The money is in addition to the 40m Welsh Government made available to local authorities in April to assist the adult social care sector. Health and Social Services Minister Vaughan Gething said the funding will ensure adult social care providers can maintain their vital care in what continues to be challenging circumstances. Care homes, which have already been seriously affected by the pandemic, are now also facing financial challenges through loss of income as a result of increased vacancies in their homes due to the need to restrict new admissions to contain the virus. Health and Social Services Minister Vaughan Gething said: Social care plays a vital role in supporting some of the most vulnerable people in our communities and has been on the front line in our effort across public services to meet the challenges posed by Covid-19. The initial payment of 40m helped the sector meet the rising costs incurred during the pandemic in areas such as staffing, increased infection control, higher food prices and greater use of ICT to keep families in touch with their loved ones where they were no longer able to meet. This further funding will ensure adult social care providers can maintain their vital care in what continues to be challenging circumstances. He added: The social care workforce is on the front line of this huge effort to respond to the coronavirus pandemic and we are committed to supporting every single person do their job. Every one of us in Wales owes them a debt of gratitude. I want to personally thank our social care workforce for their fantastic efforts in protecting the public. The funding will be made available immediately and continue until the end of September after which the situation will be reviewed again. Johnny Depp was pictured arriving at a friend's Surrey home on Sunday, days after the end of his explosive libel trial. The 57-year-old actor was seen rock music photographer Ross Halfin as he arrived at the abode, after checking out of his London hotel. Pirates Of The Caribbean star Johnny stepped out in his signature eclectic style, wearing a white brimmed brown hat with a bandanna and cuffed jaded jeans. Visit: Johnny Depp was pictured arriving at a friend's Surrey home on Sunday, as he paid the rocker a visit following the end of his explosive libel trial Sporting a camouflage-print jacket complete with a patch featuring the image of Argentine Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara, he added several chains and rings. As he emerged from a large chauffeur-driven vehicle, the Kentucky native appeared to have his hands full, juggling baggage and a camera. Wearing a pair of tinted glasses, the Hollywood superstar chatted outside the property before making his way inside his friend's property. Battle: The actor had faced off in court against his ex-wife Amber Heard for weeks during his historical libel trial, in which he fought accusations of being a 'wife beater'. Pictured in 2015 Embrace: The 57-year-old actor was seen embracing rock photographer Ross Halfin as he arrived at the abode, after checking out of his London hotel Eclectic style: Pirates Of The Caribbean star Johnny stepped out in his signature eclectic style, wearing a white brimmed brown hat with a feather and cuffed jaded jeans Boots: The Hollywood star teamed his casual ensemble with a pair of well worn black boots Johnny's visit to his friend's home comes less than a week after his ex-wife Amber, 34, fought back tears as she delivered an emotional closing statement, following what's been dubbed 'The Trial of the Century'. She said: 'I travelled to the UK to testify in these proceedings as a witness to assist the Court. 'After obtaining a restraining order in 2016 and finalising our divorce, I wanted to move on with my life. 'I did not file this lawsuit and, despite its significance, I would have preferred not to be in court. Moving: Last Tuesday, his ex Amber fought back tears as she delivered an emotional closing statement, telling onlookers it's been 'incredibly painful' to relive her break-up from Johnny 'It has been incredibly painful to relive the break-up of my relationship, have my motives and my truth questioned, and the most traumatic details of my life with Johnny shared in court and broadcast around the world. Amber Heard's statement in full I travelled here to the UK to testify as a witness to assist the court. After obtaining a restraining order in 2016 and finalising my divorce, I just wanted to move on with my life. I did not file this lawsuit and, despite its significance, I would have preferred not to be here in court. It has been incredibly painful to relive the break up of my relationship, have my motives and my truth questioned, and the most traumatic and intimate details of my life with Johnny shared in court and broadcast around the world. I stand by my testimony and I now place my faith in British justice. Although I did not bring this lawsuit, I am aware of the precious resources being consumed by his litigation and will be glad to see those resources redirected to more important legal matters delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic. I appreciate the dedication, the hard work and support of the defence legal team, as well as my UK and US lawyers. I also wish to extend my thanks to the very diligent and kind court staff and the police, who have been so sensitive in ensuring my safety and protection so that I could testify in safety. And finally, my heartfelt thanks for the tremendous outpouring of support and the many messages I have received from around the world. You have given me so much strength and I send it back to you. Advertisement 'I stand by my testimony in court and I now place my faith in British justice. 'Although I did not bring this lawsuit, I am aware of the precious resources being consumed by his litigation and will be glad to see those resources re-directed back to more important legal matters already delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic. 'I appreciate the dedication, hard work and support of the defence legal team, as well as my UK and US lawyers. 'I also wish to extend my thanks to the very kind and diligent court staff and the police, who have been so sensitive in ensuring my protection so that that I could testify in safety. 'And finally, my heartfelt thanks for the tremendous outpouring of support and the many messages I have received from around the world. You have given me so much strength and I send it back to you.' As Amber turned to go back into court, boos rang out from Depp's supporters who have been outside the High Court in large numbers on the final day of the 16-day hearing. The Pirates of the Caribbean star received a rapturous welcome upon his arrival this morning and signed autographs as dozens of fans made their presence known, armed with flowers, gifts and banners reading: 'Justice for Johnny' and 'Abuse has no gender. Men can be victims too.' The end of his sensational libel trial against The Sun newspaper will also have a major impact on another high-profile case the Hollywood star is bringing against ex-wife in the US. Judgement in the High Court trial in London is not expected to be delivered by Mr Justice Nicol until late September, giving Johnny's lawyers enough time to prepare for his US defamation case against Amber, which is expected to get underway next January. In the US proceedings, Depp is suing Heard for $50 million over a 2018 article she wrote in the Washington Post in which she describes herself as being a domestic abuse survivor. Although Depp is not specifically named, his lawyers allege that it is obvious that the article refers to him and labels the actor of being a domestic abuser. Screen star: Johnny raised a clenched fist above his head as he departed the High Court in London for the final time. He received raucous cheers from supporters gathered outside Words: Amber's statement in full delivered on the steps of London's Royal Courts of Justice Drama: Hollywood screen star Johnny is also bringing a US defamation case against Amber, which is expected to get underway next year The three-week libel trial against The Sun in London, in which Depp hopes to win 350,000 in damages, has widely been seen as a 'dress rehearsal' for the US hearing, which will take place in Virginia. It will feature all the same witnesses that appeared on behalf of either Depp or Heard in London and is also based on the same bombshell evidence that was produced at the High Court over the past few weeks. The US hearing will also result in Depp and Heard returning to the witness box again to divulge details of their stormy relationship, which have already generated widespread publicity around the world. Defamations from the former Hollywood couple and their witnesses have already been filed in the US, with the war of words between their respective camps already underway. Hotel: Sources tell MailOnline that Johnny had checked out of his London hotel earlier that day Revolutionary: The actor sported a camouflage-print jacket complete with a patch featuring the image of Argentine Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara Hands full: As he emerged from a large chauffeur-driven vehicle, the Kentucky native appeared to have his hands full, juggling baggage and a camera Chill: The star appeared relaxed and happy as he made his way to the home to see his friends Depp's defence in the US also mirrors the one that has featured at the High Court; that it was Heard and not him who was physically abusive in their relationship and that he is the victim of a 'hoax' orchestrated by her and her associates. But legal sources have indicated that a potential 'round two' of the Depp-Heard now depends on the outcome of the London libel hearing and could be settled even before it comes to court, depending on Justice Nicol's judgement. On the final day of the blockbuster trial, Depp's lawyer laid into 'compulsive liar' Amber and claimed her evidence has been littered with inconsistencies. Johnny was present to hear his barrister David Sherborne deliver his final submission, following a trial which has gripped the showbiz world with sensational details of his marriage to the Aquaman actress. Outpouring; The star received an outpouring of support from a number of fans during the trial Hug: Johnny and Ross looked elated to see each other as they embraced outside the home Shocking: During his libel trial, Johnny and Amber levelled shocking allegations at each other Union: Johnny and Amber accused each other of violence acts during their tumultuous union Amber was accused of being a 'compulsive liar,' which, the court was told, calls into question her evidence and claims that she was a victim of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of Depp. The court heard a recording, which was also played earlier in the trial, in which she admits to hitting him, as Depp's legal team alleged Heard has a 'propensity for violence'. Depp is suing News Group Newspapers (NGN), publishers of the Sun and executive editor Dan Wootton over a 2018 article which referred to him as a 'wife beater'. It appeared under the headline 'Gone Potty How can JK Rowling be 'genuinely happy' casting wife-beater Johnny Depp in the new Fantastic Beasts film?' Amber and Johnny met on the set of the 2011 comedy 'The Rum Diary' and married in Los Angeles in February 2015. Heard filed for divorce the following year, and the divorce was finalised in 2017. Embattled: The court was told yesterday that Depp's 'deep misogyny' was at the root of his anger that manifested as violence towards Amber (picturedy) SPRINGFIELD More than 50 infections have been tied to a recent coronavirus outbreak at Baystate Medical Center but the outbreak has not spread beyond the affected unit, hospital officials said Monday. Dr. Mark Keroack, president and CEO of Baystate Health, said the outbreak which totaled 36 COVID-19 infections a week ago has now climbed to 55 known cases. The figure includes 33 employees and 22 patients at a 37-bed, non-coronavirus unit at the Springfield hospital. Hospital officials have not publicly identified the unit. All employees and patients have been contacted for testing and contact tracing, Keroack said. The outbreak was traced to July 15 to 23. The hospital first disclosed the outbreak a week ago, when 23 employees and 13 patients were known to be infected. Keroack said steps taken by the hospital to identify the location of the outbreak, test all employees and patients who were potentially affected, and strengthen precautions have arrested the spread of the virus. Baystate Health strengthened its rules for mask wearing and distancing, and reconfigured some indoor spaces to create new break areas, and set up a tent outside as additional space for meal breaks, Keroack said. Hospital officials traced the outbreak to an employee who returned to work after visiting an out-of-state hot spot for COVID-19, Keroack said. The virus is then believed to have spread in break rooms, where that employee and others gathered without wearing masks, he said. Keroack offered the information during the citys weekly coronavirus update at City Hall. Keroack also said there has been increase in COVID-19 patients at Baystate Medical Center. There were 22 people hospitalized at Baystate Medical as of Monday, as compared to numbers in the teens in recent weeks. Of the 22 patients, two are in critical care, Keroack said. Dr. Robert Roose, chief medical officer at Mercy Medical Center, said there were just three COVID-19 patients at Mercy on Monday including one in intensive care. Both Keroack and Roose stressed the need for the public to continue COVID-19 preventive measures including wearing masks and other face coverings in public places, hand washing and social distancing. Related Content: Meghana Sastry By Express News Service BENGALURU: Members of the Human Rights Anti-Corruption Bureau staged a silent protest outside St Philomenas Hospital along with the family of a Covid patient who was charged an exorbitant amount for treatment, on Saturday. Hospital authorities refused to let the patient Priya be discharged over non-payment of the bill amounting to Rs 7.4 lakh. Priya was admitted 21 days back after catching the virus from her husband Andrew, a painter. When we first tried to get Priya admitted at Philomenas, we were quoted a bill of a lakh, which we couldnt afford. Authorities asked us to pay what we had Rs 10,000 and then Rs 35,000 that we borrowed, said Andrew. They had initially gone to KC General Hospital, where they were turned away due to a shortage of beds. On being given the Rs 7.4 lakh bill, the family was shocked and struggled to put together Rs 2.5 lakh over the course of the treatment, but the hospital refused to let her go until the entire amount was cleared. Priyas uncle then approached the bureau, which negotiated with the hospital. Santosh Kumar, general secretary of the bureau, said, We negotiated with the hospital all day, after which they released her for a lakh. He added that he requested the hospital to give concessions to the poor, or the matter will be taken up with Minister Dr K Sudhakar. By PTI AYODHYA/NEW DELHI: Religious rituals got under way in Ayodhya on Monday, two days ahead of the groundbreaking ceremony for a temple at a spot where devotees believe Lord Ram was born. Barricades are already in place in the temple town and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath issued an appeal, asking only those invited for Wednesday's "bhoomi pujan" ceremony to come to Ayodhya. Adityanath spent hours reviewing the arrangements for the ceremony at the Ram Janmabhoomi, where the temple will be constructed following the go-ahead last year by the Supreme Court. Twelve priests on Monday conducted prayers dedicated to Lord Ganesh. This was to be followed by prayers to the deities of the dynasties of Lord Ram and goddess Sita. On Tuesday, prayers will be offered at Ayodhya's Hanumangarhi temple. Among the 175 people invited for the main ceremony are 135 `sants' belonging to that many spiritual traditions, the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra said in a series of tweets and a press conference. The trust also noted "certain practical difficulties, faced by some guests, including religious figures" in participating in the ceremony because of the coronavirus pandemic. BJP veteran Uma Bharti, a key figure in the Ram temple movement and an accused in the Babri mosque demolition case, said she will not attend because of concerns over catching the infection. The trust asked devotees to organise "bhajans" and "kirtans" in places outside Ayodhya as well, while keeping restrictions related to COVID-19 in mind. ALSO READ | Shubh ghadi bas apne dwar par hai: An emotional Ayodhya gets ready for a new beginning Among the people invited to the event is Iqbal Ansari, a litigant in the temple-mosque land dispute case. "I will certainly attend it. The dispute is over now after the court's verdict," Ansari, 69, told PTI. His father Hashim Ansari, the oldest litigant in the case, died n 2016. After that the son pursued the case in court. Mohammad Sharif, an Ayodhya-based social activist who also got the invitation, will not be able to attend as he is too old and ill, his family said. On the dais, there will be just five people Narendra Modi, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, trust chief Nritya Gopaldas Maharaj, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel and CM Yogi Adityanath. Left parties opposed the event, saying holding the ceremony with the involvement of the Centre and the state government went against the Supreme Court verdict which directed the formation of a trust. In separate statements, both the CPI and CPM also said the Supreme Court, while delivering the verdict, had condemned the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992. Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh too sounded a discordant note, asking Modi to defer the event as this was an "inauspicious" period. The former Madhya Pradesh chief minister cited a list of politicians who have been infected by coronavirus and said a Hindu seer he has spoken to also agreed about the time being "inauspicious" for beginning any good work. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who is among those struck by the disease, hit back. "Congress leaders who had rejected the existence of Lord Ram are today trying to fix the auspicious-inauspicious time for the construction of a temple in his name," he tweeted. Yogi Adityanath called the event "historic". "It is not only a historic but also an emotional moment as after 500 years the Ram temple work will start. It will be the foundation of a new India," he said. "The COVID-19 protocol will be strictly followed at the event. As the prime minister will be here representing 135 crore people, I appeal that only those who have been invited should visit Ayodhya. The rest should remain at their respective places," Adityanath said. The ceremony will be broadcast live by Doordarshan. The chief minister urged people to light earthen lamps, decorate temples and recite the Ramayana in memory of those "who laid down their lives in the temple struggle". The mosque in Ayodhya was demolished in December 1992 by 'kar sevaks' who claimed an ancient Ram temple had stood on the same site. Last November, the apex court paved the way for the construction of a Ram temple at the site and directed the Centre to allot an alternative five-acre plot for building a new mosque in Ayodhya. The proposed merger of a well-regarded secular hospital system and a larger Roman Catholic system in Washington state has triggered new alarms about religious restrictions on patients' access to care. Virginia Mason Health System and CHI Franciscan announced plans in mid-July to form a joint operating company including 12 hospitals and more than 250 other treatment sites in the Puget Sound region and the Yakima area in central Washington. They touted the deal as a way to improve care. But the plan was unclear on whether the secular hospitals could continue to offer services forbidden by church doctrine, including abortion, birth control, gender confirmation surgery and physician aid in dying, which is legal in Washington. These questions keep arising across the country because Catholic conglomerates are some of the largest hospital systems in the U.S. with four Catholic systems ranked in the top seven and they frequently gobble up smaller, non-Catholic medical centers. The issue is particularly urgent in Washington, where Swedish Medical Center the largest nonprofit health care system in the Puget Sound area merged with Providence Health & Services in 2012 and stopped providing emergency services to end pregnancies at the hospital. Bellingham and other Washington cities saw similar service cessations following Catholic takeovers of secular hospitals. Already, 1 in 6 U.S. hospital beds are in Catholic facilities. The figure is 41% in Washington, according to a new report on religious-based hospital systems to be released in September by MergerWatch. If the Virginia Mason merger goes through, four cities in the state Bellingham, Centralia, Walla Walla and Yakima will have only a Catholic hospital. Seattle-based Virginia Mason said that, as part of the deal, it would work with CHI Franciscan to comply with the directives governing Catholic health care institutions. But it declined to offer specifics on what services the system would stop offering or make an executive available for an interview. Tacoma-based CHI Franciscan is part of the 137-hospital Catholic giant CommonSpirit Health, the second-largest hospital system in the U.S. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Ethical and Religious Directives forbid services such as abortion, contraception, tubal ligation and physician aid in dying for terminally ill patients. Catholic providers differ over whether gender transition care is permitted, but Virginia Mason said its service offerings for LGBTQ patients would not change. In a July 21 letter, 12 organizations including the ACLU of Washington, NARAL Pro-Choice Washington, End of Life Washington and the state chapter of the American Academy of Obstetricians and Gynecologists warned the proposed merger would jeopardize access to needed services. The ACLU and Planned Parenthood have set up meetings for early this month with Virginia Mason's CEO, Dr. Gary Kaplan, to discuss ways to maintain those services. "We're actively working with community groups to address their questions," Virginia Mason and CHI Franciscan said in a joint written statement. Its the latest conflict to arise as more Catholic and non-Catholic hospital systems around the country consider merging, driven by the long-running consolidation in the health care industry and now by the economic collapse caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of these efforts have been derailed by objections from regulators and advocacy groups to Catholic care restrictions. The Washington attorney general's office said it will review the proposed merger to ensure it doesn't lessen competition or harm state residents. But advocacy groups don't expect the state to block the deal. Research shows that most Catholic facilities do not explicitly inform patients about their religious care restrictions and that physicians, particularly OB-GYNs, often struggle to arrange workarounds to get patients care they need, such as birth control devices. Doctors say they are discouraged from even informing patients about medical options forbidden by Catholic rules. Washington advocacy groups are particularly worried the merger will reduce access to services in Yakima, a geographically isolated city of 94,000 east of the Cascade Mountains, where Virginia Mason Memorial is the only hospital. "The people of Washington have voted many times for access to abortion and Death with Dignity, and it's really frustrating that hospitals won't be delivering those services," said state Rep. Eileen Cody (D-Seattle), who chairs the House health committee. Women's health groups are particularly worried that Virginia Mason's facilities in Seattle and Yakima will stop providing services to terminate a pregnancy or remove fetal tissue in emergencies such as ectopic pregnancies and miscarriages or allow tubal ligations. Many Catholic-controlled hospitals don't offer those procedures. "In secular hospitals, when a woman is miscarrying, she'll be given the option to wait and see if the bleeding passes, or to immediately terminate the nonviable pregnancy," said Linda McCarthy, CEO of Mt. Baker Planned Parenthood in Bellingham. "In Catholic hospitals they don't get that option." Planned Parenthood may ask Virginia Mason to set up a model similar to one it established with Swedish Health Services in Seattle after that system affiliated with Providence, said Christine Charbonneau, CEO of Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest and the Hawaiian Islands. Swedish funded a new Planned Parenthood clinic near its campus for procedures that violate Catholic doctrine. Similarly, End of Life Washington wants Virginia Mason to agree to let its physicians individually choose whether to provide patients with aid in dying, as Swedish did after its merger, said Dr. Robert Wood, the group's medical adviser. "But we've heard CHI Franciscan is a more conservative group than Providence, and we're not optimistic that VM can negotiate that deal," Wood said. Virginia Mason has said its physicians would inform patients about all their treatment options and would provide information about other providers if patients seek services it doesn't offer. Another barrier is that the Catholic bishops revised their religious care rules in 2018 to toughen church scrutiny of workaround deals in which non-Catholic merger partners seek to preserve access to Catholic-prohibited services. If you and your partner (if you have one) didnt lose any income, and you were prudent with your child-care savings during the pandemic (i.e. it didnt get spent on non-essentials), youre probably sitting on a few thousand extra dollars by this point. Since mid-March, many families have gone without child care, which at the upper end of the spectrum runs $3,200 per month (multiple children under the care of a nanny or in daycare); and, on the lower end, starts around $600 per month for before- and after-school care for the average family with school-aged children (obviously this was happening pre-pandemic when school was normally in session). Quebec is the exception to this range as the province caps the rates for child care, making it one of the most affordable child-care models in North America. Insert summertime care, camps and activities that have largely been cancelled due to COVID-19 and that additional savings could easily be another few hundred to a thousand dollars. Wherever youve fallen on the range of child care and activities expenses, these costs are a massive component of a familys normal household budget. So its no wonder working parents are feeling financial relief. The tradeoff, however, is mental health and work performance, which is why some parents are choosing to send their kids back into care. But others are riding it out because the savings are so sweet. Heres how to tell if you need to get off the savings gravy train and reinvest in child care. Note that there are extremely strict safety guidelines that child-care providers must follow as the economy reopens. Your kids are young and you are frazzled This looks like a conference call with your one-year-old baby strapped into the baby carrier (which he is obviously too big for, but it keeps him happy), while he claws at your earbuds and squeals as the neighbours dog barks loudly outside. You feed him raisins while trying to take notes all whilst walking laps inside and outside the house. When your partner finishes their video call, you swap. The franticness pushes your work back into the evenings (after bedtime) to the wee hours of the morning (before wake-up) and into naptime, if that even happens. And thats just having one child. Imagine a toddler in the mix, too. So guess what? Like most parents without formal child care, you fall into bed at night utterly frazzled and worried about your job because your performance isnt what it used to be. Your fatigue is growing. From both a mental health and job security standpoint, this isnt good. Its time to reintroduce care, even if its part-time. Your savings are growing, but you arent keeping up with your work commitments Missing deadlines? Customer complaints? Work quality suffering? Your creativity is low? Business is picking up, but you dont have any more time in your calendar? Your boss wants you back in the physical office? Even if your employer is offering you greater flexibility with the way you schedule your day, or your goals have been reduced for the year, you may not be hitting performance targets and that could impact your job security. If you need to refocus on your work to keep your job, you need to pony up for the cost of child care. The longer term financial impact of losing your job when jobs are already scarce is far greater than the savings you are experiencing right now by not having care. Your children are not coping well Quarantine has been so hard on young people: reduced play, fewer programs, limited to no gatherings with friends, steep adjustments to online learning, too much screen time and general Groundhog Day routines at home which are good in that they allow you, the parent, to work but are a double-edged sword, meaning not great for the social development for your children. If your kids are struggling, it might be a sign that they need greater variety and social interaction in their day through formal child care. Applying the same pre-pandemic child-care solutions to your household might not make sense anymore from a safety and budget standpoint, but also because the way we work, how much we spend and on what, has changed. In plain speak, our priorities and finances may have shifted, and thats probably a good thing. Perhaps this means you need to switch your child-care solutions up: go part-time vs. full-time; move to a daycare from a home care; bring in a nanny; ask for support from your family and so on. The ultimate goal here when reintroducing care is to ensure that you and your family are safe and healthy (mentally and physically) while you work hard to keep your job; and thats probably worth paying for. PS: keep your child-care receipts to incorporate these costs into your taxes. BELMONT, Calif., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- AnitaB.org, a nonprofit organization dedicated to connecting, inspiring, and guiding women in computing and organizations that view technology innovation as a strategic imperative, today announced the winners of the 2020 Abie Awards in five categories: Change Agent, Emerging Leader, Student of Vision, Technical Leadership and Technology Entrepreneurship. "The 2020 Abie Award recipients are creating a future of inclusive technology where the people who build technology mirror the people and societies for whom they build it," said Brenda Darden Wilkerson, President and CEO of AnitaB.org. "Every individual honored has built a pathway to help empower the next generation of women technologists, in addition to their own technical achievements. We're excited to highlight their accomplishments as we work together in building the workforce of tomorrow by empowering the leaders of today." 2020 Abie Award Winners: The Change Agent Abie Award honors an outstanding international woman (non-U.S. resident) who has created or expanded opportunities for girls and women in technology. The 2020 Change Agent Winner is Dr. Jessica Wade, t a ckling gender bias one Wikipedia page at a time. The Emerging Leader Abie Award in Honor of Denice Denton recognizes a junior faculty member for high-quality research and significant positive impact on diversity. The award honors the life and career of Professor Denice Denton (1959 2006), an engineering faculty member and the first female dean of a school of engineering in a major U.S. research university who worked throughout her life to give minorities a voice and support diversity in higher education. The 2020 Emerging Leader Award Winner is Dr. Olga Russakovsky for fighting bias in Artificial Intelligence through research and mentorship. The Student of Vision Abie Award honors an undergraduate or graduate student dedicated to creating a future where the people who imagine and build technology mirror the people and societies for which they build it. This student is passionate about impactful technologies and inspires others to help build them. The 2020 Student of Vision Award winner is Pelagia Majoni for Empowering Zimbabwe's girls to address the country's food supply challenges through technology. The Technical Leadership Abie Award is our most prestigious award and celebrates a woman who led or developed a product, process, or innovation that made a notable impact on business or society. The award winner demonstrates a commitment to increasing the representation of women in technology. The 2020 Technical Leadership Award winner is, Dr. Lisa Su a CEO who transformed her company from near bankruptcy to industry leader. Technology Entrepreneurship Abie Award recognizes a woman who is the builder of an innovative, ground-breaking, and game-changing technology venture startup (within a larger organization or not). She takes direct responsibility for turning an idea into a profitable finished product through assertive risk taking and innovation. She provides a strong role model for young women coming up the pipeline; she turns technologies into viable businesses, transforms markets, and creates change. The 2020 Technology Entrepreneurship award is awarded to Tracy Young for changing the way construction leverages technology. Through their achievements and life stories, Abie Award winners demonstrate that each of us has the power to improve our world, individually and collectively. The five winners will each receive their respective award at the Virtual Grace Hopper Celebration in September 2020 where they will also each speak. Stay tuned as AnitaB.org highlights each of these five inspirational women on social media through the month of August. For more information, visit ghc.anitab.org. About AnitaB.org AnitaB.org is a nonprofit social enterprise committed to increasing the representation of women technologists in the global workforce. AnitaB. org engages with tens of thousands of women and leading organizations around the world to build diverse and inclusive workplace cultures. Founded in 1997 by our namesake, computer science visionary Anita Borg, our organization works toward a future where the teams that create technology mirror the people and societies for whom they build it. Media Contact Information: Glo Lindenmuth The Sway Effect (908) 616-8936 [email protected] SOURCE AnitaB.org Related Links anitaborg.org President Trump has officially announced that TikTok and other China-based apps will be banned in the US. In the interim Microsoft is in talks to acquire TikTok and complete the procedure by September 15th 2020. If the deal goes through, then, TikTok will continue to offer its services in the US. Trump banned TikTok after the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) concluded that ByteDance, TikToks parent company should sell the US part of the business owing to security concerns. Trump was initially against Microsoft taking over TikTok; however, he later changed his decision. In the meantime, Microsoft publicly announced that they would come up with a plan to acquire ByteDance by mid of next month. Trump asked TikTok to sell off its domestic operations to an American company by September 15th or face a ban in the US. He also added that the US treasury should get a lot of money. Microsoft is ready to acquire TikTok after complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the US. We are unsure of how the US Treasury will get a cut of the deal. I dont mind whether its Microsoft or someone else, a big company, a secure company, a very American company buys it, Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday. Itll close down on Sept. 15 unless Microsoft or somebody else is able to buy it and work out a deal, an appropriate deal, so the Treasury of the United States gets a lot of money. #BREAKING: President Trump says TikTok must be bought by US company and pay cut of selling price into US Treasury: "Right now they don't have any rights unless we give it to them." pic.twitter.com/VJ7gC1u6nc The Hill (@thehill) August 3, 2020 Last month, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters that they are considering banning TikTok. He also added that people should download TikTok only if they want their private information in the hands of the Chinese Communist Party. Thirty TigersHall & Oates member John Oates and his Americana side project The Good Road Band will release a new concert album, Live in Nashville, digitally and via streaming services on September 18. The album, which was recorded this past January at the legendary Nashville venue Station Inn, features Oates and his band performing selections from their 2018 studio effort Arkansas, along with four new original tunes. The live record also finds John paying tribute to his own childhood on a rendition of Don Gibson's "Oh Lonesome Me," which was the first song he learned to sing and play on guitar when was was just six years old. Arkansas features various songs associated one of Oates' musical heroes, blues legend Mississippi John Hurt, including covers of tunes by such American roots-music greats as Jimmie Rodgers, Blind Blake and Emmett Miller, plus two original compositions. The Good Road Band is made up of a collective of respected session musicians, among them the acclaimed mandolin player Sam Bush. "[Live in Nashville] represents a full-circle moment for me," says Oates, who's been quarantining with his family in his Nashville home during the COVID-19 pandemic. "It feels like the culmination of the Arkansas project, being able to bring these guys back, and to be able to make this record after touring and playing so many shows together." Oates has posted a lyric video featuring footage of him and The Good Road Band at Station Inn playing a version of Miller's 1924 tune "Anytime" -- a song featured on both Arkansas and Live in Nashville -- on his official YouTube channel. The black-and-white clip is has altered to look like a grainy silent film. By Matt Friedlander Copyright 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved. Merritt Corrigan tends the Official Trump Store at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at National Harbor, Maryland, U.S., February 22, 2018. Merritt Corrigan, a deputy White House liaison for the U.S. Agency for International Development, was fired Monday, on the same day she ranted about LGBTQ issues on Twitter, according to two former Trump administration officials who spoke to NBC News. Corrigan, who had held her post for just months, wrote on Twitter that she had been targeted for her "Christian beliefs." "Ms. Merritt Corrigan is no longer an employee at the USAID," the agency's acting spokesperson Pooja Jhunjhunwala said in a statement to NBC News. "USAID takes any claim of discrimination seriously, and we will investigate any complaints of anti-Christian bias Ms. Corrigan has raised during her tenure at the Agency," said Jhunjhunwala. Corrigan, an appointee of the Trump administration, joined the nation's international development arm several months ago. She had written on Twitter on Monday, before her termination was announced, "For too long, I've remained silent as the media has attacked me for my Christian beliefs, which are shared by the majority of Americans. Let me [be] clear: Gay marriage isn't marriage. Men aren't women. US-funded Tunisian LGBT soap operas aren't America First." Tweet In another tweet, Corrigan wrote: "The United States is losing ground in the battle to garner influence through humanitarian aid because we now refuse to help countries who don't celebrate sexual deviancy. Meanwhile, Russia and China are happy to step in and eat our lunch." And in another tweet, she wrote, "I watched with horror this week as USAID distributed taxpayer funded documents claiming 'we cannot tell someone's sex or gender by looking at them' and that not calling oneself 'cis-gendered' is a microagression I'm not cis-anything. I'm a woman." Tweet The news site Politico first reported that Corrigan no longer worked at USAID. It was not immediately clear if her tweets on Monday had spurred her termination, but Politico noted that she had "unlocked her previously private Twitter account and unleashed six tweets blasting USAID, congressional Democrats and the media." Corrigan did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNBC. USAID's mission statement says that the agency's "vision is a world in which the human rights of LGBT persons are respected and able to live with dignity, free from discrimination, persecution, and violence." After she was fired, Corrigan tweeted that she would appear at a press conference Thursday with two notorious conservative conspiracy theory peddlers, Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman, who have a pattern of making outrageous claims against prominent figures unsupported by credible evidence. Tweet Corrigan had been under fire since at least June, when Democratic members of Congress called on her to resign. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel and 19 other Democrats wrote acting USAID Administrator John Barsa that Corrigan holds positions "in direct opposition to the work USAID supports." The Foreign Affairs Committee tweeted its letter out Monday after Corrigan was fired. Tweet Politico reported last year that Corrigan, who is a former employee of the Republican National Committee, had "written on Twitter that 'our homo-empire couldn't tolerate even one commercial enterprise not in full submission to the tyrannical LGBT agenda.'" She also had previously written on Twitter, "Liberal democracy is little more than a front for the war being waged against us by those who fundamentally despise not only our way of life, but life itself." David Stacy, government director of the advocacy group the Human Rights Campaign, in an emailed statement said, "Sadly, Merritt Corrigan is not unique in the Trump Administration. She is the exact type of anti-LGBTQ zealot that Trump recruits and places in positions of power." "Corrigan's biased and harmful beliefs are not shared by the vast majority of Americans," Stacy said. "Corrigan is a symptom of a larger problem, it's time to hold the Trump-Pence administration accountable at the ballot box and elect a leader this November who supports the fundamental humanity of LGBTQ people and appoints people who share that basic decency." Dozens of retailers, big and small, have filed for Chapter 11 protection this year. The pace through the first half of 2020 far exceeds the number of retail bankruptcies for all of last year. About two dozen stores have sought bankruptcy protection since the pandemic started. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued an order that the complete National Anthem should be played in all cinema halls across the country before movie starts. The apex court further said the National Anthem will be accompanied by national flag on screen. SC's observations in 8 points 1. SC directs National Anthem be played in cinema halls across the country before film screening. 2. SC also stated that everyone present in the cinema halls must rise and pay respect to the National Anthem. 3. National Flag on Screen should be shown when National Anthem is played 4. National Anthem should not be printed or displayed on undesirable objects. 5. There should not be dramatisation of the National Anthem. 6. No commercial benefits be taken by a person by playing the National Anthem. 7. SC directs Centre that the order should be given effect in a week's time and be circulated to all the states and UTs. 8. The Centre has also agreed to circulate the order to all States Chief Secretaries and also to publish it on electronic and print media. Many cinema halls are presently having this practice of playing National Anthem before the movie starts. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. GUILDERLAND The Lord & Taylor at Crossgates Mall is on the list of stores the retailer plans to close as it heads into bankruptcy, Forbes reported. It is one of several stores the company plans to close in New York, including outposts in Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse. Forbes said the company also plans to shutter downstate stores in Bayshore and Yonkers. Vinay Tiwari, the Patna (Central) SP who has been sent from Bihar to lead the investigation into Sushant Singh Rajputs death, has been forcibly quarantined by Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials, according to Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey. Sushants sister Shweta Singh Kirti shared the news on Facebook and called it disgraceful. In another Facebook post, Shweta wrote, What? Is this even for real? How can an officer sent on duty be quarantined for 14 Days? #JusticeForSushant. The Bihar DGP shared on Facebook that Tiwari was quarantined on Sunday night and asked to stay at a guest house in the suburb of Goregaon. IPS officer Vinay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11 pm today.He was not provided accommodation in the IPS Mess despite request and was staying in a guest house in Goregaon, he wrote. Last week, an FIR was filed in Patna by Sushants father KK Singh against the late actors girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and six others for abetment to suicide. A four-member team of the Patna Police then reached Mumbai for investigation. Tiwari was sent on Sunday to head the investigating team. Sushant died by suicide on June 14. The Mumbai Police are investigating the case and have questioned at least 40 people so far, including Rhea and her brother Showik Chakraborty. Also read: Ankita Lokhande says Sushant Singh Rajput would be very badly affected by things written about him Rhea filed a petition in the Supreme Court, challenging the jurisdiction of the Patna Police in the case. According to the lawyer of Sushants family, Vikas Singh, this indicates that she has sought a transfer of the case to Mumbai as someone is helping her in the Mumbai Police. FIR is registered in Patna, now she (Rhea) has filed a petition in Supreme Court seeking stay and transfer of investigation to Mumbai. Isse jyada kya proof chahiye ki (what more proof is needed that) somebody in Mumbai Police is helping her, he told PTI. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918 . Follow @htshowbiz for more LOS ANGELES, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Covid-19 pandemic has permanently changed automotive retail at a rate nobody could have expected. Consumers are demanding new digital, contactless and at-home services that have placed enormous strain on every business process. Dealers have stepped up and changed virtually every aspect of their operations to meet their customer's needs. At-home services like service pick-up and delivery as well as test drives are highly specialized and very resource intensive for dealers. Customer expectations are very high. Nothing can be left to chance. When done well, these services help deliver increased Fixed Operations business from higher RO grosses to better service retention. They also deliver higher sales grosses and an overall superior customer experience. Doppler provides an unparalleled solution to dealers. There is nothing as tested or as reliable in the market: A national network of thoroughly vetted, fully trained staff All staff fully covered for workers compensation and benefits Doppler assumes all liability including full CDC compliance Customizable services and pricing to accommodate individual market and dealer needs Doppler's full stack technology solution from customer reservations to dispatch and logistics making it totally turnkey "The industry is rapidly rebuilding with new services. Dealers have an urgent need for professionally staffed, low cost solutions like Doppler that can deliver a better customer experience," said auto industry executive, retailer and AVC Capital Group Board member, James E. Press. At-home service is now a basic element of the business. Providing a consistent, superior experience requires professionally trained staff that only Doppler can provide. "Doppler for OEMs has been an enormous success. We have used all the experience gained to adapt the platform and staffing specifically for the unique requirements of dealers and their customers," said Doppler Managing Director, Dean Braunstein. No other service offers dealers the professionalism, flexibility and affordability of Doppler in the United States today. About Doppler Automotive Doppler Automotive enables true, consumer-first, multi-dimensional retailing for OEMs and dealers through anywhere, anytime, brand and product experiences. The Doppler platform combines a proprietary reservation and dispatch system with a national network of delivery agents to provide a seamless integration of online shopping and live vehicle experiences. www.dopplerdrives.com SOURCE AVC Capital Group Related Links https://www.dopplerdrives.com Clarilis, a UK-based legal technology company, raised a further 6m in Series B funding round. Backers included the Northern Venture Capital Trust Funds (VCTs) which are managed by Mercia, and Gresham House Ventures, investing on behalf of the Baronsmead VCTs. Gresham House Ventures invested 3.5m and Mercias Northern VCTs invested 2.5m. The company intends to use the funds for ongoing growth and international expansion. Co-founded by brothers James Quinn and Kevin Quinn, Clarilis is a provider of automated drafting technology. The CLARILIS platform aims to automate complex suites of precedents, such as Share Purchase and Facility Agreement suites with many ancillaries, many parties and complex underlying deal structures. Launched in 2015 Clarilis now serves a client base including Addleshaw Goddard, Baker McKenzie, National Grid and Slaughter and May. FinSMEs 03/08/2020 The Essex-based salad dressing manufacturer Tessemaes is alleging in federal court that its one-time consultants and former leaders tried to steal the company from the three brothers who founded it. An amended lawsuit filed earlier this month in the U.S. District Court of Maryland alleges that a law firm based in Washington, D.C. and five Maryland men attempted to muscle out Greg, Brian and Matt Vetter, who launched the organic food business in 2009 and named it after their mother. The defendants are the Tandem Legal Group and the Tandem Growth Group, operating out of the same Washington address; Michael S. McDevitt of Annapolis (Tessemaes former CEO), Brendan Connors of Severna Park (the companys former CFO); Herman Dunst of Woodbine; Paul Intlekofer of Severna Park and Alex Chehansky of Annapolis. Barry Coburn, the attorney representing all the defendants, declined to comment, saying only: Were going to address these allegations in court, not in the public arena. The lawsuit accuses the defendants of causing the company to sustain an estimated $45 million in losses. The 12-count complaint alleges that different defendants engaged in racketeering, negligence, legal malpractice, fraud, conspiracy, wrongful interference with a business relationship, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and unjust enrichment. The company is asking for court approval to rescind the stock granted to the defendants in 2014, an unspecified amount of damages and a jury trial. Tessemaes was founded in 2009 and now has annual revenues of about $20 million. The lawsuit emphasizes that the brothers, two of whom previously played professional lacrosse for the Chesapeake Bayhawks, were not experienced or sophisticated businessmen, but they shared a strong work ethic and the desire to see the company succeed. In 2013, Greg Vetter met McDevitt through a contact at Tessemaes bank. McDevitt told Greg that he and Tandem could help Tessemaes grow its business exponentially, the complaint says. Story continues McDevitt was chief executive officer of Medifast, Inc. and Connors was the business chief financial officer when the Baltimore-based weight loss company got into trouble with federal authorities over allegatiosn of deceptive advertising practices. In 2012, Medifast, Inc. paid a $3.7 million penalty to the Federal Trade Commission. After leaving Medifast, McDevitt co-founded Tandem in 2013, which markets itself as providing legal and business expertise to young, fast-growing companies. The complaint alleges that Tandem had an inherent conflict that kept it from putting Tessemaes interests first. The organization is based in Washington, D.C. the only jurisdiction in the U.S. that allows non-attorneys, such as McDevitt, to own a law firm. Attorneys owe a fiduciary duty to their clients and are required to act in their best interests. In contrast, a business agreement is understood to be at arms length, with the different parties looking out for themselves. While Tandem holds itself out as a legitimate legal practice, it is in fact simply a vehicle that McDevitt uses to serve his and his confederates corrupt motives, the complaint says. The complaint delineates several different schemes the defendants allegedly set into motion between 2014 and 2018 in an attempt to take over the company. Two stand out: In 2014, the defendants proposed that they be paid in stock options instead of cash, according to the complaint. The plaintiffs didnt realize that the deal was structured so that over time, the percent of the company owned by McDevitt, Connors and Dunst would have swelled, while the proportion owned by the family and original shareholders would have dwindled, the lawsuit alleges. McDevitt understood that his offer to accept payment for Tandems fees in the form of equity was likely to be attractive to Tessemaes which like many young businesses faced cash flow issues, the complaint says, and that Tessemaes would be unlikely to appreciate the inherent and insidious danger posed by such a conflict-laden arrangement. Another plot was set into motion in 2017, according to the complaint, this one allegedly hatched by McDevitt, Intlekofer and Chehansky. Once again, Tessemaes needed cash. The company would be sued the following year by some vendors for not paying its bills. According to the complaint, McDevitt promised to solve Tessemaes financial problems by raising millions from investors in weeks. In exchange, McDevitt would receive $100,000 in cash and stock options, according to the lawsuit. The catch was that the deal would require changing Tessemaes operating agreement. Both sides agreed to amendments that would have provided McDevitt with expanded authority, including veto power over incurring large debts and approval of new product lines, the lawsuit alleges. When the company reviewed the amendments ... it discovered that McDevitt, in a ploy that hearkened back to his 2014 equity grab, was attempting to grant himself rights that went well beyond what the companys board had agreed to, the complaint says. Specifically, the amendments would have given McDevitt ... more power to force the sale of the company, the suit states. The rewritten amendments were discovered before they were signed, and Tessemaes severed its relationship with McDevitt, Tandem and the others, according to the lawsuit. 2020 The Baltimore Sun Visit The Baltimore Sun at www.baltimoresun.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. (TNS) The Massachusetts State Legislature enacted a $1.8 billion information technology bond bill after lawmakers reached a deal on a finalized proposal late Friday. The bill now heads to Gov. Charlie Bakers desk.The IT bond bill offers cybersecurity and technology improvements to early child care, classrooms, law enforcement, the food industry and other areas all in the midst of a global pandemic that has made internet access, teleconferencing platforms and secure, efficient websites crucial for remote work.The House voted, 155-4, to enact the bill early Sunday. The Senate unanimously approved the proposal.Im happy. Its a good bill, said Senate Ways and Means Chair Michael Rodrigues, a Westport Democrat and one of the legislators in the bills conference committee. Its necessary to ensure that we have the appropriations necessary to continue our investments in IT and general government, and Im glad it was done.The massive bill authorizes $50 million to improve access to remote learning technology for grades K through 12, particularly for vulnerable populations that have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.Under the bill, the Department of Early Education and Care would distribute $25 million in grants to licensed early education and child care centers to offset the costs of capital improvements meant to limit the spread of the coronavirus. The department would give priority to child care centers serving families with subsidized child care and those considered crucial to the states workforce.The bill also includes $160 million for technology and telecommunications improvements, including a study of cell phone service coverage in counties where most municipalities have 500 people or fewer per square mile. The study would offer a clearer picture of the telecommunications barrier Western Massachusetts residents face and how to improve it.Of the $160 million, at least $10 million will have to be spent on improving coverage in these areas.Other highlights include $20 million for a body camera grant program, $10 million to modernize the states criminal justice data system and track racial disparities across the judicial system and $2.9 million to the Office of the Commissioner of Probation to create an automated electronic process for sealing criminal records.Lawmakers reached a deal on the proposal on what would normally be the final day of the two-year legislative session. The House and Senate voted to extend formal sessions past Friday, allowing them to continue debating major bills through the rest of the year. Several of those bills are in conference committee, including proposals on police reform, economic development, health care and transportation.House Speaker Robert DeLeo said in a statement early Saturday that the House had passed several of those priority bills this month.Now having extended the legislative session due to COVID-19, the House will continue to work with the Senate to reach resolution on these items, the Winthrop Democrat said.Asked if those negotiations could finish in August, Rodrigues said, I think they could all get done in August. Will they? We dont know. Osteen's megachurch, World Vision help the hungry and farmers during COVID Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment HOUSTON Lakewood Church, led by Pastor Joel Osteen, has partnered with World Vision, Houston-area churches and local nonprofits to distribute over 12,000 boxes of fresh food, provided by farmers facing financial hardship during the pandemic, to the hungry. The partnership, part of the Fresh Food Box Program, began soon after COVID shutdowns began. The program has fed over 860,000 Americans through 70 hub locations. Unlike some food drives, Fresh Food Box gives recipients fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy products supplied by farmers who otherwise could not sell their goods due to the economic impact of COVID-19. World Vision was in Houston for two years helping rebuild after Hurricane Harvey, Reed Slattery, national director of World Vision U.S. programs, told The Christian Post. We noticed how in need the area was. During the pandemic, we know folks arent working and food is one of the biggest needs, so we come alongside them and make sure families here have dinner. At the Houston hub, food is supplied by American farmers and shipped by a semi-truck to Lakewood Church twice per week. Lakewood Church then disperses the food to smaller Houston-area churches and nonprofits called PODS (Points of Distribution Services), according to Slattery. Food boxes are supplied for free to anyone in need, as the program will remain in Phase Two until the end of August. Slattery said he hopes the program continues into a third phase, which could proceed through October, so long as challenges do not escalate. I think one of the biggest challenges with the program nationwide is simply capacity, he said. Many churches and facilities dont have the refrigerators or space to store this fresh food. Fortunately, Lakewood has the infrastructure and ability to store food for this scale and volume. Paul Osteen, associate pastor of Lakewood Church, said he and his church were glad to step in and fulfill the need. World Vision and Lakewood Church have been working together on various projects for over 12 years, according to Osteen. A "convoy of hope built on a long-term relationship" between the church and organization was how Osteen described the partnership with World Vision. He said it brought him joy to see so much collaboration to help the community. Theres islands of food shortages all over the United States and theyre exacerbated by natural disasters and now the pandemic, Osteen told CP. As followers of Jesus, we must have our hearts open for those who are hungry and in need. Were doing everything we can as individuals and the Body of Christ. In addition to working with local churches, food pantries are also a part of the collaborative effort to fight hunger in the Houston area. Houstons food bank, among the largest in the country, receives support from the program and Lakewood Church throughout the year. Smaller nonprofits are involved as well, including The Clear Lake Food Pantry in Clear Lake City, just outside of Houston. The nonprofit feeds and prays for over 450 families in the area. Since the start of COVID-19, the need for help has continued to grow, Nathan Knight of The Clear Lake Food Pantry told CP. We are 100% volunteer and donor driven, so we would not be able to help without our partners. But to God be the glory for the great things He has done. According to Feeding Americas Map the Meal Gap project, over 1 million people are food insecure in the counties served by the Houston Food Bank, which amounts to 14.2% of the entire areas population. The data reflects food insecurity levels from 2018, which suggests the number could be higher due to the pandemic. COVID-19 has forced millions in the U.S. to become unemployed. Pastor Osteen said that the Bible calls on Christians to help others, referencing Matthew 25. The passage suggests that "if you see a brother in need and ignore, you do not have the love of God in you." Theres 2,300 verses about helping widows, the hungry and the poor, he said. If you represent Jesus, you cant just preach through words; you have to preach with your actions. When World Vision came to us, it fit what we were already doing, and what were doing is God-inspired. James Gordon Smith doesnt have COVID-19, but his daughter is convinced its killing him anyway. Theres going to be a lot of veterans like my dad dying in hospitals who are not going to get the care they need to prolong their lives or even save their lives, Stephanie Smith said. Her problem: She knows her dad served on Navy ships before and probably during the Vietnam War but cant prove it in order to get him into the state veterans system. James Smith never filed for veterans benefits that would have verified his service. The National Archives National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis probably has the proof Stephanie needs. But the pandemic closed it down in March, and its only slowly reopening. If he didnt use benefits, hes not in the online system, and with the National Archives being shut down, its a real problem to get them, Stephanie said. James Smith and his ex-wife raised three children in Missoula. He worked for years at area lumber mills. Like many war veterans, he shared few details of his service in the Navy. At 76, he suffers from Alzheimers disease, a form of dementia, and, his daughter suspects, from post-traumatic stress disorder. Studies have shown that victims of PTSD have a nearly two-fold higher risk of developing dementia than those without it. Smith has been committed to the Montana State Hospital in Warm Springs twice in the past 3 months. The first time was on April 20, more than a month into the coronavirus scourge in the U.S. Its neither the place he wants to be nor where Stephanie believes he needs to be for proper treatment. Warm Springs is not a place for recuperation, she said. The doctors report when he was going in the first time was that he was perfectly ambulatory and had a steady gait. He came out in a wheelchair. Tests at St. Patrick Hospital indicated that Smith had several strokes while at Warm Springs. Yet when he became delusional and combative at the Missoula hospital, he was sent back to the state facility in early July. Obviously people dont want to be in a hospital, Stephanie said. In his mind he thought he was being kidnapped (at St. Pats) and so he yelled out he was being kidnapped. Thats when they took him away to Warm Springs. I think hes going to die this time around. He almost died the first time. She does not fault caregivers at St. Pats or at Warm Springs, who she said are doing yeomans work to keep COVID-19 outside their doors. The National Archives National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis ceased operations on March 23 due to the pandemic that hammered the area. One of its many services, and the one Stephanie Smith is looking for, is verifying military service as a central clearinghouse for all branches of the Armed Forces. Kate Hahn, veterans service officer in Missoula for the Montana Department of Military Affairs, helped her file two records requests to the NPRC earlier this summer. One was for his discharge papers and the other for his personnel file. James signed off on both requests when he was in Missoula. Now, viewing the COVID situation and staff scale-back in St. Louis, theyre trying for an emergency request, a DD-214, but need his authorization again. Hahn faxed Warm Springs last week to see if they could get it. Stephanie Smith said Friday she hadnt heard if the fax was successful. The national records center recently updated its COVID response on its website, https://www.archives.gov/veterans/benefits: There are more than 1,000 federal employees and contractors from multiple agencies working in densely populated office space, the full-page statement says. Cubicles are in close proximity to each other; work processes required frequent, close interactions with coworkers; and the servicing of most requests requires access to over 60 million paper records that are (1) stored onsite and (2) unable to be accessed remotely. The records center was closed from March 23 to June 23. A limited number of essential staff reported on-site during that time to service urgent requests, such as those involving homeless veterans in need of shelter, medical emergencies, and funerals for deceased veterans, the statement says. In June, the NPRC entered into Phase One of a gradual reopening. Still, only 10% of the vast staff is back at work, and the center said operations have been disrupted on multiple occasions due to exposures of staff. As the pandemic continues to spread in the local community, additional disruptions are expected. Stephanie Smith was encouraged last week to learn that services will be expanded on Monday, Aug. 3. Now theyll include time-sensitive requests from veterans seeking VA home loan guarantees and jobs. And the Department of Veterans Affairs can obtain records on a temporary basis it needs to adjudicate benefit claims. The records center says it doesnt have an estimate on when it will enter into Phase Two of reopening, at which time it expects to expand services to include all requests for military discharge papers. These are the documents most often needed by veterans for benefit claims and normally represent nearly half of the NPRCs workload, it says. Even when Phase Two is entered, the center warns, it will take several months to catch up on the backlog of requests. We regret we are unable to provide a more optimistic forecast for the resumption of normal service levels, the records center message concluded. Stephanie Smith holds no illusions that itll be a simple process even when the center returns to full service. She has pursued other avenues, with clerks and recorders in Musselshell County, where she believes her father enlisted, as well as Missoula and Ravalli counties. Shes trying to contact by mail and email the naval base in San Diego, where her father has told her he was discharged. So far no luck. Compounding the situation is Stephanie Smiths own health issues. She is recuperating from injuries she said she received while helping her father around his house in Missoula, and shes doing it in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where her ex-husband is battling cancer. Smith has praise for her fathers caregivers at Warm Springs and at St. Patrick Hospital. Shes able to visit him by phone but not in person because of COVID-19 restrictions. She doesnt feel its an exaggeration to say her father is in danger of dying if she cant get him into Veterans Administration care. I know my dad, Smith said. This is certainly causing him to lose his will to live, being there. He is bedridden and his prognosis is not very good. He feels like hes on his last legs. I just told him he has to survive this until I can get him into a veterans home. Its totally tough. He said hes really having a hard time having to be stuck there. He doesnt want to die out there. Stephanie is determined to get him the care he deserves. Ive had people telling me to give up, to forget it, to just shut down because of the coronavirus, she said. Ive just kept plugging away no matter how hard it is. I keep believing Ill get through to the National Archives, so Im glad theyre opening it up again. I was feeling so negative, like people really dont care. 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. Cambodian authorities have arrested a prominent union leader for allegedly inciting social unrest over border demarcation issues with the neighboring Vietnam, the latest crackdown against opposition voices in the kingdom. Rong Chhun, president of the Cambodian Confederation of Unions and a longtime government critic, was apprehended Friday night at his home. He was taken to court Saturday to hear the charge against him. If found guilty, Chhun face six months to two years imprisonment and a fine up to about $1,000. In July he accused the government of "irregularities" at Cambodia's eastern border, which, according to him, caused locals to lose farmland. Chhun also gave an interview last week to U.S. government-funded Radio Free Asia, in which he discussed the concerns of Cambodian farmers about land infringement by neighboring Vietnam. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sens government maintains close relations with Vietnam, a country that help him rise to power after Hanoi invaded Cambodia to oust the Khmer Rouge regime. Hun Sens opponents accuse him of failing to protect Cambodian land. OKLAHOMA CITY, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Curtailed Operated Oil Volumes in 2Q20 Estimated to Generate $90 Million in Incremental Cash Flow from Operations at $40 WTI Approximately 55% of Oil Volumes (7.8 MMBo) Curtailed in 2Q20 202,815 Boepd Average Daily 2Q20 Production 2020 Full-Year Average Production of 155,000 to 165,000 Bopd & 800,000 to 820,000 Mcfpd 3Q20 Average Production of 280,000 to 300,000 Boepd 2020 Exit Rate Production of 310,000 to 330,000 Boepd Forecasting Approx. $1.3 Billion Annual Cash Flow from Operations and $200 Million Annual Free Cash Flow (FCF) (Non-GAAP) in 2020 at $40 WTI $615 Million Cash Flow from Operations and $500 Million FCF in 2H20 Targeting Total Debt of $5.4 Billion to $5.5 Billion by YE20 Low Cost Industry Leadership: Reinstating Original per Unit Cost Guidance $3.58 Production Expense per Boe in 2Q20; in Line with Original Guidance even with Production Curtailments On Track for Previously Revised $1.2 Billion or Lower Capital Spend in 2020 Est. $1.2 Billion D&C Maintenance Capital to Hold Production Flat YoY in 2021 Operating Efficiencies Continue to Drive Year-Over-Year All-In Well Costs Lower Bakken Completed Well Cost Decreased 12% to $7.2 Million per Well (Approx. 70% Structural) South Completed Well Cost Decreased 10% to $9.5 Million per Well (Approx. 80% Structural) Continental Resources, Inc. (NYSE: CLR) (the "Company") today announced second quarter 2020 operating and financial results. Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/95419/continental_resources_logo.jpg The Company reported a net loss of $239.3 million, or $0.66 per diluted share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2020. In second quarter 2020, typically excluded items in aggregate represented a decrease of $16.4 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, in Continental's reported net loss. Adjusted net loss for second quarter 2020 was $255.7 million, or $0.71 per diluted share (non-GAAP). Adjusted net loss, adjusted net loss per share, EBITDAX, net debt, free cash flow, net sales prices and cash general and administrative (G&A) expenses per barrel of oil equivalent (Boe) presented herein are non-GAAP financial measures. Definitions and explanations for how these measures relate to the most directly comparable U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) financial measures are provided at the conclusion of this press release. "Continental has proactively responded to the unprecedented events that have shaped the global commodity landscape in 2020. By deferring volumes in the second quarter of 2020, we expect to generate an estimated $90 million in incremental cash flow from operations at $40 WTI. Combined with our strong asset position and unmatched shareholder alignment, we believe Continental's equity reflects an uncommon value," said Bill Berry, Chief Executive Officer. Production Update Second quarter 2020 total production averaged 202,815 Boepd. Second quarter 2020 oil production averaged 95,174 Bopd. Second quarter 2020 natural gas production averaged 645.8 MMcfpd. During the second quarter, approximately 55% of the Company's operated oil volumes were shut in, or approximately 7.8 MMBo. The following table provides the Company's average daily production by region for the periods presented. 2Q 2Q YTD YTD Boe per day 2020 2019 2020 2019 Bakken 88,822 194,014 145,162 196,704 South 107,083 128,777 129,547 126,568 All other 6,910 8,623 7,119 8,551 Total 202,815 331,414 281,828 331,823 Financial Update "We have made tremendous strides to remain the low cost industry leader amongst our oil-weighted peers. We are reinstituting per unit cost guidance and expect LOE, G&A and DD&A per Boe to be within our previous guidance, reflecting exceptional cost management and capital efficiency," said John Hart, Chief Financial Officer. "While our debt increased modestly due to the pandemic, it has not changed our long-term strategy to continue focusing on debt reduction, with a total debt target of $5.4 billion to $5.5 billion by year end 2020." Three Months Ended Six Months Ended 2Q20 Financial Update June 30, 2020 June 30, 2020 Cash and Cash Equivalents $6.7 million Total Debt $5.74 billion Net Debt (non-GAAP)(1) $5.74 billion Average Net Sales Price (non-GAAP)(1) Per Barrel of Oil $16.35 $32.37 Per Mcf of Gas $0.12 $0.59 Per Boe $7.88 $18.56 Production Expense per Boe $3.58 $3.60 Total G&A Expenses per Boe $2.30 $1.66 Crude Oil Differential per Barrel ($7.54) ($6.66) Natural Gas Differential per Mcf ($1.58) ($1.26) Non-Acquisition Capital Expenditures $190.8 million $841.5 million Exploration & Development Drilling & Completion $155.8 million $699.8 million Leasehold $6.2 million $25.5 million Minerals, of which 80% was Recouped from FNV $2.7 million $23.3 million Workovers, Recompletions and Other $26.1 million $92.9 million (1) Net debt and net sales prices represent non-GAAP financial measures. Further information about these non-GAAP financial measures as well as reconciliations to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measures are provided subsequently under the header Non-GAAP Financial Measures. Guidance Update "Our updated 2020 guidance emphasizes our ongoing commitment to shareholder value. This is driven by the strength of our assets, the quality and flexibility of our operations and the outstanding performance by our teams, companywide," said Jack Stark, President and Chief Operating Officer. "Going forward, shareholder value remains our top priority as we continue to drive down costs, maximize free cash flow and focus on reducing debt." The Company has updated its 2020 annual production guidance to 155,000 to 165,000 Bopd and 800 to 820 MMcfpd. The Company has updated its third quarter 2020 production guidance to 280,000 to 300,000 Boepd and its 2020 exit rate production guidance to 310,000 to 330,000 Boepd. As of June 30, 2020, the Company has 215 wells in progress and expects to end the year with 140. The Company expects to average 7.7 drilling rigs and 2.5 stimulation crews in 2020. Revised production guidance is forecasted to generate approximately $1.3 billion of annual cash flow from operations and $200 million of annual free cash flow at $40 per barrel WTI, with $615 million of cash flow from operations and $500 million of free cash flow in the second half of 2020. The Company believes it is essential to prioritize the balance sheet and is targeting total debt of $5.4 billion to $5.5 billion by year end 2020. The Company maintains its commitment to low cost industry leadership amongst oil-weighted peers. In spite of significant production curtailments in the second quarter of 2020, the Company is reinstating previously suspended per unit cost guidance metrics in 2020. Production expense is expected to be $3.50 to $4.00 per Boe in 2020. Total G&A expense, which is comprised of cash and non-cash G&A expense, is expected to be $1.60 to $2.00 per Boe in 2020. Continental expects 2020 guidance for DD&A of $15.00 to $17.00 per Boe, reflecting strong well productivity and capital efficiency. The Company is on track to achieve its previously revised 2020 Capex guidance of $1.2 billion or lower, a 55% decrease from original guidance of $2.65 billion. The Company continues to drive maintenance capital lower and estimates $1.2 billion D&C maintenance capital or lower to hold production flat year-over-year in 2021. Bakken completed well cost has decreased 12% year-over-year to $7.2 million per well, with approximately 70% of these savings being structural and South completed well cost has decreased 10% year-over-year to $9.5 million per well, with approximately 80% of these savings being structural. Both the Bakken and South completed well costs include D&C and full facilities costs, including artificial lift. The Company's full 2020 guidance, capital expenditures budget and operating details can be found at the conclusion of this press release. The following table provides the Company's production results, per-unit operating costs, results of operations and certain non-GAAP financial measures for the periods presented. Average net sales prices exclude any effect of derivative transactions. Per-unit expenses have been calculated using sales volumes. Three months ended June 30, Six months ended June 30, 2020 2019 2020 2019 Average daily production: Crude oil (Bbl per day) 95,174 193,586 147,922 193,753 Natural gas (Mcf per day) 645,846 826,969 803,434 828,422 Crude oil equivalents (Boe per day) 202,815 331,414 281,828 331,823 Average net sales prices (non-GAAP), excluding effect from derivatives: (1) Crude oil ($/Bbl) $ 16.35 $ 54.66 $ 32.37 $ 52.36 Natural gas ($/Mcf) $ 0.12 $ 1.66 $ 0.59 $ 2.11 Crude oil equivalents ($/Boe) $ 7.88 $ 36.03 $ 18.56 $ 35.79 Production expenses ($/Boe) $ 3.58 $ 3.74 $ 3.60 $ 3.66 Production taxes (% of net crude oil and gas sales) 7.8% 8.7% 8.7% 8.4% DD&A ($/Boe) $ 16.07 $ 16.14 $ 16.25 $ 16.37 Total general and administrative expenses ($/Boe) (2) $ 2.30 $ 1.57 $ 1.66 $ 1.58 Net income (loss) attributable to Continental Resources (in thousands) $ (239,286) $ 236,557 $ (424,950) $ 423,533 Diluted net income (loss) per share attributable to Continental Resources $ (0.66) $ 0.63 $ (1.17) $ 1.13 Adjusted net income (loss) (non-GAAP) (in thousands) (1) $ (255,702) $ 219,136 $ (283,268) $ 435,746 Adjusted diluted net income (loss) per share (non-GAAP) (1) $ (0.71) $ 0.59 $ (0.78) $ 1.16 Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities (in thousands) $ (20,248) $ 783,396 $ 643,570 $ 1,504,904 EBITDAX (non-GAAP) (in thousands) (1) $ 36,013 $ 858,019 $ 630,260 $ 1,712,804 (1) Net sales prices, adjusted net income (loss), adjusted diluted net income (loss) per share, and EBITDAX represent non-GAAP financial measures. Further information about these non-GAAP financial measures as well as reconciliations to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measures are provided subsequently under the header Non-GAAP Financial Measures. (2) Total general and administrative expense is comprised of cash general and administrative expense and non-cash equity compensation expense. Cash general and administrative expense per Boe was $1.45, $1.17, $1.04, and $1.18 for 2Q 2020, 2Q 2019, YTD 2020, and YTD 2019, respectively. Non-cash equity compensation expense per Boe was $0.85, $0.40, $0.62, and $0.40 for 2Q 2020, 2Q 2019, YTD 2020, and YTD 2019, respectively. Second Quarter Earnings Conference Call The Company plans to host a conference call to discuss second quarter 2020 results on Tuesday, August 4, 2020 at 12:00 p.m. ET (11:00 a.m. CT). Those wishing to listen to the conference call may do so via the Company's website at www.CLR.com or by phone: Time and date: 12 p.m. ET, Tuesday, August 4, 2020 Dial-in: 1-888-317-6003 Intl. dial-in: 1-412-317-6061 Conference ID: 8636766 A replay of the call will be available for 14 days on the Company's website or by dialing: Replay number: 1-877-344-7529 Intl. replay: 1-412-317-0088 Conference ID: 10146341 The Company plans to publish a second quarter 2020 summary presentation to its website at www.CLR.com prior to the start of its conference call on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. About Continental Resources Continental Resources (NYSE: CLR) is a top 10 independent oil producer in the U.S. and a leader in America's energy renaissance. Based in Oklahoma City, Continental is the largest leaseholder and the largest producer in the nation's premier oil field, the Bakken play of North Dakota and Montana. The Company also has significant positions in Oklahoma, including its SCOOP Woodford and SCOOP Springer discoveries and the STACK plays. With a focus on the exploration and production of oil, Continental has unlocked the technology and resources vital to American energy independence and our nation's leadership in the new world oil market. In 2020, the Company will celebrate 53 years of operations. For more information, please visit www.CLR.com. Cautionary Statement for the Purpose of the "Safe Harbor" Provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 This press release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements included in this press release other than statements of historical fact, including, but not limited to, forecasts or expectations regarding the Company's business and statements or information concerning the Company's future operations, performance, financial condition, production and reserves, schedules, plans, timing of development, rates of return, budgets, costs, business strategy, objectives, and cash flows are forward-looking statements. When used in this press release, the words "could," "may," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "expect," "project," "budget," "target," "plan," "continue," "potential," "guidance," "strategy," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such identifying words. Forward-looking statements are based on the Company's current expectations and assumptions about future events and currently available information as to the outcome and timing of future events. Although the Company believes these assumptions and expectations are reasonable, they are inherently subject to numerous business, economic, competitive, regulatory and other risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the Company's control. No assurance can be given that such expectations will be correct or achieved or that the assumptions are accurate. The risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, commodity price volatility; the geographic concentration of our operations; financial market and economic volatility; the effects of any national or international health crisis; the inability to access needed capital; the risks and potential liabilities inherent in crude oil and natural gas drilling and production and the availability of insurance to cover any losses resulting therefrom; difficulties in estimating proved reserves and other reserves-based measures; declines in the values of our crude oil and natural gas properties resulting in impairment charges; our ability to replace proved reserves and sustain production; our ability to pay future dividends or complete share repurchases; the availability or cost of equipment and oilfield services; leasehold terms expiring on undeveloped acreage before production can be established; our ability to project future production, achieve targeted results in drilling and well operations and predict the amount and timing of development expenditures; the availability and cost of transportation, processing and refining facilities; legislative and regulatory changes adversely affecting our industry and our business, including initiatives related to hydraulic fracturing; increased market and industry competition, including from alternative fuels and other energy sources; and the other risks described under Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors and elsewhere in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, our Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2020, registration statements and other reports filed from time to time with the SEC, and other announcements the Company makes from time to time. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which such statement is made. Should one or more of the risks or uncertainties described in this press release occur, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, the Company's actual results and plans could differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Except as otherwise required by applicable law, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly correct or update any forward-looking statement whether as a result of new information, future events or circumstances after the date of this report, or otherwise. Readers are cautioned that initial production rates are subject to decline over time and should not be regarded as reflective of sustained production levels. In particular, production from horizontal drilling in shale oil and natural gas resource plays and tight natural gas plays that are stimulated with extensive pressure fracturing are typically characterized by significant early declines in production rates. We use the term "EUR" or "estimated ultimate recovery" to describe potentially recoverable oil and natural gas hydrocarbon quantities. We include these estimates to demonstrate what we believe to be the potential for future drilling and production on our properties. These estimates are by their nature much more speculative than estimates of proved reserves and require substantial capital spending to implement recovery. Actual locations drilled and quantities that may be ultimately recovered from our properties will differ substantially. EUR data included herein remain subject to change as more well data is analyzed. Investor Contact: Media Contact: Rory Sabino Kristin Thomas Vice President, Investor Relations Senior Vice President, Public Relations 405-234-9620 405-234-9480 [email protected] [email protected] Lucy Guttenberger Investor Relations Analyst 405-774-5878 [email protected] Continental Resources, Inc. and Subsidiaries Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (Loss) Three months ended June 30, Six months ended June 30, 2020 2019 2020 2019 Revenues: In thousands, except per share data Crude oil and natural gas sales $ 174,652 $1,137,425 $1,037,395 $2,247,009 Gain (loss) on natural gas derivatives, net (7,782) 53,448 (7,782) 52,324 Crude oil and natural gas service operations 8,789 17,509 26,847 33,284 Total revenues 175,659 1,208,382 1,056,460 2,332,617 Operating costs and expenses: Production expenses 64,673 112,430 183,151 219,396 Production taxes 11,067 93,866 82,291 180,306 Transportation expenses 32,305 53,393 92,807 102,531 Exploration expenses 1,960 3,090 13,597 4,927 Crude oil and natural gas service operations 6,062 11,206 11,972 18,392 Depreciation, depletion, amortization and accretion 290,298 485,621 826,994 980,641 Property impairments 23,929 21,339 246,458 46,655 General and administrative expenses 41,529 47,226 84,440 94,844 Net (gain) loss on sale of assets and other 612 364 5,114 112 Total operating costs and expenses 472,435 828,535 1,546,824 1,647,804 Income (loss) from operations (296,776) 379,847 (490,364) 684,813 Other income (expense): Interest expense (65,069) (68,471) (128,663) (136,308) Gain on extinguishment of debt 46,942 - 64,573 - Other 629 723 1,161 2,077 (17,498) (67,748) (62,929) (134,231) Income (loss) before income taxes (314,274) 312,099 (553,293) 550,582 (Provision) benefit for income taxes 72,143 (75,649) 124,378 (127,639) Net income (loss) (242,131) 236,450 (428,915) 422,943 Net loss attributable to noncontrolling interests (2,845) (107) (3,965) (590) Net income (loss) attributable to Continental Resources $(239,286) $ 236,557 $ (424,950) $ 423,533 Net income (loss) per share attributable to Continental Resources: Basic $ (0.66) $ 0.63 $ (1.17) $ 1.14 Diluted $ (0.66) $ 0.63 $ (1.17) $ 1.13 Continental Resources, Inc. and Subsidiaries Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets In thousands June 30, 2020 December 31, 2019 Assets Cash and cash equivalents $ 6,656 $ 39,400 Other current assets 421,734 1,167,615 Net property and equipment (1) 14,312,982 14,497,726 Other noncurrent assets 24,986 23,166 Total assets $14,766,358 $ 15,727,907 Liabilities and equity Current liabilities $ 610,114 $ 1,336,026 Long-term debt, net of current portion 5,740,554 5,324,079 Other noncurrent liabilities 1,844,438 1,959,451 Equity attributable to Continental Resources 6,196,144 6,741,667 Equity attributable to noncontrolling interests 375,108 366,684 Total liabilities and equity $14,766,358 $ 15,727,907 (1) Balance is net of accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization of $13.76 billion and $12.77 billion as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively. Continental Resources, Inc. and Subsidiaries Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows Three months ended June 30, Six months ended June 30, In thousands 2020 2019 2020 2019 Net income (loss) $(242,131) $236,450 $ (428,915) $ 422,943 Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities: Non-cash expenses 216,302 552,225 938,087 1,155,816 Changes in assets and liabilities 5,581 (5,279) 134,398 (73,855) Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities (20,248) 783,396 643,570 1,504,904 Net cash used in investing activities (312,204) (804,674) (1,018,943) (1,557,745) Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities (178,463) (36,626) 342,629 (23,456) Effect of exchange rate changes on cash - 15 - 30 Net change in cash and cash equivalents (510,915) (57,889) (32,744) (76,267) Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period 517,571 264,371 39,400 282,749 Cash and cash equivalents at end of period $ 6,656 $206,482 $ 6,656 $ 206,482 Non-GAAP Financial Measures Non-GAAP adjusted net income (loss) and adjusted net income (loss) per share attributable to Continental Our presentation of adjusted net income (loss) and adjusted net income (loss) per share that exclude the effect of certain items are non-GAAP financial measures. Adjusted net income (loss) and adjusted net income (loss) per share represent net income (loss) and diluted net income (loss) per share determined under U.S. GAAP without regard to non-cash gains and losses on derivative instruments, property impairments, gains and losses on asset sales, and gains and losses on extinguishment of debt as applicable. Management believes these measures provide useful information to analysts and investors for analysis of our operating results. In addition, management believes these measures are used by analysts and others in valuation, comparison and investment recommendations of companies in the oil and gas industry to allow for analysis without regard to an entity's specific derivative portfolio, impairment methodologies, and property dispositions. Adjusted net income (loss) and adjusted net income (loss) per share should not be considered in isolation or as an alternative to, or more meaningful than, net income (loss) or diluted net income (loss) per share as determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP and may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. The following tables reconcile net income (loss) and diluted net income (loss) per share as determined under U.S. GAAP to adjusted net income (loss) and adjusted diluted net income (loss) per share for the periods presented. Three months ended June 30, 2020 2019 In thousands, except per share data $ Diluted EPS $ Diluted EPS Net income (loss) attributable to Continental Resources (GAAP) $(239,286) $ (0.66) $ 236,557 $ 0.63 Adjustments: Non-cash (gain) loss on derivatives 659 (44,778) Property impairments 23,929 21,339 Net (gain) loss on sale of assets and other 612 364 Gain on extinguishment of debt (46,942) - Total tax effect of adjustments (1) 5,326 5,654 Total adjustments, net of tax (16,416) (0.05) (17,421) (0.04) Adjusted net income (loss) (non-GAAP) $(255,702) ($0.71) $ 219,136 $ 0.59 Weighted average diluted shares outstanding 360,204 374,009 Adjusted diluted net income (loss) per share (non-GAAP) $ (0.71) $ 0.59 Six months ended June 30, 2020 2019 In thousands, except per share data $ Diluted EPS $ Diluted EPS Net income (loss) attributable to Continental Resources (GAAP) $(424,950) $ (1.17) $ 423,533 $ 1.13 Adjustments: Non-cash (gain) loss on derivatives 659 (30,592) Property impairments 246,458 46,655 Net (gain) loss on sale of assets and other 5,114 112 Gain on extinguishment of debt (64,573) - Total tax effect of adjustments (1) (45,976) (3,962) Total adjustments, net of tax 141,682 0.39 12,213 0.03 Adjusted net income (loss) (non-GAAP) $(283,268) ($0.78) $ 435,746 $ 1.16 Weighted average diluted shares outstanding 362,804 374,557 Adjusted diluted net income (loss) per share (non-GAAP) $ (0.78) $ 1.16 (1) Computed by applying a combined federal and state statutory tax rate of 24.5% in effect for 2020 and 2019 to the pre-tax amount of adjustments associated with our operations in the United States. Non-GAAP Net Debt Net debt is a non-GAAP measure. We define net debt as total debt less cash and cash equivalents as determined under U.S. GAAP. Net debt should not be considered an alternative to, or more meaningful than, total debt, the most directly comparable GAAP measure. Management uses net debt to determine the Company's outstanding debt obligations that would not be readily satisfied by its cash and cash equivalents on hand. We believe this metric is useful to analysts and investors in determining the Company's leverage position since the Company has the ability to, and may decide to, use a portion of its cash and cash equivalents to reduce debt. This metric is sometimes presented as a ratio with EBITDAX in order to provide investors with another means of evaluating the Company's ability to service its existing debt obligations as well as any future increase in the amount of such obligations. At June 30, 2020, the Company's total debt was $5.74 billion and its net debt amounted to $5.74 billion, representing total debt of $5.74 billion less cash and cash equivalents of $6.7 million. From time to time the Company provides forward-looking net debt forecasts; however, the Company is unable to provide a quantitative reconciliation of the forward-looking non-GAAP measure to the most directly comparable forward-looking GAAP measure of total debt because management cannot reliably quantify certain of the necessary components of such forward-looking GAAP measure. The reconciling items in future periods could be significant. Non-GAAP EBITDAX We use a variety of financial and operational measures to assess our performance. Among these measures is EBITDAX, a non-GAAP measure. We define EBITDAX as earnings before interest expense, income taxes, depreciation, depletion, amortization and accretion, property impairments, exploration expenses, non-cash gains and losses resulting from the requirements of accounting for derivatives, non-cash equity compensation expense, and gains and losses on extinguishment of debt as applicable. EBITDAX is not a measure of net income/loss or net cash provided by/used in operating activities as determined by U.S. GAAP. Management believes EBITDAX is useful because it allows us to more effectively evaluate our operating performance and compare the results of our operations from period to period without regard to our financing methods or capital structure. Further, we believe EBITDAX is a widely followed measure of operating performance and may also be used by investors to measure our ability to meet future debt service requirements, if any. We exclude the items listed above from net income/loss and net cash provided by/used in operating activities in arriving at EBITDAX because these amounts can vary substantially from company to company within our industry depending upon accounting methods and book values of assets, capital structures and the method by which the assets were acquired. EBITDAX should not be considered as an alternative to, or more meaningful than, net income/loss or net cash provided by operating activities as determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP or as an indicator of a company's operating performance or liquidity. Certain items excluded from EBITDAX are significant components in understanding and assessing a company's financial performance, such as a company's cost of capital and tax structure, as well as the historic costs of depreciable assets, none of which are components of EBITDAX. Our computations of EBITDAX may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. The following table provides a reconciliation of our net income/loss to EBITDAX for the periods presented. Three months ended June 30, Six months ended June 30, In thousands 2020 2019 2020 2019 Net income (loss) $(242,131) $236,450 $(428,915) $ 422,943 Interest expense 65,069 68,471 128,663 136,308 Provision (benefit) for income taxes (72,143) 75,649 (124,378) 127,639 Depreciation, depletion, amortization and accretion 290,298 485,621 826,994 980,641 Property impairments 23,929 21,339 246,458 46,655 Exploration expenses 1,960 3,090 13,597 4,927 Impact from derivative instruments: Total (gain) loss on derivatives, net 7,782 (53,448) 7,782 (52,324) Total cash (paid) received on derivatives, net (7,123) 8,670 (7,123) 21,732 Non-cash (gain) loss on derivatives, net 659 (44,778) 659 (30,592) Non-cash equity compensation 15,314 12,177 31,755 24,283 Gain on extinguishment of debt (46,942) - (64,573) - EBITDAX (non-GAAP) $ 36,013 $858,019 $ 630,260 $1,712,804 The following table provides a reconciliation of our net cash provided by/used in operating activities to EBITDAX for the periods presented. Three months ended June 30, Six months ended June 30, In thousands 2020 2019 2020 2019 Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities $ (20,248) $783,396 $ 643,570 $1,504,904 Current income tax provision (benefit) - - (2,223) - Interest expense 65,069 68,471 128,663 136,308 Exploration expenses, excluding dry hole costs 1,903 3,090 7,281 4,927 Gain (loss) on sale of assets and other, net (612) (364) (5,114) (112) Other, net (4,518) (1,853) (7,519) (7,078) Changes in assets and liabilities (5,581) 5,279 (134,398) 73,855 EBITDAX (non-GAAP) $ 36,013 $858,019 $ 630,260 $1,712,804 Non-GAAP Net Sales Prices Revenues and transportation expenses associated with production from our operated properties are reported separately. For non-operated properties, we receive a net payment from the operator for our share of sales proceeds which is net of costs incurred by the operator, if any. Such non-operated revenues are recognized at the net amount of proceeds received. As a result, the separate presentation of revenues and transportation expenses from our operated properties differs from the net presentation from non-operated properties. This impacts the comparability of certain operating metrics, such as per-unit sales prices, when such metrics are prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP using gross presentation for some revenues and net presentation for others. In order to provide metrics prepared in a manner consistent with how management assesses the Company's operating results and to achieve comparability between operated and non-operated revenues, we may present crude oil and natural gas sales net of transportation expenses, which we refer to as "net crude oil and natural gas sales," a non-GAAP measure. Average sales prices calculated using net crude oil and natural gas sales are referred to as "net sales prices," a non-GAAP measure, and are calculated by taking revenues less transportation expenses divided by sales volumes, whether for crude oil or natural gas, as applicable. Management believes presenting our revenues and sales prices net of transportation expenses is useful because it normalizes the presentation differences between operated and non-operated revenues and allows for a useful comparison of net realized prices to NYMEX benchmark prices on a Company-wide basis. The following tables present a reconciliation of crude oil and natural gas sales (GAAP) to net crude oil and natural gas sales and related net sales prices (non-GAAP) for the periods presented. Three months ended June 30, 2020 Three months ended June 30, 2019 In thousands Crude oil Natural gas Total Crude oil Natural gas Total Crude oil and natural gas sales (GAAP) $158,720 $15,932 $174,652 $1,005,146 $132,279 $1,137,425 Less: Transportation expenses (23,518) (8,787) (32,305) (45,981) (7,412) (53,393) Net crude oil and natural gas sales (non-GAAP) $135,202 $7,145 $142,347 $959,165 $124,867 $1,084,032 Sales volumes (MBbl/MMcf/MBoe) 8,270 58,772 18,065 17,549 75,254 30,091 Net sales price (non-GAAP) $16.35 $0.12 $7.88 $54.66 $1.66 $36.03 Six months ended June 30, 2020 Six months ended June 30, 2019 In thousands Crude oil Natural gas Total Crude oil Natural gas Total Crude oil and natural gas sales (GAAP) $932,490 $104,905 $1,037,395 $1,916,264 $330,745 $2,247,009 Less: Transportation expenses (73,890) (18,917) (92,807) (87,628) (14,903) (102,531) Net crude oil and natural gas sales (non-GAAP) $858,600 $85,988 $944,588 $1,828,636 $315,842 $2,144,478 Sales volumes (MBbl/MMcf/MBoe) 26,521 146,225 50,891 34,922 149,944 59,912 Net sales price (non-GAAP) $32.37 $0.59 $18.56 $52.36 $2.11 $35.79 Non-GAAP Cash General and Administrative Expenses per Boe Our presentation of cash general and administrative ("G&A") expenses per Boe is a non-GAAP measure. We define cash G&A per Boe as total G&A determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP less non-cash equity compensation expenses, expressed on a per-Boe basis. We report and provide guidance on cash G&A per Boe because we believe this measure is commonly used by management, analysts and investors as an indicator of cost management and operating efficiency on a comparable basis from period to period. In addition, management believes cash G&A per Boe is used by analysts and others in valuation, comparison and investment recommendations of companies in the oil and gas industry to allow for analysis of G&A spend without regard to stock-based compensation programs which can vary substantially from company to company. Cash G&A per Boe should not be considered as an alternative to, or more meaningful than, total G&A per Boe as determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP and may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. The following table reconciles total G&A per Boe as determined under U.S. GAAP to cash G&A per Boe for the periods presented. Three months ended June 30, Six months ended June 30, 2020 2019 2020 2019 Total G&A per Boe (GAAP) $2.30 $1.57 $1.66 $1.58 Less: Non-cash equity compensation per Boe (0.85) (0.40) (0.62) (0.40) Cash G&A per Boe (non-GAAP) $1.45 $1.17 $1.04 $1.18 Non-GAAP Free Cash Flow Our presentation of projected free cash flow is a non-GAAP measure. We define projected free cash flow as cash flows from operations before changes in working capital items, less capital expenditures, excluding acquisitions, plus noncontrolling interest capital contributions, less distributions to noncontrolling interests. Noncontrolling interest capital contributions and distributions primarily relate to our relationship with Franco-Nevada to fund a portion of certain mineral acquisitions which are included in our capital expenditures and operating results. Free cash flow is not a measure of net income or operating cash flows as determined by U.S. GAAP and should not be considered an alternative to, or more meaningful than, the comparable GAAP measure, and free cash flow does not represent residual cash flows available for discretionary expenditures. Management believes that this measure is useful to management and investors as a measure of a company's ability to internally fund its capital expenditures and to service or incur additional debt. From time to time the Company provides forward-looking free cash flow estimates or targets; however, the Company is unable to provide a quantitative reconciliation of the forward-looking non-GAAP measure to its most directly comparable forward-looking GAAP measure because management cannot reliably quantify certain of the necessary components of such forward-looking GAAP measure. The reconciling items in future periods could be significant. Continental Resources, Inc. 2020 Guidance As of August 3, 2020 2020 Original 2020 Updated Full-year average oil production (Bopd) 198,000 to 201,000 155,000 to 165,000 Full-year average natural gas production (Mcfpd) 935,000 to 960,000 800,000 to 820,000 Capital expenditures budget $2.65 Billion $1.2 billion Operating Expenses: Production expense per Boe $3.50 to $4.00 $3.50 to $4.00 Production tax (% of net oil & gas revenue) 8.3% to $8.5% 8.3% to $8.5% Cash G&A expense per Boe(1) $1.10 to $1.40 $1.10 to $1.40 Non-cash equity compensation per Boe $0.50 to $0.60 $0.50 to $0.60 DD&A per Boe $15.00 to $17.00 $15.00 to $17.00 Average Price Differentials: NYMEX WTI crude oil(2)(per barrel of oil) ($4.50) to ($5.50) ($5.50) to ($6.50) Henry Hub natural gas(3)(per Mcf) ($0.50) to ($1.00) ($0.75) to ($1.25) 1. Cash G&A is a non-GAAP measure and excludes the range of values shown for non-cash equity compensation per Boe in the item appearing immediately below. Guidance for total G&A (cash and non-cash) is a projected range of $1.60 to $2.00 per Boe. 2. Includes second half 2020 guidance of ($5.00) to ($5.50). 3. Includes natural gas liquids production in differential range. Includes second half 2020 guidance of ($0.50) to ($1.00). 2020 Capital Expenditures The following table provides the breakout of budgeted capital expenditures: ($ in Millions) North D&C South D&C Leasehold, Facilities, Other Capex $635 $315 $250 2020 Operational Detail The following table provides additional operational detail for wells expected to have first production in 2020: Asset Average Rigs Gross Operated Wells Net Operated Wells Total Net Wells(1) North 3.4 116 76 100 South 4.3 54 38 42 Total 7.7 170 114 142 1. Represents projected net operated and non-operated wells with first production. SOURCE Continental Resources Related Links http://www.clr.com (Bloomberg) -- Wearing face shields, masks, two layers of gloves and navy cotton overalls, two scientists carefully lift off a metal manhole cover to reveal the cumulative waste of some 400 migrant workers. As one of them lowers a yellow rubber tube into the fetid sewer outside a dormitory in central Singapore, a third explains how samples of the brownish liquid provide a crude snapshot of how the city-state is trying to keep a step ahead of the coronavirus. Wastewater surveillance -- which Dutch scientists showed in March can identify evidence of the pathogen earlier than testing patients -- is one of a handful of strategies around the world being developed to pinpoint emerging hotspots and flare-ups before cases spiral out of control. If you think the community has no Covid, but its found in the wastewater, then you know its there somewhere, said Dale A. Fisher, an infectious diseases physician at Singapores National University Hospital and chair of the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network, a group that monitors and reacts to dangerous epidemics. With countries from Australia to Spain struggling to arrest fresh waves of the contagion, scientists and public health officials are looking to additional tools, including sniffer dogs and drones, to hunt down the insidious virus. People can transmit the virus before they develop symptoms, frustrating efforts to stem transmission using the mainstay approach -- testing and isolating infected people and tracing their contacts -- alone. Resurgences have occurred in places that have gone months without recording a new infection, forcing governments to impose economically-crippling restrictions again and testing citizens tolerance for the disruption wrought by the pandemic. The virus stealthiness means its crucial to find ways to augment traditional surveillance, said Peter Collignon, a professor of clinical medicine at the Australian National University Medical School in Canberra. Story continues Why Silent Spreaders Make Coronavirus Hard to Beat: QuickTake Monitoring wastewater is a useful way to find the pathogen before its identified within a community, said Collignon. Infected people dont just shed the virus in their respiratory droplets; it may also be in their urine and feces -- sometimes during the incubation period and even after nose and throat tests are no longer positive for the virus. Early Warning A lot of data suggested it predates the increase in clinical cases, Collignon said in an interview. Finding the virus in wastewater can serve as an early warning system, and provide a trigger for authorities to start increasing restrictions on people and their movements, he said. Because if we do it now, rather than waiting for 10 days, well probably see less of an outbreak. You can use sewage testing to adjust the limits you put on the movement of populations over different periods of time. Collignon said. That sort of nuance may be useful as the pandemic -- now in its eighth month -- grinds on. Strict social distancing measures are proving harder to enforce in some places, particularly among young people and those who dont get paid if theyre ill or self-isolating. Another mass lockdown in the Australian city of Melbourne has proved less effective the second time around with some defying the restrictions. Authorities imposed a nighttime curfew in Melbourne at the weekend as case numbers continue to surge. Deadly Australia Flareup Shows Limits of Locking Down Again Wuhan, the central Chinese city where Covid-19 first emerged in December, is routinely testing sewage and environmental samples from hospitals, markets and shopping malls. No traces of the virus have been found in wastewater since the data were made available in mid-June. In Singapore, an explosion in cases among migrant workers caught authorities off guard, triggering a pivot in its approach to the virus. The country started a a pilot program to monitor wastewater in April, focusing on the dormitories that accommodate the workers, infections among whom have pushed Singapores case tally beyond 52,000. Testing of wastewater has since been expanded to include other population-dense centers such as hostels and residential care facilities. Other alternative surveillance methods that dont require people to front up for testing are also being deployed elsewhere. Separate teams in Germany, the U.K., France, Finland and Australia are training dogs to sniff out people with the coronavirus, counting on the animals ultra-sensitive noses to detect metabolic changes in Covid-19 that the patients themselves may not notice. An international team aims to have dogs trained in months for low cost, instantaneous and reliable screening at airports, hospitals and quarantine sites, according to the University of Adelaide, in South Australia, which is helping to study the sensitivity and specificity of canine olfactory detection of Covid-19 against standard lab tests.- Fever-Spotting Drones In the same city, researchers at the University of South Australia are working on pandemic drones that have specialized sensor and computer vision systems to spot people with the telltale signs of a respiratory infection in crowds. They could be used in offices, airports, cruise ships, residential care facilities and other places where groups of people may work or congregate. In South Korea, widely lauded for its success in suppressing the pandemic with out disruptive measures like lockdowns, health officials in Seoul have relied on their version of Navy Seals -- elite teams of epidemiologists, laboratory technicians and database specialists -- to identify infected people early in order to curb spread. Authorities say they have compressed the time it takes to trace contacts with those infected from one day to 10 minutes, potentially limiting the scale of infections through speedy intervention. But their speedy response also relies on a wide range of data collected by mobile carriers, credit card issuers, the surveillance cameras that are ubiquitous in cities like Seoul and lately a QR code registering system installed at entertainment venues to pin down potential contacts. These Elite Contact Tracers Show the World How to Beat Covid-19 To be sure, most of these alternative methods aim to seek out vestiges of the virus in places where it isnt apparent, making their relevance where the illness is widespread, such as parts of the U.S. and some developing countries, questionable. Wastewater surveillance is a blunt tool thats not helpful in places where the virus is circulating widely, said Fisher at the National University Hospital. Researchers at Shanghais Tongji University found the pathogen was harder to detect in sewage after toilets were cleaned with chlorine and other disinfectants. But as the world anxiously awaits the development of safe and effective vaccines, a combination of active monitoring and early intervention is the only sure way to gain control over the stealthy virus, according to Collignon at the Australian National University. This is an essential public health measurement that needs to be done not only now but continuously, and the results need to be available for everybody to see within 24 hours, he said. People have to act on the results, not just assume its a research project. (Updates with nighttime curfew declared for Melbourne in 12th paragraph.) 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. Military members and veterans can get up to four free months of Apple Music through the Apple Music military discount -- but... Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 2) Several lawmakers are in favor of placing the Senate under an enhanced community quarantine to show support to the call of medical frontliners for a timeout. Senator Ping Lacson on Sunday said they might formalize the decision in a session on Monday afternoon. He noted that there appears to be a consensus among most senators, including the minority bloc. Since we cannot adjourn for more than three session days without the consent of the HOR (House of Representatives) as provided under Art VI, Sec 16 (para 5) of the Constitution, we will have to resolve our way forward in this regard, Lacson said. Among those who have expressed support in the possible move are Senator Ralph Recto, Senator Migz Zubiri, and Senator Kiko Pangilinan. On Saturday, frontline healthcare workers feeling the strain of attending to still-increasing COVID-19 patients urged the government to reimpose strict movement restrictions in Metro Manila and its nearby regions for two weeks. READ: Pagod na pagod na kami: Frontliners appeal for two-week ECQ in Mega Manila amid surge in coronavirus cases President Rodrigo Duterte is expected to announce Sunday night his response to the call, following a meeting with key Cabinet officials. The country's COVID-19 tally has reached over 103,000, with a death toll over 2,000. The story I am told reveals that sometime this Friday afternoon a long caravan of over-the road buses will arrive Chattanooga as a stop of some modern-day Freedom Riders, this in remembrance of those titanic human beings who walked with Dr. Martin Luther King in his most victorious moment to quell racism in the South. Sponsored by a group known as Atlanta Uprising and sanctioned locally by our Unity Group, there will be a rally at Miller Park at 6:30 p.m. in the loving memory of statesman John Lewis in what is being billed, quite gloriously, as The Good Trouble Ride. Rep. Lewis (D-Ga) succumbed to pancreatic cancer on July 17 and is best known (and hopefully will be long remembered) for over 50 years of a doggedly determined campaign for minority voter rights. His greatest effort was for equality of all people, particularly in the South, and he suffered a fractured skull for his beliefs on a notorious Bloody Sunday. He was marching with Dr. Martin Luther King in a Selma-to-Montgomery Civil Rights March on March 7, 1965, when his skull was fractured, but the better truth is he was brutally beaten numerous times and spent 40 days in a Mississippi penitentiary, but he never wavered. This last 37 years he has been a member of Congress representing a huge district in Atlanta and, with no exaggeration, has evolved into one of Americas great giants. My morning prayer, of course, is that the hell we have seen in the racial protests across the country will not accompany this Fridays tribute to Rep. Lewis that has ensnarled our nation since George Floyd was killed in a police arrest in Minneapolis on May 26. For instance, Portland, Oregon, has had night riots far different from lawful protests - for over two months - and by every account Black Lives Matter fell by the wayside in Portland and other still-smoldering cities about six weeks ago. Todays attacks, though borne by the protests, are well-staged and better organized riots by blatant criminals. Fridays gathering in Miller Park is in no way about civil disorder but we know that where good is espoused, evil will seek an opportunity to disrupt. This morning, and every morning this week, I pray the great life of John Lewis and Dr. Kings other Big Six who organized The March on Washington in 1963 will be remembered with a reverence and a great dignity on Friday and that God will encircle these people His people with a thicket of thorns in a great Celebration of Rep. Lewis life. * * * On Thursday, the day John Lewis was laid to rest, the York Times published an essay that the Congressman had written distinctly as his farewell. Here it is in its entirety, and Ill keep a copy, and hope to read it often as a pledge, until my last day comes: TOGETHER, YOU CAN REDEEM THE SOUL OF A NATION By Rep. John Lewis (February 21, 1940-July 17, 2020) While my time here has now come to an end, I want you to know that in the last days and hours of my life you inspired me. You filled me with hope about the next chapter of the great American story when you used your power to make a difference in our society. Millions of people motivated simply by human compassion laid down the burdens of division. Around the country and the world, you set aside race, class, age, language, and nationality to demand respect for human dignity. That is why I had to visit Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington, though I was admitted to the hospital the following day. I just had to see and feel it for myself that, after many years of silent witness, the truth is still marching on. Emmett Till was my George Floyd. He was my Rayshard Brooks, Sandra Bland, and Breonna Taylor. He was 14 when he was killed, and I was only 15 years old at the time. I will never ever forget the moment when it became so clear that he could easily have been me. In those days, fear constrained us like an imaginary prison, and troubling thoughts of potential brutality committed for no understandable reason were the bars. Though I was surrounded by two loving parents, plenty of brothers, sisters and cousins, their love could not protect me from the unholy oppression waiting just outside that family circle. Unchecked, unrestrained violence and government-sanctioned terror had the power to turn a simple stroll to the store for some Skittles or an innocent morning jog down a lonesome country road into a nightmare. If we are to survive as one unified nation, we must discover what so readily takes root in our hearts that could rob Mother Emanuel Church in South Carolina of her brightest and best, shoot unwitting concertgoers in Las Vegas and choke to death the hopes and dreams of a gifted violinist like Elijah McClain. Like so many young people today, I was searching for a way out, or some might say a way in, and then I heard the voice of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on an old radio. He was talking about the philosophy and discipline of nonviolence. He said we are all complicit when we tolerate injustice. He said it is not enough to say it will get better by and by. He said each of us has a moral obligation to stand up, speak up and speak out. When you see something that is not right, you must say something. You must do something. Democracy is not a state. It is an act, and each generation must do its part to help build what we called the Beloved Community, a nation and world society at peace with itself. Ordinary people with extraordinary vision can redeem the soul of America by getting in what I call good trouble, necessary trouble. Voting and participating in the democratic process are key. The vote is the most powerful nonviolent change agent you have in a democratic society. You must use it because it is not guaranteed. You can lose it. You must also study and learn the lessons of history because humanity has been involved in this soul-wrenching, existential struggle for a very long time. People on every continent have stood in your shoes, through decades and centuries before you. The truth does not change, and that is why the answers worked out long ago can help you find solutions to the challenges of our time. Continue to build union between movements stretching across the globe because we must put away our willingness to profit from the exploitation of others. Though I may not be here with you, I urge you to answer the highest calling of your heart and stand up for what you truly believe. In my life I have done all I can to demonstrate that the way of peace, the way of love and nonviolence is the more excellent way. Now it is your turn to let freedom ring. When historians pick up their pens to write the story of the 21st century, let them say that it was your generation who laid down the heavy burdens of hate at last and that peace finally triumphed over violence, aggression and war. So, I say to you, walk with the wind, brothers and sisters, and let the spirit of peace and the power of everlasting love be your guide. * * * Selah. royexum@aol.com "The app that you use the most on your phone and you don't realize it is your keyboard," says Christophe Barre, the co-founder and chief executive of OneKey. A member of Y Combinator's most recent cohort, OneKey has a plan to make work easier on mobile devices by turning the keyboard into a new way to serve up applications like calendars, to-do lists and, eventually, even Salesforce functionality. People have keyboards for emojis, other languages and gifs, but there have been few ways to integrate business apps into the keyboard functionality, says Barre. And he's out to change that. Right now, the company's first trick will be getting a Calendly-like scheduling app onto the keyboard interface. Over time, the company will look to create modules they can sell in an app store-style marketplace for the keyboard space on smartphones. ezgif.com-optimize.gif For Barre, the inspiration behind OneKey was the time spent working in Latin America and primarily conducting business through WhatsApp. The tool was great for messaging, but enterprise functionality broke down across scheduling or other enterprise app integrations. "People are doing more and more stuff on mobile and it's happening right now in business," said Barre. "When you switch from a computer-based world to a mobile phone, a lot of the productivity features disappear." Barre, originally from the outskirts of Paris, traveled to Bogota with his partner. She was living there and he was working on a sales automation startup called DeepLook. Together with his DeepLook co-founder (and high school friend), Ulysses Pryjiel, Barre set out to see if he could bring over to the mobile environment some of the business tools he needed. The big realization for Barre was the under-utilized space on the phone where the keyboard inputs reside. He thinks of OneKey as a sort of browser extension for mobile phones, centered in the keyboard real estate. "The marketplace for apps is the long-term vision," said Barre. "That's how you bring more and more value to people. We started with those features like calendars and lists that brought more value quickly without being too specialized." The idea isn't entirely novel. SwiftKey had a marketplace for wallpapers, Barre said, but nothing as robust as the kinds of apps and services that he envisions. "If you can do it in a regular app, it's very likely that you can do it through a keyboard," Barre said. The Matthews Japan Fund (Trades, Portfolio) disclosed this week that its top five trades for the second quarter featured a new position in Hoya Corp. (TSE:7741), two position reductions and two sold out transactions. Overseen by Taizo Ishida and Shuntaro Takeuchi, the fund seeks long-term capital appreciation by investing over 80% of its assets in the common and preferred shares of companies located in Japan. The fund looks for companies that are capable of sustainable growth based on a wide range of fundamental characteristics, including balance sheet information, size and stability of cash flows and financial health. As of the quarter-end, the Japan Fund's $1.39 billion equity portfolio contains 47 stocks, with eight new holdings and a turnover ratio of 15%. Despite this, the fund's top five trades included selling out of Kyowa Exeo Corp. (TSE:1951) and Shimadzu Corp. (TSE:7701), as well as reducing its position in Shinonogi & Co. Ltd. (TSE:4507) and Sony Corp. (TSE:6758). New buy: Hoya The fund purchased 385,200 shares of Hoya, giving the position 2.65% weight in the equity portfolio. Shares averaged 9,894.56 yen ($93.36) during the second quarter. Hoya operates two business segments: Life Care and Information Technology. The former segment supplies medical endoscopes and surgical equipment to support the operation of contact lens retail stores, while the latter segment focuses on electronics products for the semiconductor industry. GuruFocus ranks Hoya's financial strength and profitability 9 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a double-digit Altman Z-score, interest coverage and debt ratios outperforming over 86% of global competitors and operating margins that have increased approximately 2% per year on average over the past five years. Story continues bd1ebbf2b70bcaa74c5c16e683d003c5.png According to the fund's quarterly letter, Hoya may "benefit from accelerating development of cutting-edge technology" in the extreme ultraviolent light area. Sold out: Kyowa Exeo The fund sold 1,889,900 shares of Kyowa Exeo, trimming the equity portfolio 2.66%. Shares averaged 2,511.26 yen ($23.69) during the second quarter. 98725c4a95961667d28600927b713905.png Kyowa Exeo provides technological and construction solutions, products and services for various end markets. The company's profitability ranks 8 out of 10 on the back of a GuruFocus business predictability rank of 4.5 stars, which suggests strong and consistent revenue and earnings growth over the past 10 years. Despite this, Kyowa Exeo's Piotroski F-score is a low 3 out of 9, while operating margins are expanding over the past five years albeit outperforming just over 51% of global competitors. e430d41fdcab367a63970f899347cb72.png Shimadzu The fund sold 1,258,200 shares of Shimadzu, trimming the equity portfolio 2.09%. Shares averaged 2,802.56 yen during the second quarter. db25c92f42fd4008b61d6257e2840862.png Shimadzu manufactures a wide range of scientific instruments, medical systems, aircraft equipment and industrial machinery. GuruFocus ranks the company's financial strength 9 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include interest coverage and debt ratios outperforming over 90% of global competitors. Despite this, the company's profitability ranks just 7 out of 10 as three-year revenue and earnings growth rates outperform just over 52% of global competitors, offsetting operating margins that have increased approximately 4.20% per year on average over the past five years. 479b61173cd598eec2ce841f1a113211.png Shinonogi The fund sold 702,800 shares of Shinonogi, knocking off 80.08% of the position and 2.20% of the equity portfolio. Shares averaged 5,986.47 yen during the second quarter. e3e94791928b3248dc810f1f4bb261ee.png GuruFocus ranks the specialty and generic drug manufacturer's financial strength 9 out of 10 and profitability 8 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a double-digit Altman Z-score, debt ratios that are outperforming over 90% of global competitors and an operating margin that has increased approximately 14.40% per year on average over the past five years. c40613208b465ebf49a38f0c5d59a025.png Sony The fund sold 499,200 shares of Sony, trimming the holding 38.18% and the equity portfolio 1.88%. Shares averaged 6974.05 yen ($65.83) during the second quarter. fdbfb9fe9ba36dddbe8548162d9eac27.png GuruFocus ranks the Japanese consumer electronics giant's financial strength 6 out of 10: Although the company has high interest coverage, Sony has a weak Altman Z-score of 0.94. d38fc56a6f9d275ab337c8e0254dc22d.png Gurus with large holdings in Sony's New York Stock Exchange shares (NYSE:SNE) include PRIMECAP Management (Trades, Portfolio), Mario Gabelli (Trades, Portfolio)'s GAMCO Investors Inc. (NYSE:GBL) and Daniel Loeb (Trades, Portfolio). 9dfd2dee58cd9c42e2e81140dd5105e3.png Disclosure: No positions. Read more here: Bestinfond's Top 5 Buys in the 2nd Quarter The 4 Most-Voted Stocks in the Considering Basket as of July FPA Capital Fund Buys 1, Trims 4 Positions in the 2nd Quarter Not a Premium Member of GuruFocus? Sign up for a free 7-day trial here. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Todd White says his mission is to 'wake up' 'dysfunctional' church: 'The end is closer than ever' Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment One week after publicly repenting for failing to preach the whole Gospel, evangelist Todd White said his mission now is to now wake up the dysfunctional and sleeping American Church. Last week, I shared, I repent for not preaching the full Gospel, White, founder and president of Lifestyle Christianity, said in a sermon delivered Aug. 2. If any of you think that you know it all about the Gospel, you're deceived. I don't care who you are, I don't care what theologian you are, I don't care if you're a doctor of theology, if you've got your masters of divinity. If you think you know it all, I'm sorry, you're wrong. I have stepped into a new awareness of why I'm really here, he emphasized. I feel like I just got saved. I feel like I've just met Jesus. White, a drug addict turned evangelist, said his mission now is to wake up a sleeping church. I'm very concerned for a large majority of the body of Christ that says that they've met Him and yet lives in sin, he said. There are people that are coasting through, there is a large majority of the church that sleeping. They're not awake, they're sleeping. We need to wake up. We need to wake up. People are dying. My urgency to share the Gospel, my urgency to reach the lost, my urgency to reach a church that thinks she's found is so big I can't even stand it. I can't even tell you what I feel in my heart. According to White, the American Church is so dysfunctional right now it's absolutely ridiculous. Dysfunction is thinking that my way is the only way, the Watauga, Texas-based pastor explained. But Jesus is the way, the Gospel is the way. When I say I haven't preached the full Gospel, it just means that God has taken me to a depth of His heart that I have not yet seen, and I want to see more people come to Christ. We should all want to be able to be repentant. Repentance isn't the day you get saved only. If something's wrong, you repent. What does that mean? Repentance isn't just changing your mind. I understand that that's taught, and it is an about-face, but it's an about-face with godly intention, with godly sorrow. White said he loves being corrected by God and cautioned listeners: If youre not being corrected, you might not be His son. The prayers of those who have interceded on his behalf have worked, White said, adding: Now Im more on fire and more intense than I've ever felt before in my life. I'm more in love with Gods Scripture and God's holiness than I've ever been in my life. I am more convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that the time is now. I am more convinced right now than ever before. I am fearful for a Church that is walking half-heartedly. I am fearful for the body of Christ that is walking haphazardly, just walking so-so, [saying theyre] with Jesus, yet sin is priority still in their life. White cited 2 Corinthians 5:10, which reads: For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. This Scripture blew me away, he stressed. There's really no way out. God's a holy God. Some people like some of what I say and they cut out the rest that they don't like. I've got news for you. I am trying to warn you that the time is closer than ever. The end is closer than ever. I want us to run hard, but I want us to run holy. Earlier in his message, White said many people have accused him of being deceived, and thanked those who have prayed for him. I am overtaken with gratitude for people that have prayed for me, he said. White rebuked the show American Gospel: Christ Alone, a series that condemned the prosperity gospel, for assuming and putting him in a place of guilt because of his association with pastors Bill Johnson, Kenneth Copeland, and Benny Hinn. None of them called me to talk to me, not one of them asked me to share my heart, not one of them asked me what I believe, he said of the American Gospel creators. Now all of a sudden, Todds the biggest heretic on the planet. Shame on you for not praying for me and talking to me, but making a movie, thinking that you're God's police. You're going to stand before a holy God and answer for your life of judgment and hate, and it's called murder. It's no different than racism. It's the same thing. It's called no love. You have no love. White made headlines last week after revealing he recently underwent a season of painful pruning where God impressed upon him the importance of preaching on the topic of sin and the need for a Savior. This has been the hardest season of my life, he shared. Im like, Lord, what are you doing? He said, Im pruning every branch that you have. Im like, Its not OK. It hurts. And He said, If you were dead, it wouldnt hurt. There are parts of you that need to die. Im going to kill them. White shared that this convicted him and showed him that he had not been preaching the whole Gospel. I repent! White exclaimed. You have no idea. I will not be responsible. I believe that when I preach that the blood of people is on my hands. Victorians who are forced to self-isolate and do not have enough sick leave will be eligible for a new pandemic payment from the federal government in renewed efforts to stop the spread of the coronavirus in workplaces. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Monday the government would fund $1500 grants for people in self-isolation that the Andrews government had previously paid for, after the state recorded 429 new cases and 13 deaths. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has unveiled a "disaster payment" for people who have to self-isolate without sick leave. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen The federal government is also preparing to again heavily subsidise childcare throughout the state to ensure centres remain open for the next six weeks during the stage four lockdown measures. Mr Morrison said he would seek to gain clarity from the Andrews government in the coming days over the future of childcare centres. A storm is born: When a low-pressure system that was dithering over the tropical Atlantic last week posed a threat to Puerto Rico and the island of Hispaniola, the center designated it Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine and started issuing forecasts and warnings. The system formed into Isaias, but it was far from clear yet what its future held. Isaias weakened while passing over the mountainous Dominican Republic, as storms generally do, but it strengthened more quickly than expected afterward, and by the time it reached the Bahamas on Friday it was a Category 1 hurricane. At that point, the forecast track threatened nearly the whole Eastern Seaboard of the United States, from South Florida to Maine. The storm could have affected almost anywhere, everywhere or nowhere along that track, as far as we could tell. A near miss: Florida, the closest potential target, braced for a hurricane, but as the weekend progressed, it gradually became clear that the storm would only graze the state as a ragged tropical storm that seemed likely to stay that way until landfall in the Carolinas. But Isaias reorganized yet again, reaching hurricane strength again on Monday night before making landfall in North Carolina. A helping hand: At the same time, the wind shear that used to look as though it would diminish the storm may now sustain it. The hurricane center noted for the first time on Monday morning that an unusually strong winter-type Jetstream would produce strong baroclinic forcing meteorologist-speak for what drives nontropical storms like noreasters and would produce very strong wind gusts along the Mid-Atlantic states. That is why, a day before Isaias is expected to reach New York City, we now have a forecast for hurricane-strength gusts in the area, with the potential for widespread power outages and other problems that were not on the radar, literally or figuratively, until today. J ohn Hume, Nothern Ireland's Nobel Peace Prize-winning political titan, has died at the age of 83. Mr Hume, who was handed the Nobel award for his efforts in helping forge peace in Northern Ireland via the Good Friday Agreement, had suffered ill health for a number of years. His death on Monday at Owen Mor nursing home in Londonderry marked the end of a towering career and prompted tributes from across the political spectrum. Here are some of the key moments that marked Mr Hume's life, and his most notable achievements: Mr Hume's political career started in 1969, when he was elected as an independent nationalist MP at Stormont at the age of 32 / PA January 18 1937 John Hume is born in Londonderry. He is educated at St Columbs College and St Patricks College, Maynooth, before going on to become a teacher. 1968 Mr Hume emerges as one of the leading members of the civil rights movement as the Derry Citizens Action Committee (DCAC) stage a number of marches, advocating strictly peaceful demonstrations. 1969 Mr Humes political career begins when he is elected at the age of 32 as an independent nationalist MP at Stormont. August 1970 Mr Hume becomes a founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP). 1979 Mr Hume becomes leader of the SDLP. 1980s Mr Hume becomes directly involved in secret talks between the UK government and Sinn Fein. June 10 1983 Mr Hume is elected to Westminster for the new Foyle constituency. November 15 1985 The Anglo-Irish Agreement is signed. 1988 Mr Hume begins a series of contacts with Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams, which was to prove crucial in developing the peace process. 1997 The IRA announced the renewal of its 1994 ceasefire. Multi-party talks begin at which Mr Hume and the SDLP play a significant role as the then second biggest party behind the UUP. 1998 Parties sign the Good Friday Agreement and a powersharing government is formed at Stormont. The agreement helped to bring to an end a period of conflict between Republicans and Loyalists in the region called the Troubles. Mr Hume wins the Nobel Peace Prize jointly with UUP leader David Trimble. Mr Hume was jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize with UUP leader David Trimble in 1998 / AP 2004 Mr Hume retires from politics due to ill-health. 2010 Mr Hume is voted as Irelands Greatest in a public poll by RTE. 2012 Pope Benedict XVI names him a Knight Commander of the Papal Order of St Gregory the Great. 2018 Mr Hume is too ill to attend a ceremony at Queens University in Belfast to mark the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Good Friday Agreement. 2020 He dies aged 83. He recently revealed he was in hospital undergoing a recent 'stomach operation'. And on Monday, My Kitchen Rules star Colin Fassnidge appeared to be in good in good spirits as he shared a black and white photo of himself on a mobility scooter. In the photo, the 45-year-old chef is seen smiling while giving out free meals to the locals in Banksia, Sydney. Doing his part! On Monday, celebrity chef Colin Fassnidge, 45, (pictured) was all smiles when he was pictured sitting on a mobility scooter after a 'stomach operation' 'Soup kitchen still on today,' he wrote underneath the photo. Colin handed out meals stored in brown paper bags to the locals and he also had a basket filled with free bread. This isn't the first time the big-hearted chef has helped out during the coronavirus pandemic. Making a recovery: Last week, that had undergone the operation at Sydney's Prince of Wales Private Hospital, cheekily telling The Daily Telegraph they were 'searching for a heart' In March, the My Kitchen Rules star shared a video to Instagram to let fans in the area know that he can offer them a free feed. He said in the Instagram video: 'Everybody is doing takeaway. We're doing takeaway from our two places. 'But what we realised was a lot of people who have been coming in soon won't be able to afford takeaway or meals and have families that are doing it tough.' Heading home: He added that despite being 'f**king sore', he was expected to be discharged from the hospital over the weekend On Thursday last week, Colin told The Daily Telegraph that he had undergone the operation at Sydney's Prince of Wales Private Hospital. 'They were looking for a heart, they couldn't find one. I've had a stomach operation,' the chef judge joked. He added that despite being 'f**king sore', he was expecting to be discharged from the hospital over the weekend. 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. Trump removes TVA board chairman, calls for firing of CEO over use of foreign workers A SpaceX capsule carrying two NASA astronauts has successfully landed off the coast of Florida, completing the first crewed splashdown in a US vehicle in 45 years and the first ever by a private company. The SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour landed off the coast of Pensacola in the Gulf of New Mexico early on Monday morning, Australian time, returning two astronauts, Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, to Earth after a visit to the International Space Station (ISS). The Demo-2 mission launched at the end of May saw the two NASA astronauts travelling to the International Space Station (ISS) on a two-month test flight of the vehicle. The spacecraft undocked from the ISS on Saturday and returned to Earth after a 21-hour overnight journey. On behalf of the SpaceX and NASA teams, welcome back to Planet Earth. Thanks for flying SpaceX, mission control said. The flight was the last test of whether SpaceX could transport human astronauts to and from orbit, something no private company has ever done before. It followed an unpiloted test flight to the station last year. SpaceX will now begin operational manned flights for NASA late next month. Along with Boeing, SpaceX is one of only two private companies to have landed huge contracts with NASA to fly astronauts to the ISS. Its the first time NASA has sent astronauts into space from US soil since it scrapped its shuttle program in 2011. In the years since, it has used Russia to launch its astronauts into space. The SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour was the first crewed splashdown in an American capsule in 45 years. SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted his congratulations to the team on Monday. When space travel becomes as common as air travel, the future of civilisation will be assured, Musk later tweeted. The splashdown involved the SpaceX on-board thrusters and two sets of autonomous parachutes working to slow the capsule down from 28,100kms per hour in orbit to 563kph during atmospheric re-entry and just 24kph when it hit the water. The tech companys capsules outer shell effectively withstood temperatures of up to 19,000 degrees and maintained an internal temperature for the astronauts at 29 degrees. The launch has been labelled as the start of a new era in human spaceflight by Bridenstine. The spacecrafts control panel consisted entirely of touchscreen displays, using products including Australias own Atlassians Jira, Bitbucket and Confluence, in its development cycles. Once the capsule landed in the ocean, it was quickly swarmed by a number of private boats, looking to investigate the unique occurrence, Space.com reported. That was not what we were anticipating, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said. After they landed, the boats just came in. We need to do a better job next time for sure. SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell said there will be better security next time to protect the capsule upon its return to Earth. The lesson learned here is that we probably needed more Coast Guard assets, and maybe more SpaceX and NASA assets as well, Shotwell said. This was a demonstration mission. This is the time that you go learn about these things, and well certainly be better prepared next time. SpaceX is also looking to launch a mission to Mars after successfully completing a number of tests last year. SpaceX prototype rocket Starhopper successfully completed a second test flight in August last year, climbing to the target height of 150m and hovering for nearly a minute before gently navigating back to the ground. The company is hoping to eventually use its Starship mega-rocket to carry humans and cargo to the Moon and Mars. He thought his boyfriend Austin McKenzie had contracted coronavirus. But Kavin McHale admits what he initially thought was the deadly respiratory disease turned out to be a case of salmonella. Speaking on Saturday, the Glee! actor, 32, revealed he inadvertently gave Austin, 26, food poisoning as a result of serving under-cooked chicken sausage, but mistakenly took it for COVID-19 after he became 'extremely sick'. COVID mishap: Glee star Kevin McHale revealed on Saturday that his boyfriend, Austin McKenzie was tested twice for coronavirus after becoming 'extremely sick' Austin's illness put the couple on red alert and he subsequently got tested for coronavirus twice, but it was ultimately determined that salmonella from meat was the cause of his illness. Kevin felt terrible for making his partner ill, as he said on Twitter: 'But have you undercooked chicken sausage (unintentionally) and then served it to your bf and then he got superrrrr sick and you thought it was covid and you got tested twice but nah you just fed him salmonella? 'He should break up with me. I would.' Cooking contamination: Despite thinking that Austin had COVID-19, the actor, 32, revealed that his boyfriend in fact contracted salmonella from eating undercooked chicken. Austin replied with a screenshot of a Google search that said: How to get revenge on your husband,' and added the caption: 'Just doin some light research. He followed up by updating his Twitter biography and said: 'I left Twitter years ago. Im back on now to monitor my thirsty boyfriend, Kevin Mchale, who 'accidentally' gave me salmonella 5 days ago.' Kevin responded with 'omg' in regards to his beau's changed Twitter profile and continued to joke about intentionally 'poisoning' him. Payback time: Kevin joked that his partner should break up with him to which Austin responded with a Google search of 'how to get revenge on your husband' The Glee! actor made light of the situation on Twitter, a stark contrast to last month when he commented on the death of his beloved co-star Naya Rivera. His former co-star was found dead in Lake Piru after she disappeared during a boat trip with her four-year-old son, Josey last month. After several days of searching, her body was found, no foul play was suspected and her passing was determined to be a result of drowning. Kevin shared some touching comments regarding the actress and said that he felt the late Cory Monteith was guiding authorities to finding her body. Cory starred as the lead male, Finn Hudson, in Glee! and was a co-star to both Kevin and Naya. Keeping an eye: Austin joked that he had returned to Twitter after several years away from the site in attempt to 'monitor' his 'thirsty' boyfriend and his salmonella inducing antics Greatly missed: Last month, the Glee actor reacted to the tragic death of his co-star Naya Rivera who died at the age of 33 by drowning in Lake Piru, California He unfortunately passed away in 2013 as a result of combined drug intoxication, and Kevin felt that he was a guardian angel watching over Naya following her tragic death. Writing on Twitter, Kevin noted: 'I'm not religious by any means, but you'd be hard-pressed to convince me that Cory didn't help find our girl today. 'These 2, in many ways, were the male and female versions of one another. So nice, cared deeply, were stupidly talented, the most fun, and really really good people.' Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Made Anthony Iswara (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 16:13 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b3337b 1 SE Asia Southeast-Asia,UN-Secretary-General,UNESCAP,COVID-19,collective Free Southeast Asia must step up its COVID-19 response to combat the imminent deepening of inequality, United Nations secretary general Antonio Guterres said in a recent report highlighting weak health systems and connectivity in the region. The pandemic has highlighted deep inequalities, shortfalls in governance and the imperative for a sustainable development pathway. And it has revealed new challenges, including to peace and security, Guterres said in a statement last week, suggesting that the region had much work to do. The secretary general published a policy brief on Wednesday highlighting the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on vulnerable groups and the danger that many would be pushed back into poverty and unemployment. Some countries remain unable to address COVID-19 sufficiently. More than half of the countries in Southeast Asia are vulnerable because of weak health systems, according to the report. The World Health Organizations universal health coverage index of service coverage reported a median index of 61 out of 100, suggesting that much more progress is needed, the report read. However, the region has reported significantly fewer confirmed COVID-19 cases and related deaths than most other global regions with some variation among countries. The report noted that regional cooperation had been robust. UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) executive secretary Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana told reporters in a teleconference that while four or five countries in the region were quite okay in their COVID-19 preparedness, health expenditures for some countries were too low compared to the level that is required. Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, Thailand, Timor Leste and Laos had low health expenditure as a proportion of their GDPs in 2016, according to an assessment adapted from the Human Development Index (HDI) in the report. The report showed that some countries had a lack of physicians, nurses and midwives, as well as hospital beds, among other indicators. But Armida noted that almost all of the regions countries had seen high levels of connectivity through mobile phone service subscriptions, although only a handful of countries had sufficient levels of fixed broadband. The usual indicators before this pandemic were human development-related measures and, of course, health. But with the pandemic, connectivity has come to the fore and is crucial, Armida said. Some 55 percent of Southeast Asias population remains without internet access, according to a UNESCAP statement late last month. In Indonesia, the digital divide has impeded the governments COVID-19 social assistance programs, which rely heavily on online platforms to deliver relief to those in need. Read also: Digital divide causes disparities in COVID-19 relief distribution: Experts The report urges the region to address rising inequalities in its plans for recovery by employing short-term stimulus measures, long-term policy changes and by bridging the digital divide, among other measures. But Griffith University epidemiologist Dicky Budiman argued that the countries with high health system rankings in the survey with a high number of hospital beds and health workers were not necessarily more successful in their responses to the pandemic. He underscored leadership and quick and accurate responses to the pandemic as indicators of success, citing Angela Merkel of Germany and Jacinda Ardern of New Zealand as examples. He also noted that there were gaps in testing capacity between countries like Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries. Despite such limitations, countries had to work mostly alone to tackle the pandemic, he said. Now is the time not only to end this pandemic on a local scale but also on a regional one, he said. Dont let any country choose the wrong strategy." Amid calls for more regional cooperation, Foreign Ministry director-general of ASEAN affairs Jose Tavares told The Jakarta Post that ASEAN was exploring a number of initiatives to curb COVID-19 regionally. He noted that Indonesia had formulated the ASEAN Standard Operating Procedures for public health emergencies, had coordinated cross-border public health responses, had established a COVID-19 ASEAN response fund and had aided with regional reserves of medical supplies, among others initiatives. In a press briefing on Thursday, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi hinted at the passage of another ASEAN COVID-19 initiative. "In regard to the ASEAN travel corridor proposed by Indonesia, as of now it is still being finalized and discussed among ASEAN countries," she said. Read also: Indonesia proposes regional travel corridor at ASEAN summit Indonesia proposed the plan during an ASEAN summit in June, seeking to increase the regions connectivity and facilitate the economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. QUITO, Ecuador, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Republic of Ecuador (the "Republic") announced today that it has received the requisite consents from Eligible Holders as of 5:00 p.m. Central European Time, on August 3, 2020 (the "Consent Deadline") for its consent solicitation announced on July 20, 2020 (the "Consent Solicitation"), relating to its bonds listed in Tables A and B below (the "Eligible Bonds"). In conjunction with the Consent Solicitation, the Republic had also announced it was inviting Eligible Holders to exchange their Eligible Bonds for a package of new securities (the "New Securities") to be issued by the Republic under a new master indenture (the "Invitation to Exchange" and, together with the Consent Solicitation, the "Invitation"). The terms and conditions of the Invitation are described in the invitation memorandum dated July 20, 2020 (as amended, the "Invitation Memorandum"). Capitalized terms used herein but not defined herein shall have the meanings ascribed thereto in the Invitation Memorandum. Following acceptance of the Requisite Consents, the Republic will be executing supplemental indentures to the indentures governing each series of Eligible Bonds, effecting the proposed modifications approved in the Consent Solicitation and described in the Invitation Memorandum. The supplemental indentures will become effective upon execution by the Republic and the trustee, but if executed prior to the Settlement Date, each will provide that the proposed modifications will not become operative until (i) the Republic has completed (and not terminated) the Consent Solicitation in accordance with the terms and conditions set forth in the Invitation Memorandum, including the International Monetary Fund (the "IMF") having announced an IMF staff-level agreement on a new funded program for Ecuador (the "IMF Condition"), and (ii) each Eligible Holder who has delivered its consent and whose consent has been accepted by the Republic pursuant to the Consent Solicitation shall have received the New Securities (including the New PDI 2030 Bond), in each case as set forth in the Invitation Memorandum. As of the Consent Deadline, the approximate principal amount and percentage of each series of Eligible Bonds for which the Republic has received and accepted consents (subject to the satisfaction of the IMF Condition and the GLC Opinion Condition as described in the Invitation Memorandum) is set forth on Tables A and B below. The Republic has received the consents required to result in the modification of 100% of the aggregate principal amount outstanding of the Eligible Bonds set forth in Table A pursuant to the proposed modifications. As a result, the Republic has satisfied the condition in the Invitation which required at least 80% of the aggregate principal amount outstanding of the Eligible Bonds set forth in Table A being modified pursuant to the proposed modifications or otherwise exchanged for New Securities. Except for the IMF Condition and the GLC Opinion Condition, all other conditions for the consummation of the Consent Solicitation set forth in the Invitation Memorandum were satisfied as of the Consent Deadline. As announced previously today, we have extended the expiration date solely for the Invitation to Exchange to 5:00 p.m. Central European Time on Friday, August 7, 2020 (the "New Expiration Date"). We have not extended the Consent Deadline. Accordingly, during the period commencing after the Consent Deadline and ending at the New Expiration Date, Eligible Holders may tender their Eligible Bonds to be exchanged for New Securities; however, they will not be able to deliver consents to the proposed modifications and will not be eligible to receive any payments or any New PDI 2030 Bonds in respect of accrued and unpaid interest. The settlement date for the Invitation is now expected to occur on Wednesday, August 12, 2020, or as soon as practicable thereafter, upon the satisfaction of the IMF Condition. The Republic is in continued negotiations with the IMF to satisfy the IMF Condition prior to the proposed settlement date. As set forth in the Invitation Memorandum, we will terminate the Invitation unless settlement of the Invitation occurs on or prior to August 20, 2020 (the "Settlement Deadline"); provided that, we have the right to extend the Settlement Deadline to September 1, 2020, with the consent of the Eligible Holders representing a majority of the aggregate principal amount outstanding of all Series of Eligible Bonds, as reasonably determined by us in our sole discretion. Table A (1)(2) Eligible Bonds ISIN / Common Code Principal Amount Outstanding Consents Delivered and Accepted(3) Consents Delivered and Accepted(3) as a Percentage of Principal Amount Outstanding 10.750% Notes due March 28, 2022 XS1458516967; XS1458514673 / 145851696; 145851467 U.S.$2,000,000,000 U.S.$1,972,287,000 98.61% 8.750% Notes due June 2, 2023 XS1626768656; XS1626768730 / 162676865; 162676873 U.S.$1,000,000,000 U.S.$977,614,000 97.76% 7.875% Notes due March 27, 2025 XS2058848826; XS2058845210 / 205884882; 205884521 U.S.$600,000,000 U.S.$587,055,000 97.84% 9.650% Notes due December 13, 2026 XS1535072109; XS1535071986 / 153507210; 153507198 U.S.$1,738,250,000 U.S.$1,703,336,000 97.99% 9.625% Notes due June 2, 2027 XS1626529157; XS1626530320 / 162652915; 162653032 U.S.$1,000,000,000 U.S.$982,142,000 98.21% 8.875% Notes due October 23, 2027 XS1707041429; XS1707041262 / 170704142; 170704126 U.S.$2,500,000,000 U.S.$2,454,719,000 98.19% 7.875% Notes due January 23, 2028 XS1755432363; XS1755429732 / 175543236; 175542973 U.S.$2,974,000,000 U.S.$2,906,442,000 97.73% 10.750% Notes due January 31, 2029 XS1929377015; XS1929376710 / 192937701; 192937671 U.S.$2,106,000,000 U.S.$2,069,176,000 98.25% 9.500% Notes due March 27, 2030 XS2058866307; XS2058864948 / 205886630; 205886494 U.S.$1,400,000,000 U.S.$1,382,144,000 98.72% Total Aggregate Amount N/A U.S.$15,318,250,000 U.S.$15,034,915,000 98.15% ___________________________________ (1) The amounts presented in this table are subject to de minimis adjustment. (2) Excludes the principal amounts outstanding with respect to Eligible Bonds owned or controlled by the Republic or by any public sector instrumentality of the Republic. (3) Subject to the satisfaction of the IMF Condition and the GLC Opinion Condition. Table B (1)(2) Eligible Bonds ISIN / Common Code Principal Amount Outstanding Consents Delivered and Accepted(3) Consents Delivered and Accepted(3) as a Percentage of Principal Amount Outstanding 7.950% Notes due June 20, 2024 XS1080331181; XS1080330704 / 108033118; 108033070 U.S.$1,894,973,000 U.S.$1,808,157,000 95.42% ___________________________________ (1) The amounts presented in this table are subject to de minimis adjustment. (2) Excludes the principal amounts outstanding with respect to Eligible Bonds owned or controlled by the Republic or by any public sector instrumentality of the Republic. (3) Subject to the satisfaction of the IMF Condition and the GLC Opinion Condition. The aggregate principal amounts of New Securities that will be issued on the settlement date for the Invitation will be announced promptly after the New Expiration Date. Eligible Holders, or custodians for such holders, of Eligible Bonds may obtain a copy of the Invitation Memorandum by contacting the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent at the contact information set forth below, or by download, following registration, via: https://gbsc-usa.com/ecuador. This announcement is for informational purposes only and is not an invitation or a solicitation of consents of any holders of Eligible Bonds. The Consent Solicitation and Invitation to Exchange to Eligible Holders of Eligible Bonds is only being made pursuant to the Invitation. Holders of Eligible Bonds should read the Invitation Memorandum carefully prior to making any decision with respect to delivering their consents or tendering their securities because it contains important information. Ecuador will make (or cause to be made) all announcements regarding the Invitation by press release in accordance with applicable law. Ecuador has not registered the Invitation, the Eligible Bonds or the New Securities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), or any state securities law. The Invitation may not be made in the United States or to any U.S. persons except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act. The Invitation is being made only to (A) "qualified institutional buyers" as defined in Rule 144A under the Securities Act, (B) "accredited investors" within the meaning of Rule 501(a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) of Regulation D under the Securities Act ("institutional accredited investors") and (C) (x) persons outside the United States, (y) if located within a member state of the European Economic Area or in the United Kingdom, a "qualified investor" as defined in Regulation (EU) 1129/2017, and (z) if located outside the EEA or the UK, is eligible to receive this invitation under the laws of its jurisdiction. Only holders of Eligible Bonds who have returned a duly completed eligibility letter (available on the website of the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent, at https://gbsc-usa.com/ecuador) certifying that they are within one of the categories described in the immediately preceding sentence are authorized to receive and review the Invitation Memorandum and to participate in the Invitation ("Eligible Holders"). None of the DEALER MANAGER, the Trustee, the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent, the financial advisor nor any of their respective directors, employees, affiliates, agents or representatives makes any recommendation as to whether Holders should deliver their consents or TENDER THEIR ELIGIBLE BONDS pursuant to thE INVITATION, and no one has been authorized by any of them to make such a recommendation. Each Holder must make its own decision as to whether to consent or TENDER THEIR ELIGIBle bonds. The Invitation Memorandum is available from the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent. The Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent for the Invitation is: Global Bondholder Services Corporation 65 Broadway Suite 404 New York, New York 10006 Attn: Corporate Actions Banks and Brokers call: (212) 430-3774 Toll free (866)-470-3800 By facsimile: (For Eligible Institutions only): (212) 430-3775/3779 Confirmation: (212) 430-3774 Email: [email protected] Any questions regarding the terms of the Invitation should be directed to the Dealer Manager or the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent at their respective addresses and telephone numbers set forth on this communication. If you have any questions about how to tender your Eligible Bonds in the Invitation, you should contact the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent. Requests for additional copies of the Invitation Memorandum, the eligibility letter or any other related documents may also be directed to the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent. The Dealer Manager for the Invitation is: Citigroup Global Markets Inc. 390 Greenwich St, 1st Floor New York, NY 10013 Attention: Liability Management Group U.S. Toll-free: +1-800-558-3745 Collect: +1-212-723-6106 Email: [email protected] ********* The Republic of Ecuador Ministry of Economy and Finance Av. Amazonas entre Pereira y Union Nacional de Periodistas Plataforma Gubernamental de Gestion Financiera, Pisos 10 y 11 Quito, Ecuador (Financial Advisor to the Republic of Ecuador) Lazard Freres 121 Boulevard Haussmann 75008, Paris SOURCE The Republic of Ecuador Tropical Storm Isaias is expected to strengthen into a hurricane again as it heads toward the Carolinas, the National Hurricane Center said Monday. It is one of two systems forecasters were tracking Monday morning. The other is a low pressure system in the Atlantic that forecasters said could develop into a tropical depression later this week. Neither system poses a threat to Louisiana, forecasters said. Here's what to know about Tropical Storm Isaias and the low pressure system as of 7 a.m. Monday. Where is Tropical Storm Isaias? As of 7 a.m., Tropical Storm Isaias was about 100 miles southeast of Jacksonville, Florida, and about 250 miles southwest of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It was moving north at 13 mph. On the forecast track, the center of Isaias will pass east of the Georgia coast Monday morning, the National Hurricane Center said. The center of Isaias will then approach the coasts South Carolina and North Carolina within the hurricane warning area later Monday. The center is then expected to move inland over eastern North Carolina Monday night, and move along the coast of the mid-Atlantic states on Tuesday and into the northeastern United States by Tuesday night. Will Isaias strengthen? Tropical Storm Isaias has maximum sustained winds near 70 mph, as of Monday morning. Some strengthening is anticipated Monday, forecasters said, and Isaias is forecast to regain hurricane strength before it reaches the coast of northeastern South Carolina or southern North Carolina Monday night. A Category 1 hurricane has winds of 74 mph to 95 mph on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale. +5 With hurricane season and coronavirus peaking, Louisiana officials worry people won't evacuate Emergency managers in Louisiana struggling with how to fold COVID-19 precautions into their evacuation plans as the 2020 hurricane season ente Slow weakening is forecast after Isaias makes landfall in the Carolinas and moves across the U.S. mid-Atlantic region Monday night and Tuesday. Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 125 miles from the center. Watches and warnings in effect Heavy rainfall, flash flooding, dangerous rip currents and a few tornadoes are possible with this storm, forecasters said. Hurricane conditions are expected within the hurricane warning area in South and North Carolina Monday night. Get hurricane updates in your inbox Sign up for updates on storm forecasts, tracks and more. e-mail address * Sign Up Tropical storm conditions will spread north within the tropical storm warning area from Florida to southern New England through Tuesday afternoon. Tropical storm conditions are possible in the tropical storm watch area in New England beginning late Tuesday. A storm surge warning is in effect for: Edisto Beach, South Carolina, to Cape Fear, North Carolina A storm surge watch is in effect for: Cape Fear to Duck, North Carolina Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds A hurricane warning is in effect for: South Santee River, South Carolina, to Surf City, North Carolina A tropical storm warning is in effect for: Flagler/Volusia county line, Florida to South Santee River,South Carolina North of Surf City, North Carolina, to west of Watch Hill, Rhode Island Chesapeake Bay south of North Beach Tidal Potomac River south of Cobb Island Delaware Bay Long Island and Long Island Sound Pamlico and Albemarle sounds A tropical storm watch is in effect for: Watch Hill, Rhode Island, to Stonington, Maine Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket and Block Island Read the full 7 a.m. advisory for Isaias. The next one comes out at 10 a.m. Low pressure system in Atlantic A low pressure system was a few hundred miles north of the northern Leeward Islands as of 7 a.m. Monday. Some slow development is possible with this system, forecasters said, and a tropical depression could form later this week. The system is expected to move northwest at about 15 mph on Monday and Tuesday and then stall several under miles southwest of Bermuda, forecasters said. It has a 60% chance (medium) of developing into a tropical depression within five days. John Oliver has criticised Donald Trumps handling of the coronavirus crisis, describing the US presidents actions as shockingly reckless. Trump was widely condemned last week for using his Twitter account to promote a video in which a controversial doctor denounced the use of protective facial masks. Dr Stella Immanuel, whom Trump called impressive, also endorsed the use of the chemical hydroxychloroquine as a measure to combat coronavirus, which experts suggest is not only ineffective, but highly dangerous. In a press conference, Trump said that shes had tremendous success with hundreds of different patients, and described her voice as important though he admitted he knows nothing about her. Speaking on his HBO comedy series Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, the British-American comedian took issue with Trumps remarks. That is not the philosophy you want when vetting medical experts, he said. Downplaying the risks of this have dire consequences. Recklessness is abounding right now, heightening the need for strong leadership but unfortunately, were getting the exact opposite of that, he said. Just a week after Trump was given credit for shifting his rhetoric by urging Americans to wear masks, he did something that even for him was shockingly reckless. Oliver has been an outspoken critic of the president throughout Trumps time in office, particularly during the pandemic. The presenter quipped that Trump belonged in the knucklehead hall of fame as a result of his actions. The viruss death toll in the US is higher than anywhere else in the world, with more than 155,000 people dying as a result of Covid-19. - Business mogul Femi Otedola recently celebrated his darling wife Nana on her birthday - The billionaire husband posted a cute photo of his wife on Instagram to mark her special day - Otedolas daughter, DJ Cuppy, also celebrated her mum on the occasion of marking a new age - Fans and followers joined the billionaire and his daughter in celebrating someone special in their lives PAY ATTENTION: Click See First under the Following tab to see Legit.ng News on your Facebook News Feed! Popular Nigerian business mogul Femi Otedola recently took to social media to celebrate his darling wife, Nana, who clocked a new age on Sunday, August 2. The billionaire businessman in a celebratory post shared on his official Instagram page wished the mother of his children a simple happy birthday. Sharing a beautiful photo of the ever-stylish Nana, Otedola said: "Happy Birthday to Darling Nana .F.Ote." See his post below: PAY ATTENTION: Read best news on Nigeria's #1 news app Interestingly, Otedola was not the only one that took out time to celebrate her special lady. Also taking to Instagram in celebration, DJ Cuppy, posted a cute photo as she marked her mothers birthday. Billionaire businessman Femi Otedola and his wife Nana. Photo: Instagram/@femiotedola/@cuppymusic Source: Instagram Cuppy and Nana were seen striking a pose together in the photo shared by the entertainer. DJ Cuppy while announcing that its her mums birthday, called on her fans and followers to join her in wishing the birthday girl well. PAY ATTENTION: Get your daily relationship tips and advice on Africa Love Aid group Read some congratulatory birthday messages from Otedola and DJ Cuppys followers below: jackieaina: "Shes sooo cute happy birthday." nikkilaoye: "Happy Birthday to @nana_otedola . God bless her more as she adds a new year today Amen." casspernyovest: "Happy birthday. Mom she's so beautiful." onyinyeayozie: "Happy birthday ma'am. Age gracefully." ziclino: "Happy birthday to her. Much love sir." eliztemitope: "Happy birthday Mama, May the Lord bless your new age in Jesus Name (Amen)." irunbynature: "Happy birthday to a beautiful woman of virtue and grace." Some weeks ago, Legit.ng reported that DJ Cuppy told her fans on social media that she usually helps her billionaire dad operate his mobile device. The musician shared a video of her billionaire dad complaining about something stressing him on his phone. Afterwards, the Gelato crooner was spotted helping her dad solve the problem. Most Nigerians dream of spending their next birthday abroad | Legit TV Source: Legit.ng Chennai: Governor Banwarilal Purohit tested positive for Coronavirus on Sunday when the total number of new infections in the State was 5875 with Chennai accounting for 1065. Fatalities in the State too was high at 98 with some districts showing a spike in deaths. Thiruvallur had eight deaths, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Virudhunagar six each, Kanchipuram five and Chengalpattu and Kanyakumari four each. In Chennai it was 17. The Governor, who visited the Kauvery Hospitals for tests and assessments, was asymptomatic and clinically stable, a press release from the hospital said, adding that he had been advised home isolation since the infection was mild. He would be monitored by the medical team of Kauvery Hospital, the release added. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswamy warned private hospitals that overcharged people for Coronavirus treatment of severe action. In a tweet, the Chief Minister said private hospitals should display the government approved rates for treatment of Coronavirus prominently for the people to see. Some of the districts that topped in infections were Chengalpattu 446, Kanchipuram 293, Kanyakumari 200, Theni 309, Thiruvallur 317, Thoothukudi 271, Tirunelveli 201 and Virudhunagar 337. The rapid increase in deaths and infections from the coronavirus has motivated a group of entrepreneurs in Bolivia to manufacture mobile crematorium furnaces. Carlos Ayo, an environmental engineer and part of the group of entrepreneurs, said the idea wasn't just to diversify but to do something for his country. He said there have been instances in some locations in Bolivia where bodies were showing up in the streets because families either didn't have the resources or were unable to find places to bury or cremate them. Ayo said his group were advertising the mobile crematory oven by hauling it through the streets of La Paz with a large sign reading: "Mobile crematory ovens." This unique way of advertising is aimed at local authorities in cities that lack the equipment to meet the rising demands. According to the Ministry of Health, in the last week of July, virus-linked deaths rose to over 80 per day reaching a cumulative of 3,064 and 78,793 contagions from the disease. The entrepreneurs decided to venture into the manufacture of these furnaces with the idea of making it mobile, so it can be moved to the city that needs it the most. Ayo said the initiative came up in March as the pandemic expanded and bodies were seen on the streets in China, Europe. Then the same thing happened in Latin America. Bolivia, one of the poorest countries in South America, has been hit with the disease against the backdrop of a precarious health system and a saturation of funeral services. In Bolivia, only main cities have crematory ovens. One of the most hard-hit cities is Cochabamba, in central Bolivia. Here, families were keeping coffins in their homes for more than six days, and dead were being placed in the streets due to a collapse of their funeral services, as the main cemetery had only one obsolete crematorium oven. The Ministry of Health, in the face of this emergency, activated a protocol in which it stated that bodies could be buried in the ground and in mass graves. Cremation is still necessary in municipalities that have this service. Stakeholders in the implementation of the Asante Kingdom Land Restoration Project are advocating strict enforcement of by-laws to ensure the success of the project. At a meeting in Kumasi to assess the projects progress, the stakeholders underscored the need to apply the recommended sanctions to offenders to protect the environment and river bodies. They expressed the view that the adoption of stringent measures, including the enforcement of the by-laws, would help sustain the Asantehene's climate change agenda. The Asante Kingdom Land Restoration Project seeks to plant 100 million trees by 2030 around river bodies and degraded lands. It is being implemented by the Manhyia Palace in partnership with the Oheneba Poku Foundation. Other collaborators are Blaze Metals, Forestry Commission, Environmental Protection Agency, Fisheries Commission, Water Resources Commission, Forestry Research Institute of Ghana, Bosomtwe District Assembly and Bosome Freho District Assembly The first phase of the project is targeting over 20 fringe communities of the Bosomtwe Lake in the Bosomtwe District where about 100,000 trees had already been planted. Nana Adu Mensah Asare, the Amakomhene, who is the representative of the Asantehene on the project, said it was important to take stock and assess the progress and to strategize for the future. He charged community members to ensure that the trees planted were nurtured and protected to survive. They should also own the project and protect the Lake, which is a pride of Ashanti, and to preserve the economic benefits local communities derive from tourism. Mr Fred Kyei Sarpong, the Executive Director of Oheneba Poku Foundation, said the project was part of the Asantehenes larger climate change agenda in the Asante Kingdom. He said it was unfortunate for people to destroy the environment and river bodies because of poverty irrespective of the consequences on humanity. We are tackling this challenge head-on by ensuring economic development and social inclusion so that everybody would feel part of the exercise to achieve environmental sustainability, he said. That responsibility is what we want to drum home and keep everybody accountable for whatever we are doing to our environment, he added. Source: GNA 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 Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 15:43:40|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- As countries around the world are cautiously reopening to revive their hard-hit economies in the COVID-19 pandemic, global tourism has seen a glimmer of hope, but still faces an uphill struggle. Tintagel Castle, a medieval fortification located in Cornwall in southwest England, is considered one of the most spectacular sites in Britain. Annually, over 250,000 tourists visit the place and pass through routes and ruins from around the 5th-7th century AD. However, this year, COVID-19 has taken its toll on the famed tourist attraction as the number of visitors to the site plunged. When the nationwide lockdown was announced in March, Georgia Butters and her staff at Tintagel Castle were getting ready for the busy Easter period. But after all the preparation for one of the busiest periods of the year, the site was forced to close as the lockdown restricted travel and domestic tourism dropped instantly. On July 4, the British government announced the phase-by-phase reopening of outdoor venues, bringing hope to Butters, English Heritage's head of historic properties in Cornwall. To achieve the goal of keeping staff and visitors safe, the entire site reopened but with a new visiting system that features social distancing, including a one way visiting route, limited access to the cafe, as well as timed ticketing for everybody. These measures have obviously restricted the number of visitors and affected their travel experiences. "At the moment we're looking at a third of our peak capacity, which is a significant difference," said Butters. The reduced number of visitors means that the surrounding area will likely take a hit, as for much of the immediate local communities, Tintagel is somewhere that provides a living for them. In other parts of the world, similar efforts are also underway to salvage the staggering tourism industry. In Italy, a government policy intended to revive tourism took effect in July. According to a promotional program effective until the end of this year, low-and medium-income households, couples, and individuals who spend holidays at Italian tourist facilities can benefit from a financial bonus of up to 500 euros (560 U.S. dollars). In Finland, a large-scale open-air market and dining area located on Helsinki's iconic 3,000-square-meter Senate Square opened to the public on July 1, in a move to encourage the catering and tourism industries. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of overnight stays by foreign tourists in Finland dropped by nearly 93 percent in June 2020, Statistics Finland said in a press release issued on Thursday. Between January and June this year, a total of 6.08 million nights were spent by tourists in Finnish accommodation facilities, 42.6 percent less than the same period in 2019. The number of nights spent by foreign tourists dropped by 48.9 percent from the previous year, according to the data. A larger picture across the globe is even grimmer. On July 28, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) highlighted the enormous cost which the coronavirus pandemic brings to the global tourism sector, both in tourist numbers and revenues. The latest edition of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer shows that lockdown restrictions imposed to respond to the epidemic led to a 98 percent fall in international tourist numbers in May this year, compared to May 2019. The Barometer also shows a 56 percent year-on-year reduction in tourist arrivals in the first five months of this year, with a loss of 320 billion U.S. dollars in international tourism receipts, which the UNWTO said is "more than three times the loss during the Global Economic Crisis of 2009." The dramatic fall in global tourism has placed millions of livelihoods at risk. UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said in a statement that the data showed "the importance of restarting tourism as soon as it is safe to do so," calling on governments in every world region "to prioritize public health while also protecting jobs and businesses." While global tourism is slowly returning under easing restrictions, its prospect is still uncertain for a string of downside risks such as the resurgence of the virus, the possibility of new lockdowns and the safety concerns with travel. Last week, the British government warned against non-essential travelling to Spain, saying "the advice is based on evidence of increases in cases of COVID-19 in several regions" in Spain, which gave a fatal blow to the country's tourism. Even though the Spanish government insists the country is safe to travel to, health authorities have acknowledged that the country may be experiencing a second wave of cases. The majority of the cases have been detected in bars and nightclubs, as well as seasonal fruit and vegetable pickers. The premature opening of big but unsafe tourist markets for the sake of reviving tourism is out of the question, Cypriot Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou said in July. Ioannou dismissed suggestions that tourists from high-risk countries could be screened by mass testing at airports. "Just imagine what would happen even if only a few travelers tested positive, even five, each day. Quarantine facilities and hospitals would be filled in no time at all," Ioannou said. Without properly handling these coronavirus-related concerns, it could be hard for global tourism to get back on track, which, in turn, will severely hamper the recovery of the world economy. According to a report published on June 15 by the World Travel & Tourism Council, tourism and travel industries created 330 million jobs in 2019 and accounted for 10.3 percent of the global economy. To accelerate the recovery of tourism, the council suggested in the report "the adoption of global health and safety protocols, the implementation of a rapid test and trace strategy to help contain the spread of the virus, as well as the greater collaboration between the public and private sectors to ensure a standardized global approach to the crisis." Enditem Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 00:05:48|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close JERUSALEM, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- An Antonov cargo plane landed in Israel on Monday to transport Iron Dome anti-rocket batteries from Israel to the U.S. Army, Israel's defense ministry announced. Local TV channels showed the aircraft, the world's largest cargo plane, landing in the evening at Ben Gurion Airport outside Tel Aviv. The plane is carrying U.S. military Oshkosh trucks that will be used for the Iron Dome systems bought by the U.S. Army, according to a statement issued by the ministry. The systems will be used "to defend U.S. military troops against a wide range of ballistic and aerial threats," the Israeli ministry said, without elaborating on where will the systems be deployed. The landing of the plane marks the final stage of a purchasing deal signed last August between the Israeli defense ministry and the U.S. Department of Defense. Under the deal, the U.S. Army bought from Israel two off-the-shelf Iron Dome batteries. Enditem JERUSALEM - Israeli fighter jets and attack helicopters struck military targets in southern Syria belonging to the Syrian army Monday night, hours after thwarting an infiltration attempt from Syria by suspected militants trying to plant explosives, the Israeli military said. In a rare statement acknowledging strikes in neighbouring Syria, the army said the targets included observation posts and intelligence collection systems, anti-aircraft artillery facilities and command and control systems in Syrian army bases. Syria acknowledged the strikes, saying that Israeli helicopters fired missiles at Syrian army outposts and reported unspecified material damage. The incident comes amid heightened tension on Israels northern frontier following a recent Israeli airstrike that killed a Hezbollah fighter in Syria and anticipation that the militant Lebanese group would retaliate. Earlier Monday, Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, said Israeli troops spotted irregular activity in the Golan Heights. Israeli troops opened fire on the suspected militants, some of whom were armed, after observing them placing the explosives on the ground, Conricus said. There was no official confirmation that the four suspected attackers were killed but a grainy video released by the army shows four figures walking away from barbed wire marking the frontier. The four then disappear in a large explosion that engulfs the area. The Israeli military has not said if the four are suspected of ties to Iran or Hezbollah, two Syrian allies. However, Conricus said Israel held the Syrian government responsible for the incident. Addressing Likud party lawmakers, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that Israel thwarted an attempted sabotage on the Syrian front and would continue to harm all those who try to harm us and all those who harm us. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in 1967 and later annexed the territory. The U.S. is the only country to have recognized Israels annexation. Tensions have been high on Israels northern frontier following the Israeli airstrike that killed the Hezbollah fighter in Syria last month. Following the airstrike, the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights was hit by explosives fired from Syria and Israel responded by attacking Syrian military positions and beefing up its forces in the area. Israel has been bracing for further retaliation and last week it said it thwarted an infiltration attempt from Lebanon by Hezbollah militants, setting off one of the heaviest exchanges of fire along the volatile Israel-Lebanon frontier since a 2006 war between the bitter enemies. Israel considers Hezbollah to be its toughest and most immediate threat. Since battling Israel to a stalemate during a monthlong war in 2006, Hezbollah has gained more battlefield experience fighting alongside the Syrian government in that countrys bloody civil war. After 40 years of calm, the Israel-Syrian frontier has heated up in recent years as Iran has tried to establish a military foothold on Israels doorstep while helping Syrian President Bashar Assad in his countrys yearslong war. Hezbollah also has aided Assad. Read more about: Lebanese foreign minister quits over slow reforms, Aoun adviser takes over Lebanese Foreign Minister Nassif Hitti speaks during a joint news conference with Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi in Amman By Ellen Francis BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon named the president's diplomatic adviser as new foreign minister on Monday after Nassif Hitti quit the post, blaming a lack of political will to enact reforms to halt a financial meltdown which he warned could turn Lebanon into a failed state. Foreign donors have made clear there will be no aid until Beirut makes changes to tackle state waste and corruption, which are behind the crisis that is the biggest threat to Lebanon's stability since a 1975-1990 civil war. "Will this cry of deep frustration move Lebanon to finally work on reforms, on measures taking care of the Lebanese, sinking every day deeper into poverty and desperation?" tweeted United Nations special coordinator for Lebanon, Jan Kubis. In his resignation statement, Hitti cited "the absence of an effective will to achieve structural, comprehensive reform". President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Hassan Diab appointed Charbel Wehbe, Aoun's diplomatic adviser since 2017 and a career diplomat, as foreign minister. Wehbe, 67, is a former secretary general of the ministry. He is seen as close to Aoun and his influential son-in-law Gebran Bassil, a former foreign minister who heads the largest Christian political bloc in the sectarian power-sharing system. Wehbe later told local broadcaster OTV that the government should work "step by step" to help the country overcome what he described as difficulties. "Lebanon must always strive and knock on the door of all friendly and brotherly states," he said. "MULTIPLE BOSSES" Hitti, a former ambassador to the Arab League, was appointed in January when Diab's cabinet took office with the support of the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement and its allies. "I took part in this government to work for one boss called Lebanon, then I found in my country multiple bosses and contradictory interests," Hitti said. "If they do not come together in the interest of rescuing the Lebanese people, God forbid, the ship will sink with everyone on it." Story continues Hitti had differences with Diab and was frustrated at being sidelined, sources close to the ministry said. Diab last month appeared to criticise France's foreign minister for tying aid to reforms and an International Monetary Fund (IMF) deal. Talks with the IMF, which the heavily indebted state entered in May after a sovereign default, are stalled due to a row over the scale of vast financial losses between the government, banks and lawmakers from the main parties. (Reporting by Ellen Francis; Editing by Kevin Liffey, Andrew Cawthorne and Timothy Heritage) Bulgarian Academy of Sciences signs with Pensoft to move Silva Balcanica journal to ARPHA The scholarly publisher and technology provider Pensoft welcomes the open-access, peer-reviewed international journal in forest science concerning the Balkan Peninsula, Central and Southern Europe Silva Balcanica to its self-developed publishing platform ARPHA. Having become the latest addition to the lengthy portfolio of scholarly outlets dedicated to the fields of ecology and biology for Pensoft and ARPHA, Silva Balcanica is now offering a wide range of benefits and services to its readers, authors, reviewers and editors alike. Having already acquired its own glossy and user-friendly website provided by ARPHA, Silva Balcanica also takes advantage of the platform's signature fast-track, end-to-end publishing system. In addition, the published content enjoys automated export of data to aggregators, as well as web-service integrations with major global indexing and archiving databases. Ever since its inception in 2001, the journal by the Forest Research Institute at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (FRI-BAS), has been providing open access to the latest research in all aspects of forest ecosystems and landscapes of the Balkan Peninsula, and also Central and Southern Europe. Silva Balcanica invites scientific analysis of practical results, as well as investigations, in the forest sciences, including forest ecology; forest soil science; forest genetics, tree breeding and plantation forestry; biometry and sylviculture; forest economy and management; forest entomology and pathology; ecology and management of game fauna, urban forestry and green infrastructure. Constructive critique addressing scientific publications or events in the field of forestry and forest science are also accepted. In the first 2020 issue of Silva Balcanica, we can find a total of eight research papers, dealing with a range of various topics, including studies on local plant diversity, genetics, application of experimental designs for forestry research, ecosystem services, population dynamics, invasive pathogens and previously unknown populations of forest-dwelling insects. It brings together single-authored research contributions as well as international collaborative projects, with input from authors from Bulgaria, Greece, Northern Macedonia and Italy. "Silva Balcanica is an important scholarly outlet and also a remarkable example of international cooperation, inspired and maintained by curiosity, care and responsibility towards the unique, but fragile ecosystems this part of Europe hosts. This is why we take pride in having this particular journal joining our portfolio," comments Prof. Lyubomir Penev, CEO and founder of both Pensoft and ARPHA Platform. Silva Balcanica's Editorial Board says: "The Scientific Council of the Forest Research Institute at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences decided to begin publishing Silva Balcanica as an international series in 2001 and since 2014, Silva Balcanica has been published as an international journal. We are honored to have as members of our Editorial Advisory Board eminent European professors and researchers in forestry and related sciences that join our efforts in pursuit of high quality scientific publishing. We are confident that Silva Balcanica will unite the research of scientists and specialists in forestry from Southeastern, Central and Eastern Europe and beyond, and will help them in the processes of their European integration." ### Visit the new website of Silva Balcanica at https:/ / silvabalcanica. pensoft. net . Additional information: About Pensoft: Pensoft is an independent academic publishing company, well-known worldwide for its innovations in the field of semantic publishing, as well as for its cutting-edge publishing tools and workflows. In 2013, Pensoft launched the first ever end to end XML-based authoring, reviewing and publishing workflow, as demonstrated by the Pensoft Writing Tool (PWT) and the Biodiversity Data Journal (BDJ), now upgraded to the ARPHA Publishing Platform. Flagship titles include: Research Ideas and Outcomes (RIO), One Ecosystem, ZooKeys, Biodiversity Data Journal, PhytoKeys, MycoKeys and many more. About ARPHA: ARPHA is the first end-to-end, narrative- and data-integrated publishing solution that supports the full life cycle of a manuscript, from authoring to reviewing, publishing and dissemination. ARPHA provides accomplished and streamlined production workflows that can be customized according to the journal's needs. The platform enables a variety of publishing models through a number of options for branding, production and revenue models to choose from. Contact: Prof. Lyubomir Penev, founder and CEO at ARPHA and Pensoft Email: penev@pensoft.net Prof. Georgi Georgiev, Editor-in-Chief at Silva Balcanica and Deputy Director at FRI-BAS Email: ggeorgiev.fri@gmail.com This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. By PTI AIZAWL: The Mizoram government has decided to treat coronavirus-infected security personnel and civilian patients at separate COVID-19 hospitals in the state, an official said on Monday. The decision in this regard was taken during an emergency meeting chaired by Health Minister Dr R Lalthangliana on Sunday in the wake of a spike in COVID-19 cases among security personnel posted in the northeastern state, he said. Officials observed it was not "medically healthy" to treat infected security personnel and civilian patients at the same hospital, he said. It was decided that the nursing school in Sercchip town will be reserved for infected Border Security Force (BSF) personnel, while jawans of other paramilitary and armed forces will be treated at the AYUSH Hospital at Thenzawl in Sercchip district and the Tribal Art Centre at Tanhril in Aizawl, he said. Apart from these facilities, Assam Rifles has its own COVID-19 care centre at Zokhawsang near Aizawl. Civilian patients will be treated at the Beraw COVID- 19 care centre and the multipurpose centre at ITI locality in Aizawl, the official said. There are 64 beds for COVID-19 patients at the state- run Zoram Medical College here. It was also decided that guidelines will be framed for quarantining of security personnel, he said. Mizoram had on Sunday reported its highest single-day spike in COVID-19 cases as 55 more people, including 47 security personnel, tested positive for the infection. The fresh infections have taken the number of active cases in the state to 215. Security personnel and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) staffers constitute 76.74 per cent of the total number of active cases in the state. Prince Andrew's ex-girlfriend Lady Victoria Hervey today claimed Ghislaine Maxwell used her as 'bait' to entertain Jeffrey Epstein's friends, saying the paedophile 'kind of sat back and sort of waited for her to sort of go fishing'. The 44-year-old socialite and former 'It Girl', who is the daughter of the 6th Marquess of Bristol and the Duke of York's former love interest, first met the pair 20 years ago and said she was 'really young and naive' at the time. ITV released a clip to MailOnline ahead of tonight's 'Ghislaine, Prince Andrew and the Paedophile' documentary which also featured Lady Victoria describing Maxwell and Epstein as like 'Batman and Robin' and a 'double act'. She said: 'Jeffrey was really the frontman and Ghislaine was the accomplice. It was kind of like a Batman and Robin, and they were a double act. I don't think Jeffrey could have done any of it without Ghislaine.' Presenter Ranvir Singh said: 'And Ghislaine was crucial to getting those girls, was she, do you think to those dinners?' Lady Victoria replied: 'I think he just kind of sat back and sort of waited for her to sort of go fishing and go find however many girls were needed, you know, to entertain his friends. I think I was pretty much used as bait. You know, looking back at, you know I was really young and naive, and she's entertaining these, you know, big businessmen. So I didn't realise it of course at the time, but looking back...' Also pictured: Lady Victoria with Prince Andrew in London in 2002, and with Ghislaine Maxwell in Hollywood in 2004. BASEL, Switzerland, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- NBE-Therapeutics, the Swiss-based company developing best in class cancer therapies based on its proprietary, highly differentiated Antibody Drug Conjugate (ADC) platform, announces the appointment of Bertrand Damour as Chief Executive Officer. Bertrand Damour has 20 years' management experience in the biotech industry in Europe and US as CEO of biotech companies and in the banking industry. He was previously CEO of: US proteomics company GeneProt Inc.; Mind NRG, a Swiss biotech in the field of CNS (which was acquired by Minerva Neurosciences); OncoEthix, a Swiss based oncology company in the field of epigenetics, (which was acquired by Merck & Co. for US$375 million); and more recently at Synthena AG, a company developing Oligonucleotide based therapeutics for the treatment of genetic neuro muscular diseases. Bertrand has extensive expertise in corporate transactions, including M&A, LBOs and IPOs gained while working in the banking industry at J.P. Morgan, Rabobank International and Deutsche Bank in New York and London. Detlev Mennerich, Partner at Boehringer Ingelheim Ventures and Board Member of NBE-Therapeutics, commented: "We are delighted to welcome Bertrand to NBE-Therapeutics. His extensive financial, management, and biotech expertise will be invaluable as we take NBE-Therapeutics to the next stage of development and help maximize the potential of its unique ADC platform." Bertrand Damour, the new CEO of NBE-Therapeutics, said: "I am very enthusiastic about my new role with NBE-Therapeutics. The company has a fantastic technology platform and I have been genuinely impressed by the management's professionalism and the unsurpassed track record of the scientific team. NBE-Therapeutics has an exciting future and I am proud to be a part of the team to help drive our success." Dr. Ulf Grawunder, founder and previous CEO of the company will move to a new role as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Development Officer. He will be focused on moving the company's first drug candidate, NBE-002, an anti-ROR1 ADC, through clinical development. Commenting on the appointment, Dr. Ulf Grawunder, Founder of NBE-Therapeutics, said; "I am very pleased to have Bertrand take over as CEO with his vast expertise in corporate transactions. I am looking forward to working with him at this very exciting stage of the company." NBE-Therapeutics' best in class iADC platform creates highly potent and safe immune-stimulatory ADCs with an anthracycline payload, inducing a long-lasting immunological anti-tumor effect. Lead candidate NBE-002 has shown unprecedented preclinical efficacy, as well as favorable safety profile in multiple pipeline programs. A first-in-human study with NBE-002 is expected to commence in 2020, focusing on triple negative breast cancer and lung cancer, as well as other solid cancer indications and lymphomas. About NBE-Therapeutics NBE-Therapeutics is a privately-owned Swiss biotech company based in Basel and founded in 2012 with the vision of developing next-generation immune-stimulatory antibody drug conjugate (iADC) products. NBE advances its products to clinical proof of concept with the goal of improving treatment options for cancer patients. The company leverages proprietary platforms covering all aspects of ADC development: its Transpo-mAb Display technology for antibody discovery, its SMAC-Technology for site-specific payload conjugation of toxins to antibodies and a novel highly effective and immune-stimulatory anthracycline-based toxin platform. The company is financially backed by the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund (D), the PPF Group and Novo Holdings (DK) as institutional investors, and by additional Swiss, German and Dutch private investors. For more information about NBE visit the website www.nbe-therapeutics.com. A photo of Bertrand Damour is available on request. SOURCE NBE-Therapeutics President Donald Trump railed against a 'witch hunt' Monday after New York prosecutors seeking his tax returns told a federal court his family company is being probed for alleged fraud. Trump addressed the case at a White House press briefing after a rambling introduction where he said the coronavirus would 'soon be very much under control.' He then got asked about the court push, where prosecutors indicated their probes are going well beyond a hush-payment scheme to porn star Stormy Daniels and into complex financial matters related to the company started by Trump's father and overseen by him until he was elected in 2016. 'This is just a continuation of the witch hunt,' Trump said. 'This is just a continuation of the witch hunt,' president Donald Trump fumed as prosecutors sought to obtain his tax returns by citing widerangeing investigations of his business 'Its Democrat stuff they failed with Mueller they failed with everything,' Trump said, referencing Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, which generally confined itself to allegations of a conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russians. The report preceded a failed Democratic impeachment effort. 'They failed at every stage of the game,' Trump said. 'Even before I got in this was starting with the Mueller deal. Mueller started a little bit after,' Trump corrected himself. Mueller was appointed after former Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from overseeing the Russia investigation in 2017. Trump also said he was barely familiar with the matter, which was reported in the New York Times and a variety of outlets as a court filing was made public. 'Theres nothing that I know even about it,' Trump said. 'I said whats this all about? I know nothing about it.' 'Its a terrible thing that they do. Its really a terrible thing. The witch hunt has gone on long enough,' he said. A Manhattan prosecutor trying to get President Donald Trumps tax returns told a judge Monday that he was justified in demanding them, citing public reports of 'extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization.' Trumps lawyers last month said the grand jury subpoena for the tax returns was issued in bad faith and amounted to harassment of the president. Manhattan District Attorney District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr. is seeking eight years of the Republican presidents personal and corporate tax records, but has disclosed little about what prompted him to request the records, other than part of the investigation is related to payoffs made to women to keep them quiet about alleged affairs with Trump. The Manhattan District Attorney cited reports of 'extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization' as it defended its subpoena of eight years of Trump and Trump Organization tax returns In a court filing Monday, though, attorneys for Vance said Trump's arguments that the subpoena was too broad stemmed from 'the false premise' that the probe was limited to so-called 'hush-money' payments. 'This Court is already aware that this assertion is fatally undermined by undisputed information in the public record,' Vances lawyers wrote. They said public reporting demonstrates that at the time the subpoena was issues 'there were public allegations of possible criminal activity at Plaintiffs New York County-based Trump Organization dating back over a decade.' 'These reports describe transactions involving individual and corporate actors based in New York County, but whose conduct at times extended beyond New Yorks borders. This possible criminal activity occurred within the applicable statutes of limitations, particularly if the transactions involved a continuing pattern of conduct,' the lawyers said. 'In light of these public reports of possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization, there was nothing facially improper (or even particularly unusual) about the Mazars Subpoena, which issued in connection with a complex financial investigation, requesting eight years of records from an accounting firm,' they wrote. The office had earlier subpoenaed the Mazars accounting firm for the tax return information, in a case that resulted in a 7-2 Supreme Court decision. Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr.'s office continues to seek Trump tax return information in court Longtime Trump lawyer Michael Cohen says Trump directed him to make payments to Stormy Daniels The filing says the investigation prompting the subpoenas is about more than 'hush money' payments. Here Adult film actress/director Stormy Daniels attends the 2019 Adult Video News Awards at The Joint inside the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on January 26, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada Trump denies the porn star's allegations of an affair The lawyers urged Judge Victor Marrero to swiftly reject Trump's arguments, saying the baseless claims were threatening the investigation. Marrero, who ruled against Trump last year, has scheduled arguments to be fully submitted by mid-August. 'Every day that goes by is another day Plaintiff effectively achieves the `temporary absolute immunity that was rejected by this Court, the Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court,' Vance's lawyers said. 'Every such day also increases the prospect of a loss of evidence or the expiration of limitations periods - the precise concerns that the Supreme Court observed justified its rejection of Plaintiffs immunity claim in the first place.' The Supreme Court last month rejected claims by Trumps lawyers that the president could not be criminally investigated while he was in office. Vance sought the tax records in part for a probe of how Trumps then-personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, arranged during the 2016 presidential race to keep the porn actress Stormy Daniels and model Karen McDougal from airing claims of extramarital affairs with Trump. Trump has denied the affairs. Cohen is serving the last two years of a three-year prison sentence in home confinement after pleading guilty to campaign finance violations and lying to Congress, among other charges. He said he plans to publish a book critical of the president before the November election. The prosecutors' memo sites cites three media reports to back up the claim that 'possible criminal activity' justify the subpoena. A Wall Street Journal story details the $130,000 hush payment that Cohen made to porn star Stormy Daniels, who claims she had an affair with Trump. Another is an extensive New York Times report alleging Trump engaged in 'outright fraud' and reported on an investigation on practices Trump and his siblings took to lower the taxable estate of his father, Fred Trump. They also cited a Washington Post report that Trump overstated his wealth when he would issue a 'Statements of Financial Condition' to ledners and insurers. Longtime Trump lawyer Michael Cohen leveled the charge in House testimony following his guilty plea of lying to Congress. Millions including Lebron James, Beyonce, and other stars seek justice for Breonna Taylor. However, criminal law experts say that the Police Officers involved should not be charged. Breonna Taylor, an African-American who works as a medical technician, was fatally killed by Louisville Metro Police Department officers Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison, and Myles Cosgrove on March 13, 2020. Until today, millions are still seeking justice for Taylor, including Lebron James, Beyonce, and other stars. However, seven experienced Louisville defense lawyers not involved in the case said that the three Police Officers should not be charged with murder or manslaughter according to a published report in the Courier Journal. The criminal lawyers believed that the Police Officers have the legal right to defend themselves because Breonna Taylor's boyfriend shot them first. Additionally, three of these lawyers who believed that they should not be charged are Blacks. Aubrey Williams, a former president of Louisville's NAACP chapter and has spent almost 40 years of his career fighting police in court, gave his sympathy as to what happened to Breonna Taylor. However, he believed that Police Officers should not be indicted or convicted. Another Defense Lawyer, Jan Waddell, who is Black and is frequently fighting police officers in the court, said that Mattingly and Cosgrove are likely immune from prosecution. He explained that police officers are allowed to return fire under the Kentucky Law if their life is at risk. It can be remembered that Police Officer Jonathan Mattingly was shot in the leg by Breonna Taylor's boyfriend because he thought they were intruders. Kenneth Walker said that he did not know they were Police Officers and felt that they were robbed. However, Taylor's family civil lawyer Sam Aguiar acknowledged the police officers' right under the Kentucky Law. Still, he questioned why the Police Officer continued to shoot after they were no longer in danger. Sam Aguiar said this based on the pieces of evidence shown and cited as well a 911 call from a neighbor who reported hearing gunfire. He also added another evidence where another 911 call was reported, and this time the caller said he heard more gunshots in just more than a minute. Moreover, LMPD Chief Robert Schroeder fired Police Officer Brett Hankinson because he showed extreme indifference to the value of human life when Hankinson "blindly fired ten rounds into the back of Taylor's apartment and the one next door without verifying they were directed against someone who posed an immediate threat." Meanwhile, Hankinson's lawyer David Leightty clarified and said that his client fired his gun as a response to the gunfire directed at himself. Other officers and Hankinson did not fire blindly into Taylor's apartment. Additionally, Leightty declined to give comments if his client will be charged with the crime. This developing report about Breonna Taylor's case will surely outrage people who seek justice for African-Americans, most especially if the police officers were acquitted in the shooting and killing incident. Check these out! (Newser) Bands of heavy rain from Isaias lashed Florida's east coast Sunday, with the tropical storm strengthening slightly in the evening on its way up the Eastern seabord, the AP reports. Officials dealing with surging cases of the coronavirus in Florida kept a close watch on the storm that was weakened from a hurricane to a tropical storm Saturday afternoon, but still brought heavy rain and flooding to Florida's Atlantic coast. The National Hurricane Center advised at 5pm ET Sunday that the storm was about 65 miles off the midpoint of Florida's east coast, and about 410 miles south of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It was strengthening slightly with sustained winds just under a category 1 hurricane, taking a north-northwest path, according to the center. story continues below Upper-level winds took much of the strength out of Isaias, said Stacy Stewart, senior hurricane specialist at the hurricane center in Miami. "We were expecting a hurricane to develop and it didn't," Stewart said Sunday. "It's a tale of two storms. If you live on the west side of the storm, you didn't get much. If you live east of the storm, there's a lot of nasty weather there." Authorities closed beaches, parks, and virus testing sites, lashing signs to palm trees so they wouldn't blow away. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state is anticipating power outages and asked residents to have a weeks supply of water, food, and medicine on hand. In Palm Beach County, about 150 people were in shelters, said emergency management spokeswoman Lisa De La Rionda. The county has a voluntary evacuation order for those living in mobile or manufactured homes, or those who feel their home can't withstand winds. The storm's maximum sustained winds declined steadily throughout Saturday, and were at 65 mph at 2pm ET Sunday, before crawling back up to 70 mph a few hours later, the hurricane center said. "The center of Isaias will move offshore of the coast of Georgia and southern South Carolina on Monday, move inland over eastern North Carolina Monday night and move along the coast of the mid-Atlantic states on Tuesday," according to the hurricane center. A Tropical Storm Watch has been extended northward to Watch Hill, Rhode Island, including the Chesapeake Bay, Delaware Bay, Long Island, and Long Island Sound. (Read more tropical storms stories.) (Support Free Thought) - As TFTP has reported, the United States prison industrial complex is a predatory and often racist system which ensnares people into with arbitrary laws for victimless crimes. Once you make it into this system, it is very difficult to escape. The prison industrial complex exists for a number of corrupt and unscrupulous reasons but one of the main reasons is free to almost free labor also known as slave labor. Prisoners across the country make little to no money to do everything from processing poultry to making license plates. One such product that prisoners make, however, has been brought to our attention and it is utterly disgusting. The very people who kidnap and cage people over victimless crimes like marijuana possession or unpaid traffic citations, are reaping the benefits of prison labor in the form of propaganda. Thats right, prisons in Massachusetts are using prisoners to make Blue Lives Matter merchandise! Bill Humphrey, who is a city council member in Newton, Massachusetts, and also hosts a podcast called Arsenal for Democrac, came across this insanity while researching for a recent podcast episode on prison labor. He had no problem referring to this practice for what it is depravity. among the things we (the people of Massachusetts) make state prisoner-laborers produce in our depraved state prison labor system pic.twitter.com/jMx66uXRVF Bill Humphrey (@BillHumphreyMA) July 19, 2020 When the prison industrial complex ensnares its victims through the enforcement of immoral drug war laws and predatory policing and then forces them to make propaganda for that very system, there is no other word to describe this other than depraved. On top of the already immoral aspects of using prison labor to make police propaganda, it is corrupt too. They are using state resources in an apparent violation of U.S. Flag Code, which states that: The flag should never have placed upon it, nor on any part of it, nor attached to it any mark, insignia, letter, word, figure, design, picture, or drawing of any nature. As TFTP has reported previously, though the official end of slavery was declared on June 19th, it would be many years until Americans were willing to give up their free labor. In fact, they never gave it up, they just created a system which applies it to everyone. This system is in spite of the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution which declared that slavery shall no longer exist in the United States. Despite the 13th Amendment vestiges of racial discrimination and inequality would continue to exist in America well into the 20th century. Whats more, thanks to the language included in the amendment coupled with the subsequent criminalization of normal behaviors over the next century, the 13th Amendment would eventually be used to expand the potential for slavery to all United States citizens. The 13th amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified on December 6, 1865, provides that: Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction. Pay attention to the bold text above and now think about all the things that are considered crimes in the land of the free. This is not some covert conspiracy theory either. The Louisiana State Penitentiary of Angola operates exactly like a slave plantation did 150 years ago. In fact, the slave plantation which occupied the land previously, was converted into the prison. As a report from the Atlantic titled American Slavery, Reinvented points out: Angolas farm operations and other similar prison industries have ancestral roots in the black chattel slavery of the South. Specifically, the proliferation of prison labor camps grew during the Reconstruction era following the Civil War, a time when southern states established large prisons throughout the region that they quickly filled, primarily with black men. Many of these prisons had very recently been slave plantations, Angola and Mississippi State Penitentiary (known as Parchman Farm) among them. Other prisons began convict-leasing programs, where, for a leasing fee, the state would lease out the labor of incarcerated workers as hired work crews. Convict leasing was cheaper than slavery, since farm owners and companies did not have to worry at all about the health of their workers. This prison labor has since morphed into a slavery-for-all type scenario, which is why the ostensible land of the free has more prisoners per population than any country in the world. In fact, about 1 in every 110 U.S. adults is currently incarcerated and 1 in every 38 U.S. adults is under some form of correctional supervision. The prison industry is booming and so are the profits from forced labor. Thanks to the war on drugs and the criminalization of damn near everything in this country, the US now has 2.3 million people locked behind bars, with many of them forced into labor. In fact, as Diego Arene-Morley, president of Brown University Students for Sensible Drug Policy stated in 2014, There are more African American men in prison, jail, on probation or parole than were enslaved in 1850. At any given time, a little less than half of the entire US prison population is behind bars and forced into slavery for crimes which have no victim. In fact, the criminalization of American life has become so profitable, that its spawned an entire prison industry dedicated to enslaving Americans. Though the term Private Prison is a farce from the get-go, it is these corporations that continue to lobby the government to make more things illegal, thereby increasing their prison and de facto slavery populations. A truly Private prison would not be solely funded by taxpayer dollars. These Private prisons are nothing more than a fascist mixture of state and corporate, completely dependent upon the extortion factor of the state, i.e., taxation, as a means of their corporate sustenance. A truly Private prison would have a negative incentive to boost its population for the simple fact that it is particularly expensive to house inmates. On the contrary, these fascist, or more aptly, corporatist prisons contractually require occupancy rates of 95%-100%. The requirement for a 95% occupancy rate creates a demand for criminals. Think about that for a second; a need or demand for people to commit crimes is created by this corporatist arrangement. The implications associated with demanding people commit crimes are horrifying. People are rioting in the streets right now because cops are the ones who the private prisons depend upon to maintain these high occupancy rates. Creating a completely immoral demand for criminals leads to the situations like George Floyds or others whose lives are ruined or ended as cops attempt to keep these occupancy rates high. People, who are otherwise entirely innocent are labeled as criminals for their personal choices and thrown in cages. We are now witnessing a vicious cycle between law enforcement who must create and arrest criminals and the corporatist prison system that constantly demands more prisoners. And people are clearly growing tired of it! Sadly, many people dismiss the fact that there are nearly a million people in prison for victimless crimes saying things like, well they shouldnt have broken the law. Ironically enough, the people who say these things simply dont even realize they are likely breaking the law too. Former NSA official William Binney sums this myth up quite accurately, The problem is, if they think theyre not doing anything thats wrong, they dont get to define that. The central government does. Attorney Harvey Silverglate argues that the average American commits three felonies a day without even knowing it. Most of these crimes have no victim either like possessing marijuana, driving a car with dark windows, or a burned out license plate light. After you get in trouble for one of these arbitrary things, you get to spend years making flags supporting the very system that put you there. And we call this the land of the free. Rose Dente contracted COVID-19 at the nursing home where she spent the last four years of her life and died in late March at a time, say her lawyers, when aides and other staff members at the Veterans Memorial Home in Menlo Park were told not to use masks and gloves because it might scare residents. Her family now could find it difficult to hold anyone responsible. Those seeking to sue New Jersey nursing homes in the wake of a pandemic that has so far claimed the lives of more than 6,700 residents will not have an easy road. Nearly four months ago, the states nursing facilities and hospitals were granted broad immunity during a public health emergency from civil lawsuits to those acting in good faith, stemming from services in support of New Jerseys COVID-19 response efforts. While not stopping all lawsuits, the state raised the bar in what might be considered negligence. But some noting the death toll in nursing homes they believe was exacerbated by inadequate supplies of masks and other protective equipment, as well as staffing shortages that led to the spread of the deadly virus say the immunity approved by the state gave troubled nursing homes an avenue to escape accountability. This is not an industry that regulates itself well, said attorney Deborah R. Gough, who specializes in nursing home abuse and neglect cases. We all want to protect front line workers and I understand the spirt behind it. But in the end, these immunity bills are protecting bad actor nursing homes. In New York, efforts to void a measure that gave nursing homes and hospitals the same kind of broad immunity from lawsuits was watered down, but passed both houses of the Legislature last week. It now awaits Gov. Andrew Cuomos signature. Here in New Jersey, there is no similar move to change the law. The litigation limits in the state were set into play during the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, as the death toll mounted not only in nursing homes, but in hospitals where a shortage of ventilators raised growing fears that critical life support might be withheld for the sickest of patients. An executive order by Gov. Phil Murphy provided what the administration called broad civil immunity to health care professionals and facilities providing services in support of New Jerseys COVID-19 response efforts who are acting in good faith. Just over a week later, the Legislature launched a fast-paced effort to make that immunity law, providing civil and criminal immunity to health care facilities during public health emergencies. The governor signed the bill two weeks after his executive order. Nursing industry officials say the action taken by the state came at a time of crisis. New Jersey recognized the importance of providing immunity to protect front-line healthcare facilities and their staffs who worked tirelessly and at great personal risk to care for those who were most vulnerable, said Jonathan Dolan, president and CEO of the Health Care Association of New Jersey, which represents the long-term care industry in the state. Rescinding their immunity would benefit those who want to use the courts to second guess decisions made under unprecedented circumstances. Gough said the coronavirus should not have taken nursing home administrators by surprise. She pointed to well-documented stories of infections spiraling out of control in Washington, before it occurred in New Jersey, and an earlier adenovirus outbreak in Wanaque, as well as shortages of protective equipment in many states, long before the virus took hold here. The immunity granted by the state, she said, is allowing troubled facilities to escape responsibility for their failures to protect people who were dependent on them for their care. Understaffing. Underfunding. They are going to continue operating the way they always did because there is no accountability, she said. GOING TOO FAR? A spokeswoman for Murphy said the bill passed by the Legislature did not bar all claims by those seeking to go to court. Gross negligence, recklessness, and willful misconduct are not granted immunity in the executive order or the law, noted Alexandra Altman. But the two state senators who voted against the measure believe it went too far. Absolute immunity strips away a persons right to seek redress in court, and fails to protect our most vulnerable citizens, said Sen. Nia Gill, D-Essex. This grant of immunity exacts a heavier toll on our senior citizens, low-income communities, and communities of color due to co-morbidities such as diabetes, cancer and other diseases that exacerbate the impact of COVID-19. Sen. Joseph Vitale, the Middlesex Democrat who heads the Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee, also was a no vote. I believe that the legislation was too broad, he said. Vitale said the original intent of the law dealt just with the administration trying to get its arms around the shortage of ventilators and the worst-case scenario of denying someone the potentially lifesaving use of a ventilator. In that context alone, I thought it was reasonable, he explained. But he believes the aspects of the law dealing with nursing homes are too broad. There have been a number of allegations that some nursing homes were negligent in care of their residents during the early and later stages of the outbreak. For family members not to be able to hold them accountable for negligence that is something I could not support, the senator said. Everyone who voted for the bill had the best of intentions. But on a personal level, I just could not support the expansion of the original proposal. Only Assemblyman Brian Bergen, R-Morris, voted against it in the Assembly. I was on the fence moving into the vote, he said. But granting civil immunity was irresponsible. To deprive people the right to sue just did not make sense. It was premature legislation that never should have been done. Attorney Paul da Costa, who represents Dente, said he has been retained by 45 clients both residents and staff who have raised issues about the standards of nursing care and infection control at the New Jersey Veterans Memorial Home at Menlo Park where 65 residents and one staff member died. Many people even attorneys wrongly believe that there is complete immunity, or that it is a legal impossibility to be able to successfully pursue malpractice cases, he suggested. The bill did not grant complete immunity to healthcare providers and institutions. Rather, it provides for limited or quasi immunity, he said. According to da Costa, the law explicitly carved out exceptions and does not immunize acts or omissions constituting a crime, actual fraud, actual malice, gross negligence, recklessness, or willful misconduct. That means claims against the Menlo Park Veterans Homes and all other nursing homes can still be brought, but there must be a showing of gross negligence, recklessness or willful misconduct. In a notice of intent to claim damages filed on behalf of Rose Dente, it is alleged that the 99-year-old widow of a U.S. Army veteran died due to gross departures from the standards of nursing care and infection control at the Veterans Home in Menlo Park. The notice cited directives by the facilitys administration not to use masks and gloves because it may scare the residents, delays of over a month before isolating the residents who were confirmed or suspected of having COVID-19, permitting residents to congregate in common areas even after the administration knew that it had COVID-19 positive residents and staff in the building, and allowing COVID-19 positive or presumptively positive staff to continue working in the building. Kryn Westhoven, a spokesman for the state Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, said he could not comment. Its ongoing litigation, he said. I cannot say anything. The state operates three nursing homes for veterans Menlo Park, Paramus and Vineland. Because they are state-run facilities, da Costa said New Jersey has an extra layer of protection from prospective suits that requires the filing of a notice of claim before a suit is even filed. He said Dentes death was on the nursing home. It gets down to the administrators knowing there was COVID in the facility and turning a blind eye to it and telling employees not to wear a mask, the attorney said. He noted when Dente died at a local hospital, she had tested positive for COVID-19 and her daughter called the administrator of Menlo Park to alert them. She was trying to raise a red flag for the facility, he said. They asserted there was no COVID. Meanwhile, da Costa said others he represents are waiting to see if the Legislature and the governor follow through on promises to investigate and hold hearings on what happened at the states nursing homes. A very bright light needs to be shined on the extremely dark situations of what transpired at the Menlo Park and Paramus Veterans Homes, as well as other places, he said. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Newsletter | Homepage Local journalism needs your support. Subscribe at nj.com/supporter. Ted Sherman may be reached at tsherman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. A general view shows the Holden branding at the entrance of the Holden manufacturing facility in Elizabeth in Adelaide, Australia on Dec.11, 2013. (Morne de Klerk/Getty Images) Holden Brand in Australia Earns Praise for Data Sharing Holden has been praised for its approach to service and maintenance data ensuring aftermarket repairers will be able to successfully work on the companys cars after it exits Australia. General Motors decision to retire the brand this year is being investigated by a Senate inquiry which will hold a public hearing on August 3. The inquiry will be told how the closure announcement in February came as a complete shock to its 800 remaining staff at the time. It will also hear that questions need to be answered on just when GM made the crucial decision to quit the local market, amid suggestions it was much earlier. But in its submission, the Australian Automotive Aftermarket Association said the companys withdrawal would not have a marked effect on owners of the estimated 1.6 million Holdens on the nations roads. The Australian auto aftermarket will be able to source parts, provide regular service and repair these vehicles, it said. This is a situation that is unique to Holden. Unlike every other brand on Australian roads, Holden ensures repair and service information is available on fair and reasonable commercial terms to the 23,000 independent auto repair workshops in Australia. In other submissions, the Australian Automotive Dealer Association said the way Holdens demise played out raised serious questions of whether dealers were misled. The AADA said for some time GM had been adamant, both privately with dealers, and publicly through the media, that it was in Australia for the long haul, despite the end to local car manufacturing. On the basis of those assurances, and the fact many agreements still had more than two years to run, Holden dealers had a clear expectation the brand would remain in Australia with some investing millions of dollars to upgrade operations. This inquiry needs to question whether General Motors Corporation, headquartered in Detroit, made the strategic decisions to exit the right-hand-drive car market globally some years in the past, the association said. In its own submissions to the Senate inquiry, General Motors Holden said the decision to retire the brand was made only a few days before Februarys public statement. Despite hopes of reaching a different outcome, the inescapable conclusion was GM could not sustain further investment into Holden, it said. At the time of the closure announcement, Holden had about 185 dealers across the country and still employed about 800 staff. About 600 were expected to be made redundant including more than 200 engineers and more than 250 management and administrative staff. Tim Dornin in Adelaide We recently launched Cherokee Nations online application for our Respond, Recover and Rebuild Elder Assistance Initiative. These programs will help ease the impact of COVID-19 on Cherokee elders age 62 and older not only here in the Cherokee Nation reservation, but around the world. But, we need everyone to apply by the August 28 deadline. Please take a moment to listen as Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. and Cherokee Nation Deputy Principal Chief Bryan Warner explain the enrollment process for this program, and other important details in the video below. Then, if you qualify, log on to www.cherokee.org and click on the purple Elder Assistance graphic in the center of the website. There you will find eligibility requirements, deadlines, and instructions. If you need assistance, please direct all requests to 918-453-5464. Cherokee Nation At Cherokee Nation, we are putting the federal CARES Act dollars to work for our citizens and our communities. To that end, we have committed more than $7 million to our Career Services Department. This will keep our existing programs at full strength and expand new programs to help citizens living on our reservation who have been negatively impacted by COVID-19 The Cherokee people want to work, but it can be a challenge during the worst public health crisis in generations. The expanded programs are providing essential support, training and education to help Cherokee families weather the economic impact of the pandemic. Well before the pandemic, Cherokee Nation was strategically investing in career training. Our earlier work has enabled us to rapidly pivot to also support the COVID-19 response . Our team has been incredibly diligent in this unprecedented and ever-changing time. Congratulations to Sequoyah High School Class of 2020! Sequoyah High School safely celebrated its graduating seniors with a virtual commencement ceremony w/ only grads in attendance. Visit our Facebook page to view all photos from last nights ceremony: https://t.co/c9DsbyKt7e pic.twitter.com/wWvdtPN1GX CherokeeNation (@CherokeeNation) August 1, 2020 With the infusion of $7 million, we are expanding our GED program to offer online instruction for tribal citizens seeking a high school diploma. We are also expanding our summer youth employment program and extending the completion date through December, because so many teens were unable to work summer months due to COVID-19. With the program extension, high school and college students will have more opportunity to earn income while in school. We have increased funding to our tribal training program, formerly known as Day Work. Participants of the program receive payment to help with emergency necessities such as gasoline, groceries and utility bills. To help fill the growing demand for remote health positions, we are increasing our focus on areas such as telemedicine and health IT technicians. Additionally, we have expanded tuition assistance by $1 million for tribal citizens who are interested in classes via a Career Tech center. These programs are available for a wide range of career fields, including many tracks that can be completed by the end of the year, such as construction, truck driving, welding and health care. We will also have a technology enhancement grant available for many of these career trade students. Finally, our work experience program, which gives citizens a chance to get on-the -job training and transition into full employment with Cherokee Nation, its entities and partners, will get a financial boost. These expanded opportunities will now help more Cherokees gain employment during this difficult time. They will also improve the economic health of our whole region. Recovering the economy is essential for protecting our communities and our mental and physical health. With so much uncertainty around how long it will take the economy to fully return to pre-COVID-19 levels, Oklahomas tribal and state leaders must provide relief and a direction forward. By investing in our workforce, we help our citizens develop the skills needed for the future. This moment is extremely difficult, but it can also be an opportunity to jumpstart a long-term career. If you are a Cherokee looking for new career opportunities during this critical time, I encourage you to contact the Cherokee Nation Career Services department at 918-453-5555 to learn more about the right program for you. Chuck Hoskin Jr. is the 18th elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, the largest Indian tribe in the United States. He is only the second elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation from Vinita, the first being Thomas Buffington, who served from 1899-1903. Prior to being elected Principal Chief, Hoskin served as the tribes Secretary of State. He also formerly served as a member of the Council of the Cherokee Nation, representing District 11 for six years. Join the Conversation Youtube star Jake Paul has no plans to stop throwing parties amid the COVID-19 pandemic, insisting that he won't 'sit around and not live my life' even as over 154,000 people have died across the US. The 23-year-old, who rose to fame on the now-defunct app Vine and is known for posting reckless and adventurous videos on YouTube, faced backlash after throwing a wild party at his Calabasas mansion on July 14. But after Calabasas mayor Alicia Weintraub expressed 'outrage' over the 'outrageous gathering' in which dozens of people without masks drank and danced, Paul indicated to Insider last week that he would continue to do what he wants. Sorry not sorry: Youtube star Jake Paul has no plans to stop throwing parties amid the COVID-19 pandemic What pandemic? The 23-year-old faced backlash after throwing a wild party at his Calabasas mansion on July 14 Party time! A man who appears to be Paul is seen in this video where a crowd of people surround a table filled with red solo cups and drinks Carefree: At the party wild attendees were seen swinging from a construction backhoe in the backyard Videos emerged on social media shortly after the party, where revelers showed no concern for social distancing or wearing protective masks. People were seen drinking, playing beer pong, and swinging off a construction backhoe at the gathering. Revelers were both indoors and outdoors, crowded closely together without a mask in sight. Calabasas mayor Alicia Weintraub was left outraged after learning of the party and says she's looking into 'all options' for penalties for Paul. Paul told Insider that he spoke to the mayor and 'everything is cool,' though he didn't elaborate on what she said. The mayor, meanwhile, said she didn't speak to Paul at all, and only a representative for the the YouTuber. She said that possible fines would be issues in the future and the sheriff's department would intervene. Condemned: Calabasas mayor Alicia Weintraub expressed 'outrage' over the 'outrageous gathering' in which dozens of people without masks drank and danced Whatever! But Paul didn't say that would put an end to his wild bashes, and insisted that it wasn't clear to him how he should be behaving No masks here! Video from the gathering shows people gathered around the staircase and ignoring social distancing measures 'I don't know what to think of it, to be honest. I don't think anyone really does,' Paul said about pandemic restrictions 'No one has answers, our leadership is failing us, and everyone kind of just doesn't know what to do,' he added, despite several decrees on what to do from various government officials But Paul didn't say that would put an end to his wild bashes, and insisted that it wasn't clear to him how he should be behaving. 'I don't know what to think of it, to be honest. I don't think anyone really does,' he said. 'No one has answers, our leadership is failing us, and everyone kind of just doesn't know what to do. 'But I personally am not the type of person who's gonna sit around and not live my life,' he added. Paul's July 16 party was thrown in spite of California Gov. Gavin Newsom's desperate plea for people to be wary of the virus. As of Sunday, the state has had 509,162 confirmed cases and 9,356 deaths. 'I was very upset that somebody would hold such an outrageous gathering in our community,' Mayor Weintraub said after being notified of the event. 'We're trying to do everything we can to get our numbers down and keep our community safe, and something like this just does the opposite,' she said to ABC News. He does what he wants: 'I personally am not the type of person who's gonna sit around and not live my life,' he added 'We're trying to do everything we can to get our numbers down and keep our community safe, and something like this just does the opposite,' the mayor said of Paul's party Influencers everywhere! Pauls friend Tana Mongeau shared this video of him standing on a machine in his backyard Reckless: She added another video of a person swinging from a construction backhoe in the backyard Locals near the Calabasas party reported seeing 'tons of people walking on the street unmasked and then gathering.' One of the videos posted on social media shows a crowd of people in what appears to be the living room of the home, where revelers were seen drinking as music played in the background. People were crowded close together on a staircase. Another video shows hordes of people around a table filled with red solo cups of drinks. Yet another video shows people playing beer pong outside. Footage uploaded by Pauls friend Tana Mongeau on TikTok shows people dangling from a construction backhoe in the backyard as the crowd cheers. Tana is yet another influencer who has been throwing and attending parties during the pandemic. And now, unconfirmed reports on social media including a tweet from comedian Dennis Feitosa allege that she may have tested positive for the virus, as have other partygoers. Last week, LA-based comedian Elijah Daniel, 26, took to Twitter to claim that 'a lot of influencers' had 'confirmed to him' they'd contracted the virus after attending different events. 'Warning: a lot of influencers have been confirmed to me testing positive for COVID-19 after the influencer parties, like a LOT,' he tweeted on July 28. 'And they arent saying anything & arent warning people they came in contact with after.' Elijah added: 'If you attended, get tested. yall caused an outbreak. thanks!' Uh-oh: Tana is yet another influencer who has been throwing and attending parties during the pandemic. And now, unconfirmed reports online allege that she may have tested positive Par-tay! Meanwhile, Paul has found other ways to flout pandemic restrictions, and in June shared photos from a concert he hosted Paul pictured at the concert, where he and others are seen not wearing masks As for those partying in Calabasas like Paul and his guests, Mayor Weintraub said that as of earlier this month, Calabasas adopted a fine of $100 for people caught not wearing a mask. She said she's working with the Lost Hills Sheriff's station to ensure no more similar house parties take place. Meanwhile, Paul has found other ways to flout pandemic restrictions, and in June shared photos from a concert he hosted. Also that month, he allegedly took part in looting and riots and was charged with criminal trespassing and unlawful assembly for entering the Scottsdale Fashion Square mall when it was closed. The incident took place amid peaceful protests decrying police brutality and systemic racism. He was identified to police through tips and videos sent in. Paul denied looting and said he wanted to 'share our experience and bring more attention to the anger felt in every neighborhood we traveled through.' His brother Logan Paul, another YouTube star, is also no stranger to controversy. He came under fire in late December 2017 into early 2018 when he uploaded a vlog on his YouTube channel about a trip to Japan in which he visited a 'suicide forest' near Mount Fuji, a place where people were known take their own lives, and depicted a recently deceased corpse. The video was removed from YouTube and Paul issued a public apology. A television presenter was left virtually unrecognisable after being viciously beaten by a stranger on a train while he tried to rape her in front of her six-year-old son in Ukraine. Anastasia Lugova was brutally attacked by Vitaliy Rudzko, 45, when he stormed into her sleeping compartment during her journey from Mariupol to the capital city of Kyiv, on Friday. The 28-year-old and her son Zakhar were asleep when Rudzko, wearing only his underwear, broke in at around 3am and grabbed her by the neck. Anastasia Lugova, 28, was assaulted by Vitaliy Rudzko, 45, in front of her son, six, during her train journey from Mariupol to the capital city of Kyiv, on Friday The woman and her six-year-old son Zakhar, pictured, were sleeping in their compartment when Rudzko, wearing only his underwear, broke in at around three in the morning Anastasia told local media: 'I woke up after he grabbed me by the neck and started punching me in the face. 'I started screaming and calling for help but no one came.' 'He then said: ''Be a good girl or it will be worse'', and started undressing me. According to Anastasia, the noise woke up her son, who saw the horrific episode and cried. When Rudzko turned to the boy with an obvious intent to hit him, the mother did everything she could to protect her child. She said: 'I started begging the thug not to hurt my son and promised to do everything he wanted. 'I asked him to go somewhere else to get him away from my son. 'He agreed and ordered me to go to his compartment.' After they entered Rudzko's compartment and he started taking off his underwear, the victim pushed him and rushed back to her son. The train crew handed Rudzko to the police after the train arrived in Kyiv. He faces up to eight years in prison if found guilty of battery and attempted rape She said: 'I grabbed Zakhar and we ran to the conductor, who hid us in her compartment.' The thug continued to search the carriage for Ms Lugova, covering himself with a sheet. The train crew took Rudzko down and handed him to the police after the train arrived in Kyiv. When Rudzko turned to her son with an obvious intent to hit him, Anastasia (right and left, after the attack) did everything she could to protect her child She was hospitalised with severe bruises to her face and all over her head and told her story on social media urging people not to be indifferent to those who call for help Her son Zakhar constantly cries and is receiving counselling following the horrific experience. He says: 'Mom, forgive me for not protecting you' Police launched a criminal case for battery and attempted rape against the man, who was taken in custody. He faces up to eight years in prison if found guilty and an investigation is ongoing. Anastasia Lugova was hospitalised with severe bruises to her face and all over her head. The host told her story on her social media urging people not to be indifferent to those who call for help. Her son Zakhar is receiving counselling following the horrific experience. Anastasia said: 'My son cannot stop crying and constantly repeats: ''Mom, forgive me for not protecting you''.' Afghan National Security Forces cleared the Jalalabad prison and surrounding area of attackers on August 3, following an assault claimed by IS which killed at least 29 people, according to Fawad Aman, a spokesman for Afghanistan Ministry of Defense. Aman said militants attacked the prison, other buildings, and civilians in the area on Sunday, and 10 terrorists were killed in the clearing operation on Monday. TOLO News reported a vehicle laden with explosives was detonated at the prison gate on August 2. At least 29 people were killed and 43 were injured in the attack, and approximately 700 inmates escaped during the attack, the report said. Videos filmed by Aman show local residents cheering for National Security Forces as they walk through the streets. Credit: Fawad Aman via Storyful On September 6, 1901, William McKinley, the 25th president of the United States, was felled by an assassins bullet. The shot may not have been heard around the world, but its news certainly ricocheted across Wall Street. McKinley had been its man, the so-called advance agent of prosperity. His successor, on the other hand, was Theodore Roosevelt a crusading former governor of New York who had been shuffled off to the position of the vice presidency, in part to stymie his efforts at reform. Now, he was sitting in the Oval Office. In her first book, The Hour of Fate, Susan Berfield explores the events surrounding the landmark trustbusting case Northern Securities Co. v. United States (1904) and the fierce rivalry that led there. Roosevelt, the buccaneering statesman, always willing to test the limits of his power, had met his match in John Pierpont Morgan, an inflexible financier, who was determined to consolidate his growing business interests across coal, rail, and steel. Both men were cut from much the same cloth, writes Berfield. Each had been born into extraordinary privilege and wanted for little. By his junior year at Harvard, Roosevelt drew an annual allowance greater than the salary paid to the university president. Several decades earlier, Morgan had spent his mid-twenties supplementing his income by manipulating the market for gold. (He created artificial shortages by shipping gold he had bought on credit to London, then traded on its inflated prices.) But while Morgan had an aristocrats disdain for public sentiment, Roosevelt reveled in it. On occasion, he would gossip with journalists during his afternoon shave, dictating statements on policy even as his face was lathered in shaving cream. Morgan, by contrast, dealt in private. He preferred to gather disputing parties around a table usually his table aboard his yacht, the Corsair and fix it up. The banker saw Washington as a second-rate power to the world of high finance. As a matter of fact, he had singlehandedly ended the Panic of 1893 by bailing out the United States Treasury. Morgan convinced President Grover Cleveland not to sell government bonds on the public market and risk a run on gold and instead to sell $65 million in securities to him and his syndicate of buyers, stabilizing the economy as it teetered on the brink of financial collapse. Roosevelt took a different view. To his mind, Manhattan was a troublesome insular possession that exercised an outsized influence over the country at the expense of the government. And that had to change. Story continues I am afraid of Mr. Roosevelt because I dont know what hell do, said Morgan, according to one apocryphal account. Roosevelts reply: Hes afraid of me because he does know what Ill do. This the debate over what, if any, limits there ought to be on corporate power was the tightrope Roosevelt walked in the weeks following McKinleys death. That autumn, the young leader set to work on a 20,000-word State of the Union address, in which he would lay the groundwork for his unexpected presidency. In particular, he argued that great corporations exist only because they are created and safeguarded by our institutions; and it is therefore our right and our duty to see that they work in harmony with these institutions. It is this theme that Berfield makes the focus of her book, which is at once a work of popular history and a call to action. The exhortation to contemporary reform is hard to find, but it is there, tucked away in its final few pages. Careful not to name names, Berfield writes in the epilogue: Corporate power is concentrated, again, and so is privilege. . . . It has created a new Gilded Age, and now, another progressive moment striving to hold capitalism and corporations to account. Both moments are probably best understood as responses to two separate industrial revolutions, spurred by the invention of the internal combustion engine and by the Internet, respectively, although this is not explicitly drawn out by the author. In 1885, the railroads comprised 80 percent of the listings on the New York Stock Exchange. Today, five American technology companies make up a quarter of the S&P 500 by market capitalization and their share of the American economy is only growing. While disruptive technologies and shifting markets are a given, Berfield explains that there is a political equilibrium to labor and capital, which, if gone unchecked, can spill over and result in social upheaval. That is what happened at the turn of the 19th century. In the years following the Civil War, around 170 million acres of public land out west were given, not sold to private railroad companies, writes Berfield. What resulted from that was a patchwork of small inefficient enterprises and quarrelsome businessmen all looking to make a quick buck. The industry was wracked by uncertainty, which was bad for investors and bad for Morgan. But he saw an opportunity. Through an elaborate system of trusts, Morgan could extend his control over large swathes of the American economy. By 1874, most of the coalfields in Pennsylvania had come under the control of the railroads, and over the next 25 years Morgan gradually consolidated those interests into tightly run cartels. In McKinleys first term, the gross national product of the country rose by a stunning 30 per cent. The time was ripe to form a holding company what would become known as Northern Securities from the three largest railroad operators: the Northern Pacific, Great Northern, and Burlington lines. The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 had been introduced as a guardrail against the coalescing of mega-corporations such as Standard Oil but had been of limited effect. State attorneys general very rarely brought forward cases, and when they did the captains of industry were able to exploit ambiguities in the law to their advantage or simply incorporate as a holding company in another jurisdiction. Companies continued to hoard the wealth they created, and inequality in society grew. One might say that the hour of fate came when Roosevelt chose to intervene in the anthracite-coal strike of 1902. Instead of putting down the strike by force, the president acted as a mediator between unions and business leaders. It was the first time the federal government had arbitrated a labor dispute. Eventually, the parties settled. Writing to his sister Bamie, Roosevelt commented on the intransigence of the railroad operators who were absolutely out of touch with . . . practically all the rest of the country. His resolve was strengthened to forge ahead with his Square Deal agenda, including the regulation of corporations through antitrust laws. In the presentation of these facts, Berfield turns what could be a rather dry and complex story into a lively epic, chronicling the clash between two titans. Her language flows beautifully and weaves between choice quotations, which have been painstakingly researched and plotted throughout the book. Meticulous attention is also paid to the most fleeting details, from soon-to-be witnesses of McKinleys assassination dabbing their brows in the oppressive heat to what restaurant catered the wedding of Morgans daughter. The end result is a book that is novelistic in tone and historical in substance. But with such a large supporting cast of characters, the text can be unwieldy, and neither Morgan nor Roosevelt make for comfortable bedfellows in the retelling of this story. For one, they only ever met a handful of times. And it is difficult to carve out a single self-contained episode: Roosevelts second term and the Panic of 1907, which Morgan helped resolve, are not covered by Berfield. Indeed, separate biographies of the men by Doris Kearns Goodwin and Ron Chernow fall within touching distance of 1,000 pages apiece. In some sense, therefore, Morgan and Roosevelt feel incomplete in The Hour of Fate. The reader does not come to properly know them. Meanwhile, the author is perhaps a little guilty of eliding some characters too closely with the main themes of the book. The railroad baron George Baer is portrayed more as a caricature (the archetypical Monopoly Man) than a fully enfleshed person. It is more interesting, for instance, to learn why Baer believes he has a God-given right to property, rather than to simply put it to down to his supposed aloofness. Similarly, not enough emphasis is placed on how Roosevelt changed the nature of the presidency or how the relationship between business and the state was upended during this time. That it did and should have done is presumed. This subtle strand of presentism reminds us that Berfield is writing a work of popular history for the here and now as opposed to an academic study of the period. Nevertheless, she provides some fascinating insights into the arduous lives of miners by drawing heavily on the first-person testimonies given to Roosevelts independent commission as well as on trade-union leaders, including John Mitchell, whose story is recounted from beginning to end. On balance, the book is well structured. It does lose momentum toward the end, however, and one suspects that it becomes a casualty of its own vaulting ambition to dramatize the battle to transform American capitalism. After chapter 13, the book shifts from a textured narrative driven by peoples experiences to an insiders guide to Washington and the sausage-making of antitrust laws and judicial decisions. While it is undoubtedly interesting, some readers will be thrown by this transition, not least because it rules out a tidy conclusion. Having set herself the unenviable task of tying together multiple narrative threads into one climactic event, Berfield looks to the Supreme Court ruling as a kind of reckoning. But in the final equation, the calling off of the coal strike is perhaps the natural end to the book, whereas in its current form it has three other competing conclusions: the legal milestone of Northern Securities, Roosevelts second inauguration, and a nod to the Panic of 1907, the last time Morgan was able to backstop the American economy. The Hour of Fate is by no means a comprehensive history of antitrust law and the industrial unrest that marked the beginning of the 20th century, and neither does it strive to be. It is a window into that distant period. It reaches beyond our modern understanding of antitrust law as harm caused to consumers and tackles these ideas in their infancy. To that end, it is a well-crafted primer, an introduction for further reading. Berfield invites us to consider the parallels between the trusts and monopolies that arose around coal and the railroads and asks whether the same is happening today with respect to data. Her answer leaves a lot of the legwork to the reader, who may wonder whether such interventions are even possible today. Organized labor is far weaker than it was then. The gig economy has unmoored workers from identifying strictly with a single profession. And most important, is it true that nations hold dominion over corporations in a globalized economy where evolving supply chains and markets are the norm? That is not even to mention the doublespeak with which American politicians heap scorn on big business but then place them on a pedestal as national champions against European antitrust investigations or the growing global influence of Chinese companies such as Huawei. In any case, great corporations again hold the levers of our economy, and the pandemic has put into sharper focus that most challenging relationship between labor and capital. More from National Review Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Paris, France Mon, August 3, 2020 17:24 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b398fa 2 World sanofi,pharmacy,drugmakers,birth-defect,epilepsy Free French prosecutors have indicted pharma giant Sanofi for manslaughter over birth defects linked to an epilepsy drug, the company said Monday, in a long-running case that has also seen it charged with fraud. The charges relate to the drug valproate, marketed as Depakine among other trade names, which studies say has caused disabilities in about 15,000-30,000 children whose mothers took the medicine while pregnant. On the market since 1967, the drug is used to treat epilepsy, migraines and bipolar disorder. But research found that when pregnant women took the drug, their children had an elevated risk -- between 10 to 40 percent -- of congenital malformations, autism and learning difficulties. Sanofi is facing separate charges of aggravated fraud and unintentionally causing injury in 42 cases filed by families, but insists it had warned health authorities of the drug's risks already in the 1980s. On Monday, the company confirmed a report in Le Monde newspaper that prosecutors have now also charged it with manslaughter. But in a statement sent to AFP it insisted it had "fulfilled its obligation" of providing information on the drug and its side-effects, and said it "contests the validity of these proceedings." Sanofi said it has filed a legal challenge to the indictment. Under the French legal system, charges do not automatically result in a trial as prosecutors can decide not to proceed based on a lack of evidence. Last month, a French court ordered the state to pay thousands of euros in damages over the scandal, saying officials should have ensured the drug was not taken by pregnant women. The court found that health officials knew about the risk of birth defects from Depakine already in 1983, and of learning disabilities and autism from 2004. Another 500 complaints have been lodged with France's national compensation agency for medical accidents, which has already proposed a 6.5-million-euro ($7.6-million) package for Depakine victims. Sanofi, a France-based multinational, is working on a candidate vaccine against the novel coronavirus with Britain's GSK, for which it will receive up to $2.1 billion from the US government. By Terje Solsvik and Nora Buli OSLO (Reuters) - Norway stopped all cruise ships with more than 100 people on board from disembarking at its ports from Monday, after an outbreak of COVID-19 was reported late last week on a ship that had already disembarked at the port of Tromsoe. At least 41 passengers and crew who were on board the cruise ship MS Roald Amundsen, operated by Norwegian company Hurtigruten, have so far tested positive for the coronavirus, while hundreds more on board were told to self-isolate for 10 days, local public health officials said on Sunday. Norway is in touch with Germany, Denmark, Austria, Philippines and Latvia as passengers and crew on board came from these countries, officials said. Ships that have already departed will be able to offload passengers and crew at Norwegian ports, but those yet to start journeys will not be able to do so, Norwegian Health Minister Bent Hoie said. The new rules are effective for the next 14 days. "The pandemic is not over," Hoie told a news conference. The Nordic country of 5.4 million inhabitants had reopened most of society in recent weeks as it got the COVID-19 pandemic under control. Some 9,268 infections have been reported in Norway as of Monday, with 256 deaths. FIRST OUT Hurtigruten was the first cruise operator worldwide to return an oceangoing cruise ship to service in mid-June, touting reduced passenger capacity, social distancing and strict rules on hygiene. It will now suspend all so-called expedition cruises until further notice. "We have failed," CEO Daniel Skjeldamn told a news conference. "I apologise strongly on behalf of the company." The MS Roald Amundsen had been scheduled to sail around the British Isles in September. Trips with two other vessels have also been suspended, though its business shipping goods between Norwegian ports will continue. Norwegian police told Reuters they would investigate whether any laws had been broken. Story continues Four of the MS Roald Amundsen's crew members were hospitalised on Friday when the ship arrived at Tromsoe, and later diagnosed with COVID-19. Tests showed another 32 of the 158 staff were also infected. Among the infected crew, 32 were from the Philippines while the rest were of Norwegian, French and German nationality. The foreign crew had been tested for the coronavirus before leaving their home countries but did not quarantine before starting work on the ship, the company said. Passengers were allowed to disembark before anyone had been diagnosed, triggering a complex operation to locate them. So far, five of the combined 387 passengers travelling on the ship on two separate cruises since July 17 have been found to carry the virus, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and the Tromsoe municipality said. (Editing by Gwladys Fouche, Kirsten Donovan and Susan Fenton) Mumbai Police Commissioner Parambir Singh recently spoke to media for the first time about the ongoing investigation in Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death case. As per ANI, he said that so far, the Mumbai Police has recorded statements of 56 people, and is probing every angle including professional rivalry, financial transactions and health. Singh further revealed that Sushant was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and was taking medication for the same. He was quoted as saying, "It has come to surface that he had bipolar disorder, he was undergoing treatment and taking medicines for it. What circumstances led to his death is the subject of our investigation." The Mumbai Police Commissioner mentioned that when the Mumbai Police recorded the statement of Sushant's father, sister and brother in law on June 16, they didn't raise any suspicion neither they complained about any lapse in the investigation. Speaking about Rhea Chakraborty, he said, "She was one of the 56 people questioned by Mumbai police. Her statement was recorded twice, and she was called to the police station several times. I can't comment about her whereabouts." Singh also revealed that no politician's name came up during the investigation carried out by the same police. He also said that there is no evidence against any politician from any party. The Mumbai Police Commissioner reacted to Bihar police's claim of non-cooperation and said, "There is no question of non-cooperation. We are legally examining whether they (Bihar police) have jurisdiction or not in Sushant Singh Rajput's case. Still, if they've got jurisdiction then they should prove it." In the press conference, Singh also said that they have still not found any direct transfer of money from Sushant Singh Rajput's bank account to Rhea Chakraborty's account. ALSO READ: Sushant Singh Rajput Was Googling 'Painless Death And 'Schizophrenia', Says Mumbai CP Parambir Singh ALSO READ: Sushant's Death Case: Owner Of Ambulance Which Carried Actor's Mortal Remains Says No Foul Play Worried about your mental well-being or of someone you know? Help is just a call away. Reach out to the nearest mental health specialist at COOJ Mental Health Foundation (COOJ)- 0832-2252525, Parivarthan- +91 7676 602 602, Connecting Trust- +91 992 200 1122/+91-992 200 4305 or Sahai- 080-25497777/ SAHAIHELPLINE@GMAIL.COM According to the Industry and Information Technology Department of Hunan Province, Hunan is planning to invest 6.74 billion yuan for 5G construction and build 20.04 thousand 5G base station in 2020. By the end of the year, it will achieve 5G network coverage in areas with industry application needs. The sprout of the "new infrastructure", represented by 5G technology, brings new opportunities for the traditional construction machinery industry chain. SANY HEAVY INDUSTRY CO., LTD., headquartered in Changsha, enjoys a reputation of "intelligent factory" as it owns the national intelligent manufacturing demonstration factory. In this factory, "5G+ intelligent manufacturing" robot giants work nonstop. They are working in almost all of the procedures, from goods collecting, transferring, parts assembling, to painting, drying, detecting and warehousing, etc. SANY and its partners are now working together to develop innovative 5G intelligent manufacturing application. In the future, 5G will be applied in detection, equipment maintenance and key station monitoring. SANY, ZOOMLION, CRCC and SUNWARD, these four world-top 50 construction machinery enterprises stand as the golden brands in Changsha industry chain. Facing with the increasing competition in the global market and the impact of the epidemic, leading manufacturing enterprises such as SANY are enabling traditional construction machinery through 5G+ industrial internet, making the construction machinery industry chain "strong" and boosting the transformation from "made in Changsha" to "intelligently made in Changsha". Since 2017, Changsha has been making great efforts to deploy the strategy of "promoting the manufacturing industry with the emerging industry chain". On the basis of the 16 original industry chains, such as construction machinery and modern seed industry, 6 more chains, such as automobile and bio-pharmaceutical, have been added, making it clear to develop the "22 emerging and advantageous industry chains". Thanks to these good policies, large quantities of high-quality projects of emerging industries have been set up in Changsha, leading a prosperity to all industries. YUANPIN BIOTECH stands as a great example of the emerging bio-pharmaceutical chain. It is the largest cell tissue bank in Hunan and the only large-scale enterprise for stem cell application in Changsha bio-pharmaceutical industry chain. It's project Clinical Demonstration of Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia Treated with Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cells that has been approved as the first batch by the Science and Technology Department of Hunan Province, while it has only been settled in Changsha Economic and Technological Development Zone for less than one year. Numerous preparations of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells are produced day and night and sent for critical patients in Hubei province. The bio-pharmaceutical chain members should always keep eyes on the research of cutting-edge technologies and core products, while not neglect the transformation of scientific and technological achievements and product marketing. YUANPIN BIOTECH has been cooperated with Xiangya Hospital of Central South University and The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanhua University to conduct clinical treatment and projects regarding stem cells, which covers a wide range of clinical treatment including Parkinson. These activities give powerful supplements to the weakness of the whole industry chain and further extend the chain and value of bio-pharmaceutical industry. The advantages of industrial development formed by "strengthening the chain" and "supplementing the chain" are bringing new momentum to Changsha. According to government figures, in the first half of this year, 63 major projects with an investment of more than 200 million yuan were introduced into 22 industry chains in Changsha, including two "10 billion level projects" and four "5-10 billion yuan projects", with a total planned investment of 103.2 billion yuan. Image Attachments Links: Link: http://asianetnews.net/view-attachment?attach-id=368519 Caption: A sorting robot is working at SANY No.18 factory in Changsha. Link: http://asianetnews.net/view-attachment?attach-id=368525 Caption: At the on-site meeting of "5G+ industrial internet" in Hunan Province, the enterprise leaders are watching the "5G+ 360 degree factory" monitoring system at SANY No.18 factory. SOURCE The Industry and Information Technology Department of Hunan Province Regional Meghalaya health department refutes BJP MLAs allegations Correspondent Shillong, Aug 2 | Publish Date: 8/2/2020 1:22:57 PM IST The Meghalaya Health and Family Welfare Department on Sunday brushed aside allegations made by senior BJP legislator Sanbor Shullai, who had lashed out at the department accusing it of failing in tackling COVID-19 situation in the State. Statement coming from peoples representative like Sanbor Shullai criticizing the health department means he is directly criticizing the Health Workers of the state which is not good at all as it might de-motivate them, Director of Health Services (MI), Dr. Aman War told reporters. The senior medical official, however admitted that there were some minor lapses in providing services to the people of the state and said, the Health Department and its Health Workers were very serious in tackling the outbreak of COVID-19. He pointed out that different departments of the government and the village durbars were all making a combined effort in tackling the situation. You very well know the inputs are never only from health department. We have review meetings, War said and added that under the guidance and leadership of State Health minister, AL Hek the health department was not concentrating in the headquarters, but throughout the state as a whole. Interestingly, both Shullai and Hek are the only two BJP legislators who are part of the National Peoples Party-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government in the State We are not to concentrate only in headquarters, we have to go out and talk and discuss with people at the ground level. We get inputs and we learn and we provide suggestions and also incorporate their suggestions, he said. You have seen the sacrifice made by our health workers together with frontline workers, police, shnong...this sacrifice made by the frontline workers will ensure we win the battle. In this fight of ours, we have our own shortcomings. We go to many places, we take back suggestions and also issue advisories. We had gone across the state. Each and every visit of ours is not lip service but service given from the heart, War asserted. Now after all this hard work, at times we get stones thrown at us. To say that we have failed is wrong. We are not going to listen to anything that is negative and de-motivates us. Morale of our workers is very high, he iterated. Time is running out on Donald Trump. While there are still 92 days until Election Day, the president has as little as half as much time to begin closing the gap with Joe Biden, according to interviews with nearly two dozen Republican and Democratic Party officials and strategists. Trumps window is smaller and his margin for error tighter because of an expected surge in mail voting due to the coronavirus and because the electorate this year appears more hardened than in 2016, with fewer undecided voters to peel off in the closing days of the contest. Voters will begin receiving ballots in key swing states as early as next month. In North Carolina, elections officials will start sending ballots to voters on Sept. 4. Four more battleground states Pennsylvania, Michigan, Florida and Minnesota will begin mailing ballots or start early voting by the end of September. All of that will happen before the first presidential debate, on Sept. 29. Arizona, Ohio and Iowa will start early voting right after, in the first seven days of October. If I were running the Trump campaign, I would want to see a marked uptick by the beginning of October, said Charlie Gerow, a Pennsylvania-based Republican strategist. Gerow, like many Republicans, believes the Republican president will outperform current polls on Election Day. But clearly, with early voting, he said, the timeline is accelerated. Trumps concern about the timing and mechanics of the election was never plainer than on Thursday, when he suggested delaying it because of unsubstantiated claims about widespread mail voting fraud. The president has no authority to change the date. But he has good reason to be worried. While in a closer contest, the rigors of the election calendar would be felt more evenly by both campaigns, Trump has so much ground to make up in the polls that allowing Biden to lock down even a small portion of the early vote could be debilitating. Entering August, Trump trailed Biden by 7 percentage points in national polls, according to RealClearPolitics' polling average. Biden also holds an edge in nearly every swing state. Story continues For months, Trumps hope for a rebound in public opinion polls rested on an expectation that the coronavirus would subside by fall, and that the economy would show signs of improvement. Neither has happened, and the race has stagnated, with Biden maintaining or even expanding on his leads. The one thing Trump needs most is time. And thats the one thing that he has none of with this calendar, said Doug Herman, who was a lead mail strategist for Barack Obama's 2008 and 2012 campaigns. One prominent Republican strategist, noting the dates that ballots will be sent to voters in Florida and elsewhere, declined even to talk about the accelerated timeline of this election. No, he said. Its bad news. The Trump campaign recognizes the calendar squeeze: On Monday, it is launching an ad offensive that will focus on the earlier voting states. Four years ago, Trump benefited from a longer runway with a less decisive electorate. About 13 percent of voters in 2016 said they made their decision between the candidates in the last week before the election, according to exit polls, with Trump carrying late deciders by about 3 percentage points. But the number of undecided voters is smaller than it was in 2016, now representing about 10 percent of the electorate, according to both Democratic and Republican internal polling. And the sliver of voters who are undecided or registered third party are more likely to support Biden than Trump, according to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll, with 61 percent saying they would support Biden if they had to choose now. Election Day is October 24 48 hours after the last debate, Frank Luntz, the veteran Republican consultant and pollster, said in an email. On that Sunday, people will wake up, have their coffee, go to church (or not) and make up their minds. On that day, the election is over. One reason Republicans worry about mail voting is that Democrats have been outpacing them in mail ballot requests throughout the primaries and in the run-up to the general election in many states. In 2016, about 40 percent of voters cast ballots in person before Election Day or by mail, a number is expected to dramatically expand because of concerns about in-person voting amid a pandemic. In North Carolina, nearly six times as many voters had requested absentee ballots by last week as had at the same time in 2016, according to Michael Bitzer, a political science professor at Catawba College who is tracking the requests. And the increase overwhelmingly favors Democrats, who account for more than half of all requests. Republicans made up just 14 percent of requests, according to Bitzer, down from about 36 percent in 2016. FILE - In this May 28, 2020, file photo processing work on mail in ballots for the Pennsylvania Primary election is being done at the Butler County Bureau of Elections, in Butler, Pa. Pennsylvania officials said Friday, July 31, 2020, the state will foot the cost of postage for voters to mail in ballots in November's general election, a move that Gov. Tom Wolf has made a priority as the coronavirus pandemic unexpectedly fueled high interest in voting by mail under a new state law. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic, File) Many of those voters will not immediately return their ballots, and it is difficult to predict when most ballots will be sent in. In a normal year in California, a populous state with a traditional 29-day mail ballot period, about half of the total mail vote typically is returned about 10 days before Election Day, said Paul Mitchell of Political Data Inc., a voter data firm used by both Republicans and Democrats in California. Still, even a portion of the early vote could swing the election in competitive states decided by a relatively small number of votes. In Minnesota, where Trump lost to Hillary Clinton in 2016 by only about 45,000 votes, early voting will start on Sept. 18. If youre talking about just winning on the margins here, and it being a close election if you dont have your s--- together by Sept. 18, its going to be harder to catch up, said Minnesota's Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party chairman, Ken Martin. In Arizona, where early voting starts Oct. 7, Steven Slugocki, Democratic Party chairman in the swing county of Maricopa, tells party activists that Election Day is not Nov. 3. Its October 7, and it goes until Nov. 3. He said, I tell people all the time: Literally, you could win or lose in that first week, three weeks before Election Day. Republicans are scrambling to narrow Democrats mail voting advantage, with state and county parties appealing to voters to request mail ballots despite Trumps rhetoric. In Minnesota, Republican phone-bankers are urging Trump supporters to request absentee ballots so you can put more time and effort to helping our Republican candidates from President Trump and all GOP candidates up and down the ballot, according to a call script obtained by POLITICO. Jack Brill, acting chairman of the local Republican Party in Sarasota County, Fla., said his county party has spent a ton of money trying to increase Republican mail voting rates, and his family registered to vote by mail to help the numbers. But Brill expects Republicans in his county will largely wait to swamp the polls on Election Day, as do party officials elsewhere. Jennifer Carnahan, chairwoman of the Minnesota Republican Party, said that while the party is making a strong push for absentee voting, Election Day is still, as it stands now, the day when the majority of people vote. When it comes to undecided voters, it is becoming increasingly apparent to Republicans that the later the decision is made, the better. It is still possible that conditions surrounding the virus will improve, and even if they do not, Trump could damage Biden in the debates. Biden has profited from a period of the campaign in which he has largely remained secluded at his Delaware home. Phillip Stephens, the Republican Party chairman in Robeson County, one of several North Carolina counties that shifted from supporting Barack Obama in 2012 to Trump in 2016, said the urgency is being felt by both sides. Democrats want people to vote now, while Biden is still in the basement, he said, while Republicans need to push a decision to Election Day as much as possible. But relying on Election Day voting can be hazardous. People forget to vote. Rain might diminish turnout. An outbreak of the coronavirus could scare away potential voters. Trump is going to dominate among Election Day voters, said the longtime Republican pollster Glen Bolger. But what if theres bad weather in a part of a key state, or theres a coronavirus outbreak and voters say, Nah, Im not going to stand in line and vote. Rick Gorka, a Trump campaign spokesman, agreed that "Election Day isn't on Nov. 3. GOTV [get-out-the-vote] starts the day after Labor Day." But the Trump campaign disputes that the timeline is a problem for the president. If the election was held tomorrow, Gorka said, Trump would benefit from his large field and digital organization, which has been preparing for the general election and making millions of door knocks and phone calls since long before Biden became the nominee. What team does Joe Biden have in place to do get-out-the-vote efforts? He doesnt have one, Gorka said. And voters, for the most part, dont just show up. You have to beg, borrow, steal, annoy, persuade. Trump is working against a Democratic apparatus that is furiously trying to put the election out of reach before Election Day. Through the Biden-Democratic National Committee coordinated campaign, there are now hundreds of field staffers working on early voting efforts across the battleground states, a DNC official said. Priorities USA, the Biden campaigns preferred big-money vehicle, is preparing to spend heavily on digital ads in August pushing Democratic-leaning voters without a history of voting by mail to request mail-in ballots, part of a $24 million vote-by-mail and voter mobilization program. Patrick McHugh, Priorities executive director, said Trump has a dwindling window of time to turn the election in his favor. He put it at about half the amount of time of the 100 days. Microsoft confirmed on Sunday that it is interested in buying the American business of ByteDances popular TikTok social-networking service, pending a review by the Trump administration, with the intention of closing the deal by mid-September. President Trump, however, had his own demands. Microsofts announcement caps off an eventful weekend that began Friday night with President Trump stating that he would ban TikTok, the Chinese short-form social video service. Rumors then began swirling that Microsoft was interested in aquiring the company, but that Trumps opposition to the service might prevent the deal from occurring. A Sunday-night blog post from Microsoft confirms that the deal is, in fact, in the works. According to Microsoft, Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella and President Donald Trump spoke, with Trump apparently giving his approval for a potential acquisition to proceed. Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns, Microsoft said. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury. Trump, however, on Monday threw an unexpected wrench into the deal, claiming that Microsoft would be forced to pay a finders fee of sorts to the government. I did say that if you buy it, whatever the price is I said a very substantial portion of that price is going to have to come into the Treasury of the United States, because were making it possible for this deal to happen, Trump said. Right now they dont have any rights, unless we give it to them. SO if were going to give them the rights, then it has to come into this country. Trump compared the arrangement to a landlord-tenant arrangement. Without a lease, the tenant has nothing. So they pay whats called key money or they pay something. TikTok deal set to close by September Microsoft said Sunday that it hoped to complete the deal by Sept. 15, 2020, pending discussions with TikToks parent company, ByteDance. Microsoft would in fact buy TikToks operations in several English-speaking countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, and would result in Microsoft owning and operating TikTok in these markets. According to reports, the Trump administration was concerned that data collected by TikTok was being transferred to the Chinese government. (ByteDance has denied these allegations.) Microsoft said that all data collected by the TikTok operations it would acquire would remain within the United States, and any data that was stored or backed up outside the United States will be transferred to its servers within the United States. The data residing on those servers outside the U.S. would then be deleted, it said. Microsoft and ByteDance said that it has given notice to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). Microsoft also said it would not comment further until the deal was done, or rejected. Microsofts track record in the social-media market has been mixed, as the company has tended to favor the enterprise and business space. LinkedIn, a social-networking company Microsoft bought for $26 billion in 2016, remains Microsofts biggest and most successful play in the space, though LinkedIn is primarily designed to connect employees, potential recruiters, and other career-oriented members together. Microsoft tried out a social network called so.cl, but shuttered it without much promotion. Ironically, Microsoft unexpectedly closed its Mixer streaming service on June 22, sending users to Facebook Gaming instead. This story was updated on Monday, Aug. 3 at 12:17 PM with additional details, including Trumps key money request. The normally affable secretary of state Mike Pompeo had a little surprise in store for Democrats who conduct their own foreign policy. Speaking on a talking heads interview with Fox News's Maria Bartiromo: Maria Bartiromo: I was struck by Dianne Feinstein because didn't she have a driver for 20 years that we ended up finding out was a Chinese spy? Mike Pompeo: We did. You'll recall, she meets with some frequency with Foreign Minister Zarif there too. There's something not quite right. And this is not consistent with America's national security in either case. These are adversaries that intend harm for her state of California and I wish she would not engage in this kind of rhetoric and these kind of meetings that undermine these kind of efforts. That's diplomatic, but pretty strong. Feinstein, under the cover of her Senate Intelligence Committee position, has been meeting with Iran's mullah regime almost behind the Trump administration's back, just as the U.S. attempts to outmaneuver the regime. According to the Washington Examiner in a piece dated May 27, 2019: Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a top member of the minority party in the upper chamber, met recently with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif at a time of escalating tensions between Washington and Tehran. The two had dinner around the end of last month when Zarif was visiting the U.S., sources told Politico. Feinstein's team said the dinner was designed to update the senator on the situation between the U.S. and Iran and was "arranged in consultation with the State Department." A State Department official said the agency did not ask the California Democrat to meet with Zarif, but did not deny discussions had taken place. This is a pretty outrageous thing, given the stake involved. Up until now, the meetings have been known but not an issue, given the incurious press, which doesn't seem to think this is news. But it is news, this whole idea of the loyal opposition being the disloyal opposition, and Pompeo, who undoubtedly has access to intelligence, is pointing out that there is something mighty strange about Feinstein's cozying up to the mullahs at a time when the U.S. is attempting to halt their activities. This is no right-wing conspiracy theory, in other words; this is something the U.S. finds concerning. He had similar harsh words for the activism of China in the U.S. Seems Democrats are constantly attracted to purveyors of American collapse and ruin. Pompeo at a minimum seems to know the score and now has the Democrats on their back foot. Hat tip: GatewayPundit. Image credit: Fox News shareable YouTube screen shot. US Condemns Hong Kong Election Postponement By VOA News August 02, 2020 The United States has condemned the Hong Kong government's decision to postpone the Legislative Council elections initially scheduled for September 6, 2020, for one year. "There is no valid reason for such a lengthy delay," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement Saturday, adding that "the elections should be held as close to the September 6 date as possible." If elections are not held in "a manner that reflects the will and aspirations of the Hong Kong people," he said, the semi-autonomous city "will continue its march toward becoming just another Communist-run city in China." Pompeo called the postponement a "regrettable action" which confirms Beijing's intention not to honor the Sino-British Joint Declaration, an UN-registered treaty, and the Basic Law, when Britain turned Hong Kong to China in 1997. China's hand-picked Hong Kong leader, Carrie Lam, announced Friday that the city's September legislative election would be postponed for a year, because of the coronavirus pandemic. The move is seen as a blow to the pro-democracy camp, which was widely expected to do well in the election. Observers say the postponement was the latest in a series of moves by the government in recent days to thwart the pro-democracy movement. Just recently, Hong Kong authorities fired two pro-democracy academics active in politics, arrested four young activists on national security charges and issued arrest warrants for six others, including a U.S. citizen, and disqualified 12 pro-democracy candidates for the legislative election. The six have fled the territory and are wanted on suspicion of violating the national security legislation that entered into force a month ago. Two prominent U.S. legislators, Congressman Eliot Engel, Chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, and Senator Robert Menendez, the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued a stern warning to China Friday, saying in a statement that "if Beijing thinks that this effort will silence those who stand for freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law, it is gravely mistaken: today we are all Hong Kongers." "This action only further undermines the credibility of China as a responsible rule-abiding member of the international community," Engel and Menendez said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address by Sumon Corraya Some 605 fruit trees guava, lemon, quince, gooseberry and grapefruit were planted yesterday in parish villages. For BCA secretary Hemanto Corraya, during the coronavirus pandemic, people came to realize how badly they behaved towards nature. Dhaka (AsiaNews) A total of 605 fruit trees guava, lemon, quince, gooseberry and grapefruit were planted yesterday in villages in Mausaid parish with the local pastor, Fr Chanchal Hubert Pereira, as the guest of honour. We responded to what our Holy Father asked us in Laudato Si', namely to take care of our land. Hence, we are planting trees, said Dominic Ranjan Purification, a Catholic, president of Mausaid Christian Multipurpose Cooperative Society Ltd (members pictured). Speaking to AsiaNews, Ranjan Purification said that some coop leaders recently decided to plant a tree to celebrate Mujib Year[*]. The country's Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, also called for planting trees. In December last year, the Archbishop of Dhaka, Card Patrick DRozario, announced that Bangladesh Catholics would plant 500,000 trees, in line with Laudato Si. Overall, we feel the need for plants in our villages to save the environment and create a green common home, Ranjan Purification said. All the members of the Cooperative Society call on members and others to encourage their families to plant at least one fruit tree at home and follow instructions. If any member of our Coop Society responds to our appeal by planting trees, we will give them priority in our Cooperative loans, Ranjan Purification explained. Fr Pereira likes the Coop Societys initiative. It seems that tree planting is very timely, commendable and essential to our parish, he said. I thank those who undertook this initiative. They responded to the Popes appeal, which could be successfully implemented. I thank them. The parish priest also said that the Catholic Church is also planning to plant around 500,000 trees, a process that will start soon. A few days ago, organisers met for this purpose. Home to about 620 Catholics, Mausaid parish is located on the extreme edge of Dhaka. New manufacturing plants have set up shop in the area, accentuating urban sprawl. This has led to the cutting of trees. As a result of this, Catholics now realise that tree planting is essential. Patrick Purification, head of the Bangladesh Catholic Students Movement (BVSM), Hemanto Corraya, secretary of the Bangladesh Christian Association (BCA), and other Mausaid parish leaders attended the event. They too welcomed the tree planting scheme. BCA secretary Corraya told AsiaNews that during the coronavirus pandemic, people came to realise how badly they have behaved towards nature. If we plant trees, we will get a greener land. We need to respond from the heart to Pope Francis' appeal, he said. I think that the appeal to take care of our common home is very timely and appropriate. [*] In 2020-2021, Bangladesh marks the centennial anniversary of the birth of the countrys founder, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The state government has flagged harsher penalties for those caught flouting coronavirus restrictions, as police issued the largest number of fines in one day since Victoria's second lockdown began. Victoria Police issued almost $250,000 worth of fines in the 24 hours to Monday morning, including one to a man who travelled to the Melbourne CBD to play Pokemon Go and another who went to his Surf Coast holiday home. Victoria Police patrol the Tan on Monday as part of Operation Sentinel. A total of 172 fines were issued on Sunday, of which 22 were issued at vehicle checkpoints and 27 were handed to people not wearing a face mask or covering without a valid exemption. It was the largest number of fines issued in a day in Victoria since stage three restrictions were re-introduced in the state at midnight on July 8. Chris Iheuwa a Nollywood actor and director clocks 50 today. In a special pose on Instagram to mark his birthday, he looks elegant as he thanked God for his life. Finally the day is here. Thank you Lord, he wrote. However, the Actors Guild of Nigeria(AFN) sent a message of congratulation to Chris Iheuwa. The message read: Happy birthday to an Actor and filmmaker, CEO stable stage Production and the Vice Chairman of the Lagos state chapter of AGN. God bless you and grant you more years of celebrations in health and wealth. Chris Iheuwa is an actor who has journeyed with Nollywood from cradle to where the industry stands now. He is known for his stellar performance in movies such as Rattle Snake in 1995, Phone Swap in 2012, Joba in 2019, The Second Bed (2020), La Femme Anjola (2020), and The Delivery Boy (2018), among others. He studied Theatre Arts a degree from the University of Ibadan and MA from the University of Lagos. Related We think intelligent long term investing is the way to go. But along the way some stocks are going to perform badly. For example, after five long years the Hunting PLC (LON:HTG) share price is a whole 64% lower. We certainly feel for shareholders who bought near the top. And it's not just long term holders hurting, because the stock is down 61% in the last year. Even worse, it's down 20% in about a month, which isn't fun at all. View our latest analysis for Hunting 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 flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price. During five years of share price growth, Hunting moved from a loss to profitability. That would generally be considered a positive, so we are surprised to see the share price is down. Other metrics might give us a better handle on how its value is changing over time. The revenue fall of 2.6% per year for five years is neither good nor terrible. But it's quite possible the market had expected better; a closer look at the revenue trends might explain the pessimism. You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image). We like that insiders have been buying shares in the last twelve months. Even so, future earnings will be far more important to whether current shareholders make money. You can see what analysts are predicting for Hunting in this interactive graph of future profit estimates. A Different Perspective We regret to report that Hunting shareholders are down 60% for the year (even including dividends). Unfortunately, that's worse than the broader market decline of 13%. Having said that, it's inevitable that some stocks will be oversold in a falling market. The key is to keep your eyes on the fundamental developments. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 10% per year over five years. We realise that Baron Rothschild has said investors should "buy when there is blood on the streets", but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality business. 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 5 warning signs we've spotted with Hunting (including 1 which is is concerning) . Story continues If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them). Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on GB exchanges. 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com. A Nazareth woman pleaded guilty Monday to participating in an election fraud scheme. Amber Correll, 39, pleaded guilty to multiple counts of making false signatures and statements on nomination petitions, according to a news release from Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro. Police say she forged 25 signatures on nomination petitions for U.S. Congressional candidate Tim Silfies. The Libertarian candidate ran in 2018 against Susan Wild and Marty Nothstein. There should never be a doubt that the men and women who appear on ballots or work to gather the signatures needed to get candidates before voters are following the law and doing honest work, Shapiro said in a news release. Corrells attorney, Brandon Lauria of Philadelphia, didnt return a phone message seeking comment. Police say Correll was paid to collect the signatures by Jake Towne, 40, of Easton. Thats not illegal, but police say Towne broke the law by signing papers saying he circulated the nomination petitions when in fact Correll circulated them. At a preliminary hearing in January, Towne attorney Gary Asteak said its common practice for party officials to sign off as circulators of nominating petitions even though they didnt physically circulate the petitions. He said Towne looked over the sheet, matched the names to the addresses and was satisfied they were authentic. Northampton County Libertarian Party Chairman Jake Towne, left, leaves his preliminary hearing with his attorney, Gary Asteak. Towne is charged with perjury for allegedly signing a candidate's nominating petition even though he didn't circulate the petition.Rudy Miller | For lehighvalleylive.com Asteak said Towne turned down a really sweet deal to plead guilty and will take the case to trial. Towne is charged with five criminal counts, including perjury. Shapiros news release says Towne will stand trial in February. Correll will be sentenced after Townes trial. This contrived case against Jake Towne is the result of a corrupt system that seeks to silence political activists. The charges against Mr. Towne originated with a GOP fishing expedition to coerce two third party candidates to withdraw from running for office. Circulators in Pennsylvania have never been required to witness signatures on a petition sheet. They only need to have requisite knowledge, meaning reason to believe that the signatures are genuine. Dozens of previous civil cases prove this. What Towne did has never been tried in a criminal court because it is not a criminal matter, said Libertarian Party Chairwoman Jane Horvath in an emailed statement. She said Correll acted along to deceive Towne. The attorney generals abuse of power will become evident as the details of this case unfold, and hopefully the public will take notice of how corrupt the two-party system really is, Horvath said. Senior Deputy Attorney General Nicole Forzato is prosecuting Correll and Towne. Towne ran for Congress in 2010 and ran for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2018. He serves as secretary for the Northampton County Libertarian Party. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to Lehighvalleylive.com. Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. If theres anything about this story that needs attention, please email him. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook. Advertisement The President of the Yoruba Youth Socio-cultural Association (YYSA) Olalekan Hammed has advised Nigerians to look beyond North for the plum job of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria come 2023, noting that the affirmative statement made by the President Muhammadu Buhari saying that his appointees have abused trust owing to the unending terrorism and banditry in country is an evidence of his ineptness and failed anti-graft war. In a statement issued and made by the National President of the association and available to Time Nigeria. According to the statement, Right from the inception, President Buhari listed fight against corruption as his main agenda followed by tackling insecurity. He endeavored by carefully appointed trusted allies without minding the federal character and outcries for lopsidedness of these appointments. Infact, some people supported the anomalies with the mindset that, the outcome matters, if appointing only his people is the way out to better the countrys condition, no problem. National President of the association expressed his displeasure on the outcome of their performance as they all made no difference, according to him, Disappointingly, none of his saints performed differently. The situation in Nigeria now becoming more pitiable than it was in six years ago in terms of corruption and insecurity. We could neither blame the appointees not the service chiefs for both crushed anticorruption and worsened insecurity in the country. Instead, the person we voted for to preside over Nigeria would be taken responsible. The failure of Mr Presidents appointees is indeed his failure. He however advised that in 2023, Nigerians we must look beyond north to ensure that we have a formidable and competent president for us to move forward as a nation. He said. The governor of Kwara State, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, has set up a panel of inquiry to investigate the federal allocations accruing to the 16 local government areas of the state as well as their share of the internally generated revenue from May 29, 2019 till date. PREMIUM TIMES had reported how 16 local government chairmen and councillors have been on suspension after they were accused of misappropriation of public funds. They were suspended in June 2019. Their suspension has, however, been extended twice. The suspended council executives have approached the court, questioning the stoppage of their salaries and the extension of their suspension. In pursuance of the powers conferred on the Governor of Kwara State under the Commission of Inquiry Law CAP, C17 Laws of Kwara State, 2006 and other enabling law in that regard, I, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, the Governor of Kwara State, hereby constitute a panel of inquiry into local government federal allocations and IGR accruing to local government councils from May 29 to date, the governor said in a statement announcing the panel on Monday evening. The statement listed Mathew Adewara as the chairman of the panel, with Sabitiyu Grillo, a permanent Secretary, appointed as the Secretary of the panel. The panel comprises a representative of the department of state service (DSS); Nigeria Police Force; Titilayo Adedeji; Baba Ibrahim; Aisha Mohammed; and Asmau Apalando, the statement added. The panel of inquiry is mandated to investigate and probe funds received and disbursed to all the 16 local government councils of Kwara State from May 29 2019 to date, it stated. One of the duties of the panel is to ascertain the amounts reviewed by local governments as statutory allocation from the federal government from May 2019 to date. Others include investigate the amounts received by the local governments as IGR from the Kwara State Internal Revenue Service (KW-IRS), the amounts received by the local governments from other sources into the Joint Allocation Account Committee (JAAC) and the veracity of the claim of N300m monthly deduction by the Kwara State Government from the local government funds. The statement said the panel has two weeks to submit its report. The setting up of the panel came amid the governors official invitation to the anti-graft body EFCC and the House of Assembly to investigate the issue. Mr AbdulRazaq said he remains true to his electoral promise not to touch a kobo of local government funds in compliance with the NFIU guidelines. The US-China trade conflict benefited Vietnams industrial property market in 2019 as manufacturers began shifting production to alternative markets. Average asking rents for industrial land in Vietnam increased by as much as 10 per cent, with some industrial parks reporting rent growth of up to 40 per cent year-on-year, CBRE said. Vietnam Jones Lang Lasalle Company (JLL Vietnam) said land prices in the industrial property segment have reached new levels even though the disease has impacted the land lease process. COVID-19 has caused temporary difficulties for upcoming business plans, but with a long-term investment strategy, industrial real estate in Vietnam is still very attractive. In the second quarter of this year, JLL Vietnam recorded rising land prices with an average of US$106 per sq.m for a lease cycle, up 9.7 per cent compared to the same period last year for the southern industrial property market. Meanwhile, the rent price of ready-built factories was still stable at $3.5-5 per sq.m per month, because the contract is only short term for 3-5 years and tenants are also susceptible to the pandemic's impact. The recent disruptions have prompted companies to diversify supply chains throughout Asia. We have seen some manufacturers moving away from centralised supply toward increased diversification, said Desmond Sim, head of research, Singapore and Southeast Asia, at CBRE. Countries that are already investing in new infrastructure and are more open to attracting industry likely will receive the lions share of relocations. CBRE also expects to see a shift in trade patterns with this growing focus on diversifying supply chains and production locations, Sim said. This trend has already started. While China is the worlds largest export economy by value, China-to-US exports decreased by 12.7 per cent in 2019, and total trade between the countries fell by US$100 billion year-on-year. Countries that have benefited from this shift include Taiwan and Vietnam, the fastest-growing trade partners with the US. Total trade between the US and these two markets rose in 2019 by $18.7 billion and $9.1 billion, respectively. Countries outside Asia, such as Belgium, the Netherlands and France, have seen increased activity as well. Although there are some barriers to entry, including a shortage of industrial land in prime locations and a lack of infrastructure in key areas, Vietnams manufacturing industry and industrial real estate market stand to benefit from the rapid changes in global trade and supply chains, as long as trade with developed countries remains a key growth driver, according to CBRE. In addition to infrastructure facilitating the movement of goods and driving demand for logistics space over the long term, CBRE also sees e-commerce growth changing warehousing demand in Asia-Pacific, including Vietnam. Total cross-border e-commerce sales in the region are expected to more than double to $389.5 billion in 2023 from $181.4 billion in 2018. The integration of local supply chains likely will blend industrial and retail real estate, affecting the way goods are warehoused and delivered to consumers. Bonded warehouses, which enable storage of goods without payment of duty, are increasingly popular amid rising consumer demand for imported products, as they facilitate faster delivery than direct shipping from the country of origin. CBRE expects an increase in leasing demand for these warehouses, especially in large consumer markets such as China and India. VNA ISTANBUL Over the weekend, many Turkish citizens visited family members and popular tourism destinations amid festivities for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, or Kurban Bayrami. Health officials are now closely monitoring COVID-19 cases, which they expect to rise after the nationwide holiday travel and are calling for the enforcement of new precautions to limit the spread of the coronavirus. You dont need to be an oracle to know this, Dr. Sinan Adiyaman, president of the Turkish Medical Association (TTB), told Al-Monitor. Adiyaman said social distancing measures and weekend curfews were lifted hastily in June, and new daily recorded cases are floating near 1,000 after falling below 800 on June 2. He credits the rise to the reopening of restaurants and cafes along with increased international and domestic travel, as well as mass prayers marking the conversion of Istanbuls Hagia Sophia to a mosque on July 24. To date, Turkeys Health Ministry has reported about 233,000 COVID-19 cases and nearly 5,750 virus-linked deaths. According to data from Johns Hopkins University, Turkey ranks 17th in recorded cases worldwide and has the 22nd highest death rate. While national health officials have been lauded for their initial management of the coronavirus, keeping case numbers low through strict curfew measures on schoolchildren and senior citizens, Adiyaman said the continuation of the current lax restrictions may lead to a resurgence of COVID-19 cases, which appear to be rising quickly in the nations southeastern regions. According to TTB data compiled from 65 cities, 300 new coronavirus cases are being recorded daily in Sanliurfa, also known as Urfa. The beds allocated for COVID patients are almost full in Urfa, Osman Yuksekyayla, co-chair the Sanliurfa Medical Chamber, told Al-Monitor, adding he was concerned the upcoming flu season would overstretch medical staff. If the rise in COVID cases goes on like this, the burden on health workers will increase and there will be a shortage of medical personnel, which was already a problem in Urfa before the pandemic. TTB officials are also reporting 300-350 new daily cases in Diyarbakir and that intensive care units are full in the Black Sea city of Sinop. Other cities that have seen sharp rises in new infections include Erzurum, Konya, Rize, Mardin, Canakkale and Zonguldak. Looking over the rise in infection rates, Adiyaman criticized Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca for downplaying the risk of a second coronavirus wave when restrictions were lifted in June, claiming his statements created a relaxed mood among people. Adiyaman told Al-Monitor, We can say the first wave has not slowed down. The Turkish Health Ministry did not respond to requests for comment. On July 30, the TTB also condemned a decision by the Health Ministry to stop sharing the numbers of intubated COVID-19 patients and those in intensive care. Koca said the decision was made to abide by international standards in a July 29 tweet, adding the ministry would instead begin reporting figures on patients in critical condition and the rate of patients with pneumonia. In attempting to make sense of why these two parameters have been removed from the table, it is in vain to look at epidemiology, Adiyaman said in a July 30 statement, adding Turkish officials were not following World Health Organization codes concerning the reporting of virus-linked deaths. Koca responded to criticism that the changes were implemented following a decision by the ministrys science advisory committee, though committee member Ates Kara said he did not know the reason for the change, according to Gazete Duvar. Ive been saying every day that the number of seriously ill patients is increasing, Koca said Aug. 1. Would someone who is hiding something say that? The Diyarbakir Health Platform announced Wednesday that a sharp rise in local cases were not reflected in official data, stating new case incidences in southeastern Turkey number 16.6 per 100,000, more than double the national average. "The official statistics, which we as health laborers know very well do not reflect the truth, cannot hide the fact that the outbreak is spreading quite rapidly in both our province and other provinces in the region," the body reported in a statement. Throughout the pandemic, Turkeys health minister has urged caution, repeatedly prompting citizens to follow social distancing measures and wear masks. Still, he said COVID-19 cases could rise in the coming weeks and may require the re-imposition of previous travel restrictions and curfew measures. Its inevitable for the numbers to turn toward a negative direction if this relaxed mood continues, Koca said. Our citizens should rid themselves of this mood before we reintroduce serious limitations. Otherwise, wed be forced to adopt regional measures once again. Meanwhile, the Turkish tourism sector awaits a rise in international visitors after Russia-Turkey flights resumed Aug. 1. Turkey is also accepting tourists from England and the United States, though the nation is not yet on the European Unions list of safe travel countries. Still, persistent coronavirus worries led Iraqs Aviation Authority to suspend flights between the country and Turkey Sunday. Turkish authorities suspended flights to Iran and Afghanistan on July 19. As the summer season begins to wind down, Turkish health officials are also weighing the risks involved with reopening schools, currently slated to begin the fall session on Aug. 31. Opening schools before bringing the pandemic under control could create new difficulties, Adiyaman told Al-Monitor. He said health officials would continue studying approaches taken by other countries, noting Israeli schools were briefly reopened and then shut down following a COVID-19 outbreak in one high school. In seeking solutions, Adiyaman pointed to strict social distancing measures, such as those taken in Finland and Belgium, where the reopening of schools has not raised case numbers. Yuksekyayla remained more cautious on school reopenings. At a time like this, the opening of schools will only increase the spread of the virus, Yuksekyayla told Al-Monitor. Authorities should reconsider the decision to open the schools where the virus is spreading at higher rate. We certainly are considering what rule we could put in place that JCAR would approve, Pritzker said. But I would say its the legislature, its true, that hasnt been willing to move forward on a mask mandate. But I have one in place for the state and cities and counties have been actually very good, for the most part, about suggesting to people that this is enforceable. A Tory MP has been accused of rape but not been named. (PA Images) The anonymity given to the unnamed Tory MP who has been accused of rape is puzzling, a lawyer has said. The politician, who is said to be a senior Conservative and a former minister, was reportedly arrested after a woman accused him of rape, sexual assault and coercive control. He has not been named by the Metropolitan Police and the media is yet to publish his identity. Victims of sex crimes have lifelong anonymity and the press must not report details that could lead to their identity but the accused do not routinely have the same protection. So whats going on? What is the background? Reports say the MP has been accused by a young woman who used to work in parliament. The story was first reported by The Sunday Times. He was arrested on Saturday morning and released on bail later that day. The Met said it does not routinely name people who are being investigated. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) A police statement said: The Metropolitan Police Service received allegations relating to four separate incidents involving allegations of sexual offences and assault. These offences are alleged to have occurred at addresses in Westminster, Lambeth and Hackney between July 2019 and January 2020. The Met has launched an investigation into the allegations. A man in his 50s was arrested on Saturday 1 August on suspicion of rape. The Tories have refused to suspend the whip from the MP, a move that Labour has described as shocking. Chief whip Mark Spencer said the allegations are taken very seriously but that police must carry out their investigation before we can assess where were at. Labour MP Jess Phillips told Times Radio it sent a terrible message that important figures can secure protection with their Westminster status. Why did police not name him? The Met told Yahoo News UK it would not name anyone at this stage of a case. The Met does not identify any person who may, or may not be, subject to an investigation, a spokesman told Yahoo News UK. Tory chief whip Mark Spencer has come under pressure from Labour to suspend the unnamed MP. (PA Images) James Saunders, partner at Saunders Law Solicitors, said that was unsurprising, though pointed out there is no law providing anonymity for someone who has been arrested but not charged. Story continues So what about the press? Saunders is, however, surprised that the press is yet to identify the man. The media have reported on high-profile names accused of rape and other serious crimes in the past after they have been arrested. Its really puzzling that the press has unified on the issue, Saunders said. He pointed to a rule brought in for parliament in 2016 which stopped the custom of the speaker of the House of Commons from identifying an MP as having been arrested but that does not stop the media revealing the accuseds name. The only possible angle is it would identify the alleged woman victim but it doesnt look as though it would, Saunders told Yahoo News UK. By identifying the MP I dont think you logically identify the young lady. Victims of sex crimes have lifelong anonymity which is why press reports will say they cannot be identified for legal reasons. This is automatic, and does not get given by members of the press being contacted and told not to report their name. Saunders said if the MP is charged, their name will then have to come out, but expects the identity will emerge before a decision is made about whether further action will be taken. He said: I think the name will be published whenever it is and if the outcome is that he is not proceeded against. ANN ARBOR, MI Washtenaw County voters will decide dozens of contested races and several ballot proposals in the Aug. 4 primary. While many have chosen to vote by mail due to the COVID-19 pandemic, regular polling locations still will be open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday for in-person voting. In Ann Arbor, voters will decide City Council primary races in all five wards, as well as a county transportation tax renewal and races for county prosecutor, county sheriff, county clerk, state House seats, judge seats and the 12th Congressional District seat now held by U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell. There are other contested races and tax proposals to consider throughout the county. Residents can check their voter registration status, find out where to vote and view sample ballots on the Michigan Voter Information Center website. Ann Arbor voters also can use the citys Election Day line tracker to check the number of people waiting in line at city polling places and view estimated wait times. Absentee voters must return their ballots to city and township clerks offices by 8 p.m. Election Night to be counted. The county clerks office urges voters who have not yet returned their ballot to do so as soon as possible by delivering it to their clerks office or drop box located at the address on the return envelope. Mailing ballots is not advised at this point since they wont be counted if received late. MLive has partnered with the nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Michigan to provide information to voters. Check out the leagues election guide at Vote411.org to find out more about candidates and proposals on the ballot. MORE FROM THE ANN ARBOR NEWS: 39,000 absentee ballots in Washtenaw County still unreturned one day before primary How they voted: The issues that have divided Ann Arbors City Council A lot of things are just different. Heres Ann Arbors plan for socially distant voting Tuesday Campaign finance reports show alliances in Ann Arbor council races 5 Ann Arbor council races, 13 candidates: Heres what they have to say WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. The COVID-19 pandemic has strained nearly every sector of society, including the postal service. With experts continuing to recommend social distancing, fewer people are frequenting stores and record numbers are streaming to online venues to shop. Perhaps one of the most surprising items that can be purchased online and delivered through the mail are live chicks, within hours of hatching. The Poultry Extension Collaborative (PEC), a new collective of poultry specialists from Purdue University, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, North Carolina State University and the University of Maryland, recently published a guide for buying newly hatched chicks online. The team includes: Marisa Erasmus, assistant professor of animal sciences, Purdue University. Leonie Jacobs, assistant professor of animal welfare and behavior, Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences, Virginia Tech. Prafulla Regmi, assistant professor of applied animal welfare, North Carolina State. Shawna Weimer, assistant professor of animal and avian sciences, University of Maryland. Erasmus said the ability to order chicks online is not a COVID-19 phenomenon. The service has been around for a long time, but due to the increase in postal traffic and online ordering, the venture has become much riskier for the chicks. It is better, at this point, to hold off on ordering because there are so many unknowns and packages are taking much longer to be delivered, Erasmus added. Weimer said that she interacts with online groups devoted to poultry enthusiasts and learned about an instance when a shipment of chicks arrived dead. I have learned a lot about people and chickens through these groups, and about how much our team is needed, she said. Chicks can survive a few days after hatching without food and water through their yolk reserves. But due to high volumes of mail and other uncertainties, it can take longer than 72 hours to deliver the chicks, which endangers their well-being. Other stressors include temperatures that are too high or too low and inappropriate handling or accidents during transit. In most cases, chicks are placed in a specially ventilated box with padding to absorb feces without any source of food or water. While boxes are labeled to indicate live animals inside, most post office officials are not trained to cope with the handling of live animals. Newly hatched chicks require an environment with a high temperature, around 95 degrees Fahrenheit, because they are unable to regulate their body heat, Jacobs explained. If ordering live chicks through the mail, buyers should purchase through a National Poultry Improvement Plan (NPIP) certified establishment. An even safer course of action, Regmi said, is to either buy directly from a local hatchery or to have fertilized eggs shipped. Investing in a small incubator to help hatch the eggs is safer and, potentially, more cost effective, Jacobs added. At this point, people should really start exploring alternatives to having live chicks shipped, whether they are a business or keep chickens as a hobby. As the COVID-19 pandemic develops, hatcheries may become better at preventing or reducing harm to the chicks during transit, Erasmus added. For the time being, however, she echoed Jacobs suggestion to wait or pursue other avenues to buy chicks. Also, she said, consider the postal workers. They are not used to dealing with live animals and they especially dont want to deal with dead ones. To read the full PEC publication, visit https://bit.ly/3jYEslt. Writer: Emma Ea Ambrose, 765-494-2406, eeambros@purdue.edu Sources: Marisa Erasmus, merasmus@purdue.edu; Shawna Weimer, slweimer@umd.edu; Leonie Jacobs, jacobsl@vt.edu; Prafulla Regmi, pregmi@ncsu.edu Journalists visiting campus : Journalists should follow Protect Purdue protocols and the following guidelines: Campus is open, but the number of people in spaces may be limited. We will be as accommodating as possible, but you may be asked to step out or report from another location. To enable access, particularly to campus buildings, we recommend you contact the Purdue News Service media contact listed on the release to let them know the nature of the visit and where you will be visiting. A News Service representative can facilitate safe access and may escort you on campus. Wear face masks inside any campus building. Wear face masks outdoors when social distancing of at least six feet is not possible. Agricultural Communications: 765-494-8415; Maureen Manier, Department Head, mmanier@purdue.edu Agriculture News Page The decision to give special permission for 400 worshippers to gather at a mosque to celebrate Eid despite COVID-19 restrictions has been slammed by local officials, who claim they were not even told about the exemption. Social distancing restrictions in New South Wales prevent more than 100 people from gathering in places of worship. But NSW Health gave permission for four times that number to attend the Auburn Gallipoli Mosque in western Sydney on Friday for Eid al-Adha prayers - a major religious event in the Islamic calendar. Worshippers had to wear masks, but Cumberland City Council Mayor Steve Christou said he was 'absolutely livid' the state government would risk the health of residents during a pandemic. Muslim worshippers leave Auburn Gallipoli Mosque in western Sydney after a mass prayer for the Eid al-Adha festival on Friday 'This kind of behaviour from the state is inexcusable and I am absolutely livid that they would potentially jeopardise the health and wellbeing of our residents and the health of greater Sydney residents,' he told The Daily Telegraph. 'We either have a pandemic, which we acknowledge and adhere to the relevant health directives for one and all, or we dont.' Attendees had to sign in and were split into four zones, which included two levels of the mosque, a function hall and the car park. Up to 100 people were allowed inside at any one time, with up to 400 people allowed on the premises - far less than the several thousand who usually attend. Worshippers also wore stickers to designate the zone to which they were assigned. Mayor Christou - who claimed he only found out about the decision through the media - said though he would have opposed the exemption if he had known about it. 'I dont understand how NSW Health can pick and choose who is at risk and who warrants an exemption,' he said. Worshippers wait in line to celebrate the Islamic holiday at the mosque on Friday (pictured). The local council's mayor said he was 'livid' that the mosque got an exemption Attendees had to sign in and were split into four zones as part of the agreed health protocol (pictured, staff stopping worshippers at the mosque in front of a table with hand sanitiser) NSW Health said in a statement the mosque developed a 'comprehensive safety plan' and the government body were on site on the day to ensure the agreed procedures were being followed. Cumberland City Council Mayor Steve Christou. 'I dont understand how NSW Health can pick and choose who is at risk and who warrants an exemption,' he said The mosque's one-off exemption comes after two cases of coronavirus were linked to a church and four more were tied to a funeral service in Sydney. Coronavirus cases have also been confirmed in the same area of western Sydney as the mosque, with Merrylands Advanced Early Learning Centre being forced to close last weekend when two workers there tested positive for COVID-19. The mosque's president Abdurrahman Asaroglu had said previously the venue had implemented appropriate measures to reduce the risk of a coronavirus outbreak. 'Our community is really understanding and they are OK to follow these measures no shaking hands, no hugging making sure that they just pray,' Dr Asaroglu told ABC. 'If everyone does the right thing I don't think there will be any issues.' NSW Health officials were on site to monitor compliance with social distancing, the government body said (pictured, at the mosque on Saturday) A Muslim worshipper registers his name at the mosque. 'Our community is really understanding and they are OK to follow these measures no shaking hands, no hugging,' the mosque's president said before the event In 2019, nearly 3,000 worshippers attended Eid al-Adha prayers at the mosque and thousands more spilled onto the streets nearby. Dr Asargolu said the large attendance last year could not be replicated in 2020. He said if more than 400 people arrive at the mosque, they would be turned away. 'If anybody is not abiding by the regulations, we have security to make sure that they are excluded,' he said. Prime Minister Scott Morrison had said he was concerned with large gatherings at places of worship. Mr Morrison, who is a devout Christian, said he and wife Jenny had not been to church in months. A worshipper wearing face mask (pictured) arrives at the Auburn Gallipoli Mosque on Friday alongside observers from NSW Health Coronavirus restrictions in NSW mean places of worship are normally limited to 100 people inside unless they have an exemption. Pictured: The Auburn Gallipoli Mosque on Friday 'I know faith is very important to people, but even at times like this, it's even more important that we don't gather in those large groups,' he told 2GB radio on Friday. 'As important as faith is, that we really do think of the health issues here. 'I just want to encourage everyone to make positive decisions when it comes to how they choose to celebrate their faith over this important time for that (Islamic) community.' Aspiring lawyers can (for now) say goodbye to the days of having to use uncomfortable cardboard applicators, because tampons and pads are allowed to be brought in during the upcoming bar exam in Texas. Pearland attorney Sarah Riffel said she remembers feeling like an outlaw because she needed menstrual products at the exam last summer, according to the Texas Tribune, and she used her lunch break to smuggle in her own products before returning back to her testing room. "Our only intent is to operate the examination fairly and securely, not to discriminate unfairly against any person or group," Texas Board of Law Examiners executive director Susan Henricks said in a statement to the Tribune. Henricks added that until this month, they found that applicants were fine using the products that were being provided. That doesn't seem to be entirely true though, because on July 20, hundreds of lawyers, law professors and students penned a letter to the National Conference of Bar Examiners with the subject Examinees Right to Bring Menstrual Products into Bar Exams. "Without doubt, many people taking bar exams in the coming monthswomen, transgender men, and nonbinary personswill be menstruating," the letter said, citing that menstrual products are not 'one size fits all'. "It is critical that they have access to their own menstrual products during the exam as opposed to only unknown and likely uniform products that are provided by a state board in a restroom." TESTING FOR COVID: Front-line workers describe a day at the Pridgeon Stadium COVID-19 testing site in Cy-Fair Many people criticized the ban, and even generated a hashtag on Twitter to share their thoughts and keep others updated on what was happening with the request to lift it. Because of the spike in COVID-19 cases, the Texas Supreme Court canceled the two-day in person exam for the month of July and added an alternative exam online for the month of October. There's no word at this time on whether or not the rule will remain in place for the in-person February exam, but September test takers can breathe a slight sigh of relief knowing they can bring menstrual products of their choice -- as long as they are inside a clear, plastic bag. During an emotional sentencing hearing Jan. 2 before Porter Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Clymer, Glands parents, Matthew and Jessica Gland, talked about the pain caused by the death of their daughter, described as someone who had a way about her that always made those around her smile and laugh. Criticisms comes after bail was denied to a CA university researcher accused of lying about her ties to China. China on Monday accused the United States of monitoring, harassing and willfully detaining Chinese students and researchers in the US. Foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbins comments follow the denial of a bail request in California for a university researcher accused of lying about her ties to Chinas military and governing Communist Party to gain access to the US. Wang also criticised the Trump administration for imposing sanctions on a major paramilitary organisation in the countrys western Xinjiang region and on two officials for alleged human rights abuses against ethnic and religious minorities. Wang said China had no intention of helping Juan Tang escape from the US but did not otherwise comment directly about the accusations against her. However, he said China urged the US to handle the case fairly in accordance with the law and ensure the safety and legitimate rights and interests due to Tang. People gather near the US Consulate General in Chengdu, Sichuan province, China, last week as the final group of US personnel prepared to leave the consulate after China ordered its closure in response to a US order for China to shut its consulate in Houston [File: Thomas Peter/Reuters] For some time, the US, with ideological prejudice, keeps monitoring, harassing and willfully detaining Chinese students and researchers, and making presumptions of guilt against Chinese researchers, Wang said. The US actions have seriously violated the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens and severely disrupted the normal cultural and personnel exchanges between China and the US, which amounts to outright political persecution, he said. In denying bail, US Magistrate Judge Deborah Barnes said Tang, 37, would have reason to leave the country if released. Tang has been held without bail since July 23 when she was arrested after she left the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco to seek medical care for her asthma. Tang, who has a doctorate in cellular biology, entered the United States on December 27, 2019, to work at the University of California, Davis, as a visiting researcher in the Department of Radiation Oncology, Alexandra Negin, an assistant federal public defender, said in her filing asking the court for her release on bail. The lab closed because of the coronavirus pandemic and Tang had been preparing to return to China, Negin said. Plain-clothes US security officials stand outside the back door of Chinas Consulate after Chinese employees left the building, in Houston, Texas, United States [File: Adrees Latif/Reuters] Tang and three other scientists living in the US face charges of lying about their status as members of Chinas Peoples Liberation Army, or PLA. All were charged with visa fraud, the Justice Department said. Tang was the last of the four to be arrested after the Justice Department accused the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco of harbouring a known fugitive. Negin said Tang went to the consulate to seek help and remained there after FBI agents questioned her at her Davis apartment on June 20 and executed a search warrant, seizing her passport and visa. Agents found photographs of Tang in a uniform of the civilian cadre of the PLA and also reviewed articles from China that identified her military affiliation. Negin argued that the evidence against Tang is based on old photographs from when she was a student at a medical school run by the military and documents that were translated on apps. Wang said the US State and Treasury Department penalties targeting the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps seriously interfered in Chinas internal affairs and violated the basic norms of international relations. Police detain a Hong Kong protester at a rally in support of the human rights of Xinjiang Uighurs in Hong Kong, China last December [File: Lucy Nicholson/Reuters] The sanctions hit the corps, its commander and former political commissar for alleged abuses against Uighur Muslims, including mass arbitrary detentions, forced labour and torture. They freeze any assets the targets may have in US jurisdictions, and perhaps more significantly, bar Americans from doing business with them. Wang repeated Chinas assertion that it has been acting against violence, terrorism and separatism and that Xinjiang-related issues are not about human rights, ethnic groups, or religions at all. China has used that in an attempt to deflect international condemnation of its internment of more than one million Uighurs and members of other Muslim minority groups in prison-like camps that it calls re-education and job training centres, along with other abuses. The corps acts like a parallel government in the vast, resource-rich region, operating its own schools, courts and a large network of businesses. Tech Mahindra announced the launch of Mhealthy, a solution to enable workforce and community safety against COVID-19. Mhealthy is a comprehensive solution powered by new generation technologies including artificial intelligence and machine learning to enable data driven digital diagnostics. As part of the campaign, Tech Mahindra will conduct exclusive screening for COVID warriors from the media at the Press Club of India (PCI) premises. Tech Mahindra will conduct the three-day screening campaign for over 4500 members of Press Club of India in order to safeguard them against the risks of COVID-19. Further, Tech Mahindra has rolled-out phase-wise screening starting with third-party vendors across its India offices and plans to extend the benefits to its employees, customers, and partner ecosystem. With a commitment to make the workplaces safe for its employees, partners and customers, Tech Mahindra is working to safely reopen offices for a limited number of employees using the best available screening technology. Mhealthy enables screening of the individuals at the workplace on a regular interval to check for risk factors of COVID-19, such as comorbid conditions, immunity status, and biomarkers of infection. CP Gurnani, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, Tech Mahindra, said, As the world looks to return to work, there are concerns both for the employer and the employees pertaining to the perceived risks and safety measures. The team at Tech Mahindra has understood and scoped for both by creating our solution Mhealthy. Not only does the solution do an instant risk assessment on COVID-19, but also additionally screens multiple factors that may contribute to risk. In the new normal, this is as essential as a seatbelt while driving. Mhealthy platform is ISO 13485 2016 certified, Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) cleared, clinically tested and compliant with all government mandated regulations, and guidelines. Key attributes include a 96 percent accurate antibody test along-with over 32 screening tests on a single platform. Press Club of India Spokesperson, said, As businesses return to work, there is an urgent need to ensure safe and secure work environment for the employees. This special initiative by Tech Mahindra will provide an opportunity for our members who are constantly on the field to check their antibody levels and safeguard them against the risks of COVID-19. Mhealthy seamlessly connects health providers with employees, track and monitor the overall health of the workforce, provides scalable results through real time dashboard and audio/video health consultation thus reducing consultation time and action. Harshvendra Soin, Global Chief People Officer and Head of Marketing, Tech Mahindra, said, As a leading global digital transformation provider, we are leveraging new-age technologies to ensure the safety and well-being of not only our associates, but also our partner and customer ecosystem. We are happy to extend the benefits of this health solution to our COVID-warriors from the media industry and conduct exclusive screening for them at the Press Club of India. This special initiative reiterates our commitment towards our people, and the society in safeguarding from COVID-19. The solution enables smooth screening, creating a safe work environment for all. Committed towards the fight against COVID-19, Tech Mahindra, has also created a special leave policy which is over and above the existing leave entitlement for employees who may test positive. As part of TechMHRNxt charter, focuses on reimagining people function for creating human-centred workplace and enhance employee experience by leveraging next-generation technologies along with human interactions. 145 Indian students, studying in different medical colleges in the central Asian country, were brought back by the special flight. (Representational Image: PTI) Indore: A special aircraft carrying 145 Indian students stranded in Kyrgyzstan due to the coronavirus- induced lockdown landed at the airport here in Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday night, an official said. Indore districts nodal officer for COVID-19 prevention, Dr Amit Malakar, said the Air India flight from Kyrgyzstan, operated under the Centre's "Vande Bharat" mission, landed at the city airport at 8:45 pm. He informed that 145 Indian students, studying in different medical colleges in the central Asian country, were brought back by the special flight. These include students from neighbouring Chhattisgarh and other states besides Madhya Pradesh, he said. Malakar said none of these passengers showed any symptoms of COVID-19 during screening at the airport. However, all 145 passengers will have to stay in quarantine centres for the next seven days in their hometowns as per central government guidelines, he said. After this, they will have to stay in isolation in their homes for a week, Malakar added. More than two dozen people carried signs and protested outside the Whole Foods store on East Burnside Street Sunday afternoon, saying store management had reprimanded employees who wore buttons that stated Racism has no place here, a phrase taken directly from Whole Foods mission statement. Dylan Woodruff, one of the protesters, said he originally distributed the buttons about two weeks ago and said the stores manager called him into his office to reprimand him. He said he was fired on Monday. However, he also said that he had previously given notice for unrelated reasons, but was not allowed to work the rest of his time at the store. Im not too worried about losing the job, since Ive already quit, Woodruff said. My main concern is how it affected everyone else in the store. Woodruff said he was told the companys dress code was one of the reasons he could not wear the buttons. He said he was told the buttons had to either be made directly by Whole Foods or a company-approved vendor. A Whole Foods spokesperson said that Woodruff will be paid through his original resignation date and that the companys dress code prohibits clothing with visible slogans, messages, logos or advertising that are not company-related. If Team Members are not in compliance, we always offer them the opportunity to comply, including providing new face masks when necessary, the spokesperson said. Team members are unable to work their shift until they comply with our company dress code policy. Street Roots first reported Woodruffs dismissal. Whole Foods employees across the country have drawn attention to how some stores have not allowed employees to wear apparel with the companys phrase or Black Lives Matter. In July, Business Insider reported that a Whole Foods store in Connecticut told employees wearing shirts with the companys statement to change clothes, turn their shirts inside out or go home. Whole Foods stores in Massachusetts have become the target of a boycott, while employees from stores across the country filed a class-action lawsuit when the company forbade them from wearing clothing printed with Black Lives Matter. At the rally outside Whole Foods in Portland, protesters yelled at drivers when they slowed down to enter the stores parking lot, telling them the store was racist and to avoid crossing the picket line. Most customers tried to ignore them and went inside anyway. Other cars passing by honked in support of the employees, eliciting cheers from protesters who carried signs stating Whole foods racism is the hazard and I thought racism had no place here? Chel Barrientos, who helped organize the protest, said that the Laurelhurst store is the only one that has not allowed employees to wear the buttons. They added that the store also stopped providing hazard pay for workers during the pandemic in June, instead doling out a bonus that came out to around $200 after taxes. Whole Foods added that it paid employees an extra $2 per hour as hazard pay from mid-March through June 1, adding that it paid employees who worked overtime double their regular hourly rate. They all feel the same way, Barrientos said of their co-workers. This is a message that we stand behind and that we want to be able to wear on our uniforms. Ryan Nguyen; rnguyen@oregonian.com; @ryanjjnguyen General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has questioned the level of professionalism of military personnel deployed to maintain peace in the Banda Constituency, accusing them of not only "reeking of alcohol", but having the demeanour of "rebels on drugs". According to the NDC Chief Scribe, instead of discharging their core duties as expected, the military officers are rather supporting the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Parliamentary Candidate to flout the agreement signed by the two main political parties. Military Presence It would be recalled that in the wake of disturbances that resulted in the unfortunate demise of one person in the area about a week ago, military officers were dispatched to assist other security agencies to calm matters. But these soldiers have been accused of targeting a particular group of people and denying them their rights to register. A video of the NDC General Secretary of the NDC complaining bitterly about the presence of the military in the Banda area who had blocked the road to stop busloads of people from accessing registration centres, went viral on Sunday. "Drunkards" & "Rebels On Drugs" Throwing more light on the issue on Okay FMs Ade Akye Abia Morning Show, a furious Asiedu Nketia charged at the soldiers for intimidating residents in the constituency. The military officers on duty have no business to stop people from taking part in the registration exercise. They can't block the road to stop people from registering. You should see those military officers on duty smelling of alcohol; blowing fuse when they were talking to me. They looked like rebels on drugs and you could not look into their eyes and if you don't take care, you will get drunk talking them, he asserted. He claimed that Mr. Joe Danquah who is the Parliamentary Candidate for the ruling NPP is acting on his words as he is said to have stated that he will not comply with the agreement the two parties have signed to. Rebuttal Meanwhile, the military high command has denied targeting any particular tribe and admonished the public to disregard any such report. Refuting the allegations of intimidation and prevention of eligible persons in Banda from registering in the ongoing voter registration, Director of Public Relations for Ghana Armed Forces, Colonel E. Aggrey-Quashie, explained that the Militarys presence in the constituency is an agreement between both the NDC and NPP. In a statement copied Peacefmonline.com, he pointed out that the Bono Regional Security Council on 30th July 2020 met representatives of the two main political parties-NPP and NDC- to deliberate on the peaceful conduct of the registration exercise. It stated that the agreement was signed by Mr. Joe Danquah (NPP) and Hon Ahmed Ibrahim (NDC MP-Banda) and witnessed by the Hon Regional Minister to maintain peace in the Banda district during the remaining days of the voters' registration exercise and after, until the end of the 2020 General election in December 2020. The agreement further stated that REGSEC will give the necessary security to the Banda Constituency and the entire Region, before, during, and after the process of the 7th December Election. The REGSEC and the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders should meet the Chiefs to determine the boundaries of Banda. The two Parliamentary Candidates (Mr. Joe Danquah and Hon Ahmed Ibrahim MP) should stop busing people to the registration centers if indeed they were ordinary residents; they should go there on their own volition, the agreement between. But General Mosquito, as the NDC General Secretary is affectionately called, rubbished the statement and insisted that irrespective of the agreement not to bus people to registration centers, the "soldiers had no right to obstruct the movement of eligible Ghanaians, albeit bussed to participate in the registration exercise". Watch video below 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 Tian Feilong, a Chinese intellectual in favor of the new national security law (Image: By Giulia Marchi 2020 The New York Times) When Tian Feilong first arrived in Hong Kong as demands for free elections were on the rise, he said he felt sympathetic toward a society that seemed to reflect the liberal political ideas he had studied as a graduate student in Beijing. Then, as the calls escalated into protests across Hong Kong in 2014, he increasingly embraced Chinese warnings that freedom could go too far, threatening national unity. He became an ardent critic of the demonstrations, and six years later he is a staunch defender of the sweeping national security law that China has imposed on the former British colony. Tian has joined a tide of Chinese scholars who have turned against Western-inspired ideas that once flowed in Chinas universities, instead promoting the proudly authoritarian worldview ascendant under Xi Jinping, the Communist Party leader. This cadre of Chinese intellectuals serve as champions, even official advisers, defending and honing the partys hardening policies, including the rollout of the security law in Hong Kong. Back when I was weak, I had to totally play by your rules. Now Im strong and have confidence, so why cant I lay down my own rules and values and ideas? Tian, 37, said in an interview, explaining the prevailing outlook in China. Witnessing the tumult as a visiting scholar in Hong Kong in 2014, Tian said, he rethought the relationship between individual freedom and state authority. Hong Kong is, after all, Chinas Hong Kong, he said. Its up to the Communist Party to clean up this mess. While Chinas Communist Party has long nurtured legions of academics to defend its agenda, these authoritarian thinkers stand out for their unabashed, often flashily erudite advocacy of one-party rule and assertive sovereignty, and their turn against the liberal ideas that many of them once embraced. They portray themselves as fortifying China for an era of deepening ideological rivalry. They describe the United States as a dangerous, overreaching shambles, even more so in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. They oppose constitutional fetters on Communist Party control, arguing that Western-inspired ideas of the rule of law are a dangerous mirage that could hobble the party. They argue that China must reclaim its status as a world power, even as a new kind of benign empire displacing the United States. They extol Xi as a historic leader, guiding China through a momentous transformation. A number of these scholars, sometimes called statists, have worked on policy toward Hong Kong, the sole territory under Chinese rule that has been a stubborn enclave for pro-democracy defiance of Beijing. Their proposals have fed into Chinas increasingly uncompromising line, including the security law, which has swiftly curbed protests and political debate. We ignore these voices at our own risk, said Timothy Cheek, a historian at the University of British Columbia who helps run Reading the China Dream, a website that translates works by Chinese thinkers. They give voice to a stream of Chinese political thought that is probably more influential than liberal thought. As well as earnestly citing Xis speeches, these academics draw on ancient Chinese thinkers who counseled stern rulership, along with Western critics of liberal political traditions. Traditional Marxism is rarely cited; they are proponents of order, not revolution. Many of them make respectful nods in their papers to Carl Schmitt, the German legal theorist who supplied rightist leaders in the 1930s and the emerging Nazi regime with arguments for extreme executive power in times of crisis, Ryan Mitchell, an assistant professor of law at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, documented in a recent paper. Theyve provided the reasoning and justification, Fu Hualing, a professor of law at the University of Hong Kong, said of Chinas new authoritarian scholars. In a way, its the Carl Schmitt moment here. Chinas ideological landscape was more varied a decade ago, when Tian was a graduate student at Peking University, a traditionally more liberal campus. Censorship was lighter, and universities tolerated guarded discussion of liberal ideas in classrooms. Many scholars, including Tians dissertation adviser, Zhang Qianfan, argued that Hong Kong, with its robust judicial independence, could inspire similar steps in mainland China. I had also been nurtured by liberal scholars, Tian said. Such ideas have gone into sharp retreat since Xi took power in 2012. He began a drive to discredit ideas like universal human rights, separation of powers and other liberal concepts. Dissenting academics are maligned in the party-run news media and risk professional ruin. Xu Zhangrun, a law professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing, was detained in July and dismissed from his job after writing a stream of essays condemning the partys direction under Xi. Education authorities generously fund pro-party scholars for topics such as how to introduce security laws in Hong Kong. Chinese and foreign foundations that once supported less orthodox Chinese scholars have retrenched because of tightening official restrictions. More than fear and career rewards have driven this resurgence of authoritarian ideas in China. The global financial crisis of 2007, and the United States floundering response to the coronavirus pandemic, have reinforced Chinese views that liberal democracies are decaying, while China has prospered, defying predictions of the collapse of one-party rule. China is actually also following a path that the United States took, seizing opportunities, developing outward, creating a new world, Tian said. There is even a fervent hope that well overtake the West in another 30 years. Chinas authoritarian academics have proposed policies to assimilate ethnic minorities thoroughly. They have defended Xis abolition of a term limit on the presidency, opening the way for him to stay in power indefinitely. They have argued that Chinese-style rule by law is inseparable from rule by the Communist Party. And more recently they have served as intellectual warriors in Beijings efforts to subdue protest in Hong Kong. For them, law becomes a weapon, but its law thats subordinated to politics, said Sebastian Veg, a professor at the School of Advanced Studies in Social Sciences in Paris who has studied the rise of Chinas statist thinkers. Weve seen that at work in China, and now it seems to me were seeing it come to Hong Kong. For Hong Kong, these scholars have supplied arguments advancing Beijings drive for greater central control. Under the legal framework that defined Hong Kongs semiautonomy after its return to China in 1997, many in the territory assumed that it would mostly manage its own affairs for decades. Many believed that Hong Kong lawmakers and leaders would be left to develop national security legislation, which was required by that framework. But Xis government has pushed back, demanding greater influence. The authoritarian scholars, familiar with both Xis agenda and Hong Kong law, have distilled those demands into elaborate legal arguments. Several Beijing law professors earlier served as advisers to the Chinese governments office in Hong Kong, including Jiang Shigong and Chen Duanhong, both of Peking University. They declined to be interviewed. I dont think theyre necessarily setting the party line, but theyre helping to shape it, finding clever ways to put into words and laws what the party is trying to do, said Mitchell, of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. This is all happening through legislation, so their ideas matter. A Chinese government paper in 2014, which Jiang is widely credited with helping write, asserted that Beijing had comprehensive jurisdiction over Hong Kong, dismissing the idea that China should stay hands off. The framework that defined Hong Kongs status was written in the 1980s, when China was still weak and under the sway of foreign liberal ideas, he later said. They treat Hong Kong as if it were part of the West, and they treat the West as if it were the entire world, Jiang recently said of Hong Kongs protesters. Chinas rise has not, as some imagined, drawn Hong Kong society to trust the central authorities. After protesters occupied Hong Kong streets in 2014, he and other scholars pressed the case that China had the power to impose national security legislation there, rejecting the idea that such legislation should be left in the hands of reluctant Hong Kong authorities. The survival of the state comes first, and constitutional law must serve this fundamental objective, Chen, the Peking University academic, wrote in 2018, citing Schmitt, the authoritarian German jurist, to make the case for a security law in Hong Kong. When the state is in dire peril, Chen wrote, leaders could set aside the usual constitutional norms, in particular provisions for civic rights, and take all necessary measures. Chen submitted an internal study to the partys policymakers on introducing security legislation for Hong Kong, according to a Peking University report in 2018, over a year before the party publicly announced plans for such a law. Since Chinas legislature passed the security law in late June, he, Tian and allied Chinese scholars have energetically defended it in dozens of articles, interviews and news conferences. Chinese intellectuals, Tian suggested, will next confront worsening relations with the United States. We have to choose what side were on, including us scholars, right? he said. Sorry, the goal now is not Westernization; its the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. c.2020 The New York Times Company Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Monday announced the launch of a $5 million multimedia campaign to push the use of face masks to slow the spread of COVID-19, and said it was worthy of considering a fine for those who flout mask regulations. The ad campaign will carry the tagline it only works if you wear it and will focus on cities and counties in the state that have the most work to do, Pritzker said. Chicago is also cracking down on large parties after the city shut down a trap music warehouse event in the West Humboldt Park neighborhood over the weekend, officials said. The city shut down a party on Friday night that was scheduled to go until 4 a.m. the next morning. City officials took issue with the party because it was violating anti-coronavirus social distancing rules. Meanwhile, parents and teachers in Chicago and across the country are calling for schools to open safely or not at all. In Logan Square Monday morning, a group gathered to share their concerns about CPSs tentative fall plan a combination of in-person class and remote learning. The Chicago Teachers Union, which also hosted a protest and caravan to City Hall Monday, has strongly advocated for a remote-only start to the school year, as several other suburban and big-city districts have decided to do. Earlier on Monday, Illinois announced 1,298 new confirmed cases of COVID-19. The state also reported 10 additional deaths. Illinois now has 183,241 total known infections and 7,526 fatalities. Heres whats happening Monday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois: 6:58 p.m.: CPS has not decided to move to all-remote fall, contrary to NBC Nightly News report The NBC Nightly News incorrectly reported Monday evening that Chicago Public Schools will revert to all remote classes this fall. On the contrary, CPS has not decided to cancel in-person classes and as of Monday evening is still planning on a hybrid of in-person and remote learning when school starts alter Labor Day. The TV reporter erroneously stated that, following a report of a coronavirus case in a reopened school in Indiana, Chicago Public Schools, the third largest in the nation, announced theyre moving away from their planned hybrid system to all-remote learning. CPS spokesperson told the Tribune thats not true, and the district is still planning on releasing a final fall plan later this week. Hannah Leone 6:30 p.m.: At least 18 Illinois football players tested positive for COVID-19 since returning to campus in June At least 18 Illinois football players tested positive for COVID-19 since returning for workouts in June, the school announced Monday. Twenty-three athletes in all and two staff members tested positive, according to a university news release that said the 100-plus football players on campus accounted for greater than 75% of the positive tests. Illinois said it has tested 164 athletes weekly since they returned in stages for voluntary workouts this summer, with more than 1,200 tests administered. The school said the overall positive test rate was less than 1.9%. Four athletes experienced symptoms but none required hospitalization, according to the university. Three cases remain active, and those players as well as teammates theyve come in contact with remain in quarantine. Illinois will not release the number of quarantined players, an athletic department spokesman said. Illinois did not suspend workouts at any time. Read more here. Shannon Ryan 5:07 p.m.: Cook County recommends further COVID-19 restrictions for suburban bars, other businesses to voluntarily follow Cook County officials issued health guidance Monday that recommends but does not require that restaurants and other businesses in the suburbs further restrict in-person services to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The Cook County Department of Public Health is asking suburban bars, fitness clubs, personal care businesses and others to follow these guidelines as COVID-19 rates for people in their 20s have soared to be about 2 1/2 times higher than they were at the end of March. That age group now has the highest rates of COVID-19, according to CCDPH. We get it. Its summer. Young people are tired of the restrictions, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle wrote in a statement. But the virus is still with us. We need to get the word out and encourage young people to be patient. Physical distancing and wearing a mask is the minimum we need people to do. Under the guidelines, establishments that serve alcohol without a food license are asked to limit consumption to outdoor service only. The maximum party size for restaurants and bars should be curtailed to six people, whether indoors or outdoors. Indoor fitness classes should be reduced to 10 people maximum, while any personal care businesses should discontinue services that require removing a face mask, such as facials or shaves, according to the CCDPH guidelines. Similar to restrictions already enacted in Chicago, the recommendations also call for residential property managers to limit guests to six people per unit. Read more here. Alice Yin 4:48 p.m. (update): University of Illinois will require two COVID-19 tests weekly for students and faculty with in-person classes at Urbana-Champaign campus Students and faculty participating in face-to-face classes at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign this fall must be tested for COVID-19 twice a week, the university announced Monday. The mandatory saliva-based testing, developed by UIUC researchers, will begin for students on Aug. 16, a week before classes are set to start. About one-third of the classes at that campus will be fully in-person or include in-person components while the rest, including large lecture courses, will be offered remotely, according to spokeswoman Robin Kaler. If everyone does their part to maximize the safety of our entire community, we have the ability to provide modified in-person delivery of our missions, Chancellor Robert Jones said in a news release. The new details help outline UIUCs strategy for restarting some educational activities on campus while also adapting to the coronavirus pandemic. As part of the new rules, students or faculty planning to visit campus for any reason this fall such as grabbing supplies from a building must first get tested and receive their results no more than four days prior to arriving. Those who test positive for COVID-19 must quarantine for 14 days either in campus dorms that have been set aside for this use or in an off-campus residence. Read more here. Elyssa Cherney 3:28 p.m.: Northwestern pauses football workouts after a player tests positive for COVID-19 Northwestern football has paused workouts after a player tested positive for COVID-19, the Tribune has learned. An NU spokesperson confirmed Monday that the program would not resume workouts until Wednesday at the earliest. Friday is the allowable start date for contact practices, per NCAA rules. As a result of the positive test and contact tracing initiatives, some NU football players have been placed in quarantine. Those who have come within six feet of the player for a specified period of time will need to test negative before being cleared to leave their residence or return to workouts. The Wildcats last workout was Friday. Read more here. Teddy Greenstein 2:05 p.m.: In a sweeping lawsuit, 42 Chicago businesses seek insurance coverage for COVID-related business losses In a sweeping lawsuit, prominent Chicago restaurant groups including Lettuce Entertain You and Gibsons are fighting their insurance carriers over denial of coverage for lost income related to COVID-19. The suit, filed Thursday in Cook County Circuit Court, is one of hundreds businesses have filed against insurers over the last several months as the health crisis, and shutdowns mandated by the government, slashed revenues. It is notable for its breadth: there are 42 plaintiffs, mostly Chicago restaurants, and 18 insurers listed as defendants. The suit alleges shutdown orders caused hundreds of millions of dollars in losses that should be covered by the policyholders business interruption insurance. Normally such policies cover income losses when property is damaged from a fire or other physical events. The plaintiffs, represented by Jenner and Block, include a diverse roster of restaurants, from the chain Roti Mediterranean Grill to neighborhood businesses such as Wicker Parks Bangers and Lace and the South Loop mainstay Mannys Deli. The DuSable Museum of African American History and the Peggy Notebart Museum are also listed as plaintiffs in the suit. Read more here. Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz 1:58 p.m.: Lightfoots administration shuts down weekend warehouse event as city looks again at cracking down on large parties Mayor Lori Lightfoot is again cracking down on large parties after the city shut down a trap music warehouse event in the West Humboldt Park neighborhood over the weekend, officials said. The city shut down a party at 4106 W. Chicago on Friday night that was scheduled to go until 4 a.m. the next morning, Business Affairs and Consumer Protection commissioner Rosa Escareno told reporters. We want all party planners or party-goers to be warned large events and gatherings that violate the health order put our entire community at risk and will not be tolerated, Escareno said. Escarenos department will team with the building, fire and police departments to step up enforcement actions against large parties. City officials took issue with the trap warehouse party, which was promoted via Event Brite, because it was violating anti-coronavirus social distancing rules. 1:28 p.m.: Lord & Taylor, Mens Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank seek to close 10 Chicago-area stores as list of chains in bankruptcy continues to grow Lord & Taylor and the owner of Mens Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank became the latest retailers to seek bankruptcy protection and announce plans to close stores, including 10 in the Chicago area. Retailers already were struggling to keep up with changes in consumers shopping habits. Then came the coronavirus pandemic, which hit bricks-and-mortar chains hard, especially in areas where stay-at-home orders forced stores to close and kept shoppers home. Lord & Taylors bankruptcy comes less than a year after clothing-rental startup Le Tote bought it from Hudsons Bay Co., which also owns Saks Fifth Avenue. Le Tote, which filed for Chapter 11 protection Sunday in the Eastern District of Virginia, said it is closing 19 of Lord & Taylors 38 stores, including one in Northbrook. Read more here. Lauren Zumbach (Updated 1:20 p.m.) 11:36 a.m.: Illinois launches $5 million mask awareness campaign, Pritzker opens door to fines for those who disregard rules Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Monday announced the launch of a $5 million multimedia campaign to push the use of face masks to slow the spread of COVID-19, and said it was worthy of considering a fine for those who flout mask regulations. The ad campaign will carry the tagline it only works if you wear it and will focus on cities and counties in the state that have the most work to do, Pritzker said. The governor launched the effort in Springfield, days after Sangamon County was one of 11 counties in the state flagged by the Illinois Department of Public Health as at a warning level based on COVID-19 metrics. The campaign will respond to the latest trends in cases and mobility at the county level, concentrating the spending on areas of the state where COVID-19 metrics indicate a potential resurgence. 12:57 p.m.: Second stimulus check updates: Coronavirus relief bill remains up in air as negotiations are slow, grinding Slow, grinding negotiations on a huge COVID-19 relief bill are set to resume Monday afternoon, but the path forward promises to be challenging and time is already growing short. Republicans are griping that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi won't drop her expansive wish list even as concerns are mounting that the White House needs to be more sure-footed in the negotiations. Both the Trump administration negotiating team and top Capitol Hill Democrats remain far apart, and talks since Saturday when the combatants announced modest progress have yet to lend momentum. Both sides used television appearances over the weekend to showcase their differences. Ahead of Mondays talks, all sides predict a long slog ahead despite the lapse of a $600-per-week supplemental COVID-19 jobless benefit, the beginning of school season and the call of lawmakers cherished August recess. Several more days of talks are expected, if not more. Read more here. Associated Press 12:34 p.m.: 1,298 new known COVID-19 cases, 10 additional deaths Illinois announced 1,298 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Monday. The state also reported 10 additional deaths. Illinois now has 183,241 total known infections and 7,526 fatalities. Chicago Tribune staff 12:33 p.m.: A Chicago farmers market kicks out a vendor alleging COVID-19 safety violations A longtime Chicago farmers market vendor is alleging that it was targeted unfairly after it was recently removed from the Wicker Park Farmers Market. Nichols Farm & Orchard, based outside Marengo, was absent from Sundays Wicker Park Farmers Market after the local Chamber of Commerce removed the vendor, citing instances of noncompliance with some of the COVID-19 health regulations for our market on multiple occasions, according a statement from the Wicker Park Bucktown Chamber of Commerce. A July 28 post on Nichols Facebook page claimed that the manager of the farmers market was trying to kick us out of the market mid season without just cause. She has had a personal problem with our farm and staff for several seasons and feels this is just cause to disinvite us from the market. This is harassment. The farm has sold at multiple markets in the Chicago area for years and also supplies several area restaurants with produce. Read more here. Adam Lukach 12:25 p.m.: CTU president says Mayor Lori Lightfoot doesnt have the guts to close the schools The Chicago Teachers Union president, who led teachers in an 11-day strike last fall, said Monday that city and school officials are putting it on us to close the schools because the mayor doesnt have the guts to do it herself. Jesse Sharkey spoke at a rally to protest the CPS proposal for fall to combine in-person and remote learning. The union is strongly pushing for an all-remote start to school. CTU leaders have stopped short of saying they would stage another strike if schools reopen, though its statewide affiliate, the Illinois Federation of Teachers, has said that option is on the table, along with potential remedies in court. The mayor does not have the guts to close the schools, Sharkey said outside CTU headquarters Monday. Theyre putting it on us to close the schools. Thats what we feel like is happening. Andrea Parker, a teacher at Fulton Elementary, said during the union rally that having a plan for if something happens at a school is not enough. Its not a matter of if; its a matter of when, and I do not want to be the when. I do not want my students to be the when, Parker said. I do not want to be the sacrificial lamb because youre forcing us to go into an environment that is dangerous. Read more here. Hannah Leone 12:02 p.m.: Chicago Public Schools parent: My kids are not an experiment Parents and teachers are taking to the streets in Chicago and elsewhere Monday to protests plans for reopening schools this fall. In Logan Square, a group that included parents, children and other community members gathered to say they still have concerns about the plan Chicago Public Schools has proposed for fall that includes a hybrid of in-school and remote instruction. One parent on hand, Sandy Viveros, 28, She said she is disappointed in the plans CPS has provided and doesnt yet feel comfortable want to send her children, aged 5 and 10, to school. Theyre not really giving us enough information about what their safety (plan) is going to be. And also, Im here because my kids are not an experiment, thats basically what theyre trying to do, Viveros said. Another speaker said she has seven children and the past two months have been very difficult for me and my family, she said, adding shes asking CPS for a realistic plan for school in the fall. This virus is not a game, she said. Read more here. Christen Johnson 11:58 a.m.: Michigan lawmaker tests positive for coronavirus, prompts cancellation of the legislative session The Michigan Legislature on Monday canceled this week's session and hearings after a Lansing-area state senator tested positive for the coronavirus through screening required by his service in the Michigan Army National Guard. Republican Sen. Tom Barrett, of Charlotte, said he was told the results Sunday afternoon after being tested Friday. The 39-year-old said he was tested because the guard implemented a COVID-19 screening policy for all soldiers one week before they are to depart for training events. He said he tested positive despite having taken reasonable precautions. Videos show him wearing a mask during several committee meetings last week and the week before. Read more here. Associated Press 8:53 a.m.: Federal PPP money is gone. COVID-19 still threatens Americas restaurants. Now what? The check has been cashed, the money spent, and beleaguered restaurant owners across America are looking down at empty wallets. Government coronavirus loans in the spring helped eating establishments rehire laid-off employees and ride out the pandemic's initial surge and wave of shutdown orders. But that Paycheck Protection Program money has now been spent at many restaurants, leaving them in the same precarious position they were in during outbreaks early days: Thousands of restaurants are being forced to close down again on mandates from state and local officials combating the viruss resurgence, particularly in the South and West. Read more here. Associated Press 7:25 a.m. State to launch new public awareness campaign to work against COVID-19 spread Gov. J.B. Pritzker was scheduled Monday to launch a new public awareness campaign aimed at reducing the spread of COVID-19, according to his press office. Pritzker was scheduled to hold a news conference late Monday morning at the Springfield headquarters of the states emergency management agency to announce the campaign. The announcement comes as the state has seen a resurgence of coronavirus cases and questions about whether some regions designated for COVID-19 response might have to pull back in their opening up. Chicago Tribune staff 7:10 a.m.: Chicago Teachers Union, parents, students to rally for all-remote start to school year Chicago Teachers Union members, parents and Chicago Public Schools students planned to hold rallies Monday to press the Board of Education to move to an all-remote start of the school year, capped with a noon rally at City Hall. After neighborhood rallies Monday morning, including at the teachers union West Side headquarters, CTU members and others were scheduled to caravan to City Hall for a rally. The events are part of a national day of action sponsored by a coalition of teachers unions and activist groups, including the Democratic Socialists of America, whose aim is to advance a racial justice agenda in public education, in particular by organizing for police-free schools, according to the group. Chicago Tribune staff 7 a.m.: East Aurora schools will now start with remote learning this fall, and West Aurora schools could follow suit East Aurora School District 131 and West Aurora School District 129 are looking to begin the school year with all-remote learning due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Both of Auroras school districts announced Friday that they are looking to reverse course from their original hybrid learning plans released a week earlier because of the current rate of COVID-19 cases in the area. East Aurora officials said the district is going to all-remote learning this fall, while in West Aurora the superintendent will recommend to the School Board Monday night that the district also go to all remote learning for the first quarter of the new school year. Read more here. Linda Girardi 6:45 a.m.: Naperville-area school districts reverse course, will have students do remote learning through October Indian Prairie School District 204 and Naperville School District 203 students will do e-learning from home through October, reversing earlier plans to resume in-person classes on a staggered basis in September, the districts announced Friday. D204 Superintendent Adrian Talley said in a note to parents that the change was made after a review of the latest guidelines released by the Illinois Department of Public Health, Illinois State Board of Education and local health departments. More than 100 administrators and teachers were involved in creating the Return to School Plan, he said. D204s revised plan will be discussed at Monday nights school board meeting. Read more here. Naperville Sun staff 6 a.m.: Suburbs didnt want to be linked with Chicago over coronavirus restrictions. Now many areas are showing positivity rates higher than the city. Some suburban and rural leaders got their wish when their counties were separated from Chicagos for purposes of monitoring the coronavirus. But now officials warn that many collar counties are seeing higher rates of positive tests than the city, which could prompt tighter restrictions. In a region where nursing homes once accounted for the majority of cases, health officials say now large gatherings of young people without proper precautions are sparking outbreaks. Positivity rates have been rising in the counties surrounding Chicago, prompting Gov. J.B. Pritzker to ask local officials to start tightening the leash on COVID-19 restrictions. The latest warnings show an evolution in the spread of the pandemic, which has been a factor in the deaths of more than 7,500 people in the state. Read more here. Robert McCoppin Here are three stories from this weekend about COVID-19. From left: Counselor to President Hope Hicks, Assistant to the President and White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications Dan Scavino, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, and White House Staff Secretary Derek Lyons walk across the South Lawn upon return to the White House in Washington, DC. Random coronavirus tests at the White House will now become mandatory for staff in the Executive Office of the President, a White House official told CNBC on Monday. The heightened level of enforcement with the random testing policy comes "as part of our ongoing efforts to protect the health and safety of the entire White House Complex," the official said. Multiple people who work in the White House have tested positive for the virus including at least one who was in close proximity to President Donald Trump. The random testing policy had already been in place on a voluntary basis for "several months," the official said. Politico, however, reported that White House staff had received an email Monday morning informing them that random Covid-19 testing was starting that day. "Failure to report to testing will be considered a refusal to test," the email said, according to the news outlet. More than 4.6 million coronavirus cases have been confirmed in the U.S., and at least 154,860 people have died, data from Johns Hopkins University shows. The White House has previously implemented rules to prevent transmission of Covid-19 on its grounds. After Trump's personal valet and Vice President Mike Pence's press secretary Katie Miller both tested positive in May, The White House started requiring staffers entering the West Wing to wear facial coverings. Staffers in close contact with Trump are receiving regular testing. But The Tampa Bay Times, citing the White House Correspondents' Association, reported later Monday that a reporter who recently traveled with Trump to Florida has tested positive. Anthony WALLACE /AFP/Getty HONG KONGJuly has been a month of constant struggle for this city in recent years, but especially since the protests last summer, which raised the stakes in the quest for universal suffrage. This year is even more chaotic: A third wave of COVID-19 infections has revived worries that Hong Kong, one of the densest cities in the world, may soon see an overwhelmed hospital system. Meanwhile, some of the pro-democracy movements organizers, still in their teens, have been targeted by the newly formed secret police, taken away in the night. And now, in truly Trumpian fashion, Septembers election for legislators seats has been called off, wiping away what was expected to be a landslide win for the oppositionand keeping some of Beijings puppets in their seats for at least another year. Twitter Accounts Deleted. Social Media Scrubbed. Spooked Hong Kong Braces for New Security Law On Friday local time, Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam said she had made the decision to delay the September vote, citing the COVID-19 pandemic as a risk for the three million or more people who may come out to cast their ballots. Lam also mentioned that candidates have been unable to organize campaign events due to social distancing rules, and that international travel restrictions prevent eligible voters who are overseas from returning to the city. But few in the city are buying into her talking points. Just one day before Lams announcement, which she said is backed by higher authorities in the Chinese Communist Party, 12 pro-democracy candidates were disqualified from running. These include 23-year-old Joshua Wongone of the activists who gave a face to the Umbrella Movement of 2014 and is the subject of a Netflix documentaryas well as four current legislators. The COVID-19 pandemic has given cover to Hong Kongs government to limit opposition action. Public gatherings of more than two people have been banned. Now, an anti-mask law, which was meant to counter protesters concealment of their identities, coexists alongside a mandate to wear face masks for public health and safety reasons, giving the police force an extra opening to harass and arrest anyone in the city. Story continues Beijings national security law that applies to Hong Kong came into effect on July 1. It indicates that any individual involved in sedition, subversion, treason, or collusion with foreign forces may face up to 10 years in prison. The vaguely defined law has sparked alarm in the city, and the Hong Kong Bar Association said it is designed to erode the high degree of autonomy that the citys population once had access to. News that the September election may be called off has been circulating in Hong Kong for days. People in the city are not surprised by Lams move, because the democratic camps primaries held three weeks ago, with more than 600,000 people participating in a straw poll, pointed to crushing defeat for establishment figures, repeating a landslide win achieved by the pro-democracy opposition camp in the voting booth last November. Sensing that the system isnt rigged enough in favor of its proxies in Hong Kong, Beijing called the primaries a serious provocation that ran counter to the national security law, and claimed that foreign forces may have facilitated or even orchestrated the process. There are recent examples that tell us a voting day can be organized safely during the pandemic. South Korea held its legislative election in April this year, then Singapore had its general election in July. By following a few simple rules that we are all familiar with nowmaintaining distance from one another, masks on always, keeping hands and shared surfaces cleana vote can take place. And Hong Kongers have been highly disciplined for months, managing to flatten and squash the curve without an official lockdown. Businesses formulated work-from-home arrangements for their staff. The population stocked up on food and limited social gatherings. Public areas are cleaned regularly, often hourly. The recent surge in infectionsthe citys third wavewas brought on largely by people who had waivers for the mandatory 14-day quarantine, granted by Lams administration to airline crews, sailors, commercial truck drivers, executives of listed companies, and other individuals who were given special permission. In all, more than 250,000 people skipped quarantine in Hong Kong after traveling internationally between February and June. Now, the city is adding about 100 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 infections each day. The Hong Kong Police Force is using this lull on the streets to catch up with visible, high-profile organizers of the anti-government or pro-democracy movement. Police officers have been visiting shopping malls and universities to gather security camera feeds, and they have arrested the administrators of some Telegram groups that disseminate various kinds of information, like street protest tactics. And the newly formed secret police unit launched its first operation this week, taking into custody four individuals aged 16 to 21 for inciting secession. The three men and one woman include the former leader of a pro-independence group, Studentlocalism, which disbanded on June 30, one day before the dreaded security law came into effect. These arrests, along with the suspension of Septembers election, have angered a city of people who are seeking a small say in how they are governed. Think of it as the death of democracy cut by cut, where the Chinese Communist Party and its proxies in Hong Kong slowly slice away at the structures through which the city seeks self-determination. There is never a killing blow, just a new wound every day. And what about the massive marches and rallies of last summer that had seven-figure attendance, or the street-level, black bloc resistance that drew inspiration from Bruce Lees be water philosophy? They are unlikely to return any time soon. Fear and fury permeates the cityfear not so much of persecution, but of the uncertainty that has come to define life in Hong Kong more than the pandemic; and fury fueled by the indignation that seethes through an understanding that the CCP and its puppets do not recognize Hong Kong as a place for people who were born and bred here. Donald Trump, who once said its great that CCP leader Xi Jinping ripped up term limits to become president for life in China, has flirted with postponing elections in the United States. That vision came true one day after he said it, on the other side of the world, where an authoritarian government is rolling back one freedom after another. 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. President Donald Trump said Monday that he had fired the chair of the Tennessee Valley Authority, saying the executive was getting paid too much and was hiring foreign workers. There was some confusion, as the president also railed about the pay for the TVAs chief executive and demanded his pay -- now $8 million, Trump said -- be trimmed to no more than $500,000. Trump told reporters at the White House that he was formally removing the authoritys chair of the board and another member of the board, and he threatened to remove other board members if they keep hiring foreign labor. The board members are recommended by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. An Alabamian is chair of the TVA board. James Skip Thompson of Decatur, is the president and CEO of Corporate Billing, a subsidiary of National Bank of Commerce, Birmingham. Previously, he served as the president and CEO of both First American Bank in Decatur and First Commercial Bank in Huntsville, as well as serving on the board of Decatur Utilities. His term expires May 18, 2021. The TVA is a federally owned corporation created in 1933 to provide flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing and economic development to the Tennessee Valley, a region that was hard hit by the Great Depression. The region includes parts of north Alabama, Tennessee Mississippi and Kentucky as well as small sections of Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia. Trump said the TVA board must immediately hire a new chief executive officer who puts the interests of Americans first. We want the TVA to take action on this immediately. ... Let this serve as a warning to any federally appointed board: If you betray American workers, you will hear two words: Youre fired. U.S. Tech Workers, a nonprofit that wants to limit visas given to foreign technology workers, took out an ad to persuade Trump to stop the TVA from outsourcing much of its information technology division. The group, led by Kevin Lynn, criticized the TVA for furloughing its own workers and replacing them with contractors using foreign workers with H-1B visas. Trump made the announcement as he signed an executive order to require all federal agencies to complete an internal audit to prove they are not replacing qualified American workers with people from other countries. The White House said the order will help prevent federal agencies from unfairly replacing American workers with lower cost foreign labor. The order followed the TVA's announcement that it would outsource 20% of its technology jobs to companies based in foreign countries. TVA's action could cause more than 200 highly skilled American tech workers in Tennessee to lose their jobs to foreign workers hired on temporary work visas, according to the White House. In a statement, the TVA supported the executive order. We want to ensure that U.S. employees have good opportunities through our employment and supply chain practices. We look forward to working with the White House, continuing a dialogue and supporting future policies in this direction. All TVA employees are U.S.-based citizens. All jobs related to TVAs Information Technology department must be performed in the U.S. by individuals who may legally work in this country. In a statement sent to AL.com in June, the TVAs Malinda Hunter said outsourcing has no impact in Alabama. TVA and its IT department are committed to continuously improving how we support the Tennessee Valley. To support that goal, the IT organization have been working on a year-plus long project to modernize how it provides its services. Union leadership has been involved with this process, which has included benchmarking other utilities and federal agencies as well as completing detailed internal assessments. They found that TVA was lagging other utilities and federal agencies in moving from a customized internal software development process to using more modern software tools in a cloud-based system. A difficult but necessary decision was made to improve TVAs process, which unfortunately did impact 108 individuals. Weve been communicating with those impacted employees for several months and 37 have already found new TVA positions while others have voluntarily left the company. The remaining 62 individuals were presented their final notifications in early June, starting a 90-day period where they will continue to receive full pay and benefits while taking advantage of an extensive outplacement effort, including contacts with the companies who will now be performing some of these roles. Unfortunately, there is a great deal of misinformation being spread about this process. As I previously mentioned, this process has been going on for nearly two years, so it is completely unrelated to COVID-19. There is no offshoring of jobs. The three companies chosen to do this work all have extensive U.S.-based operations and already perform these functions for other federal agencies, including the Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security and Department of the Navy. As a federal agency, TVAs contracts require all work to be completed in the United States. While we respect that the union was not pleased with the result of the process, its important to remember that they were actively involved. Our goal remains to treat impacted employees respectfully and professionally as we continue to work with them during this transition. See how the TVA estimates its impact in Alabama. AL.coms Paul Gattis contributed to this report. It will be updated. Updated to reflect the TVA statement was received in June. Transphorm, Inc. ("Transphorm" or the "Company") (OTCQB: TGAN)-a pioneer in the development and manufacturing of high reliability, high performance gallium nitride (GaN) power semiconductors-today announced the Company received approval from FINRA for its common stock to be listed and quoted on the Over-the-Counter (OTC) market. Transphorm will trade on the OTCQB under the symbol "TGAN" as of market open today. Transphorm's co-founders, Umesh Mishra, Ph.D., CTO, and Primit Parikh, Ph.D., COO, commented, "We and our entire worldwide team are extremely proud to have Transphorm be publicly listed and commence trading, marking an important milestone in the Company's evolution. The listing of our common stock provides both existing and prospective investors with direct access to invest in Transphorm and participate in our future anticipated growth as we continue to scale Transphorm's high-voltage GaN products for power conversion applications across our growing base of customers." Transphorm's broad product portfolio is comprised of both 650 volt and 900 volt GaN FETs for high-voltage power conversion applications ranging from 30 watts to over 10 kilowatts, including the industry's first JEDEC (commercial/industrial) and AEC-Q101 (automotive) qualified 650 volt devices and the only 900 volt GaN device on the market. With an IP portfolio that exceeds 1,000 patents, the Company's best-in-class products offer the industry's leading quality and reliability (Q+R) backed by field performance of less than 1 failure per billion hours of operation spanning across 65 watt (adapters/fast chargers) products to 4 kilowatt (power supplies/UPS) products. The Company's AEC-qualified devices are currently being evaluated by electric vehicle power conversion suppliers and design partners for design-in on future automotive applications. Today, Transphorm is actively ramping volume production in support of the growing adoption of its GaN power FETs, targeting power adapter, computing, uninterruptible power supply (UPS), data center and communications infrastructure applications. Transphorm is pleased to acknowledge that B. Riley FBR served as the Company's capital markets advisor through the quotation process. B. Riley FBR is the operating name for B. Riley Securities, Inc., a full-service investment bank and subsidiary of B. Riley Financial, Inc., is based in Los Angeles with offices across the United States, providing corporate finance, research, sales and trading services. Additionally, the Company will be hosting a Business Update Conference Call in late August. The conference call will be conducted by Transphorm's CEO, Mario Rivas, co-founder and COO, Primit Parikh, Ph.D. and CFO, Cameron McAulay. Access information for the live and archived replay of the conference call will be made available in advance via press release and also posted in the Investor Relations Events section of Transphorm's website at www.transphormusa.com/investors. About Transphorm, Inc. Transphorm, Inc. (www.transphormusa.com), a global leader in the GaN revolution, designs and manufactures high performance and high reliability GaN semiconductors for high voltage power conversion applications. Having one of the largest Power GaN IP portfolios of more than 1,000 owned or licensed patents, Transphorm produces the industry's first JEDEC and AEC-Q101 qualified high voltage GaN FETs. Its vertically integrated device business model allows for innovation at every development stage: design, fabrication, device, and application support. Transphorm's innovations are moving power electronics beyond the limitations of silicon to achieve over 99% efficiency, 40% more power density and 20% lower system cost. Transphorm is headquartered in Goleta, California and has manufacturing operations in Goleta and Aizu, Japan. For more information, please visit www.transphormusa.com. Follow us on Twitter @transphormusa. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements (including within the meaning of Section 21E of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 27A of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended) concerning the Company, expected listing and trading on OTCQB, the Company's technology and future anticipated growth. Forward-looking statements generally include statements that are predictive in nature and depend upon or refer to future events or conditions, and include words such as "may," "will," "should," "would," "expect," "plan," "believe," "intend," "look forward," and other similar expressions among others. Statements that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on current beliefs and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance. Actual results could differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement as a result of various factors, including, without limitation: risks related to Transphorm's operations, such as additional financing requirements and access to capital; competition; the ability of Transphorm to protect its intellectual property rights; and other risks set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by applicable law, the Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statement, or to make any other forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200803005174/en/ Contacts: Investor Contacts: Shelton Group Brett Perry Leanne Sievers 1-214-272-0070 1-949-224-3874 sheltonir@sheltongroup.com Company Contact: Cameron McAulay Chief Financial Officer 1-805-456-1300 ext. 140 cmcaulay@transphormusa.com Its been a long, hard two weeks for thousands of people in northern California impacted by the recent devastating wildfires and the American Red Cross is there, providing shelter and comfort to those in need with the help of community partners and volunteers. People impacted by these fires have now been out of their homes since mid-August and for some, the fires have taken everything. As of Friday morning, more than 1,700 homes may have been destroyed and at least 857,000 acres burned by the largest fires the LNU Lightning Complex fire, SCU Lightning Complex fire and the CZU August Complex fire. Two fires the LNU Lightning Complex fire and the SCU Lightning Complex fire are among Californias three largest wildfires in recorded history. Firefighters have made great progress in containing these fires, but record-setting heat and dry weather conditions are forecast for the holiday weekend. The fires are still burning, although slowly being contained, said Denise Everhart, Division Disaster Executive, Pacific Division, for the Red Cross. People have been in hotels or shelters for more than two weeks. There are some that have been out of work for that long. They need food, prescription assistance, someone to listen and information about their evacuation. And the Red Cross is there for them. RED CROSS RESPONSE Hundreds of Red Crossers are working around the clock to provide food, shelter, relief supplies and comfort to the thousands of people affected by the wildfires. Several thousand people are still being provided emergency lodging by the Red Cross and our partners in shelters and hotels. With the help of partners, the Red Cross has already served more than 43,000 meals and snacks and distributed more than 10,700 relief items to people in need. Volunteers have also provided more than 6,000 individual care contacts to help people with medical or disability needs or provide emotional and spiritual support during this challenging time. FINDING SHELTER To find an open shelter, go to the nearest temporary evacuation point, visit redcross.org or view open shelters through the Red Cross Emergency app. If you dont have access to a computer or smart phone, call 800-RED-CROSS (800-733-2767) to be directed to sheltering options near you. DOWNLOAD RED CROSS APPS The Red Cross Emergency app can help keep you and your loved ones safe with real-time alerts, shelter locations and safety advice on wildfires. The Red Cross First Aid app provides instant access to information on handling the most common first aid emergencies. Download these apps for free by searching for American Red Cross in your app store or at redcross.org/apps. It's been a busy wildfire season in California and the Red Cross has been helping. Find out what Red Cross disaster workers have done since July here. HOW YOU CAN HELP You can make a difference in the lives of people impacted by the California wildfires by visiting redcross.org, calling 800-RED-CROSS or texting the word CAWILDFIRES to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Donations enable the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from these disasters. This includes providing food, shelter, relief supplies, emotional support and other assistance. Ensure your donation helps people affected by the California wildfires by choosing that option on redcross.org/donate or 800-RED-CROSS. If you have the time, you can make a significant impact as a Red Cross volunteer. Review our most urgently needed volunteer positions here: http://redcross.org/volunteertoday. WILDFIRE SAFETY STEPS Dont return home until officials say its safe to do so. Inspect the roof immediately and extinguish any sparks or embers. Wildfires may have left embers that could reignite. Check your home for embers that could cause fires. Look for signs of a fire including smoke or sparks. Avoid damaged or downed power lines, poles and wires. Keep your animals under your direct control. Hidden embers and hot spots could burn them. Wet down debris to minimize breathing in dust particles. Wear leather gloves and shoes with heavy soles. Throw out any food that has been exposed to heat, smoke or soot. CORPORATIONS, FOUNDATIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS HELP The generous donations from members of the Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and the Disaster Responder Program enable the American Red Cross to prepare communities for disasters big and small, respond whenever and wherever disasters occur and help families during the recovery process. ADGP $1 Million members are: Amazon; American Airlines; Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Anthem Foundation; Bank of America; Caterpillar Foundation; Costco Wholesale; Delta Air Lines; Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation; FedEx; The Home Depot Foundation; Latter-day Saint Charities; Lilly Endowment Inc.; Marathon Petroleum Foundation, Inc.; Microsoft Corp.; Nationwide Foundation; State Farm; UPS; VSP Global; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; The Walt Disney Company; and Wells Fargo. ADGP $500,000 members are: Altria Group; Aon; Capital One; Citi Foundation; The Clorox Company; The Coca-Cola Foundation; Darden Foundation; Delta Dental Community Care Foundation; Discover; Edison International; Energy Transfer/Sunoco Foundation; Fidelity Charitable Trustees Initiative; Ford Motor Company; Fox Corporation; General Motors; Grainger; HCA Healthcare; IBM Corporation; International Paper; The J.M. Smucker Company; Johnson Controls Foundation; The Kroger Co. Foundation; LHC Group; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; Merck Foundation; Mondelez International Foundation; New Balance Foundation; PayPal; PepsiCo Foundation; Progressive Insurance; PwC Charitable Foundation; San Manuel Band of Mission Indians; Sands Cares; Southwest Airlines; The Starbucks Foundation; Takeda Pharmaceuticals; Target; The TJX Companies, Inc.; Toyota; United Airlines; The USAA Foundation, Inc.; Visa Foundation; and The Wawa Foundation. Disaster Responder Program members are: 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe; American Express; Assurant; AstraZeneca; AT&T; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; Avangrid Foundation; The Ball Foundation; Barclays; BMW of North America; CarMax; Choice Hotels International; Cisco Foundation; CNA Insurance; Consumer Cellular; CSX; DICKS Sporting Goods Foundation; Dominion Energy; Duke Energy; Duke Realty; Equitable; Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation; Harbor Freight Tools Foundation, LLC; Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation; HP Foundation; Humble Bundle; The Kraft Heinz Company Foundation; Lenovo; Liberty Mutual Insurance; Mastercard; Neiman Marcus Group; Northrop Grumman; Northwestern Mutual and the Northwestern Mutual Foundation; Old Dominion Freight Line; The Pfizer Foundation; Procter & Gamble; Prudential Financial; Raytheon Technologies; Rodan + Fields Prescription for Change Foundation; Ryder System, Inc.; Security Finances Lending Hand Foundation; Southeastern Grocers Home of BI-LO, Fresco y Mas, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie; Tata Consultancy Services; TD Ameritrade; Trane Technologies Charitable Foundation; U-Haul International; and U.S. Bank Foundation. Y. Padmavati was found to have been infected with the disease, an official said on Monday. "As Padmavati's sample result turned positive, she has also been admitted to the privately-run Manipal Hospital where Yediyurappa is under treatment for the virus," an official of the Chief Minister's Office told IANS in Bengaluru. Yediyurappa, 78, has five children, including two sons and three daughters. "Though the Chief Minister's eldest son ... 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 New York The check has arrived and beleaguered restaurant owners across America are looking down on their empty wallets. Government coronavirus loans in the spring helped eating establishments rehire laid-off employees and ride out the pandemic's initial surge and wave of shutdown orders. But that Paycheck Protection Program money has now been spent at many restaurants, leaving them in the same precarious position they were in during outbreak's early days: Thousands of restaurants are being forced to close down again on mandates from state and local officials combating the virus' resurgence, particularly in the South and West. And even in parts of the country where the outbreak appears contained, restaurants' revenue is far below normal because social distancing requirements and wary diners mean fewer tables, fewer customers and limited hours. John Pepper used a PPP loan to pay employees and reopen four of his eight Boloco restaurants when Massachusetts lifted its shutdown order in early May. But with the money spent and business at the restaurants down as much as 70 percent, Pepper had to again close two locations. The staff of 125 he had before the virus outbreak is down to 50. "A lot of this is out of our hands at this point," Pepper says. "At this moment, I don't see getting my full payroll back." Congress is debating another relief bill that potentially will have more help for small businesses, but even with more loan or grant money, restaurants will remain at the mercy of the virus that has decimated their business. The virus' resurgence has prompted officials in California, Texas, Florida and other states to order restaurants shut again. In the Northeast and other parts of the country where infection rates appear more stable, no one expects limits on inside dining to be lifted anytime soon. Restaurants generally have a low profit margin, between 5 percent and 6 percent, and they achieve that only if they have a full house virtually every day, says Sean Kennedy, executive vice president for the trade group National Restaurant Association. They also tend to have only about two weeks of cash on hand, making them highly vulnerable when their sales are down. "They aren't designed to have an on-off switch. They're designed to be used seven days a week, 14 to 15 hours a day at 100 percent of capacity," Kennedy says. Gerry Cea was forced to shut his Miami restaurant, Cafe Prima Pasta, from March into May when the outbreak first began. Now he has again closed the dining room as local officials try to contain the virus; the Miami/Dade area is one of Florida's hit hardest by the virus. Cea is still able to serve customers outside, but the intense South Florida heat and frequent summer rains are limiting him to about 40 diners a night instead of the hundreds he served before the pandemic hit. And Cea is mindful that the peak hurricane season is still to come. "With the PPP money we received we were able to pay 48 employees, but that has run out now, so we are left with very few alternatives" for funding, Cea says. He's hoping for more help from the government, even if it's a loan that must be repaid. In the meantime, Cea says, "the only reason we are pretty much surviving is because we own the building," he says. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. The pandemic has devastated an industry that expected to have nearly $900 billion in sales this year. Before the outbreak, the Labor Department counted 12 million workers in restaurants and bars, and nearly two-thirds worked at small businesses with fewer than 500 workers. In April, employment in restaurants and bars of all sizes had been cut by nearly half as establishments across the country were closed. Restaurants were among the small businesses the Paycheck Protection Program was intended to help, but some owners say it was of limited use. The program so far has given about $42 billion in loans to restaurants, bars and lodging companies. But many restaurants burned through loans quickly because the original terms of the program required them to use the money within eight weeks in order to get loan forgiveness. Many establishments couldn't reopen but paid staffers not to work anyway. Then when they reopened with revenue limited by social distancing, they couldn't afford their full payrolls. Congress changed the spending requirement to 24 weeks in early June, but that was too late for many restaurants. It's not yet known what small business help will be in any upcoming relief package, although Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has mentioned the possibility that small businesses with big revenue declines could get a second PPP loan. But restaurants need a long-term solution that addresses their particular needs, Kennedy says. For example, allowing families that get food stamp assistance to use their benefits in restaurants. "We're going to be limping along or shutting down altogether" without long-term help, Kennedy says. Stephanie Williams still hasn't fully reopened two of her Bennu Coffee shops in Austin, Texas, and continues to operate with curbside service and delivery only; a third location that opened over the weekend does have socially distanced seating. Williams has spent the PPP money she got in early May she had recalled furloughed workers but with revenue at one store down by half and the other by nearly two-thirds, Williams had to let 20 staffers go again. "We assumed at the end of eight weeks, this will be over. But here in Texas, things are drastically worse than when we shut down in March," Williams says. Like other states where the virus is resurgent, Texas saw cases increase after it ended shutdown orders in early May. The Berejiklian government will exhaust all options with coronavirus restrictions before it shuts down the economy, with a key minister saying stubborn case numbers could force changes. Victor Dominello, one of the government's senior ministers leading NSW's COVID-19 response, said "shackling the economy" was not an option and warned the state's biggest threat was complacency. Customer Service Minister Victor Dominello says complacency around being COVID safe is a big threat to NSW. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer "Compliance can be escalated up or down depending on infection rates. If the rates are stubborn then we can turn up the dial further on compliance," Mr Dominello said. "Given what is at stake in terms of jobs, we need to exhaust compliance measures before we shackle the economy." Amaravati, Aug 3 : In a shocking incident, three COVID-19 patients were allegedly shifted to a hospital in a garbage vehicle in Andhra Pradesh's Vizianagaram district. A video, which shows three persons boarding the trolley in Nellimarla town, has gone viral on social media, prompting the authorities to order a probe. The incident reportedly occurred on Saturday when an ambulance did not reach to shift three members of a family to the hospital. They had undergone COVID-19 tests on Wednesday and it was on Friday that they were found positive. Locals alerted 108 ambulance and requested that they be shifted to hospital. However, the ambulance did not reach the location, forcing the residents to arrange a trolley from Nellimarla Nagar Panchayat. Local officials ordered a probe into the incident. Primary Health Centre medical officer Gayatri Devi said the ambulance was sent immediately after learning about the patients from volunteers but before the vehicle could reach there the local residents mobilized a trolley from the municipal body. Nellimarla Nagar Panchayat Commissioner J. R. Appala Naidu said the vehicle was being used to carry Sodium Hypochlorite and other items for burying the COVID-19 victims. Vizianagaram District Medical and Health Officer Dr Ramana Kumari said she had ordered a probe into the incident. Former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said he was appalled over the treatment meted out to the patients. "Appalling! Three Covid-19 patients in BC Colony, Jarjapupeta in Vizianagaram Dist were taken to the hospital in a garbage vehicle'," the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief tweeted. "Don't know about coronavirus, but the helpless patients might contract other dangerous diseases. Why are they not being treated like humans?," Naidu asked. Worship leader: US on 'cusp of revival,' time to change narrative of burning cities with worship Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Worship artist Sean Feucht believes that the coronavirus prohibitions on holding church services is a double standard and that the United States is on the brink of a revival. In an interview with Fox & Friends, Feucht noted that he is participating in and helping lead gathering outside the four walls of the church, in the open air. "It's not just beaches," he said. "We're going under bridges, we're meeting in fields, really anywhere we can gather and spread out and worship, we're finding those places. It's summer time in California, it's just such an amazing movement that we've seen so much momentum on." Feucht, who recently ran for Congress in California but lost in the primary, is a worship leader with an extensive missionary background and is the founder of Hold the Line, an activist movement aimed at engaging the church and millennials, urging them to become more politically active. He has been taking the power of worship to the streets where tragedies have happened, including the place where George Floyd was killed while in police custody earlier this year. Asked by host Pete Hegseth about why singing and church services have been deemed "non-essential" and banned but protests that have drawn large crowds have been permitted, Feucht replied, "It is a double standard and I would say at best it's hypocrisy and at worst, it's bigotry. You know there's a target on churches." "I think it's time. We have to rise up. We need bold and courageous pastors that are not only going to stand on our Constitutional rights to worship, but are going to stand up against the insanity of these laws that are targeting the church." Yet he is taking the opportunity to worship outdoors to shift the spiritual atmosphere in troubled places around the nation. One such worship gathering is planned in the streets of Portland, Oregon, for Aug. 8. "The narrative that we've seen has just been burning and destruction. It's been disheartening, but yet the church in Portland, the church of Oregon, they want to gather, they want to rise up. They want to change the narrative and flip the script on their cities. It's going to be peaceful. It's going to be full of love," he said. Thanking his followers on his Instagram account after the Fox News interview, Feucht commented that he believes that "we are on the cusp of a revival that will sweep America!" The worship leader noted in a separate post that he has invited California Gov. Gavin Newsom to pray on the steps of the Capitol building for an event called "Let Us Worship" on Sept. 6. A judges order that The Seattle Times and other media must turn over unpublished content to the police is a blow to independent journalism. The order imperils journalists documenting this summers historic protests and sends the wrong message about the media as a check on government power. Journalists unique role and responsibility is protected in Washingtons shield law, passed by legislators in 2007. The law prohibits officials from forcing journalists to turn over unpublished information outside of specific and narrow circumstances. King County Superior Court Judge Nelson Lees recent order that The Seattle Times and four other news outlets must hand unpublished protest video and photos to police investigators is a troubling interpretation of that law. Police want the journalists images to help identify suspects who set fire to police cars and stole police firearms during a May 30 protest in downtown Seattle. Certainly, those involved in the crimes should be held accountable. But even the mistaken conflation of journalists with police investigators can directly impact news gatherers ability to do their work. In volatile situations like recent protests, this misconception can and has led to physical violence. As the National Press Photographers Association and Press Freedom Defense Fund wrote in a joint statement about Lees decision, It is dangerous enough for visual journalists to be covering the COVID-19 pandemic and the protests over the death of George Floyd. The last thing visual journalists want is to be seen as an arm of law enforcement, aiding attempts to gather evidence. As Seattle Times assistant managing editor Danny Gawlowski wrote in a declaration submitted to the court, even before the court ruling, Times photo journalists have had to repeatedly explain their independence to protesters. During one early protest, a Times staff photographer was hit in the head by a rock and punched in the face. The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker has verified more than 585 incidents of journalists being assaulted, arrested or otherwise prevented from reporting during this summers protests in dozens of cities. Independence from political and commercial influence is the backbone of responsible journalism. Journalists must report in the public interest, not in the service of government. Journalists are facing enormous challenges as they report this historic moment. The courts decision threatens to make a bad situation worse. The Seattle Times via AP Editors note: Editorials published from other sources do not always represent the viewpoints of The Daily Progress, but are offered in an effort to share additional opinion and information. Len McCluskey today ramped up threats to cut Labour funding over Keir Starmer's 'reckless' payout to anti-Semitism whistleblowers. The Unite chief said it was 'perfectly legitimate' for the union to look at its donations to the party following the damages settlement. Mr McCluskey, an ally of former leader Jeremy Corbyn, said 'eminent barristers' had advised Labour it could win the case. He also delivered a warning to Sir Keir that Unite expected to be 'influential' and the Left should be 'very much involved' in policies. The comments come after seven former employees from the party's governance and legal unit, who were responsible for the investigation of allegations of misconduct by party members, sued Labour after it issued a press release describing them as having 'personal and political axes to grind'. Len McCluskey (pictured left earlier this year) has ramped up threats to cut Labour funding over Keir Starmer's 'reckless' payout to anti-Semitism whistleblowers The legal action followed the broadcast in July 2019 of a BBC Panorama programme titled Is Labour Anti-Semitic?. The party has refused to disclose how much the settlement would end up costing, but fees and damages are thought likely to amount to nearly 375,000. Sir Keir's predecessor Mr Corbyn called the decision to settle 'disappointing' and claimed it was a 'political decision, not a legal one'. Mr Corybn said his team was advised while he was leader that the 'party had a strong defence'. Panorama reporter John Ware is taking legal action against the Islington North MP following the remarks. Mr McCluskey suggested in an interview with the Observer yesterday that donations would be reconsidered. And speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme this morning, he said Sr Keir had made a 'miscalculation'. 'It was a clear miscalculation, I'm afraid, it's like pinning a sign up to people saying ''queue here with your writ and get paid out by the Labour Party'',' he said. Asked if he had ordered a review of the trade union's funding of the party, Mr McCluskey said: 'I haven't ordered a review, I was asked a question in an interview and I replied by saying ... when my executive meets I'm quite certain that they would want questions answered. 'It isn't a question about ordering reviews, but of course we do make donations, affiliations, to the Labour Party. 'It's our members' money, their pennies and pounds, and they expect us to be influential... Mr McCluskey also delivered a warning to Sir Keir (pictured on a visit to Peterborough last week) that Unite expected to be 'influential' 'It is perfectly legitimate for us to raise concerns when money is being spent, especially if we believe that money is being spent recklessly.' He added: 'I have made it clear that we support Keir... my only message to him is that he needs to be careful that the balance he is approaching with policies makes certain that the Left is very much involved in that.' Under Mr Corbyn's leadership, the party was dogged with allegations that it had failed to take action over members accused of promoting anti-Semitism. Labour has not commented on Mr McCluskey's donation threat, but Sir Keir's spokesman previously said all three candidates in the final of the party's leadership contest, which concluded in April, had agreed they wanted to see the case settled. The spokesman told reporters last month: 'I think it is worth remembering that during the leadership contest, all three candidates - Rebecca (Long-Bailey), Keir and Lisa (Nandy) - said, and all pledged at the Jewish Labour Movement hustings, that they would seek to settle this issue and that also they believed the party had not taken the right approach at the time.' Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Washington, United States Mon, August 3, 2020 11:45 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b22a44 2 World US,Donald-Trump,Tik-Tok,Microsoft Free Microsoft announced Sunday it would continue talks to acquire the US operations of popular video-sharing app TikTok, after meeting with President Donald Trump who seemingly backed off his earlier threats to ban the Chinese-owned platform. "Following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald J Trump, Microsoft is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the United States," the company said in a statement, acknowledging the "importance of addressing the President's concerns" over national security. Microsoft added that it would continue negotiations with ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, with the intention of "completing these discussions no later than September 15." The statement came after Trump on Friday said he would ban the app, which is especially popular with young audiences who create and watch its short-form videos and has an estimated one billion users worldwide. TikTok should be sold or blocked in the US, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told ABC earlier Sunday, while Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Fox News the president would "take action in the coming days with respect to a broad array of national security risks that are presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party." TikTok denies it could be a tool for Chinese intelligence, with its US general manager Vanessa Pappas declaring Saturday: "We're not planning on going anywhere." 'Biggest loser' "The United States would be the biggest loser if it banned TikTok," Daniel Castro, vice president of the think tank Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, said Saturday. "All of its data centers are outside of China, and there is no evidence that it presents a national security threat." Trump said he would use an executive order to ban TikTok, or the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a law granting the president powers to regulate international trade in the face of an "unusual and extraordinary threat" from abroad to US foreign policy, national security or the economy. His threat has caused great concern for US TikTok users, particularly content creators who make money on the platform. Many of them have posted links to their Instagram or YouTube accounts so as not to lose followers if the platform is ultimately blocked. In its statement, Microsoft said it plans to "build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections." Buying TikTok would give Microsoft a chance to break into the social networking market. The IT group currently owns the professional networking platform LinkedIn, and Teams, an internal messaging service for companies. 'Bizarre' Pappas promised Saturday to create 10,000 US jobs at TikTok over the next three years, in addition to the 1,500 current employees. "Don't fall for this," responded senior Trump aide Peter Navarro, a fierce China critic and a main architect of the trade war with Beijing. "China has hired a whole bunch of American lobbyists. They put a puppet CEO in charge of that company," he told Fox News, referring to former Disney executive Kevin Mayer, who became the CEO of TikTok in May. On Friday evening Trump indicated he opposed a takeover of TikTok by an American company, a solution nevertheless agreed to by most of the involved parties, including ByteDance, according to The New York Times. "This is getting bizarre. A 100 percent sale to an American company... mitigates any reasonable data protection concerns," tweeted Alex Stamos, a former Facebook head of security and a researcher at Stanford University. "If the White House kills this [sale] we know this isn't about national security," he added. Almost 15,000 cattle have gone missing in Northern Ireland alone in the last 4 years, according to figures by the region's agriculture department. The number was revealed in response to a written question from Ulster Unionist Agriculture (UUA) Rural Affairs spokesperson Rosemary Barton MLA. She asked the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) minister Lesley Griffiths to detail how many cattle and sheep had been stolen or reported missing - broken down by constituency - in the last four years. Figures show that 14,506 cattle had gone missing. County Armagh was the worst affected area with a total of 636 cattle recorded as missing or stolen last year, followed by Newry at 606. DAERA said it took all instances of missing cattle 'very seriously' and investigated 'each incident individually'. But Ms Barton said the figures were 'astonishing': I was astounded when I received the figures that so many cattle had disappeared from the departments official cattle recording system APHIS. The system does not differentiate between the number of cattle recorded as stolen and those that have gone missing from the system." Ms Barton said three Divisional Veterinary Centres - Newry, Armagh and Dungannon - accounted for 6,813 of the missing cattle alone. While I am certainly aware that a number of cattle are stolen each year, it would appear that many cattle are disappearing from the system, which may suggest that cattle are being sold, moved and slaughtered illegally," Ms Barton said. I intend to progress this query to try to establish what follow-up action DAERA takes in relation to these disappeared animals. Under the Cattle Identification (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations (NI) 2012, if an animal is lost or stolen, the keeper must send written notification of this to DAERA within seven days of becoming aware. Farmers have also been urged to report every incident of suspected theft to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). It follows the release of figures earlier this year which revealed that livestock worth 3 million were stolen from UK farms in 2019. Commercial drivers in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, on Monday withdrew their services to protest alleged illegal taxation by some thugs and local government officials in the state. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that due to the protest a lot of commuters were stranded at bus stops in Calabar while many trekked to their different destinations. The protesters carried placards with inscriptions such as stop harassing us, illegal taxation is a crime in Cross River among others. The protesters alleged that some people were often harassing drivers in the metropolis to pay some taxes and levies against the tax exemption law of the state. Governor Ben Ayade had constituted the Cross River Anti-Tax Agency to ensure that all low income earners in the state including taxi and tricycles operators were exempted from paying all forms of taxes and levies. Speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria, the representative of the protesting drivers, Edem Asuquo, said drivers were caught on a daily basis for dropping and picking passengers at different spots in the city. They take you to their Centres and collect N25,000 or N15,000 from you, which is the least. So we decided to march to the governors office to protest and hear from him directly and know if he is the one sending these people to harass us or not. READ ALSO: This is why we withdrew our services today, he said. In his response, Emmah Isong, a clergyman and Chairman, State Anti-Tax Agency, said the protest was good and a welcome development. The governor exempted these classes of people from taxation and, then, some politicians and local government officials kept taxing them. We, the Anti-Tax Agency, have tried everything to tell the local government authorities not to tax them. So the people should take their destinies in their hand by protesting for their right, it is good for the state, so long as they are peaceful and do not destroy any property. They have been using security agencies to harass the drivers, security agencies that refused to cooperate with the Anti-Tax Agency are cooperating with politicians to harass and exploit the poor, he said. He advised residents of the state to know their tax exemption rights and pursue them vigorously, adding that it must not be the job of the Ant-Tax Agency alone. NAN reports that due to the protest, a lot of commuters were stranded at bus stops in Calabar while many trekked to their different destinations. When contacted on telephone, Nkese Emeyo, the media officer, Calabar South Local Government Area, said the council had nothing to do with the extortion. My Chairman placed a revocation notice to all contractors collecting taxes for the LGA. So, there is nothing like tax from our council. We are not getting anything from anybody and we have not sent anybody to get tax from drivers, she said. (NAN) [August 03, 2020] New Genesys Cloud Integration with Microsoft Teams Drives Productivity and Collaboration CHENNAI, India, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Genesys, a global leader in cloud customer experience and contact center solutions , has expanded its Microsoft partnership with a new, native integration. Microsoft Teams and Genesys Cloud, the all-in-one solution and one of the world's leading public cloud contact center platforms, are now fully integrated, giving employees a more connected, intuitive and productive experience. As a result, contact center agents can collaborate with any employee using Teams so they can resolve customer issues faster and deliver better service. Genesys Cloud and Teams make collaboration easy for contact centers Today, contact center employees work in several different systems across multiple devices, constantly toggling back and forth. This adds inefficiency and friction, stifling collaboration efforts and making it more time consuming and cumbersome to serve customers. Together, the integrated solutions address these challenges and enable employees to call Teams users throughout their organization, all from within Genesys Cloud. The integration provides organizations like Western Governors University with an end-to-end solution that makes employees' jobs easier and improves the customer experience. "Deploying Genesys Cloud has already made it simler for our employees to work with students," said Adam Davis, director of operations, Western Governors University. "The new integration with Microsoft Teams allows our student care teams to connect with one another and share knowledge so they can efficiently support our students' needs." Bridging the gap between the front and back office When agents need to consult with a subject matter expert outside of the contact center, they can use the integrated directory, search and presence features to find the Teams user with the right expertise from within their Genesys Cloud desktop. They can determine availability and collaborate in real time with a single click. For example, if a customer asks a question about a loan for a new vacation home while on a support call, an agent can quickly find an available mortgage specialist to help address the issue during the interaction. This facilitates teamwork, knowledge sharing and results in faster resolution for customers. "We are thrilled to add yet another element to our long-standing partnership with Microsoft, which marks an important step forward in helping our customers deliver on the promise of Experience as a Service," said Olivier Jouve, executive vice president and general manager, Genesys Cloud. "With more than 75 million daily active users, Microsoft Teams is a predominant unified communications and productivity tool for thousands of enterprise organizations. By integrating our platform with Teams, employees can draw upon expertise from anywhere in the organization so they can provide experiences tailored for every customer." Mike Ammerlaan, Director of Microsoft 365 Ecosystem marketing at Microsoft said, "More organizations recognize that employees throughout the business contribute to outstanding customer experiences not just those in the contact center. The Genesys Cloud and Microsoft Teams integration helps ensure employees are equipped with the right tools to collaborate with colleagues across the enterprise while benefitting from features like advanced routing, call recording and interaction analytics to deliver consistent service." Learn more about the Genesys Cloud and Teams integration. About Genesys Every year, Genesys delivers more than 70 billion remarkable customer experiences for organizations in over 100 countries. Through the power of the cloud and AI, our technology connects every customer moment across marketing, sales and service on any channel, while also improving employee experiences. Genesys pioneered Experience as a Service(SM) so organizations of any size can provide true personalization at scale, interact with empathy, and foster customer trust and loyalty. This is enabled by Genesys Cloud, an all-in-one solution and the?world's leading public cloud contact center platform,?designed for rapid innovation, scalability and flexibility. Visit www.genesys.com. 2020 Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories, Inc. All rights reserved. Genesys, the Genesys logo, Genesys Cloud and Experience as a Service are trademarks, service marks and/or registered trademarks of Genesys. All other company names and logos may be registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective companies. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Mindfulness could help trainee GPs to build their resilience and reduce burnout, helping to reduce the number of newly qualified GPs leaving the profession, according to University of Warwick researchers. Mindfulness could help trainee GPs to build their resilience and reduce burnout, helping to reduce the number of newly qualified GPs leaving the profession, according to University of Warwick researchers. A new study of GP trainees in Coventry and Warwickshire shows that they are experiencing similar levels of burnout to experienced GPs, but that the majority were willing to use mindfulness as a method to reduce its impact. The study is published in the journal BJGP Open and surveyed 47 GP trainees working in Coventry and Warwickshire on their experiences of stress and burnout. The results informed a new Mindful Practice Curriculum that the researchers are currently piloting as a method of helping doctors to manage stress and burnout issues in themselves. Recent evidence has shown that doctors who fully qualify as a GP have a very high rate of leaving the profession within the first five years. Lead author Dr Petra Hanson of Warwick Medical School, and a Clinical Research Fellow at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, said: "That is quite worrying because it will mean that there is a crisis in the workforce, especially amongst GPs. "We know that, in general, doctors suffer from relatively high levels of burnout and for patients that could result in poorer care. But it's also bad for individual doctors because it could result in those doctors leaving the profession." The researchers recruited 47 GP trainees in their second or third year of training to take part in a survey assessing their wellbeing, resilience and burnout, using well established measures. They found that 64% of the trainees were experiencing burnout, defined as issues relating to excessive stress at work. This was broken down into those experiencing emotional exhaustion and disengagement, with 77% of trainees experiencing exhaustion and 80% experiencing disengagement. This is not dissimilar to the rates seen in fully qualified GPs from previous research, which are 94% and 85% respectively. The researchers were also surprised to find lower resilience among GPs in training, having assumed that doctors were more likely to have greater resilience, with an average value 3.02 where the normal range would be 3 - 4.3. The survey showed that a third of the GP trainees were already practicing some sort of mindfulness technique, often in the form of an app. Over 80% wanted to try mindfulness, but wanted to see more evidence for its effectiveness and were concerned about the demands on their time. Mindfulness is defined as a capacity for enhanced and sustained moment-to-moment awareness of one's own mental and emotional state and being, in the context of one's own immediate environment. The Mindful Practice Curriculum is an intervention designed for doctors. It has been widely tested in the United States but the researchers are currently evaluating its effectiveness in the UK for the first time. The key differences with this type of mindfulness course are that it is very structured and addresses issues that are specific to doctors. Dr Hanson adds: "In general, the GP trainees were very open to it, and they knew that it was not only going to be benefitting patients but also themselves. "We found evidence showing that mindfulness was used among doctors to improve resilience and wellbeing, but we wanted to use something that was structured and specifically designed for doctors. Mindfulness doesn't have a well-standardised definition of how it can be used as an intervention amongst different groups of people or professionals. "This course covers areas such as making mistakes in clinical practice, compassion fatigue, mindful listening, things that every doctor, regardless of their expertise, will at some point in their career have issues with. I'd like to see this programme incorporated into the training of doctors, regardless of speciality. I don't think there's any difference between doctors in training." After graduating from medical school, doctors undergo two years of foundation training at the end of which they can choose which speciality they want to go into. If they choose to become a GP they have a three year long training programme, where by their final year they are working at a similar level to a fully-qualified GP. Although by their third year they are working with patients in a similar manner to a fully-qualified GP, they have additional stresses such as exams and maintaining a portfolio. Professor Jeremy Dale, GP in Coventry and Head of the Unit of Academic Primary Care at Warwick Medical School, said: "This study casts light on the importance of addressing the wellbeing of doctors as part of their GP training. With such high levels of emotional exhaustion and disengagement being experienced by trainees, this is likely to be adversely affecting their wellbeing, their career plans and of course the care of their patients. The interest shown in incorporating mindfulness training as part of GP training suggests that this could be an important life skill that GP trainees are keen to develop to help them cope with the pressures of working in general practice." ### * "Burnout, resilience, and perception of mindfulness programmes among GP trainees: a mixed-methods study" is published in BJGP Open, DOI: 10.3399/bjgpopen20X101058 Notes to editors: For interviews or a copy of the paper contact: Peter Thorley Media Relations Manager (Warwick Medical School and Department of Physics) | Press & Media Relations | University of Warwick Email: peter.thorley@warwick.ac.uk Mob: +44 (0) 7824 540863 TikTok owner ByteDance has accused Facebook of plagiarism and smears although it did not elaborate on the accusation. The Chinese firm also said it faced "complex and unimaginable difficulties" as it worked to grow into global company. The Beijing-based company made the comments in a statement late on Sunday posted on its official account on Jinri Toutiao, a news aggregator app it owns. "ByteDance has always been committed to becoming a global company. During this process, we have faced all kinds of complex and unimaginable difficulties, including the tense ... India keeps scheduled international flights suspended till 31 August Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has extended the suspension of scheduled international flights to and from the country till 31 August amid rising cases of corona virus infection in the country. The civil aviation regulators move comes amidst a spike in corona virus cases in the country, which is rising at an incremental rate. The government had suspended scheduled international commercial services in March till 31 July in the wake of the pandemic, while cargo flights and special flights approved by the DGCA have been permitted. DGCA said the government had decided to extend the suspension on the Scheduled International Commercial Passenger Services to/from India up to 2359 hours IST of 31st August. However, this restriction will not applicable for international all-cargo operations and flights specifically approved by the DGCA, it added. During the suspension period, India allowed more than 2,500 repatriation flights by foreign carriers to evacuate stranded passengers to/ from India, the statement noted. Under the Vande Bharat Mission, Air India and Air India Express have uplifted 2,67,436 stranded passengers, and other charters have uplifted 4,86,811 stranded passengers from 6 May to 30 July period, it added. Government proposes a gradual movement of passenger traffic during the Covid-19 situation. It has signed Transport Bubble agreements with countries like USA, France, and Germany to facilitate movement of people in essential cases. On 16 July, the ministry of civil aviation (MoCA) announced setting up 'air bubbles' and partially resumed international flights to destinations in the US, Germany, France. An air bubble is a travel corridor between two countries that will fly their aircraft in a regulated environment. This arrangement has been made due to several travel restrictions across the world because of the coronavirus pandemic. India is planning to establish a bubble with the UK soon under which there would be two flights per day between Delhi and London. "We have got a request from Germans also. I think the arrangement with Lufthansa is almost done...We are processing that request," civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri said. The ministry of home affairs in its 'Unlock 3' guidelines has stated that International air travel will be permitted in limited manner. Hope Wells, 23, of West Philadelphia, a 2018 La Salle University graduate and a tireless advocate for cancer patients, died Tuesday, July 21, of acute myeloid leukemia at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. About this time last year, leukemia had put Ms. Wells in the hospital yet again. But as always, she wasnt about to let her disease define her. From her hospital bed, she began a public awareness campaign for Be the Match, the bone marrow donor network, to help others with cancer. She even mailed beauty products as donor incentives between her chemo treatments. She was an advocate. She was fearless, said her eldest sister, Charity. She was a strategist. She was a passionate and selfless spirit. Two days before her death, The Inquirer published a story in its Sunday UpSide section about a video that Ms. Wells five sisters they called themselves the Hope Fighters created with messages from more than 200 friends and family members to lift her spirits while she was hospitalized. When she awoke and saw the article, she wept tears of joy, her family said. Despite her waning strength, she spoke of gratitude. She made the statement: Every day I live is a blessing. Every day I live in pain is a blessing. Every day I suffer is a blessing, Charity Wells said. She was just so grateful to live another day. Raised in a close family by the Rev. Michael Wells and Patricia Wells, Ms. Wells and her sisters attended Beulah Baptist Christian Day School in Philadelphia and the Christian Academy in Brookhaven. The sisters sang a cappella together at their home church, Beulah Baptist, and at other churches when their father was a guest preacher. Ms. Wells was also active in the churchs youth ministry and was a volunteer with the Martin Luther King Jr. Association for Nonviolence. She planned to do work that would help cancer survivors, their families, and the larger community. While at La Salle, Ms. Wells was active in student government and the African American Student League, and strove to be a voice for diversity and inclusion on campus. She was also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority and launched a brand ambassador program with the national beauty line Shea Moisture. Ms. Wells was an artist and dancer, and loved to travel. As a teenager, she took part in a mission trip to the Dominican Republic. While at La Salle, she studied abroad in Mexico, France, and Germany. The six Wells sisters the others are Faith, 24; Joy, 22; Grace, 20; and Glory, 16, in addition to 26-year-old Charity were named for Christian virtues, and the family says they live up to their names. That seemed especially true of Hope, they said. She was an inspiration to her sisters. Hope would run toward the things that most people would be nervous to do, said Glory Wells. She pursued any opportunity with a passionate spirit and encouraged others to do the same. She left a legacy in such a short time on this earth, said Grace Wells. She touched so many lives without even knowing. In the weeks before she died, Ms. Wells father helped fulfill her dream of forming a nonprofit, Hope for Hope. Possible projects include job fairs and help for cancer survivors and their families. In addition to her parents and sisters, Ms. Wells is survived by aunts, uncles and cousins. A Celebration of Life service will be held Saturday, Aug. 8, at Christ Community Church, 4017 Chestnut St. There will be a public viewing before it from 8 to 11 a.m. The 11:30 a.m. service will be limited to immediate family due to COVID-19, but will be livestreamed on the Faith Without Borders YouTube page and via Faith Wells Facebook profile. Internment will follow at West Laurel Hill Cemetery, Bala Cynwyd. Donations may be sent to Hope for Hope Inc., Box 250, Merion Station, Pa., 19066. UNITED NATIONS (AP) Six years after Islamic State fighters launched an attack on Iraqs Yazidi minority, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad and human rights lawyer Amal Clooney accused government leaders and the United Nations on Monday of failing to bring the extremists responsible for the genocide to justice. Murad, whose mother and six brothers were killed by Islamic State fighters, told a U.N. commemoration of the Aug. 3, 2014 massacre in Iraqs Sinjar region that the Yazidis feel abandoned by the international community. The status quo is destroying our community and international inaction is enabling the extremist group to accomplish their goal of eradicating the Yazidis from Iraq, warned Murad, who was captured by IS and held as a sex slave for months before escaping. Clooney, the wife of actor George Clooney who represents the Yazidis, said that when she addressed the U.N. Security Council last year she proposed ways to achieve justice for those who died, are missing and still captive including authorizing the International Criminal Court to put IS on trial and creating a court by treaty between the U.N. and Iraq. No progress has been made, she said. None of the pathways to a court have been studied, pursued, or seriously discussed at the United Nations, or by the Security Council, Clooney said. No conference of foreign ministers has been convened. No government proposals, or counter-proposals, have been put forward and analyzed. No state has offered to host international trials. She recalled warning the Security Council last year that if no action was taken, IS fighters held in makeshift prisons in Syria were at risk of escaping and there would be no justice. Clooney said the escapes she feared took place last October when hundreds of IS prisoners walked free from those camps. Yazidis are followers of an ancient faith who are falsely branded devil-worshippers by Sunni extremists, many of whom joined IS. Story continues When the Islamic Sate group swept into northern Iraq in 2014, the militants massacred thousands of Yazidi men and enslaved an estimated 7,000 women and girls. Many managed to escape as U.S.-backed Iraqi forces gradually drove the militants from their self-declared caliphate that once spanned a third of both Iraq and Syria in a grueling 3-year campaign. But in a joint statement, Murad and Clooney said there is no concerted attempt to search for or rescue over 2,800 women and children who remain missing and in captivity in Iraq and Syria. They said over 200,000 Yazidis almost half the community in Iraq remain displaced in camps without adequate medical treatment and an increased risk of exposure to the COVID-19 virus. And Murad and Clooney said over 120,000 Yazidis who have returned to Sinjar desperately need health care, electricity, shelter, clean water, sanitation, education and opportunities to make a living. Murad told the commemoration that the Yazidis are caught in a dispute between the Iraqi government in Baghdad and the Kurdish regional government in Erbil over who will control Sinjar which has curtailed services and investment and she urged them to quickly resolve it. While Murad and Clooney said they are grateful that the U.N. has authorized an international investigation of IS atrocities against the Yazidis, Murad stressed that an investigation is not a trial, and we want our day in court. We must not let another year go by and stay in the status quo, the Nobel laureate said. The international community must fulfill its promise to deliver justice for the Yazidi community. ... Survivors cannot wait another six years for the world to act. Clooney cited efforts to achieve justice within six years after past atrocities including the Nazi defeat in World War II and the genocides in Rwanda in 1994 and the Bosnian town of Srebrenica in 1995. More recently, she said, an international team authorized by the U.N. Human Rights Council is preparing cases against perpetrators of the alleged genocide against the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar. In addition, 57 nations are supporting a case brought by Gambia at the International Court of Justice under the Genocide Convention, and the International Criminal Court is investigating crimes in Myanmar, she said. Yazidi survivors deserve no less, Clooney said, stressing that government leaders, U.N. diplomats and all those with influence have a responsibility to respond. Doing nothing is not only wrong, it is dangerous because these fighters are not going away, and their toxic ideology continues to spread, she said. And justice is possible now, just as it has been possible before, if only it is made a priority. Advertisement London Underground journeys are still down by 75 per cent on last year as workers ignored the government's drive to get back to work today. Just 240,000 trips were made on the Tube during this morning's rush hour to 10am, which marks a six per cent increase on last week. Passengers, some still not wearing face coverings, had plenty of space for social distancing as a few took the Jubilee Line into the city centre. Boris Johnson had heralded today the first Monday in August as the day 'work from home' guidance ends and Britain should return to the office. But almost five in six office employees will continue to stay at home despite the desperate drive to reignite the economy. Commuters sat on the Tube on their phones and read the newspaper this morning, with plenty of spare seats and only a few travellers forced to stand. It is a world away from the usual jostle for a position at rush hour, when thousands of weary Londoners cram into all available spaces in the carriages. On a typical morning before the coronavirus struck, about 1,124,825 would take the London Underground between 4am and 10am. But during the pandemic this plummeted by up to 90 per cent, with just 109,306 taking the network on the morning of May 29. MailOnline has contacted Transport for London for today's figures. Liverpool Street Station in central London looks bare today as few passengers take to public transport to get back to the office A woman scratches her head as she walks down a gangway from a train as she gets into Liverpool Street Station in central London Slide me Left: Today. Right: Last week. The London Underground remained quiet at rush hour this morning despite the PM saying 'work from home' is over Passengers, some still not wearing face coverings (pictured), had plenty of space for social distancing as a few took the Jubilee Line into the city centre A few passengers leave the train at Liverpool Street Station this morning as they head to work in the city centre Desolate trains are parked at Liverpool Street Station in London which was devoid of commuters at rush hour today Boris Johnson had heralded today the first Monday in August as the day 'work from home' guidance ends and Britain should return to the office. But rush hour was quiet London traffic data from TomTom shows congestion at rush hour this morning stood at just 22 per cent, down from 26 per cent last week and 52 per cent last year. But Apple mobility trends, which is only available up to Saturday, suggests there are more people driving in London - up 10 per cent - while walking and transit are down 11 per cent and 29 per cent respectively. A Mail audit of 30 of Britain's biggest firms, representing 320,000 employees, found just 17 per cent of office-based staff would travel to work this week. The PM said Britons could go back to the workplace at the 'discretion' of their employers and would no longer be advised to stay away from public transport. But many businesses are not planning for most workers to return to offices until at least towards the end of the year, while the likes of Facebook and bank RBS said staff will not go back until 2021. London traffic data from TomTom shows congestion at rush hour this morning stood at just 22 per cent, down from 26 per cent last week and 52 per cent last year Hourly congestion level over the last 48 hours shows a continually low figure for the numbers travelling in the capital Apple mobility trends, which is only available up to Saturday, suggests there are more people driving in London - up 10 per cent - while walking and transit are down 11 per cent and 29 per cent respectively Almost five in six office employees will continue to stay at home despite the desperate drive to reignite the economy (pictured, the Jubilee Line this morning) Passengers make their way towards the Jubilee Line on the Underground at rush hour this morning An near-empty carriage on the Jubilee Line left plenty of space for commuters to social distance, but showed workers were not listening to the government A Mail audit of 30 of Britain's biggest firms, representing 320,000 employees, found just 17 per cent of office-based staff would travel to work this week (pictured, the Jubilee Line this morning) Seats were left unoccupied at rush hour on the Jubilee Line and only a few had to stand in stark contrast to the commute pre-Covid Just one firm surveyed, investment bank JP Morgan, had set a target for a substantial return to the office today just 2,400 of its 19,000 staff. The approach taken by white-collar workers is in stark contrast to building sites, warehouses, shops and restaurants where staff have been at their workplace for weeks. The Government has been criticised for failing to hammer home its back-to-work message. Kevin Ellis, chairman of accountancy giant PwC, which has 22,000 staff in Britain, said he believed his employees would only spend three or four days per week at work even after the pandemic. It had 5,000 staff in its offices last week and he hoped to reach 11,000 by the end of this week. The Mail contacted 60 of Britain's biggest firms and half provided a response. Of the 320,000 workers, there are just over 53,000 going into the office. Three companies said their employees would not return to work until 2021, while a further nine had not confirmed a date. Almost five in six office employees will stay at home today despite the Government's drive to get staff to return to their workplaces. With offices closed and staff working from home, Canary Wharf remained eerily quiet last Monday Canary Wharf is usually bustling during typical evening rush hours, with thousands working at the East London landmark Barclays boss Jes Staley, who still has 60,000 staff working at home, said the return to the office would happen 'over time'. Aerospace firm Airbus said staff would return from the middle of this month. Four firms, including Vodafone, will return from September, Microsoft will bring staff back from November and the London Stock Exchange will bring 30 per cent back in December. WH Smith and catering company Compass said their offices were open, but the decision on whether to return is voluntary. Law centres could collapse due to viris, MPs warn Law centres across the country could collapse during the coronavirus pandemic, MPs have warned. Without more funding, not-for-profit legal services providers could disappear putting access to justice at risk for those who need it, the House of Commons justice committee said. A report by the committee into the impact of coronavirus on the legal professions in England and Wales said publicly funded providers must be supported now to ensure they are there to give 'access to real justice' in future. It warned that the coronavirus pandemic had caused massive disruption to the legal system. Justice Secretary Robert Buckland said: 'I am working very hard, not just with the Treasury but internally, to see what more can be done to help the flow of regular income to the professions, particularly those at the sharp end of legal aid.' Advertisement Unilever will ask staff to return from September in a 'hybrid' system where people come into the office only a few days a week. BT said it would only ask staff to return 'when we are confident it is safe'. Peter Chalonel, 69, who employs nine people, revealed how he is spending 200 per week to keep his office Covid-secure so that staff could return to the office. He told MailOnline: 'We have told our staff to come back and have gone out of our way to make sure that it's safe for them to do so. 'We're spending around 200 per week on regular cleaning, providing masks and hand sanitiser. It cost us another 1,000 getting the office ready.' Mr Chalonel added: 'The Government has to get the balance right between reviving the economy and the nation's health. It's a very tricky situation because if there is another spike, we will all be in trouble. 'But we can't stay at home any longer, the country has to get working and most of our staff have been very supportive of what we have to do.' Carina Graboyz, 60, an audiology technician said she was instructed to return to work by her manager following the Government's announcement. She said: 'It's my first day back and I'm actually quite excited. I've been working from home but had been told that we should now come back because the Government is allowing it. 'I think it's a very good move for the whole country. Things have to start returning to normal again and we have to get the economy back on its feet.' Ms Graboyz added: 'I'm not nervous at all and am confident that the management have done everything they can to make sure the office is safe. 'I've been working from home throughout the lockdown and started getting very bored. It's going to be nice seeing colleagues again and being back in the office.' The Mail's findings come as a report published today said London's pubs, shops and restaurants alone had lost 2.3billion in lunch and after-work trade between March and June. The Centre for Economics and Business Research calculated the cost of lockdown to 'ghost town' London's hospitality sector at 25million per day. It said the 'new normal' where close to one in three work from home on any given day will drain 178million per month from London's hospitality and retail sectors. The alarming analysis has re-ignited fears there will be a bloodbath of businesses across cities such as Manchester, Bristol and Edinburgh, with consequences for the wider economy. Around 6,000 jobs have already been lost at baguette seller Upper Crust and Pret a Manger, and city centre burger chain Byron has shut half its restaurants and axed 650 staff. ANN ARBOR, MI Ann Arbor voters could be asked in November to OK a city charter proposal to switch to ranked-choice voting for city elections. That would allow voters in future city elections to rank their choices for mayor and City Council in order of preference, with a process of elimination to weed out the least-supported candidates until theres a winner with a majority of votes. Mayor Christopher Taylor and Council Members Zachary Ackerman and Julie Grand are sponsoring the proposal on City Councils agenda Thursday night, Aug. 6. If approved by council, it will head to the Nov. 3 ballot for city voters to decide. The ballot proposal reads as follows: Shall the charter be amended to provide that the mayor and City Council members are to be nominated and elected by a ranked-choice voting method in the event that state law allows for it? Theres legislation pending in the Michigan House of Representatives to allow municipalities to adopt ranked-choice voting for election of local officers. If Ann Arbor voters approve a city charter change in November and the state legislation is enacted, the city could switch to ranked-choice voting for the 2022 election in which there will be contests for mayor and five council seats. Grand gave her colleagues a heads up at the July 20 council meeting she would be bringing forward the proposal. I believe it has a lot of support in the community. It increases participation and its more democratic, she said. The proposed resolution lays out the process that would be followed to declare winners in city primary and general elections for mayor and council races. Under ranked-choice voting, its not enough for a candidate to just get the most votes they must get a majority to win. So, a candidate in a three-way race, for example, couldnt win with 40% of the vote if their opponents evenly split the other 60%. Instead of just voting for one candidate, voters would rank their choices in each race. If a candidate received a majority of the first-choice votes, they immediately would be declared the winner. But if no candidate received a majority of the first-choice votes, the candidate who received the least first-choice votes would be eliminated and each vote cast for them would be transferred to the voters next-preferred candidate. Depending on the number of candidates and how votes split, that process of elimination could go multiple rounds until theres a candidate with a majority of votes. Watch these videos explaining how it works: A group called Rank MI Vote held a series of town halls across the state earlier this year to promote ranked-choice voting. People typically say it allows them to vote their will and that their vote wont be wasted, Ron Zimmerman, Rank MI Votes director of live outreach, said earlier this year, calling it something that really gives people more voice. It ensures similar candidates in a race cant split the vote or spoil the election, and candidates with the best ideas, not the most money, have a fair shot, the group argues. Grand noted there are three-way contests in three of five Ann Arbor council races in Tuesdays primary. In future cases like that, Grand said, ranked-choice voting could help avoid situations where two candidates aligned on issues such as housing density or climate change receive a majority of the votes but still lose because they split the vote, giving the seat to someone who doesnt best represent the ward. We want someone whos going to be representative of the ward, Grand said. Another benefit of ranked-choice voting, she said, is that two candidates who are aligned on issues in a three-way race could work together and encourage their supporters to rank the other as their second choice, resulting in a more pleasant experience and candidates tearing each other down less. If the citys vote tabulators cant feasibly accommodate ranked choices equal to the total number of candidates running for each office, the city would limit the number of choices a voter could rank to no fewer than three, according to the proposal. MORE FROM THE ANN ARBOR NEWS: Your guide to Tuesdays primary election in Washtenaw County 39,000 absentee ballots in Washtenaw County still unreturned one day before primary How they voted: The issues that have divided Ann Arbors City Council Were so thankful. 10 murals coming to Ann Arbor after Art Center hits $50K goal A lot of things are just different. Heres Ann Arbors plan for socially distant voting Tuesday In the last twenty years, digital polymerase chain reaction (dPCR) technology has given hopes to have potential applications in genetic engineering, cell biology and medical diagnostics. In this context, Paris, Francebased life sciences company Stilla Technologies is providing digital dPCR solutions for highprecision genetic analysis. Since 2016, the company has been targeting the $2billion digital PCR market providing research organizations with specialized in molecular biology and genetic analysis via its Naica System, a digital PCR solution that enables scientists to detect and quantify DNA mutations with precision. The system supports a wide range of genetic tests and molecular biology assays including liquid biopsy tests for cancer diagnostics, viral load quantification, prenatal testing, and GMO detection. Naica runs on the companys genetic testing and nucleic acid quantification technology, Crystal Digital PCR, and can characterize multiple types of nucleic acids with its threecolor detection capability. Stilla launched the first generation of the system in 2016 and generated first revenues in 2017. The company also advises and supports its customers worldwide through a multidisciplinary R&D team, with expertise spanning from microfluidics to chemistry, including molecular biology and AI. In February 2020, Stilla raised 20m ($22m) in Series B funding round that brought in Chinese group TUSHoldings as a new investor, with participation from existing investors Illumina Ventures, Kurma Partners, LBO France, Paris Saclay Seed Funds, BNP Paribas Developpement and Idinvest Partners. The company is using the funds to continue its development efforts for its solutions. Led by Remi Dangla, CEO, Stilla Technologies has also addressed these unpredented times by developing a highly sensitive SARS-CoV-2 detection kit, which is intended for qualitative detection of reported conserved viral nucleic acid sequences, Nucleoprotein N (FAM) and ORF1ab (HEX). Using the same Crystal Digital PCR, the kit includes reagents, Sapphire chips, and COVID-19 positive and negative controls. According to the company, it has emerged as an alternative to the traditional qPCR technique. Tests indicate a specific detection of SARS-CoV-2 sequences down to 5 copies per 25l reaction (equivalent to 0.2 cp/l) for ORF1ab and for Nucleoprotein N: down to 7 copies per 25l reaction (equivalent to 0.28 cp/l)). FinSMEs 03/08/2020 PLI scheme set to bolster localistion of mobile phone production The Production Linked Incentive Scheme (PLI) for large scale electronics manufacturing, notified by the government on 1 April 2020, has attracted a total of 22 smart phone manufacturers, including smart phone majors Samsung and Apple, union minister of telecommunication and information technology Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Saturday. Under the $6.65 billion PLI scheme, government extends an incentive of 4 to 6 per cent on incremental sales (over base year 2019-20) of smart phones under target segments that are manufactured in India to eligible companies, for a period of five years. The scheme was open for filing applications till 31 July 2020. Incentives are applicable under the scheme from 1 August 2020. A total of 22 companies, including international mobile manufacturing companies, have filed application under the PLI scheme. The international mobile phone manufacturing companies that have applied under Mobile Phone (Invoice Value Rs15,000 and above) segment are Samsung, Foxcon Hon Hai, Rising Star, Wistron and Pegatron. Out of these, 3 companies namely Foxcon Hon Hai, Wistron and Pegatron are contract manufacturers for Apple iPhones. Apple (37 per cent) and Samsung (22 per cent) together account for nearly 60 per cent of global sales revenue of mobile phones and this scheme is expected to increase their manufacturing base manifold in the country, Prasad said. Under Mobile Phone (Domestic Companies) segment, Indian companies, including Lava, Dixon Technologies, Bhagwati (Micromax), Padget Electronics, Sojo Manufacturing Services and Optiemus Electronics, have applied for inclusion in the scheme. These companies are expected to expand their manufacturing operations in a significant manner and grow into national champion companies in mobile phone production. Ten companies have filed applications under the Specified Electronic Components segment, which include AT&S, Ascent Circuits, Visicon, Walsin, Sahasra, Vitesco and Neolync. Over the next 5 years, the scheme is expected to lead to total production smart phones and components valued at about Rs11,50,000 crore. Out of the total production, companies under Mobile Phone (Invoice Value Rs15,000 and above) segment have proposed production of over Rs9,00,000 crore. The companies under Mobile Phone (Domestic Companies) segment have proposed production of about Rs2,00,000 crore and those under Specified Electronic Components segment have proposed production of over Rs45,000 crore The scheme is expected to promote exports significantly. Out of the total production of Rs11,50,000 crore in the next 5 years, more than 60 per cent worth Rs7,00,000 crore will be exported. The scheme is expected to bring in additional investment in electronics manufacturing to the tune of Rs11,000 crore. Government expects the scheme to generate approximately 3 lakh direct employment opportunities in the next 5 years along with creation of additional indirect employment of nearly 9 lakh. Domestic value addition is expected to grow from the current 15-20 per cent to 35-40 per cent in case of mobile phones and 45-50 per cent for electronic components. With the demand for electronics in India expected to grow manifold by 2025, the minister expressed confidence that PLI scheme and other initiatives to promote electronics manufacturing in India a competitive destination for electronics manufacturing and give boost to AtmaNirbhar Bharat. Creation of domestic champion companies in electronics manufacturing under thescheme will give fillip to vocal for local while aiming for global scale. Prime Minister Narendra Modis major initiatives like `Digital India and `Make in India along with his vision of `Atmanirbhar Bharat, envisions positioning India as a global hub for Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) by focusing on size and scale, promoting exports and enhancing domestic value addition by creating an enabling environment for the industry to compete globally. Apple already assembles some its smartphones, including the iPhone 11, via Foxconn and Wistron's local unit in India. reports citing sources said Foxconn has proposed to invest $1 billion in India. India hopes it will help turn the country into a global smartphone export hub like neighbouring China. Pegatron, one of Apple's top suppliers, has yet to open a plant in India, but is in talks with various states to set up operations, according to sources. South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co Ltd has also applied for PLIs, Prasad told a news conference. Samsung, which runs the world's biggest mobile phone manufacturing plant on the outskirts of New Delhi, already exports devices made at the plant. Prasad said the scheme is expected to increase Apples and Samsungs manufacturing base manifold in India. Lava, which once also assembled some models for China's Lenovo, was among the Indian companies that have applied for the scheme, Prasad added. India's smartphone sector is a bright spot in the South Asian nation's economy, thanks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's emphasis on local manufacturing in a bid to create jobs. With more than 1 billion wireless subscribers and roughly 350 million users still on basic phones, India is expected to be the next smartphone manufacturing hub as firms propose Rs11 lakh crore mobile phone production under the PLI scheme. New Filing Suggests Manhattan DA Investigating Protracted Criminal Conduct at the Trump Organization The Manhattan district attorney suggested that the offices subpoena for President Donald Trumps financial records is part of an investigation into possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization that was alleged in media reports in recent years, according to a new court filing. The office of New York Country District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. told the court on Monday that publicly available information about the Trump organization and its officers, which includes allegations of insurance and bank fraud, provides a legal basis for requesting the substantial amount of financial records from the presidents accounting firm, Mazars USA. In light of these public reports of possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization, there was nothing facially improper (or even particularly unusual) about the Mazars Subpoena, which issued in connection with a complex financial investigation, requesting eight years of records from an accounting firm, the office wrote (pdf). The district attorney made the argument in a filing responding to Trumps new challenge against the prosecutors subpoena seeking the presidents tax returns as part of a grand jury probe. The presidents lawyers argued in their second amended complaint that Vances subpoena was widely overbroad and issued in bad faith, which amounted to a form of harassment against the president. When the subpoena was issued, Vance was reportedly investigating hush money allegedly paid to two women during the 2016 presidential campaign: adult film performer Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. Trump has denied any wrongdoing in connection with the two women. Mondays filing suggests that the scope of Vances investigation is more expansive than the prosecutor had previously acknowledged. In a footnote, the district attorney pointed to three media reports published in 2018 and 2019 about the presidents wealth and finances to justify its subpoena. The reports alleged wrongdoing by Trump and his organization to expand his businesses including illegally inflating his worth to prospective lenders and investors. Public reporting demonstrates that the Office had a valid basis for requesting each category and timeframe of document listed in the Mazars Subpoena, the district attorney office argued. These reports describe transactions involving individual and corporate actors based in New York County, but whose conduct at times extended beyond New Yorks borders. This possible criminal activity occurred within the applicable statutes of limitations, particularly if the transactions involved a continuing pattern of conduct. Trump has been fighting Vances subpoena since September 2019, arguing that the president enjoys absolute immunity from state criminal process under the Constitution. The district court denied Trumps application for an injunction over the subpoena and dismissed the case in October 2019. The 2nd Circuit also denied the presidents request for relief. Trumps lawyer argued in the Supreme Court that a sitting president has absolute immunity from state criminal subpoenas because compliance with them would impair the performance of his presidential duties. The federal government, which was also involved in the case, argued that a state grand jury subpoena for personal records of a sitting president should meet a higher standard of need. The Supreme Court on July 9 pushed back (pdf) on both arguments and said no citizen, not even the President, is categorically above the common duty to produce evidence when called upon in a criminal proceeding. However, the top court left the door open for the president to seek recourse, suggesting that Trump could still challenge the subpoena on other grounds. In Trumps filing in late July, his lawyers argued that the scope of the subpoena was overbroad as it requested for voluminous documents beyond the district attorneys limited jurisdiction under New York law and was not properly tailored for Trumps records. They argued this was because Vance had copied the wording of subpoenas issued by House Committees also seeking the presidents financial records. They also argued that the extensive nature of the subpoena also suggest that Vance had issued the subpoena in bad faith. Vances office argued that Trumps challenge should be tossed out as it fails to establish overbreadth or bad faith and does not state a claim. Trumps lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment by The Epoch Times. According to experts from the University of Colorado Boulder, increasing amounts of fresh water have moved into the Arctic Ocean in the past 20 years. Researchers fear that if this trend continues, the desalination of the North Atlantic may disrupt ocean currents. Such events have happened before in the 1970s and 1980s but they were temporary, while now the process has become permanent. Scientists say that the share of fresh water in the Arctic Ocean has grown by 10 percent, that is by 10,000 cu km, since the 1990s. Forecasts suggest there is no stopping the freshening in the near decades. Even a radical cut in carbon emissions could considerably influence the process no earlier than in the second half of the century. The surface waters of the Arctic Ocean are already the freshest in the world because of high volumes of river runoff, but due to global warming, ice thawing in the Antarctic and along Greenland coasts, where the most serious desalination was recorded, has accelerated six times, and the fresh and sea waters mixing in the ocean is happening differently by the American and Russian coasts. As a result, the ecosystem in the region is drastically changing to create a practically "new ocean," scientists believe. In scientists' view, the first place where the fresh water export will grow in the coming decades as a result of climate change will be the Nares Strait between Greenland and Canada, a kind of northern gates between the Arctic and the other oceans. Ironically, such a process would mitigate the effect of global warming in Northern Europe for a while, but the disruption of ocean currents could have unfavorable consequences in the long term both for the climate and the entire ecosystem of the North Atlantic. A military equipment supplier that has been accused of fraudulently mis-representing its size in order to benefit from privileges associated with being a small business has received a Paycheck Protection Program small business loan worth at least $2 million, public records show. Atlantic Diving Supply, a Virginia Beach, Va.-based reseller of specialized military gear, is the latest organization whose receipt of taxpayer-backed loans through the Paycheck Protection Program has raised questions about a program launched in early April to help sustain employment at small companies through the economic crisis. In late April, the Treasury Department retroactively clarified its rules after well-known restaurant chains, car dealerships and hotel companies reported receiving PPP loans. Several of them returned the loan funds following public uproar; others kept the money. The SBA has said it will audit all PPP loans above $2 million to determine whether the recipients were eligible. Representatives from the Small Business Administration and Atlantic Diving Supply did not comment on the company's receipt of SBA loans. The company's legal issues are detailed extensively in a report to be released Monday by the nonprofit Project on Government Oversight, known as POGO. A review of business data by POGO and the nonprofit Anti-Corruption Data Collective concluded that ADS was one of at least 27 PPP recipients estimated annual sales of more than $1 billion in 2019. Another 2,068 loan recipients cleared $100 million in sales last year, according to the analysis. Nick Schwellenbach, a senior investigator at POGO, questioned whether it's appropriate for ADS to receive small business coronavirus loans. Schwellenbach's investigation also found that two other firms allegedly tied to ADS including one that was named in a settlement with the Department of Justice separately received smaller PPP loans. "It's important that taxpayer funding reserved for genuine small businesses isn't siphoned off by companies that are not eligible," Schwellenbach said. "As a top government contractor with revenues well over a billion dollars a year, it strains credibility that Atlantic Diving Supply is a real small business, especially given several recent settlements and law enforcement outcomes related to their alleged small business contracting fraud." Although it received a favorable ruling from the SBA as recently as November 2019, ADS's small business credentials have long been called into question. ADS started as a small, family-owned shop focused on the military diving community in Virginia Beach, which includes the Navy Seals. It was transformed under the leadership of long-time chief executive Luke Hillier, winning its first major government contract in 2000. It grew quickly to meet an insatiable demand for military gear of all sorts in the years following 9/11. That fast growth became permanent business as the U.S. military presence in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere dragged on for nearly two decades. At one point, ADS filed papers to go public, something that is usually the purview of large corporations. In 2015 it purchased Theodore Wille International, a military food and equipment supplier with offices in seven countries. Its business has remained healthy despite recent troop reductions. ADS received more than $3 billion in unclassified government contract dollars in 2019, procurement records show. That's more than some well-known, objectively large government contractors, including Bechtel, KBR and CACI. ADS has already cleared $1 billion in federal contract receipts in 2020 despite the economic crisis. As it has grown ADS's continued status as a small business status has been critical to its participation in the Defense Department's Tailored Logistics Support, or TLS program, a lucrative military supply line that is largely restricted to SBA-approved small and disadvantaged businesses. In recent years, ADS's official headcount has teetered close to the SBA's 500-employee limit for small-company designation, and the company has fought off repeated challenges to its size status. If ADS were declared "no longer small," it would not only be ineligible for SBA coronavirus assistance, but would also be forbidden from competing on small business set-aside contracts that drive its business. In 2017, ADS settled federal allegations that it used a network of allegedly-affiliated companies to rig bids and fraudulently misrepresent its size. The Justice Department called the $16 million settlement "one of the largest recoveries involving alleged fraud in connection with small business contracting eligibility." Hillier, who has moved on from the CEO role but remained the company's chairman as of July 20, according to a company filing, separately paid $20 million to settle federal allegations that he "violated the False Claims Act by fraudulently obtaining federal set-aside contracts reserved for small businesses that his company was ineligible to receive." The settlements resulted from a Qui Tam lawsuit brought by whistleblowers. Two of the alleged affiliate businesses - Karda Systems and SEK Solutions - were named in a related case in which Ron Villanueva, a former state lawmaker from Virginia Beach, pleaded guilty to federal charges that he conspired to defraud the United States. Villanueva admitted that he and a friend pretended both companies were run by people who qualified for particular grants and drafted a misleading letter to the SBA that mischaracterized the degree to which one firm relied on other suppliers. ADS briefly lost its small business designation as a result of those allegations when a Defense Department contracting officer, concerned by ADS's settlement, requested a formal SBA review of the company's size status and its degree of affiliation with other companies named in the whistleblower lawsuit, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post. That SBA review determined that ADS was "other than small," which temporarily blocked the company from bidding on set-aside contracts. But ADS successfully appealed that ruling, which was reversed because it relied on old financial records. Today the company continues to receive federal contracts designated for small firms. Because the settlements arrived at by ADS and Hillier did not include a determination of liability, the company has been allowed to keep benefiting from the SBA's various small business programs. Its most recent size determination was finalized in November 2019. August 03 : Malaika Arora, who returned to judge the dance reality show Indias Best Dancer on Sony TV, is always vocal about her bonding with her sister Amrita Arora. At the Raksha Bandhan special episode of the show, the diva shared how she loves her sister, and shares a great bond with her. On the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, Malaika posted a beautiful picture of herself with Amrita on her Instagram handle, and wrote a heartfelt note with it. Tum hi ho bandhu, sakha tum hi. It's not just a prayer, it's not just a song...it's what defines our boundless relation. You are not just my baby sister...u are my best friend when I need one, an elder sister when I feel like being a child again, a sounding board when I feel like venting and a brother so I never miss having one. We are everything to each other and words fall short to describe our eternal bond. Happy Raksha Bandhan to you! Malaika wrote. Dressed in traditional attires, Malaika and Amrita look beautiful as they pose for the picture. Malaika explained in the note how Amrita plays multiple roles in her lifethat of a sister, a brother, a friend and many more. Whether it's the sisterhood of undying support or bro code to protect each other fiercely...we have it all. The best of both worlds in one package, that's how I'd like to describe you, she wrote. Some months ago, I saw a shocking video: someone rode a bicycle down a sidewalk in Los Angeles, filming as he went, for something like a half hour. The entire time, he passed tent encampments or cities on both sides of the sidewalk. They seemed to go on forever and had an appearance of permanence. Yesterday a friend sent me a similar video, on a smaller scale, which was filmed by a resident of South Minneapolis. It shows Minnehaha Park, near the famous Minnehaha Falls. The tent city that has sprung up there is replicated in many other Minneapolis parks. These encampments are the result, I believe, of an executive order by Governor Tim Walz that decreed all 38 parks within the city of Minneapolis to be open for occupancy by tent squatters. I assume this order ostensibly has something to do with the governors emergency powers based on the COVID epidemic, but how the two are related I cant tell you. Basically, we are living under martial law. Here is the video: Minneapolis, once a nice city, is crumbling as a result of decades of bad governance. It has one advantage over Los Angeles, however. It is not possible to live in a tent in Minnesota in January. At some point, the residents of Minneapoliss parks will decamp, at least temporarily, for warmer climes. UPDATE: Check out this tweet by Hennepin County Police and Fire Monitoring, which I take it is just a (liberal) person. She quotes a Minneapolis resident who is appalled at the depths the city has fallen to, and responds unsympathetically: #uptownmpls O how sad you cant walk your little doggie, children of north minneapolis havent been able to play in their own yards for years out of this same fear the #privileged are now experiencing, I feel no empathy for you, you asked for it & you got it #MplsCrime pic.twitter.com/mF8BvTBwJh Hennepin County Police & Fire monitoring (@HCP_FM) August 2, 2020 Well, thats one way to achieve equality, I guess. A comment on the post: My guess is thats true. Pace of grain exports from Ukraine slower than last year 23:35, 03.08.20 419 Ukraine exported 2.52 million tonnes of grain from July 1 to August 3, 2020. Thank you for tuning in to episode 84 of The CUInsight Experience podcast with your host, Randy Smith, co-founder of CUInsight.com. This episode is brought to you by our friends at PSCU. As the nations premier payments CUSO, PSCU proudly supports the success of more than 1,500 credit unions. The credit union industry is headed into an exciting period of innovation and digital transformation. As such, Im chatting with Chuck Purvis, President and CEO of Coastal Credit Union in North Carolina, on this weeks episode about what credit unions can and should do to stay relevant, grow, and prosper in the coming years. Chuck and I also talk about the challenges he and his team at Coastal have had to overcome these last few months. During the episode, Chuck and I discuss shifts in member service and the long-term implications, as well as the need for credit unions to collaborate as an industry on new and innovative digital platforms. Chuck also shares what he feels needs to change to keep credit unions relevant from now on and how hes grown as a leader through this crisis. In the leadership and life hacks portion of the show, Chuck and I talk about some of the leadership lessons hes picked up along the way, as well as what hes learned from a few of the setbacks. We discuss his path to Coastal, what it took to build a phenomenal executive team, and how the inspiration has changed over the years. He shares that Git er done is his favorite saying, that leaders arent always the smartest people in the room, and that when he has a day off he loves to be at his lake house or on the water relaxing. We finish up with the rapid-fire questions and find out that Chuck wanted to be an architect when he was young. He also loves any song by Rascal Flatts. He also shares that spending quality time with his family at the lake house has become more important, while things, stuff, and trips have become less. Chuck shares some very insightful final thoughts that you dont want to miss! Enjoy! Find the full show notes on cuinsight.com Subscribe on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher Books mentioned on The CUInsight Experience podcast: Book List How to find Chuck: Chuck Purvis, President and CEO of Coastal Credit Union cpurvis@coastal24.com www.coastal24.com Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram Show notes from this episode: A big shout-out to our friends at PSCU, an amazing sponsor of The CUInsight Experience podcast. Thank you! Check out all the outstanding work that Chuck and his team at Coastal Credit Union are doing here. Shout-out: CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference Shout-out: CO-OP Financial Service Learn more about Constellation here Shout-out: US Central Credit Union Shout-out: Carolinas Credit Union League Shout-out: Raleigh, North Carolina Shout-out: Chuck wife Shout-out: Jill Nowacki Album mentioned: Greatest Hits by Rascal Flatts Shout-out: Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek Shout-out: Chucks son Shout-out: Elon Musk Shout-out: Steve Jobs Shout-out: Tesla Shout-out: The Boring Company Shout-out: SpaceX Previous guests mentioned in this episode: Jill Nowacki (episodes 4, 18, 37, 64 & 82) In This Episode: [02:17] Welcome to the show, Chuck! [03:50] Chuck shares some things they had in place before the pandemic that has helped them during the crisis. [05:15] What has been the biggest change your credit union has made? [07:35] Chuck speaks about what they have in place to help their members. [08:49] Listen, as Chuck discusses how he thinks the pandemic will change the way members do business with credit unions. [09:44] Chuck shares whether they will keep the remote workers once the pandemic is under control. [11:20] Chuck believes that it is hard to develop trust over a phone call. [12:45] What do you think credit unions need to do to stay relevant to the disruption that is going on? [14:01] Chuck speaks about how he has grown as a leader through this pandemic. [16:55] Chuck shares what he will be most proud to have accomplished over the next year. [18:37] What inspired you to take the gig with Coastal Credit Union? [21:47] Chuck speaks about how the inspiration has changed with time on the job. [23:25] Get er done is something Chucks team has heard him say repeatedly. [23:59] Chuck shares that he came by the ability to make hard decisions naturally. [26:57] Is there a myth about leaders you want to debunk? [28:06] Chuck discusses some mistakes he made and mistakes he sees young leaders make. [31:28] Listen as Chuck shares advice he was given early in his career. [32:52] Chuck likes to be at the lake house if he has a day off. [34:59] Chuck was shy and nerdy in high school, but he still got into a bit of trouble. [36:52] When he was growing up, he wanted to be an architect. [39:37] Chuck speaks about his daily routines. [40:44] What is the best album of all time? [41:37] Do you have a favorite book that you think everyone should read? [42:35] Spending quality time with his family has become more important, and things and stuff have become less important. [44:01] Elon Musk is the person who comes to mind when he hears the word success. [45:26] Chuck shares some final thoughts. [46:36] Thank you so much for being on the show! Conservation efforts in China put in place to protect the giant panda may have triggered a decline in the numbers of leopards, snow leopards and wolves. Experts from China found that these carnivores as well as the dhole, the Asian wild dog have almost disappeared from the protected areas set aside for the panda. Accordingly, the researchers have argued for a broader conservation strategy to be implemented in the region to protect biodiversity as a wider whole. Conservation efforts in China put in place to protect the giant panda, pictured, may have triggered a decline in the numbers of leopards, snow leopards and wolves (stock image) Researchers found that four large carnivores have almost disappeared from the protected areas set aside for the panda. Pictured, where each of the carnivores (leopard, top left, snow leopard, top right, wolf, bottom left and dhole, bottom right) still exist in (in black) and have disappeared from (in grey) the five mountain ranges across which the giant panda live 'Since the establishment of the first giant panda reserve in the early 1960s, the Chinese government [...] has invested enormously in giant panda conservation,' the researchers wrote in their paper. 'As a direct result of these efforts, the status of giant pandas on the International Union for Conservation of Natures Red List changed from Endangered to Vulnerable in 2016.' However, they added, 'the present findings indicate the insufficiency of giant panda conservation for protecting [...] large carnivore species.' In their study, biologist Sheng Li of Peking University and colleagues examined 73 of China's wildlife protection areas, 66 of which were giant panda nature reserves. They determined whether of not the four large carnivores dholes, leopards, snow leopards and wolves were present or absent in each area using camera-trap surveys undertaken between 2008 and 2018. This contemporary field data was compared with historical baseline survey data gathered in 58 of the protected areas shortly following their establishment. The researchers found that, in the 5060 years since the panda reserves were first created, all four species have been lost from a substantial proportion of the areas. Specifically, dholes have vanished from 95 per cent of all reserves, leopards from 81 per cent, wolves from 77 per cent and snow leopards from 38 per cent. Accordingly, the researchers have argued for a broader conservation strategy to be implemented in the region to protect biodiversity as a wider whole. Pictured, a snow leopard, whose numbers have fallen by around 38 per cent across the various Chinese protected reserves in the last 5060 years (stock image) Dholes the Asian wild dog, pictured have vanished from 95 per cent of all reserves, while wolves have disappeared from 77 per cent and snow leopards from 38 per cent (stock image) According to the researchers, these losses have been triggered by factors including disease, logging and poaching. 'Future conservation efforts should target restoring ecosystems with high trophic [food web] complexity to facilitate the recovery of large carnivore populations,' Sheng Li and colleagues concluded. The full findings of the study were published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution. In their study, biologist Sheng Li of Peking University and colleagues examined 73 of China's wildlife protection areas, pictured, 66 of which were giant panda nature reserves Emergency officials stand outside a bar after gunmen shot dead a journalist early on Sunday in the Mexican city of Iguala in the southwestern state of Guerrero, according to local authorities on Aug. 2, 2020. (GRISEL TAPIA FLORES/via REUTERS) Journalist Shot Dead in Violent Mexican State ACAPULCO, MexicoGunmen shot dead a journalist early on Sunday in the Mexican city of Iguala in the southwestern state of Guerrero, local authorities said, in what was at least the fourth murder of a reporter in the country this year. Pablo Morrugares of news website PM Noticias had gone to dine in an Iguala restaurant in the company of a police bodyguard when the unidentified assailants opened fire on them after midnight, Guerrero state prosecutors said in a statement. The website also published an announcement about the killing on Facebook, as did the human rights commission of Guerrero, which has long been one of Mexicos most violent states. Morrugares, who was killed along with his bodyguard, Guerrero state prosecutors said, had survived a previous assassination attempt in 2016, a local official said. The motive for the shooting was not immediately clear. According to Reporters Without Borders, a non-profit group dedicated to protecting freedom of information, three other journalists had been killed in Mexico this year. Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. Microscopy Devices Market Share, Trends And Growth Analysis By Type (Optical Microscopes, Electron Microscope, Scanning Probe Microscope (Spm), Others), By Application (Life Science, Material Science, Pathology), By End User (Hospitals & Clinics, Academic & Research Institutes, Diagnostics Centers) - Forecast Till 2022 Factors substantiating the market growth include the increased funding by the public and private sector for life science research studies and the expansion of the semiconductor industries in most of the emerging nations. Increasing research and development activities initiated by governments, schools, universities and research institutions across the developing regions have fuelled the growth of the market. Market Research Future (MRFR) in recently published study asserts that the global Microscopy Devices Market share is expected to reach USD ~10.5 Billion in 2022; it has been noted that market is growing at steady pace and is expected to grow at the CAGR of 7.8% during the forecasted period 2016 2022. Surpassing its previous growth records in terms of value & volume, the market is expected to gain prominence over the forecasted period. Global Microscopy Device Market Regional Analysis Globally, Asia-Pacific is the largest market for microscopy devices. The APAC market is expected to grow further registering 7.3% CAGR during 2016-2022. North America market for microscopy devices accounting for the second-largest market globally will grow at 11.5% CAGR during the assessment period. Microscopy Device Market Competitive Analysis The Microscopy Device market is widely expanded and highly competitive with the presence of numerous major and small players operating at the international and regional level around the globe. The market will witness fierce competition due to the expected extensions in product & service and product innovations. Manufacturers operating in the Microscopy Device market strive to develop Device with adept technology with unrivalled design and features. Get full report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/microscopy-devices-market-2313 Key Players: FEI, Meiji Techno, Nikon Metrology NV, Woodley Equipment Company Ltd, Radical Scientific Equipments Pvt. Ltd, Bruker, Mauna Kea Technologies SA, Icon Analytical Equipment Pvt. Ltd, Olympus Corporation, NIDEK Inc., Sonix, Inc., Konan Medical USA Inc., Carl Zeiss, and Leica Microsystems are some of the prominent players at the forefront of competition in the Global Microscopy Device Market and are profiled in MRFR Analysis. Industry/ Innovation/ Related News November 2017 Researchers of Germany and Portugal collaboratively developed the first microscope to concurrently monitor movement and neuron activity in zebrafish larvae without interfering with their behavior. To enable wider use in the research community, the neurobehavioral tracking microscope uses off-the-shelf components and is open source. Browse other healthcare-related reports Anti Epilepsy Drugs Market Peptic Ulcer Drugs Market About Market Research Future: MRFR team has supreme objective to provide the optimum quality market research and intelligence services to our clients. Our market research studies by Components, Application, Logistics and market players for global, regional, and country-level market segments, enable our clients to see more, know more, and do more, which help to answer all their most important questions. In order to stay updated with the technology and work process of the industry, MRFR often plans & conducts meet with the industry experts and industrial visits for its research analyst members. Contact: https://www.marketresearchfuture.com (Natural News) The first question that Hillary Clinton should be asked by a reporter the very next time she is interviewed is this: What did you know about allegations against your husband. former President Bill Clinton, that he entertained underage girls on Jeffrey Epsteins Pedo Island, and when did you know them? She would never answer that question, of course, but then shell never have to because no one in the garbage mainstream media would dare ask. Because they already know. And yet, they should because new evidence has just emerged that appears to confirm what has long been suspected: That the former president may be no better than Epstein when it comes to sex with underage girls. Ditto for Britains Prince Andrew, if the evidence is true. And the FBI sure has some explaining to do as well. Court documents unsealed late this week resulting from a civil lawsuit against deceased pedophile Epsteins madam, Ghislaine Maxwell, feature very damning quotes regarding Clinton as well as a revealing one about President Donald Trump. In 2016 one of Epsteins alleged underage sexual conquests, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, filed suit against Maxwell, accusing her of having recruited her to perform masseuse duties on Epstein when she was just 15 years old. Documents from that suit were unsealed Thursday and contain quotes that implicate Clinton and others. The released documents contain a transcript of a 2011 session between Giuffre and one of her lawyers, Jack Scarola: Scarola: Do you have any recollection of Jeffrey Epsteins specifically telling you that Bill Clinton owes me favors? Giuffre: Yes, I do. It was a laugh though. He would laugh it off. You know, I remember asking Jeffrey whats Bill Clinton doing here [on Epsteins island] kind of thing, and he laughed it off and said well he owes me favors. Giuffre: He never told me what favors they were. I never knew. I didnt know if he was serious. It was just a joke. He told me a long time ago that everyone owes him favors. Theyre all in each others pockets. Scarola: When you say you asked him why is Bill Clinton here, where was here? Giuffre: On the island. Scarola: When you were present with Jeffrey Epstein and Bill Clinton on the island, who else was there? Giuffre: Emmy [another girl who was allegedly a regular at Epsteins house], and there was 2 young girls that I could identify. I never really knew them well anyways. It was just 2 girls from New York. Scarola: And were all of you staying at Jeffreys house on the island including Bill Clinton? Giuffre: Thats correct. He had about 4 or 5 different villas on his island separate from the main house, and we all stayed in the villas. Scarola: Were sexual orgies a regular occurrence on the island at Jeffreys house? Giuffre: Yes. In addition, according to the documents, noted Harvard professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz allegedly abused a minor girl, was a witness to further alleged abuses by others, and helped to draft a non-prosecution agreement that gave him immunity. Witness interview: Bill Clinton was at Epstein's island with Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, and "2 young girls." pic.twitter.com/NG8PbaZLNt Techno Fog (@Techno_Fog) July 31, 2020 As for the FBI, the bureau was in contact with a minor victim of abuse in 2014 back when James Comey was running the place on behalf of Barack Obama. But they did nothing about it. The victim was even pleading with the FBI for any evidence the agency had on Epstein and Maxwell so she could strengthen her case, according to the documents. But she wasnt given any. And why? The FBI knew for years what was going on with Epstein and Maxwelland Clinton and yes, Prince Andrew. According to the documents, the bureau had their own copy of that infamous photo with Andrew, Maxwell, and Giuffre. Remember that famous Prince Andrew photo with Ghislaine Maxwell and the victim? The FBI had their own copy for years even before the victim's 2011 FBI interview. The FBI knew. They always knew. pic.twitter.com/A5TjKt4Kf7 Techno Fog (@Techno_Fog) July 31, 2020 As for our current president, the documents contain revealing information about his character too. The documents contain denials that Trump and some other world leaders were involved in untoward behavior. In a 2016 deposition Giuffre said that Trump didnt partake in any sex with us and never flirted with me, The Guardian reported. Sources include: TheGuardian.com ZeroHedge.com NaturalNews.com A Long March 3B rocket carrying the Beidou-3GEO3 satellite lifts off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Xichang in southwestern China's Sichuan Province on June 23, 2020. (STR/AFP via Getty Images) China Completes BeiDou Navigation System Amid Security Concerns The Chinese regime recently completed the rollout of its satellite-based navigation system with much fanfare. But experts have for years warned about the security threats the system poses to users and governments. The BeiDou Navigation Satellite System was officially commissioned July 31 at a ceremony in Beijing, which was attended by Chinese leader Xi Jinping and other high-ranking Chinese officials such as Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of Chinas Central Military Commission, the Communist Partys top military decision-making body. The BeiDou system, a state-run project launched in 1994, was completed June 23 when China launched its 35th and final BeiDou-3 satellite into geostationary orbit. In 2018, the system began providing services to countries that signed up for Chinas Belt and Road Initiative. Since 2013, the foreign policy project has invested in infrastructure projects and trade routes around the world as Beijing seeks to bolster its geopolitical clout. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin claimed at a daily briefing on July 31 that the BeiDou system is in use in over half of the worlds countries. According to Chinese state-run media, BeiDou boasts more accurate positioning than its U.S. counterpart, the Global Positioning System (GPS), in the Asia-Pacific region. In China, more than 70 percent of smartphones are using BeiDou, as of the first quarter, according to state-run newspaper Global Times. While the BeiDou system has both civilian and military applications, Beijing developed the system primarily for military purposes, according to a 2015 report by the U.S.China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), a congressional body. Chinas military, the Peoples Liberation Army, viewed its dependence on foreign navigation systems as a strategic vulnerability, the report noted. Chinas ambitions in developing BeiDou were explicitly spelled out in state media reports. On Aug. 1, Hunan Daily reported that the BeiDou system would allow China to have greater strength in the face of ever more fierce international competition and to hold the power of taking the lead. It predicted that once BeiDou is combined with technologies such as the 5G next-generation wireless communications and artificial intelligence, it would generate unfathomable power for China, creating new industries with more economic and social benefits. The BeiDou system is supported by Beijing under the industrial policy of Made in China 2025, a blueprint for China to supplant global competitors and become a high-tech manufacturing powerhouse. Taiwans Ministry of Science and Technology, in a report issued in 2016, outlined several threats posed by the BeiDou system to smartphone users. It warned that Beijing could track, eavesdrop, and steal information from smartphone users if their devices were embedded with malware and connected to BeiDou. Some smartphone manufacturers, such as Samsung, Huawei, and Xiaomi, have begun offering BeiDou as an option for picking up satellite signals. The ministry called on Taiwan government employees not to use smartphones connected to the BeiDou system, so as to prevent them from being potential targets of Chinas attacks. USCC, in a separate report published in 2017, issued a similar warning. Beidou could pose a security risk by allowing Chinas government to track users of the system by deploying malware transmitted through either its navigation signal or messaging function (via a satellite communication channel), once the technology is in widespread use, USCC stated. USCC also warned of the potential military threat posed by BeiDou. China would also be able to attack an adversarys access to GPS without disrupting its own capabilities, the commission warned. Beijing could also influence other countries to align their interests with it, by offering Belt and Road nations incentives to adopt the BeiDou system, a January 2019 report by the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency warned. President Donald Trump said TikTok will have to close its U.S. operations by Sept. 15 unless theres a deal to sell the social media networks American operations. He said that hes okay with the idea of Microsoft Corp. buying TikTok -- as the company has said its negotiating to do -- and that there would have to be a substantial payment to the U.S. as part of the deal. Trump set off a furious scramble over the fate of the Chinese-owned app on Friday, when he said he would ban the companys operations through an executive action on Saturday. But the weekend passed without any official move from the White House, after the president spoke with Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella about his companys efforts to purchase the viral video application. Microsoft said in a blog post that it was aiming to complete a deal for TikToks operations in the U.S., as well as in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, no later than Sept. 15. The White House had insisted upon that deadline, according to people familiar with the matter. It could prove an uphill climb, with key details for the deal -- including price -- still not worked out, people familiar with the discussions said. The White House has said its concerned that TikToks parent company, ByteDance Ltd., could be compelled to hand over American users data to Beijing or use the app to influence the 165 million Americans, and more than 2 billion users globally, who have downloaded it. And Trump has looked to ratchet up pressure on China ahead of Novembers election, frustrated by slow implementation of the trade pact inked earlier this year and the spread of the coronavirus for which he blames China. Trump Rally Teenagers opposed to the president have also used the app to disrupt the presidents campaign activities, including signing up for tickets to the presidents first rally since the beginning of the pandemic, in Tulsa. Attendance at the late June event was far below expectations, and Trump hasnt held another rally since. In its blog post, Microsoft pledged to add more security, privacy and digital safety protections to the TikTok app and ensure that all private data of Americans be transferred back to the U.S. and deleted from servers outside the country. The company also said it may invite other American investors to take minority stakes in the company. Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns, the company said. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury. Still, U.S. lawmakers and administration officials have favored shutting down the application altogether to send a message to China after Beijing restricted American companies like Facebook Inc., Twitter Inc. and Alphabet Inc.s Google. White House adviser Peter Navarro on Monday said in a pair of interviews with CNN and Fox News that he wasnt sure Microsoft was the right company to buy TikToks U.S. operations, saying it had helped China construct its internet firewall. Should we trust any company that operates in China? Navarro told Fox News. Sri Lanka: New assessment shows 74% of Sri Lankas freshwater fish threatened with extinction by Malaka Rodrigo August 03,2020 | Source: Mongabay Surveys carried out in the early 1980s in the many reservoirs in Sri Lankas dry zone showed abundant populations of the red-fin labeo (Labeo lankae), an endemic species of frewshwater fish. Reports indicated the fish was also available at local fish markets. But decades later, it has disappeared from the reservoirs it was known to inhabit, a fate it shares with many other freshwater fish across Sri Lanka. In fact, a recent assessment of the islands freshwater fish shows three-fourths of endemic species are facing extinction. The National Red List is updated regularly as taxonomic revisions result in adding or removing species. The 2020 assessment shows 139 freshwater fish species, 61 of which are found only on the Indian Ocean island. Of the endemic species, the red list classifies 12 as critically endangered, 24 as endangered, and nine species as vulnerable. It also lists five species as near threatened, two as data deficient, and the rest as being of least concern in terms of their conservation status. Thirty-six non-endemic freshwater fish species were also assessed under the red list review, with eight listed as threatened. Threatened endemics Sampath Goonetillake, IUCN Sri Lankas senior program officer for biodiversity and one of the assessors of the National Red List, said the assessment will be accepted globally as it was carried out according to the global red list criteria. The assessment should not be viewed as a mere listing of species under different levels of threat but as a scientific yardstick to execute specific conservation actions, Goonetillake told Mongabay. About 28% of Sri Lankas land area has been declared protected areas, managed either by the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC) or the Forest Department. Most of the species listed as threatened, endemic or range-restricted are found in habitats located outside this protected areas network and are severely impacted by human activity. There had been several local extinctions, and if this trend continues, it may lead to extinction of entire species as well, Goonetillake said. Rohan Pethiyagoda, an expert in freshwater fish and leading taxonomist who previously served as deputy chair of the IUCNs Species Survival Commission, said Sri Lankas protected areas network has almost no relevance to aquatic organisms. As a result, streams and stream-side habitats are at risk, he said. While freshwater fish face many threats, Pethiyagoda identified three key issues: First, the pollution of streams and rivers by sewage and agricultural chemicals. Next, there is the loss of riverside shade. It is important to recognize that almost all wet-zone endemics are strongly associated with shaded streams, Pethiyagoda told Mongabay. The third major threat is the increasing number of non-native fish taking over Sri Lankas inland waters, whether from the inland fisheries industry or as escapees from the ornamental fish industry, Pethiyagoda said. Still, there are some positive developments. Several species, such as the red-fin labeo were listed as critically endangered in 2012, but today have seen their conservation status eased to endangered. This is because surveys done afterward discovered different populations, Goonetillake said. Pethiyagoda said conservation initiatives are possible. Once local communities are made aware of the value that freshwater fish carry, they take great interest in contributing to their conservation, he said. He cited the examples of the critically endangered Bandula barb (Pethia bandula) and Asoka barb (Systomus asoka), both endemic species, which are now strictly protected by local communities in Galapitamada and Kitulgala in Kegalle district, in Sri Lankas lush Sabaragamuwa province. I had a hand in describing both these species around 1990, and the moment the local people were shown the fish and told that it was unique to their stream or river, they became very protective of it, Pethiyagoda told Mongabay. Giving local communities ownership in conservation initiatives is arguably the best, and probably only, method of conserving such species, he added. Conserving freshwater fish The 2020 freshwater fish red list assessment includes recommendations for conservation. One is to launch islandwide systematic surveys of freshwater fish, as recent evolutionary studies show there are species yet to be described and that taxonomic clarity is needed for several already described species. Another recommendation is to conduct population assessments of at least the critically endangered species. The recent evaluation process revealed that some nationally threatened species with a wide distribution range could not be listed under any of the IUCN threat categories, Goonatilleke said. Development of conservation action plans have been proposed for the threatened fish species found only in Sri Lanka and to evaluate the feasibility of ex-situ conservation, where breeding of critically endangered species occurs. We want to use the national red listing effort as a springboard to introduce much-needed urgent conservation actions for the endemic threatened freshwater fishes, Padma Abeykoon, head of the Biodiversity Secretariat of Sri Lankas Ministry of Environment and Wildlife Resources, told Mongabay. As a means of generating funds for the vital conservation initiative, Pethiyagoda recommended tapping the countrys two main state-owned utility companies, Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB). Both agencies rely for their operations on the freshwater habitats of the Kelani and Mahaweli rivers; they earn more than $300 million combined from hydropower and urban water supply, respectively. At present, there is no mechanism to reinvest in the natural resources used for hydropower generation or water supply. Investing in the conservation of these natural resources is of direct benefit to them, Pethiyagoda said. If just 1% of the earnings can be reinvested in conservation efforts, it can make a difference. A 5% tariff on water and electricity could generate around $15 million a year and have a transformative impact not just on the aquatic biodiversity of these two rivers but all natural waterways in the biodiversity rich island, he added. NIA has so far arrested 10 people in the case of smuggling of gold through diplomatic baggage addressed to the UAE consulate in Thiruvananthapuram New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested six more people and conducted searches at six places in connection with the Kerala gold smuggling case, an official said on Sunday. The agency has so far arrested 10 people in the case of smuggling of gold through diplomatic baggage addressed to the UAE consulate in Kerala capital Thiruvananthapuram. On 30 July, two accused Jalal A M of Ernakulam and Said Alavi E of Malappuram were arrested for conspiring with the arrested accused Ramees KT, an NIA spokesperson said. On 31 July, two more accused, Mohammed Shafi P and Abdu PT, both residents of Malappuram, were arrested in the case, he said. On 1 August, the NIA arrested two more persons Ernakulam-residents Muhammad Ali Ebrahim and Muhammad Ali after investigation revealed that they were part of the conspiracy, besides aiding and assisting Jalal AM in collecting the smuggled gold from Ramees KT in Thiruvananthapuram and distributing the contraband among other conspirators, he said. Muhammad Ali is a member of the Popular Front of India and was earlier charge-sheeted by the Kerala Police with chopping the palm of a professor but got acquitted after a trial in 2015, the official said. On 2 August, the NIA conducted searches at six places the residences of Jalal A M and Rabins Hameed in Ernakulam, and of Ramees KT, Mohammed Shafi, Said Alavi and Abdu P T in Malappuram the official said. During searches, two hard disks, one tablet computer, eight mobile phones, six SIM cards, one digital video recorder, and five DVDs were seized, besides various documents including bank passbooks, credit/debit cards, travel documents and identity documents of the accused, he said. The NIA took over the probe and registered a case on 10 July against four people, including a key woman suspect, for their alleged involvement in smuggling 30 kg gold worth Rs 14.82 crore in diplomatic baggage in Kerala. Further investigation in the case was underway, the official added. - Nini Amerlise, a Ghanaian-Canadian model, is raising the flag of Ghana high with great achievements and initiatives - She recently received two huge awards, including the model of the year title in Canada - Nini, who was bullied and abused while growing up, also runs a nonprofit called We Are Royals that empowers youth and women Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in Ghanaian-Canadian supermodel, Nini Amerlise, is making waves in the modelling industry in Canada and raising the flag of Ghana and Africa high as a result. Ameyawdebrah.com reports that in March this year, Nini Amerlise took home two awards at the AFRIFAMU Awards held in Los Angeles: Best Canadian Model of the Year and one for philanthropy recognition called Using Talent to Impact Women. Life has not always been so good for the Ghanaian-Canadian who was a victim of several counts domestic abuse and bullying growing up. READ ALSO: Drolor Bosso Adamtey I: Ghanaian King & Christian leader in U.S. condemns killing of 90-year-old Source: Kayvar, androidappsapk.co, numainstream.com Source: UGC READ ALSO: Ghanaian mom, dad and kids perform amazing choral music at home Yet, because of all she has been through, Nini developed a drive to empower the youth and women after much mentoring, which lead to the establishment of We Are Royals Inc. We Are Royals is a nonprofit organisation seeking to develop the esteem and confidence in youth through arts and culture in and across North America, West Africa, and the Caribbean diaspora. Aside from all of these, the international supermodel has been featured in major publications like Vogue UK, Flare magazine, Be Body Aware Campaign for Vogue Italia, Glamour Magazine, Huffington Post, Daily Mail UK, and Jamaican Gleaner. Nini Amerlise has also been used on 10 international magazine covers to date. READ ALSO: Historic match shows how Black Stars held Real Madrid to a 3:3 draw at Accra Sports Stadium in 1962 In another interesting report by YEN.com.gh, George Bannerman, a popular Ghanaian Master of Ceremony (MC), is set to get married to his long time girlfriend who he has dated for 13 years on August 1, 2020. The handsome man, who has been an MC for tons of marriages as shown by photos sighted by YEN.com.gh on social media handles, broke the news on Twitter. Along with the heartwarming words in the post was a photo that showed the couple when they were both much younger but still together. Enjoy reading our stories? Download YEN's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Ghana news! Faces of Ghana: 2 brothers paving roads in Ghana with granite and cobblestones: Share your stories and news by getting interactive on our Facebook page! Source: YEN.com.gh YEREVAN. The main guarantors that are holding Turkey back from Armenia are the Russian 102nd military base in Gyumri and the CSTO. Eduard Sharmazanov, deputy chairman of the former ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), told this to a press conference on Monday, commenting on the current Turkish-Azerbaijani military exercises and the respective statements by the incumbent Armenian authorities. He called on the Armenian authoritiesnot knowing about Turkey's policy, strategy and anti-Armenian stance"not to be Ankara's lawyers, and not to make confident statements about whether Turkey will attack Armenia. Sharmazanov also argued that Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his supporters used to hold anti-Russian rallies. "They propagate Russophobia," the RPA official added, noting that the CSTO is a guarantors of Armenia's security. San Francisco, Aug 3 : Eight US troops, who went missing in a training accident last week, have been presumed dead as search and rescue operation off the California coast has ended, the military said. "After an extensive 40-hour search, the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), I Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF), and the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) concluded their search and rescue operation for seven missing Marines and one Sailor," Xinhua news agency reportedciting the I Marine Expeditionary Force as saying in a statement on Sunday. The accident took place on July 30 when an amphibious assault vehicle carrying 15 Marines and one Navy sailor began to take on water during a training exercise near San Clemente Island. One Marine was killed and two were injured in the accident while other Marines were rescued, the Marine Corps said previously. "It is with a heavy heart, that I decided to conclude the search and rescue effort," said Col. Christopher Bronzi, 15th MEU Commanding Officer, in the statement. "I know all of us in the USMC family are extremely saddened following the announcement of the end of SAR (search and rescue) operations," US Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger tweeted Sunday morning. "This difficult decision was made after all resources were exhausted. Our prayers continue to be with the family and friends of the eight Marines and one sailor we lost," he noted. Officials said that efforts will now turn to finding and recovering the missing service members. Over the course of the at-sea search, rescue helicopters, ships and watercraft searched more than 1,000 square nautical miles. The circumstances surrounding the mishap are being investigated, according to the press release. CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Neutrolis, a biotechnology company developing therapeutics that target neutrophils, the most abundant immune cells in the body, today announced the development of NTR-441, a first-in-class DNASE1L3 enzyme analog that has the potential to rapidly and systemically clear neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) for severe cases of COVID-19. NETs are a fundamental arm of the immune system and play an important role in chronic and acute diseases. "We believe NETs are the common factor that explains the mysterious multisystem complications of COVID-19," said Toby Fox, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Neutrolis. "Our lead compound, NTR-441, and other molecules from our Chromatinase platform are the only drugs currently in development that could systemically remove NETs from the body. Thanks in part to competitive funding from the National Institutes of Health (R43HL150944), we will test whether NTR-441 is effective in ARDS, the most lethal manifestation of COVID-19." Several independent investigators have observed NETs in the lungs of autopsied COVID-19 patients, and observed that NETs biomarkers in patient blood correlate with the clinical severity of COVID-19. "We just published a study of patients who succumbed to COVID-19 in EBioMedicine published by The Lancet. Surprisingly, we found NETs congesting blood vessels in the lungs of all patients. Clearing these NETs with NTR-441 to restore blood flow may help patients survive COVID-19," said Martin Herrmann, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Experimental Medicine from the University Hospital Erlangen in Germany, who has studied NETs extensively for the past 15 years. "NETs may also induce microthrombosis in many organs causing organ failure or strokes. All of these thrombotic events are highly prevalent in COVID-19 patients," said Denisa Wagner, Ph.D., Edwin Cohn Professor of Pediatrics at Boston Children's Hospital (BCH), Harvard Medical School, which licensed Neutrolis some of the intellectual property that underpins the Chromatinase platform. "NETs are a fundamental but unaddressed culprit in a wide array of human diseases. As a critical care specialist and pulmonologist, I think that an efficient therapy against NETs will be important for patients with COVID-19 and other causes of ARDS," said Mark Looney, M.D., Professor of Medicine at University of California, San Francisco and an expert in ARDS. "If proven safe and effective, NTR-441 could benefit a wide array of patients long after the coronavirus pandemic has ended." About NTR-441 NTR-441an engineered analog of the natural NET-destroying enzyme DNASE1L3is the world's first investigational drug that can be systemically delivered to accurately target NETs. In patients with severe COVID-19, the circulating levels of DNASE1L3 are not adequate to counteract the rapid and systemic formation of NETs. NTR-441 has the potential to systemically clear NETs in the vasculature and end organs like the lungs in patients suffering from severe COVID-19. About NETs NETs are sticky, web-like structures made of chromatinDNA studded with structural proteinsand expelled by suicidal neutrophils. NETs block air sacs and blood vessels in the lungs, trigger hyperinflammation and blood clotting (thrombosis), potentially causing irreversible end-organ damage and death. About Neutrolis Neutrolis is a biotechnology company developing first-in-class therapies that target neutrophils and their pathogenic products, including NETs. Neutrolis' proprietary platform, Chromatinase, is based on the naturally occurring enzymes that break down the extracellular chromatin that form NETs. The company's lead product, NTR-441, is a patented, first-in-class, engineered DNASE1L3 analog with potential application in COVID-19, ARDS, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic sclerosis and other NET-mediated diseases. Neutrolis has received two competitive LabCentral Golden Ticket awards from Pfizer and Bristol-Myers Squibb. The company is privately held and has been supported to date by First Rice Capital and Prefix Capital, as well as individual investors and funding from the National Institutes of Health. It was founded by Drs. Toby Fox and Abdul Hakkim, two of the earliest and most cited leaders in the NETs field. SOURCE Neutrolis Climate change protesters broke into the Silverstone circuit prior to the start of Sunday's British GP. They unfurled an "Act Now" banner over the regular trackside advertising, highlighting a potential problem with the sport's security amid the corona crisis. According to reports, the four 'Extinction Rebellion' protesters were dressed as marshals and were ultimately arrested by police, who confirmed that the protesters were found "inside the venue perimeter". "We found out about this before the formation lap when marshals reported it to race control," said race director Michael Masi. "We immediately contacted the security service and looked for other areas where people may have come in." Another issue during Sunday's race was the time it took for Daniil Kvyat's crashed car to be removed from the circuit. British commentator Martin Brundle said during the broadcast that it might be because of a shortage of marshals. "No," Masi insisted. "It was more about the condition of Daniil's car, which made it difficult to remove. "I do not think the current restrictions have affected the efficiency of the marshals' work." (GMM) By PTI KOLKATA: The West Bengal government Monday announced changes in the dates for the complete lockdown dates in August for the fourth time, removing all Sundays from the purview of the restriction to check the spread of the contagion in the state. As per the new changes the lockdown will now be enforced on Augus 20 and 21 and August 27 and 28, instead of August 16, 17, 23 and 24 as announced earlier, the government order said. The other lockdown dates - i.e. August 5, 8 and 31 are unchanged. This for the fourth time the state government has changed the dates. On July 28 the state government had thrice altered the dates. The state government had on July 28 withdrawn the complete lockdown on August 2 and 9 and pared down the number of lockdown days from nine to seven. The step had then been taken after receiving requests from different communities since the dates coincided with festivals, officials had said. This time too requests and appeals have been received from different quarters to relax the lockdown on certain dates as they are coinciding with some festivals and days marked for the observance of local customs. The order issued by state chief secretary Rajiva Sinha said "We have taken this decision to partially modify the order keeping in view of the requests received and in due consideration of the public sentiment". In the fresh order, the state government has withdrawn lockdowns on Sundays as proposed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The change of lockdown dates elicited sharp reactions from the opposition parties which criticised the ruling TMC, alleging that it is completely clueless and has failed to manage the crisis arising out of COVID-19. "The state government has not only failed but is also clueless about the way forward. The state government could change the dates, but it didn't yield to our request to change the date of August 5 the day of bhoomi pujan at Ayodhya for the construction of the Ram Mandir," BJP national secretary Rahul Sinha said. Taking a swipe at the West Bengal government for deliberately selecting August 5 for the lockdown, the state BJP on Monday asked the state government to shift the date as it did for the Eid festival. CPI(M) legislature party leader Sujan Chakraborty said the chief minister and her government had turned the idea of the lockdown into a "farce". "We don't know whether the TMC government is running an administration or a circus," he said. West Bengal has so far reported 78,232 cases of COVID-19. There are 1,234 containment zones in the state at present. Im a Latino more specifically, a Chicano and my father is a Mexicano who immigrated here in the early 70s. Many in my Latinx family are indifferent to the use of the term Latinx or dont know it exists. I hadnt heard it myself until about four years ago, when I returned to the U.S. after living in Mexico for four years and met up with an acquaintance, a Southern Oregon University professor who is also of Latinx heritage. She advised me to use the term Latinx to refer to a mixed-gender group of people of Latinx heritage. After that, I polled Latinx friends I grew up with in the Phoenix-Talent area. They had not heard of the term, and most were not comfortable with it. I decided the easiest thing for me to do was to know when to use the term around folks in the U.S,. K-12 and higher-education communities and definitely not to worry about using it at carne asadas, quinceaneras, bodas, etc. Anyhow, Im conflicted about the use of this word, and am especially uncomfortable when a non-Latinx person tells me if I should or should not use it, as in the recent letter to the editor (Use of Latinx disrespectful, July 28.) I also feel uncomfortable with what seems like an effort to politicize this term. How about we just leave it up to each individual relating to what term they feel comfortable using? Ben Garcia, Talent US Activist Accused of Breaching HK's Security Law Says He Will Not Back Down By VOA News August 02, 2020 Samuel Chu, one of six activists now living overseas who Hong Kong has reportedly issued arrest warrants for under its new national security law, has told VOA he will not stop fighting for democracy for Hong Kong. According to China's state television, Chu, an American citizen originally from Hong Kong who has lived in the United States for 30 years, and five other Hong Kongers who have fled the city for political reasons, are wanted by Hong Kong police for allegedly "inciting secession and collusion with foreign forces to endanger national security." Chu, 42, is a founder and managing director of Washington-based Hong Kong Democracy Council, which has lobbied the U.S. government to take action on China for the erosion of Hong Kong's democracy. The Hong Kong police and government have not officially confirmed the news. Hong Kong's top leader, Carrie Lam, said Saturday it was "inconvenient" to comment on the enforcement of the national security law but said opposition to the Hong Kong or Chinese governments "is not a way out." The five others include Nathan Law, a pro-democracy campaigner and ousted lawmaker who recently fled to Britain, Simon Cheng, a former British consular staffer who was granted asylum in Britain after alleging he was tortured in China, and activist Ray Wong. If confirmed, this would be the first time Hong Kong authorities have used the sweeping national security law enacted a month ago to target campaigners living outside Hong Kong. Chu told VOA the authorities are trying to use the new law to intimidate and "create fear." Article 38 of the law says nonresidents can be prosecuted for acts outside of Hong Kong, implying that critics of China including Hong Kong's large diaspora may face legal risks if they enter the city. Chu is the first foreign national targeted by the law and he said he is "a test case" of how the law would work. He said neither he nor his family have heard from the Hong Kong or Chinese authorities. China, he said, "is sending a threat to Hong Kong people that if you have connections [with the six activists], you might be implicated," he said. By pursuing him, though, the Chinese government is actually alerting Americans to the fact that not only Hong Kongers will be affected by this law, but also U.S. citizens, he said. The Chinese authorities are "provoking and inviting foreign response every time they use the law," he said. "Millions of people are now understanding that if they can go after us, they can come after anybody," he said. Chu said by aggressively targeting overseas activists, China has become "the greatest threat to [its] own national security." "The most egregious danger they have is the national security law because they're inviting all kinds of actions against themselves," he said. "They are inviting the U.S. to step up response, both politically and policywise." Chu's 76-year-old father, the Reverend Chu Yiu Ming, a veteran pro-democracy activist who has helped activists from the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown escape abroad and a co-founder of the 2014 civil disobedience Occupy Central movement, was convicted and given a suspended sentence for his role last year. China often harasses the families of dissidents or activists living abroad in exile to silence them. Activists also sometimes find themselves the target of harassment and intimidation by unidentified people, suspected to be security agents. He insisted that as a U.S. citizen, it was his constitutional right to advocate and lobby the U.S. government. "I would not stop what I'm doing," he said. "They are not going to scare me into hiding and they're not going to erase me from being able to speak out." "This is why we created the Hong Kong Democracy Council. We always knew there might come a time when the only free organization and voice for Hong Kong might be us," he said. "It was created to be the last frontier to be able to speak freely." Chu, however, said he was "sad" that the trip he made to Hong Kong last year to attend his father's trial "might be the last for a long time." Nathan Law, former chairman of the now-disbanded Demosisto pro-democracy group, would not comment for this article, but said on Facebook that the alleged national security crimes he was accused of breaching were "trumped up charges" and the result of him "loving Hong Kong too much." Law, 26, said he was saddened by the news in Hong Kong last week, which included the arrests of four student activists on national security charges, the disqualification of 12 pro-democracy candidates for the legislative election and now the wanted list that included his name. "These are indications of our need to remain active on the global stage. That Hong Kong has no place for even such moderate views like ours underscores the absurdity of Chinese Communist rule," he wrote. In a poignant note that highlighted his fears over his family being implicated, he declared he would sever his relationship with his family, saying his advocacy work overseas was conducted in his own personal capacity. Willy Lam, an adjunct professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said China wants to send a message that it cannot accept Hong Kongers, even those abroad, lobbying foreign governments or organizations. "They want to warn Hong Kong activists against pursuing international lobbying, otherwise they'll arrest and extradite them," Lam said. To foreigners, the message is "don't interfere in Hong Kong affairs, otherwise you'd harm activists like Nathan Law." "China is very determined and is acting quickly. More people will be arrested in the near term. They will further silence and stop intellectuals and journalists from expressing opinions and target democracy activists," he said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address "I am excited for what the future holds for our India team under Ratan's leadership," said Ernest Z. Bower, BGA President & CEO. "India is a core and strategic country for our business. In many ways this is India's time. Ratan brings a wealth of expertise and strategic vision to our work there. His energy and expertise will be critical as we support our growing clientele in one of the world's most important and fastest growing markets." "I am deeply honored to have been appointed as the managing director for BGA's team in India and humbled to accept this responsibility," said Mr. Shrivastava. "I look forward to working with Ernie and the great BGA team to leverage our trusted networks and build on the foundation that has been developed over the past decade." "BGA's team is positioned well to support global companies in India, as the country increasingly attracts higher levels of foreign investment. Ratan brings practical, grounded expertise that will serve our companies well," said Persis Khambatta, BGA Managing Director for South Asia. Ratan is a senior executive and management consulting professional with a proven track record in government and industry across India, Asia, Middle East & Africa. He has served as an expert with KPMG India and as an advisor at the influential industry association, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), where he helped develop the domestic space and satellite industry initiatives and built business strategies for collaboration between Indian industries and international partners. Ratan headed the defense exports division at Ashok Leyland Ltd. and he built and led the Frost & Sullivan's aerospace and defense consulting practice with a client portfolio of global companies and government entities in India, UAE and Singapore. He developed strategies for growth, market planning and market access, including the identification of new markets, competition analysis and localization strategies. Ratan served the Indian Army for nearly two decades, and took early retirement with the rank of lieutenant colonel. He earned his MBA, before moving to the private sector. BowerGroupAsia (BGA) is a strategic advisory firm that specializes in foreign direct investment throughout the Indo-Pacific. BGA helps clients interpret the world's most complex and dynamic markets, providing on the ground, hands-on support and actionable insights and analysis to implement strategies, mitigate risk, expand business and do great things in Asia. For more information, visit www.bowergroupasia.com . Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1221694/Ratan_Blue_Press_Release__1.jpg Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1084586/BowerGroupAsia_Logo.jpg Related Links www.bowergroupasia.com SOURCE BowerGroupAsia Srinagar: One of the biggest sufferers from lockdown under lockdown in Jammu and Kashmir has been education. Previously, Kashmiri Valley in particular suffered huge education losses as its students were forcibly kept away from schools and colleges by frequent official curfews and restrictions, separatist-sponsored shutdowns, incidents of violence and prolonged political unrests, the worst of these witnessed in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2016. While at the local level innovative and creative educational initiatives were taken from time to time by teachers and community leaders to compensate academic losses, many parents who could afford it sent their wards to schools and colleges outside J&K to continue their studies. Back home, the closure of educational institutions for more than one year has taken a heavy toll on the academic career of students, many of whom now feel stressed and apprehensive. Over past couple of months I have treated a number of students who were emotionally upset. They said that they were worried about their future, said noted psychiatrist Dr. Abdul Waheed Khan. Amid the lockdown necessitated by COVID-19, various private institutions in J&K, like other parts of the country, started online classes in May/June and soon several government-run institutions including universities followed the suit. But the governments denying access to 4G internet services in the Union Territory has played the spoilsport. G.N. Var, chairman of Private Schools Association of Jammu and Kashmir (PSAJK) which has 2,200 schools associated with it, termed it denial of right to education. He said, The restrictions on high speed internet are making it difficult for our students to avail online courses and access information which is vital in their career-building. We see it as a denial of the right to education. Endorsing him, Srinagar resident Ghulam Nabi Khan said that his daughter Afshaan is worried as she finds it difficult to pursue studies on line due to poor connectivity. Days before J&K was stripped of its special status and split up into two UTs on August 5 last year, the authorities had ordered closure of the educational institutions. Though it announced reopening of schools in a phased manner in the Valley after a few weeks, parents showed reluctance in sending their wards to these in the face of persisting tensions. Educational institutions reopened-some in mid-February and others in the first week of March- but the government again suspended class work at these on March 12 in view of the COVID-19 threat. The concerned authorities said that apart from private schools conducting online classes, J&Ks nine universities and over one hundred degree colleges prepared the e-content and video lectures which were subsequently uploaded on the university websites, but the students have complained that they are unable to access the website or find it difficult in absence of high speed internet. Apart from denial of 4G internet, frequent withdrawal of even 2G bandwidth services on the pretext of law and order issues has caused huge inconvenience to both students and teachers. My classmates and I were engaged in learning online from our teacher. While trying to ensure we grasp successfully, he suddenly disappeared from the screen. Every one of us yelled where has Sir gone. Later, we learnt he was connected from hometown Budgam where an encounter (between militants and security forces) had started and with that internet services were snapped, said Umme Kulthum, a student. On May 11, the Supreme Court had directed the government to constitute a three-member high-powered committee to look into the issue of restoring 4G internet services in J&K. The Union Home Ministry informed the top court recently that the special committee has decided against resuming the services. In an affidavit filed on July 21, in response to a contempt petition against the Central government, the MHA said the committee will review its decision after two months, citing the prevailing security situation in the UT. However, J&Ks Lt. Governor Girish Chandra Murmu, said on July 26 that restoration of 4G internet will not be a problem. He said, Im not afraid how people will use this. Pakistan will do its propaganda whether it is 2G or 4G. It will always be there but I dont see an issue. Meanwhile, it is reliably learnt that the Central government has agreed to restore J&Ks statehood and will soon set the process in motion for it. A father of three, Emmanuel Eze, on Monday allegedly killed himself at Amagu Umudiaka village, Ihe community in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State. Eze, who hailed from Ehe-alumona, Nsukka, reportedly hanged himself in the early hours of Monday in an uncompleted one-storey building close to the house where he lived as tenant with his family. The late mans elder brother, Silas Eze, who confirmed the incident, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Nsukka on Monday that his late brother had been behaving abnormally before he took is life. It is unfortunate that my younger brother decided to commit suicide. For sometime now he had been behaving like someone who had mental health problem. Yesterday (Sunday), he hit the younger sister with a big wood and ran away, the sister was immediately rushed to the Bishop Shanahan Hospital, Nsukka. We are surprised to discover this morning that he has hanged himself in an uncompleted one-storeyed building near his compound. As I am talking with you, Emmas wife is not yet aware that her husband has committed suicide, because she is the one staying with my sister in Bishop Shanahan Hospital, he said. Eze said that one of the family members had been mandated to report the incident at the Nsukka Divisional Police Station. When contacted, Mr Daniel Ndukwe , the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Enugu State Police Command, said that he had received several calls on the incident. Ndukwe however, said that the command was still awaiting brief from Nsukka Divisional Police Station. (NAN) Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates With almost 50 days passing since Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at his Mumbai flat, and the Mumbai Police yet to make any major breakthrough, the Bihar Police on Sunday deputed one of its senior officers -- Vinay Tiwari, to assist its team probing the actor's death. However, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials have "forcibly quarantined" quarantined him for 14 days upon his arrival, claimed Bihar Police. A stamp of quarantine was put on Vinay's arms and pictures of the same were shared on social media. IPS officer Binay Tiwari who reached Mumbai from Patna on official duty to lead the police team has been forcibly quarantined by Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials: Bihar Police #SushantSinghRajputDeathCase ANI (@ANI) August 2, 2020 IPS officer Binay Tiwari (in pictures) who reached Mumbai from Patna on official duty to lead the police team has been forcibly quarantined by Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials: Bihar Police #SushantSinghRajputDeathCase pic.twitter.com/oIhCPy5aDu ANI (@ANI) August 2, 2020 Bihar's DGP Gupteshwar Pandey also alleged that Vinay "was not provided accommodation in the IPS Mess despite request and was staying in a guest house in Goregaon." IPS officer Binay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11pm today.He was not provided accommodation in the IPSMess despite request and was staying in a guest house in Goregaw pic.twitter.com/JUPFRpqiGE IPS Gupteshwar Pandey (@ips_gupteshwar) August 2, 2020 cadre IPS 11 .SSR . !@IPSVinayTiwari pic.twitter.com/6Le4AXjuJ8 IPS Gupteshwar Pandey (@ips_gupteshwar) August 2, 2020 Now, BMC has also issued a response in the matter saying, "Patna SP Vinay Tiwari has been quarantined as per the present guidelines for domestic arrivals at Mumbai Airport." Patna Superintendent of Police Binay Tiwari has been quarantined as per the present guidelines for domestic arrivals at Mumbai Airport: Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) #SushantSinghRajputDeathCase https://t.co/mT8k5BkVUr pic.twitter.com/LI4wiFuxRT ANI (@ANI) August 3, 2020 Earlier, Sushant's US-based sister Shweta Singh Kirti also requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to look into the case of her brother's death. A four-member team of the Bihar Police in Mumbai has claimed that Mumbai Police were not co-operating with it in its investigation into Sushant's death. Read: Bihar DGP on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Investigation: No Information Shared by Mumbai Police Bihar's DGP Gupteshwar Pandey told IANS on Sunday that Vinay, the SP, City, Patna would be joined by other senior police officers from Bihar, if the need arises. (With inputs from IANS) DGAP-News: African Energy Chamber / Key word(s): Miscellaneous African Energy Chamber: Equatorial Guinea hold discussions with African Energy Chamber and updates on energy developments during Covid-19 03.08.2020 / 15:15 The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Equatorial Guinea hold discussions with African Energy Chamber and updates on energy developments during Covid-19 Last week, the African Energy Chamber held a bilateral discussion with the Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons of Equatorial Guinea, led by H.E Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, alongside the Director of Hydrocarbons, Robustiano Eyegue Ndong and NJ Ayuk, the Executive Chairman of the African Energy Chamber. Download Image 1: https://bit.ly/2Pfqb5Y Download Image 2: https://bit.ly/39PHnIF The Chamber sought to understand the state of the hydrocarbon sector in the country and was briefed by the Minister and the Director on immediate and near-term plans by the Ministry. Equatorial Guinea has moved its Year of Investment program to 2021, with plans to add many more investments opportunities and projects, while taking into consideration the challenges of Covid-19. For instance, the Ministry is continuing its mining drive-in with a strong focus on the mainland and expects to drive new mining programs in 2021. The Minister agreed with the Chamber that Covid-19 has been a great disruptor to the energy sector. The Chamber urges the Equatorial Guinean government to continue working with oil and gas operators to find ways to ensure operations continue. The Minister advised the Chamber that the rapid development of the Alen unitization project operated by Noble Energy will be delayed until 2021. This is liquid-rich gas and condensate field is located in Block O, about 32km off the east coast of Bioko Island, in Equatorial Guinea. However, the Alen backfill gas project into EGLNG remains on track, with the project scheduled to come online in the first quarter of 2021. When pressed on the rapid approval of Chevron acquisition of Noble Energy, the Minister advised the Chamber that the Ministry is currently studying the transaction as it pertains to Equatorial Guinea and will respond in due course taking into consideration compliance with the laws and regulations of the country as well as binding legal instruments like the Production Sharing Contract. On the Gas Mega Hub, the Chamber was informed that Equatorial Guinea has contracted UK-based firm Gas Strategies to continue working on a revised Gas Master Plan as the Minister believes it is an important step towards the country developing a timely, economic and equitable plan for to monetise gas, and with a clear vision towards having a Gas Mega Hub anchored around Punta Europa. The Chamber commends the development of gas, as LNG stands to be a game changer in the local, regional and international energy markets. It also puts Equatorial Guinea in line with other members of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum, of which Equatorial Guinea is a member, when it comes to monetizing gas. The Minister advised that exploration activity is still ongoing in the country, with Kosmos Energy likely to proceed with a drilling campaign in 2022. Furthermore, Trident Energy started a 4D seismic survey over its Block G assets, which contain the Ceiba and Okume fields offshore with a potential to drill three wells in 2021. Finally, the Ministry is engaged in discussions with Venezuelan state company PDVSA on the upstream and the downstream sector. "Equatorial Guinea is an important oil and gas player and continues to be a great partner in advancing the relationships with investors while promoting local content. The Chamber welcomes this dialogue and we remain committed to more engagements with African energy leaders because this is vitally important to the private sector." said NJ Ayuk "The African Energy Chamber, supported by leading energy companies, is confident that by working together, we will ensure win-win opportunities as well as engage candidly on serious issues with African governments. These frank, no-holds-barred conversations concerning our energy industry can guide African governments to create an enabling environment that is effective for investors and citizens alike." concluded Ayuk The African Energy Chamber periodically holds bilateral discussions with governments and institutions on energy issues in Africa. These discussions are important for leaders and investors to engage in discussions of the most important economic and commercial issues, including investment in oil and gas, infrastructure development, local content, and enabling policies that make in country operations better. No fewer than eight US banks from BBVA and BMO to Citi and SFCU are going digital-first via Google Pay in 2021. Thats based on announcements from the companies, recently reported by 9to5Google. The banks will be offering up accounts directly in the Google Pay app and theyll be responsible for the financial side of the equation. But Googles unit will be responsible for the user experience, the banks say. According to BBVA, Google will provide the front-end, intuitive user experiences. Thats in addition to financial insights handling. Thats a sentiment echoed by BMO, alongside hints that Google Pay will also offer built-in budgeting tools for the bank accounts. Which banks are going to be partnering with Google Pay in 2021? In Googles own statement on the matter, more details were made available. Not least of all, the company listed out the banks it will be working with. That includes six new banking institutions in addition to Citi and Stanford Federal Credit Union. The latter two banks were already confirmed earlier. Advertisement Now, six new banks will be offering digital checking and savings via the search giants app. That includes BBVA USA and BMO Harris, as noted above. But it also includes Bank Mobile, Coastal Community Bank, First Independence Bank, and SEFCU. Accounts opened or managed via Google Pay will not only offer up the tools suggested by BBVA and BMO either. The money will be stored in an FDIC or NCUA-insured account. So this will work almost exactly, on that side of things, like a traditional bank account. Is this going to lead to a new Wallet replacement? What isnt immediately clear, is whether or not the announcements have anything to do with earlier rumors that Google Pay would gain its own debit cards. Those accounts and cards, sources indicated as early as April, would be competing directly with Apples Card. Advertisement This wouldnt be the first time Google has gotten into self-branded banking. Or at least self-branded cards associated with money management. The company launched its own Google Wallet card back in November of 2013. That service was dropped in 2016, followed shortly by the end of Google Wallet as an offering altogether. It seems unlikely that the search giant would go that route here, however. Although its still possible that any cards offered by the company would support advanced technological features, as hinted by the banks in question, they wont necessarily bear Google branding. And theres very little chance the company would be able to relaunch its own branded efforts regardless. While associated with the Google Pay app, as the current plan for 2021 stands, these cards are tied directly to specific types of bank accounts from individual banks. Yesterday, Premier Daniel Andrews declared that Victoria is officially in a state of disaster. For the next six weeks, Melbourne will be under an 8pm curfew; and regional Victoria has moved to stage three restrictions in an attempt to suppress the spread of the coronavirus. In this episode, national editor Tory Maguire is joined by acting editor of The Age Michelle Griffin to discuss how Melburnians are faring on day two of the stage four restrictions. Our supporters power our newsrooms and are critical for the sustainability of news coverage. PARIS and CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- ENTEROME SA, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company leveraging its unique knowledge of the microbiome-immunoinflammation axis to develop next-generation therapeutics, notes a new academic publication describing the creation of the most comprehensive and unified catalog to-date of genomic and proteomic data from the human gut microbiome. The publication in Nature Biotechnology (Almeida, et al, ref. 1), reports on the establishment of a catalog of more than 200,000 reference genomes from over 4,600 species of human gut bacteria. The research was conducted by an international collaboration involving major academic institutes, such as the European Bioinformatics Institute (UK), Sanger Institute (UK), University of California, San Francisco (USA), Chan Zuckerberg BioHub (USA), University of Trento (Italy), University of Queensland (Australia), Joint Genome Institute (USA) and Enterome (France). These reference catalogs build on previous global projects aimed at characterizing the human gut microbiome (such as the Human Microbiome Project). The goal of this research is to enable a better understanding of the functions and interactions of bacterial species in the gut microbiome and link to their roles in human health linking genotype to phenotype within specific clinical contexts, such as during inflammatory diseases, metabolic diseases and cancer. Enterome has further expanded on this work to assemble the most comprehensive and annotated dataset of peptides and proteins from the gut microbiome (Enterome's MetaSecretome dataset). This dataset underpins Enterome's proprietary OncoMimics and EndoMimics platforms, which are being applied to identify and develop novel orally administered, potent and well-tolerated next-generation therapeutics. Christophe Bonny, Chief Scientific Officer of Enterome, said: "Enterome has a wealth of expertise and powerful technologies designed to explore and analyze the functional content of the human gut microbiome. We are focused on applying our expertise and tools to address in silico large-scale data analysis of microbiome genes and proteins to develop novel drugs for major diseases. We are thrilled that these capabilities have been recognized by our prestigious collaboration partners, and that we have been able to contribute to these important new genomic and proteomic resources. We are confident that these new resources will contribute to an even better understanding of how to leverage the influence of the gut microbiome to improve human health." Reference 1. Almeida, A., Nayfach, S., Boland, M. et al. A unified catalog of 204,938 reference genomes from the human gut microbiome. Nat Biotechnol (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41587-020-0603-3 Contacts Enterome Pierre Belichard, CEO Tel. +33 1 75 77 27 87 [email protected] Media Relations Mark Swallow / Sylvie Berrebi / David Dible Citigate Dewe Rogerson Tel. +44 207 638 9571 [email protected] Investor Relations Melody Carey Rx Communications Group Tel. +1 917 322 2571/ [email protected] About Enterome Enterome is a world leader in the discovery and development of novel pharmaceuticals based on its unrivalled understanding of the interaction between the gut microbiome and the immune system (the 'microbiome-immunoinflammation axis'). Enterome is leveraging this expertise to develop a pipeline of clinical and pre-clinical candidates (small molecules, proteins and peptides) with a focus on cancer, autoimmune, inflammatory and metabolic diseases. Enterome has two unique platforms that are generating highly promising drug candidates: - OncoMimics: highly effective, off-the-shelf immunotherapies against cancers (EO2401, EO2463). EO2401 is in Phase 1/2 clinical trials in patients with glioblastoma and expected to enter first clinical trials in patients with adrenal malignancies during mid-2020. EO2463, is being prepared as a clinical candidate for B-cell malignancies. - EndoMimics: a new generation of biologics for inflammatory diseases (EM101), Type 2 diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease. These highly productive platforms have been created using Enterome's world-leading Metasecretome technology, which gives it an unrivalled ability to generate precision drugs by using the natural reservoir of thousands of safe and tolerized effector proteins that are produced by the gut bacteria. Enterome's most advanced drug candidate is EB8018 (also referred to as sibofimloc/TAK-018), which selectively blocks the virulence factor FimH, is advancing through clinical trials in Crohn's disease. EB8018 has been partnered with Takeda globally, with Enterome retaining a significant profit share in the US. Enterome is headquartered in Paris (France) with operations in Boston (US) and is backed by leading venture capital investors. For more information please visit the company's website at: www.enterome.com SOURCE Enterome Shanghai elderly population predicted to be 40% in 2030 By:Wu Jiaqi | From:english.eastday.com | 2020-08-03 09:32 Huang Ming, a member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), said in a meeting that the elderly population will reach a whopping 40% in 2030, and will continue to increase to 44.5% in 2040 through 2050. Huang also said that in order to plan and carry out the fourteen-fiveelderly care plan, it is paramount to acknowledge the fact that Shanghai is a city with a heavily aging population. Shanghai is one of the first cities in all of China to transgress into an aging population. As the pressure for more attentive and modern care grows with this population, Shanghai has chosen community home care as its main mechanism to cope with this enlarging issue. Currently, there are 268 community general elderly care systems, fostering 1744 spots of good neighborliness demonstration. With more than sixty-five thousand professional care takers and by the end of 2019 517 new businesses, the elderly care industry is an ever-growing one. However, it seems that more has to be done to preempt the predicted future. Huang feels that the improvements in the elderly care system should be primarily on the quality of service. He advised for the centers to promote a family caresystem in which families are involved heavily in the care of their elderly members. This means that the center will coordinate both having professionals take care of the elderlies most basic needs, and also encourages the families to take care of the elderlies regularly at a subsidised rate. Elderly care is more complicated than the family care system, with the industry extending to much more than just care, but also health and recovery services. Huang suggested the option of online medical treatment, where elderly people can seek medical care online and receive prescribed medicine delivered to them, taking care of ones both in and away from hospitals. The families will also undergo professional training by the care centers to make sure these elderly people will be provided with systematic, supportive service. Apart from medical care, Huang also pointed out some issues in the industry as a whole. In order to satisfy all needs from multiple target groups, it is necessary to incentivize the market to release its full potential. This includes encouraging businesses to operate in multiple regions, continuously actualizing branding, regulation and franchising, allowing businesses to go beyond the government criteria for elderly care to develop a better care system in general. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) President Rodrigo Duterte has said members of the New People's Army could avail of free COVID-19 vaccines once they are available. During an address late Sunday night, the President said vaccines would be given to members of the New People's Army should they want it. He said he wanted the NPA to be healthy because his soldiers were "very, very healthy." "I do not propose that you respond to my policy... Itong mga NPA, if they really want to get their shots free, they can always line up, and I will ask now the military and the police to be forgiving. Pag nakapila sila doon, walang armas just to get the shots, give it to them," he said. [Translation: I do not propose that you respond to my policy... The NPA, if they really want to get their shots free, they can always line up, and I will ask now the military and the police to be forgiving. If they line up and they are not armed just to get the shots, give it to them.] The President added, "I want you to stay healthy because my soldiers are very, very healthy. And they should be getting the first shots of the vaccine should we acquire them in due time. Last week, the government said it was ready to spend 20 billion to distribute free COVID-19 vaccines to 20 million people. Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, who was tasked by Duterte to take care of the funding, detailed how the Philippines plans to procure 40 million doses of vaccines estimated to cost 20 billion. "We have a plan," Dominguez said during the televised meeting. "We can execute it as soon as the Department of Health (DOH) chooses which vaccine or vaccines they want. Certainly, by late this year, if it's available, we can already buy it." He said the vaccine chosen by the DOH will be bought through the Philippine International Trading Corporation (PITC), which is under the Department of Trade. It will be initially financed by the Land Bank of the Philippines and the Development Bank of the Philippines, then paid off by the DOH. "The Department of Health will put in their budget to pay this $400 million or roughly 20 billion. We can pay that over maybe two or three years. Babayaran nila (they will pay) through the financing company, which is Landbank and DBP," he said. The finance chief added, "That is totally available, the financing is available for this program." Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, in a separate briefing, assured the Philippines does need to sell state assets to fund the vaccine purchase. Dominguez also said that once the vaccine is readily available in the Philippines, the country's economy will finally recover especially after hitting the "lowest part" in April and May. "Once the vaccine is available, I'm sure the economy now can be fully opened and we can start not the new normal but the normal life," he said. President Rodrigo Duterte expressed confidence that a vaccine will be developed by December. He said it is possible that China will be one of the first countries to complete its research, and claimed the Philippines will get priority access to the vaccines because it is "friendly" to the East Asian giant. "I promise you by the grace of God, I hope by December we will be back to normal," he said in his taped address which aired on Friday, July 31. Makeeba McNeely in front of 222 N. Simpson St. in Phila. on Aug. 2, 2020. Just a day earlier, Zamar Jones, 7, was playing there on his porch when he was struck in the head by gunfire. Read more When the neighbors on Simpson Street heard the barrage of gunfire on the street on Saturday night more than a dozen shots in quick succession, some said they waited until the shooting ended, and then peered cautiously outside. Down the block, a little boy lay still on the ground, at the foot of his own porch steps. It was 7-year-old Zamar Jones, his mother Jennifer Lee confirmed to The Inquirer Sunday, a playful, cheerful boy with friends in almost every home on the 200 block of North Simpson Street, a tight-knit residential street that borders Cobbs Creek Park. He had been shot in the head. Zamar and several other children had been playing outside together just before the gunfire erupted, about 7:40 p.m., neighbors said. Police said a man drove down Simpson Street and opened fire on a group of people standing on the block two of whom fired back. One of the bullets hit Zamar, who was on his porch next to his toy race car and scooter. His family and neighbors rushed to his side. A nurse who lives on the block performed CPR on the boy until a police officer lifted him into a squad car in especially dire cases, Philadelphia police officers will not wait for medics to arrive and raced to the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia. On Sunday, Zamar remained there in critical condition, while neighbors on Simpson Street held a prayer vigil and tried to organize help for his family. Police were holding one man in custody Sunday and searching for two others. The shooting on Simpson Street was part of a weekend of gun violence across the city, in which two people were killed and seven more, including Zamar, were wounded. Earlier in the evening on Saturday, a man working on his car in North Philadelphia was killed when another man walked up to him, demanded he empty his pockets, and then shot him. Around midnight Saturday, one man was killed and another injured in a shooting at a drag race in Philadelphias Port Richmond section. Early Sunday morning, police said, five women were injured in a shooting at a house in Kensington. A tragedy of a different magnitude Police officials said Zamars shooting was a tragedy of a different magnitude. While every act of gun violence is lamentable, Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said in a statement, it is especially tragic when the victim is among our most vulnerable; and it is our collective responsibility police, and community to ensure that our children are safe and well-protected. Police said the case began when a man was driving a blue or silver Chevy Silverado south on Simpson Street around 7:40 p.m. on Saturday. As he passed a group of people standing outside a house on the block, the driver pointed a gun out of his window and opened fire. The man kept driving, police said, and two other men standing on the street pulled their own guns and began to shoot at the truck. Fleeing, the driver rear-ended a GMC Yukon and then jumped into the SUV he had just crashed into, driving away on Race Street. After police arrived on Simpson Street, the man returned to the block and tried to get back into his Silverado, police said. They chased him to the 6300 block of Race Street, where he was arrested. Police are still searching for the other two men, who fled the scene in a maroon Ford Taurus, which police later found on the 200 block of North 64th Street. Police have not yet identified the man in custody, saying they would do so when an investigation into the shooting is completed or the man is formally charged. Solace hard to come by Neighbors on Simpson Street said they were relieved that someone had been taken into custody, but with Zamar still in critical condition, solace was hard to come by. They have one guy its better than none, said Sean Doreen Smith, whose 7-year-old grandson is friends with Zamar. Smith had called her grandson inside from playing just before the gunfire began. As soon as he stepped in the house, she said, shots rang out. When she heard Zamar had been hit, Smith said, she fainted. Everyone is really shaken, she said. But the block has rallied around Lee and her family, organizing a prayer service and vowing to offer any help they can. On Sunday, after the block prayed together, neighbor Makeeba McNeely made call after call, trying to find a place for the family to stay for the night. In her shock and grief, Lee could barely bring herself to drive down Simpson Street, let alone enter her home, McNeely said. Lee, her husband Rasheem McDonald, and her six children have lived on the block for several years, and have formed close friendships with the other families, said McNeely, who lives a few doors down and described Lee as being like a sister. Zamar, McNeely said, wasted no time in charming the residents of Simpson Street. He has best friends from the top of the block to the bottom of the block, said McNeelys daughter, 13-year-old Zion. Zamar is known for loving popsicles, his prized lime-green scooter, and his pets, a dog and a cat, the McNeelys said. Hes set to enter the second grade this fall, and has regularly done chores for neighbors, running errands at the corner store. Hes a beautiful kid, McNeely said. Inquisitive, curious hes a little boy. And he was playing. Authorities ask that anyone with information on the shooting call 911, or the Philadelphia polices homicide division at 215-686-3334. Taking a swipe at the West Bengal government for deliberately selecting August 5 for Covid-19 lockdown when 'bhoomi pujan' (groundbreaking rituals) in Ayodhya for the construction of Ram temple is scheduled, the state BJP on Monday demanded the TMC ministry to shift the date like it did for the Eid festival. Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh said the decision (August 5 for lockdown) reflects the ruling party's strategy to turn "West Bengal into Bangladesh". He sought change of the date like it was done keeping in mind the Eid festival on August 1, so that people of the state could join countrymen in celebrating Ram temple 'bhoomi pujan'. "We had no problem with state government changing dates for the lockdown due to the Eid festival. Similarly the sentiment of the Hindus over the construction of Ram Mandir should not be ignored," Ghosh said. The state government had earlier selected August 2 along with other dates in the month for biweekly complete shutdown to break chain of COVID-19 transmission, but it (Sunday) was later taken out of the list keeping in mind the festivity. Now August 5, 8, 16, 17, 23, 24 and 31 are the dates when the West Bengal will go for total lockdown to check rapid spread of virus. "A lockdown on August 5 will not allow a suitable atmosphere for those who want to celebrate the historic day of bhoomi pujan for the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. This mindset of the TMC government is a reflection of its strategy to turn West Bengal into Bangladesh," the BJP leader said. The TMC leadership termed BJP's assertions as "baseless" and urged it to refrain from communal politics amid the COVID-19 pandemic. "Everyone should keep in mind that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected Bengal and the entire country. This is not a time to pursue communal politics. "In Bengal, we have witnessed harmony and brotherhood among all religions and cultures for decades; we should not spoil it," TMC senior leader and minister Firhad Hakim said. The August 5 ceremony will mark the beginning of the construction of Ram temple after a decades-long title suit over the site at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh was settled by Supreme Court in November, 2019. The BJP, which has emerged as the main challenger to TMC after winning 18 out of a total of 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal in the 2019 general election, only four less than TMC's tally of 22, has been blaming Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for "muslim appeasement." With the state assembly election due in Bengal in less than an year time, the saffron party do not miss any opportunity to hit out at the ruling party. Press Release August 3, 2020 Senate adopts resolution commending Hungarian envoy The Senate today adopted a resolution commending outgoing Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Jozsef Bencze for his invaluable work as envoy of the Republic of Hungary to the Philippines that strengthened Hungary-Philippines relations. Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri introduced Senate Resolution No. (SRN) 478 which was adopted by the chamber taking into consideration SRN 479 authored by Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto, Minority Leader Franklin Drilon, Senators Francis Pangilinan, Risa Hontiveros, Leila de Lima and Panfilo Lacson. Zubiri, in his sponsorship speech, said Bencze started his term in December 2016 after he presented his Letter of Credence as Ambassador of Hungary to the Philippines to President Rodrigo Duterte. By March 2017, Hungary reopened its Embassy in Manila, after 21 years of absence in the country. He said Bencze was instrumental in strengthening the bilateral relations between the Philippines and Hungary. According to Zubiri, it was also during Bencze tenure that the Philippines-Hungary Parliamentary Friendship Association, which was created in 2000, was re-launched and even expanded its membership. He said the Hungarian ambassador witnessed the signing of the Agreement on Economic Cooperation between the Philippines and Hungary which established a Joint Economic Commission to promote the expansion and diversification of mutually advantageous economic cooperation activities. The Republic of Hungary, Zubiri said, has extended humanitarian assistance to the Philippines at various times and shared expertise in developing technologies and techniques in water management when our country was facing a water crisis and send financial aid to victims of the bombing of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Jolo, Sulu. "As ambassador Joszef Bencze's duty in the Philippines draws to an end, we would like to commend him for being instrumental in strengthening and reinvigorating the bilateral ties between the Philippines and Hungary, the reopening of the Hungarian Embassy in Manila, and the cooperation of the two countries in many spheres," Zuburi said. Prior to his assignment as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Hungary to the Philippines, Bencze served as Ambassador to the Republic of Macedonia (2011), Senior High Counsellor at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2010), High Commissioner at the National Police Headquarters (2007--2010), Lieutenant General since 15 July 2007, Director-General for Enforcement at the National Headquarters of the Customs and Finance Guard (1997--2007), High Counsellor at the Office of the Prime Minister (1995--1997), and Mayor of the Local Government of Farr-nos Village (1990-1991). A self declared white supremacist has been filmed slapping a female bartender in the face in sickening footage taken at a Florida restaurant. The man - identified as Nicholas Arnold Schock - lashed out after declaring the 'Aryan nation will rule all' and telling people to 'call Trump' as they try to restrain him. Schock, 36, has been charged with one count of battery and one count of disturbing the peace, The Herald Tribune reports. He has a long list of arrests dating back to 2000, records show. The clip was shared online and is understood to have been taken at Pop's Sunset Grill in Nokomis on Friday. A witness told police Schock claimed to have 'killed n******' and threatened to kill 'everyone in the establishment', Newsweek reports. A self declared white supremacist has been filmed slapping a woman in the face in sickening footage taken at a Florida restaurant. The man - identified as Nicholas Arnold Schock - lashed out after declaring the 'Aryan nation will rule all' and telling people to 'call Trump' Schock, 36, has been charged on one count of battery and one count of disturbing the peace In the footage the man identified Schock is topless with what appears to be a swastika tattoo and his shorts open, exposing himself. He shouts: 'I'm a white supremacist. The Aryan nation will rule the world! People covered in tattoos are going to be my closest relatives, I promise you.' As restaurant staff move to try and calm him down the man shouts: 'I don't give a f***, call Donald Trump, please. I'm not going nowhere. I will butt-f*** this bitch on the table right now. 'If you don't know Donald Trump, I'm not going nowhere.' The clip was shared online and is understood to have been taken at Pop's Sunset Grill in Nokomis on Friday. A witness told police Schock claimed to have 'killed n******' and threatened to kill 'everyone in the establishment', Newsweek reports As the woman - who works in the restaurant and has been identified as Kisha Biche - approaches him he hits out, striking her across the face. Others rush to restrain him as a group of men manage to wrestle him to the ground and hold him until police arrive. Eyewitness Declan McIlveney told The Herald Tribune: 'Me and my buddy ran around the corner. 'When he was one the ground he spouted out all the Aryan nation, white power stuff. 'Then he started talking about how if anyone was phoning him or taking pictures, they should send it to Donald Trump because Donald Trump would get it him off.' A GoFundMe set up to help the bartender slapped in the footage has raised more than $4,000 as of Sunday evening. It states that Kisha Biche, pictured, suffered concussion 'as a result of a vicious, unprovoked attack' Pop's Sunset Grill said in a statement: 'At approximately, 3 p.m. Friday afternoon, a troubled 36-year-old male entered our premises and immediately began spewing erratic hate dialogue. We made every effort to remove him within minutes after his arrival while simultaneously speaking with 911 dispatch police officers. 'Unfortunately, he violently attacked one of our staff. He was immediately subdued and held until the Sheriff arrived. 'We'd like to thank our community for their unparalleled support and empathy. Pop's Sunset Grill is grateful of the heroic efforts of our staff, owner and customers that apprehended the individual within seconds of his violent assault of our brave bartender that stood between him and our customers in a protective mode. 'She is recovering at home on paid medical leave. In the 20 years of our current ownership this is the first incident of violent assault.' A GoFundMe set up to help the bartender slapped in the footage has raised more than $4,000 as of Sunday evening. It states that Kisha Biche suffered concussion 'as a result of a vicious, unprovoked attack'. Schock is being held in Sarasota County Jail on $620 bond. Dresden - In Kazakhstan, the proposal of Akezhan Kazhegeldin, urging to unite some governmental bodies and give emergency powers to a special commission to combat the epidemic and the economic crisis, is widely discussed. In an open letter to President Tokayev, the leader of the democratic opposition insists that the head of state personally has to lead this commission. Kazhegeldin also suggested that former President Nursultan Nazarbayev should completely resign from all posts in the Security Council, Senate and the ruling Nur-Otan party. The former President reserved these posts for himself for life, transferring executive power to Kassym-Zhomart Tokayev in March 2019. In July of this year, N. Nazarbayev turned 80 years old. In Kazakhstan itself, the number of cases of COVID -19 continue s to grow. The state of emergency introduced earlier did not end the epidemic. International experts working with Akezhan Kazhegeldin say that the number of patients in the country has reached 300 thousand. Official statistics report on almost 2,000 new cases per day. The situation has deteriorated to such a tragedy, that the German government publicly listed Kazakhstan as a prime country of risk. This was said during the weekly press conference of the German Government on July 27 in Berlin. China accuses the Kazakh authorities of the hiding thousands of cases and deaths in its official statistics by calling them victims of a pneumonia epidemic. In recent weeks, demonstrations of desperate citizens took place in Kazakhstan. Citizens cannot receive the necessary treatment; they even must stand in lines for days to pick up from overcrowded morgues the bodies of deceased relatives. The fall in incomes of the population, caused by the long-term economic crisis and the resumption of quarantine, is causing massive protests. Citizens are outraged by the insignificance of the state support for those, who lost their jobs. Kazhegeldin is sure that the failures in the fight against the pandemic and the economic crisis are explained by corruption in the government and state monopolies. He invites Tokayev to open the way for a new generation of politicians and administrators, well-educated, with experience of work in international organizations and corporations. Former Kazakh Prime Minister Akezhan Kazhegeldin poses a direct question to the President of Kazakhstan: My young colleagues and I are ready to carry out vital reforms and intend to achieve them - in social life, in the economy, in the political system. We need a clear answer - we have to move united into the future or will you remain in the past with Nazarbayev and his Nur-Otan Party? " The full text of Akezhan Kazhegeldin's open letter to President Tokayev. Serik Medetbekov Email: zagranburo@gmail.com Phone: +49 172 4385022 The region in 2020 is in much worse shape than in 2010. If you thought the Middle East has hit rock bottom and may finally emerge intact from a decade of upheaval and conflict, think again. The economic, political and societal realities in the region are going from dire to horrendous, with no end in sight. They could spiral out of control towards a more violent and chaotic future with unforeseen international ramifications. The killings may have relatively subsided in some places, for now, but the wounds of war are not healing and are being exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic and its associated economic hardship. The greater Middle East is hurting far more than meets the eye. In 2010, the region was also heading into the abyss, but with little fanfare. Today, the writing is on the wall. If similar but milder situations have led to a violent and destructive decade, todays apocalyptic dangers could lead to a much worse outcome. Predicting a hot winter This is going to be a hot winter, I wrote in an internal Al Jazeera memo in November 2010, forecasting the political temperature of the coming season. The Middle Easts falling temperatures will do little to cool off what appears to be a hot winter season. As a number of fragile or deadlocked states heighten tensions toward a major crisis, conflict, and possibly terrible violence, its paramount that we at Al Jazeera reflect and prepare for various scenarios including the worst war. The list of countries was long, and they shared similar characteristics: deepening division, frustrated populations, compromised sovereignties, instability, and the threat of inter- and intra-national conflict and violence. The region may have suffered terribly over the previous century, but at no time in recent memory had the Middle East looked so gloomy as in the first decade of the 21st century its ruling elites so cynical, tensions so high, and impoverishment so widespread. Within months, popular protests broke almost everywhere, leading to a short Arab Spring, which was soon followed by turbulent seasons that brought the region to its knees. Today, like back then, anger and despair linger on every street corner. At the turn of this decade, just as at the turn of the previous one, the region is facing a global economic crisis. And once again, Middle Eastern nations are suffering not only from the incompetence, repression, and corruption of their regimes but also from foolish and reckless US foreign policy which backs autocrats and provokes instability. But now, unlike back then, the region hurts from not one but two decades of conflict: civil wars, proxy wars, and imperial wars that have left Syria, Libya, Yemen and Iraq in tatters. Indeed, the melancholy of 2010 hardly measures up to the depression and simmering anger of 2020. If the tension in the air was palpable then, you could now cut through it with a knife. The melange of political corruption, geopolitical paralysis, and economic depression have paved the way for unprecedented brutality and violence. From bad to worse If in 2010 the Israeli-Palestinian peace process was deadlocked, today it is dead, period. The military occupation has deepened, and tensions have risen amid looming Israeli annexation of a third of the occupied Palestinian territories. The Iranian regime was and remains bombastic, but the tension with its neighbours has only intensified following its military interference in the civil wars of Syria and Yemen wars that have destroyed much of the two countries, leading to the death and displacement of millions. And for the past four years, the Trump administration has fuelled tensions in both the Gulf and Near East as it has supported the Israeli expansionist policies and walked away from the Iran nuclear deal while imposing harsh sanctions on the country and its trading partners, which have bankrupted and infuriated its regime. The violent tit for tat between the two sides could escalate to open conflict, especially if Trump is re-elected in November. One could only imagine the death and destruction another imperial war against a regional power may produce. The same goes for the destructive Russian intervention and counterproductive European interference in regional affairs. North Africa and the Sahel region continue to suffer from insurrection, drought, and regional disputes, with the civil war in Libya spiralling out of control amid increased foreign military intervention. Even those smaller nations once bizarrely referred to as islands of decency, like Tunisia, Lebanon, and Jordan, are facing instability and simmering tensions. Another, the United Arab Emirates, has turned into a police state and rather indecent destabiliser, playing a pernicious reactionary role from Libya to Yemen. Tunisia, which has been considered the only Arab Spring success story, is mired in political volatility and economic hardship, while Lebanon and Jordan have struggled with social upheaval and empty coffers. Dwindling oil prices are hitting and hurting all countries of the region the energy-producing countries, from Algeria to Iraq through Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Gulf states, as well as the poorer countries in the region that depend on remittances. The result is higher unemployment, poorer public services and assured instability. One of those dependent nations is Egypt. For decades, the most populated Arab nation has been governed by an incompetent authoritarian regime. But today it is ruled by a brutal and inept dictatorship that has imprisoned tens of thousands of political opponents and ordinary people. Since Abdel Fattah el-Sisi took over power through a military coup detat in 2013, promising Egyptian revival, his inept and corrupt regime has only produced paralysis and depression. The hope in some western capitals that General el-Sisi would take after Chiles military dictator Augusto Pinochet and apart from brutal rule would also achieve some stability and economic growth turned out to be no more than wishful thinking. Now that his Gulf backers are not able or willing to provide him with additional billions of dollars, humanitarian, economic and political crises will likely ensue. Doubling down The same regimes that unleashed a reign of counter-revolution characterised mainly by violence, terror and repression are today doubling down on their brutal rule. Morally, financially and politically bankrupt, their power is completely and utterly dependent on brute force and foreign support. Nowhere is that as obvious as in the Iranian-Russian support for the bloody Bashar al-Assads regime, Saudi-Emirati support for the el-Sisi regime, US support for the extremist Israeli regime, and Emirati-Egyptian support for the warlord Khalifa Hafter in Libya and Emirati support for the separatist stooges in Yemen. The situation has been so dire for so long throughout the region, nothing short of divine intervention would be needed to undo the damage of the past decades. Not even a miraculous fall of repressive dictatorships and the retreat of their international backers would be sufficient to resurrect Arab countries in the years, nay decades, to come. It is only the people of the region who are able to pull away from the brink. In the past two decades, they have shown they are capable of the most peaceful, most enlightened revolt but also of the darkest, most violent insurrection. How they choose to go about changing their unbearable reality will go a long way in shaping their future. Heres a very long interview where I talk about An American Pickle, Judaism, Israel, and more! Yay! https://t.co/HoKxwQgALG Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) August 3, 2020 Seth Rogen says that while he doesnt regret his comments on Israel, he thinks some of it was misconstrued.I think that its a tricky conversation to have in jest. And thats something that perhaps I now look at and say, Oh, now that we joked about that, perhaps we could clarify some things so people dont run around thinking that I think Israel shouldnt exist anymore. And Im sensitive to Jewish people being hurt, as a Jewish person. And Im sensitive to Jewish people thinking Im not a proud Jewish person, which I am.Truthfully, I think my pride in being Jewish and how deeply I identify as a Jewish person perhaps made me feel like I was able to say things without as much context as perhaps I should give them you know what Im saying? And I am sensitive to Jews thinking that I dont think Israel should not exist, and that there are a lot of Jewish people who are alive who wouldnt be without Israel. And my parents met in Israel; Ive been to Israel several times. Rogen also talked about how he was working on his American Pickle film, which will premiere August 6 on HBO Max, when the Tree of Life Shooting happened in Pittsburgh.We were supposed to start shooting on Monday, and the shooting happened on that Saturday if Im not mistaken and I was about a mile away from it when it happened. It was, in a sense, very scary, but in another sense I remember thinking: Im about to make the most Jewish movie Ive ever made, probably the most Jewish movie that almost anyones ever made, in the wake of the most violent antisemitic attack in the history of America, in the same city. And there was a sense that it suddenly became much more important to do it. And any fear I had about how Jewish a movie it was, I honestly thought that if there was ever a time to double down on this, now was that time.On anti-semitism in Hollywood, I try to call out antisemitism where I see it. I know for a fact that antisemitic people also do thrive in Hollywood so the notion that Jews control the careers of everyone in Hollywood is wildly inaccurate. Mel Gibson has made several movies over the last several years. He won an Academy Award for one of them, I think, in the wake of making horribly antisemitic comments. (Gibson received an Oscar nomination for Hacksaw Ridge in 2017.)On why he has been adapting comic properties like Preacher and The Boys, Ever since I was a kid, I was a huge comic book fan. Stan Lee is Jewish and hes one of the architects of the comic universe as we know it. And I think the more you analyze the stories of comic books, the more you see these themes of people being othered, people being attacked for how they were born, their attributes. There are explicitly Jewish storylines in some of the comic books Magneto [in X-Men] is a Holocaust survivor and as a kid, reading that was very powerful and something that just really hooked me.On how the current political climate in America is for Jewish people, The president is [a] white supremacist, so things are not great here. And Republican politicians literally tweet blatantly antisemitic propaganda pretty regularly. Its a weird time in America. More at the source The Kern County Administrative Office hopes to use unspent money from the previous fiscal year to help soften the financial blow that departme Bhima Koregaon: Accused formed Committee for Defence and Release of G N Saibaba India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Aug 03: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) conducted raids in connection with the Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad case at Gautam Buddha Nagar in Uttar Pradesh. This case pertains to organisation of Elgar Parishad at Pune, Maharashtra on December 31 2017, which promoted enmity between various caste groups and led to violence resulting in loss of life & property and state-wide agitation in Maharashtra. The investigation revealed that the Elgar Parishad along with Maoist leaders used the incident to spread the ideology of Maoism/Naxalism and encourage unlawful activities on the instructions of the leaders of CPI (Maoist), a banned organisation. Elgar Parishad: Associate professor of DU remanded in NIA custody It was found that Hany Babu M T was a co-conspirator along with other accused persons propagating the naxal ideology. Babu was arrested on July 28 2020. Further, the investigation also revealed that accused Hany Babu was in contact with Paikhomba Meitei, Secretary Information and Publicity, Military Affairs, Kangkeipak Communist Party (MC), an organisation banned under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. An interview of Ganapathy, General Secretary of CPI (Maoist) was shared by Paikhomba Meitei with the accused Hany Babu. Communications of Hany Babu with other Maoists of Manipur have also been retrieved. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News The investigation also revealed that after the release of CPI (Maoist) leader Pallath Govindankutty, Babu along with co-accused Rona Wilson, took the initiative to help him financially by raising funds. Babu, along with other accused persons namely Rona Wilson, Anand Teltumbde, P Varavara Rao and Surendra Gadling formed a Committee for the release of G N Saibaba who was sentenced to life imprisonment for his links with CPI (Maoist). Poet-activist Varavara Rao, accused in Elgar Parishad case, tests positive for COVID-19 During the search at Babu's house, NIA seized one account ledger, one receipt book of the Committee for the Defence and Release of Dr G N Saibaba, several documents as well as electronic items such as hard disk, USB pen drive among other items. Popular Pakistani news channel, Dawn, was allegedly hacked on Sunday by anonymous hackers. An advertisement running on this TV channel featured the Indian Tricolour and a message saying 'Happy Independence Day'. This incident grabbed the attention of several netizens. The message was flashing on the channel at around 03:30pm on Sunday. Meanwhile, Dawn News has put out a tweet in Urdu. This tweet reads, "The Dawn administration has ordered an immediate investigation into the matter." The leading Pakistani news channel also stated that it was broadcasting as usual when the Indian Tricolour and the Happy Independence Day message started appearing over a commercial suddenly. It remained on the screen for some time and then vanished. "Dawn News is investigating the sudden broadcast of the Indian flag and Happy Independence Day text on its screen," the channel said in a statement on its official website. The statement further read that the viewers will be apprised as soon there is a final conclusion in the matter. This, however, is not the first time that hackers have targeted an organisation in Pakistan. Earlier this month, the DGPR of Pakistan occupied Kashmir demanded freedom from Pakistan and leveled charges of human rights violations on the Imran Khan government. Later, it was found that the official PoK government website was hacked by Indian hackers. The message on the site read, "Awaam of Azad Jammu and Kashmir seek independence from Pakistan. Pakistan army and police are involved in mass-scale human rights violations, atrocities on innocent civilians and spreading terrorism. We strongly condemn Pakistani rulers for the discriminatory policies and misrule in Azad Jammu and Kashmir for the past 70 years." Also read: DoT asks govt websites to conduct 'security audit' amid rising cyberattacks by Chinese hackers Newspaper Uncovers More Than 6,000 COVID Infections on US College Campuses By VOA News August 02, 2020 A New York Times survey of 270 U.S. colleges and universities has uncovered 6,600 COVID-19 infections among students and staff and 14 coronavirus-related deaths. Hundreds of the almost 1,000 schools the newspaper contacted did not reply to the questions. The statistics do not include numbers for the fall semester that has already started at some schools. "This data, which is almost certainly an undercount, shows the risks colleges face as they prepare for a school year in the midst of a pandemic," the newspaper said. American educators are cobbling together a hodgepodge of plans on how best to protect students and staff from the virus. Some have taken all classes online, while other have a mixture of online and in-class learning. China is sending seven Chinese health officials, the first of a 60-member team to Hong Kong Sunday to begin widespread COVID-19 testing in the territory. The global financial hub is experiencing a third wave of the coronavirus outbreak. Hong Kong's new infections have been in the triple digits for the past 11 days. Australia has not been hit as hard as some countries with the coronavirus, but the state of Victoria has experienced a recent surge in cases, resulting in the imposition of new lockdown restrictions in Melbourne, the capital, effective Sunday. Victoria is Australia's second-most-populous state. The coronavirus pandemic, declared by the World Health Organization on March 11, will be a lengthy one, the WHO said Saturday. Citing the likelihood of response fatigue, the health organization's emergency committee anticipates the COVID-19 pandemic will be long and the global risk level of COVID-19 very high, it said in a statement. So far, worldwide, at least 17.8 million people have been infected and more than 685,000 people have died, according to Johns Hopkins University data. "It's sobering to think that six months ago," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said before entering the meeting as it began Friday, "there were less than 100 cases and no deaths outside China." Lawmakers for the Navajo Nation, another group hit hard by the pandemic, approved nearly $651 million in spending to fight COVID-19. The funds came from more than $714 million the tribe received as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act. About 175,00 people live on the reservation that spreads across parts of New Mexico, Arizona and Utah. About one-third of the homes lack running water, and quarantining is an unfamiliar concept. As of Friday, the tribe reported more than 9,000 people infected and 456 deaths. On Saturday, Vietnam said it plans to test everyone in Danang, a city of 1.1 million people, for the coronavirus. The country had been a success story, passing 100 days without a new case of the coronavirus-caused disease, when a cluster of cases surfaced in the popular resort city. Forty new cases were reported Saturday and four more Sunday, for a total of nearly 600 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and three deaths. Up to 800,000 visitors to Danang have left for other parts of the country since July 1, the Health Ministry said Saturday, adding that more than 41,000 people have visited three hospitals in the city since. New coronavirus cases in other cities, including Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, have links to Danang. Also Saturday, France began testing travelers for the coronavirus when they arrive at an airport or port from one of 16 countries. Travelers can skip the test if they have proof of a negative test within 72 hours. France is not allowing most travel to or from those 16 countries, which include the U.S. and Brazil. Confirmed cases of COVID-19 have increased in France recently to more than 225,000 and more than 30,200 deaths. It is now mandatory to wear a face mask in indoor public spaces. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Churches at Sandema in the Builsa North District of the Upper East Region on Sunday resumed full services with strict adherence to the COVID-19 protocols. This was possible after President Akufo-Addo in his 14th address to the nation eased restrictions on church activities. The Ghana News Agencys (GNA) visit to some churches in the District observed that all the Churches had Veronica Buckets placed at vantage points on their premises, while temperatures and names of worshippers were written before they were allowed entry into church buildings. At the Christ the King Catholic Church, there were posters on entrances to the church, and names of congregants were taken, as they were directed to wash their hands. Reverend Father Sebastian Aduko, the Parish Priest of the Church, in an interview with the GNA said As Catholics, we are partners in development with the government, and we have taken everything into detail. As you can see, we have registration of church members ongoing and they are checking temperatures of members. We have the Veronica Buckets there and we are observing the social distancing, and everybody is wearing a face mask. So for us, we have no problem. He condemned any lackadaisical attitude of members of the public on the relaxation of the protocols, adding that, let us be serious, cooperate, with God, He will see us through. Reverend Father Aduko said the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic was a great lesson for Ghanaians to reflect on, We are the same people, COVID-19 has taught us a lesson, we should respect each other and be one anothers keeper. At the Emmanuel Temple of the Assemblies of God (AG) Church, at Bilinsa, a community in the District, the COVID-19 protocols were strictly observed as in the rest of the Churches visited, it was also observed that the attitude of congregants usually dancing together in groups during praises was absent. The Resident Pastor, Reverend Albert Adekaldu, said they had been observing all the directives and protocols to ensure that church members were safe and worshipped God in good health and strength. Generally, the GNA observed that the Sandema township was flooded with members of various churches in the early hours of the morning trooping to their places of worship. Source: GNA 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 Pizza Hut will be adding toilet paper, instant noodles, grocery, medicines, and other essential goods on its delivery menu to help customers with their daily needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. In an exclusive report from Daily Mail Australia, Pizza Hut Chief Executive Officer Phil Reed said he has piloted a program to aid those who are worse hit by the coronavirus crisis. The Helping Hands Essentials program will allow people who lack access to stores to use the pizza delivery hotline for their daily needs. Since Pizza Hut is among the few businesses in Australia with digital communications, logistics systems, and delivery riders, Reed said that the scheme could be easily rolled out when needed. Aside from having pizzas delivered, customers can also order toilet paper, toothpaste, instant noodles, sugar, and other essential goods with the Helping Hand Essentials. Also, the company can assist in getting basic medications. However, the CEO hopes there was no need for such a service because it would mean the scenario has worsened amid the crisis. "It is crucial that we are able to continue to serve in the communities where we can provide support," said Reed adding that the new service is not yet running. However, the company has been cooperating with authorities to ensure that proper support can be given to the elderly and other vulnerable members of the society when things get "really tough." Read also: How Businesses Can Still Run While Covid-19 Is Out There Ready for emergencies Reed said Pizza Hut can mobilize and produce huge amounts of carbs and protein as their branches are uniquely positioned to provide support where it is needed while obtaining accurate intelligence from the field.' On Sunday, Aug. 2, Victoria's premier Dan Andrews dropped the announcement putting Australia's second-largest state under a "state of disaster" after the country recorded 671 new COVID-19 cases in a day. "We have to do more right now," Andrews said as the country continues to struggle to mitigate the health crisis that has affected almost all countries in the world, according to BBC News. With the new rules, Melbourne will be under a curfew between 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m., at least until Sept. 13. "Where you slept last night is where you'll need to stay for the next six weeks," Andrews added. This is when Pizza Hut's Helping Hands Essentials may be utilized as people lose access to necessities as they will be locked up at home. The company's existing nationwide home delivery infrastructure with contact-less payment options can be used to aid those who are needy. Unlike the supermarkets that had difficulty with the delivery of grocery orders at the onset of the crisis, customers could still call Pizza Hut and get a pizza within 30 minutes. Pizza Hut is still meeting with health authorities, emergency services, and various other government agencies about how its system could help the authorities. While there is still no exact date when the program will be launched, people can continue calling the hotline for pizza. Read also: iPhones Can Soon Process Credit Card Payments in 3 Easy Steps Tech Times owns this article. Written by CJ Robles 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Busted: Former Disney Channel star Ronni Hawk was reportedly arrested and booked on one felony count of corporal injury to a spouse or cohabitant at LAPD Van Nuys Station on Friday morning (pictured above in the family sitcom Stuck in the Middle in 2016) Former Disney Channel star Ronni Hawk was reportedly arrested and booked on one felony count of corporal injury to a spouse or cohabitant at LAPD Van Nuys Station on Friday morning. The Florida-born 20-year-old's boyfriend - 21-year-old snowboarder Miles Fallon - had 'visible injuries including scratches' when police arrived at their Los Angeles home, according to TMZ. Hawk's bail was set at $100K following the verbal argument, which clearly turned physical. She is expected to appear in court for the charges on December 11 2020. Things looked much better for the couple when Ronni and Miles shared some happy couples photos on Instagram back on July 19. It appears the couple have been dating for over a year. Ronni (born Veronica) originally found fame playing self-absorbed eldest sister Rachael Diaz in Disney Channel sitcom Stuck in the Middle, which ended in 2018 after three seasons. She appeared in the family show alongside Joe Nieves, Cerina Vincent, Kayla Maisonet, Jenna Ortega, Isaak Presley, Nicolas Bechtel, Malachi Barton, and Ariana Greenblatt. Lately, the former Donald Trump supporter - who boasts 1.1M social media followers - has been doing paid partnerships with brands like Wanderlust Swim and Sardinian swimwear line La Reveche. Bad romance: The Florida-born 20-year-old's boyfriend - 21-year-old Miles Fallon - had 'visible injuries including scratches' when police arrived at their Los Angeles home (pictured July 19) Ended in 2018 after three seasons: Ronni (born Veronica) originally found fame playing self-absorbed eldest sister Rachael Diaz in Disney Channel sitcom Stuck in the Middle. She is pictured right Ronni - who calls herself a 'social activist' in her Twitter bio - made headlines back in 2018 after pro-Trump tweets from the star were unearthed by fans. She also had used Twitter to criticize people protesting gun violence after the Parkland shooting. 'Listennnnn y'all. Yes, this shooting was a horrific, tragic event but yelling at our government WILL NOT HELP US!!!! Another pro-gun tweet read: 'Does anyone remember when alcohol was banned then everyone started unground [sic] selling, guns will be the same; WE need to protect ourselves.' Fans of her show On My Block called for her to be written off the show, which actually focuses on young people of color in a low-income neighborhood affected by gun violence. Cancelled: Fans of Ronni's Netflix show On My Block (above) called for her to be written off after pro-Trump tweets from the star were unearthed Support: This was posted the day after Trump won the 2016 election Opinionated: She also had used Twitter to criticize people protesting gun violence after the Parkland shooting She later issued an apology, explaining that she was not 'informed enough' and had been 'posting blindly.' 'To be honest, Im nervous to speak up knowing whatever I write at this point wony make everyone happy. 'The truth is that I was 16 years old when I put that post out there and at 18, I know know that I am not informed enough on several different subjects to be posting blindly.' 'What I do know, is that being on this show has been one of the most special things in my life and I do not take it for granted. I learned to much from this show about injustices that take place in this world and that being silent is just as bad as doing nothing.' Ronni's On My Block character Olivia only appears in the first season of the show. Apology: She later issued an apology, explaining that she was not 'informed enough' and had been 'posting blindly' 'Do your own dirty work': Before the COVID-19 crisis, Hawk wrapped her role as armed college student Tomi Shaw in Kevin M. White's upcoming drama, Girl with a Gun Before the COVID-19 crisis, Hawk wrapped her role as armed college student Tomi Shaw in Kevin M. White's upcoming drama, Girl with a Gun. The Louisiana-set film also features Jeremy London, Bill Martin Williams, Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen, and Rachel G. Whittle. In February, Hawk guest-starred in two episodes of The CW's Legacies and she served video vixen duties for Lukas Graham's music video Lie last year. Kenneth Niedermeier and Armando Rubio have been very open about their relationship struggles on 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way. And in a recent Instagram Q & A, Kenneth shared a few details about his past and revealed why he once had to fake a marriage. 90 Day Fiance couple Kenneth and Armando | Via Instagram/Kenneth Niedermeier Armando talks about his past on 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way When he first told his story on 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way, Armando revealed that he was in a relationship with a woman because he was struggling with his sexual identity. He got married at a young age and became a father to his now 6-year-old daughter, Hannah. Even though at a very young age I knew I was gay, given the macho culture I was from and living in Mexico, I wanted to have a relationship with a woman, and I thought this was the only way that possibly these feelings would go away and I could be a man, Armando says on the show. After we had been married for about eight years I decided to tell Hannahs mother that I was gay. When I first told her she was kind of lost and she definitely cried about it. RELATED: 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way: Armandos Ex-Wife Had a Disagreement Over Money with Him Just Before Her Fatal Car Crash Soon after Armando came out to his wife, she told his parents. They were very uncomfortable with the revelation, and essentially pushed him back into the closet. Armandos ex-wife died in a tragic car crash a few years ago, and hes been raising Hannah with his family ever since. Kenneth has four children As seen on 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way, Kenneth has four grown children hes leaving behind in the United States when he moves to Mexico. He has 23-year-old triplet daughters Madison, Cassidy, and Taylor and a 26-year-old son named Bricen. The reality star also has a three-year-old grandson, Cooper. Kenneth is very close to his children and his move to Mexico has taken a toll on him. On the show, he said he was worried about the prospect of leaving his family. For the last almost 27 years, Ive been all about my kids, Kenneth says. One of the biggest challenges for me leaving, and my family, is the unknown. Kenneth reveals why he had to fake a marriage On the premiere episode of 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way, Kenneth explained that he had his children with a friend through in-vitro fertilization. And in a recent Instagram Q & A, the reality star revealed that he had to fake a marriage to get it done. Good chance to clear this up, Kenneth wrote. I was never married to my kids mother, we faked being married to do in vitro back in the 90s, we just signed a paper at the doctors office saying we were. In any case [I] was never married, I have two long term relationships in my life though. He may not have been married before, but Kenneth seems to be a truly committed father and partner. Hopefully, as this season continues, fans will get to see Armandos family come around and embrace him. Last week, Montgomery County, Maryland, where I live, issued an order prohibiting all non-public schools from opening for in-person classes before October 1. Larry Hogan, Marylands Republican governor, promptly went on Twitter to express his disagreement with this decision. He tweeted: I strongly disagree with Montgomery Countys decision to mandate the closure of private and parochial schools. As long as these school develop safe plans that follow CDC and state guidelines, they should be empowered to do whats best for their community. This is a decision for schools and parents, not politicians. I liked the tweet. However, I didnt expect Hogan to take any action that would override Montgomery Countys decision. I wrong. Today, Hogan issued an emergency order stating that non-public schools can make their own decisions regarding reopening for in-person instruction in the coming academic year. He explained: Private and parochial schools deserve the same opportunity and flexibility to make reopening decisions based on public health guidelines. The blanket closure mandate imposed by Montgomery County was overly broad and inconsistent with the powers delegated to the county health officer. To be clear, Marylands recovery continues to be based on a flexible, community-based approach that follows science, not politics. . . . I want to thank all the parents, students, and school administrators who have spoken out in recent days about this important issue. (Emphasis added) As the words blanket closure suggests, local health officials may shut down schools on a case-by-case basis for health reasons. Some suspect that the countys decision to keep private schools closed was driven by a steep decline in new public school enrollment. Montgomery County has decided to limit its public schools to online education until February of next year (at least). The county reportedly expected approximately 2,500 new students to enroll in grades K-12 for the fall, but instead has enrolled only 300 new students. Why enroll your child in a school system that will be closed, except of online learning, if there is an affordable private school option? But its not the countys job to ensure robust public school enrollment by shutting off alternatives. The CDC has warned of the considerable risks associated with extended school closures. Thanks to Gov. Hogans order, many parents have the option of enabling their kids to avoid those risks by accepting what they reasonably deem to be lesser ones. Polands anti-monopoly watchdog UOKiK said on Monday it had fined Gazprom 213 million zloty ($57 million) for lack of cooperation in its proceedings with regard to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project. Poland sees Nord Stream 2, which would double Russias gas export capacity via the Baltic Sea, as a threat to Europes energy security, saying it will strengthen Gazproms market dominance. Nord Stream 2 is led by Gazprom, with half of the funding provided by Germanys Uniper and BASFs Wintershall unit, Anglo-Dutch company Shell, Austrias OMV and Engie. UOKiK has been examining the project for years and in 2019 it fined Engie 40 million euros for failing to provide documents and information relating to the case. "At the beginning of the year, we requested Gazprom provide us with contracts concluded by its subsidiary with other companies financing the construction of Nord Stream 2...The company failed to provide such information," the head of UOKiK said in a statement. "To my mind, it is an intentional act, the aim of which was to obstruct the ongoing proceedings," Reuters cited the statement as saying. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Gazprom have said they plan to complete Nord Stream 2. More than 90% of the construction has been completed. The Russian energy giant supplies most of the gas consumed in Poland. Polish state-run gas company PGNiG has often complained it pays more than its European peers for Russian gas. In July, Gazprom paid PGNiG the $1.6 billion the Polish company won in a pricing dispute and PGNiG chief executive said that Polands relations with Gazprom were "becoming normal." Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 02:33:48|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close MADRID, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- A mobile phone application aimed to help trace possible coronavirus infections will be launched in the Balearic Islands and Canary Islands, the first of Spain's 17 autonomous communities to launch such an app, Spain's Secretary of State for Digitization and Artificial Intelligence Carme Artigas confirmed on Monday. The Radar COVID application will be made available in both iOS and Android versions to residents and tourists in the two islands regions, which are popular with foreign tourists. Artigas explained the test of the app, which was held from June 29 until July 20, had been a success, with around 3,200 people on La Gomera, one of the Canary Islands, and around 100,000 throughout Spain downloading the application. In a simulation of a coronavirus outbreak during the test period, the application detected over 6.5 close contacts per infection, almost twice as many as those located by "track and trace" workers using telephones. During the test, 61 percent of people informed of a possible infection subsequently sent warnings to alert people who they had spent time with. "The application sees more than us, it remembers the contacts we have had with strangers, it is faster than us and has more memory because it records any close contact, it also respects the highest privacy standards and has been shown to be less intrusive than the call of someone who interrogates you to reconstruct what you have done in the last few days," assured Artigas. She also pointed out that users had said they were pleased with the application rating with 8.2 points out of 10. Enditem Ubisoft editorial vice president Tommy Francois has left the company after being accused of workplace misconduct. A company spokesperson confirmed the news to Gamasutra, but declined to comment further when asked if Francois had resigned or been dismissed as a result of an investigation. It's been just over a month since Francois was reportedly placed on disciplinary leave after being accused of abusing employees and enabling further misconduct. Francois' fellow editorial vice president Maxime Beland also departed Ubisoft at the beginning of July following a number of sexual harassment and assault allegations. Meanwhile, three high-profile members of the company's executive team including chief creative officer Serge Hascoet, Ubisoft Montreal chief exec Yannis Mallat, and chief talent and communications officer Cecile Cornet all recently resigned for either enabling or perpetrating abuse. Notably, Ubisoft described those three departures as "voluntary" rather then outright dismissals. That seems to be the trend as the company looks to reshape its toxic culture following a spate of abuse, harassment, and misconduct allegations that preceded the departures of other employees like Assassin's Creed Valhalla director Ashraf Ismail and associate public relations director Stone Chin. After we reported on those allegations, multiple anonymous sources spoke to Gamasutra about how the company has enabled a culture of abuse and control that allowed sexual harassment, abuse, racism, and homophobia to take root and flourish. Addressing the situation, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said he would oversee "profound changes" to improve and strengthen the corporate culture, including hiring independent consultants to investigate misconduct allegations, overhauling the HR and editorial departments, and appointing new heads of workplace culture and diversity and inclusion. Those on the inside, however, expressed concern that Ubisoft would pursue a "razzle dazzle" response that would only serve to root out the accused without addressing the systemic issues that permeate the studio. "Very few trust our processes or the people in charge of solving the issues. Both Tommy and Maxime were open secrets, and there are so many yet to be outed," explained one current staffer, speaking to Gamasutra earlier this year. "Until we see the company act on people like this without a victim coming forward publicly, I have no trust its not just a show designed to protect our image." US President Donald Trump boards Air Force One prior to departing from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, July 31, 2020, as he travels to Tampa, Florida. President Donald Trump is returning to one of the wealthiest regions of New York for a fundraising blitz as presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden builds his own formidable campaign war chest. Trump and his team will be traveling this week to the Hamptons on Long Island for high-dollar, in-person fundraisers as the state enforces 50-person limits on gatherings in certain areas amid the coronavirus pandemic. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has continued to call on people across the state to stay socially distant and wear masks. The events begin Thursday, when son Donald Jr., and the son's girlfriend, leading campaign and Republican National Committee fundraiser Kimberly Guilfoyle, will be guests at a dinner. Tickets for this event start at $2,800 per person for the reception and go up to $50,000 per couple to attend the corresponding dinner. More expensive fundraisers that will feature the president himself are set to take place on Saturday. Trump is slated to head to an afternoon fundraiser in the area, with tickets starting at $50,000 for guests take part in a photo op and watch the president's remarks. For $100,000, an attendee can also be part of a round table discussions with Trump. The later event on Saturday will cost up to $500,000 per couple to gain entrance. All proceeds for the Hamptons events will be going to the Trump Victory committee, a joint fundraising operation between the campaign and the RNC. Representatives for Trump and the RNC did not return requests for comment. The president's slew of campaign fundraising events, including on Aug. 10 in Jackson, Wyoming, comes as Biden and the Democratic National Committee have started gaining ground in Trump's cash-on-hand advantage. At the end of the second quarter, Trump and the RNC had $295 million on hand while Biden and the DNC had $242 million on hand. Biden and his allies outraised Trump's team during the quarter. A Real Clear Politics polling average shows Biden ahead of Trump by 7 points. With that, the Trump campaign launched TV ads in the early voting states of North Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Arizona. As for the event in Wyoming, Foster Friess, a businessman and former Republican gubernatorial nominee, will be one of the co-hosts to the fundraiser, he told CNBC late Monday. It will feature Trump Jr., Guilfoyle, the presidents daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner. Tickets to the round table discussion start at $5,600 and go up to $35,500. Trump's campaign and the president's family have ties to the Hamptons. Trump's son and his girlfriend recently took part in a social event in the Hamptons at the home of longtime real estate executive Joe Farrell. The New York Post reported that Guilfoyle and Trump Jr. did not wear masks. Guilfoyle later tested positive for the coronavirus. Trump Jr. and Guilfoyle reportedly bought a $4.4 million for a summer home in Bridgehampton last year. His father and the RNC raised at least $10 million last year during a swing through the Hamptons. The town of Southampton has also come under scrutiny after a nonpolitical charity concert that featured performances by the Chainsmokers and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon, who opened the show as a DJ. The event was supposed to only allow guests to watch from their vehicles, but videos on social media show many got out of their cars, with no social distancing and lax mask wearing. The state's health commissioner recently started an investigation into the event. A bust of late Belgian king Leopold II, who exploited the country's brutally-run former central African colony as a personal estate, has been vandalised for a third time. Ruling the Belgians between 1865 and 1909, Leopold II was revered at home as the builder of his country, but his legacy came under the spotlight this year as anti-racist protests spread around the world. During his reign, the land that was then the Belgian Congo and is now largely in the Democratic Republic of Congo was run for his profit and millions of Africans were killed, tortured or died of the hardship of forced labour. When "Black Lives Matters" protests erupted this year triggered by anger in the United States at the latest police killings of unarmed black suspects, Leopold's many monuments were targeted. The latest incident is thought to have taken place late Friday, when a statue of Leopold outside the Africa Museum just outside Brussels was once again daubed in blood-red paint. The plinth under the late king's head is now emblazoned "BLM II", a reference to Black Lives Matter. Museum director Guido Gryseels told AFP on Monday that the museum -- a former colonialist institution which reopened after a renovation in 2018 with a mission to put Belgium's history in Africa in proper context -- had already been planning to add an explanatory plaque to the statue. But he said the entire future of the statue was now up for debate and that "a lot of people would like to see it taken down". The story of Marmum, a new state-of-the-art dairy factory in the heart of the UAE, will be highlighted in a 44-minute documentary by National Geographic Abu Dhabi. Marmum is creating a sizeable local production of dairy products to meet the growing demands of the local population and consumers abroad, while also meeting national food security goals. The National Geographic Abu Dhabi film Marmum, takes audiences on an exciting visual journey, focusing on the challenges behind the conception of a large-scale, innovative dairy factory, delivering modern farming standards and offering a range of products such as milk, flavored milk, yogurts, laban and juices. The film highlights the various components of the brand new project located in Nahel, a desert region in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi: from the farm to the cow feeding area to the bottling and packing areas. Viewers will witness the building of the new modern farm which accommodates 3,700 cows as well as the feed area and the milking parlor. The film also spotlights the new, state-of-the-art factory, spread over 30,000 sq m, which uses next generation technologies, including robotics, in the bottling and packing areas. Built to the latest international standards, the new factory will enable Marmum to significantly increase production and deliver a world-class high quality product to their customers in the UAE and abroad. The film explores how Marmums business model is integrating sustainability as a core value. Viewers are taken on a tour of the factorys roof, which is filled with solar panels. Aligned with the nations sustainability goals, the Marmum factory and farm will have nearly half of their electricity needs powered by solar energy in the coming few years. Viewers will see how the new farm location was selected based on where solar energy can be harnessed and where wind disruption is minimal. With cows being very sensitive to wind, viewers learn that minimal wind disruption leads to stress-free, happier cows, which in turn increases their milk production. The film also showcases how the new Marmum factory has delivered a number of firsts in modern farming, including the first of its kind rotary in the UAE. The rotary has been designed as a milking facility providing utmost comfort and one of the finest stress-free environments for the animals, which encourages their milk production. The film explores the cow selection process, a vital component of the project, following the farm manager as he travels to Germany to select the right milking cows to ensure a high quality dairy product. Cow selection attributes include weight and age, good functional attributes and their pedigree to understand their lineage. The documentary follows his final selection of cows as they arrive in the UAE and then enter the rotary for the first time. The film also showcases how the factory is future proofed in its design with a whole area dedicated to growth, which will be fully equipped to meet the future needs of the countrys growing communities. Marmum premieres on the National Geographic Abu Dhabi on July 27 at 11 pm UAE time/10 pm KSA time. TradeArabia News Service The Congress party and its leaders have vilified the sentiments of millions of Hindus by questioning the existence of Prabhu Shriram on multiple occasions. Ahead of Bhoomi Pujan on August 5, Zee News conducted a discussion on Ayodhya and Ram Mandir. In a shocking display of ignorance, Congress leader Kumar Ketkar denied the historical existence of Shri Ram and cast aspersions about the Hindu God being a creation of literature. Kumar Ketkar questions existence of Shri Ram At about 19 minutes into the discussion, the host asked Ketkar whether he or the Congress party now believes in the existence of Prabhu Shriram. In a display of sheer ignorance, the Congress leader replied, Ram exists because of Ramayan. However, a conclusion is yet to be reached on whether Ram is the creation of history or literature. Valmiki wrote a great epic and its impact was felt both in India and abroad. But, I dont know if He existed in history. On being questioned about his bizarre stance on the existence of Prabhu Shriram, Kumar Ketkar tried to justify his comments in light of the baseless claims made last month by the Prime Minister of Nepal KP Sharma Oli about Prabhu Shriram. During a recent event to commemorate Bhanubhaktas birth anniversary, the Nepalese Prime Minister claimed that India had created a fake Ayodhya in India when, according to him, it is a village in Birgunj in Nepal. There is no historical evidence (of the existence of Shri Ram) and that is why Nepals PM claimed that Ayodhya is located in Nepal, Ketkar concluded. Sambit Patra dares Kumar Ketkar to speak against Allah He was then slammed by BJP leader Sambit Patra for hurting the religious sentiments of Hindus and dared him to deny the existence of Allah in a similar fashion. What is the Congressman saying? He is asking whether Prabhu Shriram is the creation of history or literature. He is telling us to show evidence that Ram existed If you had said the same thing about Allah, you would have been beheaded by now. Be grateful that you are a Hindu else you would not have the audacity to say something like this, Sambit Patra taught Kumar ketkar a session in secularism and free speech. Congress denied existence of Prabhu Shriram, opposed Ram Mandir In 2007, an affidavit filed by the Congress-led government read, Valmiki Ramayana and Ramcharitmanas admittedly form an important part of ancient Indian literature, but these cannot be said to be historical records to incontrovertibly prove the existence of the characters and occurrences of events depicted therein. The affidavit was filed to register the UPA governments opposition to the demand to scrap the Sethusamudram project as it would damage the Ram Setu. Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal fought the Ram Janmabhoomi case for the Sunni Waqf Board opposing the building of a magnificent Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya. He also employed dilatory tactics and asked the apex court to delay the decision in the Ram Janmabhoomi case till the 2019 elections. Another eminent Congress leader Shashi Tharoor had earlier claimed that no good Hindu would want a Ram Mandir at Babri site. Tharoor urged that one should have the Ram Mandir in ones heart. LETTERS: Senior voices want to be heard; who taught you to hate? BOSTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Fastmarkets RISI, the definitive source of commodity data and insights for the forest products industry, has announced that Walter Schalka, Chief Executive Officer of Suzano, has been named the 2020 Latin American CEO of the Year. It is the first time an executive from the region has won the award for the sixth consecutive year. The award will be presented virtually to Mr. Schalka at the Virtual Latin American Conference on August 11, 2020, which will be held on the Zoom/Zerista platform. The Latin American CEO of the Year is nominated by a group of independent judges, comprised of investment analysts and portfolio managers covering the Latin American and global pulp and paper industry. Amongst the reasons cited for Mr. Schalka's sixth win, one analyst commented, "Suzano's stock is flattish up 12% on the last 12M, but I liked how he was able to incorporate synergies from the merge with Fibria, while he found out how to turnaround the commercial strategy of the company to solve the inventories problem." In addition to the successful handling of the merger, a second analyst commented on Mr. Schalka's "transparency on calls and meetings with analysts" and his unique ability to "maintain a good relationship with the entire market." A third analyst referred to Mr. Schalka's resilience as a reason for his vote, mentioning that "despite a rough start in 2019, the company came around and was able to normalize its inventory levels across its supply chain throughout the year." When notified of his win, Mr. Schalka stated: "I am very pleased to receive this honorable recognition from Fastmarkets RISI. Suzano has been transforming itself for many years and analysts, probably, are perceiving that the whole company is focused on improving cost structure, developing new applications for short fiber, expanding consumer goods. On the other hand, we recently released our new ambitious ESG goals. These are just some of our more recent moves in this never end transformation process." According to the latest Fastmarkets RISI news reports, Suzano posted increased bleached eucalyptus kraft (BEK) pulp sales in the first quarter of 2020. The company traded a record volume of roughly 2.9 million tonnes in the first three months of the year and 10.5 million tonnes over the last 12 months. With good industrial performance, the company produced and sold more pulp in the period, with inventories moving down 500,000 tonnes in the first quarter of 2020. Considering figures since July of 2019, the company's pulp inventories were down by 1.6 million tonnes. Additionally, this month Fastmarkets RISI also reported that Suzano has partnered with the NGO WWF and consumer goods producer Procter & Gamble (P&G) to restore the native Atlantic forest in the state of Espirito Santo, where it runs the Aracruz pulp mill. One of Suzano's macro objectives for 2030 is to directly contribute to the removal of more than 40 million of tonnes of CO emissions from the atmosphere, as well as support the people in its surrounding communities to rise above the poverty line. When discussing the native forests Mr. Schalka stated, "[The] Amazon has an immense value for Brazil, it plays a geopolitical role and Brazil should be a leader in protection." About Walter Schalka: Walter Schalka began his career at Citibank and later joined the holding company of Grupo Maepar. In 1989, he began working as Chief Financial Officer at Dixie Lalekla. After the merger between Toga and Dixie Lalekla, in 1995, that created the Dixie Toga Group, he became General Director. In 1997, he became the group's CEO and played a decisive role in its expansion, merger and transfer of control processes. In May 2005, he joined Grupo Votorantim as CEO of Votorantim Cimentos, where he was responsible for the operations in Brazil and in 14 other countries. In January 2013, he became CEO of Suzano Pulp and Paper, where he has focused on improving the company's results. Walter Schalka holds a bachelor's degree in Engineering from the Technological Institute of Aeronautics (ITA) and a graduate degree in Business Administration from the Getulio Vargas Foundation of Sao Paulo (FGV-SP). He also participated in the executive programs at IMD (Switzerland) and Harvard University (USA). For more information about the Latin American Conference, click here. About Fastmarkets RISI Fastmarkets is the leading price reporting, analytics and events organization for global commodities markets, including the forest products sector, as Fastmarkets RISI. Businesses working in the pulp and paper, packaging, wood products, timber, biomass, tissue, and nonwovens markets use Fastmarkets RISI data and insights to benchmark prices, settle contracts and inform their strategies worldwide. Along with objective price reporting and industry data, Fastmarkets RISI provides forecasts, analysis, conferences and consulting services to stakeholders throughout the forest products supply chain. About Fastmarkets Fastmarkets is the leading price reporting, analytics & events organization for the global metals, industrial minerals and forest products markets. It operates within Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC. Fastmarkets' core activity in pricing drives transactions in commodities markets around the world and is complemented by news, industry data, analysis, conferences and insight services. Fastmarkets includes brands such as Fastmarkets MB and Fastmarkets AMM (previously known as Metal Bulletin and American Metal Market, respectively), Fastmarkets RISI and Fastmarkets FOEX. Its main offices are in London, New York, Boston, Brussels, Helsinki, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, Beijing and Singapore. Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a member of the FTSE 250 share index. It is a leading international business-to-business information group focused primarily on the global banking, asset management and commodities sectors. SOURCE Fastmarkets Related Links https://www.fastmarkets.com/ She's become one of the breakout stars of Bachelor in Paradise due to being outspoken, hilarious and sassy. And it appears Mary Viturino is also quite the diva when it comes to her media appearances, as she is reportedly charging for interviews. The reality star, 32, has been accused of turning down a podcast interview because she wasn't going to be paid for her time. Scroll down for video Hot property! Bachelor in Paradise star Mary Viturino (pictured) has been accused of 'only doing paid interviews'. Pictured with Alex McKay, Ciarran Stott and Niranga Amarasinghe Journalist Megan Pustetto, the host of the So Dramatic podcast, made the explosive claim on Monday's episode. 'Mary seems to think she's in the major leagues now, because she's only doing paid interviews apparently. Yes, Mary is charging for interviews,' she said. 'FYI, this is not a thing. You do not charge for interviews.' Media outlets rarely pay for interviews unless a person is very high-profile or at the centre of a major news story. Daily Mail Australia has contacted Mary Viturino for comment. 'Mary seems to thinks she's in the major leagues now': The reality star, 32, has been accused of turning down a podcast interview because she wasn't going to be paid for her time The mother of one has recently been profiting off her reality TV fame by joining the video platform Cameo. Cameo enables fans to request personalised videos from celebrities for a fee. Mary charges her fans $20 for a video, but other Bachelor franchise stars charge up to $50 for short clips. Reasonable? She has recently been profiting off her TV fame by joining the video platform Cameo. Mary charges her fans $20 for a video, but other Bachelor franchise stars charge more Romance: As Bachelor in Paradise heads into its final week, Mary appears to have found love with intruder Conor Canning (left) As Bachelor in Paradise heads into its final week, Mary appears to have found love with intruder Conor Canning. It's been rumoured that Mary is still dating the Hobart real estate seven months after the dating show wrapped filming in December. Bachelor in Paradise continues Monday at 7:30pm on Channel 10 However, the U.S. militarys Central Command later said there were no indications that any U.S. aircraft has been lost, saying in an email to The Associated Press that all U.S. military assets have been accounted for. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has hit out at demonstrations calling for his resignation, accusing protesters of trampling democracy and the media of encouraging them. Mr Netanyahu, who was sworn in for a fifth term in May, has often complained of press bias against him, and some of the charges he faces in a corruption trial relate to alleged attempts to seek favourable coverage from media barons in return for state favours. Thousands of Israelis have been taking to the streets, including outside Netanyahu's Jerusalem home, to protest against alleged corruption and economic hardship stemming from lockdowns during the coronavirus crisis. Mr Netanyahu, who heads the right-wing Likud party, has denied wrongdoing in the three graft cases against him. Criticising the protests and media at the weekly cabinet meeting, Mr Netanyahu said that while demonstrators portray their campaign as an attempt to "preserve Israeli democracy, I see it as an attempt to trample democracy". "These demonstrations are fuelled by a media mobilisation, the likes of which I can't remember," he said, accusing the Israeli press of "North Korean-like" uniformity in its alleged bias against him. "They do not report the demonstrations - they participate in them. They add fuel," said Mr Netanyahu, who returned as prime minister in 2009 after a first term from 1996-99. Mr Netanyahu (70) said no one was trying to restrict the demonstrations, in which many of the protesters are young Israelis. Opinion polls have shown his popularity is in decline. However, Mr Netanyahu's main coalition partner - Defence Minister Benny Gantz of the centrist Blue and White party - defended the demonstrations. "The right to protest is the lifeblood of democracy," Gantz said at the cabinet meeting. Legislator Tamar Zandberg, of the opposition left-wing Meretz party, said in a statement that Mr Netanyahu was "marching in the footsteps of dark regimes". Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Arjuna Ranawana (Reuters) Colombo, Sri Lanka Mon, August 3, 2020 12:00 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b23f7b 2 World Sri-Lanka,elections,politics Free Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa hopes to tighten his hold on the nation's fractious politics in an election on Wednesday that could elevate his brother and allow the two to change the constitution if they prevail. Rajapaksa, who claims credit for controlling the spread of the new coronavirus in the island nation, hopes to install his elder brother and former president - current caretaker Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa - in the post formally with an outright election victory. Voters in the tiny Indian Ocean nation of 21 million people will wear masks, carry their own pens to mark ballot papers and maintain physical distancing for the parliamentary polling that has twice been postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Votes will be counted on Thursday. Sri Lanka has reported 2,816 infections of the new coronavirus and 11 COVID-19 deaths as of Sunday. The totals are lower than in neighboring south Asian countries, held in check by a strict lockdown since March. "We will make it safe for you to vote," said chief election commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya, urging people to vote without fear. The Rajapaksa brothers, who built their political careers as Sinhalese Buddhist nationalists, are best known for crushing Tamil separatists fighting for a separate homeland for their ethnic minority. The 26-year civil war ended under the elder Rajapaksa's presidency. Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who won the presidency in November, is not up for re-election in the parliamentary polls. Given the support the brothers enjoy among the Sinhalese majority, Mahinda is favored to become prime minister over Sajith Premadasa, analysts say. Sri Lanka does not have a tradition of conducting political opinion polls. The opposition candidate is the son of Ranasinghe Premadasa, who was assassinated while president by a Tamil suicide bomber in 1993. The Rajapaksas want to return to the presidency powers that were diluted by previous governments as part of reforms to prevent abuses of power. "The majority community in Sri Lanka have [shown] that they have already decided they want the Rajapaksas back by voting Gotabaya Rajapaksa into the presidency," said Jayadeva Uyangoda, an independent political commentator. The question, he said, is whether they will get a big majority to make sweeping changes. The reforms created independent bodies, including judicial, human rights and police commissions to exercise powers that had been concentrated in the president. President Rajapaksa says he cannot implement his agenda of economic growth because of the curbs on his power. It is impossible to make any meaningful changes and implement the agenda that I presented to the people," he said last week. Restoring those powers would require amending the constitution, which in turn requires a two-thirds majority in parliament. Wales unlocks further with warning We can only continue to do this if everyone carries on this hard work This article is old - Published: Monday, Aug 3rd, 2020 Pubs, restaurants and cafes will be able to serve customers indoors today for the first time since March. It comes after hospitality businesses were officially given the go ahead to re-open indoors by First Minister Mark Drakeford on Friday. Although cafes, pubs and restaurants were told they could open outdoors in July, this is the first time since the lockdown restrictions were imposed that customers will be allowed to sit inside. The industry has been one of the hardest hit during the pandemic and in Wales is amongst the last to re-open. Many Wrexham eateries are also taking part in the UK Governments Eat Out to Help Out scheme, which offers customers a 50 per cent discount on food and non-alcoholic drinks on Monday Wednesday until August 31st. The initiative, which was announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak at his mini budget in July, is capped at a maximum discount of 10 per person. You can find out which businesses in Wrexham are part of the scheme, here. Indoor bowling alleys, auction houses and bingo halls have also been given the go ahead to re-open today. Mecca Bingo says it will be opening its Wrexham branch from today with new social distancing and safety measures in place. This includes a cap on the number of people in the building, enhanced cleaning and sanitising stations for customers. Other changes coming in place in Wales today as explained by Welsh Government:- The restrictions preventing more than two households or extended households meeting outdoors will be changed to allow up to 30 people to meet outdoors. Physical distancing must be maintained at all times. The guidance will be updated to relax the position on children under 11 having to maintain a 2 metres distance from each other or from adults. This reflects the scientific evidence, which shows the risk of transmission is lower among this age group. However, it is very important older children and young adults continue to follow social distancing and the other measures to keep them safe. Licensed wedding venues will be able to re-open to provide wedding ceremonies. However, indoor receptions will not be able to take place for the time being they will be considered as part of the changes for August 15. If conditions remain favourable, from 10 August Welsh Government have said swimming pools, indoor fitness studios, gyms, spas and indoor leisure centres will be able to re-open and childrens indoor play areas will be able to open. First Minister Mark Drakeford said Wales is moving into the green phase of its traffic light system and that guidance is increasingly important in setting out all the measures and steps we need to take to protect us from coronavirus. He said: It is thanks to the hard efforts of everyone in Wales that we have been able to control the spread of coronavirus and relax the restrictions. We can only continue to do this if everyone carries on this hard work. If we stop now, there is a real risk we will see new outbreaks of coronavirus and we may have to reverse some of these restrictions to control its spread again. We are facing the likelihood of a resurgence of the virus over the autumn and winter this will not be over by Christmas. We all have an ongoing responsibility to keep Wales safe. This means maintaining social distancing, washing our hands often and thinking carefully about where we go, what were doing and why. The Welsh Government is also exploring whether changes can be made to the rules to enable people to meet indoors with other people who arent part of their household or extended household from August 15. However it is acknowledged by the first minister that remains one of the most difficult areas from a public health perspective because of the increased risk of transmission. Mr Drakeford said: We have seen the resurgence of the virus in places across the world linked to the re-opening of indoor spaces and gatherings of people indoors in Melbourne and in the southern US states, for example. The current rules on indoor gatherings will remain in place for the time being. If the scientific evidence and advice from the Chief Medical Officer for Wales supports a relaxation of the rules, we will aim to bring changes into force on 15 August. If we are able to change the rules on gatherings indoors, this will include options to allow small social events, such as wedding receptions to take place. At present, the rules only allow people to meet indoors with others from the same household or extended household. This means that, from Monday, people will only be able to visit indoor areas of restaurants, pubs, for example with members of their own household or extended household. Untrained security guards may have contributed to Melbourne's horror coronavirus outbreak by giving into the desperate pleas of guests 'going absolutely nuts' while confined in hotel quarantine, a returned traveller has claimed. An independent inquiry will this week examine Victoria's scandal-riddled quarantine program after hotels involved in the operation were identified as a major contributor to Melbourne's second wave. Victoria was the only state that hired private security firms to manage its hotel quarantine implemented by the federal government in March. The inquiry, which begins on Thursday, is expected to hear how quarantined guests tried to beg and bribe overwhelmed security guards to be let out of their rooms for a cigarette, fresh air or released early from quarantine while still infectious. An independent COVID-19 Hotel Quarantine Inquiry will hear evidence this week. Pictured are guests going into hotel quarantine in Melbourne after returning from overseas in March A returned traveller who spent two weeks in quarantine in April claims he was on what guards described as the 'crazy floor' of a Melbourne hotel, where mental health workers were called in to sedate hysterical guests. 'They (the guests) were begging to be let out and running for the doors,' the man told The Australian. He said the guards appeared unprepared to control guests desperate to be released from confinement. 'And they were being told no, but the guards had no real authority they gave the impression they could be talked around. And guests were going up to the security guards, begging and offering money to be let out. It was insane,' he added. Hotel Quarantine Facebook pages have also revealed the fragile state of returned travellers while confined in isolation. 'By the third day, my partner was screaming I mean, SCREAMING for help, sobbing uncontrollably and wailing that she just wanted to die,' one guest posted. A number of security guards have since tested positive, spreading the virus across Melbourne, which has since gone into stage four lockdown with night curfews. Health care worker Christine Cocks lodged a scathing inquiry submission about the uncleanliness of her room while in hotel quarantine. Commuters wearing facemasks are seen waiting for a tram during in Melbourne on Monday 'We were provided with spray liquid and toilet cleaner and a cloth, but no toilet brush. The window had hand prints all over it, which I just had to clean off,' Ms Cocks wrote. 'The carpet was dirty. Quite a few in our cohort asked for a vacuum cleaner. We did not. Of concern to us was how the vacuum cleaner was transferred from room to room. I do not think it was cleaned between transfers. 'A fair percentage of our cohort had tested Covid positive.' Her biggest concern was when she stripped all bed linen, including the mattress topper upon leaving the hotel before finding out her stay would be extended extended another night. 'When I asked for a replacement I was told that the mattress topper was not supposed to be included in the wash,' Ms Cocks wrote. 'We cannot believe this. How disgusting. What a great way to spread a virus! 'I think it is unfair to just point a finger at the security staff at the hotel because, to us, the most likely weakness was the how potential contaminants were managed by the hotel. 'Quarantine should only be managed by people well-trained in handling of contaminants.' A man is seen walking on Collins Street during in Melbourne on Monday as unprecedented lockdown measures were announced The inquiry will examine the decisions and actions of government agencies, hotel operators and private contractors, communication between the parties, guidance, training and equipment provided to security guards and hotel staff, along with policies, protocols and procedures. The hearing will continue a second day on Friday if additional time is required. The inquiry is due to deliver its findings on September 25. The inquiry comes days after security guards lifted the lid on the Melbourne hotel quarantine saga. A subcontractor admitted some guards were hired via Gumtree or other social media platforms and were not provided with training. 'There's no proper regulation, no criteria. It's like anyone can do anything,' subcontractor Roger told 60 Minutes on Sunday night. He admitted many weren't equipped with the skills needed to work in quarantine hotels. 'They have absolutely no knowledge what to do in this situation, because they are not trained for these kinds of situations,' he said. Roger said he was aware of allegations that some guards were sleeping with infected guests. 'Yes. I was told that a guard had sex with the guests,' he said. Among the unqualified guards who monitored guests was was university student 'John' who claimed neither he or any of his colleagues were given personal protection equipment. Security subcontractor 'Roger' (pictured) told 60 Minutes he hired guards through websites such as Seek and Gumtree 'Everyone was sitting outside of their rooms without any PPE because they told us not to wear any mask,' he claimed 'From the very first point, [there was] no proper training. There must be some standards and protocols that say, 'You can do this' or 'You cannot go there in during your break'.' John also claimed some of his colleagues unknowingly spread the virus by going to nearby convenience stores and fast food outlets on their breaks. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa urged citizens to remain careful and adapt to measures necessary to limit the spread of the coronavirus pandemic as confirmed infections in the country breached 500,000. We must maintain our vigilance until we have no more coronavirus cases in our country, Ramaphosa said in a statement published on the presidency website. If we do not do so, there is the risk of a resurgence in those areas where the virus has now begun to stabilize. With 503,290 confirmed Covid-19 cases and more than 8,000 fatalities, South Africa is the worst-hit country on the continent. The stabilization of a daily increase in infections in the province of Gauteng, which includes the economic hub of Johannesburg, the Western Cape and Eastern Cape suggests that prevention measures are having an effect, he said. Additional equipment and personnel are being deployed to areas experiencing an increase in infections and a team led by South Africas Biovac Institute is preparing to produce doses of a successful vaccine locally, Ramaphosa said. South Africa imposed a lockdown that shuttered almost all economic activity for five weeks from March 27. While most businesses were allowed to resume operations from May 1 under strict conditions, the restrictions are weighing on output. The government expects the economy to contract 7.2% this year. Now read: New SAA will prioritise equal employment over experience for pilots A young Irish tourist has died and another was seriously injured after being run over while crossing the main dual carriageway in Marbella. The accident occurred in the early hours of Monday morning at kilometre 174 of the A-7, near Puerto Banus. According to sources, a group of friends on holiday on the Costa de Sol had crossed the road in an unsafe place by jumping over the central reservation, although this will have to be confirmed in the Guardia Civil traffic police inquiry under way. Two of the members of the group were hit by a car travelling on the Malaga-bound carriageway, said the police report. The driver tested negative for alcohol and drugs. One of the two young men who were hit by the car, 21-year-old J. B. T., was killed, while the other suffered serious injuries and was taken to the Costa del Sol hospital. Both victims are from Dublin and were staying at a Marbella hotel. According to sources, they had barely been on the Costa del Sol for 24 hours, having arrived at Malaga Airport on Saturday. Just hours before the accident the group of friends had apparently gone on a horse and carriage tour of the town. Less than a month ago another pedestrian was killed on the same road through Marbella, this time at kilometre 190. Michigan voters who mailed in their absentee ballot too late or never received one can still cast a vote in-person for Tuesdays primary election. Voters who applied to vote by mail have a few options to participate in the Aug. 4 primary, but theyll have to leave the home. The Michigan Secretary of State recommends voters contact their local clerk to arrange an in-person visit Monday, but voters can also cast a ballot at their polling location Tuesday. Related: Your guide to local elections in Michigan on Tuesday, Aug. 4 Michigans Aug. 4 primary election will decide a variety of local proposals and solidify local, state and federal candidates for the general election on Nov. 3. An unprecedented number of residents are seeking to vote by mail in 2020 elections, an option preferred by the Michigan Secretary of State, but clerks have voiced concerns about the mail systems ability to deliver the increased load of absentee ballots in a timely manner. Michigan voters can track the status of their absentee ballot online here. The Michigan Secretary of States Office established a website that allows voters to check when their ballot was mailed to them and when it was received by their local clerk. Polls officially open Tuesday at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. All ballots must be received by local clerks by 8 p.m. Tuesday. Can I vote early if something happened to my absentee ballot? Voters have until 4 p.m. Monday to obtain a new ballot at their local clerks office. Someone who asked for an absentee ballot but never received it should call their local clerk and arrange an in-person visit. Find your local clerk at Michigan.gov/Vote. Upon filling out a written form, the old ballot -- whether it arrived at your home, was lost in the mail or damaged -- will be voided. Anyone who receives a new absentee ballot Monday must submit it to their local clerk the same day. If youre concerned that your ballot was mailed too late and wont arrive on time, you can spoil the ballot before 4 p.m. Monday. This allows voters to cast a new ballot at the clerks office or on Tuesday, ensuring their vote is counted. Can I vote in person if something happened to my absentee ballot? Someone who asked for an absentee ballot but never received one in can still vote in-person Tuesday. Voters must sign an affidavit at their polling place that states their absentee ballot was lost, destroyed or never arrived. Voters who request an absentee ballot arent required to vote by mail. If a voter received an absentee ballot but did not fill it out, they can still cast a vote Tuesday. Voters in possession of a blank ballot must bring it to their polling location on Aug. 4. Voters will hand over their blank ballot to poll workers and receive a new one to be cast on election day. If someone has already voted by mail, they will not be allowed to vote in person, according to the Secretary of States Office. Monday is the last opportunity to vote early Monday is the last day for anyone who hasnt asked for an absent voter ballot to obtain one -- just go to your local clerks office by 4 p.m. Voters who already turned in a ballot but want to change their decision can also spoil their ballot Monday and fill out a new one at their clerks office. Theres still time to turn in an absentee ballot The Secretary of State advises voters to submit their absentee ballot to their local clerk in person before 8 p.m. Tuesday. It is too late to send a ballot through the mail. Michiganders in possession of a completed absentee ballot should drop it off at their clerks office or a ballot drop box, according to the Secretary of State. Find drop box locations here. Completed absentee ballots will not be counted if the voter does not sign the outside of the return envelope. MLive Media Group has partnered with the League of Women Voters of Michigan to provide candidate information and other voting resources to readers ahead of 2020 elections. Each candidate was given a list of questions relevant to the office for which they are campaigning. The voter guide can be accessed at vote411.org. READ MORE ON MLIVE: Your guide to local elections in Michigan on Tuesday, Aug. 4 Michigan ballots must be received by 8 p.m. on Election Day to count after court declines to hear challenge Trump campaign temporarily halts TV advertising in Michigan but plans to spend $11M before election Police records that could make or break Prince Andrews alibi for the night he is alleged to have had sex with a sex-trafficked teenager have been destroyed. Scotland Yard made the admission to a former Royal protection officer who told The Mail on Sunday he believed Andrew may have returned to Buckingham Palace in the early hours of March 11, 2001. Virginia Roberts, then 17, claims she was coerced by paedophile Jeffrey Epstein into having sex with the Prince on the night of March 10 at the Belgravia home of Ghislaine Maxwell. In his infamous Newsnight interview last November, the Duke of York insisted he had spent that night at Sunninghill Park, Berkshire, with his children, having earlier dropped off Princess Beatrice at a Pizza Express in Woking, Surrey, for a party. This article is part of the On Tech newsletter. You can sign up here to receive it weekdays. Whats happening with TikTok is one of the strangest things Ive seen. Let me catch you up. One of the worlds hottest apps has become a political hot potato because its owned by the Chinese internet giant ByteDance at a time when relations between the United States and China are at a low point. U.S. government officials say they are worried that the Chinese government might force TikTok to hand over information it collects about Americans and use the app to spread a Chinese-friendly view of the world. TikTok has tried and failed to calm those fears. That brings us to this weekends strange scene: The chief executive of Microsoft negotiated directly with the president of the United States over the purchase of an app from China. At least 29 people are dead and 50 injured after ISIS attacked a prison in Afghanistan, sparking a two-day battle that saw 300 inmates including jihadis freed. The attack began Sunday when an ISIS militant drove a van filled with explosives up to the prison gates and detonated it, before gunmen opened fire. Attackers then streamed into the jail through the breach, shooting dead civilians, guards and rival militants including Al Qaeda prisoners as they opened the cells. At least 29 people including civilians, guards and prisoners have been killed after ISIS attacked a jail in Afghanistan, sparking a day-long firefight ISIS blew up the prison in Jalalabad on Sunday evening before fighters streamed inside and occupied it, firing at Afghan security forces who managed to retake the prison on Monday Around 1,350 of the jail's 1,800 inmates - including ISIS fighters - escaped during the raid, with 1000 recaptured and more than 300 still missing Around 1,350 of the jail's 1,800 inmates - including many ISIS fighters - are thought to have escaped, with more than 300 still missing. 400 stayed in the prison. Gunmen then bedded down in the prison and surrounding buildings, fighting running gun battles with security forces who tried to retake it. Defense Ministry spokesman Fawad Aman said the prison was taken back in the afternoon on Monday. The fighting also left at least 50 wounded. At least eight militants were also killed during the fighting. Even as Afghan troops seized the prison in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, some 70 miles east of Kabul, ISIS fighters continued to fire on them from a nearby neighborhood. Civilians were caught up in the crossfire as the attack got underway on Sunday evening Sporadic gunfire rang out from nearby residential buildings in central Jalalabad, an area of high security near the provincial governor's office. As security forces swept through the prison, they found the bodies of two Taliban prisoners apparently killed by the Islamic State group. The ISIS affiliate in Afghanistan, known as IS in Khorasan province and headquartered in Nangarhar province, later claimed responsibility for the attack. The attack came a day after authorities said Afghan special forces killed a senior Islamic State commander near Jalalabad. Several hundred prisoners in Jalalabad are believed to be ISIS members. Following the collapse of its so-called Caliphate, ISIS has transitioned into a guerrilla fighting force waging wars in the Middle East and Africa. In Afghanistan, the terror group is at war with US, Afghan and Taliban forces - which are currently trying to strike a peace deal. The US struck a deal with the Taliban in February. A second, crucial round of negotiations between the Taliban and the leadership in Kabul has yet to start. The Taliban's political spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, told The Associated Press that his group was not involved in the Jalalabad attack. The bloody attack came a day after the Afghan government announced it had killed a senior ISIS commander near Jalalabad A wounded man is treated at a local hospital in Jalalabad after being injured during the prison attack late on Sunday The Taliban had declared a three-day cease-fire starting last Friday for the major Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. The cease-fire expired at 12 a.m. Monday. "We have a cease-fire and are not involved in any of these attacks anywhere in the country," Shaheen said. The Taliban also had denied being involved in a suicide bombing in eastern Logar province late Thursday that killed at least nine people and wounded 40. Afghanistan has seen a recent spike in violence, with most attacks claimed by the local IS affiliate. A United Nations report last month estimated there are around 2,200 IS members in Afghanistan. Boris Johnsons government signed deals for quick-turnaround tests for Covid-19 as the UK prepares for a winter resurgence of the disease amid criticism its initial response to the crisis was too slow. Millions of the tests, which can give results in 90 minutes and check for flu and other viruses, will be sent to hospitals and care homes, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said Monday. The fact these tests can detect flu as well as Covid-19 will be hugely beneficial as we head into winter, so patients can follow the right advice to protect themselves and others, Hancock said in an emailed statement. The tests will help break chains of transmission quickly, he said. Click here for full Covid-19 coverage Johnsons government, which has been criticized for locking down too slowly at the start of the UK outbreak, is making preparations for flare-ups in the fall and winter. Ministers have been reviewing possible responses and The Sunday Times reported they war-gamed sealing off London from the rest of the country in a meeting last week. A report published Monday by the Institute for Government and the Chartered Institute for Public Finance and Accountancy said cuts to budgets since Johnsons Conservatives came to power in 2010 meant vital services were understaffed and poorly equipped when the virus hit the UK in February. Ministers had failed to learn the lessons of pandemic simulation exercises, it said. Greater investment in staff, buildings and equipment would have left services far better placed to respond to coronavirus, Nick Davies, program director at the IFG said in a statement. The government must learn from these mistakes, reflect on where public services are least resilient, and ensure key services are better prepared for either a second wave of coronavirus or any future pandemic. Major incident Ministers are seeking to damp down spikes of the virus while rebooting the economy, which is facing its worst recession in 300 years. Local Government Secretary Robert Jenrick denied newspaper reports that the government plans to close pubs and said curbs on the movements of everyone over the age of 50 is not something being actively considered. The reports came days after Johnson reintroduced restrictions in northwest England and postponed the planned easing of nationwide lockdown measures. On Sunday evening, emergency and public services organizations in Greater Manchester declared a major incident to improve their response to a surge in infections. Former Chancellor of the Exchequer Sajid Javid said the government should make it clear that Asian communities in the northwest are at the center of the renewed outbreak in the area. British Asians -- a diverse group -- are more likely to work in frontline jobs and live in larger multi generational households, he said on Twitter. These factors put them at risk. Lets be honest about it to protect the most vulnerable. Range of options Possible measures if infection rates spike elsewhere include locking down the capital and tightening quarantine rules on those flying into the UK, the Sunday Telegraph reported. There could be travel curbs in and out of the M25 highway encircling Greater London and a ban on overnight stays if theres a surge in cases, the Sunday Times said. Johnsons office said the reports were speculation but Jenrick said it is right for ministers to keep responses to all possible scenarios under review. Youd expect the government to be considering the range of all the options, Jenrick, who said he wasnt aware of the plan to seal off London, told Times Radio on Sunday. We dont want to do anything thats a blanket approach across the country; our strategy is to manage this in a localized way with targeted action. Oxford Nanopore Technologies said its initial order from the government is for 450,000 of its LamPORE tests, which use DNA and RNA sequencing to detect the virus. There is potential to scale up to millions of tests per month, the company said in a statement. DnaNudge said it will provide 5.8 million tests along with processing equipment in a deal worth about 161 million pounds ($211 million). The technology allows doctors and nurses to quickly determine whether patients are infected in emergency settings and before undergoing surgery, cancer care and other procedures, the company said. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 13:52:46|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese fugitive suspected of perpetrating duty-related crimes has returned to China to face the law, China's top anti-graft authority said Monday. Qu Zhilin, former chief of a community-level branch committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, fled overseas in February 2018, according to a statement by the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission. Qu has surrendered his embezzled money to the authorities. In July 2018, the Licang District supervisory commission in Qingdao launched an investigation against Qu, and he was listed on the Interpol Red Notice in March 2020, the statement said. Calling Qu's surrender an important achievement in China's continued manhunt for duty-related crime suspects, an official in charge of fugitive repatriation and asset recovery said China will step up efforts to hunt down fugitives who had worked at grassroots levels or in fields related to people's livelihood, and never allow corrupt criminals to go scot-free. Enditem Israel launched air strikes on Syrian military targets in southern Syria late Monday, after thwarting an attack near the Israeli-occupied sector of the Golan Heights. In Damascus, the state-run news agency Sana said Israeli helicopters rocketed Syrian army positions near Quneitra in the south but caused only material damage. It also said air defences had gone into action near the Syrian capital. The Israeli army said its fighter jets, attack helicopters and other warplanes struck Syrian army positions in retaliation for the attempt to lay explosives in the Golan Heights. "The targets struck include observation posts and intelligence collection systems, anti-aircraft artillery facilities and command and control systems in SAF (Syrian Armed Forces) bases," the army said in statement. "The IDF holds the Syrian government responsible for all activities on Syrian soil, and will continue operating with determination against any violation of Israeli sovereignty," it said. Tensions are already high between bitter rivals Israel and Syria. Last month, Israeli army helicopters struck military targets in southern Syria in retaliation for earlier "munitions" fire towards Israel. Israel did not directly blame Syrian forces for the munitions fire, but said it held the Damascus government responsible. And earlier Monday, the Israeli army said it had killed four men laying explosives near the Israeli-occupied sector of the Golan Heights. 'Inside Israeli territory' "They were inside Israeli territory but beyond the fence," military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus told journalists in a telephone briefing. He said an Israeli commando unit lying in wait attacked the intruders shortly after 11 pm Sunday (2000 GMT) with assault rifles and sniper fire backed by air strikes. "Our estimate is that all four were killed," Conricus said in English, adding that there were no Israeli casualties. Story continues Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement Monday that "the army thwarted an attempted attack on the Syrian front". "We don't let our guard down," he said, recalling an incident at the Lebanese border last week that prompted Israeli artillery fire across the frontier, as well as rocket fire Sunday evening from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip which led to retaliatory Israeli air strikes. Israel will "strike anyone who attacks us or tries to attack us", he added. Possible Hezbollah links Several Israeli media outlets reported that Monday's actions were in response to an increased threat from the Iran-backed Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah, which has a significant presence in Syria. Last month, five Iran-backed fighters were killed in an Israeli missile strike south of Damascus, according to Britain-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Then last Monday, Israel said it had thwarted an infiltration attempt from Lebanon by up to five Hezbollah gunmen, a claim denied by the Iran-backed group. Israel reported an exchange of fire that forced the "terrorists" back into Lebanon. It said it fired artillery across the heavily guarded border for "defensive" purposes. "We do not know at this stage and we cannot confirm a link between this terrorist squad and Hezbollah or Iranians," Conricus said. "We know that there are many different factions operating on Syrian soil." The Syrian Observatory said it was likely, but could not be confirmed, that the attackers were from the Syrian Resistance to Liberate the Golan. The Hezbollah-linked group was formed more than six years ago to launch attacks in the Israeli-occupied zone. The Syrian Observatory said late Monday there were Israeli air raids on the southern province of Quneitra and on Boukamal city, near the Iraqi border in the northeast. Conricus said that Israel's Maglan commando unit had been deployed at the attack site for several days. "We spotted irregular night-time activity in this specific location for the past week and we had a commando unit deployed in the area," he said. (AFP) By Sudarshan Varadhan and Nidhi Verma CHENNAI/NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indian power plants used the most gas in at least 3-1/2 years in the June quarter, as operators along the west coast snapped up cheap liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports that have become competitive against coal, government data showed. Power producers say the trend is likely to continue until at least September, and perhaps beyond, providing a bright spot for LNG sellers as demand elsewhere falls due to a global economic slowdown sparked by the coronavirus pandemic. Gas consumption by power plants rose 11.7% to 104.83 million standard cubic metres per day (mmscmd) in the three months to end-June from the same period last year, data from the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) showed. Imports accounted for 37.4% of overall gas consumption by power plants, up from 35% a year ago. Lower spot prices are making natural gas "lucrative" for power plants, according to India's largest gas importer Petronet LNG Ltd, which recently cancelled a tender to buy long-term LNG. (Graphic: Fossil fuel imports by Indian utilities https://graphics.reuters.com/INDIA-ELECTRICITY/gjnvwxlxdpw/index.html) "I do believe there is some coal switching taking place and imported coal-based power plants may not be competitive vis a vis spot LNG (consuming power plants)," Vivek Mittal, general manager for marketing at Petronet, said on a recent conference call. India's imports of spot gas more than doubled in the June quarter from a year ago to the highest in at least 14 quarters, while purchases under long-term contracts slumped by over a third to the lowest in the same period, a Reuters analysis of the available data showed. COAL SALES PLUNGE The increased use of gas comes as India's overall electricity demand is expected to fall this year for the first time in decades, with a likely fall in national coal-fired generation. Sales at state-run Coal India, which sells most of its output to power companies, fell to the lowest level in nearly four years in the second quarter. Weaker sales could continue through end-September due to the annual monsoon, when coal demand and output typically falls and transportation is difficult. Story continues Imports of coal by power plants also fell to the lowest level during the June quarter in at least seven years. (Graphic: Mode of gas imports by Indian utilities https://graphics.reuters.com/INDIA-ELECTRICITY/dgkvldbjevb/index.html) Still, coal remains India's dominant fuel for power production. More than half of India's gas-fired plants are also shut because they are not economically viable, which power producers attribute to high taxes and transportation costs. Gas consumption increased mainly due to higher consumption by companies on India's west coast, particularly the state of Gujarat, home to some of the country's biggest LNG import plants. The state, which is close to producer countries such as Qatar, also has a better gas transportation network, and is relatively far from coal mines, making gas-fired power production relatively cheaper, power producers say. Gujarat-based private firms such as Torrent Power and utilities run by the state government accounted for nearly all LNG imports by power companies, according to the CEA. "We expect global LNG prices to be at current levels for the next two years due to low global demand and gas consumption by power plants in Gujarat to increase," an executive from a large Indian power producer said. "But only plants on the west coast will be able to make use of the price competitiveness with coal." (Reporting by Sudarshan Varadhan and Nidhi Verma; Editing by Florence Tan and Richard Pullin) Patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection often complain of fatigue, but now a new study shows that it also causes severe and frequent fatigue in those who recover after mild illness too. The study, published on the preprint server medRxiv* in July 2020, reports a startling prevalence of fatigue in people who recovered from acute COVID-19 illness, even when they had only a mild illness. Colorized scanning electron micrograph of a cell (blue) heavily infected with SARS-CoV-2 virus particles (red), isolated from a patient sample. Image captured at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland. Credit: NIAID Fatigue is the presenting symptom in many patients with COVID-19, ranging from 44% to 70% of cases. The extent and duration of this symptom remain an unknown area, mainly whether it represents a post-viral fatigue syndrome triggered by the virus. A prior report dealing with the long-term sequelae of the earlier severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak reports that patients had long-term fatigue, muscle aches, weakness, and depression even at one year from acute infection, severe enough to hinder their return to work. Another study reported fatigue in patients assessed at 40 months from infection in over 40%. Similar findings were reported after the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) at six months or more. The same results are seen with other viral infections too, including Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV), Q-Fever, and Ross River Virus (RRV) infections. Many earlier studies have described these post-viral fatigue syndromes, especially regarding the immune changes. Immunological Changes in COVID-19 The immunological changes seen in COVID-19 are well recognized, including lymphopenia, leukocytosis, and a higher proportion of neutrophils to lymphocytes. Severe COVID-19 is marked by higher levels of C-reactive protein, ferritin, and D-dimers (markers of tissue damage and coagulation dysregulation), and IL-6, among other inflammatory cytokines. Intermediate monocytes, a class of monocytes that is found in infection and inflammation, are also increased. The Study: COVID-19 Patients and Fatigue The current study by a team of Irish researchers was aimed at a prospective evaluation of patients who had COVID-19 and then recovered, to detect chronic fatigue symptoms after recovery. The researchers wanted to avoid multiple etiologies for the fatigue by using a single infection as the population characteristics, to allow greater accuracy of the syndrome description. The link, if any, between the fatigue and any particular characteristic of the infection, was sought, as also the uncovering of any persistent disease markers after the resolution of infection. The study included 128 patients with a mean age of 50 years, of whom about 56% were hospitalized with COVID-19, and the rest were outpatients. Over half were healthcare workers, as is characteristic of Irish COVID-19 outbreaks. The median duration from discharge from hospital or diagnosis of outpatients to testing during the study was 72 days, at which point only 2 of 5 patients said they felt fully recovered. Of the 82% who were employed before the illness, about a third were still not back at work at the time of the study. The researchers used the Chalder Fatigue Scale (CFQ-11), along with clinical characteristics and blood tests, to arrive at their conclusions. The mean fatigue score was ~16, with the score for physical fatigue and psychological fatigue being 11 and ~5, respectively. Over half the patients were diagnosed with fatigue based on this score, and in this group, the mean score was 20. High Prevalence of Post-COVID Fatigue Thus, the current study shows that at ten weeks from infection (median 72 days), over half of the patients who had COVID-19 continue to experience severe fatigue. In other words, these patients who have been medically certified as fully recovered fail to experience good health. Secondly, as a result of such fatigue, daily functioning is impaired, and over a third do not return to work even by 10 weeks. This goes against the recommendation that following a viral infection, the patient should return to work four weeks later to prevent loss of conditioning. Again, given the high percentage of healthcare workers affected, this kind of employee attrition will significantly hit healthcare systems. A third observation is that post-COVID-19 fatigue is much more frequent than that reported after the infections mentioned above but at a level comparable to that of post-SARS fatigue. However, the levels of fatigue in this cohort, though more significant than the fatigue levels in the general population, and meeting the CFQ-11 criteria for fatigue, were lower than required for a diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome. The CFQ-11 scores were comparable to those found in patients diagnosed with CFS. Such levels are more typical of those seen in chronic disease states, and this is a concerning observation since most of these patients were not, in fact, actively infected at the time of testing, nor did they have severe disease. This is a surprising finding, and the researchers comment, Our findings would suggest that all patients diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 will require screening for fatigue. Also, females seem to be at higher risk for the development of fatigue following COVID-19, as is the case with previous CFS studies. Patients with pre-existing depression and on anti-depressants are also at higher risk of severe fatigue. However, further research is needed to find out if depression develops after fatigue sets in post-COVID and to trace the course of fatigue over time. Inflammation Not Related to Fatigue There was no relationship between the values recorded in six inflammatory/cell death parameters and the occurrence of fatigue or the total CFQ-11 score. In the same way, IL-6 levels were independent of fatigue diagnosis or the total score. On the other hand, over 85% of the study subjects had normal CRP and IL-6 levels. Another inflammatory cytokine, soluble CD25, was normal in 94% of cases. Thus, the development of fatigue is not apparently the result of any specifically inflammatory pattern, as none was found in the test results. In previous studies, CFS has been linked to a lot of different alterations in inflammatory markers and the populations of various immune cell types. Still, none have been found to remain constant across many studies. Multidisciplinary Interventions The researchers rule out obvious associations of specific disease conditions with either CFS or post-COVID fatigue, instead saying, CFS may be the endpoint of a variety of distinct pathways, or maybe the consequence of pathological changes that are no longer systemically detectable. This is an important suggestion since it means that immunomodulation is not a valid strategy in treating these conditions. Instead, non-pharmacological interventions are favored to counter the multiple factors, including depression, that are involved in its etiology. Such interventions include graduated physical exercise and cognitive behavioral therapy, as well as implementing suggestions from occupational health experts. The short period between the diagnosis/discharge and the study is a significant limitation since other studies on fatigue take place six months or more after the viral illness, which is supposed to have precipitated it. The researchers recommend that follow-up studies be done to examine the health of patients over time, in larger groups, and using multidisciplinary modes of treatment to identify the most effective therapies. *Important Notice medRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, should not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information. MANZINI - In context, 2 648 minus 812 is 1 836. This mathematics shows the difference of the countrys COVID-19 cases between those recorded during the first month (July 2020) of the second ban of alcohol sale and those from the period when the country recorded its first confirmed case of coronavirus to the day before liquor sale was banned. Given these figures and the debate which ensued over the ban of alcohol sale, this publication sought to establish if governments move to prohibit the distribution and sale of alcohol worked or did not during the first half of the two-month ban. The above figures reflect that from March 14, 2020, when the country recorded its first COVID-19 case to June 30, 2020, which is the day before the second ban of alcohol sale was implemented, it recorded 812 coronavirus cases. On the other hand, during the first month of the ban of alcohol sale (from July 1), it recorded 1 836 COVID-19 cases. After analysing the above figures, the Swaziland National Liquor Association (SNLA) Secretary General, Thamsanqa Hlatshwayo, said since government, through Prime Minister (PM) Ambrose Dlamini, said it was banning the sale of alcohol because it was among the leading factors that spread COVID-19, the statistics prove otherwise. Contributors In fact, he said according to their analysis, alcohol was not among the leading contributors in the spread of COVID-19. To support their analysis, the secretary general said according to statistics released by the Ministry of Health, minimal infections took place at social environments as most happened at home. This was confirmed by the Director of Health Services, Dr Vusi Magagula, who said so far, almost 70 per cent of the infections took place at home, while approximately 20 per cent happened at work and only about 10 per cent were recorded to have occurred at social environments. As such, Hlatshwayo emphasised that government got it wrong when it claimed that alcohol was among the leading contributors to the spread of COVID-19. He added that this was because it was public knowledge that alcohol was being sold in the black market, where COVID-19 guidelines were not adhered to, but still social infections were minimal. This means that the social infections were going to be even better if government allowed the legal liquor traders to operate because they would ensure that alcoholic beverages were strictly sold for home consumption, educate the public and adhere to the COVID-19 guidelines, Hlatshwayo said. Again, the secretary general said government did not have control over the black market. He said there was no way customers could be sanitised because they traded in a hurry so as not to be caught by law enforcers. He added that there was no way the black marketers could order the people to drink at home because they were making a killing in terms of profit. Hlatshwayo said as far as they were concerned, there was no way to separate cigarettes from alcohol. He said the ban of the sale of alcohol had been implemented twice since the outbreak of COVID-19, but the sale of cigarette was never prohibited despite the fact that smokers shared it. Now that the prices have hiked, a cigarette is shared by many people because they cannot afford to buy any, Hlatshwayo added. He said they approached government to demonstrate their awareness of the unique challenges presented by the pandemic and their willingness as an association to work in collaboration with the administration to prevent further contaminations that could occurred in and around their areas of business. Protect He said their members had already taken measures and increased their level of responsibility to protect themselves, staff and customers from COVID-19. In fact, he said they had made significant efforts to create a safe environment for all staff, customers and others who may enter their outlets. In terms of staff hygiene, he said they had ensured that they were all expected to adhere to the basic hygiene requirements of washing and or sanitising their hands as well as wearing of a face mask or face shield. Cashiers will not handle customers bank cards, but present the device for the customer to use. Once the customer has finished with the device, it will be sanitised, Hlatshwayo said. On the other hand, he said in terms of the hygiene of their outlets, they would disinfect their structures often. He said this would include disinfecting surface tops as well as high contact surfaces at least hourly. Again, he said sanitisers would be placed at the entrance area of all outlets for all persons (customer and staff), who entered the outlets to sanitise their hands. Condition He said customers would be required to wear a face mask or appropriate item covering the nose and mouth as a condition of entering an outlet. Customers allowed in the outlet will be limited in number to ensure proper social distancing is observed and once the limit is reached, they would enforce a one person out, one person in system, the secretary general said. He added that sanitisers would be available for trolleys and/or baskets and large groups of people would not be permitted to shop together. He said customers would be encouraged to finalise their purchase as soon as possible. He explained that to ensure that customers were kept away outside the outlets, alcohol would be strictly and only sold for home use. He said sit-ins would not be allowed together with drinking whether individually or in groups outside the outlets. He said customers would be monitored to ensure that they observe social distancing while queuing. He added that posters would be placed outside their outlets encouraging responsible and safe practices. The secretary general said they had also planned that all liquor outlets owners should ensure that they provided basic guidelines and trainings to their staff on COVID-19 compliance requirements. On top of that, he said the staff members would be required to share information with customers on consuming at home and not sharing drinks. In terms of value chain operations, he said in order to facilitate efficient stocking and to avoid large numbers in few outlets, they had proposed that the wholesale and distribution of liquor should begin from 9am to 5pm from Monday to Saturday and this would be open for licensed liquor traders only. Legally Regarding the enforcement of the guidelines, Hlatshwayo said the liquor licensing inspectors, police and other legally authorised law enforcement forces should be vigilant and enforce the full might of the law to anyone contravening the COVID-19 rules and regulations. Outlet owners and staff had already agreed that they would work in collaboration with the stakeholders to ensure that all trading guidelines are observed, the secretary general said. Again, he said they would use the COVID-19 hotline 977 for health-related questions and police toll-free line 999/9999 to report any violations of the rules. In terms of public awareness, he said they would partner with government in educating consumers and the public at large on how to comply with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and Ministry of Health guidelines. Meanwhile, Government Spokesperson Sabelo Dlamini said the selling of alcohol remained banned until further notice. He said governments focus was on containing the spread of the virus, to save lives and allow the economy to be revived. Dlamini was asked if, according to government, the ban of alcohol sale was yielding the desired results of flattening the curve or not. He was also asked about the SNLA verdict that the ban of alcohol sale did not work, based on the number of COVID-19 cases recorded during July 2020, when the distribution of liquor was prohibited. Vijayawada, Aug 3 : Nimmagadda Ramesh Kumar assumed charge as Andhra Pradesh State Election Commissioner (SEC) on Monday, three days after the state government reinstated him on the orders of the High Court. The retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer arrived at the SEC office and took the charge. He said all the district collectors and other officials concerned were informed about his assuming office. Speaking on the occasion, Ramesh Kumar said that the SEC is an independent Constitutional body and functions without any prejudice. He hoped that he would continue to get the support from the government in discharge of his duties. Ramesh Kumar was removed as SEC by the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) government after he postponed the local body elections in March citing the precautions required to check the spread of Covid-19 pandemic. The state government on July 31 issued a gazette notification in the name of Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan, restoring Ramesh Kumar as SEC on the direction of the High Court. The notification stated that it was subject to the outcome of the Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by the state government in the Supreme Court, challenging the High Court order. The development came 10 days after Ramesh Kumar called on the governor and brought to his notice the orders passed by the High Court reinstating him as the SEC and instruction given by the court in a contempt petition filed by him against some government officials for not implementing the court orders. The High Court on July 16 had asked Ramesh Kumar to call on the Governor, saying the latter has the powers to appoint the SEC as per its order. The bench comprising Chief Justice J.K. Maheshwari and M. Satyanarayana Murthy gave the direction on a contempt of court petition filed by Ramesh Kumar who was reinstated as SEC by the High Court on May 29. He alleged that the state government was resorting to contempt of court by not allowing him to resume office as the SEC. YSRCP government had issued an ordinance on April 10 to sack Ramesh Kumar as the SEC following a row over the postponement of local body elections. Within hours after sacking him, the government appointed former high court judge Justice V. Kanagaraj as the new SEC. On the petitions of Ramesh Kumar and several others, the High Court on May 29 struck down the ordinance, declaring it unconstitutional. It also set aside the orders appointing Kanagaraj as the new SEC. Ramesh Kumar had issued a circular to all District Collectors, CEOs of zilla praja parishads, District Panchayat Officers, and Municipal Commissioners the same day, stating that pursuant to the High Court orders he stood restored to the office of SEC. However, the next day he withdrew the circular after Advocate General S. Subramanya Sriram stated that Ramesh Kumar's action of issuing a circular is illegal as the High Court had not asked him to take charge. Police arrest pro-life activists for Black Preborn Lives Matter sidewalk chalk Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Police in Washington, D.C., arrested a man and a woman in front of Planned Parenthood because they were writing Black Preborn Lives Matter with a piece of chalk outside the abortion facility. Our students and team members were threatened, harassed, and arrested in front of Planned Parenthood in Washington D.C. for painting all Black Preborn Lives Matter, the pro-life group Students for Life tweeted Saturday. The tweet also carried a video of the incident. Hey folks, I need to tell you now, that if you continue chalking youre going to be placed under arrest for defacing property, an officer can be heard saying. A Metropolitan Police Department spokeswoman told The Epoch Times that the arrests were for the defacing of property. The man and the woman were released with citations. Weve had several offers from legal organizations to help our @StudentsforLife team in light of the unconstitutional arrests and banning of our #BlackPreBornLivesMatter street painting today, Students for Life President Kristan Hawkins said. @MayorBowser, you messed with the wrong students. Recently, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser painted the streets of the city with the slogan BLACK LIVES MATTER, the pro-life group pointed out in an online petition. In doing this, the petition says, she proclaimed not only what those of us in the pro-life genuinely believe and fight for every day in-front of Planned Parenthoods and other abortion facilities across America. But she also opened up the streets of Washington, D.C. for public expression. After applying and receiving our permit and after being told by the Metropolitan police that the Mayor has opened a Pandoras box by painting public streets, Students for Life arrived at the D.C. Planned Parenthood on Saturday, August 1st to six police cars threatening to arrest our team and student leaders if we painted BLACK PREBORN LIVES MATTER, even using the temporary paint we bought that the Police Department specifically requested. When the members of the group asked if they could use sidewalk chalk to chalk their anti-violence message on the streets, the police threatened to arrest us. This means, the group said, Mayor Bowser apparently only thinks that SOME Black Lives Matter and that only SOME slogans are allowed to be painted on streets. Not only has Mayor Bowser bought into the eugenic and racist lies that Planned Parenthood sells and what their political contributions guarantees that what goes inside of Planned Parenthoods each and every day is anything but violence and racism. But she has bought into the lies that only some people have freedom of speech and expression in America, people like her in positions of power, people like her who pride themselves on their wokeness. Last weekend, the Baby Lives Matter movement painted a blue and pink mural displaying the phrase Baby Lives Matter in front of a Planned Parenthood clinic in the city. The movement began three weeks ago after artist and pro-life activist Tayler Hansen spent seven hours painting a Baby Lives Matter mural on the street in front of a Planned Parenthood abortion facility in his hometown of Salt Lake City, Utah. [Ten] unarmed Black Americans were killed by police in 2019. They have murals all around the country. Almost 400,000 innocent babies were murdered by Planned Parenthood in 2019. Its about damn time they get a mural too. #BabyLivesMatter, Hansen proclaimed at the time. In 2019, abortion was the leading cause of death worldwide. Almost 43 million children were denied the most basic right of all: life, Hansen said in a video posted to Twitter. [That] is why I felt inclined to demonstrate a true peaceful protest dedicated to those abandoned without a voice. Get AfricaFocus Bulletin by e-mail! Format for print or mobile Africa/Global: Preventing the Next Pandemic AfricaFocus Bulletin August 3, 2020 (2020-08-03 ) (Reposted from sources cited below) Editor's Note COVID-19 is just one example of the rising trend of diseases from Ebola to MERS to West Nile and Rift Valley fevers caused by viruses that have jumped from animal hosts into the human population. The rising trend in zoonotic diseases is driven by the degradation of our natural environment through land degradation, wildlife exploitation, resource extraction, climate change, and other stresses. - Press release from UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Nairobi, July 6, 2020 While the world is still struggling to cope with the Covid-19 pandemic, which originated from bats in China, zoonotic diseases are a far more general issue, linked not only to wildlife but to domestic animals, particularly those in factory farming environments. Unless the impact of human economies on the natural environment can be managed differently, zoonotic diseases are certain to continue to be more prevalent, and some among them will become pandemic. This AfricaFocus Bulletin contains the press release and excerpts from Preventing the next pandemic: Zoonotic diseases and how to break the chain of transmission. This new report from two Nairobi-based global organizations makes the case that preventing such a development by catching diseases at an early stage depends on global coordination of research and policy on the intersection of animal health, human health, and the health of the environment. UN agencies are referring to this approach as One Health, and stepping up cooperation of specialized agencies to promote it. Covid-19 has led to new attention to this need, as illustrated by recent articles in The Guardian, Foreign Affairs, Monthly Review, and SciDev Net. Unfortunately there have also been stereotypes and rumors attached to the Chinese origin of Covid-19, such as the allegation that the virus may have originated from one of the foremost institutions involved in research on bat viruses and the erroneous stereotype that eating bats is a Chinese tradition, neither of which have any credibility among knowledgeable scientists. For a refutation of the bat-eating myth and an explanation of its origin, see this post by anthropologist Osten Cramer who has specialized in the wildlife trade in China and other Asian countries. And for more about Shi Zhengli, the leading virologist who began her work on bat viruses with SARS in 2004, see recent articles in Science magazine and Scientific American. Shi and her work illustrate the kind of international scientific collaboration which Lancet editor Richard Horton has recently lauded as the truly global collective effort by scientists to respond to Covid-19, contrasting it to the failure of politicians, including the crime against humanity in President Trump's cutoff of funding to the World Health Organization. For previous AfricaFocus Bulletins on health, visit http://www.africafocus.org/intro-health.php For previous AfricaFocus Bulletins on agriculture, visit http://www.africafocus.org/intro-ag.php ++++++++++++++++++++++end editor's note+++++++++++++++++ Unite human, animal and environmental health to prevent the next pandemic UN Report Press Release, 6 July, 2020, Nairobi UN Environment Programme (UNEP) * International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) https://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/press-release/unite-human-animal-and-environmental-health-prevent-next-pandemic-un * COVID-19 is just one example of the rising trend of diseases from Ebola to MERS to West Nile and Rift Valley fevers caused by viruses that have jumped from animal hosts into the human population. * A new assessment offers ten recommendations, and identifies One Health as the optimal way to prevent and respond to future pandemics. * The rising trend in zoonotic diseases is driven by the degradation of our natural environment through land degradation, wildlife exploitation, resource extraction, climate change, and other stresses. Nairobi, 6 July 2020 As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to take lives and disrupt economies across the world, a new report warns that further outbreaks will emerge unless governments take active measures to prevent other zoonotic diseases from crossing into the human population, and sets out ten recommendations to prevent future pandemics. The report, Preventing the Next Pandemic: Zoonotic diseases and how to break the chain of transmission, is a joint effort by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). It identifies seven trends driving the increasing emergence of zoonotic diseases, including increased demand for animal protein; a rise in intense and unsustainable farming; the increased use and exploitation of wildlife; and the climate crisis. The report finds that Africa in particular, which has experienced and responded to a number of zoonotic epidemics including most recently, to Ebola outbreaks, could be a source of important solutions to quell future outbreaks. The science is clear that if we keep exploiting wildlife and destroying our ecosystems, then we can expect to see a steady stream of these diseases jumping from animals to humans in the years ahead, said UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen. Pandemics are devastating to our lives and our economies, and as we have seen over the past months, it is the poorest and the most vulnerable who suffer the most. To prevent future outbreaks, we must become much more deliberate about protecting our natural environment. A zoonotic disease or zoonosis is a disease that has passed into the human population from an animal source. COVID-19, which has already caused more than half a million deaths around the world, most likely originated in bats. But COVID-19 is only the latest in a growing number of diseases including Ebola, MERS, West Nile fever and Rift Valley fever whose spread from animal hosts into human populations has been intensified by anthropogenic pressures. Every year, some two million people, mostly in low- and middle- income countries, die from neglected zoonotic diseases. The same outbreaks can cause severe illness, deaths, and productivity losses among livestock populations in the developing world, a major problem that keeps hundreds of millions of small-scale farmers in severe poverty. In the last two decades alone, zoonotic diseases have caused economic losses of more than $100 billion, not including the cost of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is expected to reach $9 trillion over the next few years. African countries have an opportunity to lead pandemic prevention efforts Zoonotic diseases are on the rise everywhere on the planet, and African countries a number of which have successfully managed deadly zoonotic outbreaks have the potential to leverage this experience to tackle future outbreaks through approaches that incorporate human, animal and environmental health. The continent is home to a large portion of the worlds remaining intact rainforests and other wild lands. Africa is also home to the worlds fastest-growing human population, leading to an increase in encounters between livestock and wildlife and in turn, the risk of zoonotic diseases. The situation on the continent today is ripe for intensifying existing zoonotic diseases and facilitating the emergence and spread of new ones, said ILRI Director General Jimmy Smith. But with their experiences with Ebola and other emerging diseases, African countries are demonstrating proactive ways to manage disease outbreaks. They are applying, for example, novel risk-based rather than rule-based approaches to disease control, which are best suited to resource-poor settings, and they are joining up human, animal and environment expertise in proactive One Health initiatives. The reports authors identify the One Health approach -- which unites public health, veterinary and environmental expertise -- as the optimal method for preventing as well as responding to zoonotic disease outbreaks and pandemics. Participants in media sensitization activity held on 15 November 2019 at ILRI Nairobi, Kenya (photo credit: ILRI/Paul Karaimu).] 10 recommendations The report identifies ten practical steps that governments can take to prevent future zoonotic outbreaks: Investing in interdisciplinary approaches, including One Health; Expanding scientific enquiry into zoonotic diseases; Improving cost-benefit analyses of interventions to include full-cost accounting of societal impacts of disease; Raising awareness of zoonotic diseases; Strengthening monitoring and regulation practices associated with zoonotic diseases, including food systems; Incentivizing sustainable land management practices and developing alternatives for food security and livelihoods that do not rely on the destruction of habitats and biodiversity; Improving biosecurity and control, identifying key drivers of emerging diseases in animal husbandry and encouraging proven management and zoonotic disease control measures; Supporting the sustainable management of landscapes and seascapes that enhance sustainable co-existence of agriculture and wildlife; Strengthening capacities among health stakeholders in all countries; and Operationalizing the One Health approach in land-use and sustainable development planning, implementation and monitoring, among other fields. The report launch comes on World Zoonoses Day, observed by research institutions and nongovernmental entities on 6 July, which commemorates the work of French biologist Louis Pasteur. On 6 July 1885, Pasteur successfully administered the first vaccine against rabies, a zoonotic disease. ********************************************************* Preventing the next pandemic: Zoonotic diseases and how to break the chain of transmission Section Four Managing and preventing zoonoses: This section sets out the One Health approach as the most promising way to manage and prevent zoonoses; it also gives examples of its past successes and discusses some of the potential barriers to a wider uptake. Lessons from managing previous zoonotic outbreaks, including pandemics, are shared and discussed. The One Health approach to controlling Zoonoses Humanitys experience in public health over the past centuries allows us to draw some broad lessons about effective management of zoonoses. The One Health approach can be defined as the collaborative effort across multiple disciplines to attain optimal health for people, animals and the environment. This approach has emerged as a key tool for preventing and managing diseases occurring at the interface of human, animal and environment health. At the same time, a closely related approach, known as EcoHealth has been defined as a set of systemic, participatory approaches necessary to understanding and promoting both health and well-being in the context of social and ecological interactions. Both the One Health and EcoHealth approaches emphasize multidisciplinary collaboration for holistic interventions that attain not only human health goals but also animal and environment health targets, the latter two of which are central to improving the control of neglected and emerging infectious diseases, many of which are zoonoses. Though both One Health and EcoHealth approaches sit at the nexus of human, animal and environmental interactions, they have subtle differences: One Health, as generally practiced, emphasizes biomedical animal and human health, while EcoHealth pays more attention to the broader relations between health and ecosystems, focusing on the environment and related socio-economic systems. A third concept, Planetary Health, focuses on human health in relation to global sustainability. As none of these terms has an agreed or standardized definition, and given their convergence and similarities, this assessment report adopts One Health as the umbrella term, as it can be most easily understood by decision- makers and the general public. As we have seen, zoonotic diseases involve and affect human health, animal health and environment health. The pathogens originate in animals, and the emergence or spillover of the diseases they cause in humans is usually the result of human actions, such as intensifying livestock production or degrading and fragmenting ecosystems, or exploiting wildlife unsustainably. As such, their management should be inter-sectoral. At the global level, three intergovernmental organisations, from different sectors, have specific mandates that address zoonotic diseases: the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). In response to the bird flu (HPAI) pandemic, these three intergovernmental organisations along with UNICEF, the United Nations System Influenza Coordination (UNSIC), and the World Bank developed a strategic framework for reducing the risks of emerging zoonoses. This framework has five strategic elements that remain relevant today: 1. Build robust and well-governed public and animal health systems compliant with the WHO International Health Regulations (the amendment entered into force in July 2016) and OIE international standards through the pursuit of long-term interventions. 2. Prevent regional and international crises by controlling disease outbreaks through improved national and international emergency response capabilities. 3. Promote wide-ranging collaboration across sectors and disciplines. 4. Develop rational and targeted disease control programmes through the conduct of strategic research. 5. Better address concerns of the poor by shifting the focus from developed to developing economies, from potential to actual disease problems, and through a focus on the drivers of a broader range of locally important diseases. In 2010, FAO, OIE and WHO started collaborative work to address risks at the human-animal-ecosystems interface as described in the FAO/OIE/WHO Tripartite Concept Note. In 2019, they updated their joint 2008 tripartite guide on zoonoses and other One Health issues. Other intergovernmental organisations also have interests in environment, animal and human health, notably the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), some Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) and the World Bank. The Convention on Biological Diversity has developed Biodiversity-inclusive One Health Guidance. And there are many other organisations, institutes, programmes, government agencies and nongovernmental organisations working in this space. CGIAR, for example, is the worlds largest global agricultural innovation network; one of CGIARs constituent centres, the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), has programmes working on livestock and human health and sustainable livestock systems. In general, environment health initiatives have been less well represented than animal, livestock and human health initiatives in global zoonoses prevention and control programmes. But the environment is key to the emerging One Health approaches that are spearheading zoonoses risk reduction and control at regional and national levels. Role of environmental health and its practitioners in Ugandas One Health programmes Environmental health practitioners in Uganda have significantly helped to reduce sickness and deaths caused by zoonotic disease outbreaks such as Ebola. These practitioners work at the frontlines of disease surveillance. Their tasks include the following: Inspecting livestock before slaughter as well as the meat in slaughterhouses and butcheries; Monitoring the destruction of condemned meat; Investigating zoonotic disease outbreaks and monitoring disease control programmes; Ensuring the control of disease vectors and vermin such as rats, fleas, mosquitoes and monkeys; Providing communities with health education on pertinent issues such as vaccination of children and pets; Involving themselves in all matters related to food safety; and Helping to enforce Ugandas public health legislation. In short, Ugandas environmental health practitioners are the very embodiment of the One Health approach to healthy people, animals and the environment. To stop disease outbreaks in the future, Uganda will be relying on this remarkable group of environmental health activists to advise on, plan, implement, manage and monitor the countrys many One Health activities. ************************************************************* Frequently Asked Questions Preventing the Next Pandemic: Zoonotic diseases and how to break the chain of transmission By the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/32919/ZDFAQ.pdf What are zoonotic diseases? Zoonotic diseases (also known as zoonoses) are illnesses that are caused by germs that spread between animals and people. Examples of zoonoses include HIV/AIDS, Ebola, Lyme disease, malaria, rabies, West Nile virus, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), in addition to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Certain animals are more likely to harbor zoonotic pathogens. These include rodents, bats, and non-human primates, as well as economically important livestock such as pigs, cows and chickens. The pathogens most likely to jump species from animal to human are those that are widely distributed, mutate rapidly and have multiple hosts. In China's Guangxi province in 2004, Shi Zhengli releases a fruit bat after taking a blood sample. Credit: Shuyi Zhang. Source: Scientific American. What is driving the spread of zoonotic diseases? * In the last hundred years, the world has seen massive increases in human populations, resulting in massive decreases in natural environments. These two parallel trends are critical parts of the complex chain of events that has triggered a rise in the emergence and spread of new zoonoses. * Many of the new zoonoses have emerged in low- and middle-income countries. * Seven specific factors are driving this trend: o Increasing demand for animal protein o Unsustainable agricultural intensification o Increased use and exploitation of wildlife o Unsustainable use of natural resources accelerated by urbanization, land use change and extractive industries o Travel and transportation o Changes in food supply chains o Climate change Africa has an opportunity to lead pandemic prevention efforts * Many African countries have significant experience managing pandemics including the recent Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo - and can use this experience to prevent future pandemics. In Uganda, for example, officials have been able to reduce sickness and deaths caused by zoonotic diseases, including Ebola, malaria and Rift Valley fever. Their techniques include using satellite systems to anticipate heavy rainfall events, which can produce mosquito swarms that can trigger outbreaks. * By adopting a One Health approach that unites human, animal and environmental health, African countries can take the lead in developing and implementing strategies to prevent future pandemics. [more FAQ in full document on-line] AfricaFocus Bulletin is an independent electronic publication providing reposted commentary and analysis on African issues, with a particular focus on U.S. and international policies. AfricaFocus Bulletin is edited by William Minter. AfricaFocus Bulletin can be reached at africafocus@igc.org. Please write to this address to suggest material for inclusion. For more information about reposted material, please contact directly the original source mentioned. see http://www.africafocus.org To subscribe to receive future bulletins by email, click here. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee on Monday called for the Tennessee General Assembly to convene next Monday for a special session to address COVID-19 liability protections, telehealth services and laws governing the Capitol grounds. As COVID-19 continues to present unique challenges, we feel it is in the best interest of the state to convene a special session to address liability protections and telehealth, said Governor Lee. I thank Lt. Gov. McNally and Speaker Sexton for their continued partnership as we work towards an efficient, productive assembly. The special session will address extending COVID-19 liability protections in order to provide legal clarity and certainty for health care providers, businesses, schools, non-profits and others, it was stated. With the coronavirus pandemic continuing to present challenges for our people and our economy, it is now more important than ever that Tennessee businesses, hospitals, churches and schools have COVID-19 liability protection, said Lt. Gov. McNally. The last thing small business owners, pastors, doctors and school superintendents need to worry about are frivolous lawsuits which would further impede their ability to do their jobs in this difficult time. I am grateful Gov. Lee called this session to address COVID-19 liability and other issues critical to our state. I am committed to working deliberately and efficiently with Gov. Lee, Speaker Sexton and all members of the House and Senate to pass legislation on these issues and get our members back home quickly and safely. Lawmakers will address the expansion of telehealth services to Tennesseans and encourage insurers to cover clinically appropriate, medically necessary services provided via telehealth. I agree with Gov. Lees decision to call a special session, said House Speaker Cameron Sexton. We are looking forward to coming back and finishing the peoples business to increase access to tele-health services, and to protect businesses, churches, academic and health facilities from baseless lawsuits during the ongoing pandemic. I am very appreciative of the call to strengthen existing laws against those who deface property, who escalate peaceful protests into acts of aggression and those who seek violence towards law enforcement and judicial members. The House is committed to working with Gov. Lee and his administration, as well as Lt. Gov. McNally and the Senate to safely, efficiently, and effectively address these timely issues for the benefit of Tennessee and Tennesseans. Lawmakers will also address laws governing Capitol grounds and surrounding areas that have recently been subject to vandalism, defacement and unlawful overnight camping. The full special session call may be viewed here. Opposition parties have stepped up pressure on Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to quit owning moral responsibility as details of the gold smuggling case began to emerge. A day after Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan sat on a dharna in Delhi, opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala held a day-long fast in the state capital on Monday seeking Vijayans resignation. The CMs office is under cloud after his secretarys role came out in the smuggling case. Pinarayi Vijyan is Narendra Modi of Kerala and he never tolerates any healthy criticism.This is the first time a CMs office is coming under such a charge, said AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik in a video conference as Chennithala began his fast. The CMs powerful secretary M Sivasankar, a senior IAS officer, was suspended after his alleged links with one of the accused Swapna Suresh surfaced. The case hit the headlines on July 5 after 30 kg of gold that came in an air consignment for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) consulate in Thiruvananthapuram was seized from the airport. Swapna Suresh and another accused Sandip Nair were about to get a plum contract to furnish the upcoming consular office UAE in Hyderabad, said a senior official familiar with the ongoing multi-agency probe. An agreement was clinched with a furniture firm in Malappuram for a multi-crore rupee deal which also had a provision forpayment of commission. A week after Swapnas arrest in Bengaluru on July 11,furniture mart owner T M Anwar was also arrested in connection with the smuggling case. We have information that she acted as a brokerin many deals and accepted hefty commissions. She used her proximity with the powerful to strike deals. Her prowess in many languages including Arabic,English and Hindi bowled over many, said the senior official. Meanwhile State Higher Education Minister K T Jaleel, whose phone number figured prominently in Sureshs call list,reiterated that he interacted with her only for distributing Ramadan kits and copies of the Quran donated by the UAE. The BJP had expressed serious doubtsover consignments that came from the UAE and later transferred to Malappuram ina government vehicle. The Minister of State for External Affairs has said he violated protocol by accepting donations from another country without informing the Centre. Some people are threatening me with terms like treason and protocol violation. The NIA is probing the case, let it investigate this also. I am least bothered about these wild allegations, said Jaleel. But BJP state president K Surendran said there was no need to send holy books from the UAE as they were readily available in Kerala also. He alleged that 28 such packets were taken to the ministers constituency in a government vehicle. CHICAGO, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- BNY Mellon Wealth Management has named Julie Alcala as Senior Wealth Strategist, based in Chicago, IL. She will work with high-net-worth individuals, family offices, business owners, executives, and foundations and endowments on their wealth strategy and planning. Julie reports directly to Chicago Regional President, Stacie Kuhlman. Julie brings over 20 years of financial services experience to this role. Prior to joining BNY Mellon, Julie spent ten years at William Blair as Director of Wealth Planning. Before that, she was a vice president in the Family Wealth Management Group at Credit Suisse. Earlier in her career, she worked in public accounting at RSM, Deloitte, and Arthur Andersen & Co., serving high-net-worth individuals. "Julie's strong network and deep understanding of the Chicago market will support our team in growing relationships and enhancing our offering to clients," Kuhlman said. "These strengths, coupled with her wealth management experience, make her an indispensable resource for our clients and the Chicago team." With both CFP and Certified Public Accountant designations, Julie is viewed as an industry thought leader on a broad range of wealth planning topics. Julie earned a B.S. in accounting from Indiana University. ABOUT BNY MELLON WEALTH MANAGEMENT For more than two centuries, BNY Mellon Wealth Management has provided services to financially successful individuals and families, their family offices and business enterprises, planned giving programs, and endowments and foundations. It has $254 billion in total client assets, as of June 30, 2020, and an extensive network of offices in the U.S. and internationally. BNY Mellon Wealth Management, which delivers leading wealth advice across investments, banking, custody, and wealth and estate planning, conducts business through various operating subsidiaries of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation. For more information, visit www.bnymellonwealth.com or follow us on Twitter @BNYMellonWealth. ABOUT BNY MELLON BNY Mellon is a global investments company dedicated to helping its clients manage and service their financial assets throughout the investment lifecycle. Whether providing financial services for institutions, corporations or individual investors, BNY Mellon delivers informed investment and wealth management and investment services in 35 countries. As of June 30, 2020, BNY Mellon had $37.3 trillion in assets under custody and/or administration, and $2.0 trillion in assets under management. BNY Mellon can act as a single point of contact for clients looking to create, trade, hold, manage, service, distribute or restructure investments. BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK). Additional information is available on www.bnymellon.com. Follow us on Twitter @BNYMellon or visit our newsroom at www.bnymellon.com/newsroom for the latest company news. Media Contact: Rich Stanton 212-922-7205 [email protected] SOURCE BNY Mellon Wealth Management Related Links http://www.bnymellon.com A scene from the Korean musical "Ludwig: Beethoven the Piano" / Courtesy of Gwasuwon Musical Company By Kwon Mee-yoo The musical "Ludwig: Beethoven the Piano," a Korean musical revolving around the renowned German composer, has become Korea's latest cultural export to China. A licensed Chinese production of the musical will be staged in Shanghai in December. The Korean musical, premiered in 2018, portrays Ludwig van Beethoven's life as a musician and his conflict with nephew Karl, whom Ludwig wants to raise into a musician. The year 2020 celebrates the 250th anniversary of the classical music composer and "Ludwig" presents its third production in Korea at the Daehangno TOM Theater, Hall 1, until Sept. 27. This production focuses on the strife between Ludwig and Karl, who wants to be a soldier but has to follow Ludwig's dream instead of his own. The musical features three different actors to portray different stages of Ludwig's life. From a child actor and a young Ludwig to the elderly Ludwig who recollects his life, the musical shows various aspects of the composer's life. As Ludwig suffers from hearing loss, the fictional character Marie brings him hope. Marie is described as an ambitious woman who dreams of becoming an architect and inspires Ludwig to think outside the box. Her addition makes the musical take a step forward from being a plain biographical one, adding contemporary elements. Poster for the Chinese production of the Korean musical "Ludwig: Beethoven The Piano," which will be staged in Shanghai in December / Courtesy of Gwasuwon Musical Company (TNS) It started as an effort to "harden" the town's electrical infrastructure with bigger, more secure concrete utility poles.Now, Longboat Key, Fla., is embarking on a massive, voter-approved project to position the town to embrace newer technologies.Since last summer, the town has been fast at work burying its overhead utility lines in a process known as "undergrounding." Utility poles will be no more, and taller "smart poles" will take the place of existing street lights.But also included in the project is a town-wide fiber optic network that ultimately seeks to provide 100% coverage of the community over time."We're excited about the opportunity to tie all of our facilities in with our own fiber network," said Town Manager Tom Harmer. "Our IT staff sees that's going to provide us quite a benefit capacity-wise, reliability-wise and technology-wise."The town estimates that 7% of its residents are "severely limited" in fiber-based broadband choices. It also says the town ranks as the 75th most-connected town in the state, ahead of Palmetto, Bradenton, Ellenton and Bradenton Beach.Harmer said the project was born out of an ongoing concern about weak or spotty cell service on the island.By incorporating a fiber optic backbone into the undergrounding project, the town aims to increase desirability for prospective residents, thus driving up property values.Harmer anticipates that different services could emerge from the project, such as cameras or sensors atop the smart poles that could enhance public safety. He also said the poles will be designed to allow fiber to run up to an antenna on top for increased connectivity."How do we utilize new technology not just cellular technology, like 4G and 5G but other technology to provide an advantage to the residents that live here, the visitors that visit and the town itself?"And the benefits of underground infrastructure are myriad, he said."We think it provides significant reliability, especially during storm events," he said. "You don't have the typical tree limbs or trees that will pull down lines or shut off service, so you get a more reliable service for that."We believe it's safer, and obviously there's an aesthetic piece to it as well."Longboat Key voters approved two referendums to fund the $49.1 million project.The first, approved by 62.6% of voters in November 2015, cleared the way for a $25.25 million bond to fund the undergrounding of utilities along Gulf of Mexico Drive.Another referendum in March 2016 approved a bond of up to $23.85 million to fund undergrounding along all remaining neighborhood streets an undertaking dubbed "The Neighborhood Project." That referendum was approved by 52.9% of voters.Both projects are occurring simultaneously and are referred to jointly as the Town Undergrounding Project. But for the purpose of bond financing requirements, they are being accounted for separately.The bonds are being repaid by non-ad valorem tax assessments, which are based on the project's benefits to property owners, not the value of their property.According to Harmer, a number of residents have already prepaid their assessments.Others were given the opportunity to make payments over time. And in the event of a property sale, many owners have worked the assessment costs into their closing negotiations so new buyers don't have to pick up the tab.The project is divided into four phases that start at the south end of the town and move northward before meeting in the middle. It is slated to be completed by 2022.As of late July, Harmer said, phases one and two along The Gulf of Mexico Drive portion of the project are already complete. Phase one for the neighborhoods portion is underway.The town contracted Wilco Electrical, a West Palm Beach-based company, to complete much of the undergrounding construction work. The town recently signed its binding cost estimate with Florida Power and Light for phase three of the project.Longboat Key is primarily served by internet providers Comcast and Frontier. According to Harmer, the town solicited offers for public-private partnerships for the fiber network last year, but none of the negotiations reached an agreement."We are still looking for opportunities to work with a private partner or partners on the infrastructure," he said. "We think it's important to get the project going and get some of this infrastructure in place.""These types of companies move pretty fast," he continued. "They don't want to wait two or three years for infrastructure to be in place."Harmer said the town has talked to other communities to understand the full range of how they are improving internet access for residents.Fort Collins, Colo., was one of them. The city launched its own broadband service, "Fort Collins Connexion," following a 2017 ballot measure. The service offers residents one-gigabit upload and download speeds for $59.95 a month, and 10-gigabit speeds for $299.95 a month."We are not heading that way," Harmer said. "But still, their staff did a lot of research." Key Findings of the Study of GCC Automotive Wiring Harness Market: In 2018, by application, the chassis wiring harness type segment generated the highest revenue. In 2018, by vehicle type, the passenger car segment was the highest revenue contributor. In 2018, GCC region-wise, Saudi Arabia contributed the highest revenue, followed by Bahrain, UAE, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar. The Key players operating in the GCC automotive wiring harness market are Kromberg & Schubert Middle East South Africa: Validity period of visas extended Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has issued directions in line with the National State of Disaster Regulations to extend the validity period of legally issued visas which expired during the lockdown period, to 31 October 2020. The directions extend the initial validity period from 31 July 2020 to 31 October 2020. This means that lawfully issued visas, which expired from 15 February and during the period of the lockdown, are deemed to be valid until the end of October 2020. Holders of such visas are permitted to remain in the country under the conditions of their visas until 31 October 2020. Those wishing to be repatriated to their countries within this period can depart without being declared undesirable persons. The refugee reception offices throughout the country remain closed. VFS offices are open only by appointment for collection of outcomes on applications which were made before the lockdown. Call for written submissions Minister Motsoaledi has also invited the public and stakeholders to make written comments on the South African Citizenship Act Draft Amendment Regulations published on 24 July 2020 in the Gazette. The Draft Regulations relate to Sections 4 (3) and 5 (1) of the South African Citizenship Act. The Amendment Sections were passed by Parliament in 2010 and came into operation on 1 January 2013. Written submissions can be sent to the Legal Services Division on or before 30 August 2020 to Tsietsi.Sebelemetja@dha.gov.za. Enquiries on the Draft Regulations can be directed to Adv Tsietsi Sebelemetja at (012) 406 4271. The Directions and Draft Regulations can be accessed via the following links: https://www.gov.za/documents/disaster-management-act-measures-prevent-and-combat-spread-coronavirus-covid-19-home-0 https://www.gov.za/documents/south-african-citizenship-act-regulations-draft-comments-invited-24-jul-2020-0000. SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. In the first half of 2020, the Big Tech companies of Facebook, Amazon, Apple and Google combined to spend over $20 million on lobbying. As reported by CNBC these companies have focused on economic legislation to tackled coronavirus. It was recently revealed to what extent Google focusses on lobbying to influence federal policy. The company also spent $17 million dollars on lobbying in 2017. Facebook has also been revealed to have involvement int anti-privacy lobbying in the EU. Facebook and Amazon lead lobbying efforts It appears the Facebook and Amazon spent the most on lobbying in the last six months. The social media company spent $10 million dollars with Amazon also investing a similar amount. Advertisement The main focus of big tech lobbying appears to have surrounded economic policy in response to coronavirus. Their efforts included the CARES Act, which aimed to give relief to small businesses through a federal loan program. Congress and implement the plan and has seen billions of dollars in loans approved. Lobbying spend under scrutiny by Congress Congress, the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general are concerned about much of this behaviour. These bodies have worries about potential violation of antitrust laws. All the CEOs of these companies also faced questions from Congress this week. Advertisement None of these companies revealed exactly what they were looking to achieve in these lobbying plans. A spokesman for Facebook said the company focused on supporting small businesses. However, it did not respond to follow-up questions on the matter. Big tech companies focus on coronavirus relief During the pandemic, Facebook did support small businesses. The companys chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg said the companies will press on with plans for a $100 million grant program to help small businesses. Apple declined to comment on the matter whilst Google and Amazon did not respond to emails. However, some of the disclosures found in the reports give insight into likely motivations for these companies. Advertisement Amazon tapped Subject Matter, which is a lobbying shop, to lobby Congress and the Executive Office of the President. This was based on issues related to federal and private sector testing protocols for COVID-19. In April, Amazon was in the middle of a workers protest due to a lack of protections for those who continued to work. Amazon paid Subject Matter $60,000 for their work in the second quarter. Apple also embarked on a similar lobbying spending spree during this period. The company used Invariant which is another lobbying group. Records show Apple spent money to make inroads into the previously mentioned Heroes act. Records also suggest Apple was trying to make an impact on virtual learning given most schools shut down. Advertisement Google spent the least of the big four during the pandemic. However, it still tapped up three firms to focus on coronavirus relief. The growing inflected and importance of big tech lobbying is quite a concern for the government. Anti-trust and anti-privacy issues are coming to the fore meaning these companies are more under the microscope than ever. How this all plays out is anyones guess but this story certainly going away any time soon. My earliest family holiday memory was a trip to Inchydoney Hotel in the mid-1980s. It was notable for two things: it rained incessantly, and at some point, during a game of 'spin the bottle' with other holidaying kids, I had my first kiss. That trip summed up Irish holidays for me - cloudy with a chance of memories. Does anyone ever ask the question 'how was the holiday?' and actually want to hear an answer? In my experience, people usually just want to know A) how much the holiday cost and B) if it was it worth it. Having just returned from a holiday in our beloved homeland - my first in the intervening 35 years since that damp kiss in Inchydoney - I can shed some light on both. Our decision to holiday at home was guided by the pandemic, but also by the fact that overseas holidays can be a bit of a dose. Sun holidays seem great when you are sat at your desk looking out at the rain, but once you touch down in Costa del Wherever, you realise the heat is annoying, people are annoying, and there is no consolation in cheap pints when you are stuck in a country where you cannot drink the tapwater. This year was always going to be different, and realising that we might be enjoying a belle epoque of open county borders between Lockdown One and a potential Lockdown Two, we booked a week in Co Clare, AKA, 'the place you went on a school geography trip'. Truth be told, we tried Kerry first, but The Kingdom was all full up. So Clare it was, and our neutral expectations are perhaps what made this the best holiday we have been on. It became this remarkable discovery, like crashing through the wardrobe into Narnia, or down the rabbithole to Wonderland, or up the twister to Oz. Except, obviously, we just took the N20. First, the important stuff - we paid 750 for seven nights in a spacious thre- bed house in the village of Bunratty, brought two cars, and all four kids - even the teenager, who did not want to go. It was in many ways much like any other holiday, we over-packed, over-spent, and over-ate, but it was all done with purpose - to know that you are doing something good with your money made our epicurean gorging and spending feel like we were putting our shoulders to the wheel for Ireland. No, we didn't need a tonne of artisanal chocolate from Hazel Mountain, a boot full of craft beer from Western Herd, or an abundance of handmade cosmetics and fragrances from the Burren Perfumery, but it is possibly going to be short, strange season and someone has to make up for the absence of rich Americans. And besides, getting to all those far-flung places was such an adventure that there had to be treasure at the end. We had blazing sunshine for the first four days - it was all beach trips, cliff walks and John Hinde postcard scenes that just took our breath away. Every time my car crested a hill, or rounded a bend, I found myself repeating, 'my God, look at that, isn't that incredible'. And it was. There is no hyperbole, and nothing I can say will do it justice. Clare is breathtaking. The last three days were damp and drizzly, which was fine as it allowed me to indulge in my true passion - squinting into the wind and speaking at length about death. Standing in the ruins of Corcomroe Abbey in the rain, looking over all the headstones with my family name on them; getting soaked in Caherconnell Stone Fort, staring at burial sites and sheep skulls; or telling my kids at Poulnabrone Dolmen that maybe the ancients had the right idea, drop off at 35 before everything starts to fall apart. Lucky them that they had me to brighten the few gloomy days with my cheerful palliative patter. Last year's trip to Spain left me with a couple of nice memories - my first experience of Barcelona, exploring the village of Salou, finding a great off-license. That's about it. It also cost us a small fortune. Our trip to Clare saturated us with memories, all jostling to be the one that lasts a lifetime - the absolute dark of Aillwee Caves, skipping in and out of cottages in Bunratty folk park, an amazing clam and mussel linguine in Monks of Ballyvaughan, wonderful chowder in Linnane's of New Quay (they don't do a family discount, I asked), clambering into Finavarra Tower at the end of the Flaggy Shore, jumping the waves at Kilkee, becoming emotional at the first pint of Guinness in months, being overwhelmed by the Cliff Of Moher. The list goes on, and even when we left, we knew there was more there to be discovered - another castle just across the bay, another great restaurant just around the corner, another karst hillock to be crested. This was our first proper Irish holiday, our first taste of just how good this country can be, how beautiful, how ageless. It is a great country, with or without a roof over it. - Noname has criticised Beyonce's recently released film titled Black Is King - The US rapper, who is also a poet, labelled the musical film as an "African aesthetic draped in capitalism" - The star called on celebs to use their power to change the lives of black people in Africa - Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in US rapper Noname has taken to social media to share her two cents on Beyonce's Black Is King film. The opinionated musician described the visual album, which also stars South African celebs, as an "African aesthetic draped in capitalism". She said she hopes other Americans remember black people living in the continent whose lives have been affected by US "imperialism". Born Fatimah Nyeema Warner, the 28-year-old added that black liberation is a global struggle and called on others to use their influence to uplift black people living in Africa. She tweeted on 31 July: READ ALSO: Akufo-Addo hails Shatta Wale over Beyonce's Already video "We love an African aesthetic draped in capitalism. Hope we remember the black folks on the continent whose daily lives are impacted by US imperialism. If we can uplift the imagery I hope we can uplift those who will never be able to access it. Black liberation is a global struggle." According to FreshHipHopMag, Noname then further retweeted information about anti-government protests occurring in Zimbabwe. US rapper Noname has criticised Beyonce's Black Is King musical film. Image: @nonamehiding @beyonce Source: UGC READ ALSO: Jay Z gives Shatta Wale massive boost as he shares Already video on social media In other news related to Zimbabwe, YEN.com.gh reported that Mzansi rapper AKA has taken to social media to show his support to Zimbabweans who are going through the most following recent political tensions in their country. The rapper urged his fans to spread awareness about what Zimbabweans are reportedly subjected to in their country on a daily basis. The Fela In Versace rapper tweeted: "Lets spread awareness about whats going on in Zimbabwe ... because ultimately the people need all the help they can get." This is after some of them took to social media using the hashtag #ZimbabweanLivesMatter to voice their anger about their rights being violated, allegedly by their own government. Another Mzansi celeb who has showed his support to Zimbabweans is Zakes Bantwini. He tweeted: "With so much against us already as black Africans all we got is each other, let's not be against one another. #ZimbabweanLivesMatter." Ghanaian engineering graduate converts shipping containers into apartment and offices | #Yencomgh Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page! Source: YEN.com.gh President Trump is still fighting against having to face a defamation lawsuit by the writer E. Jean Carroll, who claimed in a book that the president raped her long before he was in office. Lawyers for Carroll argued earlier this month that Trump can no longer claim to be immune from her defamation lawsuit simply because he is a sitting president, given a recent landmark decision by the Supreme Court. The court found in early July that a president is not immune from criminal investigations and subpoenas, stemming from an investigation into Trumps financial dealings by Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance, which had demanded his tax records. Now, lawyers for Trump claim the ruling does not apply to Carrolls case, because its a civil lawsuit at the state level, not a criminal one, according to a letter sent late last week to the judge overseeing the case. Carroll, a longtime magazine writer and advice columnist for Elle based in New York, filed her lawsuit against Trump late last year in New York state court alleging that he defamed her by publicly calling her accusation that he raped her in the mid-Nineties fiction. He also implied that she is paid as a Democratic operative, as is New York Magazine, where her allegation first appeared as part of a review of her book. Admitting Trump is now not immune from criminal proceedings at the state level, given the decision in the Vance case, Trumps lawyer insisted that there is no relevant ruling on civil actions, leaving him with immunity. State courts, under the Supremacy Clause, are not empowered to exercise any jurisdiction or control over the presidents official conduct, attorney Marc Kasowitz wrote. Moreover, the Supreme Court has made clear that its holdings concerning the amenability of the president to criminal process do not, as plaintiff would have it, extend in a mechanistic fashion to civil litigation. Carrolls attorneys argued broadly that nothing in the [Vance] decision limits its analysis to criminal proceedings, according to a letter to the judge. Story continues It follows directly from Vance that Trumps assertions of immunity in this case, as well as his purported arguments for a stay, are completely baseless, they added. But Kasowitz isnt giving it up, insisting that civil and criminal cases between state and federal courts offer different concepts of immunity. He went on to argue that the Supreme Courts decision in a separate case over the same issue of Trump refusing to hand over any of his tax or financial records, this time to the U.S. Congress, telling the lower court to do a further review of the scope of documents being requested, also works in favor of Trumps immunity. By telling the court to do another review, Trump being forced to hand over any records to Congress is almost certainly delayed until after the upcoming November election. There is no pressing need for a state court to exercise control over a sitting president in a civil action, particularly because the action can be resumed when the president is no longer in office, Kasowitz wrote. Although Trump is trailing behind former Vice President Joe Biden in national voter polls on the election, he could win the November election. If the New York court sides with Trumps argument now, it could mean he would not have to face Carrolls claims until the beginning of 2025. For More, See: A Lot of Companies Spent More on Facebook Advertising Amid Boycott What People Are Shopping for Now, Months Into a Pandemic Interim Hearst Magazines President Named, Search for Successor Begins Sign up for WWD's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, has said it was now ready to receive back into its fold prominent politicians who left the pa... The ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, has said it was now ready to receive back into its fold prominent politicians who left the party for one reason or another. The ruling party invited the politicians such as former vice president Atiku Abubakar, Governor Aminu Tambuwal, former senate president Bukola Saraki and Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue state who joined the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and other parties ahead of the 2019 election. This was after Senator Barnabas Gemade of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, again decamped to the APC at the weekend. Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, had earlier returned to the ruling party. APC, in a statement by its Deputy National Publicity Secretary Yekini Nabena, said it was ready to welcome members who wished to return to its fold. Terrorist death threats and abuse failed to intimidate John Hume, who has earned a place in history as the father of the current Northern Ireland peace process. The former SDLP leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner John Hume has died at age 83 after a short illness. Mr Humes family announced his passing, saying; "It seems particularly apt for these strange and fearful days to remember the phrase that gave hope to John and so many of us through dark times: we shall overcome." Expand Close Nobel Peace Laureate's John Hume (R) and David Trimble display their awards for the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo December 10.Photo by Dylan Martinez/Reuters / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Nobel Peace Laureate's John Hume (R) and David Trimble display their awards for the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo December 10.Photo by Dylan Martinez/Reuters Read More SDLP leader John Hume spent his entire political career working to try to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and turn it into a united Ireland. But he is best known for his efforts to secure peace and a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland which culminated in the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. International stage Hume simply never gave up although at one point his life was under constant threat, his house and car firebombed and the word Traitor daubed on the walls of his home. He responded by pushing the problems of Northern Ireland onto an international stage. He formed close links with powerful political figures in Britain, America, Europe and Ireland to find a peaceful response. Throughout his career Hume stuck firmly to the view that violence only deepened division. The answer to difference is to respect it. Therein lies a most fundamental principle of peace respect for diversity, he stressed in his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech. The eldest of seven children, John Hume was born on January 18th 1937. The family lived in a small terraced house in the Glen area of Derry. When he passed the 11 plus exam he secured a place in secondary school, which his parents could not otherwise afford. His first calling was to study for the priesthood in St Patricks College, Maynooth, Co Kildare but he opted instead to become a secondary school teacher in his home town. He married Patricia Hone in 1960 and the couple had five children, three daughters Terese, Aine and Maureen and two sons Aidan and John. Chronic social problems in Derry politicised the young teacher who decided that financial cooperation between all sides could lift people out of poverty. His solution was to help set up the first Credit Union in Northern Ireland. President Mary McAleese recalled being taken by her grandmother to a public meeting about the Credit Union where she heard Hume explain what seemed like an exotic concept people power. Hume campaigned for civil rights. When police batoned participants in a march in 1968 it transformed the Civil Rights protest into a mass movement with Hume at the forefront. By February of the following year he was elected as an Independent Nationalist to the Stormont Parliament. He also made his first trip to America, to Boston and convinced the influential Ted Kennedy that there was an alternative to the IRA to get social justice in Northern Ireland. From that point onwards Hume had the ear of every subsequent US President. Deciding that politics was the way forward, in 1973 he was elected to the short-lived Northern Ireland Assembly and appointed Minister for Commerce. A founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) Hume became party leader in 1979, the same year he was elected to the European Parliament. Four years later he took a seat at Westminster as the representative for Foyle and helped shape to Anglo-Irish Agreement which was signed two years later. It gave the Irish government a formal role in the affairs of Northern Ireland. The pivotal moment for Hume came in 1987 when he was on holidays with his wife in Gweedore in Donegal. He was asked to meet Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams and the pair talked in secret over the next six years. The very purpose of our talks was to try and end all violence said Gerry Adams. When Adams was spotted going into Humes house in 1993, Hume instantly became a target for loyalist paramilitaries and even his own party members disapproved. I wanted total peace in our streets and I knew that talking to Gerry Adams was a major way of doing that, Hume insisted. Adams said later: There wasnt somebody prepared to break the cycle and John Hume did that. Hume was not deterred by hostility from all sides and declared he did not care two balls of roasted snow about all the criticism. His wife Pat, however, described this period as a very turbulent period for her husband. He lost weight, he found it very difficult to sleep, the stress was unbelievable. The talks ultimately led to the 1994 cease-fire between the IRA and the Unionist paramilitaries. At Easter of 1998 the Northern Ireland political parties signed what became known as the Good Friday agreement in which Hume played a leading role. In the autumn of that year the Nobel Committee decided to award the Peace Prize to Hume and Ulster Unionist Party leader David Trimble Hume was also awarded the Gandhi Peace Prize and Martin Luther King Award and is the only person to get all three major peace awards. In his Nobel Prize acceptance speech he said: I want to see Ireland as an example to men and women everywhere of what can be achieved by living for ideals, rather than fighting for them and by viewing each and every person as worthy of respect and honour. Television proved the ideal medium for Hume who was both articulate and persuasive. He knew how to work TV for the greatest impact. He drew his inspiration from Mahatma Gandhi and Dr Martin Luther King Jr and quoted from them extensively. Hume became seriously ill at a peace conference in Austria in 1999 when his intestine ruptured. He had to have three abdominal operations and was put on a ventilator in the intensive care unit. Pat her husband suffered some brain damage as a result which caused memory problems. While John could not remember things for more than half an hour he could still enjoy crosswords and the newspaper "so it could be worse. People love John. He can go out for a walk. Every taxi in the place will stop for him, she added. After his retirement the memory difficulties intensified and became quite severe. He announced a complete retirement from politics on February 4th 2004 and did not contest the European election that year or the general election of the following year. John Hume has been acknowledged as a man of intelligence, energy and passion and above all a peacemaker of world status. John Humes hope for Ireland was one of partnership where we wage war on want and poverty, where we reach out to the marginalized and dispossessed, where we build together a future that can be as great as our dreams allow. Ayodhya: Former litigant in Ayodhya land dispute case Iqbal Ansari and Padma Shri Mohammed Sharif have been invited to bhoomi pujan ceremony of the Ram temple at Ayodhya, according to Champat Rai, general secretary of Sri Ramjanmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra trust. Champat Rai told ANI, "We have also invited Iqbal Ansari (former litigant in Ayodhya land dispute case) and Padma Shri, Mohammed Sharif to the foundation stone laying ceremony" of Ram Temple on August 5. The rituals preceding 'bhoomi pujan' started in Ayodhya today with 'Gauri Ganesh' puja. The 'puja' started at 8 am today amid chanting of mantras by 11 priests while 'Ramayana path' were held in various other temples. The 'Gauri Ganesh' puja was done by priests from Kashi, Kanchi and Delhi. The three-day rituals will culminate with the 'bhoomi pujan' that will be performed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday. Senior BJP leader Uma Bharti today tweeted that she will not be able to attend the 'bhoomi pujan' ceremony due to coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic situation. She said she is worried about the health of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after hearing that Union Home Minister Amit Shah and some other BJP leaders have also tested positive for coronavirus. In another tweet, senior BJP leader said that she has urged the officers of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas of Ayodhya and Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to remove her name from the list of invitees for the ceremony. Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya also received invitiation from Shri Ram Janambhoomi Teeth Kshetra Trust general secretary Champat Rai today to attend the 'bhoomi pujan' ceremony. Maurya was closely involved in the Ram temple movement. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, however, reached Ayodhya today to take stock of the preparations, two days ahead of the much-awaited 'bhoomi pujan' of the Ram Temple. The Chief Minister expressed his joy on Twitter and quoted a few lines from Ramcharitmanas adding that the wait from many centuries is now over. Meanwhile, Northern Railways has announced that the first phase of the new modern railway station in Ayodhya will be completed by June 2021. The station will be built on the theme of Ram temple and will be equipped with all modern facilities. A police operation began in Kyiv on Monday after a man entered the bank premises in the Leonardo business center on the corner of Volodymyrska and Khmelnytskoho streets, stating that he had a bomb in his backpack and asked to call the police, law enforcement officers are negotiating with him at the moment, said Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Anton Geraschenko. "On August 3, at 12.00, a representative of Universal Bank JSC (Shevchenkivsky district, premises of the Leonardo business center) called the police and said that an unknown man under 35 had entered the office and said he had a bomb in his backpack and asked to call the police. The employees of the banking institution left the premises, and the department head stayed of her own free will," Geraschenko wrote on Facebook on Monday. According to him, a special police operation "Thunder" has been launched. "The police representatives started negotiations with the terrorist and offered him to surrender," the deputy head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs said. Geraschenko also asked Kyiv residents and the city guests to bypass the area of the intersection of Volodymyrska and Khmelnytskoho streets in the near future. Aubrey K. Noonan I am thrilled to have Aubrey join our team. She brings a unique skillset and knowledge of criminal law that allows her to provide exceptional legal counsel to those who are charged with serious criminal offenses. We are committed to protecting their rights, Crowder commented. The Crowder Law Firm, P.C. handles all types of criminal matters, including crimes against children; drug offenses; driving while intoxicated (DWI); sex crimes; property crimes; white-collar offenses; violent crimes; and weapons violations. Aubrey is an experienced state and federal criminal defense trial attorney. She is skilled at representing clients in state and federal matters including investigations, trials, and appeals. Aubrey has handled almost every type of misdemeanor and felony case, from DWIs, assaults, thefts, to felony sexual assaults, and crimes against children. Born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas, Aubrey graduated magna cum laude from the University of North Texas with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and a minor in Political Science. Aubrey earned her Juris Doctorate degree from Texas Tech University School of Law. While attending Tech Law, she served as the State Bar of Texass Senior Law School Representative. Aubrey has also worked for the Lubbock County District Attorneys Office, the Tarrant County Criminal District Courts Judicial Staff Counsel, and for Hurley, Guinn & Sellers, a criminal defense firm in Lubbock, Texas, prior to graduation. Upon receiving her law degree, Aubrey worked at Mills & Williams, L.L.P. in Dallas, Texas. While at the firm, she had the opportunity to assist in a high-profile federal jury trial in which the defendants were acquitted of all charges. Aubrey is licensed to practice law in the U.S. District Courts Northern and Eastern Districts of Texas. Active in the local legal community, she is also a member of the State Bar of Texas, the Dallas Bar Association, the Dallas Young Lawyers Association, and the Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association. Aubrey was also named an Elite Lawyer for 2020. This prestigious award recognizes outstanding attorneys who have displayed competence in their practice areas and received acknowledgement from their fellow peers. I am thrilled to have Aubrey join our team. She brings a unique skill set and knowledge of criminal law that allows her to provide exceptional legal counsel to those who are charged with serious criminal offenses. Our clients deserve a strong defense so they can avoid a conviction and move on with their lives. We are committed to protecting their rights and securing the best possible outcome, Crowder commented. About The Crowder Law Firm, P.C. For more than 20 years, The Crowder Law Firm, P.C. has been advocating on behalf of those who have been charged with the most serious criminal offenses. Attorney Darlina Crowder and her team of accomplished attorneys serve the residents of Collin County and North Texas. They have secured over 250 not-guilty verdicts and acquittals for their clients. They are prepared to defend against serious felony charges in both state and federal court, including charges of capital murder. To learn more about The Crowder Law Firm, P.C., visit https://www.crowdercriminalfirm.com/ or call 214-303-9600 to schedule a free consultation. Google on Monday introduced the new affordable smartphone Pixel 4a starting at $349 for the lone 6GB+128GB model in the US that will arrive in India in October. The company said it will reveal the price for the Indian market closer to its launch, which will be available for purchase on Flipkart. Pixel 4a is now available for pre-order in the US on the Google Store and on Google Fi. It will be available to customers on August 20 through the Google Store, BestBuy.com, Amazon and more, as well as US carriers including Google Fi, U.S. Cellular and Verizon, the company said in a statement. The smartphone features a 5.8-inch OLED display and will come in Just Black' colour. The phone has a matte finish and includes Pixel's signature color pop power button in mint. Google is keeping the same camera module it used in the Pixel 3, 3A, and Pixel 4: Sony's 12MP IMX363. The rear camera supports HDR+ with dual exposure controls, Portrait Mode, Top Shot, Night Sight with astrophotography capabilities, and fused video stabilisation. There is also optical image stabilisation (OIS). For selfies, the phone has an 8MP camera sensor at the front, with an f/2.0 lens. The Pixel 4a is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G Mobile Platform, Titan M security module for on-device security, 6 GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. The smartphone houses a 3140mAh battery that supports 18W fast charging. Former President Bill Clinton speaks during the funeral service for the late Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) in Atlanta, Ga., on July 30, 2020. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool/Getty Images) Bill Clinton Denies Having Been to Epsteins Private Island, Spokesman Says Former President Bill Clinton, through a spokesperson, has denied ever having been to Jeffrey Epsteins private island, following the release of documents in which an alleged Epstein victim claimed to have seen Clinton there. The story keeps changing, the facts dont, Clinton spokesman Angel Urena said in a July 31 statement on social media. President Clinton has never been to the island. In a separate statement to Newsweek, Urena said Clinton has never been to Little St. James Island. Hed not spoken to Epstein in well over a decade, he added. Well before [Epsteins] terrible crimes came to light. Virginia Roberts Giuffre, 36, accused Epstein, who was convicted of soliciting prostitution of minor girls in 2008, of sexually assaulting her numerous times, with the help of his one-time girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell. Giuffre told one lawyer that she remembered Clinton being present on Epsteins plane. The majority of the girls that Jeffrey actually met or had on his plane or in his house were underage, she said. Epstein told Giuffre that lots of people owed him favors. He also said that he helped people for the sole purpose of having them owe him afterward. Theyre all in each others pockets, she said. Giuffre said she did remember that, but wasnt sure whether Epstein, who a medical examiner said killed himself in jail while awaiting trial on child sex trafficking charges, was joking. Little St. James Island, one of the properties owned by Jeffrey Epstein, in an aerial view near Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, on July 21, 2019. (Marco Bello/Reuters) Yes I do. It was a laugh, though. He would laugh it off. You know, I remember asking Jeffrey whats Bill Clinton doing here kind of thing, and he laughed it off and said, Well, he owes me a favor. He never told me what favors they were. I never knew. I didnt know if he was serious. It was just a joke, she said. By here, Giuffre said she was referring to Epsteins roughly 70-acre island in the Caribbean, named Little St. James and also known as Little St. Jeffs. Locals knew it as pedophile island. When Epstein and Clinton were on the island together, Maxwellrecently arrested for allegedly grooming minor girls for Epstein to abusewas also there, as were two young girls from New York, Giuffre said. Sexual orgies were a regular occurrence on the island, Giuffre and other women have said. U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska in late July ordered the unsealing of the new documents, which were part of a civil lawsuit that Giuffre filed against Maxwell. Jeffrey Epstein, center, appears in court in West Palm Beach, Fla. on July 30, 2008. (Uma Sanghvi/Palm Beach Post via AP) Epstein visited the White House multiple times while Clinton was in office, according to files from the Clinton Library, and Clinton flew on Epsteins plane a number of times after leaving office. The flights included underage girls, an investigative journalist has claimed. A portrait of the former president was found in Epsteins New York mansion. Urena said in a statement last year that Clinton was unaware of Epsteins terrible crimes. The plane rides also included Clintons Secret Service detail and staff and supporters of the Clinton Foundation, he said. Clinton also visited Epstein twice in New York City, and a former Clinton aide was among those at a dinner at Epsteins home in 2010. An ABC anchor was captured on internal video in 2016 saying executives quashed a story that featured an interview with Giuffre. Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who has accused Jeffrey Epstein of sexual abuse, speaks in New York on Aug. 27, 2019. (Bebeto Matthews/AP Photo) It was unbelievable what we had. [Bill] Clinton, we had everything. I tried for three years to get it on to no avail, and its like these new revelations, and I freaking had all of it, she said. In a conversation with another lawyer that was part of the newly unsealed documents, Giuffre said Maxwell told her that she flew Clinton to the island on a helicopter. She said she wasnt sure whether Maxwell was telling the truth, because Ghislaine likes to talk a lot of stuff that sounds fantastical. Different details from Giuffre discussing the helicopter were unsealed in 2019. Giuffre said at the time that Maxwell flew Clinton in a black helicopter that Epstein had bought Maxwell but stressed that she didnt personally witness Clinton being flown to the island. The relevant parts can be found on pages 144 to 153 and 290 in a compilation that the website Law & Crime created of all of the unsealed documents. The first confirmed case of a person infected with COVID-19 was traced back to November 17, 2019 (260 days ago), in a 55-year-old man from Hubei province in China. Since then, 18.1 million people have been infected globally, and more than 691,000 have perished. It has been 195 days since the first person with COVID-19 was identified in the US, in Washington state. Since then, the US has become the epicenter of the global pandemic, with over 4.8 million cases and over 158,000 deaths, outpacing every other nation without a seeming end to the daily gruesome figures. Two million cases were recorded just in July. The previous high in April had seen close to 900,000 cases. At the end of May, when the initiative to reopen the countrys economy was in full throttle, the nation had barely brought the pandemic under any semblance of control. The daily cases coming off the spring surge, when the seven-day moving average had reached a peak of 32,471, had barely seen a 30 percent decline when the Trump administration and states were clamoring to loosen restrictions and allow commerce to resume. COVID-19 testing site in Ohio (credit Lauren Ramsby) As predicted, the number of cases started to rise again in mid-June, especially in the Sun Belt states that were keen on opening up as soon as possible. The decline in fatality rates served to assure governors and state officials that the rise in cases was a byproduct of more testing as well as younger people becoming infected. Again, public health experts cautioned that fatality rates would begin climbing soon. But these concerns were dismissed by the media, touting the declines in death rates as assurance that young people were somehow impervious to the effects of the virus. The physics of the pandemic has proven that such optimistic sentiments were misplaced. In the first week of July, the seven-day moving average of daily fatalities reached its lowest point, with 521, and began climbing steadily, having now reached a seven-day moving average of 1,129. The curve for new cases peaked nearly 10 days ago, reaching a seven-day moving average of over 68,000, and has been on a slow decline. There have been at least 27,585 people who have succumbed in July. By all accounts, it is expected that daily deaths will continue to increase over the next two to three weeks before reaching their peak. Three states have surpassed New York with total casesCalifornia (513,763), Florida (487,132) and Texas (449,736). Georgia, New Jersey, Illinois, Arizona, North Carolina, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Tennessee have all passed 100,000 cases. California has the distinction of third place in the number of deaths, with 9,370, behind New Jersey and New York. For July, this represents a 51.6 percent increase, just for fatalities. Texas, with 7,266 fatalities, saw a 155 percent increase in deaths. Florida, with 7,022 deaths, has seen a 97.6 percent increase. Despite the downturn in new daily cases, previously staunch supporters of rapid reopening are now raising the alarm and acknowledging that the pandemic in the US is deeply entrenched in communities throughout the Midwest. Dr. Deborah L. Birx, the White Houses coronavirus coordinator, speaking on CNN, said, What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread. Its into the rural as equal to urban areas. To everybody who lives in a rural area, you are not immune or protected from this virus. COVID-19 daily cases seven-day average in the US Dana Bash, CNNs chief political correspondent, followed with the question, People are panicked, people are worried, people dont understand why this is seemingly completely out of control. Is it time to reset? Dr. Birx, uneasy, barely managed to defend the administrations response to the pandemic and essentially deflected the question. On July 29, a coalition of health experts urged the federal government to step back from their push to reopen the economy and move to close nonessential businesses. A letter drafted by Matthew Wellington, public health campaigns director, US PIRG, and signed by more than 1,000 health professionals, reads, Hit the Reset Buttonof all the nations in the world, weve had the most deaths from COVID-19. At the same time, were in the midst of reopening our economy, exposing more and more people to coronavirus and watching the number of cases, and deaths, skyrocket. Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security published a report over the weekend titled Resetting Our Response: Changes Needed in the US Approach to COVID-19. They, too, are advocating a shutdown of nonessential businesses, explicitly calling for the closure of high-risk activities and settings in jurisdictions where the epidemic is worsening and to reinstitute stay-at-home orders where health care systems are in crisis. Additionally, they are demanding bolstering supply chains for personal protective equipment (PPE) and testing equipment, as well as establishing a robust ramping up of contact tracing. COVID-19 daily deaths seven-day average in the US The US economys contraction in the second quarter of 2020 was the worst ever recorded. Gross domestic product fell nearly 10 percent, shrinking by $1.8 trillion. The only comparison to such a collapse in historical reference is to the Great Depression and the demobilization after World War II. Every week in July, the number of unemployment claims exceeded 1 million. Jerome H. Powell, the Federal Reserve chair, told reports last week, The path forward for the economy is extraordinarily uncertain and will depend in large part on our success in keeping the virus in check. Neel Kashkari, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, has expressed concern over the toll the pandemic has taken and suggested a short-term lockdown to get control of the health crisis. The end of July saw US unemployment supplements expire for tens of millions of people. And still, like their response to the pandemic, Washington continues to bicker over the relief package. The pandemic is shifting to new locations, rapidly moving into Midwest states like Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, Kansas and Nebraska, predominately due to summer travels. Government officials in some of these states are attempting to reimpose restrictions again, warning residents that a surge could overwhelm their limited hospital capacities. Yet a lack of a real coordinated effort and comprehensive strategy by the Trump administration has led to widespread social resentment and frustration. Local officials say the move to assign to the red zone was unfounded. Ternopil is one of the two regional centers in Ukraine, along with Lutsk, which was put in the so-called "red zone" according to the new rules of adaptive quarantine introduced in Ukraine recently and effective starting today. Municipal authorities, in line with the new regulation, shall introduce severe restrictions: put public transport on halt, shut down restaurants and shopping malls, according to TSN.Ranok. Ternopil authorities, however, say they don't understand how the city ended up in the "red zone", protesting the move. Read alsoNew rules of adaptive quarantine come into force in Ukraine on Aug 3 Therefore, Ternopil residents had a regular morning today, with people rushing to work, public transport working as usual, kindergartens, bars, and shops set to open. Earlier, Mayor Serhiy Nadal addressed city residents, promising that Ternopil would retain the usual quarantine regime and that all establishments will keep operating. The mayor said he believes the decision of the State Emergencies Commission is unfounded and even illegal. Over the past week, there was even a decline in the number of patients. The COVID-19 hospital load reached only 46%, which is half the figure required for the red zone, according to the mayor. Meanwhile, intercity trains starting today will suspend stops at the city rail station, which is something local authorities can't influence. As UNIAN reported earlier, new rules of zonal quarantine came into force in Ukraine today. State Sen. Tom Barrett, R-Charlotte, has tested positive for COVID-19 after a routine medical screening required through his military service, according to a press release. Barrett, who is a Chief Warrant Officer 2 in the Michigan Army National Guard, underwent a test on Friday, July 31, which was required one week prior to leaving for a military training event, he said in a release. No significant symptoms are showing at this time, he said. I will be self-isolating according to medical guidelines, Barrett said in the release. I have done my best to make contact with those I have been around in the past couple weeks so that they may also seek medical advice. I look forward to resuming my normal work schedule as quickly as possible. Barrett has served in the U.S. Army for more than a decade as a helicopter pilot, and is a veteran of both Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clarklake, said the Senate is following its COVID-19 guidance by ensuring all Senators, officials and staff are informed of Barretts positive test. The Senate Business Office provides all senators and staff with appropriate information for follow-up and protocols, Shirkey said in a release. Our immediate focus is on notification to all senators and staff. We will evaluate the need for changes to the legislative calendar in the coming days. Barrett is the first Republican state legislator with a confirmed positive case of COVID-19. Rep. Karen Whitsett, D-Detroit, and Rep. Tyrone Carter, D-Detroit, also tested positive in April. State Rep. Isaac Robinson, D-Detroit, died on March 29. He was not tested for COVID-19 before his death, but multiple reports have linked his health issues to the coronavirus. Second Michigan legislator confirmed positive for coronavirus Barrett has publicly criticized Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for her push for unilateral emergency powers during the COVID-19 pandemic. He sponsored Senate Bill 858, which would have amended Michigans Emergency Management Act of 1976, laying out deadlines for when some of Whitmers executive orders would end. Whitmer vetoed it on May 5. Whitmer vetoes bill that would have reopened some businesses sooner The governor continues to disregard the constitutional separation of power by extending emergency declarations unilaterally, Barrett said in a May 6 release after the GOP-majority Legislature filed a lawsuit against Whitmer. The Legislature most closely represents the voice of the people, but apparently the governor is not interested in hearing the concerns of Michiganders. It should offend everyone that a governor wants to control power for as long as she chooses. The Senate is scheduled to reconvene at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 6. Barrett was scheduled to address line item vetos by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on appropriations for the Michigan State Police and statewide military veteran programs. COVID-19 PREVENTION TIPS In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued executive orders requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while in public indoor and crowded outdoor spaces. See an explanation of what that means here. Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus. For more data on COVID-19 in Michigan, visit https://www.mlive.com/coronavirus/data/. Read more from MLive: Whitmer vetoes GOP-backed bill to house nursing home coronavirus patients in separate facilities Michigan Senate backs bill to stop placing coronavirus patients in nursing homes States handling of COVID in nursing homes worthy of critique, but GOP lawmakers miss mark, experts say Iran Parliament Committee Defends Appointment Of Controversial Man To Audit Court Radio Farda August 02, 2020 Iranian parliament's budget committee has once again defended its decision to appoint a controversial operative as the head of its Supreme Court of Audit, despite the publication of numerous documents showing he faked his educational and other credentials. Mehrdad Bazrpash who is a former Basij militia leader, lawmaker and vice president in the government of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was elected with the support of the hardliner Paydari Front in an open session of parliament. Soon after the election some politicians, observers and opponents on social media began criticizing the move, arguing that Bazrpash has been involved in suspected corruption and has faked various documents related to his education and other matters. However, the head of the budget committee has written to parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf to say that after two more meetings to review the criticism the committee has decided that the appointment was correct, the semi-official ISNA news website reported August 2. The Speaker himself is accused of large-scale corruption and irregularities during his 12-year tenure as mayor of Tehran (2005-2017). Elias Naderan, a member of the budget committee, has also criticized the decision saying "legal processes" were not followed in Bazrpash's election. Another lawmaker has also tweeted the same criticism, saying the budget committee fell short of performing its duties. Bazrpash served as CEO of two of Iran's largest automakers SAIPA and Pars Khodro -- during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency. There are allegations that he engaged in corruption at this time when the carmakers were losing money. Source: https://en.radiofarda.com/a/iran-parliament- committee-defends-appointment-of-controversial -man-to-audit-court/30762432.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 A team of scientists led by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have discovered the parameters that determine the efficiency of a class of low-cost catalysts called spinel oxides - a discovery that breaks a bottleneck in the extraction of hydrogen from water through electrolysis, the process of splitting water with electricity. A major challenge of this process lies in the energy loss as the chemical reactions involved in water electrolysis take place, driving up the cost to produce hydrogen through this method. Catalysts are therefore necessary to speed up these chemical reactions. Spinel oxides, which are typically made of cheap transition metals, have garnered interest in recent years as a stable, low-cost catalyst that could overcome this challenge, but the design of high-performing spinel oxides has been hampered by the lack of understanding of how they work. Now, NTU Singapore's Associate Professor Jason Xu Zhichuan and his team have made two important advances. They have unravelled, at the atomic scale, how spinel oxides work to speed up water electrolysis. Primed with that new understanding, the team then used machine learning to select new spinel oxides with increased catalytic activity, making water electrolysis more efficient. These findings bring the team a step closer to making water splitting a suitable approach for large-scale manufacture of hydrogen gas, which has been highlighted by the Energy Market Authority as one possible low-carbon alternative for reducing Singapore's carbon footprint as it targets to halve its peak greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. This is in line with global trends - the European Union, for instance, recently unveiled its "hydrogen strategy" as an important part of the solution to meet the 2050 climate neutrality goal of the European Green Deal. Associate Professor Xu of the NTU School of Materials Sciences and Engineering said: "To improve the performance of spinel oxides, we need a deeper understanding of how they work as catalysts to make water electrolysis more efficient. Now, by identifying the parameters that make spinel oxides good catalysts for this process, we can create new, better spinel oxides based on these parameters, bringing us one step closer to a hydrogen-powered economy." The findings were published in scientific journal Nature Catalysis in July. A step closer to a hydrogen-fuelled economy Extracting hydrogen from water electrolysis, when powered by renewable energy sources such as wind or solar energy, is an attractive approach to produce hydrogen fuel, which has the potential to replace fossil fuels used in power plants, transport, and the process of bunkering. Hydrogen is also attractive as a viable alternative to traditional energy storage options such as lithium ion batteries, which gradually lose their charge over time. The water electrolysis process takes place in an electrolyser, where two main chemical reactions take place as water is split: one results in hydrogen production, while the other leads to oxygen production, and the two gases are kept separate by a membrane. Assoc Prof Xu, who is also part of NTU's Energy Research Institute, said the main bottleneck lies in the chemical reaction that leads to oxygen generation from the other side known as the oxygen revolution reaction. He said: "The oxygen evolution reaction is critical to the efficiency of devices that split water to produce hydrogen fuel, but it is also a sluggish chemical reaction that lowers the overall energy conversion efficiency. This is why we need catalysts such as metal oxides to speed things up." While precious metal oxides have proven to be state-of-the-art catalysts that reduce energy consumption and enhance energy conversion efficiency, their scarcity, high cost and poor durability have limited their application at large scale. Spinel oxides, with their low cost and availability in abundance, could become a viable alternative if they were designed with the right parameters, such as the type of transition metal in the spinel oxide, to increase catalytic activity, said Assoc Prof Xu. Based on key parameters that the team had identified, the team trained a machine learning model with a dataset of over 300 spinel oxides in order to screen and predict the efficiency of any spinel oxide catalyst in a matter of seconds. Using this method, the team found that a new oxide comprising manganese and aluminium was predicted to show superior catalytic activity. This was validated experimentally. Assoc Prof Xu said: "While the ability to design highly efficient catalysts greatly pushes forward the technique of water electrolysis in hydrogen production, there are two other major bottlenecks we have to look at before widespread adoption of this technique is possible. Firstly, we have to improve the membrane in such alkaline electrolysers to support long-term hydrogen production. "When that's done, then we can work with our engineering colleagues to see how we can put all of these upgrades into an electrolyser that can function on an industrial level." ### The NTU-led team was supported by researchers from institutes in Beijing and Hong Kong, in addition to those from Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) and National University of Singapore. The work is funded by the Ministry of Education and the National Research Foundation. Note to Editors: Paper 'Covalency competition dominates the water oxidation structure-activity relationship on spinel oxides' published in Nature Catalysis 3, 554-563 (July 2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41929-020-0465-6 Media contact: Foo Jie Ying Manager, Corporate Communications Office Nanyang Technological University Email: jieying@ntu.edu.sg About Nanyang Technological University, Singapore A research-intensive public university, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) has 33,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students in the Engineering, Business, Science, Humanities, Arts, & Social Sciences, and Graduate colleges. It also has a medical school, the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, set up jointly with Imperial College London. NTU is also home to world-class autonomous institutes - the National Institute of Education, S Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Earth Observatory of Singapore, and Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering - and various leading research centres such as the Nanyang Environment & Water Research Institute (NEWRI) and Energy Research Institute @ NTU (ERI@N). Ranked amongst the world's top universities by QS, NTU has also been named the world's top young university for the past seven years. The University's main campus is frequently listed among the Top 15 most beautiful university campuses in the world and it has 57 Green Mark-certified (equivalent to LEED-certified) building projects, of which 95% are certified Green Mark Platinum. Apart from its main campus, NTU also has a campus in Singapore's healthcare district. For more information, visit http://www.ntu.edu.sg. Alleging that the Kerala gold smuggling case is related to the "financing network" of terrorist organisations, as well as the security of the country, BJP national general secretary Muralidhar Rao on Sunday demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. This comes after the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested six more people and conducted searches at six places in connection with the Kerala gold smuggling case, an official said on Sunday. The agency has so far arrested 10 people in the case of smuggling of gold through diplomatic baggage addressed to the UAE consulate in Kerala capital Thiruvananthapuram. Speaking to ANI, Rao said that Kerala CM and his office are also under the scanner, adding that a fair investigation should be done. "Gold smuggling was done in an organised way. This is not only a gold smuggling case but it is related to India's security. It is also related to the financial network of terrorist organisations. Kerala CM and his office are also under the scanner. The fair investigation should be done in a transparent way. There should be no political interference in the probe," Rao told ANI. READ: Kerala gold smuggling case: Customs Joint Commissioner Aniesh Rajan transferred to Nagpur READ: Kerala gold smuggling case: NIA arrests six more people and conducts searches at 6 places BJP Launches 18-day Long 'satyagraha' Demanding resignation of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan over the gold smuggling case, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members on Saturday launched a 18-day long 'satyagraha'. While inaugurating the hunger strike via video conference, BJP MLA Bhupender Yadav said that the CM is the 'architect of SNC-Lavalin scam'. Further, Yadav said NIA in the FIR filed has pointed out that the money from gold smuggling was used to fund terror. "His principal secretary M Sivasankar was also questioned by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Pinarayi Vijayan is answerable for the gold smuggling case and he should resign," Yadav added. READ: Kerala Gold Smuggling: BJP launches 18-day long 'satyagraha', demands CM's resignation READ: Kerala gold smuggling case: NIA questions accused KT Rameez; terror angle under spotlight Illustrative photo (Source: VNA) Da Nang A joint venture between the Singaporean-based Sakae Holdings and SSF Investment limited company has submitted a document offering help in the form of medical equipment and necessities to the central city of Da Nang in its COVID-19 combat. Accordingly, the firms assistance package includes seven remote body temperature monitoring devices, five Nihon Kohden patient monitoring devices, 20 Terufusion syringe pumps, and 10 tonnes of rice for Da Nang people in quarantine sites.The proposal was sent with a document on Singapores experience on fighting COVID-19 compiled by Douglas Foo, president of Khoo Teck Puat hospital, the biggest public hospital in Singapore.Foo said the experience is quite similar to current measures applied in Vietnam.He stated Vietnam is doing well in itsprevention and control, particularly in quarantine work and tracing people visiting high-risk locations. DENVER, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pax8 , the best place to buy cloud solutions, today announced that The ChannelPro Network has named Pax8 a 2020 Readers Choice Award winner in three categories: Best Cloud Computing Marketplace Vendor, Best Distributor Cloud/MSP Service Offerings, and Best Value-Added/Specialized Distributor. We are honored to be recognized as a 2020 Readers Choice award winner by the readers of the ChannelPro Network in three strategic categories, said Ryan Walsh, Chief Channel Officer at Pax8. As the industry continues to evolve, we are committed to helping the partner community thrive in the modern channel through our technology, education, and continued innovations. Readers of ChannelPro-SMB and the ChannelPro Network were invited to participate in the IT channels only SMB-focused Readers Choice Awards by casting their votes via the publications website for the vendors, distributors, and professional organizations with the most SMB- and partner-friendly solutions, services, or programs in the channel today. For each of the 50 categories, readers were asked to select the option that best satisfies the unique business requirements, work styles, and budgets of their small and midsize business clients, as well as those that best serve their own partner organizations. The multiple-choice survey, which provided space for write-in responses, was fielded from March to May 2020 and drew participation from more than 1,500 channel VARs, MSPs, integrators, system builders, and IT consultants. Gold, Silver, and Bronze winners are named in each category. I do not think the channel has ever experienced a year like this one. The pandemic and its aftereffects have roiled the economy and our businesses, yet channel partners have responded by making adjustments on the fly to keep their staffs and customers safe and productive, says Michael Siggins, president and publisher of ChannelPro-SMB and the ChannelPro Network. Now more than ever, our readers rely on partnerships with vendors, distributors, and professional associations to help them stay competitive and grow their bottom line. Against this backdrop, our readers give recognition to the brands they rely on most. These results give us a unique indicator of the most trusted brands that power the channel today and into tomorrowwhatever tomorrow may bring. To learn more about Pax8, please contact the cloud solutions advisors at (855) 884-PAX8, email info@pax8.com , or visit www.pax8.com . About Pax8 Pax8 is modernizing how partners buy, sell, and manage cloud. As a born-in-the-cloud company, Pax8 simplifies the buying journey, empowering its partners to achieve more with cloud technology. The companys technology displaces legacy distribution by connecting the channel ecosystem to its award-winning transactional cloud marketplace. Through billing, provisioning, automation, industry-leading PSA integrations, and pre and post-sales support, and education, Pax8 is a proven disruptor in the market. In 2018, Pax8 was ranked number 68 on the Inc. 5000 and in 2019, the company was ranked number 60. If you want to be successful with cloud, you want to work with Pax8. Get started today at www.pax8.com. Follow Pax8 on Facebook , LinkedIn , and Twitter . About ChannelPro-SMB ChannelPro-SMB, part of the ChannelPro Network, provides targeted business and technology information for IT channel partners who serve small and midsize businesses. Via a monthly magazine and associated online properties, the ChannelPro Network delivers expert opinion, analysis, news, product reviews, and advice vital to a resellers business success. Perspectives from VARs, vendors, distributors, and analysts are spotlighted daily. No other media company focuses on the small and midsize marketplace like ChannelPro-SMB. More information is available at www.ChannelProNetwork.com . An estimated 20,000 people attended a sprawling rally for Belrusian opposition candidate Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya one week ahead of the country's presidential vote. That's according to the human rights center Vyasna (Spring), which oversaw the counting for the August 2 rally outside the western city of Brest. Tsikhanouskaya, a 37-year-old former teacher, is challenging Belarus's authoritarian leader, Alyaksandr Lukashenka, who is facing mounting public opposition after 26 years in power. Tsikhanouskaya announced her candidacy after her husband, vlogger and activist Syarhey Tsikhanouski, was arrested and banned from the election after he had expressed his intention to run. An accidental candidate, Tsikhanouskaya now finds herself at the forefront of a political wave that a growing number of Belarusians hope can bring in a democratic tide to the Eastern European country of some 9.5 million. The August 2 rally took place in a park on the outskirts of Brest, in an area designated by local government authorities. It was the smallest location that Tsikhanouskaya has been permitted to hold a political rally at, and her supporters spilled into the woods outside the park due to the lack of space in front of the stage. The start of Tsikhanouskaya's rally was delayed because her car was stopped several times by police as she traveled to Brest from the city of Baranavichy. Tsikhanouskaya's August 2 rally coincided with Belarus's Airborne Troops Day and she saluted several servicemen who were in the crowd. Trust in the authoritarian president has suffered since Lukashenka downplayed the coronavirus pandemic as nothing more than a "psychosis" that could be warded off with vodka, a tractor ride, or a visit to a sauna. The first round of the election is scheduled for August 9, but previous elections in Belarus have not been considered free or fair by Western governments or observers. During this campaign, hundreds of opposition activists have been arrested, and other opposition figures were prevented from running for president. Tsikhanouskaya is part of a female trio who together are challenging Lukashenka. She joined forces with Veranika Tsapkala (left, in third photo below) and Maryya Kalesnikava (right), who both represented would-be presidential candidates who were barred from the August 9 ballot. MEXICO CITYMexican authorities on Sunday arrested the leader of the Santa Rosa de Lima cartel, a gang known for stealing millions of dollars of fuel from government pipelines and for turning once-peaceful Guanajuato state into one of the most dangerous regions in the country. Videos show the pre-dawn capture by federal and state authorities of Jose Antonio Yepez Ortiz, who is known by the alias El Marro, which means the Sledgehammer. He was detained along with five others in a raid that authorities said also freed a kidnapped businesswoman. The capture of Yepez Ortiz, one of the most high-profile arrests by the Mexican government in years, highlights the contradictory nature of the security policies pushed by President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who has vowed to fight crime by eradicating poverty and break with the militarized strategies of his predecessors but who in practice has not always done so. It also casts a focus on the changing nature of Mexicos criminal organizations, which have branched out far beyond transnational drug trafficking and are now engaged in cargo robbery, domestic drug sales and control of industries as diverse as gold mining and the avocado trade. Yepez Ortiz, 40, first made headlines for allegedly stealing more than a million dollars worth of fuel a day from the many pipelines radiating from a government-owned oil refinery in the city of Salamanca. His cartel became the most powerful of the countrys many fuel-theft gangs, known as huachicoleros, and later branched out into other illegal enterprises, including extortion and local drug sales. In 2017, his group ran afoul of the Jalisco New Generation cartel, one of the most powerful criminal organizations in Mexico, led by Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as El Mencho. Mexican media have reported that the Jalisco cartel, which is a leading smuggler of methamphetamine and fentanyl into the United States, originally tried to make a deal with Yepez Ortiz: Keep the lucrative fuel-theft business but allow Jaliscos drug mules to ferry their product through the state. Yepez Ortiz not only rejected the offer, but also allegedly ordered the killing of the nephew of the Jalisco groups leader, setting off a cartel war that has convulsed the state in violence. There were 3,540 killings in Guanajuato last year, a more than threefold increase since 2016. With 2,293 more killings in the first half of this year, Guanajuato is on pace to set a new record. Among the many brutal acts recorded in the state in recent months was the massacre of 27 people at a drug rehabilitation centre in the city of Irapuato, which authorities believe was carried out by the Santa Rosa gang. Last year, Yepez Ortiz escaped a raid by authorities on his compound, possibly through an underground complex of tunnels. Authorities did not say where Yepez Ortiz was arrested Sunday. A video that appeared to be leaked from somebody present at the raid showed him, in a grey sweatshirt and tan work boots, being taken toward a helicopter by heavily armed security forces. Mexican Security Secretary Alfonso Durazo said Yepez Ortiz would be charged with organized crime and fuel theft. Mexican and U.S. authorities praised the arrest of Yepez Ortiz, with U.S. Ambassador Christopher Landau tweeting in Spanish: Criminals think they are so smart, but in the end us good guys will always win. But others questioned whether it might actually fuel more violence. The Jalisco cartel last month posted a video apparently filmed near the border of Jalisco and Guanajuato states that showed dozens of its members outfitted with assault riffles and machine guns as well as an anti-aircraft missile. Experience leads us to be cautious, tweeted former congressman Fernando Belaunzaran. Dozens of leaders have been captured in Mexico and it has not caused a reduction in violence.. He was referring to the targeting of cartel capos, known as the kingpin strategy, which has been a key element of Mexican security efforts since 2006, when the country, aided by the United States, first deployed soldiers, marines and federal police officers in the countrys war on the gangs. While some security analysts argue that such strategies helped stop Mexico from becoming a narco state, they also unwittingly unleashed a wave of violence as would-be kingpins fought for control of cartels. For example, Mexico has recorded several of its bloodiest years ever since the arrest and extradition of Sinaloa cartel leader Joaquin (El Chapo) Guzman in 2017. Lopez Obrador, who was elected in a landslide victory in 2018 in part on his pledge to bring peace to this violence-weary nation, has repeatedly renounced the militarized approach of his predecessors, for whom capturing cartel leaders was a priority. He has vowed to tackle organized crime by fighting poverty instead, a strategy he has dubbed hugs, not bullets. Yet those promises have not translated to concrete changes on the ground. Since he took office a year and a half ago, armed federal forces have continued to pursue leaders of criminal groups, including a botched operation to capture Guzmans son last fall. Federal troops briefly detained the young drug boss, but later decided to release him after the Sinaloa cartel took large parts of the northern city of Culiacan hostage. Lopez Obrador said the decision to release the younger Guzman was made to save innocent lives. We will no longer fight violence with violence, he said at the time. There is no longer a war against drug traffickers. The arrest of Yepez Ortiz led some to question whether that was really the case. Hadnt they said they werent after the bosses anymore? asked Sergio Sarmiento, a columnist for Reforma newspaper, on Twitter. Read more about: Microsoft has confirmed it is still pursuing talks to buy the social app TikTok, with reports that Donald Trump has given the negotiations a 45-day deadline. The news comes just after TikToks US general manager, Vanessa Pappas, stood up for the app, saying were here for the long run. Donald Trump had threatened to ban TikTok from the US as early as last weekend, but ultimately took no action, instead talking with Microsoft about its plans. In a statement on Sunday, the company announced that after a discussion between the president and its CEO, Satya Nadella, it is still committed to buying the app, subject to a complete security review and a mid-September deadline. Microsoft will move quickly to pursue discussions with TikToks parent company, ByteDance, in a matter of weeks, said the statement, and in any event completing these discussions no later than September 15, 2020. During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States government, including with the president. The company addresses the Trump administrations security concerns head-on, emphasising that: Microsoft would ensure that all private data of TikToks American users is transferred to and remains in the United States, and that to the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the United States, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred. The security issue is what will fundamentally determine TikToks future in the US. Concerns about data retention and privacy have risen to the top of the agenda as the government takes an increasingly hawkish attitude towards China, its longtime suspicions over trade and military manoeuvres only aggravated by the Chinese Communist Partys moves to exert greater control in Hong Kong. For its part, TikTok and its Chinese owner ByteDance have maintained that its security measures are more than adequate to protect American users, even as various branches of the US military have banned their service members from using it. The apps general manager in the US, Vanessa Pappas, recently maintained that the app is here for the long run. Millions of Americans who use TikTok every day, she said in a video message, bringing their creativity and joy into our daily lives. Weve heard your outpouring of support and we want to say thank you. Were not planning on going anywhere. Mr. de Blasio said that it was the wrong time and the wrong place to make that arrest, and that any scenes similar to Portland were troubling. The mayor said he would talk to Commissioner Shea about a better way to get that done, though he said destroying police property was not acceptable. In cities like Atlanta and Louisville, Ky., police chiefs have lost their jobs after episodes of police violence in the wake of protests over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. But Commissioner Sheas job security seems far more assured. Ive been very clear about my faith in Commissioner Shea, Mr. de Blasio said at a recent news conference. I have known him over these whole seven years of the administration, and Ive seen what he can do. On Monday, the mayor again praised Commissioner Shea after a violent weekend in the city, saying: Theres no doubt in my mind he will succeed in bringing crime down. All of Mr. de Blasios police chiefs have been acolytes of his first commissioner, William J. Bratton, who became a policing celebrity in the 1990s for his broken windows approach to fighting crime. The second commissioner, James P. ONeill, was a protege of Mr. Brattons, and offered continuity, as has Commissioner Shea, known for overseeing the data-driven Compstat program. Mr. de Blasio kept going back to the Bratton orbit because the results were good, said Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum, a law enforcement policy nonprofit. Crime has continued to go down, and people were generally satisfied, Mr. Wexler said. If youre de Blasio, youre like, Why would I make a dramatic change? Indonesian cops probing illicit funds linked to graft fugitive arrested in KL Indonesian police are investigating allegations that a flow of illicit funds had allowed fugitive Djoko Tjandra (photo, above), who was arrested in Kuala Lumpur last Thursday, to evade authorities for 11 years after being convicted of corruption. Malaysian police have been tight-lipped over details of Djoko's arrest, although Indonesian police have reportedly described it as a "planned operation" in cooperation with Malaysian police since last month. The 68-year-old was reportedly handed over by Malaysian police, late last Thursday night to their counterparts and flown back to Jakarta in a chartered private jet from Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang Jaya. English daily The Jakarta Post reported that Djoko was questioned at the headquarters of the National Polices Criminal Investigation Agency (Bareskrim) and is currently detained at a police facility in Salemba, Central Jakarta. "We will proceed with our investigation related to the issuance of travel recommendation letters and the alleged flow of illicit funds (pertaining to his flight)," Bareskrim chief Listry Sigit Prabowo reportedly said during a televised press briefing. According to The Jakarta Post, Bareskrim's Civil Servant Investigator Supervisory and Coordination Bureau head Prasetyo Utomo has been named as a suspect by the police for allegedly issuing forged travel letters for Djoko. "We could look into additional alleged bribery surrounding the case if he were to open up," Listry Sigit reportedly said. The Indonesian newspaper also quoted Indonesia's Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) acting spokesperson Ali Fikri, who said the anti-graft body had offered assistance to track the flow of funds in the case. "We have communicated and coordinated with Bareskrim through our deputy (head) of prevention," Ali was quoted as saying. Djoko fled Indonesia in 2009 Djoko fled Indonesia and went to Papua New Guinea in 2009, a day before the Supreme Court sentenced him to two years in prison and a fine of Rupiah 15 million for conviction in the Bank Bali corruption case. Story continues He first made headlines in Malaysia in 2015 over links to the 1MDB's Signature Tower in the Tun Razak Exchange by Indonesia's Mulia Group and its local subsidiary, under control of his brother, Eka Tjandranegara, as its president-director and owner. At that time, responding to queries raised on Djoko's Interpol red notice alert for being wanted by Indonesian judicial authorities, Mulia Group said Djoko no longer held any position or shares within the group. Indonesia's former attorney-general, HM Prasetyo (above), previously claimed that the then Malaysian attorney-general, Apandi Ali, had in 2016 made a personal request for him to consider dropping Djoko's conviction and allowing the tycoon to return as a free man. Since then, Djoko's reported return to Indonesia in June this year, apparently undetected by the local authorities, had raised fresh allegations of corruption and a renewed probe, which so far implicated three high-ranking police generals. All three were reportedly removed from their positions for alleged facilitation of Djokos domestic travels. Djoko had attempted to file a request for a review of his 2009 conviction, after having reportedly obtained a new electronic ID card, passport and having his Interpol red notice status lifted. He is believed to have travelled back to Kuala Lumpur and his arrest there followed a South Jakarta court rejection of his review application, over Djoko's failure to be present in person in court, as required by Indonesian law. NORTHPORT, AL. Growth has been the ongoing theme for one Northport music store and that successful trajectory recently prompted a needed change of venue. RSB Percussion, now located in the Black Warrior Village shopping center at 244 McFarland Blvd., held a soft opening on Saturday and were met with a supportive response from the community. "If you can play it, we got it and if you cant, we can teach you to play it," said Rodney Booth, the store's general manager. "For the community this is an eye-opener and Saturday you saw people stand at the door and just say 'oh my goodness.'" RSB Percussion named for the owner and Booth's wife Rebecca Sue Booth may be new to Black Warrior Village, but the brand is far from a rookie on the local music scene. Last July, Booth said, RSB opened in another building that was around 800 square feet, but in a matter of months, the business outgrew the space. RSB Percussion General Manager Rodney Booth shows off a sign inside the store (Photo by Ryan Phillips, Tuscaloosa Patch) "We opened in July and had our grand opening in November and were already busting at the seams," Booth said. "Weve been in business for about five years and started this as a reverb-type store and it just grew and grew. Knowing so many different musicians in town from playing in bands and at churches and our connection with the high schools and universities, we grew, and the support from the local music scene and musicians is why we grew so much." The opportunity to move to the newest location on McFarland Boulevard presented itself in April and once RSB secured its new building, management set out on a series of upgrades to the facilities. "We have a permanent stage in here for all of our clinics and events going on here and well be announcing more of that at the end of this month," Booth pointed out. While the name may denote one facet of music equipment, local demand has seen RSB not only expand its offerings to accommodate more musicians, but also the way it presents the products. Story continues Sporting one of the largest cymbal walls in the southeast, RSB is now the first store in the country to incorporate the new Zildjian Halo System a new display system that was just rolled out by the world-famous equipment manufacturer. The store is also a flagship dealer for the widely-used DW Drums, in addition to brands such as Sonor, Pearl, Mapex, Tama, Gretsch and others. A wall of cymbals at RSB Percussion in Northport (Photo by Ryan Phillips, Tuscaloosa Patch) On the guitar side, the store is a licensed Ibanez and Dean dealer, but could possibly announce a new partnership soon, Booth said. Apart from the percussion offerings, Booth said the addition of guitars and other instruments has broadened the appeal for the store. He then said it's the people behind the counter and on the floor, however, who make the experience special for customers. "I would say carrying guitars has added a good bit to us and we've also brought in a lot of used gear and consigned gear," he said. "We have Hunter Curry our percussion specialist, Carl Anthony who is our guitar sales manager and Glenn Sharp who used to own Decade Music for a little over 14 years. [Sharp] is well-recognized in the community and knows a lot about used and consigned gear and runs sound for a lot of different groups in town, so Glenn brings a lot of years of store management and knowledge to the business." THRIVING DURING CRISIS The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has many stuck at home and looking to dabble in new hobbies, which has translated into good business for many music stores, including RSB Percussion. Booth said for a store like RSB, many of the offerings can only be found in places like Atlanta, Memphis or Nashville. "We really survived well through the pandemic because you have a lot of folks who are homebound," he said. "Weve sold a lot of silent stroke drum heads. A lot of these companies make heads now that you can put on an acoustic kit that brings the volume down. Zildjian and other companies also make low-volume cymbals perfect for practice or cocktail gigs." The biggest challenge spurred by the pandemic, according to Booth, has come in the logistics sector, with overseas manufacturers also dealing with effects of the deadly virus that has impacted nearly every walk of business. "The COVID situation has put a damper on getting equipment," he lamented. "We have one sound manufacturer that we just cant get anything from until probably October and some of the stuff comes from overseas and some companies that normally ship for these companies have switched their logistics over for medical and pharmaceutical supplies. You can get mad about it, but it is what it is." Despite some workable issues as a result of the ongoing pandemic, Booth credited the support received from the Northport and Tuscaloosa communities, as well as Columbus, Mississippi, and expressed his gratitude to the local music scene in recognizing the potential for the store. "We weathered the storm," he said. "Very responsibly, but we weathered the storm." As the store grew, even through the pandemic, the brand remained the same and Booth said that was due to the feedback given by those doing business with RSB. While the expansion into guitars and other equipment gave management some pause in reconsidering its namesake, it was clear the RSB brand stuck out. "Were well-rounded now compared to when we started with just drums and percussions, so we decided to leave the name what it is because folks in this area and our national disturbers said to leave RSB," he said with a smile. LOOKING AHEAD Perhaps the biggest change for the store from a customer standpoint will be the new hours, with RSB previously being closed on Mondays at its former location. Booth said the new location will now be open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. and on Saturdays from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. What's more, RSB will also offer a slate of classes and clinics, ranging from the beginner level to advanced. "Weve got Hunter Curry, who will be teaching drum lessons and we have a lesson room set up," Booth explained. "Mapex has afforded us a nice drum set to go in there and Zildjian has given us low-volume cymbals. We have a guitar room, too, and we're working on a getting an instructor." In addition to classes, RSB also plans to announce some bigger events coming up that will feature nationally-recognized artists, with one possibly in mid-September. "I know were planning one in October, but mid-September we will probably have an artist come in," Booth said. "Weve got some nice national acts that are going to come in and showcase some drums and guitars, so it should be great." This article originally appeared on the Tuscaloosa Patch Fishing on the Great Lakes is in limbo right now. Theres legislation in the state Senate to change commercial fishing regulations, and five Michigan Native American tribes are in negotiations with the state over fishing rights. As part of the weekly series MichMash, MLives Cheyna Roth and WDETs Jake Neher explain how what happens over the next few months could have lasting impacts on fishing in Michigans Great Lakes. Bills currently in a state Senate committee would tighten commercial fishing regulations and update fines and penalties for violations. Supporters say the current laws are decades old and in need of a face lift. But the few remaining full time commercial fisheries say these bills, as currently written, would destroy them. Thats in large part because the legislation would permanently take away their ability to fish for lake trout, walleye and perch. Right now, they cant legally fish for trout and walleye, and perch can only be caught in specific areas. But that could change depending on fish populations. If the bills were passed, commercial fishers would never be able to catch these types of fish. Theres also the ongoing issue of renewing the 2000 Great Lakes Consent Decree between the state and five Native American tribes. A consent decree was supposed to be finalized in August, but a judge granted an extension until the end of the year because of the coronavirus pandemic. The state shares the amount of fish that can be caught with the tribes, and each tribe has a designated commercial fishing area. The consent decree will lay out all the terms of the agreement, including location and types of gear that can be used. But the current sticking point is one tribe, the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe, wants to get rid of exclusive zones for each tribe and allow all the tribes to fish in any area. Whether the groups will be able to work out an agreement, and what that agreement looks like, before December 31 could fundamentally change fishing on the Great Lakes for years to come. More From MichMash: MichMash: Campaigns try to reach people without touching them during coronavirus pandemic MichMash: You might be wrong about Michigans economy MichMash: Michigan parents look for support during coronaviurs pandemic Dhanush opens up on the trials and tribulations he has faced 14 hours ago Wanted Hong Kong activist-in-exile vows to continue push for democracy ROC Central News Agency 08/02/2020 02:55 PM Berlin, Aug. 1 (CNA) Hong Kong activist-in-exile Ray Wong () believes he and five others have been put on a Hong Kong wanted list for violating the national security law to deter overseas Hongkongers from building groups that promote democracy there. The 26-year-old Wong, the former convener of Hong Kong Indigenous, a political group known for its localist stances, was charged with rioting in 2016 following the Mong Kok clashes that broke out in February that year. He skipped bail and fled to Germany in November 2017 while awaiting trial on charges related to the Mong Kok riot. He was granted refugee protection in Germany in May 2018, and has been studying political science at the University of Gottingen since October 2019. On July 31, Hong Kong police issued a wanted list of six overseas-based democracy activists accused of breaching the new Hong Kong national security law, including Wong, according to Hong Kong media reports. In an interview with CNA on Saturday, Wong said he was not surprised by the Hong Kong government's decision and was not afraid of it. He believed that issuing the wanted list was aimed not at arresting those on it but rather at deterring overseas Hongkongers from connecting with those on the wanted list and preventing them from forming organizations, he said. Wong recently founded the Haven Assistance with other Hongkongers-in-exile, such as Lam Wing-kee (), a Hong Kong bookseller, to help Hong Kongers move abroad. Lam was arrested for selling politically sensitive books but has defied mainland China and reopened his bookshop in Taiwan. Wong also met with Simon Cheng (), a former employee of the British Consulate-General in Hong Kong, who is also on the wanted list. Wong said many Hongkongers want to move overseas and his main task in the near future will be to organize other Hongkongers-in-exile and lobby foreign political leaders in various countries to bring the influence of Hongkongers to bear on the communities in which they live. Meanwhile, in an interview Saturday with German international broadcaster Deutsche Welle's (DW) Chinese Service, Wong said he will not stop speaking out for Hong Kong despite being targeted or threatened by Beijing. Establishing a platform or channel for international communication will be a lifeline to Hong Kong's longstanding survival, he said. (By Lin Yu-li, Chang Shu-ling and Evelyn Kao) Enditem/cs/ls NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Home minister Amit Shah tests positive for Covid-19, admitted to hospital Union home minister Amit Shah who took over management of corona care in the capital following a sudden spike in cases has himself tested positive for the new coronavirus (Covid-19) on Sunday even as Delhi reported 961 new cases in last 24 hrs, taking the total to 1,37,677. The minister has been admitted to a hospital. Shah took to social media to inform about his infection. "I have tested positive but my health is fine," he said, adding that he has been hospitalised on the advice of doctors. The union home minister also appealed to those who came into close contact with him in the last few days to get themselves tested for corona virus (Covid-19). "I request those who came in contact with me in last few days to get tested for coronavirus and isolate themselves," he wrote in a message on Twitter. "On getting the initial symptoms of corona, I got the test done and the report came back positive. My health is fine, but I am being admitted to the hospital on the advice of doctors. I request that all of you who have come in contact with me in the last few days, please isolate yourself and get your inquiry done," Shah tweeted again. BJP leaders wished the home minister speedy recovery. BJP Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy tweeted, "I am sorry to hear from news media that Amit Shah has to be admitted to hospital because he has tested positive for Coronavirus. I wish him a speedy recovery and pray for his early discharge." On Saturday, Shah addressed a webinar 'Lokmanya Tilak: Swaraj to Atmanirbhar Bharat' organized by ICCR Delhi on the 100th death anniversary of Lokmanya Tilak. Indias coronavirus tally crossed the 1.7-million mark on Sunday, just two days after it went past 1.6 million. The total coronavirus cases surged to 17, 50,723, while the death toll climbed to 37,364 with 853 people succumbing to the disease in a day. The recoveries have increased to 11, 45,629, while there are 5, 67,730 active cases of coronavirus infection in the country at present. The dead also included Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister Kamla Rani Varun who succumbed to the pandemic The recovery rate among COVID-19 patients has risen to 65.44 per cent while the fatality rate has further dropped to 2.13 per cent, health ministry data showed. A young surfer has opened up about the horrifying moment a 'monster' great white shark mauled his mate before making a beeline for him. Miles Redfern was surfing with his friend Phil Mummert at 'The Farm' at Bunker Bay in Western Australia about 2.15pm on Friday when the predator attacked. Mr Mummert, 28, was thrown off his surfboard by the five-metre great white shark before being bitten on the upper part of his leg. Mr Redfern watched on in horror before the beast then came hurling through the water towards him. Mr Mummert's girlfriend, Mish Wright, (pictured right with Mr Mummert) wrote a heartfelt message to her boyfriend's rescuers and said she was 'beyond grateful to everyone that helped save Phil's life' Ms Wright shared images of Mr Mummert (pictured) recovering at Bunbury Hospital while in good spirits 'I was terrified. We all hear stories about how big they are, but seeing them first-hand was next level,' he told 9news. 'It was like a small car, it was just huge.' Other surfers rushed to help the pair, hauling Mr Mummert onto a board and taking him back to shore. Mr Mummert was airlifted to Bunbury Regional Hospital where he underwent emergency surgery. One of Mr Mummert's rescuers recounted how quickly the brutal attack unfolded. 'He's just sitting on his board and the next thing you know we just heard someone go "shark",' one of Mr Mummert's rescuers told Nine News. 'I turned around and I've just seen this white (shark) kind of breach and it had already smashed, hit Phil. Miles Redfern (pictured) was surfing with Phil Mummert at 'The Farm' at Bunker Bay in Western Australia about 2.15pm on Friday when the predator attacked Mr Mummert (pictured with emergency services and the surfers who rescued him) hit the great white with his surfboard and the five metre shark bit his board and right thigh The five-metre great white shark also bit Mr Mummert's board in half (pictured) during the attack on Friday 'It just obliterated his board, it was just floating there like icicles.' Despite escaping uninjured, Mr Redfern admits the ordeal has left him shaken. However, he has vowed he will still return to the water. A Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development statement said they were investigating the attack. 'DPIRD is working with local authorities to coordinate responses,' the statement read. The beach was closed while DPIRD officers conducted patrols, it has since reopened. There has been a spate of shark attacks on the east coast in recent months including five fatalities this year. Mr Mummert was attacked on the southeast coast of Western Australia (pictured) on Friday Witnesses said Mr Mummert's shark bite (pictured) was up to 150mm deep after he was attacked during a surf trip 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 Anyone who misreported the facts and figures, in fact, violated all moral and ethical values. by Ali Sukhanver Immature eagerness rather urgency makes things horrible particularly when matters are directly linked with the credibility of a nation and security of a country. A few days back when a renowned Pakistani journalist was allegedly kidnapped from a very busy road of Pakistans federal capital Islamabad, some media-men from national and international media groups started pointing their fingers towards the security agencies of Pakistan without any proof and without any investigation. Whosoever was behind this heinous act must be taken to task but after thorough investigation. Blaming abruptly simply mars the facts; moreover such type of blame-game defames and discredits not only the working of our security agencies but the whole country and the whole nation. Today countless Indians are sarcastically asking on social media What were the security agencies of Pakistan doing when that journalist was being kidnapped from that busy road of the federal capital. It is the professional responsibility of all media-men to file their stories after complete investigation and certainly they must provide proofs in support of their investigative reports. As far as the kidnapping incident from Islamabads busy road is concerned, there had been countless incidents of the same kind in US, UK and so many countries hundred times more advanced in resources and available technology. The security agencies must stop such type of incidents and they no doubt do everywhere as much as is possible for them. In most of the cases they try to keep a vigilant eye on nefarious activities but they have no power of performing miracles; they cannot stop things which are in the minds of the planners. Recently another example of this immature eagerness was observed in different national and international newspapers when a news-report on unfreezing of the bank accounts of five leaders of (defunct) Jama'at-ud-Da'wah and Lashkar -e-Taiba was published in a Pakistani paper. The news-report said that Pakistan has restored their bank accounts. The report said, All of them are UNSCs enlisted terrorists though and currently facing sentences ranging 1 to 5 years in Lahore jail for terror financing cases filed against them by the Punjab Counter Terrorism Department. According to the details narrated in the news-report the defunct JUD leaders had forwarded an appeal to the government of Pakistan for restoring their bank accounts so that they could run their family affairs. They also mentioned about their financial income and sources of earning. A copy of this application was sent to the UNSC also for final approval. It means that the UNSC was the final authority which could restore their accounts. The government of Pakistan simply acted upon the directions given by the United Nations; there was no personal interest or will of the government in restoring their bank-accounts. Keeping the facts and figures aside, unfortunately, some analysts tried to convince their audience that this restoration of accounts was the result of that soft corner somewhere hidden in the heart of the government of Pakistan. They tried to misguide the world around that this restoration of bank-accounts was independently done by the government of Pakistan. The facts are altogether otherwise; Pakistan has never encouraged any kind of terrorism as Pakistan itself has been the worst victim to this menace. Restoration of the bank accounts of all these leaders has nothing to do with the will and desire of the government of Pakistan; it was simply done on the direction of UNSC. Dragging Pakistan into a new blame game is in fact an attempt to defame the whole nation in the international community and to weaken the very foundation of the country already facing a lot of problems. As per tradition the Indian media took full benefit of the situation and exploited the news published in Pakistani newspapers in the most negative way. It was also propagated that at the initial stage, Pakistan had restored the bank accounts of the terrorists, at some later stage, arrangements would be done for their release. The South Asia Monitor said focusing on that news report, The report raised eyebrows over Pakistan's actions on ground and claims on papers in front of the global community and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), where it has claimed to seize all assets, offices and bank accounts of the JUD and its affiliate individuals. The ball was never in the court of the government of Pakistan; the applicants sent their applications for the restoration of their bank accounts to the government of Pakistan and forwarded the same to the UNSC. It was not the government of Pakistan but the United Nations Sanctions Committee responsible for unfreezing of these accounts. The Committee looked thoroughly into all details, followed all rules and regulations, approved the application and then directed the government of Pakistan to take necessary action. Anyone who misreported the facts and figures, in fact, violated all moral and ethical values. Blaming someone for the thing he has not done is a crime and this crime becomes an act of terrorism when our own people get involved into it. While reporting on some issue of a sensitive nature or analyzing some sensitive situation of national importance, we all must keep in mind that words become more poisonous and more disastrous than nuclear weapons if not carefully used. Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh on Monday briefed the media about the ongoing investigation into the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput. According to ANI, he said that the Mumbai Police have recorded the statements of 56 people so far and are probing every possible angle. Till now statements of 56 people have been recorded, all angles are being investigated be it a professional rivalry, financial transactions or health. It has come to surface that he had bipolar disorder, he was undergoing treatment and taking medicines for it. What circumstances led to his death is the subject of our investigation, he said. Sushants family has filed an abetment to suicide FIR in Patna against actors girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty. It has come to surface that he had bipolar disorder, he was undergoing treatment and taking medicines for it. What circumstances led to his death is the subject of our investigation: Param Bir Singh, Mumbai Commissioner of Police on #SushantSinghRajputDeathCase https://t.co/B0truatyap ANI (@ANI) August 3, 2020 Recently, Sushants therapist Susan Walker Moffat told Barkha Dutt in a statement that he and his girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty came to her in November-December last year. In a statement, Susan said that she wanted to put to rest the misinformation and conspiracy theories being spread online about the actors death. Sushant was suffering terribly during his bouts of depression and hypomania. Rhea was his strongest support. From the first time I met them as a couple, I was impressed by the degree of concern, love and support she showed. It was very evident how close they were. Rhea took care of his appointments and gave him enough courage to attend, despite his being so fearful that someone would find out, she said. When he was severely ill, he depended on her as somewhat of a mother figure and she completely filled that role with love, encouragement and patience, she added. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajputs sister Shweta says disgraceful as Patna IPS officer to lead probe forcibly quarantined in Mumbai However, Sushants brother-in-law Vishal Kirti and the actors former girlfriend, among many others, have questioned his diagnosis. Diagnosing mental disorders is an arduous task and diagnosing someone Bipolar (I or II) is even more so. Not only do you have to observe the person very closely, but you also have to observe them over long periods of time (it takes six years on average to diagnose after the onset of symptoms). Susan very conveniently diagnoses Sushant in less than two months (perhaps over a couple of appointments), with a life-changing diagnosis, he said in a lengthy blog post. Vishal also drew attention to the fact that it was Rhea who sought treatment, not Sushant himself. The FIR claims that Sushant was perhaps given psychotropic drugs by Rhea (maybe even without his knowledge). Covert/Surreptitious medication is also perhaps illegal in the 21st century. There could be many explanations of this sudden onset of mental health issues in October/November of 2019. This could be a result of covert medication and withdrawal of psychotropic drugs (perhaps the covert medication stopped during their Europe trip in October 2019 [perhaps because of eating out mostly so no opportunity to covertly medicate him with food? or perhaps intentionally not medicating?], which led to withdrawal symptoms). And then, he was perhaps taken to the psychotherapist under the pretext of care, he said. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918 . Follow @htshowbiz for more Iran has taken aimed at the U.S and Europe for financing terrorist and providing protection for terrorists, as Teheran rounds up the leader of a US-based anti-government group. Jamshid Sharmahd, described by Teheran as the ringleader of the Tondar terrorist organization has been arrested according to a statement issued on Saturday by the Iranian Intelligence Ministry. Tondar according to the Iranian authorities is responsible for sabotages and attacks in Iran including an April 2008 terror attack in Shiraz that killed 14 people and injured 215 others. Based in California, Sharmahd was also reportedly responsible for anti-Iran media coverage. Foreign Minister Javad Zarif following the arrest took Twitter to chastise the U.S and Europe over what he called hypocrisy. The west must cease financing and harboring [sic] terrorists. From their safe havens in US and Europe, they promote hatred, agitate & organize murder & mayhem, and shamelessly claim responsibility for the murder of innocent Iranian civilians, he wrote on the social media. Sushant Singh Rajputs friend, Siddharth Pithani, has said that the actor was very upset after his name was associated with the alleged suicide of his former manager, Disha Salian. Sushant died by suicide on June 14, less than a week after Disha fell to her death from a high rise building on June 8. Siddharth, who was also living with Sushant at the actors Bandra home, told Zoom that Disha had managed Sushant only for a short time, and yet she was described as Sushant Singh Rajputs former manager in news articles about her. He met her only once in his life, Siddharth said. She was Sushants manager for only a very small time. Siddharth added that Sushant kept crying the day he learned of Dishas death. His sister was there to take of him that time. She fed him, gave him water. His sister came over the day Rhea left. The following day this incident happened, and that affected him so much. He fainted also. His sister and me were in the same room. We all saw how badly it affected him. ALSO WATCH | Sushant death: Lawyer Vs Mumbai police over probe, Bihar officers quarantine Dishas mother, Vasanti, said as much in an interview to Zee. This cannot have a connection with Sushants death, she never took his name. We didnt know that she was Sushants manager. We came to know later. Only once, she had told us that she had gone to Sushants house with somebody. How can there be a connection after meeting him just once? She was his manager for a very short time. Also read: Siddharth Pithani reveals Sushant Singh Rajput was heartbroken in January, said I have no one Siddharth said that he slept in Sushants room that night, and went to his own room only after the actor had fallen asleep. Siddharth also confirmed that Sushant was taking medication for depression, and that the actor had made it Siddharths responsibility to ensure that he takes his medicines. Siddharth also recalled how the actor had told him to move in with him, and had emotionally said that he doesnt have anyone. Sushant said, I have no one. We will go away from all this. We will go to Pavna, Siddharth said. Former actor and talk show host Simi Garewal wrote on Twitter recently that a CBI probe could uncover the connection between Sushant and Dishas deaths. #DishaSalian death must be investigated.Why was it ignored?? It will reveal the truth of the conspiracy linked to the murder of #SSR, her tweet read. Last month, Sushants father KK Singh filed an FIR with the Bihar Police against the late actors girlfriend, actor Rhea Chakraborty, for abetment to suicide. The FIR alleged that Rhea threatened to frame Sushant for Dishas death. On June 8 night, Sushants secretary Disha committed suicide. Rhea had appointed her as Sushants secretary. Later, Rhea blocked Sushants number on her cell. Sushant was afraid that Rhea could have made him responsible for his managers suicide as she had threatened to frame him in the secretarys suicide case, the FIR said. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918 Follow @htshowbiz for more SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The economic collapses in Spain and France over the last quarter were massacres. Italy's GDP fell back to levels last seen in the early '90s. The picture emerging on both sides of the Atlantic from official GDP data is as traumatic as feared, but it is also in one sense a statistical mirage. An induced economic coma for three months is akin to an extended holiday. It is not the end of the world as long as the tissue of the economy is kept whole and lost output is fully buffered by fiscal transfers, and so long as support is continued until a V-shaped recovery takes hold - and whittles down the extra debt load. Sharemarkets remain strong, but they shouldn't be seen as a sign that the global economy is on the road to a quick recovery. Credit:AP But this is not what is happening. The pandemic is still wreaking havoc and stimulus is running out before the rebound reaches self-sustaining "escape velocity". Cliff edges are approaching: furlough payments for workers are being cut; and loan guarantees for firms will expire, as will moratoria on corporate layoffs. "We're going to hit a crunch in September and October," said David Owen from Jefferies. Letters: Don't let virus get in the way of treatment for cancer, other diseases The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has inaugurated the Youth in Greenhouse Enterprise Project for the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), which seeks to create permanent employment opportunities for the youth in agriculture. He also inaugurated the KNUST Islamic Centre. Event The Asantehene, who doubles as the Chancellor of the university, was assisted by the Minister of Education, Dr Mathew Opoku Prempeh, to perform the inaugurations to climax the investiture of the first female Vice-Chancellor of KNUST, Professor (Mrs) Rita Akosua Dickson. Greenhouse project The 20 greenhouses were built under the Youth in Agric Programme by the university and are aimed at contributing to the countrys import substitution and export trade by growing green pepper, chili pepper and tomatoes. It was a partnership with the government and funded through a loan from the Exim Bank Ghana. It is being facilitated by a private sector company, Agripack Impact. The greenhouses were built at GH70,000 each. The KNUST greenhouse enterprise project is part of pilots in six regions, namely the Ashanti Region, Greater Accra, Volta, Central, Western and Eastern. Also in attendance was President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. He expressed optimism that the project would offer employment for the teeming graduate unemployed youth in the country. Other projects Otumfuo Osei Tutu II also inaugurated a five-storey edifice for the school of Social Sciences of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), as part of measures to accommodate the expected huge numbers of the first batch of free senior high school (Free SHS) students. The four-year project which cost GH64 million, was funded through the universitys Internally Generated Fund (IGF) and executed by Berock Ventures Limited, a local construction firm. Capacity The building has 25 lecture halls, 100 offices for lecturers and supporting staff, seven secretariats for heads of departments and a 1,200 capacity auditorium. The disability-friendly edifice, also has studios, research laboratories, a computer research centre for postgraduates and a 250-capacity car park. With two elevators, which make it easy for users to access the facility, the building has two separate libraries, one on the first floor and the other on the second. After a tour of the complex and other projects, Otumfuo commended the authorities of the university for supervising such a great edifice. He also commended highly Prof. Kwasi Obiri-Danso, the immediate past Vice-Chancellor of the university, for his role in actualising the project. Islamic Centre The Asantehene also inaugurated a multipurpose KNUST Islamic Centre. Construction of the centre was funded by the Chief Executive Officer of Japan Motors, Ghana, Mr Salim Kalmoni; with support from other Muslim bodies. Source: graphiconline.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 Highlights TRAI in its latest letter has asked Airtel and Vodafone why premium plans were not flagged as a new type of service. The regulator stated that if the telcos had done so, it would view the plans under a different lens. TRAI has also sought clarity on non-priority customers being affected if surrounded by priority customers. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in its latest letters to Airtel and Vodafone has sought clarity on the premium plans being offered by the telcos. ET quoted the letters from TRAI that have questioned the telcos why they did not flag the premium plans as new types of services that could have helped the regulator to examine the plans under a different lens before approving their launch. "As per information available in Trai as filed by you, no wireless plan is committing any differential broadband speed, (but) it's seen that RedX and Platinum plans are not only providing priority on the network but also committing higher speed," TRAI said in its letters to Vodafone and Airtel. Airtel and Vodafone recently rejected concerns by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) over platinum plans. Both Airtel and Vodafone have said that their premium plans have not downgraded the network quality for general users nor have they violated any norms. TRAI stated that the telcos should have informed the regulator about the plans separately, as per the report. It now seeks clarity on the differential broadband speeds under wireless plans. It seeks to know how the telco will work around network congestion when non-priority customers are surrounded by priority customers. TRAI also wants to know if the telcos will control maximum data speeds in their respective networks using services such as video streaming, conversational video, and FTP (file transfer protocols) for every subscriber. Airtel had earlier stated that offering priority service to just 1-1.5 per cent of the subscriber base which provides less than 10 per cent of the revenue would not affect the service of 98 per cent customers who contribute to nearly 90 per cent of the revenue. Vodafone also defended its REDX plan stating that 1.27 lakh subscribers of the REDX plan do not even make 0.1 per cent of the telco's total 4G user base. Reliance Jio had cited the plans to be misleading and moved TRAI. TRAI had blocked the premium plans after which Vodafone moved the Telecom Dispute Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT). The TDSAT then allowed the telcos to run their plans and said while it is justified for TRAI to review the plans, blocking them was not necessary. Mayank Singh By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Rejecting Chinas claim that disengagement on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) was more or less over, India on Sunday demanded complete disengagement of troops from Finger 4 and Patrolling Point 17A and other stand-off points. According to sources, India hardened its stance during the fifth round of talks between Corps Commanders of the two countries held in Moldo on the Chinese side of the LAC on Sunday, in a bid to thwart Chinas salami-slicing tactics. Talks are being held and complete disengagement of troops from the remaining standoff points will be the main agenda, sources told TNIE on Sunday evening, when the talks were still on. Finger 4 on the northern flank of Pangong Lake and Patrolling Point 17A (Gogra) are the places where China has not fulfilled the commitments of disengagement as decided in previous meetings. Disengagement at PP14 (Galwan Valley) and PP15 was completed and verification done in the beginning of July. Sources said Chinese troops left the heights at Finger 4 but remained deployed on the ridges in the vicinity. Also, the disengagement is pending at PP17A. Our stance is status quo ante before Chinese troops moved forward in the first week of May source added. Indian XIV Corps Commander Lt Gen Harinder Singh and Maj Gen Lin Liu, Commander of the South Xinjian Military District have been representing their respective sides. Earlier meetings were held on June 6, June 22, June 30 and July 14. The Chinese troops had clashed with the Indian troops on the intervening night of May 5 and 6 and subsequently moved their troops forward. Later, the artillery and armoured assets were moved. Thereafer, both sides deployed fighters in forward areas. India has done precautionary deployment all along the 3,488-km LAC, de facto border between India and China. China had on July 25 said disengagement was complete in Galwan, Hot Springs and Gogra but was silent on Pangong Tso. In response, India said there has been some progress but disengagement is not yet over. This week, the Met Office has warned that a heatwave is set to sweep over parts of the UK, with temperatures expected to soar as high as 36C in the south-east on Friday. With the arrival of warmer weather and many still anxious to plan trips abroad, it is welcome news that outdoor swimming pools were allowed to reopen in England from Saturday 11 July as part of the governments ongoing plan to ease lockdown restrictions. Whether youre a lover of alfresco dips, are looking for an alternative way to get fit or want to fill your summer with some family-friendly activities, a trip to one of the UKs many outdoor pools should feature highly on your to-do list. But, as pools begin to reopen, guests should expect some changes, including varied opening times and the need to pre-book. So be sure to check with the venue before visiting. From Brighton to Cornwall and South London, The Independent has put together a list of some of the countrys best outdoor swimming spots that will guarantee you the best of British summer. So, all thats left for you to do is strip off, jump in and enjoy some alfresco fun. Saltdean Lido Saltdean, Brighton Opened in 1938, Saltdean is the only Grade II-listed coastal lido in the country and has even been described as one of the seven wonders of the English seaside by Historic England. After undergoing restoration, the heated pool re-opened in 2017 when it successfully welcomed over 40,000 visitors and picked up two Brighton & Hove Business Awards - Best New Kid on the Block & Best Hospitality Leisure & Tourism. The venue is currently open to guests with social distancing in place to ensure visitors have a safe and enjoyable visit. Visitors must pre-book online a 50-minute slot with the FUSION APP, which will enable the pool to comply with the government's test and trace service and ensure there is plenty of space with no more than the permitted number of users. When booking, swimmers will be given an arrival time which will enable access within a 10-minute time period. Visitors must arrive with swimming costumes already on and with any equipment such as floats or goggles as changing rooms will be closed. There will also be a reduced number of showers available for use. Opening times are Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and weekends from 7am-7pm and tickets cost 8 for an adult swim or 150 for a season ticket option up until Sunday 13th September. Admission: Adult 8.00 Visit the website here Bude Sea Pool Bude, Cornwall A semi-natural amenity that was built in the 1930s to provide a safe environment for people to swim in, the Bude Sea Pool lies under the curve of the cliffs in a picturesque conservation area near the civil parish of Bude-Stratton. Almost 50,000 people visit Bude Sea Pool every year, making it the number one visitor attraction in the town. Access to the pool is unrestricted and free of any admission charge. The pool is currently managed by the Friends of Bude Sea Pool (FoBSP), a local charity that aims to preserve, improve and enhance the site for the benefit of the local community and thousands of people who visit the town every year. Visitors do not need to book slots to visit the pool, however they are asked to respect the venue's social distancing signage around the pool areas. Admission: Free Visit the website here Brockwell Lido Herne Hill, South London One of London's most attractive heated pools the art deco lido built in 1937 celebrated its 80th birthday in 2017. The much-loved local landmark boasts an award-winning cafe, ivy-covered brick and sundecks, making the whole place feel like an oasis amid the urban chaos. The Grade II-listed location was the focus of Lucy Blakstad's documentary Lido, which was first broadcast on BBC Two in 1995, and was the setting for a Libby Page's book called The Lido that was a bestseller in 2018. Visitors are required to pre-book slots for 50 minute swim sessions and will be given a 10 minute entry window. Changing rooms and lockers are currently out of use and they ask that swimmers arrive pre-changed, using the designated areas for towels and bags. There will be an accessible toilet which will be cleaned regularly. Currently, the sessions are for adults only (aged 16+). Under 16's will not be allowed access to the pool, regardless of swimming ability. Admission: Adult 8 Visit the website here Droitwich Spa Lido Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire The Droitwich Spa Lido, like so many others, went through a period of decline in the 20th century, until a massive refurbishment over the period of two years meant it opened its doors once more in the summer of 2007. Now it is one of Britains last remaining inland, open air saltwater pools and is heated to a Mediterranean 23C. The lido also boasts a sun terrace, cafe and childrens wet play area with water cannons and fountains. The venue will be re-opening from 1 August 2020 and will open for a six week period up to 13 September. During this time, the pool will only be allowing a reduced number of swimmers at any one time and sessions will be limited to two hours. Visitors will be able to book up to two days in advance and make all payments online. Admission: Adult 5.50, Child 4 Visit the website here Hathersage Swimming Pool Hathersage, Derbyshire An open-air swimming pool nestled in the hills of the Peak District, Hathersage Swimming Pool first opened way back in 1936. With water heated to 28C, hot poolside showers, lawns and views of Stanage Edge and Hathersage Church, the spot continues to be a popular tourist attraction. Over the last few years the Parish Council and local people have raised over 100,000 to replace the old fashioned changing facilities and install disabled toilets, with further refurbishment planned for the future. The pool is now open and all tickets must be pre-booked online. Guests must arrive ready to swim and to shower post-swim at home to minimise time spent in the changing rooms. Lockers will be available for use and sterilised once a day. Admission: Adult 7, Child 4 Visit the website here Jubilee Pool Penzance, Cornwall Battered by storms in 2014, and following two years of closure and a 3 million restoration, the Jubilee Pool opened its doors wide again in 2016. This spectacularly sited lido down on the foreshore is currently undergoing construction to build a geothermal pool, new all-weather changing room and treatment rooms. Open every day from late May until October. Jubilee Pool is now open to guests but all bookings must be made in advance and no walk-in tickets will be available. Only changing rooms without doors will be available for use this season and there will not be any showers available at the pool. Visitors are asked to arrive at the pool wearing their swimming kit under their clothes. Admission: Adult 5, Child 3.50 Visit the website here Parliament Hill Fields Lido Gospel Oak, North London Built in 1938 and Grade II-listed, the Parliament Hill Fields Lido is the only stainless steel lined outdoor pool in the country which gives the water a metallic shimmer. The lido is unheated, but wetsuits are permitted at the lifeguards discretion. There are two sessions a day (7-9am and 10am-6pm) with an additional adults-only evening session on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays. It also boasts a paddling pool for under-fives and a cafe. The venue re-opened to guests on Saturday 18 July and is operating with a pre-booking system online. There is also a phone booking system available for those with additional access requirements or who cannot book online. Each swim session will last 60 minutes and will have a limited number of swimmers. Admission: Adult 4, Child 2.40 Visit the website here Bristol Lido Clifton, Bristol Grade II-listed, and the oldest heated outdoor swimming pool in Britain, Bristol's lido has good reason to feel proud of its heritage. A secluded oasis tucked within a charming courtyard of Georgian terraces, it's a positively chic hang-out, with a restaurant and spa making it feel more like a luxury hotel than your average council pool. It's open daily year-round and is heated to 20-24 degrees. The lido has been open to members only in recent weeks however it has just started taking non-member adult swims. Guests have been pre-booking 40 minute swim and hot tub sessions with a maximum capacity of nine people at a time. Any non-members should call up from 9am and check if there are spaces and pay 10 for a 40 minute session. In the current climate, the venue is not yet allowing children's access to the pool. Admission: Adult 20, Child 7.50 Visit the website here London Fields Lido Hackney, East London London Fields Lido in Hackney boasts a 50m Olympic size, heated outdoor pool thats open all year round. The swimming pool offers lane swimming all day, while swimming lessons for children and adults, and one-to-one swimming lessons are available during its dedicated swimfit sessions. Facilities also include a cafe as well as a large sundeck and sunbathing area. The pool is open to visitors seven days a week. However, its owners have warned guests that activities and facilities offered at the location may experience temporary closures or changes to opening hours and/or services provided during the ongoing pandemic. Admission: Adult 5.10, Child 3 Visit the website here Stonehaven Open Air Pool Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire Stonehaven might have an average summer daytime temperature of 15 degrees, but who cares when the water in this pool which was built in 1934 is heated to a balmy 29 degrees? Britain's most northerly lido, the Olympic-sized 50m pool offers fun sessions for children, lane swimming and even midnight swims that mean you can take a dip beneath the stars to disco music. Unfortunately, the pool will remain closed for the remainder of the 2020 season. However, its owners have said they will update customers on their website with any updates and news of 2021 opening times. Admission: Adult 5.60, Child 3.45 Visit the website here Tailored Brands, the parent company of Mens Wearhouse, Jos. A. Bank and other mens fashion brands, announced Sunday it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company hopes the bankruptcy filing will help alleviate its $630 million debt. It was also announced in July that up to 500 stores have been identified that could potentially close over time. Tailored Brands said the coronavirus pandemic has caused it to implement a series of operating and organizational changes. A list of potentially affected stores has not yet been released. The company also operates K&G Fashion Superstore and Moores Clothing for Men. In New Jersey, there are currently 13 Mens Wearhouse, 12 Jos. A. Bank and five K&G Fashion Superstores. There are no Moores Clothing for Men stores in the U.S., since its based in Canada. Although not marketed as a liquidation sale, Mens Wearhouse is offering up to 70% off on clearance items, while Jos. A. Bank is holding a Super Tuesday sale. K&G Fashion Superstore is also having a summer clearance sale where you can find items for up 75% off. It has been a rough few months for the brick-and-mortar retail industry, which already had been struggling. JCPenney, Brooks Brothers, New York & Company, Sur La Table, Pier 1 Imports and Lucky Brand have all filed for bankruptcy during the coronavirus pandemic. RELATED STORIES ABOUT RETAIL: Back to school sales 2020: Desks, chairs, laptops, backpacks, at-home learning supplies NHL coronavirus face masks: See new designs for all 31 teams Walmart permanently closing its only store in Princeton Please subscribe now and support the local journalism YOU rely on and trust. Nicolette Accardi can be reached at naccardi@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter: @N_Accardi. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tip Accused person Latifah Bumaye being escorted by police at Bole District Magistrate Court 03.08.2020 LISTEN Latifah Bumaye, 25, a trader believed to be an associate of Hajia Filipina who allegedly lynched a 90-year-old woman, Madam Akua Denteh, at Kafaba in the East Gonja Municipality of the Savannah Region, has been arraigned before the Bole District Magistrate Court today presided over by Andrew Prince Cudjoe. The accused person was provisionally charged with murder. The case prosecutor, chief inspector Abdulai B. Awuni, pleaded with the court to remand the accused person for further investigation. The judge granted the request of the police prosecutor and demanded the accused be remanded into police custody to reappear in court on August 20, 2020. The charge was read and explained to the accused person but her plea was not taken. More Suspects Five people, who are believed to have participated in the lynching which has since sparked national outrage, have been remanded in police custody by a district court at Bole. They pleaded not guilty and the court, presided over by Andrew Prince Cudjoe, remanded them until August 20. The suspects Haruna Aness, 34; Issaka Tanko, 35; Shaibu Murtala, 29; Sulemana Ali, 35; and Issaka Sachebu, 32, have been charged with conspiracy and murder. The Chief of Kafaba, Seidu Yahaya, under whose jurisdiction the incident occurred, has also been granted police inquiry bail. The police placed a GH2,000 reward for anybody that would help in the arrest of the suspects; and yesterday, a benevolent individual placed a GH5,000 reward for anybody who could assist the police to arrest Filipina. Madam Akua Denteh was lynched at Kafaba in the East Gonja Municipality in the Savannah Region. The woman was openly beaten to death by Hajia Filipina,the soothsayer with support from a mob in the community. The main suspect, Hajia Filipina, as at the time of filing this report was still on the run. ---Daily Guide US Marines Ends Search for Missing Servicemen By VOA News August 02, 2020 The U.S. Marines says it has ended the search and rescue mission for seven missing Marines and one Sailor following an accident in Southern California. All the service members are presumed dead. "It is with a heavy heart, that I decided to conclude the search and rescue effort," Col. Christopher Bronzi, 15th MEU Commanding Officer, said in a statement. "The steadfast dedication of the Marines, Sailors, and Coast Guardsmen to the persistent rescue effort was tremendous." "As we turn to recovery operations, we will continue our exhaustive search for our missing Marines and Sailor," Bronzi said. Fifteen Marines and one Sailor were participating in a routine training exercise Thursday off the coast of San Clemente Island, California, when the amphibious assault vehicle (AAV) they were riding in began to take on water and sank. Sixteen service members participated in the exercise. Eight Marines were rescued, one died, and two others are in critical condition at a local hospital. The accident is under investigation. Marines frequently practice beach attacks using amphibious troop transport vehicles. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The last time Spiro Dimitriou saw his father, he played him some of his favourite Greek songs and watched his Dad's eyes light up. Four days later, his 73-year-old father John was gone. He died alone in a Melbourne hospital two weeks after contracting coronavirus at St Basil's Homes for the Aged. John Dimitriou, 73, was a resident at St Basil's Homes for the Aged in Fawkner. "I was waking up every hour thinking about my poor Dad. All alone, frail, dying," Mr Dimitriou said. "My mind boggles that this is Australia. This is happening here." Mr Dimitriou wants to ensure the death of his father was not in vain, as authorities struggle to contain deadly outbreaks within the state's aged care facilities. Dont call Christy Turlington Burns a supermodel. Its just silly, she said over the phone, while home in New York. It was a made up, manufactured thing, and so I didnt feel like I mean, first of all, its just a job. And I feel like model fills the experience and the job perfectly well. It didnt need a capital S or a super in front of it. If anything, I wanted to always have the option to be outside of it and to do other things. So, to me, the more lower-case M, the better, in terms of my future choices. Theres humor behind her words. Soft-spoken and relaxed, she laughed as she shared the thoughts. It is what it is, said the California native. During her rise to fame in the Nineties, while still modeling, Burns turned her attention to education. She graduated from New York University and later Columbia University with a masters degree in public health, which she applies today in her work for Every Mother Counts. The nonprofit, which she founded in 2010, aims to improve maternal health and make pregnancy and childbirth safe for all women. During the pandemic, the organization has been busier than ever creating guidelines and resources for soon-to-be mothers. Its been a purposeful time for the charity amid the crisis, she said. On the other side, Ive been parenting two teenagers, she added. While now on summer break from school, her kids had been working remotely from home. Im not looking forward to the probability of returning to that in the fall, when were all fighting for Wi-Fi and space, she said. While shes dabbled in and out of modeling jobs throughout the years, theres one particular partnership that has been a constant in her life: her role as the face of Calvin Kleins Eternity campaign, which began in 1988. Of all the ads, 1995s photographs by Peter Lindbergh are perhaps the most well-known. Shot in Hawaii, they feature Burns and a male model portraying eternal love, a message behind the womens and mens fragrances. Then, in 2014, Burns husband Edward the actor, producer, writer and director stepped in as love interest for Inez and Vinoodhs version in Turks and Caicos. Now, the celebrity couple revisit that moment in a new campaign, shot by photographer Lachlan Bailey and director Matt Lambert on yet another beach; This time, its in Malibu, Calif. Story continues This idea of eternity and of something that lasts and endures being the centerpiece of the campaign is not lost on me during this period, shared the model. So many of us have wanted to look back and go back to simpler times. While the two signature Eternity fragrances have remained the same, the brand has released a new line extension, a floral, fruity scent for Eternity Eau Fresh for women and an earthy Eternity Cologne for men, priced at $95 and $85, respectively. Released on a rolling basis since Aug. 1, the perfumes are currently available at Macys. On the business end, the strategy for all fragrances during the pandemic has been to prioritize the icons of the market, said Simona Cattaneo, president of luxury brands at Coty (whose portfolio includes Calvin Klein Fragrances). Eternity is one of the icons. As consumer behavior is changing, in a crisis such as the one we are living in, you go back to icons, you go back to safe productsmeaning valeur sure, the icons of the market that you know, Cattaneo continued, calling from Paris. For today, [with the new campaign], we needed to bring forward a more joyful, playful and optimistic expression of this eternal love. As a real-life, modern and multifaceted couple, the Burnses bring authenticity to the story, she added. Its not scripted. Fragrance has maintained a very important category, Cattaneo said. Its true that were going through difficult times, unprecedented times when it comes to fragrances. What is interesting is that e-commerce is booming, even for fragrances. And we are creating the new norm. That includes exploring new options for in-store testing. As always in crisis, there are learnings, she continued. Though she stayed mum on details, she added: We are completely changing the consumer experience. Sign up for WWD's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. (Opalesque) The Internal Revenue Service has released new guidelines that will restrict the use of carried interest in tax calculations after an error in the 2017 tax cut bill. To read this article: Chief Minister Allays Concerns Over Visitor From Channel Isles Chief Minister Howard Quayle has moved to allay concerns over business trips between Guernsey and Jersey. Manx residents are able to travel to and from Guernsey without restrictions following the formation of an air bridge between the two Covid-free Islands. The first flights operated by airline Aurigny took place on July 22. However, some have voiced their worry over business visits to Guernsey from Jersey; with the latter having yet to be declared free of coronavirus. Mr Quayle says we effectively have a similar system in place for key workers wanting to come here: Media Howard Quayle By PTI MUMBAI: The decision to quarantine a Bihar Police officer, who reached Mumbai to supervise the probe being conducted by that state's police into the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput, is as per the Maharashtra governments directives, the city civic body said on Monday. The officer will have to make a formal request to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) authorities for relaxing the necessary quarantine period, it said. On Sunday night, Patna City Superintendent of Police Vinay Tiwari was quarantined by the BMC and his hand stamped indicating the isolation period till August 15 after he arrived here. He has been quarantined for 14 days at the State Reserve Police Force (SRPF) guest house in suburban Goregaon. Bihar Director General of Police Gupteshwar Pandey later alleged that Tiwari was "forcibly quarantined" by civic authorities in Mumbai. "IPS officer Vinay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from Patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11 PM today. He was not provided accommodation in the IPS mess, despite request, and was staying in a Guest House in Goregaon," Pandey tweeted. However, the BMC on Monday cited the Maharashtra's government directives, dated May 25, where rules for domestic travellers include necessary home quarantine, among others. "The BMCs P/south ward officials came to know about the domestic travel of a Bihar police officer and his staying at SRPFs group 8 guest house located in Goregaon (East)," the BMC said in a statement. "As per the directives, the BMC officials reached the guest house and informed the Bihar police officer about the directives of necessary home quarantine after such domestic travel, it said. "The officer will have to make a formal request to BMC officials for relaxing the necessary home quarantine period, the civic body said. Rajput, 34, was found hanging at his apartment in suburban Bandra on June 24. After Tiwari arrived at the Mumbai airport on Sunday, he told reporters that he was here to supervise his team and will probe all possible angles in the case. "Mumbai Police are probing the case as per their style and we will do so as per ours. If required, we will also record the statements of Bollywood celebrities whose statements were recorded by the Mumbai Police. " Mumbai Police, who are probing the case of Rajput's death, have so far recorded statements of nearly 40 people, including those from the actor's family, his cook and people from the film industry like filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, film critic Rajeev Masand, director-producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali and filmmaker Aditya Chopra. The Bihar Police team is probing a separate 'abetment to suicide' case on the basis of a complaint filed by the late actor's father in Patna last week. So far, the Bihar Police have recorded statements of 10 people in connection with Rajput's death. CHRISTIANSBURG Montgomery County officials have plans in place for the use of $1.8 million remaining in federal CARES Act funding. Among the items to be funded are additional personal protective equipment, sanitation supplies and more significant improvements related to social distancing. Among the improvements are a redesign of the treasurers office lobby, a kiosk to provide electronic payment options in the County Government Center lobby and a covered outdoor space for animal adoptions. For example, the covered space for animal adoptions will be a gazebo-like structure that will provide shelter during inclement weather, but still allow people to remain outdoors as they first meet and interact with the animals. Montgomery Countys Finance Director Angie Hill outlined the items to be covered with CARES Act money during the most recent Board of Supervisors meeting this past week. She, along with other senior county staff, also used the time to provide clarification on use of that funding. The CARES Act was passed in March to provide workers and institutions, among other recipients, with some financial relief amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Virginia received $3.1 billion, $1.3 billion of which has been awarded to localities. Montgomery County received $8.5 million, $2.4 million of which it kept, according to figures Hill presented this past week. The remainder of the countys CARES Act money was distributed to its two towns based on their population numbers and a regional task force that has provided much of the local response to the pandemic. Of the $2.4 million Montgomery County kept, $620,000 had already been used for personnel and expected items such as personal protective equipment, sanitation, telecommuting and measures for virtual board of supervisors meetings. Other items that Montgomery County plans to cover with the federal funding include an evaluation related to the air filtration system and touchless restroom fixtures and water fountain stations. With the town of Blacksburg spearheading the measure, there are also plans to provide grants to eligible small businesses and daycare facilities that have been financially impacted by the pandemic. Hill later clarified that the grants will primarily aim to help the businesses and daycare facilities cover expenses incurred directly as a result of conditions imposed by the pandemic. In a restaurant, for example, those expenses include personal protective equipment. Supervisors Todd King and Sara Bohn asked Hill about hazard pay, or increased compensation due to certain jobs requiring potential exposure to the virus. Hill said so far county employees cant collect hazard pay, an issue that she added is out of the localitys hands. Its not really our decision. Its what the guidance says so far, Hill said before later adding that the guidelines can change. Hill, however, did say federal funding can be applied for certain employees who are specifically assigned to duties linked to the COVID-19 response. She said that, for example, can be the overtime incurred by local police officers who were reassigned to work the testing sites across the area. Supervisors complimented staff on much of the upcoming plans and past months work in response to the pandemic. Concerned about COVID-19? Sign up now to get the most recent coronavirus headlines and other important local and national news sent to your email inbox daily. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Illustrative photo (Source: VNA) Accordingly, the firms assistance package includes seven remote body temperature monitoring devices, five Nihon Kohden patient monitoring devices, 20 Terufusion syringe pumps, and 10 tonnes of rice for Da Nang people in quarantine sites. The proposal was sent with a document on Singapores experience on fighting COVID-19 compiled by Douglas Foo, president of Khoo Teck Puat hospital, the biggest public hospital in Singapore. Foo said the experience is quite similar to current measures applied in Vietnam. He stated Vietnam is doing well in its COVID-19 prevention and control, particularly in quarantine work and tracing people visiting high-risk locations./. Cattle grazing a field razed by fire that also burned several thousands of hectares in Amazon forest (Reuters Connect) (Photo : Reuters Connect ) The number of fires in the Amazon region showed a dramatic increase in the Amazon region in July compared to July last year, according to official figures from Brazil. Brazil's National Space Agency revealed that there are 6,803 fires, a 28 percent increase. In July 2019, there were 5,318. Last month, the National Institute for Space Research (INPE) recorded 2,248 fires, compared to 1,880 fires recorded in the same month last year. Since the reports of increased fire last month, concerns are mounting that this year's fires would exceed the blazes from last year. In August 2019, fires peaked to 30,901, thrice the number recorded in 2018. READ: Deadliest Year for Environmental Defenders; 212 Death Toll in 2019 Alarmed by the numbers Erica Berenguer, an Amazon ecologist and a senior research associate at the University of Oxford, said that she was alarmed by the numbers as July is the burning season. "This is an indicator that the rest of the burning season is going to be very intense," she said. The science director of Amazon Environmental Research Institute (IPAM), Ane Alencar, shares the same concern, Ane Alencar. Last June, Greenpeace reports more than two thousand fires in Amazon, the highest in the past 13 years. The burning season lasts typically from June to September every year. The Amazon spreads on several South American countries, but 60 percent is in Brazil. It is the home of millions of species of flora and fauna and the home of millions of indigenous peoples. Cause of Fire Outbreaks In 2019, IPAM revealed that 33 percent of the fire outbreaks were from private lands, followed by areas with no specified land use. Alencar said that the fires in 2019 were not triggered by drought, but high deforestation levels as 2019 have not been particularly dry compared to previous years. This year, illegal loggers and farmers wanting to clear the ground quickly deliberately started the forest fires in the country. Agricultural and mining activities are encouraged by Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro as he believes that there should be more "development and economic opportunities" in the Amazon region. Bolsonaro criticized its environmental agency of the country for imposing excessive fines on his first year of office. A drastic decrease in penalties for environmental violations was imposed. The increasing number of fires corresponded with a sharp drop in penalties for environmental violations, while the environmental agency remains understaffed and underfunded. READ ALSO: Largest Meat Company JBS Linked to Amazon Farm Conducting Illegal Deforestation A Call for More Meaningful Actions Conservation groups accuse the government of inaction as concerns that another 2019 forest fire situation must not happen again. The pandemic is also worsening the situation as arson incidences are monitored less. Brazil is the second-highest coronavirus death toll in the world next to the US. The increased smoke could damage the breathing of virus patients. After the increased numbers of fires last year, Greenpeace cites that many investors, companies, and governments have expressed their concern about the destruction of the Amazon forest. They are sending a message that they refuse to do business with forest destroyers. Bolsonaro announced a fire moratorium for 120 days, but Greenpeace called the measure as "performative and inefficient." Greenpeace said that to protect Amazon and its peoples, the Brazilian government needs to increase environmental agencies' funding, strictly implement the environmental laws, and protect the Indigenous People's rights. READ NEXT: A River of Black Sludge With Debris Flooding Through Arizona Jaida Oates was 12 when she first watched Fruitvale Station, a biographical film about a young Black man named Oscar Grant who was killed by BART police in Oakland. It was a defining moment for the preteen the day she began to envision a career in criminal justice. Now, at 16, that mission is already becoming a reality. Jaida, an incoming junior at Rodriguez High School in Fairfield, is part of the inaugural cohort of Young Defenders, an internship program that pays high school students to learn and train at the San Francisco Public Defenders Office. I want to be a civil rights lawyer. Law is definitely my passion, Jaida said, adding that shes been inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement. This is exciting, because I can finally get my foot in the door with the things I want to do. The Young Defenders program officially begins Monday after virtual orientation last week. Its the latest expansion of San Francisco Mayor London Breeds 2018 Opportunities for All initiative, which places youth of all backgrounds into paid internships, employment training, and mentorships with businesses, nonprofits and city departments. San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju said the idea for an internship in his office was born out of what he called the George Floyd moment: The brutal Minneapolis police killing of Floyd, a Black man, on Memorial Day touched off a nationwide reckoning about police violence within communities of color, and galvanized a movement that is demanding change from governments. As calls to defund the police and invest in underserved communities exploded into a national rallying cry, Raju said he was brainstorming with Jeremiah Jeffries of the nonprofit Teachers 4 Social Justice on how to seize on the momentum. A collaboration with the Mayors Office, Human Rights Commission and Teachers 4 Social Justice put the pieces together in a matter of weeks. I think youth around the country are looking for a new way to look at criminal justice reform, and I think the Black Lives Matter movement is fueling that, Raju said. I think young people really want a way to be engaged, and this program is going to give them the opportunity to not just see the problem but be part of the solution. Over the next 40 weeks, the 25 chosen high school students will be given tasks like researching the law, performing technical work with paralegals, organizing files electronically, reading over materials for attorneys and fine-tuning their writing skills, Raju said. Theyll hear from guest lecturers, participate in projects like mock trials, and learn about the system through the lenses of investigators, IT workers, paralegals, social workers and attorneys. Some may have the opportunities to pitch in on actual cases. Many will also earn academic credit and receive the minimum wage for up to 15 hours a week. Because of COVID-19 concerns, the internship will be done remotely, at least for the time being. Typically when people say theyre interested in criminal justice, in the path seems to be police officer or probation officer, Raju said. But theres so much on our side that people just dont know about. Kate Munsch / Special to The Chronicle India Brar, a new Youth Defender and incoming sophomore at Phillip and Sala Burton Academic High School, scored an Opportunities for All internship for the second year in a row. She worked with Airbnb last year as part of the program. India, 15, said she was hoping to be placed in an area that worked with the criminal justice system, and thinks she may want to become a public defender one day. The teen said she sees a lot of bias in todays society, particularly based on skin color or class status. If you dont have enough money, youre not going to get the same amount of resources as someone who does have a lot of money, she said. If you are a white person, you might get completely different charges for the same crime that a person of color may have. I find that so unfair, and its sad, really. 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. In 2019, the first full summer of the Opportunities for All program, there were more than 3,800 total placements, officials said. The summer 2020 cohort has placed over 1,400 youth in internships. Breeds recently proposed budget builds in $5.5 million from the general fund to continue the Opportunities for All program over the next two fiscal years. This is the city, the school district and community-based organizations working together to do the most for young people, especially during this time, said Jeffries, who is a public school teacher and coordinator for Teachers 4 Social Justice. SF Young Defenders is a concrete example of where we should be reallocating funding to, away from policing and criminalization of youth, toward education and giving youth a foundation to build careers focused toward justice. In a statement, Breed said she knows firsthand how an internship can change the course of a young persons life. We created Opportunities for All to empower youth and give them a chance to learn new skills and build professional connections, while also getting paid for their time, she said. This program invests in communities that have historically been left behind, and opens up opportunities that otherwise would have been out of reach. Megan Cassidy is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: megan.cassidy@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @meganrcassidy Christians in northern have taken case of mass killings of their brethren to God in prayers as the authorities of the government have failed to protect them. The Christians under the aegis of the Christian Association of Nigeria in Kaduna State declared a non-denominational prayer and fasting rally to seek for God's intervention. Christians in some communities in the southern part of the state have been under incessant attacks of gunmen leading to death of many and sowing grief and fear in the communities. Kaduna state CAN Chairman, Reverend Joseph Hayab and the state Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party, Hassan Hyet, have faulted the government and security agencies for not doing enough to stop the killing of Christians in Southern Kaduna. They spoke on Sunday during the prayer session held at ECWA Church in the state capital to kicks-start the prayer for intervention of God. The CAN Chairman questioned the objectivity of Presidency which he said had turned into the mouthpiece of the bandits going by its recent statement on the killings. According to him, the attacks on mostly Christians communities in Southern Kaduna is nothing short of as an ethnic cleansing. Conflicts between mainly Christian popolation of Southern Kaduna and the Muslims in the state dates back to decades, but it appears to have additional dimension under administration of Governor Nasir El-Rufai, which has shown less sensitivity in handling the delicate relationship between the two religious groups in the state. But the Commander of Operation Safe Haven which is involved in the ongoing security operations in southern Kaduna and Platuea State, Major General Chukwuemeka Okonkwo, says the attacks are pure reprisals and counter reprisals carried out by the Fulani communities and Southern Kaduna natives, and therefore, has no ethnic agenda. He, however, added that enough is being done by security agencies to bring lasting peace to Southern Kaduna, while he also called on both parties to sheath their swords. Chhattisgarh Police has arrested a senior citizen (65) on charges of molesting five minors at his house in Balod district. He has been booked under Sections 375 (rape) and 354A (sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, and sent to judicial custody on Sunday. Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP), Balod, DR Porte said that the accused is a barber and used to live in a village under the jurisdiction of Arjunda police station. The minor girls used to visit the accused Rekhuram Sens house to watch television. He molested them between July 20 and 30, said the ASP. The incidents occurred in the afternoon, when most of the villagers would go to work in fields. No one was suspicious of his activities because he is a senior citizen, he added. The crime came to light on Saturday, when one of the rape survivors narrated her ordeal to a family member. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Ukraine is holding talks on the supply of the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as it comes to the market, Ukrainian Health Minister Maksym Stepanov has said. "We are actively pursuing a policy of agreements on the supply of vaccines to Ukraine, as soon as they appear, with almost all companies or alliances that have already come a long way and may produce a vaccine in the near future. We want Ukraine to be one of the first countries provided with vaccines," Stepanov said at a briefing on Sunday, August 2. He also recalled that four clinical trials of drugs that can be used in the symptomatic treatment of COVID-19 had been registered in Ukraine. According to Stepanov, the Ministry of Health of Ukraine monitors global trends in the treatment of coronavirus disease and, if necessary, includes the necessary drugs in the national COVID-19 treatment protocol. Ukraine reported 73,158 cases of COVID-19 as of August 3, including 990 new cases over the past 24 hours. Some 1,725 patients died of the disease and 39,543 recovered. op South Africa: Condolences for MP Peter Parliament Presiding Officers have extended condolences to the family and friends of Member of Parliament Zamuxolo Peter who passed away on Friday, due to COVID-19 related illness. Peter joined Parliament as a Member of the National Assembly after the 2019 general elections. He served in the Portfolio Committee on Tourism and Joint Standing Committee on the Auditor General. Parliaments Presiding Officers, led by Speaker of the National Assembly, Thandi Modise and Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, Amos Masondo, said the loss of another public representative to COVID-19, is heart-breaking. The Presiding Officers described Peter as a selfless and consummate servant who, despite being relatively new to Parliament, immersed himself well in the workings of Parliament and its constitutional functions. He was an asset to the committees he participated in, where he particularly demonstrated subject matter knowledge. He was passionate about rural tourism and was at the forefront of the vigorous pursuit of fearless oversight for the development of rural tourism as a catalyst for the rural economy. We will remember him fondly for his passion, dedication and hard work in the service of the constituencies he represented and the people of South Africa in general, the Presiding Officers said. The Presiding Officers reiterated their call to South Africans to remain vigilant and guard their safety against the virus by protecting themselves and their loved ones. Also expressing his sadness on the passing of Peter, Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Tourism, Supra Mahumapelo said, one could always count on Peter for assistance when assistance is required, and he would go an extra mile to ensure that the objectives of the committee were met. I remember when a particular radio station was looking for a Nguni speaking person for a radio show on tourism in traditional areas, Peter being committed to the transformation of tourism in villages, townships and small towns, stepped in and did a fine job of promoting the work of the committee. One of his ideals was to ensure that we have corrupt free governance in South Africa, and that we, as Members of Parliament, exercise our oversight mandate and hold the government accountable for its delivery of services to the people. The committee send its heartfelt condolences to Peters family, friends and his comrades, may his soul rest in eternal peace, Mahumapelo said. SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Ponddy Education Ponddy Education Inc., an industry leader in personalized language learning, announced today that it received its full accreditation from the Accrediting Commission for Schools, Western Association of Schools and Colleges (ACS WASC). The accreditation makes Ponddy one of very few online Chinese language programs in the US that have achieved this status and marks a significant step in Ponddys role as the leading enabler of Chinese online education worldwide. We are thrilled about receiving full accreditation through ACS WASC. It validates the integrity of the Ponddy program and enables individuals who want to learn Chinese online to earn a transferable credit, said Ponddys CEO, Franz Chen. Ponddys accreditation furthermore empowers schools and organizations that may want to but are unable to offer Chinese language courses to offer such courses through partnering with Ponddy. Through such partnerships, schools that don't have enough students, teachers or technical resources to offer a Chinese language course can immediately allow their students to take online classes with Ponddy and receive valuable high school transfer credits. Ponddy has been serving students of all ages for four years. The company is continually upgrading its online programs by designing smarter courses, improving instruction methodology, hiring the best teachers and following corporate governance. From its inception, the platform has been designed for efficient online learning via the internet, which makes it a viable learning channel during the pandemic for individuals, schools as well as corporations. To optimize teaching and make it more personalized, Ponddy has adopted AI-assisted technology that creates adaptive curricula and highly customized learning plans for each student. This technology has been shown to accelerate language training and make it easier and more engaging for students to learn. The Ponddy online program had characteristics of language immersion and a friendly user interface which makes learning Chinese for a beginner level student very easy, said Dustin, 19, a student from Rochester, NY. Theres nothing repetitive about Ponddys curriculum. I am always learning new things, added Holden, 17, from Norwalk, CT. Each of Ponddys online courses follows a specific pathway that leads the student up a gradual ladder of progress. To optimize learning, Ponddy teaches its students about the Chinese culture and covers current topics. I think my favorite thing is that a lot of the content covered in class was based on very relevant topics of the current world, said Kylie, 17, a student from Rocklin CA. The tutors Ponddy employs have been meticulously trained to specialize in online Chinese instruction. Over the years, they have developed courses that match the accepted standards of the US curriculum set by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). Ponddy has also been approved by the College Board to offer an online AP Chinese Language and Culture course*, which makes the students who complete the course eligible for transferable high school credits. As a purveyor of global language education, Ponddy aims to enable schools all over the world to easily expand their curricula by offering their students Chinese programs through a partnership. In this sense, the accreditation Ponddy received marks such a significant step in the companys growth and the realization of its mission. *AP and Advanced Placement are registered trademarks of the College Board. Used with permission. Contact info: Silicon Valley Headquarters: 1550 The Alameda, Suite 310, San Jose, CA 95126 https://ponddy.ai https://twitter.com/PonddyEducation https://www.linkedin.com/company/ponddy https://www.instagram.com/ponddyeducationinc/ Christians are forced to choose between faith and work or enlisting. Universities ban students from Sunday Mass. Party members cannot absolutely practise any religion. These are ways the Party defends itself from the growth of Christianity in China. Fr Domenico, a priest from the north of the country, describes the situation. AsiaNews's investigation into the situation of the Church in China continues two years after the signing of the provisional agreement. Rome (AsiaNews) In China one cannot be a civil servant and Catholic, nor can one join the military and be a Christian. These are but some examples of the persecution that takes place in the People's Republic and which seem to have worsened since China and the Vatican signed a provisional agreement on episcopal appointments two years ago, which should either lapse or be renewed in September. In his testimony, Fr Domenico, a priest from Northern China, lists the ways the church is controlled (CCTV cameras, registration, public security, etc.), apparently motivated by the discovery that Catholics and Protestants together outnumber the membership in the Chinese Communist Party. Fr Domenicos story is the fifth part of a series of investigative articles into the situation of the Church in China two years after the signing of the provisional agreement. Here are parts one, two, three and four. After the signing of the provisional agreement on episcopal appointments, the attitude and actions of the Chinese government towards religion can be summarised as follows: 1. Towards the faithful 1.1 Recording the number of believers at national level The faithful are required to provide their personal data, such as name, identity card number, gender, age, ethnicity, education level, address, etc. After obtaining this information, the Party and the government realised that the number of Catholics and Protestants far exceeds the number of Party members. This has raised great concern, like Herod fearing the baby Jesus born in Bethlehem. 1.2 Party members are strictly prohibited from holding religious beliefs. Party members are required to sign a pledge not to profess any religion; believers who are baptised in childhood and later enrolled in the Party must commit to no longer profess Catholicism, nor participate in religious activities. 1.3 Public servants and government officials who are not Party members, must sign a pledge not to profess any religion. Many believers who work for government agencies or public institutions betray their religion and abandon their faith for fear of losing their jobs. 1.4 Members of the Chinese Communist Youth League must abandon their faith or leave the League. 1.5 Children under the age of 18 are not allowed to profess a faith. 1.6 Religious believers are not allowed in the military. 1.7 Underground bishops, priests and nuns who are recognised by the government must first register with the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association (CPCA), back the independent and autonomous Church and take part in its religious activities. 1.8 Religious activity outside registered religious places are not allowed. 1.9 The Church cannot engage in educational activity. 2. Towards religious communities After vetting by the State Administration for Religious Affairs, the Civil Affairs Department can register branches of the CPCAs as a legal person at the national, provincial, county and city levels. However, two thirds of Catholic dioceses have not yet registered as a legal person. 3. Towards religious sites 3.1 To implement the "Four entrances" programme churches must bring in the flag, the central values of socialism, religious beliefs, and traditional culture. Under the Partys leadership, people must back the independent and autonomous Church and democratic principles, and defend themselves from the infiltration of foreign religious powers. 3.2 Many churches have been demolished, whilst others have had their religious signs, such as crosses and icons, removed. 3.3 In order to control all religious activities, the government requires churches to install CCTV cameras connected to the public security network. 3.4 Even registered churches are often shut down on pretexts like "the number of members is too small. In fact, small numbers are the result of local officials suggesting they "not register too many members. When this happens, the authorities can close churches down, claiming that they cannot be used with so few people. This is what happens in my county: registration, "four entrances", CCTV cameras, evangelisation ban among Party members and minors . . . Many Catholics who are public servants or government officials betray their religion and abandon their faith for fear of losing their jobs, but their hearts are in trouble. When Catholics want to join the military, and pass all the checks, they cannot do so if they say they are Catholic. In one case, a young Catholic man, who was baptised as a child, joined the Chinese Communist Youth League when he was in middle school. After enrolling in university, he was told to abandon his faith or leave the League, but since he was very attached to the faith, he decided to quit the League. One university banned Catholic students from attending Sunday Mass. In one diocese three churches were torn down and the cross in two others was removed. The government also closed two parishes on the pretext that they had "too few members". Father Domenico, priest, North China "Bright Pattern's Omnichannel Communication Interaction Platform paired with NCSi's deep service management knowledge provides a perfect combination to help you get more out of your current solution, allowing you to communicate on all voice and digital channels while providing advanced automation," said Michael McCloskey, CEO of Bright Pattern. Bright Pattern software dramatically improves the ROI of service management solutions with automated password reset, automated incident creation and resolution, status updates and notifications, voice self-service, and automated routing of all communications. The software also lets companies measure employee performance and customer satisfaction with advanced quality management features to improve every interaction. 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SOURCE Bright Pattern Related Links http://www.brightpattern.com Liberal National Party Queensland vice-president Cynthia Hardy has been voted in to the top job after the weekend resignation of former state party president David Hutchinson. Ms Hardy was elected Queensland party president in a virtual meeting held via Zoom on Monday evening, becoming the first woman to lead the organisational wing of the party. New acting President of the Queensland LNP, Cynthia Hardy. She beat former LNP Queensland president Gary Spence and Dr Bill Glasson, who tried to overthrow former prime minister Kevin Rudd in the seat of Griffith at the 2013 federal election. A party member since March 2009, Ms Hardy has been state electoral council chairwoman, state vice-chairwoman, south-west region chairwoman and party unit secretary. Betel leaves made of silver will be among the things which will be used in the groundbreaking ceremony for the Ram temple in Uttar Pradeshs Ayodhya on August 5. Five betel leaves (paan) made of silver have been sent to Ayodhya by the members of the Chaurasiya community from Varanasi. Betel leaves are considered auspicious and are included in many pujas in Hinduism. Nageshwar Chaurasia, president of Kashi Chaurasia Community, presented these betel leaves (paans) to members of the Vidwat Parishad, an organisation of intellectuals and scholars of Veda, Astrology, Paninian and Saskrit Grammar. These scholars left for Ayodhya today from Varanasi. Three noted scholars of Astrology and Vyakaran (grammar) will supervise the rituals of Bhumi pujan, the foundation stone-laying ceremony of Ram temple. The silver paan leaves have been donated by the Chaurasia community from Varanasi. The temple will be made from stones, without any iron and steel, the temple construction workshops supervisor had said last week. Anu Bhai Sompura, the temples construction workshop supervisor, said, I am working here for 30 years. The stones are here, other stones will come from Rajasthan. Plain stones will come and the cutting will be done here. We have two machines here that cuts stone. No iron will be used, wood, copper and white cement will be used, he said. Mahant Raju Das, from Hanuman Garhi Mandir, had said, Trust has decided the temple will be made of stones as the stones are long-lasting. Hanuman Garhi mandir is also made of stone which was built in 1164 AD. Gold, silver and copper which people will give would be put in the temples neev (foundation). Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to lay the foundation stone of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on August 5, according to Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, the president of the temple trust. The construction will begin after the ceremony in which chief ministers of several states, ministers from the Union Cabinet and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, among others are also likely to participate. In the movie Good Will Hunting, Minnie Drivers character, true to her British roots, was perplexed by Boston native Matt Damons use of the phrase take back. Used as in a take-back. Damons character said he feared Drivers character would want a take-back if he followed her to California. The IRS, true to its American roots, has been offering quite a few take-backs lately. Answering COVID-connected tax questions now carries the risk that the IRS will issue a take-back. And just about everything is COVID-connected. Earlier this COVID season I had a question about returning required minimum distributions (RMDs) from early in 2020. The question related to monthly RMDs taken from an IRA early in 2020. The CARES legislation eliminated RMDs for 2020, but a bit late for those who take monthly distributions and had started pre-CARES. I (correctly, at least at the time) answered that only one monthly RMD could be rolled back into the IRA without a tax effect following the CARES changes to the RMD rules. The tax law limits you to one rollover per 12-month period. This left those who started RMDs early in 2020 with taxable distributions that could have been avoided only with properly functioning crystal balls. And everyone knows you cannot predict the actions of Congress. The IRS has now issued a take-back. Anyone who had a distribution from a retirement plan that would have been a RMD apart from the CARES suspension of RMDs can now roll it back tax free through Aug. 31. The Aug. 31 or earlier rollover will not be a rollover for the one per 12-month rule. So even multiple RMDs can be rolled back provided it is by Aug. 31. How do you like them apples (a cultural reference tied to an earlier cultural reference)? This take-back applies only to what would be a RMD. So a 50-year-old who took a non-RMD distribution that cannot be rolled because the 60-day period has expired or because it would be a prohibited second rollover is out of luck (well, except as allowed by the special COVID positive or adverse financial consequence distribution rules). And for something completely different, the other day I was standing in line at the post office with about 15 of my closest friends, each of us looking like we were about to rob the place, and I (again) learned that tax questions can come my way at any time and in any place. A young man, which means younger than me, had waited 15 minutes to get to the counter to ask a simple question: which form does he fill out to notify the IRS that his address had changed? This did not go well for him. He was curtly told that IRS and the post office are two different creatures, albeit perhaps both creatures. He was made to leave by the walk of shame, sent back empty-handed to shelter at his (apparently new) home. Wheeling into action I caught him as he passed me. I have particular skills that may be of value to you, I said. If you have not yet filed your 2019 tax return, simply place the new address on that return and you are done, I said. Upon discovering that he had filed the return using the old address I remained imperturbable while informing him of a special IRS form to report such a change in ones status. A Google search led me to the special IRS number assigned to this reporting device a Form 8822. He asked where to send it. I told him the form would tell him. So I directed him to go home, print the form, fill it out, and go to the post office to mail it. The post office would get it to the IRS for sure, I said. He then thanked me and left the post office to go home to get the form to drop at the post office. Then I remembered that IRS is not opening mail such as the Form 8822 because of its own sheltered employees. I adjusted my mask and stared straight ahead. Im done with COVID tax questions. James R. Hamill is the Director of Tax Practice at Reynolds, Hix & Co. in Albuquerque. He can be reached at jimhamill@rhcocpa.com. THOUSAND OAKS (dpa-AFX) - AbbVie, Inc. (ABBV), Amgen Inc. (AMGN), and Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. (TAK) said Monday that they have enrolled the first patients in the I-SPY COVID Trial (Investigation of Serial Studies to Predict Your COVID Therapeutic Response with Biomarker Integration and Adaptive Learning) clinical trial. The three companies are members of the COVID R&D Alliance, a group of more than 20 of the world's biopharmaceutical and life science companies working to speed the development of novel antibodies, potential therapies and anti-viral therapies for COVID-19. The I-SPY COVID Trial is a collaboration between members of the COVID R&D Alliance, Quantum Leap, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or FDA. The trial is sponsored and managed by Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative. The trial will evaluate the efficacy of cenicriviroc, a chemokine (CCR2 and CCR5) dual-receptor antagonist; Otezla (apremilast), a PDE4 inhibitor; and Firazyr (icatibant injection), a bradykinin B2 receptor antagonist in severely ill, hospitalized COVID-19 patients who require high-flow oxygen. The I-SPY COVID Trial utilizes Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative's adaptive platform trial design, which is intended to increase trial efficiency by minimizing the number of participants and time required to evaluate potential treatments. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. The Socialist Equality Party calls on workers, young people and the poor to vote for our candidates in Sri Lankas national elections on Wednesday. The party is fielding a total of 43 candidates in the Colombo, Jaffna and Nuwara-Eliya districts. The SEP is the only party fighting for a unified movement of the working class, across ethnic lines, on a socialist and internationalist program in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the rising danger of dictatorship and imperialist war. The coronavirus, which has so far infected 18 million people and killed 690,000 internationally, has accelerated the crisis of world capitalism and produced an economic recession not seen since the World War II. Facing the emergence of mass resistance and revolutionary struggles, the ruling classes in every country are preparing military and fascist dictatorships to suppress this opposition. US imperialism is at the centre of this crisis. The Trump administration is taking police state measures aimed at crushing protests and has stepped up its military and political provocations against China, Russia and Iran. This is increasing the danger of a Third World War, with catastrophic consequences for mankind. The global crisis has intensified the economic, political and social turmoil in Sri Lanka. Workers resistance has erupted against the job and wage cuts and unsafe working conditions imposed by big business with the backing of the Rajapakse government. SEP member K. Kandeepan discusses partys program with Annfield estate workers About 400,000 jobs have been destroyed in the formal manufacturing sector, while the government imposes its austerity and privatisation policies and the cost of essentials increases. Last weeks strike by 10,000 Colombo Port workers in protest against the privatisation of the eastern terminal is just one indication of rising working class resistance. While the pro-capitalist unions shut down the strike yesterday, deep-going opposition that has accumulated over decades, including from the 30-year communalist war against the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, is rising throughout the island. The pandemic has exposed the ruthless class attitude of the Rajapakse government and the official opposition parties towards all working people. The government has rejected mass testing and claims lower infection rates in order to present a rosy picture of the real situation. Like its counterparts internationally, the Sri Lankan government has made private profit the priority, not the health and lives of working people. Responding to big business demands, President Rajapakse has directed public and private sector employees to go back to work under unsafe conditions, on lower wages and increased productivity targets. Sri Lankan authorities have also blocked the return of 40,000 Sri Lankan migrant workers from the Middle East, claiming they could bring the coronavirus. Determined to suppress the growing movement of workers, President Rajapakse and his ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) have intensified their efforts to secure a two-thirds parliamentary majority in order to rewrite the Constitution and give the president autocratic powers. His call for a strong government is a euphemism for a presidential dictatorship based on the military. Under bogus claims of fighting COVID-19, Rajapakse has elevated a host of generals into key positions, including the appointment of retired Major General Kamal Gunaratne as defence secretary. The opposition United National Party (UNP), Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB), Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and Muslim parties have no fundamental differences with the ruling regime. They participated in two all-party meetings called by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse, the presidents brother, and are backing all the administrations responses to the pandemic. On April 27, the UNP, SJB, TNA, Muslim parties and plantation unions promised unconditional support to the president if he reconvened parliament. Fearful of the eruption of revolutionary working class struggles, the opposition political parties are backing Rajapakses moves towards dictatorship. None has opposed the militarisation of the administration. SJB leader Sajith Premadasa has declared that he can work with President Rajapakse if the SLPP forms the government after the elections. The TNA has declared that it wants to win more parliamentary seats in order to continue negotiations with the Rajapakse government. In other words, the TNA, in exchange for a few sops from Rajapakse, will back his dictatorship. UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe has declared that if his party wins, he will negotiate another International Monetary Fund loan to solve the crisis. In other words, he is willing to impose more austerity, as did his previous government. At the same time, the SLPP and its chauvinist allies have stepped up their anti-Muslim and anti-Tamil rhetoric in an attempt to divide the working class and channel social tensions along ethnic lines. The Tamil and Muslim parties have responded with their own communal and nationalist propaganda. The NSSP is contesting the elections on a joint ticket with the pro-imperialist UNP. Its leader, Vickramabahu Karanarathne, is on the UNP slate for Kalutara district in the Western Province. The FSP is promoting a fake left front of trade unions and other left groups to block any independent movement by the working class. The party has written twice to the prime minister during the pandemic offering to assist the government to face the crisis. The SEP in the past six months, in line with its co-thinkers in the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI), has deepened its struggle against the government and big business attacks on the working class and the poor. From the outset, the SEP issued a statement on March 28 titled Coronavirus crisis in Sri Lanka: A program for the working class, which called for the unity of Sri Lankan workers as part of the global efforts of the working class to fight the pandemic. On April 18, our statement Sri Lanka: Oppose return to work in unsafe pandemic conditions! No to job destruction! rejected Rajapakses demand for a return to work. On June 2, the party issued another statement titled: SEP (Sri Lanka) calls for action committees to counter threat of pandemic and defend jobs. On June 9, the SEP issued the statement Sri Lankan president establishes military taskforce: Another step toward dictatorship, warning the working class about Rajapakses anti-democratic measures. The Rajapakse government has responded by targeting our party. This was sharply expressed in the visits by army intelligence officers in the military-occupied North to the homes of our party candidates, including the leader of the SEPs Jaffna district slate. An effective fight against the pandemic, as the ICFI explained in a June 23 statement, requires the systematic coordination of economic, scientific, industrial and information resources. This essential international collaboration is impossible under capitalism, which is rooted in the nation-state system. The ruling class of every country is preoccupied, above all, with its own national interests Control over the response to the pandemic must be taken out of the hands of the capitalist class. Mass action by the working class, coordinated on an international scale, is necessary to bring the pandemic under control and save millions of lives that are now at risk. The fight against the pandemic is not only, or even primarily, a medical issue. It is, above all, a matter of social and political struggle. This is the basis of the fight being waged by the SEP in Sri Lanka. We call upon workers to establish independent action committees and safety committees to fight for a safe workplace, defend jobs, working conditions and wages and defeat the attack on democratic rights. The working class must seize the banks, the large corporations and the plantations and reorganise the economy rationally, not for profit but for the benefit of the majority. This is the only answer to the dictatorship being prepared by Rajapakse and his SLPP. This program is inseparably connected to the fight against imperialist war. In 2015, Washington orchestrated a regime-change operation in Sri Lanka to oust Mahinda Rajapakse, who was leaning towards Beijing, and install Mithripala Sirisena as president, who integrated Sri Lanka more closely into the US war drive. The Trump administration has repeatedly warned President Gotabhaya Rajapakse that he must maintain close military relations with the US. The Sri Lankan working class must unite with its international class brothers and sisters to build an anti-war movement on the basis of socialist policies. Against the nationalist filth of reactionary bourgeois parties and their pseudo-left hangers on, the SEP and its sister parties in the ICFI fight for this revolutionary internationalist program. We urge workers and youth to join the SEP to build it as a mass party of the working class and take forward the fight for a Sri Lanka-Eelam Socialist Republic, as part of a Union of Socialist Republics in South Asia and internationally. Hanoi should focus on improving the infrastructure system coupled with hastening administrative reforms to attract investment flow. - Photo cafef.vn According to Deputy Head of the Party Central Committee Economic Commission Nguyen Huu Nghia, Hanoi plays an important role in the northern key economic region and in improving regional links. It was necessary for the capital city to promote regional economic development, Nghia said, adding that the focus should be placed on attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) on offer due to the global shift of value chains pushed by the COVID-19 pandemic. An important factor was developing the urban infrastructure system, said Tran Quoc Cuong, Deputy Head of the Central Commission for Internal Affairs. Cuong said Hanoi had seen considerable infrastructure development in recent years, mostly in the capital citys northern and western parts. Cuong said more attention should be paid to developing the infrastructure system in the citys south. He said that Hanoi should consider building an airport in the southern region to reduce the pressure on Noi Bai International Airport and contribute to developing the economic triangles Hanoi Hai Phong Quang Ninh and Hanoi Thanh Hoa Nghe An. Nguyen Mai, Chairman of the Vietnam Association of Foreign Investment Enterprises, said what was important to Hanoi now was not how much FDI the city attracted but the quality of the investment. To compete with other countries in attracting FDI, Mai said Hanoi in particular and Vietnam must hasten administrative reforms to create favourable conditions for investors. In addition, Hanoi must focus on developing a skilled labour force and tackling traffic congestion and environment pollution, Mai said. Besides, attention should be paid to improving the infrastructure system and building industrial zones with developed infrastructure systems and logistics services. According to the municipal Department of Planning and Investment, the capital city is now more selective in attracting FDI. The capital city is developing FDI attraction strategies for specific markets, with the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, the US, the EU, Australia and New Zealand key target markets. Hanoi will focus on calling for FDI in large-scale projects and highly competitive products and those which promote small and medium-sized enterprises to engage in the global value chains of multinational corporations, through which, the city will receive technology transfer and could develop the support industries, Nguyen Manh Quyen, Director of the municipal Department of Planning and Investment, said. Hanoi aims to attract US$30-40 billion in registered FDI in 2021-25 period with the disbursed capital of around $20-30 billion. Projects which used advanced technologies to increase operational efficiency and protect the environment are set to make up 50 per cent in 2025 and 100 per cent by 2030. The local procurement rate is expected to increase to more than 30 per cent in 2025 and 40 per cent in 2030. Quyen said the capital would enhance investment promotion, support investors in implementing their projects and protect their rights. In addition, e-government would be developed to reduce time and costs for enterprises while the city would act to increase investors access to land. He said the city was speeding up the construction of infrastructure in industrial zones and industrial clusters. Statistics showed the city had 17 industrial zones and 107 industrial clusters. Hanoi has been among top localities in attracting FDI in recent years. In 2018 and 2019, the capital city ranked first out of 63 provinces and cities in Vietnam in FDI attraction with registered capital of $7.5 billion and $8.67 billion, respectively. In the first seven months of this year, Hanoi attracted around $2.82 billion in FDI and the city expects to attract $5 billion for the full year. Pompeo's remarks followed reports that Microsoft is in advanced talks to buy the US operations of TikTok New York: President Donald Trump plans to take action on a what he sees as a broad array of national security risks presented by software connected to the Chinese Communist Party, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday. Pompeo's remarks followed reports that Microsoft is in advanced talks to buy the US operations of TikTok, which has been a source of national security and censorship concerns for the Trump administration. These Chinese software companies doing business in the United States, whether it's TikTok or WeChat there are countless more ... are feeding data directly to the Chinese Communist Party, their national security apparatus, Pompeo said on FOX News channel's Sunday Morning Futures. Could be their facial recognition patterns. It could be information about their residence, their phone numbers, their friends, who they're connected to. Those those are the issues that President Trump has made clear we're going to take care of. Trump had said on Friday that he would soon ban TikTok in the United States. A federal committee is reviewing whether that's possible, and its members agree that TikTok cannot remain in the US in its current form, because it "risks sending back information on 100 million Americans, said treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin. We all agree there has to be a change...everybody agrees it can't exist as it does," Mnuchin said Sunday on ABC News This Week with George Stephanopoulos. As speculation grew over a ban or sale of the social media's US business, TikTok posted a video on Saturday saying: We're not planning on going anywhere. TikTok's catchy videos and ease of use has made it popular, and it says it has tens of millions of users in the US and hundreds of millions globally. Its parent company, Bytedance Ltd, launched TikTok in 2017. It bought Musical.ly, a video service popular with teens in the US and Europe, and combined the two. It has a similar service, Douyin, for users in China. But TikTok's Chinese ownership has raised concern about the potential for sharing user data with Chinese officials as well as censorship of videos critical of the Chinese government. TikTok says it does not censor videos and it would not give the Chinese government access to US user data. The president, when he makes his decision, will make sure that everything we have done drives us as close to zero risk for the American people, Pompeo said. That's the mission set that he laid out for all of us when we get... we began to evaluate this now several months back. We're closing in on a solution. And I think you will see the president's announcement shortly. The debate over TikTok parallels a broader US security crackdown on Chinese companies, including telecom providers Huawei and ZTE. The Trump administration has ordered that the US stop buying equipment from those providers to be used in US networks. Trump has also tried to steer allies away from Huawei over concerns that the Chinese government has access to its data, which Huawei denies. Nineveh Plains Transitional Justice Report: July COVID-19 continues exacerbating the challenges already faced by the Nineveh Governorate. Lockdown restrictions have increased expenses and worsened living conditions. Militias continue as an unwelcome presence, and concern was raised that ISIS is using lockdown for recruitment purposes. Residents continue asking the question of whether immigration or returning home is preferable. From an investigative point of view, some argued that returning is necessary for holding those who committed genocide accountable. Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that by the end of July, there had been 1061 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Nineveh Governorate, with 355 still active and 43 fatalities. This represents a significant increase compared to the previous month. Most residents are mandated to take a COVID-19 test to pass through militia checkpoints, an expense of approximately $42 per individual. While not consistently applied, this cost is in addition to whatever type of financial exploitation or harassment already experienced by several residents when passing between different militias. "I think the checkpoints generally in the Nineveh Plains treat you based on your infection, but it is not easy to move around. Maybe the coming days will be better," says one resident. A recent report by WHO explains how these challenges are made worse by COVID-19. "(Nineveh's) living conditions have worsened as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak and the subsequent containment measures, including lockdown." These problems were echoed by many residents, several of whom point out that corruption remains a common thread. A Karamlesh resident shared, "the situation in the Nineveh Plains generally, and Karamlesh specifically, suffer instability and uncertainty. Everyone agrees there is a lack of improving the economy, security, and job opportunities. Also, everyone agrees on having bad public services and no electricity part of the time. Organizations did their part by doing relief, but protecting civilians from the militias is the responsibility of the government." "There are two things that can be added to the sufferings this year," said a Qeraqosh healthcare worker. "All the world is suffering the pandemic, but we in the Nineveh Plains are suffering the pandemic in addition to a collapse of public services and the economy. There is no electricity, only 4 hours (on) some days. I believe the governments in Baghdad and Erbil agreed on corruption. Since 2014 till now, we couldn't experience a good day." COVID-19 containment measures have hindered, but not fully prevented, counter-terrorism activities directed towards remnants of ISIS in Nineveh. Preemptive operations remain ongoing. A United Nations Security Report about the status of ISIS noted that the pandemic impacted the extremists' ability to travel. The report warned that ISIS "has had a captive audience during lockdown and if it has successfully used this for planning and recruitment purposes, it is possible that the easing of restrictions in non-conflict zones will see a spike in attacks once targets become available again." The future role of the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS remains uncertain. The US has emphasized that the anticipated resurgence of ISIS has not materialized in Iraq. The US announced a change of role as the coalition draws down, and that the US will transition so that its primary concern is high-level advisory work. There are attempts at encouraging Iraq to take more ownership in efforts combatting ISIS. Polarization Meanwhile, the question of immigration was once again on the minds of several residents. Some remain strongly opposed to immigration. A member of the Nineveh Plains Protection Unit shared, "I can see Christians can get their rights as immigrants in Iraq from governmental and non-governmental organizations as well. Actually, they got much more than what they lost. The only difference is that no one has enabled them to have a source of income. Government, churches and organizations gave them their daily bread, but none helped them to have their jobs again. But still, that's not a reason to leave your land." Others disagree. "COVID-19 made the lack of healthcare, public services, ambulance, and emergency response clearer in Iraq," warns one local. "Much more clear than what we all know. After the declaration of liberation of Mosul, people are between two bad choices: staying in a country with no services and no security, or leaving to an unknown." A report published by Aid to the Church in Need further highlights these differences of opinions. The report warns that unless Nineveh's security, infrastructure, and economic challenges are resolved, the Christian population in Iraq could fall to only 23,000 within the next four years. The report said that most Christians have considered leaving the country, and as many as 87% of the respondents feel unsafe. A significant disparity between how Muslim and Christian Iraqis view their personal security was observed. Nearly a quarter of the survey's Christian respondents stated that they had been negatively impacted by a militia, often citing their experience as falling within the categories of psychological trauma, displacement, theft, and threats of violence. Observing the situation of Christians, a resident shared, "Christian immigration in Iraq started even before ISIS. We can't forget the hundreds of thousands who left Iraq after 2003 because Iraq does not have rules to protect humans, especially minorities. Violence was the promoted language by the governments who came after 2003. I am a Muslim, but I have lived with my Assyrian friends for many years. I think they don't deserve anything but peace. They are the best humans I have ever met!" Investigation Investigative efforts remain challenged under the conditions of COVID-19. A mass grave was found near Mosul. It extended hundreds of meters and is believed to hold the remains of 600 Shi'ite prisoners executed by ISIS in 2014. Yet another grave, or execution site, was discovered in Sinjar. A Yazidi who returned home this month explained, "After I returned to the home, I cleaned it. While cleaning the bathroom, I saw the remains of a person in the sewage basin, and I think it belongs to one of the ISIS victims of the Yazidi genocide in 2014." He continued, "I called the sub-district police station and informed them of what I saw. According to the Ba'aj Court order, the Talazir police station took the remains and sent them to the forensic medicine in Nineveh Province, then to the capital of Baghdad." In both situations, the theme of return underscores how the graves were discovered. The Director of Yazidi Organization for Documentation explains how return and investigation are necessarily integrated. He stated, "Return is a positive and important thing for several reasons. Firstly, adherence to the land. Secondly, the protection of evidence. Thirdly, the protection of mass graves from tampering and sabotage." He continued, "Fourthly, in order to compel the state to implement transitional justice measures for victims and their families, which include considered compensation, restitution of victims, reparation, and protection... holding the perpetrators accountable with the participation of victims and their families in the trial procedures that take place for those responsible. Return compels the state to take these steps." Jean Castex has called on France "not to let down its guard" in the fight against the coronavirus in order to prevent the need for a new national lockdown, as concern grows over a recent surge in cases, notably across the north of the country. Speaking this Monday in the northern city of Lille, the premier said, "The virus has not gone on holiday and neither have we. "We need to protect ourselves against this virus, without putting a stop to our economic and social life, in other words avoiding the risk of a new generalised lockdown." France, which has registered over 30,000 deaths from the Covid-19 pandemic, recorded thousands of new cases last week prompting some regions to reimpose local restrictions. "We are seeing an increase in the figures for the epidemic which should make us more attentive than ever, and this is the case," Castex said. "I call on every French person to remain very vigilant. The fight against the virus depends of course on the state, local communities, institutions, but also on each of us," he added. Masks compusory in some public areas The city of Lille, a bustling hub close to the Belgian border, has been the subject of particular concern with the prevalence of the virus doubling to 38 people per 100,000 people over the last two weeks. In parts of the city it is now obligatory to wear masks outside to limit the contagion, a move that local authorities can now impose themselves. As well as in Lille, outdoor mask wearing is now obligatory in parts of the northern region of Mayenne, as well as the popular coastal summer tourist destinations of Biarritz, Saint-Malo and Le Touquet. The French government has been determined to encourage citizens to go on holiday this year, especially within the country, in the hope of giving some help to an economy that contracted by almost 14% in the second quarter of 2020. But officials are keenly aware that the opening up brings risks and the government has been troubled by scenes especially of young people partying at close quarters outdoors in holiday spots. Story continues Decentralised EU contact tracing app in development Meawnhile, the European Commission said on Friday it had signed a contract for SAP and Deutsche Telekom to build a software platform that would enable national coronavirus contact tracing apps to 'talk' to each other. The hope is that creating the gateway would help slow the spread of Covid-19 by making it possible to log encounters between people while they are travelling abroad and issue push warnings should one of them be infected. The two companies, designers of Germany's Corona-Warn-App which has been downloaded 16 million times, proposed creating the gateway in June, when EU member states agreed on a framework to make the apps interoperable. Nine EU states - Austria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Latvia and Poland - have launched apps based on a technology standard developed by Alphabet's Google and Apple. Another nine countries plan similar apps that will use this "decentralised" design, where phones that come into close contact share random identifiers and receive risk notifications if a contact later tests positive for Covid-19. The common design means these apps are compatible and could easily be plugged into the gateway. However, experts say it will be more challenging to hook up the French and Hungarian apps, which store data on central servers. France's Stop Covid app, which was launched in June, has been critiscised for being inefficient in tracking the spread of coronavirus, too expensive to develop and mainly ignored by the French with only 3% of the population having downloaded the application. President Trumps insouciant rampage of lawlessness continues. His latest violationless serious than some of his actions, but more brazen than mostinvolves his desire to give Anthony Tata a senior job in the Pentagon without the Senates consent. Tataa retired brigadier general, Fox commentator, and rabid conspiracy theoristwas about to undergo Senate confirmation hearings on Thursday to become undersecretary of defense for policy. Suddenly the hearing was canceled, possibly because he was likely to be rejected. Advertisement Then on Sunday night, it was announced that Tata would be appointed to a job described as Performing the Duties of Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Policy. Trump wanted to make him acting undersecretary, replacing the current acting undersecretary, James Anderson, but the law forbids making anyone an acting official unless he or she already holds a Senate-confirmed post, which Tata does not. (He has been serving as a consultant to Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, but that doesnt count.) So instead, he gave Tata this ungainly, unprecedented, and legally dubious title. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Trump has said he prefers to have acting secretaries in his cabinet because their status gives him more flexibilitymeaning they are not accountable to Congress and are likely to be particularly loyal to him, since theyre still auditioning for the job. Advertisement Advertisement Tata would give him more flexibility still. In various tweets and talk-show appearances, he has slandered former President Obama as an anti-Semite, a Manchurian candidate, and a terrorist leader peddled the notion that a deep state cabal is undermining Trump; accused former President Bill Clinton of sedition and/or treason; and denounced House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as a violent extremist. When he was first nominated for the Pentagon job, he apologized for some of these statements, saying they are not indicative of who I am. The Pentagons policy secretariat has been raggedy since the onset of Trumps presidency, a prime victim of his former chief strategist Steve Bannons goal of pulling off the deconstruction of the administrative state. Trumps first defense secretary, retired Gen. James Mattis, didnt actively collude in the dismantling, but he paid little attention to the Pentagons civilians, so let it happen. By the time Mattis quit in December 2018, many civilians had departed or been fired; vacancies were slow to fill, as only people who voted for Trump were even considered for the jobs. Advertisement Advertisement The whole point of the deconstruction was to centralize the powers of the federal government in the Oval Office as much as possibleand, to the extent that departments and agencies were still needed, to make their senior officials as loyal to the president as possible. Esper started out as a lapdog of a secretary, though hes steadily been dissenting from Trump ever since the protests over George Floyds police killing.* Advertisement Advertisement Some fear that Trump is planning to fire Esper and replace him with Tata as acting defense secretary. If Tata had been formally nominated and confirmed as undersecretary, this could have happened; it may even have been Trumps plot. But under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, only an official who holds a Senate-confirmed position can be promoted to acting secretary. Its not even clear whether Tata could become acting under secretary if James Anderson, the current acting under secretary, resigned. Probably not, asagainTata doesnt hold a Senate-confirmed position. For that matter, he doesnt hold any sort of official position. As his title puts it, he is merely Performing the Duties of the deputy undersecretary. Advertisement Advertisement However, Trump might legitimately be wondering if anybody in Congress cares about the fine print of the law. For instance, his secretary and deputy secretary of homeland security, Chad Wolf and Ken Cuccinelli, are both acting; neither has been confirmed by the Senate. (Wolf had been confirmed as undersecretary, allowing him to be promoted to acting secretary. Cuccinelli isnt even an acting deputy; like Tata at the Penagon, he is Senior Official Performing the Duties of deputy secretary.) Under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, an acting secretary cannot serve in that role for longer than 210 days. Yet Chad Wolf has been acting DHS secretary for 263 days, meaning that all of his decisions for nearly the past two monthsincluding the ordering of armed border guards to battle protesters in Portlandare illegal. Yet nobody has raised a fuss about this. Nobody has demanded Wolfs ouster. So maybe Trump thinks he can get away with moving Tata up the ranks, even to become acting secretary of defense. The Republican-controlled Senate would have to take active steps to block Trumps desires. That would be a first. They might soon be tested. If so, their place in history, and maybe their seats in the Senate, willand shouldbe on the line. For more of Slates news coverage, subscribe to What Next on Apple Podcasts or listen below. On this weeks episode of Working, June Thomas spoke with audio drama writer, director, and producer John Scott Dryden. London-based Dryden started his career at the BBC and has created dozens of adaptations and radio plays there. More recently, his work has appeared in podcast form, including Tumanbay and Passenger List. They spoke about the evolution of Drydens career, his preference for recording audio dramas on location, and his recent reverse adaptation, turning Tumanbay into a book, The City of a Thousand Faces. This partial transcript of their conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. Advertisement June Thomas: Youve made a lot of audio dramas outside the U.K. with a U.K. audience in mindmany in India, but in Egypt, Japan, Hong Kong, and lots of other places as well. Rather than recording in a studio in London, you make a story set in India, etc. Can you give us an example of a specific time when youve done that? Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement John Scott Dryden: One is the project I met my wife, Ayeesha Menon, on. It was an adaptation of the novel A Suitable Boy, by Vikram Seth. I could have made it in the U.K. There are loads of Indian-origin actors here, but somehow I felt that if I went to India itself, where a lot of the acting community speak English, there would be something more authentic about it. Advertisement Advertisement The other thing with the actors here is that theyre British. Their origin is Indian, and sure, they can put on an Indian accent, because maybe their parents have slight Indian accents, but it just wouldnt feel quite as real. They would be putting on the Indian accent that they think the British audience would expect to hear. Whereas if we did the whole thing in India, it would feel much more authentic. And then the other part was the sound of India. If wed done it in the U.K., we probably would have ended up using loads of sound effects. It was a hugely complex production, because its got a very large cast. We decided to do it in a real location. So we found this huge house that was pretty run down, and we had the actors living there. We all lived there for three weeks, and we were recording there as well. But it was one of those experiences where we just became a community, and weve all stayed in touch since. The production team are still my producers in India. As a result of that, we probably do at least one project a year in India. Advertisement Advertisement You mentioned accents, and Id love to dig into that a bit more. One of your most popular adaptations was of Robert Harris novel Fatherland. Its set in Germany, but obviously its in English. So how did you think through the accent question? Advertisement Advertisement This is almost the opposite of working in India. There was no real benefit in making Fatherland in Berlin and having German accents. Its a thriller set in a fictional future. Everyone is supposed to be German, except for an American journalist caught in Berlin. I was determined not to have any kind of German accents, because I thought it would trip up the actors all the time. We should just do it with all the actors normal voices. Advertisement Advertisement We also decided to record it all on location in London. We said, London is Berlin. Simple as that. We went to real places, like, if it was set in a pub, we would go and record in a pub. If theyre walking down the street, theyd be walking down a London street. But we wouldnt pretend. We would simply say, This is Berlin, and wed do nothing else to create that illusion. That was enough. With a thriller story, thats all you need. Advertisement Advertisement We havent yet talked about your most recent epic, Tumanbay, which recently aired its final episode in the U.K. (Season 4 is coming to the U.S. soon.) How did you decide on the accents in that show? It seemed like many of the actors were doing a bit of an accent, but it wasnt an Egyptian accent or a Greek accent. What was your thinking? Advertisement Its a historical fantasy, so we didnt have to be accurate to anything in particular. But it is loosely inspired by the Mamluk dynasty that ruled in Egypt between the 13th century and 1509. So there was always a kind of Egyptian tone to it. But I have to say, it was pretty random. It was down to the actors, and most of them are just speaking in their normal voicesits got a very multicultural cast. The story works great for that because in the time that it was inspired by, Cairo was the most powerful city on the planet, and it attracted people from everywhere because of its wealth. Artists would come from Europe. There would be tradespeople from India. Mercenaries went there to earn their fortune. Its a great setting for drama because you can cast anyone, and theyll fit in. To listen to the full interview with John Scott Dryden, subscribe to Working on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or listen below. Actress Rhea Chakraborty, who has been missing over the past few days, reportedly left her building in the middle of the night along with her family. Rhea went missing soon after she was charged with abetment to suicide, along with six others, in an FIR lodged by late actor Sushant Singh Rajput's father KK Singh. Sushant was found hanging at his residence on June 14, and the postmortem report stated the actor had committed suicide. Now, a report by Republic TV has claimed that the supervisor of Rhea's building has said that the actress along with her parents and brother left three days ago in the middle of the night, according to hindustantimes.com. "They left together in a blue car and had big suitcases with them," the supervisor was reportedly quoted as saying. The supervisor added that Sushant had not visited Rhea's residence for some time now. Sushant's father KK Singh had filed his FIR at Rajiv Nagar police station in Patna a few days back. Rajiv Nagar police station in-charge Yogendra Ravidas said that Sushant Singh Rajput's father KK Singh has accused six people, including Rhea, for abetment to suicide in his complaint (FIR number 241/20). On July 31, a video of Rhea went viral, where she was seen addressing the allegations against over the death of her boyfriend Sushant. In the clip, she said: "I have an immense faith in God and the judiciary. I believe that I will get justice. Even though a lot of horrible things have been said about me in the electronic media, I will refrain from commenting on the advice of my lawyer as the matter is sub judice." "Satyamev Jayate. The truth shall prevail," Rhea concluded. Google launched the Pixel 4a today and unlike previous years, there is only one version available. Thats one size, one color. No Pixel 4a XL, no Clearly White or Purple-ish option we can only get it in Just Black. But there is going to be another variant available in the fall and thats the Pixel 4a (5G). There will also be a 5G-ready version for the upcoming Pixel 5, which Google hadnt officially announced until today. The 5G devices will start at $499, making them among the cheaper 5G phones around. Vice president of product for Google Hardware Brian Rakowski told Engadget that there will be millimeter wave and sub-6 configurations for people in the US. Though the company isnt ready to share many other details on the phones just yet, but wanted to let people know these 5G devices are coming in the fall. If someone wants to wait for 5G, theyll know about what its going to cost or the starting prices, Rakowski said. Considering how much we liked the Pixel 4a, especially its affordable $350 price, it will be interesting to see how these 5G devices will perform. Rakowski said that eliminating color and size variants has helped keep the Pixel 4a production costs low, and given that the device has already been delayed due to the pandemic, its easy to see why the company couldnt release the 5G variant at the same time as the original. The companys been able to use its software to make less-expensive hardware run like flagships, and its likely that despite the low starting price, the Pixel 4a (5G) and Pixel 5 could deliver premium experiences. Still, we cant say until we learn more and get units in hand, so stay tuned for the details when Google launches these guys in the fall. Nippon Life India Asset Management Ltd (NAM India), the asset manager of Nippon India Mutual Fund (NIMF), has appointed Parekh Ashvin as an independent director on the NAM India board for a five-year term. Parekh has more than 40 years of experience in business and operational strategies in banking, insurance, asset management and para-banking Institutions across the Indian subcontinent, the US, Europe and Australia. The news comes on the day the company announced the launch of a multi-asset fund. The Nippon India Multi Asset Fund (NIMAF) is an open-ended scheme and will provide a one-stop asset allocation solution across asset classes. The New Fund Offer (NFO) opens on August 7, 2020 and closes on August 21. Asset allocation is the key to long-term wealth creation. Over the last decade we have seen divergent returns among asset classes and hence have different levels of risk. The Nippon India Multi Asset Fund will provide a one-stop solution to investors looking to have a diversified and balanced portfolio," Nippon India Mutual Fund ED and CEO Sundeep Sikka. The funds investment objective is to generate long term capital appreciation by investing in a diversified portfolio comprising of equity and equity-related securities, debt & money market instruments and Exchange Traded Commodity Derivatives and Gold ETF. The fund will invest 50 percent of its assets in Indian equities,20 percent in international equities, 15 percent in commodities and the remaining in Debt & Money Market Instruments The minimum investment required is Rs 5,000 and in multiples of Rs 1 thereafter. The fund will be managed by heads of the respective asset classes Manish Gunwani, CIO Equity Investments, NIMF, Amit Tripathi CIO - Fixed Income,NIMF, Vikram Dhawan Head - Commodities, NIMF "Our fund investment strategy consists of asset allocation beyond equity & debt covering commodity as being an important tool for diversification and allows many investors to venture into a diversified and asset class for long term wealth creation," Sikka added. Nippon Life India Asset Management (NAM India) has appointed Parekh Ashvin, as Independent Director on the board of directors of Nippon Life India Asset Management Limited for a term of 5 years. Mr. Parekh has more than 40 years of rich experience in Business & Operational strategies in Banking, Insurance, Asset Management and Para-banking Institutions across the Indian Subcontinent, US, Europe and Australia America is way behind on building high-speed rail. While nations like China and Spain have thousands of miles of high-speed rail in operation and are building thousands more all we've got is Amtrak's D.C.-to-Boston Acela Express, with its average operating speed of 70 mph.Money is not the biggest problem, nor is lack of consumer demand. There have been federal allocations, and increasingly commitments by private investors, that aim to connect America's major cities by high-speed rail. The issue is space: The lines cannot be built because there's no designated right-of-way for them.I have four recent examples, all with varying degrees of right-of-way trouble. California is the noted public one. Parts of its $98.5 billion project are under construction, but the full line connecting Los Angeles and San Francisco won't be completed in the foreseeable future due to political haggling, contracting cost overruns and, you guessed it, right-of-way issues. The state has had difficulty buying and assembling land, which doubled the project's real-estate costs along its San Joaquin Valley portion.In Texas, a company called Texas Central Partners LLC wants to build a high-speed rail line connecting Dallas and Houston. Dubbed the Texas Central Project , some of it would run along existing highway and freight rail lines, but a portion of the route will have to be acquired through eminent domain. Because the rail line would be privately run, this would mean condemnations of private property for the gain of private interests. This has caused the project to face legal battles; first planned in 2013, it won't be completed until 2026, if at all.A third example is more promising: Florida's Brightline train . Virgin Group and Fortress Investment Group have already built a passenger line, maxing out at 79 mph and mostly using existing, upgraded track, that connects Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. The investors have built residential towers along the route, imitating a common "value capture" city-building strategy that occurs abroad. Virgin wants to expand Brightline with higher-speed lines to Orlando, Disney World, Tampa and eventually Jacksonville, and is negotiating with the Florida Department of Transportation and the Central Florida Expressway Authority about leasing space along Interstate 4.A fourth and potentially successful example is the XpressWest train that would connect Victorville in Southern California with Las Vegas. Also managed by Virgin Group, the high-speed rail project will run along the median of I-15 in California, thanks to a lease the firm recently entered into with the California Department of Transportation. Stuck in planning and financing hurdles since 2005, XpressWest's anticipated completion date is in 2023.The public-private negotiations of right-of-way found in the latter two examples could be replicated nationwide. In fact, this is how America used to operate. Early railroads including the first transcontinental one were built with the help of federal land grants that provided contiguous right-of-way. Private companies then built and operated the lines, creating explosive service growth and making America a world leader in the industry.When automobiles replaced railroads as the favorite passenger-transport option, the federal government facilitated this by funding interstate highways. The right-of-way clearance measures were often extreme whole neighborhoods were destroyed but while this episode is a stain on America's urban planning history, it did produce an efficient transport network that helped the country grow.For high-speed rail, there could be just as much effort to provide right-of-way, and it wouldn't be nearly as disruptive. In fact, much of the right-of-way has already been cleared for the aforementioned roads and freight rail, and new passenger bullet trains could be built along these routes. It's just a matter of having private and public bureaucracies recognize this adjacent space and issue RFPs for it to be leased.Brightline and XpressWest are early examples of how this could look, but they're just the start. Private investors have expressed interest in building high-speed rail between Baltimore and Washington Portland, Ore., and Seattle , and D.C. and New York City . These projects could, theoretically, happen along highways that are already connecting the cities. It's time to make room for them.GoverningGoverning (Photo : REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke) SpaceX owner and Tesla CEO Elon Musk arrives on the red carpet for the automobile awards "Das Goldene Lenkrad" (The golden steering wheel) given by a German newspaper in Berlin, Germany, November 12, 2019. (Photo : REUTERS/Aly Song) Tesla Inc Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk is seen on a screen during a video message at the opening ceremony of the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai, China July 9, 2020 Elon Musk, one of the top billionaires in the world that founded and made CEO of tech companies like SpaceX and Tesla, has his own personal school. Yup, that's right! Musk has a school on his own that explains how artificial intelligence is use or how its made. For as young as one-year-old, children can enroll in his non-regular school. Shockingly, one of its major difference to regular schools is that there will be no grades required during the semester. Wait, what? Introducing Ad Astra Before we even heard about Elon Musk school, we all know something will be different from this school. And we're not mistaken! In 2015, Elon had an interview with a Chinese media team wherein he told everyone about the school he has been operating for a year. It was called 'Ad Astra,' or means 'to the stars.' This school is made for young children to learn about artificial intelligence, creating robotics, and other stuff. Interestingly, Ad Astra is not made out of pushing grades, but only for children to enjoy creating stuff out of ordinary. So if your kids wanted to create flamethrower out of recycled metals, the Elon school is where they should be at. In his interview, Elon said that Ad Astra is, of course, not made out of conventional schooling. He said that the school accommodates up to 40 students now, along with five of his sons. One of the students is even the world's youngest best violinist. Most of the students from the school are children of SpaceX staff. In a Business Insider report, they detailed how the schooling was different in Ad Astra. First, there are no grades to monitor or record at the school. All children that are ages seven up to 14 are teamed up in order to test their skills with scores on their works, not letters based on their performance. "There aren't any grades, making all of the children go in the same grade at the same time like an assembly line," he said. Secondly, children can go out of their school anytime they felt like it. There are no mandatory classes that should be attended in Ad Astra. Instead, if the kids don't feel good about taking a particular subject, they can easily opt-out of the class. Elon Musk hates regular schools Contrary to what's expected, Elon hates attending regular schools. According to his interview, he doesn't like going to conventional schools since he felt 'tortured' being there. This was also the main reason why he thinks of creating his own school. "The regular schools weren't doing the things that I thought should be done. So I thought, well, let's see what we can do," said him. The report said that one day a week of online lessons in Ad Astra may cost $7,500 at least. Are you still interested to enroll? ALSO READ: Elon Musk's Mysterious Neuralink Chip Could Make You Hear Things That Were Impossible to Hear Before 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. An Islamic human rights organization, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has rejected the examination timetable recently released by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) for the conduct of the 2020 West African Secondary School Certificate Examinations (WASSCE). WAEC scheduled the examinations to begin on Tuesday, August 11 but MURIC said the timetable is exclusive, sectional, parochial, insensitive, and provocative because it clashes with the period of Friday Jumuah prayers. The group further called the schedule an invitation to anarchy, designed to cause pain to Muslim candidates. The group stated its position in a press statement issued on Monday by its director and founder, Ishaq Akintola. The group said, WAEC has again fixed some of its subjects for the period of the Muslim Friday Jumuah prayer in its examination which begins next week Tuesday 11th August, 2020. These are papers that Muslim candidates are also expected to take. The implications are very serious. WAEC is deliberately creating a wedge between young Muslims and the mosque. WAEC is making it impossible for Muslim youth to worship. The examination body is encroaching upon Allah-given fundamental rights of Muslim candidates to access freedom of religion as guaranteed by Section 38 (i) & (ii) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. At best, the examination body is reducing the chances of good performance among Muslim candidates. A quick glance at the timetable recently released by WAEC shows that there are at least three clashes between examination periods and Muslim prayers on Fridays: Management-in-Living (2 pm, Friday 14th August, 2020); Literature-in-English (2 pm, Friday 21st August); Health Science (1.30 pm, Friday, 4th September). This timetable is exclusive, sectional, parochial, insensitive and provocative. It is an invitation to anarchy. It is designed to cause pain to Muslim candidates. It is therefore the handiwork of sadists and anarchists. It smirks of an anti-Muslim machinery oiled by the passion for hate and injustice. This is in spite of efforts made by us to guard against this kind of clash. It will be recalled that MURIC issued a proactive press statement on Tuesday 23rd June, 2020 under the caption Consider the Friday Question in Your Timetable: MURIC Tells WAEC. This press release was expected to remind WAEC of the need to avoid the present controversy. But WAEC ignored it. The examination body cannot claim ignorance of this reminder because it was well published by the media. We are perturbed by WAECs recalcitrance. The fact that the examination body ignored the above advice shows that it deliberately targets Muslims for persecution. It inflicts unbearable psychological trauma on young Muslim candidates. It is unacceptable. This has to stop. There is also enough evidence that this is not the first time WAEC will fix examinations during the Muslim prayer period on Friday. MURICs struggle with WAEC over the Friday question is of great antiquity. Unfortunately WAEC does not appear ready to learn from history. We will cite at least two past clashes and our interface with the examination body. The timetable clashed with Jumuah service in 2015 and MURIC cried out thereby forcing the examination authority to adjust its timetable. Again in 2018 WAEC reenacted the same scenario. MURIC kicked again and WAEC adjusted its timetable It was due to this constant occurrence that we took a proactive step two months ago by cautioning WAEC not to allow its timetable to clash with the Jumuah period this year but the leopard refused to change its skin. Is WAEC deaf? How can a public institution be so insensitive? What have the Muslims done to deserve being treated like blacks in apartheid South Africa? We wonder why it should be so difficult for WAEC to leave out three hours only (from 12 noon to 3 pm) on Fridays in its examination timetable to allow Muslims to worship. Muslim candidates need three hours because the prayer usually starts around 1 pm. They need at least one hour to get to the mosque, one hour for the service inside the mosque and another one hour to return to the examination hall. Muslims everywhere in the world do not joke with the Friday Jumuah prayer. This special weekly prayer has divine and scriptural basis in Quran 62:9-11 and any attempt to circumspect it by any means constitutes a challenge to divine authority. Justice also demands that the Muslim prayer period be respected by all, especially by WAEC because the Christian Sunday remains sacrosanct. Perhaps WAEC examinations should be held on Sunday morning if it will not respect the Muslim prayer period. What right does WAEC have to force Muslim candidates to write examination during Friday prayer time when the examination body does not fix its examinations on Sunday to disturb Christian worship? Is WAEC deliberately destabilizing Muslim candidates? How can a Muslim candidate be in the right frame of mind to sit for an examination slated for 2 pm on a Friday when he must be in the mosque from 1 pm to 2.30 pm? What is WAECs gameplan? Is WAECs timetable planned by double agents? MURIC calls the attention of the Federal Government and the Ministry of Education to WAECs excesses. Muslim candidates should not be blamed if they refuse to write examination under duress. Any examination that infringes upon freedom of religion is ultra vires, unlawful, illegal, illegitimate and unconstitutional. Candidates for such examinations acting alone or in conjunction with their parents have every right to use every lawful means to stop the examination. WAEC is therefore invited to take notice of impending action by Muslim candidates unless it adjusts its timetable to accommodate Muslim Jumuah service during the coming examinations. Muslim candidates must be given three hours every Friday. This is non-negotiable. Nigerian Muslims will liberate themselves from slavery, serfdom and religious apartheid if government is lackadaisical. The only thing MURIC opposes is violence. Our message to WAEC is very clear and simple: We warned you early enough but you decided to dare Nigerian Muslims with your satanic timetable. We are returning it back to sender. Adjust your timetable and stop provoking Muslims forthwith. Let the Muslims go. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates Young people violating 'one country' principle have gloomy future: Carrie Lam Global Times By Xu Keyue Source: Global Times Published: 2020/8/2 14:12:56 Carrie Lam, Chief Executive of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR),said that some young people have wrongly got the idea that opposing the local or central government will help them, and warned that if they violate the "one country" principle, their future could be gloomy. According to Hong Kong local media, Lam said in an interview on Saturday that since the national security law for Hong Kong was implemented a month ago, an enforcement mechanism has been put in place. She said she would not disclose details of how the law is being enforced, but notes that, "in short, we are acting in accordance with the law." Lam said some young people in recent years have gotten the wrong idea that opposing HKSAR government or central government is the way out. "It's not the way out," Lam said, noting that, "as a special administrative region of China, Hong Kong has much room for development under the principle of 'one country, two systems.' But if people violate the principle or trample on the core principle of 'one country,' their future could be gloomy." Last year, Hong Kong was plunged into chaos by prolonged protests, which saw many young people taking to the streets and behaving in a radical manner. About 60 percent of the protesters are under 30 years old, media reported in August 2019, citing a study. Violent tactics included blocking the airport, vandalizing the Hong Kong Legislative Council building and insulting the Chinese national flag and emblem. In addition to her comments about Hong Kong's youth activists, Lam explained the reason for postponing September's Legislative Council (LegCo) election, which is now scheduled for September 5 next year. She cited the current COVID-19 situation as severe, pointing out that it threw the HKSAR government's ability to conduct a safe election into doubt. The Hong Kong Electoral Affairs Commission confirmed her view that there would be many risks associated with carrying out the election at this time, and pointed out that many voters said they could not return to Hong Kong to vote due to border restrictions during the pandemic. Lam reiterated that the postponement was a major and difficult decision, given that public safety and the fairness of the election were her primary concerns, not political considerations. "There are wins and losses in elections," Lam added, saying that despite the HKSAR government expecting the pro-establishment camp to lose in last year's district council elections, they went ahead regardless. "Therefore, we will never find ways to obstruct an election due to being afraid of losing," she said. Lam also noted that opinion polls show more than half of the public support postponing the election. Hong Kong on Saturday reported 124 confirmed local transmissions, bringing the total confirmed COVID-19 infections to 3,397. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Coast Guard on Saturday urged commercial and recreational boaters in New York, Connecticut and New Jersey to prepare for possible high surf, dangerous rip currents, heavy wind, heavy rainfall, and coastal flooding from Hurricane Isaisas, which has the potential to impact the region. The storm, which snapped trees and knocked out power in Bahamas on Saturday, was churning toward the Florida coast and was expected to reach the Northeast by Tuesday. Heavy rain and strong wind gusts have been predicted. Captains of the Ports of New York and Long Island Sound both encouraged boaters to be proactive and prepare for the impending weather. Recreational boaters were urged to pull small boats out of the water and secure any gear. Owners of large boats were urged to move the vessels to inland marinas and pull trailer-able boats from the water, storing them in locations not prone to flooding. Storms such as this can be unpredictable, and it is important that both commercial mariners and recreational boaters prepare accordingly, said Capt. Jason Tama, Sector Commander for Sector New York, in a written statement. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters New York Hurricane New Jersey Connecticut At age 93, Giuseppe Paterno gave himself a pep talk, and it was the push he needed to go back to school. Paterno lives in Palermo, Italy, and is a retired railway worker. Growing up, his family was poor, and he only received a basic education. An avid reader his entire life, he earned his high school degree at age 31, and in 2017, finally decided to enroll in college. "I said, 'That's it, now or never,'" Paterno told Reuters. He signed up for classes at the University of Palermo, focusing on history and philosophy courses. "I understand that it was a little late to get a three-year degree, but I said to myself, 'Let's see if I can do it,'" Paterno said. He used a typewriter for his assignments, and read from books he could hold in his hands, not digital copies. Last week, the 96-year-old grandfather graduated first in his class with top honors, becoming Italy's oldest ever university graduate. He may be finished with his courses, but Paterno's not done learning, and plans on spending his days writing and revisiting "all the texts I didn't have a chance to explore further." The way he sees it, "knowledge is like a suitcase that I carry with me. It is a treasure." More stories from theweek.com Why Obama still drives Republicans nuts The most damning inside portrait of the Trump administration yet Trump uses charts to defend his COVID-19 response, shrugs about John Lewis, in freewheeling Axios interview Teachers, support staff at more than 35 school districts across the US protest against reopening while COVID-19 surges. Teachers and support staff at more than 35 school districts across the US are protesting against the reopening of schools while COVID-19 is surging in many parts of the country. WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said there might never be a silver bullet for the new coronavirus, despite the rush to discover effective vaccines. More than 18 million people around the world have been diagnosed with the new coronavirus as of Monday. Almost 11 million have recovered and more than 690,000 have died. Here are the latest updates: Monday, August 3 23:18 GMT Students return to school in parts of Germany Children have returned to school in the northeastern German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the first in the country to start the new school year following nationwide shutdowns at the height of the coronavirus pandemic in March, according to AP news agency. Federal Education Minister Anja Karliczek has advocated mask requirements inside school buildings. But the school system is largely a matter for the 16 state governments in Germany, and as students returned to class in cities like Rostock and Schwerin on Monday, regional officials had not yet implemented such a rule. Since schools largely closed down in mid-March, parents, teachers and children have eyed the reopenings warily. Many children voluntarily wore masks Monday as school began, and several schools implemented their own mask rules and handed them out to children who forgot them. 19:34 GMT California governor says cases, hospitalisations, trending down The governor of California has said that rates of new COVID-19 cases, hospitalisations and intensive care unit admissions were all trending down in the state, according to the latest analysis. Governor Gavin Newsom said in a briefing that the states Central Valley agricultural hub was still being hit disproportionately hard by the pandemic. 19:20 GMT Italy survey suggests coronavirus six times more prevalent than official data Almost 1.5 million people in Italy or 2.5 percent of the population have developed coronavirus antibodies, a figure six times more than official numbers reported, according to a survey from statistics agency Istat. The survey by Istat and the health ministry, was based on antibody tests conducted on 64,660 people. The survey found marked local differences with the northern region of Lombardy, where the epidemic first broke out in February, showing 7.5 percent of the population had tested positive for coronavirus antibodies compared to just 0.3 percent in the southern region of Sicily. 18:55 GMT South African corruption watchdog probes COVID-19 tenders South Africas anti-corruption watchdog has said it was investigating irregularities in coronavirus-related tenders, the latest in a series of scandals that trade unions said showed the governments failure to tackle graft. The probes by the Public Protector come soon after investigators launched separate inquiries into the procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE) in Gauteng province, the countrys economic heartland. News reports have alleged that politically connected individuals have milked the state for millions during the coronavirus pandemic. 18:40 GMT UK reports second-highest COVID-19 cases since June The UKs health ministry has reported 938 new cases of COVID-19, the second-highest daily total since June, taking the total number of positive test results to 305,623. The most recent peak in cases came on July 29, when health ministry data show there were 995 positive tests, the highest number since June 16. 17:45 GMT France sees a rise in number of patients in ICU units France has said the number of people in intensive care units for COVID-19 stands at 384, compared with 371 on Friday, the second time in a week that figure has increased after declining for 16 weeks. In a statement, health authorities reported another 29 deaths from the disease, bringing the total to 30,294. 17:35 GMT US parents struggle as schools reopen amid coronavirus surge Many school districts around the United States had offered parents a choice of at least some in-person classes or remote instruction. But an uptick in COVID-19 cases in many states has prompted districts to scrap in-person classes at least for the start of the school year, including in Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Washington. Read more here. Paul Adamus, seven, waits at the bus stop for the first day of school on Monday, August 3, 2020, in Dallas, Georgia, the United States [AP Photo/Brynn Anderson] 16:55 GMT Teachers protest across US over reopening schools Teachers and support staff at more than 35 school districts across the US are protesting against the reopening of schools while COVID-19 is surging in many parts of the country. They are demanding in-person classes not be held until scientific data supports it, safety protocols such as lower class sizes and virus testing are established, and schools are staffed with adequate numbers of counsellors and nurses, according to a website set up for the demonstrations. Teachers are also demanding financial help for parents in need, including rent and mortgage assistance, a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures, and cash assistance. 16:49 GMT Chief of staff to Brazils Bolsonaro tests positive Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaros chief of staff, Army General Walter Souza Braga Netto, has tested positive for COVID-19, his office has said, becoming the seventh Brazilian minister to have contracted the disease. Braga Netto is doing well and has no symptoms, the office said in a statement. He will remain in isolation until a new medical evaluation is carried out, and will continue to work remotely. Last week, Bolsonaros wife and one of his ministers tested positive for COVID-19. Bolsonaro also contracted the disease but his latest test showed he was no longer infected. 16:36 GMT French city tells shoppers: wear masks outside or pay fine French Prime Minister Jean Castex urged people not to let down their guard in the fight against COVID-19 as one of Frances biggest cities ordered people to wear masks outdoors in busy pedestrian streets. The virus is not on holiday and neither are we, Castex said on a visit to Lille, where police on Monday gained the power to levy a 135 euro ($158.45) fine on anyone not observing the new rule. 16:00 GMT Spain reports 968 new cases, total exceeds 288,000 Spain has reported 968 new coronavirus infections in the past day, showing a slower pace of contagion than last week when the country reported more than 1,000 new cases for three days in a row. 15:47 GMT Some COVID-19 survivors suffer psychiatric disorders, Italian study says COVID-19 survivors suffer higher rates of psychiatric disorders including post-traumatic stress (PTSD), anxiety, insomnia and depression, according to a study conducted by San Raffaele Hospital in Milan. The survey showed that more than half of the 402 patients monitored after being treated for the virus experienced at least one of these disorders in proportion to the severity of the inflammation during the disease. It was immediately clear that the inflammation caused by the disease could also have repercussions at the psychiatric level, said professor Francesco Benedetti, group leader of the Research Unit in Psychiatry and Clinical Psychobiology at San Raffaele, in a statement. Based on clinical interviews and self-assessment questionnaires, physicians found PTSD in 28 percent of cases, depression in 31 percent, anxiety in 42 percent of patients and insomnia in 40 percent, and finally obsessive-compulsive symptoms in 20 percent. 15:42 GMT Gambian ministers test positive for COVID-19 Three cabinet ministers in Gambia have tested positive for COVID-19, the presidency has said. President Adama Barrow is in self isolation for the next two weeks, the presidency said last week, after Vice President Isatou Touray tested positive. Now, finance minister Mambureh Njie, energy minister Fafa Sanyang and agriculture minister Amie Fabureh have also been infected by the virus, the presidency said in a statement late on Sunday. 14:48 GMT Norway suspends cruise ships with more than 100 people on board from disembarking at ports Norway will stop all cruise ships with more than 100 people on board from disembarking at Norwegian ports in the wake of the outbreak of COVID-19 on a Hurtigruten cruise ship, the Norwegian health minister has said. The new rules will initially apply for 14 days, Bent Hoie said. They will not apply to regular ferry traffic, both domestic and international. Read more here. The new rules will initially apply for 14 days, Norways Health Minister Bent Hoie said, and will not apply to regular ferry traffic, both domestic and international [Morris MacMatzen/Getty Images] 14:34 GMT Indias Modi set to visit temple site despite minister having COVID-19 Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend a foundation-laying ceremony for a Hindu temple on Wednesday, organisers have said, even though his interior minister has contracted COVID-19. Amit Shah, who is Modis top lieutenant as well as Indias interior minister, was admitted to a private hospital near Delhi on Sunday, four days after attending a cabinet meeting which the prime minister presided over. But preparations are continuing for Modi to visit a temple that is being built in honour of Hindu god-king Ram in the northern town of Ayodhya, said the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, which is driving its construction at the site of a mosque that was razed nearly three decades ago. 14:20 GMT Spain to roll out COVID-19 app twice as effective as human tracers in pilot Spain aims to roll out a COVID-19 contact-tracing app across the country in September after saying that a pilot showed it could detect almost twice as many potential infections as human trackers during a simulated outbreak on a tiny island. In the absence of a vaccine or cure, states are deploying Bluetooth wireless technology to log contacts and alert people when someone they have been near tests positive. Spain used a new system developed by Google and Apple which holds data on individual devices to ensure privacy, to build an app it tested on La Gomera, an island next to the tourist hotspot of Tenerife in the Canary archipelago, in July. 13:43 GMT White House, Congress face tough week of aid talks Congressional Democrats and Trump administration officials face increasing pressure to come up an agreement on coronavirus aid legislation on Monday, after missing a vital deadline to extend relief benefits to tens of millions of jobless Americans. Top Democrats in Congress and top representatives of President Donald Trump were due to meet in the US Capitol to resume talks aimed at breaking the deadlock, after reporting progress over the weekend. But the two sides remained far apart, with top Republican lawmakers on the sidelines of the negotiations. Hi, this is Mersiha Gadzo in Toronto, Canada taking over the live updates from my colleague Linah Alsaafin in Doha, Qatar. 12:33 GMT Indias Wockhardt strikes deal to supply COVID-19 vaccines to UK Indian drugmaker Wockhardt Ltd will supply millions of doses of multiple COVID-19 vaccines, including that being developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, under a deal with the UK government. The company has reserved fill-and-finish capacity the final manufacturing step of putting vaccines into vials or syringes and packaging them as part of the agreement, it said. Fill finish is a critical step in the process to get the vaccine in a form to be given to patients. The agreement with Wockhardt will boost our capability to ensure that, Kate Bingham, chair of UK Vaccines Task Force, said in a statement. 11:25 GMT WHO: There may never be a COVID-19 silver bullet The World Health Organization has warned that despite hopes for a vaccine, there may never be a silver bullet for coronavirus, and the road to normality will be long. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and WHO emergencies head Mike Ryan exhorted all nations to rigorously enforce all health measures, Tedros telling a virtual news briefing that face masks should become a symbol of solidarity around the world. A number of vaccines are now in phase three clinical trials, and we all hope to have a number of effective vaccines that can help prevent people from infection. However, theres no silver bullet at the moment and there might never be. Read more here. 10:55 GMT Greece makes masks compulsory on ship decks after COVID-19 spike Greece will make mask-wearing compulsory on the decks of ferries sailing to its islands, extending the requirement beyond interior spaces after a recent spike in infections, a government spokesman said. Last week, Greece made mask-wearing mandatory in all indoor public spaces and also in outdoor spaces where proper distancing cannot be observed. The new measure will go into effect from Tuesday until August 18, as the summer holiday season hits its peak. 09:38 GMT Norways Hurtigruten halts cruises after COVID-19 outbreak MS Roald Amundsen, operated by Norways Hurtigruten, leaves a port in Tromso, Norway, after its crew members were diagnosed with COVID-19 [Terje Pedersen/NTB Scanpix/ via Reuters] Norwegian cruise line Hurtigruten is halting all its expedition cruises until further notice following an outbreak of COVID-19 on one of its vessels last week, the company said. At least 40 passengers and crew from the MS Roald Amundsen cruise liner have so far tested positive for the coronavirus, public health officials said on Sunday. Our own failure, as well as the recent rise in infections internationally, have led us to halt all expedition cruises in Norwegian and international waters, Chief Executive Daniel Skjeldam said in a statement. 08:55 GMT Top Indian ministers in hospital as virus cases breach 50,000 for fifth day Indias interior minister Amit Shah and the chiefs of two big states Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh have been hospitalised with COVID-19 as the countrys daily cases topped 50,000 for a fifth straight day. The country reported 52,972 new infections in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 1.8 million the third-highest in the world after the US and Brazil. With 771 new deaths, the COVID-19 disease has now killed 38,135 people in India. 08:05 GMT Data leak reveals Iran cover-up on COVID-19 deaths: BBC A BBC Persian service investigation has found the number of deaths from COVID-19 in Iran is nearly triple what Irans government claims. The governments own records appear to show almost 42,000 people died with COVID-19 symptoms up to 20 July, versus 14,405 reported by its health ministry. The number of people known to be infected is also almost double the official figures: 451,024 as opposed to 278,827. 07:40 GMT Melbourne to close retail, scale back other industries until mid-September Australias second-biggest city has announced new restrictions on sectors including retail and construction as it tries to contain the spread of a resurgent coronavirus. From Wednesday night, Melbourne will close retail, some manufacturing, and administrative businesses as part of a six-week lockdown, which is expected to hit 250,000 jobs, roughly the number already impacted. Meanwhile, the state of Victoria declared a state of disaster on Sunday due to a surge in community transmissions. 07:06 GMT Poland to check virus regulations followed in shops Poland has made wearing face masks mandatory in public [File: Hannibal Hanschke/Reuters] Polands health minister said police and health authorities would start checks in shops this week to see if people are following regulations to keep their mouths and noses covered. This week we are starting inspections in shops (to see) whether clients are wearing masks, whether the staff are wearing masks, Lukasz Szumowski told Polish public radio. 06:20 GMT Vietnam PM says early August decisive time to avert large-scale virus spread Vietnams Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said early August would be a decisive period for preventing large-scale coronavirus spread, which has re-emerged after more than three months. We have to deploy full force to curb all known epicentres, especially those in Danang, state broadcaster VTV quoted Phuc as saying. Phuc said this current wave of infection could have a more critical impact than the previous one and ordered officials to both contain the spread and maintain supply chains. Hello, this is Linah Alsaafin in Doha taking over from my colleague in Kuala Lumpur, Ted Regencia. 05:06 GMT Singapore to make travellers wear electronic tags to enforce quarantine Singapore will make some incoming travellers wear an electronic monitoring device to ensure compliance with coronavirus quarantines as the city-state gradually reopens its borders. From August 11, the devices will be given to all travellers coming from a select group of countries who will be allowed to isolate at home rather than at a state-appointed facility, Reuters news agency said. The travellers are required to activate the device upon reaching their home and must acknowledge all notifications received on the device. Attempts to leave home or tamper with the device will alert the authorities. 04:22 GMT US registers more than 45,000 new COVID-19 cases, 420 deaths The United States has registered at least 45,688 new cases as of the end of Sunday, raising the total to 4.68 million from the previous day of 4.64 million, according to the latest Reuters tally on Monday. Reuters also reported at least 420 new deaths during the same 24-hour period, raising the total to 155,343, compared to 154,923 the previous day. 04:03 GMT Honduras extends coronavirus curfew for another week Honduras will extend its coronavirus curfew for another week through to August 9 in an effort to curb the pandemic, Reuters reported, quoting the countrys security ministry. Honduras first imposed a curfew, in effect between 5pm (23:00 GMT) and 7am (13:00 GMT), in March. 03:48 GMT Germanys confirmed coronavirus cases rise by 509 to 210,402 The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 509 to 210,402, Reuters reported on Monday, quoting the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases. The reported death toll rose by seven to 9,148, the tally showed. 03:18 GMT Sri Lanka polls to go ahead despite spread of coronavirus Parliamentary elections will go ahead in Sri Lanka on Wednesday despite coronavirus fears. Voters will wear masks, carry their own pens and maintain physical distancing for the poll, which has been postponed twice because of the pandemic. Votes will be counted on Thursday. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa hopes to tighten his hold on the nations fractious politics in an election that could elevate his brother and allow the two to change the constitution if they prevail. Sri Lanka has reported 2,816 infections and 11 COVID-19 deaths as of Sunday. The totals are lower than in neighbouring South Asian countries, held in check by a strict lockdown since March. Sri Lankas main opposition party leader Sajith Premadasa, centre, waves to supporters during the last day of campaigning in Colombo [Chamila Karunarathne/EPA] 02:31 GMT Coronavirus outbreak in Xinjiang subsides, 28 new cases reported An outbreak in Chinas far northwestern region of Xinjiang is still subsiding, with 28 new cases reported Monday, according to AP news agency. The 590 cases so far have been concentrated in the capital, Urumqi, where authorities have conducted mass testing, cut public transport, isolated some communities, and restricted travel. 02:15 GMT South Korea reports 23 new COVID-19 cases South Korea has confirmed 23 new cases 20 from overseas and three local transmissions amid a downward trend in the number of locally infected patients, AP reported. The cases announced on Monday by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention took the countrys total to 14,389 cases and 301 deaths. Health authorities consider imported cases less threatening to the wider community as they enforce two-week quarantines on all arrivals from overseas. 02:00 GMT Australias Melbourne braces for more business closures as tougher restrictions bite Australias second-biggest city, Melbourne, entered its first day of tougher restrictions to contain a resurgent coronavirus, Reuters reported. State premier Daniel Andrews was expected to announce measures around business closures later on Monday. The state of Victoria declared a state of disaster on Sunday and imposed a nightly curfew for the capital as part of the countrys harshest movement restrictions to date, a move backed by the federal government. Supermarkets will remain open along with restaurant takeaway and delivery services, but some other businesses will be asked to shut down. Schools will move to remote learning from Wednesday. 01:15 GMT Pope appeals to political leaders create jobs Pope Francis has called on politicians to create jobs so economies can relaunch from the lockdowns imposed to combat the pandemic, according to AP news agency. The pope, speaking after the traditional Sunday blessing, said without work, families and society cannot go forward It requires lots of solidarity and lots of creativity to resolve this problem. The popes remarks follow a week in which officials released statistics showing a record plunge in both the US and eurozone economies. 00:55 GMT Italys tally of new virus cases down to 239 The number of new confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Italy nudged lower to 239 in the last 24 hours, while eight deaths were recorded in Lombardy, the epicentre of the countrys epidemic. That brings the total number of cases in Italy to 248,070 to date and deaths to 35,154, AP news agency reported early on Monday quoting the countrys health ministry. The number of daily cases in Italy has hovered between 200-300 for weeks, mostly related to people arriving from outside of Italy, either foreign workers or migrants. 00:25 GMT Britain to roll out millions of 90-minute coronavirus tests Britains healthcare system has come under severe strain during peaks in the countrys COVID-19 outbreak, which has killed more than 46,000 people, the fourth-highest toll in the world [Andy Rain/EPA] Millions of COVID-19 tests which can offer results in 90 minutes and do not need to be administered by a health professional will be rolled out to British hospitals, care homes and laboratories in the coming months, Reuters news agency quoted health secretary Matt Hancock as saying. Separately, the publicly-funded National Health Service said it would be offering COVID-friendly treatments to cancer patients, including drugs that do not have a big impact on the immune system. Britains healthcare system has come under severe strain during peaks in the countrys COVID-19 outbreak, which has killed more than 46,000 people, the fourth-highest toll in the world, according to a Reuters tally collated on Sunday. 00:15 GMT Mexico reports 4,853 new coronavirus cases, 274 more deaths Mexicos health ministry has reported 4,853 new confirmed coronavirus cases and 274 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 439,046 cases and 47,746 deaths, according to Reuters news agency. The government has said the real number of infected people is likely significantly higher. Workers are pictured next to a body bag containing the body of a COVID-19 victim at a crematory in Mexico City on Sunday [Edgard Garrido/Reuters] 00:01 GMT Brazil registers 25,800 new coronavirus cases, death toll tops 94,000 Brazil has recorded 25,800 additional confirmed cases and 541 deaths in the past 24 hours, according to Reuters news agency quoting the countrys health ministry. Brazil has registered more than 2.73 million cases of the virus since the pandemic began, while the official death toll has risen to 94,104 as of the end of Sunday, according to the ministry data. _______________________________________________________________ Hello and welcome to Al Jazeeras continuing coverage of the coronavirus pandemic. Im Ted Regencia in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. For all the key coronavirus-related developments from yesterday, August 2, click here. Its not really up to Congress, but their support adds important political momentum to the deal. Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal is among those more cautious, noting that such a transaction should not distract us from the need to crack down on insidious spying & surveillance by Chinese companies.Its quite likely other names will pop up as potential suitors, leaked by bankers or ByteDance insiders in the hope of building the illusion of a bidding war. But Microsoft has the credibility and strategy to get a deal past the real gatekeepers in Washington, leaving ByteDance with few other options. Two teams of astronomers have made a compelling case in the 33-year-old mystery surrounding Supernova 1987A. Based on observations of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and a theoretical follow-up study, the scientists provide new insight for the argument that a neutron star is hiding deep inside the remains of the exploded star. This would be the youngest neutron star known to date. Ever since astronomers witnessed one of the brightest explosions of a star in the night sky, creating Supernova 1987A (SN 1987A), they have been searching for a compact object that should have formed in the leftovers from the blast. Because particles known as neutrinos were detected on Earth on the day of the explosion (23 February 1987), astronomers expected that a neutron star had formed in the collapsed center of the star. But when scientists could not find any evidence for that star, they started to wonder whether it subsequently collapsed into a black hole instead. For decades the scientific community has been eagerly awaiting a signal from this object that has been hiding behind a very thick cloud of dust. The "blob" Recently, observations from the ALMA radio telescope provided the first indication of the missing neutron star after the explosion. Extremely high-resolution images revealed a hot "blob" in the dusty core of SN 1987A, which is brighter than its surroundings and matches the suspected location of the neutron star. "We were very surprised to see this warm blob made by a thick cloud of dust in the supernova remnant," said Mikako Matsuura from Cardiff University and a member of the team that found the blob with ALMA. "There has to be something in the cloud that has heated up the dust and which makes it shine. That's why we suggested that there is a neutron star hiding inside the dust cloud." Even though Matsuura and her team were excited about this result, they wondered about the brightness of the blob. "We thought that the neutron star might be too bright to exist, but then Dany Page and his team published a study that indicated that the neutron star can indeed be this bright because it is so very young," said Matsuura. advertisement Dany Page is an astrophysicist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, who has been studying SN 1987A from the start. "I was halfway through my PhD when the supernova happened," he said, "it was one of the biggest events in my life that made me change the course of my career to try to solve this mystery. It was like a modern holy grail." The theoretical study by Page and his team, published today in The Astrophysical Journal, strongly supports the suggestion made by the ALMA team that a neutron star is powering the dust blob. "In spite of the supreme complexity of a supernova explosion and the extreme conditions reigning in the interior of a neutron star, the detection of a warm blob of dust is a confirmation of several predictions," Page explained. These predictions were the location and the temperature of the neutron star. According to supernova computer models, the explosion has "kicked away" the neutron star from its birthplace with a speed of hundreds of kilometers per second (tens of times faster than the fastest rocket). The blob is exactly at the place where astronomers think the neutron star would be today. And the temperature of the neutron star, which was predicted to be around 5 million degrees Celsius, provides enough energy to explain the brightness of the blob. Not a pulsar or a black hole Contrary to common expectations, the neutron star is likely not a pulsar. "A pulsar's power depends on how fast it spins and on its magnetic field strength, both of which would need to have very finely tuned values to match the observations," said Page, "while the thermal energy emitted by the hot surface of the young neutron star naturally fits the data." "The neutron star behaves exactly like we expected," added James Lattimer of Stony Brook University in New York, and a member of Page's research team. Lattimer has also followed SN 1987A closely, having published prior to SN 1987A predictions of a supernova's neutrino signal that subsequently matched the observations. "Those neutrinos suggested that a black hole never formed, and moreover it seems difficult for a black hole to explain the observed brightness of the blob. We compared all possibilities and concluded that a hot neutron star is the most likely explanation." advertisement This neutron star is a 25 km wide, extremely hot ball of ultra-dense matter. A teaspoon of its material would weigh more than all the buildings within New York City combined. Because it can only be 33 years old, it would be the youngest neutron star ever found. The second youngest neutron star that we know of is located in the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A and is 330 years old. Only a direct picture of the neutron star would give definite proof that it exists, but for that astronomers may need to wait a few more decades until the dust and gas in the supernova remnant become more transparent. Detailed ALMA images Even though many telescopes have made images of SN 1987A, none of them have been able to observe its core with such high precision as ALMA. Earlier (3-D) observations with ALMA already showed the types of molecules found in the supernova remnant and confirmed that it produced massive amounts of dust. "This discovery builds upon years of ALMA observations, showing the core of the supernova in more and more detail thanks to the continuing improvements to the telescope and data processing," said Remy Indebetouw of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory and the University of Virginia, who has been a part of the ALMA imaging team. A cherub figure with a book, symbolizing learning, is seen in a general view of the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, on July 2, 2020. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters) Democratic Think Tank Embraces Term Limits for Supreme Court A major think tank on the left has come out in favor of limiting the terms of justices of the Supreme Court, who currently serve for life, to reduce what it terms the high courts outsized power. The Center for American Progress (CAP), based in the nations capital, is an influential think tank that has sometimes been referred to in the media as a government-in-waiting when Republicans are in power. The organization was founded in 2003 by John Podesta, who became a counselor to President Barack Obama and was chairman of Hillary Clintons 2016 presidential campaign. Presumptive Democratic nominee for president Joe Biden, who was Obamas vice president for eight years, hasnt been receptive to imposing term limits for the justices. Andrew Yang, who previously sought the Democratic partys presidential nomination, endorsed term limits. Most proposals to cap justices terms have set the limit at 18 years on the high court bench. The traditional argument against term limits is that justices have to be independent of the political process. The report by Maggie Jo Buchanan, CAPs director of legal progress, comes as the Democratic Party is drafting language for its official 2020 platform about structural court reforms to increase transparency and accountability within the federal judicial system. The idea of term limits for the Supreme Court is gaining momentum and continues to enjoy support by a variety of progressiveas well as conservativelegal experts, Buchanan said in releasing the report Aug. 3. Congress needs to act, according to Buchanan. The rules governing the U.S. Supreme Court must be updated to reflect the reality of life in modern America. The average tenure of a Supreme Court justice has significantly lengthened since the establishment of the federal judiciary in the 1700s, giving outsize power to nine individuals in a way the framers of the Constitution could never have imagined. This longevity has resulted in a lack of regularity in vacancies, introducing further randomness to the judicial selection process. As a result, the confirmation process for the highest court has become politically divisive, with extremely narrow votes and theatrics from the nominees themselves. This state of affairs is untenable; policymakers must address it by enacting legislation to create term limits for justices. Each individual justice now has more power over American life in a way that no other branch of government does, she writes. For example, members of Congress, on average, are younger than the current members of the Supreme Court, and every appointee before Justice Sonia Sotomayor has been in office longer than the average senator. And, of course, the president is term-limited by law. The justices ever-longer lifetime tenures have increased the stakes every time theres a new nomination to fill a vacancy on the high court. She offered Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnells refusal to hold confirmation hearings for Obama high court nominee Merrick Garland as an example. McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, kept the vacancy created by the death of Antonin Scalia open for months so that Donald Trump, the incoming Republican president, could fill it. Curt Levey, president of the Committee for Justice, told The Epoch Times that hes skeptical of proposals to limit Supreme Court justices terms. Such plans seem motivated by a vague feeling that these guys are too powerful, Levey said in an interview. But theyre still going to be super-powerful for 18 years, so its very hard to see how it will lead to decisions that people are happier with. And it is certainly not going to help conservatives, he said. The left, he said, has this bizarre conception that its a conservative court. Trey Mayfield, an attorney who has argued before the Supreme Court, described term limits as an interesting idea, but probably not all that necessary. There are nine of them. If any one of them starts losing mental fitness, the rest can pick up the slack. And while its true that people live longer now, its also true that infant mortality was the larger reason for a lower average age at the time of the founding. If you made it to 5, you were likely going to live a good, long time. One of the first chief justices, John Marshall, served for 30 years, until he was 79, Mayfield said, adding, theres a better argument for age limits for senators and congressmen. The funding will benefit 106 towns and villages throughout every county in Ireland. In the city, there is a 40,000 grant to "restore pedestrian access along the partially blocked footpath between Killard and Blarney", according to figures released by the Department of Rural and Community Development today. Elsewhere, Youghal, Rathcormac and Macroom will all get grants while 18,000 will be allocated for the "purchase of two marquees and amplification equipment to facilitate the holding of 'all-weather' community events in the West Cork area". Every other county in Munster saw over 100,000 awarded to them, with Adare, Co Limerick getting 40,000 for the "refurbishment of the Countess of Dunraven Fountain and creation of new pedestrianised area with seating around the fountain". In Kerry, 39,690 was granted to Dingle to extend the Green St Car Park and to replace kerbside parking that was removed as part of Safe Streets initiative. It is vitally important that we increase footfall in rural towns and villages by supporting them to adapt to this new normal as a result of Covid-19," Minister Heather Humphreys said. "This funding will benefit communities by altering the streetscapes so that people can shop, work and socialise safely. "I have increased the funding for the Town and Village Renewal Scheme as part of the 17 million rural package that my Department secured under the July Jobs Stimulus. This means that even more towns and villages will benefit from supports, she added. When a baby cries, who would not melt his heart? What if a baby loses his parents? You would feel heartbroken. The baby, Paul Anchondo, is a very young survivor of the El Paso Walmart shooting that killed his parents and twenty-one others a year ago. The infant boy continues his life and can now thumb through books and dance to a Batman jingle. Paul is with his grandmother, and his uncle, Tito Anchondo, helps take care of the one-year-old. Tito said that it will take several years before Paul discovers what happened to his parents like the other El Paso residents who still struggle to accept the tragedy. Paul's father Andre is Tito Anchondo's brother, and Paul's mom is Jordan, who died in the shooting at a Walmart store. Tito Anchondo said that they are making collections of his brother's photos, accomplishments, and any added information to save for the baby Paul. "When he does get to that age, we can tell him," Tito said. "You know what, like, this is what happened to your father. Something horrible happened to your mom and dad. But, you know, we're still here," he added. According to the authorities, Jordan Anchondo, Paul's mom, shielded him from gunfire while his father, Andre, shielded them both. The baby suffered from broken fingers and has public admiration due to the miraculous survival of the tragedy. TIME reported that President Donald Trump and first lady, Melania Trump, visited Paul in the hospital on his first birthday during the COVID-19 pandemic. The celebration was attended by a drive-by caravan of motorcycles and cars. Tito Anchondo reiterated that the youngest massacre survivor wouldn't attend events associated with the August 3, 2019 shooting in El Paso due to the risks that the baby could get coronavirus. Besides, Paul's paternal grandmother has health conditions, which makes her vulnerable to the virus. Tito acknowledged that the infant had been the court's focus in supervising and settling custody negotiations between Paul's maternal and paternal families. The orphan's grandparents grew up in Mexico's Ciudad Juarez. Paul's grandfather owns an auto-body repair shop in El Paso, and Tito Anchondo describes himself as a "patriot" who works in the shop. Anchondo supports president Trump without reservations, as per ABS News 7. Tito remembers the massacre as an eye-opener to the divisive political, racial, and ethnic tensions they have in El Paso. Authorities said the gunman was targeting Latinos. "The shooting was the biggest racist attack on Mexican-Americans, and to me, that was something that was, you know, non-existent," Tito believed. "Call it privilege (from) living in El Paso, one of the safest cities in the United States." Check these out: COVID-19 and Its Positive Consequence: Long-Lost Sisters Reunite After More Than 50 Years 96 Year-Old Latino Man Graduates with Top Honor, Survives WWII, and Now the Pandemic Texas City Commissioner Gabriel Salinas Dies in Police Gun Battle Congress MP Karti Chidambaram on Monday said he has tested positive for Covid-19. In a tweet, the son of former finance minister P Chidambaram said his symptoms are mild and he has gone into self-isolation on medical advise. I have just tested positive for #Covid. My symptoms are mild and as per medical advice I am under home quarantine. I would urge all those who have recently been in contact with me to follow medical protocol, Karti tweeted. This comes a day after Union home minister Amit Shah and Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa tested for coronavirus on Sunday. Shah is the first union cabinet minister to have tested positive for the disease. I have just tested positive for #Covid. My symptoms are mild and as per medical advice I am under home quarantine. I would urge all those who have recently been in contact with me to follow medical protocol. Karti P Chidambaram (@KartiPC) August 3, 2020 After showing initial symptoms, I underwent a test for coronavirus and the report came out positive. My health is fine but I am being admitted to the hospital on the advice of doctors, Shah had tweeted. Karnataka CM took to Twitter and shared about his health. His daughter, BY Padmavati, is also reported to have contracted the disease. I have tested positive for coronavirus. Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self-quarantine, Yediyurappa tweeted. Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is also among some of the top political leaders to have tested positive for the virus recently. He had urged people not to hide their symptoms and come forward for testing to ensure timely treatment. The governments official data on the coronavirus outbreak is startling: More than 4.6 million cases in the U.S. More than 440,000 in Texas. More than 70,000 in Harris County. But those numbers dont include all positive COVID-19 patients. Texas, unlike 27 other states, excludes the results of increasingly popular, rapid COVID-19 tests from the numbers it reports publicly obscuring the scope of the pandemic, records and interviews show. The antigen tests are used in doctors offices, hospitals and stand-alone clinics and deliver results in less than 30 minutes. But conflicting guidance from the Texas Department of State Health Services created confusion among local health departments about what test results to report. A reliance on faxed test results has created a paper backlog that makes it impossible for the state to do its own tally. And while there is no way to independently estimate the scope of the undercount, based on the 11 Texas counties that publish antigen tests results separately of their own accord, the states tally is short by at least tens of thousands of cases but likely far more, a Houston Chronicle analysis found. And the undercount is about to get worse. The federal government is rolling out a program to use thousands of antigen tests in nursing homes across the country including Texas. State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin, who serves as vice-chair of the House committee that oversees the states public health agencies, said the lack of reliable data is hindering the overall COVID-19 response effort in Texas. The only way people will be inspired to act right without government mandates is if they have the information they need to make smart choices, Hinojosa told the Chronicle. And that has been just impossible to come by. The antigen test was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in May under an emergency authorization. They are considered to be less reliable than the molecular polymerase chain reaction, or PCR tests which are highly accurate but typically have to be shipped out to laboratories for analysis. With the current backlogs, those tests can take a week or more for results. Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer But according to the FDA, the risk is not that the antigen tests will result in false positives indicating someone has COVID-19 when they do not. The concern is that they are more likely to result in a false negative meaning they fail to detect when someone has COVID-19. The state, following U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention instructions, considers people with a positive antigen test to be a probable case of COVID-19. And DSHS policy is to report only confirmed cases to the public, although that may soon change, said Chris Van Deusen, the agencys spokesman. Were doing things weve never had to do before, Van Deusen said. Were doing the best we can. Local health departments fax case reports to the state for each positive coronavirus test result, documenting on the form which kind of test was administered. But with hundreds of thousands of reports coming in from across Texas, DSHS staff cant tally up the results in time to report them daily to the public. Instead, the agency relies on its own regional offices and county websites for its daily update of coronavirus statistics. Since most counties arent reporting the number of positive antigen tests results on their websites, the state has no way to report the number publicly yet. The tests are becoming an increasingly larger part of the surveillance effort for the coronavirus. BD, one of the major producers of antigen tests in the U.S., has distributed more than 750,000 of the tests so far. The company expects to manufacture 2 million tests a week by the end of September. Without better data, the state cannot communicate to the public a clear picture of the pandemics scope, experts said. Catherine Troisi, an infectious disease epidemiologist with UTHealth School of Public Health in Houston, said the number of both kinds of tests should be reported publicly. It gives you a better idea of whats happening in the community, she said. In early May, DSHS sent new instructions to county health departments on how to report coronavirus cases to the state. It explicitly told counties to note probable cases and the type of test done on the form so the state could send that data to the CDC. But the agency did not want those results published for the public. On July 16, DSHS removed almost 3,500 cases from Bexar Countys case totals, saying the cases were probable and not confirmed because they were from antigen test results. San Antonio officials pushed back. To be clear, this is not an error in Metro Healths reporting, said Colleen Bridger, San Antonios interim director of public health, in a press release. This is a disagreement over what should be reported in total counts. We will continue to align our definitions with those from the CDC and the Texas Department of State Health Services, while honoring the states request to separate probable cases. Bexar County was not alone. Ten other counties include antigen positives in its public reports. Nueces County is also reporting antigen positive results in the totals it sends to the state. About 2,500 of its 12,478 cases come from antigen tests, according to Annette Rodriguez, the health director for the Corpus Christi Nueces County Public Health District. Rodriguez said the decision was discussed with the state and local officials. Were trying to be as transparent as we can, Rodriguez said. Problems at the state level also affect the national tally of COVID-19 cases. The CDC requires states to report antigen test results, but an official with the agency confirmed to the Chronicle that Texas has not done so. The exclusion of antigen test results is the latest example of the states struggle with data collection and reporting. It took months for the state to include cases from prisons in its tally. Antibody test results, which show whether someone once had the virus, not whether they are actively sick, were included for weeks against the guidance of epidemiologists. Last week, the state started using death certificate data only for its coronavirus death statistics, increasing its total death number by 700. The critical data gaps worry lawmakers, hospital administrators and emergency responders who are on the front lines of an outbreak spinning out of control. I spend all my time trying to figure out what are the facts on the ground and if Im struggling to understand that, given the access to information that I have, then I can guarantee you that the average person just trying to make it through this with their family doesnt understand how bad things are, Hinojosa added. matt.dempsey@chron.com stephanie.lamm@chron.com jordan.rubio@chron.com Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 22:35:24|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close NANNING, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Two primary schools in south China have received wide attention online by awarding live carp and slices of pork to their best-performing students. Photos and videos, showing some pupils in Sanjiang Dong Autonomous County of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region happily showing off the fish and pork, were widely spread online and were soon among the top buzzwords on Chinese social network Weibo. Some 200 pupils at Jiangchuan Primary School in Sanjiang each got a live carp, and pupils in another school of the same county received pork for their good grades at the just-concluded final exam. Li Xiaoxue, vice principal of the Jiangchuan school, said that it was the third consecutive semester that students have been motivated with live carp as the carp symbolizes wealth and courage in the country, and the awards were welcomed by students and their families. In Chinese legend, a carp turns into a dragon after jumping over a mountain across the Yellow River. The story is often used to encourage children from deprived families to climb social ladders by studying hard. The Chinese word "fish" is also a homophone for "abundance", and a symbol of wealth. All students in the Jiangchuan school live in the Nanzhan community where all the residents were relocated from poor and remote areas of the county. "Life has been hard for these students, and we hope the special awards hearten them," said Li, adding that since the Nanzhan community is located right next to the school, the students can share the fresh fish and the joy of winning with their families. Enditem US Nationwide Empirical Survey Shows: No Corona Virus (CV) Epidemic NEWS PROVIDED BY "What's Right What's Left" Radio Ministry Aug. 3, 2020 MEDIA ADVISORY, Aug. 3, 2020 / Christian Newswire/ -- Deacon Brooks of "What's Right What's Left" Radio Ministry (WRWL), drove across America, over five weeks, March through April of 2020, interviewing DOZENS of Americans, from all walks of life, in DOZENS of jurisdictions, all across the Country. When asked, Guess how many said they knew someone who died of corona virus? You guessed it, Zero. "What's Right What's Left" is releasing complete findings at http://christiannewswire.com/images/CVSurvey072920.pdf WRWL is aware of no other news outlet which conducted a nationwide, empirical CV survey of this kind. Deacon Brooks has also tracked weekly percentages, for total US and World deaths attributed to CV -- over now eight months. The results? Through July of 2020, NO EPIDEMIC IN THE US. -- Deaths in US remain effectively Zero percent of US population (0.04%). NO PANDEMIC IN THE WORLD. -- Deaths worldwide remain effectively Zero percent of world population (0.007%). Click to view complete report. Deacon Brooks adds, "It is perhaps no surprise, the empirical survey matches so closely the reported percentages. There never was, nor can be, a broad CV emergency. Period. This is not a public health epidemic." SOURCE: "What's Right What's Left" Radio Ministry. CONTACT: Deacon Brooks, 440-338-1367, wrwlministries@gmail.com Maximizing Value for Scientific and Medical Affairs Satya Sagi, commented, We are very thrilled to partner with Joe Pierce and his EndPoint team. By forming SciMax Global, I believe we have established a powerful combination of exceptional people, strategy, and solutions from both sides to address key challenges in Medical Affairs." Techsol Corporation and EndPoint Technolgoies announced today that both companies have joined forces to form SciMax Global, a new subsidiary company that focuses on providing next-generation technology platform services and value-driven business consulting services for the digital transformation of Scientific Communications and Medical Affairs in the pharmaceutical industry. With the formation of SciMax Global, Joe Pierce, Founder and President of EndPoint Technologies and Satya Sagi, Founder and CEO of Techsol Corporation along with key team members from both companies have come together to combine the Medical Affairs technology prowess of Techsol and the consulting expertise of EndPoint. SciMax Global will focus exclusively on Medical Affairs, a third strategic pillar of the new age Pharmaceutical organization, alongside R&D and Commercial. To address key Medical Affairs business challenges for global pharmaceutical and life sciences companies, the company will offer value-driven solutions through 2 broad service categories: SciMax Consulting Services Subject Matter Expertise to develop and execute Medical Affairs Digital Transformation Strategy utilizing Artificial Intelligence, Analytics, Validation, Compliance, Data Privacy, Strategy and Project Management SciMax Medical Affairs Platform Services Unified Cloud Solution for Pharma to support Medical Affairs Programs such as Medical Information, Grants, Publications, Investigator Initiated Studies (IIS/IIT), Expanded Access etc Collaboration and Engagement Portals (Med Info, HCP, Patient etc.), Real World Evidence Data Analytics Outcome Assessments The core SciMax Medical Affairs Technology Platform shall include Techsols MedInquirer (MIQ), a leading cloud-based, Medical Information, and Medical Communication System along with the MIQ Self Service Portal and MIQ Mobile App. For more than 5 years, MedInquirer has been used by Global Biopharma Companies and Contact Centers to efficiently, respond to Medical Information Inquiries and to report and triage Adverse Events and Product Complaints. Techsol Corporation first developed MedInquirer in a strategic partnership with one of the largest, US Contact Centers and a top-ten, international, specialty Pharmaceutical Company. SciMax will continue to develop Artificial Intelligence (AI) based solutions, congress technology and conduct MI-Tech Forum events. Joe Pierce, says, Ive been in the industry for nearly 25 years and Techsols MedInquirer is simply the best MI solution available. As EndPoint has continued to expand our professional services, we wanted to be able to bring forward and support the best MI solution to the marketplace. This can be achieved now as SciMax. We are extremely excited to be partnering with Sagi and the Techsol team to continue to develop, implement, and support this comprehensive solution. Satya Sagi, commented, We are very thrilled to partner with Joe Pierce and his EndPoint team. By forming SciMax Global, I believe we have established a powerful combination of exceptional people, strategy, and solutions from both sides to address key challenges in Medical Affairs. We have positioned the SciMax platform to become a market leader through our deep domain expertise, industry relationships, continuous technology innovation, consulting capability and strong commitment to the Pharmaceutical Industry. Joe Pierce shall be the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SciMax Global. He will lead the strategy formation and execution for the new company. All the team members of EndPoint have joined the SciMax team in various strategic roles. Saad Rahman, previously the Director of Product Management of MedInquirer, shall now assume the role of Chief Product Officer (CPO) to lead the technology platform strategy, development, and delivery. Other team members of Techsol will be involved in administrative, business, development, quality assurance, service and support roles. Sagi will continue as Founder and CEO of Techsol Corporation. As a founding board member of SciMax, he will continue to support the executive team in shaping the overall platform strategy and process execution. About SciMax Global SciMax Global is an innovative Scientific Communications and Medical Affairs technology solutions provider in the pharmaceutical industry. With a unified cloud Technology Platform and value-driven Consulting Services, SciMax has proven capabilities to help Pharma and Life Science companies for managing different medical affairs programs that improve patient outcomes and care excellence through automation, evidence and insights generation. Contact Joe Pierce CEO, SciMax Global +1 630-204-2652 joe.pierce@scimaxglobal.com 101 College Rd East Princeton 08540 NJ http://www.scimaxglobal.com About Techsol Corporation Techsol Corporation specializes in offering cloud-based, information technology services and innovative software solutions to global pharmaceutical, life sciences and healthcare companies. Founded in 2010, a market leader in providing highly configurable process-oriented technology solutions for digitally transforming pharmaceutical business operations across medical affairs, clinical development and drug safety. With offices in Princeton, NJ/ Hyderabad, India/ Seoul, South Korea, Techsol Corporation delivers domain-specific business solutions focused on establishing cross-platform integrations, business process automation, facilitating stakeholder collaboration, risk-based validation, and providing operational insights with advanced AI and data analytics. About EndPoint Technologies EndPoint Technologies is dedicated to providing comprehensive technology and business consulting services to life science organizations. Specializing in Medical Affairs in Pharmaceutical and Biotech Companies, EndPoint provides insight and assistance with the process of selecting and implementing new technology, including strategic planning, requirement definition, project management, solutions evaluation, implementation, validation, and training. EndPoint has extensive experience in providing solutions around data privacy, helping companies become and remain compliant. In addition, EndPoint provides systems management, maintenance, and support for a number of widely used software solutions. A major incident has been declared in Greater Manchester due to increases in coronavirus infection rates across multiple localities. The decision to up the readiness of emergency and public services to respond to the escalating Covid-19 transmission rate in the region comes after the UK Government announced new lockdown restrictions for parts of the North West on Thursday. Congress rarely acts except when up against a deadline, and stopgap spending bills and partial government shutdowns have become almost routine in recent years, as Congress repeatedly offers fresh proof of its own dysfunction. As economically harmful as a government shutdown is, however, it is nothing compared with the coronavirus, which has already killed more than 152,000 Americans while simultaneously clobbering the economy. Gross domestic product dropped 9.5 percent in the second quarter of the year, the Commerce Department said Thursday a decline that would have been even worse without the economic aid provided by Congress. A additional 21 coronavirus cases were recorded in Vietnam on Monday, with 15 in Da Nang and six in neigboring Quang Nam Province, according to the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control. The fifteen patients in Da Nang include 12 people in close contact with confirmed cases, two people taking care of their patient relative at Da Nang Hospital, and one outpatient at Da Nang Family Hospital. Their ages range from 20 to 78. The six cases in Quang Nam are all linked to Da Nang Hospital, namely three patient visitors, one person taking care of an undetected COVID-19 patient, one person in close contact with the same patient, and an inpatient in the nephrology and endocrinology ward of the hospital. Aged 38 to 83, they are isolated for treatment at a hospital in Quang Nam. One patient was declared free of the virus on Monday, the national steering committee said. Vietnam has registered 642 coronavirus cases as of Monday evening, with 374 recoveries and six deaths. At the time of writing, the nation is quarantining 103,268 people who were in close contact with infected patients or entered Vietnam from virus-hit regions. At least 195 patients have been traced to Da Nang, a touristy city on the central coast, since July 25, when a new community-based case was detected after 99 days of zero documented local infections in Vietnam. Tens of thousands of people have returned to big cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City from Da Nang over the past weeks so authorities are aggressively tracing them for testing. Social distancing has been enforced in certain places to contain the virus. But Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said on Sunday that extensive social distancing like the one imposed in the entirety of Vietnam in April will not be in place across the country again now, citing a dual goal of stalling the pandemic and ensuring economic growth. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Coronavirus vaccine makers are now faced with a new hurdle -- single dose vaccines. As pharmaceutical companies make headway, the focus is now to formulate single dose vaccines. One-dose vaccines are not only convenient, it also would be cheaper for the patients. Not to mention, single-shot COVID-19 vaccines would have better global deployment. However, most of the frontrunners in the COVID vaccine race are double-shot vaccines, including Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech's candidates. Meanwhile, Oxford-AstraZeneca are testing single-shot vaccines. Johnson and Johnson is testing both. Immunogenicity or the amount of immune response generated by a vaccine is at the crux of this research. Too little immunogenicity means that the vaccine is ineffective and too much means the vaccine could produce side effects. However, two-shot vaccines are not all that bad. Sometimes, it also means that it could have a longer, sustained immune response. Dr. Dan Barouch, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School told ABC News, "We know that a second shot will likely increase the immune responses. We do think a two-shot vaccine would raise more robust response." But once the first shot is administered, people might get complacent and not seek a second shot. That would mean the course is incomplete and would only provide minimal protection. Also read: Coronavirus vaccine update: Eyes on India as candidates race towards finish line Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca has also said that coronavirus might require annual vaccination. "But the truth is that we don't know, this virus is very unpredictable," said CEO Pascal Soriot. "What we know is that most companies are targeting two injections for the initial vaccination and then our own assumption based on what we know from the technology we use with SARS 1 is that the immunity could last 12 months maybe 18 months," said Soriot. Here are the updates from India and across the world: Oxford University-AstraZeneca: Pune-based Serum Institute of India has received the approval of Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) to conduct Phase 2 and 3 human trials in India. The approval was granted late Sunday night after a thorough evaluation based on the recommendations of Subject Expert Committee (SEC). "The firm has to submit safety data, evaluated by the Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB), to the CDSCO before proceeding to Phase 3 clinical trials," a senior official said. Each subject will be administered two doses in a gap of four weeks (first dose on day one and second dose on day 29) following which the safety and efficacy will be assessed. Phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of the Oxford vaccine is already underway in the UK, Brazil and South Africa. Around 1,600 people above 18 years of age will participate in the trials across 17 selected sites. Also read: Coronavirus vaccine update: SII to change trial protocol; Russian candidate may be approved by Aug 12 Russian vaccines: Russia is planning to launch a nationwide vaccination campaign in October. The candidate, is however, yet to complete its trials. Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said that they would start vaccinating health workers and teachers first. The COVID-19 vaccine candidate has been developed by Gamaleya Institute in Moscow. Not only that, the country is gearing up for the mass production of another vaccine by November. Vector State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology plans to start production of its coronavirus vaccine in November. "We expect to start production already in November this year. So, closer to the end of the year and the start of the next year we can talk about switching to vaccination at least for [people] from risk groups with a further switch to massive vaccination," Director-General Rinat Maksyutov said. Sanofi-GlaxoSmithKline: Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline have said that they are in advanced discussions to supply up to 300 million doses of an experimental COVID-19 vaccine for the 27-country European Union. The EU wants to ink deals with six drugmakers for their coronavirus vaccine for 450 million citizens. "It is envisaged that, once a vaccine has proven to be safe and effective against COVID-19, the Commission would have a contractual framework in place for the purchase of 300 million doses, on behalf of all EU member states," it said in a statement. Also read: Coronavirus vaccine: Why Americans will pay lot more than Indians for COVID-19 vaccine YEREVAN. The Media Advocate initiative of Armenia has urged not to be guided by the principle of selective decision-making in courts. It has noted this in a statement, which also reads as follows: According to Aravot daily, this year, in their February 18 issue, they referred to an article partially published on Aravot.am website under the headline Daily Press Review. As it is mentioned in Aravot daily, the press review ended with the following link: You can read the whole article in todays issue of Haykakan Zhamanak newspaper. The above-mentioned publication referred to the article titled The conflict between Alik Sargsyan and Vardges Hovakimyan has a long history, which was published in Haykakan Zhamanak daily in 2018, in its July 6 issue. As it turned out later, on the basis of that article, a lawsuit was filed for refutation; nevertheless, a refutation request was submitted not to the initial source Haykakan Zhamanak daily but to aravot.am and the execution of the verdict was assigned to the Judicial Acts Compulsory Enforcement Service. The article titled as Aravot is not going to be held accountable instead of someone referred to this incident: Aravot has never been involved in this lawsuit, moreover, certain issues related to our professional and business reputation were touched upon before the verdict was made in court. It is also interesting that no other media outlet that published the same article was involved in the process, not even as a third side. Media Advocate Initiative urges the judge making the verdict to clarify the reason why media outlets were not involved in the case investigation and why Aravot dailys reference according to which Haykakan Zhamanak daily is the source of the article, was not considered. Media Advocate initiative urges to stop such cases of pressure against freedom of speech, not to label the media outlets, as well as not to be guided by the principle of selective decision-making in courts and not to target this or that media. GREENWICH Officers arrested a 26-year-old local man on multiple charges of sexual assault involving a young person, police announced Monday. Carlos Omar Corado-Juarez, of Mill Street, Byram, was charged with four counts of second-degree sexual assault, one count of fourth-degree sexual assault and five counts of risk of injury to a minor, police said. He was arrested Friday. An investigation began July 28 after police said they received a complaint of a past sexual assault of a young person under the age of 16. A mother reported to Greenwich police that her child was subjected to inappropriate sexual contact on five separate incidents, police said. The incidents began in late 2019 and continued through July, the police statement said. According to a police summary, the victim provided information about the incidents. The investigators were able to locate and seize evidence that corroborates the victims account. Support and medical attention were provided to the victim and her family, the police statement said. Corado-Juarez was arrested without incident late last week, police said. He was unable to post $200,000 bail, police said. He was cited with 10 different counts of criminal sexual misconduct, according to the arrest report. Police reminded the public that anyone with information about sexual assaults involving young people can contact police at 203-622-8030. The Rowan Center in Stamford provides support for victims of sexual assault, and they can be reached at 203-329-2929. rmarchant@greenwichtime.com No one thought that there would be a time when shops in Asias biggest wholesale market would be empty amid the festive time! But thats what pandemic has done to us - made us experience the unbelievable. The business in Old Delhis Sadar Bazar has certainly affected. During Raksha Bandhan, a market that used to be overcrowded had a different look this year. A dip in the sales have been reported by the shopkeepers, who took different routes to manage their losses. Ansh from Ansh Rakhi Bhandar says, We used to get rakhi from Rajkot and Gujarat every year, but this time neither could we go there nor they came here aur upar se Chinese samaan pe ban lag gaya tha. So, I decided to not sell rakhis this year. Based on the situation in 2021, I will decide my future plans, but right now, we are not focusing on our main business. Our entire focus is on Diwali and we are busy in manufacturing items for it right now. If we made a PDF of rakhis to help our customers choose from home, the PDF would be a never-ending one! If one rakhi costs 30, then there are about 40 designs in it; and we sell rakhis from 30 to 300! Mahavir Gupta, rakhi seller in Old Delhi There are some who were selling rakhis like every year and even managed to convince their customers to visit their shops by assuring that they were taking all the necessary safety precautions. Mahavir Gupta, from a rakhi store in Sadar, says, We had thought of taking virtual route but its not possible. If we made a PDF of rakhis to help our customers choose from home, the PDF would be a never-ending one! If one rakhi costs 30, then there are about 40 designs in it; and we sell rakhis from 30 to 300! Thats why we advised our regular customers to come to the shop taking a cab, and we helped them in every way we could so that they dont face difficulty in finding a transport back home since Delhi Metro is still not operating. A lot of shops that were completely shut in Old Delhi. Its hard to say who sold rakhi this year and who didnt because half of the market was shut and half was open. Those who came here, I suggested them to check with the shopkeeper once if they came to shop from a particular shop, adds Ansh. The whole situation slowed down the sale of rakhi this year and affected the wholesale business badly. Anuj Gupta, a shopkeeper, says, Due to the pandemic, we didnt have many new items this year. Also, the number of customers reduced drastically. Most of the people took to buying rakhis online as they were trying to avoid visiting the market, no matter how much we tried to ensure them that we are taking all precautions at our end. Author tweets @ruchikagarg271 Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Mr Hume passed away in the early hours of Monday morning after a short illness, according to his family. The former Foyle MP had dementia and was cared for in the Owen Mor nursing home in Derry. In a statement, the family said: "We would like to extend our deepest and heartfelt thanks to the care and nursing staff of Owen Mor nursing home in Derry. We would like also to extend our gratitude to the people of Derry and Moville/Greencastle, who have looked after John and shown us so much kindness as his dementia has progressed. "Celebrating community in all its diversity went to the heart of Johns political ethos and we are very appreciative that our communities supported, respected and protected John." The family said the funeral will be arranged according to the current government regulations with very strict rules on numbers. It seems particularly apt for these strange and fearful days to remember the phrase that gave hope to John and so many of us through dark times: we shall overcome. Advertisement In 1998, after all-party negotiations at last produced the Belfast Agreement, Hume and David Trimble jointly received the Nobel Peace Prize. Regarded as one of the key architects of the peace process he received numerous accolades for his efforts to promote peace. Hume was instrumental in talks between the British and Irish governments and Sinn Fein that led to the 1994 IRA ceasfire and ultimately to the brokering of the Belfast Agreement. Peace maker Paying tribute to Mr Hume, Taoiseach Micheal Martin said he was "a great hero and a true peace maker". During the darkest days of paramilitary terrorism and sectarian strife, he kept hope alive. And with patience, resilience and unswerving commitment, he triumphed and delivered a victory for peace. While the 1998 Good Friday Agreement was the product of many peoples work, can anyone really claim that it would have happened without John Hume? He didnt just talk about peace, he worked unstintingly for peace, at times in the face of the most virulent criticism and risk to his life. He knew that to be a peace maker on this island meant being a risk taker," he said. Their grief will be great but they can take pride in the knowledge that they have shared their life with one of the greatest Irish people that ever lived. Advertisement I extend my sympathies to his wife Pat and his five children Aine, Therese, John jnr, Aidan, and Mo. Their grief will be great but they can take pride in the knowledge that they have shared their life with one of the greatest Irish people that ever lived. All people on this island will give thanks for his life. President Michael D Higgins said John Hume had a willingness to listen to what was often difficult to accept. He said he transformed and remodelled politics in Ireland and d we should all be grateful that we had such a person as John Hume to create a light of hope in difficult times. Former Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams descrived Hume as a giant in Irish politics. I have to say on this sad day we wouldnt have the peace that we enjoy today if it wasnt for John Hume. Former US president Bill Clinton paid tribute to his peace maker friend John Hume who forged peace in Northern Ireland. In a joint statement with his wife Hillary, Mr Clinton described the former SDLP leader as having fought a long war for peace. His chosen weapon: an unshakeable commitment to non-violence, persistence, kindness and love. With his enduring sense of honour he kept marching on against all odds towards a brighter future for all the children of Northern Ireland, they said. Advertisement Through his faith in principled compromise, and his ability to see his adversaries as human beings, John Hume helped forge the peace that has held to this day. My full statement on my friend's passing here: https://t.co/JZ42lwYWFR Bill Clinton (@BillClinton) August 3, 2020 Through his faith in principled compromise, and his ability to see his adversaries as human beings, John helped forge the peace that has held to this day. Irish unity Born in Derry in 1937, he entered politics in 1973 and was elected MP for Foyle in 1983. A founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), he succeeded Gerry Fitt as its leader in 1979. He went on to serve as an MEP. Hume spent his entire political career working to create a united Ireland. But he is best known for his efforts to secure the Belfast Agreement in 1998. In 1993 he drew up proposals with Sinn Fein's Gerry Adams which they passed to the Irish government saying these could form the basis for a lasting peace in Ireland. In 1997 his efforts were finally rewarded when in July the IRA announced the renewal of its 1994 ceasefire. Political talks ensued which eventually led to the signing of the Belfast Agreement in 1998. Unionist politicians viewed Mr Hume as just as dangerous to their cause as the IRA. Solution Advertisement Educated and eloquent, he enunciated the case of constitutional nationalism. Mr Hume articulated the feelings of the ever-growing Catholic middle-class and early on constructed a theory which changed little over the years that the heart of the Irish question lay not with the British but with the Ulster Protestants and that partition was not the cause of division but a symptom of it. A solution to the age-old problem could only be found with agreement from the Protestants. Their numbers gave them a veto and they could not be forced into any new arrangement against their will, he argued. The issue was no long one about winning or losing, but about sharing or choosing not to share. In practical terms, he won the argument. In a tribute this morning, former taoiseach John Bruton said Hume reframed the problem from being one about who held sovereignty over land, to being one about people, and how they related to one another. The issue was no long one about winning or losing, but about sharing or choosing not to share. In practical terms, he won the argument. That is why we have peace today. Hume came from the first generation to benefit from the 1944 Education Act and went to the local grammar school, St Columbs College. He went on to Maynooth College, the Catholic seminary near Dublin, to study French and modern history before returning to teach in his old school. In 1960 he married his wife Pat, had five children and continued to live in the Bogside area of Derry despite regular attacks on his home. Advertisement His involvement in the 1960s with the Credit Union movement brought him into contact with the issues of the day, housing and anti-Catholic discrimination in a city where Protestants were in the minority but boundary gerrymandering gave them a Unionist majority on the local council. Speaking on Monday, Sinn Fein's Gerry Adams said: I think what was significant was he was a Derry man, so he wasnt in an ivory tower, he wasnt in a little bubble, he was presented by Father Alex Reid with the possibility that if we could shape an alternative, we could shape a new political dispensation. And being given that possibility, he then bent his will over a long time to create with me and other what we now have. Political career He first came to political prominence in the civil rights movement in 1968. His reputation for non-violence was established on the streets. In 1970 he was one of the founding fathers of the SDLP and soon emerged as its chief policymaker. He became leader in 1979. He was elected to the 1973-74 Northern Ireland Assembly and was head of the Department of Commerce in the ill-fated power-sharing executive in 1974. He was also elected to the 1982-86 Northern Ireland Convention. He was elected as one of Northern Irelands three MEPs in 1979 and made it to Westminster in 1983 when boundary changes created the new Foyle seat, the first time a non-Unionist had got a seat in parliament for Londonderry since the establishment of Northern Ireland. He was seen as the main architect of the Anglo-Irish Agreement signed between the British and Irish Governments in 1985 and which, much to Unionist fury, gave Dublin a say in the affairs of Northern Ireland. Mr Hume led his party in various talks with the British Government and other local parties during efforts to set up a devolved administration. Following extensive and often heated discussions, the Belfast Agreement was signed on April 10th, 1998. Devolved government followed with a local Assembly sitting at Stormont led by Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble. Many had expected Mr Hume to become deputy first minister as the leader of the then second largest party. But instead Seamus Mallon took on that role, amid rumours of a bad working relationship between Mr Hume and Mr Trimble. In 1998, Mr Hume won the Nobel Peace Prize, jointly with Mr Trimble. He built up a reputation as an international politician, winning the ear of Dublin, European leaders and, possibly most important of all, the powerful Irish-American lobby. Within Europe he spearheaded economic initiatives which won Northern Ireland special financial aid, and fellow MEP and arch political foe, the Rev Ian Paisley, lined up in support. He was also a recipient of the Gandhi Peace Prize and the Martin Luther King Award. In the summer of 1999, Mr Hume was taken ill at a conference in Austria, and had to undergo a series of operations. He retired as leader of the SDLP in 2001, succeeded by fellow Derry man Mark Durkan. He announced his retirement from politics in 2004. His Foyle Westminster seat was successfully defended in 2005 by Durkan. However, Mr Humes party and the UUP suffered electorally since the signing of the Belfast Agreement, overtaken by Sinn Fein and the DUP. It was a sad moment for the SDLP in June 2017 when Mr Humes former seat in Foyle was lost to Sinn Fein, along with South Down and South Belfast, leaving them without any MPs. In 2010 he was named Irelands Greatest in a public poll by RTE. In 2012, Pope Benedict XVI made him a Knight Commander of the Papal Order of St Gregory the Great. The House Oversight Committee has asked Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, appointed by President Trump in May, to testify on Sept. 17 on changes made to the U.S. Postal Service under the Trump administration. Why it matters: USPS mail has seen days of backlogs and delays after DeJoy, a former fundraiser for Trump and the Republican National Committee, enacted new cost-cutting procedures that took effect in mid-July, the Washington Post reports. The big picture: Voting rights groups have said that USPS delays could be a "recipe for disaster" as many states push for mail-in voting as the safest option for November's election, according to the New York Times. Trump has railed against the reliability of mail-in voting and claimed, without evidence, that the election will be rigged if widespread mail-in ballots are allowed. What they're saying: "While these changes in a normal year would be drastic, in a presidential election year when many states are relying heavily on absentee mail-in ballots, increases in mail delivery timing would impair the ability of ballots to be received and counted in a timely manneran unacceptable outcome for a free and fair election, the committee wrote to DeJoy in a letter on July 20. New York The check has arrived and beleaguered restaurant owners across America are looking down on their empty wallets. Government coronavirus loans in the spring helped eating establishments rehire laid-off employees and ride out the pandemic's initial surge and wave of shutdown orders. But that Paycheck Protection Program money has now been spent at many restaurants, leaving them in the same precarious position they were in during outbreak's early days: Thousands of restaurants are being forced to close down again on mandates from state and local officials combating the virus' resurgence, particularly in the South and West. And even in parts of the country where the outbreak appears contained, restaurants' revenue is far below normal because social distancing requirements and wary diners mean fewer tables, fewer customers and limited hours. John Pepper used a PPP loan to pay employees and reopen four of his eight Boloco restaurants when Massachusetts lifted its shutdown order in early May. But with the money spent and business at the restaurants down as much as 70 percent, Pepper had to again close two locations. The staff of 125 he had before the virus outbreak is down to 50. "A lot of this is out of our hands at this point," Pepper says. "At this moment, I don't see getting my full payroll back." Congress is debating another relief bill that potentially will have more help for small businesses, but even with more loan or grant money, restaurants will remain at the mercy of the virus that has decimated their business. The virus' resurgence has prompted officials in California, Texas, Florida and other states to order restaurants shut again. In the Northeast and other parts of the country where infection rates appear more stable, no one expects limits on inside dining to be lifted anytime soon. Restaurants generally have a low profit margin, between 5 percent and 6 percent, and they achieve that only if they have a full house virtually every day, says Sean Kennedy, executive vice president for the trade group National Restaurant Association. They also tend to have only about two weeks of cash on hand, making them highly vulnerable when their sales are down. "They aren't designed to have an on-off switch. They're designed to be used seven days a week, 14 to 15 hours a day at 100 percent of capacity," Kennedy says. Gerry Cea was forced to shut his Miami restaurant, Cafe Prima Pasta, from March into May when the outbreak first began. Now he has again closed the dining room as local officials try to contain the virus; the Miami/Dade area is one of Florida's hit hardest by the virus. Cea is still able to serve customers outside, but the intense South Florida heat and frequent summer rains are limiting him to about 40 diners a night instead of the hundreds he served before the pandemic hit. And Cea is mindful that the peak hurricane season is still to come. "With the PPP money we received we were able to pay 48 employees, but that has run out now, so we are left with very few alternatives" for funding, Cea says. He's hoping for more help from the government, even if it's a loan that must be repaid. In the meantime, Cea says, "the only reason we are pretty much surviving is because we own the building," he says. The pandemic has devastated an industry that expected to have nearly $900 billion in sales this year. Before the outbreak, the Labor Department counted 12 million workers in restaurants and bars, and nearly two-thirds worked at small businesses with fewer than 500 workers. In April, employment in restaurants and bars of all sizes had been cut by nearly half as establishments across the country were closed. Restaurants were among the small businesses the Paycheck Protection Program was intended to help, but some owners say it was of limited use. The program so far has given about $42 billion in loans to restaurants, bars and lodging companies. But many restaurants burned through loans quickly because the original terms of the program required them to use the money within eight weeks in order to get loan forgiveness. Many establishments couldn't reopen but paid staffers not to work anyway. Then when they reopened with revenue limited by social distancing, they couldn't afford their full payrolls. Congress changed the spending requirement to 24 weeks in early June, but that was too late for many restaurants. It's not yet known what small business help will be in any upcoming relief package, although Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has mentioned the possibility that small businesses with big revenue declines could get a second PPP loan. But restaurants need a long-term solution that addresses their particular needs, Kennedy says. For example, allowing families that get food stamp assistance to use their benefits in restaurants. "We're going to be limping along or shutting down altogether" without long-term help, Kennedy says. Stephanie Williams still hasn't fully reopened two of her Bennu Coffee shops in Austin, Texas, and continues to operate with curbside service and delivery only; a third location that opened over the weekend does have socially distanced seating. Williams has spent the PPP money she got in early May she had recalled furloughed workers but with revenue at one store down by half and the other by nearly two-thirds, Williams had to let 20 staffers go again. "We assumed at the end of eight weeks, this will be over. But here in Texas, things are drastically worse than when we shut down in March," Williams says. Like other states where the virus is resurgent, Texas saw cases increase after it ended shutdown orders in early May. Ayatollah Mohammad Emami Kashani, a former Friday Prayer Imam and a member of the Assembly of Experts says Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was the only choice for the Islamic Republic's next leader when Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeyni died in June 1989. "We had no other choice," says Emami Kashani, adding that "We could have chosen a group of clerics to form a leadership council, but that was a problematic idea." Meanwhile, he said in the interview which appeared on the semi-official news agency ISNA's webpage on Monday August 3 that Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri who was the deputy supreme leader was initially opposed to his appointment and believed that Grand Ayatollah Golpayegani would be a better deputy leader. Emami Kashani also for the first time revealed some information about the ouster of Montazeri. "We were told that Ayatollah Khomeini was planning to dismiss Montazeri from the post of deputy leader. It was at a meeting also attended by Ayatollah Khamenei and Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani." Rafsanjani said dismissing Montazeri would be very dangerous. "Khomeini's son, Ahmad, said Montazeri had made some controversial remarks that led Khomeini to believe he was not good for the post," said Emami Kashani. Montazeri at the time had opposed Khomeini's idea of hanging thousands of political prisoners in jail. It is still not clear when the interview with Emami Kashani which appeared on the semi-official news agency ISNA was conducted. It is also not clear why the agency released the interview now after 31 years when the events took place. Emami Kashani added that when the Assembly of Experts was discussing the idea of a leadership council, Khamenei was meant to be on the council. He said Khamenei did not want to be the Supreme Leader, but Rafsanjani and I agreed that we had to make a choice quickly as Saddam Hussain's army was still at Iran's borders. Emami Kashani quoted Khamenei as saying "Most of you do not believe in me as a knowledgeable man. But I told everyone that Khamenei used to teach advanced courses on theology in Mashhad and I was one of his pupils. I then stressed: I bear witness that Mr. Khamenei is a knowledgeable man." "Then I suggested that we should put the matter to vote even if some people do not approve of his qualifications. First, we took votes for a single leader versus a leadership council and it was approved that we need a single leader," Emami Kashani added. The reason was that earlier we did away with the Supreme Council of Judiciary and appointed one person as Judiciary Chief, as the idea of leadership council did not work at the Judiciary. By the same token, the Assembly of Experts came to the conclusion that it was best to have one person as Supreme Leader. "Only a few people did not vote for Ayatollah Khamenei as the Supreme Leader. One of them, Ayatollah Hosseini Kashani, insisted that Montazeri should succeed Khamenei. To be on the fair and safe side, we put the matter to vote and approved Montazeri's ouster. Speaking about Khamenei's merits as a "source of emulation," which is one of the highest clerical ranks in Shiism, Emami Kashani does not mention that still many clerics believe Khamenei lacks the qualifications for being a source of emulation. Instead he claims Khamenei had solid credentials. "After the death of Grand Ayatollah Golpayegani and Grand Ayatollah Araki, the clerical community held a debate about who can be a new source of emulation. There were seven candidates for the rank and Ayatollah Khamenei was one of them", he said. Emami Kashani did not say that Khamenei's credentials as an ayatollah has also been questioned by some clerics and that in fact his title changed from Hojjat ol-Eslam, a lower rank, to one an ayatollah overnight as soon as he became the supreme leader. Emami Kashani is currently a member of the Assembly of Experts, a body tasked to name the next supreme leader after Khamenei dies. In recent years he has been an outcast at the seminary and had to leave his position as one of the Friday Prayer Imams of Tehran. Regular attendees still remember that he used to lose track of his speech during his latest sermons in 2019 and at times looked lost in the middle of his sermons. Rick Barnes picked an unusual time and place for a scavenger hunt. Tennessees mens basketball coach was combing through the wreckage of Saturdays 107-79 loss at Kentucky in search of something, anything, to salvage as being positive. Judging by one comment, Barnes wasnt even sure what he was looking for. We are going to find out about a lot of different things, he ... (click for more) I always laugh when I see the ESPN "Way Too Early" college football poll. It's out right now, just a week after the national championship game won by Georgia. I found another reason why it's laughable. Of the 25 teams in the poll, seven are from the SEC, and Tennessee is not among them. That means that ESPN feels the Volunteers are not among the best seven teams in the conference ... (click for more) Some detractors have expressed concerns that local school councils are not always the best equipped to make these decisions. They argue the councils havent been given alternative options by CPS, nor do the councils have the power to redirect money usually spent on resource officers to other services. Many councils also do not regularly post meeting minutes or have enough members to meet the necessary quorum requirements. President Donald Trump said Monday the U.S. may have a coronavirus vaccine available to the public ahead of the administration's goal of the end of the year or early 2021. "We're balancing speed and safety and we're on pace to have a vaccine available this year, maybe far in advance of the end of the year," Trump said during a White House press briefing. "And we're mass-producing the most promising candidates in advance so that we're ready upon approval. We have our military lined up, it's logistics, it's all about logistics." He mentioned vaccine candidates from drug companies Pfizer and Moderna, which both began late-stage trials for their leading vaccine candidates last week, and have already vaccinated "several hundred people," according to senior administration officials. Both potential vaccines use mRNA molecules, which scientists hope will provoke an immune response to fight the virus. "These are companies that are not only well know, they are well respected," Trump said. Because of the pandemic, U.S. health officials and researchers have been accelerating the development of vaccine candidates by investing in multiple stages of research even though doing so could be for naught if the vaccine ends up not being effective or safe. Trump's prediction of when the U.S. may have a vaccine may be optimistic. Though scientists expect to have an effective vaccine widely available by next year, there is never a guarantee. While drugmakers are racing to make millions of doses of vaccines, there's a chance the vaccine will require two doses rather than one, potentially further limiting the number of people who can get vaccinated once it becomes available, experts say. Officials also need to make sure states have the vials, needles and syringes needed to administer the vaccine or risk shortages. Additionally, scientists say that questions remain about how the human body responds once it's been infected with the virus. The answers, they say, may have important implications for vaccine development, including how quickly it can be deployed to the public. One critical question among scientists is whether antibodies produced in response to Covid-19 offer protection against getting infected again. Scientists hope the antibodies provide some degree of protection against getting the virus, but they can't say that definitively yet since it was discovered just seven months ago. Health officials say there is no returning to "normal" until there is a vaccine against the virus, which has infected more than 18 million people worldwide and killed at least 689,922, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's leading infectious disease expert, has repeatedly said he's "cautiously optimistic" that scientists will discover a safe and effective vaccine by the end of the year or early 2021. However, he also has said that a vaccine likely won't be "widely available" to the American public until "several months" into 2021. Trump said Monday he hopes the U.S. will be able to end the pandemic "very, very quickly" once a vaccine is available. "We want to make people better," he said, adding the U.S. will first send the vaccine to the areas that need it most. Two additional COVID-19 deaths were reported Monday in Lake County as the Region again saw more than 100 new cases and Indiana's case total surpassed 68,000, according to updated health statistics provided Thursday by the Indiana State Department of Health and local health departments. Death totals across the Region included 271 in Lake County, 41 in Porter County, 29 in LaPorte County, 10 in Newton County and two in Jasper County. There were five new deaths statewide Monday, bringing the state's total to 2,780. New deaths were reported between Saturday and Sunday. All data were provisional and subject to change as more information is reported to the state. ISDH listed another 200 deaths as probable, meaning there was no positive test on record but a physician listed COVID-19 as a contributing cause, based on X-rays, scans and other clinical symptoms. One of the deaths in Porter County's total was listed as probable. Lake County reported 64 new cases, bringing its total to 7,101. Porter County added 32 more cases, bringing its total to 1,206. LaPorte County's cases increased by nine, for a total of 838. No elections for Bolivia Bolivias elections have been postponed for the third time since the leaders of Bolivias coup took over late last year. Instead of holding elections on the 6th September, elections will now (fingers crossed) take place on the 18th October. Luis Arce (right) during a celebration of Bolivias Plurinational State Foundation Day, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, 22nd January 2020. Bolivia has been under the leadership of interim President Jeanine Anez and the Juntos alliance since the coup last year. You might remember she promised swift and democratic elections as soon as stability was brought back to Bolivia after the coup she helped lead. This was obviously a false promise to appeal to the regional and international orchestrators of the coup. Since coming to power, the interim government of Bolivia has been shifting their foreign alliances from China, Russia, and other non-aligned countries to the US, the European Union and Israel. This includes asking for Israels help to fight terrorism in Bolivia and pledging allegiance to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The Anez government has also cracked down on public dissent and left organisations. According to Latin-American news outlet, Telesur, at least fifty community radio stations have been shut down, as well as at least sixty-seven journalists imprisoned, threatened, or accused of committing crimes of sedition and terrorism since the Anez government took office. The Anez government has not stopped harping on about leftist influence. However, this leftist influence is the popular resistance of the people. Examples of this are the thousands of people who took to the streets after elected president Evo Morales was forced to resign and the continuing resistance of the thousands of members of Six Federations of Tropical Cochabamba and the workers represented by the Central Obrera Boliviana (COB). COVID-19 Bolivia currently has about 69,000 COVID-19 cases with about 1,200 new cases each day. The interim government is trying to blame the pandemic crisis on the previous socialist government for apparently not doing anything for healthcare. This, however, is just another right-wing lie spread by the government. The coup regime has wound back many social programs since November such as the Unified Health System (Sistema Unico de Salud). The Bono Juancito Pinto, Bono Juana Azurduy and Renta Dignidad cash transfer schemes have also been eviscerated. This contrasts with a 700 per cent increase in healthcare spending during the previous Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) administration led by Evo Morales. But what is the interim government doing except for expelling hundreds of Cuban doctors and medical personnel, winding back co-operation with China and Russia, and cutting social programs which help the poor? Well, they are currently on to their third health minister and the health system is now failing under the increased load the Coronavirus pandemic has produced. Twenty of thirty-four hospitals had closed at the end of June according to Bolivias Health Workers Union. The poorest regions have been the hardest hit. These regions have high support for Morales and MAS. In Cochabamba, the Kara Kara region was the site of protests against state abandonment and hunger in May. In June, three MAS members were arrested for involvement in these protests, allegedly for terrorism and health-related crimes. Locals in Kara Kara have also been denied water to help combat the pandemic after the area had their water cut off by authorities. The interim government used the pandemic as an opportunity to postpone elections that it promised last year to bring to Bolivia. The interim government is using every tool in its repertoire to rig undemocratic elections. ELECTIONS To the current leaders dismay, MAS candidate Luis Arce currently dominates in the polls at forty-two per cent. The beneficiaries of last years coup trail in votes: Carlos Mesa at twenty-seven per cent, Jeanine Anez at thirteen per cent and Luis Fernando Camacho at nine per cent. These numbers further show the popular support MAS has compared to the current illegal interim government. There are currently talks of forming a right-wing coalition before elections to defeat MAS at the polls. The political teams of Mesa and Anez have met to discuss an alliance. It is no wonder that elections have been postponed yet again to give the coup leaders more time to strategise how to overcome the peoples distrust of the interim government and the popular support for MAS. One of these strategies was the interim governments formal application to ban MAS from participating in elections. According to Kawsachun News, a left political news source from Bolivia, electoral authorities could be imprisoned if they dont ban the MAS from participating in the elections. Another one of the coup leaders, Fernando Camacho, asked the Organisation of American States (OAS) to intervene to stop the elections from taking place on 6th September. OAS was the organisation that falsely accused Morales of rigging the elections last year and for justifying the 2019 coup. Now, it seems they might be back for round two in suppressing MAS and Bolivias self-determination. The interim government is justifying this political move by accusing MAS candidate Luis Arce of breaking electoral laws by mentioning an opinion poll before election campaigning has begun. The situation they refer to was when Luis Arce told a reporter that he was generally favoured in the opinion polls. Evo Morales spoke out against the current attack on MAS by pointing out the double standard since Juntos vice-presidential candidate, Samuel Doria Medina, [also] commented on and published opinion polls twice, but they [the interim government] all remained silent. Argentinas Interior Minister has also stood up for the undemocratic attacks against Movement Towards Socialism and said in a tweet: Bolivias de facto government is attempting to postpone the elections and ban the main political force. This is inadmissible for those of us who have a deep commitment to democracy and human rights. Conclusion The outcome of the 18th October election is up in the air since the coup leaders are doing all in their power to repress political dissent, destroy the socialist opposition, silence left leaning media outlets, and manipulate the electoral process. The irony and double standards reek as the interim government that the US helped gain power due to undemocratic elections, is behaving undemocratically. The situation is textbook fascism. Who is to benefit from the current situation? The imperialists that the interim government has aligned itself with, namely the US, the EU and Israel. These foreign countries that had their hands in the 2019 coup, are now able to exploit Bolivias lithium resource for electric cars and batteries. In a mask-off moment on the 25th July, Elon Musk replied to a tweet voicing concerns about Teslas lithium supply chains by saying, We will coup whoever we want! Deal with it. Postponing elections for the third time will only hurt the poor and marginalised members of Bolivian society. The coup-regimes current response to the pandemic is to punish the Chapare and Cochabamba regions and try to destroy all social gains made by the fourteen years of (MAS). Every day that the coup-regime continues is another day the poor suffer and lose ground. Elections in Bolivia must happen as soon as possible. We denounce the move to further postpone elections. Down with the coup regime. Down with the destabilising activities of US imperialism. Power to the people of Bolivia. Good luck to MAS and Luis Arce in the upcoming elections. What we're watching heading into a new week on the 2020 campaign: Days to general election: 92 Days to first state offering early voting (North Carolina): 33 THE NARRATIVE With early voting fast approaching, both presidential camps are feverishly making final preparations for the post-summer sprint to Election Day as the coronavirus pandemic and related economic devastation show few signs of improving. Democrat Joe Biden is on the verge of picking a running mate, if he hasn't already, a decision that is likely the most significant of ... 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 Robyn Lawley showed off her new haircut on Monday - and she ensured all eyes were on her. The model shared an Instagram photo in which she posed topless in just black underpants, flaunting the curves which made her famous. The stunning 30-year-old covered her bust with her hands, her hair flowing long around her. Woah! Robyn Lawley (pictured) showed off her new haircut on Monday - and she ensured all eyes were on her. The model shared an Instagram photo in which she posed topless in just black underpants, flaunting the curves which made her famous The beauty appeared makeup free, looking down at the camera as she struck a dramatic pose. She captioned the arresting image: 'Finally got a hair cut...' and explained the photo was a Polaroid. Robyn has spent the past few months in quarantine at her home base in New York City. She captioned the image: 'Finally got a hair cut...' and explained the photo was a Polaroid Earlier this month, the Australian model flaunted her enviable figure while enjoying some time in the great outdoors. The stunner encouraged others to head outside as much as they could for their health. 'If you can get out into nature during this time, it helps heal the body and mind,' she captioned the post she shared to Instagram. Get out! Earlier this month, the Australian model flaunted her enviable figure while enjoying some time in the great outdoors Fresh air: She encouraged others to head outside as much as they could for their health In the stunning image, Robyn showed off her ample assets and trim pins in a black bikini with high waisted briefs. The advocate for size diversity closed her eyes as she held her face up to enjoy the fresh air and sunshine in an idyllic lush green outdoor space. The picturesque setting included a sweet pebble lined babbling brook but the natural beauty was no match for Robyn's killer curves. A hot sale of a Chinese product, whether assembled in India or anywhere else in the world, may make the country of origin rule fall by the wayside. Moreover, its execution is challenging for businesses as there are no clear guidelines or definitions from the authorities on what constitutes 'country of origin'. In a few days, a Shenzhen-headquartered smartphone major is expected to fire up the Indian e-commerce scene, going by history. Online marketplace giants have announced plans to make the launch of the latest device a success that may indicate recovery in demand during the extraordinary Covid slowdown. It could be a mere coincidence that the latest smartphone by a Chinese company, founded less than seven years ago, will hit the Indian market at a time when anti-China movement has peaked in the country. If despite the prevailing nationalistic spirit, buyers go all out to snap up the latest phone, the lack of reason in China bashing (including banning of popular apps such as TikTok and keeping prominent telecom equipment makers like Huawei and ZTE out of the ambit of tenders and auctions) will stand out. Also, the party around the latest smartphone from a Chinese brand coincides with the government asking e-commerce firms to mention the country of origin for every product sold online. With that diktat on country of origin, the government has tied itself in knots. For instance, a hot sale of a Chinese product, whether assembled in India or anywhere else in the world, may make the country of origin rule fall by the wayside. Thats not the only reason why the rule, specifically meant for e-commerce platforms, may fumble. While the idea behind such a directive was to block certain goods (read made in China) without saying it in those many words, its execution is challenging for businesses as there are no clear guidelines or definitions from the authorities on what constitutes country of origin. Lets begin with the definition. Is the country of origin the same as the country of manufacturing? Or is it the country of assembling the product though its parts are imported? What if the product is designed, owned and patented in one country, but is made in another country for cost efficiency? There are many such questions, to which nobody seems to have an answer. Indeed, under the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011, theres a provision for declaring the country of origin, as the Centre rightly told the Delhi high court in an affidavit on Wednesday. However, this applies to only imported packaged goods. Certain categories, including furniture, cannot be covered under the rules and therefore it would be legally untenable to enforce the directive for all products. Also, if declaration of the country of origin is made mandatory for products online, it should be the same for those sold in physical stores as well. Marking the country of origin for millions of products will take up to one year, estimates suggest. To get a sense of the scale, the Indian marketplace platforms owned by American majors Walmart and Amazon have around 200 million products each. So, in the midst of Covid and lockdown stress, e-commerce companies have now got an additional task to interpret the origin of each and every product and label them accordingly. Thats bad timing when a large chunk of the population is still working from home. Theres another hurdle. For conventional e-commerce firms, it would have been easier to handle the logistics of the country of origin rule. However, the onus will be on sellers for marketplace firms like Amazon and Walmart, which holds a majority stake in Flipkart. Amazon, for instance, hosts more than 600,000 sellers on its India platform. Its those sellers who have to ensure compliance. While theres a mix of big and small sellers on the e-commerce platforms, a large majority of them are micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) - a category of business that the government is focused on in terms of financial stimulus during the slowdown as well as helping them scale up. If they have to mandatorily spend time and resources on adhering to such directives at short notice, MSMEs may see the e-commerce platforms as a disadvantage for their business. On the other hand, such a move would adversely impact the Digital India plans of this government. Its important for regulation to keep pace with technology, but they should not scuttle businesses, while bringing in new rules without much thought. More so when companies are trying to bounce back to pre-Covid levels. E-commerce is one of the sectors to show green shoots earlier than others; lets not spoil the party. Instead, the effort should be to help the sector get back to business as usual. Photograph: Beawiharta/Reuters Joseph Finan, patent agent in the Dallas office of global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP, has been recognized in a special edition of D Magazines Best of Big D: Heroes. The publication typically showcases its annual Best of Big D issue with the best businesses and services Dallas has to offer. This year the magazine redirected its focus to showcase the Dallas community heroes, with over 900 submissions. Finan was selected for this honor for giving his time, talents, and resources to join the grassroots effort in the 3-D printing community to help produce and deliver personal protective equipment during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Finan donated 1,215 cleanable, reusable, face shields and about 1,000 ear savers, which has a market value of about $12,000. I am honored to be recognized alongside such an impressive group of individuals, Finan said. Thank you to those who supported my endeavor. A special thanks to my Greenberg Traurig colleagues for financing a large portion of the project. Without their support, we wouldnt have been nearly as successful. Joes commitment and passion to helping others is reflected in both his legal work as a patent agent as well as his community involvement. We are incredibly proud of Joe and are grateful to have him as a member of our team, said Joseph Coniglio, managing shareholder of Greenberg Traurigs Dallas office. Finan helps companies protect their intellectual property by drafting patent applications, identifying patentable subject matter, and representing clients before the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). He knows how to apply the law under both pre-AIA and AIA and has experience with foreign filings and PCT applications. He has extensive knowledge of the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure and is effective at using it to support positions in response to Office actions. Finan is also well-versed in claim interpretation and rejections under 112, as well as the causes and avoidance of critical defects in patent applications. About Greenberg Traurig, LLP Texas: Texas is important to Greenberg Traurig, LLP and part of its history. With more than 130 Texas lawyers in Austin, Dallas, and Houston, Greenberg Traurig, LLP has deep roots in the Texas business, legal, and governmental communities. Greenberg Traurig Texas works with clients to address their interdisciplinary legal needs across the state utilizing the firms global platform. The Texas attorneys are experienced in industries key to the states future, including: aviation, chemicals, construction, education, energy and natural resources, financial institutions, health care, hedge funds, hospitality, infrastructure, insurance, media, medical devices, pharmaceutical and biotechnology, real estate, retail, sports, technology and software, telecommunications, transportation, and video games and esports. About Greenberg Traurig, LLP: Greenberg Traurig, LLP (GT) has 2200 lawyers in 41 locations in the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. GT has been recognized for its philanthropic giving, diversity, and innovation, and is consistently among the largest firms in the U.S. on the Law360 400 and among the Top 20 on the Am Law Global 100. Web: http://www.gtlaw.com Twitter: @GT_Law. Raw material supply for COVID-19 vaccines sufficient in China Global Times By Chi Jingyi and Yin Yeping Source: Global Times Published: 2020/8/2 20:03:41 As countries race to promote COVID-19 vaccines, concerns have arisen over the supply of upstream raw materials. Industry analysts said that Chinese manufacturers need not worry as China has a sufficient raw material supply. According to China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), as of July 23, a total of 13 enterprises in the country have launched construction of assembly lines to produce COVID-19 vaccines, while 9 Chinese enterprises have received regulatory approval to start clinical vaccine trials. The planned output of vaccines will surpass 200 million doses from Sinopharm China National Biotec Group (CNBG). According to the data published by local media, the output of COVID-19 vaccines next year is likely to hit 500 million doses. Tao Lina, a Shanghai-based vaccine expert, said that China is fully capable to supply the raw materials needed to produce COVID-19 vaccines, if they are approved by the regulator. "The production of a COVID-19 vaccine requires the inactivated virus to be cultured in specific cells, for example, chicken embryos, which is the same as the cells used in rabies vaccine, as the two inactivated vaccines have the same production processes and technology," Tao told the Global Times Sunday. Data from the National Institute for Food and Drug Control showed that 58.83 million rabies vaccines were issued in China in 2019. By the first half of 2020, the total number of issued rabies vaccines in China was 34.17 million, with a year-on-year increase of 27.7 percent. The production capacity of rabies vaccines can be transferred to that of COVID-19 vaccines, because "the production of inactivated COVID-19 vaccines use much the same technology," Tao said. The latest example was seen in July at the COVID-19 vaccine production base in East China's Zhejiang Province, which is expected to be put into use in March. The production base will produce COVID-19 and rabies vaccines, according to the Administrative Committee of Ningbo Free Trade Zone. "There is no need to worry about raw materials such as proteases as they are used in small amounts in producing COVID-19 vaccines," Tao added. In a country such as China that has 1.4 billion people, if the raw materials needed for vaccines rely on imports, it will entail some hidden risks, but the problem has been addressed long ago, Tian Hongjian, a technician with China Medicinal Biotech Association, told the Global Times Sunday. China has a huge market and at the same time is a big producer of vaccines. The equipment needed to produce COVID-19 vaccines is available, and some production lines are already in place, Tian added. Yang Xiaoming, chairman of CNBG, said that the inventory of the inactivated coronavirus vaccine in the company has reached 4 million doses, and therefore can quickly meet the Chinese market's demand once the vaccine is approved by the regulator, local media reported Thursday. Vaccine vials are another concern for many vaccine manufacturers. An employee of Shandong Pharmaceutical Glass Co. Ltd, who asked not to be named, told the Global Times Sunday that the enterprise alone can produce sufficient vaccine vials. The A-share listed company is a major vaccine packaging manufacturer in China. According to corporate database Tianyancha, there are more than 60 vaccine-related packaging manufacturers in China. According to incomplete statistics, the annual output of vaccine vials can reach more than 8 billion, meeting the demand of the coronavirus vaccine production, said the China Association for Vaccines on May 17. "Currently, most domestic vaccine vials use low-borate borosilicate glass: the price is affordable compared to imported vaccine vials that use borosilicate glass," the employee said, adding that Shandong Pharmaceutical Glass has developed borosilicate glass for high-end consumers. "However, domestic vaccine vials may not be of that high quality as imported ones in compatibility - and prolonged exposure might affect the quality of the contained vaccine. The coronavirus vaccine will be used as soon as it is produced, so there should be no problem if domestic vaccine vials are used," Wang Xuegong, deputy director of the China Pharmaceutical Enterprises Association, told the Global Times Sunday. There are more than 100 novel coronavirus vaccine projects under development worldwide, according to the WHO. Earlier, China has promised that the Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccines will be made available to the entire world. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Rating Action: Moody's affirms Daiichi Sankyo's A2 ratings; maintains stable outlook Global Credit Research - 03 Aug 2020 Tokyo, August 03, 2020 -- Moody's Japan K.K. has affirmed Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited's A2 issuer and senior unsecured ratings. The rating outlook remains stable. The rating affirmation reflects (1) the strong progress Daiichi Sankyo has made in its antibody conjugate (ADC) projects for cancer treatments, (2) the likely revenue expansion over the next two to three years following the launch of its first ADC drug, Enhertu, and (3) the medium to long-term growth potential stemming from its promising product pipeline. RATINGS RATIONALE Daiichi Sankyo's A2 rating reflects its strong market position in Japan's (A1 stable) pharmaceutical industry. While its current revenue is concentrated in Japan, favorable progress in its oncology pipeline development, particularly in its ADC project, will enhance its business portfolio. With the successful launch of the breast cancer drug Enhertu, Daiichi Sankyo has taken important steps in establishing its oncology franchise, while also improving its geographic diversification with its expansion in the US. Further, Daiichi Sankyo's collaboration with AstraZeneca PLC (A3 stable) in the development and commercialization of Enhertu and DS-1062 will accelerate its sales globally and provide funds for R&D. Successful launches of these drugs will make its product portfolio more innovative than its previous focus on cardiovascular and metabolism treatments. Profit sharing on these ADC drugs with AstraZeneca will moderate the future upside in profit. Nevertheless, favorable test results to-date indicate Enhertu could drive revenue growth of as much as 10% annually in two to three years. In addition to breast cancer, Enhertu is undergoing clinical studies globally for applications also for lung, gastric and colorectal cancer. Further, other ADC projects in its early-stage pipeline could provide organic growth in the latter half of this decade and temper its need to make acquisitions. The company's balance sheet is very strong, with cash exceeding its debt. Moody's expects that positive free cash flow and cash will enable the company to reduce debt and further improve its already low leverage. Story continues FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS The stable outlook reflects Moody's expectation that Daiichi Sankyo's revenue will grow from ADC drugs and that debt will be retired as they mature. Moody's also expects collaboration with AstraZeneca will provide earnings growth for Daiichi Sankyo, although their profit sharing arrangement will cause profit growth to lag revenue growth. An upgrade is unlikely in the next several years, given the company's low profitability due to its reliance on the low-margin Japan market and more concentrated portfolio of therapeutic categories and products relative to its global peers. Nevertheless, the rating could be upgraded over time if Daiichi Sankyo becomes more diversified in its product and geographic mix, as well as improves its profitability. Moody's could downgrade the rating if the ADC drug launch and commercialization fall below expectations and leverage increases, for example, with debt/EBITDA rising above 2.5x on a sustained basis. The principal methodology used in these ratings was Pharmaceutical Industry (Japanese) published in July 2017 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_196413. Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology. Headquartered in Tokyo, Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited is a leading pharmaceuticals company in Japan. REGULATORY DISCLOSURES For further specification of Moody's key rating assumptions and sensitivity analysis, see the sections Methodology Assumptions and Sensitivity to Assumptions in the disclosure form. Moody's Rating Symbols and Definitions can be found at: https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_79004. For ratings issued on a program, series, category/class of debt or security this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the same series, category/class of debt, security or pursuant to a program for which the ratings are derived exclusively from existing ratings in accordance with Moody's rating practices. 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For any affected securities or rated entities receiving direct credit support from the primary entity(ies) of this credit rating action, and whose ratings may change as a result of this credit rating action, the associated regulatory disclosures will be those of the guarantor entity. Exceptions to this approach exist for the following disclosures, if applicable to jurisdiction: Ancillary Services, Disclosure to rated entity, Disclosure from rated entity. The ratings have been disclosed to the rated entity or its designated agent(s) and issued with no amendment resulting from that disclosure. These ratings are solicited. Please refer to Moody's Policy for Designating and Assigning Unsolicited Credit Ratings available on its website www.moodys.com. Regulatory disclosures contained in this press release apply to the credit rating and, if applicable, the related rating outlook or rating review. Moody's general principles for assessing environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks in our credit analysis can be found at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1133569. The Global Scale Credit Rating on this Credit Rating Announcement was issued by one of Moody's affiliates outside the EU and is endorsed by Moody's Deutschland GmbH, An der Welle 5, Frankfurt am Main 60322, Germany, in accordance with Art.4 paragraph 3 of the Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 on Credit Rating Agencies. Further information on the EU endorsement status and on the Moody's office that issued the credit rating is available on www.moodys.com. Please see www.moodys.com for any updates on changes to the lead rating analyst and to the Moody's legal entity that has issued the rating. Please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for additional regulatory disclosures for each credit rating. Yukiko Asanuma Analyst Corporate Finance Group Moody's Japan K.K. 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A four-block stretch of San Franciscos Tenderloin neighborhood will be remodeled to make room for pedestrians, a temporary project intended to allow for more physical distancing during the coronavirus pandemic. The new pedestrian spaces were announced by Mayor London Breed and Supervisor Matt Haney on Friday as a way to support residents and businesses in the neighborhood, which has been hit hard by the virus. The Jones Street project will extend from OFarrell Street to Golden Gate Avenue. It will include an additional 5 to 8 feet of walking space, adjacent to the sidewalk borrowed from the streets and protected from traffic with concrete barriers or parked cars. Additionally, the initiative builds on the Play Streets effort, shutting down full street blocks on Saturdays so children can safely play there instead. City officials will also work with local restaurants to support outdoor dining on the blocks. We know that its been difficult for people to maintain physical distance on sidewalks when going out for essential outings in the Tenderloin, and these changes will make it easier for people to get around their neighborhood safely, Breed said in a statement. COVID-19 has also made it difficult for our businesses, and thanks to our Shared Spaces Program, more restaurants in the Tenderloin will be able to use outdoor space to operate, which will support the economic and physical health of our entire community. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency will begin refashioning the area this week. The Tenderloin not only deserves but desperately needs streets that are re-designed to meet the needs of the residents, essential workers, businesses, families, and seniors, Haney said in a statement. With the critical guidance of the Tenderloin Traffic Safety Taskforce and many other stakeholders, Im excited that this set of projects is being implemented. 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. In a neighborhood notorious for open-air drug markets, filthy streets and high numbers of homeless and vulnerable residents, the area also requires substantial police and medical services. The Tenderloin has a higher concentration of traffic crashes and emergency service calls than anywhere else in the city, said Jeffrey Tumlin, SFMTA director of transportation. The street safety and design approaches that work in other neighborhoods did not work in the Tenderloin, Tumlin said. Were grateful to the creativity of community-based organizations, the Fire Department and other partners for helping us find creative solutions that work for the unique needs of Tenderloin residents. Megan Cassidy is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: megan.cassidy@sfchronicle.com, Twitter: @meganrcassidy Maria Ines brought this antique four-poster bed, which she has dressed with embroidered linen and lace, from her former home at Whitfield Court Maria Ines Dawnay in her drawing room with some furniture from her previous home. The grand piano belonged to Hugh. The top of the piano is covered with photos from his polo-playing days The family room is furnished with comfortable white sofas, while the walls are covered with photographs of Hugh and Maria Ines, their children and grandchildren. Its my life with Hugh, she says simply The elegant hallway is typical of a Georgian hallway, with its cross motif. It is floored in Portland stone Maria Ines Dawnay in her library. The sculpture of the horse is just one of many equine motifs in the house because of Hughs passion for polo. He once offered me a horse and I asked, Do you really want me to ride? He said, Yes, so I said, Give me your best horse. He never mentioned it again, she says While the colour of the front door is something most of us agonise over when decorating our homes, visitors often don't even notice it. If one is left waiting for a knock to be answered, it's the outside one turns to, and in the case of the home of Maria Ines Dawnay in Co Waterford, the exterior is wonderful - acres of rolling lawns and mature trees surround her stunning stand-alone Georgian-style home. However, the colour of Maria Ines's front door is particularly striking and it transpires it was chosen for a very romantic reason - it's the colour of the uniform her late husband, Major Hugh Dawnay, was wearing when this bubbly Argentinian first clapped eyes on the dashing officer of the British Army. His regiment was the 10th Hussars. That was in the early 1970s, and since then, Maria Ines has lived in Waterford. For much of their marriage, the couple lived in a magnificent period mansion called Whitfield Court, her beloved Hugh's ancestral home. Hugh ran a large farm and a world-renowned polo school there, and as well as looking after their two children, Sebastian and David, who are both now grown up, Maria Ines herself operated the house as a Hidden Ireland for paying guests. In 2006, the couple built their current home. It was a downsizing move as Hugh, then in his mid-70s, was finding it hard to manage everything. This house is big by most standards, but compact compared to Whitfield Court, which had 17 bedrooms. Expand Close Maria Ines Dawnays country-style kitchen decorated in cream. The table and Aga are from her late husband Hughs ancestral home / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Maria Ines Dawnays country-style kitchen decorated in cream. The table and Aga are from her late husband Hughs ancestral home Maria Ines also ran an interiors shop in Waterford city for many years, and her innate talent and interiors knowledge are evident in the many beautifully furnished rooms in the house, which are filled with things she picked up over the years, as well as some pieces from her previous home. Hugh's mother was Lady Katherine Beresford, daughter of the then Lord Waterford, so there are some family heirlooms, including magnificent sets of china. "She had one set for lunch and another for dinner and chided me if I used the wrong one. She was a lady, that's the way she was brought up," Maria Ines notes with a laugh. Maria Ines herself was born in Salta in the Andes between Bolivia and Chile, the daughter of a doctor who served two terms as Argentinian minister for health. The family moved when she was 12 to Buenos Aires, and after completing school - Maria Ines went to an English-speaking school as her mother was determined that she would learn English - she studied museology with a view to a career in museums. However, no sooner had she qualified than she met Hugh. "He came with the British Army to Buenos Aires to play polo with the Argentine Army. A friend of mine, the daughter of a general, brought me to a lunch party and Hugh was there. He was following a blonde lady at the lunch and sat next to her, but she didn't talk to him so he decided to talk to me. I wasn't going to play second fiddle, so I hit him on the head with a polo whip. It's true," she recalls with a laugh."We both started laughing and then we knew we had the same sense of humour." Despite their age and religious difference - Maria Inez was 22 and an Argentinian Catholic and Hugh was 17 years older and an Anglo Irish Protestant - they fell in love and married a year later. Hugh left the British Army and the couple moved to Ireland. Shortly after, Hugh took over the family farm at Whitfield Court in Waterford as his father had died just before the wedding. "I was very homesick at first. My mother-in-law, Lady Katherine, lived with us," Maria Ines volunteers. Expand Close Maria Ines Dawnay in her drawing room with some furniture from her previous home. The grand piano belonged to Hugh. The top of the piano is covered with photos from his polo-playing days / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Maria Ines Dawnay in her drawing room with some furniture from her previous home. The grand piano belonged to Hugh. The top of the piano is covered with photos from his polo-playing days "She was very Victorian, quite different to me; sometimes she didn't approve of me and she would go 'tsk, tsk'. For example, when there was a storm, I would hide with my children under the stairs so I wouldn't hear it; she would disapprove of that. "Looking back, I have no regrets - she was wonderful, I'm glad I had her. And she gave me the history of the family, because she knew I was going to carry it on. I have her diaries, I hope to write her biography." Learning how to live with Lady Katherine was one task, finding like-minded people with whom to be friends was another. "When I came to live here, it was funny, they thought I was going to be an incredible rider because I came from Argentina. All the Anglo Irish, the only thing they did was ride. They were so different," Maria Ines says. "The people who became my first friends here were the cook, Paddy the handyman, and the housekeeper, I followed them everywhere and I learned Irish ways." However, when Maria Ines became pregnant for the first time, she made friends with other expectant mums, many of whom are still among her core group of friends, and in her book club. "It's wonderful, they are still all my best friends," she says in her charmingly accented English. "What helped me too was the ICA, the Irish Countrywomen's Association. I was with them briefly. We did all sorts of crafts, patchwork and the like, and I gave a lecture about Argentina. The ICA was wonderful." Once her sons - Sebastian, now a professional polo player, and David, who's in pharmaceuticals - arrived, she was well settled in Waterford and she and Hugh had a busy life running the farm and the polo school. Through the polo, they met an international set and there are many photos of Hugh with the royal family. To cater for the polo players and the Hidden Ireland guests, Maria Ines actually went to the trouble of becoming a professional cook by doing the full-time, three-month Ballymaloe course. Expand Close The family room is furnished with comfortable white sofas, while the walls are covered with photographs of Hugh and Maria Ines, their children and grandchildren. Its my life with Hugh, she says simply / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The family room is furnished with comfortable white sofas, while the walls are covered with photographs of Hugh and Maria Ines, their children and grandchildren. Its my life with Hugh, she says simply She became very involved in the Chernobyl Children's Project International with Adi Roche and Ali Hewson and travelled several times with them to Belarus. She held a big ball at Whitfield Court for the charity, raising money for an incubator and an ambulance, with the help of her friends. Along with all these activities, she opened an interiors shop, The Country House, in Waterford, which she ran from 1979 until 1990. She started it again in 2012, this time calling it Country House Design. Maria Ines credits the shop with helping her to cope with Hugh's death eight years ago. "When my husband died, my world fell apart, but the shop kept me going," she says. "I loved the furnishings I brought from France, I loved the French country look. I used to go to Paris, Milan and Madrid to buy for the shop; my customers loved what I bought. My customers and I had so much in common; I loved it." She only retired from the shop early this year; she was thrilled to find a lovely young woman, Sinead Gunnigle, to take on the lease and Sinead has now opened Nest, also an interiors shop, to continue the tradition. Maria Ines also found great comfort in her lovely home, which she shares with Carlitos, her dog. When she decided to move from the old house, she wanted to combine, within the new build, the best of Georgian design and modern conveniences. The hall is the epitome of the period's design. "The Georgian design is normally in the form of a cross, with rooms off it," she says. The house has high ceilings, beautiful hand-made mouldings on the ceilings and antique mantlepieces, but unlike most Georgian buildings, the house has lots of useful rooms - utility rooms and bathrooms - and masses of storage. Her own en suite and dressing room are huge. "When you're building your own house, you can do that," she says with a laugh, adding that she was able to make her own bedroom, one of four, identical to her bedroom at Whitfield. As well as a beautiful country-style kitchen, complete with Aga, Maria Ines has a light-filled conservatory, two drawing rooms, a dining room and a wonderful library full of historical and non-fiction tomes. And needless to mention, there are many Waterford Crystal chandeliers from the old house. The many tabletops are covered with family photos - particularly Hugh and Sebastian at polo events with Prince Charles, Prince Philip, even Prince William - and the walls are covered in landscapes and still lifes. Soon, Maria Ines's own paintings will also hang on the walls; she started doing watercolours during the lockdown and already she has become very proficient with delicate images of hydrangeas and tulips. "My motto is: 'If you're determined, you can do it'," she says. Given Maria Ines's happy, successful, productive life so far, it's a motto which obviously has stood to her. Edited by Mary O'Sullivan Photography by Tony Gavin (Sharecast News) - Stocks in London have shaken off early losses, helped by the release of a much better than expected reading on euro area factory activity last month and similarly upbeat survey results overnight in China. A comparable survey for the UK also pointed to a fast recovery in the sector, but as in the rest of Europe, analysts were concerned that any improvement might lack staying power if joblessness didn't follow suit soon. "Of course, these survey's can be volatile at the best of times and this is far from that," said Oanda's Craig Erlam. "The risk of further restrictions and lockdowns will continue to be a huge cloud of uncertainty for many industries but after months of disruption, there may be a sense of relief at this data. Whether fears become a reality will depend on how good localized containment efforts turn out to be." Against that backdrop, as of 11:55 BST the top flight index was adding 0.66% to 5,936.30. IHS Markit's UK manufacturing sector Purchasing Managers' Index was revised lower from a preliminary reading of 53.6 for July to 53.3 and against the June reading of 50.1. Samuel Tombs, Pantheon Macroeconomics's chief UK economist, said the figures showed a "rapid" recovery in the sector but he was concerned by the fact that it partly reflected so-called 'pent-up' demand in the wake of the Covid-19 lockdown that "ultimately will fade away by the autumn". To take note of as well were reports at the weekend of the increasing odds that stricter Covid-19 restrictions could be in the pipeline, both in the UK and the US. Still high tensions between Beijing and Washington continued in the background meanwhile, with US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, signalling at the weekend that the Trump administration was set to clamp down on an array of Chinese state-controlled software manufacturers due to national security concerns. Still ahead on the economic front, the US Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing PMI was due for release at 1500 BST. HSBC and Rolls Royce weight on FTSE 100 Lenders' shares were the biggest drag on the FTSE 100 as a group after HSBC posted by a 65% drop in interim profits and warned that it was expecting full-year loan losses of between $8bn - $13bn "given the deterioration in consensus economic forecasts and actual loss experience" during the second quarter. Rolls Royce was at the bottom of the pile on the top-flight index amid speculation that tighter lockdown restrictions could be on the cards in the US and the UK. Hargreaves Lansdown on the other hand was at the top of the leaderboard, with its shareholders enjoying a good day as the stock was buoyed by data showing heightened interest in the stock market from millennials. Rio Tinto was also higher as iron ore futures hit a one-year high during Singapore trading hours, which analysts at SP Angel said were the product of continued stockpiling by Chinese firms, supply worries around Brazil linked to the Covid-19 pandemic in the South American giant and some analysts' forecasts for a small deficit in the market in 2020. Out on the FTSE 250 meanwhile, Hammerson was unwanted after the property developer confirmed that it was in discussions over a possible disposal of its 50% interest in VIA Outlets to its joint venture partner APG, and was also considering an equity raise via a rights issue. Also moving lower on the back of talk of a possible tightening in Covid-19 restrictions were the likes of Trainline, Mitchells&Butlers, Carnival, Cineworld and National Express. Shares of Lloyd's of London insurer Hiscox were also in the red after swinging to a loss in the first half and setting aside $232m for Covid-19 related claims. The company reported a pretax loss of $138.9m (106m) for the six months to the end of June compared with a $168m profit a year earlier. Gross premiums written fell to $2.236bn from $2.338bn. Market Movers FTSE 100 (UKX) 5,938.83 0.70% FTSE 250 (MCX) 16,967.51 0.21% techMARK (TASX) 3,733.55 0.51% FTSE 100 - Risers Avast (AVST) 596.50p 3.83% Just Eat Takeaway.Com N.V. (CDI) (JET) 8,552.00p 3.66% Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,813.00p 3.66% Fresnillo (FRES) 1,276.50p 3.57% CRH (CRH) 2,850.00p 3.04% Ashtead Group (AHT) 2,506.00p 2.92% Intertek Group (ITRK) 5,526.00p 2.75% Rio Tinto (RIO) 4,735.50p 2.61% Smurfit Kappa Group (SKG) 2,600.00p 2.36% Experian (EXPN) 2,738.00p 2.28% FTSE 100 - Fallers Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 216.30p -6.61% HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 325.95p -4.75% ITV (ITV) 54.54p -3.78% International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 158.55p -3.76% M&G (MNG) 156.95p -2.27% British Land Company (BLND) 357.90p -2.24% Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 116.25p -1.77% Standard Chartered (STAN) 379.60p -1.61% Imperial Brands (IMB) 1,261.50p -1.14% Whitbread (WTB) 2,160.00p -0.92% FTSE 250 - Risers IP Group (IPO) 74.50p 12.03% XP Power Ltd. (DI) (XPP) 4,260.00p 11.81% FDM Group (Holdings) (FDM) 969.00p 4.19% Polar Capital Technology Trust (PCT) 2,025.00p 3.85% Just Eat Takeaway.Com N.V. (CDI) (JET) 8,552.00p 3.66% Cairn Energy (CNE) 123.70p 3.43% Allianz Technology Trust (ATT) 2,400.00p 3.00% Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 555.60p 2.77% BlackRock Smaller Companies Trust (BRSC) 1,252.00p 2.62% IMI (IMI) 1,071.00p 2.59% FTSE 250 - Fallers Trainline (TRN) 377.20p -7.78% Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 142.60p -6.80% Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 54.10p -6.56% Equiniti Group (EQN) 120.00p -6.10% Hammerson (HMSO) 60.28p -6.08% Workspace Group (WKP) 582.00p -5.37% Shaftesbury (SHB) 486.00p -5.36% Cineworld Group (CINE) 36.25p -5.10% Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 742.00p -5.07% Rank Group (RNK) 130.60p -4.39% San Francisco, Aug 3 : California, the new epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic in the US, witnessed a record surge of 9,032 new cases in 24 hours, health authorities said. With a population of around 40 million, the country's most populated state has so far registered a totol 509,162 cases to date, Xinhua news agency quoted the Department of Public Health as saying Sunday. In the past 24 hours, 132 new COVID-19 deaths were recorded, bringing the state's fatalities to 9,356. With an increase of 149,388, there have been 8,035,975 tests conducted in California so far. "As testing capacity continues to increase across the state, an increase in the number of positive cases has been expected -- increasing the importance of positivity rates to find signs of community spread," the Department said. The number of confirmed cases in California surpassed New York state last week as the largest count in the US. California has not reported any recoveries so far. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) "Thanks for flying @SpaceX." Current Location: Planet Earth A 2:48pm ET, @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug splashed down, marking the first splashdown of an American crew spacecraft in 45 years. #LaunchAmerica pic.twitter.com/zO3KlNwxU3 NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A successful space trip that spanned just over two months came to a close on Sunday when two astronauts safely splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico completing the first astronaut trip to orbit by a private company, SpaceX and NASA said. SpaceX, the rocket company started by billionaire Elon Musk, launched the Crew Dragon capsule in a partnership with NASA in May after final tests for the trip were completed earlier in the year. The two NASA astronauts who undertook the journey, Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley, were safely lifted out of the water after their capsule returned to Earth in the first water landing completed by NASA since 1975, the agency posted on Twitter. The completed trip serves as a pivotal milestone for the NASA Commercial Crew Program an initiative to send astronauts to the International Space Station by privately operated crew vehicles. The trip could signify a first step to enabling more people to go to space for activities like sightseeing and research. .@AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug have been lifted out of the water and are aboard the Go Navigator. Welcome home. #LaunchAmerica pic.twitter.com/gjqUcLMy8X NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 Just before the recovery ship brought the space capsule out of the water, a group of small private boats piloted by onlookers in the area got close to the craft causing mission personnel to force back the encroachers, one of whom was flying a banner supporting President Donald Trump. The recovery team detected small amounts of NTO, or nitrogen tetroxide a potentially toxic propellant that comes from the capsules rocket engines when the craft was hauled from the ocean. Officials said traces of NTO are common and expected, adding that a purge of the fumes were completed before the astronauts exited the capsule. What is not common is having passersby approach the vehicle at close range with nitrogen tetroxide in the atmosphere, said NASA Administrator Jim Bridestine. Thats not something that is good and we need to make sure we are warning people to not get close to the spacecraft in the future. After 4 p.m., the astronauts were removed from the craft with the help of a recovery crew and were seen giving a thumbs-up while still in their space suits. You should take a moment to just cherish this day, especially given all the things that have happened this year, Hurley said as he exited the Crew Dragon, also thanking the employees of NASA and SpaceX for their work on the mission. Trump commented on the astronauts safe return home on Twitter. Great to have NASA Astronauts return to Earth after very successful two month mission. Thank you to all!, he said. This is a great day for NASA and a great day for the United States of America, said Bridestine, adding that the trip signified entering a new era of human spaceflight. WATERLOO REGION The standard pandemic protocols are all too familiar by now wash your hands, keep your distance, wear a mask. But as more businesses reopen, and schools prepare to welcome students back in the fall, are we overlooking another weapon in the fight against COVID-19? Chao Tan thinks so. Tan, a professor in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering at the University of Waterloo, believes that indoor air monitoring and filtration is a critical step, especially if the virus can spread via aerosols tiny particles that can remain in the air for a longer time and not just through larger droplets. I believe we need to monitor the indoor air quality for the safety or health of the occupants, Tan said. Field measurements in an office environment showed a marked difference in the amount of time it took to reduce aerosols in the air if measures such as ventilation and an air purifier were used, he said. Monitoring technology can detect the presence of aerosols in the air, but not a virus itself. I do believe we need to clean the air when there is heavy occupancy inside, because that would be beyond the capability of a conventional HVAC system, Tan said. Standard systems are focused on keeping people comfortable, not cleaning the air, and while they may provide some filtration, thats typically intended more to protect the device than the occupants, he said. They may help to remove dust or allergens, but those are very large particles, much larger than viral contaminants. Conventional HVAC systems in buildings are not designed to tackle the COVID-19 virus, Tan said. If anything, they could serve to circulate aerosols in the absence of robust filtration. Alex Taylor wishes more people would pay attention to the importance of treating indoor air in tackling the COVID-19 crisis. Theres an advantage from a business perspective, to be sure Taylor is the president of Austin Air Canada, a family business founded in Waterloo Region that specializes in medical-grade air purifiers. But he said he wants to educate the public. Once more information from doctors becomes more prevalent, it will become obvious that we need to deal with this, he said. Austin Airs sales have exploded since March, especially in the wake of an open letter submitted to the World Health Organization about a month ago from 239 scientists in 39 countries urging the agency to revise its guidance on airborne transmission. The WHO acknowledged a few days later it could not rule out the possibility of airborne aerosol transmission outside of medical settings under certain circumstances, such as in crowded spaces with poor ventilation. Many of Austin Airs purifiers have gone to dental and doctors offices and private schools in Canada and the United States, Taylor said. The people that are in the know are buying now. The compact units incorporate HEPA and carbon-cloth filtration that exceeds that of an N95 respirator mask, the company states. Two different sizes cover about 700 or 1,500 square feet of open-concept space, respectively; prices start at about $550. The company recommends a filter change every three years for a medical setting, or every five years for residential use. Manufacturing moved to Buffalo about a decade ago, but increasing demand is prompting Taylor to look at re-establishing a plant in Canada as well. Monitoring indoor air quality and parameters such as humidity and carbon dioxide levels can help to identify problem areas inside a building where a virus such as COVID-19 may have a better chance of spreading. Waterloo tech firm Eleven-x has partnered with engineering consulting firm Pinchin on technology to monitor workplace air quality, with wireless sensors providing real-time monitoring of carbon dioxide, relative humidity, temperature, particulate matter, light levels, and motion. Higher carbon dioxide concentrations, for example, could point to areas where too many people are gathered, or where ventilation is inadequate. Maintaining a relative humidity between 40 and 60 per cent may help to limit a virus spread, some studies have shown. This partnership with Pinchin is really about our technology working alongside theirs to bring safety to people in many different environments and enclosed spaces, which is going to be paramount as they return to work and moving forward, Eleven-x president and chief executive officer Dan Mathers said in a release. Tan, the UW professor, thinks governments should be consulting with more indoor air specialists as COVID-19-related decisions are being made. It never hurts to hear more opinions. Mask-wearing is a good approach, but Tan cautions there are loopholes in that strategy some people are exempted from wearing masks, while others dont wear them properly or are using inappropriate masks, like ones with valves that release unfiltered air when the wearer exhales. There are simple things people can do that are beneficial. Open a window to bring fresh air in, but keep interior doors closed. Because your pollutants, if any, may transmit from one room to the hallway, then go to another room, Tan said. Filtration or monitoring technology comes at a cost, but could prove invaluable in keeping COVID-19 at bay. I would encourage the administrators or the decision-makers to consider that as an option, if you can afford it, said Tan. Job Title: HIV Care & Treatment Officer Organization: Rakai Health Sciences Program (RHSP) Duty Station: Uganda Reports to: Regional Manager Care & Treatment About US: Rakai Health Sciences Program (RHSP) is a collaborative bio medical research and service delivery organization. RHSP strives to improve the quality of life of the local population through a combination of community-based research, curative services and prevention strategies in the districts of South-central Uganda. Job Summary: The HIV Care & Treatment Officer will Provide HIV related technical support to health care workers at supported HFs in assessment, diagnosis & clinical care of all patients . Key Duties and Responsibilities: Provide technical assistance and mentorship for health workers in HIV/AIDS care Provide continuous clinical mentoring in all areas including reporting for all related MoH reports Support and participate in a Continuous Medical Education (CME) programs for all staff Support coordination of health education talks in HIV/AIDS related fields Lead and strengthen quality improvement activities in all HIV/AIDS related fields at all facilities Support referral and linkages for clients receiving care at supported facilities Support HMIS and program reporting for all supported facilities Any other assigned duties in line with your role Qualifications, Skills and Experience: The ideal applicant must hold a Diploma in medicine Training in clinical management of HIV/AIDS and opportunistic infections Registration with the Allied Health professionals Council At least one year and above work experience in a busy clinical HIV/AIDS setting Experience in clinical care of infants, children and adolescents would be an advantage Specific experience and training in HIV management or care Good interpersonal skills required Ability to interact productively and work in a team environment Self-motivated, innovative and capable of meeting deadlines. Excellent communication skills required (Both oral & written) How to Apply: All interested candidates possessing the above attributes can send their; applications including a cover letter, updated CV with 3 referees, and copies of academic qualifications/certificates, addressed to the HR Manager to jobs@rhsp.org . Kindly indicate the job title in the subject line of the email. Only online applications will be considered. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. Any form of lobbying and canvassing will lead to disqualification. Deadline: Tuesday 4th August 2020 by 5:00pm For more of the latest jobs, please visit https://www.theugandanjobline.com or find us on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/UgandanJobline For the last few days patients with appointments at the Doctor Marcos ophthalmologist's in Torre del Mar have been greeted by two humanoid robots, Cr-1 and NAO. The two androids are capable of taking patients' temperatures and asking them general medical questions related to their appointments as soon as they walk through the door. The eye specialist confirms that he has introduced them into the clinic to improve coronavirus prevention measures and the risk of infection, but stresses that they "will not lead to redundancies among staff". Doctor Marcos says that every one of his 11 members of staff has a specific role and that the robots "can't replace human contact". Cr-1 and NAO, which have cost the clinic over 100,000 euros, are able to assist technicians, optometrists and ophthalmologists. In addition, they can help the fight against Covid infection by taking temperatures using thermal imaging cameras. They can also carry out a diagnostic questionnaire and dry eye tests, among other functions. Pioneers Doctor Marcos says that he had been looking into the idea of using robots at his Torre del Mar practice since 2017, following a work trip to South Korea. "Seeing the Samsung society, how they work with technology and how they have managed to keep Covid-19 death rates down is incredible," he reflects. The acquisition of the two robots has been possible through an alliance he has with the Exener Group and Macco Robotics, both of which are entirely Spanish companies. "That's why we are ahead of the rest," he explains proudly. This is not the first time that Doctor Marcos has been a pioneer in his field. With experience of working in the USA and Asia, the eye specialist was one of the first in his sector to use laser treatment to treat lazy eye, short and long sightedness as well as performing latest generation ultrasound on cataracts, glaucoma. The list goes on. As well as the two robots that the Torre del Mar clinic has just acquired, Dr Marcos has also been using robots in surgery. "The famous Da Vinci has the advantages of 3D precision, it's less invasive and has the option of telesurgery." He adds that the robots can work "in places with high levels of infection or radiation", which is the case now with coronavirus. The doctor also mentions nanorobots, which can help to treat problems such as blood clots. The biggest disadvantage to using this type of technology, according to Dr Marcos, is the cost. He also points out that programming the robots is "difficult" and that the lack of regulations regarding responsibility is also an issue. "There have been cases of robots causing small burns," he acknowledges. However, despite the drawbacks, Dr Marcos believes that the question isn't about a "robotic future" but that "robots are already working with patients with Alzheimer's, cancer, in dentistry, with children and elderly people now". He concludes that working with this type of technology is "the new normal". Russia has dismissed US and British claims that it tested an anti-satellite weapon in space, and declared that the accusations served to justify Washingtons own plans to deploy weapons in orbit. US and British officials claimed on Thursday that the July 15 test of an anti-satellite weapon signalled a continuing Russian effort to develop technologies that could threaten space assets of the United States and its allies. The Russian Foreign Ministry rejected the allegations, saying in a statement that the July 15 experiment did not threaten any other space objects and complied with the international law. It described the claims as part of an information campaign to discredit Russias space activities and its peaceful initiatives aimed at preventing an arms race in space. Asked to comment on the US and British accusations, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters: Russia has always been and remains a country committed to complete demilitarisation of space and non-deployment of any types of weapons in space. Russias Defence Ministry previously stated that the July 15 event involved a small space vehicle that inspected one of the national satellites from a close distance using special equipment. The ministry added that the inspection provided valuable information about the object that was inspected, which was transmitted to the ground-based control facilities. But US military officials said the Russian activity was inconsistent with the stated mission of an inspector satellite. The Russian satellite system used to conduct this on-orbit weapons test is the same satellite system that we raised concerns about earlier this year, when Russia manoeuvred near a US government satellite, said Air Force Gen John W Raymond, commander of the United States Space Command. In a space strategy document published last month, the Pentagon asserted that China and Russia present the greatest strategic threat due to their development, testing, and deployment of counterspace capabilities and their associated military doctrine for employment in conflict extending to space. Story continues Russias military said in December that it conducted an experiment with a small satellite that separated from a carrier space platform. It said the vehicle transmitted images to assess the technical condition of another Russian satellite as part of the experiment. It described the test as part of an ongoing effort to check the condition of satellites. Several other Russian inspector satellites were launched earlier with the same stated purpose and they performed orbital tests. In the months since Toronto started rolling out its collection of 50 new photo radar cameras, five have been reported stolen a feat, considering each weighs about 365 kilos at least 14 have been vandalized and one has even been set on fire. Im not much of a detective but Im starting to feel like there are some people out there who dont like these things very much. But theres a foolproof solution for drivers who are cursing the existence of these machines, designed to automatically issue speeding tickets to the owners of cars caught on camera going too fast. And it doesnt involve skulking out in the cover of night with several bottles of lighter fluid or a hydraulic lift capable of hoisting an 365-kilo speed camera. Instead, try this: slow the hell down. New data released by the city last week shows way too many drivers arent doing that. After a lengthy grace period in which drivers caught on camera were issued only warnings, the city flipped the switch and started issuing real traffic tickets on July 6. During the first two weeks of operation, the 50 cameras issued a whopping 7,645 tickets. Thats an average of 546 a day. One camera, placed on Renforth Dr. near Michael Power-St. Joseph High School in Etobicoke, was responsible for a full 12 per cent of all tickets issued. It also saw the record for fastest speed, with one car clocked doing 89 km/h in a 40 km/h zone. Not far away, a camera on Trehorne Dr. near Hilltop Middle School also in Etobicoke issued eight tickets to the same car between July 6 and July 20. The data is clear. Toronto drivers are flagrantly exceeding speed limits. These numbers also suggest these photo radar cameras could be a cash cow for Toronto, but money shouldnt be a motivator for city hall. A spokesperson for the city told me that while its not yet known exactly how much revenue was raised from the 7,645 tickets issued, as the window for people to dispute their tickets is still open, the average fine per ticket issued was approximately $104.30. Assuming most tickets arent overturned, that gives a ballpark estimate of the photo radar program generating almost $800,000 over the first two weeks. Spread over a full year, the city could be looking at an annual haul of just under $21 million. The number could be much higher if the city scaled up the program, adding more cameras. How much could Toronto make with 100 cameras? What about 500? For city hall, those could seem like tantalizing questions, especially given their pandemic-related financial woes, but pump the brakes a bit. While the photo radar cameras have already justified their existence theyre way more cost effective than paying police officers to hang out for hours with radar guns its important that the goal of this program always be improving road safety, not generating revenue. The reason there are speed cameras on Toronto streets today is because the city was seeing an alarming number of pedestrians killed or seriously injured by cars. There were 42 pedestrians killed in 2019, by the Stars count, matching the number in 2018. The science says speed is an undeniable factor: a pedestrian hit by a car going 60 km/h has a 95 per cent chance of dying, compared to a 30 per cent chance of death if hit by a vehicle going 40 km/h, according to research included in Torontos Road Safety Plan. If safety is the focus, the citys transportation department should use the photo radar data as a guide for where to prioritize changes to road design. The Etobicoke location on Renforth Dr. responsible for the highest number of tickets so far, for example, is a long straightaway with wide lanes. It doesnt look like a street designed for a 40 km/h limit. Adding traffic calming measures like traffic lights, speed bumps or a nice landscaped median here would make speed less inviting. That redesign would likely mean less money for the city through the photo radar program, but it would also represent an overall improvement for safety. And that not cash should remain the goal. A large number of the valley networks scarring Mars's surface were carved by water melting beneath glacial ice, not by free-flowing rivers as previously thought, according to new UBC research published today in Nature Geoscience. The findings effectively throw cold water on the dominant "warm and wet ancient Mars" hypothesis, which postulates that rivers, rainfall and oceans once existed on the red planet. To reach this conclusion, lead author Anna Grau Galofre, former PhD student in the department of earth, ocean and atmospheric sciences, developed and used new techniques to examine thousands of Martian valleys. She and her co-authors also compared the Martian valleys to the subglacial channels in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago and uncovered striking similarities. "For the last 40 years, since Mars's valleys were first discovered, the assumption was that rivers once flowed on Mars, eroding and originating all of these valleys," says Grau Galofre. "But there are hundreds of valleys on Mars, and they look very different from each other. If you look at Earth from a satellite you see a lot of valleys: some of them made by rivers, some made by glaciers, some made by other processes, and each type has a distinctive shape. Mars is similar, in that valleys look very different from each other, suggesting that many processes were at play to carve them." The similarity between many Martian valleys and the subglacial channels on Devon Island in the Canadian Arctic motivated the authors to conduct their comparative study. "Devon Island is one of the best analogues we have for Mars here on Earth--it is a cold, dry, polar desert, and the glaciation is largely cold-based," says co-author Gordon Osinski, professor in Western University's department of earth sciences and Institute for Earth and Space Exploration. In total, the researchers analyzed more than 10,000 Martian valleys, using a novel algorithm to infer their underlying erosion processes. "These results are the first evidence for extensive subglacial erosion driven by channelized meltwater drainage beneath an ancient ice sheet on Mars," says co-author Mark Jellinek, professor in UBC's department of earth, ocean and atmospheric sciences. "The findings demonstrate that only a fraction of valley networks match patterns typical of surface water erosion, which is in marked contrast to the conventional view. Using the geomorphology of Mars' surface to rigorously reconstruct the character and evolution of the planet in a statistically meaningful way is, frankly, revolutionary." Grau Galofre's theory also helps explain how the valleys would have formed 3.8 billion years ago on a planet that is further away from the sun than Earth, during a time when the sun was less intense. "Climate modelling predicts that Mars' ancient climate was much cooler during the time of valley network formation," says Grau Galofre, currently a SESE Exploration Post-doctoral Fellow at Arizona State University. "We tried to put everything together and bring up a hypothesis that hadn't really been considered: that channels and valleys networks can form under ice sheets, as part of the drainage system that forms naturally under an ice sheet when there's water accumulated at the base." These environments would also support better survival conditions for possible ancient life on Mars. A sheet of ice would lend more protection and stability of underlying water, as well as providing shelter from solar radiation in the absence of a magnetic field--something Mars once had, but which disappeared billions of years ago. While Grau Galofre's research was focused on Mars, the analytical tools she developed for this work can be applied to uncover more about the early history of our own planet. Jellinek says he intends to use these new algorithms to analyze and explore erosion features left over from very early Earth history. "Currently we can reconstruct rigorously the history of global glaciation on Earth going back about a million to five million years," says Jellinek. "Anna's work will enable us to explore the advance and retreat of ice sheets back to at least 35 million years ago--to the beginnings of Antarctica, or earlier--back in time well before the age of our oldest ice cores. These are very elegant analytical tools." ### Events over the last week have made it clear that the situation in eastern Ladakh remains grim. There is a clear disjunct between Chinas, entirely erroneous, description of the disengagement process as almost complete and Indias, factual, understanding of the ground reality regarding the deployment of Peoples Liberation Army troops. Military and diplomatic-level talks between the two sides have made little progress. The Chinese ambassador to India, late last week, reiterated the Chinese position and stuck to Beijings narrative of the Galwan incident, blaming India. All of this points to a clear signal from the Chinese. Talks or no talks, Beijing is telling New Delhi that it will not budge. The chutzpah here is staggering. China wants the Indian side to pull back from what is Indian territory; it wants patrolling powers curtailed; it wants to convert the new facts on the ground it has created by violating past pacts into the new reality; it wants India to give up on its own territorial claims in the region; and all this while, it also expects Delhi to be held responsible for the stand-off in the first place. There is little doubt that events over the past three months have shown China is Indias most dangerous strategic adversary. In the immediate context, Delhi has to focus on retaining and boosting its military strength at the Line of Actual Control. It should also come up with creative ways to exert military pressure on China, perhaps in other geographies where Beijing is more vulnerable, to force it to step back while factoring in the risks of escalation carefully. It must continue to tell China that Beijings fond hope of retaining the economic benefits of the relationship while posing a security threat will not be entertained. It must cement international partnerships, and actively participate in the global narrative against Chinas belligerence, for hedging is no longer a viable option. It must prepare for not just a long winter in Ladakh, but a difficult decade ahead where Indias territorial integrity and sovereignty will be challenged from two fronts. And it must focus on the domestic front to ensure political stability, social harmony, and most importantly, economic growth and national unity to be able to take on China. Beijings signals leave India with no choice but to respond accordingly. Fifteen of the 20 largest school districts are expected to be teaching fully online in the fall, according to data collected by Education Week, a trade publication focused on education. By contrast, among colleges, the pattern is reversed. Just 128 roughly 4 percent of the nations thousands of colleges have announced plans to hold classes solely online, according to data gathered by Davidson College. There are plenty of exceptions. At the elementary and secondary levels, major school districts like Hillsborough, Fla. (which includes Tampa) and Dallas are planning to have students attend classes in person. New York City, which has the nations largest school system, is trying to have it both ways, by having students split their learning between the classroom and the home. The Boston campus of the University of Massachusetts plans to shift classes completely online, as do several of Harvards graduate programs. But most colleges are welcoming students back to campus this fall, while enormous public school districts like Los Angeles Unified and Philadelphia are expected to have no children in their buildings. A broad group of educators and health experts argues that young children should be the first back in classrooms, partly because if a child doesnt learn to read, write and handle numbers early in primary school, she or he may struggle for the rest of her or his life. And as a practical matter, many young children cant log themselves onto a computer and learn independently, as university students can. The educational needs of young children have economic implications. When children learn at home, they need adults nearby to assist them. Affluent families can afford to hire a nanny to supervise their children during the school day, but most people cannot. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a forecast that deaths related to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the United States could reach 20,000 in just the next 21 days. In the CDC projection, more than 173,000 COVID-19 deaths in America may come by August 22. The forecast was published by the CDC itself, the CTV News reported. The CDC data means about 1,000 deaths will take place every day for the next 30 days. The John Hopkins University data showed that since the start of the pandemic, at least 154,000 deaths have been recorded in America, with over 4.6 million infected with COVID-19. The CDC said new deaths will most likely increase in the states of Alabama, Kentucky, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, Tennessee and Washington. Some of these states have seen some progress in their COVID-19 numbers, but have recently raised their alarm again. Across the country, local leaders and public health experts have told residents that they have to be on alert and careful because social gatherings, especially among younger Americans, are fueling the spread of the coronavirus among people. States in the South appear to be near their peak, but experts said even those in the Midwest have to feel more concerned as well. More Masks, More Lives Saved Dr. Megan Ranney, an emergency physician at Lifespan Health System, said levels are "still far too high" in the U.S., the CNN reported. She reminded people about the need to use masks. She also said it may be for the best that large social gatherings are "shut down for the time being" until the U.S. comes up with a strategy that gets the virus under better control. Experts said young people in the U.S. may bring the virus back home without knowing it as many people do not show symptoms. Health officials in Washington said at least 30 percent of residents, who came up positive of the coronavirus caught it from someone who was asymptomatic. Dr. Chris Murray of the University of Washington said about 55 percent of Americans are wearing a mask these days. Murray sees it as good news, but thinks there is still "a long way to go" before the U.S. can meet the estimated 95 percent mask wearing rate in Singapore, which can save a lot of lives in the country. Researchers in Texas also reported that there are some effects to even two weeks' worth of social distancing policies. It can spread the virus by about 65 percent globally that can then prevent 1.5 million new cases. Daniel McGrail, a post-doctoral fellow studying systems biology, said in a statement that states with social distancing policies showed lower transmission rates compared to states without. The team even saw a smaller reduction spread in states without such policies. "New Phase" According to NPR, White House coronavirus task force coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx said on Sunday that the U.S. is facing a "new phase" of the pandemic, noting that it is "extraordinarily widespread" within both rural and urban areas. She urged people to follow public health rules as cases are still climbing in many parts of the country. Birx said what the U.S. is seeing today is different from the March and April numbers. The White House's coronavirus task force warned about emerging hot spots in the Midwest as cases in the South and West skyrocket in the recent months. Birx told CNN that the projects can still be changed, if states can speed up or maintain their efforts to fight the virus. Want to read more? Check these out! Texas' Coronavirus Death Toll Declines But Only Due to Error that Affected the Data New Study From CDC Confirms Kids Could Be the Spreader of the Virus COVID-19 and Its Positive Consequence: Long-Lost Sisters Reunite After More Than 50 Years QUITO, Ecuador, August 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On July 20, 2020, the Republic of Ecuador (the "Republic" or "Ecuador") commenced a solicitation of consents from Eligible Holders (as defined below) to modify the terms of ten series of outstanding bonds having an aggregate principal amount of approximately U.S.$17.4 billion (the "Eligible Bonds") and their respective indentures (the "Consent Solicitation"). In conjunction with the Consent Solicitation, the Republic also commenced an invitation to Eligible Holders that delivered their consent in the Consent Solicitation to tender their Eligible Bonds in exchange for a package of new securities to be issued by the Republic (the "New Securities") under a new master indenture (the "Invitation to Exchange" and, together with the Consent Solicitation, the "Invitation"). The terms and conditions of the Invitation are described in the invitation memorandum dated July 20, 2020 (as amended, the "Invitation Memorandum"). Capitalized terms used herein but not defined herein shall have the meanings ascribed to such terms in the Invitation Memorandum. The Republic announced today that, based on consents delivered as of 4:00 p.m. Central European Time on August 3, 2020, it had obtained the Requisite Consents to modify all series of Eligible Bonds as proposed in the Invitation, without giving effect to any re-designation. Final results will be communicated as early as practicable following receipt of any additional consents delivered prior to the Consent Deadline (as defined below). The Republic also announced its decision to extend the expiration date solely with respect to the Invitation to Exchange from 5:00 p.m. Central European Time on Monday, August 3, 2020 (the "Old Expiration Date") to 5:00 p.m. Central European Time on Friday, August 7, 2020 (the "New Expiration Date"). The Consent Deadline, which is the deadline to consent to the proposed modifications pursuant to the Consent Solicitation, will not be extended and remains today at 5:00 p.m. Central European Time (the "Consent Deadline"), and is not affected by this announcement. As set forth in the Invitation Memorandum, the Republic reserved the right in its sole discretion to extend the Old Expiration Date at any time. Any Eligible Holders whose Eligible Bonds are held on its behalf by a broker, dealer, bank, custodian, trust company or other nominee must contact such entity if it wishes to participate in the Invitation to Exchange, as such entities may establish an earlier deadline to receive instructions to tender Eligible Bonds. Eligible Holders that tender their Eligible Bonds after the Old Expiration Date and prior to the New Expiration Date will be eligible to receive the New Securities with the exclusion of the New PDI 2030 Bonds in the same amounts as if such Eligible Bonds had been tendered prior to the Old Expiration Date, as set forth on Table A below. However, such Eligible Holders may no longer deliver consents to the proposed modifications and will not be eligible to receive any payments or any New PDI 2030 Bonds in respect of accrued and unpaid interest on their respective Eligible Bonds. In addition, such Eligible Holders will no longer be able to provide a Unique Identifier Code as part of their tender submission. The Settlement Date for the Invitation is now expected to occur on Wednesday, August 12, 2020, or as soon as practicable thereafter, but no later than the Settlement Deadline (scheduled for August 20, 2020, unless such deadline is further extended by the Republic pursuant to the Invitation). Pursuant to the terms of the Invitation, the principal amount of New PDI 2030 Bonds being issued to Eligible Holders that delivered valid Consents and Tender Orders prior to the Old Expiration Date will be adjusted to reflect the actual Settlement Date. Except as set forth in this announcement with respect to the Old Expiration Date, the Settlement Date and the ability of Eligible Holders to provide a Unique Identifier Code, the terms of the Invitation as set forth in the Invitation Memorandum are not modified or amended. ********* Table A Distribution of the New 2030 Bond, New 2035 Bond and New 2040 Bond Eligible Bonds New 2030 Bond, New 2035 Bond and New 2040 Bond Distribution(1) 2022 Bond U.S.$300.00 principal amount of New 2030 Bond U.S.$495.30 principal amount of New 2035 Bond U.S.$116.00 principal amount of New 2040 Bond 2023 Bond U.S.$229.00 principal amount of New 2030 Bond U.S.$495.30 principal amount of New 2035 Bond U.S.$187.00 principal amount of New 2040 Bond 2024 Bond U.S.$300.00 principal amount of New 2030 Bond U.S.$495.30 principal amount of New 2035 Bond U.S.$116.00 principal amount of New 2040 Bond 2025 Bond U.S.$189.00 principal amount of New 2030 Bond 2026 Bond U.S.$495.30 principal amount of New 2035 Bond 9.625% 2027 Bond U.S.$227.00 principal amount of New 2040 Bond 8.875% 2027 Bond 2028 Bond 2029 Bond 2030 Bond ___________________________________ (1) Principal amount of each bond per U.S.$1,000 principal amount of Eligible Bonds. ********* Eligible Holders, or custodians for such holders, of Eligible Bonds may obtain a copy of the Invitation Memorandum by contacting the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent at the contact information set forth below, or by download, following registration, via: https://gbsc-usa.com/ecuador. This announcement is for informational purposes only and is not an invitation or a solicitation of consents of any holders of Eligible Bonds. The Consent Solicitation and Invitation to Exchange to Eligible Holders of Eligible Bonds is only being made pursuant to the Invitation. Holders of Eligible Bonds should read the Invitation Memorandum carefully prior to making any decision with respect to delivering their consents or tendering their securities because it contains important information. Ecuador will make (or cause to be made) all further announcements regarding the Invitation by press release in accordance with applicable law. Ecuador has not registered the Invitation or the Eligible Bonds under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), or any state securities law. The Invitation may not be made in the United States or to any U.S. persons except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act. The Invitation is being made only to (A) "qualified institutional buyers" as defined in Rule 144A under the Securities Act, (B) "accredited investors" within the meaning of Rule 501(a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) of Regulation D under the Securities Act ("institutional accredited investors") and (C) (x) persons outside the United States, (y) if located within a member state of the European Economic Area or in the United Kingdom, a "qualified investor" as defined in Regulation (EU) 1129/2017, and (z) if located outside the EEA or the UK, is eligible to receive this invitation under the laws of its jurisdiction. Only holders of Eligible Bonds who have returned a duly completed eligibility letter (available on the website of the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent, at https://gbsc-usa.com/ecuador) certifying that they are within one of the categories described in the immediately preceding sentence are authorized to receive and review the Invitation Memorandum and to participate in the Invitation ("Eligible Holders"). None of the DEALER MANAGER, the Trustee, the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent, the financial advisor nor any of their respective directors, employees, affiliates, agents or representatives makes any recommendation as to whether Holders should deliver their consents or TENDER THEIR ELIGIBLE BONDS pursuant to thE INVITATION, and no one has been authorized by any of them to make such a recommendation. Each Holder must make its own decision as to whether to consent or TENDER THEIR ELIGIBle bonds. The Invitation Memorandum is available from the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent. The Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent for the Invitation is: Global Bondholder Services Corporation 65 Broadway Suite 404 New York, New York 10006 Attn: Corporate Actions Banks and Brokers call: (212) 430-3774 Toll free (866)-470-3800 By facsimile: (For Eligible Institutions only): (212) 430-3775/3779 Confirmation: (212) 430-3774 Email: [email protected] Any questions regarding the terms of the Invitation should be directed to the Dealer Manager or the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent at their respective addresses and telephone numbers set forth on this communication. If you have any questions about how to tender your Eligible Bonds in the Invitation, you should contact the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent. Requests for additional copies of the Invitation Memorandum, the eligibility letter or any other related documents may also be directed to the Information, Tabulation and Exchange Agent. The Dealer Manager for the Invitation is: Citigroup Global Markets Inc. 390 Greenwich St, 1st Floor New York, NY 10013 Attention: Liability Management Group U.S. Toll-free: +1-800-558-3745 Collect: +1-212-723-6106 Email: [email protected] ********* The Republic of Ecuador Ministry of Economy and Finance Av. Amazonas entre Pereira y Union Nacional de Periodistas Plataforma Gubernamental de Gestion Financiera, Pisos 10 y 11 Quito, Ecuador (Financial Advisor to the Republic of Ecuador) Lazard Freres 121 Boulevard Haussmann 75008, Paris SOURCE The Republic of Ecuador Flint residents whose health and homes were harmed by lead-contaminated water scored a legal milestone on July 29 when the Michigan Supreme Court said they could proceed with a lawsuit against public officials for the disastrous decisions that caused the scandal. Plaintiffs in this case raise some of the most disturbing allegations of malfeasance by government actors in Michigans history, Justice Richard Bernstein said. The courts opinion was a key procedural step in long-running litigation that now will return to the Court of Claims. By a 4-2 vote, the Supreme Court said Flint residents could pursue a claim of diminished property values. Residents also can argue that their right to bodily integrity was violated by the use of corrosive water from the Flint River. That part of the opinion was a 3-3 tie. But its a victory for residents because a tie under court rules affirms an earlier decision in their favor by the Michigan appeals court. Flint used water from the Flint River in 2014-15 without treating it to reduce the corrosive effect on old pipes. As a result, lead leached into the system. Use of the river water was supposed to be a temporary measure while a pipeline was built to Lake Huron. The lawsuit names then-Gov. Rick Snyder, two former Flint government managers appointed by Snyder and public agencies that repeatedly assured the public that the water was safe. Defendants have fought plaintiffs every step of the way by attempting to foreclose their lawsuit through procedural grounds. Yet, the people of Flint have endured, and they now ask for an opportunity to be heard, Bernstein said. The judiciary should be the one governmental institution that hears their grievances and affords them the opportunity to at least proceed with their case. In a dissent, two conservative justices, Stephen Markman and Brian Zahra, said the lawsuit should be stopped based on strict deadlines to file a claim. Justice Elizabeth Clement didnt participate because she was involved in Flint water legal matters as a member of Snyders senior staff. During arguments in March, Assistant Attorney General Nate Gambill had urged the court to rule against Flint residents. There is no policy maker who authorized or mandated that low-level staffers go out and expose the plaintiffs to toxic water, he said. Related: Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Michigan Some of the comments are being made by high-ranking Democrats pushing candidates such as Florida Representative Val Demings and more recently California Representative Karen Bass making some worry that women of colour are being forced to hinder one another. Loading "It bugs me that people want to pit these two black women against the other," said South Carolina Representative James Clyburn, a key Biden confidant, referring to the burgeoning Bass v Harris narrative. "Nobody is trying to pit Senator Elizabeth Warren against [Michigan Governor Gretchen] Whitmer. And both of their names are being mentioned every day as being in the search. "It is messier than it should be because somebody is trying to create a story," Clyburn added. In recent days the negative attention has focused on Bass, who has gone out of her way to stress that she is unable to "envision" herself president. In 2008, former president Barack Obama told Biden to view the vice-presidency as the "capstone" of his career, and Biden has said that he sees his relationship with Obama as a model. The Daily Caller published a piece about a 2010 speech Bass gave at the ribbon cutting for a new Scientology facility that opened in Los Angeles, in which she seemed to praise the organisation. The Atlantic published a lengthy article examining her past visits to Cuba and warm words for former leader Fidel Castro, and how it could cost votes in the key state of Florida. Trump target: Representative Karen Bass, a Democrat from California and chair of the Democratic Black Caucus. Credit:Bloomberg The Trump campaign immediately seized on Bass's history with Cuba. "Joe Biden and Karen Bass Would Invite Castro's Communism into America," read a headline on a Trump campaign news release. Florida Senator Marco Rubio, in a call with reporters, warned that she'd be "the highest-ranking Castro sympathiser in the history of the United States government". Bass went on NBC News's Meet the Press on Sunday to show how she'd address those accusations, saying, "I don't consider myself a Castro sympathiser." She characterised her position on Cuba as "really no different than the position of the Obama administration". She's also pushed back on the notion that she and Harris should be compared with each other. Bass and Harris spoke privately at a memorial service for the late congressman John Lewis last week. "It was good," Bass saidearlier. "She said, 'We ain't doing that.' It was fine." Bass added: "I'm not the anti-Kamala." Biden's timeline for picking a vice-president has slipped significantly. He initially said he would make the decision by August 1, then said it would be the first week of August. Now the campaign is signalling that it probably will wait until the second week of August. Loading His decision to eliminate men from the selection process has meant that many of the candidates who would traditionally be considered for this role, such as Senator Cory Booker, are off the table. There's been no speculation about Andrew Cuomo, even as the New York Governor's star rose during his daily coronavirus briefings. Vanquished contenders such as former Texas congressman Beto O'Rourke, Washington Governor Jay Inslee or former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg have also faded from the national conversation as the spotlight shifted to women. And many noted that the competition to become the second-most-powerful person in the country is always going to be fierce. "It's natural that it's competitive," said Senator Robert Casey. "It's historic regardless of who he chooses, so that probably adds to the intensity of it." For her part, Harris allies have been lobbying the Biden team in public and in private. Racial justice lawyer Ben Crump, who represents the family of George Floyd, wrote an opinion article for CNN supporting her candidacy. Behind the scenes, powerful allies such as Glenda Baskin Glover, the head of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority and president of Tennessee State University, wrote a missive to Biden's vetting team, urging it to select Harris - a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Post. And Harris attempted to use the attacks on her "ambition" as a weapon. "There will be a resistance to your ambition," she said on Friday during Black Girls Lead 2020, a virtual conference for young black women. "There will be people who say to you, 'You are out of your lane,' because they are burdened by only having the capacity to see what has always been instead of what can be. But don't you let that burden you." She also received an assist from Biden campaign manager Jennifer O'Malley Dillion that came soon after Dodd's comment. "Ambitious women make history, change the world, and win," O'Malley Dillion said in a social media post. In an interview, Clyburn said Biden has only told him that he would make up his mind "before the convention." In 2008 and 2012, vice-presidential candidates were announced days before the convention. Clyburn also said he believes it would be a "plus" for Biden to select a black woman, but he added the former vice-president does not like being told what to do - and he provided some hint that he cannot endorse one of the candidates. "Of the 12 names out there, with one exception, I know all of them," Clyburn said in an interview. "There's one person that I don't know." Clyburn declined to say who on the list was unknown to him. He made a similar comment on MSNBC last week, leading to speculation that he was throwing shade on former national security adviser Susan Rice, but Clyburn balked at that interpretation. "I know Susan Rice very, very well," he said. He said he was trying to approach Biden carefully with his advice. "Ultimatums are not good," Clyburn said. "I'm not going to tell the vice-president what he must do." He warned that pushing Biden too hard could backfire. "Nobody wants to be forced," Clyburn said. Others are taking a far different approach in the final days. The Reverend William Barber, a leader of the Poor People's Campaign, along with roughly 50 other leading black clergy members sent an open letter to Biden's campaign on Friday, "insisting" that he select a black woman. "We are writing to caution the Democratic Party that it takes black enthusiasm, the key determinant for turnout, for granted at its own peril," according to the letter, which predicts that a Democratic ticket including a black woman would result in black turnout that exceeds Obama's numbers in that community. The decision will automatically elevate whichever woman is selected, either making history by installing her as the first female vice-president or giving her a head start for the 2024 campaign should the ticket fail - which is a key reason the stakes are so high. The Biden campaign has been tight-lipped about its contenders. But that has not stopped allies and friends from speculating. "If I had to bet my life on who would be the candidate, I'd still bet Harris," said Rendell, who is raising money for Biden and frequently talks to his top campaign officials. "She has the least negatives, she's the most polished. She's the person who can take on [Vice-President Mike] Pence in a campaign debate." But he also made it clear how volatile the process has been. "The buzz the in the last three weeks - not this week - but the last few weeks, the buzz was Susan Rice," Rendell said on Thursday. Representative Image live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Economists at State Bank of India (SBI) on Monday pitched for a sector-specific loan restructuring package after the end of the six-month loan repayment moratorium on August 31. They said the moratorium data is not "significantly perturbing" but hit out against the "spate of unplanned and unintelligent lockdown mania" in many pockets. There is a growing list of voices demanding loan restructuring given the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on economic activities. However, some point to the global financial crisis experience, where the restructuring eventually led to an amassing of a huge pile of bad loans that the system is yet to get over. "It is imperative that restructuring of loan accounts in select sectors is used as a policy option after August 31, to mitigate stress," the SBI economists said in a report adding that the setbacks are emanating from the continuing limited-area lockdowns and also job losses. "We believe some sectors/companies may need support like one-time restructuring, sectoral support etc. to tide over the situation," they added. 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 Last week, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government is actively engaged in talks with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on loan recasts. "The focus is on restructuring. The finance ministry is actively engaged with the RBI on this. In principle, the idea that there may be a restructuring required, is well taken," she had said. The SBI economists said the actual number of retail borrowers availing moratorium is lower than the reported one because after the reporting of the data, many borrowers have started repayments. In the corporate segment, companies with adequate balance sheet strength have also opted for a breather and are using the moratorium to conserve cash in the uncertain times, they said. Citing an independent sectoral analysis of over 300 companies having a debt of over Rs 4 lakh crore, it said that 40 per cent of the moratoriums are in sectors with comfortable debt-to-equity ratio like pharmaceutical, fast-moving consumer goods and healthcare, they added. The economists also said banks need to be adequately capitalised and added that it is imperative that the banking sector should avoid a repeat of the post-2008 crisis experience by being cautious and adopting utmost due diligence. Isnt it an irony that Captain Idahosa Wells Okunbo, a self-effacing, patriotic, hardworking, sincere and compassionate individual, has been continuously drawn out of his beautiful and enviable private life, just because a pretentious cartel that feigns to hate money but lives a life that only money perhaps illicit money can sustain wants what he has? It therefore belies logic that a private individual, who has continued to invest his hard-earned money into staggering, commendable philanthropy, to ultimately improve the cause of humanity, is the target of the sudden attacks of some people, both on the political and business fronts. But thats easy to decipher, anyway. They desire what he has, not just in terms of money or influence, but good deeds, character and sound upbringing. Even the Holy Book talks about the spirit of envy and victimisation. It condemns it, because its evil; not of the Lord. The latest spin against this illustrious son of Bini Kingdom was from the stable of the Editor, Saturday title of the THISDAY Newspapers, Yemi Adebowale. Its been a long time I read a title editor of a major national daily plunge cheaply into the arena with mutilated facts, discarding every iota of circumspection. First, this was disturbing somewhat, because journalism, like a few other great callings, is guided by basic and simple rules, however, considered by its practitioners as golden. Thus, for a title editor of a major and prominent national daily, balancing accounts is sacrosanct, whether it is a column, analysis, feature or basic news story. But, in the event, that your facts had not been confirmed, the rule says, leave out. You cannot claim to be under any form of pressure to the detriment of the credibility of your company and the hard earned reputation of other people, whom you can only aspire to be. Pray you get any close. However, after researching into Adebowales kind of person, it was not disappointing to learn from some of his colleagues, both within and outside the newspaper company, how he is wired. He accords details and research no respect. One would be committing same offence to, therefore, reel off some of the commentaries about him. But to the THISDAY management, theres a lot to do to help him. The likes of Adebowale requires periodic re-training to measure up to standard in every definition of the word, if he must start to live up to billings. That said, it is also disturbing to note that anyone would be back in this station and on this very matter over the Secured Anchorage Area (SAA) of the Lagos Waterways, managed by the Ocean Marine Solutions Limited, a going concern owned by Captain Hosa and which has lived up to its reputation over the last 14 years. Theres no debating the fact that the Managing Director of Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Bala-Usman has more than an official interest in the SAA and does not hide it except for the likes of Adebowale, who would rather gloss over the obvious but focus on sheer pizzas and flashes without any substance whatsoever. Even if the renowned love of Hadizas life was a stakeholder in the sector and wanted everything to go his way, did it mean others with equally critical stakes in the sector and the Nigerian project should be destroyed on account of the billionaire in question? Lets revisit the facts again, perhaps, for the record. Theres no gainsaying the fact that the cooperation and support provided by the Ocean Marine Solution Limited (OMSL) to the Nigerian Navy in securing the Lagos delineation of the nations waterways has been the biggest relief savoured in recent time against unceasing pirates attacks, which in turn has boosted revenue significantly. Anyone would appreciate this more, when the situation is juxtaposed with the experience of investors and stakeholders in the Port Harcourt axis of the waterways, the home state of the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, where the pirates have continued to have a field day, without as much a resistance from any security architecture put in place and designed for such purposes. But in Lagos, with the cooperation and support that the OMSL has continued to give to the Nigerian Navy, the state now has its Secured Anchorage Area (SAA) sufficiently protected, a situation that is not only encouraging to investors but has further motivated stakeholders to function more effectively. Its bad enough that some stakeholders had earlier approached the NPA leadership on the need for better security funding for the Lagos waterways, to which it replied it could not muster the amount of money in question, before they turned to OMSL for this effective and mutual cooperation, which has continued to yield desired results. This also informed why stakeholders in the industry frowned at a recent order, which allegedly came from the Hadiza-led NPA, threatening to arrest and sanction operators at SAA. That was to say the least, disturbing and counterproductive. The stakeholders even wrote a letter to that effect to the president, Muhammadu Buhari, and had it published in some of the major national dailies. On the contrary, as a function of procedure and protocol, assuming there were allegations of infractions, which must be entered properly for record purposes, the right thing to do would have been to report the development to the Nigerian Navy, which in turn, would investigate such claims and take appropriate action to stem the tide. But to sit in the comfort of her office and out of sheer vendetta, victimisation and favouritism, dish out orders to the Navy to arrest vessels they were meant to protect, not only questioned her understanding of the operations of that sector but also spoke to getting unduly involved in a purely business and security concerns. To think that the agency under Hadiza has no alternative security architecture in place in the event that the frustration of OMSL continues, the resort to rethinking the allegations of sabotage in the many attacks by the pirates might be inevitable. To support this position, which her spin-doctors were blinded to, not only did the Senate clear OMSL and give it a clean bill to continue with its good work of assisting the Nigerian Navy to protect the Lagos waterways by providing the much-needed logistics after listening to the submission of stakeholders; the OMSL has also enjoyed commendation from foreign partners for doing an irresistibly good job at the Lagos waterways. In addition, the submission by Captain Hosa on the operations of OMSL at SAA during the Senate hearing was so stellar that he left the chambers with his shoulders high and other stakeholders as well as the legislative committee members proud of him. He knew the issues and sold them conveniently without resorting to lies or cheap blackmail. Therefore, to fault Adebowales submission that Hadiza came to the job with a reform agenda, largely, to block leakages of revenue and stifle contractors from taking advantage of the NPA to line their pockets with money due to the federal government, the opposite has been the case. He would do well by doing some soul-searching. Sadly, Hadiza came to the job with crass immaturity and gross inexperience in a highly technical turf and rather than take the pains to learn the intricate nuances, shes been preoccupied with just one agenda: to protect the business concerns of an individual, known in the industry as the love of her life. How is that doing the job of the federation entrusted to her or executing a reform agenda? Theres no way to spin this, picking on Captain Hosa alone is a clear indication that theres more to it. Adebowale mentioned some other interests but not the names of those behind them. He, however, went all out depicting Captain Hosa in his compromised mindset, because Adebowale thought the retired commercial pilot was his pay masters problem at NPA. As an editor of the category that THISDAY generously but erroneously placed Adebowale, he would have saved himself some embarrassment, if he had spoken to other stakeholders, say in LADOL and the BUA Group and asked how much of victimisation they had so far suffered in the hands of Hadiza, just because she was and is still determined to protect the interest of just one man. Im sure they would speak to him off-the-record to, at least, cure his poisonous ignorance. It was, therefore, not surprising in any form or shape that people, who were supposed to supervise as well as guide a delinquent and irreverent MD would also go on a national television to corroborate lies and fictions, only to justify their premeditated plans against an innocent man, who is legitimately doing his business and following the laws of the land. The interesting thing is that the heads of both the ministry and the agency are products of the approval of the Senate, the same way the senate had given SAA a clean bill of health to continue with its operations. We either live by the laws of our land or quit when we are too big to be guided by them. Captain Hosa has chosen to be a patriotic Nigerian, who would do right and seek justice, wherever and whenever his rights are impugned. The current play at SAA is not an exception. He is by far more of a blessing than those, who are abusing their privileged positions today. But tomorrow, when they are no more, posterity would speak to their records too, in clear unmistaken language. *Nureni-Bello wrote from Abuja Viral: Man finds dead lizard in bowl of sambar; FIR registered against Delhi restaurant India pti-Madhuri Adnal New Delhi, Aug 03:An FIR has been registered against Saravana Bhavan, a popular South Indian vegetarian restaurant chain, after a customer allegedly found a dead lizard in his bowl of sambar at its outlet in Connaught Place, Delhi police said Monday. Pankaj Agarwal, a regular visitor to the restaurant, walked into Saravana Bhavan with his two friends Saturday night and ordered dosa and sambar. As they were having the meal, Agarwal found a dead lizard in his bowl of sambar and captured it on his mobile phone. Restaurant serves COVID-19 curry and naan; Image viral "I had almost finished my dosa and was taking last sip of sambar when I found a dead lizard, which was half missing," he said. Agarwal, a resident of Chandni Chowk, said he immediately raised the issue with the restaurant staff, who apologised. The manager assured him it won't happen again. "But since the restaurant has a heavy footfall, I wanted to bring into public notice the hygiene maintained here and so called up police," Agarwal said. J&K: Army says missing soldier likely abducted by terrorists| Oneindia News The restaurant did not respond to phone calls for reaction. "Based on the complaint, we have registered an FIR against the restaurant under IPC section 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and section 336 (act endangering life or personal safety of others). The matter is under investigation," Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Eish Singhal said. Police have asked the restaurant to provide the CCTV footage, the details of the cook and the its license, the officer added. Police have also asked the restaurant for the ingredients of the sambar. Tailored Brands, the owner of Men's Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank, filed for bankruptcy protection after the coronavirus lockdown kept America's office workers at home, curtailing demand for new suits. The filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of Texas makes the company the latest in a string of retailers that have grappled with competition from online shopping and have been among the hardest hit by Covid-19. Lockdowns have drained revenue, pushing already-struggling companies like J.C. Penney, J. Crew, and Neiman Marcus into bankruptcy. Lord & Taylor also filed Chapter 11 on Sunday. Like many apparel chains, Tailored Brands was in a tough spot before the outbreak. Sales have fallen every year since 2016 as Men's Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank contended with changing consumer tastes and e-commerce rivals. The retailer was preparing a filing that would give it a chance to cut its borrowings and close unprofitable locations, Bloomberg reported last week. "The unprecedented impact of Covid-19 requires us to further adapt and evolve," CEO Dinesh Lathi said in a statement. The company's four retail brands, including Moores Clothing for Men and K&G Fashion Superstore, will continue to operate through the process. It employs 18,000 workers and operates 1,274 retail and apparel rental stores in the U.S. and 125 in Canada, according to court documents. Tailored Brands filed Chapter 11 with a pre-negotiated plan of reorganization that is supported by more than 75% of its senior lenders, the company said in the statement. The bankruptcy is expected to reduce the retailer's funded debt by at least $630 million and will be financed by existing debt holders, according to the statement. The plan calls for a $500 million bankruptcy loan backed by the company's existing revolving credit facility lenders. Tailored Brands will ask the court's permission to access the loan combined with cash on hand, including $90 million of previously restricted cash made available to fund operations throughout the restructuring. The bankruptcy loan will then convert to a $400 million revolving credit facility upon emergence from Chapter 11. The company's term loan holders will receive their portion of an exit term loan of between $325 million to $425 million and 100% of the reorganized equity, according to court documents. Shareholders will be wiped out, with no recovery from the plan. Tailored Brands is gradually returning to normal operations after the coronavirus temporarily shut its doors. It re-opened just under half of its stores as of June 5, according to a statement. All of them, as well as e-commerce distribution centers in the U.S. and Canada, were temporarily closed in the first quarter. The company traces its roots to 1973, when George Zimmer started Men's Wearhouse in the Houston area. He would go on to become the face of the brand, starring in television commercials spouting his catchphrase "You're going to like the way you look -- I guarantee it," before he was ousted in 2013. It acquired Jos. A. Bank the following year. To lead it through its restructuring, Tailored Brands is working with law firm Kirkland & Ellis as legal advisor, investment bank PJT Partners as financial advisor and AlixPartners as restructuring advisor. The case is Tailored Brands, Inc., 20-33900, U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of Texas (Houston). Keras Resources PLC - mine development in US and Africa - Calls shareholder meeting for August 24 to vote on its agreement to buy 51% of Falcon Isle Holdings LLC, the 100% owner of the Diamond Creek phosphate mine in the US state of Utah. Keras will pay a nominal consideration but will provide Falcon Isle with a USD2.5 million loan, which will be repaid from the project's cash flow. To fund this, Keras has placed 1.44 billion new shares at 0.12 pence. Chief Executive Russell Lamming and Non-Executive Director will convert loans of USD350,000 each already provided to Falcon Isle into Keras shares as part of the placing. Current stock price: 0.12p Year-to-date change: down 33% By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved. After putting Patna City Superintendent of Police Binay Tiwari in home quarantine, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in Mumbai is now searching for four other police officers from Bihar who have come to Mumbai to probe a case related to the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput. Tiwari is leading a Bihar Police team which is in Mumbai to investigate an "abetment to suicide" case on the basis of an FIR filed by Sushant's father K K Singh in Patna. In his FIR, Sushant's father has named actress Rhea Chakraborty and her family members as accused. Sources told Zee Media that the BMC is planning to put all police officers, who have come to the city from Bihar to probe this case, in home quarantine. It is learnt that all four cops from Bihar are currently stationed at a secret location. On Sunday (August 2), Tiwari was recording the statement of an important eyewitness in Sushant's case when he was asked by BMC officials to go into home quarantine. The BMC officials also put a stamp of home quarantine on his hand. Tiwari is currently staying at a guesthouse and he cannot leave the guesthouse. If he decides to come out of guesthouse then it will be violation of lockdown rules and Maharashtra Police may file an FIR against him. In a related development, Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey has called an emergency meeting at 3 PM on Monday and has asked all senior officers involved in this case to attend the meeting. It is learnt that Bihar police would decide its future course of action in this meeting. Sources said that the matter of mistreatment of Bihar police by their counterparts in Maharashtra could also be raised in Biahr Assembly on Monday. Notably, Mumbai Police is already probing this case and has so far recorded statements of as many as 37 people including Rhea, Mahesh Bhatt, Aditya Chopra, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Sanjana Sanghi along with actor's personal staff members and doctors. Sushant, a resident of Patna, reportedly died by suicide at his Bandra residence in Mumbai on June 14. The Iranian side has confirmed its readiness to fulfill international obligations in the case of the UIA plane crash. The sum of compensation to the relatives of those killed in the plane crash will be calculated after Iran provides all the information. "Everyone is definitely interested in the fast progress [of the investigation]. Everyone is interested in the sum of compensation. I would like to emphasize once again that the sum of compensation will be calculated only after the Ukrainian side receives comprehensive information about the incident circumstances. I saw the Iranian side's readiness to complete both the technical and criminal investigations and bring perpetrators to justice," Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Yevhenii Yenin said on the air of Ukraine 24 TV channel. He reminded that the prosecutor's office of Ukraine also provided procedural guidance within the criminal proceedings over the downing of the Ukrainian plane. According to Yenin, a meeting between the leadership of the Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine and representatives of the Iranian Prosecutor's Office had already been held. "We expect to get specific information that could serve as evidence in criminal proceedings," the deputy minister said. In addition, the heads of aviation services and lawyers will join the process. Yenin added that the Ukrainian side would insist on the maximum sum of compensation to the relatives of the crash victims. The Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) plane (flight PS752) heading from Tehran to Kyiv crashed shortly after it took off from the Imam Khomeini International Airport at about 06:00 Tehran time (04:30 Kyiv time) on January 8. There were 176 people on board nine crew members (all Ukrainians) and 167 passengers (citizens of Ukraine, Iran, Canada, Sweden, Afghanistan, Germany, and the UK). All passengers and crew were killed in the crash. On July 18, France's Civil Aviation Safety Investigation Authority (BEA) received Flight PS752s recorders from Iran. On July 24, Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Yevhenii Yenin informed that the transcript from Flight PS752s recorders had confirmed illegal interference with the plane. On July 30, Irans delegation arrived in Kyiv to participate in talks on compensation for the downing of UIA flight PS752. On July 31, the Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine informed that the next round of Ukraine-Iran talks on the investigation into PS752 flight crash was scheduled for October. ol "FOURMIDABLE is proud to have been working with the members of this ownership group since 2007 and have built a strong professional relationship. We are extremely excited to be part of the city and looking forward to managing such an upscale community," said Michael Schocker, President of FOURMIDABLE. "Watson Glades Place is going to be a wonderful addition to the Gatlinburg area." Watson Glades Place offers residents 80 one, two and three bedroom homes. The newly constructed, energy efficient community features fully equipped kitchens with dishwashers, in-unit washers and dryers and vaulted ceilings. The community will also offer residents an outdoor pool, business center, fitness center, furnished clubhouse and playground. Watson Glades Place is being developed in cooperation with the Tennessee Housing Development Agency under the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program. The general contractor is BACAR Constructors of Nashville, Tenn. The developers for the property are Watson Glades Place 2017 Limited Partnership. The first residents moved into their beautiful new homes in late July. Applications are being accepted online at www.watsongladesplace.com. Rental rates for Watson Glades Place range from $595 to $795 a month. There are income limitations for residential applicants based on the area median income, but no direct rent subsidies are offered at the community. About FOURMIDABLE FOURMIDABLE is a national real estate management and brokerage company that specializes in managing, marketing and leasing market rate, tax credit, senior and family government assisted, public housing and rural development apartment communities. Founded in 1975, FOURMIDABLE currently manages 66 communities in ten states, with more than 6,450 units under management. FOURMIDABLE is a member of the elite AMO (Accredited Management Organization) and is an approved management firm for HUD, MSHDA and other State Agencies. Additionally, FOURMIDABLE affiliated companies offer support for property management companies and owners, including agility-pm, a provider of back office accounting, HR, IT and compliance support; eCrosstown, a provider of free WiFi amenity services to apartment residents; and ePhonz, a specialized telephone product for apartment management companies. For more information, please call 248-593-4634 or visit www.fourmidable.com. SOURCE FOURMIDABLE Related Links https://www.fourmidable.com University of Ottawa law student Nina Haroune has paid thousands of dollars in rent over the past four months for a downtown apartment just minutes from campus, despite the fact shes been living with family in Mississauga. The 23-year-old is one of many post-secondary students who are locked into off-campus lease agreements despite moving back home when classes moved online. This situation left me in a very bad financial position, said Haroune, whos been receiving the Canada Emergency Response Benefit. I had to rely on CERB to continue paying for my rent because job opportunities were scarce and I was here worrying about an empty apartment hours away from me. Haroune said she moved to Ottawa in September 2019 to attend classes, but moved back home after the provincial state of emergency forced the school to close its doors in March and move all courses online. She isnt able to break the 12-month lease thats bonded her to her unit which comes with a price tag of $1,950 per month. So far, shes paid $9,750 for the empty one-bedroom in the nations capital. The landlord said that because the apartment was still available and safe to live in, and because I was making a choice to go back home, it wouldnt be sufficient reason to break out of the lease, Haroune said. In the early days of the pandemic, students in other parts of the province petitioned to have their rent fees waived as classes moved online and they moved out. Some in Kitchener-Waterloo called for financial support after both universities in the area Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier told students that all of their classes and exams for the rest of the school year would take place online. Their petition garnered more than 7,500 signatures. Soheir Mehdi, a 23-year-old studying French at Wilfrid Laurier, said she had to leave campus grounds immediately after the state of emergency was announced. She also lost her on-campus job and decided to move back to her family home in Mississauga as she could no longer afford her expenses and rent. Mehdi, who shared a home with four roommates and pays around $600 a month in rent and utilities, said many students who renewed their leases in February had no way of knowing what they were in for. She said she was one of the lucky ones, and was able to secure a job as a financial consultant during the pandemic thats keeping her rent paid until her lease ends in August. Others who renewed their leases in February are stuck in limbo as the school has yet to make an official announcement on its plans for September. Benjamin Ries, a housing lawyer at Downtown Legal Services at the University of Toronto, said there are some potential remedies for the situations Haroune, Mehdi and others find themselves in. If a tenant has already paid but they take the position that their tenancy should have ended earlier, there is an application that they can get their money back up to a year since then, he said. Ries also said landlords have a duty to minimize a tenants losses if they can. They cant just sit there and say you owe them rent for the rest of the year. They are required by Residential Tenancy Act and common law to find another tenant if its a possibility. Ries said an option for Haroune could have been to look for a replacement tenant on her own and sign her lease over to them. But if the tenant fails to find someone to take over their lease, he said, they are on the hook for their rent and it might not be easy to find someone in university towns where economies have faltered during the pandemic. Another option, which Ries said applies to Mehdis case, would be an argument of frustration, which can be used when an unforeseen event happens that is neither partys fault and as a result makes it hard for someone to pay their dues. Handout File photo dated 12/04/2000 of Former South African President Nelson Mandela meeting John Hume at the South African Embassy in Dublin Photo: PA Wire File photo dated 24/08/2014 of John Hume and his wife Pat, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. PA Photo.Photo: Niall Carson/PA Wire File photo dated 19/10/2000 of the Dalai Lama (left) meeting with fellow Nobel peace laureate John Hume, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. Photo: Martin McCullough/PA Wire SDLP Conference, St Columb's Hall, Derry 12th March 2016. SDLP Leader Colm Eastwood John Hume at the conclusion of the conference Photo:Presseye. Bill Clinton in front of the Guildhall with former SDLP leader John Hume and his wife Pat. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. John Hume in front of the Stormont Building in 2002 (Paul Faith/PA) SDLP leader John Hume with his wife Pat speak to the media after he and David Trimble won the Nobel Peace Prize (PA) Former SDLP leader John Hume and Bill Clinton pictured in front of the Guildhall. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Hometown heroes: John Hume celebrates with Derry City players after their 2010 First Division win John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim The SDLP team led by leader John Hume arrives at Stormont in 1999 to start the process of selecting ministers for the devolved government John Hume and his wife Pat at the Foyle Arts Centre in Londonderry after hearing that he and David Trimble were to share the Nobel Peace Prize John Hume with his good friend, Senator Ted Kennedy, in the Bogside U2 star Bono is flanked by David Trimble and John Hume on stage during a special concert in Belfast to promote the Yes vote in the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement (Chris Bacon/PA) Bertie Ahern and John Hume as they took part in a press conference on the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in Belfast. Picture Charles McQuillan/Pacemaker. John Hume in thoughtful mood at the SDLP party conference in Newcastle in 1979 John Hume is detained by soldiers during a civil rights protest in Londonderry in August 1971. John Hume is carried aloft through Londonderry city centre after being returned as MP for Foyle in 1987 SDLP leader John Hume spent his entire political career working to try to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and turn it into a united Ireland. But he is best known for his efforts to secure peace and a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland which culminated in the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. Unionists unfairly accused him of riding on the back of the IRA campaign of violence. Expand Close Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams (left) and SDLP leader John Hume (Chris Bacon/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams (left) and SDLP leader John Hume (Chris Bacon/PA) But he was unstinting in his opposition to the use of terrorism for any means and made several brave attempts to convince the republican movement that the campaign of violence should be ended. In 1985 he briefly met directly with the IRA to try to win a ceasefire, but failed and incurred the wrath of the Irish government. Three years later he engaged in unsuccessful talks with Gerry Adams, then president of the IRAs political wing, Sinn Fein, to try to gain not a ceasefire, but a permanent end to violence. In 1993 he again met Mr Adams several times and they drew up proposals which were passed to the Irish government saying they could form the basis for a lasting peace in Ireland. In 1997 his efforts were finally rewarded when in July the IRA announced the renewal of its 1994 ceasefire. Political talks ensued which eventually led to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. Unionist politicians viewed Mr Hume as just as dangerous to their cause as the IRA. Educated and eloquent, he enunciated the case of constitutional nationalism. Expand Close David Trimble chats with John Hume (Paul Faith/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp David Trimble chats with John Hume (Paul Faith/PA) Mr Hume articulated the feelings of the ever-growing Catholic middle-class and early on constructed a theory which changed little over the years that the heart of the Irish question lay not with the British but with the Ulster Protestants and that partition was not the cause of division but a symptom of it. A solution to the age-old problem could only be found with agreement from the Protestants. Their numbers gave them a veto and they could not be forced into any new arrangement against their will, he argued. Born in Londonderry in January 1937, the oldest of six children, Mr Hume came from the first generation to benefit from the 1944 Education Act and went to the local grammar school, St Columbs College. He went on to Maynooth College, the Catholic seminary near Dublin, to study French and modern history before returning to teach in his old school. In 1960 he married his wife Pat, had five children and continued to live in the republican Bogside area of Derry despite regular attacks on his home. His involvement in the 1960s with the Credit Union movement brought him into contact with the issues of the day, housing and anti-Catholic discrimination in a city where Protestants were in the minority but boundary gerrymandering gave them a Unionist majority on the local council. He first came to political prominence in the civil rights movement in 1968. He was present at the civil rights march in October that year which ended in disorder and set the spark to decades of violence. But his reputation for non-violence was established on the streets at a time others sought revolution and confrontation. Ironically, during his brief excursion into street politics, he was pulled in and questioned, as a non-violent demonstrator, by an enthusiastic Marines captain called Paddy Ashdown. The following year he was returned to the old Stormont parliament as MP for Foyle, unseating the then Nationalist leader Eddy McAteer. In 1970 he was one of the founding fathers of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) and soon emerged as its chief policymaker. Expand Close John Hume worked with Ian Paisley PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume worked with Ian Paisley He became leader in 1979. He was elected to the 1973-74 Northern Ireland Assembly and was head of the Department of Commerce in the ill-fated power-sharing executive in 1974. He was also elected to the 1982-86 Northern Ireland Convention. He was elected as one of Northern Irelands three MEPs in 1979 and made it to Westminster in 1983 when boundary changes created the new Foyle seat, the first time a non-Unionist had got a seat in parliament for Londonderry since the establishment of Northern Ireland. He was seen as the main architect of the Anglo-Irish Agreement signed between the British and Irish Governments in 1985 and which, much to Unionist fury, gave Dublin a say in the affairs of Northern Ireland. Mr Hume led his party in various talks with the British Government and other local parties during efforts to set up a devolved administration. Following extensive and often heated discussions, the Good Friday Agreement was signed on April 10 1998. Devolved government followed with a local Assembly sitting at Stormont led by Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble. Many had expected Mr Hume to become deputy first minister as the leader of the then second largest party. But instead Seamus Mallon took on that role, amid rumours of a bad working relationship between Mr Hume and Mr Trimble. In 1998, Mr Hume won the Nobel Peace Prize, jointly with Mr Trimble. He built up a reputation as an international politician, winning the ear of the Irish government, European leaders and, possibly most important of all, the powerful Irish-American lobby. Expand Close SDLP leader John Hume with his wife Pat speak to the media after he and David Trimble won the Nobel Peace Prize (PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp SDLP leader John Hume with his wife Pat speak to the media after he and David Trimble won the Nobel Peace Prize (PA) Within Europe he spearheaded economic initiatives which won Northern Ireland special financial aid, and fellow MEP and arch political foe, the Rev Ian Paisley, lined up in support. He was also a recipient of the Gandhi Peace Prize and the Martin Luther King Award. In the summer of 1999, Mr Hume was taken ill at a conference in Austria, and had to undergo a series of operations. He retired as leader of the SDLP in 2001, succeeded by fellow Derry man Mark Durkan. He announced his retirement from politics in 2004. His Foyle Westminster seat was successfully defended in 2005 by Mr Durkan. However Mr Humes party and the UUP suffered electorally since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, overtaken by Sinn Fein and the DUP. It was a sad moment for the SDLP in June 2017 when Mr Humes former seat in Foyle was lost to Sinn Fein. The party also lost South Down and South Belfast, leaving them without any MPs. That election temporarily signalled the end of Irish nationalism having a voice at Westminster, given Sinn Fein does not take its seats. In last Decembers election, the SDLP returned to the green benches of the Commons, when current leader Colum Eastwood regained the Foyle seat in a landslide win and party colleague Claire Hanna won back South Belfast. Mr Humes impact on politics has been recognised a number of times. In 2010 he was named Irelands Greatest in a public poll by Irish national broadcaster RTE. In 2012, Pope Benedict XVI made him a Knight Commander of the Papal Order of St Gregory the Great. Mr Hume, who was 83 in January, had been suffering from dementia for many years. In May 2018, he was too ill to attend a ceremony at Queens University in Belfast to mark the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Good Friday Agreement. Kmart will urge customers to wear face masks while visiting stores across New South Wales in a bid to stem the spread of coronavirus. The brand will not make masks compulsory, but will 'strongly encourage' customers to cover their faces before entering stores. John Gualtieri, the retail director of Kmart Australia & New Zealand, said the message was about keeping customers and employees as safe as possible during 'these challenging times'. 'We have applied our learnings, adapted and updated the ways to safely shop with us in store... we're strongly encouraging team members and customers to wear face coverings.' The decision comes after Bunnings and Woolworths implemented similar health advice for the safety of all customers and staff. Woolworths Group, which owns Dan Murphy's and BWS alcohol stores as well as the grocery chain, will provide all staff with face masks to wear while serving customers. Kmart will urge customers to wear face masks while visiting stores across New South Wales in a bid to stem the spread of coronavirus A bartender at Jah Bar Dee Why Beach poses for a photo in her face mask as the premier urges people to wear them in public But a spokesman told NCA NewsWire staff would not be policing the use of masks in stores, and customers could refuse if they chose to do so. Bunnings Chief Operating Officer Deb Poole had a similar message, but added the company would 'greatly appreciate customers getting on board to help protect everyone'. The decision comes amid further untraceable cases of COVID-19 in New South Wales. There have been seven cases in the last week alone where NSW Health has not been able to identify a clear source of the infection. The concerning new trend prompted Premier Gladys Berejiklian to backtrack on previous advice that masks were not necessary. Patrons wearing face masks are seen using hand sanitiser and registering their check in details at The Bavarian restaurant at the Manly Wharf On Sunday, Ms Berejiklian said authorities would not make mask usage mandatory in NSW, but revised current recommendations to address four specific circumstances. Masks should be worn by public-facing employees such as hospitality or grocery workers, worshippers and residents of suburbs near COVID-19 clusters, as well as in situations where social distancing is impossible. 'We have been talking about masks for several weeks but obviously the persistent situation in Victoria gives us cause for alarm in terms of the potential for further seeding in NSW, and it is about risk mitigation strategy,' Ms Berejiklian said. 'We're going to the next stage of assessing what else and how else we can decrease the risk and break the current chain coming through NSW.' Ms Berejiklian said she will be heeding the advice of health authorities in her daily life, calling wearing a mask 'the fourth line of defence'. 'I want to stress it is not compulsory, but it is a strong recommendation from NSW Health, given where we are in the pandemic, given the risk posed from Victoria and given the rate of community transmission in New South Wales,' she said. 'I myself, when I next go grocery shopping, will be wearing a mask.' NSW residents are being recommended to wear face masks in public as coronavirus case numbers continue to rise. Pictured: a shopper wears a face mask in Woolworths in Sydney on Friday A person wearing a face mask in front of a Woolworths shop in Sydney Ben Lambert / Hearst Connecticut Media file A West Haven man is facing federal drug and weapon possession charges after authorities said he had ammo and a distribution quantity of cocaine near a West Haven elementary school, the U.S. attorneys office for the district of Connecticut said. Brian Melendez, 31, was arrested July 31 and is charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession with intent to distribute cocaine within 1,000 feet of a school, according to a release. On Friday, in the morning, at Hinchinbrook Shire Council Chambers, Ingham, His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC, received a briefing from Hinchinbrook Shire Council representatives. Following, at Ingham, His Excellency and Mrs Kaye de Jersey visited Ingham State School, and the Governor addressed students and guests and Mrs de Jersey read a book to students and guests. Following, at Hinchinbrook Shire Hall, Ingham, His Excellency and Mrs de Jersey hosted a community morning tea, and the Governor addressed guests. Following, at Ingham Fire Station, Ingham, His Excellency and Mrs de Jersey met representatives of the Emergency Services, and the Governor addressed guests. Following, at JKs Delicatessen, Ingham, His Excellency and Mrs de Jersey received Mayor, Hinchinbrook Shire Council, Cr Ramon Jayo. In the afternoon, at the Civic Centre, Tully, His Excellency and Mrs de Jersey received a briefing from Cassowary Coast Regional Council representatives. Following, at Tully, His Excellency and Mrs de Jersey visited Tully State School, and the Governor addressed students and guests and Mrs de Jersey read a book to students and guests. The National Democratic Congress (NDC) aspiring Member of Parliament (MP) for Kwesimintsim, Philip Fiifi Buckman, has advised Muslim youth against political violence. He said political violence impede development and progress, and therefore should not be entertained by the youth of the constituency. He told the youth that avoiding political violence means that they must not allow themselves to be used by desperate politicians to cause mayhem, and disturbances in the coming elections. Fiifi Buckman, one of the rising lawyers in Western Region, believes that as the 2020 elections beckon, some politicians would plan activities to foment troubles but advised the Muslim youth not allow themselves to be used by these political figures to execute unhealthy and unproductive plans. Addressing the Muslim community at Kwesimintsim in the Kwesimintsim Constituency of the Western Region during the celebration of the Eid-al-Adha festival, Lawyer Fiifi Buckman noted that Islam had no place for violence. Under the circumstance, he advised the Muslim youth to be mindful of the teachings of the Holy Quran, and the wise sayings (Hadith) of the holy prophet Muhammed against violence and its effects on development. "Muslims are generally peaceful people", he acknowledged whilst admonishing the youth to eschew acts of indiscipline in their communities. He explained that the behaviour of a few misguided youth from the Muslim communities (Zongos) has often led to negative branding of these communities. Lawyer Fiifi Buckman, an enterprising politician joined the Muslim community to celebrate the Eid-al-Adha festival at Kwesimintsim on Friday. It was at the end of the prayers, that he had the privilege to speak to the congregation that he urged them (Muslims and residents of Zongo communities) in general to stand up against plotters and perpetrators of electoral violence. These, he underscored, would help maintain peace, law and order in the constituency, the Western Region and across the country. Lawyer Fiifi Buckman also urged the Muslim youth to channel their energies into activities and things that are considered more productive instead of engaging in political violence. As a person with development at the heart of his campaign messaging, Lawyer Fiifi Buckman donated two trips of stones to the Muslim community for construction of the central mosque in Kwesimintsim currently demolished. He urged the constituents to give him an opportunity to lead Kwesimintsim as the lawmaker after the December polls. He said his campaign has been centered on securing the seat after the polls. "By providing transformational and visionary leadership, I know we can together develop Kwesimintsim Constituency, he concluded. An American company has inked a contract with Kurdish authorities in northeastern Syria to develop and export the regions crude oil under a secretive deal approved by the U.S. government months after President Donald Trump announced he was leaving U.S. troops to secure the oil, multiple people familiar with the project told POLITICO. The agreement reached by a little-known firm helmed by politically connected former military and diplomatic officials has already angered the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad, which does not recognize the Kurdish authorities as autonomous. The Syrian Foreign Minister called the deal illegal and said it is aimed at stealing Syrias crude. The deal advances a longtime U.S. goal to help the Syrian Kurds, which have been staunch U.S. allies in the fight against the Islamic terrorist group, to strengthen their position in the region, where they face not just Assad's brutal regime but also the Turkish government -- and provide new means to help address the desperate needs of civilians that have been caught in the Syrian civil war. The company, Delta Crescent Energy LLC, was incorporated in Delaware in February 2019, according to its business license. Its partners include former U.S. ambassador to Denmark James Cain; James Reese, a former officer in the Armys elite Delta Force; and John P. Dorrier Jr., a former executive at GulfSands Petroleum, a U.K.-based oil company with offices and drilling experience in Syria. It has been in talks with the Kurds for more than a year but only received a license from the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control for the work in April, according to a State Department official and a Syrian source familiar with the discussions. The arrangement is to refine and use some of the oil locally but also export some through northern Iraq and Turkey, they said. The Treasury Department has multiple sanctions against Syrias oil market. In a March 2019 the Trump administration issued the orders targeting companies that deliver or finance petroleum shipments of Syrian oil on behalf of the countrys government. The effort is designed to punish the Assad regime for atrocities committed amid the countrys civil war. Story continues However, the Pentagon and State Department have long been working to enable the Syrian Kurds to harness the crude oil in the region, a former Trump administration official told POLITICO. The idea is that revenue from the oil could help the Kurds deal with the dire humanitarian situation in the war-torn country, including overflowing refugee camps from years of civil war, the person said. The goal is to get the production back up to where it was before the civil war and sanctions, said Ambassador Cain. It was very much our effort to keep the State Department advised not seeking approval but wanting to know if this was contrary to American policy interest. Nobody told us no. A spokesperson for the Syrian Democratic Forces, which controls the region and is allied with the United States, declined to comment. A Treasury Department spokesperson also declined to discuss the deal on Monday. "Treasury does not generally comment on or provide details on license applications or specific licenses that have been issued as the information contained within these licensing applications and determinations may be protected by the Privacy Act, the Trade Secrets Act, or other regulations governing OFACs licensing authorities," the spokesperson said in an email. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo appears during a Senate Foreign Relations committee hearing on the State Department's 2021 budget on Capitol Hill Thursday, July 30, 2020, in Washington. (Greg Nash/Pool via AP) The deal first came to light during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Thursday, when Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was questioned about it by Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. Pompeo said the administration supports the deal and said it is intended to modernize the oil fields. The deal took a little longer ... than we had hoped, and now were in implementation, he said. Graham told POLITICO on Monday that the company will brief him this week on its plans. "I think this companys going to improve the viability of the northern oil fields to make them more productive, Graham said. Conceptually it makes sense that we should, instead of just writing checks, help people help themselves. The State Department is leading the effort under James Jeffrey, United States Special Representative for Syria Engagement and the Special Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIL, and his deputy, Joel Rayburn, the former Trump administration official said. However, they have sought to keep the deal quiet for fear that Russia, which backs Assads regime and deploys military and paramilitary forces across the region, might retaliate, both the State Department official and Syrian source said. A State Department spokesperson declined to comment on the contract but noted that the U.S. government considers requests on a case-by-case basis to authorize U.S. persons involvement in activities that would normally be prohibited. We are not involved in the commercial decisions of our local partners. However, as a general matter, we work to ensure that our sanctions are in line with our foreign policy interests and target the Assads regime continued violence against the Syrian people, the spokesperson said. Syrian oil is for the Syrian people and we remain committed to the unity and territorial integrity of Syria," the spokesperson added. "The United States government does not own, control, or manage the oil resources in Syria. The populations in areas liberated from ISIS make their own decisions on local governance. Delta Crescent has so far been the only company to receive a license to work in Syria since U.S. military forces all but abandoned the country in October. President Donald Trump speaks during a briefing with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House, Monday, Aug. 3, 2020, in Washington.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon) Trump at the time ordered only enough troops to stay in the war-ravaged country to allow for keeping the oil." The U.S. used residual forces to secure the oil fields in the eastern part of the country and to continue fighting Islamic State militants. The countrys oil field were seized by ISIS during the civil war. Years of fighting that forced ISIS to retreat left the production infrastructure devastated, however. Delta Crescent operates under the protection of the SDF and the U.S. military in northeast Syria, the sources said. Pentagon spokesperson Cmdr. Jessica McNulty noted that the Department of Defense "does not have an affiliation with any private companies in regard to the oil fields in northeast Syria." However, she added that U.S. forces in the region are "securing critical petroleum infrastructure in northeast Syria to deny ISIS access to critical resources and revenue." The militants previously used revenue generated from oil fields there to fund its terror operations. "We will not let that happen again," she said. McNulty also noted that the oil resources "currently provide some of the funding necessary for the SDF to conduct operations" against ISIS. The companys plan is to sell the Syrian oil to various customers in the region, potentially including Assad, Turkish-backed rebels and Iraqi Kurdistan, all of whom could then sell it on the international market, the Syrian source said. Cain said the company would sell its products directly into the international market at market prices so that they can use the proceeds to rebuild their economy and help their people, he said. Reese, the former Delta Force soldier was also a founder at North Carolina-based consulting and private security firm TigerSwan. The company gained notoriety several years ago when North Dakota regulators sued it for providing private security in the state without a license after it sent agents to crack down on protests against the Dakota Access pipeline, operated by a company owned by Trump donor Kelcy Warren. TigerSwan denied all wrongdoing and the state dropped the case after the company left North Dakota. Attempts to reach Dorrier were unsuccessful. He left GulfSands in the late 2000s, according to news reports at the time. A GulfSands spokesperson did not reply to emails seeking comment. Betsy Swan Woodruff contributed to this report. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Jocelyne Zablit (Agence France-Presse) Los Angeles, United States Mon, August 3, 2020 10:02 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b1d960 2 Food pandemic,coronavirus,COVID-19,united-states,restaurant,food Free For Gabriel Gordon and his wife Lena, the small restaurant they opened 14 years ago in the coastal California town of Seal Beach was a dream project and the cornerstone of their future success. But this weekend, Beachwood BBQ, which had become a staple in the community, permanently shut down -- yet another casualty of the carnage the coronavirus pandemic has unleashed on restaurants across the United States. "This restaurant launched everything for us and allowed us to have a nice life," said Gordon, 43, who is now concentrating his efforts on another restaurant and three breweries he owns. "This is what allowed us to have a nice life and it's heartbreaking to see it close." According to the National Restaurant Association, the restaurant industry -- the second largest private sector employer in the US -- is among the hardest hit by the pandemic, with losses projected to reach a staggering $240 billion by the end of the year. "It's such an apocalyptic time for this industry," Sean Kennedy, executive vice president of public affairs for the association, told AFP. "We were the first industry to shut down and we will be the last to recover from this pandemic. "That's because we won't be in place until the airlines are fixed, until the hotels are fixed and until tourism is back." As of July 10, according to Yelp, there have been 26,160 total restaurant closures across the United States, of which 60 percent (15,770) have permanently shut down. That represents the highest total business closures in the country, surpassing retail. The impact has especially been felt in major cities and regions that rely on tourism during the summer months in order to stay afloat the rest of the year. Read also: COVID-19 forces restaurants, retailers to cut wages, furlough employees 'Like losing family member' "Cities like Los Angeles ... depend on tourism, conventions, vacationers, honeymooners -- that's what drives restaurant traffic," said Kennedy. "Until that's restored, we are not going to see anything approaching normal business markets for the restaurants." In California alone, the statistics are sobering. There were some 1.4 million people working in a restaurant before the pandemic, and over the past four months some 1 million have either been laid off or furloughed, said Sharokina Shams, vice president of public affairs for the California Restaurant Association. "We anticipate that 30 percent of California restaurants will close permanently as a result of the pandemic," Shams told AFP. "The last couple of economic crises that this industry can talk about would be the last recession in 2008 and the couple of years that followed 9/11. "This is far, far worse." One of the reasons the sector has been hammered is the fact that restaurants often operate on very low profit margins and have very thin cash reserves. And although the financial rescue handed out by the government helped, restaurant owners say it does not go far enough to allow many to survive. "The average restaurant is making between six and seven percent profits ... and has about 16 days of cash on hand," Kennedy said. "And suddenly (with the pandemic) they are expected to find a way to pay their rent, their utilities, to deal with the inventory. "For a growing number of restaurants, the answer is to shut down permanently." That was the case for Madelyn Alfano, 62, owner of Maria's Italian Kitchen, a restaurant chain in the Los Angeles area, who was forced to close two of her outlets and is fighting to keep the remaining ones open. "It's like losing a family member ... it's my life savings, passion and there is a feeling of defeat," Alfano told AFP, commenting on the two closures. "I would equate this to someone with an illness and the doctor says 'we have to cut off your foot so you can live'." She said as the pandemic hit, her business plummeted 50 percent overnight and, like other restaurateurs, she had to swiftly adapt to a new reality. "When I tell people what the net profit of a restaurant is they tell me I'm absolutely crazy to do this," Alfano said. "Every morning, you don't know what the day is going to bring ... and as the owner of a restaurant you cannot show fear. Stoicism is very important." For Gordon, one redeeming side-effect of the pandemic is that it has forced him and others in the industry to reflect on their frantic pace of life and to slow down. "A lot of us are saying 'why do we need to open six or seven days a week'," he said. "This has made us rethink our whole business model." Due to COVID-19, the drive will not collect physical school supplies this year, but encourages the community to make monetary donations of any amount, which will stay in the community in which the donation was made. School supplies will be purchased and distributed with the help of Schoolhouse Supplies, going directly to help local teachers and students. "In Oregon, nearly half of all children cannot afford even the most basic school supplies," said Rob Stuart, President and Chief Executive Officer, OnPoint Community Credit Union. "This year, families are struggling financially more than ever as they face uncertainty around the upcoming school year. A donation of $25 will provide one student with basic supplies for an entire year. No amount is too small, so we hope you will join us in supporting students by alleviating some of the pressure families are feeling through these challenging times." As part of this year's drive, the KGW School Supply Drive Tech Drop, a contact-free electronic device collection event with Free Geek, will take place on Saturday, August 15, from 8:0011:00 a.m. in the parking lot of OnPoint's new Lloyd Center Branch (located at 1100 NE Weidler St., Portland, OR 97232). Free Geek accepts nearly everything that plugs in or uses electricity, so the community is encouraged to bring reusable laptops, smartphones, tablets, e-readers, video systems, and much more. To learn more or review other drop off locations please visit KGW.com/School. In addition to its longstanding support of the KGW School Supply Drive, OnPoint also recently donated $25,000 to Schoolhouse Supplies in support of its at-home learning kits program. OnPoint's donation equipped families across the Portland-metro region with at-home resources to help finish the school year through distance learning. Nearly 23,000 kits have been distributed since March to families in need. "So many of our families are struggling right now, and it's important we support our students as they face new challenges through this crisis," said Alice Forbes, Executive Director, Schoolhouse Supplies. "We are grateful to OnPoint for its continued support of Schoolhouse Supplies and of the many local students we serve. We hope OnPoint's generosity inspires the rest of our community to support our students in this critical time by donating to the KGW School Supply Drive." Click here to learn more about Schoolhouse Supplies and its mission to equip as many local families as possible with the school supplies they need to succeed. ABOUT ONPOINT COMMUNITY CREDIT UNION Founded in 1932, OnPoint Community Credit Union is the largest credit union in Oregon, serving more than 403,000 members and with assets of $7.3 billion. OnPoint membership is available to anyone who lives or works in one of 28 Oregon counties (Benton, Clackamas, Clatsop, Columbia, Coos, Crook, Curry, Deschutes, Douglas, Gilliam, Hood River, Jackson, Jefferson, Josephine, Klamath, Lane, Lincoln, Linn, Marion, Morrow, Multnomah, Polk, Sherman, Tillamook, Wasco, Washington, Wheeler and Yamhill) and two Washington counties (Skamania and Clark) and their immediate family members. More information is available at www.onpointcu.com or 800-527-3932. SOURCE OnPoint Community Credit Union They are due to join forces on the silver screen in the upcoming war epic The Nightingale. And famous sisters Dakota and Elle Fanning looked lovely when they were spotted together in Los Angeles, California on Sunday, wearing deeply contrasting day looks as they walked through a park. Dakota, 26, wore a long navy blue shirt dress that hung down to her mid-calf, and featured ruched shoulders and a frill at the hem. Out for some sun: Famous sisters Elle and Dakota Fanning looked lovely when they were spotted together in Los Angeles on Sunday, wearing deeply contrasting day looks The War Of The Worlds star left the bottom buttons undone to allow for a peek of thigh. The elder Fanning sister complemented her look with white trainers and a monogrammed mask. She also sported silver bangles on her wrist, and a set of earrings. Dakota shielded her eyes from the bright sunshine with octagonal tortoiseshell sunglasses. Lost in thought: Dakota wore a long navy blue shirt dress that hung down to her mid-calf, and featured ruched shoulders and a frill at the hem She wore her hair up and parted at the middle. Elle, meanwhile, was in brighter colors, wearing a summer-appropriate light yellow midi sundress that ended at her mid-thigh. The Super 8 actress's garment featured soft frilly short sleeves. She paired the dress with a wide-brimmed straw panama hat, wearing her blond hair straight and long underneath it. Stepping in style: Elle, meanwhile, was in brighter colors, wearing a summer-appropriate light yellow midi sundress that ended at her mid-thigh The Maleficent star completed her day look with brown strappy sandals, and she carried her face mask in her hand. Until recently, Dakota had been mainly based in New York City, but has since relocated to Los Angeles where both her sister Elle as well as their mother Heather Joy Arrington reside. Aside from a couple of isolated projects including the 2001 film I Am Sam, in which Elle portrayed a younger version of Dakota's character, the thespian sisters have never worked on a film together. Soon to change: Aside from a couple of isolated projects in which Elle portrayed a younger version of Dakota's character, the thespian sisters have never worked on a film together; seen in a recent Instagram challenge The Nightingale, based on the novel of the same name by Kristin Hannah, will mark the first time Dakota and Elle will share the screen in a dramatic feature film, and they will portray sisters, to boot. The film, to be directed by Inglourious Basterds actress Melanie Laurent, follows a pair of sisters in wartime France as they frantically try to keep their lives from falling apart at the onset of World War II. The film is currently listed as being in pre-production, and is expected, for now, on December 22nd, 2021. Soon to come: The Nightingale, based on the novel of the same name by Kristin Hannah, will mark the first time Dakota and Elle will share the screen in a dramatic feature film; Dakota seen on a recent episode of Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen Meanwhile, both sisters are also enjoying the continuation of their respective TV series. Dakota's second outing as Sara Howard in The Alienist is currently airing on TNT, with the second season bearing the sub-title Angel Of Darkness. The period mystery/thriller series is based on the books The Alienist and The Angel Of Darkness by Caleb Carr. And Elle just received the happy news that her period series The Great, following the life of young Catherine The Great, has been renewed for a second season on Hulu. Meanwhile, both sisters are also enjoying the continuation of their respective TV series: Elle's period series The Great has been renewed for a second season on Hulu Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray is unlikely to visit Ayodhya for the bhoomi pujan for Ram temple construction there on August 5 owing to the serious COVID-19 situation in the Uttar Pradesh town, senior Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut indicated on Monday. IMAGE: A hoarding of PM Narendra Modi and other leaders put up beside a statue of Lord Hanuman, ahead of the foundation laying ceremony of Ram Temple, in Ayodhya. Photograph: PTI Photo "It is important that the PM is going. The chief minister (Thackeray) can go there anytime, Raut told reporters here while extending good wishes for the ceremony. The 'bhoomi pujan' of the Ram temple is scheduled to be held on Wednesday at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh and is expected to be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Raut reiterated the Shiv Senas contribution in the Ram temple construction campaign, and said the party has given Rs 1 crore for the purpose of building the temple. "The outbreak of COVID-19 in Ayodhya and surrounding areas is a matter of concern...Uttar Pradesh's minister Kamal Rani (Varun) lost life (due to the disease), while three other ministers are infected," Raut said. "I think as less people as possible should go there and the ceremony there be held. It is important that the PM is going. The chief minister (Thackeray) can go there anytime, the Rajya Sabha member said. Asked if Thackeray has not been invited for the ceremony, Raut said, Nobody is waiting for the invitation." He said the chief priest of the temple and security guards there have been quarantined. The Shiv Sena does not want to give a political angle to the issue (of party leaders not being invited), he said, adding that the situation in Ayodhya is serious and a kind of medical emergency is prevailing there". "And you (the media) are asking about who is going and all. As less number of people as possible should go there...we will go there later, Raut said, adding that even BJP veterans like L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi, who played key roles in the temple campaign, were unlikely to attend the ceremony due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The Shiv Sena had laid the foundation of the temple construction, he said. The temple construction would not be possible had the Babri mosque not been brought down, he said. The BJP, VHP and the Sangh Parivar accepted that it was the Shiv Sainiks (Shiv Sena workers) who had "pulled down the mosque", he said. "So, we had laid the road (of temple construction). We are happy that the temple is being built. And you have seen that Uddhav Thackerayji, our Shiv Sena has given Rs 1 crore fund for it, he added. The Babri mosque in Ayodhya was demolished on December 6, 1992 by 'kar sevaks' who claimed that an ancient Ram temple had stood on the same site. Advani and Joshi were leading the Ram temple movement at that time. In November last year, the Supreme Court paved the way for the construction of Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya, and directed the Centre to allot an alternative five-acre plot to the Sunni Waqf Board for building a new mosque at a "prominent" place in the holy town. Meanwhile, Raut refused to comment on queries pertaining to the case of actor Sushant Singh Rajputs death. "Mumbai Police are able. Trust should be reposed into them if they are investigating the case. Police of the world have faith in the Mumbai Police," the Shiv Sena leader said. "So, when the probe is on, the person who is not in the government and not related to it, like me, should not comment about the probe. It is not right, he added. Rajput, 34, was found hanging at his apartment in suburban Bandra on June 24. The Mumbai Police, who are probing Rajput's death, have so far recorded statements of nearly 40 people, including those from the actor's family, his cook and people from the film industry like filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, film critic Rajeev Masand, director-producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali and filmmaker Aditya Chopra. A Bihar Police team is probing a separate 'abetment to suicide' case on the basis of a complaint filed by the late actor's father in Patna last week. Coronavirus LIVE Updates: Karti Chidambaram, Congress leader and MP from Sivaganga, has tested positive for coronavirus, he said on Twitter. Taking to the micro-blogging site, Karti, the son of former finance minister P Chidambaram said: "I have just tested positive for #Covid. My symptoms are mild and as per medical advice I am under home quarantine. I would urge all those who have recently been in contact with me to follow medical protocol." Earlier, the daughter of Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, who tested positive for Covid-19, also tested positive for Covid-19. Yediyurappa, who is admitted to a private hospital, tweeted: "I have tested positive for coronavirus. Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self quarantine." The hospital said that the CM is clinically stable and is being monitored closely by its team of doctors. The chief minister has had a series of public engagements and meetings this past week, including the inauguration of the project work on the Bengaluru Bio-life-sciences Park on July 29, where entrepreneur Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw was present. Meanwhile, Congress MLA Rakibul Hussain has become the seventh legislator in Assam to contract coronavirus infection. Hussain, the MLA from Samaguri in Central Assam and a former state minister, said in a Facebook post that he tested positive for the virus along with his wife Nazreen Hussain. His son, however, tested negative. I have tested COVID-19 positive.... Request everyone who came in contact with me in the last four days to get themselves tested," he said in the post. The former minister is the first Congress legislator to have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Another prominent politician of the party, All India Mahila Congress president and former Silchar MP Sushmita Dev, had earlier tested positive for the virus. All the other MLAs of the state, who had tested positive for COVID-19, were from the BJP. They are Assembly Deputy Speaker Aminul Haque Laskar, Atul Bora, Krishnendu Paul, Naryan Deka, Bolin Chetia and Nabanita Handique. Story continues In some positive news, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has given nod to the Serum Institute of India (SII) for conducting phase 2 and 3 human clinical trials of a COVID-19 vaccine candidate, developed by the University of Oxford, in the country. Government officials said the approval for conducting phase 2 and 3 clinical trials by the SII was granted by DCGI Dr V G Somani late Sunday night after a thorough evaluation based on the recommendations of the Subject Expert Committee on COVID-19. As a rapid regulatory response, the expert panel at the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) on Friday, after a detailed deliberation and considering the data generated on the vaccine candidate in phase 1 and 2 of the Oxford University trial, had recommended granting permission for phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of the potential vaccine, 'Covishield', on healthy adults in India, the officials said. "The firm has to submit safety data, evaluated by the Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB), to the CDSCO before proceeding to phase 3 clinical trials," a senior official said. "As per the study design, each subject will be administered two doses four weeks apart (first dose on day one and second dose on day 29) following which the safety and immunogenicity will be assessed at predefined intervals," the official said. Currently, phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of the Oxford vaccine candidate is going on in the United Kingdom, phase 3 clinical trial in Brazil and phase 1 and 2 clinical trials in South Africa. The officials said that the SII had submitted a revised proposal on Wednesday after the expert panel on Tuesday, following deliberation over its application, had asked it to revise its protocol for the phase 2 and 3 clinical trials besides seeking some additional information. The panel has also recommended that the clinical trial sites which have been proposed for the study be distributed across India. According to the revised proposal, 1,600 people aged above 18 years will participate in the trials across 17 selected sites, including AIIMS Delhi, BJ Medical College in Pune, Rajendra Memorial Research Institute of Medical Sciences (RMRIMS) in Patna, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, AIIMS-Jodhpur, Nehru Hospital in Gorakhpur, Andhra Medical College in Visakhapatnam and JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research in Mysore. "According to the application, it would conduct an observer-blind, randomised controlled study to determine the safety and immunogenicity of 'Covishield' on healthy Indian adults," the official said. The SII, which has partnered with AstraZeneca, for manufacturing the Oxford vaccine candidate for COVID-19 had submitted its first application to the DCGI on July 25 seeking permission for conducting the phase 2 and 3 trials of the potential vaccine. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said on Monday that the Bihar police, who had arrived in Mumbai to probe Sushant Singh Rajput's case, was quarantined as per the state government guidelines. The Bihar Police officer who arrived in Mumbai to probe a case related to the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput was guided for home quarantine as per the state government guidelines, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said on Monday. According to a BMC statement, a team of the corporation approached the cop yesterday and explained to him the whole procedure for domestic air travel amid the COVID-19 pandemic, including home quarantine. The P/South Administration received information stating that the said officer arrived in SRPF group Being a domestic air traveller, he needs to be guided for home quarantine as per the State Government Guidelines, the statement said. The BMC also said that the policeman has been guided to apply to the competent authority of Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) for exemption in the home quarantine period as per the state government notification. Also Read: Covid cases rise unabated in India: 52,000+ cases recorded within 24-hrs Also Read: Inside details of Commander Level meet: Disengagement at Pangong Tso discussed Earlier, Bihar Director-General of Police (DGP) Gupteshwar Pandey had said that Patna Superintendent of Police (SP) Vinay Tiwari, who is heading a police team from Patna in the case, has been forcibly quarantined by the municipal authorities in Mumbai. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had earlier said that the state Director General of Police (DGP) Gupteshwar Pandey will speak to the Maharashtra Police as regards the quarantining of Patna SP Vinay Tiwari in Mumbai. Bihar DGP will speak with the authorities there. Whatever happened with him (Vinay Tiwari) is not right. It is not a political matter. Bihar Police is carrying out its duty, Kumar told reporters here. A team of Bihar Police is in Mumbai to probe the matter on the basis of an FIR which was registered in Patna, based on a complaint filed by Rajputs father KK Singh against actor Rhea Chakraborty under several sections including abetment to suicide. Also Read: Ayodhya Ram Mandir: Uma Bharti to skip groundbreaking as Covid precaution NASA's satellites were working overtime as they snapped pictures of the large Apple Fire in Banning Canyon near San Bernardino, California on Aug. 02, 2020. This fire began on July 31, 2020 and the cause of the fire is still under investigation. To date the fire has consumed 20,516 acres and is 5% contained.Much of the northern and eastern edge of the fire is located in very steep, rugged hillsides not easily accessible to firefighting vehicles. Low humidity, high temperatures, low moisture content in the surrounding vegetation and winds all contribute to the spread of fire once it breaks out. This fire is burning in an area that haso not had fire activity in recent years leaving it with plenty of fuel for growth. Hot, dry conditions are expected to continue in the area. ### NASA's satellite instruments are often the first to detect wildfires burning in remote regions, and the locations of new fires are sent directly to land managers worldwide within hours of the satellite overpass. Together, NASA instruments detect actively burning fires, track the transport of smoke from fires, provide information for fire management, and map the extent of changes to ecosystems, based on the extent and severity of burn scars. NASA has a fleet of Earth-observing instruments, many of which contribute to our understanding of fire in the Earth system. Satellites in orbit around the poles provide observations of the entire planet several times per day, whereas satellites in a geostationary orbit provide coarse-resolution imagery of fires, smoke and clouds every five to 15 minutes. For more information visit: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/fires/main/missions/index.html NASA's Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) Worldview application provides the capability to interactively browse over 700 global, full-resolution satellite imagery layers and then download the underlying data. Many of the available imagery layers are updated within three hours of observation, essentially showing the entire Earth as it looks "right now." Actively burning fires, detected by thermal bands, are shown as red points. Image Courtesy: NASA Worldview, Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS). Caption: Lynn Jenner with information from Inciweb. Iraqi ministry of transport has made it mandatory for all Iraqis aimed at traveling to Iran to take Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests to diagnose infection by the lethal respiratory coronavirus before taking the trip, Trend reports via Mehr. The ministry announced in a statement that Iranian officials have called for Iraqi to take PCR tests before entering the Iranian borders under the Covid-19 pandemic. The statement added that the tests are mandatory for Iraqi nationals entering Iran as of Tuesday, August 3. Iran has allowed Iraqis trips to the country in case the travelers preserve health protocols and respect the announced instructions by the Iranian ministry of foreign affairs. It is worth noting that Iraq has accorded with Iran on the formation of joint medical committees and groups with the aim of exchanging medical information to combat Covid-19. The two sides have also conferred on the exchange of information on common treatment protocols in Iran for treating COVID-19. Iran has achieved remarkable results in its anti-coronavirus medical studies and is sharing the knowledge with its neighbor. The COVID-19 RT-PCR test is a real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test for the qualitative detection of nucleic acid from SARS-CoV-2 in upper and lower respiratory specimens. US President Donald Trump said Monday he does not oppose Microsoft Corp acquiring the US operations of TikTok and said he will ban the service in the United States on Sept 15 without a sale. The comments came after Trump Friday he said he was planning to ban the Chinese-owned video app's U.S. operations after dismissing a possible sale to Microsoft. Trump's comments confirmed a Reuters report Sunday that he had agreed to give China's ByteDance 45 days to negotiate a sale of popular short-video app TikTok to Microsoft. Trump also said the US . Treasury would need to get a ... The third location of Flower Child, an eatery developed by Fox Restaurant Concepts, is finally opening in the Heights after facing delays due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The location was originally slated to open on March 24. The Heights-area Flower Child will open Tuesday. The concept will be housed at 1533 North Shepherd Drive, Suite 100 Houston, TX 77008, according to Fox Restaurants. The restaurant is a part of Market at Houston Heights, which will be home to additional restaurants and businesses. Capital Retail Properties is developing the 30,000-square-foot, two-story Market at Houston Heights in partnership with Randy Wile of Wile Interests Inc. to fund the project, the Houston Business Journal reported. The new location of Flower Child will encompass a 3,500-square-foot space, and has patio seating available, according to the announcement. The location will open with limited seating and takeout orders, in line with current dining guidelines due to the pandemic. The farm-fresh eatery opened a location in the Woodlands in early 2020, and has a location in Uptown. It offers vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options. Flower Child takes pride in its Mother Earth Bowl containing ancient grains, sweet potato, portobello mushroom, avocado, cucumber, broccoli pesto, charred onion, leafy greens, red pepper miso vinaigrette and hemp seed. The restaurant also serves up tasty sides like its gluten-free mac and cheese and smashed gold potato. The establishment isn't the only Houston-area eatery developed by Fox Restaurant Concepts; Blanco Tacos + Tequila in the Houston Galleria is also a brainchild of the same company. The Hope Generation Ministry International has called on the youth to tap into the knowledge of the elderly instead of branding them as witches and wizards. Prophet Dr Eric Nana Kwasi Amponsah, the General Overseer of the church, said the elderly were full of wisdom with wealth of experiences, which when tapped into, would inure to the growth and development of the people. In an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Accra, he condemned the gruesome murder of the 90-year old Akua Denteh at Kafaba, near Salaga in the Gonja District. He said the blood of the innocent old woman would forever be on the hands of the perpetrators of the heinous crime. Prophet Amponsah, therefore, called on the law enforcement agencies to investigate the crime and punish those involved to serve as a deterrent to others. The barbaric and condemnable act perpetuated on the woman has no place in this modern civilised country of ours, he said. People should rather unite to fight challenges such as diseases, poverty and squalor that is confronting the nation. Im appalled by such a condemnable act. Source: GNA 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 Mandy L. Hall Named Senior Executive Vice-President, Chief Corporate Officer, Global Managing Director, Secretary & Treasurer Mandy L. Hall Mandy L. Hall, Senior Executive Vice-President, Chief Corporate Officer, Global Managing Director, Secretary & Treasurer Mandy L. Hall, Senior Executive Vice-President, Chief Corporate Officer, Global Managing Director, Secretary & Treasurer MIAMI, Aug. 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Guess & Co. Corporation is pleased to announce Mandy L. Hall has been appointed senior executive vice-president, global managing director, secretary and treasurer of the company. Ms. Hall joined Guess & Co. Corporation initially as a member of the senior executive support team working closely with the CEO on strategic projects. Prior to joining Guess & Co. Corporation, Ms. Hall served as vice-chairman, deputy president and chief executive officer of T.G.C., a for-profit social enterprise company that combines business opportunities with second chances for convicted persons. She rose through the ranks after joining the company as corporate vice-president. At T.G.C., she was instrumental in building key relationships in the community for the company and oversaw the companys rebranding. She was also responsible for a company re-organization that resulted in a share exchange and setup of a new parent company. Ms. Hall also served as vice-chairman and president of T.G.C. Asset Management, Ltd., T.G.C. Capital Corporation, Good People Telecom and T.G.C.C., a diversified construction company. She has successfully developed acquisition strategies while in executive management and has a keen focus on serving customers. Prior to T.G.C., Ms. Hall held management positions at various small businesses and she also owned and operated a styling salon. She credited her early experiences in personal care with her ability to connect with people in her current positions. As senior executive vice-president, chief corporate officer, global managing director, secretary and treasurer, Ms. Hall is a senior member of the companys leadership team working closely with the CEO, COO and CFO. Ms. Hall has responsibility for client relationship management and project management across the entire company. She also oversees corporate administration, shareholder administration, treasury management and corporate affairs. Ms. Hall will manage the companys growth in the U.S. and select international markets including client relationships, vendor relationships and strategic partnerships. We are delighted to have Ms. Hall as a senior member of our company, she has demonstrated her ability to deliver for our clients and our shareholders in a consistent and meaningful way. She motivates fellow management team members and clients enjoy working with her because of her enthusiasm and dedication, said Jerry D. Guess, chairman, CEO and president of Guess & Co. Corporation. Story continues About Guess & Co. Corporation Guess & Co. Corporation is an emerging global stewardship solutions company with energy, health care, technology and real estate businesses. We partner with communities, companies and governments to improve the welfare of people. Guess & Co. Corporation is a registered contractor with the U.S. Government to provide solutions to federal government agencies and members of our company have active top-secret/SCI clearances. We are based in Miami, Florida and have over 20 subsidiaries. Guess & Co. Corporation was founded in August of 2017. The management team of Guess & Co. Corporation has over 50 years of combined experience. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/f407a5a6-8138-4a04-8e0c-db9edfa5d1be CONTACT: Media Contact: Media Relations media@guessandcocorporation.com Back in the CFA Chicago office, the surviving boxes of marked and unmarked films remained mostly unexamined for 14 years. Babler, who came to the CFA in 2017, says that weve known we had reels labeled The First Degree, with a question mark, since the donation came in. The lure, she says of this collection, wasnt that it was mainly agricultural films; its that a lot of films were unlabeled, or came with a question mark, or werent quite legible. Or simply said unidentified silent narrative. Mary Ellen Spear and her partners planned to do things differently right from the start when they established Pioneer Elder Care in 2011. The model is very different than a typical long-term care home, she said. Rather than build large multistory buildings where dozens or hundreds of seniors would live, Spear said they chose to build four bungalows, each about 288 square metres (3,200 square feet). The buildings are limited to 10 residents, each with their own private bedroom. And although the homes are not classified as long-term care and do not receive government funding, she said the 40 residents within the four facilities are among the most vulnerable. Our focus of care is strictly for residents with dementia and Alzheimers. Theyre the most vulnerable, Spear said. We provide full care here as much care, maybe more, as a nursing home. The plan was to provide a comfortable home-like atmosphere for the residents of the facilities located in residential areas, rather than traditional institutional settings. But now, at a time when COVID-19 outbreaks have had a devastating impact on residents of long-term care homes throughout Niagara and beyond, the model adopted by Pioneer Elder Care is also showing a resistance to the spread of the deadly virus. More than half of Niagaras 866 cases of COVID-19, as of Saturday, were associated with outbreaks and most of those including three underway were at long-term care homes. Spear said staff and residents at Pioneer Elder Care have managed to avoid any cases of the virus. A lot of times its a common-sense approach, Spear said. Its what makes sense for our residents. For years, groups like Guardian Angels Program, Network 4 Long Term Care Advocacy Committee and others have been lobbying the provincial government for enhanced care for residents. Guardian Angels founder Betty Miller said her organization and others have been calling for a new approach to seniors care. Rather than warehousing seniors in massive facilities, she said the focus should be on investing in more smaller nursing homes and subsidizing the costs so seniors can afford to live within them. At the same time, support for home-care services to allow people to stay in their own homes longer should be increased. She said Pioneer Elder Care despite being a private for-profit home is an example of the model that should be used as the province moves forward with its plans to invest $1.75 billion in long-term care homes in the next five years. Despite the recommendations of the Long-Term Care Staffing Study Report released last week, Premier Doug Ford said on Friday he would not commit to providing nursing-home residents with four hours of hands-on care daily. But Spear said Pioneer Elder Care is ahead of the curve on that, too. We have the highest staffing ratios in the region, Spear said. The company employs about 50 people and everyone works directly for Pioneer, and we always have the same staff in the same bungalow on the same shift, with no outside agencies called in to provide additional services. Spear said it was done to provide continuity for residents, but the move has also likely helped keep the virus from finding its way into the facilities. Thats huge, Miller said. By paying fair wages to workers, Spear said the home has also managed to avoid staff shortages that have plagued other facilities especially since the pandemic hit. Miller said she has not seen a nursing home yet that isnt understaffed. They have been for years, she said. Its just the way it is. Spear said government officials toured the St. Catharines homes two years ago, and they were shocked that we could provide the level of care at the rate its at. Although living in one of the bungalows is not cheap, she said it doesnt need to be that way. At about $5,200 a month, Pioneers rooms are about twice the payments residents of subsidized long-term care homes pay. But because Pioneer its registered as a retirement home does not receive government subsidy, Spear said its actually less expensive than a traditional long-term care home. If you look at the cost of a long-term care bed, between what the family pays and the province, theyre close to $7,000 a bed, Spear said. People dont realize what these homes actually cost. She said other provinces such as New Brunswick provide subsidies directly to residents rather than the homes themselves, giving seniors and their families more choice about where they want to live. In Ontario, I know its a huge problem but there are things to do quickly to help, she said. Spear said her company has a new retirement home in Niagara Falls, called Chapel Heights, offering a mix of services including independent living, supportive and full enhanced care to its 86 residents, who will begin moving in Tuesday. Initially, the women said, an officer told them the vehicle had been reported stolen and that the suspects were two Black men. But the women, both African American, said no men were with them and provided proof that Johnson was the owner. She told the Secret Service she had never reported the car stolen. Eventually, the women were released without an apology or answers to their questions, Winston said. When COVID-19 struck, couple Steve and Lisa Glasseys businesses were heavily impacted. Rather than waiting for things to get better, they embarked on developing PetSave - an online social enterprise that puts 100 per cent of profit in animal welfare. As the former CEO for Wellington SPCA, Steve believes the animal welfare system in New Zealand has worsened and wanted to do something tangible to help improve the status quo. Lisa too has also worked for the SPCA in fundraising along with other charities such as Ronald McDonald House. Now in its third month of operation, sales are going well with the trend for pet owners to shop online for pet food and supplies. Customers accumulate PetSave points with every purchase which they can redeem on discounts or use to help allocate the companys annual profits to one of its select charity partners. As part of a world first, PetSave ships the majority of their products in re-usable cardboard pet carriers and although this cuts into the social enterprises profit margin, its about "paws before profit". While at the SPCA, Steve led the SPCAs response to rescue more than 1000 animals left behind following the Edgecumbe floods. Nearly half of affected households had insufficient numbers of pet carriers during evacuation according to Steves research. After leaving the SPCA, he co-founded Animal Evac New Zealand with their work covered on TV during the Australian Bushfires in New South Wales where his team carried out dozens of rescues, but also distributed over 150 pet carriers in the township of Bundanoon as the bushfire forced evacuations. "The lack of pet carriers is a causal factor in evacuation failure during disasters, so saturating the community with as many pet carriers as possible is likely to not only save animals, but people too as they often return in harms way to rescue animals left behind." As part of supporting local, the cardboard pet carriers are made in New Zealand, and have lots of printed information on emergency preparedness to encourage pet owners to be prepared. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 00:36:28|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- China on Monday urged the United States to immediately withdraw its wrong decision of imposing sanctions on the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps and two relevant officials, vowing to "resolutely fight back" if the U.S. side is bent on behaving like this. Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin made the remarks in response to relevant U.S. move, and a recent statement by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo criticizing China's Xinjiang policy. "The U.S. action is a gross interference in China's internal affairs and a grave violation of basic norms governing international relations. China firmly opposes and strongly condemns it," Wang told a daily press briefing. He said Xinjiang-related issues are never about human rights, ethnicity or religion, but about counter-terrorism and anti-separatism. "Xinjiang affairs are purely China's internal affairs. The United States has no right and no ground to interfere." Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps has made important contributions to promoting Xinjiang's development, ethnic unity, social stability and border security, living in harmony with all ethnic groups as a friendly and supportive companion, said Wang. "The U.S. allegation is nothing but rumor-mongering and mud-slinging." The Chinese government is resolute in upholding its sovereignty, security and development interests, in fighting violent terrorist, separatist and religious extremist forces, and in opposing any foreign interference in Xinjiang affairs and China's other internal affairs, Wang said. While commenting on Pompeo's recent accusation about so-called "surveillance" against ethnic minorities in Xinjiang, Wang said the allegation has no factual basis at all. "It is a common international practice to use modern scientific and technological products and big data to improve social governance, and the United States is no exception. The installation of cameras in public places in accordance with law in Xinjiang does not target any specific ethnicity and it aims to improve social governance and prevent and fight crimes. This measure has been widely supported by people of all ethnic groups as it makes the society safer, he said. "Speaking of surveillance, the United States has long been criticized for its massive surveillance using high-techs," Wang said. According to a report released by Georgetown University, half of American adults, or more than 117 million people, are enrolled in a law enforcement face recognition network, and African Americans are most likely to be singled out, he said. Moreover, relevant U.S. agencies have long been conducting massive, organized and indiscriminate cyber theft, surveillance and attacks against foreign governments, companies and individuals in breach of international law and basic norms of international relations, Wang said. "This has been a well-known fact to all." Pompeo and his likes' remarks are "nothing better than malicious slanders," Wang said. "Such attempt to sabotage prosperity and stability in Xinjiang and seek pretext to have a hand in China's internal affairs is doomed to fail." Enditem Willie McCoys death haunts the Vallejo Police Department. Vallejo police officers fatally shot McCoy in the drive-through lane of a fast food restaurant on Feb. 9, 2019. In police body camera footage, it appears McCoy, who had fallen asleep or passed out with a gun in his lap, was waking when officers fired 55 shots. He never had a chance. The questionable killing prompted Geoffrey King to take action: He founded Open Vallejo, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news site with a clear task: We seek to illuminate a small city long burdened by police violence, neglect, and corruption, its website reads. My hometown is uniquely, I think, troubled, and theres just this amazing community clamoring, hungry for more than being abused like this, King, 40, told me. King is a Vallejo native and Stanford Law School graduate who has taught privacy law at UC Berkeley for almost a decade. He has the first three words of the Constitution We the People tattooed on his left forearm. He has worked for the Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York nonprofit that promotes press freedom. Over the past year, King has been busy. Hes used the California Public Records Act to dig into the goings-on in the Vallejo Police Department. And, hes unearthed some gems. Last week, King broke a story that rocked the city of 122,000: A former Vallejo police captain accused the department of firing him for flagging misconduct that he said included concerns that some officers bent their badges to mark fatal shootings. It was the result of a nine-month investigation. Now Playing: Geoffrey King, an attorney and advocate of press freedom, founded Open Vallejo and speaks with The Chronicle's Otis Taylor. Video: San Francisco Chronicle The revelation led Police Chief Shawny Williams to announce an independent investigation Friday. Its been a rocky two months in Vallejo. Sean Monterrosa, a 22-year-old San Franciscan, was killed on June 2 by an officer who shot through the windshield while sitting in the backseat of an unmarked police truck. Solano County District Attorney Krishna Abrams is playing hot potato with state Attorney General Xavier Becerra over whose office should investigate the shooting. Williams asked OIR Group, a company that specializes in police practices, to investigate the shooting. In June, OIR Group released a 70-page report that found that the Police Department wasnt properly reviewing use-of-force incidents, suitably investigating misconduct allegations or appropriately disciplining officers. Since George Floyds death, policing has been under intense scrutiny. Yet, somehow that didnt stop a high-ranking officer from allowing the windshield to be destroyed. The officer was placed on leave. Becerra, who announced a review and reform agreement with Vallejo in June to investigate use-of-force procedures and more, will also investigate the destruction of evidence. And now officers have allegedly bent badges as if dead people are trophies. How are Vallejoans supposed to trust the police? Its unclear how VPD will recover from this, but a good place to start would be a completely transparent investigation of these issues by a person widely seen by the community as exhibiting impeccable integrity and professionalism, said Jerry Threet, a former San Francisco deputy city attorney who, as law enforcement auditor of Sonoma County, combed the countys use-of-force complaints for three years before his retirement last year. King has filed almost 200 public records requests, including ones that compelled the city to release video of the fatal shootings of Monterrosa, McCoy and Ronell Foster, an unarmed man who was shot by an officer who chased him in February 2018. Since Open Vallejo has really targeted a particular community with its efforts, theyve been able to do not just the preliminary records requests, but very aggressive and astute follow up and taking it as far as litigation when necessary, said David Snyder, the executive director of the First Amendment Coalition, a nonprofit focused on free speech. In my experience, that kind of pinpoint geographic focus is very unusual and may be unique. Robert Weisberg, a Stanford law professor, said King was a true idealist. He takes all civil rights issues very, very seriously, said Weisberg, who taught King when he was a Stanford Law School student. Hes got a clear, philosophical approach to law, and hes very passionate about it. 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 Jan. 27, Open Vallejo reported on interim City Attorney Randy Risners history of mismanaging client cases. At the Vallejo City Council meeting the next night, council members derided Open Vallejo without addressing the veracity of the reporting. Councilman Hakeem Brown characterized the article as a public lynching, saying Open Vallejo was no different than the Klan or a terrorist organization. Brown, who told my colleagues that the Police Department needed a complete reform after Open Vallejos latest story, didnt respond to my request for comment. A Feb. 5 letter to the editor in the Vallejo Times Herald by Lt. Michael Nichelini, the president of the Vallejo Police Officers Association, complained about the strain of public records requests on city staff as if the requests had nothing to do with the behavior of officers. I believe Open Vallejo maliciously and purposely spews what I see as lies, false information and inflammatory messages on the internet/social media, he wrote. They are crippling this city, city staff and the overall health of this city. I wanted to ask Nichelini whether he saw things differently since the badge story but, as Open Vallejo reported, hes the officer who was put on leave for allegedly destroying the windshield in the Monterrosa killing. In March, the Society of Professional Journalists Northern California chapter gave King an award for rigorous reporting and relentless use of the California Public Records Act to shine a light on a troubled local government. King says hes got more work to do. Its going to be painful, he said. It could, if we do our work right, end up resulting in serious professional and maybe even legal consequences for some of these officials based on their own conduct theyre already engaged in. San Francisco Chronicle columnist Otis R. Taylor Jr. appears Mondays and Thursdays. Email: otaylor@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @otisrtaylorjr The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt has a new commanding officer for the third time since March, four months after a Western Pacific deployment marred by a coronavirus outbreak that ended with a diversion to Guam, a leadership crisis and the death of a sailor. Capt. Carlos Sardiello, who oversaw recovery efforts aboard the carrier and its eventual return to San Diego, relinquished command of the Theodore Roosevelt on Friday for the second time in less than a year, according to a Navy statement. Taking his place is Capt. Eric J. Anduze, of Manati, Puerto Rico, who most recently served as executive officer of the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, the service said. Sardiello had helmed the carrier from July 2017 until Capt. Brett Crozier took over in October 2019. Sardiello returned to the carrier in March after Crozier was relieved by then-acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly. Sardiello referred to the carrier's recent challenges in a farewell message. "It was a privilege to lead the Rough Riders a second time weathering the storm that engulfed and sidelined Theodore Roosevelt," Sardiello said in the Navy statement. Crozier was at the helm when the Roosevelt diverted to Guam on March 26 after several sailors tested positive for the coronavirus. Modly removed him after a letter Crozier emailed his Navy superiors pleading for help surfaced in the San Francisco Chronicle soon after. Video of thousands of Roosevelt sailors chanting Crozier's name as he walked off the carrier for the last time flooded social media. A week later, a recording surfaced of Modly's speech to the Roosevelt's crew criticizing Crozier and calling him "too naive or too stupid." A public backlash ensued and Modly resigned. Under Sardiello's leadership, the ship remained in Guam two more months as sailors were isolated, tested and treated. Ultimately, more than 1,150 Roosevelt sailors tested positive, one of whom died. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday had considered returning Crozier to command until reviewing the results of a May investigation into the handling of the outbreak. The investigation revealed failures in Crozier's leadership aside from the letter, including a decision to decline opportunities to get sailors off of the ship early because they would not have been sent to single-occupancy rooms like he had requested. Gilday on June 19 told reporters that Crozier's "determination that onboard quarantine was ineffective should have led to an acceleration of sailors to ashore accommodations. It did not." Sardiello will return to be director of Joint and Fleet Operations at U.S. Fleet Forces Command, the assignment he held when he was pulled away to take over for Crozier. "The sailors persevered showing great fortitude in the face of adversity, and reverence and stoicism in remembrance; they have proven that fighting through the threat of infectious disease at sea can be done," Sardiello said of his crew's efforts since March, according to the statement. "The resilience and dedication to mission displayed by our Sailors during this pandemic response was truly remarkable." Kevin Magnussen says he has joined those who refuse to kneel before Formula 1 races because he does not support the Black Lives Matter political movement. In Austria and Hungary, only six drivers did not join Lewis Hamilton and the rest of the 2020 field in kneeling in solidarity with the anti-racism movement. But with world champion Hamilton wearing a 'Black Lives Matter' t-shirt rather than the 'End Racism' slogan on the shirts of the other drivers, Haas driver Magnussen admits kneeling made him increasingly uncomfortable. So, on Sunday at Silverstone, the Dane elected to join Max Verstappen, Kimi Raikkonen, Daniil Kvyat, Carlos Sainz, Antonio Giovinazzi and Charles Leclerc in deciding instead to stand. "I do not fully support what the organisation Black Lives Matter stands for," Magnussen is quoted by Algemeen Dagblad newspaper. Indeed, on the official Black Lives Matter website, racism is not the only issue mentioned. There are references to transgenderism and "cisgender privilege", and one stated aim is to "disrupt the Western-prescribed nuclear family structure". Magnussen said: "I am against racism and I think that should stop. That's why I knelt at first. "But I think every driver and every person can show their own thoughts in the way that they want to express them." So as the kneeling moments continue in 2020, 1996 world champion Damon Hill said there is a risk that the support for it will eventually fade. "People don't like being told what to do," he told PA Sport. "You don't want to wear out people's sympathies so it is going to be a challenge to keep the flag flying for Lewis' cause. Maybe he is going to have to do it on his own and move on," Hill said. Meanwhile, Magnussen said he is happy with Haas' 2020 car, even though the team had to take a step backwards following a dire 2019 season. "The 2019 model was really, really strong once in a while, but it just wasn't consistent and it peaked very rarely," he said. "This year we have gone in a different direction and it's really good. I'm not saying it's really fast because we are one of the slowest teams. "But it's consistent, so what it can do, it can do it all the time. However, when you change a concept as radically as we did, it's hard not to take a step back," added Magnussen. "We are heading in a better direction now, but it has cost us a little here and there. That's frustrating and difficult, but it was necessary for us to be able to come back even stronger." (GMM) Rating Action: Moody's rates new Apache senior notes Ba1 Global Credit Research - 03 Aug 2020 New York, August 03, 2020 -- Moody's Investors Service, ("Moody's") assigned a Ba1 rating to Apache Corporation's (Apache) proposed senior unsecured notes offering. Apache's existing ratings, including its Ba1 Corporate Family Rating (CFR), and negative outlook remain unchanged. The proceeds from the proposed offering will be used to fund an announced tender offer for outstanding senior notes and repay revolver borrowings. "This senior notes offering extends Apache's debt maturity profile and liquidity runway to weather this period of low oil and gas prices," commented Pete Speer, Moody's Senior Vice President. Assignments: ..Issuer: Apache Corporation ....Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Assigned Ba1 (LGD4) RATINGS RATIONALE Apache's proposed and existing senior unsecured notes are rated Ba1, the same as the CFR. The company's revolving credit facility and senior notes are all unsecured with no subsidiary guarantees. The new senior notes will be used to fund a simultaneously announced tender offer for existing senior notes spread across multiple maturities, but targeting nearer-term maturities. The remaining proceeds will be used to repay revolver borrowings, with the overall transaction supporting the company's good liquidity position (SGL-2) by extending its maturity profile and increasing available borrowing capacity on its revolver. Apache's Ba1 CFR reflects the benefits of its large asset base that is diversified geographically, geologically and by hydrocarbon. Its mix of unconventional and conventional reservoirs moderates its capital intensity compared to its more shale focused peers. Apache's property portfolio benefits from having producing assets in the North Sea and Egypt that provide exposure to Brent oil pricing and generates meaningful cash flow even in a low oil price environment. This adds diversification to its large acreage position in the Permian Basin. The company also has a prospective acreage position in Suriname with three discoveries to date. This could prove to be a very valuable asset, but this requires significant development and therefore production and cash flow generation will not begin for several more years. Story continues The company is challenged by high debt levels and weak credit metrics relative to similarly rated peers even prior to the oil price collapse in March 2020. Apache has substantially cut its dividend and capital spending to minimize negative free cash flow in 2020 and generate free cash flow as commodity prices recover to reduce debt. These decisive steps will enable the company to maintain solid liquidity and achieve some debt reduction in 2021. However, low capital investment will drive declining production and reserves that will result in higher E&P leverage metrics, while cash flow based credit metrics are expected to be weaker than most peers even when oil prices recover to $50/bbl or higher. The negative outlook reflects the uncertain pace of recovery in oil prices over the remainder of 2020 and 2021. If commodity price recovery is limited, then declines in production and reserves could accelerate and Apache's metrics will not improve to levels supportive of its Ba1 rating. FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS Apache's ratings could be downgraded if commodity prices remain low, the company's production and reserves fall faster than Moody's forecasts or if debt reduction over the medium term falls short of expectations. Retained Cash Flow (RCF)/Debt sustained below 20%, Leveraged Full-Cycle Ratio (LFCR) sustained below 1x, or Debt/PD above $12/boe could result in a ratings downgrade. In order for a ratings upgrade to be considered, Apache has to substantially reduce outstanding debt and grow production and reserves funded with internally generated cash flow at competitive returns in a more supportive commodity price environment. A LFCR above 1.5x, RCF/Debt above 30%, and Debt/PD approaching $8/boe could support a ratings upgrade. The principal methodology used in these ratings was Independent Exploration and Production Industry published in May 2017 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1056808. Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology. Apache Corporation is a large independent exploration and production company headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company operates in the Permian Basin in west Texas and southeastern New Mexico, with acreage spanning the Midland, Delaware and Central Basin Platform sub-basins. Core international operating areas are in Egypt and the North Sea, and an exploration program is underway in Suriname. REGULATORY DISCLOSURES For further specification of Moody's key rating assumptions and sensitivity analysis, see the sections Methodology Assumptions and Sensitivity to Assumptions in the disclosure form. Moody's Rating Symbols and Definitions can be found at: https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_79004. For ratings issued on a program, series, category/class of debt or security this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the same series, category/class of debt, security or pursuant to a program for which the ratings are derived exclusively from existing ratings in accordance with Moody's rating practices. For ratings issued on a support provider, this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to the credit rating action on the support provider and in relation to each particular credit rating action for securities that derive their credit ratings from the support provider's credit rating. 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The ratings have been disclosed to the rated entity or its designated agent(s) and issued with no amendment resulting from that disclosure. These ratings are solicited. Please refer to Moody's Policy for Designating and Assigning Unsolicited Credit Ratings available on its website www.moodys.com. Regulatory disclosures contained in this press release apply to the credit rating and, if applicable, the related rating outlook or rating review. Moody's general principles for assessing environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks in our credit analysis can be found at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1133569. The Global Scale Credit Rating on this Credit Rating Announcement was issued by one of Moody's affiliates outside the EU and is endorsed by Moody's Deutschland GmbH, An der Welle 5, Frankfurt am Main 60322, Germany, in accordance with Art.4 paragraph 3 of the Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 on Credit Rating Agencies. Further information on the EU endorsement status and on the Moody's office that issued the credit rating is available on www.moodys.com. Please see www.moodys.com for any updates on changes to the lead rating analyst and to the Moody's legal entity that has issued the rating. Please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for additional regulatory disclosures for each credit rating. Peter Speer Senior Vice President Corporate Finance Group Moody's Investors Service, Inc. 250 Greenwich Street New York, NY 10007 U.S.A. JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 Steven Wood MD - Corporate Finance Corporate Finance Group JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 Releasing Office: Moody's Investors Service, Inc. 250 Greenwich Street New York, NY 10007 U.S.A. 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The reason to connect Lewis to Dewey is to highlight and emphasize this idea of democracy as a social and ethical commitment, something that cannot be limited to the ballot box, something that must be lived and practiced in all spheres of life. Marching, speaking, deliberating, educating, persuading these are just some of the actions that help make democracy real. Theyre also the tools well need to defend democracy against the looming threat of autocracy. Just a few hours before Lewiss funeral in Atlanta, President Trump denounced mail-in voting, in one of his now regular attempts to delegitimize the upcoming election. He also raised the idea of pushing the election back, to another date. With Universal Mail-In Voting (not Absentee Voting, which is good), 2020 will be the most INACCURATE & FRAUDULENT Election in history, he wrote on Twitter. It will be a great embarrassment to the USA. Delay the Election until people can properly, securely and safely vote??? Theres no legal way the president can delay or postpone the election. Its date is set by state and federal law and moving it would require a herculean political effort. Trump lacks the patience or capacity to coordinate. But that doesnt mean his language isnt dangerous. Trump is sowing chaos. Hes undermining public faith in the election process and building a constituency of supporters who will treat any result short of his re-election as evidence of fraud and misconduct. And hes been backed thus far by an attorney general who repeats his false claims and gives ominously conditional answers to questions about honoring the democratic process. Asked during a hearing of the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday what he would do if Trump loses the election but refuses to concede, Bill Barr answered, If the results are clear I would leave office, a response that leaves open the possibility of unclear results and a contested outcome. Its fair to say that over the last three and a half years our democratic norms have done little to restrain Trumps most corrupt and authoritarian instincts. Our checks and balances have proved inadequate in the face of a president who sees the Constitution as merely a few pieces of paper. As weve seen with child separation on the border or secretive federal police in Portland, Ore., Trump has tried to extend and expand his authority as much as he can, daring the political system to stop him each time. But while many of our institutions have not been up to the task of confronting Trump, our democracy, meaning individuals and communities and civil society, has. Protest put Trump on the defensive in the days after he took office; protest drew attention to his abuses at the border; and protest over the last three months has helped galvanized many millions more against him. If Trump is defeated, and if he does leave office, it will be because Americans understood, and took seriously, the idea that democracy is a way of living as much as it is a form of government that it is, as Lewis told us, an act and not a state. BERLIN - A German company that specializes in laser communication says it is pulling out of uncompleted deals in China after the German government barred it from delivering hardware to the country. Mynaric said on Friday that it had requested official clearance of a planned export of products to a Chinese customer, which it didnt identify. It said it received a notification that clearly prohibits Mynaric from delivering laser communication hardware to China. Asked on Monday about the companys announcement, Economy Ministry spokesman Korbinian Wagner had no immediate comment and said the government typically doesnt confirm, deny or comment on individual cases. Mynaric, which said it hadnt yet delivered any laser communication hardware to China, said it is ceasing business in China immediately and would start extricating itself from uncompleted transactions. It said it considers its clear commitment to national interests of its core markets as critical to its business success. This commitment is even more important now, considering pending governmental opportunities in the U.S. a market that is currently gaining significant momentum, it added, citing as one example the Space Development Agencys current examination of proposals related to a U.S. government communication network. Mynaric said it has received high interest from numerous international actors. Increasing antagonism between the United States and China is rattling governments and companies around the world, with the role of Chinas Huawei in 5G telecommunications networks one major source of tension. Read more about: Putting all speculation to rest, Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh said on Monday that there was no party at the home of actor Sushant Singh Raput on June 13, the day before he was found dead on June 14. "We have the CCTV footage of June 13 and June 14, there was no party there on June 13," Singh said. "The Mumbai Police is investigating the case thoroughly, from all possible angles, including his family members, friends, doctors and others, besides the financial transactions details of Sushant's bank accounts," Singh said. To a query on the name of a prominent Maharashtra political personality being bandied about on social media, Singh categorically said that no such thing has emerged in the investigations. To a query, Singh said that Sushant was "emotionally upset" after the death of his ex-manager Disha Salian, and was even seeing 5 to 6 doctors. "When he saw his name being linked with Disha Salian's death on social media, he was emotionally disturbed. He had met her only once and he had even asked his advocate who she was," Singh told mediapersons. He pointed out that Sushant was very conscious' about what was appearing on social media. The police chief categorically rejected allegations in some quarters that the Mumbai Police had not sealed Sushant's duplex flat in Bandra where he was found dead on June 14. "The flat was sealed that day (June 14) itself. The next day (June 15), forensic teams and doctors visited the flat and completed their investigations there, only after that the flat was unsealed," Singh asserted. On Sushant's bank accounts, he said that the investigations have shown Rs 4.50 crore in the form of deposits, but there is nothing on alleged money transfers to his actress girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty's accounts. "We have recorded the statements of 56 persons so far, including Sushant's family members, doctors, friends, his current and former chartered accountants, the back transactions, checked the bank statements and bank ledgers. Further investigations are on," Singh said. His response pertained to the FIR lodged by Sushant's father, Krishna Kumar Singh with Patna Police claiming Rhea Chakraborty and her family had allegedly swindled money from his son, and later the Enforcement Directorate also entered the investigation. "The Mumbai Police are investigating the case thoroughly, in a professional manner, from all possible angles including Sushant's financial transactions and bank account details," Singh added. While the initial statements of Sushant's father and sister were recorded on June 16, they have not responded to further requests later. However, the police extended full cooperation with Sushant's sister and brother-in-law meeting the Joint Commissioner of Police and when they wanted to visit their Pune bungalow, the police ensured that an officer of ACP rank accompanied them. Responding to Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey's statement on the forced quarantine' of Patna IPS officer Vinay Tiwari, Singh denied knowledge of the same and threw the ball in the BMC's court. "I am not aware of it. The BMC should have knowledge of this, they handle such quarantine issues," Singh said. The police commissioner convened the media gathering a day after he briefed state Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, and later accompanied him to give the status on the case to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday, amid a clamour from opposition Bharatiya Janata Party and sections of Bollywood to hand over the probe to CBI. Pakistan's leading news channel Dawn News was reportedly hacked on Sunday after a huge Indian flag emerged on top of an advertisement being relayed on the channel. Viewers tuned into the Pakistani news channel were taken by surprise after seeing the Indian Tricolour on an advertisement for a disinfectant brand along with the message of 'Happy Independence Day' being relayed on the screen. This was repeated throughout the day over several advertisements being relayed on the channel. Many Pakistani netizens took to Twitter to point the blunder after which Dawn news issued an official statement saying, "Hackers attacked Dawn News TV today, after which the channel's screen suddenly started broadcasting the Indian flag as well as the text of Happy Independence Day, on which an investigation into the matter has been ordered." Dawn News said that the truth would be relayed to their viewers, adding that it was too premature to comment on the incident. Read: India's Secrecy & Pakistan's Self-served Peril, Harish Salve Opens Up On Kulbhushan Case Read: PM Modi's Rakhi-sister From Pakistan Sends Rakhi Via Post, Prays For His Good Health Read more: https://t.co/LUXoMdG3EM #DawnNews pic.twitter.com/4hImbV70oZ DawnNews (@Dawn_News) August 2, 2020 Pak netizens react What the hell Dawn News Get out from Pakistan @Dawn_News - Love Pakistan or Leave Pakistan pic.twitter.com/8Wj9tyalnw Pakistan Youth Team (@PakYouthTeam01) August 2, 2020 From dawn leaks to indian advertisement #DawnNews is on some other agenda. This chanel usually float anti state content in their news. pic.twitter.com/5DVmEX2wGr Imtiaz Butt(Limited Edition) (@ImtiazButt79) August 2, 2020 Read: COVID-19: Pakistan Reports 553 New Patients, Tally Stands At 279,669 Read: US Says Man Gunned Down In Pakistani Court Was American Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 00:04:06|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close by Tafara Mugwara HARARE, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- As the novel coronavirus pandemic keep tourists confined to their home countries, wildlife conservation initiatives that depend on tourism revenues have been severely crippled. With many tourists either cancelling or postponing their travel plans, budgets for wildlife conservation in Zimbabwe have been decimated drastically, reducing the capacity of responsible authorities to effectively execute their duties. The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks), which is the authority mandated to manage Zimbabwe's national parks and safari areas, relies heavily on international tourism earnings for its operational activities. Luke Brown, co-founder of Vayeni Safari Escapes and Zambesia Conservation Alliance, said the COVID-19 crisis has brought a sudden stop to wildlife tourism, a development that has drastically disrupted conservation funding. "This pandemic has caused untold challenges to the tourism industry, be it hunting tourism, or photographic tourism, there are estimates that 60-70 percent of revenues that were helping conservation efforts were coming from tourism," he told Xinhua. Brown added that the economic fallout from the pandemic are being felt both directly and indirectly to the safari industry and downstream industries such as hospitality and travel industries. He urged funders of wildlife conservation and tourists planning to travel to Africa after the pandemic to extend their support to organizations involved in wildlife conservation to enable them to continue protecting wildlife and the environment. "When you want to travel after this pandemic you may find some of the areas you wanted to travel to are no longer there, because they couldn't be supported any longer. Maybe tourism will come back by the end of the year, or maybe next year, maybe it's not a significant amount of time to create a total disaster, but the disaster is brewing for sure, for wildlife," Brown said. ZimParks spokesperson Tinashe Farawo recently told state run The Herald newspaper that lack of tourism revenues had badly affected the organization to an extent that the authority would soon fail to pay its employees. "ZimParks relies heavily from tourism earnings for its operational activities. Wildlife tourism plays a critical role in our foreign currency generation through game viewing and licensed hunting. We also use the proceeds to respond to human wildlife conflicts... The situation is dire and if we don't pay rangers and support their operations, this might pose serious problems for the country's wildlife conservation efforts," Farawo said. According to a recent report by the Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (ZELA), the pandemic had a negative impact not only on conservation efforts, but also on rural communities since most Rural District Councils (RDCs) in protected areas depend on wildlife resources for their day to day operations. "In these areas, revenue from safari operators constitutes over 90 percent of the RDCs' income stream. The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic is casting doubt on trophy hunting and subsequently on the share of the revenue from hunting quotas allocated to safari operators," the report said. The report said restrictions on international travel has led to a decline in the safari revenues going to the RDCs. The uncertainty around international travel and hunting is negatively affecting the hunting industry. In the absence of trophy hunting, it is most likely that revenue to RDCs will drastically decline and adversely affect service delivery, according to the report. "Because of COVID-19, it is highly likely that most wildlife reliant communities will no longer be able to finance the activities of ward resilience committees and this will subsequently negatively affect natural resource conservation efforts," reads part of the report. Zimbabwe has some of Africa's largest game reserves, and is home to thriving populations of the big five -- the lion, leopard, rhinoceros, elephant and buffalo. The southern African country is one of the 10 countries in the world with the best wildlife conservation methods, according to a recent research by Oxford University's Wildlife Conservation Research Unit in partnership with Panthera, an organization devoted to the conservation of wild cat species and their ecosystems. In 2019, Zimbabwe welcomed 2.29 million international tourists, making the country one of the top tourist destinations in the region. The country received a total of 1.25 billion U.S. dollars in tourism receipts in the same year, with foreign receipts contributing 868 million dollars. Zimbabwe's Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Mangaliso Ndlovu recently said the country's tourism sector could lose up to 1.1 billion dollars due to travel restrictions. Last month government granted permission to national parks and safari operators to resume limited operations for local tourism in a bid to boost domestic tourism. However, inter-city travel remain banned, meaning that only people living close to the national parks would be able to visit them. Given the economic environment in the country, locals are less likely to visit tourist attractions in sufficient numbers to support the struggling sector. Enditem NASA astronauts Douglas Hurley and Robert Behnken returned to Earth on August 2 in their SpaceX Dragon capsule. The duo landed in their SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft in the Gulf of Mexico. Behnken and Hurley returned after spending 64 days in space. It was the first splashdown by US astronauts in 45 years, with the first commercially built and operated spacecraft to carry people to and from orbit. (Image: Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP) Astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken return to earth on a SpaceX capsule on August 2. (Image: SpaceX via AP) The SpaceX capsule splashes down in the Gulf of Mexico. (Image: Cory Huston/ NASA via AP) NASA Chief Astronaut Pat Forrester, left, and NASA astronaut and Crew Recovery Chief Shane Kimbrough, along with other NASA and SpaceX support teams onboard the SpaceX GO Navigator recovery ship, prepare for the landing of the SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola. (Image: Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP) The SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft is lifted onto the SpaceX GO Navigator recovery ship shortly after it landed with NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley onboard in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola. (Image: Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP) NASA astronaut Douglas Hurley waves to onlookers as he boards a plane at Naval Air Station Pensacola, August 2. (Image: Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP) NASA astronaut Robert Behnken gives a thumbs up to onlookers as he boards a plane at Naval Air Station Pensacola to return him and NASA astronaut Douglas Hurley home to Houston, August 2. (Image: Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP) ATLANTA, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX) continues to rapidly develop and deliver a full suite of innovative Response solutions to help both consumers and businesses weather the COVID-19 economy and plan for the future. The company today announced the availability of a new Response RECOVERY solution suite. Response RECOVERY leverages advanced Equifax analytics and differentiated data assets to help lenders and service providers offer the additional services and support. This solution can help better serve customers in a time of need and sustain the business growth that serves as the lifeblood of the American economy. "Traditional credit scores remain an important component of the lending process," said Mark Luber, Chief Product Officer for Equifax USIS. "In an unprecedented period of recession, we also believe that more data means better decisions for those consumers and small businesses that need access to additional credit. Response RECOVERY provides lenders and service providers with the data and analytics they need to both care for their customers and ensure the long-term health of their portfolios." During the 2008 recession, a prolonged credit crunch impacted financial institutions' ability to lend, consumers' ability to borrow, and impaired the financial system overall. Response RECOVERY was designed to help lenders and service providers to improve insights as they consider how to extend credit to those who are eligible for loans and other services at a time when they need it most. With Equifax Response RECOVERY, lenders and service providers can: Help ensure consumer access to credit. Point-in-time and trended consumer insights provide important information for underwriting during a period of economic instability. This is designed to provide institutions with the greater confidence in their underwriting process needed to help ensure consumer access to credit. With Response RECOVERY, lenders and service providers get the information they need to reach out and support their existing customers already in accommodation situations at other institutions. Analyze trends and model strategies. The new Equifax Ignite Market Intelligence Sandbox allows organizations to securely access and analyze aggregate trends across multiple Equifax datasets to make more timely decisions related to COVID-19 analysis and other periods of hardship. Make decisions with the speed of the cloud. An increasingly digitized financial services industry and a growing number of alternative lending channels require near real-time, actionable data in the cloud as consumers seek loans and other services from their mobile devices. A new cloud-based Smart Alerts gives lenders the ability to quickly make competitive offers to consumers likely in-market for credit cards and other services. Support small businesses. Response RECOVERY was also built with the understanding that small businesses (SMBs) are the backbone of the U.S. economy. According to a 2019 U.S. Small Business Administration report , SMBs create two-thirds of net new jobs and drive U.S. innovation and competitiveness. They also generally respond to changes in the economic conditions more rapidly than larger businesses, providing leading indicators of economic shifts. Response RECOVERY provides reliable predictors of small business financial stress, advanced signals of business cycle inflection points and statistically valid indicators of unemployment change. The Response RECOVERY solution suite is available now. For more information, please visit our Equifax Response solutions center . ABOUT EQUIFAX INC. At Equifax (NYSE: EFX), we believe knowledge drives progress. As a global data, analytics, and technology company, we play an essential role in the global economy by helping financial institutions, companies, employees, and government agencies make critical decisions with greater confidence. Our unique blend of differentiated data, analytics, and cloud technology drives insights to power decisions to move people forward. Headquartered in Atlanta and supported by more than 11,000 employees worldwide, Equifax operates or has investments in 25 countries in North America, Central and South America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific region. For more information, visit Equifax.com FOR MORE INFORMATION Kate Walker for Equifax USIS [email protected] SOURCE Equifax Inc. Related Links http://www.equifax.com STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Staten Island parents of special education students rallied on Monday outside the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) office in Eltingville to call on the city to return students to full-time in-person learning when school buildings reopen in September. In-person instruction and services like physical, occupational, and speech therapies were moved online when school buildings were shuttered in mid-March due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. EU approval is based on two Phase III studies showing Cosentyx provides fast and strong skin clearance, along with significant improvement in quality of life and a favorable safety profile 1 Moderate-to-severe psoriasis affects more than 350,000 children worldwide 2 , with the physical and psychological burden disrupting important formative years 3 Cosentyx is a proven brand, supported by long-term five-year sustained efficacy and safety data across psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and ankylosing spondylitis (AS), over 100 studies and with more than 340,000 patients treated worldwide since launch 4,5,6,7 Approval reinforces Cosentyx leadership in immuno-dermatology and rheumatology, following recent EU approval in non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis (nr-axSpA), with plans to expand to 10 indications over the next 10 years Basel, August 3, 2020 Novartis, a leader in immuno-dermatology and rheumatology, today announced the European Commission (EC) has granted the approval for Cosentyx (secukinumab) for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in children and adolescents aged 6 to <18 years. The recommended dose for children up to 50 kg is 75 mg (without a lower weight restriction), and 150 mg for children 50 kg and over (150 mg as a starting dose, which may be increased to 300 mg, if needed). Psoriasis is a life-long debilitating disease that significantly impacts childrens quality of life, both physically and emotionally. There are only a few approved treatment options available for the pediatric population and so it is important to broaden the adult therapeutic options out to children when possible, said Professor Christine Bodemer, Head of the Department of Dermatology, NeckerEnfants Malades Hospital, Paris. This approval means Cosentyx is now available in Europe for children and adolescents, and will provide an additional option to quickly gain relief from their symptom burden and to significantly improve their quality of life. Story continues The approval is based on two Phase III international studies in children and adolescents aged 6 to <18 years. The studies showed that both low-dose (75150 mg) and high-dose (75300 mg) of Cosentyx were highly efficacious in rapidly improving skin symptoms and quality of life, with a favorable safety profile up to 52 weeks1. The impact of psoriasis on children is much deeper than skin and can potentially lead to life course impairment, said Todd Fox, Global Head of Medical Affairs Immunology, Hepatology and Dermatology at Novartis. This is the second European approval this year for Cosentyx, which also has approvals across four adult indications, reinforcing our commitment to reimagine medicine for both pediatric and adult patients. Children with psoriasis have a poorer quality of life than their peers due to symptoms such as itching and fatigue, in addition to feelings of stigmatization. These in turn may affect their emotional wellbeing and performance at school8. Children with psoriasis are susceptible to bullying, name-calling and shaming at school, leading to higher rates of depression and anxiety than their peers, said Jan Koren, President of the European patient group EUROPSO. We welcome this approval, as there is a need for additional treatment options that can help give children the freedom to enjoy full and active lives by improving psoriasis symptoms and thus overall quality of life. Novartis is working closely with all stakeholders to ensure that eligible European pediatric patients can start benefitting from Cosentyx as quickly as possible. Novartis will also be seeking approval for Cosentyx for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in children and adolescents aged 6 to <18 years in a number of other countries including Australia, Canada, Japan and the US. About psoriasis Psoriasis is a life-long debilitating systemic inflammatory disease that significantly impacts patients quality of life, both physically and emotionally9. One-third of psoriasis cases begin in childhood and of these the onset is most common during adolescence10. Moderate-to-severe psoriasis affects more than 350,000 children worldwide and may impact children deeper than the skin, with the physical and psychological burden of psoriasis disrupting important formative years2. The incidence of pediatric psoriasis has more than doubled between 1970 and 2000 in the US and an upward trend in incidence of psoriasis has been observed in several countries9,10. There are only a few approved treatment options available and the unmet medical need remains high3. About the study data The two Phase III international studies in children and adolescents aged 6 to <18 years consisted of one openlabel, two-arm, parallelgroup, multicentre study in children with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis and one randomized, double-blind, placebo and etanercept-controlled study in children with severe plaque psoriasis. Dosing regimens of Cosentyx were stratified by weight. In children with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, the low dose of Cosentyx provided fast and strong skin clearance, with 93% achieving Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) 75 as early as Week 12, 69% achieving PASI 90 at Week 12 and 88% at Week 24, 59.5% achieving completely clear skin (PASI 100) by Week 12 and 67% by Week 24. In patients with severe psoriasis, the low dose of Cosentyx ensured sustained skin clearance through Week 52, with PASI 90 achieved in 75% of patients1. Differences in PASI 75 in patients with severe psoriasis treated with Cosentyx were seen as early as Week 4 and in patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis as early as Week 2. Half of children with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis treated with the low dose of Cosentyx reported complete relief from symptom burden of psoriasis on their quality of life as early as Week 12, as measured by Children's Dermatology Life Quality Index (CDLQI) 0/1 responses. In children with severe plaque psoriasis treated with the low dose of Cosentyx, 44.7% reported complete relief by Week 12, with 60.6% by Week 52. Cosentyx safety profile of both the low dose and high dose is comparable and consistent with the established adult psoriasis indication. No new safety signals were observed in children. About Cosentyx (secukinumab) Cosentyx is the first and only fully-human biologic that directly inhibits interleukin-17A (IL-17A), an important cytokine involved in the systemic inflammation and development of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, PsA, AS and nr-axSpA11,12,13. Cosentyx is backed by more than 12 years of clinical experience and long-term five-year data across three indications of psoriasis, PsA and AS, as well as data from real world evidence14-19. These data strengthen the unique position of Cosentyx as a rapid and long-lasting comprehensive treatment across axial spondyloarthritis, PsA and psoriatic disease, with more than 340,000 patients treated worldwide with Cosentyx since launch4,19. Disclaimer This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can generally be identified by words such as potential, can, will, plan, may, could, would, expect, anticipate, seek, look forward, believe, committed, investigational, pipeline, launch, or similar terms, or by express or implied discussions regarding potential marketing approvals, new indications or labeling for the investigational or approved products described in this press release, or regarding potential future revenues from such products. You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on our current beliefs and expectations regarding future events, and are subject to significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. There can be no guarantee that the investigational or approved products described in this press release will be submitted or approved for sale or for any additional indications or labeling in any market, or at any particular time. Nor can there be any guarantee that such products will be commercially successful in the future. In particular, our expectations regarding such products could be affected by, among other things, the uncertainties inherent in research and development, including clinical trial results and additional analysis of existing clinical data; regulatory actions or delays or government regulation generally; global trends toward health care cost containment, including government, payor and general public pricing and reimbursement pressures and requirements for increased pricing transparency; our ability to obtain or maintain proprietary intellectual property protection; the particular prescribing preferences of physicians and patients; general political, economic and business conditions, including the effects of and efforts to mitigate pandemic diseases such as COVID-19; safety, quality, data integrity or manufacturing issues; potential or actual data security and data privacy breaches, or disruptions of our information technology systems, and other risks and factors referred to in Novartis AGs current Form 20-F on file with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Novartis is providing the information in this press release as of this date and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. About Novartis Novartis is reimagining medicine to improve and extend peoples lives. As a leading global medicines company, we use innovative science and digital technologies to create transformative treatments in areas of great medical need. In our quest to find new medicines, we consistently rank among the worlds top companies investing in research and development. Novartis products reach nearly 800 million people globally and we are finding innovative ways to expand access to our latest treatments. About 109,000 people of more than 140 nationalities work at Novartis around the world. Find out more at https://www.novartis.com. Novartis is on Twitter. Sign up to follow @Novartis at https://twitter.com/novartisnews For Novartis multimedia content, please visit https://www.novartis.com/news/media-library For questions about the site or required registration, please contact media.relations@novartis.com References 1. Novartis data on file. 2. Parisi R, Symmons DP, Griffiths CE, et al. Global epidemiology of psoriasis: a systematic review of incidence and prevalence. J Invest Dermatol. 2013;133(2):37785. 3. Menter A, Cordoro KM, Davis DMR, et al. Joint American Academy of DermatologyNational Psoriasis Foundation guidelines of care for the management and treatment of psoriasis in pediatric patients. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2020; 82:161-201. 4. Data on file. COSENTYX Access. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp; July 2020. 5. Baraliakos X, Braun J, Deodhar AA,et al. Long-term evaluation of secukinumab in ankylosing spondylitis: 5-year efficacy and safety results from a Phase 3 trial. Presented as a late-breaking abstract at the American College of Rheumatology Annual Meeting; October 1924, 2018; Chicago, IL. 6. Bissonnette R, Luger T, Thaci D, et al. Secukinumab demonstrates high sustained efficacy and a favorable safety profile through 5 years of treatment in moderate to severe psoriasis. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2018;32:1507-14. 7. Mease PJ, Kavanaugh A, Reimold A, et al. Secukinumab Provides Sustained Improvements in the Signs and Symptoms of Psoriatic Arthritis: Final 5-year Results from the Phase 3 FUTURE 1 Study. ACR Open Rheumatol. 2020;2(1):18-25. 8. Fortina AB, Bardazzi F, Berti S, et al. Treatment of severe psoriasis in children: recommendations of an Italian expert group. Eur J Pediatr. 2017;176(10):1339-54. 9. World Health Organization. Global report on psoriasis [online] 2016. Available from: https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/204417 [Last accessed: July 2020]. 10. Tollefson MM, Crowson CS, McEvoy MT, et al. Incidence of psoriasis in children: a population-based study. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2010;62(6):979-87. 11. Girolomoni G, Mrowietz U, Paul C, et al. Psoriasis: rationale for targeting interleukin-17. Br J Dermatol. 2012; 167:717-24. 12. Sieper J, Poddubnyy D, Miossec P. The IL-23IL-17 pathway as a therapeutic target in axial spondyloarthritis. Nat Rev Rheumatol. 2019; 15:747-57. 13. Jansen DT, Hameetman M, van Bergen J, et al. IL-17-producing CD4+ T cells are increased in early, active axial spondyloarthritis including patients without imaging abnormalities. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2015;54(4):728-35. 14. Data on file. CAIN457F2310 (MEASURE 2): 5 Year Report. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp; September 15, 2015. 15. Data on file. Data Analysis Report: Study CAIN457A2302E1. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp; November 30, 2015. 16. Marzo-Ortega H, Sieper J, Kivitz A. 5-year efficacy and safety of secukinumab in patients with ankylosing spondylitis: end-of-study results from the phase 3 MEASURE 2 trial. Lancet Rheumatol. 2020;2:e339-46. 17. Data on file. CAIN457F2312 Data Analysis Report. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp; November 2008. 18. Data on file. CAIN457F2310 (MEASURE 1 and 2): Pooled Safety Data. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp; July 23, 2018. 19. Data on file. AIN457A2102 Clinical Study Report. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp; December 2008. # # # Novartis Media Relations E-mail: media.relations@novartis.com Antonio Ligi Novartis Global External Communications +41 61 324 1374 (direct) antonio.ligi@novartis.com Eric Althoff Novartis US External Communications +1 646 438 4335 eric.althoff@novartis.com Louise Clark Novartis Pharma Communications +41 61 324 2970 (direct) louise.clark@novartis.com Novartis Investor Relations Central investor relations line: +41 61 324 7944 E-mail: investor.relations@novartis.com Central North America Samir Shah +41 61 324 7944 Sloan Simpson +1 862 778 5052 Thomas Hungerbuehler +41 61 324 8425 Isabella Zinck +41 61 324 7188 The web browser wars between Google and Microsoft have intensified significantly, off late. This is particularly true since Microsoft started pushing the new Edge browser to all Windows 10 and Windows 7 PCs as part of a Windows Update package, over the summer. In fact, the Microsoft Edge web browser, ever since it adopted Chromium as its foundation earlier this year, has been steadily gaining popularity. We had reported in early May that Edge was now nipping at the heels of Mozilla Firefox in the global market share, at least as far as the desktop and PC users are concerned. It has finally gone past Firefox, as far as the market share is concerned. The latest numbers by Netmarketshare indicates that Microsoft Edge has settled into second place, albeit a distant second to the runaway leader Google Chrome. That means Mozilla Firefox drops down to third. Google Chrome rocks a global market share of 71.11% at the end of July, while Microsoft Edge now has 8.09% share of the browser ecosystem around the world. Mozillas Firefox clocks in with 7.36% share. Firefox had 7.58% share at the end of June. Microsoft revamped the Edge web browser to use Chromium earlier this year from the EdgeHTML platform it used before, and is now available for Windows 10, Windows 7, macOS, Android, iOS and iPadOS platforms. While it has its advantages over Google Chrome, at least in terms of being less resource hungry, Edge most certainly got a big push over the summer as Microsoft is now pushing the Edge web browser via the automatic Windows Update route to PCs running Windows 10. Microsoft has been consistently adding new features to Edge and also improving its performance regularly to make it work better on older PCs as well. This is a follow-through of the war of words that Mozilla and Microsoft have already engaged in, over web standards. In December 2018, when Microsoft announced that it would adopt Chromium for its next Edge browser evolution, Mozilla had accused Microsoft of giving up on the EdgeHTML standard and strengthening Googles position. Google is a fierce competitor with highly talented employees and a monopolistic hold on unique assets. Googles dominance across search, advertising, smartphones, and data capture creates a vastly tilted playing field that works against the rest of us, said Mozilla's Chris Beard at the time. He eventually stepped down as CEO of Mozilla Corporation in September 2019. Subsequently, Microsoft fired back in a post which said, It's time for Mozilla to get down from their philosophical ivory tower. The web is dominated by Chromium, if they really cared about the web they would be contributing instead of building a parallel universe that's used by less than 5 percent. There may have been some truth in what Mozilla had indicated at, back in 2018. Just a look at the data for the last three months shows Google Chromes share continues to rise as more people are adopting it as the standard browser on their PCs, smartphones and tablets. Chrome had 69.81% share in May this year, which increased to 70.19% in June and is now 71.11% as per the latest numbers at the end of July. Microsoft Edges growth, in the same period indicates shares of 7.86%, 8.07% and 8.09%--most certainly not as steep a rise as one would have expected now that the new Microsoft Edge browser is being updated on most Windows 10 PCs, if not all already. Mumbai, Aug 3 : Bandhan Financial Holdings Limited has lowered its stake in Bandhan Bank by 20.95 per cent through a block deal to meet the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) licensing norms for new private sector banks. Post the deal, the holding company's stake in the bank is at 40 per cent, the bank said in a regulatory filing. As per the licensing guidelines, the non-operative financial holding company (NOFHC) was required to bring its excess shareholding to 40 per cent of the paid-up voting equity capital of the bank. "In order to be fully compliant with the Licensing Guidelines, the NOFHC has today i.e. August 03, 2020 informed the bank that it has diluted its excess shareholding of 20.95 per cent i.e. 33,73,67,189 equity shares of Rs 10 each fully paid-up in the bank through secondary market sale," it said. Bandhan Bank said that it had been exploring various options to bring the shareholding to the prescribed level. Pursuant to amalgamation of GRUH Finance Limited into and with the bank effective from October last year and consequent to issuance of fresh equity shares to the shareholders of GRUH, the shareholding of the holding company diluted from 82.26 per cent to 60.96 per cent of its paid-up voting equity share capital, the filing said. Shares price of the bank on Monday plunged 10.60 per cent on the BSE to close at Rs 308.65 per share. LOS ANGELESMore than two years after a lower court judge dismissed Stormy Daniels defamation lawsuit against Donald Trump, the United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals slapped down Daniels appeal of the Judge James Oteros decision, in a hearing at the Ninth Circuits Pasadena, Calif., courtroom on Friday, Politico reported. The lawsuit stemmed from an April 2018 incident in which Daniels and her then-lawyer Michael Avenatti appeared on the ABC Network program The View, where they revealed what they said was a forensic sketch of a man who had accosted and threatened Daniels, invoking Trumps name, in a Las Vegas parking lot, seven years earlier. Following the broadcast, Trump lashed out on his Twitter account, claiming that man depicted in the sketch was non-existent, and declaring, A total con job, playing the Fake News Media for Fools (but they know it)! Avenatti quickly filed the defamation suit on Daniels behalf. But later that year, Otero ruled that Trumps tweets fell under the category of hyperbole and were not intended to be taken literally. He threw out the lawsuit and ordered Daniels to pay approximately $300,000 in Trumps legal fees. Nearly two years later, the Ninth Circuit in its opinion agreed that Trumps tweet could not reasonably be read as asserting that (Daniels) was committing a crime, and that Trumps phrasing was simply a colorful expression of rhetorical hyperbole. The court also ruled that because Daniels principal place of residence is in Texas, that Texas law would apply. And under that states defamation statutes, statements of opinion cannot form the basis of a defamation claim. Trumps tweet was a response to another tweet which pointed out an alleged similarity in appearance between the man depicted in the sketch and Daniels ex-husband. Trumps tweet was merely expressing an opinion about that supposed physical resemblance, the court ruled, and therefore could not be defamatory. Daniels had argued in her original suit that by using the term con job, Trump was accusing her of engaging in criminal fraud. But the Ninth Circuit judges shrugged off that claim as well. It would be clear to a reasonable reader that the tweet was not accusing (Daniels) of actually committing criminal activity, the judges wrote. After Daniels won a $400,000 settlement from the city of Columbus, Ohio, stemming from her wrongful arrest there in 2018, Trumps lawyers petitioned to receive their legal fees in the defamation suit from that settlement cash. But in June of this year, a federal judge in Ohio stopped that claim, ruling that Trump and his attorneys had no right to seize Daniels settlement money. Photo By NBC4 Columbus YouTube Screen Shot Buildings at the Artux City Vocational Skills Education Training Service Center, believed to be a reeducation camp where mostly Muslim ethnic minorities are detained, north of Kashgar in China's northwestern Xinjiang region, on June 2, 2019. (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images) Seized Human Hair Products From Xinjiang Provide Evidence of Persecution In a move that may help give insight into human rights abuses in China, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) seized 13 tons of human hair products coming from the Western province of Xinjiang in the first week of July. On July 20, the Commerce Department sanctioned a Chinese hair accessory company. Hair products from a Chinese shipment seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection on July 1, 2020. (Courtesy of CBP) Survivors, investigators, and Uyghur activist groups have said the seized hair comes from women held inside various concentration and labor camps in Xinjiang, and for the first time, U.S. authorities have a strong piece of evidence in hand for further investigation into the persecution of the Muslim minority group. Investigative journalist Ethan Gutmann, who visited various camp survivors in Turkey and Kazakhstan, recently told The Epoch Times in an email: My back-of-the-envelope calculation is that this shipment represents the hair of approximately 90,000 women, incarcerated in re-education camps. Although this sort of long, exotic hairdeep chestnut browns, red highlightsare usually identified in Chinese catalogs with the euphemism Mongolian, the hair is shaved from the heads of Uyghur, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, and Hui women. The U.S. government has taken a series of actions to respond to the repression in Xinjiang. Most recently, on July 20, the Commerce Department added 11 Chinese companies implicated in abuses in Xinjiang, including the Hetian Haolin Hair Accessories Co. Ltd., to its entity list. This list is a tool to restrict the export, reexport, and transfer of products subjected to export regulations by those persons or companies involved in activities that threaten the national security or the foreign policy interests of the United States. On July 31, the U.S. Department of the Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned one Chinese government entity and two current or former government officials on July 31 for human rights abuses, including mass arbitrary detention and severe physical abuse. Inside Concentration Camps Gulbakhar Jalilova, a citizen of Kazakhstan and a survivor of the Xinjiang concentration camps, was a trader and often visited Urumchi, the capital of the Xinjiang Autonomous Region, to purchase clothes. She was arrested in 2017 from her hotel for what the Chinese authorities wrote in her trial document as abetting terrorist activities. Gulbakhar Jalilova before her time in the concentration camp in Xinjiang. (Courtesy of Gulbakhar Jalilova) The mother of four was lodged inside a six-meter-square space for 465 days with many other women who were daily given unknown drugs. One of the first things the camp authorities did when these women arrived in the camp was cut their hair, which was done regularly for those staying in the camp for longer periods. Jalilova spoke recently with The Epoch Times. She had met investigative journalist Gutmann in Istanbul in Turkey in October 2019. Jalilova reenacted for Gutmann how inmates would be taken to a hole in the walltheir hands cuffed in the frontwhile an unseen person would cut their hair from the other side of the wall. Gutmann described what the survivors he met told him happened once they arrived in the camp. It was practically universal. Entering the camp, the women were forced to line up in front of a hole in the wall. When it was your turn, you were forced to stick your head through the hole while an unseen hand sheared your head with a clipperas one woman said, like an animal, Gutmann said. Long hair is considered a matter of honor for women in traditional Uyghur culture. Another concentration camp survivor, Mihrigul Tursun, 30, who testified before the U.S. Congress in November 2018, was detained three times, once in a prison and twice in a concentration camp, for a total of 11 months over two years, from 2015 to 2017. She told The Epoch Times that three days after she arrived in prison the first time, the hair of all 50 inmates in her cell was cut. Almost all of them had long, braided hair. Gulbakhar Jalilova demonstrating the hole in the door where her head was shaved, in Istanbul in October, 2019. (Ethan Gutmann) Everyone was depressed, emotionally shocked. They felt helpless and hopeless. They felt dishonored. Even if it didnt hurt them physically, it hurt them mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, said Tursun, adding that she had waist-long hair when she entered the prison. Tursun has happy memories of her mother braiding her long hair until she was 15. She fondly remembers the many long-hair competitions in her school and said there are 12 to 15 kinds of braids and many hair accessories Uyghur woman use. Elfidar Hanim, secretary of the Uyghur American Association, told The Epoch Times that this importance given to growing long hair has been used by Chinese authorities, who are using hair from inmates in labor and concentration camps to make money. The 13-ton shipment manufactured by the Lop County Meixin Hair Product Co. Ltd. that CBP seized on July 1, is valued at $800,000. Hanim said this business has been going on for years. China has been doing this business for a while, but these hair products were never caught. This time it happened because theres more awareness about the matter and also because Radio Free Asia recently reported about it, she said. Radio Free Asia (RFA) published the report Hair Product Industry Linked to Uyghur Forced Labor Booming in Xinjiangs Lop County on May 28, written by reporter Gulchehra Hoja. RFA confirmed to The Epoch Times by email that their early reporting played a key role in helping CBP seize the shipment on July 1. Tip of the Iceberg Gutmann and Hanim said the hair products are evidence of only one aspect of a broad array of serious human rights violations. Yet this is simply the tip of the iceberg. Go deeper and you will find evidence of forced labor, sexual slavery, and forced sterilization. The greatest amount of livesI estimate over 10,000 women per year, at a minimumare lost to live organ harvesting. When Western women use Chinese beauty products containing collagen, they are inadvertently rubbing the remnants of the latter group into their faces, Gutmann wrote. Hanim said the Uyghurs inside these concentration camps are subjected to forced organ harvesting, forced sterilization, and used as guinea pigs for medical testing. Not only that, now they are using Uyghurs piece by piece for making money out of it, marketing whatever they could get, said Hanim, who compared these stories to those coming from the Nazi concentration camps. The former inmates Tursun and Jalilova spoke about inmates being subjected to blood tests and pregnancy tests. Pregnant women were forced to abort. They also recounted being given unknown medicines every day. They said these drugs stopped menstruation in young women. Jalilova said the drugs were given to them to keep them quiet. They didnt feel pain or hunger. A recent picture of Gulbakhar Jalilova in Istanbul, Turkey. (Courtesy of Gulbakhar Jalilova) In a report released on July 28, the Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP) said the Chinese regime has made a relentless effort to cover up its crimes against the minority Muslim population in Xinjiang. After being confronted at the August 2018 review by the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the regime attempted to justify the existence of the concentration camps as an effort to educate extremists and as vocational education centers. Later, the government claimed that detainees had graduated, as it launched a vast scheme of factory forced labor and meted out long prison sentences without trial, the UHRP stated in a release. DNA Testing Gutmann and Hanim said the seizure of human hair from Xinjiang by CBP gives the United States an opportunity to investigate the issue further as now they have a concrete piece of evidence. U.S. Customs is apparently going to test the DNA, presumably to establish that the hair is Uyghur or Kazakh in origin, rather than Han Chinese. But that does not go far enough. Beijing has unwittingly given us physical evidence of a crime, Gutmann said. Hanim said its a difficult piece of evidence to establish because its easier to do DNA testing if hair roots are intact, and these hair products dont have them. She said, however, the CBP shouldnt return this shipment to the Chinese if the evidence isnt established. Individuals from Atajurt, a Kazak Human Rights Organization, with investigative journalist Ethan Gutmann in Almaty, Kazakhstan, January 2020. (Josephine De Haan-Montes) Also, we would like them to destroy the hair or keep it instead of giving it back to China because they are going to resell to other countries; they are going to resell to poor countries. And also China will find a way to remarket, in the future. They might give a different name and may transfer for different regions or even label it as Indian hair, Hanim said. She said the United States should advocate to other Western countries to not buy products coming from forced labor or from the concentration camps in Xinjiang. Harry Styles two solo albums have really showcased his writing style. Even though he wrote for One Directions albums, his solo music is very unique to those songs; instead of pop or radio-focused music, his albums have tracks reminiscent of the 70s or classic rock. His fans love that, of course, and his recent travels might suggest that hes working on even more music to satisfy anyones Harry Styles fix. Harry Styles on the red carpet on arrival for the BRIT Awards 2020 in London on February 18, 2020 | Tolga AKMEN / AFP via Getty Images) RELATED: Theres a Fan Theory That Harry Styles Co-Wrote a Song on Taylor Swifts Folklore and Its Actually Pretty Convincing Some fans noticed a pattern to Harry Styles writing process Recently, Styles was seen jogging around Rome, according to Hollywood Life. In photos, hes seen with AirPods and a jogging route on his iPhone, seemingly just enjoying life in Italy. And last month, on July 20, Hollywood Life also reported Styles was seen at Casa Maria Luigia, which is near the providence of Modena, Italy. does your heart ever just go harry styles in italy hannah (@imfallingcth) August 1, 2020 HARRY STYLES DRIVING A TRACTOR IN ITALY pic.twitter.com/JgtPS88MCN Silvia (@ystylesl) July 30, 2020 RELATED: Harry Styles Sign of the Times Isnt From His Perspective; Its Much More Heartbreaking Than That Even though he was also seen jogging in London in June, it seems like hes taken up shop in Italy for at least a couple of weeks. And some fans have theories as to why that is. On Aug. 1, the Tik Tok user @.ch4n3l posted a video sharing her theory on Styles time in Italy. She noted that he went to Jamaica to record and write Harry Styles, his first album. Then, he took an extended trip to Japan before Fine Line came out. I smell a new album, the Tik Tok user wrote. Harry Styles prefers to write away from home, it seems Its a pretty substantial theory, considering the pattern and the fact that Styles has stated he likes to go away to write to clear his head. While on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Dec. 18, 2019, he talked about why he went to Jamaica and Japan, although he did emphasize that he didnt really record music while in Japan. He went there mostly to travel on his own, which isnt something he really was able to do before. But in regards to why he goes away to write, its mostly to stop distractions. I think for me its a lot about not being in like so in the mix, and kind of being around a lot of distractions, he said on the show. So, even, honestly, being away from all your friends, where somebody will say, Do you wanna come around for dinner? Or something like that, which kind of takes you out of the studio. I think its more, for me, its just about just focusing on that one thing. When talking to Cameron Crowe in September of 2017, according to Billboard, Styles described the day-in, day-out writing process Harry Styles took while he was in Jamaica. It made it so we were in Jamaica, were in the studio every day, we just didnt think about anything else. It was about these five guys in a room, were in Jamaica, lets make some music that we want to sit in Jamaica and listen to, and that was it. Obviously, with the success of both albums, that process and strategy seemed to work for Styles. This only adds to the theory that hes in Italy to make more music. But, of course, thats not something hes commented on yet. Stevie Nicks, one of his idols, has also suggested writing in Italy in the past Styles music and overall vibe have been compared to Fleetwood Macs in the past, and so its no wonder that the two have a special bond, as E! News put it. Theyve performed together, and Nicks even wrote that Fine Line has inspired her during quarantine, comparing it Rumors, even. And interestingly, Nicks has also stated she found Italy to be a great place to write and find inspiration. You go to Italy, which I did on the Fleetwood Mac tour, she told Thirteen.org in 2011 about her songwriting process. I was there for four weeks, and I wrote the song Italian Summer, and it sounds like I wrote it about a big love affair, but I didnt. I wrote it about Italy, walking around on the cobblestone streets and feeling free and feeling safe. So you can be inspired by anything. She also said that inspiration can be found anywhere. But maybe Styles took Italy to heart as his next songwriting hot spot. RELATED: Some Harry Styles Fans Want the Singer to Play Heath Ledgers Character in a Remake of This Beloved Rom-Com Classic Crude oil futures declined to Rs 2,987 per barrel on August 3 as participants increased their short position as seen by the open interest. Crude oil prices have been trading in a narrow range of $39-43 a barrel in the last few sessions. Navneet Damani, VP Commodities Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd said, Crude oil prices struggled to break above levels of $40 as OPEC+ plans are due to pull back from production cuts starting August and return about 1.5 mbpd in markets after cutting global supply by 10 percent. According to Damani, headwinds remain as higher oil prices will encourage energy firms to slow rig count reductions and possibly start adding some units later this year and encourage US shale producers to slowly ramp up output. Gasoline refining margins are at the lowest seasonal level in years, showing refiner profitability facing pressure as pandemic keeps Americans at home and off the road. Another source of concern is an intensifying tension between the US and China as US President Donald Trump threatens to ban TikTok, a popular video app run by China's ByteDance, he said. Tapan Patel- Senior Analyst (Commodities), HDFC Securities, said crude oil prices traded under pressure on demand growth concerns amid slower economic growth and higher supplies. The oil production from OPEC is expected to rise by 1 million barrels per day for the month of August as Saudi Arabia and other Gulf members ended their voluntary supply curbs. The total US oil rig count rose resumed decline with active oil rigs fell by 1 to 180 last week as per data published by Baker Hughes. The CFTC data showed that NYMEX WTI net long positions fell by 15817 lots to 11 week low. In the futures market, crude oil for August delivery touched an intraday high of Rs 3,011 and an intraday low of Rs 2,976 per barrel on MCX. So far in the current series, black gold has touched a low of Rs 2,520 and a high of Rs 3,182. Crude oil delivery for August slipped Rs 31, or 1.03 percent, to Rs 2,992 per barrel at 15:00 hours IST with a business turnover of 4,386 lots. Crude oil delivery for September edged lower by Rs 44, or 1.44 percent, to Rs 3,021 per barrel with a business volume of 73 lots. The value of August and September's contracts traded so far is Rs 677.18 crore and Rs 3.18 crore, respectively. Patel expects oil prices to trade sideways to down for the day with support at $39 and resistance at $41. MCX Crude oil August futures have support at Rs 2,930 with resistance at Rs 3,020. West Texas Intermediate crude slipped 1.27 percent at $39.76 per barrel, while Brent crude, the London-based international benchmark was down 0.99 percent to $43.09 per barrel. Global warming has been a cause of concern since long and several warnings have been sounded by the scientists against the phenomenon. Satellite analysis has now revealed a grim effect of the same. Two ice caps in the Arctic have completely disappeared. (Representative Image: Reuters) NASAs ASTER satellite has confirmed the disappearance of two ice caps located on the Hazen Plateau of Canadas Ellsmere Island. As per scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), humans are to blame for this. In fact Mark Serreze, director of NSIDC, had predicted this in 2017. Serreze had visited the St. Patrick Bay ice caps in 1982 as a young graduate student along with his advisor, Ray Bradley, of the University of Massachusetts. He then came out with his research paper on the ice caps in 2017, predicting that the ice caps would melt out completely within the next five years. NSIDC director Mark Serreze conducting research on the St. Patrick Bay ice caps as a graduate student in 1982. (Image: NSIDC) Unfortunately for us, the scientists were right. When I first visited those ice caps, they seemed like such a permanent fixture of the landscape, said Serreze. To watch them die in less than 40 years just blows me away. Global warming ice cap meltdown As per a release by NSIDC, scientists had compared images of the ice caps from different decades to come to the prediction made in the 2017 paper titled The Cryosphere. The area of the St. Patrick Bay ice caps in 1959, 2001, 2014, and 2015 as per data from aerial photography, GPS surveys and NASAs ASTER. (Image: The Cryosphere paper) They compared July 2015 data from ASTER satellite to vertical aerial photographs taken in August of 1959. It was then they found that between 1959 and 2015 the ice caps had been reduced to only five percent of their former area. The research further pointed out that the ice caps had shrunk noticeably between 2014 and 2015 due to the especially warm summer in 2015. Reaching to the inevitable conclusion, the ice caps are now found to be absent from ASTER images taken on July 14, 2020. Climate change warning call (Representative Image: Reuters) The St. Patrick Bay ice caps were located on the Hazen Plateau, forming half of a group of small ice caps at the location. They are believed to have been formed and grown to their maximum extents during the Little Ice Age several centuries ago. The other half of the plateau comprises of the Murray and Simmons ice caps. Since these ice caps are located at a higher elevation, they are safe from the disastrous effects of global warming yet. Scientists, however, predict that they will meet the imminent demise as well. Once they are gone, "all thats left are some photographs and a lot of memories," warns Serreze. President Donald J. Trump stops to talk to reporters as he walks to board Marine One and depart from the South Lawn at the White House in Washington on July 31, 2020. President Donald Trump said Monday that it could be easier if Microsoft were to buy Chinese-owned TikTok in its entirety, rather than a small part of the social video app, because the name would be split across two companies, and suggested the company should pay the U.S. Treasury as part of the deal. "I think buying 30% is complicated, and I suggested that he can go ahead, he can try," Trump told reporters in the Cabinet Room at the White House on Monday. He was referring to his conversation over the weekend with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. The comments come a day after Microsoft confirmed in a statement that it has looked at buying TikTok in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand. A larger deal could go beyond resolving the U.S. government's concern over Chinese control of the app, where hundreds of millions of people share short videos that often feature music. A transaction of the type the president envisions could also prove more expensive than the one Microsoft described on Sunday. Trump said Monday that part of the amount paid to buy TikTok would have to come to the U.S. Treasury Department because it would be making the deal possible. "It's a little bit like the landlord/tenant; without a lease the tenant has nothing, so they pay what's called 'key money,' or they pay something," Trump said. "But the United States should be reimbursed or should be paid a substantial amount of money, because without the United States they don't have anything, at least having to do with the 30%." Microsoft's largest acquisition to date is the 2016 acquisition of business social network LinkedIn, at $27 billion. Investors of the privately owned ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, valued TikTok at $50 billion, Reuters reported last week. Considered the "guardian of the genome," TP53 is the most commonly mutated gene in cancer. TP53's normal function is to detect DNA damage and prevent cells from passing this damage on to daughter cells. When TP53 is mutated, the protein made from this gene, called p53, can no longer perform this protective function, and the result can be cancer. Across many cancer types, mutations in TP53are associated with worse outcomes, like disease recurrence and shorter survival. As with all our genes, TP53 exists in duplicate in our cells. One copy we get from our mothers, the other we get from our fathers. Up until now, it has not been clear whether a mutation was needed in one or both copies of TP53 to affect cancer outcomes. A new study led by researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering definitively answers this question for a blood cancer called myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), a precursor to acute myeloid leukemia. "Our study is the first to assess the impact of having one versus two dysfunctional copies of TP53 on cancer outcomes," says molecular geneticist Elli Papaemmanuil, a member of MSK's Epidemiology and Biostatistics Department and the lead scientist on the study, published August 3 in the journal Nature Medicine. "From our results, it's clear that you need to lose function of both copies to see evidence of genome instability and a high-risk clinical phenotype in MDS." The consequences for cancer diagnosis and treatment are immediate and profound, she says. A Large, Definitive Study The study analyzed genetic and clinical data from 4,444 patients with MDS who were being treated at hospitals all over the world. Researchers from 25 centers in 12 countries were involved in the study, which was conducted under the aegis of the International Working Group for the Prognosis of MDS whose goal is to develop new international guidelines for the treatment of this disease. The findings were independently validated using data from the Japanese MDS working group led by Seishi Ogawa's team in Kyoto University. "Currently, the existing MDS guidelines do not consider genomic data such as TP53 and other acquired mutations when assessing a person's prognosis or determining appropriate treatment for this disease," says Peter Greenberg, Director of Stanford University's MDS Center, Chair of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Practice Guidelines Panel for MDS, and a co-author on the study. "That needs to change." Using new computational methods, the investigators found that about one-third of MDS patients had only one mutated copy of TP53. These patients had similar outcomes as patients who did not have a TP53 mutation -- a good response to treatment, low rates of disease progression, and better survival rates. On the other hand, the two-thirds of patients who had two mutated copies of TP53 had much worse outcomes, including treatment-resistant disease, rapid disease progression, and low overall survival. In fact, the researchers found that TP53 mutation status -- zero, one, or two mutated copies of the gene -- was the most important variable when predicting outcomes. "Our findings are of immediate clinical relevance to MDS patients," Dr. Papaemmanuil says. "Going forward, all MDS patients should have their TP53 status assessed at diagnosis." As for why it takes two "hits" to TP53 to see an effect on cancer outcomes, the study's first author Elsa Bernard, a postdoctoral scientist in the Papaemmanuil lab, speculates that one normal copy is enough to provide adequate protection against DNA damage. This would explain why having only one mutated copy was not associated with genome instability or any worse survival rates than having two normal copies. Given the frequency of TP53 mutations in cancer, these results make a case for examining the impact of one versus two mutations on other cancers as well. They also reveal the need for clinical trials designed specifically with these molecular differences in mind. "With the increasing adoption of molecular profiling at the time of cancer diagnosis, we need large, evidence-based studies to inform how to translate these molecular findings into optimal treatment strategies," Dr. Papaemmanuil says. ### Contributing centers: Karolinska Institute (Sweden), Dusseldorf MDS Registry (Germany), University of Pavia (Italy), La Fe University Hospital (Spain), Radboudumc Medical Center Nijmegen (The Netherlands), Amsterdam UMC (The Netherlands), Cochin Hospital (France), Chang Gung Memorial Hospital (Taiwan), Gruppo Romano Laziale MDS (Italy), University of Bologna (Italy), Medical University of Vienna (Austria), Hannover Medical School (Germany), University Hospital Dresden (Germany), Federal University of Ceara (Brazil), Institut Josep Carreras (Spain), Aou Careggi Hospital (Italy), Democritus University of Thrace (Greece), University of Oxford (United Kingdom), Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein (Brazil), Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (United States), Vanderbilt University (United States), Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion (Czech Republic), University Medicine Gottingen (Germany), Rete Ematologica Lombarda (Italy), Saint-Louis Hospital (France), Saint James's University Hospital (United Kingdom), Japanese Data Center for Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation (Japan), Nagasaki University (Japan), Tsukuba University (Japan), Gifu Municipal Hospital (Japan), Kobe City Medical Center General Hospital (Japan), Gifu University (Japan), Kyoto University (Japan), Chugoku Central Hospital (Japan), Chulalongkorn University (Thailand), NTT Medical Center Tokyo (Japan), Osaka Red Cross Hospital (Japan), Tokyo Medical University (Japan), Kurashiki Central Hospital (Japan), Sasebo City General Hospital (Japan). This study was supported in part by the Celgene Corporation, the MDS Foundation, Inc., Bloodwise, Austrian Science Fund, Italian MIUR-PRIN grants, Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro, 51000 project, the Francois Wallace Monahan Fellowship, the Josie Robertson Foundation, the European Hematology Association, American Society of Hematology, Gabrielle's Angels Foundation, V Foundation, Damon Runyon-Rachleff, the Geoffrey Beene Foundation, the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, and the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Dr. Papaemmanuil is a Josie Robertson-funded investigator at MSK. Drs. Papaemmanuil and Bernard have received research funding from Celgene. About Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK): As the world's oldest and largest private cancer center, Memorial Sloan Kettering has devoted more than 135 years to exceptional patient care, influential educational programs and innovative research to discover more effective strategies to prevent, control and, ultimately, cure cancer. MSK is home to more than 20,000 physicians, scientists, nurses and staff united by a relentless dedication to conquering cancer. Today, we are one of 51 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers, with state-of-the-art science and technology supporting groundbreaking clinical studies, personalized treatment, and compassionate care for our patients. We also train the next generation of clinical and scientific leaders in oncology through our continually evolving educational programs, here and around the world. Year after year, we are ranked among the top two cancer hospitals in the country, consistently recognized for our expertise in adult and pediatric oncology specialties. http://www.mskcc.org. Many Texans have returned to work. Others, those deemed essential, never left. Some workplaces may have fallen short of safety standards amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to complaints made to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. One report made to OSHA's hotline in August claimed that at least 60 employees tested positive for COVID-19 at the Walmart Distribution Center in New Braunfels. The company had not disinfected the facility and was not enforcing the use of face masks, according to the report. READ ALSO: Avoid haunted houses: Metro Health releases guidelines for a safe Halloween in San Antonio Workers at San Antonio International Airport charged with emptying aircraft lavatories - potentially exposing them to human waste and "blue juice" - did not have access to hot water for handwashing. Those allegations were found in complaints made to OSHA and assembled in a nationwide map by Strikewave. The data was last updated on Oct. 18. The following complaints have since been closed by the agency. Keep scrolling to see the COVID-19 complaints made to OSHA in the San Antonio area. Resembling a butterfly with its symmetrical structure, beautiful colours, and intricate patterns, this striking bubble of gas -- known as NGC 2899 -- appears to float and flutter across the sky in a new picture from ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT). This object has never before been imaged in such striking detail, with even the faint outer edges of the planetary nebula glowing over the background stars. NGC 2899's vast swathes of gas extend up to a maximum of two light-years from its centre, glowing brightly in front of the stars of the Milky Way as the gas reaches temperatures upwards of ten thousand degrees. The high temperatures are due to the large amount of radiation from the nebula's parent star, which causes the hydrogen gas in the nebula to glow in a reddish halo around the oxygen gas, in blue. This object, located between 3000 and 6500 light-years away in the Southern constellation of Vela (The Sails), has two central stars, which are believed to give it its nearly symmetric appearance. After one star reached the end of its life and cast off its outer layers, the other star now interferes with the flow of gas, forming the two-lobed shape seen here. Only about 10-20% of planetary nebulae [1] display this type of bipolar shape. Astronomers were able to capture this highly detailed image of NGC 2899 using the FORS instrument installed on UT1 (Antu), one of the four 8.2-metre telescopes that make up ESO's VLT in Chile. Standing for FOcal Reducer and low dispersion Spectrograph, this high-resolution instrument was one of the first to be installed on ESO's VLT and is behind numerous beautiful images and discoveries from ESO. FORS has contributed to observations of light from a gravitational wave source, has researched the first known interstellar asteroid, and has been used to study in depth the physics behind the formation of complex planetary nebulae. This image was created under the ESO Cosmic Gems programme, an outreach initiative to produce images of interesting, intriguing or visually attractive objects using ESO telescopes, for the purposes of education and public outreach. The programme makes use of telescope time that cannot be used for science observations. All data collected may also be suitable for scientific purposes, and are made available to astronomers through ESO's science archive. Note [1] Unlike what their common name suggests, planetary nebulae have nothing to do with planets. The first astronomers to observe them merely described them as planet-like in appearance. They are instead formed when ancient stars with up to 6 times the mass of our Sun reach the end of their lives, collapse, and blow off expanding shells of gas, rich in heavy elements. Intense ultraviolet radiation energises and lights up these moving shells, causing them to shine brightly for thousands of years until they ultimately disperse slowly through space, making planetary nebulae relatively short-lived phenomena on astronomical timescales. HOUSTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE: GPI) (the "Company"), an international, Fortune 500 automotive retailer, today announced that, subject to market conditions, it intends to offer for sale $550 million in aggregate principal amount of senior unsecured notes due 2028 (the "Notes"). The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering, together with cash on hand, to redeem all of the outstanding 5.000% Senior Notes due 2022 and pay all fees and expenses related to this offering. The Notes to be offered have not been, and will not be, registered under the Securities Act, or any state securities laws, and thus, the Notes may not be offered or sold in the United States except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws. The Notes are being offered to persons reasonably believed to be qualified institutional buyers in an offering exempt from registration pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act") and to non-U.S. persons outside of the United States in compliance with Regulation S under the Securities Act. This announcement shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of these Notes or any security, and shall not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in which such offering, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. ABOUT GROUP 1 AUTOMOTIVE, INC. The Company owns and operates 186 automotive dealerships , 242 franchises, and 49 collision centers in the United States, the United Kingdom and Brazil that offer 31 brands of automobiles. Through its dealerships, the Company sells new and used cars and light trucks; arranges related vehicle financing; sells service contracts; provides automotive maintenance and repair services; and sells vehicle parts. FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which are statements related to future, not past, events and are based on the Company's current expectations and assumptions regarding the Company's business, the economy and other future conditions. In this context, the forward-looking statements often include statements regarding the Company's strategic investments, goals, plans, projections and guidance regarding the Company's financial position, results of operations, business strategy, and often contain words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "should," "foresee," "may" or "will" and similar expressions. While management believes that these forward-looking statements are reasonable as and when made, there can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we anticipate. Any such forward-looking statements are not assurances of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things, (a) general economic and business conditions, (b) the level of manufacturer incentives, (c) the future regulatory environment, (d) the Company's ability to obtain an inventory of desirable new and used vehicles, (e) the Company's relationship with the Company's automobile manufacturers and the willingness of manufacturers to approve future acquisitions, (f) the Company's cost of financing and the availability of credit for consumers, (g) the Company's ability to complete acquisitions and dispositions and the risks associated therewith, (h) foreign exchange controls and currency fluctuations, (i) the Company's ability to retain key personnel, (j) the impacts of COVID-19 on the Company's business, (k) the impacts of any potential global recession and (l) the Company's ability to maintain sufficient liquidity to operate. For additional information regarding known material factors that could cause the Company's actual results to differ from the Company's projected results, please see the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements after the date they are made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Investor contacts: Sheila Roth Manager, Investor Relations Group 1 Automotive, Inc. 713-647-5741 | [email protected] Media contacts: Pete DeLongchamps Senior Vice President, Manufacturer Relations, Financial Services and Public Affairs Group 1 Automotive, Inc. 713-647-5770 | [email protected] or Clint Woods Pierpont Communications, Inc. 713-627-2223 | [email protected] SOURCE Group 1 Automotive, Inc. Related Links http://www.group1auto.com Abu Dhabi Distribution Company (ADDC), a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa), announced that it has expanded its Green Corner initiative to LuLu Hypermarket outlets in Al Wadha and Mushrif Malls to attract more consumers to energy efficient products. The initiative supports ambitions to reduce 20% of Abu Dhabi's water and electricity consumption by 2030, a core focus of ADDCs demand-side management programme, Tarsheed. Speaking about the expansion, Saeed Mohamed Al-Suwaidi, Managing Director of ADDC, said: Promoting energy efficient products and encouraging customers to use them falls under our agenda to drive sustainability across the emirate. Achieving reductions in water and electricity consumption over the next decade is an integral component of our strategic objective to build a smart, sustainable, integrated and rationalised distribution network that meets current and future demand. The introduction of additional Green Corners as part of the Tarsheed program will assist in ensuring this vision becomes a reality, and we are delighted to be broadening our collaboration with LuLus hypermarket chain. M A Yusuf Ali, Chairman and Managing Director, LuLu Group, said: We are delighted to continue expanding the Green Corner initiative across our stores in Abu Dhabi, where we make high-quality and energy efficient products accessible to shoppers. We believe in this great sustainability initiative that will preserve the environment for the benefit of future generations. Using ESMA rating system, Tarsheeds Green Corner initiative helps customers choose appliances that have energy efficiency labels with information on appliances annual energy consumption rate, providing detailed information on the expected level of savings in their water and electricity consumption. This initiative included designing marketing material, including facades and shelves of green corner stands, as well as leaflets and educational brochures to customers. Salesman have also been trained by Tarsheeds team to demonstrate sufficient knowledge on ESMAs efficiency rating, from various appliances and their impact on water and electricity consumption to promoting the high efficient products displayed in green corner stands. The expansion of additional Green Corners follows the announcement of Taqas successful transaction with Abu Dhabi Power Corporation on July 1, 2020, which created the UAEs 2nd-largest publicly listed company by capitalisation and a top 10 utilities player in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region by regulated assets. -- Tradearabia News Service Rep. Sim Sang-jeung, leader of the minor opposition Justice Party, speaks during a meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul, Monday. / Yonhap By Jung Min-ho Chief Rabbi of Ukraine and Kyiv City Moshe Reuven Azman highly appreciates the initiative by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to grant official status to Jewish religious holidays. He said this at a meeting with Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Ihor Zhovkva on Monday, the presidents press service reported. "The Rebbe highly appreciated the initiative of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky on granting state status to Jewish religious holidays. On behalf of the Jewish community, he conveyed gratitude to the Head of State for this important decision," the report says. For his part, Zhovkva noted the important role of the Jewish community of Ukraine in the development of the Ukrainian state and the establishment of the principles of multiconfessional tolerance and openness in society. The interlocutors discussed topical issues of a Ukrainian-Israeli dialogue. Ihor Zhovkva thanked Moshe Reuven Azman for his significant work in recognizing Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky as Righteous Among the Nations. As Ukrinform reported, on July 30, President Volodymyr Zelensky instructed the Cabinet of Ministers to consider the issue of granting official status to certain religious holidays, in particular, Eid al-Fitr, Eid al-Adha, Pesach, Rosh Hashanah, Hanukkah, Easter of Western Christians and others. ish Patna IPS investigating Sushants case forcibly quarantined Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey on Sunday said that IPS officer Vinay Tiwari heading a police team from Patna investigating the case related to the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput has been "forcibly quarantined" by the municipal authorities in Mumbai. IPS officer Binay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11pm today.He was not provided accommodation in the IPSMess despite request and was staying in a guest house in Goregaw pic.twitter.com/JUPFRpqiGE IPS Gupteshwar Pandey (@ips_gupteshwar) August 2, 2020 Read full story: Sushant Singh Case: Patna SP Vinay Tiwari 'forcibly Quarantined' By BMC, Says Bihar DGP SpaceXs historic Crew Dragon mission ends SpaceXs Crew Dragon Capsule successfully landed in the ocean off the coast of Florida at 12:18 am IST on August 3. After spending 63-days at the International Space Station (ISS), the two US astronauts, Bob Behnken and Douglas Hurley returned to Earth. The NASA astronauts blasted off from the Cape Canaveral on May 30 and the two marked the first splashdown in 45 years. "Thanks for flying @SpaceX." Current Location: Planet Earth A 2:48pm ET, @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug splashed down, marking the first splashdown of an American crew spacecraft in 45 years. #LaunchAmerica pic.twitter.com/zO3KlNwxU3 NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 Read full story: Crew Dragon Splashdown In Gulf Of Mexico Successful, First Crew Recovery At Sea Since 1975 Pak's Dawn News issues statement after being hacked Pakistans Dawn News was reportedly hacked on Sunday after a huge Indian flag emerged on top of an advertisement being relayed on the channel. Dawn news issued an official statement saying, "Hackers attacked Dawn News TV today, after which the channel's screen suddenly started broadcasting the Indian flag as well as the text of Happy Independence Day, on which an investigation into the matter has been ordered." Read more: https://t.co/LUXoMdG3EM #DawnNews pic.twitter.com/4hImbV70oZ DawnNews (@Dawn_News) August 2, 2020 Read full story: Pak's Dawn News Issues Statement On Airing Indian Tricolour & I-Day Wish During Commercial Ex-AAP Councillor Tahir Hussain admits his role in Delhi riots As per an Interrogation Report (IR) by Delhi Police, suspended Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor, Tahir Hussain has confessed about his role in the North East Delhi violence that broke out in February this year. According to ANI, he has also admitted that he has incited people to unleash violence. Hussain said that he met former JNU student Umar Khalid at Popular Front of India (PFI) office in Shaheen Bagh on January 8. Read full story: Delhi Riots Case: Ex-AAP Councillor Tahir Hussain Admits His Role In Instigating Violence Internet sector in US calcified, says China Hu Xijin, Editor-in-Chief of Global Times, on Sunday said that the internet sector of the United States has been "calcified". He claimed that to young people, Facebook, Twitter etc have been outdated, not convenient to use and not fun. This comes after US President Donald Trump on Friday (local time) said that his administration may ban Chinese video-sharing application TikTok. Internet sector of the US has been calcified. To young people, Facebook, Twitter, etc. have been somewhat old-fashioned, inconvenient to use and not fun. New internet giants and applications constantly emerge in China. Banning TikTok will make US internet duller. Hu Xijin (@HuXijin_GT) August 2, 2020 Read full story: Internet Sector In US Calcified; Twitter & FB 'not Fun': Chinese Stooge Bats For TikTok Egypt invites Elon Musk to 'explore' pyramids SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has been invited to visit Egypt to see for himself that its famous pyramids were not built by aliens. While referring to a conspiracy theory, Musk sparked controversies earlier as he tweeted that pyramids were obv built by aliens. However, Egypts International co-operation minister soon replied on the post, inviting the multi-billionaire to come to the country and explore the writings and learn about structures in person. I follow your work with a lot of admiration. I invite you & Space X to explore the writings about how the pyramids were built and also to check out the tombs of the pyramid builders. Mr. Musk, we are waiting for you . @elonmusk https://t.co/Xlr7EoPXX4 Rania A. Al Mashat (@RaniaAlMashat) August 1, 2020 Reda full story: Egypt Invites Elon Musk To 'explore' Pyramids After He Suggests They Were Built By Aliens Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and home minister Anil Deshmukh are determined to not hand over the investigation into the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) despite mounting pressure. While the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has criticised the state government for its handling of the case, there is division within the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi alliance with Congress leaders favouring the transfer of the case to CBI and Shiv Sena supporting Mumbai Polices investigation. Thackeray held a high level meeting with police officers on Sunday evening, in which he was briefed on the progress made by Mumbai Police in its investigation. Thackeray was reportedly satisfied with how the probe into the actors suicide is being handled. Deshmukh, who has previously said there is no need to hand the case over to CBI, on Monday morning said, Mumbai Police is investigating the case professionally. Following rumours and allegations on social media that claimed a state minister is implicated in the case, the state government has decided to take action against those attempting to defame the government. Through social media and a section of media, it is being repeatedly projected that the son of a minister had attended the party at Sushants residence a day before he died. Its false propaganda to transfer the case to the central agency. We have decided to take a serious note of and action against it, said a state government official who was at the meeting. Some in the bureaucracy and the state Cabinet feel the Maharashtra government has struggled to tackle how the episode has been politicised by the Opposition. Right from a case in Patna to a strategic movement of creating suspicion about involvement of a Maharashtra minister, it was a well thought out strategy by the Opposition. Instead of giving a fitting reply, the government seems to have fallen prey to it. We could not even take advantage of the doubtful integrity of the director general of Bihar Police who has been blaming Mumbai and Maharashtra Police. Goof ups at the local level by stamping the Bihar Police officer with a quarantine mark has further damaged our image. Our opinion is that the case should be handed over to CBI as it appears to be just a suicide with no foul play involved, said a senior Congress leader requesting anonymity. After Vinay Tiwari of Patna City police was quarantined by BMC on Sunday, former chief minister of Maharashtra and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis had questioned why Tiwari had been singled out for quarantine and described the state governments decisions regarding the investigation into Rajputs death as really strange. BJP leader Ram Kadam has questioned if the state government was trying to hush up certain incidents and referred to a conspiracy theory that Mumbai Police has since debunked, which claimed a state minister had attended a party at the residence of Rajputs former manager Disha Salian, who died by suicide on June 8. Mumbai Police has said there is no evidence to connect Salian and Rajputs deaths. On Monday, the commissioner of Mumbai Police said in a press conference that Bihar Police has no jurisdiction over Rajputs suicide case, but senior officials in the home department speculated that the Centre could take over the case using the first information report (FIR) filed in Patna. Mumbai Police has not filed any FIR so far as they have not found any substance to convert the accidental death report into an FIR. Patna Police has already filed an FIR and it can be handed over to the CBI for which Maharashtra governments consent is not required. Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has already expressed his willingness for the transfer. The hearing in the Supreme Court on Wednesday now bears great significance, but it will paint Maharashtra and Mumbai Police in poor light, said an official. The Supreme Court will hear actor Rhea Chakrabortys plea to transfer the FIR lodged against her in the case of Rajputs suicide from Patna to Mumbai, today. Police officer turned lawyer YP Singh said, Without state consent or an order from the Apex or high court, the transfer cannot take place. If Mumbai Police has not lodged an FIR, it is right on its part as it may not have found adequate evidence against anybody. Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant accused the BJP of defaming Mumbai Police. Maharashtra BJP leaders, on the orders of their high command, are defaming our police. Director general of police of Bihar is at the forefront in the attempt. The DGP is facing serious charges in a case, which was being investigated by the CBI. The officer wanted to contest election as a BJP candidate in the past, he said. Sawant also questioned why Rajputs father had not registered a complaint with Mumbai Police. In their signed statements, none of Rajputs family members, including his father, had mentioned any suspicion of foul play, said Mumbai Police. Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Monday also came out in support of Mumbai Police. If Mumbai Police is already investigating the case, anyone not related to the Maharashtra government and not related to the case should not comment on it as Mumbai Police is capable of conducting the probe on its own, Raut said. He said anyone claiming the police investigation was compromised because a state minister was involved in the case should come forward. They should openly name the person. Saying such baseless things is not even politics, I think. People know everything. This should be stopped immediately. Mumbai Police should be allowed to carry on with its work, he said. Shiv Senas Arvind Sawant on Monday alleged Bihar Police officers had used luxury cars owned by BJP office bearers while in Mumbai. Speaking to ANI, Sawant said, Whose vehicles were those? The BMW belonged to a BJP office bearer. If Bihar Police travels in it, you can understand the politics. Rajput, 34, was found dead in his apartment in Bandra in Mumbai on June 14. The post mortem declared he had died by suicide. A police investigation into the circumstances of his death is underway. Afghan security personnel gather in front of the prison in Jalalabad where IS launched an attack (Rahmat Gul/AP) An Islamic State group attack on a prison in eastern Afghanistan holding hundreds of its members continued on Monday after at least 21 people were killed in fighting overnight, a local official said. Another 43 people have been injured in the attack, which began late on Sunday when an IS suicide bomber slammed his explosive-laden vehicle into the entrance to the jail in Jalalabad, capital of Nangarhar province, some 70 miles (115km) east of Kabul. More assailants then opened fire. Expand Close Afghan security personnel gather in front of the prison (Rahmat Gul/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Afghan security personnel gather in front of the prison (Rahmat Gul/AP) Three attackers have been killed so far but the battle was continuing on Monday with sporadic gunfire still coming from the prison grounds, said Attaullah Khogyani, a spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province. Some of the dead were prisoners, he said, as well as civilians, prison guards and Afghan security personnel. ISs affiliate in Afghanistan, known as IS in Khorasan province, claimed responsibility for the attack. The affiliate has its headquarters in Nangarhar province. The motive of the attack was not immediately clear; however, another provincial official said some prisoners escaped during the fighting. The prison houses about 1,500 inmates, of whom several hundred are believed to belong to the IS affiliate in Afghanistan. Expand Close A wounded man receives treatment at a hospital after the suicide car bomb and gun attack in the city of Jalalabad (AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A wounded man receives treatment at a hospital after the suicide car bomb and gun attack in the city of Jalalabad (AP) The attack came a day after the Afghan intelligence agency said a senior IS commander had been killed by Afghan special forces near Jalalabad. While IS has seen its so-called caliphate stretching across Iraq and Syria eliminated after a years-long campaign, the group has continued fighting in Afghanistan. The extremists have also battled the Taliban in the country, whom the US overthrew following the 2001 American-led invasion after the September 11 attacks. The Talibans political spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, told the Associated Press that his group was not involved in the Jalalabad attack. The US struck a peace deal with the Taliban in February. A second, crucial round of negotiations between the Taliban and the political leadership in Kabul has yet to start. Nevertheless, Washington and Nato have already begun withdrawing troops in line with the deal. We have a ceasefire and are not involved in any of these attacks anywhere in the country, he said. Expand Close Afghan families leave their homes after the IS attack on the prison in Jalalabad (Rahmat Gul/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Afghan families leave their homes after the IS attack on the prison in Jalalabad (Rahmat Gul/AP) The Taliban declared a three-day ceasefire starting on Friday for the major Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. It expired at 12am local time on Monday, although it was not immediately clear if it would be extended as the US pushes for an early start to intra-Afghan negotiations which have repeatedly been delayed since Washington signed a peace deal with the Taliban in February. The Taliban also denied being involved in a suicide bombing in eastern Logar province late Thursday which killed at least nine people and wounded 40 others. Afghanistan has seen a recent spike in violence, with most attacks claimed by the local IS affiliate. Tanaiste Leo Varadkar will keep the use of diplomatic officials who help VIPs to plan his official events. The former Taoiseach has already retained his aide-de-camp in his newly beefed-up role. The Fine Gael leader's high profile as Tanaiste is causing some disquiet as it has raised questions about who is in charge of the Government - Taoiseach Micheal Martin or Mr Varadkar. Mr Varadkar had a protocol officer as part of his entourage when he was Taoiseach. Now an official will continue to accompany him when he is participating in official events in his new expanded role as Tanaiste. Mr Varadkar is getting his own personal military aide as he expands his role as Tanaiste. The Fine Gael leader is strengthening his presence in the Coalition with an Office of the Tanaiste in Government Buildings, allied to his portfolio as Business Minister. The move will see Taoiseach Mr Martin and Mr Varadkar operate more akin to the first minister and deputy first minister in Northern Ireland. The Tanaiste has been provided with protocol assistance twice in the five weeks since he took up his new role, a spokesman said. However, Mr Varadkar does not receive protocol assistance when acting as Business Minister. "As outlined in the Programme for Government, the Protocol Division provides occasional protocol services to the Tanaiste where these do not relate to his departmental role," said the spokesman. "Since his appointment as Tanaiste, the division has provided protocol services on two occasions, on June 28 at a wreath-laying at the Connaught Rangers Memorial in Glasnevin, and on July 11 on his attendance at a vigil to mark the 25th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide in Millennium Park, Blanchardstown. "No additional staff were assigned to the Protocol Division for the provision of this service. "The division has responsibility for State protocol, including protocol for the Taoiseach and Tanaiste and the Government. "This involves the organisation of State and official functions, including inward visits from heads of state or government," the spokesman also added. In a break with protocol, the Tanaiste will join the Taoiseach and President in having his own aide-de-camp (ADC) - an army officer who accompanies him to official events. Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney is also keeping perks from his previous role as Tanaiste. Following an intervention by Mr Varadkar, Mr Coveney kept his State car and garda driver, rather than dropping down to a civilian driver. Looking after the Tanaiste's official engagements is a new addition to the role of the protocol division. "The Protocol and General Division of the Department of the Taoiseach has responsibility for State protocol, including protocol for the Taoiseach and ministers of state," the department's website says. "This involves the organisation of State and official events including commemorations, inward visits from heads of state or government. "The division is the point of contact between the President and government departments. "It also has responsibility for arts and culture issues, in particular in relation to the Creative Ireland Initiative. "The division supports the work of Cabinet Committee F on National Security, the Inter-Departmental Senior Officials Group and chairs the Interdepartmental Group on Security of Ireland's Electoral Process and Disinformation," adds the website. Description "25% Off for Industry Workers - Mondays in August - Industry Night: 25% OFF! for all service industry workers! All eligible service industry worker will receive 25% off their total bill on Monday nights in August. Food & Alcohol must be purchased together. 25% OFF Valid 4pm to CLOSE on August 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th & 31st" Spotlight By PTI BALOD: A 65-year-old man was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting five minor girls by luring them to watch television at his home in Chhattisgarh's Balod district, police said on Monday. The accused allegedly committed the offence for three days - from July 28 to July 30 - at a village under Arjunda police station limits and the victims' parents reported it to police on Saturday following which he was arrested, Balod Superintendent of Police Jitendra Meena said. As per preliminary investigation, the accused used to call the girls, aged between 8 and 11 years, from neighbourhood to his home to watch television after finding them playing on streets, he said. He would then make the minors sit in front of the television and call them one by one inside a room where he sexually assaulted them, the official said. The offence came to light when the mother of one of the girls found her upset and disinterested in playing with the other children. When the mother asked, the girl narrated the entire incident to her, he said. Four other girls also revealed the same ordeal to their parents who then approached police, the official said. The accused was arrested on Saturday was booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 354(a) (sexual harassment), 363 (kidnapping), 376 (rape) and 376 (2)(n) (rigorous imprisonment for a term not less than 10 years but may extend to imprisonment for life), and provisions of the Protection of Children for Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, he said. "Preliminary medical examination of the girls did not reveal injuries on their private parts. However, we have sent some samples for forensic examination and their reports are awaited," he said. Further investigation was underway in the case, he added. Russias finance ministry is looking to raise as much as US$1.93 billion (143 billion Russia rubles) in taxes from the oil industry over the next two years, as the oil price crash has shrunk Russias key revenue streamoil. According to a document on a Russian government website, cited by Reuters, the finance ministry is looking to receive more tax proceeds by amending the tax code and the recently implemented profit-based tax. The government and the Russian oil industry are heading for a dispute over the proposed tax amendments, Russian business daily Kommersant reported on Monday, citing sources familiar with the matter. According to Kommersants sources, the proposal if passed would negatively affect mostly Gazprom Neft, the oil division of gas giant Gazprom, and Rosneft, the biggest oil producer in Russia. The profit-based tax, introduced as an experiment last year, has led to the Russian budget not receiving US$2.9 billion (213 billion rubles), according to the sources. The Russian companies, however, strongly disagree that they should repay that sum under a new tax amendment, and the issue could be escalated to President Vladimir Putin, Kommersant reported. The possible changes to the tax code would be harmful to the fundamentals of Russias oil industry, Reuters quoted VTB Capital as saying in a note. Currently, Russias economy is suffering the consequences of the oil price crash it helped create with the temporary rift with its OPEC+ partner Saudi Arabia in March. The Russian ruble crashed, and Russias oil income shrank as a result of the plunge in oil prices. The oil price crash, along with the coronavirus-driven global recession, will result in Russias economy shrinking this year by 6 percent, or by the most in 11 years, the World Bank said in its latest economic report on Russia earlier this month. Russia is said to be considering whether to adopt a kind of state oil hedging program, similar to Mexicos oil hedge, to protect government revenues from oil price crashes in the future. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: After a petition started in July called on Trader Joes to remove racist branding and packaging from its stores, the store responded saying it will not be changing its packaging. We want to be clear: we disagree that any of these labels are racist. We do not make decisions based on petitions, a statement said on July 24. More than 5,000 people have signed the petition. The grocery chain labels some of its ethnic foods with modifications of Joe that belies a narrative of exoticism that perpetuates harmful stereotypes, the petition states. For example, Trader Mings is used to brand the chains Chinese food, Arabian Joe brands Middle Eastern foods, Trader Jose' brands Mexican foods. The statement is a reversal to what Kenya Friend-Daniel, a spokeswoman for Trader Joes, said when the petition was first gaining traction. While this approach to product naming may have been rooted in a lighthearted attempt at inclusiveness, we recognize that it may now have the opposite effect -- one that is contrary to the welcoming, rewarding customer experience we strive to create every day, she said, according to CNN. CNN also reported that Friend-Daniel said, packaging for a number of the products has already been changed. Other products, such as Aunt Jemima, have started undergoing a rebrand to to make progress toward racial equality. The full statement from Trader Joes: To Our Valued Customers: In light of recent feedback and attention weve received about our product naming, we have some things wed like to say to clarify our approach. A few weeks ago, an online petition was launched calling on us to remove racist packaging from [our] products. Following were inaccurate reports that the petition prompted us to take action. We want to be clear: we disagree that any of these labels are racist. We do not make decisions based on petitions. We make decisions based on what customers purchase, as well as the feedback we receive from our customers and Crew Members. If we feel there is need for change, we do not hesitate to take action. Decades ago, our Buying Team started using product names, like Trader Giottos, Trader Joses, Trader Mings, etc. We thought thenand still dothat this naming of products could be fun and show appreciation for other cultures. For example, we named our Mexican beer Trader Jose Premium and a couple guacamole products are called Avocados Number in a kitschy reference to a mathematical theory. These products have been really popular with our customers, including some budding mathematicians. We constantly reevaluate what we are doing to ensure it makes sense for our business and aligns with customers expectations. A couple years ago we asked our Buying Team to review all our products to see if we needed to update any older packages, and also see if the associated brands developed years ago needed to be refreshed. We found that some of the older names or products just werent connecting or selling very well; so, they were discontinued. Its kind of what we do. Recently we have heard from many customers reaffirming that these name variations are largely viewed in exactly the way they were intendedas an attempt to have fun with our product marketing. We continue our ongoing evaluation, and those products that resonate with our customers and sell well will remain on our shelves. Trader Joes has been a unique, fun and neighborly place to shop for over 50 years. We look forward to taking care of our wonderful customers for many future decades. - Trader Joes Related Content: The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), South East Chapter, has urged the authorities to ensure the security of lives and property in Kaduna. The South East CAN Chairman, Goddy Okafor, made the call in Aba on Sunday while addressing journalists on the persistent bloodbath in Southern Kaduna. Mr Okafor, of the Glorious Gospel Centre, Aba, Abia State, said the failure to stop the killings in the state was creating fears in the minds of citizens about their safety in their own country. The killings going on in Southern Kaduna are very disturbing. We are one people and we believe we are one nation, but for these persistent killings going on in Southern Kaduna to keep occurring without drastic measures to stop it is very disturbing. These people that are being killed in Kaduna are Nigerians. Governments and security agencies owe it as a duty to protect them. The protection of lives and property is the responsibility of the government. Every time there are killings, some bandits are blamed. So, we keep asking, these bandits are they really human beings or spirits? He said that Nigeria is a great nation with a future if well-governed. He said if citizens should wallow in doubt of their citizenship rights, it would not benefit the country. Mr Okafor urged governments to clear any doubt in the minds of Nigerians about the source of the killings by stopping them. The cleric urged Governor Nasir el Rufai to do all in his powers to curb the killings in the state. Mr Okafor also urged police authorities to ensure their men did more intelligence gathering. He warned that killings and banditry should not continue if Nigeria was to know peace and security. The bishop further spoke about the health challenges in the country and pleaded with medical personnel planning to leave the country to jettison the idea. He stressed that the development, if not halted, would endanger Nigerias healthcare system. He, therefore, urged the government to provide what the professionals needed to perform creditably and to enjoy their work in order to discourage their emigration. If we lose all our good hands when we are sick, who will take care of us? Government should listen to the NMA and keep the best doctors we have with us here, he said. Mr Okafor expressed dismay at the rate at which Nigerian youth engaged in cultism and other crimes. He reiterated the need for Nigerian youth to be given a sense of direction in life through job creation. (NAN) Elizabeth Smart: Finding Justice premieres August 2nd at 10/9c. Dont miss as Elizabeth Smart explores the case that inspired Ann Rules A Murder To Remember. Elizabeth Smart: Finding Justice premieres August 2nd at 10/9c. Posted by Lifetime on Wednesday, July 22, 2020 True crime fans can check out Lifetimes Elizabeth Smart: Finding Justice series, which begins tonight, Aug. 2, at 10 p.m. ET. It is also available on fuboTV (7-day free trial). Hosted by kidnapping survivor Elizabeth Smart, the new series explores the real stories behind some chilling crimes. In the first episode, The Brainwashed Bride: The Candra Torres Case, Smart interviews Torres about her harrowing ordeal stranded in the wilderness with a murderer and master manipulator. Torres and her husband were camping in Oregon, but things took a terrifying turn when a stranger named Thomas Brown offered to show them a spot for the perfect catch. Before the day was out, Torress husband and their dog were dead victims of what Brown convinced her was a hunting accident and that was just the beginning of her nightmare. Before long, he had brainwashed her in what would prove to be a landmark case of Stockholm Syndrome. The story inspired bestselling true crime author Ann Rules book Empty Promises, now a Lifetime original movie called A Murder to Remember. The movie is part of a weekend of true crime programming drawn from Rules books, airing on Lifetime and streamable on fuboTV (7-day free trial). What channel is Lifetime on? You can find which channel Lifetime is on by using the channel finders here: Verizon Fios, AT&T U-verse, Comcast Xfinity, Spectrum/Charter, Optimum/Altice, DIRECTV and Dish. Where can I watch Elizabeth Smart: Finding Justice if I dont have cable? Fans can live stream it on fuboTV (7-day free trial, then $54.99/month). FuboTV is a streaming service that offers access to your favorite TV shows, live sports events and much more. Subscriber content preview OLYMPIA The Washington Department of Ecology said salmon will have better habitat with help from a $332,000 penalty settlement with Cooke Aquaculture after the collapse of its floating pen near Cypress Island in 2017. In press materials Ecology said the settlement required that part of the fine go to an environmental project for regional salmon enhancement or habitat restoration, and part to the department's Coastal Protection Fund. . . . A relatively small crowd of hundreds gathered Sunday evening near the near the downtown Portland Justice Center for the 67th straight day of protests against police violence and systemic racism. Some among them expressed frustration at the dwindling numbers. By 10 p.m., about 400 people stood in and around the city parks where protesters have gathered nightly since the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd sparked a nationwide protest movement more than two months ago. They gathered in dispersed groups; one group held a candlelight vigil while another listened to speakers talk about the state of the protests. Cars parked on Southwest 3rd Avenue and Madison Street, blocking off Madison Street. Lines of protesters at Main Street did the same. A recorded speech by Martin Luther King Jr. played for the gathered crowd. Police presence was scarce Sunday evening, as has become the norm in recent days near the downtown protests. Speakers in the park nearby made plain their disappointment that the evening drew so few people. Sunday was the fourth day since federal officers turned over the job of guarding the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse to the Oregon State Police and Portland Police. This is not a movement about anti-fed, said speaker Teal Lindseth, whos attended protests nightly. Its a movement about Black lives matter. Some stood in the street in front of the federal courthouse, chanting slogans that included Defund the police! and Stay woke! They were led by activist Demetria Hester, a regular presence at the nightly protests. By 11 p.m., the protesters in front of the courthouse were chanting and dancing to a drummers beat. Since the federal officers -- who fired tear gas and crowd-control munitions at demonstrators virtually every night to disperse crowds -- left the post, the protests have taken a notably peaceful turn. Saturday night brought a change in that trajectory. Though a protest downtown remained calm, another on the east side of the river saw a more combative police response. The downtown event began when the Portland chapter of the NAACP hosted an event at Tom McCall Waterfront Park aimed at bringing the focus back to the issue of systemic racism and Black lives. City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty and U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley spoke at that event, among others. Later, hundreds of demonstrators marched through downtown without police engaging. Another protest, on the east side of the river, saw a more dramatic police response. That protest, which began at Laurelhurst Park, was declared an unlawful assembly by the Portland Police Bureau at 9:53 p.m. after officials said protesters threw bottles and pointed lasers at police outside the Multnomah County Sheriffs Office on East Burnside Street. Two people were arrested. Portland police also said they deflated the tires of a car that had been moving slowly, preventing officers from removing people from the road. According to a Portland Police statement, people wearing clothing with Press written on it were among those throwing things at officers. A judge has prohibited Portland police from arresting, threatening to arrest, or using physical force directed against journalists or legal observers for not leaving when an unlawful assembly is declared. City attorneys have argued some protesters have begun identified themselves as press in response to the order. The injunction does not prohibit police from arresting anyone, including journalists, who commit crimes beyond a failure to disperse. Protests started early Sunday, with a handful of people demonstrating in support of police in downtown Portland near the Multnomah County Justice Center in the afternoon. Several dozen Black Lives Matter protesters surrounded them. Also Sunday, two dozen people carried signs and protested outside a Whole Foods store on East Burnside Street Sunday afternoon, saying store management had reprimanded employees who wore buttons that stated Racism has no place here, a phrase taken directly from Whole Foods mission statement. Dueling demonstrators gathered at corner of SW 3rd and Main, at the Justice Center. Some activists have closed intersection. Signs: Back the Blue, Support Police. pic.twitter.com/YU5h3qIGF4 Noelle Crombie (@noellecrombie) August 2, 2020 -- The Oregonian/OregonLive A new generation of stamp duty-free hotspots is emerging across London as buyers respond to the Governments tax amnesty on homes costing less than 500,000. From fashionable central locations such as Bow, to good-value suburbs including Harrow and regeneration zones like Woolwich, buyers are focusing on postcodes where they can buy below the new threshold. Research by Rightmove, published today, reveals the locations where property searches are booming and where average asking prices are around, or below, the magic 500,000 mark. Buyers can potentially save a cool 15,000 during the stamp duty holiday, which continues until the end of next March. Top spot: Deptford, south-east London Top of the list is Deptford, in south-east London, where the average asking price stands at 465,670 and the number of property searches has gone up by a thumping 75 per cent. Becky Munday, managing director of Mundays estate agents, believes the area is benefiting from a ripple of buyers priced out of Peckham. It does have a very cool, young, hip and trendy thing going on, she said. There are all these cute little bars and cafes on the high street. Transport links are strong, with trains to London Bridge in just seven minutes, and there is also a DLR station, while Greenwich Park and Blackheath are within walking distance. Most homes in the area are purpose-built flats expect to pay around 550,000 for a two-bedroom property, which Munday points out is 100,000 less than in Peckham. But just to the south of the A2, in St Johns, there are also some streets of pretty three-bedroom period houses. Post-lockdown buyers are also keen on locations where it is possible to buy a three-bedroom family home for less than 500,000. Harrow, north-west London; East Ham, in east London; Edmonton in north London and Morden in south London, are all seeing big spikes in interest. Why buyers are heading to Bow, east London For buyers interested in a central location, Bow, just south of Victoria Park, is a smart option. It is far cheaper than Victoria Park village and you can get off the Tube and cycle to Canary Wharf or the City in about half an hour. Average prices stand at 517,419, according to Rightmove, and the number of searches is up almost 50 per cent. Laura Stronghill, senior branch manager of Hamptons International, rates Bow for its great range of property from Georgian and Victorian houses and flats, to purpose-built apartments. It is still better value than if you were looking in, say, Hackney, and we also get people coming from Islington. A lot of our buyers are young couples, often first-time buyers. The stamp duty holiday has opened things up for them. A two-bedroom period conversion flat in Bow would cost from about 550,000. Stronghill estimates that a resale purpose-built flat in Canary Wharf could cost 700,000 to 1million. In trendy Victoria Park, a two-bedroom period flat would cost 650,000 to 750,000. What Bow does lack, however, is a thriving high street. The only thing that is missing is that it has not got a core, agreed Stronghill. Roman Road Market is coming up a lot and there are some really cool independent shops starting to open, but if you want to eat or go shopping, most people go to Stratford. Regeneration zones are also attracting interest according to todays report. Stratford in east London, Wood Green in north London, and Lewisham and Woolwich, which are both in south-east London, are all in line for billions of pounds of new investment over the next few years and all make the top 10. Stamp duty savings in Lewisham In Lewisham a massive programme of housebuilding has been triggered by the possibility of the Bakerloo line being extended to the area, led by the massive 350million Lewisham Gateway work on its second phase, 649 rental flats, shops, restaurants, bars and a multiplex cinema, is due to complete in 2023. This is another good option for City workers trains to London Bridge take less than 10 minutes. And although Lewishams shopping centre is desperately shabby, there are signs of regeneration in new(ish) restaurants such as Sparrow, the Model Market street food pop-up, and foodie-friendly Brockley Market, where you can buy sourdough starter kits, seasonal veg boxes, vegan cinnamon buns at 6 for three, and all sorts of other hipster-friendly treats (www.brockleymarket.com). I am really excited about Lewisham, said Becky Munday. There is a real growing sense of community there, Ladywell Fields is massive and beautiful, and you can still buy a two-bedroom Victorian flat for around 500,000. Pioneer Woman host Ree Drummond's eldest daughter Alex threw a mask-free engagement party at the 'temporarily closed' Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas on Saturday. The 23-year-old homeschooled bride-to-be beamed as she flashed her diamond sparkler beside her fiance Mauricio Scott in several party snapshots with friends. Texas Governor Greg Abbott made masks and face coverings mandatory for all public outings on July 2 in order to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Congrats! Pioneer Woman host Ree Drummond's eldest daughter Alex threw a mask-free engagement party at the 'temporarily closed' Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas on Saturday Governor Abbott's executive order bans indoor and outdoor gatherings with more than 10 people, but he does make an exception for weddings at 50% capacity. Texas is the third-ranked state currently spiking in the nation due to over 448K confirmed COVID-19 cases leading to 7,471 deaths as of Sunday. Alex originally met her engineering groom-to-be during their freshman year at Texas A&M University, which they both graduated from last year. 'Still waiting for someone to pinch me?!' the devout Christian gushed via Instagram. 'The Scotts': The 23-year-old homeschooled bride-to-be beamed as she flashed her diamond sparkler beside her fiance Mauricio Scott (2-R) in several party snapshots with friends 'So happy for these two!' Texas Governor Greg Abbott made masks and face coverings mandatory for all public outings on July 2 in order to slow the spread of the coronavirus 'Dallas Mayor is not granting exceptions': Governor Abbott's executive order bans indoor and outdoor gatherings with more than 10 people, but he does make an exception for weddings at 50% capacity 'Mauricio Scott is the sweetest picture of God's goodness and provision. And I get to spend forever with him! I love you, fiance!' Alex's famous 51-year-old mother - who boasts 10.9M social media followers - wrote: 'These two are gonna have so much fun together. We love you, Alex and Mauricio!' Drummond's fellow Food Network personality, Valerie Bertinelli, commented on her post: 'Wonderful!' Ree (born Ann Marie Smith) will next celebrate her 24th wedding anniversary on September 21 with fourth-generation cattle rancher Ladd Drummond. 'I don't belong here': Alex originally met her engineering groom-to-be during their freshman year at Texas A&M University, which they both graduated from last year (pictured March 18) The devout Christian gushed via Instagram: 'Still waiting for someone to pinch me?! Mauricio Scott is the sweetest picture of God's goodness and provision. And I get to spend forever with him! I love you, fiance!' Alex's famous 51-year-old mother - who boasts 10.9M social media followers - wrote: 'These two are gonna have so much fun together. We love you, Alex and Mauricio!' Drummond's fellow Food Network personality, Valerie Bertinelli, commented on her post: 'Wonderful!' The Oklahoma-based couple are also parents to 20-year-old daughter Paige, 17-year-old son Bryce, and 15-year-old son Todd. Alex has been keeping busy filming most of Drummond's at-home cooking shows for the Food Network. The flame-haired mother-of-four also blogs and sells her brand of bakewear, dinnerwear, tools, and gadgets at Walmart. Setting an example: Ree (R) will next celebrate her 24th wedding anniversary on September 21 with fourth-generation cattle rancher Ladd Drummond (L, pictured in 2019) Week 31 brought us a bunch of new phones, starting with the Samsung Galaxy M31s. The new leader of the Korean company's lower mid-range lineup comes with a 6.5 AMOLED, quad cameras and 6,000 mAh battery. Oppo made a couple of major announcements itself with the Reno4 and Reno4 Pro. Red Magic and Black Shark gaming brands also unveiled their latest flagships with the 5S and 3S, rounding up a pretty exciting lineup of new phones. Qualcomm had an announcement of its own - Quick Charge 5 and while it can't be seen on any phone just yet, it's certainly something to look forward to. Meanwhile, the Samsung Unpacked event is fast approaching and you can tell by the increasing amount of leaks and teasers about the device that will be presented on stage. The most affordable member of the iPhone 12 lineup also starred in a fairly major leak, but Apple confirmed the coronavirus disruptance to the supply chain will cause a delay to the market availability. Check out the list of most read articles over the past week below to make sure you haven't missed anything important. See you in seven days! Galaxy Unpacked teaser reveals all incoming devices The Note20 series will be joined by the Galaxy Z Fold 2, Tab S7 duo, Watch 3 and Galaxy Buds Live. Qualcomm announces Quick Charge 5: 100W+ speed lets you fill a battery to 50% in 5 minutes A full charge will take only 15 minutes. The new standard runs 10AC cooler than QC4 while delivering 4 times the power to the battery. The OnePlus Nord cracks during bend test The plastic frame is, as expected, not as robust as the metal one. Full Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 and S7+ specs leak: first with 120 Hz screens and S865+ chipsets These will be the first tablets from Samsung with a high refresh rate screen. They will use the upgraded S Pen from the Note20 duo to boot. Several mid-range and entry level Nokias coming at IFA The Nokia 2.4 leaked in some detail, we only have the broad strokes for the Nokia 6.3 and 7.3. There's a fourth model in the works too. First Motorola Razr 2020 images appear The device will share plenty of similarities to the 2019 version but will offer improved hardware. Google confirms Pixel 4a reveal coming on August 3 This has really been a very long time in the making. Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro+ to come with customizable GPU The new Mi 10 Pro+ was developed alongside Qualcomm and will offer unprecedented GPU control. Black Shark 3S unveiled with 120 Hz 6.67" AMOLED display, same Snapdragon 865 chipset The screen is the major upgrade over the Black Shark 3, which topped out at 90 Hz. The 3S also has faster RAM and storage. Given the need to make testing facilities available to as many people as possible given the increasing Covid-19 cases, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU) has got permissions from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to start tests. The lab will be operational by the second week of August. As many as four new Covid-19 testing labs are being set up by the state government including the one at the College of Animal Biotechnology, GADVASU, Ludhiana. The colleges lab will be the first one out of the four to get necessary approvals from ICMR for the tests, a prerequisite step before opening a Covid-19 lab, said Dr JPS Gill, director of research cum nodal officer of the lab. University has the experts and research labs Diagnostic tests are highly skill-oriented and GADVASU has the expertise and well established research labs in the field of animal biotechnology, virology, cell culture and disease epidemiology, he said. University vice-chancellor (V-C), Dr Inderjeet Singh, meanwhile, visited the lab on Monday to oversee operations before the first samples came in. Veterinarians were an important component of health services and contributed to make the community safe, he said. The V-C also thanked the state government for its confidence in the capabilities of the university to designate it as a centre for Covid-19 testing. GADVASU would go the extra mile in the fight against coronavirus, he said. Dr Inderjeet Singh also said he was grateful to the state government and Dr Raj Bahadur, vice-chancellor, Baba Farid University of Health Sciences (BFUHS), Faridkot, for providing the necessary equipment, logistics and supporting staff for the lab. He also urged the team of scientists at the university to work fearlessly, assuring them of all help. Samples will be processed once the necessary kits were received from BFUHS, he said. Sample processing in two shifts To begin with, 20 scientists and lab personnel will be working in two shifts and processing approximately 100 to 250 samples per day, which will be increased to 1,000 a day once lab facilities are upgraded. To conduct Covid-19 tests, the university had sent 10 scientists: Six to Government Medical College, Amritsar, and four to Government Medical College, Patiala, for training in May. Among them, Dr Rajnish Sharma, Dr Mudit Chandra, Dr JS Arora, Dr Neeraj Singh, Dr Harsh Pawar and Dr Omar Khaleel Baba went to Patiala and Dr Mohan Jairath, Dr Deepali, Dr Jaspreet Kaur and Dr Astha Sharma went to Amritsar. Chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh had in May sanctioned Rs12 crore to six such institutions to purchase required equipment. Besides GADVASU, Ludhiana, these are Regional Disease Diagnostic Lab (RDDL), North Zone Jalandhar; Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar; Punjabi University, Patiala; Punjab Biotech Incubator, Mohali; and Punjab Forensic Lab, Mohali. Chief whip Mark Spencer today stood by his decision not to suspend the senior Tory MP arrested on suspicion of rape. The party is under mounting pressure, including from the alleged victim, to strip the ex-minister of the Conservative whip. But Mr Spencer said it was right to allow the police to conclude their investigation before taking any action, while also stressing the need to protect the identity of the accuser. The former parliamentary researcher in her 20s has alleged she was assaulted and forced to have sex. She claims that she was left so traumatised by their relationship last year that she ended up in hospital. Defending his handling of the case, Mr Spencer today said: 'They are very serious allegations and we do take those allegations very seriously. 'I think it is down to the police to do that thorough investigation, not for the Whips Office to investigate this alleged crime, it is for the police and the authorities to do that. 'Once they've come to that conclusion, then we can assess where we're at and the position that the MP find themselves in.' Sources insisted Mark Spencer (pictured today) had not been told of any accusation of serious sexual abuse by the former minister Opposition politicians have condemned the 'shocking' decision not to withdraw the whip from the MP. London's Victims Commissioner, Claire Waxman, accused Boris Johnson of breaking a vow to treat abuse against women 'seriously'. However, a senior Tory source told MailOnline that suspending the MP would inevitably lead to them being identified. It was claimed today the Chief Whip was aware the MP was in a sexual relationship with a woman when she made a complaint about his behaviour - but not that there was an allegation of sexual assault. Sources insisted that when Mr Spencer spoke to the woman in April he was not told of any accusation of serious sexual abuse by the unnamed former minister. A spokesman for Mr Spencer said: 'The Chief Whip takes all allegations of harassment and abuse extremely seriously and has strongly encouraged anybody who has approached him to contact the appropriate authorities, including Parliament's Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme, which can formally carry out independent and confidential investigations.' Mr Spencer is understood to be adamant that when he spoke to the woman she did not refer to any 'serious sexual abuse'. However, sources confirmed he was aware that the pair had a sexual relationship. The alleged victim has hit out at the party for not taking swift action, telling The Times: 'It's insulting and shows they never cared.' Women within the Tory ranks are demanding the Party takes action after a former Conservative MP was last week convicted of sexual assault in a separate case. An ex-Tory minister told the Daily Telegraph: 'I'm surprised the whip hasn't been removed considering what happened to Charlie Elphicke. I think the chief has a lot to answer for.' Opposition politicians have condemned the 'shocking' decision not to withdraw the whip from the MP. Pictured, the Houses of Parliament today The PM told MPs last year women 'must have the confidence that crimes, domestic violence and sexual abuse, are treated seriously by our law enforcement system'. Bur Ms Waxman warned on Twitter that 'not suspending an MP accused of rape while investigations are ongoing conveys a different message'. Asked about the situation in a round of interviews this morning, business minister Nadhim Zahawi told Sky News he did not know the details of the investigation. 'There's a victim here as well. I think it's a right for us to wait until the police can do their investigation, and then you'll be hearing from the chief whip as to what action will be taken,' he said. Supporters of the accused MP, who cannot be named, say he 'totally' denies the allegations after he was questioned and bailed by police. He has also been given the '100 per cent' backing of his local party. In a statement issued by the former minister's local association, its chairman said the MP disputed the allegations. '[The MP] has made us aware of allegations made against him,' they said. 'He denies these totally. And this association give him our 100 per cent support. 'Some of the officers of this association have known him for around 25 years and from our knowledge of him in a political and personal capacity we can't accept that there is any truth whatsoever in these accusations.' The Metropolitan Police said it had received allegations on Friday of sexual offences and assault relating to four separate incidents at addresses in London, including in Westminster, between July last year and January this year. A spokesman said: 'The Met has launched an investigation into the allegations.' A man in his 50s was arrested on suspicion of rape and was taken into custody at an east London police station, the force added. He was later released on bail to a date in mid-August. A father of three children, Emmanuel Eze on Monday allegedly committed suicide at Amagu Umudiaka village, Ihe community in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State. Mr Eze, who hailed from Ehe-alumona, Nsukka, reportedly hanged himself in the early hours of Monday in an uncompleted one-storey building close to the house where he lived as a tenant with his family. Elder brother to the deceased, Silas Eze, who confirmed the incident, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Nsukka on Monday that his late brother had been behaving abnormally before he took his life. It is unfortunate that my younger brother decided to commit suicide. For some time now he had been behaving like someone who had a mental health problem. Yesterday (Sunday), he hit the younger sister with a big wood and ran away, the sister was immediately rushed to the Bishop Shanahan Hospital, Nsukka. We are surprised to discover this morning that he has hanged himself in an uncompleted one-storeyed building near his compound. As I am talking with you, Emmas wife is not yet aware that her husband has committed suicide, because she is the one staying with my sister in Bishop Shanahan Hospital, he said. READ ALSO: Mr Eze said one of the family members had been mandated to report the incident at the Nsukka Divisional Police Station. When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Enugu State Police Command, Daniel Ndukwe, said he had received several calls on the incident. Mr Ndukwe however, said the command was still awaiting a brief from Nsukka Divisional Police Station. (NAN) Nobel Peace Prize winner John Hume, "the architect of the Northern Ireland peace process", has died. The former leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) had been ill for some time. Having committed his life to the pursuit of Irish unity by peaceful means, he was fiercely criticised for holding secret talks with Gerry Adams. But in 1993, Mr Hume persuaded the British and Irish governments that the gun could be taken out of Irish politics. When the IRA declared its ceasefire the following year, Sinn Fein were brought in from the political cold. It was the beginning of a peace process that would culminate in the Good Friday Agreement and power-sharing government at Stormont. In 1998, Mr Hume and his Unionist counterpart David Trimble were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace. Speaking at the award ceremony in Oslo, Mr Hume said: "I want to see Ireland as an example to men and women everywhere of what can be achieved by living for ideals rather than fighting or dying for them." In a statement, his family said: "We are deeply saddened to announce that John passed away peacefully in the early hours of the morning after a short illness. "We would like to extend our deepest and heartfelt thanks to the care and nursing staff of Owen Mor nursing home in Derry. "The care they have shown John in the last months of his life has been exceptional." They added: "John was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a great grandfather and a brother. He was very much loved, and his loss will be deeply felt by all his extended family. "It seems particularly apt for these strange and fearful days to remember the phrase that gave hope to John and so many of us through dark times: we shall overcome." Irish prime minister Micheal Martin described Mr Hume as one "of the greatest Irish people that ever lived" and said his life was one of "towering achievement". "John Hume was a great hero and a true peace maker," he said, adding: "All people on this island will give thanks for his life." Story continues Boris Johnson paid tribute to the "political giant", saying there would have been no Belfast or Good Friday Agreement without him. The prime minister said: "He stood proudly in the tradition that was totally opposed to violence and committed to pursuing his objectives by exclusively peaceful and democratic means. "For decades he sought resolution of the Troubles in Northern Ireland through dialogue and agreement. Without John Hume there would have been no Belfast or Good Friday Agreement." Northern Ireland's First Minister Arlene Foster said he was a "giant in Irish nationalism". "In our darkest days he recognised that violence was the wrong path & worked steadfastly to promote democratic politics," the Democratic Unionist Party leader wrote on Twitter. Deputy First Minister and Sinn Fein vice president Michelle O'Neill said: "John was a huge figure in Irish politics for many years and was known the world over for his peace-making efforts. "He was a leader who worked tirelessly for the community and his beloved Derry." Mr Adams, a former Sinn Fein leader, said the peace process was Mr Hume's "huge achievement" and he was a "giant in Irish politics". "I have to say on this sad day we wouldn't have the peace that we enjoy today if it wasn't for John Hume," Mr Adams told a news conference. He added: "To his great credit, when the news broke about him meeting with me, and he was the victim of a tsunami of abuse and of vilification, he stuck with it. "We must have met in secret and privately for over a decade, against a background and a foreground of terrible atrocities and other events. "At the end of it all, it worked. And it worked not least because of John Hume." Author and journalist Eamonn Mallie, who knew him well, said: "Hume was driven by one thing - a passion for peace. He hated that violence. He resented that violence. "At every conference, constant at the northern star, Hume spelled out, underscored, amplified, the grotesqueness of what the IRA were doing." Mr Hume had come to prominence during the civil rights movement in his native Derry. An MP for 22 years, an MEP for 25, he became a towering figure in the Anglo-Irish politics of the 20th century. Former US president Bill Clinton, who once described him as "the Martin Luther King of Northern Ireland", said in a joint statement with his wife Hillary: "Hillary and I are deeply saddened by the passing of our friend John Hume, who fought his long war for peace in Northern Ireland. "His chosen weapon: an unshakeable commitment to non-violence, persistence, kindness and love. With his enduring sense of honour he kept marching on against all odds towards a brighter future for all the children of Northern Ireland. "Through his faith in principled compromise, and his ability to see his adversaries as human beings, John helped forge the peace that has held to this day." Former British prime minister Tony Blair said he was a "political titan". "His contribution to peace in Northern Ireland was extraordinary," Mr Blair said. "I don't think we would have ever really got the peace process going and implemented if he hadn't been there offering help and advice." SDLP leader Colum Eastwood MLA said: "His legacy is Ireland at peace with itself. His legacy is the ending of 800 years of history and allowing us now to achieve all sorts of possibilities. "We're no longer fighting with each other and there's no prospect that we will in the future. "We're at peace, we have a democratic opportunity to set our own future. John Hume did that." A book of condolence in memory of Mr Hume will be opened at the Guildhall in the city by Mayor Brian Tierney. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Next time youre strolling through Staten Islands parks, look for large fenced-in areas known as deer exclosures. You may even notice the difference between the diverse greenery inside the fence and the barren areas surrounding it. Exclosures give wildlife biologists and ecologists the chance to observe plants that would grow if an area is left undisturbed by browsing deer. Its no secret that over the past decade the deer population has grown immensely on Staten Island, but now the long-term effect is starting to settle in. On a recent tour of the area, Deputy Brough President Ed Burke explained that while our forests may look lush and healthy to the average Staten Islander, thats not the case. When Staten Islanders see that our park systems, both the city and the state, have to fence in portions of the forest floor to protect the native vegetation, well I think they are going to be concerned about that, Burke said about raising awareness about the current state of our woods. 16 Saving the woodlands of Staten Island Clay Pit Ponds State Park Preserve in Charleston, which currently has two exclosures, is the perfect example of an ecosystem that is being altered by the presence of deer. According to Cliff Hagen, president of the Protectors of Pine Oak Woods, the park was once covered with various native berry bushes, shrubs and flowers, but now it only houses about three different types of foreign plants due to deer browsing. As they [the deer] eat these low growing shrubs, these invasive species then start to take over, [such as] stilt grass and garlic mustard, said Hagen, changing the chemicals in the soil and ultimately preventing native plant life from growing back. Unfortunately, the destruction goes far beyond the plants in the area. Petrides middle school science teacher Christa McDonald explained that these changes affect nearly every species that lives in the ecosystem. She is dedicated to educating her students on the importance of maintaining diversity in our forests. Both Hagen and McDonald recommend pulling out Japanese stilt grass or other invasive plants that grow on your property. If you have any questions or want to learn more about maintaining our forests, contact the Protectors of Pine Oak Woods. Watch the video above to learn more about saving Staten Islands woodlands. Appropriately enough it all began with a credit union loan. It was 1972 and the North was enduring a terrible year of murder and mayhem, including the killing of 14 innocent people by British soldiers in Derry. Read More John Hume, a charismatic civil rights leader from Derry, had big ideas about finding a way out of the mess this country was in. But he had no money. He and his wife, Pat, had five children and all were entirely dependent on her teachers salary. Suddenly, he got an invitation to meet one of the most influential Irish-Americans, Senator Ted Kennedy, at the Irish Embassy in Bonn. The credit union loan, appropriately to a man who had championed the foundation of those peoples banks all over Ireland, covered the flight and a hotel room. And happily the meeting was a huge success. Ted Kennedy believed John Hume had the formula which could unlock the conflict in the North, and he was prepared to use his influence in Washington to put the case to Britain. The story is told in a documentary film John Hume in America made in 2018. The documentary drew in a huge range of characters who were at the heart of it all over almost 40 years. Contributors included two US Presidents, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, two British Prime Ministers, John Major and Tony Blair, the American mediator, George Mitchell, and former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern. There were also a host of former Irish diplomats whose unsung skills proved vital in the whole 30-year-long series of interlinked projects. John Humes message was deceptively simple: Nothing would be achieved by violence. The people of Ireland were divided it was not about two pieces of turf. Resolution must begin in the North and the key to any change was the principle of consent. In America this message faced two potent enemies. One enemy was Irish-Americans unthinking IRA support, via the money jar on the bar. The other, more powerful enemy, was reticence by Washington's political elite, who accepted that Northern Irelands problems were an internal UK matter, and they did not risk irking London by interfering. John Hume set out to change the Washington elites view of Northern Ireland as a more urgent but achievable goal. Changing grass-roots Irish-America would have to wait. Relatively quickly he succeeded by persuading not just Ted Kennedy, but a host of others including the legendary Tipp ONeill, as speaker of the House of Representatives, the second most powerful politician in the USA. To paraphrase his long-time colleague the late, Seamus Mallon, John Hume went to where power was and he sought to use all his persuasive powers to influence those with that power. Over a tireless political career, he successfully sold this self-proclaimed single transferrable speech in Dublin, Washington, London, and Brussels. Eventually he even sold it, albeit very belatedly, to Sinn Fein and the IRA. There is an interesting contribution from Gerry Adams who admits they "wasted years." He does not add that they also wasted thousands of lives. John Hume himself was too ill to take part in the making of that 2018 film. But it is replete with footage of his memorable comments and assessments. Very striking is his defence of the hugely controversial Hume-Adams dialogue in the early 1990s, insisting he was doing it to help save lives, it was no disrespect to IRA victims. There are many other evocative moments, not least Humes lament for the dead hunger striker, Bobby Sands, whom he saw as a pawn of both British and IRA propaganda. It was praise indeed to hear the Democratic Unionist Party MP, Geoffrey Donaldson, admit Hume was light years ahead of Unionists in opening up these US contacts. It was also interesting to note that Margaret Thatchers close ally, Lord McAlpine, had said the hardline British Prime Minister lamented agreeing the 1985 Anglo Irish Agreement. But she said the Americans had made her do it. This film is not all upbeat achievements, though there are uplifting moments. The grim reality of all the reverses, the senseless killing and destruction, are well chronicled via lots of old footage. John Hume worked closely with Dublin, especially the Irish diplomats. But he always argued that Dublin governments had never defined why they wanted from Irish unity. This left Unionists to characterise it as conquest of the north by the south making unity a dirty word. Ireland must be one of the few places on earth where people seriously suggest it is wrong to unite people, John Hume reflected. But for all that John Hume was no saint. Seamus Mallon, who died this past January, said he could be a difficult person, bad at accepting criticism, and prone to solo runs which disenchanted colleagues. But Mallons verdict was unequivocal: There is a greatness about his political life, what he did, and what he helped to change. I would put him in the same breath as Parnell and Daniel OConnell. Read John Hume in Europe in tomorrow's Irish Independent Approximately 70 percent of solid waste in Vietnam is now processed via burial. This not only costs a large surface area for landfills but also creates water and air pollution. It is these sites, practising solid waste burial or burning, that become a dangerous source of greenhouse gases like CO2, CH4, or N2O, leading to climate change. A research by the Department of Science, Technology and Environment (under the Ministry of Construction) about greenhouse gases emission in solid waste treatment from 2014 2017 reveals that solid waste burial has created a larger amount of greenhouse gas than any other treatment methods. In fact, in 2017, the total volume of CO2 emission was 9.1 million tonnes, 8.1 million tonnes of which belonged to solid waste burial. Meanwhile, solid waste burning and composting release only 647 tonnes and 191 tonnes of CO2 respectively. Estimates on the potential of energy harnessing from household waste in Vietnam show a processing capacity of 200 4,000 tonnes per day to create about 200MW. This means that if handled properly, solid waste burning is able to supply a large volume of electricity while reducing up to 60 percent of greenhouse gases compared to waste burial. Ms. Luu Linh Huong from the Department of Science, Technology and Environment stated that to reach this potential, provinces in the nation need to invest more in upgrading waste treatment technologies, making better use of composting and incineration, ensuring sustainable socio-economic growth. Besides popular solutions to raise the publics awareness about environment protection and to improve waste treatment technologies, Vietnam is also interested in carbon pricing in hope of stopping the overuse or over-harnessing of energy to earn profit. Dr. Truong Duc Tri, Deputy Director of the Department of Climate Change, shared that carbon pricing will bring new opportunities to investors and businesses when offering carbon credits. These credits will force manufacturers to either reduce exhaust fumes emission or to pay dearly for this release. In the long term, this method encourages the investment in clean development and technology upgrading, ultimately leading to low-carbon economic growth. However, the selection of a suitable tool for carbon pricing in Vietnam is a key factor as it affects the sustainable development of the whole country and various communities, businesses there. Thus, in order to successfully form and boost the carbon market via carbon pricing, along with a full report on possible impacts of the method on the society and economy, it is necessary to synchronously introduce a transparent examination system for greenhouse gases and greenhouse gas release monitoring in national and industrial scales. Also, a detailed route on greenhouse gas reduction in each industry must be announced. By Minh Hai Translated by Thanh Tam ATHENS, Ga., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- FormFree Head of Vendor Management and Compliance Katie King has been recognized by HousingWire (HW) as a 2020 Woman of Influence. In its tenth year, the Women of Influence awards program honors 100 women who are "shaping and propelling the mortgage, real estate and fintech industries forward." King was recognized for her contributions to the housing economy during the 2008 housing market crash and for her role at FormFree, where she oversees all matters relating to compliance, audits, vendor management and enterprise risk. A 20-year veteran of the housing and finance industries, King earned her compliance and government relations bona fides as a senior leader at such organizations as Black Knight Financial Services, Citizen's Bank and SunTrust Bank (now Truist). As Director of Business Development and Client Relations at Hope LoanPort, King deployed the nation's first consumer-direct portal, which helped 750,000 distressed homeowners access the National Mortgage Settlement. "Katie's experience has positioned FormFree to excel even in the midst of a public health pandemic," said FormFree CEO Brent Chandler. "Her swift efforts have been instrumental in helping our partners understand that we need to urgently advance industry acceptance of direct-source borrower data to streamline processes, improve security and decrease costs for lenders, servicers, investors and most importantly borrowers." "This year's Women of Influence represent leaders who have faced some of the most unprecedented challenges the housing industry has seen in years," said HousingWire Magazine Editor Kelsey Ramirez. "Their strength set an example of leadership that impacted not just their teams or companies but the industry overall. This was one of the most competitive years we have ever seen for the award." The full list of HW's 2020 Women of Influence award honorees can be viewed at https://www.housingwire.com/articles/here-are-housingwires-2020-women-of-influence/. About FormFree: FormFree is a market-leading fintech company whose revolutionary products AccountChek and Passport are changing the credit decisioning landscape and encouraging lenders nationwide to incorporate a more holistic view of each borrower's financial DNA. To date, thousands of U.S. lenders and brokers have ordered millions of FormFree's patented verification reports representing over a trillion dollars in loan verifications. FormFree delights borrowers and lenders with a paperless experience, reduces origination timelines by up to 20 days and offers automated analysis and standardized delivery to lenders and investors using a secure ReIssueKey. For more information, visit https://www.formfree.com/ or follow FormFree on LinkedIn. About HousingWire: HousingWire is the most influential source of news and information for the U.S. mortgage and housing markets. Built on a foundation of independent and original journalism, HousingWire reaches over 40,000 newsletter subscribers daily and over 4 million unique visitors each year. Our audience of mortgage, real estate, financial services and fintech professionals rely on us to Move Markets Forward. Visit https://www.housingwire.com/ or https://www.solutions.housingwire.com to learn more. *PHOTO: https://www.Send2Press.com/300dpi/20-0803s2p-katie-king-300dpi.jpg Twitter: @RealFormFree @HousingWire This release was issued through Send2Press, a unit of Neotrope. For more information, visit Send2Press Newswire at https://www.Send2Press.com SOURCE FormFree Related Links https://www.formfree.com Japans imports of crude oil from the UAE reached to 20.13 million barrels in June, according to data from Agency for Natural Resources and Energy in Tokyo. The agency, part of the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, reported that the percentage of oil imports from the UAE amounted to 35.1% of the total Japanese oil imports, noting that the amount of crude oil that Japan imported during that month amounted to 57.33 million barrels, a WAM report said.-- Tradearabia News Service After working non-stop through an excruciating five months of the coronavirus pandemic, Houston healthcare workers are at the tipping point for exhaustion, according to Houston Methodist ICU director, Dr. Faisal Masud. "My teams are tired. It's five months--five months they've been working non-stop," Masud said. "We are stretched but we are managing." Texas set a new record on Wednesday, marking the seventh day in a row that hospitals had fewer than 1,000 beds available, according to Houston Chronicle data analysis. According to Texas Health and Human Services, there were 10,471 COVID-19 hospitalizations statewide on Wednesday. 'WE'RE SEEING THE WORST OF THE WORST: Houston nurse describes situation in ICU surge Masud is warning Texans about a dangerous misconception that if you are young, you will quickly recover from coronavirus. The serious issue at hand is the long-term effects on your lungs and heart. "If you get admitted to hospital and you get oxygen, the data that there is some long-lasting damage," Masud said. "If youre admitted to the ICU, almost half of those patients are showing some abnormality on the heart scan. If youre young, you may think you can recover, but you are looking at a lifelong impact on the heart and lungs." According to a report from UC Berkeley, the long-lasting effects of COVID-19 could inflict serious damage to the lungs, heart and gastrointestinal tract. "One thing we didnt anticipate was that the virus seems to accelerate a great deal of scarring in the lungs," Dr. John Swartzberg told Berkeley News. "What we really fear is long-term shortness of breath that could extend anywhere from being very mild to severely limiting. There is also a disturbing report looking at computerized tomography (CT) scans of asymptomatic people that found they were left with some scar tissue." Swartzberg also added that COVID-19 could directly attack the heart. "There is evidence now that the virus can directly attack heart muscle cells," Swartzberg continued "And, theres also evidence that the cytokine storm that the virus triggers in the body not only damages the lungs, but can damage the heart." With the relentless uptick in patients at Houston Methodist, Masud said that it is concerning that Texas is becoming the new epicenter for this coronavirus spread. "We as Texans pride ourselves to be best, No. 1 at things, but I dont want to be No. 1 in this," he said. "Our community has the power to stop this and change the trajectory." COVID-19 STRAIN: What does a more contagious COVID-19 strain mean for Houston? A top doctor weighs in Masud said that although his staff is managing, the hospital has had to add Intermediate Care Units due to the surge. "We're managing quite a few of these patients in our intermediate care units," Masud said. "These are for patients who are not sick enough for ICU, but not well enough to be in another ward. We've been successful so far to provide patient-centered care. We've done a good job stabilizing patients and getting them better." He's urging all Texans to take this pandemic seriously--"wear your masks, practice social distancing," for the sake of their health and the health of caregivers who must tirelessly to help the community. "If the Texas Medical Center which is the largest medical complex in the world is telling people to stop and listen, take precautions, I would listen," Masud said. Masud added that July 4th was a critical time for more infections to occur, but that time will tell. "We'll find out this week how that plays out," Masud said. alison.medley@chron.com Actor Portia de Rossi has defended her wife, Ellen DeGeneres, amid allegations of bullying and harassment behind-the-scenes on the TV hosts popular show. In July, Warner Bros launched an internal investigation after a number of former employees claimed they were bullied and sexually harassed while working on the show. A Buzzfeed report quoted 10 workers who came forward to describe the alleged toxic work environment and make accusations against specific producers. DeGeneres, who was not personally accused of mistreating staff, issued an apology to staff and said she took full responsibility, as her name is the shows brand. I told everyone in our first meeting that The Ellen DeGeneres Show would be a place of happiness no one would ever raise their voice, and everyone would be treated with respect, she said, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Obviously, something changed, and I am disappointed to learn that this has not been the case. And for that, I am sorry. Anyone who knows me knows its the opposite of what I believe and what I hoped for our show. De Rossi has since encouraged her followers to be kind to one another, as more people come forward to detail their experiences with DeGeneres. Sharing a poster that reads, I stand by Ellen, she added in the caption: To all our fans we see you. Thank you for your support. #stopbotattacks. #IStandWithEllenDeGeneres #IStandByEllen #IstandByEllenDeGeneres. Everybody Loves Raymond star Brad Garrett recently claimed he knew more than one person who had been mistreated on The Ellen Show. Access unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Amazon Prime Video Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up Sorry but it comes from the top @TheEllenShow, he tweeted. Know more than one who were treated horribly by her. Common knowledge. On Sunday 2 August, an Australian radio host alleged that DeGeneress team had instructed him not to look at her during an interview on the Today show, which he executive produced at the time. Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode has challenged the Federal Government to allow founder of the Synagogue of All Nations, SCOAN... Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode has challenged the Federal Government to allow founder of the Synagogue of All Nations, SCOAN, Prophet T.B Joshua to pray and heal COVID-19 patients at various Isolation Centres across the nation. He said the FG should hook him up by satellite through his Emmanuel TV to isolation centres in Nigeria as well and see the result. Fani-Kayode said he had watched in amazement how God healed thousands from 43 nations through prayers by satellite on Emmanuel TV by Prophet T.B. Joshua over the last one month. The satellite was connected to Covid-19 isolation centres in those countries & after prayers the patients were healed. The doctors looking after them at the centres & the patients themselves testified to this. Even the World Health Organisation has publicly acknowledged and commended the good work he is doing and TB himself has said that the prayers must be coupled with the taking of the necessary medication and that all Covid protocols must be observed and strictly adhered to. He said that the medical and the spiritual must go together. This man has done so much for the Church, for the poor, for Nigeria and for humanity. His compassion, efforts and ministry are truly remarkable which is why I often mention or write about him. I also know that, like yours truly, he is the object of envy and hate by many of his peers who are either ignorant of who and what he is and what he represents or who simply feel dwarfed by him and who really do not know him. They find it hard to comprehend or accept the fact that his humility, humanity, kindness, forgiving spirit, generosity, compassion and selflessness are the source of his strength and the reason for his extraordinary favour from God. I cannot understand why many Nigerians do not appreciate the work he is doing. I challenge the Federal Government to hook him up by satellite through his Emmanuel TV to isolation centres in Nigeria as well and see the result, he said. He said more than ever before we need the healing touch of God to deliver us from this evil plague and we have someone that can provide that through prayer on television right here in our shores. Millions all over the world are tapping into this great anointing and blessing but some Nigerians remain skeptical and cynical. The World Health Organization on Saturday warned the coronavirus pandemic was likely to be 'lengthy' and that is effects would be felt far into the future after its emergency committee met to evaluate the crisis six months after sounding the international alarm. The committee 'highlighted the anticipated lengthy duration of this COVID-19 pandemic,' the WHO said in a statement, and warned of the risk of response fatigue given the socioeconomic pressures on countries. The panel gathered Friday for the fourth time over the coronavirus crisis, half a year on from its January 30 declaration of a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) - the WHO's highest level of alarm. WHO continues to assess the global risk level of COVID-19 to be very high, it said following the meeting. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (seen above in Geneva last month) said the COVID-19 pandemic 'is a once-in-a-century health crisis, the effects of which will be felt for decades to come The image above taken at a lab in Maryland last month shows a colorized scanning electron micrograph of a cell (blue) heavily infected with coronavirus particles (red) that was isolated from a patient sample The novel coronavirus has killed at least 680,000 people and infected at least 17.6 million since the outbreak emerged in China last December, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP. In the United States, which has emerged as the viral epicenter, nearly 155,000 Americans have died after contracting coronavirus. As of Sunday, there were nearly 4.65 million cases in the US. The US, Brazil, Mexico and Britain have been particularly hard hit in recent weeks by the disease COVID-19, as their governments have struggled to come up with an effective response. Unsurprisingly, the panel, comprising 17 members and 12 advisers, unanimously agreed that the pandemic still constituted a PHEIC. Several countries around the world have imposed strict lockdowns in a bid to control the spread of the respiratory disease, plunging economies into sharp contraction. The committee urged the WHO to provide nuanced, pragmatic guidance on COVID-19 management to reduce the risk of response fatigue in the context of socio-economic pressures. The panel urged the WHO to support countries in preparing for the rollout of proven therapeutics and vaccines. The committee also urged the agency to accelerate research into the remaining critical unknowns of the virus, such as the animal source of the disease and potential animal reservoirs. It called for improved understanding of the epidemiology and severity of COVID-19, including its long-term health effects. And the committee wanted more light shed on the dynamics of the virus, such as modes of transmission, shedding, potential mutations; immunity and correlates of protection. The near six-hour gathering was hosted at the WHO's headquarters in Geneva, with some participants joining via video-link. The committee will reconvene within the next three months. Going into the meeting, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the pandemic's effects would be long-lasting. It's sobering to think that six months ago, when you recommended I declare a PHEIC, there were less than 100 cases and no deaths outside China, he said Friday. The pandemic is a once-in-a-century health crisis, the effects of which will be felt for decades to come. The committee warned countries to prepare their health systems to cope with seasonal influenza and other disease outbreaks alongside the new coronavirus. They were also urged to encourage global solidarity on COVID-19 and address mis/disinformation about the virus. The WHO has been sharply criticized for the length of time it took to declare an international emergency. The United States, which accused it of being too close to China, officially began its withdrawal from the organisation in July. The agency has also been criticized for recommendations deemed to be late or contradictory, in particular on wearing masks, or the modes of transmission of the virus. Although knowledge about the new virus has advanced, many questions remained unanswered and populations remain vulnerable, Tedros said on Friday. 'Early results from serology (antibody) studies are painting a consistent picture: most of the worlds people remain susceptible to this virus, even in areas that have experienced severe outbreaks,' he said. 'Many countries that believed they were past the worst are now grappling with new outbreaks. 'Some that were less affected in the earliest weeks are now seeing escalating numbers of cases and deaths.' Kim Kardashian and her husband Kanye West have reportedly embarked on a family getaway in a bid to save their allegedly troubled marriage. On Sunday, musician, designer and presidential hopeful Kanye, 43, was spotted boarding a private jet in Cody, Wyoming, with his four-year-old son Saint. And TMZ reports that Kanye and Kim, 39, have taken a planned family vacation with their four children in a bid to salvage their relationship before it's 'beyond repair'. Getaway: Kim Kardashian and her husband Kanye West have reportedly embarked on a family getaway in a bid to save their allegedly troubled marriage. Pictured in November 2019 They were last seen together last weekend, when Kim jetted from Los Angeles, where she's been staying with their children, for an emotional reunion in Wyoming with Kanye, who has publicly made controversial statements with their relationship. MailOnline has contacted representatives for Kim Kardashian and Kanye West for comment. Kanye has been spending time at his Wyoming ranch while he works on music and continues his bid to run for the office of United States President. During Kanye and Kim's reunion last week, the pair were pictured having an emotional exchange in the musician's car, which looked to have left Kim in tears. We are family: The couple are said to have taken their four children North, seven; Saint, four; Chicago, two, and Psalm, one with them on their break, amid reports of troubles The Keeping Up With The Kardashian star proceeded to leave Wyoming solo back to Los Angeles to reunite with their children. Kim has since denied a report that she feels 'torn' about the prospect of leaving Kanye, whose recent erratic behaviour she has attributed to his bipolar disorder. In the report, shared by People, a source is quoted as saying: 'She isn't getting back what she needs from Kanye. She was to the point that she flew to Cody to basically tell him their marriage is over and to say goodbye.' People reports that musician and fashion designer Kanye is eager to work on their marriage, recently issuing a public apology to her on Twitter after stating during a presidential rally that she contemplated aborting their first daughter North, seven. Concerns: Kanye appeared at a campaign rally in South Carolina on July 19 (pictured), during which he delivered a lengthy monologue that sparked concerns about his well-being However, a source claimed the apology is as far as his reparative efforts have gone, explaining: 'He doesn't seem to get what she is saying. He hasn't changed anything that she told him needs to change.' 'Kim is very torn,' added the source. 'The last thing she wants is to be divorced with four kids. She knows that she will be fine financially, but her concerns are the kids and the partnership. She is moving towards a divorce, but who knows if she will actually sign papers.' After his presidential campaign rally on July 19, in which he tearfully revealed he and Kim had considered aborting North, Kanye launched into a days-long string of Twitter rants denouncing both his wife and his mother-in-law Kris Jenner. Kim, who was reportedly livid that he shared the abortion story publicly, made a statement late last month, saying that her family was 'powerless' to intervene to help Kanye with his bipolar disorder issues. 'Complicated and painful': Kim took to Instagram late last month following West's late night Twitter meltdown, saying she feels 'powerless' amid his struggle with bi-polar disorder And while Kardashian's representatives have told MailOnline that reports that she is weighing whether to leave her husband are 'absolutely not true', a number of Kanye's recent tweets suggest divorce has been on his mind for some months. Clearly the distance between the couple has been a source of contention, as during Kanye's Twitter meltdown last week, he stated: 'My family must live next to me,' before adding: 'It's not up to E or NBC anymore.' The rapper appeared to be hinting that he wanted Kim and the kids to be based in Wyoming and not in LA, where she films her E! reality series Keeping Up with the Kardashians. 'Kanye has been in Wyoming for the last year. Kim goes about once every five weeks and brings the kids,' one source told Us Weekly. Added the source: 'They haven't been spending time together because he moved his life completely to Wyoming and that's not where their life is, their family is, their kids are in school or the larger family is.' Another report added that Kanye lives 'full time' in Wyoming as it is 'best for his creativity' according PageSix. Kim is also said to have urged Kanye to quit his bid for presidency, which lead him to a disastrous first campaign rally in North Charleston, South Carolina, where he claimed he and his wife considered aborting their first baby, daughter North. Yet Kanye is still eager for his presidential bid to become a reality, after making another last-ditch attempt to get on another ballot in Missouri last week, and is said to have hired top political advisers. Speaking out: Kim was reportedly livid that Kanye shared the abortion story publicly. Kanye has continued to defend his revelation. Pictured in November 2019 Last month, Kim took to Instagram following Kanye's controversial behaviour, admitting that she was 'powerless' amid his meltdown, calling her husband 'brilliant but complicated'. The reality star said 'his words sometimes do not align with his intentions' after Kanye last night claimed he has been 'trying to get divorced' from Kim since she met his fellow rapper Meek Mill at a hotel. Kanye said late last month that Kim was 'out of line' to meet Meek Mill at a hotel in Los Angeles to talk about 'prison reform', and blasted her mother Kris Jenner as 'Kris Jong-Un' while accusing the pair of 'white supremacy'. However, Kanye apologised to his wife in a tweet days later, amid reports that he went to hospital to be treated for anxiety. Staying focused on other things: Kim has continued to focus on her family posting pictures of her children regularly; her son Psalm, right, seen with his cousin True, daughter to Khloe The rapper tweeted: 'I would like to apologize to my wife Kim for going public with something that was a private matter. I did not cover her like she has covered me. 'To Kim I want to say I know I hurt you. Please forgive me. Thank you for always being there for me.' His apology came after Kim gave a frank and open statement about the situation to her fans, sharing three pages to her Instagram story amid the controversy. She wrote: 'Those that understand mental illness or even compulsive behavior know that the family is powerless unless the member is a minor.' The star continued: 'I understand Kanye is subject to criticism because he is a public figure and his actions at times can cause strong opinions and emotions. 'He is a brilliant but complicated person who on top of the pressures of being an artist and a black man, who experienced the painful loss of his mother, and has to deal with the pressure and isolation that is heightened by his bi-polar disorder. 'Those who are close with Kanye know his heart and understand his words some times do not align with his intentions.' It has also been reported that the couple have been living separately for the past year, with Kanye at their $14 million ranch in Wyoming and Kim back in Hidden Hills, California, with their four children, making near-monthly trips to see Kayne Kim and Kanye four children daughters North, seven and Chicago, two, and sons Saint, four, and Psalm one. A scientist prepares samples during the research and development of a vaccine against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at a laboratory of BIOCAD biotechnology company in Saint Petersburg, Russia June 11, 2020. Russia is preparing to start a mass vaccination campaign against the coronavirus in October, the country's government has claimed. Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said clinical trials of a coronavirus vaccine candidate from the Moscow-based Gamaleya Institute were complete, Russian state news agency RIA reported Saturday. Moscow has claimed the test results showed an immune response in all subjects, with no side effects or complications. Russia has completed early-stage clinical tests with the vaccine candidate from the institute, a spokesman for Russia's RDIF sovereign wealth fund told CNBC on Monday. The country is now set to begin large-scale phase three trials this month. This phase of clinical research is the only way to show whether a vaccine is effective. According to the World Health Organization, there are 26 candidate vaccines in clinical trials around the world, including an early-stage one from the Gamaleya Institute. But the WHO has not listed any second or third-phase trials from the country. The laboratory behind the vaccine is now seeking regulatory approval for the drug, Murashko said according to RIA, and that this would be required before it could be used. Doctors and teachers would be the first to be vaccinated, he said, while mass vaccinations are planned for October. Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov told Russia's TASS news agency Monday that the country was expecting to manufacture several million doses of Covid-19 vaccines each month by the start of 2021. This acceleration of Russia's vaccine development could mean the country will become the first in the world to inoculate people against the virus, a huge milestone in combating a pandemic that has claimed the lives of more than 689,000 people worldwide. Organised crime gangs have stepped up pet thefts since the start of the coronavirus pandemic to cash in on rising prices for dogs and puppies. The surge in dognapping has been driven by greater demand for dogs from people spending more time at home during lockdown, police say. It is thought thieves in some areas are leaving white chalk marks outside homes to indicate to accomplices which houses have dogs worth stealing. The gangs are targeting mostly pedigree and working dogs, some changing hands for thousands of pounds. In the past two months, 40 dogs have been taken in Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, including several cocker spaniels. Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Show all 19 1 /19 Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Peppi the Puli The images of the dogs jumping in mid air were taken by Italian photographer Claudio Piccoli Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Fox the border collie Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Banjo the Australian kelpie Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Toby a mixed breed Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Splash the Australian Shepherd Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Urmas the whippet Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Aemy the mixed border collie and Harzerfuchs Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Pessah the border collie Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Paul the border terrier Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Tris the border collie Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Leep and Chester both border collies Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Jake the border collie Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Chester the border collie Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Jungle the border collie Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Peach the border collie Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Iliade the Australian Shepherd Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Oz the border collie Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Fai the border collie Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com Stunning shots show dogs in mid-flight in the woods Claudio Piccoli with border collie Leep Claudio Piccoli / SWNS.com A West Highland terrier, a jack russell and a Chihuahua-cross were stolen from a kennel in Stretham, Cambridgeshire, in the early hours one night last month after thieves cut fencing to get inside. Police in the county have warned owners to be extra-vigilant after 17 dog thefts in recent weeks. In Suffolk, two Lhasa apso dogs and seven puppies, worth up to 2,000 each, were among pets stolen from a boarding kennels, along with six Labrador puppies and a spaniel. Cocker spaniels may sell for as much as 3,500 each. Recommended Therapy dog stolen from autistic girl before birthday and Christmas The charity DogLost says dog thefts went up by 65 per cent between 23 March, when lockdown was announced, and 1 June, compared with the same time last year. Police issued a warning at the weekend after white chalk lines appeared on brickwork, gates and wooden fences in the county, leaving owners worried that they were being targeted, the website Tyla reported. Detective Inspector Chris OBrien, of Cambridgeshire police, said: With more people working from home and finding themselves with extra time, the demand for dogs has soared across the country. However, this has in turn resulted in huge increases in prices which has sadly led to criminals taking advantage of the situation by stealing dogs in an attempt to sell them on at a high price. Sgt Brian Calver, of Suffolk police, said: Organised crime groups are actively targeting addresses with working breeds tending to be those that are favoured by criminals. Recommended Stolen pet dog reunited with family after four years apart The loss of any pet can be devastating to owners, with the added trauma of not knowing what sort of conditions the dog is being subjected to. We would advise dog owners to review security of any outdoor kennels. He said all but one of the thefts involved dogs classed as working gun breeds. In Lancashire, 22 dogs, including two litters of puppies, were taken in a raid on a breeders kennels. In Cambridgeshire, dogs have also been reported stolen from Bluntisham, Peterborough, Horningsea, Stow Cum Quy and Wilburton. Some have even suggested owners change their dog-walking patterns for fear that gangs are watching popular routes. When three dogs were taken in Gobowen, north Wales, their owner Keri Arbel, told her local paper she believed they were stolen to order after the price of puppies had increased over lockdown. We would advise dog owners to review security of any outdoor kennels Suffolk Police Animal lovers are campaigning to make pet theft a specific offence with jail terms, with petition to parliament having nearly 75,000 signatures. Currently pets are legally regarded as inanimate objects when stolen. Daniel Allen, founder of the campaign, said that in the coming month, based on average theft rates, at least 192 dogs would be recorded as stolen for irresponsible breeding in horrific conditions, dog fighting, as well as for selling on and ransom. Ipswich MP Tom Hunt supports a change in the law, saying: Current punishments represent a slap on the wrist for this cruel crime. Police say all dogs should be microchipped so they can be traced if found. Companies like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat that are making vegetable-based meat substitutes have captured the imagination and wallets of consumers, but so far, there's been no real corollary for the seafood industry. Now, a startup coming from Y Combinator's summer cohort, Kuleana, is hoping it can swim in those waters. While new businesses like Wild Type, Finless Foods and Shiok Meats are all developing cell-based alternatives to using live tuna, salmon and shrimp, and Good Catch and Ocean Hugger are proposing their own tuna replacements, Kuleana hopes to differentiate itself by replicating sushi-grade raw tuna. And that's only the beginning, according to Kuleana co-founder and chief executive, Jacek Prus. Eventually, the company hopes to be making vegetarian alternatives to tuna, salmon and more fish and shellfish. "Nobody has really done raw tuna very well yet," says Prus. "Were going to do raw tuna and then probably salmon." Prus became interested in the food industry after taking an animal ethics class at the University of Texas at Austin. After five years in the city, Prus moved to Europe and helped set up the ProVeg International incubator. It was there that Prus got in touch with Ron Shigeta, a longtime researcher, technologist and entrepreneur in the food science space who previously worked as the chief science officer at IndieBio. Shigeta put Prus in touch with the Barcelona-based food science researcher Sonia Hurtado and the three launched Kuleana (Shigeta has since left the company). The food accelerator experience gave Prus, a lifelong meat eater before college, a grounding in alternative proteins and led to the thinking around how to develop a more flavorful fish alternative. Sample product from Kuleana. Image Credit: Kuleana Kuleana's tuna is made using iron and algae oil and a mix of different proteins, and forming them in a proprietary way, Prus said. Using an initial 50,000 in seed funding from Good Seed Ventures, Kuleana is developing a scaffolding that will enable the company to recreate the taste and texture of raw fish, without using 3D printing techniques (which Prus said could make the product look and taste "cooked"). Story continues To get to market, Kuleana is reaching out to a number of sushi chefs at restaurants around the country, because the first target is, in fact, restaurants. "What we found is that 60% [of seafood] is eaten out of the home, and with raw seafood that's significantly higher," said Prus. "We're doing it heavier on the food service route." Within the year, Kuleana may be appearing in some stores as a tuna alternative in sushi rolls and poke bowls at a price that Prus said is already competitive with higher-grade tuna loin. Kuleana already held two successful taste tests in Barcelona and San Francisco and the company boasted in a recent note to investors that there were letters of intent for orders of over 50,000 pounds of the company's vegetarian tuna substitute. "The taste of tuna isn't the hardest part... its the texture," says Prus. "[Competitors] are formatting their process through extrusion and it will not work. Im confident that what were doing with the biotech might be one of the best approaches out there." Advertisement Thousands of Chinese beer lovers left their face masks and virus worries behind to gather in large crowds and raise a much-needed glass as the largest booze festival in Asia opened over the weekend. China has largely brought the coronavirus outbreak under control through a series of lockdowns and restrictions, and the small number of cases reassured beer-lovers to turn out at the annual Qingdao beer festival despite the global pandemic. At the festival, which opened on Friday and will run until late August, drinkers were eating and drinking together, watching shows and fireworks and sampling the more than 1,500 types of beer available. Cheers! Beer-lovers were reassured by China's low numbers of new virus cases, and turned out to raise a glass in Qingdao Visitors are pictured having fun during the Qingdao International Beer Festival at Gold Sand Beach Beer Square on July 31 Drinkers were eating and drinking together, watching shows and fireworks and sampling the more than 1,500 types of beer Many revellers were walking around the enormous venue in Shandong province mask-free, with long tables packed with merry drinkers in scenes reminiscent of pre-COVID-19 days. State broadcaster CCTV said the festival was a chance for people to go back to 'normal life and clink glasses'. 'It's been half a year since I last travelled around... I feel so happy and relaxed right now,' Wang Hua, a tourist from northern Shanxi Province, told CCTV. The annual Qingdao beer festival, billed as the largest beer festival in Asia, opened on Friday and will run until late August Many revellers were walking around the enormous venue in Shandong province mask-free, with tables packed with drinkers The central 'Beer City' is limited to 30 per cent visitor capacity, while staff must wear masks and visitor temperatures taken But all was not entirely as normal. The central 'Beer City' is limited to 30 per cent visitor capacity, while staff must wear masks and visitor temperatures and health codes are checked. The Qingdao festival is the largest of its kind in Asia and one of China's biggest tourism events, according to China Daily. Although it is held in summer every year, its high popularity has led it to be called Asia's Oktoberfest. Last year, the month-long event reportedly welcomed 920,000 domestic and international visitors, who downed 1,100 tons of beer. Although it is held in summer every year, the Qingdao Beer Festival has been called Asia's Oktoberfest due to its popularity Last year, the month-long event welcomed 920,000 domestic and international visitors, who downed 1,100 tons of beer Imported beer containers must be tested for the virus and disinfected before entering the venue this year, officials said Imported beer containers are also being tested for the virus and disinfected before entering the venue, officials said, after several local clusters in China were linked to imported food. The seaside resort is the home of Tsingtao, one of the most popular beers in China and the most exported around the world. The brewery was set up while Qingdao was under German colonial rule between 1898 and 1914. China has seen a new spike of infections in the north-western province of Xinjiang and the north-eastern city of Dalian. Both regions have used draconian measures to fight the disease. Numbers of new COVID-19 cases in Muslim-inhabited Xinjiang are continuing to fall, with 28 reported on Monday. The seaside resort is the home of Tsingtao, one of the most popular beers in China and the most exported around the world China has seen a new spike of infections in the north-western province of Xinjiang and the north-eastern city of Dalian Officials reported 43 new cases nationwide, including seven imported infections and eight in the north-eastern province of Liaoning. No new deaths were reported, leaving China's total fatalities at 4,634 among 84,428 cases. All the new cases in Xinjiang were in the regional capital and largest city of Urumqi, which has been at the centre of China's latest major outbreak since cases were first detected there in mid-July. The region has reported a total of 590 cases, all but four of them in Urumqi, where authorities have conducted mass testing, cut down on public transport, isolated some communities and restricted travel outside the city. Yet, while mainland China's latest outbreak appears to have peaked, authorities in the semi-autonomous Chinese city of Hong Kong are struggling to contain a new wave of infections, with more than 200 new cases added over the weekend. Some of the more unusual recently reported side-effects of the coronavirus pandemic have been delays to the sale of part of Africas largest fibre company and extensions of operator licences in the Philippines. According to Bloomberg, Zimbabwean billionaire and founder of Econet Global Strive Masiyiwa cant seem to find buyers for a stake of 20 percent to 34 percent of his company Liquid Telecommunications Holdings Ltd. Estimates of $600 million have been given for the likely value of the sale, which is apparently required to pay back a large loan for a pay-TV venture that foundered due to Zimbabwes economic problems and currency shortages. Talks with potential investors on the sale of the fibre giant were apparently affected by the spread of Covid-19 in March, with buyers adopting a wait-and-see approach, given the potential effect of lockdowns on Africas economies. In normal circumstances Liquid Telecom, which operates in 13 countries in East, Central and southern Africa and has data centres in South Africa and Kenya, might seem an attractive purchase. But these arent normal circumstances. The pandemic has brought slightly better news for telecommunications services providers and broadcasters in the Philippines, however. According to TeleGeographys CommsUpdate, the Philippines regulator, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), has issued a memorandum extending all existing permits, certificates and licences until 31 December 2020, citing the many mobility limitation issues in many regions around the country due to lockdown restrictions. All parties enjoying this extension will need to renew permits or licences on or before the last working day of December 2020. Advertisement Sixty per cent of counties across the United States are now seeing an uncontrollable spread of COVID-19 infections, a data map shows - as Dr Deborah Birx warns cases are 'extraordinarily widespread' across the country. The data map, which was compiled by spatial analytics company Esri, shows that almost every state across the country has at least one county experiencing an 'epidemic trend', or uncontrollable spread, of coronavirus cases. Of the 3,141 US counties, 1,918 are currently experiencing an epidemic outbreak, according to the data. Every state has counties - 807 in total across the country - that are seeing spreading trends, which is an outbreak that could still be controlled if preventative measures are taken. Arizona, Louisiana, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, South Carolina, North Carolina, Delaware and Maryland are only seeing epidemic or spreading trends, the data shows. The only three states that do not have an uncontrollable spread are in the far Northeast, including Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. The data map, which was compiled by spatial analytics company Esri , shows that almost every state across the country has at least one county experiencing an 'epidemic trend', or uncontrollable spread, of coronavirus cases Currently, the number of infections across the country has surpassed 4.66 million and more than 154,000 Americans have died from the virus. Dr Deborah Birx, the head of the White House coronavirus task force, warned on Sunday that the US had reached a new phase of the outbreak with infections 'extraordinarily widespread' in rural areas as well as cities. As coronavirus cases continue to surge across much of the country, public health officials are trying to work with governors to tailor responses for each state. 'We are in a new phase,' Birx told CNN's State of the Union. 'What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread.' Birx warned that people living in multi-generational households in an area that is experiencing an outbreak should wear masks inside the home to protect the elderly or those with underlying conditions. She said federal officials have been working on individual reports for each state by examining community trends and hospital records. 'Each of these responses have to be dramatically tailored,' she said, adding that what she had witnessed visiting 14 states over the last three weeks gave her cause of concern. 'As I traveled around the country, I saw all of America moving,' Birx said. 'If you have chosen to go on vacation into a hot spot, you really need to come back and protect those with comorbidities and assume you're infected.' Currently, the number of infections across the country has surpassed 4.66 million. The US recorded nearly 49,000 new infections on Sunday, which is down considerably from the daily average 60,000 over the past few weeks. The lower count was due, in part, to Texas not reporting cases due to system upgrades The number of cases have been trending downwards after reaching daily peaks in mid-July in mostly Sunbelt states including Texas, Arizona, California and Florida More than 154,000 Americans have died from coronavirus. While daily cases in hotspot states are showing signs of a decline, deaths appear to be increasing Even though deaths are rising across the US, they remain well below levels seen in April when an average of 2,000 people a day were dying from the virus Meanwhile, Admiral Brett Giroir, an assistant Health and Human Services secretary, continued to stress the importance of wearing masks. 'If we don't do that, and if we don't limit the indoor crowded spaces, the virus will continue to run,' he told NBC's Meet the Press. 'We are very concerned and this is a very serious point.' Dr Deborah Birx, the head of the White House coronavirus task force, warned on Sunday that the US had reached a new phase of the outbreak with infections 'extraordinarily widespread' in rural areas as well as cities 'That's why we're going to all the states, we're on local radio, we give specific instructions to every governor by county, what they need to do when we start - when those counties start tipping yellow, because that's the time when you have to stamp it down.' The US recorded nearly 49,000 new infections on Sunday, which is down considerably from the daily average 60,000 over the past few weeks. The lower count was due, in part, to Texas not reporting cases due to system upgrades. The state is due to release the figures on Monday. The number of cases has been trending downwards after reaching daily peaks in mid-July in mostly Sunbelt states including Texas, Arizona, California and Florida. While daily cases in those hotspot states are showing signs of a decline, deaths appear to be increasing. Even though deaths are rising across the US, they remain well below levels seen in April when an average of 2,000 people a day were dying from the virus. Health experts have indicated the death toll may not be as bad this time around possibly because a large share of the current cases are younger people, who are less likely to die, and because of advances in treatment and knowledge of the virus. Deaths are a lagging indicator and can continue to rise weeks after new infections drop. A coronavirus death, when it occurs, typically comes several weeks after a person is first infected. The University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation predicted in March that the pandemic could kill more than 81,000 people by July. In its latest statement in mid-July, the IHME said its model now projects the death toll at more than 224,000 by November 1. It said many fatalities could be avoided by preventative measures such as masks and social distancing. Florida reported 7,104 new cases on Sunday. Cases have been trending downwards since peaking in mid-July. Deaths have been trending upwards across the state with 62 new deaths reported on Sunday Texas recorded 9,539 new cases on Saturday with infections trending downwards in the latter half of July. Deaths in the state surged to record highs last week California's cases are now trending downwards after surging in late July. The state recorded 9,032 new cases on Sunday and 132 new deaths. Deaths have been gradually rising across the state since mid-July Arizona's cases have been trending downwards since hitting record peaks in the first week of July at a time when hospitalizations were also peaking. Deaths in the state surged in mid-July but appear to have plateued in the latter half of the month ORLANDO, Fla., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Clean Streak Ventures ("Clean Streak" or the "Company"), an express car wash platform headquartered in Orlando, announced the acquisition of 7 Bay Breeze Car Wash and Lube ("Bay Breeze") sites located in Tampa Bay, FL. Bay Breeze is one of Tampa Bay's largest car wash operators, offering express and full-serve washes, detailing and quick lube services. The acquisition expands Clean Streak's current platform to 17 locations across Tampa Bay, Orlando and Naples. Keith Feltner, the former owner of Bay Breeze, stated: "We are thrilled to have worked with the Clean Streak team. Their desire to retain our employees was an important factor that provided us with confidence our washes and people would be in good hands." Tom Welter, CEO of Clean Streak, said: "Clean Streak continues to execute on its plan to build an operator-led car wash platform. We were looking to grow our presence in Florida and Bay Breeze is an attractive addition to our portfolio. We are excited to invest a significant amount of capital in the locations and bring our financial and operational resources to the company." Clean Streak is actively seeking opportunities to expand its geographic footprint through acquisitions or partnerships, and tuck-ins or new developments in its existing markets. For more information on Clean Streak Ventures, please visit www.clean-streak.com. About Clean Streak Ventures Clean Streak Ventures is a national car wash platform headquartered in Orlando, which currently operates 17 locations in Florida. The Company's main goal is to provide the best customer service experience and the industry's fastest, highest quality washes. Clean Streak prioritizes people, putting customers first and investing in its team members. Clean Streak is actively pursuing acquisitions and partnerships to expand its geographic footprint. The Company's growth strategy is focused on acquiring regional market leaders and providing sellers with the option of realizing full liquidity or partnering with them and remaining actively involved in the business. Clean Streak Ventures is a portfolio company of MKH Capital Partners, a Miami-based private equity firm. SOURCE Clean Streak Ventures LLC Related Links https://www.clean-streak.com RAIL passenger groups have expressed their frustration at the latest in a series of delays to the Crossrail project. The new link from Berkshire to Essex via central London was due to open next summer, having originally been scheduled to begin operating in December 2018. The original cost of 14.8 billion is said to have risen to 18.25 billion. Transport for London, which is responsible for the project, has blamed the latest delays on the coronavirus pandemic. It has still not announced a new target date for the first section of the Elizabeth Line. Patrick Fleming, secretary of Henley Branch User Group, claimed that TfL was using the pandemic as a smokescreen. He said: I think they were in deep trouble with compatibility and they have been working on the software to try to fix it. They need time but when you are under pressure that is something you dont get. In some respects, covid-19 has actually given them a breather but we are not holding our breath. There is probably at least another years work to do but it is all guesswork because we dont hear very much. I do think there are flaws with Crossrail, particularly for Henley. We have had very good support from Great Western Railway for the fast services into Paddington and linking those trains to the branch line. What it means, though, is that they have lost some of their capacity, because it has gone over to Crossrail and now there is the danger that we are going to have to rely on what is essentially an underground train that doesnt give us the best service. Our mission is to stay in touch with GWR and encourage it to continue the semi-fast services so that Henley and Shiplake commuters have a chance to get into London in a reasonable time. Crossrail will come but the real question is does it matter? With covid-19, I dont think the passenger numbers are going to build up that quickly in terms of people going back to work. We have got the capacity now because they can run trains into Paddington but the concern is congestion. The idea of Crossrail was to bypass that congestion, so for vulnerable people this is a shame because it would have been a way of getting through that. Neil Gunnell, of Henley Trains, said: Further delay to Crossrail is frustrating, especially as it was touted as being on time and on budget right up to a very short period before the original date. The delay will lead to growing congestion and continued slower journey times and will be frustrating for those who have accepted jobs in the City or Docklands on the basis of swifter journey times. However, the best way for local commuters to travel to and from London will always be to use the Great Western Railway fast services between Twyford and Paddington. Henley Trains has ensured that almost all services on the branch line connect with a GWR service to or from Paddington. These services have fewer stops and full seating, power at the seat, tables, wifi, hat racks and toilets. Even for off-peak users, TfL trains can largely be avoided. Edward Marshall, chairman of Wargrave User Group, said: What a surprise there have been so many dramas with Crossrail from start to finish. The virus is delaying work this year and they cant be blamed for that, to be fair. The whole country is going to be a year behind with what has happened. At the minute, the railways are running extremely light but there are more families travelling into Henley. However, the travellers that have been worst affected are commuters. TfL had to make an announcement and I think they have been quite sensible to say they arent going to be able to achieve what they said they would. It all sounds marvellous in theory having a stopping train from Reading to London but you have to ask about the practicalities. They are blocking services because their trains are so slow, so GWR haslost capacity. Even British Rail realised there was no point in running a stopping service from Reading to London and that was post-war. Now that it is indefinitely delayed, what are they going to do to help people now? Someone needs to look at it again. GWR rolled over and now TfL cant provide the service. Construction on the 73-mile link has been taking place since 2009 but the pandemic has caused a halt of several months. A Crossrail spokesman said: A programme of this scale and complexity was already challenging. The impact of covid-19 has clearly made the existing pressures more acute. Due to a pause of physical activity on sites and significant constraints on ongoing work, time has been lost, only some of which can be recovered. The opening of the central section between Paddington and Abbey Wood next summer, as announced earlier this year prior to covid-19, is not achievable. TRENTON Three city cops face explosive claims that they planted a gun on an innocent man, according to a newly filed lawsuit. Robert S. Christie, who was arrested and charged two days apart in 2018 with drug and weapons offenses, is suing at a time when cops in New Jersey and across the nation are under fire following the death of George Floyd. Officials throughout the U.S. are now considering a host of police reforms, including repealing qualified immunity, which thanks to a 1982 U.S. Supreme Court ruling has shielded cops for decades from legal liability unless theyre shown to have violated rights clearly established by previous cases with nearly identical facts. According to the lawsuit, Christie, 35, was exonerated of the weapons charge and now is suing to hold Trenton cops Harrison Steimle, Matthew Hutchinson and Jason Astbury accountable. He has alleged they fabricated, planted, tampered with and withheld evidence that showed he was innocent of possessing a gun Aug. 11, 2018, the suit claims. The officers carried out and perpetuated a conspiracy to deprive plaintiff of his rights by participating in a corrupt effort to illegally seize, book, and fraudulently attempt to convict plaintiff on false charges manufactured and supported by defendants, according to the four-count lawsuit, filed by attorneys Robin Lord and Clifford Bidlingmaier III. The complaint which also names police director Sheilah Coley includes counts of malicious prosecution, false arrest and imprisonment, and civil rights violations. Christie was arrested Aug. 9 and Aug. 11, 2018, on drug and then weapons offenses, respectively. He pleaded guilty in April 2019 to the drug charges and was sentenced to time served after 247 days in the joint, the Mercer County Prosecutors Office said. The gun charge was dismissed by the prosecutors office due to insufficient evidence, said Casey DeBlasio, a spokeswoman from the MCPO. Cops claimed they saw Christie toss a gun underneath a car near a bar, according to Trentonian blotter. Officers from the Violent Crimes Interdiction Task Force received information about a man armed with a gun at a bar near the intersection of Poplar Street and North Clinton Avenue. Christie allegedly tossed the weapon after seeing police, officials said at the time. The gun was loaded with hollow-point bullets and reportedly stolen out of Lakewood. But Christies lawyers said the stop was unconstitutional and Trenton cops did not have probable cause to detain Christie, let alone hook and book him on weapons offenses. The lawsuit without mentioning Christies evidence that suggests the gun may have been planted accused officers of willfully ignoring evidence that he never possessed the weapon when officers rolled up on him in a parked vehicle. The city doesnt comment on pending litigation. This isnt the first time Trenton Police has been accused of planting evidence in criminal cases. Lord sued on behalf of Tyrawn Carter, who was charged with aggravated assault after a suspicious gun find in September 2016. The case is still pending, court records show. Body-camera footage contradicted Trenton K-9 cop Drew Astburys claim that he found a rusted-out handgun that state police later determined was inoperable. The footage also showed officers attempting to coerce Trenton Police officer Chris Hutton into shutting off his body-worn camera, which he refused to go along with. The Trentonian sued to compel the city to release the footage after the police department initially refused to turn over the damaging footage because the officers in the video were under internal affairs investigation. Astbury claimed in a sworn probable cause affidavit that he found a gun a .32-caliber Colt after seeing Carter drop it over a chain link fence outside 241 Walnut Avenue. The tape showed officers fanning out across the neighborhood in a frantic search for the weapon. It took several minutes until Hutton, not Drew Astbury, found a rusted-out gun in the same spot described in Astburys probable cause affidavit, undercutting his claim that he found the gun immediately after seeing Carter drop it in the spot. COVID-19: Activists warn of sharp rise in human trafficking in near future August 03,2020 | Source: PTI Tarannum (name changed) has many cut marks on her wrist, scars that constantly remind her of the several years she spent in a brothel where she was sexually exploited countless times. "Three years of hell," she recalls. Daughter of a fisherman from a cyclone-prone area of the Sundarbans in West Bengal, India, 13-year-old Tarannum was trafficked by a local shopkeeper in 2012. He tricked her into believing that he would get her a job as a domestic worker with a good salary. Once in Delhi, he sold her to a woman at a brothel. After three years, she was rescued by a local NGO with the help of police. But even after she returned home, the trauma of the past haunted her and she turned suicidal, trying to slit her wrist multiple times. Slowly recuperating now, Tarannum hopes no one ever goes through what she did. Another trafficking survivor Reema (name changed) does not remember her parents. She only faintly recalls her father. At a very young age, a brothel owner had trafficked her and forced her into prostitution. She was finally rescued from a brothel in Sonagachi, West Bengal, in 2013 at the age of 21 after enduring many years of sexual abuse in different cities across the country. Both Tarannum and Reema are among thousands of children and women who get trafficked in different parts of the country every year. This year with the outbreak of the coronavirus, activists and researchers are worried that an exponential increase in human trafficking cases will take place in the coming times. Roop Sen, anti-trafficking researcher and gender rights activist, said it's "undeniable" that those on the margins of society are vulnerable to trafficking. "The reasons are manifold like debt trap, closing down of factories, restaurants and retail shops, probable rise in demand of young girls and women in red light areas," he said. According to Sen, among the steps the government can take to combat human trafficking are cash transfer support to more vulnerable families and communities, cash transfer to children and adolescents attending schools and creating safe migration services. He further suggested that anti-human trafficking units can gather intelligence on trafficking in hotspots. Sambhu Nanda, an activist from West Bengal who coordinates an NGO-network called Partners for Anti-Trafficking claimed that multiple reports of missing and trafficking of girls have been received in the past two months. "Even when parents reported the cases to local police stations, the officers pleaded helpless since all their energies were focussed on COVID prevention," he said. Pompi Banerjee, a member of NGO Sanjog, said the vulnerabilities due to the lockdown and the pandemic are essentially the susceptibilities that have existed for a long time, but at a scale where they were not highly visible issues. "The pandemic, the lockdown, and in parts of our country devastating natural calamities (floods and cyclones) are now accentuating these vulnerabilities and have brought them out in the open, visible enough that they can no longer be ignored by the law enforcement and politicians," Banerjee said. N Rammohan, anti-trafficking activist from Andhra Pradesh who runs NGO HELP, claimed that many sex workers, who are the earning members for their families especially for their children, have been driven to take loans under exorbitant interests during the lockdown period. "The local loan sharks who are not registered under the Money Lenders' Act, especially operating in red light areas, are poaching women with adolescent girls and encouraging them to take loans under high interest. When they would be unable to repay their loans, the sex workers would be forced to prostitute their daughters," he said. Priti Mahara, Director, Policy Research and Advocacy at CRY - Child Rights and You said separated and orphaned children are also particularly vulnerable to trafficking and other exploitation like forced begging and child labour. "The state needs to be prepared to provide enough child care homes/facilities, improve the quality and safety standard of childcare homes, child sponsorship and foster care. There are increased chances of many children getting separated from families, becoming orphans or falling out of the safety net," she said. She further said the government and civil society need to activate local self-governance units like panchayats to keep the records of families and children entering and exiting villages and slums to help keep track of children and expedite follow ups. Prabhat Kumar, deputy director of child protection for NGO Save the Children said whenever there is a disaster, there is rise in trafficking cases due to the crisis that follows as it becomes easier to recruit people and send them for trafficking, forced labour or sexual exploitation. The economic crisis, lack of enforcement mechanisms and migrant crisis might lead to rise in trafficking in the coming times, he warned. newindianexpress.com 2020 Theme(s): Communities and Organisations. By Steven Rogers, 08/02/2020 ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Steven Rogers is a senior entertainment reporter for Reality TV World and been covering the reality TV genre for two decades. star Karine Martins has confirmed she has left her husband Paul Staehle and filed for an emergency protective order that includes an array of shocking allegations -- including claims that Paul has physically assaulted Karine, sexually assaulted her, and prevented her doctor from prescribing contraception to her.Karine -- who announced she was pregnant with the couple's second child in May -- and Paul have had an extremely volatile relationship since even before they wed, and Karine has repeatedly previously announced plans to divorce Paul only to have the couple later reconcile.The allegations that Karine had left Paul and sought an emergency protective order against him had first surfaced on Friday when Paul took to Instagram and claimed Karine had filed a "full restraining order" against him and shared photos of the order Karine had allegedly filed against him."I'm not allowed to be around her or my son, within 500 feet of them at all," he reportedly said.Paul's protective order postings came a few hours after he had made an earlier series of Instagram Stories postings in which he claimed Karine had gone "missing" with their son Pierre while he was in a hospital waiting for "test results" he feared would show he had cancer."Karine took off with Pierre, I don't know where they are," Paul said. "Neighbors called me upset saying, 'Your wife... just took off with your baby, no car seat -- hopped in somebody's car and took off.'"In the postings, Paul claimed that when the test results came back they showed he had a STD, not cancer, and then appeared to blame the STD on his prior allegations that Karine has cheated on him since the couple arrived in Kentucky from Brazil earlier this year."I've never cheated on Karine, ever, but apparently I've tested positive for an STD and they are giving me treatment for me," Paul said in one video.Paul then later posted another video claiming the local sheriff's office had "come by" and was "looking for Karine" because she was "missing" and they didn't "know where she's at."Karine confirmed she has left Paul and obtained an emergency protective order against him in a Sunday afternoon statement she released on Instagram."I want you all to know that me and Pierre are doing well now," she wrote in a lengthy Instagram Stories posting."All this past days I had a lot going on. As the media showed, I had issues where the police was called because I feared for my life and my son's life which led me to ask for help and ultimately be rescued from an environment that no longer was healthy for none of us involved in the situation.""I'm getting the best help I could ever get and I'm really thankful for all the people involved in it. I also thank all the people that worry about me for the support I have had. It have been a big part of my recovery," she continued."Relationships are hard and sometimes it just can't be fixed anymore. I need this time to organize my thoughts, work on myself and care for my son after everything we have been through in the last year and half."In addition, Karine also confirmed the emergency protective order photos Paul had publicly shared were genuine and addressed Paul's claims that the application had not been written in her own handwriting (which Paul had attempted to prove by sharing multiple photos of handwritten recipes Karine left behind in the couple's home)."Just to clarify, the [emergency protective order] was me, I had help from a translator since I do not speak English," she wrote.Karine also denied Paul's claims that she is missing and being sort by local sheriffs."I also would like to state that I'm not missing. The police [know] where to find me if they need me," she wrote in her posting. "This is a legal matter not a "media matter" That being said it's the first and last time I will speak about it."Lastly, Karine also denied she has set up a GoFundMe account to help her financially."I have not set up a Go fund me or any other kind of means to receive money," she wrote. "Please report them. All I ask is to keep your prayers for me and Pierre."Karine made a number of shocking allegations against Paul in the emergency protection order application that he shared -- including claims that Paul has assaulted her, "forcefully rapes me," "hold[s] my Green Card and all my documents," monitors her phone, uses cameras to monitor her on his phone when he is not home, has forced her to drink beer while pregnant, and has forbidden Karine's doctor from prescribing birth control to her."On multiples occasions in the past 3 weeks the respondent pushed me, grab my breast squ[ee]zing and twisting, hurting me, pushing me to the floor, covering my mouth. He force his penis into my mouth and forcefully rapes me. If I refuse he throws things, he yells, or he threat[ens] to call police," Karine wrote in the handwritten two-page application."He currently hold[s] my Green Card and all my documents. I am not allowed to leave the house, he monitor[s] my phone, he [has] cameras around the house and he can see through his phone who arrives and who leaves. He threat[ens] take out son Pierre away if I ever leave. He forced me to drink alcohol by threat[ing] me so I drunk some so he calm down.""He is constantly on social media making videos of me against my will saying I am crazy, saying I have mental illness. Recently he called [Child Protective Services] and told [them] I was always drunk, aggressive, and abusive to him," she continued."He post on social media [that] I have [cheated with] several [men] even knowing that he [has] cameras around the house and I can't leave. I have no access to money for my son or myself.""I went to the doctor to try [and] get contraceptive. In the doctor's office he said 'no' because I would be doing an abortion. The doctor explained the contraceptive was only for preventing [pregnancy] and I would not get pregnant [but] Paul said 'no' and took me home."According to her application, Paul has also refused to let her return home to Brazil and fears she would still not be safe from him there."I came to U.S. to visit my in-laws and now he [does] not let me go back. We got married in Brazil, not in U.S.," she wrote. "When I ask to go back to me family he threat[ens] [to] take my son away.""I am terrified he will hurt me or hurt my son because I runned away from him and I am even afraid to go back to Brazil now because He Can go to Brazil and hurt us."Karine ended her application by stating she was also afraid of Paul's mother Mary and wanted no contact with any of his family or friends."I have my family in Brazil but I don't feel that law enforcement will protect me from him there," she wrote. "I am afraid of him and his mother because his mother knows and sees what he does and she refused [to] report her son. I have witnessed him threat[en] and being violent with his own mother.""I do not want any contact with or his mother, his friends or family. I do not want them close, I am afraid of them hurt[ing] my son for revenge."The events that led to Karine's emergency protective order appear to have started on Thursday when Paul posted a lengthy Instagram Live video where he and Karine had a huge fight in which they made assault allegations, called the police, and Paul said he may file for full custody of their son Pierre after Karine allegedly cheated on Paul and violated a Child Protective Services case against her."We were doing a call, I look over, I see her talking to a Brazilian lawyer about child support and divorce. I asked her what's going on with this," Paul was shown telling police when they arrived.During the Instagram Live video, an apparent friend of Karine's also told the police Karine wanted to be taken to a "shelter" where someone could "help her."The woman said Karine depended on Paul -- who seemed to be holding Karine's passport and other documents -- for everything, including money, and so Karine basically didn't have a way out.During the video, Paul also repeatedly boasted to officers that he has ten cameras recording everything that occurs in the house and he could show them footage showing Karine assaulting him several days earlier.In addition, Paul was also shown repeatedly telling Karine that he would give her her own Green Card, passport and other legal paperwork but he would not give her their son's documents."You're not taking my son out of the country. Absolutely not!" Paul yelled at Karine at one point in his Instagram Live session."You're not taking my son and running off... You can talk to a lawyer. If I have to, I'll release him to a judge, or I'll put him in custody of a detective. But I'm not giving you my son's documents -- absolutely not. No, not happening."Later that night, at around 4AM on July 31, Paul posted another video on his Instagram Stories and seemed to claim the police were called again."I apologize to you guys for earlier. It's been crazy here. I did not get arrested. The cops did come back," Paul said."We had a storm and Karine got on her cell phone and called the police because the WIFI disconnected. She said I was halting her communications... which didn't make any sense to me because she had her phone the whole time and the WIFI just randomly went out.""Sometimes Internet goes out in our houses -- it happens right?! But you're going to call the cops? For that? The cops weren't too happy about it."Paul added it had "been stressful" for the couple and they "need prayers.""That's the big thing," Paul said. "Everybody, pray for us. And like I said... I don't want Pierre in dangerous situations. Pierre has been in a very dangerous situation before and that's why things happened."Want more spoilers or couples updates? Click here to visit our homepage! JALALABAD, Afghanistan (AP) Militants affiliated with the Islamic State group stormed a prison in eastern Afghanistan in a daylong siege that left at least 39 people dead, including the assailants, and freed nearly 400 of their fighters before security forces restored order, a government official said Monday. The attack underscored that the Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan is still a formidable presence, and it highlighted the challenges ahead as U.S. and NATO forces begin to withdraw following Washington's peace deal with the Taliban. The peace accord aims to recruit the Taliban to battle the militants from IS, which U.S. officials have told The Associated Press is the Americans' biggest foe in Afghanistan. Both the Taliban and the IS affiliate are staunch rivals. At least 10 of the dead were IS militants involved in the assault to free their comrades from the prison in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, said Ajmal Omar, a provincial council member. The rest of the dead were believed to be prisoners, civilians and Afghan forces, although no official breakdown was given. Another 50 people were wounded in the attack that began Sunday when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives-packed vehicle at the entrance to the prison complex some 115 kilometers (70 miles) east of Kabul, Omar said. Other militants simultaneously stormed the prison and took up positions in nearby residential buildings. They fired on Afghan troops for several hours, even after the security forces retook the prison and began recapturing some of the inmates. Of the five prisoners killed by the militants, at least three were members of the Taliban, showing the tensions between the two factions. An AP photographer who went inside the prison, which houses about 1,500 inmates, said he saw the bodies of five of the attackers and at least four prisoners. Omar said about 430 prisoners stayed in their cells or hid during the siege. It was unclear Monday how many prisoners remained at large. Story continues One inmate, who gave his name as Azizullah, said he heard the powerful explosion, followed by the militants storming into the main prison block, shouting for their fighters and telling them to flee. The aim of this attack was to rescue all Daesh members inside the prison, and unfortunately that included five or six senior Daesh people, Omar said, using an Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group, which is also known as ISIS. Among the prisoners who escaped was the group's shadow governor for neighboring Kunar Province, he said. The Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan, known as IS in Khorasan Province, claimed responsibility for the attack. The militants have established a base in Nangarhar Province. Afghanistan has seen a recent surge in violence, with most attacks claimed by IS militants. U.S. and Afghan forces along with the Taliban have pounded IS positions. While the group's strength might have been reduced, analysts say it is still able to stage such high-profile attacks such as the jailbreak. "Rumors of the demise of ISIS in Afghanistan are greatly exaggerated. It retains the capacity to carry out attacks, and it continues to gain new recruits ranging from disaffected former Taliban fighters to newly radicalized young Afghans," said Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Wilson Center. "The attack on the jail took place in terrain where ISIS has long had a deep presence, and it used tactics that the group has frequently deployed in Afghanistan," he said. "It amplifies, for Kabul and Washington and other NATO partners, just how serious the ISIS challenge remains. On Saturday, authorities said Afghan special forces killed a senior Islamic State commander near Jalalabad. The Talibans political spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, told the AP that his group was not involved in the prison attack. We have a cease-fire and are not involved in any of these attacks anywhere in the country, he said. The Taliban had declared a three-day cease-fire starting Friday for the major Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. The cease-fire expired at midnight Sunday, although it wasnt immediately clear if it would be extended. The U.S. reached the peace deal with the Taliban in February, but a second, crucial round of negotiations between the Taliban and the political leadership in Kabul has yet to begin. Washington has been pushing for an early start to intra-Afghan negotiations that have repeatedly been delayed since the Taliban accord was reached. In a tweet late Monday, Shaheen said U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held a video call with the Talibans chief negotiator, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar. His Pashto language tweet said Pompeo welcomed the cease-fire. Shaheen repeated the Talibans demand that the Afghan government free all 5,000 Taliban prisoners it holds in line with the deal. President Ashraf Ghani has refused to release the last 400, calling a grand council of elders for Thursday to decide the issue. While the Islamic State group has seen its so-called caliphate stretching across Iraq and Syria eliminated after years of fighting, the group has continued its attacks in Afghanistan. The extremists also have battled the Taliban, which was overthrown by the U.S. in a 2001 American-led invasion following the Sept. 11 attacks. A United Nations report released last month estimated the membership of IS in Afghanistan at 2,200. While its leadership has been depleted, IS still counts among its leaders a Syrian national Abu Said Mohammad al-Khorasani. The report also said the monitoring team had received information that two senior Islamic State commanders, Abu Qutaibah and Abu Hajar al-Iraqi, had recently arrived in Afghanistan from the Middle East. - Faiez reported from Kabul, Afghanistan. Associated Press writer Kathy Gannon in Islamabad contributed. McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) easily beat Wall Street estimates with its fiscal 2020 fourth-quarter results in May despite COVID-19 headwinds. And its shares have also performed pretty well so far in 2020 with the ongoing pandemic. The giant healthcare company probably isn't going to lose any of its momentum after announcing fiscal 2021 first-quarter results before the market opened on Monday. Here are the highlights from McKesson's Q1 update. By the numbers McKesson reported revenue in the first quarter of $55.7 billion, roughly matching its revenue total in the prior-year period. The result, though, topped the consensus Wall Street Q1 revenue estimate of $53.85 billion. The company announced Q1 net income of $444 million, or $2.72 per share, based on generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). This reflected solid improvement from McKesson's GAAP earnings of $423 million, or $2.27 per share, recorded in the prior-year period. McKesson posted adjusted earnings of $2.77 per share in the first quarter, down 16% year over year. Despite the decline, the result trounced the average analysts' Q1 adjusted-earnings estimate of $2.30 per share. Behind the numbers McKesson CEO Brian Tyler stated, "Thanks to the strong execution of our employees around the world, McKesson delivered first-quarter results ahead of our original expectations, as volumes across the business improved earlier than anticipated." But while the company beat expectations, there were some trouble spots. The good news for McKesson's top line in Q1 was that revenue for its biggest segment, U.S. pharmaceutical and specialty solutions, rose 2% year over year to $45.1 billion. This modest growth was driven mainly by an expanding market and higher volumes from major retail customers. However, more brand-to-generic conversions and lower overall prescription volumes weighed on the segment's Q1 sales. There was bad news, though, for McKesson's other segments. Revenue for its European pharmaceutical solutions segment fell 7% year over year to $6.2 billion on lower volumes in its pharmaceutical distribution business. Its medical-surgical solutions segment generated revenue of $1.8 billion in Q1, down 5% year over year. Fewer primary care patient visits as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic was the primary culprit behind this decline. McKesson's other businesses' revenue in Q1 totaled $2.6 billion, a 13% year-over-year decrease driven mainly by lower pharmaceutical volumes in Canada. The company's GAAP earnings result was boosted by an after-tax net gain of $97 million from insurance proceeds connected to McKesson's settlement of a shareholder-derivation action related to its controlled substances monitoring program. Its adjusted earnings were lower largely due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on prescription volumes and primary care patient visits. Looking ahead McKesson boosted its full-year 2021 guidance. It now projects non-GAAP earnings per share of between $14.70 and $15.50, up from its previous forecast of between $13.95 and $14.75. The primary wild card for the healthcare stock over the next few quarters will be the COVID-19 outbreak. McKesson's upward revision to its full-year guidance likely assumes continued improvement with prescription volumes and primary care visits, both of which depend on avoiding coronavirus-related lockdowns in the future. The refusal of the US Congress to take action as supplemental federal unemployment benefits expired July 31 for as many as 30 million American workers demonstrates the social interests that drive the corporate-controlled political system in the United States. A Congress whose average member is a millionaire has not the slightest concern for the mass suffering the cutoff of benefits will inflict on the working class. Tens of millions of workers and their families have already begun to experience the impact of this act of class savagery. Their weekly incomes will be cut by 60 to 90 percent, depending on the level of state unemployment benefits they may continue to receive. Nearly 20 million households will be unable to afford their monthly rent, under conditions where a limited moratorium on evictions was allowed to expire on the same day, Friday, July 31. Millions more will be unable to buy sufficient food, let alone afford health insurance and medical care under conditions of a nationwide COVID-19 pandemic. The cutoff of supplemental benefits is not the byproduct of gridlock in Washington or the unintended consequence of election-year conflicts between Democrats and the Trump administration, as the corporate media presents it. This is a deliberate policy. For all their mutual mudslinging and displays of partisan ferocity, the Democratic and Republican parties and the Trump administration serve the same class interests and are pursuing the same goal. They aim to use the threat of poverty, hunger and homelessness to force millions of workers to return to work producing profits for the capitalist class, regardless of the spreading danger from the coronavirus pandemic. Appearing on Sunday television interview programs, after a three-hour negotiating session on Saturday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (net worth $120 million), speaking for the Democrats, and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (net worth $300 million), speaking for the Trump administration, agreed that the $600-a-week supplemental benefit would not be renewed in its previous form. On the ABC program This Week, Mnuchin flatly attacked the supplemental benefit, repeatedly describing jobless workers who received the $600-a-week payment as overpaid and complaining that the payments had led to widespread refusal by workers to go back to their jobs when recalled after the end of state lockdowns imposed because of COVID-19. When his interviewer expressed skepticism that an extra $600 was a disincentive to finding a job, Mnuchin replied, Theres no question in certain cases where were paying people more to workstay home than to work. Thats created issues in the entire economy. The former Hollywood financier, whose personal wealth would cover the cost of supplemental benefits for 10,000 workers for an entire year, was giving voice to the claims of Senate Republicans and numerous corporate employers. They have argued that the $600-a-week federal benefit made it difficult to induce workers to return to work at low-paying fast food, retail and sweatshop positions. Speaking on the same program, Pelosi tried to make a display of sympathy for the unemployed, criticizing the Republicans for subjecting jobless workers to a greater degree of scrutiny than businessmen who collected tens of millions of dollars in federal payments under the misnamed Paycheck Protection Program. But she embraced the suggestion of the second-ranking Democrat in the House, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, who said last week that the supplemental benefit was negotiable, and that the Republican demand to reduce the weekly amount was not a deal-breaker. Pelosi suggested a sliding scale of payments, as proposed by Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (Democrat from New York), in which the amount of money thats given as an enhancement for unemployment insurance should relate to the rate of unemployment. So, as that goes down, then you can consider something less than the $600 Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (net worth $22.5 million) has set August 7 as the effective deadline for the ongoing negotiations, the day the Senate will begin its August recess. The House and Senate could well begin their monthlong breaka period of lavishly-paid vacations far beyond the reach of most American workershaving either drastically cut benefits for the unemployed or failed to restore them at all. On the same day that federal supplemental benefits expired, the House of Representatives passed, on a near-party-line vote, a $1.3 trillion bill to fund the Department of Defense, as well as the departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Justice, Transportation, Energy and several other agencies. The military component of that bill, close to $750 billion, would by itself have paid for more than 40 weeks of supplemental unemployment benefits. It includes such items as $70 billionfour weeks of supplemental benefitsfor Overseas Contingency Operations, the slush fund the Pentagon uses to cover expenses for wars in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan, as well as drone missile strikes across a much wider area. The most recent bill for a single weapons system, the F-35 fighter jet, at $34 billion, would pay for two weeks of supplemental benefits. A single Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier (there are five on order, and 10 planned in total) comes to $18 billion for research, development and constructionone weeks worth of supplemental unemployment benefits to keep 30 million American families alive. There are other comparisons that can be made. General Motors CEO Mary Barra made $21 million last year, or $420,000 per week, enough to fund the unemployment benefits of 700 jobless workers. The increase since March in the personal fortune of a single individual, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, comes to $74 billion, enough to cover supplemental benefits for four weeks. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has gained more than $50 billion during the same period. He could pay the benefit bill for an additional three weeks. American billionaires as whole have gained $565 billion over the past four months, enough to finance supplemental benefits until March 2021. And that leaves out the rest of the Wall Street investor class, those of less than billionaire rank, for whom the four months since the passage of the CARES Act in late March have been the most lucrative period in the history of world capitalism. Senator McConnell claimed that 15 to 20 members of his Republican caucus opposed any extension of supplemental benefits at all, and several of these diehards have been quoted bemoaning the colossal federal borrowing that has been carried out since the coronavirus pandemic forced the temporary lockdown of the US economy. The figures cited above, however, demonstrate the lying character of the claims that there is no money to provide necessary support to allow workers and their families to survive without being forced back into workplaces that would quickly become focal points of a deadly infectious disease. Resources aplenty exist, created by the labor of workers. There could be no more fitting disposition of these resources than to confiscate them from the capitalists and put them to use to ensure the survival of the principal productive class in modern society, the proletariat. To fight for such a perspective, workers must break with the two parties of big business, the Democrats and Republicans, and establish their political independence. The working class must build its own political party, based on a revolutionary socialist program aimed at putting an end to the profit system. This means joining and building the Socialist Equality Party. Preventing a global education disaster By Kevin Watkins, exclusively for the Sunday Times in Sri Lanka View(s): View(s): LONDON The beautiful thing about learning, the great blues guitarist B.B. King once wrote, is that no one can take it away from you. Born and raised in poverty, King understood the value of education as a force for change. If only political leaders responding to the COVID-19 pandemic had an ounce of his insight. COVID-19 is now mutating into a global education emergency. Millions of children, especially the poorest and young girls, stand to lose the learning opportunities that could transform their lives. Because education is so closely tied to future prosperity, job creation, and improved health, a setback on this scale would undermine countries progress, reinforcing already extreme inequalities. Yet this emergency has yet to register on the pandemic response agenda. Lockdowns have shut more than one billion children out of school. For an estimated 500 million, that means receiving no education at all. A Save the Children survey in India found that two-thirds of children stopped all educational activity during lockdown. The danger now is that a perfect storm of lost schooling, increased child poverty, and deep budget cuts will lead to unprecedented reversals in education. This is an emergency layered on a pre-existing crisis. Even before the pandemic, 258 million children were out of school, and progress toward universal education had stalled. Now, increased child poverty alone could result in ten million children not returning to school. Many of these children risk being forced into child labor or early marriage (in the case of adolescent girls). Meanwhile, already abysmal pre-pandemic learning levels, which left half of all children in developing countries unable to read a simple sentence by the end of primary school, are set to worsen. Pathbreaking research on the impact of the 2005 earthquake in Kashmir, Pakistan captures the risk to learning. Schools were closed for three months. When they reopened, attendance quickly recovered. But four years later, children aged between three and 15 who lived closest to the fault line had lost the equivalent of 1.5 years of learning. Imagining that outcome on a global scale gives a sense of what is at stake. Education empowers people, reduces poverty, and improves health, and the human capital that it generates shapes the destiny of countries. Lost education will erode that capital, effectively placing the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals beyond reach. Governments should now be investing to prevent that outcome. Unfortunately, education budgets are being hollowed out by recession and the diversion of public spending and international aid to health care and economic recovery. As a result, governments in low- and middle-income countries could end up spending $77 billion less than planned on education over the next 18 months. So, what can be done to avert disaster? In its new global Save Our Education campaign, Save the Children has set out a three-part agenda for recovery. The first priority is to keep learning alive during lockdowns. Governments should do all they can to reach children through radio, TV, and remote-learning initiatives. Countries such as Ethiopia, Uganda, and Burkina Faso have developed ambitious national distance-learning programmes. They and others need more donor support to implement them at scale. Second, the pandemic creates an opportunity to address the wider learning crisis. Too many children are being taught at the wrong level, owing to schools rigid application of poorly designed curricula. Every child returning to school should undergo a learning assessment aimed at identifying those in need of support. Remedial teaching programmes such as those pioneered by organisations like BRAC and Pratham can then prevent these children from falling further behind, thereby reducing the risk of future dropout. Third, increased international financing is critical. Most of the worlds poorest countries, especially in Africa, entered the economic downturn with limited fiscal space. That room for maneuver is now shrinking further as recession bites and external-debt problems intensify. Rich-country governments have responded to the COVID-19 crisis by tearing up their fiscal and monetary policy rulebooks and underwriting ambitious national recovery plans. They should be equally bold in supporting education in developing countries. More effective leveraging of multilateral development bank balance sheets is an obvious starting place. The Education Commission has advocated establishing an International Finance Facility for Education to provide loan guarantees, thus enabling the World Bank and other institutions to borrow cheaply on international markets and lend the funds to developing countries. Every $1 of guarantees under this scheme could unlock $4 of financing for education. This approach, which would include rigorous debt-sustainability evaluations of recipient countries, could mobilise resources on a scale commensurate with the crisis. Aid donors and the World Bank should support it. To its credit, the Bank is front-loading resources already allocated to the International Development Association, its concessional lending arm. But an unprecedented crisis surely demands more than that. The Bank should establish a supplementary IDA budget of at least $35 billion and step up its support for education. Debt relief is another potential source of financing. The G20s Debt Service Suspension Initiative for IDA members (the worlds 73 poorest countries) is a small step in the right direction. Unfortunately, private and Chinese creditors, which account for over half of these countries debt-service payments (about $25 billion this year) have shown scant interest in participating. As a result, countries like Cameroon, Ethiopia, and Ghana are currently spending two or three times more on debt service than they do on primary education. In effect, countries are meeting short-term debt payments by eroding long-term human capital. Allowing the claims of private creditors to rob children of their right to an education is morally indefencible and economically ruinous. That is why Save the Children has proposed a mechanism through which debt obligations can be converted into investments in children. We can measure the health impact of COVID-19 on adults by tracking infection rates and deaths, and we can gauge its economic effects in terms of lost GDP, higher unemployment and rising public debt. The education emergency is less visible to policymakers. But it will leave millions of the worlds poorest children carrying the scars of diminished opportunity for the rest of their lives. We can and must protect their future. Kevin Watkins is the CEO of Save the Children UK. Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2020. www.project-syndicate.org Brian Scott, President/ CIO ClearTone Consulting I am so excited to support the growth of Frederick Countys burgeoning business community by helping them navigate todays complex technology demands. Brian Scott As technology continues to pervade all aspects of business operations, companies need experienced and expert direction to strategically leverage technology to accelerate growth and differentiate themselves from competitors. Fractional or virtual CIO services provide strategic direction, expert management, and experienced execution required for companies to succeed in todays complex and tech-centric business environment. Today, technology products and services are fundamental to all aspects of running a business. Software-as-a-Service (SAS) systems support all departments including HR, finance, and operations. Data backups, hosting, disaster recovery, and software development have moved onto the cloud. Cybersecurity risks are very real and continue to grow with sources reporting a 50% increase in ransomware and malware attacks year over year. With the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual worker connectivity and communications are paramount today than ever before. Successful businesses are those that leverage technology to accelerate growth and minimize risks by effectively supporting the strategic objectives of the organization. Although businesses of all sizes face these complex challenges and the infusion of technology, SMBs rarely have the budget to support a full-time CIO. The answer is a virtual or fractional CIO. Brian Scott is a Frederick resident, working and living in the area for the past eighteen years. Utilizing his twenty years of experience as Chief Information Officer for a prominent national company, Brian launched ClearTone Consulting LLC with the goal of helping small and medium sized businesses win in their marketplace by strategically leveraging technology. Brian offers expert guidance and management in areas such as software and product development, networking, data center operations, cybersecurity, and business systems. I am so excited to support the growth of Frederick Countys burgeoning business community by helping them navigate todays complex technology demands. Brian Scott ClearTone Consulting LLC offers expert strategic technology leadership to the SMB community. Supporting businesses with development of their strategic technology vision, implementation of their technology roadmap, protection from cybersecurity risks, support of their computing and data assets, and development of their IT teams, ClearTone Consulting LLC offers experienced and expert virtual CIO services. An article by Tigran Mkrtchyan, the Ambassador of Armenia to Latvia, was published in delfi.lv, one of the largest Latvian online periodicals. The article runs as follows: Victim blaming or placing the responsibility of a crime upon its victim is a common practice. It is essential to bullying and oppression and it has been used on a broad international scale. During the Holocaust, there were Nazis who used all possible means to shift the blame for the horrible genocide on the Jews themselves. Holocaust deniers have been known to do the same thing. Victim blaming was widely used by the Young Turks as they planned and executed the Armenian genocide. Victim blaming is still being used, today and now! On July 12, Azerbaijan initiated an act of aggression against the sovereign territory of Armenia in the Tavush region, 150 km away from Nagorno-Karabakh. Its aim was to improve the Azerbaijani military positions, at the expense of the Armenian peoples, in those places where aggression was least expected. Azerbaijans armed forces also targeted the villages of Movses, Aygepar, Chinari, and Nerkin Karmiraghbyur in the Tavush region of Armenia with artillery fire and drones, causing significant damage to both the civilian infrastructure and residential houses. There is evidence that Azerbaijans armed forces deployed artillery and armored vehicles in the courtyards and between residential houses in the village of Aghdam, which faces Armenias Chinari village. It is from these positions that the Azeris targeted Armenian villages, in order to make it look like Armenia retaliated against Azerbaijani civilian targets. Armenian Armed Forces did what any other state must do in similar situations: protect the sovereign territory of the homeland. And they did that successfully, once again confirming that money cannot always and everywhere buy an effective army, an axiom which the greatest strategic thinker of modern times Carl von Clausewitz would have advised at the beginning of 19th century. Soon after the start of this failed aggression on Armenia, and the complete failure to improve Azerbaijans military positions, the President of that country - Ilham Aliyev- became despondent. Shortly after appointing the new Foreign Minister, Mr. Jeyhun Bayramov, the Azerbaijani President made a startling statement: () some diplomats have betrayed the state, committed treason and do not conceal it. They are controlled by the secret services of the countries they live in. We have sufficient information. Apparently, this mood swing in Baku has made some of its diplomats abroad very nervous and has even led them to become provocative. Provocations prove their patriotism to their capital, where victim-blaming has long been the main feature of their Armenian narrative. In some capitals, including Riga, and in clear breach of local laws, anti-Armenian rallies laden with provocative statements were organized. This aggressive behavior led to clashes between Azerbaijani and Armenian communities in Moscow, Brussels, Warsaw, London, in various parts of the USA and other places. They also led to the desecration and intentional damage of Armenian property in the diaspora. Three decades of Azerbaijans dehumanizing Armenians and Armenia within its borders have resulted in irrational hatred, which is now being exported abroad and is raising eyebrows everywhere. The July 14 pro-war rally in Baku, with its chants of death to Armenians, were sadly reminiscent of the Sumgait 1988 and Baku 1990 brutal pogroms of Armenians. When the English thinker Thomas Hobbes articulated his theory, that mankind is in a state of war of all against all, he was describing human life as it existed before civil society. When the German political theorist Carl Schmitt claimed that the willingness to kill others for the simple reason that they are members of a hostile group is the ultimate degree of dissociation in politics, he knew firsthand what he was talking about. He had lived through World War I. If we want to search for the roots of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, we must emphasize that this region has never been a part of the Republic of Azerbaijan. It was not within Azerbaijan when the latter declared its independence in 1991. Nagorno-Karabakh was not a part of Azerbaijan when it was first created in 1918. How is that possible, you may wonder? The answer is quite simple. After the Sovietization of the region in 1920, Nagorno-Karabakh, against the will of its people, was included within the borders of Bolshevik Azerbaijan as an autonomous region, in accordance with the 1921 decision of the Caucasian Bureau of the Communist Party of Russia, led by Joseph Stalin. What is more, neither the above-said Bureau nor Stalin had the legal authority to make such a decision. Therefore, it is closest to the fact to claim that for 70 years the region of Karabakh was annexed to Soviet Azerbaijan. It is worth mentioning that in October 1988, during the 1st congress of the Latvian Popular Front, eminent Armenian writer Silva Kaputikyan said that the goal of the Armenian popular movement is to free Karabakh of its administrative subordination to Azerbaijan. The congress delegates expressed their support by unanimous applause Now I would like to draw the readers attention to a few misleading points raised and used by Azerbaijan. The representatives of Azerbaijan are repeating ad nauseam that it was Armenia that initiated the attacks in order to threaten the normal functioning of energy and transport lines, as Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline etc., hinting that Armenia is threatening Europes energy independence. I know that readers of such claims do not need to be informed about RMA (revolution in military affairs): the changes in the nature of warfare brought about by the innovative application of new technologies. Nor do they need to be reminded that in todays world, an advanced military does not need to physically see a target in order to destroy it. Armenia, Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and Azerbaijan each have the capacity to target key infrastructures in each others territory. None of these countries needs to invade its neighbor or use ground troops in order to destroy a specific target. What we must focus on is the difference between capacities and goals. Armenias main task is to ensure our sovereignty, our borders, the security of our country and people, and to promote global security. Armenian officials do not think let alone speak about attacking civilian infrastructures inside Azerbaijan. Yet quite recently, the world was shocked to learn that the Defense Ministry of Azerbaijan officially did not rule out the possibility that his country would launch a missile attack on the Metsamor nuclear power plant in Armenia. This unprecedented statement clearly shows genocidal intent and state-sponsored nuclear terrorism. The President of Azerbaijan is preaching that Armenian leadership wishes by this conflict to distract attention from internal problems. Well, I think that we should not forget that one of the most important differences between Armenia and Azerbaijan is that the former is building a democratic state, while the latter is further falling into authoritarianism. The opposition forces in Armenia during the Azerbaijani aggression stood behind the Armenian Army, which was defending our country. In Azerbaijan, however, the clashes of protesters with the police were used as another pretext to silence the internal enemy. The Washington Posts conclusion was to the point in this regard. "Mr. Aliyevs use of the iron fist to destroy his critics is the opposite of democracy and why everyone should worry about this intemperate tyrant."? Here again we come to the most important point. What can be done from now on to de-escalate the situation with effective short-term results? The OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs (the USA, Russia, and France) have offered to establish an international mechanism of reliable ceasefire monitoring not only on the Line of Contact between Azerbaijan and the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic but also between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The mediators noted that without such a mechanism, the sides will continue to blame each other for initiating deadly attacks on the Line of Contact and Armenia-Azerbaijan border (https://www.osce.org/mg/185746). The Armenian sides have accepted this offer and continue to express support for its urgent introduction. Moreover, since the establishment of the ceasefire on July 16, the Azerbaijanis have on a number of cases violated the arrangements on cessation of hostilities. And, as they did in the 1990s, they are prone to attack and then blame the other side. Secondly, Armenia has welcomed and reiterated its support for the UN General Secretarys appeal for the establishment of a global ceasefire. Azerbaijan is silent on this account too. Third, the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs have urged and continue to urge the sides to refrain from inflammatory rhetoric. Unfortunately, we have witnessed a further exacerbation of Armenophobia in Azerbaijan and reckless hate speech. This must stop immediately! It is necessary for the authorities of Azerbaijan to publicly renounce the use (and threats of use) of force. Azerbaijani leadership should recognize that there is no alternative to peace talks. Fourth, the entire international society needs to unwaveringly support the de-escalation of the situation, urge all sides to refrain from any action that might further escalate the situation. In this regard, Azerbaijans senior ally Turkey has been anything but constructive. An unprecedented level of threats against Armenia have been part of the Turkish reaction. Evidence of this are the joint Turkish-Azerbaijani military drills on July 29 to August. 5, which include mortars, armed vehicles, and cannons striking simulated targets as well as helicopters and warplanes in Baku, Nakhijevan, Ganja, Kurdamir, and Yevlakh (i.e. on the western and eastern borders of Armenia and not far from Nagorno-Karabakh). Clearly, these are not exercises of a defensive nature. The expanded geography of aggression against Armenia has been Azerbaijani strategy from day one of the conflict of Nagorno-Karabakh, when in addition to the war against Artsakh, Azerbaijan attacked Armenian borders from all its borders and imposed blockade together with Turkey, which continues to this very day. The language of threats needs to stop! Armenia and Armenians worldwide will not tolerate another genocide! New Delhi, Aug 3 : Potatoes being sold in Delhi could be laced with harmful chemicals. Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly Ramvir Singh Bidhuri has written a letter to the Lieutenant Governor about the poisonous vegetables and demanded an investigation by the Crime Branch. Bidhuri citing a report of Shriram Lab has claimed that potatoes, coated with plaster of paris, cement and yellow 'chuna' are being sold in Delhi and these potatoes are dangerous for health and can cause serious illness. Usually hill potato is quite popular in the market. Bidhuri claimed that customers are being misled in the name of 'Pahari' potato which is brought from Shimla and elsewhere. This chemical-rich potato is being brought from cities like Sambhal, Bareilly, and Chandausi, which are being sold in the market in the name of hill potatoes. The Leader of Opposition has claimed that this potato is grown in a steady manner and at the same time these chemicals are applied to sell substandard potatoes at high prices. It is dried in the sun so that it looks like a hill potato. Bidhuri claimed that hundreds of trucks of potatoes are being ordered in Azadpur Mandi and it is being supplied even outside Delhi. Bidhuri claimed that even after being aware of it, the mandi administration and the government remained silent. He demanded that the investigation of the matter be probed by the Crime Branch of Delhi Police so that those involved in this dangerous business could be exposed and arrested. He alleged that the Delhi government has not taken any initiative to stop this business, despite the fact that such adulteration has come to light in Azadpur Mandi, which is under the Delhi government. Sonia Toure remembers the exact moment when her life changed forever. She was on a Zoom call in mid-March with her work colleagues when she coughed. It was a deep, strange-sounding cough that startled everyone. Later that night she got a 103-degree fever and pain shot all over her body. "These were not body aches," she recalls. "My body hurt so bad it felt like I was beaten by a group of people. I could barely walk to the bathroom or catch my breath." Toure, a 54-year-old project coordinator for the CUNY Research Foundation in New York, was sick 12 days before she went to the hospital. By then she lost her sense of taste and smell, and nausea and vomiting had kicked in. She had called the city's 311 emergency phone number for advice, but they told her to stay home and ride it out. On the twelfth day, she was feeling extremely ill, so she called an Uber to drive her to Mount Sinai Hospital. She was admitted with pneumonia, acute kidney injury and for two weeks drifted in and out of reality. "Luckily, I didn't need a ventilator," Toure recalls, "but in three days I needed emergency kidney dialysis. My creatinine levels went to a high of 14 within a week until my kidneys ultimately failed." Formerly a strong and healthy woman with no underlying health conditions, Toure has beaten Covid-19 after a four-week hospital stint, but the disease has ravaged her kidneys and long-term health prospects. She lives with severe edema and now takes trips to the dialysis center three to four times a week. In the months ahead, she is planning a living donor kidney transplant. Her 21-year-old son plans to donate his kidney to keep her alive. Toure's tale demonstrates a harsh reality. Severe coronavirus patients are often as much in need of dialysis machines as they are ventilators. Many of the ones who recover from Covid-19 have some form of residual kidney damage that can last for months, years or even permanently. A study from Mount Sinai Hospital System in New York is a microcosm of the trend. Forty-six percent of patients that were admitted to the hospital with Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic had some form of acute kidney injury; of those, 17% required urgent dialysis. Surprisingly, 82% of patients that got an acute kidney injury had no history of kidney issues; 18% did. More than a third of patients that survived did not recover the same kidney function they had before contracting the virus. The study, conducted Feb. 24May 30, tracked a population of nearly 4,000 patients with a median age of 64. Mount Sinai used an AI tool it co-developed in collaboration with RenalytixAI, called KidneyIntelX, that rates a person's chances of getting kidney disease. Unfortunately, this is a phenomenon being seen throughout the U.S. and around the world, says Dr. Alan Kliger, co-chair of the American Society of Nephrology Covid-19 Response Team. Since late February he has been working with the CDC to share trends on how the virus is affecting the kidneys in patients at hospitals across the country. "What we have observed is that approximately 10% to 50% of patients with severe Covid-19 that go into intensive care have kidney failure that requires some form of dialysis." There are several ways this viral disease can make kidneys fail, Dr. Kliger notes. Some evidence shows immune systems go into overdrive and produce inflammatory cytokines, known as cytokine storms, which can hurt the kidneys as well as other organs. In other cases, biopsies have shown that the virus directly attacks the kidney by entering through ACE-2 receptors the coronavirus can hook to and then infect cells. In other cases, patients become so seriously ill from Covid-19 it can trigger sepsis, which can lead to multiple organ failure. Finally, there is also evidence that ventilators can reduce blood flow through the kidney in patients with severe lung disease due to Covid-19 and that in turn can hurt the organ. You are here: World Flash The number of COVID-19 cases in Japan increased by 1,330 to reach 39,255 on Sunday amid a resurgence of infections across the country, according to Japan's health ministry and local governments. The total number of cases excludes 712 from the virus-hit Diamond Princess cruise ship quarantined in Yokohama earlier in the year. The new daily addition surpassed the 1,000 mark for the fifth straight day on Sunday after a record number of 1,578 new infections were confirmed on Friday. Authorities in large cities have been forced to re-impose restrictions on some businesses to contain the spike. The Tokyo metropolitan government reported 292 new cases of infections on Sunday, bringing the cumulative total for Tokyo to 13,455. The capital had raised alert for the outbreak in mid-July to the highest, meaning "infections are spreading." Following Tokyo, Osaka Prefecture recorded 194 new cases, while Aichi reported 160 new cases. Fukuoka Prefecture saw a spike of 145 new infections on Sunday Tokyo's neighboring prefectures of Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba reported 72, 74 and 51 new cases on Sunday respectively, the latest figures showed. The death toll in Japan from the pneumonia-causing virus currently stands at 1,026, including 13 from the Diamond Princess cruise ship. The health ministry also said there are currently 83 patients considered severely ill with ventilators or in intensive care units. The ministry added that 26,565 people have been discharged from hospitals after their symptoms improved, according to the latest figures released Sunday. A 63-year-old Secaucus man has been charged with aggravated criminal sexual contact with a teenage girl, authorities said. Pedro Delgado was arrested on July 30 by Secaucus police officers after an investigaton that began on July 15, when the incident was first reported, Police Chief Dennis Miller said. Delgado, who knows the teen, was also charged with endangering the welfare of a child. He was issued a complaint summons and released. He is scheduled to make his first appearance on the charges Aug. 13. No other details for released by the police department. Rep. Adam Schiff, a Massachusetts native and chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, endorsed Rep. Joe Kennedy III this week in the congressmans bid to unseat Sen. Ed Markey in the Massachusetts Democratic primary. Schiff, a powerful member of the House of Representatives, was thrust into the national spotlight last year for his management of Republican President Donald Trumps impeachment trial. The California Democrat, who is originally from Framingham, said in a statement he recognized Kennedy as a shrewd legislator and tactician, and as a passionate warrior for justice. I have seen how Joe has used his skill, talent and determination to fight Trumps abuses of power every single day of this presidency, he said. In a 22-second video published Sunday, Schiff offered his endorsement of Kennedy, referencing his own Massachusetts upbringing while doing so. As a Framingham native, I feel strongly about many things, but two especially: the Red Sox and Joe Kennedy, Schiff said in the video. From the moment I met Joe, I saw him as the powerful, progressive voice that Massachusetts needs. I hope youll support Joe as well, and go Red Sox. This years Senate race between Kennedy and Markey has become increasingly competitive in recent months, with Kennedy accusing Markey of spending minimal time in Massachusetts during last months debate and Markey describing Kennedy as a progressive in name only during a June debate. The race appears to be tight as well. Polling earlier this year appeared to show that Markeys early lead over Kennedy had shrunk. Both legislators have received some high-level endorsements this summer, though. Markey, who unveiled the Green New Deal environmental protection bill with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in 2019, was endorsed by the New York Democrat in September 2019 and launched an ad featuring the progressive icon in late July. In the 30-second video, Ocasio-Cortez noted Markey was an original cosponsor of Medicare For All and co-authored the Green New Deal with her last year. The congressional resolution has become a signature issue for both Democrats. When it comes to progressive leadership, its not your age that counts. Its the age of your ideas, she said. And Ed Markey is the leader that we need. The Massachusetts senator was recently endorsed by 100 former government officials, advocates and educators as well, while Kennedy was given the endorsement of the Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts in May. The two congressmen will square off again in a debate on Aug. 11 on WBZ-TV. Related Content: Brian Mason still drives his old mans JD 2030 tractor. Three generations of keeping tractors in good nick Les, Sam and James Paddison. By Jonathan Killick news@localmatters.co.nz Despite increasing urbanisation in Rodney, vintage tractors sitting in local barns tell a rich story of the areas rural history. The Paddison family of Matakana have been told they bleed green because of their fascination with John Deere tractors, which has lasted decades. Les Paddison and his son Sam, who is a hay baling contractor, own eight John Deeres between them. Les favourite is a 30 horsepower 1948 model John Deere one of a collection of tractors bought by the Government to sell to returned servicemen. Les bought his first John Deere in 1980 and recalls the moment he got his first tractor with an enclosed cab in 1999. It was like stepping into a world of luxury after baling hay for 12 years without one. Before that, when I got home I couldnt read the paper because of the dust in my eyes. At that time people still criticised me for buying a tractor with a cab, but I should have done it years ago. The addition of suspension was also a high rating feature for Les, who says its a lot easier on his bones. I am in my 70s now and that suspension could have come a lot earlier in life. Today, his son Sams pride and joy is a computer-assisted 200 horsepower John Deere 6170R. It uses GPS for auto steering and farmers can plot a course to make it automatically turn between rows on a field. It is designed for the US and Australia where farmers can fall asleep in the time it takes to work a row. It has a seat warmer, air conditioning and even a fridge to cool down some beers. Sams son James, 3, knows each of the familys tractors by name and can point out their parts, including where to change the oil. Meanwhile, there are more than 20 tractors in Brian Masons shed in Tomarata, but even he loses count. All of them are in working condition, although none of them could be started on the day this reporter visited. Brians collection is a tribute to past farmers from all over the north, having mostly come from deceased estates. Theres a British Leyland from Puhoi, a 61 Ferguson once owned by the late Eddie Logue, a 52 Ferguson from Tom Mulligan of Tomarata, and a 59 Fordson Major once owned by the Hargreaves family in Oneriri, to name a few. Theres also a red Massey Harris that belongs to Brians wife, which was bought in a clearance sale in Clevedon. The owner had lost his leg in a tractor pulley during an exhibition at the Glenbrook show and let the tractor go for a good price. Brian also has a John Deere 2030 that was bought brand new by his father in 1979 and it is still used to work the farm. Ive broken a peat swamp with it, he says. Each year in autumn, Brian and his mates take their vintage tractors to Tomarata Beach where they pull in some fish and have a BBQ to celebrate yesteryear with friends. Dhaka, Aug 3 : The ingredients of liquid refined tannery waste of Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) follows the standards set by the Environment Department, said KM Ali Azam, Secretary of the Industries Ministry. Bu Sumi Khan Dhaka, Aug 3 (IANS) The ingredients of liquid refined tannery waste of Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) follows the standards set by the Environment Department, said KM Ali Azam, Secretary of the Industries Ministry. The country's tanned leather exports fell from nearly $300 million in FY 2016 to less than $90 million in present. To fight additional pressure after Eid-ul-Adha, five bodies were constituted aiming to take all necessary measures after observing the overall conditions, he said. The Secretary made the remark while visiting the industrial area of the tannery at BSCIC of Savar here on Sunday and said already it is fully functional without control of CETP monitoring. "We managed persistent water supply and electricity connection and also inputted sufficient manpower and security for tannery industry," he added. The Ministry of Industries and the BSCIC have stepped up efforts to tackle some of the problems of the central effluent treatment plant CETP. BSCIC has assigned more engineers to make the CETP fully functional, with a major focus on the chrome recovery unit. It has also launched an effort to secure land-registration papers for TIE tannery owners to help them with their financing. Other development partners are working with the business associations on sustainability reporting, human resources development, and developing a knowledge base of global markets and trends. Besides, to boost leather exports to the US and Europe, the industry must obtain certification from the Leather Working Group (LWG) demonstrating compliance with those markets' labour and environmental standards, said experts. Standards compliance must be seen, therefore, as an integral part of Bangladesh's national investment in the leather industry. To achieve this compliance, harmonious relations between workers and owners will also be required. Workers and owners need to recognize their common interest in obtaining LWG certification. There are several causes for this malaise, including poor marketing, an unskilled workforce, and lack of financing, but chief among them have been exploitive labour conditions and destructive environmental practices that have brought international criticism and sanctions. The leather sector is one of the oldest industries in Bangladesh, and tanneries are the dominant employer, accounting for 92 per cent of all leather workers. As a source of national export earnings, leather is second only to ready-made garments, and Bangladesh leather exports account for 10 per cent of world demand. But the industry has been troubled in recent years, especially the tannery sub-sector. For decades, pollution from tanneries at the main industrial site in Dhaka poured into the Buriganga River, wiping out aquatic life and forcing the city to rely heavily on groundwater for washing and drinking. But in 2017, culminating a government campaign that began in 2001, the tanners were forced to move their factories to the newly built Tannery Industrial Estate (TIE) located in Savar. Of the 220 factories at the Dhaka site, roughly 90 per cent of all tanneries in the country, some 123 completed the move and are currently operating in Savar. It was hoped that the tannery move would increase exports in the leather sector by bringing the industry into compliance with destination-market requirements, but the hasty, disorganized, and incomplete construction of the TIE appears to have thwarted this hope. To prevent the dangerous pollution that occurred at the old Dhaka site and bring the industry into better compliance with customer environmental requirements, the new location includes a central effluent treatment plant (CETP), able to treat 30,000m3 of liquid effluents a day, and additional facilities for chrome recovery, water treatment, and sludge treatment. But some planned capabilities are not yet installed, and the CETP is not yet running at full efficiency, with the result that sludges are now dumped in an open yard, and untreated water is regularly dumped into the neighbouring Dhaleshwari River, causing severe pollution. The local community complained that the Dhaleshwari River has become "unusable" and "toxic" since the tanneries arrived. They reported itching and other skin problems from the use of the river water. Farmers, who make up 75 per cent of the people in the riverbank villages, can no longer use the river water for irrigation, and have had to install motor-driven tube wells, increasing their costs substantially. The village social life has also changed. Previously, people of all ages used to swim and bathe in the river and wash their cattle there. For the workers, housing, transportation, and food are more expensive in Savar. Most workers are still temporary, with no benefits or allowances for their higher expenses. Most of them work without formal employment agreements, factory identity cards, or provisions for leaves of absence. Women receive no maternity leave. Most workers lack personal protective equipment and must operate tools and machinery without adequate safety measures. Most tanneries, apart from a few larger ones, do not follow national or international standards for storing, transporting, or using harmful chemicals and workers and supervisors commonly suffer from diseases of the skin and lungs, headaches, diarrhea, and fatigue. The Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) is responsible for inspecting these factories and enforcing compliance with health and safety regulations, but with just two inspectors for the whole tannery estate, a lack of appropriate communications channels, and a general atmosphere of mistrust, the agency is finding it challenging to perform its oversight role, says local community people. Criticising the move to postpone the Legislative Council elections in Hong Kong by a year, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that the freedom-loving people of Hong Kong would prevail. He also stated that the only reason for the poll delay is Beijing's fear that Chinese Communist Party candidates would be crushed. Pompeo urged the government to reconsider their decision. He also stated that COVID-19 is not the reason for the delay in the election. The actual reason for the postponement is that the Chinese Communist Party candidates would be crushed. He further added that the freedom-loving people of Hong Kong would prevail, and the leadership in Beijing can't permit that to happen. Reportedly, Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced the delay on July 31, citing an upsurge in Covid-19 cases. Pompeo on August 2 urged Hong Kong to reconsider the decision to postpone its elections, stating that the delay would be another setback to its autonomy from Beijing. Lam invoked her emergency powers to reschedule the elections scheduled for September 6, until September 5, 2021. "We urge Hong Kong authorities to reconsider their decision. If they aren't, then regrettably Hong Kong will continue its march toward becoming just another Communist-run city in China, he said of the delay, in a statement released on August 2, Pompeo added. Read: US Secretary Of State Pompeo Says Threats To US In Afghanistan Raised With Russia Read: 'Quad Has Been Reinvigorated': Pompeo Tells US Lawmakers In Big Signal To China Hong Kong's opposition lawmakers also condemn poll delay Apart from Pompeo, Hong Kong's opposition lawmakers have also condemned the poll delay as a political move. As a result of domination in the district council elections last November, pro-democracy candidates are believed to secure a majority in the 70-seat legislature. Before the poll delay was announced, election officials barred 12 opposition candidates from running, in a few case owing to them previously supporting US sanctions on Hong Kong, which can now be considered as an offence under the national security law recently imposed by China. Read: Mike Pompeo Slams China Over Its Developments In Hong Kong And Ecuador Read: Mike Pompeo Says 'tide Is Turning' Against China After 'vigorous Diplomacy' By US Pompeo had earlier also called out the move to postpone the Legislative Council elections in Hong Kong. Pompeo had stated that the elections should be held as close to September 6 as possible and in a way that reflects the aspirations of the people of Hong Kong. (Image credit: AP) A production line of the RoK-invested Hana Kovi Vietnam garment firm (Photo: VNA) Prague David Jarkulisch, an economic diplomat from the Czech Republic, has spoke highly of positive changes in Vietnams revised Law on Investment which aims to attract and bolster efficiency of foreign investment. In an article published on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, he noted that the revised law, which is to take effect at the beginning of 2021, will improve conditions and incentives for foreign investors. The law aims to make Vietnams business climate more appealing to foreign investors and attract new investment in high technology, Jarkulisch said. Although Vietnam is among the most attractive investment destinations in Asia, foreign investment in the country so far has primarily targeted low tech sectors, he added. As a result, the Vietnamese Government decided to adjust its foreign investment attraction strategy last year to support innovative and high-tech industry sectors, the diplomat noted. An important factor of this strategy is to change investment incentives. The Government emphasises that a majority of the incentives and changes in the new investment law reflect the demands of large multinational companies that have long sought to enter the Vietnamese market. The author also underlined that despite the negative impacts of COVID-19, Vietnam remains attractive to investors and drew a total of 18.8 billion USD in foreign investment in the first seven months of 2020, a year-on-year decline of only 7 percent. New Delhi: Delay by courts in deciding cases is forcing the public to resort to extra-legal measures to solve their disputes and law-abiding citizens are becoming lawbreakers, retired Supreme Court (SC) judge justice RV Raveendran said last week. The mounting pendency of cases is also affecting the quality of dispensation of justice, as judges look at cases as mere statistics rather than as a human problem due to the enormous workload on them, he had said on July 28, urging measures to be taken to address the pressing issue. Due to delay, confidence in the rule of law and justice system is getting eroded. So, people start thinking of solutions outside the legal framework. Landlords engage musclemen to evict tenants, financial institutions engage dubious collection agencies, etc. Law-abiding citizens become a society of lawbreakers. This is the most dangerous side-effect of delay, he said. Justice Ravindran, who retired from the SC in 2011, was speaking at the launch of a book titled Justice Frustrated: The Systemic Impact of Delay in Indian Courts by Daksh, a civil society organisation. The book is a volume of essays with contributions from jurists, economists, sociologists, and researchers. The book gives insight into the effects of delay and to understand the practical repercussions of judicial delay on the lives of people, organisations, institutions, and society itself. Learnings from Dakshs Access to Justice Surveys in 2016 and 2017 (findings of which are published in two earlier reports, State of The Indian Judiciary and Approaches to Justice in India) made us think more deeply about the various kinds of impact that judicial delay has on individuals, society, and the justice system. This led us to conceptualise this book. In analysing the impact of judicial delay, we want to go beyond calculating the costs and time spent on attending court hearings to a more nuanced and detailed understanding of the cascading effects of judicial delay at multiple levels, Surya Prakash BS, programme director, at Daksh told HT. Justice Ravindran, in his speech, highlighted the abysmal judge to population ratio which, he said, was one of the major reasons for the delay. Indian judiciary has a judge population ratio of 18 judges per million. Judiciary seldom functions at its sanctioned strength, it normally operates with 75% of strength. So the ratio of judges to the population will be around 12. If you compare it with developed countries, they have 50 to 110 judges per million, he said. He said that the mindset of the bar and the bench has to change when it comes to addressing the issue. A powerful bar and a very conservative judiciary have developed a mindset tuned to think of the life cycle of cases in terms of years and decades rather than days and months. Negotiated settlements and adoption of alternative dispute resolution is not given the push which they deserve, Ravindran added. He said that the executive, legislature and the judiciary have been lacklustre, when it comes to tackling the problem. The response of the executive to demands for more courts, judge, and infrastructure have been lukewarm. The response of the legislature to the demand for better laws has been sluggish. The response of judiciary for demands for better processes for selection of judges and their training has been unsatisfactory, he said. Judicial delays are a societal problem, not just a judicial institution problem. They have social, economic, political, and other day-to-day ramifications and affects our lives in more ways than one without us realising it. It goes to the very root of our constitutional republic. After all, if we dont sort out our problems in court, the rule of law fails and undermines us as a society, said Harish Narasappa, lawyer and co-founder of Daksh. Having written that title, Im not sure that I, or anyone else, knew John Hume. He was a giant of his time, at home in any company and well worthy of his Nobel peace prize, but an enigmatic figure, who always kept his cards close to his chest. Not that he was unfriendly, or wary of speaking his mind on any topic, political or otherwise, but he thought more deeply than anyone, around the clock, about what ailed his beloved country and what he could do to heal it. In time, historians compared him to Daniel OConnell, Irelands foremost non-violent reformer in the 19th century, and in recent years an RTE poll voted Hume as the greatest Irishman in history. The first impression he made on me was in the early 1960s, as leader of the University for Derry campaign. Here he was, a mere history teacher among the experienced unionist ministers, exposing the weakness of their case against siting the second university in his majority Catholic city, in favour of their preferred Protestant Coleraine. Next time I saw him he had left teaching to manage Atlantic Harvest, the idea of a local businessman, Michael Canavan, to smoke and exploit locally the salmon that was traditionally exported to Britain. Hume had been spotted as a future leader, from his pioneering Ireland-wide promotion of the Credit Union movement, providing an understanding bank for the masses, including himself. With a suitcase full of smoked salmon, he had hitched a lorry ride to Southampton, knowing that the ships of Cunard were a potential target. To nobodys surprise, he came back with orders that helped secure a business that is still thriving. It was a job that suited his powers of persuasion, and he confided that if events had turned out differently, he could have seen himself as a supermarket manager. But his true vocation came with the civil rights campaign in 1968, when revolutionaries like Eamonn McCann began the street protests, but lacked a more mainstream leader to broaden their appeal. Hume stepped forward, as if he had been born for the job, and I stood in wonder as he cooled a potentially calamitous confrontation between 15,000 marchers and a thin line of police with wise words and an ingenious proposal that the parade could successfully conclude the aborted October 5 march by walking on the pavements. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next John Hume 1937 - 2020: A life in pictures Close John Hume playing with his children John Hume is carried aloft through Londonderry city centre after being returned as MP for Foyle in 1987 John Hume on his wedding day with wife Pat John Hume is detained by soldiers during a civil rights protest in Londonderry in August 1971. John Hume John Hume in thoughtful mood at the SDLP party conference in Newcastle in 1979 Bertie Ahern and John Hume as they took part in a press conference on the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in Belfast. Picture Charles McQuillan/Pacemaker. U2 star Bono is flanked by David Trimble and John Hume on stage during a special concert in Belfast to promote the Yes vote in the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement (Chris Bacon/PA) PA John Hume with his good friend, Senator Ted Kennedy, in the Bogside John Hume with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan John Hume and his wife Pat at the Foyle Arts Centre in Londonderry after hearing that he and David Trimble were to share the Nobel Peace Prize Photopress Belfast John Hume with party colleague Seamus Mallon John Hume and David Trimble with U2 frontman Bono celebrating the Good Friday Agreement The SDLP team led by leader John Hume arrives at Stormont in 1999 to start the process of selecting ministers for the devolved government John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast Hometown heroes: John Hume celebrates with Derry City players after their 2010 First Division win SPORTSFILE Former SDLP leader John Hume and Bill Clinton pictured in front of the Guildhall. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams (left) and SDLP leader John Hume (Chris Bacon/PA) PA John Hume worked with Ian Paisley PA SDLP leader John Hume with his wife Pat speak to the media after he and David Trimble won the Nobel Peace Prize (PA) PA John Hume in front of the Stormont Building in 2002 (Paul Faith/PA) John Hume with David Trimble (PA) PA Bill Clinton in front of the Guildhall with former SDLP leader John Hume and his wife Pat. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. SDLP Conference, St Columb's Hall, Derry 12th March 2016. SDLP Leader Colm Eastwood John Hume at the conclusion of the conference Photo:Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. File photo dated 19/10/2000 of the Dalai Lama (left) meeting with fellow Nobel peace laureate John Hume, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. Photo: Martin McCullough/PA Wire PA File photo dated 24/08/2014 of John Hume and his wife Pat, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. PA Photo.Photo: Niall Carson/PA Wire PA Handout File photo dated 12/04/2000 of Former South African President Nelson Mandela meeting John Hume at the South African Embassy in Dublin Photo: PA Wire PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume playing with his children The government could no longer ignore the street protests, breaking out daily, and a host of unprecedented reforms were quickly enacted, appointing a development commission for Derry, introducing one man one vote in council elections and repealing the Special Powers Act, the bane of all nationalists. Hume, like many moderates, was prepared to sit back and see how real were the changes, but the student revolutionaries, taking their lead from the Paris riots, wanted more. A march from Belfast to Derry was ambushed by loyalists at Burntollet and a subsequent murder and riots spelt the end of the non-violent rights movement and the rise of IRA and loyalist paramilitary involvement. Read More Meanwhile, as the media in Britain, Europe and America woke up to the conflicts in Northern Ireland, Hume was using his oratorical and language skills to win supporters worldwide. Soon, the major US networks and newspapers were beating a path to his door. Ted Kennedy spoke critically about the unionist government and as I watched a Dungiven Orange march an angry loyalist delivered a smart smack on the head to my NBC companion with the words Take that for Mr Kennedy. Later, it was Ivan Cooper, a rare Protestant in the civil rights frontline, who described to me his admiration for Hume. Hes the brave one, not me, he said. I have no fear when Im at the head of a throng, but I can see what Hume is going through, with all that responsibility. He would have been a natural leader for the new party born out of the civil rights movement, the SDLP, but, to make sure working-class Belfast was involved, Gerry Fitt was chosen. Fitts earlier election in divided West Belfast was a warning of changed times and as an irrepressible Westminster MP he had won valuable support among Labour MPs, some of whom joined him at the October 5 march. At his home in West End Terrace, overlooking the Bogside, he was the man the international media and diplomats had to see. And if he wasnt there, he was in the US, persuading senior Democrats that there was a political alternative to IRA violence But despite ONeills belated reforms, the student leftists were not impressed, even if Hume lay low. Keep asking for more was their motto and the New Year march from Belfast to Derry, which I witnessed from a safe distance at Burntollet, heralded a disastrous year. Ethnic cleansing in west Belfasts Bombay Street led to an IRA revival, the Armys arrival and Humes next challenge, to stem the flow of dollars and guns from Irish America. At his home in West End Terrace, overlooking the Bogside, he was the man the international media and diplomats had to see. And if he wasnt there, he was in the US, persuading senior Democrats that there was a political alternative to IRA violence. When Sunningdale agreement, in 1973, heralded the first attempt at power-sharing between the unionist and nationalist blocs, Hume had his first and last taste of running a department, as commerce minister. Before he had a chance to put his American contacts to use, however, loyalist working-class power turned off the lights, literally, and it was back to Westminster rule. One St Patricks Day in the 1980s, I got a sense of how valuable he was to both Dublin and London when Garret FitzGerald arranged an Aer Lingus trip to the annual shenanigans in Washington. All doors were open to the guru from Derry, including a party in Georgetown where there was a Rembrandt over the fireplace and Ted Kennedy was at the door before deciding the house was too full for his entourage. Later, I got a chance to hear from Kennedys own lips how much respect Hume commanded in the US capital. His name was enough to get me through the protocol all the way to the Senators relatively modest Virginia pad. Outside was a beaten-up old Chevrolet, which Kennedy told me he used to move about the city anonymously. On Northern Ireland, I was assured, nothing was said without running it past Hume and the Irish embassy, where an old friend of Hume, Sean Donlan, held court. On the other side of the Irish question, in New York, I made my way by tube train to a clapboard house in Flatbush where a leading IRA gunrunner lived, a veteran of the civil war in the 1920s. I had to ask myself later, did he really say he admired Hitler for standing up to the British? Yes, he did. For some time, Id regarded Hume as the most strategic thinker in Ulster politics, who worked night and day to devise a new rights-based future for both unionists and nationalists. But what would he think about me, a journalist and columnist with the pro-Union, Protestant-owned Belfast Telegraph, writing the story of his life up to 1984, explaining his theories and filling in the gaps in his personal history to appeal to a wider audience? I neednt have worried. When we met again, at an SDLP conference, I made my pitch for his first biography and he agreed there and then. For the next few months, we travelled the highways and byways of Derry and Donegal, tape recorder running. When I noticed that he never used his seat belt, he explained that he owed his life to that habit. On a country road he had driven through a hedge and overturned the car. No one was around and without a belt he was able to climb out, shaken, but uninjured. It was then that I came to realise how central to his being was his wish to find an answer to the Irish dichotomy, with its perpetually violent claims between the native Gaels and descendants of the 17th century Protestant Plantation. It had to be taken out of the narrow six-county context, he insisted, and had to be seen in three-dimensional terms, encompassing the competing claims of London, Dublin and Belfast. There was another dimension, which the French speaker, historian and once-aspiring priest readily embraced, Europe. Just as he saw American influence as positive rather than negative, he regarded the experience of Britain and Ireland finding common cause in the European Community, as it then was, to be essential to healing old wounds. With Stormont in abeyance since Bloody Sunday which Hume tried to avert, fearing the worst he threw his energies into the European project, becoming easily the most influential parliamentarian. To this day there are legacies of his lobbying for good causes and industrial investment that employees know nothing about. I have seen this influence for myself on occasional jaunts to Brussels and Strasbourg, where walking the corridors with Hume meant constant interruptions to greet friends from every quarter elected and unelected. At briefings with him, you got used to major players like Jaques Delors dropping in for a chat. In cafes the staff knew his favourite food and drink, never healthy, as well as his lack of ready cash. How he got through his busy schedule without the benefit of a watch I never knew, but his knowing friends protected him so well he was able to keep his mind focused on higher things. Although he was just one of three Northern Ireland MEPs, he had a special place in Dublin, London and Brussels relations, capable of working alongside Ian Paisley or Jim Nicholson to maximise their collective clout. Relations with Paisley, whose counter-demonstrations arguably helped make the case for civil rights in the 1960s, as well as re-energising sectarianism, were guarded, but civil. There were always two Paisleys and I learned to tell which I was dealing with, the open or closed, he said. About Martin McGuinness, whose parents Hume knew and respected, he would only say, during the bad times, I dont know how he lives with himself. As part of his long game, Hume made a point of keeping in close touch with Dublin, even if some on the Left felt he might more profitably have used his influence in Westminster, where he was never at home. A high point was the 1983 New Ireland Forum, helping to concentrate minds on the realities of Irish unity, as opposed to the eternal dream. Its conclusion, that institutions should be established to give Dublin a pacifying role in Northern Ireland were instantly dismissed by Margaret Thatcher before eventually being accepted in the 1985 Anglo Irish Agreement. Like most people, I was unimpressed by Humes one-man negotiations with Gerry Adams, against a background of IRA mayhem, and I remember sharing my scepticism in a brief stop at his rented holiday farm house in south-west France. Pat made me and my wife, Joy, welcome, but there were some raised voices as we took a morning swim in the cattles plastic watering pool and drove to Maurice Hayess retreat nearby, overlooking the Gironde. Progress was being made, he assured me, just wait. Maybe he started the slide that led to Sinn Fein overtaking the SDLP, and maybe this could have been minimised, but the end result of the Hume-Adams talks was the monumental 1998 Good Friday Agreement. Having played his part in the multi-party talks, minus DUP, he sprang one of his last surprises, handing over the deputy first leaders task to old comrade Seamus Mallon, who sadly never gelled with David Trimble. There was one more moment in the limelight, jointly receiving the Nobel peace prize with Trimble in Oslo, and he had surely earned a retirement giving lucrative lectures worldwide. It was not to be, however, when in Austria a sudden digestive disorder required emergency surgery. A mistake was made, his brain was deprived of oxygen and he never recovered all his faculties. Most of his latter years have been spent at his beautiful seaside retreat near Greencastle, Donegal, close to his late friend playwright Brian Friel. There and in Derry, Pat my rock keeps his legacy alive, and I treasure a last visit we made to them both, complete with obligatory meal in Greencastles prized fish restaurant. My wife Joy is a retired languages teacher, and John noticeably perked up at the chance to use his fluent French, such a bonus on TV and in the European Parliament. We worked through an Irish Times crossword before a walk was suggested and we took a leisurely stroll along the seashore to Moville. Nearing the town, I saw three girls on a seat, smoking, and thought no more of it. Not John, however, who gave them a quiet teacherly talk about the evils of smoking, and what it had done to his family, not mentioning that he had been a 30-a-day man himself. We retreated to his local and introduced ourselves to a couple of wide-eyed Belgian tourists. Yes, theyd heard of John Hume, but didnt know until I told them that the Foyle bridge theyd just crossed was built with European funds that he had lobbied hard to obtain. The pub was close to the chapel where he was now a daily communicant, recalling his early days in Maynooth. (There, another career beckoned, to a leading role in the Church, before doubts prevailed.) As we waited for Pat to give us a lift home, he mused on priestly celibacy, predicting that the shortage of priests meant that it had to change. Otherwise, thered be no one to say Mass. The bright light that I had seen on the streets of Derry might have dimmed, but the spirit that inspired in the darkest days was still active. What he thought of Brexit and all that I never found out, but no one doubted that he would have been appalled. Europe, to him, had been a bridge across which the two sides in Ireland could meet and co-operate, avoiding the hated (by him) arithmetical solution to the Northern Irish question, when nationalists outnumbered unionists. It is Irelands loss and Britains that he was not there, even in a background role, to devise yet another ingenious way forward. As the US looks to ban TikTok, Snapchat is making moves that could replace it. Users will soon have the ability to add popular songs to snaps from the firm's 'robust' catalog of music, which stems from a number of deals with industry partners like Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group. When looking at a snap with music, users can swipe up to see the album art, song title and artist name. There is also a 'Play This Song' option that opens a webview to Linkfire so you can listen to the full song on your favorite streaming platform like Spotify, Apple Music and SoundCloud. Scroll down for video Users will soon have the ability to add popular songs to snaps from the firms 'robust' catalog of music. When looking at a snap with music, users can swipe up to see the album art, song title and artist name A Snap spokesperson said: 'We're constantly building on our relationships within the music industry, and making sure the entire music ecosystem (artists, labels, songwriters, publishers and streaming services) are seeing value in our partnerships.' The new feature is set to roll out to this fall in the US as well as Canada and Australia. 'Snapchat is designed to be a communication tool for close friends, and there is tremendous value in friend-to-friend music recommendations,' the firm shared in a statement. 'Snapchatters will be able to form an even deeper connection to the artists and songs they love, both on and off platform.' Although users will be able to connect to the full song in their player, there is not an option to see videos featuring the same song a key feature offered by TikTok. However, Snap has formed partnerships with music companies to provide songs in the app Although users will be able to connect to the full song in their player, there is not an option to see videos featuring the same song a key feature offered by TikTok. However, Snap has formed partnerships with Warner Music Group, Universal Music Publishing Group, Merlin and others to develop a 'robust and curated catalog of music. The news comes as US President Donald Trump threatens to ban TikTok in the US. 'As far as TikTok is concerned, we're banning them from the United States' he told reporters on Air Force One as he returned from Florida. 'Well, I have that authority. I can do it with an executive order or that [emergency economic powers].' The president also made clear he did not support an American company to purchase TikTok's U.S. operations after an earlier report claimed Microsoft was 'in talks' to acquire the platform. The new Snapchat feature is set to roll out to this fall in the US as well as Canada and Australia. Sources told The New York Times on Friday that a deal was in the works, but it was unclear where the two firms stood. At the same time, reports had claimed Trump was planning to order TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance to give up ownership of the platform. Sources familiar with the matter told Reuters the White House, ByteDance and potential buyers of TikTok, including Microsoft failed to produce a deal that would result in the Chinese company shedding the app's U.S. operations. The talks are expected to continue in the coming days. 04.08.2020 LISTEN We initially thought of COVID-19 as a disease affecting only China, little did we know Ghana will also be affected by the deadly virus. Indeed, we have not been in normal times for the past 5 months. We appreciate the great work of His Excellency Nana Addo Danquah Akuffo Addo during these tough times for the good people of Ghana. We are indeed grateful. Prominent amongst these great works is the absorption of utility bills for over 50% Ghanaians, provision of personal protective equipment, funding to rescue small scale enterprises, and most recent one absorbing the 2020 WASSCE registration fees for all candidates. However, we as University students feel we have been left out by the government. We propose the reduction of fees for the 2020/2021 academic year due to the underlisted reasons; As at 31st, May, 2020, 23,000 people working at accommodation facilities lost their jobs. Job loss means no salary for these laid off workers. 856 job losses between have been recorded from 32 Montessori, day care and primary schools between April and June 2020 for private sector educational institutions in Accra and Kumasi. 1, 531 jobs have been lost between April to June 2020 within the ceramics, Timber, Food and Argo-processing industries in the manufacturing sub-sector. Despite the recent easing of COVID-19 restrictions on commuter buses, Trotro, and Taxis, people working with these vehicles have had to endure 70- 50% loading capacity for the past five months. The reduction in sales for the past five months has affected the finances of these drivers. Tight restriction on borders by countries has disrupted the global supply chain. People engaging in trading activities risk becoming redundant when their goods run out. Majority of the people who have been affected by COVID-19 are parents, some with their wards in the University. Loss of job would affect their ability to pay their children fees for the ensuing academic year. Some parents are also involved in the informal, which has not been spared the wrath of COVID-19, their finances are sure to take dip, which affect their ability to take care of their wards in the University. Parents have other things to take care of when school resumes, apart from school fees, they also pay accommodation, and feed their wards. We propose the following as ways which the government can reduce school fees for the 2020/2021 academic year; Ghana has an estimated student University population of 500,000. Every student pays an average fee of GH2000.00 every academic year. We propose government absorbs 30% of the school fees for the 2020/2021 academic year. This means government will absorb GH600.00 of the fees of 500,000 students. This is about 30% of the Corona virus Alleviation fund. Introduction of a school fee paying quota system, which would allow student pay their fees in bits over the course of the academic year. This would take the burden of having to pay all the school fees at once off our parent. Student who pay part of their fees should be allowed to access services that paying full fees would have guaranteed them. Government should absorb certain charges in our school fees in order to reduce the fee. Examination, sanitation, medical examination, physical development levy just to name a few are examples of bills government can absorb from our school fees to help reduce it. We believe the government of Ghana is putting in the requisite efforts to ensure Ghanaians are shielded from the harsh economic burden brought about by COVID-19, and ensure we are all safe. We believe government reducing fees for the 2020/2021 academic year will do a great deal of off-setting the already heavy burden on our parents, and also ensure Ghanaian youth will have access to education without finance becoming an obstacle. Attached is the signatories of students from the various Universities in Ghana supporting the petition. CONVENER AYIKPEINYER AKANUWEIR GABRIEL UNIVERSITY OF HEALTH AND ALLIED SCIENCES +233558199869 PUBLIC RELATION OFFICER YUSSIF CHINCHANKU UNIVERSITY OF HEALTH AND ALLIED SCIENCES +233555375052 GENERAL SECRETARY ODURO - NYARKO CELESTINE UNIVERSITY OF PROFESSIONAL STUDIES +233552221698 ORGANIZER NANA KWAME UNIVERSITY OF HEALTH AND ALLIED SCIENCES +233501474430 Cc; University Students Association of Ghana All Media houses. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, have congratulated Professor Mrs. Rita Akosua Dickson on her investiture as the 11th Vice-Chancellor of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST). The newly-invested Vice-Chancellor is the first female to occupy that prestigious position in the history of Ghana's foremost science and technology educational institution. She takes over from Prof. Kwasi Obiri-Danso, whose term of office officially, ended July 31, this year. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, addressing the gathering at the investiture, held at the Great Hall, Kumasi, said the University community should rally behind the new Vice-Chancellor. She ought to be given the needed support and cooperation to realize the overall vision and mission of KNUST. The President said the University had an important role to play in the area of science and technology, which had become the driving force behind successful nations. The 21st Century is going to be dominated by science and technology, President Akufo-Addo noted, and asked the new Vice-Chancellor to be up to the task in leading the University to come out with cutting-edge research findings and innovative ideas in order to realise Ghanas development agenda. The University, he said, would be given the requisite support by the government to enhance research work, technology transfer and the training of the requisite human resource for the society. Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, who is Chancellor of the KNUST, said Prof. Mrs. Akosua Dicksons appointment as the first female Vice-Chancellor, had come as a motivation to women. Akosua, you cannot forget your great-great-grandmother, the famous Yaa Asantewaa. Always remember, you share the same ancestral blood and I see in you, the Yaa Asantewaa of KNUST, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II remarked. The Chancellor asked the new Vice-Chancellor to strive to bring her managerial and academic capabilities to bear for sustainable growth of the University. She should pursue the University's Strategic "Plan 2K25" with seriousness to enable the authorities achieve their aims and objectives. The Asantehene asked Prof. Akosua Dickson to endeavour to consider suggestions put across by the University community, saying she should bring all stakeholders on board in the discharge of her duties. Prof. (Mrs) Akosua Dickson, a product of the Wesley Girls' High School, Cape Coast, obtained her first degree in Pharmacy at the KNUST. She went on to pursue graduate studies leading to the award of Master of Pharmacy degree in Pharmacognosy in 1999, and was appointed lecturer at the University in 2000. Her academic endeavours enabled her to study for a Doctor of Philosophy degree at Kings' College, University of London, United Kingdom (UK). She returned to teaching and research at KNUST in 2007 and got promoted to the rank of Senior Lecturer in 2009, and further to Associate Professor of Pharmacognosy in 2014. Prior to her appointment, Prof. Akosua Dickson served as the Pro Vice-Chancellor. Source: GNA 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 President Donald Trump (C), First Lady Melania Trump (R), and their son Barron Trump (L) return to the White House after two weeks spent at Trump's golf club in New Jersey on Aug. 18, 2019. (Eric Baradat/AFP/Getty Images) Barron Trumps Private School to Remain Closed Under Health Officials Order The private school where President Donald Trumps 14-year-old son Barron is enrolled will stay closed for in-school instruction through Oct. 1, along with other non-public institutions in Montgomery County, Maryland. Montgomery County Health Officer Travis Gayles issued a directive last Friday, requiring all schools located in the county but not affiliated with the countys public school district, including private schools, religious schools, and independent schools, to exclusively conduct online learning through Oct. 1. The countys public schools had previously announced that they would go fully online through Jan. 29, 2021. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have based our decisions on science and data, Gayles said in a press release. At this point the data does not suggest that in-person instruction is safe for students or teachers. We have seen increases in transmission rates for COVID-19 in the state of Maryland, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Virginia, particularly in younger age groups, and this step is necessary to protect the health and safety of Montgomery County residents. Gayles said the order will be will be reevaluated before Oct. 1 to determine whether it should be extended, terminated, or amended. Barron Trump, a rising ninth grader at St. Andrews Episcopal School in Potomac, Maryland, is due to start his new school year on Sept. 8. When the countys order came out, the school had yet to decide whether to offer a full-time remote learning or a hybrid model, with students going to school a few days a week for traditional in-person learning, and learning online from home the rest of the week. As we prepare to make a decision the week of Aug. 10 about how to best begin the school year, we will continue to follow guidance of appropriate health officials and refine both our hybrid and distance learning plans, St. Andrews administrators wrote in a letter. We are hopeful that in September most of our students will be able to return to on-campus learning and relationships. The order came as President Trump continues to urge schools across the nation to bring students back to the classroom in the fall. He said in July that he felt comfortable with Barron and his grandchildren returning to school because he was informed that young children are less likely to catch or spread the virus. I am comfortable with that, Trump said. They dont catch it easily. They dont bring it home easily, and if they do catch it, they get better fast. I would like to see the schools open 100 percent. And well do it safely. Well do it carefully, Trump said. AstraZeneca has been granted protection from future product liability claims related to its COVID-19 vaccine hopeful by most of the countries with which it has struck supply agreements, a senior executive told Reuters. With 25 companies testing their vaccine candidates on humans and getting ready to immunize hundred millions of people once the products are shown to work, the question of who pays for any claims for damages in case of side effects has been a tricky point in supply negotiations. This is a unique situation where we as a company simply cannot take the risk if in four years the vaccine is showing side effects, Ruud Dobber, a member of Astras senior executive team, told Reuters. In the contracts we have in place, we are asking for indemnification. For most countries it is acceptable to take that risk on their shoulders because it is in their national interest, he said, adding that Astra and regulators were making safety and tolerability a top priority. Dobber would not name the countries. EU officials told Reuters this week product liability was among contentious points in European efforts to secure supply deals for potential COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer, Sanofi and Johnson & Johnson. The United States, however, already has a law to exclude tort claims from products that help control a public-health crises in the form of the 2005 Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness, or PREP Act. AstraZeneca, Britains second-largest drugmaker, has pledged to supply a total of more than 2 billion doses at no profit in agreements with the United States, Britain and European countries, among other nations and organizations. Astras deals differ from most rivals because it has secured government backing for production and development efforts, while competitors such as GlaxoSmithKline are looking to negotiate a price for a finished product, contingent on approval. To back its claim to forgo profits from the $1.2 billion collaboration in the United States, Astra has even granted the government access to financial accounts related to the venture, according to Dobber. There are very clear milestones before they are going to pay. Because we made the promise to manufacture the vaccine at no profit, auditors of the U.S. administration will get free access to our accounting books, he said. (Reporting by Ludwig Burger and Pushkala Aripaka; editing by Edmund Blair and David Evans) Topics COVID-19 Trends Claims USA Europe Headline changed, details added (first version posted on 16:25) BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 3 Trend: More than 1,000 ASAN volunteers have been involved in Azerbaijan to control the entrances to the beaches, the activity of which has been permitted, as well as to control the observance of the rules set on the beaches, Trend reports citing the ASAN Service. The individuals who will visit the beaches during the quarantine regime introduced in connection with COVID-19 pandemic must comply with a number of rules. 1. Before visiting the beaches, it is necessary to see cimerlik.az website, check the number of people on the beaches and choose the least crowded one. 2. It is necessary to enter the beaches only through the entrance controlled by ASAN volunteers, and leave the beaches only through special exits. 3. People must bring only necessary items to the beach. 4. When entering and leaving, it is necessary to use disinfectants available on the beaches. 5. It is necessary to observe social distance and hygiene rules in fitting rooms and bathrooms. 6. People must rest only in special zones while on the shore. 7. After eating and using protective equipment, it is necessary to clean the appropriate area, throw waste into special waste bins and containers. 8. People must not visit the prohibited areas. 9. In case of any health problems, it is necessary to notify the controller immediately. 10. People must observe social distance on the beaches and comply with the requirements of the controllers. When visiting beaches that have not been listed on the cimerlik.az website, it is necessary to be extremely careful as the pandemic-relatrd monitoring is not conducted there. Now Open 3 August 2020 Hilton's (NYSE: HLT) Hampton by Hilton, the global upper midscale brand known for its commitment to providing unmatched guest service, today announced the opening of its newest property, Hampton Inn & Suites Raleigh Midtown. Developed as a joint venture between LODEN Properties and Summit Hospitality Group and managed by Davidson & Jones Hotel Corporation, Hampton Inn & Suites Raleigh Midtown features 152 modern and spacious rooms and offers travelers high-quality, value-added amenities. Hampton Inn & Suites Raleigh Midtown is located at 1229 Wake Towne Drive, Raleigh, NC 27609 adjacent to the new Wegman's and the Midtown East shopping center. The property features an onsite full-service bar, outdoor patio, and a 1,176 sq. ft meeting space. The adjacent Midtown East retail amenities owned by Regency Centers, including Holly Park Sh opping Center, offer guests of the hotel numerous opportunities for dining, shopping, fitness and personal services within walking distance. Every Hampton by Hilton guest will enjoy the brand's signature free, On the Run breakfast bags; and free WiFi in every room. Hampton continues to lead the pack in terms of guest experience, with Hampton by Hilton Team Members committed to delivering friendly and authentic service, backed by the industry-leading 100% Hampton Guarantee. Hampton Inn & Suites Raleigh Midtown is part of Hilton Honors, the award-winning guest loyalty program for Hilton's 17 distinct hotel brands. Hilton Honors members who book directly through preferred Hilton channels have access to instant benefits, including a flexible payment slider that allows members to choose nearly any combination of Points and money to book a stay, an exclusive member discount that can't be found anywhere else and free standard WiFi. Memb ers also enjoy popular digital tools available exclusively through the industry-leading Hilton Honors mobile app, where Hilton Honors members can check-in, choose their room and access their room using a Digital Key. For more information or to make reservations, please visit https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/ rdurdhx-hampton-suites-raleigh-midtown/ or call (919) 831-4700. About LODEN Properties LODEN properties is a Raleigh-based development company that assembles multifaceted teams to create magnetic hospitality, retail and mixed-use experiences. LODEN focuses on urban projects that contribute in a meaningful way to the community. Under the leadership of Russ Jones and Henry Ward, Loden Properties strives to build locally-focused urban projects that attract people to create, work, shop, eat, and enjoy. Projects, in addition to the Hampton Inn & Suites Raleigh Midtown, include: The Longleaf Hotel, Gateway Plaza, the Aloft Durham Downtown, Target Hillsborough Street, Roxboro & Dillard, and the Grimwood House. About Summit Hospitality Group Founded in 1989 in Raleigh, North Carolina, Summit Hospitality is a full-service hotel management and consulting firm that builds and operates hotels and restaurants, bringing to each enterprise a combination of financial, development, design, and quality, on-time construction expertise to serve the specific needs of its clients. Summit currently owns and operates 18 hotels in Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, Charlotte, Winston-Salem, Wilmington and Pinehurst representing nearly $250 million in assets, with over 700 employees. About Davidson & Jones Hotel Corporation For over 37 years Davidson & Jones Hotel Corporation have provided a full range of hotel operations and management services focused on delivering outstanding guest experiences for their properties. Services include: revenue management, accou nting, sales and marketing, food and beverage and human resources. Current properties managed include: The She CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Disc Medicine, a company dedicated to the discovery and development of novel therapeutic candidates for serious and debilitating hematologic diseases, today announced the appointment of Jonathan Yu as Senior Vice President of Corporate Strategy and William Savage, MD, PhD as Vice President of Clinical Development. Together, they will work to build the company's portfolio and advance its pipeline of hepcidin pathway modulators toward the clinic to treat serious hematologic diseases. "Both Will and Jonathan bring tremendous expertise to Disc Medicine, and I'm thrilled to welcome them to the team," said John Quisel, JD, PhD, Chief Executive Officer at Disc Medicine. "Will's experience in clinical hematology will prove invaluable as we advance our pipeline of novel therapeutic candidates targeting the hepcidin pathway into the clinic, and Jonathan's extensive business acumen will be a great asset as we continue to grow the company and our portfolio." Mr. Yu brings his experience in corporate strategy, commercialization and operations to the Disc team. Prior to joining Disc Medicine, Mr. Yu was a co-founder and Vice President of Corporate Strategy, Finance and Operations for Qpex Biopharma. He has also served in various leadership roles at The Medicines Company, most recently as Vice President of Strategic Planning and Corporate Development, where he was instrumental in the divestiture of commercial-stage infectious disease assets to Melinta Therapeutics and the acquisition and subsequent integration of Rempex Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Yu has also held roles at Acceleron Pharma, SR One, and Johnson & Johnson, spanning commercial planning and assessment, business development and finance. Jonathan received an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and an AB in Biochemical Sciences from Harvard College. "I'm thrilled to join Disc Medicine at such an exciting stage in its growth," said Jonathan Yu, Senior Vice President of Corporate Strategy. "This is a special opportunity to build on the work of an exceptional founding team and create an innovative company that is specifically for patients who are suffering from hematologic diseases." Dr. Savage brings a decade of hematology and transfusion medicine clinical research experience, having worked across academic institutions, biopharma and biotech. Prior to joining Disc Medicine, he served as Senior Medical Director at Magenta Therapeutics, where he managed clinical development activities from preclinical through phase 2 and led regulatory interactions. Prior to Magenta Therapeutics, he was the Global Clinical Development Lead in Hematology at Shire/Takeda. Before transitioning to biotech/biopharma, Dr. Savage was an Assistant Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School/Brigham and Women's Hospital and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where he trained in pediatric hematology/oncology and transfusion medicine. Dr. Savage received his BA in Biochemistry from Columbia University, his MD from Weill Cornell Medical College and his PhD in Clinical Investigation from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "Historically, patients with serious hematologic diseases have had limited treatment options, and the field has lacked innovation compared to other disease areas," said Will Savage, MD, PhD, Vice President of Clinical Development at Disc Medicine. "Disc's unique approach in targeting hepcidin regulation presents a compelling opportunity to bring meaningful new therapies to patients suffering from these conditions." Disc Medicine is advancing two therapeutic programs focused on modulating hepcidin expression a novel, orally administered matriptase-2 inhibitor which increases hepcidin expression to treat iron loading anemias, and a hemojuvelin antagonist monoclonal antibody to reduce hepcidin expression and address anemia in a range of serious inflammatory and hematologic diseases. About Disc Medicine Disc Medicine is a hematology company harnessing new insights in hepcidin biology to address ineffective red blood cell production (erythropoiesis) in hematologic diseases. Focused on the hepcidin pathway, the master regulator of iron metabolism, Disc is developing a portfolio of first-in-class therapeutic candidates to transform the treatment of hematologic diseases. For more information, visit www.discmedicine.com. SOURCE Disc Medicine Related Links http://www.discmedicine.com Malte Luk Organic search traffic, that is, online traffic that comes from search engines, comprises 53 percent of all traffic on the Internet. If there are people on your website, there's a better than a coin flip's chance that they came from searching something on Google, Bing, or another search engine. That's why search engine optimization (SEO) is so important for entrepreneurs to understand. Having a solid SEO strategy can be key to growing your website and expanding your brand's reach. If you need some help getting started with digital marketing, and SEO specifically, The SEO & Social Media Ads Certification Bundle can help. ATLANTA Tens of millions of Americans were warned on Monday to brace themselves for the threat of flooding, power outages and downed trees as Hurricane Isaias intensified while moving up the Atlantic Coast. On the coast of the Carolinas, residents were preparing for the Category 1 storms arrival on Monday night, boarding up their windows and stocking up on generators, flashlights and gas cans. Farther inland, in North Carolina and Maryland, officials said that flooding would be one of the storms most perilous risks. The storm is expected to soak much of the East Coast in the coming days, prompting state officials to caution residents that they must prepare for heavy rainfall and powerful winds while remaining vigilant against the coronavirus. I know that North Carolinians have had to dig deep in recent months to tap into our strength and resilience during the pandemic, and that hasnt been easy, Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina said. But with this storm on the way, we have to dig a little deeper. Lets keep each other safe from the wind and water as well as from the virus. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) President Rodrigo Duterte has again defended Health Secretary Francisco Duque III from massive criticisms on his management of the COVID-19 crisis. But Senator Panfilo Ping Lacson said he is puzzled why the countrys health chief still enjoys the confidence of the President despite numerous calls for his immediate resignation. I couldnt understand what amulet or magic potion Duque has as far as the President is concerned, Lacson said in a statement on Monday. It is not only me who disagrees with the President for not firing Secretary Duque," Lacson said. "There were 14 senators who had earlier asked him to resign. I dont think that number has changed. Lacson was referring to the previous resolution of senators from the 24-member chamber calling for Duque's resignation for his "failure of leadership, negligence, lack of foresight, and inefficiency" in the measures and actions carried out by the Department of Health (DOH). He also noted that many others in the DOH and the medical community want Duque to step down or be replaced. Earlier in the day, Lacson chided the President for claiming in his Sunday address that Duque does not deserve to be criticized because he was not the one who imported the virus to the Philippines. No sir," Lacson tweeted, responding to the President's claim. "The COVID-19 importers are the virus-infected couple from Wuhan, China, who spread the virus in Manila because your Secretary Duque miserably failed to do a simple contact-tracing." Meanwhile, House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano sang a different tune, noting that the lower chamber agrees with the President that COVID-19 is the enemy, not the government. Calling for unity, Cayetano said that people should keep an open mind and not let partisan politics get in the way of doing the right thing. Duque again earned the ire of some senators and other officials over DOH's mass recovery adjustment that included more than 37,000 mild and asymptomatic cases in recoveries in its new COVID-19 reporting system on July 30. Other politicians such as Surigao del Norte Rep. Ace Barbers and Sorsogon Governor Francis Escudero slammed the DOHs irresponsible and insulting adjustment on the cases, and claimed that the department could function better if it did not have Duque on board. Sen. Francis Pangilinan also previously noted that Dutertes COVID-19 plans will ring hollow and empty if Duque remains the health czar. HUNTINGTON, NY The Huntington Union Free School District announced its proposed coronavirus reopening plan for the 2020-21 school year, which is scheduled to kick off Sept. 9. The district will follow social distancing guidelines, require face coverings for all students and staff and use physical barriers, Superintendent James W. Polansky stated in the reopening plan. Coronavirus-specific safety measures will be taken, including restricted use of common areas, cleaning and disinfecting spaces and equipment regularly, and quickly responding to ill students and staff. The district will also be prepared to shift rapidly to distance learning for all students if rolling closures happen. The plan is just a proposal, as Gov. Andrew Cuomo has the final say on if schools will open at all in the fall. Families will have a choice between hybrid and full-time distance learning, according to the district. The hybrid model consists of both in-person and distance learning. "While the district is prepared to welcome all students back into classrooms, we are offering learning situations that include both hybrid and distance learning options to ensure that our families have the ability to choose the model that works best for their children," Polansky said. Kindergartners and students in the special class setting are scheduled to attend school every day. A phase-in process is also listed as one of the district's strategies. It will allow officials to assess COVID-19 metrics and implement the initial phases of the district's plan. There are three phases listed. Under phases one and two, full distance learning is available at all grade levels. Under phase three, all students will return to in-school learning. The transition dates are to be determined. Students will be assigned to four cohorts under the hybrid model, meaning they'll be placed in groups that will report to school together on designated weekdays. These are organized by alphabetical spelling of last names. Story continues In phase one, elementary students grades 1 through 6 will have a 2/3 day per week in-school rotation, while grades 7 through 12 will follow a 1/2 day per week rotation. Under phase two, grades 1 & 4 will return to school every day, while the other elementary grades will still follow phase one protocols. For middle and high school students, the four cohorts will combine to two (T/W or Th/F; alternating M). Students unable to return to school due to health issues or who are uncomfortable returning to school on the scheduled start date can participate in the district's full-time distance learning program. These students will be placed in a cohort leading to a transition into the hybrid model should they choose to do so. Families will be asked to express their intent for students to use this option before the school year begins. During phases one and two of the plan, students may return to the hybrid model if they notify their principal. All students will be expected to return to school under phase three, the district said. Surgical masks and cloth-based coverings are acceptable. A variety of personal protective equipment will be available at all Huntington schools, as the district will provide one reusable mask to every student and staff members. Students will get "mask breaks" throughout the day, but they must wear them on the bus. Hand sanitizer dispensers were installed in cafeterias, as well as all classrooms and offices that don't have sinks. All classrooms will be equipped with disinfectant and paper towels. While at school, students and staff will be asked to stay at least 6 feet apart from one another. The requirement will pertain to classrooms, cafeterias, playgrounds and offices, with markers on the floor. The required distance is at least 12 feet for chorus students and band members who play a wind instrument. Students in gym class won't participate in physical contact sports, and shared equipment must be cleaned after each use. Students, staff and visitors will be subjected to daily screenings: a five-question questionnaire and a temperature check at school entry. "The District remains focused on student and staff safety, on addressing the trauma that our collective community has experienced, and on providing high-quality instruction and learning experiences regardless of the model(s) implemented," Polansky wrote. "We will continuously monitor the situation and provide updates and revisions following changes to guidance, regulations and policies at all levels. We will strive to remain proactive in anticipation of circumstances that may change throughout the course of the school year." Students in the distance learning model will have webcam access to classrooms, and a Chromebook will be issued to them by the district. Earlier this month, Cuomo announced that New York schools can reopen only if coronavirus infection rates fall below strict benchmarks to be set in early August. The "formula" Cuomo spelled out allows school openings in regions that are in phase four and have an infection rate under 5 percent. An "emergency" stop to openings will take place if infections rise above 9 percent, he said. A full decision on openings is expected to be made within the next week. Nearly 1,700 participated in a survey by the district on the three learning models: roughly 57 percent approved of in-school learning, approximately 51 percent approved of the hybrid model, and only 29 percent said "yes" to the remote model. More than 65 percent prefer a live teacher, roughly 16 percent voted for pre-recorded lessons, about nine percent voted for independent learning, approximately four percent said they prefer a supplemental small group, and around six percent said 'other.' This article originally appeared on the Huntington Patch Chipotle is booming as people emerge from lockdown and the company wants to hire another 10,000 employees in coming months, an official said - making the restaurant chain one of several looking to add staff in an economy otherwise dimmed by the coronavirus pandemic. The fast-casual brand, known for its Mexican-inspired bowls and burritos, has already added about 8,000 of the 10,000 employees it targeted when it launched its last major hiring spree in May. 'As we go back into this next hiring season, we'd love to hire another 10,000 because of the growth that's occurring in the company,' said Marissa Andrada, Chief Diversity, Inclusion and People Officer, speaking to Reuters on Thursday. Marissa Andrada of Chipotle said the company would like to hire 10,000 more people Chipotle's profits are up 30 per cent during the pandemic, the company reported Roughly half the of the 12.3 million restaurant and bar workers employed in February lost their jobs in March and April, making the industry among the hardest hit by the pandemic. Nationwide, across all industries, around 1.3 million people have been losing their jobs every week. The travel industry has seen huge job losses, and jobless claims are nearly double the worst weeks in previous economic crises, including 665,000 during the Great Recession and 695,000, the previous record, from 1982. American Airlines has warned that 25,000 employees about 29 per cent of its staff could be furloughed in the fall. General Motors said it would furlough about a third of its workers, 1,250 people, from its Wentzville Assembly plant in Ohio. High-street retailers have also suffered tremendously, with the bankruptcy of Neiman Marcus, J Crew and Brooks Brothers, among others. J.C. Penney is laying off 1,000 people, and REI will shed 400 jobs. On Sunday Lord & Taylor the oldest U.S. department store, founded in 1826 - announced it too was filing for bankruptcy. Chipotle employs more than 85,000 people globally. Chipotle employs 85,000 people worldwide and would like to hire more, Andrada said The company, whose shares are up more than 30 per cent from the start of the year, will also launch a revamped career website by Wednesday, which it planned before the pandemic hit, she said. Chipotle is not alone. As the economy shows signs of stalling and jobless rolls are growing, McDonald's, Starbucks and Taco Bell parent Yum Brands Inc are seeing sales recover, and that could leave them needing to hire more cooks and cashiers. Dunkin Brands Group wants to hire 25,000 new restaurant employees, from front counter staff to managers - even as it plans to close underperforming units, the company said on an earnings call on Thursday. The moves follow the expiration of enhanced U.S. unemployment benefits of $600-a-week on Friday, in the absence of action by Congress. A March federal aid plan laid out the extra $600 payments as millions of Americans lost their jobs because of the crisis. Since then, the country has begun to reopen, but economic progress may have stalled as the outbreak spreads in new areas and many companies slow rehiring. Jobless rolls grew by 867,000, to 17,018,000, during the week ended July 18 - the first increase since late May. Average weekly earnings for restaurant and bar workers was around $400 in May versus about $1,000 for all private sector U.S. workers. According to Eater, a waiter in New York City previously earning the city average of $42,440 will now only take home about $408 every week on state unemployment, or roughly $10.20 per hour - well under the citys minimum wage of $15. Unemployed dishwashers will earn roughly $7.60 per hour while out of work. The Manhattan living wage, the amount individuals needs to spend on food, medical expenses, and rent, is nearly $18 per hour, according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Flynn Restaurant Group, which owns more than 1,250 Applebee's, Taco Bell, Panera and Arby's restaurants, struggled to recruit new employees during the pandemic. But by mid-July, applicants for manager-level positions surged back, a change that founder Greg Flynn attributed in part to the looming end of enhanced unemployment benefits. 'You are never not looking for people' to hire in fast food, said Barry Friends, a partner at food industry consultant Pentallect. 'In the short term, the labor pool is going to be better.' Fast food retailers such as McDonalds, Taco Bell and Starbucks are doing well at the moment Papa Johns said last week that it wanted to add another 10,000 workers after already bringing on 20,000 earlier in the crisis as demand for pizza soared. Papa Johns needs delivery drivers in particular, said Chief People and Diversity Officer Marvin Boakye in an interview with Reuters. The company and its franchisees are also hiring truck drivers, as well as workers at restaurants and at quality control centers where the brand's pizza dough is produced. The pizza chain has even improved retention versus 2019, though Boakye would not disclose numbers. He said that was because of increased health and safety measures, free online doctors visits during the pandemic and expanded subsidized online college courses especially as students are not sure whether they will be able to return to campuses in the fall. While billionaires have been expanding their business fields, other businesspeople have scaled down their operations and sold some subsidiaries. The meat and animal feed markets have interested three Vietnamese dollar billionaires Nguyen Dang Quang (Masan - consumer goods manufacturer), Tran Dinh Long (Hoa Phat - steel manufacturing) and Tran Ba Duong (Thaco, automobile). From left: Nguyen Dang Quang, Tran Ba Duong, Tran Dinh Long Thacos pig breeding is at the starting position as it just drew up a plan recently after it made a strategic investment in Hung Vuong Seafood (HVG). Thadi, a subsidiary of Thaco, plans to set up some joint ventures to produce pig breeders and animal feed. It is also considering raising pigs for meat in accordance with EFSA standards which can churn out 1.2 million pigs a year. Masan and Hoa Phat joined the market 5-6 years ago. Masan became the second largest animal feed producer in Vietnam overnight, after it bought two biggest companies in the field Proconco and ANCO. Hoa Phat Agri has been maintaning very high growth rates in recent years. In 2019, the revenue of Hoa Phat Agri increased by 72 percent to VND8 trillion, making up 12 percent of total revenue of the group. Hoa Phat Agri has been maintaning very high growth rates in recent years. In 2019, the revenue of Hoa Phat Agri increased by 72 percent to VND8 trillion, making up 12 percent of total revenue of the group. Bitcoin? Tran Dinh Long invests $3 million in a startup, Long invests in bitcoin and Long said that is the future are statements spread on the internet these days. The content has also been advertised on e-newspapers through Google Network. However, Hoa Phat Group has denied Longs investments in bitcoin, saying that Tran Dinh Long, president of Hoa Phat, only invests in and manages one enterprise Hoa Phat Group. And Long did not state what was quoted in the article. Hoa Phat Group affirmed that Long and other members of the board of management of Hoa Phat now work only for Hoa Phat and none of them has other private businesses. Billionaire Thao jumps into insurance sector The ecosystem of the only Vietnamese dollar female billionaire Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao has been enlarged with the establishment of HD Insurance Company on May 19. This is the 67th insurer in the market and the first insurance company licensed over the last two years. Prior to that, in 2018, the Ministry of Finance granted a license to OPES, an associated company of VP Bank. Vietjet Air, where Thao works as CEO, has approved a plan to set up a subsidiary which provides payment services. Vietjet holds 51 percent of the charter capital of VND50 billion of the enterprise. To date, 34 businesses in the field have been licensed so far. As such, Thaos ecosystem comprises Sovico Vietjet HD Bank HD Saison and HD Insurance which provide diverse financial services to clients. Kim Chi Billionaire Pham Nhat Vuong honoured by Forbes in COVID-19 fight Forbes Asia has recognised Vietnamese billionaire Pham Nhat Vuong as an influential figure who has notably contributed to joint efforts to halt the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic. Iowa farmers cant seem to catch a break. Last week, China Beige Book chief executive officer Leland Miller told Bloomberg News the Phase One trade deal with China is in a very difficult position with the Trump administration getting tough on Beijing. Previously, President Donald Trump indicated Phase Two was unlikely, while blaming Chinese malfeasance for instigating the global coronavirus pandemic. Among the groups most loyal to the president, farmers became retaliatory targets when he imposed tariffs against friends and foe alike while seeking to rewrite trade deals. The battle with China lasted nearly two years before the Phase One pact in January. China agreed not to compel foreign firms to turn over technology, allow some intellectual-property protections, and remove onerous restrictions on farm imports. It also agreed to buy $200 billion in U.S. products by the end of 2021, including $36.6 billion in agricultural purchases this year. Trump envisioned $50 billion, advising farmers to get bigger tractors to meet the demand. But purchases have lagged far behind schedule. In June, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said Phase One was over, but Trump quickly tweeted it was fully intact. Then China decided to dismantle Hong Kongs One Country, Two Systems status a measure of autonomy enjoyed by the former British colony to last 50 years when handed over to China in 1997. China responded to ongoing demonstrations by purging Hong Kong history texts, banning pro-democracy slogans and songs, arresting opposition leaders, detaining peaceful protestors and installing secret police. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called it the death knell for Hong Kong autonomy, putting special trading privileges at risk. Last year Congress mandated that the State Department must certify Hong Kong as sufficiently autonomous to justify tariff exemptions on $38 billion in trade. The U.S. ordered the Chinese embassy in Houston closed, and China shuttered the U.S. embassy in Chengdu. Pompeo declared 50 years of engaging China had failed, that Chinese President Xi Jinping is a true believer in a bankrupt, totalitarian ideology. We must induce China to change, he said, adding, or Communist China will surely change us. Once again, Iowa farmers second to Illinois in soybean exports, but first in pork and eggs are in the cross hairs after two years of huge financial losses and shifting trade partnerships. In May, a National Bureau of Economic Research report found soybeans and meat products experiencing the most considerable redistribution effects from trade retaliation. Losses in foreign trade with retaliatory countries outweigh the gains from trade with non-retaliatory countries by more than $14.4 billion, it stated. Our results also indicate that non-retaliatory countries accommodated the increased demand from retaliatory countries by reorienting their trade relationships. We find that countries in South America and Europe benefited the most from these adjustments gaining more than $13.5 billion in additional foreign sales. To help offset losses, the administration provided farm interests, including investors, a $12 billion aid package in 2018 and $16 billion in 2019. They got another $23 billion in coronavirus-related legislation. China had been the biggest buyer of U.S. soybeans and second to Mexico in pork purchases. In 2017, the U.S. exported $24 billion in agricultural products to China. Soybeans amounted to $12.2 billion or 52% of its U.S. purchases, while pork was 5%. During the trade war, soybeans plummeted to $3.1 billion in 2018,improving to $8 billion last year. Phase One got off to a slow start with $1.2 billion in Chinese soybean purchases between January and April, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Farm groups correctly complained China was favoring Brazil. China is light years from the pace of ag commodities they need to buy each month to reach the $36.5 billion commitment for 2020, Pro Farmer policy analyst Jim Wiesemeyer wrote in June. Will they reach it? I seriously doubt it. I expect China will renege on the 2020 Phase 1 commitment. By early August it will be clear to all. As former National Security Adviser John Bolton wrote in The Room Where It Happened, Trump was desperate to make the trade deal now unraveling. At a December 2018 dinner with Xi, Trump offered to reduce U.S. tariffs in exchange for increases in Chinese farm-product purchases, to help with the crucial farm-state vote. Six months later, Bolton claimed Trump told Xi a trade deal with China would be a big plus for him politically, later pleading with Xi to ensure hed win. The White House rejected the accounts. China is making its opposition to Trump clear. A 25-year, $400 billion investment deal with Iran disregarded U.S. sanctions imposed after Trump pulled out of the multinational nuclear accord. Farm groups worked hard to cultivate trade pacts and partnerships. Regrettably, whenever it seems theres a light at the end of the tunnel, it goes dark again. Ozo has emerged as the winner of the head of house for week three after a stellar performance in the HOH Challenge in Big Brother House.... Ozo has emerged as the winner of the head of house for week three after a stellar performance in the HOH Challenge in Big Brother House. He gets to enjoy immunity from next weeks eviction and the fully furnished head of house (HOH) room for the rest of the week. Ozo appointed his closet friend in the house, Dorathy as the deputy HOH. Ozo is the first male housemate to win the title after Rebecca "Nengi" Hampson and Lucy Essien held the position for the first and second week, respectively. As custom demands, former head of house, Lucy was not allowed to compete in the challenge neither was she eligible for deputy HOH position. Laycon was sidelined as well due to his injury but risk being put up for this weeks eviction unless he is chosen as deputy head of head. A Lehigh Valley Walmart will be the latest drive-thru COVID-19 testing site, one of nine Walmart stores across the state to start offering the service. Testing will begin Wednesday at the Whitehall Township Walmart off MacArthur Road, and other stores. Registration is required one day in advance, the sites can see up to 50 registered patients, and testing will not be done inside the stores, the state Department of Health said. When we established our testing strategy, we wanted testing to be accessible, available and adaptable and we are working to meet that challenge. Anyone who believes they are in need of a COVID-19 test and meet testing criteria can get tested today in Pennsylvania, Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said in a news release. As the pandemic continues, it is imperative that we shift testing sites to communities with increasing demand. If the need for testing in additional communities arises, we will re-evaluate our site locations. The following sites will be open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, after opening on Wednesday: Walmart Supercenter pharmacy drive-thru, 2601 MacArthur Rd., Whitehall Walmart Supercenter pharmacy drive-thru, 355 Walmart Drive, Uniontown Walmart Supercenter pharmacy drive-thru, 2010 Village Center Dr., Tarentum Walmart Supercenter pharmacy drive-thru, 134 Daniel Kendall, West Brownsville These sites will be open 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, after opening on Wednesday: Walmart Supercenter parking lot, 20245 Route 19, Cranberry Township Walmart Supercenter parking lot, 200 Kocher Lane, Elizabethville Walmart Supercenter parking lot, 50 Newberry Parkway, Etters Walmart Supercenter parking lot, 1355 E Lehman St, Lebanon Walmart Supercenter parking lot, 100 Chippewa Town Center, Beaver Falls The nine new sites join existing drive-thru testing sites at Walmarts in Clarion, State College, New Castle and Edinboro. At this time, the tests are free. They will be processed by Quest Diagnostics. To register, patients will need to create an account on Quests patient portal and answer eligibility questions to determine if they meet the criteria to get tested. Once a person is registered, they will be notified of a testing location within a 50-mile radius of them with available appointment times. After scheduling an appointment time, patients must print a voucher and bring the voucher with them to their appointment. After testing, residents are required to go home and self-isolate. Patients will be notified of their test results via email. The department said the current average turnaround time for test results is seven or more days. Physicians will call patients with a positive test result. Testing is offered by hospitals, health systems, Federally Qualified Health Centers, health clinics and businesses including Rite Aid, CVS, Patient First and Walgreens. Northampton County partnered with Lehigh Valley Hospital-Coordinated Health Allentown Hospital to offer a drive-through COVID-19 testing site in Bethlehem Township, after its Easton Hospital one closed at the end of June. Symptoms of COVID-19, that may appear in as few as two days or as long as 14 days after exposure, include: Fever Cough Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing Diarrhea Chills Repeated shaking with chills Muscle pain Headache Sore throat New loss of taste or smell Please subscribe now and support the local journalism YOU rely on and trust. Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Huawei will be launching the Mate 40 series in the next couple of months. Now a new leak has reportedly shown the Mate 40 Pro screen protector with curved edges. This indicates the display could look similar to the Horizon display introduced with last years Mate 30 Pro. With the upcoming Mate 40 Pro, the company could introduce new features to take advantage of its curved display edges. FYI, the 6.53-inch Horizon Display on the Mate 30 Pro came with 88-degree curved edges. Huawei Mate 40 Pro to come with waterfall design The company also replaced the physical buttons on the Mate 30 Pro with virtual buttons. While the company tried to enhance the experience with OTA updates, it never really felt like physical buttons. With the Mate 40 Pro, the company will likely stick with the same virtual buttons. Advertisement Additionally, a new patent suggests the company could add more virtual button features to the Mate 40 Pro, particularly when using the camera app. From the images included in the patent listing, several buttons are placed on the edge of the display. These include HDR, LED flash, White Balance, shutter button and more. In the last year, we have seen quite a few smartphones with a similar waterfall display. While the waterfall display does offer a seamless viewing experience, the companies havent yet sorted the accidental touch issue. Initial leaks suggested the device might feature a 90Hz refresh display though the new leaks suggest otherwise. It will likely run on Android 11 out of the box The Mate 40 Pro could also become the companys first-ever smartphone with a 120Hz display. It will also be running on the latest EMUI 11 based on Android 11. The device will continue to miss out on the Google support and lacks support for all the essential Google apps. Advertisement The Mate 40 Pro might also come with the all-new 5nm Kirin 1000 chipset made by Taiwans TSMC. With the US sanctions, this could be the last Kirin chipset coming from TSMC. Mainly, the next-gen Huawei P-series will adversely affect by the sanctions. While there is no official confirmation, the Mate 40 series will most likely be unveiled in October. Alongside the Mate 40 series, Huawei is also launching a new Huawei Mate X2 foldable smartphone and a new Huawei smartwatch. According to Counterpoint Research, Huawei became the largest smartphone brand in the world for the very first time in the month of April 2020. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Huawei has registered a growth of 19 percent. A flight passenger has been jailed after he sexually assaulted a flight attendant while she served drinks, repeatedly took his shirt off and challenged other passengers to fight. Kramat Khan touched the flight attendant inappropriately without consent and then later grabbed her from behind in a tight hug and kissed her neck, ignoring her pleas for him to stop. The 36-year-old also ripped off his shirt and challenged other passengers to fight on the easyJet flight to Tenerife on June 29 last year. Kramat Khan, of Stone Close, Great Denham, has started serving jail time after sexually assaulting a flight attendant, endangering an easyJet aircraft and racial abuse The court heard that the pilot of the flight requested permission for a priority landing at in Tenerife because of Khan. Khan, of Stone Close, Great Denham, started serving his jail time on Monday after he was sentenced at Luton Crown Court. He will be in jail for six months for endangering an aircraft and a further two months to run concurrently for the sexual assault and one month for racially aggravated harassment, also concurrent. Bedfordshire Police said Khan repeatedly refused to stop leaving his seat and taking off his shirt. Luton Crown Court (pictured) sentenced Khan to six months for endangering an aircraft and a further two months to run concurrently for the sexual assault and one month for racially aggravated harassment, also concurrent 'Khan ignored them and his behaviour escalated to become abusive and aggressive towards the crew and the other passengers, demanding a fight and being racially abusive towards members of crew who tried to assist,' a police spokesman said. 'The pilot was forced to request a priority landing in Tenerife. 'However, the crew took the decision to report Khan's behaviour to police on their return to the UK. Sergeant James Hart of Bedfordshire Police's Airport Policing Unit said: 'Khan's behaviour posed a serious risk to the crew and passengers and he acted disrespectfully towards a female member of the crew, leaving her shaken and distressed for several days after. 'We are pleased that the severity of his actions have been recognised by the court in the form of a jail term. 'The crew's primary responsibility is for the safety of the aircraft and its passengers and Khan's behaviour put that in jeopardy. 'Abusive and disruptive passengers must expect to be firmly dealt with, and this behaviour is never acceptable, let alone on board an aircraft.' Mick Broster, Head of Security for easyJet, said: 'Whilst serious disruptive passenger incidents are rare, easyJet will not tolerate them. We take them very seriously, always push for prosecution and we fully co-operated with the police during their investigation.' By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The Citizenship Amendment Act may take another three months to actually come into effect as the Union Home Ministry has sought an additional three months time for framing rules of the CAA. The ministry has made the plea before the Department Related Standing Committee for Subordinate Legislation as according to the Manual on Parliamentary Work, the rules for any legislation should be framed within six months of the presidential assent or an extension must be sought, officials said on Sunday. The Manual on Parliamentary Work also states that in case the ministries/departments are not able to frame the rules within the prescribed period of six months, they should seek extension of time from the Committee on Subordinate Legislation stating reasons for such extension which cannot be more than for a period of three months at a time. The controversial CAA, which facilitates granting of Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim minorities of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, was passed by Parliament nearly eight months ago and had led to protests in different parts of the country. The President had given his assent to the legislation on December 12, 2019. The home ministry made the plea after the panel enquired about the status of the rules for the CAA. The son of the oldest litigant in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title suit, a Padma Shri awardee and the chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board (UPSCWB) are three Muslim invitees among the 175 guests attending the foundation-laying ceremony of the Ram temple on Wednesday. The first invitee is Iqbal Ansari, 69, son of Hashim Ansari who died at of 95 in 2016 after which the son started pursuing the case in the top court. The second is 80-year-old Mohammad Sharif, who is known across the state for his work in holding final rites for at least 5,000 unclaimed Hindu and Muslim people. The third is Zufar Ahmed Faruqi, the chairman of the UPSCWB that was the main Muslim party in the title suit and the head of the 15-member trust that is helming the construction of a mosque at a five-acre site in Ayodhya district. We have invited Iqbal Ansari and Mohammad Sharif from Ayodhya for bhumi pujan of Ram Mandir, said Champat Rai, general secretary of the Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Tirath Kshetra Trust. Mohammad Sharifs contribution to the society cannot is priceless. He has given respectful cremation or burial to unclaimed bodies in Ayodhya, added Rai. A top state government official confirmed Faruqis invitation on condition of anonymity. Ansari welcomed the invitation. I am delighted to be invited for bhumi pujan. Lord Ram and Ram Mandir will usher in development in Ayodhya, said Ansari, who had opposed filing of a review petition to the Supreme Courts 2019 verdict that cleared the way for the construction of the temple. Our Prime Minister is coming. I will meet him and give him a Ramnami stole (a piece of cloth with Rams name written on it) and Ramcharitmanas as a present, Ansari added. The dispute is over now after the courts verdict. I respect sadhus and saints.. I think it is Lord Rams will that I attend it. Sharif, a cycle mechanic popularly known as chacha (uncle), was awarded the Padma Shri, the countrys fourth-highest civilian award, this year and hit the headlines for his work in giving a respectable send-off to unclaimed bodies during the coronavirus pandemic. I am very happy after receiving the invite. I am thankful to the PM and hope that Ram temple will also bring development in Ayodhya, said Sharif. Faruqis spokesperson confirmed the invitation. Yes , the chairman has got an invite, said Athar Hussain. In his press conference, Rai announced that the trust also invited Purnima Kothari, sister of two brothers from Kolkata who were kar sevaks, or Hindu religious volunteers, who died in police firing in Ayodhya on October 30, 1990 while on a procession to the 2.77 acre site. The trust also invited family members of local kar sevaks in Ayodhya who died in the firing. We wanted to invite more Karsevaks. But due to pandemic we have only invited local Karsevaks and Purnima Kothari, sister of Kothari brother of Kolkata, said Rai. The trust will felicitate the kar sevaks at another function Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir Nirman Yajna after the coronavirus pandemic, Rai added. He appealed to the kar sevaks to be patient. In the Ram Mandir movement, a large number of kar sevaks contributed. They all want to come to Ayodhya for the bhumi pujan. We also wanted the same but due to the pandemic this is not possible at present, said Rai. But bhumi pujan by the PM is necessary to start the construction work of Ram Mandir. (with agency inputs) MEXICO CITY Press groups called for justice Monday after unidentified gunmen killed a journalist in southern Mexico along with a police officer assigned to protect him after a 2016 attack. Pablo Morrugares was the fifth journalist to be killed in Mexico this year, in attacks which are increasingly killing police guards assigned to the victims. More than 140 journalists have been killed over the past 20 years. The prosecutors office in Guerrero state said Morrugares and a state police officer were at a restaurant when they were killed in a hail of bullets Sunday. Authorities found 55 shell casings from assault rifles at the scene in the city of Iguala. The killers apparently opened fire from a passing vehicle. Morrugares was director of the P.M Noticias Guerrero web site, which frequently reports on the gang violence that plagues the region. Local media reported that threats against Morrugares had been displayed in the past on banners hung by roadsides, a tactic frequently used by drug gangs in Mexico. On Monday, the Inter American Press Association called on authorities to investigate the crime. It said Morrugares and his wife had survived a previous attack in 2016, when attackers opened fire on their car. The group called on Mexican authorities to provide better funding and protection for journalists registered in a government protection program. While the Mexican government has sometimes assigned police bodyguards for threatened journalists, killers have increasingly been murdering both the journalists and their guards. In May, gunmen killed the owner of a newspaper and one of the policemen who had been assigned to protect him in northern Sonora state, following earlier threats. Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor Varian Medical Systems Inc.s VAR third-quarter fiscal 2020 results are scheduled to release on Aug 5, after market close. In the last-reported quarter, the company delivered an earnings surprise of 1.2%. Lets take a look at how things are shaping up prior to this announcement. Q3 Estimates Picture Currently, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal third-quarter revenues is pegged at $ 677.1 million, suggesting a fall of 18% from the year-ago number. The same for adjusted earnings per share (EPS) stands at 55 cents, indicating a year-over-year fall of 58.3%. Key Catalysts Varians solid Oncology platform is expected to have driven fiscal third-quarter performance. Particularly, the Protons Solutions business is likely to have driven growth. In the fiscal second quarter, the company inked an agreement with National Health Service Trust for 15 TrueBeam machines to equip centers across England. The company closed the ProBeam 360 system purchase contract in the APAC region. These developments are expected to get reflected on fiscal third-quarter performance. However, due to the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, overall revenues within the Oncology segment are expected to have been impacted during the fiscal third quarter. Notably, Varians key radiotherapy solutions Eclipse and TrueBeam are currently seeing robust demand from healthcare vendors. In March 2020, Varian announced the newest release of its treatment planning system, Eclipse v16. This release comprises intelligent features such as RapidPlan PT, the first clinical application of machine learning in proton treatment planning. Varian Medical Systems, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise Varian Medical Systems, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise Varian Medical Systems, Inc. price-eps-surprise | Varian Medical Systems, Inc. Quote The Halcyon Platform is also expected to have contributed to sales in the to-be-reported quarter.In the fiscal second quarter, the company signed a deal for five Halcyon systems to be deployed in centers across England. In March 2020, the company received three new system orders and five system upgrade orders for Halcyon 2.0. The company also received an order for 12 TrueBeam machines, 22 Halcyon systems and one VitalBeam from Pharmstandard in Russia. Story continues Strong customer reception for Ethos therapy solution is also expected to have driven the fiscal third-quarter performance. The CTSI acquisition, which was integrated into the Oncology unit in 2019, is expected to have continued contributing to the topline during the fiscal third quarter. Moreover, with the takeovers of Endocare, Alicon and Boston Scientifics microspheres portfolio, Varian has likely strengthened its Interventional Oncology Solutions arm and these are likely to have positively impacted the companys fiscal third-quarter performance. What Our Quantitative Model Suggests Per our proven model, the combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an earnings beat. That is not the case here as you will see. Earnings ESP: Varian has an Earnings ESP of 0.00%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they're reported with our Earnings ESP Filter. Zacks Rank: It carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Stocks Worth a Look Here are a few medical stocks worth considering as these have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter. Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation IART has an Earnings ESP of +20.69% and a Zacks Rank of 3.You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Nevro Corporation NVRO has an Earnings ESP of +15.17% and a Zacks Rank of 3. GW Pharmaceuticals GWPH has an Earnings ESP of +17.38% and a Zacks Rank of 3. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 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 Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation (IART) : Free Stock Analysis Report Varian Medical Systems, Inc. (VAR) : Free Stock Analysis Report GW Pharmaceuticals PLC (GWPH) : Free Stock Analysis Report Nevro Corp. (NVRO) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. The company plans to mass-produce hundreds of millions of doses of the vaccine, which is still in clinical trials and might not even work. But if it does, Adar Poonawalla, the chief executive of Serum, will have on hand what everyone wants and possibly in huge quantities before anyone else. Mr. Poonawalla says that he will split the vaccine doses he produces 50-50 between India and the rest of the world, with a focus on poorer countries. The Serum Institute is steered by only two men: Mr. Poonawalla and his father, Cyrus, a horse breeder who became a billionaire. Leapfrogging: Vaccines take time not just to perfect but to manufacture. More than one project is conducting these two processes simultaneously and starting production now, while the vaccines are still in trials. That way, if and when a vaccine is approved at best within the next six months, though no one really knows doses will be on hand. The global race: U.S. and European governments have sealed billions of dollars in deals with pharmaceutical giants like Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, Sanofi and AstraZeneca to speed up the development and production of select vaccine candidates in exchange for hundreds of millions of doses. Figure 1 Cardinal Resources Tenements in Ghana Cardinal Resources Tenements in Ghana Figure 2 Location of 63 km2 Namdini Mining Lease Location of 63 km2 Namdini Mining Lease Figure 3 Namdini Project Showing Completed Drill Locations Namdini Project Showing Completed Drill Locations Figure 4 Completed Geotechnical Drill Locations on TSF and Process Plant Areas Completed Geotechnical Drill Locations on TSF and Process Plant Areas Figure 5 Namdini Mining Licence and Bolgatanga Project Tenements Namdini Mining Licence and Bolgatanga Project Tenements Figure 6 Yameriga Prospect with Drillholes, Trenches and Rock Chip Sample Locations. Yameriga Prospect with Drillholes, Trenches and Rock Chip Sample Locations. Figure 7 Yameriga Rock Chip samples Yameriga Rock Chip samples Figure 8 Yameriga Trench YMTR002 looking South showing vein orientation types Yameriga Trench YMTR002 looking South showing vein orientation types Figure 9 Subranum Project Tenement Straddling Bibiani Shear Zone Subranum Project Tenement Straddling Bibiani Shear Zone TORONTO, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cardinal Resources Limited (ASX: CDV; TSX: CDV) (Cardinal or the Company) a Ghana gold focused exploration and development company, is pleased to present its Quarterly activities report for the period ended 30 June 2020. HIGHLIGHTS On March 16, 2020 the Company advised that it had received notification from Nord Gold SE (Nordgold) that it had acquired a relevant interest of 19.9% of the shares in Cardinal, (having acquired 16.4% stake previously owned by Goldfields Limited), and further advised that Nordgold had provided a non-binding indicative and conditional proposal to acquire all the issued capital of Cardinal that it did not already own for AU$0.45775 per share in cash. On March 30, 2020 the Company updated its shareholders and provided commentary as to how the Company is managing the current COVID-19 pandemic. On May 4, 2020 the Company announced an update on permitting approvals and COVID-19 impacts on the Companys progress. On June 5, 2020 the Company announced that the senior secured credit facility (as amended in February 2020 and March 2020) had been assigned from Sprott Private Resource Lending, L.P. to the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF), a Ghana Government owned infrastructure investment vehicle. On June 16, 2020 the Company responded to media speculation in Ghana and advised that the Company continued strategic discussions with banks, financiers and other parties which continued to show interest in bringing the Namdini Project into production with a view to maximising economic outcomes. Whilst discussions in relation to any potential transaction remain ongoing, at that time no agreement had been entered into in relation to any transaction. On June 18, 2020 the Company announced the recommended all-cash takeover offer of Cardinal Resources by Shandong Gold Mining (Hong Kong) Co, Ltd (a subsidiary of Shandong Gold Mining Co, Ltd) (Shandong Gold). Cardinal entered into a Bid Implementation Agreement with Shandong Gold, pursuant to which Shandong Gold agreed to acquire 100% of the issued and outstanding ordinary shares in Cardinal at a price of AU$0.60. Proposed implementation by way of an off-market takeover offer with a 50.1% minimum acceptance condition. The Board of Cardinal unanimously recommended acceptance of the Shandong Gold offer in the absence of a superior proposal. On July 7, 2020 the Company announced that it had raised AU$11,960,000 as a result of the issue of 26,000,000 fully paid ordinary shares to Shandong Gold in accordance with the terms of the Bid Implementation Agreement. On July 15, 2020 Cardinal received an unconditional on-market takeover offer at AU$0.66 per share from Nordgold. Having regards to the unsolicited nature of the takeover bid and the provisions of the Bid Implementation Agreement with Shandong Gold, the Board of Cardinal recommended a take no action at the time in relation to the Nordgold takeover bid. On July 20, 2020 the Company advised that its Namdini Mining Licence had officially received Sovereign Parliamentary Ratification in Ghana. On July 22, 2020 the Company advised that it had received a revised and improved proposal for an off-market takeover from Shandong Gold, pursuant to which Shandong Gold will offer to acquire all of the shares in Cardinal it does not presently own at a cash price of $0.70 per share. On July 27, 2020 the Company, after careful consideration of the Revised Shandong Gold Offer and Nordgolds unconditional on-market offer for Cardinal, Cardinals Board of Directors (in consultation with the Special Committee, its financial and legal advisors), unanimously recommended that Cardinal shareholders ACCEPT the Revised Shandong Gold Offer (in the absence of a superior proposal); and REJECT the Nordgold Bid. Story continues On July 30, 2020 the Company advised that it had entered into a deed with each Shandong Gold Mining (HongKong) Co., Limited and Shandong Gold Mining Co., Ltd, to amend the Bid Implementation Agreement. OUTLOOK The principal activity of the Company is gold exploration and mine development in Ghana. The Company holds tenements prospective for gold mineralisation in Ghana in two granitegreenstone belts: the Bolgatanga Project and the Namdini Gold Project (Namdini), which are, respectively, located within the Greenstone Belts in northeast Ghana and the Subranum Project, which is located within the Sefwi Greenstone Belt in southwest Ghana. The main focus of activity is the Namdini Gold Project which has a gold Ore Reserve of 5.1Moz (138.6Mt @ 1.13g/t Au; 0.5g/t Au cutoff) inclusive of 0.4Moz Proved (7.4Mt @ 1.31g/t Au; 0.5 g/t Au cutoff) and 4.7Moz Probable (131.2Mt @ 1.12 g/t Au; 0.5g/t Au cutoff). In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and following advice from the World Health Organization (WHO) as well as the Australian, Ghanaian, and Canadian Governments, Cardinal has enacted changes to its exploration programme and on-site development programme, primarily focused on the safety and well-being of our workforce. All international travel remains suspended. On the ground in Ghana, the workforce has been reduced to key personnel only. According to WHO External Situation Report 189 (July 27, 2020), there had been 32,435 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ghana, including cases via local transmission. 161 deaths from COVID-19 have been recorded in Ghana at the time of this report. At the time of writing, the Northern Region of Ghana, where Cardinals main tenements are located, have recorded 308 COVID-19 cases with one death. Some restrictions and lockdowns have been eased. Strict COVID-19 Operational Procedures have been introduced on site and in Cardinal Offices in Perth and Accra. The Company is doing everything to ensure it is well placed to resume normal business as soon as practically possible. The Project technical team and its partners are still actively working on adding value to the Namdini Gold Project. Figure 1 accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b24c0235-c0a9-47cd-9c17-337d1fe65ec4 THE NAMDINI GOLD PROJECT Property Title / Mining Lease A LargeScale Mining License covering the Namdini Mining Lease was granted to Cardinal Namdini Mining Limited (Cardinal Namdini), a wholly owned subsidiary of Cardinal, by the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources (the Minister) under the Ghanaian Minerals and Mining Act 2006 (Act 703) (the Act) in December 2017. In February 2020, the Minister - in accordance with the Act- approved the application to expand the original Mining Lease to the maximum allowable area. The expanded Large-Scale Mining Lease now totals 63km2 and is valid for a renewable term of 15 years from 2020 (Figure 2). Subsequent to the Quarter end the Company advised that its Namdini Mining Licence had officially received Sovereign Parliamentary Ratification in Ghana. Figure 2 accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/5e9be1ee-7974-4933-bf9b-4bd1f133d111 *7.4Mt @ 1.31g/t Au for 0.4Moz Au Proved and 131.2Mt @ 1.12g/t Au for 4.7Moz Au Probable; 0.5g/t Au cutoff Project Development Timeline Table 1: Proposed Project development schedule (Subject to Financing and COVID-19 impact). Milestone Target timeline Advance Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) to completion Q4 2020 Advance Resettlement Action Plan to substantial completion Q1 2021 Target production commencement H1 2023 Following release of the Feasibility Study and accompanying NI43101 Technical Report (ASX/TSX Press Release dated 28 October and 28 November 2019 respectively) the gold price has traded within the range of US$1,492 to US$1,902 per ounce on 24 July 2020. The three-year running average to 24 July 2020 is US$1,385 per ounce.Project Economic Outcomes The Feasibility Study evaluated the Namdini project outcomes at a gold price of US$1,350 per ounce, but also presented gold price sensitivities from US$1,150 per ounce and up to US$1,550 per ounce which Cardinal has set out below in Table 2 below. Table 2 Namdini Project Feasibility Study Outcomes (ASX/TSX Press Release dated 28 October and 28 November 2019 respectively) Project Financial Model Gold Price US$ / oz 1,150 1,350 1,550 Capital Cost (including $42M contingency) US$M 390 390 390 All in Sustaining Costs (AISC)1 Starter Pit US$ / oz 585 585 585 Life of Mine (15 years) US$ / oz 895 895 895 Total Project Payback months 33 21 9 PreTax NPV5% US$M 406 914 1,438 PreTax IRR % 26 43 57 Royalties calculated at a rate of 5.5% at UD$1,350/oz and 6.0% at US$1,550/oz and a corporate tax rate of 32.5%; both subject to negotiation.1 Cash Costs + Royalties + Levies + Life of Mine Sustaining Capital Costs (World Gold Council Standard). The forecast financial information set out above in Table 2 was initially contained in Cardinals Feasibility Study (refer Cardinals ASX Announcement dated October 28, 2019 titled Feasibility Study Confirms Namdini as Tier One Gold Project.) Cardinal confirms that all the material assumptions underpinning the above forecast financial information in the Feasibility Study continue to apply and have not materially changed. Project Development Partners Table 3: FEED Team: COMPANY ROLE Lycopodium Feasibility Study Managers. Process plant and associated infrastructure. Capital and Process Operating cost estimation. AMC Consulting Mine design, planning, optimization, scheduling and mining contractor tendering Orway Minerals Consultants Comminution data analysis, crushing and grinding option studies. ALS Laboratory (Perth) Metallurgical test work to support the process design criteria. Knight Piesold Consulting Tailings Storage Facility and selected infrastructure design. Independent Metallurgical Operations Metallurgical test work management and analysis MPR Geological Consultants Mineral Resource modelling of the Namdini Deposit. Orefind Geology and deposit structural genesis. Sebbag Group International Mine Design Management and Review. NEMAS Consult & Geosystems Consulting Environmental Impact Assessment Study. Whittle Consulting Enterprise Optimization of the Namdini Project. Alastri Software Tactical Scheduling, Haulage Modelling and Reserving Software. Maelgwyn Mineral Services Africa AachenTM process metallurgical optimization. BDO Advisory Financial Model Integrity & Reviewer (PEA, PFS and FS). MKM Social SocioEconomic Study and Resettlement Action Plan. Project Permits and Approval Status July 2018 Environmental Impact Statement ( EIS ) development and documentation process initiated December 2019 Cardinal submitted its Draft EIS for development of the Namdini Project with Ghanaian EPA January 2020 Ghanaian Environmental Protection Agency ( EPA ) completed its review of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the development of the Namdini Project. The EIS revised as needed and resubmitted in March 2020 February 2020 Relocation Action Plan ( RAP ) approved. The RAP was developed over an extended period, inclusive of extensive consultation with the Project Affected People ( PAP ) and several levels of the Government. It was signed off by all PAP and subsequently approved by the Ghanaian Minerals Commission February 2020 Water License granted. Permits the use of water for construction and mine operations purposes April 2020 Ghanaian EPA approves Cardinals EIS, granting its Permit for the development of the Namdini Gold Project July 2020 The Namdini Mining Licence had officially received Sovereign Parliamentary Ratification in Ghana The Company was granted an environmental permit for the Namdini Gold Project by EPA on April 20, 2020. The permit expires October 20, 2021. Renewal is expected on October 27, 2021 following the submission of an Environmental Management Plan (EMP). The EMP will be submitted six months prior to the expiry. Developing a safe, successful, and sustainable gold mine continues to be a principal focus for Cardinal Resources. Progress on permitting initiatives are as follows: Application for Bulk Oil Facility permit from the Ghana EPA Registration of the proposed Environmental Impact study with the EPA Application for zoning letter from the Talensi District Assembly Outlook for the third quarter is as follows: Application for Fire Certificate from the Ghana National Fire Service Rehabilitate existing access road to the project site Application for chemical use permit from the EPA and Narcotics Board of Ghana Create access to proposed water abstraction point on the White Volta Implement operations Health, Safety and Environmental (HSE) Management System Application for mine operating permit from the Minerals Commission of Ghana Resettlement Action Plan MinCom has approved Cardinals RAP for its Namdini Gold Project in the Talensi District of the Upper East Region of Ghana, West Africa. The RAP report was produced in accordance with the Minerals and Mining (Compensation and Resettlement) Regulation 2012 (L.I 2175), and International Finance Corporations (IFC) Performance Standards on Social and Environmental Sustainability. MinComs approval has paved the way for construction of 275 structures including residential and public buildings for the people of Accra Site and Buing village, which is planned for the next financial year. The 270 impacted households with a total population of 1,410 people will be compensated for loss of assets and livelihood. Existing infrastructure will be improved. The communities signed the Resettlement Agreement with the Company on February 11, 2020. FEED Update All works for the FEED programme were wound down for Cardinals appointed consultants following advice from the Company due to the global spread of COVID19. Additional land was acquired for the Namdini project area which resulted in the tailings storage facility (TSF), water storage facility (WSF) and waste storage dump (WSD) being optimised with the additional space being made available. A summary of the FEED activities up to the point of suspension were as follows: Cardinal continued negotiating the separable Engineering Procurement and Construction Management contracts with Lycopodium The following design notices were being processed: An 11kV power supply selected for the river abstraction pumps as opposed to a diesel generator set Splitting of the oxygen demand into two separable oxygen plants for redundancy Specifications of the lease boundary fencing to be upgraded. A carbon-in-leach ( CIL ) tower crane chosen as opposed to a gantry crane Addition of a semiautomatic Sodium Metabisulphite handling system Addition of a Lime Blower for delivery to the Process Plant outside of the Plant fence Haul truck crossovers for tailings and decant pipelines Flat pack versus block work for the permanent accommodation camp, fly camp and construction camp Reducing the size and hence cost of the primary crusher The site lay-out issued for final review The Project Execution Plan in the process of being reviewed by Cardinal An updated TSF dam breakage analysis completed and issued to Cardinal The WSF relocated and a new WSD designed. The project execution schedule was premised on a Financial Investment Decision (FID) date of May 1, 2020 and a site access date of September 1, 2020. At the time of suspension, the schedule was ready for review by Cardinal. Specific schedule target milestones are defined as follows: Plant warehouse to be commissioned and handed over 12 months before first gold pour Incinerator to be commissioned and handed over 12 months before first gold pour Mining Service Area Facility to be commissioned and handed over 9 months before first gold pour Metallurgical laboratory to be commissioned and handed over 6 months before first gold pour A constructability project review was completed during the FEED, to be ready for a planned Hazard Identification (HAZID) analysis. The HAZID was cancelled due to the suspension. The following procurement packages were in various stages of evaluation: Fly Camp Facilities, Operation and Camp Management Site Survey Services Infrastructure Bulk Earthworks Plant Bulk Earthworks Concrete Works Field Erected Tanks and Steel Framed Buildings Construction Camp Services Mining contract tender expressions of interest were sent to thirteen (13) potential mining contractors. Namdini Project Drilling Namdini Infrastructure Sterilisation Drilling During the Quarter, sterilisation drilling was suspended. Sterilisation drilling to date as expected has returned no significant mineralisation. To date, approximately 37,164m of drilling has been completed, comprising of 381 reverse circulation (RC) drillholes for approximately 36,529m and 2 diamond drillholes for approximately 635m (Figure 3). Figure 3 accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d22a90c0-5fb2-488f-8ffb-390b727284c3 Namdini Infrastructure Geotechnical Drilling No Geotechnical drilling and test-pitting were undertaken for the project infrastructure during the Quarter, due to the COVID-19 restrictions. Figure 4 highlights completed Geotech investigations on the TSF and Process Plant areas. Figure 4 accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a2fc8424-ae66-43e0-8738-6ca5f0ad3503 REGIONAL EXPLORATION UPDATE The Company owns exploration rights to two exploration projects: The Bolgatanga Project which includes Bongo Licence Area, Kungongo Licence and Ndongo Licence Area (Figures 1 and 5) located in the northeast of Ghana and the Subranum Project located in the southwest of Ghana (Figures 1 and 9). The main focus of the Companys regional exploration programme during the Quarter was field mapping and ground-truthing initiated after a review of structures and targets generated from geophysical data, historical RC results and a follow up on identified geophysical targets with trenching and sampling programme at Yameriga (RL9/19) (Figure 5). Figure 5 accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ebd95aaf-2bb2-4bb9-884f-442195b600a9 *7.4Mt @ 1.31g/t Au for 0.4Moz Au Proved and 131.2Mt @ 1.12g/t Au for 4.7Moz Au Probable; 0.5g/t Au cutoff BOLGATANGA PROJECT Ndongo Licence Area The Ndongo Licence Area, hosts part of the extensive regional Bole-Bolgatanga Fault in the northwest and the prospective Nangodi Shear Zone in the centre of the licence area. The licence area wraps around the southern end of the Palungu granitoid intrusive, in the south-eastern region of the licence and forms the main area of prospectivity on the tenement (Figure 5). The Ndongo Licence Area, comprises of the combined, Nangodi Prospecting Licence (RL9/13, covering a land size of 84.7km), Ndongo Prospecting Licence (RL9/22, covering a land area of 157km), and Yameriga Prospecting Licence (RL9/19, covering a land size of 36.78km), granted to Cardinal to prospect for gold in the Bolgatanga and Talensi Nabdam District in the Upper East Region in the Republic of Ghana. The combined land area of the Ndongo Licence Area is 278.48km. The Company focused exploration activities during the Quarter at Yameriga conducting field mapping, ground truthing, trenching and some scout RC drilling after a review of geophysical targets, historical RC results and artisanal workings (Figure 6). Rock chip samples collected from veins in adits and rock dumps around adits in heavily artisanal areas returned significant gold assays. A summary of the highlighted results is shown in Table 5 and in Figure 6 below. The significant assays returned from the rock chip samples indicate the potential for discovery of high-grade economic gold mineralisation at Yameriga and warrant further detailed exploration work. Rock chips were mainly quartz veins (milky and smoky) with iron staining and occasional visible specks of gold. Primary rocks encountered were variably altered volcaniclastics with chlorite-silica alteration and specks of sulphides (Rock Chip sample pictures in Figure 7). A total of 17 scout RC drillholes totaling 1,070m and 1 DD totaling 49.88m were also completed and dispatched to Intertek Laboratory. Assay results are still pending and will be reported next Quarter. Table 4 lists the drillhole and trenching activity undertaken within the quarter. Table 4: Yameriga First Pass RC Drilling and Trenching Programme No. Holes RC (m) DD (m) Total (m) No. Samples No. Duplicates No. Blanks No. Stds Total Samples Drilling 18 1,070 49.88 1,119.88 1,120 52 26 27 1,225 Trenching 2 - 34 49 2 1 1 53 Table 5: Yameriga Rock Chip Samples SampleID GridID mEast mNorth mRL Au (g/t) YMRX047 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,390 1,185,571 223 129.2 YMRX044 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,377 1,185,567 225 13.5 YMRX041 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,388 1,185,564 223 68.4 YMRX019 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,223 1,185,872 218 28.9 YMRX017 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,222 1,185,873 218 20.0 R332468 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 744,687 1,183,665 119 4.7 R332454 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 745,364 1,185,748 179 0.7 R332447 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 744,946 1,184,192 232 7.2 Figure 6 accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4569c4b2-1f52-4698-b95a-45c0d527fea4 Figure 7 accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/96d44b0b-d44a-4e4d-9e24-120f958cebfd Two follow-up trenches were also completed during the quarter for a total of 34m (Figures 6 and 8). The purpose for the trenching was to obtain a better understanding of the host rocks, styles of mineralisation, structural controls and to ultimately refine targets generated from geophysical surveys. Mapping and sampling (horizontally and vertically) were completed within the saprolite along the trench walls, targeting the two types of veins (milky and smoky) encountered (Figure 8). Trench YMTR002 returned significant gold assays summarised in Table 6. Table 6: Summary of Individual Trench Significant Assays at Yameriga TrenchID Azimuth () GridID mEast mNorth mFrom mTo mWidth Au (g/t) YMTR002 170 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,382 1,185,562 1.0 3.0 2 33.3 YMTR002 170 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,380 1,185,568 7.0 12.0 5 2.5 YMTR002 170 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,380 1,185,568 11.0 12.0 1 1.0 Figure 8 accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b57b6390-3286-4ddf-a7f4-d6caf418cb80 Kungongo Licence Area The Kungongo Prospecting Licence (RL9/28) is located approximately 40km west of Namdini Gold Project and covers a total land size of 122.4km. The licence hosts the extensive regional Bole-Bolgatanga fault over a length of 6km in the northwest corner of the tenement. The tenement is underlain by Birimian greenstones which have been extensively intruded by younger granitoids (Figure 5). As part of the Companys precautionary measures put in place to minimize the risk of exposure of employees amid the COVID-19 pandemic, all exploration activity at Kungongo was placed on hold during the Quarter. Bongo Licence Area The Bongo Licence Area covers a total land area of 465km. It hosts part of the regional Bole-Bolgatanga Fault (Figure 5). The Bongo Licence Area comprises of the combined, Bongo Prospecting Licence (PL9/29 covering a land size of 155km) located in the Bongo area, Kandiga-Atibisi Prospecting Licence (PL9/38 covering a land size of 155km) located in the Kandiga-Atibabisi area, and Zoko-Tarongo Prospecting Licence (PL9/37 covering a land size of 155km) located in the Zoko-Tarongo area all in the Upper East region of Ghana. As part of the precautionary measures put in place by the Company to minimize the risk of exposure of employees amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company suspended all exploration activity at the Bongo Licence Area during the Quarter. SUBRANUM PROJECT The Subranum Project covers an area of 71.4km located in southwest Ghana. The license straddles the eastern margin of the Sefwi Gold Belt which is bounded by the regional Bibiani Shear Zone (BSZ) stretching about 200km across southwestern Ghana (Figure 9). There is 9km of the BSZ developed within the Subranum license trending NE to SW. The BSZ forms a very prospective, sheared contact between Birimian phyllites and greywackes to the southeast and mafic to intermediate volcanics and volcaniclastics to the northwest. Granitoid stocks of the Dixcove suite intrude this shear zone. The portion of the Bibiani Shear Zone occurring within the Subranum tenement is 9km long, trending SW to NE. Previous extensive exploration has outlined a 5km long gold target, extending from the SW tenement boundary towards the NE, with the remaining 4km of the 9km strike length remaining relatively unexplored. All exploration activities were on hold during this Quarter as part of the Companys precautionary measures to minimize the risk of exposure of employees to COVID-19. Figure 9 accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/98eb17ce-37aa-4e3d-854d-8927a98ec9bf TENEMENT SCHEDULE ASX LISTING RULE 5.3.3 The following tenement information is provided pursuant to ASX Listing Rule 5.3.3. No tenements in part or whole were relinquished, surrendered or otherwise divested during the Quarter ended June 30, 2020. All Cardinals tenements are in good standing with the Ghanaian Minerals Commission. Project Licence Area Tenement Name Tenement Number Licence Type Interest Acquired During Quarter Interest Divested During Quarter Interest Held at End of Quarter Bongo RL9/29 Prospecting - - 100 % Bongo Kandiga-Atibabisi PL9/38 Prospecting - - 100 % Bolgatanga Zoko-Tarongo PL9/37 Prospecting - - 100 % Nangodi PL9/13 Prospecting - - 100 % Ndongo Ndongo PL9/22 Prospecting - - 100 % Yameriga RL9/19 Prospecting - - 100 % Kungongo Kungongo RL9/28 Prospecting - - 100 % Namdini Namdini Datoko PL9/29 Mining Lease - - 100 % Subranum Subranum Subin-Kaso PL9/309 Prospecting - - 100 % CORPORATE UPDATE Finance Update The Company announced that the senior secured credit facility (as amended in February 2020 and March 2020) (Facility) had been assigned from Sprott Private Resource Lending L.P. (Sprott) to the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF), a Ghana Government owned infrastructure investment vehicle. As a result of the acquisition, Cardinals senior debt facility provider is now GIIF. The balance of the Facility was approximately US$23.8 million (following a US$0.4 million repayment of the debt to Sprott prior to the transaction) and Cardinal has also been provided with further funding (from previously restricted cash) totaling an additional US$3.1 million which now forms part of Cardinals working capital. As part of the transaction, Cardinal agreed to amend and restate the Facility under Ghanaian law. The material commercial terms of the Facility (below) remain unchanged or are otherwise more favourable for Cardinal, as set out below: 24-month repayment term (the Sprott arrangements had a maturity date of March 1, 2021) Interest rate of 7.75% + the greater of 3 months LIBOR or 1% per annum Early repayment flexibility is continued and as per the arrangements with Sprott, a 5% redemption premium applies to all future repayments of the Facility Secured against the assets of Cardinal and its wholly owned subsidiaries in Ghana Upon a change of control of Cardinal, GIIF may require repayment of the Facility (under the prior Sprott arrangements, immediate repayment was required in such circumstances) Corporate Update NordGold Bid On March 16, 2020 the Company advised that it has received notification from Nord Gold SE (Nordgold) that it had acquired a relevant interest of 19.9% in shares of Cardinal, (having acquired the 16.4% stake previously owned by Goldfields Limited), and further advised that Nordgold had provided a non-binding indicative and conditional proposal to acquire all of the issued capital of Cardinal that it did not already own for $A0.45775 per share in cash (Nordgold Bid). Shandong Offer On June 18, the Company announced that it had entered into a Bid Implementation Agreement with Shandong Gold Mining (Hong Kong) Co, Ltd (a subsidiary of Shandong Gold Mining Co, Ltd), pursuant to which Shandong Gold had agreed to acquire 100% of the issued and outstanding ordinary shares in Cardinal at a price of A$0.60 cash per share, by way of an off-market takeover offer. Cardinals Board of Directors carefully considered the Shandong Gold Offer in consultation with the Special Committee appointed in connection with the strategic process. Accordingly, Cardinals Board of Directors unanimously recommended that all Cardinal shareholders accept the Shandong Gold Offer in the absence of a superior proposal. Cardinals Directors, who collectively hold approximately 6.37% of Cardinals ordinary shares, intend to accept the Shandong Gold Offer in respect of all Cardinal shares they own or control by the later of 21 days after the offer is opened for acceptance and 5 days after dispatch of the Cardinal Targets Statement, in the absence of a superior proposal. Cardinals Board of Directors have been exploring a range of potential transactions to maximise value for shareholders and consider that the Shandong Gold Offer as the best option for shareholders, in the absence of a superior proposal, and will deliver several key benefits to shareholders including: Certain and immediate value for Cardinal shareholders - ability for shareholders to realize certain and immediate value at a significant premium to Cardinals trading price on the ASX and TSX markets. By accepting the Shandong Gold Offer, subject to the Shandong Gold Offer going unconditional, Cardinal shareholders will receive cash consideration of A$0.60 for every Cardinal share they own No financing condition - the Shandong Gold Offer is an all-cash offer and is not subject to any financing conditions Avoids risks associated with mine development the Shandong Gold Offer eliminates exposure to the risks inherent in any new mine development, including financing, operational and regulatory risks Subsequent to the quarter end the Company issued 26,000,000 fully paid ordinary shares to Shandong Gold to raise AU$11.96 million in accordance with the BIA. Shareholder approval was not required for this Placement as the Company issued the shares under its Listing Rule 7.1 placement capacity. The funds raised by the Placement will be used to ensure Cardinal may continue advancing the Namdini Project towards development and working capital. Revised Nordgold Bid On July 15, 2020 the Company received an unconditional on-market takeover offer for Cardinal at AU$0.66 cash per share from Nordgold (Revised Nordgold Bid). Cardinal also noted that as the Nordgold Takeover Bid was unsolicited, it will need to be considered in detail by the Board, together with the Special Purpose Committee and its financial and legal advisers. Revised Shandong Gold Offer On July 27, 2020 Cardinal announced that the Company had received a revised and improved proposal for an off-market takeover offer from Shandong Gold pursuant to which Shandong Gold will offer to acquire all of the shares in Cardinal it does not presently own at a cash price of A$0.70 per Share (the Revised Shandong Gold Offer). After careful consideration of the Revised Shandong Gold Offer and Revised Nordgold Bid, Cardinals Board of Directors (in consultation with the Special Committee, its financial and legal advisors), unanimously recommend that Cardinal shareholders: ACCEPT the Revised Shandong Gold Offer (in the absence of a superior proposal); and REJECT the Revised Nordgold Bid. The recommended Revised Shandong Gold Offer of A$0.70 cash per share values Cardinal at approximately A$395 million on a fully diluted basis and represents an attractive premium of approximately 6.1% to the Revised Nordgold Bid of A$0.66 cash per share announced on 15 July 2020. The Board of Directors considered the Revised Nordgold Bid closely and in the context of the Revised Shandong Gold Offer and took into account, amongst other matters, the price and conditionality of the two offers. Whilst the Board acknowledges that the Revised Nordgold Bid is unconditional, based on the information available to it at the date of this announcement, the Board has no reason to believe the conditions of the Revised Shandong Gold Offer (which include, amongst other conditions, 50.1% minimum acceptance by Cardinal shareholders and Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) approval), cannot be satisfied within a reasonable timeframe. Cardinal understands that Shandong Gold has received all necessary Chinese regulatory approvals, with the result that the Revised Shandong Gold Offer is no longer conditional on any Chinese regulatory approvals. The Board also notes that there is the potential for certain shareholders to be aggrieved by the structure of the Revised Nordgold Bid (namely those Shareholders holding Cardinal Shares in non-Australian depositaries or on branch registers). While the Revised Nordgold Bidders Statement alludes to a practical mechanism whereby such Cardinal Shares can be moved to an Issuer Sponsored Holding or CHESS Holding in Australia in order to accept the Revised Nordgold Bid, it is possible that the Revised Nordgold Bid could be subject to regulatory issues (particularly in Canada) which could result in it being prevented from proceeding in the absence of corrective steps taken by Nordgold. As the Directors have determined to continue to unanimously recommend that Cardinal Shareholders accept the Shandong Gold Offer (in the absence of a Superior Proposal), the Bid Implementation Agreement requires Cardinal and Shandong Gold to use their best endeavours to agree any amendments to the Bid Implementation Agreement which are reasonably necessary or desirable to reflect the revised and improved Shandong Gold Offer. Cardinal anticipates entering into an appropriate amending agreement to give effect to such amendments imminently. Cardinal announced on 30 July 2020 that it had entered into a deed with each of Shandong Gold Mining (HongKong) Co., Limited and Shandong Gold Mining Co., Ltd, to amend the Bid Implementation Agreement (Deed). In summary, the Deed amends the BIA to, amongst other matters: - increase the Offer Price to A$0.70 per Share; - note that the Offer will no longer be subject to any Chinese regulatory approvals; - make certain changes to the proposed timetable of the Offer; - increase the ascribed value per Cardinal Option for certain Options; and - increase the break fee so that it continues to represent approximately 1% of the deal value. Cardinals joint financial advisors are Maxit Capital LP (Nth America), Hartleys Limited (Australia), Cannacord Genuity Corp. and BMO Capital Markets and its legal advisors are HopgoodGanim Lawyers (Australia) and Bennett Jones LLP (Canada). Timetable and Next Steps Detailed information relating to the Revised Shandong Gold Offer will be set out in the Bidders Statement and Targets Statement, which are now expected to be dispatched to Cardinal shareholders on or about 13 August 2020. The Bidders Statement and Targets Statement will set out important information, including how to accept the Revised Shandong Gold Offer, information about Shandong Gold and the key reasons as to why Cardinal Shareholders should accept the Revised Shandong Gold Offer (in the absence of a Superior Proposal). CAPITAL STRUCTURE As at July 30, 2020 the Company had the following capital structure: Capital Structure Listed Unlisted Total Fully Paid Ordinary Shares (CDV) 526,024,522 526,024,522 Unlisted Options Ex. $0.75 on or before 21 Dec 2022 1,000,000 1,000,000 Milestone Options Ex. $0.50 on or before 12 Apr 2022 18,500,000 18,500,000 Milestone Options Ex. $0.965 on or before 21 Dec 2022 2,018,100 2,018,100 Milestone Options Ex. $0.679 on or before 21 Dec 2022 2,180,049 2,180,049 Milestone Options Ex. $0.59 on or before 21 Dec 2022 2,180,049 2,180,049 Unlisted Options Ex. $1.00 on or before 21 Dec 2022 1,867,817 1,867,817 Unlisted Milestone Options Ex on or before 10 Dec 2024 6,369,557 6,369,557 Unlisted Milestone Options Ex on or before 10 Dec 2024 5,476,530 5,475,530 Cash Balance The Companys cash balance at June 30, 2020 was approximately AU$3.7 million, subsequent to the quarter end the Company raised AU$11.6 million. APPENDIX 5B Cardinal Resources Limited provides the following information in relation to payments to related parties and their associates, as required by 6.1 and 6.2 for the 30 June 2020 2020 Appendix 5B. HopgoodGanim Lawyers of which Michele Muscillo, a Non-Executive Director, is a partner of, provided legal services to the Company. Amounts that have been paid or payable total AU$370,248 for the three months ended June 30, 2020. During the Quarter ended June 30, 2020 a total of AU$244,722 was paid to all Directors of the Company as remuneration. ABOUT CARDINAL Cardinal Resources Limited (ASX/TSX: CDV) is a West African goldfocused exploration and development Company that holds interests in tenements within Ghana, West Africa. The Company is focused on the development of the Namdini Gold Project and released its Feasibility Study on 28 October 2019. Cardinal confirms that it is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information included in its announcement of the Ore Reserve of October 15, 2019. All material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning this estimate continue to apply and have not materially changed. The Namdini Project has a published gold Ore Reserve of 5.1Moz (138.6Mt @ 1.13g/t Au; 0.5g/t cutoff), inclusive of 0.4Moz Proved (7.4Mt @ 1.31g/t Au; 0.5g/t cutoff) and 4.7Moz Probable (131.2Mt @ 1.12g/t Au; 0.5g/t cutoff). Authorized for release by the Board of Cardinal Resources Limited. For further information contact: Archie Koimtsidis Alec Rowlands CEO / MD IR / Corp Dev Cardinal Resources Limited Cardinal Resources Limited P: +61 8 6558 0573 P: +1 647 256 1922 Cannings Purple (Investor Relations, Australia) Peta Baldwin or Warrick Hazeldine E: pbaldwin@canningspurple.com.au E: whazeldine@canningspurple.com.au Competent / Qualified Person Statement The information in this press release that relates to Exploration Results is based on information prepared by Mr. Paul Abbott, a full-time employee of Cardinal Resources, who is a member of the Geological Society of South Africa. Mr. Abbott has sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person, as defined in the 2012 Edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves. The scientific and technical information in this announcement that relates to Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves at the Namdini Gold Project has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Richard Bray, a Registered Professional Geologist with the Australian Institute of Geoscientists and Mr. Ekow Taylor, a Chartered Professional Geologist with the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Mr. Bray and Mr. Taylor have more than five years experience relevant to the styles of mineralisation and type of deposits under consideration and to the activity which is being undertaken to qualify as a Competent Person, as defined in the 2012 Edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves and as a Qualified Person for the purposes of NI43101. Mr. Bray and Mr. Taylor are fulltime employees of Cardinal and hold equity securities in the Company. Cardinal confirms that it is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information included in its announcement Ore Reserve of 03 April 2019. All material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning this estimate continue to apply and have not materially changed. ASX Listing Rule 5.23.2 This report contains information extracted from the following reports which are available for viewing on the Companys website www.cardinalresources.com.au : 4 May 2020 Cardinal Company Update 30 Mar 2020 Company Update 26 Mar 2020 Cardinal Expands Namdini Mining Licence Area 11 Mar 2020 Cardinal Receives Approval for Resettlement Action Plan 27 Feb 2020 Cardinal Receives Key Water Extraction Permits 31 Jan 2020 31 Dec 2019 Quarterly Activities and Cashflow Report 29 Jan 2020 Namdini Project Finance Update 28 Nov 2019 Cardinal Files Feasibility Study NI 43101 Technical Report 31 Oct 2019 Sep 2019 Quarterly Activities and Cashflow Report 28 Oct 2019 Feasibility Study Confirms Namdini as Tier One Gold Project 15 Oct 2019 Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve Statement 30 Sept 2019 Feasibility Study Update 16 July 2019 Cardinals Starter Pit Infill Drilling Results 10 July 2019 Cardinal Reports Further Shallow HighGrade Gold 04 June 2019 Positive Metallurgical Update on the Namdini Project 18 April 2019 Addendum to Namdini Ore Reserve Press Release 03 April 2019 Cardinals Namdini Ore Reserve Now 5.1 Moz 27 Mar 2019 Cardinal Intercepts HighGrade Shallow Gold at Ndongo East 23 Jan 2019 Cardinal Hits More HighGrade Shallow Gold at Ndongo East 28 Nov 2018 New Drill Season hits highgrade shallow gold at Ndongo East 29 Aug 2018 Cardinal Extends Ndongo East Discovery Strike Length 16 July 2018 Cardinal Makes New Gold Discovery at Ndongo East 28 May 2018 Encouraging First Pass Gold Results at Ndongo The Company confirms it is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information included in this report relating to exploration activities and all material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning the exploration activities in those market announcements continue to apply and have not been changed. The Company confirms that the form and context in which the Competent Persons findings are presented have not been materially modified from the original market announcements. Cardinal is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information included in its announcement of the Ore Reserve of October 15, 2019. All material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning this estimate continue to apply and have not materially changed. Disclaimer This ASX / TSX press release has been prepared by Cardinal Resources Limited (ABN: 56 147 325 620) (Cardinal or the Company). Neither the ASX or the TSX, nor their regulation service providers accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release. This press release contains summary information about Cardinal, its subsidiaries and their activities, which is current as at the date of this press release. The information in this press release is of a general nature and does not purport to be complete nor does it contain all the information, which a prospective investor may require in evaluating a possible investment in Cardinal. By its very nature exploration for minerals is a highrisk business and is not suitable for certain investors. Cardinals securities are speculative. Potential investors should consult their stockbroker or financial advisor. There are a number of risks, both specific to Cardinal and of a general nature which may affect the future operating and financial performance of Cardinal and the value of an investment in Cardinal including but not limited to economic conditions, stock market fluctuations, gold price movements, regional infrastructure constraints, timing of approvals from relevant authorities, regulatory risks, operational risks and reliance on key personnel and foreign currency fluctuations. Except for statutory liability which cannot be excluded and subject to applicable law, each of Cardinals officers, employees and advisors expressly disclaim any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the material contained in this press release and excludes all liability whatsoever (including in negligence) for any loss or damage which may be suffered by any person as a consequence of any information in this Announcement or any error or omission here from. Except as required by applicable law, the Company is under no obligation to update any person regarding any inaccuracy, omission or change in information in this press release or any other information made available to a person nor any obligation to furnish the person with any further information. Recipients of this press release should make their own independent assessment and determination as to the Companys prospects, its business, assets and liabilities as well as the matters covered in this press release. Forwardlooking statements Certain statements contained in this press release, including information as to the future financial or operating performance of Cardinal and its projects may also include statements which are forwardlooking statements that may include, amongst other things, statements regarding targets, anticipated timing of the feasibility study (FS) on the Namdini project, estimates and assumptions in respect of Mineral Resources and anticipated grades and recovery rates, production and prices, recovery costs and results, capital expenditures and are or may be based on assumptions and estimates related to future technical, economic, market, political, social and other conditions. These forward looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by Cardinal, are inherently subject to significant technical, business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from estimated or anticipated events or results reflected in such forwardlooking statements. Cardinal disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly or release any revisions to any forwardlooking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, circumstances or results or otherwise after todays date or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, other than required by the Corporations Act and ASX and TSX Listing Rules. The words believe, expect, anticipate, indicate, contemplate, target, plan, intends, continue, budget, estimate, may, will, schedule and similar expressions identify forwardlooking statements. All forwardlooking statements made in this press release are qualified by the foregoing cautionary statements. Investors are cautioned that forwardlooking statements are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forwardlooking statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein. SCHEDULE 1 YAMERIGA PROSPECTING LICENCE SURFACE SAMPLING, TRENCH SAMPLING AND DRILL RESULTS HoleID Depth (m) Dip () Azimuth () GridID mEast mNorth mRL YMDD003 38 -50 85 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,207 1,185,869 218 YMRC001 85 -50 85 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,206 1,185,817 218 YMRC002 85 -50 85 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,184 1,185,866 216 YMRC003 32 -50 85 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,199 1,185,918 216 YMRC004 72 -50 85 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,215 1,185,768 216 YMRC005 66 -50 85 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,209 1,185,889 216 YMRC006 20 -50 85 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,217 1,185,871 216 YMRC007 36 -50 260 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,229 1,185,872 216 YMRC008 74 -50 122 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,523 1,186,210 230 YMRC009 54 -50 80 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,372 1,185,566 220 YMRC010 54 -50 80 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,385 1,185,518 222 YMRC011 60 -50 80 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,373 1,185,616 221 YMRC012 50 -50 28 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,377 1,185,544 224 YMRC013 50 -50 28 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,360 1,185,565 221 YMRC014 50 -50 28 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,403 1,185,540 221 YMRC015 85 -50 123 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,436 1,186,475 224 YMRC016 85 -50 122 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,572 1,186,175 212 MetaData Listing of Drillholes TrenchID Azimuth () GridID mEast mNorth mFrom mTo mWidth Au (g/t) Comments YMTR002 170 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,382 1,185,562 1.0 3.0 2 33.3 Vertical sampling YMTR002 170 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,380 1,185,568 7.0 8.0 1 11.1 Horizontal sampling YMTR002 170 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,380 1,185,568 11.0 12.0 1 1.0 Horizontal sampling Summary of Individual Trench Significant Assays SampleID GridID mEast mNorth mRL Au (g/t) YMRX047 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,390 1,185,571 223 129.2 YMRX044 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,377 1,185,567 225 13.5 YMRX041 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,388 1,185,564 223 68.4 YMRX019 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,223 1,185,872 218 28.9 YMRX017 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 743,222 1,185,873 218 20.0 R332468 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 744,687 1,183,665 119 4.7 R332454 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 745,364 1,185,748 179 0.7 R332447 UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North 744,946 1,184,192 232 7.2 Summary of Individual Random Rock Chip Samples APPENDIX JORC CODE 2012 EDITION TABLE 1 REPORTING OF EXPLORATION RESULTS - YAMERIGA Section 1 Sampling Technique and Data Criteria JORC Code Explanation Commentary Sampling techniques Nature and quality of sampling (e.g. cut channels, random chips, or specific specialised industry standard measurement tools appropriate to the minerals under investigation, such as down hole gamma sondes, or handheld XRF instruments, etc.). These examples should not be taken as limiting the broad meaning of sampling. Random Rock Chip samples comprise of sampling of random surface rocks by collecting rock pieces suitable for assaying. Samples weigh on average 1.5kg. Samples are photographed both wet and dry and geologically logged. Trench Channel samples comprise of sampling of continuous 1m or 2m interval channel near the base on the entire length of the west face with intervals dictated by observed alterations and mineralisation. Each homogenised sample weighs on the average 2.0kg. Reverse Circulation (RC) drill samples are collected by using downhole sampling hammers with nominal 140mm diameters. Samples are collected through a cyclone and immediately weighed to determine recoveries; the entire sample is then split by a threetier riffle splitter. Two samples (~2.53.0 kg) are collected, one for the laboratory, the other a duplicate stored at the Bolgatanga sample shed. Diamond drill sampling is by longitudinal halfcore samples of HQ core size. Include reference to measures taken to ensure sample representivity and the appropriate calibration of any measurement tools or systems used. Sampling is guided by Cardinal Resources protocols and Quality Control procedures as per industry standard. To ensure representative sampling: Trench Channel sample tool and sampling site are cleaned between samples and sample material collected over the same interval and volume to ensure representative nature of the samples. 1m RC samples are collected from a cyclone, passing them through a 3tier riffle splitter, and taking duplicate samples every 20th sample. HQ core samples are taken selectively through the altered, silicified and shear zones, with minimum 0.5m and maximum 1.5m lengths of sample. Aspects of the determination of mineralisation that are Material to the Public Report. In cases where industry standard work has been done this would be relatively simple (e.g. reverse circulation drilling was used to obtain 1 m samples from which 3 kg was pulverised to produce a 30 g charge for fire assay). In other cases, more explanation may be required, such as where there is coarse gold that has inherent sampling problems. Unusual commodities or mineralisation types (e.g. submarine nodules) may warrant disclosure of detailed information. The determination of mineralisation is based on observed alterations, silicification and shearing of the lithologies. Random Rock Chip, Trench Channel and RC samples are crushed to 2mm, then a <1kg split sample is pulverised via LM2 Ring Pulveriser to a nominal 85% passing 75m. Diamond drill samples are crushed to 2mm, and a <1kg split sample is then pulverised via LM2 Ring Pulveriser to a nominal 85% passing 75m. For Random Rock Chip, RC and Diamond drill samples, a 200g subsample is taken from the pulverised material for analysis. A 50g charge weight is fused with lithargebased flux, cupelled and the prill dissolved in aqua regia. The gold tenor is then determined by AAS. For Trench Channel samples, a 1.5kg sub-sample is taken from the pulverised material and gold analysed using Active Cyanide Leach, 24-hour solvent extraction method. Drilling techniques Drill type (e.g. core, reverse circulation, openhole hammer, rotary air blast, auger, Bangka, sonic, etc.) and details (e.g. core diameter, triple or standard tube, depth of diamond tails, facesampling bit or other type, whether core is oriented and if so, by what method, etc.). Reverse circulation drilling uses sampling hammer of nominal 140mm diameter. Diamond core drilling is completed with core size of HQ with a standard tube. Triple tube is used in saprolite at the tops of the holes. Core is orientated to determine both azimuth and dip using digital Reflex ACT II RD orientation tool. Drillholes are inclined at 45 to 60 angles for optimal zone intersection. All drill collars are surveyed using Trimble R8 RTK GPS with downhole surveying every 30m using Reflex digital surveying instruments. Method of recording and assessing core and chip sample recoveries and results assessed. Diamond core recovery is logged and captured into the database. The method of recording RC Chip and Core sample recoveries was to enter the relevant data on a handheld Motion F5te Tablet PC using a set of standard templates supplied by Maxwell Geoservices, Perth (Maxwell). Reverse circulation sampling is good. RC chips are logged, weighed and captured to the database. RC sample recoveries are assessed by weighing 1m samples from the cyclone on a scale in the field and comparing with the theoretical volume contained in a 1m by 140mm diameter hole to calculate an estimated percentage sample recovery. Core recovered from each drill run is measured and compared with the drill run length drilled to calculate an estimated percentage core recovery. For core drilling the overall recoveries are excellent with weighted average recovery greater than 98%. Measures taken to maximise sample recovery and ensure representative nature of the samples. Measures taken include the use of bigger HQ core size diamond drilling to maximise recovery, having a geologist onsite to examine core and core metres marked and orientated to check against the drillers blocks and ensuring that all core loss is taken into account. At the reverse circulation rig, sampling systems are routinely cleaned to minimise the opportunity for contamination and drilling methods are focused on sample quality. The measures taken to maximise RC sample recovery are through a cyclone and a 3tier riffle splitter. Each 1m sample is passed twice through the splitter before sampling to ensure maximum homogenisation of each sample and to collect an unbiased representative sample to be assayed. The reverse circulation rigs have auxiliary compressors and boosters to help maintain dry samples. Where wet samples are encountered, the reverse circulation drilling is discontinued. Whether a relationship exists between sample recovery and grade and whether sample bias may have occurred due to preferential loss/gain of fine/coarse material. No relationship is seen to exist between sample recovery and grade, and no sample bias has occurred due to preferential loss/gain of any fine/coarse material due to the acceptable sample recoveries obtained by the drilling methods employed. Logging Whether core and chip samples have been geologically and geotechnically logged to a level of detail to support appropriate Mineral Resource estimation, mining studies and metallurgical studies. Random Rock Chip samples are fully logged. All the exposed surfaces along the west trench wall sampled is geologically logged and entered directly to a digital Field Tough book laptop logging system using Cardinal geological codes. All drillholes are fully logged. The lithology, alteration and geotechnical characteristics of core are logged directly to a digital format on a Field Toughbook laptop logging system following procedures and using Cardinal geologic codes. Data is imported into Cardinals central database after validation in LogChief. Random Rock Chip and Trench Channel samples are only relevant to early stage exploration and not suitable to support Mineral Resource estimation. In the opinion of the Component Persons, all geological logging of RC and Core is to a level of detail to support future Mineral Resource estimation. Whether logging is qualitative or quantitative in nature. Core (or costean, channel, etc.) photography. Logging is both quantitative and qualitative. All trench exposures are photographed. Both Random Rock Chip samples, Trench Channel samples, RC chips in trays and HQ core are photographed both in dry and wet form. The rock outcrop from where the Rock Chip sample was obtained is photographed with coordinates taken; portions of each sample submitted are retained as reference material. The total length and percentage of the relevant intersections logged. All drill holes are logged in full and to the total length of each drill hole. Subsampling techniques and sample preparation If core, whether cut or sawn and whether quarter, half or all core taken. Orientation of core is completed for all diamond holes and all are marked prior to sampling. Longitudinally cut half core samples are produced using a Core Saw with diamond impregnated blades. Samples are weighed and recorded. If noncore, whether riffled, tube sampled, rotary split, etc. and whether sampled wet or dry. RC samples are split using a threetier riffle splitter. The majority of RC samples are dry. On occasions that wet samples are encountered, they are dried prior to splitting with a riffle splitter. For all sample types, the nature, quality and appropriateness of the sample preparation technique. Random Rock Chip samples and Trench Channel samples are dried at 105C for four hours and weighed. Samples are firstly Jaw Crushed and a second stage crushing is effected through a RSD Jaques crusher to a nominal 2 mm and then split to <1.0 kg. The reject sample is retained in the original bag and stored. The split is pulverised in a LM2 Ring Pulveriser to a nominal 85% passing 75m. Approximately 200g subsample of the pulverised material of Random Rock Chip sample is used for assay. A 1.5kg sub-sample of the pulverised Trench Channel sample material was used for cyanidation bottle roll analysis for gold. RC drill samples are sorted and dried in an oven for 8 hours and weighed. They are then crushed to 2mm using a RSD Boyd crusher and a <1.0kg split is taken. The reject sample is retained in the original bag and stored. The split is pulverised in a LM2 Ring Pulveriser to a nominal 85% passing 75m and a 200g subsample is used for analysis. Drill core samples are sorted, dried at 105C for 4 hours and weighed. Samples are crushed through Jaques crusher to nominal -10mm. A second stage crushing is through Boyd crusher to nominal -2mm and then split to <1.0kg. The reject sample is retained in the original bag and stored. The split is pulverised in a LM2 Ring Pulveriser to a nominal 85% passing 75%m and approximately 200g subsample of the pulverised material is used for fire assay. All preparation equipment is flushed with barren material prior to commencement of the job. Quality control procedures adopted for all subsampling stages to maximise representivity of samples. Cardinal Resources has protocols that cover the sample preparation at the laboratories and the collection and assessment of data to ensure that accurate steps are used in producing representative samples for the analytical process. Key performance indices include: Contamination index of 95% (that is at least 95% of blanks pass); failures can only be attributed to probable minor laboratory contamination. Crushed Size index of 95% passing 2 mm (1:50 sample screened). Grind Size index of 85% passing 75 microns (minimum 1:50 sample screened). Check Samples returning at worst 20% precision at 90th percentile and bias of 5% or better. Crusher and pulveriser are flushed with barren material at the start of every batch. Measures taken to ensure that the sampling is representative of the in situ material collected, including for instance results for field duplicate/secondhalf sampling. Measures taken to ensure that the Trench Channel sampling is representative of the insitu material collected is to take approximately 2.0kg homogenised samples across the entire 1m or 2m sampling interval. Measures taken to ensure that the RC sampling is representative of the insitu material collected are to take field duplicate samples every 20th sample. Approximately 3kg samples from the splitter are retained from each sample and stored at the companys secured premises for possible reassay. Measures taken to ensure that the core sampling is representative is to sample half core at 0.5m (minimum) to 1.5m (maximum) intervals through the recognisable altered, silicified, mineralised shear zones. Results of field duplicates for RC samples and Check Samples for both RC and DD samples are all evaluated to ensure that the results of each assay batch are acceptable. 1:20 grind quality checks are completed for 85% passing 75m criteria to ensure the representativeness of sub-samples. Whether sample sizes are appropriate to the grain size of the material being sampled. Sample sizes are considered appropriate to the grain size. Quality of Assay data and laboratory tests The nature, quality and appropriateness of the assaying and laboratory procedures used and whether the technique is considered partial or total. Trench Channel samples are analysed for gold using Active Cyanide Leach, 24-hour Solvent Extraction of a 1.5kg sample with AAS Finish: This analysis was undertaken at the Intertek laboratory in Ghana. Though, the cyanide leach method is considered a partial extraction technique, the 24-hour leach time should ensure high extraction. The larger sample volumes used for the leach method usually result in better representativity of grade where coarse grained gold/nuggety gold could potentially exist when compared to fire assay method which uses a much smaller sample volume that may not be representative due to coarse grained gold/nuggety gold existing in the sample volume. Random Rock Chip samples, RC samples and DD samples are analysed for gold by lead collection fire assay of a 50g charge with AAS finish; the assay charge is fused with the lithargebased flux, cupelled and prill dissolved in aqua regia with gold tenor determined by flame AAS. Fire assay is considered a total assay technique. In the opinion of the Competent Persons, the analytical methods are considered appropriate for the mineralisation style and is of industry standard. For geophysical tools, spectrometers, handheld XRF instruments, etc., the parameters used in determining the analysis including instrument make and model, reading times, calibrations factors applied and their derivation, etc. No handheld geophysical tools are used. Nature of quality control procedures adopted (e.g. standards, blanks, duplicates, external laboratory checks) and whether acceptable levels of accuracy (i.e. lack of bias) and precision have been established. Cardinals QAQC protocol is considered industry standard with certified reference materials (CRMs) submitted on a regular basis with routine samples. The CRMs having a range of values and blanks are inserted in the ratio of 1:20. Duplicates are taken at the riffle splitter every 20th sample. No duplicate samples are taken from DD core samples and trench samples. Pulps are submitted to a secondary laboratory for checks on the accuracy and precision of the primary laboratory. Coarse rejects are submitted back to the primary laboratory to assess the adequacy of the subsampling process. Laboratories QAQC involves the use of internal laboratory standards using certified reference material and blanks. No standards are used for Rock Chip samples. Verification of sampling and assaying The verification of significant intersections by either independent or alternative company personnel. Significant results from Random Rock Chip sample and Trench Channel sample results have been verified by alternative company personnel. Significant drill intersections have been verified by alternative company personnel. The use of twinned holes. None of the drill holes in this report are twinned. Documentation of primary data, data entry procedures, data verification, data storage (physical and electronic) protocols. Primary data are captured on field tough book laptops using LogChief Software. The software has validation routines and data is then imported onto a secure central database. Discuss any adjustment to assay data. The primary data is always kept and is never replaced by adjusted or interpreted data. Location of data points Accuracy and quality of surveys used to locate drill holes (collar and down hole surveys), trenches, mine workings and other locations used in Mineral Resource estimation. Random Rock Chip sample locations and Trench Channel sample sites are pickedup using handheld GPS. Initially drill hole collar coordinates are obtained using handheld Garmin GPSmap 64s GPS within 3m accuracy. Subsequently all drill collars are accurately surveyed using Trimble R8 RTK DGPS system within 10mm of accuracy (X, Y, Z). Accuracy and quality of downhole surveys of RC and DD drill holes are determined by using Reflex EzShot survey instrument at regular 30m intervals. Specification of the grid system used. Coordinate and azimuth are reported in UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North. Quality and adequacy of topographic control. Topographic control at Yameriga was supplied by Southern Geoscience Consultants (Perth) using satellite imagery. Data spacing and distribution Data spacing for reporting of exploration results. Random Rock Chip sampling involved collecting surface samples from areas of interest with visible gold mineralisation. Sampling has therefore not been completed on a regular grid. The trenches were located at 335m spacings and they were designed to cut across previously identified coincident gold-in-soil and geophysical anomalies. Data spacing is appropriate for reconnaissance stage exploration sampling programmes. The RC drilling was carried out on variably spaced fence lines (25m to 400m apart) with hole spacing of 50m along lines testing mineralisation up to a vertical depth of approximately 65m and covering a strike length up to 400m. Whether the data spacing and distribution is sufficient to establish the degree of geological and grade continuity appropriate for the Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve estimation procedure(s) and classifications applied. Exploration is at the early stage, and as such drill data spacing and distribution are insufficient to establish geological and grade continuity that are appropriate for reporting Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves. Orientation of data in relation to geological structure Whether sample compositing has been applied. No sample compositing has been applied. Whether the orientation of sampling achieves unbiased sampling of possible structures and the extent to which this is known, considering the deposit type. Rock Chip sampling has been selectively conducted. The orientation of trenches is not likely to bias the assay results and is not relevant given the early stages of exploration. Drillholes are orientated to achieve intersection angles as close to perpendicular to the mineralisation as practicable based on geophysical modelling and field mapping data. Some sampling bias may occur. Systematic geological mapping and structural information from the current diamond drilling are required to determine the true orientation of dips and structures of the mineralisation. If the relationship between the drilling orientation and the orientation of key mineralised structures is considered to have introduced a sampling bias, this should be assessed and reported if material. No significant orientationbased sampling bias is known at this time. Sample security he measures taken to ensure sample security. An independent Ghanaian security contractor is used to ensure sample security. The drilling contractor is accountable for drill core and RC chip production at the drill site. Final delivery from the drill site to the laydown area within the core yard is managed by Cardinal. The core yard technicians, field technicians and Geologists ensure the core and chips are logged, prepared and stored under security until conveyed to a nearby accredited sample preparation laboratory by Cardinal. At the time of sample delivery at the laboratory, a signoff process between Cardinal and the laboratory ensures that samples and paperwork correspond and samples are receipted against the Cardinal submission sheets. The sample preparation laboratory is responsible for the samples from the time of collection from Cardinal until pulps and rejects are collected and checked by Cardinal Geologists. Two pulp samples are produced: one pulp dispatched by Cardinal to the appropriate laboratory for assay; the duplicate pulp and reject stored by Cardinal in a secure storage facility for possible re-assay or other testwork. Audits or reviews The results of any audits or reviews of sampling techniques and data. Sampling techniques are of industry standards. Section 2 Reporting of Exploration Results (Criteria listed in section 1 will also apply to this section where relevant) Criteria JORC Code Explanation Commentary Mineral Tenement and Land Status Type, name/reference number, location and ownership including agreements or material issues with third parties including joint ventures, partnerships, overriding royalties, native title interests, historical sites, wilderness or national park and environmental settings. Cardinal has 100% ownership of Yameriga Prospecting Licence PL9/19 covering a land size of 36.78km to prospect for gold in the Bolgatanga and Talensi Nabdam District in the Upper East Region in the Republic of Ghana. The Licence was originally owned by Red Back Mining Ghana Limited. In August 2017, Cardinal entered into a definitive agreement with Red Back Mining Ghana Limited to acquire total ownership of Yameriga Prospecting Licence. The Yameriga Prospecting Licences is subject to a 1% NSR royalty payable to Kinross Gold Limited (via its acquisition of Red Back Mining) on all minerals mined, removed and sold. The security of the tenure held at the time of reporting along with any known impediments to obtaining a license to operate in the area. The Yameriga Prospecting Licence is current and in good standing at the Ghanaian Mineral Commission. Exploration Done by Other Parties Acknowledgment and appraisal of exploration by other parties. Prior to Cardinal acquiring ownership of Yameriga from Red Back Mining Ghana Limited in August 2017, the Licence has been the subject of previous exploration by BHP, Africwest, Etruscan (JV with Red Back) and Abzu (JV with Red Back). Geology Deposit type, geological setting and style of mineralisation The geological setting is a Paleoproterozoic Greenstone Belt comprising Birimian metavolcanics, volcaniclastics and metasediments located in close proximity to the Nangodi Shear Zone, a splay off the extensive Bole-Bolgatanga Fault. Gold mineralisation occurs within shear zones comprising alteration haloes containing higher grade lenses of altered, silicified, sheared metavolcanics and disseminated sulphides Drill hole information A summary of all information material to the understanding of the exploration results including tabulation of the following information for all Material drill holes: Easting and northing of the drill hole collar Elevation or RL (Reduced Level elevation above sea level in meters) of the drill hole collar Dip and azimuth of the hole Down hole length and interception depth Hole length A summary of the Random Chip sampling, Trench Channel sampling and drillhole information is provided in this document. If the exclusion of this information is justified on the basis that the information is not Material and this exclusion does not detract from the understanding of the report, the Competent Person should clearly explain why this is the case. There has been no exclusion of information. Data aggregation methods In reporting Exploration Results, weighting averaging techniques, maximum and/or minimum grade truncations (e.g. cutting of high grades) and cutoff grades are usually Material and should be stated. No weighting averaging techniques nor cutting of high grades have yet been undertaken. Where aggregated intercepts incorporate short lengths of high grade results and longer lengths of low grade results, the procedure used for such aggregation should be stated and some typical examples of such aggregations should be shown in detail. Aggregated intersections incorporating short lengths of highgrade results within the shear zones are calculated to include no more than intervals of 3m below grades of <0.5 g/t Au when assay results are reported. The assumptions used for any reporting of metal equivalent values should be clearly stated. No metal equivalents are used in the intersection calculation. Relationship between mineralisation widths and intercept lengths These relationships are particularly important in the reporting of exploration results. Random Rock Chip and Trench Channel sampling are designed to assess the potential of gold mineralisation sources. The relationship between mineralisation widths and intersection lengths from DD and RC drilling are not yet fully understood. If the geometry of the mineralisation with respect to the drill hole angle is known, its nature should be reported. The geometry of the mineralisation with respect to the drillhole angles is not yet known. If it is not known and only the down hole lengths are reported, there should be a clear statement to this effect (e.g. down hole length, true width not known). The geometry of the mineralisation is unknown; only downhole length is reported (no true width of mineralisation is reported). Diagrams Appropriate maps and sections (with scales) and tabulations of intercepts should be included for any significant discovery being reported. These should include, but not be limited to a plane view of drill hole collar locations and appropriate sectional views. Appropriate locality map, cross sections of the drilling, interpreted geology and assays are included within the body of the accompanying document. Balanced Reporting Where comprehensive reporting of all Exploration Results is not practical, representative reporting of both low and high grades and/or widths should be practiced to avoid misleading reporting of Exploration Results. The accompanying document is considered to represent a balanced report. Other substantive exploration data Other exploration data, if meaningful and material, should be reported including (but not limited to): geological observation; geophysical survey results; geochemical survey results; bulk samples size and method of treatment; metallurgical test results; bulk density, groundwater, geotechnical and rock characteristics; potential deleterious or contaminating substances. Other exploration data collected is not considered material to this document at this stage. Further data collection will be reviewed and reported when considered material. Further Work The nature and scale of planned further work (e.g. tests for lateral extensions or depth extensions or large scale step out drilling). Diagrams clearly highlighting the areas of possible extensions, including the main geological interpretations and future drilling areas, provided this information is not commercially sensitive. Geological mapping, surface rock sampling, trenching, geochemical surveys, geophysical surveys and DD/RC drilling are continuing. Moscow: In Russia's Dagestan region, the official coronavirus figures started to seem suspicious to residents back in April. The mountainous republic in the North Caucasus region along the Caspian Sea was reporting just two to three fatalities per day from COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, at the time. That didn't add up when a single village might hold five funerals in one afternoon. People wearing face masks and gloves to protect against coronavirus come through passages equipped with disinfectant sprays at a shopping mall entrance in Moscow, Russia. Credit:AP Dagestan's officials eventually acknowledged that the real number of coronavirus cases and deaths was probably much higher. And, in the process, Dagestan became a point of reference for questions on the overall tallies in Russia, which reports the world's fourth-largest number of confirmed cases but a mortality rate that is about a fifth that of US per capita figures, according to Johns Hopkins University data. For the Kremlin, its claims of a low death rate are hailed as a tribute to Russia's medical system and the leadership of President Vladimir Putin. Any attempts to challenge that narrative - such as whether coronavirus cases and deaths are often misclassified - are quickly slapped down by Putin's government. The government is planning to revolutionise the healthcare system in the country by creating an online portal for health records of citizens as well as of caregivers in one place. This would be a voluntary platform and is likely to be announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 15. The National Digital Health Mission (NDHM) would be a complete health ecosystem that would have personal health IDs as well as a registry of doctors and health facilities. The NDHM has received in-principle approval from the cabinet. The platform would have four key features, including health IDs, personal health records, Digi Doctor and health facility registry, as mentioned in a report in Times of India. The platform is also likely to include e-pharmacy and telemedicine services after the regulatory guidelines for the same are formed. The digital health ecosystem would be a voluntary one and would be up to the individual, hospitals and doctors to enrol. Health records would be shared only after authorisation by the individuals. Ownership of the data would remain with individuals and consent would be required to access it. The user would have the final say in allowing a medical practitioner or facility to access the health records even for a limited period of time. They would also be able to link their Aadhaar with the unique health ID. The ID would be applicable across states, hospitals, pharmacies and labs, as mentioned in the daily. Digi Doctor would allow doctors to sign up on the app along with their details and contact numbers. They would also be assigned a digital signature that they could use for prescriptions. Health facilities would also be assigned a unique electronic identifier. The government expects the app to improve efficiency, effectiveness and transparency of health service in India, as mentioned in the daily. The National Health Authority (NHA) that is implementing the Ayushman Bharat scheme has created the platform. The NDHM would be available as an app and website. The technology platforms are ready as well as the cloud infrastructure. The final proposal is likely to seek Rs 400 crore from the government even as the Ministry of Finance has approved a budget of Rs 470 crore for the proposal. The app is likely to roll out soon after the launch. Also read: MHA introduces new guidelines for international arrivals; 7-day paid institutional quarantine compulsory FILE - This June 2020 file photo, shot from a television screen provided by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy shows damage to anchor support EP-17-1 on the east leg of the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline within the Straits of Mackinac in Michigan. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer criticized Enbridge Inc. on Wednesday, July 22, 2020 for what she described as the company's refusal to make an airtight pledge that it would pay for any damages caused by an oil spill from its pipeline beneath a Great Lakes waterway. (Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy via AP File) TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer criticized Enbridge Inc. on Wednesday for what she described as the company's refusal to make an airtight pledge to pay for damages caused by a potential oil spill from its pipeline beneath a Great Lakes channel. The Democratic governor's administration is pressuring the Canadian pipeline company for an explicit acknowledgment of financial responsibility for any release from its Line 5 into the Straits of Mackinac. Enbridge insists it already made such an assurance under a 2018 agreement with former Republican Gov. Rick Snyder to construct an underground pipeline tunnel beneath the straits. Im shocked at Enbridge Inc.s refusal so far to sign a written agreement promising to cover the costs of an oil spill in the Great Lakes if this unthinkable event were to happen, Whitmer said in a statement. When I was a kid, my parents taught me: You break it, you pay for it. It seems thats the bare minimum Enbridge owes every Michigander so long as the company continues to pump crude oil through the Straits of Mackinac. Mike Koby, president of U.S. operations for Enbridge Energy LP, said the company had repeatedly made clear its acceptance of financial liability and was eager to discuss the matter with state officials. The Governors parents had it right," Koby said in a letter to Dan Eichenger, director of the state Department of Natural Resources. We agree completely. Line 5 carries oil and liquids used in propane from Superior, Wisconsin, to Sarnia, Ontario. A nearly 4-mile-long (6.4-kilometers-long) segment, laid in 1953 beneath the Straits of Mackinac, is divided into two pipes. The straits connects Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. It is a popular tourist draw and has cultural and economic importance to native tribes that operate commercial fishing vessels in the area. The state is asking Enbridge to carry $900 million of liability insurance and have about $1.88 billion in additional assets available for a worst-case rupture in the straits. Enbridge says it's doing so under the 2018 tunnel agreement with Snyder. Story continues But that deal was signed by Enbridge subsidiaries not Enbridge Inc., their parent company based in Calgary, Alberta. The disagreement centers on whether the parent company is legally bound by the deal or by terms of a 1953 easement the state granted to put the dual pipelines in the straits. Based on a contractor's analysis, the state contends Enbridge Inc. is off the hook and should make an explicit commitment in writing. Eichenger said the analyst also had concluded that Enbridge subsidiaries weren't capable of meeting the financial obligations. Koby disagreed on both points. The Enbridge entity that has signed the agreements with the state of Michigan has repeatedly demonstrated it has the financial strength alone to satisfy the financial assurances in the agreement, his letter said. In addition, Enbridge Inc. will take full responsibility for the clean-up of any incident in Michigan or anywhere along our pipeline system. Under the U.S. Oil Pollution Act, the owner of Line 5 would be obligated as a responsible party to assume the cost of any cleanup, Koby said. Environmental groups that have long pushed to shut down the pipeline said the financial dispute should be the final straw. If the governor now fails to begin the legal process of decommissioning Line 5 she will be responsible for the financial consequences of any Line 5 rupture on her watch, said Sean McBrearty, coordinator of Oil & Water Don't Mix. A state judge ordered a temporary Line 5 shutdown last month after Enbridge reported damage to a steel anchor holding a section of one pipe in place. The judge later allowed oil to resume flowing through the other underwater pipe. To test whether the wood has rotted, try poking it with the tip of a screwdriver or an awl. If it goes in only an eighth of an inch or so, the wood is probably still sound. If you can poke in deeper, though, you definitely need to at least replace the bottom panel. Its dangerous, White said. Overhead doors have a cable and an extension spring to help lift and lower the door. All the tension is on the bottom panel, White said, so if the wood there disintegrates, the door can suddenly give way and seriously hurt anyone nearby. White said his company would never assess safety just from pictures. The company would arrange a visit to your home, where someone could inspect the door and, if necessary, measure for a replacement panel or a whole new door. There is no charge for this. Today we will run through one way of estimating the intrinsic value of WH Smith PLC (LON:SMWH) by estimating the company's future cash flows and discounting them to their present value. One way to achieve this is by employing the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Models like these may appear beyond the comprehension of a lay person, but they're fairly easy to follow. We generally believe that a company's value is the present value of all of the cash it will generate in the future. However, a DCF is just one valuation metric among many, and it is not without flaws. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model. View our latest analysis for WH Smith Crunching the numbers 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 begin with, we have to get estimates of 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. Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value: 10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 Levered FCF (, Millions) UK110.7m UK135.2m UK143.4m UK149.9m UK155.2m UK159.7m UK163.5m UK166.8m UK169.7m UK172.5m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x4 Analyst x3 Est @ 6% Est @ 4.57% Est @ 3.56% Est @ 2.86% Est @ 2.37% Est @ 2.02% Est @ 1.78% Est @ 1.61% Present Value (, Millions) Discounted @ 10% UK100 UK111 UK106 UK101 UK94.6 UK88.1 UK81.7 UK75.5 UK69.6 UK64.0 ("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St) Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = UK891m Story continues After calculating the present value of future cash flows in the initial 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 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield of 1.2%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 10%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2030 (1 + g) (r g) = UK172m (1 + 1.2%) (10% 1.2%) = UK1.9b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= UK1.9b ( 1 + 10%)10= UK704m 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 UK1.6b. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of UK9.4, the company appears a touch undervalued at a 23% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind. dcf Important 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. You don't have to agree with these inputs, I recommend redoing the calculations yourself and playing with them. 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 WH Smith 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 10%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.329. 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: Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it shouldn't 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. Why is the intrinsic value higher than the current share price? For WH Smith, there are three further aspects you should consider: Risks: Case in point, we've spotted 3 warning signs for WH Smith you should be aware of. Future Earnings: How does SMWH'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 Solid Businesses: Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered! PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every British stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here. 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com. Houthis Claim Downing US-Made Spy Drone Near Saudi Border Sputnik News 13:26 GMT 02.08.2020(updated 13:32 GMT 02.08.2020) DOHA (Sputnik) - The Houthi movement, which controls the north of Yemen, said that it shot down a US-made spy drone near the border with the Saudi province of Jazan on Sunday. "The air defenses were able to shoot down a US spy drone, RQ-20, over Haradh district off Jizan with an undisclosed missile," a Houthi military spokesman said, as quoted by Al Masirah broadcaster. The Saudi-led coalition is yet to comment on the claim. The Arab coalition has been carrying out airstrikes against the Houthis at the internationally recognized Yemeni government's request since March 2015. In response, Houthis attack Saudi border areas and shoot down hostile military drones. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Srinagar: Authorities on Monday imposed a curfew in Srinagar until Wednesday fearing protests by separatists against the Centres move last year on August 5 to divest Jammu & Kashmir of its special status and to divide the state into two Union territories. In an order, Srinagar district magistrate Shahid Chaudhary quoted a police report, saying separatists and Pakistan-sponsored groups were planning to observe August 5 as a black day. There are specific inputs about violent protests endangering public life and property, he said. The report has further made a case that to prevent such violence and loss of life and property, it is immanent to impose curfew in the district. Chaudhary added such gatherings would also be detrimental to the efforts of containing Covid-19. The six-day Covid-19-related restrictions, which began from July 31, have also been extended up to August 8. Jammu & Kashmir on Monday reported 590 fresh Covid-19 cases and 11 deaths that took the toll from the infection to 407. A bulk of the fatalities 377have been reported from the Kashmir Valley. Shaheena Akhtar, a 42-year-old Srinagar resident, said the severity of the pandemic-related restrictions suddenly intensified from Monday. She said the security forces manning the roads were harsher and even manhandled people. My young daughter who was pillion riding was chased by baton-wielding security men at Hawal. They were really scared, Akhtar said. Since August 5 is coming, they are forcing people to stay indoors. Former chief minister Mehbooba Muftis daughter, Iltija, said security and surveillance in the Valley have suddenly been increased. Not like non-discriminatory COVID virus will be more active in the days approaching 5th August, so clearly this is being done to ensure that anger & frustration felt by people here remain hidden, she tweeted. Mufti was among hundreds of people detained in August last year as part of measures to prevent protests against the nullification of the Constitutions Article 370 that stripped Jammu & Kashmir of its special status. Two other former chief ministers, Omar Abdullah and Farooq Abdullah who were also detained, have since been released. A communications blackout and a lockdown were also imposed in Jammu & Kashmir in August last year. Most of the restrictions have since been eased even as high-speed 4G internet services remain banned. Amitabh Bachchan, after spending days at the Nanavati hospital in Mumbai after testing positive for Covid-19, returned home yesterday. Social media is abuzz with all sorts of posts welcoming the legendary actor back to his home. Amul has now joined in too to share a homecoming gift to welcome Big B. Amitabh Bachchan returns home from hospital! with this caption they shared an image. The cartoon features the iconic Amul girl and the actor. One of the captions on the image reads AB beats C and the other says Homecoming gift. They shared the image both on Instagram and Twitter: Since being shared just over an hour ago, the post has already gathered over 2,200 likes and counting. It has also gathered tons of reactions from people. From welcoming Bachchan home to appreciating Amuls post, people shared different comments. There were some who posted heart emojis to express their reactions. Amuls creativity par excellence and relevant for decades. Kudos to your team! wrote an Instagram user. Bharat will beat C, expressed another. Heres how tweeple reacted: We all love you @SrBachchan SIR Rupam (@xhobdo) August 3, 2020 Nice..Amul... Nitesh Nayaka (@NiteshNayaka6) August 3, 2020 What do you think of Amuls post? Grassroots Official Helps Lift Tibetan Herdsmen out of Poverty Editor : Wang Liyan Source : Xinhua Grassroots Official Helps Lift Tibetan Herdsmen out of Poverty( ) Zhuomaji has worked as head of the village-stationed working team in Gangcha Village, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Northwest China's Gansu Province since 2018. Spending more than 200 days on the grassland annually, she has launched a series of poverty alleviation workshops to develop characteristic industries and boost employment for locals. Responding to a "no garbage" initiative, Zhuomaji launched a "toilet revolution" and courtyard environment evaluation, greatly improving the environment of the village. She also invited doctors from the county to give health lectures to villagers and conduct free screening of cervical and breast cancers for female villagers. Gangcha has become a beautiful environment-friendly village and fulfilled its poverty-alleviation goal ahead of schedule. When asked about her wish, Zhuomaji said, "We will continue to make the grassland and the people here more beautiful." (Source: Xinhua/Translated and edited by Women of China) Staff members work at a makeshift hospital for COVID-19 patients at the AsiaWorld-Expo in south China's Hong Kong on Aug. 1, 2020. (Xinhua/Wu Xiaochu) BEIJING, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- The raging COVID-19 epidemic situation in Hong Kong has always been cared about by the central government. At the request of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government, the central government has decided to send testing personnel to Hong Kong to help with mass nucleic acid testing and assist the city in building temporary quarantine and treatment centers. The central government has voiced its understanding of and support for the HKSAR government's decision to postpone the Legislative Council election due to the worsening epidemic situation. Since its return to the motherland in 1997, Hong Kong, with resolute support of the central government, has continued to overcome challenges in its quest for development and made remarkable achievements. To tackle the deteriorating COVID-19 situation aggravated by a new outbreak wave since July, the HKSAR government has requested support from the central government. Thus, the central government has been taking concrete actions to solve the urgent problems plaguing Hong Kong, injecting strong impetus into Hong Kong's fight against the epidemic. Photo taken on Aug. 1, 2020 shows an area for medical staff at a makeshift hospital for COVID-19 patients at the AsiaWorld-Expo in south China's Hong Kong. (Xinhua/Wu Xiaochu) On Sunday, seven members of a newly established nucleic acid testing team from the mainland arrived in the HKSAR to assist in laboratory work. Besides, a support team for makeshift hospitals has also been assembled on the mainland. The full support of the central government has provided a solid guarantee for the fight against COVID-19 in Hong Kong. Hong Kong will always have the motherland's strong backing to overcome the epidemic and all future challenges. With the constant support of the central government and active assistance of all sectors of the mainland, Hong Kong, under the leadership of the HKSAR chief executive and government, will vanquish the epidemic soon. Google Pixel 4a is scheduled to launch today. The phone is also likely to have a 5G variant which would launch in the fall along with the Pixel 5. The features and specifications of Google Pixel 4a has already leaked online. While there is no confirmation on the launch of the phone, it is likely to be launched in the evening. GOOGLE PIXEL 4A PRICE According to tipster Ishan Agarwal who leaked the full specification details of Google Pixel 4a, the phone is likely to be priced around Rs 26,100 for the 6GB+128GB model in the US market. Google Pixel 4a 5G model would be launched for a slightly steeper price of Rs 37,300. However, it is not likely to launch today. GOOGLE PIXEL 4A FEATURES Google Pixel 4a would come with 5.81-inch-HD+ hole-punch OLED display. The display would have an asked ratio of 19.5:9 and would come with HDR support. Powered by Snapdragon 730G SoC, Google Pixel 4a is expected to come with a 3,140mAh battery. As for the camera, Google Pixel 4a would come with a single 12.-2-megapixel dual pixel phase detection rear camera. The front camera would have an 8-megapixel lens with f/2.0 aperture and an 84-degree field of view. The new Google release would also come with 4K 30fps video recording and 1080p 120fps recording The phone is likely to measure 144x69.4x8.2mm and weigh about 143 grams. Always On Display and Now Playing features for the lock screen are likely. Meanwhile, the Google Pixel 4a 5G model is expected to be bigger than the Google Pixel 4a and would offer 5G network. Google Pixel 4a would be available in the US, UK, Ireland, Australia, Canada and Japan. It is not clear when the phone would be available in India. Also read: Legacy of the Galaxy Note: What past phones reveal about the upcoming Galaxy Note 20 Also read: Realme V5 5G with Dimensity 720 SoC, 5000mAh battery launched: Price, specifications A controversial thin blue line flag that was removed from a fire truck in Hingham, will now hang from an engine in Weymouth, the Norfolk County city where Police Sgt. Michael Chesna was fatally shot two years ago in the line of duty. Thin blue line flags were taken down from fire trucks in Hingham after a resident submitted a complaint to the Board of Selectmen, which explained last week the community is only allowed to display official flags on town property, including those of the U.S., the state of Massachusetts and the town itself. POW MIA flags, which memorialize veterans of World War I, and flags flown to commemorate Peace Officers Memorial Day on May 15 of each year can also be publicly displayed by the town of Hingham. The resident who complained about the fire department displaying the thin blue line flag argued in an email it had undoubtedly become a political symbol, most often used to counter Black Lives Matter and the fight against rampant police brutality. While Hingham is blessed with a remarkable police force and these problems may not be as relevant to our quiet little town, the symbols are still representative of issues that our country is confronting as a whole, the resident wrote. The email also pointed out that a month ago the town declined to fly pride flag honoring the LGBTQ+ community, as it was not in abidance with the community flag-flying practice. The Hingham Board of Selectmen noted the resident has since received threats to his life and property. A Facebook post Monday morning from the Weymouth Police Department, showed one of the thin blue line flags from the Hingham Fire Department on Engine 3 in Weymouth. In one of the four photographs posted by Weymouth police, officers and fire officials can be seen sitting around the fire truck alongside the flag. The Thin Blue Line flag from Hingham FD was placed on the rear of Weymouth Engine 3 this morning, Weymouth police wrote. In an emotional statement posted to Facebook roughly a week ago, Chesnas widow, Cindy Chesna, criticized the town of Hinghams efforts to remove the thin blue line flags from its fire trucks. She also sharply critiqued the Massachusetts State Legislatures police reform bill that is currently being finalized that aims to hold law enforcement officials more accountable for wrongdoing and combat racial inequities in policing. Cindy Chesna said both the town of Hinghams actions and the legislatures bill are a personal attack on everything Mike stood for as a police officer and a decorated army veteran. The thin blue line flag is not a political statement and does not represent an opposition toward anything. It simply represents the police officers role of separating the good from the bad while creating order from the chaos, she claimed. However, others view the flag differently. NPR reported the thin blue line flag has been associated with white supremacist groups, and some have argued it symbolizes a racist agenda. The Thin Blue Line flag from Hingham FD was placed on the rear of Weymouth Engine 3 this morning. Posted by Weymouth Police Department on Monday, August 3, 2020 Related Content: Founder of Chris Embassy, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome has said it is a shame for African leaders, including President Muhammadu Buhari to be... Founder of Chris Embassy, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome has said it is a shame for African leaders, including President Muhammadu Buhari to be travelling to Europe and America to get medication when they are sick. Buhari and some African leaders had on several occasions travelled abroad to seek medication when they were sick. But Oyakhilome, in a broadcast to his members on Sunday described such act as a shame on African leaders to always seek help from abroad. Why cant Africa be allowed to produce their medication? How many years do you need somebody to help you. For how long can you be waiting? It will be a shame at this time of your life and history if vaccines have to be imported to Africa to help Africa. It is a shame and a failure on the part of the leaders. Your great grandfather was helped, your grandfather was helped, now you want to be helped. It is a shame, you ought to come up with your own vaccines, whatever medicine you need. It is a shame that leaders of Africa still have to travel to Europe and America to get medication when they get sick. You should be ashamed. At this time of your life, you should have grown up, What are all the universities you have built, what are they for? It is about time you started thinking, he said. Oyakhilome lamented the huge brain drains in Africa, without the leaders bothering about the consequences. Look at the brain drain, they take the best of Africa and take to Europe, Asia and China and you dont care, what kind of leadership that has no vision for the future? We need leaders in Africa that can think, leaders that have brains and some mind, and have a vision, he stated. He wondered when African leaders would put away childishness and still be depending on other countries for loans and others when they have enough. He reportedly spent lockdown at his Game Of Thrones co-star Emilia Clarke's LA pad, which costs 20,000 a month to rent. And Richard Madden certainly seemed happy to be home as he celebrated his return to Scotland on Instagram on Sunday. The Bodyguard actor, 33, beamed as he showed off a rocket firework in one snap before putting on a very hunky display in a selfie outside a stately home. Having fun: Richard Madden, 33, celebrated his return to Scotland after spending lockdown in LA by posing with some fireworks while at a country estate on Sunday Richard appeared to be in good spirits as he showed off a huge rocket firework on Instagram Stories, writing: 'What could go wrong?' He also teased fans on Instagram with a picture of himself wearing Ray Bans in front of a stately home which had a Land Rover parked at the door. The Rocketman actor showed off his rugged look, going unshaven and letting his locks curl into a slight quiff at the front of his head. It is believed that Richard is staying in the Blair Atholl area of Scotland, a village in Perthshire known for its rustic stone buildings and scenic landscape. Looking good: The actor put on a suave display has he took a selfie outside a stunning house with a Land Rover parked in the background While in another snap, Richard showed fireworks filling the sky after he set the rocket off at midnight. He also gave his fans a glimpse at the stunning scenery in Scotland, posting a few snaps from countryside walks. It comes after Richard was said to be spending isolation in a lavish 20,000 a month LA property with actor Froy Gutierrez. Richard was believed to be living in Emilia's two-bedroom home with Froy, after moving out of the house he shared with Brandon Flynn last year. Enjoying home: Richard has also been posting beautiful snaps of the landscape in Scotland Home sweet home: The hunk shared several glimpses of the countryside with his followers He was first photographed with the Teen Wolf star, 22, who is from Texas, in February. It is unknown if his pal has joined him on his trip to Scotland as some fans have claimed that Froy was seen last week in London. Richard previously lived with 13 Reasons Why actor Brandon, 26, until they had a falling out in November last year. According to The Sun, Richard and Froy have been holed up in the luxury LA pad during the coronavirus pandemic. Celebrations: After a day spent enjoying the views, Richard set off some fireworks Brandon and Richard allegedly drifted apart and Brandon asked bosses at fashion brand Versace not to invite Richard to an event they were throwing at the end of last year, reports the website. A source told the publication: 'Richard and Brandon bonded over being up-and-coming actors in the industry and decided to share a place while both working in LA. 'But they have fallen out in the past few months and have cut ties with each other. 'Brandon has made it clear he doesnt want to see Richard because he asked the team at Versace not to invite him to a party they are having at the beginning of December.' The news of the pair moving out came after Richard dodged a question about his relationship with Brandon after it was implied they were more than just friends. During an interview with the New York Times to promote his role in Rocketman, Richard said: 'I just keep my personal life personal. I've never talked about my relationships.' Mexico President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador blamed state and local government officials of being behind the rise of Jose Antonio 'El Marro' Yepez and his Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel. Lopez Obrador, who often criticizes past administrations for the country's ongoing wave of violence, made the claim during a Sunday afternoon address that was uploaded to social media after El Marro and nine henchmen were captured at approximately 4am local time in the Guanajuato municipality of Juventino Rosas. 'How did this cartel grow so much that Guanajuato became the most violent state in the country? They have 15 percent of the homicides that are committed in the entire country, 15 percent in Guanajuato. That is if there are 100 homicides, 15 are committed in Guanajuato in one day,' Lopez Obrador said. 'And there are days of 20, of 25 homicides, so how did this grow? How did this case happen in Guanajuato? The usual complicities, the compromises with municipal authorities, with state authorities, impunity. The [arrest] is important, very important.' Jose Antonio 'El Marro' Yepez, leader of the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel, was arrested Sunday in Guanajuato, Mexico Jose Antonio 'El Marro' Yepez (middle) operated a fuel theft network in the central Mexican state of Guanajuato Mexico President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said state and local government officials in Guanajuato are to blame for rise of Jose Antonio 'El Marro' Yepez and his Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel and the terror they have planted in the state With Yepez locked away in prison, intelligence reports accessed by Mexican newspaper El Universal show that his father, Juan Rodolfo Yepez, and brother, Rodolfo Yepez, could be taking over the cartel. Juan Rodolfo Yepez was arrested March 6 in the Guanajuato municipality of Celaya while driving a vehicle that has been reported stolen. But he was released June 26 after a judge granted him bail because the federal government had failed to build a case against him despite evidence that connected him to organized crime activities. Lopez Obrador had previously called for an investigation after a judge freed Yepez's mother, Maria Ortiz; his sister; Juana Yepez; and a cousin identified as Rosalba, when the three women along with 30 other alleged cartel members were let go in June after they were arrested in a raid. The leftist leader Lopez even suggested that judge Paulina Irais Medina colluded with cartel leader Jose Antonio 'El Marro' Yepez and was looking for any loophole that would lead to the release of the family members and henchmen. The defense was able to prove that the authorities arrested Ortiz without obtaining a warrant to search one of her daughter's home, which is located a block away from the stash house. The agents then took El Marro's mother to the safe house so that they could claim they had apprehended her there. Attorneys also proved that the Guanajuato Criminal Investigation Agency planted $89,000 at the stash house by removing it from 30 different addresses in the San Isidro de Elguera neighborhood. Authorities initially said Ortiz was in possession of all of the money. Former Guanajuato prosecutor Juan Miguel Alcantara told Mexican newspaper El Universal that Yepez did not envision his organization dominating at a larger, national scale like the traditional criminal organizations. The cartel was based out of the municipality of Villagran and had a presence in the nearby cities of Celaya, Cortazar, Salamanca, Irapuato, Valle de Santiago, and his birthplace Juventino Rosas, where he was apprehended. With Yepez in power, the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel rose to dominance via the theft of fuel from refineries operated by the state-owned oil company Petroleos Mexicanos [Mexican Petroleum]. Yepez also drove out local cartels from the area that sold synthetic drugs. intelligence reports accessed by Mexican newspaper El Universal show that El Marro's father, Juan Rodolfo Yepez (pictured), and his brother, Rodolfo Yepez, could be taking over the cartel El Marro was arrested Sunday morning in the Guanajuato city of Juventino Rosas In October 2017, the cartel's influence in the area attracted the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and its leader, Nemesio 'El Mencho' Oseguera, who also wanted in on the lucrative business, thus sparking one of the deadliest rival cartel conflicts that the government has witnessed and failed to contain in Guanajuato, once known as a relatively quiet state. El Marro declared war on El Mencho, which led to a significant spike in murders as the Jalisco New Generation Cartel settled in the area and imposed its presence in the Guanajuato cities of Leon and Salamanca. The friction with El Mencho forced El Marro to seek an alliance with Los Viagras, which operate out of the western state of Michoacan and the Sinaloa Cartel, which under its former leader Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman maintained a relationship with El Mencho before he split off on his own. Violence between the cartels has left at least 2,293 people murdered in Guanajuato through June 2020. Government data shows Guanajuato homicides increased to 2,834 in 2019 from 2,609 in 2018. Authorities registered just 1,084 murders in 2017 and 1,096 were reported in 2016. A Covid-19 victim's widow blamed his death on President Donald Trump, Texas Gov. Greg Abbot and defiant anti-maskers. Screenshot Facebook The widow of a coronavirus patient in Texas is blaming President Donald Trump, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, and anti-maskers for her husband's death. Stacey Nagy published an impassioned obituary which ran in the Jefferson Jimplecute, according to a note that Nagy wrote on Twitter. "The blame for his death and the deaths of all the other innocent people, falls on Trump, Abbott and all the other politicians who did not take this pandemic seriously and were more concerned with their popularity and votes than lives," Nagy wrote. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. David Nagy, who died on July 22, is one of nearly 7,000 Texas residents who lost their lives to the novel coronavirus. Heartbroken over her husband's death, Nagy's grieving widow, Stacey, wrote an impassioned obituary, placing the blame on President Donald Trump, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, and what she described as selfish anti-maskers. Related: 6 months of coronavirus in the USA, reviewed in 6 minutes "The blame for his death and the deaths of all the other innocent people, falls on Trump, Abbott and all the other politicians who did not take this pandemic seriously and were more concerned with their popularity and votes than lives," Nagy wrote. "Also to blame are the many ignorant, self centered and selfish people who refused to follow the advice of the medical professionals, believing their 'right' not to wear a mask was more important than killing innocent people." The obituary ran in the Jefferson Jimplecute newspaper, and could not be found online. Several people have shared photos of the print version of the obituary, which was published on July 30. Jefferson is a city in eastern Texas, about 165 miles from Dallas. It has a population of around 1,961. Some have tweeted copies of the obituary to Trump. The obituary says that David Nagy, 79, died in the ICU at Christus Good Shepherd Hospital in Longview, Texas. Story continues Nagy leaves behind five children, numerous grandchildren and great grandchildren, his obituary says. Stacey Nagy described herself in the obituary as inconsolable, and indicated that her husband had been separated from family during his last days. Medical protocol requires that COVID-19 patients be isolated during their care because of the highly contagious nature of the virus. Stacey Nagy didn't immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment. "Dave did everything he was supposed to do, but you did not," Nagy wrote to the politicians and anti-maskers in the obituary. "Shame on all of you, and may Karma find you all!" Read the original article on Business Insider Still, a virtual start to the school year is just one of the demands put forth by Virginia Educators United. The coalition of educators is also calling for necessary funding and supports to effectively implement online learning, including paid sick and family leave, an extension of the $600 unemployment benefits bump, rent forgiveness and mortgage forbearance, universal healthcare, and government-funded financial support for those who do not qualify for unemployment benefits, according to a news release sent out by the group. Carla Okouchi, a march organizer and teacher for Fairfax County Public Schools, said the demands address the countrys concurrent and ongoing economic, racial and health crises. Demonstrators drove to Richmond because thats where all the funding starts, she said. As drivers started their cars to embark on their procession to the Virginia Capitol, Christine Melendez, a Spanish teacher for Chesterfield County Public Schools, finished taping the last of her card stock posters to her lime green car. The main message of her signs in English and Spanish was only when its safe, or solo quando sea seguro. Coleen Nolan attends the Pride of Manchester Awards 2019. (Carla Speight/Getty Images) Coleen Nolan has tried to remain positive after her sisters Linda and Anne revealed they both have cancer, a supportive statement shared to her Twitter account has revealed. Linda and Anne shared the news they were both receiving treatment for cancer on Sunday (2 August) and younger sister Coleen took to social media to show her support for the pair. Read more: Coleen Nolan says she fought off celebrity 'sleaze bags' as a teenager in the 80s A statement shared to the Loose Women star's Twitter account said: "Theyve beaten it before - they can beat it again... Please keep them in your thoughts and well wishes X Theyve beaten it before - they can beat it again Coleens brave sisters Linda and Anne sadly reveal they both have cancer again In tomorrows papers, here is a preview below. Please keep them in your thoughts and well wishes X https://t.co/AHAVAnWJtC Coleen Nolan The Nolans Go Cruising Tues Quest Red (@NolanColeen) August 2, 2020 Linda's cancer is in her liver after she previously overcome breast cancer in 2006. She has also previously had cellulitis and lymphoedema back in 2007, as well as secondary cancer in her pelvis in 2017. Anne has stage three breast cancer, having beaten the same illness back in 2000. Linda, Coleen, Bernie and Maureen Nolan at BBC Radio 2 in 2012 in London, England. (SAV/FilmMagic) They have both received chemotherapy treatment at Blackpool's Victoria Hospital. Sister Bernie also had cancer, losing her battle in 2013. The Nolan sisters arrive at the Lyceum Ballroom Left to right; Linda, Coleen, Bernie, Maureen and Anne Nolan. (PA Images via Getty Images) Despite the harrowing news, the sisters appear to be dealing with it with a dose of humour. Linda told The Sun: We laughed and we cried really. Its hysterical. Forget the Chemical Brothers, weve become the Chemo Sisters. Read more: The Nolans look back on their dysfunctional childhood: 'I suppose we were exploited' But there is also a fear of the worst for Anne. She said: I love my life so much. I love my daughters, my grandchildren, my friends, all my family. I want to live for as long as I possibly can. Story continues Linda added: Its just really hard and Im scared of dying. I dont want to die. I want to be around and see my great nieces and nephews grow up, and thats why Im putting everything Ive got into trying to get well. The Crown: Part Eighteen By Michael Moriarty ABERFAN! What can this be about? Thursday, October 20th, 1966! Ah! Aberfan, Wales! A Friday. Lest we forget, a major, distinctively different, cultural corner of Great Britain! Oh, my God! An earthquake?! Certainly looks like it! Now, Aberfans citizens trying to dig their loved ones out from under the rubble and ruins! Not an earthquake?! Not, not entirely Mother Natures fault. A creation of the coal mining industry collapses and. with the force of an earthquake, crashes into and buries countless numbers of children and their teachers. When the tragedy is reported to the Queen, she refuses to visit the site. Why would I go? she asks. The Crown visits hospitals. Not the scenes of accidents! The mounting evidence of Queen Elizabeths utter insensitivity to her people and her obedience to old rules that increasingly look utterly inadequate?! Hmmm My once, unswerving loyalty to this particularly devoted Christian Queen of England has been badly damaged. More in this third series of The Crown has been altered by the creators than just the cast. The much sadder truths about the Queens shortcomings are being accented. And at Aberfan?! Mother Natures excessive rains are partly a cause for the disastrous collapse of the mines! The design and maintenance of the coal mines themselves, however, are also responsible for the now, seemingly unending nightmare. Increasingly responsible for the size of the collapse. As Prime Minister Wilson anxiously responds to it, Everything is political! So far? 60 bodies recovered. An uncalled for moment of silence descends upon everything and everyone! The rising death toll seems to have demanded a profoundly shocking inability to say anything. BACK TO WORK, EVERYONE! ends the previously frightening silence. How many more have been killed by the possibly avoidable nightmare?! Every whistle blown means another dead child pulled from the wreckage. As much as a 150 more are still missing. Most of them children. As the news expands to other upper reaches of Royaltyand the additionally empowered, such as Prime Minister Wilson?! A silence as deafening as the unexpected one that fell so suddenly over almost all of Aberfan?! Now falls over everything. Michael Moriarty is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor who starred in the landmark television series Law and Order from 1990 to 1994. His recent film and TV credits include The Yellow Wallpaper, 12 Hours to Live, Santa Baby and Deadly Skies. Contact Michael at rainbowfamily2008@shaw.ca. He can be found on Twitter at https://twitter.com/@MGMoriarty Home The invasion, however, is unlikely to be expected this fall, Kondratiuk says, citing analytical arguments. The Kremlin views its army as a tool to satisfy foreign policy ambitions, so issuing an order to invade another state is only a matter of time and opportunity for Moscow. "At the present stage of hybrid war, Russia has deployed a military grouping close to Ukraine borders, which includes two new armies and an army corps: the 20th Army has already been practically formed. It consists of a 24,000-strong pair of divisions. There's also a 45,000-strong 8th Army, including the 1st and 2nd army corps deployed in the temporarily occupied territories of Donbas; and the 22nd Army Corps as part of Russian navy's coastal forces consisting of 9,000 servicemen. These units will become fully operational in the near future," Kondratiuk wrote in an oped for ZN.ua. Russia's strategic nuclear forces has been armed with the latest weapons by 83%, aerospace forces by 75%, airborne troops and naval forces by over 63%, and land forces by 50%. Availability of modern command and control facilities in the army stands at about 67%, the intelligence chief wrote. "Moscow is creating long-term threats, including through developing a new military base near the Ukraine borders (in Rostov, 60 km away from the border) to permanently host units of the newly formed 150th motorized rifle division," Kondratiuk noted. Read alsoRussian security agencies using religion as tool to meddle in Ukraine intelligence chief For the aims of political pressure on Ukraine and the West, the Kremlin intends to use the strategic military exercises Kavkaz-2020, where "the scenario will be worked out of an offensive on the neighboring countries". The total number of troops involved in maneuvers scheduled for September this year will amount to at least 120,000, along with 3,000 armored combat vehicles, nearly 300 aircraft, 250 helicopters, 50 warships, and up to five submarines. A possible scenario for the exercise is also the use of troops to resolve the issue of freshwater supply to the temporarily occupied Crimea. "Russia's armed forces could potentially, under a far-fetched pretext, deploy deep into the territory of Ukraine's Kherson region in order to seize control over the dam of the North Crimean Canal," wrote Kondratiuk. In general, Russia has already turned the peninsula into a solid military base, the top intel official said. The adoption of a strategic decision to conduct in one form or another an offensive military operation against Ukraine (in particular in the area of the North Crimean Canal) is limited by the falling prices on global oil and gas markets and decreasing revenues to the Russian budget; Moscow's hopes of exploiting COVID-19 to reset relations with the West; the upcoming local elections in Ukraine amid Moscow's hopes to strengthen the presence of pro-Russian forces in Ukrainian politics; the shifting of military resources toward the Turkish-Russian confrontation in Syria and Libya, as well as indirectly within the framework of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict; and Russia's local elections in September 2020, against the backdrop of Vladimir Putin's popular rating dropping to 23% and a heightened protest potential. The Kremlin is also being held back from ordering an offensive by the vicissitudes of the U.S. presidential campaign and the developments in the Donbas settlement talks in the Minsk and Normandy formats. "According to our estimates, the complex influence of these factors makes the scenario of military aggression against Ukraine in the fall of 2020 untimely for the Kremlin," the SZR head reported. Read alsoUkraine's top intelligence official talks Russian threats in media domain However, the agency's analysis shows that "in the long term, Russian efforts in relation to Ukraine may transform into a large-scale military operation with the seizure of more Ukrainian territories". The following factors may contribute to this: - The need to divert public attention from a number of internal problems (a plunging popular rating of the Russian government due to the deteriorating standards of life, a rapid economic decline, a weakening of the power vertical, and the opposition of regional elites); - The need to address socio-economic problems in the temporarily occupied Crimea (water supply, failure of the tourist season); and - Our leading international partners focusing exclusively on their internal problems (complex electoral processes, radical escalation of social, demographic and economic issues, refugees, or terrorism). Earlier, despite the fact of Russian aggression being waged against Ukraine for the sixth year already, deputy chief of Russian diplomacy Andrei Rudenko claimed Russia has no aggressive intentions in relation the neighboring country. Twelve Delhi University (DU) colleges fully funded by the Delhi government are struggling to pay salaries to teaching and non-teaching staff, and electricity and other bills, for the last three months due to the shortage of funds. Officials at Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College (DDU) said their phone and internet connections were disconnected as they could not pay the dues for four months. While some of these colleges have paid salaries to their teaching staff for the month of May by diverting funds from other accounts, majority of them are yet to pay salaries for the last three months. Although the Delhi government said it has released funds for salaries, officials at these colleges said the money is insufficient. A senior official in the governments finance department said there is a major shortage of funds because of the pandemic. Revenues have dropped. The Capital recorded revenue collections of less than 40% for the first four months of the financial year 2020-21 compared to the corresponding period in the previous year. Till June, the government was facing difficulties even in paying salaries of employees. Large portions of funds were utilised in Covid management. The government has sought financial assistance of Rs 5,000 crore from the Centre but it is yet to receive any amount, the official quoted above said. Hem Chand Jain, principal of DDU, said their phone and internet connections were disconnected and electricity connection will be snapped soon. The college has Rs 17.6 crore deficit of which Rs 8 crore is required for the payment of salaries. The Delhi government has already paid Rs 2.3 crore twice in March and April but it was not sufficient. Our monthly expenditure on salary payment is Rs 2.7 crore. We could not pay salaries to our teaching and non-teaching staff since May. How can the government think we would be able to meet all expenditures with such an insufficient fund? he said. Jain said the college could not pay electricity bills, property tax and other pending expenditures since April. We are getting repeated calls from the electricity board. We could not pay the electricity bill for the last four months and now we have to pay Rs 40 lakh together. We are soon going to lose the connection if the amount is not paid at the earliest. It will be a big issue since we have staff and some international students living at the campus, he said. Delhi education minister Manish Sisodia said, We have already released the salary funds but the government is also short of funds. A similar situation prevails in other 11 colleges, including Keshav Mahavidyalaya, Shaheed Rajguru College for Applied Sciences for Women, Maharaja Agrasen College and Acharya Narendra Dev College. There are around 1,200 teaching and 900 non-teaching staff members employed on a permanent basis in these colleges, other than the contractual staff. DUs Dean of Colleges Balaram Pani said the university had written to the Delhi government several times in the last three months over the issue. In April, the colleges had a backlog of previous months. The funds received were also insufficient. If the college required Rs 7 crore, only Rs 2 crore was transferred to them. How is it even possible for the colleges to function in such circumstances, he said. Ravi Toteja, principal of Acharya Narendra Dev College, said, We could not pay salaries to our teaching and non-teaching staff members since April. We are yet to pay our electricity and other bills. Our connection can be disconnected anytime soon. Beside salaries and bills, these colleges are struggling to maintain infrastructure and other facilities. Payal Mago, principal of Shaheed Rajguru College for Applied Sciences for Women, said, The college has a sewage treatment plant at its campus. Due to the non-payment of salaries, the PWD removed the technician looking after the plant and now sewer water is flowing all over the campus. But we do not have funds to fix it. The college paid electricity bills till last month, diverting funds from students funds. DU Teachers Association president Rajib Ray said, Its absolutely inhuman that our colleagues working in these colleges are unpaid for the last three months. The government should immediately release all pending funds. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Australia to make Facebook, Google pay for local news content US tech giants Facebook Inc and Alphabet Incs Google will have to pay for news content sourced from local media outlets in Australia, in a landmark decision by state regulators to protect media rights. Internet firms like to Facebook and Google will have to pay for news content provided by media companies under a royalty-style system that will become law this year, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said. This means that to continue in the news business, Facebook and Google, which currently lift news content directly from news sources, including newspapers and websites, will have to compensate the source or gather news themselves. Its about a fair go for Australian news media businesses. Its about ensuring that we have increased competition, increased consumer protection, and a sustainable media landscape, Frydenberg told reporters in Melbourne. Nothing less than the future of the Australian media landscape is at stake. Australian government late last year told Facebook and Google to negotiate a voluntary deal with media companies to use their content, but that did not materialise. Canberra now says if an agreement cannot be reached through arbitration within 45 days the Australian Communications and Media Authority would set legally binding terms on behalf of the government. The Australian governments move is another hurdle in the path of the tech giants as they try to fend off calls for greater regulation. It comes a day after US lawmakers, in a congressional hearing, pulled up Google and Facebook for alleged abuse of market power. This followed an inquiry into the state of the media market and the power of the US platforms. Google said the regulation ignores billions of clicks that it sends to Australian news publishers each year. It sends a concerning message to businesses and investors that the Australian government will intervene instead of letting the market work, Mel Silva, managing director of Google Australia and New Zealand, said in a statement. It does nothing to solve the fundamental challenges of creating a business model fit for the digital age. Media companies, including News Corp Australia, a unit of Rupert Murdochs News Corp, lobbied the government to force the US companies to the negotiating table amid a long decline in advertising revenue. While media companies continue to lose advertisement revenue, the tech giants have been reaping gains from ever increasing advertisements. A 2019 study estimated about 3,000 journalism jobs have been lost in Australia in the past 10 years, as traditional media companies bled advertising revenue to Google and Facebook. For every A$100 spent on online advertising in Australia, excluding classifieds, nearly a third goes to Google and Facebook, according to Frydenberg. Microsoft confirmed that it is in talks to buy TikTok from Chinas ByteDance and expects to conclude the M&A negotiations by Sept. 15 coming after Donald Trump said he opposed such a deal and has claimed he plans to ban TikTok. Microsoft said that if it consummated a deal for TikTok, it would move all data servers covering U.S.-based users to American shores, in a bid to alleviate U.S. policymakers concerns that Chinese government officials might be able to track TikTok users or access private messages. TikTok has said it has more than 100 million users in the U.S. Following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald J. Trump, Microsoft is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the United States, the Redmond, Wash.-based tech giant said in a statement Sunday. Trump told reporters Friday he planned to take some kind of action to ban TikTok over national-security concerns given the popular social-video apps Chinese ownership. However, experts have questioned whether such a move would hold up on legal grounds. Microsoft, in its statement, said, Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns. It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury. Reps for TikTok and ByteDance didnt respond to requests for comment on Microsofts announcement. TikTok has been valued at $50 billion by a group of ByteDances U.S.-based investors including Sequoia and General Atlantic, who also have been seeking to acquire control of TikTok, Reuters reported last week. Microsoft cautioned that the talks with ByteDance are preliminary and that there can be no assurance that a transaction which involves Microsoft will proceed. The company said it doesnt plan to provide additional info until there is a definitive outcome to our discussions. Story continues In any event, Microsoft said, it plans on completing these discussions with ByteDance about an acquisition of TikTok no later than Sept. 15, 2020. Among other measures, Microsoft said, it would ensure that all private data of TikToks U.S. users is transferred to and remains in the United States. To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed up outside the United States, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred. This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections. The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries, Microsofts statement said. According to Microsoft, ByteDance and Microsoft notified the interagency Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) of their intent to explore a preliminary proposal that would involve Microsoft buying TikToks operations in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Microsoft said it may invite other American investors to participate on a minority basis in this purchase. TikTok recently hired former Disney exec Kevin Mayer as CEO, who also joined ByteDance as COO. In a move aimed at alleviating security fears over the app, Mayer last week announced that TikTok will publicly disclose the apps algorithms, moderation policies and data flows. An acquisition by Microsoft might be TikToks best path forward at this point. With ByteDances back against the wall, Microsoft has emerged as being the only possible white knight, Wedbush Securities Dan Ives wrote in a research note. A deal for TikTok would vault Microsoft into the still-growing social media sector, which has seen massive growth over the past decade of services like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter. Microsofts big strategic internet acquisitions in recent years have included LinkedIn for $26.2 billion in 2016 and Minecraft for $2.5 billion in 2014, both of which it has largely left intact as autonomous divisions. Over the weekend, TikTok began filling up with testimonialssome of them emotional, a lot of them just sillylike this one from a grandma with 2.5 million followers who is maybe best known for putting some Mentos into a soda bottle and letting the concoction explode all over her face. These videos were spurred by the presidents assertion, on Friday, that he was going to ban TikTok. Hes alleged the Chinese-owned company is a security threat. The president may be backing off his initial threat to ban TikTok, but that still leaves an open question: What do we do about this app? I asked Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian, who covers China for Axios. Advertisement About a year ago, she downloaded TikTok and planned to sign up, but she ended up deleting the social media app off her phone. As a journalist, shes already had her email hacked by the Chinese government. She worries about the apps data collection and that she could be targeted. But watching the Trump administration debate the idea of deleting TikTok for everyone else in the U.S., Allen-Ebrahimian thinks we have to understand how we got to this point and what the risks arewhatever we end up doing. Our conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Mary Harris: Over the weekend, the president got a lot of attention for suggesting he wanted to ban TikTok. And it sounds like youre not sure thats such a far out idea. Advertisement Advertisement Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian: The idea of our government taking action to protect our society from TikTok is absolutely not a far out idea and is, I think, appropriate. The problem with banning something is we dont have any kind of special legal or decision-making structure about how to ban a social media app. This is kind of uncharted territory for the U.S. And its a really delicate thing, because if you look at China 10 years ago, when they were banning Facebook and Twitter and lots of other websites, that was universally viewed as censorship, as a threat to free speech, and as a threat to an open world. And for the U.S. to ban TikTok would in a sense be emulating that. Advertisement Ive been struck by all the folks out there putting out memes preemptively mourning TikTok. And I think its hard for people to square in their minds: How could the platform that hosts silly videos be a national security threat? Advertisement I think theres a couple of reasons for that. One of them is related to China. And one of them isnt. A sort of separate discussion is: How much data do we want these big companies to have? And what do they do with that data? And how do we govern that as a society? But the other part of it thats specific to TikTok is that the Chinese government, and not the U.S. government, would be the one that would have access to that data. And thats deeply concerning. Advertisement Advertisement You can think I as an individual dont want the Chinese government to have my information. But theres a larger societywide concern. We know that the Russian government sought to meddle in the 2016 elections by manipulating social media. We have seen over the past year that the Chinese government is learning from Russia. They have undertaken several campaigns on Twitter, most notably, to feed disinformation. So theyre actively seeking to change narratives, to feed conspiracy theories into societies outside of their country. And having direct access to 160 million Americans social media accountshow they interact with information, what they make go viral. Having access to that data on a mass scale makes us as a society very vulnerable to Chinese disinformation, especially as were coming up to our elections. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Can we talk a little bit about some of the evidence that TikTok is being used for data harvesting, like with the Uighur situation in China? ByteDance, which is the Chinese parent company that owns TikTok, assisted Chinese government efforts to identify and locate Uighur women of childbearing age. And once they were located, they were rounded up and some of them were put into camps and some of them went through a forced sterilization process as part of the campaign of genocide that the Chinese government is perpetrating in Xinjiang. Why did ByteDance assist with that? ByteDance is required by law to hand over any data to the Chinese government if requested. And they have essentially no power to fight back. The other part of that is that according to Chinas security and intelligence laws, if you are the subject of this request, if you have to comply with the Chinese government request to hand over data information and provide assistance, you are also required to keep that assistance a secret. Advertisement Thats not just for Chinese companies, right? Any employees who physically work in China have to abide by these Chinese laws. This is the same situation as Zoom. Zoom is definitely an American company, but they have 700 research and development employees in China. All 700 of those employees are subject to Chinas intelligence and cybersecurity laws, which means that any one of them could be approached and asked to give assistance. Im not saying this has happened, but Im saying that the laws make this possiblethey could put in a back door, or they could give any kind of data that they have access to to the Chinese government. And again, theyre required by law to keep that assistance a secret. So that is one severe weakness that TikTok also has. In addition, the Chinese government could put pressure on the company by saying, look, were going to kick you out of your building. Were going to make life difficult for you, because they have leverage over the company. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement What if an American company just purchased TikTok and took over its operation? Reportedly Microsoft has been in talks to do that. Would that solve the problem here? It would alleviate the problem. It wouldnt solve the entire problem. In the short term, it would remove that legal pressure that any Chinese company is under from these laws that Ive mentioned. However, there are two things that it wouldnt relieve. One of them is the TikTok employees who are based in China. And second, it doesnt solve the structural problem, which is that this data still exists. Its still being collected. We dont have a sweeping data privacy law. I do think that a sale of the company would be the best possible way that anyone has so far suggested. It would allow TikTok influencers to continue to use it, and it would greatly mitigate that systemic risk. But it wouldnt eliminate it. Advertisement If whats happening with TikTok is kind of an indicator of whats happening in the wider U.S.-China relationship, I wonder what its telling you. If you want to look at the U.S.-China relationship over the past six months, there has been a rapid deterioration of bilateral relations. The trade deal has really sort of unraveled. And there has been a vicious downward spiral of this tit-for-tat behaviorwith the media, kicking out each others journalists, with closing the consulates. Theres been this rapid deterioration. Part of the reason for that is that the China superhawks in the administration have been tempered for several years by the need of the administration to keep reasonably good ties with China in order to work on the negotiations for the trade deal. Since the trade deal has fallen apart and since the Trump campaign seems to have made Chinas role in the coronavirus a major platform of the reelection strategy, that barrier has been removed. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Its funny because youve really made the case that dealing with TikTok is essential and also, of course, dealing with the Uighur human rights abuses is essential. So while everything is happening very fast and very chaotically, is this a positive outcome or a negative outcome? Whats so difficult is, despite the perhaps lack of strategy in how the administration appears to be rolling out some of these initiatives, theyre not wrong to view the Chinese Communist Party as a very serious threat to global freedom. And I say that simply by looking at what Chinese General Secretary Xi Jinping has said himself. Hes basically said that they want to expand. They want to promote their model around the world. They want to take center stage in global affairs. And they have shown time and again that they are very willing to treat the citizens of other countries the way they treat their own people, which is with profound suppression. And I personally dont want that future. So what do we do? Listen to the full episode using the player below, or subscribe to What Next on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Advertisement The Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) has demanded that the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi immediately steps aside while the probe of the alleged lethal clauses in Article 8(1) of the commercial loan agreement signed between Nigeria and Export-Import Bank of China which allegedly wills the sovereignty of Nigeria in the $400 million loan for the Nigeria National Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Infrastructure Backbone Phase II Project, signed in 2018. In a statement signed by its Secretary General, Chief Willy Ezugwu, the CNPP commended the Chairman of the House Committee on Treaties and Agreements, Hon. Ossai Nicholas Ossai for observing the anomaly and not succumbing to the Ministers antics aimed at truncating the probe. The CNPP then frowned at the attempt by the Minister to stop the investigative hearing into some of the agreements signed between Nigeria and China while responding to various questions on the ongoing modernisation of railway projects being implemented by his ministry. We are aware that the Minister is expected to appear again before the House of Representatives on 17th August, 2020, over the ongoing investigation into the commercial loan agreement signed between Nigeria and Export-Import Bank of China to the tune of $5.3 billion. For us, for Mr. Rotimi Amaechi to urge the House Committee not to investigate the terms of the loans being received by the federal government because he believed that the probe will jeopardise the chances of the country getting further loans is nothing but a cover up attempt that must be strongly resisted. The Ministers further argument that China was monitoring happenings in Nigeria and the probe will send a negative message to the Asian country about Nigeria is clearly an affront on the intelligence of the Nigerian people. We believe that the real fear of the Minister of Transportation is that if the probe continues, at the end of the day, his deeds against the Nigerian people will come to the open. The CNPP hereby called on the minister to step aside for proper investigation as he has proven that, by his defence in favour of the defective loan agreement, he has something to hide. The CNPP is keeping track of the Ministers ongoing argument in the media and is currently consulting with relevant civil society organisations on the next line of action on the matter, the statement read. By Agencies JODHPUR: A Jodhpur restaurant is hoping to win back customers afraid of eating out during the COVID-19 pandemic with a special "COVID Curry" and "Mask Naans". "This has been a really tough time for us and for our entire sector," Yash Solanki, owner of the vegetarian Vedic eatery in the western city of Jodphur, told AFP. The fried vegetable balls have been shaped to look like the "crowned" coronavirus, while the accompanying breads look like surgical masks. Solanki said that they had also added, and advertised, that their COVID curry had extra Indian herbs and spices that are good for people's health. "Even with recently relaxed curbs, the fear still dominates. People are still very reluctant to eat out," Solanki said. The New Indian Express had earlier reported about a hotel in Madurai that added mask parotta to its menu in early July. "The ingredients and preparation for 'mask parotta' are the same as 'veechu parotta' and differs only in shape where three layers of a face mask is tactfully kneaded from the dough. Being instrumental in spreading an important message in my hometown at this pandemic period gives me immense satisfaction, making it a worthwhile effort," S Sathish Babu, one of the people involved in its making, had said. The Madurai hotel in May had also introduced 'Corona' rava dosa (priced Rs 50 a piece), 'Corona' bonda (a plate of two pieces priced Rs 50), herbal rasam made using the ingredients of the Siddha immune-boosting concoction 'kabasurakudineer'. ALSO SEE: (With inputs from AFP and Express News Service) The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare announced directions and preventive actions to regulate the transmission of COVID-19 in yoga centers and gymnasiums which are to be opened from 5 August. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Monday issued guidelines and preventive measures to check the spread of COVID-19 in yoga institutions and gymnasiums that will reopen on August 5. According to the latest guidelines, only establishments outside containment zones will be allowed to open. The guidelines asked the management of gyms and yoga institutes to advise people above the age of 65 years, people with co-morbidities, pregnant women, and children below the age of 10 not to use gyms and be in closed spaces. The concerned establishments were asked to change floor plans so that an area of four square metres is allotted to one person. The placement of cardio and strength machines should be at least six feet apart from each other. The use of outdoor spaces is recommended. Apart from that, all social distancing and hygiene norms should be followed while managing the crowd. Use of masks is mandatory. However, during yoga and other exercises, it is advised to use visor as masks, especially N-95, during exercise may cause difficulty in breathing. According to the guidelines, the establishments should maintain the temperature of indoor spaces between 24 degrees to 30 degree Celsius as advised by CPWD, along with maintaining the relative humidity in the range of 40 per cent to 70 per cent. The guidelines also asked establishments to promote cashless payment methods. Installation and use of Aarogya Setu App was advised for all, including the management and customers of the establishments. Also Read: Assam plans to reopen educational institutions from September 1 The in on Monday asked Chief Minister K Palaniswami to reconsider the ruling AIADMK's opposition to the three-language formula proposed in the New Education Policy, saying the poor and the middle class in the state wanted it so that they can be on par with students of CBSE schools and other states. The two-language policy had been in place for the last five decades and its continuation would take the state backward by 50 years, unit Vice-president Vanathi Srinivasan claimed. She attacked the DMK, which has come out against the NEP, accusing it of playing a double game and over the issue by claiming that Vedas were sought to be imposed and saying always stood against untouchability. Reacting to Palaniswami's statement backing the two- language policy, she told reporters here all cannot afford to study in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools and the strength of students studying in the state-run Tamil medium schools had been decreasing over the years. Considering the plight of such students, the Chief Minister should reconsider the decision to oppose the three- language formula, she said adding there would be no problem in studying additional languages. The new policy was formulated after consulting with the educationists, academicians and the people, she said. Targeting DMK, Srinivasan said the opposition party chief M K Stalin should come forward and prove that the schools "run by his relatives and party cadres" were not teaching Hindi and bring out a white paper on the issue. She also sought to know whether the MPs from Tamil Nadu, who opposed the three-language policy, will surrender the 10 Kendriya Vidyalaya seats each allotted under the MPs quota for admission to the centrally-run schools. "Are the 39 MPs from Tamil Nadu, who oppose the three- language policy, ready to surrender the 10 seats allotted to them in Kendriya Vidyalaya, which they use for commercial purpose," she asked. In view of the future of poor students, both the ruling AIADMK and DMK should not not oppose the three-language policy, the BJP leader said. While Palaniswami said the three-language formula in the NEP "is painful and saddening" and asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reconsider it, the DMK led alliance comprising the Congress, MDMK, VCK, CPM, CPI and MMK, wrote to the former asking him to pass a resolution against the new NEP in the Cabinet meeting. (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.) Nigerian actress, film producer, model, and television personality; Yvonne Jegede entered August 2020 with a whole new vibe. The mum of one, notable for producing 3 is Company, rose to prominence after she made a cameo appearance in the music video African Queen by 2Face Idibia alongside Annie Macaulay. She shared new photos of herself, rocking a blue dress and penned the note below: Good morning people. I officially welcome everyone to the month of August, my birth month. This month will bring to us the best of everything we wish/pray/hope for. #Aug25 Related Zoom CEO Eric Yuan speaks before the Nasdaq opening bell ceremony in New York on April 18, 2019. Zoom said Monday it will stop selling new or upgraded products directly to customers in mainland China, and will instead only offer its video conferencing services via third-party partners. "Dear Customers, thank you for choosing our services. We wish to inform you that we will be selling services in Mainland China only through our partners. If you have a need for online video conferencing, you may reach out to our partners," the company said on its Chinese website. Zoom started notifying customers in China on Monday about the change, which will come into effect on Aug. 23, 2020, according to a letter seen by CNBC. A spokesperson confirmed the date. "In the past, our go-to-market model in China has included direct sales, online subscription, and sales through partners. Two months ago, we stopped offering online subscriptions," the letter said. "We are now shifting to a partner-only model with Zoom technology embedded in partner offerings, which will provide you better local support." "Users in Mainland China may continue to join Zoom meetings as participants," a spokesperson for the company added. Its China-based partners Bizconf Communications, Suirui Zhumu Video Conference and Systec Umeet are the three that Zoom recommends customers to switch to. That means clients will no longer be able to buy services directly from Zoom. Instead, they will have to buy products offered by these third-parties which are using some of Zoom's technology. It's unclear what prompted Zoom's move in China. In May, Zoom made changes that only allowed corporate customers to sign up. That meant free users were not allowed to host meetings but could join those initiated by such customers. Manhattan prosecutors suggested on Monday that they have been investigating President Donald Trump and his company for possible bank and insurance fraud. The office of the district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance Jr., made the disclosure in a new federal court filing obtained by The New York Times. The DAs office argued Trump should have to comply with its subpoena seeking eight years of his personal and corporate tax returns. The presidents lawyers have asked a judge to declare the subpoena invalid. Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Trump can be subpoenaed to provide his financial records to the Manhattan District Attorney The prosecutors did not directly identify the focus of their inquiry but cited undisputed news reports about Trumps business practices. The reports, including investigations into Trumps wealth and an article on the testimony of his former lawyer, Michael D. Cohen, who said that Trump may have illegally inflated his net worth and the value of his properties to lenders and insurers. Related content BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - German stocks advanced on Monday after a private survey showed China's factory activity expanded at the fastest pace decade in July, helping ease worries about the Covid-19 pandemic on the global economy. Closer home, German manufacturers saw in July an expansion in activity for the first time since December 2018, a survey showed. The IHS Markit's final PMI for manufacturing rose to 51.0 in July from 45.2 in June. The benchmark DAX inched up 118 points, or nearly 1 percent, to 12,431 after declining half a percent on Friday. Automakers advanced across the board amid signs of a broader recovery from the coronavirus crisis in China. BMW rose half a percent, Daimler gained 1.4 percent and Volkswagen climbed 2 percent. Banks Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank traded mixed after a warning from Europe's biggest lender HSBC over rising bad loans. Holiday company TUI AG declined 1.4 percent after it agreed a sale and leaseback deal for five new Boeing 737 MAX-8 aircraft with BOC Aviation. Siemens Healthineers slumped 5 percent after it agreed to buy U.S. firm Varian Medical Systems for $16.4 billion. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 01:02:31|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close NAIROBI, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Kelvin Mweu, a banker, lives in Athi River, south of Kenya's capital Nairobi, and works in the city center. He commutes to and from the suburb, some 30 km away from the city center daily, leaving in the morning and returning in the evening. Thousands of other Kenyans who live in areas neighboring the capital, which are normally referred to as its "bedrooms", because that is where the majority live as they work in Nairobi, follow a similar routine. The interlinkage between the capital Nairobi and the neighboring areas has seen the bedrooms become the new COVID-19 hotspots as the infection spreads. Nairobi, which has been the epicenter of the disease since its outbreak in Kenya in March, accounts for about 80 percent of the total 22,597 infections. For months, the capital was followed by the coastal city of Mombasa, the second largest town in the east African nation. But a rise in cases in Nairobi's bedrooms namely Kiambu, Machakos and Kajiado counties has seen Mombasa lose the second spot as infections in the three regions surge. The regions are currently the new hotspots for the disease, according to the Ministry of Health. On Monday, out of the 544 cases, Nairobi accounted for 412, Kiambu 27, Machakos 17 and Kajiado 17. Mombasa accounted for nine cases. And on Sunday, of the 690 cases announced, Nairobi contributed 533, Kiambu 57 and Kajiado 28. Mombasa had only one case in the tally. This has been the trend in the past weeks, with the health ministry asking residents in the capital's "bedrooms" to enhance containment measures. "Our proximity to Nairobi makes us vulnerable to the disease because our people commute daily in and out of the city," said Kiambu governor James Nyoro, whose region has recorded 400 cases in eight days. He further attributed the rise in cases to increased testing by health authorities. But there is also the major issue of failure by a majority of citizens in the areas to strictly observe containment measures like wearing masks and social distancing. A survey shows in Kitengela, one of the bedrooms of Nairobi, that a number of citizens were flouting health protocols. At an open-air market in the suburb, located south of Nairobi, some traders on Monday shouted out prices of their wares, others used pre-recorded messages amplified on loudspeakers to catch the attention of customers. The market was a sea of humanity, populated by not only the traders but also buyers, motorbike taxi riders and commuters. Most of the people at the market had masks, but a majority wore them inappropriately and did not observe social distance, exposing themselves to the risk of spreading or contracting the disease. "Some people are not taking the health measures seriously yet the disease is spreading fast here as it is doing in Nairobi. I blame it on carelessness or ignorance, this is costing us," said David Kinuthia, a motorbike taxi rider. Some public transport vehicles commonly known as matatus, which ply routes from the city centre to outskirts of Nairobi have been blamed for worsening the situation by flouting rules to enhance social distancing. The rising cases in Nairobi and its bedrooms put the thousands who commute between the two regions at a higher risk of contracting the disease, which is causing concern among residents. "If there is a time we need to stay at home, then this is it because one is at a higher risk of getting the disease as it spreads faster where we work and where we live," said Mweu. Rashid Aman, chief administrative secretary in the Ministry of Health, noted on Monday that the failure to adhere to containment measures was to blame for the spike in cases around the country, especially in areas around Nairobi. "We are seeing cases in Mombasa decline because people are adhering to set protocols. That is what we must do," he said. Enditem When insurance coverage lawsuits brought by businesses seeking coverage for COVID-related interruptions surpassed the 700 mark last week, the natural question to ask was: Is that a lot? Thats exactly the question that Chris Cheatham, CEO and co-founder of insurtech RiskGenius, asked during a webinar he hosted last week, addressing the question to Tom Baker, the William Maul Measey professor at the University of Pennsylvania, who presented the figure. Baker, an expert in insurance law and policy, showed an analysis of the numbers of business interruption coverage suits following past catastrophe events between 2009 and 2020in particular, Hurricanes Ike, Irma and Harvey and Superstorm Sandy and COVID-19. They exceed the norm by two or three times all the nat cats, he said, comparing the current level of COVID-19 cases in federal courts to the business interruption coverage suits filed after those natural catastrophes. Its a big deal, he added, displaying line graphs with case spikes that rose to less than 100 for Hurricane Ike a year after the third-quarter 2008 event, and to roughly 150 a year later. For Sandy, Irma and Harvey, case filings were less than 100 in similar time frames. The University of Pennsylvania has been tracking insurance coverage litigation on a COVID Coverage Litigation Tracker (CCLT) powered by Lex Machina, machine learning-focused legal analytics software that harvest information from PACER, the federal docket system. A webinar slide based on recent CCLT output indicated a figure of 694 total COVID-19 business interruption insurance coverage lawsuits, but Baker said that he had seen a list of 69 new cases on the day of the webinarJuly 21. While that number likely had some duplicates (owing to an overly inclusive search he uses to tap the Lex Machina tool), Baker confidently projected that the BI cases had eclipsed 700 at that pointmore than Ike, Sandy, Irma and Harvey together. Although Baker could not compare COVID BI case numbers with those brought in the wake of Hurricane Katrina because Lex Machina only goes back to 2009, he speculated that while the Katrina-driven suits numbers would be bigger than those for the other storms, it wouldnt be anything like COVID-19. And its not slowing down, Baker added, referring to the continual trend in COVID BI coverage suit filings. Cheatham, who has been using the University of Pennsylvania tracker to put together analyses of his own, agreed with the assessment. Its almost five-times, he said, comparing the COVID case counts to those following each of the storms individually. Providing one obvious reason for the disparity, Cheatham noted that while a hurricane hits just one areaa single state or multiple statesCOVID-19 shut down almost everything for a period of time. That was a countrywide shutdown essentially, except for some remote locations, where businesses just across the board were shut down, Cheatham said, turning to Baker to supply other reasons that COVID is a much bigger BI event in terms of the claims being filed than the storms. Baker offered that the nature of the coverage disputes is different. For hurricanes, coverage disputes centered around question like what share of the loss the insurance company should pick up vs. the federal flood program. And then also, what was the value of the damage? In contrast, for COVID-19, the insurance industry has decided that its just not paying absent an affirmative coverage [grant] in the policy. He added: I think things move to litigation faster and also, with a greater propensity because theres not that belief that, Hey, we can come to some agreement. When the answer is, No, your claim is denied, the next step is litigation. Penn. Higher Than New York Cheatham and Bryan Wilson, MIT Fellow, have been working on their own analysis of trends in COVID litigation for a series of articles Cheatham is authoring exclusively for Carrier Management, titled COVIDigation Nation. In the accompanying article, COVIDigation: Why So Many Cases? Are More Coming?the first of the serieshe uses Penn Laws COVID Coverage Litigation Tracker to conclude that 69 percent of COVID insurance coverage lawsuits have been filed in just nine states. While big states known for high litigation rates generally, like California and Illinois are among them, Cheathams analysis shows another factor is the correlation between COVID infection rates and the number of insurance coverage lawsuits filed. Still, there are a few questions that Cheatham needed Bakers help to answerlike why Pennsylvania, registering 10.5 percent of the coverage lawsuits as mid-July, and Florida, with 8.3 percent, were outpacing New Yorks 7.0 percent? Part of the reason is that New York isnt viewed as a particularly policyholder-friendly jurisdiction, Baker said, explaining a slower pace of filings in the Empire state. Beyond that, he said that plaintiffs firms actively seeking to consolidate cases in other states may explain some of the other outliers. MDL vs. Class Action: Whats the Difference? During a July 21 RiskGenius webinar, Prof. Tom Baker from the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School explained that a class action decides the case for all the people who are in the class unless they choose to opt out so that decides the case. An MDL just gets the case ready, and then it goes back to the court where it started and where [cases are] resolved on an individual basis. Practically, MDLs tend to settle as a group and class actions, once class certification is granted, tend to settle too, he said, noting the similarities between the two that are nonetheless different from a legal procedure perspective. Speculating on what would happen in a COVID insurance litigation MDL, he said discovery would take place. Expert witnesses would address questions like, What is COVID-19? What does it mean to have virus in the building? Whats the transmission? In addition, motions to dismiss could be ruled upon. Summary judgment motions could be ruled on. And typically, in an MDL, with a lot of prodding from the judges, the parties will tend to agree to put cases in different categories and then some categories will be resolved and settled; others wont. Judges may also remand cases selectively for test case trials because the idea of an MDL is that theres too many casesto handle them all really individually so lets figure out the process that will allow the parties to resolve them. There is an effort right now in the federal courts to have what is called an MDL, which is multidistrict litigationa procedure in the federal courts thats very widely used in products liability cases, but has, to my knowledge, never been used before in insurance cases, Baker said. He explained that what an MDL does is that it transfers all of the cases of a particular category to one federal court for proceedings leading up to, but not including trial. (The cases go back to the court where they originated for the trial.) There are three teams of lawyers who have filed three competing efforts to consolidate these cases in Pennsylvania, Florida, and Illinois, Baker said, noting that the three cohorts have adopted different strategies. The Pennsylvania lawyers strategy has been, Hey, were going to file the most cases and that this case should be consolidated in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania because thats the center of gravity from cases.' While Florida lawyers are using a similar strategy, a high-powered coverage lawyer on the Illinois team of higher profile national lawyers is simply relying on their reputations rather than flooding the dockets. The strategy that theyre taking is, Listen, were just really amazing lawyers and you should do it in Chicagoand Chicago is in the middle of the country, Baker said. Years Not Months In his COVIDigation analysis, Cheatham also tracks the timing of case filings, finding roughly one-month lag between spikes in COVID infections and new high watermarks for litigation filings. Viewing a jump in infections during the week of a June 23 based on the New York Times COVID-19 dataset, Cheatham suggested there could be a surge in insurance litigation near the end of July. (See related article by Cheatham, COVIDigation: Why So Many Cases? Are More Coming?) Baker, going back to his analysis of hurricane landfalls and BI coverage litigation, suggests an even longer loss development tail for insurers to worry about. The peak doesnt come until one year out, Baker said, pointing to a bar graph showing case counts at intervals of six months, 1-2 years, 2-3 years and over three years out for the storm events. While most showed case spikes in the 1-2 year bucket, for Ike, the spike came in 2-3 years, and there were still Sandy BI lawsuits being filed after 3 years. To the extent that COVID-19 cases follow that pattern, which its too soon to tell because were not even six months out really, then that suggests that theres a lot more lawsuits to come, Baker concluded. Topics Lawsuits Catastrophe COVID-19 Florida New York Hurricane Illinois Pennsylvania WASHINGTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley will discuss their recently completed SpaceX Demo-2 test flight mission to the International Space Station during a news conference at 4:30 p.m. EDT Tuesday, Aug. 4. The news conference from NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston will be broadcast live on NASA Television and on the agency's website. This will be a virtual event with no media present, due to the safety restrictions related to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Reporters who wish to participate by telephone must call Johnson's newsroom at 281-483-5111 to RSVP no later than 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 4. Those following the briefing on social media may ask questions using the hashtag #AskNASA. SpaceX's Crew Dragon, carrying Behnken and Hurley, splashed down at 2:48 p.m. Sunday under parachutes in the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, and was successfully recovered by SpaceX. After returning to shore, the astronauts immediately flew back to Houston, where they were greeted by their families and invited guests including NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and SpaceX Chief Engineer Elon Musk at a welcome home ceremony. NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 test flight launched May 30 from the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Nearly 19 hours later, Crew Dragon docked to the forward port of the International Space Station's Harmony module May 31. Behnken and Hurley contributed more than 100 hours to scientific experiments and participated in numerous public engagement events during their 62 days aboard the station. Behnken conducted four spacewalks with Expedition 63 Commander and NASA colleague Chris Cassidy to upgrade two power channels on the station's truss with new lithium-ion batteries. Overall, the astronaut duo spent 64 days in orbit, completed 1,024 orbits around Earth and traveled 27,147,284 miles. This was SpaceX's final test flight and will provide data about the performance of the Falcon 9 rocket, Crew Dragon spacecraft and ground systems, as well as in-orbit, docking, splashdown, and recovery operations. The data will inform NASA's certification of the SpaceX crew transportation system for regular flights carrying astronauts to and from the space station. SpaceX is readying the hardware for the first rotational mission, which is scheduled to occur following NASA certification. NASA astronauts Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, Jr., and Shannon Walker, as well as Soichi Noguchi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), are assigned to the first operational flight of Crew Dragon and spend six months aboard the station. NASA's Commercial Crew Program works with the U.S. aerospace industry to develop safe, reliable, and cost-effective crew transportation systems that will carry astronauts on American rockets and spacecraft from American soil to the International Space Station, and back. A successful Commercial Crew Program could allow for additional research time and increase the opportunity for discovery aboard humanity's testbed for exploration, including helping us prepare for human exploration of the Moon and Mars. Follow updates on the Commercial Crew Program at: https://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew/ Follow Hurley on Twitter and Instagram and Behnken on Twitter. Download b-roll and additional video content at: http://images.nasa.gov Get the latest space station news, images and features on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. SOURCE NASA Related Links http://www.nasa.gov Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) The number of coronavirus cases in the country rose to 106,330 on Monday, with 3,226 new cases logged by the Department of Health. Nearly half of the new cases are from Metro Manila, which registered 1,541 more infected residents. Also included in the top five provinces with the most new cases are Cebu province with 503, Laguna with 181, Rizal with 158, and Cavite with 129. The DOH added that 275 more were tagged as recovered, for a total of 65,821 patients who have gotten well from the disease. Meanwhile, the death toll climbed to 2,104, with 46 new fatalities. This is the highest number of deaths recorded in a day since July 19, when the DOH reported that 58 more people died. The department said that of the newly reported deaths, 37 happened in July, while the remaining nine occurred from March to June. There are currently 38,405 active cases or currently ill patients in the country, based on the case report. The Philippine National Police also announced that 34 more among its ranks tested positive for the virus, for a total of 2,283 infected police personnel. Recoveries stand at 1,251, while the death count is at 11. Among Filipinos abroad, the Department of Foreign Affairs also said 28 more have been infected with the disease. The case tally is now at 9,597, with 5,653 recoveries and 693 deaths. President Rodrigo on Sunday night announced Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal will shift back to a stricter modified enhanced community quarantine from August 4 to 18 in an effort to slow down the viral transmission in the areas. The decision came after the medical community said the countrys healthcare system is already overwhelmed and appealed for a two-week enhanced community quarantine in the countrys capital region and its nearby provinces. Researchers from the University of the Philippines said the governments imposition of MECQ may bring down the number of infections to more than 50,000, significantly reducing its previous projection of 220,000 cases if the metropolis retains its general community quarantine status. READ: MECQ may save more than 50,000 COVID-19 cases, but not enough to flatten the curve Under MECQ, quarantine passes will be required to limit the number of people allowed to go out, and public transportation will be suspended anew. Jeffery B. Hardy Sr., left, owns Sanitation & Disinfecting Service in Milwaukee. His crew gets ready to do a Covid19-type cleaning at Community of Grace Baptist Church in Milwaukee. MILWAUKEE As more people are allowed back into offices, restaurants and hotels under the City of Milwaukee's reopening plans, the need for disinfection is greater than ever. Pest 2 Rest Pest Control, a family-owned extermination company, is one of the many businesses that now specialize in COVID-19 disinfection. "There is a 0.1% difference between sanitizing and disinfecting," said Jeffery Hardy Sr., the co-owner of Pest 2 Rest. "So, sanitizing, you're cleaning; disinfecting, you're killing the virus. And that's what we're encouraging people to do." He also encourages clients to have a plan of action after his job is done. Hardy's business, as its name would suggest, started out killing bed bugs, roaches, rodents and other critters. Since March, Hardy chose to pivot like many other entrepreneurs. Now, he and his wife, Brenda, and sometimes their three kids as well, spray interiors to rid keyboards, desks and doorknobs of the invisible menace that has claimed the lives of almost 150,000 Americans. The Hardys began their transition in February when Hardy was urged by his supplier to make a significant order of something called Nisus DSV. "I think he knew something was gonna happen," Hardy said. "And then March came and everything kind of hit the fan, and come to find out that this product is a disinfectant that's used for the COVID," Hardy said. "It's very kind of hard to find now." The path to 5G: After years of hype, the technology is making progress in the US 401(k) plans: Do they still make sense for you? It might, or might not Jeffery B. Hardy Sr., from left, Zeonte Robbins, Brenda Hardy, Jeffery Hardy's wife, and son Jeffery Hardy Jr. clean Community of Grace Baptist Church in Milwaukee. Nisus DSV can be found under the EPA registration number 10324-80 on List N, which contains EPA-approved disinfectant products "for use against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19." Thanks to the switch to office cleaning, Pest 2 Rest is probably doing better financially than it was before, Hardy said. Pest 2 Rest began in 2009 as a one-man operation. Once the workload became too much for Hardy alone, his wife joined, too. Eventually, all three of their children came to help out in the family business. Story continues These days, instead of ridding mattresses of unwanted critters, they're more likely to be spraying down bar stools. But what they are most passionate about is making churches safe again. Their desire to help the faithful started a few weeks ago while taking a Saturday drive. Like so many others, they were looking for a way to fend off boredom. "Every bar that we went past had a line out the door, 20 or 30 people waiting to get in," Hardy said. The next day, "We went past six or seven churches, and not one person." The Hardys wondered how this could be and decided to take it upon themselves to do something about it. The demand for disinfection is so high that many other businesses have reoriented themselves to meet it. Another company, Onedesk, based in Minneapolis is approaching the new demand for office cleaning from a high-tech perspective. The company's website and app, which have the look and feel of a thriving Silicon Valley startup, enable clients to message, schedule and pay for services through an online platform. Onedesk contracts with cleaners throughout the country using a thorough vetting process. Once approved, contractors are required to maintain industry knowledge with regular assessments. Like Pest 2 Rest, the company looks a lot different than it did a few months ago. "We would just come in, vacuum, we would dust, you know. We would make offices look good, nice," said Roman Peysakhovich, CEO of Onedesk. "Now the main thing is all about disinfection. It's the only thing that people care about. It's not so much about just having a tidy office." Contractors now use virucide and electrostatic sprayers, devices that use positively charged particles that cling to surfaces. Peysakhovich said his company's services, once seen as a luxury, are now considered fundamental. Jeffery B. Hardy Sr., from left, helps his wife Brenda, put on a respirator after assisting daughter Breanna Hardy with hers before entering the church. Onedesk, formerly Building Masters, took the opportunity to reconfigure itself when statewide orders like "Safer at Home" shut down businesses and reduced the need for cleaning services across the country. "So it took about a good two months for us to learn all this stuff and review most of the basics," Peysakhovich said. A third alternative for eliminating the virus barely requires human help. Altapure is a disinfection technology and manufacturing company based in Mequon, Wisconsin. It has developed the AP-4, a touchless device that can disinfect a 3,000-cubic-foot room in 45 minutes. It can be controlled wirelessly, which reduces the risk of human contamination. Carl L. Ricciardi co-founded Altapure with his son, Jonathan, in 2003. Ever since the coronavirus pandemic hit, AP-4 sales have gone up and its customer base has expanded dramatically. "Prior to COVID, we were primarily a medical facility oriented company. Post-COVID nursing homes, long-term care facilities, restaurants any place where people gather has become a customer," Ricciardi said. Altapure has clients in the Midwest, on the East Coast and even in Australia and New Zealand. "COVID was a wake-up call for the world and a wake-up call to American medicine and a wake-up call to hospitals and, certainly, a wake-up call to the public." Brenda Hardy of Pest 2 Rest can attest to this last point. She said her friends and family speak of cleaning and disinfecting to make places such as churches safe enough to visit again. Hardy said that "cleanliness is next to godliness," but during this pandemic, 'clean' is simply not good enough. Reach the reporter at aaning@Gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @agyakaning This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Former exterminators and cleaners pivot to coronavirus disinfection The loss of a sense of smell is known to be one of the earliest signs of Parkinson's disease (PD) and can even appear years before the characteristic tremors and loss of motor function are seen. Some scientists believe that olfactory dysfunction may not just be a sign of broader neural damage, but rather may have a more direct linkage to the generation of the disorder itself. In support of this idea, deposits of a protein called alpha-synuclein that form Lewy bodies can be found in olfactory areas, as well as in dying dopamine neurons whose loss triggers PD, and mutations in the gene encoding alpha-synuclein produce PD. In the central nervous system, the sensory neurons that line the nasal epithelium are particularly susceptible to neuroinflammatory attack due to their accessibility to toxic agents inhaled from the environment. Indeed, the olfactory system is directly exposed to a barrage of environmental toxins arising from bacteria, viruses, mold, dust, pollen and chemicals. These toxins lead to local inflammatory responses inside the nose where olfactory neurons send their sensitive endings, and inflammation can spread to promote activation of inflammatory cells called microglia deeper in the brain. Since mounting evidence indicates that neuroinflammation contributes to the development and progression of PD and other degenerative diseases, scientists have proposed that the initial impact of environmental toxins inhaled through the nose may induce inflammation in the brain, triggering the production of Lewy bodies that can then be spread to other brain regions. However, the relationship linking olfactory dysfunction and PD development remains unclear. Ning Quan, Ph.D., a neuroscientist from Florida Atlantic University's Schmidt College of Medicine and a faculty member of the FAU Brain Institute (I-BRAIN), is among a team of researchers with new findings that add weight to this theory and identify a critical signaling molecule that may be key to the domino effect kicked off by nasal inflammation. Results of the study, published in the journal Brain Pathology, showed that application of an irritating component of a bacterium's cell wall induces inflammation in the areas exactly where the olfactory neurons project, called the olfactory bulb. Moreover, these areas show the hallmark signs of PD, depositions of alpha-synuclein, the core components of Lewy bodies. PD is characterized by progressive motor and non-motor symptoms linked to alpha-synuclein pathology and the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the nigrostriatal system. Toxic aggregates of alpha-synuclein can arise from either overexpression of the protein, changes in protein modifications, and from hereditary mutations. Quan and collaborators from China's Xuzhou Medical University, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, and First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, demonstrate that inflammation induced in the nasal epithelium leads to overexpression of toxic forms of alpha-synuclein both in the olfactory system and in the dopamine neurons, which then degenerate and trigger Parkinson's-like behaviors in mice. Using a mouse model developed by Quan, the researchers demonstrate that these effects require activation of a single receptor protein for the inflammatory signal, interleukin 1 beta. "Data from our study show that the bacterial trigger does not move across the blood-brain barrier," said Quan. "Rather, a sequential inflammatory activation of the olfactory mucosa triggers a subsequent expression of inflammatory molecules within the brain, propagating the inflammation." According to the Parkinson's Foundation, approximately 60,000 Americans are diagnosed with PD each year. More than 10 million people worldwide are living with PD. Incidence of PD increases with age, however, an estimated 4 percent of people with PD are diagnosed before age 50. People with PD may experience tremor, bradykinesia, limb rigidity, gait and balance problems as well as cognitive impairment. "Parkinson's disease is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder," said Randy Blakely, Ph.D., executive director of FAU's I-BRAIN. "Currently, there is no cure for the disease and current medications have significant side-effects. These new findings may ultimately lead to potential therapies that could shut down the origins and progression of this debilitating disease." ### This research is supported by the Innovative Entrepreneurship Training Program for National College Students (201710313027), Top-notch Academic Programs Project of Jiangsu Higher Educational Institutions (PPZY2015B161), National Natural Science Foundation of China (81471330, 81601198), and the Qing Lan Project. About the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine: FAU's Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine is one of approximately 154 accredited medical schools in the U.S. The college was launched in 2010, when the Florida Board of Governors made a landmark decision authorizing FAU to award the M.D. degree. After receiving approval from the Florida legislature and the governor, it became the 134th allopathic medical school in North America. With more than 70 full and part-time faculty and more than 1,300 affiliate faculty, the college matriculates 64 medical students each year and has been nationally recognized for its innovative curriculum. To further FAU's commitment to increase much needed medical residency positions in Palm Beach County and to ensure that the region will continue to have an adequate and well-trained physician workforce, the FAU Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine Consortium for Graduate Medical Education (GME) was formed in fall 2011 with five leading hospitals in Palm Beach County. The Consortium currently has five Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) accredited residencies including internal medicine, surgery, emergency medicine, psychiatry, and neurology. About the FAU Brain Institute: Inaugurated in 2016 on the John D. MacArthur Campus in Jupiter, Fla., the FAU Brain Institute, supports research, education and community outreach among more than 100 faculty level researchers at FAU and its affiliate research centers. One of FAU's four pillars that guide the University's goals and strategic actions, the Institute seeks to unlock the secrets of brain development, function and plasticity and how the mechanisms uncovered can be compromised to drive devastating brain disorders. From the study of neuronal development and signaling to investigations of brain diseases including addiction, autism, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, researchers from FAU's Brain Institute seek to generate knowledge that benefits society. For more information about the Institute and its members, visit http://www.ibrain.fau.edu. About Florida Atlantic University: Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University, with an annual economic impact of $6.3 billion, serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at sites throughout its six-county service region in southeast Florida. FAU's world-class teaching and research faculty serves students through 10 colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, the College of Business, the College for Design and Social Inquiry, the College of Education, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Graduate College, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. FAU is ranked as a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University is placing special focus on the rapid development of three signature themes - marine and coastal issues, biotechnology and contemporary societal challenges - which provide opportunities for faculty and students to build upon FAU's existing strengths in research and scholarship. For more information, visit http://www.fau.edu. Gabriel Ogbonna, the Abia-based lawyer who has spent over three months in the custody of the State Security Service (SSS), has filed a motion on notice against the agencys Director-General, Yusuf Bichi. PREMIUM TIMES reported how Mr Ogbonna has been held in the custody of the secret police for over three months despite court judgments ordering his release. In March, the lawyer was arrested for posting articles criticising the government of Governor Okezie Ikpeazu in Abia State, via his social media page. Shortly after the arrest, he was arraigned before a magistrate court in Umuahia alongside another person for publishing false and threatening messages through the internet against Mr Ikpeazu. However, because the magistrate court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case, he was remanded at a correctional facility in the state capital until April 28, when he was arraigned before the Federal High Court in Umuahia and was granted bail. Mr Ogbonna was rearrested by SSS operatives on his way out of the correctional facility in Umuahia on the same day. This was after he had perfected the bail conditions. This paper learnt that the SSS moved Mr Ogbonna to its office in the state and subsequently, its headquarters in Abuja, where he has been in custody without any charge against him. None of Mr Ogbonnas friends, relatives or his legal representative has been allowed to visit him since he was transferred to Abuja. More so, all legal efforts to ensure his release have been unsuccessful. On June 29, the Federal High Court in Umuahia ordered the SSS to release him unconditionally and awarded N1.5 million damages in his favour. The court also struck out Abia States case against Mr Ogbonna, following the failure and neglect by the police to produce him. Contempt of court In the motion filed on Monday, Mr Ogbonna through his lawyers, Nkem Okoro and Monday Ubani, asked the Abuja High Court to compel the SSS Director-General to release him. The lawyers hinged the motion on the Umuahia court judgment and previous cases of contempt. READ ALSO: An order of court, no matter the fundamental vice attaching thereto, remains legally binding and valid until set aside by due process of law, a copy of the court documents partly read. The law in this instance is clear that it is settled that it is the unqualified obligation of every person against or in respect of whom an order is made by a court of competent jurisdiction to obey it unless and until that order discharged and this the more so, where the person affected by the order believes it to be irregular or void. In so far as the order exists, it must be obeyed to the letter. See Military Governor of Lagos State v. Ojukwu & Anor. (1986), the lawyers cited. We must humbly urge this honourable court to grant this application as prayed as the Applicant has established by credible evidence the existence of a valid order of this honourable court, the service of same on the 1st Respondent who were represented by a team of lawyers in the matter at trial court. The Applicant has also established the refusal and neglect of the 1st Respondent to obey a valid order of this honourable court. PREMIUM TIMES had reported the notoriety of the SSS in disobeying court rulings and judicial processes. The publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, Shiite leader Ibrahim El-Zakzaky and former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, were held by the agency despite being granted bail by the courts in separate cases. Although Messrs Sowore and Dasuki were eventually freed in December 2019, Mr El-Zakzaky is still in detention. Government MP Andrew Laming has defended politicians' right to challenge medical advice if the debate is "fact against fact". Dr Laming's comments come in the wake of controversial social media posts from Liberal MP Craig Kelly claiming Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews was "criminally negligent" for restricting hydroxychloroquine, an unproven coronavirus treatment touted by US President Donald Trump. Liberal MP Andrew Laming has argued politicians should challenge medical experts if they think the facts are on their side. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen "If you don't like what they say, unfriend them and don't follow them," Dr Laming said on the ABC's Q+A program on Monday night. "[Mr Kelly] is not in the Cabinet." In 20 Facebook posts over the last three days Mr Kelly has trumpeted hydroxychloroquine as a key ingredient in several countries' putative success in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic and described studies critical of its effectiveness as "fraudulent". Turkey, UAE clash over Libya conflict, trade accusations of interference Iran Press TV Sunday, 02 August 2020 9:10 AM A war of words has escalated between Turkey and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over Libya, where the two states support opposing sides in the African country's long-running conflict. The Emirati minister of state for foreign affairs, Anwar Gargash, has slammed Turkish defense minister for his recent comments about Abu Dhabi's role in Libya, urging Ankara to sop meddling in the affairs of Arab states. "Relations are not managed by threats and there is no place for colonialist delusions in this day and age," Gargash wrote on Twitter, referring to the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi had earlier censured "malicious" actions by the UAE in Libya, where Abu Dhabi along with Egypt, Russia and others has been supporting rebel forces led by renegade Khalifah Haftar in an offensive to seize power from the internationally-recognized government in Tripoli. "Abu Dhabi does what it does in Libya, does what it does in Syria. All of it is being recorded. At the right place and time, the accounts will be settled," Akar said in an interview with Qatar's Al Jazeera Arabic broadcaster. "It is necessary to ask Abu Dhabi, where this hostility, where these intentions, where this jealousy comes from," he added. With crucial help from Turkey, the Tripoli government has gained the upper hand in the counter-offensive against the Hafter-led rebels after it reversed many of their gains both around the capital and elsewhere in the country. The Turkish military has been providing air cover, weapons, and proxy militia from Syria to help the Libyan government. Egypt has, in recent weeks, threatened to militarily intervene if Libyan government forces act on a pledge to press to recapture the coastal city of Sirte, which fell to Haftar's rebels in January. Libya has been beset by chaos since the overthrow of ex-dictator Muammar Gaddafi on the back of a NATO military intervention in 2011. Since 2014, two rival seats of power have emerged, namely the UN-recognized Libyan government, headed by Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, in Tripoli, and another group, which is based in the eastern city of Tobruk and supported militarily by Haftar-led forces. Libyans fear future as warring sides vie for control: UN envoy The Libyan conflict has over the past years taken a heavy toll on the lives as well as the economic state of civilians in the oil-rich country. The acting United Nations (UN) special envoy for Libya said on Saturday that the Libyan people are concerned that external actors could strip them of the right to decide their own future. "The Libyan people are exhausted and scared in equal measure," Stephanie Williams said on a visit to London. "They are tired of war, and want peace, but they fear this is not in their hands now. They want a solution and a ceasefire. The alternative to a ceasefire and an inclusive political solution is essentially the destruction of their country." The UN envoy went on to say, "With so many external actors with their own agendas, the risk of miscalculation and a regional confrontation is high." Williams emphasized that the conflict unfolding in Libya was to the detriment of civilians and said, "This is as much a battle between external rivals, as a civil war now, in which the Libyans are losing their sovereignty." The UN secretary-general also warned last month that foreign interference in the conflict in Libya had reached "unprecedented" levels. "The [Libyan] conflict has entered a new phase, with foreign interference reaching unprecedented levels, including in the delivery of sophisticated equipment and the number of mercenaries involved in the fighting," Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in an address to a high-level virtual meeting of the UN Security Council. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address A viral video of a DJ spitting Jagermeister at revellers has led to a police investigation over concerns coronavirus regulations were ignored at a Costa del Sol club. The video, which has been shared thousands of times on Twitter, shows the moment Fali Sotomayor drinks from a bottle of Jagermeister and then spits out the drink at fans. He can then be seen pouring the liqueur from the same bottle into people's mouths as he dances in the centre of the crowd. Only one of the people in the clip can be seen wearing a face mask. The footage was filmed by a clubber in July at the Kokun Ocean Club on the Los Alamos beach in Torremolinos, Malaga. The DJ, who is part of the electronic music duo Les Castizos, apologised on social media for acting "irresponsibly" at the event. "We feel ashamed and sorry," said Sotomayor. "The video shows a specific moment in a show in which, unfortunately, we act irresponsibly." According to reports in the Olive Press, Spanish police launched an investigation into the DJ's behaviour on Monday. Police are also looking at whether the Torremolinos establishment had the appropriate safety measures in place. The Malaga Hoteliers Association said on Twitter: "We denounce such acts of irresponsibility against public health and we reiterate our commitment to sanitary regulations." Cronkite News PHOENIX When the sun is up, hes up and ready to hit the road by 8. Flatbed trucks are loaded with brimming barrels of water, and the teams take off up and down the burnt orange washboard roads that crisscross the Navajo Nation Reservation. Zoel Zohnnie grew up on a ranch in these vast lands, knowing what its like to live without running water, knowing what it means to drive for miles to fill up at a community water station and then haul it back home. For some families, its a whole day of leaving home, waiting in line, coming back, unloading, he said. Just to drink water and have water for living. When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived on the reservation, Zohnnie saw families and elders sheltering in place and no one helping them to haul water they desperately needed. So I took up a PayPal and purchased a water tank, put it in the back of my truck and hit the road, and ended up doing that day after day, said Zohnnie, who calls his group Water Warriors United. Water is a precious commodity thats scarce in many places across the U.S. but even more so in rural Native American communities like the Navajo Nation, where a virus that requires hand-washing and proper hygiene has taken an especially heavy toll. Zohnnie, 42, is a boilermaker by trade, doing pipe welding, power plant maintenance and refinery construction. But he was laid off at the end of March, just as COVID-19 cases began increasing across the sprawling reservation. He has underlying health conditions that put him at higher risk of contracting COVID-19 and suffering more. But as the virus that causes the disease took hold of Dinetah, he knew he had to find a way to help, even while practicing social distancing and staying safe. His is the story of how one person saw a problem that needed a solution and started a movement to try to find one as a friend said, Changing the world one barrel at a time. Volunteers with Water Warriors United set out to deliver water across the Navajo Nation.The organization has four 16-foot flatbed trucks that carry 550-gallon tanks, hoses, equipment and a water pump. Photo courtesy of Water Warriors United A scarce resource November report released by the nonprofit US Water Alliance found that more than 2 million Americans lack access to running water, indoor plumbing or wastewater services. Those disparities are worse in communities of color and even more extreme, the study found, among Indigenous people whose households are 19 times more likely to lack indoor plumbing than those of white families. On the Navajo reservation, which stretches 27,000 square miles through Arizona and into New Mexico and Utah, an estimated 30% of the 174,000 residents lack access to running water. Many, the US Water Alliance report said, have less than 10 gallons of water in their homes at any given time, sometimes using as little as 2 or 3 gallons a day. The average American uses 88 gallons a day. The Navajo people say that water is life, but plentiful, clean water is hard to come by on the reservation. Many households are not good candidates for centralized water systems because extending water lines is expensive. Photo courtesy of Water Warriors United Some residents drive hours to get water to haul home, ration what water they do have between hygienic uses and cooking, or stockpile it in case of emergency. One woman, the report noted, has bartered homemade pies for water. These obstacles often force residents to travel to towns bordering the reservation to buy water, said Monica Harvey, a Navajo who founded Defend Our Community, a group working to assist elders during the pandemic. Harvey, who lives in Leupp, points to other problems, such as broken windmills that hinder water pumping and limited hours at tribal chapter houses, the government subdivisions and communal gathering places where Navajos often get their water. There was one point where the chapter house in Leupp was announcing that they were going to shut down a water station, Harvey said. The water from that water station is for livestock only. But sometimes, residents have to resort to that water to drink. One family hauled water by 5-gallon containers. The Water Warriors gifted them two, 55-gallon drums. The group has delivered more than 400 barrels of water. Photo courtesy of Water Warriors United A report by the Navajo Nations Department of Water Resources notes that a lack of reliable drinking water stifles economic growth throughout the reservation while contributing to higher incidence of disease. Add an extremely contagious virus into this mix and the circumstances become even more dire, experts note. You can imagine if you dont have access to running water, then the very basic things you need to do to stay home and stay safe during a viral pandemic arent possible, said George McGraw, founder of DigDeep, a nonprofit that works on the reservation to bring running water into homes and schools. You cant wash your hands for 20 seconds several times a day with soap and water. Youre constantly being forced to leave social isolation to drive to a grocery store thatll have bottled water or to drive to a gas station, a truck stop, a school, a library if theyre open to take a shower or collect water. Cynthia Harris, director of tribal programs at the Environmental Law Institute in Washington D.C., said the long-standing issues around access to water and water quality in Indian Country can be boiled down to three main obstacles: resources, logistics and battles over water rights. Funding for infrastructure improvements is limited. The Indian Health Service reported last year a backlog of almost 2,000 sanitation-related construction projects in Indian Country and estimated it would cost $2.7 billion to provide all American Indians and Alaska Natives with safe drinking water and adequate sewerage systems. The rural nature of homes also makes for logistical challenges. On the Navajo reservation, which is bigger than the state of West Virginia, many households are not good candidates for centralized water systems because extending water lines to low-density, mountainous areas is extremely expensive, according to Harris group. Weve heard quite a bit from Congress and the executive branch about looking at infrastructure, ensuring that tribes are included in that at a sufficient level, Harris said, noting some opportunities to address these issues may be part of the $2.2 trillion coronoavirus relief package known as the CARES Act. There is a toolbox, she said. The question is, which tools bring to bear ensuring tribes are included. The Navajo Nation has received $714 million under the CARES Act, and President Jonathan Nez has proposed using $300 million of that for agriculture projects and water infrastructure, including improved residential plumbing. Final expenditures are being negotiated between the Navajo Nation Council and Nez. But time is running out: The federal government is requiring that CARES Act funding be spent by years end. A hand for the forgotten We will never be able to measure the magnitude of language, culture, or history that this virus has taken from our tribes. We have already lost so much, but are also collectively doing so much. When COVID-19 started sweeping across the Navajo reservation, Zoel Zohnnie noticed elders and others were unable to access water stations. So he purchased a water tank and started hauling water to them. Photo courtesy of MJ Harrison Zoel Zohnnies words punctuate the website of Collective Medicine , the nonprofit that serves as the umbrella organization for his Water Warriors United campaign. The effort has grown from one man and one water tank to an operation where volunteers deliver on average 5,000 gallons a week to residents across the reservation. The idea behind this whole campaign was to reach the people who cant get to the water themselves, and to reach the people who are far away enough to have been forgotten, Zohnnie said. And theres been a lot of people that have been forgotten. The more he ventured out, the more donations started flowing in. He used the money to buy 55-gallon water barrels for Navajos living out of 5-gallon buckets or small containers. Zohnnie now has four 16-foot flatbed trucks that carry 550-gallon tanks, hoses, equipment and a water pump. His team has delivered more than 400 barrels and more than 100,000 gallons of water to more than 20 communities. Now what were trying to do is figure out a refill system for the places weve already been, so that we can just go back to these homes and kind of recirculate where weve already been, he said. But if we do that, then it takes away from us being able to reach other areas that havent been given barrels yet. So were trying to get as many barrels out there as possible, first, so that way at least the residents and our elders and tribal members can have a barrel. That makes their life a little easier when they have to haul water for themselves. Check this out!.. WWU got 360 barrels delivered to our warehouse in Gallup. YOUR donations did this. A big shout out to Mark and Stacy DiGregorio for being instrumental helping us with this huge step. Thank you to Joe D. for allowing us to utilize his storage space. Continue to help us help those in need by clicking this link: paypal.me/collectivemedicine Posted by Water Warriors United - A Collective Medicine Campaign on Saturday, July 18, 2020 Water Warriors United: Donation of Water Barrels Along the way, Zohnnie has met dozens of people, many whose circumstances brought tears to his eyes. One family of 18 was living in a small shack with no running water. Another home included several children living alone without water or electricity. The dad had passed away probably four months ago, and the mom had passed away two months before that, he recalled. So the kids were just trying to make their way, and there was nobody that was really helping them. That was one that kind of stuck with me. Another man was caring for his 90-year-old mother, who requires a feeding tube. They lived off a 20-mile dirt road and were unable to haul water on their own because the man couldnt leave his mother for the time it would take to go out and return. Its been quite an eye-opener, Zohnnie said. Growing up on the reservation, you kind of know whats going on. But until youre there visiting each home, talking to each person, it never really hits you until you hear them or you look at them in the eye and see how they feel. Our team is purchasing and delivering new water barrels just as fast as we can pick them up. Your donations make all... Posted by Water Warriors United - A Collective Medicine Campaign on Saturday, August 1, 2020 Harveys group, Defend Our Community, began collaborating with Zohnnie to get water to the elders it works with. It was very difficult for elders throughout the community to get drinking water, so his team came out and was able to provide 55-gallon water barrels with drinking water, she said. They had a water tank in the back of their vehicle as well. So elders who needed water jugs or containers filled, they were able to help fill those containers with drinking water. A lot of them were so grateful that a few of the elders broke into tears because they received help. Finally someone showed up to help them, to provide aid to them. Zohnnies effort is just one of several, and Harris and others note that any permanent solutions to the water access issues must go beyond trucking in gallons here and there. The pandemic, Harris said, is an opportunity to stop, to pause, to reflect and consider these issues and look at how we can do better. Zohnnie hopes to continue his initiative beyond COVID-19, to keep helping his people in whatever way he can. He wants the world to see that not all thats come from the pandemic is sorrow and tragedy. I feel like because of this virus, there are beautiful things happening, he said. And I think one of them is the fact that it has brought a lot of people together. Theres a lot of people still out there suffering from it, still out there protecting themselves from it, too. But, he added: Even though its a dangerous and ugly virus, it has done beautiful things to help people see that we can come together in times of crisis. Note: This story originally appeared on Cronkite News . It is published via a Creative Commons license . Cronkite News is produced by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University Join the Conversation NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. Coastal shops and restaurants closed early, power began to flicker at oceanfront hotels and even the most adventurous of beachgoers abandoned the sand Monday night as newly restrengthened Hurricane Isaias sped toward the Carolinas. The U.S. National Hurricane Center warned oceanside home dwellers to brace for storm surge up to 5 feet (1.5 meters) and up to 8 inches (20 centimeters) of rain in spots, as Isaias moved up the coast. The Carolinas werent the only states at risk. All those rains could produce flash flooding across portions of the eastern Carolinas and mid-Atlantic, and even in the northeast U.S., said Daniel Brown, senior hurricane specialist at the U.S. National Hurricane Center. A tropical storm warning extended all the way up to Maine, where flash flooding was possible in some areas on Wednesday. The center also warned of possible tornadoes in North Carolina on Monday night and early Tuesday, and from eastern Virginia to southern New England later Tuesday. Isaias (pronounced ees-ah-EE-ahs) was upgraded again from a tropical storm to a Category 1 hurricane at 11 p.m. EDT. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 85 miles (137 kph) and was centered about 40 miles (64 kilometers) east northeast of Myrtle Beach. It was moving north northeast at 22 mph (35 kph). The Hurricane Center said it expected the storm to make landfall early Tuesday near southern North Carolina. Isaias killed two people in the Caribbean and roughed up the Bahamas but remained at sea as it brushed past Florida over the weekend, providing some welcome relief to emergency managers who had to accommodate mask-wearing evacuees in storm shelters. The center of Isaias remained well offshore as it passed Georgias coast on Monday. President Donald Trump on Monday described Isaias as very serious. Storm surge and inland flooding are possible and everyone needs to remain vigilant until it passes, Trump said. Authorities in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, ordered swimmers out of the water to avoid rough surf and strong rip currents. By nightfall, power began to flicker at beachfront hotels as Isaias crossed the last bit of warm water on its path toward the U.S. mainland. Still, on this part of the South Carolina and North Carolina coasts that has been affected to varying degrees by seven tropical storms or hurricanes since 2014, residents werent panicking. Its just going to be a lot of wind and high tide, said Mike Fuller, who has lived along the coast for more than a decade. As the storm neared the shore, a gauge on a pier in Myrtle Beach recorded its third highest water level since it was set up in 1976. Only Hurricane Hugo in 1989 and Hurricane Matthew in 2016 pushed more salt water inland. Oceanfront streets throughout the area flooded as the sea ended up nearly 10 feet (3 meters) above low tide. Up the coast in southern North Carolina, high winds from Isaias inner core knocked down trees and power lines, blocking roads. No major damage was initially reported. Shops and restaurants appeared quieter than usual for a summertime Monday in North Myrtle Beach, but locals blamed COVID-19 more than Isaias. No businesses were boarding up their windows, although some moved outside furniture inside. Wayne Stanley and his family came to the city over the weekend from Julian, North Carolina. Hes never experienced a hurricane, but said he never considered canceling his familys weeklong vacation either. I was pretty scared to start off with, Stanley said Monday. Then we thought maybe its not going to be that bad. Officials in frequently flooded Charleston, South Carolina, handed out sandbags and opened parking garages so residents on the low-lying peninsula could stow their cars above ground. Forecasters had warned earlier of possible major flooding, but the storm passed faster than expected and only about a dozen streets were flooded. Farther up the coast into North Carolina, the hurricane center predicted storm surges of 3 to 5 feet (0.9 to 1.5 meters) when Isaias moves onshore. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper warned residents on Monday that the storm could be dangerous regardless of its strength. He urged those evacuating to turn to shelters as a last resort, citing coronavirus risks and the need to operate shelters at reduced capacity to allow for social distancing. Whether its labeled a tropical storm or a hurricane, you should take this storm seriously, and make sure your family is ready, Cooper said. Ferry operators wrapped up evacuations from Ocracoke Island in North Carolinas Outer Banks on Monday, moving more than 3,500 people and 1,700 vehicles off the island over four days. Island officials were taking no chances after taking a beating less than a year ago from Hurricane Dorian. Evacuation orders also have been issued for Hatteras Island north of Ocracoke. Morgan Stewart said many evacuating residents had come into the store where she works in the inland community of Kinston to buy tarps, batteries, flashlights and other supplies. You can tell theyre worried, said Stewart, who saw cars parked on higher ground over the weekend as she secured her boat at a marina. Since forming last week, Isaias has been buffeted by competing forces both trying to kill and strengthen it, said University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy. Of all the places it could be, it found the warmest water it could, which fuels storm development, McNoldy said. And yet it is struggling. Thats because dry air kept working its way into the storm at low and mid-levels, which chokes storms. Isaias passage near Florida over the weekend was particularly unwelcome to authorities already dealing with surging coronavirus caseloads. The storm brought heavy rain and flooding to the state, forcing authorities to close outdoor virus testing sights, as well as beaches and parks. Officials lashed signs to palm trees so they wouldnt blow away. About 150 people had to keep masks on while sheltering in Palm Beach County, which had a voluntary evacuation order for people living in homes that cant withstand dangerous winds, said emergency management spokeswoman Lisa De La Rionda. ___ This story has been edited to correct the spelling of Isaias in the third paragraph from the bottom. ___ Associated Press reporters Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia; Jeffrey Collins and Michelle Liu in Columbia, South Carolina; Sophia Tulp in Atlanta; and AP Science Writer Seth Borenstein in Kensington, Maryland, contributed to this report. BBVA USA says it will introduce a digital bank account next year in a collaboration with online giant Google. The bank announced the collaboration with Google today, but many of the details surrounding the project are still being worked out. BBVA USA says the FDIC-insured digital account developed by both companies will be offered via Google Pay, and will be built on top of the banks existing digital infrastructure. Google will provide the front-end, intuitive user experiences and financial insights. The new accounts will debut in 2021 and will be open platform. BBVA USA President and CEO Javier Rodriguez Soler said the move fulfills one of the companys strategic goals: to reach more customers with digital offerings. This collaboration with Google is fully aligned with this effort - even more so in todays world where the ability to conduct your financial life in a digital manner, from account opening to transacting to understanding financial health, is an imperative, he said. BBVA has worked for several years on digital initiatives, such as the companys award-winning banking app. BBVA USAs open banking initiative, BBVA Open Platform, is a developer platform that provides banking and payments services in the U.S. Felix Lin, vice president of Payments Ecosystems at Google, said the initiative will meet the evolving needs of a new generation of customers, while Soler said collaborations with companies like Google represent the future of banking. Patna, Aug 3 : Bihar Police on Monday urged Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to release its senior IPS officer Vinay Tiwari from the 14-day quarantine and allow him to smoothly carry out investigation into actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death. The state police wrote a letter to the civic body protesting its move against its senior officer, who was specifically sent to Mumbai on Sunday to probe allegations of abetment to suicide raised by the late actor's father. The BMC has refuted the Bihar Police claim of any conspiracy and has said it was a normal protocol being followed amid the Covid-19 outbreak for any person travelling from outside to Maharashtra. The state police force has called the BMC's move to send Tiwari into quarantine upon reaching Mumbai on Sunday as "against rules". The Patna City SP was sent to Mumbai to assist a four-member team of Bihar Police that landed here just days back. Bihar's DGP Gupteshwar Pandey on Monday said it was not "appropriate to forcefully send Tiwari into quarantine". Sanjay Kumar, Inspector General (IG), Patna Zone, in the protest letter addressed to the BMC chief, requested for immediate release of Tiwari from quarantine so that he can perform his duties. "It's wrong to send our officer in Mumbai into quarantine, considering the guidelines of the process. BMC could have exempted him but it didn't do so," Kumar wrote in the letter. The IG noted in the letter that Mumbai Police was officially informed about Tiwari's visit to the city, and taking that into consideration, it's "totally inappropriate to send the IPS officer into quarantine". Tiwari, an IPS officer of 2015 batch, was sent to Mumbai to conduct a parallel investigation into Sushant's death after the late actor's father, K.K. Singh filed an FIR on July 25. It was the first FIR in the case, despite the Mumbai Police investigating the case for nearly 50 days since Sushant's death. Sushant, who hails from Purnea, was found hanging at his Bandra apartment in Mumbai on June 14 following which the city police started its probe. K.K. Singh has accused his son's girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and her family members for allegedly abetting his suicide. He filed the FIR at Rajiv Nagar police station in Patna. DGP Pandey had earlier told reporters that Bihar Police would reveal all facts associated with the matter. Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images En espanol | Ah, the drive-in. The joy of finding just the right parking spot, hooking a tinny speaker into your window and then splattering nachos and orange soda all over your soft Corinthian leather upholstery. Drive-ins, actually, were already back on America's 21st-century radar as the nostalgic alternative to the theater multiplex, and this year's COVID-19 cautions have put them right at the forefront of socially distanced moviegoing. But with only about 300 drive-ins currently operating in the whole country, it might be easier to pop up a drive-in vibe right in the comfort of your own home. And for that, all you really need is the right movie something summery and light, or goofy and gory, with more than a pinch of sweet nostalgia and a bucket of buttered popcorn to spill all over the sofa. Check out these 16 critic-picked films that bring the drive-in to you. Jaws (1975) The best drive-in movies are thrill rides, and they don't get more thrilling than Steven Spielberg's classic fish tale. Last summer, a drive-in in Texas figured out how to make the film even more gripping by holding screenings in a lake with the audience floating in inner tubes. This summer, Bruce as Spielberg (now 73) nicknamed his mechanical great white shark is back in land-based drive-ins, which have been screening mostly vintage features as they wait for the studios to start releasing new pictures again. But it plays just as well at home, with or without inner tubes. Watch it here: HBO Max, iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, YouTube, Fandango Now, Vudu, Microsoft Home RELATED: Which Jaws cast member was shot at the day he arrived on Martha's Vineyard to film? Who kept having nightmares for weeks after the movie wrapped and why? Get the answers to these and 18 more trivia ticklers for Jaws aficionados, right here: 20 Things You Didn't Know About Jaws The people of the left have shown their true colors these past four years. They have revealed for all to see just how low they will go to destroy the people they hate. With every fiber of their beings Democrats, the media, mindless celebrities, et al. are intent upon destroying the country if it will ensure President Trump's defeat. We have learned that they support the rioters, vandals, and looters. They've long made it clear they loathe the military. Now we know that, like the violent activists of Antifa and BLM, they do not support the police. They want to defund them. They seem to think that by standing with the criminals, they will defeat President Trump in November. So deluded by their hatred for this president are they that they actually believe that a majority of the American people agree with them. They do not. Ask the residents of Minneapolis, Portland, Seattle, Los Angeles, New York, Austin, and the other cities under siege. Once vibrant business sectors of those cities have been decimated and now resemble the crime-ridden streets of third-world nations. Business-owners have been financially ruined. Still, the Democrats do not speak out against the violence. They defend it. They seem almost to celebrate it as if it is warranted because they lost the 2016 election. How vulgar is the left? One only has to see some of the tweets or leftists' comments on the death of Herman Cain. This fine and accomplished man was raked over leftist coals for having attended the Trump rally, for not wearing a mask. Twitter was gleeful, as were the ever-bottom-dwelling Joe and Mika, who blamed Trump outright for Cain's death. But there was no worse display of political pornography than Obama's evangelical, tent revivalist screed at John Lewis's funeral. He did begin by remembering Lewis's life and importance, but he soon pivoted to base racial politics with the craven use and misuse of the Bible and history. The former president apparently thinks so little of his audience that he assumes we don't know that every racist he invoked was a Democrat. George Wallace? Democrat. Bull Connor? Democrat, as was every other person who imposed the Jim Crow laws and opposed the Civil Rights bills John Lewis fought with the Republicans then in Congress to see passed. Lewis was one of the true heroes of those days. He might have been the man to unify the left and right once Trump was elected, but that was not to be. He fell in with the Trump-haters and so contributed to the further division between left and right, black and white. It was Lewis who organized the boycott by Democrats of Trump's inauguration in 2017. Somewhere along the way, this onetime compatriot of MLK lost his will for racial harmony. He ultimately became afflicted by the racism that now dominates and shapes the Democrat platform, the misguided conviction that the legacy of slavery has permanently rendered any and every person with black skin a victim. President Obama doubled down on this brand of racial politics to the unending harm to America. Obama was not only the most corrupt president in U.S. history, but the most divisive. He set race relations back at least fifty years. His speech at Lewis's funeral was true to his schismatic style. Despite his privileged life, his having been elected to the presidency twice, despite now being a multi-millionaire, this is a man who hates America with a passion that has not abated since he was in office. He accused federal agents of using "tear gas and batons" against "peaceful protesters." As anyone with eyes and a television knows, those were and are not peaceful protesters. This was a lie. They were and are violent and destructive of anything in their wake, from small businesses to federal buildings. Obama went on to spew lies about restricting black Americans from voting. Wholesale lies, and he knows that what he said is not true. Favoring voter ID is hardly racist. Every person in that audience had to show an ID to attend Lewis's funeral, yet to require ID to vote is somehow racist? It is Obama and his ilk who oppose voter ID because (1) they actually think blacks cannot obtain legal identification and (2) no voter ID makes it easier for them to cheat, and cheat they do. One would think he was speaking in 1960. Know this: there are no voter suppression laws. None. Obama is lying to frighten black Americans, for whom he clearly has no respect. His speech degenerated into an attack on all that John Lewis had achieved until Lewis capitulated to the far left of his party. Obama waxed rhapsodic about all the peaceful protesters; he compared them to the civil rights activists of Lewis's early years. This was another abject lie, and everyone watching knew. Antifa and Black Lives Matter are violent, Marxist organizations who mean to undo America as founded. This is who the decidedly not "peaceful protesters" are. Obama's hijacking of the Lewis funeral was despicable; he is a disgrace as a former president. Whenever he has the opportunity to help heal an aching nation, he chooses instead to incite, to accuse, to condemn. He is not a good man. Americans deserved better from their first African-American president. Thomas Sowell would have been a blessing. Obama is, and will likely remain, a blight upon the national conscience. Image credit: Ari Levinson via Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0. Processed with Graphite. Jeff Roorda, business manager for the St. Louis Police Officers Association, said Monday in response to the shooting the night before, This out-of-control violence is not going to stop until we have a circuit attorney committed to holding people accountable for their dangerous conduct. There are investments we need to make in this community to actually reduce violence because it has been high during the tough-on-crime era and it is too high now, Gardner said. Were soon to launch, for example, Cure Violence, which is one of the programs known to actually reduce harm. We also need to make significant investments in our youth. Coming together as a community and making these investments is what we should be focusing on, rather than another attempt by Jeff Roorda to stay relevant while he disregards the needs of this community. 'Ethiopia's initial filling of the dam 'bears negative implications that show Ethiopia doesn't want to reach a fair agreement,' said Mohamed Abdel-Atti, the Egyptian minister of irrigation Egypt slammed Ethiopia's unilateral initial filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) on Monday during the second round of African Union (AU)-brokered talks. Egypt criticised the Ethiopian action that was taken without consultation or agreement with downstream countries Egypt and Sudan, a statement by the Egyptian Ministry of Water and Irrigation said. Ethiopia's initial filling of the dam "bears negative implications that show Ethiopia doesn't want to reach a fair agreement," said Mohamed Abdel-Atti, the Egyptian minister of water and irrigation. The Ethiopian action "violates the Declaration of Principles" signed in 2015, Abdel-Atti stated. Monday's trilateral meeting was conducted via video-conference in the attendance of observers and experts from the United States, EU Commission and AU Commission. Abdel-Atti urged the need to swiftly seal an agreement on the filling and operation of the dam to reach consensus on contentious issues. He referred to Egypt's suggestion concerning the working mechanism of the talks held for two weeks, stressing that based on the 21 July AU mini-summit -- held via video-conference between the heads of state of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia as well as the president of South Africa, the current chair of the African Union -- the current negotiations will focus on filling and operating the GERD and that talks over future projects will follow in a later stage after an agreement over the mega-dam is reached. Sudan stresses trilateral accord; Ethiopia repeats stance During the meeting, Sudan urged signing a trilateral agreement that safeguards its Roseires Dam on the Blue Nile and ensures the smooth exchange of information in accordance with international law, the Sudanese water ministry said in a statement on Monday. Sudan also criticised the unilateral filling of the dam by describing the move as one that "raised concerns in case of the reoccurrence of such a move in the future, specifically over the environmental and social impacts of the Renissance Dam on farmers on the banks of the Blue Nile." Meanwhile, Ethiopia "reiterated its commitment to expeditiously finalise talks with a win-win outcome," a statement by the Ethiopian water, irrigation and energy ministry read on Monday night. Ethiopias water minister Seleshi Bekeli, "underscored the resolve of the heads of government of the three countries to reach a speedy agreement on the first filling in short term and a comprehensive agreement addressing the outstanding issues on the GERD negotiation." The statement did not address Cairos and Khartoums objections over the unilateral dam filling and other outstanding issues. Officials from the three nations have agreed that the technical and legal committees will hold meetings to discuss points of contention on 4-5 August before presenting their conclusion at a ministerial meeting slated for 6 August. AU-sponsored negotiations Monday's round of AU-sponsored talks came two weeks after the announcement by Addis Ababa that it had completed the first-year filling of the dams reservoir. The first round of AU-sponsored talks over the project ended two weeks ago without reaching an accord. The leaders of the three countries agreed in a mini-summit held later on the need for continued discussions over the filling and operation of the dam. Egypt and Sudan have repeatedly expressed their concerns over Ethiopia's unilateral initial filling of the dam. Egypt said it agreed with Sudan and Ethiopia on the need to priortise reaching a legally binding deal on the filling and operation of the mega-dam, and the AU called on the three countries to "work expeditiously to finalise the text of a binding agreement." However, Ethiopian foreign ministry spokesman Dina Mufti said at a press conference in Addis Ababa two weeks ago that Ethiopia wants a guiding agreement on the GERD that is non-binding. Egypt has voiced concern over Ethiopia's refusal to agree on rules regulating the filling and operation of the GERD during drought and dry years. Cairo is also concerned about future projects on the Blue Nile, a main tributary of the Nile, and demands binding dispute settlement mechanisms, which Addis Ababa has refused to include in a deal. Egypt, which relies on the Nile for 95 percent of its fresh water, fears the dam will significantly reduce the rivers flow, especially during the filling stages through periods of drought and dry years. Ethiopia, on the other hand, says the project is key to its development. Search Keywords: Short link: Actor Angad Bedi has defended his upcoming film Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl, against the backlash that it has received following its trailer debut recently. Angad plays Gunjans brother in the film, with Janhvi Kapoor in the title role as the former IAF pilot. In an interview to Mid-Day, Angad commented on the backlash, and said, Its my film, too. Everyone has a right to their opinion, but people are spitting fire against one another. The flak [that the film is receiving] is unfair. Every industry is competitive. The film has been thrust headfirst into the insider-outsider debate, mainly because of Janhvi and producer Karan Johars involvement. Janhvi is the daughter of actor Sridevi and producer Boney Kapoor, while Karan has been at the receiving end of online backlash in the wake of actor Sushant Singh Rajputs death. On YouTube, the trailer has received over 1,50,000 likes but more than 80,000 dislikes as well. Angad, citing his own example, continued, I have auditioned for over 300 movies, and every rejection has been a learning experience. My role in Soorma led me to this film. I had gone to meet Shashank [Khaitan], who, in turn, made me meet Sharan (Sharma). After I tested for the role, Sharan told Karan [Johar] he wanted me for the part. There are lakhs of people in the industry, so its only fair that we all get a chance. Actors are like any other professional who work for a pay cheque. Also read: Angad Bedi on nepotism: Rather than pointing fingers at anyones lineage, I see this as a healthy competition In an interview to Hindustan Times, Angad also defended several insider actors, and said that they deserve to be in the industry because of their talent. Alia (Bhatt), Varun (Dhawan), Ranbir (Kapoor) are all good actors. Why shouldnt they get opportunities? Rather than pointing fingers at their lineage, I see this as a healthy competition. Ive faced rejections, too. There have been times when filmmakers didnt want to see my face and thinking Im not up to the mark, gave the chance to someone else, he said. Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl is based on the life of one of Indias first female Air Force pilots. The films rights were scooped up by Netflix, which will release it on August 12. The film also stars Pankaj Tripathi, Vineet Kumar Singh, Manav Vij and others. Follow @htshowbiz for more SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON At least 29 people were killed and more than 50 others injured in a battle at a prison holding Islamic State militants in Afghanistan, after a deadly attack by gunmen. In addition, the authorities said 10 insurgents were killed. Some prisoners escaped, although a number were recaptured. US astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, who flew to the International Space Station in SpaceX's new Crew Dragon, splashed down in the capsule in the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday after a two-month voyage that was NASA's first crewed mission from home soil in nine years. Behnken and Hurley undocked from the station on Saturday and returned home to land in the waves off Florida's Pensacola coast on schedule at 2:48 p.m. ET following a 21-hour overnight journey aboard Crew Dragon "Endeavor". The successful splashdown was a final key test of whether Elon Musk's spacecraft can transport astronauts to and from orbit a feat no private company has accomplished before. "On behalf of the SpaceX and NASA teams, welcome back to Planet Earth. Thanks for flying SpaceX," SpaceX mission control said upon splashdown. For the return sequence, on-board thrusters and two sets of parachutes worked autonomously to slow the acorn-shaped capsule, bringing Behnken and Hurley's speed of 17,500 miles per hour in orbit down to 350 mph upon atmospheric reentry, and eventually 15 mph at splashdown. During reentry to Earth's atmosphere, the capsule's outer shell withstood temperatures as high as 3,500 Fahrenheit while Behnken and Hurley, wearing SpaceX's white flight suits strapped inside the cabin, experienced 85 Fahrenheit. "Thanks for flying @SpaceX." Current Location: Planet Earth A 2:48pm ET, @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug splashed down, marking the first splashdown of an American crew spacecraft in 45 years. #LaunchAmerica pic.twitter.com/zO3KlNwxU3 NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 The crew will spend up to an hour floating inside the capsule before joint recovery teams from SpaceX and NASA retrieve them for a helicopter trip ashore. There they will undergo medical checks ahead of a flight to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Billionaire entrepreneur Musk's SpaceX became the first private company to send humans to orbit with the launch of Behnken and Hurley, who have spent more than two months on the space station. The landmark mission, launched from NASAs Kennedy Space Center on May 31, marked the first time the U.S. space agency launched humans from American soil since its shuttle program retired in 2011. Since then the United States has relied on Russia's space program to launch its astronauts to the space station. Behnken and Hurley's homecoming was also the first crewed splashdown in an American capsule in 45 years. The pair undocked from the space station late on Saturday and began gradually decreasing their orbital altitude overnight, awaking Sunday morning to recorded wake-up calls from their sons. "Good morning Dragon Endeavor," Hurley's son said in a recorded message sent to the capsule. "I'm happy you went into space but I'm even happier that you're coming back home." A historic moment, netizens came out on Twitter and celebrated the splashdown. .@NASA SpaceX landing is extraordinary. Bravo! Humanity and bravery and science at its best #SplashDown https://t.co/eG8ITM2aBv Maria Shriver (@mariashriver) August 2, 2020 First #SplashDown in decades. Well done NASA. Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) August 2, 2020 4 chutes and #Splashdown! Wow how was THAT???!! So exciting -- but hard for us here on earth to wait and watch!!! Welcome home Bob and Doug -- and Congratulations to @NASA and @SpaceX for a job well done! #DragonSplashDown https://t.co/vQxbguxGGE pic.twitter.com/fmcMfpADMZ Cady Coleman (@Astro_Cady) August 2, 2020 We have #SplashDown!! Standing ovation to #Dragon @SpaceX on a successful mission. Americans are back to space! pic.twitter.com/dczEljpEw1 John Dissauer (@johndissauer) August 2, 2020 NASA officials have said Crew Dragon, a pod with seven astronaut seats, was in a "very healthy" condition while docked at the space station, where astronauts conducted tests and monitored how the spacecraft performs in space. NASA, aiming to galvanize a commercial space marketplace, awarded nearly $8 billion to SpaceX and Boeing Co collectively in 2014 to develop dueling space capsules, experimenting with a contract model that allows the space agency to buy astronaut seats from the two companies. "Great to have NASA Astronauts return to Earth after very successful two month mission," President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter. "Thank you to all!" (With Reuters inputs) Rhea Chakrabortys Lawyer Reveals Her Statement Has Been Recorded, Says She Cooperated With The Police' Russias Federal Security Service (FSB) has conducted a massive special operation to intercept underground gunmakers, detaining 42 individuals and uncovering 22 clandestine arms upgrading workshops equipped with 3D-printers, the FSB Public Relations Center said. "The Federal Security Service together with the Interior Ministry and the National Guard in 12 regions has intercepted the activity of 42 individuals involved in the modernization of civilian weapons into combat analogues, manufacturing of ammunition in underground workshops, and their sales in various subjects of the country," TASS cited the FSB as saying. According to the intelligence agency, during the special operation the activity of 22 underground workshops modernizing weapons and manufacturing ammunition was foiled. The FSB reported that the workshops were fitted with special equipment, including 3D-printers and numerical control machines. The special operation was conducted in Moscow, the Moscow Region, Dagestan, the Karachay-Circassian Region, Chechnya, the Krasnoyarsk Region and the Amur, Voronezh, Lipetsk, Irkutsk, Rostov and Kemerovo regions. "Places of residence of the illegal gunsmiths are being searched and investigated," the FSB reported. As a result, 179 units of combat and civilian firearms, as well as firearms with restored combat properties have been withdrawn from illicit circulation. Eighty-year-old New Yorker Judith Hunt went to the hospital on Jan. 31 after falling and breaking a femur and hip. She left Manhattans Mount Sinai Morningside Hospital in early Julyafter battling an aneurysm, sepsis, abdominal and heart surgeries, and Covid-19, she and her doctors told CNN. 80-year-old New Yorker Judith Hunt. (Courtesy of Mount Sinai Health System) It was hysterically funny, in a way, Hunt said of the experience. It was like every time I turned around, something new came up. Thats why I started laughing at it. Because it was like, when do we get leprosy? When is the rain of frogs? Hunt tested positive for the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, in March, according to Dr. Gabriele DiLuozzo, director of aortic surgery for the hospital. At one point, Hunt was intubated and put on a respirator. She was also initially given doses of hydroxychloroquine, which worsened her heart condition and led to a heart attack, Dr. DiLuozzo said. (Courtesy of Mount Sinai Health System) After enormous collaboration between multiple teams of physicians, physical therapists, and other health care workers, Hunt was able to walk out of the hospital on her own. However, Dr. DiLuozzo credits her remarkable recovery at least in part to her spirit and attitude toward life. I spoke with the nurses, Dr. DiLuozzo said. I said if there was a way I could extract her genes, I would try somehow to put them in my bloodstream because this woman is indestructible. Hunt said she realized early on that her chances were not good. She decided to accept her possible death with her indomitable sense of humor. Hell, at one point I died for two minutes, Hunt said. And did I get the white light? No. Its like getting your tonsils out, and no ice cream or jello. 80-year-old New Yorker Judith Hunt left Manhattans Mount Sinai Morningside Hospital in early July. (Courtesy of Mount Sinai Health System) Hunt can talk at length about the magnificent doctors, nurses, aides, and room cleaners who took care of her. They gave me such hope for the human race that people like them existed, Hunt said. Dr. Malcolm Reid, chair of rehabilitation at Mount Sinai Morningside and Mount Sinai West, oversaw her physical recovery. Many patients just wouldnt have had the mental fortitude to stay the course, Dr. Reid said. Just to be in the hospital that long is draining. As for whats next, this August, Hunt, and two friends will be renting a room on Long Islands East Hampton. I have no idea whats next, Hunt said. All I know is theres a next. The CNN Wire and Epoch Times staff contributed to this report. Rainforest Cafe server Camille Sneddon will be allowed to wear a face shield, after having been told she could not during previous shifts at the Niagara Falls restaurant. We recently had an employee at the Rainforest Cafe refuse to work without a face shield, stating that she believed it was unsafe to work without it, said Sarah Vazquez, a spokeswoman with Canadian Niagara Hotels, in an email to the Niagara Falls Review Monday. We do not believe this to be true and we were concerned about the negative effect this would have on other employees and possibly our guests thinking our restaurant was an unsafe place to be without a face shield. Vazquez said the Ontario Ministry of Labour determined the workplace was safe for the worker and that the face shield cannot be a condition to refuse to work. Having said that, and while not a legal health and safety obligation, we also understand how people have different levels of comfort with this virus. For this reason, we have decided to allow the employee to wear a face shield, since it gives her more comfort. Vazquez said the company, which owns the Clifton Hill restaurant, is also reviewing and re-training staff on the main ways they can stay safe, which is physical distancing, the wearing of masks and proper hand washing. At this point in time, a face shield is not required. We are all continuing to learn through this pandemic, and we will continue to try and evolve our procedures to keep our employees and guests safe as we get more information and guidance from the medical and scientific community. Sneddon, of St. Catharines, said shes happy the company will let her wear a shield, but is disappointed it took her going to the Niagara Falls Review and two work refusals to get to this point. I think its probably because of all the outpouring of support (received on social media), she said. Sneddon said she was sent home from work Wednesday for wearing a shield while serving customers. Sneddon said she was again told by management during her shift Saturday she could not wear a face shield, which led to a work refusal and involved the Ministry of Labour. Kathy Yamich, an education and mobilization co-ordinator with Workers United Canada Council, the union representing servers at Rainforest Cafe, said a ministry inspector attended a meeting with her, Sneddon and management Saturday. Its my understanding the inspector is issuing multiple COVID-19 orders, said Yamich. With patrons again allowed to eat inside restaurants, in limited capacity, Sneddon, who has worked at Rainforest Cafe for 12 years, feels servers have the right to feel comfortable and safe on the job. She said a mask is not enough when serving a table full of patrons not wearing masks. After serving two tables Wednesday, her supervisor asked why she was wearing a shield. When she responded it was for increased safety, she said the supervisor went to consult with someone else, then returned saying she had to remove it. When she said she wouldnt take it off, Sneddon was told to cash out early and go home. The union filed a complaint about the matter Friday with the Ontario Labour Relations Board. For her shift Saturday, Sneddon said she wore a shield and was told by a manager to take it off. Mike Ward, a business agent and union representative with Workers United Canada Council, said a shield acts as a second layer of protection. It helps the servers not touch their face. It also protects them from the vapour droplets that may get through the masks. Its virtually impossible to do social distancing when youre serving a table, he said. We want to make sure that the servers and the guests are as safe as possible. The assault began on Sunday evening with car bomb detonated at the entrance to the prison, leading to numerous other blasts later A wounded man receives treatment at a hospital after a suicide car bomb and multiple gunmen attack in the city of Jalalabad, east of Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP) Jalalabad: Islamic State militants were battling Afghan security forces in the eastern city of Jalalabad on Monday morning, after an overnight assault on a prison that led to a mass jailbreak, officials said. The assault began on Sunday evening with car bomb detonated at the entrance to the prison, and there were numerous other blasts heard as the IS gunmen opened fire on security guards. Two Nangarhar province officials said at least five civilians were killed, and around 40 wounded during the initial attack and the gunbattle through the night, as Afghan special forces arrived to support police. During the ensuing chaos more than 75 prisoners escaped, forcing police to divert manpower to try to recapture them, according to the officials. IS claimed responsibility for the attack, which came a day after the Afghan intelligence agency said special forces had killed a senior commander of the group near Jalalabad, the provincial capital of Nangarhar. Some 130 kilometres (80 miles) east of Kabul, Jalalabad lies on the highway leading to the Khyber Pass and the Pakistani city of Peshawar. A United Nations report last month estimated there are around 2,200 IS members in Afghanistan, and that while the group is in territorial retreat and its leadership has been depleted, it remains capable of carrying out high-profile attacks. Grocery chains, specialty shops, it just died -- our wholesale business died, Santiago said in an interview. I was like, This is our time. We have to focus all our business right now on direct-to-consumer and figure out how to drive as much sales and traffic to our website. Welkom in Amsterdam 1922. Neural network artist Denis Shiryaev describes himself as an artistic machine-learning person with a soul. For the last six months, hes been applying himself to re-rendering documentary footage of city lifeBelle Epoque Paris, Tokyo at the start of the the Taisho era, and New York City in 1911the year of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. Its possible youve seen the footage before, but never so alive in feel. Shiryaevs renderings trick modern eyes with artificial intelligence, boosting the original frames-per-second rate and resolution, stabilizing and adding colornot necessarily historically accurate. The herky-jerky bustling quality of the black-and-white originals is transformed into something fuller and more fluid, making the human subjects seem well, more human. This Trip Through the Streets of Amsterdam is truly a blast from the past the antithesis of the social distancing we must currently practice. Merry citizens jostle shoulder to shoulder, unmasked, snacking, dancing, arms slung around each other unabashedly curious about the hand-cranked camera turned on them as they go about their business. A group of women visiting outside a shop laugh and scatterclearly they werent expecting to be filmed in their aprons. Young boys looking to steal the show push their way to the front, cutting capers and throwing mock punches. Sorry, lads, the award for Most Memorable Performance by a Juvenile goes to the small fellow at the 4:10 mark. Hes not hamming it up at all, merely taking a quick puff of his cigarette while running alongside a crowd of men on bikes, determined to keep pace with the camera person. Numerous YouTube viewers have observed with some wonder that all the people who appear, with the distant exception of a baby or two at the end, would be in the grave by now. They do seem so alive. Modern eyes should also take note of the absences: no cars, no plastic, no cell phones And, of course, everyone is white. The Netherlands population would not diversify racially for another couple of decades, beginning with immigrants from Indonesia after WWII and Surinam in the 50s. With regard to that, please be forewarned that not all of the YouTube comments have to do with cheeky little boys and babies who would be pushing 100 The footage is taken from the archival collection of the EYE filmmuseum in Amsterdam, with ambient sound by Guy Jones. See more of Denis Shiryaevs upscaled vintage footage in the links below. Related Content: Watch Vintage Footage of Tokyo, Circa 1910, Get Brought to Life with Artificial Intelligence Watch Scenes from Belle Epoque Paris Vividly Restored with Artificial Intelligence (Circa 1890) A Trip Through New York City in 1911: Vintage Video of NYC Gets Colorized & Revived with Artificial Intelligence Iconic Film from 1896 Restored with Artificial Intelligence: Watch an AI-Upscaled Version of the Lumiere Brothers The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat Station Ayun Halliday is an author, illustrator, theater maker and Chief Primatologist of the East Village Inky zine. Follow her @AyunHalliday. Two Adivasis were killed after they stepped on a landmine allegedly planted by outlawed Maoists in Andhra Pradeshs Visakhapatnam district on Monday afternoon, police said. The incident took place in the forests of Kondru tribal hamlet under Injari gram panchayat limits of Pedabayalu block at around 4 pm. The deceased were identified as Mondipalli Ajay Kumar and Mondipalli Mohan Rao of Jamiguda tribal hamlet of Chintalaveedi gram panchayat. According to the police, the two tribal youth had gone into the forest in search of some cattle which were missing from the herd after grazing. They accidentally stepped on a mine planted under the soil on the thoroughfare. It exploded, killing both of them on the spot, Pedyabayalu sub-inspector of police Raja Rao said. He said there was specific information that the landmine was planted by the Maoists targeting the security forces combing in the area for the last few days. We came to know that the Maoists had planted landmines in the Kondru forest area and our forces have been avoiding the route in the last two days, the SI said. The two tribal youth, who were unaware of the landmines, ventured into the forest in search of cattle. We suspect it to be a pressure mine, rather than remote-controlled sensor mine, as the Maoists use the latter only on seeing the combing police forces, Raja Rao said. The bodies were still lying in the village, as the police did not go there because of Maoist threat. The village is located deep in the interior and inaccessible by road. We shall shift the bodies to the hospital for post-mortem on Tuesday, the SI said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Enrico Dela Cruz (Reuters) Manila, Philippines Mon, August 3, 2020 09:13 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b18167 2 SE Asia Philippines,coronavirus,COVID-19,coronavirus-restrictions,COVID-19-infection,pandemic,SARS-CoV-2,virus-corona,novel-coronavirus Free The Philippines will reimpose a stricter coronavirus lockdown in and around the capital for two weeks from Tuesday, authorities said on Sunday, as the country struggles to contain infections that have jumped to more than 100,000 cases. President Rodrigo Duterte has approved placing Metro Manila and nearby provinces such as Laguna, Cavite, Rizal and Bulacan under so-called "Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine" (MECQ) until Aug. 18, his spokesman Harry Roque told reporters. Some businesses and public transport are expected to be closed in the capital, which is currently under the less restrictive General Community Quarantine classification. Work and quarantine passes will also be required, as authorities seek to restrict movements. Duterte's move came after 80 local groups representing 80,000 doctors and a million nurses called for tighter controls, saying the country was losing the fight against the coronavirus. "I have heard you. Don't lose hope. We are aware that you are tired," Duterte said late on Sunday, addressing the medical frontliners during a televised speech after meeting cabinet members and his coronavirus task force. The Philippines recorded 5,032 additional infections on Sunday, the country's largest single-day increase, taking its confirmed coronavirus cases to 103,185. The death toll jumped by 20 to 2,059. This is the second highest number of COVID-19 infections and deaths in Southeast Asia, behind Indonesia. Duterte also approved the hiring of 10,000 medical professionals to beef up the current workforce and additional benefits for healthcare workers treating COVID-19 patients, Roque said. In mid-March, Duterte imposed one of the world's longest and strictest lockdowns in the capital and other provinces to curb the coronavirus spread. He began easing restrictions in June in an effort to revive the domestic economy, which is now facing its biggest contraction in more than three decades. In the latest threat, locals in Lahore have threatened to convert Gurdwara Shaheedi Asthan at the busy Naulakha Bazaar into a mosque. A video shows Lahore resident Suhail Butt Attari trying to mobilize people to convert the historic shrine into Masjid Shahid Ganj. The gurdwara has history behind it. It was built to commemorate the sacrifice of Bhai Taru Singh who had stood up to the Mughal rulers against forced conversion. The issue has not gone unnoticed in India. Leaders and political parties cutting across party lines have condemned the incident. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said: "A strong protest was lodged with the Pakistan High Commission today on the reported incident whereby Gurdwara Shahidi Asthan, site of martyrdom of Bhai Taru Singh ji at Naulakha Bazaar in Lahore, Pakistan has been claimed as the place of Masjid Shahid Ganj and attempts are being made to convert it to a mosque." Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh too criticized this attack on the religious rights of the Pakistani Sikhs. In a tweet, he said: "Strongly condemn attempts being made to convert holy Gurdwara Sri Shahidi Asthan in Lahore, site of martyrdom of Bhai Taru Singh Ji, into mosque. Urge @DrSJaishankar to convey Punjab's concerns in strongest terms to Pakistan to safeguard all Sikh places of reverence." Feeling unsafe in Pakistan over denial of rights, thousands of Sikhs and Hindus migrate to India every year. Soon after coming to power, the BJP government had expedited the process of giving visas to Hindu and Sikh refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Owing to denial of minority rights in some neighboring countries, the Indian government had announced that all such persecuted minorities to be provided fast-track Indian citizenship. However, persecution of minorities continues in India's western neighbor. As recently as January 2020, concerns about the security of Sikhs had been raised when a mob of nearly 400 angry people chanting anti-Sikh slogans had attacked Gurdwara Nankana Sahib near Lahore. Similarly, in March 2017, the Sikhs had lodged protests over not being included as a religion in the national census form. After protests and petitioning the country's courts, the minority group was added as a separate religion in the census. However, when the census was released a couple of years later, Pakistan did not release the data for its minorities, sparking fears that their numbers have reduced owing due to conversions and a steady exodus. An anti-minority atmosphere pervades the entire country and is highly toxic. Radesh Singh Tony, a well-known Sikh leader who had been at the forefront of taking up cudgels for minority rights, fled Peshawar for Lahore after he was threatened by armed men. He was not just a Sikh leader but also a local councillor. Facing threats to his life, Tony made an appeal on Twitter to Sikhs outside Pakistan to help him and his family move out of the country. Later he deleted his account. He also made a video, speaking out about assassination threats to his family. One such tweet reads: "I am getting assassination threats from Pak hardliners. The life of my family is in danger Living in Pakistan is very dangerous for my family ?? please please extend me help/refuge any further delay would cause serious troubles for my family @mssirsa @amnesty @hrw @Gulalai_Ismail" Tony was lucky that he escaped. Another prominent Sikh leader Charnjit Singh was shot dead by motorcycle-riding gunmen in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2018. He had been working on inter-faith harmony and was a known critic of the Taliban. Coming back to Gurdwara Shaheedi Asthan, conversion threats to minority shrines is not a new phenomenon. Something similar had happened in 2016 when the local government in Peshawar carried out an auction of a portion of a historic gurdwara-Bhai Biba Singh. Following the successful auction, the government then asked the local police in 2018 to take possession of the auctioned part of the historic site and hand it over to the individual who had been given control. But after the Sikh community launched a vigorous litigation, which lasted a few years, the Peshawar High Court ordered the Pakistan government to stay the auction. What these incidents prove is that survival of minorities and their heritage in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a daily struggle. While the Sikhs, Hindus, Ahmadiyas and Christians wage a daily battle to live another day, their cultural and religious heritage is steadily obliterated even as Pakistan lectures the world on upholding human rights in other countries. (This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --IANS ksk/ A yoga studio in Sydney's affluent eastern suburbs was forced to close due to coronavirus. An infected person attended the studio in Bondi for an hour between 12.15pm and 1.15pm on July 23, with their case linked to The Apollo Restaurant cluster in Potts Point. NSW Health did not identify the yoga studio, as all patrons and close contacts to the venue at the time of the infected visitor have been notified by authorities. South Eastern Sydney Local Health District told Daily Mail Australia the studio wasn't named as there is no requirement for the community to act on this information. A Bondi yoga studio was forced to close after a visitor infected with coronavirus attended the venue on July 23 (stock image) Large crowds to flock to North Bondi Beach on Sunday as coronavirus cases in NSW continue to steadily rise 'This person is associated with the Apollo Restaurant cluster at Potts Point and was previously counted in the public health alert issued on 28 July, 2020,' a spokesperson said. 'There is no broader risk at the yoga studio as all close and casual contacts of the confirmed case have already been individually identified. 'Public health officers confirmed appropriate cleaning and other COVID-Safe measures are in place.' The Apollo cluster has grown to 20 COVID-19 cases in Sydney after another infected person linked to the restaurant attended Fitness First in Rockdale on July 27. A passenger gives over her details at the Bondi Beach coronavirus drive-through testing facility in July A NSW Health statement reads they were there from 11.25am to 12.30pm and all close contacts have been notified. Thirteen new cases of coronavirus were recorded in New South Wales on Monday, with 18,823 tests reported in the 24-hour recording period. Steadily rising case numbers caused Premier Gladys Berejiklian to announce on Sunday mask wearing is now 'strongly recommended' in places where it's impossible to socially distance. This includes supermarkets, public transport and places of worship across the state. The widespread mask adoption comes after Melbourne plunged into Stage Four lockdown on Sunday while NSW reported seven 'mystery cases' in the past week. With that mindset, consider the health of anyone you may come in contact with during and after your trip everyone from gas station attendants to your friends and family. You may be putting their health in jeopardy. So be sure to maintain social distancing and wear masks when appropriate. When you return, its recommended that you quarantine for at least two weeks. If youre traveling alone, make sure you have space in your home to quarantine without coming into contact with anyone, or secure lodging elsewhere before you travel. Michael Hammond, the legislative counsel for Gun Owners of America, made an update to GOA members informing them about a new gun grab that Congress is trying to ram through while everyones attention is focused on the Wuhan virus. In his report, Hammond asserted that a number of House pro-gun Republicans voted for a large defense bill which contained a red flag gun confiscation provision specifically tailored to military members. Aidan Johnston, GOAs Director of Federal Affairs, highlighted this congressional farce in an article for the Houston Courant. The Gun Confiscation Orders (GCOs) passed in the House only apply to people subject to the United States Code of Military Justice. However, these orders would be worse in many regards when compared to red flag GCO programs being pushed in state legislatures. Hammond pointed out that the essentials are the same: a gun owner can be stripped of his or her Second Amendment-protected rights in an ex parte proceeding by an unsubstantiated allegation from a hostile relative who dislikes him or her. Experience shows that the confiscation normally occurs in a surprise raid on the gun owners home in the middle of the night. At the moment, the GCO is part of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Hammond called attention to several differences between state red flag orders and the provision that just passed the House: Unlike the boilerplate GCOs drafted by gun control groups and passed in 19 states, the House-passed NDAA bill allows the presidentpresumably, in their opinion, President Joe Bidento write all of the particulars. Hammond declared that House Republicans were caught sleeping. Although Trump has threatened to veto the bill, a number of Republicans teamed up with Democrats to pass gun confiscation, with a veto-proof majority to boot. This illustrates the bipartisan nature of the gun control status quo in Washington D.C. The only way gun owners can break this cycle is by using the primaries to punish bad incumbent Republicans and getting more principled Second Amendment defenders elected to Congress. Jacinda Ardern has called off plans for a trans-Tasman travel bubble between New Zealand and Australia. The New Zealand Prime Minister said flights between the two nations was out of the question as Victoria struggles to contain a coronavirus outbreak. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced a stage four lockdown on Sunday as his state recorded 671 new COVID-19 cases and seven deaths. The amount of community transmission has delayed the possibility of travel between New Zealand and Australia by several months. New Zealand has not seen a single case of community transmission in 93 days compared to Melbourne's 760 active coronavirus cases with no known source. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has cancelled plans for the trans-Tasman tourism bubble as Victoria struggles to contain a coronavirus outbreak Premier Daniel Andrews announced a stage four lockdown on Sunday as Victoria recorded 671 new COVID-19 cases and seven deaths (Pictured: Deserted Melbourne on Sunday night) Ms Ardern told Radio NZ the outbreak was a 'major step back for the trans-Tasman travel. 'Obviously this is going to be some time away now,' Ms Ardern said. Ms Ardern said all of Australia would need to be free of community transmission for at least 28 days before the travel bubble goes ahead. 'Anywhere where we have COVID-free travel they have to be free of community transmission for a period of time - that will be some time for Australia,' she told The AM Show. Australia could approve plans for a travel bubble with New Zealand on a state-by-state basis, Simon Birmingham said 'It will be on the backburner for several months.' For the next six weeks, Melburnians are banned from leaving their homes between 8pm and 5am unless for work or care-related reasons. While the restrictions are the most intense in Australia so far, they are still not as harsh as New Zealand's level four lockdown. There was a possibility of opening up the trans-Tasman bubble state-by-state as other locations in Australia are better off than Victoria. Federal tourism minister Simon Birmingham announced last Thursday that there could be approval for a travel-bubble on a state-by-state basis. The Morrison government previously said Australia would only enter into a travel agreement if state borders were open and all residents had access. But Senator Birmingham said he hoped the plan could move forward 'at some point this year,' according to the Australian Financial Review. 'If New Zealand was ready to move and the rest of country in Australia was ready to move - but we had this quarantine still in place around Victoria - well that's an idea that's worth entertaining,' he said at a Tourism and Transport Forum summit. While the Melbourne restrictions are the most intense in Australia so far, they are still not as harsh as New Zealand's level four lockdown Melbourne's restrictions came into place from 6pm Sunday and will run for six weeks before being reevaluated on September 13 '[The government would] see if we can manage to work it out with the Kiwis so they can travel safely to Sydney, Gold Coast, Adelaide and Perth.' But comments made by Air New Zealand chief executive Greg Foran last week suggest the plan may not go ahead until 2021. '[The travel bubble] felt a little bit closer eight weeks ago,' he said. 'Now it feels that possibly, that maybe, at best, [it could come at] the end of this year, and probably more likely next year.' Melbourne's restrictions came into place from 6pm Sunday and will run for six weeks before being reevaluated on September 13. Under the 'stage four' restrictions, Melbourne residents will only be allowed to exercise for an hour a day and can't travel more than 5km from home for the purpose of shopping. Victoria recorded 671 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday (pictured). A Stage 4 lockdown will see nearly all shops close and high school students back to learning from home Only one person from each household will be able to go to the shops each day. Metropolitan Melbourne will be under a nightly curfew, between the hours of 8pm to 5am, from Sunday night with some exemptions for those providing care and travelling to and from work. Regional Victoria will move to 'stage three' restrictions, with restaurants, cafes, bars, gyms and other businesses to shut from midnight on Wednesday. Victoria recorded seven new deaths from coronavirus on Sunday, taking the national toll to 208, along with 671 new cases. Six of the deaths were connected to the age care sector. Seventy-three of the new cases are linked to known outbreaks while 598 remain under investigation. Secret UK trade documents used by then Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to attack the Government were stolen by Russian hackers from the email account of former international trade secretary Liam Fox, it was reported today. The Department of International Trade documents on post-Brexit trade talks with the US were brandished by the hard Left MP at a press conference in November, days before he led his party to a catastrophic vote defeat at the hands of Boris Johnson. The Reuters news agency today cited sources who said they were taken from the email of Dr Fox, who had been removed from his post by Boris Johnson the previous July. The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because a criminal investigation is underway, said the hackers accessed the account multiple times between July 12 and October 21 last year. The account was said to have been the victim of a 'spear phishing' message, where users are tricked into handing over their log-in details and password. They declined to name which Russian group or organisation they believed was responsible, but said the attack bore the hallmarks of a state-backed operation. The Kremlin did not immediately respond to a request for comment today. The Department of International Trade documents were brandished by the hard Left MP at a press conference in November days before he led his party to a catastrophic vote defeat at the hands of Boris Johnson The Reuters news agency today cited sources who said they were taken from the email of Mr Fox, who was removed from his post by Boris Johnson the previous July Among the stolen information were six tranches of documents detailing British trade negotiations with the United States, which Reuters first reported last year were leaked and disseminated online by a Russian disinformation campaign. British foreign minister Dominic Raab confirmed that report last month, saying that 'Russian actors' had sought to interfere in the election 'through the online amplification of illicitly acquired and leaked Government documents'. Reuters was not able to determine which of Mr Fox's email accounts was hacked and when it was first compromised. It is not clear if Mr Fox, who is still an MP but stood down as trade minister on July 24 last year in a cabinet reshuffle, was a minister at the time. On November 27 last year Mr Corbyn staged a stunt claiming to reveal the sensitive documents about US-UK trade talks, as he fought of attacks over anti-Semitism in the Labour Party. The documents date from 2018, well before Boris Johnson was PM, and only includes officials rather than ministers. The unredacted versions were also shared on Reddit for months before the conference, and were even tweeted by a Labour MEP five days previously without attracting any attention. Mr Fox's replacement, Liz Truss, is currently in the US for talks with Donald Trump's administration. She is scheduled to meet US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on Monday and Tuesday, his office said. A British government spokeswoman said today: 'There is an ongoing criminal investigation into how the documents were acquired, and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this point.' She added that the government had 'very robust systems in place to protect the IT systems of officials and staff.' Representatives for Fox declined to comment on the details of Reuters findings. The hack of Fox's account - which has not been previously reported - and subsequent leak of the classified documents ahead of last year's election is one of the most direct examples of suspected Russian attempts to meddle in British politics. In the past, Moscow has repeatedly denied allegations of election meddling in Britain, France, the United States and other countries. Russia's foreign ministry described the latest British accusations by Raab as 'foggy and contradictory'. A British parliamentary report released last month found that Moscow had tried to influence a referendum on Scottish independence in 2014, and that Britain's government had failed to adequately investigate possible Russian attempts to sway the 2016 vote on Brexit. Fox's email account was hacked using a so-called 'spear phishing' message, which tricks the target into handing over their password and login details, the sources said. The sources said it was not clear if the hackers who stole the trade documents were the same people who later leaked them online. After first being posted online by an anonymous internet user in the run-up to last year's vote, the stolen documents were seized on by Britain's opposition Labour Party during the election campaign. It said they showed a government plot to sell the much-loved National Health Service to the United States, an accusation Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly denied. Read what is in the news today: Vietnam confirmed one locally transmitted case of COVID-19 on Monday morning, a 60-year-old woman from Quang Nam Province linked to the Da Nang Hospital outbreak, bringing the countrys tally to 621 infections. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc at an online government meeting on Sunday called for careful consideration before any decision is made on imposing social distancing measures. Phuc added he had also told Ho Chi Minh City chairman Nguyen Thanh Phong during a phone call on Saturday that the southern metropolis should not go on enhanced social distancing yet. Da Nang City, Vietnams current outbreak epicenter, on Sunday turned two local dormitories into centralized quarantined centers for COVID-19 patients. Storm Sinlaku devolved into a tropical depression upon making landfall in north-central Vietnam on Sunday afternoon, causing prolonged rain across the country. More than 230 Vietnamese citizens from Thailand and nearly 280 others from 24 European and African countries were brought home on Sunday on two special flights that landed at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi and Van Don International Airport in Quang Ninh Province, respectively. The Peoples Committee of the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak on Sunday night decided to seal off several streets in its capital city of Buon Ma Thuot from 0:00 Monday after three local people had been confirmed COVID-19 positive. The Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control of Que Son District in the central province of Quang Nam is tracking passengers that traveled on two buses one that departed for Da Nang at 2:45 pm July 25 and the other running vice versa at 2:45 pm July 27 after one passenger on the bus trips has been diagnosed with COVID-19. Bien Hoa City in the southern province of Dong Nai suspended all kindergartens and day care centers in the city from 0:00 Monday, as well as decided to isolate and sample all medical workers and inpatients at the oncology department at Dong Nai General Hospital for COVID-19 testing after a local 50-year-old woman had been confirmed as Vietnams COVID-19 patient No. 595 on Sunday. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Protests Spread Across Russia in Support of Jailed Khabarovsk Former Governor By VOA News August 02, 2020 Protesters took to the street in cities across Russia on Saturday in support of jailed Khabarovsk former governor Sergei Furgal. Russian federal police detained protesters in the cities of Saint Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Moscow. The demonstrations come as thousands of people marched in the Russian Far East city of Khabarovsk for the fourth weekend Saturday, angered by the arrest of the region's popular governor and his replacement with a Kremlin favorite. The situation in the Khabarovsk region has become a problem for the Kremlin as demonstrations in support of protesters there are spreading elsewhere in the country. Furgal, 50, a medical doctor by training, was arrested by Russian federal law enforcement in early July on charges related to multiple murders in 2004 and 2005. He was flown to Moscow, where he was ordered jailed for two months and is being held in Moscow's notorious Lefortovo prison. Russian President Vladimir Putin replaced Furgal with a young State Duma deputy, Mikhail Degtiarev, with no ties to the region, to serve as acting governor of the Khabarovsk region. Many people in Khabarovsk believe the charges leveled against Furgal, and his replacement last week, are politically motivated. Furgal was elected in 2018, defeating a candidate from Putin's party, United Russia. Braving the heavy rain beneath umbrellas Saturday, protesters were chanting "Freedom!" and "Putin resign!" outside a government building, while a banner read "Russia without Putin!" At times protesters also chanted "We came here of our own will." Many in Khabarovsk, a city on the border with China, see the charges against Furgal as unsubstantiated and politically motivated. They are demanding that his trial take place in his home city, not Moscow. Protests in the city, about 8,000 kilometers east of Moscow, erupted July 11. Since then, protesters have been demanding the release of Furgal and an open and fair trial for him. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address ABL's DoD contracts, awarded by the Air Force Research Laboratory and AFWERX, with participation from the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center, total $44.5m over three years. Additionally, ABL has secured $49mm of financing led by Ethan Batraski at Venrock with participation from New Science Ventures, Lynett Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures. The recent round closed on March 31 st , and fully funds ABL through a three launch demonstration campaign in 2021. Concurrently, ABL has begun testing an integrated RS1 upper stage with an E2 engine. E2 is developed in-house and powers both the first and second stages of RS1. Testing is conducted at Edwards Air Force Base under a CRADA with the AFRL Rocket Propulsion Division entitled "Testing of Additive Manufactured Liquid Rocket Components and Engines in a Rapidly Deployable Architecture for Future Responsive Launch Operations," enabling ABL's use of the Area 1-56 test site. "AFRL was an early supporter and remains a key, trusted partner," said Harry O'Hanley, founder and CEO of ABL. "The AFRL team at Edwards Air Force Base is forward thinking and understands how to work with non-traditional contractors to rapidly innovate. Together, we're developing critical technology to meet the needs of the next generation warfighter and serve the burgeoning commercial space market." The RS1 second stage has undergone successful cryogenic propellant loading and proofing. ABL has begun testing the integrated RS1 second stage at Edwards. Over the last year, ABL has performed successful thrust chamber, gas generator, and turbopump testing, with performance exceeding the levels required for flight. Testing to date has proven the manufacturing techniques and designs of the first stage, second stage, and the E2 engine. The stage test campaign will culminate in a series of long duration tests later this quarter which will advance qualification of RS1. Based on the test results, ABL has increased the performance target of RS1 to 1,350 kg maximum capacity to a 200 kilometer low earth orbit. "We've completed hundreds of engine, stage, and ground system tests across multiple deployments to unimproved sites. All were performed on generator power with fully self-sufficient systems," said Dan Piemont, ABL founder and CFO. "From the beginning, we've focused on developing tactically responsive launch CONOPS alongside our technology. The result is a large capacity, fit-for-purpose resilient launch system. I am excited to deliver value to our customers in the United States Government and our commercial customers across the U.S. and the globe with this technology." To expedite development and production of the RS1 vehicle, ABL has leased additional propulsion test facilities at Mojave Air and Space Port; expanded into a 60,000 square foot multi-facility campus in El Segundo to support full-scale production of the RS1 vehicle; received a signed Category 1 certification plan from NASA; and grown to a team of 80 engineers, designers, and production experts. "We hand-picked each member of ABL to assemble what we consider to be the strongest team in the industry," said O'Hanley. "It is an intimidating group with limitless potential. With every design review completed, test performed, and part manufactured, our team raises the bar and strengthens U.S. leadership in technology development and manufacturing." Additionally, ABL has entered into support agreements for launch operations at Vandenberg Air Force Base and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Leveraging the containerized, deployable, and self-sufficient features of GS0, ABL will be able to utilize the shared pads SLC-8 at Vandenberg and LC-46 at Cape Canaveral with minimal infrastructure buildout. "We're at the three year anniversary of founding our company and have stayed true to our original business model. By avoiding unnecessary technical risk and maintaining a focus on execution, we have made significant progress in a short time with limited resources," said Piemont. "We are ahead of our original schedule and are intent on rapidly achieving orbital launch." ABOUT ABL SPACE SYSTEMS: ABL Space Systems was founded in 2017 to develop low-cost launch vehicles for the small satellite industry. ABL is headquartered in El Segundo, California. To learn more, visit ablspacesystems.com. SOURCE ABL Space Systems Company Related Links https://www.ablspacesystems.com Retiring Navy chief praises Phuket division for fight against influential people PHUKET: Adm Luechai Ruddit, Commander in Chief of Royal Thai Navy (RTN), today commended the personnel at the Third Area Command in Phuket for their work, especially for the way they deal with influential people. military By Eakkapop Thongtub Monday 3 August 2020, 02:35PM Adm Luechai arrived at the Third Area Command, based at Cape Panwa, this morning (Aug 3) as a special visit ahead of his formal retirement as the Navy Commander in Chief, a post he has held for the past two years. Adm Luechai said he felt welcomed back to the base in Phuket, where he had previously served. "I am very pleased to visit here again. Naval Region 3 is the area where I used to work. I have visited here many times, and each time I feel connected to this unit and proud to have served with you, he said. He also praised the Third Area Command for their work, which he said had made Phukets Navy division loved by the general public. On behalf of the Navy, thank you to all the personnel that made the Third Area Command famous, he said. This region seems like a peaceful area, but that is not the case, he said. The border from Ranong to Satun covers a distance of over 600 kilometers, and includes an area covering thousands of square kilometers that we must look after for national maritime interests. Its a challenge that requires highly knowledgeable personnel to be able to accomplish this mission, he added. The mission of the Navy Region 3 unit is very different from other navy divisions. The important thing is to fight with many influential people, Adm Luechai noted. Complex problems that require clear communication with neighbouring countries requires intelligence and prudence to accomplish the work harmoniously and effectively in line with policy, he said. I would like to commend you once again for the work that has been accomplished. As I retire today, I would like to take the opportunity to bid farewell to all of you. We have worked together for the Navy with the intention of always achieving a good mission, he added. Adm Luechai also noted the Third Area Commands role in providing assistance in sea rescues and their role in boosting marine transport safety for tourists in Phuket and other provinces along the Andaman coast. He also praised the efforts to stave off and pursue the offenders in the sea-steading case, and the local Navy personnels support role in the fight against the spread of COVID-19. This includes assisting with the transport of medical personnel and delivery medical equipment, and the delivery of relief bags of food and necessities to people in all areas, such as those on Racha Yai Island and the sea gypsies in Rawai, on the Surin Islands and even Koh Lipe in Satun province, he said. (@FahadShabbir) ABU DHABI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 04th Aug, 2020) H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, exchanged Eid Al- Adha greetings with Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, Sabri Boukadoum. This came over a phone call wherein the two top diplomats discussed ways of enhancing cooperation across all fronts in addition to reviewing a number of regional and international issues of mutual concern. The conversation touched on the latest developments related to the global fights against COVID-19 and the efforts made by the two friendly nations to stem its fallout. Sheikh Abdullah commended the privileged relations between the two nations and the UAE's determination to advance cooperation to higher levels to the best interest of the two fraternal peoples. Credit: CC0 Public Domain The behavioral problems of a nine-year-old tend to look very different from those of a teenager. What if, before any severe delinquency and rule-breaking began, the young child's brain function and reward-seeking behaviors could provide clues about whether antisocial behavior, violence, and aggression might develop later? Two papers from Rebecca Waller of the University of Pennsylvania, Samuel Hawes of Florida International University (FIU), and colleagues explored this question, specifically in regard to children who also display callous-unemotional (CU) traits, typically characterized by a lack of empathy, reduced sensitivity to others' emotions, and a lack of guilt around breaking rules. "Early behavior problems really concern parents," says Waller, who runs the Emotion, Development, Environment, & Neurogenetics Lab at Penn. "The broad idea with this research was to see whether there are differences in the brain at an early age, before the more severe types of delinquency have started." Using data from the National Institutes of Health's Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, which started in 2015 and will follow about 12,000 9- to 11-year-olds for a decade, the researchers first looked at gray matter volume in the brain. They found that compared to typically developing children, those with disruptive behavior disorders had less gray matter in the amygdala and hippocampus, areas associated with processing emotion and forming memories. The work, which Waller and Hawes published in Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging, suggests that early behavior problems do show up in the brain, often regardless of the presence or absence of CU traits. In a second paper, published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, the researchers focused on reward behavior, specifically brain function as ABCD Study participants anticipated and then received a reward. They found that relative to typically developing youth, those with behavioral disorders, including those with CU traits, had decreased activity in the brain's reward network while awaiting their prize but increased brain activity once they obtained it. "A primary goal of this research," says Hawes, an FIU research assistant professor and co-investigator on the ABCD Study, "is to identify neural risk markers that can be used to inform personalized intervention and treatment efforts." Analyzing gray matter Waller has been using neuroimaging in her work for seven years. "The brain tells us something about what's going on with these kids that we couldn't learn just by observing their behavior, that we couldn't see from just watching them," she says. In 2016, researchers at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom conducted a meta-analysis of 13 studies looking at how gray matter volume in the brain relates to conduct disorders. Waller and Hawes wanted to take a similar approach, this time using the larger sample size and younger age group in the ABCD Study and broadening the focus to include CU traits. They took the 2016 meta-analysis as a starting point, selecting 11 regions in different parts of the brain whose functions relate to emotion processing, learning, and language. They also accounted for race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, IQ, and sex, as well as anxiety and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, the latter of which has been linked to more severe conduct disorders. With study parameters in place, they analyzed the data to determine whether there were any differences in gray matter volume between typically developing children and those with early behavior problems, both with and without CU traits. "We didn't find as many differences as we thought we would," Waller says. "But, relative to the healthiest kids, those with zero symptoms of anything, kids with behavioral problems had relatively less gray matter in several important brain areas. But we didn't find differences specific to CU kids." In particular, they noticed less gray matter in the amygdala, a small region in the brain's temporal lobe that processes environmental stimuli, as well as in the hippocampus, which is located next to the amygdala and plays a role in memory and learning. The researchers published the findings in Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging. "We can cautiously infer that something atypical in the structural development of these two regions seems to be implicated in this type of pathology," Waller says. "Potentially, having this aberrant structure might contribute to deficits in emotional response, leading to the kids showing the behaviors that we seebut there are several steps of inference there." Anticipation versus reward Building on the gray matter work, Waller and Hawes turned to what's happening in the brain as children respond to reward. "There's a long history in behavioral research suggesting that youth with severe behavioral problems have increased reward drive," Hawes says. "These youth often continue to engage in reward-driven behaviors even when faced with serious punishment and other severe consequences." Yet previous fMRI results in this area were mixed. Beyond that, little prior work with this population had parsed what happens during two distinct temporal phases of reward processing. "Anticipation and receipt of a reward are associated with different aspects of reward-related decision-making," Hawes says. "We were interested in looking at how brain activity in youth with behavior problems differed from that of typically developing youth." So, they used a monetary-incentive task administered to youth taking part in the ABCD Study. While lying in an MRI machine, participants were shown one of three colored shapesa pink circle, yellow square, or blue trianglesignaling that they might win or lose money (20 cents or $5) or that nothing at all would happen. After a brief delay, they then saw a target, again one of the colored shapes. To win money or avoid losing it, they had to respond by pressing a button within a certain timeframe. Shortly thereafter, a message told participants their outcome. Each participant completed the process several times across multiple trials. "At the beginning of each trial the participant sees how much money they could win. Once the target is presented and they press the button, there's a moment when they anticipate that they're going to be told they've won," Waller says. "Then they get feedback on the screen saying, 'You've won $5' or 'You've won nothing' or 'You've lost.' That's the moment of receipt, so there's separation in time between the feeling that they're going to win and when they're told they've actually won." From these trials, the researchers garnered that relative to healthy children, those with behavioral disorders showed decreased brain activity when anticipating a reward and increased brain activity once they received it. This was particularly pronounced in the subset of youth with a behavioral disorder and CU traits. These findings they published in the American Journal of Psychiatry. "This matters in terms of how we think about working with children in any number of settings," Hawes says. "Associations between environmental cues and rewards represent a key aspect of learning. Insight into how this process unfolds is essential, not only for understanding healthy development versus challenges to normal socialization and development but also for shaping behaviors in more positive ways." It also means that different children may require different interventions. "Not all kids with conduct problems are the same," Waller says. "There are some important subgroups with different things going on at the neural level who might need different treatment options." Among other aspects, future work will analyze what's happening in the brain when losses occurthe yellow square in the monetary-incentive experiment. It's all with an eye toward understanding whether what's seen in the brain at age nine or 10 indicates the potential for risky behaviors down the line. Ultimately, the researchers say, it will help to develop novel treatments for conduct problems informed by what's known about brain function and structure in these disorders. Explore further Study reveals differences in brain activity in children with anhedonia More information: Samuel W. Hawes et al. Reward Processing in Children With Disruptive Behavior Disorders and Callous-Unemotional Traits in the ABCD Study, American Journal of Psychiatry (2020). Samuel W. Hawes et al. Reward Processing in Children With Disruptive Behavior Disorders and Callous-Unemotional Traits in the ABCD Study,(2020). DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.19101092 Rebecca Waller et al. Disruptive Behavior Problems, Callous-Unemotional Traits, and Regional Gray Matter Volume in the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development Study, Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging (2020). DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2020.01.002 Journal information: American Journal of Psychiatry Nicola Sturgeon said she 'wanted to cry' over pictures of pubgoers gathering with no social distancing at the weekend as 27 cases of coronavirus are linked to one bar in Aberdeen. SNP MP Stephen Flynn today tweeted two photos he had spotted online of the city centre, where an outbreak took place in The Hawthorn Bar. The MP said he was 'scunnered' by the images, which showed dozens of people queuing to enter pubs in the city. It comes as NHS Grampian announce 27 cases of the virus have been linked to the bar, adding it is 'aware' of photos being shared online of 'extremely busy bars'. Stephen Flynn MP tweeted two photos of revellers packing in Aberdeen city centre despite the coronavirus lockdown, which Nicola Sturgeon said made her want 'to cry' Mr Flynn's images show people outside Soul Bar and The Justice Mill in Aberdeen, where a cluster of cases have been linked to another pub, Hawthorn Bar Nicola Sturgeon, pictured above on July 27, said she 'wanted to cry' over pictures of pubgoers gathering with no social distancing at the weekend The First Minister gave the latest coronavirus figures at the Scottish Government's daily briefing in Edinburgh on Monday, saying there have been no Covid-19 deaths in Scotland for the 18th day in a row. Addressing the Aberdeen cluster, the First Minister earlier said there may be more than the 13 cases announced on Sunday. She also thanked the owners of the Hawthorn bar, where the outbreak is believed to have started, and said that work is being done to address the cluster. The First Minister added the coronavirus outbreak was 'exactly what we feared' when the decision was taken to reopen the hospitality industry. Retweeting Mr Flynn's images on Monday morning, Ms Sturgeon described the scenes as 'dangerous', warning it could result in the closure of more bars. She said: 'Spot on from @StephenFlynnSNP - Covid remains a real and present threat to our health and wellbeing. 'Scenes like these are dangerous, and could easily result in pubs being closed again - which no one wants. We all have a responsibility here. Please, please everybody #keeptheheid.' Mr Flynn, who represents Aberdeen South, said: 'A bit scunnered by some of the photos appearing online from the city centre over the weekend. 'Covid-19 has not gone away - as is evident from the cluster linked to The Hawthorn Bar. Should act as the wake-up call some folk clearly need.' NHS Grampian tweeted earlier on Monday: 'We can confirm the number of cases detected in the Aberdeen COVID-19 cluster associated with The Hawthorn Bar now stands at 27.' SNP MP Stephen Flynn today tweeted two photos he had spotted online of the city centre, where an outbreak took place in The Hawthorn Bar Retweeting Mr Flynn's images on Monday morning, Ms Sturgeon described the scenes as 'dangerous', warning it could result in the closure of more bars It added: 'We aware that many photos have been shared on social media over the weekend of extremely busy bars and venues in Aberdeen. 'Our Environmental Health colleagues at Aberdeen City Council are in contact with licensees in the city to reiterate the safety rules and regulations. ' Dr Emmanuel Okpo, Consultant in Public Health Medicine, said: 'It is not entirely surprising further cases have been detected. This virus is still circulating in our communities. It poses a risk to all of us. 'People who have not gone to this bar, or who live in other parts of Grampian, should not assume they are somehow "safe". 'If you develop the symptoms of COVID-19 a loss of sense of taste or smell, a fever, or a new, continuous cough, isolate at home & arrange a test.' The owners said customers who were there on July 26 tested positive but it was confirmed by NHS Grampian they are only showing mild symptoms. Physical distancing measures were put in place within the pub and contact tracing is being carried out to identify any other potential cases. Meanwhile, a total of 2,491 patients have died in Scotland after testing positive for Covid-19. Ms Sturgeon said 18,694 people have tested positive for the virus, up by 18 from 18,676 the day before. She said 11 of these new cases were in the Grampian area, though she could not say if these were linked to the outbreak in Aberdeen. There were 265 people in hospital with confirmed Covid-19, no change on the previous day. Of these, three were in intensive care, no change on the previous total. Kenneth Lamy This unprecedented situation isn't going away any time soon. It is clear that collecting, analyzing and verifying data will be the key to creating new rent structures that will allow both retailers and landlords to fulfill their obligations to their customers and all of their stakeholders. Retail real estate owners and managers continue to face unprecedented circumstances as a result of the ongoing increase in coronavirus cases, even as stores have in many areas reopened (and some may face closing once again). As U.S. retailers and shopping centers enter the sixth month of the pandemic, landlords are seeking more effective approaches for deferring partial rents into the fall, observes Kenneth S. Lamy, founder, president and CEO of The Lamy Group, an international financial management consulting firm specializing in retail and commercial real estate for more than 30 years. The key, he said, is effective collection, verification and analysis of data. Those retailers who could take advantage of the first tranche of the Small Business Administrations Paycheck Protection Program in April, which permitted recipients to use up to 40% of the monies to pay rent, have exhausted those funds. If these companies also negotiated a three-month rent deferral, they shortly are coming up to full rents being due, even if they are conducting a fraction of their normal business, if any at all. Under these underperforming conditions brought on by the pandemic recession, the typical rent structure minimum rent plus obligatory contributions by tenants for the shopping centers property taxes, insurance and common area expenses prorated in accordance with the tenants occupied space simply doesnt work, according to Lamy. But landlords require those rents so they can pay their own obligations. The result is that the two sides will once again need to negotiate a way for both to survive and, eventually, thrive again, Lamy said. Just as the COVID-19 virus itself seems to be coming in waves so, too, are the resulting retail casualties, Lamy said. For many tenants, especially entrepreneurs, the first round of assistance has been exhausted. But landlords have operating costs and mortgages and a lease that requires at least some rent to be paid. Restructuring can take several forms: deferral, abatement and outright forgiveness. But the only way to have an honest and productive partnership, he noted, is through data that will allow landlords to evaluate the health of the retailer and allow them to assess the amount and type of assistance that can be offered. In other words, Lamy said, They need information that will allow them to determine a fair rent that the tenant can afford during the period of decreased revenues. That data is available: Many retailers and restaurants are required by lease to report sales to landlords on a monthly basis so that percentage rent, in addition to fixed minimum rent, can be determined. Those tenants that are not required by lease to report sales are likely to see this new requirement in a future lease amendment if rent relief is granted by the landlord. If theyve requested rent relief in the past, theyve also provided at least two years of previous sales figures, as well as monthly sales for 2020, including data for months preceding the onset of shelter-in-place orders, said Lamy, also founder and CEO of DataPoint International LLC (DPI), the creator of the EXETER Retail DataHub, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that provides a comprehensive, one standard system for collecting, analyzing and certifying sales data from retailers and restaurant tenants with desired transparency. After decades of helping landlords to evaluate their tenants health and negotiate various forms of rent relief, I saw that even in a people-oriented industry such as retail, data is key, Lamy said. Thats why my team and I developed EXETER, though I admit that I never thought how critical the data we collect would become during a global pandemic. When landlords combine the real-time data with historical retail tenant data, they can judge the overall picture of a retail locations health. The landlord can then analyze this data to determine if a retailers financial woes result solely from COVID-19 or if there are other underlying challenges that could preclude an eventual recovery. The Lamy Groups proven retail methodology provides its landlord clients with a financial process to discover, analyze and confirm a retail tenants status in order to make an informed, fair decision. For stores that are part of a larger chain, the methodology and financial process is applied to the parent company as well as the individual location in question. The Lamy Groups retail-focused team of accountants, consultants and financial analysts prepare a report of an individual retail tenants financial health and viability, typically within 36 hours. The firms analysis includes specific key performance indicators that help a landlord assess a retail or restaurant tenants ability to survive after it reopens. Perhaps as important, basing negotiations and decisions on data can ease tensions during a stressful period for all. It has never been more important, Lamy noted, for landlords and tenants to forge a true, win-win partnership to navigate this crisis. For some retailers, that may be percentage-only rent for a period, for others a (partial) deferral for an additional period. Regardless of the decision, it is clear that the ramifications of COVID-19 stores and restaurants closing down again by government order, limitations on the number of customers permitted in the facility or even continued reluctance of shoppers to venture indoors will continue to be an issue through 2020 and perhaps longer. This unprecedented situation isnt going away any time soon, Lamy said. It is clear that collecting, analyzing and verifying data will be the key to creating new rent structures that will allow both retailers and landlords to fulfill their obligations to their customers and all of their stakeholders. About The Lamy Group The Lamy Group is a Mandeville, Louisiana-based international financial management consulting firm of certified public accountants, MBAs and other professionals. Founder, President and CEO Kenneth S. Lamy, CRRP, CRX is an instructor and volunteer for the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) for more than 30 years. The Lamy Group specializes in customized financial retail sales, compliance and specialty examinations (tenant sales audits/revenue share/data verification) programs, ancillary revenue audits, retail property and sales analytics, restaurant consulting, including lease consulting and related compliance programs for clients. Clients include owners, developers, managers, publicly-traded real estate investment trusts (REITS), realty advisors and institutional investors throughout North America, the Caribbean and Mexico. Hudson, NY (12534) Today Clear early then increasing cloudiness after midnight. Low 12F. NNW winds shifting to S at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Clear early then increasing cloudiness after midnight. Low 12F. NNW winds shifting to S at 10 to 15 mph. Restrictions were imposed in the Kashmir valley on Monday, with officials saying that the curbs have been enforced as part of efforts to contain the spread of Covid-19. The restrictions come two days ahead of the first anniversary of the revocation of Jammu and Kashmirs special status. While officials maintained that restrictions were in view of the pandemic, residents say it has more to do with the completion of one year of the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, last year. Business establishments, markets and shops were closed while public transport remained off the roads in the Valley. The movement of people was strictly regulated and there was heavy development of security forces on roads. Concertina wires and road blocks sealed roads at many places and police were seen asking people in private cars to return. However, government employees and banks have been exempted from the restrictions on producing valid identity cards or movement passes. Construction and developmental activities have also been exempted, officials added. District magistrates said strict implementation of the lockdown restrictions was ordered in view of the spike in the number of coronavirus cases. Security forces have been deployed in strength at several places across the valley to enforce the lockdown, the officials said, adding any violation will invite strict action. Shaeena Akhtar, 42, a resident of Old City, said the severity of restrictions which used to be associated with Covid-19 pandemic suddenly intensified from Monday. She said the security forces on roads were harsher and even manhandled people. My young daughter who was pillion riding behind a close relative was chased by baton-wielding security men at Hawal. They were really scared, Akhtar said. Since August 5 is coming, they are forcing people to stay indoors, she added. The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Saturday informed that it was extending its Covid-19 lockdown restrictions till August 5. The earlier order had stated that the lockdown will continue till July 31. The administration noted that in the light of escalating virus infections, it was safest to extend lockdown restrictions till August 5. PDP president Mehbooba Muftis daughter Iltija Mufti said the heightened security arrangements in the valley were being undertaken to ensure that anger and frustration felt by people against the Centres decision remain hidden. She tweeted: Not like non-discriminatory Covid virus will be more active in the days approaching August 5, so clearly this is being done to ensure that anger and frustration felt by people here remain hidden. Javaid Khaliq, a netizen said: Preparations of August 5 and nothing else. It is their only option to hide the situation on ground and pretend everything is ok. Political analyst Noor Ahmad Baba said the lockdown in Kashmir was different from the rest of the country. There is an element of politics here. In the name of lockdown due to coronavirus, it is also conveniently used for political motives, he said. He said there were smarter ways of enforcing lockdown without impacting the economy, which the authorities were not attempting to give a try. I am certain the lockdown is going to continue because August 5 and August 15 is coming, he said. Curfew in Srinagar Fearing protests by separatists on August 5, the Srinagar administration on Monday decided to impose a curfew till Wednesday with immediate effect. The Covid-19 restrictions, which were imposed from July 31 till August 5, have been extended upto August 8. Srinagar district magistrate Shahid Chaudhary, in an order, while quoting a report of SSP, stated that Separatists and Pakistan-sponsored groups are planning to observe August 5 as a black day, thereby raising apprehensions of violence. There are specific inputs about violent protests endangering public life and property, he said, adding that such gatherings will also be detrimental to the efforts of containing the spread of virus. Two of eight troops missing after their landing craft sank off the Southern California coast during a training exercise have been identified as Oregon men. Lance Cpl. Chase D. Sweetwood of Portland, 19, and Pfc. Jack Ryan Ostrovsky of Bend, 21, were among the 15 Marines and one Navy sailor aboard an amphibious assault vehicle that sank last week. Both were riflemen with Bravo Company. They and the others who are missing are presumed dead. Eight Marines were rescued, but one later died and two are in critical condition. The 26-ton, tank-like craft took on water and quickly sank in hundreds of feet of water too deep for divers making it difficult to reach. The Marines have called off the search, which started late Thursday afternoon. "It is with as heavy heart that I decided to conclude the search and rescue effort," said Col. Christopher Bronzi, commander of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit. All of the Marines aboard were attached to the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, based at nearby Camp Pendleton, north of San Diego. They ranged in age from 19 to early 30s and all were wearing combat gear, including body armor and flotation vests, according to Lt. Gen. Joseph Osterman, commanding general of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. The craft was one of 13 amphibious assault vehicles that had just completed an exercise. It was heading back to a Navy ship when it began taking on water about a half-mile from the Navy-owned island off San Diego. Troops on board two other amphibious assault vehicles responded quickly but couldn't stop the sinking, Osterman said at a Friday news conference. Over the course of the search, dozens of helicopters and ships searched more than 1,000 square nautical miles of sea. Efforts will now turn to finding and recovering the service members and investigating the circumstances surrounding the sinking, officials said. The names of the victims will be released 24 hours after their families are notified. The vehicle, nicknamed an "amtrac" -- short for "amphibious tractor" -- was designed to be buoyant and had three water-tight hatches and two large troop hatches. The Marines use the vehicles to transport troops and their equipment from Navy ships to land. The vehicles have been used since 1972, and continually refurbished. The Marine Corps commandant, Gen. David Berger, suspended waterborne operations of all of its more than 800 amphibious assault vehicles across the branch until the cause of the accident is determined. He said the move was out of "an abundance of caution." It was the deadliest of several accidents involving amtracs that have occurred during Camp Pendleton exercises in recent years. In 2017, 14 Marines and one Navy sailor were hospitalized after their vehicle hit a natural gas line at the camp, igniting a fire that engulfed the landing craft. And in 2011, a Marine died when an amphibious assault vehicle in a training exercise sank offshore of the camp. -- Staff and wire reports Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. House Democrats Subpoena Pompeo Aides Over Trumps Firing of State Watchdog House Democrats have issued subpoenas to four State Department officials, calling on them to testify as part of an investigation into the firing of a government watchdog. The officials, senior aides to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, have been requested to appear for joint depositions by Democrats on the House Committees on Foreign Affairs and Oversight and Reform, an Aug. 3 release said. The move comes amid allegations that the Trump administration has been stonewalling the Democrat-led probe into the firing of former State Department Inspector General Steve Linick by President Donald Trump. Trump said he fired Linick after losing confidence in him, while Pompeo later clarified he had asked the president to fire the watchdog because he was not contributing to the State Department the way he was instructed. The Administration continues to cover up the real reasons for Mr. Linicks firing by stonewalling the Committees investigation and refusing to engage in good faith, a joint statement from House Foreign Affairs Chairman Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), House Oversight Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), and Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) reads. That stonewalling has made todays subpoenas necessary, and the Committees will continue to pursue this investigation to uncover the truth that the American people deserve, the bicameral group added. The four aides targeted by the subpoenas are Undersecretary of State for Management Brian Bulatao, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Mike Miller, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Marik String, and senior adviser Toni Porter. In Capitol Hill testimony in early June (pdf), Linick accused Bulatao of trying to bully him into dropping a probe the watchdog had launched into Pompeos stewardship of Saudi Arabian arms sales. Pompeo has accused the former watchdog of undermining the State Department, saying Linick was a bad actor in the inspector general office here, adding that it was his mistake to let Linick serve in his post as long as he did. In his testimony, Linick refuted justifications for his firing but would not speculate on why he was fired, saying, I can tell you that I dont believe theres any valid reason that would justify my removal. The subpoenas come after the Committees ranking members vowed to interview key officials they believe have knowledge about Linicks dismissal and how the watchdogs investigations may have prompted Pompeo to have him fired. Congress has demanded answers about the abrupt firing of the Inspector General, but Secretary Pompeo has failed to explain his actions. We call upon administration officials to comply and appear for interviews with the Committees, and for Secretary Pompeo to comply with the Committees investigation and not obstruct the American people from discovering the truth about his own actions, members of the bicameral group said in a May 29 statement. In Mondays statement announcing the subpoenas, the lawmakers said a senior State Department official, Charles Faulkner, had testified voluntarily. Mr. Faulkner testified that Congress had legitimate concerns when it was holding up these sales on humanitarian grounds and that State Department officials werent surprised by the Saudis reckless use of U.S.-built weapons and the resulting loss of innocent life. Nevertheless, the Departments senior leadership appeared determined to see the sales go forward, the Democrat lawmakers said in their statement. The sale of arms to Saudi Arabia was made possible by Pompeos invoking, in May 2019, of a rarely used provision in federal law to bypass a congressional review. A number of congressional Democrats objected when Pompeo last year notified Congress of the decision to use an emergency loophole in the Arms Export Control Act to proceed with the arms sales, which included precision-guided munitions, along with other bombs and ammunition. Some 26 members of Congress wrote a letter to Linick, urging him to review the matter, saying there were dubious grounds for invoking the emergency. Korea Development Bank (KDB) Chairman Lee Dong-gull speaks during an online press conference at its headquarters in Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of KDB By Lee Min-hyung Korea Development Bank (KDB) will normalize operation of Asiana Airlines if Hyundai Development Company (HDC) backs out of its takeover deal with the cash-strapped airline, the state-run lender said Monday. "As a main creditor of Asiana, we are considering a number of options to normalize the business operations of the airline under the scenario that the suggested but pending acquisition proposal between the interested parties comes to nothing," KDB Vice President Choi Dae-hyun told reporters during an online press conference. The message came amid the growing likelihood that HDC would not proceed with the takeover contract with Asiana at a time when the former continues to take what KDB deemed to be "unreasonable steps" to delay the M&A procedure. Late last month, HDC demanded time to carry out an additional 12 weeks of due diligence on Asiana before finalizing the deal, but it did not provide any convincing reasons to back up the demand. Earlier, HDC already ended its due diligence on the airline after seven weeks. "Our top priority is to normalize management of Asiana," Choi said. "If HDC decides to cancel the deal with Asiana, we are going to focus on stabilizing the company and then push for its sale to a third party." He added the bank is leaving open all possibilities including selling the firm to a conglomerate or affiliate. The creditor also sent a message of warning to HDC, slamming the company for taking "irresponsible and insincere" steps in the M&A process. "If HDC was sincere enough to acquire Asiana, the company should have taken relevant procedures such as paying more contract deposits but it did not make any such trustworthy actions," Choi said. Last year, HDC decided to purchase the airline at 2.5 trillion won, and paid 250 billion won, 10 percent of the total value of the deal for the contract deposit. If the company reverses its decision and opts not to buy Asiana, it will lose its deposit. Even if HDC backs out of the deal it is possible it could file a lawsuit to recoup its deposit, citing reasons such as the falling corporate value of Asiana amid the coronavirus pandemic. But HDC should be held legally accountable for the potential break-up of the deal, according to KDB Chairman Lee Dong-gull who also joined the online press conference. "Asiana Airlines and Kumho Industrial, the largest shareholder of the airline, do not have to take any legal responsibility, as they have done the utmost to finish the M&A and taken all relevant steps," Lee said. He stepped up criticism of HDC and urged the company to return to talks immediately. "All the arguments made by HDC were groundless and have been distorted maliciously," the KDB chief said. "We do not understand the real intention of the firm's demand to carry out due diligence once again." "We urge both interested parties to engage in final negotiations by opening up all possibilities, as the deadline for the M&A procedure comes closer." Kumho expressed its intent to call off the deal if the issue is not resolved by Aug. 12, in an official document sent recently to HDC. IT and Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has gone into self isolation, as he had met Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday evening, a source said. Prasad does not have any symptoms and the self-isolation is purely based on existing protocol, the source added. Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said that he had tested positive for COVID-19 and is getting admitted to a hospital following the advice of doctors.Read Also: Coronavirus update: 52,972 cases, 771 deaths reported in 24 hrs; tally rises to 18 lakh Read Also: Personal health IDs, e-records, doctors' registry part of Centre's digital health ecosystem plan SpiceJet said it operated its maiden long-haul charter flight from Amsterdam to Bengaluru and Hyderabad on Sunday carrying 269 Indians. The low-cost carrier said in a press release it had chartered a wide-body A330neo aircraft from Portuguese airline Hi Fly for this flight from Amsterdam in the Netherlands. While the Amsterdam-Bengaluru leg of the flight had the Hi Fly's call sign 5K471, the Bengaluru-Hyderabad leg had the SpiceJet's call sign SG471. "The flight arrived in Bengaluru at 8.58 am IST and the same aircraft then proceeded to Hyderabad with the remaining passengers," SpiceJet said. The twin-aisle A330neo aircraft used by SpiceJet has a configuration of 353 economy and 18 business class seats. Also Watch: Scheduled international passenger flights continue to remain suspended in India since March 23 amid the coronavirus pandemic. However, special international charter flights, permitted by the Indian aviation regulator DGCA, have been operating as usual. The aviation sector has been significantly impacted due to the travel restrictions imposed in India and other countries in view of the pandemic. All airlines in India have taken cost-cutting measures such as pay cuts, leave-without-pay and firings of employees in order to conserve cash. HOUSTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Castleton Resources LLC ("Castleton Resources" or the "Company") announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the Terryville upstream assets in Northern Louisiana from subsidiaries of Range Resources Corporation ("Range") for $245 million plus contingent payments that are a function of commodity prices. Under the terms of the agreement, Range will retain certain midstream commitments through their remaining term. Castleton Resources is owned by Castleton Commodities International LLC ("CCI") and Tokyo Gas America Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. Tokyo Gas America Ltd. will increase its ownership in Castleton Resources from 46% to approximately 70% when the acquisition closes, with the balance to be held by CCI. Pro forma for the Terryville acquisition, Castleton Resources will own over 315,000 net acres of leasehold in East Texas and Northern Louisiana with total daily net production of nearly 500 MMcfe/d. Craig Jarchow, President and CEO of Castleton Resources, said, "We are very pleased to be able to purchase quality assets at a low-point in the commodity-price cycle. The Company is well-positioned to enhance the value of these assets through further operational enhancements, among other activities. We remain focused on strategically growing and diversifying our upstream and midstream assets, and broadening our portfolio with attractive opportunities that complement our long-term business strategy." Kazuya Kurimoto, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tokyo Gas America Ltd. said, "Tokyo Gas America participated in Castleton Resources in May 2017, and has grown steadily with Castleton Resources by acquiring shale and tight sand assets since then. We are pleased that Castleton Resources will join Tokyo Gas group companies, and with Castleton Resources as the base, we will continue to aim for further business expansion in East Texas and Louisiana." The transaction is scheduled to close on August 14, 2020. Castleton Resources will change its name to "TG Natural Resources LLC" by late March 2021. Greenhill acted as M&A advisor and Kirkland & Ellis served as legal advisor to Castleton Resources in this transaction. K&L Gates acted as legal advisor to Tokyo Gas America Ltd. Bracewell LLP acted as legal advisor to CCI. About Castleton Resources LLC Castleton Resources is one of the largest producers in the Ark-La-Tex region of East Texas and Northern Louisiana. The company is private and is co-owned by subsidiaries of Tokyo Gas America and Castleton Commodities International. Please visit Castleton Resources' website for more information: http://www.castletonresources.com/ About Castleton Commodities International LLC CCI is a global energy commodity merchant with integrated businesses focused on marketing, merchandising, and trading commodities, and the ownership, operation and development of commodities-related infrastructure and upstream assets. Please visit CCI's website for more information: http://www.cci.com/ About Tokyo Gas America Ltd. Tokyo Gas America Ltd. was established on February 1, 2013 and is fully owned by Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. The company develops wide-ranging businesses that include renewable power generation, upstream operations such as gas field development, midstream to downstream operations as exemplified by power generation, natural gas distribution, LNG exportation and natural gas trading in North America. Please visit Tokyo Gas America's website for more information: http://www.tgamerica.com/ About Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. is the largest gas utility company in Japan. Founded October 1, 1885, the company supplies gas and power to 11 million customers in the greater Tokyo area. Tokyo Gas has developed a comprehensive range of business that spans from upstream resource development and procurement to gas transportation and sales. Please visit Tokyo Gas' website for more information: http://www.tokyo-gas.co.jp/en/ Media Contact: Hill+Knowlton Strategies Brian R. Brooks +1 (713) 752-1901 [email protected] SOURCE Castleton Resources LLC Related Links http://www.castletonresources.com For most of white America, talk about racism has been taboo. Racism has been ignored and discounted. There was no honest public acknowledgment and discourse, particularly regarding the main source of racism in America slavery and its aftermath. American racism was deliberately constructed to justify American slavery. As discovered by descendants of one slave-trading family, regarding American slavery, they knew what they were doing, knew it was wrong and did it, anyway. Ruth Simmons, the former president of Brown University, commissioned a self-reflective study of Browns connection to slavery. Part of the Brown family accumulated extraordinary wealth as slave traders who owned sugarcane plantations where Africans were worked to death. Their average life expectancy on the plantations was less than seven years. Yet the slavery-induced stereotype has unceasingly maintained that African-Americans were and are lazy. The demonization and dehumanization of African Americans needed to be powerful enough to obfuscate the horrors of slavery. In every facet of American life, African Americans were denigrated and debased. Slaveowners brainwashed Americans to believe that the enslaved had no history, had no self-worth, were not the economic foundation of American wealth and that their existence was completely defined by their enslavement. Racism became inextricably intertwined within the fabric of American society. Racism became so hardwired within the American consciousness that it has become a default position, undetectable to most Americans. Proactive steps are necessary to counter these concepts. For instance, the myths, stereotypes and lies, generated by slavery and the Confederacy, must be truthfully and publicly exposed, along with the horrors and the consequences of slavery. The manifestation of this bigotry, in the bad acts of police officers, should no longer avoid accountability. Proactive steps, needed to generate massive change, must occur in police departments. Police departments need to effectively screen out applicants who have demonstrated or who possess racially hostile attitudes. The departments need to remove officers who demonstrate racially hostile attitudes or behavior. What is needed is a defunding of the militarization of police departments. The departments need to reaffirm their commitment to serve as peacekeepers and not as military forces with missions to occupy Black communities. Officers need to undergo ongoing training in effective measures to remove racial stereotypes, myths and profiles from their everyday policing techniques. We need police unions to step up and support these changes. The racially biased treatment of Black people by police cannot be tolerated. For example, the gentle police treatment of Dylan Roof, a white mass murderer of Black church attendees, in contrast with the horrific police killing of Philando Castile in the presence of his girlfriend and her 4-year old daughter, is indefensible. Since slavery, Black reports of violence at the hands of police and others have been disbelieved. The culture, thoughts and language of slavery continued after it was abolished. Confederate stereotypes, myths and revisionist history have been adopted in whole or part, throughout America. Slavery existed throughout the nation, and the North has been quite receptive to these ideas, as well. I am part of a team of lawyers at Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder representing Connecticut resident Tamara Lanier in her lawsuit against Harvard University. One of Harvards most revered professors, Louis Agassiz, promulgated a pseudo-science proclaiming the inferiority of Black people. In 1850, as the debate raged regarding the Fugitive Slave Act, Agassizs theories were seized upon as justification for slavery and as rationalization for white supremacist ideology that persists to this day. After the Civil War, the war against African Americans was relentless. Terrorist mobs, which included white policemen, murdered thousands of Blacks. A scheme was developed in the former Confederate states to re-enslave African Americans. They were criminalized for being Black, convicted of phantom crimes. The 13th Amendment abolished slavery for all, except those convicted of crimes. Many former slave plantations and significant industries, such as U.S. Steel profited. The money for convict labor was paid to the municipalities and comprised major portions of the private and public economy for whites. This period is commonly labeled the Jim Crow era, which many assert should be properly designated the era of Neo-Slavery. In current years, we witnessed municipalities, such as Ferguson, Mo., which seized upon related concepts to subsidize their governments. America has never fully acknowledged, nor has it come to terms with its horrific legacy of slavery and racism. That failure has manifested itself in malevolent policies and ongoing systemic racism. The mindset engendered by slavery has been so powerful that many people of good will disbelieved accounts of racism. It required the recordings of modern technology to cause them to realize they have been misled. The time has come to strip away the toxic vestiges of the past and to engage in truth and reconciliation. Millions are calling for the development of a new chapter of the American experience. The well-being of this nation depends upon a successful response to this call. Preston Tisdale is the secretary of the Public Justice Foundation. He serves on the Board of Governors of the Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association, the American Association for Justice, and on the Connecticut Commission on Racial and Ethnic Disparity in the Criminal Justice System. He can be reached at PTisdale@koskoff.com or 203-336-4421. Your browser does not support the audio element. More than 500 Vietnamese citizens from Thailand and 24 countries in Europe and Africa arrived in Vietnam on Sunday on two special flights organized to repatriate citizens stranded due to the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the two flights carrying nearly 280 people from 24 European and African countries landed at Van Don International Airport in the northern province of Quang Ninh. The flight was arranged by Vietnamese and French authorities and national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines. Passengers included children under 18, the elderly, pregnant women, people with illnesses, students without accommodation, stranded tourists, and workers with expired contracts and visas. Right after landing at the airport, all the passengers were given health checks and sent to COVID-19 quarantine areas in accordance with current regulations. The other flight, organized by Vietnamese and Thai authorities and budget carrier Vietjet Air, carried more than 230 Vietnamese citizens from Thailand to Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi. Vietnam pledges to bring home more Vietnamese nationals stranded abroad based on their needs and the nations current quarantine capacity. The Southeast Asian country remains closed to international arrivals except for people brought home on repatriation flights or foreign experts and highly skilled workers individually approved to enter. Vietnam has logged 621 cases of COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, since the pandemic first hit in January. Six patients have died while 373 have recovered from the disease in the country. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! When Tian Feilong first arrived in Hong Kong as demands for free elections were on the rise, he said he felt sympathetic toward a society that seemed to reflect the liberal political ideas he had studied as a graduate student in Beijing. Then, as the calls escalated into protests across Hong Kong in 2014, he increasingly embraced Chinese warnings that freedom could go too far, threatening national unity. He became an ardent critic of the demonstrations, and six years later he is a staunch defender of the sweeping national security law that China has imposed on the former British colony. Tian has joined a tide of Chinese scholars who have turned against Western-inspired ideas that once flowed in Chinas universities, instead promoting the proudly authoritarian worldview ascendant under Xi Jinping, the Communist Party leader. This cadre of Chinese intellectuals serve as champions, even official advisers, defending and honing the partys hardening policies, including the rollout of the security law in Hong Kong. Back when I was weak, I had to totally play by your rules. Now Im strong and have confidence, so why cant I lay down my own rules and values and ideas? Tian, 37, said in an interview, explaining the prevailing outlook in China. Witnessing the tumult as a visiting scholar in Hong Kong in 2014, Tian said, he rethought the relationship between individual freedom and state authority. Hong Kong is, after all, Chinas Hong Kong, he said. Its up to the Communist Party to clean up this mess. While Chinas Communist Party has long nurtured legions of academics to defend its agenda, these authoritarian thinkers stand out for their unabashed, often flashily erudite advocacy of one-party rule and assertive sovereignty, and their turn against the liberal ideas that many of them once embraced. They portray themselves as fortifying China for an era of deepening ideological rivalry. They describe the United States as a dangerous, overreaching shambles, even more so in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. They oppose constitutional fetters on Communist Party control, arguing that Western-inspired ideas of the rule of law are a dangerous mirage that could hobble the party. They argue that China must reclaim its status as a world power, even as a new kind of benign empire displacing the United States. They extol Xi as a historic leader, guiding China through a momentous transformation. A number of these scholars, sometimes called statists, have worked on policy toward Hong Kong, the sole territory under Chinese rule that has been a stubborn enclave for pro-democracy defiance of Beijing. Their proposals have fed into Chinas increasingly uncompromising line, including the security law, which has swiftly curbed protests and political debate. We ignore these voices at our own risk, said Timothy Cheek, a historian at the University of British Columbia who helps run Reading the China Dream, a website that translates works by Chinese thinkers. They give voice to a stream of Chinese political thought that is probably more influential than liberal thought. As well as earnestly citing Xis speeches, these academics draw on ancient Chinese thinkers who counseled stern rulership, along with Western critics of liberal political traditions. Traditional Marxism is rarely cited; they are proponents of order, not revolution. Many of them make respectful nods in their papers to Carl Schmitt, the German legal theorist who supplied rightist leaders in the 1930s and the emerging Nazi regime with arguments for extreme executive power in times of crisis, Ryan Mitchell, an assistant professor of law at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, documented in a recent paper. Theyve provided the reasoning and justification, Fu Hualing, a professor of law at the University of Hong Kong, said of Chinas new authoritarian scholars. In a way, its the Carl Schmitt moment here. Chinas ideological landscape was more varied a decade ago, when Tian was a graduate student at Peking University, a traditionally more liberal campus. Censorship was lighter, and universities tolerated guarded discussion of liberal ideas in classrooms. Many scholars, including Tians dissertation adviser, Zhang Qianfan, argued that Hong Kong, with its robust judicial independence, could inspire similar steps in mainland China. I had also been nurtured by liberal scholars, Tian said. Such ideas have gone into sharp retreat since Xi took power in 2012. He began a drive to discredit ideas like universal human rights, separation of powers and other liberal concepts. Dissenting academics are maligned in the party-run news media and risk professional ruin. Xu Zhangrun, a law professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing, was detained in July and dismissed from his job after writing a stream of essays condemning the partys direction under Xi. Education authorities generously fund pro-party scholars for topics such as how to introduce security laws in Hong Kong. Chinese and foreign foundations that once supported less orthodox Chinese scholars have retrenched because of tightening official restrictions. More than fear and career rewards have driven this resurgence of authoritarian ideas in China. The global financial crisis of 2007, and the United States floundering response to the coronavirus pandemic, have reinforced Chinese views that liberal democracies are decaying, while China has prospered, defying predictions of the collapse of one-party rule. China is actually also following a path that the United States took, seizing opportunities, developing outward, creating a new world, Tian said. There is even a fervent hope that well overtake the West in another 30 years. Chinas authoritarian academics have proposed policies to assimilate ethnic minorities thoroughly. They have defended Xis abolition of a term limit on the presidency, opening the way for him to stay in power indefinitely. They have argued that Chinese-style rule by law is inseparable from rule by the Communist Party. And more recently they have served as intellectual warriors in Beijings efforts to subdue protest in Hong Kong. For them, law becomes a weapon, but its law thats subordinated to politics, said Sebastian Veg, a professor at the School of Advanced Studies in Social Sciences in Paris who has studied the rise of Chinas statist thinkers. Weve seen that at work in China, and now it seems to me were seeing it come to Hong Kong. For Hong Kong, these scholars have supplied arguments advancing Beijings drive for greater central control. Under the legal framework that defined Hong Kongs semiautonomy after its return to China in 1997, many in the territory assumed that it would mostly manage its own affairs for decades. Many believed that Hong Kong lawmakers and leaders would be left to develop national security legislation, which was required by that framework. But Xis government has pushed back, demanding greater influence. The authoritarian scholars, familiar with both Xis agenda and Hong Kong law, have distilled those demands into elaborate legal arguments. Several Beijing law professors earlier served as advisers to the Chinese governments office in Hong Kong, including Jiang Shigong and Chen Duanhong, both of Peking University. They declined to be interviewed. I dont think theyre necessarily setting the party line, but theyre helping to shape it, finding clever ways to put into words and laws what the party is trying to do, said Mitchell, of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. This is all happening through legislation, so their ideas matter. A Chinese government paper in 2014, which Jiang is widely credited with helping write, asserted that Beijing had comprehensive jurisdiction over Hong Kong, dismissing the idea that China should stay hands off. The framework that defined Hong Kongs status was written in the 1980s, when China was still weak and under the sway of foreign liberal ideas, he later said. They treat Hong Kong as if it were part of the West, and they treat the West as if it were the entire world, Jiang recently said of Hong Kongs protesters. Chinas rise has not, as some imagined, drawn Hong Kong society to trust the central authorities. After protesters occupied Hong Kong streets in 2014, he and other scholars pressed the case that China had the power to impose national security legislation there, rejecting the idea that such legislation should be left in the hands of reluctant Hong Kong authorities. The survival of the state comes first, and constitutional law must serve this fundamental objective, Chen, the Peking University academic, wrote in 2018, citing Schmitt, the authoritarian German jurist, to make the case for a security law in Hong Kong. When the state is in dire peril, Chen wrote, leaders could set aside the usual constitutional norms, in particular provisions for civic rights, and take all necessary measures. Chen submitted an internal study to the partys policymakers on introducing security legislation for Hong Kong, according to a Peking University report in 2018, over a year before the party publicly announced plans for such a law. Since Chinas legislature passed the security law in late June, he, Tian and allied Chinese scholars have energetically defended it in dozens of articles, interviews and news conferences. Chinese intellectuals, Tian suggested, will next confront worsening relations with the United States. We have to choose what side were on, including us scholars, right? he said. Sorry, the goal now is not Westernization; its the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Chris Buckley c.2020 The New York Times Company PIGGS PEAK A search for an alleged rapist ended badly when a police officer opened fire on another man, causing fatal injury. The man (25), who was identified as Simanga Mpila, was shot dead around Sidvwashini under Ntfonjeni Inkhundla after an alleged scuffle with police officers. Mpila is said to have been a friend to a man whom the police were looking for regarding a rape incident. Trouble is said to have started when three police officers arrived at the alleged rapists place of abode in an attempt to arrest him. This was after they had received a report that the wanted suspect was living with another person (Mpila). Upon arrival, the police officers did not find the man they were pursuing, but his friend, who was later shot. Just as the police were engaging Mpila, a scuffle is said to have ensued. It is believed that the scuffle was further exacerbated when the police noticed some dagga in the house. Confronted Mpila is said to have confronted one of the police officers in an aggressive manner, allegedly resulting in a scuffle over the law enforcers firearm. It was allegedly during the scuffle that the firearm went off, causing fatal injury to Mpila. Mpila is alleged to have jumped onto the police officer but the cop was quick to defend himself, resulting in the man being shot. The incident happened at an area which is close to the South African borderline and the officers are said to have been concerned that he would grab the firearm and escape into the neighbouring country. After the shooting, the man was rushed to the Piggs Peak Government Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent Phindile Vilakati confirmed the shooting. Intervene Vilakati also stated that the police had gone to look for a rape suspect but that instead, another person tried to intervene. She confirmed that the deceased had wrestled with a police officer over a firearm. It was during the scuffle, according to Vilakati, that a shot was fired, causing severe injury to the man who later died. The alleged rape suspect is still on the run. Noteworthy is that this publication recently reported about an incident where a thug tried to wrestle a member of the Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force (UEDF) in an attempt to take his weapon. The thug was shot in the leg causing severe injury. He was rushed to the Siteki Government Hospital where he was admitted for treatment. Integrated Computer Solutions, Inc. (ICS) announced today that Defense Information Systems Agency awarded RedTeam Engineering, LLC (RedTeam) a prime position on the Defense Information Services Agency (DISA) Systems Engineering, Technology, and Innovation (SETI) Government-wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC). The contract represents new work for the company, has a ten year ordering period, and a total ceiling value of $7.5 billion. DISA designed SETI to speed government procurement of critical engineering expertise to research, design, develop, implement, integrate, and optimize Department of Defense (DoD) information technology capabilities, systems, and solutions. ICS led the formation of the RedTeam Engineering joint venture (RTEJV). RTEJV is comprised of some of the most innovative and thought-leading businesses and includes an ecosystem of industry partners that ensure we provide a single point of entry for any customer requirement, anywhere in the world, at any time. RTEJV Members include ICS, Innovation Labs, SPECInnovations, and Heptagon. This award demonstrates the result of our investments in Innovation Research & Development (IR&D) via our ICS Labs division, said Steve Goldsby, Project Manager of RTEJV, and the CEO of ICS. We established ICS Labs specifically to deliver innovative solutions in SETI technical areas including cybersecurity, modernization, cloud, and analytics to DISA and its DOD mission partners. Led by our Chief Digital and Innovation Officer Tom Brazil, ICS Labs optimizes IR&D spending and compresses innovation timelines using our Agile Innovation Management System. About RTEJV RedTeam Engineering includes some of the most innovative and thought-leading small businesses in the industry and an ecosystem of industry partners that ensure we provide a single point of entry for any customer requirement, anywhere in the world, at any time. http://www.rtejv.com Integrated Computer Solutions, Inc. ICS brings an intimate understanding of DoD and mission partner needs, sophisticated business systems, and proven ability to manage contractor teams (including $50B global IT providers). Our proven processes, personnel, and systems maximize our ability to deliver against any requirement and minimizes risk to DoD. http://www.icsinc.com Innovation Labs One of the worlds leading innovation consulting firms, Innovation Labs provides a scalable framework that can be applied to DoD innovation requirements in support of any program, maximizing the value of those innovation projects. Innovation Labs portfolio has been refined over 16 years serving Global 100 companies, services including the Innovation Audit, Innovation Workshops, Innovation Labs, Scenario Planning, Strategy, and Certification. http://www.innovationlabs.com SPECInnovations SPECInnovations brings a proven ability to deliver against the engineering requirements of any size and complexity. With an established team of senior systems engineers with capability and performance building enterprise architectures (EA) for major DoD entities, SPECInnovations provides an innovative cloud-based Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) platform (Innoslate) that ensures requirements traceability throughout the lifecycle and the ability to model complex systems using LML, SysML, IDEF0, and DoDAF diagrams. Mod/Sim capability ensures DISA understands the implications of any decision at any point in the lifecycle. http://www.specinnovations.com Heptagon Heptagon brings world-class network engineering on a global scale. With in-depth knowledge of the Joint Regional Security Stacks (JRSS) and SIPRNet JRSS (S-JRSS), Heptagon brings DoD low-risk capability for enterprise network requirements, including VoIP and eVoIP. Heptagon was part of the original group of engineers responsible for designing the USAF migration solution to DoD JRSS EA in less than 30 days. http://www.heptagonit.com member was cremated at the Chhatarpur crematorium here in the presence of family members and relatives on Monday. The last rites took place around 11:30 am. His two daughters consigned his mortal remains to flames. His wife Pankaja Singh was present there. Due to COVID-19 protocols, Singh's last rites were performed in the presence of a limited number of people. The 64-year-old, who died on Saturday in Singapore, had been undergoing treatment at a hospital there for six months and had undergone a kidney transplant in 2013. Singh's body was brought to the capital in a chartered aircraft on Sunday evening. Political leaders, family members and relatives paid their last respects to Singh. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP member Jyotiraditya Scindia, and Jaya Prada were among the first ones to pay floral tributes to the former Samajwadi Party leader at his Chhatarpur farmhouse. (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.) A look inside refrigerators across San Antonio will reveal one thing: People here love their H-E-B brand products. Given the choice between national labels or one of H-E-B's family of brands, many Texans will tell you anything with the signature, red oblong logo is in their basket. For example, I won't eat any French onion dip unless its an H-E-B Select Ingredients product. Some products warrant more than an "Mmmmm, good stuff " at the kitchen table. Judging by the daily Twitter reviews, fans of the grocery store chain want H-E-B to know how much they enjoy its brands. Shopper are always eager to tweet to the store's twitter account to tell them what they love, from mango chamoy ice cream to black pepper ketchup. One customer went as far as to suggest other grocery stores should carry H-E-B products after tasting the Mootopia milk. Another called H-E-B "the makers of everything great." Have room on your shopping list to try a few new things? Take some suggestions from the fellow Texans below. CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Japan will on Monday release final Q1 numbers for gross domestic product, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. Previously, GDP was called lower by 1.9 percent on quarter and 7.2 percent annualized. China will see July results for the manufacturing PMI from Caixin, with forecasts suggesting a score of 51.3 - up slightly from 51.2 in June. Australia will release July numbers for the Performance of Manufacturing Index from the Australian Industry Group and for job ads from ANZ. In June, the manufacturing index score was 51.5, while job ads surged 42.0 percent on month. Indonesia will see July figures for consumer prices, with forecasts suggesting an increase of 0.03 percent on month and 1.66 percent on year - slowing from 0.18 percent on month and 1.96 percent on year in June. Core CPI is tipped to gain an annual 2.11 percent, easing from 2.26 percent in the previous month. Finally, several of the regional nations will see July results for their respective manufacturing PMIs from Markit Economics, including Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. John Hume, who spent over 40 years campaigning for peace and a lasting solution to the Northern Ireland conflict, has died in his native Derry aged 83 years. Mr Humes family announced his passing this morning. Expand Close Former SDLP leader John Hume. Photo: PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Former SDLP leader John Hume. Photo: PA Read More In a statement, they said: We are deeply saddened to announce that John passed away peacefully in the early hours of the morning after a short illness. We would like to extend our deepest and heartfelt thanks to the care and nursing staff of Owen Mor nursing home in Derry. The care they have shown John in the last months of his life has been exceptional. They added: John was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a great grandfather and a brother. He was very much loved, and his loss will be deeply felt by all his extended family. It seems particularly apt for these strange and fearful days to remember the phrase that gave hope to John and so many of us through dark times: we shall overcome. I never thought in terms of being a leader. I thought very simply in terms of helping people. Nobel Laureate and former SDLP Leader John Hume passed away last night. We all live in the Ireland he imagined - at peace and free to decide our own destiny. Thank you, John. pic.twitter.com/0yO5KWaTv7 Social Democratic and Labour Party (@SDLPlive) August 3, 2020 The SDLP have paid tribute to him on social media, writing: "I never thought in terms of being a leader. I thought very simply in terms of helping people. "Nobel Laureate and former SDLP Leader John Hume passed away last night. We all live in the Ireland he imagined - at peace and free to decide our own destiny. "Thank you, John." Mr Hume, a teacher turned politician, has been widely acknowledged as the key person in ending 30 years of violence in the North which cost over 3,600 human lives. Over decades he built up huge influence in the USA and Europe, as well as London and Dublin, and finally even convinced the IRA of the value of his ideals, much of which were enshrined in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. Former US President Bill Clinton, whose backing for the peace process was crucial, paid a warm tribute. John Hume, and the results he achieved in Northern Ireland, stand as a stunning rebuke to the people who chose violence, President Clinton said. John Hume was honoured with the Nobel Peace Prize in 1998, and in 2010 he was voted Irelands Greatest Person in a poll for RTE television. He had retired from active politics in 2004 and in recent years suffered a number of health problems including dementia. In 2015, his wife of 55 years, Pat Hume also spoke publicly about his declining health, and how the people of his beloved Derry looked out for him when he sometimes strayed about his native city. He was born in Derry in January 1937 and he often recalled how his great-grandfather, Sam Hume, had been a Scottish Presbyterian. Derry was a majority Catholic/Nationalist city but also the centre of shocking discrimination on jobs and housing by the Protestant minority, something he challenged from a very young age. Educated locally in St Columbs College, he originally went to Maynooth to study for the Catholic priesthood. He abandoned this plan and became a teacher of history and French, and a community activist in Derry. He and Pat Hume, also a teacher, married in 1960 and they had five children. His wife supported him throughout his long political work and for a time was the sole family breadwinner when the Norths politics had broken down and he had no income. His early community activism included the credit union movement, in which he became a national leader, and also housing action in Derry. This involved a constant fighting discrimination against nationalists and naturally led on to early involvement in the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association, inspired by similar movements in the USA and Europe. John Hume was a life-long advocate of peaceful protest who also criticised the old Nationalist Partys failure to properly represent the Catholic minority. In 1969 he defeated the Nationalist leader, Eddy McAteer, to take a seat in the Stormont parliament for Derry. In 1970 he helped found the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) seeking justice via non-violent action and attempting to especially unite all nationalists. He was briefly Commerce Minister in the ill-starred power-sharing government, set up under the 1973 Sunningdale Agreement but smashed by Loyalist trade unions. From 1972 onwards he had begun successfully forging long-term links with key Irish-US politicians, notably Senators Ted Kennedy and US House speaker, Tipp ONeill. These people eventually exerted big influence in London on the Northern Ireland issues. Elected to the European Parliament in 1979 he became an increasingly influential figure in Dublin, London, Brussels and Washington and he also took over leadership of the SDLP. By that time he was also well known in Brussels as he had been working periodically for Irelands EU Commissioner, Dick Burke. He was associated with the New Ireland Forum in 1984 which led on to the 1985 Anglo Irish Agreement. In the early 1990s he began controversial talks with Sinn Fein and the IRA via Gerry Adams. He faced down heavy criticism on all sides and endured long periods of doubt. But the contact helped yield an IRA ceasefire in 1994 and the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. In 2001 he turned down an opportunity to become Northern Ireland deputy first minister and retired in 2004. In recent years he has suffered poor health. A removal for Mr Hume will leave Moville, Co Donegal, to the Cathedral of Saint Eugene, Derry, for 5.00pm tomorrow. The funeral mass will take place at 11.30am on Wednesday and will be broadcast at 11.30am on RTE One and also televised on RTE News Now, and on its online and digital platforms. The mass will also be live-streamed on the Steugenes Cathedral website. President Donald Trump on Monday claimed mail-in votes will lead to a 'great embarrassment our country' this November, argued the United States Post Office is not ready to handle the millions of ballots expected to come through its system and advised New York to redo its June primary contest that remains undecided. The president has railed against the mail-in voting option that many states are turning to in order to combat the spread of the coronavirus. He slammed Nevada officials for approving a vote-by-mail election for this November and pointed to a New York congressional primary that was held on June 23 and remains undecided as a reason to fear mail-in ballots for the presidential election. 'There's never been a push like this for mail-in ballots,' the president said, not addressing the concerns long lines at voting booths could spread the coronavirus. President Donald Trump claimed mail-in votes will lead to a 'great embarrassment our country' this November, argued the United States Post Office is not ready to handle the millions of ballots expected to come through its system and advised New York to redo its June primary contest that remains undecided A New York Congressional primary contest between Representative Carolyn Maloney and challenger Suraj Patel remains undecided six weeks later He noted New York's Democratic primary contest between Representative Carolyn Maloney and challenger Suraj Patel remains undecided. He called on the state to 'rerun that race.' 'If you look at the New York congressional race which is a disaster, it's been a total disaster. They are six weeks into it now and they have no clue what's going on, and I think I can say right here and now, you have to rerun that race because it's a mess. Nobody knows what's happening with the ballots or the lost ballots and the fraudulent ballots I guess. I think you probably have to take the Carolyn Maloney race and run it over again. This is a small race with literally thousands of people, small thousands and it's all messed up,' he said. Patel trails Maloney by some 3,700 votes, though more than 12,000 ballots have been disqualified, including about 1,200 that were missing postmarks, he told The New York Times. The state board of elections in New York said they had several workers stricken with the coronavirus and that put them behind in their counting. Plus turnout was more than anticipated. In New York City alone, more than 10 times the number of absentee ballots received in any other recent election came in. Trump repeated his charge that states that are going to mail-in voting, like Nevada, are using the pandemic to steal the election. 'They are using covid to try to get the mail-in ballots,' he said. Cages loaded with ballots in United Postal Service bins rest behind a worker at a Board of Elections facility in New York Wednesday Trump claimed the U.S. Postal System will not be able to handle the millions of mail-in ballots that will go through its system for the general election The president also charged the post office would not be ready to handle the millions of ballots expected to go through the mail system. 'I don't think the post office has prepared for a thing like this,' he said. Some state election officials have expressed similar concerns about the post office but postal workers charge that changes made by the new post master general - a large Republican contributor to Trump who was appointed by the president - have led to delays in the mail. But President Trump claimed it was the fault of online retailers like Amazon were contributing to the problem because they use the post office to make their delivers. Many online companies use a variety of delivery services - including the post office, FedEx, and UPS - to make deliveries. 'How can the post office be expected to handle -- they have regular mailing and then now on top of that, they have the internet where you have Amazon and these companies doing all the buying instead of going to a department store, they go by through mail so you have massive numbers of purchases now going through the post office, purchases of items and gifts, and that's a tremendous strain on the post office,' he complained during his press conference at the White House on Monday. Trump added the Republican Party would be suing in Nevada to stop the mail-in voting, as it is suing in other states like California. The president started off his Monday morning with an attack on mail-in voting, accusing Nevada of conducting an 'illegal late night coup' with its decision to embrace that option as Republicans fret Trump's salvos could hurt them at the ballot box in November. Lawmakers in Nevada on Sunday passed a bill to have November's vote be conducted by all mail-in ballots. The governor is expected to sign it, meaning Nevada will join several other states that have taken that option as a way to combat the coronavirus epidemic. Trump and Republicans have warned that such moves will lead to voter fraud despite repeated studies that show that is not the case. The president decried Nevada's move in a tweet Monday morning. The state is a critical one for November's election. 'In an illegal late night coup, Nevada's clubhouse Governor made it impossible for Republicans to win the state. Post Office could never handle the Traffic of Mail-In Votes without preparation. Using Covid to steal the state. See you in Court!,' he wrote. President Donald Trump railed against what he called an 'illegal late night coup' in Nevada after state decides to let vote be conducted all by mail-in Pundits warn Americans won't know if Trump or Joe Biden won on election night because of time it will take to count mail-in votes; election results could take a week or more The Republican Party has launched lawsuits in several states - including California - that are expanding their mail-in voting options in response to the pandemic. Seven states have decided to automatically mail ballots to voters without them having to request one. Five states already conduct elections by mail-in ballots. And many other states have allowed fear of the coronavirus to be used as a reason for requesting an absentee ballot. Trump has repeatedly slammed mail-in voting even as he defends absentee voting, which he used in Florida's presidential primary and plans to use in the general election. But Republicans are starting to worry that the president's attacks on mail-in ballots could keep their own voters from using that option in November, hurting them on election day. Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel and Trump advisers have warned the president he could hurt the GOP at the ballot box, urging him to encourage absentee voting, The Washington Post reported. The president spent Monday morning sending out a half a dozen tweets on the election, his approval rating and the coronavirus pandemic. He also claimed his visits to Texas and Florida last week showed strong support for his candidacy compared to rival Joe Biden. 'My visits last week to Texas and Frorida (sp) had massive numbers of cheering people gathered along the roads and highways, thousands and thousands, even bigger (by far) than the crowds of 2016. Saw no Biden supporters, and yet some in the Fake News said it was an equal number. Sad!,' he tweeted. But mail-in voting remains a top topic on the president's mind. Trump has complained on many occasions Democrats are using the coronavirus to steal the election by expanding mail-in voting options. But governors counter that mail-in voting is needed to prevent long lines at polling places. Additionally, most election workers tend to be retirees, who are more at risk for the virus due to their age. And studies show low cases of voter fraud in mail-in voting. 'The bottom line is that absentee and mail balloting are secure in America,' Wendy Weiser, the director of the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center, told CNN. 'Election officials, Republicans and Democrats alike, pretty much universally are confident in the system.' Meanwhile, pundits are warning it's unlikely Americans will know if Trump or Joe Biden is the winner on election night due to the many states using mail-in voting. At least 77 per cent of voters in November will be able to vote by mail, according to an analysis by The Washington Post. And many states allow a mail-in ballot to be counted as long as it's post marked by Election Day, meaning a final result may not be known for days after November 3. Already the New York primary election has been affected by mail-in voting as the state has yet to complete the count for several primary races that took place on June 23. And Pennsylvania's board of elections saw tens of thousands of ballots arrived in the week after the June 2 primary election, many which were counted after an order from the governor. The state expects the same scenario in November. 'I don't think it's penetrated enough in the average viewer's mind that there's not going to be an election night. The usual razzmatazz of a panel sitting around discussing election results that's dead,' Brandon Finnigan, the founder of Decision Desk HQ, told The New York Times. President Trump has stoked elections fears with his tweets and news interviews, leading Democrats to worry he will attempt to delegitimize the election. 'This president is going to try to indirectly steal the election by arguing that mail-in ballots dont work theyre not real, theyre not fair,' Biden told a virtual fundraiser last week. Trump warned on Friday the United States would face its 'biggest election disaster in history' with mail-in ballots being used this fall. 'This is going to be the biggest election disaster in history,' Trump predicted of the November contest, adding the results may never be known. 'You won't know the election result for weeks, months, maybe years after. Maybe you'll never know the election result. And that's what I'm concerned with. It'll be fixed. It'll be rigged,' he said at the White House during an event with police chiefs. 'Watch what happens,' he said. Trump has, of late, refused to say if he'll accept what happens in November. Asked by Axios' Jonathan Swan, in an interview to air Monday on HBO, the president wouldn't say if he would accept the will of the voters but did argue Hillary Clinton hadn't accepted the 2016 election. 'Hillary Clinton didn't accepted them. She's still never accepted them,' Trump said. Clinton formally conceded to President Trump in both a private phone call and in a public speech after the election. Trump has questioned the legitimacy of using mail-in ballots in November, an option many states are using to help combat the spread of the coronavirus. The president went as far to suggest postponing the election. Last week Trump doubled down on his threat to delay November's election, citing concerns mail-in voting could lead to a 'rigged' and 'crooked' result. The president, in a brief news conference at the White House on Thursday evening, said he didn't want to see the election delayed but also argued he didn't want to see mail-in ballots go missing, indicating his opposition to mail-in voting remains an issue in regards to the general election. President Donald Trump doubled down on his threat to delay November's election, citing concerns mail-in voting could lead to a 'rigged' and 'crooked' result President Trump said he was concerned that mail-in voting, which many states are considering as an alternative to in-person voting to help combat the spread of the coronavirus, could lead to miss ballots and a 'rigged' election Trump and some Republicans have pushed the unproven claim that mail-in voting leads to fraud and they've also questioned the ability of the U.S. Postal Service to get all the ballots delivered to the various state boards of election. 'We're asking for a lot of trouble,' Trump said. 'Do I want to see a date change? No. But I don't want to see a crooked election. This election will be the most rigged election in history.' More and more states are looking at mail-in voting options as a way to counter the coronavirus pandemic but Republicans believe that favors voting blocs that vote Democrats and are suing several states to stop the process. 'I don't want to delay,' Trump added. 'I want to have the election. But I also don't want to have to wait three months and then find out that the ballots are all missing and the election doesn't mean anything. That what's going to happen.' 'And everyone knows it,' he added. 'Smart people know. Stupid people may not know it. Some people don't want to talk about it. But they know it.' Meanwhile, the U.S. Postal Service is experiencing days-long backlogs of mail, sparking fears the problem could continue into November and affect the election. Additionally, an internal report from the postal service warned almost half the states are not providing adequate time for workers to deliver ballots ahead of the election. Several states affected are battleground ones that could decide if Trump or Biden is the next president and it's big cities - which are hot beds of Democratic voters - that will likely be most affected. U.S. Post Office is experiencing massive delays due to changes implemented by the post master general appointed by President Donald Trump - delays that could affect the election An internal report from the Postal Service warned there are 24 states with deadlines close enough to the election that do provide or at high risk for not giving the post office time to deliver ballots before the election Several states affected are battleground ones that could decide if Donald Trump or Joe Biden is the next president But the delays are the result of changes put in place by Trump fundraiser-turned-postmaster general Louis DeJoy, The Washington Post reported, leading to allegations of that the election is being undermined by politics. President Trump and his Republican allies have attacked the U.S. Post Office, saying the postal system cannot be trusted to deliver mail-in ballots to the various state boards of elections to be counted. The number of mail-in ballots is expected to be unusually high this year as states are expanding that voting option to help combat the spread of the coronavirus. The changes DeJoy implemented include prohibiting overtime pay, shutting down sorting machines early and requiring letter carriers to leave mail to avoid extra trips or late delivery on routes. His supporters say the moves are to cut costs and help the debt-ridden service make its way to the black. But postal workers told the newspaper that the changes have resulted in at least a two day delay in parts of the country along with bins and bins of unsorted, undelivered mail piling up in post offices. Additionally, many states use a postmark to determine whether or not a ballot meets the deadline to be counted and the delays in processing could affect them, meaning a ballot that was mailed in time still may not have the election day post mark that many states require in order for it to be counted. An internal report from the Postal Service warned there are 24 states with deadlines close enough to the election that do not provide or at high risk for not giving the post office time to deliver ballots before the election. The states include the battleground states of New Hampshire, Maine, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, and Ohio. 'Ballots requested less than seven days before an election are at a high risk of not being delivered, completed by voters, and returned to the election offices in time,' the report stated. Louis DeJoy is an American businessman and Republican Party fundraiser who was appointed in May 2020 by unanimous selection of the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service to serve as the 75th United States Postmaster General In Michigan, which is using expanded mail-in voting options for its August 4 primary and the general election, officials are encouraging voters to drop off their absentee ballot to their local clerks in person. 'This close to the primary, Michiganders should return their absentee ballots to their clerk's office directly, or submit them via their local ballot drop box, in order to ensure their vote is counted,' Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said in a statement last week. Benson became a target of Trump's wrath in May when she mailed absentee ballot applications to the state's 7.7 million registered voters. The president threatened to withhold federal funding from the state in return. Post office workers spoke of their fears about the November election. 'I'm actually terrified to see election season under the new procedure,' said Lori Cash, president of the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 183 in Western New York, told The Post. David Partenheimer, spokesman for the U.S. Postal Service, responded that the delays were temporary and would not impact the upcoming election. He called allegations DeJoy takes directions from President Trump are 'wholly misplaced and off-base' and pointed out the postmaster general is appointed by a bipartisan board of governors. Michigan Postal Workers Union President Michael Mize described to a local news outlet how workers were no longer allowed to stay late at their distribution centers until all of the mail for their route was sorted and ready to be sent out. 'Eventually this [is] going to cause long-term, large delays if we don't do something,' he said. He predicted big cities like Detroit and Grand Rapids would be most affected - areas that are heavy with Democratic voters. The winner of the presidential election would not be sworn into office until Wednesday, January 20, 2021, which would give almost three months for all ballots to be counted. In 2000, the winner of the George W. Bush and Al Gore contest was not declared until December 12 after numerous recounts in Florida and a ruling by the Supreme Court. "Collaborative research efforts leveraging adaptive platform trials enable faster and more complete learning about what works for patients, and they are especially critical for addressing urgent public health threats like COVID-19," said Dr. Mark McClellan, director of the Robert J. Margolis, Center for Health Policy at Duke University and former commissioner of the U.S. FDA and administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. "Platform trials bring down the cost and increase the ease of executing well-powered, high quality studies, especially when multiple, potential therapies need to be evaluated quickly. The I-SPY COVID Trial is expanding a timely and effective platform trial strategy to evaluate promising treatments while maintaining an appropriate level of safety and statistical rigor necessary for regulatory evaluation." The study is a collaboration between members of the COVID R&D Alliance, Quantum Leap, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). AbbVie, Amgen, and Takeda are members of the COVID R&D Alliance (COVID R&D), a group of more than 20 of the world's leading biopharmaceutical and life science companies working to speed the development of potential therapies, novel antibodies, and anti-viral therapies for COVID-19 and its related symptoms. "Sick patients in hospitals cannot wait; options are urgently needed. I'm proud to partner with AbbVie and Amgen and the dozens of other companies who have joined the COVID R&D Alliance, to initiate critical platform trials like I-SPY COVID," remarked Andy Plump, President of R&D at Takeda Pharmaceuticals and co-founder of the COVID R&D Alliance. "The world learned of COVID-19 only six months ago, and the speed at which the scientific community has joined forces to address the critically high unmet need is inspiring. Together, experts across our companies and industry can accelerate trials with promising, well-understood therapies that upon investigation, may show efficacy in this devastating disease." The therapies under investigation were selected based on their potential to impact the immune system response of COVID-19 patients who need respiratory support. Approximately 10-15 percent of patients afflicted by COVID-19 develop acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and up to 60 percent of those patients admitted to an ICU require ventilation for an average of two weeks. It is estimated that half of those patients will not survive. Based on the respective mechanisms of action, Otezla may suppress inflammation resulting from an immune response, Firazyr may ameliorate bradykinin-driven pulmonary edema, and cenicriviroc acts by blocking monocytes trafficking to tissues, features that may help to reduce or mitigate the severity of ARDS response in severely ill COVID-19 patients. Dr. Laura Esserman, co-founder of Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative and lead investigator of the I-SPY Trials stated, "The level of cooperation among pharma companies in response to the pandemic is unprecedented. The COVID R&D Alliance stepped forward to streamline the process of identifying safe, scalable and potentially effective agents and joined with the I-SPY consortium to propel our efforts forward at record speed. We are excited to open the trial and work to reduce the devastating effects of the virus in severely ill COVID patients, and to do it now, when we need it most." I-SPY COVID is one of several platform studies being pursued by members of COVID R&D to test promising therapeutic candidates faster than any single company could do operating alone. Members are investigating marketed and late-stage therapies indicated for other disease states, which, based on their mechanisms of action may have a potential treatment effect in COVID-19 patients. The group is employing adaptive platform trial methodologies that enable the ability to test multiple therapies simultaneously and modify protocols in real-time based on outcomes observed. In addition to designing and sponsoring several platform trials, the COVID R&D Alliance is: Evaluating more than 1,900 preclinical candidates against active controls to uncover which hold the greatest promise for COVID-19. Reviewing promising early-stage candidates that may show potential efficacy against COVID-19, and connecting them with potential funders from venture capital or pharmaceutical developers to enable rapid advancement. Working with TransCelerate's DataCelerate platform to enable real-time data sharing and real-world evidence to inform ongoing and future studies in COVID-19, so research communities benefit from learnings and avoid duplication. platform to enable real-time data sharing and real-world evidence to inform ongoing and future studies in COVID-19, so research communities benefit from learnings and avoid duplication. Operating as an interlocutor with governments, regulators, and non-governmental organizations to share insights and engage in other platform trials. About the I-SPY COVID Trial The I-SPY COVID Trial ( I nvestigation of S erial Studies to P redict Y our COVID Therapeutic Response with Biomarker Integration and Adaptive Learning) is an adaptive platform trial designed to increase trial efficiency by minimizing the number of participants and time required to evaluate experimental and/or repurposed drugs. The focus of the trial is to improve outcomes for severely-ill COVID-19 patientsthose who require at least 6L of high-flow oxygen either by mask or nasal cannula, known as level 5 on the World Health Organization (WHO) COVID scale, an 8 point ordinal scale of clinical severity status. The primary endpoint of I-SPY COVID is time to achieve level 4 (or less) for at least 48 hours on the WHO COVID scale. Key secondary endpoints include duration of time on ventilator and mortality. The I-SPY COVID Trial is sponsored and managed by Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative. For more information, visit www.quantumleaphealth.org or www.ispytrials.org. About the COVID R&D Alliance Organized in March 2020, the COVID R&D Alliance is operating unconstrained by past models of development and is accelerating study candidates without regard to company affiliation. Members are sharing clinical trial data and real-world evidence, as well as crowd-sourcing early stage candidates to identify mechanisms and treatments that may be effective against COVID-19. Initial efforts by the group focus on advancing well understood therapies and late-stage investigational medicines for severely ill patients who need options. Future activities will expand to testing re-purposed molecules, early stage candidates, and therapeutic drug combinations. Additional information on the COVID R&D Alliance is available at www.CovidRDAlliance.com. About Cenicriviroc (CVC) CVC is an oral, once-daily, potent immunomodulator that blocks two chemokine receptors, CCR2 and CCR5, which are intricately involved in the inflammatory and fibrogenic pathways in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) known to cause liver damage including cirrhosis, liver cancer, or liver failure. These pathways have also been shown to be closely involved with the respiratory sequelae of COVID-19 and of related viral infections. Because of CVC's unique mechanisms of action, the drug has been viewed as having a potential role in the treatment of COVID-19 patients, in addition to its potential in the management liver fibrosis due to NASH, including as a part of combination-treatment strategies. CVC has been studied in both NASH patients and in HIV+ patients, and is in Phase 3 development for NASH. CVC has been granted Fast Track status in adults with liver fibrosis due to NASH, the population at highest risk of progression to cirrhosis. About Otezla (apremilast) OTEZLA (apremilast) is an oral small-molecule inhibitor of phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) specific for cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). PDE4 inhibition results in increased intracellular cAMP levels, which is thought to indirectly modulate the production of inflammatory mediators. The specific mechanism(s) by which Otezla exerts its therapeutic action in patients is not well defined. Otezla is currently approved for use in more than 45 countries as an oral treatment for inflammatory diseases including psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis and Behcet's disease. By inhibiting PDE4, Otezla is thought to modulate the production of inflammatory cytokines and other mediators, which may prove helpful in inhibiting the inflammatory response associated with the signs, symptoms and pulmonary involvements observed in some COVID-19 patients. Amgen plans to collaborate with platform trials to investigate Otezla's ability to prevent clinical deterioration in patients with COVID-19. Otezla (apremilast) U.S. INDICATIONS Otezla (apremilast) is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis who are candidates for phototherapy or systemic therapy. Otezla is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with active psoriatic arthritis. Otezla is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with oral ulcers associated with Behcet's Disease. Otezla (apremilast) U.S. IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION Contraindications Otezla (apremilast) is contraindicated in patients with a known hypersensitivity to apremilast or to any of the excipients in the formulation Warnings and Precautions Diarrhea, Nausea, and Vomiting: Cases of severe diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting were associated with the use of Otezla. Most events occurred within the first few weeks of treatment. In some cases, patients were hospitalized. Patients 65 years of age or older and patients taking medications that can lead to volume depletion or hypotension may be at a higher risk of complications from severe diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting. Monitor patients who are more susceptible to complications of diarrhea or vomiting; advise patients to contact their healthcare provider. Consider Otezla dose reduction or suspension if patients develop severe diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting Depression: Carefully weigh the risks and benefits of treatment with Otezla for patients with a history of depression and/or suicidal thoughts/behavior, or in patients who develop such symptoms while on Otezla. Patients, caregivers, and families should be advised of the need to be alert for the emergence or worsening of depression, suicidal thoughts, or other mood changes, and they should contact their healthcare provider if such changes occur Psoriasis: Treatment with Otezla is associated with an increase in depression. During clinical trials, 1.3% (12/920) of patients reported depression compared to 0.4% (2/506) on placebo. Depression was reported as serious in 0.1% (1/1308) of patients exposed to Otezla, compared to none in placebo-treated patients (0/506). Suicidal behavior was observed in 0.1% (1/1308) of patients on Otezla, compared to 0.2% (1/506) on placebo. One patient treated with Otezla attempted suicide; one patient on placebo committed suicide Treatment with Otezla is associated with an increase in depression. During clinical trials, 1.3% (12/920) of patients reported depression compared to 0.4% (2/506) on placebo. Depression was reported as serious in 0.1% (1/1308) of patients exposed to Otezla, compared to none in placebo-treated patients (0/506). Suicidal behavior was observed in 0.1% (1/1308) of patients on Otezla, compared to 0.2% (1/506) on placebo. One patient treated with Otezla attempted suicide; one patient on placebo committed suicide Psoriatic Arthritis: Treatment with Otezla is associated with an increase in depression. During clinical trials, 1.0% (10/998) reported depression or depressed mood compared to 0.8% (4/495) treated with placebo. Suicidal ideation and behavior was observed in 0.2% (3/1441) of patients on Otezla, compared to none in placebo-treated patients. Depression was reported as serious in 0.2% (3/1441) of patients exposed to Otezla, compared to none in placebo-treated patients (0/495). Two patients who received placebo committed suicide compared to none on Otezla Treatment with Otezla is associated with an increase in depression. During clinical trials, 1.0% (10/998) reported depression or depressed mood compared to 0.8% (4/495) treated with placebo. Suicidal ideation and behavior was observed in 0.2% (3/1441) of patients on Otezla, compared to none in placebo-treated patients. Depression was reported as serious in 0.2% (3/1441) of patients exposed to Otezla, compared to none in placebo-treated patients (0/495). Two patients who received placebo committed suicide compared to none on Otezla Behcet's Disease: Treatment with Otezla is associated with an increase in depression. During the phase 3 clinical trial, 1% (1/104) reported depression or depressed mood compared to 1% (1/103) treated with placebo. No instances of suicidal ideation or behavior were reported in patients treated with Otezla or treated with placebo Treatment with Otezla is associated with an increase in depression. During the phase 3 clinical trial, 1% (1/104) reported depression or depressed mood compared to 1% (1/103) treated with placebo. No instances of suicidal ideation or behavior were reported in patients treated with Otezla or treated with placebo Weight Decrease: Monitor body weight regularly; evaluate unexplained or clinically significant weight loss, and consider discontinuation of Otezla Psoriasis: During clinical trials, body weight loss of 5-10% occurred in 12% (96/784) of patients treated with Otezla and in 5% (19/382) of patients treated with placebo. Body weight loss of 10% occurred in 2% (16/784) of patients treated with Otezla compared to 1% (3/382) of patients treated with placebo During clinical trials, body weight loss of 5-10% occurred in 12% (96/784) of patients treated with Otezla and in 5% (19/382) of patients treated with placebo. Body weight loss of 10% occurred in 2% (16/784) of patients treated with Otezla compared to 1% (3/382) of patients treated with placebo Psoriatic Arthritis: During clinical trials, body weight loss of 5-10% was reported in 10% (49/497) of patients taking Otezla and in 3.3% (16/495) of patients taking placebo During clinical trials, body weight loss of 5-10% was reported in 10% (49/497) of patients taking Otezla and in 3.3% (16/495) of patients taking placebo Behcet's Disease: During the phase 3 clinical trial, body weight loss of >5% was reported in 4.9% (5/103) of patients taking Otezla and in 3.9% (4/102) of patients taking placebo During the phase 3 clinical trial, body weight loss of >5% was reported in 4.9% (5/103) of patients taking Otezla and in 3.9% (4/102) of patients taking placebo Drug Interactions: Apremilast exposure was decreased when Otezla was co-administered with rifampin, a strong CYP450 enzyme inducer; loss of Otezla efficacy may occur. Concomitant use of Otezla with CYP450 enzyme inducers (e.g., rifampin, phenobarbital, carbamazepine, phenytoin) is not recommended Adverse Reactions Psoriasis: Adverse reactions reported in 5% of patients were (Otezla%, placebo%): diarrhea (17, 6), nausea (17, 7), upper respiratory tract infection (9, 6), tension headache (8, 4), and headache (6, 4) Adverse reactions reported in 5% of patients were (Otezla%, placebo%): diarrhea (17, 6), nausea (17, 7), upper respiratory tract infection (9, 6), tension headache (8, 4), and headache (6, 4) Psoriatic Arthritis: Adverse reactions reported in at least 2% of patients taking Otezla, that occurred at a frequency at least 1% higher than that observed in patients taking placebo, for up to 16 weeks (after the initial 5-day titration), were (Otezla%, placebo%): diarrhea (7.7, 1.6); nausea (8.9, 3.1); headache (5.9, 2.2); upper respiratory tract infection (3.9, 1.8); vomiting (3.2, 0.4); nasopharyngitis (2.6, 1.6); upper abdominal pain (2.0, 0.2) Adverse reactions reported in at least 2% of patients taking Otezla, that occurred at a frequency at least 1% higher than that observed in patients taking placebo, for up to 16 weeks (after the initial 5-day titration), were (Otezla%, placebo%): diarrhea (7.7, 1.6); nausea (8.9, 3.1); headache (5.9, 2.2); upper respiratory tract infection (3.9, 1.8); vomiting (3.2, 0.4); nasopharyngitis (2.6, 1.6); upper abdominal pain (2.0, 0.2) Behcet's Disease: Adverse reactions reported in at least 5% of patients taking Otezla, that occurred at a frequency at least 1% higher than that observed in patients taking placebo, for up to 12 weeks, were (Otezla%, placebo%): diarrhea (41.3, 20.4); nausea (19.2, 10.7); headache (14.4, 10.7); upper respiratory tract infection (11.5, 4.9); upper abdominal pain (8.7, 1.9); vomiting (8.7, 1.9); back pain (7.7, 5.8); viral upper respiratory tract infection (6.7, 4.9); arthralgia (5.8, 2.9) Use in Specific Populations Pregnancy: Otezla has not been studied in pregnant women. Advise pregnant women of the potential risk of fetal loss. Consider pregnancy planning and prevention for females of reproductive potential. There is a pregnancy exposure registry that monitors pregnancy outcomes in women exposed to Otezla during pregnancy. Information about the registry can be obtained by calling 1-877-311-8972 or visiting https://mothertobaby.org/ongoing-study/otezla/ Lactation: There are no data on the presence of apremilast or its metabolites in human milk, the effects of apremilast on the breastfed infant, or the effects of the drug on milk production. The developmental and health benefits of breastfeeding should be considered along with the mother's clinical need for Otezla and any potential adverse effects on the breastfed child from Otezla or from the underlying maternal condition Renal Impairment: Otezla dosage should be reduced in patients with severe renal impairment (creatinine clearance less than 30 mL/min) for details, see Dosage and Administration, Section 2, in the Full Prescribing Information Please click here for Otezla Full Prescribing Information. About Firazyr (icatibant injection) FIRAZYR (icatibant injection) is a bradykinin B2 receptor antagonist indicated for the treatment of acute attacks of hereditary angioedema (HAE) in adults 18 years of age and older. Indication may vary by country. It is administered by subcutaneous injection. It is thought that icatibant may ameliorate bradykinin-driven pulmonary edema by blocking the bradykinin-2 receptors. Firazyr (icatibant injection) IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION Laryngeal attacks can become life threatening. If you have an HAE attack of the throat (laryngeal attack), inject icatibant injection and then go to the nearest hospital emergency room right away. The most common side effects of icatibant injection include: redness, bruising, swelling, warmth, burning, itching, irritation, hives, numbness, pressure, or pain at the injection site fever too much of an enzyme called transaminase in your blood dizziness nausea headache rash These are not all of the possible side effects of icatibant injection. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away. You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any other medical conditions, if you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed, or if you are pregnant or planning to become pregnant. Icatibant injection has not been evaluated in pregnant or nursing women. You and your healthcare provider will decide if icatibant injection is right for you. If your symptoms continue or come back, you may repeat your icatibant injection at least 6 hours apart. Do not use more than 3 doses of icatibant injection in a 24-hour period. Tiredness, drowsiness, and dizziness have been reported following the use of icatibant injection. If this occurs, do not drive a car, use machinery, or do anything that needs you to be alert. Please see the full Prescribing Information. About AbbVie AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas: immunology, oncology, neuroscience, eye care, virology, women's health, and gastroenterology, in addition to products and services across its Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn. Forward-Looking Statements Some statements in this news release are, or may be considered, forward-looking statements for purposes of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "project" and similar expressions, among others, generally identify forward-looking statements. AbbVie cautions that these forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, competition from other products, challenges to intellectual property, difficulties inherent in the research and development process, adverse litigation or government action, and changes to laws and regulations applicable to our industry. Additional information about the economic, competitive, governmental, technological and other factors that may affect AbbVie's operations is set forth in Item 1A, "Risk Factors," of AbbVie's 2019 Annual Report on Form 10-K, which has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. AbbVie undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to forward-looking statements as a result of subsequent events or developments, except as required by law. About Amgen Amgen is committed to unlocking the potential of biology for patients suffering from serious illnesses by discovering, developing, manufacturing, and delivering innovative human therapeutics. This approach begins by using tools like advanced human genetics to unravel the complexities of disease and understand the fundamentals of human biology. Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages its biologics manufacturing expertise to strive for solutions that improve health outcomes and dramatically improve people's lives. A biotechnology pioneer since 1980, Amgen has grown to be the world's largest independent biotechnology company, has reached millions of patients around the world and is developing a pipeline of medicines with breakaway potential. For more information, visit www.amgen.com and follow us on www.twitter.com/amgen. Amgen Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on the current expectations and beliefs of Amgen. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements, including any statements on the outcome, benefits and synergies of collaborations, or potential collaborations, with any other company, including Adaptive Biotechnologies (including statements regarding such collaboration's, or our own, ability to discover and develop fully-human neutralizing antibodies targeting SARS-CoV-2 to potentially prevent or treat COVID-19), or the Otezla (apremilast) acquisition, including anticipated Otezla sales growth and the timing of non-GAAP EPS accretion, as well as estimates of revenues, operating margins, capital expenditures, cash, other financial metrics, expected legal, arbitration, political, regulatory or clinical results or practices, customer and prescriber patterns or practices, reimbursement activities and outcomes, effects of pandemics or other widespread health problems such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on Amgen's business, outcomes, progress, or effects relating to studies of Otezla as a potential treatment for COVID-19, and other such estimates and results. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties, including those discussed below and more fully described in the Securities and Exchange Commission reports filed by Amgen, including its most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent periodic reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K. Unless otherwise noted, Amgen is providing this information as of the date of this news release and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this document as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual results may differ materially from those Amgen projects. Discovery or identification of new product candidates or development of new indications for existing products cannot be guaranteed and movement from concept to product is uncertain; consequently, there can be no guarantee that any particular product candidate or development of a new indication for an existing product will be successful and become a commercial product. The scientific information discussed in this news release related to Amgen's product candidates is preliminary and investigative. Such product candidates are not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and no conclusions can or should be drawn regarding the safety or effectiveness of the product candidates. Further, any scientific information discussed in this news release relating to new indications for Amgen's products is preliminary and investigative and is not part of the labeling approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the products. The products are not approved for the investigational use(s) discussed in this news release, and no conclusions can or should be drawn regarding the safety or effectiveness of the products for these uses. About Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE:4502/NYSE:TAK) is a global, values-based, R&D-driven biopharmaceutical leader headquartered in Japan, committed to bringing better health and a brighter future to patients by translating science into highly-innovative medicines. Takeda focuses its R&D efforts on four therapeutic areas: Oncology, Rare Diseases, Neuroscience, and Gastroenterology (GI). We also make targeted R&D investments in Plasma-Derived Therapies and Vaccines. We are focusing on developing highly innovative medicines that contribute to making a difference in people's lives by advancing the frontier of new treatment options and leveraging our enhanced collaborative R&D engine and capabilities to create a robust, modality-diverse pipeline. Our employees are committed to improving quality of life for patients and to working with our partners in health care in approximately 80 countries. For more information, visit https://www.takeda.com. Takeda Forward-Looking Statements This press release and any materials distributed in connection with this press release may contain forward-looking statements, beliefs or opinions regarding Takeda's future business, future position and results of operations, including estimates, forecasts, targets and plans for Takeda. Without limitation, forward-looking statements often include words such as "targets", "plans", "believes", "hopes", "continues", "expects", "aims", "intends", "ensures", "will", "may", "should", "would", "could" "anticipates", "estimates", "projects" or similar expressions or the negative thereof. These forward-looking statements are based on assumptions about many important factors, including the following, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements: the economic circumstances surrounding Takeda's global business, including general economic conditions in Japan and the United States; competitive pressures and developments; changes to applicable laws and regulations; the success of or failure of product development programs; decisions of regulatory authorities and the timing thereof; fluctuations in interest and currency exchange rates; claims or concerns regarding the safety or efficacy of marketed products or product candidates; the impact of health crises, like the novel coronavirus pandemic, on Takeda and its customers and suppliers, including foreign governments in countries in which Takeda operates, or on other facets of its business; the timing and impact of post-merger integration efforts with acquired companies; the ability to divest assets that are not core to Takeda's operations and the timing of any such divestment(s); and other factors identified in Takeda's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F and Takeda's other reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, available on Takeda's website at: https://www.takeda.com/investors/reports/sec-filings/ or at www.sec.gov. Takeda does not undertake to update any of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release or any other forward-looking statements it may make, except as required by law or stock exchange rule. Past performance is not an indicator of future results and the results or statements of Takeda in this press release may not be indicative of, and are not an estimate, forecast, guarantee or projection of Takeda's future results. About Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative is a 501(C)(3) charitable organization established in 2005 as a collaboration between medical researchers at University of California, San Francisco and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. Our mission is to integrate high-impact research with clinical processes and systems technology, resulting in improved data management and information systems, greater access to clinical trial matching and sponsorship, and greater benefit to providers, patients, and researchers. Our goal is to improve and save lives. Quantum Leap provides operational, financial, and regulatory oversight to the I-SPY Trials. For more information, visit www.QuantumLeapHealth.org. SOURCE Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative Related Links https://www.quantumleaphealth.org Mumbai: Raksha Bandhan is an India auspicious festival to celebrate the special bond between Brother and Sister. A sister ties Rakhi to brother in return brother promises her to protect her from evil eyes. Bollywood's bold and bindass actress Sherlyn Chopra has some different ideas and forward Ideologies. Sherlyn Chopra is an actress who has made her name on her own terms and hard work. This Raksha Bandhan Sherlyn Chopra ties Rakhi to herself, Sherlyn said, " Today a girl doesnt need a brother to feel safe & protected. Todays woman can protect herself and her family from social evils and wrongdoers. I tie a rakhi to myself as I consider myself my guardian & protector. Every woman has the inner strength to become Kaali, the fiery Goddess who symbolises fearlessness, power, strength & sheer grit." On a work front, actress Sherlyn Chopra has worked in many Bollywood projects but decided to start her own venture and be a powerful entrepreneur. Redsher is the OTT platform with high-quality short films and web series produced and written and acted by Sherlyn Chopra. Sherlyn Chopra is a fitness freak and shares her hardcore workout video every and then. Who gets to be first in line for a COVID-19 vaccine? U.S. health authorities hope by late next month to have some draft guidance on how to ration initial doses, but its a vexing decision. Not everybodys going to like the answer, Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, recently told one of the advisory groups the government asked to help decide. There will be many people who feel that they should have been at the top of the list. Traditionally, first in line for a scarce vaccine are health workers and the people most vulnerable to the targeted infection. But Collins tossed new ideas into the mix: Consider geography and give priority to people where an outbreak is hitting hardest. And dont forget volunteers in the final stage of vaccine testing who get dummy shots, the comparison group needed to tell if the real shots truly work. We owe them ... some special priority, Collins said. Huge studies this summer aim to prove which of several experimental COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. Moderna Inc. and Pfizer Inc. began tests last week that eventually will include 30,000 volunteers each; in the next few months, equally large calls for volunteers will go out to test shots made by AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Novavax. And some vaccines made in China are in smaller late-stage studies in other countries. For all the promises of the U.S. stockpiling millions of doses, the hard truth: Even if a vaccine is declared safe and effective by year's end, there wont be enough for everyone who wants it right away -- especially as most potential vaccines require two doses. Its a global dilemma. The World Health Organization is grappling with the same who-goes-first question as it tries to ensure vaccines are fairly distributed to poor countries -- decisions made even harder as wealthy nations corner the market for the first doses. In the U.S., the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a group established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is supposed to recommend who to vaccinate and when -- advice that the government almost always follows. Story continues But a COVID-19 vaccine decision is so tricky that this time around, ethicists and vaccine experts from the National Academy of Medicine, chartered by Congress to advise the government, are being asked to weigh in, too. FILE - In this Monday, July 27, 2020 file photo, a nurse prepares a shot as a study of a possible COVID-19 vaccine, developed by the National Institutes of Health and Moderna Inc., gets underway in Binghamton, N.Y. Who gets to be first in line for a COVID-19 vaccine? U.S. health authorities hope by late next month to have some draft guidance on how to ration initial doses, but its a vexing decision. (AP Photo/Hans Pennink) Setting priorities will require creative, moral common sense, said Bill Foege, who devised the vaccination strategy that led to global eradication of smallpox. Foege is co-leading the academys deliberations, calling it both this opportunity and this burden. With vaccine misinformation abounding and fears that politics might intrude, CDC Director Robert Redfield said the public must see vaccine allocation as equitable, fair and transparent. How to decide? The CDCs opening suggestion: First vaccinate 12 million of the most critical health, national security and other essential workers. Next would be 110 million people at high risk from the coronavirus -- those over 65 who live in long-term care facilities, or those of any age who are in poor health -- or who also are deemed essential workers. The general population would come later. CDCs vaccine advisers wanted to know whos really essential. I wouldnt consider myself a critical health care worker, admitted Dr. Peter Szilagyi, a pediatrician at the University of California, Los Angeles. Indeed, the risks for health workers today are far different than in the pandemics early days. Now, health workers in COVID-19 treatment units often are the best protected; others may be more at risk, committee members noted. Beyond the health and security fields, does essential mean poultry plant workers or schoolteachers? And what if the vaccine doesnt work as well among vulnerable populations as among younger, healthier people? Its a real worry, given that older peoples immune systems dont rev up as well to flu vaccine. With Black, Latino and Native American populations disproportionately hit by the coronavirus, failing to address that diversity means whatever comes out of our group will be looked at very suspiciously, said ACIP chairman Dr. Jose Romero, Arkansas interim health secretary. Consider the urban poor who live in crowded conditions, have less access to health care and cant work from home like more privileged Americans, added Dr. Sharon Frey of St. Louis University. And it may be worth vaccinating entire families rather than trying to single out just one high-risk person in a household, said Dr. Henry Bernstein of Northwell Health. Whoever gets to go first, a mass vaccination campaign while people are supposed to be keeping their distance is a tall order. During the 2009 swine flu pandemic, families waited in long lines in parking lots and at health departments when their turn came up, crowding that authorities know they must avoid this time around. Operation Warp Speed, the Trump administrations effort to speed vaccine manufacturing and distribution, is working out how to rapidly transport the right number of doses to wherever vaccinations are set to occur. Drive-through vaccinations, pop-up clinics and other innovative ideas are all on the table, said CDCs Dr. Nancy Messonnier. As soon as a vaccine is declared effective, we want to be able the next day, frankly, to start these programs, Messonnier said. Its a long road. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Conservationists have captured footage of endangered tigers in a region of western Thailand for the first time in four years. The footage of the big cats is rekindling hope that tigers are returning to the forests of the country after being poached to near extinction and sold in the illegal wildlife trade. Remote camera traps captured three young Indochinese tigers in February and March. In one shot, a curious tiger comes right up to the camera to check out the device. Released to coincide with Global Tiger Day, the images were captured as part of a joint monitoring program between Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP), global wild cat conservation organization Panthera and the Zoological Society of London (ZSL). "In a sea of news casting doubt on the future of our planet's wildlife, this development is a welcome sign of hope and potential turning of the tide for the endangered tiger in Thailand," said John Goodrich, chief scientist and tiger program director for Panthera. The tigers are believed to have moved south from an established breeding population, with at least one tiger traveling about 80 kilometers (50 miles) to reach a new area near the Myanmar border. That part of Thailand is remote, mountainous and covered in thick tropical forest. However, the exact location of the tigers hasn't been made public to protect them from poachers. "We believe they are quite young and think they are all males," said Chris Hallam, Southeast Asia regional coordinator for Panthera, the global wild cat conservation organization. Hallam said that evidence of tigers moving into areas not seen before was significant because it means those areas are protected enough and have enough prey for them to settle. "We don't know that they are definitely stetted down in that area, but we are monitoring them closely," he said, adding that their presence signified "the recovery of an area that historically would have had tigers and is now sort of welcoming them back." There are an estimated 3,900 tigers left in the wild worldwide, down from 100,000 a century ago, with the majority in India. In Thailand, just 160 tigers are thought to remain. Poaching is the main cause of depleted tiger numbers, where the animals are hunted and killed to fuel the demand for the multi-billion dollar illegal wildlife trade. Tiger parts, such as skin and bone, are hugely sought after in the traditional medicine market. The destruction of their habitats from logging and human encroachment has also contributed to the decline. While they once flourished across much of Asia, tiger populations have been destroyed in China, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and much of Myanmar. Three populations are already extinct -- Caspian, Javan and Bali tigers. The South China tiger is also critically endangered, and possibly extinct in the wild. In 2010, all 13 countries with tiger populations committed to doubling the number of wild tigers by 2022, which is the Year of the Tiger in the Chinese zodiac. The Global Tiger Recovery Program has seen some success, including in India and Nepal. India's tiger population increased by a third between 2014 to 2018 to almost 3,000 animals, according to a national survey. Other areas have fared poorly. A 2019 report suggested that there are no tigers left in Laos and some experts warn tiger populations on the Malayan Peninsula could go extinct in two to three years. The new sightings in Thailand then are hugely important for the survival of the entire species. "Thailand is absolutely essential for tiger populations and tiger conservation," said Panthera's Hallam. "Thailand, especially for the Indochinese tiger, is the last bastion of hope for recovering that species." The chief of the wildlife research division for Thailand's DNP, Saksit Simcharoen, said the sightings were "encouraging for the future of tigers in our country and beyond." "These tigers are in a precarious situation. Sustained and stronger protection of this area from poaching activity of any kind is the key to ensuring these individuals live on, helping Thailand's tigers to rebound," he said. Recognizing that tigers faced extinction in Thailand, the government launched a plan to increase tiger numbers by 50% by 2022, with some success. The world's second known breeding population of Indochinese tigers was found in eastern Thailand in 2016. The discovery in the UNESCO World Heritage site of Dong-Phayayen Khao Yai Forest Complex included images of tiger cubs and was a significant step toward ensuring the survival of tigers in the country. The largest breeding ground is in the Thungyai-Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuaries in western Thailand. The new sightings, thought to have expanded from this region, are the result of a seven-year effort that included bolstering protected areas and tiger habitats, training rangers, strengthening law enforcement, and working with villages to better understand livelihoods and mitigate human-wildlife conflict. "To witness apex predators, like tigers, returning to forests means the ecosystem is recovering, which is good for all wildlife," said Eileen Larney, ZSL's Chief Technical Advisor in Thailand. "The situation for tigers worldwide remains precarious, but successes like this show that through our work with communities and governments, we can see populations start to recover." The Coalition of University Students is calling on government to reduce school fees for the 2020/2021 academic year as a result of the financial challenges caused by the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. The Coalition has written to the Minister Of State In Charge Of Tertiary Education to plead to the government on their behalf for the reduction in fees for the next academic year. The group argues that they have not really been captured in the Covid-19 interventions by the government to alleviate the challenges of the citizenry. Hence, a reduction in the fees for the next year will come in very handy. We appreciate the great work of His Excellency Nana Addo Danquah Akuffo Addo during these tough times for the good people of Ghana. We are indeed grateful. Prominent amongst these great works is the absorption of utility bills for over 50% Ghanaians, provision of personal protective equipment, funding to rescue small scale enterprises, and most recent one absorbing the 2020 WASSCE registration fees for all candidates. However, we as University students feel we have been left out by the government. We propose the reduction of fees for the 2020/2021 academic year, the petition from the Coalition of University Students has said. The Group further explains that the majority of the people who have been affected by COVID-19 are parents, some with their wards in the University. They insist that the government will need to help by reducing school fees because the loss of jobs would affect the ability of parents who have lost their job in these trying times to pay the fees of their wards for the ensuing academic year. Read below the petition from the Coalition below which contains a proposal on how the government can reduce school fees for the 2020/2021 academic year; As Mobile County reported a rise of 943 new cases of coronavirus over the weekend, one of the regions more popular Walmart Supercenters was closed due to an outbreak among employees. But by Monday, the Walmart in Tillmans Corner west of Mobile had been reopened. And the coronavirus cases, according to a Mobile County Public Health Department official, was the result of a surveillance aberration and might reflect cases reported earlier in the month. Instead of a spike, the county had fewer cases than first reported. They were laboratory tests performed on patients earlier in July, said Dr. Rendi Murphree, an epidemiologist with the Mobile County Health Department. She said both county and state health investigators had to manually process 800 to 1,000 laboratory tests that had not been put into the Alabama Department of Public Health Departments COVID-19 surveillance system. She said the team of six-to-eight investigators inputted the cases into the system on Friday and Saturday, and that most of the cases reflected cases from earlier in July. Thats the reason those numbers looked high on Friday and Saturday, said Murphree. The report (over the weekend) is artificially skewed because of the process we had to go in to manually (report the lab results). Murphree said it will not be uncommon to see spikes in COVID-19 cases since the surveillance system is overwhelmed by a large number of laboratory positives coming in around the county. Mobile County has reported 9,058 cases since the coronavirus pandemic began in March, which is the second-most in Alabama behind only Jefferson County. The countys 191 deaths are second to only Jefferson Countys total of 225. Mobile Countys 18.31% of new COVID-19 cases over the past two weeks represents the third highest among Alabamas 67 counties, according to data compiled by the website Bama Tracker. We are in an extremely high community-based transmission right now, she said. But Murphree said that if the weekend aberration is removed, the county had fewer cases last week than it did during the week of July 19-25. Its a hopeful sign that the mask ordinance and increased compliance with the mask (mandates) may have the intended effect, Murphree said. The county has required mask wearing since early July, while the states mandate has been in effect since July 15. Murphree, who provides updates on Mobile Countys COVID-19 situation on Monday and Friday afternoons, said she was unaware of the details over the closure of a Walmart Supercenter in Tillmans Corner. The store was shut down from 4 p.m. Saturday until 7 a.m. Monday for cleaning after COVID-19 cases were reported among staff. The company declined to provide additional information, including how many people were infected. The Tillmans Corner store is among the regions more popular Walmart Supercenters. In 2017, the store was one of a small handful of Walmarts nationwide to combine new technological features and redesigns as part of a makeover. We understand the role we play in providing our customers with food, medicine and other essential items during this time, Walmart spokesman Phillip Keene said on Saturday. We also understand (Mobile) has been hit especially hard by COVID-19. On Monday, everyone entering the Walmart store was wearing a face covering. Walmart has been requiring customers to wear face coverings at all its namesake stores and at its Sam Clubs stores since July 20. The Bentonville, Arkansas-based company implemented the nationwide policy at a time when about 65% of its more than 5,000 stores and clubs were in states and areas where there was a mandate required on face coverings. The Tillmans Corner Walmart has only one entrance and exit into the store remaining open. The store, as part of a company policy, restricts the number of people inside at any one time. The company also has an emergency leave policy in place for associates who are unable or uncomfortable coming to work. At the Tillmans Corner #Walmart on the day its reopened following a closure due to #COVID19. Home&Pharmacy entrance is closed, but a good crowd here today. pic.twitter.com/Yu7BFhwNlP John Sharp (@JohnSharp99) August 3, 2020 Walmart stores, like many other big-box retailers, are more controlled environments with one-way aisle shopping, sneeze guards at cash registers, and social distancing signage throughout. Erik Johnson, assistant professor of economics, finance, and legal students at the University of Alabama Culverhouse School of Business, said one of the ways retail stores are retaining customers during the pandemic is by simply making people feel comfortable. He said one of the biggest challenges for big-box retail businesses to make sure people are not waiting too long in a checkout line. Its kind of a function of this super controlled environment to relieve that kind of stress as you are inside with a bunch of people you dont know, said Johnson. He said that having single-door entries and exists, along with employees visibly wiping down shopping carts with sanitized wipes, are other examples of making customers feel comfortable about their shopping experience. Who knows if that works but it makes me feel better, Johnson said. Its good for business and keeps people coming to the store. If you shut it down for a few days, and clean it up, it will make customers feel good about coming back. Its just good business to do these precautions and show that youre trying. Saica Group to Build New Corrugated Packaging Plant in Hamilton, Ohio Construction of the new corrugated packaging facility is expected to start in September 2020 and take eighteen months to complete. August 3, 2020 - Spain-based Saica Group announced plans to build a new corrugated packaging facility in the City of Hamilton's Enterprise Park in Ohio. The company said the new plant will be an investment of nearly $72 million. Construction is expected to start in September 2020 and take eighteen months to complete. When operational, the plant will create 64 new jobs. "Since the beginning, we have been looking at different locations in the Midwest," said Ramon Alejandro, Chairman of Saica Group. "The assistance offer from the State of Ohio combined with the appealing proposal from the City of Hamilton motivated our decision. JobsOhio, REDI Cincinnati and the City of Hamilton have been key supporting players during this process. We are very excited with this new project and we look forward to the next steps." According to Saica, state and local incentives are expected to support Saica's investment in Hamilton. In June, the State of Ohio approved a Job Creation Tax Credit, and JobsOhio is supporting the project with a JobsOhio Economic Development Grant and JobsOhio Workforce Grant. The project is also contingent on the approval of a Job Creation Tax Credit and property tax abatement by the City of Hamilton. About Saica Group Saica Group is one of the largest European players in the development and production of recycled paper for corrugated board, with a production of 3.5 million of short tons of paper. With more than 10,000 employees across Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, UK, Ireland, Turkey, Luxembourg and The Netherlands. Saica Group has four business areas: production of recycled paper for corrugated board (Saica Paper), waste management and environmental services (Saica Natur), production of corrugated packaging (Saica Pack) and flexible packaging (Saica Flex). For further information, visit: www.saica.com . SOURCE: Saica Group Barely a couple of hours after Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh backed Mumbai Police saying it was probing actor Sushant Singh Rajputs death in a very professional manner, former chief minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis said it was strange the Bihar Police was not being allowed to perform their duties. It is really very strange that why Maharashtra Government is coming under unnecessary suspicion by not allowing Bihar Police to perform their duties, Fadnavis said in a tweet. In another tweet he asked why a Bihar police officer who had flown into Mumbai had to be quarantined. A medical team from Kerala visited Mumbai, UP Police came to investigate Vikas Dubey case, a team from Bihar police is already working in Mumbai since 4 days but none of them were quarantined then why only an SP rank officer is treated differently? Instead of solving the mystery of #SushantSinghRajput s death , such behaviour will only result into huge public outcry and disbelief amongst the people about the investigation. Devendra Fadnavis (@Dev_Fadnavis) August 3, 2020 Patna City Superintendent of Police Vinay Tiwari, who arrived in Mumbai on Sunday to supervise the probe being conducted by Bihar Police, was quarantined by BMC authorities for 14 days at the State Reserve Police Force guest house in suburban Goregaon. BMC authorities also stamped his hand showing the quarantine period till August 15. In another tweet, Fadnavis said this kind of action will cause disbelief among the people over the investigation. Instead of solving the mystery of #SushantSinghRajput s death , such behaviour will only result into huge public outcry and disbelief amongst the people about the investigation, the former CM said. The opposition BJP in Maharashtra has been demanding that the probe in the case be handed over to the CBI, while the state government has been dismissing the same. Earlier Monday, Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh said Rajputs family did not complain about any lapse in the investigation being carried by his force. Rajput died by suicide in Mumbai last month. Telling the truth is the habit of a goodness church culture, telling lies is the habit of a toxic church culture. Take your pick: the SBC church scandals revealed in newspapers, the Roman Catholic curia as told by journalists, or local churches like Willow Creek or Harvest Bible Chapel. What revealed the culture of those in power was how they responded to a variety of allegations from abuse of power to abuse of women to abuse of money. Laura Barringer and I, in our book coming out in October with the title A Church called Tov (tov means good, goodness), investigated the variety of false narratives, or lies, churches tell. They tell these stories to protect and preserve power, to protect the brand and reputation, and sometimes they tell these narratives for no other reason than revenge. Tell them they do. Too often. Our book is written for church people and leaders and we are hoping they will read it together and have long culture-forming conversations. We want to help churches work on forming a church called tov, or a goodness culture forming in churches. Those that tell these false narratives have a toxic culture for only out of a toxic culture are these narratives spun. A church marked by tov (goodness) tells the truth, a church marked by toxicity spins lies. Boz Tchividjian, nothing less than an expert on toxic cultures in churches, developed in an RNS article the following false narratives: Redefine the narrative. Shift the blame False empathy Then he concludes: False narratives suppress truth, promote darkness, and eviscerate lives. Should they be acceptable in a faith that is centered upon the One who calls Himself truth, light, and the giver of life? Hes right: those who follow the Way, the Truth, and the Life are called to be truth-tellers. I got into this project with Laura in part because I have studied how German pastors responded to their complicity in the Holocaust. They denied complicity. Very very few called the German church and the German Christians to repentance, and one who did was Martin Niemoeller (who was the American churchs posterboy for the good German church leader after the war). Image: Cover Photo So I was on the look out for false narratives in the churches mentioned above, and so Laura and I developed eight narratives building on Boz but developed independently as we had these developed before Bozs article came out, but he clarified our thinking even further. Ours are particularly focused narratives, and they of course overlap and churches often use more than one of these. Discredit the critics Demonize the critics Spin the story (as an intentionally false narrative) Gaslight the critics (this is a major device used in toxic cultures) Make the perpetrator the victim Silence the truth Suppress the truth Issue a fake apology (Wade Mullen is a specialist on this in churches) No matter who you are and what church you are in, these narratives are lies designed to prevent the truth from being told. A tov church culture responds to allegations with truth-finding and truth-telling. A toxic church culture finds ways to protect itself. Leaders sit around and figure which ones will work in their context and then crumple up the true stories so they can be tossed in the rubbish bin. These false narratives rewound the victims. These false narratives corrupt the heart of the church. These false narratives turn church cultures into greater toxicity. UNCONDITIONAL The Japanese Surrender in World War II By Marc Gallicchio Every August, newspapers are dotted with stories of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, accompanied by a well-picked-over but never resolved debate over whether atomic bombs were needed to end the Asia-Pacific war on American terms. What is left to learn 75 years (and with so much spilled ink) later? For Marc Gallicchio, the answer is in the domestic politics of the United States and Japan, which drive a narrative that unwinds less like a debate than a geopolitical thriller. Unconditional offers a fresh perspective on how the decision to insist on unconditional surrender was not simply a choice between pressing the Japanese into submission or negotiating an end to the conflict. It also traces ideological battle lines that remained visible well into the atomic age as the enemy shifted from Tokyo to Moscow. President Harry Truman believed unconditional surrender would keep the Soviet Union involved while reassuring American voters and soldiers that their sacrifices in a total war would be compensated by total victory. Disarming enemy militaries was the start; consolidating democracy abroad was the goal. Only by refusing to deal with dictators could Germany and Japan be redesigned root to branch. But Truman faced powerful opposition from the Republican establishment, including the former president Herbert Hoover and Henry Luce, whose Time/Life media empire presaged Fox News today. Republicans fought Truman on two fronts: First, they sought to undo New Deal social and economic reforms; second, they argued that giving Japan a respectable way out of the conflict would save lives and, at the same time, block Soviet ambitions in Asia. Conservatives believed the left in the United States was more determined to use unconditional surrender to destroy Japanese feudalism than to confront Soviet ambitions future manna from heaven for postwar redbaiters like Senator Joseph McCarthy. A line of protesters blocks the street in front of the Mark O. Hatfield Courthouse during a Black Lives Matter protest in Portland, Ore., on Aug. 2, 2020. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images) Peaceful Protest in Portland Overnight: Police The gathering in Portland on Aug. 2 was peaceful, police officials said. Nightly riots since May in Oregons largest city have caused tens of millions in damage and lost business. The level of violence has been decreasing in recent days, according to federal and city officials, though rioters on Saturday night attacked police officers. A group estimated at a couple hundred gathered in Lownsdale Square Park in downtown Portland on Sunday. The park is near the Mark O. Hatfield Courthouse, a federal building the Trump administration has focused on protecting due to near-nightly assaults. The gathering spilled out into the streets surrounding the park. Vehicular traffic was unable to get through for several hours, the Portland Police Bureau said in an incident summary. A line of protesters blocks the street in front of the Mark O. Hatfield Courthouse during a Black Lives Matter protest in Portland, Ore., on Aug. 2, 2020. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images) Speakers lead chants during a Black Lives Matter protest in Portland, Ore., early Aug. 3, 2020. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images) By midnight, the majority of the crowd left the area. Portland Police Bureau members did not interact with the gathering, it added. Police described the gathering as a peaceful event. Video footage from the scene showed little violence, apart from a fire and one person in the crowd punching another. Protesters are openly admonishing those who allegedly want to stir up trouble, even threatening to kill one. Infighting among those gathering downtown is not uncommon as accusations fly about intentions and ideology. People gave speeches and milled around the park and the Justice Center late Sunday. One speaker said people are coming out because theyre restricted from doing a number of things during the COVID-19 pandemic. Two people talk while sitting on concrete barriers in front of the Mark O. Hatfield Courthouse in Portland, Ore., on Aug. 2, 2020. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images) A Multnomah Count Sheriffs Office cruiser drives past the Mark O. Hatfield Courthouse during a Black Lives Matter protest in Portland, Ore., early Aug. 3, 2020. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images) We get lost in the sauce and we lose the message. The whole message of black lives matter has been hijacked. Look at them, theres a party over there. That [expletive] party is because bars are closed. Aint no [expletive] clubs going on. And because there aint no bars or clubs open, this is the new bar, this is the new club over there, he told those assembled. State and city officials reached an agreement with federal officers late last month to work together to try to quell the violence in Portland. Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell said on July 30 that he was hopeful the collaboration will lead us to a better place as far as quelling some of nightly violence and making a safer environment, not only for officers, but also for people who are coming down to express their First Amendment rights. I think its always important to reiterate, not everyone down there is engaged in criminal, violent, bad activity. Thats a small subset of a bigger group whos had an interest in speaking out on this topic, he added in a virtual press conference. While noting that Portland Police declared an unlawful assembly Saturday night, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said activity around the Mark O. Hatfield Courthouse continued in an overall trend of diminishing violence as a result of the increased cooperation between state and federal law enforcement. In stark contrast to the intense weekend violence in Portland over the past two months, protests around federal property remained generally peaceful, with minor incidents of malicious activity and vandalism, the agency said in a summary of the nightly activity. Still, the enhanced number of DHS personnel will remain on the ground until officials determine that the courthouse and other federal property are safe. This was the agency, after all, whose hot-headed officers shot to death an unarmed young accountant, Bijan Ghaisar, off the George Washington Parkway in suburban Virginia, then went into a defensive crouch and refused to provide an explanation, the officers names or an iota of other information pertaining to the killing. This was the agency whose officers, behaving more like storm troopers than responsible law enforcement, attacked peaceful protesters and clubbed working Australian journalists in Lafayette Square, across from the White House, clearing the way for President Trumps photo op at St. Johns Church in June. That incident left blameless demonstrators bruised and triggered a diplomatic protest. And this was the agency that, when asked for its audio transmissions of the incident that evening, revealed that none existed, owing to what Chief Monahan described as a technical glitch that began two years ago. When members of Congress asked for the agencys written log of the events in Lafayette Square, he said hed check with the lawyers and get back to them. It all happened in a series of clicks. Holding his breath, Li Peng squatted down and pressed the shutter button successively as he focused his camera on a beacon tower at the ancient Great Wall, standing beneath a starry sky. Minutes later, Li scrolled through the photos he just took, picked out one of his most satisfying clicks and jotted down a caption for the picture -- "looking into the star-studded sky." "The images of Great Wall in different seasons and at varied times provide people an opportunity to reach out to its long history," the 46-year-old said. The Great Wall, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, consists of many interconnected walls. Regarded as the largest and greatest fortification system in China's history, the Great Wall was built across the country during different dynasties to protect its territories and resist invasion from various nomadic groups. However, few people know that aside from the famous Great Wall in Beijing, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region is also home to many ruins of the Great Wall and is dubbed as the "museum of the Great Wall." Research shows there is 1,038 km of the Great Wall remaining in Ningxia. As a researcher from the Ningxia Museum and a voracious photographer, Li has been taking photos of the Great Wall for the past 20 years. Li's odyssey with the camera started around 1998 when he began documenting a section of the ancient Great Wall in Qingtongxia City, his hometown. At that time, he was working with the city's cultural relics administration department. "Back then, in my spare time, I often got up in the middle of the night and tramped over mountains and through ravines for hours to photograph the ancient Great Wall," he said. Li can't remember exactly how many pictures he had taken of the ancient Great Wall. However, what he does remember is the general condition and details about the Great Wall through his more than 20 years of researching and photographing experience. "Ningxia not only has a wide range of architectural remains of ancient Great Wall, including the remaining walls, beacon towers, trenches and passes, but also has abundant natural features alongside, covering high mountains, deserts and grasslands," Li noted. Shutterbugs, like Li, deem capturing the views of the Great Wall as a way of preserving its heritage. Chen Jing, 50, is another avid photographer. She is a teacher at a vocational school and initially began her rendezvous with the Great Wall through a borrowed camera. Now, she has purchased a professional camera and various lenses. Chen has even obtained a commercial drone license to nurture her hobby better. "I'm a native of Yanchi County. My father has authored books on the 260-km section of the ancient Great Wall in the county. At first, I just wanted to bring back the photos of Great Wall to him as he is too old to conduct an on-site investigation," Chen said. Chen added that the more photos she took, the more duty-bound she felt to document the section. Last year, Chen and her husband published a collection of pictures taken over the past nearly 10 years with financial support from the county government. "It was arduous but worthwhile," she said, recalling the grueling days when she and her husband had to sleep in a tent during their frequent outings. Li said that mining activities alongside a section of the Great Wall at the eastern foot of the Helan Mountains used to pose threats to its historical features. However, in recent years, Ningxia has ramped up efforts to protect the Great Wall by shutting down mines and restoring remains of the Great Wall. Last year, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the National Cultural Heritage Administration jointly released a comprehensive conservation plan for the preservation and utilization of the Great Wall. When Li was transferred to the Ningxia Museum in 2018, he launched a campaign to solicit pictures of the ancient Great Wall in Ningxia. More than 200 shutterbugs from across the region contributed some 1,800 photographs. He then hosted an exhibition based on the works he collected. So far, more than 100,000 people have visited the exhibition that has spanned for more than a year and a half. "It is of great significance to unfold the cultural landscapes of the Great Wall and to pass on and carry forward the connotations of the 'Great Wall spirit' like grit and persistence," said Li. In recent years, companies have been prowling the web for public photos associated with peoples names that they can use to build enormous databases of faces and improve their facial recognition systems, adding to a growing sense that personal privacy is being lost, bit by digital bit. A start-up called Clearview AI, for example, scraped billions of online photos to build a tool for the police that could lead them from a face to a Facebook account, revealing a persons identity. Now researchers are trying to foil those systems. A team of computer engineers at the University of Chicago has developed a tool that disguises photos with pixel-level changes that confuse facial recognition systems. Named Fawkes in honor of the Guy Fawkes mask favored by protesters worldwide, the software was made available to developers on the researchers website last month. After being discovered by Hacker News, it has been downloaded more than 50,000 times. The researchers are working on a free app version for noncoders, which they hope to make available soon. KEY HIGHLIGHTS: Disadvantages of swab tests forced scientists to look for alternatives US NIH has selected seven biomedical companies to develop simple mass screening methods US-based Fluidigm has developed a platform for mass testing using saliva Israel Defence-DRDO-CSIR collaboration is working on breath and sound-based testing Social engineering tests using smell, taste, walking and checking blood oxygen levels are also being experimented Researchers globally are testing a host of new technologies and simpler ways to detect coronavirus - from saliva, taste, smell and even voice as a replacement to the current methods of testing with nasal and throat swabs. Swab tests, though used in the gold standard RT-PCR diagnosis, have practical shortcomings like availability of skilled staff, quality collection kits or viral transport medium, high costs, sampling errors, besides the risk of healthcare workers getting infected with the virus. The other blood and plasma-based test platforms are also found to have accuracy issues. Simple and fast mass screening The US government's National Institutes of Health (NIH) is investing $248.7 million in new technologies for COVID-19 testing. Under the Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics (RADx) initiative, it has awarded contracts to seven biomedical diagnostic companies to develop new lab-based and point-of-care tests. These seven, which were given Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) by the US Food and Drug Authority (FDA), were chosen from over 650 applicants and 31 projects that were found successful in the first phase of trials, said the NIH. Four of these introduce innovations in laboratory-based testing technologies, including next generation sequencing and integrated microfluidic chips, that can dramatically increase testing capacity and time for the result. This will pave way for fast, simpler and mass screening in schools, companies, malls and other social congregation areas. The California-based Fluidigm has developed a microfluidics platform, which has the capacity to process thousands of PCR tests per day with a primary focus on saliva samples. SanDiego-based Mesa Biotech's hand held RT-PCR machine can detect viral RNA at the point of care and results are available from the removable cartridge in 30 minutes. California-based Talis Biomedical's point of care test detects SARS-CoV-2 through isothermal amplification of viral RNA and an optical detection system, returning a result in under 30 minutes. San Diego-based Quidel's simple point of care technology to mass screen people can be used in a hospital or a pharmacy setting. Boston-based Ginkgo Bioworks and California's Helix OpCo's next-generation sequencing technologies can process thousands of individual tests at once and make results available in a day or two. Ginko is expected scale up to 50,000 tests per day by September and 100,000 per day by the end of the year. Breath and sound to detect virus Meanwhile, four technologies to detect the virus in 30 seconds, developed by the Israeli scientists, are being evaluated at Delhi's Dr Ram Manohar Lohia hospital. It's part of a collaboration between the Israeli Defence R&D, India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). In a first, people will have to blow into or speak in front of a breath-analyser like instrument to collect the sample. Using a technology called terahertz spectroscopy, the sample is deposited on a chip and examined to exactly detect the virus. Results are available in less than a minute. NanoScent, the Israei firm making the breath analyser test kits, says an extensive trial in Israel for the presence of live virus delivered results with 85 percent accuracy.The product could receive regulatory approval within months. The National Centre of Scientific Research in France is also conducting advanced trials of a breath-analyser machine to detect the virus. Read Also: Coronavirus update: 52,972 cases, 771 deaths reported in 24 hrs; tally rises to 18 lakh Read Also: Personal health IDs, e-records, doctors' registry part of Centre's digital health ecosystem plan The public turned to dairy during the peak of lockdown as figures show a spike in sales of milk and cheese, with only a minority buying vegan alternatives. Consumers chose to consume and connect over their favourite dairy based foods to get them through lockdown, new Kantar figures highlight. Milk Your Moments, a 1m dairy industry marketing campaign to drive consumption of dairy products, helped increase sales. A huge 2.9 billion cups of tea and 1.7 billion cups of coffee were drunk over the peak lockdown period, increases of 21% and 19% respectively, data shows. Figures show the overwhelming popularity of milk, with 94% of UK households purchasing milk over the last four weeks compared with only 16% buying a dairy alternative. Cheese has also seen unprecedented increases in sales, with consumption of cheese increasing 48% during lockdown. People found themselves making their own sandwiches and lunches as well as in scratch cooking such as homemade pizza, which saw a 235% jump in online conversations. Home cooking and the craze for banana bread also caused sales of butter to spike in the week of 22 March, with a year on year increase of 69% in weekly sales. Industry body Dairy UK said consumers turned to the foods they 'know, trust and enjoy' during the lockdown period. Dairy UK, Dr Judith Bryans said: We should be incredibly proud how its created positivity for dairy and increased awareness around mental health issues, during such an uncertain time. "We should also see it at a starting block to future because we need to talk to our consumers on an ongoing basis. AHDB said the campaign was 'hugely important' as it backed British dairy producers and consumers during a time of national crisis. Rebecca Miah, AHDB head of dairy marketing said: "Understanding that dairy has such a crucial part to play in human connection as well as nutrition is a real step change for the dairy industry. "We should continue to be proud of our importance to society, with these strong growth numbers demonstrating the fact. The campaign finished on Friday (31 July) after last week successfully hitting its target of raising 100,000 in support of the UKs leading mental health charity Mind. Donations were generated through visits to the Milk Your Moments microsite and by encouraging text donations. The Australian share market finished session marginal lower on Monday, 03 August 2020, as the fret about of further virus-led business lockdown measures in Victoria overshadowed better than expected domestic manufacturing data. At closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down marginal 1.69 points, or 0.03%, to 5,926.09. The broader All Ordinaries shed 4.36 points, or 0.07%, to 6,053.94. Investor sentiment was ruffled on fears about the long-term economic damage from tighter lockdowns in Victoria. On Monday afternoon Premier Dan Andrews confirmed retailers would be closed except for hygienic collection or delivery methods, construction sites would be reduced to a skeleton staff, and abattoirs would be scaled back to 30% capacity. Stricter lockdown conditions were expected to affect about 250,000 Victorians and raised concerns about employment and economic growth. Further, the country's second-largest city Melbourne imposed a nightly curfew, as part of the country's harshest movement restrictions to date, while the neighbouring states of New South Wales and South Australia also stepped up precautions. The financial sector dropped, with National Australia Bank and ANZ falling more than 4%, Westpac dropping to 3.5%, and Commonwealth Bank falling 1.8%. Consumer discretionary sector stocks fell, with sharp falls of between 6% and 7% in travel companies. Wesfarmers and Aristocrat Leisure suffered, receding 1.4% and 1.5%, respectively. Materials stocks advanced with Rio Tinto and BHP Group climbing 1% and 1.6%, respectively, on strong demand as China, the world's top steel producer, continued to ramp up production. ECONOMIC NEWS: Australia AiG Manufacturing PMI Expands to 53.5 in July-- Australia manufacturing sector continued to expand in July with a seasonally adjusted Performance of Manufacturing Index score of 53.5, the latest survey from the Australian Industry Group revealed on Monday, up from 51.5 in June. The expansion in July was driven by the two largest manufacturing sectors in terms of employment: the large food and beverage and machinery and equipment sectors. All other sectors reported difficult trading conditions due to the impact of COVID-19. CURRENCY NEWS: The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7117 after slipping from levels above $0.72 last week. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor aka Agbor Balla Atia Azohnwi Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor Anyior aka Agbor Balla, President of the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa, CHRDA, says a negotiated settlement to the crisis in Cameroons North West and South West Regions is now a matter of extreme urgency. The current crisis in the North West and South West Regions in Cameroon has caused untold hardship to the people. Ten months since the end of the Major National Dialogue, there's nothing concrete to show in the direction of peace, said the human rights lawyer in a Facebook post on July 20. Agbor Balla thinks that with very little done by the government in the direction of peace, other avenues at resolving the protracted crisis should be sought before a bad situation gets uglier. His words: It is now time for National, Regional and International initiatives to be re-launched with a clear objective to bring on the table the various warring parties in a bid to seek a negotiated settlement to the ongoing war. We need Peace! In January, Agbor Balla described decentralization and/or special status as stop-gap measures, advising that stakeholders should return to the drawing board to address the fundamental issues. Hear him: A two-state federation is a Solution to the crisis. Any other solution be it decentralization, 10 state federation or a special status are only stop-gap measures. We shall have to go back to the drawing board to address the fundamental issues. Speaking Tuesday, October 1, 2019, at the Major National Dialogue held at the Yaounde Conference Center, Agbor Balla said the people who have taken up arms to make of Cameroons North West and South West Regions an independent state they call Ambazonia may only be pacified if the form of the state is touched to accommodate federalism. Taking the Decentralisation and Local Development Commission headed by ex-Forestry and Wildlife Minister Ngole Philip Ngwese by storm, Agbor Balla regretted that another dialogue may be ordered by President Paul Biya not too long after the Major National Dialogue if the form of state was not discussed back then. A video clip of the Human Rights Lawyers clarion call filtered out of the in-camera session and made rounds on social media at the time. In the video, Agbor Balla calls on Senator Mbella Moki Charles to bear him witness. Agbor Balla said: I dont want us to waste taxpayers money today and next year the President calls us for another dialogue. We need to find a lasting solution. And like Dr. Munzu said yesterday, I am not prescribing any particular form of the state. But we cannot leave here without looking at the form of the state. As I sit here, if I show you my messages from some of the separatist leaders abroad, they are asking if they have at least started talking even about the form of the state. Some of us have put our reputation and our image on the line to be here. If you follow social media, they attack some of us just for coming here. But we believe in the oneness and the unity of this country. We believe that Cameroon should be one and indivisible. But we equally believe that decentralization will not solve the problem. We have to get to a federation. That is the minimum the people who have taken up arms will accept. Agbor Balla calls for unity Yesterday, Agbor Balla, pioneer President of the outlawed Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium, CACSC, regretted that while the people are yearning for a return to peace, infighting is rather ruining the struggle. He called on all those representing the Anglophone voice in whatsoever capacity to close ranks. When we stop the infighting, labelling those we disagree with them as Enablers, Blacklegs, Traitors, Sell out Etc. And we include everyone into the debate without attacking their persons or positions then we shall truly be on track. A lot of our brothers and sisters with constructive and brilliant ideas with leadership qualities have either withdrawn from the struggle or decided to take a back seat. This is due to the insults and I know it all syndrome where some people deify leaders and are intolerant to healthy debates and discussions. We cannot succeed as a people if we dont address these facts. Recap: Several high-profile Twitter accounts, including Barrack Obama, Bill Gates, Joe Biden, Apple, and others, were hacked to facilitate a Bitcoin scam. The fake tweets claimed that donations deposited into a Bitcoin account would be matched dollar-for-dollar and would go to charities supporting Covid-19 efforts. Last month, 17-year-old Graham Ivan Clark was arrested in connection with highjacking over 100 Twitter accounts. Additional details have emerged, showing that the teen has a history and reputation of scamming others online. Some of Clark's friends told the New York Times that he would frequently "sell" Minecraft items to other players, collecting their money but never relinquishing the goods. In a similar 2019 investigation, authorities seized $15,000 in cash and more than $3 million in Bitcoin from the teen. Even though Clark bragged on his now-deleted Instagram account, posing with Rolex watches and designer sneakers, the funds were returned, and he was never charged. This time authorities are not holding back. The teen now faces 30 felony charges for his involvement in highjacking more than 100 verified Twitter accounts from well-known celebrities and organizations. He and others posted tweets claiming to be these people and companies saying they would "double" deposited Bitcoin donations and send the money to COVID-19 charities. The US Department of Justice released the names of two others involved in the scam. Mason Sheppard, 19, of the UK, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and the intentional access of a protected computer. Nima Fazeli,22, of Orlando Florida, is accused of aiding and abetting the intentional access of a protected computer. Both were charged in the Northern District of California. Since Clark is a minor, he will face federal juvenile proceedings in the 13th Judicial District in Tampa. The group reportedly used social engineering to get Twitter employees to grant access to "internal systems." "This attack relied on a significant and concerted attempt to mislead certain employees and exploit human vulnerabilities to gain access to our internal systems," the company said in a statement. They pulled the con off by somehow gaining access to Twitter's Slack messaging board. From there, they were able to convince others they had legitimate access privileges to tools that can take over any account. Image credit: Budrul Chukrut JALALABAD, Afghanistan A militant assault on a prison complex in eastern Afghanistan ended on Monday after a 20-hour gun battle, leaving 29 people dead and officials scrambling to recapture hundreds of prisoners, including many from the Islamic State and the Taliban. The attack at the prison in Jalalabad City was claimed by the Islamic State. It began on Sunday night when a brief cease-fire between the Afghan government and the Taliban was still in place. Its timing underscored the complexity of a conflict that is growing deadlier by the day, even as peace talks face obstacles. Gen. Yasin Zia, the chief of the Afghan army who arrived in the city to lead the last stretch of the operations, said ten assailants were involved in the attack and all were killed. The security perimeter was first breached with a car-bomb before attackers with assault rifles streamed in and started a gun battle with prison guards. Increasing localisation of workforce and pushing more work offshore are some of the levers that IT services firms are looking at using to partly mitigate the impact of the rise in visa costs in the US. The US Department of Homeland Security (USCIS) last week gave its approval to hike fees on non-immigrant visas, with effect from October this year. The visa filing fees for H-1B high-skill visas has been hiked by 21 per cent to $555, while that for L1 (intra-company transfer) visas has been increased by 75 per cent to $850. While Indian IT firms have, in the past few years, stepped ... Turkey's regional rivals are going beyond Libya as they respond to the scale-tipping Turkish military intervention in the North African country. Having declared a red line at Sirte and al-Jufra on the Libyan battlefield, Egypt and its partners are stepping up efforts to impede Turkey on the diplomatic front as well as in Syria and Iraq. While forging closer ties with Damascus, Egypt has at the same time focused on the Syrian Kurds, following in the steps of the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. According to Turkeys state-run Anadolu news agency, Egypt has now sent troops to Idlib, the rebel-held province where Turkey has built up a military presence to keep the Syrian army from advancing. Citing reliable military sources, Anadolu reported July 30 that about 150 Egyptian soldiers, arriving via the military airport in Hama, had been deployed to front lines in Khan al-Asal in the western countryside of Aleppo and around Saraqib in southern Idlib, armed with light weapons and coordinating with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iran-backed militias. Kamal Amer, chair of the Egyptian Parliaments Defense and National Security Committee, denied the report and the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights said its local sources had failed to confirm the deployment. The veracity of the report may be disputed, but such Egyptian assistance to Damascus would hardly be a surprise, given the course of events. Ample signs have already emerged that the Egypt-Emirati-Saudi axis is following a strategy to contain and distract Turkey in conflict zones in its proximity. The moves the three countries have been making and the ties they seek to develop are largely a response to Turkey and despite some gaps and discordance, they have complemented each other in terms of purpose. Egypts efforts to hinder Turkey began several years ago, with Ankaras patronage of the Muslim Brotherhood underlying the bad blood between the two. In November 2016, for instance, the Lebanese newspaper As-Safir claimed that Egypt had dispatched 18 helicopter pilots to help the Syrian army and planned a larger military deployment down the road. The report followed a visit to Cairo by Syrias intelligence chief, Ali Mamlouk, the previous month. Once the intelligence chiefs of two key players in the Middle East take the stage, it's clear that overt or covert cooperation is in the cards. For quite some time, Egypt has been trying to lay the ground for Syrias return to the Arab League while working connections with Kurdish actors. It has allowed the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces to open an office in Cairo, facilitated dialogue between the Kurds and Cairo-based Syrian oppositionists and sought to be a bridge between the Kurds and Damascus. Last fall, SDF commander Mazlum Abdi also known as Mazlum Kobane publicly hailed Cairos criticism of Turkeys Operation Peace Spring that targeted Kurdish fighters east of the Euphrates. The offensive had a major diplomatic blowback for Ankara, with Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Cairo receiving SDF representatives. The delegations that went to Riyadh and Abu Dhabi were reportedly headed by Kobane himself. Even more remarkably, Egypt has vocally slammed Turkeys ongoing military operations in northern Iraq and sought to make use of Baghdads unease to boost bilateral ties and draw Iraq into the Arab fold as much as possible. Turkeys operations target the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has long used bases in Iraqi Kurdistan to sustain its armed insurgency against Ankara. In Syria, Cairos ties with the Kurds are not based on a dual agenda, unlike the Saudis, whose agenda overlaps to a certain extent with that of the United States. Since the overthrow of the Muslim Brotherhood government in 2013, Cairo has steered clear of a regime-change agenda in Syria. Unlike in Libya, it has pursued a more individual approach that allows it to add military and intelligence dimensions to its relationship with Damascus. Tellingly, Egyptians were absent from a delegation of Saudi, Emirati and Jordanian military officials that met with SDF leaders in northeast Syria in May 2018. Of note, Egypts intelligence chief, Abbas Kamel, has stepped up contacts with Arab counterparts across the region. In February, he visited eastern Libya, Tunisia and Algeria in what was reportedly an effort to enhance intelligence collaboration against growing Turkish influence in the region. In early March, Kamel traveled to Damascus, where he met with Mamlouk vice president since last year to discuss the war on terrorism in Syria as well as regional developments, according to local media reports. Visiting Damascus at the same time was a senior delegation from eastern Libya that signed dozens of protocols with the Syrian government and reopened the Libyan Embassy in the city. The ground for the visit was laid by Egypt and the Libyans spoke of cooperation against Ankaras expansionist ambitions in the region. On July 21, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi had a phone call with the Saudi king, followed by a flurry of Saudi diplomatic activity in the region. Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan traveled to Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco after a July 27 visit to Cairo, where he reaffirmed Saudi support for Egypt in the Libyan turmoil. In sum, Riyadh is trying to strengthen Egypts hand in Libya and weaken the Turkey-Qatar axis, but is cautious not to appear to be encouraging an Egyptian-led war in the country. Sisi and the king spoke a day after the Egyptian Parliament authorized a cross-border military deployment on a western front a reference to Libya to counter criminal armed militias and foreign terrorist elements, after Cairos June 6 appeal for a cease-fire and negotiations in Libya fell through. The risk of a Turkish-Egyptian faceoff in Sirte may be frozen for now, but the tensions are taking on new dimensions as Turkey becomes the target of a containment strategy of sorts. The maneuvers of the Egypt-Emirati-Saudi axis could eventually fail to change the multi-factor equilibrium in Libya, but the trio might create serious troubles for Ankara by edging into restive areas along Turkeys borders, primarily through ties with the Kurds. Up until the 1998 Adana accord, which averted the threat of Turkish military action against Syria for harboring the PKK, regional issues linked to Turkeys internal dynamics were of little interest to other Arab actors. This policy is gradually changing. Deutsche Bank has launched an internal review into Rosemary Vrablic, the longtime personal banker of President Trump and his son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, The New York Times reports. The bank is specifically investigating a real estate transaction involving Vrablic and a company called Bergel 715 Associates. In June 2013, Vrablic and two of her co-workers in Deutsche Bank's private banking division bought a $1.5 million Manhattan apartment from Bergel 715. At the time, Kushner held an ownership stake in Bergel 715, a person with knowledge of the matter told the Times. On Friday, Kushner and his wife, Ivanka Trump, stated in an annual personal financial report that in 2019, they received $1 million to $5 million from Bergel 715. This was the first time the couple ever disclosed their stake in the company, the Times reports, and this income was not related to the Vrablic transaction. In 2013, Donald Trump and Kushner were both clients of Vrablic, and had collective received about $190 million in loans from Deutsche Bank, with more to come later, the Times reports. Bank employees are normally not allowed to conduct personal business with clients due to the potential for conflicts of interest, and Deutsche Bank told the Times the company was not aware of the transaction before being contacted by the newspaper. One of Bergel 715's main owners is George Gellert, a Kushner family friend and investor, and it is unclear the size of Kushner's stake in the entity. Vrablic joined Deutsche Bank's private banking division in 2006, and the Kushner family worked with her before then. Kushner introduced Vrablic to Trump in 2011, at a time when Trump was struggling to find people to lend him money due to defaults and bankruptcies, the Times reports. More stories from theweek.com The most damning inside portrait of the Trump administration yet Trump uses charts to defend his COVID-19 response, shrugs about John Lewis, in freewheeling Axios interview Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers watch Trump fiddle with banning TikTok as America burns Ex-President Jerry John Rawlings has threatened to deal with Professor Kwamena and the likes who continue to peddle falsehood about him. Mr Rawlings made this known in a social media post in which he heaped praises on two prominent traditional rulers in the country; Otumfo Asantehene of the Ashanti Kingdom and Torgbi Afede XIV of the Asogli State in the Volta Region. According to Rawlings, he is tired of continuously defending himself all these years. He however threatens to deal with Prof. Kwamena whose agenda he described as callous and a way to take control of the party he [Rawlings] founded. "Much as I found it tiring and tedious to be engaging in self defense when I have given my all, all of these years, who are desperately seeking control of the NDC party...", part of Rawlings' Facebook post. Last week, Prof. Ahwoi launched his book; "Working With Rawlings" in which he revealed that Rawlings at a point in time turned against the late President Prof. Evans Atta Mills. Prof. Ahwoi also revealed in the book that the much loved Rawlings was not ready to exit the reins of power. He added that the former President squeezed the testicles of one party official at the entrance of La Trade fair in Accra decades ago. Read the Facebook post below: OTUMFUO DESERVES COMMENDATION I want to take the opportunity to congratulate the Asantehene for the steps he has taken, to seriously protect the environment and also to thank him for tampering justice with mercy on Nana Bantamahene. We each have to learn to take a cue from the Asantehene and be bold and audacious in our defence of the environment, especially from thieves and crooks, who with impunity can collect parcels of land anywhere, anyhow and do as they wish against the public good and the sanctity of nature. Let me also express my gratitude to Togbe Afede XIV, President of the National House of Chiefs for taking the initiative to lead a delegation of the Volta Region House of Chiefs to the border areas in the region to ascertain things for themselves. Some of the unsightly things we see on the Internet do not speak well of us locally and internationally. Much as I find it tiring and tedious to be engaging in self defence when I have given my all, all these years, I will soon deal with the callous agenda of bile by the likes of Kwamena Ahwoi, who are desperately seeking control of the NDC party. The NDC could, should and has survived on the authority of the word but if care is not taken, it will collapse and drown as has been happening, on the word of those in authority. --- When Debbie Krebs got the bill for a March emergency room visit, she immediately noticed something was missing: her coronavirus test. Krebs, a lawyer who focuses on insurance issues, had gone to the Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, New Jersey, with lung pain and a cough. A doctor ran tests and scans to rule out other diseases before swabbing her nose. A week later, the medical laboratory called, telling her it was negative. Krebs had a clear memory of the experience, particularly the doctor saying the coronavirus test would make her feel as if she had to sneeze. She wondered whether the doctor could have lied about performing the test, or if her swab could have gone missing. (But if so, why had the laboratory called her with results?) The absence of the coronavirus test made a big price difference. Congress, Krebs had heard, barred insurers from charging patients for visits meant to diagnosis coronavirus. Without the test, Krebs didnt qualify for that protection and owed $1,980. She called the hospital to explain the situation but immediately ran into roadblocks. When I called the hospital, they said, You did not get a coronavirus test, she said. I told them I absolutely did. Across the country, Americans like Krebs are receiving surprise bills for care connected with coronavirus. Tests can cost between $199 and $6,408 at the same location. A coming wave of treatment bills could be hundreds of multiples higher, especially for those who receive intensive care or have symptoms that linger for months. Services that patients expect to be covered often arent. This patchwork of medical billing is one reason The New York Times is starting something new: soliciting your medical bills. Were asking you to send us copies of your bills for coronavirus testing and treatment, so we can understand what costs look like across the country. We want to know how patients are managing their medical bills in the midst of a pandemic. This is part of our larger effort to understand how the pandemic is reshaping U.S. health care. American medical billing is unlike that of any other developed country. The government does not regulate health care prices but instead lets insurers and hospitals negotiate fees. Those deliberations happen in secret, and patients often do not learn the cost of their care until a bill shows up in the mail. Sometimes, insurers give reporters a peek at their data. Thats how I learned that a laboratory in Texas had charged $2,315 for individual coronavirus tests. But more often, they keep that information confidential, which is why we need readers bills and explanation-of-benefit documents for any care related to coronavirus. Readers bills have already shown that surprise medical bills for coronavirus have been in the United States nearly as long as the disease itself. In late February, an American man and his 3-year-old daughter were hit with medical bills totaling thousands of dollars for care received during a government-mandated quarantine. This was only weeks after Washington state announced the countrys first known case. I assumed it was all being paid for, Frank Wucinski, the patient, said at the time. We didnt have a choice. When the bills showed up, it was just a pit in my stomach, like, How do I pay for this? The federal government has since resolved to give Americans special protections against outlandish medical bills. Congress enacted new rules to make the tests a rare oasis within the U.S. health care system the price had to be public; and copayments, deductibles or other charges werent allowed. Or at least, Congress tried to. The experiences of patients who had or suspected they might have COVID-19 show how hard it is to write different billing rules for a tiny sliver of the countrys $3 trillion in health spending. Numerous doctors offices and hospitals do not post the cash prices for their coronavirus tests, despite the federal requirement to do so. Some patients have encountered unwarranted copayments as doctors and hospitals have stuck to their regular billing habits. Others have failed to qualify for the protections because they did not receive a coronavirus test as part of their care or, in the case of Krebs, had it left off the bill. Aside from mandating that COVID-19 tests cost the patient nothing, there are no new rules to protect insured Americans from coronavirus treatment bills. Health policy experts worry that even those with good insurance could end up facing high costs. One outcome they envision: A patient goes to an in-network hospital for coronavirus treatment, but that hospital is overwhelmed and has no beds left. The patient is transferred to an out-of-network hospital and gets significant bills as a result. Our system is so complicated, said Karen Pollitz, a senior fellow at the Kaiser Family Foundation. If things arent exactly right or werent coded correctly, you get thrown into the blizzard. The protections that do exist are based on the receipt of something that can be in short supply: a coronavirus test. If doctors cant obtain a test and turn to other diagnostic methods testing for other diseases, for example the patient will have to cover the visits cost. The Trump administration has also set aside an undisclosed sum to pay for uninsured Americans testing and treatment, a program that has become increasingly important as millions have lost coverage in the economic downturn. So far, that fund has paid out $348 million to providers, but it is unknown how much money remains or what happens when it runs out. Billing challenges have persisted, despite these new rules and programs. Many stem from the decision by legislators to condition aid on receipt of a test. Dr. Kao-Ping Chua, a pediatrician in Michigan, started running into problems in March when he had patients with coronavirus-like symptoms seeking tests. His health system, like many others, required patients to undergo testing for other conditions before coronavirus. I had to tell my patients that, if the test I run first comes back positive and says you have the common cold, youll have to pay for it, he said. But if you test negative, that allows you to get the COVID test, and that waives your cost sharing. Luciano Aita, 35, sought treatment in early July at St. Marys Medical Center in San Francisco after his chest started closing up and he felt as if he couldnt breathe. I was super scared and worried about COVID, since I never had experienced anything like that before, he said. A doctor checked his blood pressure, listened to his lungs and took his temperature but did not administer a coronavirus test. He recalls being told that the emergency room was giving the test only to critically ill patients, and he did not qualify. Aita, who lost his job at a record store at the start of the pandemic and is uninsured, received a document at the end of his visit estimating he would owe $1,157. If the hospital had tested him for coronavirus, the federal fund could have covered the visit entirely. Last week, he received a medical bill for the visit that was only $350. He initially thought this was good news that the hospital had dropped his charge. But when he looked into the issue, he learned this was an additional charge from the doctor who saw him. I understood that if it was related to COVID, it would be taken care of, Aita said. Its a pandemic, Im unemployed, and now Im dealing with the stress of this situation. A spokesman for Dignity Health, which owns St. Marys Medical Center, said the hospital uses CDC protocols to decide who is tested, but he declined to comment on Aitas case. We have suspended billing patients for their portion of their bill for the testing and treatment of COVID-19 while we work with insurers and the government to exhaust financial assistance options for patients, said Chad Burns, the spokesman. Aita, however, does not appear to qualify for those protections because he did not receive a test. As coronavirus spreads and hospitalizations mount, so will the ranks of those managing unexpected bills. The Kaiser Family Foundation estimates that a fifth of all coronavirus hospitalizations could result in a surprise medical bill from an out-of-network doctor who became involved in the patients care. The nonpartisan foundation also projects that, on average, an American with employer-sponsored coverage would face $1,300 in costs for a coronavirus hospitalization. Congressional staffers working on the issue say theyve come across cases in which health providers are not following the new rules on coronavirus billing. The providers are charging patients for services when they shouldnt, or not posting their cash prices for testing online as they are legally required to. Billing offices may just be doing what theyre used to looking at your card, seeing that it says $30 copay and collecting it, Pollitz said. The person at the front desk may not know you got a test. The protections arent airtight. Congress is currently split over how far to go in protecting coronavirus patients from surprise medical bills. House Democrats have supported mandating that insurers cover all costs related to treatment as part of the HEROES Act, a larger stimulus package. Senate Republicans introduced their stimulus proposal, the HEALS Act, last week. It does not include a similar mandate. In the case of Krebs, she shared her bill with me after reading another article I wrote about coronavirus test billing. Together, we tracked down a record for her coronavirus test to prove that it did indeed occur. Two days after I inquired about the case, the Valley Hospital resubmitted her bill with the coronavirus test included. Her insurer, Aetna, reprocessed the bill and confirmed that she would no longer be charged. We were trying to come up with extraordinary processes quickly to react to the many changes placed on all of us, including payer requirements of coverage, Josette Portalatin, an assistant vice president at the hospital, wrote in an email to Krebs. We apologize that your lab COVID test was not on your original claim, but happy to report we tracked down the issue. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. According to the workers compensation insurer, the funding ratio of the TMF was re-measured at the end of the first quarter of 2020. It added that payments between NSW Treasury and the TMF are not only reflected in the NSW Budget but are also included in financial statements and icares annual reports. To label these payments as a bailout is incorrect, asserted icare. Any self-insurer, whether in the public or private sector, will, as a matter of course, make transfers into and out of their scheme. Read more: Mark Lennon resigns as icare board member The TMF is a not-for-profit scheme providing workers compensation insurance to over 200 public sector agencies and their 335,000 workers and 82,000 volunteers across the state. In its declaration, icare went on to explain: NSW Treasury decides on advice from icare how much funding should be in the TMF at any time. NSW Treasury withdraws money from the fund if it is in surplus and tops it up as needed. This is based on investment returns and current and anticipated claims by NSW Government agencies arising from asset damage, professional indemnity, public liability, motor vehicle accidents, workers compensation, and more. Further, contrary to the media reports, recent data from the State Insurance Regulatory Authority shows the TMF has maintained the highest Return to Work rate across all workers compensation insurers in NSW since 2018. The company emphasized that the fund, which it called healthy, is here to stay. The public have been urged to support and not blame others in the ongoing fight against coronavirus. Acting chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn made the call as 46 new Covid-19 infections were reported in Ireland. No new deaths with the virus were reported by the National Public Health Emergency Team, leaving the national total at 1,763. However the latest cases have brought the Irish total number of infections to 26,208. Of these new cases, 32 have been described as close contacts of a confirmed case, while five cases have been identified as community transmission. Some 27 are men and 19 are women, while 85% are under 45 years of age. Thirty-two are associated with outbreaks or are close contacts of a confirmed case, Fifteen cases are located in Kildare, eight in Laois, seven in Clare, five in Offaly and the remaining 11 are spread across nine other counties. Dr Ronan Glynn urged the public to encourage each other to sustain efforts to contain the virus. People of all ages will occasionally slip up as they learn to live safely with this virus, he said. We should not seek to attribute blame, but rather continue to encourage one another to build on and sustain the great efforts that we have all made to date. We continue to urge everyone to observe the safe behaviours that we recommend, such as physical distancing, washing hands regularly, wearing a face covering where appropriate, avoiding crowds and doing all we can to protect each other. NPHET continues to monitor the evolving situation very closely and will meet tomorrow. Image Source: 123rf The lockdown has only increased the number of domestic violence cases. The victims have been forced to live with the abusers. Reporting the abuse has become difficult as theyre living in close quarters. According to an international newspaper, the United Nations Population Fund and its partners Avenir Health, Johns Hopkins University in the US and Victoria University in Australia, noted a 20% increase in violence during an average three-month lockdown in all 193 UN member states. The National Commission For Women in India reported that it received around 257 complaints in the last week of March. Almost 90,000 cases of gender-based violence were reported in South Africa during the first week of its lock-down from March 26 to 2 April. Australia saw a 75% increase in online searches for support on domestic violence since the lockdown from 23rd March. The unreported cases though are the bigger concern as help cant reach them. Some cannot/could not communicate their problem as they couldnt find a spot to file a complaint without abuser listening in. To address this problem, a hand signal has been introduced by the Canadian Womens Foundation. The victim can use this non-verbal sign to raise a red flag regarding domestic violence. The domestic abuse hand signal involves holding your hand up to the camera with your thumb tucked into your palm, and then folding your fingers down and trapping your thumb in your fingers. Source: Canadian Womens Foundation Use this sign if you want to tell your friends or family that you are being abused and cant say it out loud for fear of repercussion. You could use the sign in person when you meet too. And it doesnt leave any digital trace, so if your phone is getting checked by the abuser, youre safe. See this video to know what you can do. If your friend or an acquaintance gives out this signal, heres what you should do. Call them and ask yes/no questions to get more clarity. Ask questions like if they want you to call a helpline number or if they need shelter or something else. Inform them that youve understood the message and are ready to help at any point of the day. Call the domestic violence helpline numbers and inform them of this problem. Find out helpline numbers here. Also Read: #ActAgainstAbuse: Dont Remain A Mute Bystander Petrofacs Engineering and Production Services (EPS) business has announced the award of a two-year contract with UKs NEO Energy. Under the terms of the agreement, Petrofac will provide Well Management and Well Operator support for 25 production wells across the Affleck, Balloch, Dumbarton, Flyndre and Lochranza fields. The contract also positions Petrofac to support future well construction and intervention campaigns. Todays announcement builds on Petrofacs previously awarded Integrated Services Contract for NEO Energy, through which it provides ongoing operational, maintenance, engineering and construction support in support of the Operators UK activities. As Well Operator, Petrofac will be responsible for direct procurement and management of all sub-contracted services. Petrofac will also deploy its industry-leading project management software, Turus, to ensure efficient and assured project delivery. Nick Shorten, Managing Director for Petrofac Engineering and Production Services in the Western Hemisphere, said: Through the deployment of our extensive asset and well management expertise, we will work closely with NEO Energy to assure the integrity of its wells and deliver safe and cost efficient construction in support of any future field development. This award builds on our existing track record for delivering Well Operator services for clients in the UKCS, bringing the size of our well portfolio in the basin to 50. Petrofac pioneered the outsourced Well Operator model in 2015. Under regulations set by the Offshore Safety Directive Regulator, it takes responsibility for the monitoring and management of wells on behalf of its clients. Petrofac is currently Well Operator for seven North Sea clients. TradeArabia News Service Wildlife officials are celebrating after more than 5,000 Burmese pythons were removed from the Florida Everglades since elimination efforts began three years ago. The surprising milestone was announced in a statement on July 28 by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD), which worked together on the Python Elimination Program. 'Removing these invasive snakes gives our states amazing native species a better chance at survival and is a critical part of conserving the one-of-a-kind Everglades ecosystem,' the agencies wrote. Under Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida wildlife officials launched the Python Elimination Program to remove the scores of Burmese pythons that have slowly inundated local wildlife. Two Florida wildlife agencies announced last week that more than 5,000 Burmese pythons (pictured) have been removed from the Florida Everglades In 2017, Florida wildlife agencies started paying trappers to capture and kill the invasive species. Officials offered trappers hourly rates for time spent hunting and even supplied cash bonuses for longer snakes. 'An additional incentive payment of $50 for each python measuring up to 4 feet plus an extra $25 for each foot measured above 4 feet,' according to the SFWMD website. 'An additional $200 for each eliminated python found guarding "nests" with eggs.' Burmese pythons, which are native to Southeast Asia, were introduced to Florida more than 20 years ago as a result of escaped or released pets. The State of Florida worked with wildlife agencies to create the Python Elimination Program after the invasive species messed with the local ecosystem They found shelter in the Everglades and South Florida, which is where Burmese pythons are still found today. However, they've begun traveling north as well. In Florida, it is illegal to release nonnative species into the wild since they can negatively impact native wildlife and upset the ecosystem's balance. 'Another win for the Everglades,' said SFWMD Governing Board Member 'Alligator Ron' Bergeron in the statement. 'Every snake counts. Each invasive python eliminated represents hundreds of native Florida wildlife saved.' FWC Commissioner Rodney Barreto added that the newest milestone was reached with help from not only wildlife officials, but local community members. 'Weve learned through the Python Challenge that experience counts when finding and removing Burmese pythons,' said Barreto. 'We cant win the battle alone. Its one team, one mission. We need the support of these experienced python hunters as well as the partnership with the South Florida Water Management District and the ongoing support of Gov. Ron DeSantis.' Wildlife officials believe Burmese pythons reached the Everglades as escaped or released pets It is illegal to release nonnative species into the Florida wild because they negatively affect native species and inundate the area Wildlife officials in Florida offered to pay trappers to remove Burmese pythons and included bonuses based on the snake's size The 'Python Bowl' was an event held on January 20 that invited local trappers to compete to remove as many snakes as possible from the ecosystem. The initiative was spearheaded by the State of Florida, the Miami Super Bowl Host Committee and other agencies involved in wildlife. 'The protection of our environment and natural resources is critical,' said Gov. DeSantis in a 2019 statement. 'Invasive Burmese pythons have decimated local wildlife and pose a massive threat to natural food chains and flora and fauna. 'The 2020 Python Bowl is sure to be a great success, and I look forward to the positive effects it will have on preserving and protecting the Everglades ecosystem.' The Python Bowl resulted in 80 snakes being captured and removed from the wild. The State of Florida partnered with the Miami Super Bowl Host Committee to create the Python Bowl, a competition that invited locals to compete to remove snakes from the area Pictured: Florida wildlife officials have shared photos of local residents and trappers who've captured Burmese pythons The exact number of Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades is unknown, but wildlife officials estimate there are tens of thousands of the species The FWC announced that its Python Action removed its 900th snake in September 2019 by local Bobby Monroe. That snake was just two-feet-long, but another snake captured that year stretched to 18 feet and weighed a whopping 98lbs. It was the second largest snake ever caught in Florida. A spokesperson for the FWC told Tampa Bay Times that the Python Action Team had removed more than 1,700 snakes since 2017. The SFWMD have captured almost 3,400. Burmese pythons have shifted the dynamics in the Everglades and South Florida after it was introduced. Burmese pythons are one of the largest snakes in the world and can grow to more than 20 feet on average The snake feasts on local populations like birds, rabbits and possums, which takes food resources away from native wildlife species like alligators and panthers. They are an apex predator that can grow more than 20 feet long and are considered one of the largest snakes in the world. The exact number of pythons in the area has not been determined, but it's estimated to be tens of thousands. The public can help control nonnative invasive wildlife by reporting sightings to the FWCs Exotic Species Hotline at 888-IveGot1 (888-483-4681), online at IveFot1.org or by using the free smartphone app IVEGOT1. Here are todays top news, analysis and opinion at this hour. Know all about the latest news and other news updates from Hindustan Times. Covid-19 update: Yoga institutes, gyms to open from August 5; govt issues guidelines The government has allowed gymnasiums and yoga institutes to lift shutters from August 5 under the third phase of unlocking the Covid-19 lockdown. As per the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), yoga institutes and gymnasiums located in Covid-19 containment zones shall not be permitted to open. Read more. Sushant Singh Rajputs family didnt raise any suspicion, no evidence against any politician: Mumbai Police commissioner Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajputs family did not complain about any lapse in the investigation being carried by Mumbai Police into his death in June, the citys top police official has said. Read more. Light diyas at home to mark the historic moment of bhoomi pujan: Adityanath In the run-up to the ground-breaking ceremony of the foundation stone-laying of Ram Temple in Ayodhya on Wednesday, chief minister Yogi Adityanath said it is essential to light earthen lamps or diyas at our homes to mark the historic moment. Read more. Supreme Court remained a mute spectator when Delhi burnt: Prashant Bhushan refuses to apologise The Supreme Court (SC) remained a mute spectator as communal riots ravaged north-east Delhi, advocate Prashant Bhushan said on Sunday in his counter-affidavit filed in response to the contempt of court case initiated against him by the top court for his tweets against the apex court and the Chief Justice of India (CJI), SA Bobde. Read more. Pakistan court allows India to appoint lawyer for Kulbhushan Jadhav The Islamabad high court on Monday adjourned the hearing in the Kulbushan Jadhav case till September 3, saying India should be given a chance to appoint a lawyer to defend the former Indian Navy commander sentenced to death for alleged involvement in a spying case. Read more. Anand Mahindras floor drain post sparks an interesting Twitter chatter. Seen it yet? Anand Mahindra, every now and then, shares posts which not just impresses people but leaves them with various thoughts too. Case in point is his latest tweet which is about the design of a floor drain. The business tycoon has shared an image which has now sparked chatter among people. Read more. The following remarks are intended to address some of the questions raised by the selection of Professor Naana Opoku-Agyemang as the NDCs vice-presidential candidate for the 2020 national elections. They are not meant to indicate my party affiliation. I am not a member or follower of the National Democratic Congress or indeed of any of Ghanas political parties. But I am not neutral, politically, or personally. Politically speaking, I am partisan. I belong to the independent left. In defiance of todays arranged neoliberal consensus, I am left and proud, dreamer of an infinitely more just society than the one we currently inhabit. Moreover, I am a member of that weird human subspecies, the male feminists, those who believe that women and men are endowed with the same capabilities, are entitled to the same rights, freedoms, and duties, and are equally fit to be guardians of the material and moral resources of our society. Prompted by that conviction I salute the historic selection of a woman and, in particular, Professor Naana Opoku-Agyemang, as a major political partys candidate for the office of vice-president. This is not just a matter of symbolic significance. This is an event of enormous substantive importance, one that is long overdue. That should do as an answer to the bizarre question someone posed after the announcement: Is Ghana ready for a woman vice-president? I vividly recall an analogous question often asked at the inception of the Obama adventure: Are the American people ready for a black President? I was always tempted to say the following to the questioner: By the American people you mean white American people, dont you? You are not speaking of the whole of the American citizenry, certainly not of the black part of the blessed whole, are you? This is a case of the fraction impersonating the whole, isnt it? In a similar vein I say: By Is Ghana ready for a woman vice-president? you mean Ghanaian men, dont you? Are Ghanaian women likely to ask that question? I could be wrong but I will swear by the ancestors of Kurankyekurom, Akyemfo that only a guy and a slowly recovering male-supremacist would even ask that question? And what, may I ask, have we men wrought all these years marvelous regime after marvelous regime anyway? Nor am I neutral on a personal level either. Or rather, I should say that my personal view of Naana, her competence and preparedness for the office is not unconnected with my political understanding. Full disclosure: although I am a recent returnee to Ghana, I have known Naana Opoku-Agyemang for over four decades beginning in the 1980s. Teaching in the Graduate Programme of Social and Political Thought at York University, I was a member of Naana Opoku Agyemangs PhD dissertation committee and present at the brilliant defense of her work in 1989. I do not hope to convince the misogynistic Neanderthals who have been bleating out all manner of drivel and appalling comments impugning her competence, but let me assure the genuinely curious of this: Naana Opoku-Agyemang possesses a formidable intellect, one demonstrably capable of enlarging the fruits of her specialty into other institutional and societal domains. That is what a great intellect does, not to dwell immured in the enclosure of one discipline but, if called upon to do so, to see and attend to connections among varied problems of our social world. That is what is especially required of the aspirant to political office, more specifically, presidential and vice-presidential office the ability to gather the disparate facts and special needs pertaining to all societal domains into a coherent and compelling vision of national purpose. Where is it written that the vice-president who assists in crafting and executing that vision, or for that matter the president, should be an economist or this and that specialist? Curiously, one person who voiced this stipulation is a University of Ghana political scientist, someone presumably familiar with the requirements of political office as a vocation. My answer to our learned friend is this: might as well require, in view of the current plague and pressing needs, that they ought to be virologists or immunologists. The offices of the minister of finance and health would be entirely superfluous. Yes, we need engineers and technicians. So, the philistines and tunnel-vision fetishists of science and technology declare a pox on literary studies and the like. Say goodbye to a generation of scholars who will cultivate and preserve the knowledge of the arts. These humanities-abolitionists are not content to cast aspersions on Naana the accomplished scholar, educationist, and administrator. Let the sins of the mother be visited upon her children. And so, one commentator on the Ghanaweb scoffs at the fact that two of Naanas three children have doctorates in literature and one in economics. Even the hallowed discipline, economics, it seems, is woefully inadequate! This is stupid. That view is the most eloquent proof that some acquaintance with the modes of reasoning fostered by the humanities is not a bad thing. What we desperately need now are leaders capable of thoughtful practice, visionary and inventive work, leaders able to conscript competent specialists and practitioners to help execute the discrete parts of a designed whole. I would say that Naana Opoku-Agyemang is supremely qualified to be such a leader; she is such a leader. And it is not insignificant that she is a woman, an audacious and accomplished woman. We should all be dancing in the streets if it were not for this pernicious plague. Ato Sekyi-Otu Emeritus Professor of Social & Political Thought York University Toronto, Canada The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has unveiled the first Volkswagen vehicle to be assembled in Ghana, following the establishment of the VW assembly plant in Ghana. At the unveiling ceremony, held at the Kempinski Hotel, on Monday, 3rd August 2020, President Akufo-Addo expressed his delight at the decision taken by Volkswagen to assemble a number of its brands right here in Ghana, not only for domestic use, but also for the West African market. It will be recalled that on Thursday, 30th August 2018, at the invitation of the President, the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, paid a brief visit to Ghana, where an agreement was reached between Government, Volkswagen and its Ghanaian partner for the assembly, and, ultimately, the production of VW vehicles in the country. According to President Akufo-Addo, there were many who expressed doubts about the feasibility of such an assembly plant being established in Ghana; and there were those who, for narrow, partisan considerations, described this announcement as nothing but a hoax, which would never see the light of day. Two years on, we have confounded the doubting Thomases, and I am happy to be here this morning to launch, officially, the first Volkswagen vehicle that has been assembled in our country. It is a good day for Mother Ghana, he added. VWs presence in Ghana, President Akufo-Addo noted, has been facilitated by Governments bold move to develop the Ghana Automotive Development Policy, under the auspices of the Ministry of Trade and Industry, with generous fiscal incentives. It is gratifying to note that VW is going beyond the Beetle to assemble in Ghana other brands, namely Tiguan, Teramont, Amarok, Caddy, Polo and Passat. Volkswagen means The Peoples Car, so I am expectant that the brands being assembled in Ghana will not only be affordable, but also be of the highest quality, he added. The President assured Volkswagen Ghana that Government will continue to support the company in diverse ways to ensure the sustainability and profitability of this venture in Ghana. To this end, he indicated that the Chief of Staff at the Office of the President, Hon. Akosua Frema Osei-Opare has issued, recently, a new directive to all Ministries, Departments and Agencies, and, indeed, to the Public Procurement Authority, to give first preference to the acquisition of locally assembled vehicles, when public funds are used to buy vehicles. Additionally, the Minister for Finance, in his excellent Mid-Year Budget Review Statement to Parliament, indicated that Government is going to establish an Automobile Industry Development Support Centre, which will, amongst others, co-ordinate the technical processes for licensing domestic vehicle assemblers and manufacturers, and monitor, also, their compliance with industry regulations and standards, he said. He continued, The Centre will also co-ordinate the implementation of an essential element of a viable automotive sector, that is the establishment of a Vehicle Financing Scheme, which will link financial institutions to individuals and groups interested in purchasing newly-assembled vehicles in Ghana. Furthermore, the Centre will carry out an Automotive Skills Enhancement Programme to provide requisite skills for the various categories of the value chain of the automobile industry. With the Chinese company, Sinotruk, already engaged in the assembly of trucks in Ghana, the President was hopeful that other global automobile companies, which have indicated their preparedness to set-up shop in Ghana, will soon follow the remarkable, pioneering example of Volkswagen. In developing the new automobile industry in Ghana, President Akufo-Addo reiterated the commitment of Government not to destroy the livelihoods of local stakeholders engaged in the industry value chain. I have engaged with representatives of the various stakeholder groupings, and given them the assurance that Government will introduce the necessary policy safeguards to protect their interests, and enable them, also, over time, to adapt to the new realities of the emerging automotive sector, he said. Additionally, Government, the President said, will continue to introduce appropriate incentives and support interventions to attract both foreign and local investments into the automotive assembly and manufacturing sector in Ghana. It is worth noting that, already, a Ghanaian owned company, the Kantanka Group, is in possession of a license to undertake auto-assembly operations in Ghana. I believe the development and modernisation of the industry present a "win-win" opportunity for both foreign and local companies engaged in the industry value chain, he said. 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 Hyderabad, Aug 3 : Rejig.HydStartups, an initiative by the Telangana State Innovation Cell (TSIC) and T-Incubators & Enablers to support start-ups in reimagining and repositioning their business model post-COVID-19 pandemic, has received more than 300 applications and 100 start-ups have been selected to be part of the mentoring programme, it was announced on Monday. Rejig.HydStartups is spread out in three-weeks of mentoring to help start-ups connect with investors or gain corporate market access, will see a three-pronged approach -- understanding the concerns of the start-up with a completion of leg work assigned by the mentor, understanding the change of strategy, and a revised pitch. The programme will culminate in a massive pitch day event where the start-ups will be pitching for equity funding, collateral-free debt funding, or corporate market access. The start-ups selected were from domains like life-sciences, fintech, manufacturing, agriculture, FMCG, emerging technology. A webinar involving ecosystem catalysts, was organised to understand the impact of the pandemic on the start-ups and expectations from the founders to become resilient. "Hyderabad will be standing out for its city as a whole approach through this important initiative Rejig.HydStartups to support the start-ups in coming weeks to become resilient post-pandemic. Even the applications that we received was a truly relevant mixture of industry sectors that require immediate attention," said Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary, Information Technology, Telangana government The webinar also saw a panel discussion involving Ravi Narayan, CEO of T-Hub & CIO of TSIC, Sridhar Pinnapureddy, Founder Chairman of CtrlS Datacenters, currently the President of TIE Hyderabad, Sateesh Andra, Managing Director of Endiya Partners, an established VC and investor. Panel was moderated by Deepanwita Chattopadhyay, CEO of IKP Knowledge Park. The speakers gave their experiential insights and urged the startups to relook at their business models and be willing to reimagine during the toughest crisis. Some of the steps founders could take range from identifying the alternate market for the existing product or service, rationalising the product or service, smart cost optimisation, to look out for answers by discussing with the customers, mentors, and investors. One of the important mentions by all the panellists towards betterment was founders' resilience, the fact that the investments largely are done based on the strength of the business model and quality of the human capital. Chattopadhyay said that it is a great opportunity not just for startups but also for the incubators and enablers to collectively contribute to the start-up ecosystem in the times when mentor access is important for founders to get a sounding board. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) President Rodrigo Duterte has had enough from his critics, including opposition leaders, supposedly plotting to unseat him through a "revolution" amid the pandemic, Malacanang said Monday. During his briefing, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque noted that long-standing criticisms from Vice President Leni Robredo, Senator Franklin Drilon, and even a popular musical theater song hinting a "revolution", have collectively fuelled negative sentiments from Duterte during his address to the nation on Sunday. "Sunud-sunod ang pagtawag ni Sen. Drilon na failure ang IATF, sinusugan iyan ni VP Leni Robredo, kasabay nung kumakalat na revolution song," Roque said. [Translation: Sen. Drilon's consecutive comments that the Inter-Agency Task Force is a failure, along with remarks from VP Leni Robredo, then this circulating revolution song.] "Ang Presidente, sabi niya, kung iyon talagang mga nanggugulo...nais magsamantala sa pandemic na gusto siyang palitan through a revolution, sige na po gawin na natin ngayon," he said. [Translation: The President said that those who have been making threats...taking advantage of the pandemic by plotting to have him replaced through a revolution, then please lets do it now.] In a radio interview on Sunday, Roque made mention of the Filipino rendition of uprising anthem "Do You Hear the People Sing," a song from West End musical Les Miserables, performed by artists and celebrities in previous anti-government protests. Roque then pointed back to the public appeal of the medical community to have a two-week timeout to refine pandemic medical strategies, a move which Duterte interpreted as their way of revolting against the government. "Next time, huwag ninyo ako parinig-rinigin ng revolution. Eh kung mag rebolusyon kayo, you will give me free ticket to stage a counterrevolution," Duterte said Sunday. [Translation: Next time, do not let me hear about revolution. If you mount one, you will give me a free ticket to stage a counterrevolution.] Roque added that frontliners should have aired their sentiments directly to the President instead of letting him be the last person to know about their demands. Philippine College of Physicians Vice President Dr. Maricar Limpin said that they were simply showing the government the true situation on the ground. Meanwhile, Philippine Medical Association President Joseph Santiago said the medical community is openly cooperating with the government in its COVID-19 response. Duterte has placed Metro Manila, the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal under MECQ from August 4 to 18, following the health workers' appeal. Haiti - News : Zapping... A Haitian delegation in DR on August 16 Roberto Alvarez, the next Chancellor of the Dominican Government, revealed that on August 16, several important delegations will come from the United States, Spain and Haiti for the handover ceremony of the new Dominican President Luis Abinader. He added that other delegations have confirmed their presence including Turkey, adding that due to the pandemic, the ceremony will take place in the presence of a limited number of guests, in the absence of outgoing or incoming officials and without military parade. Jacmel : Murder of Mrs. Amine Brun Zenny On the night of Thursday to Friday July 31, Mrs. Amine Brun Zenny (82 years old) a notable of Jacmel, lawyer, educator, former director of Lycee Celie Lamour, was murdered in her residence located at avenue La Liberte Jacmel by burglars, before fleeing with their loot... The former Senator and businessman Edwin Zenny offered an amouint of 5 million Gourdes to anyone who could identify the alleged murderer of his aunt Amine Zenny. Isaias : 3,000 people affected The Haitian authorities evacuated more than 3,000 affected families, following the passage of the storm Isaias in the country in the North-West department more precisely in Port-de-Paix, Saint-Louis du Nord, Bassin-Bleu and Baie de Henne. See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-31441-haiti-news-zapping.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-31417-haiti-flash-first-assessment-of-the-storm-isaias.html Jimani : seizure of 56 kg of marijuana from Haiti On Saturday, the Specialized Land Border Security Corps (CESFRONT) seized in the Jimani border area 56 kg of marijuana and 340 cartons of 10 packs of "Capital" brand cigarettes from Haiti. Haitian smugglers tried to smuggle this merchandise on horseback. Faced with the intervention of the Dominican military, the Haitians fled, abandoning their horses and contraband goods. CEP : Moise awaits the names of the new representatives After the resignation "en bloc" of the Representatives of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-31369-haiti-flash-grouped-resignation-of-8-remaining-members-of-the-cep.html the President Jovenel Moise launched new invitations to the various sectors of civil society, so that they nominate their new representative, granting them 72 hours to send him the name of their representative. Delivery of equipment against Covid-19 to the DPC In order to continue with the fight against the spread of Covid-19 during the hurricane season, the Ministry of Public Health handed over 100,000 surgical masks and several gallons of alcohol to the Directorate of Civil Protection (DPC) for people who will eventually be placed in temporary shelters. HL/ HaitiLibre Four towns in Laois are among 106 towns and villages around Ireland to benefit immediately from 2.8 million in funding, announced this August Bank Holiday Monday. The funding is to help communities to shop, socialise and work safely in light of Covid-19 Pandemic. Laois has got a total of 107,500, for work in Abbeyleix, Mountmellick, Mountrath and Portarlington. Abbeyleix gets 40,000 to erect a semi-permanent modular canopy structure between the existing library and the fountain within Market Square. Mountmellick, Mountrath and Portarlington all get the same sum each of 22,500 for "modification and enhancement of the Public Realm to help comply with social distancing and encourage increased footfall". Laois County Council has already invested in such measures in Portlaoise. Cllr Tom Mulhall has welcomed the cash for Portarlington. "I have been informed this morning by Minister Martin Heydon and Minister Heather Humphreys that Portarlington has received 22,500 in Covid-19 supports. This will help rejuvenate towns and improve facilities in community centres and to help people who are working locally. This is very welcome news as Portarlington is an important commuter and local business town and this funding will help encourage people to shop, socialise and work in the town. I will be also be working to ensure that Laois County Council takes whatever action necessary to further support Portarlington to recover after the difficulties brought on by Covid-19," he said. The Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys TD, has today Monday, August 3, announced details of the first 2.8 million in funding approvals from her Department to help rural towns and villages to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic. The full July Stimulus Package includes an additional 10m for towns and villages, 5 million for upgrading and improving community centres and 2 million extra to support the islands This first tranche of funding under the enhanced Town and Village Renewal Scheme recognises the need to support rural businesses and communities to rebuild in response to COVID-19. Practical examples for which the funding will be used include: Widening walkways and footpaths to provide seating for shoppers Providing sheltered areas outside local amenities Enhancements to community centres to allow for remote working Adapting community spaces, playgrounds and other outdoor areas for social distancing Supporting the establishment of Cycle Cafes. Speaking today, Minister Humphreys said: It is vitally important that we increase footfall in rural towns and villages by supporting them to adapt to this new normal as a result of COVID-19. This funding will benefit communities by altering the streetscapes so that people can shop, work and socialise safely. I have increased the funding for the Town and Village Renewal Scheme as part of the 17 million rural package that my Department secured under the July Jobs Stimulus. This means that even more towns and villages will benefit from supports. Minister Humphreys continued: Local Authorities throughout the country have been developing creative and innovative proposals to increase footfall and assist businesses in our rural towns and villages. This tranche of funding announced today is part of an enhanced 25 million Town and Village Scheme which will continue to rejuvenate rural communities across Ireland. Further approvals under this hugely popular scheme will follow in a series of funding rounds that will be announced in the coming weeks. I expect that up to 500 towns and villages will be supported this year under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme. The National Diversity & Inclusion Cannabis Alliance (NDICA) announced today that financial grants are still available for the Returning Citizens Stimulus Grant Program. This pilot program provides single grants of $2,700 to individuals who have been released from prison or jail in the last 12 months to assist them in transitioning back to the community. In partnership with the Los Angeles Regional Reentry Partnership (LAARP), we have provided nearly $2,000,000 in grant funding to date to support Returning Citizens who are most in need, said Bonita Money, executive director and founder of NDICA. This funding is critical to help support a smooth transition, she said. The grants provide non-restricted financial support to participants to use for living expenses and other needs. Returning Citizen Taewon Wilson explained, The $200 they give you when you are released doesnt go very far, so this type of program really eliminates a lot of stress. Wilson was released recently after a couple of decades of incarceration and found out about the program through the Ella Baker Center in Oakland, CA. More than 9,000 people have participated in the pilot program, currently offered in a few cities nationwide and in Los Angeles and Oakland within California. Each participant must meet eligibility requirements and program milestones to receive payments. The comprehensive stimulus program is funded by a private non-profit and may be renewed depending on outcomes. The grant is proportioned in three-month increments based on certain activities like setting up a bank account and getting a phone. It gives us a standard of responsibility to fulfill the requirements and this is also really important in helping to establish credit, Wilson added. NDICA has been participating in this program for several months, and with new additional funding, grants are still available. Priority is given to individuals who are released from prison or jail after serving longer sentences. Ive been in and out of the system since I was a juvenile, explained Carl Briggs, another program participant. I have never seen anything like the Returning Citizens Program. Its first in class and by far the best program in Los Angeles. NDICA is a beacon of light to the lower living. A lot of organizations say they help but NDICA really does, he added. To learn more about this program and how to apply, contact NDICA at info@thendica.org. For further information, please contact: Kristie Amobi, Head of Communications Tel: +1-213-598-0236, e-mail: kristie@thendica.org Time zone: PST: Pacific Standard Time About NDICA The National Diversity & Inclusion Cannabis Alliance (NDICA) is a non-profit working to promote social equity and social justice in the cannabis industry. With chapters in Los Angeles, CA, Fresno, CA, Chicago, IL, Oklahoma City, OK, and Columbus, OH, NDICA exists to help ensure that people who were negatively affected by the War on Drugs are represented in the legal cannabis industry throughout the country. NDICA works with social equity applicants and license holders in need of technical assistance, mentorship and resources to ensure a fair and equitable cannabis industry. Visit http://www.thendica.org to learn more. Commercial construction sites will revert to 'pilot light' mode with just a quarter of their normal workforce and smaller home builders will only be allowed five workers on site under ramped-up stage four restrictions to stop the spread of COVID-19 in Victoria. "We are moving them to a pilot light phase, not being turned off completely but they are dramatically reducing the number of people they have working for them and their output over the next six weeks," Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said. The deserted construction site of the Melbourne Quarter project on Collins Street on Monday. Credit:Simon Schluter The harsh new restrictions on business will affect metropolitan Melbourne. All large building sites in the city will need a COVID safety plan, one of a string of measures introduced on Monday to limit the spread of COVID-19 infections, which on Friday shut down one major Melbourne construction site, the curvaceous 79-storey Premier Tower nicknamed after Beyonce in Spencer Street. SACRAMENTO Three weeks after Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered a retreat from the coronavirus and reinstated statewide shutdowns for much of the economy, it appears the plan is working: Californias outbreak is showing signs of slowing down. Newsom rang cautiously optimistic at a news briefing in Sacramento County on Monday, noting that case counts and hospitalizations are dropping for the first time in several weeks. The percentage of people testing positive a key indicator of the outbreak is trending down too. The state continues to see far more disease now than even a month ago, and the death toll is still climbing, public health experts noted. But it appears the decision to pause reopening in much of the state and implore the public to wear face coverings and avoid gatherings is paying off. Well need to see another few weeks of this kind of data ... to feel more confident about where we are as a state, Newsom said. Its encouraging. At the same time, we can quickly find ourselves back to where we were just a few weeks ago, a month ago, with significant increases if we do not maintain our vigilance. This virus is not going away. Daily new cases are down about 21% over the past two weeks from an average of about 9,800 a day to 7,800, Newsom said. Hospitalizations have fallen 10% in the same time, with about 6,400 people currently in the hospital, including 1,940 in intensive care. The state has reported just over 520,000, including 7,673 on Monday. The percentage of people testing positive has dropped to an average of 7% over the past 14 days, from 7.5% last week. Public health experts generally say a rate of 5% or less is needed to gain control of the pandemics spread. A 20% decrease (in cases) in the state is nothing to sneeze at, said George Rutherford, a UCSF infectious disease expert. Now we pat ourselves on the back and do more of what weve been doing. The state improvements are apparent in the Bay Area, too, where average daily new cases fell about 29% last week from the week before from about 1,000 a day to 700. The Bay Area has reported about 56,000 cases in all, including 533 on Monday. California reflects the broad U.S. picture, with cases declining nationally over the past week. The highest single day so far was July 24, with more than 78,000 cases, and daily reports have stayed between about 58,000 and 70,000 since then. Paul Chinn / The Chronicle Public health experts echoed the governors caution, although they welcomed the most recent data. The new case reports and hospitalization numbers are still alarmingly high, they said, and nowhere near what the state and counties need to see to regain control of the outbreak. Also, the recent numbers are still fresh and could trend up again an especially important lesson after overconfidence and subsequent relaxing of behaviors, like mask wearing and social distancing, contributed to the recent swell of cases. Plus, the death toll is continuing to climb. Thats not surprising, since deaths lag the case reports and hospitalizations by a week or two, but its nonetheless sobering, public health experts said. California reported 801 deaths last week the most in any week so far in the pandemic. More than 9,500 Californians have died of COVID-19. Newsom credited measures California has taken in the past month for the statewide declines, including ordering several business sectors to shut back down. Rutherford and other experts agreed. They noted that case counts and other measures of the pandemic lag two to three weeks behind the actual spread of the virus, and so its to be expected that now three weeks after Newsom paused the economic reopening the results would be apparent in the data. Im not yet ready to say that the governor dialed things down to the perfect place. But I think were seeing the effects of his efforts three weeks ago, said John Swartzberg, an infectious disease expert with UC Berkeley. Is it going to be enough? If things continue like this, I think yes. I was worried that if we didnt see something significant in a week or two that wed be locked down again. Newsom warned that the state cannot take its progress for granted, saying lax behaviors led to the June and July surge in cases. Lets not relive that experience again, he said. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle 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 governor added that while much of the state has seen improvement, there are still emerging hot spots in the Central Valley, where new cases have surged, especially among agricultural workers and Latino households. Positive test rates and hospitalizations also are climbing there. Last week, the state put in place measures that Newsom said helped reduce infection rates in hard-hit Imperial County, including deploying strike forces of inspectors to enforce health orders and helping infected people quarantine from people close to them. Disproportionately, this disease is impacting our diverse communities, Newsom said. Thats why our targeted interventions, disproportionately, are focusing on essential workforce, on farmworkers, on critical workforce. Although cases are dropping nationally, there are troubling signs that the virus is spreading in some states that so far have escaped the worst of it, continuing a trend in this pandemic of outbreaks surfacing in previously unburdened areas just as it appears to be slackening off in others. In a virtual interview with the Journal of the American Medical Association on Monday, Anthony Fauci, the nations top infectious disease expert, said the U.S. needs to push its daily case counts down well below 20,000 possibly under 10,000 to maintain control of the virus. Over the past month, several states, including California, have reported more than 10,000 cases alone in a day. Stomping on that daily case count is especially critical with the flu season on the horizon, Fauci said. Were right in the middle of the first wave here. Were having surging of cases, anywhere between 60,000 and 70,000 a day, a thousand deaths, Fauci said. If we dont get them down, well have a very bad situation in the fall. Dustin Gardiner and Erin Allday are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: dustin.gardiner@sfchronicle.com eallday@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @dustingardiner @erinallday Rahaf al-Jaa trained as a midwife, but now uses her skills to spread awareness about the spread of the coronavirus and means to protect yourself writes Zaman Al-Wasl. On Jul. 7, 2017, Rahaf al-Jaa lost her husband, who died during a bombing raid leaving her with two children to struggle against the difficult circumstances of war in Syria. Like thousands of Syrian women, Rahaf, 24, fought to leave her mark in her community and to overcome the obstacles that war and revolution have thrown her way, going back to study midwifery at the Faculty of Medicine in Idleb. Jaa worked with the Syrian Expatriates Medical Association (SEMA) as a healthcare provider and in health awareness and malnutrition in densely populated areas, especially camps, in addition to gaining experience through her studies and work in a clinic as a midwife. The most prominent legacy of the war are ignorance and poverty, Rahaf said. She has worked for two years to raise awareness among Syrian women, on the internet and through her visits as part of the voluntary awareness campaigns that she conducted in camps in northern Syria. With the spread of the novel coronavirus in neighboring countries, the rising number of infections recorded in the liberated areas, and the lack of awareness among civilians, I took it upon myself to provide preventive advice and guidance to the affected communities, especially the displaced in border camps and random camps scattered on the outskirts of villages and other towns within the province, she explained. One of Rahafs first visits was to a camp near the town of Sarmada, in northern Idleb. Despite the limited time between raising her children, her work in the private clinic, and her studies, she conducted individual and group awareness sessions as the risk of infection rose, especially in overcrowded camps. Rahaf even worked with a media agency to produce an educational awareness program on the pandemic, and the dangers that people may face if they do not follow the preventive measures provided. The program, the first of its kind in the liberated Syrian north, will be broadcast in a few days on social media sites to raise awareness and contain the spread of coronavirus. Other educational programs will be made in accordance with the situation in these areas. However, she explained that if the virus spreads considerably in the upcoming days, all awareness campaigns would be pointless, and that medical teams working in Idleb and the countryside of Aleppo must move the infected into isolation centers and urge people to self-quarantine in cooperation with local authorities. I will be the first to volunteer in isolation centers, and to provide medical care and treatments for the infected. Rahaf previously used her personal Facebook account to provide lessons, awareness tips and advice for mothers, and pregnant and breastfeeding women, since midwifery is her field of expertise. Rahaf said that her aspiration is to be an active member of society during the current difficult circumstances, providing all the knowledge she gained to the largest possible number of Syrian women. This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author. Defence force soldiers will help enforce hotel quarantine in Western Australia. Federal Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said Premier Mark McGowan requested the Australian Defence Force's help at five Perth hotels over the weekend. She said having a uniformed presence would make a difference. A woman arrives at a Perth hotel to begin her quarantine. Credit:Getty Images I have been in regular contact with Premier McGowan over what assistance WA might require from the ADF," she said. That request, for up to 50 ADF personnel to support police and health compliance with quarantine in city hotels, was received on the weekend." Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russias Security Council, said the nations migrants are committing more crimes amid mass unemployment due to the coronavirus pandemic. Medvedev told a meeting of the Security Council on August 3 that about 40 percent of migrants in Russia lost their jobs during the pandemic. This, of course, creates a breeding ground for the growth of crime, potentially, in this area, he said. Russias Interior Ministry on July 25 accused migrants of egregious cases of extremism, gross violation of public order, and unauthorized mass protests. Two days later, on July 27, Russia's Federal Security Service said it killed a Tajik migrant who it claims planned a terrorist attack in Moscow. Most migrants in Russia come from Central Asia with many working in construction or cleaning city streets and buildings. Russia banned the deportation of migrants at the end of April amid the pandemic. Medvedev warned the state may tighten rules on immigration, including making companies more responsible for the actions of migrants they hire. Reporting by TASS and Kommersant White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said Monday that the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok poses a threat to privacy and national security, telling the Axios Re:Cap podcast, "Let's not downplay the threat here: the mothers of America have to worry about whether the Chinese Communist Party knows where their children are." Why it matters: Navarro, a fervent China hawk, is among the voices shaping White House policy on TikTok, which President Trump said Monday must be sold by Sept. 15 in order to avoid a U.S. ban. Navarro suggested that if Microsoft is allowed to buy TikTok, the company should be forced to make unrelated concessions related to its China operations. What he's saying: "There are really two issues, privacy and national security. And it's simple question for the mothers of America. It's 12 o'clock. Do you know if the Chinese Communist Party knows where your children are?" Navarro said. "Let's not be foolish about this. We're getting attacked every day by the Chinese Communist Party. They rip us off for half a trillion dollars a year of intellectual property. And the idea that somehow, these innocent fun little applications are innocent and fun only, is laughable." Go deeper: A British woman has escaped the death penalty for stabbing her husband to death in Malaysia - after a judge ruled she was guilty of manslaughter and not murder. Samantha Jones, 51, broke down in tears as a judge spared her the mandatory penalty of death by hanging after ruling she was not guilty of murdering husband John Jones, 63, at their home on the island of Langkawi in 2018. Instead Jones, who claimed to have stabbed John in self-defence after suffering years of physical abuse, was found guilty of 'culpable homicide without intent'. Jones, who has already spent two years in jail awaiting trial, was ordered to serve three and a half more years behind bars. She had been facing up to 10 years. Samantha Jones, 51, from Somerset, dodged the death penalty as she went on trial in Malaysia on Monday (pictured) as a judge ruled she was not guilty of murder Jones was instead found guilty of 'culpable homicide without intent' for stabbing husband John Jones, 63 (pictured), to death in 2018 Lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo said she was also fined 1,800. He said: 'She is very relieved having come to terms with what happened that night, and for the court... to understand what happened that night. She didn't intend for this to happen.' Arriving at court earlier in the day while wearing a mask and handcuffs, Jones had insisted: 'I loved that man.' Jones, a former insurance clerk, and John, a retired fireman, moved to Malaysia 13 years ago from Somerset after falling in love with the country on a holiday in 2002. But she claims their 'new life' quickly turned into 'hell in paradise' as John - a father-of-two and grandfather-of-four - drank heavily and physically abused her. Jones says she acted in self-defence after suffering years of physical abuse at the hands of her husband (pictured together) Jones says she reported John twice to the police in the UK before they moved for abusing her, but felt unable to go to police in Malaysia because the subject is 'taboo'. Lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo says Jones had suffered a broken jaw during one beating, and feared that John would kill her one day. Friends in the area have previously claimed that John banned her from talking to other men and even attacked her with a sword on one occasion. On the day of the killing - October 18, 2018 - John had been out all day drinking with his ex-pat friends when he returned home and an argument broke out. She claims she was punched in the face and kicked in the stomach before grabbing a knife in self defence, as John goaded her to stab him. Jones says she ran to the bathroom clutching the knife, before stabbing John in the chest as he renewed his attack on her - with the knife piercing his liver. After being sentenced to three and a half years in jail, Jones was led away from the courtroom and on to a waiting prison bus (pictured) Jones said she stabbed her husband (scene, pictured) after he returned from an all-day drinking session with friends and became abusive - hitting her in the face and stomach Jones says she grabbed a knife (pictured) to protect herself, then plunged it into her husband's chest as he goaded her to attack him She then ran to a neighbour to call for help, but by the time an ambulance arrived, John had bled to death. She was arrested and charged with murder, and has been languishing in jail on the island since then. During early court hearings, she appeared barefoot and with matted hair. On Monday she appeared more composed - with her hair tied up and a mask on. Speaking ahead of the trial, Deo told The Mirror: 'The one thing she wants everyone to know is she really loved this man. 'He had a lot of problems and she was standing by him and working it through. 'She never imagined anything like this could ever happen. Shes lost her husband and home. She is still grieving, it has been a traumatic experience. 'We are of the view the facts of the case do not support a murder charge.' One lakh designer diyas (earthen lamps) from Etah and Kannauj, handpicked by chief minister Yogi Adityanath, would add glitter during the August 5 Ram temple bhoomi pujan event in Ayodhya. A truckload of these diyas have already been dispatched to the temple town and chairman of Maati Kala Board Dharamvir Prajapati is reaching Ayodhya to ensure that they are distributed to all major temples and for river banks adjacent to the bhoomi pujan site. Besides these designer diyas, lakhs of others would be lit up in the run-up to the event and during the bhoomi pujan event in Ayodhya following CM Yogis call for deepotsav (festival of lights) on August 3, 4 and 5 in the temple town. Also read: Why Ayodhyas Hanumangarhi temple is first on PM Modis itinerary Along with Ayodhya, the Lucknow bungalow and offices of the chief minister, his ministerial colleagues as well the party offices and those held by senior party functionaries and cadres would be also be lit up. Besides Uttar Pradesh, potters from Maharashtra and Rajasthan, have contacted Prajapati and expressed the desire to be associated with the Ram temple event. A Mumbai based businessman has contacted me offering to donate one lakh earthen lamps. A big potter from Rajasthan wants to donate a Ram idol worth nearly 60 lakh. Its going to be Diwali on, and in the run-up to, the August 5 event. For everyone from Ayodhya to Lucknow and beyond it would be a momentous occasion. We are especially happy because the potters, who are mostly OBCs, and for whose cause the Maati Kala Board has been set up by our government, would get recognition and respect that they deserve, said Prajapati, who is busy these days with identifying promising potters to be listed on the board. Prajapatis, an OBC community, traditionally make a living by giving shape to clay - from toys to diyas. Also read: 20,000 temples get fresh paint. Ram dhun reverberates as Ayodhya decks up for the big day Prajapati said CM Yogi was so impressed by the designer diyas that he ordered one lakh of them. When I showed him the designs, Yogiji immediately said he wanted them in Ayodhya. He has big plans for Maati Kala Board and feels it has great potential, Prajapati said. Pratyush Kumar, the potter from Kannauj whose designer diyas impressed Yogi, said he was doubly pleased. I am delighted that my lamps would add to the occasion at Ayodhyas bhoomi pujan. What delights me even more is that our communitys kala (art) would now get a wider audience. The setting up of the Maati Kala Board has been a step in the right direction, said Kumar. Since 2017, when an estimated 1.7 lakh earthen lamps were lit up on the banks of the Saryu river, to 2019 - when Ayodhya made it to the Guinness records with 5.5 lakh earthen lamps lit up at the same time - the deepotsav has been getting bigger each Diwali. This time, deepotsav is being celebrated a few months ahead of Diwali. A GOES-16 GeoColor satellite image taken Saturday morning and provided by the NOAA, shows Hurricane Isaias over the Bahamas. Read more LIVE COVERAGE: Click here to read live updates of Isaias in the Philadelphia region for Aug. 4 Tornado watches are up for the entire region, and tornado warning was posted for upper Bucks County, on as Isaias approaches the region wringing out heavy rains that already have set off flood warnings. And forecasters say conditions are about to deteriorate. The strongest sustained winds were expected to arrive by mid- to late morning, along with gusts to 60 mph and perhaps 70 mph at the Shore. No sightings have been confirmed, but the National Weather Service hoisted a tornado warning for the area around Dublin Borough, Bucks County, until 8:45 a.m. based on radar evidence. At 8 a.m. the center of Isaias was in southeastern Virginia and was expected to rip through the heart of New Jersey from late morning through the early afternoon. Widespread power outages were expected as strong winds could work in tandem with saturated roots to bring down trees. Projected rainfall amounts read more like winter-storm warnings 3 to 6 inches were expected, or 4 to 8 weeks worth. The storm was upgraded to a category 1 hurricane on Monday night, after it killed two people in the Caribbean, caused damage to the Bahamas, and brought heavy rain and flooding to Florida. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency late Monday night in advance of the storm, effective since 5 a.m. Tuesday. The heavy rains could coax streams out of their banks, but no flooding was expected along the main stem of the Delaware River could lead to potential flooding from rivers and streams. A flash-flood watch was in effect until midnight for the entire region. The last time Philadelphia itself was in a tropical storm warning, said Nicholas Carr, meteorologist at the National Weather Service Office in Mount Holly. Fay, which made landfall on July 10 in New Jersey, mostly just led to heavy rain in Philadelphia, while the winds were confined to the Jersey Shore and Delaware. READ MORE: Heavy rains cause flooding at Shore and in Philly as Tropical Storm Fay deluges the region Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolfs administration urged residents to know the difference between a flood watch, which means that flooding may occur, and a flood warning, which means there is actual flooding. Officials also suggested residents consider possible evacuation plans and identify a meet-up location for family members in the event they get separated. The best way to help emergency responders is for individual families to be prepared with an emergency plan and a communications plan, so everyone knows what they need to do to stay safe, Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency director Randy Padfield said in a statement. More than 100 current and former chief executives called for more aid to small businesses in the United States in a letter sent to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Monday. The letter was organized by the former Starbucks chief Howard Schultz with the support of Senator Michael Bennet, Democrat of Colorado, and Senator Todd Young, Republican of Indiana. It is signed by the likes of Walmarts Doug McMillon, Alphabets Sundar Pichai and Disneys Bob Chapek. The letter states: We cannot stress enough the urgent need to act. Every day that passes without a comprehensive recovery program makes recovery more difficult. By Labor Day, we foresee a wave of permanent closures if the right steps are not taken soon. Tens of millions of Americans have already lost their jobs in this pandemic. Allowing small businesses to fail will turn temporary job losses into permanent ones. By year end, the domino effect of lost jobs as well as the lost services and lost products that small businesses provide could be catastrophic. The chief executives call for federally guaranteed loans, at favorable terms, that will enable small businesses to transform and sustain themselves through 2020 and well into 2021. Internal Special Forces emails disclosed as part of a High Court case around the deaths of four Afghans shot by the SAS have been described as deeply troubling by a lawyer for a relative of the deceased. Documents showed that immediate and serious concerns were raised about the killings in Helmand province in February 2011, and members of the British Army were raising concerns at the time about a pattern of killings by the same unit, the solicitor said. The Sunday Times reported that internal communications between senior special forces officers showed serious concerns being expressed about the deaths of 33 people in 11 raids during a three-month period that year by one SAS unit. The newspaper quoted one email in which, it said, one of the countrys highest-ranking special forces officers described allegations he had received as explosive and disturbing and that they suggested a deliberate policy among one unit to engage and kill fighting-aged males on target even when they did not pose a threat. Saifullah Yar, in his 20s, has been granted a judicial review into the deaths of four of his family who were were shot on February 16 2011. Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Show all 20 1 /20 Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Nooria*, 15 in the home her family has lived in for the past two years in Mazar-i Sharif She was forced to flee her home with her family after their town was attacked by armed groups. Nooria describes a rocket hitting her neighbours home killing many inside. They fled on foot with just the clothes on their backs and she now lives in Mazari Shariff where Save the Children have enrolled her in school and provide vocational training Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Nooria* hopes for a future with no war; "When they attacked our village, the rocket hit our neighbour's house and they all died. Our house then caught fire and we ran away. My friends who I used to play with - I still don't know if they are alive or if they are dead. Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict I'm hoping for a better future, to learn, to support my family and to get them out of this difficult life. And I'm hoping for a future where there is no war. Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Naveed*, 16 at his family home in Mazar-i Sharif Naveed lost his leg when he stepped on a mine aged just 8-years-old. He was herding the family's sheep in the mountains near their home when he triggered a landmine Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict After months of medical treatment his right leg was eventually amputated. He received physiotherapy and a prosthetic leg from the International Committee for the Red Cross in Mazar Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Now enrolled in school, Naveed is being given vocational training by Save the Children. For around a year I felt and dreamt that I still had my leg. But when I woke up and saw, there was no leg. Sometimes Id feel with my hand to check and find it wasn't there. Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict If someone has loses their leg, it does not mean that they have lost their mind." Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict "With the help of our minds we can continue to study, learn, and work to make the future of our families brighter. Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Naveed and Mahboob*, 55 (Naveed's father) Several years ago Neveed's father, Mahboob, was brutally beaten with rifle butts by armed groups after, he says, he failed to provide food for them while they were stationed in the family's village. He suffered brain damage which affected the right side of his body, speech and his brain function Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Habiba*, 14, and Arezo*, 15 in a village outside Kabul Habiba and Arezo were injured with their mother three years ago in a suicide bombing in Kabul. Arezo is still traumatised from what she saw and has become completely withdrawn Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Arezo's younger sister Habiba cares for her, takes her to lessons and anywhere she wants to go. They are both in school through Save the Children's 'Steps towards Afghan girls' education success' (STAGES) programme, which helps the most marginalised girls get access to education, stay in school and learn. Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Habiba says: When I woke up and I opened my eyes I saw lots of bodies and I thought I was not alive any more. It was horrible. I'll never forget that. Whenever there is a big sound she gets scared because she was traumatised by the sound she heard during the attack. I love my sister, and I help her with her lessons, I take her anywhere." Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict "She's older than me but I feel like the older one because I support her. I hope for a better future for me and my sister. Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Khalida*, 10 in a classroom in a village outside Kabul Two years ago Khalida lost her 18-year old brother when he was killed in an explosion in Kabul. She misses him every day and says the family are still carrying the grief of his loss Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict "Two years ago, my brother was going to Kabul when an explosion happened and he lost his life. We are still carrying the grief and are crying over him. At the time we were happy, everyone was happy. Now no-one is happy in the family. When I remember him, I cry and feel so bad. I hope for peace and that war will stop, and that nobody loses their brother Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict I want to get education to become a teacher. I want to teach others who have never been to school Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Sema*,11 at her family home in Kabul Sema recalls coming home from her aunt's house and being told that her father had been killed in a suicide attack Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict Sema still thinks about him every second and likes to look at his prayer beads (Tisbeh) to remember him. They hang from the curtain in the family home. She loves school and wants to become a teacher one day. Sema says she wants peace in her country to stop other children losing their fathers. We still have lots of his belongings, like his car, his clothes, his watch, his shoes. Whenever we see them we cry. He gave us all so much love every moment and he is on our minds. I want for the powerful people around the world to stop the war and bring peace, because I don't want other children to lose their fathers. Andrew Quilty/Save the Children Afghanistan war: lives of children devastated by the endless conflict I want to become a teacher to serve the country and I don't want any girls to be illiterate. I want to teach all the girls, so they have access to education. *Names have been changed to protect identities Andrew Quilty/Save the Children The emails were disclosed to his legal team as part of the High Court hearing last month. His lawyer Tessa Gregory, from law firm Leigh Day, said: The material disclosed is deeply troubling. Not only does it show that the Afghan Partnering Unit raised immediate and serious concerns about the shootings of our clients relatives, it also shows that members of the British Army were contemporaneously raising concerns that the shootings formed part of a pattern of killings by the same unit, with there even being a suggestion that there was a deliberate policy of killing fighting-aged males when they posed no threat. It is a matter of grave concern that all of this nearly remained hidden. Our client was almost shut out from bringing this case because the government repeatedly stated in these proceedings that there was no basis for initiating an independent investigation before 2014, or for considering the shootings were anything other than in accordance with the rules of engagement. What has been revealed makes plain that is untrue. It substantially adds to our clients concern that there has been a cover-up and it has left him more determined than ever to find out the truth of what happened to his loved ones. A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said: This is not new evidence, and this historical case has already been independently investigated by the Royal Military Police (RMP) as part of Operation Northmoor. It has also been subject to four reviews conducted by an independent review team. These documents were considered as part of the independent investigations, which concluded there was insufficient evidence to refer the case for prosecution. The Service Police and the Service Prosecuting Authority of course remain open to considering allegations should new evidence, intelligence or information come to light. Press Association Penny Lancaster has spoken out on her experience of the menopause, revealing that she first experienced symptoms during lockdown. The star, 49, spoke to her Loose Women co-stars from her London home during Monday's show, updating them on her lockdown with husband Rod Stewart, 75. Penny admitted she has found the past few months extra tough because of her symptoms, but gushed that her rocker husband and their two sons Alastair, 14, and Aiden, 9, have been very understanding. Tough time: Penny Lancaster has spoken out on her experience of the menopause, revealing that she first experienced symptoms during lockdown Speaking from her home, Penny told her co-stars: 'Rod and I have a very close and intimate, open relationship about all sorts of things.' 'I talk to him about how I'm feeling in the lead up to my period, feeling a little down or sad or I always say, "Darling give me space today, it's the time of the month."' She added: 'I've explained to them [my family] about the hormones I'm experiencing since March, my last period.' 'I've been having the really hot sweats, and then freezing cold my body temperature is fluctuating all over the place. It affects your mood swings, I've been putting on more weight.' Love: The star, 49, spoke to her Loose Women co-stars from her London home during Monday's show, updating them on her lockdown with husband Rod Stewart, 75 Penny then recalled a particularly tough day, explaining: 'I was in the kitchen, cooking dinner, it had been one of those days where everything had been going wrong and I'd had enough. I ended up throwing the dinner across the kitchen.' 'I just screamed and burst into tears. The boys came and hugged me. Rod said, "Just give mummy a minute". So, we're lucky that we've got that open discussion.' Speaking of feeling there's a lack of information available, she said: 'What's really confusing for me, I'm trying to explain to my husband and the boys what's going on, but I don't really know myself'. Symptoms: Speaking from her home, Penny told her co-stars: 'I've explained to them [my family] about the hormones I'm experiencing since March, my last period' She added: 'I don't know what's happening. My younger friends are saying to me, 'Are you going to do HRT, what symptoms have you got?' I'm saying, 'I don't know!' Penny, Rod and their sons have split lockdown between their homes in Florida and London, as well as enjoying a recent break in Croatia. She explained to Loose Women that she and Rod 'always consider ourselves extremely lucky in lockdown...having a larger property and land to exercise in.' 'We count ourselves lucky, and thinking how awful it must be for those in small apartments. Our hearts went out to them.' Kumar Vikram By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, the busiest in the country, operated only 9,335 domestic flights in June this year as against 27,985 flights in the same month last year, a drop of nearly 67%. The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai, the second busiest, operated a mere 2,594 domestic flights this June as against 19,682 in the same month in 2019a drop of 87%. These telling numbers are not restricted only to the two biggest airports in the country. Official data accessed by this newspaper shows that Covid-19 and the subsequent lockdown have played havoc with the aviation sector, resulting in a sharp fall in the number of flights operated and the number of fliers from airports across the country. Consider the number of domestic flights in June 2019 and 2020 from some of the other prominent airports. Chennai airport saw a drop of more than 80%, Bengaluru 74%, Hyderabad 71% and Kolkata 61% in-flight operations. The numbers are grimmer if April-June 2019 and the same period this year are compared. Most airports show a drop of more than 80% (see graphic). The same steep decline in June 2019 and 2020 is seen in the number of domestic passengers handled at all the airports in the country. In June 2019, the Delhi airport handled more than 40 lakh domestic fliers, but in the same month this year, it came down to 8.82 lakh, a fall of 78%. The story is the same across all airports. Among the major airports that saw a drop of more than 90% are Mumbai, Goa and Mangalore. Coronavirus effect: Airlines fighting for survival Its not as if the crisis facing the aviation sector is not known. Except for state carrier Air India, which operated the Vande Bharat mission and evacuation flights, the rest were grounded for two months, hitting their balance sheets. But even after domestic flight operations resumed on May 25, all airlines have been fighting to survive owing to record low demand. The fear of Covid-19 has driven away the fliers, which is reflected in low passenger load. Spicejet had 94% occupancy in June 2019, this came down to 68% in the same month this year. Indigos corresponding figures were 90% and 60% while Air Vistaras were 83% and 57%. The low demand has bled airlines, forcing layoffs and salary cuts. The sectors meltdown was also hammered home last week when Indigo, the largest airline, declared its financial results for the quarter ending in June, showing a net loss of Rs 2,844 crore. The government is confident that the aviation sector will see a rebound sooner than later. Union civil aviation minister Hardeep Puri told reporters recently: We are assuming that by the time Diwali comes this year, we would have 55-60 per cent of pre-COVID domestic flights operating in India. But airlines, rating agencies and experts dont share that optimism. They are unanimous that the sector faces severe headwinds and unless consumer confidence in flying is restored, reviving the industry is an uphill task. There have been estimations that predict the recovery of the aviation industry. We believe that it may take anywhere between 18 and 24 months to recover from the current situation, said an Indigo official. This newspaper sought the views of other airlines also but they did not respond. Former Vayudoot CEO Harshvardhan said it would take four to five years to reach pre-COVID levels. There are multiple challenges. The biggest problem is that traffic has dropped drastically, there is a fear among travelers. Then there are factors like quarantine rules of different states. I dont see any normalcy in the sector before 2024 or 2025. Rating agency Crisil said the plunge in demand will badly impact the financials of airlines. Its latest report estimates that the aviation industry will see a revenue loss of Rs 24,00025,000 crore. Airlines will be the worst affected, contributing more than 70% of the losses, or Rs 17,000 crore, followed by airport operators with Rs 5,000- 5,500 crore and airport retailers, including retail, food and beverages and duty-free outlets with Rs 1,700-1,800 crore, Crisil said. Another rating agency ICRA said in the last quarter of the current fiscal year, the industry was likely to report degrowth of 3-14% in domestic passenger traffic. YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. Governor of Tavush Hayk Chobanyan has visited the villages in his province which suffered the most during the recent Azerbaijani cross-border bombardments, where around 100 damaged buildings are being re-built. Yesterday I visited the towns of Aygepar and Nerkin Karmiraghbyur, who suffered the most from the bombardment. We are going to complete the reconstruction as soon as possible, and our residents will have better homes than they had before the shelling, the Governor said in a statement. Governor Chobanyan praised the villagers for their resilience, noting that they are standing taller than ever on their land. The villages in Armenias Tavush province came under Azerbaijani cross-border artillery strikes in mid-July. Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday greeted people on the festival of Raksha Bandhan. He is currently undergoing treatment in hospital as he tested positive for coronavirus. "Heartfelt greetings to the people of the country on the auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandhan," Shah tweeted in Hindi. The home minister on Sunday said he had tested positive for Covid-19 and was getting admitted in a hospital following the advice of doctors. For live updates on the coronavirus outbreak, click here "I have done a coronavirus test after showing initial symptoms and I have tested positive. My health is fine but I am getting admitted to a hospital on the advice of doctors," he had said. LUCERNE, SwitzerlandVendo, a payment facilitator for e-commerce, has released its July COVID-19 update today, which describes the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on subscription content businesses. The report may be found here. The slides from the presentation are available here. The talk analyzes the effects of lockdown on adult businesses and the rising number of infections over the past 30 days. Bottom line: This last month has seen increased traffic, increased conversion and an increase in total members as a result of reduced cancellations. The company forecasts a new normal of continued lower cancellation rates among elevated traffic and conversion. The presentation examines COVID-19's effects in the U.S., Italy, Spain and Sweden, plus provides an overview of countries that have taken a strong track-and-trace approach, including Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea. I love spending time with the team at Vendo. They always have valuable data, insights and viewpoints that I cant get elsewhere, remarked Andrew H., Chief Revenue Officer. "For the team at Vendo and myself, we really wanted to somehow re-live the industry conference happy hour vibe, some constructive conversation on key topics, some chit chat between peers and the odd loud-mouth," commented Lukas Taylor of DigiRegs. "The key take-away and action triggers for the audience are most definitely the data insights shared. These metrics impact the success and survival of pay-sites and set industry benchmarks. Everyone who attended were super engaged with big smiles all round in the gallery viewthat's a plus for us. We are excited to host the next event mid-September." "I really enjoyed participating; it was a good event. And yes, the time went fast," said Andy, a business manager. "I like the polling and found that helpful, comparing my experience to the larger group. Might be interesting to follow those up by discussing the disparities in the results. For example, when XX% of the poll felt business was up, what are they doing right and what can the others do to improve their results?" The next Vendo User Conference will be announced soon. For additional information, contact Sara at [email protected]. One in every four or five Covid-19 patients do not develop effective antibodies to provide long-term immunity from the novel coronavirus, says Dr SK Sarin, Director of the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences, who also heads the five-member committee formed to assist Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in tackling the Covid-19 pandemic. In this exclusive interview to CNN-News18, Dr Sarin explains why allowing the community to develop herd immunity through virus transmission is not the best way to deal with the pandemic. With nearly 24% of Delhi testing positive for Covid-19 in the last serological survey, the new survey is expected to throw up higher percentages. Is the capital headed towards herd immunity? We have lived the past four months in the Covid-19 era, but I just want people to understand two things to make them fear less. Just like HIV is an infection and AIDS is the disease, having the virus does not mean you have the disease. It means you have an infection of coronavirus or Sars-2 coronavirus. And if you get the disease, that is if your lungs are infected and you have fever, you have Covid-19. So Covid-19 is a disease. The full form is coronavirus disease. And it was born in 2019 around December. So that is how you get Covid-19. Now, the major issue is that everybody who gets the infection is detected by a test, but what about the remaining people? And is the herd immunity always a group of people who never had the symptoms but had the disease? How does having the virus and the disease help? In the beginning, there were about 1% people in the first ICMR study. But the Delhi study showed that more than 23% of the people had antibodies. What does it mean? When the infection rate is about 2.6% in Delhi, out of 2 crore people, just 1.5 lakh had the virus. That means 0.6 % carried the virus, but 23% of the people had antibodies. There are merely two meanings to this. One, we missed out on so many. If you had tested one-fourth of Delhi -- 50 lakh people and impossible in a way -- then you would have found this. So one is you missed out on those. Second, these people got infected without getting symptoms. So they were just exposed. Now those people, those 23%... if you do it after a month, it can go up to 30% or higher. What does it mean? So, in the first studies which came in Germany and Spain, people said they will issue an immunity certificate/immunity passport, which means you can go from one country in Europe to another country because you have antibodies. So are these 23% people in Delhi safe or stronger than the remaining people? You have to understand how the virus is cleared from the body. Somebody gets a virus and it takes five to seven days for the virus to replicate in the throat and other places. During this period, the body's white blood cells try and contain the virus. By that time, the body senses that yes, there is an intruder in my body, and starts building what is called an 'adaptive immunity'. First comes your 'natural immunity', then the 'adaptive immunity', which is also of two parts. One is making antibodies. As everybody knows, you have an antigen, you make an antibody. But certain cells in the body also have the virus, so you make some white blood cells which go and kill the virus-containing cells. So adaptive immunity is of two parts -- one is the antibody, which everyone makes, and the other is to kill the cells that contain the virus. And that is the basis of the new vaccine as well. The beauty of the Oxford vaccine trials is that it not only makes the antibodies against coronavirus, but also stimulates your T-cells, your white blood cells to find out where it is. We have to understand five to six things about these antibodies. All antibodies are not 'neutralising' ones. So these people can actually get the infection. Second, after sometime, these antibodies decline. Third, and very importantly, these antibodies are not produced in everybody. Now, the question arises on 'herd immunity'. It basically means everybody has silently got exposed to the virus, and now the virus cannot infect. Now, if you wait for the virus to go and infect to get herd immunity, you will pay a high price, deaths will occur. I would say it is very, very risky to allow others to develop 'herd immunity'. When you give a vaccine for Polio or you give a vaccine for other infectious diseases, then you expect that 70-80% of the population is already infected and 10-20% of the population may need vaccine protection. Here, it is reversed. In corona, nobody was ever exposed. So to get herd immunity, you generally require 80-90% of the population already infected, and then the vaccines are effective. To protect people, we have to wait for a very perfect vaccine. Although, and I hope I am wrong, the feeling is that vaccines may not be truly protective in the beginning. What type of antibodies will they make? How much will the level of antibodies be and will these antibodies be protective in all age groups? Will you need a higher dose in some people who are obese, smokers, alcoholic or diabetic? I don't think that we will have answers at least a year-and-a-half till vaccine trials are conducted in large populations. In the absence of a very effective vaccine, allowing people to get infected is a very risky proposal. What is the critical percentage of people in Delhi who must be infected for the rest to get immunity? There are two ways to get immunity. One is to suffer, and one is to get a vaccine. Which one would you like? To get 'herd immunity', as I said, you need almost 80% of the population -- one crore sixty lakh people of Delhi -- to get corona. We do not want our people to get infected to an immunity that may be transitory, that may not be lasting, that may bring you more deaths. I dont think the concept of allowing 'herd immunity' is the best way. Yes, you may develop it silently like the people who got it without suffering. For protection, the vaccine remains our only hope. Till the vaccine comes, don't think 'herd immunity' is an alternative. It is not. Is it irresponsible for people to be talking about it? Let's say Delhi had a survey of 21,400 people. Now, those who were 23% positive should be checked every month for six months to see whether their antibodies persist. Now, the question is 77% who were not infected, are they getting infected? What is the incidence of new infection in a given area? So, say 21,400 people get re-tested, that is one way. The second way is you take new people and then find out every month for a period of three to six months what the incidence of new infections is. Having done that, we will have some data as the backbone for future strategies. Why is the immunity developed not in a static state like it is in some other diseases? That is a basic question in science. We have memory cells. The body has a physiological memory and then it has a memory of intruders. Now certain viruses also change the memory cells, not allowing things to register. The body has something called 'T cell' (thymus cells), that is 'T lymphocyte' which fight, and 'B lymphocyte' (bone marrow cells) which make antibodies. Sometimes, the message to 'B lymphocyte' is also abrogated. It is stopped. So 'B cells' don't make antibodies. This virus is smart. It changes, it mutates. As of now, we know it makes antibodies. Antibodies may be good for few months six months -- because the virus is young. So, don't take it for granted. And some people do not make antibodies. I can say, one in four or five do not make good antibodies. As of now, all these tests are new. So the antigen test has fallacy rate of about 15%, RTPCR sample is not collected properly so you may have 70 to 80% positivity. Antibody tests are new and developing, so we have very limited knowledge about their life. Till the science is on very sound footing, and it is re-produced in every country, we need to be cautious. If you have got Covid-19 once, it is possible that you get it again? You can. Don't take it for granted. Once God has been kind and blessed you to get out of it, don't think you are a hero and step out without a mask. In a study conducted on people in a Korea nightclub, people got re-infected. There are many such instances where those who recovered got re-infected. Although the infection was mild I must say. And these people are better off than those who never got infected. Somebody who got infected, recovered and had antibodies, at least has some kind of currency in the body. So the 23% in Delhi are definitely better off than others, but that does not mean you can go into open markets. What is the consolation then? Consolation for those 23% is that they never suffered. They were blessed. They got the virus silently. They were able to get rid of that virus. They certainly have some immunity in them. Why is the prevalence so high when there was strict lockdown? Let me tell you, to get antibody you must have got infected a month ago. So your survey of June 26-July 10 means the guys got it in the month of May. May be even earlier. So, these were times when people were moving, there were migrations. People were not so careful. I guess now they are more educated, more disciplined. So I think the reason they got it was this. But now every month, we must have a survey. I had a feeling that it was there because I had a feeling by now that x number of people would have got infected. This was my gut feeling because the reproduction rate was quite high. It was 1 to 2.5 to 3. So, if Delhi has so many, at least there would be 20 to 30% who would be infected. Asymptomatic, but never got tested. It is impossible to test everybody. Now, I feel the positivity rate may go up to one-third in a month or you may see 30% or so. Interestingly in the hospitals, the antibody rate is 8% or so only, not 23%. That is because the doctors and staff used extremely strict measures. So we are going to do it every month to see if it is increasing or not. It means that the staff are not following the orders and rules. The same should be done for citizens. Red zone areas should have repeated screening. Do not think that it is the responsibility of the police. It is the citizens responsibility. You are responsible for your health. Everyone has to understand this. Why are positives disproportionately low when you compare it to the high percentage of people exposed? The reasons I guess is partly because the populations we are doing are all probably asymptomatic. So, I think if you segregate those who come to hospitals versus those who are tested outside, and you will find the difference. Earlier, mainly our positives were related to hospitals, those coming to hospitals or clinics. That may be one reason why we are not picking up people who are positive, but that does not mean that the infection is not spreading. I think that the capacities are increasing. Antibody test will be a better way now for community spread, if at all, than antigen test. Delhi is reporting a steady decline considering that it is doing 21,000 tests a day on an average and even if you factor in the far fewer numbers of RTPCR tests. We are having a decline. We are over the hump in Delhi and we are getting into better shape than before. That way, I think our estimates were also that July is the time we will reach the hump and we will decline. Fortunately for Delhi, lady luck has smiled. Secondly, it does not mean that we are testing the right people always. There is always scope to do better. 03.08.2020 LISTEN Television personality, Afia Schwarzenegger is asking Ghanaians to vote for President Akufo-Addo to win his second term bid. Ms. Schwarzenegger joined the #4More 4 Nana campaign over the weekend. In a 49 seconds video, she pleaded with Ghanaian prospective electorates to vote for President Akufo-Addo come December 7, 2020, saying me, I want four more years for Nana. She cited the freebies such as electricity, water, etc, Mr Akufo-Addo was offering Ghanaians as a reason for campaigning for his re-election. ----Daily Guide Identity and access management in 2022 - what will the future look like? As we enter into 2022, there is still a level of uncertainty in place. Its unclear what the future holds, as companies around the world still contend with the COVID-19 pandemic. Remote working has been encouraged by most organisations and the move to a hybrid working system has become business as usual, for the majority of businesses. Some have reduced their office space or done away with their locations altogether. Following best security practices With all this change in place, there are problems to deal with. According to research, 32.7% of IT admins say they are concerned about employees using unsecured networks to carry out that work. Alongside this, 74% of IT admins thought that remote work makes it harder for employees to follow best security practices. This need to manage security around remote work is no longer temporary. Instead, companies have to build permanent strategies around remote work and security. The coming year will also create a different landscape for small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs). Here are some key predictions for next year and what to start preparing for in 2022: The reality of SMB spending around security will hit home SMBs had to undertake significant investments to adapt to remote working SMBs had to undertake significant investments to adapt to remote working, especially in comparison to their size. They had to undertake significant digital transformation projects that made it possible to deliver services remotely, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Weve seen a shift in mindset for these companies, which are now more tech-focused in their approach to problem solving. According to our research, 45% of SMBs plan to increase their spending towards IT services in 2022. Around half of all organisations think their IT budgets are adequate for their needs, while 14.5% of those surveyed believe they will need more, to cover all that needs to be done. Identity management spending to support remote work For others, the COVID-19 pandemic led to over-spending, just to get ahead of things and they will spend in 2022, looking at what they should keep and what they can reduce their spending on. Areas like identity management will stay in place, as companies struggle to support remote work and security, without this in place. However, on-premise IT spending will be reduced or cut, as those solutions are not relevant for the new work model. Services that rely on on-premise IT will be cut or replaced. The device will lead the way for security We rely on our phones to work and to communicate. In 2022, they will become central to how we manage access, to all our assets and locations, IT and physical. When employees can use company devices and their own phones for work, security is more difficult. IT teams have to ensure that theyre prepared for this, by making sure that these devices can be trusted. Wide use of digital certificates and strong MFA factors Rather than requiring a separate smart card or fingerprint reader, devices can be used for access using push authentication There are multiple ways that companies can achieve this, for example - By using digital certificates to identify company devices as trusted, an agent, or strong MFA factors, like a FIDO security key or mobile push authentication. Whichever approach you choose, this can prevent unauthorised access to IT assets and applications, and these same devices can be used for authentication into physical locations too. Rather than requiring a separate smart card or fingerprint reader, devices can be used for access using push authentication. Understanding human behaviour Alongside this, it is important to understand human behaviour. Anything that introduces an extra step for authentication can lead to employees taking workarounds. To stop this, it is important to put an employee education process in place, in order to emphasize on the importance of security. The next step is to think about adopting passwordless security, to further reduce friction and increase adoption. Lastly, as devices become the starting point for security and trust, remote device management will be needed too. More companies will need to manage devices remotely, from wiping an asset remotely if it gets lost or stolen, through to de-provisioning users easily and removing their access rights, when they leave the company. Identity will be a layer cake Zero Trust approaches to security Identity management relies on being able to trust that someone is who they say they are. Zero Trust approaches to security can support this effectively, particularly when aligned with least privilege access models. In order to turn theory into practical easy-to-deploy steps, companies need to use contextual access, as part of their identity management strategy. This involves looking at the context that employees will work in and putting together the right management approach for those circumstances. For typical employee behaviour, using two factor authentication might be enough to help them work, without security getting in the way. How enterprises manage, access and store identity data There will also be a shift in how enterprises manage, access, and store that identity data over time For areas where security is more important, additional security policies can be put over the top, to ensure that only the right people have access. A step-up in authentication can be added, based on the sensitivity of resources or risk-based adaptive authentication policies might be needed. There will also be a shift in how enterprises manage, access, and store that identity data over time, so that it aligns more closely with those use cases. Identity management critical to secure assets in 2022 There are bigger conversations taking place around digital identity for citizenship, as more services move online as well. Any moves that take place in this arena will affect how businesses think about their identity management processes too, encouraging them to look at their requirements in more detail. Overall, 2022 will be the year when identity will be critical to how companies keep their assets secure and their employees productive. With employees working remotely and businesses becoming decentralised, identity strategies will have to take the same approach. This will put the emphasis on strong identity management as the starting point for all security planning. President Donald Trump targeted Dr. Deborah Birx, a leading member of the White House coronavirus task force, in a tweet Monday, complaining that she "hit us" following reported criticism of her from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Trump said on Twitter that Pelosi, D-Calif., had gone after Birx "because she was too positive on the very good job we are doing on combatting the China Virus, including Vaccines & Therapeutics." "In order to counter Nancy, Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!" Trump wrote. Trump TWEET It was not immediately clear which of Birx's remarks Trump was referencing in the tweet. The White House did not respond to CNBC's request for clarification. When asked about his tweet at a White House press briefing Monday evening, Trump said: "I think we're doing very well, I told Dr. Birx I think we're doing very well, she was in my office a little while ago. It's a person I have a lot of respect for. I think Nancy Pelosi's treated her very badly, very, very badly, very nasty." Trump did not respond when asked to clarify if he disagreed with Birx's characterization of the current state of the pandemic. Birx had warned on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday that the U.S. had entered a "new phase" in its battle against the virus. "What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread ... it's more widespread and it's both rural and urban," Birx said. Leading LTL carrier invests in service center capacity to continue award-winning service THOMASVILLE, N.C., Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. expands its network by adding nine service centers in new and existing markets during the first half of 2020. The steady growth solidifies the companys strong presence across the United States, bringing total nationwide service center count to 238. The less-than-truckload (LTL) carriers new facilities include, Butte, Mont., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Conroe, Texas, Jonesboro, Ark., Lafayette, Ind., LaGrange, Ga., Rochester, N.Y, Rock Island, Ill. and University Park, Ill. The nine new and renovated service centers are strategically placed for operational efficiency and designed with innovative technology. The Companys investment in each market will support capacity needs, improve shipping time, and enhance delivery flexibility, allowing Old Dominion to better serve customers. Even during an unprecedented time, we will continue to invest in our network and look for additional ways to improve our operations, said Chip Overbey, senior vice president of strategic planning. Our goal is to build capacity to win market share, while shortening response time and transit times. Our investments align with our long-term strategic plan of investing in our business. Old Dominion selects new locations with the intent of better serving customers. Each service center is built with future growth in mind, including room to increase door-count, potential to hire additional employees, and equipped to leverage the latest technology. The new facilities allow the company to operate with a high standard of excellence and a commitment to employee growth, who are the backbone of each operation. Our customers are having to adapt to these rapidly changing times. Our newest service centers are integral to Old Dominion Freight Lines operations, accommodating unique customer needs and shipping higher volumes of goods. We will continue to invest in long-term solutions to help our customers keep their promises, said Overbey. Story continues Old Dominions service center openings include: Butte, Mont. Butte is strategically located near two major highways, I-90 and I-15, and in close proximity to two class I railroads, the Union Pacific Railroad and Burlington Northern Sante Fe Railroad. In addition, the port of Montana provides a variety of services. This 20.25-acre and 42-door service center is a critical gateway to improve deliveries to Canada's international border. As one of six service centers in Montana, this location allows Old Dominion to improve service offerings, shipping times, and better serve customers. Cedar Rapids, Iowa Located on nine acres, the Cedar Rapids service center operates with 44 doors and room to increase by up to 20 doors in the future. The facility will service the surrounding communities, including Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, Cedar Falls, Iowa City, Mt. Pleasant, Manchester, and Dyersville, where Field of Dreams from the 1989 movie is located. Conroe, Texas As the Houston metro area continues to see sustained growth, Old Dominion adds an additional service center to the market. This facility has 63 doors on nearly 25 acres and is equipped to expand by up to 100 more doors if needed. The Conroe service center currently has 27 employees. Jonesboro, Ark. Just three miles from its previous location, the new Jonesboro service center is one of the largest LTL facilities in Northeast Arkansas and the Missouri Bootheel. The new facility is sixty-four percent larger than the previous location, sitting on 14.67 acres of land, with 44 doors and the potential to add over 30 more doors. As one of four Old Dominion service centers in Arkansas, the Company has proudly served this community for over 12 years. Lafayette, Ind. Old Dominion opened the Lafayette service center to accommodate the regions recent growth. The new facility sits on 23.1 acres with 42 doors and space to double the door count in the future. As the sixth service center in Indiana, the Lafayette location will increase capacity in the area and help OD to provide faster response and service times. The service center immediately created eight new jobs. LaGrange, Ga. Located near the Georgia and Alabama border, the move to the new 63-door service center sits in a prime location by two major interstates, I-85 and I-185, and near major retail distribution centers and industrial manufacturers. The LaGrange location is one of ten service centers in the Peach State. Rochester, N.Y. Old Dominion returns to the Rochester area after moving operations to a nearby community in the early 2000s. This service center brought 17 new jobs to the community. The remodeled facility has 28 doors and sits in a central location to offer closer proximity to customers. The Rochester location plays a critical role in delivering shipments to and from Canada. Rock Island, Ill. The Rock Island service center serves major markets like Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Des Moines, Kansas City, St. Louis, Omaha and Indianapolis. Located only a few minutes from the second-longest interstate in the country, I-80, the 77-door facility was built on 24 acres. Over the last five years, the economic strength in the Quad-Cities region increased by 5.2 percent. University Park, Ill. Out of all of the new service centers this year, the University Park facility has the highest door count with 86 doors. It is strategically placed to provide easy access to the state's major interstates, I-57, I-355, I-80, I-294, and I-94. A high door count and ideal location allows the Company to reduce stem time to the customers and adds more capacity. The new facility moves a variety of essential products like food, cleaning supplies, tires, over-length items and more. This service center also has a unique feature where the dock has trailer bumpers, which helps keep the elements out of the dock. The newest service centers are examples of Old Dominions investment and commitment to its customers as the Company continues to enter new markets, operate with efficiency to meet high standards and further solidify ODs promise of transporting shipments on-time and in-full. For more information about Old Dominion, visit www.odfl.com or call (800) 432-6335. On Twitter: @ODFL_Inc and Facebook: Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. About Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. is a leading, less-than-truckload (LTL), union-free motor carrier providing regional, inter-regional and national LTL services through a single integrated organization. Our service offerings, which include expedited transportation, are provided through an expansive network of service centers located throughout the continental United States. Through strategic alliances, the Company also provides LTL services throughout North America. In addition to its core LTL services, the Company offers a range of value-added services including container drayage, truckload brokerage and supply chain consulting. Attachment CONTACT: Kate Redding Old Dominion Freight Line 404-266-7578 kredding@webershandwick.com The former king of Spain, Juan Carlos, announced on Monday he was abandoning his country amid a Spanish court investigation into a lucrative business contract and a separate money laundering and tax evasion probe in Switzerland. In a letter released by the royal household and addressed to King Felipe VI, his son and Spains current monarch, Juan Carlos said that his decision to leave amid the multiple inquiries was taken with the same eagerness to serve Spain that inspired my reign. In a brief response, King Felipe thanked his father and stressed the importance of his legacy, while at the same time underlining Spains adherence to the rule of law and the values enshrined in its Constitution. In 2014, King Juan Carlos abdicated in favor of his son, amid health problems and a series of personal scandals that were already undermining the reputation of Spains monarchy. A couple with 14 children say they spend $3,500 a month to feed the whole family and it takes 18 loads of laundry a week to keep everyone in clean clothes. Karen and Deon Derrico have had four sets of naturally-conceived multiples quintuplets, two sets of twins, and most recently, triplets as well as two non-multiple kids back to back, and now they're offering a peek at their home life in the upcoming TLC series Doubling Down with the Derricos. In a new preview clip for the show, which premieres August 11, Karen, 40, says they spend $3,500 a month 'easy' at the grocery store, going through about 15 packages of waffles and 20 rolls of toilet paper a week. Pricey! Karen and Deon Derrico have 14 kids and spend $3,500 a month to feed their whole family Inside: They're offering a peek at their home life in the upcoming TLC series Doubling Down with the Derricos BusyL Breakfast time is a bit crazy in their house as they wrangle all the kids around the table 'In a week we go through 15 boxes of waffles, 20 rolls of toilet paper,' says Deon, 49 Having a big family certainly doesn't come cheap, and the Derricos spend a fortune to keep everyone well fed. 'The amount of money that we spend on groceries, oh my gosh. $2,500 to $3,500, easy,' Karen says in a preview clip. 'In a week we go through 15 boxes of waffles, 20 rolls of toilet paper,' adds Deon, 49. 'Eighteen loads of clothes a week,' Karen chimes back in. Ensuring they could provide for such a big family was an essential part of having so many children, they noted. 'I am a stay-at-home mother, and my phenomenal, handsome husband over here is a real estate investor,' says Karen. 'We chose to have a large family. We also chose to make sure we could provide for our large family,' she adds. Family of 16: Karen and Deon Derrico are getting ready to welcome triplets while raising their 11 children in their new TLC reality series 'I am a stay-at-home mother, and my phenomenal, handsome husband over here is a real estate investor,' says Karen 'We chose to have a large family. We also chose to make sure we could provide for our large family,' she adds Lots of clothes: The family does 18 loads of laundry a week Organized: The older kids' toothbrushes are labeled and arranged around the sink The couple who are still expecting their youngest children, the triplets, as the new series kicks off knew that having multiples was a possibility before they started a family. 'We both have multiples on both sides of our family but we have the most multiples that anyone has ever heard of,' Deon says. 'After our oldest, I had two miscarriages. So once I became pregnant, the doctor started me on progesterone to sustain my pregnancy. But all of our children were naturally conceived. Not one round of IVF,' says Karen. 'Having four sets of multiples back to back? It's like getting struck by lightning while getting struck by lightning,' Deon says in a trailer for the show. 'Many parents know with just one child, two children, it's a job. But when you have soon-to-be 14, it's a job.' 'We have our good days and our bad days,' Karen adds. 'But there's always enough love.' What are the odds? Multiples run on both sides of their family, and they've had quintuplets, twins, and now triplets without IVF Small screen: The new reality series premieres on August 11 (Karen is pictured reading to her kids) Cute! Three of the triplets wear matching outfits in a preview clip 'We have our good days and our bad days,' Karen adds. 'But there's always enough love' 'It's fun because you're never lonely and you're never bored, and then it's stressful because sometimes they don't listen to you and they just act like animals,' oldest daughter Dairan says The premiere season, which has been in development and production for over a year, chronicles Karen's pregnancy and the toll it takes on their growing family. At 24 weeks, doctors advise the busy mom to spend the remainder of her pregnancy on bedrest leaving Deon to manage the household and all 11 children on his own. Video also shows Deon rushing to the hospital as he explains his wife is in active labor and will be delivering their triplets early. 'Our triplet babies have not had enough time in the womb, and I am just terrified,' the soon-to-be father of 14 admits. In her testimonial, Karen cries as she opens up about the 'great deal of responsibility' that she feels. 'I'm really nervous that I could lose one of these babies,' she says. Three more on the way: The premiere season, which has been in development and production for over a year, chronicles Karen's pregnancy Full house: Multiples run on both sides of their family, and after welcoming their first two children, the couple had twins, quintuplets, and then a second set of twins Incredible: All of Deon and Karen's children were conceived naturally Blessed: While Deon and Karen always wanted a large family, they didn't realize just how large it would be Candid: Deon says having one or two kids is a job, 'but when you have soon-to-be 14, it's a job' In addition to the new triplets, the couple has five-year-old quintuplets Deniko, Dariz, Deonee, Daician and Daiten, eight-year-old erek, seven-year-old twins Dallas and Denver, and 13-year-old Darian. The oldest daughter is 'extremely helpful,' according to her mom, who says she helps with breakfast and wrangling kids. 'It's fun because you're never lonely and you're never bored, and then it's stressful because sometimes they don't listen to you and they just act like animals,' Dairan says. 'They [all] help each other navigate chores and duties around the house, and they learn from each other,' Karen adds. Hard to handle: At 24 weeks, doctors advise Karen to spend the remainder of her pregnancy on bedrest Stepping up: Deon has to manage the household and all 11 children on his own Scary: The clip also shows Deon rushing to the hospital as he explains his wife is in active labor and will be delivering their triplets early Fearful: Karen admits she is 'really nervous' that she could lose one of her babies Doubling Down with the Derricos is the perfect fit for TLC, which has featured a number of series about large families, including Jon & Kate Plus 8, OutDaughtered, Sweet Home Sextuplets, 7 Little Johnstons, Welcome to Plathville, and Sister Wives. 'TLC has always been the home for extraordinary families, and with multiple multiples the Derricos take "extraordinary" to a whole new level!' TLC president and general manager Howard Lee says in a statement. 'They bring a fresh voice, perspective, and willingness to share their culture and values. And while their size may be unique, their story is universally relatable devoted parents trying to raise their children the best way they know how all while navigating life's ups and downs. 'We are proud and excited to introduce TLC viewers to the Derricos.' The first manned mission of SpaceX has come to a conclusion and is a success as astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley arrived back home on Earth on Sunday, Aug. 2, in the historic splashdown aboard the company's Dragon capsule in the Gulf of Mexico. Elon Musk Emotionally Welcomes Back Astronauts In a report by the Daily Mail, billionaire SpaceX CEO Elon Musk rushed from Houston to Hawthorne, California, the company's headquarters, to welcome the astronauts back personally. Musk also addressed the small group that had gathered for the momentous event following the success of the company's first manned mission to space to the International Space Station (ISS) that lasted for a couple of months. It was also the first time that a crewed mission took off from Cape Canaveral in Florida in nine years aboard the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, donning the new all-white spacesuit designed by the company (and got the approval of the veteran astronauts) on May 30. Moreover, the arrival of the veteran NASA astronauts also signals the space agency's first water landing since 1975. The CEO was clearly emotional and thankful and even admitted that he prayed for the mission. "This day heralds a new age of space exploration," Musk said, addressing the group. "I'm not very religious, but I prayed for this one." Read Also: Elon Musk Retracts Controversial Pyramid Claims After Slammed by Egyptian Experts The Return of the American Flag Additionally, the tech CEO also posted a tweet from his official Twitter account, welcoming Hurley and Behnken back as well as thanking them for flying with SpaceX, and also congratulated the company and the people behind the mission, along with NASA for the completion of the first crewed Dragon flight. But it turns out that Behnken and Hurley were not the only ones who returned home from the ISS. In the tweet, Musk added an emoji of the US flag, which refers to SpaceX's rivalry with the Boeing Company on which astronaut crew would be the first to bring the American flag that was left on the ISS back in 2011. Behnken and Hurley brought the flag back and were stowed as cargo in the Dragon capsule. Pushing to Make Tourist Space Flights Possible Both Boeing and SpaceX had to pay $7 billion to NASA for their "space taxi" contract, but after a failed test run last year, the company founded by Musk in 2002 became the clear frontrunner in the race to make space travel as common as air travel. "I think my entire adrenaline just dumped. These are difficult times, there's not that much good news. No matter where you are on planet Earth, this is a good thing. And I hope it brightens your day," Musk further said. Hurley also addressed the small group that gathered for their arrival and said that it was "overwhelming" to see everyone, especially with what has happened on Earth for the last few months, referencing the COVID-19 pandemic. Another SpaceX crew launch will happen as early as next month in preparation for the possible tourist flights to the ISS as early as next year if the company's crewed missions work well. Read Also: Elon Musk Creates School With No Grades Required, Saying Regular Schools are 'Torture' This article is owned by TechTimes Written by: Nhx Tingson 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. ATS, JRS and ALAT release new clinical practice guidelines for the difficult to diagnose condition, hypersensitivity pneumonitis. Credit: ATS More than 30 years after the last guidance on the clinical evaluation of hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP), the American Thoracic Societyin collaboration with the Asociacion Latinoamericana de Torax or ALAT and the Japanese Respiratory Society- has developed new guidelines for clinicians. The guidelines are available online ahead of print in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Hypersensitivity pneumonitis manifests as interstitial lung disease. It is difficult to diagnose and until now, there has been little consensus in terms of disease definition, diagnostic criteria and diagnostic approach. "The clinician is often unable to distinguish features of fibrotic HP (f-HP) from those of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and some patients meeting the criteria for the diagnosis of IPF may in fact have f-HP with pulmonary fibrosis," said Ganesh Raghu, MD, professor of medicine, University of Washington and director of the Center for Interstitial Lung Disease at University of Washington Medical center. "The high rate of screen failures in patients participating in IPF clinical trials highlights this diagnostic challenge, as pulmonologists may be misdiagnosing patients with f-HP as having IPF, overlooking environmental factors that can contribute to the disease." The guideline committee categorized HP into two clinical phenotypes, namely nonfibrotic and fibrotic HP, and made recommendations for reach. Their priority was to help clinicians make a confident and accurate diagnosis of HP. The following is a summary of the panel's recommendations, which were formulated using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach (GRADE): Recommendation 1 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP or fibrotic HP, the guideline committee makes no recommendation or suggestion for or against the use of a specific questionnaire to identify potential inciting agents of HP; instead, the guideline committee recommends the development and validation of a questionnaire. Remark: Pending the availability of a validated questionnaire, the guideline committee advocates that clinicians take a thorough history to identify potential exposures and sources in the patient's environment that are known to be associated with HP. Recommendation 2 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests performing serum IgG testing that targets potential antigens associated with HP (suggestion, very low confidence in the estimated effects). For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests performing serum IgG testing that targets potential antigens associated with HP (suggestion, very low confidence in the estimated effects). Recommendation 3 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP, the guideline committee recommends bronchoalveolar lavage with lymphocyte cellular analysis (recommendation, very low confidence in the estimated effects). For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests bronchoalveolar lavage with lymphocyte cellular analysis (suggestion, very low confidence in the estimated effects). Recommendation 4 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests transbronchial forceps lung biopsy (suggestion, very low confidence in the estimated effects). For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes fibrotic HP, the guideline committee makes no recommendation or suggestion for or against transbronchial forceps lung biopsy. Recommendation 5 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP, the guideline committee makes no recommendation or suggestion for or against transbronchial cryobiopsy. For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests transbronchial cryobiopsy (suggestion, very low confidence in estimated effects). Recommendation 6 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests surgical lung biopsy; this recommendation is intended for after alternative diagnostic options have been exhausted (suggestion, very low confidence in estimated effects). For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests surgical lung biopsy; this recommendation is intended for after alternative diagnostic options have been exhausted (suggestion, very low confidence in estimated effects). "These guidelines create a framework that we hope will standardize clinical care and facilitate research," said Kevin C. Wilson, MD, professor of medicine at Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. Wilson also oversees development of clinical practice guidelines for the ATS. The ATS has published nearly 20 clinical practice guidelines on various conditions, ranging from allergy and asthma to TB, other pulmonary infections and including IPF, a disease often mistaken for f-HP. For ATS guideline implementation tools and derivatives, go here. Explore further New guideline aids in diagnosing idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis More information: Ganesh Raghu et al. Diagnosis of Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis in Adults. An Official ATS/JRS/ALAT Clinical Practice Guideline, American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine (2020). Journal information: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine Ganesh Raghu et al. Diagnosis of Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis in Adults. An Official ATS/JRS/ALAT Clinical Practice Guideline,(2020). DOI: 10.1164/rccm.202005-2032ST Former Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Professor Kwamena Ahwoi, has made startling revelation about the late President John Evans Atta Mills. He claims the late President resigned from office but had to be persuaded to rescind his decision. He said former President Mills had called him that he was going to announce his resignation because former President Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings who brought him to political limelight was disturbing him. According to Prof. Ahwoi, the late Professor Mills had complained to him that he was receiving constant attacks on his personality from Mr. Rawlings, founder of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), who made him his vice between early 1997 and early 2001. The ex-minister said the straw that broke the camel's back was a comment Mr. Rawlings made in Tamale which made Prof. Mills call him (Ahowi) and said in Fante, I have resigned. Speaking on Citi TV after the launch of his book entitled: Working with Rawlings, the former minister recounted that there was one particular incident which caused President Mills nearly to resign. In fact, he resigned as President. The only thing that saved this country was that he called to tell me he was resigning. I was at IEA conference at Aburi when he (Mills) called and said 'Kwamena, have you heard about what Jerry (Mr. Rawlings) had gone to say about me in Tamale' and I said no. Then he added 'get the audio and listen to it because I have resigned and I don't want anybody to stop me', he disclosed. And I said to him, Mr. President, I believed that you have decided to resign, but I also believe that you are not sure whether you have taken the right decision. You want a second opinion otherwise you would not have called to tell me. I would have heard about it in the media, he narrated. Prof. Ahwoi said he requested the late President to give him time to consult his gang (that is how I put it). And so I called Captain Tsikata and he said I should arrange to go and see him, and should bring in Totobi Kwakye. By Sunday evening, we went to his residence. He (Mills) had actually packed his things in suitcases everything ready to leave. So we talked about four hours which ran into 12 midnight and we managed to convince him to stay because we were taking certain corrective measures, he revealed. We were successful in those measures and as a result he stayed. Otherwise, he was going to resign on an account of the way Jerry Rawlings was treating him, he added. Atta Mortuary Man Jab Prof. Ahwoi said it all started when Mr. Rawlings in 2006 approached him and his brothers to find a replacement for Prof. Mills, who was supposed not to be well as the NDC candidate. He approached my senior brother, Ato Ahwoi, to contest Prof. Mills in the NDC primaries, and we took offence because Jerry knew the role I and Ato had played in getting Prof. Mills out of the comfort of academia to come and join the turbulence of Ghanaian politics (sic), he said. He knew that there was a very close chemistry between us, especially Ato and Prof. Mills, and therefore as I have recounted in my book, I thought that he was asking us to betray Prof. Mills, he added. The former Local Government Minister said when Ato Ahwoi refused to accede to Mr. Rawlings's proposal, he fell on Eddy Annan, who was also another close confidant of Mills, asserting that the late President was virtually living in Eddy Annan's house while he was the Vice-President. He stated that when Rawlings failed to achieve his mission, things started deteriorating, saying it was from that time that we got upset and the drifting apart started. And it got worse when Mills became President and Jerry began his attacks on him. 'Attacks?' the host, Samuel Atta Mensah asked and Prof. Ahwoi answered 'yes', and Prof. also asked rhetorically, Did you not hear about Atta Mortuary Man story and the Konongo Kaya? Do you know what Konongo Kaya means? Atta Mortuary Man used to dress people nicely when their bodies were brought to Tetteh Quashie and for him nobody was very sure what was going to happen to him when he died, he explained. On Konongo Kaya, Prof. Ahwoi said was the man who could not perform his task and would not leave it for another person who can do it better, adding these are all kinds of innuendoes made by ex-President Rawlings in apparent attacks on Prof. Atta Mills. ---Daily Guide YREVAN. During Mondays consultation chaired by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Edvard Hovhannisyan, Chairman of the State Revenue Committee (SRC), presented the SRC 2019 performance report within the framework of the 2019-2023 Action Plan of the government of Armenia. Also, the SRC chief presented to Pashinyan the SRC 2020-2024 strategic program for development and improvement of administration. Summing up the consultation, the PM emphasized the continued and consistent work of the SRC on several tasks. Also, Pashinyan noted that he was going to visit Armenias border checkpoints in the near future to assess the work done since his previous visit. The premier added that despite the current crisis year, the Armenian government has set a high target for state budget revenues, and the State Revenue Committee should do everything possible to fulfill its tasks. Chinese seniors keep up with the times, learn to explore the digital world While the mobile internet is profoundly changing the way people live, senior citizens in China are increasingly getting in on the digital world, despite some barriers. Yang Su, a 60-year-old professional micro vlogger, is among them. With more than 2.3 million followers on Chinas famous short video app Douyin, his videos have been watched by over 100 million times. Pictures show Luo Xu teaching a senior citizen how to use a smartphone (UR), Yang Su (L) recording a short video, and Ding Qiulin reading a book at a community library. Two years ago, my son uploaded a clip of me playing the piano at home, and merely hours later it was played over 1 million times, Yang recalled. After graduating from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, he was a pianist of the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra. The internet has opened a door to a whole new world for him. Over the course of two years, he has filmed over 600 short video clips and opened an official account on social platform WeChat to share articles and offer online piano courses. Its not easy for him to learn how to film a video, something that might not be easy even for young people. Spending a long time staring at the music sheets always causes eye soreness, and he needs to play through the music since he doesnt know how to edit and cut clips. According to Yang, the lighting, framing and camera angles were always not right at the beginning, so his child helped him a lot later. The internet has opened the door to a new world, Yang said, adding that he has kept himself occupied and always feels young at heart regardless of his age. However, some seniors arent taking as quickly to the new technology. Ding Qiulin, a 72-year-old retiree in Puyuan community, Changsha in central Chinas Hunan province, is one of them. I have used my smartphone for more than one year, but I am only adept in using WeChat for video calls, he said. Often unfamiliar or uncomfortable with apps, Ding is intimidated by emerging technology, but has found that supermarkets welcome both mobile payments and cash, and he can still use his bus card to take buses and subways. Fortunately, the younger generation is pitching in to bridge the digital divide in older adults. Luo Xu, a post-90s volunteer, joined a non-profit organization in Beijing eight years ago to teach the elderly how to surf the internet. While helping senior citizens ranging between 50 and 90 years old acquire the basics of digital technology to stave off loneliness, Luo found that what the elderly need most is for someone to communicate with them. I feel very satisfied to see that the elderly can seek human communication, companionship and psychological consolation, and feel respected, he said. Among the most difficult decisions of presidents is the deployment of troops into harms way. Its the presidents responsibility to ensure, to the highest degree possible, that the inherently dangerous jobs of the military arent burdened with unnecessary and avoidable dangers. In Military City, U.S.A., we live with the consequences of these decisions, and prolonged inaction can be just as consequential and devastating to national security as a rush to action. Case in point: Russia. When intelligence suggests a tyrant of a country long adversarial to the United States has placed bounties on the lives of American troops, the natural reaction from the president should be outrage, a demand for answers from that tyrant, and assurances to the military and American people that he will be relentless in pursuit of the truth and protection of our soldiers. Faced with such intelligence that Russian President Vladimir Putin is targeting American troops in Afghanistan President Donald Trump has done none of these things. In June, the New York Times reported U.S. intelligence had concluded a Russian military intelligence unit paid the Taliban to kill American troops in Afghanistan. Unit 29155 has a history of carrying out assassination attempts in other countries. Initially, the White House said the president wasnt briefed because the intelligence wasnt conclusive. It was then revealed the intelligence was included in the presidents daily briefing in late February. Its unclear if Trump read it. To be clear and fair, theres not a consensus about this intelligence. While the CIA is confident Russia offered the bounties, the National Security Agency is not. Still, the intelligence gleaned by the CIA, along with the stronger evidence of Russia undermining the U.S. mission in Afghanistan, should be enough to give it credence, demanding further clarity. What is clear is that the possibility of Putin incentivizing the killing of American soldiers stirred no response or sense of urgency from the administration. And while there is no consensus around the intelligence, there is agreement about Russian support for the Taliban. Since the briefing containing the intelligence about the bounties, Trump has spoken to Putin eight times, including on July 23. Not once, in those conversations, did he raise the issues of the bounties. When asked in an interview with Jonathan Swan on Axios on HBO why he did not, Trump said, That was a phone call to discuss other things, and frankly thats an issue that many people said was fake news. He also said he reads the daily briefing, but this issue never reached my desk. Whether or not thats the case, the issue should have come up with Putin in this most recent conversation and, really, much earlier. Throughout his presidency, Trump has repeatedly taken Putins word over the findings of U.S. intelligence agencies. But even if the intelligence of bounties on the lives of soldiers was slight, the president any president of any party has a moral responsibility to show military families, the nation and especially the soldiers that hes willing to fight for them by confronting the man accused of offering money for their lives. While there is no consensus, the evidence is credible enough to warrant curiosity, anger and confrontation. In the Axios interview, Trump said, If it had reached my desk, I would have done something about it. Like, ask Putin about it? Thats, literally, the least he could do. Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday expressed hope for an early start of the Intra-Afghan talks to end the decades-old bloodshed in the war-torn country. During a telephonic conversation with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who called Khan to greet him on Eid-ul-Azha, the two leaders discussed the Afghan peace process, according to a statement issued by the prime minister's office. The prime minister "expressed hope that the current momentum would be further built to implement the US-Taliban Peace Agreement in its entirety leading to Intra-Afghan Negotiations at the earliest", it said. Khan also highlighted Pakistan's contribution to the peace process, stressing that peace in Afghanistan was of paramount importance. An agreement signed between the US and the Taliban in February in Doha drew up plans for withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan in exchange for security guarantees from the insurgent group. As part of the Doha deal, the US committed to withdraw its 12,000 troops within 14 months. Troops have since been reduced by over a quarter, according to a recent report on Afghanistan published by the Congressional Research Service. The Taliban committed to prevent other groups, including Al Qaeda, from using Afghan soil to recruit, train or fund raise toward activities that threaten the US or its allies. AEE Rwanda is deeply grateful to the support offered during the COVID- 19 pandemic lockdown. The support came as a rescue operation, and without it, the families that were served would have suffered greatly during the lockdown. The support that was received covered 258 families (1,598 persons) which were in dire need. They were able to distribute 20kg of rice, 10kg of beans and facemasks to each family. This gift enabled these families to go through the lockdown period easier. The story below of Gisele UWINEZA illustrates how food support was a great rescue to the families. Gisele Uwineza is a 28 year old Christian woman, who has 3 children. Before the COVID-19 lockdown, Gisele did casual labor, which included going to peoples homes to wash clothes and working in their crop fields. When the government ordered all people to stay at home, Gisele could not get causal work anymore. She inevitably stayed at home and she did not know how she could survive during the lockdown. The first 2 weeks of the lock down were very hard for her family, as she had no work and no money to buy food. She occasionally received food from well-wishers and this enabled her and her family members to have at least 1 meal per day. Through the Grace of God, Gisele was selected to receive food support from AE. Just like the other members in her village, she received 20kg of rice, 10kg of beans and facemasks for herself and her children. This enabled her to survive during the lockdown, together with her children. Each morning she woke up with a heart full of deep gratitude to God and to the people that He used to supply her needs. She did not have to worry what she and her children would eat each day! By the time the total lockdown in Kigali was relaxed and she got casual labor again, she still had some food in the house. Mere words are not enough for Giseles family members to express the deep gratitude in their hearts, for the immense support received, which enabled them to survive the lockdown! It is their prayer that the good Lord will bless everyone who became the hands of Jesus in their lives! A rare sea bird called brown booby, which is originally found in Australia and the United States, was rescued at Virar on Sunday afternoon. Suraj Pandey, a 21-year-old pharmacy student, spotted the dehydrated and tired bird which was being attacked by crows, and rescued it. Pandey informed forest department officials who took custody of the bird. The brown booby is now being treated at Transit Wildlife Rescue Centre,Shilphata in Kalyan which is run by the forest department, and will be released in the Arabian Sea when the bird is in a better shape to fly, said Namrata Pawar, range forest officer, Virar. Brown booby or Sula leucogaster (scientific name) is a large seabird of the booby family, Sulidae, and is found on the islands and coasts of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in Australia and the United States, said Pandey who also rescues snakes. Brown booby birds frequent breeding grounds of the islands in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, and nest in large colonies, said Bhushan Bhoir, zoology professor at Sonopant Dandekar Shikshan Mandali, popularly known as SDSM College, Palghar. Bhoir added that the bird, which eats only small fish or squid, may have flown from Australia to Kerala or Karnataka in search of food and ended up in Palghar. He also added that theres a chance that the bird might have lost direction. The bird could have been tired from flying as it can fly only when there is high wind speed due to its aerodynamic wings, said Bhoir adding that the bird floats on the water when it gets tired. Bihar police on Monday (August 3) slammed Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) decision to 'forcibly quarantine' IPS officer Binay Tiwari, who reached Mumbai from Patna on Sunday (August 2) to probe a case related to the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput. Bihar police said that Patna City Superintendent of Police Tiwari has been home quarantined by BMC in order to stop the Bihar police from probing Sushant's case and Tiwari's has been put in 'house arrest' and not in home quarantine. Bihar police said that thousands of millions of people are coming to Mumbai daily from different areas of the country and they are not kept in home quarantine. Police added that IPS officer Tiwari has been quarantined deliberately to stop the investigation of Bihar Police. According to Bihar police, IPS mess was officially sought for the stay of Tiwari but the senior IPS officer was not provided this facility and when Tiwari himself arranged a guesthouse then he was taken by BMC officials for home quarantine. It is learnt that the Bihar government has also been made aware of this development. Interestingly, Biahr Chief Minister Nitish Kumar also heads the Home Ministry. Tiwari will monitor the investigation in Sushant's case from guest house until further decision of Bihar government. Surprisingly, on July 27, when a team of Bihar police went to Mumbai for probe in this case no one from that team was home quarantined but the BMC swung into action as soon as Tiwari reached Mumbai. Shiv Sena has been ruling BMC for more than 25 years and Shiv Sena is currently in power in Maharashtra in alliance with NCP and Congress. It is to be noted that Tiwari is leading a Bihar Police team which is in Mumbai to investigate an "abetment to suicide" case on the basis of an FIR filed by Sushant's father K K Singh in Patna. In his FIR, Sushant's father has named actress Rhea Chakraborty and her family members as accused. Talking to Zee Media, Vindo Mishra, Group leader of BJP corporators in BMC, slammed the BMC's decision to put Tiwari in home quarantine and said that it seems that the Bihar police officer has been placed in home quarantine in order to stop police from cracking Sushant's death case. He also said that why the same rule was not applied on the Bihar police team which had arrived in Mumbai few days to probe this matter. Mishra demanded that a CBI probe should be ordered in this case for free and fair investigation. Sushant, a resident of Patna, reportedly died by suicide at his Bandra residence in Mumbai on June 14. Urjit Patel has been one of the most enigmatic governors of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in the recent past. He is known to be simple, shuns protocol, and hardly speaks. Even during the (almost mandatory) post monetary policy press conferences, he would largely let his deputies do the talking. The most blistering attack on the state during his tenure was made by Viral Acharya, his deputy, who acknowledged the blessings of Mr Patel in the speech. He was quite a contrast to his predecessor Raghuram Rajan who was accused of speaking beyond his brief. Therefore, it was exciting to hear ... Pinto Deepak By Express News Service HYDERABAD: Papushetty Uday Kiran Gupta, a grocer from Shadnagar, has become the first COVID-19 survivor to have donated plasma thrice in a month. He was Shadnagar's first COVID-19 patient. "After I tested positive, I got a new identity as the first patient. This continued even after I recovered and returned home. But only after I started donating plasma, people have chan2ged their attitude towards me. Given the opportunity, I am ready to donate blood plasma as many times as possible and help people," he said. Speaking to Express on how he had contracted the virus from his close friend, when he took the latter to a hospital for treatment, Uday Kiran said that his friend fell ill after visiting Jiyaguda market, but he tested negative. Unfortunately, Uday tested positive a week later. "When I was at Gandhi Hospital, people were calling me continuously. There were so many messages blaming me for spreading the virus in the town and my family members faced humiliation. Unable to answer all calls, I would switch off my phone the entire day and used it only once to talk to my family," he said. "As my phone was switched off, people started spreading messages, saying I had died. But somehow due to my willpower and strong support from doctors, I recovered and returned home," he added. However, the actual trouble started at that time. "I understood that peoples insensitivity towards COVID patients is much more than their fear of the deadly virus. We were ostracised in our locality," he said. Meanwhile, he started receiving calls from the family members of Covid-19 patients who were in need of plasma therapy. Uday Kiran recollects that he used to receive at least seven calls per day, but was reluctant initially. But after repeated requests from people, he went to a corporate hospital where he agreed, after clarifying all his doubts, to donate plasma for the first time in June. "Later, I saw a video message of the police appealing to donate plasma and I approached Shadnagar Inspector. The Inspector encouraged me and got me registered, after which I donated on July 15. I donated for the third time on July 30," he added. Uday Kiran said that the very same people who used to spread misleading messages about him and his family are now recognising his service. "I am now known as the first COVID-19 patient in the area. Not only that but also as a plasma donor. I feel happy when people ask me about it now," he added. Korean drama rose in popularity at the start of 2020 with the top rating drama "Crash Landing On You." Since then, Hallyu stars keep making big comebacks on the small screen. With rising numbers of new shows, this created a new string of trendiest actors and actresses that play unforgettable characters. Netizens expect to see more of these stars with their future projects as they rise in their careers. Here is the list of the trendiest rising actors and actresses in 2020: KIM DA MI Her unique fashion and hairstyle, together with her strong character, made her standout in "Itaewon Class." She won the Best New Actress in television award at the 56th Baeksang Arts Awards for the lead role, Yo Ji Seo, in the said drama. Thanks as well to the success and popularity of the show, Da Mi will play a part in the sequel of "The Witch: Part 1 The Subversion." HAN SO HEE At the age of 25, the pretty actress gained worldwide recognition after playing the lead role in one of the top-rated Korean drama series "The World Of The Married." It was a roller coaster ride for the young actress, but she handled it well. Her popularity is also one of the reasons her controversial past photos, with tattoos and cigarettes, resurface online. Her troubled mother's wrongdoings also resurfaced, but Han So Hee's close friends stood by her side and defended her. Meanwhile, the actress was also nominated in the Baeksang Arts Awards for Best New Actress (TV). AHN BO HYUN Playing one of the villains in the drama "Itaewon Class," Ahn Bo Hyun rose in popularity due to his fight scenes with actor Park Seo Joon. His role was efficiently played, that it was so convincing- netizens grit their teeth after each brawling scene with any of the Danbam team. After his appearance in "Itaewon Class," Ahn Bo Hyun kept himself busy with his upcoming MBC drama "Kairos." He's also filming numerous commercials. WOO DO HWAN The actor was hailed as a certified scene-stealer in the drama "The King: Eternal Monarch." Netizens applauded his dual character performance as he acted remarkably and justified each role. In each episode, Woo Do Hwan was one of the much-awaited actors that viewers wanted to see. Since then, many have praised the actor's acting skills and his transformation over the years. His good bromance with Lee Min Ho also made him more endearing. Meanwhile, the actor unexpectedly enlisted in the mandatory military service last July 2020. Many look forward to his safe return and his next project in the future. JEON MI DO Jeon Mi Do was active in the musical theatre prior to acting. She debuted on the big screen through the film "Metamorphosis" in 2019. Meanwhile, her first leading role as a television star was in the 90s-based drama and Netflix original "Hospital Playlist" as a professor of neurosurgery. She gained popularity in the show, which nominated her for Best New Actress (TV) at the Baeksang Arts Awards. The actress also sang the cover of Shin Hyo-beom's song "I Knew I Love" for the drama's OST, which peaked at number 1 on the Gaon Digital charts. Netizens are eager for the second season of "Hospital Playlist" which is set to premiere early next year. Cape Canaveral, Fla. Two NASA astronauts returned to Earth on Sunday in a dramatic, retro-style splashdown, their capsule parachuting into the Gulf of Mexico to close out an unprecedented test flight by Elon Musks SpaceX company. It was the first splashdown by U.S. astronauts in 45 years, with the first commercially built and operated spacecraft to carry people to and from orbit. The return clears the way for another SpaceX crew launch as early as next month and possible tourist flights next year. Test pilots Doug Hurley an Upstate New York native and Bob Behnken rode the SpaceX Dragon capsule back to Earth less than a day after departing the International Space Station and two months after blasting off from Florida. The capsule parachuted into the calm gulf waters off the coast of Pensacola, hundreds of miles from Tropical Storm Isaias pounding Floridas Atlantic coast. Welcome back to planet Earth and thanks for flying SpaceX, the companys Mission Control said. Hurley was born in Endicott, N.Y., and graduated from Owego Free Academy. The astronauts' ride home in the capsule dubbed Endeavour was fast, bumpy and hot, at least on the outside. The spacecraft went from a screaming orbital speed of 17,500 mph (28,000 kph) to 350 mph (560 kph) during atmospheric reentry, and finally to 15 mph (24 kph) at splashdown. Peak heating during descent was 3,500 degrees Fahrenheit (1,900 degrees Celsius). The anticipated top G forces felt by the crew: four to five times the force of Earths gravity. "Thanks for flying @SpaceX." Current Location: Planet Earth A 2:48pm ET, @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug splashed down, marking the first splashdown of an American crew spacecraft in 45 years. #LaunchAmerica pic.twitter.com/zO3KlNwxU3 NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 A SpaceX recovery ship with more than 40 staff, including doctors and nurses, moved in following splashdown, with two smaller, faster boats leading the way. To keep the returning astronauts safe in the pandemic, the recovery crew quarantined for two weeks and were tested for the coronavirus. SpaceX expected it to take a half-hour for the ship to arrive at the capsule and additional time to lift it out of the water onto the deck. The astronauts had plenty of seasick bags if needed while waiting in the bobbing capsule. A flight surgeon was going to be the first to look into the capsule, once the hatch swung open. After medical exams, the astronauts were expected to fly home to Houston for a reunion with their wives and sons. The last time NASA astronauts returned from space to water was on July 24, 1975, in the Pacific, the scene of most splashdowns, to end a joint U.S.-Soviet mission known as Apollo-Soyuz. The Mercury and Gemini crews in the early to mid-1960s parachuted into the Atlantic, while most of the later Apollo capsules hit the Pacific. The lone Russian splashdown was in 1976 on a partially frozen lake amid a blizzard following an aborted mission; the harrowing recovery took hours. SpaceX made history with this mission, which launched May 30 from NASAs Kennedy Space Center. It was the first time a private company launched people into orbit and also the first launch of NASA astronauts from home turf in nearly a decade. Hurley came full circle, serving as pilot of NASAs last space shuttle flight in 2011 and the commander of this SpaceX flight. Musk monitored the descent and splashdown from SpaceX Mission Control in Hawthorne, California. NASA turned to SpaceX and also Boeing to build capsules and ferry astronauts to and from the space station, following the retirement of the shuttles. Until Hurley and Behnken rocketed into orbit, NASA astronauts relied on Russian rockets. SpaceX already had experience hauling cargo to the space station, bringing those capsules back to a Pacific splashdown. This is the next era in human spaceflight where NASA gets to be the customer, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said from Johnson Space Center in Houston shortly before the astronauts return. SpaceX needs six weeks to inspect the capsule before launching the next crew around the end of September. This next mission of four astronauts will spend a full six months aboard the space station. Hurley and Behnkens capsule will be refurbished for another flight next spring. A Houston company run by a former NASA official, meanwhile, has partnered with SpaceX to send three customers to the space station in fall 2021. Boeing doesnt expect to launch its first crew until next year. The company encountered significant software problems in the debut of its Starliner capsule, with no one aboard, last year. Its capsules will touch down in the U.S. Southwest desert. By beating Boeing, SpaceX laid claim to a small U.S. flag left at the space station by Hurley and the rest of the last shuttle crew. The flag which also flew on the first shuttle flight was carefully packed aboard the Dragon for the homecoming. Also on board: a toy dinosaur named Tremor, sent into space by the astronauts young sons. The boys recorded a wake-up call for their fathers Sunday morning, urging them to rise and shine and we cant wait to see you. Dont worry, you can sleep in tomorrow, said Behnkens 6-year-old son Theo, who was promised a puppy after the flight. Hurry home so we can go get my dog. Pune: The SIT probing the Govind Pansare murder case has filed a supplementary chargesheet against Sanatan Sanstha member Virendra Tawde at a court in Kolhapur. The over 400-page supplementary chargesheet was filed in Kolhapur sessions court on Tuesday. Tawde, earlier arrested by CBI in the Narendra Dabholkar murder case, was in September taken into custody by Kolhapur police in connection with the murder of CPI leader and rationalist Govind Pansare. Tawde is the second accused named in Pansare murder case by the state Special Investigation Team (SIT). The SIT had already filed a chargesheet against Sameer Gaikwad, another member of Sanatan Sanstha, in the Pansare murder case. "We filed the supplementary chargesheet against Tawde here in Kolhapur sessions court," said additional superintendent of police Suheil Sharma, the investigating officer in the murder case. However, he refused to divulge any information on the charges levelled against Tawde. "I can only confirm that the chargesheet of over 430 pages has been submitted in the court," he said. However, police sources said that charges against Tawde are likely to be similar to the ones under which Sameer Gaikwad has been charged. Tawde was first arrested by the CBI in the Dabholkar case in June this year from Panvel and later the state SIT arrested him on September 2 this year in the Pansare case. Gaikwad was arrested in September last year in the Pansare murder case. Tawde had worked as an organiser for the conservative Hindu outfit Sanatan Sanstha in Kolhapur for some time, and therefore he came under the scanner of state police SIT probing the Pansare murder case, police had earlier said. Pansare, known for his rationalist views, was shot dead in Kolhapur on February 20, 2015. His wife too was injured in the attack. Dabholkar, a noted anti-superstition activist and rationalist, was murdered in Pune on August 20, 2013. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Were almost a month into the 2020 hurricane season, which lasts through Nov. 30, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts there will be more storms than usual, including six to 10 hurricanes, with half of them category 3 or higher. If you havent already made an emergency evacuation plan, now is the time to do so. And if you have a pet, youll need to prepare an evacuation travel kit just for them. Pets other than dogs and cats may require additional items. Here is a pet travel kit checklist and some tips gathered from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the Humane Society of the United States and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Tips Consider microchipping your pet in case it gets lost and registering the microchip and your contact information with the manufacturer. Make sure your pet has on a collar, ID tag and leash whenever it leaves the car. Put your cellphone number on the tag. Dont let your pet roam in the vehicle. Dogs and cats are most safe in a crate anchored by a seat belt. There also are other restraints that keep dogs in place, but they dont provide safety in a crash. Pets should be placed in the back seat. Even when crated, pets in the front seat can be injured by airbags if theres an accident. Never let a pet ride in the back of an open pickup truck. Its dangerous to let an animal hang its head out of a vehicle window; it can be hurt by flying debris, and air rushing into their lungs can be harmful. Stop regularly to allow you pet to move around, drink water and eliminate waste. (Cats may need a litter box.) Never leave your pet alone in a vehicle even for a short period of time. Temperatures inside a car rise above 100 degrees quickly on a warm day and can seriously injure or kill an animal in just a few minutes. Keep your pet close (and on a leash) when walking around an unfamiliar area, and keep them a safe distance from other pets and wildlife. Being in a place they dont recognize can be disorienting or frightening for some animals and can cause them to react differently than they normally do. Evacuation kit __ Pet carrier with bedding __ Collar with ID tags, leash __ Waterproof container for supplies __ Veterinary records (put in waterproof packaging) __ Rabies certificate __ Vaccination records __ Heartworm test results (for dogs) __ FeLV/FIV test result (for cats) __ Prescriptions __ Registration or adoption records __ Microchip information __ Photo of your pet, with description __ Owners contact information __ Two weeks worth of food in a waterproof container __ Two weeks worth of water __ Food and water bowls __ Two-week supply of medications __ One-month supply of flea, tick and (for dogs) heartworm medication __ Litter box and scoop (for cats) and plastic bags for waste __ A favorite toy __ A familiar blanket (for comfort) __ Cleaning supplies for accidents Five useful tips for easing pet separation anxiety The pandemic may have brought you even closer to your animal companion. Here's how to cope with your mutual separation anxiety as the government lifts restriction that require you to spend more time apart. +7 Pet adoptions and fostering have surged during the pandemic When COVID-19 began sweeping through Louisiana, Ginnie Baumann Robilotta, the vice president of Animal Rescue New Orleans (ARNO), grappled wit By Jung Min-ho Two brokers have been arrested on charges of helping 146 foreigners file fraudulent refugee applications for money. According to Busan Immigration Office's investigation bureau Monday, a Vietnamese woman, 27, was recently arrested for allegedly helping 91 Vietnamese file the applications with false information so they could stay and work in Korea until the process is completed. The woman is suspected of receiving between 1.3 million won and 4 million won from each a total of 180 million-360 million won in return. In a separate case, a Russian man, 24, was arrested for allegedly providing the illegal services to 55 foreigners, many of whom are Russians. He is suspected of taking 1.2 million won from each a total of 60 million won. So far, 50 of them have been deported. The immigration office said it is searching for the rest. According to investigators, applicants falsely claimed that they faced persecution in their countries for reasons race, religion, sexual orientation and others. But they concluded that these were not real reasons. "It usually takes about three years to finish the whole process, so brokers promote that they (foreigners) can make money during the process," an immigration official said. The immigration office said it will act decisively in such cases and strengthen screening procedures for asylum seekers. Senior Bihar Police officer Vinay Tiwari, who arrived in Mumbai on Sunday to assist the state police team probing the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, denied any lack of coordination between the two police forces. Asked by the reporters at Mumbai airport if he was deputed due to reports of lack of co-ordination between Mumbai and Bihar Police, he said: "It's (his visit) a part of the process of the investigation." "It can't be said that there is a lack of co-ordination. There is a step called supervision in any process of investigation and for that, a senior officer needs to step in. We are moving in the right direction," Tiwari, an IPS officer of 2015 batch, said. "I have come here so that I can interact with my team and take the investigation ahead," he said. Bihar's DGP Gupteshwar Pandey told IANS on Sunday that Tiwari, currently the SP, City, Patna, has been sent to Mumbai to help the four-member Bihar Police team in Mumbai that complained of lack of co-operation by the Mumbai Police over the investigation. Tiwari also said that his arrival in Mumbai should not be seen as a step by the Bihar Police to arrest Rhea Chakraborty -- Sushant's girlfriend and Bollywood actor, who along with her family members, had been named in a July 25 FIR filed by the late actor's father K.K. Singh. The Bihar Police are also yet to retrieve any medico-legal document in the Sushant Singh Rajput case. On this, Tiwari said: "That is why I have come and we will try our best to get all the documents." On its own part, the Mumbai Police have questioned many people, including filmmakers. Tiwari, on being asked if his team will also quiz the filmmakers, said: "So far, we are questioning those involved in this case... who were close to him (Sushant) in the last few days (before his death). "Our team has done a lot of work in this direction. If there is a need to interrogate the filmmakers to carry forward the investigation, we will do that too," he said. Sushant was found hanging at his Bandra apartment in Mumbai on June 14 following which Mumbai Police began probing the case. K.K. Singh on July 25 had filed an FIR against his son's star girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and her family members for allegedly abetting his suicide. Following this, the Bihar Police also launched its investigation. Bihar's DGP Pandey had told reporters on Saturday that Bihar Police would reveal all facts associated with the matter. Rhea is presently absconding. The Bihar Police team had also visited her flat but could not find her there. After this, Pandey admitted that the Bihar Police have not been able to 'locate' her. With Rhea having released a video in which she claimed her innocence, the DGP said that instead of declaring herself innocent on video, she should record her statement before the police, as this will be in her favour. "Rhea must clear her side. We do not have any enmity with her, but if she continues to run in this way, then it will be difficult for her. I assure you that the Bihar Police are investigating at their own level and the day we get the evidence against the culprits, we will drag them out even from hell. The Bihar Police are fully capable of this task," he asserted. The Winneba District Court, presided over by Mr Isaac Oheneba Kufuor, has granted an appeal for out-of-court settlement in a case involving the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate and the Winneba District Police Commander. It has, therefore, given Neenyi Bondzie, an opinion leader at Winneba, the mandate to handle the out-of-court settlement between Chief Superintendent Okanta, the Winneba District Police commander, and James Kofi Annan, the NDC parliamentary candidate. Neenyi Bondzie is to brief the Court of the outcome of the settlement on Wednesday, August 5. Annan, also a social entrepreneur, was dragged to court for an alleged offensive conduct and interfering with the work of an official in connection with the ongoing registration exercise. Narrating the facts of the case, Detective Police Inspector Frank Kpel, the Acting Winneba Crime Officer, said the complainant, Chief Supt Okanta, was chairing the Municipal Registration Review Committee Meeting at Latter Days Saints Church at Winneba Junction, on July 21 at 0930 hours, when the accused in the company of some people entered the premises. He said Annan, the accused, confronted the Effutu Municipal Electoral Officer and asked why the Committee had commenced meeting without a representative of the NDC. Chief Supt Okanta, who was sitting with the EC Official, asked Annan to address him (Okanta) as the Chairman of the Committee to have his grievances resolved. Detective Inspector Kpel said the comments of the complainant did not go down well with Annan and he retorted You are the reason why we are not enjoying peace in Winneba Town. The Police Commander, who viewed Annans statement as an intent to provoke the breach of the peace, reported his behaviour to the police. He said they had to exercise greater restraint to avoid open confrontation, which disrupted the meeting and Annan was later arrested. Source: GNA 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 Nearly 300 employees with Georgias largest school district have tested positive for COVID-19 or been exposed to the virus. The Gwinnett County School District will not return to in-person classes and will instead reopen with online learning for the school year starting August 12. However, while students can stay at home teachers are still required to come to school for their remote teaching. Teachers began to return to their schools for in-person planning on Wednesday and on Thursday the school district reported 260 employees tested positive for the virus or had contact with a positive case, removing a major chunk of the school force just days before the start of the semester. 'As of last Thursday, we had approximately 260 employees who had been excluded from work due to a positive case or contact with a case,' Sloan Roach, a GCPS spokeswoman said to CNN. 'This number is fluid as we continue to have new reports and others who are returning to work.' Georgia's largest school district Gwinnett County Schools have reported 260 employees who have tested positive for COVID-19 or were exposed to a case. Now they'll be 'excluded' from work just days before the school year starts on August 12 The district, the largest employer in the county, employs more than 24,900 people, meaning one percent is infected or affected by the virus. Protests have taken place outside of the Gwinnett County School District building over the weekend comprising of teachers who demand to teach from their homes to protect themselves from the virus and parents who are adamant for their kids to return to school. Teachers also protested to demand the district address the needs of some 3,000 students who don't have computers or access to WiFi for remote learning. 'I believe as of March, there were 3,000 of our families who dont have internet access,' educator Shavaun Mincey said to WSB-TV. 'We need to be able to stand in the gap, reallocate some funds and be able to help our families so that all are successful.' The district, located in Atlanta, is the largest school system in the state and serves 180,000 students. The district had planned to start the school year with in-person and online instruction, however due to spikes in cases across the country the district decided to start remotely for students. In the decision the district also said teachers will no longer be allowed to work remotely, according to the The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The move switched to virtual teaching was 'due to the current COVID-19 situation in our county and the rising numbers of cases in Gwinnett County,' Roach said. She noted there is already a reporting and tracing process in place and a protocol for excluding employees who test positive or have been exposed. Roach said that due to the tracing process the district determined a majority of the cases were the result of community spread. The school district decided to have remote learning for students but teachers still have to report to their schools to teach While students will start classes remotely, teachers with the district are still told to report to school 'We have people who have called in to report who have not been at school or work,' she said. Gwinnett County has the second highest rate of COIVD-19 cases in the state with 17,781 confirmed infections, according to Georgias Department of Public Health. Statewide Georgia has more than 190,000 cases and 3,800 deaths as of Monday morning. 'Given the number of COVID cases in Gwinnett we would expect to see positives among our employees based on the community spread in our county,' Roach said. Now teachers are concerned to report to schools to teach even if students aren't there following the outbreak. Some instructors reported that in-person training and meetings are taking place in spaces that aren't properly disinfected and masks aren't worn at all times. Across the country school districts are grappling with the decision on whether to return to in person teaching this fall. Teachers also protested to demand the district address the needs of some 3,000 students who don't have computers or access to WiFi for remote learning. 'I believe as of March, there were 3,000 of our families who dont have internet access. We need to be able to stand in the gap, reallocate some funds and be able to help our families so that all are successful,' educator Shavaun Mincey said A protest of parents demanding the schools let children return to school next week above Parents protested outside the Gwinnett County Schools building over the weekend demanding students be allowed to return to in-person classes A view of the parent protest pictured above with signs that say 'Zoom is not a classroom' Students and parents held signs that said 'Let me go to school' and 'Moms choose in school' Ashley Newman resigned from her post as a teacher at Gwinnett Elementary due to the threat of returning to school in the midst of the pandemic. 'I personally know of at least 16 schools with outbreaks and teacher have only been back for three days,' Newman said to the The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. But shes struggled since stepping away. 'I applied for the government funding where I could get two-thirds of my pay for 12 weeks, but I was denied,' she said. Newman explained she has a four-year-old daughter who is too young to come to school with her and although daycare is open, there are 16 registered children in the program, which is more than Newman is comfortable with. One of the Royal Navy's newest warships has set sail from Portsmouth for the Mediterranean. The 295ft ship HMS Trent is designed for duties including counter piracy, anti-smuggling and counter-terrorism. But the friends and family of crew members had to watch proceedings at Portsmouth Naval Base live online due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The new warship will train and patrol with Nato forces as part of Operation Sea Guardian, which seeks to deter international crime and terrorism The vessel's crew stood to attention beside her as she was officially commissioned at the quiet ceremony. Addressing the crew, HMS Trent's Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commander James Wallington-Smith said it was a 'great sadness' that friends and family could not attend the commissioning ceremony as they normally would have before the pandemic. He said: 'It is the understated support of all those around us who form the backbone on which we are able to to our job'. The vessel's crew stood to attention beside her as she was officially commissioned at a quiet ceremony at Portsmouth Naval Base 'Without their own hard work and sacrifice, we would not be able to make it to the start date on time.' HMS Trent was built on the Clyde in Scotland by BAE Systems and delivered to the Royal Navy in December. HMS Trent's Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commonder James Wallington-Smith said it was a 'great sadness' that friends and family could not attend the commissioning ceremony as they normally would have before the pandemic Since then she has been going through sea training and workouts to prepare her for her first deployment. The new warship will train and patrol with Nato forces as part of Operation Sea Guardian, which seeks to deter international crime and terrorism. Lt Cdr Wallington-Smith said: 'The entire ship's company have worked tirelessly in difficult circumstances during the Covid-19 pandemic to prepare HMS Trent for this day. 'I could not be prouder of them and everyone within Portsmouth Naval Base and beyond who has helped us reach this point.' About two-thirds of the 65 ratings and officers who make up HMS Trent's ship's company will crew the vessel at any one time. (FILE PHOTO: Catherine LaiAFP via Getty Images) SINGAPORE From 10 August, all incoming travellers to Singapore who are serving their Stay-Home Notices (SHNs) outside of dedicated facilities will need to don an electronic monitoring device throughout the 14-day period. In a joint media release on 3 August (Monday), the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA), Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and Ministry of Education (MOE) said that with the progressive lifting of travel restrictions, the use of wearable electronic monitoring devices will enable them to monitor those serving SHN at their places of residence more effectively. This new measure applies to all incoming Singaporeans, permanent residents, long-term pass holders (including students pass holders), work pass holders and their dependants. Those aged 12 and below will be exempted from this requirement. Students on SHN residing in hostels in educational institutions are also excluded, as they would be under close observation. Device will trigger if traveller leaves place of residence Since 21 March, all incoming travellers have to serve a 14-day SHN upon entering Singapore. They serve their SHN either at their place of residence or at dedicated facilities, and are tested for COVID-19 at designated community testing facilities before the end of their SHN period. On arrival in Singapore from 10 August onwards, travellers serving their SHN at their place of residence will be issued with an electronic monitoring device at the checkpoints, after immigration clearance. They will need to activate the electronic monitoring device upon reaching their place of residence. If the device is not activated as required, the authorities will follow up to determine their location, and assist to resolve any technical difficulties, or take enforcement action if needed. During the 14-day period, persons wearing these devices may receive notifications on these devices and need to acknowledge them in a timely manner. Any attempt to leave the place of residence or tamper with the electronic device will trigger an alert to the authorities, who will conduct follow-up investigations, except when the person is leaving his/her place of residence for his/her appointment for the COVID-19 test. Story continues After serving their SHN, they need to deactivate the device and dispose of or return it in accordance with the instructions. The devices use GPS (global positioning system) and 4G/Bluetooth signals to determine if persons on SHN are within the range of their place of residence, the joint media release said. The devices do not store any personal data and do not have any voice/video recording function. Data transmitted from the devices to the authorities backend system, such as the GPS and 4G/Bluetooth signal data, is protected by end-to-end certificate-based encryption. The authorities will abide strictly by public sector data protection rules in managing and protecting personal data collected by these devices, which includes the recommendations of the Public Sector Data Security Review Committee. Only government officials authorised by the respective authorities will have access to the data for the purposes of monitoring and investigation. Liable to be charged if found tampering with device Previously, ICA, MOM and MOE have been monitoring SHN compliance via a combination of manual and automated text messages and phone/video calls, and physical house visits. The authorities said that those who fail to comply with SHN requirements, including those who tamper and/or remove the electronic monitoring device during the SHN period, will be liable to be charged under the Infectious Diseases (COVID-19 Stay Orders) Regulations 2020. The penalty may be a fine of up to $10,000 and/or imprisonment of up to six months. For foreigners, ICA/MOM may take further administrative actions, such as revoking, or shortening the validity of permits and passes to remain/work in Singapore. Stay in the know on-the-go: Join Yahoo Singapore's Telegram channel at http://t.me/YahooSingapore Related stories: COVID-19: Wearable contact tracing device may be given to everyone in Singapore No plan currently for mandatory use of wearable devices for COVID-19 contact tracing: Balakrishnan Riga City, Latvia -- (SBWIRE) -- 08/03/2020 -- The fruits of patient labor are always sweet. For Tycoon, today marks an exciting day as it is a result of months of perseverance and dedicated work. Tycoon is extremely thrilled to announce that their long-awaited Crowdsale is live now! Their next step will be to present an already working product, the Tycoon platform, which they have developed in the last two years. The innovative startup proudly unveils its Token Online Shop following a huge demand of the Tycoon Token (TYC). The shop is a user-friendly platform with an engaging interface that makes navigating much easier and the entire buying process much more convenient than ever! In order to acknowledge the support of their community, Tycoon offers an exclusive bonus of 10% TYC for purchases made during the Crowdsale. For example, if an investor buys 10,000 TYC, they can get an additional 1,000 TYC bonus on their purchase. With this deal, they pay for 10,000 TYC and receive 11,000 TYC instead. Get a Head Start: Be a Part of Tycoon Crowdsale The Tycoon Token completed a successful private sale and now it will be offered to the community through a Crowdsale. This is the general public's opportunity to obtain TYC and get additional benefits while using the platform. Their Token is central to all transactions and activities on the Tycoon platform. It not only plays an important role in getting discounts during transactions on the platform, like 25% discount on transaction fees but also secures Token holders an early access privilege on the platform before anyone else! The maximum supply of the TYC is 140 million and can only be bought in our Token Online Shop. Tycoon is a platform crafted by professionals that instantly gives you a trading acceleration. Our platform uses advanced APIs to connect traders to reputed digital assets trading platforms like Binance. The process is simple and seamless: Users can follow professional traders and copy their trades fully automatically in order to benefit from their expertise and earn handsome profits. The professional traders being followed receive commissions and an enhancement in reputation. This helps them attract more traders, making copy trading the perfect way for novice traders to enter the world of cryptocurrency trading. A Safe and Secure Platform The Tycoon platform has been designed using state-of-the-art security architecture to protect user data as well as their transactions. The users' digital assets will never be stored on the platform. This makes it an extremely safe and secure platform for all kinds of traders. Tycoon uses the Coinbase payment gateway that gives users 100% safe payments with several popular currencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin. Referral Program: Invite friends and receive 15% Bonus Tycoon also introduces a Referral program through which users and their referrals can earn an additional 15% Tokens on each purchase of TYC. There is no limit to referrals and users can earn more when they refer more people to the Tycoon platform and Crowdsale. The referral history from the Crowdsale will be imported to the platform later and enables users to receive a share of every fee paid by their referrals. 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Join the Crowdsale on shop.tycoon.io and experience a whole new way to earn handsome profits from digital assets. About Cryptoshib Criptoshib tries to keep crypto enthusiasts updated with the latest happenings and stories from the crypto world. We try to post stories about projects and people of the crypto and blockchain communities from around the world. Media Contact Contact Name: Serdar Bisi Organization Name: Tycoon Ltd Address (city and country): 13 Tepeleniou Str.Tepelenio Court, 3rd floor8010 Paphos, Cyprus email: info@tycoon.io Website URL: www.tycoon.io Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. A burnt brick factory built by the Oyo State Government to serve infrastructural needs has been abandoned and left in ruins for 14 years, PREMIUM TIMES reports. The factory, situated in Oloba Village, Erunmu, Egbeda Local Government Area of the state, is one of the projects embarked upon by the Rashidi Ladoja-led administration in 2004. Mr Ladoja governed the state from 2003 to 2007- although he suffered impeachment in 2006 and was later reinstated same year. Even after Mr Ladojas administration, successive governments have done nothing to salvage the decay of the project. Visiting the factory in June, this reporter observed that production and other activities have been grounded for over a decade. The paths to the site had become so bushy that one could barely walk through. The only person found in the factory was the guard, who is in charge of protecting the sophisticated but rusty machines and the other production equipment from being stolen. Short-lived joy For Mr Ladoja, the burnt brick project was conceived with a view to reducing the cost of construction in the state. But for the dwellers of Oloba village, the project meant more as their joy knew no bounds when the factory was constructed in 2004. They had high hopes that such infrastructural investment will be a major driver for social amenities and consequently, the development of Oloba village and other neighbouring communities. The abandoned factory in Oloba Egbeda Many of the villagers who spoke with this newspaper believed such factory would attract other basic amenities such as electricity, potable water and good roads; and above all, create employment opportunities. According to the Baale (head) of Oloba village, Lamidi Oyekan, everybody was surprised when the government began the project and they were elated to see both white and black engineers in the village. The Head of Oloba Community Mr Lamidi Oyekan We gave them acres of land for the project with the expectation that it would bring employment to our lands which would increase our lifestyle in the village and its environs, Mr Oyekan told this reporter that sunny afternoon. Their expectations were further heightened when the factory commenced operations and many youth started working in the construction department of the factory as casual workers. However, the hope of the people hit the rocks in 2006 when Mr Ladoja was impeached. The impeachment of the governor brought an automatic halt to the ongoing activities of burnt brick making in the factory. That has been the situation to date. Grievances Mr Oyekan, while expressing his dissatisfaction about the abandonment, stated that it has caused a great setback for this village. The abandoned factory in Oloba Egbeda He said, They would have installed the electric transformer given to us then, unfortunately, we remain in our usual state till this moment. All we get is visitation from some government workers, but nothing has been so far. Oloba village has never had electricity and residents had hoped the factorys operation would speed up the provision of electricity to the community. Idowu Jaiyeoba, one of those who worked at the factory, lamented how he was promoted from a casual worker to a permanent staff before his employment was abruptly terminated. We were all working without payment then holding unto the promises given to us that we would be paid as at when due. Myself and other workers were so sad when the operation stopped abruptly despite not being paid for all our hard work and efforts. It has really affected my financial stability and my colleagues. Right now, I have gone back into my small-scale farming after waiting for a long time, he added. Another villager who used to sell food to the factory workers while it was still functioning, Morenike Akinyioye, shared her disappointment concerning the abandonment of the project. She said the implications of the shutdown made her fall back to her palm oil extraction job, her first craft. the abandoned factory in Oloba Egbeda I would have become more established and better than this if things did not turn out the way they did, she said in regrets. Ladoja speaks Reacting to the abandonment, the spokesperson to Mr Ladoja, Lanre Olatinwo, admitted that the project was stalled because Mr Ladoja was illegally removed. He also blamed the then house of assembly for stalling work on the project, even after the reinstatement of Mr Ladoja. Advertisements The hoodlums in the house of the assembly made it difficult for us to move on with the project amidst other political crises, he told our reporter. Ray of hope Meanwhile, Taiwo Adisa, the chief press secretary to the incumbent governor, Seyi Makinde, has assured that the current administration is keen on reviving the abandoned project. He said Mr Makinde had visited the place, adding that the state has advertised that place for public-private partnership. The project is one of the twenty projects of such. The governor has ordered that the company that built the place be traced because it is an Italian company which is no longer in Nigeria so that they can recalibrate the project. When asked about the budget allocated for the reviving of the project, he insisted that the government will not drop any money and that the project has been handed over to a competent company. Experts proffer solutions Hamzat Lawal, an accountability advocate and the founder of Follow The Money Nigeria, in an interview with this paper, condemned the lack of continuity in projects embarked upon by government administrations. It is quite unfortunate that successive governments, when they come to government, in some cases, cancel what their predecessors have put in place, he said. When asked about the solution to the abandonment of developmental projects, he proffered that the communities should be involved in ensuring that their needs are met. He advised that the government should meet with community members from time to time. By doing this, the government needs to have a constructive dialogue with community members. For projects to be successful, it is about ensuring value for money and ownership of the community because it will reduce vandalization of public property and it will also ensure prosperity in various communities. He also advised the current administration to deliberate on the project and revive it so that the aspirations of the community people will be met. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 22:53:31|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close KIGALI, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Rwanda National Police on Sunday said a movement clearance pass will be open from Monday to those who need to travel to or from the Kigali International Airport (KIA) during curfew hours. Rwandan airports, including the main airport KIA, reopened to travelers Saturday, more than four months after the central African nation suspended commercial passenger flights to mitigate the COVID-19 outbreak. However, a curfew imposed by the government as a COVID-19 preventive measure has banned people from going out from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. local time (1900 GMT to 0300 GMT the next day). Applicants shall request the clearance pass via an online platform or a quick code and provide his or her name, telephone number, car license plate number, time of movement, and flight number, according to the police. Hotels are required to apply for the pass for customers traveling from the airport, the police added. The police also reminded the public to comply with the COVID-19 preventive measures, including practicing social distancing, wearing face masks, washing hands regularly, staying at home during curfew hours and avoiding contact when greeting others. The Rwandan health ministry on Sunday evening reported 20 new COVID-19 cases and 25 recoveries, bringing the total number of confirmed cases and recoveries to 2,062 and 1,144, respectively. Enditem Dover, Delaware, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dover, Delaware -- Respected RV industry leader and President of the RV Advisor Consumer Association (RVACA) Gigi Stetler is issuing a nationwide alert to all businesses and individuals who are approached by Marcus Lemonis the star of CNBCs The Profit and the CEO of Camping World . Unfortunately, Lemonis is the false profit. Every week I get contacted by individuals who have fallen victim to Lemonis predatorial and unscrupulous business tactics. Some have been outlined in an incredible Inc. expose by Will Yakowicz, but since CNBC has yet to remove him from The Profit, its time to protect other businesses and individuals before they are preyed upon by Lemonis and also destroyed, said Stetler. Stetler is calling on all victims of Lemonis, CEO of Camping World, to come forward in efforts to attain justice. Two new lawsuits have recently been filed against Lemonis by his former business partners, Nicolas Goureau and Stephanie Menkin, who were introduced to Lemonis when they appeared on The Profit. Goureau and Menkin (who are siblings) allege that Lemonis fraudulently induced them to invest in their retail business, Courage B, in exchange for a capital investment and his expertise in growing their company. However, instead of trying to help, Lemonis allegedly focused on making the company indebted to him (in upwards of hundreds of thousands of dollars) so that he could control the company and its assets with the purpose of financially ruining it. The complaints seek millions of dollars in damages from Lemonis and his entities. A copy of the complaints can be found here: Complaint 1 ; Complaint 2 . Over the years, Stetler has also witnessed the unscrupulous and deceptive business practices of Camping World, the RV powerhouse owned by Marcus Lemonis. Stetler says, former Camping World customers continually contact her after buying defective, lemon RVs from the industry giant. She says, these Camping World customers often spend months trying to get these defective RVs serviced, often with no success. Stetler says, she even has proof that some RVs are sold as new at Camping World but are actually pre-owned with multiple problems. Its the same pattern over and over again. I even know somone who has contemplated suicide because of the financial damage Lemonis and Camping World has done to their life. Lemonis needs to be stopped and held accountable for his egregious actions, said Stetler. Anyone who has been victimized by Marcus Lemonis is encouraged to immediately contact Stetlers legal team at lockelaw@thervadvisor.com . In addition, any whistleblowers, other potential victims or anyone able to offer information about Lemonis are encouraged to come forward. RVACA President Gigi Stetler is available for media interviews. To coordinate, contact Kelcey Kintner at 646-391-8001 or kelcey@redbanyan.com About Gigi Stetler A fearless entrepreneur, Gigi Stetler created and leads the first female-owned RV company in the United States, RV Sales of Broward . With more than 30 years of experience in the industry, she is one of a handful of top RV experts in the country. Stetler also launched and runs The RV Advisor - an online platform to effectively connect millions of RV owners, dealers, and service centers that is considered the Angies List of the RV industry. Stetler is also the founder of the non-profit RV Advisor Consumer Association (RVACA) , which provides RVs to healthcare workers who need a safe space to quarantine and isolate during the COVID-19 pandemic. The August issue of Technology Magazine is now live, covering topics such as AI, automation, cloud, data and more NORWICH, England, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- BizClik Media announced today the launch of the August edition of Technology magazine. In this month's cover feature, we speak to Ciara Mullan, VP of Transition and Transformation at renowned IT services provider T-Systems. Mullan informs us about what it takes to implement transformation projects in such challenging times as we are now in. Mullan believes her role delivering transformation requires a specific culture to be implemented. "We're transforming our tools and our operations," she says. "That means having programmes in place, being of an open mindset and working with people that share our culture, on a cultural transformation. That is leading to a focus on reducing complexity, optimising speed and giving the right focus to our customers." We also hear from SAP's Lorraine Longato and Nicholas Nicoloudis, who inform us on the topic of human-centric innovation and what it means to use technology to change lives.. Cloud computing is an ever-present fixture on the digital transformation agenda. That's why our Top 10 sees us counting down the world's largest companies that offer their customers cloud services. Don't forget to read our other feature interviews with AltaMed Health Services, COLOTRAQ, Dentsu Aegis Network, Panasonic, Digital Realty and many more. READ TECHNOLOGY MAGAZINE HERE Contact: Shirin Sadr Shirin.sadr@bizclikmedia.com +44-2080542069 About Technology Magazine https://www.technologymagazine.com/ Technology Magazine is a 'Digital Community' for the global technology industry that connects the world's largest technology brands and their most senior executives with the latest trends as the industries around the world pivots towards technology and digital transformation. Technology Magazine is a 'trusted authority' on the latest technology news combining 'Executive Thought Leadership Interviews' with the very latest case studies on Industry 4.0, Cloud, Cyber, AI, Data and Data Analytics. The focus of Technology Magazine's 'Digital Community' is to provide our users with the 'Ultimate Digital Experience' - an incredible digital magazine, an world-class website, an award-winning newsletter service as well as video reports, podcasts, blogs, webinars, white papers, research reports, virtual events and a database second to none. Technology Magazine also offers its advertising partners a unique blend of digital branding, content syndication and executive thought leadership articles as well as a 'gated intelligence community' providing ultimate demand generation and measurable 'Ad-Campaign' ROI's. Technology Magazine is read by industry professionals at all levels, as well as technology and consulting executives. About Bizclik Media Group https://www.bizclikmedia.com/ BizClik Media Group is a UK-based media company with a global portfolio of leading industry, business and lifestyle digital communities. BizClik Media is fast becoming the trusted authority in Digital Media with a portfolio of brands across Technology & AI, Finance & Insurance, Manufacturing & Supply Chain, Energy & Mining, Construction, Healthcare, Wireless Communications & Data Centres. Science is clear on the efficacy of face masks it's proven to slow the spread of COVID-19. But what of face shields? Youve probably seen someone wearing one in your neighborhood. Its basically an individually sized salad bar sneeze guard attached to a headband. The advantages of a transparent plastic face shield over a face mask arent trivial. Breathing is easier while wearing a shield. Speech isnt muffled like it can be through a mask. Eyeglasses are less likely to fog up. People wearing a full-face visor instead of a mask tend not to touch their mouth, nose and eyes as much. You can see if a person is smiling at you through a face shield. With a face mask, you cant know for sure if its grin or a scowl under the fabric. Psychologists and speech therapists find that communicating with patients wearing a face shield is easier than with those wearing a mask. Hearing-impaired people can read the lips of people protected by a shield. Doctors, nurses, dental workers and other front-line health workers wear shields, but mostly as an added layer of protection in conjunction with masks. They're essential for intubation, which often causes to patients to expectorate violently. The shields also extend the longevity of the masks by blocking droplet contamination. If someone coughs in your face, a mask wont protect your eyes, but a shield will. And unlike face coverings designed for single use, such as surgical masks and N95 masks, plastic shields can be washed down and reused indefinitely. Despite the benefits, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is clear on its guidance: Face shields are not recommended for normal everyday activities or as a substitute for cloth face coverings. For one thing, its unknown how well shields, which have openings at the sides and bottom, protect others from droplets expelled by the wearer. Furthermore, the level of protection a shield affords to the person wearing it has not been thoroughly studied. In a recent coronavirus outbreak at hotel in Graubunden, Switzerland, only those workers who were wearing a face shield were exposed. "It has been shown that only those employees who had plastic visors were infected. There was not a single infection among employees with a mask," Rudolf Leuthold, director of the cantonal health department in Graubunden, told The Local. Nevertheless, face shields have their advocates. A Cincinnati physician says teachers and students should wear full face shields instead of cloth masks when classes resume in the fall. "These [holds up his fingers] are the 10 most deadly weapons, which is why you do not want to touch your t-zone,' your eyes, nose and mouth," internist Dr. Will Sawyer told Fox19. "Its self-inoculation." Sawyer maintains people can't help touching face masks to constantly adjust them, but a face shield forces them to keep their hands away from their face. However, the CDC says COVID-19 is primarily transmitted via respiratory droplets by coughing and sneezing, speaking and even breathing. Hand-to-mouth/nose/eye transmission is believed to be much less common, although it does happen. Whether you wear a mask or a shield, frequent hand washing is strongly encouraged. School districts in Ohio, Pennsylvania and other states are including face shields among the protective gear theyre ordering in anticipation of reopening in the fall. In the Bay Area, for example, the Palo Alto Unified teachers union wants the district to outfit teachers with both face masks and shields. Dr. Eli N. Perencevich, an infectious disease physician and professor of internal medicine and epidemiology at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, co-authored an essay in the Journal of American Medical Association arguing for greater use of face shields by the general public. The opinion piece was published April 29. Perencevich referred to a 2014 simulation study in which face shields were shown to reduce immediate viral exposure by 96% when worn by a simulated health care worker within 18 inches of a cough. But the author of the study, William Lindsley, a research biomedical engineer at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, told NBC News people should stick to cloth face coverings. "A cloth mask or a medical mask is going to do a better job of protecting you against the smaller particles than a face shield would," Lindsley said. "A face shield is good against the really big stuff [droplets] that you can kind of see. But as the stuff gets smaller and smaller, it's just easy for that to go around the face shield and be inhaled." There is mounting scientific evidence that the coronavirus can be spread as an aerosol, mainly indoors, suggesting that viral particles could be inhaled through the openings at the bottom and on the sides of a face shield. Swiss Federal Office of Public Health spokesman Daniel Dauwalder told The Local visors or shields are no substitute for face masks, but they could serve as a "complementary form of protection." California and New York both require people to wear face coverings in public. But while New York allows anyone to substitute a plastic shield for a mask, California's Department of Health's guidance states that shields be worn only by those who have a medical condition that prevents them from wearing a mask. It also stipulates that the shield should have a drape attached to its bottom edge. MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE: Sign up for 'The Daily' newsletter for the latest on coronavirus here. SF pastor claims without evidence that 'news reports on COVID are largely unreal' Andytown Coffee closes cafes, roastery after former employee tests positive for COVID-19 Florida Man Took Coronavirus Aid and Bought a Lamborghini, Officials Say Trump calls new Senate GOP coronavirus bill 'semi-irrelevant' Newsom announces $52M in funding to help hard-hit part of California Mike Moffitt is an SFGATE Reporter. Email: moffitt@sfgate.com. Twitter: @Mike_at_SFGate August is usually when we try to get one final vacation in, find fun ways to beat the heat, and take our last licks of summer. But this year, August is different. For those of us who have school-aged children, the potential return to class hangs over us; we count down the hours before the realities of a viral pandemic test us where it matters most. The month feels both too long and too short at once a giant chasm of unknowns during which everything can change, and an insufficient amount of time to prepare for such a daunting enterprise. Since schools closed in March where I live, life has been a giant adjustment for my 5-year-old. It marked the end of classrooms, playgrounds, recess, singalongs, field trips, swim lessons, sports, fairs, camps, playdates and almost every other great thing that kids look forward to doing together. Learning continued at home, but it was different, difficult and far less fun. We managed some responsible outdoor get-togethers with family and close friends that, because of distancing, proved more frustrating for him than enjoyable. He misses his friends and his teachers and is desperate to return to school. But he wont be returning to school as he knew it. And as I contemplate what life will be like for him if he does, Im not so sure it will actually be better for him. Schools around the country are putting in place their plans for reopening, many of which include things like daily temperature-taking, hourly handwashing, all-day mask-wearing, six-foot distancing, isolation rooms for kids who appear symptomatic, social interactions through plexiglass and teacher-led anxiety management exercises. While all of that is well-intended and likely necessary to keep schools safe from the coronavirus, it also frankly sounds like a dystopian hellscape that will make learning a terrifying if not wholly un-fun experience for my soon-to-be kindergartener. Right now, we dont talk much about COVID-19 at home. My son knows people are sick and thats why things are closed, but hes never once feared that he or we will get sick. The virus is still very much, in his mind, a faraway villain. But I worry that school, and its attentiveness to symptoms and safe practices, will bring fears about catching coronavirus right to his mental and psychological doorstep, where every interaction he has is fraught with awful possibilities. Weighing that against the well-known psychological benefits to going to school (as well as the economic and social upsides) is an impossible and unanswerable exercise. While the CDC advises, Important social interactions that facilitate the development of critical social and emotional skills are greatly curtailed or limited when students are not physically in school, the school experience they are advocating now is one no school-aged child in America has ever been through. Those unknowns are why some psychologists are worried. Anne Glowinski, professor of child psychiatry at Washington University in St. Louis, is less concerned about kids navigating the new rules than she is the adults adding to their anxieties. Kids can find games in everything, she said of wearing masks and social distancing rules. But what kids are most sensitive to is whether the adults around them are uncertain and scared. So when teachers get sick, or if some feel forced to be there, or when parents are overly worried, and adults just arent at their best, kids can react to that. All they want to know is that they will be OK and their family will be OK and we arent sure about that. As hard as weve worked to physically keep COVID-19 away, weve worked equally hard to keep it away from our kiddos psyche, which seems an impossible task once he goes back to school and its everywhere. Its good that states and school districts are implementing rigorous health and safety measures to reduce the risk of the coronavirus spread in the fall. But what we just dont know is whether keeping kids safe at school will actually make some of them unhealthy. S.E. Cupp is the host of S.E. Cupp Unfiltered on CNN. Medical aid team arrives in HK, bringing skills, blessing Global Times By Liu Caiyu, Fan Anqi and Cao Siqi Source: Global Times Published: 2020/8/2 21:38:40 More urgent to cut off community transmission by expanding tests: expert The first group of seven nucleic acid testing technicians from the Chinese mainland arrived in Hong Kong on Sunday to begin the task of assisting Hong Kong to curb the surging number of COVID-19 infections. They will be followed by a team of experts who specialize in building makeshift hospitals. After the seven clinical laboratory technicians from the neighboring Guangdong Province arrived, they will meet with officials and staff from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) health department and BGI Genomics before they get to work in laboratories. Locals and experts in Hong Kong reached by the Global Times on Sunday applauded the aid from the central government as being "timely," as Hong Kong has confirmed more than 100 new cases of COVID-19 for 12 consecutive days. The medical system is stretched to its limits with 115 confirmed local transmissions reported on Sunday, bringing the total confirmed COVID-19 infections to 3,511. The team of seven is led by Xu Dewen, an expert from the health commission of Guangdong Province and who was commander in chief of the Guangdong medical team which helped Wuhan in the early days of the epidemic. Guangdong will later dispatch 60 clinical laboratory technicians selected from more than 20 local public hospitals to Hong Kong. As part of efforts by the National Health Commission (NHC), a team of six from the Chinese mainland with expertise in constructing Wuhan's makeshift hospitals will be dispatched to Hong Kong as well, staying there for six months at most to help the city build makeshift hospitals, local media the Changjiang Daily reported. Hong Kong's Chief Secretary for Administration Matthew Cheung Kin-chung said Sunday that apart from assisting Hong Kong to build the makeshift hospital at the AsiaWorld Expo, the central government will also help build a new specialist modular hospital in Hong Kong, similar to Huoshenshan Hospital that was built in Wuhan in just 10 days. Cheung said the HKSAR government is seeking the suitable location to build this hospital, but how many people from the Chinese mainland will get involved is unknown. Aid teams from the Chinese mainland are expected to bring the most "effective" anti-epidemic measures to Hong Kong as the city has adopted relatively loose measures to keep the numbers of infections low, rather than clearing infections entirely, Wang Peiyu, a deputy head of Peking University's School of Public Health, told the Global Times on Sunday. "The team will help Hong Kong to cut community transmission of the virus by expanding COVID-19 testing." Go on a mission Aid teams from the mainland are not only responsible for bringing the mainland's epidemic preventive and control measures to Hong Kong, they would also bring blessings from the mainland. Asked how a citywide nucleic acid testing program covering about 7.5 million Hong Kong residents should be carried out, Jin Dongyan, a biomedical professor at the University of Hong Kong, told the Global Times on Sunday that "As Hong Kong has large population flows and less ability to mobilize people at the community level than the mainland, it will be harder to arrange citywide testing for all residents there." Wang noted that conducting citywide tests is not as urgent as cutting community transmission. When there is a confirmed patient, both close contacts and people living in the same zone, either in same community or company, should be tested. The method of expanding tests has proved effective in mainland cities, Wang said. Among the team of six who will help with the makeshift hospitals, the NHC selected those with most experience who had fought in Wuhan where COVID-19 was first reported, including Wan Jun, head of Wuchang makeshift hospital in Wuhan. Others in the team include experts in infectious disease prevention and control and nursing services as well as two specializing in construction design. The team will not only bring experience of building a makeshift hospital, but also bring the best wishes the mainland has for Hong Kong, Wan said. Wan's team will share their experience of how to operate a makeshift hospital with their peers in Hong Kong, including design, personnel arrangement, treatment processes, training and the disposal of medical waste. Before their departure, the team has been studying medical standards and regulations in Hong Kong. They are likely to head for Hong Kong Monday or Tuesday, the Global Times learnt from sources. Offering 500 beds, the renovated AsiaWorld Expo hospitals opened to COVID-19 patients on Saturday, which is helping reduce the pressure that regular hospitals are under. Jin said that building a new hospital along the lines of Huoshenshan might not happen at once, as it will take time to find the right place that is less populous, but it would help Hong Kong deal with an unexpected larger COVID-19 outbreak in the future. As aid teams from the mainland are embarking on their mission to Hong Kong, some went to the AsiaWorld Expo holding banners on which was written "thanks for my country, thanks for the national medical team." Some from the mainland sent blessings online, hoping that Hong Kong will win the battle against the novel coronavirus as soon as possible. The medical workers from the Chinese mainland have offered great help in times of need, Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po also expressed thanks to Beijing on Sunday for extending a helping hand to Hong Kong. However, medical aid from the mainland was also put under political lens as some people in the city were seen to mock, even oppose such help. A group of people from the Neo Democrats launched a protest in front of the Hospital Authority of Hong Kong, expressing their discontent for the mainland's help. Roy Tam Hoi Pong, a member of the organization and also a Tsuen Wan district councilor, claimed that the public and private hospitals and clinics in Hong Kong have sufficient resources to conduct tests for all high risk groups. "Opposing support teams from the mainland is just like those protesters who targeted the city's smart lampposts as they feared the government was using them to spy on them. Such protest is a typical reflection of anti-intellectualism," Nixie Lam, a Tsuen Wan district councilor, told the Global Times on Sunday. Lam slammed the organization for being stupid and shallow and putting politics ahead of human lives. Victor Chan Chi-ho, vice chairman of the Hong Kong Association of Young Commentators, also told the Global Times on Sunday that it is shameful for some opposition people with ulterior motives criticizing the kind offering from the central government, even increasing the chaos as the city is experiencing the severe outbreak. According to Lam, people who oppose the mainland's support have always harbored hatred toward the mainland. Previously, their political advocacy mainly focused on inciting local residents to push people away from the mainland by claiming that travelers from the mainland were taking the resources of local residents. But such voices are a just a small minority, and it cannot represent the majority of residents in the city, Lam stressed. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner (left) speaks during a media availability regarding filing charges against police officer Richard Nicoletti at his Center City office on Wednesday, July 22, 2020. Nicoletti, a Philly SWAT officer, turned himself in after pepper spraying kneeling protesters on I-676 in June. Read more In 2017, Larry Krasner won his election for Philadelphia district attorney on promises of ending mass incarceration, cash bail, and the death penalty, among other reforms. Since then, national media has often heralded Krasner as a model progressive prosecutor. But Krasners actions have fallen far short of his rhetoric. Despite claims that his office is working to end cash bail, court watchers have observed assistant district attorneys consistently request cash bail for people who cannot afford to pay, even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. In a recent interview with Democracy Nows Amy Goodman and Nermeen Shaikh, Krasners until-that-point progressive tone vanished when he was challenged on his continued use of cash bail, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Rattling off an attack on Philadelphia bail funds and activists that was riddled with mischaracterizations and whataboutisms, Krasner made one point abundantly clear: He still doesnt understand why bail exists. The Constitution promises that anyone charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Assigning cash bail to those who cannot afford to pay flips that promise on its head, incarcerating people who have not yet been convicted of a crime because they are poor. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court recently reminded bail authorities that cash bail should never be imposed for the purpose of ensuring that a defendant remains incarcerated pending trial. Bail should never be a means to keep people incarcerated. In fact, bail is a tool to ensure that people show up for their day in court, not to keep them incarcerated until that day. Assigning cash bail without considering whether a person can afford to pay creates a two-tiered criminal legal system that treats those with financial means much differently than those without. During a pandemic, this distinction becomes a matter of life and death. As Krasner notes in the interview, Theres no easy exit door to the jail, because the courts are closed. This statement is an abdication of Krasners own prosecutorial powers. He has the authority to drop charges against those accused of low-level offenses. He could request that cash bail be suspended in cases where a payment is the only thing keeping a person incarcerated. His assistant DAs could stop their practice of regularly requesting million-dollar bail, according to a recent report by the Philadelphia Bail Fund. He could step up, instead of passing the buck. Krasner need not look far to educate himself on what it would mean to end the reliance on cash bail in Philadelphia. Just across the border, New Jersey virtually eliminated all cash bail statewide in 2017. While ending cash bail, unfortunately, did little to address the racial disparities that makeup New Jerseys jail and prison population, it did decrease the overall jail population. Whats more, the use of nonmonetary bail and other tools like text reminders have ensured that people out on bail still show up for their day in court at effectively the same rate as before the change. Several other states and localities have moved to end the use of cash bail with similar results. The bottom line is that the work done by bail funds like the Philadelphia Bail Fund, the Philadelphia Community Bail Fund, and advocates like the Youth Art and Self-Empowerment Project saves lives. Without these groups work to rescue people from the horror of being incarcerated pretrial during a deadly pandemic, the situation in our jails would be exponentially worse. Krasners mischaracterizations of and attacks on the bail funds and other activists show that the district attorney has a long way to go in living up to his self-proclaimed mantle as a progressive prosecutor. Reggie Shuford is the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania. STILLWATER Backed by the support of an online survey, Eskimo Joes restaurant has decided it will make no changes to its longtime name or logo. We want to thank the more 30,000+ people who filled out our online survey. At this time we will be keeping our name and logo, the restaurant announced Monday on its Facebook page. The company started the survey recently in response to an online petition calling for an end to people of color being depicted in caricatures and used as mascots, specifically in Eskimo Joes and sister restaurant Mexico Joes branding. The Eskimo Joes logo is a caricature of an Indigenous person from northern North America, and the logo for Mexico Joes is a caricature of a man holding a taco and a guitar while wearing a poncho and a sombrero. Of the more than 30,000 respondents to the restaurants survey, the overwhelming majority more than 90% encouraged us to keep our branding of 45 years, the restaurant reported. They love Eskimo Joe and Buffy, who have always represented fun and excellent service while welcoming and respecting all people. The full version of this article was originally published by the Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit newsroom based in Washington, D.C. Lucie Joseph started to feel sick on April 28 as she rang up customers at a Shell gas station in Delray Beach, Florida. Joseph said her boss wouldn't give her time off without a doctor's note. But the owner of the gas station, Sun Gas Marketing and Petroleum, didn't offer her health insurance, so she didn't go to the doctor. Joseph, a single mother with a 10-year-old son, kept working -- seven more shifts over 10 days. IMAGE: Lucie Joseph and her son (Courtesy Lucie Joseph) Joseph's symptoms worsened, so she decided to get tested for COVID-19. On May 9, Joseph learned she had tested positive, and a nurse told her to quarantine. Over the next six weeks, Joseph tested positive twice more and texted the results to a manager. As instructed, she didn't return to work until she had two consecutive negative tests. On June 15, however, she was fired. "I was stunned," said Joseph, who showed the Center for Public Integrity images of the text messages with her employer and a document indicating she'd tested positive for COVID-19. Video: Economic impact of pandemic on minority and low-income communities Joseph, who earned $13 an hour, didn't realize she had a legal right to job protection. Two months before she was fired, President Donald Trump signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which requires certain small and medium-sized businesses to pay a worker's full salary for two weeks if they become infected with COVID-19 and prohibits businesses from firing employees for taking leave. But Joseph, who was eventually paid two weeks' wages, didn't know about the law until she consulted a lawyer. Many other workers are equally uninformed. Sun Gas owner Richard Vogel did not respond to requests for comment. Meanwhile, hundreds of U.S. businesses have been cited for illegally denying paid leave to workers during the pandemic, according to documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. As of June 12, nearly 700 companies had violated the law's paid-leave provisions and owed back wages to hundreds of employees, according to Labor Department records. Violators include six McDonald's franchises and the franchise owners of a Comfort Suites, Courtyard by Marriott and Red Roof Inn. Story continues In all, the businesses owe $690,000 in unpaid wages to 527 employees, who are not identified in the documents. Most of the workers are low-wage earners in the construction, hotel and food industries. It's likely many more companies have broken the law because workers such as Joseph aren't aware of their rights and therefore haven't filed complaints. "Workers with low wages are most in need of paid leave," said Tanya Goldman, a former Labor Department policy adviser who's now an attorney at the nonprofit Center for Law and Social Policy. "They literally cannot afford to stay home and take a sick day if they get COVID." Red Roof Inn's corporate office said it was trying to track down the employee involved but didn't give further comment. A spokesperson for Choice Hotels, which owns the Comfort Suites brand, said the hotel is owned by a franchisee and did not comment on the violation. Eileen Arslan, comptroller for the Courtyard by Marriott in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, which was cited for a violation, said hotel staff members were confused at first about who was covered under the new law. As soon as they heard from the Labor Department, they paid the employee the wages owed, Arslan said. Congress is considering another stimulus bill that would extend paid sick days to workers not covered under the current law, such as health care workers, first responders and employees at companies with more than 500 workers. Establishments with fewer than 50 workers are exempt if they show paid leave would seriously hurt their businesses. But the bill is tied up in the Senate as Republicans and Democrats fight about how much aid to give workers. 'I need to eat' About a third of U.S. workers don't receive paid time off from their employers. Most of them work in low-wage jobs. Others, such as Joseph, get only one or two days of paid time off a year. Others get a bit more, such as Angely Rodriguez Lambert. IMAGE: Angely Rodriguez Lambert with her grandmother and her aunt (Courtesy Angely Rodriguez Lambert) Rodriguez, who works as a cashier at a McDonald's restaurant in Oakland, California, gets up to five sick days a year under state law. But that wasn't enough to pay her bills while she recovered from COVID-19. Rodriguez was one of 11 employees at the McDonald's in the East Bay neighborhood of Temescal who tested positive for the coronavirus in late May. Forced to quarantine, Rodriguez asked if she could get paid while she recovered at home. Probably not, her boss said, adding that she would check with her supervisor. Rodriguez said she never got a response. Rodriguez, who earns $14.14 an hour, didn't realize she had the right to get paid for two weeks during quarantine. "Imagine living here without any money," Rodriguez said in Spanish. "I can't stay in my home if I don't pay the rent, and I need to eat and send money to my family." Rodriguez and five co-workers are suing the franchise owner, VES McDonald's, for allegedly breaking local labor laws, including a temporary Oakland ordinance that requires employers to give workers two paid weeks off if they get sick during the pandemic. Rodriguez said she eventually was paid for 60 hours but is owed another 20. The company said it eventually paid all workers in mid-June who asked for leave, according to court records. Rodriguez's employer, McDonald's franchise owner Valerie Smith, did not respond to a request for comment. In court documents, her lawyers said the franchise has complied with the law. A spokesperson for McDonald's Corp. said the company asks employees who are sick to stay home. "We're confident the vast majority of restaurant employees impacted by COVID-19 are getting paid sick leave through existing franchisee and corporate policies, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, CARES Act and state and local regulations, and McDonald's USA requires its franchisees to comply with all applicable laws and regulations," the spokesperson wrote. IMAGE: Strike at Oakland McDonald's (Courtesy Fight for $15) Rodriguez and Joseph are the types of workers the Families First law was supposed to help: low-income earners who aren't paid if they are sick or don't get enough paid leave to quarantine for at least two weeks. The law also guarantees working parents 10 weeks off at two-thirds pay if a worker's child care provider closes because of the pandemic. Employers get a tax credit to cover the cost. Data from the Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division, which enforces the paid-leave law, shows that businesses with a large number of low-wage workers are breaking the law more often than others. Most of the violators are construction and renovation companies, hotels, restaurants, grocery stores and manufacturers. The U.S. Postal Service has the most violations: 57. It owes workers nearly $100,000, Labor Department records show. Sandra Capkovic, who delivers mail in the Tampa, Florida, area, said a supervisor denied her request for 10 weeks of paid leave to take care of her 7-year-old son, whose babysitters have been unavailable during the pandemic. Capkovic said her supervisor told her the paid-leave law covers only parents whose children's schools and day care facilities are closed, and she would have to use the 10 days of annual leave she had accumulated. The Families First law covers working parents whose "child care provider" is unavailable, but doesn't specify whether that includes babysitters. Capkovic said she didn't file a formal complaint because she didn't know if her supervisor had violated the law. A spokesperson for the postal service said the agency began educating employees about their rights as soon as the law was signed by the president. "Significantly, the number of violations cited (57) is a very small fraction of the Postal Service workforce, which is comprised of more than 630,000 employees," she wrote. Two former Labor Department officials said the 692 paid-leave records obtained by the Center for Public Integrity likely reflect only a fraction of employers who are breaking the law. "It's very challenging for an employee, in a time of increasingly high unemployment and instability in the labor market, to have the courage to make a complaint," said Michael Hancock, an employment lawyer and an assistant administrator for policy in the Wage and Hour Division during the Obama administration. Joseph, meanwhile, is now receiving unemployment pay and looking for work. She's preparing to sue Sun Gas, claiming it broke the paid-leave law. "Bosses need to know that we're human, that we have a family too," she said. Click here to read the rest of this story. The Center for Public Integrity is a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative news organization in Washington, D.C. MASSILLON, Ohio - New Yorker magazine cartoonist Roz Chast will give the keynote address for the NEA Big Read 2020. The free virtual program will be televised on MCTV channels 21 and 621 at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13. It also will be posted on Massillon Museums Facebook and YouTube channels. In 2014, Chast wrote Cant We Talk About Something More Pleasant? The award-winning graphic memoir is this years book selection. The illustrated story focuses on facing end-of-life issues with her parents. Free copies can be picked up at the museum as supply lasts. A readers guide is available online to enhance understanding of the book. Chast, who attended Rhode Island School of Design, has written and illustrated several books, but is mostly known for her iconic and cerebral cartoons in The New Yorker. The NEA Big Read is a community-reading program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. The NEA Big Read - the largest federal literature program since the WPA - aims to prioritize reading in American culture. MassMus participation in the NEA Big Read 2020 has generated more than 40 corresponding virtual and live events in collaboration with its programming partners. Massillon is one of 78 communities nationally to secure the program for the 2019-20 grant cycle. The museum is one of two Ohio institutions to receive a share of the funding for this grant cycle. I am on cleveland.coms life and culture team and cover food, beer, wine and sports-related topics. If you want to see my stories, heres a directory on cleveland.com. Karti Chidambaram Chennai: Lok Sabha MP and son of senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, Karti, on Monday said he has tested positive for Covid-19. Karti tweet Advertisement 'I have just tested positive for #Covid. My symptoms are mild and as per medical advice I am under home quarantine. I would urge all those who have recently been in contact with me to follow medical protocol,' he said in a tweet. Kochi, Aug 3 : The police and the health authorities are now waiting for the results of the chemical examination to know the actual cause of the death of a three-year-old boy who died in the wee hours of Sunday after he was found to have swallowed a coin. On Monday, the post mortem was conducted and it was found that there were two coins and not one as was reported earlier, soon after the boy was brought to the Aluva government hospital near here at 11 a.m. on Saturday. The body has now been handed over to the kin, while the internal organs have been kept for chemical examination to find out if the death was due to other reasons. An X-ray taken at the hospital revealed that there was a coin in his stomach. Following which the doctors advised the boy to be taken to the Ernakulam general hospital. According to the relatives, the doctors at the general hospital referred the boy to the state-run Alappuzha Medical College hospital, as there was no paediatric surgeon. The boy was then transported in an ambulance to the Medical College located about 70 km from Kochi. The doctors advised the family to give bananas and milk to the boy and said the coin will come out through the digestive track. He was then sent back home. The boy reached home around Sunday midnight. After some time he developed problems and was rushed to the Aluva government hospital, where he breathed his last. The relatives are up in arms and have accused the hospitals of negligence. Following this State Health Minister K.K. Shailaja has ordered a probe into the matter. The police has now taken up the case and are waiting for the report of the chemical examination for further action. "We want a through probe into what has happened and will not rest until justice is delivered," said a relative. The boy's parents are living separately, with his father working in Karnataka and his mother staying with her relatives here. 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 Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Lidia Kelly (Reuters) Melbourne, Australia Mon, August 3, 2020 08:27 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b15bbc 2 World Australia,coronavirus,coronavirus-effect,coronavirus-restrictions,pandemic,SARS-CoV-2,curfew,virus-corona,novel-coronavirus,COVID-19,COVID-19-infection Free Australia's second-most populous state of Victoria declared a state of disaster on Sunday and imposed a nightly curfew for the capital Melbourne as part of its harshest movement restrictions to date to contain a resurgent COVID-19. Melbourne, Australia's second-largest city already under a reimposed six-week stay-home order, has struggled to rein in the disease, with record numbers of infections of the new coronavirus reported last week. On Sunday, Victoria reported 671 infections, one of its highest, and seven COVID-19 deaths. High numbers of community transmissions and cases of unknown origins have forced the new restrictions, which will be in place for six weeks, officials said. "The current rules have avoided thousands and thousands of cases each day, and then thousands of people in hospital and many more tragedies than we have seen. But it is not working fast enough," Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews told a televised briefing. A curfew from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. every day will be implemented from Sunday evening in Melbourne, barring the nearly five million people in the city from leaving their houses except for work or to receive or give care. The sweeping new restrictions limit the time Melbourne residents may spend on outdoor exercise and essential shopping. All schools will move to remote learning from Wednesday. Supermarkets will remain open, and restaurants, already closed for dining in, will be able to continue with their takeaway and delivery services. Federal backing The federal government backed Victoria's measures, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison saying in a post on his Facebook page that they were "regrettably necessary" to stop the spread of the pandemic. "We are all in this together and we will get through it," Morrison said. Australia's Health Minister Greg Hunt said at a televised briefing the federal government supports the measures with a 'heavy' heart. "We do so because they will help save and protect lives," Hunt said. The backing by the federal government, ruled by a Liberal Party-led coalition, for the measures by Victoria's Labor Party government shows national unity across the political spectrum in a country with a loose federal system. Australia has fared far better than many other countries in keeping the coronavirus from spreading, but at a high economic cost. It has recorded around 18,000 coronavirus cases and just over 200 COVID-19 deaths, but the recent surge in Victoria has proven difficult to contain. The state of disaster gives Victoria police additional powers to ensure people are complying with public-health directions. "We have no choice but to make these decisions and to push on," Andrews said. "This is the only option we have." Restrictions on movement and business operations elsewhere in the state will be less severe than in Melbourne. Andrews said further restrictions for Victoria businesses will be announced on Monday. Neighboring New South Wales, the most populous state, reported 12 infections on Sunday, with the state now "strongly" recommending the use of face masks in public. Deborah Birx, the physician overseeing the White House coronavirus response, warned Sunday that the United States had entered a "new phase" of the pandemic and urged people to take extreme health precautions as infections and deaths rise sharply throughout the county. "I want to be very clear what we're seeing today is different from March and April," Birx told CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday, noting that cases were increasing in rural and urban areas. "It is extraordinarily widespread." Asked about an estimate from former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb that virus deaths could top 300,000 by the end of the year, Birx said "anything is possible." She said such an outcome would be far less likely if people practiced social distancing and avoided large gatherings. The Republican National Committee said no final decision has been made about whether President Donald Trump's renomination will be held in private at the GOP convention, contradicting previous reports that restrictions on crowd size during the coronavirus pandemic would prevent members of the press from attending. Two RNC officials insisted Sunday that they are still working through the logistics and press coverage options, a break with a statement reportedly made by a GOP convention spokesperson the previous day. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin made clear in separate interviews Sunday that they remain far apart on a coronavirus relief deal that would restore expired unemployment benefits for millions of Americans. Pelosi said the administration continued to resist a public health strategy to attack the virus. Mnuchin defended the administration's response and said Democrats' demand for $1 trillion in new state and local aid was a non-starter. Tropical Storm Isaias is closing in on Florida as the state grapples with soaring coronavirus infections, hospitalizations and deaths. The storm will unleash strong wind gusts, heavy rain and possibly storm surge flooding along its eastern shores from south to north through Sunday night. At least four schools - Corinth High School in Mississippi, Greenfield Central Junior High School in Indiana and two schools in Indiana's Greater Clark County Schools district - reported that a student had tested positive for the coronavirus during the first week back in session, forcing people who had been in contact with them to self-quarantine. Birx has faced mounting criticism over her handling of the coronavirus response following a New York Times report last month stating that her optimistic outlook on the pandemic's trajectory helped justify reopening decisions that preceded new outbreaks. In a Sunday morning interview, ABC News's Martha Raddatz asked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., whether she had confidence in Birx. "I think the president is spreading disinformation about the virus, and she is his appointee," Pelosi said. "So I don't have confidence there, no." READ MORE: How Philly-area colleges are planning to test students and staff for coronavirus Birx defended her decisions. "I have tremendous respect for the speaker. I have tremendous respect for her long dedication to the American people," she told CNN. "It was unfortunate the New York Times wrote this article without speaking to me. ... I have never been Pollyannaish or nonscientific or non-data driven." Birx's remarks came after another week of grim signs that the country's pandemic response was failing. The seven-day average for new coronavirus-related deaths rose in nearly half of U.S. states over the past week, pushing the national death toll past 150,000 and prompting health experts to warn that the trend was unlikely to reverse anytime soon. Numerous states have reported record daily fatalities in recent days, including California, which reported 219 on Saturday, according to tracking by The Washington Post. Florida reported a record 257 deaths on Friday, and seven-day averages for new deaths reached new highs in states across the South, West and Midwest. Nationwide, the daily coronavirus death toll exceeded 1,000 for the sixth day in a row on Saturday, according to The Post's data. The 1,198 new fatalities marked the most that officials have counted on a Saturday, when death reports tend to be lower than those tallied midweek, since May 9. Birx and Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious-disease expert, have warned 20 states in the Sun Belt, the Midwest and the Pacific Northwest that the virus spread is accelerating within their borders. Mitigation efforts have helped in some places, Birx said, but people need to practice strict social distancing and wear masks. She also raised concerns about the virus spreading within multigenerational households, urging people in those settings to "really consider" wearing masks inside their homes. With the new academic year starting soon in many communities, Birx also suggested that schools avoid in-person instruction in places where infections are rising - a departure from recent demands by Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos that schools fully reopen in the fall. "We need to stop the cases," Birx said. "If you have high caseload and active community spread - just like we're asking people not to go to bars, not to have household parties, not to create large spreading events, we're asking people to distance-learn at this moment so we can get this epidemic under control." READ MORE: Coronavirus test pooling could help, but not solve, the U.S. testing morass The increase in deaths has trailed a massive surge in coronavirus cases by several weeks, as health experts predicted when infections started trending upward in June. The time lag was greater than in the pandemic's early months, when deaths followed infections more closely. Experts say the change may be because many of the new outbreaks have started among young, healthy adults who passed the virus to older, more vulnerable people and because expanded testing has allowed health workers to identify cases closer to the time of infection. "Overall, what this tells us is that now that deaths have started to increase, we can expect them to increase for several more weeks," Ellie Murray, an epidemiologist at Boston University, told The Post. "We cannot afford to pretend everything is fine and heading back to normal." The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's most recent analysis of pandemic fatalities shows weekly reports of new deaths increasing over the next month, with 5,000 to 11,000 new deaths projected in the third week of August. The national death toll could climb to more than 168,000 by that time, with a high estimate of 182,000, according to the CDC's review. Amid the rising deaths, Trump on Sunday struck an optimistic note, tweeting, "USA will be stronger than ever before, and soon!" Trump and other prominent Republicans have continued to promote the drug hydroxychloroquine as a silver-bullet solution to covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, despite evidence that it does not help patients recover. Last week, he tweeted then deleted a viral video of a doctor falsely claiming that the drug was a "cure for covid." Twitter removed various versions of the video, saying they violated its covid-19 misinformation policy. Asked about hydroxychloroquine on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday, Adm. Brett Giroir, the official in charge of the administration's testing efforts, stressed that the drug was not an effective treatment. "At this point in time, there has been five randomized controlled, placebo controlled trials that do not show any benefit to hydroxychloroquine," Giroir said. "So, at this point in time, we don't recommend that as a treatment. There's no evidence to show that it is." The Washington Posts Eli Rosenberg, Felicia Sonmez, Joseph Marks and Jacqueline Dupree contributed to this report. Portland, Oregon recorded 15 homicides in July. Thats the most in one month in more than three decades, according to the police. As for shootings, there were 63 in July. In July 2019, there were 28, again according to the police. Police Chief Chuck Lovell noted that the department was forced to disband its 34-member Gun Violence Reduction Team at the direction of the City Council. According to this report, the unit was eliminated on July 1, apparently in response to a disproportionate number of Blacks being pulled over in traffic stops or something. Not surprisingly, gun violence in Portland skyrocketed. It would be interesting to know whether Blacks made up a disproportionate number of people shot and murdered in Portland during July. If Portland is like most American cities, Blacks did. Black traffic stops clearly matter to Portlands city council. The lives of Portlands residents, including those of Blacks, dont seem to. Representative image Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey, on August 2, charged that Vinay Tiwari, the IPS officer from Patna who is in Mumbai to probe a case related to Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death, has been "forcibly quarantined" by civic authorities in the metropolis. Tiwari is heading a Bihar Police team which is in Mumbai to investigate an "abetment to suicide" case on the basis of a complaint filed by the late actor's father in Patna. "IPS officer Vinay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from Patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11 PM today," Bihar Director General of Police (DGP) Pandey tweeted. "He was not provided accommodation in the IPS mess, despite request, and was staying in a Guest House in Goregaon," he said. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has reportedly guided Tiwari to apply for exemption in home quarantine. 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 Rajput, 34, was found hanging from the ceiling of his Bandra residence on June 24 last. Last month, Rajput's father lodged an FIR here of abetment to suicide naming actress Rhea Chakraborty, said to be close to the deceased Patna-born actor, and her family members as accused. Tiwari was posted as the City SP (East) in Patna. The Mumbai Police, which is also probing the death case, have so far recorded statements of nearly 40 people, including those from Rajput's family, his cook and people from the film industry that include filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, film critic Rajeev Masand, director-producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali and filmmaker Aditya Chopra. Wellington: The community outbreak of COVID-19 in Melbourne has driven the possibility of a trans-Tasman travel bubble between New Zealand and Australia well into the distance, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says. Before such travel was possible, Australia would need to have 28 continual days with no community transmission, Ardern said, suggesting that could be at least several months away. NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern with Prime Minister Scott Morrison in Sydney in February. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer Ardern was asked on her Monday morning media rounds about the developing situation in Melbourne where on Sunday there were 760 active cases of COVID-19 with no known source, meaning they were acquired in the community. It has been 93 days since New Zealand last saw a case of COVID-19 with no known source. The virus causing the COVID-19 pandemic, SARS-CoV-2, presents at least six strains. Despite its mutations, the virus shows little variability, and this is good news for the researchers working on a viable vaccine. These are the results of the most extensive study ever carried out on SARS-CoV-2 sequencing. Researchers at the University of Bologna drew from the analysis of 48,635 coronavirus genomes, which were isolated by researchers in labs all over the world. This study was published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology. It was then possible for researchers to map the spread and the mutations of the virus during its journey to all continents. The first results are encouraging. The coronavirus presents little variability, approximately seven mutations per sample. Common influenza has a variability rate that is more than double. "The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is presumably already optimized to affect human beings, and this explains its low evolutionary change", explains Federico Giorgi, a researcher at Unibo and coordinator of the study. "This means that the treatments we are developing, including a vaccine, might be effective against all the virus strains". Currently, there are six strains of coronavirus. The original one is the L strain, that appeared in Wuhan in December 2019. Its first mutation - the S strain - appeared at the beginning of 2020, while, since mid-January 2020, we have had strains V and G. To date strain G is the most widespread: it mutated into strains GR and GH at the end of February 2020. "Strain G and its related strains GR and GH are by far the most widespread, representing 74% of all gene sequences we analysed", says Giorgi. "They present four mutations, two of which are able to change the sequence of the RNA polymerase and Spike proteins of the virus. This characteristic probably facilitates the spread of the virus". If we look at the coronavirus map, we can see that strains G and GR are the most frequent across Europe and Italy. According to the available data, GH strain seems close to non-existence in Italy, while it occurs more frequently in France and Germany. This seems to confirm the effectiveness of last months' containment methods. In North America, the most widespread strain is GH, while in South America we find the GR strain more frequently. In Asia, where the Wuhan L strain initially appeared, the spread of strains G, GH and GR is increasing. These strains landed in Asia only at the beginning of March, more than a month after their spread in Europe. Globally, strains G, GH and GR are constantly increasing. Strain S can be found in some restricted areas in the US and Spain. The L and V strains are gradually disappearing. Besides these six main coronavirus strains, researchers identified some infrequent mutations, that, at the moment, are not worrying but should nevertheless be monitored. "Rare genomic mutations are less than 1% of all sequenced genomes", confirms Giorgi. "However, it is fundamental that we study and analyse them so that we can identify their function and monitor their spread. All countries should contribute to the cause by giving access to data about the virus genome sequences". ### This study was published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology with the title "Geographic and Genomic Distribution of SARS-CoV-2 Mutations". The authors are Daniele Mercatelli and Federico M. Giorgi, both from the Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology of the University of Bologna. Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best addresses the press as city crews dismantle the Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP) area after multiple shootings, in Seattle on July 1, 2020. (David Ryder/Getty Images) Seattle Police Chief Says Protesters Targeted Her Home Seattle Police Department Chief Carmen Best, in a letter to the Seattle City Council, wrote that protesters and agitators targeted one of her homes on Saturday night in nearby Snohomish County. Best wrote that her neighbors were successful in ensuring the crowd was not able to trespass or engage in other illegal behavior in the area, despite repeated attempts to do so. The police chief, who led efforts to dismantle far-left activists weekslong autonomous zone in late June, urged the City Council to take steps to ensure public safety. I urge both of you, and the entire council, to stand up for what is right, Best wrote. These direct actions against elected officials, and especially civil servants like myself, are out of line with and go against every democratic principle that guides our nation. Before this devolves into the new way of doing business by mob rule here in Seattle, and across the nation, elected officials like you must forcefully call for the end of these tactics. Best noted that while its appropriate for demonstrators to exercise their rights to peacefully protest in the wake of George Floyds death in May, all of us must ensure that this righteous cause is not lost in the confusion of so many protesters now engaging in violence and intimidation, which many are not speaking against. Photos posted by the Lynnwood Times showed dozens of vehicles lining the streets of a small residential community. It reported that a crowd of about 200 mostly white men and women in their twenties, who were dressed in black with masks and black hoods were seen carrying Black Lives Matter signs. They were also seen carrying bags with unknown contents. According to the report, agitators shouted insults and residents, wrote down license plate information of vehicles, took photos of homes, and asked children what schools they attended. Snohomish County Sheriff Adam Fortney said in a statement that I assured her [Best] that the Snohomish County Sheriffs Office would deploy whatever resources were necessary to protect her, her family, and her property. Neighbors told the Lynnwood Times that their information was disclosed on social media, apparently by the agitators. I feel incredibly unsafe, said a neighbor, who was not identified. We think it will happen again Their objective was not completed; they never made it to her house, we stopped them so we think they will be back. Last month, demonstrators gathered in Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkans neighborhood in an attempt to send her a message. According to reports at the time, they wanted to see the Seattle Police Departments budget cut by 50 percent. Protesters and agitators also appeared at the homes of some City Council members, according to KOMO News. Scott Capper is currently serving three and a half years in Mountjoy for two assaults A Dublin crime gang "enforcer" jailed for two vicious assaults has been charged with having a mobile phone in prison. Scott Capper (26), who is serving a three-and-a-half-year sentence for injuring two men in separate pub attacks, appeared in court accused of unlawfully having a phone in Mountjoy. Judge Marie Quirke adjourned the case against him at Dublin District Court. Capper, of Cappagh Green, Finglas, is considered to be a right-hand man of the local drugs gang boss nicknamed Mr Flashy. He is alleged to have had the phone last February 20. Bail The prosecuting garda told Judge Quirke he arrested the accused before the court and he made no reply to the charge after caution. He was handed a copy of the charge sheet. The garda said the DPP directed summary disposal of the case at district court level. Judge Quirke made an order for disclosure of prosecution statements at the request of defence solicitor Michele Finan. Ms Finan said bail had to be fixed because it was a new charge and there was no garda objection. "He's in Mountjoy at the moment," she said. "Is he there for the foresee- able future?" the judge asked. Ms Finan replied: "Yes." Judge Quirke set bail in Capper's own bond of 50, with no cash lodgment or conditions required. She also granted free legal aid. Capper, wearing a face mask and black "Love Moschino" T-shirt, signed his new bail bond before the case was adjourned to a date in November. He will be expected to indicate how he intends to plead to the charge on that date. Capper was jailed for three-and-a-half years at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court in July last year. He pleaded guilty to assault causing harm to Jaroslaw Gaska at The Morgan Hotel, Fleet Street, Dublin 2, on Aug-ust 8, 2016 and assault causing harm to Nevil Picton at Sin nightclub, Temple Bar, on Oct-ober 2, 2016. The court heard at the time that he punched Mr Gaska in the face, breaking his jaw, when the man touched Capp-er's girlfriend's hair after admiring it and telling her "it was lovely". Two months later, Capper punched Mr Picton "in an uppercut fashion" in an unprovoked assault. Before that, Capper's most serious criminal conviction was for his role in a violent disorder incident at the Cardiffsbridge Road, Finglas, in 2017. Journalists in Namibia have hit out at employers and politicians for muzzling the media and in defence of the right to ask difficult questions. The IFJ backed the calls by journalists in an open letter to media and the authorities to be able to work in the public interest, free from pressure or restraint. Journalists from across Namibian media wrote to the authorities highlighting recent attacks on the right to report. The letter states: This stems from, among other things, the recent incident involving one of our colleagues, Edward Mumbuu, who had an encounter with President Hage Geingob a politician during which he freely and with permission asked questions which were in the public interest and needed to be addressed. Ironically, the management of the Namibia Press Agency (Nampa) viewed our colleagues will and zeal to execute his duties as a matter deserving retribution. This resulted in a leaked communique in which the agencys management distanced itself from the journalists conduct. This incident confirms allegations that state-owned media continues to be controlled by politicians (elected officials) to advance their personal interests, thereby suppressing the mandate of these media outlets, which is to advance the voices of the voiceless. It is disappointing to witness the managers of state-owned media dancing to the tune of their masters sad song of betrayal of the Namibian people. As a collective we believe it is the prerogative of newsroom managers to stand up and protect staff members instead of leaving them exposed to intimidation and threats. They should be the challengers and critics of the government of the day in building the nation. Their lethargy is an impediment to democracy. It is our firm belief that Namibia, being a torchbearer of media freedom, should protect the rights of journalists and create an atmosphere in which journalists are able to operate freely, independently and uncensored, while promoting democratic values by encouraging debates on contentious issues. While this was just one of many incidents during which media bosses and the authorities have tried to suppress a journalist, this trend is growing in the industry and needs to be dealt with. As the press corps, it is imperative that we operate in an environment that is supportive, free and conducive to our daily routines, bearing in mind that our trade is one that is highly intensive, driven by nothing but the need to communicate with, inform and educate the Namibian public. We need to ask difficult questions to uphold the victory of our independence. We do this with pride, although in challenging circumstances. When the authorities punish a journalist for asking difficult questions, they are betraying the victory over persecution and they are eroding the progress made towards a free Namibia. We will not stand by and watch this happen. IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger welcomed the collective stand taken by the journalists and said: This powerful statement by a cross section of journalists should serve as a warning that journalists will defend the right to serve the public interest not narrow political interests. The IFJ stands fully behind those who speak out and act in the best traditions of our profession. Instead of appeasing the politicians, media bosses should also stand alongside journalists in demanding the right to ask difficult questions on behalf of citizens. The IFJs Africa office is currently working with journalists in Namibia to develop a new trade union to fight for the labour and professional rights of the countrys media workers. WHO: Pandemic is Once-in-a-Century Health Crisis By Lisa Schlein August 02, 2020 An Emergency Committee on COVID-19 was convened by the World Health Organization to assess the current status of the pandemic. It is calling for global solidarity in supporting efforts to contain it. Not surprisingly, the Emergency Committee for the fourth time has unanimously agreed that COVID-19 constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. When the Committee first made this declaration on January 30, there were fewer than 100 cases and no deaths outside China. Now, six months later, the World Health Organization is reporting more than 17 million cases globally, including more than 750,000 deaths, with more than half the number of cases and deaths occurring in the Americas. WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says this is a sobering reminder of the gargantuan task that lies ahead. "The pandemic is a once-in-a-century health crisis, the effects of which will be felt for decades to come," he said. "Many countries that believed they were past the worst are now grappling with new outbreaks." The nearly three dozen experts and advisers who met virtually have come up with a range of recommendations to guide national and international efforts to combat the pandemic. One is to coordinate regional and global commitments to the development of vaccines and therapeutics. Tedros understands the hopes vested in finding a safe and effective vaccine and medications to treat the disease. However, he cautions people to lower their expectations. "Although vaccine development is happening at record speed, we must learn to live with this virus, and we must fight it with the tools we have," he said. The Emergency Committee says public health and social measures are some of the best tools that communities have for fighting the new coronavirus. These involve testing, tracing, social distancing, wearing masks and handwashing. The Committee advises states to maintain active community-based COVID-19 surveillance systems. It calls upon them to share information on travel measures based on risk assessments so international travel can safely resume. It also urges states to counter misinformation and false information about COVID-19 that undermine efforts to combat the pandemic. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Herschel L. Abbott Jr., a New Orleans lawyer and enthusiastic volunteer who joked that he couldnt say no helping out -- or even leading -- any organization that might strike his fancy, died Sunday at home. He was 78. During his decades in New Orleans, Abbott, who reigned as Rex in 2011, served on the boards of about 50 organizations, including the St. Thomas Community Health Center, the Lambeth House Foundation, Dillard University, WYES-TV, the Bureau of Governmental Research, the Louisiana Board of Regents for Higher Education and the Tulane Shakespeare Festival. He was so generous, not just with money, but in his thoughts about people, said Christian Christy Brown, a former Rex and longtime friend. Hes always had a burning desire to serve, said Denis McDonald, a former Rex and a friend since he and Abbott were in high school in Monroe. Its not a personal ambition, McDonald said. Hes had an ambition to serve and has had great ideas and devotion to so many causes. When you look at all the things hed done in the community, its overwhelming. In recognition of Abbotts service, he was awarded The Times-Picayune Loving Cup for 1999. In presenting the cup, Ashton Phelps Jr., the newspapers publisher, said that simply recounting Abbotts contributions to the community would be enough to make one want to lie down for a while. Because Abbott worked with so many different kinds of organizations and causes, Phelps praised his ability to lead diverse groups of people in all sorts of projects that build our community. These groups included the Metropolitan Crime Commission, the Louisiana Museum Foundation, the Public Affairs Research Council, the Council for a Better Louisiana and the Southeast Louisiana Council of the Boy Scouts of America. When Abbott was asked in an interview how he juggled those commitments with his career at the law firm of Jones Walker and, later, BellSouth, Abbott didnt rattle off a time-management strategy or roll out an elaborate schedule showing what to do and when to do it. Instead, he said: "I just do what needs to be done at the time it needs to be done. I find when an emergency comes, something can be shoved aside a little bit." His tendency to over-commit to activities he cared about was part of Herschels inner being, said William H. Hines, a longtime friend and law-firm colleague who was Rex in 2013. He really, really liked people, Hines said. If you like people, that probably leads to you to want to help people. He wanted his legal career not to confine him but to use as a platform to help other people. To help other people helped him to enjoy life. He took great joy out of accomplishing things that helped other people. And sometimes Abbott simply worked on activities that appealed to him. An Anglophile who was profoundly interested in history, Abbott was a member of the Churchill Society he was known for his spot-on Winston Churchill impersonation and chairman of the board of the National World War II Museum. Gordon Nick Mueller, the museums president and CEO emeritus, lauded Abbotts amazing, facile mind and praised his talent at raising money and thinking strategically. That latter asset, Mueller said, led Abbott to determine that the museum had to move beyond its physical boundaries in the Warehouse District to embrace distance learning and to digitize the museums holdings to make them available online to a global audience. We needed leadership on the board to move us to that next level, Mueller said. Hes been the Rock of Gibraltar. 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 Abbott was born on Sept. 4, 1941, in Little Rock, Arkansas, and grew up in Monroe. He graduated from Neville High School, where he was student body president. He earned undergraduate and law degrees at Tulane University, where he was an editor of the Tulane Law Review. He then served four years in the Air Forces Judge Advocate Generals Corps three years in Altus, Oklahoma, and a year in Vietnam. When Abbott returned to New Orleans, he joined the law firm of Jones, Walker, Waechter, Poitevent, Carrere and Denegre in 1970. He became a partner in 1973 . . In 1991, Abbott joined BellSouth as general counsel for Louisiana. Four years later, he moved to Atlanta to be associate general counsel of BellSouth Communications, and in 1996, he was named president of the companys Louisiana operations. Five years later, he was transferred to Washington to be BellSouths vice president of governmental affairs. He held that post until Jan. 31, 2007, when he retired from AT&T, which had acquired BellSouth, and returned to New Orleans and Jones Walker, where he held the title of special counsel. And he resumed his civic activity, which included serving for 18 months as chairman of the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority. All these leadership positions bolstered his case to be named Rex, an accolade for which civic involvement is an implicit requirement. Even though his reign was only 24 hours long, Abbott was excited about the prospect of donning a wig and costume and riding through the city on Fat Tuesday. Its the neatest thing in the world, he said a few days before he climbed onto the kings float. Five years after that triumph, Abbott suffered a stroke that confined him to a wheelchair. But it didnt confine him to his home; he was seen regularly at meetings and social gatherings, McDonald said. He persevered, said Anne Milling, a civic activist. Most of us would have thrown in the towel a long time ago, but he never gave up. Its what enabled him to live for so long that interest in everything. Survivors include his wife, Anne Abbott; a son, Lee Abbott of Newnan, Georgia; a daughter, Cathryn Jones of New Orleans; and five grandchildren. Funeral arrangements are incomplete. I nvestors have piled into two London-listed groups which are battling the spread of coronavirus. FTSE 250 firm IP Group said one of the companies in its portfolio, Oxford Nanopore Technologies, is working with the Department of Health to roll out its Lampore test. NHS labs will gain access to 450,000 of the Covid-19 tests and potentially use its tech to screen frontline staff who are asymptomatic for the virus under the terms of the deal. Intellectual property commercialisation company IP owns 15.8% of Oxford Nanopore, which is was spun out of the citys university in 2005, and its shares rose 11% to 74p. Alan Aubrey, chief executive of IP Group, said: "The roll-out of LamPORE, the company's first diagnostic assay, is a significant development for Oxford Nanopore and in the battle against COVID-19 in the UK. We are proud that Oxford Nanopore has been supplying countries all over the world with sequencing capability throughout this pandemic to help support the response to the crisis." Separately, AIM-listed engineering group Versarien saw its stock increase 10% to 45p on launching a graphene-enhanced protective facemask. It has received orders for 120,000 of its masks which minimise the spread of the virus. Manufactured in China, the company said the mask orders were for 100,000 units from a "leading unversity" and "20,000 ordered by a UK electrical and mechanical servicing and repairs business". Neill Ricketts, chief executive of Versarien, said: We have taken great encouragement from the initial level of interest and are already in discussions with a number of other potential customers. Importantly, through our partner, we also have the capacity to fulfil much larger numbers of product orders going forward." The virus crisis has seen a clutch of small biotech stocks surge in value as the hunt to stem the virus continues. How Books and Buckets program in Long Beach aims to keep kids away from gang violence An Islamic State attack on a prison in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, turned into a nearly daylong gun battle that saw more than 1,000 Islamic State and Taliban prisoners escape, report the New York Times' Zabihullah Ghazi and Mujib Mashal. Driving the news: The attack, which started with a car bomb before morphing into an ongoing battle with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, left at least 21 people dead and 43 people wounded. It came at the tail end of a three-day ceasefire between the Afghan government and the Taliban, coinciding with the Eid al-Adha holiday. Why it matters: It showcases the Islamic State's potential to act as a spoiler in the ongoing peace process between the Afghan government and the Taliban. She has been tapping into full relaxation mode during a sun-soaked getaway with her beloved spaniel Monty after lockdown travel restrictions were eased. And Georgia Toffolo looked the picture of happiness as she continued her idyllic holiday over the weekend. In images shared to Instagram, the former Made In Chelsea star, 25, flaunted her incredibly toned figure in the vibrant two-pieces while letting her skin breathe by going make-up free. 'Another week of love, affirmations, meditation and healthy nourishing food': Georgia Toffolo looked the picture of happiness during her idyllic holiday over the weekend In her first outfit, the ex Queen of the Jungle stunned in a lilac bralet and matching briefs by Oceanus, decorated with hand embroidered Swarovski crystals throughout. Another image saw the reality star put on a busty display in a plunging white bikini top by Shein while embracing her natural complexion by ditching make-up. The media personality captioned her posts: 'Another week of self love, affirmations, meditation and (mostly [laughing emoji])healthy nourishing food. 'Contentment featuring wet dog bottom in this happy snap! thank you @oceanus_swim for this banging bikini - its so beautiful.' (sic) Wow-factor! In images shared to Instagram, the former Made In Chelsea star, 25, flaunted her incredibly toned figure in the vibrant two-pieces Radiant: The blonde beauty styled her tresses into a low bun for another snap In her element: The former Queen of the Jungle has been tapping into full relaxation mode during a sun-soaked getaway with her beloved spaniel Monty Her trip comes amid claims her ex, Jack Maynard, is dating Pippa Middleton's relative Lily Mackie. The YouTuber, 25, is said to be 'completely smitten' with the millionaire heiress, 21, who is related to socialite Pippa, 36, through her husband James Matthews, 44 - Lily's half brother. The I'm A Celebrity 2017 contestant is believed to have met his new love interest - who is also the niece of former Made In Chelsea star Spencer Matthews, 31 - through current cast member of the E4 series, Miles Nazaire, 24. Found love? Her trip comes amid claims her ex, Jack Maynard (pictured in 2018), is dating Pippa Middleton's relative Lily Mackie A source told The Sun On Sunday: 'Jack's completely smitten, he's never felt like this before. 'Not only does he think Lily is beautiful but he loves that she's intelligent, too. 'He feels ready for a serious relationship and is looking forward to travelling the world with her.' Wealthy: The YouTuber, 25, is said to be 'smitten' with the heiress, (pictured top left with her family) 21, who is related to socialite Pippa, 36, through her husband James Matthews, 44 Lily's mother, Nina, is the half sister of James and Spencer Matthews through their father David's first marriage to racing driver Anita Taylor. Her father is businessman Adam Mackie, worth 440 million, whose electrical wholesale company, City Electrical Factors, was founded by his grandfather. Jack's new girlfriend and her sister Rosa, 18, spent their school holidays jet-setting with their family to destinations including the Maldives, Venice and the 1,400-a-night Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles. Georgia and Jack were first linked after appearing in the I'm A Celebrity jungle together in 2018. A young Lao worker was beaten, shocked and tied up by his employers at a Chinese banana plantation in northwestern Laos in a dispute over working hours, his relatives said. Lou Xiongs relatives say he was beaten and shocked by Lao and Chinese employers at a Chinese banana plantation in Hin Heuap District of Vientiane Province after he told them he was too tired to work. His employers -- the Phaly Company which runs a 500-hectare banana farm with several hundred workers denied they beat Lou Xiong and said he walked off the job during harvest season in violation of his contract. Im human. Im too tired. Its already 7:00 pm. I cant work anymore. Ill come back to work tomorrow, a relative of Lou Xiong, an ethnic minority Hmong in his late teens, quoted him as describing the incident last week. Suddenly, he was beaten up by five Lao and Chinese men, then taken to the office where he was held at knife point and asked by the Chinese boss: Do you want to die? the relative, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told RFAs Lao Service. Lou Xiong and his wife, who also worked at the plantation were told to take their personal belongings, and given 3 million kip ($331), the relative said. RFA was unable to independently verify the family's account of the incident. Writing on social media on July 27, a day after the incident, his father said Lou Xiong was beaten up at Viengkham Banana Plantation and that he had reported the beating to village authorities, who are investigating. He was too tired and asked his boss, a Lao, then the interpreter told the Chinese boss, who brought electric equipment then shocked him and took a rope and tied him up like a pig." Lou Xiongs hands and feet with a rope and he was electrically shocked and beaten on the face, body, back, neck, legs and arms, his father wrote. He was then carried to a pick-up truck and taken to a location where he was forced to sign a document and finger printed, the father added. He (the worker) was not beaten up; he was not beaten up that much, not as much as the father said in the video clip, a representative from Phaly Company, the farm owner, told RFA. The worker breached the contract. This is the time of the year to harvest bananas, everybody should be working hard, he said. The foreman said that he said he had a gun, so the foreman had no choice but to tie him up, added the company representative, who said Lou Xiong became angry and threatened plantation personnel. Lou Xiong shows wounds sustained from a beating at the hands of Lao and Chinese exployers at a banaana plantation in northwestern Laos, July 26, 2020. Credit: Family of Lou Xiong. Lou Xiongs relatives, however, said he does not own a gun and did not have a weapon. I saw the clip and I knew that it happened in Viengkham Village but did not know in what district, said an official of the Agriculture and Forestry Department of the Hin Heuap District. If we had known, we would have gone there and taken a look at the case. If the beating really took place in our district, our authorities will step in, he told RFA. Concerns over chemical run-off from heavily polluting Chinese-owned banana plantations led in January 2017 to government orders forbidding new banana concessions, though many farms remained in operation and the ban was lifted the following year in order to attract investment. Banana farming is a major source of employment in rural Laos, with 100 hectares of planted land employing 100 people in nurseries, planting and harvesting, researchers say. But illnesses and deaths have long been reported among Lao workers exposed to chemicals on foreign-owned banana farms. Chemical run-off from the farms has also polluted many of the countrys waterways, killing fish and fouling drinking water. Some Laos are also concerned about growing Chinese influence as a result of massive investment in hydropower dams and other infrastructure projects under Beijing's $1.3 trillion Belt and Road Initiative. China is Laos largest foreign investor and aid provider, and its second-largest trade partner, after Thailand. Reported by RFA's Lao Service. Translated by Max Avary. Written in English by Paul Eckert. Women from Bairin Left Banner in Chifeng City, North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, make brooms at a local factory on July 27. [CNSPHOTO/Wang Zheng] Bairin Left Banner in Chifeng City, North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, has made efforts in developing its broom-processing industry as a way out of poverty in recent years. As a well-known broom processing base and trading market, it's capable of processing and selling 80 million brooms per year, with its products being exported to many countries and regions, including Japan, Republic of Korea and Australia. The banner, now dubbed "the hometown of kochia scoparia" (a kind of cash crop which can be used to make brooms), maintains a cultivation area of 57,658 acres, and is encouraging surrounding areas of more than 164,736 acres to join the industry. The banner was removed from the country's list of impoverished county-level regions in March, 2020. Female workers make brooms at a local factory in Bairin Left Banner, Chifeng City, North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, on July 27. [CNSPHOTO/Wang Zheng] Workers load the brooms onto a pedicab in preparation for transportation in Bairin Left Banner, Chifeng City, North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, on July 27. [CNSPHOTO/Wang Zheng] Tourists come to appreciate the handmade brooms at a local factory's exhibition room in Bairin Left Banner, Chifeng City, North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, on July 27. [CNSPHOTO/Wang Zheng] Female workers process the brooms with colorful threads at a local factory in Bairin Left Banner, Chifeng City, North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, on July 27. [CNSPHOTO/Wang Zheng] (Source: CNSPHOTO/Translated and edited by Women of China) Violence erupted in southern Chile early Sunday when Mapuche indigenous protesters were removed from occupying local government buildings. The demonstrators clashed with local residents during the action which saw several municipality buildings in the Araucania region damaged. Interior Undersecretary Juan Galli said 48 people were arrested amid the "absolutely condemnable" unrest. Mapuche protesters had occupied local government buildings for several days to show their support for the leader Celestino Cordova, who is on a monthslong hunger strike in prison, and other Mapuche whom they consider political prisoners. According to local news reports, residents tried to force the protesters to leave the municipality buildings, before burning and turning over vehicles belonging to the demonstrating Mapuche. Police had to interfere to force the demonstrators' eviction and prevent further violence. The events marked a revival of the historical conflict between the Chilean state and the native Mapuche people, which was designated this week as a priority issue for the new Interior Minister Victor Perez. The Mapuche resisted the Spanish conquest for 300 years, until military defeats in the late 19th century forced them into Araucania, south of the Bio Bio river, about 340 miles (550 kilometers) south of the capital. Chile's government then encouraged European immigrants to colonize the area. Today, most of the Mapuche live in poverty on the fringes of timber companies or ranches owned by the descendants of Europeans. Speaker Shadrack (r) and a representative of National Youth Council (c) handing certificate to a female Youth MP last week. live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Radhakishan Shivkishan Damani, promoter of Avenue Supermarts (which runs hypermarkets retail chain D-Mart), added 3 stocks to his portfolio, increased stake in one and retained holdings in 6 companies in the June quarter. Apart from Avenue Supermarts, where he and his family members/entities own 74.99 percent stake in total, Damani holds more than 1 percent stake in 10 companies, according to the June quarter shareholding pattern available on exchanges. We have collated data only from companies where Radhakishan Damani has direct holdings. During the quarter ended June 2020, Radhakishan Damani made fresh entry into defense company Astra Microwave Products with 1.03 percent stake, Kalyani Group company BF Utilities with 1.3 percent and Mangalam Organics with 2.17 percent. Astra Microwave manufactures sub-systems for RF and microwave systems used in defense, space, meteorology and telecommunication, while BF Utilities is a infrastructure company and Mangalam Organics (erstwhile Dujodwala Products) has a strong foothold in pine chemicals industry. During the quarter, Damani raised his shareholding only in one company, which is India Cements. In fact, he has steadily been increasing stake in the smallcap cement company and he as a single entity also has a largest shareholding in the company. Radhakishan S Damani raised his stake in the company to 10.8 percent in the June quarter, up by 0.51 percent from 10.29 percent held at the end of March quarter. He along with his brother Gopikishan S Damani also held 1.34 percent shareholding in India Cements and his brother in his own name had 8.26 percent stake in the company. Therefore, their total stake in the company stood at 20.4 percent as of June 2020. Furthermore, Radhakishan Damani's shareholding remained unchanged in six companies in June quarter compared to March quarter 2020, which are Foods & Inns (4.72 percent), Simplex Infrastructures (2.28 percent), Spencers Retail (2.09 percent), VST Industries (4.97 percent), Kaya (1.11 percent) and Prozone Intu Properties (1.26 percent). In the shareholding pattern, companies report to exchanges holdings by public investors only for entities that have one percent stake or more. Meanwhile, Damani pared stake in Delta Corp in the June quarter. Trendlyne data indicated that Damani's shareholding in Delta Corp fell below one percent mark for the first time. His name was first spotted in public shareholding list in September quarter 2019 with 1.53 percent stake, since then he has consistently reduced stake to 1.32 percent in December quarter 2019 and 1.17 percent in March quarter 2020. : Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. A special government panel that examines national security threats, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, has extended its deadline by 45 days to allow Microsoft to explore the purchase, a person familiar with the matter said. The 45-day extension was reported earlier by Reuters. After months of deliberations, that panel had recommended that TikTok sell its assets to an American company to curtail Chinas potential influence in the United States, and Microsoft had stepped forward as a potential buyer. But several China hawks in the Trump administration, including the White House trade adviser Peter Navarro, argued against the sale, seeing the moment as an opportunity to take more sweeping action to ban TikTok and other Chinese-run internet services like Tencents WeChat. On Monday, Mr. Navarro doubled down on that approach, suggesting that Microsoft should be required to divest any business it had in China if it bought TikTok. In an interview with CNN, Mr. Navarro accused Microsoft of enabling Chinese censorship and surveillance through products like Skype and its search engine, Bing. This is not a white-hat company, he said. Mr. Trump appeared to take Mr. Navarros side on Friday, saying that he did not favor a sale of TikTok and that he instead planned to ban the app entirely. But after a series of calls, including from Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, and Satya Nadella, the chief executive of Microsoft, Mr. Trump appeared to change his mind. Several of Mr. Trumps aides had warned that a ban could prompt an intense legal battle, as well as hurt the presidents popularity with younger Americans. TikTok has said 100 million Americans use it. TikTok acquired something of an anti-Trump reputation in June, after some of its users boasted that they had registered for thousands of tickets to Mr. Trumps campaign rally in Tulsa, Okla., to embarrass the campaign, but pro-Trump content on the app is widespread. Some of its most popular users are conservatives, and the hashtag #conservative has 1.9 billion views. ROSEMONT, Ill., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The International Housewares Association announced today that its annual home + housewares gathering, The Inspired Home Show, will be held in-person Aug. 7-10, 2021 at McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago. The event had previously been scheduled for March 13-16, 2021. The Show is ranked 11th in the Top 250 Trade Shows in the U. S. and is the largest annual 1st quarter event in Chicago. "As the pandemic continued into the summer, we had multiple conversations with our Board of Directors, exhibiting members and retail buyers, all of whom were experiencing apprehension about the ability to safely convene the industry as soon as March of 2021," said Derek Miller, IHA president. "While the Show continues to be a critical part of their businesses, the health and safety of our industry is our first priority and moving the event to later in the year allows more time for authorities to successfully manage this crisis." "On behalf of the IHA Board of Directors, all of whom are exhibitors at The Inspired Home Show, I'm extremely pleased that we were able to find alternate dates for The Inspired Home Show 2021," said Howard "Chip" Steidle Jr., CEO of John Ritzenthaler Company and 2020 IHA chair. "Given the current trajectory of the pandemic and the ongoing nature of treatment and vaccine development, I can confidently say that this is the best option for our industry right now." The decision to postpone the Show until August of 2021 has been met with universal support from the home + housewares retailer community. "We spoke to a number of key retailers, both domestic and international," said Miller. "All of them have been very vocal about their desire to have a face-to-face Show in 2021 and are enthusiastic about holding the Show later in the year." Regarding the 2022 Show, Miller said IHA will survey exhibitors and buyers in the coming weeks to collect current and relevant buying pattern data to determine appropriate timing for future Shows. An FAQ with further information for both exhibitors and attendees is available on the Show website, TheInspiredHomeShow.com/DateChange. The International Housewares Association is the 82-year-old voice of the housewares industry, which accounted for (US)$394.3 billion at retail worldwide in 2018. The not-for-profit, full-service association sponsors the world's premier exposition of products for the home, The Inspired Home Show, IHA's Global Home + Housewares Market (TheInspiredHomeShow.com), and offers its 1,400 member companies a wide range of services, including industry and government advocacy, export assistance, industry and consumer trends through the IHA Market Watch, executive management peer groups, a B2B community at www.housewares.org, group buying discounts on business solutions services and direct-to-consumer engagement through TheInspiredHome.com. SOURCE International Housewares Association Related Links http://https://www.housewares.org SARATOGA SPRINGS - When she died last summer, socialite, philanthropist and horse-racing enthusiast Marylou Whitney left $17,200,000 to her children, homes to two employees and the rest of her vast fortune to her husband, John Hendrickson, according to a copy of her will filed last month in surrogates court.11 Related: Marylou Whitney's widower puts staggering price tag on Adirondack estate The will, written two years ago in Lexington, Ky., and filed Dec. 12 in Ballston Spa, comes with an admonishment to her heirs that warns they risk the loss of their inheritances if they contest her will. "I have given a great deal of thought to the division of my property at my death," Whitney wrote in the will. "... I do not want any of those persons or entities named herein to contest the distribution being made to them or others, or in any way challenge my decision." Whitney left $10 million to her youngest daughter, Cornelia Whitney Tobey, the only child she had during her marriage to the late Cornelius "Sonny" Vanderbilt Whitney. She left another $5 million to her daughter, Heather Ann Mabee, her youngest child with her first husband, John Deere heir Frank Hosford. Her other three children with Hosford, Henry Deere Hosford, Frank Hobbs Hosford, and Marion Louise Llewellyn, received $1 million, $1 million and $200,000, respectively. Whitney took care of two long-term employees who lived in homes that adjoin her historic mansion, Cady Hill, on Geyser Road. Karrie Steuer was given 20 Geyser Road and Deana Signor inherited 14 Geyser Road. Like the rest of the Cady Hill compound, the homes are secluded by trees. The remainder of Whitney's money, property and other holdings - including Cady Hill, a home in Kentucky and 36,000 acres in the Adirondacks, were left to Hendrickson, who was also named the executor of the will. I would give everything back for one more quality day with her, said Hendrickson who was married to Whitney for 22 years. I would give my life, freely, willingly for one more great day." He said none of the five children are contesting the will and all, as court papers show, have consented to Hendrickson as the executor. Hendrickson said he believes Whitney tried to divide the money between her children while taking into account money they were given over the years. There is no animosity, Hendrickson said. No one is complaining ... she loved her children. They are her blood. She has always taken care of them. They all miss their mother. We are all grieving." Hendrickson took note that the will bequeathed homes to Steuer and Signor, both longtime staff members at Cady Hill. These are people who worked for her for many years and were devoted to her, Hendrickson said. Earlier: Saratoga socialite, philanthropist MaryLou Whitney dies at 93 Marylou Whitney, a deserving Hall of Famer Whitney was 93 years old when she died on July 19. She died at Cady Hill, the family estate not far from the Route 50 entrance to the Avenue of Pines at the Saratoga Spa State Park, after a brief stay in the Saratoga Hospital. Whitney was a fixture in Saratoga Springs, for years hosting a summer party that was a high point of the racing season. She donated money to institutions around the community and in the 1990s, she sold more than 14,000 acres in the Adirondack Mountains to the state for $17 million. Her imprint in the community extended far beyond the world of racing, which she helped preserve in Saratoga Springs with her second husband Whitney, and included generous support for the Saratoga Hospital, contributions to the founding of the Saratoga Performing Arts Center in 1966 and donating time and money to the track's backstretch workers. Currently, $1.3 million of Whitney's money is going toward renovating the Hall of Fame at the National Museum of Racing. Her first marriage, to Hosford, ended in divorce. Sonny Whitney, whom she wed in 1958, died in 1992 at age 93. When he died, Whitney left her a fortune estimated at $100 million. Hendrickson would not comment on what her estate is worth now. She married Hendrickson, then a top aide to the governor of Alaska, in 1997, and the two became fixtures in Saratoga. Whitney came from humble beginnings in Kansas City, where she was born Marie Louise Schroeder on Christmas Eve 1925. She attended the University of Iowa and began working as an actress, with appearances on radio, movies and television. It was at her insistence that Saratoga Springs become her home following her wedding to Whitney. He had been planning to sell Cady Hill, one of his nine residences, but she fell in love with the property on first sight. And while she described the city as a "ghost town" in 1958, she was widely recognized for her role in city's revival. Hendrickson said Whitney never discussed her will or her final wishes with him. However, he said he knew what she was passionate about especially the backstretch workers at the Saratoga Race Course. With that in mind, Hendrickson, in coordination with Saratoga Hospital, will auction off some of her belongings to build a health clinic on the backstretch. Right now, the clinic is housed in a trailer. The online auction, set to happen in the runup to the Whitney Stakes in August, will include one of Whitneys cars as well as her jewelry, hats, gowns and other items. She would want this to benefit something greater than herself, Hendrickson said. Im trying to do my best to honor what she would want me to do. There is an old Spanish saying, If you go to bed with someone you wake up with the same dreams,' Hendrickson said. I think whatever she wanted to do, I was fine with that. My job was only to honor what she wanted to do. Pete Rush, an Australian Sculptor, creates a sculpture of a horse using driftwood, which he collected on the beach, some palm tree seed pods, and flax that took him almost two hours to construct. The day before he scoured the beach for driftwood and when he found two pieces that resembled a horse's head, it inspired him. Once the wood was collected he laid it out on the ground in the shape of the horse. He collected the palm seed pods to use as the tail and mane of the horse. He used flax to hold the pieces together. When asked how he does it without referring to drawings, he says he has the drawing in his head which he can rotate in his mind and that the sticks are like bits of the drawing which he puts into place. He doesn't use any screws, glue, or cable ties. He uses gravity, natural joins in the wood, and flax to hold the sculpture together. Pete first started making his driftwood creations at the start of the year when COVID hit. His first creation was also a horse and it was inspired by a palm seed pod that reminded him of a horse's tail. As he completed making the first sculpture, many people came up to him and told him how good it made them feel, and how much joy it brought to their day, then he started building them regularly. He has made several amazing sculptures on the Central Coast of NSW including a giant whale with legs, kangaroo, emu, mythical creatures battling, penguin, a huge Dromornis, giraffe, black swan and many more. They are hugely popular with the locals and tourists alike and is extremely photogenic. Some of his creations take three days and nights to build. Others he completes over a single night, and they are revealed in the daylight at the delight of the beach walkers. Unfortunately, at times, drunken youths smash the sculptures using big sticks. When asked how he felt about that, Pete said, "it didn't hurt too much if he'd only spent a few hours on them, but the ones which he spent a few days on, it hurt!" He recalls seeing a youth hitting his giant Dromornis (ancient bird) and chuckled when he saw how the bird was so resilient the stick bounced back and almost hit the youth. Pete has many interviews with the media as his sculptures are true art and inspired by world events. He recently made a giant elephant in the baked mud in memory of the elephants dying in Botswana, and also a kangaroo to remind us to bounce back from COVID. Pete is an inspiration to many and is bringing real joy in a time of despair. The Sushant Singh Rajput case turned into a full-fledged inter-state fight on Monday with civic authorities in Mumbai quarantining a senior Bihar Police officer at the helm of an investigation into the actors suspected suicide, which has sparked a debate on mental health issues, how the film industry treats outsiders, and also the circumstances that led to his death on June 14. Bihar Police alleged that Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Vinay Tiwari was forcibly quarantined even as chief minister Nitish Kumar termed the move inappropriate. In its defence, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said the step was taken in accordance with the Maharashtra governments guidelines to stop the spread of Covid-19. Later in the day, the Mumbai Police, who too are probing the death of the 34-year-old actor separately, said Bihar Police did not have any jurisdiction to investigate the case, bringing to the fore the differences between the police forces in the two states over the high-profile case that has come under media spotlight. The law is clear. If the incident has not happened in our jurisdiction, we register a zero first information report [FIR], and transfer it to the concerned state police. We do not know how Bihar Police are investigating the case, Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh said, speaking to the media for the first time on the actors death. They [Bihar Police] approached us and asked for some documents; we asked them under what section they were asking for the documents, he said. Rajput, who had a short but promising career, was found hanging at his Bandra residence in Mumbai. The mystery surrounding his death has moved on from theories on and investigations into how nepotism in Bollywood may have claimed his life to allegations of a criminal conspiracy involving his girlfriend. Earlier in the day, a row erupted over BMCs decision to quarantine IPS officer Tiwari, the Patna City superintendent of police, at the State Reserve Police Force facility in suburban Goregaon on Sunday. His hand stamp indicated that he will be in isolation till August 15. Tiwari arrived at the Mumbai airport on Sunday and told reporters there that he was there to supervise a Bihar Police team, which is already in city, and probe all angles in the death of Rajput. On Monday, Bihar CM Kumar voiced strong disapproval of Tiwari being put in quarantine. Whatever has been done to him is inappropriate, Kumar told reporters when asked about the police officer. Kumar said the matter was taken up with authorities in Maharashtra by Bihar director general of police (DGP) Gupteshwar Pandey. He [Pandey] will himself speak to the authorities concerned, Kumar said. When asked about whether he would have a word with Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray, Kumar said: It is not a political matter. The issue at hand is a legal obligation of the Bihar Police. We will make all possible efforts to fulfil the same. Bihar DGP Pandey broke the news on Twitter and also shared footage of Tiwari with a quarantine stamp on his hand. He alleged that Tiwari was forcibly quarantined by BMC authorities. Pandey also said the officer was denied accommodation in the IPS officers mess and was made to stay at a guest house in Goregaon. BMC said the decision to quarantine Tiwari was taken in line with the Maharashtra governments directives dated May 25 that mention home quarantine for domestic travellers on arrival, among others. Tiwari will have to make a formal request to BMC for relaxing the necessary quarantine period, it said in a statement. Separately, the Enforcement Directorate questioned Rajputs chartered accountant (CA) in connection with a money laundering probe that stemmed from the complaint lodged by the actors father with the Bihar Police, officials said. Mumbai Police have so far recorded statements of over 50 people, including those from the actors family, his cook and people from the film industry. At his press briefing, Mumbai Police commissioner Singh said an investigation was on and various angles such as personal rivalry, financial distress and health-related issues were being looked into. We have consulted experts, examined phones, gadgets and other evidence, he said. Singh said there is no evidence of any party at Rajputs residence on June 13 or June 14. We have examined CCTV footage of the building and recorded statements of every member in the house..., he said. Singh said Rajput used to search his name on Google. We are in touch with the five doctors whom he consulted...We are also in touch with a chartered accountant, Singh said. He added that the Mumbai Police did not find any misappropriation of Rajputs money. The Bihar Police are probing a separate abetment to suicide case on the basis of a complaint filed by the actors father in Patna on July 28. In the complaint, he accused Rhea Chakraborty, Rajputs girlfriend and an actress herself, of having befriended his son in May 2019 with the intention of furthering her own career. Meanwhile, Chakrabortys lawyer refuted the Bihar Polices claim that she was missing, and said till date she was yet to receive any summons from them in connection with the case of Rajputs death. (With agency inputs) Speculation surrounding the whereabouts of Juan Carlos continued to grow on Tuesday, with media reports suggesting Spains former king fled to the Dominican Republic following allegations of corruption. In a letter to his son King Felipe VI, the former monarch wrote of his considered decision to move due to the public repercussions of certain episodes of my past private life. Guided by my desire to do what is best to serve the Spanish people, its institutions and you as king, I am informing you of my ... decision to leave Spain at this time, Juan Carlos said. He wrote that his legacy and my own dignity demand that it should be so and said he did not want to make his sons role difficult. The royal family published the letter online on Monday. King Felipe thanked his father for his decision and referenced the historic importance of his reign for democracy in Spain. However, the palace did not disclose the former king's destination, and his whereabouts remained a source of speculation and conflicting reports on Tuesday. According to Spains La Vanguardia and ABC newspapers, Juan Carlos headed for the Dominican Republic via Portgual after leaving the palace on Sunday. Portuguese TV channel TVI24 and tabloid Correio da Manha had said on Monday Juan Carlos was in Cascais, a resort area near Lisbon where he spent part of his childhood. Spanish news website El Confidencial, which also reported the royal was in Portugal, said the palace might confirm his location later on Tuesday. Authorities in the Dominican Republic and in Portugal's Cascais municipality said they had no news of his whereabouts. Juan Carloss is being investigated by authorities in Spain and Switzerland over claims he was given millions of euros by Saudi Arabias late King Abdullah in alleged bribes for a high-speed rail contract. He is alleged to have transferred a large amount of the money to a former mistress in what investigators are considering as a possible attempt to hide the payments from authorities. The exile of the once-popular but now scandal-tarnished King Emeritus, as he is known following his abdication, stunned Spaniards and left them divided over whether the 82-year-old should have stayed to face justice. Juan Carlos came to the throne in 1975 after the death of General Franco and was widely respected for helping to guide Spain from dictatorship to democracy. But his popularity sank in later years due to a series of scandals, including an elephant-hunting trip in Botswana, prompting him to step down in 2014. Spain's King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia (Jonathan Bachman/Reuters) Switzerlands La Tribune de Geneve newspaper reported in March that Juan Carlos had received $100m (90m) from the late Saudi King. That was followed by a drip-feed of allegations in the Spanish media, including that he gave much of the money to a former mistress. Juan Carlos has repeatedly declined to comment on the corruption allegations. Spanish monarchs have immunity during their reign but his abdication leaves him potentially open to prosecution. While prosecutors in Geneva and Madrid are looking into offshore accounts and possible bribes, Juan Carlos is not formally under investigation in either country and so is not technically a fugitive. His lawyer, Javier Sanchez-Junco, said in a brief statement that despite his decision to leave the former king would remain at the disposal of the prosecutors office. Deputy prime minister Pablo Iglesias, of the left-wing Podemos party, said Juan Carlos should have stayed in Spain. Juan Carlos de Borbons flight abroad is an act unworthy of a former head of state and it leaves the monarchy in a very compromised position, he wrote on his Facebook page. His partys parliamentary group went further, saying there was no reason to continue with a monarchy lacking the minimum ethical values in a statement which risked opening a rift with its government partner, the royalist Socialist Party. The government had repeatedly asked King Felipe to take steps to distance himself further from his father. He put an end to his fathers palace allowance and renounced his own inheritance in March, following allegations of secret offshore accounts reported to be linked to the Saudi rail contract. Opinion polls have shown Spaniards to be roughly equally split over whether their country should remain a monarchy or become a republic a move that is impossible under the current constitution, itself very hard to change amid a highly fragmented parliament. Additional reporting by agencies Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Riska Rahman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 13:45 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b2af70 1 Business Bank-Central-Asia,BCA,Rabobank,acquisition,stock-market,jakarta-composite-index,Indonesia-Stock-Exchange Free Publicly listed Bank Central Asia (BCA) expects to complete its acquisition of agriculture-focused Rabobank Indonesia by the end of the third quarter of this year, having received approval from shareholders. BCA shareholders gave their consent to the banks plan to acquire Rabobanks 3.72 million shares during an extraordinary general meeting on July 30. The shares represent full ownership of the company, which is currently owned by Dutch bank Cooperative Rabobank UA, PT Aditirta Suryasentosa, PT Antarindo Optima, PT Antariksabuana Citranagara and PT Mitra Usaha Kencana Sejati. The total value of this acquisition will refer to a fixed premium of US$20.5 million plus a one-time adjusted book value on closing in September 2020, BCA said in a statement. After getting the approval of its shareholders, BCA said it would submit applications to the Financial Services Authority (OJK) to get the bodys approval for the acquisition. The process is expected to be complete by the end of the third quarter of this year. BCA stocks, traded on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) under the symbol BBCA, had dropped 1.52 percent as of 11:04 Jakarta time on Monday as the exchanges main gauge, the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI), plunged 2.75 percent. Foreign investors dumped, on net, Rp 135.8 billion worth of BCA stocks during Monday morning trading as the local stock market was hit by negative sentiments because of contractions announced by big economies such as the United States, France and Germany, last week. The bourse as a whole recorded a foreign net sell of over Rp 878 billion. Previously BCA corporate secretary Raymon Yonarto said the acquisition of Rabobank Indonesia aimed to support Indonesias banking architecture. It is also meant to support our subsidiaries existing businesses, he said in a statement to the IDX last year. The bank would also study the possibility of merging Rabobank with a BCA subsidiary in the future, according to the statement. Rabobanks acquisition will be the second recent acquisition by BCA. In November 2019, BCA took complete ownership of Bank Royal for Rp 988.05 billion (US$67.24 million). Rabobank Indonesia announced earlier last year that it would stop operations in June 2020. President director Jos Luhukay said the decision was made to align with the global business strategy of the Rabobank Group, which would focus on the supply chain of food and agricultural products. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 10:39:19|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Staff members of an employment service agency impart policies on employment assistance to a relocated resident (L) in Xingye County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, May 2, 2020. Guangxi, a key region in China's poverty-relief mission, has been making unremitting efforts to win the tough battle against poverty by securing employment of the poor population. Trying to get people employed has played a vital role in Guangxi's large-scale campaign to fight poverty, as it can lift the whole family out of poverty. It has proven the most effective and direct way to help shake off poverty. Additionally, it has shown that if people could work in a long term, intergenerational transmission of poverty can be effectively mitigated. In recent years, the regional government has given top priority to employment work by enacting more active employment policies, organizing vocational trainings, and improving services to support employment and entrepreneurs. These measures have ensured impoverished people's access to job opportunities and public services. Those poor people who have been relocated to more inhabitable areas are mostly living a stable life due to working. They are able to access to jobs thanks to vocational training services and job opportunities offered by poverty-relief workshops near resettlement sites. (Xinhua/Cao Yiming) Belgium is to tighten measures to contain the spread of Covid-19 after a spike in infections, introducing compulsory face masks in crowded outdoor public spaces. Brussels imposed a lockdown on 18 March in an attempt to contain the coronavirus epidemic, which has claimed 9,808 lives to date. With a population of just 11.5 million, Belgium is one of the nations per capita that has been hardest hit by the virus, although it has said that was partly due to its transparency . The government eased the lockdown in early May, and it had planned to loosen restrictions further on Thursday. But a series of localised outbreaks and a 91 percent spike in nationwide infections last week forced the government to think again. The latest figures should not throw us into panic but have to be taken seriously, Prime Minister Sophie Wilmes told a news conference on Thursday. Masks outdoors, tracing Under the new measures, which come into effect on 25 July, Belgians will have to wear a mask in public, including at outdoor markets, shopping streets and other crowded sites. Tighter measures will also be imposed on bars and restaurants: people who are not seated will have to wear masks. Customers will also have to leave their contact details to make them easier to trace in case of localised outbreaks. Night shops will have to close by 10:00 pm. Local authorities could also put communities into full lockdown if it was justified by epidemiological data. The government stopped short, however, of imposing stricter restrictions, such as checks on all travellers returning from abroad or shortening opening hours for bars and restaurants. Belgians will continue to be allowed to meet as many as 15 friends a week after the government decided against cutting the number to 10, Wilmes said. An easing of restrictions could be announced on 1 September, potentially allowing trade fairs to resume. Story continues France concerned France has also seen a recent spike in infections in areas which had been relatively unaffected until now, such as Mayenne, La Rochelle and Brittany. The government is to announce a series of measures on Friday following a council of defence meeting at the Elysee palace, as fears grow over a possible second wave. The issue of closing borders with neighbouring countries such as Belgium and Spain will be one of the thorny questions under discussion at Fridays meeting. Absolutely nothing is ruled out, government spokesperson Gabriel Attal said on Wednesday. There are no taboos on that question. The only objective is to protect French people. (with Reuters) Despite Hurricane Isaias targeting the east coast of Florida this weekend, NASA and SpaceX are continuing with plans to return a pair of American astronauts from the International Space Station, hoping Isaias will miss at least some of the seven designated landing sites arrayed on either side of the Florida peninsula. If all goes according to plan, NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley will climb aboard their SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, and undock from the station at about 7:34 p.m. Saturday and splashdown at about 2:42 p.m. Sunday, either in the Atlantic Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico. With the storm predicted to churn up Florida's Atlantic coast Sunday, just as the astronauts would be headed home, officials said that it a Gulf landing would be more likely if they do proceed with a landing attempt. The teams will continue to closely monitor the storm and "evaluate impacts to weather around the Florida peninsula," NASA said in a statement late Thursday. It said NASA and SpaceX would make a decision on a primary landing site about six hour before the undocking. There's no rush to bring the crew home, however, especially since it would be the first time NASA astronauts splashed down at sea since Apollo-Soyuz, the joint U.S.-Soviet mission, in 1975. The spacecraft can stay on the space station for up to about 120 days, and is only about halfway through that timeframe. "The systems on Dragon are doing very well," Steve Stich, NASA's commercial crew program manager, said earlier this week. "The spacecraft is very healthy." He said the spacecraft was inspected using a robotic arm, and a team of engineers from NASA and SpaceX looked at the data. The "results were very favorable," Stich said. "There were no areas on the vehicle that were of any concern for re-entry." He said flight controllers would be patient for the most opportune moment, calm seas and gentle winds, ideally under 10 m.p.h., before committing to a return. "We have plenty of opportunities here in August, and we're in no hurry to come home," he said. Speaking to reporters from the station Friday, Behnken and Hurley, both veteran astronauts, said they were looking forward to getting home, but would be patient. "We won't leave the space station without some good landing opportunities in front of us, good splashdown weather in front of us," Behnken said. "We don't control the weather and we know we can stay up here longer. There's more chow. And I know the space station program has got more work we can do." The spacecraft has three days worth of "consumables," oxygen, food and water, in case the spacecraft undocks but then needs to stay in orbit before committing to a return, officials said. Behnken and Hurley lifted off on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center on May 30, the first flight of NASA astronauts from United States soil since the Space Shuttle was retired in 2011. It also marked the first time a private company flew astronauts to orbit. Along with Boeing, SpaceX is under contract from NASA to develop spacecraft capable of flying people to the station. And this mission, known as Demo-2, is designed to test the Dragon spacecraft to ensure it operates properly before NASA allows the company to fly operational missions of astronauts to the station. Like the launch, the return journey is a perilous one. The spacecraft will be traveling 17,500 m.p.h. and hit the atmosphere with such force that flames will engulf the capsule, testing the heat shield. As it gets closer to Earth, two drogue parachutes will deploy, and then four main chutes are to guide the spacecraft down to the sea, where rescue crews will be standing by. In the case of an emergency, Air Force search and rescue teams as well as contractors from ManTech, a private security company, will be on standby with C-17 cargo aircraft to deploy to either the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic. Another team is posted in Hawaii to respond if the mission goes way off course and lands in the Pacific. "If the spacecraft comes down where it is supposed to, in the condition expected, then SpaceX is 100 percent responsible for the recovery of the crew and the spacecraft," said Mike McClure, a ManTech program manager who used to command the Air Force's rescue detachment. "If, however, the spacecraft lands someplace else, or the condition of the spacecraft and the crew drives SpaceX or NASA to request [Department of Defense] assistance, then our team will spring into action." Despite the many challenges of a water landing, Hurley and Behnken said they were not concerned. "Splashdown is closer than it was the last time we were asked questions about it," Behnken said. "But I still don't feel nervous about it. Really, we're focused on the things that we'll need to do to be as safe as possible as we come back." It'll be a fairly long flight, some 18 hours between undocking and splashdown. And the astronauts will be busy monitoring the capsule's systems, making sure everything is on track and operating properly. But they'll also have some time to get some rest. "We'll spend a good share of that sleeping," Hurley said. Cecilia Chimbiri, Netsai Marova, and Joana Mamombe, have accused suspected state security services of subjecting them to a harrowing catalogue of torture allegations, which span from being beaten to suffering repeated sexual assaults to being forced to drink each others urine. Ms Chimbiri, who is 32, Ms Marova, 25, and Ms Mamombe, 27, are Zimbabwean human rights activists. The three women allege they suffered torture and unspeakable humiliation after being abducted by suspected state security services in May. Chenayi Mutambasere, who is also a human rights campaigner and a close friend of the three female opposition activists, has now spoken to The Independent about the alleged abuse they endured and their alleged mistreatment since. She said the trio had been arrested again on Friday but have now been released. The rich nations have already signed agreements to purchase over 1.3 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines, Bloomberg reported referring to the data from Airfinity analysts. The list of countries includes the US, the UK, Japan, the EU. According to analysts, they intend to buy another 1.5 billion vaccines thanks to supplies and deals that have not yet been closed. Experts fear that this aggressive buying will endanger other countries that may be the last in line to purchase the vaccine. The US and UK have struck a deal with Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline Plc, and Japan - with Pfizer, the article noted. "The possibility wealthier countries will monopolize supply, a scenario that played out in the 2009 swine flu pandemic, has fueled concerns among poor nations and health advocates," authors said. He said: "I was so captivated by the style of drums playing on all his tracks and the style of how the keyboards were presented. His music touched my life and many here in Papua New Guinea and the Pacific. His live performances around the world were awesome and so captivating and inspirational. Sowetan One thing we could say about the analysts on Orocobre Limited (ASX:ORE) - they aren't optimistic, having just made a major negative revision to their near-term (statutory) forecasts for the organization. There was a fairly draconian cut to their revenue estimates, perhaps an implicit admission that previous forecasts were much too optimistic. After the downgrade, the consensus from Orocobre's eight analysts is for revenues of US$75m in 2020, which would reflect a sizeable 38% decline in sales compared to the last year of performance. Following this this downgrade, earnings are now expected to tip over into loss-making territory, with the analysts forecasting losses of US$0.11 per share in 2020. Yet prior to the latest estimates, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$85m and losses of US$0.11 per share in 2020. Ergo, there's been a clear change in sentiment, with the analysts administering a notable cut to this year's revenue estimates, while at the same time increasing their loss per share forecasts. View our latest analysis for Orocobre The consensus price target was broadly unchanged at AU$2.95, perhaps implicitly signalling that the weaker earnings outlook is not expected to have a long-term impact on the valuation. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. The most optimistic Orocobre analyst has a price target of AU$4.55 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at AU$2.00. Note the wide gap in analyst price targets? This implies to us that there is a fairly broad range of possible scenarios for the underlying business. Another way we can view these estimates is in the context of the bigger picture, such as how the forecasts stack up against past performance, and whether forecasts are more or less bullish relative to other companies in the industry. We would highlight that sales are expected to reverse, with the forecast 38% revenue decline a notable change from historical growth of 41% over the last five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the same industry are forecast to see their revenue grow 0.5% annually for the foreseeable future. It's pretty clear that Orocobre's revenues are expected to perform substantially worse than the wider industry. Story continues The Bottom Line The most important thing to note from this downgrade is that the consensus increased its forecast losses this year, suggesting all may not be well at Orocobre. Regrettably, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and the latest forecasts imply the business will grow sales slower than the wider market. Often, one downgrade can set off a daisy-chain of cuts, especially if an industry is in decline. So we wouldn't be surprised if the market became a lot more cautious on Orocobre after today. After a downgrade like this, it's pretty clear that previous forecasts were too optimistic. What's more, we've spotted several possible issues with Orocobre's business, like dilutive stock issuance over the past year. Learn more, and discover the 3 other warning signs we've identified, for free on our platform here. Another way to search for interesting companies that could be reaching an inflection point is to track whether management are buying or selling, with our free list of growing companies that insiders are buying. 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com. Chinese soldiers practice in Beijing on Sept. 25, 2019, ahead of a military parade on Oct. 1 to mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China (Kyodo) New Zealand Universities, Businesses Providing Cutting-Edge Knowhow to Beijings Military: Expert Warns New Zealand universities and businesses are providing valuable knowledge and technology to Beijings Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) via collaborations with their Chinese counterparts. These collaborations could inadvertently be accelerating the modernisation of the Chinese Communist Partys military arm, according to a new report. China expert Prof. Anne-Marie Brady, who co-authored the July study for the Wilson Center, found researchers at New Zealands universities were partnering with several Chinese institutions with links to the PLA. Although many academic collaborations were benign in nature, the paper warns that the New Zealand government and universities needed to be more proactive in dealing with Beijings willingness to exploit civilian links with Western countries to access cutting-edge scientific expertise with military-end-use. Professor Anne-Marie Brady, acknowledged internationally as an expert on Chinese affairs, recently presented a paper to a conference in the United States titled Magic Weapons. (University of Canterbury) Despite the relative size of the countrys university sector (with eight institutions), the report found that on a per institution basis New Zealand published more joint research with PLA-affiliated universities than the United States over the last 25 years. The findings revealed that New Zealand institutions published 70 joint papers at a ratio of around eight PLA-connected papers per New Zealand university. Meanwhile, the United States, with over 1,200 accredited universities, published 1,779 papers at a ratio of about one paper per U.S. university. Co-opting civilian research for potential military use by Beijing has become a geopolitical flashpoint in recent years. In 2017, the PLA formally codified its Civil Military Fusion doctrine, which mandates that technologies developed by private companies and institutions can be repurposed for military use if needed. Related Coverage Report Finds 250 US Collaborations With Chinese Military-Tied Researchers The goal is part of Chinese leader Xi Jinpings push to fast-track the PLAs modernisation from a land-based army to a multi-faceted military force. In the U.S., the Trump administration has begun pushing back against these efforts by scrutinising companies and academics with links to the PLA. Most recently, a Chinese researcher at Stanford University was charged with visa fraud for not disclosing her relationship with the Chinese military, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Massey Universitys Previous Connection with Chinese Military Research In New Zealand, one example of academic collaboration with the PLA involved Massey University partnering with Chinese artificial intelligence firm iFlytek. In 2017, university scientists flew to Hefei in China for the official signing of an agreement with iFlytek to fund a position at Massey. The position was filled by Wang Ruili. iFlytek has attracted controversy because of its development of speech recognition technology which has been used by Beijings Ministry of Public Security for mass surveillance programs on Uyghur Muslims. The company has since been blacklisted by the U.S. government. In late 2019, Massey University faced criticism for its relationship with iFlytek. Doranda Doo, SVP of iFLYTEK Co. Ltd. speaks to Qian Chen, reporter of CNBC on Day 2 of CNBC East Tech West in Guangzhou, China on Nov. 19, 2019. (Zhong Zhi/Getty Images for CNBC International) Professor Wang Ruili split his time between Massey and supervising seven doctoral students at the National University of Defence and Technology (NUDT), arguably the premier and best-funded PLA university in China. NUDT has a track record of research into supercomputers, autonomous vehicles, hypersonic weapons, and the Beidou satellite systemChinas main competitor to the U.S.-owned GPS satellite. Wang and his students have also been involved in the development of unmanned systems which was lauded by Chinese General Yang Xuejun as the core of weapon equipment. The general, who is also president of the Academy of Military Sciences, encouraged NUDT researchers to seize the historical opportunity of intelligent unmanned combat. The Yi Long drone by China Aviation Industry Corporation (AVIC) is displayed during the 9th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai, China, on Nov. 13, 2012. (Phillippe Lopeza/AFP via Getty Images) On Aug. 3, a Massey University spokesperson confirmed with The Epoch Times that it no longer has a relationship with iFlytek. The Wilson Center report also found PLA connections with the University of Auckland, Victoria University in Wellington, Auckland University of Technology, University of Canterbury, and Otago University. In the business realm, Chinese universities and enterprises have also been collaborating with New Zealand-based companies. In 2014, major Chinese state-owned automotive and machine manufacturer, Beijing Automobile Industry Company (BAIC) acquired a 50 percent interest in Pacific Aerospace, based in Hamilton, New Zealand. Britains Prince William (C) unveils the latest model P-750 XSTOL aircraft during his visit to Pacific Aerospace in Hamilton on April 12, 2014 (Fiona Goodall/AFP via Getty Images) The companys flagship drone cargo plane model (the P-750-XSTOL) was subsequently adopted and flown in China under a different moniker (the AT-200) and has now been adapted for military use, specifically for counter-insurgency and light attack. Potential International Fallout The report warned that New Zealand could be at risk of breaching its obligations under the Wassenaar Arrangement, a multilateral agreement aimed at controlling the export of weapons and sensitive dual-use goods and technologies. Further, the country risked major reputational damage if the government did not address issues related to technology transfer to Beijing, especially given the tight-knit nature of the scientific community. New Zealands scientists and technology firms could potentially be shut out of international collaborations and business opportunities. It pointed to the recent D10 proposal by the UK government, which would see a grouping of countries come together to develop alternative 5G technologies outside of Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei. A woman stands at the booth of Huawei featuring 5G technology at the PT Expo in Beijing on Sept. 28, 2018. (Reuters) The proposal did not include New Zealand, despite other Five Eyes nations being earmarked for inclusion (Australia, United States, and Canada). The New Zealand government has received criticism for not officially banning Huaweis involvement in its 5G network, instead, leaving the decision to local telecommunications firm Spark. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has also not ruled out Huaweis participation in the future. South Africa: VBS cannot be revived, Reserve Bank confirms The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) says the banking licence for the old VBS Mutual Bank, in its old form, cannot be revived. The Reserve Bank said it has received a number of letters from parties interested in reviving the Venda Building Society (VBS) Mutual Bank. VBS was placed into liquidation by the High Court on 13 November 2018. The bank is currently being liquidated, the collection on loans is continuing and assets are being sold to recover monies owed to depositors. The SARB said it has provided R261 million, covering over 97% of retail depositors, who originally deposited with VBS Mutual Bank. To date, the Reserve Bank said over 98% of deposit balances guaranteed by government have been claimed. The banking licence under which VBS Mutual Bank operated was suspended. VBS Mutual Bank, in its old form, cannot be revived. The SARB cannot give that licence to someone else or to another entity, the Reserve Bank said in a statement. The Reserve Bank said if anyone wishes to apply for a new mutual or commercial banking licence, they are welcome to do so, and any party wishing to buy any of the assets of the old VBS Mutual Bank may do so, through the liquidator. They can also apply to use the name VBS or Venda Building Society, with the permission of the courts (and, in this case, the community involved). This process would be similar to the new licence granted to the resuscitated African Bank after the old African Bank was placed into curatorship in 2014. A banking licence application is, however, for a new licence and the applicant would need to meet the financial and prudential requirements of the particular licence that they are applying for (licence conditions for mutual banks, cooperative banks and commercial banks differ), the Reserve Bank explained. The SARB said the application process for a banking licence is relatively long, and can take between one and two years. The SARB and the Prudential Authority (PA) have welcomed any engagement with communities and other interested parties seeking to enter the financial sector. We stand ready to advise and guide applicants through what is a long and complex process. We remain committed to ensuring a safe and sound financial sector, which meets the transformational and financial inclusion objectives of government, the Reserve Bank said. SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2020-08-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Iron Mountain Incorporated IRM is set to release second-quarter 2020 results on Aug 6, before market open. The companys quarterly funds from operations (FFO) per share and revenues are expected to have declined year over year. In the last reported quarter, this real estate investment trust (REIT) posted normalized FFO per share of 59 cents, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 45 cents. Results reflected strength in the companys core storage business. Over the preceding four quarters, it surpassed the FFO per share estimates on all four occasions, the average positive surprise being 11.31%. This is depicted in the graph below: Iron Mountain Incorporated Price and EPS Surprise Iron Mountain Incorporated Price and EPS Surprise Iron Mountain Incorporated price-eps-surprise | Iron Mountain Incorporated Quote Lets see how things are shaping up prior to this announcement. The massive work-from-home environment due to the coronavirus pandemic is expected to have driven the material demand for highly connected data-center space from cloud and Internet customers. This sudden incremental network demand, stemming from an increase in remote working, is likely to have buoyed Iron Mountains data-center business. In fact, in early June, the company signed a 27-megawatt (MW) data-center lease deal for its new FRA-1 data center in Frankfurt, Germany, which is currently under construction. With this, it already surpassed its full-year leasing plan of 15-20 MWs. Moreover, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter revenues from the global data-center business is pinned at $68 million and indicates 9.7% growth from the year-ago figure of $62 million. Further, with strong box retention, Iron Mountain enjoys a steady stream of recurring revenues from its core storage and record management businesses. This is likely to have driven profitability and cash for the company in the second quarter. However, there has been a slowdown in certain new sales activity at its storage business. Management is of the view that low economic activity instead of the fact that remote working is likely to have impacted physical storage business volumes. This is expected to have hindered the companys storage rental revenues and net operating income (NOI). Story continues In fact, the consensus estimate for quarterly storage rental revenues is pinned at $674 million, indicating a sequential decline of 1.5%. Also, the estimate for storage NOI of $541 million compares unfavorably when compared with the prior quarters figure of $549 million. Also, the pandemic has taken a toll on Iron Mountains service business (representing 20% of revenues) due to lower economic activity and remote working that have resulted in low demand for pick-up or drop off of boxes in the June-end quarter. In fact, the company identified a year-over-year decline of 45-50% in retrieval and refile activity during April. Further, in its secure destruction segment, shred volumes in April witnessed a 25-30% year-over-year decline due to limited pickups. Amid these, Iron Mountain expects a 40% year-over-year decline in second-quarter service activity.This is concerning as the service segment was already reeling with low recycled paper prices. In fact, the consensus estimate for second-quarter service revenues is pinned at $236 million and indicates a decline of 39% from the prior-quarter reported figure. Lastly, prior to the second-quarter earnings release, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the companys second-quarter FFO per share remained unchanged at 42 cents over the past month. It also represents a year-over-year decline of 22.22%. Moreover, revenues for the April-June period are pinned at $918.3 million and the figure indicates a 13.9% year-over-year decline. Earnings Whispers Our proven model does not conclusively predict a surprise in terms of FFO per share for Iron Mountain this season. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of a FFO beat. That is not the case here, as you will see below. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter. Earnings ESP: Iron Mountains Earnings ESP is 0.00%. Zacks Rank: The company currently carries a Zacks Rank of 3. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Stocks That Warrant a Look Here are a few stocks in the REIT sector that you may want to consider, as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to report a positive surprise this quarter: Healthcare Trust of America, Inc. HTA, set to report quarterly numbers on Aug 6, currently has an Earnings ESP of +0.96% and carries a Zacks Rank of 3. Public Storage PSA, slated to release results on Aug 5, has an Earnings ESP of +0.41% and carries a Zacks Rank of 3 at present. National Storage Affiliates Trust NSA, scheduled to announce earnings figures on Aug 6, has an Earnings ESP of +0.44% and holds a Zacks Rank of 3 currently. Note: Anything related to earnings presented in this write-up represents funds from operations (FFO) a widely used metric to gauge the performance of REITs. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 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 Public Storage (PSA) : Free Stock Analysis Report Iron Mountain Incorporated (IRM) : Free Stock Analysis Report Healthcare Trust of America, Inc. (HTA) : Free Stock Analysis Report National Storage Affiliates Trust (NSA) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Sahaya Novinston Lobo By Express News Service CHENNAI: The State government had made it very clear, multiple times, that landlords must not force tenants to pay rent till the economy recovers from the shock induced by the Covid-19 pandemic. And yet, a police inspector and a landlord are alleged to have threatened and assaulted a city resident demanding that he pay the dues immediately, following which he killed himself. The inspector in question, G Bensam, was swiftly suspended after a video of the victim, recorded minutes before his death, went viral. Srinivasan (42) was a painter residing in Vinayagapuram. He had reportedly not paid his house rent for the last few months, as he had no income during the lockdown period. His house owner, Rajendran, who also is a local political functionary, approached the Puzhal police, following which inspector Bensam visited Srinivasans house on Saturday. There, Bensam is alleged to have assaulted Srinivasan, and threatened him to settle the dues by the end of the day. Unable to arrange money, Srinivasan set himself on fire at around 11pm. He was taken to the Government Kilpauk Medical College Hospital with 90 per cent burns, where he succumbed on Sunday afternoon. In a video shot by his brother Ganesan from the hospital, before his death, Srinivasan is heard saying that he was assaulted by the officer at 7pm that evening. The landlord brought the inspector to my house and they both threatened me, after which the inspector attacked me, Srinivasan is seen saying in the video, before being interrupted by a police personnel who tries to chase Ganesan out of the hospital room. Express tried reaching out to Bensam for a comment, but he did not respond to calls or text messages. A senior official confirmed that he had been placed under suspension. The officer, meanwhile, also denied that Srinivasan was assaulted. Bensam suspended earlier for flashing private parts to woman Express tried reaching out to Bensam for a comment, but he did not respond to calls or text messages. A senior official confirmed that he had been placed under suspension. The officer, meanwhile, also denied that Srinivasan was assaulted. A police team went to the house based on the request of the house owner. As Srinivasan was drunk, they asked him to come to the police station on Sunday morning. They did not beat him up. Bensam has been suspended for intervening in a civil dispute without following proper procedures. Inspector Bensam has a questionable service record, according to sources. In July 2018, when he was the inspector of Karungal station in Kanniyakumari, he was suspended for alleged sexual harassment. He is said to have flashed his private parts to a woman over a WhatsApp call and made obscene gestures at her. The police, on their part, alleged that Srinivasans neighbours had complained against him eight months ago for creating nuisance. He was booked under minor sections and let-off with a warning, said an officer. (Assistance for those having suicidal thoughts is available on Tamil Nadus health helpline 104 and Snehas suicide prevention helpline 044-24640050) Statement before death In a video shot by his brother Ganesan, before his death, Srinivasan is heard saying that he was assaulted by inspector Bensam on Saturday. The inspector was suspended after the video went viral. Ashraf Ghani fled Kabul after 'stealing USD 169 million from the state funds', claims Afghan diplomat Ex-president Ashraf Ghani says he fled Kabul to save 6 million people in the Afghan capital Did Ghani flee with millions of dollars? US watchdog to probe PM Modi, Afghan President Ghani discuss evolving security situation India pti-PTI New Delhi, Aug 03: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani discussed the evolving security situation in the region and other areas of mutual and bilateral interest on Monday, the Prime Minister's Office said. During a phone call, the two also exchanged EidulAdha greetings. President Ghani thanked Prime Minister Modi for timely supply of food and medical assistance to meet Afghan requirement. Modi reiterated India's commitment to the people of Afghanistan in their quest for a peaceful, prosperous and inclusive Afghanistan, the PMO statement said. J&K: Army says missing soldier likely abducted by terrorists| Oneindia News Ram Mandir Bhumi Pujan: No Electronic devices, bags allowed; security code to ensure single entry "The two leaders also exchanged views on the evolving security situation in the region and other areas of mutual, bilateral interest," it said. The phone call happened as reports said Afghan forces retook a prison in the country's east, a day after the Islamic State terrorist group attacked the facility in which at least 29 people were killed. live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More ICICI Direct's research report on Dabur India Dabur Indias (DIL) revenue fell 12.9% with domestic business reporting resilient numbers with mere 8.4% decline in sales despite manufacturing & supply chain disruptions for most of April. Domestic volumes fell 9.7%. International business saw a steep decline of 21.6% given MENA & Nepal business were impacted by Covid-19 & macro headwinds. The strong growth of 29.2% in healthcare was aided by Chyawanprash & Honey with 700% & 69% growth (on low base considering its off season). Further OTC & ethical portfolio witnessed growth of 34.4% & 10.7%, respectively, driven by new launches. Home & personal care (HPC) segment saw a steep decline of 14.9% impacted by hair oils, home & skincare products. The manufacturing operations for non-essentials only started in April end & demand conditions for HPC segment was also static. However, oral care segment saw growth of 1.4% led by 8.1% growth in Red toothpaste. Foods business saw a 34.4% sales decline with Juices & Nectar seeing 51.4% volume dip. Operating margins expanded 90 bps to 21% with stable gross margins & 150 bps dip in A&P spends. Net profit dipped 6.2%. Outlook The current crisis has certainly created new opportunities for DIL and it seems to be in best position to leverage the opportunity by aggressive product developments. We see more than 50% of sales generating categories on high growth path either with strong consumer demand or high opportunity size. We expect 16% revenue growth in FY22 after flat growth in FY21. Moreover, we estimate stable margins, earning CAGR of 11.9% in FY20-22E. We maintain BUY rating with a revised target price of Rs 565. For all recommendations report, click here Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies 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. Read More The fisherman who built a following over the last three years by selling directly from his boat at Fishermans Wharf is moving his operation to the Port of Redwood City, a deepwater harbor jutting into the bay in the middle of Silicon Valley. There, Giuseppe Pennisi will also sell fish and chips and cioppino made with his freshly caught seafood out of a food truck called Pioneer Seafoods. Pennisi is making the move after the Port of San Francisco told him he would have to stop selling from his usual spot on Pier 47 in order to allow Scomas Restaurant to set up outdoor tables there during shelter-in-place. He took out a loan of $200,000 to buy the food truck trailer and to move the business. Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle I felt that I have maybe 10 more years left of my fishing career and I did not want to change my life, said the 56-year-old fisher. I really enjoy seeing my customers who support us and there were too many good things about what we were doing to end it all. Pennisi and his crew plan to begin selling fish from his boat, the Pioneer, later this month at the harbor in Redwood City, a 10-minute drive from downtown Redwood City. Customers will be able to walk down a pier to purchase whole fish or buy fish and chips and other plates of food at the food truck parked nearby, next to an area with picnic tables, palm trees and wide lawns with a bay view. Prepared food will cost between $8 and $10 a plate, and besides four main menu items, Pennisi will offer specials like steamed black cod with vegetables and rice. The fisherman was the subject of a Chronicle special in-depth report, The Fishermans Secret: a Modern-Day Treasure Hunt about his quest to retrieve sunken gold treasure he believes he spotted on the bottom of the sea. A groundfish fisherman, Pennisi specializes in rockfish, petrale sole, black cod (or sablefish), halibut, which will cost between $1 and $5 per pound for whole fish. Because he will have a commercial kitchen in the food truck, cleaned fish will be available for another $2 per pound. He also plans to sell salmon and Dungeness crab from other fishers in season. Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more. Our focus is on families, to try to make fish affordable, he said. Pennisis mother, Elaine, and daughter, Nina, who both live in Monterey, will help out cooking at the food truck, along with some friends. They plan to be open from about 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., possibly with a later start for the food truck, four days a week. Pioneer Seafoods food truck and fish sales. Coming later in August. 459 Seaport Blvd, Redwood City. http://pioneerseafoods.com/ Tara Duggan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tduggan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @taraduggan A father has been jailed after offering who he thought was a 14-year-old girl $1,000 for sex. Cabramatta man Jamie Mckeay posted an ad on Locanto in June last year where he was 'looking to reward an Asian girl for some fun'. The 33-year-old's ad description offered $1,000 for a 'teen', which lead him to be contacted by Strike Force Trawler detectives. Police posed under the alias of a 14-year-old Thai girl named Kim, with Mckeay proceeding to ask officers sexually explicit questions on Skype. Jamie Mckeay (pictured middle after his arrest in June 2019) posted an ad 'looking to reward an Asian girl for some fun', offering $1,000 for sexual favours His explicit messages included asking to ejaculate on the teenager, boasting about his penis size and requesting to meet up in school hours. Daily Telegraph reported on his arrest in June last year Mckeay said his lewd messages were intended to 'scare her off'. Mckeay told Judge Richard Weinstein in Campbelltown District Court he was 'depressed and lonely' when sending the messages. The New Zealand native also said he wished to 're-live' his teenage sexual history. Mckeay was convicted of using a carriage service to procure a person under 16 and possessing child pornography on a hard drive. He was sentenced to two years and three months in jail and will be released on September 20 on a one year recognisance order. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) The medical communitys latest public distress call is not an attempt to mount a revolution against the government amid the COVID-19 crisis, a group of doctors and a health expert told President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday. Responding to Dutertes latest pronouncement, the Philippine College of Physicians clarified there was never a call for revolt during the frontliners virtual meeting over the weekend, where they publicly voiced concern about the countrys current health care status. If you closely review the virtual conference on August 1, there was never a call for revolt nor was there any threat of leaving patients on their own since our oath instructs us to first do no harm to anyone who needs our help, the group said in a letter addressed to the President. It was not the intention of the media forum to humiliate the administration and the IATF. The call was for the DOH and IATF to provide the HCWs a fighting chance in the war against COVID and prevent unnecessary fatalities nothing more, the letter further noted. Dr. Tony Leachon who previously served as an adviser for the countrys COVID-19 task force echoed the sentiment, noting how the countrys healthcare capacity and manpower have been severely affected by the pandemic. It might seem to be some sort of a revolution to the eyes of the President, but it was not meant that way, Leachon said in an interview with CNN Philippines The Source. We just like to be understood by the President that the medical community is having a hard time right now in trying to manage the avalanche of cases at the emergency room and also at the hospital level. Over the weekend, representatives from various medical societies appealed to the chief executive to revert Mega Manila back to a stricter quarantine status, citing an overwhelmed healthcare system and frontliners. The move would also pave the way for officials to further refine pandemic control strategies, the group said. In response, Duterte said he "fully understands" the healthworkers' call for a time out, but also warned them against hinting about staging a "revolution. The President noted they could have just written a letter to authorities, instead of airing out concerns publicly. So kami dito, hindi namin kayo kinakalimutan. There would not have been no need for you to go into and raising your hands as if sabihin ninyo revolution, revolution, Duterte said in his late-night address on Sunday. Next time, huwag ninyo akong parinigrinigin ng revolution. Iyan ang mas delikado sa COVID. Eh kung mag-revolution kayo, you will give me the free ticket to stage a counterrevolution. How I wish you would do it, he added. [Translation: We at the government do not forget about you. There would not have been no need for you to go into raising your hands as if youre shouting for revolution. Next time, dont imply revolution. Thats more dangerous than COVID. If you go on a revolution, you will give me the free ticket to stage a counterrevolution. How I wish you would do it.] Malacanang, for its part, also said the doctors could have aired the issues directly to the government, instead of going public with their pronouncements. Malinaw ang sinabi ng Presidente na hindi naman kinakailangang magkaroon ng splash kumbaga, sana binigyan naman siya ng pagkakataon na sagutin ang liham bago sila nagkaroon ng publicity, Roque said in his virtual media briefing later in the day. [Translation: Its clear what the President said that there was no need for splash. They could have given him a chance to respond to the letter before seeking publicity.] Nevertheless, the President partly heeded the call of the community, as he decided to place Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal back to a stricter MECQ starting Tuesday. Coronavirus infections in the country have breached the 100,000 mark on Sunday, with the Philippines once again listing a new record-high in daily cases. TWIN FALLS The Idaho Army National Guard battalion based in Twin Falls has a new commander. The 116th Brigade Engineer Battalion held a change of command ceremony Sunday morning at Centennial Park. The new commander is Lt. Col. Stephen C. Arnett, who previously served in Twin Falls. I spent a lot of time in this battalion as the assistant operations officer and Im super excited to be back with these guys, Arnett said. Its a great community; its a great unit. The 116th Brigade Engineer Battalion is headquartered in Twin Falls and has elements in Boise, Gooding, Mountain Home, Grangeville, Jerome, Moscow and Orofino. The battalion supports the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team, Idahos largest National Guard unit. Arnett takes over for Lt. Col. Lee D. Rubel, who has served as the units commander since February 2018. Rubel led more than 500 soldiers through 28 drill weekends, a Duck Valley Individual Readiness Training mission, an eXportable Combat Training Capability exercise, a National Training Center rotation with more than 1,100 soldiers, three gunnery cycles, one real world support mission and multiple field training exercises. Commanding this battalion has been one of the most amazing experiences of my military career, Rubel said in a statement. I could not be more proud of these soldiers and their work supporting the state of Idaho and this nation. Arnett joined the Idaho Army National Guard in 1999 and commissioned as an engineer officer in 2000. He has served in Operation Iraqi Freedom III and Operation New Dawn. He has served in a number of positions in the 116th Brigade Engineer Battalion. As a civilian, he works for the State of Idaho Military Division as the chief of the environmental management office. Love 4 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 0 The helmet and bravery medals awarded to a Spitfire ace who survived being struck by flak while travelling at 300mph have sold for more than 18,000. Group Captain Arthur Donaldson, of 263 Squadron, a hero of the defence of Malta during the Second World War, withstood being hit by flak which blew off his helmet and knocked him unconscious. The airman also had two digits on his left hand severed during a dogfight which landed on his lap. The helmet (right) of a Second World War hero Arthur Donaldson (left) who survived being struck by flak while flying at 300mph has sold with his bravery medals for 18,600 at auction G/Capt Arthur Donaldson's medal group consists of the Distinguished Service Order, Distinguished Flying Cross with Second Award Bar; Air Force Cross, 1939-1945 Star; Air Crew Europe Star; Burma Star; Defence and War Medals 1939-45; Coronation 1953 But he still somehow brought his aircraft home despite his gruesome injury as blood gushed all over the cockpit. He later survived a plane crash off Gibraltar that resulted in 17 deaths, and a bout of malaria during a stint in the Far East. His bravery medals - including a Distinguished Service Order, Distinguished Flying Cross with bar and an Air Force Cross - were sold with London based auctioneers Spink & Son. The sale also featured his log books, the damaged flying helmet and a typescript for his unpublished autobiography aptly named 'Finger Trouble'. The collection achieved a hammer price of 15,000, with extra fees taking the overall figure to 18,600. Marcus Budgen, head of the medals department at Spink & Son, said: 'The final price of 18,600 for the awards of Group Captain Donaldson reflect his quite unique service and sacrifice during the Second World War. 'The injuries he suffered in the fight against the enemy were rewarded with a plethora of decorations.' G/Capt Donaldson was born in Weymouth, Dorset, in 1915. He was the youngest of three brothers, all of whom were awarded Distinguished Service Orders during World War Two. He joined the RAF in 1934 and was a flying instructor at Central Flying School in RAF Upavon, Wilts, when war broke out in 1939. G/Capt Donaldson took command of 263 Squadron in February 1941 and carried out daring 'hit and run' strikes on occupied France and Belgium in Westland Whirlwinds. He destroyed a number of aircraft on the ground and inflicted considerable damage to buildings and dispersal pens. Once while returning to base with his squadron, he attacked six anti-aircraft barges, sinking one and damaging three others. Group Captain Arthur Donaldson was a heroic Spitfire ace (pictured) and carried out a number of daring high-risk missions during his service throughout the Second World War (file photo) In September 1941, he had his first brush with mortality. During a low-level attack on an enemy airfield at Morlaix, Brittany, in September 1941, his aircraft was hit by flak and an explosive round ripped apart the top of his flying helmet. He was temporarily knocked unconscious, coming to his senses after travelling four miles over the sea at 300mph. Recounting the incident in his memoirs, he wrote: 'I remember the intense flak getting uncomfortably close, when suddenly one of them hit me. 'I felt this one because it was in the fuselage, then a colossal bang and I lost consciousness. It was a funny feeling - rather like a severe blackout. 'I couldn't see. I remember, all in a flash, thinking 'Christ, I'm hit,' and my one thought was not of death but of becoming a prisoner of war. 'I can remember opening the throttle and pulling the stick back. The next thing I remember was gradually coming to. 'Here again, my sense recovered before my sight and, when I could see, I noticed that I was out to sea, meaning that I had travelled three or four miles at about 300mph.' G/Capt Donaldson received a Distinguished Flying Cross before being installed as wing commander at RAF Colerne, Wiltshire, and Spitfire wing leader at Fairwood Common, South Wales. In August 1942, he was sent to Malta to become wing commander at RAF Ta Kali, leading the island's heroic rearguard against the Luftwaffe. During an eventful tour, he shot down at least seven German aircraft before losing two fingers in his left hand during an attack on a group of Junkers Ju 88 on October 15. Describing that awful moment, he wrote: 'My Spitfire was riddled with bullets. One came through the side, took away the throttle and then entered the engine, putting it out of action. 'I looked down and to my horror I saw two of the fingers of my left hand lying on my lap! 'There was blood everywhere, petrol was streaming into my eyes and I wasn't at all happy. 'The controls seemed OK so I rolled over, stuck the nose down and beat the hell out of it. 'I cannot say that at that moment I felt any pain. I was in a state of shock and all I wanted to do was remain alive. As I had dived down I was thinking of what to do. 'I decided to try and make Ta Kali since if I baled out by parachute it would be minutes before the RAF Air Sea Rescue picked me up. 'However efficient they were, no doubt I would bleed to death before rescue arrived, not only was my left-hand bleeding profusely but I had numerous other wounds to my head, arms, legs and face.' He was rushed to hospital and operated on before watching the rest of the battle 'from the veranda'. Group Captain Arthur Donaldson, pictured, also survived a plane crash off Gibraltar that resulted in 17 deaths, and a bout of malaria during a stint in the Far East while in the RAF G/Capt Donaldson was flown out of Malta as a 'stretcher case' on October 31. Tragically, the Liberator transporting him back to Britain crashed into the sea during take-off following a stopover in Gibraltar. He emerged from the wreckage with burns to one of his arms. His time in Malta saw him add a bar to his Distinguished Flying Cross, with his citation highlighting how he also orchestrated a 'highly successful' attack on three Sicilian aerodromes. G/Capt Donaldson's final tour of duty was in the Far East from June 1945, where he commanded a fighter wing near Rangoon, Burma. He was evacuated home with malaria after four months. Following the war, he fulfilled several high-ranking roles including station commander at Biggin Hill, south London, and deputy director of air defence at the Air Ministry before retiring in 1959. He settled into the quiet life, running a village shop and post office near Dorchester, Dorset, before his death aged 65 in 1980. G/Capt Donaldson's medal group consists of the Distinguished Service Order, Distinguished Flying Cross with Second Award Bar; Air Force Cross, 1939-1945 Star; Air Crew Europe Star; Burma Star; Defence and War Medals 1939-45; Coronation 1953. The New York Times One by one, the celebrity Twitter accounts posted the same strange message: Send Bitcoin and they would send back double your money. Elon Musk. Bill Gates. Kanye West. Joe Biden. Former President Barack Obama. They, and dozens of others, were being hacked, and Twitter appeared powerless to stop it. While some initially thought the hack was the work of professionals, it turns out the mastermind of one of the most high-profile hacks in recent years was a 17-year-old recent high school graduate from Florida, authorities said Friday. Graham Ivan Clark was arrested in his Tampa apartment, where he lived by himself, early Friday, state officials said. He faces 30 felony charges in the hack, including fraud, and is being charged as an adult. Two other people, Mason John Sheppard, 19, of the United Kingdom, and Nima Fazeli, 22, of Orlando, Florida, were accused of helping Clark during the takeover. Prosecutors said the two appeared to have aided the central figure in the attack, who went by the name Kirk. Documents released Friday do not provide the real identity of Kirk, but they suggest it was Clark. Clark was skilled enough to go unnoticed inside Twitters network, said Andrew Warren, the Florida state attorney handling the case. This was not an ordinary 17-year-old, Warren said. Clark convinced one of the companys employees that he was a co-worker in the technology department who needed the employees credentials to access the customer service portal, a criminal affidavit from Florida said. By the time the hackers were done, they had broken into 130 accounts and raised significant new questions about Twitters security. Despite the hackers cleverness, their plan quickly fell apart, according to court documents. They left hints about their real identities and scrambled to hide the money theyd made once the hack became public. Their mistakes allowed law enforcement to quickly track them down. Less than a week after the incident, federal agents, search warrant in hand, went to a home in Northern California, according to the documents. There, they interviewed another youngster who admitted participating in the scheme. The individual, who is not named in the documents because he or she is a minor, gave authorities information that helped them identify Sheppard and said that Sheppard had discussed turning himself into law enforcement. Kate Conger and Nathaniel Popper c.2020 The New York Times Company HARTFORD A naval technician was sentenced to 18 months in prison followed by five years supervised release on Monday for sexually abusing a 14-year-old boy on the grounds of the Naval Submarine Base in Groton. Chazzman Chung, 29, of Groton, met the victim through an online dating app in 2018, according to John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut. Though the victims profile stated he was 18 years old, Durham said Chung was aware that the boy was only 14. Children who suffer trauma from abuse or violence early in life show biological signs of aging faster than children who have never experienced adversity, according to research published by the American Psychological Association. The study examined three different signs of biological aging--early puberty, cellular aging and changes in brain structure--and found that trauma exposure was associated with all three. "Exposure to adversity in childhood is a powerful predictor of health outcomes later in life--not only mental health outcomes like depression and anxiety, but also physical health outcomes like cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer," said Katie McLaughlin, PhD, an associate professor of psychology at Harvard University and senior author of the study published in the journal Psychological Bulletin. "Our study suggests that experiencing violence can make the body age more quickly at a biological level, which may help to explain that connection." Previous research found mixed evidence on whether childhood adversity is always linked to accelerated aging. However, those studies looked at many different types of adversity--abuse, neglect, poverty and more--and at several different measures of biological aging. To disentangle the results, McLaughlin and her colleagues decided to look separately at two categories of adversity: threat-related adversity, such as abuse and violence, and deprivation-related adversity, such as physical or emotional neglect or poverty. The researchers performed a meta-analysis of almost 80 studies, with more than 116,000 total participants. They found that children who suffered threat-related trauma such as violence or abuse were more likely to enter puberty early and also showed signs of accelerated aging on a cellular level-including shortened telomeres, the protective caps at the ends of our strands of DNA that wear down as we age. However, children who experienced poverty or neglect did not show either of those signs of early aging. In a second analysis, McLaughlin and her colleagues systematically reviewed 25 studies with more than 3,253 participants that examined how early-life adversity affects brain development. They found that adversity was associated with reduced cortical thickness - a sign of aging because the cortex thins as people age. However, different types of adversity were associated with cortical thinning in different parts of the brain. Trauma and violence were associated with thinning in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, which is involved in social and emotional processing, while deprivation was more often associated with thinning in the frontoparietal, default mode and visual networks, which are involved in sensory and cognitive processing. These types of accelerated aging might originally have descended from useful evolutionary adaptations, according to McLaughlin. In a violent and threat-filled environment, for example, reaching puberty earlier could make people more likely to be able to reproduce before they die. And faster development of brain regions that play a role in emotion processing could help children identify and respond to threats, keeping them safer in dangerous environments. But these once-useful adaptations may have grave health and mental health consequences in adulthood. The new research underscores the need for early interventions to help avoid those consequences. All of the studies looked at accelerated aging in children and adolescents under age 18. "The fact that we see such consistent evidence for faster aging at such a young age suggests that the biological mechanisms that contribute to health disparities are set in motion very early in life. This means that efforts to prevent these health disparities must also begin during childhood," McLaughlin said. There are numerous evidence-based treatments that can improve mental health in children who have experienced trauma, McLaughlin said. "A critical next step is determining whether these psychosocial interventions might also be able to slow down this pattern of accelerated biological aging. If this is possible, we may be able to prevent many of the long-term health consequences of early-life adversity," she says. ### Article: "Biological Aging in Childhood and Adolescence Following Experiences of Threat and Deprivation: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis," by Natalie Colich, PhD, University of Washington, Eileen S. Williams, PhD, Stanford University, and Maya Rosen, PhD, and Katie McLaughlin, PhD, Harvard University. Psychological Bulletin, published online Aug. 3, 2020. Full text of the article can be found online at https://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/releases/bul-bul0000270.pdf. Katie McLaughlin, PhD, can be reached by email at kmclaughlin@fas.harvard.edu. The American Psychological Association, in Washington, D.C., is the largest scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States. APA's membership includes nearly 121,000 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. Through its divisions in 54 subfields of psychology and affiliations with 60 state, territorial and Canadian provincial associations, APA works to advance the creation, communication and application of psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve people's lives. Microbiologics has also expanded its viral capabilities to include reverse genetics systems to create recombinant viruses, increased in-vitro assay capabilities, including cytopathic effect screening, hemagglutination-inhibition testing (HAI), neutralization assays, and yield-reduction assays. The newly renovated space also allows for increased capacity for viral propagation of high-titer stock materials. Microbiologics has also recently completed its process for ISO 13485 accreditation at the San Diego Facility. Additional information about the complete virology services offered at Microbiologics is available by email at [email protected]. Visit microbiologics.com/virology to learn more. About Microbiologics Microbiologics, the leading global provider of infectious disease biomaterials. Microbiologics has provided clinical, food, water, pharmaceutical and cosmetic laboratories with reliable, ready-to-use microbial reference materials for nearly 50 years. The company has a distribution network that reaches more than 140 countries worldwide. Microbiologics acquired San Diego based Virapur in 2017 expanding its research and development support services to therapeutics, vaccines and gene therapy, as well as broaden its viral molecular controls portfolio. Karin Pauly Microbiologics 1.800.599.2847 [email protected] SOURCE Microbiologics Related Links http://www.microbiologics.com/ The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has charged the tricycle rider who fought some of its operatives to court. The agency also demoted its officials involved in the public brawl. In a video clip, the man, angered and scantily dressed, stood on the bonnet of the FRSCs patrol vehicle, assaulting one of the officers in the process. He undressed himself and tore the officers uniform. The incident happened in Benin, Edo State. In retaliation, some of the operatives ganged up against the man and rained slaps and beatings on him. The unclad rider, who was reportedly arrested for driving against traffic, also destroyed the agencys patrol vehicle. In a statement on Sunday, Bisi Kazeem, the agencys spokesperson, said while the prosecution of the tricycle rider has commenced, the officers involved have been recommended for demotion. A North Korean defector who escaped back to the North on July 18 was caught on military surveillance equipment not once, but seven times, but nobody took any notice. The man, who was accused of sexual harassment here, was caught five times by short and mid-range monitoring equipment and CCTV cameras and twice by thermal-imaging sensors operated by the Marine Corps as he crawled through a drainage pipe and swam back to the North. But the military was completely oblivious of his escape until North Korea's state media crowed about it on July 26. South Korean soldiers at a marine guard post who were monitoring the cameras were allegedly unable to identify the defector due to forest fires on the North Korean side. But the Marine guard post was only staffed on three shifts due to a shortage of personnel, instead of four as required. Six hours is commonly seen as the maximum number of hours a human can maintain focus, but each shift had been stretched out to eight hours. The Joint Chiefs of Staffs said some areas are "difficult" to distinguish with surveillance equipment, which means trained personnel are needed to watch the monitors. According to President Moon Jae-in's defense reform plans, South Korea's standing forces are gradually being reduced from 618,000 in July of 2018 to 500,000 by 2022. That is leading to a 1.2-fold increase of the part of the frontline area overseen by each military division. The mandatory military service is also being shortened from 21 to 18 months, and this means 67 percent of soldiers will fail to become fully familiar with their duties before their discharge. The side effects of these changes are only just starting to become apparent in the latest debacle. There were concerns early on whether a South Korean military of just 500,000 troops would now be able to take on the 1.28-million-strong North Korean military where soldiers get seven to 10 years of hardened experience. The South Korean military boasted that high-tech drones and unmanned surveillance aircraft will easily compensate for any shortfall. But what use is expensive equipment if nobody knows how to operate it? What would have happened if North Korean special forces troops had infiltrated the other way by the same route? There have been many instances where military facilities were breached. In March this year, a drunk infiltrated an air defense shelter in Siheung, Gyeonggi Province and stayed there for an hour before being caught, while a senile elderly man entered a Navy base in Jinhae, South Gyeongsang Province unnoticed and wandered around for an hour. Every time the military is found guilty of a flagrant security breach, the defense minister apologizes and vows to come up remedies, but nothing is ever done. What will he promise this time? When Black unemployment has run through the roof, the only thing she can do is TikTok and dance and tweet at Trump, while we got problems right here in the city of Chicago, Johnson said. We are now in a moment where it is very clear who our allies are and who our enemies are. Whoever would risk the lives of Black and brown children, you got to see them as an enemy. RIDLEY TOWNSHIP Several hundred residents turned out on the lawn of the township building to hold a Back the Blue rally to support police Sunday afternoon. This is a community event this is not a rally, this is not a protest. This is getting our town together so we can support our law enforcement, said Ridley resident Joe Carafa, who put the event together over the past ten days. What happened yesterday has nothing to do with us, said Carafa, a self-described peacekeeper, referring to a rally Saturday which, as reported in the Times, turned tense as crowds of mostly white men bum-rushed Black Lives Matter protesters as they neared the township police station before being separated by police. Unfortunately, the way it was handled, I dont believe it was handled in the correct way. In contrast, the atmosphere of Sundays event was relaxed. Numerous flags fluttered in the wind supporting police, various police organizations and President Donald Trump. A number of police organizations set up tents and handed out water and pretzels to those in attendance. The National Anthem was sung as everyone stood in silence, with hats off and covering their hearts with their hands. This is to show that we are the people of the community and we can stand above everything that is going on right now, Carafa said. He hoped the event would give members of the public a chance to talk to police officers and share some of their thoughts. He runs a groups Facebook site with 10,000 followers, where he attempts to hold a dialogue. We need to train our kids to get racism out of our heads so we call all live equally, when it comes down to it, said Carafa. We have to get this anger out of us. Dont label them (police) and its hard not to in todays society. I dont want my son to live in a world like this where everything is racist. I want my son to consider whether you are white, Black, Spanish, Puerto Rican, Chinese, were all equal. Why put a label on somebody? Were here to support the police, said John Bustin of Ridley Park, who pointed to his shirt pin with a photo of Philadelphia Police Officer Daniel Faulkner, who was murdered in 1981. We cant have our cops being slaughtered. Aside from Carafa, there were no planned speakers at the event. Organizers said a number of politicians were invited to speak; however, they declined. Two people picked up the microphone to give some words including Josh Bryan of Collingdale, a criminal justice major at Widener University, who said the support of those in attendance would help motivate him in the police academy and Lutfor Rahman Hemu, who said he was an immigrant from Bangladesh and encouraged those in attendance to vote for Trump. Most of the afternoon supporters lined MacDade Boulevard waving flags and cheering as cars went past honking horns. One or two pick-up trucks, including a U-haul rental, burned rubber as they passed. A lone car holding a BLM -Black Lives Matter sign went past. One bystander made a derogatory remark, that it meant :Burn, Loot, Murder. Most others ignored the car. Thoughout the two-hour event, passing groups of police cars went past instigating loud cheers from the crowd. Were just here to support the police. We dont want to see them defunded, said Ashley Hunter, who was there with her friend Kellie Park. This is no disrespect to Black Lives Matter. I understand the movement. We just want to show we respect them and we are appreciative of all the hard work they do. Kathy Payne of Prospect Park was at both the Saturday and Sunday events. She said she was surprised to see more white marchers Saturday than African Americans and expressed the view that they were being overly influenced by social media and were not thinking for themselves. I think they are uneducated, said Payne. One woman (on Saturday) kept yelling Jesus was Black. I found that to be obnoxious. I came here to support the Ridley police. I grew up here, lived in Woodlyn and graduated from Ridley High School in 1972. Its a fallacy that Black people dont support the black and blue, said Rev. Dr. Edna Hopkins Rozier, who is African American and said she has family members who are police officers as well as students she has taught. Asked why she thinks there were few African Americans at Sundays event, she said one reason is not many Blacks live in Ridley and people often do not get involved unless they are personally affected. I came because I support the police, said Hopkins-Rozier. Its important for both sides to know we share this world. We share thoughts and we share Ridley. The sooner we get together, the better it will be. She added there are bigger issues that must be addressed. Were fighting all these viruses; were fighting economic difficulties. There are other bigger wider issues that will take all of us to solve, Hopkins-Rozier said. The article said Vietnam assumed the ASEAN chairmanship in perhaps the most challenging year ever to take on the role. Vietnam had been gearing for this important year, where the country not only chairs ASEAN but also serves as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, it stated. According to the article, Vietnam has repeatedly proven its ability to host important regional forums and even high-level meetings of global importance, such as the highly challenging DPRK-US summit in Hanoi last year. The author hailed this as a remarkable makeover, especially as the country just broke out from diplomatic isolation with the normalisation of relations with the US and the joining of ASEAN in the mid-1990s. Foreign Policy emphasised that Vietnam has earned further respect and recognition from its neighbours, including much wealthier and more developed ones like Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia, thanks to its impressive response to COVID-19. Effective and early recovery puts Vietnam in a better position to think beyond the crisis management and have more strategic bandwidth for regional matters, it held. As predicted by economists from the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the Asian Development Bank, Vietnam has the highest chances in the region to move out of the post-COVID economic crisis in relatively better shape, the article said, hailing this as a significant shift in Vietnams position in ASEAN. According to the article, Vietnam has been taking up an even more pivotal role in the bloc regarding diplomatic aspects. It emphasised that Vietnam highly respects ASEAN norms, maintains a consistent foreign policy, and has stepped up to socialise these norms to the other newer members. It held that, given the crisis enveloping the world, the main objective of Vietnams 2020 ASEAN Chairmanship is to preserve the blocs unity and solidarity. The high expectations from the other ASEAN members and dialogue partners reflect the level of confidence in Vietnams diplomatic capability, the article said. MBABANE - The question of whether POCA offends against the Constitution or that it should be suspended as a whole will now be decided by the High Court. This happens against the backdrop of the House of Assembly having recently moved a motion to suspend the forfeiture of assets in terms of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act of 2018 (POCA). The office of the attorney general (AG) has since re-enrolled a matter where Bhekithemba Bhembe (46), who is the Shiselweni II (Embangweni) Constituency Headman, is challenging the constitutionality of POCA. Bhembe approached the court after the State obtained an order to seize a motor vehicle belonging to him, which it was convinced, was used as a conduit to transport drugs or instrumentality to commit criminal activities. In the application, Bhembe is among other prayers seeking an order declaring the entire legislation, being the POCA, to be inconsistent with the Constitution. Operations Bhembe wants the court to suspend the operations of POCA as a whole and direct that Parliament be given a chance to amend the law within 12 months. The matters will be argued before Judge Nkululeko Hlophe on September 30, 2020. According to the headman, the Act gives the director of public prosecutions (DPP) the right to move a civil application before court thus taking away the powers of the attorney general. The applicant (Bhembe) further wants the High Court to declare Section 42 and 43 of POCA null and void and unconstitutional for allegedly violating property rights which were enshrined in the Constitution. He contended that Section 42 of the Act was unconstitutional as it tampered with the rights of property owners to be heard before their properties were seized. It was further his submission that Section 44 of POCA also violated Section 19 of the Constitution in so far as it authorised the court to seize property of persons ex parte (without the knowledge of the other party involved in the matter). Section 19 of the Constitution states that: A person shall not be compulsorily deprived of property or any interest in or right over property of any description except where the following are satisfied; the taking of possession or acquisition is necessary for public use or in the interest of defence, public safety, public order, public morality or public health. In his application, Bhembe averred that the moving of applications ex parte under Section 42 of the POCA had been wrongly made to be the rule instead of being the exception. He argued that this was in direct conflict with the spirit of the Constitution and was thereby unconstitutional. Section 42 and 43 of the POCA are unconstitutional for vagueness and unreasonableness in so far as these Sections purport to impose civil court rules applicable in ordinary civil courts but at the same time prescribe extra stringent and unreasonable rules to be observed, he argued. He submitted that Section 21 of the Constitution created no exception to the right to be heard before a final decision adverse to one was issued in civil matters. Hearing It shall be argued during the hearing of this matter that the right to be heard has been made absolute in civil matters in terms of Section 21 of the Constitution and that ex parte applications, which have an adverse effect on property interest of another person, are unconstitutional, Bhembe submitted. He alleged that Section 42 of POCA did not provide for a return date, but allowed for the grant of a final order which could only be rescinded and not defended. He argued that POCA, having been passed by a simple majority of the House sitting separately, could not impliedly amend the Constitution either by reducing, modifying, adulterating, redefining, the content of the rights and creating exceptions to the application of the rights enshrined in Section 19 and 21 of the Constitution. Bhembe submitted that this could be done unless the Legislature complied with the manner and form stated in Section 246 of the Constitution. The AG, Sifiso Mashampu Khumalo, is on record having informed the House that it did not have powers to suspend the operations of the law. The legislators were further told that it was also the court which had those powers. Bhembe is represented by Khumbulani Msibi while appearing for the State is Assistant Attorney General Mndeni Vilakati and Sydney Mlotshwa. A very small fraction of Ontarians roughly one per cent have been infected by the novel coronavirus, according to new antibody blood-testing data from the provinces public health agency. The findings suggest that the true number of people sickened by COVID-19 in Ontario is closer to 160,000, more than four times the official tally. While that might sound high, it actually means the province is doing a fantastic job at catching infections, one epidemiologist says and a much better job than other jurisdictions. Recent U.S. research has estimated the true caseload there at six to 24 times higher. The presence of antibodies to the virus was higher in certain age groups and some parts of the province, including Toronto, according to the Public Health Ontario study. But the overall low numbers attest to Ontarios success in stifling the initial wave of the pandemic, the scientists say. When you think about what the numbers mean, it really suggests that our social distancing and our public health measures have been really effective at preventing widespread infection in the population, said Shelly Bolotin, a Public Health Ontario scientist and University of Toronto professor who led the study. She noted, however, that this study could not compare antibody prevalence across different income or demographic groups; the blood specimens were stripped of identifying details before analysis. Data from multiple sources has shown the pandemic is exacting a disproportionately high toll on low-income and racialized Ontarians. And the downside of low antibody prevalence is that nearly the entire population of Ontario carries no immunity to COVID-19. Even for those who do test positive for antibodies, researchers still dont know how long or strong their protection will be. It also reminds us that were still vulnerable, Bolotin said. Weve done well so far, but we need to really be vigilant about continuing to maintain these public health precautions. The estimates were obtained by gathering 8,902 blood samples sent to Public Health Ontarios Toronto lab between March and June to be tested for other diseases. The specimens were then re-analyzed to detect antibodies to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The presence of antibodies, a product of the bodys immune system, suggests that a person has been infected to the virus. The relationship between severity of illness and the concentration of antibodies in a patients blood is still an evolving area of research, but Bolotin said the threshold the study used was likely to capture people who were infected but had no symptoms, one of COVID-19s more dastardly features. Because health-care services were so severely curtailed at the height of the pandemic, far fewer specimens were collected in the earlier months 827 in the March-April and 1,061 in May. In June, however, the researchers were able to access 7,014. As a result, comparisons between the earlier and later time periods should be made with caution. Nevertheless, the number of specimens with detectable antibodies was consistently low: just 97 total tested positive. The researchers estimate for SARS-CoV-2 antibody prevalence across Ontario in June, the most reliable period because of the large number of specimens, was 1.1 per cent. It was 0.5 per cent in March-April and 1.5 per cent in May. (The estimates were adjusted to compensate for the tests tendency to miss about one in 10 positives and to be representative of Ontarios population.) In the June samples, the researchers found that those over age 80 had the highest prevalence of antibodies, at 2.6 per cent, while the five to nine year olds had none. Bolotin noted that the researchers are less confident about their findings for children: because healthy children rarely get blood drawn, they had fewer samples to work with, and the samples they did have are probably not representative of the pediatric population. Bolotin said Public Health Ontario will be publishing new antibody survey reports at regular intervals, and hoped to track this data in children as schools reopen. Researchers believe that kids may also be under-identified using the typical viral-genetic testing, known as PCR, because they are more likely to have a mild or asymptomatic case of COVID-19. Our estimates are very, very low for children in this report. How is that going change in the fall? . . . we may be able to capture it, if we get enough of a signal with these samples, Bolotin said. The percentages of antibody prevalence differed by geography, too. Toronto and the Central East portion of Ontario, which includes Peel Region, both had estimates of 1.5 per cent. In Toronto, that means the true caseload is likely closer to 44,000 than the official count of 15,400. Dr. David Fisman, an epidemiologist at the University of Torontos Dalla Lana School of Public Health, said that catching one in three COVID-19 cases is fantastic. His own analyses of published antibody blood surveys have suggested that globally, only about seven per cent of the true number of infections are being identified. Given some of the struggles weve had with testing, and the restrictions on testing, I think its quite remarkable that we identified one-third of cases, Fisman said. In New York City, one of the hardest-hit cities in the pandemic, data from antibody blood surveys has estimated that approximately 23 per cent of residents have been infected by the novel coronavirus, 10 to 12 times higher than reported case counts. A recent study estimated that in Missouri, true case counts are 24 times higher. Fisman noted that the higher prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies does not mean New Yorkers are more protected from second or third waves of the pandemic. We are very vulnerable to future waves, Fisman said, noting that an estimated 60 per cent of the population would need to be vaccinated or have durable natural antibody protection to reach herd immunity. Our population and New Yorks population are both vulnerable. We have just saved more lives so far. Undated photo from family of Zaron Henderson (left) with his brother Zamar Jones. Zamar Jones, 7, was shot in the head by a stray bullet, as he ducked to get out of the way, while on his front porch in the 200 block of N. Simpson St. on Saturday. Read more A 7-year-old boy shot in the head Saturday as three men waged a shootout in front of his West Philadelphia home died from his injures Monday afternoon, according to police. Zamar Jones was pronounced dead at 1 p.m., said Staff Inspector Sekou Kinebrew, a police spokesperson. Zamar was sitting on his porch Saturday night, next to his toy race car and scooter, when the men began firing at one another on the 200 block of North Simpson Street, police said. The motive for the shooting remained under investigation, and police were still searching Monday afternoon for two of the three suspected gunmen. One of the men, Christopher Linder, 27, was in custody and will be charged with murder, said Jane Roh, a spokesperson for the District Attorneys Office. Linder was arraigned Monday and held without bail on two counts of attempted murder, aggravated assault, and a host of related crimes, according to court records. Linder is accused of driving onto Simpson about 7:40 p.m. Saturday and unloading a barrage of bullets at a group of people standing outside, prompting two men to return fire. One of the shots hit Zamar in the head. Zamar had been fighting for his life Monday morning at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, said Makeeba McNeely, a neighbor and family friend. McNeely said Zamars mother was with him and was numb. Shes broken. Zamar was a bundle of joy, McNeely said. Everybody loves him. Everybody loves Zamar. The city continues to experience a surge in gun violence. Almost 1,100 people have been shot this year, according to police statistics, a 36% increase over the same point last year. The citys homicide total through Sunday was 255 people, a 34% increase over last year, and more than the annual total for 2014, when 248 people were slain. District Attorney Larry Krasner faulted the availability of guns, as well as poverty, a lack of opportunity, and substance abuse for the ongoing spike in shootings. Every kid deserves to live free of violence, harm, or fear, Krasner said in a statement. All children deserve an opportunity to develop and grow into healthy, happy adults. Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said in a statement this weekend that it is especially tragic when the victim is among our most vulnerable; and it is our collective responsibility police and community to ensure that our children are safe and well-protected. The block where Zamar was shot has been under police scrutiny before. In 2017, after three shootings occurred near the 200 block of North Simpson within two weeks, police stationed a patrol car there 24 hours a day, installed a surveillance camera on a pole at the blocks north end, and encouraged foot patrol officers to concentrate on the area. Inspector Derrick Wood said Monday that video footage captured the incident and could be helpful in identifying the two men who fired back at Linder. Wood and Krasner encouraged anyone with information about the crime to call police. Police have said the incident began when Linder drove a Chevrolet Silverado south on Simpson. As Linder was driving, police said, he opened fire on a group of people standing outside, prompting two other men on the street to pull their own guns and shoot back at the truck. Linder crashed into a GMC Yukon while trying to drive away, police said. He then jumped into the Yukon and drove that vehicle from the block. He has also been charged in the auto theft. Linder later returned to Simpson to try to get back into his Silverado, police said. Officers were on the scene, and they chased him onto the 6300 block of Race Street and arrested him. Authorities are still searching for the two men who traded shots with Linder. Police said they fled in a maroon Ford Taurus, which officers later found on the 200 block of North 64th Street. Linder was on probation for a previous conviction. In 2014, according to court records, he pleaded guilty to aggravated assault, conspiracy, and robbery of a motor vehicle. He received a 5-to-15 year prison sentence, as well as 19 years of probation, records say. The details of that case were not available Monday. Linder is being represented by the Defender Association of Philadelphia. Dan Stevenson, the associations homicide chief, called the case an obvious tragedy, but said it was too early in the investigation to comment further Filipinos line up at a Manila sports complex that has been turned into a COVID-19 transportation center, July 29, 2020. Updated at 3 p.m. ET on 2020-08-03 Millions of people in Manila and nearby cities will see their movements restricted again, starting Tuesday, after President Rodrigo Duterte ordered that the Philippine capital region be placed back under a COVID-19 lockdown as the number of confirmed cases surged past 100,000 over the weekend. Duterte gave the order late Sunday after an emergency meeting, which focused on a warning from the Philippine College of Physicians and about 80 other medical groups during the weekend that the health care system has been overwhelmed and a timeout was necessary to make adjustments. Metro Manila as well as highly populated areas in nearby Laguna, Bulacan, Rizal and Cavite provinces were to be placed under a modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) through Aug. 18, Duterte said. I have heard the call of different groups from the medical community for a two-week enhanced community quarantine in Mega Manila, Duterte said during a late-night briefing on Sunday that was attended by emergency officials and carried live by government television. I fully understand why your health workers would like to ask for such a timeout period. We are doing everything possible to alleviate the situation, to assist our health care workers and enhance our health care system, he said, emphasizing that advanced countries, including the United States, faced similar concerns. Essential businesses such as banks and food processing firms will be allowed to operate, while barbershops, restaurants, malls and others that had been allowed to open gradually will again be closed. Mass transportation including trains and buses will be stopped while ferries and domestic air travel are to be scaled back. [A]ll of us will again be homeliners stay at home, presidential spokesman Harry Roque told reporters. Going in and out of the house is banned, especially for youth and seniors, except for those getting essentials and those allowed to work in offices and establishments that are essential, he said. Face-to-face education is forbidden but online classes will continue as school facilities will be closed. Individual outdoor exercise such as walking, jogging, running or biking will be allowed. Mass gatherings are prohibited except for critical government services and authorized humanitarian activities, Roque said. Up to five people will be allowed in religious gatherings. In March, the Philippines imposed a strict quarantine but lifted it after 100 days to jumpstart the economy. Last week, Duterte further loosened the capitals quarantine measures and allowed the opening of more establishments in a bid to spur the economy further. The health department reported 3,226 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, on top of the 4,963 on Saturday and 5,032 on Sunday, pushing the total since the pandemic began to 106,330. It also reported that 2,104 had died of the coronavirus nationwide since the pandemic broke out in the Philippines. The nation has the second highest number of infections in Southeast Asia, trailing Indonesia, which has reported more than 113,000 cases according to disease experts at U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University. Globally, more than 18.1 million have been infected by COVID-19 and more than 690,000 have died. A member of the Alliance of Health Workers, a Philippine NGO, joins a demonstration outside the Jose Reyes Hospital in Manila where protesters demanded safer working conditions amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Aug. 3, 2020. [Czar Dancel/BenarNews] 80 medical groups seek timeout On Saturday, the 80 medical groups led by the Philippine College of Physicians and representing 80,000 doctors, nurses and other health care workers went public and appealed for a two-week timeout as hospital staff are stretched out. They appealed for leadership and asked the government, particularly the health department, to reevaluate its strategy in dealing with COVID-19. What were going through right now is worse than what we went through at the start [of the COVID-19 crisis] in March, said doctor Lei Camiling-Alfonso, a technical specialist at the Philippines Science of Public Health Physicians. Camiling-Alfonso said it was premature of the government to ease lockdown restrictions in June, adding this gave the public false hope that the countrys situation was improving. Its not. In fact, its far from that, she said. Seventy-one percent of ICU bed capacity is already full. If we dont fix our interventions, it will get worse in two weeks. She appealed to people to strictly follow health protocols including the proper wearing of masks. The health workers said a timeout was needed to enable them to regroup, reevaluate the situation and take steps to prevent new cases from overwhelming hospitals. They urged the government to develop comprehensive and effective measures to address the outbreak, saying health workers were burned out. They also warned Duterte that the system might collapse soon, contrary to government pronouncements. We are waging a losing battle, they said in a letter sent to the president. The two-week lockdown should be used by the government and health institutions to address hospital workforce deficiency, as well as improve contract tracing and quarantine measures and compliance, the doctors said. Aside from reviving the stricter lockdown, the government on Monday said it had agreed to hire additional health care workers and distribute millions of facemasks to the poor. This came shortly after the city government of Manila ordered the temporary closure of two hospitals the Ospital Ng Maynila (Hospital of the city of Manila) and the Dr. Fabella Memorial Hospital citing the growing number of infections among staff. PHILIPSBURG:--- The Honorable Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport (ECYS), drs. Rodolphe Samuel, has taken the bold decision to keep schools closed and to start the new school year with online learning, until further notice. He communicated this to parents and guardians via a letter, dated July 31, 2020. But, are schools prepared to deliver education online? Unfortunately, the Ministers decision came ten days prior to the official start of the new school year, which gives schools very little time to prepare. In a press briefing, just two days earlier, the Minister had given a strong indication that schools would open the traditional way while the necessary health and safety protocols would be put in place. Several school boards also announced that they were busy putting the required protocols in place to be able to receive their students in the new school year. As far as online learning is concerned, only one school board, the Protestant Christian Schoolboard, mentioned that it was prepared to offer in-school teaching or to go over to virtual teaching immediately. As the Minister of ECYS is also the head of public education, it would have been good if he could have assured parents, students and the public that the public schools are also prepared and ready to offer online teaching when school starts on August 10th. Public education is the second largest group of schools with approximately 1400 students, 160 teachers and seven schools. With this amount of students, teachers and schools, Government should actually be leading the charge and setting the example as far as online learning is concerned. The Minister mentioned in his letter that various approaches can be found in the Sint Maartens Education Continuity Plan. Several questions come to mind when contemplating the Ministers decision to start with online learning. Is the Sint Maartens Education Continuity Plan available on line so that parents and the public can have insight as to what and how students will be learning while at home? Has the curriculum content been adapted with respect to timing and pacing? What does the online schedule or timetable look like? Have the teachers received the necessary training to be able to prepare and deliver online teaching? Are all teachers in possession of an adequate PC or laptop as well as the necessary software? Has the Ministry ensured that reliable internet access is available to all students? If there are students who do not have access to the internet at home, has the Ministry made arrangements for these students to receive online teaching, under supervision, at their community center or at one of the schools in their vicinity? The Ministry should not expect a household with multiple school-going children to have only one device such as a laptop, a tablet or a phone. Therefore, has the Ministry ensured that each student possesses a device on which he or she can receive online education? Most of the responsibility for learning will now be shifted from the school to the home and from teachers to parents. Parents will be required to supervise their children as they follow online classes and to assist them with their homework assignments and projects. Therefore, does the Ministers plan also include the necessary training or preparation for parents to be able to cope with online teaching? Has the Ministry considered that many parents still have to go out to work? In a case like this, can parents depend on the Ministry to provide a location, with a teacher, where they can send their children to follow online classes? This should also be the case if children do not have a quiet place at home where they can work without being distracted. Does the Ministers plan also address the issue of student assessments as well as the evaluation of the teaching-learning experience? The Ministers decision to establish online teaching is a very serious one that affects a total of some 7000 students, 700 teachers and 25, fully subsidized, primary and secondary schools. But, there are also a number of non-subsidized schools, that do not fall under the authority of the Minister of ECYS, such as Learning Unlimited (LU), Caribbean International Academy (CIA), and all the nursery schools. Nevertheless, as far as the health, safety, and wellbeing of all students on Sint Maarten are concerned, these schools fall under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labor (VSA in Dutch). As such, it is the responsibility of the Minister of VSA to ensure that these schools are in total compliance with the COVID-19 health and safety regulations on Sint Maarten. If the non-subsidized schools are allowed to receive students in the new school year, these students will pose a serious health risk to their circle of family and friends. Will the VSA inspectors go out and physically inspect these schools to determine if they are COVID-19 compliant? The decision to start with online learning is just the first step in a series of decisions to ensure that our students receive quality online education. Parents need to be assured that their children will receive an education that is at least equal or perhaps superior to classroom instruction. For this reason, the Minister should make the plan available as soon as possible. It would set parents minds at ease knowing that our schools are ready to offer their children quality education during these trying times. Wycliffe Smith Leader of the SMCP At least 107 people were killed in July, more than double the same month last year, according to data kept by the Tribune. Thats the most homicides the city has seen since in a single month since September of 1992, when 109 were recorded. Syria has condemned recent reports regarding an oil deal between a US oil company and the Syrian Democratic Forces writes SANA. Syria has condemned in the strongest terms the agreement signed between the Qasad militia of the Syrian Democratic Forces and a US oil company to steal Syrian oil, affirming that it considers it null and void and has no legal effect. In a statement to SANA on Sunday, a Foreign and Expatriates Ministry official source said that the Syrian Arab Republic condemns in the strongest terms the agreement signed between the Qasad militia and a US oil company to steal Syrian oil under the sponsorship and support of the US administration. The source affirmed that this agreement is considered as aggravated theft and it can be only described as a deal between thieves who are stealing and thieves who are buying, and it constitutes an assault against Syrias sovereignty, and a continuation of the hostile US approach towards Syria, which is represented by stealing the resources of the Syrian people and hindering the efforts exerted by the Syrian state for rebuilding what has been destroyed by terrorism, which is mostly backed by the US administration itself. The source added, Syria considers this agreement null and void and has no legal effect and it warns again that such despicable acts express the approach of those client militias which have agreed to be a cheap puppet in the hands of the US occupation. The source asserted that those hired militias realize that the brutal American occupation will inevitably disappear and that it will be defeated like the terrorist groups which the Syrian state has been able to defeat, since the Syrians are able to protect their resources and to preserve the unity of their country and people. This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author. The largest school district in Georgia has confirmed that approximately 260 employees have either tested positive for the coronavirus or have been exposed, according to CNN. Employees in the Gwinnett County School District (GCPS) wont be returning to in-school learning for the upcoming school year on time. The situation in Gwinnett is fluid, GCPS spokeswoman Sloan Roach told CNN in an email Sunday evening. "As of last Thursday, we had approximately 260 employees who had been excluded from work due to a positive case or contact with a case," Roach said. "This number is fluid as we continue to have new reports and others who are returning to work," she added. The district, located in the metro Atlanta area, is set to reopen with online learning on Aug. 12. Despite the high case count and the confirmed community spread, some parents held a protest last week demanding that children be allowed to return to in-person learning. GCSD was giving the community the option for in-person learning until late July. But then the decision to only provide virtual learning was established "due to the current Covid-19 situation in our country and the rising numbers of cases in Gwinnett County," Roach explained. Roach did not say if the newly identified positive cases have changed the district's reopening plans. There was already a reporting and tracing process in place, as well as a protocol to exclude employees who test positive or came into contact with a confirmed case. Roach went on to say, that through the tracing process, the district determined that the majority of these 260 cases were the result of community spread. "We have people who have called in to report who have not been at school or work," she said. Gwinnett County has the second highest rate of Covid-19 cases in the state, with 17,781 confirmed cases, according to Georgias Department of Public Health. More than 190,000 cases and 3,800 deaths have been reported in the state of Georgia as of Monday morning. 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. Read more: 03.08.2020 LISTEN Students of University of Cape Coast(UCC), University of Education (UEW), University of Kwame Nkrumah Science and Technology (KNUST), University of Ghana(UG) and Ghana Institute of languages who were sent to Togo and Benin respectively on a year abroad programme have been evacuated back to Ghana following their efficacious studies. It is an annual programme which is fully funded by the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat and it is particularly given to Ghanaian students studying the French language in the above institutions and other colleges of education. The aim is to provide the enabling environment for these students to ameliorate their proficiency in the French language. One question may be echoing loudly in your mind "but how did they come?" Speaking to one beneficiary of this year's scholarship programme, Mr. Eric Dodwe Kwame, one of the UEW students who made it to the Universite d'Abomey- Calavi, Centre Beninois des langues etrangeres (CEBELAE), he narrated to me, Mr. Emmanuel Bartels Ankrah "despite the Covid-19 pandemic, we had a successful programme in CEBELAE, Benin. Our courses ended peacefully without any interruption. This was possible through the cooperative effort of the institution's management. In fact, they were professional in their duties. Unlike our other colleagues, we spent 6 months. We were enrolled on the E-learning to finish our second semester. Our studies were not truncated in any way, it was smooth. After our exams, we received a notice from the ambassador, Mr. Alowe Leo Kabah, together with his cohorts like Mrs. Louisa Hanson, deputy head of missions, Mad. Amma Agyeiwaa Boateng, Consulate and welfare and Miss Edith Quarshie, accountant of the embassy who had been with us all through the pandemic era and were pragmatic in discharging their duties, that we should prepare for the Ghana government in collaboration with the Benin foreign minister will bring us back home. We were very excited and on the 11th of July 2020, they made it happen. We returned by bus and with the escort of the Benin national security, we crossed the Benin and Togo borders safely then the Ghana national security took over. We were sent to the airport. They divided us into groups and allocated us to some nice hotel where we were put under a 14-day mandatory quarantine. Most importantly, we were fascinated to be put under quarantine for two reasons. One, it is poignantly true that many would have raised allegations against the government, my community would not have been an exception. Two, colleagues in KNUST and UG who came before us made it clear that they were treated extremely well to the point that they wanted the government to extend the days after the 14 days has expired and the results had it that they had all tested negative. Frankly speaking, the treatment under the quarantined mood was not different from what our brothers described to us. In fact, we even wanted them to extend it too. The only issue was that we were all gripped in trepidation wondering who was going to be tested positive after our blood samples were taken. Thankfully, all of us tested negative. As I speak with you now, I'm home with my family and everything had returned to its normalcy. I'll say Kudos to the government, irrespective of the widespread economic upheaval caused by this pandemic, he still remembered us and brought us back to our families". Meanwhile, our source has it that UCC students who are beneficiaries of this scholarship and had their year abroad in Universite de Lome, Village du Benin, Togo have also arrived safely in Ghana. They are the last batch to return to Ghana and are currently under mandatory quarantine in Accra which cannot be disclosed. They arrived on the 24th of July, 2020. They'll be freed to go home to their families after the 14-days. Some of the students are jokingly appealing to the government for the extension of the quarantine due to the warm reception. Emmanuel Bartels Ankrah University of Cape Coast By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, owners of around 3,000 budget hotels and guest houses in the national capital had to let go more than 75 per cent of their staff and are now staring at bankruptcy with unpaid bills running into lakhs, umbrella groups representing them have claimed. So severe is the situation that the president of Delhi Hotel and Restaurant Owners Association, Sandeep Khandelwal, claims he himself was being unable to pay his house rent. Even though the Centre had allowed hotels across the country to open their doors to customers from June 8, the Delhi government did not do so considering a large number of Covid-19 cases in that month. With Delhi witnessing a significant improvement in the Covid situation in July end, the Arvind Kejriwal government last Thursday allowed hotels to resume normal functioning. But that was not to be as L-G Anil Baijal the next day vetoed the decision, saying the situation continues to be fragile. He said over four lakh people depend on hotels, guest houses and restaurants for their livelihood directly or indirectly. The establishments have remained closed since March 15. Most of the employees have returned to their villages. A few remain to look after the premises. They, too, are not being paid their full salaries, he said. Khandelwal, who runs a hotel on a lease himself, claimed that he has not been able to pay its rent for the last four months. I pay Rs 7 lakh as rent for the property. Around 50 families depend on the hotel directly or indirectly... I represent the budget hotels and look at the situation I am in. Others are in a much worse condition, he said. Khandelwal claimed that hotel and guest house owners are being forced to pay hefty water and power bills, even though there has been zero business in the last four months. We demand that the government give us rebate on bills. Many establishments are on the verge of bankruptcy. If they cannot provide any relief, at least renew our fire and police licences and allow us to operate, he demanded. Hotels still shut in city Even though the Centre had allowed hotels across the country to open their doors to customers from June 8, the Delhi government did not do soconsidering a large number of Covid-19 cases in that month. Maruti Suzuki India Ltd and Hyundai Motor India Ltd are looking to ramp up vehicle production back to the peak levels of FY18, said two people directly aware of the plans, as the countrys two largest carmakers gear up for an expected spurt in sales during the coming festival season. Maruti plans to produce 160,000-170,000 vehicles in October, and has also asked suppliers and employees to work extra days during the month, the two people said, requesting anonymity. Hyundai, on the other hand, is also likely to manufacture 58,000-60,000 vehicles as it expects demand for its Creta and Venue utility vehicles to peak during Diwali, which falls in November, they added. The plans of Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai are a bellwether for Indias car industry as they had a combined 68% share of the domestic passenger vehicle market in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020. Both companies increased vehicle production in FY18 and in the first half of FY19 to meet robust demand in line with a pickup in economic activity. Sales later decelerated due to factors such as a slowing economy, higher fuel prices, insurance costs and farm distress. This year, too, automakers remain cautious about the sustainability of demand despite an expected spike in festive sales. Maruti Suzuki, for instance, has declined to share sales volume guidance for this fiscal. Automakers have also been finding it tough to ramp up production due to disruption in supply chains. Lockdowns in various states, rising number of Covid-19 cases, shortage of skilled manpower and increased inspection of imported parts from China following escalating tensions between the two nations have added to the woes of automakers and their suppliers. Mint on June 18 reported that Osamu Suzuki, chairman of parent Suzuki Motor Corp., had written to Marutis suppliers, urging them to help the company in this regard by producing more components. Both Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai managed to ramp up production in the past two months as retail demand picked up due to faster recovery in the rural markets and a shift in customer preference for personal mobility. Marutis domestic wholesales, or factory dispatches, touched the 100,000 mark in July, up from 51,274 vehicles in June and 13,865 units in May. Hyundai recorded sales of 38,200 vehicles in July, rising from 21,320 units in June and just 5,500 units in May. Both companies though plan to reduce manufacturing after the festive season since the long-term demand scenario is still uncertain due to the rising tally of coronavirus cases, said the first person cited above. A spokesperson for Maruti Suzuki declined to comment on the production forecast. Hyundai did not respond to an emailed query sent on Monday. The second person cited above said Maruti has been quite bullish about the festive season as retail sales are picking up and the production forecast of 170,000 vehicles can be achieved due to the ramp-up at the Gujarat plant, where popular models such as Swift and Baleno are made. The three intertwined crises we now face the coronavirus pandemic, the conflict over racial equity and the plummeting economy have exposed our public institutions, ranging from education to health care to nursing homes, as outdated and inadequate to the present challenges. With government revenues plunging across the country, most see their only choice as cutting programs with little if any fat left to cut which will only exacerbate these other crises.There is an alternative. And that is to rethink how the public sector delivers human services, which account for roughly two-thirds of public spending at all levels of government. The only way state and local governments will survive the current challenge is not to slash programs, but rather to redefine their entire human-services model for the 21st century. Those that do the most in this regard, and do it the quickest, will be the ones that do the best.In large part, the problem is our reliance on large physical institutions for the delivery of almost all public services. Virtually all institutional settings have been implicated in and contributed to the current crises. For example: The first major hot spots for the spread of the coronavirus were nursing homes, which continue to be epicenters of the outbreak. Hospitals, of course, have become major disease vectors themselves and are now taxed to capacity in areas experiencing the most virulent outbreaks, such as Phoenix and Miami. Schools were shut down almost immediately across the country, and we are now engaged in a great nationwide debate as to if, when and how they can reopen. Offenders are being released from prisons across the country to stop the uncontrolled spread of the virus within their walls.Most such institutions also are highly implicated in the debate over racial equity: Public education has always has been inequitably provided and funded, and racial disparities have worsened dramatically with the sudden shift to distance learning. High-speed internet access is essential if your entire education has been moved online, but roughly one-seventh of households with school-age children lack such a connection , and that share rises to one in three for the 40 percent of such households with incomes below $50,000. It's even higher for poorer families, African Americans, Latinos and those in rural areas. Such families also are likely to lack a home computer adequate to the task of online learning. Health disparities and access to medical care, including in emergency settings, are strongly correlated to race, as the higher death rates from COVID-19 among African Americans have laid bare. Similar racial disparities are prevalent in every other area of human services, from child care and early childhood education to nursing homes. There is, of course, one area where people of color are treated to far higher levels of government attention: the criminal justice system. Those subject to the wildfire spread of the virus in confinement are disproportionately Black.And now the economic downturn is coming for all such services like the grim reaper. State governments are looking at severe revenue losses and, inevitably, budget cuts in the neighborhood of 25 percent for the 2020-21 fiscal year. North Carolina's public university system is looking at budget cuts as deep as 50 percent . Local governments and school districts will be slightly insulated at first because property taxes lag other revenue declines, but by next year they will be in severe distress as well.And what is the general governmental response to these looming deficits? To cut services, of course. Even state funding for primary and secondary schools, usually an untouchable even in such crises, is beginning to be slashed, and how could it be otherwise? We have spent decades hollowing out most public services: What is left to eliminate?What's important to realize is that all these services emerged in their current forms early in the 19th century. It started with the "insane asylum," which at the time was actually conceived as a humane advance over prior systems of neglect. This became the model for the treatment of all social maladies, from violent offending to simply being poor or left an orphan. The solution to every ill turned out to be to construct an imposing and dehumanizing building, cram as many people inside it for as long as possible, ruin their lives and then release them into society. (When I have given talks on this subject, the teachers in the audience invariably interject that this applies to schools as well.) The basis of how we address crime, mental and physical health, poverty, child welfare, schooling and even the warehousing of our elderly is, then, literally insanity.The asylum model itself as well as poorhouses, orphanages and prisons was derived in turn from that dominant institution of the era: the factory. But thinking of people as factory inputs and outputs is inherently dehumanizing.It is also outdated. We now know better how to address these challenges and achieve better outcomes for people. The literature in all of these separate fields, developed independently, reads remarkably similarly: In all cases, we know that individually tailored efforts work better than one-size-fits-all; that real-world integration works better than cloistered institutionalization; that continued support and "aftercare" work better than simply dropping people at some predetermined end-point; that sticks are rarely effective without carrots; and that, as your grandmother might have told you, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The dispersed and ubiquitous technologies that define our age make all of this from community corrections to urgent-care centers, and from hybrid learning to home care for the elderly much more practicable and effective.And here's the irony: Doing virtually everything we ask government to do better would also mean doing it cheaper. We don't need to be cutting public services: We need to be modernizing them.As I've written before, everything from how we handle criminal corrections to how we serve the children in our midst most in need would be improved if we invested in individualized solutions, more modern and competitive systems, and preventing crime and recidivism, poverty, ignorance, family disintegration, mental illness and chronic health disparities, instead of simply mopping up after them if not, indeed, sweeping them under the rug.This would also better address the multiple threats now facing our state, local and if anyone there were paying attention federal governments: an abandoned public health infrastructure, a shuttered education system, the isolation of our seniors, breakdowns in public order and a collapse of public resources in which a further turn to austerity will only worsen all the other problems.How do we solve this spiraling free-fall of public budgets and public services? Not by cutting government spending. Not by bloating it. But by fundamentally rethinking it and bringing it into the 21st century, and doing so as soon as possible.GoverningGoverning Meghan Markle has donated 8,000 from the proceeds of her Together recipe book to a British charity offering cookery classes led by migrants and refugees. Migrateful, a London-based project, announced the news on Twitter, explaining: 'We're so excited to share that we have received a donation of 8000 from The Royal Foundation on behalf of The Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle!' A source close to the Duke, 35, and Duchess of Sussex, 38, who are currently living in Tyler Perry's $14 million mansion having stepped back from royal duty, confirmed to Hello magazine that the funds came from the proceeds from the Together cookbook, which is still part of the Royal Foundation. The Together cookbook, which contains 50 kitchen favourites from women from the Grenfell community, was launched in September 2018 as the Duchess's first major solo endeavour as a member of the royal family. Meghan Markle, 38, has donated 8,000 to a London-based project Migrateful, which runs cookery classes led by refugees. The funds came from proceeds raised by her first major royal project, the Together cookbook (pictured, visiting the Hubb kitchen in November 2018) Announcing the generous donation online, Migrateful explained: 'We are immensely grateful for this donation which will go towards supporting the Migrateful mission.' The organisation's website explains how it 'runs cookery classes led by refugees, asylum seekers and migrants struggling to integrate and access employment. 'The cookery classes provide ideal conditions not just for learning English and building confidence, but also for promoting contact and cultural exchange with the wider community.' It continues: 'Due to legal, linguistic and social barriers, finding work can be extremely difficult for many migrants. The funds were donated from the Royal Foundation on behalf of the Duchess, who is currently living in Los Angeles having stepped back from royal duty in March The organisation announced the news on Twitter over the weekend, adding that they felt 'immensely grateful' for the donation 'Migratefuls mission is to empower and celebrate refugees and vulnerable migrants on their journey to integration, by supporting them to run their own cookery classes.' Together: Our Community Cookbook, was released by Meghan to support the Grenfell community in September 2018 The generous donation came from proceeds raised from the Hubb's Together cookbook, which was Meghan's first major royal project. Meghan released Together: Our Community Cookbook to help Grenfell survivors in September 2018. The recipes proved popular and 38,811 copies were sold in the first two months. The cookbook made 557,638 for the Grenfell survivors of the Hubb Community Kitchen, and the royal charity invested 232,551 to help them further. According to The Telegraph, the royal charity spent 204,031 on refurbishing the kitchen, and a further 28,520 on training and development schemes. The couple have returned to the Hubb Community Kitchen a number of times in the year since, on both private and public engagements. Members of the community have spoken out to thank Harry and Meghan for their ongoing support. The most recent visit came in January on their return from their Canadian hiatus and before their public engagement at London's Canada House. The donation comes after Prince Harry and Meghan formally axed their royal charitable foundation in another symbolic split from the Royal family. Documents filed at Companies House last week confirmed they are winding up the company behind the Sussex Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. The donation comes as the Duke and Duchess formally axed their royal foundation as they step away from royal duty The Sussex foundation was only incorporated on July 1 last year following Meghan and Harry's decision to split from the foundation that they previously shared with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. After announcing they were launching a new charity Archewell in the US back in April, the couple said they were 'looking forward' to getting started with the foundation, which will replace their Sussex Royal brand. The move to dissolve the Foundation had not been unexpected and follows the Queen's decision that Harry and Meghan can no longer use the word 'royal' in their branding. The couple moved to Los Angeles with baby Archie to start their new life after they were forced to choose between financial independence or remaining as working members of the royal family. Far to the west of the protests in Khabarovsk, large rallies in another location are also attracting the Kremlin's attention: Belarus, where a swell of desire for change has turned an August 9 election into the biggest challenge authoritarian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka has faced over a quarter-century in power. Senior Correspondent Tony Wesolowsky joins host Steve Gutterman to discuss. A Japanese robotic startup has unveiled a smart mask, called 'C-Mask', which lets users connect to their smartphones and make calls remotely, without needing to access their smartphones. The mask also has a speech recognition technology, that helps people send text messages via speech without needing to access their phones at all. According to its creator, Donut Robotics, the key objective is to make interpersonal communications easier, especially with social distancing norms in place due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The mask is built of plastic and silicone, with breathable pores to ensure comfort of users. The key highlight of C-Mask's abilities is the ability to translate from Japanese into eight other languages, including Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Indonesian, English, Spanish, and French. It also helps amplify the user's voice, in case the person they are talking to cannot hear them through the mask. It has an embedded microphone that connects to the user's smartphone via Bluetooth, to help conduct voice calls and speech messages. Donut Robotics' proprietary translation software was created for a robot called Cinnamon, which was part of an initiative by the company to provide live translation and speech services for visitors at Tokyo's Haneda Airport. However, the project took a back seat when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out. To make the most of this time, Donut Robotics CEO, Taisuke Ono said that his company's engineers soon decided to use the software in a face mask, which he believes could be a hit during the pandemic. The smart C-Mask will be unveiled in Japan, with 5,000 units shipping from September. It will cost from 3,980 Yen (~Rs 2,800), in order to attract more mainstream buyers. Eventually, Donut Robotics aims to sell the mask in USA, Europe and China, as the Covid-19 crisis still continues at a persistent pace. The C-Mask can reportedly be used to setup online meetings, book medical appointments and taking notes. In the near future, the company has stated that it aims to release more augmented and virtual reality features to add to the mask's abilities as well. Launched by film and television studio Huanxi Media Group, OTT platform Huanxi Media delivers high-end scripted and non-scripted content to a growing subscriber base in mainland China. Content in the deal with all3media covers a range of genres such as true crime, travel, food, arts/culture, history and royalty, and will see in all 25 titles added to Huanxi Medias new non-scripted portfolio.The deal also features two seasons of Studio Lamberts Race Across the World, the ambitious series that challenges teams to take on the ultimate globe-trotting adventure a ground-level race across multiple countries with limited cash and no modern technology. Additional travel-focused titles acquired are Our Guy in Japan (North One Productions- pictured), Kevin McClouds Escape to the Wild (Optomen Television) and Bears Wild Weekend with Stephen Fry (betty tv). Two titles have been signed from all3media internationals true crime catalogue: The Innocence Network (Pernel Media) and Murder on the Internet (Spun Gold).A collection of food-themed content led by chef Gordon Ramsay will also be available via Huanxi Media. This includes all three series of the US ratings hit Gordon Ramsays 24 Hours to Hell and Back (Studio Ramsay for Fox, US) alongside One Potato Two Potatos Gordons Ultimate Cookery Course, Gordons Festive Home Cooking and Gordon Ramsay Behind Bars.Programming also includes Raw TVs award-winning special Drowning in Plastic and the two most recent series of BBC Studios Fake or Fortune feature in the deal, alongside a host of acclaimed history documentaries such as Pompeii Life Before Death, Rome - Empire without Limit with Mary Beard and Egypts Lost Queens, all from Lion Television. Finalising the deal are a selection of titles from the royal catalogue: Spun Golds one-off special Secrets of the Royal Babies and two-parter Royal Wives of Windsor, and Lion Televisions Henry VII The Winter King.Were delighted to work with Huanxi Media for the first time as the platform continues to build its new non-scripted offering in China, commented Kit Yow, sales manager Asia Pacific at all3media . With such a wealth of finished content available, were able to deliver premium, globally relevant programming to new platforms quickly and efficiently, helping them to ensure that their brand stands out and appeals to a wide range of new viewers. By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 08/03/2020 ADVERTISEMENT [ Spoiler Warning: This report features spoilers revealing whether Deavan and Jihoon are still together or if the couple have split.] ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT So did Jihoon and Deavan work things out or did they split -- is the couple still together now? 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. couple Jihoon Lee and Deavan Clegg 's relationship has reached a breaking point on Season 2 of : The Other Way, so did Deavan fly back to America and dump her husband or is the pair still together now?Deavan was a 22-year-old from Salt Lake City, UT, when she met Jihoon, a 29-year-old mobile phone dealer from Seoul, South Korea, on a dating app.Jihoon gushed about how Deavan was his "fantasy" girl, and they used translating apps to communicate with each other.Deavan and Jihoon talked to each other every day for three months, and then Jihoon traveled to America to meet Deavan in person as well as her young daughter Drascilla from a previous relationship. Drascilla was three years old at the time and will turn five this August.Deavan and Jihoon fell for each other quickly and were intimate during Jihoon's stay, which resulted in a surprise and unplanned pregnancy with Jihoon's first child.Jihoon and Deavan found out they were expecting after six positive pregnancy tests confirmed their suspicions on the day he was leaving to return to South Korea in 2018.After Jihoon returned home to South Korea, the couple planned to get married and become a family.So after Deavan won the approval of Jihoon's parents -- which was a difficult task -- Jihoon proposed marriage during a lunch at a Las Vegas restaurant. He also intended to return to America just two months later for Deavan's scheduled C-section.However, Deavan learned the baby had to be delivered early because her blood pressure was really high, and unfortunately, Jihoon said it would be too expensive to cancel his flight and buy a new ticket to the United States.Deavan therefore welcomed her son Taeyang in April 2019 without Jihoon by her side, and Jihoon admitted he was "a very bad father" at first.Jihoon eventually made his way to the United States to meet his son, but he had a lot of learning to do, like changing diapers. He also revealed to Deavan he had lost his job.Jihoon's "lack of financial responsibility" really worried Deavan, especially since he had nine months while she was pregnant to save for a baby.Jihoon told Deavan not to worry and their future would be bright, but Deavan was sick of hearing "trust me" and said she needed things to actually happen.Deavan then moved to South Korea and start a new life, and she chose not to bring Drascilla with her right away in order to make sure Jihoon had all of their affairs in order and her daughter would be okay in a foreign country.Deavan expected Jihoon to have landed a full-time job and an apartment for them, but he was still living in his parents' house and broke the news they'd continue living there for a few months.Deavan said it was "unacceptable" to be stuck sharing a one-bedroom apartment with a newborn and Jihoon's parents.Jihoon admitted to Deavan it was hard for him to save money because he was financially in debt.Jihoon apparently owed $30,000 (which included interest on a loan he had taken out to pay the original $15,000 fine) due to illegally selling used and lost phones, but at the time of their conversation, he said he had his debt down to $5,000.Despite the major red flags, Deavan and Jihoon still filed marriage papers so she could reside in Jihoon's country permanently. And three weeks later, they had a traditional Korean wedding ceremony.Deavan documented her relationship with Jihoon in Summer through Fall 2019 on social media and started a small T-shirt business with Jihoon that was doing well at the time.But Deavan unfortunately suffered a miscarriage with her third child. She announced on Instagram in October 2019 she had lost a baby.On Season 2 of : The Other Way, Deavan lamented how she was exhausted and overwhelmed raising two children by herself.Deavan therefore flew back to South Korea with the intent of living there permanently and Jihoon helping to raise her children. Deavan packed condoms because she said she didn't want to get pregnant again, and her mother Elicia joined her for the trip to assist with Drascilla and Taeyang.Deavan rented her family an apartment for one month until Jihoon could get them settled in a new place, and she just hoped Jihoon was telling the truth this time and would have "his sh-t together."Deavan was about to be in for a rude awakening because Jihoon had "exaggerated" about how much money he was making."I don't really have a job," Jihoon admitted to the cameras. "I have a side job doing deliveries and it goes by the hour. It's a part-time job. I lied to Deavan because if I not have money, then Deavan's not come to Korea."Jihoon's friends even thought Jihoon was making Korean men look bad.Deavan then arrived in South Korea, which marked her second attempt to move there permanently. Jihoon hadn't seen Deavan in two months, and he said he was very excited to see her.Once Deavan saw the apartment they'd be living in and Elicia appeared disgusted, Jihoon's mother scolded her son for not checking the apartment before Deavan and her family traveled.The place was broken down in a bad neighborhood, and Elicia vented she was "totally losing [her] sh-t."Deavan described the apartment building as "the ghetto of Korea" and said it wasn't even on a street -- it was in an alley and surrounded by trash and even toilets.Elicia pulled Jihoon aside and gave him a piece of her mind by saying she had expected him to behave like a man and find a safe place for her daughter and grandkids to live.Elicia appeared to be on the verge of tears and complained, "I am extremely disappointed in Jihoon," and Deavan was also "extremely angry" at her husband.Deavan soon discovered the apartment was tiny, there was no stovetop or living room, and she barely had room for her suitcase."It just feels like I'm doing all the heavy lifting in this relationship and he has done nothing so far," Deavan noted in a confessional. "It's just to the point where I can't do it anymore."Deavan was clearly tired of Jihoon's empty promises, and Jihoon acknowledged the situation was a mess and he had failed to earn back Deavan's trust. He called himself a total "idiot."Jihoon also confessed to Deavan he had no money, and Deavan vented, "All the things I was worried about were true."The pair tried to communicate through a language-translating piece of technology but it wasn't translating correctly and so the pair couldn't have a clear conversation."If I would have known you didn't have money, I wouldn't have came here," Deavan said. "Why do you keep lying to me?""To be honest, I wanted you to come here fast," Jihoon said. "If you're worried about money, you can leave here."Jihoon asked Deavan to stay for a few months and give him another chance, but she refused to stay in the apartment and threatened to leave when her mother was scheduled to leave South Korea.Deavan was furious and cried because she had nothing at home to go back to but she didn't have a good reason to stay in South Korea either.Jihoon claimed he earned around $2,000-3,000 a month, but Deavan had been working 17 hours a day while raising two kids. She thought Jihoon working a part-time job so he could "take more naps" was "ridiculous."Jihoon's mother apparently managed his money so he couldn't spend it on himself, and so he told Deavan that he was saving for a new house."It sounds like you didn't want to spend your money so you let me spend all my money, and now we're here and I don't have anything. I don't have money, I don't have a car," Deavan told Jihoon."I gave up everything for you, but you couldn't give up some time to work harder to help. My life is not a game. I have sacrificed a lot and you've sacrificed nothing, and I at this point, have lost all trust. If you loved me and the kids, you would've helped."Jihoon replied, "You're right, I am so sorry. But I do love you.""I don't think I want to be together anymore after this," Deavan noted. "I am going to get a hotel tonight with just my mom so I can be alone with the kids and think."Jihoon realized it was probably "game over" for him.Jihoon figured this was "the last straw" for Deavan, although Jihoon's mother hoped Deavan wouldn't give up on her relationship so easily because men in South Korea supposedly tell "white lies" when they are young and immature.Jihoon vented about how he had been living his life "all wrong" and felt like "a loser," and he was scared to lose Deavan.Jihoon's mother advised him to stop crying, "snap out of it, and change." She told him to cease the opportunity and be better for the sake of his son, Taeyang.Meanwhile, Deavan's mother Elicia believed Deavan had made a huge mistake in moving her family to South Korea, and Deavan was beginning to think she was right. Deavan couldn't speak the language or even order for her kids at a restaurant.Deavan considered using the rest of her money to return to America, but she wanted answers and figured the only way to do that would be to sit down with Jihoon and his mother, who was controlling Jihoon's finances."If this conversation doesn't go well, I will leave and go back to America and never speak to [Jihoon] again," Deavan said."If I were to make the decision, we'd be on the plane right now," Elicia confessed.Deavan then met Jihoon and his parents at a restaurant to get to the bottom of what was going on. Jihoon ignored Deavan at first at the restaurant, which Deavan couldn't believe, but Jihoon said he couldn't even face his wife because he felt so bad about his behavior.Deavan and Jihoon then communicated through a translator, and Jihoon admitted he was wrong and would work hard to provide money for his family. Deavan, however, said she had heard that before and Jihoon said the same exact thing four months ago.Jihoon apologized for being selfish and explained his money was in his mother's bank account for safekeeping, with Jihoon's father dubbed "a mistake" since his wife and baby needed money.Jihoon said his mother had his money because he was afraid of making another mistake, and the translator changed his words to, "I'll make another mistake. I'll waste that money again."Jihoon was so frustrated with the translator, and when he asked Deavan for another chance, the translator failed to relay that information.Jihoon grew furious and then he and his parents started shouting at each other about how to communicate with Deavan, but all Deavan could comprehend was that Jihoon was yelling."They seem like they're very angry at me," Deavan said.Jihoon wanted to explain that his mother had his money so he couldn't spend it on himself, but he was just shouting the words in Korean at Deavan and she couldn't understand.Deavan said it was "disgusting" how Jihoon had lost his temper, and she said, "You made me give up my life to come here. You scammed me; you tricked me. My life is ruined now."Jihoon's mother laughed, and then Deavan said in tears, "This isn't a joke. I don't want to do this. They think it's a joke. I want to end this. I don't want to do this anymore. I am uncomfortable."With that being said, Jihoon stormed away from the table and said Deavan was pissing him off."Am I a joke?" Jihoon vented. "I'm not a f-cking joke... I am really serious -- more than Deavan. F-ck this!""I don't want to be here right now," Deavan told the cameras.There was clearly a huge misunderstanding and the couple just couldn't communicate.At the beginning of : The Other Way's second season, Deavan was shown waiting out the coronavirus pandemic while living in South Korea.The footage filmed earlier this year, around February or March, and was seemingly intended for TLC's : Self-Quarantined spinoff.Deavan shared how COVID-19 was "very serious" where she was staying in South Korea. She said South Korea was the second country with the most infected people and so she and Jihoon were in quarantine in an apartment together.Deavan admitted her daughter Drascilla was going stir crazy and her son Taeyang couldn't play outside."They're predicting 60 percent of the country could get the virus, and that's really scary. Everyone is in panic mode, and I don't know what to do," Deavan told her Diary Cam.( : The Other Way then flashed back to seven months earlier, when Deavan was preparing for her move to South Korea with her two kids.)Although Deavan and Jihoon were just together a few months ago, Deavan's mom Elicia revealed in late July that Deavan had returned to the United States and was quarantining separately from Jihoon.Elicia posted a photo of her granddaughter Drascilla on July 20, and in the comments section, she wrote Deavan has been "stuck" in America with her two kids while Jihoon remains in South Korea, according to In Touch Weekly."She is visiting here, but the travel restrictions have forced her to be here longer," Elicia wrote, adding, "[Deavan and Drascilla] are stuck here until travel restrictions are lessened because of the virus."Elicia saying Deavan is "visiting," "stuck" and "forced" to be in the U.S. longer that anticipated suggests Deavan is trying to get back to South Korea to be with Jihoon again, so it appears the couple is still together despite the distance between them right now.And Jihoon seemingly misses his wife and children, as he took to Instagram on July 19 with an image that read, "If love is deep, longing becomes pain."Earlier in July, Jihoon seemingly gave away he and Deavan are still together when he lashed out at trolls on Instagram, saying is in his past and he now has a job that supports his family, meaning Deavan and her two kids.After posting several hashtags, Jihoon wrote, "To people who ask me to get a job, I'm always so kind to people who are kind to me first. But to those who are rude to me, I'm an assh-le to them. Distinguish between show and reality. And the show is in the past."Jihoon continued, "I've said countless times that I have a job. My job is to deliver food. I earn enough money to take care of my family. If you read this and you tell me to get a job, from now on, I'm thinking of you as a goldfish with a memory of three seconds.""I'll just ignore it and block it," he added. "Cuz I don't want to talk to fish, yeah think about it how crazy huh?! Bye."Jihoon's post served as the caption to a screenshot of him slamming a hater."I'm working right now... You need to be logical. Don't be so old. I have a job. And my side job blocks a b-tch like you."There was also evidence in June on social media that Deavan and Jihoon were still going strong, at least at the time.On June 17, Jihoon posted a funny picture of Deavan holding a large box of condoms, and Deavan commented, "Jihoon knows how to work it whoot whoot."Given the box said the condoms were "small pecker condoms," Deavan clarified, "Hahahahaha haha everyone knows it was a joke."And a few days earlier, Deavan posted a selfie of herself modeling in a really nice home or apartment."Loving this dress. Super cute. #90dayfiance #90daytheotherway #fashion #tattoos #morningvibes," Deavan captioned the June 14 photo.One follower commented, "Omg she's back in the states!!??"And then Deavan confirmed, "Just visiting," suggesting her permanent residence is still South Korea.Deavan also confirmed in the comments section of her post she is "definitely not pregnant" again.In addition, Deavan often adds the hashtags #southkorea and #deavanandjihoon to her Instagram posts.Going back to early June, Deavan conducted an interview with Access in which she said she was really excited for fans to see more of her relationship with Jihoon on Season 2 of : The Other Way."It's very exciting. I'm so excited to continue my journey and share my journey. I'm really, really excited that people get to see me and Jihoon and more of that aspect, because I think on Season 1 people didn't get to see too much of us," Deavan said."But this time, everyone will get to see that and this beautiful journey. You guys are going to see definitely some of our lowest points and some of our highest points, so it's going to be worth the watch."Deavan assured Access that Jihoon "loves [being a father].""It's definitely a life-changing thing for him and I think he's very happy with it, even though it was a surprise to both of us. But he absolutely loves both kids," Deavan shared.Despite the ups and downs in her relationship with Jihoon, Deavan called starring on the with him "a great experience" that was "life-changing."Want more spoilers or couples updates? Click here to visit our homepage! 19 Couple lives on former Ellis Island ferryboat in waters off Staten Island Despite decades of positive messaging to encourage women and girls to pursue education tracks and careers in STEM, women continue to fall far below their male counterparts in these fields. A new study at Carnegie Mellon University examined 25 languages to explore the gender stereotypes in language that undermine efforts to support equality across STEM career paths. The results are available in the August 3rd issue of Nature Human Behavior. Molly Lewis, special faculty at CMU and her research partner, Gary Lupyan, associate professor at University of Wisconsin-Madison, set out to examine the effect of language on career stereotypes by gender. They found that implicit gender associations are strongly predicted by the language we speak. Their work suggests that linguistic associations may be causally related to people's implicit judgement of what women can accomplish. "Young children have strong gender stereotypes as do older adults, and the question is where do these biases come from," said Lewis, first author on the study. No one has looked at implicit language - simple language that co-occurs over a large body of text - that could give information about stereotypical norms in our culture across different languages." In general, the team examined how words co-occur with women compared to men. For example, how often is 'woman' associated with 'home,' 'children' and 'family,' where as 'man' was associated with 'work,' 'career' and 'business.' "What's not obvious is that a lot of information that is contained in language, including information about cultural stereotypes, [occurs not as] direct statements but in large-scale statistical relationships between words," said Lupyan, senior author on the study. "Even without encountering direct statements, it is possible to learn that there is stereotype embedded in the language of women being better at some things and men at others." They found that languages with a stronger embedded gender association are more clearly associated with career stereotypes. They also found that a positive relationship between gender-marked occupation terms and the strength of these gender stereotypes. Previous work has shown that children begin to ingrain gender stereotypes in their culture by the age of two. The team examined statistics regarding gender associations embedded in 25 languages and related the results to an international dataset of gender bias (Implicit Association Test). Surprisingly, they found that the median age of the country influences the study results. Countries with a larger older population have a stronger bias in career-gender associations. "The consequences of these results are pretty profound," said Lewis. "The results suggest that if you speak a language that is really biased then you are more likely to have a gender stereotype that associates men with career and women with family." She suggests children's books be written and designed to not have gender-biased statistics. These results also have implications for algorithmic fairness research aimed at eliminating gender bias in computer algorithms. "Our study shows that language statistics predict people's implicit biases -- languages with greater gender biases tend to have speakers with greater gender biases," Lupyan said. "The results are correlational, but that the relationship persists under various controls [and] does suggest a causal influence." Lewis notes that the Implicit Association Test used in this study has been criticized for low reliability and limited external validity. She stresses that additional work using longitudinal analyses and experimental designs is necessary to explore language statistics and implicit associations with gender stereotypes. ### Lewis and Lupyan received funding for the project, titled "Gender stereotypes are reflected in the distributional structure of 25 languages," from the National Science Foundation. WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump's unfounded attacks on mail balloting are discouraging his own supporters from embracing the practice, according to polls and Republican leaders across the country, prompting growing alarm that one of the central strategies of his campaign is threatening GOP prospects in November. Multiple public surveys show a growing divide between Democrats and Republicans about the security of voting by mail, with Republicans saying they are far less likely to trust it in November. In addition, party leaders in several states said they are encountering resistance among GOP voters who are being encouraged to vote absentee while also seeing the president describe mail voting as "rigged" and "fraudulent." As a result, state and local Republicans across the country fear they are falling dramatically behind in a practice that is expected to be key to voter turnout this year. Through mailers and Facebook ads, they are racing to promote absentee balloting among their own. In the process, some Republican officials have tried to draw a distinction between "absentee ballots," which Trump claims are secure, and "mail ballots," which he has repeatedly attacked. In fact, the terms are used interchangeably. Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill, describing a recent meeting with a group of Republican voters in Fort Payne, said he felt compelled to explain that there is only one kind of mail-in voting in Alabama, and that it is safe and secure. "They were confused about two different kinds of mail-in balloting," he said, "where one is 'good' and one is not." Merrill's concerns were echoed by senior White House and campaign aides, as well as GOP operatives in numerous key states including Pennsylvania, Ohio and Iowa, who all spoke on the condition of anonymity to criticize the president. "It is a problem," said one Republican strategist in North Carolina. "The president has oversimplified the issue to criticize the method of voting, rather than the way it's done. The details matter." Republican National Committee spokesman Mike Reed disputed the view that Trump's attacks on mail voting are a threat to Republican turnout. "Some are going to vote absentee through the proper process as they always do, and you will see us encouraging them to do that," Reed said. "But many of our voters just prefer to vote in person." With the novel coronavirus pandemic still raging across the United States, election officials in dozens of states have addressed fears of infection at the polls by preparing for a massive increase in mail balloting. Officials in both parties are building turnout operations geared specifically to mail voting on the belief that a majority of voters will prefer to cast their ballots this way. At least 77% of American voters will be able to vote through the mail in the fall, according to a Washington Post tracker of state rules. At the same time, Trump's campaign and the RNC are fighting against the expansion of mail balloting, seeking to stop efforts backed by Democrats and voting rights advocates to loosen rules, such as witness signatures and identification requirements, that would make it easier for people to vote by mail. GOP party officials argue that such restrictions are necessary to prevent fraud. The president has gone much further, however, launching wholesale broadsides against the concept of voting by mail that have emerged as a central strategy of his campaign. "The 2020 Election will be totally rigged if Mail-In Voting is allowed to take place, & everyone knows it," he tweeted July 26, one of more than 70 attacks he has made against voting by mail since March, according to a tally by The Post. Senior Trump advisers, including RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, have warned the president that his broad rhetoric is complicating Republican turnout efforts, multiple strategists said. McDaniel and Justin Clark, Trump's deputy campaign manager, have repeatedly encouraged the president to promote the use of absentee ballots. McDaniel has additionally urged him to stop his blanket attacks on mail voting and present a more nuanced message. GOP officials around the country said more clarity from the president would help voters. "I think that is the distinction he is trying to draw," Merrill said. "I would hope that he would be more specific in his explanation so people understand what the difference is." Trump has indicated that he has no plans to back off his attacks on the integrity of the vote, strategists said. Some advisers acknowledged privately that the president may be laying the groundwork to claim the election was rigged if he loses in November. Just last week, Trump suggested delaying the election until Americans can safely cast ballots in person. In recent days, Vice President Mike Pence and Attorney General William Barr both spoke publicly about the risk of fraud they said was inherent in mail balloting, without offering evidence. The president also recently elevated Clark, a lawyer who has led his campaign's litigation efforts to restrict the expansion of mail voting. And the White House is expected to repeatedly emphasize the risks of "mass mail-in voting" in upcoming months, according to a senior White House official. "He tweets about this every day," said a campaign adviser, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal thinking. "Clearly, it's his concerted strategy." On Monday, the president accused Democrats in Nevada of "an illegal late night coup" after the state legislature passed a bill that would allow ballots to be sent to all active voters, while also requiring a minimum number of in-person voting locations. Trump tweeted that it "made it impossible for Republicans to win the state" and claimed the U.S. Postal Service "could never handle the Traffic of Mail-In Votes without preparation." "See you in Court!" he added. A campaign official said GOP officials were considering a lawsuit challenging the bill, which was signed Monday evening by Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak, a Democrat. Trump said later in the day that a suit would be filed Tuesday, but he has been known to threaten litigation without always following through. The president appeared to try to clarify his position on mail voting, telling reporters during a briefing at the White House that "absentee is great," but that "universal mail-in ballots is going to be a great embarrassment to our country." Trump campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh said there is nothing confusing about the president's distinction between absentee balloting and all-mail voting. He declined to address concerns in the party that Trump has discouraged his supporters to vote absentee. "President Trump was quite clear that universal mail-in voting, as Democrats are pushing, is ripe for fraud, while normal absentee voting by mail is completely different," Murtaugh said. "There's a vast difference between voting absentee for people who can't get to the polls on Election Day versus mailing every registered voter a ballot, even those who didn't request one." In fact, only a handful of states are planning to proactively send mail ballots to all voters. They include three that have successfully conducted virtually all-mail elections for years: Washington, Oregon and Colorado. Democrats are not seeking mail-only elections in most states, in part because many of their voters, especially people of color and younger Americans, have historically been less likely to vote by mail. Meanwhile, there are now growing signs of a palpable impact on GOP enthusiasm for mail voting. A Monmouth University poll of registered voters in Georgia taken late last month found that 60% of Democrats are at least somewhat likely to vote by mail this fall, compared to 28% of Republicans. Glen Bolger, a pollster with the Republican firm Public Opinion Strategies, said that in one swing state he declined to identify, only 15% of voters planning to cast ballots by mail were Trump supporters. "Republicans are skeptical about voting by mail, and that's a problem up and down the ballot," he said. Similarly, an analysis of current absentee ballot requests in North Carolina shows that Democrats have vastly outpaced Republicans, even though roughly the same numbers of Republicans and Democrats voted by mail four years ago. "Everybody's up," said Michael Bitzer, a politics professor at Catawba College in Salisbury, N.C., who conducted the analysis. "It's just that Democrats and unaffiliateds are through the roof, and Republicans are not even on the second floor." Bitzer said Trump's "mixed messages" about absentee balloting are probably one factor, along with more enthusiasm and greater coronavirus concerns among Democrats. Republicans have been working in creative ways to try to counter the effects of Trump's words. State and national Republicans are inundating their voters with Facebook ads and mailers promoting the message that absentee balloting is safe. Some of the messages claim that Trump is criticizing only the practice of "universal" mail-balloting - sending ballots to all registered voters. One recent Facebook sponsored post from the Johnston County, N.C., Republican Party exhorted voters not to dismiss a GOP mail piece coming their way: "ATTENTION!!! If you receive an ABSENTEE BALLOT MAILER like shown in this picture, please know that it is legitimate!!!" "Please don't confuse North Carolina's absentee system with other states' all-mail elections," read the message from party chairman. "NCGOP and JoCo GOP agrees with the President that our current absentee ballot request system is safe and secure." The assurance was met with skepticism from many commenters. "Burned it! I will go in person to vote straight Republican," wrote one. "Why is the GOP sending this out," wrote another, adding: "You know damn well that we are arguing against this, and here it is our own damn party sending this horse dung out?!!! Whoever is in charge of this should be fired. I am going to the polls, Don't send me one." Another recent ad, from the Alaska GOP, lamented how few Republicans have requested absentee ballots and urged supporters to submit their request "NOW." Reed, the RNC spokesman, said there is a "clear difference" between what Democrats are seeking this cycle and a typical absentee ballot request process. "Washington Democrats and the media may not understand these distinctions or be willfully misconstruing them, but our voters understand it," he said. However, some of Trump's advisers don't think he has done a good job explaining the distinction - while others have admitted there really isn't a difference. In one lawsuit pending in Pennsylvania, the president's lawyers argued that "the terms 'mail-in' and 'absentee' are used interchangeably." More than 30 states - including Florida, where Trump voted absentee in the primary this year - allow any voter to cast a ballot by mail. For their part, Democrats are challenging measures that they argue create unfair hurdles to voting, such as rules limiting who can cast absentee ballots, while also pushing to extend early in-person voting and ensure that all Election Day voting locations are able to open with full staffs. Marc Elias, a Democratic lawyer who is leading voting litigation in 18 states this year, said the president's muddled messaging has "sawed off the limbs of every House and Senate candidate in America" trying to maximize voter turnout during a pandemic election. Some Republicans actions amount to an admission that Trump's rhetoric might be confusing. In Florida, Republicans have begun encouraging their supporters to vote early in person - an apparent concession to the mistrust of mail balloting Trump has sown. And a GOP mail piece, sent to voters in North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Michigan, quotes part of a July 10 tweet by Trump, in which he wrote: "Absentee Ballots are fine because you have to go through a precise process to get your voting privilege." But the flier blurs out the second part of the tweet: "Not so with Mail-Ins. Rigged Election!!! 20% fraudulent ballots?" Reed defended the mailer, describing it as "completely in line" with Trump's position, but he declined to address the blurring of the president's tweet. The fliers were paid for by state parties but produced in coordination with Trump Victory, a joint fundraising committee that includes the RNC. Political operatives across the country say banking early and absentee votes is crucial to avoid leaving turnout to chance, including the vagaries of weather on Election Day as well as the potential of an autumn spike in coronavirus infections. A shift to Election Day voting also costs campaigns money, several operatives said; ballots cast by mail shrink the universe of voters who still need to be persuaded with expensive mail pieces, robocalls and TV ads in the final days of the race. In some states, Republican leaders who had previously followed Trump's lead in discouraging expanded access to mail balloting are shifting their approach. In Iowa, the GOP-controlled legislature passed a law earlier this year blocking the secretary of state, Republican Paul Pate, from sending ballot request forms to all registered voters without lawmakers' permission. But in July, after several Democratic counties in Iowa announced they would send request forms themselves, legislative leaders granted the state permission to do so, as well. Democrats, meanwhile, believe Trump's rhetoric has given them a potential turnout advantage - but they are also preparing for the possibility that the president is laying the groundwork to contest the results after Nov. 3. It's possible that the Democratic advantage among absentee votes, and the potential Republican advantage in Election Day voting, will mean that the president will appear ahead that night - only to potentially lose as mail ballots are tallied in subsequent days. The flood of mail votes could also prompt a barrage of litigation over which ballots should be counted. "Must know Election results on the night of the Election, not days, months, or even years later!" Trump tweetedlast week. On voting issues, Elias, the Democrats' lead tactician said: "Their sole purpose is to mount a cynical effort to undermine the elections and people's confidence in the outcome." Even after he was widely rebuked last week for floating the idea of delaying the election, Trump did not repudiate the idea. Stephen Miller, the president's senior policy adviser, defended his boss in a Fox News interview, falsely claiming that the identities of voters who cast ballots are not confirmed, allowing noncitizens to vote. "This will be catastrophic for our nation," the president said at the White House on Friday. "You'll see it. I'm always right about things like this." You are here: China Field calibration test of two ocean observation satellites has been completed in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, sources with the Ministry of Natural Resources said Monday. The 35-day calibration test was led by the ministry's National Satellite Ocean Application Service and assisted by staff members from the China Academy of Space Technology. The test included the calibrations of microwave scatterometers, which are key payloads carried by China's HY-2B satellite and China-France Oceanography Satellite. The two ocean-observation satellites were launched into space in October 2018. The microwave scatterometer is a radar instrument that enables scientists to observe ocean surface winds and waves simultaneously. It is crucial in the study of the global marine environment and climate change. According to the ministry, the test has achieved expected results. The Mundhwa police have lodged a case against a landlord for physically assaulting his tenant for non-payment of rent for four months. The tenant did not pay rent including power bills totally estimated to be worth around Rs 14,000 during the lockdown period. The victim has been a tenant for nearly five years. The incident comes in the wake of strict warning issued by Pune police regarding action to be taken against landlords harassing tenants for rent. The accused have been identified as Devendra Suresh Bhat, Nargis Bhat and Suresh Bhat based on the complaint lodged by tenant identified as Roshan Suresh Parate, 26. According to police, the complainant and his mother stayed in the house on rent for the last five years but during the Covid crisis, he was unable to pay the monthly rent and total arrears along with power bills which added up to Rs 14,000. Acting Mundhwa police station in-charge Saleem Chaus said, A case has been lodged against the accused of harassing the tenant during the Covid-19 crisis period and subsequent physical assault. The first such case was lodged against a landlady harassing a student tenant in June. She allegedly demanded rent from a civil services student during the lockdown and violated the order of the government. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Preliminary results from random door-to-door TRACE-COVID-19 sampling by Oregon State University last weekend suggest that 17% of the Hermiston community had the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 on July 25-26. "The results of this study are a significant warning," said Hermiston Mayor David Drotzmann. "We now have a clearer picture of how many people are carrying this disease without knowing it, and how rapidly it is spreading family to family, household to household." TRACE stands for Team-based Rapid Assessment of Community-Level Coronavirus Epidemics. The OSU public health project began in April in Corvallis and later expanded to Bend and Newport. "Our results indicate the virus is extremely widespread in Hermiston and more prevalent than previous data had indicated," added Ben Dalziel, assistant professor in the College of Science at OSU and co-director of the project. In Hermiston, 29 two-person field teams canvased 30 neighborhoods, with 249 of the households visited, or 44%, agreeing to participate. In all, the field workers received samples from 471 people, and 41 tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. TRACE modeling, which takes into account the sensitivity of the test and the locations of the positive individuals, estimates the prevalence of the virus last weekend was 169 out of every 1,000 people in Hermiston. That translates to nearly 3,000 infected people in the city overall. "This study confirms what we have feared based on weeks of troubling data from the Oregon Health Authority: The coronavirus has spread throughout Hermiston and threatens the entire community," said Oregon Gov. Kate Brown. "Umatilla County is now in a 'baseline, stay home' status and we must do everything possible to contain these outbreaks. Wear your face coverings, watch your distance and wash your hands. I'd like to thank the TRACE team at Oregon State for their hard work on this important research." In announcing prevalence results, the TRACE team follows reporting policies used by the Oregon Health Authority and local health departments. "These data reaffirm what we are learning from public health investigations, that in addition to outbreaks, there are many cases of COVID-19 which are sporadic," said Dean Sidelinger, health officer and state epidemiologist at the Oregon Health Authority. "This indicates wide community spread." Oregon State University researchers also gathered multiple wastewater samples from Hermiston and neighboring Boardman in early July and again from July 21-24. Analysis of the wastewater samples "showed consistently strong viral signals in both cities that have remained very high and not decreased over time," said lead researcher Tyler Radniecki of the OSU College of Engineering. "The levels recorded are significantly higher than any of TRACE's previous wastewater samples," he added. Both the door-to-door and the wastewater results indicate the virus is widespread in Hermiston and the situation is serious and warrants immediate action, said TRACE leaders. "Half of the 30 randomly selected neighborhoods we visited had at least one positive participant," said Dalziel. "This means that the virus is very widespread within the community, not clustered in only a few locations." As well, 80% of those Hermiston community members who tested positive in the TRACE sampling did not report symptoms of the virus. "This result is cause for concern because efforts to monitor and stop spread that are based on symptoms will miss many infected individuals," said Dalziel. "The large number of infected people without symptoms combined with the widespread distribution of the virus within Hermiston creates significant risks for the entire population." "Residents should pay close attention to social distancing and follow the statewide face-covering mandate that began earlier this month," added Javier Nieto, dean of OSU's College of Public Health and Human Services and another of TRACE's leaders. "Other measures, such as avoiding large gatherings, will also help slow the spread of the virus, in line with the state of Oregon's decision announced today to move Umatilla and Morrow counties back to phase one COVID-19 status. It is particularly important that individuals who have symptoms or who have tested positive follow state and county health guidelines such as self-isolating and seeking medical care." Hermiston is the largest city in northeastern Oregon at just over 18,000 people, and Umatilla County ranks first among the state's 36 counties in the number of COVID-19 cases per 10,000 people, with over 222 cases per 10,000 as of July 30. This tally includes both current and past cases. Most of the businesses where cases have spiked are in the food processing industry, though the list also includes Hermiston's Walmart distribution center and Marlette Homes, a maker of manufactured houses. "Based on the numbers that we are seeing in our county, sadly, I am not surprised by the TRACE results," added Jonathan Hitzman, health officer for Umatilla County. "Our business community is doing a remarkable job of helping to contain this virus, but I am distraught by the extremely high number of asymptomatic positives in the study. This certainly helps to explain, in part, why we are having such a difficult time getting ahead of this thing." The TRACE study is a collaboration of the OSU colleges of Science, Agricultural Sciences, Engineering, Public Health and Human Sciences, and the Carlson College of Veterinary Medicine, in partnership with county health officials. "We are grateful to the Hermiston residents who were willing to participate in TRACE," said Jeff Bethel, an associate professor in OSU's College of Public Health and Human Sciences and a member of the TRACE leadership team. "The results show that if individuals wish to avoid infection, they need to be extra vigilant and abide by health officials' guidance. And because the vast majority of people infected report no symptoms, extra care and additional testing is warranted beyond only those who report symptoms." TRACE uses a statistical model to estimate the proportion of the community that is infected during the period when the samples were collected. The model uses information on the number of samples, the number of positive tests, the sensitivity of the tests and the locations of the positive results within neighborhoods and households. "TRACE does two things," Dalziel said. "First, we find and get help to participants who are infected but do not know they are, which reduces the chances of these folks unknowingly spreading the virus to other people. Second, we rapidly estimate how widespread the virus is in the general population, which informs public health strategies. Rapid, representative estimates of community prevalence provide a different type of information than case counts or hospitalizations, since those indicators tend to lag behind current conditions, and are biased toward individuals who show symptoms." The study initially was funded by OSU and a grant from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and has been aided by work from the OSU Foundation and the OSU Alumni Association. Funding from PacificSource Health Plans allowed for expansion to Bend and Newport and additional sampling in Corvallis, and the Oregon Health Authority funded the Hermiston sampling. At each home visited by TRACE field workers, members of the household are invited to participate in the study. Those who choose to take part are asked to provide information such as their name and date of birth; to fill out a simple consent form; and to answer a few confidential, health-related questions. Participants are given a nasal-swab test kit that they administer to themselves inside their home and their minor children if they want them to take part. The field staff wait outside, and the participants leave the completed test kits outside their front door. Field staff maintain a safe distance at all times and do not enter anyone's home. The tests used in TRACE-COVID-19 collect material from the entrance of the nose and are more comfortable and less invasive than the tests that collect secretions from the throat and the back of the nose. The field workers leave participants with information about the project and how they will receive their results as well as health guidance from county health officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Participants in the study are sent their results and those of their minor children by secure email with receipt by standard mail delivery as a backup. Everyone's personal information is safeguarded. The diagnostic testing component of TRACE operates through a partnership between the Oregon Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, which is located at OSU, and Willamette Valley Toxicology. For more information about TRACE, visit the TRACE-COVID-19 website. The site includes a list of frequently asked questions. COVID-19, first reported to the World Health Organization on Dec. 31, 2019, has been confirmed in more than 16 million people worldwide and has killed more than 660,000 people. In the United States, there have been more than 4.3 million reported casesincluding more than 17,000 in Oregonand more than 148,000 deaths nationwide. Umatilla County has had 1,780 confirmed cases and 20 deaths. "TRACE's work is only possible because community members and health officials have worked with the TRACE team to obtain meaningful results that present a representative picture of the whole community in a very short period of time," Bethel said. "We're grateful for their help in providing information that is useful both to individual residents and to health officials." Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak The U.S. administration is reportedly weighing travel restrictions on all members of the Communist Party of China (CPC) from visiting the United States. If the reports are accurate, the United States would be closing the door of rational diplomacy and plunge further into the abyss of ignorance and ideological confrontation. Such a hysterical move indicates that the United States would be standing in ridiculous opposition to the 1.4 billion Chinese people and will only prove to be detrimental to the interests of the Americans. Under the leadership of the CPC, Chinese people have gained independence, freedom and liberation. Guided by socialism with Chinese characteristics, more than 800 million people have been lifted out of poverty since the founding of the People's Republic of China more than seven decades ago, a significant contribution to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. As for the CPC's governance philosophy, putting people first and foremost has always been its core ideal. China has secured major strategic achievements in containing COVID-19 within about three months after its outbreak. In order to protect people's life and property, China adopted prompt measures to relocate about 3.76 million people from areas affected by floods and geological disasters over the past two months. In a CPC Central Committee Political Bureau meeting held last week, "development for the benefit of the people" was reiterated for formulating the 14th Five-Year Plan for Social and Economic Development. Pathetically, a different picture is unraveling on the other side of the Pacific. With about 4.4 percent of the world's population, the United States has seen its death toll from COVID-19 standing at nearly a quarter of the world's total. In disregard of facts, the U.S. administration resorts to one lie after another, from human rights, intellectual property to the South China Sea, in attacking the CPC. The China-smearing ploy serves as a fig leaf for poor pandemic response, shaky economy and failure to address social inequalities at home. In a recent article published on The Washington Post, Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, slammed some U.S. politicians' slander against the CPC as "misrepresentation of history" and "undiplomatic." From its unilateral provocation of closing China's consulate general in Houston to planned travel restrictions on CPC members, the United States is erecting a segregation wall of ideological confrontation that will push away investment, trade and other opportunities for boosting vitality. For years, the U.S. national development has been deemed as a story of pioneering spirit and open-minded exchanges, but since when has it deteriorated into a blind hatred? The answer rests with the cold-war mentality deeply entrenched in some politicians, who are anxious about retaining the old "glory" of hegemony, coupled with strategic miscalculations about the CPC. During his historic China visit nearly half a century ago, the then U.S. President Richard Nixon quoted President George Washington at a banquet: "Observe good faith and justice towards all nations. Cultivate peace and harmony with all." This should serve as a resounding reminder to those who are hell-bent on making U.S. foreign policies arrogant and short-sighted. Defaming the CPC and instigating discord are to no avail for "making America great again." It is high time for the U.S. administration to adopt a rational and objective attitude in its cognition of the CPC and adhere to pragmatism in its China policy. Otherwise, ideological bias under the "America First" doctrine is doomed to backfire. Dublin, Aug 3 : Former Irish politician and Nobel Peace Prize winner John Hume died on Monday at the age of 83, his family said in a statement. He passed away in the early hours of Monday at the Owen Mor nursing home in Londonderry, reports the BBC. The former teacher and of the highest-profile politicians in Northern Ireland for more than 30 years, came to prominence during the Civil Rights Movement in 1968. He was one of the founding members of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) in 1970. He became leader of the party in 1979, a post which he relinquished in November 2001. Hume, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1998, had been suffering from dementia for many years. In a statement, his family said: "John was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a great grandfather and a brother. "He was very much loved, and his loss will be deeply felt by all his extended family." Politicians have paid their tributes to Hume, also known as one of the architects of the Northern Ireland peace process, the BBC reported. Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said that Hume was a "great hero and a true peacemaker". "Throughout his long life he exhibited not just courage, but also fortitude, creativity and an utter conviction that democracy and human rights must define any modern society." Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair called him "a political titan; a visionary who refused to believe the future had to be the same as the past", while First Minister of Northern Ireland Arlene Foster said: "In our darkest days he recognised that violence was the wrong path and worked steadfastly to promote democratic politics." In his message, SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said: "We can never repay all that John did for us but we can live the values that meant so much to him. We shall overcome." Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajputs family did not complain about any lapse in the investigation being carried by Mumbai Police into his death in June, the citys top police official has said. Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh also said that no politicians name has come up during the investigation into Rajputs death and there is no evidence against any politician from any party. Singh said the statements of the 34-year-old actors father, sister and brother-in-law were recorded on June 16, two days after he was found dead in his apartment in Bandra. Also read | Sushant Singh Rajput had bipolar disorder, was taking medicines for it: Mumbai Police Commissioner At that moment, they didnt raise any suspicion neither they complained about any lapse in our investigation, Singh was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. A four-member special investigation team from Patna Police has also started a parallel investigation into Rajputs death after the actors father filed a complaint with them. Rajputs father, KK Singh, has lodged a police complaint against actor Rhea Chakraborty and her family members and Patna Police registered a first information report (FIR) under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including abetment to suicide. His father alleged that Chakraborty and her family kept his son away from his family, handled his bank accounts and took away crores of rupees. His FIR mentioned that when she found Rajputs bank balance was depleting, she left his house on June 8 and took cash, jewellery and his medical reports along with her, and also blocked his mobile number. The top police official said Mumbai Police have recorded the statements of 56 people in the course of their probe into the case and that all angles are being investigated be it professional rivalry, financial transactions or his health. It has come to surface that he had bipolar disorder, he was undergoing treatment and taking medicines for it. What circumstances led to his death is the subject of our investigation, Singh said. Also read | No party held at Sushant Singh Rajputs house on evening before death: Mumbai Police Commissioner Chakraborty, the commissioner said, was one of the 56 people questioned by the city police. Her statement was recorded twice and she was called to the police station several times, he said. I cant comment about her whereabouts, he added. Singh also commented on the allegation by Rajputs father in his police complaint filed in Patna that Rs 15 crore was siphoned off from his sons account. During the probe, we found he had Rs 18 cr in his account of which around Rs 4.5 cr are still there. Till now no direct transfer to Rhea Chakrabortys account found and we still probing, he said. Singh said also denied claims by the Patna Police that they are not being helped in their investigation into the case even as Bihars director general of police (DGP) Gupteshwar Pandey said an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, in Mumbai to lead their probe, was forcibly quarantined by Mumbais civic authorities. Vinay Tiwari had reached Mumbai on Sunday to lead the team probing the death of Rajput. It was just one of the points in the turf war playing out between the police forces of the two states. There is no question of non-cooperation. We are legally examining whether they (Bihar police) have jurisdiction or not in the case. Still, if they have got jurisdiction then they should prove it, he said. The death has occurred of Edward (Eddie) Dunne McAuley Court /Dooley`s Tce., Athy, Kildare Edward (Eddie) Dunne, McAuley Court and formerly Dooleys Terrace, Athy, passed peacefully on 31st July, 2020. Predeceased by his brother Paul. Sadly, missed by sister Rose (King), his brothers Patrick and Seamus, sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, extended family, neighbours and friends. In line with government advice regarding public gatherings, a funeral Mass for a maximum of 95 people will take place. Eddie will be reposing at Thompsons Funeral Home, Athy for family and close friends on Sunday, 2nd August, Funeral Mass on Monday, 3rd August, at 11am at St. Michaels Parish Church, Athy. The Funeral Mass can be viewed by clicking on https://www.parishofathy.ie/ Monday, the 3rd August, at 11am followed by interment in St. Michaels (Old) Cemetery. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral but due to current restrictions cannot, may leave their personal message in the condolences section below. The death has occurred of Elizabeth (May) Griffin Ballymore Eustace, Kildare Griffin, Elizabeth (May), Ballymore Eustace, Co. Kildare, 31st July, 2020. In her 99th year, passed away, peacefully, at home in the care of her loving family. Beloved wife of the late Christy. Adored mother, grandmother, old nanny, mother-in-law and sister. May will be sadly missed by her loving and heartbroken children Theresa (Dixon), Christopher, Patrick and Vincent, daughters-in-law Fiona and Philomena, son-in-law Edmund, grandchildren Eimear (Malaysia), Ruth (Australia), Amanda, Amy, Tom, Conor and Orlaith, great-grandchildren Keelan & Aoibhe, sisters Ann and Sally, brother Pat, nieces, nephews, extended family, neighbours and friends. May her gentle and loving soul rest in peace. Funeral Mass on Monday in the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Ballymore Eustace followed by burial in St. Marys Cemetery. Family flowers only. Donations if desired to Friends of Naas Hospital. Given the exceptional climate and to protect everyone who knew May, Mass is for immediate family only (50 persons). Those who would have liked to attend her funeral but due to these restrictions cannot, may leave a personal message for the family on the condolence page below. The family thank you for your cooperation, understanding and support at his time. The death has occurred of Mary Boland (nee Lee) Piercetown, Kilcock, Meath / Celbridge, Kildare BOLAND, Mary (nee Lee), (Piercetown, Kilcock, Co Meath and formerly Church Road, Celbridge, Co. Kildare) August 2nd, 2020 (peacefully) in the loving care of the staff at Sancta Maria Nursing Home, Kinnegad, predeceased by her sister Josie and brothers Christy and Bill. Deeply regretted by her loving husband Michael, son Ronnie and his wife Elaine, family Aaron, Aoife, Declan, Josephine, Ciara, Aisling and Sinead, brothers John and Pat, relatives and friends. May she rest in peace A private funeral will take place due to government advice regarding public gatherings. When the current circumstances have passed we look forward to celebrating Marys life with friends and extended family at a later date. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral; but due to current restrictions cannot, please leave your personal message by selecting Condolences below or alternatively leaving a message at www.cunninghamsfunerals.com. Family flowers only, donations if desired to The Irish Heart Foundation. The death has occurred of Marie Farrell (nee Crowe) Bluetown, Allenwood North, Allenwood, Kildare Formerly of Celbridge peacefully in the wonderful care of the staff of Naas Hospital surrounded by her loving family. Sister of the late Betty Magorian and aunt of the late Enda. Sadly missed by her loving husband George, son Chris, daughters Mary and Dymphna, son-in-law Mick, daughter-in-law Karen, grandchildren Orla and Conor, sister Joan, brothers-in-law Leo and John, nephews, nieces, relatives, neighbours and friends. May Marie rest in peace In line with Government advice regarding public gatherings, a funeral Mass for a maximum of 50 people will take place. Removal on Tuesday morning at 10:30 am to arrive at the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Allenwood for requiem Mass at 11 o'clock. Burial afterwards in Cross Patrick Cemetery.Those who would have liked to attend the funeral, but due to current restrictions cannot, please feel free to leave a message in the condolence page below. Livestream of Marie's funeral Mass can be viewed on the Allen Parish Facebook page. The death has occurred of John (Jack) Carr 719 Quarry Farm, Athy, Kildare In the loving care of the nurses and staff of Tallaght University Hospital. Deeply regretted by his loving family. Rest in Peace A private repose will be held in Rigney's Funeral Home, Athy, from 4pm on Sunday evening. Removal at 5.30pm on Sunday evening to arrive at St. Michael's Parish Church, Athy, for 6pm. Requiem Mass on Monday afternoon at 4pm (limited to 95 people). Burial afterwards in St. Michael's Old Cemetery, Athy. The death has occurred of Patrick (Paddy) Ronan Melitta Park, Kildare Town, Kildare / Ferns, Wexford Formerly of Ballyandrew, Ferns, Co. Wexford Retired army sergeant. Peacefully at hospital surrounded by his loving family. Husband of the late Olive and father of the late Patsy and Matthew. Sadly missed by his loving son Patrick, daughters Jackie, Paula and Sharon, sons in law, daughter in law, grandchildren, great grandchildren, brothers, sisters, brothers in law, sisters in law, nephews, nieces, relatives, neighbours and friends. May Patrick rest in peace Due to current government guidelines regarding public gatherings, a private family funeral will take place. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral, but due to current restrictions cannot, please feel free to leave a message in the condolence page below. Patrick's Funeral Mass in St. Brigid's Parish Church, Kildare Town can be viewed at mcnmedia.tv on Monday morning at 11o'clock. Burial afterwards in St. Conleth's Cemetery, Kildare Town. The death has occurred of Edward (Eddie) Dunne McAuley Court /Dooley`s Tce., Athy, Kildare Edward (Eddie) Dunne, McAuley Court and formerly Dooleys Terrace, Athy, passed peacefully on 31st July, 2020. Predeceased by his brother Paul. Sadly, missed by sister Rose (King), his brothers Patrick and Seamus, sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, extended family, neighbours and friends. In line with government advice regarding public gatherings, a funeral Mass for a maximum of 95 people will take place. Eddie will be reposing at Thompsons Funeral Home, Athy for family and close friends on Sunday, 2nd August, Funeral Mass on Monday, 3rd August, at 11am at St. Michaels Parish Church, Athy. The Funeral Mass can be viewed by clicking on https://www.parishofathy.ie/ Monday, the 3rd August, at 11am followed by interment in St. Michaels (Old) Cemetery. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral but due to current restrictions cannot, may leave their personal message in the condolences section below. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral, but due to current restrictions cannot, please feel free to leave a message in the condolence page below. The death has occurred of Esther (Breda) Flynn (nee Brennan) Manchester, England/, Athy, Kildare Deeply regretted by her loving husband Michael, brothers Paddy and Christy, relatives and friends. Rest in Peace Requiem Mass will take place at 11am on Thursday the 6th August (limited to 95 people) in St. Michael's Parish Church, Athy, which will be livestreamed, see www.parishofathy.ie. Burial afterwards in St. Michael's New Cemetery, Athy. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral but cannot due to current restrictions, may leave a personal message in the section marked 'Condolences' below. Family flowers only, please. Donations, if desired, to The Le Cheile Unit, St. Vincent's Hospital, Athy. The death has occurred of Ursula Hyde (nee Hughes) Bennettsbridge, Athy, Kildare In the loving care of the staff of Killerig Nursing Home, Carlow. Wife of the Late John. Deeply regretted by her loving son Liam, daughter Maura, sister Sheila (Greene), daughter-in-law Mary, son-in-law Gordon, grandchildren John, Siobhan, Ken, Colm, Lauren and Colin, great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, relatives and friends. Rest in Peace A private repose will be held in Rigney's Funeral Home, Athy on Saturday evening between 6pm and 8pm. Requiem Mass will take place at 1pm on Monday the 3rd August (limited to 95 people) in St. Michael's Parish Church, Athy, which will be livestreamed, see www.parishofathy.ie. Burial afterwards in St. Michael's Old Cemetery, Athy. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral but cannot due to current restrictions, may leave a personal message in the section marked 'Condolences' below. Two new lawsuits allege that the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph in Missouri covered up abuse by two priests who were known to be sexual predators. The lawsuits, one filed on July 28 and the other on July 20, were announced by the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. One of the priests died while the diocese was in the process of removing him from the priesthood and the other is no longer allowed to present himself as a priest, the diocese said. The lawsuit filed July 20 alleges the Rev. Darvin Salazar sexually assaulted the victim in the rectory at Holy Cross Catholic Church and then prevented the plaintiff from leaving in July 2018, The Kansas City Star reported. The lawsuit says the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese had reports about Salazars sexual predation from at least five others but failed to remove him from service until after he committed sexual crimes against the plaintiff. The diocese said all allegations against Salazar were presented to law enforcement, which declined to bring criminal charges. The second lawsuit, filed July 28, alleges former priest John R. Tulipana assaulted a 13-year-old boy several times in 1977 while at Coronation of Our Lady Catholic Church in Grandview. Tulipana was barred from the ministry in 1994. He died in 2012. In 2008, the diocese agreed to a $10 million settlement with 47 plaintiffs who alleged sexual abuse by 12 priests, including Tulipana. In 2014, the diocese paid out another $10 million to settle sexual abuse lawsuits of 32 plaintiffs that involved 14 current and former priests including Tulipana in cases filed from September 2010 through February 2014. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Abuse Molestation Missouri Kansas If all goes according to the current proposal, most Chicago Public Schools students will return to classrooms for in-person learning two days a week in September. But even before CPS makes a final decision about whether to reopen schools, parents have learned that they must indicate by Aug. 7 whether their children will participate in the proposed hybrid approach or stick with all remote learning. Here are some frequently asked questions about the current hybrid proposal. New Delhi: Two Indian Army officers and 5 soldiers were martyred after militants in police uniform attacked an artillery unite in Nagrota on the outskirts of Jammu on Tuesday. Indian Army's Northern Command issued a statement confirming the casualties. "The terrorists forced their entry into the officers' mess complex by throwing grenades and firing at the sentries. In the initial counter action, one officer and three soldiers of the army were martyred," the statement said. Read | Alert sounded at Vaishnodevi shrine following Nagrota terror attack The terrorists entered two buildings which were occupied by the officers, families and men. This led to a hostage-like situation. The situation was very quickly contained and thereafter, in a deliberate operation, all were successfully rescued which included 12 soldiers, two women and two children. However, in this rescue attempt, one more officer and two jawans sacrificed their lives," the statement read. The statement said that the army has recovered the bodies of three militants and operations are in progress to sanitise the area. Read | Nagrota attack is Pak army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa's message to India: Former home secy RK Singh Defence minister Manohar Parrikar briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the deadly attack The defence ministry is likely to seek a formal report from the army about the assault which came just two months after the deadly Uri terror strike. Sources said the Prime Minister was briefed in the morning and again after the operation was over. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Protesters shout slogans against a revision to real estate-related bills during a rally, Aug. 1, near the National Assembly in Seoul. Yonhap By Do Je-hae Rival parties continued to clash over revisions to the Housing Lease Protection Act, which would be aimed at raising taxes on owners of multiple homes and containing property market speculation. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), which controls 176 seats out of the 300-member Assembly, is determined to pass the bills at a plenary session today, the last day of the July extraordinary assembly. But the main opposition United Future Party (UFP) is refusing to cooperate. The Legislation and Judiciary Committee, where 11 out of 18 seats are held by the ruling party, passed the revision bills on Monday night to enable them to be put to a vote in the plenary session. The UFP did not participate in the committee vote. The DPK has claimed it is necessary to swiftly pass the bills in order to improve the people's livelihoods and support the Moon Jae-in administration's policy priority to cool down the housing market, particularly relating to the steep housing prices in Seoul and nearby areas. "We will make sure to pass the bills related to real estate and other related bills to improve the people's livelihoods at the plenary session today," DPK chairman Lee Hae-chan said during a meeting of the party's supreme council. When good people drink the BLM Kool-Aid By Mark Alexander Donald Trump's election was the catalyst for an epidemic of the emotional incontinence called "Trump Derangement Syndrome," that Democrat Party politicos and their Leftmedia outlets incessantly provoke. The Demos' primary target for this unceasing inflammation is their largest voter bloc, women, whom they endeavor to keep emotionally unhinged by fanning the flames of toxic femininity. In 2016, Trump won 52% of votes cast by men but only 41% of those cast by women. That 11% gender gap was the largest in four decades of presidential elections. Demo researchers have written endlessly about the "gender gap," but none of them dare to declare that female voters are more emotive than male voters. This unspoken but demonstrable demographic reality is precisely why Democrats elevate the most highly emotive topics, such as gender issues, to the top of their platforms. The Demos' secondary constituency target is their largest racial voter bloc, black Americans. Because almost 90% of black people vote Democrat, a significant part of the aforementioned gender voting gap is also a racial gap. Thus, Democrat race hustlers, with the help of their race-luring profiteers, perennially promote a race-bait agenda, using every isolated instance of real or imagined injustice to propagate fear and division. This includes their most recent appeal to women and blacks, the BIG lie that our nation is besieged with "systemic racism," and that the path forward must be under the banner of the so-called Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. But it is not just Democrat women and black folks who have consumed, and been consumed by, the BLM Kool-Aid. Democrats have found support for their BLM bait in another dependable bloc of their constituent voters, both male and female: white Millennials. And that support has spilled over into the ranks of good people who would not otherwise identify themselves as "leftist" or "Democrat," but who have been emotionally hijacked by BLM rhetoric and propaganda. If you know a good person who is emotively intoxicated by the BLM messaging, here is one formula for detox. In dealing with emotive family, friends, and colleagues who are predisposed to succumbing to social pressure particularly in this generation where social media is an ever-present influencer it's important to understand this about perceptions: The disconnect between the cognitive (generally Right) versus emotive (generally Left) interpretation of ideas and events creates the most significant and sometimes most impenetrable obstacles to reaching common ground between Right and Left. Ask leftists for something about which they're passionate, and they most often predicate their response with, "Because I feel..." But ask conservatives for something about which they're passionate, and they most often predicate their response with, "Because I think..." Cognitive processors sometimes fail to convey an empathic understanding of an issue, while emotive processors tend to be overwhelmed with empathic feelings about it. The real disconnect starts when emotive interpretation neglects the facts, and cognitive understanding fails to recognize the feelings. In debate, this constitutes the proverbial mix of oil and water which are quick to separate. Frankly, it's extremely important to have the capacity to both think and feel in order to cognitively contemplate a position and then express it effectively to someone who's emotively entrenched in a contrary position. Case in point: Last week, amid all the racial tension fomented by Democrats and their racist antagonizers nationwide, a very smart and well-educated influencer, whom I have known for years, issued a public statement about BLM. My otherwise conservative friend, a white male, dug himself deep into the BLM hole before he was aware he was even digging. He's in the "helping profession" and has an enormous heart for other people, for justice, and for what is good and right which is how he ended up so deep in that hole. To summarize, he issued a declaration that anyone who dared say "all lives matter" in response to the assertion that "Black Lives Matter" (he used caps in reference to the organization) is committing a reductionist offense and displaying a complete lack of sympathy and empathy for black people. In other words, he treated the phrase "black lives matter" as synonymous with the organization Black Lives Matter. I responded to him, privately, that I was sure he didn't fully understand that the Black Lives Matter hate group's mission is an affront to everything he believes. I suggested that if his message was basically "all lives matter," but that black lives seem to matter less in some important cultural ways, then we should seek to reconcile that inequality and find grounds for agreement. I gently helped him understand that BLM's Marxist mission and beliefs, under the leadership of their racist and black supremacist founders, and supported by the fascists of the white so-called "antifa movement," are entirely antithetical to the Christian views he and I share as people united by God not by any racial characteristic. I directed him to the words of BLM cofounder Patrisse Cullors, who stated last month: "The first thing, I think, is that we actually do have an ideological frame. ... We are trained Marxists. We are super-versed on, sort of, ideological theories. And I think that what we really tried to do is build a movement that could be utilized by many, many black folk." That would be the Marxist ideology responsible for a global reign of terror and nearly 100 million deaths during the previous century. I helped my friend see that the BLM movement is wholly antithetical to the Christian love and reconciliation advocated by Martin Luther King. In fact, MLK never uttered the words "black lives matter," and he never advocated violence, nor the burning or looting of another's property. King declared: "Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that." I provided my friend with resources exposing leftist myths about race, as well as Democrat lies about racist cops and the truth about black-on-black violence. I provided him resources to understand the Democrat Party's racist roots, noting that the party was and remains the architect of systemic racism and institutionalized poverty. He knew that I spent years investigating hate groups, including white supremacist groups in the 1980s when they were somewhat more than the isolated and ignorant cells of haters that exist today. Understanding the ideology of racist hate groups, I told him that if there was a white supremacist movement today named "White Lives Matter," it would be the racist equivalent of Black Lives Matter. I advised him that when I affirm the universally held Christian tenet that "all lives matter," it is not because of a "total lack of empathy" but, indeed, it is a "reductionist" repudiation of the racist hatred fomented by Black Lives Matter and the toxic anger and division that its adherents promote. Now, for the record, "gently helping" someone who is advocating BLM is not my first instinct. But with an understanding of the difference between cognitive and emotive processors, I knew that if I was going to bridge the emotive/cognitive gap with my friend (and, by extension, those he influences), I couldn't start by beating him over the head with a reality check. The bottom line here is that there was a disconnect between his strong and legitimate feelings and the need for a larger conversation considering the facts one that we needed to address if we were going to achieve some understanding and maintain our friendship. In the end, we did reach common ground and agreement, and he issued a public clarification and distinction between the phrase "black lives matter" and the organization Black Lives Matter. Likewise, I hope this helps you achieve the same in your interactions with BLM defenders. Our country and, indeed, the free world depend upon it. Mark Alexander is the executive editor of the Patriot Post. The significant drop in Russian gas supplies to Turkey and Qatar's rise to second place among Ankara's gas partners is a consequence of the sharp drop in prices for natural gas, in the framework of which the suppliers have chosen different tactics of behavior in the Turkish hydrocarbon market. Energy experts spoke about this in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza, explaining the reasons behind reduction in gas cooperation between Russia and Turkey. It should be noted that in comparison to May last year, despite the launch of the Turkish Stream, Russia reduced gas supplies to Turkey this May by 62%, to 340 million cubic meters, and in comparison to April - by 30%. May supplies of liquefied natural gas from Qatar, on the contrary, increased by 300% annualy, to 520 million cubic meters, compared to April - by 100%. As a result, the share of Qatari gas on the Turkish market in May amounted to 19.5%, while the share of Russian - 12.7%. As the senior analyst of UralSib Aleksey Kokin noted, in May Qatari gas turned out to be much cheaper for Turkey than Russian gas, so Ankara chose to stock up on LNG supplies from Qatar. This happened because it has become profitable for importers to buy liquefied gas: its surplus on the market is great, it has fallen in price sharply. Turkey, which has the opportunity to receive liquefied gas, tried to take maximum advantage of the situation and store gas reserves for the winter. It is unlikely that this will last forever, but until October-November, LNG may remain more profitable than pipeline gas," he said. At the same time, Gazprom may not react to this situation, hoping that in the long term its prices will be lower than Qatari prices even without additional discounts. Perhaps Gazprom is calmly looking at how it is being squeezed out in this or that market by cheap LNG, as it expects that in the future pipeline gas will still be cheaper. There are pricing formulas that Gazprom apparently does not want to change due to market conditions, because it hopes that after some time the gas balance will return to normal parameters and the excess of LNG will leave the market. Accordingly, it may be profitable for the company now to simply wait out this unfavorable time in order to then restore the volume of supplies to Turkey without lowering the prices," Alexei Kokin said. Aleksey Belogoryev, Deputy Director for Energy at the Institute of Energy and Finance, also noted Gazprom's intention to maintain the classic pricing scheme for Turkish buyers. "The dramatic decline in Russian gas supplies to Turkey has been going on for three years due to the fact that contracts with Turkish companies staye that the price of gas is still tied to the price of oil products in Europe - and they are still higher than prices on the spot gas market," the expert said. LONDON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- AQMetrics, a leading global platform for risk and regulatory compliance, has onboarded UK asset manager, Marlborough Investment Management Ltd, for its MiFID II transaction reporting. The partnership follows a number of other MiFID II client wins for AQMetrics in recent months, with the Irish firm set to onboard several more MiFID firms in the coming weeks as well in the wake of the NEX Abide regulatory reporting wind down. The selection of AQMetrics for its MiFID II regulatory reporting was straightforward for Marlborough Investment Management, part of the Marlborough Group with 10.5 billion assets under management. A robust technology offering, proven track record and major focus on customer satisfaction were reasons to migrate their MiFID II transaction reporting from NEX Abide, Marlborough said, while AQMetrics already has a longstanding reporting relationship with Marlborough's Irish affiliate. "The decision was an easy one," said Kim Cooling, Head of Compliance. "Our Irish branch has a longstanding and positive MiFID II relationship with AQMetrics already. Once we realised we had to change providers from NEX Abide, our Irish office recommended AQMetrics. It was a very smooth transition from there on, with the normal checks of technology and data." For AQMetrics, the win highlights the fact that more and more firms are willing to turn to boutique specialists that can offer unbeatable service and customer satisfaction for the long haul, as well as the usual regulatory and technology solutions. "We're thrilled to onboard more MiFID II clients, whether they're coming from NEX Abide or are just wanting to change their provider," said Darell Miller, Head of Sales at AQMetrics. "With the recent news about NEX Abide and Deutsche Borse, it's understandable that many will want assurances going forward. Partnering with a specialist, whose core competencies and focus include regulatory reporting, is one way to achieve this going forward." Having Launched in 2012, AQMetrics has gained a reputation as the leading regulatory technology and risk solution for asset managers and administrators of all stripes and sizes. The Irish firm continues to expand into Europe and the US and recently won the "Best RegTech Solution" category at the 2020 HFM European Services Technology Awards. "Firms are starting to realise that big is not always better," Miller added. "While we pride ourselves on our technology solutions, customers are increasingly turning to us for the unparalleled level of automation and customer satisfaction that we offer too." About AQMetrics AQMetrics is a leading regulatory and risk platform focused on delivering compliance solutions to leading financial firms across the globe. Drawing upon the team's deep experience in innovation, technology, reporting, and financial services, we have built a simple and transparent platform that has quickly become the industry's best. To learn more about AQMetrics' MiFID II ARM visit https://www.aqmetrics.com/mifidiiarm Whatever the clients' needs, we leverage market-leading technology to help them more efficiently meet their obligations. The AQMetrics platform has been tried, tested, proven and perfected. To find out why more and more financial firms are turning to AQMetrics, visit https://www.aqmetrics.com, or follow us on Twitter @AQMetrics. Marlborough Investment Management Ltd. The Marlborough Group has been providing market leading investment management and administration since 1986. The Marlborough Group provides a range of highly regarded investment products covering all of the world's major financial markets. We remain sharply focused on our overriding objective, which is to add value for our investors, and because we remain privately owned we can concentrate on this without distraction. We believe that through high quality active management combined with superior fund knowledge, service quality and product understanding we can add the greatest possible value for our investors and that by doing this, we repay the trust those investors place in us. Contact: Andrew Manners, +44 (0)7788981751 [email protected] SOURCE AQMetrics Ltd Related Links https://www.aqmetrics.com/ 03.08.2020 LISTEN Heinz Wohlfarth took the dust offered and looked at it in his palm saying: "I guess...this will never happen and the earth has never been, since creation, seen anything that can be seriously and honestly called overcoming of egoism in people; also in the light of colour. We were the same, we are the same, we will be the same and ...." George Fahnrich looked at him while picking up more dust: "Hamster people!" "Let us be honest to ourselves," challenged Heinz Wohlfarth his Lubeck friend with a big smile all over his face, "the past time that we were together and spend time together...wasnt it a great time for you and me to learn from each other and come to deeper insight of what life is all about?" "In particular the aspect of freedom," added George Fahnrich and smiled back. "Sure...we had a jolly great time, so much so see, so much to learn and understand. I trust that not only us, but all people out there, will make great use of what we have seen, felt, heard, and understood...for them to climb up and up to higher and higher levels. I mean, after all our life should be for nothing but to stimulate others as when we have made others better then ourselves in our time, we truly can say that we have achieved our destiny, mission accomplished. And when I look around this place where Jesus Christ once was born and died, it is truly a remarkable place for such a search as we have accomplished it...truly remarkable. But...," he smiled even brighter, here the journey will not end. It is another phase on a long, long journey to understand what this world is all about. As long as we both shall live, we will not end to understand, to observe, to hear and to listen to life`s matters. Whether we will ever be smart enough to understand the real truth, the fundamentals ... gosh, I really cannot say. All I know is that we must still continue to dig deep and deeper to be worth having received the honour of being alive. And so, we are mandated to voice from level to level what we understand willing always to learn and possibly correct wrong thinking based on the time we find ourselves in." "I need your High Five, brother," lifted Heinz Wohlfarth his right hand feeling the sweat of George Fahnrich`s palm in his palm. "There will be more information from us coming to this world!" They arrived safely at Hamburg-Airport late autumn. Cold was about to hit the city. Leaves have fallen from all trees covering the city in quiet times, in a preparation phase to slow down and survive through a harsh winter. Seeing Hamburg from above, River Elbe, Airbus Industries, and the biggest cemetery in the world, Ohlsdorfer Friedhoff, across from the Airport on the other side of the train tracks heading towards Hamburg City Center. Ohlsdorfer Friedhoff was only accessible to cars and bikes, to walk through end to end would have taken the best parts of an afternoon. Bus lines connected gates with each other for crying and sad people to visit their loved once. It was more a park than anything else, not like in France or other countries stone besides stone. Even small ponds were a part of the cemetery. No wonder that some visitors used the location to walk around and take a deep breath of fresh air. Many famous and rich people in German history were buried there alongside fallen soldiers of both world wars. The winter that was about to come was clearly hidden in the air. Both remembered their childhood when snow was about to swallow them standing high in the streets for toddlers hard to manage getting to school. They were laughing thinking of the year that the north of Germany was cut off from the rest of the country and roads leading to smaller villages were impossible to use for which reason the villages for weeks had to be supplied with food, drinks and medication from the air. It never came as a surprise to anyone that nine months later the hospitals around were filled with crying babies too much. They had passed customs with ease finding their way to the bus stop that would take them home. "Always when I hear and see Hamburg, even seeing Hamburg number plates, I get very, very sentimental. Not that I would break down in tears and cry, no, but there is a certain feeling inside me," said Heinz Wohlfarth while looking out of the bus windows seeing had been part of his life for so long, so familiar, extended house into the wide open of the city that he was born into. "I do understand and appreciate what you are saying," mentioned George Fahnrich sitting by his friends side. "A whole universe of time and space hits you when you return to the place that was your home and place of birth...it gets me also!" "But that does not mean," turned Heinz Wohlfarth to his friend with serious facial expression, "that I want to stay here always. no, I want to travel the world and understand it. When I think of England, when I am there, when I touch the soil of that great island or when I have to leave again...guess what, I cry always." "You as a German cry for England? Strange!" was George Fahnrich surprised while the bus was about to reach Ohlsdorf Train Station, time to change public transport. "As I am always saying, my brain in German, very much so, no problem...but my heart is British, very much so. When I think of England and I touch base there or find myself about to departure by air of ship...I am telling you, even as I have done it many times in my life now...but still today it gets me. I always have to separate myself from others, stand in a quiet corner and cry. It just gets me, and I cannot help it. Because of that I know that I am British in all that I am, but my citizenship and my upbringing is German...and my thinking, my character...very much German, I am telling you." "So, you are a mix of two great worlds than?" applauded George Fahnrich while they stood at the platform waiting for the S-Bahn to take them to Alte Wohr where Heinz Wohlfarth had his apartment. During his stay in Israel someone had rented the place for small money. So, he was hoping to find the flat in the same condition he had left it months ago. Heinz Wohlfarth was relieved to see his apartment was still the same as he had left it and advised George Fahnrich: "So, this is the room you can stay in until you leave tomorrow for Lubeck." They dropped their bags in the hallway before going out and look for food. After intensive shopping in the nearest Supermarket both started to cook. George Fahnrich was amazed to taste the expertise Heinz Wohlfarth had in preparing a superb meal for both of them. Heinz Wohlfarth smiled and informed his friend that his parents were both chefs therefore it is in his blood to cook well. "Opening a can of Ravioli...never a problem for me!" did he laugh while enjoying his ice-cream, vanilla, and chocolate flavour. They went to bed early as the long flight had taken a toll on them. "Good morning, George, time to get up," opened Heinz Wohlfarth the door to the guest room and found it empty. He was shocked. He looked everywhere in the room for a clue where his friend could possibly be. His beg was standing in a corner untouched. Searching in the whole apartment to look for an indication of where his friend might have gone too, but he did not find any sign of his whereabouts. His heart was beating faster and faster. Fear crawl up his neck. He had problems to breathe and swallow. No sign whatsoever. When reporting George Fahnrich to the Police at the nearest Police Station around Hartzloh Platz he was informed that George Fahnrich was found dead in Speicherstadt for mysterious reason. Without the involvement of any other person, that was what the Police Officer told him, he had run against the concrete wall of a warehouse. At the warehouse was a poster stick which was damaged only with a blood spot that had the size of the head of a newborn baby in between the legs of a woman. E N D Dedicated to Ms. Mawuena Trebarh A grenade attack launched early Sunday morning at a displaced persons camp in the Far North region of Cameroon killed 16 people and wounded seven, according to local officials. Its obvious that Boko Haram is responsible, Mahamat Chetima Abba, the mayor of Mayo-Moskota, where Nguetchewe camp is located, told French news agency AFP. The town has an informal camp of about 800 people where many have fled the violence from Islamist group Boko Haram. Mayo-Moskota is near the Nigerian border. Reports indicate that the attackers arrived with a woman, who was holding the grenade. The Extreme North region had been calm for a few weeks, according to Abba, so the attack was a surprise, he said. Boko Haram is a Nigerian separatist group that is trying to create their own Islamist caliphate in the country. Fighting does spill into countries bordering Nigeria, however, including Cameroon, Niger, and Chad. Some 30,000 people have died, while millions have been displaced due to the violence. UPDATED: 6.00pm A community in west Cork is in shock after two people died when their car entered water in the area this morning. The two men named locally as Michael Bowen (40) from Ahakista and Tadhg Murphy (19) from Glengarriff lost their lives at Glengarriff on the Kenmare Road at around 5.30am. They were pronounced dead at the scene. A third man was airlifted to hospital in Cork with serious injuries, while a fourth male occupant of the car was uninjured. The two survivors are both believed to be from the Glengarriff area. Its a close-knit community and a small rural community, and you know, people have great care and love for each other, and its just a tragedy that has unfolded this morning thats absolutely shocking. Local Independent TD Michael Collins says the area is trying to come to terms with what happened: For this tragedy to hit them on the week that it is, or any time for that matter, is a cause of great upset to the whole of that area, the greater Bantry area and down towards Kilcrohane area - its an absolute tragedy thats hard to comprehend at this time. Advertisement Its a close-knit community and a small rural community, and you know, people have great care and love for each other, and its just a tragedy that has unfolded this morning thats absolutely shocking," he added. The road was closed earlier for a forensic examination, with local diversions in place. Gardai are now appealing for anyone in the area who saw a black Volkswagen Jetta to contact them. Superintendent Declan O'Sullivan says the investigation is ongoing. "The incident occurred between Glengarriff village and the National park in Glengarriff, which is about a mile outside the town on the Kenmare road. We are investigating all circumstances of the accident, so we are appealing for anyone who may have witnessed anything or may have any information in relation to the occupants of the car, or the car itself" added Mr O'Sullivan. Between around-the-clock news reports, interviews with public health experts, and pundits hashing out the pros and cons of different disease-fighting strategies, were hardly at a loss for information and perspectives on COVID-19. Yet there are still many questions we struggle to answer with complete confidence: Why has this happened? What should we do in response? And where is God in all of this? In God and the Pandemic: A Christian Reflection on the Coronavirus and Its Aftermath, theologian and author N. T. Wright shows how Scripture speaks to our confusion and uncertainty. Andy Bannister, director of the Solas Centre for Public Christianity in Scotland, spoke with Wright about his book. Many Christians have already written books about the pandemiceveryone from John Lennox to John Piper, and even people with names other than John. What inspired you to contribute your own book? Back in March, Time magazine asked me if I would do an article on the pandemic. It got a rather provocative headline: Christianity Offers No Answers About the Coronavirus. Its Not Supposed To. I wanted to say that this drives us toward the Romans 8 position, where the Spirit groans within us with groans beyond words (v. 26)this is an extraordinary thing for Paul to say. And what it says to me is that we are supposed to be humble in the face of this, not to think we should know all the answers. After the article appeared, I began to get feedback. People emailed me to ask, How can you say that? And I was informed about what people were saying on Twitter (I never look at Twitter myself). All the while, I kept hearing people use Scripture in a way that seemed less than fully adequate. The book is an attempt to explore how Scripture, in its entire narrative and flow, really speaks to the circumstances were experiencing today. When COVID-19 hit, it seemed many of us were taken by surprise. Do you think the Western church has been living with comfort and security for so long that we have forgotten how to deal with darkness, suffering, and crisis? Absolutely! I was talking to a senior church leader a few weeks ago about this, and he remarked: You know, Tom, we dont do lament very well. Were not used to it. But nor do we celebration terribly well either. What we mostly seem to do is complacency. And I think hes right. I keep hearing Christians asking, Could this be the end of the world? And I want to remind them that things like this have happened again and again. For example, in 191718, there was the great Spanish flu pandemic, during which churches in some parts of the world were shut for a year. We forget that we have been here before. Furthermore, for my baby boomer generation, which grew up after World War II, we havent had a war on our territory. We havent had a pandemic. Sure, weve had a couple of economic crises, but weve managed to weather those, more or less. So weve just muddled along and carried on as though nothing too bad is going to happen. We forget about history. I was fascinated when I recently reread the letters of Martin Luther, one of which I quote in the book. Luther had to cope with this kind of stuff every few years, either for himself or for people in neighboring towns who cried out, Help! Weve got a great epidemic. People are dying. What do we do? Luther talks about obeying the rules concerning taking medicine, helping practically where you can, and not getting in the way and giving the disease to others if you might be infectious. He was very pragmatic, effectively saying, This is how we cope. Lets not make a big theological fuss about it. Article continues below Your book draws on plenty of Old Testament themes, especially from the Psalms and Job. Concerning the latter, you argue that part of the point of Job is precisely its unresolved character. Do you think Christians today seem to struggle with ambiguity because they lack a firmer grounding in the Old Testament? I think the New Testament has a place for ambiguity as well. There are many places in the New Testament which end with a kind of dot-dot-dot, question mark, because thats called living by faith. Overall, I think part of our problem is the rationalism of the last two or three hundred years in the Western world, which has soaked into the church because the rationalist critics of Christianity have said things like: Aha, look, modern science shows us that Christianity is false! In response, rationalist Christians have said, No, lets show how it is all completely rational! That can lead to us wanting to have the answer to everything, and so we want to say things like: Because God is sovereign, he must either have done this deliberately or at least permitted it deliberately. We think that we should be able to see what hes up to. But I really dont think we are given that kind of access. One of my favorite moments in the New Testament is in Pauls letter to Philemon about the slave Onesimus. He writes, Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back forever (1:15). In other words, Paul thinks that perhaps he might be able to see what God was up to in this situation. But hes not going to say so definitively. Theres a humility here that we need. Now that could spill over backwards into an attitude of We know nothing, so who cares? That wouldnt be wise either, because we are given guidelines. But knowing all the details is, as the saying goes, above our pay grade. Its Gods job. Our job, when God lets us know what we have to do in this particular situation, is to get on with it. When you talk about the Gospels, you emphasize the example of Jesus standing at the tomb of Lazarus, weeping. What might you say to somebody who isnt a Christian, who is wrestling with the problem of suffering, and who asks: What good is a weeping God? I can weep. Anybody can weep. What we need is action; we need something done! How does Jesus weeping help? Theres plenty of action in the story, and the action grows out of the tears. As is often the case, in fact, tears in the Gospels sometimes are the crucial element. What they show is that the God who made the world, who became human as Jesus of Nazareth, is not sitting upstairs somewhere, looking down and saying, Okay, Ill sort out your mess. Rather, hes the God who comes and gets his hands dirty and gets his hands pierced in order to be where we are and to rescue us from there. Its profoundly comforting to know that when I am grieving, as Paul says in Romans 8, Jesus is grieving with me, and the Holy Spirit is grieving within me. And this is one of the things that marks out the Christian faith as distinct from pretty well any other worldview that I know. What does the rest of New Testamentand in particular the role of the Holy Spirithave to teach us about our response to the pandemic? Romans 8, which I just mentioned, is one of the greatest passages in the whole Bible. When I was working as a bishop, if I was interviewing people for parish jobs, I would sometimes ask: Whats your desert-island Bible text? And to make it harder, I would add, Youve already got John 20 and Romans 8, so dont go there. Those are too obvious. Article continues below Romans 8 is full of glory. Its full of salvation. Its full of the work of the Spirit. Its easy to get carried away, however, and imagine that once were through the difficult parts of Romans 7, were just sailing on a high all the way to Pauls affirmation that nothing can separate us from the love of God (8:3839). But you still have to go through the dark tunnel of Romans 8:1830, especially verses 26 and 27, which speak of the Spirit interceding for us in our weakness. When the world is in a mess, as it is in general but particularly at times like now, it would be very easy to imagine the church standing back and saying, What a pity the world is in such a mess. But we at least know the answers. But no, Paul says that when the world is groaning in labor pains, then even we ourselveswho have the firstfruits of the Spirit, the stirring of Gods new creation within usare groaning as we wait for our adoption as sons and daughters, the redemption of our bodies (Rom. 8:23). You might say, okay, so the church shares the mess that the world is in, but surely God knows what hes doing. Well, in a sense, yes, God knows what God is doing. But here we strike the mystery of the triune God, because Paul says that at that very moment, the Spirit groans within us with inarticulate groanings. Furthermore, alluding to Psalm 44, one of the great psalms of lament, Paul says that the God who searches the heart knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for Gods people according to Gods will (Rom. 8:27). In other words, God the Father knows the mind of the Spirit. But the mind of the Spirit is the mind that has no words to say for how terrible things are right now. This is a very strange business. But what I think what it means is this: that in order to rescue the world, God comes in the person of his Son to take the weight of sin upon himself. And God comes in the person of the Spirit to be the one who groans in the church, at the place where the world is in pain. That is how God then moves by those labor pains from the present state of horror and shame in the world to salvationthe total new creation, which is what were promised. The idea of the Spirits grieving and groaning takes me back to something you touched on earlier, namely lament. Throughout the book you say we need to embrace lament. Is this something we have forgotten a bit in the modern church? If so, how do we rediscover it? Yes, I really think some of us have forgotten it. For those in a tradition where we use the Psalms all the time, it helps that we come through lament quite frequently. When Im praying the Psalms, day by day, I will often hit one of the psalms of lamentand often this is what I need, because these bad things are going on in my life. At other times I might come across psalms of lament when I am personally feeling quite cheerful. So then, as a spiritual exercise, I try to think my way into the situation of people that I know about around the world: either friends of mine or people Ive seen on television or in the news who are in a terrible situation nowpeople in a horrible, squalid refugee camp, or whatever the case may be. And I pray the psalms of lament trying to embrace them in the love of God. We need to remember that lament is not just for Lent. Its also built into Advent, as we prepare for Christmas. Those are seasons we can use to develop liturgies of lament that bring the pain of the world into the presence of God, using psalms of lamentlike Psalms 22, 42, and 88that prefigure what Jesus prayed on the cross: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Matt. 27:46). Sometimes those prayers come out the other side into the light. And sometimes, like Psalm 88, they simply dont. They stay in the dark. And theres a sense that God is with us in that darkness. Article continues below Toward the end of the book, you talk about the church and its response to various lockdown orders. You argue that our willingness to suspend in-person gatherings and conduct services online may have accidentally reinforced the secular idea that faith is a private activity. How do we navigate the tension between the call to corporate worship and the importance of public health? I begin with the point that Luther made that we must not spread infection. Thats irresponsible. Its playing around with other peoples lives. And if we love our church buildings more than we love our neighbors, then woe betide us. The fact is, most of the churches in the UK are old buildings, which makes it very difficult to deep-clean them. And I take that very seriously. But on the other hand, I worry that online church can easily tempt us into saying, Oh, we dont need to meet in person, because these are spiritual matters. So you can worship God in your bedroom, in you pajamas, as much as anywhere else? Well, in a sense you can. But Christianity is a team sport. Its something we do together. Think of the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, graciousness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control (Gal. 5:2223). All of those are things we do together. You cant be practicing them apart from one another. And so the sooner we can come back together wisely, the better. As for receiving the Eucharist, yes, we can receive that on the screen, but there is also a sense of fasting, of deprivation, of exile, because the body of Christthe larger family of the people of Godis not physically present with us. Ive long thought that the most important response to evil and suffering isnt words so much as action, even action that may be costly. Jesus modeled this for us. So, in light of the suffering caused by the pandemic: What should Christians be doing now? How then should we live? Theres a fascinating passage in Acts 11, where the disciples in Antioch hear from a prophet that theres going to be a famine (v. 28). They dont respond: Oh dear, what can this mean? Is God angry with us? Does this mean the Lord is coming back? No, theyre very practical. They ask: Who is going to be most at risk? What can we do to help? And who should we send? The result is that Paul and Barnabas are sent off to Jerusalem with money for the poor church there (v. 2930). Its similar at the start of John 9, the story of the man born blind. Jesus is relentlessly practical and discourages his disciples from asking whose fault this was or whether some sin was to blame (v. 3). It wasnt actually anybodys fault. The important question is what God would have us do in response. So for us, we should start with our neighbors, friends, and family, asking who we could help by bringing some food, tools, or medical supplies. Maybe our church could get involved with something like running a food bank. In short, we should ask: What can we do? In his wonderful book Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World, the historian Tom Holland points out that many things the church and only the church used to do have now been taken on by the wider secular society. Thus many doctors and nurses who would not call themselves Christians have picked up this strong imperative to look after people, even at the potential cost of their own lives. That is a noble thing. But in the ancient world, it was only the Christians who did that. So in a sense, some of that Christian ideal has spread out into the world. And we should thank God for that. But in the church, we have been doing things like medicine, care of the poor, and education from day one. They are deep in the churchs DNA. So Christians should be reclaiming that tradition and holding onto itand not just when theres a pandemic going on. [ This article is also available in espanol, Portugues, Francais, , , Deutsch, Indonesian, and . ] A man in his 40s has died after he got into difficulty while trying to help another man from drowning in Co Cork. He was named locally as Bernard Geasley. Gardai were called to reports of a missing person in the water in Ballincollig Regional Park at around 8.30pm last night. Members of the Coast Guard and Cork City Search and Rescue assisted officers in a search operation last night. The man was discovered later on and pronounced dead at the scene. It is believed that he entered the water in an attempt to help another man who appeared to be in difficulty. Divers and a sonar scanning the river bed were used in the search. He had reportedly been at Ballincolligs Regional Park with his brother and a friend before the incident near a damaged weir in the River Lee yesterday. The local coroner has been notified and the body has since been removed to Cork University Hospital. A garda spokesperson confirmed that enquiries into the death are ongoing. HOUSTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Autumn Lane Advisors is pleased to announce it has been named to the 2020 edition of the Financial Times 300 Top Registered Investment Advisers. The list recognizes top independent RIA firms from across the U.S. This is the seventh annual FT 300 list, produced independently by Ignites Research, a division of Money-Media, Inc., on behalf of the Financial Times. Ignites Research provides business intelligence on investment management. RIA firms applied for consideration, having met a minimum set of criteria. Applicants were then graded on six factors: assets under management (AUM); AUM growth rate; years in existence; advanced industry credentials of the firm's advisers; online accessibility; and compliance records. There are no fees or other considerations required of RIAs that apply for the FT 300. The final FT 300 represents an impressive cohort of elite RIA firms, as the median AUM of this year's group is $1.9 billion. The FT 300 Top RIAs represent 39 different states and Washington, D.C. Autumn Lane Advisors is a boutique wealth management firm that helps clients coordinate and manage their wealth with the objectivity, expertise and client experience associated with a family office. Serving as a fiduciary, Autumn Lane Advisors works exclusively for our clients. For additional information, visit http://autumnlanellc.com/. SOURCE Autumn Lane Advisors Related Links http://www.autumnlanellc.com/ Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar said on Monday the forcible quarantine of the Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, who was sent to Mumbai lead the probe into the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, was not right and that the force is just doing their duty. Kumars comments came after Bihars director general of police (DGP) Gupteshwar Pandey said Mumbai Police had forcibly" quarantined Vinay Tiwari in tweets late on Sunday night amid a turf war between Bihar police and Mumbai Police over the probe into Rajputs death. The DGP has informed me about the developments. He will speak with the authorities there. Whatever happened with him is not right, Kumar said while speaking to reporters. This is not political. This a legal responsibility of Bihar Police and they are carrying out their duty, he added. Pandey had put out the allegation again the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in his tweets. IPS officer Vinay Tiwari reached Mumbai today from Patna on official duty to lead the police team there but he has been forcibly quarantined by BMC officials at 11 PM today, Pandey had tweeted. He was not provided accommodation in the IPS mess, despite request, and was staying in a Guest House in Goregaw, he said. The top police official also tweeted a 40-second video of Tiwari in a blue t-shirt and quarantine stamp on the back of his left hand. The Mumbai civic authority, on its part, said Tiwari had been quarantined "as per the present guidelines for domestic arrivals at Mumbai Airport". The four-member team from Patna Police started a parallel investigation into Rajputs death after the 34-year-old actor's father filed a complaint in Patna against actor Rhea Chakraborty and her family members Patna Police registered a first information report (FIR) under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including abetment to suicide. Rajput was found dead in his Bandra apartment on June 14. The man was identified as Sukhrob Karimov, a 32-year-old citizen of the Central Asian nation of Uzbekistan. Ukrainian police have arrested a man who threatened to blow up an explosive device at a bank in the nations capital. The man, identified as Sukhrob Karimov, a 32-year-old citizen of the Central Asian nation of Uzbekistan, on Monday entered a bank office in Kyiv and said he had explosives in his backpack. He let bank staff go and demanded that the authorities invite journalists so that he could make a statement. Police burst into the room while the man was talking to journalists and arrested him. Officials confirmed after the man was arrested that he did in fact have explosives. Previous incidents It was the third such incident in recent weeks. Last month, an armed man carrying explosives took 13 passengers hostage on a bus in the western Ukrainian city of Lutsk. Police freed the passengers and arrested the attacker following a 12-hour standoff after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed to his demand to post a movie recommendation on social media. On July 23, another man took a senior police officer hostage in the central Ukrainian city of Poltava before being shot dead by police on Saturday. The hostage was unharmed. New Delhi: The Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh on Monday met Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar to discuss Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput death case. Meanwhile, LG Patna Sanjay Singh said, "we discussed the recent developments regarding the case. There is no decision taken on whether more police officials will be sent to Umbai for investigation. Bihar DGP sai, "our investigation has been hampered after IPS officer Vinay Tiwari has been put on quarantine by Mumbai police. We are waiting for the Supreme Court verdict. Mumbai cops are looking for our other four officials to put them in quarantine as well. They have asked for their location from Patna police." Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at his Bandra residence on June 14, 2020. Several political leaders, parties and fans have been pressing for a CBI inquiry into the case since many new developments have been unravelled. Bihar police have come into action and a parallel investigation along with Mumbai police is on track to come to a conclusion. Majority of Nigerians who contracted COVID-19 so far did not have relevant travel history or exposure to another individual with the virus, meaning that the origin of their infection is unknown. This is according to the coronavirus situation report for August published by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Sunday. Despite a continued decline in the daily figure of confirmed coronavirus infections in Nigeria, there has been a troubling uptick in mystery cases which health experts believe could upset plans of full opening of public activities across the country. On Sunday, 304 coronavirus infections were recorded in Nigeria, the lowest number in at least two weeks. Since Friday, the nation has been recording cases below 500. The latest figure brings the total number of infections in the country to 43, 841. Mysterious Cases But according to the NCDC report, over 70 per cent (31, 237) of confirmed cases are from unknown sources that contact tracers could not tie back to likely community sources such as spouses, co-workers, or neighbours. They cannot also be traced to persons with travel history, putting a strain on efforts towards identifying specific individuals with exposure risks. This situation portrays the intensity of community spread of this contagion but also puts the government in a difficult position in trying to ensure balance between keeping the economy running and fighting the virus, Tolu Fakeye, a public health physician said. Nigeria has had to reopen its economy as authorities seek to balance health needs with the economic needs of the populace. Schools are being reopened gradually, domestic flights have resumed, while markets and religious centres are also gradually being reopened. Health experts believe the prevalence of cases with no traceable identity should intensify the need for blanket protections such as mask-wearing and social distancing and can halt further reopening of public activities. Only two per cent (804) of cases have travel history while 27 per cent (11, 800) had contact with them, the report said. The findings of this report clearly shows that there is evidence of community transmission, but the extent is still not clear, Chinaza Ezeigwe, a public health worker, said. The NCDC, in its Week 15 Editorial titled, Scaling up COVID-19 testing capacity in Nigeria, said the cases with unknown sources were evidence of the existence of community transmission. Currently, the need to conduct more testing is being advocated due to increased cases of community transmission, the agency said. Poor testing But despite the uptick of community transmission, Nigeria has lagged in testing people who showed symptoms of the disease. On April 28, the Nigerian government announced its target of testing at least two million people within the next three months. The ambitious 90 days target elapsed a few days ago, but Nigeria failed to cover at least 30 per cent of the two million. Nigeria still conducts only about 900 to 1,400 tests per day across 26 molecular laboratories in the country, a source confirmed to PREMIUM TIMES. As of the time of reporting, Nigeria has tested about 287, 532 of its 200 million population. Repeated calls and texts to Chikwe Ihekweazu, NCDC Executive Director, seeking to find how the agency would expand testing and intensify contact tracing of cases with unknown sources were not responded to as of press time. The report The report showed that more males are infected with the virus. Of the 43, 841 total, 28,305 (65 per cent) are men while 15,536 (35 per cent) are women. The most affected age group is between 31 to 40 (25 per cent). Out of a total 43,841 infected persons so far, 20,308 have recovered and have been discharged after treatment in the countrys 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Advertisements Five fatalities were recorded from the virus on Sunday, pushing the total number of confirmed deaths from the virus to 888. Preparedness Since the confirmation of the first case on February 27, the NCDC said it has released several advisories and statements to help Nigerians and some affected groups in particular, to respond to the pandemic. These guidelines include: 1. An online course on Infection, Prevention and Control (IPC) for COVID-19 via NCDC eLearning platform 2. Ahead of forthcoming elections in the country, NCDC issued Guidelines for Conducting Elections During the COVID-19 Outbreak in Nigeria. 3. To protect elders, and those with pre-existing medical conditions, NCDC issued an Advisory for Vulnerable Groups. 4. NCDC said it released guidelines on the re-opening of places for worship. 5. NCDC also released Strategies to Improve Surveillance for COVID-19 Guidance for States 6. Guidelines have been issued for the safe transportation of remains of persons suspected or confirmed to have died of COVID-19. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 21:10:28|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close JERUSALEM, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Director generals of Israel's governmental hospitals have warned Monday that they would have to lay off many workers due to severe budget shortages amid the coronavirus crisis. In a letter sent to the Organization of State Employees Physicians, a copy of which was seen by Xinhua, the General Directors Forum of Government Hospitals claims that "the current conduct endangers the hospitals' capabilities to deal with the pandemic." "This is the largest social, economic and health challenge in Israel's history, however, the state has not yet provided proper solutions to the hospitals' daily operation with an adequate budget," it added. They noted that in recent weeks they have contacted all relevant bodies to avoid reaching this crisis, but to no avail. If immediate steps are not taken, they warned that they would reduce personnel in all sectors. The loads in Israeli hospitals has increased in recent weeks due to a significant rise in morbidity, from few dozens of daily new coronavirus cases to more than 2,000. Enditem Hyderabad, Aug 3 : Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday launched 'E-RakshaBandhan' campaign aimed at creating public awareness on cyber crimes against women and children. The virtual cyber crime awareness programme -- jointly developed by Andhra Pradesh Police and Crime Investigation Department (CID), will focus on ensuring the safety of women and children in cyber space. Partnered with Cyber Crime Prevention Against Women and Children (CCPWC), Cyber Peace Foundation, and other organisations, the police department will be organising the month-long online awareness drive. It is aimed at creating awareness among the public on the sharp rise in cyber crimes. Launched on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, the month-long campaign would be conducted through online sessions in the form of webinars, workshops, competition, covering different topics related to cyber crimes. Experts from across the country will take part in this campaign and conduct webinars to teach women and girls how to protect themselves from cybercrimes. The Andhra Pradesh police have also launched a new cyber crime portal to facilitate victims/complainants to report cyber crime complaints online. Issues on child sexual abuse, child victim support, domestic violence, rape victim support, sexual harassment at workplace and street harassment can be reported on the web portal. The Chief Minister said his government was proud to have 18 Disha police stations across the state for speedy investigation and trial of cases related to sexual offences against women. He noted that investigations of 167 cases relating to crime against women have been completed and charge sheets have been filed in the courts. Amid a surge in new Covid-19 cases in Uttar Pradesh, a data analysis by HT shows that the state government has relied on rapid antigen tests to improve testing numbers an area in which Indias most populous state has been a laggard so far. In the week ending on Saturday, an average 93,770 samples were tested in Uttar Pradesh every day the highest in the country in absolute numbers. The next closest state in terms of daily tests was Tamil Nadu with 61,626 samples tested on average every day in the last week 34% fewer than UP. Click here for full Covid-19 coverage A month ago, for the week ending July 1, UP was testing 22,218 samples a day on average, while Tamil Nadu was testing 32,338 (45% more). In fact, two other states Maharashtra (24,135 daily tests) and Andhra Pradesh (24,028) tested more than UP as well. This shows how testing has been ramped up in UP over the past few weeks (Chart 1). To be sure, this increase in testing was much needed in UP, in the backdrop of the states massive population of 225 million. A month ago, the state conducted 3,373 tests per million residents, the lowest in the country after Bihar (2,493 tests per million) and Telangana (1,913) against the then national average of 6,794 tests per million. Since then the state has climbed two spots and has tested 10,571 sampled per million; though it remains significantly lower than the national average of 14,871 (Chart 2). Much of the increase can be attributed to the states decision to start using antigen tests. An antigen is a protein that induces an immune response in the form of production of antibodies against a disease, and detecting its presence through an antigen-based test determines a present infection. Since these tests can possibly lead to false negatives, several cases can slide under the radar. But experts say it can be used in small areas of hot spots to test every resident and quickly isolate as many patients as possible. In contrast, the real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test is the gold-standard for Covid-19 testing. It is used for the qualitative detection of nucleic acid from the Sars-CoV-2 in upper and lower respiratory specimens and is primarily based on PCR, a process that duplicates and amplifies genetic fragments of the virus, so that it becomes easily detectable. Experts say this is the most definitive test currently available and should be used as often as possible. On July 20, when the state tested 40,659 samples, only 7,780 or 19.1% of tests were antigen tests (Chart 3). This share of antigen tests in the total samples tested in the state has been increasing daily since. As of August 1, nearly 69% of the 114,844 samples tested in the state were antigen-based. In the same time period, while RT-PCR tests have largely remained the same (in the 30,000-a-day range), antigen tests have grown 10-fold (from 7,700 tests a day on July 10 to 78,000 tests a day on August 1). The strategy applied by the UP government is not unheard of. Nearly one in four Covid-19 tests conducted across the country currently uses a rapid antigen test kit, HT reported on Saturday. Delhi, which is perhaps the only region in the country that has managed to control the outbreak, has also relied heavily on antigen tests to scale its testing on July 30, for instance, 71.6% of all tests performed in the capital were antigen-based. A senior doctor with the core team of Kanpurs chief medical officer (CMO), who did not wish to be identified, said the decision to rely on antigen tests so heavily was based on the limited number of RT-PCR labs and machines. The target for daily tests was not achievable without ramping up the scale of rapid antigen tests, the doctor said, adding that the number of machines available as of now was clearly not enough. Experts say the lack of infrastructure related to RT-PCR tests remains a major challenge for the UP government, especially with he monsoon, which sees a massive spike in infections, underway. Monsoon is favourable for the spread of infection. RT-PCR is the gold standard to test and identify cases early and accurately. Satellite testing centres should be made and RT-PCR machines should be placed for a population of every two lakh. In a city such as Lucknow, there should be at least 100 RT-PCR machines placed in different areas, said professor TN Dhol, ex-head of the department of microbiology at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh. A proposed rockfall fence in the Delaware Water Gap on Interstate 80, that is estimated to cost more than $50 million could collapse before its built if a proposal to pull federal funding passes. U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer introduced an amendment Monday to the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, which provides funds to state Department of Transportation agencies around the country. The amendment would prohibit money from the act being used to build a proposed rockfall fence in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area in New Jersey. In 2018, the New Jersey Department of Transportation proposed building the fence along I-80 in Knowlton and Hardwick townships. The approximately half-mile-long fence is designed to guard against potential rockfalls in the northern Warren County townships, about a mile from the bridge connecting Pennsylvania and New Jersey and within the 70,000-acre water gap recreation area. The fence would be installed between the 4-lane interstate highway and cliffs that reach over 1,500 feet. DOT has stated that the area on I-80 that winds along the Delaware River has the highest risk of rockfall of anywhere on New Jerseys highways. Rockfalls and related events have closed the highway three times in the last 15 years. Between 2001 and 2017, there were 11 rockfalls that caused 14 accidents, one of which was fatal. Several local elected officials and citizens groups, including I80DWG Coalition, have spoken out against the fence. The fence would detract from the natural beauty of the area and be costly to tourism, fence objectors have said. Local leaders have said theres more they could do with tens of millions of dollars than build a half-mile-long fence to prevent rockfalls. The local economy relies heavily on tourism to the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, which attracts visitors because of its unparalleled beauty and natural vistas, Gottheimer said in a statement. Building an obstructive and unsightly artificial wall will diminish the attractiveness of the area to tourists and wreak havoc on the economy. Construction could take up to three years to complete with lane closures on the highway. No detour has been established since the highway will remain open during construction but many have said they fear increased traffic will occur on local roads because of lane closures. A DOT schedule anticipates construction to begin in 2023. It is unclear how much support Gottheimers proposed amendment will receive in Congress. Phone and email attempts to reach Gottheimer last week were unsuccessful. John Best is a freelance contributor to lehighvalleylive.com. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. It is reported that two men who allegedly committed suicide by hanging committed the act out of depression. The police said one of the deceased persons had a history of mental illness while the other way suspected to be depressed. The bodies of Roy Kwasi Wilson, 41, and Samuel Ofori Agyapong, 54 were, retrieved at Madina and Fise respectively, hanging in their respective rooms over the weekend. According to police source, investigations conducted has revealed that the two were depressed, hence taking their one lives. The source said family members of Kessie Wilson, corroborated police findings and added that deceased had a history of mental illness. Narrating their death to the daily guide, Accra Regional Police Public Relations Officer ,DSP Efia Tenge said on July 26, at about 8:00 am, a gentleman from Teshie, reported to the police at Madina that at about 7:30 am, he visited his brother Wilson at Madina and found the brother dead and hanged on a rope in his room. She said the police proceeded to the scene and saw a young man hanging on a rope from his crossbar with his feet off the ground. She revealed that the body was examined after which it was removed and deposited at the police hospital Morgue DSPTenge continued that the following day, Amasaman police received information from a complainant, the brother-in-law of Agyepong about his death. The police PRO said on July 27, at about 10:30am the complainant went to his brother-in-laws room and found him hanged on a hook of a ceiling fan tied with a nylon sponge. ----Daily Guide Pompeo, who has said he asked Trump to fire Linick, emphasized at a Senate hearing last week that the president has absolute authority to fire appointed officials. But he said there were several reasons he wanted Linick out. In particular, he said, Linick had leaked the results of an IG investigation that found the departments office of policy planning had in 2017 acted against several career officials deemed to be politically disloyal because they had also served during the Obama administration. As the first large-scale whole-industry-chain furniture exhibition held in China this year, CIFF Guangzhou 2020 provided both on-site and online exhibits and events. Organizers of CIFF Guangzhou emphasized the irreplaceability of physical exhibition for the industry, as complex sensory experience such as touching and smelling plays an important part in decision making of furniture buyers. To ensure on-site attendees' health and safety with COVID-19 remaining a challenge, the organizers had deployed a real-name reservation and registration system and adopted a strict set of protocols in terms of dealing with risks association with the ongoing pandemic, meeting the various prevention and control requirements. As the comprehensive platform of choice for new product debuts and trade, CIFF Guangzhou 2020 has played a positive role in maintaining strong domestic sales and foreign trade, promoting the recovery and new growth across the industry in the post-epidemic era, with the aim of ensuring the steady development of the furniture industry's supply and industrial chains. Germany-based Emma Mattress won many potential partners through the event. Its General Manager of China market, Li Ziyun said CIFF Guangzhou had made great efforts and she was surprised at how rewarding the efforts have proven to be. Apart from providing a platform where the upstream and downstream sides of the industry can meet, CIFF Guangzhou 2020 hosted over 30 high-end displays, design forums and trend launch events, including 2020 Global Furniture Industry Trend Conference, "Design Spring" Contemporary Chinese Furniture Design Fair and 2030+ International Future Office, to lead and drive the next stage of industry growth. Anson, buyer from Turkey, who attended the event with plan of introducing more office furniture brands and manufactures to markets of Turkey, Middle East or Europe, said he had learnt a lot about the latest trends of the industry. CIFF Guangzhou 2021 is scheduled to be held between March 18-21 and March 28-31, 2021. For more information, please visit: https://ciff-gz.com/en Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1223001/CIFF_Guangzhou_Furniture.jpg Related Links http://ciff-gz.com/en SOURCE China International Furniture Fair (Guangzhou) NAC now has an attractive offering to help their employees more easily book their space-available air travel while at the same time taking advantage of great travel deals and discounts through the ID90 Travel app and website. ID90 Travel continues to offer innovative technologies for the aviation services industry. In a partnership with Northern Air Cargo (NAC), ID90 Travel has created an interline platform for NAC employees to book non-revenue travel on Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Air. As part of the agreement, NAC will have access to ancillary travel products and services including hotels, all-inclusive resorts, car rentals, ground transportation, travel insurance, and cruises. NAC joins Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines employees in gaining access to the ID90 Travel top-rated mobile booking app, desktop platform, and expert customer service. Part of our mission at NAC is to create a great place for our employees to build long-term careers, said Gideon Garcia, Vice President & GM of Northern Air Cargo. Thanks to our relationship with ID90 Travel, we can now expand our benefits package to include flight privileges and travel supplier discounts to our valued employees. Our world-class technology platform gives carriers and cargo companies like NAC the opportunity to provide their teams with consumer grade web and mobile app air booking capabilities alongside valuable travel services, said Mike Stacy, CEO of ID90 Travel. NAC now has an attractive offering to help their employees more easily book their space-available air travel while at the same time taking advantage of great travel deals and discounts through our app and website. NAC employees will gain access to select features of the ID90 Travel integrated solution: Exclusive Rate Hotel Pricing: Search and book from among close to 1 million hotels, resorts and vacation rentals around the world with exclusive discounts of up to 70% off prices youd find on popular consumer travel sites. Discounted Cruises: Get some of the best interline cruise deals exclusive to airline employees on cruise lines like Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, Celebrity and others. Destination Activities: Choose from ready-made itineraries of 30,000 things to do and see across the globe. Exclusive Rate Travel Insurance: Purchase low cost trip-interruption insurance and be covered for out-of-pocket expenses that come with being stuck in a destination. Gold Standard Customer Care: NAC employees get quick answers to their questions with 24/7 multi-lingual customer service support. All-in-One Mobile App: Everything comes together in a fast, easy-to-use mobile booking app. Learn more about ID90 Travel here: https://www.id90travel.com/ Northern Air Cargo (NAC) Northern Air Cargo, LLC (NAC) is an American cargo airline based in Anchorage, Alaska. NAC operates a fleet of Boeing 737-300s and Boeing 737-400s within the state of Alaska, and widebody Boeing 767-300 services throughout the Caribbean and South America. Other services include aircraft maintenance services through its subsidiary, Northern Air Maintenance Services, on demand charters and consolidation of cargo. With a main base at the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, NAC also operates out of a hub at Miami International Airport. About ID90 Travel ID90 Travel provides airlines around the globe a SaaS platform that automates and reduces costs associated with airline employee travel programs. It is a one-stop, comprehensive solution for airlines' employee travel needs. With more than one million airline segments booked annually, ID90 Travel provides Online and Interline ticketing for employees to fly for leisure or company business on their own carrier or partner airlines. In addition, with more than 1,000,000 hotels in inventory across the world, and the largest selection of rental cars and cruise lines available to non-revenue travelers, ID90 Travel is the first company in the airline industry to provide employee pass-travel programs with the ability to seamlessly book discounted hotels, rental cars and cruises. ID90 Travel also offers a trip insurance policy tailored to the needs of these travelers. ID90 Travel clients include some of the largest carriers in the world, including United Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Spirit, Czech Airlines and Aeroflot, to name a few. For more information, visit http://www.ID90travel.com. Contact Taylor L. Cole, APR at 972.333.4343 or taylorlcole@gmail.com @TravelwithTLC LOS ANGELES, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A national insurance expert and actuary warned California lawmakers that AB 2167, scheduled for a vote in the Senate Insurance Committee on Tuesday, would raise homeowners' insurance rates by 40% in the first year it takes effect and make it harder for Californians to find coverage. Robert Hunter, Director of Insurance for Consumer Federation of America, a former National Insurance Administrator and former Insurance Commissioner of Texas, told Senators that by linking California insurance rates to the unregulated international reinsurance market, the bill would cause additional double-digit rate hikes any time a significant weather event happens around the world. Read the letter and press release: https://consumerfed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AB2167LetterJRHunter.pdf https://consumerfed.org/press_release/california-homeowners-insurance-legislation-will-raise-premiums-by-40-across-the-state/ "I have no doubt that this [reinsurance] provision of AB 2167 will drive up the average cost of insurance in California by hundreds of dollars per home and subject the state's homeowners insurance market to additional spikes in price and non-renewals as it becomes tethered to unregulated and erratic global reinsurance markets," Hunter, a Fellow in the Casualty Actuarial Society, wrote. AB 2167 (Daly-Anaheim), and its companion bill SB 292 (Rubio-Baldwin Park), would further deregulate homeowner insurance in California by eliminating the protections of voter-approved Proposition 103, which requires insurance companies to open their books to public scrutiny and justify rate increases. In addition to allowing insurance companies to pass on the costs of reinsurance without regulatory scrutiny, the bill overrides Proposition 103's protections against price-gouging and discriminatory practices and strips the Insurance Commissioner of the authority to reject unjustified rate increases. "This bill spits in the face of California voters, who passed Proposition 103 to require insurance companies to open their books and justify their rates. If the bill passes, the price of home and renter's insurance will go through the roof and many people will lose their homes. AB 2167 does nothing to require insurance companies to sell coverage to the people who require it. The last thing Californians need right now is an insurance tax hike," said Harvey Rosenfield, author of Proposition 103 and founder of Consumer Watchdog. Rosenfield will testify against AB 2167 at the Senate Insurance committee hearing at 1:30 on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance industry claims that AB 2167 will help make home insurance more available in wildfire areas. However, nothing in the bill requires insurance companies to sell or renew insurance to homeowners in communities insurance companies claim are "wildfire risks" at a price that anyone will be able to afford. Consumer Watchdog, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, and consumer, civil rights and community groups all oppose AB 2167. The insurance industry has given California Senators $2.3 million since 2017. Over the last decade, insurance companies have spent $32.5 million in campaign contributions to benefit state politicians. See the numbers: https://www.consumerwatchdog.org/insurance/insurance-industry-gives-ca-senators-235-million-win-right-raise-homeowners-rates Read Consumer Watchdog's letter of opposition to AB 2167 and a Q&A about its provisions. https://www.consumerwatchdog.org/sites/default/files/2020-08/AB2167OpposeSenateIns.pdf https://www.consumerwatchdog.org/sites/default/files/2020-08/Q%26AAB2167SenInsurance.pdf SOURCE Consumer Watchdog Related Links http://www.consumerwatchdog.org The largest freshwater lake in the northern province of Quang Ninh has seen the lowest water level for nearly 40 years. Yen Lap Reservoir located in Uong Bi Town has a capacity of 127 cubic metres and was put into operation in 1982. It is the supply for drinking water plants in Uong Bi Town and Ha Long City. The lake bed has mostly dried up, except for some sections with the water level of just several metres deep, and been covered by grass. Some parts have become so dry that vehicles and buffaloes can travel through. Yen Lap Reservoir has faced the lowest water level for nearly 40 years. The area has witnessed rain for just twice since the rainy season this year. Nguyen Xuan Tung, director of Yen Lap Irrigation Company, said that the reservoirs current water level is just 20 cubic metres, accounting for just a third of last years figure. This is the low record level of the lake over the past four decades. The company has worked with Quang Ninh Water Supply and Construction Company to reduce the water supply from Tan Lap Lake for local residential to ensure irrigation for around 6,000 hectares of crops in Quang Yen District. Quang Ninh Water Supply and Construction Company has set up a floating pumping station to conveniently move to the lakes areas with water. The floating pumping station to conveniently move to the lakes areas with water The company has also informed the problem to local people so that they know how to store water. Vehicles are also used to transport water to restaurants and hotels. The firm will establish a water pipeline to take water from another lake for Bai Chay and Quang Yen areas. Dtinews An Nhien Nearly 55,000 ha of crops in Vietnam's central region hit by drought Close to 55,000 ha of crops in the central region are lacking in water, according to the Directorate of Water Resources at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. WASHINGTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Crowning an impressive fifty-year legacy of high-impact programming within Africa, the Africare Board of Directors and President & CEO Robert L. Mallett today announced both the planned cessation of Africare operations in the US and the endorsement of a newly created independent entity, "PanAfricare" based in Senegal, West Africa. The birth of PanAfricare will coincide with the planned sunset of Africare. The new PanAfricare has established its own board of directors and will operate autonomously from the existing organization. Africare will transition its entire portfolio of projects to PanAfricare. As the legacy Africare closes its operations, a new "Friends of PanAfricare" has also been established. Its sole, independent purpose will be to support the new PanAfricare and other organizations with similar missions in sub-Saharan Africa with fundraising from donors who support the mission of Africare. Upon inception, PanAfricare can demonstrate extensive reach with a presence in each region of Sub-Saharan Africa -- Angola, Burkina Faso, Chad, Nigeria, Kenya, Zimbabwe and, of course, Senegal where the new PanAfricare headquarters will be based. Programs are within the core competencies of legacy Africare and the new PanAfricare, including: Agriculture, Nutrition, Health, Women's and Youth Empowerment. "It has been my great honor to serve as a steward of Africare's enormous impact of transforming lives in Africa from agricultural innovation, food security and nutrition to empowering women and youth. Now is simply the right time to pass this baton of stewardship not only to the capable Gorgui Diallo and the talented field staff but to the entire continent of Africa via the new PanAfricare. I have great confidence that governments and donors committed to capacity building will take note and support this bold new venture," said President & CEO Robert Mallett. "It was indeed the appropriate moment to dually celebrate Africare's wonderful legacy while also looking forward to ensure PanAfricare would be in a position to deliver services to the people of Africa," said Board Chair Stephen D. Cashin. "We are greatly appreciative of all the global 'Africare alumni' who have provided their energies and idea capital towards reaching this milestone." "We are also grateful to our many government, international and corporate partners, foundations, sororities, churches and individual donors over this period who have underwritten the delivery of valuable services to the people of Africa. Africare has long enjoyed a widely diverse base of donor support," he added. The new PanAfricare will be headed by the experienced and respected former Africare country director Gorgui Diallo and many talented country-based project teams will join him in this new venture. "I am humbled, honored and energized to become the inaugural CEO of the new PanAfricare. We appreciate the confidence of existing donors such as Bayer, Exxon Mobil and others who have reauthorized former Africare grants to PanAfricare. The new PanAfricare is excited about many projects such as nurturing a highly innovative initiative converting mining waste to fertilizer in Chad." Africare is inviting existing staff, dedicated Africare Alumni, donors and all our loyal supporters to adopt the hashtags "#AfricareGoldenYear2020" and "#MyAfricareMemory" on social media and share their sentiments, participation and even photos in support of the collective work in Africa. During the 1970-2020 period, Africare invested approximately $2 billion across 38 African countries. "#AfricareGoldenYear2020 is dually a recognition of our great fifty-year legacy in Africa while highlighting the promising planned programming on the continent," said President & CEO Robert Mallett. "As we are on the ground every day, we increasingly see effective solutions towards uplifting people's lives developed locally throughout our operating countries vs. imported from the US. A new autonomous PanAfricare is dedicated to delivering programming which directly benefits people," Mallett added. Additional details regarding Africare, Africare House, PanAfricare and past influential leaders such as C. Payne Lucas can be found on Africare's website at www.africare.org. Africare was founded in 1970 as a leading non-governmental organization committed to addressing African development and policy issues by working in partnership with African people to build sustainable, healthy and productive communities. During its fifty years, it has invested approximately $2 billion in 38 African countries . In 2020, Africare announced a planned sunset of US operations coinciding with the formation of an autonomous new Senegal headquartered entity named PanAfricare. PanAfricare will continue Africare' s legacy of implementing programs with a commitment towards 'improving lives and building futures' on the African continent. Africare concurrently also facilitated the formation of the "Friends of PanAfricare" non-profit entity which will support PanAfricare and other organizations with similar missions in sub-Saharan Africa. CONTACT: Vada O. Manager [email protected] or [email protected] 503-807-1635 (m) SOURCE Africare Related Links http://www.africare.org The President of the National House of Chiefs, Togbe Afede XIV, has called for a human face approach to the border closure to mitigate livelihoods of communities at the frontiers. He said the benefit of nationality has eluded residents of border communities requesting for mitigating approaches. Togbe Afede, doubling as the Agbogbomefia of Asogli State, said these, when he led the Standing Committee of the Volta Regional House of Chiefs to tour Leklebi-Kame border community in the Afadzato South District and others in Ho Municipality and Ketu South and engaged with immigration officials. He said the situation was worse than expected, as it affected access to basic facilities in the country for those caught on the cross borderline. He said the siting of immigration posts away from the actual border lines affected communities on the frontier, and that efforts to secure the nation's borders must not hinder the livelihoods of cross border residents. It's a blanket suggestion that you cannot cross the checkpoint when you know that Ghana lies beyond that checkpoint. How do parents explain to their children that we are no more Ghanaian? Suddenly you cannot come to your own country. Can you imagine the psychological trauma? Togbe Afede asked. The post at Leklebi Kame is several hundred meters away from the actual border post, and officials of the Ghana Immigration Service there told the Committee that the President's directives prevented Ghanaians living beyond the post from crossing, and they had made several arrests. The place is calm. There are no crossings, no one dares, one official said, and confirmed that people from beyond the post, who were schooling in Ghana too had been denied passage. He said the location created challenges and threatened their peaceful coexistence with residents, and suggested that the post be moved closer to the border. Togbuiga Delume VII, Paramount Chief of Ve Traditional Area, said there had been no reports of harassments by security personnel there since their deployment. Mr Thomas Alutornu, Secretary to the Hornuta Traditional Council in the Ho West District reported to the Committee that military personnel deployed to the area, few days later started breaking into homes, and also arrested some residents they claimed were Togolese seeking to register. He said the people lived in fear as they were surrounded by security personnel until the voter registration process was done with. They were turning people away, yet we share a common boundary with Togo and we share the same culture, Mr Alutornu said, adding that it was wrong to claim that people of frontier communities were not Ghanaians. He, however, noted that no violence had been recorded, although some local vigilantes had also committed to helping keep out non-Ghanaians. Togbe Afede called for peace and unity, and said the chieftaincy institution supported peaceful conduct of the elections, and would continue to work towards its success. The Committee visited border communities in the Ho Municipality, and also major entry points in the Ketu South Municipality, asking border officials to continue to sympathize with the people. Togbui Amenya Fiti V, Paramount Chief of the Aflao Traditional Area, conducted the entourage round some security barriers mounted within communities. The Committee also toured the several security posts manned by military and immigration officers, which Togbe Fiti pointed out were placed on a line wrongly sited by the Togolese Authorities and called for the demarcation of Aflao lands. ---citinewsroom This essay by John Hume originally appeared in London Review of Books on February 2, 1989. In recent times in Ireland we have been reminded of a lot of anniversaries. Remembering the past is something of an obsession here. The future, discussing it or shaping it, doesnt seem quite so popular. Decisions might have to be taken. Leadership might have to be given. Our attitude to the future is paralysed by our obsession with the past. Indeed I have often thought that our over-indulgence in the past is a reflection of a much deeper weakness our lack of the confidence to stand on our own feet, in our own time, with the ideas of our time, facing the problems of our time. It is, of course, the voices of our extremes which continually invoke the past under the guise not only of being its true but of being its only inheritors the keepers of the holy grail thus endowing themselves with a sanctity of purpose which justifies everything they say or do, no matter how horrific. One of the ironies is that these extremes are in many ways mirror-images of one another. The lack of self-confidence exhibited in the arrogance of their rhetoric and actions is only one of the common actors. We see it again in the demand, and the need, of each side to hold all power in their own hands, in the anxiety to have political structures made in the image of one tradition. It is evident in the rejection of tolerance and the need for domination. It is visible in the abandonment of peaceful processes. It is proclaimed in attitudes that seek victory and not accommodation. It is trumpeted by those who are so unsure of their Irishness that they need to remind us of it constantly. Their eyes mist over with self-righteous emotion as they wave national flags their cherished possession. They dont seem to notice that the real level of their respect is measured by their painting the flag on kerbstones for everyone to trample upon. The Unionist people have a long and strong tradition in Ireland. They have a rich Protestant heritage and a great pride in their tradition. They have pride in their service to the Crown, pride in their contribution to the United States, in their spirit of industry and achievement, in their work ethic and in their faith. Their special mettle is believed by many of them to be expressed in victories in battles long ago, battles regularly commemorated. But that pride is expressed in an archaic supremacism and in a desperate fear that they could not survive in accommodation with other traditions. They must live apart. Living apart may have been acceptable as long as their hold on power was underpinned by successive British goverments: but that is no longer the case. The fundamental change that has taken place as a result of the Anglo-Irish Agreement is a change that is deeply and fully understood by every Unionist. As a squad of helmeted riot police with shields move in to break up a mob of demonstrators, John Hume steps into their path pleading with them not to use violence in the centre of Derry on April 21, 1969. What it means is that their exclusive hold on power has gone and is not coming back. The power of veto on British policy which they have always had, and which goes to the heart of our problem here, has gone and is not coming back. The loss is uncomfortable for their leaders, for while they held that privileged position they never had to be politicians or exercise the art of politics, which is the art of representing ones own view while treating others with fairness. For traditional Unionism in Northern Ireland, other points of view have never actually existed. To this day, as they boast about the proposals which they have placed before the British Government about the future of Northern Ireland the future of us all the insult which their behaviour represents doesnt seem to have occurred to them. Not only have they not presented these proposals to those of us who represent other views views which must be accommodated if we are to have a future: they havent even published them for the information of their own followers. They are still oligarchs. The faithful will line up when the drums beat. The other points of view, to which lip-service is publicly paid, dont really count. However painful and difficult for them, their loss is in fact very healthy not only for them but for the whole community. Mrs Thatcher has done for Unionists what John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson did for the whites of Alabama in the Sixties. She has stripped them of ascendancy and privilege, and in so doing has done a service to us all by placing us on a politically equal footing. What Unionists should understand, however, is that the boot is not on the other foot. Our experience has taught us too much for that. In addition, and contrary to what our political opponents like to say, the Anglo-Irish Agreement has conferred no special benefits on the SDLP. The challenge to all of us is the same. When people who differ share a piece of earth, they sit down and sort out their differences: that is what happens in every stable and peaceful democracy in the world. We either take up that challenge now, sit down with representatives of the rest of this island, in the confidence that we can not only represent but safeguard our various traditions, or we do not and instead pass on this outdated and costly quarrel to the next generation. If we do, it may well take us a long time. That should not hinder us. The willingness to search for accommodation, and to stay with the search in spite of difficulty, must be supreme. We have a lot to conquer. We have to overcome a legacy of the deepest mistrust, the sequence of hurts and injustices piled high upon one another of which each section of our people has its own rabid tale to tell. But we should realise that those hurts, those injustices, indeed our whole present situation, are the symptoms and the product of the attitudes which have brought about our present intolerable society and which have failed to address a simple yet fundamental question: how do we share this island piece of earth together, in a manner that gives supremacy to none? John Hume sits by a by fire in an early morning demonstration in Derry in February 1972. Picture: Watford/Mirrorpix/Mirrorpix/Getty If we address that question today, we will transform the atmosphere throughout this island, and the good will towards us across the world where our wandering people have left such a mark will be overwhelming. Then there are those who are mirror images of traditional Unionism. They, too, believe in themselves alone as the only answer to the problem of a deeply-divided society, without the slightest acknowledgment of anyone elses existence apart from the ritual verbal genuflections. Self-determination of the Irish people is their objective, they say. The Irish people are defined by them. To judge by their actions and their contempt for the opinions of others, the Irish people as defined by them are themselves alone. They are more Irish than the rest of us, they believe. They are the pure Irish master race. That deep-seated attitude, married to their method, is one of the hallmarks of undiluted fascism. They have also the other hallmark of the fascist the need for a scapegoat: as they see it, the Brits are to blame for everything even their own atrocities! They know better than the rest of us. They know so much better that they take unto themselves the right, without consultation, to dispense death and destruction. By destroying Irelands people, they destroy Ireland. Read More Colum Eastwood: Each and every one of us lives in the Ireland Hume imagined I had discussions with them recently. The talks were designed to explore whether they were willing to lay down their arms and join the rest of the people of this island in the lengthy and difficult search for peace based on real self-determination. I put some questions to them about the price of their means and method, about the consequence of victory for their viewpoint, about peaceful alternatives which already exist. They replied with well-worn declarations about nationhood and the rights of the Irish people to self-determination, while ignoring the single most self-evident fact that strikes every human being in the world as they look in at Ireland: the Irish people are divided on that very question, the question of how to exercise self-determination. For people who proclaim their Irishness and their pride in Ireland so loudly they are remarkably lacking in both the self-confidence and the guts to sit round and talk with their fellow Irishmen as a way of persuading them that this vision of Ireland is the best one. In particular, their decision to use guns and bombs to persuade their Protestant fellow Irishmen is not only an extreme instance of lack of faith in their own beliefs or in the credibility of these beliefs: it is an indication of appalling moral cowardice and a deeply partitionist attitude. For its real effect is to deepen the essential divisions among the Irish people. There is not a single injustice in Northern Ireland today that justifies the taking of a single human life. What is more, the vast majority of the major injustices suffered not only by the Nationalist community but by the whole community are direct consequences of the IRA campaign. If I were to lead a civil rights campaign in Northern Ireland today, the main target would be the IRA. It is they who carry out the greatest infringements of human and civil rights, with their murders and bombings, their executions without trial, their kneecappings and punishment shootings. John Hume, Garret FitzGerald, Charles Haughey, and DIck Spring, at the first meeting of the Ireland Forum at Leinster House in 1983. Picture: Eamon Farrell/RollingNews.ie The most fundamental human right is the right to life. Who in Northern Ireland takes the most human lives? Let the record speak. In the 21-year period of the current troubles, 31 per cent of those who have died were members of the security forces. Fourteen per cent were members of paramilitary organisations. Fifty-five per cent were ordinary civilian men and women from both sections of the community, 69 per cent of them from the Catholic community and 31 per cent from the Protestant. And who killed all those people? The statistics are devastating: 44 per cent were killed by the Provisional IRA and 18 per cent by their fellow-travelling Republican paramilitaries. Twenty-seven per cent were killed by Loyalists. Ten per cent by the British Army. Two per cent were killed by the RUC and 0.28 per cent by the UDR. In short, people describing themselves as Irish Republicans have killed six times as many human beings as the British Army, 30 times as many as the RUC and 250 times as many as the UDR. And wait! One of their main claims is that they are the defenders of the Catholic community. SDLP leader John Hume is comforted as he weeps at the funerals of the Greysteel massacre victims. Of the 1,194 members of the Catholic community who died, 46 per cent were killed by Loyalist paramilitaries, 37 per cent by people describing themselves as Republicans and 17 per cent by the security forces. And in the last ten years since 1 January 1978, of the 305 members of the Catholic community who have lost their lives, 112 (37 per cent) have been killed by people describing themselves as Republicans, 105 (34 per cent) by Loyalists and 88 (29 per cent) by the security forces. In the last twenty years Republicans have killed more than twice as many Catholics as the security forces and in the last ten years they have killed more than the Loyalists. Some defenders! And I havent even mentioned their mistakes. Was it OCasey who said: The gunmen are not dying for the people, the people are dying for the gunmen? In addition, all the major grievances today within the Nationalist community are direct consequences of the IRA campaign: the presence of troops on our streets, the harassment and searching of young people, widespread house searches, prisons full of young people, lengthening dole queues leading to the emigration of many of our young people, checkpoints, emergency legislation ... If the campaign were to cease, these grievances would disappear. The troops would very soon be off our streets; they wouldnt be harassing young people or searching houses. Checkpoints would vanish, emergency legislation would be unnecessary. We could begin a major movement to empty our prisons, particularly of all those young people who were sucked into the terrible sectarian conflicts of the Seventies. And of course we could begin the serious job of attracting inward investment. John Hume and Ian Paisley The strange irony, as they deliberately refuse to recognise, is that the British position on Ireland has shifted. As I have said before, if the British and Argentine Governments were to announce tomorrow that they had signed an internationally-binding agreement, setting up a permanent Anglo-Argentine Conference, with a permanent secretariat in Port Stanley, to deal with the problem of the Falklands/Malvinas, would the whole world not regard it as a significant shift? That is what has happened here. The whole world has recognised it. The Unionists recognised it. In practice, this shift has meant the removal of the Unionist veto on British policy, the removal of their exclusive hold on power. Ah but, say the Provos, the British are here defending their economic and strategic interests and are keeping the people of Ireland apart in order to do so. Hence our armed struggle is justified. The British have no economic interest in Northern Ireland any more. It costs them 1.5 bn per year. British business can now locate anywhere in the European community. What possible strategic or military advantage is there in a nuclear age for Britain to have bases in Ireland? They had been closing them down steadily until the troubles began. Politically, the Governments official position is that if the Irish people want unity and independence, and those who want it persuade, not all, but some of those who dont, thus creating a majority in Northern Ireland, then they can have it. What sort of Irishman or Republican is it who will not take up that challenge, but instead believes that guns and bombs and the deaths of Irish people are necessary instruments of persuasion? What sort of Irish Republican is it who can ignore the fact that the methods he is using are bringing more suffering on his own people? Would any genuine Irish Republican given the starkness of the statistics I have outlined not reconsider his whole approach and his means and method in particular? The truth is, of course, that their method has become more sacred than their cause. My challenge to those people in Ireland, North and South, who regard themselves as Republicans is to accept the straightforward offer made to them in my talks with them. Lay down your arms once and for all. Join the rest of the people of Ireland in the search for ways and means of breaking down the barriers with our Protestant fellow-citizens, in persuading them to join us in building a new Ireland that reflects our diversity, and in persuading the British Government to commit all its resources to the same end. If this were to happen, then the atmosphere in this whole island, and in the North in particular, would be transformed and the nightmare of all our people would be truly at an end. Meanwhile the Anglo-Irish Agreement remains the target of both Unionist and Provo. I never cease to be amazed when I read some of the critics of the Agreement. They dont seem to have much understanding of what the Agreement actually is, or they simply havent read it. The Treaty of Rome set up the European Council of Ministers to deal with the questions referred to is under the Treaty. It set up a secretariat, called a commission, drawn from all countries represented in the Council, to service the Council. The Council meets regularly. It has open disagreements. Ministers sometimes even walk out. But nobody says the Treaty of Rome should be scrapped or is a failure. The Anglo-Irish Conference and Secretariat are modelled on the European Council of Ministers and Commission. We have witnessed the same sort of hiccups, and the same slow progress. But, as with Europe, the faults lie, not with the Agreement or its intentions, but with one or other of the governments who operate it. We should also remember that one of the strengths of the arrangement is that governments change and some will be more active than others, yet each can make its own distinctive contribution to the building process. When the Agreement was signed, we made clear that we in the SDLP saw the Agreement, and its instrument, the Conference, not as a solution, but as a means for dealing with the problem on a regular basis. We also foresaw that the major area of difficulty would be the administration of justice. The past year has underlined that view in a very significant way, with a series of events that starkly demonstrate the deep gulf that exists on this question the Stalker-Sampson affair, Private Thain, the McAnespie Killing, Gibraltar and its consequences in Milltown and the Andersontown Road, the so-called broadcasting ban, the restrictions on the right to silence, the Craigavon inquests. These events have been accompanied, moreover, by a succession of terrible IRA atrocities. It has always been our view that the bedrock of peace and order, the bedrock of justice in every society, is consensus among the population on how it is governed. When there is such a consensus, then justice and order follow naturally the police are our police and the courts are our courts. But when a society is divided, as ours is, on this fundamental question, then questions of courts and policing become very divisive issues. The best that any political party can do in those circumstances, and what we, through our spokesmen, have consistently done, is to offer full and unqualified support to the Police Force in seeking out anyone who commits a crime. All we ask is that it be done impartially within the rule of law. Given our experience, that is hardly an unreasonable qualification. We have welcomed the many advances in dealing with the symptoms of our deep-seated problem that the Agreement has made possible and we have listed them many times. We have also criticised, not only the failure to advance, but steps in the wrong direction such as the recent package of so-called tough action. But through all this we keep our eyes firmly fixed on the main purpose of the Agreement, which is to provide the means for dealing with the underlying problem or disease which gives rise to all these symptoms. It is here that we believe the Agreement has its greatest significance. It has removed the unjust Unionist veto on British policy, removed their exclusive hold on power, and this time the British Government has not succumbed to blackmail. By standing firm, it has broken through the vicious circle which has paralysed all political development. Hume and Gerry Adams at the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation in Dublin Castle in 1994. Picture: Eamonn Farrell/RollingNews.ie In the past, as in 1974, when British governments backed down before Unionist threats, they confirmed the leadership of Unionism in the hands of the no-surrender, no-compromise brigade and reinforced the basic appeal of the IRA, which was that the only thing the British understand is force. This time, that is not happening, and there is a new and fluid political scenario which opens up major opportunities for those who want solutions. But we still have too many who simply want victory for their point of view. When will they learn that they are not the people? Like ourselves, they represent only a section of the people and all sections have to be involved and accommodated in any solutions. The next stage for those interested in answers is obvious. It has to be dialogue and discussion which addresses the problem of our unsettled relationship. Let us call once again, therefore, for a conference table. Let the main subject of discussion be clear: how we share this island to our mutual satisfaction. Let us also agree that any agreement reached would transcend in importance any previous agreement, because it would address and settle a relationship which goes right to the heart of our quarrel the relationship between the Unionist people and the rest of the people of this island. And before we approach the conference table, or agree its agenda, let us meet to talk about the mechanisms whereby any such agreement is endorsed by the people, both North and South, so that there will be absolute reassurance that sell-outs will be impossible and all traditions respected. The door to such a conference table should be open to every party with an elected mandate. In practice, that means that every party sits down on the same terms, bringing nothing to the table but their own beliefs and powers of persuasion. There should be no place for any party using force, or reserving the right to use force if they do not get their way. While we engage in all of this, 1992 looms. The completion of the Single Market with freedom of movement for people, goods and services, and the creation of a commercial United States of Europe with a market of 320 million people, will have much greater impact on the daily lives of the people of this island than any of the other matters which we spend most of our time discussing. We should draw some lessons from that. Forty-three years ago the Second World War ended. Europe was devastated, its major cities in chaos, millions of its citizens dead. The bitterness between ancient foes, particularly France and Germany, was deeper than ever. If in that bleak landscape someone had forecast the Europe of the Eighties, he would have been described as a fool or a dreamer. Yet it happened because leaders had the vision to suggest new ways. They recognised that if the peoples of Western Europe, with their deep differences and fears for their survival, had chosen the wrong path to protect these differences, the results would have been ruinous for Europe as a whole. John Hume and Seamus Mallon outside No 10 Downing Street in 2001. After 1945, led by men of vision, they tried a new way. They sat down with former enemies to hammer out agreed institutions which settled relationships and preserved differences. No one would have believed in 1945 that by 1992 they would be moving towards the United States of Europe, with the Germans still German and the French still French. One thing is certain: they would never have achieved it had they continued to dwell on the past and call up the ghosts of the past. That approach would have led, as it always had done and as it does in Ireland, to conflict in every generation. Can we in Ireland not learn the same lesson? Can we not sit down with former enemies, with those whom we distrust, and hammer out institutions which will settle our relationships and preserve our differences? Is it too much to ask that we invest in the future for a change? For we havent finished with our anniversaries. Very substantial ghosts of the past loom in the 300th anniversaries of 1689 and 1690 the Siege of Derry and the Battle of the Boyne. In addition to our own local quarrel, those dates commemorate a wider and deeper European quarrel a quarrel, however, that has long been laid to rest in Europe. So have subsequent and more bitter ones. Will these anniversaries reinforce our spirit of confrontation, or will we commemorate them as divisions of the past by laying to rest the ancient quarrel that continues to disfigure us as a people? 3rd August 2020 Runtime 18:57 London South East caught up with Predator oil & Gas CEO Paul Griffiths. Predator was started in 2017, IPOd in 2018 and have operations in Trinidad, Morocco and Ireland. Paul gave @LondonSouthEast an in-depth update on strategy and current operations. We started by asking him about the CO2 sequestration business in South West Trinidad. Paul explained that he had been dealing with Leo Koot, Executive Chairman of Columbus and the CERP team. Columbus have just had shareholder approval for an agreed takeover by Bahamas Petroleum. Paul is waiting for legal approval of the deal and hopes to then discuss his proposals for FRAM, the joint venture with CERP. We have three options on how to proceed and look forward to discussing those with Bahamas. We think that we have made it clear to the market our preference is to be a CO2 EOR services provider and not to take on licences and to be actively producing conventional oil.. As Paul explained, CO2 sequestration means taking CO2 from the atmosphere and putting it into the ground to reduce the viscosity of oil and to make it more mobile, and therefore cheaper, faster and easier to get it to the surface and delivering a higher rate of production per well. He added: "We are going to do a production rate test on our test well in Trinidad next month and are just waiting for approval for our production facilities to go on site. In Morocco the company are waiting for the latest Covid review on August 10th to see if the lockdown there will be lifted. We hope things will have improved sufficiently to be able to move our rig team from Canada and well service providers from Algeria across borders to be able to drill by October". Paul welcomed the surprise arrival of ConocoPhillips in Morocco in June as 'obviously fantastic news, to have a SuperMajor next door is fantastic, it couldnt be more positive'. However, he warned investors not to assume that Conoco would necessarily be looking to do a deal with Predator. We need to drill a successful well first to derisk it and prove our capability . Paul made it very clear that if successful, #PRD will put a development plan together and sell out, rather than develop the project with joint venture partners. Its always best to take your profit and to leave something on the table for somebody else. Turning to Ireland, Paul describes the Irish market for LNG as very difficult because of the political situation. However the Irish 'need security of energy supply' and only have a gas deal with the UK who are are now outside the EU. Although Irish politicians are against gas currently, Paul believes they will 'see sense at some point'. As Paul sees it, an onshore gas scheme taking fracked gas from America is a no-no in Ireland . However he has come up with a proposal for a floating regasification unit, an FRSU to attach to the Kinsale Field pipeline and take LNG ashore to Southern Ireland. The FRSU supplier will pay for the offshore Capex, the major part of the deal, the regulatory authorities are positive and two potential offtakers for LNG signed up for potential gas in 2023. In six months we got traction on this project. We are currently taking a regulatory risk if you like, as Ireland currently sees these fossil fuels as a bad things but we believe pragmatism will come about next year and security of supply will become more important. The "usual oaths" His Excellency Sir Charles Fitzroy, Governor-in-Chief of NSW landed at 12md at the Semi-Circular Quay [sic], in Sydney Cove yesterday. At the Governors request the Chief Justice, Members of the Executive Council, the Judges, the Clergy, Magistrates and Civil Officers assembled at the quay to receive His Excellency on his landing, and followed in procession to Government House, where His Excellency took the usual oaths. Maitland on the rise The 1846 census of the Maitland district showed an increase of 44 per cent to 8674 while Sydneys population at 49,790 had increased by 40 per cent. The districts civil condition included 8207 free persons, 74 per cent increase, and 430 holding tickets of leave. In the past five years nearly all prisoners on the government payroll had been removed and replaced by a free married population a highly satisfactory change from all points of view. Daily Ordinary no more Switzerlands foreign minister raised concern over China moving away from the path of openness and called for the need for strengthening international law. Speaking to a weekly newspaper SonntagsBlick, Ignazio Cassis said that the economic liberalisation in China has not been matched by the political liberalisation. Cassis asserted that Switzerland must defend its interests and values more robustly by strengthening international law and the multilateral system. Chinas national security law has undermined the autonomy of Hong Kong and Switzerland fears for its companies who have invested in the Semi-autonomous region. The minister highlighted that Switzerland had established a constructive but critical relationship with China over several decades and rule of law and human rights have always been a part of the dialogue. He warned that the western world will react more decisively if China sticks to its course of human rights violations and curbing the autonomy. Read: Hong Kong Bar Association Expresses 'grave Concern' After Govt Delays Election Read: US Condemns Hong Kong's Rescheduling Of Elections, Asks Them To Reconsider Decision Deteriorating relations Chinas relations with European nations have become bitter after members of the European Parliament called upon the EU to consider filing a lawsuit against China. In a resolution adopted June 19, the European Parliament voted in favour of bringing China before the International Court of Justice over its decision to adopt a new national security law for Hong-Kong. MEPs alleged that Chinas decision to impose national security legislation on Hong Kong violates the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. They called the new legislation as an assault on Hong Kongs autonomy and strongly condemned Chinas constant and increasing interference in the citys internal affairs. The European Parliament is greatly concerned by the steady deterioration of civil and political rights, and press freedom in Hong Kong and calls for an independent and impartial investigation into the polices use of force against pro-democracy protesters, the statement read. However, China went ahead with the implementation of the draconian law and has started detaining pro-democracy activists under the garb of national security. The arbitrary law has led to the suspension of extradition treaties signed between Hong Kong and several other countries. Read: China's Embassy Condemns Germany's Suspension Of Extradition Treaty With Hong Kong Read: Germany Suspends Extradition Agreement With Hong Kong Following Election Postponement President Akufo-Addo has descended heavily on his predecessor, ex-President John Dramani Mahama, describing him as Ghana's worst president ever. Without mincing words, he stated that the Mahama-led National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration displayed gross incompetence, thereby collapsing the economy. In this regard, President Akufo-Addo has stated that Mr. Mahama has no moral justification to label the current New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration as incompetent. He said he had never displayed incompetence like his predecessor, Mr. Mahama. During the introduction of his running mate, Mr. Mahama tried to create the impression that the Akufo-Addo administration was incompetent, but the President had fired back that nobody can challenge the NDC flagbearer with regard to incompetence. You are the worst performing president of Ghana for the past 30 years and you have the audacity to label my government as incompetent, he said on Kumasi-based Wontumi Radio over the weekend. According to him, the economy was in tatters and the country was heading into a ditch when the NPP administration assumed the mantle of leadership on January 7, 2017. President Akufo-Addo then blamed Mr. Mahama for the poor state of the country, accusing him of mismanagement. The worst statistics of our country's economy was managed by former President Mahama, who was only good at displaying gross incompetence all over. He left behind an economy with a growth rate of 3.4 per cent and total mismanagement in all sectors of the state and that shows how incompetent he is, he pointed out. President Akufo-Addo said Ghanaians were lucky that the NPP won political power at a time when the country was on the brink of collapse. Everybody in this country knows who the incompetent one is. Even a toddler in this country knows that Mr. Mahama is the incompetent one, he remarked amid laughter. He reiterated that the NPP administration inherited a country that was in a mess and so he wonders why Mr. Mahama is now trying to push his famous incompetence tag on him. According to him, it is a fact that his administration has performed excellently in less than four years unlike the erstwhile Mahama government. President Akufo-Addo, who tackled a number of pressing national issues during the interview, said truly the NPP government was delivering. For instance, he said the NPP, which boasts of a lot of seasoned economists and intelligent people, had managed to bring renaissance into the economy and the state. The President stated that the hopeless state that Mr. Mahama and the NDC left behind in 2016 is no more there, as the NPP administration had remarkably delivered. On the upcoming elections, he said the electorate would vote massively for the NPP to enable it to sustain its achievements for the country. Ghanaians would speak on December 7, and it will be an emphatic victory for the NPP and myself, so that we can continue to lead our country on the path of prosperity, he stressed. ---Daily Guide In case you havent noticed, the coronavirus is still very much with us. Around a thousand Americans are dying from Covid-19 each day, 10 times the rate in the European Union. Thanks to our failure to control the pandemic, were still suffering from Great Depression levels of unemployment; a brief recovery driven by premature attempts to resume business as usual appears to have petered out as states pause or reverse their opening. Yet enhanced unemployment benefits, a crucial lifeline for tens of millions of Americans, have expired. And negotiations over how or even whether to restore aid appear to be stalled. You sometimes see headlines describing this crisis as a result of congressional dysfunction. Such headlines reveal a severe case of bothsidesism the almost pathological aversion of some in the media to placing blame where it belongs. For House Democrats passed a bill specifically designed to deal with this mess two and a half months ago. The Trump administration and Senate Republicans had plenty of time to propose an alternative. Instead, they didnt even focus on the issue until days before the benefits ended. And even now theyre refusing to offer anything that might significantly alleviate workers plight. To the people requesting the addition of Maria Mena to the last post: I didn't include her because she's the one to actually gain huge(norwegian standards lmao) worldwide popularity. Here are the singles she has released this year, after a several year long gap! Reply Thread Link ugh yes this melancholy goddess glad to hear new music from her Reply Parent Thread Link such a unique voice, i could always recognise her voice even though i haven't listened to her in like 10 years. glad to hear she sounds the same lol Reply Parent Thread Link That's a name I haven't heard of in two decades. Reply Parent Thread Link ty for introducing me to mari she is amazing Reply Thread Link Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in Hello! Your entry got to top-25 of the most popular entries in LiveJournal!Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in FAQ Reply Thread Link i see you, troll! Reply Parent Thread Link OP, do you want to be a music journalist? Reply Thread Link is this a job offer? Reply Parent Thread Link no... im sorry if i got your hopes up :/ Reply Parent Thread Link lmao i was just kidding. i did use to do some freelance work for a radio station actually! Reply Parent Thread Link oh ok! Yeah, you seem like a natural. any of the music publications would be lucky to have you. I would ask if you had a blog, but privacy is no joke in these streets. Reply Parent Thread Link that is such a sweet compliment, thank you! <3 i would PM you my blog if i had one! Reply Parent Thread Link akuvi's sister tried for eurovision last year as well and her song was a bop Reply Thread Link omg i had no idea!! i like it the background synth on the verses kinda reminds me of Dark Horse? Reply Parent Thread Link Wow, Mari Boine is incredible. Ty for the rec! Reply Thread Link I'm really enjoying these. Thank you once again for these posts! Reply Thread Link Wow, Mari is wonderful Checking out the others now! Reply Thread Link Oooh, Musti's music is really nice. TY OP! Reply Thread Link thanks to skam i was introduced to the bop fy faen by temur & hkeem! there was some good music on that show, that I would have never come across other wise Reply Thread Link The Skam soundtrack was amazing! Reply Parent Thread Link Joehoe, here we go again! Reply Thread Link I've been trying to think of Woc in finnish music and sadly there is not much Reply Thread Link a user in the WOC in Swedish music post recommended Yeboyah, she's a finnish rapper! i loved some of her songs Reply Parent Thread Link great post op would ary be considered a woc idk Reply Thread Link CPI(M) leader and former lawmaker from Tripura, Jitendra Chaudhury, and two others were on Sunday charged with criminal conspiracy, rumour-mongering and spreading communal disharmony over a social media post alleging BJP supporters broke a statue of an indigenous woman. The 17-feet long statue was found broken on Saturday morning in Khumulwng, the headquarters of the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC). Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secretary Mihir Sarkar lodged the complaint, claiming that the statue fell down because of heavy rainfall and storm. ....with an ill and perverse motive and malafide intention, one of the political parties of the state, Communist Party of India (Marxist) had tried to fraudulently distort the facts and has tried to put the blame upon BJP and RSS as is clear from Facebook posts of CPIM Paschim Tripura Zilla, Sarkar said in his complaint. We see it as a criminal effort to spread communal disharmony among the different communities of the state and as it appears a deep conspiracy has been hatched by the CPI ( M) to promote and spread communal violence in the state, Sarkar said. Sarkar submitted the complaint at West Agartala Police Station from where it was referred to Radhapur police station in Khumulwng as the incident occurred in that place. We took an FIR against three including former MP Jitendra Chaudhury under Section 120(b), 153(a), 505 (2) of the Indian Penal Code. We are investigating the matter, Suman Majumder, Jiranias sub-divisional police officer, said. The administrators of the Facebook page of CPI(M) Tripura and that of CPI(M) Paschim Tripura Zilla were also charged. Tripura police appealed to people not to believe in rumours and warned that legal action would be taken against the violators. Rumours are being spread in social media about one broken statue at Khumulwng, PS Radhapur, West district with an attempt to cause disharmony among the communities. Actually it fell down due to heavy rain and storm. A police party was present at that time when it fell down. A general diary entry has been recorded in the Radhapur police station in this regard, the police posted on its social media page. Chaudhury had written on Facebook that the statue was vandalised and the state has been transformed into a laboratory of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and BJP to give a shape to their Hindu Rashtra model. I didnt say that they (BJP) did this. I said that since the formation of their government, their culture of violence began the journey with vandalising of statues of Lenin, Karl Marx and even last ruler Maharaja Bir Bikram. The saffron party polluted cultural, political and social environment of our state, he said later. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 10:21:47|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close WASHINGTON, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- Homicides have surged 24 percent this year in the 50 largest cities across the United States, against the backdrop of a coronavirus pandemic, an economic slash and a national unrest over racial injustice and police violence, according to the latest data compiled by the Wall Street Journal. There were a total of 3,612 homicides so far this year in the 50 largest U.S. cities, an analysis of crime statistics of the newspaper showed. In all, 36 of the 50 cities studied saw homicide rise at double-digit rates, representing all regions of the country, said a WSJ report on Sunday. Shootings and gun violence also rose, while many other violent crimes such as robbery fell, said the report, adding that the murder rate is still low compared with previous decades. Many police departments across the country point to a rising tide of gang violence, in which rival groups of mainly young offenders battle over control of neighborhoods, catching rivals and innocents in the process, said the report. Though many of U.S. biggest cities are run by Democrats, the rise in killings is a bipartisan problem, the report noted. Homicides are rising at a double-digit rate in most of the big cities run by Republicans, including Miami, San Diego, Tulsa and Jacksonville, as well as in cities run by Democrats and in the two major cities run by Independents -- San Antonio and Las Vegas, according to the report. Police say homicide spikes are hitting low-income, mostly Black and Latino communities especially hard, said the report, adding that some researchers say the upward trend in murder might be evidence of a fraying of the social order. "Everything that society does that might shape public safety was turned upside-down during the pandemic," Jens Ludwig, a University of Chicago professor and director of its Crime Lab, was quoted as saying. Enditem Puzzles hub Visit our brain gym where you will find simple and cryptic crosswords, sudoku puzzles and much more. Updated at midnight every day. PS ... We would love to hear your feedback on the section right HERE On Thursday, US Border Patrol (USBP) agents raided a camp set up by the migrant aid group No More Deaths (NMD) near the ranching community of Arivaca, Arizona, approximately 11 miles north of the US-Mexico border. The raid resulted in the arrest of one person and the setting up of ongoing surveillance and enforcement operations at the campsite. The actions of the USBP agents have been justified by Tucson Sector Chief Roy Villareal as part of a regular law enforcement operation in a key smuggling route for both undocumented immigrants and drug traffickers. However, this seems to be a vindictive retaliatory action by the agency against NMD for having further exposed the expanding role of BORTACthe shadowy, highly trained special operations forcein USBPs policing actions. NMD is a faith-based group that has been providing humanitarian assistance to migrants making the deadly crossing across the southwestern border of the United States. Its main operations have involved providing water, food and medical assistance to those who desperately need them by placing them in various parts of the inhospitable terrain, and having some outposts, which perform a similar function. One such outpost is Byrd Campa collection of military-style tentsthat was the focus of the raid this past week. The official account put forth by Villareal makes it appear as though there were a large number of undocumented migrants who were tracked by USBP agents right up to the camp. In this narrative, it is the agents who appear in a humanitarian guise, helping a woman they encountered outside the camp, and having her taken to a nearby hospital for medical assistance. NMD reports a somewhat different version of the incident. According to volunteers at the camp, the raid began with a USBP agent on horseback riding in at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday, without a warrant. The agent proceeded to detain a migrant, who was then taken into custody. While this was going on, other agents in ATVs and regular patrol vehicles circled the camp, and continued their enforcement operations through Friday. They also set up a checkpoint on one of the roads leading to the camp, while flying surveillance drones above the campsite. The obvious aim of these kinds of actions is to intimidate both those who do humanitarian work as well those who are driven by the circumstances to seek such help. The cruelty and inhumanity underlying such moves cannot be over-emphasized, given the inhospitable terrain and the specific horrors of the summer in the southwestern border region. Arivaca is expected to see temperatures reach as high as 115 degrees Fahrenheit in the coming week. However, what makes the timing and location of this particular raid interesting is that it comes in the wake of NMDs publication of internal USBP emails concerning another raid on the camp three years ago. The emails, obtained by NMD after filing a Freedom of Information Act request in April 2019, reveal the pressures exerted by the president of the National Border Patrol Council on the agency to target the humanitarian aid camp, as well as the role of BORTAC, the agencys highly-trained paramilitary unit, in the 2017 raid. The intra-agency emails exposed by NMD show that BORTAC agents were part of the raid against Byrd camp in June 2017, which saw 30 armed agents entering the camp and arresting four migrants after a three-day showdown. NMD has maintained that the migrants were in desperate need of medical help, and that the raid was a signal that the Trump administration and its agencies intended their war against immigrants to include humanitarian aid groups in the US. Given what has happened since, this claim seems to be a mere statement of fact. Over the past three years, NMD has been systematically targeted by various federal agencies. Soon after the Byrd camp raid, nine volunteers from the group were cited for entering Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge without a permit and leaving behind water and canned food for migrants. Federal prosecutors initially tried to pursue criminal charges against them, but ultimately failed. The most blatant attempt to intimidate the group came when one of the nine, Scott Warren, faced felony charges for supposedly harboring two undocumented immigrants. However, after two trials, Warren was acquitted of all charges last November. The escalation of attacks against NMD follows a well-established pattern of the current administration, which involves vindictive retaliation against any exposure of its crimes. The first attempts at criminal prosecutions of volunteers came on the heels of widespread condemnation of the 2017 raid; the upping of the ante by filing felony charges against Warren came after NMDs exposure of USBP agents tampering with water containers left in the desert; and now, a second raidand this one, warrantlesswith ongoing surveillance of the same camp after new information about BORTAC is made public by NMD. These highly trained, special ops-like forces, functioning within a federal agency, have more or less remained a shadowy presence until the recent protests in Portland. Deployed as part of the shock troops of the Trump administration, BORTACs appearance in a city far from the border, as well as its agents seeming lack of qualms in using force against civilians, however, has drawn attention to the expansive and intensified militarization of Border Patrol. If nothing else, the use of these specialized troops against protesting citizens reveals the ways in which the war against immigrants has served as an essential front in the attack on the democratic rights of the entire working class. 1. The next stimulus package? The parties remain far apart. As Democratic leaders huddled with top administration advisers in search of a compromise economic recovery package, President Trump derided their efforts and said he might use an executive order to ban evictions, which the Republican aid proposal did not include. The president has been notably absent from the negotiations, even after the expiration last week of enhanced jobless benefits for tens of millions of Americans. Above, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, left, and the White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, on Capitol Hill today. Mr. Trump accused Democrats of being single-mindedly focused on getting bailout money for states they control and unconcerned with extending unemployment benefits. Polands Supreme Court on Monday upheld the results of President Andrzej Dudas narrow victory in presidential elections last month, the countrys closest contest since the fall of communism in 1989, a decision that clears the path for the countrys conservative Law and Justice party to continue in power. Thousands of supporters of the opposition candidate and rights groups had filed legal challenges in the countrys highest court demanding that the election be reassessed after Mr. Duda edged out Rafal Trzaskowski, the opposition candidate and the liberal mayor of Warsaw. Mr. Duda secured 51.03 percent of the vote, while Mr. Trzaskowski won 48.97 percent, in a mid-July runoff. Opponents of Mr. Duda pointed to many irregularities during the campaign and election, including pushing forward with the vote despite the coronavirus pandemic, limited access to the vote for Poles abroad, and the role of the public media and government officials in the campaign. Miroslaw Wyrzykowski, a former judge of the countrys constitutional tribunal, was among those who criticized the courts decision. Anton Gerashchenko has later revealed the culprit's name. He is identified as an Uzbekistan national Sukhrob Karimov, 32. On August 3, at 12:00, a manager at the Universal Bank JSC (Shevchenkivskyi district, Leonardo business center) called the police and reported that an unidentified man under the age of 35 had entered the branch and said he had a bomb in his backpack. The man himself asked bank managers to call the police, reads a report by Deputy Interior Minister Anton Gerashchenko. Employees of the banking institution left the premises, while the head of the branch remained at her own will, Gerashchenko wrote on Facebook. Read alsoUkraine police shoot Ukraine hostage-taker dead after week-long search operation A special police protocol "Thunder" has been initiated. Police began negotiations with the terrorist and offered that he surrender. Citizens have been asked to stay away from the Leonardo business center at the corner of Bohdana Khmelnytskogo and Volodymyrska streets. Anton Gerashchenko has later revealed the culprit's name. He is identified as an Uzbekistan national Sukhrob Karimov, 32. The man is believed to be demanding that he give a live-streamed interview to a number of Ukrainian TV channels. No other demands have been voiced so far. Oil energy stocks climbed higher after the European Unions (EU) fiscal stimulus package raised optimism for the bloc to overcome the coronavirus pandemics economic fallout. Oil prices rallied to their highest level since early March, when the commodity was trading in the bearish territory following the pricing war between Russia and Saudi Arabia. European Union Stimulus Deal To safeguard EU economies that have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, European leaders have decided to create a recovery fund of roughly 750 billion following five days of discussions. The EU will tap the financial market to borrow the amount. Of the total recovery fund, 390 billion will be distributed to severely hit EU member states as grants. The remaining fund will be distributed as loans. The agreement also comprises a fresh budget of roughly 1.1 trillion for 2021 to 2027, thereby creating a combined spending package of 1.8 trillion. Coronavirus Vaccine Hopes There has been growing optimism surrounding the development of a coronavirus vaccine by 2020-end after three of the leading candidates in the world recently reported promising early trial data. The studies established that the three vaccine candidates have generated sufficient immune responses. Also, no serious side effects were reported by the participants through the study period, signifying that the vaccines were well tolerated and safe. One of the three promising vaccine candidates is being developed by the Oxford University researchers and AstraZeneca PLC (AZN). The other two are experimental vaccines of German biotech firm BioNTech SE (BNTX) and U.S. drugmaker Pfizer Inc. (PFE); and Chinas CanSino Biologics. EU Deal & Vaccine Hopes Lift Oil The news of EU stimulus deal and advancement of coronavirus studies have made investors more hopeful that fuel demand will improve following the gradual recovery of global economies. On Jul 21, the price of crude oil rallied to a four-month high, buoyed by the positive news. Story continues The price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude surged 3.3% to touch $42.17 per barrel mark, the highest since Mar 6. The price of Brent crude also surged 3.2% to $44.67 per barrel, the highest since early March. Stocks Poised to Gain The surge in oil price, recovering more than 230% since late-April, is supportive of upstream energy operations. Hence, it will be wise for investors to consider upstream energy stocks with oil contributing majorly to production volumes. We have shortlisted four stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Cimarex Energy Co. XEC is among the leading energy firms with strong footprint in the Permian, the most prolific basin in the United States. The company, with oil contributing significantly to its total production volumes, has witnessed upward estimate revisions for 2020 bottom line in the past 30 days. Notably, the Zacks Rank #2 stock gained 10.9% on Jul 21 following the news of the EU stimulus deal. Diamondback Energy, Inc. FANG, being engaged in exploiting and developing unconventional onshore oil reserves in the Permian, is also a leading energy player. The Zacks #2 Ranked company has also witnessed upward earnings estimate revisions for 2020 in the past 30 days. The stock gained 9.2% on the day. Centennial Resource Development, Inc. CDEV also has a strong footprint in the Delaware Basin, a sub-basin of the Permian Basin. In the past 60 days, the oil producer with a Zacks Rank of 2 has seen upward estimate revisions for 2020 bottom line. The stock gained 12.5% on Jul 21. Bonanza Creek Energy, Inc. BCEI is a leading oil producer in the domestic market. The #1 Ranked stock has seen upward earnings estimate revisions for 2020 in the past 30 days. The company also gained 8.3% on Jul 21. Just Released: Zacks 7 Best Stocks for Today Experts extracted 7 stocks from the list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 Strong Buys that has beaten the market more than 2X over with a stunning average gain of +24.1% per year. These 7 were selected because of their superior potential for immediate breakout. See these time-sensitive tickers 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 Cimarex Energy Co (XEC) : Free Stock Analysis Report Diamondback Energy, Inc. (FANG) : Free Stock Analysis Report Bonanza Creek Energy, Inc. (BCEI) : Free Stock Analysis Report CENTENNIAL RES (CDEV) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. Relative calm was maintained at the Armenia-Azerbaijan state border overnight and in the morning of August 3, the Ministry of Defense of Armenia said. The Azerbaijan side violated the ceasefire regime with firearms 8 times by firing 95 shots in the direction of Armenian positions, and two times in the direction of combat positions deployed in the direction of Koti, defense ministry spokesperson Shushan Stepanyan said on Facebook. She said that the Azerbaijani armed forces made 6 ceasefire breaches at Armenian military positions in the Zangakatun direction as well. On July 12, the Azerbaijani military attacked Armenia with cross-border artillery bombardment. Civilian infrastructures, including village homes and farms, were also targeted by the Azerbaijani military. On July 21, another wave of attack was launched by Azerbaijan. Special forces units of the Azerbaijani military attempted to breach into an Armenian military outpost known as Anvakh, but were repelled. Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan TikTok found itself in hot water after President Trump expressed concerns about the app collecting data on American citizens and the threat that poses to national security. Owner ByteDance has so far been unsuccessful in working out a deal with the US government so an alternative solution is proposed Microsoft could acquire TikTok. The software giant officially confirmed that CEO Satya Nadella has been in talks with the President as well as ByteDance. Microsoft is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury. The talks with ByteDance will be completed by September 15 of this year, one way or another. If Microsoft strikes a deal, it will acquire TikTok operations in select markets and may invite other US investors to take on a minority share. Note that the company is only looking to run TikTok services in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. ByteDance will continue operating the social network in the remaining markets. TikTok Microsoft will ensure that the private data of American users is transferred to the US. The company is also committed to offering security oversight to the local governments. TikToks US arm alone is valued between $15 and $30 billion. This will be a major get for the company as Microsofts other social networking attempt, streaming platform Mixer, was recently sent to the great server farm in the sky (this after signing multi-million dollar contracts with popular streamers to lure them away from Twitch). Source MORTON For the second summer in a row, the police department hosted an Ice Cream Social for residents of the borough. We like to strengthen our relationship with the community, said Morton Police Officer Ian Kelly, spokesman for the program. Joining in with the police department this year were the Morton-Rutledge Fire Co. and the office of state Rep. Jennifer OMara, D-165 of Springfield. The ice cream and water ice was provided by Georgeos Water Ice. Inc. of Marcus Hook. And for the children, there were bright red plastic firefighters hats. This is the second year for the ice cream social, Kelly said as music blared from black speakers with flashing lights, which fascinated the toddlers at the social. We also did a Trunk or Treat for the kids last Halloween and we ran a holiday house decorating contest. We had 10 entries, so everybody got a prize. And we did a Beards for Charity contest from in Novembe and December. The officers donated money and helped to sell T-shirts. We raised $2000 that we gave to two families in need. Kelly said the police department is working on plans for a Community Day with 10 other events in the works. But the pandemic has limited us to what we can do for now, he said. Mr. Kobach, the former Kansas secretary of state who has run for office multiple times, has long been a controversial figure because of his severe views on issues including immigration and voting rights. He has cultivated a devoted conservative following but also discomfited many more moderate Republicans in the process. His 2018 run for governor he eked out a primary win with President Trumps endorsement, only to lose to Democrat Laura Kelly in the general election further convinced some party leaders that he would uniquely endanger the Senate seat this year, a fear backed by Senate Republican polling. Its a conviction he dismisses as establishment angst. Mr. Kobach is running in a crowded Republican field against candidates including Mr. Marshall and Bob Hamilton, a businessman who started a successful plumbing company and has lent his campaign several million dollars (tagline: Send in a plumber to drain the swamp.). All three have spent time campaigning in person across the state in recent days. Mr. Marshall embarked on what he called a campaign countdown tour, and Mr. Kobach has been hosting events centered around discussing the Constitution. Strategists studying the race described a close and fluid contest, and they headed into Primary Day with uncertainty about the outcome. Some were also bracing for a slow tabulation of the results to account for large numbers of mail-in ballots. It has been 88 years since Kansas sent a Democrat to the U.S. Senate, and the state remains fundamentally conservative terrain. But top Republicans acknowledge that at a challenging moment for their party as Mr. Trump faces strong disapproval for his handling of the coronavirus crisis Kansas is not a sure bet in a general election Senate race, especially if a well-known and polarizing candidate is on the ticket. Rotunda Rumblings On tour: Democratic former Vice President Joe Bidens campaign is heading on tour across the state this week with virtual roundtables in more rural manufacturing hubs, Seth Richardson reports. Thats part of an increased push by the Biden camp in Ohio as the race has tightened, showing Biden competitive with Republican President Donald Trump, who won the state by 450,000 votes in 2016. Biden was among the speakers at the virtual state Democratic convention over the weekend, Darrel Rowland reports for the Columbus Dispatch. Dollar, dollar bill yall: Trump will be in Northeast Ohio on Aug. 6 for a high-dollar fundraiser, Richardson reports. The visit marks the first for the president since his January rally in Toledo and the first since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. Office visit: FBI agents raided ex-House Speaker Larry Householders legislative office on Friday as part of their ongoing investigation into what they have called his $60 million bribery scheme to ascend to power and pass Ohios nuclear power plant bailout. As Jeremy Pelzer reports, the agents seized computers, records, an iPhone, and a framed picture of a nuclear power plant. Sign of the times: The League of Women Voters of Ohio has filed a lawsuit over local election officials practice of signature matching for absentee ballots, just 95 days before the Nov. 3 election, Laura Hancock reports. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose also faces a suit from the Ohio Democratic Party, which wants a judge to allow absentee ballot requests via email, fax or other electronic means. On todays calendar: LaRose is set to meet with Republican Rep. Gayle Manning and Democratic Rep. Jessica Miranda to talk about campaign finance reform. In the wake of Householders arrest, the lawmakers introduced a bill aimed at addressing the problem of dark money. HB 737 would ultimately require corporations to report campaign donations to the Secretary of States office. In the political arena: The Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, site of the 2016 Republican National Convention, might be used as a polling place for the November election, Chris Fedor reports. The Cleveland Cavaliers, the city and the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections are talking about putting the enormous building to use, which would provide lots of social distancing space for voters. Dried out: Gov. Mike DeWine signed an executive order ending alcohol sales statewide at 10 p.m. nightly after the Ohio Liquor Control Commission adopted the rule Friday morning, Richardson writes. Bar owners, bartenders and attorneys are miffed as to why theyre being targeted since DeWine hasnt released any contact tracing data that shows theyre contributing significantly to coronavirus spread. Good luck with that: Not satisfied with the Justice Departments recent decision to dispatch 25 more federal agents to fight violent crime in Cleveland, a group of 10 local mayors joined with Niles-area Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan to pitch Trump on relocating the FBIs headquarters to Northeast Ohio. The payroll these approximately 8,000 FBI jobs bring with them would go much further in Northeast Ohio than they currently do in the Washington, DC region, and moving the building to the Midwest would show your commitment to creating opportunity in a region that desperately needs the economic stimulus that such a move would bring, Ryans letter said. The $600 question: Congressional Democrats including Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown are blaming Trump and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell for failing to renew legislation that provided unemployed workers with a $600 weekly payment from the federal government on top of their state benefits during the coronavirus pandemic, writes Sabrina Eaton. Republicans blamed Democrats for delays. The Lakes take: The Democrat-controlled U.S. House of Representatives on Friday passed a mammoth $1.3 trillion spending bill that includes money to restore the Great Lakes and fund numerous federal departments through next September, Eaton reports. Toledo Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur said it includes $59.2 million for new inland waterway navigation projects in areas including the Great Lakes Weekend numbers: Heading into the weekend Friday, 1,533 more coronavirus cases were reported, bringing the total to more than 91,000 cases, Hancock reports. Cases tapered off a bit over the weekend, with 928 on Saturday and 944 on Sunday. Good and bad trends: While the number of coronavirus cases reported daily in Ohio seems to have leveled off over the last couple of weeks, a new trend is showing up. The seven-day period ending Friday included reports of 192 deaths, reports Rich Exner. Thats more deaths than in any seven-day period since early June. There had been as few as 80. (I wont) see you in court: The Ohio Supreme Court has extended an order allowing remote appearances in Ohio courts because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The order, which also allows the remote administration of oaths and affirmations, was set to expire July 30 but is now in effect until further notice. Dark money comes to light: Now-bankrupt Ohio coal giant and House Bill 6 supporter Murray Energy Corp. provided $100,000 in dark money involved in the alleged racketeering and bribery scheme that ensnared former House Speaker Larry Householder and four others, Randy Ludlow of the Columbus Dispatch and Jackie Borchardt of the Cincinnati Enquirer report. The Dispatchs Beth Burger also reports that environmental groups want the federal bankruptcy judge handling Murrays Chapter 11 case to require the company to disclose spending related to the Householder case. Failure to report: An Ohio Elections Commission complaint has been filed against state Rep. Niraj Antani because the Dayton-area Republican didnt report a $5,000 campaign contribution from Householder in September 2018. The complaint was filed by Kris Hatcher, the husband of Kurt Hatcher, executive director of the Montgomery County Democrats. Antani, whos running for state Senate this year, said in a statement that the omission was a clerical error, hes very frustrated and disappointed in myself, and that hes setting up campaign protocols to make sure it never happens again. Bank statement: Ohio Senate Democrats on Friday reported having about $230,000 cash on hand after raising $164,709 between Jan. 31 and July 7. In a release, Democrats touted their haul as the most the caucus has raised in a single filing period since 2015. However, reason they had to report at all on Friday is because during the last campaign-finance deadline in early June, they raised so little money they didnt have to file a report. Senate Republicans reported having more than $1.9 million on hand in June because they filed then, they didnt have to file a report Friday. Full Disclosure Five things we learned from the Feb. 18, 2020 financial disclosure statement filed by state Rep. Tom Patton, a Strongsville Republican: 1. In addition to his $69,054 legislative salary last year, Patton received $50,000 to $99,999 as a marketing consultant for Blue Technologies, a printer and copier company; $10,000 to $24,999 as a consultant for Amazing Tickets, and $10,000 to $24,999 as president of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 756. 2. He has six life-insurance policies, two salary reduction arrangement simplified employee pension plans, a public-employees retirement plan, an individual retirement account, a Roth IRA, and a 401(k). 3. His travel reimbursements in 2019 included $3,538.08 in mileage from the Ohio House and $133.40 from the Ohio House GOP's campaign arm. 4. Last year, he received a gift worth more than $75 (or at least $25 if it came from a lobbyist) from the Ohio Dermatological Association. 5. He received at least $100 worth of food and/or drinks from the Ohio House GOP's campaign arm -- both when it was called the Ohio House Republican Organizational Committee, and under its current name of the House Republican Campaign Committee. Birthdays State Sen. Bob Hackett Michaela Burriss, legislative aide to state Rep. Michele Lepore-Hagan Straight from the Source No limit to protests, but you cant go to church on Sunday. -Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, in a combative exchange with Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Jordan was grilling Fauci on whether Black Lives Matter protests were spreading the coronavirus. Fauci replied that crowding together while not wearing masks contributes to the spread of the virus. Capitol Letter is a daily briefing providing succinct, timely information for those who care deeply about the decisions made by state government. If you do not already subscribe, you can sign up here to get Capitol Letter in your email box each weekday for free. A large quantity of suspected MDMA and cocaine was siezed last Saturday, August 1, after a search by gardai of a home in Leixlip, Co Kildare. A man has been arrested and charged and will appear before the courts later today. At approximately 12.45pm, following an intelligence led operation undertaken by the Leixlip Drugs Unit targeting the sale and supply of drugs in the Kildare, Laois and Offaly divisions, a search operation was conducted at a house in Louisa Park, Leixlip. During the course of this search, gardai located and seized approximately 520,000 of suspected MDMA (pending analysis). A man was later arrested at the scene by gardai. During a follow-up search of the man's vehicle, approximately 80,000 of suspected cocaine (pending analysis) was seized. A number of follow-up searches were carried out in Kildare and Dublin on Sunday, but no items were seized and no arrests were made. The arrested male, aged in his early 30s, was detained at Leixlip Garda Station under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996. He has since been charged and will appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice, Dublin, at 4pm this afternoon, Monday, August 3. Investigations are ongoing. The Sekyere East District Directorate of the Ghana Education Service (GES) has embarked on an intensive training program for the school authorities in the area in order to help in the management of the pupils and students, particularly as the final year students were in school amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Mr. William Brako Adjepong, the District Director of the GES said the exercise was part of the governments efforts to curtail the spread of the coronavirus disease in the country. The GES has the mandate and responsibility in managing the welfare and wellbeing of the pupils and students and it is in this interest we are embarking on this gesture in order to ensure that our parents and guardians of the students are relieved from the fear and panic as well as anxieties for having their children in school in this pandemic moment, he noted. Mr. Adjepong urged the teachers and the various school authorities to tighten measures in their various schools to facilitate the curbing of the disease in the country. Mr. Justice Settor, the District Public Relations Officer of the GES Directorate urged the school authorities to prioritize engagement of the Parents Teachers Association (PTA) and their School Management Committees (SMC) in the fight against the coronavirus disease as school was in session. He urged the school authorities to be very cooperative the parents, guardians as well as the students in this critical moment of the covid-19. 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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(0x7f048555fda8)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f048558ff48)', '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(0x7f048555fda8)') 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(0x7f048558ff48)') 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(0x7f04855c52c0)') 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(0x7f048558ff48)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f048558ff48)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0484cbe0a0)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f04855bb8f0)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f04855bb8f0)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the September 19 governorship election in Edo State, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, has s... Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the September 19 governorship election in Edo State, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, has said that Governor Godwin Obaseki is heading for a disgraceful end, with the avalanche of defection hitting his camp. Ize-Iyamu stated this on Monday in Benin, while receiving the Deputy Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Mr. Yekini Idiaye, who reportedly dumped Obaseki and pledged loyalty to the APC candidate. Addressing the lawmaker, Ize-Iyamu lamented what he called disgraceful end to which Obasekis regime which claims popular support, has come, with the daily abandonment of his government by civil commissioners, chairmen of Boards and appointees. He described the alleged inaugurating five out of 24 elected APC members as legislators in Edo Assembly at 9.45 pm, by Governor Obaseki as lamentable and an assault on democracy, which he said had deprived over 50 percent of Edo people of representation in the legislature. The APC candidate commended the lawmaker and others who had previously pledged their loyalty, for their steadfastness in choosing to remain in the APC on which platform they got elected. He assured them that his Manifesto of Hope, Simple Agenda will be implemented to the letter in every part of the state when he gets elected. Farmers are being warned against rushing to sign new telephone mast deals as mobile-phone operators look to agree rights to retain telecommunications equipment on their property. Over recent weeks mobile phone operators have been urging farmers to commit to lease renewal terms for existing mast sites on their properties. However, property consultancy Galbraith warns this is in advance of a pending Tribunal decision in Scotland that could prohibit the contract terms they are proposing. Operators are offering significantly lower payments than the current rents received from these sites as well as their standard terms, which often change many aspects of the agreement in their favour. They are offering one-off inducement payments, often in excess of 10,000, to property owners on condition they sign an agreement within the next few weeks. This timescale is likely to be prior to an expected key Lands Tribunal for Scotland decision on whether operators can legally demand a replacement lease under the new Electronic Communications Code, which is aimed at modernising the UKs telecommunications system. According to Galbraith, the proposed terms often contain provisions which will be detrimental to the property owner, such as giving up rights to all future rent reviews for the term of the agreement. Mike Reid, head of energy at Galbraith urged farmers not to rush into anything: The Scottish Lands Tribunal is due to decide on a case that could have a direct bearing on the agreement proposed by the mobile operators. "Generally speaking, farmers could agree better terms than the terms being proposed by the mobile operators. Mr Reid said any delay in agreeing new terms with the operators would not affect mobile coverage in the area as the operators were operating from these sites with the protection of the Code. "The proposals received can also be quite misleading implying that the new Code rights are required for the operation of the site, which is often not the case, he said. By PTI MUMBAI/PATNA: Actor Sushant Singh Rajput was suffering from bipolar disorder, a mental condition characterised by extreme mood swings, at the time of his death, Mumbai police chief Parambir Singh said on Monday amid clamour by Bihar politicians for a CBI probe. Meanwhile, in a startling claim, Rajput's father said he had forewarned Mumbai police about threat to the actors life way back in February but it failed to take note of it and also did not act upon complaints against named persons a day after his death in June. Amid escalating acrimony between Maharashtra and Bihar police over jurisdictional issues, an IPS officer who had landed in Mumbai on Sunday for leading the SIT probe in the case, was quarantined under the COVID-19 regulations in force in the city, a development Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar called "inappropriate and forcible". Bihar police chief Gupteshwar Pandey said in Patna that the state police will lodge a formal protest with the Mumbai municipal authorities over the "forcible quarantine" of Vinay Tiwari who was on official duty. The issue resonated in the two Houses of Bihar legislature, with lawmakers across the political divide demanding a CBI investigation into the death of the 34-year- old Patna-born actor. Both Mumbai and Patna police are probing the case parallelly. Rajput, who impressed his audience with his performances during his short but promising career, was found hanging in his rented apartment in Mumbai's Bandra on June 14. "It was found that the actor had bipolar disorder, and was undergoing treatment and taking medicines for it. What circumstances led to his death is the subject of our investigation," Mumbai police commissioner Singh said. ALSO READ | Stress due to Disha death link could have driven Sushant to suicide: Mumbai Police chief There is no question of non-cooperation with the Bihar police team which is in the city in connection with the Sushant Singh Rajput death case, Singh said, adding Mumbai police are seeking legal opinion on the matter. He said Patna police should have lodged a "zero FIR" and transferred it to Mumbai police as the incident had happened under the latter's jurisdiction. Meanwhile, actor Rhea Chakraborty's advocate refuted Bihar Police's claim that she was "missing", and said till date she has not received any summons from them over the death of Rajput. In his complaint on which an FIR was lodged on July 25, Rajput's father K K Singh accused Chakraborty and her family members of abetting his son's suicide, besides defrauding him of his money and subjecting him to blackmail. In a video statement, Singh claimed he had forewarned Mumbai police about the threat to Rajput's life way back in February and also "named" a few persons who, he suspected, were behind his death. "I had told the Mumbai police in February that my son Sushant faced a threat to his life but it did nothing. When my son died on June 14, I requested them to take action against named persons. But nothing came of it even after 40 days. Left with no other option, I lodged a case at a police station here in Patna," he said. The Mumbai police commissioner, however, insisted at his press conference that Rajput's family had made no such complaint. "The statements of Sushant's father, sister and brother-in-law were recorded on June 16. At that time, they neither raised any suspicion nor complained about any lapse in our probe," he said. "The FIR by Bihar police says Rs 15 crore were siphoned off from Sushant's account. During the probe, we found he had Rs 18 crore in his account of which around Rs 4.5 crore are still there," he said. The city police, in their note, pointed to K K Singh releasing a statement about his family submitting the written complaint. "It must be clarified that no such written complaint was addressed to the Bandra Police on that day (February 25)," said the note. However, O P Singh, an IPS officer and brother-in-law of Rajput, had sent some WhatsApp messages to the then DCP Zone 9 regarding this matter, the Mumbai police said. ALSO READ | Rhea Chakraborty not missing, hasn't got summons from Bihar police, says her lawyer The then DCP Zone 9 had called OP Singh and told him a written complaint was mandatory for any inquiry or action, they said in the note. However, O P Singh wanted the matter to be resolved informally, but the DCP had clearly told him this was not possible, the Mumbai police said. There is no confirmation yet of a direct transfer to the account of Rhea Chakraborty, he added. The Enforcement Directorate, meanwhile, questioned Rajput's chartered accountant (CA) in connection with a money laundering probe that has stemmed from the complaint lodged by Rajput's father, officials said. They said Sandeep Shridhar was questioned in Mumbai by the central probe agency and his statement recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). At least two companies linked to Rajput and some financial deals involving Chakraborty and her brother Showik are under the ED scanner. Chakraborty, her bother and others are expected to be summoned by the agency for questioning soon. Political lines got blurred as the bicameral Bihar legislature demanded a CBI inquiry into Rajput's death. The demand was first raised by Neeraj Kumar Singh Bablu, a BJP MLA and the deceased star's cousin. Requesting Nitish Kumar to recommend a CBI probe, he said, "It is evident that the Maharashtra government is trying to put hurdles in the way of Bihar police, preventing it from investigating the matter properly. Bablu's wife Nutan Singh, a BJP MLC, also raised the issue in the legislative council. The demand received bipartisan support, with leader of the opposition Tejashwi Yadav saying,"I had written a letter to the CBI shortly after Rajput's death and also requested that the upcoming film city in Rajgir be named after the deceased actor." Mumbai police commissioner Singh said after registering an Accidental Death Report (ADR) in the case, the investigation is in progress and till now statements of 56 people have been recorded. The statements of Sushant's sisters have also been recorded, he said. Sushant was upset after he was linked with the death of his former manager Disha Salian on June 8, he said. "No politician's name has come up during the probe so far. There is no evidence against any politician from any party," Singh said, referring to a query on the name of a prominent young Maharashtra politician being mentioned on social media. Users of WeChat, China's messaging, social media and payment app, can now browse and buy Uruguayan and other Latin American goods at the touch of a button, from regional spirits to gemstones. "We target Chinese audience with an interest in Latin America, who want to consume new and different types of products," Martin Perez, a partner in e-commerce site Latin American Style (Estilo Latinoamericano), told Xinhua. On his travels to China, Perez, a consultant, noted there was no online venue specifically designed to showcase Latin American products, so he decided to set up one. To achieve the goal, they spent two years. The effort paid off with a pioneering venture on China's premier social networking app. Latin American Style chose to break into the market with WeChat, the multipurpose app that has over 1.15 billion users, but the idea is to eventually expand to China's e-commerce giants. "Right now, we are one of the first Uruguayan enterprises in China. In e-commerce, we are the only one," he said. Perez's partner, economist Ruben Alvarez, recalled that when Perez proposed the idea, "the first thing that came to my mind was that China is a huge opportunity." Their site, which went online on June 21, offers an access to Chinese consumers for small Latin American companies and producers. Meanwhile, consumers in China can browse a variety of items, including violet amethysts mined in northern Uruguay and the local firewater grappamiel, a blend of spirits sweetened with honey. A brand called Serrana has already won buyers who placed orders for more bottles. Coming soon are beef jerky snacks from Ecuador, wines from Argentina and apparel from young Uruguayan designers. The goods arrive at a warehouse in Shenzhen, and from there they can be shipped to any part of China within a maximum of 72 hours. Thanks to the partnership between WeChat and Latin American Style, the distance between China and Latin America has gotten much smaller. GREENWICH Klara Monaco, who has served as assistant principal at New Lebanon School, was named the new principal of Glenville School, Greenwich Public Schools announced Monday. Monaco replaces Marc DAmico, who recently became the director of curriculum for kindergarten through Grade 8 and head of kindergarten through Grade 5 leadership for the Greenwich Public Schools. We are excited to have Klara leading Glenville School, said school Superintendent Toni Jones, who made the appointment. Her years as an assistant principal, interim principal and educator have formed her collaborative and innovative approach to leadership. She has been and will continue to be a trusted partner to her staff, students and parents, building a strong school community based on mutual respect and a common goal of student success. Monaco said she is looking forward to new role, which officially begins on Wednesday. I am thrilled and honored to join the Glenville community, she said. I look forward to partnering with the students, faculty and families as we continue our tradition of excellence and navigate these uncertain times together as a community. In her previous role as assistant principal at New Lebanon School, Monaco addressed student behavior referrals, facilitated planning and placement team meetings, and created the schools master schedule. She also collaborated with the building design team on the educational specifications for the construction of the new building and partnered daily with the schools principal to lead staff and students. During her tenure at New Lebanon School, Monaco also served as interim principal of of the on two occasions, from February 2018 to May 2018 and from February 2019 to May 2019. Her experience as interim principal required her to lead school staff, manage the schools budget and continue oversight of the student body. Before joining the staff at New Lebanon School in 2013, Monaco served as an educational evaluator for Greenwich Public Schools, where she served the special education community across the district. Before joining GPS, Monaco worked in a number of roles, including adjunct professor at Albertus Magnus College and PPS team leader for Harborside Middle School in Milford. Monacos career in education began as a special education teacher at Harborside Middle School and at the Windward School in White Plains, N.Y. She holds a bachelor of arts in history from Siena College, a master of arts in special education from the College of New Rochelle, and a sixth-year degree in educational leadership from Southern Connecticut State University. dfierro@greenwichtime.com John Humes contribution to peace building in Northern Ireland has been hailed across the political spectrum on both sides of the Irish Sea. Unionist and nationalists in the region were united in praise for his efforts to end decades of sectarian conflict, while Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Irish premier Micheal Martin voiced similar tributes on behalf of the UK and Irish governments. In Mr Humes beloved home town of Derry, current SDLP leader Colum Eastwood, who now holds the Foyle Westminster seat his political hero occupied for 22 years, said the island of Ireland had lost one of its greatest figures. John Hume was quite simply a political giant. He stood proudly in the tradition that was totally opposed to violence and committed to pursuing his objectives by exclusively peaceful and democratic means. Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) August 3, 2020 In the days ahead, Ireland will be united in mourning his loss, he said. However, amidst that national mourning, it is equally true that the marking of Johns death also opens up a space to reflect on, and celebrate, the magnitude of his life. As part of that reflection of Johns work, never has the beatitude rung truer blessed be the peacemakers. The life of John Hume will forever be a blessing upon this island since Ireland is now blessed by the peace he gifted to us all. It is the greatest legacy a political leader can bestow upon his country. Saddened to hear of the death of John Hume. A huge political figure in our society for many decades. A leader who took risks that ultimately helped bring about peace. He will be sadly missed. My thoughts are with Pat and his family circle and with his @SDLPlive family. Michelle ONeill (@moneillsf) August 3, 2020 Stormont First Minister Arlene Foster said Mr Hume was a giant figure in the life of Irish nationalism and wider Northern Ireland. For many of my generation, he was a constant throughout our lives, said the DUP leader. Whilst we disagreed politically, I always admired his steadfast abhorrence of violence, regardless from where it came. Whilst he was recognised across the world, there can be no doubt however that his loss will be most keenly felt in his home city. My thoughts and prayers are with Johns family and friends at this difficult time. We think especially of his wife Pat, his children and grandchildren. I hope they take some comfort from the peace he helped to create. Sincere condolences to Pat & the wider Hume family. A giant in Irish nationalism, John left his unique mark in the House of Commons, Brussels & Washington. In our darkest days he recognised that violence was the wrong path & worked steadfastly to promote democratic politics. pic.twitter.com/Ctkdfxa4Au Arlene Foster #ProudofNI. (@ArleneFosterUK) August 3, 2020 Sinn Fein deputy First Minister Michelle ONeill expressed her sadness. John Hume was a hugely important figure in our political history and a driving force in the Good Friday Agreement, she said. He was a man of vision and committed to bringing about equal rights for all. John leaves behind a legacy of power sharing and peace. Former Ulster Unionist leader Lord Trimble, who was jointly awarded the Nobel peace prize along with Mr Hume, said he left an enduring legacy. RIP Pathfinder - John Hume. Changemaker & Peacemaker. Principle, logic, stickability. Engine for change, anchor for stability & torch for progress. Respect difference, assert rights affirm democracy. Europe #EU#GFA was his blueprint & for much more#ThankYouJohnHume pic.twitter.com/q9Aqfwv2gG Mark Durkan (@markdurkan) August 3, 2020 He was a major contributor to politics in Northern Ireland and particularly to the process that gave us an agreement that we are still working our way through, he said. Thats hugely important and thats something that he will be remembered for in years to come. Former UK prime minister Sir John Major praised Mr Humes efforts to win peace. Few others invested such time and energy to this search and few sought to change entrenched attitudes with such fierce determination, he said. Those whose communities have been transformed into peaceful neighbourhoods may wish to pay tribute to one of the most fervent warriors for peace. He has earned himself an honoured place in Irish history. Irelands deputy premier Leo Varadkar also paid tribute to Mr Hume. Any attempt to summarise John Humes contribution to the people of the island of Ireland is sure to fall short, he said. He was a once-in-a-generation leader whose vision for peace was only surpassed by his hard work in making that vision a reality. On the campaign trail for governor of Connecticut two years ago, political insiders warned that governing is different from leading a private company. You cant expect government to innovate and improve lives like Amazon or Apple do. Government exists to provide basic services and drive consensus, not to foster great economies. But is this reality or an excuse for public officials to justify a perpetually inadequate status quo while focusing their power on getting re-elected or promoted to a higher office? Are they even trying to innovate and improve lives, or is their hidden agenda to increase the scope of government to create coalitions of loyal voters that keep them in power? Our elected officials have the same tools available to them that corporations and entrepreneurs use to innovate every day and more. Why must government be mired in mediocrity, or worse, create long-term economic disaster while the business of transforming lives is left to business? World class companies put the interests of customers and shareholders ahead of management. Shareholders expect management to be a fiduciary of their hard-earned money. To spend it wisely. To develop strategies to enhance the organizations value, and to deliver good returns on the capital invested. While these responsibilities may sound modest, a government that followed such basic rules of ethics and, really, human decency, would be a wonderful surprise to Connecticut residents. Amazon built perhaps the most customer focused organization on Earth with more than 353 million products, delivered overnight, through a user-friendly web application. You can say, Alexa, order coffee, to the Amazon smart speaker and be inhaling the bags aromatic brew 24 hours later. Its like magic. Meanwhile, the state of Connecticut is just realizing that three-hour waits at the Department of Motor Vehicles can be reduced with something called the World Wide Web. In the heat of the COVID crisis, the Lamont administration blamed long delays in issuing unemployment checks on a decrepit 40-year old Cobalt software system. Why did our leaders think maintaining an efficient, modern computer system for vital services paid for by workers and employers alike was such a low priority, and what was that money used for instead? Taxpayers are both customers and shareholders of state government. They give money, albeit non-voluntarily, to elected officials and trust them to use it judiciously. To provide efficient services while using innovation to improve their quality of life. With the billions of dollars spent on roads each year, you might imagine wed be zipping around in flying cars by now. But residents are told they need a whole new form of taxation tolls just to prevent the states ancient bridges from crumbling down onto cars using the same carbon emitting fuel that Fords Model T used in 1908. This past week, residents were shocked by energy bills that went up by 50 percent or more. In a hastily crafted response to irate customers, Eversource blamed Connecticuts legislature for forcing them to buy high cost power from a nuclear power plant (Millstone) that went into operation 50 years ago. Millstone countered that their price is actually lower, and that Eversource is padding delivery charges to the detriment of customers. Regardless of whos right, why is government even involved? Is it the role of government to force residents to pay for technology installed in the same year that Elvis Presley visited with President Richard Nixon in the White House? A competitive market drives progress and innovation. A centrally controlled, heavily regulated market puts politics ahead of people. While a human tragedy, COVID-19 provides an opportunity to fundamentally change how Connecticut operates. Imagine the people Connecticut could attract if state government lowered property, income or sales taxes, or reduced the regulation on small businesses, providing a competitive advantage over neighboring states. Or connected business with Connecticuts world class universities to innovate as Boston did with a fast-growing technology hub? Or stopped the political infighting and made a real investment in cleaner, cheaper sources of energy? Several weeks ago, Gov. Ned Lamont paid $2 million to out-of-state consultants to Reopen Connecticut. Allowing small business owners to reopen before they go bankrupt is easy. What the state needs is a commitment to put the interests of taxpayers ahead of special interest voters, once it does reopen. Decades of higher taxes to fund wasteful spending has proven to be an inherently flawed strategy for Connecticut and we dont need a team of high-priced consultants to tell us that. Bob Stefanowski was the Republican candidate for Connecticut governor in 2018. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) Office space rentals managed to grow by half despite COVID-19 lockdowns from April-June, against some discontinued leases largely due to offshore gaming firms closing shop, Leechiu Property Consultants said in its latest report. The local property scene saw sustained expansion during the first semester, with the Information Technology and Business Process Management or IT-BPM segment leading the take-up of commercial space at 42,000 square meters. This is more than half the 77,000 sqm of new leases signed between April-June. Cebu accounted for 40 percent of the demand, followed by Bonifacio Global City in Taguig, the Ortigas area between Mandaluyong and Pasig cities, and Iloilo. However, new lease agreements finalized so far are just one-fourth of what was signed during the same period in 2019. Leechiu said there was no demand from Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) the past few months, a reversal from leading leases in 2019. RELATED: 30-day grace period for rental fees kicks in early for businesses that reopened during lockdown DTI Overall, 8 percent or 89,000 sqm of commercial spaces have been vacated as of June, with POGOs accounting for 54 percent. By location, nearly half were in Quezon City while 21 percent involved offices in Makati. The consulting firm attributed the pullouts to tax regulations and movement restrictions which "curtailed POGO growth." The Bureau of Internal Revenue required POGOs to pay all of their unpaid taxes from April and earlier before they are allowed to resume operations amid the COVID-19 pandemic, on top of practicing minimum health standards. RELATED: Villanueva says most POGOs operate despite not paying taxes The property firm batted for more support to the IT-BPM and POGO sectors, saying they continue to provide more jobs. "The sustained growth of these sectors will allow us to bounce back from this pandemic swiftly. We need as many employers as possible to help our economy," the report read. Leechiu said it expects an additional demand for 482,000 sqm of commercial space, still led by these industries. It added that POGOs should be back in the scene by September. Meanwhile, the real estate consulting firm recorded a decline in revenues from middle-income residential sales, against an increase in the upscale segment for homes worth 7 million to 12 million. All other properties saw declines, with lower middle-income homes hurt the most by unemployment and job displacements of overseas Filipino workers. About 1.5 billion young learners 90 per cent of the worlds schoolchildren are or have been locked out of school. About 810 million are in low and middle-income countries, where even before COVID-19, there were significant barriers to learning, especially for the poorest and most marginalised children. The pandemic continues to make life difficult in Australia. Millions are experiencing economic hardship due to job losses and business closures. Julia Gillard with Hugh Evans, CEO of youth charity Global Citizen, and pop star Rihanna, an ambassador for The Global Partnership For Education, in Malawi. Credit:Evan Rogers As tough as it is, we are in a much more fortunate position than many around the world. Imagine going through all this without a decent, universal healthcare system. Or without adequate food. Or knowing that even when schools reopen, the pandemic has ended your childrens chance for an education. That is exactly what many families and nations face. In the past, Australians have looked out for our neighbours. We need to do so again. Ram temple in Ayodhya to be ready by 2025, open for 'darshan' to devotees by 2023 end Foundation works for Ram Mandir to be ready by October, 'garbhagriha' by Dec 2023: VHP 'Shiv Sena contributed Rs 1 crore for Ram temple in Ayodhya' India pti-PTI Mumbai, Aug 03:The Shiv Sena has contributed Rs 1 crore for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya ahead of the "bhoomi pujan" scheduled for August 5 as announced by Maharashtra Chief Minister and the party president Uddhav Thackeray earlier this year, the party said on Monday. The amount was transferred to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust's bank account via real-time gross settlement (RTGS) on July 27, the Sena said on Twitter. Ayodhya Ram Mandir Temple Bhumi Pujan: Time, Date, Muhurat It also shared the July 27 letter written by Thackeray to the chairman of the Trust, saying the said amount had been transferred that day. The Sena's clarification came amidst reports quoting Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, chairman of the trust, as saying that no money was received from the saffron party as promised. Thackeray had announced the monetary contribution on March 7 this year during his visit to Ayodhya to commemorate 100 days in office as the chief minister. J&K: Army says missing soldier likely abducted by terrorists| Oneindia News "I had during my Ayodhya tour resolved to contribute Rs 1 crore on behalf of the Shiv Sena. This amount has been transferred via RTGS to Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust's bank account in Ayodhya on July 27," Thackeray said in the letter. Hailing the upcoming ground-breaking ceremony, Thackeray stated crores of Hindus across the world have been waiting for this "historic" moment for years. Earlier in the day, Sena MP Sanjay Raut hinted that Thackeray may not visit Ayodhya owing to the serious COVID-19 situation in the Uttar Pradesh town. Chandigarh, Aug 3 : The Punjab Police on Monday apprehended 12 more people, including two businessmen, and launched manhunt for a Ludhiana-based paint business owner who had allegedly supplied three drums of spurious liquor that triggered over 100 deaths. Chief Minister Amarinder Singh asked Director General of Police (DGP) Dinkar Gupta to apprehend every person involved in the case and move swiftly to ensure stringent action against them. Nobody should be spared, said Singh. The police have also launched departmental inquiry against two DSPs and four SHOs, who were suspended for negligence. The magisterial probe, ordered by the Chief Minister, is also examining involvement of all the suspects, six police and seven excise and tax officers -- suspended by the Chief Minister on Saturday. With the latest arrests, the number people apprehended in the case have gone up to 37, including five kingpins of the illicit liquor mafia. (Newser) The clock is going tick-tock when it comes to TikTok selling its US arm to Microsoft or another American company, President Trump said Monday. The presidentwho on Friday said he was considering banning the Chinese-owned app for security reasonssaid TikTok would be shut down on Sept. 15 unless a deal was reached, Bloomberg reports. "I dont mind whether its Microsoft or someone else, a big company, a secure company, a very American company buys it," he told reporters at the White House. Trump also said the federal government would be getting a "lot of money" from the deal, though he didn't explain exactly how that would work, the New York Times reports. story continues below "Whatever the price is that goes to whoever owns itbecause I guess its China, essentially, more than anything elseI said a very substantial portion of that price is going to have to come into the Treasury of the United States," Trump said. The president earlier rejected suggestions that Chinese company ByteDance could sell TikTok to Microsoft, but he apparently changed his mind after talking to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Microsoft said in a Sunday blog post following that conversation that the company will "move quickly" on the deal, which would be finished no later than Sept. 15. Sources tell Reuters that Trump decided to OK the deal after pressure from his advisers and Republican lawmakers, who feared that banning the popular short-video app would alienate younger voters. (Read more TikTok stories.) BOSTON and LOS ANGELES, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Illinois Gastroenterology Institute (IGI), the second largest independent gastroenterology practice in Illinois, has partnered with GI Alliance (GIA). GIA, an entity formed through Waud Capital's partnership with Texas Digestive Disease Consultants, is the largest independent gastroenterology practice in the U.S. Alongside its affiliated physicians, GIA also invested in Central Illinois Endoscopy Center (CIEC), which will remain majority-owned by physicians and GIA. Provident Healthcare Partners (Provident) served as exclusive financial advisor to Illinois Gastroenterology Institute. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. "Working with Provident made the transition and process extremely transparent. They took the time to understand the goals of the entire group and guided us to a match with the right partner," said Dr. Shiraz Khaiser, Physician Board member and Partner of IGI. "This merger would not have been possible without the guidance and counsel of the Provident team. We are thrilled to have closed our transaction with GIA and look forward to the new opportunities this partnership will bring." "IGI is the leading provider of digestive health services in Central Illinois, having established a joint venture in 2009 with UnityPoint Health in CIEC," noted Ethan Goodson, Director at Provident. "In partnership with GIA, the organization is well-positioned to continue to enhance its patient-centric service and develop increasingly efficient strategies to deliver premier care to the region." "Despite difficulties posed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we are pleased with the efforts by all parties to execute a transformative transaction for the IGI shareholders. We look forward to seeing the contribution IGI will bring to GIA's strong Illinois footprint," commented Bill Bolding, Senior Analyst at Provident. About Illinois Gastroenterology Institute Established more than 20 years ago, IGI is the largest downstate Illinois practice dedicated to gastroenterology conditions. Offering both medical and surgical services, IGI's physicians, nurse practitioners and staff provide comprehensive diagnosis and treatment. With 9 gastroenterologists and 5 advanced-level providers, IGI's team brings together extensive experience and cutting-edge knowledge to offer the best possible care. Visit https://www.visitgi.com/. About GI Alliance GIA is a physician-led and majority physician-owned GI services organization supporting the needs of more than 350 independent gastroenterologists operating in Texas, Louisiana, Illinois, Arizona, Indiana, and Arkansas. GI practices that are part of the GI Alliance are focused on providing the highest-quality care to their patients. In addition to providing operational support for practices, GIA is working to unite gastroenterologists nationwide to align interests and improve the quality of care for patients. Visit https://gialliance.com/. About Provident Healthcare Partners Provident is the leading investment banking firm specializing in merger and acquisition advisory, strategic planning, and capital formation for healthcare companies. The firm has a comprehensive knowledge of market sectors and specialties, including the gastroenterology specialty. Provident also has unsurpassed experience and insight into the M&A process, which includes working with a number of buyers such as private equity firms and strategic consolidators. Visit www.providenthp.com. Contact: Provident Healthcare Partners Gina Casiello 877-742-9800 SOURCE Provident Healthcare Partners LLC Related Links http://www.providenthp.com She's been on cloud nine ever since embarking on a new relationship with musician Josh Newsham last month. And Arabella Chi looked typically radiant as she enjoyed a relaxing day at Atzaro Beach in Ibiza on Monday. The Love Island star, 29, ensured all eyes were on her as she slipped into barely-there yellow bikini, which highlighted her enviable frame. In her element: Arabella Chi looked typically radiant as she enjoyed a relaxing day at Atzaro Beach in Ibiza on Monday Showcasing her toned midsection, the model turned heads in the tiny two-piece, which featured a triangle bikini top and matching briefs. The bombshell proved less is more as she went make-up free while quenching her thirst with a beverage. The TV star will face 14 days of quarantine when she returns to the UK after the government pulled its air bridge with Spain following a spike in COVID-19 cases. Working it: The Love Island star, 29, ensured all eyes were on her as she slipped into barely-there yellow bikini, which highlighted her enviable frame Arabella recently moved in with fellow Love Island star Harley Brash, 21, following her split from Wes Nelson. The pair had been dating for nine months but were said to have 'grown apart' and had become more aware of their six-year age gap ahead of their split. The hunk left the home he shared with the blonde so they didn't have to isolate together under lockdown rules. He is now living with his friend and former Love Island 2018 co-star, Josh Denzel. Smitten: The blonde has been on cloud nine ever since embarking on a new relationship with musician Josh Newsham last month (pictured) A source told The Sun at the time: 'It's all over. They started to grow apart. They want to remain civil with each other and hope to remain friends.' The news likely came as a shock to their fans, as just a week before they called it quits, they revealed that they were enjoying their time in lockdown together. Speaking to OK! Online, Wes said: 'It's been alright. It's hard to get out at the moment, isn't it? We're just trying to do our piece of exercise a day.' The Disaster Tourist challenges the reader to evaluate our curiosity about traumatised communities and landscapes that appear exciting for their unpredictability and history of ruin. In this fortnightly column, Pages From The Wild, Urvashi Bahuguna looks at accessible, engaging books from around the world, on the environment and ecology. *** Yun Ko-eun's The Disaster Tourist (2020) follows a travel company in Korea, named Jungle, which specialises in guided tours to areas that have been struck by natural disaster in the recent past. Published originally in 2013 in Korean, the novel has been newly translated into English by Lizzie Buehler. The protagonist, Yona Ko, who has spent most of her twenties and early thirties working at Jungle, is one of the curators of these unorthodox travel experiences. Like her colleagues, she scans the news and social media for disasters that may draw the attention of future clients. She scopes out earthquake-hit regions and tsunami-ravaged coasts for ones that show promise. Yona chooses locations that can be groomed into disaster tourism destinations with week-long itineraries that include homestays with the locals, visits to the site of the volcanic eruption which resulted in over a hundred fatalities or the river affected by severe and on-going water pollution, shopping for local ware and (sometimes) relief work related to the disaster. After her boss sexually assaults her, she finds herself isolated at the company and reassigned to clerical tasks. When she turns in her resignation, Jungle offers her an all-expenses-paid trip to convince her to stay. She can choose from any of their underperforming experiences and review the trips viability for the company. They sell it to her as an opportunity for rest and travel, and she relents. The Disaster Tourist isnt always an elegantly plotted novel but it is an endlessly fascinating one. What experiences do we seek when we think weve had all the usual ones? Is it a misplaced desire to experience the full gamut of reality that draws people to landscapes with storied scars and places of palpable poverty? A premise that at first sounds slightly exaggerated or outrightly satirical gradually grows into something familiar and resonant as the reader confronts the ways in which travel can feel educational and humbling while being voyeuristic and patronsing. Yona chooses to accompany a group to an island nation, located south of Vietnam, named Mui where a substantial portion of the ground had caved in some years ago killing several people in the vicinity. But of late, Mui had begun to wane in popularity with disaster tourists. Rain had filled the sinkhole which had been a previously dread-inducing chasm at one hundred and eighty meters deep. The travellers include an educator who has brought her five-year-old daughter along to teach her about the world and a student who has come in the hopes of ethically visiting a disaster site and volunteering towards rebuilding the community. It is apparent that the cynicism with which Jungle views their clients is different from the way these people view themselves. While Jungle sees them as people in whom they must evoke empathy, excitement, fear and gratitude, the reality is that the travelers see their reasons as unique and intrinsically linked to their specific stories. The group in Mui spends a night in a village in rooms on stilts on the water which are described as typical housing for the area. What appears to be a fairly innocuous interaction between the locals and the tourists is revealed to rest on fragile and masked foundations when Yonas camera goes missing and all the local homes are unceremoniously searched. There is no question as to which group has been implicitly accused. When the camera turns up elsewhere, the travel group descends into discomfort where privilege is angrily and briefly discussed before the conversation dies out. A series of unexpected circumstances leads to Yona designing a new tour through Mui which she attempts to show in broader light to future tourists by including the islands mangrove forest, which can be traversed by boat and the resident strangler fig trees, which are strong enough to have broken through the concrete nearby. But a more sinister plan is at work in the island with vast amounts of money and employment at stake. One of the puzzling absences in the novel is a lack of engagement with the growing climate crisis. Though extreme climate events form the backdrop of the novel, there is no sense amongst the travellers that the disasters, whose aftermaths they have sought out, are increasing in frequency and intensity the world over and that they or their descendants will likely live to experience a comparable event closer home. While The Disaster Tourist is an intriguing read about capitalisms ability to monetise everything including climate disasters, the novel doesnt quite live up to its marketing as an "eco-thriller". Instead, it challenges the reader to more robustly evaluate our curiosity about traumatised communities and landscapes that appear exciting for their unpredictability and history of ruin. What does a community lose even if they do financially benefit in some ways? What compromises are they forced to make during these visits for the sake of offering an authentic experience to a tourist? KEWEENAW COUNTY, MI Two sections of an off-road vehicle trail system in the Upper Peninsula are closed due to logging activity. Logging operations on private property along the 15-mile stretch forced the immediate temporary closure of the state-managed ORV B Route in Keweenaw County. The closure is expected to affect access to Copper Harbor through mid-September. BK ORV Trail, located on private land, has been closed for timber harvesting since May. The closure remains in effect. Logging near the trails creates a safety hazard for would-be riders. The two trails connect, and neither is currently accessible. There is no detour or reroute for B Trail. The trail is closed between Lac Labelle and Keystone Bay roads with gates at both ends. DNR conservation officers and county sheriffs deputies will patrol the closure. Riders will not be able to access Copper Harbor and the Keweenaw Point area when traveling from locations such as Eagle Harbor, Eagle River, Phoenix, Mohawk and Calumet, said Rob Katona, DNR central U.P. trails specialist. For more information on these and other closures in Michigan, visit Michigan.gov/DNRClosures. For more information on ORV trails, visit Michigan.gov/DNRTrails. By Online Desk It was a big day for director Geetu Mohandas and her 'Moothon' team at the New York Indian Film Festival 2020 (NYIFF). Nominated in four categories - Best Film, Best Actor, Best Director, and Best Child Actor- Moothan won in three of these four categories making the 2019 film a big hit at NYIFF 2020. Moothon won the best film award, Malayalam star Nivin Pauly grabbed the best actor award while the young Sanjana Dipu won in the best child artist category. Labeling it a proud moment for the Malayalam film fraternity, many took to Twitter congratulating the team of Moothon for this big success. 'Moothon' review: A welcome change for Malayalam film industry overdosed by feel-good films Sending his best wishes, director Bejoy Nambiar congratulated actor Nivin Pauly on Twittter for the big win. Moothon is a Malayalam-Hindi bilingual film directed by Geetu Mohandas and co-produced by Anurag Kashyap, who has also penned the Hindi dialogues of the film. The film revolves around a 14-year-old who travels to Mumbai from Lakshadweep in search of his elder brother but gets trapped in the underbelly of the city. A few days back another Malayalam film 'Run Kalyani' was featured in the New York Indian Film Festival. Directed by filmmaker Geetha J, the movie was also nominated for three categories including best film, best director, and best actress. The NYIFF 2020, was held virtually from July 24 to August 2, screened feature and non-feature films in various Indian languages including Assamese, Bengali, Haryanvi, Hindi, English, Ladakhi, Maithili, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali and Tamil. (Inputs from ENS) Health and environment agencies are monitoring a former gasworks site after recording "highly offensive" smells amid claims that local people have mystery illnesses. The site at Dock Road in Limerick, which is being cleared for redevelopment, has been the subject of multiple complaints since December. Gas Networks Ireland, which owns it, features in the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) latest quarterly National Priority Sites list for enforcement because of the issues that have arisen there. The EPA is now working with the Health Service Executive (HSE) to assess whether there is a public health concern. Both the EPA and Gas Networks Ireland say air-quality samples have all returned results well within legal limits. But the EPA said it had 69 complaints about the site since December, mainly about an "offensive gassy odour". "Many of the complainants have reported worries about possible health impacts because of the odours," it said. "We recognise this concern, and we are liaising with the Department of Public Health, HSE Midwest about it. "Also, we are conducting continuous monitoring of a range of volatile substances likely to be present in emissions from the site. "Results to date indicate that, although the odours are highly offensive, concentrations of these substances are well below established air quality standards for the protection of human health." Fiona Lysaght, whose house is in a terraced row that backs on to the site, said she had unexplained ailments. "I have a low immune system so I'm used to health problems but I've never experienced this before," she said. "I get awful headaches, upset stomach, diarrhoea, stinging eyes. I've had repeated antibiotics but I can't clear my chest. I have elderly neighbours and I feel very sorry for them. They can't even open a window or sit outside." Derrick Amrein, who runs the Chisel & Oak furniture store and workshop nearby, said it had to stay closed because he can't work there. He reported similar problems to Fiona. "I get a lot of vomiting and a swollen stomach and the fatigue is overpowering," he added. He was referred for toxicology tests, the results of which are due this week. There are disputed accounts of workers refusing to stay on site. Gas Networks Ireland said this did not happen. "No employees, contractors or sub-contractors have reported or left the site due to health concerns as a result of the clean-up works at the former gasworks site on Dock Road in Limerick," it said. The Health and Safety Authority was asked if it had received any complaints but it would not comment on individual workplaces. The site is the last of five old gasworks to be remediated by Gas Networks Ireland around the country. Work involves stripping off the top three metres of soil and stone, screening it for contaminants and mixing it with fresh material before returning it while also removing 11 underground gas storage tanks. Gas Networks Ireland said it was aware of the concerns of a small number of people. "We would like to reassure residents, workers and visitors to the Dock Road area that we put safety at the heart of everything we do," it said. Doug Dennerline, CEO of betterworks With new ways of working being invented daily, more and more enterprises are realizing the necessity of a transparent organizing system to keep their workforces aligned to company objectives and engaged with the challenges and rewards of a job well done betterworks, the leading enterprise software for OKRs/CFRs, Engagement, and Calibration, has been ranked No. 200 on SaaS Mags list of the top 1000 global SaaS companies in 2020. SaaS Mags annual SaaS 1000 features the fastest-growing SaaS companies in the world based on a proprietary algorithm that identifies SaaS organizations leading their markets, from large enterprises to smaller startups. Work is not a place you go, its what you do, said Doug Dennerline, CEO of betterworks. With new ways of working being invented daily, more and more enterprises are realizing the necessity of a transparent organizing system to keep their workforces aligned to company objectives and engaged with the challenges and rewards of a job well done. We are gratified SaaS Mag recognizes betterworks as a leader in our segment of the SaaS marketplace. About betterworks With its unique combined OKR, Conversations, Feedback & Recognition (CFRs), Engagement, and Calibration solution, Betterworks empowers companies to execute on their business objectives with agility and resilience through alignment, commitment, and transparency. Betterworks formula for Better empowers leaders and employees to perform at the highest level and sustain competitive advantage from anywhere. The company is headquartered in Redwood City, California, is backed by Kleiner Perkins, and is the only OKR/CFR platform endorsed by OKR pioneer John Doerr. Betterworks is used daily by employees and managers in 119 countries in 20 languages. The companys Solution and Professional Services Team has helped multiple global organizations, including Intuit, Kroger, Lending Tree, and Vertiv, achieve agile execution. For more information about the latest business and people management strategies and best practices, please visit http://www.betterworks.com. About SaaS Mag SaaS Mag is the world's largest quarterly SaaS publication informing leaders in the industry on business, technical, and market trends. SaaS Mag was started by M&A advisors who encountered SaaS company founders, funders, and executives, and realized the growing industry needed its own source of insider news and analysis. The publication is distributed to tens of thousands of SaaS professionals and features advice, profiles of innovative people and companies, and industry commentary. For more information on SaaS Mag and the SaaS 1000, please contact editors@saasmag.com. Im excited to combine two of the industrys legacy brands PolyVision, a global leader in the innovation and manufacture of CeramicSteel, collaborative writing products, and architectural panels for cladding, announced today the acquisition of Marsh Industries Inc., an Ohio-based visual display board manufacturer. The purchase of Marsh trails the recent announcement (https://bit.ly/3faLPCU) that Illinois-based private equity firm, Industrial Opportunity Partners, acquired PolyVision propelling the companys growth strategy. This investment will create synergies with PolyVisions existing manufacturing facilities and operational resources, enabling PolyVision to grow the architectural panel business in North America, expand capacity and offer shorter lead times. Im excited to combine two of the industrys legacy brands, says Peter Lewchanin President & CEO of PolyVision. Marsh has a rich history dating back to 1914, with five consecutive generations of family ownership who share the same core values as PolyVision. This new operations platform will enable us to expand our panel fabrication capacity and our geographic presence, offer higher volumes of quality CeramicSteel panels and local mass customization. Norm Young, an IOP Operating Principal, commented "I am thrilled to have Marsh Industries join our portfolio company PolyVision Corporation. We believe Marsh has built a solid company over the years and look forward to expanding the business across PolyVisions served geography." Brian W. Marsh, who will continue to lead Marsh as CEO, says, Marshs joining the PolyVision family is a great fit and I couldnt be more pleased. Weve worked together for years in a different capacity and this new partnership provides opportunities for growth for both businesses. Marsh Industries will operate as an independent brand and continue to focus on board manufacturing for their existing product lines. ABOUT POLYVISION PolyVision Corporation is a global leader in the innovation and manufacture of CeramicSteel for a variety of industries. For over 65 years, weve helped make the world a better place by creating products that enhance visual experiences and connect people to their environments. PolyVision CeramicSteel is used around the world for traditional chalkboard and whiteboard surfaces, modern collaboration products for many of the worlds most influential organizations and architectural walls and cladding for public spaces. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, PolyVision does business in over 65 countries. For more information about CeramicSteel and its uses, visit polyvision.com. ABOUT MARSH INDUSTRIES, INC. Marsh Industries is based in New Philadelphia, Ohio and is one of the largest manufacturers of visual board products in the United States. The family-owned business manufactures various visual display products for schools such as markerboards, tackboards, space dividers and acoustic panels. For more information, visit marsh-ind.com ABOUT INDUSTRIAL OPPORTUNITY PARTNERS IOP, an Evanston, Ill.-based private equity firm with $910 million of committed capital since inception, is dedicated to creating value through investing in manufacturing and value-added distribution businesses with revenue between $30 million and $400 million. IOP focuses on businesses with strong product, customer, and market positions, and provides management and operational resources to support sales and earnings growth at its businesses. For more information, visit IOPs website at iopfund.com. The shooting at the weekend of a 12-year-old girl in Stockholm sparked outrage on Monday and reignited a debate around a rise in gang-related violence in Sweden. The girl, who is not believed to have been the intended target, was hit by a stray bullet aimed at two men allegedly linked to Swedish organised crime, local news website, Expressen, reported. People had placed flowers and candles at the scene on Monday. 'This can't happen again. It's a 12-year-old girl,' said Christina Lundstrom, 51, who had come to pay her respects. Police working at the site today, where a twelve year old girl was shot near a petrol station in Botkyrka, south of Stockholm, Sweden on Sunday morning Police take photographs as they gather evidence after a 12-year-old girl was shot dead in an allegedly botched drive-by shooting, in Botkyra, south of Stockholm yesterday People pay tribute by putting candles and flowers at the site where a twelve year old girl was shot near a petrol station in Botkyrka, south of Stockholm, Sweden, today. The girl was taken to hospital, but later died from her injuries No arrests have been made, but police told AFP that they had opened a murder investigation and were seeking information about a white car seen at the time of the shooting. Justice Minister Morgan Johansson described his 'dismay and disgust' to news agency TT, and promised 'more police and harsher sentences'. Speaking on Swedish radio, opposition MP, Johan Forsell, called for a re-think 'to make Sweden safer.' Sweden has given police added surveillance powers, stepped up witness protection schemes and toughened sentencing for drugs and weapons-related crimes after a wave of shootings and bombings in recent years. During the first six months of 2020, 20 people have been killed in 163 shootings, in the country of some 10.3 million inhabitants, according to police. In 2019, there were some 42 deaths in 334 reported shootings. Last August, two women, who were also not the intended targets, were shot in incidents just weeks apart. Criminologist Ardavan Khoshnood told broadcaster SVT that in the last 10 years, about 15 innocent bystanders had been killed. People pay tribute by putting candles and flowers at the site where a twelve year old girl was shot near a petrol station in Botkyrka, south of Stockholm, Sweden today Local police chief Carolina Paasikivi said she could not confirm the reports until her team had gathered evidence. 'I cannot confirm any such reports, but want to underline that we are in great need of witnesses and observations. It's only when we have that that we can say what happened. Let us determine whether or not they are relevant observations,' Paasikivi told the TT newswire. The shooting happened shortly before 3.30am on Sunday morning outside a petrol station in the Norsborg area of Botkyrka, south of Stockholm. Paasikivi said police were currently trawling through hours of CCTV footage and that investigators had found 'interesting' scenes they'll be able to analyse. As of this morning, no arrests have yet been made, but Paasikivi said several people have been brought in for questioning to assist with the case. Sweden's Interior Minister, Mikael Damberg, said: 'I am aware that no words are enough for the one who lost a child in this terrible way, but I still want to say that our thoughts go to you and that we share your grief in this difficult time. 'From the side of the government, we will continue to vigorously expand society's ability to fight crime with more police, tougher penalties and preventive work.' Pictures from the scene yesterday show investigators combing through the area, which is outside a McDonalds restaurant and Shell pump station. 'We will investigate and do everything in our power to bring the people behind this terrible act to justice,' national police chief Anders Thornberg told TT. 'We will collect witness statements, forensic evidence and all material that could help us move the investigation forward. But how successful we are also depends on those who know anything about the incident coming forward and helping us solve the crime.' Local Michel Rizk told Aftonbladet that he arrived at the petrol station to refuel, but found the premises shut off by investigators. 'I think it's tragic. You get worried,' he said. 'I have children myself and it is only a matter of time before they run down to the gas station to buy something.' Locals have gathered to light candles and hold a vigil for the 12-year-old. (Bloomberg) -- Attorneys general from New York and California are partnering with the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Amazon.com Inc.s online marketplace, according to people familiar with the matter, ratcheting up scrutiny of the worlds largest e-commerce company. The three agencies will work together to interview witnesses in coming weeks on joint conference calls, the people said. Bloomberg reported on the FTC investigation last year, and Californias probe was revealed in a court filing last week. The New York investigation and collaboration among agencies at the state and federal level hasnt previously been reported. State and federal regulators cooperating can often precede a big antitrust enforcement action, similar to that taken against Microsoft Corp, said Diana Moss, president of the American Antitrust Institute. This appears to be taking the shape of what could be a major collaborative antitrust investigation, she said. This happens in big cases where the feds have a stake in enforcing the law, and also when states have an interest in protecting their constituents. Through spokespeople, Amazon, the FTC and the offices of Californias and New Yorks AGs all declined to comment. New York Attorney General Letitia James is also investigating the termination of Chris Smalls, who led a demonstration at an Amazon warehouse in Staten Island. Amazon has said Smalls and three other activist workers were fired for violating company policy. Amazon is among four big technology companies being scrutinized for allegedly abusing their market power. Along with the chief executives of Alphabet Inc., Facebook Inc. and Apple Inc., Amazons Jeff Bezos testified last week before a House committee probing antitrust allegations. Almost 40 cents of every dollar spent online in the U.S. goes to Amazon, which has more of the online retail market than its nine closest competitors including Walmart Inc. and EBay Inc. combined, according to EMarketer Inc. Amazon, which denies abusing its market position, has said it represents a small fraction of total U.S. retail sales. Story continues (Updates with background starting in sixth paragraph.) 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. This acquisition leverages the strengths of each organization to deliver a comprehensive e-commerce print solution for professionals, businesses, and consumer brands. Reischling Press, Inc. (RPI) a pioneer in the personalized print services market, has acquired Blurb, an industry-leading e-commerce platform of print-on-demand books, magazines, wall decor, and digital services for self-publishers and creative professionals, the company announced today. The acquisition extends RPIs overall strategy to offer a full suite of services and e-commerce platform solutions to businesses around the world, said Rick Bellamy, CEO of RPI. This is a strategic acquisition for us and culminates the long-term partnership between our two companies, Bellamy said. Blurbs primary audiences are creative professionals and self-publishers, and this acquisition leverages the strengths of each organization to deliver a comprehensive e-commerce print solution for professionals, businesses, and consumer brands. RPI and Blurb have partnered together for years in the publishing and personalization market, with their business relationship beginning in 2005. Blurb was the enabling customer for RPIs acquisition of Paro in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, in 2011. RPI has produced the vast majority of Blurbs volume for years, Bellamy said. Therefore, our overall customer base will continue to receive RPIs focus and commitment to an excellent customer experience. We plan to expand our capabilities across our existing in-house and partner network platforms to service our customers through our operational excellence. Rix Kramlich, CEO of Blurb, will become general manager of RPIs new eCommerce division. Becoming part of RPI is a natural next step for Blurb, Kramlich said. It will enable us to focus on and accelerate improvements in the things that our users love about Blurb - our world-class creation tools as well as the breadth and quality of our printed products. Blurb will become an RPI company and continue to maintain offices in San Francisco and the UK. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, many RPI and Blurb employees are working remotely at this time and will do so for the foreseeable future. Other terms of the deal, including acquisition price, were not disclosed. This is the fourth acquisition for RPI. In 2019, RPI acquired the assets of SoftPrint Holdings, which accelerated RPIs ability to deliver expanded services for product builders, increased manufacturing capacity, and reduced delivery times for RPIs customer base. It also expanded the companys geographic distribution footprint. In 2013, the company acquired DPI, an Atlanta-based company that provides web-to-print, on-demand products and services for business-to-business customers. In 2011, RPI acquired Paro, a company based in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, that provides print products for the corporate and consumer markets in Europe. About RPI RPI is a leading make-on-demand producer of private label personalized print services to businesses around the world, including books, greeting and holiday cards, apparel, and business products for e-commerce companies, mass retailers, and Fortune 1000 corporations. RPIs blue-chip retail and e-commerce customers rely on its consistent, reliable execution and state-of-the-art manufacturing for the rapid delivery of innovative products utilizing consumer-generated content. RPI has one of the industrys largest fleets of HPs Indigo digital printers and has been listed on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies for seven years. The Seattle-based company, which celebrated its 40th year in business in 2019, has additional production facilities in Kennesaw, GA, Rochester, NY, and Eindhoven, NL. The company has received strategic investments from HCAP Partners and Riverlake Partners. About Blurb Blurb is a self-publishing platform and creative community that enables individuals, creative professionals and businesses to create, publish, share, and sell high-quality photo books, trade books, magazines, and eBooks. Blurb is accessible across the globe with free, innovative book creation and layout tools. Using the Blurb Print API, content-focused organizations are able to offer their customers the ability to create and print branded custom books. Founded in 2005, Blurb has more than 2 million independent book authors worldwide with more than 22 million units shipped to 70 countries around the world. The company is headquartered in San Francisco and can be found online at http://www.blurb.com. For the start of the new school year, Savvas is pairing myView Literacy , its leading core K-5 literacy program, and Reading Spot , a digital library, with AMI's Moby.Read. Moby.Read uses advanced speech recognition and scoring technologies to automate the oral reading assessment experience and increase testing accuracy, in and out of the classroom. All reading audio is captured and recorded for teacher playback, a feature essential for blended (remote and in-person online) learning. Moby.Read is easily accessible on any digital device or computer that supports Google Chrome as well as by single sign-on through Savvas Realize, the edtech industry's most versatile learning management system. "Strong reading skills are the bedrock of any young student's education, and it's difficult to succeed in other core areas without that foundation. Assessing students' reading skills during this time of school closures and distance learning is more critical than ever," said Bethlam Forsa, CEO of Savvas Learning Company. "By providing teachers with a digital tool that utilizes artificial intelligence to do oral reading assessments, we are saving teachers valuable time by allowing them to focus more on instruction and improving students' reading skills." Research-backed and standards-aligned, Moby.Read includes benchmark assessments that enable teachers to view students' progression over the school year for critical reading skills accurate reading rate, accuracy, comprehension, and expression while also providing reading level information. The Moby.Read oral fluency assessment also: Models Fluent Reading by allowing students to hear a model reading and then re-read passages aloud. by allowing students to hear a model reading and then re-read passages aloud. Records Students' Performance in a play-back portfolio so teachers can listen to audio to inform instruction, further analyze results, or share with students and parents. in a play-back portfolio so teachers can listen to audio to inform instruction, further analyze results, or share with students and parents. Engages Young Readers (Grades K-5) by giving students short passages to read aloud, then retell the passages and answer questions in their own voice. by giving students short passages to read aloud, then retell the passages and answer questions in their own voice. Reports in Real Time key reading skill scores and shows trend data. key reading skill scores and shows trend data. Provides Running Record Charts to record and track students' word analysis capabilities. to record and track students' word analysis capabilities. Offers Fully Automated and Self-Administered Testing to provide students independence while teachers benefit from automated scoring. "Teachers need efficient, accurate reading assessments that are integrated with high-quality, engaging instructional content. This is critical to accelerate their students' reading growth," said Jared Bernstein, Ph.D., co-founder and president of AMI. "We are proud to partner with Savvas to bundle our products to create a new and better holistic reading solution for teachers and students. We share an absolute commitment to enabling all students to improve their skills and become strong, confident readers and the collective strengths of both organizations put that goal squarely in focus." Together, Savvas and AMI offer a seamless reading solution that enables continuous learning through instruction, assessment, and practice opportunities, allowing teachers to track student progress while motivating readers with titles that match their interests and reading abilities. Moby.Read is fully integrated with myView Literacy, the highly successful blended print and digital, interactive K-5 English language arts solution by Savvas. Moby.Read is also coupled with Reading Spot, a digital library that offers a curated collection of 3,500+ high-quality ebooks. A key feature of Reading Spot is that it allows teachers to create a "virtual book bag" personalized for each individual student. For both solutions, Moby.Read provides valuable data to inform instruction for greater student achievement. Annie Leone, an elementary school teacher for the Pinellas County School District in Florida, has long searched for an integrated solution to effectively and efficiently measure all of her students' reading abilities a periodic assessment that could take a week or longer. "As a first-grade teacher, I struggle daily to find the time to quickly assess every student in my classroom in order to tailor differentiated instruction," Leone said. "Having the ability to determine my student's reading level in just 15 minutes, and potentially my entire class in one day, will help me better address each child's individual needs. This truly is a game changer for K-5 teachers like me." ABOUT SAVVAS LEARNING COMPANY At Savvas, we believe learning should inspire. By combining new ideas, new ways of thinking, and new ways of interacting, we design next-generation learning solutions that help prepare students to become global citizens in a more interconnected, digital world. To learn more, visit www.Savvas.com . ABOUT ANALYTIC MEASURES INC. (AMI) AMI is built on the principle that applying data science and technology in educational settings will accelerate learning. We apply our expertise in artificial intelligence, psycholinguistics, test design, and psychometrics to develop new literacy products and automated performance assessment services. To learn more, visit https://www.analyticmeasures.com/ . SOURCE Savvas Learning Company Related Links http://www.Savvas.com 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: 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: 28:
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Both Australian citizens and foreign national workers on short-term visas will be paid $1500 per fortnight if they are told they must self-isolate for coronavirus and cannot work. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said people can apply for the $1500 payment multiple times, and it's primarily aimed at people on short-term visas. Mr Morrison described Victoria's situation as heartbreaking after the state recorded 429 new cases on Monday, and 13 more deaths bringing the national toll to 221. 'We know that we have to help them push through, because Australia's future depends on these weeks and months ahead,' he told reporters in Canberra. The prime minister encouraged people to contact their friends in Victoria. 'Cheer them up. Encourage them. Let them know you're there for them if you're in a state in a much better situation - which, thankfully, all other states and territories are.' A woman walks past an empty shop in Melbournes central business district on Monday A man walks past a masked tree in Melbourne on Monday. Melbourne residents are now subject to a strict curfew after 8pm and must wear facemasks if they leave their homes The queue outside a Centrelink office in Melbourne in April - many workers already lost their jobs and are on JobSeeker or JobKeeper. They won't be eligible for the disaster payment which is only for workers who have exhausted their sick pay and must self-isolate Australian Defence Force members patrol Melbourne's streets on Monday, helping with the pandemic response Melbourne's CBD pictured on Monday, is eerily empty after a State of Disaster was declared Victorian Premier Dan Andrews has announced further restrictions for Melbourne, with retail, some manufacturing and administration to close from midnight on Wednesday. 'While I never thought that I would be telling people not to go to work, that is what we have to do in order to stop the spread of this wildly infectious virus,' he told reporters. $1500 DISASTER PAYMENT: CAN YOU GET IT? * Victorian workers who are told to self-isolate for 14 days and have exhausted all their sick leave can get the payment * The payment is to make up the short fall when sick leave is exhausted * It is for Victorian residents only * Australian citizens and permanent residents living in Victoria are eligible * Foreign workers on short-term visas are also eligible * You can apply by calling Services Australia's Disaster Recovery Payment hotline after Wednesday on 180 22 66 * Payment means there is no excuse for people to keep working when told to self-isolate * You can get the payment multiple times if you are directed to self-isolate multiple times and thus cannot work * Federal Government will pay for citizens and permanent residents * Victorian Government will pay for foreign workers on short term visas * Those on JobSeeker do not qualify as they are already receiving income support * Those on JobKeeper also will not qualify as they are already receiving income support Advertisement Supermarkets, bottle shops, pharmacies, petrol stations, banks, news agencies, post offices and butchers will remain open. Melbourne residents have started six weeks of a strict lockdown, including an 8pm-5am curfew and no travel more than 5km from home for shopping or exercise. It comes as Tasmania closes its borders until at least the end of the month, backtracking on a decision to allow South Australian, West Australian and Northern Territory visitors from Friday. NSW recorded 13 new COVID-19 cases in the 24 hours to 8pm on Sunday - four of which were returned travellers from overseas or Victoria and one with no known source. Another four cases were announced from the weekend - a family of four, including a baby, from Wagga Wagga in the Riverina region that recently returned home from Melbourne and went into self-isolation. Criteria for travel between NSW and Victoria was tightened two weeks ago, with movement limited to work, education or medical purposes. NSW residents returning from Victoria are forced into two weeks of self-isolation. South Australia has reported two new coronavirus cases - both in hotel quarantine - as officials move to reimpose some COVID-19 restrictions. Premier Steven Marshall announced on Monday the return of restrictions with family gatherings reduced from 50 to just 10 people and trading in pubs and restaurants to be limited to seated patrons only. Mr Marshall said the new arrangements would take effect from midnight on Tuesday night. Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk expressed concern, which she will raise at the next national cabinet meeting, about a travel exemption that allowed an infected embassy worker to fly from NSW to Queensland. The young consular staff member tested positive to COVID-19 after he returned from overseas and was allowed to fly from Sydney to the Sunshine Coast without quarantining. The man is now in self-isolation with his wife as health officials race to contact trace people who sat near him. There were no new cases recorded in Queensland overnight. @theMarket: Stocks Fall as Congress Fails to Act It should come as no surprise that our politicians failed to compromise on a new bailout package this week. It is symptomatic of a country that suffers from a great philosophical divide. The only entity that investors can truly believe in is the Fed. Keep the faith. Chairman Jerome Powell, in his Thursday press conference after the two-day Federal Open Market Committee meeting, said the path forward is "extraordinarily uncertain." As such, our central bank will remain accommodating, he promised, which means the financial markets will continue to be supported going forward. Readers should remember that. Over the long term, I plan to remain constructive towards the stock markets. However, in the short-term, we need to contend with a number of negatives. The unemployment numbers are going up, not down. Economic data may also weaken during the next few weeks. You can thank those red states that ignored expert medical advice and reopened their economies for that. As a result, businesses have had to cancel, or slow their plans to reopen some state economies. And now those COVID-19 hot spots appear to be spreading and moving toward the Midwest. I expect this trend to continue. And while the numbers of cases and deaths (more than 151,000) continue to climb, the Republican's answer is to announce a $1 trillion rescue package. The centerpiece of their legislation is focused on protecting businesses from lawsuits by employees who sicken and/or die by coming back to work and extending the PPP benefits to businesses. The Democrats want a $3 trillion package which focuses on the unemployed and additional funds to state and local governments. As of this writing, the parties remain far apart. In the balance are millions of Americans who will be facing eviction notices with reduced unemployment compensation and no job prospects. All but the most conservative economists believe that the $1 trillion plan offered by the Republicans is woefully inadequate. There is also no evidence whatsoever that the Republican claim that the additional $600 a week supplement in unemployment is encouraging workers to remain at home instead of looking for jobs that do not exist. I am also quite concerned with the planned re-opening of the nation's school systems. My recent column, "How much are your kids worth," outlines the horrible choice parents in America have to make in the next few weeks. The risk I see is that, like the push to re-open states prematurely, school re-openings may follow the same path and backfire (as it has in many other countries). Children in classrooms might become "super spreaders" of the virus, infecting themselves, their parents, grandparents, along with their cities and states. I warned readers two weeks ago to prepare for some volatility in the event Congress failed to act before the end of the month. That prediction has come true. The longer politicians continue to procrastinate, preen, and pose for the cameras without delivering another fiscal stimulus package, the longer financial markets will continue to gyrate. Since market participants have already priced in another stimulus package, the failure to pass this legislation would trigger a market decline. Readers should also remember that the months of August and September have not treated investors kindly in the past. Let's hope the politicians don't make this a self-fulfilling prophecy. The Mumbai police busted a gambling den in Vikhroli (East) area on Monday and arrested 38 people including four women and seized cash 3.62 lakh from them. The arrested people are from Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane and Kalyan area. Deputy Commissioner of police Prashant Kadam said, The raid was conducted on the specific information that the gambling is running in ground plus one structure in Tagore Nagar area in Vikroli (east). A police team was formed from the DCP squad and they conducted raids and found people gambling cards and were not following social distancing. During check we found 27 people and four women came from outside like Navi Mumbai, Thane and Kalyan while others are owner, manager and staff members, said Kadam. The suspects were taken into custody and police have been conducting panchnama. The FIR will register against them under the charges of gambling act, violating lockdown norms and for maintaining social distancing, said Kadam. Ontario is launching a battle against one of the predators preying on fish and damaging trees. A Friday announcement from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry shows a plan to allow a fall hunting of the cormorants a double-crested bird said to be harmful to natural habitat and fish stocks. The hunting season will run between Sept. 15 and Dec. 31 starting this year, the ministry said. Each hunter will be allowed to kill a maximum of 15 cormorants per day. Weve heard concerns from property owners, hunters and anglers, and commercial fishers about the kind of damage cormorants have caused in their communities, so were taking steps to help them deal with any local issues, John Yakabuski, minister for natural resources and forestry, said in a news release. According to the ministry, cormorants are dangerous because their droppings can kill trees and other vegetation, thus depriving safe nesting habitats for other colonial waterbirds. A cormorant can eat up to one pound of fish a day, according to the statement. Back in 2018, Ontario government floated the idea of having an open season for the hunting of cormorants, suggesting the hunt to be permitted between March and December and allowing a hunter to take up to 50 cormorants. The current limitations stem from public consultations with property owners, hunters and anglers, as well as commercial fishers. The ministry says Ontario is home to at least 143,000 breeding cormorants in 344 colonies. According to surveys from the ministry, cormorant populations seem to be on an increase in Lake Ontario, Lake Erie and Lake Superior, while the numbers stay steady in Lake Huron and St. Lawrence River. We listened to those who provided comments about the cormorant hunting proposal, and as a result, we are introducing only a fall hunting season to avoid interfering with recreational users of waterways and nesting periods for some migratory birds, Yakabuski said. Gail Fraser, a York University biology professor who has studied cormorants, said the hunt is not necessary and the governments latest move is just a political manoeuvre to appeal to its base, as opposed to being science-based. I am seriously concerned that theyre just going to remove cormorants from Ontario, she told the Star. Fraser was one of over 3,000 people who submitted comments on the initial proposal for a hunt. She said theres an estimated 700,000 hunters in Ontario, and if one-quarter of these hunters kill one cormorant during that 90-day hunting season, that will translate into over 120 per cent above the estimated cormorant breeding population. The government has spent a lot of money in the past in an effort to re-grow the cormorant population in the early 1970s while it faced extinction, Fraser said. Instead of hunting them now, the ministry should be assessing localized human-wildlife conflicts before undertaking actions to specifically address that, she said. According to Fraser, its not fair to simply say cormorants kill trees, because they are not nesting in every possible tree across the Great Lakes region. In addition, there are other predators eating fish, including humans, so theres no proof that cormorants are the biggest culprits. Saying that controlling cormorants is going to be the magic pill to having healthy fish populations is just not good science, Fraser said. Gaby Regalado's daughters, Jaqui, left, and Yuliana with headphones they received at a giveaway at the Mar Vista Family Center in April. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) After a troubled and uneven spring of distance learning, Los Angeles schools will reopen in two weeks with a major reboot for learning at home that includes a structured schedule, mandatory attendance-taking and more required online time with teachers and counselors, under a tentative agreement between the teachers union and the district. The official schedule will be shorter than a normal on-campus school day, beginning at 9 a.m. and ending at 2:15 p.m., with teachers expected to work an average of six hours while exercising broad discretion over how much time they spend teaching live online classes versus providing recorded sessions and supervising students working independently. Time also will be set aside for the social and emotional needs of students and families through counseling. The pact appears to resolve a major hurdle that was creating uncertainty among parents as the Aug. 18 start of the school year quickly approaches. "We have all learned from our experiences with distance learning since March and weve applied what we learned to this agreement," said L.A. schools Supt. Austin Beutner and teachers union President Cecily Myart-Cruz in a joint statement. "Our shared goal is to provide the best possible education for students in our schools." Similar agreements which specify the amount of live online instruction and establish consistent schedules for families are being hammered out across the state and nation. San Diego Unified announced an agreement with its teachers union last week as did Green Dot Public Schools, a unionized charter-school organization that operates 19 campuses in Los Angeles and Inglewood. After campuses closed in March due to the coronavirus, L.A. Unified and other school systems worked quickly to hand out work packets and textbooks, provide computers and Wi-Fi hotspots, and train teachers in online instruction. But in the end, say experts, the shutdown appeared to exacerbate learning gaps affecting Black and Latino students, those from low-income families and those with disabilities. Story continues "Live, quality, instruction, consistently tracking student engagement across the year, and clear communication with parents are all more important than ever for equity this fall," said Elisha Smith Arrillaga, executive director of Education Trust-West, an Oakland-based research and advocacy group. "We are glad this plan includes first steps in each of these areas but hope even more detail will be provided." The more structured, 30-hour minimum week contrasts with an agreement in April with no set schedule and a 20-hour minimum week for teachers although many went far beyond that. UC Berkeley education professor Bruce Fuller called the new pact a vast improvement, but added that the obvious missing piece is attention to child care and academic supervision for low-income families, including those of essential workers. "It's a strong model for attentive parents who can afford to stay home," Fuller said. "But I see no specificity for how educators will connect with kids in working-class families who fail to log on with teachers," especially, he said, those parents who "must return to work to keep food on the table, working swing shifts and irregular hours, unable to oversee their child's online learning." Another quick take was offered by Robin Lake, director of the Center on Reinventing Public Education at the University of Washington. Compared with other school systems her research team has looked at, the L.A. plan provides "very little time for kids to feel connected and engaged in school," Lake said. "Given how many LAUSD kids seem to have checked out last spring and how many must be struggling with isolation, this hardly seems like a good idea." She added: "The day itself is shorter than most districts we've looked at." A group of parents last week threatened to sue the district if the learning environment did not improve considerably. A representative for the group said Monday they continue to weigh their options as they review the new learning plan. Speak Up, an advocacy group that has complained about the quantity and quality of distance learning, praised the consistent schedules and daily live instruction, but said the plan contains too little teaching time, especially given the accumulated learning loss. There also needs to be an opportunity for ongoing parent input, said Katie Braude, the group's chief executive. Concerns over academic progress spurred state lawmakers to insert instructional requirements into the budget bill, requiring teachers to take online attendance and document student learning. The rules reimposed the states minimum daily instructional minutes of 180 for kindergarten, 230 minutes for grades 1 through 3, and 240 minutes for grades 4 through 12. Paulina De Loza, 8, holds a computer issued at the Ellen Ochoa Learning Center in Cudahy in April. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) Another provision of the six-page agreement would limit a session of screen time for preschoolers to no more than 45 minutes. The pact also establishes work expectations for non-teaching union members such as counselors, nurses and librarians, some of whom had difficulty connecting with the students they served or adjusting to altered roles after campuses closed. Numerous parents have complained about inadequate services for students with disabilities and those learning English. Noah Garcia, 3, left, and cousin Mia Porres, 4, pick up meals in March with their grandmother Zoila Umana, right, from LAUSD volunteers. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) Under the tentative agreement, principals appear to have some latitude in assigning non-teachers duties when they cannot perform their regular tasks or cannot perform them in the usual way. In addition, the district has agreed to a union demand to suspend annual performance evaluations of tenured teachers for the soon-to-begin academic year. The union also achieved other concessions in terms of supervision and evaluation. Administrators, for example, must give notice before joining virtual courses and web-conferencing sessions. And live instruction cannot be recorded by the district without prior notice and the consent of the instructor. Negotiations continued until 10 p.m. Sunday. In general, the district was pushing for a longer school day than the union, which favored more flexibility. Areas are cordoned off with caution tape in March at Dorsey High School. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) Under orders by Gov. Gavin Newsom, public and private schools located in counties on the states coronavirus watchlist cannot reopen for the start of school. Campuses could potentially reopen once virus transmission recedes and stabilizes for 14 days. Elementary schools can petition to reopen sooner. The teachers union plans to have its members vote on the agreement next week. The school board, which also must approve the pact, is scheduled to meet Tuesday and could take up the matter. A major item already on that agenda is whether the board will put a $7-billion school facilities bond before voters in November. Officials have said the bond would help replenish funds spent in response to the pandemic as well as to meet other needs. The agreement would be in effect through December or until campuses reopen. Negotiations are continuing over how things will work when campuses are allowed to reopen. (@FahadShabbir) Damascus, Aug 3 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 4th Aug, 2020 ) :The Syrian army activated its air defences late Monday against "hostile targets" near the capital Damascus, the official news agency SANA reported. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights meanwhile reported there were Israeli air raids on the southern province of Quneitra and on Boukamal city, near the Iraqi border in the northeast. The Punjab CM said his Delhi counterpart's demand was nothing but a 'political gimmick' aimed at regaining AAPs lost foothold in the state Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Sunday hit back at Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal for the demand of a CBI probe into the state's hooch tragedy, saying the AAP leader should "mind his own business". Amarinder Singh further asked the Delhi chief minister "not to exploit the tragic affair for reviving his defunct Aam Aadmi Party's stake in the state". Mr Kejriwal in his tweet on Sunday demanded a CBI probe into the Punjab hooch tragedy, which has claimed 98 lives so far. Slamming Mr Kejriwal, the CM in a statement said, "So many people have died and all you are interested in is making political meat from the incident. Don't you have any shame." Asking the AAP leader to "mind his own business", the Punjab CM said his Delhi counterpart should concentrate on maintaining law and order in his own state, which was "notorious for the brazen manner in which criminals and gangs were roaming the streets without fear". Trashing Mr Kejriwal's claim that "none of the illicit liquor cases from the last few months have been solved by the local police", the Punjab CM asked the AAP leader to verify his facts "before shooting through his mouth". Citing that an illicit liquor factory was busted in Khanna on 22 April, the CM said eight accused were arrested and a manhunt was launched for seven others. In another case, two kingpins behind an illicit liquor distillery operating in Patiala district were arrested on 22 May and 13 June this year, and on 10 July, challan was filed in the court, the Punjab chief minister said. Expressing full faith in the Punjab police, the CM said Mr Kejriwal's demand for a CBI probe was nothing but a "political gimmick", aimed at "regaining lost foothold" for his party, which had "completely lost ground" in Punjab despite being the principal opposition party. The CM said despite the cases of targeted killings in Punjab being handed over the CBI, it was eventually the Punjab Police that had solved the same. Even in the sacrilege cases, the CBI failed to deliver and it is the Punjab Police which is unravelling the case, he claimed. Rather than delaying the investigation and allow the trail to go cold even in the present spurious liquor case by handing over the probe to CBI, he was more interested in ensuring swift action against all those whose greed had cost the state around 100 lives, the CM said in the statement. The CM asked Mr Kejriwal to check out his facts before making "unsubstantiated and wild allegations" against his government, whose track record in curbing crime of all kinds was "exemplary". "Why don't you ask your Punjab unit for data and figures first and then comment on our working," he told the Delhi CM. Mr Singh also advised his Delhi counterpart to concentrate on his state's "horrendous" COVID situation. "Rather than worrying about Punjab's affairs, why don't you take care of the health and lives of Delhiites," the CM said. Saying that strict action is being taken against all those found guilty in cases of illicit brewing and smuggling, Amarinder Singh said in the hooch tragedy, too, 30 people have already been arrested in three districts. Moreover, 13 officials from the police and excise and taxation departments had been suspended for negligence while investigations are on to ascertain their complicity in the case, he said. A magisterial inquiry had ordered with the mandate to submit its report within a month, he further said, asking what was the need for CBI to take over the case when the local police was handling it so effectively. San Francisco, Aug 3 : Google has started adding an icon in Google Maps and Search to help people identify Black-owned businesses. The move, which comes amid a surge in online searches for Black-owned businesses, is part of the company's commitment to support underrepresented entrepreneurs. With the addition of the icon, people will be able to see a black heart over an orange three-striped background which will indicate a Black-owned business in Google Maps and Search. Similar to other attributes, Google relies on business owners to self-identify as being Black-owned businesses. It is not clear how Google will verify the authenticity of the claims. But the company has a partnership with the US Black Chambers, Inc. (USBC) which has 145 Black Chambers of Commerce and 326,000 members across the country. Google and USBC will provide training for Black-owned businesses to enhance their presence on Google through the use of digital tools like Google My Business and Google Analytics. "Our hope is that by partnering with USBC, we can help more businesses connect with their community and customers," Jewel Burks, Head of Google for Startups US, said in a blog post last week. The number of new confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Italy nudged lower to 239 in the last 24 hours, while all eight deaths were recorded in Lombardy, the epicentre of the countrys epidemic. That brings the total number of cases in Italy to 248,070 and deaths to 35,154, according to Health Ministry figures released Sunday. New cases were distributed in every region, with none at zero, and Emilia-Romagna, which has had several outbreaks, counting the most at 49. The number of daily cases in Italy has hovered between 200-300 for weeks, mostly related to people arriving from outside of Italy, either foreign workers or migrants. Italians have been filling beaches, particularly on the weekends, as the country enters the traditional holiday month of August. A beach establishment in Sabaudia, south of Rome, was closed after a lifeguard tested positive. And Italian high-speed railway operators were forced to reverse plans to loosen distancing rules on trains after Health Minister Roberto Speranza passed an ordinance blocking a move by the transport ministry to allow all seats to be occupied. La Cala de Mijas Lions Club has launched the association's first Alzheimer's and Dementia Support Group. The support group was formed because the Lions realised there was a great demand for a service to help English-speaking expats living in the Malaga province who care for people with dementia. Key Points Dementia. Alzheimer's is the most common cause of dementia - a general term for a decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with daily life. Cause. There are many different types of dementia and the disease can be triggered by numerous conditions, although it is not a normal part of the aging process . Symptoms. As the disease advances, symptoms become more severe and the patient will experience confusion and severe behavioural changes. The first meeting was attended by trained staff and a qualified nurse, who offered free assistance with medical queries and respite care. The purpose of the group is to provide support, information and friendship to the carers in order to allow them to cope better by sharing their feelings and experiences. The sessions also offer carers the chance to meet other people in similar situations, while their loved ones are kept stimulated with special activities in a separate area. Caring for someone with any type of dementia is stressful and intensely emotional, especially when their memories and skills begin to diminish. These changes can produce emotional confusion for both carer and patient and, as the patient's needs increase, the carers' responsibilities will become more challenging. Seeing as there is currently no cure, it is the carer who usually makes the biggest difference to the quality of life of a sufferer. Physical and mental burden However, the care often becomes all-consuming and as a patient's functional and physical abilities continue to diminish, the burden often puts the carer at great risk of significant health problems like depression, exhaustion and high levels of stress. The group is run by Sandie Tavendale, who became a Lion in 2016. Although not a qualified specialist, Sandie acquired experience as a carer while looking after her own mother, who suffered with Alzheimer's for 20 years. Sandie believes the support group is necessary here on the coast because carers are the ones who often feel isolated. "I have experienced this disease first hand, so I know what it is like to be isolated. You stop getting invites from people because they are embarrassed and do not know how to handle the situation. You are also embarrassed about what your loved one might do. "Many carers feel they are isolated, and they need to talk to others who are caring for loved ones, so this is why the group was founded," Sandie explained to SUR in English. Other advice offered by the specialists during the meeting was to "keep things simple". Sandie told the group that it is "important to focus on feelings rather than words", and "not to argue or try to reason with the person". "One of the problems when looking after someone with dementia is frustration. I used to sometimes shout at my mother even though I knew about the illness: occasionally it just wears you down and can make you very frustrated," she declared. Early detection Understanding the difference between the two terms is important for the families and carers of those suffering with Alzheimer's or dementia and, as nurse Fay Newman points out, early detection of the disease is imperative. "There are many types of dementia and this makes it a very complex subject. One of the problems is patients not being diagnosed because family members sometimes fail to notice the changes straight away. Many put it down to getting forgetful because of their age, but loved ones should try to detect the early symptoms by making note of unusual behaviour to see if it is reoccurring." British expat Pauline Hulme is caring for her husband David, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's three years ago, although she feels that the disease may have struck much earlier than this. "When I look back in hindsight, I think it may have begun about five years ago, but we didn't realise at the time. As the disease progresses, so we lose more and more of the person who had once been a best friend, a main support and the person who shared my life and home," Pauline said. Alzheimer's is the most common cause of dementia - a general term for a decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with daily life. There are many different types of dementia and the disease can be triggered by numerous conditions. Alzheimer's accounts for between 60 and 80 per cent of dementia cases, although dementia is not a normal part of the aging process. The disease is caused by damage to the brain cells and this will affect a person's ability to communicate, their thinking and their behaviour. Symptoms Alzheimer's is a degenerative brain disease caused by cell damage and the symptoms gradually worsen over time. One of the first symptoms of Alzheimer's is memory loss, especially remembering new information: the disease attacks the part of the brain associated with learning. As the disease advances, symptoms become more severe and the patient will experience confusion, disorientation and behavioural changes. Although the biggest risk factor for Alzheimer's is old age, like dementia, it is not a normal part of ageing. Sadly, there is no cure and no way to prevent the disease or slow its progression: there are only limited medical treatments available for the symptoms. "We have medication to help ease agitation, paranoia and confusion, but it is important to try to be compassionate and understanding, as it is a very stressful experience for both patient and carer," Fay said. Age Concern President David Long attended the meeting, as his association intends to work closely with the support group. "We offered our help because we feel it is a much-needed service. It is very difficult for those who have to look after a loved one with this condition: it is extremely upsetting to watch them deteriorate and know there is nothing you can do because you know they will not get better," the president explained. The Lions Alzheimer and Dementia Support Group meets at Bar Tuta in La Cala de Mijas on the second and fourth Monday of each month between 11.30am and 1.30pm. For more information contact annediabetics@gmail.com The Phase Six of the ongoing voters registration exercise, which is the last phase, has recorded low turnout at various centres in the Ablekuma West Constituency of the Greater Accra Region. The Ghana News Agency (GNA) observed that there were few applicants at centres such as the Apostolic Church SSNT Flat and Mount Olivet Dansoman One and Two when it visited on Monday. It also noted that applicants and officials were in face shield and nose masks and observing the COVID-19 protocols. In an interview with the GNA, Mr Samuel Armah, Registration Officer at the Apostolic Church Centre, said most electorates registered at other centres during the initial phases of the exercise. He said 74 applicants had registered between Saturday and Monday when the last phase began and though not encouraging, he was hopeful that all those yet to register would endeavour to do so in the coming days. Madam Kate Mensah, Registration Officer at Mount Olivet, Dansoman one and Two centres, said her team had been there for two weeks and had registered about 489 applicants. She said the voters register would be exhibited from September 11 to 18, adding that 600 registrants were expected to vote at a particular centre during the elections. Source: GNA 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 Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. San Francisco, 3 Aug 2020: The Report 3D Printing Plastics Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Type (ABS & ASA, Photopolymers, Polyamide/Nylon, PLA), By Form (Filament, Ink, Powder), By Application, And Segment Forecasts, 2018 - 2025 The global 3D printing plastics market size is likely to reach USD 1.98 billion by 2025, according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc., rising at a CAGR of 24.9% during the forecast period. Spiraling demand for 3D printing plastics, particularly from the medical and aerospace & defense industries, is anticipated to contribute to the growth of the market during the forecast period. The 3D printing plastics market is benefitting from favorable government support in key economies such as the U.S. and China. 3D printed products assist significantly in attaining economies of scale through consumption of lesser lead time, reduced costs, and mitigated risks. 3D plastics also allows easier customization as per consumer needs. Thus, there is an upsurge in the demand for 3D printing plastics from various end-use industries such as automotive, medical, and electrical & electronics. Adoption rate of 3D printing is poised to witness a sharp rise across several new end-user industries, which in turn is expected to lead to higher demand for printing materials such as plastics. Functional prototyping, tooling, and designing have enabled extensive applications of 3D printing across newer application areas. Consumer goods is emerging as a significant application of 3D plastic products on account of reduced lead time offered by additive manufacturing techniques. Innovative additive manufacturing solutions enable the production of designer parts with complex geometries, thus, facilitating manufacturers to cater to rising consumer needs for personalized parts. Photopolymers was the dominant plastic segment in terms of both revenue and volume in 2017. Heightened demand for photopolymers can be attributed to high consumption in the production of industrial prototypes through the utilization of SLA technology. Polyamide/Nylon is estimated to experience the fastest growth rate during the forecast period on account of rising demand from both domestic as well as commercial applications. The use of polyamide/nylon is accompanied by laser sintering technology. Access Research Report of 3D Printing Plastics Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/3d-printing-plastics-market 3D Printing Plastics Market Report Highlights North America will be the dominant regional market in the global arena in terms of revenue throughout the forecast period, while Asia Pacific is projected to register the highest CAGR of 26.7% during the same period. Favorable government policies in the Asia Pacific region, particularly in China and India, are likely to drive market growth Photopolymers was the largest type segment in the global 3D printing plastics market in 2017. Photopolymers are used extensively across several end-user industries as it acts as a binder, additive, colorant, plasticizer, and chemical agent in the 3D printed product In April 2018, 3D Systems Corporation participated in RAPID+TCT 2018 held in the U.S. Product portfolio of the company consisted of several solutions, which would aid manufacturers in switching from prototyping to production and to recognize their competitive advantages. Figure 4 platform demonstrates optimum throughput and accuracy necessary for the production of plastic part Browse more reports of this category by Grand View Research at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry/advanced-materials Grand View Research has segmented the global 3D printing plastics market on the basis of type, form, application, and region: 3D Printing Plastics Type Outlook (Volume, Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) Photopolymers ABS & ASA Polyamide/Nylon Polylactic acid Others 3D Printing Plastics Form Outlook (Volume, Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) Filament Ink Powder 3D Printing Plastics Application Outlook (Volume, Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) Automotive Medical Aerospace & Defense Consumer Goods 3D Printing Plastics Regional Outlook (Volume, Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) North America Europe Asia Pacific Central & South America Middle East & Africa Access Press Release of 3D Printing Plastics Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/press-release/global-3d-printing-plastics-market About Grand View Research Grand View Research, Inc. is a U.S. based market research and consulting company, registered in the State of California and headquartered in San Francisco. The company provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and healthcare. For More Information:www.grandviewresearch.com A global wildlife emergency is developing in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. The Independent recently revealed the potential scale of the crisis after tourism collapsed and philanthropic donations plummeted, impacting the livelihoods of hundreds of frontline rangers and the thousands of other people who work in and around conservation. Almost a third of conservationists fear that the pandemic will increase threats to species and habitats, including increased poaching due to reduced law enforcement presence and tourists, along with the greater reliance on hunting by vulnerable local communities, the MBZ Conservation Fund reported. It highlights the urgency of our Stop The Illegal Wildlife Trade campaign, which was launched by The Independent's largest shareholder Evgeny Lebedev to call for an international effort to clamp down on the illegal trade of wild animals, one of the greatest threats to future biodiversity. Reports are emerging of upticks in poaching around the world: Three, critically endangered giant ibis birds were recently poisoned in Cambodia (1-2% of the entire population); at least four tigers and six leopards have been killed since lockdown in India. In Uganda, Rafiki, the countrys rare and beloved silverback mountain gorilla, became collateral damage of hunters seeking out smaller animals. Here, we examine some of the endangered species facing increased threats during our global health crisis. Rhinos Nine rhinos have been poached in South Africa since the lockdown, conservation group Rhino 911 reports, amid fears the numbers may be higher. Across the border, Rhino Conservation Botswana reported the killings of six rhinos. Rhinos are susceptible to poachers for their horn, sought for ornamental value and to be ground into traditional medicines. Half a million rhinos roamed Africa and Asia at the beginning of last century but today as few as 29,000 remain in the wild. Three species of rhino - black, Javan, and Sumatran - are critically endangered. In Africa, the western black rhino is now extinct in the wild. The two remaining northern white rhino are kept under 24-hour guard at a Kenyan conservancy. Cathy Dean, CEO of Save The Rhino, told The Independent that the pandemic's full impact of poaching on rhino populations was still being assessed. The Covid-19 conservation crisis has shown the urgency of The Independents campaign There have been rhino poaching incidents but, apart from in Botswana, its been relatively quiet, likely due to the restriction of movement within and between countries, and possibly because criminal gangs have found other forms of illicit income, Ms Dean said. For example, we think lockdown prohibitions on alcohol and tobacco in South Africa are responsible for a reduction in poaching as criminal gangs have found less dangerous ways to make money by brewing moonshine and smuggling tobacco. The crisis is mounting due to economic losses caused by the total absence of tourism in Africa this year, and a drop in philanthropic donations in the face of a looming global recession. At just seven conservation sites in Kenya supported by Save The Rhino, the projected deficit for 2020 was more than $2million. Ms Dean said: "If these conservancies go bust and cant afford to manage and protect their wildlife anymore, we will lose that habitat. It will be converted to agriculture and settled. Hundreds of thousands of acres will be lost to wildlife and that impacts conservation efforts forever." An estimated 415,000 elephants are left in Africa with the species regarded as vulnerable due to poaching ( R.J. Turner/Space for Giants) (R.J. Turner/Space for Giants) Elephants Conservationists are sounding the alarm for elephants. In June, a shocking mass killing of six elephants took place in one day in Ethiopias Mago National Park. (Ten elephants were killed across the entire east African nation in 2019). Two elephants were reportedly electrocuted by poachers on the Champua range in the state of Odisha, India the same month. An estimated 415,000 elephants are left in Africa with the species regarded as vulnerable due to poaching. Numbers continue to decline in parts of central Africa and East Africa. Between 2007 and 2014, an average of 55 elephants were killed each day in Africa, mainly for their high-value tusks. Less than 50,000 Asian elephants remain in the wild and the species is classified as endangered. Their numbers have dropped by 50 per cent in the last three generations. There has been positive steps to protect elephants including bolstering frontline ranger protection and strengthening laws against poaching in Africa. Chinas significant step of banning the ivory trade in 2017 also led to a crash in demand. The pandemic risks all of the gains. Dr Max Graham, founder of international conservation charity Space for Giants, told The Independent: "There is increasing illegal activity in protected areas largely in bushmeat poaching, an indicator of reduced law enforcement and eyes on the ground. We're worried that the opportunity which that presents is clear to the international wildlife trafficking syndicates. There are still significant illegal markets for ivory in Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, often funnelling into China. To feed those markets, syndicates could well take massive advantage of the dip in security in elephant habitat in Africa, coupled with growing economic hardship in society, to increase their demand for ivory. Pangolins The worlds most-trafficked mammal has harnessed global attention after being identified as a potential link in the spread of the coronavirus. All eight pangolin species are banned in international trade under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). An estimated 200,000 pangolins are taken from the wild every year across Africa and Asia, according to WildAid. Poachers target pangolins for meat, a delicacy in parts of Asia, and keratin scales, an ingredient in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Professor Ray Jansen, chairman of the African Pangolin Working Group recorded 97 tonnes of pangolin scales leaving Africa in 2019 but that volume has dropped to around 30 tonnes since the pandemic. The number of live pangolins intercepted by the charity has also declined: From 43 pangolins in 2019 to 12 so far this year. He told The Independent: Shutting down borders and the closing of cargo ports, along with the inhibition of peoples movements across borders and within countries has led to a huge reduction in the trafficking of pangolin scales and other pangolin products. Recommended Conservationists warn of poaching pandemic due to coronavirus crisis However he doesn't believe that poaching has declined and instead pangolin parts were being stockpiled in countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria and Vietnam. When we open up and the seas are full of cargo ships again, I think were going to see movement of illicit pangolin products next year, said Dr Jansen. I think its going to be a lot easier to stick a few tonnes of pangolin scales in between Nike shoes. He added: I dont think its gone, I just think it's waiting in the wings for global trade to go back to normal. I really hope that Im wrong." Jaguars Jaguars are listed as near threatened on the International Union for the Conservation of Natures Red List, though their status may be elevated to vulnerable due to recent disturbing trends. Around 173,000 jaguars are left in the wild today, having been wiped out from 40 percent of their historic range in Latin America and now extinct in Uruguay and El Salvador. Some 18,000 jaguars were killed each year until 1973, when CITES intervention dramatically reduced the trade in skins. In 2010, evidence emerged that illegal trade in jaguar parts was increasing driven by demand for jewellery, meat and medicinal products. Between 2012-2018, more than 800 jaguars were killed for their parts and trafficked to China, according to a study in June. Habitat fragmentation and increasingly rampant forest fires, set intentionally for land clearance by farmers and ranchers, are a growing threat to jaguars which are also targeted in retaliation when they come close to livestock. Dr Esteban Payan, South America Jaguar Program Regional Director for Panthera, the global wild cat conservation organisation, told The Independent that there had been a spike in poaching in Colombia during Covid-19 lockdowns. There are typically four or five reports a year but by the start of July, we have had reports of seven jaguars killed, he said. Dr Payan said that poachers may feel emboldened due to the absence of NGO workers on the ground during quarantine, despite the fact around 90 per cent of National Park guards were still on patrol. We dont think the killings are motivated by illegal trade but more likely disgruntled ranchers and farmers who find jaguars on their land and retaliate. There may also be more incidental encounters by people who come across jaguars while hunting during quarantine, or those visiting relatives in the countryside. The illegal trade in jaguar parts is an emerging trend and efforts to gain a clearer picture on the crisis have been hampered by the pandemic. Bolivia is a hub for trafficking where poachers will keep jaguar skulls and fangs for merchants in the illegal trade. During the pandemic, we havent recorded an increase in Bolivia, not because it isnt happening but because we dont have the eyes and ears. Giraffes Giraffes, dubbed the forgotten megafauna, are suffering a silent extinction and the pandemic has brought increasing signs of trouble. In Uganda, seven dead giraffes were found in a matter of days in Murchison National Park, according to nonprofit Uganda Conservation Foundation. Giraffe populations declined 40 percent in the last three decades, leaving approximately 68,000 in the wild facing threats including poaching and habitat loss, according to Giraffe Conservation. Their status was increased to vulnerable on the Red List in 2016 and some subspecies are now considered Critically Endangered. David OConnor, president of Save Giraffes Now pointed out that conservation projects for giraffes are several decades behind other at-risk species. The discovery that there are four distinct species was made just four years ago. Details on the numbers of giraffes that are poached can be difficult to estimate due to a patchy monitoring system. We know that illegal poaching is happening in some areas more than others and some species of giraffe are particularly at risk, Dr OConnor told The Independent. However theres a lot of unknowns on the dynamics of giraffe poaching as theres not the same monitoring network as there is for elephants across Africa, for example. The UK has recorded 938 new cases of coronavirus in a 24 hour period the highest amount to be confirmed in 24 hours since June 26, six weeks ago. On June 26 which was nearly two weeks before pubs, restaurants and hairdressers opened as restrictions were relaxed on so-called Super Saturday the number of new cases was 1,006. Mondays figure has increased from 789 on Sunday and 678 on Saturday, however, Mondays tend to be lower due to a slowdown in reporting over the weekend. Since lockdown began, the lowest number of cases recorded in 24 hours was 353 on 6 July. The Department of Health also recorded nine new deaths, bringing the death toll to 46,210. The highest death toll reported on a Monday was Bank Holiday Monday, 13 April, when 717 deaths were recorded. A person wearing a mask walks past Government advertising regarding coronavirus on a billboard in Manchester. (PA) Earlier on Monday, Scotlands first minister Nicola Sturgeon said pictures of younger people gathering in Scotland without physical distancing over the weekend made her want to cry. A total of 18 new confirmed cases of coronavirus were reported in the country, but no confirmed deaths for the sixteenth day in a row. Thirty new cases were reported on Friday in Scotland the highest daily increase for eight weeks. Sturgeon said that about half of the new cases confirmed in the last week had been among people aged between 20 and 39, and urged people to consider how necessary their nights out are. Meanwhile in Wales, 24 new cases of COVID-19 were reported, meaning 17,339 people have now tested positive for the virus there. However, as in Scotland, no new deaths have been reported in Wales. A mobile testing centre at Witton Park High School in Blackburn and Darwen, as the town is facing a "rising tide" of coronavirus cases. (PA) The new figures come one week after lockdown measures were tightened in parts of England after a surge of new coronavirus cases were reported in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and parts of East Lancashire. From midnight last Thursday, separate households have not been allowed to meet indoors in the aforementioned areas. Health secretary Matt Hancock said households gathering and not abiding by the social distancing rules was a reason for the stricter rules. Story continues On Monday, Downing Street revealed that powers to ban movement in and out of coronavirus hotspots could be used to curb the spread of COVID-19 should the situation get worse. Officials confirmed the measures which could include shutting down transport networks would be considered if needed to prevent a spike in cases. London Mayor Sadiq Khan hit out at totally unacceptable reports that the capital could be effectively cut off from the rest of England if there was a surge in cases there, but Downing Street insisted no specific plans for the UKs biggest city had been drawn up. However, Number 10 acknowledged that measures to effectively ban travel around hotspots in England were part of the armoury to combat the disease. The Contain framework drawn up by officials in July sets out the possibility of putting in place restrictions on travel if there is an area that is particularly badly affected, the prime ministers official spokesman said. Measures could be brought in under the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 impose restrictions on gatherings limiting how many people can meet and whether they can travel in and out of an area to do so or shut down local or national transport systems. Read more: Far more Brits think Sturgeon has handled coronavirus well than Johnson Many have been debating on whether or not the UK will witness a second wave of infections. Last week, an expert warned that a second wave of COVID-19 could take hold in the UK within a few weeks if the virus is not suppressed. Professor James Naismith, director of the Rosalind Franklin Institute medical research centre, made his remarks as the Daily Mail reported that Boris Johnson fears a resurgence within two weeks. The paper reports that the PMs worry comes as the weekly average of new coronavirus cases rose by 28% from three weeks ago. Last week, the government told visitors to Spain they must quarantine upon returning to the UK, with Johnson warning: Im afraid you are starting to see in some places the signs of a second wave of the pandemic. Coronavirus: what happened today Click here to sign up to the latest news, advice and information with our daily Catch-up newsletter It has now emerged that young politicians were recruited and groomed to attack the founder of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) during the Attah Mills administration. According to Professor Kwamena Ahwoi, Rawlings incessant attacks on President Mills almost caused the then President to resign therefore a strategy was adopted to hit back at Rawlings in order to save the Mills Presidency. It can be recalled what was later described by Former President Rawlings as babies with sharp teeth descended on Rawlings and his family during the early days of the Attah Mills administration due to what they perceived as Rawlings calculated attempt to make Attah Mills unpopular. The strategy according to Prof. Kwamena Ahwoi worked perfectly as Rawlings was finally tamed by the young boys and girls' ("Working with Rawlings - Page 211). The then Deputy Minister of Information, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa and Deputy Minister of Science and Environment, Dr. Omane Boamah were constantly used to denigrate and vilify the character of former President Rawlings and his wife Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings In a well-orchestrated TV and radio engagements the two deputy ministers took turns to launch a vile propaganda on Rawlings and his family describing them in very unspeakable terms and caused so much disaffection for the former First family within the rank and file of the NDC. On Metro TVs Good Morning Ghana on Thursday,10th June 2010, Dr.Omane Boamah launched a scathing attack on the Rawlingses accusing them of attempting to draw a wedge between his god-father, Ato Ahwoi and President Mills. Okudzeto Ablakwah also on Metro TVs Good Morning Ghana the following day, Friday 11th June, 2010 accused the Rawlingses of sponsoring NDC footsoldiers to Tamale on the June 4th Commemoration questioning how the poor foot soldiers of NDC managed to get money to print banners and also paid for their transport to Tamale on June 4th Commemoration of which they, Ablakwa and his other colleagues boycotted. He urged party members to disregard the Rawlingses and their evil agenda. The organized rate of attacks by the two deputy Ministers and other young activists recruited by Professor Ahwoi such as Felix Ofosu Kwakye successfully silenced Rawlings and his wife with Nana Konadu leaving the NDC to form the National Democratic Party (NDP) in 2012. In his book, Working with Rawlings, Professor Ahwoi admits that they strategically unleashed younger NDC activists on Rawlings to shut him up . and we agreed to take steps to ensure that Rawlings stopped his public humiliation of President Mills or reduce it significantly. The strategy we adopted to achieve this objective was simple enough. From our knowledge of President Rawlings, we knew that he could not stand being talked back to by people he considered his subordinates. This must have been due to his military background, because in the military, the subordinate never talks back to his superior officer. So what we decided was that anytime President Rawlings attacked or insulted President Mills publicly, one of the younger members of the party would take him on publicly, not with insult but with logic. It worked and the strategy proved effective. Rawlings toned down on his public criticism of President Mills. Instead, he turned his anger on the young boys and girls who were talking back at him whenever he criticised President Mills publicly. He described them at a public rally later as Babies with Sharp Teeth. The name stuck, but the presidency of Professor Mills was saved. By Emmanuel Amposah, Contributed by Dela Coffie Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) Domestic flights are not allowed in areas placed under modified enhanced community quarantine, while international flights will remain limited, a transportation official said on Monday. Transportation Assistant Secretary Goddes Libiran responded to online queries hours after Metro Manila, Rizal, Bulacan, Cavite, and Laguna were announced to be placed under a two-week lockdown starting Tuesday. "No domestic flights (to and from MECQ areas). Limited international flights," Libiran replied to a netizen with a graphic previously used by Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque. The official added that international flights will be limited to sweeper flights arranged by government agencies and approved by the Inter-Agency Task Force. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque also confirmed this. He added inter-island travel is also banned. DOTr also announced that the following public transport services will not be allowed under MECQ: bus, jeepney, taxi, trains (PNR, LRT-1, LRT-2, and MRT-3), and Transport Network Vehicle Service (TNVS). Metro Manila as well as the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal are set to shift back to the stricter lockdown status from midnight of August 4 until August 18, as President Rodrigo Duterte partly heeded the call of the medical community for tighter restrictions. The announcement was made late Sunday night. The public was surprised with the sudden change in quarantine classifications, with no clear transportation guidelines and other quarantine protocols laid out by Duterte or COVID-19 task force members. YEREVAN. The Ministry of Defense (MOD) of Armenia has dismissed the report that Turkish F-16 fighter planes had approached the Armenian border, 56 kilometers away from Yerevan. "As for the air situation, the information circulating does not correspond to reality," reads the statement issued Monday by Shushan Stepanyan, spokesperson for the MOD of Armenia. Lenta.ru, citing the Avia.pro portal, reported that at least two Turkish F-16 fighter jets had approached the Armenian border and turned back only when their distance from the capital city Yerevan was 56 kilometers. According to the website, this was done within the framework of a military exercise to launch a potential airstrike against Yerevan. FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Atlas Ocean Voyages, the small-ship, luxe-adventure cruise brand, today announced MAX SHORE, extended, regional odysseys that include a complimentary, three- to six-day overland adventure during the voyage. These "vacations-within-vacations" bring guests to must-see, inland destinations and landmarks that Atlas is first to offer in the cruise industry. With MAX SHORE, Atlas Ocean Voyages delivers a complete, guided land-and-sea luxury experience so adventurers can immerse themselves more deeply in the attractions, traditions and excitement surrounding the Black Sea and the Holy Land. Consistent with Atlas' All Inclusive All the Way style, air and land transportation, lodging, meals and beverages are included on MAX SHORE voyages. Furthermore, Travel Advisors who book their clients on 2021 MAX SHORE odysseys will receive a $500 or $750 gift card now and 15 percent commission at time of their clients' sailing known as GET PAID NOW. "No other cruise brand offers an included, multi-day overland adventure like Atlas Ocean Voyages does with MAX SHORE," said Alberto Aliberti, President of Atlas Ocean Voyages. "Essentially, we've combined two unforgettable, travel experiences a luxury cruise and a fascinating land tour into one without compromising either. Usually, tour extensions are at an additional cost and require more days pre- or post-cruise, but MAX SHORE includes the extended, overland adventure for guests without having to extend their travel time." Atlas Ocean Voyages remains committed to supporting Travel Advisors with GET PAID NOW. Travel Advisors immediately receive a $750 or $500 gift card for each deposited booking in a Suite or Veranda/Horizon/Adventure stateroom, respectively, plus earn 15 percent commission when their clients sail. For more information about Atlas Ocean Voyages' GET PAID NOW, Travel Advisors can visit www.AtlasOceanVoyages.com/partneroffers. "The great thing about MAX SHORE is that they are sold as one commissionable package with everything included," said Brandon Townsley, Vice President of Sales and Trade Partnerships. "We've seamlessly wrapped cruise, land adventures, cultural immersions and transportation in one complete package for Travel Advisors to sell. It's a great value and Travel Advisors GET PAID NOW and earn a great commission." Adventurers and like-spirited travelers currently have a choice of two fascinating 2021 MAX SHORE odysseys aboard World Navigator, launching in July 2021, with more to be announced. The 16-night "Black Sea in Full" MAX SHORE, departing July 28, 2021, from Athens (Piraeus), Greece, will delve into Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia, and Russia, and include an exclusive three-day/two-night overland adventure from Odessa to Kiev and Pripyat, Ukraine, to explore and overnight in the country's vibrant capital city and in the infamous Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. The power plant, where a reactor suffered a catastrophic failure in 1986, has since been designated safe for escorted visitors and Atlas Ocean Voyages is the first cruise brand to bring this unique experience to adventurers and trailblazers. Black Sea MAX SHORE guests also will transit the Dardanelles and Bosporus straits and overnight at Sochi, Russia, as well as call at Ephesus (Kusadasi), Turkey; Nessebar, Bulgaria; Bucharest (Constanta), Romania; Novorossiysk, Russia; Batumi, Georgia; and Sinop and Amasra, Turkey, and conclude with an overnight in Istanbul, Turkey. The 24-night "Comprehensive Anatolia & The Holy Land" MAX SHORE, departing August 13, 2021, will immerse guests in the historic cultural and trade crucible of Europe, Western Asia, and Jordan, starting with an overnight in Istanbul. World Navigator will then circumnavigate the Levantine Sea to Athens (Piraeus), calling at Troy (Kepez), Bozcaada, Dikili, Esphesus (Kusadasi), Bodrum, Marmaris, Fethieye, Kekova Island, and Demre, Turkey; Patmos and Heraklion (Crete), Greece; Limassol, Cyprus; and Cairo (Port Said) and Alexandria, Egypt. At Ashdod, Israel, guests depart on a six-day/five-night MAX SHORE caravan journey through Israel and Jordan, where they will marvel at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Petra; head off-road with a local Bedouin team for desert glamping under the stars; and delve into the rich history and cultures found in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Jaffa, Masada, and Madaba on this carefully guided expedition. Atlas Ocean Voyages is an all-inclusive, luxury cruise brand defined by simple elegance and will deliver authentic, thrilling, and once-in-a-lifetime adventures in the world's most extraordinary and remote destinations aboard World Navigator, a new, safe, clean and green, small expedition ship. World Navigator will embark on her inaugural 2021 year, sailing seven- to 24-night itineraries in the Holy Land, and Black and Mediterranean Seas in the summer, followed by nine- to 13-night itineraries in the Caribbean, South America and Antarctica in winter 2021/22. Adventurers, fun seekers and like-spirited travelers will find community aboard Atlas Ocean Voyages' safe, small, luxury expedition ships and revel in welcoming and lively venues to share their day's exploits. Guests indulge in 98 luxe suites and staterooms, all with an ocean view and most with a private balcony. All Atlas Ocean Voyages journeys include complimentary round-trip air travel from major U.S. and Canada gateways; prepaid gratuities; alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages; Wi-Fi; L'Occitane bath amenities; a free shore excursion in select ports on every itinerary; international gourmet dining; coffee and tea service; and onboard binoculars and butler service in suites. Safety is at the core of Atlas Ocean Voyages' Polar Category-C and Ice Class-1B certified expedition ships, and all of the most-modern hygiene and cleanliness measures are being incorporated into their design. World Navigator's construction in Portugal is on schedule, and sister-ships World Traveller, World Seeker, World Adventurer and World Discoverer will join the fleet before the end 2023. Atlas Ocean Voyages is also committed to preserving the breathtaking locales and waters that its ships visit for future generations to enjoy, and is among the first to employ the latest conservation and sustainability technologies, including a hybrid power management and propulsion system that maximizes fuel efficiency and consumes as low as one-fifth the fuel compared to conventional cruise ship systems. Additionally, World Navigator and her sister ships utilize underwater, forward-looking sonar to confidently navigate coastal, harbor and icy polar waters, and feature an alternate hydrojet propulsion system, which helps the ship quietly cruise up to five knots without disturbing marine wildlife for incomparable up-close encounters. For more information, please visit www.AtlasOceanVoyages.com and follow Atlas Ocean Voyage on Facebook (www.facebook.com/AtlasOceanVoyages), Twitter (www.twitter.com/atlascruises), and Instagram (www.instagram.com/AtlasOceanVoyages). Travel Advisors can call 1-844-44-ATLAS (1-844-442-8527) to book their clients on an unforgettable luxe-adventure journey. SOURCE Atlas Ocean Voyages Related Links https://atlasoceanvoyages.com At least six people, mostly children, died during the blast, when the improvised explosive device went off in northern Burkina Faso, security sources and local officials said Sunday. The IED, which exploded as the groups cart was passing late Saturday, also injured four others, they said. Northern Burkina Faso is notorious for jihadist attacks which have killed more than 1,000 people there and displaced about a million more since 2015. The victims were nearly all children who were returning from grazing their livestock, a local in Ouahigouya said. The cart which carried some of them rolled over a mine. IED attacks have multiplied since 2018, killing nearly 200 military personnel and civilians, according to an AFP tally. Such attacks are often combined with an ambush. Jihadist violence, which is often accompanied by inter-community strife, has killed more than 4,000 people in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, according to United Nations figures. Agence France-Presse Zurich, Switzerland -- (SBWIRE) -- 08/03/2020 -- New medication is developed all the time and can considerably improve the lives of patients all over the world. However, while much of the focus and investment is on bringing medicine from invention to pharmacy shelves, ensuring that those who could benefit from it know about it is equally key. This is the role of the medical communications industry and those who work within it and is likely to grow in importance as the race for a cure for COVID-19 continues. EPM Scientific CH works with organisations across the Life Sciences sector and within the medical communications field. Opportunities exist in medical communications in Switzerland across the country in major cities including Zurich and Chur, Geneva, Bern and Lucerne. Communicating the results of medical research and bringing key innovation and development to the attention of the people it is designed to help is a crucial part of the process of ensuring the success of medical invention. This could be something as simple as creating communication for a variety of different audiences or writing for prominent medical journals, such as the Journal of the American Medical Association. As a result, the medical communications sector is forecast to grow by $3.6bn by 2026. With a network of clients and candidates across Switzerland, EPM Scientific CH is focused on making key connections that will support the development of the Life Sciences Sector. The firm works across the country in Zurich and Chur as well as Lucerne, Bern and Geneva and is also part of a global business that covers more than 60 countries worldwide. The team specialises in Life Sciences and in medical communications roles and EPM Scientific CH frequently invests in its people to maintain this positive reputation for expertise. For example, the firm provides its people with the most up to date recruitment technology and ensures that they have access to best-in-class training. As organisations across the world seek to adapt to changing working conditions and expectations as a result of COVID-19, EPM Scientific CH is reimagining the way that recruitment is handled. This includes finding innovative solutions to the challenges that many businesses are currently presented with and ensuring that there remains a focus on people and tapping into networks so that the right connections are still made. Even during these trying times, many opportunities exist, especially within Life Sciences, and the firm is supporting businesses in this industry to move forward into growth. "During uncertain times, EPM Scientific CH offers reassurance. Crises come in many different forms financial crashes, oil gluts, and now a global pandemic". commented Luis Rolm, Global Marketing Director at EPM Scientific CH. He went on to say, "Yet, whatever the challenge, we remain steadfast in our service. We continue to offer guidance to clients in the Life Science sector and help them secure top talent." To find out more information about Medical Communications Careers in Switzerland visit https://www.epmscientific.ch/disciplines/medical-communications. For any media enquiries please contact Gary Elliott at Iconic Digital 020 7100 0726. For all other enquiries please contact EPM Scientific CH: +41 44 542 12 50. For more information about EPM Scientific CH services, please go to https://www.epmscientific.ch. About EPM Scientific CH EPM Scientific CH has a reach that extends to more than 60 countries internationally. The firm is a Life Sciences specialist, reimagining the way that recruitment is handled in this innovative sector. Police are asking the public to help identify a suspect vehicle wanted in connection to a deadly shooting in Vaughan Sunday afternoon. Police say the pictured four-door Ford F-150 pick-up truck is black and has black rims. It was seen fleeing north on Islington Ave. after a shooting near a restaurant located at 8074 Islington Ave., near Highway 7, at around 5:30 p.m. A man was suffering from gunshot wounds when officers arrived and was pronounced dead on scene. The victim will not be identified until post mortem examination has been completed, said a police news release Monday morning. No other injuries were reported, a York paramedics spokesperson said. Earlier Sunday, about 10 kilometres away, a 29-year-old man from Peel Region was killed following a double shooting in an industrial area of Vaughan. Officers found Oshaine Channers body Sunday morning at a building on Freshway Drive, which runs under Highway 407 between Jane and Keele Sts. His body was discovered after the second victim turned up at a Toronto hospital at around 7:30 a.m. and directed officers to the area, York police said. Police are still investigating both homicides. With files from Ted Fraser Read more about: Google is finally going to launch its new Pixel 4a smartphone. The handset has been long due and after multiple delays, the handset is finally going to be unveiled. Google started hinting about the final launch date a few days back with teasers on its websites and social media channels. GOOGLE PIXEL 4A EXPECTED SPECIFICATIONS The Google Pixel 4a is expected to feature a 5.81-inch, 2340x1080 display with a punch hole on the top right corner. It is expected to run on a Snapdragon 730 SoC with Adreno 618 GPU, and 6GB of RAM with 64GB and 128GB storage options. The handset will most likely run Android 10 but should soon get the Android 11 update as soon as Google releases it. The battery of the Pixel 4a is said to be rated at 3,018mAh with support for 18W fast charging, and expect a physical fingerprint scanner at the back. The camera is yet again going to be a single 12-megapixel but considering how well Googles camera software is, the performance could be great. GOOGLE PIXEL 4A EXPECTED PRICE As for the pricing, the 64GB variant is expected to be priced at $299 (Rs 22,500 approx) and the 128GB variant is said to be priced at $349 (Rs 27,000 approx). A previous leak suggested that the Pixel 4a pricing would start at $399 (Rs 30,000 approx) but that was before Apple announced its affordable iPhone SE. We are expecting the prices to go slightly higher once the smartphone reaches India. President Michael D Higgins has paid tribute to John Hume who died in the early hours of this morning. All of those who sought and worked for peace on our island of Ireland, and in the hearts of all, will have been deeply saddened by the passing of John Hume, Nobel Peace Laureate and Statesman. "John Hume, through his words, his astute diplomacy and willingness to listen to what was often difficult to accept but was the view of the Other, transformed and remodelled politics in Ireland, and the search for peace, with a personal bravery and leadership informed by a steadfast belief in the principles and values of genuine democracy. "Johns deep commitment to these values and his practical demonstration of tolerance and social justice, oftentimes in the face of strong opposition and tangible threats to his person and his family, asserted the fundamental principles of democracy. He and those others who helped usher in a discourse that enabled a new era of civil rights and responsive government that few would have thought possible, have placed generations in their debt, have been a source of hope. "That his efforts were recognised through the awarding of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize brought great joy not only to his people in Derry, his colleagues in politics, particularly in the SDLP, but to a wider global set of colleagues and fellow advocates for peace abroad who held him in the greatest esteem and admiration. "Mar Uachtaran na hEireann, as President of Ireland, may I say how deeply grateful we all should be that we had such a person as John Hume to create a light of hope in the most difficult of times. "It was Seamus Mallon, that other great statesman and courageous peace seeker and builder, who observed: Inside was a man who had something big to do. There is a greatness about his political life in what he did and what he helped to do. I would put him in the same breath as Parnell and Daniel O'Connell. "We are grieving in this difficult year 2020 for two great apostles and seekers of peace." Whatever the loss to all on this island, to his family his loss is greatest. To his wife Pat, his children, and all those who loved him, Sabina and I send our deepest sympathy. Siochan siorrai le a anam. Eirene N. Salvi I cannot think of anyone more dedicated to bringing attention to the importance and value that comes with a diverse environment, whether personal or professional, than Eirene. Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C. is proud to announce the Illinois State Bar Associations Diversity Leadership Council has selected attorney Eirene Nakamura Salvi as the recipient of the 2019-2020 Diversity Leadership Award. Each year, the Diversity Leadership Award recognizes a person or organization that has made significant contributions to the advancement of diversity within the Illinois legal community, its judiciary and/or the Illinois State Bar Association. Diversity in the Plaintiffs bar and many other walks of life has not been appreciated the way it should be. I cannot think of anyone more dedicated to bringing attention to the importance and value that comes with a diverse environment, whether personal or professional, than Eirene. She has and will continue to be a leader in this regard and has impacted Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard in her short time at the firm, Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard Partner Brian L. Salvi said. Eirene Nakamura Salvi is a co-chair and founding member of the Chicago Committee of the Japanese American Bar Association. The group provides a special forum for members of the legal profession with interests and ties to the Japanese American community to discuss issues, network, and serve the community. Ms. Salvi is also an officer of the board of Lawyers Lend-A-Hand to Youth, an organization that channels the legal communitys resources to promote one-to-one mentoring and tutoring programs in disadvantaged Chicago communities, with its primary initiative being a tutoring program for elementary students in Englewood. Ms. Salvi serves on the newly established Diversity & Inclusion Committee of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association, which aims to develop strategies and programs to increase minority membership and participation in leadership roles and joint programs with other minority bar associations. During law school, Ms. Salvi assisted a professor in writing an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the families of victims of terrorism against the Islamic State of Iran as a state sponsor of terrorism. She also worked as an extern at the National Immigrant Justice Center, where she filed a successful application for humanitarian parole for a victim of gross human rights violations in the Central Democratic Republic of Congo. During her time at Notre Dame Law School, she also served as vice president of the Asian Law Students Association and was active in the Black Law Students Association and Hispanic student groups. Born in Japan to a Japanese father and Mexican mother, Ms. Salvi moved to California with her family when she was a young child. She speaks four languagesEnglish, Japanese, Spanish, and French. Eirene and recipients of various other awards from the ISBA will be honored in the ISBAs August issue of the Bar Journal. For more information, please contact Marcie Mangan at (312) 372-1227 or mmangan@salvilaw.com. Warrawee Ubeaut asserted herself against some of the heavy hitters in the distaff pacing division and This Is The Plan held his ground amid late pressure, giving trainer Ron Burke and driver Yannick Gingras a sweep of the twin $20,000 winners-over pacing features on Sunday (Aug. 2) at Harrah's Philadelphia. After making her presence felt but ultimately struggling on two occasions against male competition in the Graduate Series, Warrawee Ubeaut sprang back to life with a sharp 1:49.2 win in the distaff split. Gingras sent the four-year-old daughter of Sweet Lou to the lead from post 4, and the pair traveled uncontested through splits of :26, :54.3 and 1:22.1 before opening her lead on the final turn. Despite late pursuit from 3-10 favourite Soho Burning Love Athe highly-regarded stablemate of champion Shartin NWarrawee Ubeaut maintained her clearance up to the winning post, sprinting home in :27.1 with much in reserve to win by one-and-a-half lengths. Soho Burning Love A reached second over Machnhope, who only managed a one-paced finish from the pocket. Warrawee Ubeaut recorded the 20th win of her career for the Burke Racing Stable, Phil Collura, J&T Silva-Purnel & Libby and Weaver Bruscemi. She paid $17.00 to win. This Is The Plan employed similar front-pacing tactics for a 1:50 score in the male split after an even but traffic-troubled effort two weeks ago in the William Haughton Memorial. The five-year-old Somebeachsomewhere gelding used a :26.3 quarter to clear Turbo Hill. Gingras then rated a :56.1 middle half with This Is The Plan before facing a stern threat from Western Joe on the final turn. Not only did This Is The Plan parry the lasting challenge of Western Joe to the line, but he also staved off the inside bid of eventual runner-up Turbo Hill to prevail by a driven neck. This Is The Plan, now an 11-time winner, campaigns for the Burke Racing Stable, Weaver Bruscemi, J&T Silva-Purnel & Libby and Larry Karr. He paid $4.20 to win. Burke and Gingras additionally teamed up with Gingras Beach ($12.40, 1:52), and Burke went on to register his fourth training win on the 14-race program with The First Step ($13.40, 1:50.4), who was driven by George Brennan. Favourites were upended in all four races in the Pick-4 sequence, resulting in a $3,175.65 dividend on a 50-cent base wager. Racing returns to Harrah's Philadelphia with a 15-race card on Wednesday (Aug. 5), featuring two $103,000 divisions of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes for two-year-old trotting colts and geldings, as well as a $17,367.57 carryover in the fifth-race Jackpot Hi-5. Post time is 12:25 p.m. (EDT). (Harrah's Philadelphia) The Governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun appears to have bowed to pressure as he stopped the payment of N25,000 by students of ... The Governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun appears to have bowed to pressure as he stopped the payment of N25,000 by students of private boarding schools for COVID-19 and malaria tests. Abiodun came under heavy criticisms parents of SS3 students in private boarding schools were made to realize on Sunday that they must pay a sum of N25,000 to get their children tested. Making a u-turn on Monday evening, the governor said, After reviewing these developments, I have today immediately directed that the government laboratories carry out test for all returning SS3 boarding students at no cost. I have also directed that all those who have paid for tests be refunded. A statement personally signed by Gov Abiodun reads: In line with the Federal Ministry of Education recommendation and WASSCE timetable, we decided to open our schools on the 4th August 2020 for SS3 students only. We put in place guidelines that would ensure that our students resume in a safe environment. In our pre-opening engagements with stakeholders, opening of boarding houses was discussed. Our State has one of the largest population of boarding students in the country, coming from all over the Country. After consultations with health professionals, we concluded that testing the children for COVID-19 before admittance will reduce the risk of community transmission. This is to reassure parents and even teachers of the safety of everybody concerned. The State planned and provided testing, free of charge, for boarding students in our public schools and allowed for the management and parents of private schools to make their arrangements to get COVID-19 tests. The two Ogun State-run laboratories have a capacity for about 500 tests a day and conduct free tests for traced contacts or symptomatic patients. To meet the additional demand for the expected number of boarding students, the statement from the Ogun State Ministry of Education, Science and Technology listed some private test centers which set up sampling points in some of our Health facilities. These private laboratories have been accredited by NCDC and Lagos State Government for walk-in tests and charge N50,400 per test but I understand that the Ministries of Health and Education negotiated this to N25,000 for boarding students in private schools that may wish to use them. There is no financial benefit to the State Government. After reviewing these developments, I have today immediately directed that the Government Laboratories carry out test for all returning SS3 boarding students at no cost. I have also directed that all those who have paid for tests be refunded. The health of our children remains our utmost priority, however in view of the total number of boarding students to be tested (5,340 private and 500 public), and bearing in mind the limitation of our installed testing capacity of 500 tests per day, it may not be feasible for all boarding students to get tested and get their results prior to resumption or even exams which commence on 17th August 2020. Consequently the State Government has, therefore, stepped down the COVID-19 test as a mandatory requirement for returning students in our exit classes. We, therefore, enjoin Private School owners to exercise their duty of care to their pupils. The admittance of students into boarding house in private secondary schools will be at the discretion of the management and the Parents Teachers Association (PTA) of such private schools. Ogun State Government recommends that students who do not have to stay in the boarding house should attend school from home, especially those with underlying health conditions. I have also directed the provision of face masks to all students in both private and public schools. The inconvenience and confusion experienced yesterday is highly regrettable and my sincere apologies to the parents and students so affected. The quality and standard of education and well being of our children are issues that are very dear to my heart. President Nana Akufo-Addo will, later today, Monday, 3 August 2020, unveil the first VW-assembled car in Ghana. The President announced the event on his Facebook page today. In March this year, the Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Alan Kyeremanten, visited the assembling plant of Volkswagen (VW) at the North Industrial Area in Accra, to have first-hand insight regarding the ongoing work of the automobile giant. Accompanied by some officials of the Trade Ministry, Mr Kyeremanten expressed satisfaction with the facility of VW. I assure Volkswagen and its local assembler in Ghana of the full support of the government in creating an enabling environment and incentive framework to make their investment a major success," he mentioned In his State of the Nation Address, President Nana Akufo-Addo said VW was due to start production by the end of April 2020. According to him, Sinotruk, which also expressed interest in Ghana, will also begin assembling a plant this year. Toyota is scheduled to start the assembly of vehicles in Tema in the last quarter of this year. We have high hopes for this new industry, which has come to join our Kantanka, the President mentioned. The establishment of these assembling plants is expected to create some thousands of jobs for Ghanaians, particularly mechanical and electrical engineers. 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 Lori Vallow's best friend labelled her 'misleading and manipulative' during the first court hearing for the the 'cult' mom's doomsday preacher husband Monday. Chad Daybell faces charges over the deaths of Vallow's children Tylee, 17, and JJ, seven. On Monday Vallow's friend Melanie Gibb told the court how the couple 'asked her to lie to police about missing son JJ's whereabouts' before he was found dead. The testimony came during a preliminary hearing where a judge will decide whether there is enough evidence to hold Daybell for trial. Both Daybell and Vallow have both been charged with concealing evidence by hiding or disposing of the children's bodies. The kids vanished in September last year. Their bodies were discovered in June on a property owned by Daybell. It remains unclear how they died and prosecutors have not charged either Daybell or Vallow with murder. When police came to her house in November last year Vallow told them: 'I look like a suspect, but Im a good person.' Months after they vanished, Lori's brother Alex Cox also died in mysterious circumstances. Police traced his cell phone data to get to the children's bodies. Police bodycam showed Vallow telling officers: 'It is very weird. Ive had to move around a lot. One of my brothers is trying to kill me. Not the brother that lives here, obviously. Hes kind of my protector. My other brother was in with my husband, who was trying to kill me for my $2 million life insurance policy.' The first witness on Monday was Detective Ray Dennis Hermosillo from the Rexburg City PD. He described finding JJ's body covered in duct tape, dressed in red pajamas and wearing black socks. Lori's friend Gibb later gave evidence, telling the court she visited Vallow the week JJ disappeared in September 2019. Gibb said she saw JJ in the home but that Vallow told her JJ 'was acting with a lot of energy' and that he would be going to live with his gran, Kay Woodcock. Gibb said she did not see Tylee that weekend. Gibb then told the court she then received a call from Daybell two months later, at the end of November, telling her to not answer the phone to Rexburg police because Lori 'was going to tell the police that JJ was with her'. Chad Daybell in court in Idaho on Monday morning for the first day of his preliminary hearing Lori Vallow is also in custody. Her kids JJ, 7, and Tylee, 17, vanished in September Their bodies were found earlier this summer Gibb detailed how she received the call from Daybell asking her to not pick up the phone to Rexburg police. She said: 'I was in shock. I asked him if he was nervous and he said yes. Within an hour or two I heard from Lori.' Gibb said Vallow then told her 'everything is fine', adding: 'She was upbeat cheery, acting like nothing was wrong.' Gibb said Vallow explained she had 'told the police I had JJ'. Vallow is said to have lied to cops, telling them her young son was at the movies watching Frozen with Melanie, according to Gobb. She added: 'She asked me to take a random picture of kids to make it look like it was JJ. She said she was trying to protect JJ from Kay [his grandmother] and family members. 'I felt horrible, in shock, not ok with it. She told something to the police which was not true. I had a really bad feeling in my stomach and was shook up by it.' Gibb said she did lie for the couple, telling police she had been with JJ but that he 'was back with Lori'. She added: 'Lori tells me her child is in danger. I'm very confused. Lori was misleading and manipulating me. She was tying to convince me that she and he was in danger. I was perplexed, I did not know what to do.' The court then heard an audio recording, taken by Gibb, in which she asks Chad & Lori why she was told her JJ was with his grandmother. The couple tell Melanie JJ 'is safe and hes happy' and it was to 'protect' him. Lori is heard telling her friend: 'I know exactly where he is. Hes perfectly fine and safe.' She adds: 'Im sorry youre friends with all those who are against me.' On June 10, officers were searching Daybell's property where Hermosillo said he noticed a '4ft x 2ft area of sod' that stuck out'. He said they dug up the soil, found three large white rocks and then panels of wood. Once they were removed, he said he was hit with the stench of a decomposing body. 'There was a black, what I can best describe as a plastic bag with a round object protruding through the dirt,' he said. Officers cut through the plastic bag and saw JJ's hair, he said. 'It appeared to be a small body, tightly wrapped in black plastic, covered in duct tape,' he said. Lori's friend Melanie Gibb, pictured, gave evidence Monday afternoon JJ Vallow's grandpa Larry Woodcock breaks down in tears during evidence Monday He told the court how he was asked to perform a search warrant at their home in November after being contacted by JJ's grandparents. Daybell, he said, told him JJ was with his grandparents and that he did not have the phone number for them. Lori's brother Alex Cox (pictured) died in December, months after he shot dead his brother-in-law Charles 'I thought it as suspicious because I thought they had been close, based on my initial investigation. I asked Mr daybell if he had Lori Vallow's phone number, he gave it. 'He stated that he felt like I was accusing him of something,' he said. He then said he tried to make contact with Lori but that she didn't answer. He tracked her down to an apartment but there was no sign of the children. Hermosillo said officers then trailed Lori and Chad for months, to Hawaii, and eventually brought them back to the US. The court also heard a recording of bodycam footage taken in November when Lori told police that JJ was being looked after by a friend of hers in Arizona. She claimed she had 'a brother' - not thought to be Alex Cox - who she said was trying to 'kill her'. Vallow told the officers: 'I have people looking for me and I dont want to be found'. In this aerial photo, investigators search for human remains at Chad Daybell's residence in the 200 block of 1900 East in Salem, Idaho on June 9 Detective Ray Dennis Hermosillo from the Rexburg City PD was the first to take the stand The remains of Lori's children Tylee Ryan (left) and Joshua 'JJ' Vallow (right) were discovered on the property of her husband Chad Daybell on June 9 - nine months after they went missing Daybell late last year married the kids mom, Lori Vallow Daybell, who's charged with conspiring to help him keep the bodies hidden and faces the same hearing next week. Both have pleaded not guilty. Court documents suggest JJ was buried in a pet cemetery on Chad Daybells property and that Tylees remains were dismembered and burned. Investigators found the bodies by tracking the movements of Loris brother, Alex Cox, using cellphone data. Cox is also dead, succumbing to an apparent blood clot in his lung at his Arizona home last December. Police Lt. Ron Ball in the small town of Rexburg, Idaho, wrote in court documents that Cox also was involved in the conspiracy to hide the kids remains. Court documents in Lori Daybells criminal case include claims that the couple believed dark spirits, or 'zombies,' would possess people. Melanie Gibb said her friend Lori told her at different times last year that both children had become zombies and that the couple believed the only way to rid a person of a dark spirit was by killing them so the person could be at rest in the afterlife. Charles Vallow - JJ's adoptive father - was married to Lori for more than a decade before he filed for divorce from her in February 2019. In court documents he claimed that Lori had become obsessed with the end of the world and had threatened to kill him The strange case began last summer after Cox fatally shot Lori Vallows estranged husband, Charles Vallow, in suburban Phoenix in what he asserted was self-defense. Vallow had been seeking a divorce, saying Lori believed she had become a god-like figure who was responsible for ushering in the biblical end times. A short time later, she and the kids moved to Idaho, where Chad Daybell lived. He ran a small publishing company and had written many fiction books about apocalyptic scenarios loosely based on the theology of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Friends said he claimed to be able to receive visions from 'beyond the veil'. At the time, Chad Daybell was married to Tammy Daybell. She died in October of what her obituary said were natural causes. Authorities grew suspicious when he married Lori Vallow just two weeks later. Police had Tammys body exhumed last December in Utah for further investigation; the results of that autopsy have not been released. Police began searching for Tylee and JJ in November after relatives raised concerns, and they soon discovered that both children were last seen in September. Chad Daybells defense attorney, John Prior, also will get a chance to argue his side during the hearing, that is expected to continue Tuesday. Neither the couple nor their lawyers have spoken publicly about the case. In most preliminary hearings, defense attorneys try to show the judge that prosecutors evidence is not strong enough to justify sending the case to trial. By Online Desk CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit, who tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday, was "stable" after doctors examined him on Monday, the Raj Bhavan said. Further, in view of the pandemic, he has decided not to host the "At Home Reception" at the Raj Bhavan here on the occasion of Independence Day 2020, it said. "Today, doctors from Kauvery hospital carried out the health checkup of the Governor and found him stable. They are monitoring his health condition 24 X 7," a Raj Bhavan release said. Earlier on Sunday, Governor Banwarilal Purohit visited a private hospital. This comes in the wake of 84 people in the Raj Bhavan testing positive for COVID-19 last week. The Governor was in home quarantine for the past few days. Purohit is 81-years-old and he was said to not have come in contact with any of those who were infected by COVID-19 in Raj Bhavan. ALSO READ | Palaniswami, OPS wish speedy recovery to Governor Banwarilal Purohit, Union Minister Amit Shah A bulletin issued by the Kauvery Hospital, where the Governor underwent further tests on Sunday, said he has been advised home isolation and a medical team would monitor him. Purohit "tested positive for COVID-19," hospital Executive Director Dr Aravindan Selvaraj said in the bulletin. "He is asymptomatic and clinically stable," it said, addig the Governor underwent further tests and assessment at the hospital located at Alwarpet area here. "As the infection is mild, he has been advised home isolation and will be monitored by the medical team of Kauvery Hospital," it added. Purohit had earlier gone on seven-day self-isolation on July 29 based on doctor's advice after three people in the Raj Bhavan tested positive for coronavirus. Earlier, as many as 84 security and fire services personnel deployed in the Raj Bhavan tested positive for the virus on July 23, but the Governor's office had then said none of them came into contact with Purohit or senior officials. (With PTI and ENS Inputs) Leon was drawn to the piano from an early age. Though he showed little interest when an older brother, Raymond, was given piano lessons, Leon would go to the piano when Raymond went out to play after his lessons and repeat, by ear, everything he had heard. He was 4 years old. His mother soon decided that Leon, rather than Raymond, should study piano. She made her intentions for her younger son clear: He would be either the first Jewish president of the United States or a concert pianist. So devoted was his mother to Leons musical training that after two weeks of kindergarten, during which he objected strenuously to nap time, she withdrew him from public school and hired tutors so that he could devote his time to practicing the piano. She also found ways of bringing him to the attention of two San Francisco conductors, Pierre Monteux and Alfred Hertz, who in turn persuaded the pianist Artur Schnabel to take Leon on as a student in 1938, when he was 9, despite Schnabels policy of not teaching children. By then Leon had already played a few concerts, but Schnabels single condition for teaching him was that there be no more concerts. Schnabel relaxed the rule in 1944 and allowed his teenage pupil to play the Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor with Monteux and the San Francisco Symphony and then with the New York Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall, also with Monteux conducting. Noel Strauss, reviewing the Carnegie Hall performance for The Times, wrote that Mr. Fleisher, making his New York debut, had established himself as one of the most remarkably gifted of the younger generation of American keyboard artists. In 1945, at the Ravinia summer festival in Illinois, Mr. Fleisher played the Brahms again it became one of his signature pieces as well as the Liszt Concerto No. 2 in A, with Leonard Bernstein conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The next summer at Ravinia, he performed four concertos under the direction of William Steinberg and Szell, who soon engaged Mr. Fleisher to perform with the Cleveland Orchestra, which Szell took over later that year. [August 03, 2020] Generex Biotechnology Announces Shareholder Conference Call on Wednesday August 26th, 2020 at 9:30 AM to Provide Details on Impending Corporate Initiatives Telemedicine & Remote Patient Monitoring Partnership Arizona MSO/HMO update AltuCell acquisition update MIRAMAR, Fla., Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Generex Biotechnology Corporation (www.generex.com) (OTCQB:GNBT) today announced that it will hold an investor conference call on Wednesday, August 26th at 9:00 am. During the call, Generex President & CEO Joe Moscato will discuss the companys new venture in telemedicine and remote patient monitoring that will be deployed in collaboration with its partnered clinics in Arizona and integrated physician network, providing near-term revenue model. Additionally, Mr. Moscato will provide an update on the Altucell acquisition. Joseph Moscato, Generex President & Chief Executive Officer said, During this COVID-19 pandemic, the world has been disrupted and business has been significantly altered not only today, but into the future as well. This business transformation is especially important for the future of healthcare, where telehealth is finally being recognized as a solution for access to care. Insurers and government payers are adopting telehealth practices with reimbursements for remote patient care. For the last year, the Generex team has been evaluating a number of healthcare information technology solutions, and we are happy to have selected a partner in a new venture in telemedicine and remote patient monitoring that we plan to implement with our physician partners in Arizona clinics. With this technology offering and the re-launch of DME-IQ, we will also be positioned to activate our physician networks. Our new telemedicine venture will enable us to generate near-term revenues, build out our physician and patient networks, and establis a foundation for success in the technological future of healthcare. Mr. Moscato continued, Throughout this pandemic, we have continued to move forward on our oncology program and the development of a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine based on the Ii-Key technology, and we have worked diligently to respond to the ever-changing market conditions we are experiencing by launching operating and financing initiatives. Over the next few weeks leading to the shareholders call, we will provide additional information in separate announcements outlining the details of these new initiatives including the telehealth venture, the ALTuCell acquisition, and the closing of three funding instruments. I look forward to speaking with shareholders on August 26th. Dial-in instructions for the investor conference call will be announced prior to the meeting date. About Generex Biotechnology Corp. Generex Biotechnology is an integrated healthcare holding company with end-to-end solutions for patient centric care from rapid diagnosis through delivery of personalized therapies. Generex is building a new kind of healthcare company that extends beyond traditional models providing support to physicians in an MSO network, and ongoing relationships with patients to improve the patient experience and access to optimal care. In addition to advancing a legacy portfolio of immune-oncology assets, medical devices, and diagnostics, the Company is focused on an acquisition strategy of strategic businesses that complement existing assets and provide immediate sources of revenue and working capital. Recent acquisitions include a management services organization, a network of pharmacies, clinical laboratory, and medical device companies with new and approved products. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This release and oral statements made from time to time by Generex representatives in respect of the same subject matter may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements can be identified by introductory words such as "expects," "plan," "believes," "will," "achieve," "anticipate," "would," "should," "subject to" or words of similar meaning, and by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. Forward-looking statements frequently are used in discussing potential product applications, potential collaborations, product development activities, clinical studies, regulatory submissions and approvals, and similar operating matters. Many factors may cause actual results to differ from forward-looking statements, including inaccurate assumptions and a broad variety of risks and uncertainties, some of which are known and others of which are not. Known risks and uncertainties include those identified from time to time in the reports filed by Generex with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which should be considered together with any forward-looking statement. No forward-looking statement is a guarantee of future results or events, and one should avoid placing undue reliance on such statements. Generex undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Generex claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements that is contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. Generex Contact: Generex Biotechnology Corporation Joseph Moscato 646-599-6222 Todd Falls 1-800-391-6755 Extension 222 investor@generex.com [ Back to the Next Generation Communications Community's Homepage ] Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 17:18:38|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close COLOMBO, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's health authorities said on Monday that all legislators who sit in the new parliament after the parliamentary elections on Aug. 5 will have to wear masks when inside the chamber, including participating in debates, to keeping with the operational and health guidelines on fighting the COVID-19 Outbreak. A 21-page operation guideline report was handed over by Director General of Health Services Anil Jasinghe to Secretary General of Parliament Dhammika Dasanayake, which includes many of the general health regulations pertaining to COVID-19. According to the guidelines in the report, newly-elected parliamentarians will be required to wear face masks. They are discouraged from shaking hands, hugging, or greeting each other in a manner in which they come into physical contact, and they should adopt other forms of greeting instead. Parliamentarians will also be encouraged to sit in the designated seat and maintain social distancing when they interact inside the parliament premises. sanitizers will be kept at every entrance in the chamber, and legislators and officials will be required to wash their hands before entering. Temperature checks will be carried out at the entrance of the building. Local media quoting parliamentary officials said that on the first sitting day of the new parliament, all 225 legislators will be required to attend, as the election of a new Speaker and the swearing-in of the newly-elected MPs will take place. Thereafter, Parliament will discuss if it is feasible to move towards virtual meetings except on days when a vote is due, the officials said. Enditem As the lockdown eases in Mae Hong Son, Thailand, local residents are returning to their normal daily routines. Hotels, restaurants, flea markets and tourist sites are reopening, trying to recover from the financial disaster caused by the closures imposed since March due to COVID-19. Temples now welcome residents and visitors. But the city remains silent due to the lack of tourists, so businesses incomes have yet to return to normal levels. Yet, the airport will remain closed until October. Residents of Mae Hong Son and the border region include many ethnic groups from Myanmar. They include Tai Yai (Shan), Karen, Lahu, Lua, Hmong, Chinese Yunnan and Pa-O. Enfolded in a high mountain range in the west of northern Thailand, Mae Hong Son is known as the city of the three mists. The presence of the large number of ethnic groups, especially the Tai Yai, means the region is suffused with the unique Shan culture, tradition and architecture. Mae Hong Son is sometimes referred to as the little Shan city and its combination of beauty and natural scenery have made it a dream tourism attraction in Thailand. The province relies heavily on tourism so the border closure with Myanmar due to the virus outbreak has stunted trade and affected Gross Provincial Product or GPP, such as agricultural and provincial products, including tourism activities, in this spectacular city. Vendors, daily wage earners and freelancers are losing their incomes and jobs. Many residents here are migrants from Myanmar and waiting to be approved for Thai citizenship. Others have a pink ID card indicating residence but not citizenship. They do not qualify for the 5,000 baht subsidy given to Thai citizens to help during the lockdown. They only rely on their savings. One member of the Hmong tribe working at the morning market, a farmer who transports fresh vegetables from their farm in Mae Hong Son, complained of losing sales due to the economic downturn, as business closures enforced as a preventive measure during the COVID-19 outbreak are lowering peoples purchasing power. People are buying fewer products from the market. Moreover, the lack of foreign tourists is having a huge impact on the economy. Our income is half what we usually get, the farmer said. Saksit Rakthanyakarn, a butcher at the fresh market, said, Schools, restaurants and hotels are closed due to the lockdown against COVID-19. We lose customers who are business owners and who usually come to buy our meat. Our income went down about 30-40 percent but we have to pay for expenses just the same. Some customers still owe us money for buying meat on credit before the lockdown but we understand their struggles. Once the lockdown is eased, we are hoping that the economy will be restored by least 80 percent. Panatpong Matananavasin, a half Thai/Shan resident, noted that even though no cases of COVID-19 have been found here, people are scared the virus will spread and are keeping themselves isolated. The town is deserted and the streets are empty as businesses remain closed and tourists stay away due to the lockdown. The number of employed is lower than the number of unemployed; some were able to find alternative jobs to mitigate the loss of income. Now that the lockdown is being eased, the silent town is slowly seeing some visitors but there are only Thai tourists; most businesses here normally rely on foreigners. We can only hope that tourism will be restored to normal and heal the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has appeared in-person at events ranging from press conferences to workplaces to a protest against police brutality in recent months. But Republican Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey hasnt seen Whitmer, a Democrat, face-to-face since Michigans first COVID-19 cases were confirmed in March, he said in an interview last week. And thats after they started off on almost the same page. The Upper West Regional Police Command is on a manhunt for a gang of men who allegedly beat up a teacher and stripped him naked in public after accusing him of sleeping with a married woman in Wa. In a statement issued and signed by the Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Inspector Gideon Boateng, the Command said the gang recorded the incident and circulated it on various social media platforms, thereby infringing on the fundamental human rights of the accused persons. The Upper West Regional Police Command has intercepted a viral video in which a man and a woman were being assaulted by a group of people at a certain location in the Wa Municipality. The command has commenced investigation into the incident to apprehend the perpetrators, it stated. The statement further appealed to residents in the area to desist from all forms of violence that will disturb the peace in the area. The Regional Police Command is on this note urging the general public to desist from taking the law into their own hands by brutalising people for offenses deemed to have been committed but rather arrest and send the alleged offenders to the nearest police station for the necessary action. Citi News sources at the Upper West Regional police CID indicated that on July 24, a gang of men, numbering about 10, besieged a guest house in Wa and forcefully broke into one of the rooms where a male teacher and a married nursing mother, who is also a teacher, were staying. The source explained that the group, led by the husband of the said lady allegedly beat up the two and stripped the man naked. The source further indicated that the group recorded videos of the incident and shared on various social media platforms, attracting the attention of the Regional Police Command who issued a warrant for the arrest of the perpetrators. Meanwhile, Sufyan Gbolo, a brother of the Man who was stripped naked, narrating the ordeal of his brother to Citi News, alleged that some influential people are preventing the police from arresting the perpetrators. He said the state attorney told me that my brother could be killed and nothing will happen to the boys. Since then, it's been more than a week and no arrest has been made. He appealed the law enforcement agencies to ensure justice prevails. Per the norms and traditions of Wa where the two accused persons currently live, having sex with a married man or woman who is not ones spouse is prohibited. Persons who engage in the act are either surcharged or punished by the traditional authorities. The state attorney in charge of the Upper West region, Saed Abdul-Shakuur declined to comment on the matter. The Upper West Regional Director of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, Alhaji Sadick Ubaidu in an interview with Citi News said beating the two accused persons and stripping the male teacher is a breach on their fundamental rights. What they have done, violates the dignity of the victim. The constitution says that the fundamental human rights of all persons shall be respected and upheld by all. Article 15 of the 1992 constitution of Ghana guarantees that the dignity of all persons shall be invaluable and that no person shall, whether or not be arrested, restricted or detained or be subjected to torture or inhuman or degrading treatment. Mr. Sadie Ubaidu, therefore, opined that the treatment meted out on the two lovers is a stuck infringement on their fundamental human rights. He called on the police to up their game and arrested the perpetrators to allow for justice to prevail. ---citinewsroom WASHINGTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (Farmer Mac;NYSE: AGM and AGM.A), the nation's secondary market provider that increases the availability and affordability of credit for the benefit of rural America, today announced that it will release its financial results for the fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2020, on Monday, August 10, 2020, after the closing of equity markets. A conference call to discuss the results will be held that day at 5:00 p.m. eastern time. The conference call can be accessed by telephone or webcast as follows: Dial-In (Domestic): (888) 346-2616 Dial-In (International): (412) 902-4254 Webcast: https://www.farmermac.com/investors/events-presentations/ When dialing in to the call, please ask for the "Farmer Mac Earnings Conference Call." This call can be heard live and will also be available for replay on Farmer Mac's website following the conclusion of the conference call. About Farmer Mac Farmer Mac is a vital part of the agricultural credit markets and was created to increase access to and reduce the cost of credit for the benefit of American agricultural and rural communities. As the nation's secondary market for agricultural credit, we provide financial solutions to a broad spectrum of the agricultural community, including agricultural lenders, agribusinesses, and other institutions that can benefit from access to flexible, low-cost financing and risk management tools. Farmer Mac's customers benefit from our low cost of funds, low overhead costs, and high operational efficiency. For more than thirty years, Farmer Mac has been delivering the capital and commitment rural America deserves. More information about Farmer Mac is available on Farmer Mac's website at www.farmermac.com. SOURCE Farmer Mac Related Links http://www.farmermac.com Textile industry in the United Kingdom's Leicester city is facing scrutiny after the recent outbreak of COVID-19 that forced authorities to reimpose precautionary measures such as social distancing. According to reports, the textile sector is being blamed for the recent outbreak in the city as some say clothing factories there had continued to operate at full capacity even during the peak of the pandemic. Media reports suggest that there are around 1,400-1,500 clothing factories in the city that employs over 10,000 workers and the factories with that many people remained operational during the pandemic despite it not being an essential service. Read: White House Experts Says COVID-19 Outbreak In US 'extraordinarily Widespread' Poor practices of factories The city of over 3,00,000 people has recently recorded a surge in coronavirus cases that put the spotlight back on these factories and their inhumane practices. As per reports, clothing factories in Leicester illegally employ workers below the average hourly minimum wage decided by British the government, which is 8.72. The factories also lack basic facilities such as sanitation and ventilation. Some of these factories operate from hazardous-looking buildings, while others operate from homes. According to Labour Behind the Label, a UK-based not-for-profit co-operative organisation, which campaigns for workers' rights, 70-80 percent of the city's production is meant for Boohoo, a cheap fast-fashion online retailer. "Boohoo has been operating throughout the crisis and has stopped responding to our requests for details of their measures to protect workers during the COVID-19 crisis. Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, reports of bad practice, underpayment of workers and allegations of non-payment of holiday pay were routine. Industry sources state that it is impossible to produce the units/garments requested by Boohoo for the product price and pay workers the national minimum wage. Indeed, wages of 23 an hour have been reported as commonplace in Leicester factories supplying Boohoo and other e-retailers," the Labour Behind the Label report said. Read: COVID-19: India's Case Tally Crosses 18 Lakh, Recoveries Surge To 11.86 Lakh Organisations such as Labour Behind the Label, Clean Clothes and others are demanding action against big brands like Boohoo by asking people to write to their local Member of Parliament. As per reports, Leicester city councillor Adam Clarke said that there is no epidemiological evidence to suggest that the textile industry is behind the recent surge in coronavirus cases. Meanwhile, Boohoo has said that it is shocked by the recent report and the accusations made against the company and further promised an investigation. Last year, we asked @boohoo to #GoTransparent, but they didn't listen. Evidence of modern-slavery in their supply chains has knocked over 1 billion off their profits. Now will they listen? Sign. Shout out loud. Boohoo, it's time to #GoTransparent!https://t.co/KOl7sCufVj Labour Behind The Label (@labourlabel) July 8, 2020 Read: COVID-19: Melbourne Braces For More Business Closures As Australia Enters Stage 4 Lockdown Read: Michigan Reports No New COVID-19 Deaths, 426 Confirmed Cases (Image Credit: AP) A year ago, Abdul Rashid was making a living by selling flowers to tourists in hundreds of ornate pinewood houseboats on Dal Lake in Srinagar, the main city in Indian-administered Kashmir. When India suddenly scrapped disputed Kashmirs semi-autonomous status, followed by an unprecedented security clampdown, economic ruin ensued. It was not just a political change. It destroyed our livelihood, said Rashid, 60, who has now turned to growing vegetables to feed his family. Days before the August 5, 2019, decision by Indias central government, authorities asked hundreds of thousands of tourists, Hindu pilgrims and migrant workers to leave the territory, shutting its economy. Since then, tens of thousands of jobs have been lost. The stunning Himalayan region in parts ruled by India and its western neighbour Pakistan since 1947, when British colonial rule ended with the creation of India and Pakistan. A portion of the region, Aksai Chin, is under Chinese control. An armed rebellion erupted in 1989 after decades of political manipulation in Indian-administered Kashmir, broken promises and a crackdown on dissent by New Delhi. Kashmiri rebels, who enjoy popular support, seek unification with Pakistan or complete independence. India dubbed the armed rebellion terrorism abetted by Pakistan, a charge Islamabad denies. Hundreds of the colourful hand-carved houseboats, known as shikaras, lie deserted, anchored still on the desolate lake. Hotels are empty, and there are barely any tourists. Some businesses had resumed with the partial lifting of the security and communication clampdown earlier this year. However, Indian authorities enforced another harsh lockdown in March to combat the coronavirus pandemic, further emaciating the local economy. The Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries pegged the economic losses in the region at $5.3bn and said about half a million jobs had been lost since August last year. The seven-decade-old Hotel Standard in Srinagar had a staff of 30, according to its manager Khurshid Ahmed. Now there are just three. The only activity inside the once-bustling place is that of the cleaning staff. Mohammed Rajab, a taxi driver for 37 years, has not received on fare since last August. I parked my taxi at our stand a few days before August 5 last year. Its still there, along with 250 others, he said. Tens of thousands of daily wage workers, like Rajab, have suffered the most. Mohammad Lateef, a boatman, used to ferry tourists around the lake. He now sells cucumbers and cigarettes to locals along its banks. Weve not earned a single penny for a year now, said Ghulam Qadir Ota, a houseboat owner. All we have are these boats. We dont have any other means to earn. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Alor Setar, Malaysia Mon, August 3, 2020 16:33 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b34bce 2 SE Asia Briton,Malaysia,murder-case Free A British woman was jailed for three and a half years Monday after tearfully admitting she stabbed her husband to death during a fight on the Malaysian holiday island of Langkawi. Samantha Jones killed John William Jones in 2018 in their house on the island during a row in the early hours of the morning, which her lawyer said came after years of domestic abuse. The 52-year-old admitted "culpable homicide", which is roughly equivalent to manslaughter, and was handed the jail term and ordered to pay a fine of 10,000 ringgit ($2,300). She had initially been charged with murder, which carries a mandatory death sentence in Malaysia, but prosecutors agreed to the lesser charge. During a hearing in the northern city of Alor Setar, Jones pleaded guilty and then wept as a prosecutor showed the High Court the murder weapon and photos of the crime scene. In mitigation, her lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo said Jones had long suffered from physical and emotional abuse meted out by her husband, who was an alcoholic and had a fierce temper. The fight began on October 18, 2018, after Jones's husband kicked her when she was lying in bed in the early hours of the morning, the lawyer said. Jones fled to the kitchen but he followed and a fight began, during which she stabbed the victim with a knife. She inflicted a 15-centimeter wound in the liver of the 63-year-old victim, who was under the influence of alcohol at the time, according to prosecutors. An ambulance arrived after 45 minutes but it was too late. "I was scared and he was so angry," Jones, who was wearing a mask, tearfully told the court. "I miss him terribly. What I did that night was unintended. "I tried to stop him, I did not know it would happen like this." Jones, who could have faced a maximum jail term of 10 years, looked calm as the sentence was handed down. The British couple had been married since 2001, and did not have children. They had lived since 2005 on the resort island in northwest Malaysia, which attracts millions of tourists to its beaches every year. RICHMOND, Va. - Former Virginia House speaker Kirk Cox confirmed Monday that he is "seriously looking" at running for governor next year, adding his name to a relatively small list of Republicans eyeing the Executive Mansion in a longtime swing state that has been steadily trending blue. Cox, a veteran legislator and retired teacher who turns 63 this month, held onto his House seat in November in a drastically revamped district, but lost the speakership as Democrats won control of the House and the Senate for the first time in a generation. Ceding the role of minority leader to another delegate, Cox spent this year's General Assembly session seemingly resigned to life as an ordinary legislator in a party that had not won a statewide election since 2009. But on Monday, Cox said he is considering a run - influenced, he said, by policies enacted by the newly Democratic legislature and by Gov. Ralph Northam's handling of both the coronavirus pandemic and the recent street protests in Richmond. Northam, a Democrat, cannot seek reelection because Virginia bars governors from serving back-to-back terms. "I have been hearing from people who want me to consider running for governor, something I would not have even thought about eight months ago," Cox said in a written statement. "After the policies put in place by Democrats this year, the vacuum of leadership during this health and economic crisis, and the violence and destruction in our streets, it's clear we need credible and steady leadership." Any formal announcement will have to wait until after this year's elections, he said. "Out of respect for candidates on the ballot this November," he said, he would not "launch a gubernatorial campaign now." Cox noted his desire for Republicans to win back congressional seats and defeat Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, but he did not mention President Donald Trump, whose unpopularity in Virginia suburbs has accelerated the GOP's slide. An unusually large number of Democrats has expressed interest in running for governor, including former governor Terry McAuliffe, who left office in January 2018 and has raised $1.7 million for a still-unannounced candidacy. Declared and potential Democrats running include Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, Attorney General Mark Herring, Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy of Prince William, state Sen. Jennifer McClellan of Richmond and Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney - though the former McAuliffe Cabinet secretary is not expected to seek the nomination if the former governor enters the race. The filing deadline, typically in the spring, has not been set. The field is smaller for Republicans. State Sen. Amanda Chase of Chesterfield is the lone declared candidate. Pete Snyder, a northern Virginia technology entrepreneur who unsuccessfully sought the 2013 GOP nomination for lieutenant governor, is considering a run. So is Charles "Bill" Carrico, a retired state trooper and former state senator from Grayson County, in the state's far southwest. Rep. Denver Riggleman, R-Va.,said last week that he is exploring a run - potentially as an independent, bucking the party that in June rejected his reelection bid in favor of a "biblical conservative." Riggleman, who has a libertarian streak, angered social conservatives last year by presiding over a same-sex wedding. As speaker, Cox was the most powerful Republican in the state and used his perch to advance conservative causes, thwarting bills to tighten restrictions on guns, expand gay rights and lift restrictions on abortion. But he went along with Medicaid expansion in 2018 and has tried to play up kitchen-table fare such as tax cuts and education, promising "practical solutions for everyday issues." "I'll be candid. I'm 62 years old. The easiest thing for me and Julie to do would be to spend the next 20 years going on walks at the park and visiting our boys at the beach, tweeting we told you so as Democrats drive up our taxes, chase investment and business out of our Commonwealth, adopt policies that lead to public employee strikes that hurt our kids, and reverse the policies that made Virginia one of the safest states in the nation," Cox's statement said, referring to his wife. "But that's just not who we are. So, yes, I am seriously looking at a run for Governor." SOLON, Ohio -- The Solon Board of Education officially approved the revised 2020-21 school year calendar Monday (Aug. 3), after first noting that classes will be held remotely for the first nine weeks. Interim Superintendent Fred Bolden said the start of the school year has been delayed until Aug. 26 to allow five additional days for professional development and planning time for teachers. Families in the district were informed in an email July 13 that an Aug. 26 start date was being recommended. At that time, Solon Schools was planning to offer two options for students to start the school year: an all-in every-day model and a virtual model. But on Monday (Aug. 3), Bolden said the district has shifted to a full remote model for the first quarter of 2020-21, based on a recommendation from the Cuyahoga County Board of Health due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Four more days also have been added throughout the school year as professional days for teachers, Bolden said. This is going to be a very unique experience for us this year, and both our administration and our teachers felt we needed additional time to prepare to regroup and, in some cases, to make adjustments throughout the year, he said. Thats what this calendar is a reflection of. Bolden said the school year will end on the same date as originally scheduled in late May. He added that the calendar exceeds the number of hours of instruction required by the state. We are in a very fluid situation, and this is where we are right now to start the year, he said. But as things change, we will be updating the community and making those changes that are necessary throughout the year. New teachers hired Four new elementary school teachers, a school psychologist and an intervention specialist were approved by the board for the 2020-21 school year at the meeting, which was physically closed to the public due to the pandemic and live-streamed on the districts YouTube channel. Bolden said some of these teachers were hired to replace others who have requested leaves of absence, and some were added due to needs based on enrollment. The new teachers -- all at Parkside Elementary School -- are Olivia DAmico, grade four, at a salary of $47,767; Chelsea Hood, grade one, $53,572; Jessica Kimbrough, grade two, $45,978; and Jeri Mismas, grade four, $58,208. Patricia Reed was hired as psychologist at Orchard Middle School at a salary of $53,530. Ronald Wiggins, whose salary is $65,045, will be intervention specialist at Solon Middle School. The board also approved leaves of absence for two teachers and a school psychologist for the coming school year. Bolden said these staff members requested the time off for family and personal reasons. Leaves of absence were granted for Danielle Feuer, second-grade teacher at Parkside Elementary School; Leigh Ann Leugers, math teacher leader at Orchard Middle School; and Eden Meihls, psychologist at Orchard Middle School. Subs, supplementals OKd In addition, the board approved a list of substitute teachers and supplemental contracts. Bolden noted that the list of substitutes is a little lighter this year. Substitutes have been a little more difficult to come by, he said. Since we are starting remote at the beginning of the year, substitutes will not be as critical a need. But should circumstances change and we move back into full (in-school) instruction mode, as we had planned for in the beginning of the year, we will definitely need those substitutes. As for the supplemental contracts, Bolden said those were awarded based on extracurricular activities that can be offered virtually, as determined by the district. The Cuyahoga County Board of Health has recommended that all extracurricular activities be suspended during the full remote instruction period due to the pandemic. So all those things that can be done virtually will be done (that way), Bolden said. If it turns out its something we cant do, we would be rescinding that contract. But if there is a way to do it virtually, were going to do it virtually, because the kids need those extracurriculars. Theyre very important to them. Bolden added that the district will be in communication with the county Board of Health to talk about specific situations and to see if there are exceptions to their orders. Ohio Schools Council The board also approved an agreement with the Ohio Schools Council in the amount of $7,058 for programs administered through the council. Bolden said the district has been affiliated with the Ohio Schools Council for many years. He said the district is able to receive some services through the council at a highly discounted rate, such as legal services. We also use them for things like media services, he said. These purchases help us defray some costs that if we would have to pay for them individually, they would be more. The boards next meeting is at 6 p.m. Aug. 17. Read more from the Chagrin Solon Sun. Torrential rains often hit Sudan between June and October, resulting in significant flooding At least five people were killed and thousands of homes were damaged by heavy floods in Sudan, the interior minister said in a statement Monday. Nearly 3,500 houses were affected by floods caused by heavy rains on Friday and Saturday, interior minister Eltrafi Elsdik said in a statement. Four of the people killed were in the central Jazira state, and one in the western Darfur region. Torrential rains often hit Sudan between June and October, resulting in significant flooding. Last week heavy downpours broke a dam in Blue Nile state, destroying more than 600 houses. Search Keywords: Short link: An alarming situation has come to the fore in Lucknow after it was found that in the last nine days as many as 2,290 patients, who have tested positive for coronavirus, have submitted their false information including name, address, contact number etc. to the local administration during their tests. As per the information received, all these 2,290 patients were examined between July 23-July 31. The administration got to know about this fraud when they tried to contact the patients to inform them about their Covid-19 reports. The local administration immediately sought the help of Uttar Pradesh Polices surveillance division after which 1,171 people were traced and admitted to the hospital. However, 1,119 patients are still untraceable and a hunt to trace them is on. A legal action is said to be taken against these people for providing wrong information about themselves to the administration. Thousands of tests were done to break the chain of coronavirus infection. People were tested at camps set up at several places in Lucknow. During this, some people submitted their wrong name, address and contact numbers. When a probe was initiated, the names and addresses were found to be wrong. We have traced down 1,171 till date, while efforts are on to trace down the remaining patients. All the hospitals and labs conducting tests are directed to verify the details of the patients at their end before taking their samples, Sujit Pandey, Commissioner of Police Lucknow told media on Sunday. Lucknow has reported 391 fresh Covid-19 cases, along with 14 deaths on Sunday. While 4,559 people were discharged from the hospitals. Meanwhile, as per the data issued by the Uttar Pradesh Health Department, with 3,953 fresh Covid-19 cases reported in the state on Sunday, the total tally has reached 92,921. The total number of deaths have reached 1,730 with 53 deaths reported on Sunday. Till date, 53,357 people have been discharged from hospitals in Uttar Pradesh, while there were 37834 active cases in the state. Experts document progress made through rehabilitation interventions that improves quality of life for patients with cerebral palsy, in this special issue of the Journal of Pediatric Rehabilitation Medicine Amsterdam, NL, August 3, 2020 - Cerebral palsy (CP) is one of the most common developmental movement disorders in children. It is associated with complex healthcare needs and for some a shortened life expectancy depending on the severity of the disorder and co-existing medical conditions. In this special issue of the Journal of Pediatric Rehabilitation Medicine, experts present advancements made by rehabilitation medicine in the care of patients with CP, improving quality of life and research. This special issue is guest-edited by two of the leading experts in the field, Deborah Gaebler-Spira, MD, Feinberg Northwestern University School of Medicine and Shirley Ryan Ability Lab/Lurie Children's Hospital, Chicago, IL, USA; and Michael M. Green, DO, Clinical Pediatric Rehabilitation Medicine Attending at Primary Children's Hospital, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA. "One of our most significant challenges is understanding the effect of all of our interventions on children through the lifespan," commented Dr. Gaebler-Spira and Dr. Green. "This second CP-focused special Issue of the journal continues to explore the impact of rehabilitation medicine on the care and research for those with CP." An important contribution to the issue showcases the use of bibliometrics, which has considerable potential for healthcare scientists and practitioners to discover new information about academic trends, pharmacotherapy, disease, and broader health sciences trends. Margret Turk, MD, the most recent Gabriella E. Molnar-Swafford Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, and co-authors demonstrate the expanding literature emphasizing function and quality of life for persons with CP including performance, aging, and health, compared to earlier studies when diagnostic feature and brain pathology dominated research. Their findings highlight the transition from diagnosis and identification to management of specific conditions and providing guidance for the continuum of needs that patients with CP experience over the course of a lifetime. This issue introduces "Needle Tips," devoted to the art, science, and practice of injecting neurolytics such as botulinum toxin and phenol in in children with CP. "It was conceived as a unique forum in which the active community of injectors would express some of the daily problems, challenges, and nuances that are the bread and butter of our daily practice," Dr Gaebler-Spira explained. Botulinum toxin injections now have a "green light" for managing spasticity in children with a variety of neuromuscular conditions. Current randomized clinical trials utilizing botulinum toxin are on children with CP, which has current FDA approval for lower and upper limb injections. However, questions remain. To address these issues injectors from the pediatric rehabilitation community present their views and rationale on current use of botulinum toxin, adverse events, dilution, and diagnoses. The section "Human-TIES come first" is a chance to introduce a piece of art, music, book, or in this case a film, to readers that will enhance understanding and create a human view of the experience of living with a disability. This issue includes a review of the documentary "Crip Camp," whose executive producers were Barack and Michelle Obama. It shows footage and interviews from Camp Jened, a summer camp for people with disabilities. The reviewer points out that terms such as "crip," "cripple," and "gimp" have been used by people with disabilities as terms of empowerment, taking formerly insulting terms and repurposing them into words of advocacy. "We consider this a must see for the field," said Dr. Green. Other issue highlights include: Use of robot-assisted gait training Constraint-induced movement therapy Autonomy - using "Skills for Growing Up" Effects of solid ankle-foot orthoses Balance, proprioception, and vestibular symptoms in children with hemiplegia Association of hepatoblastoma, prematurity, and CP Spasticity treatment for children with CP "In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic Dr. Gaebler-Spira, and Dr. Green worked around the clock with specialists across the country and the world to culminate in a very special JPRM cerebral palsy issue. It was an absolute pleasure and an honor to work with our special guest editors," added Editor-in-Chief, Elaine Pico, MD, UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital, Oakland, CA, USA. CP occurs in about 1.5 to more than 4 per 1,000 live births and individuals with CP benefit from ongoing rehabilitation throughout childhood and into adulthood. The symptoms of CP vary over the lifespan. Commonly the first symptoms are gross motor delay due to abnormal muscle tone and decreased motor control and coordination. As children age, the muscles become stiff and weak with subsequent orthopedic problems. Other systems affected may include vision, hearing, swallowing, speaking, bowel and bladder, and sensation. Although there is no cure, management and treatments such as medications and surgery can ameliorate complications and assist people with CP to live a full life. ### South Korea and the Islamic Republic of Iran have agreed to establish a working group on expanding humanitarian trade as part of efforts to maintain bilateral partnership within the scope of a U.S.-approved sanctions exemption, a South Korean source close to the matter said Sunday, August 2. Seoul says it is seeking to expand humanitarian exports to Iran, including coronavirus test kits, amid the worsening COVID-19 outbreak in the Islamic Republic and other essential medicine, like flu vaccines and antidiabetics, South Korean official news agency, Yonhap, cited a local source as saying. Under U.S. sanctions, about $7 billion of Iranian oil money has been frozen in Korean banks since last year. Korean officials plan to repay part of that by exporting drugs and medical equipment. In April, Washington approved an exclusive license for Seoul to resume some humanitarian transactions with Tehran, even if they involve Iran's central bank subject to U.S. sanctions. In late May, Seoul sent $500,000 worth of medicine for hereditary diseases in the first such shipment to the Middle Eastern country, Yonhap reported. Based on the same report, the first session of the newly-formed working group is scheduled to convene early in September. During joint video sessions, the Islamic Republic officials had expressed their willingness to buy hundreds of millions of dollars of goods from Seoul. Earlier on June 1, the Governor of Central Bank of Iran (CBI), Abdolnasser Hemmati, had announced that Iran was escalating its pressure on South Korea to release billions of dollars of oil-export revenue. He argued that Seoul was caving in to pressure from its U.S. ally and illegally withholding funds needed to counter the Middle East's worst coronavirus outbreak. Furthermore, Hemmati complained that South Korea banks were preventing Iran from using the money to buy foods and medicines, which is exempted from U.S. sanctions. "It is appalling to see that Korean banks have conveniently neglected their obligations, common international financial agreements, and decided to play politics and follow illegal and unilateral U.S. sanctions," Hemmati said in a written response to questions. Iran could launch legal action to gain access to the funds, he said, without naming the lenders in question. Immediately after the warning, the Islamic Republic Foreign Ministry summoned Seoul's ambassador in Tehran. The South Korean government has also set up a select working group between its various government departments to increase its humanitarian trade with Iran. TDT | Manama Coast Guard Command patrols have seized 10 banned trawling nets on five boats, according to Coast Guard commander Rear Admiral Alaa Abdullah Siyadi. The operation is part of the Coast Guards efforts to address violations related to fishing and the gear being illegally used in its practice. The Coast Guard commander stressed the need for sailors to abide by laws regulating fishing, which have been put in place in order to protect the marine environment and preserve the Kingdoms wealth of marine life. He noted that sea and land campaigns are continuing to arrest violators and take the necessary measures against them. The Coast Guard commander added that following the seizures, the related legal procedures have been launched. Trichloroethylene (TCE) is now available from Banner Chemicals, a global supplier of chlorinated solvents, under brand name Triklone U. The addition to high purity Triklone U Banner-Chemicals offer full range of ASTM Vapor-Degreasing Chlorinated Solvents of: Triklone LE ASTM D4080 Perklone MD ASTM D4376 About high purity Triklone U: Triklone U Caprolactam grade for and nylon 6 industry Caprolactam grade for and nylon 6 industry Triklone U Vulcanising agent for conveyor-belts and tyres repairs Vulcanising agent for conveyor-belts and tyres repairs Triklone U Adhesives for rubber industry Adhesives for rubber industry Triklone U Fluoropolymers (F-Polymer) Fluoropolymers (F-Polymer) Triklone U Herbicides, and Pharmaceutical industries ABOUT PERKLONE & TRIKLONE, MEC Prime, BRANDS Banner Chemicals exclusively supply all grades of METHYLENE CHLORIDE PRIME, PERKLONE and TRIKLONE brands, Including MEC Prime PHARMA, TRIKLONE U, TRIKLONE LE, PERKLONE MD, PERKLONE D and PERKLONE EXT PERKLONE, TRIKLONE, MEC Prime are registered trademarks supplied GLOBALLY and EXCLUSIVELY by Banner Chemicals UK All products are manufactured under ISO9001 from premium quality feedstocks and of 99.99% pure About Banner Chemicals UK Banner Chemicals is a 2M Holdings subsidiary, exporting to 90 countries and won the UK Queen's Award for enterprise. Dr. Maggie Kessler, Export Director of Banner Chemicals says: "The additional of Triklone U (High- Purity Trichloroethylene) to our Aerospace military ASTM range of solvents gives Banner Chemicals a strong position in the chlorinated industry. This includes, Triklone U for: Caprolactam industry, Vulcanising and Adhesives industry (for rubber, tyres & and conveyor-belts). Release Summary / keywords: Trichloroethylene, TCE, TRICK, Trikchlor, TRIKLONE Perchloroethylene, PCE, PERC, Perchlor, PERKLONE PERKLONE MD TRIKLONE LE ATMS Metal Degreasing Vapour Degreasers PERKLONE & TRIKLONE Aerospace approved degreasers PERKLONE & TRIKLONE Metal degreasing / Metal cleaning grades PERKLONE EXT Catalyst grade, Isomerization grade PERKLONE D Dry-cleaning TRIKLONE U for: Caprolactam industry TRIKLONE U for: Vulcanising and Adhesives industry TRIKLONE U for: for rubber, tyres & and conveyor-belts Contact: Dr. Maggie Kessler, telephone: +44-1928-597-000, email address: [email protected] SOURCE Banner Chemicals UK White House, Democrats Remain at Odds Over Coronavirus Aid Deal By Ken Bredemeier August 02, 2020 The White House and top congressional Democrats remained at odds Sunday over the scope of more assistance for 30 million American workers left unemployed by the coronavirus pandemic. In back-to-back appearances on ABC's "This Week" show, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the leader of the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives, and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, sparred over how much new aid the national government should approve beyond less generous state unemployment benefits. Four months of $600-a-week extra national benefits expired Friday. But Pelosi and other Democrats want to extend the payments through the end of 2020, while President Donald Trump and his administration initially want to cut the extra aid to $200 a week while working toward a package that would set the aid at 70% of what a worker had been paid before being laid off as the virus swept through the United States. Pelosi, Mnuchin, Senate Democratic leader Charles Schumer and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said Saturday they had made progress in reaching a deal on the unemployment assistance and other aid to boost the country's flagging economy. Their aides were set to resume discussions Sunday on details of a package while the main negotiators planned to renew their talks on Monday. But Meadows told CBS News's "Face the Nation" show, "We still have a long ways to go. I'm not optimistic that there will be a solution in the very near term." They remain far apart on the size of an overall coronavirus assistance package, however, with Democrats calling for $3 trillion in new spending and Republicans wanting to limit it to $1 trillion. The Pelosi and Mnuchin disagreements quickly became apparent on the ABC talk show. "Overwhelmingly this is about keeping people out of poverty," Pelosi said. "The $600 is essential," she said. "This is about putting workers first, putting money in the pockets of American workers." She did not, however, rule out the possibility of settling on a smaller continuing aid figure, but criticized some Republican lawmakers "who don't want (to approve) anything." She said the new assistance should be tied to unemployment rate. She downplayed complaints by Republicans that some unemployed workers have collected more in jobless benefits than they were paid while working. Mnuchin said Trump "is very concerned about the expiration" of the benefits" and "wants to spend what we need to." But Mnuchin said he was surprised Democrats have spurned a White House offer to extend the $600-a-week federal benefits for a week while talks continue. He said the continuing benefits "should be tied to some percentage of wages." Mnuchin said "there's no question some people were paid more to stay home than to work," an outcome Republicans are determined to end. He said the virus has "devastated our economy." Mnuchin said last week's report that the U.S. economy, the world's largest, fell 9.5% from April to June, the most in records dating back seven decades, was not surprising. He expressed optimism for the future, however. "I think we're going to see a very big bounce back," especially in 2021, he said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Advertisement Arkansas Black Lives Matter protesters traveled to Zinc, Arkansas, to march on the Ku Klux Klan's Grand Wizard's hometown and compound Sunday. The protest comes just four days after a viral video labeled nearby Harrison, Arkansas, as being 'America's Most Racist Town' and the 'Ku Klux Klan's headquarters.' The KKK's website claims its national headquarters to be in Harrison and that its national director, Thomas Robb, uses at least three post office boxes there, the Springfield News-Leader reported. The Ozarks Hate Watch group posted on Facebook that these men blocked the road leading to Robb's compound Armed local residents were seen standing in the road leading to Robb's compound Sunday in an effort to help keep the peace Black Lives Matter protesters traveled to Zinc, Arkansas, where Ku Klux Klan national director Thomas Robb has a compound, to demonstrate on Sunday The protest comes just four days after a viral video labeled nearby Harrison, Arkansas, as being 'America's Most Racist Town' and the 'Ku Klux Klan's headquarters Local Zinc residents were spotted carrying guns while on their porches, watching the protesters Sunday A local resident is seen armed while watching over the protesters on Sunday. Militia groups were said to have been spotted in the town during the protests Who is Thomas Robb? Thomas Robb is the Ku Klux Klan's national director. He took over the KKK in 1989. He is said to use three post office boxes in Harrison, Arkansas. He has a compound in Zinc, Arkansas. He is pastor of the Christian Revival Center, a 'Christian Identity' center based in Zinc. Advertisement Sunday's protest was organized by Bridge the Gap NWA and also promoted by Ozarks Hate Watch, drawing Black Lives Matters protesters from as far away as Branson and Springfield. The protesters met at the Harrison Police Department before traveling in a caravan towards Zinc, according to 40/29 News. Along the road to Zinc, the protesters' caravan passed people holding signs that read 'Turn back,' according to photos shared on Ozarks Hate Watch's Facebook page. Once in Zinc, the group posted pictures of armed men - some in military-style fatigues - standing in front of cars blocking a dirt road to Robb's compound. 'Militia blocking the road to the Klan Compound,' Ozarks Hate Watch's photo caption states, apparently referring to the road that leads to Robb's Zinc home. 'Too bad they didn't realize we had no intention on going to his compound.' 'You're out here in your little neck of the woods where you think you don't have to see the people that you hate,' protester Sonny Cropper told KY3, explaining why he and others had traveled to the small town. 'We know that hatred is here and we still don't tolerate it.' The news station reported that several dozen protesters had descended on the town for what they planned to be a peaceful protest. 'Several' locals were seen congregating at the other end of the town. Photos from the protest show Zinc locals carrying rifles, standing and sitting on front porches apparently keeping an eye on the protesters and protecting their homes. KKK national director Thomas Robb has a compound in Zinc, Arkansas. The protesters said they 'threw a barbecue in the KKK's backyard' A local man is seen engaging protesters in discussion. The protesters traveled to Zinc after meeting up in nearby Harrison, Arkansas - said to be the headquarters of the KKK - on Sunday morning Protesters said that they held a barbecue and offered food to anyone who wanted to eat with them An armed protester (left) is seen in Zinc, while other protesters held signs and chanted in what appeared to have been a peaceful protest on Sunday Protesters were seen holding up fists while local residents drove past them while they were in Zinc Sunday Protesters said that they had traveled to Zinc to shine a spotlight on the town and said that nobody had ever demonstrated there before. All protesters were said to have been able to leave the city safely Several dozen protesters were said to have gathered to make the trip to Zinc, Arkansas, from neighboring cities and towns Officers with the Boone County Sheriff's Department kept an eye on the protesters and locals to keep the peace In addition to carrying guns, the men had used their cars as physical road blocks on the dirt road leading to Robb's compound Local residents were seen armed while standing on the side of the road at the other end town where the protesters stood Protesters and armed local residents are seen talking in the middle of the road during Sunday's protest as officers watched Ozarks Hate Watch's Facebook page say they identified several counter protesters as being members of the League of the South. The alleged hate group members were said to be seen holding guns and sitting on folding chairs along the road as they watched the protesters. The Southern Poverty Law Center has designated the League of the South as a hate group with a neo-Confederate ideology. Officers from the Boone County Sheriff's Department were also on hand watching over the protesters. 'Sheriff Tim Roberson told 40/29 News that his department's 'role' will be to 'that we will keep the peace, that's what one of our duties will be. Obviously if there are violations of the law then those folks that do that will be subject to be arrested.' He added that 'We will be prepared for that if anything bad does happen.' Among the armed locals watching the protesters Sunday was Zinc resident Kenny Devore who said of them: 'I think if they want to start trouble they should do it in their own town. We didn't ask for 'em, we ain't never done nothing to them. And I don't really see what the reason is for them being here.' He added that locals 'just want them to get done and go away.' Protesters are seen here speaking with a local man. The group said that they wanted to open a dialogue with residents Jessica Angelica (left) and Aaron Clarke (center), co-founders of Bridge the Gap NWA, speak to the protesters who have gathered along Zinc Road A protester is seen shaking the hand of a local resident who was spreading the word about Jesus during the event There were no reports of any violence during the protest, although Ozark Hate Watch wrote on Facebook that there was a shoving match between a protester and someone they identified as a 'member of the 'Press,'' who had 'decided to push a protestor. We kept things cool tho.' On Sunday night, after the protesters left Zinc 'All safe and secure,' Ozark Hate Watch member said that the protest had taken two months to plan amongst different activist groups. They said that despite claims, 'our plan did not involve setting one foot on Lead Hill Road or making advances toward Tom Robb's property. We kept it close to the chest to give ourselves a tactical advantage for sake of security.' 'What happened in zinc today was history,' Aaron Clarke said in a Facebook Live video. He added that the group was not run out of town 'with their tails tucked between their legs.' 'We went down there and nobody's been down there, nobody's ever protested in that community. ... We literally went and threw a barbecue in the KKK's backyard.' 'We came down there to bridge the gap...what we did was we went into the community that has basically operated by the Ku Klux Klan and we extended our hand. We came down there with food for anybody who wanted food, they were able to get food,' Clarke said. He added that they didn't go 'all the way down the dirt road' leading to Robb's compound, because 'it was very clear that if the road was crowded, it could turn a potential peaceful protest into a violent protest. We didn't want things to get violent.' Clarke added that the reason for the protesters going to Zinc - and eventually returning, hopefully the 'numbers will be bigger' - was to say that 'you do need to be held accountable' and to put the spotlight on the town. SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour, NASA's first crewed spaceship to fly to the International Space Station in nearly a decade, returned safely to Earth on Sunday (August 2), splashing down into the water off Pensacola, Florida at 2:48 pm (1848 GMT). The successful mission was carried out jointly by SpaceX and NASA and it has shown that the US has the technology to send its astronauts to space and bring them safely back to the earth. "Thanks for flying @SpaceX." Current Location: Planet Earth A 2:48pm ET, @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug splashed down, marking the first splashdown of an American crew spacecraft in 45 years. #LaunchAmerica pic.twitter.com/zO3KlNwxU3 NASA (@NASA) August 2, 2020 Endeavour's water landing is significant because it is the first water landing for a crewed US spaceship since the 1975 Apollo-Soyuz mission. "It's truly our honor and privilege," said pilot Doug Hurley, who was joined on the mission by commander Bob Behnken. "On behalf of the NASA and SpaceX teams, welcome back to planet Earth and thanks for flying SpaceX," replied SpaceX's Mike Heiman. Around an hour after splashdown, both the astronauts came out of the capsule and boarded a helicopter to reach the shore. Hurley and Bhenken would come to Houston on a plane where they will meet their family members. "We are entering a new era of human spaceflight, where NASA is no longer the purchaser, owner and operator of all the hardware," said NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine in a call with reporters. "This is really just the beginning: we are starting the journey of bringing people regularly to and from low Earth orbit, on to the Moon, and then ultimately on to Mars," added Gwynne Shotwell, president of SpaceX. US President Donald Trump has lauded the safe return of the astronauts. It is to be noted that President Trump had travelled to Florida for the launch of the capsule two months ago. "Thank you to all! Great to have NASA Astronauts return to Earth after very successful two month mission," tweeted Trump. Great to have NASA Astronauts return to Earth after very successful two month mission. Thank you to all! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 2, 2020 The success of this mission is also seen as a major victory for Elon Musk's SpaceX, which has now raced ahead of Boeing, its main competitor in the commercial space race. Behnken and Hurley spent around two months at the ISS following the historic launch of the Demo-2 mission from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on May 30. China on Monday released a list of recommended candidates for highest state honors, and invited public opinions about it, according to a working committee on the Party and state medals and honorary titles. Zhong Nanshan, who has been committed to the study, prevention and treatment of major respiratory diseases and significantly contributed to the COVID-19 fight, was recommended for the Medal of the Republic nomination, said the working committee. Zhang Boli, Zhang Dingyu and Chen Wei, all of whom played an important role in the fight against COVID-19, were shortlisted for national honorary titles, it added. Zhang Boli, an academician with the Chinese Academy of Engineering, has been devoted to the study of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). He led the formulation of the TCM treatment protocol for COVID-19 patients and offered guidance on TCM treatment for COVID-19 patients. Zhang Dingyu, head of Jinyintan Hospital, one of the designated hospitals for COVID-19 patients in Wuhan, has been leading the treatment of COVID-19 patients in the city once hard hit by the epidemic, the working committee said. Chen Wei is a researcher with the Institute of Military Medicine under the Academy of Military Sciences. She has earned major achievements in basic research and development of vaccines and drugs against COVID-19. The list was finalized after an extensive process of selection, discussion and review, said the working committee, inviting the public to contribute their views before Aug. 7 through email, telephone or letters. In just a matter of days the fate of TikTok changed from a company that could be banned in the US by the President to a takeover target. In late July, President Trump said that the social media platform, which his administration considers a national security risk, could be banned in the US because of its Chinese ownership. At the same time, this was taking place, Microsoft was exploring a takeover bid for TikToks American operations. On August 2, 2020, Satya Nadella, Microsofts CEO, and Mr. Trump spoke which has allowed Microsoft chief time to flesh out the potential acquisition. The upshot of the conversation between the US President and CEO Nadella Microsoft has six weeks to seal a deal for TikTok. The company says that it has 100 million users in the U.S. In a statement, Microsoft said it would act rapidly to generate a deal Beijing-based ByteDance, aiming to wrap it up by Sept. 15. The security review will be left up to Microsoft and the company has pledged to keep all American users data within the U.S. and sever any connections to technology that remain in China. How Much Will TikTok Cost Microsoft? Both companies ByteDance and Microsoft have a vested interest in negotiating a deal. If the 6-weeks pass, and there is no deal, Microsoft will just walk away. Although the company will lose out on a social media platform that has already gained traction, it will not lose as much as ByteDance. TikTok after 6-weeks will be banned in the US and the company will have to divest its US assets. This could work but making sure that it severs its data will be a tall task, and without having a champion in the US, TikTok could be doomed. The value of the company is steep, and it will be interesting to see what TikTok will cost. In the last week of July a group of investors, including Sequoia Capital and General Atlantic, floated a $50 billion bid for TikTok. Currently, TikTok is not a public company, but Microsoft is active in online trading across the globe. What is in it For Microsoft? Microsoft has some social media platforms, like LinkedIn, but have not been able to infiltrate the teen, pre-work age group. The purchase of TikTok could create competition for Facebook and Google, leveraging gaming areas that Microsoft has a handle on like Minecraft and Xbox. What is surprising is that large tech is under fire. Apple, Facebook, Amazon, and Alphabet testified in front of Congress in late July to discuss the issues related to monopoly activity and anticompetitive behavior. Surprisingly, Microsoft was not in attendance. It does seem odd with this backdrop that the White House would push TikTok into Microsofts arms. The Risks are for Both Companies Without a successful merger, Microsoft will be left without a competitive social media product to face off against Facebook and Google. The high-profile nature could also make it difficult for many of Microsofts managers who might need to spend time fending off assaults from Congress. For ByteDance, an unsuccessful merger could mean that its widely popular US operation could be cut off from US users, per President Trump which would make it very difficult to continue to remain popular with the very fickle teen group. Art teacher Jorge Manolo Villarroel, wearing a Batman costume, poses for a photo at his home during one of his online classes, amid the new coronavirus pandemic, in La Paz, Bolivia, Tuesday, June 9, 2020. The class begins with a Zumba-style warm-up (Villarroel is also a Zumba instructor), followed by a prayer and then superhero music, to set the proper atmosphere. (AP Photo/Juan Karita) Read more LA PAZ, BOLIVIA Sometimes, Jorge Manolo Villarroel is Spiderman. Sometimes, hes the Flash, or the Green Lantern. But hes always a teacher one who lives out his childhood dreams by dressing up as superheroes for the locked-down students who attend his virtual classes. His classes have become so popular that siblings fight for the laptop screen to learn from this costumed teacher. They, in turn, often offer him tech help. They arrive to the virtual classes before me and the first surprise is to guess which superhero will appear on the screen, said Villarroel. At 33, Villarroel speaks with the passion of a child. His modest room is filled with the masks and costumes of his characters, along with images of Jesus, several Roman Catholic saints, revolutionary leader Che Guevara, and his parents. Villarroel, who lives in a poorer neighborhood of the Bolivian capital, teaches art at San Ignacio Catholic School in a wealthier area. His students range from 9 to 14 years old. Hey teacher! You have to anchor the image ... Go to the screen of your cellphone and look for a small one, a student told Villarroel; the teacher, dressed as the Flash, explained to his youngest students how to put together a mosaic of geometric figures using colored leaves. For years, they have entered our adult world; now its time for us to open up to their world, which is chat, he said. When they speak they can be limited, but in chat they expand, they become the teachers and show me applications. The class begins with a Zumba-style warm up Villarroel is also a Zumba instructor followed by a prayer and then superhero music, to set the proper atmosphere. Forty-five students follow the online classes. Villarroel himself makes the costumes he wears. I had to improvise since with the quarantine I couldnt get out, he said. At times, with his glasses, he looks as much like a disc jockey in front of a computer as a superhero. His tiny dog Coquito sleeps obliviously on his lap. Education stagnated in traditional molds. After the pandemic everything will change, including education, he said. Many schools, especially private ones like Villarroels, have been teaching online since March. But in Bolivia, the poorest country in South America, the internet is slow, expensive and available only in large cities and towns. In many poor rural areas, electricity is only just arriving and television still relatively new. Some complain that virtual classes are only available to those who have the money to buy a computer or cellphone, worsening the countrys already large gap between the rich and poor. Even in my private school there are children who do not have a good cellphone, Villarroel acknowledged. But we are in a time of change. CHICAGO, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the new market research report "Software-Defined Networking Market by Component (SDN Infrastructure, Software, and Services), SDN Type (Open SDN, SDN via Overlay, and SDN via API), End User, Organization Size, Enterprise Vertical, and Region - Global Forecast to 2025", published by MarketsandMarkets, the SDN Market size expected to grow from USD 13.7 billion in 2020 to USD 32.7 billion by 2025, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 19.0% during the forecast period. The major growth drivers for the market includes investment of CSPs in SDN technology to automate network infrastructure, significant reduction in CAPEX and OPEX, increasing demand for cloud services, data center consolidation, and server virtualization, increase in demand for enterprise mobility to enhance productivity for field-based services. Browse in-depth TOC on "Software-Defined Networking Market" 423 Tables 40 Figures 465 Pages Ask for Report Brochure: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=655 The SDN via API is expected to show the highest growth rate during the forecast period SDN enables the programming of network behavior in a centrally controlled manner through software applications using open APIs. By opening up traditionally closed network platforms and implementing a common SDN control layer, operators can manage the entire network and its devices consistently, regardless of the complexity of the underlying network technology. The open APIs support a wide range of applications, including cloud orchestration, Operation Support System (OSS)/Business Support System (BSS), Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), and business-critical networked apps. APIs are core components in the SDN architecture. There are two types of APIs: northbound APIs and southbound APIs. The former is used by controllers to push configuration and state to network devices, such as switches and routers, while the latter is used to push information between the controller and other applications. Several service providers, such as AT&T and Orange, are working with Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF), a nonprofit international industry consortium dedicated to the adoption of carrier Ethernet networks and services, and TM Forum, a nonprofit industry association for service providers and their suppliers in the telecommunications industry, to accelerate efforts to develop a set of standardized APIs for industry-wide use. The consulting professional services segment is estimated to have a larger market share during the forecast period Consulting services deal with complex inquiries and have numerous clients that demand constant changes in product and service offerings. These services focus more on offering superior customer services. The demand for consulting services is increasing across the globe due to the rising pressure on organizations to stay competitive in their respective markets. Consulting service providers offer services irrespective of the location and time to help clients streamline their business processes with innovative practices to sustain the market competition and efficiently manage employees. Speak to Research Expert: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalystNew.asp?id=655 North America is expected to hold the largest market size duringthe forecast period North America is a market with high growth potential in SDN, which is aided by the region's early and fast adoption of technologies, such as cloud computing, network functions virtualization, mobility services, and Bring Your Own Device (BYOD). High industrialization in countries, such as the US and Canada, has always been a positive factor for aiding fast growth in various business verticals. Countries in North America have favorable standards and networking regulations that help in boosting the Software-Defined Networking Market. North America houses several global leaders in networking industries and is a market for investment, opening up new opportunities for the adoption of the SDN infrastructure. 5G deployment is relatively slower in North America than in other regions due to the complexities involved in managing SDN with the backhaul infrastructure. In SDN, the control of the whole network is with the controller; hence, the deployment requires various organizational, functional, and cultural changes within organizations. Despite the challenges for the Software-Defined Networking Market in North America, it continues to be the most technologically advanced region with the latest business applications and use cases in all industry verticals. Major players in the Software-Defined Networking Market, such as Cisco, Ciena, and Juniper Networks, continue to leverage their majority revenue from this region. Key players in the global Software-Defined Networking Market are Cisco (US), Dell EMC (US), HPE (US), VMware (US), Huawei (China), Juniper Networks (US), Nokia (Finland), Oracle (US), Citrix (US), Extreme Networks (US), Infovista (US), NEC (Japan), Pluribus Networks (US), Arista Networks (US), CloudGenix (US), Cumulus Networks (US), DataCore Software (US), Fortinet (US), Fujitsu (Japan), HiveIO (US), Lenovo (HongKong), NetApp (US), Pica8 (US), Pivot3 (US), and Scale Computing (US). Browse Adjacent Markets: Data Center and Networking Market Research Reports & Consulting Related Reports: Software Defined Perimeter Market by Component (Solutions and Services), Connectivity, Deployment Mode, Organization Size, User Type (Government & Defense, IT & Telecom, and Retail & eCommerce), and Region - Global Forecast to 2024 https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/software-defined-perimeter-market-141863014.html Software-Defined Security Market by Component (Solution and Services), Enforcement Point (Virtual Machines, Network Security Gateway), Deployment Mode (Cloud and On-Premise), End User (Enterprise, Telecom/Cloud Service Provider) - Global Forecast to 2021 https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/software-defined-security-market-146062541.html 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. 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Contact: Mr. Aashish Mehra MarketsandMarkets INC. 630 Dundee Road Suite 430 Northbrook, IL 60062 USA: +1-888-600-6441 Email: [email protected] Visit Our Website: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com Research Insight: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/ResearchInsight/software-defined-networking-sdn-market.asp Content Source: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/PressReleases/sdn-market.asp SOURCE MarketsandMarkets P ubs, restaurants and cafes will offer half-price mid-week meals from today under the government's new "Eat Out to Help Out" scheme. The discount drive, launched by Chancellor Rishi Sunak in a bid to boost a hospitality sector devastated by the coronavirus pandemic, will see a maximum saving of 10 per person applied to meals at more than 70,000 venues across the country throughout August. The meal deal will apply Monday to Wednesday, and takes in the spectrum of venues - from major restaurant chains McDonalds and Starbucks to Michelin-starred restaurants, including Tom Kerridge's The Hand and Flowers in Marlow, and Yorkshire destination The Angel at Hetton in Skipton. The program will include all food but only non-alcoholic drinks, and will apply to both adults and children. The scheme was unveiled as part of Mr Sunak's summer statement. He said: "To get customers back into restaurants, cafes and pubs, and protect the 1.8 million people who work in them, I can announce today that, for the month of August, we will give everyone in the country an Eat Out to Help Out discount." The UK's 130bn hospitality industry is the country's third largest employer and represents nine per cent of all jobs. Tom Kerridge's Michelin-starred Marlow venue is among those taking part in the groundbreaking scheme / PA The scheme has already been hailed as a success by some restaurateurs. High-end steak restaurant, Hawksmoor, introduced a 20 rump steak and chips dish to its London, Manchester and Edinburgh venues. The Treasury discount will see diners pay just 10 a plate. Since announcing the deal, the restaurant founders have said they are booked up Monday to Wednesday throughout August. Londoners can find out which restaurants in the capital are taking part by entering a postcode the government's Eat Out to Help Out website. The monsoon will enter in its active phase from August 3 in India bringing heavy rainfall over parts of central and western India, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Sunday. As per the weather department, the heavy rainfall condition will continue till August 5. IMD forecast said, ''Heavy to very heavy rainfall likely over western coast, central India from August 3-5.'' IMD further predicted that a low-pressure area is likely to form over the north Bay of Bengal around August 4. A monsoon trough is also likely to shift southwards and strengthen during the next three to four days. Monsoon will enter to active phase over the Central and Peninsular India from 4th August onwards for subsequent 3-4 days, said IMD. The weather department also predicted widespread rainfall with heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places with isolated extremely heavy falls likely over coastal districts of Gujarat region on August 5 and over Gujarat state August 6. Widespread rainfall also likely with isolated heavy to very heavy falls over Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh on 4th to 5th August 2020 and isolated heavy falls over Jharkhand and Gangetic West Bengal during same period, stated the weather forecast. The weather department has also issued a red warning for coastal Maharashtra and Goa on August 4. Heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected on August 3 over Mumbai and isolated extremely heavy showers on August 4-5, the IMD said. The Ghana National Campaign Coalition (GNECC) has asked the Ghana Education Service (GES) to ensure that all teachers adhered strictly to their professional code of conduct, to curb violence in schools. The Coalition also urged the GES and school authorities not to shield any teacher found to have breached the code of conduct and other relevant regulations, to serve as deterrent to other teachers. This follows the alleged locking up of two students of the Ejisu Secondary Technical School by Mr Albert Kofi Appiah, the Assistant Headmaster of the school in his office, for allegedly stealing a stabilizer belonging to the school. His alleged conduct nearly led to the commission of suicide by one of the students. A statement issued and signed by Mr Joseph Atsu Homadzi, Interim Board Chairman, GNECC, and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra, said such acts should not be countenanced. It further stated that in a video footage, students were crawling on a road at night as a form of punishment meted out by the Assistant Headmaster to them for eating at an odd time. "The same Assistant Head is also alleged to have asked some other students of the school to scoop human excreta with their bare hands for defecating in the bush, as punishment." The Coalition said even though it supported punishment being meted out to recalcitrant students to serve as a deterrent to other students, any form of punishment must conform to rules and regulations. It however commended the GES for its swift response to the issue of unlawful imprisonment of the students, by asking the Assistant Headmaster to step aside and the subsequent processes of his arrest and prosecution. "There should be vibrant counselling units in every pre-tertiary institution to give guidance to students and to encourage them to report any form of abuse by teaching, non-teaching staff and fellow students to the appropriate authorities," it said. ---GNA DENVER, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Susan Antilla, a tireless fighter for individual investors and others victimized by those who abuse their positions of influence and trust, has been named a 2020 Business News Visionary. The distinction is bestowed on an elite group of journalists whose dedication, foresight, and talents have had a transformative impact on the profession. Antilla's oral history and profile are available at www.NewsLuminaries.com and will be featured in a commemorative book to be published in 2021. 2020 Business News Visionary Honoree Susan Antilla Dean Rotbart, editor-in-chief, NewsLuminaries.com "Susan has spent her entire career including positions with USA Today, The New York Times, Bloomberg News and TheStreet.com exposing wrongdoing and wrongdoers," said Dean Rotbart, chair and editor-in-chief of the Business News Visionary Awards. Antilla's trailblazing 2002 book, "Tales From the Boom-Boom Room: The Landmark Legal Battles That Exposed Wall Street's Shocking Culture of Sexual Harassment," was first to expose the pay discrimination and sexual abuse that plagued women in the brokerage industry. The book presaged the #MeToo movement that eventually felled the careers of hundreds of prominent executives, politicians, athletes, and entertainers. Antilla, a 2017 recipient of "The Betty Furness Consumer Media Service Award," presented by the Consumer Federation of America, is currently a reporting fellow at Type Investigations, formerly known as The Investigative Fund. In her oral history, Antilla recalls that when she worked at USA Today, where she frequently wrote about securities industry misconduct, a senior editor got word to her that she should stop writing "that investor protection crap." Susan responded, "I think we've got a problem here because investor protection crap is what I do." Antilla began her journalism career freelancing, in barter for business cards, at a Manhattan giveaway newspaper. In 1978, she joined Dun's Business Month (then known as Dun's Review) and has worked in financial journalism ever since. Antilla recalls that it was her mother, Gloria "Glo" Claudet, who impressed upon her that women can be economically and intellectually independent, and that a person's social and economic standing should have no bearing on the decency with which they are treated. Claudet, who was known for her professionalism and integrity as a realtor, passed away in November 2019, at age 95. The Business News Visionary Awards are a continuation of the Business News Luminary Awards, which, in 2000, honored the 100 top business and financial journalists of the 20th century. "The goal of this project extends beyond the celebration of the specific men and women who are profiled," noted Terri Thompson, who introduces each journalist's oral history. "It is also to educate the public about the high standards to which these and so many other dedicated journalists have adhered and to offer a proven playbook for other journalists and journalism students to follow," she says. Thompson is the former director of the Knight-Bagehot Fellowship in Economics and Business Journalism at Columbia University. Rotbart is a Pulitzer Prize-nominated, award-winning financial journalist, former columnist with The Wall Street Journal, author, and a news entrepreneur. He, along with a panel of more than two dozen distinguished nominating judges including past award recipients and top business news organization editors and reporters is responsible for selecting the 2020 class of honorees. The Business News Visionary and News Luminary Awards are made possible, in part, by the support of Monday Morning Radio , a weekly podcast produced in cooperation with the nonprofit Wizard Academy, and The Dilenschneider Group, providing an unsurpassed level of communications counsel to global clients. Additional support is provided by TimeinaBottlePhotography.com and its founder, Avital Rotbart, specializing in world-class portrait photography. Contact: Dean Rotbart 303-296-1200 [email protected] SOURCE NewsLuminaries.com Portland starts a relatively average summer weather week Monday with morning marine clouds that will clear to afternoon sunshine. Temperatures for the first few days of August should remain near average, in the low-to-mid 80s, until later in the week, when forecasters for the National Weather Service expect a chance for some rain. Marine clouds made their way into the metro area early Monday and will stick around for most of the morning. Once they clear off, skies will be sunny, and the high temperatures will reach about 83 degrees. Tuesday should have fewer to no morning clouds. With skies remaining mostly clear, the high temperatures are likely to reach 86 degrees. The National Weather Services Pendleton office took a look at the dry conditions throughout the western states: Westerly winds will kick up beginning Wednesday. Even with clear skies, the high temp is expected to stay near 84 degrees. A weak system moving into northwest Oregon will begin to bring clouds and possible rain by late Wednesday night. Thursday could be the first instance of widespread light rain in Portland since early July. The high temps will reflect that by dropping to about 74 degrees. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured the final forfeiture of N827.7 million from two companies identified as contractors with the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). The companies are Flank Power Resources Limited and GMFD Ventures Limited. In a statement on Monday signed by its spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, the EFCC said Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos gave the order on June 29. The EFCC had secured the interim forfeiture of the money on June 8. After we got the interim forfeiture from the court of the said amount for corrupt practices, the court-mandated us (EFCC) to publish it on national newspapers within 14 days, Mr Oyewole said later in a phone interview with PREMIUM TIMES while explaining the grounds for the final forfeiture. If anyone has an objection to the ownership of the properties, he should come up before it is being forfeited to the government. So after 14 days, nobody came up. The court then granted a final for forfeiture, he added. He said the order followed an affidavit asking the court for the forfeiture of the sum to the federal government of Nigeria, being proceeds of unlawful activity, traced to some contractors accounts with Zenith Bank. In recent weeks, a lot of controversies had emerged around the NDDC. The two chambers of the National Assembly had, a few weeks ago, held investigative hearings on allegations of corruption in the commission. READ ALSO: Due to criticisms of the operations of the commission, President Muhammadu Buhari had, in 2019, ordered a forensic audit of the operations of the organisation from 2001 to 2019. NDDC is saddled with the responsibility of developing the oil-rich Niger Delta region of Nigeria. One of the core mandates of the commission is to train and educate the youth of the region to curb hostilities and militancy while developing key infrastructure to promote diversification and productivity. Breakdown of recoveries A breakdown of the recovery shows that N616, 679, 098.32 (Six Hundred and Sixteen Million, Six Hundred and Seventy-Nine Thousand, Ninety-Eight Naira, Thirty-Two Kobo) was recovered from Flank Power Resources Limited, while N211million (Two Hundred and Eleven Million Naira) was recovered from GMFD Ventures Limited. It was discovered that between 2018 and 2019, Flank Power Resources Limited received the funds from the NDDC, through its account number:1015642852, while GMFD received through account number: 1014657819 both of which are domiciled in Zenith Bank Plc for desilting contracts which aside from being inflated, were not executed but diverted and laundered. The sum of N616, 679, 098.32 recovered from Flank Power Resources Limited was facilitated through 62 Zenith Bank drafts in favour of the EFCC Recovered Funds Account with the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, while the N211million from GMFD came through 22 Zenith Bank drafts in favour of the same account, the EFCC said. One of the most volatile consumer goods companies on the market these days, Luckin Coffee (OTC:LKNC.Y), experienced yet another big shake-up on Monday. The Chinese coffee chain announced that two of its directors, Jie Yang and Ying Zeng, tendered their resignations from the board of directors. In the tersely worded announcement, Luckin said "thanks Ms. Yang and Ms. Zeng for their dedicated service to the Company." Subsequent to that release, Luckin issued another stating that two of its shareholders, Lucky Cup Holdings and Fortune Cup Holdings, made a formal requisition to reinstate Sean Shao as a director. Luckin is convening an extraordinary general meeting on Sept. 2 to vote on the matter. The machinations of Luckin's board have assumed soap opera dimensions since the company became embroiled in a large-scale accounting scandal earlier this year. Shao, an independent director who had been in charge of the internal investigation into that scandal, was voted out of his position in an unusual move on July 5 -- the same day Yang and Zeng were voted in as directors. Also on that day, controversial board chairman Charles Zhengyao Lu was voted out by shareholders. The company's internal volatility began in January, following an explosive report from short-seller Muddy Waters Research alleging that Luckin fraudulently (and significantly) inflated its sales figures beginning in Q3 2019. In addition to the internal investigation, regulators in China have launched probes into the allegations. Meanwhile, numerous employees at the center of the accounting scandal have either been fired by Luckin or resigned. The CEO and chief operating officer at the time the news broke, Qian Zhiya and Liu Jian, respectivey, are no longer at the company. Despite the latest turmoil, Luckin's shares rose on Monday to close 0.8% higher, broadly moving in step with the wider stock market. With several countries developing their own coronavirus vaccines, debates have begun to ensue of who gets the first shipments of the mass-produced treatment when the development process is finished. Who gets the first vaccines? Health authorities from the United States are hopeful that by next month, the world government would have a consensus or draft guidance on how to distribute initial doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. According to AP News, the director of the National Institutes of Health, Dr Francis Collins, said not everyone is going to like the decisions that will be made. Collins said there would be people who believe that they should be at the very front of the line and given the vaccine first. Historically, the tradition for distributing the first doses of a limited vaccine demands that health workers and people who are vulnerable to severe symptoms get the treatment first. However, Collins suggested new ideas and recommended that authorities take into consideration the geographical aspects of the outbreak and see where the virus has hit the hardest. The director also noted that officials should not forget about the volunteers who willingly let themselves get injected with what they thought were unproven vaccines for the purpose of testing their safety and efficacy but were actually dummy shots, saying the world owed them a special priority. This summer, several extensive studies are researching which of the many potential vaccines against the COVID-19 virus are actually safe and effective to use. The leading establishments, Moderna Inc. and Pfizer Inc., have begun late-stage trials last week that would take 30,000 volunteers each. In the next few months, there will be other large trials that would call for a vast number of volunteers to test potential coronavirus vaccines, including those by AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, and Novavax. Some other researches, including those in China, are currently in smaller-sized late-stage trials. Some of the most difficult choices in determining who to give the coronavirus vaccines to first include whether pregnant women should be given priority or if Blacks and Latinos, who have disproportionately been affected by the pandemic, should be given special considerations, as reported by CNBC. Also Read: Dogs Can Accurately Sniff Coronavirus in Saliva and Secretions Distribution Several task forces have coordinated with each other to develop a fair and equitable distribution framework to determine how vaccines will be given out between countries. A professor of bioethics, Arthur Caplan, who is teaching at New York University Langone Medical Center, believes there will be some countries who will have spare vaccines and others will be struggling to get more. Caplan said nations would be able to utilize their excess of vaccines to strike trade deals with other countries. The professor also said enforcing safety and efficacy is another delicate issue as different countries have varying quality-control processes. According to VOA News, Trump's administration is conducting Operation War Speed that aims to speed up the manufacture and distribution of coronavirus vaccines and is currently discussing how to rapidly deliver the correct number of doses to areas that need vaccinations. Dr Nancy Messonnier of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said there are several methods and innovative ideas that are being discussed on how to accurately and fairly distribute coronavirus vaccines once the manufacturing process is finished. The medical expert said as soon as the first safe and effective vaccine is declared, the agency hopes to start the programs the next day but said there is still a long road ahead. Related Article: Russia Eyes August Registry of First Coronavirus Vaccine @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Member of Parliament (MP) for Sekondi constituency, Andrew Kofi Egyapa Mercer has slammed the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) over their criticisms regarding the reopening of schools in the country. The NDC was opposed to President Nana Akufo-Addo's directive that schools should reopen for final year students to prepare for their examinations. The party argued that the President was exposing the students to the COVID-19 pandemic and further held it was also a strategy by him to garner votes from the students for re-election during the Presidential elections this year. The criticisms became intense when some of the students in the Junior and Senior High Schools contracted the disease but eventually recovered and joined their colleagues back in school. Over 300000 students are writing their WASSCE irrespective of the pandemic, however there are precautionary measures to protect the students. The NDC as well as other critics described President Akufo-Addo as insensitive and advised him to take cues from Ghana's neighbouring country, Nigeria. The Nigerian government refused to open schools in the country. Nigeria's Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu is quoted as saying not even the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) will be allowed to determine the resumption date of schools for Nigeria and that he preferred the students lose the academic year than get exposed to the disease. But according to Hon. Egyapa Mercer, the NDC's agenda against President Akufo-Addo has backfired. This is because, he explained, the Nigerian government has made a u-turn asking the students to return to their classrooms to sit for the final examinations. Hon. Egyapa Mercer noted that the decision by the Nigerian government has been taken at a late hour which means the students were not given an ample time to study for the exams. But contrary to what Nigeria has done to their students, he argued, Mr. Akufo-Addo on the other hand being a sensitive and considerate President allowed students in the country to go back to their schools earlier so they can adequately prepare themselves for their exams. Speaking to sit-in host Nana Yaw Kesseh on Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo', he stressed that the NDC can no more deceive Ghanaians. "Everybody knows that you're singing your chorus to try and hoodwink Ghanaians, so nobody wants to support you in your hideous crime." He also pointed out the nation's elders like Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II keep acknowledging President Akufo-Addo because of his good works which is to tell the NDC and political opponents of the Akufo-Addo administration that the President and his government are on the right track. "Discerning elders of this country are watching . . They can decipher fact from fiction and commend where appropriate and condemn where necessary," he said. Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/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 Thirty-five government agencies in Seoul including nine ministries will be relocated to Sejong City about 100 km south of the capital by 2014 after a government proposal to change the plan fell foul of the National Assembly. Public Administration and Security Minister Maeng Hyung-kyu on Monday said the government now wants to complete the relocation by 2014 as originally planned. The decision came after lawmakers rejected a proposal to turn Sejong City into a regional business hub instead. In 2005, the government announced a plan to relocate 49 government agencies, including 12 ministries to Sejong City. But a governmental reorganization in 2008 shrank the number of central government agencies from 18 to 15 while others changed their names, leading to modifications of the plan. The ministry said the targets for relocation are large agencies and ministries that were recently merged with others. Although the number of agencies has dwindled, the number of civil servants affected by the relocation rose slightly from 10,374 to 10,440. Construction of the new administrative city began in late 2008 for Lot 1 (38,000 sq.m), where the Prime Minister's Office will be located, and is about 24 percent complete. Groundbreaking will begin soon for Lot 2 (21,000 sq.m), which will house economy-related agencies, while construction of other sections is slated for completion in November 2013 and October 2014. Pompeo Says U.S. Firms 'Becoming Aware' Of Abuses In Xinjiang, Warns China On Iran Deal By RFE/RL August 02, 2020 U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said American companies are "becoming aware" of human rights abuses in the Chinese province of Xinjiang as he reiterated his call for them to reconsider doing business there. During an interview with Fox News on August 2, he also said that the United States would soon take action against Chinese software companies and warned a Chinese trade deal with Iran would "destabilize" the Middle East. Pompeo told Fox that Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), which was sanctioned on July 31 by the Treasury Department, had "deep connectivity" to Western businesses, including U.S. companies. Pompeo said XPCC was involved in cotton production. "I don't think companies -- some brand names here in America -- want to be connected to what is taking place there," he told Fox. The action freezes any U.S. assets of the company and officials, and prohibits Americans from doing business with them. American clothing brands import significant amounts of cotton from China. Pompeo accused the Chinese Communist Party of doing "terrible, terrible things" to the Uyghurs, the Muslim Turkic ethnic group living in Xinjiang, including carrying out sterilizations and forced abortions. He added that American companies are "starting to become more aware" of what is happening in Xinjiang and of the "challenges this presents to their brand." "I think all across the world for an awful long time we didn't recognize the threats posed to freedom, the authoritarian nature of the regime there, and so we let things go on that we shouldn't," he said. The U.S. secretary of state said the latest rounds of sanctions has put Chinese firms operating in Xinjiang "on notice" that they must change their behavior. Pompeo's comments come amid a deterioration of relations between the United States and China over a host of issues -- from human rights abuses, spying, and intellectual property theft to Beijing's response to the coronavirus outbreak. He told Fox News that President Donald Trump will "take action in the coming days" on Chinese software companies that are feeding data directly to the Beijing government, posing a risk to U.S. national security. He gave no further details. Trump said on July 31 that he would soon issue an order for the popular social-media platform TikTok to be banned in the United States. Turning to Iran, Pompeo denounced reports that Beijing and Tehran are close to signing a $400 billion economic and security deal. He said United States sanctions against Iran would be applied to Chinese state firms, warning that Tehran's access to money and weapons "only compounds" risks for the region. "I think countries in the Middle East should see this for what it is. China's entry into Iran will destabilize the Middle East," he said. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/pompeo-says-u-s-firms- becoming-aware-of-abuses-in-xinjiang-warns -china-on-iran-deal/30762657.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 Alabama just released new guidance for school officials as they encounter the inevitable question: What to do when students or teachers catch COVID-19? Just days before some schools reopen, the Alabama Department of Public Health released an 85-page toolkit that outlines everything from what to do when a student or teacher has symptoms to how to use the county risk dashboard to make decisions to which forms to use to tell health officials about an outbreak. The document was posted online a day ahead of a statewide training session ADPH is holding to walk school officials through the toolkit. State Superintendent Eric Mackey said he is ready to help superintendents with any changes they need to make based on ADPH's guidance. "For instance, if they need to delay the start of school or change their schedule to an A/B hybrid schedule," Mackey said, "then we'll work with superintendents to make those things happen." Mackey said ADPH made some revisions last week based on input he shared, but not all of the changes he wanted were made. "They're public health, and it's a medical document." The guidance is clear: anyone with symptoms needs to be sent home and anyone in close contact with the symptomatic person needs to be sent home. Clean and disinfect the areas where the symptomatic person was. If the person with symptoms tests positive for COVID-19, everybody waits two weeks before returning to school. The state guidance does not set any parameters for when a classroom or a school should be closed. "ADPH does not routinely mandate school closure for outbreaks of infectious diseases," the document states. "The decision to close a school is a local administrative decision and one that may be made after consultation with public health officials." The guidance defines an outbreak as two people in one classroom positively diagnosed with COVID-19. What this all could mean for schools is an ongoing rotation of students and staff in and out of the classroom, as the guidelines call for those showing symptoms and all of those in close contactdefined as within six feet for 15 minutes or morewith the symptomatic person, including those who are wearing masks, to be sent home. Symptoms include coughing, fever, muscle aches, headaches, new loss of taste or smell among others. How long everyone has to stay away from school depends on whether the symptomatic person tests positive for COVID-19. A positive test means everyone who has been in close contact with the person testing positive must quarantine for 14 days from the date of the contact with the person who tested positive according to the guidance. Related: Thousands of children in Alabama could lose access to school meals as waivers expire School officials are required to file an online report within four hours once school officials are notified that someone has tested positive, and the report must include the names of all students in the classroom, teacher and staff names, guardians for students and their telephone numbers. Among the key principles for schools to consider is to use seating charts in classrooms and on buses "to help identify which students were in close contact to other students who test positive for COVID-19." Those seating charts can then be used in contact tracing, uploaded to ADPH when schools report confirmed and suspected cases. If a student or staff member tests positive for COVID-19, they should quarantine for 10 days and be without fever or fever-reducing medicine for 24 hours before returning to school. The document doesn't clearly say what happens to everyone if the symptomatic person tests negative, but presumably everyone except the symptomatic person would be cleared to return to school. ADPH gives schools the choice of whether to require a healthcare provider's release for the symptomatic person to return to school. As to how families and others in the school will be notified, the document states that school officials should use their existing school communication methods to notify parents and families that an exposure has occurred. "Confidentiality and privacy must be maintained," according to the document. School nurses will play a key role, serving as contact tracers within the school itself, identifying symptomatic students, tracing those in close contact, reporting those contacts to ADPH for further investigation, and contacting families of those children to let them know of the possible exposure. Not every school in Alabama has a school nurse, so it's unclear who will be responsible for the school nurse's duties. ADPH contact tracers will work with the sick person to identify close contacts made outside of the school community. The document opens with a statement of purpose, saying it is a roadmap to "support the goal of all students returning to school safely during the COVID-19 pandemic" and includes pages of preventative suggestions Those suggestions are similar to ones already released by the Centers for Disease Control and Protection, and include encouraging everyone to wear masks at school, set up rooms where students can be six feet apart, make sure students have access to soap and water for frequent 20-second handwashing, and reminding students to avoid touching their eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands. All students and school employees are required to wear masks under Gov. Kay Iveys order, which expires Aug. 31. Frequently touched surfaces within the school and on school buses should be cleaned and disinfected at least daily, the guidance states, or between use as much as possible. Shared objects should be limited and cleaned between uses. Cleaning and disinfecting products should not be used near children, and adequate ventilation must be used to prevent inhaling toxic fumes. Limiting movement of students in the school, having the teacher change classrooms instead of students in hallways, and minimizing or eliminating large group activities should be considered. Lunchrooms need to be at reduced capacity, and students should be encouraged to bring their own meals to school. Disposable utensils are recommended, too. Soap and water hand washing is preferred for younger students, but hand sanitizer is acceptable for older students and staff. Mackey said hes waiting to comment further until after the statewide training on Tuesday. AL.com is keeping a list of start dates and what options are for students in school districts across the state at this link. For all of AL.coms back to school coverage, click here. Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad took to Twitter to announce that he has isolated himself as a precautionary measure after a meeting on Saturday with home minister Amit Shah who has tested positive for Covid-19. Friends! Im absolutely fine. To follow protocol I hv isolated myself at home for few days as I had met Amit Shah Ji on Saturday evening for n official meeting. Im working from home & following daily routine including Yoga & exercise.Also reading books & enjoying classical music, Prasad tweeted. Another Union minister Babul Supriyo also went into self-isolation as he too had met Shah. Supriyo said he had been advised by doctors to confine himself away from his family members for the next few days and a test would be done soon. Earlier Sunday, Shah said he had tested positive for coronavirus and was getting admitted to a hospital following the advice of doctors. Shah also requested those who had come in contact with him in the last few days to get tested for Covid-19 and isolate themselves. The home minister is being treated at Medanta hospital in Gurugram. 1. Vishal Bhardwaj Movie - Maqbool (2004) 2. Vishal Bhardwaj Movie - The Blue Umbrella (2005) 3. Vishal Bhardwaj Movie - Omkara (2006) 4. Vishal Bhardwaj Movie - Kaminey (2009) 5. Vishal Bhardwaj Movie - Haider (2014) 6. Vishal Bhardwaj Movie - Pataakha (2018) Vishal Bhardwaj started out as a music director and later graduated towards directing films. He has a special knack of bringing to life William Shakespeares works in Indian settings. He has derived Maqbool from Macbeth, Omkara from Othello, and Haider from Hamlet. Hes considered as a master craftsman and tells layered tales filled with intricate detailing. Hes been recognised as one of the finest Bollywood directors of the present era. On the occasion of his birthday, we present a list of some ofdown the years.Director: Vishal BhardwajCast: Pankaj Kapur, Irrfan Khan, Tabu, Om Puri, Naseeruddin ShahThe film was an adaptation of William Shakespeare's Macbeth. Maqbool (Irrfan Khan) is the right-hand man of Jahangir Khan (Pankaj Kapur), a powerful underworld don. Like the three witches of Macbeth, two corrupt cops, (Om Puri and Naseeruddin Shah) predict that one day Maqbool will rebel and claim the throne for himself. Nimmi (Tabu), is Jahangir Khans mistress and Maqbools secret lover. She instigates him to kill Jahangir and one day, he murders his mentor in cold blood. But murder hangs heavily on his soul and he keeps seeing visions of Jahangirs ghost. Nimmi too goes mad by guilt and the two lovers are tragically killed when the opposition unites against them.Director: Vishal BhardwajCast: Shreya Sharma and Pankaj KapurThe film is based on a story by Ruskin Bond, said to be Vishas favourite writer after Shakespeare. This heartwarming film won the. A young girl gets hold of a Japanese blue umbrella and becomes an instant celebrity in her village. Everyone wants to own such an umbrella but cant do so because of the high cost. The village shopkeeper (played brilliantly by Pankaj Kapur) covets it so much that he hatches a plan to steal it, which leads him to several misadventures.Director: Vishal BhardwajCast: Ajay Devgn, Saif Ali Khan, Vivek Oberoi, Bipasha Basu, Kareena Kapoor, Konkona Sen SharmaAt the beginning of his career, if someone had told Ajay that 15 years down the line he would be acting in a Shakespeare adaptation, he would have laughed it all off as a joke. It took a. Set in the badlands of North India, the film plays out the tragic tale of Iago/Langda Tyagis (Saif Ali Khan) betrayal. Tyagi feels hes been ignored and slighted by his friend because of his handicap and wants revenge. He plots to bring him down by sowing seeds of discontent. Omi/ Othello begins to suspect his wife Dolly/Desdemona (Kareena Kapoor Khan) of infidelity and in a fit of rage kills her. Tyagi, the perpetrator behind all this too is killed by his own wife while Omi commits suicide in remorse. Only Keshu/ Cassius (Vivek Oberoi) is left alive in the end, looking at it all with muted grief. Ajay brought forth both the ruthlessness and the vulnerability of Othello through his power-packed performance and made the viewers root for his character. One can see the pain and the agony amply reflected in his eyes during the tragic climax. He also perfected the use of Khariboli dialect to bring a level of authenticity to his character.Director: Vishal BhardwajCast: Shahid Kapoor, Priyanka ChopraGuddu (Shahid Kapur) and Sweety (Priyanka Chopra), are lovers and help run an NGO which raises awareness about AIDS. Sweety gets pregnant and wants to marry him ASAP. Her brother Bhope (Amole Gupte) doesnt like outsiders and gets Guddu beaten up. Meanwhile, Guddu's twin brother, Charlie (Shahid Kapur), is a street-smart small-time thug who gets caught in a drug deal gone wrong. What follows is a long, convoluted plot involving mistaken identities, where the two brothers must unite not only to fight the mafia but the corrupt police too. Directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, the film looked inspired by Guy Ritchie films, peppered as it was with lots of black humour and stylised action.Director: Vishal BhardwajCast: Shahid Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Tabu, Kay Kay Menon, Narendra Jha and Irrfan KhanThe film is both a modern-day adaptation of William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet and an adaptation of Basharat Peer's memoir Curfewed Night, set amidst the insurgency-hit Kashmir. Haider (Shahid Kapoor), returns from Aligarh Muslim University to seek answers about his father Hilaals (Narendra Jha) disappearance. He begins searching for his father with the help of his childhood sweetheart Arshia Lone (Shraddha Kapoor), a journalist. Hes disturbed by his mother Ghazalas (Tabu) behaviour, who seems to be besotted with his uncle Khurram (Kay Kay Menon). Haider contacts Roohdar (Irrfan), who turns out to be part of a separatist group. Roohdar tells him how he met Hilaal in one of the detention camps, where they both were tortured. He hints Khurram was behind both the imprisonment and Hilaals murder.becomes mentally and emotionally shattered by the news. His only aim in life is to avenge his fathers death. But will that give him closure, especially after Arshias passing? Shahid Kapoor channelled the spirit of Prince Hamlet in his nuanced performance and won over both the critics and the masses.Director: Vishal BhardwajCast: Sanya Malhotra, Radhika Madan, Namit Das, Saanand Verma, Abhishek Duhan, Sunil Grover and Vijay RaazThe film is calledbecause the two sisters, Genda 'Chhutki' Kumari (Sanya Malhotra) and Champa 'Badki' Kumari (Radhika Madan) are explosive firebrands who have a cat and dog relationship with each other and are always ready to gouge out each others eyes. The films big USP indeed are the realistic fight scenes between the two set to some funny music. You feel engrossed as they start off by verbally assaulting each other and then the blows start raining. Its all very melodramatic and over-the-top on one hand and paradoxically feels very real as well. But the sisters dont just fight. They are also companions of sorts when it comes to playing hooky from the school, lighting up beedis or saving each other from lechers. And they arent wilted willows but strong characters having a knowledge of the world. Chhutki wants to study and be a teacher and Badki wants to own her own dairy. Indeed, one of the conflicts of the film arises from the fact that due to the lack of money, their dreams arent getting fulfilled. They find themselves yoked to domesticity with no way out and are deeply frustrated because of it. They had unknowingly eloped with brothers played by Namit Das and Abhishek Duhan and cant tolerate living together under the same roof after a point because of a lack of financial independence. Leaders are now experiencing a pivotal time in history. There are major changes in the way companies do business as they address the health and well-being of their employees in a world dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, there is heightened awareness of the need to equally include everyone in societys promises. A higher level of appreciation is evident about the challenges that diverse segments of our society face each day. Credit union directors, senior leadership, executives and employees can work together, employing their collective wisdom to navigate this terrain and increase organizational resilience in the process. Three strategic areas of focus command immediate attention to increase resilience: attending to, and empathy with, the needs of the workforce in planning for the return to the office; a renewed commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion; and a more thorough look at cybersecurity. Remote work will be with us for some time as the Covid-19 experience remakes the office-scape for both those who return and work from home. Returning employees may only be in the office certain days, as there is expected to be a major component of off-site work, due to both management efficiencies and the requirements of social distancing. Some employees may only continue work at a distance. Attuning to the employee experience with a shifting work dynamic, is critical for managing the credit unions culture. Data shows that most employees feel productive in working at a distance, however, many also feel tremendous stress that being at home entails. This was the unfortunate impact of potentially reducing productivity and increasing distractions from family obligations and childrens needs. Managements active listening to employees using regular frequent two-way conversations with employees can be the most important tool to building relationships and engendering trust. These conversations often surface problem areas that are diminishing productivity and can uncover creative ways to solve difficulties. Managements empathy with the employees situation and seeking solutions together with them can pay off. Answers can arise from openness and listening, and studies show that employees are more engaged when their company works with them to handle distance work. Boards are more involved as an important part of their duties, to support and monitor leaderships organization-wide endeavors to assure employee engagement and a healthy culture. Credit unions have long been hypervigilant about cybersecurity, however distance work has opened a new front for nefarious players to cause problems. The pandemic has given bad actors the chance to be more active than ever, infiltrating digital meetings, and seeking to access data from internet enabled work. CIOs and their teams must wrestle with the overwhelming demand for work-from-home technology itself, while also attacking the need for rigorous cybersecurity. As management confronts this issue, the board also must inform itself, oversee, and probe the credit unions strategies around this critical topic, another essential fiduciary responsibility. At this time, when the quest for racial equity is coinciding with the effects of the pandemic, every business must look in the mirror and assess any gaps between the kind of organization that exists and the one that they want and need to be. Diversity, equity, and inclusion have been important values for the credit union industry for some time. Credit unions appreciate that senior leadership, including the directors, must reflect the composition of their membership. Understanding the member is key to serving them. Even more, studies prove that diversity of thought and background in leadership improves business results. It brings needed fresh thinking to an organization. In current transitional times, an organizations well-being depends on innovation and creativity, new ways of doing things, and new behaviors. Inclusion of everyone in societys promise is not just the right thing to do, it is a leadership responsibility to make your credit union more effective, strategic and resilient for the long-term. The masks were called muzzles, germ shields and dirt traps. They gave people a pig-like snout. Some people snipped holes in their masks to smoke cigars. Others fastened them to dogs in mockery. Bandits used them to rob banks. More than a century ago, as the 1918 influenza pandemic raged in the United States, masks of gauze and cheesecloth became the facial front lines in the battle against the virus. But as they have now, the masks also stoked political division. Then, as now, medical authorities urged the wearing of masks to help slow the spread of disease. And then, as now, some people resisted. In 1918 and 1919, as bars, saloons, restaurants, theaters and schools were closed, masks became a scapegoat, a symbol of government overreach, inspiring protests, petitions and defiant bare-face gatherings. All the while, thousands of Americans were dying in a deadly pandemic. 1918: The infection spreads. The first infections were identified in March, at an Army base in Kansas, where 100 soldiers were infected. Within a week, the number of flu cases grew fivefold, and soon the disease was taking hold across the country, prompting some cities to impose quarantines and mask orders to contain it. The has approved $202 million in additional financing for Bangladesh's Modern Food Storage Facilities Project to increase the capacity of its national strategic grain reserves by 535,500 tons for 4.5 million households. has an impressive track record for growth and development, aspiring to be a middle-income country by its 50th birthday, said the World Bank, which has supported since 1972. The credit from the the bank's Development Association (IDA), which provides concessional financing, has a 30 year term, including a 5 year grace period. currently has the largest ongoing IDA programme totalling over $13.5 billion. The was among the first development partners to support Bangladesh and has committed more than $31 billion in grants, interest-free and concessional credits to the country since its Independence. The Modern Food Storage Facilities Project is helping Bangladesh address food insecurity in challenging times, such as frequent climate-induced disasters or crisis situations like the current Covid-19 pandemic, by supporting the construction of eight public modern steel silo complexes for rice and wheat storage in eight different districts. "Currently public food distribution and grain reserves have a total effective capacity of about 2 million tons," said Christian Berger, Team Leader for the project. "Most of these reserves or 'godowns' are in poor condition, leading to grain losses in quantity and nutritional value. This project helps improve the efficiency of grain storage management," he added. On top of the current construction work taking place in Ashuganj, Madhupur, and Mymensingh, the additional financing will support the construction of rice silos in Dhaka, Narayanganj and Barishal, and wheat silos will be built in Chattogram and Maheshwarpasha. The additional financing will increase the grain reserve available to households to meet the post-disaster needs and improve the efficiency of grain storage management through an online Food Stock and Market Monitoring System (FSMMS), the World Bank said. The project will also create new job opportunities, especially for women, in the operation and management of silos. "Nearly 80 per cent of Bangladesh's population lives in rural areas with climate shocks threatening their livelihoods, welfare, and food security," said Mohammad Anis, Acting World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan. "This modern food storage system, combined with an effective distribution system, will help ensure after a natural disaster or during a crisis such as the current Covid-19 pandemic," he added. He noted that the project has already helped to manufacture and distribute 500,000 household air- and water-tight food containers ("household silos") to poor farmers and women-headed vulnerable households in disaster-prone coastal areas. This success has led the government to commit to further distribute silos to an additional 300,000 households. The project will reduce grain storage and handing losses in public storage facilities by at least 50 per cent and extend the nutritional value of grain for up to two years, instead of the current six months. --IANS sumi/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.) Vineet Upadhyay By Express News Service DEHRADUN: Uttarakhand state Cabinet is soon likely to be expanded to fill the seats which lie vacant. At present, the Cabinet has total nine ministers including the chief minister of the state, said sources from Bhartiya Janta Party and the state government. Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, commenting on the issue said, "The expansion of the Cabinet was delayed due to Covid 19 epidemic. Details were already discussed with senior party leaders in Delhi in February. Cabinet explanation will be done soon once the situation normalises." Out of total 12 Cabinet berths, three still remain vacant. Ten-member Cabinet took oath including the CM himself in 2017 when the BJP won the assembly elections. Two Cabinet berths were left vacant in the Cabinet at the time of oath while another was created due to demise of the then Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prakash Pant due to cancer in June 2019. Death of Pant was followed by speculations of expansions but nothing of the sorts took place. Sources from inside the government told TNIE that there are chances of change in portfolios of many current ministers. At present, total six out of 9 ministers are from Garhwal division of the state. "At least 2 or all the 3 ministers will be from Kumaon division of the state to provide balance and give proper representation to both the regions," added a senior member of the Cabinet. Uttarakhand has two divisions, Kumaon and Garhwal with 6 and 7 districts respectively. The party insiders claim that MLAs who have held the position in the past such as Harbans Kapoor, Bishan Singh Chufal are strong contenders. One of the strongest contender and six time MLA from Kaladhungi state assembly seat, Bansidhar Bhagat was appointed BJP state president in January, earlier this year. Other names which are being discussed include Mahendra Bhatt, Surendra Singh Jeena, Pushkar Singh Dhami, Balwant Singh Bhauryal, Khajan Das, Munna Singh Chauhan and Harbhajan Singh Cheema. A pet dog could be the first in Britain to have contracted coronavirus - after it chewed its owner's discarded tissues. Mandy Hayes, 60, had all the Covid-19 symptoms and was laid up in bed for weeks with a flaming soar throat, dry hacking cough and lost sense of smell She caught her Alaskan malamute Mushka chewing on a used tissue left on her bedside table, but was assured by online advice the disease could not pass to pets. But two weeks later, ten-year-old Mushka developed the exact same symptoms as his owner - a continuous, dry 'covid' cough and extreme breathlessness. Terrified Mandy, from Gravesend, Kent, got a friend to take the dog to the vets - who dismissed the symptoms as kennel cough, then lung worm, she said. Mandy Hayes. from Gravesend in Kent, with her pet dog Mushka who she believes suffered from coronavirus after chewing on her used tissues while she was battling the infection Mushka was rushed to the vet after showing Covid-19 symptoms where they found fluid in his lungs prompting vets to suggest Mandy put him down before she urged them to treat him Can dogs contract the coronavirus infection? The UK Kennel Club says it is highly unlikely a dog will become unwell from coronavirus, stating their have been no confirmed cases of this occurring. A small number of cases have been confirmed in dogs but in these cases, the dogs did not show symptoms and it is thought they tested positive after breathing in contaminated droplets from infected humans. It says if your dog is unwell then it is very unlikely that COVID-19 is the cause of their illness, but it is still important that you contact your vet to find out what is causing their illness. The World Health Organisation for Animal Health says that while there is a possibility for some animals, including dogs, to become infected through contact with already infected humans, there is no evidence the virus can spread from animals to humans. Studies are underway to help experts better understand how the infection spreads in animals. Advertisement But the pooch got worse, and he was rushed in for a CT scan which revealed excess fluid in his lungs - another classic sign of advanced coronavirus. Retired store manager Mandy rejected advice to put Mushka down - and instead pressured vets into giving him steroids, a treatment proven to reduce deaths in COVID-19 patients. And after six weeks of illness, both Mandy and Mushka are finally on the mend. Mandy hasn't been able to get a test for her dog - but is even more convinced he had the disease after it emerged this week a pet cat has tested positive in the UK. Last month, a domestic cat became the first animal in the UK to test positive for the virus. Meanwhile in the US, the first animal to test positive for coronavirus was a tiger at a New York city zoo. Mandy said: 'I know he had it. We nearly lost him. 'When the CT scan revealed lungs full of fluid I asked can he have caught it from me, but the vet said 'no'. 'At that time, the American Kennel Club had on their website that dogs, cats should be sent away to be looked after, if someone had virus in household. 'The UK Kennel Club statement was 'no known cases'. 'This has made me very angry. I know my dog had it. 'I have video clips of him when he was suffering, showing him coughing, and very unwell. 'More pet owners need to be made aware of the fact that it is being proven cats and dogs can contract coronavirus from humans.' Since Covid-19 first emerged in Dec 2019, its infected over 16 million humans, but the PDSA animal charity says that only around 15 pets have tested positive for it despite many of us living in close contact with our pets. The charity states that most of these infected pets showed no signs of illness at all, and those that did, only developed very mild symptoms. All of them are thought to have caught the virus from a human, because they has all been in close contact with someone with strongly suspected, or confirmed Covid-19. Mandy became ill in March but at that point, tests were not routinely available to members of the public who were not in hospital. Mushka became ill after he snatched one of her used tissues off the table. Her husband Vernon, 55, tried to prise the tissue out his mouth, but it was too late. But as Mandy started to feel better, she watched in horror as Mushka became ill. Video footage shows Mushka coughing heavily and consistently grinding his teeth. Mandy believes Mushka is the first dog in the UK to have contracted the coronavirus infection For two weeks after he fell ill his condition got worse despite a number of different diagnosis from vets, until they advised he should be put down. It wasn't until the vet changed Mushka's treatment after pressure from Mandy that his condition began to improve, she claims. The steroids targeted inflammation of the lungs eventually nursed him back to health, she said. Mandy, who has two children and six grandchildren, added: 'Throughout the whole pandemic this was waved off by experts as pet owners just being pedantic and overly worried about their pets. 'I know many families who went with the advice of veterinary experts and had their beloved pets put down when there were other options. 'In America pet owners were informed that the safest thing to do was to re home their pets if they contracted the virus to prevent any chance of them getting ill. 'But we weren't informed of anything like that here in the UK. We were just told it was extremely unlikely and not to worry. 'I think pet owners should know the real reason why their cherished companions aren't here with them now, at a time when they are needed most. 'The government should accept that they were too slow in releasing this critical life saving information to the public.' A statement on the Kennel Club website said there is 'no evidence that dogs' health is impacted by COVID-19'. It added: 'If your dog is unwell then it is very unlikely that COVID-19 is the cause of their illness, but it is still important that you contact your vet to find out what is causing their illness.' Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Sunday expressed hope that the US economy, which has taken a hard hit due to the coronavirus pandemic, will bounce back, albeit a bit slow, in the third quarter this year. The US has so far reported 4,635,279 coronavirus cases and 154,598 fatalities due to the disease. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the US economy saw its largest contraction in modern history, wiping out the past five years of economic growth. The US economy shrank at a 32.9% annual rate between April and June as the country grappled with lockdowns and spending cutbacks during the pandemic. It was the deepest decline since the government began keeping records in 1947 and three times more severe than the prior record of 10% set in 1958. "This virus has devastated our economy and it's no fault of individuals. This virus came from China. They should have been more forthright early on," Mnuchin told ABC News in an interview. The Trump administration blames China for not warning the world of the coronavirus pandemic earlier and hiding the extent of its outbreak. Beijing has rejected the allegations. I've said before, the second quarter was going to be horrible. We've never had a scenario in the history of time where we shut down the entire US economy. It's like turning off the water faucets, he said. So, of course, GDP is going to be down. As we open up the water faucets, and many parts of the economy can safely operate, certain parts of the economy can't, and we've got to deal with that. I think you're going to see a very big bounce back off of a very low number this quarter assuming we continue on the right policies, Mnuchin said. The Treasury Secretary noted the scientific improvements that scientists are making on the vaccine. "I think when we have a vaccine and life gets back to normal, you're going to see a great economy again next year," he said. Also read: US economy's worst show since Great Depression, 32.9% fall in Q2 highest since 1947 Like most Ghanaians OccupyGhanas attention has been drawn to a very disturbing video making the rounds on social media. It shows an elderly woman being assaulted by two women while a crowd watches. The incident is supposed to have occurred in Kafaba in the East Gonja Municipality of the Savannah region. The victim is alleged to be a 90-year-old woman called Madam Akua Denteh, was accused by a local fetish priestess called Hajia Filina, of being a witch. It appears the priestess was hired by one Sanjo to make this diagnosis. The others involved in this crime were persons named Aliu, Bumaye, Ashley and Manafo. The poor victim succumbed to her injuries and her dead body was later found where she was lynched. This rather heart-breaking and barbaric act is but one of many such lynching incidents that plague the Ghanaian society. Victims of lynchings are not only suspected criminals but also often elderly women accused of being witches. Mob justice in itself is terrible. Unfortunately, it is a rather dark side of our countrys history and does not seem to want to go away. It is unconstitutional, barbaric, unjust, unfair and criminal, and often has fatal consequences. The fact that in this day and age, there are Ghanaians who still believe in the superstition that witches exert an enormous deleterious influence on life and the punishment for this alleged pernicious activity which should be death by lynching, is unbelievable. It hints at how deep the belief in erroneous, dangerous and arcane customs are and how much these beliefs influence life in the country. That a crowd watched as a helpless 90-year-old woman was lynched shows the degree of acceptance of this inhuman practice in the society. That this occurrence is not uncommon is rather sad. If one does a Google search with the words witch and Ghana, the stories and reports that pop up should make each Ghanaian hang their head in collective shame. It is not a coincidence that about 235 km due northwest from Kafaba is a Witch Camp. In the town of Gushegu, the Missionary Sisters of the Poorest of the Poor run a camp for poor women who were accused of witchcraft, beaten, and cast out. These are the lucky ones who did not succumb to the assaults and this camp is their haven now. Not only elderly women get accused but younger women and even children fall victim to this practice. According to a 2018 Human Rights Report by the US States Department, there are more than six witch camps spread throughout the northern regions of Ghana. These camps are said to hold about 2,000-2,500 adult women and 1,000-1,200 children and the numbers could be larger. Article 15 of the Constitution demands respect for the dignity of all persons, and clearly states: 1. The dignity of all persons shall be inviolable. 2. No person shall, whether or not he is arrested, restricted or detained, be subjected to a. torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; b. any other condition that detracts or is likely to detract from his dignity and worth as a human being. In spite of these constitutional rights, any fetish priest or priestess can get women and children assaulted and even killed with the simple yet dangerous designation of Witch. This video has incited the usual uproar and the Police has even publicized a letter about the investigation. The President has spoken about it. We understand that some arrests have been made. We commend the police on being on the case. However, soon we will forget about this incident and another poor woman will be accused of being a witch and assaulted, even killed. Unless there is a move to change this deeply-held belief system and do away with these superstitions that witches dwell among us and are responsible for most misfortunes, these assaults and lynching of poor women will not stop. It is our view that what occurred at Kafaba, before the murder happened, was a trial by ordeal, which is a second-degree felony under section 315 or our Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29). Indeed, each of the persons captured on the video as being present are guilty of the misdemeanour of being present when the crime was taking place, under section 316 of the Act. For not taking any step to prevent the crime, all those persons are guilty of a second misdemeanour under section 22 of the Act. We, therefore, call for the arrest of everyone who is identified as being present. Faced with the prospect of jail, they are very likely to help identify and track all the perpetrators in the murder. We further ask that the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) step up its efforts to educate the population about superstitions and arcane customs and practices. A program reminding Ghanaians about the need to respect each others' civil and human rights is also direly needed. We also ask the Gender and Social Protection Ministry to enforce the closure of these so-called Witch Camps and allow these poor women and children to re-join society with adequate protections. The Ministry has an obligation to offer vocational training to the occupants of those camps to aid their reintegration. The Ministry should also embark on an education program aimed at teaching people in at-risk areas that witchcraft is a superstition for which no one should die. We ask all TV and radio stations to dedicate time each day to exhorting against mob justice and the assaulting and lynching of women accused of being witches. With these actions, we hope we can take a step closer to a Ghana, where civil and human rights are respected, and the lynching of witches becomes a thing of the past In the Service of God & Country OccupyGhana 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 OSLO Norway stopped all cruise ships with more than 100 people on board from disembarking at its ports from Monday, after an outbreak of COVID-19 was reported late last week on a ship that had already disembarked at the port of Tromsoe. At least 41 passengers and crew who were on board the cruise ship MS Roald Amundsen, operated by Norwegian company Hurtigruten, have so far tested positive for the coronavirus, while hundreds more on board were told to self-isolate for 10 days, local public health officials said on Sunday. Norway is in touch with Germany, Denmark, Austria, Philippines and Latvia as passengers and crew on board came from these countries, officials said. Ships that have already departed will be able to offload passengers and crew at Norwegian ports, but those yet to start journeys will not be able to do so, Norwegian Health Minister Bent Hoie said. The new rules are effective for the next 14 days. The pandemic is not over," Hoie told a news conference. The Nordic country of 5.4 million inhabitants had reopened most of society in recent weeks as it got the COVID-19 pandemic under control. Some 9,268 infections have been reported in Norway as of Monday, with 256 deaths. FIRST OUT Hurtigruten was the first cruise operator worldwide to return an oceangoing cruise ship to service in mid-June, touting reduced passenger capacity, social distancing and strict rules on hygiene. It will now suspend all so-called expedition cruises until further notice. We have failed," CEO Daniel Skjeldamn told a news conference. I apologise strongly on behalf of the company." The MS Roald Amundsen had been scheduled to sail around the British Isles in September. Trips with two other vessels have also been suspended, though its business shipping goods between Norwegian ports will continue. Norwegian police told Reuters they would investigate whether any laws had been broken. Four of the MS Roald Amundsens crew members were hospitalised on Friday when the ship arrived at Tromsoe, and later diagnosed with COVID-19. Tests showed another 32 of the 158 staff were also infected. Among the infected crew, 32 were from the Philippines while the rest were of Norwegian, French and German nationality. The foreign crew had been tested for the coronavirus before leaving their home countries but did not quarantine before starting work on the ship, the company said. Passengers were allowed to disembark before anyone had been diagnosed, triggering a complex operation to locate them. So far, five of the combined 387 passengers travelling on the ship on two separate cruises since July 17 have been found to carry the virus, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and the Tromsoe municipality said. (Editing by Gwladys Fouche, Kirsten Donovan and Susan Fenton) Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 12:25:01|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close CANBERRA, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg on Monday said the state of Victoria is at "war" with COVID-19. Frydenberg said he was devastated by the worsening coronavirus situation in Victoria as the number of cases continued to grow. The Victorian government on Sunday evening announced a move into stage four lockdown restrictions, with a curfew from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. instituted across Melbourne and further constraints on people's movement introduced. "Nobody wanted it to come to this, we very much feel like it's a war like situation with every Victorian on the frontline," Frydenberg, the member of parliament (MP) for Kooyong in Melbourne's eastern suburbs, told Sky News. "Last night's news that we will be hit with stage four restrictions, curfews, school closures and more constraints on people's movement is going to hit Victorians really hard." "We can't afford holes in our defence, and that's why everyone needs to follow these new rules." "Just a few people can endanger many and that's the harsh reality of what we find ourselves in in Victoria." Victoria accounted for 98 percent of Australia's new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday and in the seven days to Sunday averaged 518 new cases. Frydenberg confirmed that the stricter lockdown would exacerbate the impact of the pandemic on the Australian economy. "This is a massive kick in the guts for Victorian businesses. We all want to get to the other side of the coronavirus, no one wanted to see the new cases increase as they have, so everyone recognizes that we must try to do everything to get this under control," he said. "Last night's news was very tough but Victorians are tough as well and everyone is now going to try to stem the tide of new cases." Enditem HOUSTON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- NexTier Oilfield Solutions Inc. (NYSE: NEX) ("NexTier" or the "Company") today reported second quarter 2020 financial and operational results. Second Quarter 2020 Results and Recent Highlights Reported revenue of $196.2 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $627.6 million in the first quarter of 2020 in the second quarter of 2020, compared to in the first quarter of 2020 Reported net loss of $112.5 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to net loss of $71.8 million in the first quarter of 2020 in the second quarter of 2020, compared to net loss of in the first quarter of 2020 Reported SG&A of $38.0 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $56.9 million in the first quarter of 2020. Reported adjusted SG&A (1) of $31.0 million in the second quarter of 2020, reflecting a decrease of 35% compared to $47.9 million in the first quarter of 2020 in the second quarter of 2020, compared to in the first quarter of 2020. Reported adjusted SG&A of in the second quarter of 2020, reflecting a decrease of 35% compared to in the first quarter of 2020 Adjusted EBITDA (1) of $1.7 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $72.0 million in the first quarter of 2020 of in the second quarter of 2020, compared to in the first quarter of 2020 Averaged 11 fully-utilized fracturing fleets in the second quarter of 2020 compared to 27 average fully-utilized fracturing fleets in the first quarter of 2020; deployed a second completion fleet internationally Reported revenue of $169.5 million in the second quarter of 2020 when considering only fracturing and bundled wireline, compared to $460.4 million in the first quarter of 2020 in the second quarter of 2020 when considering only fracturing and bundled wireline, compared to in the first quarter of 2020 Generated annualized adjusted gross profit per fully-utilized fracturing fleet (1) of $11.4 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $13.4 million in the first quarter of 2020 of in the second quarter of 2020, compared to in the first quarter of 2020 Advanced digital initiative program, including the successful deployment of NexHub on all deployed U.S. fleets Exited the second quarter of 2020 with total liquidity of $430.5 million , including cash of $337.1 million and no term loan maturities through 2025 Management Commentary "NexTier's second quarter performance in an extremely challenging market demonstrates we can consistently deliver on our commitments through solid execution," said Robert Drummond, President and Chief Executive Officer of NexTier. "During the quarter, U.S. producers abruptly halted much of their activity and production in response to economic shutdowns resulting from COVID-19. Our quick and decisive actions around cost control, continued focus on service quality, and the enhanced strength of our overall platform through the deployment of NexHub, our integrated digital technologies including remote monitoring capabilities, are evident in our financial performance. As we continue to navigate the current market environment, our proactive actions to improve service delivery, increase efficiency and reduce costs further differentiate NexTier and enhance its ability to compete in any environment." "We delivered adjusted EBITDA decrementals that were meaningfully ahead of our guidance, completion fleet market share at the high-end of our forecast, and increased our cash balance by $23 million," said Kenny Pucheu, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. "As the market rapidly changed, we reacted quickly to restructure our organization to be even more lean and nimble, enhancing NexTier's ability to generate free cash flow and leading returns as the market eventually recovers. Our results and financial health demonstrate that NexTier is a business partner our customers can rely on over the long haul." "While future activity remains highly uncertain, we are managing what is within our control, while maintaining an intense focus on NexTier's market readiness," continued Mr. Drummond. "Our ability to respond quickly and efficiently in a recovery is led by the capabilities of our world-class team, flexibility of our balance sheet, readiness of our asset base, and the further evolution of our innovation program. With the hard work and commitment of our entire team, we are further evolving NexTier's position as a leading completions platform." Second Quarter 2020 Financial Results Revenue totaled $196.2 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $627.6 million in the first quarter of 2020. Net loss totaled $112.5 million, or $0.53 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $71.8 million, or $0.34 per diluted share in the first quarter of 2020. Adjusted net loss(1) totaled $79.4 million, or $0.37 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2020, compared to Adjusted net loss of $20.1 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2020. Selling, general and administrative expense ("SG&A") totaled $38.0 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to SG&A of $56.9 million in the first quarter of 2020. Adjusted SG&A(1) totaled $31.0 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to Adjusted SG&A of $47.9 million in the first quarter of 2020. Adjusted EBITDA totaled $1.7 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to Adjusted EBITDA of $72.0 million in the first quarter of 2020. Second Quarter 2020 Management Adjustments Adjusted EBITDA in the second quarter of 2020 includes management adjustments of approximately $33.1 million consisting primarily of $18.9 million in market-driven severance and restructuring costs incurred as a result of significant declines in crude oil prices resulting from demand destruction from the COVID-19 pandemic and global oversupply, $5.1 million of non-cash stock compensation expense, $14.0 million of merger and integration costs, partially offset by gains of $5.0 million, which includes a net gain associated with the make-whole provision on the Basic notes received as part of the Well Support Services divestiture completed in March 2020. Completion Services Revenue in our Completion Services segment totaled $179.0 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $512.9 million in the first quarter of 2020. A sharp decrease in utilization, combined with price reductions in all basins, led to a significant decline in revenue in all service lines due to the global oil supply and demand imbalance and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Adjusted Gross Profit totaled $31.7 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $97.9 million in the first quarter of 2020. Net loss totaled $46.9 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to net loss of $13.1 million in the first quarter of 2020. The Company had an average of 11 fully-utilized fracturing fleets in the second quarter of 2020. When taking only fracturing and bundled wireline into account, annualized Adjusted Gross Profit per fully-utilized fracturing fleet totaled $11.4 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $13.4 million in the first quarter of 2020. Well Construction and Intervention Services Revenue in our Well Construction and Intervention ("WC&I") Services segment, totaled $17.3 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $56.8 million in the first quarter of 2020. Revenue decreased 70% as a result of a sharp declines in activity in both our Coil Tubing and Cementing services lines, combined with pricing reductions in all basins, resulting from unprecedented declines in market activity. Adjusted Gross Profit totaled $0.8 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to $8.8 million in the first quarter of 2020. Net loss totaled $6.2 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to net income of $3.0 million in the first quarter of 2020. Well Support Services The Company completed the divestiture of its Well Support Services segment on March 9, 2020. As a result, there was no contribution from this business during the second quarter of 2020, and results for the first quarter of 2020 for this segment reflect operations from January 1, 2020 through the date of sale. Subsequent to this divestiture, the Company's reportable segments are (i) Completion Services and (ii) Well Construction and Intervention Services. Balance Sheet and Capital Total debt outstanding as of June 30, 2020 totaled $336.7 million, net of debt discounts and deferred finance costs and excluding lease obligations. As of June 30, 2020, total available liquidity was $430.5 million, comprised of cash and equivalents of $337.1 million, and $93.4 million of available borrowing capacity under our asset-based credit facility. Total operating cash flow was $61.9 million and cash flow used in investing activities was $36.4 million, resulting in free cash flow of $25.5 million in the second quarter of 2020. Excluding cash used for merger and integration related costs of $13.0 million, and for market related severance and restructuring cash costs of $14.6 million, combined Adjusted free cash flow(1) totaled $53.0 million in the second quarter of 2020. NexTier continues to expect its 2020 total capital expenditures to be between $100 million and $120 million, subject to market conditions. Capital expenditures in 2020 will be driven by strategic innovation investments and maintenance capital expenditures. Capital expenditures during the first half of 2020 were primarily driven by the delivery of certain strategic innovation investments, with second half of 2020 spending expected to be mainly driven by maintenance. Integration Update On October 31, 2019, Keane and C&J completed their business combination and concurrent with closing, Keane, as the parent company, was renamed NexTier. Keane was determined to be the accounting acquirer in the merger, and as a result, the historical financial statements of Keane, prepared under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"), for the periods prior to the merger are considered to be the historical financial statements of NexTier. The Company has now fully completed its integration program related to the merger between Keane and C&J. The Company's targeted run-rate cost synergies of $125 million were achieved in April 2020, and ERP system integration was completed in the second quarter of 2020. "I commend our team for completing a world-class integration process, including the achievement of increased target cost synergies more than 6 months ahead of original schedule, all while upholding our commitment to customers," said Mr. Drummond. Coronavirus Monitoring and Planning The Company is monitoring the spread and impact of the coronavirus closely, and is implementing measures in accordance with local directives, as well as internal policies, to protect employees and limit business interruption. These measures include restriction on travel and employee contact in certain regions, employee education, enhanced customer and supplier communication, alternative sourcing, and other measures. The Company continues to assess its mitigation plans for further and prolonged impact from the coronavirus. Additional information on the Company's response to the coronavirus can be found in its periodic reports that are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Conference Call Information On August 4, 2020, NexTier will hold a conference call for investors at 7:00 a.m. Central Time (8:00 a.m. Eastern Time) to discuss second quarter 2020 financial and operating results. Hosting the call will be management of NexTier, including Robert Drummond, President and Chief Executive Officer and Kenny Pucheu, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. The call can be accessed via a live webcast accessible on the IR Event Calendar page in the Investor Relations section of our website at www.nextierofs.com or live over the telephone by dialing (855) 560-2574, or for international callers, (412) 542-4160. A replay will be available shortly after the call and can be accessed by dialing (877) 344-7529, or for international callers, (412) 317-0088. The passcode for the replay is 10146668. The replay will be available until August 11, 2020. An archive of the webcast will be available shortly after the call on our website at www.nextierofs.com for twelve months following the call. About NexTier Oilfield Solutions Headquartered in Houston, Texas, NexTier is an industry-leading U.S. land oilfield service company, with a diverse set of well completion and production services across the most active and demanding basins. Our integrated solutions approach delivers efficiency today, and our ongoing commitment to innovation helps our customers better address what is coming next. NexTier is differentiated through four points of distinction, including safety performance, efficiency, partnership and innovation. At NexTier, we believe in living our core values from the basin to the boardroom, and helping customers win by safely unlocking affordable, reliable and plentiful sources of energy. (1) Non-GAAP Financial Measures. The Company has included in this press release or discussed on the conference call described above certain non-GAAP financial measures, some of which are calculated on segment basis or product line basis. These measurements provide supplemental information which the Company believes is useful to analysts and investors to evaluate its ongoing results of operations, when considered alongside GAAP measures such as net income and operating income. Non-GAAP financial measures include Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Gross Profit, Adjusted Net Income (loss), free cash flow, Adjusted free cash flow, adjusted SG&A, annualized adjusted gross profit per fully-utilized fracturing fleet, and adjusted EBITDA decremental. These non-GAAP financial measures exclude the financial impact of items management does not consider in assessing the Company's ongoing operating performance, and thereby facilitate review of the Company's operating performance on a period-to-period basis. Other companies may have different capital structures, and comparability to the Company's results of operations may be impacted by the effects of acquisition accounting on its depreciation and amortization. As a result of the effects of these factors and factors specific to other companies, the Company believes Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Gross Profit, Adjusted SG&A, Adjusted Net Income(loss) and adjusted EBITDA decremental provide helpful information to analysts and investors to facilitate a comparison of its operating performance to that of other companies. The Company believes free cash flow and Adjusted free cash flow is important to investors in that it provides a useful measure to assess management's effectiveness in the areas of profitability and capital management. Annualized Gross Profit per fully-utilized fracturing fleet is used to evaluate the operating performance of the business line for comparable periods, and the Company believes it is important as an indicator of operating performance of our fracturing and bundled wireline product line because it excludes the effects of the capital structure and certain non-cash items from the product line's operating results. For a reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures, please see the tables at the end of this press release. Non-GAAP Measure Definitions: Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income (loss) adjusted to eliminate the impact of interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization, along with certain items management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance. Adjusted Gross Profit is defined as revenue less cost of services, further adjusted to eliminate items in cost of services that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance. Adjusted Gross Profit at the segment level is not considered to be a non-GAAP financial measure as it is our segment measure of profit or loss and is required to be disclosed under GAAP pursuant to ASC 280. Adjusted Net Income (Loss) is defined as net income (loss) plus the after-tax amount of merger/transaction-related costs and other non-routine items. Adjusted SG&A is defined as selling, general and administrative expenses adjusted for severance and business divestiture costs, merger/transaction-related costs, and other non-routine items. Free cash flow is defined as the net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents before financing activities, including share repurchase activity. Adjusted free cash flow adjusts free cash flow for certain management adjustments. Annualized Adjusted Gross Profit per fully-utilized fleet, is a non-GAAP measure and is defined as (i) revenue less cost of services attributable to the fracturing and bundled wireline product line, further adjusted to eliminate items in cost of services that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance for the fracturing and bundled wireline product line, (ii) divided by the fully-utilized fracturing and bundled wireline fleets (average deployed fleets multiplied by fleet utilization) per quarter, and then (iii) multiplied by four. Adjusted EBITDA decremental is calculated by dividing (i) the difference between first quarter Adjusted EBITDA and second quarter Adjusted EBITDA; by (ii) the difference between first quarter Revenue and second quarter Revenue. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are subject to risks and uncertainties and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1993, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Where a forward-looking statement expresses or implies an expectation or belief as to future events or results, such expectation or belief is expressed in good faith and believed to have a reasonable basis. The words "believe," "continue," "could," "expect," "anticipate," "intends," "estimate," "forecast," "project," "should," "may," "will," "would" or the negative thereof and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control. Statements in this press release regarding the Company that are forward-looking, including projections as to the amount and timing of synergies from C&J merger and the Company's 2020 guidance and outlook information, are based on management's estimates, assumptions and projections, and are subject to significant uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control. These factors and risks include, but are not limited to, (i) the competitive nature of the industry in which the Company conducts its business, including pricing pressures; (ii) the ability to meet rapid demand shifts; (iii) the impact of pipeline capacity constraints and adverse weather conditions in oil or gas producing regions; (iv) the ability to obtain or renew customer contracts and changes in customer requirements in the markets the Company serves; (v) the ability to identify, effect and integrate acquisitions, joint ventures or other transactions; (vi) the ability to protect and enforce intellectual property rights; (vii) the effect of environmental and other governmental regulations on the Company's operations; (viii) the effect of a loss of, or interruption in operations of, one or more key suppliers, including resulting from product defects, recalls or suspensions; (ix) the variability of crude oil and natural gas commodity prices; (x) the market price and availability of materials or equipment; (xi) the ability to obtain permits, approvals and authorizations from governmental and third parties; (xii) the Company's ability to employ a sufficient number of skilled and qualified workers to combat the operating hazards inherent in the Company's industry; (xiii) fluctuations in the market price of the Company's stock; (xiv) the level of, and obligations associated with, the Company's indebtedness; (xv) the duration, impact and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic and the evolving response thereto, including the impact of social distancing, shelter-in-place, shutdowns of non-essential businesses and similar measures imposed or undertaken by governments, private businesses or others; and (xvi) other risk factors and additional information. In addition, material risks that could cause actual results to differ from forward-looking statements include: the inherent uncertainty associated with financial or other projections; the effectiveness of the integration of C&J's businesses into the Company and the ability to continue to achieve the anticipated synergies and value-creation contemplated in connection with the merger. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors, see the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including under the heading "Risk Factors" in Item 1A of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019, and in our subsequently filed Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, both available on the SEC website or www.NexTierOFS.com. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements or information, which speak as of their respective dates, to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. Investors should not assume that any lack of update to a previously issued "forward-looking statement" constitutes a reaffirmation of that statement. Investor Contact: Kenneth Pucheu Executive Vice President - Chief Financial Officer [email protected] Marc Silverberg Managing Director (ICR) [email protected] NEXTIER OILFIELD SOLUTIONS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS & COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) (unaudited, amounts in thousands, except per share data) Three Months Ended June 30, 2020 Three Months Ended March 31, 2020 Revenue $ 196,227 $ 627,625 Operating costs and expenses: Cost of services 178,771 512,226 Depreciation and amortization 75,260 85,821 Selling, general and administrative expenses 38,024 56,884 Merger and integration 14,028 12,182 Gain on disposal of assets (953) (7,962) Impairment expense 34,327 Total operating costs and expenses 305,130 693,478 Operating income (108,903) (65,853) Other income (expenses): Other income (expense), net 2,259 416 Interest expense (5,353) (6,066) Total other income (expense) (3,094) (5,650) Loss before income taxes (111,997) (71,503) Income tax benefit (expense) (491) (253) Net loss (112,488) (71,756) Other comprehensive income (loss): Foreign currency translation adjustments (354) 1,107 Hedging activities (2,654) (2,620) Total comprehensive loss $ (115,496) $ (73,269) Net loss per share: basic $ (0.53) $ (0.34) Net loss per share: diluted $ (0.53) $ (0.34) Weighted-average shares: basic 213,760 212,842 Weighted-average shares: diluted 213,760 212,842 NEXTIER OILFIELD SOLUTIONS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (amounts in thousands) June 30, December 31, 2020 2019 ASSETS (Unaudited) Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 337,147 $ 255,015 Trade and other accounts receivable, net 86,570 350,765 Inventories, net 43,153 61,641 Assets held for sale 141 Prepaid and other current assets 51,342 20,492 Total current assets 518,212 688,054 Operating lease right-of-use assets 47,098 54,503 Finance lease right-of-use assets 2,743 9,511 Property and equipment, net 575,094 709,404 Goodwill 104,198 137,458 Intangible assets 54,881 55,021 Other noncurrent assets 7,360 10,956 Total assets $ 1,309,586 $ 1,664,907 LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY Current liabilities: Accounts payable $ 37,765 $ 115,251 Accrued expenses 144,747 234,895 Customer contract liabilities 60 Current maturities of operating lease liabilities 19,673 23,473 Current maturities of finance lease liabilities 1,363 4,594 Current maturities of long-term debt 2,303 2,311 Other current liabilities 2,816 5,610 Total current liabilities 208,667 386,194 Long-term operating lease liabilities, less current maturities 32,986 35,123 Long-term finance lease liabilities, less current maturities 1,479 4,844 Long-term debt, net of unamortized deferred financing costs and unamortized debt discount, less current maturities 334,375 335,312 Other non-current liabilities 20,490 16,662 Total non-current liabilities 389,330 391,941 Total liabilities 597,997 778,135 Shareholders' equity: Common stock 2,141 2,124 Paid-in capital in excess of par value 981,204 966,762 Retained deficit (259,102) (73,333) Accumulated other comprehensive loss (12,654) (8,781) Total shareholders' equity 711,589 886,772 Total liabilities and shareholders' equity $ 1,309,586 $ 1,664,907 NEXTIER OILFIELD SOLUTIONS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES ADDITIONAL SELECTED FINANCIAL AND OPERATING DATA (unaudited, amounts in thousands) Three Months Ended June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 Completion Services: Revenue $ 178,977 $ 512,871 Cost of services 159,149 417,382 Depreciation, amortization, (gain) loss on sale of assets, and impairment 66,746 108,591 Net loss (46,918) (13,102) Adjusted gross profit(1) $ 31,655 $ 97,876 Well Construction and Intervention Services: Revenue $ 17,250 $ 56,825 Cost of services 19,622 49,253 Depreciation, amortization, (gain) loss on sale of assets, and impairment 3,858 4,561 Net income (loss) (6,230) 3,011 Adjusted gross profit(1) $ 812 $ 8,784 Well Support Services: Revenue $ $ 57,929 Cost of services 45,591 Depreciation, amortization, (gain) loss on sale of assets, and impairment 1,398 Net income 10,940 Adjusted gross profit(1) $ $ 12,338 (1) The Company uses adjusted gross profit as its measure of profitability for segment reporting. NEXTIER OILFIELD SOLUTIONS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES ADDITIONAL SELECTED FINANCIAL AND OPERATING DATA (unaudited, amounts in thousands) Three Months Ended June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 Net loss $ (112,488) $ (71,756) Interest expense, net 5,353 6,066 Income tax benefit 491 253 Depreciation and amortization 75,260 85,821 EBITDA $ (31,384) $ 20,384 Plus Management Adjustments: Acquisition, integration and expansion(1) 14,028 12,759 Non-cash stock compensation(2) 5,141 5,451 Impairment of assets 34,327 Market-driven costs(3) 18,925 8,611 Divestiture of business(4) (3,775) (8,045) Other (1,253) (1,460) Adjusted EBITDA $ 1,682 $ 72,027 (1) Represents transaction and integration costs related to the merger. (2) Represents non-cash amortization of equity awards issued under the Company's Incentive Award Plan, excluding accelerations associated with market-driven costs or acquisition, integration, and expansion costs. (3) Represents market-driven severance and restructuring costs incurred as a result of significant declines in crude oil prices resulting from demand destruction from the COVID-19 pandemic and global oversupply. (4) Represents net gain on the sale of Well Support Services segment and increase fair value of the Basic notes and make-whole derivative received as part of the sale. Three Months Ended Variance June 30, 2020 March 31, 2020 Adjusted EBITDA $ 1,682 $ 72,027 $ (70,345) Revenue $ 196,227 $ 627,625 $ (431,398) Adjusted EBITDA decremental(1) 16 % (1) Adjusted EBITDA decremental is calculated by dividing (i) the difference between first quarter Adjusted EBITDA and second quarter Adjusted EBITDA; by (ii) the difference between first quarter Revenue and second quarter Revenue. NEXTIER OILFIELD SOLUTIONS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES ADDITIONAL SELECTED FINANCIAL AND OPERATING DATA (unaudited, amounts in thousands) Three Months Ended June 30, 2020 Selling, general and administrative expenses $ 38,024 Less Management Adjustments: Non-cash stock compensation (5,141) Market-driven costs (3,914) Divestiture of Business 728 Other 1,253 Adjusted selling, general and administrative $ 30,950 Three Months Ended March 31, 2020 Selling, general and administrative expenses $ 56,884 Less Management Adjustments: Non-cash stock compensation (5,451) Market-driven costs (5,011) Other 1,460 Adjusted selling, general and administrative $ 47,882 NEXTIER OILFIELD SOLUTIONS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES (amounts in thousands) Three Months Ended June 30, 2020 Completion Services WC&I Well Support Services Total Revenue $ 178,977 $ 17,250 $ $ 196,227 Cost of services 159,149 19,622 178,771 Gross profit excluding depreciation and amortization 19,828 (2,372) 17,456 Management adjustments associated with cost of services 11,827 3,184 15,011 Adjusted gross profit $ 31,655 $ 812 $ $ 32,467 Three Months Ended March 31, 2020 Completion Services WC&I Well Support Services Total Revenue $ 512,871 $ 56,825 $ 57,929 $ 627,625 Cost of services 417,382 49,253 45,591 512,226 Gross profit excluding depreciation and amortization 95,489 7,572 12,338 115,399 Management adjustments associated with cost of services 2,387 1,212 3,599 Adjusted gross profit $ 97,876 $ 8,784 $ 12,338 $ 118,998 Three Months Ended June 30, 2020 Frac & Bundled Wireline Revenue $ 169,470 Cost of services 148,326 Gross profit excluding depreciation and amortization 21,144 Management adjustments associated with cost of services 10,260 Adjusted gross profit $ 31,404 Average hydraulic fracturing fleets deployed 13 Fully-utilized hydraulic fracturing fleets 11 Annualized adjusted gross profit per fully-utilized fleet $ 11,420 Three Months Ended March 31, 2020 Frac & Bundled Wireline Revenue $ 460,372 Cost of services 371,817 Gross profit excluding depreciation and amortization 88,555 Management adjustments associated with cost of services 2,115 Adjusted gross profit $ 90,670 Average hydraulic fracturing fleets deployed 29 Fully-utilized hydraulic fracturing fleets 27 Annualized adjusted gross profit per fully-utilized fleet $ 13,433 NEXTIER OILFIELD SOLUTIONS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES (unaudited, amounts in thousands) Three Months Ended June 30, 2020 Net cash provided by operating activities $ 61,927 Cash flows used in investing activities (1) 36,436 Free cash flow generation 25,491 Acquisition, integration and expansion 12,968 Market-driven costs 14,559 Adjusted combined free cash flow generation $ 53,018 Three Months Ended March 31, 2020 Net cash provided by operating activities $ 48,487 Cash flows used in investing activities (1) 39,142 Free cash flow generation 9,345 Acquisition, integration and expansion 14,665 Market-driven costs 137 Adjusted combined free cash flow generation $ 24,147 (1) Excludes the $53.3 million of proceeds from the WSS Sale. Three Months Ended June 30, 2020 Net loss (112,488) Plus Management Adjustments: Acquisition, integration and expansion 14,028 Non-cash stock compensation 5,141 Market-driven costs 18,925 Divestiture of business (3,775) Other (1,253) Adjusted net loss $ (79,422) Adjusted net loss per share, basic and diluted $ (0.37) Weighted-average shares, basic and diluted 213,760 NEXTIER OILFIELD SOLUTIONS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES (unaudited, amounts in thousands) Three Months Ended March 31, 2020 Net loss (71,756) Plus Management Adjustments: Acquisition, integration and expansion 12,759 Non-cash stock compensation 5,451 Impairment of assets 34,327 Market-driven costs 8,611 Divestiture of business (8,045) Other (1,460) Adjusted net loss $ (20,113) Adjusted net loss per share, basic and diluted $ (0.09) Weighted-average shares, basic and diluted 212,842 SOURCE NexTier Oilfield Solutions Related Links www.nextierofs.com Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Defence Minister Pervez Khattak on Monday visited the Line of Control (LoC) where they were briefed by the Army about the latest situation, according to officials. The two ministers, accompanied by the Prime Minister's Special Assistant on National Security Moeed Yusuf, visited the Chiri Kot Sector. In a video message released before his visit, Qureshi said he was visiting the along with the Defence Minister to express solidarity with the Kashmiri people. The two ministers visited the Chiri Kot Sector where they were briefed by the Army about the latest situation of the LoC, officials said. India has firmly told that the Union Territory of has been, is and shall continue to be an integral part of India. Issues related to are an internal matter of India, the Ministry of External Affairs has reiterated. has been unsuccessfully trying to drum up support against India for withdrawing Jammu and Kashmir's special status on August 5 last year and bifurcating it into two union territories. India has categorically told the community that the scrapping of Article 370 of the Constitution was its internal matter. It also advised to accept the reality and stop all anti-India propaganda. (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 America's first crewed spaceship to fly to the International Space Station in nearly a decade returned safely to Earth on Sunday, splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico. The successful mission, carried out jointly by SpaceX and NASA, demonstrated that the United States once again has the capacity to send its astronauts to space and bring them back. SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour's four main parachutes gently floated down to the water after the vessel landed off the coast of Pensacola at 2:48 pm (1848 GMT). It was the first water landing for a crewed US spaceship since the 1975 Apollo-Soyuz mission. Pilot Doug Hurley, one of two astronauts on board along with commander Bob Behnken, said: "It's truly our honor and privilege." "On behalf of the NASA and SpaceX teams, welcome back to planet Earth and thanks for flying SpaceX," replied SpaceX's Mike Heiman, to laughter in the control room. A number of civilian boats swarmed the landing zone as a recovery ship sped to the scorched capsule and brought it aboard. The hatch opening was briefly delayed as a team worked to stop a leak of rocket fuel vapor. Around an hour after splashdown, the astronauts exited the capsule and now await a helicopter ride to shore, followed by a plane trip to Houston where they will re-unite with their families. US astronauts exit space capsule, after first splashdown in 45 years, off the coast of Pensacola, in Florida on August 2, 2020. Photo: AFP Space autonomy President Donald Trump -- who had travelled to Florida for the capsule's launch two months ago -- hailed its safe return. "Thank you to all!" he tweeted. "Great to have NASA Astronauts return to Earth after very successful two month mission." The United States has had to rely on Russia for rides to space since the last Space Shuttle flew in 2011. Tropical Storm Isaias, which had scuppered Endeavour's original landing site in the Atlantic, was nearing Florida's east coast Sunday, hundreds of miles away. The mission is also a major win for Elon Musk's SpaceX, which was founded in only 2002 but has leap-frogged its way past Boeing, its main competitor in the commercial space race. The US has paid the two companies a total of about $7 billion for their "space taxi" contracts, though aerospace giant Boeing's efforts have badly floundered. NASA's first crewed mission in nine years. Photo: AFP Atmospheric re-entry The Crew Dragon capsule performed several precise procedures in order to return home safely. First, it jettisoned its "trunk" that contains its power, heat and other systems, which burned up in the atmosphere. Endeavour then fired its thrusters to maneuver itself into the proper orbit and trajectory for splashdown. As it re-entered the atmosphere at a speed of around 17,500 mph (28,000 kph), it experienced temperatures of 3,500 degrees Fahrenheit (1900 degrees Celsius). This caused a brief but expected communications blackout. Endeavour then deployed two sets of parachutes on its descent, bringing its speed down to a mere 15 mph (24 kph) as it hit the ocean. A number of civilian boats swarm the landing zone as a recovery ship sped to the scorched capsule and brought it aboard off the coast of Pensacola, in Florida on August 2, 2020. Photo: AFP Astro dads The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft set off from the ISS Saturday evening. Footage showed the capsule drifting slowly away from the orbital laboratory in the darkness of space. During a farewell ceremony on the station, Behnken said that "the hardest part was getting us launched. But the most important part is bringing us home." Addressing his son and Hurley's son, he held up a toy dinosaur that the children chose to send on the mission and said: "Tremor The Apatosaurus is headed home soon and he'll be with your dads." Behnken and Hurley's return marks only the beginning for the Crew Dragon as SpaceX and NASA look ahead to future missions. Endeavor will be brought back to the SpaceX Dragon Lair in Florida where it will undergo a six-weeks-long inspection process, as teams pore over its data and performance in order to certify the vessel as worthy of future low-Earth orbit missions. The next mission -- dubbed "Crew-1" -- will involve a four member team: commander Michael Hopkins, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialist Shannon Walker of NASA, along with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency mission specialist Soichi Noguchi. Take-off is set for late September and the crew are due to spend six months on the space station. NASA astronauts Bob Behnken (R) and Doug Hurley prepare for lift-off to the International Space Station, May 30, 2020. Photo: AFP A man holding a phone walks past a sign of Chinese company ByteDance's app TikTok, known locally as Douyin, at the International Artificial Products Expo in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China October 18, 2019. Questions are being asked about TikTok's future in Europe after Microsoft confirmed Sunday it is in discussions to buy TikTok in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. TikTok parent company ByteDance, which is headquartered in Beijing, is being forced to consider a sale after President Donald Trump said he intends to ban the video sharing app in the U.S. over fears that it could share data with the Chinese government. TikTok has repeatedly denied the allegations. Microsoft said in a statement that it will keep working with the U.S. government on a deal and that it intends to conclude talks by September 15. It's unclear how much Microsoft is prepared to pay and TikTok declined to comment on the discussions. If the deal were to go through, would ByteDance be able to continue operating TikTok across Europe? Michael Norris, a research and strategy manager at Shanghai-based consultancy AgencyChina, thinks so. "TikTok's business in Europe doesn't appear to be on the table," he told CNBC Monday. "At this stage, it looks like ByteDance is confident in TikTok's ability to operate in European markets." If the deal goes through, Microsoft would operate TikTok in four countries while ByteDance would operate it in over 100 other countries. "The same product operated by different parties in different jurisdictions seems unprecedented," Norris said. "These considerations, including compliant operating models and relevant transfers of technology, infrastructure, and access, will complicate acquisition negotiations." While European governments have raised some concerns, they haven't gone as far as saying they'll ban TikTok, which has become wildly popular in the last couple of years, racking up over 2 billion downloads worldwide, according to app tracker Sensor Tower. A U.K. government spokesperson said: "We always take steps to ensure users are properly protected from attempts by companies to misuse or exploit their personal data." "TikTok is subject to the data privacy rules set out under GDPR. This is the same for all mobile app providers that collect and process personal data." "In relation to our wider online harms work, we are developing some of the most stringent laws in the world to make the U.K. a safer place to be online. These will put a duty of care on social media platforms to manage people's personal data, overseen by an independent regulator." In a bid to distance itself from Beijing and reassure Western nations, TikTok withdrew from Hong Kong after China introduced new sweeping national security laws. TikTok has also hired an American chief executive and set up local offices around the world. Last month, the company said it wanted to hire 10,000 staff in the U.S. over the next three years, and it has already hired several key executives from Google and Facebook. New Delhi: Every day there is a new development in the mysterious death case of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput. Bihar police's parallel investigation along with Mumbai police has unravelled several hidden angles related to the late actor's personal and professional life. Patna IG, Gupteshwar Pandey said, "I am trying to be in constant touch with Maharashtra DGP and monitor every development. I have also called for a high-level meeting with officials." According to sources, in a meeting held at Chief Minister's residence last evening, it was decided to send IPS Vinay Tiwari to quarantine. Soon after this meeting, the BMC was given his location and late night a team reached the guest house where IPS official from Patna was staying to put him in quarantine. Meanwhile, Dipesh's statement in connection with Sushant's case has been recorded. However, Sidharth Pithani has contacted the police on phone but has not yet appeared before SIT, said the Patna IG. Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at his Bandra residence on June 14, 2020. Several political leaders, parties and fans have been pressing for a CBI inquiry into the case since many new developments have been unravelled. Bihar police have come into action and a parallel investigation along with Mumbai police is on track to come to a conclusion. Press Release August 3, 2020 IMEE TO DOH: STOP KILLING OUR HEALTH CARE WORKERS Senator Imee Marcos has criticized the Department of Health for using a recovery report to cover up the high infection rate among health care workers during more than four months of community quarantines. "The DOH report that more than 90% of our health care workers have recovered is nothing but cold comfort. It does not cure their predicament as a group with such a high rate of infection, compared to other countries," Marcos said. "The total cases of infection in countries like Italy and the U.S. may be higher than ours, but the godawful rate of infection among our health care workers must be stopped," Marcos said. Marcos cited that as early as April, the World Health Organization already marked the Philippines as an "outlier" due to the numerous cases of infection among its health care workers. "The regional average, including China, was only 2% to 3% of total cases, while the Philippines scored 13%," Marcos said. Marcos added that DOH's own data in June placed the infection rate among health care workers at 15% of total cases. Marcos, who was designated to the conference committee tasked to reconcile the Senate and House versions of the Bayanihan To Recover As One Act, said the bill can still accommodate President Duterte's directive to grant an allowance of at least 10,000 pesos to all healthcare workers. "However, the Bayanihan 2's limited period of effectivity and budget call for the urgent passage of other bills addressing the pleas of our healthcare workers who are at the brink of a physical and psychological meltdown," Marcos said. Marcos has filed Senate Bill 1644 to grant healthcare workers an automatic allowance of 10,000 pesos and hazard pay equivalent to 25% of their salaries during a pandemic or public health emergency. Called the Healthcare Frontline Workers Welfare Act, the bill also provides free testing, free vaccination, and free access to health equipment not limited to surgical face masks and personal protective equipment (PPE). "They will also be allowed mental health care leave with pay, besides providing their material needs," Marcos said, adding that the Department of Trade and Industry should aggressively promote the local production of PPE. Marcos has also filed the Anti-Coronavirus 2019 Discrimination Act, which punishes the verbal abuse and physical harassment of healthcare workers and extends the liability of an offending establishment to its officers. Marcos added that a permanent government-run medical reserve corps must also be created to back up healthcare frontliners in future health emergencies "even before they reach their breaking point." The punishment for breaching the Government whip should apply to every member equally - according to a Fianna Fail TD. The Green Party said it has been assured two TDs who did not vote with the government on housing will not do it again. Neasa Hourigan resigned the party whip and has had her Dail speaking right suspended for two months, a sanction also imposed on junior minister Joe O'Brien - who abstained. Usually, government TDs who vote against the government are expelled from their parties. Deputy Willie O'Dea said he just has to take them on their word. Mr O'Dea said: "At the extent, for the moment the whip system is there. "And the punishment for breach of the whip should apply equally to one of those 84 TDs supporting the government-but what's done is done. "I heard the statement by Minister O'Gorman there that they gave the parliamentary party an assurance. "I'm not in a position to do anything other than to take that assurance at face value." The former Fianna Fail Minister for Defence also said the change to the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) policy is discriminatory. Minister Heather Humphreys made a change to the social welfare payment for people who lost their job due to Covid-19 so it will not affect people who travel to green list countries. Thousands of people had their payments cut-off after they were stopped and checked leaving Dublin Airport. The Department of Social Protection has rejected claims by the Data Protection Commission that the checks may not be lawful. Fianna Fail TD Willie O'Dea said he does not agree with the changes to the payment. Mr O'Dea said: "Even aside from the fact whether there is a proper legal basis for this really [...] we didn't get time in the Dail last week to discuss that. "It is discriminatory. It is slightly less discriminatory now in relation to people on social welfare than what it was before as a result of the minister changing her mind after we've already voted a very discriminatory policy through. "So I think it's still discriminatory and I wouldn't agree with it." By Express News Service HYDERABAD: In a shocking incident, a woman who died of COVID-19 in a private hospital in Hyderabad was relieved of her jewellery. The jewellery consisted of a nose stud and earrings, both studded with diamonds, a chain and a finger ring. The Banjara Hills police on Sunday registered a case of theft after gold ornaments went missing from the COVID-19 patients body at a private hospital. The police said that the total value of the missing jewellery is about Rs 5 lakh. The police said that they received a complaint from the victims son M Prakash, saying that the family found the jewellery gone when the body was handed over to them. The hospital staff, when questioned by the police, said they had handed over all her belongings to the family before starting the treatment. The police said that though they had gone through the CCTV footage, they could not get any clues. "We will also question the family. We are investigating the possible role of the hospital staff," the police said. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 11:48:21|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close WELLINGTON, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand reported two new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, with the number of active cases in the country being 27, all in managed isolation and quarantine facilities, according to the Ministry of Health. It has been 94 days since the last case of COVID-19 was acquired locally from an unknown source, according to the ministry. The first one was a male teenager who arrived in New Zealand from the United States on July 29. He tested positive for COVID-19 as part of routine testing around the third day of his stay in a managed isolation facility in Auckland, and has since been transferred to the quarantine facility. The second case was a man in his 20s who arrived in New Zealand from Switzerland via Amsterdam and Seoul on July 20. He has been staying at a hotel in Christchurch and firstly tested negative then tested positive at the second routine test, said a ministry statement. This case again emphasizes the importance of testing returnees in managed isolation facilities twice before they are able to leave the facility, it said. These cases brought New Zealand's total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases to 1,217, which is the number reported to the World Health Organization, the statement said, adding there is no one in New Zealand receiving hospital-level care for COVID-19. Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said New Zealanders need to continue to be vigilant against the threat of COVID-19 and testing rates need to be increased across the country. "We have seen how quickly infection can spread within communities, cities, and states overseas. There is still a pandemic raging around the globe and while our strict border controls form our first line of defense from the virus, we need to be sure it has not crept undetected into our communities," Bloomfield said. The results from a recent survey of General Practitioner (GPs) showed that half of the 800 GPs surveyed had seen patients who declined a COVID-19 test and that the proportion of patients that declined was on average 25 percent. Bloomfield encouraged all people who are offered a test to have it done. Enditem NEW YORK, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lowey Dannenberg P.C., a preeminent law firm in obtaining redress for consumers and investors, has filed a federal securities class action in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of its client and all similarly situated investors who purchased or otherwise acquired common stock of Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd. ("Kirkland" or the Company") (NYSE: KL) from January 8, 2019 to November 25, 2019, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The class action alleges violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act"), 15 U.S.C. 78j(b) and 78t(a) and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder by the SEC, 17 C.F.R. 240.10b-5. The class action is titled Brahms v. Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd., No. 1:20-cv-4953 (S.D.N.Y.). If you are a shareholder who purchased Kirkland securities during the Class Period, you have until August 28, 2020 to ask the Court to appoint you as the Lead Plaintiff for the Class. Any member of the proposed Class may move to serve as the Lead Plaintiff through counsel of their choice. To obtain a copy of the complaint or to discuss this lawsuit, contact Christian Levis at clevis@lowey.com or by calling 914-733-7220 or Andrea Farah at afarah@lowey.com or by calling 914-733-7256. Headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Kirkland is a gold mining and exploration company with operations in Canada and Australia. Historically, Kirkland pursued a strategy based on high-grade underground mining with low all-in sustaining costs. During the months leading up to November 25, 2019, Kirkland negotiated the acquisition of Detour Gold Corporation ("Detour"). The acquisition was dilutive of Kirklands reserve grade and increased its all-in sustaining costs. The Complaint alleges that Kirkland made false and misleading statements to the public throughout the Class Period and failed to disclose that: (i) Kirkland lacked adequate internal controls over financial reporting, especially as it relates to its projections of risks, reserve grade, and all-in sustaining costs; (ii) the Companys projections relating to its risks, reserve grade, and all-in sustaining costs were false and misleading in light of the impending acquisition of Detour; (iii) the Companys financial statements and projections were not fairly presented in conformity with International Financial Reporting Standards; and (iv) based on the foregoing, Defendants lacked a reasonable basis for their positive statements about the Companys business, operations, and prospects and/or lacked a reasonable basis and omitted material facts. On November 25, 2019, the company announced that it had agreed to acquire Detour. On news of this acquisition, Kirklands shares fell from $47.62 per share to $39.44, a decline of $8.18, more than 17%. About Lowey Dannenberg Since its inception in 1967, Lowey has specialized in the prosecution of complex civil class action lawsuits and has grown into one of the most successful shareholder litigation firms in the field. Its investor litigation group has recovered billions of dollars in the aggregate and has achieved landmark, long-term corporate governance changes at public companies. Over decades of zealous advocacy, Lowey has developed a profound knowledge of securities and antitrust class action litigation. Contact Lowey Dannenberg P.C. 44 South Broadway, Suite 1100 White Plains, NY 10601 Tel: (914) 733-7256 Email: investigations@lowey.com COLOMBO (PTI): India and Sri Lanka have expressed their commitment to further strengthen bilateral defence ties and jointly face the security challenges and concerns to ensure stability in the region. The new Defence Adviser to the High Commission of India Captain (Indian Navy) Vikas Sood has had interactions with the leadership of Sri Lanka's Ministry of Defence and armed forces in the past week, the Indian High Commission in Colombo said. Captain Sood paid courtesy calls on Sri Lanka's Defence Secretary Maj Gen. (Retd) Kamal Gunaratne on July 28, 2020, Acting Chief of Defence Staff and Commander of the Sri Lanka Army Lt Gen Shavendra Silva on July 27 and Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy Vice Admiral Nishantha Ulugetenne on July 29. During these interactions, a range of matters of mutual interest in bilateral defence cooperation was discussed. Strong commitment to further strengthen the defence relationship between the two countries was reiterated by participants on both sides. The interactions were marked by traditional cordiality and camaraderie between the armed forces of the two countries. "It was noted that India and Sri Lanka enjoy a strong and growing defence relationship pillared on extensive cooperation in capacity building, such as through training, and other close linkages. More than 50 per cent of all foreign military training slots in India are allocated to Sri Lankan defence personnel," the High Commission said. "It was observed that commonality of security concerns and challenges as well as the mutual resolve to address them for ensuring peace and security in our shared region guide the bilateral defence ties," the statement said on Saturday. Regular high-level exchanges and visits, joint training and exercises, ship visits and sports interactions are the key elements of this robust cooperation," it added. Both sides expressed satisfaction over several high-level exchanges and interactions between the two countries in the field of defence this year, despite the travel restrictions in the wake of the COVID 19 pandemic. "Besides several delegation-level visits, Maj Gen (retired) Kamal Gunaratne along with Lt Gen Shavendra Silva, participated in Def Expo 2020 at Lucknow, India in February 2020," the statement said. India expressed gratitude for the excellent cooperation by Sri Lanka Navy and Sri Lanka Ports Authority in the repatriation of Indian nationals from Sri Lanka in June 2020 when INS Jalashwa undertook a visit to the island nation. "The smooth conduct of this operation is a testimony to extremely close ties between Indian and Sri Lankan Armed Forces," the statement said. It was also noted that in line with the commitment of the leadership of the two countries to cooperate in facing COVID 19 challenges, India had extended essential medical assistance to Sri Lanka in recent months. It was recalled that the Indian Navy had gifted two transportation pods for transferring COVID 19 patients and four thermal scanners to Sri Lanka Navy. "In the context of sharing Sri Lanka's valuable experience in effectively fighting COVID, the recent participation of Maj Gen HJS Gunawardena, Chief of Staff of Sri Lanka Army in a webinar organised by India for various partner countries including Bangladesh, Thailand and Myanmar to share best practices followed by Sri Lanka was appreciated," the statement said. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka's Defence Secretary Major General (Retd) Kamal Gunaratne has said that historical relationship between China and Sri Lanka had been growing on the mutual trust built on pillars of political, economic, cultural, educational and most importantly in defence over the years. Delivering the keynote address as the Chief Guest at the inaugural ceremony of the Chinese National Defence University (NDU) Alumni Association of Sri Lanka held recently, he said, China has been a historical ally of Sri Lanka across a multitude of avenues including Buddhism, trade, infrastructure development and global connectivity, Colombo Page reported. "Sri Lankans will never forget the great cooperation extended by China during our hard times which we had to undergo during the recent past domestically and globally," the paper quoted Gunaratne as saying. He also expressed his gratitude to China and the Chinese National Defence University for providing professional expertise in training the battle commanders in planning out counter strategies during the fight against the now-defunct LTTE. China has been making significant forays into Sri Lanka, especially in the defence field. Beijing's activities have caused regional concerns, especially in India. Sri Lankan in 2017 handed over the Hambantota port to China on a 99-year lease. There are regional concerns, mostly from India, that China may make a military presence at Hambantota, located on a key sea international shipping route. Ministers were today asked to prove that two new rapid coronavirus tests bought to bolster Britain's war on coronavirus even work. The tests which give results in 90 minutes will start being rolled out from next week. One is so simple it could soon be deployed in airports, offices, pubs and restaurants bringing testing to the bulk of the population. A leading scientist today suggested they should be used to regularly screen children to prevent outbreaks in schools when pupils return in September. But, despite being hailed as 'life-saving' by Health Secretary Matt Hancock, there is no publicly available data about their effectiveness. Experts today called on Number 10 to confirm both tests are accurate by releasing research on the new devices. The government has already wasted millions of pounds by purchasing Covid tests that were later found to be inaccurate including two different types of antibody test from China. Professor Jon Deeks, a medical statistician at Birmingham University, warned the mistakes made in purchasing tests has even 'put lives at risk' because infected Brits could easily pass the virus on if they are wrongly told they are free of the virus. He said: 'We cannot emphasise how important it is to see independent evaluations of all tests before they are implemented.' The tests were purchased as the Government looks to halt a second wave of the disease, stopping the need for more draconian lockdowns and restart the stalled economy. Similar rapid diagnostic Covid-19 tests have been approved in the US for months. Tests can be legally sold in Britain when they receive a CE mark. But one of the kits bought by ministers has yet to be given the European seal of approval. UK regulators gave the other test an 'exceptional use authorisation'. Under normal circumstances, health chiefs evaluate tests in a laboratory to prove they work before approving them. Ministers then release the data, like they have done for the dozen antigen tests and handful of antibody kits they have bought. One of the new test kits, made by London-based DNANudge, will be launched next month. It scours DNA in nose swabs but saves time as the results do not need to be sent to a laboratory and can be analysed in a NudgeBox (pictured) The other test, called the LamPORE, involves taking a sample of saliva, unlike existing methods which require invasive and difficult nose and throat swabs. The testing machine comes in two sizes The companies involved would not reveal the cost but claim it is similar or cheaper to current tests which are around 18 privately but less to the NHS. DNANudge today announced the government had placed a 161million order for just 5.8million tests, the equivalent of 27 per swab. Oxford Nanopore, which makes the other test called LamPORE, has not revealed how much its deal was worth. Rapid tests, also called 'point-of-care' tests, are those which can be operated on site, such as in GP surgeries, care homes, prisons, and potentially at airports and ports. The aim of every part of the testing system is to make it rapid so that people with the coronavirus can be isolated quickly to stop them spreading it further. A rapid diagnostic test would be particularly useful in the winter to quickly diagnose patients with either flu or Covid-19. HOW NUMBER 10'S APPROACH TO BUYING TESTS HAS STUNG THEM OUT OF 20M A 'buy first, test later' approach has stung officials out of 20million. The Department of Health confirmed that it has had to cancel orders for 70million worth of tests after striking deals for them because they turned out to be bad. That figure was out of a total 90million, suggesting the remaining 20million could not be recouped and the tests must now be used for non-diagnostic purposes or scrapped. The Department said some of the tests are being used for research. One company that sold tests to Britain but didn't pass the Government's evaluation was Wondfo, which is based in the city of Guangzhou in China. The company told MailOnline the UK bought one million tests and 500,000 of them arrived on shipments at the start of April. The tests, the company said, are 86.43 per cent sensitive and 99.57 per cent specific. They miss the MHRA standard on the sensitivity measure, but have been widely used in China. The company told this website: 'To our knowledge, the UK Government has not yet determined how they will use our tests. It is our understanding that the work is still in process.' Advertisement But there is currently no publicly available data on the accuracy of either of the new tests. DNANudge, on its website, says its tests are 98 per cent sensitive. Oxford Nanopore says LamPORE is 'in validation phase'. But the Department of Health said in a statement the latter has 'the same sensitivity as the widely used PCR swab test'. Oxford Nanopore claims to have worked with several laboratories in the UK to prove its test works. Data is expected to be released in the coming days. Professor Andrew Beggs, a University of Birmingham scientist who ran one of the independent testing labs for LamPORE, told the BBC today: 'My lab was one of the labs chosen to try and pilot this system. 'We are right next door to the hospital Queen Elizabeth in Birmingham, we've already run it on patient samples that we've received in and it's 100 per cent accurate compared to the NHS test at the moment, in some ways it's slightly better because instead of having one target for coronavirus testing we can test for separate targets that you can use to detect the coronavirus it allows us to try and reduce the false negative and the false positive rate.' Professor Deeks told The Guardian: 'We would hope that the government would wait for proper evaluations, and consider the scientific evidence for all available tests before signing further contracts. 'The mistakes made in test purchasing have wasted millions of pounds as well as put lives at risk.' He added: 'Both of these technologies are new, and it is unclear what evaluations have been done.' Professor Deeks did not expand on why lives have been put at risk. But he may generally be referring to the risks of a test that produces false results and wrongly tell people with Covid-19 they are free from the virus. And for antibody tests, experts warn an inaccurate result could wrongly suggest a person has already had the virus and may not catch it again. Professor Deenan Pillay, a University College London virologist, told the newspaper: 'They [the new tests] may be very good, and if so thats great (although the data must be made available for scrutiny, and to avoid any suspicion of conflicts of interests).' Professor Alan McNally, a microbiologist at Birmingham University, tweeted that it 'would be really good if validation data could be made public'. Regulators today said the LamPORE tests could not be used until they get a valid CE mark, meaning it has been met European health and safety standards. It comes after the Government wasted a staggering amount of money on finding antibody 'have you had it' tests. Government officials said it had to cancel orders for 70million worth of coronavirus antibody kits from two companies in China AllTest Biotech and Wondfo Biotech that they had bought before checking they worked. That figure was out of a total 90million, suggesting the remaining 20million could not be recouped and the tests must now be used for non-diagnostic purposes or scrapped. Today the government said the two new rapid tests for diagnosing Covid-19 will initially be introduced in the NHS and care homes before being made available more widely over the next few months. The Samba II device (pictured), is being used at Addenbrooke's, a teaching hospital in Cambridge. It can produce results in 90 minutes The Covid-19 LAMP assay test, developed by UK-based manufacturer Optigene, can turn around results within 20 minutes. It is being trialled in Hampshire GOVERNMENT WILL START TESTING SEWAGE TO TRACK SPREAD OF COVID-19 The Government will start testing sewage to track coronavirus and could ban domestic travel to stop local outbreaks. Infected people are thought to shed coronavirus material in faeces soon after symptoms appear, meaning sewage could act as a faster indicator of the presence of Covid-19 than swab tests. This has led the government to ramp up mass sewage testing nationwide after trials across 44 sites in England were able to identify local infection rises. Environment Secretary George Eustice said the measure would give officials a 'head start' on tackling further outbreaks. A wave of localised flare-ups across England has prompted Downing Street to discuss radical proposals to shake up its crisis response. This could include banning travel in and out of areas with high infections as part of a 'flexible' strategy to avoid another national lockdown that would derail the economic recovery. The notion of locking down London was touted in March when the capital bore the brunt of cases. It could be resurrected again in the event of a second wave, with the lockdown area defined by the M25. Advertisement Unlike current tests given mainly to patients who already think they have the virus, the new methods will be used to routinely screen members of the public who show no symptoms. Officials hope they will flag up local outbreaks before they take hold, avoiding the need for local lockdowns such as that imposed in the North West last week. Crucially, both tests can also tell patients if they have the flu even if their result is negative for Covid-19. This means health authorities will be able to track the spread of the viral illnesses around the country and carry out flu jab campaigns. Ministers are anxious to avoid a major flu outbreak this winter amid fears it will coincide with a spike in Covid and put an unprecedented strain on the NHS. The LamPORE test involves taking a sample of saliva, unlike existing methods which require invasive and difficult nose and throat swabs. Professor Andrew Beggs, a genetics expert at the University of Birmingham, who has been trialling the LamPORE test, described it as 'transformational'. He said: 'A rapid test which works off saliva and gives you a result in a maximum of two hours is enormously powerful. It's definitely an advance on the tools we have at the moment.' Sir John, regius professor of medicine at Oxford University, has said that the new quick turnaround tests should be used at schools. The leading immunologist, who is spearheading the governments ongoing search for a reliable antibody test, told BBC Radio 4s The Today Programme: 'If you look at schools theres going to be a huge interest in keeping them safe the best way to do that is to screen the children at some level.' When asked how frequently children should be tested he added: 'I think some people have said once a week should be okay but others have said less frequently. 'For example, in boarding schools you could screen the kids when they came back from home and probably not screen them very often until they went home again and then screen them when they reentered the school because it acts as a large bubble.' He also sees potential for the tests to be used 'more extensively by the private sector' because there is a 'huge unmet need by schools, by airports and airlines'. Ministers are understood to have made an order for 450,000 of the tests made by Oxford Nanopore Technologies Ltd, which will be available from next week in adult care settings and laboratories. The other test, made by London-based DNANudge, will be launched next month. Ministers have purchased 5,000 of the DNANudge machines, which can process up to 15 tests a day, to provide 5.8 million tests in the coming months. It analyses DNA in nose swabs but saves time as the results do not need to be sent to a laboratory. Results of current methods can take from 24 hours to four days to come back. Sir John Bell, a professor of medicine at Oxford University, who has been advising ministers on tests, said both were just as accurate as the lab swabs currently in use in the UK. The Government has never disclosed how accurate its current tests are, but studies have indicated they give the correct diagnosis about 80 per cent of the time. It adds another rapid test to the UK's catalogue, with two other point-of-care tests currently being used within the NHS. SCIENTIST SLAMS THE GOVERNMENT FOR 'SHROUD OF SECRECY' A top scientist has slammed the 'shroud of secrecy' around the government's coronavirus decisions - as civil servants rebel over Boris Johnson's call for people to return to offices. Sir Paul Nurse, chief of the Francis Crick Institute, raised concerns that crucial choices seemed to be made by a 'black box' in Whitehall with the results sometimes 'shambolic'. He insisted more transparency and scrutiny was needed to get the 'best results'. The intervention came as the government faces a fresh backlash about mixed messaging. Treasury subsidies for eating out at restaurants are launched today, and advice that everyone should work from home is being downgraded. However, there are also mounting rumours about tightening coronavirus rules in some areas, with fears of a looming second wave. Civil servants have complained they are being used as guinea pigs for the return to offices, with claims of more cases at the heart of government over the past fortnight. Sir Paul, a geneticist and former president of the Royal Society, warned ministers that the decision-making process was too opaque. 'Decisions are too often shrouded in secrecy. They need challenge and we need processes to ensure that happens,' he said. 'If they are going to keep the trust of the nation, they need to make those discussions more public.' He added: 'It sometimes seems like a 'black box' made up of scientists, civil servants and politicians are coming up with the decisions. 'It needs to be more open. We need greater transparency, greater scrutiny and greater challenge to get the best results.' Advertisement The Samba II device, created by a University of Cambridge spin-off company called Diagnostics for the Real World, is being used at Addenbrooke's, a teaching hospital in Cambridge. The Covid-19 LAMP assay test, developed by UK-based manufacturer Optigene, has been trialled in a pilot study in Hampshire since May. It can turn around results within 20 minutes, while the Samba II device takes as little as 90 minutes. Similar rapid diagnostic Covid-19 tests have been approved in the US for months. The Food and Drug Administration gave the green light for medics to use tests by California-based Cepheid in cases of emergency in March. Cepheid's on-the-spot tests have a detection time of about 45 minutes and costs between $5 and $20 (3.84 and 15.36). Mr Hancock described the tests as 'life-saving innovations'. He said: 'Millions of new rapid coronavirus tests will provide on-the-spot results in under 90 minutes, helping us to break chains of transmission quickly. 'The fact these tests can detect flu as well as Covid-19 will be hugely beneficial as we head into winter, so patients can follow the right advice to protect themselves and others.' Neither of the new tests need to be administered by medically-trained professionals. The developers of the LamPORE test, Oxford Nanopore, hope it can be routinely used at airports, avoiding the need for quarantine. The DNANudge test has been trialled in eight hospitals, on cancer, accident and emergency and maternity wards. The Government has the capacity to test 220,000 people a day but ministers want to increase this to 500,000 by autumn. Niall Dickson, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: 'The news of quicker tests is encouraging and should mean we have a further weapon in our armoury to defeat the virus.' Saffron Cordery, deputy chief executive of NHS Providers, said: 'Having the ability to rapidly test and report the results will help the NHS and other care providers with the challenge of continuing to restart routine services, plan for winter and deal with a potential second surge in Covid-19.' The development came as ministers ditched a promise to test all residents and staff in care homes throughout the summer due to supply problems. An email sent to local council chief executives last week from the adult social care testing director Professor Jane Cummings warned of 'unexpected delays'. NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says Victoria's new restrictions would slow the number of people crossing the border but hasn't ruled out tighter measures between the states. Almost one-third of new cases confirmed in NSW on Monday were people who had returned from Victoria. Mark Christian returned to Sydney to be with his father, who is ill. Credit:Kate Geraghty Five of the 17 new COVID-19 infections reported in NSW were acquired in Victoria. One case was confirmed earlier on Monday, and four cases were confirmed later in a family who had returned to Wagga Wagga from Melbourne. Meanwhile, passengers arriving at Sydney Airport from Victoria said they were relieved to have left the state, as it recorded 429 new cases and 13 further deaths taking the national death toll to 221. Suing China over COVID-19 pandemic would be "huge mistake": U.S. senator WASHINGTON, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- Allowing U.S. citizens to sue China over the COVID-19 pandemic would be a "huge mistake," a Californian senator has said. "We launch a series of unknown events that could be very, very dangerous. I think this is a huge mistake," said Senior Senator Dianne Feinstein recently during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. Noting that China has pulled tens of millions of people out of poverty in a short period of time, Feinstein regarded China as a country "growing into a respectable nation among other nations" and a "potential trading partner." Feinstein also said that other countries, including China, could use the new legal precedent against the United States, resulting in global chaos, according to Fox News. Her comments came three months after Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed a lawsuit demanding that the Chinese government take responsibility and make compensations for the global pandemic. TO HELP struggling micro, small and medium entrepreneurs (MSME) amid the pandemic-hit economy, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Cebu Provincial Office has provided financial assistance through its Livelihood Seeding Program (LSP). LSP is a program of DTI that allows a wider reach of business development assistance by bringing government services closer to the people through partnerships between relevant local government units and DTI officials. LSP is implemeted through Negosyo Serbisyo sa Barangay (LSP-NSB) and the Pangkabuhayan sa Pagbangon at Ginhawa (LSP-PBG) program. Marivic Aguilar, DTI Cebu provincial office chief for small and medium enterprise development division, said the agency aims to target over 600 MSMEs for LSP-NSB, of which 195 beneficiaries will come from NSB batch 2019 and 435 beneficiaries for batch NSB 2020. MSME beneficiaries under this program will each receive P6,000 negosyo kits. For this year, the DTI- Cebu Province hopes to cover 87 barangays. According to Aguilar, qualified MSMEs under this program are those that have attended DTIs entrepreneurship development seminars and business advisory sessions, have business registration papers, have been in business/operation for at least six months by June 2020, and have undergone validation/assessment by the DTIs Negosyo Centers. DTI Cebu has already rolled out LSP-NSB to 21 towns, specifically the fourth and fifth income class towns of the province. More kits to distribute Some 182 MSMEs were given negosyo kits from July 20 to July 31 in Alcantara, Alcoy, Alegria, Aloguinsan, Boljoon, Borbon, Catmon, Ginatilan, Malabuyoc, Moalboal, Oslob, Pilar, Poro and Tudela in Camotes, Ronda, Samboan, Santander, Sogod and Tabuelan. MSMEs in Madridejos and Sta. Fe in Bantayan Island will receive their kits on Tuesday, Aug. 4. Another 435 negosyo kits will be distributed from August to October 2020. Moreover, the DTI Cebu aims to reach out to 650 MSMEs to be given P10,000 negosyo kits each under the LSP-PBG. Story continues Aguilar said qualified MSMEs under this program are those whose livelihood has been severely affected by fire, health disasters/pandemic, beneficiaries of killed-in-action Armed Forces of the Philippines-Philippine National Police personnel, and other priorities of the government. These are beneficiaries endorsed by the local government units for assistance and certified as having been affected by these natural and man-made calamities, and further validated/assessed by the DTI staff. Recently, the DTI Cebu distributed negosyo kits to boat owners from seven barangays in Moalboal, Cebu under the LSP-PBG program. A total of 41 boat owners, all members of the Boat Owners of Moalboal Island Hopping Association Inc., were beneficiaries of negosyo kits worth P10,000 each. LSP-PBG is a livelihood seeding and entrepreneurship development program which aims to assist individuals and families affected by fire incidents and other calamities, including health disasters like the Covid-19 pandemic, and those who will avail themselves of the Balik Probinsya Program to recover and/or start their business. (JOB) St Andrew's Cathedral (PHOTO: Dhany Osman / Yahoo News Singapore) SINGAPORE Twelve religious organisations (ROs) will be allowed to accommodate up to 100 persons at any one time for congregational and other worship services with safeguard precautions in place as from Friday (7 August), as part of a pilot measure by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY). The ROs involved are Masjid Assyafaah, Masjid Mujahidin, Masjid Al-Istighfar, Masjid Al-Iman, St Andrews Cathedral, Jurong Christian Church, Amazing Grace Presbyterian Church, Sengkang Methodist Church and Central Sikh Temple. This pilot will include the implementation of two zones of up to 50 persons each for congregational and other worship services in 9 of the 12 ROs, said MCCY. The ministry has consulted religious leaders, who are members of the National Steering Committee on Racial and Religious Harmony, to identify the ROs for the pilot. The participating ROs must have first safely conducted congregational and other worship services for up to 50 persons under the guidelines for Phase 2 reopening. ROs participating in this pilot must submit their updated safe management plans to MCCY at least three days before starting the pilot. MCCY will assess how well these ROs implement the safe management measures for their worshippers, before deciding on whether to increase the limit on the number of worshippers for other ROs. Besides the prevailing safe management measures introduced for Phase 2, the pilot ROs will have to put in place additional measures to keep the larger group of worshippers safe from COVID-19, taking into account the different worship practices: Churches, mosques and gurdwaras Establish two zones, each accommodating up to 50 worshippers, for the worship service. In worship settings where religious services are structured/seated, these zones will help to minimise interactions between worshippers. Each zone has to be separated by a physical partition or barrier. Worshippers must maintain a safe distance from one another at all times. To avoid interaction between worshippers across zones, there should also be separate entrances and exits or staggered entry and exit timings for each zone. Story continues Buddhist, Taoist and Hindu temples Safe management measures include ensuring no crowding or bunching of worshippers at common areas and in the prayer halls, no mingling between groups, and safe distancing between worshippers. Stay in the know on-the-go: Join Yahoo Singapore's Telegram channel at http://t.me/YahooSingapore Other Singapore stories COVID-19: MOH reports 226 new cases including prison inmate on short-term visit pass COVID-19: Monitoring devices for those serving SHNs outside of dedicated facilities from 10 Aug Singapore suicides rose in 2019, SOS to offer text-based counselling Man charged with cheating victims out of more than $98,000 in Haj tour scam The editor of science journal eLife has enraged fellow scientists on Twitter by saying that the roundworm was 'overhyped'. In a debate designed to spark friendly banter, podcast host Ellen Weatherford tweeted on July 18 to her 3,500 followers from @JustTheZooOfUs: 'What is the most overhyped animal?' Michael Eisen, the editor of eLife and an expert in fruit flies, replied a day later that the roundworm was, in his opinion, overhyped. 'They wiggle forward. They wiggle backwards. And occasionally they f*** themselves. That's it,' he tweeted. Social media then erupted with outrage at his slight of the roundworms, with the criticism escalating into accusations of racism, sexism and white privilege. Caenorhabditis elegans worm, colored scanning electron micrograph. Twitter erupted in fury after the editor of eLife journal said he believed the worm was the 'most overhyped' animal Editor of science journal eLife, Michael Eisen, weighed in on the debate - with explosive results Many began by questioning his use of an expletive. Others said it was unfair to researchers in that particular biological field - the roundworm is frequently studied because it provides an easy proxy for understanding biological processes, and was the first multicellular organism to have its entire genome and neural system mapped. Studies of it have been used in research on Alzheimer's, nicotine dependence, and muscle atrophy due to time spent in space. 'Look, I'm sure he thinks this is all hilarious. But many of us have had grants and papers rejected based on *exactly* this reason,' wrote one researcher. Some said that their community of researchers - like any other community - has the right to feel upset about the tweet. Irini Topalidou, a scientist at the University of Washington, was unimpressed with Eisen's tweet. 'The worm community has the right to be sensitive over these issues the same way that any other community that has received unfair criticism has the same right,' she wrote. Seattle-based scientist Irini Topalidou was particularly angered by Eisen's tweet Ahna Skop, a cell biologist based in Madison, Wisconsin, agreed that Eisen's tweet was unacceptable, describing it as a 'microaggression'. 'Jokes are often microaggressions,' she wrote. 'Meant to be funny, but in turn hurting others and your community.' Skop said that Eisen's joke was a microcosm of discrimination faced in the wider world. 'It's an allegory that revealed how the privileged continue to support the privileged. 'And that light hearted jokes are microaggressions, whether intention or unintentional communicate hostile, derogatory insults towards any group.' Another scientist, Yale-based Dr Valerie Horsley, tweeted: 'It's just a joke... women and POC have heard that one before.' She later deleted the tweet, writing: 'I am sorry for my actions in a recent tweet that I have since deleted. I hear you and understand how you feel. My comparison to racism and sexism to putting down a scientific model system were inappropriate. I will continue to listen and learn.' Microbial biologist Dr Maureen Berg responded: 'Please someone release me from this timeline.' Ahna Skop's tweets, shared by Dr Berg, accused Eisen of 'microagressions' BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 1 By Nargiz Sadikhova - Trend: The value of trade turnover between Kazakhstan and China amounted to $5.75 billion over first five months of 2020, compared to $5.71 billion during the same period of 2019, Trend reports with reference to Kazakhstans Statistics Committee. The share of China in total value of Kazakhstans trade turnover was 16.5 percent during the reporting period of 2020 compared to 15.2 percent during the same period of 2019. Kazakhstans export to China amounted to $3.8 billion over the period from January through May 2020, compared to $3.3 billion during the same period of 2019. Chinas share in total volume of Kazakhstans export amounted to 17.3 percent during the reporting period of 2020 compared to 14.1 percent during the same period of 2019. In turn, Kazakhstans imports from China amounted to $1.8 billion over the reporting period, compared to $2.3 billion during the same period of 2019. Chinas total share in Kazakhstans import was 15 percent during the reporting period of 2020 which is compared to less than 17.1 percent during the same period of 2019. The total volume of Kazakhstans trade turnover amounted to $34.9 billion over the period from Jan. through May 2020 which indicates a decrease from $37.5 billion during the same period of 2019. Kazakhstans export amounted to $22.3 billion during the reporting period of 2020 ($23.6 billion in the same period of 2019), whereas import amounted to $12.6 billion ($13.9 billion). --- Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh Toto Wolff says he is "not worried" that Lewis Hamilton might decide against extending his Mercedes contract beyond 2020. At Silverstone, the dominant six-time world champion went into the weekend explaining that he expects to keep racing in F1 for three more years. But when asked about his 2021 Mercedes deal and his talks with team boss Wolff, Hamilton said after qualifying: "No, there's no discussion at all." When asked about that, Wolff said on Sunday: "He said there were no discussions about his contract? "That's because we trust each other," Speed Week quotes the Austrian as saying. "We have had the same contract for seven years and have never had to pull it out. It's about the commercial conditions, and I'm not worried about that because up to now we have always been able to agree quickly. "I have no concerns and I think we will sit down together soon," Wolff added. (GMM) New Delhi: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi accused on Wednesday the government of helping black money hoarders with the amendment to the income tax law, saying half of the unaccounted cash would now be returned to them. The government has given 50% of the black money back to hoarders again, he said outside Parliament. The Taxation Laws (2nd Amendment) Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, providing a window to legalise black money after paying tax on the amount post-demonetisation. As per the bill, those who disclose black money to banks will have to pay 50% tax, including surcharge and penalty. Asked about the walkout by the opposition MPs in the Lok Sabha, Rahul said, "There is a practice in Parliament that whenever someone dies we respect them. This is for the first time that there was no such obituary offered for those soldiers who had died (in Nagrota attack). So the Opposition walked out." Opposition members walked out of the Lok Sabha as their demand for an obituary reference on the soldiers who died in the terror attack on army camp in Jammu was rejected by the speaker on the grounds that final details were yet to emerge. Countering Rahul's charges, information and broadcasting minister M Venkaiah Naidu said, "It is unfortunate that Congress is doing politics over the issue involving defence of the country." "The Speaker informed that combing operations are underway in Nagrota. Once operations are over, tribute will be paid in the House to the soldiers," he said. Taking on Congress, Naidu said, "People of the nation hate such small politics. Congress party walked out during question hour and then came back. Congress neither wants any discussion nor wants House to function as they are scared of being exposed. It's an insult to Nagrota martyrs." For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Marking the first US splashdown in 45 years, SpaceXs Crew Dragon astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley successfully landed in the Atlantic Ocean at 2:48 PM ET. This was the first crewed orbital flight using a private spacecraft to land back on Earth, as well as the first crewed spaceflight from the US since NASA retired the Space Shuttle in 2011. This is the last Crew Dragon test flight so, once SpaceX receives NASA certification, future flights will be regular missions carrying astronauts to the ISS. For NASA itself, its a major step forward for a Commercial Crew Program with lower costs. For SpaceX, its keeping a step ahead of private spaceflight competitors, like Boeing, and I creep closer to setting up a savings account to one day book a flight into space. Mat TikTok owner reportedly agrees to sell US stake to avoid ban Microsoft is apparently involved. TikTok Its been a chaotic weekend for TikTok's Chinese owner, ByteDance. President Trump said he would ban TikTok outright over its Chinese links and rejected talk of allowing a sell-off. (Not that the leader of the US has bigger issues to contend with at this very moment in time.) A Reuters report claims that ByteDance agreed to sell its stake in the social networks US operations to avert the possible ban. The agreement would have Microsoft protect American user data, according to the report, but Microsoft wouldnt necessarily own TikTok. On Saturday, Microsoft told several news outlets it had paused talks with TikTok following Trumps suggestion he would ban the app, then we heard the tech companies were reportedly hoping to finish a deal by Monday. Microsoft followed up later, claiming its aiming to close the TikTok deal by September 15th. Whew. Continue reading. Chromebook users get three free months of Stadia Pro Try cloud gaming on a system practically made for it. Engadget Google has introduced a new perk for Chromebook owners with a gaming itch to scratch: a free three-month trial of Stadia Pro. Youll need a system released June 2017 or later, and youll still have to buy games not included with membership, but this could be just the ticket if you want to see how Destiny 2 or PUBG plays on your Chrome OS portable. Pro, of course, offers a shifting line-up of free games to play. Last month, this included Crayta and West of Loathing, but Triple-A games have also been included since Stadias launch. Augusts bundle includes Metro 2033. Continue reading. The best weather app, Dark Sky, shuts down on Android Its now owned by Apple. Apple has shut down Dark Sky on Android and Wear OS, as promised, leaving users without the apps highly localized weather. Apple had initially planned to shutter these versions on July 1st, following its acquisition of Dark Sky in March, but offered a month-long extension right as service was due to end. Your Dark Sky subscription should already be canceled if you were paying $3 per year. The developers promised a full refund to members. Continue reading. The first US COVID-19 exposure notification apps could arrive within 'weeks' Canada's exposure notification app launched Friday. Engadget To help fight the spread of COVID-19, Apple and Google quickly developed exposure notification technology for Android and iOS that relied on Bluetooth technology in mobile phones. They initially released their platforms in May (via an update for iOS and Play Store services on Android), but so far, in the US, apps based on the technology have not rolled out widely. According to a Google blog post, apps based on their exposure notification systems have launched in 16 countries and regions, with Canada joining that count on Friday. For the US, Google says that 20 states and territories covering about 45 percent of the US population are exploring apps based on the systems, and the first ones should launch in the coming weeks. Continue reading. But wait, theres more... Google's latest Chrome extension shows detailed ad-tracking data Computer mouse co-inventor William English dies at 91 My latest lockdown workout is VR boxing Recommended Reading: The fear of TikTok In response to Maureen Nassans recent letter, which included the phrase Im sure I am not the only person who is tired of reading how our teachers do not want to go back to school because of COVID-19 fears: Teachers are sick and tired of parents who want babysitters, and thats what her comment sounds like. In addition, its common medical knowledge that children can and do transmit the coronavirus. Also, to expect a child to continually wear a mask and maintain distance is unrealistic. Although children dont have the vocal power of an adult when speaking, they harbor twice as much virus mucus in their throats and could be extremely efficient contaminators. To expect teachers to return to the classroom when its so likely theyll become infected is asking them literally to get sick and possibly die. They are also at high risk of bringing COVID-19 home to their own families. Were all in this mess together and, understandably, distance instruction via computer is not the best thing, but its a reasonable alternative under these circumstances. There should be a vaccine in the near future and that will provide a safer atmosphere. There is currently discussion regarding lawsuits resulting from a forced return to classrooms. School boards are seeking some sort of law that holds them harmless. This tells me that they expect teachers to become exposed, infected and die. The only one who wants schools reopened so badly is President Donald Trump. Even if schools do reopen to children, their parents in many cases have no jobs to return to. Our economy has been destroyed by the total inaction of the leadership of this country. It could have been so much different. J. K. Aumack, Cape May No ride for kids to new-normal schools? In response to Maureen Nassans recent letter: It should be noted that a delay in starting a normal, in-person school year will likely result in a shortage of school bus drivers, with no easy solutions outside of parents providing transportation. However, schools are not able to handle hundreds of cars dropping off and picking up children safely and efficiently in all kinds of weather. Many New Jersey school bus drivers are over age 45, with co-morbidities that elevate their risk or severe COVID-19 symptoms. This will result will result in their moving on to different jobs. Even before the pandemic, local school bus companies faced years of driver shortages that force them to run help-wanted ads year round. There is no pool of unemployed CDL-qualified drivers who can pass a drug test, a physical and a criminal background check waiting for a job. Companies are forced to hire, train and then hope a new driver candidate can pass all the needed tests and get the commercial drivers license. This takes time and money. I can also tell you plans to limit the number of students riding each bus are impossible to implement if districts want all students in school at the same time. The resources and manpower do not exist to make it remotely feasible. Two members of my family are school bus drivers, so I know that working more than 40 hours a week is already a norm. This might not sound like a big problem, but I believe it has the potential to be a logistical nightmare for parents, students and schools. Howard Pryda, Glendora Support for strike against the beans of wrath In his recent opinion piece, Why the Goya boycott is bad news, writer Samuel Berman neglects to highlight that praise for President Donald Trump from Goyas CEO, Robert Unanue, has significant sway among frequent consumers of Goya products, particularly the Hispanic community. To publicly call Trump a builder, as Unanue did, flies in the face of daily, blatant assaults by this president on the countrys non-white population. Look no further than Trumps recent announcement to end the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing program in an effort to make suburban communities free of additional low income housing. Trump's idea of "building" is more focused on increasing the partisan divide, preventing minorities from entering this country, preventing minority citizens from voting, and increasing the wealth of his cronies and himself. Berman may not view this current boycott in the same vein as Cesar Chavezs historic grape strike to improve conditions for Latino farmworkers. But, a Goya boycott should be a wake-up call to everyone to look at Trumps behavior, especially in light of the upcoming November election. Mark Del Mauro, Denville Show a shred of objectivity, Tom Moran I try to read almost all the articles in the Sunday Star-Ledger Perspective section. I dont always agree with what is said, but I read to better understand different viewpoints. I wish columnist Tom Moran (Why Tom Kean Jr. deserves to lose his campaign for Congress) would also look to see different perspectives. Moran sees little or no value in Kean, currently a state senator. That, itself, would be fine. But for Moran to pontificate on how everyone else who ran in the past did so better leaves me questioning his assessment. I do wish he could find something redeeming about a person. This might show he has some objectivity. But, I guess if you are so far leaning to the left, this isnt possible. One more thought: Moran comments that Republican Kean doesnt grope women, but apparently supports a national politician who does. I know I have seen some video clips of a Democratic candidate stroking a young girls hair at some press conference. Moran should be careful about what he hears and should pay more attention to what he sees. John Connelly, Towaco Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. The Star-Ledger/NJ.com encourages submissions of opinion. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow us on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and on Facebook at NJ.com Opinion. Get the latest news updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. It's very easy to have people, or parties, labelled far-Right, regardless of their actual beliefs, which is what a small, but nasty, group of bullies did to a few harmless people in Belfast recently after violently demonstrating their own contempt for democracy. The victims were a few members of the Irish Freedom Party, which had set up an information stall in the city centre last Saturday week, which was violently attacked and smashed by men who tore up their leaflets, screamed at them to "F*** off" and as they left chanted "Nazi scum off our streets". Those whose stall was wrecked sensibly walked away and left the field to the thugs. They then found unchallenged descriptions of their party in headlines and tweets as far-Right, fascist and Nazi. The Irish Freedom Party, a few of whose members I know slightly, wants to regain Irish sovereignty by leaving the European Union - as, oddly enough, does the Irish Republican Socialist party, better known as the political wing of the Irish National Liberation Army, which was one of the groups proud of attacking them. So, too, to the best of my knowledge, do three of the four other groups claiming to have been involved - all inspired by the Scottish socialist revolutionary James Connolly of 1916 fame: the Connolly Youth Movement, Lasair Dhearg (Red Flame) and Saoradh Liberation). I don't know where the fourth, the Belfast Anti-Fascists, who claimed the attack was their idea, stand on the EU. As far as I can tell, they're a "whatever-you're-having-yourself" gaggle looking for a bit of crack by abusing and trying to silence anyone that doesn't go along with whatever half-baked and ill-informed fashionable idea they're espousing about climate, gender, race and so on. In England, those dominating and encouraging violence in Extinction Rebellion, Black Lives Matter and self-styled anti-fascist groups, are mostly white, middle-class, privately, or grammar school, educated young people adept in climbing on whatever bandwagon gets them kudos and job opportunities. The same seems to be true in Dublin. I'd suggest to any Northern Irish parents whose children are bragging about their social justice activism that they should look closely at the organisations they're involved in and at least read their manifestoes. Considering the Black Lives Matter website was demanding the overthrow of capitalism, the family, the police and in effect all the institutions that have brought about the prosperity of the West, you might think that people like Sir Keir Starmer, the leader of the Labour Party, bishops, senior police and Gary Lineker would have thought twice before taking the knee. It's amusing to see how quickly, as they look for financial backing, Black Lives Matter are sanitising their official communications to satisfy the more moderate woke types. Back to the Irish Freedom Party, which is fiscally and socially conservative, which the last time I checked the criminal code are not prosecutable offences. As well as being eurosceptic, the party wrote in a letter to this newspaper last week, it is "pro-life, pro-family" and believes in "a small state, low tax, personal freedom and responsibility". It opposes "state authoritarianism associated with both communism and fascism" and its members come from "the Left, Right and centre of the political spectrum". However, they continued, "unlike the violent thugs who attacked our members' stall on Saturday, we are committed to achieving our aims through non-violence and the democratic institutions". They added, starkly, that the party also "believes in free speech, freedom of association, freedom of religion and won't be put off by Saoradh thugs who shot a female journalist a year ago because thuggery never deserves to win". I am sure my dear and much-missed friend Lyra McKee would be glad to be called in aid of non-violence. It would be a stand against the thugs to point out at every opportunity that the only fascists in those videos they think show them as heroes are them. "Just so extreme antifa (anti-fascist) idiots know," ended the letter, "we will go where we choose, whenever we choose." I hope that the PSNI and the public ensure that they can. Kyran Ky Miller left a legacy of kindness and caring, touching the lives of countless people. The former Midlander and owner of Wilson Miller Funeral Home died Tuesday, July 28, in Hermiston, Oregon at the age of 74. There will never be another Ky, said Kathy Ordiway, a former office professional at Wilson Miller Funeral Home. He started off as my boss and mentor. We became friends and he became part of our family. Born on Sept. 30, 1945, in Grand Haven to the late Fred and Marie Tedall, Miller graduated from Muskegon High School in 1963. He then served in the U.S. Army for three years during the Vietnam War before attending Muskegon Community College and Worham College of Mortuary Science. Miller moved to Midland in 1972 when Robert Wilson hired him at Wilson Funeral Home and Miller began managing the firm in September 1977. Ordiway, who worked with Miller for over 30 years, described Miller as a fantastic boss. He demonstrated respect and compassion toward all of his staff and clients. Ordiway noticed how Miller was gentle with his instructions, receptive to peoples moods and very tactful when it came to helping families make funeral arrangements. He said if you cant care and show compassion, then you shouldnt be in the business, Ordiway stated. One example of how Miller worked behind the scenes was his love of antiquing. According to Ordiway, Miller would decorate the funeral home with old-fashioned umbrella stands, a Melodeon piano and Roseville and McCoy pottery. There were even a few instances where families would donate their loved ones antiques to the funeral home. The reason behind displaying these items was to help people reminisce about their childhood and time spent with family. It gave you something else to think about while youre there, Ordiway said. The year 1987 was a milestone year for Millers career. He became the sole shareholder of the funeral home, its name was changed to Wilson Miller and operations moved from 142 Ashman St. to its current location at 4210 N. Saginaw Road. When the new building was built, it came with a house, where Miller lived with his dogs. He lived there until he moved to Oregon. He felt there should always be someone available, Ordiway said. The funeral homes current owner, manager and director, Craig Pickelman, first met Miller through a friend before he was employed by Wilson Miller in 1997. Pickelman recalls how Miller dutifully tended to any and all families, no matter their economic status, who came through the funeral homes doors. He was a very caring individual that would help anyone who came to the funeral home, Pickelman said. By working with Miller, Pickelman learned how to best address families needs as well as run the business efficiently. In 2016, Miller sold ownership of the funeral home to Pickelman and retired to Hermiston, Oregon. Miller maintained his friendship with Pickelman and Ordiway over the next few years. Millers kind and generous nature extended beyond the funeral home. He was involved with several area organizations, serving as Master of the Lodge with Centre Lodge 273 of Free and Accepted Masons in Midland, Bay City Consistory Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite and the Elf Khurafe Shrine Temple. He also regularly participated in the youth auction at the county fair, donating the money to church pantries. He didnt want the fanfare or any recognition for it, Pickelman said. Millers funeral arrangements are incomplete at this time and are being handled by Wilson Miller Funeral Home. A full obituary will be published at a later date. ALAMEDA, Calif., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Penumbra, Inc. (NYSE: PEN), a global healthcare company focused on innovative therapies, today reported financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2020. Revenue of $105 .1 million in the second quarter of 2020, a decrease of 21.7%, or 21.3% in constant currency1, compared to the second quarter of 2019. US revenue of $78 .0 million was slightly less than 10% below the same period a year ago. Second Quarter 2020 Financial Results Total revenue declined to $105.1 million for the second quarter of 2020 compared to $134.2 million for the second quarter of 2019, a decrease of 21.7%, or 21.3% on a constant currency basis. The United States represented 74% of total revenue and international represented 26% of total revenue for the second quarter of 2020. Revenue from sales of vascular products declined to $46.3 million for the second quarter of 2020, a decrease of 12.1%, or 11.9% on a constant currency basis. US vascular revenue declined 5.7% and international vascular revenue declined 36.7% compared to the second quarter of 2019. Revenue from sales of neuro products declined to $58.8 million for the second quarter of 2020, a decrease of 27.8%, or 27.3% on a constant currency basis. US neuro revenue and international neuro revenue declined 13.3% and 45.4%, respectively, compared to the second quarter of 2019. Gross profit was $64.9 million, or 61.8% of total revenue, for the second quarter of 2020, compared to $93.9 million, or 70.0% of total revenue, for the second quarter of 2019. Total operating expenses for the second quarter of 2020 were $82.6 million, or 78.6% of total revenue. This compares to total operating expenses of $81.1 million, or 60.5% of total revenue, for the second quarter of 2019. R&D expenses were $22.7 million for the second quarter of 2020, compared to $13.5 million for the second quarter of 2019. SG&A expenses were $59.9 million for the second quarter of 2020, compared to $67.7 million for the second quarter of 2019. Operating loss for the second quarter of 2020 was $17.6 million, compared to an operating income of $12.8 million for the second quarter of 2019. As of June 30, 2020, cash, cash equivalents and marketable investments totaled $278.3 million, which includes net cash proceeds of approximately $134.8 million from an underwritten public offering completed in June 2020. Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic The Company's business trends continue to be impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic. The Company has experienced and believes that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company's business differs by geography and procedure type. Due to the uncertain scope and duration of the pandemic, and uncertain timing of global recovery and economic normalization, we still cannot reliably estimate the future impact on our operations and financial results. Further, we think the recent resurgence in the United States and other parts of the world could cause periodic disruption in our revenue until the pandemic is contained. Webcast and Conference Call Information Penumbra, Inc. will host a conference call to discuss the second quarter 2020 financial results after market close on Monday, August 3, 2020 at 4:30 PM Eastern Time. The conference call can be accessed live over the phone by dialing (833) 350-1434 for domestic and international callers (conference id: 8138127), or the webcast can be accessed on the "Events" section under the "Investors" tab of the Company's website at: www.penumbrainc.com . The webcast will be available on the Company's website for at least two weeks following the completion of the call. About Penumbra Penumbra, Inc., headquartered in Alameda, California, is a global healthcare company focused on innovative therapies. Penumbra designs, develops, manufactures and markets novel products and has a broad portfolio that addresses challenging medical conditions in markets with significant unmet need. Penumbra sells its products to hospitals and healthcare providers primarily through its direct sales organization in the United States, most of Europe, Canada and Australia, and through distributors in select international markets. The Penumbra logo is a trademark of Penumbra, Inc. For more information, visit www.penumbrainc.com . 1 See "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for important information about our use of constant currency and other non-GAAP measures. Non-GAAP Financial Measures In addition to financial measures prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"), the Company uses the following non-GAAP financial measures in this press release: a) non-GAAP net (loss) income and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share ("EPS") and b) constant currency. Non-GAAP net (loss) income and non-GAAP diluted EPS. The Company defines non-GAAP net (loss) income as net income attributable to Penumbra, Inc. excluding the effects of the impairment loss on indefinite-lived intangible asset and the excess tax benefits associated with share-based compensation arrangements. The Company defines non-GAAP diluted EPS as GAAP diluted EPS, excluding the effects of the same items above. Constant Currency. The Company's constant currency revenue disclosures estimate the impact of changes in foreign currency rates on the translation of the Company's current period revenue as compared to the applicable comparable period in the prior year. This impact is derived by taking the current local currency revenue and translating it into U.S. dollars based upon the foreign currency exchange rates used to translate the local currency revenue for the applicable comparable period in the prior year, rather than the actual exchange rates in effect during the current period. It does not include any other effect of changes in foreign currency rates on the Company's results or business. Full reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP measures is set forth in the tables below. Our management believes the non-GAAP financial measures disclosed in this press release are useful to investors in assessing the operating performance of our business and provide meaningful comparisons to prior periods and thus a more complete understanding of our business than could be obtained absent this disclosure. Specifically, we consider the change in constant currency revenue as a useful metric as it provides an alternative framework for assessing how our underlying business performed excluding the effect of foreign currency rate fluctuations. We consider non-GAAP net (loss) income and non-GAAP diluted EPS useful metrics as they provide an alternative framework for assessing how our underlying business performed excluding the impairment loss on indefinite-lived intangible asset and the excess tax benefits associated with share-based compensation arrangements. The non-GAAP financial measures included in this press release may be different from, and therefore may not be comparable to, similarly titled measures used by other companies. These non-GAAP measures should not be considered in isolation or as alternatives to GAAP measures. We urge investors to review the reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the comparable GAAP financial measures included in this press release, and not to rely on any single financial measure to evaluate our business. Forward-Looking Statements Except for historical information, certain statements in this press release are forward-looking in nature and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions about us. Our business and operations are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and, consequently, actual results may differ materially from those projected by any forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ from those projected include, but are not limited to: the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business, results of operations and financial condition; failure to sustain or grow profitability or generate positive cash flows; failure to effectively introduce and market new products; delays in product introductions; significant competition; inability to further penetrate our current customer base, expand our user base and increase the frequency of use of our products by our customers; inability to achieve or maintain satisfactory pricing and margins; manufacturing difficulties; permanent write-downs or write-offs of our inventory; product defects or failures; unfavorable outcomes in clinical trials; inability to maintain our culture as we grow; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; and potential adverse regulatory actions. These risks and uncertainties, as well as others, are discussed in greater detail in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 filed with the SEC on February 26, 2020 and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2020 filed with the SEC on May 7, 2020. There may be additional risks of which we are not presently aware or that we currently believe are immaterial which could have an adverse impact on our business. Any forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations, estimates and assumptions regarding future events and are applicable only as of the dates of such statements. We make no commitment to revise or update any forward-looking statements in order to reflect events or circumstances that may change. Penumbra, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (unaudited) (in thousands) June 30, 2020 December 31, 2019 Assets Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 134,381 $ 72,779 Marketable investments 143,914 116,610 Accounts receivable, net 97,613 105,901 Inventories 183,442 152,992 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 16,545 14,852 Total current assets 575,895 463,134 Property and equipment, net 62,188 51,812 Operating lease right-of-use assets 42,669 43,717 Finance lease right-of-use assets 37,927 39,287 Intangible assets, net 10,645 25,407 Goodwill 7,665 7,656 Deferred taxes 36,474 31,305 Other non-current assets 6,737 2,946 Total assets $ 780,200 $ 665,901 Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity Current liabilities: Accounts payable $ 14,432 $ 15,111 Accrued liabilities 57,718 67,630 Current operating lease liabilities 4,446 4,142 Current finance lease liabilities 1,016 4,165 Total current liabilities 77,612 91,048 Non-current operating lease liabilities 45,925 47,242 Non-current finance lease liabilities 26,202 26,748 Other non-current liabilities 7,300 15,250 Total liabilities 157,039 180,288 Stockholders' equity: Common stock 36 35 Additional paid-in capital 581,066 430,659 Accumulated other comprehensive loss (2,097) (2,324) Retained earnings 45,789 57,522 Total Penumbra, Inc. stockholders' equity 624,794 485,892 Non-controlling interest (1,633) (279) Total stockholders' equity 623,161 485,613 Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $ 780,200 $ 665,901 Penumbra, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (unaudited) (in thousands, except share and per share amounts) Three Months Ended June 30, Six Months Ended June 30, 2020 2019 2020 2019 Revenue $ 105,109 $ 134,201 $ 242,438 $ 262,640 Cost of revenue 40,179 40,273 89,499 84,802 Gross profit 64,930 93,928 152,939 177,838 Operating expenses: Research and development 22,725 13,462 35,671 25,129 Sales, general and administrative 59,854 67,665 134,307 128,756 Total operating expenses 82,579 81,127 169,978 153,885 (Loss) income from operations (17,649) 12,801 (17,039) 23,953 Interest income, net 108 784 407 1,517 Other income (expense), net 511 (71) (1,144) (47) (Loss) income before income taxes (17,030) 13,514 (17,776) 25,423 Benefit from income taxes (4,129) (2,735) (5,763) (1,280) Consolidated net (loss) income $ (12,901) $ 16,249 $ (12,013) $ 26,703 Net loss attributable to non-controlling interest (941) (339) (1,478) (583) Net (loss) income attributable to Penumbra, Inc. $ (11,960) $ 16,588 $ (10,535) $ 27,286 Net (loss) income attributable to Penumbra, Inc. per share: Basic $ (0.34) $ 0.48 $ (0.30) $ 0.79 Diluted $ (0.34) $ 0.46 $ (0.30) $ 0.75 Weighted average shares outstanding: Basic 35,400,542 34,694,228 35,221,727 34,601,270 Diluted 35,400,542 36,214,321 35,221,727 36,214,362 Penumbra, Inc. Reconciliation of GAAP Net (Loss) Income and Diluted EPS to Non-GAAP Net Income and Non-GAAP Diluted EPS1 (unaudited) (in thousands, except per share amounts) Three Months Ended June 30, 2020 Three Months Ended June 30, 2019 Six Months Ended June 30, 2020 Six Months Ended June 30, 2019 Net loss Diluted EPS Net income (loss) Diluted EPS Net loss Diluted EPS Net income (loss) Diluted EPS GAAP net (loss) income $ (11,960) $ (0.34) $ 16,588 $ 0.46 $ (10,535) $ (0.30) $ 27,286 $ 0.75 GAAP net (loss) income includes the effect of the following items: Impairment loss on indefinite-lived intangible asset 2,500 0.07 2,500 0.07 Excess tax benefits related to stock compensation awards (1,320) (0.03) (6,745) (0.19) (2,802) (0.08) (8,989) (0.24) Non-GAAP net income $ (10,780) $ (0.30) $ 9,843 $ 0.27 $ (10,837) $ (0.31) $ 18,297 $ 0.51 1See "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for important information about our use of non-GAAP measures and further information about our non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP diluted EPS measures. Penumbra, Inc. Reconciliation of Revenue Change by Geographic Regions and Product Categories to Constant Currency Revenue Change2 (unaudited) (in thousands) Three Months Ended June 30, Reported Change FX Impact Constant Currency Change 2020 2019 $ % $ $ % United States Neuro $ 38,642 $ 44,574 $ (5,932) (13.3) % $ $ (5,932) (13.3) % Vascular 39,401 41,800 (2,399) (5.7) % (2,399) (5.7) % Total United States $ 78,043 $ 86,374 $ (8,331) (9.6) % $ $ (8,331) (9.6) % International Neuro 20,195 36,973 (16,778) (45.4) % $ 409 (16,369) (44.3) % Vascular 6,871 10,854 (3,983) (36.7) % 113 (3,870) (35.7) % Total International $ 27,066 $ 47,827 $ (20,761) (43.4) % $ 522 $ (20,239) (42.3) % Total $ 105,109 $ 134,201 $ (29,092) (21.7) % $ 522 $ (28,570) (21.3) % Penumbra, Inc. Reconciliation of Revenue Change by Geographic Regions and Product Categories to Constant Currency Revenue Change2 (unaudited) (in thousands) Six Months Ended June 30, Reported Change FX Impact Constant Currency Change 2020 2019 $ % $ $ % United States Neuro $ 83,749 $ 88,605 $ (4,856) (5.5) % $ $ (4,856) (5.5) % Vascular 90,068 80,280 9,788 12.2 % 9,788 12.2 % Total United States $ 173,817 $ 168,885 $ 4,932 2.9 % $ $ 4,932 2.9 % International Neuro $ 53,164 $ 74,413 $ (21,249) (28.6) % $ 1,099 $ (20,150) (27.1) % Vascular 15,457 19,342 (3,885) (20.1) % 256 (3,629) (18.8) % Total International $ 68,621 $ 93,755 $ (25,134) (26.8) % $ 1,355 $ (23,779) (25.4) % Total $ 242,438 $ 262,640 $ (20,202) (7.7) % $ 1,355 $ (18,847) (7.2) % 2See "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for important information about our use of constant currency and other non-GAAP measures. Investor Relations Penumbra, Inc. 510-995-2461 [email protected] SOURCE Penumbra, Inc. Related Links http://www.penumbrainc.com Indias leading Marathi News Channel, ABP Majha organised Majha Maharashtra Majha Vision, a flagship show highlighting various views and discourses on the government, the ongoing political developments, and key public issues on 31st July, 2020. The renowned knowledge-sharing platform was attended by Honourable Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Uddhav Thackeray, who deliberated on the states situation amid COVID-19, he said Mumbai local is still operating today. Local service is available for all essential service personnel. It is not up to the state government to decide whether or not local transport will start in Mumbai. We had to request the Central Government numerous times to start transportation for essential service personnel in the state. On the other hand, Honourable Minister of Road Transport and Highways of India, Mr. Nitin Gadkari, emphasised that lockdown is not the solution. If lockdown is further extended, there will be a financial crisis. We will have to work on the wire until we get the vaccine. The industry will have to focus on social distancing measures, and habits like hand washing & wearing masks. Complete lockdown is certainly not the way to go. He said. Just when the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government consisting of coalition partners, the Shiv Sena, the Nationalist Congress Party, and the Congress was beginning to stabilise, after it came to power six months ago COVID-19 gripped the nation. Now as the Uddhav Thackeray-led government feels the heat over handling the Covid-19 pandemic, with rise in the number of cases and fatalities, ABP Majha organised Majha Vision to bring the pertinent dialogues of the state to the fore. Various dignitaries from the ruling and opposition parties as well as several renowned journalists attended the conclave and deliberated on the pressing issues of the state. Making the summit highly informative, Majha Vision hosted dignitaries such as Uddhav Thackeray (Chief Minister of Maharashtra), Balasaheb Bhausaheb Thorat (Minister for Revenue of Maharashtra), Subhash Desai (Member of Maharashtra Legislative Council), Devendra Fadnavis (Former Chief Minister), Rajesh Tope (Health Minister of Maharashtra), Nitin Gadkari (Minister for Road Transport & Highways, Minister of Shipping and the Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises), Dadaji Dagadu Bhuse (Member of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly), Chhagan Bhujbal (Cabinet Minister of Food and Civil Supply, Consumer Affairs), Varsha Gaikwad (Cabinet Minister of School Education Department, Maharashtra), Prakash Javadekar (Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises), Jayant Patil (Cabinet Minister of the Water Resources Department), Ashok Chavan (PWD Minister of Maharashtra, Raj Thackeray (MNS), and other such as Mahesh Majrekar, Nitin Vaidya, Prashant Damle, Atul Gogawale. Ensuring perfect coordination amongst the dignitaries, the summit was moderated by the versatile ABP Majha anchors such as, Mr. Rajiv Khandekar, Mr. Abhijit Karande, Mr. Prassana Joshi, Ms. Dnyanada Chavan, and Ms. Namrata Wagle. Majha Vision is a platform, where ministers come face-to-face to deliberate on the eminent matters of the state and share their opinions on the ongoing issues. Ministers vested with responsibilities in their respective field get a chance to talk about their goals for the state and share a report card on the progress achieved in their respective ministry. ABP group aims to cater the multi lingual masses through their regional channels. ABP Majha is one of the most-viewed Marathi channel through which ABP reaches out to almost the entire region of Maharashtra. The knowledge-sharing summit Majha Maharashtra Majha Vision telecasted on ABP Majha was exclusively curated for the Marathi speaking viewers. Elaborating on the summit, Avinash Pandey, CEO ABP Network, said, Majha Vision is a unique platform for the leaders of the state to come together and deliberate on pertinent issues that concern the state & the nation. The COVID-19 crisis has worsened in Maharashtra, as it can be seen from the figures of Mumbai, Thane, Pune and other urban districts, which are witnessing rising numbers. This is a moment in time when people want to know the vision & way forward of their leaders and Majha Vision provides just the right platform for those crucial discussions. At ABP Majha, our sole purpose is to throw light on meaningful discourses of the country and keep our viewers apprised of every single matter which concerns them, with a special focus on local issues. Facebook is a proudly American company, Mark Zuckerberg said last week, appearing with the chief executives of Amazon, Apple, and Google before the House of Representatives subcommittee tasked with examining competition policy. The CEOs fielded questions from members of Congress on a range of issues beyond antitrust enforcement. When the discussion turned to China, Zuckerberg was alone among his Big Tech colleagues in speaking up against the Chinese Communist Partys threat to Internet freedom. During his opening remarks, he positioned his company as a staunch defender of American values against an alternative Chinese model that flagrantly disregards free expression. And later, when each of the four executives was asked if the Chinese government steals technology from firms in the United States, only Zuckerberg said that the phenomenon is well-documented. The others deflected. Zuckerbergs comments were consistent with an apparent change in his thinking over the past year or so, which has seen Facebooks previous courtship of the CCP end. In a 2019 speech at Georgetown University, he said that while he wanted to connect China with the rest of the world, the CCPs refusal to play ball had given Facebook more freedom to speak out and stand up for the values we believe in and fight for free expression around the world. But it must be noted that Zuckerbergs shift in stance has mirrored the recent shift in American public opinion, and it is certainly not lost on him that the CCP has of late become the focus of intense bipartisan scorn. In his remarks, he was reprising a politically convenient position that Facebook seems to have adopted as top Democrats have ramped up their criticism of the companys content-moderation policies and allegedly anti-competitive practices. Whats more, the history of Facebooks relationship with China is more complicated than Zuckerbergs recent messaging would suggest. The social network was not always blocked in China, and it spent much of the past decade attempting to regain the access to the country that it lost in 2009, following a revolt in the far-Western city of Urumqi. The uprising marked a turning point in Beijings campaign of human-rights violations in the Xinjiang region. It also led to a country-wide ban on Facebook, Twitter, and Google products. (Today, the only way to access Facebook in China is through use of a VPN.) Story continues In the years after the ban was enacted, Facebook attempted to place itself in the good graces of Chinese officials and win back access to the market. Zuckerberg surely knew that the CCP would demand control over what users posted in exchange for letting Facebook back in. But at the time, Facebook seemed to prioritize its business interests over such concerns. Zuckerberg joined the board of Beijings Tsinghua University, delivering a speech there in 2014. Two months later, Lu Wei, the Chinese official tasked with overseeing Internet censorship, visited Facebook headquarters in Silicon Valley. A photo of Zuckerberg from the meeting showed that on his desk he had a copy of The Governance of China, a collection of speeches by CCP general secretary Xi Jinping. Ive also bought copies of this book for my colleagues, he reportedly said. I want them to understand socialism with Chinese characteristics. American attitudes toward China had not yet reached their nadir at that point. While Xis grip on the institutions of party and state power in China had grown tighter in the years since his ascension to power in 2013, Beijing was not at the time recognized as a chief U.S. adversary the way it is today. Still, Zuckerberg was clearly attempting to woo top officials from an authoritarian country already seen as responsible for significant human-rights abuses and curtailments of political freedom. Of course, theres no reason to believe that Zuckerberg held any particular ideological sympathies with the CCP. As an American executive pursuing one of the largest markets in the world, it seems that he did what he thought he needed to in order to grow his company. At that point, Hong Kong was more or less autonomous, repression in Chinas far West did not rise to the level of todays mass atrocities, and elite consensus in the United States held that China sought regional, rather than global, dominance. But the signs were already there, for those willing to look: By the time Xi visited the United States in September 2015, Chinese authorities were raiding the offices of prominent NGOs, cracking down on dissidents, and targeting religious minorities with new vigor. Over the next few years, despite these red flags, Zuckerberg undertook a number of other efforts to get Facebook back into China. In 2016, he posted a picture on his Facebook account from Tiananmen Square, and was roundly criticized for neglecting to mention the 1989 massacre of pro-democracy demonstrators there. On the same 2016 trip, he met with the CCPs top propaganda official, and a year later, he and Apple CEO Tim Cook met Xi during a gathering of tech executives. These efforts did yield some fruit, if only temporarily. There was a brief glimmer of hope for Facebooks prospects in China in 2018, when it announced plans to establish an innovation hub in Hangzhou with the stated goal of assisting Chinese startups, only for the initiative to be quickly scrapped by the Chinese government. But for the most part, Facebook was forced to settle for doing business with Chinese companies outside China, which has been plenty lucrative on its own. To this day, Facebook makes billions of dollars in advertising from such companies, and may possibly be sharing user data with them. In 2018, the New York Times reported that Facebook had a data-sharing partnership with Huawei. In light of this complicated history, its fair to wonder how one should interpret Zuckerbergs remarks to Congress. One school of thought holds that he has come around to the view that the CCP poses a unique threat to political expression and now sees the restrictions demanded by Beijing as an unacceptable price of doing business in China. Another holds that Facebook executives see absolutely no path forward into the Chinese market, and think that the smart move is to play to the concerns of America lawmakers, many of whom are already skeptical of Chinese technology. Which is closer to the truth? In a certain sense, it doesnt matter. Whether Zuckerberg is merely trying to ingratiate his company with lawmakers or hes genuinely alarmed by the Chinese threat to free expression, his turn against the CCP can only be a positive development for the tech industry provided its backed up with concrete action. More from National Review Matthew Brown / Hearst Connecticut Media Lord & Taylor, the country's oldest department store chain, filed for bankruptcy on Sunday, joining about a dozen iconic retailers that have sought Chapter 11 protection during the pandemic. The once-storied institution, founded in New York in 1826, had in recent years fallen out of touch with high-end customers and younger shoppers. Le Tote, the clothing-rental start-up that bought Lord & Taylor last year for about $100 million, also filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Sunday. From The Process To The Product: The Battles And Victories Of A Saved African Woman: an awe-inspiring book that unveils the authors harrowing past and how God saved her from evil and depravity with His love and overwhelming goodness. From The Process To The Product: The Battles And Victories Of A Saved African Woman is the creation of published author Esther Cooper, a church server currently on a summer mission to make Christ known within the Philadelphia areas. Cooper shares, This timely book will encourage the Body of Christ to believe again in the reality of the existence of the supernatural realm. Esther Cooper believes that had it not been for her acceptance of Christ Jesus prior to the civil war in Liberia, her country of origin, she would have been among the hundreds of thousands of her people who became victims of the civil war. Looking at her battles and victories is a clear indication that no real Christian needs be a victim of Satan, unless by choice of failure to fight back through prayers, Bible reading, meditation, and a firm decision to believe and stand on Gods word to defeat Satan. This book will encourage the nonbeliever as well. Esther believes that if she could be processed from the devils kingdom of darkness into Christs kingdom of light, no one needs to remain Satans captive for life. This book will challenge both the Christian and unbeliever as well. The goal of this book is to lead the nonbeliever to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, the Savior of Esther, and hopefully the Savior of the reader. After reading this book and hopefully surrendering your life to Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit will begin the work of processing you into the vessel he would want to use. The process, like anything that is of value, is not easy. However, you will love the finished producta new you. Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Esther Coopers new book hopes to inspire faith to believers and nonbelievers alike and beckon them to partake in the Lords redeeming mercy and compassion. This book is a powerful testament to the uplifting graciousness of God that ushers in strength, healing, and transformation from lifes woes. View the synopsis of From The Process To The Product: The Battles And Victories Of A Saved African Woman on YouTube. Consumers can purchaseFrom The Process To The Product: The Battles And Victories Of A Saved African Woman at traditional brick-and-mortar bookstores or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble. For additional information or inquiries about From The Process To The Product: The Battles And Victories Of A Saved African Woman, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919. Investigation into capsized ferry as 1 confirmed dead, 4 still missing THAILAND: Two of the seven people who went missing after a ferry capsized off Koh Samui island on Saturday night have been rescued, leaving four still unaccounted for, while the body of the skipper was recovered, governor Wichawut Jinto announced yesterday (Aug 2). accidentsweathermarine By Bangkok Post Monday 3 August 2020, 09:16AM Raja 4, the ferry that sank off Koh Samui on Saturday night. Photo: Bangkok Post file The Raja 4 ferry operated by Raja Ferry Plc was loaded with garbage, three 10-wheel lorries and a pick-up truck, heading for Don Sak pier on the mainland. About two nautical miles from Koh Samui, as it passed between Koh 4 and Koh 5 islands, the vessel was hit by a strong storm and high waves and capsized at about 10pm. Twelve of the 16 passengers on board were employees of Raja Ferry, 11 crewmembers and a saleswoman. The four others were drivers of the three lorries and the pick-up. A rescue operation centre was set up on Koh Samui, with Mr Wichawut as director. Two marine police patrol boats were dispatched on the rescue mission. They were able to rescue nine people on Saturday night, leaving seven others still missing. The operation continued into the night, with three helicopters from the 2nd Naval Area, the 4th Army and the 7th Air Wing searching from the sky. At about 12pm yesterday, two of the missing were found on Koh Taen island, about 2 nautical miles from where the ferry capsized. They had managed to swim to the island, where local residents gave them food and water. The two were identified as crewmembers Pachara Thiprat and Suvit Nakhonsethvorachai. A boat was dispatched to Koh Taen to take them to Koh Samui. At 1.30pm, the rescue team found the body of a man on Koh Mod Daeng island, near Koh Taen. He was identified as Tewin Surat, the ferry skipper. Four people who had been on board the stricken ferry were still missing. They were named as saleswoman on board Naparada Chanhan, two crew members - Siravut Thongboonyang and Tawakorn Vachararit - and lorry driver Chaichan Laosap. Mr Pachara, a survivor, said he drifted in the sea between Koh 4 and Koh 5 islands for two or three hours, kept afloat by a rubber buoy. At one point, he saw a marine police boat some distance from him, but was unable to attract the attention of anyone on board. He was eventually blown by the wind toward Koh Taen island, where he scrambled ashore at about 8am and was helped by islanders. Yesterday, Piya Nunil, chief of the Ang Thong Islands National Marine Park, declared the closure of the marine park from Aug 2-5 for safety reasons. The move followed the Thai Meteorological Departments warning about tropical storm Sinlaku, which made a landfall over Vietnam yesterday morning. Heavy rain is expected in all regions. Actress Kajol Tyagi, who worked with Rhea Chakraborty in Jalebi has claimed that Rhea is 'faking grief' in the recently released video statement. Kajol also said that Rhea was 'oozing negativity' during the shoot of Jalebi. Last week, Rhea released a video statement saying she has immense faith in God and she will get justice, after Sushant Singh Rajput's father filed an abetment to suicide case against her and her family. Rhea released the statement on her Instagram account, which immediately flooded with comments by fans as well as industry members. Television actor Krissann Barretto wrote on Instagram, "After he (Sushant) started dating this female he was not allowed to be in touch with any of us !! All of his friends !! His numbers were changed and we all know that ! We all tried reaching him but we could not! The statement from his dad says she didn't even let him talk to his family! @rhea_chakraborty yes the truth will be out we will make sure! Satyamev jayate back at you!" Soon afterwards Kajol, replied to Krissann's comment and wrote, "@krissannb I'm insanely proud of you for commenting I was part of jalebi before it went for the reshoot and shot with her for a couple of weeks and I remember Rhea oozing negativity. Literally. I mean in this video also keeping hands folded so that body language experts have a harder time? Well it's evident she's faking grief." FIR Was Filed Against Rhea A Week Ago Last week, Sushnat's father KK Singh filed an FIR against Rhea and her family alleging abetment to suicide, the FIR also claims that Rhea did not allow him to meet his family and threatened to frame him for the death of his ex-manager, Disha Salian and misappropriated funds of Rs 15 crore from Sushant's bank account. Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has also filed a money laundering case in Sushant Singh Rajput's death case, against Rhea. Rhea In Video Statement: The Truth Shall Prevail After receiving heavy backlash for the case, Rhea released a video statement through lawyers in which she said, "Even though a lot of horrible things are being said about me on the electronic media, I refrain from commenting on the advice of my lawyers as the matter is sub-judice. Satyameva jayate, the truth shall prevail." Sushant Passed Away On June 14, 2020 Sushant Singh Rajput passed away on June 14, 2020. Mumbai Police, as well as a team from Bihar Police, are currently investigating the Bollywood actor's death. Rhea Chakraborty Breaks Silence On Allegations: I Believe I Will Get Justice, Satyameva Jayate Sushant's Friend Says Actor Cried & Fainted When He Saw His Name Being Associated With Disha's Death Worried about your mental well-being or of someone you know? Help is just a call away. Reach out to the nearest mental health specialist at COOJ Mental Health Foundation (COOJ)- 0832-2252525, Parivarthan- +91 7676 602 602, Connecting Trust- +91 992 200 1122/+91-992 200 4305 or Sahai- 080-25497777/ SAHAIHELPLINE@GMAIL.COM I saw being a state representative as an opportunity to show people in Illinois that government is something you can trust, Drury told Berkowitz. I viewed my job as trying to change a culture, a perception. Sometimes it caused me to rub elbows with people, and not be the most liked person on a given day. But that was the only way to make change in a state that is so resistant to change. Advertisement A Danish student with a fascination for 'beautiful eyes' has colourised black and white photos of famous faces including Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn. Mads Madsen, 25, who lives in Denmark, worked his magic on hundreds of images by hand using oil paint since discovering the technique online. Also among his collection are images of British national icons David Attenborough and Audrey Hepburn, as well as US astronaut Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon. Madsen told Bored Panda he was browsing Reddit when he found old pictures which had been colourised by an elderly woman. He said her work 'blew him away' so he started trying the technique himself. Mads, who is studying for a Master's degree in Classics, said he chooses which photos to colourise based on the person's eyes. 'I've always had a fascination with beautiful eyes, and that's how I pick most of my photographs,' he said. Check out some of his best photos below. Mads Madsen, 25, who lives in Denmark, has colourised hundreds of images by hand using oil paint since discovering the technique online. Pictured: Hollywood superstar actress Marilyn Monroe in 1957. She died in 1962 Hollywood legends Paul Newman and Clint Eastwood are pictured above in 1972, when they met outside a motel in Tucson, Arizona, 1972 Deaf-blind author Helen Keller is seen greeting British actor Charlie Chaplin in 1919 in this newly colourised snap Mads said he often chooses which photos to transform on the basis of what colour the subject's eyes are. Pictured: British broadcaster and naturalist David Attenborough petting a macaw in around 1950 Audrey Hepburn, who was born in 1929 and died in 1993, was a British film and fashion icon. Pictured here in a newly colourised portrait British author and journalist George Orwell, whose real name was Eric Arthur Blair, wrote the iconic book 1984. Pictured here in one of Mads' colourised images American pilot and aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart (pictured) was the first female pilot to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She disappeared in 1937 while attempting to circumnavigate the world Neil Armstrong flew on NASA's Apollo 11 mission in 1969 and was the first man to walk on the moon. Buzz Aldrin (right) flew with him and was the second man to walk on the lunar surface. Pictured in newly colourised images Physicist Albert Einstein, whose general relativity theory underpins modern science, is seen in 1948 in the right-hand photo. On the left, he is seen laughing at a dinner party. The date is unknown English mathematician and computer scientist Alan Turing, who helped to crack the German Enigma code in the Second World War during his work for the British Government at Bletchley Park Electrical engineer Nikola Tesla, with Roger Boskovich's Book 'Theoria Philosophiae Naturalis', sits in front of one of his inventions in New York Rebel US actor James Dean is seen above at the peak of his fame. He died in 1955 at the age of just 26 Leading Nazi politician Joseph Goebbels is seen in 1933 staring fiercely at photographer Albert Eisenstaedt after discovering he was Jewish. Eisenstaedt himself is quoted as saying: 'He stared at me with hate in his eyes' 100 Years Ago 1920: Charles Puls, aged 7 years, of 20th Street and Edgmont Avenue, narrowly escaped drowning in the waters of the old quarry on Fourth Street, west of Esrey Street, yesterday afternoon. He was rescued by William Knot, a companion. The boys, with others, went to the place and it was when attempting to get in an old falt-bottom boat that young Puls lost his balance and plunged into the water. 75 Years Ago 1945: Delaware Countys weather, the summers headline stealer, has turned out to be the maverick of the Philadelphia Weather Bureau, and Chief Weatherman Henry P. Adams, a Delaware Countian himself, is going to do something about it. This will mark the first time in the history of Chester that the U.S. Weather Bureau has recognized that rain that falls on the Quaker City does not always dampen the streets of Chester. And vice versa. 50 Years Ago 1970: About 750 mourners, including Lt. Gov. Raymond J. Broderick, paid tribute Sunday night to Delaware County Commissioner Frank A. Snear during in a 3 1/2 -hour viewing at the William Rigby Funeral Home in Media. Although Snears family asked that flowers be omitted in favor of donations to the Delaware County branch of the SPCA in Upper Providence, at least 100 floral arrangements surrounded the casket. At 8 p.m. Concord Lodge 625, F&A.M., conducted a memorial service at the funeral home. 25 Years Ago 1995: Residents from Tinicum, Folcroft, Newtown Square and Chester have launched independent candidacies in the upcoming contests for seats. In Tinicum, two members council candidates from the New Republican Party, Charles C. Campbell, a union painter, and Norbert J. Poloncarz, who is retired, will face George Raymond in the 1st Ward race and Ralph Slatten in the 3rd Ward respectively. In Chester, City Councilman William Rocky Brown filed to run for mayor. Brown will face Democrat Josephine Hood, who is unemployed, and retired Chester High School Principal Aaron Wilson, a Republican. 10 Years Ago 2010: Parkside Borough Council recently unanimously approved Victoria Howell of East Chelton Road to serve as Parksides next junior councilperson. The daughter of Councilman William Howell was the lone applicant for the vacant position. In a letter requesting consideration, Victoria outlined her plans to rejuvenate the Parkside Youth Challenge. The boroughs first junior councilperson was Tamarind Howell, Victorias older sister, who is now a college student. Rachel Counts served the last two years at the appointed post, but recently resigned as she prepares to move on from Sun Valley High School to college. COLIN AINSWORTH A Pineapple Express sequel was in the works until it was shut down by Sony, Seth Rogen has revealed. The 2008 comedy action film, co-written by Rogen and Evan Goldberg, followed Rogen and actor James Franco as stoners Dale and Saul in their misadventures after witnessing a murder. Following its release the movie quickly became a smash hit and cult favourite. Pineapple Express grossed more than $100m (76.43m) worldwide against a budget of only $27m (20.64m). Given the film's financial success and popularity, fans were surprised that no sequel was ever produced. Speaking as a guest on The Howard Stern Show last week, the actor said that Sony shot down the sequel due to a budget dispute. We tried to make one [a sequel] and thanks to the Sony hack you can actually find the email when Sony decided to kill the movie and not make it, he said. It was something we were very open to several years ago, but Sony was not that interested in it. The 2014 Sony Pictures hack released multiple confidential documents and email chains discussing forthcoming and unannounced movies. According to a report from The Daily Beast, the leaked emails included exchanges between producer Judd Apatow and former Sony co-chairman Amy Pascal discussing the Pineapple Express sequel in 2014. I am so glad we are so close to getting Pineapple Express 2 figured out. I am very excited to make this thing real, Apatow wrote in an email. I am sure PE2 will do even better! Marijuana is so popular now! Its on every corner. Apatow, however, reportedly wanted a $50m budget for the sequel while Sony executives insisted it be capped at $45m. As a result, the sequel was never given the green light. Access unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Amazon Prime Video Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up In his interview, Rogen confirmed, I think we probably wanted too much money. Studios, they dont like giving away money. Weird thing. Spider-Man: Far From Home director Jon Watts is known to be a sucker for hiding easter eggs in his movies which made us, the nerdy kind, so much more invested in searching for those hidden references so relentlessly. Here are five secret messages hidden in car license plates throughout Spider-Man: Far From Home: 1. Foreshadowing The Sand Elemental Columbia Pictures In the initial minutes of the film in which Nick Fury and Maria Hill are examining a wrecked site in Mexico, they pass by a car completely destroyed but with the license plate clearly visible, which read 463 GA-ON. Marvel Comics It is a reference to the Amazing Spider-Man comic book issue number 4 which came out in 1963 (4-63). This was the issue in which bad guy Sandman was introduced. Director Watts put this number plate in this scene to foreshadow the introduction of the sand elemental we later find out was just a fake design by Mysterio. 2. Introduction Of Hydro-Man Columbia Pictures When Peter Parkers class is in Venice and are on a boat just moments before they come across the water elemental, another boat passes by and its license plate shows ASM 212 Marvel Comics This was a hint towards the Amazing Spider-Man Issue 212, which introduces Hydro-Man. 3. Here Comes The Molten Man: Columbia Pictures When the school kids move away from Venice to Prague, where Fury hands over the infamous Spider-Monkey costume to Parker, you can see Maria Hill driving a black sedan with a number plate ASM 28965. Marvel Comics This was a reference to the Amazing Spider-Man issue number 28 which was released in September (9th month of the year) in 1965. This issue was also the introduction of the Molten Man, a character similar to the fire elemental they have to later deal with in the capital of the Czech Republic. 4. Fury-Parker Duo: Columbia Pictures MTU 83779 is the number plate of the car in which Nick Fury picks up Peter before the film moves towards the third and final act of the film. Marvel Comics These digits signify the Marvel Team Up, issue 83 which was released in July 1979, in which Fury and Spidey can be seen working together, just like they do at the end. 5. The First Kiss: Columbia Pictures Finally, the moment when Peter tells MJ how he truly feels and the two share a kiss, an inverted car by their side shows the number plate: TASM 143. Marvel Comics This refers to The Amazing Spider-Man, issue 143, in which the wall-crawler faces Cyclone, similar to the air/wind elemental that takes over London. It also happens to be the issue in which Parker and MJ kiss for the first time. Note: The article is inspired by the phenomenal work done by New Rockstars. Check out their content here. Also Read: 5 Times Iron Mans Helmet Showed Marvel Studios Obsession With Attention To Detail India-China: Disengagement, de-escalation remains a work in progress India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Aug 03: The disengagement and de-escalation is a work in progress between India and China. During the meeting of the military commanders on Sunday, India said that it wanted immediate disengagement at patrolling point 17 (Gogra) and Pangong Tso fingers. While the de-escalation at these points would be a short term solution, diplomatic channels are looking at a long term solution as well which would ensure that the soldiers of both sides are kept apart. The Indian security establishment does not trust the PLA. An official tells OneIndia that the Chinese side should not object to border infrastructure development as long as it is within the LAC limits. There should be no objection as long as the development is carried out without encroaching on each other's perception of where the border lies. Depsang Y, Pangong Tso disengagement to be discussed at Indo-China military level talks The Chinese border infrastructure allows for rapid deployment of troops, when compared to India. Hence it is important that India also continues with the border infrastructure development, the officer cited above also said. A long term solution would be needed to ensure that flare ups and tense stand offs do not take place between the Indian and Chinese armies. For this India and China would need to exchange maps indicating the presence of troops along the Line of Actual Control. Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News Following this patrolling protocols would have to be introduced. Earlier both India and China would undertake patrolling once a month by avoiding stand offs. However the patrolling intensity has gone up drastically now as both sides are building border infrastructure right up to the LAC. The PLA has been building roads, setting up posts powered by solar panels, laying fibre optic cables. The Indian Army too is matching the effort. Spain, Britain at COVID-19 Loggerheads By Jamie Dettmer August 02, 2020 A former Spanish prime minister once described the rock of Gibraltar, which Spain ceded to Britain in 1713, as a stone in the shoe of Anglo-Spanish relations. But Gibraltar currently isn't the only source of Spanish irritation with the British. Last week's abrupt decision by London to require Britons returning from vacation in Spain to quarantine for 14 days has angered a Spanish government desperate to salvage something from the wrecked summer tourism season. And it augurs badly for Britain's ongoing, fraught negotiations with the European Union for a post-Brexit free-trade deal. The two governments have been at loggerheads since Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his advisers abruptly reintroduced the quarantine measures six days ago to howls of protests not only from the Spanish government but also from Britain's struggling airlines and Spanish hoteliers trying to stave off bankruptcy. Johnson's official spokesman warned "no travel is risk-free during this pandemic." Since then, Luxembourg has been added to Britain's list of risky countries to visit. The Spanish government has been lobbying Downing Street to change its mind, pointing out that large parts of Spain, including the tourist hotspots of the Canary and Balearic Islands, are safer than Britain and have much lower coronavirus infection rates. In an interview last week with the Telecinco TV network, Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said his government was "talking with British authorities to try to get them to reconsider." He said Britain had made an error by lumping all of Spain together and not taking a more clinical and sophisticated regional approach. He noted nearly 65 percent of Spain's new cases are occurring in two regions Catalonia in the northeast and neighboring Aragon. Britain's quarantine requirement is "not well adjusted" to the epidemiological situation, he said. The Spanish point out that other European countries, notably France and Germany, have only advised their citizens against visiting Catalonia. Under relentless pressure from Madrid, the British government says it will review in 10 days' time the quarantine requirement, which has prompted tens of thousands of would-be vacationers to cancel their travel plans. Low-cost airlines have halted flights to Spain. The review gives some hope to Spain that Britain may reverse its decision. But Britain's quarantine decision is prompting a fierce backlash on the Iberian Peninsula that risks significant impact on Brexit talks. Spanish ministers are fuming. They were given no warning by London. The Spanish see the move as a stab in the back. Britons account for more than a fifth of the 80 million tourists who visit Spain in average every year. Nearly half a million Britons own vacation homes in Spain. The Spanish tourism association has offered to pay for British travelers to take virus tests in Spain. The dispute is threatening to reignite tensions between the two countries over the fate of Gibraltar, analysts say. Spanish politicians, goaded by the country's tabloid press, are warning that they won't do Britain any favors in the deadlocked negotiations over Britain's relationship with the EU. A key stumbling block in the negotiations is over fishing rights in Britain's waters. Gibraltar could well be sued to further complicate Brexit negotiations. The current government in Madrid has dropped pushing Spain's sovereignty claim to Gibraltar, but it might revive it under pressure from Spain's parliament. Gibraltar is desperate to ensure it will be able to benefit from a free-trade pact, if one is ever concluded, between Britain and the EU. Spain could wield a veto over that happening, shutting Gibraltar out of any easy relationship with the rest of the EU. Spain's EU Affairs Minister Juan Gonzalez-Barba warned last month, before the current spat, that talks over Gibraltar's future relationship with Spain and the EU "will not be easy." And he hinted Spain could revive sovereignty ambitions. Ninety-six percent of Gibraltar's voters opposed Brexit in the 2016 EU referendum. Spain's Iberian neighbor, Portugal, also is in dispute with Britain. Portugal was not included on Britain's safe-last of countries, which was first published last month. The country's foreign ministry blasted the exclusion, noting that 28 times more people had died from COVID-19 in Britain than in Portugal. An infuriated Antonio Costa, the prime minister, tweeted a graph illustrating it was safer in the tourist hotspot the Algarve, favored by British sun-seekers, than it was in Britain. While Portugal has enjoyed centuries of good relations with Britain, Anglo-Spanish relations have been more uneasy, stretching back to Tudor times when Henry VIII offended Spain by ditching and humiliating his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. British piracy during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I in the "Spain Main" off the coastline of the Americas and in the Caribbean Sea set the scene for Spain's bid to invade England. But the Spanish Armada was defeated by legendary English seadogs like Sir Francis Drake. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Queen Elizabeth II trended online once again after it was rumored that she would do just about anything to protect her favorite son, Prince Andrew. The Issue In a report by Globe, they claimed that Maxwell, the ex-girlfriend and madame of convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, has been "marked for death" by the British royal family. The outlet's sources alleged that while Maxwell awaits her trial, she reportedly "fear she's marked for death by powerful forces desperate to protect the British monarchy." Sources furthered that there had been secret phone intercepts that point to Queen Elizabeth II, or someone close to the Queen, who reportedly "ordered a hit" on Maxwell so she won't have a chance to expose details of Prince Andrew and Epstein's relationship. The source said, "Make no mistake - Ghislaine is next! She knows too much! She's the keeper of Epstein's sick secrets involving a who's who of powerful men." Meanwhile, a friend close to Ghislaine Maxwell allegedly told Globe that the former madame is already afraid she'll end up the same way as Jeffrey Epstein. To recall, Epstein was found dead in his jail cell last year after an apparent suicide. A popular conspiracy theory claims that the disgraced financier was actually killed and the people involved just made it seem like a suicide. Fact Check: Queen Elizabeth II Issue Not True With the issue seemingly over the top, the report is nothing but a baseless rumor and should not be believed. Gossip Cop looked into Globe's story and debunked the entire thing. The publication claim that the British monarchy doesn't rule over anything. Moreover, it is also worth noting that Prince Andrew did a BBC Newnight interview that further explored his relationship with Epstein. With that said, if the royal family didn't want anything to do with the case, they would have stopped the Duke of York from making the said appearance. The British institution is also known for not getting into political matters, and it is unlikely they will break the long-respected royal protocol just for Prince Andrew. The Duke of York is also no longer a working royal after stepping down from his duties last year, so there's no reason to believe that Queen Elizabeth II will protect her from another country's investigation of a high-profile case. While it is understandable that Prince Andrew could be in danger given the nature of the Epstein case, it is also the reason why Queen Elizabeth II refused to totally remove his son's security Then again, with just statements from unnamed sources, the controversial plot about Ghislaine Maxwell and Prince Andrew shouldn't be taken seriously. Put simply, it is just another tabloid issue with no real basis. Ghislaine Maxwell Trial As mentioned, Ghislaine Maxwell was recently arrested and is now awaiting trial. She could face up to 35 years in prison if proven guilty of her crimes in association with Epstein. Her court documents from a previous trial relating to Epstein has also been unsealed last week. However, the contents and findings has yet to be revealed to the public. READ MORE: Kate Middleton Leaked Meghan Markle Lies, 'Finding Freedom' Will Set Record Straight? TDT | Manama Bahrain has over the past five years stepped up its development of fishing ports in an effort to enhance the industry in the Kingdom, according to the Ministry of Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning. The ministry has been modernizing the infrastructure at these ports to help meet the needs of the sector, as part of an integrated plan formulated by authorities, said Works Minister Eng Essam bin Abdullah Khalaf. The Works Minister said that, based on the directives of His Royal Highness the Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa to meet the needs of citizens working in the fishing industry, these efforts are being done through the continuous coordination between the Works Ministry, municipal councils, and the fishermens association. He added that represented by its Agriculture and Marine Resources Affairs, the ministry has been able to develop 11 additional ports in the Kingdom across all governorates. These new facilities add to the already existing facilities that are located in coastal villages and sea-side regions, and they include both private sector ports and those officially affiliated with the ministry. The new ports are able to facilitate various special services for fishermen in order to meet their requirements, such as having places of prayer, proper toilets, shops for fishing supplies, specialized garages for repairing boat engines, ice factories, refueling stations, and ramps to lift boats onto land. Offices for inspectors from the ministrys Marine Control Department have also been built, along with Coast Guard Command watchtowers and facilities housing patrols and other vital services. A number of fish markets in several areas is also already underway, including at Askar and Zallaq. The ministry hopes to generate greater involvement from the private sector in investing in fishing ports, in a way that is commensurate with the development process for these facilities. We have worked on further developing the infrastructure of ports by improving and expanding waterways to facilitate the movement of fishermen and establish a concrete process that allows the flow of boats to and from the sea, in addition to developing concrete barriers to provide the largest possible space for boats at docks, the Works Minister explained. We have also sought to build parking lots at ports for the largest possible number of cars, install light posts, provide a pedestrian walkway and shaded areas for fishermen to work and to allow for the proper flow of rainwater. We have started to build fish markets at these ports, as it is important for the commercial ventures of fishermen, especially with the steady expansion of communities across the Kingdom. The ministrys Agriculture and Marine Affairs undersecretary Dr Nabil Abu Al Fath added: Through the development work at these ports, we seek to provide important additions at all facilities, whether it is for the benefit of services provided to fishermen, or for tourism purposes. These will benefit workers in the fishing industry and in marine tourism, and enhance the market for selling fish. Credit: CC0 Public Domain African-Americans have up to three times the risk of dying from strokes as people of European descent, yet there has been little investigation of if and how genetic variants contribute to their elevated risk. Until now. A large international team of scientists has completed the largest analysis of stroke-risk genes ever undertaken in individuals of African descent. The new study examined the genomes of more than 22,000 people of African ancestry, identifying important genetic contributors to stroke risk. These findings will help doctors better understand that risk, identify those at high risk and prevent the debilitating condition. "Given the undue burden that people of African ancestry endure from stroke and other cerebrovascular disease, the lack of investigation of risk factors in this group has been a substantial gap," researcher Dr. Bradford B. Worrall, a neurologist at UVA Health, said. "Our work is an important step toward filling that gap, albeit with much more work to be done. These findings will provide greater insight into ethnic-specific and global risk factors to reduce the second-leading cause of death worldwide." Understanding Stroke Risk Stroke is the leading cause of adult disability in the United States. But strokes strike African-Americans more often and at younger ages than people of European descent. In addition, African-Americans who survive often face greater disability. Family history is a major risk factor for stroke, suggesting our genes play a significant role in our risk. But most genetic stroke studies, until now, have primarily focused on people of European descent. And the results have not always held true in African-Americans. The new meta-analysis comes from the Consortium of Minority Population genome-wide Association Studies of Stroke, or COMPASS. The researchers revisited previous studies to identify genetic risk factors specific to people of African descent. In total, they examined the genomes of 3,734 people who had suffered strokes and more than 18,000 who had not. The researchers discovered that a common variation near the HNF1A gene was strongly associated with increased risk in those of African ancestry. The gene previously has been associated to both stroke and cardiovascular disease. While that variant had the strongest link to stroke risk, the researchers identified 29 other variants that also appear likely to influence stroke risk. The variants occur at 24 different locations on our chromosomes. Sixteen of those locations appeared also to influence stroke risk in other populations, the researchers report. "Studies of this nature are critical given the paucity of genetic studies focused on people of African descent and other minority populations and the substantial health disparities related to stroke in these groups," said Keith Keene, a former UVA researcher and frequent collaborator of Worrall's, who now leads the Center for Health Disparities at East Carolina University's Brody School of Medicine. "Furthermore, we increasingly recognize the power of looking at genetic risk factors across different race ethnic groups, known as transethnic analyses, for unlocking the underlying biology of diseases like stroke. If we understand the biology, we can develop new treatment and prevention strategies." In a paper outlining their findings, the researchers note the importance of such studies in understanding stroke risk among minorities. These studies have "huge potential to provide insight into the mechanisms underlying stroke disparities," the researchers write. "Our study identified novel associations for stroke that might not otherwise be detected in primarily European cohort studies. Collectively, this highlights the critical nature and importance of genetic studies in a more diverse population with a high stroke burden." The researchers have published their findings in the journal Stroke. The team included dozens of scientists from top institutions across the country and the United Kingdom working on behalf of the COMPASS, SiGN and METASTROKE Consortia. More information: Keith L. Keene et al. Genome-Wide Association Study Meta-Analysis of Stroke in 22 000 Individuals of African Descent Identifies Novel Associations With Stroke, Stroke (2020). Journal information: Stroke Keith L. Keene et al. Genome-Wide Association Study Meta-Analysis of Stroke in 22 000 Individuals of African Descent Identifies Novel Associations With Stroke,(2020). DOI: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.120.029123 Ever since the novel coronavirus took over the world, doctors, nurses, paramedics and other healthcare workers have become front line warriors of this pandemic - many losing their own lives in the process. An idol shop in Bengaluru, in order to honour and thank them for their services, has dressed the Ganesha idols as healthcare workers ahead of Ganesh Chaturthi. The festival is set to be celebrated on August 22. While one idol is dressed up as a doctor tending to a patient, a mouse - lord Ganesha's vahana (vehicle) - is seen assisting him. Another idol has a rope-like material attached to it, and coiled around a virus figurine. Also read: 10 Lesser-Known Short Stories Of Bal Ganesha You Need To Know ANI The intent is to express gratitude towards the healthcare workers, for their dedication and selfless service during this extremely difficult time of a pandemic. Medical workers have put themselves at risk since day one of this pandemic and without them, the world would have collapsed. Also read: As Human Trials Complete In Russia, Doctors & Teachers First In Line For COVID-19 Vaccine ANI Karnataka: Idols of Lord Ganesh in Bengaluru have been given looks of doctors ahead of Ganesh Chaturthi, amid #COVID19. Shridhar, an idol maker says, "We are facing COVID. We have to tell people to pray to Lord Ganesh for the betterment of the situation throughout the world." pic.twitter.com/sJ5TErv3jL ANI (@ANI) August 2, 2020 At least 99 doctors have lost their lives to the novel disease and more than 1,300 of them have been infected in India. Having to work endless hours and at close quarters with a virus that the rest of the world is fleeing from, takes a lot of courage and dedication. While a lot of them struggled to find PPE kits, spending hours running around and tending to patients, while dressed in them, is no mean feat either. As much as they're effective in offering protection, PPE kits are known to be very suffocating. Recently, an ambulance driver fainted due to being in a PPE kit for several hours, and this was the fifth incident in 15 days. There was another incident from Assam where a nurse donning a PPE kit had plopped down on the floor due to exhaustion and the picture was widely shared on social media. A heartfelt picture of a Nurse from Khanapara(Assam) Covid center: Temperature of Guwahati is around 32. Now, just imagine the pain they are going through. Still, Some politicians/People are speaking Rabish. Proud of our @nhm_assam Warriors. pic.twitter.com/BcDH1pRlPY Ron Bikash Gaurav (@BikashRon) July 8, 2020 The idol-maker, Shridhar, told ANI, We are facing COVID. We have to tell people to pray to Lord Ganesh for the betterment of the situation throughout the world. ANI Usually, a grand affair, Ganesh Chathurti might not be the same this year, just like everything else. It is strongly advised for people to maintain social distance from others and not gather in large crowds. However, that does not mean that the spirit of the festival has to be dampened. Thanks to technology, we can still revel without putting ourselves or others at risk. AKRON, Ohio, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) utility personnel are prepared to respond quickly to restore power to customers should Tropical Storm Isaias impact the areas where the company provides electric service. Company meteorologists are tracking the storm system, which is forecast to move up the east coast into New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania, with the possibility of producing heavy rain and very strong, sustained winds across the Jersey Central Power and Light (JCP&L) and Metropolitan Edison (Met-Ed) service territories throughout the day Tuesday. The companies have established storm response plans, which include staffing additional dispatchers, damage assessors and analysts at regional dispatch offices, and arranging to bring in additional line, substation and forestry personnel, as needed, based on the severity of the weather. As part of the storm planning process, JCP&L has secured additional resources to assist in the areas expected to be impacted in the coming days and is setting up staging sites in N.J. In addition, FirstEnergy has coordinated with contractors and electric industry mutual assistance organizations to secure additional resources to assist with storm restoration efforts should they be needed. Met-Ed line crews will be assisted by contractors who are currently working on transmission and distribution projects across its service area. As the Tropical Storm path becomes more certain, FirstEnergy utilities will continue mobilizing resources to provide support to all expected storm impact areas. Company representatives also have been in contact with emergency management officials, state officials, regulators and local officials about Tropical Storm Isaias preparation efforts. During severe weather, customers who are without power are encouraged to call 1-888-LIGHTSS (1-888-544-4877) to report their outage or click the "Report Outage" link on www.firstenergycorp.com. Customers should immediately report downed wires to their utility or their local police or fire department. Customers should never go near a downed power line, even if they think it is no longer carrying electricity. Extra caution should be exercised in areas where downed wires may be tangled in downed tree branches or other debris. For updated information on the company's current outages, FirstEnergy's storm restoration process and tips for staying safe, visit the 24/7 Power Center at www.firstenergycorp.com/outages. FirstEnergy encourages customers to plan ahead for the possibility of electric service interruptions by following these tips: Keep flashlights and fresh batteries in your home. Avoid using candles to light your home, especially around children and pets. If you have a water well and pump, keep an emergency supply of bottled water and/or fill your bathtub with fresh water. Stock an emergency supply of convenience foods that do not require cooking. Have a hard-wired telephone or a charged cell phone handy in the event you need to report your electricity is out. Mobile phones can be charged in your vehicle using a car charger when the power is out. Gather extra blankets or a sleeping bag for each person. Do not use gas stoves, kerosene heaters or other open-flame heat sources indoors. These can cause deadly carbon monoxide gas to build up in your home. Keep a battery-powered radio with extra batteries on hand. Tune to a local station for current storm information. Customer Generators Emergency power generators offer an option for customers needing or wanting uninterrupted service. However, to ensure the safety of the home's occupants as well as that of utility company employees who may be working on power lines in the area, the proper generator should be selected and installed by a qualified electrician. When operating a generator, the power coming into the home should always be disconnected. Otherwise, power from the generator could be sent back onto the utility lines, creating a hazardous situation for utility workers. FirstEnergy customers also can subscribe to email and text message alert notifications to receive weather alerts in advance of major storms, and updates on scheduled or extended power outages. Customers can also use two-way text messaging to report outages, request updates on restoration efforts, and make other inquiries about their electric accounts. More information about these communications tools is available online at www.firstenergycorp.com/connect. Met-Ed serves approximately 570,000 customers within 3,300 square miles of eastern and southeastern Pennsylvania. Follow Met-Ed on Twitter @Met_Ed and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MetEdElectric. JCP&L serves 1.1 million New Jersey customers in the counties of Burlington, Essex, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren. Follow JCP&L on Twitter @JCP_L, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/JCPandL, or online at www.jcp-l.com. FirstEnergy is dedicated to safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its 10 electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. The company's transmission subsidiaries operate approximately 24,500 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow FirstEnergy online at www.firstenergycorp.com and on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp. SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp. Related Links http://www.firstenergycorp.com Emeritus Pope Benedict is seriously ill after returning to the Vatican following a visit to Germany to see his dying brother. The retired pope, 93, is suffering from shingles and has become so weak that he cannot raise his voice, according to his German biographer. Benedict's 'mind and memory are active but his voice is barely audible at the moment,' author Peter Seewald told newspaper Passauer Neue Presse. Seewald said Benedict was optimistic when the pair spoke on Saturday, when he said he might pick up writing again if his strength returns. But his condition has since 'become extremely fragile', the newspaper reported. Benedict came to his native Bavaria in June to pay his ailing brother Georg Ratzinger a final visit. Ratzinger, aged 96, died on June 29 after suffering a 'serious illness' which his church did not name. It was Benedict's first trip outside Italy since 2013, the year he resigned from the papacy due to health concerns. Benedict had previously praised his elder brother for being a 'companion' and 'trustworthy guide' during his life. The pair had been ordained together on the same day in 1951 after deciding from a young age that they would dedicate their lives to the church. Georg, who was an organist and choirmaster as well as a priest, confessed that he was 'disappointed' after hearing his brother had been made pope in April 2005 because it would mean they would see less of each other. Benedict, who until his appointment had been theological enforcer to John Paul II, held the role until 2013, when he became the first to resign the title in 600 years. Since his resignation, he has lived in a small, former monastery inside the Vatican. Source: Dailymail.co.uk 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 MILILANI, Hawaii, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- This week, Servpac Inc. announced the official opening of their MTP Data Center and has begun scheduling tours for interested parties. The state-of-the-art facility opens to meet growing demand for a reliable local data solution in a time plagued by uncertainty and enhanced risk exposure for Hawaii businesses. The short and long term impacts of COVID-19 continue to stay top of mind for Hawaii's executives and business owners, causing decision makers to not only look for cost saving solutions, but also strategic initiatives to ensure business resiliency. While some areas of business look to downsize, technology is one key area where leaders are looking to scale up in order to facilitate more remote access, data security, team collaboration and business continuity. As the only Tier 4 data center in Hawaii, MTP offers customers the most advanced power and cooling technology to safeguard their data from system outages and loss of mission critical information. With access to Hawaii's largest carriers including Servpac's own dedicated fiber network, customers are able to access their data safely and efficiently. The completion of MTP also enables local businesses to save on cost up to 50% by reducing the risk of operational downtime and unpredictable hardware maintenance that could surge above $500k annually. In addition, businesses can experience significant savings by outsourcing their infrastructure maintenance, energy consumption, leased space and security. "In the last 20 years, there have been no major investments for data centers in Hawaii," says Richard Zheng, President and Founder of Servpac. He goes on to say, "Now more than ever, businesses need a reliable, local digital infrastructure to build their capacity and address their data needs. We've listened by expanding Hawaii's digital landscape with a best in class data center for customers in their own backyard." The 30,000 sq. ft. facility in Mililani Tech Park is built 10 miles inland and 850 feet above sea level. The data center's Central Oahu location makes it the most naturally secure environment for continued operations, especially during the Pacific hurricane season. MTP also features Disaster Recovery office space, including 100 hot desks and 20 private suites. To schedule a tour, visit: servpac.com/mtptour About Servpac Servpac, Hawaii's Cloud Solution, delivers next-generation cloud computing, data colocation, managed services, dedicated fiber internet and VoIP telephone solutions for Hawaii businesses. For more information, please visit servpac.com . Contact: Cory D'Orazio, 808-237-5139, [email protected] SOURCE Servpac Inc. Related Links https://www.servpac.com A woman has been charged after allegedly deliberately coughing in a policeman's face twice before setting her two large dogs on him. Police said they were called to a home in the Wagga Wagga suburb of Ashmont in southern New South Wales about 11.15am on Sunday to reports of a domestic violence incident. A 27-year-old man was arrested by police on arrival at the Tarakan Avenue address before they tried to speak to the 24-year-old woman. A woman has been charged after allegedly deliberately coughing in a policeman's face. Pictured are police officers wearing face masks before a banned Black Lives Matter rally on July 28 She allegedly told the man to spit on police and informed attending officers they were both waiting for the results of a COVID-19 test. 'The woman then allegedly moved in front of a male constable and coughed deliberately in his face, twice, before letting two large dogs off their leads,' NSW Police said in a statement. Police said the man was released pending further inquiries and the pair were allowed to go to a COVID-19 pop-up clinic for testing. Police said they were called to a home in Ashmount in western Wagga Wagga, southern NSW to reports of a domestic violence incident before a woman allegedly coughed twice in a policeman's face 'As a result of the incident, the two officers were taken for COVID-19 testing. They have since returned negative results,' a spokesman for the police force said. 'The woman has since been charged with not comply noticed direction re spitting/coughing COVID-19, stalk/intimidate intend fear physical etc harm and resist or hinder police officer in the execution of their duty.' The woman was granted conditional bail and is due to appear in Wagga Wagga Local Court on September 16. The drug firm is expected to deliver about 60 million doses of multiple vaccines against the coronavirus, including the one co-invented by Oxford and AstraZeneca, in the next few months New Delhi: Drug firm Wockhardt on Monday said it has entered into an agreement with the UK government to supply millions of doses of multiple vaccines that are being developed to fight COVID-19. "The company has entered into an agreement with the UK government to fill-finish the COVID-19 vaccines. The manufacturing will be undertaken at Wockhardt's CP Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of the company based in Wrexham in North Wales," Wockhardt Founder Chairman Habil Khorakiwala said in an online press conference. As per the terms of the agreement, the company has reserved the manufacturing capacity to allow for the supply of multiple vaccines to the UK government in its fight against COVID-19, including AZD1222, the vaccine co-invented by the University of Oxford and its spin-out company, Vaccitech and licensed by AstraZeneca, he added. "We are proud to be collaborating with the UK government to make vaccines available and the arrangement brings in a huge sense of purpose and pride, it upholds our ongoing commitment to fight against such a pandemic of global human importance," Khorakiwala said. As a global organisation, Wockhardt is focussed and committed to assist in mitigating the worldwide impact of COVID-19, he added. "In the next few months, we are expected to deliver about 60 million doses," Khorakiwala said. Wockhardt has a large manufacturing capacity in India, and Wockhardt's combined fill-finish vaccine manufacturing capacity, both in India and UK, is one billion doses, he added. "In fact, we have offered our Aurangabad facility for the manufacturing of fill-finish vaccines to the Indian government...," Khorakiwala said. On the agreement, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Government of UK, Alok Sharma said ensuring that the UK has the capability to research, develop and manufacture a safe and effective vaccine is critical in its fight against coronavirus. "Today, we have secured additional capacity to manufacture millions of doses of multiple COVID-19 candidates, guaranteeing the supply of vaccines we need to protect people across the UK rapidly and in large numbers," he added. Wockhardt UK MD Ravi Limaye said the company expects to start delivering the first doses of the vaccine later this year. The UK government has reserved one fill and finish production line for its exclusive use for the next 18 months in order to guarantee the supply of vaccines required to fight COVID-19 in the UK, Wockhardt said. "We have made significant progress in securing a diverse portfolio of potential vaccines and treatments for COVID-19, adding a fourth vaccine candidate from GSK and Sanofi last week. However, discovering a successful vaccine is only part of the solution, we also need to be able to manufacture it," UK Vaccines Task Force Chair Kate Bingham said. Fill finish is a critical step in the process to get the vaccine in a form to be given to patients, she added. "The agreement with Wockhardt will boost our capability to ensure that from the moment a successful vaccine is identified, we will be able to produce the quantities of vaccine required, as quickly as possible, for the people who need it," Bingham said. Shares of Wockhardt Ltd closed at Rs 303.40 per scrip on the BSE, up 9.99 percent from the previous close. Chris Foley, director of the Office of Online Education at Indiana University. James Brosher, IU Business schools partnering with companies to provide what those companies are looking for in an employee is foundational to the graduate business education model. Its perfectly natural, too, that schools located in regions heavily populated with a certain type of industry would cater to that industry. Now, one Midwestern university is taking such partnerships another step. Indiana University announced July 28 that it has signed a pact with consulting and IT giant Infosys to offer the Bangalore, India-based companys U.S.-based employees access to a huge slate of graduate and undergraduate degree programs including the Kelley School of Businesss top-ranked online MBA, Kelley Direct Online. Infosys moved to Indianapolis, Indiana, about 50 miles from IU, in 2018. IU has long had partnerships with Indianapolis- and Bloomington-based corporations to develop specific programs or provide executive training. But this deal is on another level altogether, particularly because of the pipeline of talent it brings to the Kelley School not only its online MBA but several masters programs, as well. We feel like its a really positive move, says Chris Foley, associate vice president for academic affairs and director of the IU Office of Online Education. Infosys created a side of operations in Indianapolis in 2018, and being one of the largest public institutions within the state, we have had faculty and administration members building relationships with Infosys since then. They started opening some conversations that really nicely coincided with some work that we were doing in the IU online world, which was trying to organize our degrees and offerings so that they were easier for corporations to access for basically their benefit programs for their employees. With an internal restructuring of degree programs underway at the university, the timing was right for a partnership like this, Foley says. Story continues Weve long worked with corporations to develop specific programs that they would need or smaller agreements to provide executive training or training for their new cohorts, he tells Poets&Quants. At one time we had somewhere between 130, 140 different programs grad, undergrad, certificates, degrees. We had quite an offering, and we knew that just trying to have individual conversations about individual programs, we really needed to have a better portfolio approach, saying, Heres what we offer, and this is what you can have access to. And so it really coincided well with what we were doing internally to structure our offerings to provide more of an off-the-shelf approach. And then this was a great local provider and a local corporation that we definitely wanted to have a presence with. So as part of those communications wed already had with some of our faculty and administration with the company, we were able to incorporate this and it met a need on both our sides. INFOSYS STAFFERS WILL BE EXPECTED TO MEET SAME STANDARDS AS OTHER APPLICANTS TO KELLEY DIRECT The IU-Infosys deal was announced a few weeks after a new partnership between accounting and consulting giant EY and Hult International Business School that makes Hults online MBA available for free to all EY staffers. But Hults online MBA and Indianas are not in the same league. Kelley Direct Online is one of the best programs in the world, ranked first in 2020 by U.S. News and second by Poets&Quants. The program normally costs just under $75,000 and has an acceptance rate of 82%. But the deal doesnt give Infosys employees unfettered access to Kelley Direct. Company staffers who number around 239,000 in the U.S. and 2,500 in Indianapolis will have to pass muster to be accepted to it, including going through the same admissions process as other applicants. They will be expected to meet the normal application process and admission standards, Foley says. We do streamline a few things. We certainly will be adding a concierge service for this, so there will be a company point person so that we can answer questions directly related to this. We certainly will try to expedite them to get them through the process because we know that theyll be additionally vetted and supported through the company, so the company is doing work for us on that end. Well have specialized communication materials that well partner with Infosys to send out to employees regarding it, as well as a resource website for them. Were trying to put as much of a specialized series of services around it while, at the same time, making sure that the students meet the same quality standards and expectations that we would have for any student. Its the same degree that everybody else would be getting. IUs prestigious online MBA is not the only online business degree Infosys employees can now submit streamlined applications to. In addition to five undergraduate degrees, which are meant to appeal to Infosys employees with associates degrees, the university is offering 11 other graduate degrees: The MS in Business Analytics, MS in Cybersecurity Risk Management, MS in Data Science, MS in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, MS in Finance, MS in Global Supply Chain Management, MS in Marketing, MS in Strategic Management, MS in Technology for Facilities Management, MS in Technology for Organizational Leadership, and MS in Technology and Technical Communication. All courses have been developed and will be taught by on-campus faculty and more programs are imminent, Foley says, though he declined to provide details. As one of the nations leading research universities, IU is pleased to provide a diverse, rigorous and rewarding academic experience to students, as well as a critical tool to help our partners such as Infosys further develop their workforce, Foley says. Corporate-university partnerships such as this have proven to drive economic growth both locally and globally by enabling individuals and entire organizations to respond to the rapidly changing needs of the marketplace. CORONAVIRUS CREATES LOTS OF UNKNOWNS These days no story about a new B-school program can neglect to include the impact of the coronavirus Covid-19, which has thrown graduate business education and all of higher education into upheaval. How will the launch of IUs new partnership with Infosys be affected by the ongoing pandemic? It depends, Foley says. I dont have an estimate of how many employees will likely sign up, he says. We hope that it will be a nice, solid relationship, but I also know that due to Covid, companies are also restructuring their benefit programs. Infosys may be one of those. And so that will definitely entail how many tuition reimbursement and things like that are available. When we were having these conversations in the fall of 2019, theyre not going to be the same situation in 2020, obviously. But we still are pretty confident that this will be a great program for the employees and great for the company. The other thing that I would say is that they were particularly interested in getting students who had associates degrees into bachelors degree programs, so we were able to do that. It wasnt just about graduate education, although we certainly have that. As opposed to in the past, when we had a particular cohort of employees that we knew we were going to educate with specific degrees, this is more of a broader agreement that would allow employees of all backgrounds to have access to higher education so that makes it hard to predict what the impact of Covid will be. There is little question of the value of an IU online degree to any Infosys employee, Foley says. I think the real challenge for many companies right now is that its a great perk that they can add to their employee training, but at the same time, theyre having to absorb costs or redeploy their workforce, so they have added costs to respond to, he says. I think we all agree that its a really good thing for students and employees to go back and get additional training. This is a great time for it. Its going to be an added benefit. Theyre going to be able to learn how, not just in the classroom, but through the networking of other people that are both in their own company as well as externally, how theyre adapting to this scenario. But in the end and I certainly cant speak on behalf of Infosys on this one the bottom line is companies are being impacted and that always is going to impact how much they can particularly financially support their employees at this time. Were ecstatic, I have to say. From all Im hearing internally and then from my colleagues out there, were really pleased to get this one off the ground. Were really pleased to be working with a company that has a presence in Indiana and is an international leader in this field. I think its a win-win for everybody involved. DONT MISS WHY EYS FREE ONLINE MBA FOR EMPLOYEES IS NO THREAT TO B-SCHOOLS and THE BEST ONLINE MBA PROGRAMS OF 2020 The post Indiana University Partners With Infosys To Offer Online MBA & Other Grad Degrees appeared first on Poets&Quants. Some royal fans thought this day would never come but the name of Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussexs rescue dog has finally been revealed. Read on to find out what the duke and duchess named their pup and what the special meaning is behind it. Meghan Markle and Prince Harry greet the President of Irelands dog | MAXWELLS/AFP via Getty Images RELATED: Meghan Markle Annoyed Palace Aides and Was Scolded For Wearing a Certain Necklace From Prince Harry When Prince Harry and Meghan got their rescue dog When Meghan moved to the U.K. shortly before marrying Harry her little Beagle, Guy, went with her. But she was forced to give up her older dog, a Labrador-German Shepherd mix named Bogart. After saying their vows on May 19, 2018, the prince and former Suits star adopted a dog together. It was reported that the addition to their family was a black Labrador but no other information about the pup was released to the public. Now what they call their canine is a mystery no more. People noted that the name, which was revealed in the biography Finding Freedom: Harry and Meghan and the Making of a Modern Royal Family by journalists Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, is Pula. The pups name has a special meaning Meghan Markle pets dog in Australia | Ian Vogler Pool/Getty Images There is a very special reason behind why they chose to give their pooch that name. Pula is the official currency of Botswana, a country Harry and Meghan both love and is a place they visited together when they first started dating. Theyve shown a number of times how dear the African nation is to them. The center gem of the engagement ring Harry designed for his bride is from there. And in 2019, Meghan surprised her husband by camping out under the stars just like did on their first trip to Botswana. Meghan recreated their Botswana camping adventures in their backyard, a source told People at the time. Its a place that means so much to them and to Harry in particular so Meghan wanted to bring that happy place to him on his day so she set up a tent, got sleeping bags, cooked dinner, and recreated Botswana where they fell in love. How another royal pooch got its name Kate Middleton, Prince William, and Prince George with dogs Tilly (Middleton family pet) and Lupo | Michael Middleton WPA Pool/Getty Images Harry and Meghan arent the first royals to try and keep their pups name under wraps. Back in 2012, Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge tried to keep the name of their dog a secret. They were pressed and after a few months decided to reveal that the black English cocker spaniels name is Lupo. The name which means wolf in Italian has a special connection to Kates side of the family. According to Vanity Fair, the surname of the duchess paternal great-grandmother was Lupton. RELATED: Prince Harry Really Wanted His Son to Be Best Friends With Prince William and Kate Middletons Children The SDLP has announced the death of former party leader John Hume. Mr Hume, a Noble peace prize winner, was regarded by many as the driving force behind Northern Irelands 1998 Good Friday peace agreement. The party announced his passing on Monday morning. Read More SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said the death of John Hume represents the loss of "20th century Irelands most significant and consequential political figure. "It is no exaggeration to say that each and every one of us now lives in the Ireland Hume imagined an island at peace and free to decide its own destiny." He added: "This is an historic moment on this island but most of all it is a moment of deep, deep sadness. In the days ahead, Ireland will be united in mourning his loss. However amidst that national mourning, it is equally true that the marking of Johns death also opens up a space to reflect on, and celebrate, the magnitude of his life. "As part of that reflection of Johns work, never has the beatitude rung truer - blessed be the peacemakers. The life of John Hume will forever be a blessing upon this island since Ireland is now blessed by the peace he gifted to us all. It is the greatest legacy a political leader can bestow upon his country. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next John Hume 1937 - 2020: A life in pictures Close John Hume playing with his children John Hume is carried aloft through Londonderry city centre after being returned as MP for Foyle in 1987 John Hume on his wedding day with wife Pat John Hume is detained by soldiers during a civil rights protest in Londonderry in August 1971. John Hume John Hume in thoughtful mood at the SDLP party conference in Newcastle in 1979 Bertie Ahern and John Hume as they took part in a press conference on the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in Belfast. Picture Charles McQuillan/Pacemaker. U2 star Bono is flanked by David Trimble and John Hume on stage during a special concert in Belfast to promote the Yes vote in the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement (Chris Bacon/PA) PA John Hume with his good friend, Senator Ted Kennedy, in the Bogside John Hume with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan John Hume and his wife Pat at the Foyle Arts Centre in Londonderry after hearing that he and David Trimble were to share the Nobel Peace Prize Photopress Belfast John Hume with party colleague Seamus Mallon John Hume and David Trimble with U2 frontman Bono celebrating the Good Friday Agreement The SDLP team led by leader John Hume arrives at Stormont in 1999 to start the process of selecting ministers for the devolved government John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast John Hume waiting for the verdict of the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble, Tony Blair and John Hume at Dunadry in Co Antrim Photopress Belfast Hometown heroes: John Hume celebrates with Derry City players after their 2010 First Division win SPORTSFILE Former SDLP leader John Hume and Bill Clinton pictured in front of the Guildhall. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams (left) and SDLP leader John Hume (Chris Bacon/PA) PA John Hume worked with Ian Paisley PA SDLP leader John Hume with his wife Pat speak to the media after he and David Trimble won the Nobel Peace Prize (PA) PA John Hume in front of the Stormont Building in 2002 (Paul Faith/PA) John Hume with David Trimble (PA) PA Bill Clinton in front of the Guildhall with former SDLP leader John Hume and his wife Pat. Photo-Jonathan Porter/Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. SDLP Conference, St Columb's Hall, Derry 12th March 2016. SDLP Leader Colm Eastwood John Hume at the conclusion of the conference Photo:Presseye. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. File photo dated 19/10/2000 of the Dalai Lama (left) meeting with fellow Nobel peace laureate John Hume, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. Photo: Martin McCullough/PA Wire PA File photo dated 24/08/2014 of John Hume and his wife Pat, the former SDLP leader has died at the age of 83. PA Photo.Photo: Niall Carson/PA Wire PA Handout File photo dated 12/04/2000 of Former South African President Nelson Mandela meeting John Hume at the South African Embassy in Dublin Photo: PA Wire PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Hume playing with his children "Hume will always find a home amongst the pantheon of great Irish leaders and it is only right and natural that he will now be spoken of in the very same breath as OConnell and Parnell. "It is important that Johns endeavours are fully appreciated in terms of their sheer scale - his impact and legacy extends well beyond one lifetime and well beyond the confines of Northern Ireland. His lifes work brought to an end the seemingly intractable historical arc of bitter conflict between the neighbouring islands of Britain and Ireland. "After some 800 years which inflicted so much hurt and harm on all our peoples, it is John Hume who must now be remembered as the great healer of that history. For all of these reasons and more, John Hume truly was Irelands greatest." Read More The party extended its sympathies and thanks to the care and nursing staff of Owen Mor nursing home in Derry. "The care they have shown John in the last months of his life has been exceptional," the statement said. "As a family, we are unfailingly inspired by the professionalism, compassion, and love they have shown to John and all those under their care. We can never adequately show them our thanks for looking after John at a time when we could not. The family drew great comfort in being with John again in the last days of his life. "We would like also to extend our gratitude to the people of Derry and Moville/Greencastle, who have looked after John and shown us so much kindness as his dementia has progressed. Celebrating community in all its diversity went to the heart of Johns political ethos and we are very appreciative that our communities supported, respected and protected John." The statement continued: "John was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a great grandfather and a brother. He was very much loved, and his loss will be deeply felt by all his extended family. "Johns funeral will be arranged according to the current government regulations with very strict rules on numbers. "We realise this will mean that many will be unable to join us and we will arrange a memorial service and a celebration of his life in due course. Above all, we know that John would have prioritised public health, and the safety and health of our communities. We are grateful for your condolences and support, and we appreciate that you will respect the familys right to privacy at this time of great loss. "It seems particularly apt for these strange and fearful days to remember the phrase that gave hope to John and so many of us through dark times: we shall overcome." TUI aircraft parked at Hannover Airport. Photo: Hauke-Christian Dittrich/Picture Alliance via Getty Images German airline TUI (TUI.L) said on Monday that it had signed a sale and leaseback deal for five new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, in a move that will raise $226m (173m) to bolster its balance sheet during the coronavirus pandemic. The airline said that the deal, which it made with Asian aircraft leasing company BOC Aviation, formed part of its asset right strategy, which will see it sell its own assets to reinvest in new ones. TUI said that the deal, which was made on standard commercial terms, would create a lifetime lease obligation of about 223m (201m, $262m). The airline said that it expected to sign further financing deals on aircraft deliveries in the future. BOC Aviation has said that it remains confident about the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, which faces severe regulatory hurdles following two deadly crashes involving the plane. The aviation industry is confronting an unprecedented crisis in coronavirus, as airlines and manufacturers face a collapse in demand from travellers. READ MORE: UK airports predict 4bn in lost revenue this year TUI signalled in May that it expected to axe around 8,000 jobs and that it needed to trim costs by up to 30% because of the pandemic. TUIs move comes after the owner of British Airways last week announced plans for a rights issue of up to 2.75bn (2.5bn), warning that the airline industry will take years to recover from the coronavirus crisis. International Airlines Group (IAG.L), which also owns Iberia and Aer Lingus, revealed the fundraising measures as it also posted losses in both the second quarter and first half of the year. Meanwhile, British Airways pilots last week voted to accept a package that will temporarily cut jobs and pay to avoid a larger number of redundancies. The British Airline Pilots Association said its members voted by 85% in favour of the deal. There will be around 270 jobs axed and temporary pay cuts starting at 20%, the association said. READ MORE: British Airways pilots vote to accept job and pay cuts package Story continues UK airports are set to lose at least 4bn in revenue this year due to the pandemic. Karen Dee, chief executive of the Airport Operators Association (AOA), said demand would not reach pre-pandemic levels for a considerable period despite a gradual easing of travel restrictions worldwide. Airport companies are calling for more UK government support, including a suspension of air passenger duty, wage subsidies after the furlough scheme ends in October, and relief from business rates similar to hospitality and retail firms. Separately, think tank the New Economic Forum warned that as many as 70,000 jobs linked to the aviation industry were at immediate risk due to the coronavirus pandemic. The think tank compared the expected collapse in aviation employment with the rapid decline of the UK coal industry in the early 1980s, which left lasting economic scars on many communities. ATs design for the park and ride facility. Beth Houlbrooke says the 2.8 hectare site will make an ideal long-term community transport hub. Auckland Transport (AT) has been given the go-ahead to build a $5.4 million park and ride facility at the former Atlas site, just north of Warkworth, by Rodney Local Board, using funds from the Boards Transport Targeted Rate. Members voted seven to two last month in favour of the design, which will include 131 carparks, drop off spots, bike racks and toilets, plus bus stops on either side of State Highway 1 and a new signalised pedestrian crossing between them. They also voted to approve an estimated construction budget of $177,000 for the removal of ground asbestos contamination at the Council-owned site. AT said the cost of designing and building the park and ride had risen from just over $1.5 million in 2018 to $5.4 million today due to several factors not included in original estimates, such as providing bus stops inside the site and on SH1; the pedestrian crossing; the cost of lighting, CCTV and traffic signals; more earthworks than expected due to the slope of the site; increased ground asbestos contamination removal costs; and higher costs for detailed design, consenting and management processes. Wellsford Board member Colin Smith tried to stall the project due to Council budget cuts. In light of Covid-19 and the conditions were going to come up against, Id like to see the park and ride put on hold at this stage, and the targeted rate be approved for our road sealing extension money, he said. I just feel this is only serving a few people in the Rodney district and the money would serve Rodney people better in the seal extension programme. Warkworth member Tim Holdgate agreed, saying roading was going to be severely impacted, and he thought more people would support fixing rapidly deteriorating local roads than paying for a park and ride. Both voted against the proposals. However, Warkworth member and deputy chair Beth Houlbrooke said it was a long-term investment that would provide permanent parking for the community, even if AT ever built an alternative facility in decades to come. People say we must provide infrastructure before growth well, this is infrastructure, she said. The Warkworth business community is constantly complaining about lack of parking because spaces are taken up by people catching the bus in the CBD around the Old Masonic Hall and Baxter Street carpark. And on every concept design for this site, theres always been a carpark. She added that with the current budget situation, it would be good to put a stick in the ground in the Council-owned site to prevent any potential attempts to sell it off by its property division, Panuku. The park and ride would also enable buses to re-route west of Warkworth to serve the Summerset retirement village, Ms Houlbrooke said. Board chair Phelan Pirrie said it was a big project and an important one. Weve done a structure plan, we know growth is coming, with more housing. Were addressing an infrastructure issue here, he said. This is one of our biggest projects and the first of our capital projects for the targeted rate. Its a big step to take. The meeting heard that the extra $3.9 million required to design and build the park and ride would come off the Boards $7.9 million targeted rate budget for new footpaths. AT will now start detailed design work, seek community feedback, continue engagement with Mana Whenua, lodge resource consent applications and obtain construction contracts. The park and ride will be built in conjunction with a new concrete walkway from Kowhai Park to the Warkworth Showgrounds (MM, July 1). BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 3 By Fidan Babayeva Trend: The currency reserves of Azerbaijan amounted to $51.1 billion as of July 1 this year, according to the draft amendments to Azerbaijans law On state budget for 2020, Trend reports. According to the data, in the first six months of this year, the volume of gross domestic product in real terms decreased by 2.7 percent compared to the same period last year, including the volume of non-oil gross domestic product - by 2.5 percent. The volume of funds allocated for the country's fixed capital decreased by 2.7 percent, including revenues from the non-oil sector - by 15.5 percent. At the same time, the decline in non-oil revenues and the reduction in other financing sources as a result of the weakened economic activity in the country have posed a threat of imbalance between the revenues and expenditures, as well as harmonized execution of the state budget, the draft reads. BJP National Vice President Uma Bharti on Monday stated that she will visit Ayodhya but not attend the 'bhoomi pujan' ceremony for Ram temple in view of rising Covid-19 cases. "From the moment I have heard the news that Home Minister Amit Shah and some other Uttar Pradesh BJP leaders have tested positive for Covid-19, I am worried about the safety of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the people present in Ayodhya for the foundation stone laying ceremony," Uma Bharti tweeted (translated from Hindi). "I have informed the officials of Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas that I ... 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 On June 29, amid pandemic-induced unemployment and economic uncertainty, the Lamont administration released a sweeping $33 million assistance program for renters, homeowners and local landlords. The relief package includes state and federal support, ranging from rental assistance for those experiencing income or job loss to mortgage relief programs for homeowners. Critically, the program augments patchwork policy at the federal level, supporting those who may not qualify for CARES Act benefits. Connecticut has been lauded as a national leader in the housing policy response to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, making pandemic reopening and recovery equitable demands not only short-term support and relief programs for individuals, but also a reevaluation of the housing policies that have made Connecticut one of the most segregated states in the country. In a state where children born in wealthy towns have a life expectancy six years longer than those born in urban areas, our pandemic response must address the network of social factors housing, access to health care, nutrition and economic stability that reproduce and exacerbate inequality. Connecticut has an unprecedented opportunity to pursue bold innovation and experimentation in housing policy, tackling long-standing issues such as housing affordability, housing insecurity and economic segregation. The far-reaching scope of the crisis unites a new coalition of renters, landlords and homeowners in desperate need of state support that will outlast the immediate relief package. State and local policymakers must capitalize on this newfound appetite for housing reform, coordinating short- and long-term policy responses. Findings from DataHavens new report Towards Health Equity in Connecticut show the central role of stable housing in successfully reopening the state. Evicted adults and those who are made homeless are much more likely to experience unemployment than those with stable housing. Children in evicted families see drops in their performance at school a trend that will only be amplified as reliable access to the internet becomes a staple of education under COVID-19. If recovery policy hopes to reunite people with jobs and return children to productive learning environments, combating evictions and prolonged housing insecurity must play a central role in state and local decision making. Economic hardship is not distributed equally. The pandemic has strikingly illuminated and compounded the states existing inequalities, some of which deep and abiding were created by policy decisions made in a more explicitly racist past. Legislators cannot excise current policy decisions from this history; rather, policy must be informed by the contours of inequality COVID-19 has heartbreakingly put into focus and address them head on. Renters, who are more likely to be Black, Latino or female are also more likely than homeowners to experience severe housing cost burdens or spend more than half of their income on housing. Income loss due to the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbates these pre-existing inequalities. Data from April and May show that 67 percent of Latino households and around 50 percent of Black and Asian households reported a loss of income from employment, compared to 43 percent of white households. In a DataHaven analysis of the Census Bureaus new Household Pulse Survey, 47 percent of Latino and 33 percent of Black renters reported that they were not likely to be able to make their June rent payments, compared to 19 percent of white renters. Through proper coordination and implementation, the governors relief programs can provide invaluable insight into what policies work best for our communities. Community members, activists, and policymakers have the rare opportunity to observe how innovative housing policy from rethinking a hyper-local approach to affordable housing to block grants for improving communal well-being can transform communities. For example, the package includes $10 million of CARES Act funding earmarked for cities to pursue previously cost-prohibitive local housing initiatives. The honor of being celebrated as a leader in COVID-19 housing policy comes with responsibility. Building communal resilience giving people what they need to recover from the pandemic and the shutdown begins at home. Local and state officials have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to tackle not merely the consequences but the causes of inequality. By evening the odds of achieving health and well-being, we can emerge from the pandemic as a stronger Connecticut for all residents, regardless of ZIP code. Numi Katz is at DataHaven, a New Haven-based nonprofit organization with a 25-year history of public service to Connecticut communities. Its mission is to empower people to create thriving communities by collecting and ensuring access to data on well-being, equity and quality of life. Nobody can shoot a pistol bullet through a banana in such a way that the skin is perforated but the banana remains intact. However, on the level of individual atomic layers, such a feat has now been achieved - a nano-structuring method has been developed at TU Wien (Vienna), with which certain layers of material can be perforated extremely precisely and others left completely untouched, even though the projectile penetrates all layers. This is made possible with the help of highly charged ions. They can be used to selectively process the surfaces of novel 2D material systems, for example to anchor certain metals on them, which can then serve as catalysts. The new method has now been published in the journal ACS Nano. New materials from ultra-thin layers Materials that are composed of several ultra-thin layers are regarded as an exciting new field of materials research. Ever since the high-performance material graphene was first produced, which consists of only a single layer of carbon atoms, many new thin-film materials have been developed, often with promising new properties. "We investigated a combination of graphene and molybdenum disulfide. The two layers of material are brought into contact and then adhere to each other by weak van der Waals forces," says Dr. Janine Schwestka from the Institute of Applied Physics at TU WIen and first author of the current publication. "Graphene is a very good conductor, molybdenum disulphide is a semiconductor, and the combination could be interesting for the production of new types of data storage devices." For certain applications, however, the geometry of the material needs to be specifically processed on a scale of nanometres - for example, in order to change the chemical properties by adding additional types of atoms or to control the optical properties of the surface. "There are different methods for this," explains Janine Schwestka. "You may modify the surfaces with an electron beam or with a conventional ion beam. With a two-layer system, however, there is always the problem that the beam affects both layers at the same time, even if only one of them is supposed to be modified. Two kinds of energy. When an ion beam is used to treat a surface, it is usually the force of the impact of the ions that affects the material. At TU Wien, however, relatively slow ions are used, which are multiply charged. "Two different forms of energy must be distinguished here," explains Prof. Richard Wilhelm. "On the one hand, there is the kinetic energy, which depends on the speed at which the ions impact on the surface. On the other hand, there is the potential energy, which is determined by the electric charge of the ions. With conventional ion beams, the kinetic energy plays the decisive role, but for us the potential energy is particularly important." There is an important difference between these two forms of energy: While the kinetic energy is released in both material layers when penetrating the layer system, the potential energy can be distributed very unevenly among the layers: "The molybdenum disulfide reacts very strongly to the highly charged ions," says Richard Wilhelm. "A single ion arriving at this layer can remove dozens or hundreds of atoms from the layer. What remains is a hole, which can be seen very clearly under an electron microscope." The graphene layer, on the other hand, which the projectile hits immediately afterwards, remains intact: most of the potential energy has already been released. The same experiment can also be reversed, so that the highly charged ion first hits the graphene and only then the molybdenum disulphide layer. In this case, both layers remain intact: the graphene provides the ion with the electrons necessary to neutralize it electrically in a tiny fraction of a second. The mobility of the electrons in the graphene is so high that the point of impact also "cools down" immediately. The ion crosses the graphene layer without leaving a permanent trace. Afterwards, it can no longer cause much damage in the molybdenum disulphide layer. "This provides us now with a wonderful new method for manipulating surfaces in a targeted manner," says Richard Wilhelm. "We can add nano-pores to surfaces without damaging the substrate material underneath. This allows us to create geometric structures that were previously impossible." In this way, one could create "masks" from molybdenum disulfide perforated exactly as desired, on which certain metal atoms are then deposited. This opens up completely new possibilities for controlling the chemical, electronic and optical properties of the surface. "We are very pleased that our excellent collaborations via the TU Doctoral College TU-D were able to contribute significantly to these results," says Janine Schwestka, who was a member of the TU-D for more than three years. "In addition, it distinguishes Vienna as a location for science and research that we were able to establish contacts with the University of Vienna through short distances in order to deepen our joint expertise and complement each other methodically". ### Contact Prof. Richard Wilhelm Institute of Applied Physics TU Wien T +43-1-58801-13435 wilhelm@iap.tuwien.ac.at As Ayodhya prepares for the groundbreaking ceremony of the Ram Temple by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 5, sources said that those invited will have to undergo a Covid-19 test, and only after testing negative will they be allowed to enter the event. Sources said the decision had been taken after various BJP leaders tested positive for Covid-19 recently, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Amit Shah had tested positive for coronavirus on Sunday and was subsequently admitted at the Medanta Hospital in Gurgaon. Uttar Pradesh BJP Chief Swatantra Dev Singh has tested positive for Covid-19, after which news came of UP Jal Shakti Minister Mahendra Singh also being infected by the deadly disease. On Sunday, Cabinet Minister Kamala Rani Varun died due to the coronavirus infection in Lucknow. Meanwhile, implementation of strict security measures is underway in the entire district of Ayodhya in view of Modi's visit on August 5 for the Ram Temple program. Not more than five people will be allowed to gather at one place at the event. The district's boundaries will be sealed on Tuesday. On Saturday, UP Chief Secretary, Additional Chief Secretary Home, DGP and other officials visited Ayodhya and prepared a security blueprint for the district, including the 'Ram Janmabhoomi' site. The officials also issued instructions to authorities for execution of the plans, under which many protocols are to be followed during the Prime Minister's visit. Protocols to contain the spread of coronavirus will be strictly followed. DIG, Deepak Kumar informed the media that a meeting has been held with all the agencies regarding the security of Modi, and that there was complete preparation for the event in which all standards of security would be met. Under the Covid protocol, not more than five people will be allowed to gather at one place in Ayodhya on August 5. The security arrangements are being made for all the VVIPs and the invited guests. All the boundaries of Ayodhya and Faizabad city will be sealed from the eve of the main event of Bhoomi Pujan. No one will be allowed to enter, said DIG Deepak Kumar. Aug. 3, 2020-- More than 30 years after the last guidance on the clinical evaluation of hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP), the American Thoracic Society - in collaboration with the Asociacion Latinoamericana de Torax or ALAT and the Japanese Respiratory Society- has developed new guidelines for clinicians. The guidelines are available online ahead of print in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Hypersensitivity pneumonitis manifests as interstitial lung disease. It is difficult to diagnose and until now, there has been little consensus in terms of disease definition, diagnostic criteria and diagnostic approach. "The clinician is often unable to distinguish features of fibrotic HP (f-HP) from those of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and some patients meeting the criteria for the diagnosis of IPF may in fact have f-HP with pulmonary fibrosis," said Ganesh Raghu, MD, professor of medicine, University of Washington and director of the Center for Interstitial Lung Disease at University of Washington Medical center. "The high rate of screen failures in patients participating in IPF clinical trials highlights this diagnostic challenge, as pulmonologists may be misdiagnosing patients with f-HP as having IPF, overlooking environmental factors that can contribute to the disease." The guideline committee categorized HP into two clinical phenotypes, namely nonfibrotic and fibrotic HP, and made recommendations for reach. Their priority was to help clinicians make a confident and accurate diagnosis of HP. The following is a summary of the panel's recommendations, which were formulated using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach (GRADE): Recommendation 1 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP or fibrotic HP, the guideline committee makes no recommendation or suggestion for or against the use of a specific questionnaire to identify potential inciting agents of HP; instead, the guideline committee recommends the development and validation of a questionnaire. Remark: Pending the availability of a validated questionnaire, the guideline committee advocates that clinicians take a thorough history to identify potential exposures and sources in the patient's environment that are known to be associated with HP. Recommendation 2 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests performing serum IgG testing that targets potential antigens associated with HP (suggestion, very low confidence in the estimated effects). For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests performing serum IgG testing that targets potential antigens associated with HP (suggestion, very low confidence in the estimated effects). Recommendation 3 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP, the guideline committee recommends bronchoalveolar lavage with lymphocyte cellular analysis (recommendation, very low confidence in the estimated effects). For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests bronchoalveolar lavage with lymphocyte cellular analysis (suggestion, very low confidence in the estimated effects). Recommendation 4 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests transbronchial forceps lung biopsy (suggestion, very low confidence in the estimated effects). For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes fibrotic HP, the guideline committee makes no recommendation or suggestion for or against transbronchial forceps lung biopsy. Recommendation 5 < For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP, the guideline committee makes no recommendation or suggestion for or against transbronchial cryobiopsy. For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests transbronchial cryobiopsy (suggestion, very low confidence in estimated effects). Recommendation 6 For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes non-fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests surgical lung biopsy; this recommendation is intended for after alternative diagnostic options have been exhausted (suggestion, very low confidence in estimated effects). For patients with newly identified ILD whose differential diagnosis includes fibrotic HP, the guideline committee suggests surgical lung biopsy; this recommendation is intended for after alternative diagnostic options have been exhausted (suggestion, very low confidence in estimated effects). "These guidelines create a framework that we hope will standardize clinical care and facilitate research," said Kevin C. Wilson, MD, professor of medicine at Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. Wilson also oversees development of clinical practice guidelines for the ATS. The ATS has published nearly 20 clinical practice guidelines on various conditions, ranging from allergy and asthma to TB, other pulmonary infections and including IPF, a disease often mistaken for f-HP. For ATS guideline implementation tools and derivatives, go here. ### About the American Thoracic Society Founded in 1905, the American Thoracic Society is the world's leading medical association dedicated to advancing pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine. The Society's more than 16,000 members prevent and fight respiratory disease around the globe through research, education, patient care and advocacy. The ATS publishes four journals, the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, the American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology, the Annals of the American Thoracic Society and ATS Scholar. About Asociacion Latinoamericana de Torax (ALAT) ALAT was founded in 1996 with the aim of promoting respiratory health, scientific development and education among pulmonologists of the region. ALAT has more than 10,500 active members that meet and collaborate using primarily Spanish and Portuguese languages. The Association has close relationships with the other large Respiratory Societies from USA, Europe, Asian and Africa. ALAT publishes in collaboration with the Spanish Society of Pulmonology (SEPAR) the Journal "Archivos de Bronconeumologia" and more recently, founded RESPIRAR as a virtual journal with Educational purposes publishing reviews, comments and guidelines of different lung disorders. About the Japanese Respiratory Society The Japanese Respiratory Society (JRS) was founded in 1961. There are now approximately 12,700 members making it the biggest scientific respiratory society in the Asian-Pacific Region. JRS contributes to the promotion of respiratory health and welfare by engaging innovative science, culture, education, and clinical research in the field of respiratory health and diseases. "Respiratory Investigation" is an official journal, published in English. The journal published original manuscripts on clinical investigations of a variety of respiratory diseases and medicines, along with articles concerning basic physiology, pathology, and cellular/molecular biology relating to any pulmonary diseases. To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account. We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription. A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means youre helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much! Warehouse CInemas Were excited to reveal our equipment and plans for better closed captioning experiences and open captioning programming. says Kyle Kops, General Manager of Warehouse Cinemas. Warehouse Cinemas, a locally owned, premium movie theatre company offered a private tour with local advocates for the deaf and hard of hearing moviegoing community on Friday, July 31st. This is part of a continued effort to dialogue and bridge the gap to the 6,000+ deaf and hard of hearing members of the Frederick community to offer the best moviegoing experience possible for all! Were excited to reveal our equipment and plans for better closed captioning experiences and open captioning programming. says Kyle Kops, General Manager of Warehouse Cinemas. Warehouse Cinemas promises no more uncomfortable and heavy CC glasses. Their QSC CCR-100 closed caption devices are made to provide each user with a simple and effective CC movie experience. An arm mounted closed caption receiver provides each user with a private display that is attached by an angled flex arm with a base and cupholder. The built-in optics present a distant virtual image to the user so the caption and movie screen can be viewed without refocusing the screen. Along with the top of the line CC equipment, Warehouse Cinemas plans to also roll out an open caption screening program. They will offer, for example, premium open captioning access for early screenings of big films on traditional opening Thursday nights, whenever possible. # # # About Warehouse Cinemas: A venture of HighRock Group, Warehouse Cinemas offers a unique, premium movie going experience by providing first-run movies, dynamic pricing, leather recliner seating, high-quality picture and sound, premium food and drink options, modern-industrial decor, and special community events. About HighRock Group: HighRock Group is a privately held holding company headquartered in Hagerstown, Maryland. Companies currently under HighRock Group include HighRock Studios, a full-service marketing agency, Warehouse Tap Room, a restaurant and tap house, LeftBrain Technology, a data and marketing automation company, and Warehouse Cinemas. Learn more: highrockgrp.com. LEWISBURG- A COVID-19 outbreak at the Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary has been limited to one housing unit and corrections officers working there have been urged to get tested, a union official says. That was the information provided Sunday by Andrew Kline, president of Local 148 of the American Federation of Government Employees. The Bureau of Prison (BOP) did not respond to a request for confirmation. Its coronavirus resource webpage lists 35 inmates having tested positive for the virus, the same number as Saturday. None of the 35 is very sick or needing outside medical attention, Kline said. The medium-security prison has an inmate population of 1,047. Staff and management have done a great job identifying, containing and quarantining those affected, he said. But families of inmates believe the prison is a breeding ground for germs and that inmates are being mistreated. Mass testing started Thursday after the first positive test result using rapid tests. Correction officers and staff are not required to be tested but are screened and their temperature taken before they are permitted to enter the medium-security prison. If employees were to be tested, it would require daily testing because they could come in contact with someone in the community that has COVID-19, he said. Family members of some of the more than 900 inmates who were transferred in April from the medium-security prison in Estill, S.C., that was devastated by a tornado, allege conditions at Lewisburg create a breeding ground for germs. Citing the lack of air conditioning and air movement in the prison that was built in 1932, they claim inmates are treated inhumanely. A spokesperson for the families provided information to PennLive on the condition of anonymity because they said they fear reprisals against their husbands and sons in the prison. Some of their allegations include: With multiple 90-degree days in July, inmates felt as if they were living inside furnace. Some tried to get relief to sleep by lying on the concrete floor. One prisoner had heat rash so bad it even covered the palm of his hands. Five-inch fans can be purchased at the commissary for $16 and batteries, which last about a day, cost $4. Inmates should not have to live like this and if conditions cannot be expeditiously improved they should be moved to a place that treats them properly, the families say. We worry each and every day about the well being of our loved ones behind those walls. USP Lewisburg needs to be a top priority in making this place humane and livable, the spokesperson said. Half of the prisoners transferred from Estill have not received their personal belongings and many of those who did, did not get all of them, she said. There have been lockdowns after lockdowns limiting the ability of inmates to contact loved ones, she said. A July 1 letter the Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project and the Lewisburg Prison Project sent to the Lewisburg warden also cited deplorable housing conditions. Two non-profit organizations that assist inmates with alleged civil rights violations claim Lewisburg inmates are not adequately protected from coronavirus transmission. READ: Mass testing of Lewisburg pentitentary inmates underway after first COVID-19 case Norwegian cruise ship MS Roald Amundsen moored in Tromso, Norway, Monday Aug. 3, 2020. After 40 people, including four passengers and 26 crew members on the Norwegian cruise ship have been tested positive for the coronavirus, the operator says it was stopping for all cruises with its three vessels. The 40 people were admitted to the University Hospital of North Norway in Tromsoe, north of the Arctic Circle, where the empty ship has docked. (Terje Pedersen/NTB Scanpix via AP) A Norwegian cruise ship line halted all trips and apologized Monday for procedural errors after a coronavirus outbreak on one ship infected at least 5 passengers and 36 crew members. Health authorities fear the ship also could have spread the virus to dozens of towns and villages along Norway's western coast. The confirmed virus cases from the MS Roald Amundsen raise new questions about safety on all cruise ships during a pandemic even as the devastated cruise ship industry is pressing to resume sailings after chaotically shutting down in March. The Hurtigruten cruise line was one of the first companies to resume sailing during the pandemic, starting cruises to Norway out of northern Germany in June with a single ship, then adding cruises in July to the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. The 41 people on the MS Roald Amundsen who tested positive have been admitted to the University Hospital of North Norway in Tromsoe, north of the Arctic Circle, where the ship currently is docked. The cruise line said it suspended the ship and two others - MS Fridtjof Nansen and MS Spitsbergen - from operating for an indefinite period. "A preliminary evaluation shows that there has been a failure in several of our internal procedures," Hurtigruten CEO Daniel Skjeldam said in a statement. He added the company that sails along Norway's picturesque coast between Bergen in the south and Kirkenes in the north is "now in the process of a full review of all procedures." It has contacted passengers who had been on the MS Roald Amundsen for its July 17-24 and July 25-31 trips from Bergen to of Svalbard, which is known for its polar bears. The ship had 209 guests on the first voyage and 178 guests on the second. All other crew members tested negative. But since the cruise line often acts like a local ferry, traveling from port to port along Norway's western coast, the virus may not have been contained onboard. Some passengers disembarked along the route and may have spread the virus to their local communities. A total of 69 municipalities in Norway could have been affected, Norwegian news agency NTB reported. The city of Tromsoe is urging anyone who traveled on the ship or had any contact with it to get in touch with health authorities. Crew members clean on board Hurtigruten's vessel MS Roald Amundsen, docked in Tromso, Norway, Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. Over 30 crew members and an unconfirmed number of passengers have so far tested positive for the coronavirus after two international cruises which resumed operation recently, since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. (Terje Pedersen/NTB scanpix via AP) The Norwegian government announced Monday it was tightening the rules for cruise ships by banning ships with more than 100 passengers from docking in Norwegian harbors and disembarking passengers and crew members. The ban will be in place for two weeks and only applies to cruise ships, not ferry boats. Health Minister Bent Hoeie said the situation aboard the Hurtigruten ship served as "the background" for the decision. Police in Norway said they would open an investigation to find out whether any laws had been broken. It's not yet how the MS Roald Amundsen outbreak began. NTB reported that 33 of the infected crew members came from the Philippines and the others came from Norway, France and Germany. The passengers were from all over the world. Skjeldam said cruise ship officials did not know they should have notified passengers after the first infection was reported Friday, adding that they followed the advice of the ship's doctors. But Line Vold of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health said its advice was to inform passengers and crew as soon as possible so they could monitor their health and go into quarantine or isolation, if needed. "We have made mistakes. On behalf of all of us in Hurtigruten, I am sorry for what has happened. We take full responsibility," Skjeldam said. Hurtigruten says the operations of three shipsMS Roald Amundsen, MS Fridtjof Nansen and MS Spitsbergenhave been halted for an indefinite period. In Italy, the Costa Crociere cruise ship line said three crew members from two ships in Civitavecchia, near Rome, have tested positive for the coronavirus. The cruise company said two assigned to the Costa Deliziosa were hospitalized and a third, assigned to the Costa Favolosa, was in isolation on the ship. A view of the Hurtigruten's vessel MS Roald Amundsen, docked in Tromso, Norway, Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. Over 30 crew members and an unconfirmed number of passengers have so far tested positive for the coronavirus after two international cruises which resumed operation recently, since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. (Terje Pedersen/NTB scanpix via AP) The Italian cruise company, which is part of Carnival Corp. said the crews of both ships were being screened ''in view of the possible relaunch of our cruises, as soon as the government gives the authorization.'' The Cabinet was to meet on the matter Sunday. Costa Crociere said that all crew members were tested for the virus before leaving their countries, then undergo a second test once they arrive in Italy, after which they are put under a two-week monitoring period. Cruise lines stopped sailing in mid-March after several high-profile coronavirus outbreaks at sea. More than 710 people fell ill aboard Carnival's Diamond Princess cruise ship while it was quarantined off Japan and 13 people died. The Cruise Lines International Association, which represents more than 50 companies and 95% of global cruise capacity, said the resumption of cruises has been extremely limited so far. The voyages taking place must have approval from and follow the requirements of national governments, the group said. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control, for example, is not allowing cruise ships in U.S. waters at least through September. The industry association said it is still developing COVID-19-control procedures based on advice from governments and medical experts. Once the guidelines are finalized, member companies will be required to adopt them, CLIA said. A German cruise ship last week set sail from Hamburg, testing procedures for how cruise ships can operate safely during the pandemic. The ship sailed with less than 50% capacity and only went on a four-day trip at sea with no stops at other ports. In the South Pacific, some 340 passengers and crew are confined on a cruise ship in Tahiti after one traveler tested positive for the virus. The commissariat for French Polynesia said all those aboard the Paul Gauguin cruise ship are being tested and will be kept in their cabins Monday pending the results. The South Pacific archipelago started reopening to tourists last month, with a requirement that all visitors get tested before arriving and re-test themselves four days after entering. Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Shops in Telanganas Hyderabad saw an increased footfall ahead of Raksha Bandhan on Sunday despite the prevailing COVID-19 pandemic, with one shopkeeper adding an interesting Corona rakhi made of cow dung to the collection. Sales this year are low because of the pandemic so I tried to come up with something that might induce people to buy my rakhis. This year I am selling a Corona rakhi made of cow dung. A few people have bought it and they seem to like it, Akash, a shop owner told ANI. Telangana: People in Hyderabad purchase rakhis ahead of #RakshaBandhan tomorrow. A shop owner says, "We have all types of rakhis but the sale is comparatively low due to #COVID19, we faced difficulty in procuring raw material. This yr we're also offering rakhis made of cow-dung" pic.twitter.com/8zlTn3b0zP ANI (@ANI) August 2, 2020 He said that this year it was a tough decision to open his shop amid the pandemic because he was unsure about getting a return on his investment. I had to put all my faith in this haul of rakhis because I was not sure if they would sell or not. I dont want my investment to go waste as this occasion only comes once a year and I will have to wait a whole year to sell items if they dont sell today, he added. According to Priyanka, a shopper who purchased three rakhis for her brothers told ANI that this year, they would take COVID-19 precautions while celebrating. Only our immediate family will be celebrating Raksha Bandha this year. We are going to maintain social distancing and sanitise our hands at frequent intervals. We are also going to be extra careful about the food we eat, she said. Rakshan Bandhan is being celebrated on August 3 this year. Denise Rowe could tell from the moment her grandma got on the phone that the 98-year-old wasn't happy. "I have a bone to pick with you," Juanita Davis declared. Davis had been the driving force behind three decades of Winrow family reunions, which draw up to 200 people from 30 states every other summer. For two years, she had been preparing to host in Oklahoma City what she feared might be her last gathering. Then the pandemic hit. And when the family conducted a Facebook poll in late May, Rowe said she didn't feel comfortable attending the Labor Day event. Rowe, an attorney and yoga teacher in Potomac, Md., tried to explain she was worried she might get her grandma sick. But Davis said her faith had kept her healthy for almost a century. "My soon-to-be 99-year-old grandmother is ready to write me out of the will," Rowe said half-jokingly, "because I told her covid is real." Across the country, families are facing fraught decisions - and fierce disagreements - over whether to see one another this summer. From California to Chicago to Charlotte, family gatherings of all kinds have been linked to coronavirus outbreaks that have sickened scores of people. But as the pandemic drags on, it is testing relatives' resolve to remain apart. Summer reunions offer a preview of what could happen later this year, when Americans celebrate their first Thanksgiving and Christmas since the pandemic's start. The debate about whether to hold reunions has been especially difficult for African American families, for whom large summer reunions are important rituals given extra urgency from the national reckoning on racism. At the same time, Black families also have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic. When Rowe reminded her grandma that a relative in his 20s had nearly died of covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, Davis replied with scripture. "You can't live in fear," Rowe recalled her grandma saying. "Faith is what you have to rely on." - - - As the coronavirus began its deadly march across America, it forced families to make painful concessions. Birthday parties, graduation ceremonies, weddings and funerals were canceled, postponed, downsized or streamed online. Family gatherings that were held anyway sometimes sparked outbreaks. A covid cluster at an Idaho onion-ring factory was traced back to a family reunion. A party of two dozen relatives in Charlotte led to 41 infections. And a family dinner for six in Dallas resulted in 14 people getting sick, one of whom died and another one of whom remains on a ventilator. "You cannot imagine the guilt I feel, knowing that I hosted the gathering that led to so much suffering," the dinner party's host wrote. Last week, Maryland's Republican Gov. Larry Hogan warned people not to assume spending time with relatives was risk-free. "The number one activity of those who have tested positive recently, reported by a staggering 44 percent . . . was attending family gatherings," he said at a news conference in which he tightened mask and travel restrictions. "We have people saying, 'We're not going out. We're going to rent a beach house together with 20 or 30 of our family and we are staying home.' But they are spreading the virus." Dane Riley was still debating whether to host the biennial Ruffin family reunion at Gum Springs Community Center in Northern Virginia when he learned that a cousin had been hospitalized with covid and was on a ventilator. "That pushed me over the edge," said Riley, 58, who postponed the reunion until next summer. "I see people having gatherings in their homes, in their backyards," he said. "I don't feel safe putting my family in jeopardy that way." For Phalba Smith-Reid, canceling the Lollis family reunion for the first time in 32 years felt like a personal betrayal. Before her mother died in 2016, she had asked Smith-Reid to take over from her in organizing the gatherings. "She said, 'Promise me you'll be the one to keep things going,' " Smith-Reid recalled. "Part of me feels like I'm letting her down. That's the most disappointing thing." This year's reunion was scheduled for the Fourth of July weekend in the capital, and was jokingly billed as a "March on Washington." The family was supposed to visit the National Museum of African American History and Culture, watch the fireworks on the Mall, and celebrate Smith-Reid's uncle, a civil rights activist named Rance A. O'Quinn. O'Quinn was going to speak about how he fled Mississippi as a child after his father was murdered, a crime that - according to family lore - was committed by the Ku Klux Klan in retaliation for hosting NAACP meetings. Instead, O'Quinn died of heart failure on June 28 - the day Mississippi legislators voted to remove the Confederate emblem from its flag. Another relative died around the same time. The family was too overwhelmed to hold a virtual reunion, Smith-Reid said. When Chandler Powell Sr. suggested canceling the Anderson-Brown-Carroll family reunion on the Fourth of July weekend in Annapolis, Md., younger relatives initially pushed back. But opposition vanished after a relative ended up on a ventilator with covid-19 before eventually recovering, he said. The retired Annapolis police officer, who now lives in North Carolina, was looking forward to talking to the younger generation about the protests rocking the nation. "These reunions are about being able to share our stories, talk about our heritage, being able to understand who we are as a family and our origins," he said. "They are a lifeline." Some families have taken extra precautions before proceeding with reunions. When Sierra Jackson began planning a reunion in Charleston, S.C., a couple of years ago, she envisioned the two dozen cousins in their 20s and 30s dining at restaurants and drinking at bars. But as spring turned to summer, and it became clear the coronavirus wasn't going away, the cousins faced a decision. Should they cut their losses on the Airbnb, or go ahead with the mid-July event? "The majority still wanted to go," recalled Jackson, a 32-year-old from Washington. "From there we said, OK, what we're going to do is at least a week out everybody needs to go get a covid test. Of course we had a couple of stragglers who said, 'I don't know where to go.' I said 'I'll Google it for you.' " Everyone tested negative and the four-day event went smoothly, with the cousins cooking at home and avoiding others at the beach. When an elderly relative wanted to stop by to see them, they donned masks but couldn't refuse an embrace. "You can't stop a 70-year-old woman from hugging her grandkids," Jackson said. Two weeks later, there are no signs anyone got sick. "We do have a responsibility to not act recklessly," Jackson said. "But at the same time, the longer this goes, it is a bit of personal decision. People have to weigh and measure what risks are appropriate for them and their families. . . . I'm going to do what I need to do to see the people I love." - - - Two years ago, the Winrow-Windrow family reunion was held in Washington. Dozens of relatives - some of whom spell the last name differently - wandered the Mall in matching T-shirts, visiting museums and monuments before boarding a cruise on the Potomac. At the end of the four-day event, family leaders met to decide who would host in 2020. Several people made a pitch. But the contest was effectively over as soon as Davis asked to host in her "limited time on this earth." Led by Davis, the Oklahoma City branch of the family booked a hotel downtown and a boathouse along the river that would be turned into a private casino for a night. But the emotional highlight would be a chartered bus trip to the tiny town of Earlsboro, where Davis's father had owned a large farm and helped found a church. Rowe's mother would tell the family's oral history on the way. When the pandemic hit, Oklahoma initially seemed like a relatively safe place for the reunion, which was originally scheduled for mid-July. Compared with New York and New Jersey, where some family members lived, the state appeared unaffected. But by May 24, when one of Rowe's cousins polled relatives on Facebook about moving the reunion to Labor Day, cases were rising across the south and west. Oklahoma would see its numbers begin to spike a few weeks later. But even after Rowe and some other relatives said they probably wouldn't come, the family deliberated over what to do. "It's one thing to seek opinions," said Ellisa Johnson, Rowe's aunt, who lives in Chicago. But relatives in Oklahoma City had already put down more than $5,000 that local businesses refused to refund. "The other issue is the financial obligations." For Davis, the dilemma was deeper still. A devout Seventh Day Adventist, she had been devastated when relatives told her she had to stop attending church because of the pandemic. Her faith had guided her for almost a century, in which her family had flourished. Why should that change now? Rowe reminded her of services that had spread infection and of the young relative who had contracted covid and nearly died. Johnson, who visited Davis in June after testing negative for the coronavirus and again last month, told her about the Dallas family dinner that had gone horribly wrong and began suggesting alternatives to a big family summit. When Rowe called her grandma on a recent afternoon ahead of a family committee vote on the reunion, Davis seemed conflicted. "I take my family serious, and it gets smaller and smaller," she told her granddaughter, adding with a chuckle: "It's down to me now!" "Yes, you're the queen," Rowe replied. Davis said she recognized that postponing the reunion was the safest option, even as she hoped the family would figure out some way for it to go ahead. In the end the family would decide to go forward with a much smaller reunion. "I'm hard to discourage," Davis admitted. She didn't want to endanger anyone, Davis insisted, but the nonagenarian wasn't above appealing to emotion. "The reason I'm so pushy about having it is that I might not be here" for the next one, she said. Rowe said she admired her grandmother's drive and relentless optimism. "I'm not a quitter," Davis replied. "I'm a believer, and that's what I believe: that the Lord has a plan, that he will take care of us. He's done it so many times for me." After about 20 minutes, Rowe tried to say goodbye, but Davis had one more question about the reunion. "Did you ever make up your mind whether you are going to be in town that day?" she asked. "Well, Granny, you know I'm going to do everything in my power," Rowe replied carefully. "I'm going to watch how the coronavirus is playing out and I'm going to watch to see what makes the most sense and do whatever I need to do, because you know I also value the reunions and I love you so much and I'll do whatever I can. OK?" "Alrighty," Davis said. "I believe what you say, because you've never let me down." In this article STLA-IT F GM General Motors CEO Mary Barra speaks to the news media June 12, 2018 in Detroit, Michigan. Bill Pugliano | Getty Images The Detroit automakers' earnings showed they are better prepared and more resilient to weather a crisis than they were a decade ago even as the coronavirus pandemic still hobbles much of the global auto industry. It's something Wall Street has wanted the companies to prove they were capable of doing since the Great Recession, which forced General Motors and then-Chrysler into government-backed bankruptcies in 2009. But the Detroit automakers didn't receive the respect from investors many thought they deserved after releasing second-quarter earnings last week. Despite GM, Ford Motor and Fiat Chrysler each significantly beating earnings expectations, shares of the companies were down for the week as Wall Street shrugged off the results. The initial cold-shoulder response had analysts who cover the automakers, specifically GM, questioning what more could be done for the companies to enter Wall Street's good graces as Tesla and several electric vehicle start-ups with no revenue have recently done. GM shares closed Friday at $24.89, down 3.2% from Monday. Ford stock sank 4.6% to $6.61 for the week. Fiat Chrysler closed at $10.15, down 5.3% for the week. With the overall market rising Monday, shares of Ford was up nearly 5% and Fiat Chrysler was up more than 4% in morning trading, while GM was up about 2%. Shares of the Italian-American automaker remain down nearly 30% for the year. 'Remarkable negative' reaction Instead of asking GM CEO Mary Barra about the company's performance, Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas asked whether she would change its name to better align with its emerging technologies. He suggested "Ultium," after GM's next-generation vehicle batteries. Deutsche bank analyst Emmanuel Rosner recommended the automaker spin off its electric vehicle operations, "forcing the market to recognize its advanced technology." "The remarkable negative market reaction to GM's impressive 2Q earnings beat, in our view reflects much more than just management's conservative 2H20 outlook meeting high investor expectations," Rosner wrote in an investor note following the company's Wednesday earnings. GM, despite the pandemic, has reconfirmed plans to invest $20 billion from 2020 through 2025 in autonomous and electric vehicles. Barra, who would historically defend the company's reputation, didn't nix the idea of a name change. She said the input was appreciated and that GM, which was established in 1908, is "going to make any changes necessary to drive the shareholder value." "That's something that we evaluate and look at, when's the right time and what are the proof points that ... make it real. We believe strongly in our EV future," she said. Beating Wall Street Reasons analysts gave for the lack of movement following the better-than-expected earnings, including a surprise net profit by Ford, varied by automaker. Overall, they included a disbelief in a rapid recovery of vehicle sales and the Detroit automakers not being able to successfully adapt to emerging technologies such as electric and autonomous vehicles. CFRA Research senior equity analyst Garrett Nelson raised 12-month price targets on Ford and GM following their earnings, but he maintained sell ratings for both of the stocks. "We maintain a Sell following the stock's sharp rebound, not expecting GM's vehicle sales to return to pre-pandemic levels anytime soon and consider its new model pipeline as relatively unexciting compared to peers," he wrote regarding GM. Jonas said investor concerns surrounding GM's "ability to confront the end of the internal combustion era otherwise known as 'the melting ICE cube,' remain as prevalent as ever." Credit Suisse analyst Dan Levy categorized last week's lack of movement in GM shares as Wall Street "looking past" near-term accomplishments and focusing on long-term strategies for electric and autonomous vehicles. For Ford, investors are returning their sights to the company's multiyear $11 billion restructuring plan through the early 2020s that has been criticized for moving too slowly and being years behind recent cost-cutting actions of GM. "While the product opportunity is bright with F-150 and Bronco, and there could be upside to '21 (estimates) as these products bear fruit, there is nevertheless significant work ahead on global redesign," Levy wrote. Earnings Ford was the only Detroit automaker to beat profit and revenue expectations of Wall Street during the second quarter. Ford reported an adjusted pretax loss of $1.9 billion after warning investors in April that it expected to lose more than $5 billion. Its automotive revenue of $16.6 billion exceeded the $15.95 billion analysts expected. Then-Ford CEO James Hackett (3rd R) and team members, including his successor, Jim Farley (3rd L), reveal the company's first mass-market electric car the Mustang Mach-E, which is an all-electric vehicle that bears the name of the company's iconic muscle car at a ceremony in Hawthorne, California on November 17, 2019. Mark Ralston | AFP | Getty Images Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas, the ranking Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued a statement after the head of the Washington-based Open Technology Fund said last week it has been forced to cut off tools used by tens of millions to access the Internet and uncensored news through the Voice of America. Places affected include Hong Kong, where online freedom has become a flash point between the United States and China. The Chinese government could move any day to shut down Internet communications for the territorys 7 million residents, cutting off political opponents from the free world, McCaul said, yet the U.S. has frozen the funds efforts to protect that access for weeks. NuView Life Sciences, a Park City, UT-based clinical stage, precision oncology company, secured a $90M funding agreement with international investment group GEM Global Yield. Under the accord, GEM agreed to purchase common shares from NuView on a firm commitment basis with an aggregate value of USD$90m, upon NuView filing a Registration Statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The deal provides NuView a 36-month drawdown period. The company intends to use the funds to complete a 600-patient in vitro double-blind clinical trial in accordance with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval process. Led by Paul Crowe, Chairman and CEO, NuView NuView will also allocate funds for its in vivo diagnostics and Theranostic programs. GEM Global Yield LLC SCS, a Luxembourg-based private, alternative investment group FinSMEs 03/08/2020 ALBANY Albany County Executive Dan McCoy told reporters Monday he has antibodies from a bout of COVID-19 that he believes he contracted around the beginning of the year. Coronavirus was first detected in the U.S. in January, but was not widely tested in people until the pandemic exploded in March. McCoy said he got an antibody test in May which revealed he had previously contracted the virus. Studies indicate coronavirus antibodies appear to diminish as time goes on. The county executive's office said a doctor who spoke to McCoy about the test results estimated the level of antibodies in his system suggested he had the virus in December, January or February. The county executive had not previously disclosed the results of the test and his office could not explain why. If he was sickened at the end of 2019 or during the early months of 2020, McCoy would be among the earliest known in the U.S. to have gotten the virus without traveling outside of the country. "They put the timetable down before it even broke here, before we even knew about it," he said. The Albany County executive is one of the few local officials in upstate New York to identify as having COVID-19. For example, Buffalo's common council president tested positive back in March, but most other known cases have been among state legislators and New York City council people. McCoy, who during months of news briefings on the virus became a face of the region's battle against the virus, has been tested several times for COVID-19 since the pandemic hit the U.S. in February. None of those tests have come back positive, his staff said. The county executive's office said McCoy traveled to Washington D.C. in early December for a meeting of the County Executives of America and visited Texas in February for National Guard duty. He went to Maryland later that month for another meeting of the County Executives of America. McCoy's campaign filings also show charges to a restaurant in New York City in mid-February. McCoy believes he had coronavirus symptoms in December - but that was at least a month before the virus was proven to exist in the U.S. "It was scary because I didn't know what I was dealing with at the time but I knew I was really sick," he said. "It doesn't mean I can't get it again. It just means I had it once and got through it. So I am cautious." McCoy, who has never publicly spoken about the results of the antibody test, has asthma and is conscientious about not exposing himself to the virus. In recent months, he said he's been criticized for being an ardent deliverer of the message that people should wear masks and social distance in public. His office could not say why McCoy did not reveal the antibody tests result earlier. The earliest known death of an American infected with coronavirus who did not travel outside of the country occurred on Feb. 6, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Santa Clara County, Calif., woman died after becoming ill on Jan. 31. Her death was followed by the unrelated death of another man who died at home between Feb. 13 and Feb. 17. For months, scientists have been trying to determine when the virus arrived in the U.S. A June report published by the CDC estimated that the disease could have started spreading in the U.S. in mid-January. On Monday, McCoy also addressed hostility and criticism he has been getting from county residents for his advocacy for social distancing and the need to use face masks. "When you put your head on the pillow at the end of the day, you hope every decision you made was a decision that didn't cost someone their life," he said. Meanwhile, Albany County sought to reassure the public that Shaker High School has been sanitized after a school employee tested positive for COVID-19. The school in Colonie was closed Monday for cleaning. McCoy said the county learned of the employee's positive COVID-19 case Sunday. "It was out of an abundance of caution that the school was closed today," said Elizabeth Whalen, county health department commissioner. "This has been a matter that has been comprehensively addressed by the school district and health department." Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. All individuals who were in contact with the employee have been contacted, Whalen said. McCoy acknowledged that parents may feel uncomfortable sending their children to school come the fall, and said that remote learning is still an option for those parents. Overall, the county saw nine new coronavirus cases Monday, bringing the total to 2,304. Three of the new cases are health care workers, two traveled out of state, and another individual was linked to the Fourth of July party on Albany's Hudson Avenue. The total number of attendees of that party , or people connected to those people, who ultimately contracted COVID-19 is now 47. The Albany County hospitalization rate has decreased to 0.4 percent, with one COVID-19 patient in the hospital. "We listen to the governor for guidance every day, and the CDC," McCoy said. "Right now it's still out there in the community." Both McCoy and Whalen addressed issues of compliance with regulations that would prevent the spread of COVID-19. Whalen said she and her staff have been getting considerable pushback from people they contact to direct a quarantine. "If you decide that you are going to hang up on my staff, that you are going to be difficult, the next step will be to have law enforcement at your door so please take this seriously," Whalen said. "This is becoming an increasingly difficult situation for our staff to work with." Cases in rest of Capital Region Percent positive cases in the Capital Region decreased slightly over the weekend, with .9 percent of people testing positive for COVID on Sunday. Western New York rose to the top of regions with 2.2 percent of people testing positive. But there were troubling signs of the continuing presence of the virus here Monday. Warren County said that it had its first death Saturday since May 30, a person who contracted COVID-19 while they were in an assisted living facility. Also, two Rensselaer County children under the age of three have tested positive for the disease, the county said on Monday. One of them is a one-year-old from Poestenkill, the other is a two-year-old from Troy. The county had one other person test positive for the disease overnight. The county now has 96 active cases, including 22 residents in the hospital. Steve Hughes and Lauren Stanforth contributed to this report Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 3) Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra has ordered the National Bureau of Investigation to look into the recent deaths of two officials from the National Center for Mental Health and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office. Department Order No. 192 calls for a probe into the killing of NCMH chief Roland Cortez, his driver Ernesto dela Cruz, and PCSO Board Secretary Wesley Barayuga, who were ambushed by motorcycle-riding gunmen in broad daylight in two separate incidents. It also directs the NBI to file appropriate charges against those involved, should there be sufficient evidence. The NBI, through officer-in charge Eric Distor, has been directed to submit a report on the investigations and case build-up within 10 days "and periodically thereafter." Cortez and dela Cruz were killed on July 27 in Quezon City. Meanwhile, Barayuga and was shot and killed in Mandaluyong City on July 30. His driver, Salvador Gunao, was also shot but survived. Congress likely has the votes to override President Donald Trump's threatened veto of the entire defense policy bill over a provision that would change the names of Army bases honoring Confederate generals, according to a top member of the House Armed Services Committee. "I think the president is going to be hard-pressed to veto over that issue," said Rep. Anthony Brown, D-Maryland, a retired Army colonel and committee vice chair. Read Next: Marine Corps IDs 9 Troops Lost in Tragic AAV Accident The provision would strip the Confederate names of at least 10 Army posts, including Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Fort Hood in Texas, and Fort Benning in Georgia. Congress has been unable to override a veto, which requires a two-thirds vote in the House and Senate, since Trump has been in office, but "this may very well be the first that we would override," Brown said at a July 31 virtual forum hosted by Center for Strategic and International Studies. Trump has repeatedly threatened to veto the proposed $740 billion National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2021 over the provision. The bill includes a 3% pay raise for the military. In a June 30 Twitter post, Trump said he would veto legislation "which will lead to the renaming (plus other bad things!) of Fort Bragg, Fort Robert E. Lee, and many other Military Bases from which we won Two World Wars." The House version of the NDAA would change the names within one year, while the Senate version gave three years to change the names. Brown said he expects a compromise provision to change the names to emerge from a House-Senate conference committee to come up with a unified version of the NDAA. In his 30-year Army career, Brown said he served at several of the bases in question but was unaware that they were named for Confederate generals to "memorialize this 'Lost Cause' of the failure of the South in the Civil War." He said troops now in the military are "much more aware of these things," particularly in the aftermath of the Black Lives Matter protests nationwide. Brown also praised moves by the Marine Corps and the Navy to ban displays of the Confederate flag on bases. He urged Defense Secretary Mark Esper to revise his own military-wide policy that omitted the Confederate flag from a list of flags approved for display. In a July 16 memo, Esper said the only flags approved for display on bases are the U.S. flag; the flags of states and territories; the POW-MIA flag; those of allied countries; unit flags; senior leader flags; and flags flown for protocol purposes. In a letter to Esper released Friday, Brown joined with more than 30 other House members in pressing for an explicit ban on the display of the Confederate flag and a policy change to allow the display of the sovereign nation flags of Native Americans and the LGBTQ pride flag. "The implicit banning of these symbols of diversity and inclusion runs counter to our ideals as a nation and a military," the letter to Esper said. The Defense Department "must have the strength and courage to be able to simultaneously stand against a symbol of hate and oppression in the Confederate Battle Flag while allowing the display of support for civil rights, equity, and justice," the letter states. -- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com. Related: From Bumper Stickers to T-Shirts, Confederate Flags Now Officially Off-Limits for Marines Ram temple in Ayodhya to be ready by 2025, open for 'darshan' to devotees by 2023 end Foundation works for Ram Mandir to be ready by October, 'garbhagriha' by Dec 2023: VHP 'Muhurat for Ram temple ceremony inauspicious', claims Digvijaya Singh India oi-Deepika S New Delhi, Aug 03: Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh has claimed that the foundation ceremony of Ram temple in Ayodhya is being organised despite "warnings", including by a seer, on the inauspicious date of August 5, because it suited the Prime Minister. "The foundation ceremony of Ram temple in Ayodhya is being organised at an inauspicious time. Swami Swaroopanandji Maharaj, the most senior Shankaracharya of Dwarka and Joshimath of our Hindu religion, has very clearly alerted about this," tweeted Digvijaya Singh in Hindi. Ram Mandir Bhumi Pujan on Aug 5: Know Timing, How To Watch LIVE Coronavirus in India cross 18-Lakh mark, death toll mounts to 38,135 | Oneindia News Singh also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to defer the Ram Mandir bhumi pujan ceremony due to 'ashubh muhurat'. Singh asked UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to convince PM Modi to postpone the plan. "Modi ji, how many people you want to sent to hospital. Yogi ji, you should convince Modi ji. Why the Sanatan Dharma principles are being violated during your rule. And what is your compulsion that you are allowing this?" he asked. He said priests linked to the Ayodhya rituals, a UP minister, the UP BJP chief and Union Home Minister Amit Shah have coronavirus. "Shouldn't the UP Chief Minister and the Prime Minister quarantine themselves? Is 14-day quarantine only for the common man and not for the PM?", he asked. Prime Minister Modi is expected to reach Ayodhya at around 11 a.m. on August 5 and he is likely to stay there for around three hours. Modi will first offer prayers at Hanuman Garhi and then visit the pre-fabricated temple at Manas Bhawan where the idol of Lord Ram is presently kept. He will then proceed to the Ram Janmabhoomi for the 'bhumi pujan'. A Newbridge woman waiting two years to get her leg amputated is now part of a fundraising campaign set up by family and friends in a bid to get her private care. Marie McDermott (70), a resident of Piercetown, has osteoporosis and following a fall is in need of a leg amputation. The Newbridge pensioner wants to get a prosthetic leg and has been fitted at Cappagh, the National Orthapedic Hospital. Following a fall two years ago, Marie then went to have a knee replacement, approximately 12 months ago, but this has been unsuccessful. She now has an obvious open wound, which either her daughter or herself are regularly dressing at home. Her daughter Ellen McDermott said: We dont want the excuse of a hospital being busy, she is in so much pain. She is on a walker frame, hopping on one leg and trying to push with her shoulder. She said: She just wants the operation done, she is so much pain. She says, you could offer me a million euros, but if you get my leg sorted, that is all I want. Following a recent fall, Maries leg is swollen and despite a long wait at Tallaght Accident & Emergency, she has not been admitted to hospital. Ellen says that the metal on her knee is wide open, she is having to dress the wound a few times a day. Maries daughter, who is also her carer, says that sometimes the wound needs to be changed four times a day. She says that a nurse calls once a week to assist in changing the dressing. Ellen says that even the effort of her going to a hospital appointment is now very difficult as she needs to be lifted. She said that on going to bed, last Friday, the walking frame slipped, and Marie went to grab it, and fell. Ellen said: We have not been given any concrete information. She says that Tallaght Hospital has been sending out appointments but they have been cancelled. Ellen said that her mother was screaming in pain last Friday week, after being sent home. She says that her mother should get private care as her condition could be life threatening. Newbridge woman Marie McDermott Ellen said: We feel the only way forward is to get this all done privately so we can end her suffering once and for all. No human should have to live like this. We are hoping to raise enough money to get Marie the care she needs and to get her leg sorted once and for all. Her daughter said: We have the worry of the virus, and then the worry if she gets sepsis. She would like to go to Cappagh as they do aftercare. If she had to stay in for a month, and everything was done they are private, we want her to get treated. She is in agony. Hopping on one leg is not helping her arthritis. Before she fell, she was very active, she was always up and down to the shopping centre, up and down to Dublin on the train, but over the past two years she hasnt been able to get out and about. The Gofundme.com page Private Care for Marie McDermott, set up online by close friends and family of the popular pensioner is hoping to raise approximately 20,000, which they hope will cover the cost of the operation and then her rehabilitation afterwards. So far, over 8,000 has been donated. Ellen is very concerned for her mother as they also lost a close family member earlier this year. They are frustrated that her issues since the knee replacement have not been rectified by Tallaght Hospital, and annoyed that she was not admitted last week. Sinn Fein Deputy Patricia Ryan, says that she is awaiting a response from Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly this week in a Parliamentary Question sent to him, and is hoping that Marie gets the urgent treatment that she requires very soon. She put in the Parliamentary Question last week. Deputy Ryan said: The waiting list nationally is too long, we are coming across more people waiting. There are people waiting for cancer treatment. I have not come across anything as severe as Marie McDermotts open wound, she must be in awful pain. I am shocked. Fear According to Deputy Ryan, a significant amount of elderly people are waiting for treatment, including cancer care, since the onset of Covid. She said: I am horrified that Marie McDermott is waiting this long, she is high risk. I am afraid she will get gangrene. by Fady Noun Her funeral was held in the Church of Saint-Simeon in Ghosta, her hometown. Leading political and religious figures were present. She went from fighting in the countrys civil war to living the faith in the Risen Christ. Speaking about her, Patriarch al-Rahi praised her path of faith. Beirut (AsiaNews) She died a Carmelite. This is the surprising news that Jocelyne Khoueirys immediate family and her family at large heard at her funeral yesterday at St Simeon Church in Ghosta, her hometown. Her family at large was the Lebanese Phalanges Party (Kataeb) to which she belonged and fought for as a true lioness, during the early years of Lebanons civil war, before going through a conversion that made her switch from an ethnicised Christianity to living the faith in the Risen One. At the end of the ceremony led by Bishop Antoine Nabil Andari, patriarchal vicar in Jounieh, attended by MP Roger Azar as representative of the countrys president, several speakers addressed those present, starting with Carmelite nun, Sister Agnes of the Cross, who created a real surprise. The nun began by recounting Jocelyne Khoueirys last days and the heartbreak the latter felt at the idea of departing, since "her time had come", and of leaving her work unfinished, but what work is completed during its founders lifetime? After Jocelyne Khoueirys death, the decision was taken not to keep her body and beautiful face, with her haloed white hair, in the hospital, but to ask the monastery of the cloistered Carmelites in Harissa to hold a vigil in their chapel, in accordance with Maronite tradition. It was in fact at the door of this Carmel that Jocelyne knocked, in 1978-1979, with the intention of embracing the religious life, before Bashir Gemayel got her to desist in order to provide spiritual training to his forces, after she gained a reputation as daring fighter in the Kataeb. Jocelyne Khoueirys fame was born in 1975 when she took part in the famous battle of the hotels, fighting at Holiday In, and later, in 1976, defending along with a few other young women a building in Martyrs Square, downtown Beirut, against Palestinian fighters. During the 1977-1979 truce, she thought of laying down her arms. But in 1980, Bashir Gemayel asked her to train 500 young women to carry arms and be the partys female fighters. In the convent chapel, her body was watched over by the nuns and those close to her, her face radiant. However, the nuns, separated from the faithful in the chapel by a wooden fence and a curtain, were not able to see her, Sister Agnes de la Croix said. Upon their request, after the lay faithful left the chapel before the arrival of the funeral directors, the Carmelites of Harissa, contemplated her face in peace, and were inspired to place their own habit on Jocelynes body and to officially count her as one of them. This was a spiritual consecration, said someone who witnessed the prayer vigil. Jocelyne was crowned with flowers, embalmed, praised, the ceremony symbolically responding to a deep desire that had accompanied her for more than 40 years. Eulogy Standing, those present were able to hear Patriarch Al-Rahi read the eulogy in which he focused not on Jocelyne Khoueiry the fighter, but on her journey of faith which led her, with the same passion, nearly five years ago, to obtain a doctorate in theology from the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik. Putting aside the years 1975-1979, where she was a fighter with Kataebs regular forces, and the years 1980-1985, when she joined the Lebanese Forces (LF) and tried to "evangelise" them, a former LF member, Assaad Shaftari (Chaftari), who also converted, called her work military pastoral outreach. The patriarch spoke of a radical conversion of life, marked by an unwavering attachment to the Eucharist and the Virgin Mary. He briefly mentioned Jocelyne Khoueirys works, in particular her main foundation, La Libanaise 31 mai (Lebanese Woman 31 May), the date of the Marian feast of the Visitation, and the John Paul II Centre for Cultural Dialogue. The families of fallen fighters, orphans, the needy, and the disabled were the focus of her apostolic action. With the Oui a la vie (Yes to Life) movement, she fought against the trivialisation of abortion. She was also interested in interfaith dialogue and the process of purification of memories, which defuses violence in the very hearts of former enemies. The Patriarch noted that John Paul II and Benedict XVI chose her to attend the Synod on Lebanon and Synod on the Family. Pope John Paul II also appointed her to the Pontifical Council for the Laity. Born on the day of the Assumption Speaking at the ceremony, Souraya Bechaalani, president of the Ecumenical Council for the Middle East and a long-time friend, summed up Jocelyne Khoueiry in three words: she was a woman, with all the dignity the word carries, born on 15 August, feast day of the Assumption; she gave herself completely to the Virgin, Queen of Peace, to whom she dedicated her life: and she was Lebanese, with all the commitment one may have for ones homeland. Fouad Abounader, former LF commander and one of Jocelynes comrade in arms also spoke. Like her, he broke with the LF in 1985, after the first intifada when Samir Geageas forces fought those of Elie Hobeika. He too spoke with admiration of the influence gained by the Christian associations founded by Jocelyne Khoueiry after 1985 in Italy and in the Vatican. Former Kataeb party chief and former Lebanese President Amine Gemayel was the last to speak at the farewell ceremony. As party leader, he mentioned Jocelyne Khoueirys faithfulness to Kataebs motto "God, Country, Family before citing a war story, on the Chekka front, which he personally led. Jocelyne Khoueiry and her unit, who had come to the rescue, indignantly refused to be on simple guard and police duty, and demanded instead to be deployed in the most dangerous positions on the front. Sami Khoueiry, Jocelynes brother and Kataeb regional chairman in Kesrouan, received the Kataeb party badge of honour on her behalf. As a sign of the time, the party founded by Pierre Gemayel yesterday claimed for itself an old fighter who went beyond partisan lines. New York, Aug 3 : New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has urged local governments to be prepared for the possible tropical storm Isaias, which is expected to lash the state from Monday night to Tuesday morning, according to media reports. "Right now the models project that it will hit the New York City area, Long Island, especially the South Shore of Long Island and the Hudson Valley," Xinhua news agency quoted Cuomo as saying to the media on Sunday. Though the Governor said Isaias was not expected to be a hurricane when it hits the state, it can still dump 3 inches of rain and bring 80 km/h winds. "We're concerned about it here in New York... We don't think we'll have hurricane force winds, but we could have significant winds and significant downfall," he added. He said people living in flood-prone areas should be getting ready for the storm. The state was making sure generators, pumps and high-water vehicles were ready, Cuomo added. "We're preparing. Local governments should be preparing," Cuomo said. The storm should be over by Wednesday morning and it is expected to hit Long island and the Hudson area, he said. On Sunday, the storm was off the Florida coast and its maximum sustained winds had declined to 100 km/h. Immigrants are essential to Texas and Houstons economy before, during and after the COVID-19 crisis. To succeed, we need immigrants to support our economy and to fill essential roles. In fact, if we were to restrict immigration by 30 percent, Houston would lose $51 billion in regional GDP by 2036, as demonstrated by centers research last year. The economic disruption from COVID-19 shows that immigrants contributions are now more important than ever. As such, the Supreme Courts decision to block the termination of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program represented much-needed welcome news for both Houston and the entire Lone Star State. Unfortunately, the presidents actions following the ruling have only maintained the world of uncertainty that hundreds of thousands of DACA recipients grapple with every day. This week, the administration said immigrants with DACA would have to renew their status for one year instead of two years and that no new applicants will be considered. The program itself remains under comprehensive review. The DACA program was established in 2012 to shield young immigrants who came to the U.S. as children from deportation and provide them with access to work and education. DACA recipients must submit an application, pay a fee, undergo a thorough background check and renew their status, now, yearly. Once approved, individuals with DACA status receive temporary protection from deportation as well as the ability to legally work and study in the United States. In virtually every way that matters, DACA recipients often called Dreamers are the same as those of us fortunate enough to have happened to be born on American soil. The United States is the only home many of these young immigrants have ever known. They have attended elementary, middle and high schools in Texas and studied at colleges and universities across our state. These Dreamers grew up playing alongside our children. This is why polling has shown that over three-fourths of Americans are in support of the DACA program. Moreover, Dreamers are contributing members of Texas communities and economy, with 96 percent of them either employed or enrolled in school. Each year, DACA recipients contribute $705.2 million in federal taxes, along with $409.9 million in state and local taxes. They are community leaders, business owners, innovators, entrepreneurs, and our neighbors and friends. DACA recipients are also fighting this pandemic on the frontlines in essential roles and are critical to our ability to recover from the novel coronavirus. Nationwide, more than 200,000 DACA recipients are across the country employed in essential food, education and health care industries. Texas alone has 30,600 DACA essential workers, which includes 2,800 educators and 4,300 health care workers. And immigrants comprise 27 percent of our health care workforce in the Houston region. While the Supreme Court decision was great news for the immigrant community and Texass economy, now is not the time to sit back and take a breather. We must work proactively to support DACA recipients in their aim to be contributing members of the community, given that the benefits Dreamers confer to our region and state are needed now more than ever. We have a long road to economic recovery from COVID-19 ahead and its vitally important we provide DACA recipients and immigrants avenues to contribute. The business community, faith leaders and engaged citizens must work with our elected officials to explore comprehensive ways to support our Dreamers before the DACA program encounters additional challenges. Putting an end to the fear and uncertainty that Dreamers and their colleagues and friends have faced in recent years is right and best for Texas. Perlman is president and CEO of Center for Houstons Future. The center brings business, government and community stakeholders together to engage in fact-based strategic planning, collaboration and action on issues of great importance to the region. Some will be in classes with just eight students to ensure a safe distance. Many will have their temperatures checked when they arrive on campus each morning. Others will have their sense of smell tested with scented stickers before theyre allowed to set foot inside. Everyone will be wearing masks. Teachers, administrators and staff at many of San Antonios best-known faith-based schools are planning carefully to reopen campuses, striving to keep the novel coronavirus at bay while still providing their young charges with an education. They dont have to follow the San Antonio Metropolitan Health Districts directive prohibiting schools from opening until after Labor Day on Sept. 7, according to Gov. Greg Abbott, but they nonetheless are concerned about the health and safety of those on their campuses. Public health officials only can intervene if an outbreak occurs, Abbott and other Republican leaders said. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a recent letter that religious schools can decide for themselves when to reopen without government interference. Some religious schools are planning to reopen their campuses Aug. 17 or sometime during that third week of August. Others are following the health care professionals lead and are waiting until after Labor Day. Photos by William Luther / San Antonio Express-News At least one is waiting until Sept. 21 to welcome all of its students back. But nearly all of these schools are offering online instruction so students can learn remotely from the safety of their homes if parents are more comfortable with that option. For in-person education, staffers are spreading out desks in classrooms to allow more space between students and enacting disinfection policies. In some cases, class sizes will be reduced. Two private institutions Cornerstone Christian Schools and St. Lukes Episcopal School report having enough space in their buildings to keep students at safe distances from each other. Lutheran High School of San Antonio will have only a third of its student body about 40 kids on campus at one time. I actually agree with the plan to hold out the big schools because theres no way they can socially separate enough, said Patrick Maynard, Lutheran High Schools head of school. Theres just no way they can put the correct things in place for that number of kids to have a high confidence level that safety measures are going to work. On ExpressNews.com: Gov. Abbott, GOP leaders shoot down Metro Health order about San Antonio school reopenings during pandemic Lutheran has just 120 to 130 students, allowing more flexibility. About a third of them plan to stay home to do online schooling, watching Lutheran teachers live in their classrooms, Maynard said. The others intending to return to campus when school reopens Aug. 17 will be separated into two pods and will alternate school days, with one group of 40 students coming to campus Mondays and Wednesdays, and the other 40 attending Tuesdays and Thursdays. Fridays will be online school days for all students. Marvin G. Pfeiffer Jr. This will allow for class sizes of no more than eight students in classrooms spanning about 700 square feet, Maynard said. Masks will be required on campus. As Lutheran students and staff file into a single entrance in the mornings, their temperatures will be checked, and theyll be asked to sniff scented stickers to verify whether their sense of smell is working. Thats because loss of smell is one symptom of the novel coronavirus. Two portable air purifier systems with ultraviolet rays have been added to every room, Maynard said. Air conditioning units filtration systems have been upgraded. Teachers also will spray students desks with disinfectant at the end of every class so departing students can wipe them down. Desks will be disinfected again at the start of each class, when arriving students will wipe them down once more. The school has been meeting online with parents and students every two weeks throughout the summer to discuss those plans. Maynard thinks it will be several months before all Lutheran students are back on campus. My optimistic self would say maybe mid-October, he said. My realistic self (says) its probably going to be January, probably mid-January, when most everybody wants to be back. At St. Lukes Episcopal School, pre-kindergartners and kindergartners will return to campus Aug. 19, while first through eighth graders will start online classes that same day. The hope is that older students will return to campus Sept. 8, said Chelsea Collins, the new head of school. On ExpressNews.com: Reversing course, TEA wont fund schools closed solely due to Bexar County coronavirus health orders Younger students are starting on-campus classes sooner partly because its difficult for children 3 to 5 years old to stay engaged in online instruction. Right now St. Lukes Episcopal has 195 students, but it has enough space on campus to accommodate twice as many, Collins said. We have the space to spread out, she said. It works out beautifully that we can accommodate all of our students at the same time once we have the green light to do that. Masks will be required at all times, even for the youngest students, which Collins admits will be a challenge. We have a medical professional advisory committee thats reviewing our plans to ensure that they approve and think that we are doing everything we possibly can to mitigate risk, she said. The Archdiocese of San Antonio is letting each of its 38 Catholic schools in 19 counties choose when to open. They can start as early as Aug. 17 or as late as Sept. 8, depending on when each campus is ready and when staffers are trained to follow new safety protocols. Catholic education is very good, but it is not easy, Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller said. I thank our schools team and principals for the tremendous work they have done the past several weeks. It has been incredible. San Antonio Express-News / File photo About 10,000 students in the archdiocese attend Catholic schools, which span from Del Rio to Seguin. Marti West, the archdioceses superintendent of schools, said most schools are planning to open Aug. 17. Some will open with all their students, but some of the larger ones will reopen with a small percentage of students and slowly bring in the others if conditions are safe enough, with an eye toward being fully operational by Sept. 8. On ExpressNews.com: Some San Antonio teachers will teach online from empty classrooms because of the coronavirus But if theyre not ready if the campus isnt ready, if the parents need a little bit more time, if the community says theres no way we can start because of the current situation of the number of outbreaks then they can bump (the opening date) each week as they need to, West added. Students must wear masks at all times, while teachers will wear a combination of masks and face shields. Students and visitors will be screened before they are allowed on campus and will have their temperatures checked. Catholic students also may choose to stay home and attend school remotely through an online platform not consisting of live instruction. Others may opt to attend school on campus part-time and do their studies at home part-time. TMI Episcopal School is taking a conservative approach by offering online instruction only starting Aug. 20. The earliest students would return to campus is Sept. 21, head of school Scott J. Brown said. The school typically has 480 students each year. We are hopeful that staying off campus a little longer will allow us to stay on campus once we return, Brown said in an email. Beginning the year with remote instruction is a short-term inconvenience for what we hope will be a permanent return to what we do best. TMI believes that we have a moral and social responsibility to our own community and to the broader San Antonio community to follow the advice of our medical consultants and to do our part to slow down the spread of the virus. Concordia Lutheran School plans to reopen its campus to students Aug. 19, but also will offer online instruction. School officials declined to be interviewed. San Antonio Christian School originally planned to welcome back elementary students Aug. 18 and middle schoolers and high schoolers Aug. 19. The school has delayed reopening until Sept. 8. Superintendent Jake Walters did not return calls and emails seeking comment. Peggy OHare covers demographics, the census and occasionally crime and general assignment stories in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Peggy, become a subscriber. pohare@express-news.net | Twitter: @Peggy_OHare Industry figures have warned that the plan risks damaging the economy further - Shutterstock Downing Street appears to be pulling back from plans to tell large swathes of the over-50s they will have to shield, following a major backlash. Over the weekend senior Government sources briefed out plans that anyone over 50 who is obese, overweight or in ill health would receive a tailored letter in the autumn advising them to stay at home to protect themselves. But Tory MPs and business leaders argued this risks damaging the economy and runs contrary to Boris Johnsons plea to get workers back to the office. This afternoon, the Prime Minister's spokesman claimed the story was inaccurate, insisting that a localised approach would take priority. This echoed comments made earlier today by Nadhim Zahawi, the business minister. He told the Today programme: "The correct way to do this is to follow how the virus is behaving and react accordingly. That story is speculation and is inaccurate." Read the latest updates below. 03:25 PM And that's it for another day.... It might not have been a busy day but it was certainly a productive one, with at least one Government u-turn in the works. A whopping 73 per cent of you have blasted the proposals to ask over-50s with certain health conditions - including being obese - to shield this winter if required, saying it is "yet more overreaction, which will destroy the economy". You're not the only ones who didn't like it. Conservative MPs and industry figures have also pushed back heavily. Story continues And it seems Downing Street has listened - describing the widely-briefed story as "inaccurate" and "speculation". However, there was no shift on the position regarding the unnamed Tory MP who is accused of rape, with Downing Street and the Chief Whip himself saying action would be taken once a police investigation is concluded. The blog is drawing to close just as another story is gaining traction. Those dodgy documents brandished by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn during last year's election have been traced back to a hack (or hacks) on former trade minister Liam Fox's email account. You can read more about that here. I'll be back at 8am tomorrow, where no doubt we will hear more about this and other news from Westminster. 02:53 PM Classified trade documents used by Russian actors were 'stolen from Liam Fox's email account' Classified US-UK trade documents leaked ahead of December's General Election were stolen from the email account of former trade minister Liam Fox by suspected Russian hackers, Reuters is reporting. Two sources told the wire that the hackers accessed the account multiple times between July 12 and October 21 last year. Among the stolen information were six tranches of documents detailing British trade negotiations with the United States, which Reuters first reported last year were leaked and disseminated online by a Russian disinformation campaign. They were touted by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn as evidence of a Government plot to sell the NHS to the US as part of trade deal talks, something which Boris Johnson has repeatedly denied. Dominic Raab last month accused "Russian actors" of amplifying these documents to interfere in the election. Dr Fox's spokesman did not respond to a request for comment. However a Cabinet Office spokesperson said: "There is an ongoing criminal investigation into how the documents were acquired, and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this point. "But as you would expect, the Government has very robust systems in place to protect the IT systems of officials and staff." 02:46 PM Downing Street appoints head of newly merged Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Sir Philip Barton will head the new Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, as Downing Street continues its shake-up of the senior civil service. Sir Philip, currently the British High Commissioner to New Delhi, will take up his role as the permanent under-secretary of the new FCDO next month, on September 1. The long-standing permanent secretary at the FCO, Sir Simon McDonald, is stepping down as his department subsumes the smaller Department for International Development (Dfid). Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab described Sir Philip as "an outstanding public servant and diplomat with experience across all areas of foreign policy". He added: "I'd like to pay tribute to Sir Simon, one of the finest diplomats of his generation, who helped successfully steer the FCO during a remarkable period of change in the world." Sir Simon sparked a mini-row earlier this year when he told a select committee it had been a "political decision" not to participate in an EU-wide procurement scheme. He subsequently said he had mispoken. 02:38 PM Next year's GCSEs and A-levels could face 'further disruption', exams body warns Next year's GCSE and A-level exams could be delayed or even cancelled if there is "further disruption" caused by the pandemic, Ofqual has warned. The exams body has set out its plan for the forthcoming academic year, following a consultation that found "general support for a delay to the exams, to allow more time for teaching" although less so "if it meant a potential delay to results". Ofqual said: "We will continue to work with the DfE, exam boards, regulators in Wales and Northern Ireland, and groups representing schools, colleges and higher education to consider the best approach, and we will confirm our decisions as soon as possible." The body added: "We are planning for exams and assessments to be taken next year. Nonetheless, we recognise there could be further disruption next year. "We will continue to develop contingency measures, exploring different options." 02:32 PM Sherelle Jacobs: Second wave hysteria is a smokescreen for No 10's abysmal failures A Prime Minister slamming the brakes on lockdown easing. The highest number of daily cases in a month. Restrictions reimposed in the North of England. A major incident declared in Manchester as cases surge. Scientists who previously advocated herd immunity now warning pubs may have to shut. Youd be forgiven for thinking the second wave was upon us. But in fact, as Sherelle Jacobs writes, more than half a year into this crisis, No 10 (and the media) is still allowing incomplete, poorly interpreted and potentially inaccurate data to be widely circulated, fuelling public hysteria. 02:07 PM UK will 'never' agree a deal that undermines Gibraltar sovereignty Downing Street has said the UK will "never" agree a deal in which Gibraltar's sovereignty changes against the people's wishes, after the Daily Telegraph revealed that Spain had embarked on a secret lobbying drive in the US. Several current and former members of the House of Representatives told this paper of belligerent, forceful, aggressive and over the line attempts to get them to consider backing a plan to hand Madrid an equal say in the territory's foreign policy, defence and immigration. But the Prime Minister's official spokesman today said: "The people of Gibraltar have repeatedly and overwhelmingly expressed their wish to remain under British sovereignty and we will respect their wishes. "We will never enter into arrangements under which the people of Gibraltar would pass under the sovereingnty of another state against their wishes." He added: "Furthermore the UK will not enter into any process of sovereignty negotiations with which Gibraltar is not content. We will continue to take whatever action is necessary to safeguard Gibraltar, its people and its economy including maintaining a well-functioning Gibraltar-Spain border." 01:46 PM Northern Ireland would not be where it is today without John Hume, says Brandon Lewis The Northern Ireland Secretary has praised John Hume as "one of the most significant architects of the Northern Ireland peace process, and one of the most important figures in recent UK and Irish political history". Brandon Lewis said the Nobel Peace Prize-winning politician "looked beyond the violence that was taking place to seek a pathway to peace". He added: "Without his leadership and his courage, Northern Ireland would not be where it is today." I am deeply saddened to hear of the passing of John Hume and want to extend my condolences to his family and loved ones at this difficult time. People will today, and over the coming weeks and months, rightly grieve https://t.co/6LKznbBwgy Brandon Lewis (@BrandonLewis) August 3, 2020 01:40 PM Julie Burchill: If masks are normalised, we all become subservient Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water or rather into the museums, galleries, cinemas and places of worship where we seek our pleasures sacred and profane the Government has announced that face-coverings will be mandatory in these spaces, as they are in shops, banks, takeaways and post offices. Getting the retail section going again? Forget it. In masks, writes Julie Burchill, all we feel is our limits, and it doesnt make us generous. 01:31 PM Further five Covid-related deaths registered in English hospitals Just five people who have tested positive for coronavirus have died in English hospitals in the last 24 hours, the latest figures show. One death was registered in London and one in the South East, with three in the North East and Yorkshire. That brings the total number of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals in England to 29,352. Patients were aged between 66 and 95 years old. All had known underlying health conditions. 01:16 PM 'A ridiculous threat to our freedoms' - Telegraph readers on plans to extend the shielding programme The news that the shielding programme could be reintroduced for those most at risk from coronavirus has stirred plenty of backlash from Tory MPs and business leaders, and now looks set to be dropped. Our readers have also had their say - and while some have warned of "a backlash the likes of which will have never been seen before", not everyone was against it. Read what you had to say here. 12:51 PM Lobby latest: Sewage testing could help identify local outbreaks, says Number 10 Testing of sewage for signs of coronavirus as part of efforts to get a "head start" on where new outbreaks will occur has been taking place at sites across England. The Environment Department (Defra) said sampling waste water for fragments of the virus was being trialled at 44 sewage treatment works across England. The World Health Organisation has said there is currently no evidence that coronavirus has been transmitted through sewerage systems. But the Prime Minister's spokesman said it could "potentially be helpful in helping us identify local outbreaks", particularly at an early stage. "That's something that we will want to take advantage of," the spokesman added. 12:37 PM Government takes Tory MP rape claims 'very seriously', claims Chief Whip The Chief Whip has said he takes the matter of a Conservative MP reportedly under investigation for rape "very seriously", amid growing criticism that he did not act when the complaint was first raised with him four months ago. Speaking in a clip on Sky News, Mark Spencer said: "They are very serious allegations and we do take those allegations very seriously. "I think it is down to the police to do that thorough investigation, not for the Whips Office to investigate this alleged crime, it is for the police and the authorities to do that. "Once they've come to that conclusion, then we can assess where we're at and the position that the MP find themselves in. "Of course, we've got to bear in mind the victim, we don't want to do anything to identify the victim at the same time." Mr Spencer said he had "nothing further to add at this stage". 12:33 PM Lobby latest: Prime Minister still committed to reducing number of Lords Boris Johnson is still committed to reducing the number of peers in the House of Lords, despite him adding 36 names to the chamber last week. The Speaker of the House of Lords, Lord Fowler, has urged the Prime Minister to stop creating "mass" peerages and labelled the size of the chamber "ridiculous" following the latest swathe of appointments, which including his brother Jo Johnson, former MEP Claire Fox and the Evening Standard proprietor Evgeny Lebedev. But the PM's spokesman said: "It remains the case that the size of the House of Lords needs addressing but given retirements and other departures some new members are needed to ensure the Lords has appropriate expertise and it continues to fulfil its role in scrutinising and revising legislation." Asked if the new peers will be "passengers" rather than active members, the spokesman said: All of the individuals were nominated in recognition of their contribution to society and their public and political service. "Peers are appointed to further contribute to public service in Parliament. 12:28 PM Lobby latest: Care home testing 'has not stopped' Number 10 has insisted testing of care home residents and staff "has not stopped" but has also admitted that not all care homes have yet been reached "due to rising demand". The Prime Minister's official spokesman said: "Care home testing has not stopped. "Any care home resident or member of staff with symptoms can immediately access a free test and we are continuing to roll out asymptomatic regular testing, for staff and residents, to care homes. "However, due to rising demand across testing and some unexpected delays such as the pause on the use of Randox kit, we've not been able to reach all care homes as quickly as we'd hoped." 12:26 PM Lobby latest: Pubs may have to shut to keep schools open, Downing Street says Pubs may have to be closed in order for schools to stay open during local surges of coronavirus, Downing Street has hinted. The Government is "planning for all people to return to school full time from the beginning of the autumn term", although a "specific localised lockdown" might halt that temporarily, the Prime Minister's spokesman said. The Government is taking a "localised" approach "where you would assess the situation on the ground and take whatever steps were required to slow the spread of the virus", he added. But the Government is "committed to supporting the hospitality industry which has had a very tough time" during coronavirus. It follows comments by Prof Graham Medley, who chairs the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) sub-group on pandemic modelling, over the weekend. He told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: I think were in a situation whereby most people think that opening schools is a priority for the health and wellbeing of children and that when we do that we are going to reconnect lots of households. 12:23 PM Lobby latest: Reports of over 50s being asked to shield inaccurate, No 10 says Downing Street appears to be reversing plans to ask over-50s to shield, following a major backlash at the weekend. Although it was briefed out by senior figures within the Government, today the Prime Ministers official spokesman said the story is inaccurate. Thee Government continues to assess the scientific and medical advice and take whatever steps are needed to ensure the population is protected, he said, even saying the idea that localised age-based restrictions is not something Im aware of. However, travel restrictions - such as the lockdown sealing off London around the M25 - are possible in areas which are "particularly badly affected", he said. One of the steps to tackle outbreaks is "closing down local transport networks", he said. "It's not a new thing," the spokesman added, pointing to the details published in the "contain" stage documentation. 12:04 PM Boris Johnson 'risking industrial unrest' over office working shift, warns union Civil service unions have warned that Boris Johnson is "risking industrial unrest" by encouraging people back into offices at a point when coronavirus is starting to resurface in the community. The Prime Minister name-checked the profession as one he expected to see returning to the workplace when he announced a change to the default situation last month. But the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) has accused the Government of "playing fast and loose" with workers' safety. PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: "Current scientific advice is that people should work from home where they can. Boris Johnson is risking industrial unrest by pursuing this policy and our union will support members who believe their workplace is unsafe to return to." Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA Union, added: "The majority of civil servants are currently working successfully from home. "Ministers need to recognise this and allow the civil service to manage this transition, without pressure to virtue-signal for a pattern of working that has already changed for good." 11:52 AM New coronavirus tests can be rolled out to schools, says Health Secretary Two new coronavirus tests that can give results in just 90 minutes are "a big step forward", and allow the Government to roll out testing in schools and other settings, Matt Hancock has said. The Health Secretary told BBC News the breakthrough, revealed this morning, meant more people could get tested more quickly "so we can find out where the virus is and tackle it and keep those rates of infection down". He added: "This is a big step forward in terms of how quickly we're going to be able to get tests turned around and also how widespread we can make the tests. "These technologies which deliver these rapid turnaround tests will mean that we can expand testing capacity further and in into settings where, for instance... in schools, currently we have survey testing, so we have some testing, that would be able to be expanded. "But also looking across the community where we want to test people who don't have symptoms to find out where the virus is." 11:46 AM Have your say on: the Government's over-50s plan Ministers are facing a backlash over plans to extend the Governments shielding programme to some over-50s this winter. Tory MPs and business leaders warned that telling over-50s to stay at home risks damaging the economy and runs contrary to Boris Johnsons plea to get workers back to the office. Anyone over 50 who is obese, overweight or in ill health is likely to receive an individually tailored letter in the autumn warning them they are at increased risk and advising them of steps to take to protect themselves. Nadhim Zahawi this morning stressed it was "speculation" and the reports were "inaccurate" - although did not clarify what those inaccuracies were. But is it a necessary step for worst-case scenarios - and could it save the long-term economy, as well as public health? Have your say in the poll below. 11:39 AM Boris Johnson praises 'political giant' John Hume Boris Johnson has paid tribute to "political giant" John Hume, saying that there would have been no Belfast or Good Friday Agreement without him. The former SDLP leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner has died aged 83. In a statement across multiple posts on Twitter, Mr Johnson said: "For decades he sought resolution of the Troubles in Northern Ireland through dialogue and agreement. Without John Hume there would have been no Belfast or Good Friday Agreement. "His vision paved the way for the stability, positivity and dynamism of the Northern Ireland of today, and his passing is a powerful reminder of how far Northern Ireland has come. My sincerest condolences go to his devoted wife, Pat, and the rest of the Hume family at this difficult time." John Hume was quite simply a political giant. He stood proudly in the tradition that was totally opposed to violence and committed to pursuing his objectives by exclusively peaceful and democratic means. Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) August 3, 2020 11:25 AM WHO: There might never be coronavirus treatment 'silver bullet' It is "highly likely" that the world will face "legitimate shortages" of a coronavirus vaccine if - or when - one is developed, according to the doctor who s leading trials for therapeutic cures. Dr Derek Angus, who appears in a new Channel 4 documentary Race Against the Virus: The Hunt for a Vaccine, conversations must take place between different nations, and believes we should consider weighted lottery system, where everyone weighs in on the ethics of it. It might be decided that frontline workers should be at the front of the queue, says Dr Angus. But equally you have the question of underrepresented minorities who appear to have a disproportionate burden of the disease. You could say that they should have a chance... The point is to write out your ethical principles of fairness and be entirely transparent about it." How did we get here - and where are we going? Read the article in full here. 11:08 AM Minister defends chief whip over Tory MP rape claim inaction It is "highly likely" that the world will face "legitimate shortages" of a coronavirus vaccine if - or when - one is developed, according to the doctor who s leading trials for therapeutic cures. Dr Derek Angus, who appears in a new Channel 4 documentary Race Against the Virus: The Hunt for a Vaccine, conversations must take place between different nations, and believes we should consider weighted lottery system, where everyone weighs in on the ethics of it. It might be decided that frontline workers should be at the front of the queue, says Dr Angus. But equally you have the question of underrepresented minorities who appear to have a disproportionate burden of the disease. You could say that they should have a chance... The point is to write out your ethical principles of fairness and be entirely transparent about it." How did we get here - and where are we going? Read the article in full here. 10:51 AM Analysis: 'Covid vaccine shortages are very likely - without a plan, it will be a feeding frenzy' It is "highly likely" that the world will face "legitimate shortages" of a coronavirus vaccine if - or when - one is developed, according to the doctor who s leading trials for therapeutic cures. Dr Derek Angus, who appears in a new Channel 4 documentary Race Against the Virus: The Hunt for a Vaccine, conversations must take place between different nations, and believes we should consider weighted lottery system, where everyone weighs in on the ethics of it. It might be decided that frontline workers should be at the front of the queue, says Dr Angus. But equally you have the question of underrepresented minorities who appear to have a disproportionate burden of the disease. You could say that they should have a chance... The point is to write out your ethical principles of fairness and be entirely transparent about it." How did we get here - and where are we going? Read the article in full here. 10:33 AM Tributes pour in after peace process architect John Hume dies There are many tributes to John Hume pouring in from current politicians in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, including First Minister Arlene Foster and Taoiseach Micheal Martin. The Irish prime minister praised the Nobel Peace Prize winner, who has died aged 83, as a "great hero and a true peace maker". "Throughout his long life he exhibited not just courage, but also fortitude, creativity and an utter conviction that democracy and human rights must define any modern society," he said. "For him, the purpose of politics was to bring people together, not split them apart. Mr Martin added: "John Hume's life was one of towering achievement." Sincere condolences to Pat & the wider Hume family. A giant in Irish nationalism, John left his unique mark in the House of Commons, Brussels & Washington. In our darkest days he recognised that violence was the wrong path & worked steadfastly to promote democratic politics. pic.twitter.com/Ctkdfxa4Au Arlene Foster #WellMeetAgain (@DUPleader) August 3, 2020 Former prime ministers including Tony Blair and Sir John Major have also praised Mr Hume, although the current Government has not commented. 10:29 AM Sir John Major pays tribute to 'fervent warrior for peace' John Hume John Hume was one of the most "fervent warriors for peace" who has earned himself an "honoured place" in history, former prime minister Sir John Major has said. The former SDLP leader, who was one of the architects of the peace process and Good Friday Agreement, has died aged 83. The former Conservative party leader said: "John Hume was an advocate for peace in Northern Ireland for the greater part of his life. "Few others invested such time and energy to this search and few sought to change entrenched attitudes with such fierce determination. "Those whose communities have been transformed into peaceful neighbourhoods may wish to pay tribute to one of the most fervent warriors for peace. He has earned himself an honoured place in Irish history." 10:23 AM Nicola Sturgeon tells Scots to 'keep the heid' amid images of crowded pubs Nicola Sturgeon has called on Scots to "keep the heid" after pictures showed scenes of crowded pubs and bars this weekend. The First Minister tweeted: "Covid remains a real and present threat to our health and wellbeing. Scenes like these are dangerous, and could easily result in pubs being closed again - which no one wants." Yesterday it emerged that a cluster of 13 cases linked to a pub in Aberdeen was being investigated by public health officials. Spot on from @StephenFlynnSNP - COVID remains a real and present threat to our health and wellbeing. Scenes like these are dangerous, and could easily result in pubs being closed again - which no one wants. We all have a responsibility here. Please, please everybody #keeptheheid https://t.co/vuDqN9ZJmo Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) August 3, 2020 10:18 AM Tories tout the Government's discount dining scheme Ministers and Tory MPs are heavily touting the 'Eat Out to Help Out' scheme which launched today. Nadhim Zahawi said this morning his family of five would be making use of the discounting dining scheme, which runs from Monday to Wednesday at participating restaurants, today after work. I'm sure we will see plenty of pictures of familiar faces enjoying a meal out later today. In the meantime. Chancellor Rishi Sunak has posted this teaser. More than 72,000 individual restaurants registered Over 3.3m searches on the restaurant finder 50% off all day and night, 10 per person Unlimited Mon-Wed, no vouchers needed. Eat Out to Help Out starts today: https://t.co/kp4XPsPjmp Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) August 3, 2020 10:07 AM Have your say on: the Government's over-50s plan Ministers are facing a backlash over plans to extend the Governments shielding programme to some over-50s this winter. Tory MPs and business leaders warned that telling over-50s to stay at home risks damaging the economy and runs contrary to Boris Johnsons plea to get workers back to the office. Anyone over 50 who is obese, overweight or in ill health is likely to receive an individually tailored letter in the autumn warning them they are at increased risk and advising them of steps to take to protect themselves. But is it a necessary step for worst-case scenarios - and could it save the long-term economy, as well as public health? Have your say in the poll below. 09:53 AM Don't ban TikTok - urge them to 'break away from China', urges Tobias Ellwood Tobias Ellwood has said the UK should not ban popular app TikTok, instead urging officials to put their efforts into encouraging the tech firm to "break away" from Beijing. There have been calls to ban the app after Donald Trump told reporters last week: As far as TikTok is concerned, were banning them from the United States". China hawks including Iain Duncan Smith have said the UK should follow suit. But while Mr Ellwood, the Defence Committee Chair, has sided with the former party leader on Huawei, he is taking a different approach to TikTok. Calls to simply ban TIKTOK are shortsighted - we are losing this tech Cold War. Lets 1stly pursue a strategy to encourage tech cos with Chinese links (operating in the West) to BREAK AWAY from China & follow our transparency laws- subject, of course, to full GCHQ cyber scrutiny pic.twitter.com/w3qhrhEVzI Tobias Ellwood MP (@Tobias_Ellwood) August 3, 2020 09:45 AM People 'do not trust national system' of coronvirus restrictions, claims public health chief Local initiatives to tackle rising coronavirus cases will have more success than national measures because of a lack of trust in the top-down approach, Liverpool's public health chief has said. An "enhanced outbreak control action plan" was set up for Princes Park after almost half of the increase in confirmed cases across Liverpool last week were in the ward, which includes campaigns to drive up testing while some easements have been paused. Matt Ashton, director of public health for Liverpool, said: "This is a locally-led imposure of measures to try and control the virus at an earlier stage and therefore avoid the need for a national lockdown. "I think trust is a massive issue here. I just don't think we have trust in the national system for people to tell us what we need to do. Therefore we are much more likely to have success if we lead this locally, if we use our community champions and leaders, our faith leaders and our volunteers, and use people who actually understand the area, live and work in the area and get the message across that way." 09:41 AM Lord Trimble pays tribute to 'major contributor' John Hume Lord Trimble, who was jointly awarded the Nobel peace prize along with John Hume, has paid tribute to the former SDLP leader who has died aged 83. The former Ulster Unionist leader told BBC Radio Ulster's Nolan Show: "Right from outset of the Troubles, John was urging people to seek their objectives peacefully and was constantly critical of those who did not realise the importance of peace," he said. Lord Trimble added: "I will remember a lot of things about John, things that we did together, positions that we took, not always in agreement with each other, there was disagreement as well. "He was a major contributor to politics in Northern Ireland and particularly to the process that gave us an agreement that we are still working our way through. "That's hugely important and that's something that he will be remembered for in years to come." Tony Blair (C) David Trimble (L) and SDLP leader John Hume (R) in 1998 - AFP 09:22 AM Testing 'inaccuracies' could lead to wrongly imposing coronavirus restrictions, scientist warns "Inaccuracies" and "poor interpretation" of testing data could lead to mistakes about imposing coronavirus restrictions, a scientist has warned. Carl Heneghan, professor of evidence-based medicine at the University of Oxford, also said that the potential for false-positives - people without the disease who test positive - to drive the increase in community cases was "substantial". His comments come after new restrictions were imposed in parts of north-west England due to a rise in Covid-19 transmission rates. Writing on the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine (CEBM) website on Sunday, Prof Heneghan said it was "essential" to adjust the number of cases against the number of tests being carried out. He said that the data from tests carried out in laboratories, known as pillar one, and those in the community, pillar two, in England from July showed a trend of increasing case numbers from about 500 a day to nearly 750. Prof Heneghan said that on July 1 the seven-day moving average of testing was 41,109 for pillar one and 43,161 in pillar two. But by July 31, the pillar one seven-day average for testing had increased by 20% to 49,543 while the pillar two had risen by 82% to 78,522 tests, he said. Prof Heneghan said that when case numbers are adjusted for the number of tests done and standardised to per 100,000 tests, it showed that while pillar one was trending down, pillar two was flatlining. 09:21 AM Tony Blair praises 'politican titan' John Hume Former prime minister Tony Blair has praised John Hume's "epic" contribution to the peace process, following the death of the former SDLP leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner. Mr Blair, who was in Number 10 when the Good Friday Agreement was signed, said: "John Hume was a political titan; a visionary who refused to believe the future had to be the same as the past. "His contribution to peace in Northern Ireland was epic and he will rightly be remembered for it. He was insistent it was possible, tireless in pursuit of it and endlessly creative in seeking ways of making it happen...He influenced my politics in many ways, but his belief in working through differences to find compromise will stay with me forever. My thoughts are with Patricia and the rest of his family. He will be greatly missed." Judith Church, Tony Blair and John Hume at the Labour Party Conference in 1994 09:15 AM Sadiq Khan attacks Prime Minister over secretive London lockdown plans Sadiq Khan has written to the Prime Minister attacking plans for a London-wide lockdown without involving City Hall as "totally unacceptable". This weekend it emerged that central Government had carried out an exercise should rates rise in the capital again, which involve sealing off the city around the M25. The London mayor said: "Our surprise is that such far reaching contingency plans have been discussed and tested without the involvement or awareness of London's government. That is clearly totally unacceptable and an affront to London and Londoners." Mr Khan said it has been 12 weeks since he was last invited to join a Cobra meeting on coronavirus, claiming that decisions are "being taken without consultation with those who run and understand the country's biggest city", arguing that some of those decisions "do not work" as a result. 09:01 AM Tory MPs urge Boris Johnson to introduce airport testing to replace quarantine Leading Tory MPs have written to Boris Johnson urging him to introduce German-style tests at airports to replace blanket quarantine or risk being left behind other nations. The MPs including Sir Graham Brady, chair of the powerful 1922 Tory backbench committee, and former aviation minister Paul Maynard warn that the aviation industry faces six-figure job losses unless the Prime Minister adopts a more nuanced response. You can read the full story here. 08:53 AM The cure to irrational Covid fear is a dose of healthy conservatism At the start of the pandemic, some said: Weve got to eliminate the coronavirus, whatever it takes. Others said: Its bad, we should do what we can, but well have to learn to live with it. The Government went with a bit of both, and the policy today might be described as: Well try to live with the virus as much as possible but if theres a spike, well shut things down. Perhaps, Tim Stanley suggests, they should consider something controversial: this Conservative Government should try a bit of conservatism. 08:39 AM Former SDLP leader John Hume dies The former SDLP leader John Hume has died at the age of 83. Mr Hume, who was awarded the Nobel peace prize for efforts in forging the Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland, had suffered ill health including dementia for a number of years. In a statement, Mr Hume's family said: "We are deeply saddened to announce that John passed away peacefully in the early hours of the morning after a short illness. "We would like to extend our deepest and heartfelt thanks to the care and nursing staff of Owen Mor nursing home in Derry. The care they have shown John in the last months of his life has been exceptional." They added: "John was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a great grandfather and a brother. He was very much loved, and his loss will be deeply felt by all his extended family. "It seems particularly apt for these strange and fearful days to remember the phrase that gave hope to John and so many of us through dark times: we shall overcome." 08:24 AM Coronavirus decisions 'shrouded with secrecy', claims top scientist Major decisions about coronavirus have been "shrouded with secrecy", a top scientist has said, as he called for more transparency over policies concerning the pandemic. Sir Paul Nurse, the director of the Francis Crick Institute, said the Government should "treat the public as adults" in its communications over Covid-19. He told the BBC's Today programme: "I think we need greater openness in the decision-making. It sometimes seems somewhat shrouded in secrecy. "And not only that, but better communication of what's happening. Treat the public as adults." He claimed that at the height of the outbreak, officials were claiming that "all the testing needed for the NHS was in place" when Francis Crick work showed that "at that time, 45 per cent of frontline healthcare were infected and they were not being tested because capacity was inadequate". He added: "Now, that isn't a way to earn trust from the public. We need openness, transparency, scrutiny, and a leadership of people taking responsibility for the decision-making, and we need it now." 08:10 AM Starmer has made 'clear miscalculation' in settling anti-Semitism dispute, says McCluskey Sir Keir Starmer has made a "clear miscalculation" by settling a legal dispute with anti-Semitism whistleblowers in the party, Len McCluskey has said. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, the general secretary of the Unite union, said "eminent barristers" suggested Labour would win in the courts and therefore it was a "miscalculation" by the party's new leader. He added: "It was a clear miscalculation, I'm afraid, it's like pinning a sign up to people saying 'queue here with your writ and get paid out by the Labour Party'." Asked if he has ordered a review of the trade union's funding of the party, Mr McCluskey said: "I haven't ordered a review, I was asked a question in an interview and I replied by saying ... when my executive meets I'm quite certain that they would want questions answered. "It isn't a question about ordering reviews, but of course we do make donations, affiliations, to the Labour Party. "It's our members' money, their pennies and pounds, and they expect us to be influential." 07:49 AM Over-50s shielding report 'speculation' and 'inaccurate', minister claims A minister has claimed reports that the Government is looking at plans to shield some over-50s this winter is "speculation" and "inaccurate", amid growing backlash. Anyone over 50 who is obese, overweight or in ill health is likely to receive an individually tailored letter in the autumn warning them they are at increased risk and advising them of steps to take to protect themselves under plans being readied on Whitehall. But Tory MPs and business leaders have argued that telling over-50s to stay at home risks damaging the economy and runs contrary to Boris Johnsons plea to get workers back to the office. This morning, Nadhim Zahawi claimed that was not the Government's current thinking on how to stop the spread of the virus. He told the Today programme: "Infection rates are spiking because of people entering other people's homes...That story is speculation, it's inaccurate "We are responding... is through our local responses. "It's working, it worked in Leicester, I am absolutely confident it will work in Manchester if people follow the guidelines. "That is the correct way to do this, is to follow how the virus is behaving and react accordingly. That story is speculation and is inaccurate." 07:40 AM New 90-minute test could be rolled out to schools, says minister The Government's new 90-minute tests could be rolled out to schools and other settings, a minister has said. Nadhim Zahawi, the business minister, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme there was "already a plan for schools", but said this would be a "further enhancement of our capabilities". He added: "They can be rolled out to other settings including schools because one of the great innovations from these two brilliant gentlemen is that this can be administered without technical abilities and technical know-how... "As we roll this out, we are looking at other settings including schools." 07:35 AM Chief Whip will act after police investigation into Tory MP rape claim has concluded, says minister The Chief Whip will be waiting until the police have concluded their investigation into the Tory MP arrested for rape this weekend to act, a minister has said. Nadhim Zahawi told the Today programme that it was "wrong to speculate" at this stage, saying "we will wait to get police report and you will be hearing from the Chief Whip". Mark Spencer is under pressure to explain why he didn't act four months ago when the complaint was first raised with him, while former Dover MP Charlie Elphicke was suspended from the party. Mr Zahawi said: "Charlie Elphicke now been found guilty, he will be facing justice." He added: "Sometimes in these cases when the information is in the public domain people begin to understand why people have behaved in particular way." 07:29 AM Minister dodges question about Chief Whip's inaction over Tory MP rape claim A minister has declined to comment on what action the Chief Whip took when a complaint was first made about the Conservative MP arrested for rape back in April. Nadhim Zahawi, the business minister, told the BBC's Today programme he did "not wish to speculate any further on this until the police investigation is complete, and then you will be hearing from the Chief Whip". Challenged on reports that Mark Spencer did not act four months ago, he added: "As has sometimes happened in these cases - they are very very serious cases - when the information is finally in the public domain, people realise why people have behaved in a particular way "It is only right that we wait until that police investigation is completed and then we will be hearing from the Chief Whip." 07:23 AM New 90-minute coronavirus tests are 'game-changer', says minister The new 90-minute tests are "a game-changer" in the Government's efforts to combat coronavirus, Nadhim Zahawi has said. He told BBC Breakfast: "This is a game-changer because the ability to do a test by just over an hour ... or 90 minutes will make a massive difference to our response to coronavirus whether at hospitals if somebody's coming in for surgery and people need to know very quickly if they've got coronavirus. "You need to be able to test very rapidly and get those results that are accurate rapidly." Asked if the tests will be used in care home settings, Mr Zahawi said 50,000 tests are being delivered to care homes daily, adding: "This will make a further difference because being able to administer these tests without any clinical training is another game changer." 07:22 AM Dining discount does not contradict obesity crackdown, minister claims The Government's Eat Out to Help Out scheme does not "contradict" its anti-obesity strategy, a minister has said. Nadhim Zahawi, the business minister, told Sky News he and his family would be "going to go out and grab something nice, hopefully after work this evening." Asked about how the scheme sits alongside the Government's new obesity crackdown, Mr Zahawi said: "I think the two things aren't contradictory at all. Restaurants are still being asked to think about the food they serve, how healthy it is..." He said he is of heavier build and has tried to be careful what he eats during lockdown, and has been looking at the calories in his food. "I think that's a good thing and I think restaurants will step up and do the right thing also by following the rules because we all need to get healthier," he said. 07:12 AM Test pledge 'delayed but not abandoned', minister claims The pledge to carry out regular testing of nearly two million care home residents and staff has been delayed because of problems with a brand of tests - but has not been abandoned, a minister has said. Matt Hancock had flagged the issues with the Randox tests a couple of weeks ago, Nadhim Zahawi told Sky News. "The delay is because of a particular problem with this particular test," he said. "We will absolutely deliver on our promise." It comes as the Government rolls out new 90-minute tests in the hope of controlling the virus ahead of the winter., which Mr Zahawi told BBC Breakfast were "game-changing" 06:59 AM Chief whip under pressure over Tory MP rape case The Governments Chief Whip was on Sunday night accused of failing to act for four months on complaints against a former minister who was arrested for a suspected rape at the weekend. Mark Spencer was under mounting pressure to explain why he failed to launch an investigation into the alleged behaviour of the senior Conservative, who has not been suspended by the party despite the seriousness of the allegations. The MP, who has not been publicly named, was arrested on Saturday after a woman in her 20s made a complaint of rape and sexual assault, before being bailed later that evening until a date in mid-August. The Telegraph has established that the woman - who was working as a parliamentary aide - made a complaint to Mr Spencer on April 1, but says she became frustrated when nothing was done and sought a second meeting with him, which she says he declined. She also alleges that she told Mr Spencer - the man in charge of party discipline - that the MP issued threats against her if she spoke to anybody, but that Mr Spencer simply reassured her that the MP in question would not carry out his threat. Madrid, Aug 4 : Spain's former king Juan Carlos will leave the country, the royal palace has announced, weeks after he was linked to an inquiry into alleged corruption. Juan Carlos, 82, made the announcement in a letter to his son, Felipe, to whom he handed power six years ago, the BBC reported. He said he would be available if prosecutors needed to interview him. In June, Spain's Supreme Court opened an investigation into the alleged involvement of Juan Carlos in a high-speed rail contract in Saudi Arabia. It was not immediately clear when the former monarch would leave Spain and where he would reside. It is a humiliating exit for a king who had seemed set to go down in history as the leader who skilfully guided Spain from dictatorship to democracy after the death of General Franco in 1975, media reports said. Juan Carlos abdicated in 2014 after nearly 40 years as king following a corruption investigation involving his daughter's husband and a controversial elephant hunting trip the monarch took during Spain's financial crisis. In the letter, the former monarch wrote that he was making the decision "in the face of the public repercussions that certain past events in my private life are generating" and in the hope of allowing his son to carry out his functions as king with "tranquillity". "Guided by the conviction to best serve the people of Spain, its institutions, and you as king, I inform you of my decision at this time to leave Spain. "A decision I make with deep emotion but with great serenity," the letter said. The statement from the Zarzuela palace said that King Felipe VI had conveyed "his heartfelt respect and gratitude" to his father for this decision. In March, King Felipe VI renounced the inheritance of his father. The royal palace also said at the time that Juan Carlos would stop receiving an annual grant of a194,000 ($228,000; A174,520). Spain's Supreme Court has said it aims to establish Juan Carlos's connection with the Saudi project after his abdication in June 2014. At that point he lost his immunity from prosecution. Spanish firms won a a6.7bn (A6bn) deal to build a Mecca-Medina rail link. The probe involves Swiss banks too. Spanish anti-corruption officials suspect that the former king kept some undeclared funds in Switzerland, and a Swiss investigation is under way. The Spanish government has said that "justice is equal for all" and it would "not interfere" in the inquiry. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 02:36:33|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close JERUSALEM, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday warned that his country will attack "anyone who tries to attack us," a day after Israel said it killed "terrorists" near the Syrian border. Speaking at the Knesset (parliament), Netanyahu said that on Sunday night, Israeli troops "thwarted an attempt to plant explosives on the Syrian front." Hours later, Israeli fighter jets and aircraft targeted Hamas sites in the Gaza Strip after a rocket was fired towards southern Israel from the besieged Palestinian enclave. The rocket was intercepted by Israel's anti-rocket Iron Dome system. "We will hit anyone who tries to attack us and this principle applies to anyone who does," he said. The incident near Israel's disputed border with Syria took place overnight between Sunday and Monday in the Golan Heights. A military spokesperson said Israeli troops opened fire at four armed men who were implanting explosives near the border. Media reports said later that the four were killed. The army said that in a patrol near the site on Monday, weapons and a bag with a few improvised explosive devices (IEDs) ready to deploy were found some 25 meters from the security fence on the Israeli side of the Alpha Line, the 1967 cease-fire line between the two countries. "IDF (Israel Defense Forces) troops on the Golan Heights remain ready for further developments," the military said in a statement, adding it holds Syria "responsible for any aggression from its territory." Tensions along Israel's borders with Lebanon and Syria have been on the rise since a fighter with Hezbollah was killed in an apparent Israeli airstrike in Syria in July. Last Monday, Israel said it thwarted an infiltration attempt by Hezbollah. Hezbollah denied such an attempt. Enditem Lannion, August 3, 2020 7:30am LUMIBIRD FURTHER STRENGTHENS ITS PRESENCE IN SCANDINAVIA WITH THE ACQUISITION OF ITS DISTRIBUTOR ESSMED The LUMIBIRD Group, the European leader for laser technologies, is announcing its acquisition of the Swedish company EssMed AB, specialized in distributing high-quality medical devices for ophthalmology, on July 31, 2020. EssMed is present in Sweden, Finland and Norway, with revenues of around 2m. With this acquisition, LUMIBIRD is looking to further strengthen the commercial presence of Quantel Medical and Ellex products in Scandinavia. LUMIBIRD is also taking on the distribution of third-party products, which complement the Groups solutions, giving it a stronger position with end clients. In addition to integrating distribution margins, LUMIBIRD aims to rapidly ramp up its revenues across the region through a direct sales force and vital technical and clinical support for deploying Group or third-party products. The Group is replicating what it has already achieved in the countries where it has a direct presence: France, Poland and now Australia, Germany, the US and Japan. Next date: H1 2020 results on September 22, 2020 after close of trading LUMIBIRD is one of the world's leading specialists in lasers. With 50 years of experience and a mastering of solid state laser, laser diodes and fiber laser technologies, the Group designs, manufactures and markets high performance devices for scientific (laboratories and universities), industrial (manufacturing, defense, Lidar sensors) and medical (ophthalmology) markets. Born from the combination of Keopsys Group with Quantel in October 2017, LUMIBIRD has more than 800 employees and over 110 million of revenues and is present in 110 countries. LUMIBIRD shares are listed on the Euronext Paris B Compartment. FR0000038242 LBIRD www.lumibird.com Contacts LUMIBIRD Marc Le Flohic Chairman and CEO Tel. +33(0) 1 69 29 17 00 info@lumibird.com LUMIBIRD Aude Nomblot-Gourhand Secretary General CFO Tel. +33(0) 1 69 29 17 00 info@lumibird.com Calyptus Mathieu Calleux Investors Relations Tel. +33(1) 53 65 37 91 lumibird@calyptus.net Attachment Story continues live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Bandhan Financial Holdings, the holding company of Bandhan Bank, has brought down its stake in the lender to 40 percent from around 61 percent through a block trade, Chandra Shekhar Ghosh, Managing Director and CEO of the bank told Moneycontrol. The holding company sold the stake worth around Rs 10,500 crore in the bank. Under RBI norms, Bandhan promoter had to bring down the stake to 40 percent in the first stage. Bandhan Financial Holdings had 60.95 percent in the bank before the transaction. We have been informed that Bandhan Financial Holding has sold part of its stake in the bank. The stake is now down to 40 per cent, said Ghosh. Under current RBI rules, Bandhan need not reduce promoter stake further for another three years, Ghosh said. After three years, the bank can further reduce stake by another 20 percent if rules require, he said. Ghosh and his family members together have around 2 per cent stake in the holding company. Insurance, mutual funds business next? Ghosh said there are two ideas behind the stake sale by Bandhan Financial Holding. First, to comply with the RBI norms and second to focus on future businesses. These businesses can operate like subsidiaries under the holding company. Under the RBI norms, the bank cannot engage in other businesses. The holding company can use this money (raised from share sale) to pursue businesses like insurance and mutual funds. They will take a call and plan the future strategy, said Ghosh. Earlier, Bandhan was also considering merging the bank with the holding company to reduce the promoter stake to comply with RBI norms. Ghosh said in the backdrop of the share sale by promoters, a merger may not be necessary now. Bandhan Banks promoter holding was actually 82 percent before the acquisition of GRUH Finance last year. In September 2018, RBI imposed punitive actions on Bandhan Bank. This included withdrawing permission to open branches and freezing the remuneration of the Managing Director and CEO of the bank at the existing level until further notice. However later, in February, the RBI allowed the bank to open branches without its approval but with a rider that at least a quarter of the branches should be opened in unbanked rural areas in a year. This relaxation was given after RBI noted that it is impressed with the banks efforts to comply with the licensing rules. RBI has been insisting that promoters of private banks should keep an arms length with the banks they founded. The regulator has had a court battle with Kotak Mahindra Bank (KMB) promoter, Uday Kotak before agreeing for an out of the court settlement. The RBI let the promoters, Uday Kotak and family, retain 26 percent stake but capped the voting rights at 15 percent by April. KMB withdrew the case subsequently and some interpreted this as a win for Uday Kotak. In June, Kotak sold 5.6 crore shares for more than Rs 6,900 crore in a block deal, bringing down his stake to 26.1 percent, inching closer to the RBIs stipulated level. IndusInd Bank promoters, Hindujas, are also in dialogues with the RBI on promoter holding issue. Ghosh said business environment has been improving reflecting in improved collections post the lockdown. About a quarter of Bandhans loan book is still under moratorium. Out of its total customer base of 20.31 million, 15.46 million are micro banking customers. Out of the total loan book of Rs 74,300 crores, Rs 47,500 crore or around 64 percent is microloans. This includes individual loan portfolio amounting to Rs 2,200 crore. CRANBURY, N.J., Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PMV Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a precision oncology company pioneering the discovery and development of small molecule, tumor-agnostic therapies targeting p53 mutations, announced the completion of a $70 million Series D financing round. Avoro Capital, RA Capital Management, and Wellington Management Company joined existing investors OrbiMed Advisors, Nextech Invest, Viking Global Investors, and Boxer Capital of Tavistock Group in the round. The proceeds will be used to advance PMV Pharmas p53 product candidates. p53 is a tumor suppressor protein, and the wild type, or normal, p53 protein plays a pivotal role in the bodys natural defense mechanism against cancer and induces a highly organized program of cellular death to prevent the proliferation of potentially cancerous cells. Mutant p53 proteins can be misfolded and lose their wild type tumor suppressing function. p53 mutations are found in approximately half of all human cancers. PMV Pharmas mechanism of action seeks to restore p53 to its normal, wild-type function, which could result in the selective killing of mutant cancer cells without affecting normal tissues. This financing provides PMV Pharma with the resources to expand our pipeline and to potentially advance multiple p53 therapies into the clinic, said David Mack, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive of PMV Pharma. We are excited to have new and strong life science investors that include Avoro, RA Capital and Wellington join us in our pursuit of developing meaningful new medicines for cancer patients. The enthusiasm and confidence from our new and existing investors underscore the important advances we have made. In addition, PMV Pharma announced the appointment of Rich Heyman, Ph.D. as Chair of the Board of Directors. An industry leader, entrepreneur and renowned scientist with a deep knowledge of and broad depth in the field of oncology, Dr. Heyman has more than 25 years of biopharma experience. He currently serves as Board Chair of ORIC Pharmaceuticals and is on the Board of Directors of Gritstone Oncology, Yumanity Therapeutics, Amunix Pharmaceuticals, Metacrine Inc., and Vividion Therapeutics. Previously, Dr. Heyman was the co-founder and CEO of Aragon Pharmaceuticals and Seragon Pharmaceuticals, two biotech companies focused on discovering and developing therapeutics targeting hormone-dependent cancers. Johnson & Johnson purchased Aragon in 2013, and Genentech/Roche purchased Seragon in 2014. We are thrilled to have Rich join PMV Pharmas Board of Directors as our Chair. His wealth of experience and proven track record of strategic business, scientific and clinical accomplishments will be invaluable as we continue to progress our pipeline of p53 programs towards the clinic, said Dr. Mack. PMV has made significant progress in designing small molecules that modulate p53 function, a well-known but previously inaccessible target in oncology, said Dr. Heyman. The PMV team, its scientific founders and advisors have created potential therapies that could be first-in-class. I am excited to join as Chair of the Board and look forward to continuing to work with this talented team to help advance PMVs p53 therapies. About PMV Pharma PMV is a precision oncology company pioneering the discovery and development of small molecule, tumor-agnostic therapies targeting p53 mutations. p53 mutations are found in approximately half of all cancers. The field of p53 biology was established by our co-founder Dr. Arnold Levine when he discovered the p53 protein in 1979. Bringing together leaders in the field to utilize over three decades of p53 biology, PMV Pharma combines unique biological understanding with pharmaceutical development focus. PMV Pharma is headquartered in Cranbury, New Jersey. Contact B rixton may be at the end of the Victoria Line, but its well worth the trip if youre looking for exquisite food and unrivalled atmosphere. As part of the Governments Eat Out to Help Out scheme, many of the area's top restaurants are getting on board and offering diners 50 per cent off their food, up to 10 per head. The scheme kicks off today (Monday, August 3) and runs until the 31, and will include food and non-alcoholic drinks for both adults and children. So, ahead of its launch, here are our favourite restaurants in and around Brixton taking part. Nanban 2011 Masterchef winner Tim Anderson opened his first restaurant in Brixton back in 2015, converting an old pie and mash shop into a Japanese-inspired eatery on Coldharbour Lane. While the ramen is exceptionally good, for us the starters and sides are the main draw most notably the karaage chicken, the market tempura using veggies from Brixton Market the crispy jerk pork belly and the unbelievably tasty fried aubergine with a sweet white miso glaze and walnuts. Simply kick back, soak up the atmosphere and wash down the delicious food with a nice, cold Asahi. 426 Coldharbour Lane, SW9 8LF, nanban.co.uk Llewelyn's Tucked away in the corner between Herne Hill station and the Myla and Davis hair salon, Llewelyn's serves up seasonal dishes in a light, airy, modern room, where laid-back vibes are evident as soon as you enter the door. Should you wish to bask in the beautiful albeit, limited British sunshine, theres also a lovely seating area out front. Choose between a delicious array of starters, small plates and mains wed recommend the citrus cured monkfish, ox tongue and the decadent chocolate and cherry ice cream for dessert. Its also worth heading to their Instagram page before you dine, as they add their specials there on a daily basis. 293-295 Railton Road, SE24 0JP, llewelyns-restaurant.co.uk Four Hundred Rabbits No two ways about it: 400 Rabbits do some of the best pizza London has to offer. Our personal favourites are the Chorizo One (a spicy, flavoursome slice with a sourdough base and plenty of kick), the Dirty One (a vegan-friendly pizza with sausage, three cheeses and zesty sriracha), or if youre really feeling wild the Rhubarb One (an odd but incredible mix of mozzarella, piquillo peppers and a rhubarb sauce). Brockwell Lido, Dulwich Road, SE24 0PA, 400rabbits.co.uk Salon On the pricier end of the list but oh, so worth it is Salon. Situated in Brixton Village, this modern British restaurant uses deli ingredients and boasts some hearty, seasonal dishes. Currently, they're only offering diners a set menu, priced at 39, but it means you can tuck into their Sussex lamb with peas, broad beans and baby gem lettuce, and their succulent Cornish crab. Salon is definitely a good date night location, for those looking to break out of the lockdown routine. 18 Market Row, SW9 8LD, salonbrixton.co.uk Kricket (Hugh Johnson ) / Hugh Johnson Five years after the team first set up shop in Pop Brixton, Kricket has come back down south with its all-new location under the railway arches on Atlantic Road. Over the years, the modern Indian-inspired restaurant has built up an impressive reputation not just because it has an Insta-worthy backdrop (they know what theyre doing), but because of the simplicity and freshness of the food. The samphire pakoras, the Keralan fried chicken and the king prawn moilee are all unmissable. 41-43 Atlantic Road, SW9 8JL, kricket.co.uk/brixton A 20-year-old Delaware woman sought in a hit-and-run crash at James J. Braddock North Hudson Park in July has surrendered, Hudson County Sheriff Frank Schillari announced. Diana Smith, of Elsmere, was identified by the sheriffs office and police in Delaware as the driver in the July 13 crash that left a 47-year-old woman with serious injuries. Smith arrived at the sheriffs office at 8 a.m. Monday, Schillari said. Smith has been charged with leaving the scene of an accident that resulted in serious bodily injury, driving while unlicensed and causing serious bodily injury, and hindering apprehension, Schillari said. She was also found to have warrants for unpaid fines out of Jersey City and River Edge. She was taken to the Hudson County jail. A male passenger in the car, a black Honda Civic, is still being sought. (His photo is in the gallery below.) The hit-and-run crash occurred at 5 p.m. on July 13 at the intersection of Boulevard East and Riverview Drive North in the county park. The victim, a West New York woman who was riding a bike at the time, was taken to Hackensack University Medical Center with serious injuries. The passenger jumped out of the car and fled on foot through the park and south on Park Avenue, while Smith drove away. An investigation by the sheriffs offices Crash Investigation Unit and Detective Bureau led to the discovery of the vehicle in Elsmere, Delaware. Local authorities contacted the sheriffs office and helped identify the driver. YEREVAN, 3 AUGUST, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs Armenpress that today, 3 August, USD exchange rate up by 0.50 drams to 485.83 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 4.90 drams to 570.56 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate stood at 6.57 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 3.91 drams to 633.62 drams. The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals. Gold price up by 144.72 drams to 30691.34 drams. Silver price up by 14.59 drams to 375.97 drams. Platinum price up by 248.61 drams to 14135.92 drams. Evacuation orders remained in place early Monday for thousands of people after a wildfire in mountains east of Los Angeles exploded in size and forced crews to battle flames in triple-digit heat. The Apple Fire in Riverside County consumed more than 31 square miles of dry brush and timber, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. As of Monday morning, it was 5% contained. The cause was under investigation. Officials allowed flames to run up the side of Mount San Gorgonio, an 11,000-foot peak, because it wasnt safe to let crews work in such steep, rugged terrain, said Lisa Cox, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service. We dont want to put firefighters in a dangerous situation, Cox told the Riverside Press-Enterprise. Its burning in a straight line up a mountain. The blaze began as two adjacent fires reported Friday evening in Cherry Valley, an unincorporated area near the city of Beaumont about 85 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Flames leapt along brushy ridge tops and came close to homes while firefighters attacked it from the ground and air. One home and two outbuildings were destroyed, Cal Fire said. No injuries were reported. Evacuation orders and advisories were issued for about 8,000 people in mountain, canyon and foothill neighborhoods. Campgrounds and hiking trails were closed in the San Gorgonio Wilderness area of the San Bernardino National Forest. A huge smoke plume was visible for miles around and contributed to poor air quality. Related: Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics California Catastrophe Natural Disasters Wildfire Mayor of Rome says Italian capital is an "anti-Fascist city." Rome mayor Virginia Raggi has ruled out categorically a proposal to create a museum dedicated to Fascism in the Italian capital, reports news agency ANSA. The mayor blocked a motion proposing the creation of the Museum of Fascism put forward by a member of her own Movimento 5 Stelle (M5S), city councillor Gemma Guerrini. "Rome is an anti-Fascist city," Raggi said. "There is no misunderstanding about that." Raggi intervened following an article published in Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica, which caused a storm of controversy and was criticised strongly by partisans association ANPI. The article in La Repubblica quoted Guerrini as saying that the museum would be located in an "industrial archeology site" and that its purpose would be the "need to counteract denial and ignorance." The idea was also criticised by the centre-left Partito Democratico (PD) whose secretary for the Lazio region, Bruno Astorre, told ANSA: "It would be a slap in the face to a city that was awarded the gold medal of the resistance and to the many victims of the Fascist regime." Cover image: Palazzo della Civilta Italiana in EUR, an icon of Fascist architecture. Photo credit: ValerioMei / Shutterstock.com. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Jean Liou with AFP bureaus in Stockholm and Vienna (Agence France-Presse) Paris, France Mon, August 3, 2020 17:32 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b39bb7 2 News Austria,Sweden,night-train,Europe,leisure,travel,transport,France Free It was one of the quintessential European travel experiences. With passengers cradled to sleep by the clank of the wheels on the rails, the network of night trains that spanned the continent inspired travelogues, thrillers and films. But the cost required to keep them running, coupled with the growth of high speed day trains and the popularity of budget airlines, meant that the era of the couchette and wagon lit was quietly fading into the night. Key routes were cut and the intricate network of overnight routes across Europe was reduced to just a handful of services. But increasing awareness among passengers and governments of the carbon footprint from air travel -- coupled with shrinkage in the airline sector due to the coronavirus epidemic -- means that night trains may be in line for an unexpected renaissance. Austria, France and Sweden are among countries pressing for a return to night train travel that may yet see more of us tucking up for the night in a cozy wagon lit. President Emmanuel Macron of France -- which over the last years stripped down its overnight domestic services to just a pair of routes -- announced in July the government would "redevelop" night trains as part of a campaign to reduce emissions. Secretary of State for Transport Jean-Baptiste Djebbari said that overnight connections between Paris and the Mediterranean city of Nice, as well as with Tarbes in the Pyrenees, would be restored by 2022. "I think there is a real demand," said Christophe Fanichet, the chief executive of French rail operator SNCF's passenger arm SNCF Voyageurs. He said there was in particular a "young population that is paying attention to carbon emissions" and is prepared to take a little more time to travel. Read also: Eurail adds two countries to its unlimited global train pass Austrian 'trailblazer' Overnight trains were cut one after another in France over the last years, hardly surprising in a country where the high-speed TGV now whisks passengers from Paris to Marseille in just over three hours. Just two lines survive due to a lack of alternatives for passengers between Paris and Briancon in the Alps and Cerbere in the Pyrenees. They cost the state 20 million euros ($24 million) to keep running annually, plus 30 million to renovate the trains. Signs of a revival in overnight travel are even more apparent elsewhere in Europe, notably in Austria where state railway operator OBB has been blazing a trail for international services. OBB bought up old night train operations of German operator Deutsche Bahn and is now planning to buy 20 new trains for 500 million euros. It is now possible to hop on a train in Vienna and wake up in Brussels. "Over the coming years we want to focus on building up the network of night trains," Austrian Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler told the Kleine Zeitung newspaper. "We want to strengthen this role as a trailblazer," she added, referring to the fact that Vienna is served by more night trains than any other city in Europe. Read also: PT KAI's new sleeper trains and Priority trains: What's the difference? 'Reinvent the night train' Another model for night trains is Sweden, the home of the concept of flygskam (flight shame) advocated by teen anti-global warming activist Greta Thunberg who won't take planes and makes much of travelling to conferences aboard night trains. The government is planning to invest 400 million krona (39 million euros, $46 billion) to relaunch daily connections between Stockholm and Hamburg and Malmo and Brussels by summer 2022. It is too early to declare a night train revolution in Europe, with some operators much more wary about bringing them back. Industry participants acknowledge there has to be a better solution than the standard six-person European sleeping couchette, which contains two sets of three bunk beds separated by a small gap. This is all the more important in the era of the coronavirus, where few passengers will want to the spend the entire night in a confined space with potentially five complete strangers. "We can't just say that we want night trains. We need to reinvent the night train," said Fanichet of SNCF. "We can't just have yesterday's night train again," he added. Economia Finanzas El Gobierno aprueba el bono para el alquiler aunque los criterios se tendran que consensuar con las CCAA Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh has said that members of actor Sushant Singh Rajputs family didnt raise any suspicion when their statements were recorded in June. The actors father lodged a police complaint against actor Rhea Chakraborty and her family members in Patna on July 28 in which he expressed lack of faith in the investigation being conducted by the Mumbai Police. Singh briefed mediapersons in Mumbai on Monday about the case and said 56 people have been questioned so far. He said that every possible angle is being probed, including professional rivalry, financial transactions and health. According to ANI, the commissioner said that at the time of recording the statements of Sushants father KK Singh, sister and brother-in-law on June 16, they didnt raise any suspicion neither they complained about any lapse in our investigation. Till now statements of 56 people have been recorded, all angles are being investigated be it a professional rivalry, financial transactions or health. It has come to surface that he had bipolar disorder, he was undergoing treatment and taking medicines for it. What circumstances led to his death is the subject of our investigation, he added. Sushant's father, sister and brother in law's statement were recorded on June 16. At that moment, they didn't raise any suspicion neither they complained about any lapse in our investigation: Param Bir Singh, Commissioner of Police, Mumbai on #SushantSinghRajputDeathCase https://t.co/B0truatyap ANI (@ANI) August 3, 2020 Last month, Sushants father KK Singh filed an FIR with the Bihar Police against Rhea Chakraborty and six others, alleging abetment to suicide and cheating, among other things. A team from Patna Police is in Mumbai to investigate the case, leading to a turf war. Rhea Chakraborty was one of the 56 people questioned by Mumbai police. Her statement was recorded twice & she was called to the police station several times. I cant comment about her whereabouts, the commissioner said. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajputs sister Shweta says disgraceful as Patna IPS officer to lead probe forcibly quarantined in Mumbai Sushants father, in his FIR, had alleged that Rhea misappropriated 15 crore from the late actors bank account and used the money for her and her familys personal expenses. She was also accused of leaving the house with his doctors receipts and threatening to reveal his diagnosis to the media. It was claimed that she threatened to frame him in the death of his former manager, Disha Salian. In response to the FIR filed against her, Rhea released a video, in which she seemed to hold back her tears and said, I have immense faith in God and the judiciary. I believe that I will get justice. Even though a lot of horrible things are being said about me on the electronic media, I refrain from commenting on the advice of my lawyers as the matter is sub-judice. Satyameva jayate, the truth shall prevail. Meanwhile, it is being reported that Rhea and her family left their home in the middle of the night, a few days ago. She has filed a petition in the Supreme Court, seeking a transfer of the case against her from Patna to Mumbai. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918 . Follow @htshowbiz for more The Minister of Defence, Dominic Nitiwul has challenged former President John Dramani Mahama to prove evidence that non-Akans and Ewes are being intimidated in the ongoing voter registration exercise. The National Democratic Congress Flagbearer, John Mahama , condemned what he calls the discriminatory use of military personnel by President Akufo-Addo to disenfranchise some Ghanaians in Banda in the Bono Region. In a Facebook post, Mr. Mahama described the actions of the government as dangerous. The road President Akufo-Addo is taking our beautiful country through, using the military and party thugs to stop people from exercising their right to register and vote in the upcoming December elections, is dangerous and unacceptable. There have been many reports and video evidence, like the one in this post, of the President's deployment and discriminatory use of soldiers to target our brothers and sisters in the Volta Region and wherever there are settlements of Voltarians and non-Akans, he added. But the Defense Minister reacting to the claim in Parliament House on Monday, August 3, 2020, said the former president was wrong and misled Ghanaians with his claim. The parties ought to respect the agreement that they themselves have signed. So if the NPP tries to bus in people, they will be stopped. Same with NDC and another political party. So all I urge is for the political parties to respect what they have signed and allow the people to go individually and registerbut when you try to bus in people, it is the duty of the security service people to stop you because that was the agreement from REGSEC. The former president is wrong and misled to think that the military is being used to suppress people. The Volta Region he cited, can anybody tell me that the figures in the Volta Region are lower than the national average? Obviously not. So where is the voter suppression? Are the figures in the Northern Region lower than the national average? Obviously not. Are the figures in the Greater Accra Region also lower than the national average? It is also a no. So where is the voter suppression here again? We also have over 30,000 registration centres, how many centres have we seen military personnel visit for anybody to conclude there is voter suppression? Of course, they have visited registration centres where there is trouble and they will continue to places where there is trouble but for anybody to conclude especially a former president and Commander in Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces to conclude there is voter suppression, he is misleading the people. ---citinewsroom Adam Zaborowski (pictured in mugshot) allegedly opened fire at a cigar store clerk over a face mask mandate, which later led to a shootout with police officers A Pennsylvania man who was struggling to cope during the pandemic opened fire at a cigar shop clerk because he did not want to wear a mask, and was involved in a shootout with law enforcement, authorities said. Authorities announced that Adam Zaborowski, of Slatington, was charged on Saturday with 22 counts in Lehigh County. The charges were specifically broken down into seven counts of attempted homicide, seven counts of attempted first-degree murder of a police officer, seven counts of aggravated assault and one count of persons prohibited to possess a firearm. A previous aggravated assault conviction banned Zaborowski from owning a firearm. Separate charges in Northampton County will include attempted homicide, two counts of aggravated assault, two counts of robbery, two counts of reckless endangerment and firearm charges. An official motive for the shootings has not been disclosed, but Zaborowski's defense attorney said that stress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may have played a factor in his client's actions. John Waldron revealed that Zaborowski lost his job because the pandemic and recently lost custody of his child. 'He just wasnt dealing well with the loss of his job, the loss of his child, just not handling the pandemic well,' Waldron told Lehigh Valley Live. Waldron said those reasons don't justify his behavior, but offer insights into Zaborowski's thinking and motivation. He added that he's represented Zaborowski in the past. 'I know his dad. I know his mom. I know Adam,' said Waldron. 'From what I hear with these allegations, this is not his typical behavior pattern.' The shocking incident began just before noon on Friday when Zaborowski visited Cigars International in Bethlehem Township, Northampton County. He allegedly refused to wear a face mask, despite both the store and Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf's having enforced mandates. A store clerk offered to serve Zaborowski curbside if he did not want to wear a mask, but the father allegedly did not comply and continued to adamantly argue he did not need a mask. 'At one point the man pulled out a piece of paper and said PA. Law. read line 6. I don't have to wear a mask in here,' Tom Gallagher, a witness, told WFMZ. However, officials in Pennsylvania reiterated on July 1 that all residents are expected to wear face masks and follow public health guidelines. As of Monday, the Quaker State has recorded more than 118,00 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 7,274 deaths. Northampton County has counted 3,860 cases and 290 deaths, compared to Lehigh County's 4,849 cases and 335 deaths. When the store clerk insisted on a face mask, Zaborowski reportedly grabbed two cigars and ran out of the store without paying for them. Zaborowski on Friday visited Cigar International in Bethlehem Township, but allegedly became irate after a store clerk insisted her wear a face mask on the premises The clerk followed Zaborowski outside the shop to retrieve the stolen items. That's when Zaborowski brandished a semiautomatic handgun, fired two shots into the air and then aimed on shot at the shop clerk, according to authorities. A number of patrons were smoking outside of Cigar International at the time of the shooting, but no one was injured. Zaborowski fled from the scene in a blue Dodge Dakota pickup truck before police could make contact. 'It's crazy. You don't expect that at that point in time. Just crazy. It's the mask the guy was obviously anti mask,' said Gallagher. The next day, authorities were monitoring Zaborowski's home while waiting for the Municipal Emergency Response Team to arrive and serve an arrest warrant. But Zaborowski left his home and drove off in his vehicle before the warrant could be served. State and local officers followed him to an intersection and tried to stop Zaborowski, who allegedly shot at them after exiting his vehicle. He reportedly used an AK-47 and a semi-automatic handgun. 'Both the Slatington Borough officer and troopers returned fire and struck Zaborowski,' a spokesperson said in a new release. During the exchange, Zaborowski was struck in the leg and buttocks. 'After shooting Zaborowski, both the Slatington Borough police officer and troopers administered first aid to Zaborowski,' the press release read. Zaborowski was taken the a local hospital, where he was is expected to recover and be released into police custody in a few days. Waldron acknowledged that his client is very lucky to have survived a shootout with law enforcement. 'Theyre not shooting at your foot. Theyre not shooting at your buttocks,' he told Lehigh Valley Live. 'Its kill or be killed. So the fact that he got shot twice with non-life-threatening injures when he had an AK-47 and another handgun, Adam is very fortunate he ended up the way he did.' Lehigh County District Attorney James Martin agreed, adding: 'He opened fire on the police officers. He opened fire with an AK-47 and an automatic pistol. Do you think hes lucky?' Waldron wants to learn more about Zaborowski with mental health evaluations and tests 'to see what exactly was going on in his life to have him react this way.' Zaborowski was arraigned from his hospital bed on Saturday and bail was set a $1million. He will likely be transferred to the Lehigh County Prison. He will be arraigned on the Northampton County charges at a later time. Face masks, touted as a vital to curbing the COVID-19 pandemic, became politicized as some Americans claimed mandates have infringed on their rights. Tons of images and videos on social media show indignant citizens throwing tantrums inside stores that require face masks. Flouting face masks, which has previously been supported by President Trump, appears to do more harm than good. Trump was pictured for the first time publicly wearing a face mask in July and told Fox News that he's 'all for masks.' But in April, he ignored advice from that Center for Disease Control and Prevention and said he likely wouldn't wear one. 'I don't think I'm going to be doing it. Wearing a face mask as I greet presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings, queens - I just don't see it,' he said at the time. Additionally, Trump did not mandate face coverings at his campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in June. Herman Cain, a former GOP presidential candidate and business man, attended that rally and last week died of COVID-19 at the age of 74. He tested positive nine days after the rally. Trump denied that Cain contracted the virus while attending the rally. As infections spiked in several states, a number of officials have implemented mask mandates and other public health protocols to ensure mitigation efforts. Texas and California are among states to require residents to wear masks after infection numbers began to rise in June. California recorded more than 500,000 infection and just under 10,000 deaths. In California, counties like Los Angeles have carried the brunt of the pandemic. In Texas, the Rio Grande Valley has been dealt a tough blow regarding the pandemic with 453,000 infections and 7,500 deaths. Cameron County, for example, amassed 10,971 cases and 346 deaths. The US overall has recorded more than four million cases over the last six months and a rising death toll of nearly 155,000. Google is set to launch the Pixel 4a later today. The Google Pixel 4a is the second iteration of the budget Pixel, and while Google has not provided any details about the phone, its entire spec sheet has been leaked ahead of the launch. The one thing we dont know about the Google Pixel 4a is its price. However, the Google Pixel 3a was unveiled in Indias sub-40K segment, so you can expect the Google Pixel 4as price to fall anywhere between Rs 35,000 and Rs 40,000 in India for the base model. The Google Pixel 4a is expected to pack a Snapdragon 730G chipset, which is a pretty capable mid-range chip. But the sub-40K segment in India is home to smartphones with flagship chips like the OnePlus 7T (Snapdragon 855+), iQOO 3 (Snapdragon 865), and Realme X50 Pro (Snapdragon 865), among others. The Poco X2, Moto One Fusion+, and Realme X2 are some devices with the Snapdragon 730G, and all three of them are sub-20K smartphones. This does beg the question, what is it that you are paying for on the Pixel 4a and is it worth it? Flagship Camera vs Flagship Performance The Google Pixel 4a is expected to feature a single rear camera, similar to the main camera on the Pixel 4. However, Pixel phones have rarely been able to impress with camera hardware; Googles impressive computational photography is the Pixels biggest ace in the hole. What Google can do with a single camera, most phones at this price wont be able to replicate with four. The quad-camera moniker has become somewhat of a major selling point among OEMs. However, there are very few phones that can deliver camera consistency across their main and ultrawide camera sensors. So, most users often tend to default to the main camera, especially in surroundings devoid of bright outdoor light. And then theres Night Sight, the holy grail of smartphone night modes. The flagship killer moniker has always prioritized performance, by offering users a slightly above average camera with a flagship chipset. Like its predecessor, the Pixel 4a will flip this equation, offering a premium camera experience and a mid-range chip. However, Google failed to balance this equation with the Pixel 3a, as the Snapdragon 670 SoC was too far off from the flagship Snapdragon 800 series. However, the new Pixel 4a is expected to feature a new chip. The Snapdragon 730G is a high-performance mid-range chip tailored for gaming. Although a year old, the SD730G can tackle most tasks, including the most demanding games without much of a bother. An average user wont see much difference in regular day to day use between the Snapdragon 730G and Snapdragon 855. What this does is create a more balance equation, making the camera over performance trade-off more than worth it. Look at it this way; when it comes to performance, you are comprising on something you may otherwise not notice, but with camera quality on the Pixel 4a, youll be gaining something that everyone notices. General Pixel Pros Apart from the camera, the Pixel 4a will also provide the benefits of Stock Android and a 90Hz OLED panel, the latter of which is not uncommon in this price segment. The reason we see Stock Android as more of a Pro rather than a defining feature is because some users may prefer OnePlus Oxygen OS. Do the Pros outweigh the Cons? There are a few obvious caveats here like the lack of a telephoto or ultrawide camera. In India, almost every smartphone above Rs 12,000 has an ultrawide camera, although only a handful of them can offer camera consistency in bright outdoor light. In low light, the ultrawide camera on every mid-ranger and flagship killer falls apart. However, the biggest question of the Pixel 4a will be battery life. The phone is expected to have a 3,140 mAh battery capacity, which may not stand up well to scrutiny. Google is relatively better than other OEMs with battery management, but a more powerful chip and a high refresh rate display can take its toll on battery life. Battery life is often seen as the bane of compact smartphones, so it will be interesting to see how the Pixel 4a fairs in this area. To recap, with the Pixel 4a, you are getting a flagship camera, top-end mid-range chipset, smooth 90Hz OLED panel, arguably the best software on a smartphone, and questionable battery life. However, the success of the Google Pixel 4a, at least in India, will also hinge on the willingness of consumers to step out of their comfort zones as Google will unlikely use fancy monikers like other OEMs. Chinese artificial intelligence company Shanghai Zhizhen Intelligent Network Technology Co., Ltd., also known as Xiao-i, has filed a lawsuit against Apple Inc, alleging it has infringed on its patents. The company is calling for 10 billion yuan ($1.43 billion)in damages and demands that Apple cease "manufacturing, using, promising to sell, selling, and importing" products that infringe on the patent, it said in a social media post. Xiao-i argued that Apple's voice-recognition technology Siri infringes on a patent that it applied for in 2004 and was granted in ... A woman has gone viral with a heart-warming post revealing how the same doctor who helped deliver her as a baby also delivered her son 25 years later. Lauren Cortez, 25, from San Antonio, Texas, and her partner Peter Cortez, 25, who is a San Antonio Firefighter and in the TX Army National Guard, welcomed their son Logan James Cortez in July this year. The speech-language pathologist said she decided to have the same man, Dr. Bryan Cox, who delivered her on March 23, 1995, to also help deliver her son over two decades later. He's part of the family! New mother Lauren Cortez (right) has revealed that her baby boy was delivered by the same doctor who brought her into the world in 1995 (left) Trust: Dr Bryan Cox, pictured with newborn baby Logan, who was born in July, brought Lauren into the world on March 23, 1995, and then delivered her baby 25 years later Reassuring: Lauren explained that her mother always praised Dr Cox, pictured after delivering Lauren, and encouraged her to use him whenever she was ready to start a family Confident: 'My mom always described Dr Cox as caring, passionate about his job, and just an all-around great guy who always makes you feel like a friend,' the new mother shared Lauren shared adorable side-by-side snaps on Twitter of both herself as a newborn baby being held by Dr Cox and her newborn son also being held by him and the post quickly amassed over 700k likes. Speaking to Jam Press, Lauren explained, 'My mom always told me that she had the best OBGYN (obstetrician-gynecologist) in town and she always encouraged me to start seeing him when my husband and I began trying to start a family. 'My mom always described Dr Cox as caring, passionate about his job, and just an all-around great guy who always makes you feel like a friend more than just another patient of his. 'I found this all to be very true as Dr Cox showed interest in our lifestyle and family rather than just focused on the baby alone. 'He really makes that connection with the family and I love that about him and why I knew without a doubt I wanted him to bring our baby into this world.' Lauren had a natural delivery and welcomed her son Logan on July 26, 2020 at 6:09pm. The adorable tot weighed 6lb 1oz and is healthy and happy. However, giving birth amid the coronavirus pandemic didn't come without its difficulties too, as Lauren explained, 'I had to go through a two-hour labor and delivery fully masked which made my first-time experience very interesting. Popular: Lauren shared images of Dr Cox with her as a baby in 1995 and with her son in 2020 on social media, where they quickly went viral Proud parents: Lauren and husband Peter weren't able to have family or friends in the delivery room because of COVID-19 restrictions, but they said Dr Cox made them feel very comfortable Awkward: 'The delivery was very smooth but everyone had to take the necessary precaution of wearing a mask the entire hospital stay. That's something I'll never forget,' Lauren shared Family: Lauren joked that many social media users were confused by her images, and assumed that Dr Cox was actually the father of her child 'The delivery was very smooth but everyone had to take the necessary precaution of wearing a mask the entire hospital stay. That's something I'll never forget.' Lauren said her own mom was also unable to be at the hospital during the delivery due to coronavirus limitations. Restricted from sharing the happy moment with her nearest and dearest in person, Lauren decided to post pictures from the hospital on her social media pages - posting near-identical images of Dr Cox holding her back in 1995, and her newborn son in 2020. Within hours, the images had racked up hundreds of likes - and plenty of comments from her fellow Twitter and Instagram users. Speaking of her reaction to the post going viral, Lauren said it was very unexpected. 'Originally I shared this to Instagram for family and friends who understood that "our" baby meant my husband and I, but on Twitter, it got so easily confused for "our" baby meaning me and my doctor,' she revealed. 'My husband and I, our doctor and his wife really got a good laugh out of those comments though!' Le Tanh, general director of VNPAY received the PCI-DSS version 3.2.1, level 1 certification The certificate is the highest level of Service Provider, ensures the security of card data at businesses through a set of requirements established by the PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC). Realising the importance of payment security, as well as understanding the customers' concerns about security issues, VNPAY has made efforts to improve the security standards for its payment gateway to achieve the PCI-DSS version 3.2.1 Level 1 certification. The PCI-DSS 3.2.1 Level 1 certification is the latest version with even more stringent requirements than the previous one. The new version requires multi-factor authentication, data encryption in line with security standards, as well as regular compliance and periodic reviews across the whole organisation. Speaking at the certification ceremony, Le Tanh, VNPAY's general director said that the firm placed top priority on security and information security. Thus, the company has always made efforts to carry out all customer transactions with the highest level of security and safety. "VNPAY has spent a lot of resources and time on this special project. The certification has become a driving force for us to deliver the best quality services to our customers, ensuring the highest level of safety and security in line with international criteria" he said. VNPAY has made preparations since 2019 to get this certification by setting up a state-of-the-art tech site based on the Cisco ACI platform. The site meets 12 major and over 100 minor requirements for a payment system such as information security, data processing procedure, computer network structure... to ensure thorough data transmitting, and minimise the risk of information theft. As of present, the new conversion process has been implemented to over 30 major banks, as well as 70,000 VNPAY-QR code accepted payment points with Transport Layer Security (TLS) 1.2 specification which has strong encryption algorithms. The PCI-DSS version 3.2.1 Level 1 certification not only demonstrates VNPAY's capacity via strict requirements of data security in the process of storing, processing, and transmitting cardholder data in line with international standards, but also broadens the firm's cooperation opportunities with international organisations. Nguyen Xuan Phuc, the Prime Minister of Vietnam on August 3 asked government officials to scale-up the work to curb the coronavirus outbreak that has reappeared in the country. According to reports. Phuc told officials during a meeting on Monday that early August will be the decisive period to block the transmission of the virus and stop it from spreading in a large scale. As per the state-run broadcaster VTV, Phuc asked officials to concentrate more on Danang, a municipality in Vietnam, where the virus has re-emerged in various clusters recently. Read: Vietnam Locks Down Second City After New Virus Case COVID resurgence in Vietnam According to reports, Phuc further told officials that the latest wave of the virus could be more deadly than the previous one and ordered them to both contain the spread of the disease and also maintain the supply chain, hinting at keeping the economic sector running as usual, unlike previous containment measures that saw lockdowns and other restrictions. Vietnam was hit hard by the pandemic economically like most of the world as the socialist state witnessed the slowdown of private and national industries. Vietnamese government imposed lockdown across the country on March 31 and by May 11 authorities had already started a nationwide tourism campaign to boost the tourism sector that had been affected by the shutdown. Read: Vietnam Reports 1st Coronavirus Death In Renewed Outbreak According to figures by Johns Hopkins University, Vietnam has recorded 621 confirmed COVID-19 cases so far, of which 6 people have lost their lives. Vietnam, if compared to some of the other countries in the region have fared relatively well in tackling the crisis with even fewer cases that the Diamond Princess cruise ship. Meanwhile, the world has logged in more than 18 million infections and at least 6,89,000 deaths to date, of which the United States, Brazil, and India are the top three most affected nations. Read: Vietnam Reports More Than 2 Dozen New Cases, 2nd Death Read: Vietnam Reports 3rd Death, More Cases Linked To Hospital Prime Minister Imran Khan and the armys joint effort to embarrass and oust Supreme Court judge Qazi Faez Isa is driven by the establishments 2023 worry when the judge, who has taken a tough line on the army, is slated to be elevated as the countrys Chief Justice. Justice Isa, who was elevated to Pakistans top court in 2014, riled the army brass and Imran Khans Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf by his verdicts that have been unsparing of the establishment and Pakistans deep state. A 10-judge bench of the Supreme Court on June 19 cancelled a May 2019 presidential reference to the Supreme Court Judicial Council that wanted action against Justice Isa, accusing him of concealing foreign properties of his wife and children in his declaration of assets. But the bench didnt close the case and ordered the Federal Board of Revenue to probe the charge and send its report to the top court. Last month, Justice Isas wife Sarina Isa filed her statement with the Federal Board of Revenue in compliance with the top court order. But she isnt giving up. Sarina Isa has also challenged this part of the top courts order, according to a report in Dawn newspaper. It is the fourth review petition filed against the 7-3 majority verdict that ordered tax authorities to probe three offshore properties owned by her and her children. Three bar associations including Pakistans Supreme Court Bar Association have filed separate petitions backing the outspoken judge known for his impeccable integrity. Justice Isa, who has mostly let his verdicts do the talking, was equally unsparing when he challenged the presidential reference, wondering why his wife - an independent taxpayer - was treated as his dependent when she paid as much tax as Prime Minister Imran Khan or more. Pakistan watchers say Justice Isa - son of a leading Pakistani politician and a close associate of Muhammad Ali Jinnah - got on the wrong side of Pakistans deep state when he ticked off the powerful armed forces, which have ruled for nearly half of Pakistans history and have resumed a more active role in politics in recent years. The involvement of ISI and of the members of the Armed Forces in politics, media and other unlawful activities should have stopped, the Supreme Court bench, which comprised Qazi Faez Isa along with Justice Mushir Alam said in the February verdict. The judgment ordered the government to prosecute those spreading hate, besides telling the defence minister and the Army chief to initiate action against armed forces for violating their oath. It was a reference to Punjab Rangers director General Major General Azhar Naveed and then head of internal security section of ISI, Major General Faiz Hamid, in negotiating with the cleric to end the Faizabad protest led by a hardline Islamist Tehreek-e-Labaiks that paralysed the capital Islamabad in 2017 . It wasnt a first for Justice Isa. In 2016, an inquiry commission headed by Justice Isa to investigate a terrorist attack on a hospital in Quetta that killed dozens of lawyers, had severely criticised security agencies and asked the government to act against extremist organisations. Pakistan watchers in Delhi say the army was determined to carry out its plan to remove Justice Isa since he could challenge the authority of Pakistan Army and possibly become one of the power centers in the country when he takes over as chief justice of the Supreme Court in 2023. It is not a coincidence that Farogh Naseem, lawyer of former President Gen Pervez Musharraf, who was inducted as law minister at the request of the army in 2018, prepared the reference against Justice Isa, putting the government on a collision course with a segment of the judiciary. There is a historical context to why the army wants Justice Isa out, said a Pakistan watcher in the Indian government. Gen Musharrafwas the last Pakistan ruler to have gone this far to browbeat the judiciary back in 2007 when he tried to pressurise then Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry to resign, drew up a presidential reference and then suspended him. Gen Musharraf had to reinstate Chief Justice Chaudhary after thousands of lawyers hit the streets but imposed Emergency a few months later in November 2007 and cracked down on judges and lawyers. His government was routed in the next election. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Heather Scott and Chris Stein (Agence France-Presse) Washington, United States Mon, August 3, 2020 09:52 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b1bd4e 2 Business US-economy,united-states,economic-contraction,COVID-19,Donald-Trump Free The United States economy collapsed in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, suffering its largest decline on record while hopes for a recovery took another hit as job losses increased, according to government data released Thursday. The 32.9 percent GDP contraction, though slightly better than expected, was the worst experienced by the world's largest economy since at least 1947 and underscored the severity of the rapidly unfolding crisis, which has already destroyed tens of millions of jobs. While President Donald Trump continues to promise a dramatic recovery, COVID-19 cases have resurged in recent weeks, eroding early progress towards a rebound and forcing authorities in several states to reimpose restrictions that sent workers back home. The latest Labor Department data showed a second straight weekly increase in initial claims for jobless benefits following several weeks of declines, prompting renewed calls for Congress to quickly approve a new round of emergency spending to support the economy. The separate growth figures from the Commerce Department are given at an annual rate a measure of the full-year result if the damage was translated over 12 months. Compared to the same quarter of 2019, economic activity fell 9.5 percent, still the worst figure since 1948. "The staggering news of the historic decline of the gross domestic product in the second quarter should shock us all," US Chamber of Commerce Executive Vice President Neil Bradley said in a statement. The data "should compel Congress to move swiftly" to provide assistance to unemployed workers and businesses. Help for workers Congress is currently locked in debate over the size and composition of the next spending bill, with Democrats fighting to retain the US$600 additional weekly payment made to unemployed workers set to expire Friday. Republicans want to cut that money and offer businesses that reopen protection if some employees become infected. "COVID is the iceberg. If we don't want to be the Titanic, we need more lifeboats to traverse COVID-tainted waters," Grant Thornton chief economist Diane Swonk said on Twitter. US media reported the White House is pushing for a stop-gap measure that would extend the extra unemployment payments by one week as well as the moratorium on evictions for renters while negotiations continue. Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi has opposed the plan, and she and top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer are due to meet with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin again late Thursday to try to bridge the differences. Shortly after the data were released, Trump took to Twitter to rail against potential voter fraud and suggest postponing the November 3 election. "Delay the Election until people can properly, securely and safely vote???" Trump tweeted, prompting many to say he was trying to distract attention from the awful numbers. His opponent, former vice president Joe Biden, laid the blame squarely at Trump's feet, pointing to the death toll from the virus in the United States which on Wednesday exceeded 150,000. "The depth of economic devastation our nation is experiencing is not an act of God, it's a failure of presidential leadership," Biden said in a statement. "Had President Trump taken immediate and decisive action, tens of thousands of lives and millions of jobs would never have been lost." Employment setback, stalled growth After surging in March amid the massive job losses at the start of the pandemic, first time claims for jobless benefits have been falling for weeks, but they rose again to 1.43 million in the week ended July 25, the Labor Department said on Thursday. That figure does not include the 829,697 new claims by people who filed under a special program for those who would not normally be eligible for aid. The data show "the resurgence in COVID-19 cases is taking a toll on the recovery in the labor market," Oxford Economics lead US economist Nancy Vanden Houten said in an analysis. Continuing claims, which is the number of people receiving benefits for more than a week, jumped to over 17 million while the insured unemployment rate rose to 11.6 percent in the week ended July 18. Following a reduction of 5.0 percent in the first three months of the year, the GDP plunge was driven largely by the drop in its largest component, consumer spending, which fell 34.6 percent annualized, according to the report, which was the first estimate for the second quarter. Trade also took a huge hit in the latest quarter, with exports falling just over 64 percent, and imports down 53.4 percent. But personal income got a boost of $1.4 trillion from the government emergency spending measures that provided payroll funds for businesses and direct unemployment payments to workers. Two people a man and a woman died in unrelated shootings in Birmingham on Saturday. The Jefferson County Coroners Office on Monday identified the victims as Marquette Milous Carter, 27, and Keanna Shabree Kelley, 21. Carter was shot at 5:38 p.m. Saturday in the 900 block of 45th Street North. He was taken to UAB Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 6:40 p.m. Authorities said it appears the shooting stemmed from an altercation during a dice game. No one in custody. Kelley was shot less than four hours later in an east Birmingham neighborhood. Birmingham police received a 911 call at 9:11 p.m. that someone was trying to kick in a door at a home in the 1100 block of Kawanda Lane. Moments later, they received a second call of a person shot at the same location. When East Precinct officers arrived at the home, they found Kelley unresponsive just outside the front door of the residence. She was pronounced dead on the scene at 9:28 p.m. The preliminary investigation suggests Kelley attempted to force her way into the residence and a physical altercation ensued prior to the victim being shot. Sgt. Rod Mauldin said the resident of the home has been detained for questioning. We do believe this incident is domestic in nature,' Mauldin said. One resident said he heard at least two shots fired. Mauldin said he does not know if anyone else was in the home at the time. The homicides are Birminghams 70th and 71st so far in 2020. Of those, eight have been ruled justifiable and one accidental and therefore are not deemed criminal. One of the homicides happened in 2018 but was not discovered until this year. In all of Jefferson County, there have been 101 homicides, including the 71 in Birmingham. Anyone with information in either slaying is asked to call Birmingham police at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. Tips to Crime Stoppers are anonymous and could lead to a cash reward. The distraught wife of former MP Charlie Elphicke has recalled how his sex assault trial was especially bruising for their two children. Natalie Elphicke, who announced she was divorcing Charlie minutes after he was found guilty, said the allegations dogging her husband heaped enormous strain on family life. She said the case hanging over Charlie had seen her young son shunned by friends and her daughter's exam results suffer. Charlie was last week found guilty of assaulting a parliamentary worker 20 years his junior and a woman he chased around the family home while chanting: 'I'm a naughty Tory.' Natalie who succeeded her husband as the MP for Dover, had been photographed holding hands with him on arrival at Southwark Crown Court on a number of days. But their 25-year marriage ended following his convictions and she filed for divorce the following day. Immediately after the conviction, Elphicke's wife Natalie left the court in dark sunglasses and then announced she was leaving him 'Naughty Tory' Charlie Elphicke (pictured with his wife Natalie last Thursday) has been found guilty of three sex attacks against two women Still raw from the trial, she described how the trial had impacted on the lives of her children and how she particularly feared for her 13-year-old son during the gruelling episode. She told the Sun: 'He was ten when Charlie was suspended from the party in 2017. Invitations to parties, playdates, suddenly dried up.' She added: 'My daughter was studying for her A-levels when this first broke and, not surprisingly, they didnt go as well as they could have.' Describing her experience of the trial, she said: 'It was just awful. The case has been really unpleasant, horrible, upsetting and humiliating.' Recounting her decision to file for divorce, she added: 'We had been together a really long time but I had already formed the view before the trial had started that our marriage was unlikely to be able to survive the impact of such an ordeal over three years. 'Charlie was keen to get things back on track but I had already made clear to him I was very, very hurt by the allegations and by his behaviour with other women.' The former MP's wife Natalie Elphicke (pictured) replaced him as MP for Dover last November. She is now starting a new life Elphicke's trial heard how he groped one victim in 2007 in the family's central London townhouse while his children slept upstairs and his wife was away on business. He attacked another woman he admitted he was 'besotted' with in 2016. During the investigation Elphicke was also forced to confess to a two-year affair with a third woman who was not a complainant in the case. Despite being confronted with repeated examples of her husband's lecherous behaviour, Mrs Elphicke believed their marriage was a happy one. 'I thought he was the most amazing man in the world,' she told the Sun on Sunday. 'I was very happy in my marriage. I loved him absolutely. He was a kind and loving husband and we still spent time together. It felt so right until it all went wrong. 'The last three years have been extraordinarily difficult and they have ended my marriage. 'But I don't regret standing by my husband. I believe in the rule of law and innocent until proven guilty. But I accept the verdict too.' Elphicke was told by judge Mrs Justice Whipple to prepare for 'the very real possibility' of an immediate jail term when he returns to be sentenced on September 15. Welsh red meat production is now worth an estimated 690 million compared with 677 million the previous year, according to new industry figures. New figures are included in Hybu Cig Cymru Meat Promotion Wales (HCC) latest edition of its Little Book of Meat Facts, the annual digest of facts and trends for the lamb, beef and pork industries. It shows that in 2019, total throughput of cattle and calves in Welsh abattoirs stood at 147,600 head, with total beef production totalling 42,900 tonnes - up from 40,000 tonnes the previous year. Throughput of sheep and lambs stood at 3.3 million head, with total sheep meat production totalling 63,400 tonnes, compared with 60,800 in 2018. France remained the largest destination for lamb exports, but with important growth in trade with Germany which is now in a clear second place. Beef and lamb exports were mostly to Europe, although with significant trade to other markets in the Middle East, East Asia and Canada. The Little Book also contains information on what kinds of meat British consumers are buying and from which retailers, as well as data on key industry measures such as carcase classification. HCC Data Analyst Glesni Phillips said the statistics showed that, despite uncertainty surrounding Brexit and Covid-19, the red meat sector was 'hugely important' to the Welsh economy. Its the backbone of rural communities, and also employs large numbers in auction markets, processing and the supply chain, as well as supporting brands which are symbols of our nations high-quality food across the world. WATERLOO REGION The projectors are running again in Waterloo Regions art house cinemas, though the movie houses are operating under very different conditions as they reopen during the pandemic. Were just very excited to be reopening and were doing everything we can to provide a safe environment, said Daniel Demois, owner of the Apollo Cinema in Kitchener. Weve had to reinvent how we operate the cinema, said John Tutt, owner of Princess Cinemas in Waterloo. Last Friday, the Apollo Cinema screened its first movie since March a week after the Princess Cinemas welcomed back moviegoers July 17. Both cinemas have made major adjustments to the way they operate. Princess Cinemas has cordoned off no-sit areas in the theatre to ensure physical distancing. At the Apollo, seating is now assigned to ensure people stay apart. In keeping with the regional bylaw, audiences must wear masks. There are fewer moviegoers, too in order to comply with provincial requirements, both the Apollo and the Princess are capped at 50 people per venue. Its early days, Demois said, but so far audiences seem reluctant to come back, though some screenings at the Apollo for Jurassic Park, for instance have been close to capacity. Demois says its understandable some people dont feel comfortable yet. Obviously people are going to be hesitant, Demois said. Reopening the Princess Cinemas has gone better than Tutt had envisioned, thanks to what he calls super loyal customers. What were discovering is that as people get comfortable, the word of mouth spreads, Tutt said. He is looking for ways to modify the business. Hes offering people the chance to rent out the theatre to enjoy private bubble cinema screenings. Having operated for over 35 years, the Princess is one of the longest-running art house cinemas in Canada. Its story began in 1985 when Tutt opened the Original Princess with just a single screen. Twenty years later, the two-screen Princess Twin opened just around the block. The expansion didnt end there. Just last year, the Tutts restored a 1914 vaudeville theatre in Hamilton. The newly minted Playhouse Cinema succeeded beyond their hopes. We just had this momentum, Tutt said. We had a hugely successful first year. The Apollo, too, was thriving before the pandemic. It opened only five years ago in downtown Kitchener, and its bottom line kept improving, until it was forced to shutter its doors in March. Demois has been forced to stay inventive to keep the business above water. He held pop-up popcorn sales and sold opportunities for customers to engrave their names onto the theatres seats. Both cinemas streamed films online and used the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy Program to help with payroll. Although the months ahead will be challenging, Demois believes it isnt the end for art house cinemas. Since sound was introduced, since TV was introduced, since VHS, DVD, Blu-ray theres always a concern that each of those things will be the last nail in the coffin for movie theatres. Tibor Peter Nagy capture d'ecran Tibor Peter Nagy Jr., the United States Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of African Affairs, Department of State, says the UNDP-backed Presidential Plan for the Reconstruction and Development of the North West and South West Regions (PPRD-NW/SW) may only succeed if government understands the keen desire of the people. The U.S. diplomat was speaking Thursday, July 30, 2020, during a hearing of the Committee on Foreign Affairs: Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations. Nagys comments came as Congress listened to an update on the COVID-19 pandemic response in Africa. Anything having to do with Cameroon has to be overweighed with the problem of the conflict that is going on, Nagy said, referring to the on-going socio-political unrest in Cameroons North West and South West Regions where state forces are battling armed separatists who seek to create a breakaway state called Ambazonia. Ambassador Nagy added that: For example, now the Cameroonian government is talking about a new UN development program for the North West and the South West. Unfortunately, there is just no way to implement that. And the Cameroonian government seems to forget that the number one desire of the people of the North West and South West is to have a say over their affairs. It is one thing to talk about development. But at the heart of it, is their keen desire to have control over their own lives. Until the Cameroonian government understands that, all these plans are going to come and they are not going to succeed. The SUN recalls that on May 18, 2020, Nagy took to twitter calling on the belligerents in the conflict to stop [the] violence and start talking. He said the killing of civilians is inexcusable, citing the killings in Ngarbuh attributed to state forces and the killing of the Mayor of Mamfe by armed separatists. His words: Government killing of civilians in Cameroon is inexcusable. I urge follow-through on Ngarbuh investigation and many other incidents of this nature. I also condemn separatist attacks on local officials such as the murder of Mamfes mayor. Stop the violence, start talking. Paul Tasong and Donatus Njong were, in April, respectively installed National Coordinator and Deputy National Coordinator of the Presidential Plan for the Reconstruction and Development of the North West and South West Regions, PPRD-NW/SW. The duo is expected to ensure the rehabilitation of about 350 schools, 115 health centers, 40 bridges, 400 power points, 500 KM of Low tension power points, 600KM of rural roads, 45 markets, 12000 houses, 25000hectares of farmland, livestock lost by grazers, the reestablishment of close to 3000 personal documents lost. Tasong and his team were in the two regions from Monday, June 22 to Friday, July 3, 2020, for what they said was an Awareness and Sensitization Mission. Corporate demands by Common Law Lawyers and Anglophone Teachers led to protests in November 2016. The street demonstrations later morphed into ongoing running gun battles between state forces and armed separatist fighters in the predominantly English-speaking regions, leading to untold destruction of human lives, their habitats, and livelihoods. Ukrainian consuls will visit 19 Ukrainian political prisoners - Crimean Tatar activists, public journalists and other illegally detained Ukrainian citizens - in the pretrial detention centers of Rostov-on-Don this week, Ukraine's Consul General in Rostov-on-Don Taras Malyshevsky has told Ukrinform. "We will visit our citizens who are groundlessly accused of terrorism by Russia. They include members of the Hizb ut-Tahrir group, as well as Oleh Prykhodko from Saky against whom the FSB trumped up a case on preparations for a terrorist attack for his pro-Ukrainian views," Malyshevsky said. In addition to checking the conditions of their detention and health, feedback on the work of lawyers (all 19 prisoners have been provided with lawyers at the expense of Ukraine's state budget), the consuls will share news from the homeland, bring letters from loved ones and convey numerous Eid al-Adha greetings to Crimean Tatars, who are forced to stay away from their families and fellow believers during these holidays. About 120 Ukrainian political prisoners are currently under investigation or have already received prison terms in Russia and in Russian-occupied Crimea. A significant number of them are in Rostov-on-Don, where the Southern District Military Court is located. Most of them are residents of the temporarily occupied Crimea whom the Russian authorities deported to Russia in violation of the principles of international law. op But the man who describes himself as Americas toughest sheriff quickly received the first pardon of Trumps presidency, in a move that was widely condemned by criminal justice advocates. And tomorrow, he will be a candidate in the Republican primary for his old position. Turns out, hes even got a shot at winning. The reporter Hank Stephenson sent in a dispatch from Phoenix analyzing the dynamics of this race, and what an Arpaio victory might mean for the greater Republican Party. Hank agreed to answer a few extra questions about the sheriff for us. Hi, Hank. So catch us up. What has led the 88-year-old Joe Arpaio to run for sheriff again? I guess he hasnt taken very well to retirement? I think Arpaio isnt ready to let go of his identity as sheriff. Its partly that he has something to prove: He genuinely feels his policies and actions were the right course and as long as Trump has a shot at winning, he does too. And its partly that retirement just isnt his style: He wants to spend his golden years being the tough-guy sheriff from Arizona who made it to the national stage. Otherwise, his only hobbies are the autobiography hes typing on his electric typewriter and an upcoming streaming documentary. The primary election is tomorrow. How much of a shot does Arpaio realistically have of winning? And if he captures the Republican nomination, might he lose the general election in November? Its a three-way race between candidates that can be described as Arpaio, Arpaio-lite and not Arpaio. So its a complicated equation, and Arpaio probably has about a 50-50 shot. Even his onetime supporters worry he may not be the best candidate for November, and many of them are backing Jerry Sheridan, Arpaios former right-hand man during the heyday of his reign as sheriff. Sheridan is basically Arpaio with less baggage, though he was held in civil contempt of court for his role in continuing the offices unlawful immigration raids. (Arpaio was convicted of criminal contempt of court, though the president pardoned him.) Its also worth noting that Arpaio ran for Senate in 2018, and garnered less than 19 percent of the vote in the G.O.P. primary. But he has 100 percent name recognition, a lot of money and some very dedicated supporters. Still, jaws would hit the floor here if Arpaio won in November. The year Arpaio lost his job, Donald Trump arguably his closest ally on the national stage was elected president. But the political tides have not exactly been blowing in favor of Trumps brand recently. Polls suggest the president could become the first Republican presidential candidate in over two decades to lose Arizona in the general election. Is there a sense among political experts that Arpaios era has come and gone? Anunt de selectare a participantilor si participantelor la cel de-al doilea curs de instruire din cadrul Programului educational pentru dezvoltarea competentelor lucratorilor de tineret Nearly 56 per cent of the people who have tested positive for Covid-19 in Telangana are young, mostly below 40 years of age, an analysis of the data of the patients conducted by the state medical and health department on Monday said. As on Sunday night, the state has reported a total number of 67,660 positive cases for Covid-19, including 983 in the previous 24 hours. Around 25 per cent of these cases are of patients in the age group of 31-40 years. While 22.1 per cent cases are that of patients in the 21-30 years age group, 5.3 per cent of patients fall in the age group of 11-10 and only 3.4 per cent of patients are below 10 years of age, director of medical and health department G Srinivasa Rao said. Another 18.6 per cent of the positive cases are of people within the age group of 41-50 years and 14.7 per cent of the patients are in 51-60 years age group. It means, nearly 89 per cent of the Covid-19 patients are below 60 years of age, Rao said. Among the total number of patients, 65.6 per cent are men and the remaining are women. Though the department has not mentioned any reasons for the high percentage of cases among the youth, the health director indicated that the cases had been on the rise due to increasing mobility among people in the post-lockdown period. While the general perception is that most of the fatalities due to Covid-19 are those of people suffering from co-morbidities like cancer, asthma, coronary diseases, diabetes and hypertension, etc., the study revealed that 46.13 per cent of the patients who died of Covid-19 in the state so far did not have any co-morbidities. While 53.87 per cent of the patients who died of Covid-19 till date had one or the other co-morbidity, all the remaining victims died only because of the Covid-19 disease, the health director said. Despite having a huge number of positive cases, Telangana reported fewer deaths only 551 till now, with a mortality rate of 0.81 per cent, which is far below the national average of 2.13 per cent. Health minister Eatala Rajender, who held a video-conference with senior doctors with expertise in infectious diseases on Monday, pointed out that that most of the deaths were out of fear psychosis, rather than the disease itself. He asked the doctors to infuse confidence among the patients by regularly conducting psychological counselling sessions. The health director pointed out that the state has a high recovery rate 71.8 per cent, as against the national average of 65.44 per cent. So far, 48,609 out of 67,660 positive cases have recovered after testing negative, the official said. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Prime Minister Scott Morrison during a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on June 18, 2020. (Sam Mooy/Getty Images) Aussie PM Offers Disaster Payments for Victorians The federal government has announced disaster payments for Victorians who need to self-isolate for 14 days and have no sick leave, as the states toll rises. Prime Minister Scott Morrison says people can apply for the $1500 payment multiple times, and its primarily aimed at people on short-term visas. Morrison described Victorias situation as heartbreaking after the state recorded 429 new cases on Monday, and 13 more deaths bringing the national toll to 221. We know that we have to help them push through, because Australias future depends on these weeks and months ahead, he told reporters in Canberra. The prime minister encouraged people to contact their friends in Victoria. Cheer them up. Encourage them. Let them know youre there for them if youre in a state in a much better situationwhich, thankfully, all other states and territories are. Victorian Premier Dan Andrews has announced further restrictions for Melbourne, with retail, some manufacturing and administration to close from midnight on Wednesday. While I never thought that I would be telling people not to go to work, that is what we have to do in order to stop the spread of this wildly infectious virus, he told reporters. Supermarkets, bottle shops, pharmacies, petrol stations, banks, news agencies, post offices and butchers will remain open. Melbourne residents have started six weeks of a strict lockdown, including an 8 p.m.5 a.m. curfew and no travel more than 5 km from home for shopping or exercise. It comes as Tasmania closes its borders until at least the end of the month, backtracking on a decision to allow South Australian, West Australian and Northern Territory visitors from Friday. NSW recorded 13 new COVID-19 cases in the 24 hours to 8 p.m. on Sundayfour of which were returned travellers from overseas or Victoria and one with no known source. Another four cases were announced from the weekenda family of four, including a baby, from Wagga Wagga in the Riverina region that recently returned home from Melbourne and went into self-isolation. Criteria for travel between NSW and Victoria was tightened two weeks ago, with movement limited to work, education or medical purposes. NSW residents returning from Victoria are forced into two weeks of self-isolation. South Australia has reported two new coronavirus casesboth in hotel quarantineas officials move to reimpose some COVID-19 restrictions. Premier Steven Marshall announced on Monday the return of restrictions with family gatherings reduced from 50 to just 10 people and trading in pubs and restaurants to be limited to seated patrons only. Marshall said the new arrangements would take effect from midnight on Tuesday night. Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk expressed concern, which she will raise at the next national cabinet meeting, about a travel exemption that allowed an infected embassy worker to fly from NSW to Queensland. The young consular staff member tested positive to COVID-19 after he returned from overseas and was allowed to fly from Sydney to the Sunshine Coast without quarantining. The man is now in self-isolation with his wife as health officials race to contact trace people who sat near him. There were no new cases recorded in Queensland overnight. By Matt Coughlan and Rebecca Gredley in Canberra Cemex Philippines announces 22% decline in net sales 03 August 2020 Cemex Holdings Philippines has announced a 22 per cent decline in consolidated net sales to PHP9.6bn (US$195.6m) for the first half of 2020, while operating EBITDA was also down 22 per cent YoY to PHP1.8bn. Domestic cement volumes decreased by 17 per cent YoY during the 1H20 and domestic cement prices during both the second quarter and first half of 2020 were six per cent lower YoY. "The second quarter was very challenging for our company, with our volumes adversely impacted by quarantine measures nationwide. But we have seen construction activity gradually return with the easing of restrictions, starting the second half of May," said Ignacio Mijares, president and CEO. Published under By Jennifer Okundia Popular award winning Ghanaian actress Juliet Ibrahim discusses the issue of early marriage for young ladies and how it affects their future. Ibrahim, 34, stated that lots of women face pressure from family, society, a better life e.t.c and some of them end up marrying older men for comfort which in turn affects their career. The mum of one and content creator revealed that she, at 18 was faced with the challenge of marrying a 42 year old guy who is U.S. based. She also talked about how her acting career started after she attended auditions. Watch the fun filled video below [embedded content] Related The U.S. Supreme Court ruling has created a significant amount of confusion, especially regarding inmates serving time in state custody for crimes committed on historic tribal lands, Hunter said. He said his office will oppose these requests based on legal authority and case law that limits the ability of individuals convicted of crimes for relief. The McGirt case does not constitute a get out of prison free card, Hunter said. We are not going to allow our justice system to be exploited by individuals who have murdered, raped or committed another crime of a serious nature while the federal government considers whether to re-arrest and adjudicate their cases. Hunter said he is not challenging the McGirt case but is saying the convicted criminals waited too long to bring their claims. Hunter said he is asking the court to clarify how Indian status is to be proven and to put that burden on the defendant. In addition, he wants the burden on the defendant to show that the commission of the crime was within the boundaries of a legal reservation. Hunter said between 1,500 and 2,000 cases involve individuals who could argue that McGirt applies to them. In-flight internet company Gogo is laying off 143 workers, or about 14% of its staff, as the coronavirus pandemic continues to damage the airline industry. The eliminated positions are primarily in Gogos commercial aviation business, and are based at the companys Chicago headquarters, said spokesman Dave Mellin. Airplane seats at Gogo's Chicago headquarters allow employees test internet signals in a flight-like setting. (Beth Rooney / Blue Sky) Kristi Nix Gov. Greg Abbott announced Thursday that he would extend emergency SNAP food benefits through the month of August as the coronavirus pandemic continues. Abbott said the Texas Health and Human Services Commission will provide around $185 million in emergency Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The U.S. Department of Agriculture gave approval to the Health and Human Services Commission to extend the maximum SNAP benefits to families in need. Alstom gets EU nod to acquire Bombardier's rail business Frances Alstom SA has secured antitrust approval from the European Commission to acquire Canadian rival Bombardier Incs rail business, in a deal that will make it the worlds second-largest rail maker after Chinas CRRC Corp. The deal valued up to 6.2 billion euros ($7.4 billion) contrasted with its failed attempt last year to combine its rail assets with Siemens AG, which was vetoed by regulators because the companies refused to offer more concessions. The commissions approval for the transaction is conditional on the proposed engagements that include: Transfer of Bombardier Transportations contribution to the V300 ZEFIRO very high-speed train and an offer of IP licence to Hitachi for the train co-developed by Hitachi and Bombardier Transportation for use in future very high-speed tenders in the UK; Divestment of the Alstom Coradia Polyvalent and the Reichshoffen production site in France; Divestment of the Bombardier TALENT 3 platform and dedicated production facilities located within the Hennigsdorf site in Germany Providing access to certain interfaces and products for some of Bombardier Transportations Signalling On-Board Units and Train Control Management Systems (TCMS); and Compliance with all applicable social processes and consultations with employee representatives' bodies. The transaction, however, remains subject to further regulatory approvals in several other jurisdictions and customary closing conditions. Alstom and Bombardier welcome the European Commissions (EC) decision for conditional clearance of the proposed acquisition of Bombardier Transportation by Alstom. Thanks to the comprehensive remedies offered to solve the competition concerns in the areas of very high-speed, mainline trains and mainline signalling, the Commission has been able to speedily review and approve this transaction, European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in a statement. The Commission said Alstom will sell a French rail factory in Reichshoffen, its regional train unit Coradia Polyvalent, and a Bombardier commuter trains division and related production facilities at its Hennigsdorf site in Germany. The company also agreed to sell Bombardiers stake in a consortium with Hitachi and provide access to some products within Bombardiers train control systems and signalling units to rivals. Alstom said it expects to complete the deal in the first half of 2021. French finance minister Bruno Le Maire welcomed the EU green light. Todays decision marks a positive step for the growth opportunities of the European rail sector, which is a world leader thanks to strong domestic competition and commitment to the next generation of green and digital mobility solutions, Bombardier said. Siemens said it was reviewing the decision and would decide in due course about further action. Alstoms Force Ouvriere union said the operation was financially risky and aimed only at becoming bigger, even if it meant some parts of the company had to be cut off. Recently, a new directive was issued to the CAF, detailing, in no uncertain terms that racism, sexism, and most definitely, extremism, had no place in the Canadian Army, Royal Canadian Navy or the Royal Canadian Airforce. Hate isn't tolerated. Hate and violence are considered to be performance deficiencies. According to the Defence Administrative Order and Directive, if you're a commissioned or non-commissioned member of the Canadian Armed Forces and are caught doing any evil unto society, "including the display or communication of words, symbols or images, by a CAF member, that they knew or ought reasonably to have known would constitute, encourage, justify or promote violence or hatred against a person or persons of an identifiable group, based on their national or ethnic origin, race, colour, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, family status, genetic characteristics or disability," you're supposed to be held to account for your bullshit. Except for when you're not. In November of 2019, Unicorn Riot, identified Boris Mihajlovic, a 29-year Leading Seaman in the Royal Canadian Navy, who claimed affiliation to Atomwaffen and the Calgary, Alberta chapter of Blood and Honouryou know, Nazis. Better still, Unicorn Riot uncovered that Mihajlovic had been farting around under the handle MOOONLORD, attempting to sell military-grade munitions to another user on the neo-Nazi Iron March web forum: In an exchange held over Iron March forum comments, 'MOONLORD' agreed to arrange to sell handguns to 'FrenchSoldier'. He also offered to sell an AK-47 (500), a rocket-propelled grenade launcher (2500) and hand grenades (50 each). In November of 2019, the Royal Canadian Navy announced that they were down with investigating Leading Seaman Mihajlovic for his radicalized, hateful behaviorit's a performance deficiency! You'd think that Mihajlovic's admitted association with Blood and Honour, Atomwaffen, or, you know, trying to sell military hardware to another racist douchebag, would be enough to ensure that he'd end up on charges or, at the very least, leave him invited to fail elsewhere, outside of the Navy. You would be wrong. In late July, 2020, a concerned member of the Royal Canadian Navy leaked this video: I tore had all of the ligaments in my right ankle sheared off of my bones. It took seven months of rehab before I was walking again, and my foot's never been the same since. The Royal Canadian Navy, however, believes that it's possible for a fella to turn his back on hate dark enough that he felt at home in groups dedicated to the destruction of minorities and, attempting to sell hardware that'd help that mission along? Sure. Since the video came to light, the Canadian Forces claim that they'll be looking into Mihajlovic once again. Maybe this time, They might be compelled to do something about him. The men and women he serves with and, Canada as a whole, deserve better than this. Image via Wikipedia BOULDER, Colo. and LONDON, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- ArcherDX, Inc., UCL and the Francis Crick Institute today announced an extension to utilize personalized, liquid biopsy-based research assays for the duration of the TRACERx program, a major lung cancer research initiative funded by Cancer Research UK. Previously reported findings from the TRACERx cohort have transformed understanding non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) evolution, and the research team is taking practical steps to make precision medicine for lung cancer patients a reality. Under the collaboration, ArcherDX and UCL will continue to measure circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) taken from non-invasive peripheral blood draws at specified intervals. "We are pleased to continue the collaboration with ArcherDX to examine how minimal residual disease detection relates to cancer relapse, and immune cell responses to immunotherapies," said Professor Charles Swanton, M.D., Ph.D., UCL and the Francis Crick Institute, and is Cancer Research UK's chief clinician and lead researcher of the TRACERx project. "With more sensitive detection of ctDNA, we gain a longitudinal view of cancer evolution leading to a greater understanding of the complex tumor ecosystem. These insights will help us design novel clinical trials that are personalized to more effectively bring new cancer treatments to patients." "The TRACERx program is a pioneering effort by Professor Swanton and his team at UCL and the Francis Crick Institute. We are incredibly proud to continue this collaboration with Professor Swanton and advance the understanding of cancer biology. With our combined expertise and ArcherDX's proprietary Anchored Multiplex PCR (AMP) chemistry at the core, we will continue to develop better liquid biopsy-based, personalized clinical research assays that have higher specificity and sensitivity with the goal of achieving better outcomes for patients," said Jason Myers, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer and co-founder, ArcherDX. The collaborative group plans to publish peer-reviewed results from the collaboration. ArcherDX's Personalized Cancer Monitoring (PCM) development program is being advanced by ArcherDX and is supported by a collaboration led by Professor Charles Swanton of UCL and the Francis Crick Institute to detect evidence of disease progression in lung cancer patients from cell-free ctDNA as part of the Cancer Research UK-funded UCL-sponsored TRACERx study.[1] PCM applies ArcherDX's proprietary Anchored Multiplex PCR (AMP) chemistry to accurately detect exceedingly low levels of cancer-derived DNA from patient blood. About Personalized Cancer Monitoring ArcherDX's Personalized Cancer Monitoring (PCM) approach aims to provide a unique clinical research platform for biopharma companies and academic researchers. The platform is built on LiquidPlex ctDNA technology and powered by Archer's proprietary Anchored Multiplex PCR (AMP) chemistry to enable error-corrected next-generation sequencing (NGS). With PCM, a surgically removed tumor or a tumor biopsy undergoes Whole Exome Sequencing (WES) and is used to identify patient-specific cancer mutations. A tumor-specific ctDNA panel is created and paired with Archer's NGS library preparation reagents and provided to labs. The personalized research clinical trial assay is used to measure ctDNA taken from minimally invasive peripheral blood draws at specified intervals, detecting evidence of cancer to quantitatively measure cancer recurrence and progression. About ArcherDX ArcherDX is a leading genomic analysis company democratizing precision oncology through a suite of products and services that are highly accurate, personal, actionable and easy to use in local settings. Our Archer platform, with our proprietary Anchored Multiplex PCR (AMP) chemistry at the core, has enabled us to develop industry-leading products and services to optimize therapy and enable cancer monitoring across sample types. We develop and commercialize research use only (RUO) products, are developing in vitro diagnostic (IVD) products, and offer services that meet the unique needs of our customers and their clinical applications. Our research product portfolio consists of VariantPlex, FusionPlex, LiquidPlex and Immunoverse. IVD products currently in development for solid tumor biomarker identification and Personalized Cancer Monitoring (PCM) have both received Breakthrough Device Designation from the FDA. ArcherDX is headquartered in Boulder, Colorado. Learn more at www.archerdx.com and follow @ArcherDXInc on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. [1] TRACERx (Tracking Cancer Evolution through therapy (Rx)) lung study is the single biggest investment in lung cancer research by Cancer Research UK. We believe the translational research program is the first study to look at the evolution of cancer in real time and immense detail. Researchers follow patients with lung cancer all the way from diagnosis through to either disease relapse or cure after surgery, tracking and analyzing how their cancer develops. TRACERx is led by UCL (University College London) via the Cancer Research UK Lung Cancer Centre of Excellence and also supported by the National Institute for Health Research, University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre, Francis Crick Institute and the Rosetrees Trust. About Cancer Research UK Cancer Research UK is the world's leading cancer charity dedicated to saving lives through research. Cancer Research UK's pioneering work into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer has helped save millions of lives. Cancer Research UK has been at the heart of the progress that has already seen survival in the UK double in the last 40 years. Today, 2 in 4 people survive their cancer for at least 10 years. Cancer Research UK's ambition is to accelerate progress so that by 2034, 3 in 4 people will survive their cancer for at least 10 years. Cancer Research UK supports research into all aspects of cancer through the work of over 4,000 scientists, doctors and nurses. Together with its partners and supporters, Cancer Research UK's vision is to bring forward the day when all cancers are cured. For further information about Cancer Research UK's work or to find out how to support the charity, please call 0300 123 1022 or visit www.cancerresearchuk.org . Follow us on Twitter and Facebook . Forward-Looking Statement This press release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial risks and uncertainties for purposes of the safe harbor provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this press release other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. The words "aim," "believe," "may," "will," "estimate," "continue," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "expect," "predict," "potential," "opportunity," "goals," or "should," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on management's current expectations and involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results and performance could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of many factors. ArcherDX has based these forward-looking statements largely on its current expectations and projections about future events and trends. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Moreover, ArcherDX operates in a competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time. It is not possible for its management to predict all risks, nor can it assess the impact of all factors on its business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements it may make. ArcherDX undertakes no obligation to revise or publicly release the results of any revision to such forward-looking statements, except as required by law. Given these risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. SOURCE ArcherDX Related Links http://www.archerdx.com HONG KONG Like Hong Kong, HSBC has long sat at the crossroads between East and West, a big global bank based in Britain that has reveled in and profited from its deep relationship with China. And like Hong Kong, it is now caught in the middle of a new era of confrontation between Beijing and major Western governments. In China, HSBC has been accused of setting traps to ensnare the Chinese tech giant, Huawei. In Britain, it has been admonished for seeming to back Huaweis ambitions in the country. Straddling neutral ground is no longer an option. HSBC got called out in China for not publicly backing the new national security law in Hong Kong. When the bank eventually expressed support on its Chinese social media account, members of the British Parliament demanded an explanation and urged HSBC to rescind the statement. Global businesses are increasingly under pressure to pick sides as the United States and its allies target the political and economic agenda of China. Syracuse, N.Y. -- Lord & Taylor, Americas oldest department store chain, is closing its store at the Destiny USA mall in Syracuse following the companys filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Signs at the entrances to the store Monday morning announced a store closing sale, with 20% to 40% off everything in the store. The retailer, which was in trouble even before the coronavirus pandemic slammed the economy, filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 of U.S. Bankruptcy Code on Sunday. The chain was founded in 1826. Hudsons Bay Co. sold the chain to Le Tote, a rental subscription-based fashion brand, in 2019. Lord & Taylor operates 38 stores nationally. The company has not announced a store closing list, but Forbes reported that the other Lord & Taylor stores in New York that will be closing are in Albany, Bay Shore, Buffalo, Rochester and Yonkers. Update: All 38 Lord & Taylor stores slated to close; see full list In a statement on its website, Lord & Taylor said it was beginning a search for a new owner who believes in our legacy and values. Part of our announcement also includes filing for Chapter 11 protection to overcome the unprecedented strain the Covid-19 pandemic has placed on our business, the company said. This strategy is part of our fierce commitment to preserve a nearly 200-year-old brand that has served local communities and loyal customers for generations. Lord & Taylor will be the second major anchor store at Destiny, the largest mall in New York, to close in the coming weeks. J.C. Penney, which filed for Chapter 11 protection in May, is also closing its store at the mall. Its liquidation sale began in June. The Lord & Taylor store at Destiny USA is set to close after the troubled department store chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Rick Moriarty | rmoriarty@syracuse.com Rick Moriarty covers business news and consumer issues. Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact him anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3148 Chloe Sevigny first found fame at 19, when she starred in the 1995 indie masterpiece Kids. And the Golden Globe winner recently welcomed a kid of her own, when she became a mom earlier this year. She made motherhood look mighty chic Sunday in a sheer black look, as she masked up for a family stroll with partner Sinisa Mackovic and their newborn son Vanja. Chic mom: Chloe Sevigny made motherhood look mighty chic Sunday in a sheer black look, as she masked up for a family stroll with partner Sinisa Mackovic and their newborn son Vanja The 45-year-old left little to the imagination a see-through sheer black dress Victorian style dress with a ruffled neckline. She layered it over a black mini dress, which showed off her toned legs in a pair of black leather sandals. Sevigny finished the ensemble with a gold medallion necklace, while carrying a petite black leather handbag. She took precautions against COVID-19 in a baby blue face mask, trimmed at the top with ruffles, matching the Victorian theme. Victorian chic: The 45-year-old left little to the imagination a see-through sheer black dress Victorian style dress with a ruffled neckline Back in black: She layered it over a black mini dress, which showed off her toned legs in a pair of black leather sandals. Sevigny finished the ensemble with a gold medallion necklace, while carrying a petite black leather handbag Masked up: She took precautions against COVID-19 in a baby blue face mask, trimmed at the top with ruffles, matching the Victorian theme Happy family: The American Psycho actress began dating Mackovic, an art gallery director, in 2018, welcoming baby boy Vanja this May Splash of color: Mackovic rocked a splash of color for the outing in a yellow short-sleeve button-down shirt with a patterned red stripe across the chest Cool dad: He complemented the look with a blue denim bucket hat and a blue tie-dye face mask, while pushing Vanja in the stroller The American Psycho actress began dating Mackovic, an art gallery director, in 2018, welcoming baby boy Vanja this May. Mackovic rocked a splash of color for the outing in a yellow short-sleeve button-down shirt with a patterned red stripe across the chest. He complemented the look with a blue denim bucket hat and a blue tie-dye face mask, while pushing Vanja in the stroller. Sevigny celebrated the 25th anniversary this week of her breakout film Kids, directed by Larry Clark. She took to Instagram with some behind-the-scenes photos and the cover of her script, complete with doodles. Breakout role: Sevigny celebrated the 25th anniversary this week of her breakout 1995 film Kids, directed by Larry Clark Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Joseph E. Stiglitz and Hamid Rashid (The Jakarta Post) Project Syndicate/New York Mon, August 3, 2020 08:57 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b1779c 3 Opinion sovereign-debt,COVID-19,pandemic,economic-crisis,government-bond Free While the COVID-19 pandemic rages, more than 100 low- and middle-income countries will still have to pay a combined US$130 billion in debt service this year around half of which is owed to private creditors. With much economic activity suspended and fiscal revenues in free fall, many countries will be forced to default. Others will cobble together scarce resources to pay creditors, cutting back on much-needed health and social expenditures. Still others will resort to additional borrowing, kicking the proverbial can down the road, seemingly easier now because of the flood of liquidity from central banks around the world. From Latin Americas lost decade in the 1980s to the more recent Greek crisis, there are plenty of painful reminders of what happens when countries cannot service their debts. A global debt crisis today will push millions of people into unemployment and fuel instability and violence around the world. This nightmare scenario is avoidable if we act now. The origins of todays looming debt crisis are easy to understand. Owing to quantitative easing, the public debt (mostly sovereign bonds) of low- and middle-income countries has more than tripled since the 2008 global financial crisis. Sovereign bonds are riskier than official debt from multilateral institutions and developed-country aid agencies because creditors can dump them on a whim, triggering a sharp currency depreciation and other far-reaching economic disruptions. Back in June 2013, we worried that shortsighted financial markets, working with shortsighted governments, were laying the groundwork for the worlds next debt crisis. Now, the day of reckoning has come. This past March, the United Nations called for debt relief for the worlds least-developed countries. Several Group of 20 countries and the International Monetary Fund have suspended debt service for the year, and have called upon private creditors to follow suit. Unsurprisingly, these calls have fallen on deaf ears. The newly formed Africa Private Creditor Working Group, for example, has already rejected the idea of modest but broad-based debt relief for poor countries. As a result, much, if not most, of the benefits of debt relief from official creditors will accrue to the private creditors who are unwilling to provide any debt relief. The upshot is that taxpayers in creditor countries will once again end up bailing out excessive risk taking and imprudent lending by private actors. The only way to avoid this is to have a comprehensive debt standstill that includes private creditors. But without strong action from the countries in which debt contracts are written, private creditors are unlikely to accept such an arrangement. These governments therefore must invoke the doctrines of necessity and force majeure to enforce comprehensive standstills on debt service. But standstills will not solve the systemic problem of excessive indebtedness. For that, we urgently need deep debt restructuring. History shows that for many countries, a restructuring that is too little, too late merely sets the stage for another crisis. More often than not, an inadequate restructuring is followed by another restructuring within five years, with enormous suffering on the part of those in the debtor country. Even creditors lose, over the long run. Fortunately, there is an underused alternative: voluntary sovereign-debt buybacks. Debt buybacks are widespread in the corporate world, and have proved effective both in Latin America in the 1990s and, more recently, in the Greek context. And they have the advantage of avoiding the harsh terms that typically come with debt swaps. A buyback programs principal objective would be to reduce debt burdens by securing significant discounts (haircuts) on the face value of sovereign bonds, and by minimizing exposure to risky private creditors. But a buyback program could also be designed to advance health and climate goals, by requiring that the beneficiaries spend the money that otherwise would have gone to debt service on creating public goods. As we explain in a recent proposal, a multilateral buyback facility could be managed by the IMF, which can use already available resources, its New Arrangements to Borrow function, and supplemental funds from a global consortium of countries and multilateral institutions. In the long term, a predictable, rules-based debt-restructuring mechanism, modeled after the United States municipal bankruptcy legislation (Chapter 9) is needed. That would be in keeping with the recommendations of the post-2008 UN Commission of Experts on Reforms of the International Monetary and Financial System. The usual objection to such proposals is that they would destroy the international capital market. But experience shows otherwise. One cant squeeze water from a stone. There will be restructuring the only question is whether it will be orderly. Our proposals would aid in achieving this objective, and thus strengthen capital markets. Ultimately, though, our concern should not be with the health of capital markets, but with the welfare of people developing and emerging-market countries. There is an urgent need for debt relief now, in the midst of the pandemic. It has to be comprehensive including private creditors and more than just a stay of debt. We have the tools to do it. We only need the political will. -------- Joseph E. Stiglitz, a Nobel laureate in economics and university professor at Columbia University, is chief economist at the Roosevelt Institute and a former senior vice president and chief economist of the World Bank. Hamid Rashid is chief of Global Economic Monitoring at the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. The views expressed are their own. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. Asante Haughton knows all too well what its like to call police during a mental health crisis. Hes reached out a dozen times sometimes to get help for his mother, other times himself. Just one of those times, it was maybe helpful to have armed officers show up at the door, says Haughton, who has spoken openly about his anxiety and depression and whose mother has experienced significant mental health challenges. The other times, police presence ratcheted up tension and created a sense of fear, especially as a Black family, says Haughton. He often felt his concerns werent considered real or serious. For me, it was very clear that having officers as first responders for a mental health crisis was simply not working, and many times, was escalating a situation, Haughton, a mental health advocate and youth worker, said in an interview. Many others are now coming to the same conclusion amid uproar over the police-involved deaths of Black and Indigenous people in a mental health crisis including Toronto city council and the Toronto police board. Recent weeks have seen protesters marching through the streets decrying the local police shootings of 62-year-old Ejaz Choudry in June and 26-year-old DAndre Campbell in April, both shot dead by Peel police while in mental distress, as well as the death of 29-year-old Regis Korchinski-Paquet, who fell from her High Park highrise in the presence of police in May. The deaths are all under investigation by Ontarios police watchdog, the Special Investigations Unit. In response, Toronto city council in June started a process that will lead to a non-police-led response to mental health crisis calls, something members of the Toronto police board have said they support. We all need to ask ourselves, Why dont we have a better option? Our system is broken when our only option is to send the police into a mental health crisis situation, Uppala Chandrasekera, then-member of the Toronto police board, said at a June meeting. The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Canadas largest psychiatric facility, has also called for removing officers from mental health emergencies, something former Toronto police chief Mark Saunders, whose resignation came into effect Friday, said his officers would support. Each year, Toronto police respond to about 30,000 mental health-related calls. We readily admit that if others step up to the plate with a sustainable plan and system, then that means that there is less for us to do, more for us to focus on what we really are trained to do, Saunders said in a recent interview with the Star. Spurred through tragedy, the sudden interest in developing an alternative is what Haughton calls unfortunate serendipity. For years, he and other mental health advocates have been calling for a non-police response to mental health crisis calls. All of a sudden, people got interested politicians got interested in actually implementing these changes, said Rachel Bromberg, who has worked in the mental health realm seven years. Bromberg and Haughton met as employees at Torontos youth mental health organization Stellas Place. They have since founded the Reach Out Response Network, a coalition of stakeholders in Toronto aiming to build a civilian-led mental health emergency service one that would be rapid response, and available throughout the city 24/7. When someone is in crisis, they are already feeling afraid, overwhelmed, out of control. They dont need an officer with a gun and handcuffs showing up, Bromberg said. What they need instead is a mental health expert, who they can trust, who can help them calm down. Someone who can help them feel safer. Theyve since attracted nearly 100 volunteers, some of whom are researching best practices. The network has since begun hosting consultations for specific populations, including for homeless Torontonians and Black and Indigenous communities. We really want to get those perspectives, get those folks as involved as possible in building this, Bromberg said. The aim is to help understand what community members want and need knowledge that can then help the city design the best possible emergency response system. Bromberg and Haughton hope to partner with city decision makers to help lay the groundwork. Theyve swiftly begun that work. Recent weeks have seen a flurry of meetings with the Toronto police board, the city managers office, and councillors who a year ago were just not interested, Bromberg said. Educating decision-makers about models that have worked is a central goal. A leader in the field is the CAHOOTS program (Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets) in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1989, the model sees a mental health professional paired with a nurse or a paramedic to respond to crises involving mental illness, addiction or homelessness calls that range from suicide threats to conflict resolution. Neither staff member carries a weapon. The program is embedded within the 911 system; dispatchers determine whether a police response is necessary, or if a CAHOOTS team is better equipped to deal with the call. Occasionally, the mental health team will request police backup, but that rarely occurs. Last year, out of approximately 24,000 calls handled by CAHOOTS, backup was only requested 250 times, according to a recent report released by the White Bird Clinic, the organization that operates CAHOOTS. Last year, CAHOOTS handled about 20 per cent of the citys 911 calls, and its estimated the program has saved $8.5 million in public safety spending per year, according to the report. Bromberg and Haughton have also been studying other crisis response models. Last year, Bromberg co-founded the International Mobile Services Association, a network connecting people across Canada and the U.S. who have built or want to create a civilian-led mobile crisis service. They have been learning whats already out there and determining best practices. They recently tapped into this network to conduct a survey in response to what Bromberg says is the top question they get: what happens if a mental health call turns violent? According to the results of that scan, which included gathering data from seven established programs across North America, injuries to staff are exceedingly rare, and when any occurred, they were nearly always minor. For example, during the 31 years CAHOOTS has existed, they have never had a serious injury or death of a staff member or a client, Bromberg said. Bromberg and Haughton have been thinking a lot about why there is a presumption that mental health calls necessarily mean the risk of violence. Their theory: that having police respond to mental health crisis promotes stigma and fear of people in crisis. And we hope that by removing (police), well reduce stigma, and people will be able to see that mental health crisis isnt a crime, its a health crisis, she said. Haughton stresses that his and Brombergs efforts are not intended to insult or demean police what we are here for is to recognize that police already have so much on their plates, and they really shouldnt be a jack-of-all-trades service, he said. Police should be responding to the things that most require police work. And the large majority the very large majority of mental health calls do not at all require police to be on the scene. What are the largest emerging markets ETFs? The US equity market has delivered impressive returns to investors over the last decade. The S&P 500 index has shot up nearly 200% since 2010 before dipping in March. It was by far the longest bull run in history. The US equity markets have even outperformed international equities. Just for comparison, the MSCI World ex-US Index has gained only 50% since 2010. Several analysts and financial market strategists believed it was time to allocate a larger portion of your portfolio to international equities, especially emerging markets before the coronavirus crash. They were wrong in February, but as the US equity markets sharply already rebounded, this may be a better time to diversify into emerging markets. The simplest way to gain exposure to emerging markets is through emerging markets exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Here we take a look at the top 10 largest emerging markets ETFs in the world. Most investors prefer investing in technology stocks these days. If you are also interested in tech stocks, please read our 10 largest technology ETFs article. Global economic indicators suggest the slowdown may have bottomed out. The US-China trade tensions have also started showing signs of easing. Morgan Stanley economist Chetan Ahya recently told clients that the "improvement in manufacturing and trade can be sustained." esfera/Shutterstock.com Emerging market ETFs invest in companies or assets based in emerging countries such as China, India, Russia, and others. Depending on the underlying index they are tracking, ETFs could hold assets in stocks, bonds, or commodities. Before you invest in an ETF, it's important to look at its assets under management (AUM), trading volume, and expense ratio. The higher AUMs enable ETFs to track their indices more closely. If the trading volumes are high, the ETF will have a tighter spread. These are the largest emerging market ETFs based on their assets under management (AUM). The ranking is based on the latest data from ETFdb. Story continues 10- Schwab Fundamental Emerging Markets Large Company Index ETF (FNDE), $2.8 billion FNDE has delivered cumulative returns of 35.69% in the last five years and 18.45% in three years. Its expense ratio is 0.39%. The ETF tracks the Russell RAFI Emerging Markets Large Company Index, which measures performance of companies in China, Taiwan, Russia, Brazil, India, and other emerging markets. Its largest holdings are Gazprom, TSMC, Lukoil, and China Construction Bank. 9- Invesco Emerging Markets Sovereign Debt ETF (PCY), $3.6 billion PCY is a fixed-income fund that tracks the DBIQ Emerging Market USD Liquid Balanced Index. It invests in dollar-denominated government bonds of more than a dozen emerging countries. The ETF has returned a cumulative 35.72% in five years and 19.25% in three years. Its total expense ratio is 0.50%. 8- SPDR Portfolio Emerging Markets ETF (SPEM), $3.8 billion This emerging market ETF from State Street Global Advisors has $3.8 billion in assets. Its expense ratio is relatively lower at just 0.11%. SPEM tracks the performance of S&P Emerging BMI Index. Its largest holdings are Alibaba, Tencent, TSMC, China Construction Bank, and Naspers. SPEM has delivered cumulative returns of 27.2% in five years and 25.6% in three years. 7- VanEck Vectors J.P. Morgan EM Local Currency Bond ETF (EMLC), $4.3 billion EMLC is a bond fund that tracks the J.P. Morgan GBI-EM Global Core Index. The index consists of government bonds issued by emerging countries in their local currencies. Its expense ratio is capped at 0.41%. The fund has gained a total of just 8.58% in five years (1.17% CAGR) and 10.88% in three years. 6- iShares Edge MSCI Min Vol Emerging Markets ETF (EEMV), $5.3 billion EEMV tracks the MSCI Emerging Markets Minimum Volatility Index and has an expense ratio of 0.25%. It invests in emerging market stocks with low volatility. The ETF has delivered 3.2% annualized return in five years and 8.70% CAGR over the last three years. China, Taiwan, and India account for more than 50% of its portfolio. 5- Schwab Emerging Markets Equity ETF (SCHE), $6.6 billion SCHE is a diversified emerging market ETF with $6.6 billion in assets. Its top holdings are Alibaba, Tencent, TSMC, China Construction Bank, and Naspers. The ETF tracks the FTSE Emerging Index, which measures performance of more than 1,341 large-cap and mid-cap stocks in more than 20 emerging markets. SCHE has an expense ratio of 0.13%. 4- iShares J.P. Morgan USD Emerging Markets Bond ETF (EMB), $15.9 billion BlackRock's EMB tracks the J.P. Morgan EMBI Global Core Index. The index is composed of the US dollar-denominated emerging market government bonds. It gives you access to the government bonds of more than 30 countries. EMB has an expense ratio of 0.39%. It has delivered an annualized return of 6.23% over three years, 5.67% over five years, and 6.23% over the last ten years. 3- iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (EEM), $28.9 billion EEM invests in more than 800 large-cap and mid-cap stocks in emerging countries. It tracks the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. Its expense ratio is on the higher side at 0.68%. The ETF has offered an annual return of 10.92% over three years and 4.99% over the last five years. Its largest holdings are Alibaba, Tencent, TSMC, and Samsung. 2- iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG), $60.6 billion IEMG with $60.6 billion in assets is the second largest emerging market ETF in the world. Its expense ratio is just 0.14%. It tracks the MSCI Emerging Markets Investable Market Index. The index is composed of large-cap, mid-cap, and small-cap emerging market equities. The ETF has delivered an annualized return of 11.09% over the last three years and 5.37% over five years. 1- Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO), $65.3 billion Vanguard's VWO is the largest emerging market ETF in the world with $65.3 billion in assets. It tracks the FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap China A Inclusion Index. The index measures equity markets performance of more than 20 emerging countries including China, Russia, and India. Its expense ratio is just 0.12%. Recoveries from Covid-19 in Haryana went past 30,000 on Monday even as the state recorded 654 new infections. As many as 780 people got recovered/discharged in the past 24 hours, stated a health bulletin. The virus, meanwhile, claimed seven more lives, taking the death toll to 440 (313 men, 127 women). Four people died of Covid-19 in Panipat, two in Kurukshetra and one patient succumbed to the virus in Bhiwani. Until Monday evening, Haryana had reported 37,173 positive cases, but so far 30,470 patients have recovered from the disease. Now, there are 6,263 active patients in the state, including 130 critical patients undergoing treatment in 16 different hospitals. The recovery rate saw further improvement as it reached 81.97%, while the doubling rate climbed to 26 days in Haryana. It was after a long gap that Gurugram witnessed a drop in new cases as it registered only 43 fresh infections, whereas Faridabad logged 173 new corona carriers. Panipat reported 106 new cases, Panchkula 60, Rewari 50, Hisar 33, Kurukshetra and Yamunanagar 27 each, Sonepat 25, Karnal 20, Sirsa 17, Palwal 15, Jind 14, Fatehabad 10, Ambala and Jhajjar 9 each, Kaithal 7, Mahendergarh 5, Nuh 4, and Bhiwani 3. According to Rewari DC Yashendra Singh, of the total 50 new cases, at least 33 were from Rewari city, 10 from Bawal, six from Kasola and one from Nahar village. A confectioner from Luhari village, along with three labourers, was among the new patients registered in Jhajjar. Bhiwani civil surgeon Dr Jitender Kadian said a 43-year-old armyman, who had returned home on July 31 from Nagaland, a 68-year-old retired armyman, who is undergoing cancer treatment at a private hospital in Gurugram, and a 60-year-old woman tested positive for the virus in the district. A 62-year-old woman, whose samples were taken on August 1, succumbed to the virus today, he added. Kurukshetra chief medical officer Sukhbir Singh said among the new patients were a six-year-old boy from Brahma colony, a 14-year-old girl from Shahbads Jyoti Nagar and a 15-year-old girl from Ratgal village. That's it. Furlough is over, at least as far as my company is concerned. I am not prepared to contribute to a culture where people sit at home and do nothing. As the founder of Pimlico Plumbers, London's largest independent plumbing company, I've heard all the excuses people are worried about catching Covid-19, or they're afraid of infecting a vulnerable relative who is self-isolating. But to any employee who tells me that they don't want to come back, who wants to string out the furlough till the Government closes the scheme in October, I've got one thing to say: we don't want you back. So far I've already told 30 former staff: 'Don't bother coming in, ever.' People say I'm being heartless. In fact, I'm being compassionate, and of course I believe it's imperative that anyone who genuinely needs to shield should be supported in doing so. However, I'm facing reality, and the rest of Britain needs to wake up and do the same. If we don't all get back to work, we will face economic catastrophe on an unimaginable scale. As the founder of Pimlico Plumbers, London 's largest independent plumbing company, I've heard all the excuses. Pimlico Plumbers vans pictured above For if Britain does go bust, it'll be the most vulnerable people who will be hit worst. I'm not exaggerating: the damage done to Britain's businesses over the past four months is already incalculable. We won't see the full effects for years. And so we must put a stop to it now. Otherwise, when October comes, millions are going to discover that they don't have a job to come back to and that's the toughest time of year to find yourself on the dole, with Christmas coming. Far better that people face reality now, and set about job-hunting, retraining, even embarking on a new career, in August. It was crazy of Chancellor Rishi Sunak to announce back in May that the furlough scheme would run till October. Faced with an unprecedented situation, being battered by conflicting advice from all sides, the Government panicked and overreacted. Once October was mentioned, Downing Street was in an impossible position. They couldn't reverse the decision without causing national outrage. The fact was, people were scared of the coronavirus but they also liked furlough. Many were actually better off, despite getting just 80 per cent of their wages: not only did they pay less tax but there were no travel expenses and no need to buy work clothes. Even the cost of a daily coffee and sandwich soon adds up. The Chancellor got his figures badly wrong. With furlough payments set at 80 per cent, millions have been treating the crisis as a paid holiday. It was crazy of Chancellor Rishi Sunak to announce back in May that the furlough scheme would run till October They're milking the system. I had grave misgivings about furlough from the start. We had about 150 people working in our head office, and we did all we could to create a safe environment. Of those 150, about two thirds took leave. One third continued to come in, without whom we might not have stayed afloat. Those people know how much I admire their spirit. They've got the right attitude. We looked after them well, with a 20 daily bonus and free food and drink, ordered from outside caterers at a cost of 2,000 a week. Some have been working seven days a week. They are heroes. I've always said plumbers are one of the emergency services, even if you can't get us by dialling 999. My business is one of countless thousands that keeps Britain going. But if we dont end the furlough, and get everyone back to work, I dont know how much longer the country will cope. Raising awareness, shifting mindset, and changing behaviours are the main aims of the programme Generali Vietnam part of Italian-based Generali Group and the National Fund for Vietnamese Children (NFVC) recently organised a Sinh Con, Sinh Cha (Born Children, Born Parents) workshop for more than 300 parents, kindergarten staff, and children from Hoa Mi and Hoa Huong Duong kindergartens in Huong Thuy town in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue. A sitcom series created as part of the programme and launched on Generali Vietnams official YouTube channel last month has already garnered millions of views, interactions, and comments. Shortly after the programme launch in June, Generali Vietnam and the NFVC quickly implemented the parenting education programme by organising local workshops in selected provinces, including Thua Thien-Hue and the northern province of Bac Giang. The workshop in Thua Thien-Hue facilitated discussions about topics such as developing childrens positive emotional intelligence through regular encouragement and motivation; handling childrens tantrum behaviours; and ensuring a safe home for children. These topics fall under the programmes three main content groups of intelligence, behaviours, and health of children from newborn to six years of age. Gifts, cash, and more have been offered to needy families At the event, Generali Vietnam offered 150 gifts to all participating children and 150 programme booklets to their parents, as well as 30 special gifts in cash and in-kind to 30 needy families from local communities. We are glad that the workshop has geared up to reach out to more parts of the country, said Tina Nguyen, Generali Vietnam CEO. The workshops aim to create positive and sustainable impacts on local childrens comprehensive development, and the programme enables Generali to continue realising its strategy of becoming a lifetime partner to Vietnamese families. According to Le Tuyet Mai, deputy director of the NFVC, this community education programme is both unique and innovative, which is spreading positivity and creating impacts far and wide in society. We are glad to have been partnering with Generali Vietnam, which has been very active and dedicated to community activities, especially those targeted at disadvantaged children across the country, Mai said. Le Tuyet Mai, deputy director of the NFVC, sharing about the programme and their co-operation with Generali Vietnam More than 300 parents, kindergarten staff, and children from Thuy Phu commune, Thua Thien-Hue province participating in useful activities enhancing children education and family unity under the programme Sinh Con, Sinh Cha programme in Hue brings intriguing experience to the participants The project team under the programme and the volunteers- the staff and agent force of Generali Vietnam From now until the end of the year, at least 2,000 parents and children, and about 400 kindergarten teachers and officers from cities and provinces across Vietnam, are expected to benefit from the local workshops. The programmes booklets and online sitcoms will be available free of charge while parents will enjoy free admission to all parenting workshops. The programme is part of The Human Safety Net, a Generali Group global movement initiated in 2017. The Human Safety Nets families programme supports parents in the first six years of their childrens lives to lay the strongest possible foundations for their future, contributing to early childhood development in disadvantaged communities around the world. In Vietnam, the local programme developed by the NFVC and Generali Vietnam, referencing UNICEF materials is extending its reach to the community with practical and useful content via creative and interesting formats. In Vietnam, after nine years of operation, Generali Vietnam currently has a nationwide network of over 60 agency offices and customer service centres, serving over 300,000 clients. Martha Villatoro was excited to enroll her 4-year-old daughter, Abigail, in school "to interact with other kids, since she's an only child," but this was cut short when the Los Angeles Unified School District closed down in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. "The adjustment was tough for Abigail," Villatoro, 34, said in Spanish. The little girl went from a bustling class full of children and teachers to being home along with her mother, learning through a digital device. Abigail is one of more than 670,000 students in the nation's second-largest school system who will be taught online when the new school year starts in August, after LAUSD announced there won't be in-person instruction. Villatoro was told her daughter's school would provide them a tablet in time to start pre-kindergarten classes via Zoom, a video conference software, on Aug. 19. But Villatoro still "doesn't feel 100 percent ready" for the new semester. As school districts nationwide reconsider their reopening plans for the upcoming school year, a survey from the polling firm Latino Decisions conducted on behalf of Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors, a parent-led educational organization, found that Latino families "are apprehensive about the prospect of distance learning," mainly due to concerns over internet access and children falling behind educationally while families grapple with the health and financial consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. Related video: Back to school admist a pandemic "We know, as educators and advocates, that in-person instruction is the best way to deliver high-quality education," said Stephanie Parra, executive director of All in Education, an Arizona-based advocacy group. "Unfortunately, right now it's not the safest way." Robert Fernandez, 36, has three children in schools around Sylmar, California: Samantha, 14, who's starting high school; Derek, 11, who's in elementary school; and Roxanne, 5, who's starting kindergarten. IMAGE: Roxanne and Samantha Fernandez (Courtesy Robert Fernandez) Although Fernandez believes their home has good enough internet and technology equipment to do distance learning, he said connectivity can still be a challenge when all the children are using the internet while their mother also works from home. Story continues A third of Latino families nationwide don't have regular internet access at home. Among those who have internet, 37 percent said they can only access it through a cell phone, which is not ideal for home schooling, Latino Decisions found. "If you're getting choppy video, if you're getting choppy reception, if your teacher is kind of cutting in and out due to the quality of your computer or internet speed, those are little things that can hinder their ability to grasp new concepts," Fernandez said. His children "were very disappointed" after learning their classes were going "completely online five days a week," he said. "We're basically talking about a full year worth of school that these students have had to learn online. That's a long time, a lot of self-teaching instead of being taught." "My biggest fear is for my daughter that's going to high school. We all know high school is a very crucial point in anybody's life; it kind of develops who you are, and I think we're robbing her and a lot of other students and children from that," Fernandez said. He's also afraid his youngest daughter won't have a good "foundation for the rest of her academic career." Fears of falling behind The Latino Decisions survey found that 83 percent of primary caregivers are concerned that their children aren't learning enough from online schooling and will fall behind. The Fernandez siblings had a test ride with online classes earlier this year as schools tried to finish off their spring semesters remotely. "At first, they felt it was kind of cool, like a mini-vacation," Fernandez said. "But my two oldest then felt like they weren't getting anything out of learning on their own with little access to tutoring." Latino Decisions found that 74 percent of Latino parents said they would like to have more access to one-on-one tutoring for their children, and 76 percent said they want more time with teachers whether in-person, online or over the phone. This was especially important for immigrant families who speak primarily Spanish at home, according to the survey. Villatoro, who recently started taking English classes, said she was motivated by the need to better communicate with her daughter's teachers. "Even though the school offers translation options, I can't always open up with the teacher as much," she said. Vanessa Jimenez, 46, helps middle school students transition to high school in Arizona. She worries about the Latino parent "who would have come in and asked a hundred questions" to a school staff member or a teacher but now only has online access. "Now, they aren't asking any questions or they're asking the neighbor or somebody in their community to help them," Jimenez said. Despite academic worries, safer at home Despite the challenges with distance learning, a majority (68 percent) of Latino parents support continuing with it during the fall semester, "a strong indication of the level of concern Latino families have about COVID-19," Latino Decisions said, as the virus continues to disproportionately infect and kill Latinos across the nation. Jimenez is one of them. Her son is supposed to start third grade at the Phoenix Elementary School District on Aug. 6. But she's not comfortable sending him after her brother, who lives next door, got sick with the coronavirus and was hospitalized for almost a week. Jimenez, who already picked up a laptop for her son to start online classes, said she doesn't feel ready enough to help him, since she's not clear on the benchmarks her son needs to fulfill to successfully pass his courses. "I have no idea how that's going to look like. All I know is that school is online from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.," she said. Related: "They're less likely to survive any crisis because they're not getting the relief funds, period," a Latino small-business lender says about families like the Aguirres. Adrian Pedroza, national director of strategic partnerships at Opening Doors, said many parents nationwide share similar worries. "That's a big thing we heard from parents: They need help understanding what a school schedule looks like at home," Pedroza said, adding that better communication between the school and the parents on lesson plans and schedules is a top concern. In addition, schools need to take into account the economic stress many parents are feeling. "On top of this pressure, they're figuring out how to best keep learning going for their children," Pedroza said. "Economic insecurity can contribute to toxic stress, and the well-being of families and children is key to their ability to learn." Mixed-immigration-status families like Villatoro's didn't qualify for coronavirus aid, though they are still recovering from pandemic-related financial losses. The Fernandez household saw cutbacks on its wage increases, as well as on bonuses and commissions. "We could think about ways to reduce that economic stress," Pedroza said, "and support families with housing, unemployment benefits and how we give access to some kind of economic relief to our undocumented families." Follow NBC Latino on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. aroopdas93 Newbie Join Date: Jul 2020 Location: Mumbai Posts: 8 Thanked: 59 Times Resurrecting a loved one: My salvage '11 Honda Civic (rollover crash) Hello everyone, this is Aroop (a fairly recent addition to Team-BHP). At the outset, I would like to thank the community for sharing their Gyaan on the machines we love, it has truly been a delightful experience to read some of your experiences with cars. That said let me jump straight into my story with my pre-worshiped 8th Generation Honda Civic 1.8 v AT. I graduated from law school in 2017 and as a graduation gift from my parents (more like a negotiated position for not buying me a bike during my law school days) zeroed in on a brand new Honda City (petrol) to keep their end of the promise. However, like a lot of the 90s kids it was a dream of mine to set my foot and be a proud owner of an 8th generation Honda Civic (which honestly, in my opinion, is the only true JDM which has ever set foot on our shores (I am consciously keeping the GTR out of this)). Given the backdrop, the choice was clear, I had to listen to my heart and be an Adarsh Balak (by not looting my parents of so much money), I set out my search for the one, 8th Generation stock (I like it that way) Honda Civic 1.8V manual, preferably in pearl white (historically all the cars in my family are white and I like it that way). Mumbai was a great place to search for a pre-worshiped Honda Civic and I did come across a lot of copies of the 8th Generation Honda Civic but a vast majority of them were plagued with steering hydraulics issues, suspension failure (I was willing to live with this as this was easy to fix), transmission issues, CNG kits (like what were they thinking) and mods executed in bad taste. My search for a good example of an 8th Generation Honda Civic lasted longer than expected or to my liking (you would be surprised to see how abused Honda Civics could be). After almost 6 months of this exercise, to look for a good example (yes I am very picky about the wheels that I drive), I finally came across a decent (thats the best I could do in 6 months) example of a stock 8th generation Honda Civic 1.8 V AT and it was love after rigorous scrutiny. Before you point out I had to settle for an automatic because this was the best example of over 50-60 civics I had assessed. After finally getting my [teen realistic] dream car in my garage, it was almost like a love affair between me and my car. The car was an absolute gem and a pleasure to drive, I would only drive it over the weekends as my office was only 200 mts from where I stay and I would usually cab my way around Mumbai (if at all to go for meetings etc.) as (a) parking could be a major headache in fort and BKC area; and (b) I consider myself too passionate to be driving a car in Mumbais traffic. These two years of Kates (I used to call her that) companionship was an absolute breeze, even though Kate was no exception to, among other things, steering hydraulic failure or suspension failure (which were very expensive to fix) which cropped up within 1.5 years of ownership, it was nevertheless a pleasure to drive. Actually, a perfect example to summarise my driving experience was a review of the 8th generation Civic by CNBC whereby the host had made a comparison of the 8th generation Honda Civic to the 2009-2013 Honda City and had stated as follows: When you drive a Honda City at high speeds you get a sense of flying, but when you treat a civic in a similar manner, youd get a sense of being grounded and planted to the road, but nonetheless both of them are very good experiences Given my family owns a Honda City 2009-2013 (of course in white) and I had taken my driving lessons on it and probably wouldve clocked about 20k on the odo, I knew the exact difference in the high-speed experience both the cars offer (as rightly pointed by CNBCs host). For all the readers who are contented with a Honda Citys, Hyundai Vernas high-speed performance, you have to absolutely drive a Honda Civic. The 8th Generation Honda Civic actually shines at high 3-digit speeds, with the way it sticks to the ground and the confidence it inspires at such speeds. I mean I used to be quite happy with my Honda Citys high speed performance (actually I still am) but the Civics performance is some other thing, I mean apart from the high speed runs in my Honda City, I would consciously avoid pushing the City too much not because it is unstable at such speeds because somehow it doesnt feel as planted as the Civic. All that said, I dont endorse high speed driving and have made such runs on pre-researched stretches of the Mumbai-Pune expressway (which also happens to be the only decent road in the whole of Maharashtra). In 2 years of my companionship with Kate, I gathered about 32,000 kms on the Odo which I am very proud of given I only used to drive it only during the weekends (I typically have 80-90 hour work week, I am a corporate lawyer), this 32,000 kms included trips (sometimes multiple) to most of the attractions of the Western Ghats and Aravalli Range, Daman, Telangana, Goa, Gujarat, Silvassa and Diu. Although the car was 9 years old, it never felt its age and my original plan was to keep using the car as a daily driver until the commissioning of the Mumbai- Delhi expressway in 2022, as I intended to drive the entire stretch on my Civic as a tribute to all the joy Kate brought to my life, following which I would have shipped the car off to Odisha (my home town) where I intended to preserve the car forever (thats where I have preserved all my firsts and honestly 30-40 years down the lane I firmly believe the 8th Generation Civic will turn some heads). All was hunky-dory until recently when I decided to fulfill my dream of driving from the west coast to the east coast of India (Mumbai-Bhubaneswar). So, me and two of my friends embarked on this mega drive across the country on May 16, 2020 (after having done my research on the route to be taken and after procuring all the permits to cross Chhattisgarh and enter Odisha). We halted the night at Nagpur and I slept in the car before restarting (didnt want to take the risk of booking a hotel due to the ongoing pandemic). Next day morning i.e. May 17, 2020 at about 8:30 (we started from Nagpur at 3:30 IST) one of my friends asked if she could drive and insisted to do so as I had driven for the entire journey (I usually dont let people drive my car). Before any of the readers post any hateful comments about women being terrible drivers, I would specifically like to put it out there that I genuinely dont subscribe to this idea and I trusted my friend in this case because I had taught her how to drive that too in Kate and she had been occasionally driving Kate for the past 2 years and I was comfortable with her driving. After my friend took the wheel at about 9:30 - 11:00 IST, 60 kms from Raipur in Sankara Village in Chhattisgarh the car lost balance due to a jerky steering input at a reasonably high speed (I can only guess this could be the reason as the roads were very good and empty). After losing control the car crashed into the divider and flipped approximately four times (as stated by the bystanders), I think I felt it was three, before coming to a halt with the car upside down. The point of first impact (with the divider) was separated by about 150 meters where my car actually landed (up-side down). Fortunately, due to good luck, great build quality of a JDM and gods grace all the occupants escaped with minor scratches (the ones we got while crawling out of the car). All three of us later travelled back to our homes with the help of the drivers father (yes we were that close to the destination) where we got a detailed body check up done just to be sure. The car was later towed by Honda roadside assistance (yes I had this policy on a 9 year old car) to the nearest service centre i.e. GK Honda, Raipur. GK Honda assessed my car and prepared an estimate of Rs. 10,75,000 to fix the car as they made a recommendation to change all my body panels along with the usual airbags (replacing the airbags alone is Rs. 1,63,542) and radiator etc. Naturally, the insurance company wrote my car off as a total loss (I will elaborate on this in a separate post, I have genuinely learned a lot from this entire journey). Given the backdrop and my intent to preserve the car for an eternity, I really wanted to get the car back to working, but, spending Rs.10.75 lakhs would be a financial suicide. Fortunately, I have got a second (and a substantially cheaper) shot at retrieving my car as a salvage car dealer has agreed to retrieve the car as he can source most of the spare parts from scrap yards across the country and basis his assessment he was also of the view that none of my cars body panels were in that bad a shape that it required complete replacement, he said a mere denting and painting would do the job (please refer to the pictures and let me have your views on the same. So I have entered into a contract with him that hed fix my car (for an amount not exceeding my insurance settlement) and if and only if I like it (I will also get a paid Honda assessment done prior to deciding and will specifically get the ABS unit, Airbag unit and the general balance related issues checked) will I take the car back. If I dont retain the car the salvage dealer would procure my salvage car for Rs. 1,00,000 from me (of which he has already paid an advance amount of Rs. 75,000). In light of the aforesaid I would like to seek your views on: (a) Whether I should engage myself in this adventure or should I steer clear of this entire circumstance and stay happy with my insurance settlement? (if your answer no I would request you to kindly reason it out because clearly, I am not thinking from my brain here so a little reasoning could help a fellow Team BHPian). (b) If anyone has had an experience of buying a salvage car or repairing a totalled car, please let me have your experience so I could fairly gauge what I may be signing up to A lot of people who have zero depreciation insurance get their car fixed even though the car is totalled and it is a common practice in such circumstances, please let me know if you have faced any specific issues with such cars. (c) What are the things I should specifically check while taking delivery of my car? (d) I have always heard about the pre-judice people have against accidental cars (in the second-hand market), is it because of the superstitions or theres a legit reason to it? While answering the aforesaid questions (or any one), I request you to consider the same in the present facts and circumstances which is: (a) I have an emotional connect with my car and I would love to have her back (remember how Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean) totalled his McLaren F1 twice and still managed to sell the car for $12.2 million and how Elon Musk sold his almost totalled McLaren F1 for a profit, before you point it out no I wont monetize my car and yes to me it is a McLaren F1); and (b) I am extremely critical about how my car drives, I tend to pick up the minutest of noises/issues and get the car fixed, it can be evidenced by the fact that I changed 4 shock absorbers, engine mounts, alternator, 4 tyres, ball bearings for all four wheels, steering pump, steering hydraulics pipes and the AC Compressor (both the units) all within the last 6 months (so may car did feel pretty new actually). Thanking you in anticipation. Below are the pictures for your assessment. Hello everyone, this is Aroop (a fairly recent addition to Team-BHP). At the outset, I would like to thank the community for sharing their Gyaan on the machines we love, it has truly been a delightful experience to read some of your experiences with cars. That said let me jump straight into my story with my pre-worshiped 8th Generation Honda Civic 1.8 v AT. I graduated from law school in 2017 and as a graduation gift from my parents (more like a negotiated position for not buying me a bike during my law school days) zeroed in on a brand new Honda City (petrol) to keep their end of the promise. However, like a lot of the 90s kids it was a dream of mine to set my foot and be a proud owner of an 8th generation Honda Civic (which honestly, in my opinion, is the only true JDM which has ever set foot on our shores (I am consciously keeping the GTR out of this)).Given the backdrop, the choice was clear, I had to listen to my heart and be an Adarsh Balak (by not looting my parents of so much money), I set out my search for the one, 8th Generation stock (I like it that way) Honda Civic 1.8V manual, preferably in pearl white (historically all the cars in my family are white and I like it that way). Mumbai was a great place to search for a pre-worshiped Honda Civic and I did come across a lot of copies of the 8th Generation Honda Civic but a vast majority of them were plagued with steering hydraulics issues, suspension failure (I was willing to live with this as this was easy to fix), transmission issues, CNG kits (like what were they thinking) and mods executed in bad taste. My search for a good example of an 8th Generation Honda Civic lasted longer than expected or to my liking (you would be surprised to see how abused Honda Civics could be). After almost 6 months of this exercise, to look for a good example (yes I am very picky about the wheels that I drive), I finally came across a decent (thats the best I could do in 6 months) example of a stock 8th generation Honda Civic 1.8 V AT and it was love after rigorous scrutiny. Before you point out I had to settle for an automatic because this was the best example of over 50-60 civics I had assessed.After finally getting my [teen realistic] dream car in my garage, it was almost like a love affair between me and my car. The car was an absolute gem and a pleasure to drive, I would only drive it over the weekends as my office was only 200 mts from where I stay and I would usually cab my way around Mumbai (if at all to go for meetings etc.) as (a) parking could be a major headache in fort and BKC area; and (b) I consider myself too passionate to be driving a car in Mumbais traffic.These two years of Kates (I used to call her that) companionship was an absolute breeze, even though Kate was no exception to, among other things, steering hydraulic failure or suspension failure (which were very expensive to fix) which cropped up within 1.5 years of ownership, it was nevertheless a pleasure to drive. Actually, a perfect example to summarise my driving experience was a review of the 8th generation Civic by CNBC whereby the host had made a comparison of the 8th generation Honda Civic to the 2009-2013 Honda City and had stated as follows:Given my family owns a Honda City 2009-2013 (of course in white) and I had taken my driving lessons on it and probably wouldve clocked about 20k on the odo, I knew the exact difference in the high-speed experience both the cars offer (as rightly pointed by CNBCs host). For all the readers who are contented with a Honda Citys, Hyundai Vernas high-speed performance, you have to absolutely drive a Honda Civic. The 8th Generation Honda Civic actually shines at high 3-digit speeds, with the way it sticks to the ground and the confidence it inspires at such speeds. I mean I used to be quite happy with my Honda Citys high speed performance (actually I still am) but the Civics performance is some other thing, I mean apart from the high speed runs in my Honda City, I would consciously avoid pushing the City too much not because it is unstable at such speeds because somehow it doesnt feel as planted as the Civic. All that said, I dont endorse high speed driving and have made such runs on pre-researched stretches of the Mumbai-Pune expressway (which also happens to be the only decent road in the whole of Maharashtra).In 2 years of my companionship with Kate, I gathered about 32,000 kms on the Odo which I am very proud of given I only used to drive it only during the weekends (I typically have 80-90 hour work week, I am a corporate lawyer), this 32,000 kms included trips (sometimes multiple) to most of the attractions of the Western Ghats and Aravalli Range, Daman, Telangana, Goa, Gujarat, Silvassa and Diu. Although the car was 9 years old, it never felt its age and my original plan was to keep using the car as a daily driver until the commissioning of the Mumbai- Delhi expressway in 2022, as I intended to drive the entire stretch on my Civic as a tribute to all the joy Kate brought to my life, following which I would have shipped the car off to Odisha (my home town) where I intended to preserve the car forever (thats where I have preserved all my firsts and honestly 30-40 years down the lane I firmly believe the 8th Generation Civic will turn some heads).All was hunky-dory until recently when I decided to fulfill my dream of driving from the west coast to the east coast of India (Mumbai-Bhubaneswar). So, me and two of my friends embarked on this mega drive across the country on May 16, 2020 (after having done my research on the route to be taken and after procuring all the permits to cross Chhattisgarh and enter Odisha). We halted the night at Nagpur and I slept in the car before restarting (didnt want to take the risk of booking a hotel due to the ongoing pandemic). Next day morning i.e. May 17, 2020 at about 8:30 (we started from Nagpur at 3:30 IST) one of my friends asked if she could drive and insisted to do so as I had driven for the entire journey (I usually dont let people drive my car). Before any of the readers post any hateful comments about women being terrible drivers, I would specifically like to put it out there that I genuinely dont subscribe to this idea and I trusted my friend in this case because I had taught her how to drive that too in Kate and she had been occasionally driving Kate for the past 2 years and I was comfortable with her driving. After my friend took the wheel at about 9:30 - 11:00 IST, 60 kms from Raipur in Sankara Village in Chhattisgarh the car lost balance due to a jerky steering input at a reasonably high speed (I can only guess this could be the reason as the roads were very good and empty). After losing control the car crashed into the divider and flipped approximately four times (as stated by the bystanders), I think I felt it was three, before coming to a halt with the car upside down. The point of first impact (with the divider) was separated by about 150 meters where my car actually landed (up-side down). Fortunately, due to good luck, great build quality of a JDM and gods grace all the occupants escaped with minor scratches (the ones we got while crawling out of the car). All three of us later travelled back to our homes with the help of the drivers father (yes we were that close to the destination) where we got a detailed body check up done just to be sure. The car was later towed by Honda roadside assistance (yes I had this policy on a 9 year old car) to the nearest service centre i.e. GK Honda, Raipur.GK Honda assessed my car and prepared an estimate of Rs. 10,75,000 to fix the car as they made a recommendation to change all my body panels along with the usual airbags (replacing the airbags alone is Rs. 1,63,542) and radiator etc. Naturally, the insurance company wrote my car off as a total loss (I will elaborate on this in a separate post, I have genuinely learned a lot from this entire journey).Given the backdrop and my intent to preserve the car for an eternity, I really wanted to get the car back to working, but, spending Rs.10.75 lakhs would be a financial suicide. Fortunately, I have got a second (and a substantially cheaper) shot at retrieving my car as a salvage car dealer has agreed to retrieve the car as he can source most of the spare parts from scrap yards across the country and basis his assessment he was also of the view that none of my cars body panels were in that bad a shape that it required complete replacement, he said a mere denting and painting would do the job (please refer to the pictures and let me have your views on the same. So I have entered into a contract with him that hed fix my car (for an amount not exceeding my insurance settlement) and if and only if I like it (I will also get a paid Honda assessment done prior to deciding and will specifically get the ABS unit, Airbag unit and the general balance related issues checked) will I take the car back. If I dont retain the car the salvage dealer would procure my salvage car for Rs. 1,00,000 from me (of which he has already paid an advance amount of Rs. 75,000).In light of the aforesaid I would like to seek your views on:(a) Whether I should engage myself in this adventure or should I steer clear of this entire circumstance and stay happy with my insurance settlement? (if your answer no I would request you to kindly reason it out because clearly, I am not thinking from my brain here so a little reasoning could help a fellow Team BHPian).(b) If anyone has had an experience of buying a salvage car or repairing a totalled car, please let me have your experience so I could fairly gauge what I may be signing up to A lot of people who have zero depreciation insurance get their car fixed even though the car is totalled and it is a common practice in such circumstances, please let me know if you have faced any specific issues with such cars.(c) What are the things I should specifically check while taking delivery of my car?(d) I have always heard about the pre-judice people have against accidental cars (in the second-hand market), is it because of the superstitions or theres a legit reason to it?While answering the aforesaid questions (or any one), I request you to consider the same in the present facts and circumstances which is:(a) I have an emotional connect with my car and I would love to have her back (remember how Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean) totalled his McLaren F1 twice and still managed to sell the car for $12.2 million and how Elon Musk sold his almost totalled McLaren F1 for a profit, before you point it out no I wont monetize my car and yes to me it is a McLaren F1); and(b) I am extremely critical about how my car drives, I tend to pick up the minutest of noises/issues and get the car fixed, it can be evidenced by the fact that I changed 4 shock absorbers, engine mounts, alternator, 4 tyres, ball bearings for all four wheels, steering pump, steering hydraulics pipes and the AC Compressor (both the units) all within the last 6 months (so may car did feel pretty new actually).Thanking you in anticipation. Below are the pictures for your assessment. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by Aditya : 1st August 2020 at 22:15 . Reason: High-speed references edited. Thank you! Despite some members of his own party calling for him to step down from his leadership positions, Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan says he is not stepping down. Experts in Illinois politics and public corruption said if the powerful Chicago Democrat were to give up his leadership roles, there would be political chaos. Madigan was implicated three weeks ago in ComEds deferred prosecution agreement, which the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois released earlier this month. The utility agreed to pay a $200 million fine for its role in a bribery and patronage scheme designed to curry favor with Madigan allies in exchange for favorable legislation for the Exelon subsidiary. Madigan has denied wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime. Some members of Madigans own caucus called for the speaker to step down from his leadership positions. He has been Speaker of the House in Illinois for all but two years since 1983. He has been chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois since 1998. Longtime Illinois politics observer Kent Redfield said if Madigan were to no longer hold the role of Speaker or head the Democratic Party of Illinois, he would lose a lot of political power. The reason that labor unions and other groups give him huge amounts of money in his political committee is that he transfers it to these committees that he controls that he can spend without limit, Redfield said. Madigan is chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois, the Democratic Majority fund, the 13th Ward Democratic Org and the Friends of Michael J. Madigan fund. Those organizations control a total of $22 million in campaign cash that Madigan can move around heading into the November election. Madigan got more than $500,000 in campaign funds in one day Tuesday and could transfer that to other candidates or use it pay for other things, such as legal fees in the ComEd patronage scandal. Madigan has previously used campaign funds to cover legal expenses. Fraud and corruption expert David Parker with Saint Xavier University said even if Madigan were to no longer hold such positions, he could still wield political influence. Think about the number of cases where you had big crime bosses that were running things from federal prison, Parker said. Just because hes out of power doesnt mean he doesnt have any power or influence. Redfield said there would be political tumult if Madigan were no longer in power. Losing that position of authority creates a huge power vacuum and there really is no immediate successor, Redfield said. There would be huge competition. Black caucus, progressive caucus. It would be chaos in terms of House Democrats. Parker said in that vacuum, there could be a struggle for control of the party and its campaign money. And what methodology will they use to get there, Parker said. Theres going to be some backroom dealing and wheeling and dealing going on there as well. A young student reads a letter to Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong in a protest by a regional unit of the environmental group Climate Strike against Samsung affiliates' coal investments, held in front of a Samsung Electronics Service Center in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. / Courtesy of Climate Strike's South Gyeongsang Province chapter By Kim Bo-eun Amid ongoing protests by environmentalists, Hanwha Investment & Securities and Korea Investment & Securities joined with Samsung Securities to give up additional coal investments in Australia. Regarding the specifics of the decision, Hanwha and Korea Investment officials said Monday the cancellation of the scheduled investments was because of evidence that coal-related businesses lack substantial growth potential. Hanwha and Korea Investment purchased 250 billion won in debt in Abbot Point Terminal. The two local brokerages were known to have discussed refinancing with India's Adani Group worth 210 billion won, sources familiar with the issue said. The latest updates regarding the terminal investment came as Samsung Securities is facing a possible boycott of its electronics products by local environmentalists over its affiliates' coal investments, after civic movements in Australia led its brokerage unit to vow not to make any more of these. A regional unit of Climate Strike staged a protest recently in front of a Samsung Electronics service center in the city of Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province. Members expressed plans to boycott the products of the electronics giant if other Samsung affiliates do not suspend coal-related investments. Samsung Securities invested in the construction of a terminal through which coal from the Carmichael Mine is to be shipped overseas. The coal mine in Queensland, under development by Indian conglomerate Adani, is the one of the world's largest mine development projects. Environmental organizations in Australia have fiercely opposed the project, citing the level of carbon emissions that coal production at the mine would generate, as well as additional harm to the surrounding ecosystem. Earlier, Samsung Securities purchased the $120 million-in-debt Abbot Point Terminal with three other Korean brokerages, but stated earlier this month it would halt additional investments after a civic group vowed to boycott Samsung Electronics products. The photo shows a poster with the names of Samsung's insurance, construction and trade units. It reads: "Samsung, suspend coal investments." / Courtesy of Climate Strike's South Gyeongsang Province chapter The General Overseer of Mount Zion Faith Global Liberation Ministries, Bishop Abraham Udeh has warned the Southeast against insisting on... The General Overseer of Mount Zion Faith Global Liberation Ministries, Bishop Abraham Udeh has warned the Southeast against insisting on producing Nigerias next president. Udeh warned that an Igbo presidency would either be overthrown by the military or killed. Speaking with journalists in Nnewi, Anambra State over the weekend, Udeh said he saw the impending doom spiritually. He urged Southeast politicians to channel their enemy towards the actualisation of Biafra rather than Igbo presidency. Stressing that the Southeast wont be allowed to rule Nigeria, Udeh warned that Boko Haram insurgency and insecurity would be intensified if an Igbo man becomes Nigerias president. He said: An Igbo man might become president in 2023, but he would either be killed or overthrown by the military. I saw that situation in the spiritual realm and warned the Igbo personalities warming up for the 2023 presidential election to have a rethink and rather channel the energy and resources to Biafra actualization. It is a sealed deal that an Igbo man will never be allowed to rule Nigeria. According to how it was revealed to me, an Igbo man, after much pressure to rule, may be allowed to become president but shortly after, insecurity, including Boko Haram insurgency and banditry, will be intensified to discredit such president. This is coming at a time when a coalition of Igbo Groups had asked Gen. T.Y Danjuma (rtd) to rewrite history by supporting a Nigerian president of Igbo extraction in 2023. Actor Sushant Singh Rajputs father, KK Singh, has released a video statement saying that he had alerted the Mumbai Police on February 25 that his sons life was in danger. In a self-made video, Singh was quoted as saying by ANI, On Feb 25, I informed Bandra Police that hes in danger. He died on June 14 & I asked them to act against people named in my Feb 25 complaint. No action taken even 40 days after his death. So I filed FIR in Patna. WATCH | Sushants fathers video message; says culprits are fleeing Earlier, the lawyer representing Sushants father, Vikas Singh, said during a TV interview that the family told Bandra Police about their concern that the actor was surrounded by people they didnt trust. What has been most distressful for the family is that what was Mumbai Police doing all this while? The family has been saying as early as 24 February 2020, when Sushant was still alive that he was surrounded by people whom they dont trust and there could be some danger to him. And then when he died, the family says that please look into the people who were controlling him. No investigation against Rhea was started, she was given a clean chit, Vikas Singh said. However, while briefing the media on Monday, Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh said the family didnt raise any suspicion when the city police recorded their statements on June 16. At that moment, they didnt raise any suspicion neither they complained about any lapse in our investigation, Singh was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajput had bipolar disorder, was taking medicines for it: Mumbai Police Commissioner Sushants father has lodged an FIR against actor Rhea Chakraborty and her family members and Patna Police under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including abetment to suicide, last week. A four-member special investigation team from Patna Police has also started a parallel investigation into the actors death. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918 Follow @htshowbiz for more SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Chinese entrepreneur behind TikTok took ample precautions when he set out to straddle the tech worlds most treacherous divide: the one separating Chinas tightly controlled internet from the rest of the planet. He made TikTok unavailable in China so the video apps users wouldnt be subject to the Communist Partys censorship requirements. He stored user data in Virginia and Singapore. He hired managers in the United States to run the app and lobbyists in Washington to fight for it on Capitol Hill. None of that counted for much in the end. With TikTok now negotiating a sale to Microsoft under intense pressure from President Trump, who said on Monday that he was giving the go-ahead to such a deal, the digital wall between China and the United States is proving to be higher than ever at this moment of widening conflict between the two countries. Only this time, it is the U.S. government, not Chinas, that is putting up the barricades an escalation that could foretell an even more restrictive time for companies in both nations. A man wears a shirt promoting TikTok at an Apple store in Beijing, China, on July 17, 2020. (Ng Han Guan/AP Photo) Microsoft Should Divest From Skype, Bing Before Buying TikTok: Trump Adviser Microsofts involvement with China puts in jeopardy its possible purchase of TikTok from China-based ByteDance, White House adviser Peter Navarro said Aug. 3. President Donald Trump plans to ban TikTok from the United States because of national security and privacy concerns, but he may allow a U.S. company such as Microsoft to buy TikTok, a video platform, from its parent company. While Microsoft may be based in the United States, its actually a multinational company with links to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Navarro argued. Besides being among the American tech companies that helped the CCP set up its internet censorship, known as the Great Firewall, Microsoft continues to operate its Bing search engine and Skype video chat platform in China. So, the question is, is Microsoft going to be compromised? Navarro asked during an appearance on CNN, pointing to a doctrine put forth by Chinese leader Xi Jinping that essentially states that any company, foreign or domestic, must hand over information or data thats requested by the CCP. White House adviser Peter Navarro speaks to reporters outside the West Wing in Washington on July 3, 2020. (Erin Scott/Reuters) Whose software does the Peoples Liberation Army in China run on? Microsoft. The Chinese Communist Party, whose software do they use to do all the things they do? Its Microsoft, Navarro said. So, this is not a whitehat company thats an American company. Its clearly a multinational company thats made billions in China, that enables Chinese censorship through things like Bing and Skype. If Microsoft wants the TikTok deal to go through, executives might want to divest from China, Navarro added. Microsoft declined to comment on Navarros recommendation, instead referring to an announcement made by CEO Satya Nadella on Aug. 2. Nadella said he spoke with Trump, while Microsoft and ByteDance are in discussions about TikTok that are expected to be completed by Sept. 15. Among other measures, Microsoft would ensure that all private data of TikToks American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the United States, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred, the company said in a statement. Trump announced last week that he would ban TikTok through an executive order. He also said at the time that he wouldnt support an American company buying TikTok. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella during a tech summit in Bangalore, India, on Feb. 25, 2020. (Manjunath Kiran/AFP via Getty Images) TikToks top employee in the United States, general manager Vanessa Pappas, responded in a video message on Aug. 1, telling users: Were not planning on going anywhere. The idea of having an American company buy TikTok has garnered some bipartisan support. A US company should buy TikTok so everyone can keep using it and your data is safe. This is about privacy. With TikTok in China, its subject to Chinese Communist Party laws that may require handing over data to their government. A safe way must be found for TikTok to continue, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a statement on Aug. 3. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is among the Republicans who support the proposed deal. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said over the weekend that the president will take action on apps linked to the CCP in coming days, highlighting the national security risks. These Chinese software companies doing business in the United States, whether its TikTok or WeChat, there are countless more are feeding data directly to the Chinese Communist Party, their national security apparatus, Pompeo said. Ivan Pentchoukov contributed to this report. Where does the rain go? The rain, that falls on your house, where does it end up? Does it make it all the way to the sea? These were questions asked by a young student at John McCrae Public School in Guelph back in the late 1970s, a time when many a recess was spent watching the water flow down the Speed River adjacent to his elementary school. One day, vowed little Jeremy Shute, hed follow that winding route from the Speed all the way to the ocean. That is, if a boat could make it. As a teen, this born explorer spent many weekends searching for underground creeks, poking about in culverts around his childhood home near the University of Guelph, then drawing secret little maps of the buried waterways. Jeremy had read the popular book and seen the subsequent NFB film Paddle to the Sea, by Holling C. Holling, which tells the tale of a northern Ontario Indigenous boy who carves a boat, weights it down with lead to keep it upright and sends it downstream in the spring. Paddle floats across Lake Superior, the Great Lakes, the St. Lawrence and finally arrives, after a spirited journey, at the Atlantic Ocean where a lighthouse keeper plucks him from the waves pounding the shore. Paddle to the Sea is the dream young Jeremy kept tucked in his back pocket. Some 40 years later, this modern-day voyageur is living out his watery quest. And he has company his wife, Leslie Howarth, and sons Kofi, 23, and Nigel, 19 for an incredible journey the family calls Speed to Sea. In two-week stints each summer, the family is using local waterways as their travel corridor, seeing just how far they can go from their backyard. They are travelling by canoe, camping shoreside along the way. The adventure, which is expected to take roughly 15 weeks in total, spread over eight summers, launched one early August morning in 2017 when they loaded a couple of canoes into the river in front of the Boathouse, where the Speed and the Eramosa meet in Guelph. A small group of friends and family cheered from the bridge above as the crew pushed off in search of an ocean. Basically, you just go straight on the Grand out to Lake Erie, then make a hard left for the ocean, says Jeremy. All the streams and lakes and rivers flow to the sea eventually. At first, this voyage was really just the dream of Jeremy, a planner, geographer and cartographer who is a managing partner in the Guelph consulting firm Shared Valued Solutions, where he works on behalf of Indigenous groups on development projects and community planning. With his enduring fascination with rivers, Jeremy was also the chair of the City of Guelphs River Systems Advisory Committee for many years. His family played support team, buoying him up. But it has become a shared dream, says Leslie, a Guelph midwife. She has been there for every stroke on what she calls a very challenging labour of love. Jeremys brother, Jason, and Leslies brother, Frank, have joined them in kayaks for most of the route, while Emma, the couples oldest daughter, cheers the family on from home in Guelph. I never thought wed actually do it, says Kofi, who is studying forensic science at Trent University. Now I absolutely need to see it through to the ocean. I wouldnt miss a day. It is a true team effort with Jeremys parents, Anne and Jim Shute, functioning as landlubbing support crew, shuttling their car to and fro, plus dropping off supplies and the occasional cold drink en route. Anne Shute even hand-sewed all the spray skirts for the canoes. It is exhausting, paddling all day then constantly setting up house, says Leslie. We are all really in it together, looking out for each other my boys are looking out for me. Its so nice. In addition to intense family bonding and many friendships formed along the way, Jeremy is looking to understand and learn more about our watershed by experiencing it up close and personal, even sampling water quality as the ecological and industrial environments change shoreside. The route takes them through cultural geographies, histories of Indigenous and settler relationships, Canadian/American geopolitics, industrial developments, cities, dams and canals, not to mention some pretty rough waters. Jeremy spent years concocting grand plans on how to make the journey. Id build canoes from scratch, a 20-foot Mikmaq canoe! Id make a movie. Id been mapping out all these possible routes. Finally, I realized it was simple just get in the damn boat and float downriver. In the end, Jeremy set an arbitrary deadline: the journey would begin when he finished restoring two canoes donated by a friend. This was no small feat the canoes were rotting and needed to be stripped down to the skeleton. But it was an express route to getting intimate with his vehicles. Each leg of the trip, the canoes are blessed with a traditional smudge (a ceremony practised by Indigenous peoples) to mark the start of their journey, burning the Shutes homegrown sweetgrass. From there, the ritual is simple, Hit the water around 7, paddle, paddle, paddle until you are hungry, go as far as you can, then set up camp wherever we land. Averaging about 25 kilometres a day, three legs have taken the family down Guelphs Speed River and on several portages around the many dams along the Grand, setting up camp on any flat land they could find. Then we went along the north shore at the east end of Lake Erie, down the Niagara River and stopped just above the Falls well, you can imagine, Jeremy says. This would be the biggest portage of the journey. Due to high winds and rough waters of Lake Erie, the next two summer outings would take the paddlers south of the border so as to avoid Lake Ontario, crossing the Niagara River to Buffalo, and down to Tonawanda to join up with the Erie Canal. After several weeks, they made it to Oswego Canal, emerging at Lake Ontario. They paddled one day on Lake Ontario into Mexico Bay where the journey was to pick up this summer. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has prompted a detour. Due to travel restrictions, the family will skip ahead to Kingston, planning to start paddling down the St. Lawrence River on Aug. 20. They will double back to complete the New York state section when the U.S. border reopens. This is not a wilderness adventure we are on, Jeremy says. It is a mostly urban voyage on the watershed. We are seeing all these places with so much history and hearing stories from the people we meet along the rivers. Stories like those shared by Carolyn King, who met the family at Six Nations in Brantford, where they stopped for two nights to make some much-needed repairs to the boats after bashing around the many dams and shallow stretches along the wiggly Grand. King, the former chief of Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation and the first woman ever elected chief, is working with Bata Shoe Museum on the Moccasin Identifier Project (moccasinidentifier.com). Apparently, people used to identity each other by the unique moccasins they wore, says Jeremy. Using stencils of moccasins, King works with school groups to imprint these images on the ground in places significant to First Nations, providing a continuous reminder of Indigenous land. King, honouring the Shute familys quest, stencilled an Ojibway and a Seneca moccasin on their canoe, the First People who had paddled the waters long before. One of the canoes also has the name Uncle Barry written in marker across the bow. This came later, in year three, as a tribute to Jeremys uncle who was diagnosed and then died from cancer. People are confused looking at us at first, but once they hear about what we are doing they have been so, so friendly, says Leslie. Like the stranger walking his dog riverside in Paris. He guided the family through the woods to a flat square of grass beside a ball diamond at the Optimist Park. This would be bed for the night. Thats also where they met a girl walking her pet snake the next morning. And the woman who brought the hungry travellers a bag of oranges after finding them barricaded behind picnic tables under a shelter after a stormy night; and the kids from a canal day camp bringing them coffee. There were also the dozen police officers who swarmed the family carrying their canoe above Niagara Falls. Somebody must have called thinking we were going to run the falls! We were just getting a family portrait portaging the falls as a laugh, says Jeremy. Upon hearing the story, the police huddled in to join the portrait. Kofis best overnight memory was camping right on the break wall at the Welland Canal, a kilometre out from shore. That was amazing! These huge ships passing right next to us. Then there was the lockmaster who spotted the daring family shooting down the middle of the Niagara River. Our speed was easily double on the Niagara, says Jeremy. When the paddlers met the lockmaster two days later at their first lock in the Erie Canal, he told them he had spotted them from his home through his binoculars and felt concern at first. Then he noted their life jackets and equipment and knew they were serious about it. The life vests never come off, Leslie notes, even when it is scorching out. Thats a wise approach considering the family has encountered pretty rough waters. In Lake Erie, for example. The lake can look as flat as a mirror, then suddenly be as rough as an ocean with whitecaps at shore. They capsized twice, both times right at shore. It was crazy, waves breaking over the stern. We went down the first day, dad and Nigel the next, remembers Kofi. The family suffered no injuries, just wet gear and a dampened spirit. A family was picnicking on their front lawn sipping cold drinks watching the whole ordeal. Didnt offer a hand, we were just the water show, Leslie says, laughing. It was a trade-off getting out of Lake Erie and bypassing what was expected to be equally rough waters in Lake Ontario. The family would spend 20 days paddling the Erie Canal through Buffalo, Rochester and over to the Oswego to get them to the east end of Lake Ontario. It was pretty depressing at times, says Leslie, as Kofi nods in agreement. Water so dirty you couldnt even put your hand in it. ... There was so much dust and slime and grit. The only reprieve was the fantastic echo the walls of the canal provided. Jeremy, who had brought his trumpet along to practise at night, blasted forth through the cement chambers to spur on his team. When the family finally surfaced from the hollows of the canals they were greeted like dignitaries in the historic town of Oswego, the largest American port on Lake Ontario. A Guelph friend had given a heads-up of their arrival to an Oswego contact. We were basically given the key to the town free admission to the marine museum, a locked facility to camp, showers, and we went out to a Mexican restaurant for dinner with the boating club. Oswego had been an early trading post, United loyalists had crossed here, it was part of the Underground Railroad where African Americans escaped to Canada, and the port was key during the War of 1812. In fact, it was from here the Americans set sail to burn down the City of York (now Toronto). This whole trip has been a huge history lesson for all of us, says Jeremy. That very last morning of last years excursion, escorted by members of the Oswego kayak club, the family paddled out onto Lake Ontario. Leslie remembers it as one of the most incredible sunrises, a lake looking like glass We were feeling so so good. Having checked the weather reports thoroughly, the family never expected the huge swells that hit them out on the lake. Kofi threw out his shoulder, the rest of the family exhausted themselves as they headed for shore. It was a good reminder of who is in charge, says Jeremy. Water has tremendous power. Weve had the privilege of being a part of the flow, learning about it intimately. Like how the water changes the world around you; how people have changed the shores and flow. And how people want access to the water but once they get access, they dont want anyone else to have access. For this summers trip on the St. Lawrence, Jeremy is in the process of getting his marine radio certificate so he can communicate with the big boats out on the seaway from his canoe convoy. There will be challenges, but it is one of the prettiest stretches, weaving through the Thousand Islands. Hopefully all those people who say they want to join us finally will, Jeremy says. He says he even invited Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. If not by boat, friends and fans can follow along as Jeremy chronicles the journey on his Facebook and Instagram pages, Speed to Sea. I cant promise you a set route or tell you how far well get. We are just going to let the waters be our guide. The St. Lawrence runs 1,400 kilometres. Who knows how far you may go, who knows how far youve come, narrates the storyteller in the last line of the book, Paddle to the Sea, that once inspired young Jeremy. But that secret is known only to you and the boy who dreamed a dream and made him one winter long ago. Follow the Shutes Jeremy Shute posts photos and stories on social media during their paddling trip. Follow along on Instagram: speed_to_sea and on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/speedtosea Read more about: Former vice-president Atiku Abubakars position on Nigerias foreign debt has been vindicated and President Buhari must apologise to him and Nigerians. The Atiku Media Office made the demand in a statement Sunday. The statement was entitled: Loans: Buhari, APC Owe Nigerians An Apology: Please Read: Two months ago, the former Vice President of Nigeria and PDP Presidential candidate in the 2019 election, Atiku Abubakar patriotically called the attention of the country to the reality of reckless borrowing by the present APC administration and how the terms of those loans could compromise the future of the country. Expectedly, some managers of the party and even the government denied the allegations that he raised and also discount the warning for caution. But, regrettably, just last week, a cabinet minister confirmed our fears. Now, we all are aware that Nigerias sovereignty may have been traded for foreign loans and God forbids our inability to service those loans, the lender country would take ownership of choice infrastructure on the Nigerian soil. No negotiation could be weaker than that! Nigeria had a total foreign debt stock of $7.02 billion on May 29, 2015. Today, our foreign debt is $23 billion and rapidly rising. Debt, by itself, is not a bad thing. But debt budgeted for such unproductive ventures, like the proposed $500 million upgrade of the Nigerian Television Authority and other sundry bogus contracts, is debt that leads to death. To trade Nigerias sovereignty for this type of profligacy is the height of irresponsibility! Atiku Abubakar has long advocated for a more robust engagement of the private sector and promotion of foreign direct investment as sustainable alternatives through which government could fund infrastructure development. But on the contrary, the Nigerian government under the banner of the All Progressives Congress threaded the direction of looking for cheap foreign loans in exchange for the sovereignty for Nigeria. Recall that former President Olusegun Obasanjos administration initiated a National Privatization Programme with the sole objective of ensuring that the private sector took some measure of influence in social investment portfolio and, in some instances, provided funding for infrastructure development. There was nothing in that plan that traded Nigerias sovereignty for some cheap loans which, in the light of unfolding revelations of sleaze in some departments of government, would have ended in private pockets. The government of the day and the APC must apologize to Nigerians and make an admittance of guilt for taking the country through the throes of subjugation to another country. Related Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. suggested Monday that an investigation into President Donald Trump ranges far beyond disguised payments to alleged mistresses prior to the 2016 election. As part of a continuing fight to obtain eight years of Trump's personal and business tax records, Vance's prosecutors asserted in court documents Monday that their grand jury subpoena was issued at a time when the Trump Organization was at the center of "allegations of possible criminal activity ... dating back over a decade." Trump's attorneys have long sought to quash the subpoena issued to the president's accounting firm, Mazars USA, claiming in part that the request was too broad for an inquiry largely focused on payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels (Stephanie Clifford) and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who claimed affairs with Trump before he was elected. But in the new court filing Vance's prosecutors said the argument by Trump's lawyers is based on a "false premise that the grand jurys investigation is limited to so-called 'hush-money' payments." Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., and Assistant District Attorney Joan Illuzzi leave court in New York after Harvey Weinstein was sentenced on March 11, 2020. "In light of these public reports of possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization, there was nothing facially improper (or even particularly unusual) about the Mazars subpoena, which (was) issued in connection with a complex financial investigation," the prosecutors wrote. The battle for Trump's tax returns and financial records has raged on since the Supreme Court ruled last month that the president lacks immunity from criminal investigation, paving the way for Vance to resume an effort to obtain the documents. Supreme Court: Trump cannot keep tax, financial records from prosecutors Trump's claim of absolute immunity faced skepticism from many of the justices during oral arguments in May, with Chief Justice John Roberts noting that the court had previously allowed former President Bill Clinton to be sued by a former employee. Story continues Jay Sekulow, Trump's attorney, argued that allowing the Manhattan prosecutor to obtain the president's financial records would empower some 2,300 local district attorneys in the country, most of whom were elected, to target sitting presidents for political purposes. Carey Dunne, general counsel for the Manhattan DA's office, rejected the argument, noting that the subject of the investigation Trump Organization is based in New York City. Later Monday, Trump described the filing as a continuation of a "witch-hunt." Since the Supreme Court decision, the fight has moved to a New York federal district court where the president filed new papers, claiming that the request was issued in bad faith. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and his family, from left, son Donald Trump Jr, son Eric Trump, wife Melania Trump and daughters Tiffany Trump and Ivanka Trump prepare to cut the ribbon at the new Trump International Hotel Oct. 26, 2016 in Washington, DC. The hotel, built inside the historic Old Post Office, has 263 luxury rooms, including the 6,300-square-foot 'Trump Townhouse' at $100,000 a night, with a five-night minimum. The Trump Organization was granted a 60-year lease to the historic building by the federal government before the billionaire New York real estate mogul announced his intent to run for president. Contributing: Kristine Phillips and Richard Wolf This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump investigation goes beyond hush money, Manhattan DA suggests The first set of crew members comprising the technical team, directors, cinematographers, production designer , music director and assistants of Gaurang Doshi Productions multi-starrer web series 7th Sense have arrived in Dubai. The popular Bollywood producer, Gaurang Doshi is all set to shoot two star-studded web series in the UAE, the first of which is 7th Sense that will start filming from August 20 as the actors and other crew members are all scheduled to arrive in UAE by mid-August. Moreover, Dubais leading 5-star fashion hotel, Palazzo Versace, Jaddaf Waterfront has come onboard as Hospitality Partner and would be playing host to the Bollywood stars and crew of the series for the entire duration of their stay while some parts of the series may also be shot at this luxurious property. With the finest actors of the industry such as R Madhavan, Ronit Roy, Chunky Pandey, Ameesha Patel, Prateik Babbar and Tanuj Virwani amongst other powerful artists, the big ensemble murder mystery promises to be captivating with a riveting plot and gripping screenplay, keeping viewers on the edge while bringing out your inner detective. The next web series Line of Fire comprises of two seasons and once again boasts of superstars such as Prakash Raj, Jimmy Shergill, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Tanuj Virwani, Vijay Raaz, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Kabir Singh, Sana Saeed, Manu Rishi and Tanvi Azmi. I am very thrilled and excited as the action has began and particularly thankful to the UAE Government for making the process so seamless. UAE has done a marvellous job in controlling the spread of the virus and has become an inspiration for the world. Our team would also be taking all the precautionary measures as directed by the authorities to ensure utmost security and safety of the crew, commented Doshi. This would indeed be the first web series from Bollywood to be entirely shot in UAE and ours is the first crew in the world to begin shooting at this scale. Bringing together such a stellar star cast after 5 months of lockdown is nothing short of creating history and we are proud of achieving this big milestone. Everyone in the team is super excited to start shooting again and very happy to be back at work, added Doshi. Welcoming the collaboration with Gaurang Doshi Productions, Monther Darwish, Managing Director, Palazzo Versace, Jaddaf Waterfront, Dubai said: It would be a great pleasure for us to host the Bollywood stars and team of the web series at our luxury property and we are truly looking forward to be their host for the next 8-months. The entire cast and crew for both the web series consist of over 100 members while the illustrious crew of 7th Sense also features prominent actors like Elli AvrRam, Aashim Gulati, Sana Saeed, Ahsaas Channa, Dibyendu Bhattacharya, Sajjad DelaFrooz and Manuj Sharma alongside the big stars. Audiences would have never seen something of this magnitude in a web series till date, with such a mega star cast, super spectacular UAE locales, glamorous sets, a fascinating plot and everything presented magnificently, the murder mysteries will not only intrigue and excite but will create history, added Doshi. 7th Sense is being directed by Karan Darra, the story and screenplay is by Gibran Noorani whereas Nagaraj Rathinam is the Director of Photography, Sandip Shelar is the Production Designer and Charan Pathania will give the music and the background scores .The prep work for second web series, Line of Fire, the espionage fast-paced action thriller, will also begin simultaneously with that of 7th Sense. The big budget web series are produced under the patronage of His Excellency Suhail Mohd. Al Zarooni,an Emirati businessman,Guinness World Record holder and Ambassador at Large, Dubai. Furthermore, Madhu Bhandari is the co-producer; Amey D Nargolkar and Munir Awan are the associate producers, whereas Parag Parekh and Ronak are the financial advisors for both the web series. -- Tradearabia News Service She's been presenting her own cooking show since the tender age of 13. But Tilly Ramsay's dream of getting out of the kitchen and onto the dance floor for this year's Strictly has been scuppered by the teenager breaking her arm. The presenter, 18, is currently sporting a pink cast on her left arm after taking a tumble off a seesaw last week. Swings and roundabouts: Gordon Ramsay's daughter Tilly, 18, has scuppered her chance to compete in this year's Strictly by breaking her arm The third child of celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, 53, took to her Instagram stories to share a snap of herself sat at the kitchen table with her injury held aloft. The cheeky star poked her tongue out and gave the camera a wink in the post captioned 'I fell off a seesaw, how's your day going?' Tilly's playground mishap couldn't have come at a worse time for her as rumour has it she was set to compete in the next series of Strictly Come Dancing in October. The Matilda and the Ramsay Bunch presenter would have been the youngest contestant in this year's lineup of the BAFTA winning show. Fatherly love: Tilly, the third child of foul-mouthed celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay took to her Instagram stories to share a snap of herself sat at the kitchen table with her injury held aloft Tilly would have been the youngest signing for this year's series, which is due to begin filming in Autumn with a number of social distancing measures in place. A source told the Sun on Sunday: 'Tilly was geared up for this year's show but won't be better in time for filming.' The source revealed that Tilly was 'hugely excited' about taking part, while BBC bosses felt the connection to her famous father would boost the show's ratings. Like father, like daughter: Gordon, 53, with Tilly on This Morning with for a regular segment called Big Chef, Little Chef. They continued: 'And it's a headache for BBC bosses, who thought signing Tilly was a coup, with her famous dad and his pals bound to back her.' While there were initial talks about Tilly still competing if she was healed by October, this has been advised against by the student's doctors. The source added: 'She's been assured next year talks will resume if she is still up for taking part.' Masterchef: Tilly, who is the third of Gordon's four children who he shares with wife of 24 years Tana Ramsay, has become a successful TV chef in her own right, with her own cookery book MailOnline has contacted the BBC and Gordon Ramsay's representatives for comment. Tilly, who is the third of Gordon's four children who he shares with wife of 24 years Tana Ramsay, has become a successful TV chef in her own right. In 2017 the blonde star brought out her own cookery book called Tilly's Kitchen Takeover 'with 1 or 2 helpful hints from Dad!' Ms Ramsay has been co-presenting a This Morning segment called Big Chef, Little Chef with her father since 2018, but the pair have recently branched out into TikTok. Gordon has joined Tilly for a number of fun viral videos together, attempting the latest dance crazes or cooking together. Having made 29 videos on the platform to date for their six million followers, the Ramsay family are said to earn a whopping 4,900 per post. In May, the celebrity chef thrilled fans as he filmed his take on the Flip The Switch challenge, which saw him change into Tilly's white dress. In the video Gordon is in the midst of preparing another delicious dish ahead of another Instagram Live with his daughter, whose real name is Matilda, and begins to sprinkle pepper into the pan. The scene suddenly cuts to black, and when it returns Gordon is wearing his daughter's white frilled dress, while Tilly wears his red hoodie. Amusing: Gordon and his daughter Tilly, 18, have taken part in a number of fun viral videos together, attempting the latest dance crazes or cooking together Fun: In May, the celebrity chef thrilled fans as he filmed his take on the Flip The Switch challenge, which saw him change into Tilly's white dress Gordon captioned his post: 'How @tillyramsay and I prepared before today's live.... #fliptheswitch #tiktok.' While in March, the duo once again showcased their funny side as they performed the 'juice, sauce and a little bit of dressing' TikTok dance. Having mastered the routine, which at the time had garnered 2 million views, Gordon joked the food-themed dance could inspire some new recipes as millions around the world self isolate. This is the shocking moment an illegal motorcycle race ended in tragedy when a roadside spectator was hit by an SUV in the Dominican Republic. The horrific incident occurred Sunday as two young men were prepping to race each other on a stretch of President Joaquin Balaguer Highway that connects the provinces of Santiago Rodriguez and Valverde. Several individuals could be seen in the video holding up traffic as an individual filmed the start of the tragic race from an SUV behind the bikers. Pictured above are two participants of an illegal motorcycle race in the Dominican Republic that left bystander Juan Infante dead after he was struck by a car who was speeding behind the bikers while a passenger filmed the tragic moment Juan Infante (top right) tried to run across the highway before he was fatally struck by a car during an illegal motorcycle race in the Dominican Republic Subsequently, the bikers accelerated down the highway as the passenger filmed while the SUV accelerated behind them. The driver of the car suddenly changed lanes before he struckJuan Infante, 35. From a distance Infante and at least two other males are seen standing near the highway median guardrail. The impact of the accident sent Juan Infante (circled) to the opposite side of the highway. Infante died at the scene A passenger films the two participants of an illegal motorcycle race in the Dominican Republic. The vehicle he was traveling in struck a man who was standing next to the highway media guardrail, killing him on the spot Infante, for unknown reasons, wandered onto the road before he was struck and sent flying in the air, landing on the opposite side of the highway. 'I killed him,' the driver is heard saying in the video after he came to a full stop. The male passenger who recorded the race urges him to flee before he replied, 'how?' 'You gotta move fat [boy],' the passenger chimed in before the driver complained about his SUV being damaged as smoke started to fill the interior of the vehicle. No arrests had been reported as of Monday evening. "Dont sell your soul for a pile of soybeans," warned US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo a year ago, when Australian foreign affairs and defence ministers met their United States counterparts. This Kansas front porch advice deserved to be imbibed with caution. Within five months, the US was pumping six times more soybeans into the Chinese market than in the same period last year. The US has opened fire against China with sanctions and technology bans. But President Donald Trump and his cabinet treat as inviolable their phase one trade deal with China, signed in January. China is reported to have approved 40 US and Brazilian meat processors to send beef to Chinese markets even as four Australian abattoirs get locked out. Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Washington on July 27. Credit:AP That the US might get Australia all hot and bothered about China and then slip into our markets may be one factor in Marise Payne and Linda Reynolds drawing a line or two in our vassalage. No, we would not use Pompeos language implying an open-ended crusade against the Chinese Communist Party. And no, we would not become the only US ally to run patrols within the 12-nautical mile radius of Chinese structures in the South China Sea, even though we reject the claims. Iran, which is already in fighting two wars - one with the US imposed sanctions and other COVID 19, has again hit the headlines. According to media reports Iran is covering up deaths. The data leak reportedly revealed that the number of deaths from coronavirus in Iran is nearly triple what Iran's government claims. The government's own records appear to show almost 42,000 people died with Covid-19 symptoms up to July 20, versus 14,405 reported by its health ministry. Not only death cases, but dissimilarities could also be seen in the number of people infected is almost double official figures 451,024 as opposed to 278,827. Read:Iran Estimates It Has 25 Million Coronavirus Infections This fresh revelation came after data leak in media. According to sources Data was sent to media by an anonyms source It includes details of daily admissions to hospitals across Iran, including names, age, gender, symptoms, date, and length of periods spent in hospitals, and underlying conditions patients might have. Sources have made this data open to put light on truth and end Political Games. Read: Iran's Rouhani Says A Wedding Party Contributed To New Surge In COVID-19 Cases Health Ministry under pressure? According to reports, Doctors from Iran told media that the Iranian health ministry has been under pressure from security and intelligence bodies inside Iran. They are in a mode of denial, initially, Health ministry did not have testing kits and when they got, they were not used widely enough. The security services were not admitting the existence of contagious COVID 19 in Iran. Read: Iran's Stock Market Hits Record High Amid Battered Economy On August 1 Iran witnessed the highest daily spike in the number of infections in nearly a month, with cases on the first day of August exceeding 2,600, according to the country's health ministry. Currently, Iran has more than 300,000 confirmed cases and 17,190 deaths which makes it one the top most affected nation. Iran had relaxed restrictions in mid-April after the number of infections declined, but some restriction was reimposed in the capital city of Tehran last month to stop the spread of the virus. (Image Credits: AP) Read: Pilgrims Perform Last Rites Of Islamic Hajj In Mecca (TNS) If there was ever a good time to convince people guaranteed income can make a difference, Stockton, Calif., Mayor Michael Tubbs figured it'd be in the middle of a pandemic that is taking a heavier toll in poor neighborhoods and among Black and Latinx communities.So Tubbs, whose city has been at the heart of one of the nation's few experiments with free cash payments for more than a year, launched Mayors for Guaranteed Income last month to push for federal policy. So far, the mayors of Oakland, Los Angeles, Compton, Atlanta and 13 others have signed on."In the worst way, the pandemic has been a really good moment for guaranteed income," said Sukhi Samra, executive director for Stockton's privately funded program, the Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration. "It exposed the economic fragility of most American households, and especially of Black and brown households who have been excluded from economic well being and prosperity."COVID-19's devastating economic toll already has pushed legislators across the congressional floor to rethink unconditional income, from Republican Sen. Mitt Romney calling for widespread cash payments to every American adult to Democratic Sens. Kamala Harris, Ed Markey and Bernie Sanders proposing $2,000 monthly payments to those with incomes lower than $120,000 for the duration of the pandemic. As lawmakers across the country craft emergency relief policies and disburse cash benefits, many are finding that Stockton's guaranteed income experiment has a lot to teach.Stockton begain providing 125 of its 310,000 residents with monthly payments of $500 back in February 2019. SEED research highlighted the lack of faith in public and private institutions that often characterize marginalized cities like Stockton, whose majority minority population was hit especially hard by redlining and segregated housing policies. In 2012, Stockton became the then-largest city to file for bankruptcy in American history.Overall, recipients have spent the most on food and report lower levels of anxiety, program researchers have found."What can $500 really do? The answer is a whole lot," said Amy Castro Baker, assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania and co-researcher on the SEED program. The median income of Stockton's recipients is $1,800 a month, so SEED payments represent an increase of almost 30 percent."The $500 allowed essential workers and whole families to be able to shelter in place and follow public health guidelines," Castro Baker said. "It's allowing them to weather a public health crisis because they're able to provide the basics. And they wouldn't have been able to otherwise."That focus on those most vulnerable to economic insecurity is what differentiates Tubbs' vision from wider calls for universal basic income. Famously advocated by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., UBI implies unconditional monthly payments to all Americans, whether they work or not. In 2016, the startup incubator Y Combinator funded a basic income study that was supposed to evolve into a full-fledged pilot project in Oakland, but it never materialized.Tesla founder Elon Musk and startup founder Andrew Yang, who ran his 2020 presidential campaign on a UBI proposal, have also championed the idea as a potential solution to future job automation.With guaranteed income, however, not everyone necessarily receives money. In Stockton, only residents living in neighborhoods with a median income below the city's $46,033 a year were eligible. In that way, Samra said, guaranteed income pilots are a way to offer reparations to the communities most affected by institutional racism. Within Stockton's poorer neighborhoods, recipients were chosen randomly.Many oppose guaranteed income projects, saying they deter people from working. Rob Lapsley, president of the California Business Roundtable, called it an "easy way out" of addressing existing problems with California's complex web of public benefits, which he says is inefficient.Aside from a few who left a second or third job, Samra said, there's been no indication the monthly payments have stopped recipients from working, a trend she says is reinforced by existing research. But she recognizes guaranteed income isn't a silver bullet."It has to be coupled with other social safety nets like fair housing practices," she said.The main argument against basic income, however, is cost, particularly for state and local governments already facing coronavirus-linked budget shortfalls. Stockton's $3.8 million two-year program, which includes research and staff, is funded by private organizations and philanthropic donors.Last month, barely two payments away from the end of the project, SEED said it received enough philanthropic backing for a six-month extension."By then, I'll be just about totally debt-free," said Virginia Medina, a recipient and retired correctional facility worker. "It's going to be a good feeling."Now, 16 mayors from across the country are pushing for similar federal programs. Mayors for a Guaranteed Income doesn't require concrete policy commitments from participating mayors, but Oakland's Libby Schaaf already took it a step further by pledging to start Oakland's own pilot program if private funding materializes."If there's one silver lining to this pandemic," Schaaf said, "it's that policymakers are more open to transformative changes like guaranteed income." NEW YORK, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Turnspire Capital Partners LLC ("Turnspire"), a special situations-focused private equity firm, announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the Goodyear air springs business ("Goodyear Air Springs" or the "Company") from EnPro Industries, Inc. (NYSE: NPO) ("EnPro"). Goodyear Air Springs, under a global and exclusive license from The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company and headquartered in Fairlawn, Ohio, is a leading provider of premium air springs for trucks, trailers, buses, and specialty vehicles. Founded by The Goodyear Rubber and Tire Company in 1957, Goodyear Air Springs has over 60 years of technology leadership. The Company is a preferred partner to original equipment manufacturers ("OEM") and trucking fleets across North America and globally. Upon closing, an affiliate of Turnspire will acquire all the assets of Goodyear Air Springs, including full brand licensing rights, technical and R&D center in Fairlawn, all manufacturing facilities, all intellectual property, all real estate in the U.S. and Mexico, and all personnel. "We look forward to continuing the Goodyear Air Springs legacy as an independent company by leveraging an extensive product portfolio and bringing innovative technology solutions to leading OEM partners and aftermarket customers," said Turnspire Partner Abel S. Osorio. "Turnspire will build on the foundation of its legendary brand name, unparalleled reputation for quality, best in class reliability, and superior service. Our agreement to acquire Goodyear Air Springs is the culmination of a highly integrated diligence process in which we utilized Turnspire's extensive experience executing corporate carve-outs, and knowledge of the transportation and manufacturing industries, to deliver speed and certainty to EnPro." Turnspire looks forward to partnering with the Goodyear Air Springs management team to further solidify itself as a market leader in the air springs category by deploying Turnspire's operational capabilities and investment in equipment, people, and processes. David Brinkman, Goodyear Air Springs' general manager for EnPro will continue to lead the business as CEO under Turnspire's ownership. Mr. Brinkman said, "Turnspire is an excellent fit for our people and technology. The team's highly relevant experience, commitment to operational excellence and significant financial and strategic resources will enable Goodyear Air Springs to accelerate its growth and invest in technology that benefits our customers. We look forward to working with Turnspire to build on our established reputation in the industry for the best quality, innovation and service." The transaction is expected to close following the satisfaction of customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, including in Mexico. Chapman & Cutler LLP served as legal counsel to Turnspire. About Turnspire Capital Partners Turnspire Capital Partners invests in high-quality businesses that have reached strategic, financial or operational inflection points and stand to benefit from our hands-on, operationally focused approach. Turnspire's investment philosophy is predicated on creating value through operational improvements rather than through financial leverage. Turnspire strives to make each of its companies best-in-class in their respective industry niches, and subsequently to grow the businesses through organic initiatives or strategic acquisitions. For additional information, please visit www.turnspirecap.com. About EnPro Industries EnPro Industries, Inc. is a niche provider of precision components, solutions, and services with a well-diversified customer base. For more information about EnPro, visit the company's website at http://www.enproindustries.com. CONTACT: Mark Semer Kekst CNC 917-439-3507 SOURCE Turnspire Capital Partners LLC Related Links http://www.turnspirecap.com Vietnam is fast emerging as an international production hub for medical gear and PPE COVID-19 has been the doom of many a production sector. However, some have been put into a favourable position and have been rising to prominence to attract great flows of foreign investment. One of these sectors is medical mask and PPE production, an area where Vietnam is now recognised as a reputable supplier. Matsuoka Corporation, one of 30 companies that have just received support from the Japanese government to leave China, has decided to move operations to Vietnam. According to NNA Business News, a representative of Matsuoka Corporation said that the corporation will pour around $28 million into An Nam Matsuoka Garment Co., Ltd., a Vietnamese subsidiary, to set up a new facility to produce protective wear and other items in the coming months. Matsuoka Corporation established the subsidiary in last November, before the COVID-19 outbreak, as part of the corporation's plan to diversify production locations in Southeast Asia (supplementing existing production in Indonesia, Myanmar, Bangladesh). The new factory of An Nam Matsuoka Garment is based in VSIP Nghe An and is the fourth facility of Matsuoka Corporation in Vietnam, after the ones in Phu Tho, Bac Giang, and Binh Duong provinces. In the 2018 fiscal year (ending in March 2019), the corporation's revenues from Chinese factories made up 60 per cent of its total overseas income, while Bangladesh and Vietnam contributed 25 and 10 per cent, respectively. At the end of 2019, company spokesperson Michihiro Fukagawa said that the upcoming factory in Vietnam is expected to decrease the revenue contribution from China to 50 per cent by March 2021. He also highlighted that Vietnam is a major location for garment production for export to Japan and China. Recently, JETRO announced the list of Japanese businesses which will receive aid to leave China. Most of those specialising in producing protective gear and health products like Able Yamauchi, Showa International, Techno Global, Hashimoto, Nikkiso, and Matsuoka Corporation are choosing Vietnam as their new destination. According to the General Department of Vietnam Customs, as of June 2020, Vietnam exported 557 million medical masks to the US, the EU, Japan, and South Korea. Catching up with the new trends and the increasing demand of domestic and overseas markets, a lot of local businesses have been purchasing modern machines to make high-quality products, matching the requirements of the US and the EU, and offset a part of their losses from the global health crisis. Along with its initial success in preventing and controlling the novel coronavirus, Vietnam is emerging as a reputable source of medical equipment, drawing in foreign investors to produce PPE and medical gear. The Marine Corps has identified eight Marines and one sailor who died after their amphibious assault vehicle sank during a July 30 training exercise in the Pacific. The AAV, which sank after taking on water while training with other assets belonging to the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit in the vicinity of San Clemente Island, had 16 troops aboard in total. One Marine, Lance Cpl. Guillermo Perez, 20, of New Braunfels, Texas, was pronounced dead at the scene, then taken by first responders to Scripps Memorial Hospital in San Diego, officials with I Marine Expeditionary Force said Monday in a news release. Read Next: Marine Corps Plan to Ditch Tanks Could Burden the Army, Experts Say While seven other troops were rescued and two subsequently hospitalized, eight more remained missing. On Sunday, following a massive search-and-rescue effort involving Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Corps vessels and aircraft, the Marine Corps announced that the troops were presumed dead. The missing include: Pfc. Bryan J. Baltierra, 19, of Corona, California Lance Cpl. Marco A. Barranco, 21, of Montebello, California Pfc. Evan A. Bath, 19, of Oak Creek, Wisconsin U.S. Navy Hospitalman Christopher Gnem, 22, of Stockton, California Pfc. Jack Ryan Ostrovsky, 21, of Bend, Oregon Cpl. Wesley A. Rodd, 23, of Harris, Texas Lance Cpl. Chase D. Sweetwood, 19, of Portland, Oregon Cpl. Cesar A. Villanueva, 21, of Riverside, California All the Marines, including Perez, were riflemen with Bravo Company, Battalion Landing Team 1/4, assigned to the 15th MEU. Gnem was a hospital corpsman assigned to the same unit. The injured include a Marine rifleman with Bravo company and a Marine assault amphibious vehicle crewmember with Mechanized Company, BLT 1/4, who were not identified by name, according to the I MEF release. Both were taken to Scripps Memorial Hospital and were initially in critical condition; the AAV crewmember has been upgraded to stable condition. Recovery efforts are ongoing for the lost troops. The Marine Corps has also suspended all AAV water operations as officials investigate the cause of the deadly mishap. -- Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck. Related: Search Ends for 7 Marines and 1 Sailors in California AAV Mishap Bismah Malik By Express News Service BENGALURU: Tech giant Microsoft on Sunday announced that it is planning to acquire TikTok businesses in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The statement comes after Trump indicated that he would sign an executive order banning TikTok in the US over data privacy concerns arising from the possibility of user data being stored outside the country. Microsoft, meanwhile said that the dealwhich analysts peg at $50 billionis expected to close no later than September 15, 2020. Microsofts interest in acquiring 100 per cent of these TikTok units follow Microsoft CEO Satya Nadellas recent discussions with Trump. Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the Presidents concerns. ALSO READ | If not sold by September 15, TikTok 'out of business' in US, says President Donald Trump It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury, the company said in its Sunday statement. The US is the third largest market for TikTok in terms of revenue, generating $86.5 million (19 per cent of total revenues), according to a report from market intelligence firm Sensor Tower. In terms of downloads, US was the third largest market, behind India and China at over 160 million. Both Microsoft and TikTok parent company Bytedance had earlier sent a notice of their intent to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to explore a potential purchase of Tik Tok in the US besides several other countries. Microsoft said it is also seeking investments from other American groups. The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries. Among other measures, Microsoft would ensure that all private data of TikToks American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the United States, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred, it added. TikTok however, continues to deny all allegations over privacy concerns. Negotiation in progress Microsoft and Bytedance earlier sent a notice of their intent to explore a potential purchase of TikTok in the US to a committee. Mumbai: Mercedes-Benz, which rolled out a souped up version of its popular compact sedan CLA Class on Wednesday, said demonetisation has not really impacted sales as yet although it has lowered footfalls at dealerships. "In the medium to long-run, demonetisation is a very positive step as it will definitely take out a lot of black money in the system. "From a sales point of view, of course there is less footfalls at the dealerships as customer sentiment has taken a hit. But I am not worried about it at all as I hope by Christmas, things should get clearer," Mercedes-Benz India MD & CEO Roland Folger said. He further said, "Demonetisation, GST are not going to impact our business plans here. But having said that, we have not finalised our 2017 plans yet as there is no clarity at all on anything now. Probably, we will get clarity when the rates are finalised and there is more clarity on implementation side." Explaining why he is not bothered about the impact of demonetisation, he said, anyway more than 95 per cent of sales are financed and there is negligible cash payment happening at the Mercedes dealers' end. But yes, sentiment has been impacted which does not mean there is a crisis situation now. Folger also said, the CLA is the 12th product from the the company this year, but the firm will be launching one more model this year as against the original plan of 12 models. However, he did not name the new model. The new CLA is the ninth model to be manufactured by the company at its Pune plant and the fourth model to be added to the local assembly line this year-after the GLS 400, GLE 400, and the GLC 220 class. The company had launched the first model of the CLA in January 2015 and in eight months time, its local production from Pune, making India the only other market outside Europe to do so. The new CLA Class comes in four variants - two each in diesel and petrol, with engine capacity of 1.99 litre to 2.14 litre, and the ex-Mumbai price ranges from Rs 31.40 lakh to Rs 43.68 lakh. While the stylish new CLA 200 d Style is priced at Rs 31.40 lakh, CLA 200 d Sport comes at Rs 34.68 lakh and the CLA 200 Sport is priced at Rs 33.68 lakh. Describing the CLA Class as a landmark in automotive design, Folger said the car carves out a niche for itself with its sporty style and interiors. He added that the new model, being rolled out from the Pune plant is ready for sale at dealerships from today. Folger said the CLA remains one of the best sellers in the new generation cars portfolio of Merc and underlines the compact sedan's popularity, especially amidst the younger generation. For all the Latest Business News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. The Founder and Flagbearer of the Ghana Union Movement (GUM) has said God has sent him to rescue the country from the claws of the two major political parties, Reverend Christian Kwabena Andrews. He said since the return to democratic rule in 1992, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) were the only parties at the helm of affairs, plunging the country from one crisis to another instead of steering the wheels to development. Mr Andrews, also known as Osofo Kyiri Abosom, who was speaking during his visit to the Ketu South Municipality to introduce himself and the Parliamentary Candidate for the area to Chiefs said Ghanaians, especially the youth, who suffer the most from the mismanagement of state resources must give him and GUM, a chance in the 2020 elections for the desired change. We're going to revive all the factories and all the good policies our first President Dr Kwame Nkrumah initiated to make Ghana a prosperous country. I am not a politician but a man of God, who has been sent to deliver Ghana from NPP and NDC and I'll never betray you. The Founder and General Overseer of the Life Assembly Worship Centre in Accra said it was unfortunate that Ghana with all her natural resources such as gold and bauxite remained a poor country with the majority of the citizenry living in penury. He pledged to leverage on a free port for Ghana, industrialisation, improvement in agriculture production, among others to turn the country's fortunes around for prosperity for all and generations to come if given the nod on December 07 to be the President of Ghana. General Joseph Nunoo-Mensah, former Chief of Defence Staff of the Ghana Armed Forces, who was part of the GUM delegation to pay separate visits on Paramount Chief of Aflao and Dufia of Nogokpo on Saturday, endorsed the party saying, it was a good party determined to bring Ghana back on the track to development. Mr Williams Amuzu Agbodzalo, the Regent of Torgbui Saba, Dufia of Nogokpo cautioned politicians against fanning tribal sentiments. He said instead of causing divisions, governments must make efforts to bring the citizenry to hold hands in the true spirit of brotherhood as envisioned by Dr Kwame Nkrumah at the time of Ghana's independence for the good of all. Torgbui Amenya Fiti V, the Paramount Chief of Aflao, said the country needed the participation of true men of God in politics to ensure sanity in the way the running of the country. ---GNA By Akira Tomoshige and Hideto Sakai IGA, Japan (Reuters) - The mystique of Japan's once-feared covert warriors, spread by films and fiction, is embodied today in the world's first winner of a master's degree in ninja studies, who also grows his own crops, just as many of his predecessors did. The modern black-clad ninja is Genichi Mitsuhashi, 45, who says he realised that ninjutsu, or ninja arts, held the key to survival after he was held up at gunpoint during a stay in Brazil at the age of 19. "You are allowed to use weapons or make use of your enemy's body," Mitsuhashi said, describing how he was drawn to learn about ninjas. "You can use anything you need in order to survive. It's based on reality. It's liberating and flexible." Mitsuhashi is the first of seven enrolled students to finish a two-year programme on ninja history, traditions, fighting and survival techniques, complete with two days of fieldwork, launched in 2018 by Mie University, southwest of Tokyo. While Hollywood movies give the fighters superhuman abilities to run on water or suddenly vanish, many of them, when not on espionage missions, lived as humble farmers, secretly honing their skills through farm chores. Like the ninjas of old, who sprang from peasantry in feudal times, Mitsuhashi grows his own rice and vegetables. He runs an inn in Iga, a small city traditionally known as the home of many ninjas, while teaching martial and ninja arts at his own dojo, offering aspirants a taste of a tradition some experts fear could die out entirely because of scarce talent. "We shouldn't pick one aspect, but should aim to learn their way of life," Mitsuhashi said of ninjas, as he swung a wooden sword. "This includes self-defence, a sustainable lifestyle...I think we should aim for a comprehensive way of life, and we should learn this from ninjas." (Writing by Ju-min Park; Editing by Clarence Fernandez) The history book will show that David E. Daniel was the third president at Midland College, but those who knew him best and those who worked side by side with Daniel to help advance the colleges mission have so much more to say. Daniel died on July 23 after an extended illness. Since then, the Reporter-Telegram has heard from community, college and political leaders about the man who led Midland College to new heights during his 17 years. Davids commitment to higher education has forever left an impact on the Midland community, said Tom Craddick, Midlands state representative and the longest-serving legislator in Texas history, in an email. His legacy will live on for many generations. If a mans legacy is Did he leave a place in better shape than he found it, then Daniels work truly speaks for itself. Under Daniel the third of four presidents in the colleges history the institution boasted a 50 percent increase in enrollment -- to around 6,000 students, according to MC. His other institutions include: --establishing the Midland College Advanced Technology Center; --establishing the Cogdell Learning Center serving south and east Midland; --acquiring the Petroleum Professional Development Center in downtown Midland; --developing the MC Williams Regional Technical Training Center in Fort Stockton, which later became the colleges only branch campus; --creating the Davidson Distinguished Lecture Series and the Phyllis and Bob Cowan Performing Arts Series; --expanding the footprint of the main campus to include the Jack E. Brown Dining Hall, the Dorothy and Todd Aaron Medical Science Building, the Leona G. and John E. Fox Science Building, the F. Marie Hall Academic Building, three residence halls, a new maintenance facility and the Dollye Neal Chapel; and -- increasing the schools endowment from around $3 million to $32 million. In other words, Midland College expanded its offerings, its reach in Midland and around the region, its options for students, its value to the community and its relevance in Midlanders lives. Dr. Daniel was a zealot for community colleges and often said that a student successful at that level could then be successful at any four-year educational institution, stated David Smith, the former executive director of the Abell-Hanger Foundation, in an email to the Reporter-Telegram. As evidence of his transformative nature, the depth and scope of educational offerings at Midland College increased dramatically during his tenure. Additionally, he saw Midland College as an asset of the entire community which supported it and not merely for the students attending there. The Davidson Distinguished Lecture Series and Cowan Performing Arts Series are prime examples of that. While Daniel was a state and national leader in community colleges serving as chair of the American Association of Community Colleges and president of the Texas Association of Community Colleges -- his goal wasnt for Midland College to be just another junior college or community college but the premier institution of higher learning in the region and a place that met the needs of the community and its residents. The college noted that in establishing the Advanced Technology Center, Daniel and school leaders created a place that provides state-of-the-art education and training in technical applications, health sciences entry level professions, safety training and workforce skills to high school students, college students and employees of Permian Basin businesses. Professionally, David will be remembered for the 17 years he dedicated to establishing Midland College as one of the premier community colleges in the nation while weaving the school into the fabric of our community, Congressman Mike Conaway said in a statement. Daniels accomplishments are as long as the famed Midland College circle drive. Current Midland College President Steve Thomas, the schools fourth president, took over the reins following Daniels departure in 2008. He spoke of Midland College as a national leader among community colleges but also that his desire is to carry-on a tradition of excellence handled so well by his immediate predecessor. David Daniel gave 17 years of service to Midland College and the Midland community, Thomas said in a statement. He garnered tremendous community support for Midland College. Maybe that community support and respect for Midland College was exemplified most in 2005. That is when Midland College put its second-ever bond before the voters. The result was 69.51 percent of voters approving the bond and a nearly landslide victory of nearly 40 percentage points. Community leaders also remember Daniel for the leader he was -- the staunch advocate, community builder, and incredible visionary. He had a deep and full understanding of the Biblical call for personal generosity This charismatic president, with his intelligence, sharp wit, physical presence and booming voice, created the Midland College family, said Eileen Piwetz, executive director of the FMH Foundation and former Midland College Foundation executive director. Last month, we lost more than a Midland man, community leader or school president. We lost one of Midland Colleges finest. Let those who walk the halls and travel on its grounds, remember that. What they said about David E. Daniel Midland College and the greater Midland community have lost a staunch advocate. Professionally, David will be remembered for the 17 years he dedicated to establishing Midland College as one of the premier community colleges in the nation while weaving the school into the fabric of our community. Personally, Davids friendship and sense of humor will continue on in those who knew and loved him. Suzanne and I send our deepest condolences to Dee Dee and all of Davids family and friends. He will be missed. -- Congressman Mike Conaway Davids commitment to higher education has forever left an impact on the Midland community. His legacy will live on for many generations. Nadine and I offer our sincere condolences to the Daniels family. --State Rep. Tom Craddick For 17 years, it was my pleasure to forge with Dr. Daniel a great partnership between Abell-Hanger Foundation and Midland College. Dr. Daniel was a zealot for community colleges and often said that a student successful at that level could then be successful at any four-year educational institution. As evidence of his transformative nature, the depth and scope of educational offerings at Midland College increased dramatically during his tenure. Additionally, he saw Midland College as an asset of the entire community which supported it and not merely for the students attending there. The Davidson Distinguished Lecture Series and Cowan Performing Arts Series are prime examples of that. Due to his religious background and education, David had a deep and full understanding of the Biblical call for personal generosity as well as an appreciation for the unique relationship between donor and donee. From the time of the creation of the Students in Philanthropy program at MC, he helped convey to students a duty to give back of their time, talent and resources which resulted in a positive character change in untold numbers of MC students. He influenced and changed a great number of lives, including my own, and left me much better for knowing him. Often, he concluded our conversations with this personal exhortation: Continue to Excel! I am forever grateful for his professional leadership at the college and our personal relationship. He will be greatly missed. --David Smith, former executive director of the Abell-Hanger Foundation Eileen Piwetzs tribute to David E. Daniel Well done, good and faithful servant A legendary character, Dr. David E. Daniel arrived in Midland, Texas, in 1991 to serve as the third and longest-tenured president (17 years) making Midland College a shining star within the community. He quickly adapted and came to love passionately the land, the people, the spirit and lifestyle of West Texas. Daniel was already known nationally for being an activist and staunch advocate for community colleges. He quickly embarked upon making Midland College one of the premier community colleges in the United States. An incredible visionary, Davids steady and wise leadership culminated in a 53 percent enrollment increase. A community builder, he established the Advanced Technology Center shared by the college and Midland public school students to provide an educated technical workforce; the Petroleum Professional Development Center to support the areas major industry; the Cogdell Learning Center to serve as an outreach branch in southeast Midland; and the Williams Regional Technical Training Center in Fort Stockton to reach students who are geographically isolated. David Daniel created a legacy and set a new standard for Midland Colleges fiscal future when he encouraged the Midland College Foundation Board to establish the Chaparral Circle Endowment Fund, which prevented the college from suffering from the roller coaster ride of Texas economy. Midlanders generously responded, and subsequently the Midland College Foundation held one of the top 10 community college endowments in the nation. In 2007, Dr. Daniel would thank Midland voters for passing a $42 million expansion and improvement bond for college facilities by saying, Hundreds of citizens and organizations donated time, talent and financial resources to provide the services and means to create a beautiful and functional campus which 25 years later is considered the gem of Midland. That love affair continues the union of an aggressive and caring community and a college with a mission of service for all. In addition to several new and renovated academic buildings, Daniel introduced residence halls allowing students to have a full college experience. During his tenure, the Davidson Distinguished Lecture Series and the Phyllis and Bob Cowan Performing Arts Series were established, reaching and enhancing the lives of thousands of area residents. This charismatic president, with his intelligence, sharp wit, physical presence and booming voice, created the Midland College family. He was a mentor and a master at giving the faculty and staff tremendous independence to achieve their highest levels of excellence; empowering the employees; encouraging students and staff to pursue their career goals through education; and leading by example, frequently bending over to pick up pieces of trash that had blown onto the beautiful campus. His gregarious and productive leadership yielded an exceptional and enthusiastic community college family. Well done, good and faithful servant, David!!! Rest in peace, my dear friend. Eileen Piwtez is executive director of the FMH Foundation. Workers from the Free Library of Philadelphia protested outside the home of library Board of Trustees President Pamela Dembe's home in Philadelphia on Monday. Read more Librarians raised their voices Monday morning and stopped traffic in front of the Chestnut Hill home of Pamela Dembe, chair of the Free Library of Philadelphias board of trustees, whom they called on to resign or be fired for alleged racially insensitive behavior. The protest drew about 25 mostly white library employees and seven additional Black employees, who stood across the intersection but said they were in solidarity with the larger group. It was the latest action in a campaign to bring attention to what the protesters said was years of racial inequality suffered by Black library workers. This is the only way shes going to listen to us, Perry Genovesi, a librarian at the Parkway Central facility, said in explaining why the protest was held outside Dembes home. The protesters did not step on her property, and a contingent of Philadelphia police officers stood on the sidewalk observing the peaceful protest, which lasted a little more than an hour. Dembe, who was at home, said she would not resign unless or until the board tells me otherwise. Asked if she was racist, as the protesters asserted, she replied, I hope not, but declined to address specific complaints. It was a very small group, about a dozen people, she said of the protest. They apparently want to get rid of the entire board and free Mumia. She was referring to Mumia Abu-Jamal, the political activist serving a life prison sentence for killing a city police officer in 1981. A number of the protesters noted that Dembe, a retired Common Pleas Court judge, had upheld Abu-Jamals sentence in the past. That, they said, was an example of the judges racism. The Concerned Black Workers of the Free Library of Philadelphia have tried at least four different times to get the boards attention, Genovesi, who is white, said in an interview. From the board there was radio silence, until hundreds of white workers signed a letter of solidarity. Tension between library employees and management burst into public in late June when the group released an open letter outlining their grievances. The letter said they face discrimination on a regular basis, are paid less than white colleagues, and were being asked to return to work without a plan to keep them safe from the coronavirus. After receiving no response from library president and director Siobhan Reardon, who answered to the board, the Black employees called on her to resign, a demand that was echoed by other library employees and Mayor Jim Kenney. Reardon, who had led the 54-branch library system for 12 years, announced her resignation last month. But employees expressed outrage that Dembe opposed Reardons ouster and praised her after she stepped aside. Weve decided to take this action because Judge Pam Dembe has exhibited racism, prejudice and a seemingly unquenchable thirst for power in her position as the chair of the board of trustees, Sunita Baliga, a librarian, said in an interview. She said the judge is just as guilty as Reardon of ignoring the concerns of Black employees. Kalela Williams, director of neighborhood library enrichment programming, said she was glad to see that the movement started by Black employees had grown to include their non-Black coworkers. It is necessary that all staff members are involved in what we need to do, which is to demolish the status quo at the Free Library, she said. If Pam Dembe does not step down, that would simply mean that we have the same system all over again, and we already know how that worked out. Genovesi, Baliga and other speakers used a bullhorn to argue a case they called The People v. Judge Dembe, and in the end, they found her guilty. Now is the time for justice, not arrogance. Now is the time for soul searching, not dismissive contempt. Now is the time to listen and be a fierce advocate for change, librarian Erin Hoopes said in calling on Kenney to help oust Dembe. Announcement of Periodic Review: Moody's announces completion of a periodic review of ratings of Ipoteka Bank Global Credit Research - 03 Aug 2020 London, 03 August 2020 -- Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") has completed a periodic review of the ratings of Ipoteka Bank and other ratings that are associated with the same analytical unit. The review was conducted through a portfolio review in which Moody's reassessed the appropriateness of the ratings in the context of the relevant principal methodology(ies), recent developments, and a comparison of the financial and operating profile to similarly rated peers. The review did not involve a rating committee. Since 1 January 2019, Moody's practice has been to issue a press release following each periodic review to announce its completion. This publication does not announce a credit rating action and is not an indication of whether or not a credit rating action is likely in the near future. Credit ratings and outlook/review status cannot be changed in a portfolio review and hence are not impacted by this announcement. For any credit ratings referenced in this publication, please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for the most updated credit rating action information and rating history. Key rating considerations are summarized below. Ipoteka Bank's B1 long-term local currency deposit rating incorporates its b2 Baseline Credit Assessment (BCA) and Moody's assessment of a very high probability of support from the Government of Uzbekistan (B1), which results in a one-notch rating uplift from the BCA. Ipoteka Bank's long-term foreign currency deposit rating of B2 is capped by Uzbekistan's foreign currency deposit ceiling, also B2. Ipoteka Bank's BCA reflects (1) good capital adequacy, (2) solid profitability, and (3) limited dependence on market funding. At the same time, Ipoteka Bank's BCA remains constrained by the still high, although reducing, single-name credit concentrations and modest liquidity. The bank's strengths are also moderated by the slow economic growth in Uzbekistan this year worsened by the global spread of the coronavirus which will continue to exert pressure on the bank's profitability and asset quality of all Uzbek banks. Story continues This document summarizes Moody's view as of the publication date and will not be updated until the next periodic review announcement, which will incorporate material changes in credit circumstances (if any) during the intervening period. The principal methodology used for this review was Banks Methodology published in November 2019. Please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology. This announcement applies only to EU rated and EU endorsed ratings. Non EU rated and non EU endorsed ratings may be referenced above to the extent necessary, if they are part of the same analytical unit. This publication does not announce a credit rating action. For any credit ratings referenced in this publication, please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for the most updated credit rating action information and rating history. Lev Dorf Asst Vice President - Analyst Financial Institutions Group Moody's Investors Service Limited, Russian Branch 7th floor, Four Winds Plaza 21 1st Tverskaya-Yamskaya St. Moscow 125047 Russia JOURNALISTS: 44 20 7772 5456 Client Service: 44 20 7772 5454 Yaroslav Sovgyra, CFA Associate Managing Director Financial Institutions Group JOURNALISTS: 44 20 7772 5456 Client Service: 44 20 7772 5454 Releasing Office: Moody's Investors Service Ltd. 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Kabul, Aug 3 : The Afghan government has released 317 Taliban prisoners in the past two days, bringing the total to 4,917, the National Security Council said. "Release will continue until the total reaches 5,100," TOLO News quoted the Council as saying in a tweet on Sunday. Sunday's release came after President Ashraf Ghani on July 31 ordered the release of 500 Taliban prisoners in response to the group's three-day ceasefire announcement. Ghani said the 500 prisoners would be released within the next four days. The completion of the prisoner exchange was part of the agenda of US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad's meeting in Kabul on July 29. The Taliban has also completed the release of 1,000 government prisoners as per the peace agreement it signed with the US in Doha in February. A spokesman of the group, Suhail Shaheen, said that they freed 82 prisoners on July 28, bringing the total to 1,005. President Trump addressed the TikTok sale saga again Monday, and his most recent comments seemingly lend credence to speculation that his previous threat to ban the popular social media app was a negotiation tactic to force its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to fully divest its U.S. operations. To be clear, Trump doubled down on the threat, but this time he affirmed he would be okay with Microsoft buying the app and set a deadline for a potential sale, whereas he previously suggested a ban was imminent. "I don't mind whether it's Microsoft or someone else, a big company, a secure company, a very American company buys it," Trump said. "It'll close down on Sept. 15 unless Microsoft or somebody else is able to buy it and work out a deal, an appropriate deal, so the Treasury of the United States gets a lot of money." Microsoft has confirmed it's working on a deal, but still has some negotiating to do. The Trump administration has scrutinized TikTok lately because of concerns that ByteDance is harboring American users' data and could potentially hand it over to the Chinese government down the line amid heightened tensions between Washington and Beijing. Read more at Bloomberg. More stories from theweek.com Why Obama still drives Republicans nuts The most damning inside portrait of the Trump administration yet The American leadership void Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 16:09:08|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Tourists visit a railway-themed scenic area in Xinjian Village of Ganlan Township, Dinghai District, Zhoushan, east China's Zhejiang Province, Aug. 3, 2020. In recent years, the Dinghai District authorities have devoted all-round efforts to improve sanitation and tourist appeal in its rural areas. Statistics show that villages under Dinghai District have received 1.73 million visitor trips in 2019, earning 2.431 billion yuan (348 million U.S. dollars) in tourism revenue. (Xinhua/Xu Yu) Violent crime rates have soared back to pre-lockdown levels amid fears that numbers could rise even further as lockdown measures are lifted and the economic impact of the coronavirus is felt. London Mayor Sadiq Khan said there is a 'real risk of violent crime spiking as lockdown is eased' in the capital after the pandemic sent crime rates plummeting by a quarter in England and Wales. And it appears Khan's warning should be heeded after Friday night brought carnage in London as at least three shootings took place - one reportedly involving a sub-machine gun. Last month saw 17 killings in the city - two more than July 2019. January this year saw 11 homicides in the capital, and February just seven. There were 19,104 violent crimes in June - compared to 17,264 in February and 18,569 in January. Mr Khan told The Guardian that he is concerned that 'the last decade of government austerity, where ministers decimated police and youth services causing violent crime to rise in London and across the UK' could be repeated all over again. Last month saw 17 killings in London - two more than July 2019. January this year saw 11 homicides in the capital, and February just seven. Violent crime rates (pictured) are also soaring Violent crime monthly figures for June across the West Midlands - which includes Britain's second-most populated city, Birmingham - was the highest seen in the last year London Mayor Sadiq Khan said there is a 'real risk of violent crime spiking as lockdown is eased' in the capital West Midlands police and crime commissioner David Jamieson said crime had 'bounced back' since restricting lockdown measures were relaxed. Violent crime monthly figures for June across the West Midlands - which includes Britain's second-most populated city, Birmingham - was the highest seen in the last year. A total of 8,818 violent crimes were reported in May - edging nearer to the 9,131 figure seen in January and 9,193 figure in February. Mr Jamieson fears young people - who are not working - could get involved in criminal activity due to an abundance of time or missed schooling. On Tuesday night, a man in his 50s was stabbed to death in on Camden High street. Pictured: Forensics at the scene on Wednesday Scientific advisers last week warned that serious public disorder in the coming months could 'overwhelm all attempts' to control coronavirus and 'catastrophically' undermine recovery plans. The current 'volatile and highly complex situation' means the UK will face 'grave challenges' in maintaining public order, according to a paper considered by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) in July. The academics warn that tensions resulting from the pandemic have become 'inextricably bound' with structural inequalities and international events, adding that the military should be on standby to quash a potential break down in law and order. The police are not prepared to manage a large-scale break down of public order, and the military should be on standby, the Times reported, citing the SAGE document. The report also discussed the Black Lives Matter movement that gained traction in May and early June after the death of George Floyd in the United States. On Friday, two people were reportedly shot in Hackney, London, while another two men were shot in Brixton and a third shooting took place in Croydon just yards from West Croydon station. The first shooting reportedly took place on the Angell Town estate in Brixton at about 7pm. Forensic officers were pictured collecting evidence after a reported stabbing in Harlesden in the early hours of Saturday morning Armed Police, Paramedic and Response officers rushed to the scene after reports that 17 shots were fired. The men were treated at the scene by paramedics before being taken to hospital for further treatment. Two other people were shot at a silent party - an unlicensed music event - that was being held in Mandeville street in Hackney in East London. Three men were reportedly detained by officers at Homerton hospital after they transported the victims in a blue BMW to get live saving treatment after being shot in the early hours of Saturday morning. The detained men had all been at the gathering that was held in Willington court in E5. Armed officers were scrambled to both Homerton Hospital and Mandeville Street and the hospital was put on lockdown. Police on scene after reports of a sub-machine gun shooting in Brixton on Friday night Witnesses reported seeing specialist blood and explosives detection dogs being used to search the area. Reports suggest a bullet casing and a machete were found on a bridge near the scene of the shootings. Armed officers were also called to London Road in Croydon in the early hours of Saturday morning as London saw at least its third shooting in one night. A man believed to be in his 20s was shot at close range near West Croydon station. The road was cordoned off after reports of the shooting, and a forensic examination has taken place. Police said no arrests have been made but enquiries into the shooting continue. Meanwhile, forensic officers were pictured collecting evidence after a reported stabbing in Harlesden in the early hours of Saturday morning. On Tuesday night, a man in his 50s was stabbed to death in on Camden High street. Northrook, IL -- (SBWIRE) -- 08/03/2020 -- According to the new market research report "Power Bank Market with COVID-19 Impact by Capacity (5,001-10,000 mAh, 10,001-15,000 mAh, 15,001-20,000 mAh), Units of USB Port, Indicator, Battery Type, Price Range, Application (Smartphone, Tablet, Wearable Device), and Region - Global Forecast to 2025", published by MarketsandMarkets, the Power Bank Market is projected to grow from USD 9.0 billion in 2020 to USD 13.4 billion by 2025; it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.1% from 2020 to 2025. The growth of this market is expected to be driven by the integration of advanced technology in power banks, an increase in power consumption in smartphones due to various software applications, decline in the price of power banks, and sudden shift to work-from-home & remote learning due to COVID-19 resulting in spike in demand for laptops. These factors have helped the power bank market gain traction in applications, such as smartphones, tablets, portable media players, wearable devices, digital cameras, and others. Ask for PDF Brochure: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=127595596 Lithium-ion battery type segment held the largest share of power bank market in 2019 The power bank industry, based on battery type, is led by the lithium-ion battery segment (in terms of size). The most common types of batteries in the market are lithium-ion batteries. Lithium-ion batteries have a higher energy density, i.e., they can store more electrical charge in a given size or volume, and are cheaper to manufacture because they have lower production cost and require lower maintenance than lithium-polymer battery. Factors such as high energy capacity, cheaper rate, low production and maintenance cost, and higher battery conversion rate are fueling the growth of the Li-ion battery-based power banks. The manufacturing and the consumption of li-ion batteries will be reduced more than expected in the short-term due to COVID-19 pandemic, as a majority of lithium-ion battery manufacturers are based in China. Due to this factor, the li-ion battery-based power bank market might get negatively impacted for a short duration. The market for 2 USB ports segment led the power bank market in 2019 The demand for power banks with 2 USB ports is expected to account for the largest market share during the forecast period. Factors such as charging of 2 portable devices at a time, lightweight, higher efficiency output, and cheaper rate are the factors propelling the growth of power banks with 2 USB ports. These power banks are the most preferred power banks and are manufactured by most of the leading companies such as ADATA (Taiwan), Xiaomi (China), and AMBRANE (India). Browse in-depth TOC on "Power Bank Market" 225 Tables 53 Figures 250 Pages Inquiry Before Buying: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_BuyingNew.asp?id=127595596 APAC accounts for the largest market size during the forecast period APAC held the largest power bank market share in 2019, followed by North America and Europe. The market in APAC mainly comprises developing economies, such as China and India, which have tremendous potential for power banks. Increasing demand for portable consumer electronic devices and next-generation gadgets in countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea is driving the market for power banks in APAC. The power bank market in APAC is highly competitive with the presence of established players and the entry of new market players. These players are continually upgrading their product portfolio with the launch of technologically advanced products. Anker Innovations (China), AUKEY (China), Xiaomi (China), ADATA (Taiwan), RAVPower (US), GRIFFIN (US), Lenovo (China), mophie (US), AMBRANE (India), and INTEX (India) are among the major players in this market. Related Reports: Lithium-Ion Battery Market by Type (Li-NMC, LFP, LCO, LTO), Power Capacity (0-3,000 mAh, 3,000 mAh-10,000 mAh, 10,000 mAh-60,000 mAh, above 60,000 mAh), Industry (Consumer Electronics, Automotive, Industrial), Voltage, Region Global Forecast to 2025 Control Valve Market by Material, Component (Actuators, Valve Body), Valve Size, Valve Type (Rotary and Linear), Industry (Oil & Gas, Water & Wastewater Treatment, Energy & Power, Chemicals), and Region - Global Forecast to 2025 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. Aashish Mehra MarketsandMarkets INC. 630 Dundee Road Suite 430 Northbrook, IL 60062 USA: +1-888-600-6441 Its been a rollercoaster few months for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who stepped back from their roles as senior royals and then decided to self-isolate in LA to be near Meghans mum. Then, extracts from Finding Freedom, a biography about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, were revealed last week, throwing the couple back into the spotlight. The palace has removed Meghan Markle's biography from its official website. Photo: Getty Images And now, theyve been dealt another blow, as it appears that Buckingham Palace has edited Meghan Markles bio on their official website, wiping it of certain details about the Californian royal. After marrying Prince Harry in 2018, the palace added a description of Meghans life and work to the website, alongside other royals like Kate Middleton and Sophie Wessex. There, it detailed Meghans plea to a washing-up liquid company when she was just 11-years-old, asking them to remove the sexist language they had used in their advert. It comes after Meghan and Harry said they don't trust palace staff. Photo: Getty Images It also described how at the age of 13, Meghan volunteered at a soup kitchen in LA and described her as being a 'proud feminist'. However, the palace has since deleted any mention of the above from the duchess bio, instead only mentioning where she went to school and how she acted as Rachel Zane on Suits for over 100 episodes. The palace also left in the fact that Meghan had edited her own lifestyle blog called The Tig before she met Prince Harry. Now, the landing page for the Duchess of Sussex details how she was born Rachel Meghan Markle, how she married Harry in 2018 and went on to have Archie in May 2019. RELATED: It then reads: As announced in January, The Duke and Duchess have stepped back as senior members of The Royal Family. They are balancing their time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour their duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and their patronages. Frogmore Cottage in the UK remains their family home. Story continues Meghan's details still remain on the website, however, her bio has been deleted. Photo: Getty Images A palace spokesperson claimed the move wasnt a snub and the website is merely updated on a regular basis. "The Duchess of Sussexs current biography is on the Royal website alongside other members of the Royal family, a palace spokesperson told The Sun. "You will appreciate that the website is updated on a regular basis to reflect the work and focus of members of the Royal family. "Any updates are agreed with private offices before they are made to the site." It comes just days after it was revealed in Finding Freedom - which was written by Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, who are described as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's "cheerleaders"- that the Sussexes didnt trust royal staff. Claims in the book include that: * The Sussexes felt their complaints were not taken seriously and believed other royal households were leaking stories about them to the press. * Being told to operate under Buckingham Palace's umbrella after splitting their household from the Cambridges was "a big disappointment" to the Sussexes. * The Sussexes even considered breaking protocol by springing a surprise visit on the Queen when they believed they were being blocked from seeing the monarch. Click here to sign up to our daily newsletter to get all the latest news and hacks. Or if you have a story tip, email us at lifestyle.tips@verizonmedia.com. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 16:59:04|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BISHKEK, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Over 75 percent of COVID-19 patients have recovered in Kyrgyzstan, the country's health ministry said Monday. A total of 653 patients have recovered in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of recoveries to 27,927, which equals 75.2 percent of the total number of infections, Ainura Akmatova, head of the public health care department of the ministry, told a daily news briefing. Akmatova said that the oldest patient, a 101-year-old pensioner, was discharged from hospital on Sunday after recovery. She also reported 410 new cases over the past day, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 37,129. Currently, 7,792 patients are receiving treatment in hospitals. Meanwhile, 11 deaths from the coronavirus were registered over the past 24 hours, raising the country's COVID-19 death toll to 1,420. Enditem About 210 multiple rocket launchers have already been deployed by Russian-led forces to Donbas. Ukraine's Ministry of Defense has responded to statements by certain Russian politicians about the possibility of supplying Russian weapons to occupied Donbas. "Information about the number of weapons and military equipment in the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions is available: There are 480 tanks; over 900 armored combat vehicles; about 450 guns and howitzers; about 300 mortars; about 210 multiple launch rocket systems; about 700 anti-aircraft weapons; about 450 anti-tank weapons," the ministry said in a statement on August 3. Read alsoHead of Ukrainian intelligence believes Russia to go for another military incursion in Ukraine Russia has been using all these weapons in hostilities against Ukraine, and Russian weapons have been brought through an uncontrolled section of the Russian-Ukrainian border. "Since the beginning of the aggression, these weapons and military equipment have been used not only against members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other military units, but also against the civilian population of Donbas. Therefore, if Russia wants to increase the supply of weapons, this indicates direct armed aggression and support for terrorist activities at the state level," the statement said. The ministry recalled that the Russian Federation had been waging the war against Ukraine for the seventh year in a row. Leonid Kalashnikov, chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots, previously said that Russia could start to officially supply weapons to Donbas if the United States allocated US$300 million in military aid for Ukraine. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry says that Ukraine gets technical assistance from partner states under international treaties. "And the current situation is no exception. Ukraine is grateful to its international partners for their support in the fight against the aggressor," it said. Additional Electron Beam capacity enhances Sterigenics' global leadership in sterilization solutions CLEVELAND, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sotera Health, the world's leading, fully integrated protector of global health, announced today that it has acquired Canadian-based Iotron Industries. The acquisition expands the company's electron beam (EBeam) footprint and adds new expertise to its Sterigenics business. Iotron Industries is a leading outsourced provider of EBeam sterilization in North America. With facilities in Columbia City (Indiana), Port Coquitlam (British Columbia), and Edmonton (Alberta), Iotron Industries has an outstanding reputation for customer service, technical expertise and quality performance. Iotron is well regarded for its proprietary IMPELA accelerators, which provide high powered EBeam processing for the sterilization of medical devices and a wide range of industrial applications. "Iotron Industries is a well-respected provider of electron beam sterilization known for its strong customer relationships and the expertise of its employees," said Michael B. Petras Jr., CEO of Sotera Health. "While this acquisition expands our overall sterilization footprint, it also enhances our EBeam capabilities and the strength of our offering to the market. We welcome Iotron's management and strong team as they join our mission of Safeguarding Global Health." "I am exceedingly proud of the thriving business and expert team that we have built together at Iotron, and we all look forward to accelerating our growth as part of a global leader," said Tino Pereira, President and CEO of Iotron Industries. "Iotron and Sotera Health share common values around safety, customer focus, integrity, people and a commitment to excellence. We look forward to a brighter future together." The addition of Iotron will complement Sotera Health's Sterigenics business and enhance Sterigenics' existing global, technology-agnostic sterilization platform. About Sotera Health: Sotera Health, along with its business entities, is the world's leading, fully integrated protector of global health. With over 500 years of combined scientific expertise, the company ensures the safety of healthcare by providing mission-critical services to the medical device, pharmaceutical, tissue and food industries. Sotera Health operates 61 facilities in 13 countries. The company has over 2,600 employees globally and touches the lives of more than 180 million people around the world each year. Sotera Health serves more than 5,000 customers worldwide, including 75 of the top 100 medical device manufacturers. Sotera Health goes to market through its three best-in-class companies Nelson Labs, Nordion and Sterigenics with the mission of ensuring the safety of health care each and every day. Nelson Labs offers microbiological and analytical testing and expert advisory services to assist customers in developing and maintaining sterilization solutions in medical devices, tissue/implantable products, and the pharmaceutical and biologics fields. Nordion is the world's largest provider of Cobalt-60 used in the gamma sterilization process, and Sterigenics provides comprehensive contract sterilization and ionization solutions for the medical device, pharmaceutical, food safety and high-performance materials industries. Sotera Health Holdings, LLC is owned by private equity firms Warburg Pincus and GTCR. Learn more about Sotera Health at soterahealth.com, Nelson Labs at nelsonlabs.com, Nordion at nordion.com and Sterigenics at sterigenics.com. About Sterigenics: Sterigenics, is a global leader in comprehensive sterilization solutions and advisory services. Sterigenics has over 1600 engineers, scientists and safety specialists with deep expertise across Gamma, EtO, NO2, E-Beam and X-Ray sterilization. With operations that span 45 facilities in 13 countries, Sterigenics is the "point of safe" for customers. Sterigenics is committed to Safeguarding Global Health with every product they sterilize. About Iotron Industries: Iotron Industries Canada/USA Inc. are leaders in Electron Beam processing services and equipment, with locations in Indiana, USA and British Columbia and Edmonton, Canada. Iotron's IMPELA Electron Beam Accelerators harness technology to modify the physical, chemical, molecular and biological properties of materials and products, improving their usefulness and enhancing their value. Iotron has supplied quality service to a diverse array of customers for more than 20 years. To learn more, visit www.iotron.com. SOURCE Sotera Health Related Links https://soterahealth.com New York: US President Donald Trump's latest efforts to block a grand jury subpoena for his tax returns could provide him with the immunity from prosecution that the Supreme Court has rejected, the Manhattan district attorney's office said in a court filing on Monday. The district attorney, Cyrus Vance jnr, has been investigating payments made ahead of the 2016 presidential election to two women who claimed to have had affairs with Trump several years prior, and whether any business records were manipulated in violation of New York state law. Trump, who has denied the women's allegations, has been fighting the subpoena to his accounting firm. US President Donald Trump continues to fight moves to release his tax returns. Credit:AP Vance's investigation is focused on the possibility that business records at Trump Organisation were altered in an attempt to conceal the true nature of the payments. The district attorney's filing comes as Trump's lawyers argue the subpoena is illegal, having been shut down by the Supreme Court last month in their bid to claim that, as a sitting president, Trump is immune from investigation. Veronika Tsepkalo, the wife of opposition figure Valery Tsepkalo, who was barred from running for presidency, presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and Maria Kolesnikova, Viktor Babaryko's campaign chief, pose during a press conference in Minsk on July 17, 2020. SERGEI GAPON | AFP | Getty Images The most competitive presidential election campaign in Belarus for decades has seen a wave of discontent against the eastern European country's authoritarian leader coincide with a dramatic escalation in tensions with Russia. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, 65, is seeking his sixth term in office having been in power since 1994. The opposition has united behind Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, 37, who despite initially being reluctant to stand after her husband was barred from running and jailed by authorities, ultimately decided to challenge Lukashenko. The Belarusian Electoral Commission blocked two other political rivals from being able to run against the president. One of them, Viktor Babariko, 56, was imprisoned on what his supporters say are fake charges. The other, Valery Tsepkalo, 55, fled to Russia after alleged reports from security officials suggested he may soon face arrest and be stripped of his parental rights. Voters will cast their ballots on Sunday. "It deserves attention because a similar situation in Ukraine resulted in a global geopolitical confrontation," Christopher Granville, managing director of EMEA and Global Political Research at TS Lombard, told CNBC via telephone. The President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko speaks during a visit to No 3214 Unit of the Internal Troops of the Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs two weeks before the 2020 Belarusian presidential election. Nikolai Petro | TASS | Getty Images The "big difference" between Belarus and Ukraine, he argued, is that when Kyiv endured a strongman leader teetering amid a lack of popular support in 2014, Russia was acutely aware of the diplomatic language used in a 2008 NATO summit communique that stated Ukraine and Georgia would go onto become members of the military alliance. "Therefore, the signal for Russia was very clear that, at the first opportunity, the Americans will bounce Ukraine into NATO," Granville said. "And that was why when you had violent regime change in Ukraine six years later, in 2014, Russia moved extremely fast to secure what it considered to be its vital interests." While the context of NATO is not the same when it comes to Belarus, Granville made clear the upcoming election "could end pretty badly." He warned it was "absolutely realistic" to foresee a scenario in which Lukashenko would falsify the result of the vote to claim victory and orchestrate a "brutal" response by security forces to suppress mass protests. "You could be looking at a full-on revolution in central eastern Europe," Granville said. The Belarusian government did not respond to a request for comment when contacted by CNBC. Wagner military group Ahead of the vote, Belarusian authorities arrested more than 30 suspected Russian mercenaries accusing them of plotting terrorist acts to destabilize the country. Russia has dismissed the allegations, demanding that Belarus immediately release the security contractors. The Belarusian State Security Committee said on Wednesday that it had detained 32 employees from the secretive Russian private military group Wagner outside Minsk, with one other person detained in the south of the country. The state TV channel Belarus 1 broadcast footage of the Russians being arrested near the capital city last week. The head of Belarus' security council also said authorities would search for another 200 Russian mercenaries believed to have entered the country to stir civil unrest ahead of the election. Presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya (front) talks to reporters outside the office of the Belarusian Central Election Commission. Belarus is to hold a presidential election on 9 August 2020. Natalia Fedosenko | TASS | Getty Images "The vote has become unexpectedly competitive due to widespread popular discontent with the economy and Lukashenko's mishandling of the coronavirus," Daragh McDowell, head of Europe and principal Russia analyst at Verisk Maplecroft, told CNBC via email. As a result, McDowell said Lukashenko has made "increasingly strident claims of foreign interference, leading to thinly-veiled threats of mass repression as his grip on power has become less steady." The long-time leader of Belarus sometimes described as "Europe's last dictator" has refused to implement lockdown restrictions in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, he reportedly told Belarusians to drink vodka, go to saunas and return to work. The president also claimed other countries had imposed restrictive measures to curb the spread of Covid-19 as an act of "frenzy and psychosis." Lukashenko said last week he caught Covid-19 and recovered without displaying any symptoms. To date, more than 68,000 Covid-19 infections have been reported in Belarus, with 567 related deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Analysts told CNBC that while a lack of available polling data made it difficult to understand the consensus of the electorate, there was substantive evidence that the government's response to the coronavirus was one of the main drivers of civil unrest. 'All you have to do is call us' "It's all very murky," Timothy Ash, senior emerging markets strategist at Bluebay Asset Management, told CNBC via email. He argued frosty diplomatic ties between Washington and Minsk had been "warming" in recent months, highlighting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to Belarus earlier this year. It was the first time a U.S. secretary of state had visited the country of roughly 9.5 million people for 26 years. In a joint press conference with Belarus' Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei on February 1, Pompeo said the U.S. was willing to provide Minsk with all the oil it needs. "All you have to do is call us," he said at the time. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gestures as he speaks during a joint news conference with Belarus' Foreign Minister in Minsk on February 1, 2020. KEVIN LAMARQUE | AFP | Getty Images Louisiana ranks second in the nation in the percentage of homeowners who are late on their mortgage payments. More than 11% of home mortgages in the state were past-due on payments or in delinquency as of June, which is higher than the 7.6% national average, according to data from Black Knight, a Florida-based publicly traded technology business with access to loan-level data from some of the largest mortgage service companies. There are 1.87 million homeowners across the country who are more than 90 days past-due as of June, which is the highest level since early 2011. Past-due and delinquency rates are highest in Mississippi, at 12.5% of mortgages, followed by Louisiana, then New York at 10.9%; New Jersey, 10.6%; and Hawaii, 10.3%. Rates are 10.6% in Baton Rouge, 11% in Lafayette and 13% in New Orleans. Fortunately, the majority of homeowners have obtained forbearance from lenders that allowed them to delay payments after the coronavirus pandemic exploded in March and people were furloughed or put out of work by stay-at-home orders and business closures imposed to slow the spread of the disease. Still, some mortgages are in delinquency on the path to foreclosure, according to the Black Knight data. So far, though, fewer than 1% of loans in each area market were actually in foreclosure as of June just 0.6% in Baton Rouge and 0.5% in both Lafayette and New Orleans with homeowner protections imposed by Congress on federally-backed home loans. The health of home mortgages is one aspect economists track closely in forecasting. If delinquencies were to turn into future foreclosures, the consequences can be staggering. "It's a leading indicator, it gives you a sense of where things are heading," Gary Wagner, professor of economics at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, said of the past-due and delinquency rates and potential for future foreclosures. "That's because it's the major source of wealth (as a big asset) for most households. And it's a very serious sign because in general people are taking every step to paying their mortgage before discretionary spending," he said. "Almost 16% of wages in this country right now are coming from unemployment benefits. That's the highest it's ever been by a wide margin," Wagner said. "There are big gaps between people. There are some who have zero opportunity for generating income and some who are not affected at all." First time unemployment claims drop, but continuing claims rise statewide The number of first-time unemployment claims in Louisiana dropped sharply last week, but the number of people who continued to get jobless ben If the home mortgage loan portfolio in the state continues on its current trajectory and foreclosures do resume, it could impact the property value of whole neighborhoods, even those who are current on mortgages, he said. The ripple effect would be noticeable. "It would be like a significant decline in the stock market, except it's going to more broadly affect people," he said. "The best thing that could help is containment of the virus and we go to operating more normally," Wagner said. Typically, foreclosure starts after homeowners are 120 days past-due on payments. Congress placed a 60-day moratorium against lenders starting or proceeding with foreclosures in mid-March that's been extended to Aug. 31. It also instituted 180-day forbearance programs, with homeowners experiencing coronavirus-related financial difficulties able to request another 180-day extension of delayed payments on federally-backed mortgages. Interest still accrues on the home loan, but fees and penalties are waived. Many lenders started with an initial 90-day forbearance period. To keep whole or partial mortgage payments going, struggling homeowners had said in previous interviews that they were cobbling together savings, federal relief funds they had received and unemployment checks to prevent being hit with a huge lump sum bill, which can be avoided if lenders are willing to alter the terms of the mortgages that are in forbearance. In most cases, Americans were not prepared with significant savings to rely on during the crisis. Even those with the recommended two months or more of emergency funds have spent it. "We have a pretty low savings rate but this is like how you wouldn't shore up a river for a 10,000-year flood; you try to insure against things that are likely," Wagner said. 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 With a pandemic hitting, the U.S. economy shrank more than 33% in the second quarter a level not seen since the Great Depression and by far the largest drop since government record-keeping began in 1947. More than 30 million Americans are receiving unemployment benefits, with about one in four in the Louisiana workforce on unemployment. Congress is debating additional relief, including a full or partial extension of an expired $600 in weekly checks to the unemployed, that is critical to many Americans' financial stability and survival. Jobless workers worry about end of expanded unemployment benefits About 280,000 unemployed Louisiana workers will receive their final $600 supplemental payment from the federal government next week unless Con Some homeowners were able to catch up or make partial mortgage payments as the state's economy entered a phased restart recently and some went back to work, but many are still simply unable to pay. "Not everybody who is in forbearance is skipping their payments, but every month that has gone by since forbearance the percentage of people paying has decreased," said Kenny Hodges, CEO of Baton Rouge-based Assurance Financial, the fifth-largest home mortgage business in Louisiana, based on rankings from McLean, Virginia-based ComplianceTechs LendingPatterns.com, which pulls millions of federal home mortgage disclosure act records into one place for analysis. Assurance Financial originated more than 2,800 loans in Louisiana in 2019, but it has thousands more as part of its portfolio. If loans in forbearance were taken out of the Assurance Financial portfolio, only about 5.3% of the loans left are past-due. About 6% of the servicing portfolio is in forbearance meaning the overall past-due rate tops 11%. The percentage of those in forbearance slipping into delinquency has increased from 15% in the first month, 25% to 30% in the second month and nearly 50% in the third month, Hodges said. "They have the opportunity to bring it current when the forbearance period ends. The sooner that we can get money into the economy the better it will be for housing," he said. "When the forbearance period ends and they can't pay, now you don't have forbearance, you're delinquent now and it does start affecting your credit. While they are in forbearance there are no dings to their credit score." At Baton Rouge-based GMFS, just shy of 10% of its loans are past-due or delinquent. During the 2016 flood that hit uninsured homeowners hard, GMFS offered forbearance to those impacted by the natural disaster as required but this situation is different, said Tee Brown, CEO of GMFS, which originated more than 6,300 loans in Louisiana last year. "It's the most (forbearances) we've ever seen. We had 2,000 homeowners (in forbearance) then and just under 4,000 today. What's unique about this is that unlike a typical forbearance, we're seeing between 25% to 30% of individuals who are in forbearance still continuing to make their mortgage payments," Brown said, "which was surprising." "Continue to pay what you can, even if it's not a full payment," he said. GMFS hasn't seen more deterioration of its loans as the coronavirus pandemic has stretched on, but its leadership did notice that it's not necessarily unemployment that's a driving factor. "The vast majority of folks are in forbearance not because they are unemployed but their business has been impacted the longer we stay in Phase 2" of the reopening that still imposes capacity and other restrictions on many businesses, Brown said. World War II is the Janus event of the 20th century: a dual-natured homunculus that created even as it destroyed, gave even as it stole -- though what it was giving was far less apparent at the time than what it was taking. Its horrors were almost literally unimaginable, its scope breathtaking. It presented clear demarcations between ideologies, and while soldiers, civilians, and functionaries argued the finer points, more than 50 million people perished. The articles linked below provide extensive timelines outlining the details and events of World War II. Explore images that headline specific moments in history, including the attack on Pearl Harbor, the D-Day invasion, and the atomic explosion in Hiroshima. Advertisement Here's a look: Europe After World War I: November 1918-August 1931 The redrawn Europe of 1918 provoked resentment, political agitation, and an ambitious politician named Adolf Hitler, who found his voice in Germany's democratic process. Buildup to World War II: January 1931-August 1939 Japan's imperial ambitions were matched by Germany's desire for "living space" and Italy's dreams of glory. Britain's appeasement encouraged Adolf Hitler's schemes, while the USA remained sunk in isolationism. Start of World War II: September 1939-March 1940 On September 1, 1939, Nazi German forces moved against Poland. Treaty obligations forced England and France to declare war on Germany. For the second time in barely more than 20 years, Europe was at war. " " The Germans in the Rhineland. Nazi Germany Conquers France: April 1940-December 1940 In 1940, the Nazi German war machine conquered much of Western Europe, including France. Britain battled back with great courage. And then came Adolf Hitler's most audacious campaign: Barbarossa. United States Enacts the Lend-Lease Bill: January 1941-June 1941 In the beginning of 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt introduced his lend-lease plan to provide material support to European allies during World War II. By June 1941, the U.S. Army was nearly 1.5 million strong yet still did not join the fight until later in the year. " " Japan bombs Pearl Harbor. Japan Bombs Pearl Harbor: July 1941-December 1941 Adolf Hitler's forces cut across Russia like a scythe and were not halted until they were at the gates of Moscow. In the Pacific, Japan sent planes to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, to strike the U.S. fleet that blocked Japan's access to oil. America was in the war. The Axis Conquers the Philippines: January 1942-July 1942 The high point of Axis conquest came in 1942. Ironically, though, the U.S. Navy had already forced Japan into a defensive posture, and Nazi Germany would find it increasingly difficult to mount sustained offensives. " " The AVG Flying Tigers. Russian Army Repels Hitler's Forces: August 1942-January 1943 A renewed offensive by the Nazi Germans in Russia was a seesaw affair that ended in complete disaster for Germany at Stalingrad. In the Pacific, Allied forces advanced on the Japanese homeland, one outlying island at a time. Italy Falls to the Allies: February 1943-June 1943 Throughout 1943, the limitations of the Nazi German and Japanese war machines became apparent -- not least Nazi Germany's inability to protect its cities from Allied bombers. As World War II production skyrocketed in the United States, the Axis prepared for "total war," in which everybody -- civilian and soldier alike -- was a combatant. Italy surrendered, but the larger war ground on. " " The Germans capture Warsaw. Allies Bomb Northern Nazi Germany: June 1943-December 1943 At the end of July 1943, a succession of attacks on the northern German port city of Hamburg resulted in the first "firestorm," which killed an estimated 40,000 people. The bomb attacks immediately affected German strategy. The D-Day Invasion: January 1944-July 1944 On June 6, 1944, the largest armada ever assembled began to deliver more than 300,000 Allied troops onto beaches at Normandy, France; Adolf Hitler's two-front war had come home to him. In the Pacific, the island-hopping campaign brought American bombers within striking range of the Japanese home islands. " " A flamethrower at work. The Battle of the Bulge: July 1944-January 1945 Germany's last act was fast approaching: enemies pushing from the east and west, the skies under Allied control. Much of Europe had slipped from Adolf Hitler's grasp, but the Fuhrer fought on with new rocket weapons -- and a shocking surprise for the Allies. Japan lost control of the western Pacific, and much of what remained of its navy was smashed. Still, it would not surrender. Nazi Germany Surrenders: February 1945-May 1945 Germany's great cities were destroyed. Its leader paced in an underground bunker, giving orders to army groups that no longer existed. U.S. forces halted at the Rhine River and waited while Stalin's Red Army took its final, apocalyptic revenge on Berlin. By May, World War II in Europe was over. " " The Allies liberate France. Japan Surrenders and World War II Ends: June 1945-September 1945 Standing alone against the unstoppable Allies since May 1945, Japan absorbed terrible aerial bombardment of its cities but kept back 610,000 troops -- plus millions of pitifully armed civilians -- as it anticipated the planned Allied invasion of the home islands. Then on two unimaginable days in August 1945, the skies exploded, and the Second World War was finished. Postwar Europe and Japan: October 1945-September 1951 Allied justice encompassed not just the prosecution of Nazi German and Japanese war criminals, but practical, useful rebuilding of the vanquished nations. Japan accepted American occupation without serious incident, but the partitioning of Germany put the U.S. and its Western Allies on a collision course with the Soviet Union. " " An atomic bomb explodes. The Cold War: October 1951-1991 Cold War tensions that had been building in the 1940s became the defining reality of the new world order. The Korean War of 1950-53 was only the first of a series of ugly proxy wars engineered by the Soviets and the United States. America's "containment" of communism was harsh, but in the end the USSR was extinct, China was on the rise, and an uneasy U.S. was the only superpower left standing. CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: John S. D. Eisenhower, Senator Daniel K. Inouye, Richard Overy Ph.D., David J. A. Stone, Wim Coleman, Martin F. Graham, James H. Hallas, Mark Johnston Ph.D., Christy Nadalin M.A., Pat Perrin, Peter Stanley Ph.D. Bridgepoint Consulting, an Addison Group company and leading management consulting firm that helps organizations drive innovation and successful business transformations, today announced the addition of Ricky Berens, Business Development Manager, and Scott Gardner, CFO Consultant, to its Austin, Texas office. In his new role, Berens will focus on supporting the growth, business development and partner opportunities across all of Bridgepoints practice areas that serve Central Texas. Most recently, Berens served as Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) manager at Nulo Pet Food, one of the fastest-growing pet food brands in the U.S., where he helped build the startups financial foundation that enabled its rapid growth in the CPG industry. As Bridgepoint continues to expand, Rickys addition to the team will help to propel our growth strategy, said Vince Trevino, Principal at Bridgepoint Consulting. He brings a tactical, financial mindset to the firm that will be instrumental in helping solve the business challenges of the hundreds of companies we support throughout Central Texas. The leadership team also welcomes Gardner who brings more than 20 years of diverse, financial experience to his new role as CFO Consultant. Throughout his career, Gardner has helped companies successfully navigate high growth stages, fundraising, mergers and acquisitions, and plans for strategic exits. Prior to Bridgepoint, he served as CFO at the fast-growing Austin-based startup, Fluence Bioengineering. Were thrilled to welcome Scott to the Bridgepoint team, said Monica Gill, Principal at Bridgepoint Consulting. He brings a wealth of financial leadership and accounting expertise that will add tremendous value to both our early-stage and emerging-stage clients. His depth of knowledge will help clients across several industries meet and exceed their financial and growth goals. For the last 20 years, Bridgepoint has served more than 2,500 clients and built a strong culture made up of a network of high-quality consultants. Its financial operations expertise combined with its full scope of technology capabilities helps organizations create holistic, long-term and scalable solutions. About Bridgepoint Consulting Bridgepoint Consulting, an Addison Group company, is a leading management consulting firm that helps organizations throughout their business lifecycle. Offering a broad range of finance, technology and risk/compliance services, Bridgepoint supports clients from the startup phase all the way to IPO readiness and beyond. Since 1999, the firm has been helping executives and management teams reduce their business and operational risks, bridge resource gaps and improve overall performance. Whether an organization needs interim expertise to improve infrastructure and processes, or strategic management of a major transition or transaction, Bridgepoints team of over 170 industry leaders is able to provide the critical support needed to ensure success. The firm is headquartered in Austin, with offices in Dallas and Houston and the capability to deliver solutions across the US. To learn more about Bridgepoint Consulting and how it can help serve your organization, please visit https://bridgepointconsulting.com. Meghan Markle's life changed overnight when she became a royal. She may have been famous herself before this, but being a Hollywood star is totally different from being a Duchess. But she did not changed in status or appearance only. A friend said her whole personality changed, and this is not always a good thing, unless she changed for genuine reasons. according to her co-star in her "Deal or No Deal" stint, the Meghan Markle she knows back in 2006 is certainly not the Meghan Markle the world knows now. According to Australian model Lisa Gleave, Meghan Markle was more quiet and reserved in the past that she is now. That's actually a surprising news, because most would think she was more rowdy and outgoing as a television personality than a royal. In fact, she described her as being an introvert. While Meghan Markle was hardly scandalous before she became a royal, it was natural that she was more extroverted because of her career. But Gleave suggested otherwise. She added that not only was Markle quiet, she was also very sweet. She however described Markle as focused and determined to make something out of herself too, which is something people know Markle to be, even at present. "I remember her being very focused on her acting career and her role as a briefcase beauty, as we were called, was just a steppingstone in her career," Gleave said. Gleave said Markle easily achieved her goal then too, getting a big break just a few seasons of being a briefcase beauty. "She only did a few seasons and then landed her role in Suits which took her away." Gleave added that she was truly happy for Markle when she heard about them dating and eventually getting married. The development in her personal life certainly affected her professional life, given the fact that she has to leave her acting career. Weirdly though, even though it appears now that Meghan Markle's stint as a briefcase girl was something to be proud of, because it was a steppingstone for her. It was nothing to be ashamed about certainly, since the other briefcase girls are also notable girls themselves! Is Meghan Markle truly ashamed though? Some critics say that. Since her Wikipedia entry was drastically altered a few weeks before her relationship with Prince Harry was made public and this information about her being part of "Deal or No Deal" was not to be found there. But these are all in the past now. What people know about Meghan Markle right now is much more important. unfortunately, even since Megxit, there are reports determined to paint her in a negative light. Apart from being a so-called desperate actress who thought so high of herself, she is also painted as a bad daughter, an untrustworthy granddaughter-in-law to the Queen, a diva-ish Duchess who made staff feel bad, and a spoiled brat that lured Prince Harry from his people. It remains to be seen whether she can redeem herself in the eyes of people once the lockdown is over and all her and Prince Harry's original US plans will come true. READ MORE: Meghan Markle as Briefcase Girl: Former Workmate Reveals TRUTH About Meghan TEMPE, Ariz. A 150-foot portion of a century-old bridge that was damaged in a train derailment and resulting fire in Tempe was demolished Sunday as part of the cleanup process. Union Pacific Railroad officials said the demolished portion of the bridge will likely be cut into smaller pieces so it can be removed and there isnt a timeline yet for when the bridge will be reconstructed. Eight to 10 cars of a 102-car Union Pacific freight train traveling from Tucson to Phoenix derailed around 6 a.m. Wednesday on a railroad bridge over the man-made Tempe Town Lake. The derailed cars were carrying lumber and hazardous material and burst into flames, causing the century-old bridge to partially collapse on the south end. Tempe Fire Department Assistant Chief Andrea Glass said the partial demolition involved putting charges around various parts of the bridge in addition to small incisions which allowed for the most damaged section of the bridge to drop below. Glass said the detonation wouldnt impact the rest of the bridge and about 100 workers, mostly contractors, were working to clean up the derailment site. City officials said its still unclear when Tempe Town Lake will reopen. At least 51 undocumented immigrants, including children, were arrested at two homes in Laredo, Texas, where they were being temporarily held after they were unlawfully ferried to the United States from Mexico. U.S. Customs and Border Protection along with the Laredo Police Department and Texas Department of Public Safety raided a house located on the 3900 block of Santa Isabel Avenue on Thursday. In a statement, CBP said a 'knock and talk' raid was conducted at the stash house in West Laredo which led to the arrest of 14 migrants. Pictured above are some of the 51 undocumented immigrants detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection following the raid of two homes Thursday in Laredo Pictured are some of the 51 migrants from Guatemala and Mexico who were arrested by authorities in Laredo, Texas, last Thursday A search warrant was subsequently granted for an apartment on the same property which led the agents to 37 more undocumented migrants. CBP said at least three individuals from the group were being investigated for 'harboring' undocumented immigrants and human trafficking. All of the individuals arrested at the two homes unlawfully entered the United States and were citizens of Mexico and Guatemala. Authorities opened an investigation into three of the 51 undocumented immigrants who were apprehended in the multiple raids of homes that were used as secret hideout for individuals unlawfully entering the United States from Mexico. The three individuals are being investigated for 'harboring of undocumented immigrants and human trafficking' The apprehensions were the latest in a sweep of homes that served as illegal holding dens for migrants who were ferried across the Mexico-United States border despite the tough restrictions that have been set in place at the border throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. On July 28, CBP and the Webb County Constables Office acted on a tip regarding suspicious activity at a home on the 4700 block of Chibcha Court in Laredo and detained 52 undocumented immigrants, including three children. CBP said the individuals were from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. On June 24, Border Patrol agents also participated in a warrant search of a house in the same block where last Friday's bust took place and apprehended 26 undocumented immigrants from Mexico. If the PM gives the historic opportunity of laying the foundation stone of the Ram temple to a Dalit girl, it will send a transformational message to the Dalits in India and will give them a sense of belonging, says Dr Sudhir Bisht. IMAGE: The statues at the Ram temple site in Ayodhya getting ready for the bhoomi puja on August 5, 2020. Photograph: ANI Photo. The laying down of the foundation stone at Ayodhya is a historic occasion for Ram bhakts around the world. For Hindus it should mark the end for the struggle for a grand Ram temple. Bhagwan Ram occupies a special place in millions of hearts. Ram was the prince who forsake his claim over kingdom just to ensure that his father kept his pledge. Ram was the loving husband who travelled from the northern end of India to the southern kingdom of Lanka, to free his wife from the clutches of Ravana. Ram was the champion of class equality who ate the half-eaten ber of Shabri, his bhakt from the downtrodden caste. Ram embraced the boatman Kevat, who ferried him across the river and made him his life-long friend. Ram, the protector, saved the rishis and munis from the onslaught of demons and he elevated the status of the monkeys in his army to the level of human beings. After wandering about in the forests for 14 years Ram ruled the kingdom of Ayodhya so efficiently that his model of administration has become the touchstone of governance. It is known as Ram Rajya, the rule of Ram that was perfect in all dimensions. Tragically, Ram had to give up the companionship of his dear wife briefly after he became king. He did it to lay down high standards of social conduct for his people. I am personally aggrieved at this decision of Ram, but the moot point is that even if Ram did something that gave precedence to popular demand over justice, he did it not for personal gains, but for the larger cause of society. Ram, the warrior, the giver, the sufferer, the pacifier, the ruler, the highest man among men even though a Vishnu incarnate, has finally received recognition from the highest court in India. His birthplace shall now have a temple that we Ram bhakts have craved for a long, long time. The process of construction of a magnificent Ram temple shall begin on August 5. Ram bhakts like me will make this day the most historic day in our lives and shall celebrate it forever. Can we also use this historic opportunity to give out a powerful statement? Yes, we can. Our Hindu darshana or philosophical canvas is broadly divided into six aastik schools of thought. Nyay and Vaisheshika; Sankhya and Yoga: Poorv Mimamsa and Uttar Mimamsa. The last named darshana is also referred to as Vedant, drawn from the concluding part of the Vedas. It quenches the thirst of those who are Gyan Yogis, travellers on the path of supreme knowledge. The Vedant school of philosophy is devoid of any 'karm-kand' or the rituals and ceremonies that have come to become the most visible face of Sanatan Dharma. Vedant lays utmost importance to equality of all human beings. It propounds that all 'jeev-aatman' (souls of the living) are nothing but part of 'Brahm', the ultimate power, the supreme reality. And yet, in the real world, the followers of Sanatan Dharma are divided into the useless silos of caste. And the caste compartments are not based upon profession but predetermined by birth. This is the most unfortunate practice of the highly enlightening and truly emancipating Hindu religion. Over several centuries, the practice of caste system has destroyed the very fabric of Hindusim. Atrocities on Dalits were common place before the advent of the 20th century. A large number of Dalits and other categories of scheduled caste citizens were forced to live a life of misery and misfortune in India. They were not considered as equal to the men and women of other castes and many generations of Dalits lived horrible lives. The situation in Independent India is much changed as we find that a Dalit leader like Mayawati could become the chief minister of India's most populous state on four occasions. The post of the President of our Republic has been adorned by a Dalit. Dalits have occupied top level positions in the civil administration, in the judiciary and in politics. In spite of all the positive changes, the mindset of many Indians remains caste-centric. A decade ago, as I stood in a queue to buy Indian Made Foreign Liquor at a retail counter in Uttarakhand, the guy ahead of me and the guy behind me asked me my caste (Brahmin or Rajput?) as we chatted along. Caste seems to remain one of the most common identity symbols even in these modern times. The Dalits of India are still looked down upon by many Indians. They may get a tepid welcome inside the living rooms of high caste born Hindus but they are still not considered as equals. How many high caste families can claim that their best family friends are Dalits? A high caste man can count a Brahmin or a Bania or a Rajput or a Kayasth as his best friend, but you would often find that that Dalits would be missing from this equation. My close friend, a Dalit employed as chief engineer in a government department, still agonises when he remembers how badly his grandfather was treated in his ancient village in Bengal. He once recounted, "My grandfather was at the bottom of the pyramid in the village hierarchy and he was responsible for disposal of all dead animals in the village. He had no authority to refuse to carry out any work in this regard." "One day when he was suffering from high fever, he was beaten up when he showed up late to do the work that he was assigned to do, by birth!" Mind you, my friend and his father (who too was an engineer in a government department) claimed the benefits of reservations meant for scheduled caste students and employees. They got their engineering seats in university and perhaps some benefits in their departmental promotions on account of the reservation policy in government service and employment rules, but they both felt that there were occasions when their competence was challenged solely because of their caste. The lowliness of their caste rankled them all their lives. As our rural population will dwindle further and as industrial and service sectors will take more and more centrestage in contributing to the nation's GDP, caste barriers shall decline further. Migration from villages to towns and large cities is already breaking the 'what-is-your-caste' mentality of young Indians. To give a massive body blow to the caste mentality, the Ram Mandir's bhoomi puja (stone-laying ceremony) must be done by a Dalit girl child. This will send a transformational message to the Dalits in India and will give them a sense of belonging. Bhagwan Ram broke the barrier when he embraced Kevat, the boatman and shared a fruit with Shabri, the poor woman of low caste. Prime Minister Modi washed the feet of sanitary staff during the Kumbh Mela in February 2019. He is a social reformer in a distinctive way. He has challenged the status quo in many fields and his action of washing the feet of sanitary workers was a very, very, potent message across the length and breadth of India. If the PM gives the historic opportunity of laying the foundation stone of the Ram temple to a Dalit girl, it will act like a Mohammed Ali punch on the caste culture that prevents the physical, mental, psychological and spiritual integration of Dalits with the others in Sanatan society. I rest my case. Dr Sudhir Bisht, author and columnist, writes from Delhi. For the second straight year, Moodys Analytics has won the Risk Technology Awards for IFRS 9 Enterprise Solution of the Year and IFRS 9 ECL Modelling Solution of the Year. The two IFRS 9 awards bring the Moodys Analytics tally to seven in the 2020 Risk Technology Awards program. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200803005207/en/ The complexity introduced into financial reporting by the IFRS 9 accounting standard has proven to be a major challenge. Measuring and reporting on the future performance of credit portfolios has introduced new data, analytics, and financial processes. Moodys Analytics solutions for IFRS 9 are modular and flexible, to help institutions of any size meet the standard while strengthening their risk management and decision-making processes. The ImpairmentStudio for IFRS 9 platform is central to our IFRS 9 offering. This cloud-based software lets customers automate their impairment analysis while managing and monitoring their expected credit losses efficiently. The solution encompasses our award-winning economic forecasts, scenarios, data, and models. Were honored to win these two awards again, said Cris deRitis, Deputy Chief Economist at Moodys Analytics. The upheaval caused by COVID-19 reminds us that the expected credit losses that must be calculated for IFRS 9 can change quickly and dramatically, given the varying paths the economy can take. It also underscores the importance of using flexible impairment tools with credible forecasts for effective risk management. These awards are a testament to our market-leading capabilities. The Risk Technology Awards recognize outstanding vendors helping the industry in the fields of ALM, credit, operational risk, and enterprise risk management. This win adds to the growing list of awards and industry accolades for Moodys Analytics. About Moodys Analytics Moodys Analytics provides financial intelligence and analytical tools to help business leaders make better, faster decisions. Our deep risk expertise, expansive information resources, and innovative application of technology help our clients confidently navigate an evolving marketplace. We are known for our industry-leading and award-winning solutions, made up of research, data, software, and professional services, assembled to deliver a seamless customer experience. We create confidence in thousands of organizations worldwide, with our commitment to excellence, open mindset approach, and focus on meeting customer needs. For more information about Moodys Analytics, visit our website or connect with us on Twitter and LinkedIn. Moody's Analytics, Inc. is a subsidiary of Moody's Corporation (NYSE: MCO). Moodys Corporation reported revenue of $4.8 billion in 2019, employs approximately 11,300 people worldwide and maintains a presence in 40 countries. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200803005207/en/ Philip Barton, who took over as the British high commissioner in New Delhi in early July, was on Monday appointed permanent under-secretary in the new Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, which will incorporate the Department for International Development from September. The merger of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the DfID was announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in June, a move that drew flak from various quarters, including former prime minister David Cameron. Foreign secretary Dominic Raab said: Philip is well placed to bring together the talent and expertise of both departments while helping combine our foreign and development policy in a way that is innovative, ambitious and more integrated than ever before. Barton is due to take up the new appointment on September 1. Cabinet secretary Mark Sedwill said: Philip will bring to the role an understanding of overseas development funding together with experience of international relations. Under his leadership, I am confident that the new organisation will strengthen the UKs global leadership by aligning our development and diplomatic efforts to bring more coherence to our international presence. The Foreign Office quoted Barton as saying: I am delighted to have been appointed as the Permanent Under-Secretary of the new Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. I look forward to bringing together our diplomats and development experts to deliver for the people of the UK and act as a force for good around the world. Prior to the current posting in New Delhi, Barton held roles in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office as director-general, Consular and Security. He was also previously acting chair of the Joint Intelligence Committee in the Cabinet Office. His diplomatic posting included high commissioner to Islamabad, deputy head of mission in Washington, and director, Foreign Policy and Afghanistan/Pakistan co-ordinator. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has given approval to Serum Institute of India (SII) for conducting phase II and III clinical trials of Oxford University-Astra Zeneca vaccine against coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in the country, the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoH&FW) said on Monday. A senior official in the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) said, The subject expert committee that went through the data and protocol submitted for the trial was satisfied with the results and based on their opinion the DCGI permitted its trial in India. On July 20, the initial trial results for the vaccine candidate, Covishield, which were made public by Oxford University had shown promising results. The preliminary trial results published in the medical journal The Lancet said that the vaccine candidate was safe and induced immune reaction against SARS-CoV-2, which causes Covid-19, and protect healthy people from infection. Click here for full Covid-19 coverage As soon as they (DCGI) grant us permission, we will begin with the trials for the vaccine in India. We will soon start manufacturing the vaccine in large volumes, Adar Poonawalla, CEO, SII, had said. SII, the worlds largest vaccine manufacturer by the number of doses produced and sold globally, has entered a manufacturing partnership with biopharma major AstraZeneca to produce the Oxford vaccine. The company plans to start human clinical trials in India with about 5,000 participants. One billion doses of the AstraZeneca Oxford vaccine will be produced over the next one year. The vaccines will be for India and middle-and low-income countries across the world, Poonawalla had said. The vaccine is made from a weakened version of a common cold adenovirus taken from Chimpanzee and genetically modified to make it impossible for it to infect humans. Researchers added genetic material to ChAdOx1 from the Sars-CoV-2 viruss surface protein, spike glycoprotein (S), which helps the virus to bind to Ace2 receptors to enter human cells and cause an infection. The new trial included 1,077 healthy adults aged between 18 and 55 years with no history of Covid-19, and took place in five hospitals in the United Kingdom (UK) between April 23 and May 21. The data that was published in The Lancet covered the first 56 days of the trial and is ongoing. The widely-followed trial is currently at an advanced stage, with trials in the UK, Brazil and South Africa. A collaboration has already been reached between Oxford, the UK government and AstraZeneca to produce the vaccine on a mass scale if the final results are also positive. India is one of the vaccine hubs globally, and wherever the Covid-19 vaccine is developed we will take lead in its manufacturing. The vaccine is the ultimate solution to prevent Covid-19 transmission even though India has managed to control the outbreak very well so far, said Dr. Vinod Paul, a Niti Aayog member and the chairman of the Empowered Group on the governments medical emergency management plan. Amid the simmering border tensions between India and China, armies of India and China held fifth round of Corps Commander-level talks at Moldo on the Chinese side of Line of Actual Control (LAC) on Sunday (August 2). The talks finished at 9 PM on Sunday after around 10 hours. The details of the talks are not known so far. The meeting started at 11 AM and according to sources during the meeting Indian officers focused on complete disengagement by Chinese troops from Pangong Tso lake near LAC in Eastern Ladakh. It is to be noted that on June 30, India had said that disengagement of troops in eastern Ladakh has not yet been completed by Chinese troops. The statement came just two days after China claimed that the process was completed. "There has been some progress made towards this objective but the disengagement process has as yet not been completed," Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Anurag Srivastava had said at an online media briefing when asked about China's claim that the frontline troops of the two countries have completed disengagement at most localities along the LAC. Srivastava had also noted that India expects that the Chinese troops will "sincerely" work with it for "complete disengagement and de-escalation" and "full restoration" of peace and tranquility in the border areas at the "earliest" as agreed during talks between National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. The tension between India and China increased after the violent clashes between the troops of the two countries in Galwan Valley in which 20 Indian Army personnel were martyred. Fort Worth, TX, Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NEWMEDIAWIRE --Water Now, Inc. (OTC QB: WTNW) today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to sell substantially all of its assets to RigMax H20, LLC for a total purchase price of $30.0 million in cash, subject to certain adjustments and credits. The transaction is targeted to close, subject to confirmatory due diligence and receipt of shareholder and other mandated regulatory approvals, on or before October 31, 2020. About Water Now, Inc. Water Now, Inc., headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is engaged in the business of providing water purification solutions. For additional information about Water Now, Inc., please visit its website at http://www.waternowinc.com . CONTACT David King, Chief Executive Officer Water Now, Inc. (817) 900-9184 Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements contained in this press release, including, but not limited to, information regarding the anticipated dates for the closing of the asset sale transaction are forward-looking statements. Generally, the words believe, may, will, estimate, continue, anticipate, intend, project, expect, predict and similar expressions identify these forward-looking statements. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are based on managements current expectations and estimates. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees and are made subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual timing of the closing to vary from that stated or implied in this press release. When considering forward-looking statements, you should keep in mind the risk factors and other cautionary statements set forth in Water Nows Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and the other reports that it files with the Securities and Exchange Commission, from time to time. Except as required under applicable law, Water Now assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements made herein or any other forward-looking statements made by it, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. USA.Life founder hails platform as alternative to Facebook, Twitter for Christians and conservatives Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment As a growing number of conservatives and Christians across the United States believe social media giants are censoring them, a new platform aims to be a refuge for those who are seeking alternatives to Facebook and Twitter. Founded in early 2019 by pastor and Silicon Valley technology expert Steven Andrew, USA.Life bills itself as the answer to Facebook and Twitter censoring Christians, Conservatives, and Liberty. The platform very closely resembles Facebook. Users can send messages, join groups, and become friends with other users. Along with likes, reactions to comments also include "the unique Christian Cross Amen." Last year, Andrew explained that Facebook blocked 5 million people per month from my account alone, so I started USA.Life to give conservatives a social network that didnt block their First Amendment right to free speech. On Wednesday, Twitter's censorship was mentioned during the House Judiciary Subcommittee's hearing on antitrust when Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., asked Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg why the [Twitter] platform had temporarily suspended Donald Trump Jr.s account. The suspension came after the presidents son shared a video of doctors talking favorably about hydroxychloroquine, a drug that some claim can cure the novel coronavirus, when used early in treatment along with zinc and Zithromax. Zuckerberg said he had no desire to engage in censorship, but defended Twitters decision to suspend Trump Jr.'s Twitter account and remove the video holding up hydroxychloroquine as a cure for the novel coronavirus. If someone is going to go out and say that hydroxychloroquine is proven to cure COVID when in fact it has not been proven to cure COVID, and that that statement could lead people to take a drug that, in some cases, some of the data suggests that it might be harmful to people, we think we should take that down, he said. Facebook has also faced multiple accusations of censorship from Christians, pro-life groups and everyday users. The Christian Post reported last week that Facebook was censoring a Christian ministry's posts that shared the stories of people who once identified as LGBT before they chose to follow Christ. Facebook accused the ministry of promoting "conversion therapy." Anne Paulk, president of Restored Hope Network, told CP that at the behest of the leftist Media Matters activist group, Facebook removed posts from their most recent conference, saying that the videos violated "community standards." More than 100,000 people, churches, and businesses have already set up accounts at USA.Life. The company hopes to have more than 1 million users by the end of 2020. Unlike Facebook, which gives users a limit of 5,000 friends, USA.Life allows users to have up to 10,000 friends. USA.Life is not the only alternative social media platform that has popped up in recent years. Parler, which has 2.7 million users, was founded two years ago by John Matze Jr. and Jared Thomson. Prominent users include Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Rand Paul, R-Ky., Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., pro-life activist Lila Rose, and the Trump 2020 campaign. For their part, the CEOs of Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google have denied allegations that they engage in censorship. During Wednesday's hearing on Capitol Hill, Zuckerberg vehemently denied the accusation that his company engages in censorship. We have distinguished ourselves as one of the companies that defends free expression the most, he said. We do not want to become the arbiters of truth. That would be a bad position for us to be in and not what we should be doing. As conservatives begin to embrace alternative social media sites such as Parler and USA.Life, lawmakers on Capitol Hill are working to hold the major tech companies accountable for their censorship. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., has introduced legislation that would strip social media companies, which claim to act as neutral platforms instead of publishers, of their special immunity from lawsuits if they do not act in good faith and stop censorship. In addition to founding USA.Life, Andrew has founded 1776Free, an alternative search engine to Google. 1776Frees crowdfunding page describes it as the answer to Google and others censoring Christians, conservatives, patriotic speech, family values, and liberty. Iran: Jordan assisted U.S. in harassing Iranian passenger plan By Lt. Col. (ret.) Michael Segall Are Iran and Jordan approaching tensions in their relationship? The Iranian Nour news agency, considered close to Irans Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), published a report blaming Jordan for assisting U.S. Air Force F-15 combat aircraft to intercept and endanger an Iranian passenger plane. Mahan Airs Airbus 310 flight #1152 was flying to Beiruts international airport over Syrian and Lebanese territory. Mahans aircraft have been used in the past by Irans Revolutionary Guard Corps to convey fighters and equipment to conflict areas in the world. The report, also publicized by the Tansim news agency affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, claimed that Jordan permitted American warplanes and drones to take off from the al-Azraq air base in Jordan from where drones were also dispatched to assassinate Qassem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis in Iraq. Jordan denies the Iranian claims that it was involved in the Soleimani mission. The Iranian report warned Jordan that supporting American terrorists means taking part in evil and illegal actions which endanger civilian aviation and could have consequences for Jordan as well. The Nour agency called on the Iranian Foreign Ministry to summon the Jordanian charge d affairs to file a complaint about Jordans role and to seek clarifications on Jordans position. Foreign Minister Zarif tweeted, U.S. illegally occupies territory of another State and then harasses a scheduled civil airlinerendangering innocent civilian passengersostensibly to protect its occupation forces. Audacity to compound lawlessness upon lawlessness. Air Mahan claimed that two American fighter planes threatened the flight over Syrian airspace, and the Iranian pilot was forced to take evasive maneuvers after the Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) identified a collision course with the American jets. Iran claimed that passengers were lightly injured during the evasive maneuver. The Iranian ambassador, who visited the wounded in the Beirut hospital, termed the incident a clear example of American terrorist actions in the region. Mahan Air claimed that two American combat aircraft harassed the Iranian plane twice, the first time in the Al-Tanf area in Syria near the border with Jordan, and the second time near the Syria-Lebanon border. A spokesman for the U.S. Central Command said the jets conducted a standard visual inspection of the Iranian passenger plane in a routine fashion and from a safe distance. The spokesman added that the Mahan planes flight path could have posed a danger to the U.S. Special Forces base at Tanf, Syria. Relations between Iran and Jordan are correct, and the accusation against Jordan by some Iranian sources of helping the United States to harass Iranian planes and being involved in Soleimanis assassination is unusual. Jordan also supports Gulf States regional security policies and stands in line with their defense against Iranian attempts to interfere with the Gulf States internal issues. Iranian attempts to operate in Jordanian territory against Israel in the intelligence realm have met with limited success in the face of counterintelligence actions by Israel and Jordan, who fear Iranian attempts to undermine the Kingdom. Iran sees Jordan as a potential front line against Israel, considering Jordans long border with Israel and the ability to surround Israel. A year ago, Israel announced that it arrested a Jordanian citizen recruited by Iranian intelligence and sent to Israel to establish a network of agents and informers through ties with Israeli and Palestinian businessmen. The Jordanian citizen received his instructions from Iranian intelligence personnel in Syria and Lebanon. IDF Lt.-Col. (ret.) Michael (Mickey) Segall, an expert on strategic issues with a focus on Iran, terrorism, and the Middle East, is a senior analyst at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and at Acumen Risk Advisors. Home US cold war with China in a global economy puts allies in crossfire and will cause severe damage US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is calling for an alliance of democracies to confront China. It amounts to a new Cold War in which nations are being forced to side either with Washington or Beijing. Its a classic tyrannical power-play by Washington, yet ironically it is the Americans who are accusing Beijing of being the new tyranny in the world. However, such polarised demarcation of the planet as designated by Washington is impossible in a global economy which is highly integrated, from consumer and financial markets to supply chains. A news report this week once again underscores how even the American military is reliant on China for supplies of rare earth metals used in its weapon systems. Indeed, the entire US economy is dependent on China which is Americas biggest trade partner. In 2019, the US ran a trade deficit of $345 billion with China despite three years of Making America Great Again policy under President Donald Trump. The deficit with China accounts for about half of the US total trade imbalance with the rest of the world. And its been that way for many years. So the high-handed notion of cutting China off, as Trump says he intends doing, is facile. Thats what makes ratcheting up the Cold War hostility toward China so futile too. The shutting down of consulates and issuing of indictments for alleged espionage are only leading to a standoff which the United States cannot really enforce or afford literally. The same goes for American allies whom Washington is pushing to join in a Cold War battle. Australia, Britain, Canada, among others, are being caught in an ideological crossfire which will result in severe casualties to their economies. Australian farmers are already paying a painful price after China cancelled export orders due to Canberra being perceived as a proxy for Washington over provocative Coronavirus claims against Beijing. Pompeo was in London this week where he urged the free world to stand up to China. This followed the announcement last week by the British government to scrap a partnership deal with Chinese firm Huawei to modernise Britains telecoms. That move was prompted by intense pressure on London from the Trump administration to snub China on grounds of alleged national security risk. But the British authorities will likely incur damaging repercussions for Britains economy. The modernisation of its telecoms infrastructure will be delayed and costly. Moreover, China is a major trading partner with Britain, as it is with most countries due to being the worlds second biggest economy after the US. As Britain charts a new global trading environment post-Brexit it will need the goodwill of China more than ever. The European Union is also dependent on China for trade and investment. That would explain why European leaders are wary of Washingtons polarising policy of fracturing the world into a Cold War-like seizure. Such a zero-sum depiction of the world is simply untenable and unsustainable in an integrated global economy. Cutting off ties with China is like cutting your nose off to spite your face. During the Cold War with the Soviet Union, the world was largely isolated between the two blocs. There was minimal economic inter-connection. An Iron Curtain was possible to maintain because of the rigid separation between economies and communications. That kind of artificial isolation is impossible in todays increasingly networked world. Even Pompeo admits this, albeit pejoratively. In a keynote speech this week, he remarked with disdain: Unlike the Soviet Union, China is deeply integrated into the global economy [...] The USSR was closed off from the free world. Communist China is already within our borders. When even the Pentagon has to bow to realities of global economics and its reliance on China for vital commodities, then we should know that the new Cold War sought by Washington with China is a pipe dream. Its all empty rhetoric to justify an ideology of conflict that Washington needs to pursue for its anachronistic pretensions of global dominance. Unfortunately, by imposing its hostile bifurcated view of the world many countries, including so-called allies, will suffer economically. And all the while, international tensions are being brought to a dangerous boiling point. Russia Today A man who police feared had been murdered has been found alive in woodland, five years after he went missing. Police launched a murder investigation in November 2015 after Ricardas Puisys, then 35, had not been seen for several weeks. At the time, concerns were raised that he was being exploited. Officers worked "tirelessly" to find Mr Puisys, a Lithuanian national, but could find no trace of him, despite multiple public appeals. But, on July 1, he was found "deliberately hidden" in some undergrowth in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire. Police said he had not spoken with anyone for some time and believe he was in hiding to escape from those who had exploited him. "For almost five years Ricardas disappearance has been a complete mystery," said Detective Chief Inspector Rob Hall, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit. "That was until we received information at the end of June which led us to finding him. Selfies of a man that police said looked like Ricardas were shared by Cambridgeshire Police last year in a bid to find the Lithuanian national / Cambridgeshire Police At the time of his disappearance Mr Puisys was working at Nightlayer Leek Company in Dean Drove, Chatteris, through an agency. He was last seen at work on Saturday, September 26, 2015. Later that same evening, he was believed to be in the company of a small group of Lithuanian men. He did not return to work on the Monday. In November last year, a Facebook account was set up in his name, featuring photos believed to have been of him. According to reports in the Independent, officers attempted to make contact with the Facebook account. Officers received reports in June this year that Mr Puisys was alive and well. Police carried out a search in a wooded area in Harecroft Road where they found the man "very well concealed" and living in undergrowth. DCI Hall added: There were genuine concerns Ricardas came to harm that evening. He did not return to work on Monday, 28 September, 2015 as expected, but we now believe Ricardas made the decision to run away as he had been a victim of crime, having previously been subject to exploitation. A team of investigators worked tirelessly following up a number of inquiries, none leading to the discovery of Ricardas. That was until we received information that Ricardas may have been alive and still in the Wisbech area. Following a search of wooded area in Harecroft Road, Ricardas was eventually found living in undergrowth, very well concealed after having deliberately hidden and having not spoken with anyone for some time." The officers decided not to publicly announce Mr Puisys' safe recovery in July in order to ensure his protection and make sure safeguarding measures were in place. He is safe and we are working very closely with him to ensure he remains safe, but also to ensure he gets the support he needs after having lived through extremely difficult circumstances during the last five or more years," said DCI Hall. An investigation into potential exploitation of Mr Puisys has been launched and a team of detectives in Fenland are working their way through a number of enquiries. Crown Resorts is still working with a "junket" partner despite being warned in several due diligence reports that its owner has links to organised crime and even after being directly challenged about the relationship by the nation's anti-money laundering watchdog. A NSW government inquiry on Monday heard that Crown did not consider ending the partnership with Suncity even after it discovered $5.6 million in cash stored in the junket operator's private gaming parlour at Crown Melbourne, in an incident the casino's chief legal officer said sent "money-laundering alarms ringing". The inquiry heard that Crown did not consider ending the partnership with Suncity even after it discovered $5.6 million in cash stored in the junket operator's private gaming parlour at Crown Melbourne. Credit:Joe Armao The NSW Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority's inquiry is reviewing Crown's probity to hold a licence for its new $2.4 billion casino nearing completion at Sydney's Barangaroo in light of revelations by The Age, Sydney Morning Herald and 60 Minutes that it went into business with "junkets"- which bring wealthy Chinese gamblers to its Australian casinos - linked to powerful crime syndicates. Counsel assisting Naomi Sharp, SC, on Monday grilled Crown's chief legal officer, Joshua Preston, on one of Crown's largest junket operators, Alvin Chau and his Macau-based Suncity outfit. Academic freedom in British universities is in danger as the minority of academics with Right-leaning or pro-Brexit views feel they have to censor what they teach and discuss, a report has warned. A survey for the Policy Exchange think-tank found that political affiliations among academics in UK universities have changed in recent decades, with fewer than 20 per cent saying they voted for Right-leaning parties in the 2017 and 2019 elections. This compares with 75 per cent voting for Labour, the Liberal Democrats or the Greens. The paper, titled Academic Freedom in the UK, suggests there is a 'structural discriminatory effect' against the minority of academics at British universities who identify as being on the Right. Academic freedom in British universities is in danger as the minority of academics with Right-leaning or pro-Brexit views feel they have to censor what they teach and discuss (File photo) The paper argues that higher education institutions and the Government must do much more to ensure that all lawful speech is protected on university campuses. A YouGov poll for the report, of 820 current and former academics, found that just over half of respondents said they would feel comfortable sitting with a colleague who is a Leave supporter at lunch, in a meeting or in the staff room. But more than four in five said they believed academics who were pro-Remain would feel comfortable expressing their views to colleagues. A survey for the Policy Exchange think-tank found that political affiliations among academics in UK universities have changed in recent decades, with fewer than 20 per cent saying they voted for Right-leaning parties in the 2017 and 2019 elections (file photo) The report suggests that Right-leaning academics are more likely to choose to 'self-censor' compared to colleagues who are centrists or on the Left. Some pro-Leave social sciences and humanities academics said they had refrained from publishing or airing views in research and teaching for 'fear of consequences' to their careers. The paper warns: 'The challenge today is that a serious threat to academic freedom may now arise from within universities. Academic Freedom in the UK, suggests there is a 'structural discriminatory effect' against the minority of academics at British universities who identify as being on the Right (file photo) 'This internal threat derives from the way that some in the university both students and faculty members relate to others on campus, being willing to penalise them on the basis of their perceived or actual political views.' The report calls on the Government to make it explicit in law that universities have a direct duty to protect academic freedom and freedom of speech. Universities minister Michelle Donelan said: 'This Government is committed to bringing forward measures to strengthen free speech and academic freedom, potentially including legislation.' But Jo Grady, general secretary of the University and College Union, dismissed the findings. She said: 'The idea that academic freedom is under threat is a myth.' WASHINGTON In making an end run around Congress to appoint Anthony J. Tata, a retired brigadier general with a history of Islamophobic and other inflammatory views, to a top Defense Department post, President Trump has once again put the military exactly where it does not want to be: in the middle of a political battle that could hurt bipartisan support for the Pentagon. Mr. Tata, who had been nominated to the No. 3 job at the Pentagon, was unlikely to win Senate approval because of past incendiary comments, according to congressional staff members from both sides of the aisle. At a time when vulnerable Republican senators are grappling with how to deal with the movement to end systemic racism that has rolled across the country, Mr. Tatas nomination to the top policy post was widely seen as a step too far. Senator James M. Inhofe, Republican of Oklahoma, canceled Mr. Tatas confirmation hearing last Thursday just 30 minutes before it was set to begin. But on Sunday, the White House sidestepped Congress. Mr. Trump had Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper appoint Mr. Tata to a temporary senior position in the same Defense Department office. Arcane rules say that if he stays in that office for 90 days, Mr. Tata can then take the original job in an acting capacity without Senate approval. (Mr. Tata had withdrawn his name from consideration for that job on Sunday, and Mr. Trump formally withdrew the nomination on Monday.) On Monday at the Pentagon, where military officials have already been engaged in a tug of war with Mr. Trump over the presidents insistence that the military continue to honor former Confederate leaders, the Tata maneuver was greeted with both resignation and consternation. A boy hugs his father as he waits to be called to enter the schoolyard the Marie-Derome School in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que. on Monday, May 11, 2020. Plans are being made across the country for how to safely send students back to school in the fall as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson (Bloomberg) -- Alphabet Inc.s Google is buying a $450 million stake in home security firm ADT Inc., forming a partnership that could get the tech giants smart-home products in front of millions of new customers. The deal gives Google a 6.6% stake in the Boca Raton, Florida-based ADT, the largest home security company in the U.S. with about 20,000 employees and more than 6 million customers. Googles prowess in hardware design and software will give ADT access to technology it wouldnt be able to build on its own. ADT will begin distributing Googles Nest home products exclusively. Shares of ADT skyrocketed as much as 100% before pulling back somewhat. They were up 57% to $14.40 at 11:17 a.m. in New York. Google shares were little changed. Distribution is key for Google because it doesnt have a network of retail stores like Apple Inc. and doesnt own its own marketplace like Amazon.com Inc. The three tech giants are locked in a battle for prime placement in peoples homes, designing appliances centered around their unique voice assistants. Google has many distribution deals with home builders and utility companies, but the ADT agreement is notable for its size and the fact that Google is taking an equity stake. Until now, ADT hasnt favored one companys products over another. This deal changes that. The partnership with Google is us no longer pursuing a path of product agnosticism and aligning with someone we think is the best in the business, said ADT Chief Executive Officer Jim DeVries. ADT will still integrate with Amazons Alexa voice assistant if customers ask for it, but in hardware categories where Google has an offering, it will be the exclusive partner, DeVries said in a phone interview. The smart home market is experiencing explosive gains DeVries said, and is projected to grow 20% annually. Together the smart home and security market represents a tremendous opportunity for ADT and Google, DeVries said on a conference call with analysts. Story continues Both companies will commit an additional $150 million, subject to the achievement of certain milestones, for marketing, product development, technology and employee training, they said. The deal would make Google ADTs second-largest shareholder, behind Apollo Global Management Inc., the private equity firm that took over ADT in 2016 and helped organize an initial public offering. Google entered the smart-home market when it bought Nest in 2014 for $3.2 billion. The unit has become one of the largest makers of internet-connected thermostats, smoke alarms and locks. In the security space, it has about 40% of the market compared to Amazons 35%, according to a 2019 research report by Rakuten Intelligence. Amazons home security system Ring has been criticized by privacy and civil rights activists for working too closely with police. The company has formed partnerships with police departments to make it easy for them to request footage recorded by Ring devices. Some police forces have subsidized Ring devices for residents to expand their potential surveillance network DeVries said ADT doesnt give cameras to police and doesnt have hardware deals with law enforcement. On the monitoring side, ADT does work closely with police forces, who often respond when a security alert is triggered by an ADT alarm system. 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 Navy's new jacket, available exclusively to surface warfare officers, is now available for order. Active-duty and Reserve SWOs can submit their order forms to Naval Surface Forces to get the unisex black leather jacket the Navy authorized for their community earlier this year. The order form must be submitted on signed letterhead to be processed. The jacket is meant to build esprit de corps in the community and reflect the warfighter expertise that comes with earning a SWO pin, Navy officials said when the uniform item was announced. It's similar to the bomber jacket worn by naval aviators. Read next: USS Theodore Roosevelt's Leadership Changes Hands for The Second Time in Four Months "Those who wear the jacket will be easily identified as a part of a long lineage of professional ship drivers and maritime warfighters," Vice Adm. Richard Brown, commander of Naval Surface Forces, said in January. Vice Adm. Richard A. Brown, Commander, Naval Surface Forces, delivers the keynote address at the Surface Navy Association's 21st annual West Coast symposium on board Naval Base San Diego, Aug. 22.. (U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Woody S. Paschall) The SWO jacket is meant to be worn primarily at sea as an authorized outer garment. It's also authorized for optional wear ashore with service or dress uniforms in some settings. It's a unisex garment and is available in regular and long jacket lengths. Naval Surface Forces includes a measurement guide on its ordering website, which SWOs are encouraged to reference to get a proper fit. "The SWO leather jacket will be worn squarely on the shoulders, zipped three-fourths of the way up, collar down and sleeves fully extended between wrist and the lower thumb knuckle," a Navy administrative message on the jacket states. A name tag is required to denote the identity of the wearer. Name patches are the only device authorized to be worn on the SWO jacket. The new jacket was supposed to be available for issue in June, but was delayed by the novel coronavirus pandemic. SWOs who qualify to get the jacket can keep it when separating or retiring under honorable conditions, but they won't be eligible for replacements after that point. The jackets aren't available to retirees now, but the command's site states, "Just as we see with the aviator jackets, we expect there to be vendors who make their own version ... for retired SWOs to purchase." -- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins. Related: Navy Authorizes New Black Leather Jacket for Surface Warfare Officers The New York Times The first astronaut trip to orbit by a private company has splashed down safely in the Gulf of Mexico. Two astronauts dropped out of orbit in what was the first water landing by NASA since 1975, when the agencys crews were still flying in the Apollo modules used for the historic U.S. moon missions. Suspended under four giant billowing orange-and-white parachutes, the Crew Dragon settled into calm waters near Pensacola, Florida, at a gentle pace of 15 mph. Two small SpaceX boats arrived quickly to begin the operation to prepare the capsule to be pulled out by the main recovery ship, where crews will tend to the spacecrafts passengers. They are two NASA astronauts Robert L. Behnken and Douglas G. Hurley but the conclusion of their first voyage of nearly 64 days could be a first step to more people going to space for a variety of new activities like sightseeing, corporate research and satellite repair. This flight of the Crew Dragon capsule was operated by SpaceX, the rocket company started by Elon Musk, as part of NASAs efforts to turn over to private enterprise some things it used to do. NASA has hired two companies SpaceX and Boeing to provide transportation of astronauts to and from the International Space Station, and SpaceX was the first to be ready to take astronauts to orbit, launching Behnken and Hurley in May. With a little help, astronauts exit the capsule After 4 p.m., the recovery crews opened the hatch and assisted Behnken and Hurley, still in their spacesuits and giving thumbs up, to exit the capsule. Hurley thanked employees of NASA and SpaceX for their work on the spacecraft and mission. You should take a moment to just cherish this day, especially given all the things that have happened this year, Hurley said as he exited the Crew Dragon. He added that he felt proud to be a small part of this whole effort, to carry people to and from space. Private boats encroach splash zone as capsule is lifted from sea Before the recovery ship hoisted the capsule out of the water and prepared to open the capsules hatch, a flotilla of small private boats piloted by onlookers also converged around the bobbing capsule. At least one of them flew a banner supporting President Donald Trump. Personnel aboard SpaceXs boats chased them farther away; there is a possibility of toxic propellant fumes from the spacecraft thrusters, which could endanger passengers on other vessels nearby. Detection of the fumes in fact caused a short delay in opening the hatch to release the astronauts from the capsule. Lets just keep everyone safe; no reason to rush, Hurley said to mission control of the delay. Q: What happened as the spacecraft began to land? A: On Saturday, the Crew Dragon performed a series of thruster burns to move away from the space station and then line up with the splashdown site. Before leaving orbit Sunday, the spacecraft jettisoned its bottom half, known as the trunk, which will no longer be needed. That exposes the heat shield that protects the capsule and astronauts during reentry. Oh yeah, we felt it, Hurley said after the maneuver was confirmed on the ground. One more thruster burn of about 11 minutes in length was completed after 2 p.m. Eastern time, which caused the capsule to drop out of orbit, headed toward its landing site at sea. After further maneuvers, the capsules parachutes brought the spacecraft to the surface of the Gulf of Mexico. Q: Is it safer to land on water or on land? A: Spacecraft can safely return to Earth in either environment. During the 1960s and 1970s, NASAs Mercury, Gemini and Apollo capsules all splashed down in the ocean while Soviet capsules all ended their trips on land. Russias current Soyuz capsules continue to make ground landings, as do Chinas astronaut-carrying Shenzhou capsules. The last water landing by NASA astronauts occurred in July 1975 at the end of the Apollo-Soyuz mission, during which an American crew aboard an Apollo module docked in orbit with two Soviet astronauts aboard a Soyuz capsule. While the crew splashed down safely, a problem with the Apollo spacecraft during reentry caused fumes from rocket propellant to fill the capsule, causing breathing and eye problems for the astronauts. When Boeings Starliner capsule begins carrying crews to the space station, it will return on land, in New Mexico. SpaceX had originally planned for the Crew Dragon to do ground landings, but decided that water landings, employed for the earlier version of Dragon for taking cargo, simplified the development of the capsule. Musk further explained the reasoning on Twitter early Sunday: Parachutes were originally the backup landing system, with SuperDraco thrusters as primary, he said. Difficulty of proving thruster landing safety *and* architecture being suboptimal for moon/Mars caused us to change focus to parachutes. Q: What do astronauts experience during a water landing? A: Returning from the free-fall environment of orbit to the normal forces of gravity on Earth is often disorienting for astronauts. A water landing adds the possibility of seasickness. During a news conference Friday, Hurley said he had read some of the reports by the Skylab astronauts. There was some challenges post splashdown, he said. Folks didnt feel well, and you know, that is the way it is with a water landing, even if youre not deconditioned like were going to be. Hurley acknowledged that vomiting would not be unexpected. There are bags if you need them, and well have those handy, he said. Well probably have some towels handy as well. And you know, if that needs to happen, it certainly wouldnt be the first time that thats happened in a space vehicle. But not long after the splash down, he asked SpaceXs mission controllers to tell flight surgeons monitoring their health that, were doing pretty good so far. Q: What have the astronauts been doing since they undocked? A: Sleeping mostly. Following a series of thruster firings to put the spacecraft on track with the landing site, the astronauts schedule included a full night of rest. The capsule even completed one of its maneuvers while the astronauts were supposed to be sleeping. Any return journey that exceeds six hours has to be long enough for the crew to get some sleep between undocking and splashdown, Daniel Huot, a NASA spokesman, said in an email. Otherwise, because of the extended process that leads up to undocking, the crew would end up working more than 20 hours straight, which is not safe for dynamic operations like water splashdown and recovery, Huot said. On Sunday morning, the astronauts were greeted with a wake-up message sent from Earth by their two sons. Just before noon, the astronauts began to put their SpaceX spacesuits back on as they completed preparations for landing. Q: Why is the return trip an important part of the Crew Dragons first flight? A: After launch, reentry through Earths atmosphere is the second most dangerous phase of spaceflight. Friction of air rushing past will heat the bottom of the capsule to about 3,500 degrees Fahrenheit. A test flight of the Crew Dragon last year successfully splashed down, so engineers know the system works. A successful conclusion to the trip opens the door to more people flying to space. Some companies have announced plans to use Crew Dragons to lift wealthy tourists to orbit. In the past, NASA astronauts launched on spacecraft like the Saturn 5 moon rocket and the space shuttles that NASA itself operated. After the retirement of the space shuttles in 2011, NASA had to rely on Russia, buying seats on the Soyuz capsules for trips to and from orbit. Under the Obama administration, NASA hired two companies, SpaceX and Boeing, to build spacecraft to take astronauts to the space station. NASA financed much of the work to develop the spacecraft but will now buy rides at fixed prices. For SpaceX, the trip by Behnken and Hurley the first launch of astronauts from U.S. soil since the last space shuttle flight was the last major demonstration needed before NASA officially certifies that the Crew Dragon is ready to begin regular flights. Q: Who are the astronauts? A: Behnken and Hurley have been friends and colleagues since both were selected by NASA to be astronauts in 2000. Both men have backgrounds as military test pilots and each has flown twice before on space shuttle missions, although this is the first time they have worked together on a mission. Hurley flew on the space shuttles final mission in 2011. In 2015, they were among the astronauts chosen to work with Boeing and SpaceX on the commercial space vehicles that the companies were developing. In 2018, they were assigned to the first SpaceX flight. Q: What have the astronauts been doing aboard the space station? A: Originally, the mission was to last up to two weeks, but Behnken and Hurley ended up with a longer and busier stay at the space station. Because of repeated delays by SpaceX and Boeing, NASA ended up short-handed, with only one astronaut, Christopher J. Cassidy, aboard the space station when the Crew Dragon and its two passengers docked. They stayed two months, helping Cassidy with space station chores. Behnken and Cassidy performed four spacewalks to complete the installation of new batteries on the space station. Hurley helped by operating the stations robotic arm. The men have also been contributing to science experiments in low Earth orbit. They assisted in a study of water droplet formation in the low gravity environment of the space station using a shower head, and another that used fruit punch and foam to look at how to manage fluids in space. They also helped install new equipment inside the station that will be used in future scientific research. Cassidy will remain aboard the station with two Russian astronauts, Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner. All three are to stay on board through October when another crew of one American and two Russian astronauts will replace them. Q: When are the next Crew Dragon flights, and who will they carry? A: The first operational flight of the Crew Dragon will launch no earlier than late September. It will take three NASA astronauts Michael S. Hopkins, Victor J. Glover and Shannon Walker and one Japanese astronaut, Soichi Noguchi, to the space station. The second operational flight, tentatively scheduled for February 2021, will carry two NASA astronauts, Robert S. Kimbrough and K. Megan McArthur; Akihiko Hoshide of Japan; and Thomas Pesquet of the European Space Agency. McArthur is married to Behnken. Q: Which other companies are building rides to space? A: SpaceXs counterpart in the commercial crew program, Boeing, will almost certainly not be able to launch astronauts until next year. An uncrewed flight last year suffered significant software errors, which prevented the spacecraft from achieving its primary goal of docking at the space station, and could have led to a loss of the spacecraft during its orbital test. Boeing will now repeat the uncrewed test later this year before putting astronauts aboard. Closer to Earth, a couple of companies Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic are developing spacecraft that provide brief up-and-down tourist rides to the edge of space, although neither is capable of making the trip to the space station, or even to orbit. Kenneth Chang .c.2020 The New York Times Company New Delhi, Aug 3 (IANS) The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has given approval to Pune's Serum Institute of India (SII) to conduct clinical trials of Oxford University-Astra Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine in India. The SII received approval by the India's top drug regulator on Sunday after a thorough evaluation based on the recommendations of the Subject Expert Committee on COVID-19. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 22:40:42|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Photo taken on Aug. 1, 2020 shows the interior of a makeshift hospital for COVID-19 patients at the AsiaWorld-Expo in south China's Hong Kong. (Xinhua/Wu Xiaochu) by Cao Bin, Ding Ziyi HONG KONG, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Amid a rampant resurgence of the novel coronavirus, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government has intensified measures, expanded testing capacity, added quarantine facilities, and sought assistance from the central government to contain the epidemic as far as possible. Hong Kong has seen a new round of COVID-19 infections in multiple communities since the beginning of July. New cases remained above 100 for 12 days in a row till Sunday. The rapid increase has put Hong Kong's hospital system under great strain. Expanding virus testing has become a key. The government introduced a wide-ranging testing scheme late July in virus-battered Tsz Wan Shan Community, offering free testing to residents in the area. At the same time, screening of market tenants, bus drivers and school staff has been stepped up. More than 500,000 people have been tested so far. The first batch of seven virus testing professionals from the Chinese mainland, members of a 60-strong nucleic acid testing team established recently at the request of the HKSAR government, arrived in Hong Kong on Sunday afternoon. HKSAR Chief Executive Carrie Lam has given clear instructions on how to carry out large-scale virus testing at a meeting previously. The advance team has started working with relevant departments here and familiarizing themselves with testing facilities and procedures in preparation for the following large-scale nucleic acid testing. Yu Dewen, the team leader, said Hong Kong's public institutions have a combined testing capacity of about 10,000 samples per day, which is far from enough to meet the needs of the current epidemic prevention. The support team will increase the daily tests to up to 200,000 or even more. To alleviate the demand for isolation beds in public hospitals, the HKSAR government has opened a 500-bed makeshift hospital at the AsiaWorld-Expo near the Hong Kong International Airport and a community isolation facility at the Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village. The makeshift hospital has entered use since Saturday, and received 22 patients on the first day. A total of 14 doctors will take shift to care for the patients during the first week, and the number of on-site doctors will reach 28 by Aug. 8. The second phase of the makeshift hospital at the venue is being prepared. About 120 to 140 COVID-19 patients will be admitted daily when completed. A panel of six experts from Wuhan, also dispatched by the central government, has been set up to provide technical support in transforming more parts of the AsiaWorld-Expo into a makeshift hospital. Meanwhile, the HKSAR government has introduced five rounds of increasingly stringent measures since July 9. The so-far toughest measures include compulsory mask-wearing in all public places, both indoors and outdoors, and the group gathering limit of two people. Employers have also been encouraged to let employees work from home. The HKSAR government also tightened the testing and quarantine arrangement for exempted persons such as sea and flight crews, in a bid to strengthen the prevention of imported cases. To avoid gatherings and based on the experience of numerous countries and regions, the HKSAR government has postponed the 2020 Legislative Council election for one year, which has won the understanding and supports from various sectors of Hong Kong society. "The SAR government will continue to devote all its efforts to fighting the epidemic. Only when the epidemic situation stabilizes can the health and safety of Hong Kong residents be guaranteed and the economy recover more quickly," said Chief Secretary for Administration of the HKSAR government Matthew Cheung Kin-chung. The various measures taken by the HKSAR government are in the public interest and the central government is highly concerned about the health of people in Hong Kong, Cheung posted on his blog. "The HKSAR government expresses its heartfelt thanks." Enditem The past few months of life during the coronavirus pandemic have been a whirlwind of last-minute activity and decisions. Countless employees were suddenly thrust into remote work, changing their calendars on a dime, and many companies had to move in-person gatherings and conferences to virtual meetings. For instance, the United Nations known for its formal meetings and conferences began teleconferencing with mixed results, according to Devex reporting from late April 2020. Not accustomed to working virtually, U.N. employees had to pivot to recover after initial hiccups with online meetings. A June 2020 Harvard Business Review piece outlines a similar situation for Adobe. The brand had to cancel its annual Nevada convention abruptly in light of the pandemic. Rather than lose the chance to bring everyone together in one physical location, though, Adobe moved its conference online and more than quintupled the guest list. Related: 10 Tips on Getting the Most Out of Business Meetings Making online miracles out of potential mayhem Your company might not be as well-known as the U.N. or Adobe, but youve likely experienced the need for unplanned, urgent virtual meetings to deal with time-sensitive information during COVID-19. That wont stop anytime soon. Youll continue to be bombarded by all kinds of unexpected information. Budgets will be lost and, in some cases, found. Markets will shift. The government could release regulations affecting your operations. These shifting sands mean you can expect to arrange and execute plenty of last-minute meetings. That can be a tall order, but its not too tall if youre prepared. Salesforce, as an example, had to switch its March 2020 World Tour Sydney event from an in-person gathering to an online experience with two weeks notice. Their leaders stepped up to the challenge and moved everything to a livestream format. The result? The company surpassed the expectations with a record 80,000 participants. Handling last-minute meetings with confidence To be sure, Salesforces event planning was mostly done. The company could leverage talk tracks, sessions and content, making the move to a virtual stage slightly less arduous. Organizers didnt need to start from scratch they just needed to reframe a live experience to fit a digital format. You might not be as lucky or well-equipped with resources the next time you face an urgent situation that requires immediate communication and collaboration through virtual channels. And thats OK. You can still successfully host meetings and events online by practicing the three techniques below. 1. Map out a fluff-free agenda and guidelines. You just realized you need to set up an online gathering. Dont panic. Instead, channel your nervous energy into creating and disseminating an airtight agenda. Having a set schedule ensures all topics remain relevant to attendees. Plus, you can distribute the agenda ahead of time to encourage ordinarily quiet people to participate more fully by giving them time to think. While working on the agenda, consider the overall length of your meeting to ensure it doesnt spin out of control or devolve into endless segments. Thirty minutes is a good baseline. Remember: virtual-meet fatigue is real real enough to warrant coverage by the BBC. Keep sessions tight, allowing only priority items to make the final cut. Its easier to schedule a follow-up meeting than force people to stare at their screens for hours. As a final note, craft meeting guidelines surrounding expected protocol, such as when participants should unmute themselves or whether everyone is required to appear on video. Mention whether youre archiving and recording the communication to share with anyone who is unable to attend. If youre worried about this, you can hire a digital producer to facilitate the production aspects and leave you to focus on the content. Related: 3 Things That Will Boost Your Teams Communication 2. Divvy up assignments and take a practice run. Have you ever sat in a meeting without clear leadership or purpose? Its frustrating and often disastrous. Even if youre pressed for time, determine who needs to be present and who needs to speak. Figure out who will handle the technical aspects and who will be front and center. Even if youre planning a seemingly straightforward meeting, outline everyones role to prevent missing anything important. After fleshing out an event management document that includes specific assignments, share it. The more prepared everyone is, the better the event will flow. Oh, and make sure to practice everything from screen-sharing to using touchscreen interactive software. Videos dont always look flawless when played over teleconferencing platforms. Slide decks can freeze and screens can become pixelated. Technology is designed to make your meetings productive and compelling, but its always prudent to give everything a trial run before going live. 3. Answer questions candidly and with empathy. If youve asked attendees for questions in advance, distribute them to every presenter to make Q&A sessions efficient. If you havent requested audience questions, try to anticipate the questions participants might ask. Once you have a good idea of what people might want to know, you can consider your responses and write down bullet points. When youre leading the meeting, answer into the camera with conviction and honesty. When Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg faced 25,000 unhappy workers via a video call in June 2020, he could have prepared and delivered a clear answer in response to concerns about the controversy swirling around the presidents "shoot and loot" posts. He didnt, according to Voxs coverage. Instead, he talked about trust with employees, using language that made him seem less like their boss and more like an equally concerned colleague. His words werent eloquent, but they spoke volumes because they were authentic. Even though your job is to plan for your last-minute meetings, dont plan so much that you sound robotic. Related: Why Empathy Is Important in Leaders Right Now Its tough to pull together an award-winning show without much notice, but it certainly can be done. The next time youre faced with whipping up an online meeting, take a deep breath and apply the aforementioned best practices. Over time, youll get a reputation for hosting every impromptu event just as well as you would have in-person. Related: Copyright 2020 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved Several Republican senators on Sunday backed a plan by China's ByteDance to divest the U.S. operations of TikTok after President Donald Trump said on Friday he had decided to ban the popular short-video app. Senator John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, said on Twitter that a divestment "and purchase by U.S. company is win-win." Senator Roger Wicker, a Republican who chairs the Commerce Committee, echoed Cornyn but added that "tight security measures need to be part of any deal in order to protect consumer data and ensure no foreign access." Treasury ... The management of the NDDC has debunked fresh rumours of financial impropriety in the Niger Delta Development Commision (NDDC). The management, in a statement by its Director of Corporate Services, Charles Odili, described the rumours as a rehash of the allegations which led the National Assembly, on May 5, to order a probe of the administration of Kemebradikumo Pondei, the acting Managing Director at the Commission. A lot of controversies have emerged around the commission in the past one month. The two chambers of the National Assembly had, a few weeks ago, held investigative hearings to probe the allegations of corruption in the NDDC. Due to criticisms of the operations of the commission, President Muhammadu Buhari had, in 2019, ordered a forensic audit of the operations of the organisation from 2001 to 2019. The commission is saddled with the responsibility of developing the oil-rich Niger Delta region of Nigeria. One of the core mandates of the commission is to train and educate the youth of the oil-rich Niger Delta region to curb hostilities and militancy while developing key infrastructure to promote diversification and productivity. Reacting to the fresh allegations, Mr Odili claimed the acting MD has run a very transparent administration since he came on board. Read full statement below: Let NDDC Serve the People of the Niger Delta Less than two weeks after an exhaustive and exhausting public hearings by both chambers of the National Assembly, another round of false reports have surfaced in the media alleging all manners of improprieties by the management of the Niger Delta Development Commission. One of the reports alleges that a fresh massive fraud has been uncovered in the Commission. Reading through the story, there is no evidence of fraud in the commission. The report is merely a rehash of the allegations which led the National Assembly, on May 5, to order a probe of the 74 day administration of Prof Kemebradikumo Pondei at the Commission. Lest we forget, that probe was set up to uncover the sum of N40 billion missing from the Commission. In order to allay the fears of our stakeholders, we took the unusual step of publishing the list of payments made by the Commission since Pondei came into office. With that publication, the rug was pulled from the feet of our accusers. When the hearings proper started, there was no talk of the missing N40 billion any more. It was now about financial recklessness. As we pointed out in an earlier release, the issue of missing money is one needing objective proof. The issue of financial recklessness is a matter of subjective judgment. The reports of the hearings have been submitted and it is clear there was no money missing at the Commission. The response of the Commission to the new reports is that there is no fraud at the Niger Delta Development Commission. Prof Pondei has run a very transparent administration and this transparency is now apparent after the searchlight put on his administration in the past one month. Another report rehashed the claim of the Contractors Association that the management demands between 20 per cent and 30 per cent kickback before paying contractors. We wish to state categorically that this is false. This allegation was made at the hearing of the Ad hoc Senate Committee which probed the affairs of the Commission. The management of NDDC was at the hearing when the allegation was made and challenged the man who did so for evidence. There was no single case that he could allude to. Without any evidence, the allegation became so outlandish that not even a single newspaper reported it the following day. Prof Pondei famously said that if any contractor can prove he paid him any money, he would resign. Four weeks since that challenge was thrown on July 9, no one has come out with any proof. It is instructive that the Senate report did not adopt the allegation as valid. It beats the imagination why any newspaper will report a baseless claim, four weeks after it was made and for which no one can prove. The reporter claimed to have lifted the report from the report of the Senate Committee. We need to know why he did not report it four weeks ago when he was at the hearing. We suspect that after the scheming of the past four weeks failed to achieve the purpose of sacking the management and scuttling the work on the forensic audit exercise, the schemers are out again to heat up the polity. The point they miss is that the forensic audit exercise is a project of Mr President. Hounding and haunting an innocent academic who is merely on a national assignment will not scuttle the audit. We appeal to those who are putting their personal interests over and above that of the people of the Niger Delta to have a rethink, pull back and allow the Commission the space to serve the people of the region. Charles Obi Odili Director, Corporate Affairs The United States must take bolder action to address threats posed to the Yazidis, a US religious freedom official said Monday, as Iraqs long-persecuted minority marked the sixth anniversary of the terrorist rampage on their homeland. The US government cannot rest with just providing humanitarian aid to the Yazidis and other religious and ethnic minorities, as essential as that assistance may be," said Nadine Maenza, a commissioner at the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, a bipartisan watchdog group. It must also act decisively to push back against the regional forces that threaten the safety and security of those very communities, she said at a virtual panel hosted by advocacy group Free Yezidi Foundation. In the six years since the Islamic State (IS) stormed their towns, killed their men and enslaved their women and children, Yazidi activists say little has been done to ensure that it will never happen again. More than 2,800 of the women and children taken captive in August 2014 remain missing, with many feared dead. Those who survived what the United Nations now calls a genocide and who now live in camps scattered along northern Iraq are trapped in poverty. We need to as an international community, and the United States is committed to this, help in rebuilding, said Sam Brownback, US Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom. Speaking at an event hosted by advocacy group Yazda, Brownback said the Donald Trump administration had put forward an aggressive plan to rebuild the Yazidi ancestral homeland of Sinjar, citing nearly $300 million in financial aid pledged to vulnerable groups in Iraq since 2017. But despite financial assistance from the United States and other governments, only a fraction of Sinjars original inhabitants have returned. The mountain town has been free of IS since 2015, and yet it is still littered with landmines and booby traps. Reliable electricity and safe drinking water are scant. Some 200,000 Yazidis are displaced, unable to return to whats left of their homes 70% of which the United Nations says was destroyed by the terrorist group. The ever-present threat of Iran-backed militias, a resurgence of IS activity and recent Turkish airstrikes against Kurdish militant targets on Sinjar Mountain also have many former residents fearing a repeat of the August 2014 massacre should they leave the relative safety of the camps. Dangers face Yazidi families from every direction, Free Yezidi Foundation wrote in a statement. The international community may be hesitant to offer permanent military support in this area, but the coalition can and should take some symbolic actions in Ninevah province to demonstrate its support. Disputed areas between the central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government, including Sinjar in Ninevah province, are especially vulnerable to militant attacks. Remnants of IS have exploited the security vacuum to carry out an increasing number of insurgent attacks against civilians and security forces in the past year. The Yazidis also point the finger at Turkey, which regularly targets the Kurdistan Workers Party in northern Iraq. The Kurdish militants are viewed by Ankara as a threat to its national security and were on the receiving end of airstrikes in Sinjar this June. In addition, parts of northeast Syria that are home to a smaller population of Yazidis were overrun by Turkeys allied rebel fighters in recent years, who rights groups have accused of carrying out rape, kidnappings and forced conversions of locals. Security is the No. 1 issue, said activist Murad Ismael, recalling how the Yazidis were left defenseless when IS stormed their towns six summers ago. In the absence of meaningful military protection, Ismael called on the international community to provide training and logistical support to local forces. We will have to be holding the weapons when the next IS comes, he said. Two Killed, Over 20 Injured After Car Bomb Explodes Outside Prison in Afghanistan Sputnik News 15:40 GMT 02.08.2020(updated 17:54 GMT 02.08.2020) No militant group has so far taken responsibility for the attack. At least two people were killed and 24 more injured after a bomb blast and gunfire near a prison in Afghanistan's eastern province of Nangarhar, Attaullah Khogyani, the provincial spokesman, said. The explosion was followed by gunfire after the militants entered the prison and attacked security forces. According to our source, 50 inmates have escaped from jail following the explosion. A security official later said that some of the fugitives had been recaptured. The Daesh* have claimed responsibility for the attack, Reuters said. *Daesh (IS/ISIS/ISIL is a terrorist organisation banned in Russia) Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The coronavirus disease threatened to cast a shadow on the Ram temple foundation ceremony on Monday with a second priest testing positive for the infection and the administration expressing concern that local residents were flouting social distancing guidelines. Satyendra Das, head priest of the existing makeshift Ram temple in Ayodhya, confirmed to HT that Prem Kumar Tiwari, part of the team that conducts the daily rituals at the Ram Janmabhoomi site, had tested positive for Covid. Of course it is worrying. We all stay in the same area in the temple. I also have some other conditions and Im not a young man, said the 82-year-old. Also read: Four key guests in temple event, 175 invitees: Trust Last week, another junior priest called Pradeep Das from the same team tested positive for the infection and all those in contact with him were quarantined. Four other officials at the site also tested positive. But senior district officials played down the priests infection. We have tested a large number of people and we are taking all precautions. I dont think this event has any risks at all, said a top state government official on condition of anonymity. We had all the major festivals- Ram Navami in April, weve celebrated Eid, so why should we not be able to celebrate this, said Prakash Sharma, a senior official at the Ram Mandir Teerth Kshetra Trust. Coronavirus fears may also keep a key guest, Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board chairman Zafar Ahmad Faruqi away. Yes, the chairman has got an invite. However, he returned from Ayodhya yesterday where the land papers were handed over and since then he hasnt been feeling well. Its not corona likely as he had surgery but he wont be travelling, said Athar Hussain, Faruqis spokesperson. The state government has appealed to people to not travel to Ayodhya and instructed local officials to seal district borders from Monday night. Still, there is concern that distancing protocols are not being followed by local residents in a city with 604 active cases and 16 deaths. A letter issued by district magistrate Anuj Jha expressed concern that many people thronging the Ram Ki Paidi ghat on the banks of the Saryu river didnt wear masks and jostled with each other. To combat this, the DM ordered that from 2pm Tuesday, the entire area would be shut down for the public and only those accredited to be present in the area would be allowed in. The DM said this action was necessary so that no unnecessary crowd gathered in the area. Soldiers of the "Hard-boned Sixth Company" of the 74th Army Group of the People's Liberation Army take part in a battle drill in a coastal area of Guangdong province on June 1, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua] By ZHANG YANGFEI During a joint battle drill taking place during summer in a coastal area of Guangdong province, soldiers from the sixth company of the 74th Army Group of the People's Liberation Army faced a strong opposing force made up of a joint amphibious brigade. They were far outnumbered, with a ratio about 2 to 15, and their weapons were also outmatched, but they firmly defended the line to stop the opponents from making a landing. Repelled, the amphibious brigade called for air support. Two fighter jets were sent, attacking and causing huge losses to the Sixth Company. Just as the line was about to be breached, a small shock team of the Sixth Company launched a sudden attack on the opposition force's command vehicle, "killing" all commanders and successfully completing their defense mission. The company is known as the "Hard-boned Sixth Company", an honorary title bestowed by the Ministry of National Defense in the 1960s for the number of war heroes it produced in its 80-plus-year history who fought bravely and made the ultimate sacrifice. Today in a time of peace, the company still lives by a tough combat spirit and trains in harsh conditions to win battles. "Our goal is to always aim at actual combat and advance to a higher level," said the company's commander, Captain Zhao Song. In January, the company wrote a letter to President Xi Jinping, reporting on their work and expressing their firm determination to win. Xi later wrote in reply, encouraging all officers and soldiers to keep in mind the goal of strengthening the army, carrying forward the "hard-boned spirit" and building a stronger company. Reinforcing combat readiness has always been a priority continuously stressed by Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission. Over the past few years, he has urged the military many times to keep honing combat capabilities and fostering a war-winning mentality. In October 2017 during the 19th CPC National Congress, he set a goal that the Chinese military will become a modernized power by 2035 and a world-class force by 2050. Under his leadership, the military has beefed up efforts to achieve the goals by increasing its training intensity, pushing forward reforms and speeding up the development of modernized equipment and weapons to be more prepared for today's informatized warfare. On July 23, in the run-up to China's Army Day on Saturday, Xi visited the Aviation University of the Air Force in Jilin province to inspect pilots' training courses, teaching facilities and the training of unmanned aerial vehicle operators. Xi said that with the emergence of a large number of various types of drones, unmanned operations are bringing profound changes to warfare. He stressed the university should strengthen research into unmanned combat, step up training in real combat conditions and aim to foster drone professionals who can take command in such warfare. He also highlighted the close connection between military education and actual battlefields, urging the university to promote studies on modern air warfare and focus on teaching for actual combat and winning wars. Such remarks were also echoed at a plenary meeting in May, when Xi met with the military delegation during the annual session of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature. Xi asked the military to scale up combat training, respond promptly and effectively to all sorts of complex situations and firmly safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests. During inspections of local military units in previous years, Xi has reiterated the necessity to optimize troop structure, coordinate various units to forge strong systematic joint-operation prowess and promote advancement of scientific and technological innovation that helps accelerate modernization work. To put Xi's words into practice, military units nationwide have explored new tactics and established higher standards in training. The sixth company, for example, required all soldiers to master not only their own area of expertise but also multiple specializations in field operations. Now at least 85 percent of all company officers and soldiers are proficient in more than two major areas. Current exercises and drills closely simulate actual combat, requiring troops to strike random targets with no rehearsal in unfamiliar areas and unexpected situations. After every drill, the Sixth Company assesses their performance and researches new tactics to fix the problems they encountered during practice. The Sixth Company's increasing effort to refine operational performance is typical of the Chinese military's ongoing reforms in recent years that aim to boost actual combat capabilities and joint operational capacity, officials said. Starting in late 2015, China's armed forces have undergone massive reforms in a bid to make the military leaner but stronger and more efficient. The white paper "China's National Defense in the New Era", published in July 2019, said China had mended its military policy system, adjusted the structure of combat troops and reduced troop numbers by 300,000. Soldiers of the "Hard-boned Sixth Company" of the 74th Army Group of the People's Liberation Army take part in a battle drill in a coastal area of Guangdong province on June 1, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua] The past few theater seasons have been prodigious for Theresa Rebeck. In 2018, New York saw the premieres of Downstairs, a thriller starring Tyne Daly and Tim Daly, as well as the world premiere of her Broadway drama Bernhardt/Hamlet, led by Janet McTeer as the legendary actor Sarah Bernhardt. In 2019, we saw Seared, a Raul Esparza-led comedy about a hard-edged chef that, perhaps unbelievably considering she's had nearly 20 New York productions (including four on Broadway), netted Rebeck her very first career award to date: an Outer Critics Circle honor for Best New Off-Broadway Play (she was a Pulitzer finalist in 2004 for Omnium Gatherum). This summer, Rebeck is reflecting on the experiences with the publication of her fifth anthology, Complete Plays, 2011-2019, from Smith & Kraus. In a live interview, and then later on the phone, Rebeck discussed the book, what it's like to work with acting superstars, and the ever-present stumbling blocks on the path for even established playwrights like her. Theresa Rebeck ( Bryce Boyer) These interviews have been condensed and edited for clarity. This is your fifth anthology with Smith & Kraus. How did you find them or vice versa? Marisa Smith called me at a point when I thought my career was done. It was one of those periods that a lot of people go though, when I was like "That's that." She told me and said that they were going to put together an anthology of my plays and I was stunned. And every five or six years, she'd call me and say that it was time for another volume. At the time when they first came to me, I think they were the only American publisher that published anthologies of plays by living American writers. I don't know if that's still true. But it's quite lovely and I'm really grateful that they've taken on this project. A couple of my favorite plays of yours are in this book Seared, Bernhardt/Hamlet and then there were a few that were new to me because they hadn't been done in New York City, like The Nest. Just this year, people started doing The Nest, which I think is one of my best plays. It's set in a bar, and it kind of came out right when Sweat was coming out. And if you're gonna do a bar play, it's going to be Sweat. But it just got another production that was really wonderful, so I think people are gonna start doing it now. There's one in there, Fool, that I think is undersung. It hasn't had its moment, but I want to work on it and give it a major rewrite. It seems like a no-brainer that Moritz von Stuelpnagel would write the introduction, since he's directed two of the plays in the volume. He is the one for me. We've done three productions together and he's not just a genius, he's very, very funny and he's a really thoughtful gentleman. Over time, I've come to understand that that's what I need. I need people who behave themselves and who are gracious and keep the craziness out of the rehearsal hall. He's brilliant at that. He's the luck that fell on my head at this point in my career. Janet McTeer in Bernhardt/Hamlet ( Joan Marcus) I want to ask you what it's like to work with the caliber of actors you've had the opportunity to employ in your plays, like Alan Rickman in Seminar and Janet McTeer in Bernhardt/Hamlet. I'm fully aware of the privilege and the honor. I had a moment during Bernhardt/Hamlet where I thought, "I'm the playwright who got to work with Alan Rickman on Broadway and now Janet McTeer on Broadway, and I don't know anyone else who got that deal." Janet McTeer is mighty. That was one of the biggest thrills of my entire career. It was a very exciting time for me. Like many people, I had been obsessed with Alan Rickman for many years, and through very strange circumstances, I got to become friends with him. I learned a lot from him. He could be withering, he could be very, very challenging, but he had a beautiful heart. He became intrigued by Seminar and wanted to do it. I'm still catching up with the wonder of that sequence of events. You'd hang out with that cast, which also included Hamish Linklater and Hettienne Park and Jerry O'Connell and Lily Rabe, and think you were being with the cool kids. We'd go out and have drinks and laughs every night. It was a slightly alcoholic run. Alan loved martinis. He was a great influence in my life and I'm profoundly thankful to have known him. I miss him all the time. Hettienne Park, Hamish Linklater, Alan Rickman, Lily Rabe, and Jerry O'Connell in a promotional image for Seminar. ( Gavin Bond) When you're writing a play, do you come at it from a specific angle of, say, "I'm gonna write about a tyrannical chef who refuses to make the same dish twice?" Or do you go in with a more abstract idea of "I'm gonna write about X topic." You come at them from different directions. With Seared, which is what you're describing, I was thinking about art and the forces of creativity, and what happens when they meet capitalism. I love all my characters. I love Harry [the chef played by Raul Esparza], but everybody was like, "He's a nightmare" and I'd say, "He's so charming!" The more I spent time with it, the more I said, "He's been allowed to run that kitchen like it's his own kingdom and he's ruling it in such a terrifying way." The more I worked on it, the more it became clear to me that the secret subject of the play was toxic masculinity and hierarchies. What are the challenges that you still face as an artist, even though you're a more-than-established playwright? Gender is still a real issue. I'm puzzled about why. There are so many really powerful male producers who don't seem interested in working with female playwrights. I've tried to talk to my male peers about it. [Playwright] Doug Wright, who's a great guy, said to me in a very passionate, honest discussion, "Why aren't female producers picking up the slack?" and I thought, "I don't want to hear what they think." I want to hear from David Stone and Scott Rudin and Jeffrey Richards. All those guys who've been around for a long time. What's the stumbling block? There are so many wonderful female theater artists, and if you just count who's doing what, the number of women working on Broadway is so much less than the men. That's a mystery to me, and we should be more concerned about it. Are you working on anything now? I am. I'm a writer! I don't have much else to do. I mean, I do, obviously. I have a lot on my mind and we live in a world where everyone has a lot on their mind. I have a play that's finished and ready to go that's gonna be at Arena Stage in DC, whenever we're ready to go back. It's called Enlightenment and it's about witchcraft and the Declaration of Independence. I'm writing a play about somebody stuck at home while his nightmarish father tortures everybody on the way to the grave. It's pretty funny. And I'm writing a novel about class issues and the children of privilege and the way the world disintegrates. I started it five years ago, and there's a part where there's a blackout in New York and within a day, the National Guard shows up and they're moving people off the street. Everybody who read pieces of it told me it seemed so weird. Chron.com is following the latest headlines on the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on the Houston area. Afternoon update: Houstonians not wearing masks will now face a $250 fine, Mayor Sylvester Turner announced Monday. The move is a pivot from educating the public about wearing masks, Turner said. Now, Houston police officers will be tasked with issuing warnings to people who do not wear masks, as mandated by the state of Texas. Anyone who does not heed the warning will be issued the citation. The mayor cited rising case numbers, particularly several days of more than 1,000 new cases. Turner said Houston's COVID-19 testing positivity rate has been dropping and is now 17 percent. "We need it to be 5 percent or below," Turner said. "Seventeen is too high; ten is too high; the number needs to be 5 percent or below." Officers will not respond to 911 calls about people not wearing masks, Turner said. Morning update: A second Houston firefighter died this week after battling COVID-19, the fire department announced. Jerry Pacheco, a 17-year veteran with the Houston Fire Department, died early Monday morning after spending time in the hospital battling the virus that has gripped the city. Pacheco worked as a paramedic at Station 101 in Kingwood. We mourn the loss of our friend, said Marty Lancton, president of the Houston firefighters union. His tragic death is another reminder to be vigilant in our efforts to keep our families, friends and station crews safe in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Pacheco is the second Houston firefighter to die after a fierce battle with the virus. Leroy Lucio, a 62-year-old captain from Station 103 in Kingwood, died a week ago in a San Antonio hospital. On Twitter, Houston leaders offered condolences for HFD and Pacheco's family, including Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo. In other headlines, the Texas governments tally is undercounting coronavirus cases by the thousands, according to the Houston Chronicle. The discrepancy shows up because the state is not collecting data from rapid testing sites, which report their numbers to local governments but not the state. This means there are likely 11,000 more cases of COVID-19 throughout the state, the newspaper found. As of Aug. 1, statewide cases rose to 444,566. The Houston region added 2,337 new cases and is now at 105,765 cases total. The region reported 44 new deaths that brought the death count up to 1,708. Harris County reported 1,920 new cases and is now at 74,884 cases total. NOTE: The numbers included in this report represent a one-day change in data from July 31 to Aug. 1. It is still unclear how many of the state's new cases can be attributed to jail inmates from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. The Houston Chronicle's analysis of COVID-19 case data now includes probable and pending cases. This change is based on interviews with multiple public health officials and epidemiologists, as well as in line with CDC guidelines on reporting. DSHS is now using death certificate data for its counts of COVID deaths, leading some Texas counties to have dramatically higher counts than others and some counties to have higher numbers than state figures. jay.jordan@chron.com Leaked hospital admission data suggested Iran's coronavirus toll is much higher than is officially reported - AP Iran has dramatically underreported the extent of its coronavirus epidemic, according to leaked government figures showing nearly three times as many people may have died from Covid-19 than Tehran has officially acknowledged. The secret data suggests the government recorded 42,000 people dying with coronavirus-like symptoms up until July 20, whereas the health ministry reported 14,405 deaths in the same period. That data also showed 451,024 cases of the virus, a figure nearly double the 278,827 officially reported in that time. The documents were obtained by BBC Persian and published on Monday as the health ministry reported that Iran faces a resurgence of the disease. Even by the governments public figures, Iran is the worst affected country in the Middle East. Health ministry spokesperson Sima Sadat Lari rejected the report, claiming that foreign media were relying on anonymous sources and unscientific methodology for political purposes, according to Tehran Times. Iran officially reported its first case of coronavirus on February 19, reporting the death of two people in Qom, though health professionals and Iranian journalists had given earlier warnings about the disease. Since then, some observers have accused the government of deliberately underreporting infections. The leaked documents, supplied by an anonymous source, show Iran recorded its first Covid-19 death on January 22. This was despite repeated denials from Iranian officials that there were any virus cases in the country. The secret files included detailed information on daily hospital admissions across the country that corresponded with some other verified patient information obtained by the BBC. The discrepancy between the official records and the obtained data also corresponded with the difference between official records and the countrys excess mortality rate - the number of deaths above what would be expected under normal circumstances. The leaked data suggested that Iran was deliberately misrepresenting its coronavirus infections, as opposed to the general underreporting seen worldwide that is largely attributable to a lack of testing capacity. Story continues This was reinforced by the source, who told the BBC they shared the information to illuminate the governments political games and to shed light on truth. Everyone knew that the number of Covid cases was significantly higher than what officials were reporting, an Iranian journalist in Tehran told The Telegraph. The reports are manipulated on every level, from hospital rooms, to morgues and the health ministry, the journalist said, speaking anonymously from fear of repercussions. BBC Persian previously reported the government was underreporting the extent of the coronavirus epidemic in the country, claiming in February that the death toll was six times higher than official figures. At that time ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said it was being transparent and accused the BBC of publishing falsehoods. The government may have felt compelled to underplay the severity of the pandemic due out of fear it would stoke popular unrest and anger. The coronavirus outbreak came as the country was marking the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution on February 11 and preparing for parliamentary elections. Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that people wanted to use the epidemic to undermine the election on February 21. Iran reported its highest single-day novel coronavirus infection count in nearly a month on Sunday, with the ministry reporting 2,685 more Covid-19 cases in the past 24 hours, the highest daily count since July 8. PHILIPSBURG:--- With COVID-19 cases on the rise in St. Maarten, MP Duncan has sent questions to the Minister of VSA regarding the human resource capacity of the Ministry. For departments like Collective Preventive Services (CPS) and the Department of Social Services which deliver pertinent health and aid services to the general public, I believe that it is absolutely critical that staff are not unreasonably overwhelmed and overworked, stated the Member of Parliament. With the onset of what may be a precursor to the so-called second wave, there is likely to be an increased strain on front line and essential workers throughout the island and within Government in particular. MP Duncan has sent questions to the Minister of VSA on the critical vacancies that exist and more importantly the need for a retraining program across Government. A lack of personnel will negatively impact Governments ability to perform the tasks necessary to assist our people in these dire times; whether that is in the form of testing, welfare applications or food deliveries, noted Duncan. MP Duncan has suggested that an internal retraining or upskilling program be established so that civil servants may have the opportunity to move fluidly from one department to another, one ministry to another, in order to provide urgent capacity and support to those essential departments that may be lacking in manpower. I know that there are civil servants that are ready to switch sectors and be retrained in order to serve in areas that may be more crucial during this time. Recruitment of critical staff is key however employee rotation or transfer policies should also be implemented if this is not yet the case, concluded Duncan. T Muruganandham By Express News Service CHENNAI: Even as the opposition parties in Tamil Nadu are up in arms against the three-language policy stressed in the New Education Policy 2020, the AIADMK government led by Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami also took exception to the Centre's latest move. He asserted that Tamil Nadu would never ever allow the three-language policy. "The Centre should accept the overall view of the people of Tamil Nadu in this regard and reconsider its stand on the three-language policy. I appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allow the states to implement their own language policy according to their views, the Chief Minister said in a statement after an hour-long meeting with senior ministers and officials on the NEP. However, the statement did not say anything about the key objections being raised by the opposition parties regarding the NEP. The people of Tamil Nadu and most political parties including the AIADMK wish that the two-language policy should be in force in the state. As such, it is saddening to note that the NEP has stressed on a three-language policy, Palaniswami said. When the draft New Education Policy was released, the AIADMK government opposed it strongly, the Chief Minister said and recalled that he had written a letter to the Prime Minister on June 26, 2019. Besides, he also reiterated this in his Independence Day address last year, and on various occasions during the debates in the state Assembly, he had reiterated his stance on the two-language policy. Stating that for the past 80 years, the people of Tamil Nadu had been firm on the two-language policy, Palaniswami said, "On many occasions, the people of the state have made their mind clear through agitations." Recalling the 1965 anti-Hindi agitation, the Chief Minister noted that a historic resolution was moved by former Chief Minister CN Annadurai on January 23, 1968, in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. The resolution proposed to abolish the three-language policy in all schools in Tamil Nadu while removing Hindi from the state syllabus and allowing Tamil and English. Palaniswami also recalled that the AIADMK government had been consistently following the two-language policy proposed by Anna for the past many years. On November 13, 1986, a resolution asserting the two-language policy moved by former Chief Minister MG Ramachandran was adopted by the Tamil Nadu Assembly. Palaniswami also recalled that former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa too was firm in opposing the imposition of Hindi on non-Hindi speaking states and thwarting such efforts. She also reiterated that Tamil should be declared as an official language of the country. The Chief Minister also reiterated that the AIADMK had always been in the forefront to set right the problems faced by the Tamil language or Tamils. An Australian butcher has launched a 'Build Your Own Taco' kit so customers can host the ultimate Tuesday night dinner party in the comfort of their own homes. Vic's Premium Quality Meat in New South Wales said the 'secret to the perfect taco' is to use 'traditional and authentic ingredients' and have made those available to customers in the Sydney Metropolitan area. The food package includes one kilogram of grass-fed Angus beef flank steak, Vic's Meat dry rub seasoning blend, yellow corn tortillas, white corn chips, a moderate heat sauce and freshly made guacamole, tomato salsa and corn salsa. Priced at $85, the kit feeds between five to eight people and is available to purchase online but delivery is only offered on Tuesdays - commonly recognised as 'Taco Tuesday'. Scroll down for video An Australian butcher has launched a high quality 'Build Your Own Taco' kit for customers to indulge in Priced at $85, the kit feeds between five to eight people and is available to purchase online but delivery is only offered on Tuesdays - commonly recognised as 'Taco Tuesday' According to the product description, both the corn chips and corn tortillas are gluten free and prepared fresh to order. The guacamole, tomato salsa and corn salsa are also made fresh every day using the best quality ingredients and follow home-style recipes. All the ingredients in the kit are 'sophisticated' enough for parties of adults and are 'mild enough' for children. The butcher also shared a short video on Instagram demonstrating how to cook the meat and assemble the DIY tacos The butcher shared a short video on Instagram demonstrating how to cook the meat and assemble the DIY tacos. Season the meat with the dry rub blend and olive oil using a cooking brush, then cook on a grill or pan for ten minutes on each side. Transfer to the oven and cook for a further five to ten minutes at 180 degrees Celsius, then allow the meat to rest for ten minutes before chopping into pieces. According to the product description, both the corn chips and corn tortillas are gluten free and prepared fresh to order Vic's Meat also offers a 'Build Your Own Burger' kit priced at $60 which feeds up to six people. This kit includes 150 gram Angus Grass Fed beef patties, American cheese slices, a 'top secret' sauce, Martin's World Famous Potato Buns and 200 grams of Kurobuta Berkshire Smoked Streaky Bacon. The kit has received multiple five out of five star ratings on the business website, and customers have said 'you won't buy a better burger anywhere else'. According to the product description, all that is needed at home after receiving the kit is tomatoes, lettuce and a large appetite. Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg answers questions about the improper use of millions of users' data by a political consultancy, at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, in this still image taken from Reuters TV May 22, 2018 ReutersTV | Reuters Two European lawmakers told CNBC they are eager to step up discussions with major tech CEOs as the debate over their dominance rumbles on. The chiefs of Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Google (referred to as GAFA) were grilled by the United States Congress on Wednesday amid investigations as to whether these firms have abused their market dominance. The overall concern among many American lawmakers is that current antitrust laws which aim to create fair market competition are not fit for the digital economy. This is a concern also shared by many lawmakers in Europe. "The Congressional hearing proved that antitrust tools in Europe and the United States have their limits," Luis Garicano, a Spanish economist and member of the European Parliament for the liberal group Renew Europe, told CNBC Thursday. He added that the Parliament, the only directly-elected EU institution, is likely to intensify discussions over the future of competition rules after the summer. If they act unchecked, they can also cause significant harm to competition, innovation and ultimately to consumers. Margrethe Vestager European Commission Executive Vice President In fact, the head of competition policy in Europe, Margrethe Vestager has been tasked with revising parts of the antitrust rulebook during her second mandate in Brussels and she is due to announce new competition tools before the end of the year. In a letter to U.S. lawmakers ahead of Wednesday's hearing, Vestager wrote that "many if not most parts of today's economy are becoming increasingly digitized" and while "these platforms can bring significant benefits," there is a concern "that the reach and role of some platforms is unprecedented." "And that they have a gatekeeper role which means that if they act unchecked, they can also cause significant harm to competition, innovation and ultimately to consumers," Vestager also wrote. Stephanie Yon-Courtin, another European lawmaker who has chaired competition discussions among policymakers, said Thursday that "it is time" the chamber organizes hearings with the same big four tech CEOs. Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg is the only tech CEO that has ever faced the European Parliament. However, the format chosen to question him back in 2018 received criticism by members of the European Parliament as only a selected few politicians could ask questions. "In the past, GAFA CEOs have refused to attend themselves hearings in the European Parliament, with the exception of Mark Zuckerberg," Yon-Courtin, told CNBC via email Thursday. "I hope the CEOs will reconsider their approach," she also said, adding that apart from competition policy she is also keen to hold discussions over taxation. Digital taxation Mumbai Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) General Secretary and Andheri MLA Ameet Satam, on Sunday, raised questions on various aspects of controversies surrounding the Sushant Singh Rajput case. In a letter to Deputy Commissioner of Police (IX) Abhishek Trimukhe, Satam said many stories and theories were floating around and if the police could answer his queries, it would clear the air and pave the way for a logical conclusion in the case. The legislator sought the contents of Disha Salian's autopsy report, the probe into the circumstances leading to her death, including whether she had attended a party, and if so then who others were present at that gathering. Satam demanded details of her phone calls/messages 24 hours prior to her death, the mobile tower locations to ascertain who all were present and she met before her death. He also asked if the statement of Sushant's sister was recorded to find out if he was scared of something after Disha's death and whether he had mentioned that to her (the sister). "Did Sushant use different SIMs from June 8 to 14? If so, why?" Satam queried. Satam also wanted to know whether any party was held at Sushant's home or some other location on June 13. If so, who else were present at that gathering? He also sought local CCTV footage and mobile tower locations of certain people who were reportedly present at that party. He also sought to know whether the statements of Sushant's three servants, building security and other persons were recorded pertaining to visitors to the actor's home on June 13. He also asked about statements of his close friends, like Sandeep Singh, Mahesh Shetty and Siddharth Pithani. "Why was the body taken to Cooper Hospital, and not to Bhabha or any other hospital in Bandra close to the location of death? Has reinvestigation into the preserved viscera of Sushant ordered," Satam asked. If these were not done then it should be complied with at the earliest, Satam wrote to the police. Satam's letter has come two days after Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis and others demanded a CBI probe into the case, while actor Shekhar Suman submitted a memorandum to Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on the same. BEIJING, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- TAL Education Group (NYSE: TAL) ("TAL" or the "Company"), a leading K-12 after-school tutoring services provider in China, today announced that it will hold its annual general meeting of shareholders at 15/F Danling SOHO, No. 6 Danling Street, Haidian District, Beijing, on August 24, 2020 at 10:00AM (Beijing time). No proposal will be submitted for shareholder approval at the annual general meeting. Instead, the annual general meeting will serve as an open forum for shareholders and beneficial owners of the Company's American depositary shares ("ADSs") to discuss Company affairs with management. The board of directors of the Company has fixed the close of business on July 24, 2020 as the record date (the "Record Date"). Holders of record of the Company's common shares at the close of business on the Record Date are entitled to notice of the annual general meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof. Beneficial owners of the Company's ADSs are welcome to attend the AGM in person. The notice of the annual general meeting is available on the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at http://en.100tal.com/investor. The Company has filed its annual report on Form 20-F (the "Annual Report"), which includes the Company's audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended February 29, 2020, with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). The Company's Annual Report can be accessed on the Investor Relations section of its website at https://ir.100tal.com, as well as on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov. About TAL Education Group TAL Education Group is a leading K-12 after-school tutoring services provider in China. The acronym "TAL" stands for "Tomorrow Advancing Life", which reflects our vision to promote top learning opportunities for Chinese students through both high-quality teaching and content, as well as leading edge application of technology in the education experience. TAL Education Group offers comprehensive tutoring services to students from pre-school to the twelfth grade through three flexible class formats: small classes, personalized premium services, and online courses. Our tutoring services cover the core academic subjects in China's school curriculum as well as competence oriented programs. The Company's learning center network currently covers 90 cities. We also operate www.jzb.com, a leading online education platform in China. Our ADSs trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "TAL". For further information, please contact: Echo Yan Investor Relations TAL Education Group Tel: +86 10 5292 6658 Email: [email protected] Caroline Straathof IR Inside Tel: +31 6 5462 4301 Email: [email protected] SOURCE TAL Education Group Related Links http://www.100tal.com/ The Cabinet is expected to sign off plans to introduce random testing for Covid-19 at airports when they meet tomorrow. Health minister Stephen Donnelly said it was part of a suite of measures to tackle an increasingly volatile international travel climate. The government will also decide on whether the planned August 10 reopening date for all pubs will go ahead. Labour's Duncan Smith has welcomed the plans for testing at airports but says they don't go far enough: "Obviously, we don't have a 'red list' yet but I believe we need to identify countries where the prevalence of Covid is high," he said. Mr Smith added that where people are travelling from countries with a low prevalence of the virus, random testing is acceptable but "for countries that have high levels on Covid, we should be mandatory testing every person who is travelling from that country". The Cabinet meeting comes as 53 more cases of the coronavirus were confirmed in Ireland yesterday. With the government set to move into Phase 4 of reopening the country next week, it is being speculated that the planned reopening of the pubs will be further delayed. Advertisement WASHINGTON Cities on fire. Rioters clashing with baton-wielding cops. Bodies stacking up in makeshift graves. A trailer for the latest apocalyptic blockbuster? No, just some of the latest volleys on social media and television as the ad wars boil over between President Donald Trump, former Vice President Joe Biden and their often deep-pocketed allies. Attack ads were traditionally reserved for the final weeks of a campaign, when the vast majority of voters had settled on a candidate and there was less to lose by attacking rivals. But the middle of summer has seen a barrage of aggressive ads, such as a Trump campaign TV ad painting Biden as a clueless puppet of the chaos-fomenting socialist left or a viral video ad from the progressive group Really American labeling the presidents law-and-order agenda as Gestapo Trump. Ross Baker, a political science professor at Rutgers University in New Jersey, said he expects the intensity to escalate as Nov. 3 nears. Former Vice President Joe Biden and President Donald Trump are on opposite sides of the vote-by-mail issue. Its a little bit like the Second World War. Most of the casualties are in the last three months, he said. When the homeland is being invaded, people get pretty passionate in their defense (of) the attackers and very zealous in their onslaught. The Trump campaign has temporarily paused its ads, saying the recent change of campaign managers from Brad Parscale to Bill Stepien has led to a fine-tuning of strategy. A senior campaign official said they expect to be back on the air next week even more forcefully. On Friday Trump tweeted about a new ad campaign on Sleepy Joe Biden that will be out Monday. Throw some mud, hope that it lands So far, Trump has been the aggressor, reflecting his take-no-prisoners personality at a time when polls show him trailing Biden badly, experts say. Usually, we have an incumbent whos in the lead, an incumbent whos risk averse. Lets just run out the shot clock, said Travis Ridout, a public policy professor at Washington State University who studies political messaging. This time around, weve got an incumbent whos way behind, he said. The incumbent has to shake up the race, and perhaps the best opportunity to do that is try to disqualify the challenger, try to throw some mud, hope that it lands, hope that the media will pick up on that. More: Polls show Trump is losing to Joe Biden. They said the same thing 4 years ago against Hillary Clinton Since he entered the presidential arena in 2015, Trump has embraced his persona as a bare-knuckle brawler. He attacks opponents Republicans and Democrats alike mocking them with insulting nicknames. Trump campaign attempts to define Biden Trumps campaign has been spending heavily to define Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee who has made only limited campaign appearances due to social distancing guidelines. Through June, the Trump campaign had aired more than 55,000 ads on television (on broadcast, national cable and national network stations) at an estimated cost of $52 million, according to the independent Wesleyan Media Project, which Ridout co-directs. More than 90% of those spots had run since May 11, compared with only 3,103 ads the Biden campaign had aired at a cost of $3.2 million over the same period. But groups that oppose Trump or support Biden have picked up some of the slack. Led by Priorities USA, a top pro-Democratic outside group, third-party groups supporting the former vice president have aired some 18,000 television spots, according to Wesleyan. Many vilify Trump for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic that has infected more than 4.5 million Americans, his response to nationwide protests against police brutality, and the help political allies have received from his administration. The Trump campaign ads, both online and on TV, have taken direct aim at Biden on several fronts, charging that he would usher in an era of lawlessness, that he has been too friendly to China, and that the former vice president is showing his age. Some make false claims such as the assertion that Biden supports defunding the police, a position he has expressly rejected. More: Democrats haul in big buckets of money for Senate races as Trumps woes spill over to GOP While Bidens ads include criticism of Trump and his competency to run the country, they largely have sought to re-introduce the longtime politician, who has been out of elected office since leaving the Obama White House in January 2017, to the American public. Independent groups take aim at Trump Its third-party groups, such as the Lincoln Project and Priorities USA, that have aired most of the attack ads against the president. Trump is the most corrupt president in U.S. history, blared a recent Lincoln Project ad, while showing several advisers who have been convicted of felonies. Theres only one way to end the Trump crime spree. Throw him and his crooks out of office. Another anti-Trump ad, co-sponsored by Priorities USA and Color of Change, that features confrontations between police and protesters was banned by Google for being too graphic, though Facebook did not censor it. More: Trumps campaign to paint Biden as mentally unfit becomes a gamble John Geer, who has written extensively on negative ads in presidential campaigns, expects the ad wars to increase in frequency and intensity especially with the coronavirus pandemic limiting the candidates ability to reach voters in person and via rallies. And since Trump is not prepared to move to the middle and moderate any of his views, hes just going to have to tear down Biden, said Geer, dean of Vanderbilt Universitys College of Arts and Science in Nashville, Tennessee. That worked for him in 16 but Biden as we all know is a different candidate from Hillary Clinton. Fog horns more than dog whistles Going after someone for their age or perceived cognitive failings used to be taboo. Questions about a decline in Ronald Reagans mental acuity were raised mostly in whispers during the 1984 campaign, not in attack ads. More: Wake up call: Prominent group warns Biden campaign that its falling short on outreach to women of color Not for Trump, who relishes smashing norms, especially on his favorite medium, Twitter, where he can directly communicate with his 83.6 million followers sometimes in harsher tones than the TV ads his campaign is running. For example, the presidents June 28 tweet accuses Biden of being a Low IQ person. Personal criticisms like that are traditionally leveled by independent groups not tied to a presidential campaign. But Trump has been much more explicit in attacking opponents on sensitive issues, Geer said. I dont think Trump is using dog whistles as much as a fog horn, he said. Negative ads can be very effective if they magnify a common perception held against the candidate, Geer said. Several cars burn near a gas station during a night of rioting in Minneapolis over the death of George Floyd in police custody. The 1964 Daisy ad by Lyndon Johnsons campaign raised anxiety about Barry Goldwaters willingness to use nuclear weapons. The 1988 Willie Horton ad by the George H.W. Bush campaign attacked Michael Dukakis for being weak on crime. The 2004 Windsurfer ad by the George W. Bush campaign took aim at John Kerrys shifting positions. Theyre powerful when they have a vehicle to communicate in a clever way. But they have something thats real, he said. More: Suburban Lifestyle Dream: Trump attacks fair housing rule in tweet critics call vile Did anybody ever attack Bill Clinton for being stupid? he said. No. Why? Because hes not. But they attack him for questions tied to fidelity and integrity because theres evidence about affairs. Theres also a risk of alienating voters. For some, negativity is stimulating: It made me angry, Im going to get out there. Im going to support my candidate, he said. For others, its demobilizing in the sense we think oh theyre all just a bunch of crooks throwing mud at each other. Why should I go out and vote? This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Election 2020: Trump, Biden campaign ads turn negative early in cycle Astonishing footage has emerged of a father being dragged away in handcuffs from his dying daughters bedside by police officers during a dispute with hospital staff over her care. Rashid Abbasi was forcibly removed during a violent scuffle with four police officers after he refused to leave his daughter Zainab, six. Zainab, who suffered from the rare genetic illness Niemann-Pick disease, was critically ill at the time and her doctors had just informed Dr Abbasi and his wife Aliya they had decided to remove life-support and allow her to die. The resulting confrontation between the Northumbria Police officers and Dr Abbasi, himself an NHS consultant, was filmed by police bodycam and has been released as part of the case. After the 58-year-old was wheeled out of the hospital in handcuffs and restrained on a trolley bed, the NHS Trust which cannot be named for legal reasons applied to the High Court for permission to take Zainab off the ventilator which was keeping her alive. UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 1 January 2022 New Years Eve Lasers, drones and fireworks illuminate the sky in front of the Royal Naval College in Greenwich shortly after midnight in London EPA UK news in pictures 31 December 2021 Competitors in fancy dress run across the Pennine tops near Haworth, West Yorkshire, in the annual Auld Lang Syne Fell race which attracts hundreds of runners every year PA UK news in pictures 30 December 2021 Sunrise at Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 29 December 2021 The Very Revd Dr Robert Willis, Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, looks at Becket, a six month old red-billed chough as he visits Wildwood Wildlife Park in Kent on the anniversary of the murder of Thomas Becket PA UK news in pictures 28 December 2021 Troops of the Household Cavalry are seen reflected in a puddle during the changing of the Queens Life Guard, on Horse Guards Parade, in central London PA UK news in pictures 27 December 2021 A pedestrian walks past a winter sale sign outside a John Lewis store on Oxford street in London Getty UK news in pictures 26 December 2021 Riders take their bikes through the snow near Castleside, County Durham PA UK news in pictures 25 December 2021 Patrick Corkery wears a santa hat and beard as waves crash over him at Forty Foot near Dublin during a Christmas Day dip PA UK news in pictures 24 December 2021 People stand inside Kings Cross Station on Christmas Eve in London Reuters UK news in pictures 23 December 2021 Christmas shoppers fill the car park at Fosse Shopping Park in Leicester PA UK news in pictures 22 December 2021 The sun rises behind the stones as people gather for the winter solstice at Stonehenge. Getty UK news in pictures 21 December 2021 People take part in a winter solstice swim at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh to mark the solstice and to witness the dawn after the longest night of the year PA UK news in pictures 20 December 2021 An auction employee displays poultry to buyers and sellers attending the Christmas Poultry Sale at York Auction Centre in Murton PA UK news in pictures 19 December 2021 Joao Moutinho of Wolverhampton Wanderers looks on during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea at Molineux Getty Images UK news in pictures 18 December 2021 Freight lorries queuing at the port of Dover in Kent PA UK news in pictures 17 December 2021 Newly elected Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan, bursts 'Boris' bubble' held by colleague Tim Farron, as she celebrates following her victory in the North Shropshire by-election PA UK news in pictures 16 December 2021 Brussels sprouts are harvested by workers as they prepare for the busy Christmas period near Boston in Lincolnshire PA UK news in pictures 15 December 2021 Lewis Hamilton is made a Knight Bachelor by the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 14 December 2021 The Royal Liver Buildings surrounded by early morning fog in Liverpool PA UK news in pictures 13 December 2021 People queue outside a walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre at St Thomas's Hospital in Westminster Getty Images UK news in pictures 12 December 2021 People take part in the Big Leeds Santa Dash in Roundhay Park, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 11 December 2021 People arrive at a Covid-19 vaccination centre at Elland Road in Leeds, PA UK news in pictures 10 December 2021 Stella Moris speaks to the media after the US Government won its High Court bid to overturn a judges decision not to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange PA UK news in pictures 9 December 2021 Camels are lead around Salisbury Cathedral during a rehearsal for the Christmas Eve Service PA UK news in pictures 8 December 2021 Margaret Keenan and Nurse May Parsons, a year after Margaret was the first person in the UK to receive the Pfizer vaccine PA UK news in pictures 7 December 2021 Snowfall in Leadhills, South Lanarkshire as Storm Barra hits the UK with disruptive winds, heavy rain and snow PA UK news in pictures 6 December 2021 A person tries to avoid sea spray on New Brighton promenade in Wallasey as the UK readies for the arrival of Storm Barra Getty UK news in pictures 5 December 2021 People release balloons during a tribute to six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes outside Emma Tustin's former address in Solihull, West Midlands, where he was murdered by his stepmother PA UK news in pictures 4 December 2021 People walk through a Christmas market in Trafalgar Square Reuters UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 A pedestrian carries a dog as they dodge shoppers on Oxford Street in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 2 December 2021 Duchess of Cambridge inspects a Faberge egg at the Victoria and Albert Museum Getty UK news in pictures 1 December 2021 Meerkats at London Zoo with an advent calendar PA UK news in pictures 30 November 2021 Workers put the finishing touches to the Trafalgar Square Christmas Tree ahead of the lighting ceremony later in the week PA UK news in pictures 29 November 2021 Home Secretary Priti Patel is greeted by a police dog at a special memorial service for Met Police Sergeant Matiu Ratana Getty UK news in pictures 28 November 2021 Riyad Mahrez of Manchester City battles for possession with Aaron Cresswell of West Ham United during a match at the Etihad during snow Manchester City/Getty UK news in pictures 27 November 2021 Residents clear branches from a fallen tree in Birkenhead, north west England as Storm Arwen triggered a rare red weather warning AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 An aerial picture shows a worker using a quad bike and trailer to transport freshly harvested trees at Pimms Christmas Tree farm in Matfield, southeast England AFP via Getty UK news in pictures 26 November 2021 A shopper browses Christmas trees for sale at Pines and Needles in Dulwich, London Reuters UK news in pictures 25 November 2021 A murmuration of hundreds of thousands of starlings fly over a field at dusk in Cumbria, close to the Scottish border PA UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 A pedestrian carries a dog as they dodge shoppers on Oxford Street in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 24 November 2021 Migrants are helped ashore from a RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) lifeboat at a beach in Dungeness, on the south-east coast of England, on November 24, 2021, after being rescued while crossing the English Channel. AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 23 November 2021 The coffin of Sir David Amess is carried past politicians, including former Prime Ministers Sir John Major, David Cameron and Theresa May, Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Home Secretary Priti Patel and Prime Minister Boris Johnson during the requiem mass for the MP at Westminster Cathedral, central London PA UK news in pictures 22 November 2021 The scene in Dragon Rise, Norton Fitzwarren, Somerset where police have launched a murder probe after two people were found dead Tom Wren/SWNS UK news in pictures 21 November 2021 London-based midwife Sarah Muggleton, 27, takes part in a 'March with Midwives' in central London to highlight the crisis in maternity services PA UK news in pictures 20 November 2021 Police officers monitor as climate change activists sit down and block traffic during a protest action in solidarity with activists from the Insulate Britain group who received prison terms for blocking roads, on Lambeth Bridge in central London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 19 November 2021 A giant installation of Prime Minister Boris Johnson made from recycled clothing goes on display at Manchester Central, as part of Manchester Art Fair, in a 'wake-up call for the Prime Minister to tackle textile waste' PA UK news in pictures 18 November 2021 The scene at a recycling centre in Stert, near Devizes in Wiltshire after a large blaze was brought under control. The fire broke out on Wednesday night the fire service has said and local residents were advised to keep windows and doors shut due to large amounts of smoke PA UK news in pictures 17 November 2021 The sun rises over South Shields Lighthouse, on the North East coast of England PA UK news in pictures 16 November 2021 ancer Maithili Vijayakumar at the launch of 2021 Diwali celebrations at St Andrew Square in Edinburgh PA UK news in pictures 15 November 2021 Forensic officers work outside Liverpool Women's Hospital, following a car blast, in Liverpool Reuters Shortly before the hearing was due to begin in September last year, the six-year-old died. The video, filmed on 19 August, 2019, shows four officers approach the couple as they sit holding Zainabs hand on the intensive care unit at the hospital, which is in the north of England. They repeatedly ask Dr Abbasi to leave the ward with them, and he declines to leave his daughters side. Ms Abbasi tells the officers they had been told of the hospitals decision to withdraw life support just 30 minutes earlier and begs them to allow her husband to stay at Zainabs bedside. Recommended Charlie Gard and Alfie Evans cases cost NHS half million in legal fees Speaking on Monday, Dr Abbasi said he could not contemplate leaving his daughters side voluntarily. I would not leave my daughters bedside voluntarily just to talk to them because I knew if I stepped out they would not let me back in and they might use that opportunity to if I am away from her to remove the tube, he told BBC Radio 4s Today programme. The relationship between the Abbasis and the doctors caring for Zainab had broken down after the couple vehemently disagreed with the conclusion nothing more could be done for the girl. The police had previously been called on a separate occasion after the hospital staff said Dr Abbasi had been aggressive. In the bodycam footage, after a few minutes of trying to speak with Dr Abbasi, the police officers decide to remove him by force. They can be seen first dragging away his wife from the bedside by her wrists, before two officers pull the father, who is kicking and screaming, out of the ward and into a corridor. As they struggle to subdue him and handcuff him, Dr Abbasi screams and repeatedly slumps onto the floor and can be heard saying Ive got chest pain and asking for medication in his pocket. Rashid Abbasi is strapped down to a hospital gurney and wheeled out of the ward (Northumbria Police) During the prolonged scuffle, several of the officers accuse the 58-year-old of biting them, and he can also be heard calling them animals and bastards. One of the female officers in return accuses him of acting like an animal during the melee. The officers then tie his ankles and legs together with restraints and lift him onto a trolley bed so he can be wheeled out of the ward to the A&E department. Now, the Abbasis have launched a legal battle against Northumbria Police for wrongful arrest and say they are considering also suing the NHS Trust involved. I reacted as any father would who is suffering from grief, but I also knew in my professional capacity that my daughter was purposefully not receiving the treatment she needed to live, Dr Abbasi said. For challenging this and trying to protect my daughters life, I was treated like a criminal and an animal. This was brutal and unacceptable, but we want to emphasise that it was the doctors and the hospital who escalated the situation and involved the police unnecessarily. We are still grieving deeply, but we have no choice but to expose what has happened and to fight for justice for our daughter. But a spokesperson for the hospital insisted it had acted in the best interests of Zainab throughout. When disagreements about clinical care happen, we do everything we can to listen, understand and provide support during what are very difficult and sensitive circumstances. On very rare occasions, when there is a risk to the safety of any of the patients in our care, to relatives, visitors or to our staff or obstruction or interference with the delivery of care and treatment it is necessary for us to seek help from our security staff or the police. We must stress that this action is never taken lightly. We would like to offer our heartfelt sympathies and condolences to the family at this extremely distressing time. Speaking the Today programme, Dr Abbasi also said he believed if he had been white he would have been treated differently. A spokesman for the NHS Trust "categorically" denied this was the case, and a spokesperson for Northumbria Police declined to comment on this. In a statement, the force did say: While we recognised this was a very distressing time for him and his family, our duty was to ensure the safety of all those present. African-Americans have up to three times the risk of dying from strokes as people of European descent, yet there has been little investigation of if and how genetic variants contribute to their elevated stroke risk. Until now. A large international team of scientists has completed the largest analysis of stroke-risk genes ever undertaken in individuals of African descent. The new study examined the genomes of more than 22,000 people of African ancestry, identifying important genetic contributors to stroke risk. These findings will help doctors better understand stroke risk, identify those at high risk and prevent the debilitating condition. "Given the undue burden that people of African ancestry endure from stroke and other cerebrovascular disease, the lack of investigation of risk factors in this group has been a substantial gap," said researcher Bradford B. Worrall, MD, a neurologist at UVA Health. "Our work is an important step toward filling that gap, albeit with much more work to be done. These findings will provide greater insight into ethnic-specific and global risk factors to reduce the second leading cause of death worldwide." Understanding Stroke Risk Stroke is the leading cause of adult disability in the United States. But strokes strike African-Americans more often and at younger ages than people of European descent. In addition, African-Americans who survive strokes often face greater disability. Family history is a major risk factor for stroke, suggesting our genes play a significant role in our stroke risk. But most genetic stroke studies, until now, have primarily focused on people of European descent. And the results have not always held true in African-Americans. The new meta-analysis comes from the Consortium of Minority Population genome-wide Association Studies of Stroke (COMPASS). The researchers revisited previous studies to identify genetic risk factors specific to people of African descent. In total, they examined the genomes of 3,734 people who had suffered strokes and more than 18,000 who had not. The researchers discovered that a common variation near the HNF1A gene was strongly associated with increased stroke risk in those of African ancestry. The gene previously has been associated to both stroke and cardiovascular disease. While that variant had the strongest link to stroke risk, the researchers identified 29 other variants that also appear likely to influence stroke risk. The variants occur at 24 different locations on our chromosomes. Sixteen of the "loci," as the locations are known, appeared also to influence stroke risk in other populations, the researchers report. "Studies of this nature are critical given the paucity of genetic studies focused on people of African descent and other minority populations and the substantial health disparities related to stroke in these groups," said Keith Keene, PhD, a former UVA researcher and frequent collaborator of Worrall's who now leads the Center for Health Disparities at East Carolina University's Brody School of Medicine. "Furthermore, we increasingly recognize the power of looking at genetic risk factors across different race ethnic groups, known as transethnic analyses, for unlocking the underlying biology of diseases like stroke. If we understand the biology, we can develop new treatment and prevention strategies." In a paper outlining their findings, the researchers note the importance of such studies in understanding stroke risk among minorities. These studies have "huge potential to provide insight into the mechanisms underlying stroke disparities," the researchers write. "Our study identified novel associations for stroke that might not otherwise be detected in primarily European cohort studies. Collectively, this highlights the critical nature and importance of genetic studies in a more diverse population with a high stroke burden." ### Stroke Findings Published The researchers have published their findings in the journal Stroke. The team included dozens of scientists from top institutions across the country and the United Kingdom working on behalf of the COMPASS, SiGN and METASTROKE Consortia. To keep up with the latest medical research news from UVA, subscribe to the Making of Medicine blog at http://makingofmedicine.virginia.edu. Afghan security forces arrive at an area where explosions and gunshots were heard, in Jalalabad city, Afghanistan, on July 28, 2018. (REUTERS/Parwiz) Afghan Forces Retake Jail Attacked by ISIS; 29 Killed, Hundreds of Prisoners Missing JALALABAD, AfghanistanAfghan security forces laid siege to a prison seized by ISIS terrorists in the eastern city of Jalalabad on Monday, with at least 29 people killed after the terrorists overnight assault led to a mass jailbreak. More than 300 prisoners were at large, Attaullah Khugyani, spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province, said. Of the 1,793 prisoners, more than 1,025 had tried to escape and been recaptured and 430 had remained inside. The rest are missing, he said. After detonating a car bomb at the entrance on Sunday evening, ISIS gunmen overran the prison where many ISIS terrorists captured during a campaign in the past month were being held, along with Taliban terrorists and common criminals. Mohammad Idres, one of the prisoners trapped inside and contacted by cellphone, said he could see around four bodies on the ground outside. We are very hungry, its very hot and we dont have water, he told Reuters. Sometimes it is quiet and then firing starts, he said. The security forces cannot seem to advance because the attackers hold strategic points, including the watchtowers. Afghan security forces keep watch near the site of an attack on a jail compound in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, on Aug. 3, 2020. (Parwiz/Reuters) ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack, which came a day after the Afghan intelligence agency said special forces had killed a senior ISIS commander near Jalalabad, the provincial capital of Nangarhar. Officials said Afghan Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen Yasin Zia arrived on Monday to oversee the operation, involving special forces, to clear the ISIS terrorists holed up inside the prison. Khugyani said civilians, prisoners and members of security forces were among the 29 dead and more than 50 wounded. Eight gunmen were killed as some areas, where the attackers had taken positions, were cleared, he said. As the siege dragged through the day, the normally bustling city was placed under a curfew. Jalalabad is completely empty, Qaderi said. Some 130 km (80 miles) east of Kabul, Jalalabad lies on the highway leading to the Khyber Pass and the Pakistani city of Peshawar. A United Nations report last month estimated there are around 2,200 ISIS members in Afghanistan, and that while the group has lost territory and its leadership has been depleted, it remains capable of carrying out high-profile attacks. By Ahmed Sultan and Abdul Qadir Sediqi Niagara Region councillors have voted to ratify and sign a declaration aimed at strengthening the municipalitys relationship with Fort Erie Native Friendship Centre. The agreement, which was formalized at a recent regional council meeting, is something two provincial organizations Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) and the Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres (OFIFC) are fostering. The partnerships are essential in improving the quality of life for all communities, said Jennifer Dockstader, executive director of the Fort Erie centre. I am very excited about the work we are doing in the Niagara region, but also with AMO and OFIFC, to create strong relations in communities where friendship centres exist, Dockstader said. She said the process is already underway in Fort Erie and St. Catharines. What that has meant is the Town of Fort Erie and the City of St. Catharines has had the benefit of Indigenous knowledge shared in a timely manner, and we work collaboratively on social issues for the benefit of all Niagarans, she said. The most recent census data showed the Niagara area includes more than 12,000 individuals of Indigenous ancestry. Fort Erie Mayor Wayne Redekop said there are endless opportunities to make communities stronger by working with the Indigenous community. I am very proud we have such a close relationship here in Fort Erie with our native friendship centre and have over the years, he said. A report that came with the declaration said both friendship centres and municipal governments play vital roles in working against racism, inequality, discrimination and stigma within and between communities. The agreement sets out roles and responsibilities for the regional government and the friendship centre. St. Catharines Mayor Walter Sendzik said his city has a memorandum of understanding with Niagara Regional Native Centre, which is in Niagara-on-the-Lake and serves north Niagara. Sendzik said that agreement has proven beneficial. We are walking a parallel path together, and I hope regional council and the staff can embrace this, Sendzik said. There is a lot of work that needs to be done. It will take years to get to a place where there is a level of understanding thats been long overdue. There will be an official signing at AMOs virtual conference running Aug. 17 to 19. The document states the Region wants to set an example in the area of Indigenous relations by demonstrating overlapping community interests and working together. Friendship centres have existed in Ontario for more than a half-century and play vital roles in community development, social cohesion and improving the quality of life for Indigenous people living in urban and rural areas, the report said. The report said municipal governments provide essential services that friendship centre community members rely on to thrive. School attendance for most students is set to be suspended in Namibia again on Tuesday as coronavirus cases increase in the country. The closure comes after parents and teachers had threatened to demonstrate if schools remained open despite the rising number of new infections. Learning in all classes, except for final year students, will be suspended for 28 days. President Hage Geingob on Friday tightened the rules prohibiting drinking in bars and taverns but drinking is allowed at home. The president relaxed the rules for tourists not to undergo 14 days mandatory quarantine if they present a negative Covid-19 test conducted within 72 hours before arrival. The country has so far recorded more than 2,200 cases of the virus. Source: BBC 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 Amruta Fadnavis, the wife of former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, on Monday tweeted that Mumbai had lost its "humanity" and was "no more safe to live" looking at the way the metropolis' police was handling the Sushant Singh Rajput case. The tweet invited a backlash from Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party leaders who claimed Amruta Fadnavis was criticising the same police force of which she is a protectee. "The manner in which Sushant Singh Rajput death case is being handled -- I feel Mumbai has lost humanity & is no more safe to live for innocent, self respecting citizens," Amruta Fadnavis tweeted. Hitting back, Shiv Sena Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi took to Twitter and said, "Roams around with Mumbai police security and car" and added a personal slight by tweeting further that the men in khakhi were the "only audience forced to listen to her out of tune songs". Chaturvedi tweeted, "I challenge these state Bharatiya Janata Party leaders & their political aspiration bearing family accusing Mumbai Police & defaming them, to give up their police security go for private agencies who can make them feel safe in the city. As wife of fmr CM who was also HM to speak this way is shameful." NCP spokesperson Aditi Nalawde dug out an earlier photograph of Amruta Fadnavis sitting on the edge of a ship during a launch ceremony and tweeted "she should not forget that when she was sitting dangerously at the corner of a cruise ship, it was a Mumbai police personnel guarding her". Nalawde further alleged that Amruta Fadnavis was only interested in opening police salary accounts in the private bank where she worked. We continue to focus on our clients by leveraging technology to achieve their business initiatives during times of challenge, growth and stability The TNS Group has again been named as one of the worlds premier managed service providers on the prestigious 2020 annual Channel Futures MSP 501 rankings. TNS moved up in ranking and continues to place in the top 200 Managed Service Providers (MSPs) globally. For the 13th year running, MSPs from around the globe completed an exhaustive survey and application this spring to self-report product offerings, annual total and recurring revenues, profits, revenue mix, growth opportunities and company and customer demographic information. Applicants are ranked on a unique methodology that weights revenue figures according to long-term health and viability; commitment to recurring revenue; and operational efficiency. Channel Futures is pleased to name The TNS Group to the 2020 MSP 501. It is an honor to once again be recognized on the MSP 501 for our commitment to innovation in the MSP space. We continue to focus on our clients by leveraging technology to achieve their business initiatives during times of challenge, growth and stability, said Ami Soifer, CEO of The TNS Group. This is a testament to the ongoing commitment and excellence of the entire TNS team and we are honored to be in the company of so many established MSPs. In the 13 years since its inception, the MSP 501 has evolved from a competitive ranking list into a vibrant group of service providers, vendors, distributors, consultants and industry analysts working together to define the growing managed service opportunity. For the third year running, the applicant pool for the annual MSP 501 has grown year-over-year, making this years list the most competitive in the surveys history, says Kris Blackmon, Senior Content Director at Channel Partners and Channel Futures. The MSP 501 leveraged judgement methodology brand-new in 2020 to drill down into not just what makes a big managed service provider, but what makes a great managed service provider. The 2020 winners are truly the best examples of innovation, business acumen and strategic savvy on the planet. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the 2020 winners and gratitude to the thousands of MSPs that have contributed to the continuing growth and success of both the 501 and the thriving managed services sector. The data collected by the annual MSP 501 program drives Channel Partners and Channel Futures market intelligence insights, creating robust data sets and data-based trend reports that support our editorial coverage, event programming, community and networking strategies and educational offerings. It serves as a lynchpin to dozens of programs and initiatives. The complete 2020 MSP 501 list is available at Channel Futures. Background The 2020 MSP 501 list is based on data collected by Channel Futures and its sister site, Channel Partners. Data was collected online from Mar. 1 through June 30, 2020. The MSP 501 list recognizes top managed service providers based on metrics including recurring revenue, profit margin and other factors. The TNS Group The TNS Group operates from two primary locations in New York City and Stamford, CT and serves as a valued resource for businesses and nonprofit organizations by delivering the highest standard in IT services. We are a trusted Managed Security, IT and Cloud Services provider that offers IT services to support all industries by building and maintaining infrastructure, securing environments and providing strategic guidance for short and long-term planning. Our clients include national businesses, companies, and nonprofit organizations in the New York City Metro Area, including Long Island, Westchester and Rockland Counties, and throughout Connecticut, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. MEDIA CONTACT: Erika Ellis The TNS Group 203-316-0112 x 111 eellis@thetnsgroup.com Managed IT Services https://thetnsgroup.com/it-services/managed-it-services/ Managed IT Security https://thetnsgroup.com/managed-it-security/ Business Continuity https://thetnsgroup.com/it-services/business-continuity/ Cloud Solutions https://thetnsgroup.com/it-services/cloud-managed-services/ IT Consulting https://thetnsgroup.com/it-services/it-consulting/ The Leadership Team https://thetnsgroup.com/leadership-team/ Blog https://thetnsgroup.com/tns-blogs/ About Informa Tech Channel Futures, Channel Partners Online, Channel Partners Conference & Expo and Channel Partners Evolution are part of Informa Tech, a market-leading B2B information provider with depth and specialization in the Information and Communications (ICT) Technology sector. We help drive the future by inspiring the Technology community to design, build and run a better digital world through our market-leading research, media, training and event brands. Every year, we welcome 7,400+ subscribers to our research, more than 3.8 million unique visitors a month to our digital communities, 18,200+ students to our training programs and 225,000 delegates to our events. MEDIA CONTACT: Allison Francis Editor, Channel Futures & Channel Partners Editor, MSP 501 Allison.Francis@informa.com TIMPHISINI Tension has reached high levels around Nhlambeni after a supplier demanded back building material of a failed project. This is because nearly seven years later, the material has not been paid for through the Timphisini Inkhundla, but residents say the material now belongs to the community. If the supplier has a problem, he should pester government for the money, not us, said some residents. The material was for the construction of a clinic. According to some delivery receipts in this publications possession, the material was delivered by L.S.M Distributors (PTY) Limited in 2013. The material is currently being stored at Nhlambeni Primary School near the construction site of the clinic. Hired A foundation for the clinic had already been done by the residents as well as builders who were hired through the inkhundla. The residents also blamed the inkhundla for failing to follow through the project whose surroundings were now overgrown with thorny bushes. Sizwe Shongwe, who is the chairperson of the clinic construction project, said he was shocked when he received a call from an official from the company who said they wanted to fetch the material. Shongwe said he was shocked because as far as he was concerned, the material had been delivered for the purpose of building the clinic. He said the construction had been stalled due to lack of funds and the material was being kept at the school. He said he was surprised that after seven years, someone had returned to collect the material for the construction of the clinic. Shongwe said the residents were bitter about this such that they vowed not to allow the supplier to fetch the material. They (residents) wont allow it, he said. He said the residents said it would be unfair for the supplier to collect the material since they had worked hard to lay the foundation to mark the beginning of the construction. Noteworthy is that the project has outlived the almost three different terms of Members of Parliament (MPs) namely Jennifer Du Pont, Apton Ndlovu and Malombo Mamba. Mamba, who is the current MP was also the Indvuna YeNkhundla during the previous terms. Referred An official from L.S.M Distributors was reached for comment but he referred questions to an accountant. When the accountant was contacted, she said she was not in a position to comment and suggested that the inkhundla should be contacted instead. The Indvuna YeNkhundla, Sipho Mndzawe, confirmed that he attended a meeting at the school where the material was being stored. He said there had been some concerns that the material had not been paid for and that the supplier wanted it back. The material includes tiles, ceiling, industrial nails and door frames, among others. Mndzawe also confirmed that the residents expressed dissatisfaction with this. He said there would be another meeting tomorrow to inform residents about what the real issue was so that they could understand it as well. Mndzawe said the other concern was that the material which had been delivered was said to have been slightly different than what was ordered hence the non-payment. However, he said the residents were concerned that despite this, they would still use the material for the construction of the clinic. Plans to help develop Philippines next 'tuna capital' The municipality of Dingalan, in Aurora Province, may soon emerge as the next tuna capital of the Philippines, after General Santos City, in Mindanao. This third-class municipality, situated 183 kilometers northeast of Metro Manila, currently has one main cemented road and branching alleys. Currently, it is called the Gateway to Southern Luzon, but soon, it is likely to become a major player in the countrys tuna tradethanks to its suitable location. Dingalan has been blessed to be bounded on its eastern side by the Philippine Rise (previously known as Benham Rise), a 13-million hectare undersea extinct volcanic ridge located in the Philippine Sea. This underwater ridge has been found to have rich biodiversity and abundant natural resources that offer a safe haven for spawning, while its numerous seamounts serve as a nursery zone for oceanic tuna species, including the endangered Pacific bluefin. When previously only research activities within the Philippine Rise are allowed, about 3,000 hectares of the feature have been designated in 2017 as a special fisheries management area and protected food supply exclusive zone, where fishermen in Dingalan and other neighboring municipalities are allowed to fish for food. To date, Dingalan has about 300 fishing boats and 20 commercial fishing vessels. The focal point of fishery activities in this small town is the community fish landing center (CFLC in the aplaya, in Barangay Paltic. Here, the days fish catch is transported from the carrier boats to the landing facility, where buyers from all over Northern Luzon await to purchase the freshest fish for sale to markets and restaurants. Near the aplaya is a small processing facility for tuna that produces limited quantities of sliced sashimi, belly, jaw (panga), and tail (buntot) for select markets. On July 27, 2020, officials of the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Region 3 (DA-BFAR3), led by Regional Director Wilfredo Cruz, visited the area and were welcomed by Dingalan Mayor Sherwin Taay. After witnessing the unloading of the bountiful fish catch from two commercial boats, Director Cruz said he will advocate for the development of the towns fishery sector. First on the list is the construction of a fish port that will also serve as a dock and refuge for all vessels during typhoons, and station for the Philippine Coast Guard. Cruz said he already submitted the proposal to the DA-BFAR central office for consideration and approval. Meanwhile, the DA-BFAR3 will assist the municipal government of Dingalan organize a fisherfolk cooperative that will allow members to qualify for assistance to procure bigger boats like a 62-footer fiberglass carrier boat with 12 smaller catcher boats as well as put up bigger cold storage and processing facilities. In all, DA-BFAR3 Director Cruz said our continued assistance will surely bring masaganang ani at mataas na kita to the fisherfolk in Dingalan. For his part, Secretary Dar said he will instruct the Philippine Fisheries Development Authority (PFDA) and BFAR to conduct a feasibility study on the establishment of a fishport complex in Dingalan, Aurora, and a wholesale fish market in Rosales, Pangasinan. He said sashimi grade tuna from Dingalan can be flown out of the country thru Clark Airport, and various fish produce from Pangasinan, Aurora, Zambales, and Central Luzon can be consolidated in Rosales, Pangasinan and distributed to north, central, and north-eastern Luzon, and even to Metro Manila. Very soon, Dingalan will not only be known as the Batanes of the East, but also as the countrys tuna capital of the north. 2020 Philippine Information Agency Theme(s): Fisheries Development and Aquaculture. At work, Susan Kaars-Sypesteyn and Pieter Sypesteyn serve the foods of New Orleans and the South at their Cookhouse Restaurant, NOLA Brunch & Beignets and Buds Southern Rotisserie. At home with their four children, the couple shifts to the Cambodian cooking of Kaars-Sypesteyns upbringing. And starting Aug. 19, theyll be sharing a taste of Cambodia with San Antonio through a new restaurant called Golden Wat Noodle House. Golden Wat will offer only curbside and delivery service, sharing the same building and kitchen space with Cookhouse. That means the same team will be cooking for both operations, except that Kaars-Sypesteyn will be helping them adapt to the unfamiliar recipes and flash-fire cooking styles of her beloved Cambodian specialties. Those specialties will include a half-dozen noodle dishes and a half-dozen rice dishes, including a chicken and fish creation called nom banh chok using a complex ginger paste called kroeung to make a broth poured over vermicelli noodles. Sypesteyn compares it to chicken noodle soup, a comforting dish that Kaars-Sypesteyn said is even more important during the pandemic. We cook this so much at home, and its been so healing for me, she said. On ExpressNews.com: How Cookhouse Restaurant chef Pieter Sypesteyn balances family and work amid coronavirus Other options include a dish of pork belly, egg and fish-sauce caramel called kaw and stir-fry specialties called mee kan tang with beef and noodles and a noodle stir-fry called kuy teav cha. Wat is the word for temple in Cambodias Khmer language, and Golden Wat evokes Kaars-Sypesteyns childhood days going to Buddhist temples. Shes first-generation Cambodian American, her parents coming to the United States after fleeing the Khmer Rouge genocide of the 1970s. This is really a love story to my mom, Kaars-Sypesteyn said. Golden Wat will handle orders through goldenwatnoodlehouse.com, which is still in development, with hours of noon to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Until then, follow Golden Wat on Instagram at @goldenwatnoodle. Meanwhile, Cookhouse Restaurant, which closed briefly during the pandemic, will reopen exclusively for curbside and delivery service starting Wednesday. Mike Sutter is a food and drink reporter and restaurant critic in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Mike, become a subscriber. msutter@express-news.net | Twitter: @fedmanwalking | Instagram: @fedmanwalking The General Secretary of the ruling NPP, John Boadu, on Sunday, 2nd August 2020, successfully went through the voter registration process and grabbed for himself a voter ID card ahead of the 2020 general elections. He registered at the district office of the Electoral Commission at his hometown, Assin Fosu, in the Assin Central Constituency of the Central Region. Speaking to some pressmen after he was issued with his voter's ID card, the NPP Chief Scribe and Director of Campaign Operations, thanked the officials of the EC for the smooth conduct of the registration exercise, and more importantly, for granting him yet another opportunity to vote for President Akufo-Addo come December 7. He also used the opportunity to remind the Ghanaian public that the registration exercise had entered its final phase and therefore implored all eligible Ghanaians who were yet to register to do the same in order to entitle them to participate in the 2020 general elections and vindicate their constitutional right. John Boadu who has been touring the length and breadth of the country to monitor the ongoing voter registration, proceeded to visit some registration centres in his constituency and adjoining constituencies including Assin North and South Constituencies. 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 Mashreq, one of the leading financial institutions in the UAE, has appointed Feras Al Jaramani as Executive Vice President, Head of Public Sector, Healthcare, Education and Energy. In his role, Al Jaramani will be responsible for growing Mashreqs expanding portfolio across his designated sectors within the banks Corporate and Investment Banking Group (CIBG). Al Jaramani joins Mashreq following over 18 years of experience with leading banking groups across the Middle East and North Africa. His breadth of experience extends across public sector portfolios, export credit agency transactions, trade and cash management, M& A transactions, DCM transactions and global markets. Al Jaramani joined HSBC Bank Middle East in 2008 and remained there prior to joining Mashreq. For over twelve years he held various leadership roles in the bank before becoming its Director and Head of UAE Federal Government, Sharjah & Northern Emirates Desk, Global Banking. Prior to HSBC, he worked at United Arab Bank, Al Ain in corporate banking. He started his career in banking at Union National Bank, Al Ain, working in its corporate banking division until 2005. He holds a bachelors degree from Damascus University of Syria. Commenting on the appointment, Joel Van Dusen, Group Head of Corporate and Investment Banking Group, Mashreq Bank, said: I would like to extend a warm welcome to Feras, who joins our corporate banking and investment banking division. With our corporate clients increasingly valuing deep sectoral expertise as well as a banking knowledge partner that can help them to adapt swiftly to market changes, Feras strong background in corporate and institutional banking will enable us to provide even more relevant and bespoke solutions to match their needs. In his role, he will support us in building on and improving our portfolio, as well as establishing long-term relationships with business and government leaders across his designated sectors. I am certain Feras will play a vital role in elevating our brand across the region and positioning Mashreq as the corporate banker of choice for key stakeholders. I wish him the very best as he begins his journey with the Mashreq family. Al Jarmani added: Mashreq has built a solid reputation as one of the leading homegrown banking brands in the region and I am excited to join them as they continue to expand across key sectors. As the public sector contributes increasingly towards economic recovery and stabilisation, there exists a lot of opportunity for innovation within this space and across essential industries such as healthcare, education and energy. I look forward to working with a dedicated team of passionate experts in delivering a seamless, innovative, digital-first banking experience for Mashreqs corporate customers. -- Tradearabia News Service VERO BEACH, Fla. (AP) Bands of heavy rain from Isaias lashed Floridas east coast Sunday, with the tropical storm strengthening slightly and forecast to be near hurricane strength by the time it reaches the Carolinas. It strengthened slightly earlier in the evening with maximum sustained winds just under a Category 1 hurricane, taking a north-northwest path, according to the National Hurricane Center. Isaias is forecast to strengthen to a Hurricane as it heads toward the Carolinas Monday (CNN) Isaias forecast track Coronavirus news around the globe Texas governor skipping Republican convention to focus on COVID (The Hill) Eli Lilly launches late-stage antibody treatment trial to be tested in US nursing homes (ABC News) Russia gears up for mass vaccination against coronavirus despite international skepticism (CNBC) In much of the US, progress made in the Covid-19 fight has turned into progress lost (CNN) Outbreak hits Norway cruise ship, could spread along coast (Associated Press) Lord & Taylor, oldest U.S. department store, files for bankruptcy (NPR) Coronavirus updates: Arrests after illicit party boat with 170 guests cruises around New York City (ABC) Other headlines trending online today Report: Former Pope Benedict seriously ill (Reuters) Some mystery seeds illegally sent from China identified (CBS News) Islamic State attack on Afghan prison, killing 21, rages on (AP) Microsoft to move quickly on TikTok deal following Trump talks (NBC News) Firefighters struggle to control Apple fire in Riverside County as winds pick up (LA Times) Farmer Wants a Wife is known for helping its contestants find lasting love, unlike certain other reality shows which are known for drama and betrayal. But it seems Channel Seven's reboot of the wholesome dating series will have its fair share of scandal this year. According to TV Week, the show will be rocked by a 'partner swap' as one of farmer Harry Robertson's women 'leaves for another man'. Scandal: Farmer Wants a Wife will be rocked by a Married At First Sight-style 'partner swap' scandal, according to multiple reports on Monday The contestant reportedly leaves Harry's farm and travels back to Sydney to connect with another farmer from the show. Meanwhile, an insider told New Idea magazine that producers 'orchestrated the swap to stir up drama'. 'The wives are racier than previous seasons on Nine [and] the irony is producers have taken a leaf out of Nine's MAFS book and a wife swap is on the cards,' the source added. 'They cast the wives to orchestrate this swap mid-series to stir everything up.' Wife swap! According to TV Week, the show will be rocked by a 'partner swap' as one of farmer Harry Robertson's (pictured) women 'leaves for another man' During Sunday's episode, Madison MacKenzie, who grew up on a farm in Esk near Brisbane, quit the show only to make a dramatic return at the group dinner party. The bizarre saga began when Harry noticed Madison was missing, and the other girls told him she'd gone to the bathroom and never came back out. He went to investigate and found a distraught Madison sitting on the end of her bed with her head in her hands. Drama: During Sunday's episode, Madison MacKenzie (pictured) quit the show only to make a dramatic return at the group dinner party Harry, who had previously said Madison was 'someone that I could fall for', was gutted when she told him she wanted to leave. Later on at the dinner party, Harry and the remaining women were left shocked after being told Madison wanted to come back to the farm. Host Natalie Gruzlewski told Harry the decision was ultimately his, but Madison was waiting to talk to him about a possible return. He agreed to let Madison back in the fold, which angered the remaining three girls and prompted Ashleigh and Stacey to storm off. People walk past a British government public health campaign advertisement encouraging people to get tested, amid the spread of the CCP virus in London, Britain on Aug. 2, 2020. (Reuters/Toby Melville) Britain to Roll out Millions of New 90-Minute CCP Virus Tests Millions of tests able to detect the CCP virus within 90 minutes will be rolled out to British hospitals, care homes, and laboratories to increase testing capacity in the coming months, the countrys health minister said on Monday. The tests will help health-care workers to quickly advise on the best course of action to stop the spread of the virus, the Department of Health and Social Care announced. Both new tests can distinguish between the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, and other flu and winter diseases, enabling specific isolation rules for the CCP virus to be applied. The fact these tests can detect flu, as well as COVID-19, will be hugely beneficial as we head into winter, so patients can follow the right advice to protect themselves and others, Matt Hancock, UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, said in a statement. Current lab tests can take a day or more to process, so the new tests will enable faster testing and greater capacity. The government has ordered 5.8 million new tests that use DNA to detect the virus and 450,000 new swab tests, with plans to provide millions more later in the year. Medical staff are seen testing people at a COVID-19 test centre in Chessington, UK, on April 2, 2020. (Toby Melville/Reuters) Two Test Types The government has placed a 161-million-pound ($210-million) order with biotech company DnaNudge for their lab-free, rapid sampling kits for use in NHS hospitals from September. The DnaNudge Nudgebox machines that analyze the DNA samples from nose swabs are already in accident and emergency departments as well as cancer and maternity wards at eight London hospitals. An additional 5,000 machines are to be deployed in hospitals around the country. The company said in a statement that the new test, which has a mechanism that eliminates false negative results caused by inadequate swabbing, is quick, and has a high sensitivity (producing correct positive results 98 percent of the time), and a 100 percent specificity (producing correct negative results), in a comparison with a number of NHS laboratory tests. The other test called LamPORE is a swab test developed by Oxford Nanopore Technologies, and will be available in adult care settings and NHS laboratories from next week, the government said. It will support the UKs efforts to manage the continued reduction of COVID-19 and containment of new cases, now and through the winter cold and flu season, the company said in a statement. Neither of the new tests will need to be administered by health professionals, which means the tests can also be used in non-clinical settings, making them more practical to use. Hancock told the BBC that testing could be expanded to other settings, such as schools, and across the wider community in asymptomatic people to find out where the virus is. Test and Trace National Health Service (NHS) Test and Trace staff contact people who test positive for the CCP virus, asking them where they have been and who theyve been in near contact with. People further back in the contact chain can then be alerted where possible and advised on the best course of action to limit the spread of the disease. Swab tests show if you are currently infected even if you are asymptomatic so that contacts can be traced. Blood testing shows if you have had the virus and therefore have antibodies, which may give some immunity. This data can be put together with confirmed cases and death statistics to give an improved picture of how exactly the CCP virus is operating in the population and can inform back-to-work and lockdown-lifting measures. Having had the CCP virus is not thought to necessarily give complete immunity, however, and a reliable vaccine has not yet been developed. Countries such as South Korea and Germany who tested high numbers of their populations early on have had relatively low death rates from the CCP virus, while Britain has suffered the fourth highest death toll worldwide according to Reuters. Reuters contributed to this report. In late May, school teachers in Battambangs Samlout district realized students were struggling to cope with studying at home either via videos posted on social media or the daily telecasts on state broadcaster TVK. The Cambodian government had shut down all schools and educational institutions in March, on account of the increasing number of novel coronavirus cases. The government, which has struggled to provide quality public education, immediately transitioned to an at-home, online pedagogy. But Samlout teachers noticed that students were unable to keep up with these educational videos or lacked access to smartphones and devices needed to access the content. My students parents told me that they don't have the time to supervise their children, so the children don't learn much from television, said 25-year-old school teacher Soeun Sreynith. For some students, their parents have gone to Thailand, and they stay with their grandmother, who doesn't know about [newer] technology, she added. Soeun Sreynith is a teacher at Sre Andong Pi Primary School and was part of a group of teachers who conducted an informal survey in May to check the progress of their students. The results showed that students were unable to effectively learn from television broadcasts, given that the information flow was unidirectional and there was rarely anyone at home to assist with the studies. Additionally, rural families in the district rarely had access to smartphones nor were children allowed to keep the phones with them, even if the family had a spare phone. Soeun Sreynith said school teachers and the principal decided that it was time to try a more innovative way to both observe the governments school closure order but also ensure that students did not miss out on their education. With the help of the survey, teachers were able to map the homes of all their students. They then correlated that with the locations of teachers homes, putting each teacher in charge of teaching and helping around 50 students. The makeshift teaching schedule was quickly approved by local and Education Ministry officials, who according to Soeun Sreynith, also realized the shortcomings of the distance-learning efforts they had put in place. One of the measures the ministry has implemented is that we instructed [teachers] to form small study groups with less than 10 students, in accordance with the Ministry of Healths measures for social distancing, said Ros Soveacha, a spokesperson at the Education Ministry. Soeun Sreynith said teachers were using their homes, empty market stalls, or public buildings to conduct around four-hour-long teaching sessions with students, limiting each interaction to less than 10 students. As she was speaking to VOA Khmer in late June, six grade 2 students, wearing colorful and casual clothing, walked into Soeun Sreyniths home at 1 p.m. in Boeung Ron village. The small classroom session is her fourth of the day, and Soeun Sreynith is exhausted. When we were teaching at the school, students used to come to find us, she said. Now we are going home to home to teach them. Cambodia has scrambled, much like other nations, to facilitate the continued education of students during the pandemic. The government has created a new state-owned channel to broadcast grade-specific lessons daily and streams similar grade-specific content on Facebook pages and YouTube. The expectation has been that children will tune into these broadcasts and absorb their daily lessons. As is the case in Samlout, teachers found that technological barriers and a lack of supervision had hindered their students a situation that put them at risk of likely never coming back to the classroom once schools reopen. According to the Cambodia Education Response Plan to COVID-19 Pandemic released in July, coronavirus-related school closures had impacted more than 3.2 million students in the country, around 10,000 teachers and close to 14,000 schools. The dropout rate for students in rural areas has been a challenge for the government. The Ministry of Educations Statistics and Indicators 2015-2016 report showed the national dropout rate was at 4.6 percent for the primary level and 17 percent for lower secondary level. Education indications from UNESCO show that 83.5 percent of students in 2018 were enrolled until the last grade of primary school, the rate dropping to 79 percent for male students. A World Bank May 2020 report on education, which accompanied the Cambodia Economic Update, proposed that Cambodia should consider initiatives that can reduce the dropout rate by supporting students struggling to keep up with their work, especially in light of the current situation. Hong Reaksmey, country director for Action Aid Cambodia, schools and teachers were putting in the effort to support their students, but that it was not a uniform experience across the country. "Though there is an instruction from the ministry to the schools to visit students' houses and distribute teaching materials, not every school could implement that," he said. He added, besides implementing strict health and hygiene measures, the Ministry should also establish additional training programs to support students who were unable to cope up with the online and distance learning pedagogy. Soki Nita is one of the students who travels to meet Soeun Sreynith daily. Ty Linda is the mother of the eight-year-old and said the family has a smartphone for Soki Nita but no one to supervise her lessons. Ty Linda and her husband are busy working all day, doing a variety of jobs, such as farming, rearing pigs, and making rice wine. This leaves little time to help Soki Nita, who wants to grow up and be a teacher. "I couldn't teach her myself," Ty Linda said. If I can keep a close eye on her, she would use the phone for studying, but if I were busy doing my household chores, then she would just switch the screen to cartoon channels. There has been uncertainty over when students across the country will be able to return to schools, with the government indicating that only 20 high-standard schools to reopen in August. There has been little indication to suggest if the Education and Health Ministry will reopen public schools or conduct the critical national examination. Back at Soeun Sreyniths home, she is using the chalkboard her grandfather used when he was a teacher. When they decided to conduct the small, informal classrooms, she found it stashed in a corner of their home. Downing Street hit out at Spain this morning amid claims that Madrid lobbied US politicians to back joint-control of Gibraltar. Several current and former members of Congress said they were approached by the Spanish embassy in Washington after backing the British Overseas Territory's sovereignty. The campaign lasted between 2014 and 2019 and involved the suggestion that Gibraltar citizens be given dual Spanish nationality and Madrid would get a say in its political system, the Daily Telegraph reported. Today the Prime minister's official spokesman said: 'The people of Gibraltar have repeatedly and overwhelmingly expressed their wish to remain under British sovereignty and we will respect their wishes. 'We will never enter into arrangements under which the people of Gibraltar would pass under the sovereignty of another state against their wishes. The campaign lasted between 2014 and 2019 and involved the suggestion that Gibraltar citizens be given dual Spanish nationality and Madrid would get a say in its political system, the Daily Telegraph reported Britain and Spain, Nato allies, have clashed repeatedly in recent years over the tiny enclave at the mouth of the Mediterranean, which was ceded to Britain in 1713 and played a crucial role in the Second World War 'Furthermore the UK will not enter into any process of sovereignty negotiations with which Gibraltar is not content. 'We will continue to take whatever action is necessary to safeguard Gibraltar, its people and its economy including maintaining a well-functioning Gibraltar-Spain border.' Britain and Spain, Nato allies, have clashed repeatedly in recent years over the tiny enclave at the mouth of the Mediterranean, which was ceded to Britain in 1713 and played a crucial role in the Second World War. Its position has been thrown into even sharper focus since the Brexit vote, because of its sometimes frictious land border with Spain. Citizens of The Rock, which overwhelmingly backed Remain at the 2016 referendum, have consistently pledged their allegiance to Britain, including in several referendums on the subject. Gibraltar's Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, tweeted this morning The serving congressmen who confirmed they were targeted were Republicans George Holding and David Rouzer (North Carolina), Ken Calvert and Paul Cook (California), and Jim Sensenbrenner (Wisconsin), plus Democrat Gerry Connolly (Virginia). A seventh, Republican Rodney Frelinghuysen (New Jersey), retired last year. They told the Telegraph that the Spanish officials referred to Gibraltar as a 'colony' and at times were 'belligerent', 'forceful', 'aggressive' and 'over the line'. Mr Holding was previously awarded the Gibraltar Medallion of Honor for his support for the BOT's self-determination. Gibraltar's Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, this morning tweeted: 'We have been aware of this for some time and work to counter it. 'The position of the ES (Spanish) embassy in DC has been robustly countered by Gib on a number of occasions. We hope that ES will see that it's campaign of misinformation about Gib gets nowhere and that a new attitude will prevail.' Mumbai, Aug 3 : Covid-19 induced economic turbulence pulled down two-an d three-wheeler manufacturer Bajaj Auto's total sales in July by 33 per cent on a year-on-year basis. According to the company, its total sales during the month under review fell to 2,55,832 units from 3,81,530 units sold during the corresponding month of 2019. Similarly, Bajaj Auto's total domestic sales stood at 1,58,976 units -- down 23 per cent -- from 2,05,470 units sold in July last year. The two- and three-wheeler manufacturer's overall exports declined by 45 per cent to 96,856 units from 1,76,060 units shipped out during the like month of 2019. In term of two-wheelers, the company's total sales fell 26 per cent to 2,38,556 units from 3,22,210 units sold in July last year. The company's commercial vehicles' sales during the month under review declined by 71 per cent to 17,276 units from 59,320 units sold during the like period of last year. The COVID-19 pandemic has hit the world hard, and countries around the globe are anxious to get their hands on a vaccine as soon as possible in the hopes that it will bring a return to normalcy. Those vaccines are expected to be in short supply when they first hit the market, meaning not everyone will have access initially. Within countries, some groups will be prioritized for vaccination. But what about globally? Which countries will get the vaccines first? Many wealthier nations are already making bets on vaccines still in relatively early stages of development, with no guarantee that they will ever perform well enough to gain approval or protect their populations. That has many concerned about "vaccine nationalism," where countries look out for their own interests at the expense of others. Here's a closer look at what wealthier countries are doing to ensure supplies for their own citizens, how that might affect other countries, how Canada might fare and what efforts are being made to distribute a vaccine more fairly. What can countries do to obtain a vaccine first? There are a few different ways wealthier countries can try to ensure their own supplies: Provide funding for the development and manufacture of their own candidates to help speed it up. Manufacture a vaccine within their own country and prevent it from being exported. Make deals to reserve or preorder large numbers of doses. What impact does that have on other countries? In previous pandemics, such as an H1N1 outbreak in 2009, wealthier nations were able to buy up the first batches, leaving no supply for lower-income countries. And even some richer countries, including Canada, weren't always first in line if they didn't have their own manufacturing facilities. During the swine flu outbreak in 1976, for example, the U.S. decided to vaccinate its entire population before it would allow vaccine producers to export their products to Canada. What are countries doing to ensure their own supply? Story continues The U.S. has a program called Operation Warp Speed, which aims to produce a vaccine faster than anyone else. President Donald Trump has said he hoped it would be available before the end of the year. The program has already announced that it's providing more than $6 billion US to pay for development, manufacturing and preorders or reservations for hundreds of millions of doses of promising vaccine candidates from U.S.-based Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, Novavax, Pfizer and Merck, along with U.K.-based AstraZeneca. Saul Loeb/Pool via The Associated Press Similarly, the European Commission has a plan to use an emergency fund worth 2.4 billion (almost $3.7 billion Cdn) to buy up to six vaccines in advance for 450 million people. Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands have also signed a deal with AstraZeneca for over 300 million doses of its vaccine, which they say all EU members can participate in. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom has preordered nearly 200 million doses from AstraZeneca, BioNTech/Pfizer and France-based Valneva. There are concerns such preorders could reduce the initial availability of vaccines in the rest of the world, which has happened in previous pandemics The European Commission has specifically said it will not buy vaccines produced exclusively in the U.S. over concerns that might delay supplies to Europe. What is Canada doing to ensure its own supply? The federal government has created a $600 million fund to support vaccine clinical trials and manufacturing in Canada. It is also "closely monitoring vaccine development efforts domestically and internationally and will work quickly to negotiate advanced purchase agreements with vaccine manufacturer(s) to secure supply for all Canadians as soon as it is feasible," Geoffroy Legault-Thivierge, a spokesperson for the Public Health Agency of Canada, told CBC News in an email. However, as of July 30, it hadn't yet announced any such agreements. The government has also announced it is ordering enough equipment, such as syringes, alcohol swabs and bandages, to give at least two doses of a vaccine to every Canadian when one becomes available. Still, experts warn that Canada currently doesn't have much manufacturing capacity for vaccines, even those developed in this country many of which would be manufactured elsewhere and some of which would likely be licensed to foreign companies for manufacturing. Ted S. Warren/The Associated Press Quebec City-based Medicago is the first Canadian vaccine candidate to begin clinical trials. But CEO Bruce Clark has said that his company's main manufacturing plant is in the U.S., meaning there's no guarantee that a supply would reach Canada in a timely manner. "'Guarantee' is a strong word," Clark told The Canadian Press in July. "Strange things happen to borders in the context of a pandemic." Dr. Noni MacDonald, a professor of pediatrics and infectious diseases at Dalhousie University and the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, said Canada is a very small market. "And we will not have a vaccine if the manufacturer doesn't apply for approval," said MacDonald, who has done research on ethical issues surrounding vaccines. In the past, some manufacturers have not prioritized Canada, she said. For example, the manufacturer of the chicken pox vaccine didn't apply for approval in Canada until it had already been available in the U.S. for five years. Why should all countries have access to a vaccine? Because it's a global pandemic and our world is interconnected, outbreaks in any country have the potential to travel to other countries and cause outbreaks there, MacDonald said. "For you to be safe ... your country needs to be safe and all other countries need to be safe." That's even the case if the entire population is vaccinated, she said, as a given vaccine usually doesn't work for everyone. Due to manufacturing and distribution constraints, when a vaccine first becomes available, there isn't expected to be enough of it to vaccinate the entire populations of even countries wealthy and lucky enough to have preordered it. That means most of their populations could remain at risk for a long time if the pandemic isn't under control in other parts of the world. Outbreaks also tend to be worse and harder to control in poorer countries, posing a higher risk to both their own populations and the world. Siphiwe Sibeko/The Associated Press Dr. Joel Lexchin, a professor emeritus at York University in Toronto who has studied pharmaceutical policy, said many wealthier countries such as Canada are able to do a pretty good job of controlling the virus without a vaccine through such measures as physical distancing, frequent handwashing, mask wearing and temporarily shutting down certain businesses and services. Meanwhile, lower-income countries where many people live in crowded conditions some of them with limited access to things like clean water and soap are struggling with both controlling the epidemic and treating those who have fallen ill. "I think you need to look at where the outbreak is still the greatest threat to public health and also where the medical care resources are the lowest," Lexchin said. "You can make the case that however much we need a vaccine in Canada, there they need it much more than we do." What about global efforts to ensure a fair distribution? There are some, but perhaps the biggest is the COVAX Facility, an initiative of the World Health Organization; Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, which is a public-private partnership founded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation that vaccinates children against deadly diseases; and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, which aims to develop vaccines to stop future epidemics. COVAX is pooling money from dozens of countries to invest in vaccine candidates around the world, with a goal of delivering two billion vaccine doses globally by 2021. The program is designed to connect developing and developed nations, with all partners getting enough doses of a successful vaccine for 20 per cent of their populations, initially prioritizing health-care workers. So far, it's signed on 75 higher-income countries including Canada but not the U.S. to partner with 90 lower-income countries that together represent more than 60 per cent of the world's population. It's also joining forces with vaccine manufacturers. Rajanish Kakade/The Associated Press The program includes investment in production facilities and incentives to scale up through preorders. Because most vaccine candidates are not expected to succeed and make it to market, COVAX is designed to get higher-income countries to participate by improving the chance that they'll invest in a successful vaccine. "This is an initial opportunity for a wealthy country to kind of hedge their bets and protect their own interests and also contribute to a global effort to secure vaccine for people living in countries where the resources are not there to do it on their own," said Prof. Ruth Faden, founder of the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics in Baltimore. "It's very smart." Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has spoken in favour of and co-authored an op-ed article with leaders of other countries calling for equitable access to a COVID-19 vaccine when it's ready. Canada has already pledged $850 million to Global Coronavirus Response and $120 million toward the broader initiative that COVAX is part of, called the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator. Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, says it has raised $600 million US from higher-income countries and the private sector to provide an incentive for manufacturers to make enough vaccine to ensure access for developing countries. Will efforts for a fair distribution of vaccines work? York University's Lexchin said it's not clear if vaccines will be fairly distributed. He noted in an article in The Conversation that even for COVAX, rich countries will get the vaccine before poorer countries. And all countries will only be able to vaccinate their highest-priority groups, including health-care workers just 20 per cent of the population through the program, limiting its influence. At least one humanitarian group has expressed concern that the program doesn't stop rich countries from buying up all the supply in advance, limiting what can be distributed to the rest of the world. Lexchin said in an interview that middle-income countries such as Brazil and Mexico sometimes fall through the cracks, as they're not poor enough to take advantage of lower prices offered by manufacturers, who set the prices. He said he thinks leaders, including Canada's, need to step up as well, by requiring that vaccines and treatments be made available at affordable prices to low- and middle-income countries if government funding was received for their development. Still, MacDonald of Dalhousie University is cautiously optimistic. "We're in better shape to be more equitable about a COVID-19 vaccine globally than we were for the influenza pandemic," she said. "Do I think we're going to get it right? ... I hope we'll get it more right." The obsession with cow dung in India is not going to subside anytime soon. In the latest incident that takes the obsession up a notch, shops in Telangana's Hyderabad saw an increased footfall ahead of Raksha Bandhan on Sunday despite the prevailing COVID-19 pandemic, with one shopkeeper adding an interesting "Corona rakhi" made of cow dung to the collection. "Sales this year are low because of the pandemic so I tried to come up with something that might induce people to buy my rakhis. This year I am selling a "Corona rakhi" made of cow dung. A few people have bought it and they seem to like it," Akash, a shop owner told news agency ANI. He said it was a tough decision to open his shop amid the pandemic because he was unsure of getting returns on his investment. Representational Image "I had to put all my faith in this haul of rakhis because I was not sure if they would sell or not. I don't want my investment to go waste as this occasion only comes once a year and I will have to wait a whole year to sell items if they don't sell today," he told ANI. A shopper said that they would take COVID-19 precautions while celebrating. "Only our immediate family will be celebrating Raksha Bandhan this year. We are going to maintain social distancing and sanitise our hands at frequent intervals. We are also going to be extra careful about the food we eat," she told ANI. Rakshan Bandhan is being celebrated on August 3 this year. Recommendations are independently chosen by Revieweds editors. Purchases you make through our links may earn us a commission. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends people wear cloth face coverings whenever in public (and many states and businesses require it), face masks have become a hot commodity during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hundreds of retailers, including Nordstrom, Anthropologie, and Athleta, have begun selling masks, from those with adjustable ear loops to those with built-in filter pockets and even clear ones. However, despite being necessary for preventing the spread of coronavirus, face masks aren't always the most comfortable thing to wear. Peopleespecially those who have to wear masks for extended periods of time, like essential essential workers and healthcare professionalsoften complain of pain behind their ears due to the mask straps and skin irritation. As a result, some have started looking for alternatives to the traditional face mask. Hey, let us help you: Need masks, wipes, face shields, more. Sign up for Resources by Reviewed newsletter and never miss a recommendation People are using gaiters as face masksbut are they as effective? Enter the neck gaiter. This wide tube of fabric is worn around the neck (instead of the ears) and easily pulled up and down, to cover and uncover the mouth and nose as desired. But are they as effective as masks? Here's everything you need to know about neck gaiters, according to experts, and where to buy the best ones right now. Are neck gaiters effective? Likely yesif worn correctly, experts say. "Based on data available, face coverings including gaiters likely provide some benefit in that they will reduce the spread of respiratory droplets from an infected person to the area surrounding that individual," explains Jason Kessler, M.D., Section Chief of Infectious Disease at Atlantic Health Systems Morristown Medical Center in New Jersey. He adds that the material, the fit, and whether or not the person is wearing the gaiter as recommended (over the mouth and nose) can all impact how effective it is as a face covering. Story continues Whether or not a gaiter is as protective as a face mask is up for debate. Dr. Kessler notes that there have not yet been any studies done comparing the two, so there is no conclusive recommendation. However, Emily Sickbert-Bennett, PhD, Director of Infection Prevention at UNC Hospitals in N.C., says: "We do know that tighter-fitting face masks have better aerosol filtration, but the most important thing is for people to find a mask that is comfortable that they can and will wear. A neck gaiter covering the nose and mouth would most likely be appropriate." How to choose a neck gaiter Experts recommend a gaiter made of blended materials. If you opt to wear a neck gaiter, how do you pick the best one? While, as mentioned, no studies have yet been done to differentiate between types of face coverings, Dr. Kessler says that there are certain features to look for when choosing a gaiter. "Face coverings that are made of multiple weaves [i.e., higher thread counts] seem to block more respiratory droplets than those with lower thread counts," Dr. Kessler explains, adding, "In addition, there is some evidence that [face coverings] made of blended materials (cotton plus another material) may be somewhat more effective as well." Of course, comfort is key, as well. No matter the material, experts like Dr. Kessler and Dr. Sickbert-Bennett stress that choosing either a face mask or a gaiter that you can wear comfortably for extended periods of time will be most effective, as you won't be tempted to remove it or adjust it, which could transfer germs from your hands to your face. The best neck gaiters you can buy You can find gaiters in all different prints and colors. You can find neck gaiters at a number of retailers online, from Amazon to REI to Etsy. The top-rated one on Amazon is the Mission neck gaiterwhich has over 3,100 rave reviews for being both comfortable and breathablefollowed closely by this Achiou one, which also has thousands of reviews for its snug fit and plethora of stylish designs. Over at REI, the most popular neck gaiter is one from Blackstrap, which people say fits securely and feels soft against your skin. And finally, Etsy offers tons of different neck gaiter options, including this highly-recommended one which even has an adjustable nose piece to prevent it from slipping. No matter which you choose, it's important that you wear something, Dr. Kessler reminds people. "It is difficult to compare all of these factors to recommend masks versus gaiters but, clearly, wearing a face covering of any kind is better than not," he says. The product experts at Reviewed have all your shopping needs covered. Follow Reviewed on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for the latest deals, product reviews, and more. Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time. This article originally appeared on Reviewed.com: Neck gaiters vs. face masks: Are they as effective? Its absolutely crucial for a company to reflect its diverse users. Hiring and retaining a diverse workforce creates an environment where challenges are solved and opportunities are realized through different productive paths. This in turn creates more value for the user, since they know someone on the inside understands their unique needs, is an advocate for them, and has created services that support them. Martina will be focusing on this subject in a presentation at Insurance Connect, an innovative virtual event from Insurance Business America dedicated exclusively to connecting brokers, agents and insurance professionals, aimed at uniting the industry for networking and business during these difficult times. It is also completely free for brokers and risk managers. Limited places are available prospective attendees are urged to sign up now to be part of it. Registration is open here. The only thing they have in common is the gun that killed them. The same .38-caliber Smith & Wesson pistol snuffed out the lives of three men within days or weeks of one another in the spring of 1972: a father of nine from New York City; a witness against a prolific bank robber from Agawam; and the victim of one of Greater Springfields most notorious unsolved mob hits. Forty-eight years later, only one of the slayings has been solved leaving two families haunted to varying degrees by questions about their loved ones last moments. The Republican conducted years of research and interviews related to the three crimes, turning up new details, debunking old theories and raising new questions. Many of those still go unanswered. Among them: the enduring mystery of the sudden disappearance and death of Vincent Palmieri, a father of nine from New York City, and the high-profile mob hit on Victor DeCaro that appeared to scarcely prompt an investigation. Victor DeCaro was last seen in May 1972 at a bar near the Connecticut River in Agawam, shown above on July 30, 2020. His body was pulled from the river July 3, 1972 in Windsor, Ct.Greg Saulmon / The Republican Victim No. 1: The wiseguy from Longmeadow DeCaro, 29, of Longmeadow, was a hair stylist and mobsters son-in-law with a manslaughter conviction, a penchant for throwing punches and a significant swagger. He disappeared outside a bar he owned in Agawam amid questions about a romantic entanglement with the wife of the late mob boss Salvatore Big Nose Sam Cufari. DeCaros body turned up July 3, 1972, in the Connecticut River in Windsor, Connecticut, wrapped in a tarpaulin and trussed up. No one was ever charged with his murder. Available records connected to the still-open case are scant, but his killing secured him a prominent spot in Greater Springfield mafia lore. The Republican obtained what are apparently the only documents linked to DeCaros disappearance from the Agawam Police Department through a public records request. Two brief police reports suggest his father-in-law, the late mob underboss Francesco Skyball Scibelli, drove DeCaro to The Living Room Lounge on the Agawam riverfront. DeCaros then-partner, Amedeo Santaniello, summoned him to fill in for a sick bartender, one report states. DeCaro never made it into the bar, employees told his wife, according to the report. Frank (father-in-law) was at Ciros with DeCaro received call from partner (Amedeo) Santaniello that one of the bartenders was sick and requested that DeCaro come over to the Living Room. DeCaro does not drive so he was taken by father-in-law and dropped off at rear door, reads the typed report from May 23, 1972. A lawyer for the Santaniello family declined to comment for this story. Ciros was a popular restaurant on Main Street, owned and frequented by organized crime figures in Springfields South End most notably Cufari, who died of natural causes in 1983. The Republicans public records requests about DeCaros killing came up empty suggesting a formal murder investigation was never launched into DeCaros slaying. Connecticut State Police said they maintained no records on it. The Hampden district attorneys office said it has no case file on the matter. The late Hampden District Attorney Matthew J. Ryan in court in 1986.The Republican file Thats called a Springfield special, a former high-ranking law enforcement official said, speaking on condition of anonymity, referring to late Hampden County District Attorney Matthew J. Matty Ryans reputation for being selective in his prosecution of mob figures. Ryan did prosecute DeCaro for the 1968 death of Ralph Ramsdell, 23. Ramsdell was a patron at DeCaros restaurant when the two got into an argument and DeCaro shoved his customer down a flight of stairs. He died. DeCaro was sentenced to eight to 12 years in state prison after a jury convicted him of manslaughter. A lengthy story in The Republican made much of DeCaros connections when he was sent to a cushy forestry prison camp in Franklin County two months after beginning his sentence at the maximum-security Walpole State Prison in 1970. Quoted in the report was Chief Public Defender Edward F. McBride Jr. The mechanics to do that thing had to be high-powered. It has to come from someone who had some power. I would think it would have to come from the legislature, McBride told a reporter, though the story did not speculate on which legislator would have stepped in on DeCaros behalf. The following year, DeCaro successfully appealed his sentence, which was reduced to two years and he was soon released to his family, according to news accounts. There were a smattering of news stories about DeCaros disappearance and the discovery of his body. Some even pointed to similarities between the deaths of DeCaro, petty criminal Gary Dube and the man whose body turned up in another river in Vermont around the same time. A little more than a month after DeCaros body was discovered, three men stationed at Westover Air Force Base sued his estate in Hampden Superior Court for $150,000, arguing DeCaro gave them a beating while they were drinking at the Agawam bar. At the time the said Victor DeCaro was working at the Living Room Inc. he was a person known to the defendant to have an uncontrollable and violent disposition, the lawsuit read, according to a news story dated Aug. 29, 1972. The plaintiffs attorney alleged the beating took place on New Years Day of that year. It is unclear what the resolution of that lawsuit was. The lead mob investigator with the Massachusetts State Police said little about the DeCaro case. I am aware of that incident in 1972 but I can neither confirm nor deny whether there is an active, ongoing investigation, said Detective Lt. Mark L. Frenzo, commander of the state police organized crime unit. There is no statute of limitations for a charge of murder. In a July 2011 file photo, sisters Gailann M. Melloni of Springfield and Bonnie Lee Clark of Agawam hold a painting of their brother, Gary J. Dube. Victim No. 2: The witness from Agawam Dube, 25, was a bartender from Feeding Hills with a criminal record who ran with a tough crowd. His body was discovered on June 23, 1972, by a deckhand on a ferry that traveled between Rocky Hill and Glastonbury, Connecticut. His body was wrapped in a plastic bag, his feet bound by a sheet. The back of his head was pockmarked with bullet wounds and his body was spattered with lime. An empty gun holster was still fastened to his hip, according to investigators. It seemed a gruesome message. His body had not turned up for more than six weeks after he disappeared. The late Francis J. Soffen who once forged a reputation as a shrewd, savage outlaw whose specialty was bank heists pleaded guilty to the murder of Dube and Stephen Perrot in 1973. Dube had testified against Soffen and his fellow bank robbers before a grand jury. Soffen feared Perrot would be next and killed him, too. Dube was initially charged in connection with at least one of the robberies but the charges against him were later dismissed as false. Dube had a criminal record including illegal gun possession, but what led to his death seemed to be his peripheral associations with a dangerous crowd. Before his death, Dube was asked to take a ride to Boston with Soffen and accomplice Edward Uschmann. Dube secured his own gun from a man named Flash, according to family members. My uncle knew he was going to die, Dubes niece, Kim Clark, said in an interview. Uschmann told Ryan and state police investigators that Soffen shot Dube in the back of the head while the three were riding along the Massachusetts Turnpike with Uschmann in the drivers seat, Dube in the passenger seat and Soffen in the back seat. Ryan told a judge Uschmann said he threw the storied .38 on a rooftop in Worcester, where he and Soffen stopped to buy beer after Soffen shot Dube to death. State Police found it just where Uschmann said he left it, the late district attorney said. A ballistics report generated by the Connecticut State Police linked the gun that killed Dube to the same weapon that killed DeCaro and Palmieri. Staten Island resident Vincent Palmieri, far left, disappeared in 1972, leaving a wife and nine children behind. His body washed up on the banks of a northern Vermont river on June 1 of that year; his family in New York did not learn his fate for more than 40 years.Photo courtesy of the Palmieri family Victim No. 3: The working man from New York City Palmieri, 35, a typeset printer and father of nine from Staten Island, New York, died after four bullets were pumped in the back of his skull. His body drifted ashore on June 1, 1972, some 350 miles away from home in a gully of a remote river in East Barnet, Vermont. His corpse was spotted by a sewage treatment plant worker. Clad only in pants, socks and boots, Palmieris body was in a state of advanced decomposition, according to police records. A medical examiner discovered three wounds to the back and side of his head from a small-caliber gun. It was unclear how long he had been in the cold-running waters. He was buried in an unmarked grave in northern Vermont as authorities struggled to identify his body and find his family. All told, it took 45 years. Meanwhile, Palmieris wife and children were at a loss to explain his sudden disappearance until 2017. Cold case detectives finally tracked his family using an intersection of advances in fingerprint and DNA sciences, and ultimately with the help of Ancestry.com. But authorities only made the connection two years after his wife died in 2015, still believing her husband may have inexplicably abandoned her and their children. Palmieris eight surviving children remain preoccupied with, the circumstances surrounding their Pops death. No arrests were made in connection with the killing. No suspects were ever identified. But the limited information available points to a convicted killer from Western Massachusetts who died in prison on 2015. A father of nine children, a loving husband, a hardworking guy disappears, ends up shot in the head, executed, in a river in Vermont, lies in an unmarked grave for 45 years and nobody knows why? Like he never existed? his son, Vincent Palmieri Jr., 63, said during one of a series of interviews he and his siblings gave to The Republican. The gun that bound them Palmieri went missing on May 1, 1972, according to family members. Dube disappeared on May 8 and DeCaro on May 18 of that year. Their slayings shared the classic markings of vintage gangster hits. That playbook had few variations bullets in the back of the head, bodies dumped in waterways. But the ballistics connecting the men are incontrovertible, according to retired Vermont State Police Capt. J.P. Sinclair. While there have been significant advances in fingerprint and DNA technology, the science of ballistics has remained essentially the same since the 1970s, said Sinclair, who headed up statewide major crimes and cold case units. All weapons leave unique markings on ammunition when they are fired, Sinclair said, much like fingerprints are specific to people. The ballistics tests on the bullets gleaned from all three bodies were conducted by the Connecticut State Police, which had the most sophisticated lab in the region during that era, he said. DeCaro and Palmieris cases remain cold. In fact, Decaros murder investigation scarcely got off the ground, according to accounts from the time and the lack of any open murder case in five municipal, county and state jurisdictions that may apply. A photograph of Francis Soffen and a legal brief for his July 2011 parole hearing.The Republican file The convicted murderer linked to the gun Soffen died behind bars after a string of high-profile but unsuccessful bids for parole. Prior to his incarceration and even after, Soffen also had close ties to high-ranking members of the Italian mafia in Western Massachusetts, according to news clips. During Soffens change-of-plea hearing, Ryan, the district attorney, told a judge Dube had gone before a grand jury to testify against Soffen and his band of bank robbers. His murder briefly stymied investigators until Soffen killed again, Ryan said in court, according to 45-year-old transcripts The Republican received after another public records request. The victim in this particular case, came to me and gave me certain information, as a result of which he went before the Grand Jury and testified. Thereafter he was killed. His body was found in the river, and for some time after that we were in a position where we were making very little, if any, headway, Ryan said, according to the 71-page court record. Dubes disappearance opened the floodgates for more witnesses against Soffen to come forward, apparently fearing for their own lives. One described in gruesome detail the murder of Dube with his own gun, and an almost cavalier effort to dump his body. He pumped two or more bullets into the head of Gary Dube, as a result of which he collapsed and blood ran all over the front seat, Ryan told the court. Stephen Perrot is led into court in March 1972.The Republican file Perrot, of Springfield, was an admitted member of the so-called Soffen crew. They boosted their street credibility with three bank heists in Greater Springfield that yielded $70,000. Perrot was shot six times in the face and head on July 12, 1972, outside the former Howard Johnsons motel and restaurant on East Columbus Avenue in Springfield. He was killed by a .22-caliber pistol. His murder brought the swift arrests of Soffen and an accomplice, Robert Neilson, who stopped at a nearby bar for a drink after the killing. His slaying also served to expose the details of the Dube murder. Uschmann, Soffens accomplice in that killing, came clean to authorities in that case in a bid for self-preservation after Perrot was killed. He met Massachusetts criminal investigators for a clandestine meeting in the very hotel where Perrot met his violent end, according to court records. After testifying against Soffen, then prison time for a subsequent bank robbery in 1974, Uschmann became the superintendent of the Highway Department in the Hampden County hilltown of Montgomery. After his retirement, Uschmann was charged and sentenced to nearly six years in prison in connection with a cocaine trafficking ring. He died in 2011 at his home in West Springfield, according to his obituary, which also noted he was an animal lover and rescued stray cats in his later years. Thanks to Uschmanns detailed testimony and Soffens own temperament, Soffen never made it out of jail alive. But his legacy of violence persists with remaining questions around Palmieris death. Of the three deaths linked to the .38 pistol recovered after Dubes murder, only the investigation into Palmieris death appears to be active. During Soffens change-of-plea hearing on March 6, 1973, Ryan encouraged a judge to accept a pair of pleas to second-degree murder despite the cold-blooded nature of the killings. This would have allowed Soffen to be eligible for parole after serving 15 years behind bars. But Soffen never quite got his arms around contrition, a former parole board member said. The first time around, Frannie said there were accidental shootings, which made absolutely no sense. Then he said it was self-defense, former Parole Board member Michael J. Albano said. So as the years went on, he didnt have any credibility, he wasnt repentant and didnt show any remorse. Some people could lie their way through a hearing. Frannie wasnt even capable of that. Plus, Albano added, Soffen broke the cardinal rule of never angering Ryan by filing some sort of negative motion to assail the longtime district attorney shortly before his first parole hearing in 1988. I can still see Mattys face. He was furious. Thats the way Matty was. He had made a deal, so he showed up personally, Albano said. Soffen often tried to gladhand Albano and other parole board members when his hearings drew near, and claimed to have never taken another life. But I wouldnt be surprised to learn that he had, Albano added. Part I: Vincent Palmieri disappeared from Staten Island in 1972; his death has a mysterious link to Western Mass. ALBANY The state Division of Consumer Protection says there has been a rise in consumer complaints over online shopping during the coronavirus pandemic. The Federal Trade Commission said that it received more complaints over online shopping during April and May than any other months on record. More than half of those who complained said they never received the products they ordered. During the second quarter, the FTC said it received 4,400 complaints from New Yorkers, with 75 percent of those reporting they never received their orders. As New York State continues its data-driven, phased in approach to reopening, many of us continue to stay at home as much as possible. Finding the items we need such as masks, gloves, or hand sanitizers may be difficult at our local stores, making online shopping more appealing, New York's Secretary of State Rossana Rosado said. Online shopping offers convenience and keeps us safe at home during these trying times, but we must be careful to whom we give our hard-earned money, especially online. She suggested that consumers shop with retailers they already know and to beware of third-party vendors. She also said to comparison shop. Ted Potrikus, CEO of the Retail Council of New York State, told the Times Union that the pandemic has "brought out the worst" in online thieves. "The lowest advertised price isnt always the best deal," Potrikus said. Know the store from which youre buying. And dont forget that you can still shop locally online New Yorks Main Street independent stores and national brands alike have great web sites and you can find your favorites at retailnewyork.com." For centuries, sitting, dining, and even sleeping on the floor was common in Japan (and still can be, in certain parts of the country). That may sound uncomfortable to people who arent used to it, but tatami mat floors covered in straw actually make hard surfaces considerably softer than you might think. In many cases, these mats are used as an alternative to furniture, making the layouts of rooms more flexible. The simple wooden Zabuton Sofa from UME takes inspiration from traditional Japanese floor mats. Design studio UME took inspiration from this tradition for Zabuton, a new modular sofa system made primarily of wood. The base of the sofa is simply a wooden board and feet that elevate it a couple inches off the ground. A variety of modules can then be placed on top in all sorts of configurations to produce custom seating, beds, and tables. The result is an experience combining the very intimate, low, simple and un-ostentatious quality of the Japanese traditional items and the very generous, comfortable, social aspect of modern couches, say UME designers Victor Lefebvre and Mei-Lan Tan. A young man enjoys a good book from the comfort of his Zabuton sofa. Developed in collaboration with Takaokaya, a Kyoto-based futon maker, the Zabuton is named for the cushion traditionally used on tatami mats or floors. The sofa can also be fitted with soft cotton pads, bolster pillows, wooden partitions, and futon mattresses handmade by Takaokaya. Successive generations of Takaokaya have continued to nurture Kyoto craftsmanship for over 1,000 years, creating products with soul that are true to the times and yet draw on the traditions unique to the former capital, say the designers. Every step of their process is hands-on. Close-up of the Zabuton's gorgeous wood and futon components. Close-up of the Zabuton's wooden and futon elements, with a handy low-table partition installed in the center. Close-up of the Zabuton's sleek cotton bolster elements. Futon masters in Tokyo massage cotton filling to create an even layer before hand-inserting it into the Zabutons futon and bolster sleeves. Meanwhile, in Oakland, UME handcrafts the wooden elements like the frame, plinth, and partitions of each sofa out of maple. The partitions are contoured so the textile elements can be draped over them comfortably, but they remain beautifully simple and minimalist in silhouette. Story continues The partitions come in two sizes: a full-height backrest and a low table. They bolt onto the frame in various directions and can be easily rearranged whenever you feel like it. You can use them as double or single backrests, seat dividers, armrests, or surfaces for your mugs and phones. The base of the Zabuton is also long enough for an adult to lay down on, so it can function as a bed, a full-sized couch, a back-to-back lounger for two, or anything else you can come up with. Young woman uses her Zabuton sofa as both a cozy single-seater and a decorative table. A young woman enjoys a good book while laying down across the base of her Zabuton sofa. The sofas fabric elements consist of cotton and linen and can be customized for several different colors, patterns, and textures. The result may be far from a Westerners idea of a couch, but its also a great way to shake things up in your living space, and an interesting addition to floor-based furniture free philosophies of living. A statement on UMEs official website explains that UME Studio is a design practice where traditional craft meets contemporary tastes in delicate yet purposeful objects tailored for everyday living. Founded by Victor Lefebvre and Mei-Lan Tan, their studio is the final stop in their design process journey. They begin with months-long travels to artisan workshops in many corners of the globe to render century-old skills and techniques, collaborating with a network of artisans and designers dedicated to their craft. Fun GIF shows all the different ways two people can make use of the Zabuton's innovative design. Keeping these traditions alive is essential to the studio so is updating their forms and bringing these timeless techniques into the now to achieve authentic, distinctive designs. It seems that the communists hold nothing sacred, as China is suspected of hacking the Vatican that shows it is no better than a rogue state. The news about the Vatican hack has shocked the world, as it was not expected to come into the sights of the Chinese Communist Party. It is speculated that the communists are fishing for information. Talks are scheduled between the Catholic Church and China, which is supposed to be about a secret deal concerning the future of the Catholic Church in China. Speculation is that the communists are fishing for an advantage when they meet the representatives of the Vatican. The information was obtained by the Record Future that specializes in detecting cyber threats like the Chinese, reported CNN. When the data was dredged for intrusions, groups like Mustang Panda and RedDelta were mentioned, which is similar to former practices by the Church to send favored envoys of the Pope. Now it is more modern and the communists in Beijing are the threats. Relentless attempts for information drive Beijing to attack institutions. Allegedly, the communist hackers slyly use software that cannot be detected till the last minute, but it may have gotten into the Vatican's networks. According to Recorded Future that released a report last Tuesday, it stated that they're digging into the network to check it. It detected signs that the CCP has been sponsoring cyber-attacks in the official of the Vatican. Looking for information about the renewing of the provisional China-Vatican deal in September 2020. Also read: Japanese Navy Has Less Warships Than Chinese Fleet, But Numbers are Not Everything This high-profile meeting is not for everyone, but China wants the upper-hand in the negotiations. By raiding the Vatican mentioned in the report, it's the communist attempt to control the country's underground Catholic church. Another is that their leaders are not approved by pro-government groups like the state-run China Patriotic Association. China is not keen on the Vatican having supreme control in choosing the bishops, who hold sway over the faithful and churches in China. Beijing is wary over the control the church has on the ant-China protesters in Hong Kong, added the report. When news of the hack broke out, the Vatican kept mum. Chinese diplomats did not answer the questions, with no comment too. Initially, the New York Times put out the story, and one Chinese official called the report untrue with doubtable accusations. China was caught off guard when the story came out, as the U.S. has accused it of hacking. Hacking news of the church is not the only malfeasance conducted by Beijing, the suppression of religious worship, and human rights abuse is terrible. Muslim Uigurs, Buddhists in Tibet, and Christians are examples of the atrocities of Beijing. Recorded Future created a research group that eyes the "threat actors" online, which included the Chinese hackers, and the analyst who did the work. The analyst wanted anonymity because of reprisals from the CCP, which is not happy over the discovery. The anonymous specialist said that China likes using the method of a common spear phishing method. A lure that infects the computer of the recipient, for the attack a letter was from a Vatican official to a leader based in a Hong Kong church that initiates the hacking. This hacking episode is from the RedDelta, which is sponsored by the CCP, noted the report and cyber-attacks began in May. Related article: Loss of Hong Kong's Autonomy Under China's Rule Might Mean Sanctions From US @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Tropical Storm Isaias skirted the east coast of Florida on Sunday but is now on its way to hit North and South Carolina by Monday night. Isaias first made its effects felt in Florida Sunday with forecasters warning it could reach hurricane strength once it makes landfall in the Carolinas. As of 8 p.m. Sunday, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said the tropical storm is about 55 miles off the southeast of Cape Canaveral Florida and is 385 miles south of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The Tropical Storm Isaias has sustained winds that increased slightly to 70 miles per hour, the NPR reported. A hurricane watch was issued by the NHC to the parts of the Carolina coast from north of Charleston, South Carolina to north of Wilmington, North Carolina. The NHC said there is a possibility of hurricane conditions in these areas from Monday night to early Tuesday. East Coast to Get Drenched South Florida saw relatively little damage from the story, but local officials are braced for more serious damage. They are even prepared to work in case of a power outage, said the CNN. Between two to four inches of rain fell in some areas in South Florida and a few hundred people lost power, according to Miami Herald. As of 9 a.m. Sunday, nearly 20,000 customers have been restored power. The NHC warned of heavy rainfall from Isaias that may pose dangerous flash floods in parts of Bahamas. As for the Carolinas, there are also threats of flash and urban floods. The NHC said these floods may be most significant in the east parts of the Carolinas and the mid-Atlantic. Rivers in the Carolinas may also have minor to isolated flooding as Isaias treads the east coast. By the time the storms has reached states further north on Tuesday and Wednesday, there will be about six inches of rain in parts of New York and New England. Want to read more? Check out these stories! Isaias Downgrades to Tropical Storm But Expected to Regain Strength as It Aims for Eastern Florida New CDC Forecast Projects 20,000 Deaths Due to COVID-19 in 21 Days 'Apple Fire,' Thousands Evacuate due to Cherry Valley Wildfire Guests on Walt Disney World's Splash Mountain were reprimanded by a park employee for getting out of a sinking boat because it was a 'safety hazard.' The incident took placed Sunday evening when five amusement park visitors boarded the ride in Orlando, Florida. Footage shared by Skyelar Ingrsoll on Twitter shows a single boat completely submerged in water. On Sunday, a single boat on Splash Mountain log flume became completely submerged in water during an evening ride 'So we got out of our boat because it was sinking while we were stuck there,' Ingrsoll wrote on Twitter. 'And the Disney world employee decided to tell us that we shouldve stayed in the boat but it went under as soon as we all stepped out... nice.' A park employee is heard telling Ingrsoll and the group that they should remain inside the sunken ride. 'Do you see the boat?' the guests exclaim in disbelief. 'I understand that but this is a safety hazard,' the employee responds. Orlando local Skyelar Ingrsoll shared a video of the sunken boat on Splash Mountain to social media, where it has amassed more than 174,000 views A Disney spokesperson confirmed with DailyMail.com that one of the boats took on water and that all five guests got off safely. The ride has been reopened and continued operations on Monday. Ingrsoll told Click Orlando said she and four friends were on the ride when water began to fill the boat. The ride reportedly stopped a few times after the final drop on Splash Mountain and water continued to flow in. Announcements on the intercom instructed passengers to stay seated until a park employee could help them, but Ingrsoll said water was already up to their knees and shoulders. The five friends managed to slip out of the safety restraints and stood on a walkway next to the ride. Ingrsoll said the Disney employee 'kind of yelled at us a little bit,' explaining that the group needed to stay seated because it was a safety hazard. Ingrsoll and her four friends managed to slip out of the boat's safety restraints as water reportedly reached some passengers shoulders Pictured: A log-themed boat featured at Splash Mountain that is working properly 'As soon as we got it out it pretty much completely submerged under water,' she told Click Orlando. 'Were not going to sit in that. ' After the incident, Disney gave the group fast passes and tickets to Animal Kingdom. Ingrsoll, who added that they were soaked up to their waists, said they were also given $150 gift cards. The video Ingrsoll shared to Twitter has amassed more than 174,000 views and a few of her friends also commented on the experience. One person posted a four-second clip of the sunken ride in response to Ingrsoll's original tweet. 'Not to mention homegirl sat there and yelled at us basically for jumping out of a sinking boat,' the person wrote. 'Like what were we supposed to do, sit there [and] be like we good."' Some of the Disney guests shared their experience with the sunken boat on Twitter One woman named Karen Ramirez shared a before and after photo of the ride. The first photo shows her and her boyfriend still dry inside when it began. The second photo showed their boat underwater. Other social media users used the opportunity to crack jokes. One user shared a meme of a person making the thumbs-up signal while submerged in water. A different user shared a photo of the submerged boat and their soaked feet with the caption,'Magic Kingdom Swim Team 2020.' One person decided to up the ante and ask Disney lovers what was worse: a sunken log on Splash Mountain or a sunken boat on Jungle Cruise. 'Choose your fighter: Sunken Jungle Cruise Boat or Sunken Splash Mountain Log,' they wrote. One woman shared a before and after picture of the Splash Mountain ride on Twitter Other social media users decided to make jokes and share memes about the unexpected incident This user asked people on Twitter: 'Choose your fighter: Sunken Jungle Cruise Boat or Sunken Splash Mountain Log' Disney World's four theme parks were reopened in Florida last month, despite COVID-19 spikes in the state. As of Monday afternoon, the Florida's coronavirus dashboard reported 491,884 positive cases in Florida and 7,157 deaths. The vast majority of cases are state residents, but non-Floridians make up 5,500 of those infections. Disney announces it will ditch Splash Mountain's 'racist' 'Song of the South' theme and reimagine the attraction based on 'Princess and the Frog' which features their first black princess By Marlene Lenthang and Ralph Ortega Disney has announced it will ditch Splash Mountain's 'racist' theme based off the controversial 1946 film Song of the South, and will reimagine the attraction based on Princess and the Frog, which featured the studio's first black princess. Splash Mountain came under harsh criticism for being based off the film which includes racist portrayals, and a petition racked up over 21,000 signatures urging Disney to change the theme of the fan-favorite log-flume ride at their parks. Song of the South has been slammed for its problematic portrayal of the post-Civil War South, racist stereotypes and glossing over slavery. While the movie isn't mentioned on the ride, its characters Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox are featured along with the movie's famed song, 'Zip-a-dee-doo-dah'. 'We're thrilled to share Splash Mountain at Disneyland and Walt Disney World will be completely reimagined with a new story inspired by an all-time favorite Disney Animation film, "The Princess & The Frog",' the company announced Thursday. Disney has announced it will ditch Splash Mountain's 'racist' theme based off the 1946 film Song of the South and will reimagine it after Princess and the Frog, the franchise's first black royal Disney shared this artist concept for the new attraction that would keep today's log-flume ride and redesign it with a new set A view of Splash Mountain's current appearance featuring characters from the controversial 1946 film 'Song of the South' above With the new theme, guests will follow Tiana and her alligator friend Louis on a musical adventure through the backdrops of New Orleans, the Louisiana Bayou and Mardi Gras Over 21,000 people signed a petition asking Disney to reimagine the attraction after the 2009 animated film 'The Princess and the Frog', which features the company's first black princess 'It is really exciting to know that Princess Tiana's presence in both Disneyland and Magic Kingdom will finally be fully realized!' said actress Anika Noni Rose, who played Tiana in the 2009 film. With the new theme, guests will follow Tiana and her alligator friend Louis on a musical adventure through the backdrops of New Orleans, the Louisiana Bayou and Mardi Gras. 'I think this is great news, or as Louis would say HALLELUJAH!!' said Michael-Leon Wooley, the actor who was the voice of Louis. Disney says theyve been working on the change since last year and the Princess and the Frog theme will be adopted at Splash Mountain Disneyland in California and Disney World in Florida. Disney World will reopen its doors on July 11 after shuttering in mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic. Fans of Walt Disney World and Disneyland wanted the theme of Splash Mountain (pictured) changed because it relies on characters from the film 'Song of the South', which has been slammed by critics as racist While the move isn't mentioned on the ride, its characters Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox (pictured) are featured along with the movie's famed song, Zip-a-dee-doo-dah Disneyland in California was previously scheduled to reopen on July 17 but the company said Wednesday that date will be postponed due to a delay in the state's reopening protocols. According to Disney, no work has taken place on Splash Mountain at either park during their closures, so visitors will see the original theme and characters when the parks reopen. A date has not been set for the debut of the Splash Mountain ride makeovers. 'Tiana is a modern, courageous, and empowered woman, who pursues her dreams and never loses sight of whats really important. Its a great story with a strong lead character, set against the backdrop of New Orleans and the Louisiana bayou,' Disneyland Resort Public Relations Director Michael Ramirez wrote. 'In 1966, Walt himself opened New Orleans Square when it became the first new "land" added to Disneyland park, so it feels natural to link the story and the incredible music of 'The Princess and the Frog' to our parks,' Ramirez added. The Splash Mountain makeover will be led by Imagineering senior creative producer Charita Carter, who is also working on the new Mickey and Minnie Runaway Railway dark ride set to debut at Disneyland in 2022. 'Like Princess Tiana, I believe that courage and love are the key ingredients for wonderful adventures. I am delighted to be a part of bringing this fun-filled experience to our guests,' Carter said. The Song of the South theme was set up by Imagineer Tony Baxter for Disneyland in 1989, according to Disney's D23 fan club. Song of the South, is based on Joel Chandler Harris Uncle Remus stories, and takes place during the Reconstruction Era that followed the civil war 'Song of the South' stars James Baskett as Uncle Remus (pictured) and won an Oscar for best original song in 1948. The animated character Br'er Rabbit is seen with Uncle Remus, played by James Baskett in a scene from 'Song of the South'. Now, three decades later, Baxter will serve as a creative adviser for planning and designing the Princess and the Frog makeover. 'The attraction will be one to be proud of. I look forward to being a part of a new adventure in Disney magic and fun,' Baxter said. Song of the South has never been available on home video in the US and it is not available on the studio's streaming site Disney Plus. The Frog and the Princess tells the story of Tiana, a young black waitress in New Orleans in 1926 who kisses a frog, who is really a prince who had fallen victim to a voodoo spell, in hopes of making her dream of opening a restaurant come true. Instead Tiana is changed into a frog herself and has to find a way of becoming human again. By comparison, Song of the South, is based on Joel Chandler Harris Uncle Remus stories, and takes place during the Reconstruction Era that followed the civil war. The film stars James Baskett as Uncle Remus and won an Oscar for best original song in 1948. 'There are plenty of examples of pernicious racism in Song of the South', wrote Scott Tobias in a 2019 story in The Guardian's about the film's legacy and how it was never released on video in the US after becoming so controversial. 'The minstrelsy of the animated characters, particularly Brer Fox; the slang in the dialogue; a wandering chorus singing traditional black songs; and, most notoriously of all, a fable where Brer Fox and Brer Bear use a tar baby to fool and ensnare Brer Rabbit,' the writer explains. 'That part didnt make Splash Mountain,' he adds. Br'er Rabbit, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica, also is based on a folklore character known to slaves brought from Africa to the US. CHICAGO, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Allston Holdings LLC, parent of one of the nation's leading proprietary electronic trading firms, announced today that its Board of Managers has appointed Nancy Laethem Stern as Chief Executive Officer. Carlton Jones, who has served as CEO January 2011 through September 2012 and again from February 2015 through the present, will now serve as Executive Vice President, Head of Trading. "We are pleased to appoint Nancy to the role of CEO and have her continue to execute the firm's strategic plan," said Keith Geeslin, Chairman of the Board of Managers. "Nancy has been an exceptional leader for the past seven years and a key contributor to our strategic vision. Her leadership has been integral to ensuring that we not only meet our goals, but exceed them. We are confident that Nancy is the right CEO for Allston's next phase of our growth." Ms. Stern joined Allston in 2013 and most recently served as the firm's Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel. Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Stern served as an attorney and partner at two leading national law firms: Katten Muchin Rosenman and previously Gardner Carton & Douglas, now part of Faegre Baker Daniels, for a combined 17 years. She began her law career as a clerk for the Honorable Robert H. Cleland, U.S. District Judge in the Eastern District of Michigan. Stern earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics, with distinction, and a Juris Doctor degree, both from the University of Michigan. "I am truly excited to work with the entire leadership team and the Board to continue executing on our business plan and ensure Allston realizes its full potential. We remain committed to attracting and assembling the industry's best and brightest trading, analytical and technology professionals," Ms. Stern said. "I am especially pleased to have Carlton lead our trading team and am sure the entire firm will continue to benefit from his creativity, experience, and vision." Mr. Jones joined Allston in 2003 as a trader specializing in fixed income, foreign exchange, equity index and European products. In 2005, he was named Desk Manager for the Fixed Income desk and subsequently Group Manager for equity and equity index products as well. In 2008, Mr. Jones was named head of the firm's London office, and later that year assumed the role of Head of Trading. He has served as CEO two separate times, most recently February 2015 through the present. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics from Morehouse College in Atlanta. "I am proud that we have built one of the strongest and most intelligent firms in the industry and am confident that Nancy is the right person to lead us during this next phase of the firm's growth," Mr. Jones said. "I am thrilled to be leading one of the most talented trading teams in the world and excited about what we will be able to accomplish together." Phil Pinc will serve as General Counsel and Secretary. Mr. Pinc previously served as Senior Counsel. Prior to joining Allston, Mr. Pinc served as General Counsel, Vice President and Secretary for National Stock Exchange, Inc. Previously, Mr. Pinc served as an attorney for the law firms Katten Muchin Rosenman and Winston & Strawn. He also served as an equity options pit trader at CBOE and a treasury spread trader. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Carleton College and a Juris Doctor degree from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis. About Allston Headquartered in Chicago, Allston Holdings is parent to Allston Trading, one of the nation's leading proprietary electronic trading firms. Allston has offices in New York, Houston, and London and 90 employees globally. For more information, please visit www.allstontrading.com. SOURCE Allston Holdings Related Links http://www.allstontrading.com TDT | Manama Bahrain has affirmed its solidarity with the UAE regarding Turkish intervention in the internal affairs of Arab countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday in a statement. Bahrain denounces the hostile declarations of Turkish defence minister Hulusi Akar regarding the UAE, considering them an unacceptable provocation that contradicts diplomatic norms, and a reprehensible threat to a brotherly Arab country that is known for its constructive role in the international community. The Foreign Ministry added that Turkish interference contradicts the principles of the UN Charter and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and it represents a threat to Arab national security and regional peace, the Foreign Ministry said. Meanwhile, the Shura Councils Foreign Affairs, Defence and National Security Committee voiced its strong condemnation and denouncement of the hostile statements made by Turkeys defence minister. The committee, chaired by Dr Abdulaziz bin Abdulla Al Ajman, stressed that the Turkish officials statements are rejected and provocative, as they contravene diplomatic principles and norms. The committee considered the Turkish ministers statements an assault against a brotherly country that is keen on supporting Arab nations, as well as assisting the international community to assume its effective role in spreading peace and stability in all countries of the world. The panel reiterated Bahrains full solidarity with the UAE and backing of the measures it takes to safeguard its security and sovereignty. The Shura Council committee reiterated that the Turkish defence ministers statements, and his countrys constant interference in the internal affairs of Arab countries, breach the principles of charters of the UN and the OIC, and pose a threat to Arab security and efforts to safeguard peace in the region. The Council of Representatives also strongly condemned and denounced the Turkish defence ministers hostile statements. The councils Foreign Affairs, Defence and National Security Committee hailed the UAEs unwavering stances in defending pan-Arab security as well as its pivotal and constructive international role and efforts to promote humanitarian work and global peace. Any threat to the security of the UAE is a threat to Arab countries and regional peace, the committee said, reiterating Bahrains solidarity and support with the UAE against the Turkish interference. It called upon Arab parliaments to voice support for the UAE, condemn the Turkish ministers statements as well as the Turkish inference in the internal affairs of Arab countries. The committee stressed the importance of building interstate relations through the language of sound diplomacy, rather than threats and blatant interference so as to maintain regional security and stability The following are arrests the Danbury Police Department reported to have made last week: A 41-year-old Orchard Street man was charged with second-degree strangulation, second-degree unlawful restraint, threatening, third-degree assault and disorderly conduct. July 27 A 20-year-old Filmore Avenue woman was charged with third-degree assault, third-degree criminal mischief and disorderly conduct. July 28 A 31-year-old Golden Hill Lane man was charged with stop sign violation, operating a motor vehicle in violation of license classification and second-degree failure to appear. A 32-year-old Mourning Place man was charged with first-degree criminal trespass. July 29 A 39-year-old man from North Grosvenordale in Thompson was charged with murder, first-degree assault, unlawful discharge of a firearm, criminal possession of a firearm, carrying a pistol without a permit and breach of peace. Read more here. A 22-year-old William Street man was charged with violation of probation/conditional discharge and second-degree failure to appear. A 24-year-old Padanaram Avenue man was charged with violation of probation/conditional discharge. A 36-year-old man from Bethel was charged with sixth-degree larceny. July 30 A 27-year-old Kohanza Street man was charged with third-degree criminal mischief and disorderly conduct. A 52-year-old Spring Street man was charged with disorderly conduct, criminal possession of a firearm, ammunition or electronic defense weapon and violating a protective order. July 31 A 23-year-old Fairview Drive woman was charged with third-degree assault and breach of peace. A 24-year-old Foster Street man was charged with third-degree criminal mischief interfering with an officer and breach of peace. A 28-year-old Deer Hill Avenue man was charged with third-degree assault and disorderly conduct. An 18-year-old Concord Street woman was charged with risk of injury to child, operating an unregistered motor vehicle, improper use of marker, license or registration, failure to meet minimum insurance coverage requirements, stop sign violation, operating a motor vehicle in violation of license classification. Aug. 1 A 31-year-old Abbott Avenue woman was charged with third-degree assault, disorderly conduct and third-degree criminal mischief. A 31-year-old man from Bronx, N.Y., was charged with first-degree forgery. A 64-year-old Abbott Avenue woman was charged with third-degree criminal mischief and disorderly conduct. A 37-year-old man from Waterbury was charged with unsafe backing and operating a motor vehicle with a suspended, revoked or refused license or registration. A 36-year-old Fairfield Avenue man was charged with second-degree strangulation, third-degree assault and disorderly conduct. A 33-year-old Peace Street man was charged with risk of injury to child, third-degree criminal mischief, third-degree assault and disorderly conduct. A 51-year-old woman from Hartford was charged with third-degree assault and breach of peace. A 48-year-old Fairview Drive woman was charged with third-degree assault and breach of peace. As of January 2019, Hearst Connecticut Media does not include names in online police blotters. A security personnel (C) checks the body temperature of a woman (C-L) as she enters a market among a crowd of people as a preventive measure against the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus in Chennai on July 29, 2020. (Arun Sankar/AFP via Getty Images) Virus Surges in India, Philippines; Melbourne Under Curfew NEW DELHISurges of new coronavirus cases continued on Aug. 2 in India and the Philippines, which recorded another daily high to surpass 100,000 total infections, as officials across the globe considered stricter measures to stymie the spread of the pandemic. A curfew was imposed in Australias second-largest city, Melbourne, following a spike in infections. Countries including the United States, India, and South Africa are struggling to rein in their first wave of infections, while South Korea and others where the disease abated try to avert a second wave as curbs on travel and trade ease. Governments worldwide have reported 684,075 deaths and 17.8 million cases, according to data gathered by Johns Hopkins University. Indias 54,735 new cases were down from the previous days record of 57,118, but raised the total to 1.75 million. The month of July accounted for more than 1.1 million of those cases. The major cities of New Delhi and Mumbai might have passed their peaks, a government expert, Randeep Guleria, said. Subways, cinemas and other public facilities are closed until Aug. 31. The Philippines reported 5,032 new cases, raising its total to 103,185, with 2,059 deaths. On Aug. 1, leaders of Philippine medical organizations appealed to President Rodrigo Duterte to reimpose a lockdown on the capital, Manila. They said the health system was in danger as personnel fall ill or quit due to fear or fatigue. In Japan, the government reported 1,540 new cases, close to July 31s record of 1,579. The spike in infections, most of them in their 20s and 30s, prompted warnings that young people were letting their guard down. Gov. Yuriko Koike of Tokyo, which has about one-third of the new infections, says she might declare an emergency to contain the outbreak. In Florida, authorities were trying to prepare storm shelters while enforcing social distancing as Tropical Storm Isaias churned toward the heavily populated state. Florida reported 179 deaths on Aug. 1, raising its total to more than 7,000. The governor warned residents to expect power outages and said they should have a weeks supply of water and food. White House coronavirus task force leader Dr. Deborah Birx said Aug. 2 that the virus had entered a new phase in the U.S. as it has rapidly spread in rural and urban America. What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread, Birx told CNNs State of the Union as she urged Americans to wear face masks and observe social distancing measures. In Australia, Premier Daniel Andrews of the southern state of Victoria announced an 8 p.m.-to-5 a.m. curfew on Melbourne, a city of 5 million people. Schools statewide are to return to home-based teaching and daycare centers were closed. Andrews said there were seven deaths and 671 new cases since Aug. 1. If we dont make these changes, were not going to get through this, Andrews said. Also on Aug. 2, South Korea reported more infections but spikes appeared to be tailing off. Hong Kong reported 125 new infections as authorities tried to find the source of its latest outbreak. South Korea reported 30 new cases, raising its total to 14,366 with 301 deaths, but said only eight were acquired in the country. The government warned earlier case numbers would rise as South Koreans came home from the Middle East and other places with outbreaks. Authorities say cases from abroad are less threatening because arrivals are quarantined for two weeks. On Aug. 1, the leader of a secretive Korean church was arrested in an investigation into whether the group hampered the anti-virus response after thousands of worshippers were infected in February and March. On Aug. 1, South Africa reported 10,107 new cases, raising its total to 503,290. In Europe, the number of new cases reported in Italy dipped below 300 for the first time. An employee in the Austrian chancellery tested positive for the virus but didnt work directly with Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, the Austrian Press Agency reported. Berlin Protests Thousands protested Germanys coronavirus restrictions Aug. 1 in a Berlin demonstration marking what organizers called the end of the pandemica declaration that comes just as authorities are voicing increasing concerns about an uptick in new infections. With few masks insight, a dense crowd marched through downtown Berlin from the Brandenburg Gate. Protesters who came from across the country held up homemade signs with slogans like Corona, false alarm, We are being forced to wear a muzzle, Natural defense instead of vaccination and We are the second wave. They chanted, Were here and were loud, because we are being robbed of our freedom! Police used bullhorns to chide participants to adhere to social distancing rules and to wear masks, apparently with little success. They tweeted that they drew up a criminal complaint against the rallys organizer for failing to enforce hygiene rules, then said shortly afterward that the organizer had ended the march. Police estimated about 17,000 people turned out. The demonstrators were kept apart from counterprotesters, some of whom chanted Nazis out! Protesters continued to a subsequent rally on a boulevard running through the citys Tiergarten park, which police estimated drew 20,000 people. Police declared that event over as organizers again failed to get demonstrators to wear masks or keep their distance. Germanys government has been praised worldwide for its management of the pandemic. The countrys death tolljust over 9,150 people out of more than 210,670 confirmed virus cases as of Aug. 1. The German government has been easing lockdown measures since late April but social distancing rules remain, as does a requirement to wear masks on public transit and in shops. Officials have been warning against complacency as the number of new COVID-19 cases has crept up recently. Amid concerns about residents bringing home infections from summer trips abroad, officials introduced free tests for people entering the country. Germanys national disease control center registered 955 new cases July 31, a high figure by recent standards. By Ashok Sharma & Joe McDonald BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 3 By Azer Ahmadbayli - Trend: The recent events which took place on July 12-16 on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border has revealed another flaw in Armenia's immoral and destructive policy. It is about the information war that Armenia has been waging against Azerbaijan for the last thirty years. Russia is the most important mediator in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and keeping the public opinion of this country in the orbit of its influence has always been one of the priorities of Armenian politics. To this end, Yerevan has an army of politicians and media in the service, which constantly expresses the same position in the Russian information space around the events of long-lasting Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, that is pro-Armenian one. However, recently something has gone wrong in the fine-tuned propagandist machine. It seems that Yerevan has faced problems in controlling Russian public opinion. The Armenian media outlets state: "The latest escalation on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border revealed the wormy insides of those whom we, Armenians, are accustomed to considering friends. Its about those Russian political scientists, MPs, journalists and other brethren whom for years we were bringing to Armenia and "Artsakh" [Nagorno-Karabakh], were wining and dining them, and, when seeing off, were putting money in their pockets for trouble, so to speak. For many years they were fattening at our expense, building their own careers, acquiring real estate; and we thought it would always be that way. But alas." Yerevan is perplexed how their "devoted friends" Zatulin [Russian MP], Soloviev [Russian TV journalist] and others could have doubted the veracity of the Armenian version of the beginning of the recent escalation on the border, openly hinting that it was Armenia that initiated the clash. It turned out that the whole thing is about money, or rather, its absence, which the Yerevan media outlets for the first time openly reported about. The message reads: "The new government, which came to power on the wave of the democratic revolution, rightly considered that it is not worth paying for friendship. If a person shares our pain and aspirations, understands the essence of the conflict, who is the victim, and who is the aggressor, if it comes from the heart, then why pay for it?" To understand the motives of Armenia's "friends", Armenian politicians only need to look at themselves in the mirror. Should they not know how to buy and sell friendships?! As known, mercenaries fight as long as they are paid. If Armenia wants Soloviev, Zatulin and other mercenaries in the service of Yerevan to continue fooling the average Russian by telling tales about "good Armenians" and "bad Azerbaijanis", it will have to continue paying for their services. It remains to decide at whose expense they will be paid - at the expense of the Armenian diaspora in Russia, or at the expense of Armenian citizens, a third part of whom live below the poverty level? People are struggling; the poorest most of all. But it could have been far worse. This is as it should be. Government called on the people, essentially, to cease producing goods and services, and so it was up to government to shield them from financial disaster in effect, to take individual and small business debt onto the national balance sheet. YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. The Latvian major internet portal DELFI has published the article by Armenian Ambassador to Latvia Tigran Mkrtchyan titled Armenia and Armenians worldwide will not tolerate another genocide! Below is the English-version of the article. Victim blaming, or placing the responsibility of a crime upon its victim, is a common practice. It is essential to bullying and oppression. It has been used on a broad international scale. During the Holocaust, there were Nazis who used all possible means to shift the blame for the horrible genocide on the Jews themselves. Holocaust deniers have been known to do the same thing. Victim blaming was widely used by the Young Turks as they planned and executed the Armenian genocide. Victim blaming is still being used, today and now! On July 12, Azerbaijan initiated an act of aggression against the sovereign territory of Armenia in the Tavush region, 150 km away from Nagorno-Karabakh. Its aim was to improve the Azerbaijani military positions, at the expense of the Armenian peoples, in those places where aggression was least expected. Azerbaijans armed forces also targeted the villages of Movses, Aygepar, Chinari, and Nerkin Karmiraghbyur in the Tavush region of Armenia with artillery fire and drones, causing significant damage to both the civilian infrastructure and residential houses. There is evidence that Azerbaijans armed forces deployed artillery and armored vehicles in the courtyards and between residential houses in the village of Aghdam, which faces Armenias Chinari village. It is from these positions that the Azeris targeted Armenian villages, in order to make it look like Armenia retaliated against Azerbaijani civilian targets. Armenian Armed Forces did what any other state must do in similar situations: protect the sovereign territory of the homeland. And they did that successfully, once again confirming that money cannot always and everywhere buy an effective army, an axiom which the greatest strategic thinker of modern times Carl von Clausewitz would have advised at the beginning of 19th century. Soon after the start of this failed aggression on Armenia, and the complete failure to improve Azerbaijans military positions, the President of that country - Ilham Aliyev became despondent. Shortly after appointing the new Foreign Minister, Mr. Jeyhun Bayramov, the Azerbaijani President made a startling statement: () some diplomats have betrayed the state, committed treason and do not conceal it. They are controlled by the secret services of the countries they live in. We have sufficient information. Apparently, this mood swing in Baku has made some of its diplomats abroad very nervous and has even led them to become provocative. Provocations prove their patriotism to their capital, where victim-blaming has long been the main feature of their Armenian narrative. In some capitals, including Riga, and in clear breach of local laws, anti-Armenian rallies laden with provocative statements were organized. This aggressive behavior led to clashes between Azerbaijani and Armenian communities in Moscow, Brussels, Warsaw, London, in various parts of the USA and other places. They also led to the desecration and intentional damage of Armenian property in the diaspora. Three decades of Azerbaijans dehumanizing Armenians and Armenia within its borders have resulted in irrational hatred, which is now being exported abroad and is raising eyebrows everywhere. The July 14 pro-war rally in Baku, with its chants of death to Armenians, were sadly reminiscent of the Sumgait 1988 and Baku 1990 brutal pogroms of Armenians. When the English thinker Thomas Hobbes articulated his theory, that mankind is in a state of war of all against all, he was describing human life as it existed before civil society. When the German political theorist Carl Schmitt claimed that the willingness to kill others for the simple reason that they are members of a hostile group is the ultimate degree of dissociation in politics, he knew firsthand what he was talking about. He had lived through World War I. If we want to search for the roots of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, we must emphasize that this region has never been a part of the Republic of Azerbaijan. It was not within Azerbaijan when the latter declared its independence in 1991. Nagorno-Karabakh was not a part of Azerbaijan when it was first created in 1918. How is that possible, you may wonder? The answer is quite simple. After the Sovietization of the region in 1920, Nagorno-Karabakh, against the will of its people, was included within the borders of Bolshevik Azerbaijan as an autonomous region, in accordance with the 1921 decision of the Caucasian Bureau of the Communist Party of Russia, led by Joseph Stalin. What is more, neither the above-said Bureau nor Stalin had the legal authority to make such a decision. Therefore, it is closest to the fact to claim that for 70 years the region of Karabakh was annexed to Soviet Azerbaijan. It is worth mentioning that in 1988, October during the 1st congress of the Latvian Popular Front, eminent Armenian writer Silva Kaputikyan said that the goal of the Armenian popular movement is to free Karabakh of its administrative subordination to Azerbaijan. The congress delegates expressed their support by unanimous applause (http://85.254.250.16/raksti/724770). Now I would like to draw the readers attention to a few misleading points raised and used by Azerbaijan. The representatives of Azerbaijan are repeating ad nauseam that it was Armenia that initiated the attacks in order to threaten the normal functioning of energy and transport lines, as Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline etc. hinting that Armenia is threatening Europes energy independence. I know that readers of such claims do not need to be informed about RMA (revolution in military affairs): the changes in the nature of warfare brought about by the innovative application of new technologies. Nor do they need to be reminded that in todays world, an advanced military does not need to physically see a target in order to destroy it. Armenia, Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and Azerbaijan each have the capacity to target key infrastructures in each others territory. None of these countries needs to invade its neighbor or use ground troops in order to destroy a specific target. What we must focus on is the difference between capacities and goals. Armenias main task is to ensure our sovereignty, our borders, the security of our country and people, and to promote global security. Armenian officials do not think let alone speak about attacking civilian infrastructures inside Azerbaijan. Yet quite recently, the world was shocked to learn that the Defense Ministry of Azerbaijan officially did not rule out the possibility that his country would launch a missile attack on the Metsamor nuclear power plant in Armenia. This unprecedented statement clearly shows genocidal intent and state-sponsored nuclear terrorism. The President of Azerbaijan is preaching that Armenian leadership wishes by this conflict to distract attention from internal problems. Well, I think that we should not forget that one of the most important differences between Armenia and Azerbaijan is that the former is building a democratic state, while the latter is further falling into authoritarianism. The opposition forces in Armenia during the Azerbaijani aggression stood behind the Armenian Army, which was defending our country. In Azerbaijan, however, the clashes of protesters with the police were used as another pretext to silence the internal enemy. The Washington Posts conclusion was to the point in this regard. "Mr. Aliyevs use of the iron fist to destroy his critics is the opposite of democracy and why everyone should worry about this intemperate tyrant." (https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/azerbaijans-president-aims-to-finish-off-the-political-opposition/2020/07/29/db4ca91c-d0f0-11ea-8c55-61e7fa5e82ab_story.html?) Here again we come to the most important point. What can be done from now on to de-escalate the situation with effective short-term results? The OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs (the USA, Russia, and France) have offered to establish an international mechanism of reliable ceasefire monitoring not only on the Line of Contact between Azerbaijan and the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic but also between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The mediators noted that without such a mechanism, the sides will continue to blame each other for initiating deadly attacks on the Line of Contact and Armenia-Azerbaijan border (https://www.osce.org/mg/185746). The Armenian sides have accepted this offer and continue to express support for its urgent introduction. Moreover, since the establishment of the ceasefire on July 16, the Azerbaijanis have on a number of cases violated the arrangements on cessation of hostilities. And, as they did in the 1990s, they are prone to attack and then blame the other side. Secondly, Armenia has welcomed and reiterated its support for the UN General Secretarys appeal for the establishment of a global ceasefire. Azerbaijan is silent on this account too. Third, the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs have urged and continue to urge the sides to refrain from inflammatory rhetoric. Unfortunately, we have witnessed a further exacerbation of Armenophobia in Azerbaijan and reckless hate speech. This must stop immediately! It is necessary for the authorities of Azerbaijan to publicly renounce the use (and threats of use) of force. Azerbaijani leadership should recognize that there is no alternative to peace talks. Fourth, the entire international society needs to unwaveringly support the de-escalation of the situation, urge all sides to refrain from any action that might further escalate the situation. In this regard, Azerbaijans senior ally Turkey has been anything but constructive. An unprecedented level of threats against Armenia have been part of the Turkish reaction. Evidence of this are the joint Turkish-Azerbaijani military drills on July 29 to August. 5, which include mortars, armed vehicles, and cannons striking simulated targets as well as helicopters and warplanes in Baku, Nakhijevan, Ganja, Kurdamir, and Yevlakh (i.e. on the western and eastern borders of Armenia and not far from Nagorno-Karabakh). Clearly, these are not exercises of a defensive nature. The expanded geography of aggression against Armenia has been Azerbaijani strategy from day one of the conflict of Nagorno-Karabakh, when in addition to the war against Artsakh, Azerbaijan attacked Armenian borders from all its borders and imposed blockade together with Turkey, which continues to this very day. The language of threats needs to stop! Armenia and Armenians worldwide will not tolerate another genocide!" The French drugmaker Sanofi said on July 31 that it had secured an agreement of up to $2.1 billion to supply the US federal government with 100 million doses of its experimental coronavirus vaccine, the largest such deal announced to date. The arrangement brings the Trump administrations investment in coronavirus vaccine projects to more than $8 billion. This multi-agency effort, known as Operation Warp Speed, is placing bets on multiple vaccines and is paying companies to manufacture millions of doses before clinical trials have been completed. The global need for a vaccine to help prevent COVID-19 is massive, and no single vaccine or company will be able to meet the global demand alone, Thomas Triomphe, Executive Vice President and Global Head of Sanofi Pasteur, the companys vaccine division, said in a statement. Also on July 31, the European Union said it was working on a deal with Sanofi to buy up to 300 million doses of potential vaccines to distribute to citizens in its 27 member countries. The announcements came two days after a deal with the British government to supply up to 60 million doses of the vaccine. Financial details of those deals were not disclosed. Under the US deal, Sanofi and its partner, the British pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline, will receive federal funding to pay for clinical trials as well as for manufacturing the vaccine. Sanofi said the deal also includes an option for the company to supply an additional 500 million doses. The company expects to begin clinical trials to test for safety in September, followed by late-stage efficacy trials before the end of this year. Sanofi said it could apply for regulatory approval in the first half of next year. 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 If the vaccine is successful, it would be made available to Americans at no cost, other than what providers charge to administer it, the federal government said in a statement. The head of Operation Warp Speed, Moncef Slaoui, is a former GSK executive who as of May held just under $10 million in GSK stock. Slaouis financial ties to some of the companies that are pursuing coronavirus vaccines have raised questions about conflicts of interest. Slaoui is not a federal employee, instead working under a $1 contract that exempts him from federal rules that would require him to list his outside positions, stock holdings and other potential conflicts. Slaoui said in an interview in May that he was determined to avoid any conflicts of interest, but that his GSK stock represented his retirement from 29 years at the company, and that he had told federal officials he would not take the job if he had to sell it. Sanofi and GSK did not say how much of the federal money would go to each company only that Sanofi would receive the most. GSK did not comment on whether Slaoui had recused himself from negotiations over the deal. A senior administration official said that all agreements were negotiated by federal acquisition professionals and that Slaoui did not play a role in the negotiations. A handful of other vaccine candidates are already in late-stage clinical trials, and some, such as AstraZeneca and Moderna, have said a vaccine could be ready before the end of this year. Sanofis coronavirus vaccine relies on a protein-based technology that the company already uses to produce an influenza vaccine. It is similar to a technique used by another company, Novavax, that will receive up to $1.6 billion from the Defence Department and the Department of Health and Human Services to develop its experimental vaccine. GSK is supplying the Sanofi vaccine with an adjuvant, an ingredient used in many vaccines that boosts the immune response. Sanofi is also developing a separate vaccine in partnership with Translate Bio that uses so-called messenger RNA to provoke an immune response in the body. That vaccine is expected to enter clinical trials in the fall. As a French company, Sanofi has had to carefully navigate the geopolitics of vaccine development. In May, the companys Chief Executive, Paul Hudson, faced backlash after he said the United States would get the largest number of doses because they were investing the most. The remarks caused the company to backpedal, explaining that We have always been committed in these unprecedented circumstances to make our vaccine accessible to everyone. c.2020 The New York Times Company A dog groomer let out a loud yell and burst into tears of joy when her coworker surprised her with a new puppy after her last dog was hit by a car. Vikki Sapp's previous dog, Diego, died after he escaped from her yard in February and was sadly run over. The 51-year-old had been mourning the loss of her dog for months before her coworker Heather Hodges, 26, decided to bring some canine joy into her life at their dog salon in Waco, Texas. Vikki Sapp, 51, yelled as she discovered the puppy she had been grooming at a dog salon in Waco, Texas, was a gift for her In the heartwarming video, Ms Sapp's colleagues present her with a take-home bag of treats while she is grooming a little white dog and confused she says: 'I don't have a dog yet?' Suddenly she figures out their plan and points at the fluffy animal and shouts 'NO' with her hands over her mouth in shock. She begins to sob and the sweet puppy wags its tail and looks at her concerned before jumping into her arms. Ms Hodges had known for around four years that Ms Sapp liked Maltese dogs, Shih Tzus and Yorkies, and on May 19 received a call from a friend to ask if anyone was looking to adopt a dog. Thinking of her friend, she decided to give the beautiful puppy to Ms Sapp and the following morning Heather's friend dropped the pooch off at the salon. Ms Sapp was told the owner had said to give the dog whatever fur trim she felt would make it look pretty and for hours she talked about how beautiful the dog looked and how she wanted to take her home. The dog lover has since named the dog Layla, and after Ms Hodges shared the video online, the pair received an outpouring of support. She said: 'I was anxious, nervous, excited - I didn't know what to do with myself there were so many times I wanted to run in there to tell her. The sweet white puppy, which was organised as a gift by Heather Hodges, 26, looks at Ms Sapp concerned before jumping into her arms 'I'm not an openly emotional person so the second she realized what was going on I erupted with tears. 'My heart was singing with joy because I finally got to do something for someone that is so special to us. 'I wanted people to see that not all is bad and that anyone can bring joy to someone's life. 'While the message was great and everything went so smoothly, we do not encourage people to use animals as gifts. 'It is a financial and personal decision that people need to make on their own.' Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-02 23:36:29|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A staff member provides guidance to a man at a hospital in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 21, 2020. (Xinhua/Song Yanhua) URUMQI, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- All confirmed, suspected and asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 enjoy free treatment in northwest China's Urumqi as the city is battling a resurgence of the virus, said a municipal healthcare official on Sunday. The move is aimed at ensuring that COVID-19 patients and asymptomatic carriers receive timely treatment without worrying about the fees, said He Xinguo, Party chief of the Urumqi healthcare security bureau. On Saturday, Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, reported 29 new confirmed cases and nine asymptomatic cases of COVID-19. The total number of new confirmed and asymptomatic cases in Urumqi dropped for the third consecutive day on Saturday, indicating the prevention and control measures were taking effect, said Sui Rong, a senior municipal official. By Saturday, Xinjiang had 569 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 112 asymptomatic cases, with most of them in Urumqi. Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's black Labrador's name has finally been revealed - and it was inspired by the couple's first trip together to Africa. According to People, the bombshell biography Finding Freedom, written by royal journalists Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, confirmed the pup's name was Pula. And it seems the name has special meaning for the Duke, 35, and Duchess of Sussex, 38, because Pula is the official currency of Botswana - which is the first trip the royal pair went on after they started dating four years ago. After celebrating Meghan's 36th birthday in Botswana, the couple returned a year later to work with wildlife conservation initiative, Elephants Without Borders. The word also means 'rain' in Setswana and because rain is scarce in Botswana's desert climate, it's believed to be very valuable, the publication reported. Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's black Labrador is called 'Pula,' People has reported. Pictured, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and Archie as they meet Archbishop Desmond Tutu in Cape Town, South Africa 25 September 2019 The name is believed to have been by the couple's first trip together to Africa. Pictured, the Duke and duchess of Sussex at District 6 museum, Cape Town, South Africa Shortly after tying the knot in May 2018, the couple welcomed a black Labrador rescue into their home - but they never revealed its name and so the special meaning was unknown, until now. Prince Harry previously confirmed that the couple's 2016 trip to Botswana was an important milestone in their relationship. In their 2018 engagement interview, the royal recalled how he 'convinced' Meghan to fly out there to join him on a trip and said they spent a romantic five days camping out under the stars. 'It was I think about three, maybe four weeks [after their first date] that I managed to persuade her to come and join me in Botswana,' he said at the time. 'And we, we camped out with each other under the stars, we spent, she came and joined me for five days out there, which was absolutely fantastic.' And to mark Prince Harry's birthday last September, Meghan reportedly recreated their romantic Botswana trip 'under the stars' at home. Powerful studio bosses look at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as 'red-carpet fodder, not as a bankable item,' royal biographer Christopher Wilson has claimed. Pictured, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attend the Commonwealth Day Service 2020 on March 9, 2020 in London Prince Harry and Meghan Markle leaving St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle after their wedding on 19 May 2018 'Meghan recreated their Botswana camping adventures in their backyard. It's a place that means so much to themand to Harry in particularso Meghan wanted to bring that happy place to him on his day so she set up a tent, got sleeping bags, cooked dinner, and recreated Botswana where they fell in love,' a source previously told People. The country has a special significance for Prince Harry, who first visited Botswana shortly after his mother Princess Diana's death, when he travelled there with his brother and father. Harry fell in love with the country on that first trip and has since returned regularly, getting increasingly involved with wildlife conservation efforts in Botswana. When it came to finding the perfect engagement ring for Meghan, Harry even chose to source a diamond from Botswana - which he has previously referred to as his 'second home'. The stone was paired with two diamonds from a tiara that belonged to Princess Diana. Meghan, who became patron of the animal welfare organization Mayhew in January 2019, previously adopted pup, Bogart, as well as her beagle, Guy. By Trend Export of wood and furniture from Turkey to Azerbaijan increased by 18.24 percent from January through May 2020 compared to the same period of 2019, having exceeded $54.4 million, Turkey's Trade Ministry told Trend. In May 2020, export of wood and furniture from Turkey to Azerbaijan increased by 29.8 percent compared to the month of 2019, surpassing $15.9 million. In the first 5 months of 2020, the export of wood and furniture from Turkey to world markets dropped by 10.8 percent over the year, making up $2 billion. Meanwhile, Turkeys wood and furniture export amounted to 3.3 percent of the countrys total export. Turkey exported over $367.3 million worth of wood and furniture to international markets in May 2020, which is 30.2 percent less compared to May 2019. Turkeys wood and furniture export for May 2020 made up 3.7 percent of the countrys total export. From May 2019 through May 2020, Turkey exported wood and furniture abroad in the amount of over $5.2 billion. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Stepping up an attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh has claimed that the foundation ceremony of Ram temple in Ayodhya on August 5 is being organised keeping the convenience of the Prime Minister in mind. Singh, who is also a Rajya Sabha MP, further said that the beliefs of Sanatan Dharma and religious sentiments of people are being ignored by holding such an event at an inauspicious timing. Referring to Swami Swaroopanandji Maharaj, he tweeted in Hindi, "The foundation ceremony of Ram temple in Ayodhya is being organised at an inauspicious time. Swami Swaroopanandji Maharaj, the most senior Shankaracharya of Dwarka and Joshimath of our Hindu religion, has very clearly alerted about this. !! ? digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) August 3, 2020 Linking inauspicious timing with the rising cases of coronavirus across the country, he further said, It is the result of ignoring the beliefs of Hinduism that all the priests of Ram temple have tested Covid-19 positive. Not just this, Kamala Rani Varun, the UP Minister, has died due to coronavirus. The Uttar Pradesh BJP chief has also tested Covid-19 positive. Union Home Minister Amit Shah is also hospitalised after being infected. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan and State President are also Covid-19 positive. Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has also been infected. Moreover, the Congress leader has appealed Prime Minister Modi to postpone the foundation ceremony scheduled for August 5 to a new date keeping the Mahurrat (auspicious timing) in mind. The centre of faith for crores of Hindus is Lord Ram and one should not play with such beliefs. I again request Modi ji to postpone the inauspicious Mahurrat of August 5. After hundreds of years of struggle, the time of the construction of Lord Ram temple has come. Kindly stop it from getting disturbed, he tweeted in Hindi. In another tweet, Singh asked why Prime Minister Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were not quarantined at a time when their colleagues have tested positive for coronavirus. Should the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and the Prime Minister of India not be quarantined in these circumstances? Is the obligation to go to the quarantine only for the general public? Not for the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister? Quarantine deadline is 14 days. Modi ji, by doing the foundation stone laying ceremony at an inauspicious time, how many more people do you want to send to hospital? Yogi ji should explain to Modi ji. Why are all the limitations of Sanatan Dharma being broken while you are there? And what are your compulsions that you are letting all this happen? Meanwhile, Prime Minister Modi is expected to reach Ayodhya at around 11 a.m. on August 5 and he is likely to stay there for around three hours. Modi will first offer prayers at Hanuman Garhi and then visit the pre-fabricated temple at Manas Bhawan where the idol of Lord Ram is presently kept. He will then proceed to the Ram Janmabhoomi for the 'bhumi pujan'. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had also appealed to hold an Akhand Ramayana Path on August 4 and 5, in Mathura, Kashi, Chitrakoot, Prayagraj Naimisharanya and Gorakhpur. The Prime Minister will be laying the stone 32 seconds after 12:15:15 am on August 5, which has been decided as an auspicious time. The first brick to be laid by him will reportedly be made of silver, weighing around 35-40 kgs, which holds significance in astrology. It will apparently eradicate the effects of 'Rahu and Ketu'. Stratovolcano 5230 m (17,159 ft)Ecuador, -2S / -78.34W(4 sur 5)1934-ongoing (as of 2020), 1728-1916, 1628 (first observation) - ?Explosive. In historic time: frequent, intermittent strombolian activity If you havn't done it yet,to get one of the fastest volcano news online: : Places libres / : Depart garanti / : Quelques places disponibles / : Groupe ferme Depuis 2005, VolcanoDiscovery propose des voyages en petits groupes, des randonnees et du trekking, ainsi que des expeditions pour voir des volcans actuellement en activite, des voyages photographiques dans de nombreuses regions d'activite volcanique a travers le monde. A strong earthquake swarm and increased inflation were detected in August 2015 and triggered authorities to raise the alert level, as volcanologists think that a larger eruption could follow. News and updates on the events can be found on this page. Infos et actualites de tous les volcans actifs du monde. A new lava dome grew inside the crater lake during the effusive eruption in late 2007, replacing most of the lake. Watch the birth of a new mountain! Support us - Help us upgrade our services! Maintaining our website and our free apps does require, however, considerable time and resources. We're aiming to achieve uninterrupted service wherever an earthquake or volcano eruption unfolds, and your donations can make it happen! Every donation will be highly appreciated. Improved multilanguage support Tsunami alerts Faster responsiveness Earthquake archive from 1900 onwards Detailed quake stats Additional seismic data sources Download and Upgrade the Volcanoes & Earthquakes app to get one of the fastest seismic and volcano alerts online: Android | IOS to get one of the fastest seismic and volcano alerts online: We truly love working to bring you the latest volcano and earthquake data from around the world.We need financing to increase hard- and software capacity as well as support our editor team.If you find the information useful and would like to support our team in integrating further features, write great content, and in upgrading our soft- and hardware, please PayPal or Online credit card payment )., these features have been added recently: On Monday Mr Andrews said there was no choice but to also bring in tougher restrictions on working and shopping. The alternative, he said, was COVID-19 cases hovering around 500 a day which, as people fell ill, would eventually overwhelm the hospital system. A long queue forms outside Woolworths supermarket in South Melbourne on Sunday. Credit:Wendy Tuohy "We have to do something that is very painful, but will drive these numbers down and drive them down as quickly as possible," he said. The Premier said customers will no longer be able to go into large hardware stores such as Bunnings but will be able to collect goods as long as they do not make contact with anybody. "Retail will look very different than it's looked," he says. "It's critically important to have many, many people at home rather than at work and moving to and from work each and every day." Premier Daniel Andrews announced changes to Stage 4 lockdown restrictions. Credit:Simon Schluter Mr Andrews acknowledged that the changes would have a significant impact on the state's economy. "But until we fix the health problem, until we get these case numbers down to a much, much lower level, we simply cannot open the economy up again, so there is significant damage that needs to be done here, but there is no choice but to do that damage, to fix the health problem and then be able to move to rebuilding the economy. Loading "These are heartbreaking decisions but there is simply no choice. "The advice from the medical experts is that this is the only way to get these numbers under control, to drive them down low enough so that we can open up again. "The alternative is a six-month strategy, not a six-week strategy and then even at that point, significant doubt that that would work." The exemptions from the retail closures announced by Mr Andrews include: supermarkets, grocery, food and liquor shops; convenience stores; petrol stations; pharmacies; post offices; hardware, building and garden supplies shops selling to trade customers; maternity supplies and motor vehicle parts for emergency repairs only. Personal care services including hairdressers will be closed, as will car washes and photographic film processors. Locksmiths, laundries and dry cleaners are exempt from the closures. Markets will be permitted to sell food only, with strict enforcement of density obligations. Shopping centres will be open for exempted retail businesses. Online retailers will be permitted to have staff on site to fulfil orders, however they must have a COVIDSafe plan by 11.59pm Friday. The businesses that need to close will need to do so by midnight on Wednesday. Changes in construction industry There are new rules around construction, with commercial building projects no longer able to have more than 25 per cent of staff on site at any one time. For residential construction, there will no be more than five people on site at any one time and the workforce on large-scale government projects has been cut by half. "We are moving them to a pilot light phase, not being turned off completely but they are dramatically reducing the number of people they have working for them and their output over the next six weeks," Mr Andrews said. Meat, meat product and seafood processing and distribution centres have been singled out for specific controls as the government considers them to be "high risk". They will operate under a 33 per cent reduction compared with their usual peak. Workers will be allowed to attend only one site with a ban on "site hopping". All of these restrictions on businesses apply to metropolitan Melbourne only, except for abattoirs which will operate under stage four throughout the state. "We can't have a situation where such a high-risk environment is operating under two different sets of rules in different parts of the state," Mr Andrews said. The Premier said the latest restrictions would affect about 250,000 workers. He said about 500,000 are already working from home and a further 250,000 have been stood down. "When you add in a million students together with teachers and staff, that is when you are radically, dramatically changing the number of people moving around the community, and therefore, the number of points at which the virus can be transmitted from one person to another." Tradies will only be able to come to your home in an emergency. "There'll be no cleaners going to your house, Mr Andrews said. "There'll be no one mowing your lawns. There'll be no one providing anything other than emergency support. Loading "If you need a plumber because a pipe has burst, then yes, you can have a plumber come and do that work. But it's not the time to be painting your house or having unnecessary work happen." Driving transmission down Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said he expected that the latest restrictions would drive transmission down. "We can expect the numbers will improve week on week, but they will improve to the extent that we follow the advice," he says. Professor Sutton says stage three restrictions worked in that they flattened the curve but they would have left Victoria with 400-500 cases each day. "That means you have hundreds of cases going into next month and the month after and the month after," he says. Professor Sutton said there was "real confidence" that this harsh lockdown can work. This is not just his view, he said but that of the public health team supporting him and the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee which is made up of all the state and federal chief health officers. "They are in support of this approach by Victoria. They think it'll work. And they absolutely think it's necessary." The 13 deaths announced on Monday include a man in his 60s, two men and a woman in their 70s, two men in their 80s and five women and two men in their 90s. Eight of the 13 deaths are linked to known outbreaks in aged care facilities. Thirty-six of Monday's Victorian cases are linked to outbreaks and 393 are under investigation. The number of active cases has risen to 6489, while 5111 people have recovered from the virus. Thirty-five people are currently in intensive care, with a further 416 in hospital. What comes next Asked if these restrictions were the last resort and if there were plans for a stage five, Professor Sutton said there were very few other changes that could be made. Loading "We know it's more challenging in the second wave," he said. "But we've seen it work [overseas] and it will work." "We're not thinking about a stage five. We're thinking about a successful stage four ROCKY RIVER, Ohio -- One of the goals of Rotary International is to support basic education and literacy. The clubs -- including the Sunrise Rotary Club in Lakewood and Rocky River -- promote education for all children, as well as literacy for both children and adults. Thats why the Sunrise club decided to support the Books for Kids project, a national program established in 1986. It was founded on the belief that all children have a right to books and deserve dedicated spaces where they can read. Local programs are designed to expand access to books in the places where children learn, live and play, and to empower adults to read alongside them in order to develop lifelong literacy skills during the most critical years of their development. Thats where the Cleveland Kids Book Bank enters the picture. The Book Banks mission is to foster literacy and a love of reading by distributing free books to children in need through collaboration with the community. It opened in February 2016 to receive, manage and distribute truckloads of books every month. About 30 percent of the books come from the community; the rest are used books from online booksellers. Sunrise Rotary Club hosted a program by Books for Kids and decided to get involved with the collection of books for the initiative. Outdoor collection bins provide a place where community members can deposit new and gently used childrens books for the Cleveland Kids Book Bank. Sunrise Rotary, which meets at Rocky River Civic Center, contacted Rocky River Mayor Pam Bobst about placing a book collection box on the municipal campus. Bobst agreed and had Mike Balla and Bob Holub, Civic Center staff members, select a location for the collection box. They also arranged for the installation of a pad for the box, which has been in place for two weeks. Sunrise Rotary members will empty the bin regularly and deliver the donated books to the Book Bank, where they will be sorted, packed and distributed through more than 1,000 partner organizations that work with children and parents to encourage them to read. Rotary member Larry Faulhaber said the box already has been emptied once and donations taken to the Book Bank. He said the public is encouraged to continue putting donations in the big blue collection box, which ais located along the walkway between the parking lot on the Memorial Hall side of the Don Umerley Civic Center on the way to the Recreation Center entrance. The Sunrise Club is one of two Rotary clubs in Lakewood and Rocky River. One club meets at noon on Mondays and a second club meets at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesdays. Both meet at Umerley Hall of the Rocky River Center at Hilliard Boulevard and West 210th Street, behind Rocky River City Hall. Both clubs follow the motto of Rotary: Service Above Self. The Books for Kids project in partnership with the Cleveland Kids Book Bank is just one of Rotarys community, vocational, youth and international projects in the area. For more information on the Lakewood and Rocky River Rotary clubs, contact Kathy Berkshire at sloopyohio19@gmail.com. More information on the Cleveland Kids Book Bank is available at kidsbookbank.org or on social media. Read more from the West Shore Sun. As final year students in secondry schools in Nigeria prepare for their examination the Muslim Rights Concern, MURIC, has rejected the timetable released by the West African Examination Council, WAEC, for the exams. In a statement on Monday by the Director and founder of the group Ishaq Akintola he condemned the decision of the examination body, explaining that it is a wrong move to fix examinations on Friday, hence depriving Muslim faithfuls from observing their Jumuat prayers on Fridays. According to him, it seem like a deliberate attempt by WAEC to stop young Muslims from observing their prayers because the group had earlier warned the examination body to take cognizance of such clash it went ahead to ignore their complains. The examination is scheduled to commence on the August 11, 2020 for all final year secondary students across some countries in West Africa. Full Text of the statement reads; WAEC has again fixed some of its subjects for the period of the Muslim Friday Jumuah prayer in its examination which begins next week Tuesday 11th August, 2020. These are papers that Muslim candidates are also expected to take. The implications are very serious. WAEC is deliberately creating a wedge between young Muslims and the mosque. WAEC is making it impossible for Muslim youth to worship. The examination body is encroaching upon Allah-given fundamental rights of Muslim candidates to access freedom of religion as guaranteed by Section 38 (i) & (ii) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. At best, the examination body is reducing the chances of good performance among Muslim candidates. A quick glance at the timetable recently released by WAEC shows that there are at least three clashes between examination periods and Muslim prayers on Fridays: Management-in-Living (2 pm, Friday 14th August, 2020); Literature-in-English (2 pm, Friday 21st August); Health Science (1.30 pm, Friday, 4th September). This timetable is exclusive, sectional, parochial, insensitive and provocative. It is an invitation to anarchy. It is designed to cause pain to Muslim candidates. It is therefore the handiwork of sadists and anarchists. It smirks of an anti-Muslim machinery oiled by the passion for hate and injustice. This is in spite of efforts made by us to guard against this kind of clash. It will be recalled that MURIC issued a proactive press statement on Tuesday 23rd June, 2020 under the caption Consider the Friday Question in Your Timetable: MURIC Tells WAEC. This press release was expected to remind WAEC of the need to avoid the present controversy. But WAEC ignored it. The examination body cannot claim ignorance of this reminder because it was well published by the media. We are perturbed by WAECs recalcitrance. The fact that the examination body ignored the above advice shows that it deliberately targets Muslims for persecution. It inflicts unbearable psychological trauma on young Muslim candidates. It is unacceptable. This has to stop. There is also enough evidence that this is not the first time WAEC will fix examinations during the Muslim prayer period on Friday. MURICs struggle with WAEC over the Friday question is of great antiquity. Unfortunately WAEC does not appear ready to learn from history. We will cite at least two past clashes and our interface with the examination body. The timetable clashed with Jumuah service in 2015 and MURIC cried out thereby forcing the examination authority to adjust its timetable. Again in 2018 WAEC reenacted the same scenario. MURIC kicked again and WAEC adjusted its timetable. It was due to this constant occurrence that we took a proactive step two months ago by cautioning WAEC not to allow its timetable to clash with the Jumuah period this year but the leopard refused to change its skin. Is WAEC deaf? How can a public institution be so insensitive? What have the Muslims done to deserve being treated like blacks in apartheid South Africa?null We wonder why it should be so difficult for WAEC to leave out three hours only (from 12 noon to 3 pm) on Fridays in its examination timetable to allow Muslims to worship. Muslim candidates need three hours because the prayer usually starts around 1 pm. They need at least one hour to get to the mosque, one hour for the service inside the mosque and another one hour to return to the examination hall. Muslims everywhere in the world do not joke with the Friday Jumuah prayer. This special weekly prayer has divine and scriptural basis in Quran 62:9-11 and any attempt to circumspect it by any means constitutes a challenge to divine authority. Justice also demands that the Muslim prayer period be respected by all, especially by WAEC because the Christian Sunday remains sacrosanct. Perhaps WAEC examinations should be held on Sunday morning if it will not respect the Muslim prayer period. What right does WAEC have to force Muslim candidates to write examination during Friday prayer time when the examination body does not fix its examinations on Sunday to disturb Christian worship? Is WAEC deliberately destabilizing Muslim candidates? How can a Muslim candidate be in the right frame of mind to sit for an examination slated for 2 pm on a Friday when he must be in the mosque from 1 pm to 2.30 pm? What is WAECs gameplan? Is WAECs timetable planned by double agents? MURIC calls the attention of the Federal Government and the Ministry of Education to WAECs excesses. Muslim candidates should not be blamed if they refuse to write examination under duress. Any examination that infringes upon freedom of religion is ultra vires, unlawful, illegal, illegitimate and unconstitutional. Candidates for such examinations acting alone or in conjunction with their parents have every right to use every lawful means to stop the examination. WAEC is therefore invited to take notice of impending action by Muslim candidates unless it adjusts its timetable to accommodate Muslim Jumuah service during the coming examinations. Muslim candidates must be given three hours every Friday. This is non-negotiable. Nigerian Muslims will liberate themselves from slavery, serfdom and religious apartheid if government is lackadaisical. The only thing MURIC opposes is violence. Our message to WAEC is very clear and simple: We warned you early enough but you decided to dare Nigerian Muslims with your satanic timetable. We are returning it back to sender. Adjust your timetable and stop provoking Muslims forthwith. Let the Muslims go. Wockhardt has reserved manufacturing capacity to allow for the supply of multiple vaccines to the UK Government in its fight against COVID19. Mumbai based Wockhardt, the global pharmaceutical and biotechnology major has announced that it has entered into an agreement with the UK Government to fill-finish COVID-19 vaccines. The manufacturing will be undertaken at CP Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Wockhardt based in Wrexham, North Wales. As per the terms of the agreement the company has reserved manufacturing capacity to allow for the supply of multiple vaccines to the UK Government in its fight against COVID19, including AZD1222, the vaccine co-invented by the University of Oxford and its spinout company, Vaccitech and licensed by AstraZeneca. Dr. Habil Khorakiwala, Founder Chairman of Wockhardt emphasized, The pandemic of COVID-19 is a challenge for all and needs a concerted effort to overcome. We are proud to be collaborating with the UK Government to make vaccines available and the arrangement brings in a huge sense of purpose and pride, it upholds our ongoing commitment to fighting against such a pandemic of global human importance. As a global organization, we are focussed and committed to assisting in mitigating the worldwide impact of COVID-19. The government has reserved one fill and finish production line for its exclusive use for the next 18 months in order to guarantee the supply of vaccines required to fight COVID-19 in the UK. In the UK, Wockhardt is one of the largest suppliers in the NHS for over 20 years, has had a presence in Wrexham for over two decades, and employs over 400 people at its 612,000 square feet high-tech manufacturing facility. World facing 'generational catastrophe' on education - UN chief Reuters reporting that the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned today that the world is facing a "generational catastrophe" because of school closures amid the coronavirus pandemic. He said that getting students safely back to the classroom must be "a top priority." Guterres said that as of mid-July schools were closed in some 160 countries, affecting more than 1 billion students, while at least 40 million children have missed out on pre-school. "Now we face a generational catastrophe that could waste untold human potential, undermine decades of progress, and exacerbate entrenched inequalities," said Guterres as he launched a UN "Save our Future" campaign. "Once local transmission of COVID-19 is under control, getting students back into schools and learning institutions as safely as possible must be a top priority," he said. "Consultation with parents, carers, teachers and young people is fundamental." A returned overseas traveller who tested positive to COVID-19 after avoiding mandatory hotel quarantine and taking a further flight to Queensland has been revealed to be a security worker not a consular staff member. The man in his 20s flew into Sydney from Kabul and continued on to the Sunshine Coast. He then drove from the airport to his home in Toowoomba, about 230 kilometres away. Chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young had said the man avoided the mandatory hotel quarantine at his city of arrival under nationally agreed exemptions that allow "consulate staff" to instead quarantine in their homes. Contact tracers on Monday were still looking to notify 14 people who also travelled on the July 31 Jetstar flight from Sydney, JQ790. Today's Democratic political elite is beginning to resemble the USSR Politburo in the 1970'80s. It is rapidly aging and becoming demented, which inevitably reflects not just its bizarre behavior, but, most importantly, the quality of strategic and tactical decision-making. A degraded establishment that practiced socialism cost the Soviet empire its existence. It will not end differently for the U.S. if it follows this path. This path is personified by many prominent Democrats. The most talked about right now is, naturally, Joe Biden, who is poised to secure his presidential nomination bid in August. At the age of 77 and having had brain surgery, he constantly demonstrates signs of dementia, which is acknowledged by 38 percent of likely voters. Sixty-one percent of them believe that it is important for Biden to address the dementia issue publicly, with 41 percent saying it is "very important," according to the Rasmussen Report. At the same time, polls constantly reassure Democrats that their presumptive candidate beats his contender. Senile and confused, Joe still could admit that he would be a one-term president if elected. Among all "young, diverse, and ambitious" candidates, was he the best the Democrats could offer? Given his age, record of failed policies, lies, racism, alleged but evident foreign corruption, even sexual misconduct? Yes, he is, according to the media: "As a former vice president to Barack Obama and having served as a U.S. Senator for over 35 years, Biden is one of the most qualified people in American history to run for the presidency," goes a typical piece of praise, reminiscent, again, of the Soviet-style propaganda aimed to glorify general secretaries who could barely walk. Interestingly, some of the closest of Biden's rivals for the nominee bid Bernie Sanders (78), Elizabeth Warren (69), Michael Bloomberg (76) were not youngsters, either. Another symbolic figure for Democrats who got in a limelight ahead of this year's presidential election is the U.S. Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a leftist superstar and increasingly frail octogenarian. Right now, the Supreme Court's balance is hanging on her seemingly faltering health. In her July 17 statement, she revealed that she had begun a course of chemotherapy to treat a recurrence of cancer in May following a biopsy that revealed lesions on her liver in February. Why was the public unaware of it until now? It is noted that the recent hospitalizations to remove gallstones and treat an infection were unrelated to this recurrence. The statement ends with optimistic reassurance that Ginsburg is able to do her job "full steam." As with any person battling cancer, Ginsburg's tenacity and strong spirit deserve nothing but respect. As a U.S. Supreme Court justice, however, her power-clinging attitude exemplifies a gerontocratic trend within the Democratic party. Let's look closer at the data demonstrating the correlation between age and party affiliation at the U.S. House of Representatives. The media touted the "changing face of the Democratic party" after the 2018 midterm elections, which resulted in 19 Democratic members of Congress under the age of 40 taking office. The bigger picture, however, shows more. Why won't the media look at all current members of the U.S. House of Representatives and break them down by age category and party affiliation? Because they would see that Democratic members are older and longer serving than Republican ones. There are 56 Democrats and 22 Republicans currently serving in the House who are now older than 70 (2.5 to 1). The data also reveal that older Democrats occupy their offices for longer terms than their Republican counterparts: Representatives who are 70-plus years old have 22 Democratic members who spent less than 20 years in office and 34 of them who spent between 20 and 39 years in office. For the Republicans, these numbers are 17 with less than 20 and 5 with 20 or more years in office. This trend reveals itself in the Senate composition, too: there are 15 Democrats plus two independents (Bernie Sanders and Angus King, who are leftists) 17 in total versus 11 Republican elders (1.5 to 1). We also analyzed members of Congress who have served at least 36 years since the beginning of American parliamentarism. Seventy-eight of them were Democrats and 31 Republicans (2.5 to 1, just as it is today). Out of these long-timers, 13 Democrats and 4 Republicans died in office (3 to 1). Recently deceased congressman John Lewis, who passed in July at the age of 80 while still serving as a congressman, didn't quite make this list (he served only 34 years). But it does include Joe Biden, who served 36 years and 12 days as a senator before being elected vice president. Medical science is unequivocal: cognitive abilities (so critical for policymakers), including attention, memory, executive cognitive function, language, and visual-spatial abilities, have measurable decline with age. Here's just one study published by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (which is a part of the United States National Library of Medicine, a branch of the National Institutes of Health) that proves our point. Then there are numerous age-related diseases that hinder people from running their lives "full steam," as they once could. Moreover, there is no shame in retiring, especially when you have something to show for your career and achievements to be proud of, giving a chance to your younger like-minded peers. Just as RBG could have retired when Obama was still the president and could replace her with someone younger but who could expect a "black swan" victory of Donald Trump in their leftist camp? Power does corrupt, and power is intoxicating and addicting, but why do Democrats seem to get hooked on that drug, to the point of overdosing much more readily than Republicans? Perhaps the answer lies within their worldview, in which leftists feel superior to others. This kind of worldview was perfectly described by Friedrich Nietzsche: the superman (Ubermensch), a new kind of beyond-human, rejects traditional (Christian) moral values, is driven by "will to power" an ultimate motivation and "master morality" (vs. "slave morality") and stands "beyond good and evil" to transform society. That is an exact portrait of the Democrats. Narcissistic belief in self-exceptionalism and disdain for traditional Judeo-Christian values paired with arrogant contempt for "deplorables" force these junkies to increase the dose of power daily, at any price, till your or their last breath. Veronika Kyrylenko, Ph.D. is a research analyst at GeoStrategic Analysis (Arlington, Va.). Please follow on Twitter or LinkedIn. Igor Kyrylenko is a president of Apriori, a data technology company. His background includes working on Capitol Hill as a political technology professional, managing voter files for multiple U.S. and international political campaigns, and working with identity verification companies. Igor Kyrylenko possesses a graduate degree in political science/international relations from the University of Akron. Image: Gage Skidmore via Flickr. 7 Marines, 1 Sailor Presumed Dead After Accident Involving Amphibious Vehicles on California Coast Sputnik News 20:17 GMT 02.08.2020 Earlier, the death of one US Marine officer was confirmed by the I Marine Expeditionary Force following an accident during routine exercises off the coast of California conducted on 30 July. Seven Marines and one US Navy sailor who went missing after an incident during training exercises in southern California are presumed dead, according to a statement by the I Marine Expeditionary Force. Earlier, search and rescue efforts were being made with the support of the Navy and the Coast Guard. "It is with a heavy heart, that I decided to conclude the search and rescue effort," Col. Christopher Bronzi, 15th MEU Commanding Officer, said in a statement. "The steadfast dedication of the Marines, Sailors, and Coast Guardsmen to the persistent rescue effort was tremendous." The incident, that initially left 1 Marine dead and 8 counterparts missing after some training exercises off the coast of southern California, involved 15 Marines and one sailor. An amphibious assault vehicle (AAV) in which they were riding began to sink near the coast, off of San Clemente. According to Gen. David H. Berger, a Marine Corps commandant, two other vehicles observed the "training mishap", and their observations were used to locate the place where the AAV sank. The soldiers involved were assigned the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. After the "mishap", US Marine Corps suspended the use of amphibious assault vehicles in training exercises. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. The Ministry of Healthcare and the Ministry of Justice are jointly working on a legislative package concerning the law on the Protection of the Population during a State of Emergency, Justice Minister spokesperson Lusine Martirosyan told ARMENPRESS. The legislative packages purpose is to enable the authorities not to extend the coronavirus-related and currently active State of Emergency but still be able to implement required anti-pandemic restrictions when needed by declaring an emergency situation. Martirosyan did not mention specific timeframes as to when the bill will be ready. The Armenian government declared a national state of emergency due to the coronavirus outbreak in mid-March. Since then, the state of emergency has been extended every month. The Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan had said earlier that the authorities cannot keep extending the state of emergency forever and they need legislative amendments enabling the authorities to implement restrictions in the event of discovering new clusters of the outbreak. Reporting by Norayr Shoghikyan; Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan TEHRAN Irans supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Friday strongly condemned U.S. sanctions on the Iranian nation as a grave crime. The sanctions the Americans have exerted against the Iranian nation are for sure a grave crime, Khamenei said in a televised speech on the occasion of the Muslim feast of Eid al-Adha. Although the sanctions seem to be against the (Islamic) establishment, it is indeed against the entire nation, he noted. The immediate goal of their pressure is to exhaust and disturb the Iranian nation and to make the nation stand against the Islamic establishment, he said. Their next major goal is to prevent Irans development through sanctions, the Iranian top leader added. The United States seeks to pressure Iran to abandon its nuclear industry, reduce its defensive capability and give up its regional influence, said Khamenei. One of the other goals they pursue is to dismantle the countrys economy, he pointed out. The Iranian leader noted that nuclear electricity is indisputable need for Iran which needs at least 30,000 megawatts of nuclear power in the future. Khamenei also said Irans enemies seek to cut the countrys ties with the resistance forces in the region. We have a strategic depth in the region, on the basis of which many nations and governments are our supporters, interested in Iran, and ready to strive in the service of our goals, he said on the state TV. The Iranian leader also dismissed the U.S. calls for negotiations as no use, saying negotiations with Washington means making yourself defenseless and giving to their demands. They (the Americans) say you should abandon your defensive equipment, your regional power and national might, Khamenei said. Moreover, we are in talks with the entire world, except for the U.S. and the fake Zionist regime, he added. The Iranian top leader noted that his country will resist all pressures by the United States, as one of the benefits of U.S. sanctions for Iran has been a decrease in our reliance on selling crude oil and moving toward a non-oil economy. Related A 25-year-old man has been arrested after a 32-year-old woman was fatally stabbed in Oatlands in Sydney's north-west, police say. Emergency services were called to a unit in Ingleby Street about 4.50pm on Monday following reports of a stabbing. The woman was treated by paramedics for multiple stab wounds before being taken to Westmead Hospital, where she died. The man, who police said was known to the woman, was arrested at the scene and taken to Granville police station where he was assisting with inquiries. Electric Capital, a San Francisco, CA-based cryptonetwork and blockchain enabled business focused firm, closed its second fund, a $110m Seed and Series A fund. Co-founded by Avichal Garg and Curtis Spencer, Electric Capital is a venture firm that invests in cryptocurrencies, blockchain based businesses, fintech companies, and marketplaces. The firm compiles code, profiles nodes, analyzes blockchains and open source projects, helps secure cryptonetworks, and write software to help portfolio companies understand their ecosystems. They also publish an annual Developer Report that is the industry standard for understanding the developer ecosystems across cryptonetworks. Fund II Continues to Focus on Programmable Money: Electric Capital has three areas of focus: Layer 1 Protocols where the base token is a form of money and a token that may become a non-sovereign, store of value. Decentralized Finance & Community Owned Networks where tokens align economic incentives. Some of these networks will decentralize existing entities in traditional markets while some will be entirely novel applications that were previously impossible. Crypto Enabled Businesses and Marketplaces where customers receive novel benefits enabled by cryptography, tokens, and blockchains. Electric Capital and its founders have invested in crypto companies such as Anchorage, Bitwise, Celo, Coda, Derivadex, Elrond, Mobilecoin, Oasis, and NEAR. Garg Avichal is a serial entrepreneur with executive experience at Google and Facebook, which acquired his previous company in 2012. At Facebook, he was Director of Product Management for the Local product group. Avichal is an investor in companies and protocols such as Anchorage, Bitwise, Celo, Coda, Dapper Labs/Cryptokittes, dYdX, Lightning Labs, and many technology companies outside of crypto such as Airtable, Boom Supersonic, Color Genomics, Cruise, Figma, Newfront Insurance, Notion, Optimizely, and Threads. Before Electric, Spencer was CTO at Cruxlux, a semantic search company acquired by Kosmix/Walmart Labs and CTO at Spool, a mobile infrastructure company acquired by Facebook. At Facebook, he was an engineering lead on News Feed, Events, and Developer Experience during his tenure. Spencer was an early investor in Bitcoin and Ethereum and has invested in various frontier technology companies such as Cruise Automation, Boom Supersonic, and SpaceX. FinSMEs 03/08/2020 emocratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at a campaign event at the William "Hicks" Anderson Community Center in Wilmington. (AP) Washington: Should former Vice President Joe Biden win the White House in November, America will likely be in for a foreign policy about-face as Biden reverses, dismantles or severely curtails many of President Donald Trumps most significant and boldest actions. From the Middle East to Asia, Latin America to Africa and, particularly, Europe, and on issues including trade, terrorism, arms control and immigration, the presumptive Democratic nominee and his advisers have vowed to unleash a tsunami of change in how the U.S. handles itself in the international arena. With few exceptions, Americans could expect Biden to re-engage with traditional allies. Where the iconoclastic Trump has used blunt threats and insults to press his case, Biden, a former senator, would be more inclined to seek common ground. Historically, U.S. foreign policy hasnt changed drastically as the presidency shifted between Democratic and Republican administrations. Allies and adversaries stayed the same and a non-partisan diplomatic corps pursued American interests. That changed with Trump. Under his America First policy, he viewed both allies and the foreign policy establishment with suspicion, while speaking warmly of adversaries like North Koreas Kim Jong Un and Russias Vladimir Putin. But Trump found it hard to make swift changes. Academics often say that American foreign policy is like an aircraft carrier: easy to order a wholesale change of direction from the bridge but far more difficult and time-consuming to alter course. Trump saw that when he was unable to extricate the U.S. from the Iran nuclear deal for more than year. His well-publicized withdrawals from the Paris Climate Accord and the World Health Organization wont actually become final until after the Nov. 3 election, if ever. His decision to redeploy thousands of troops from Germany could take years. Trumps initial problems may have reflected a lack of governmental experience by both him and his top advisers. That created a steep learning curve that was complicated by their intense distrust of national security institutions. Biden, with his Senate and White House experience, may be better positioned to deliver on change swiftly. Biden told reporters Tuesday in Delaware that he knows how to get things done internationally. I understand the national security and intelligence issues, he said. Thats what Ive done my whole life. Trump has no notion of it. None. Bidens campaign also has assembled an experienced team of foreign policy advisers: Jake Sullivan served as deputy assistant to President Barack Obama and policy planning director at the State Department. Nicholas Burns had high-level foreign policy positions under Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton. Tony Blinken was deputy secretary of state and deputy national security adviser to Obama. Susan Rice, national security adviser and U.N. ambassador under Obama, is a finalist for vice president. If she isnt selected, she could become a key adviser if Biden wins. The Trump campaign casts Bidens foreign policy experience as a weakness. Joe Bidens record of appeasement and globalism would be detrimental for American foreign policy and national security, and after decades of the status quo, President Trump has made it clear that the United States will no longer be taken advantage of by the rest of the world, deputy press secretary Ken Farnaso said in a statement. For decades, the first and often only foreign policy shift that new presidents of both parties directed on their first day in office, and Trump was no exception, was abortion-related. Like clockwork, Republicans enacted the so-called Mexico City language known by opponents as the global gag rule to prohibit the use of U.S. foreign assistance for abortion-related services. Democrats rescinded it and should Biden win, he has promised to follow suit. But hes also pledged to demolish other Trump policies on Day One. They include reversing Trumps ban on immigration from mainly Muslim countries, restoring U.S. funding and membership to the WHO and halting efforts to oppose the Paris Climate Accord. Hes promised to call top NATO leaders and declare of U.S. foreign policy, Were back while convening a summit of major heads of state in his first year. One area that will require more nuance is China, which Trump has placed at the top of his foreign policy agenda and on which he has painted Biden as weak. After previously boasting of warm ties with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Trump has relentlessly attacked China, blaming it for the coronavirus outbreak that threatens his reelection prospects. Biden has been slower to directly criticize Trumps recent actions against China, but his campaign questions whether the president will eventually undermine his administrations tough actions of late by personally striking softer tones toward Beijing The administration has a history of talking very loudly but not producing results, said Jeff Prescott, a campaign foreign policy adviser, Biden also has said he would immediately restore daily press briefings at the White House, State Department and Pentagon, events once deemed critical to communicate U.S. policy that the Trump administration has all but abandoned. Biden and his surrogates say they intend to act quickly on the following: - Middle East: Restore assistance to the Palestinian Authority that the Trump administration has eliminated as well as to agencies that support Palestinian refugees. Biden hasnt said he will reverse Trumps recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital or return the embassy to Tel Aviv. - United Nations: Restore U.S. membership in U.N. agencies such as the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and possibly the U.N. Human Rights Council. - Europe: Tone down rhetoric Trump has used to berate and insult European allies. Biden can be expected to try to warm relations among NATO partners. - Africa: Try to raise Americas profile on the continent, which has become a new battleground for competition with China. - Asia: Revert to a traditional U.S. stance supporting the presence of American troops in Japan and South Korea. Biden has also criticized Trumps personal relationship with Kim. - Latin America: Cancel Trump administration agreements that sent asylum-seeking immigrants to Mexico and other countries while they await court dates. Biden has also promised to divert funding away from the southern border wall and use it on other priorities, though the Trump campaign notes that the former vice president in past comments hasnt committed to halting all new border wall construction. Biden also wants to restart Obama-era engagement with Cuba. Russia's intention to increase arms supplies to the occupied areas of Donbas is a sign of direct armed aggression and support for terrorist activities at the state level, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry has said in a statement. According to the ministry, political statements are made in Russia regarding the supply of weapons to Donbas if Ukraine receives military aid from the United States. "However, Russia has been waging war against Ukraine for the seventh year in a row. The number of weapons and military hardware in the temporarily occupied territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions is known: over 480 tanks; over 900 armored vehicles; about 450 guns and howitzers; about 300 mortars; about 210 multiple-launch rocket systems; about 700 air defense systems; about 450 anti-tank weapons. Russia uses all these weapons in hostilities against Ukraine. Russian weapons were brought to Ukraine through an uncontrolled part of the border of our state," the ministry said. According to the statement, since the beginning of the aggression, these weapons and military hardware have been used not only against servicemen of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and other military formations, but also against the civilian population of Donbas. "Therefore, if Russia wants to increase the supply of weapons, this is a sign of direct armed aggression and support for terrorist activities at the state level," the Ukrainian Defense Ministry added. According to the statement, Ukraine, in accordance with international agreements, receives technical assistance from partner countries, and this year's situation is no exception. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry thanked international partners for their support in the fight against the aggressor state. op The district administration of Tinsukia in Assam on Sunday denied reports that the blaze in Baghjan gas well has spread to other areas, and said that a fire in a farmland, about two km away from the Oil India Limiteds site, was caused by burning of bushes. A section of the media had reported that the fire at Bagjan has spread to neighbouring farmlands which created panic among the people. A well at Baghjan has been spewing gas uncontrollably following a blowout on May 27 and it caught fire on June 9, which is yet to be doused. An attempt to cap the damaged well failed on Friday. Also read | At Baghjan OIL blowout site, endangered species at risk: Report The purported news is completely false and the said fire has occurred in a farmland near the Maguri Matapung Beel, approximately 1.5 to 2 kms away from the said Bagjan Oil Well, and was lit to clear the farmland from bushes, a release issued by the district administration said. The district administration appeals to all not to fall for such false news and to maintain tranquillity and law and order in the region, it added. District officials and policemen are present at the site and monitoring the situation. Meanwhile, efforts are on to cap the well at the earliest, OIL said in a release on Sunday. It also claimed that the company was facing continued protests and blockades across many of its wells and field locations, leading to heavy production loss since June. Operations were disrupted in 12 oil wells and five gas wells since May 27. Assessments and impact studies of the blowout, as well as the blaze in villages and nearby forest areas, by various agencies are going on while the CSIR-North East Institute of Science & Technology (CSIR-NEIST) and IIT-Guwahati have completed collection of data which is being analysed and interpreted now. Surveys for assessment of damage for compensation by the district administration are also in progress in both Tinsukia and Doomdooma circles and 2,736 families have been surveyed till Saturday, according to the release. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The states ruling on schools coronavirus reopening plans will be made later this week, but the final decision on whether kids will head back in September will be up to parents, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Monday. Sufficient plans will have details on individual schools, the governor said during a press briefing. In New York City, there are 1,866 schools within the Department of Education system, according to its website. Where you have a district with multiple schools, they have to address the plan for every school, Cuomo said. If you dont have the details for each school then you dont have a plan, because how can a parent make a decision, and its not just New York City -- its any school district. A district could have a uniform plan for the schools in its system, but they would need to work out the logistics for how each school is going to things like testing in order to track the virus, the governor said. On Sunday, SUNY Empire State College President and Cuomo aide Jim Malatras criticized New York Citys Friday-submitted plan without having fully reviewed it. He compared the number of pages the city submitted with other districts in places like Yonkers and Albany. He pointed out in a tweet that the citys plan refers to an unspecified isolation room in each school for children who have high fevers while the Albany plan listed specific rooms for isolation and treatment in each of its 18 schools. UNION OFFICIAL SLAMS PLAN United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew also sent out a statement slamming the citys safety plan after the mayor announced it on Friday. The standards the city proposed for protection, testing, and closing of schools and classrooms are not enough, Mulgrew said. We need randomized testing of school communities throughout the year and a vigorous contact tracing system that gives schools test results and a course of action with a 24-hour turnaround. Whats more, the statement continued, even if there are stronger safety standards in place, we still have grave concerns about the citys ability to enforce them effectively in every school. Right now, this is not enough to protect students and staff. " Without the minutiae, Cuomo believes that students and school staff will make their own decision to not come back to the classroom rendering any reopening plan pointless. I dont care what any bureaucrat says. I trust the parents more than anyone, Cuomo said. If they dont have a good plan, no kids are gonna come and no teachers are gonna come, so you have no reopening, so youre talking to yourself. As the city and state started to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic in March, students and teachers took it upon themselves to stay home. Some Staten Island schools saw attendances as low as 7.71%, and teachers told the Advance they were considering a mass sickout if the schools werent shut down. Cuomo made the decision to close the citys public schools on March 15. YEREVAN. Representatives of the Soros foundation came to power in Armenia under the rule of PM Nikol Pashinyan. Eduard Sharmazanov, deputy chairman of the former ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), told this to a press conference on Monday, commenting on Pashinyan's recent statement that such organizations had appeared in Armenia during the tenure of second president Robert Kocharyan and third president Serzh Sargsyan. Sharmazanov noted that in those years, the representatives of these organizations had not been appointed ministers in Armenia. "[In those years,] the Soros members have not made any decision on the implementation of state policy. They have not made any decision. They were not part of the halls of power," Sharmazanov said. Thyssenkrupp completes $20.4 billion sale of elevator business German steelmaker Thyssenkrupp has successfully completed the 17.2 billion euro ($20.4 billion) sale of its elevator business to a consortium led by Advent International and Cinven, marking a, important milestone in the transformation of the company. The transaction closed on Friday (31 July) after all regulatory and customary approvals, the company said. Thyssenkrupp, on 27 February 2020, signed an agreement on the sale of the elevator business with a consortium of Advent International and Cinven, with Germanys RAG foundation acting as a co-investor. With the closing, Thyssenkrupp also received the contractually agreed purchase price. The transaction will result directly in a substantial reduction in debt to a net cash position and a significant increase in equity. The groups balance sheet ratios will thus improve significantly. At the same time, Thyssenkrupp will be able to considerably reduce past balance sheet burdens, the company stated in release. Thyssenkrup plans to use part of the proceeds to selectively develop the businesses where attractive target returns can be achieved. In addition, funds may be used for necessary restructuring measures. However, in view of the uncertain economic situation caused by the coronavirus, the company said it would retain the greatest possible flexibility in the precise allocation of funds. To secure liquidity in the coronavirus crisis Thyssenkrupp AG had entered into a 1 billion credit facility under the KfW special programme. The company did not draw on this credit facility and it will end with the closing of the Elevator transaction. Divesting the elevator business with its more than 50,000 employees was a tough decision that was not easy for anyone but it was indispensable in the interests of the whole group of companies. The proceeds in the billions will give us tailwind for the transformation of thyssenkrupp, Martina Merz, CEO of Thyssenkrupp AG. We are continuing to focus all our energies on substantially improving the performance of the remaining businesses. We wish our Elevator colleagues continued success and all the best for the future, she added. With the closing, the employee representatives on the supervisory board, Susanne Herberger, chairwoman of the works council of thyssenkrupp Elevator AG, will leave the supervisory board of thyssenkrupp AG. She will be succeeded by Tekin Nasikkol, chairman of the general works council of thyssenkrupp Steel Europe AG, the company stated. The sale of the elevator business is part of the strategic transformation of thyssenkrupp into a powerful group of companies with independent businesses, a strong umbrella brand, a lean holding company, and a focus on systematically improving the performance of all businesses. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Budi Sutrisno (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, August 3, 2020 12:04 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b24c8b 1 World vaksin,vaccine,cooperation,President-Jokowi,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,Erdogan,kerjasama,Idul-Adha,Turkey Free President Joko Jokowi Widodo exchanged Idul Adha (Day of Sacrifice) greetings with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan by phone at the Bogor Presidential Palace in West Java on Sunday. Happy Idul Adha to Your Excellency President Erdogan and Mrs. Emine and all the people of Turkey. May you always be in good health, said President Jokowi, according to a press release from the Presidential Secretariat. In return, Erdogan extended his wishes to Jokowi, First Lady Iriana Joko Widodo and the people of Indonesia. Read also: Indonesia looks to closer security, defense trade with Turkey: Ministry During the conversation, Jokowi noted his appreciation of the increasing cooperation between the two countries, including the possibility of working together to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic. I understand that Turkey is in an advanced stage of vaccine development. I am pleased to hear that our two research and technology ministers have discussed the possibility of cooperation in this matter, said Jokowi. Jokowi said he hoped that in a later visit of Erdogan to Indonesia, the two could actualize the cooperation efforts under discussion. As summer temperatures soar nationwide, a father of four is sharing a cautionary tale with other parents after his toddler suffered second-degree burns at a water park. Playing barefoot, the child stepped over hot metal and scalded the soles of his feet. Ive been through hell the last 24 hours, Andrew Sechrist told Q13 Fox Seattle on July 24 after returning from hospital with his 17-month-old son. Andrew recalled hearing his boy crying inconsolably while playing at the splash pad at Seattles Georgetown Playfield. The dad assumed his son had tripped and fallen, but upon reaching the toddler, he discovered the boy had walked barefoot over a metal grate and severely injured the bottoms of his feet. His feet were white, Andrew explained, the skin they had basically melted. He had second-degree burns on the bottom of his feet. Just putting my hand on here like that, he added, referencing the metal grate, I cant keep it here for half a second, and my one-and-a-half-year-old son walked across. Andrew asked his wife to take their other three children home, according to Cafe Mom, and rushed his youngest to two different hospitals. Seattle Childrens gave the tot medicine for pain and referred Andrew to Harborview Medical Center, where the burn unit admitted the toddler overnight. His blisters were drained and his legs wrapped in bandages; the distressed dad was given instructions that they remain on for 10 to 15 days. All in all, it was an extremely difficult 24 hours for a 17-month-old kid, Andrew reflected. Returning to the scene to test the temperature of the grate around the same time of day as the toddlers ordeal occurred, Q13 Fox later confirmed that the heat peaked at 130 degrees Fahrenheit (approx. 54 degrees Celsius). As the toddler heals, Andrew chose to share the alarming incident so that other parents will take precautions, and to inspire action from the city of Seattle. City officials, however, responded by explaining that they have no current plans to make any changes to the Georgetown Playfields layout or signage. Speaking to The Epoch Times via social media, Andrew revealed that his son has since made a full recovery: Although the doctor said he would need to wear shoes or socks outside for a whole year for his feet to heal 100 percent. His feet are now pretty sensitive to surfaces such as a pool deck, or patios/decks that are in direct sunlight. In July 2019, a Canadian toddler made headlines for burning his feet at a splash pad in Kingston, Ontario. One-year-old Thomas Donnellys parents claimed he ran barefoot onto an in-ground metal grate near the splash pad, reports the Ottawa Citizen; he was treated for second- and third-degree burns on the soles of his feet. You wouldnt think hed have to keep his shoes on and not be able to run around a splash pad, Thomass mother, Amanda Insley, considered. I want to make sure no one else got hurt. City officials responded to the incident by painting the grate yellow to make it more visible. I like that they made an effort to fix it, said Thomass father, Brandon Donnelly, but I dont like the fact that [Thomas] had to get hurt for them to do something. Somebody should have done it before. We would love to hear your stories! You can share them with us at emg.inspired@epochtimes.nyc "As medical costs continue to rise, people are looking for more ways to afford the care they need," said David Healy, senior vice president, Group Benefits for Sun Life U.S. "Any major health event can lead to out-of-pocket costs that many people simply cannot afford. Supplemental health benefits like hospital indemnity, as well as critical illness, accident and cancer insurance, can help close the coverage gaps in health insurance and bring people better financial and medical security during a time when they need it most." For "catastrophic" or extremely costly medical conditions, hospital stays can become lengthy. Of the top costliest medical conditions in Sun Life's recent report on stop-loss claims high-cost claims from self-funded employer clients cancer, complications at or after birth and transplants were among the conditions requiring longer hospitalizations, with average stays ranging from 16 to 47 days. In addition, Sun Life stop-loss claims for COVID-19, to date, show hospitalization stays ranging from 3 to 35 days. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the average cost of a hospital stay is $11,000, for approximately five-and-a-half days an average daily cost of $2,500. Members who hold more than one supplemental health policy, such as critical illness, cancer, and hospital indemnity insurance, would be eligible for payouts under each benefit, for stronger financial protection when facing a major health issue. Hospital indemnity from Sun Life is also available on the Sun Life + Maxwell Health digital benefits administration platform, which includes a supplemental health educator to help people understand how these benefits intersect with health insurance. Sun Life's recent webinar on supplemental health and hospital indemnity insurance can be viewed here, and to see how Sun Life is supporting employers and employees during the pandemic, visit www.sunlife.com/coronavirus. About Sun Life Sun Life is a leading international financial services organization providing insurance, wealth and asset management solutions to individual and corporate Clients. Sun Life has operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. As of March 31, 2020, Sun Life had total assets under management of C$1,023 billion. For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com. Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF. In the United States, Sun Life is one of the largest group benefits providers, serving more than 60,000 employers in small, medium and large workplaces across the country. Sun Life's broad portfolio of insurance products and services in the U.S. includes disability, absence management, life, dental, vision, voluntary and medical stop-loss. Sun Life and its affiliates in asset management businesses in the U.S. employ approximately 5,500 people. Group insurance policies are issued by Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (Wellesley Hills, Mass.), except in New York, where policies are issued by Sun Life and Health Insurance Company (U.S.) (Lansing, Mich.). For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com/us. Media contact: Devon Fernald Sun Life U.S. 781-800-3609 [email protected] Connect with Sun Life U.S. https://www.facebook.com/SLFUnitedStates/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/sun-life-financial/ https://twitter.com/SunLifeUS SLPC 30250 SOURCE Sun Life U.S. Related Links http://www.sunlife.com The Houston Chronicles Live Updates blog documents the latest events in the coronavirus outbreak in the Houston area, the state of Texas and across the U.S. with a focus on health and economic impacts. The Houston Chronicles ongoing coverage is available to subscribers. Subscribe now for full access and to support our work. Total coronavirus cases: 456,237 cases in Texas, including 7,544 deaths. 109,585 in the Houston region, including 1,747 deaths. More than 4.7 million in the U.S., including 155,402 deaths. Click here to see a U.S. map with state-by-state death tolls and the latest coronavirus case counts. More than 18.2 million in the world, with more than 692,000 deaths. More than 10.8 million people have recovered. You can view the worldwide totals here. Resources on COVID-19 and Texas' reopening: Use our interactive page to track the spread of cases through Harris County and the rest of Texas. For a detailed look at our state, check out the Chronicle's Texas Coronavirus Map. To get regular updates on our coverage, sign up for our coronavirus newsletter. Latest updates from today: 9 p.m. Texas saw another 6,690 new cases Monday after not reporting any case figures Sunday, according to a Houston Chronicle analysis of state data. The statewide case total went from 449,547 to 456,237. Another 70 newly reported deaths brings the statewide total to 7,544. This is the 30th highest day for new cases and the 25th highest day for newly reported deaths. The state's seven-day rolling average for new cases is now at 8,699.9. The Houston region's case count is 109,585, up 1,926 from Sunday. Harris County added 1,463 new cases Monday and is now at 78,105 cases total. There have been 1,747 deaths in the Houston region, no change from Sunday. The positive test rate statewide increased from 13.12 percent to 13.57 percent. The seven-day rolling average of viral tests was 67,617. Statewide, there were 8,819 patients hospitalized for lab-confirmed COVID-19. There are 52,200 total staffed hospital beds and 11,916 beds available, including 1,101 ICU beds. There are 6,457 ventilators available. 7:30 p.m. The Houston mens apparel chain Tailored Brands filed for bankruptcy protection on Sunday, becoming the latest in a string of retailers looking to reorganize their business and restructure debt amid the coronavirus crisis, reports Amanda Drane. The company, parent of Mens Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank, said it plans to close up to 500 stores as it seeks to restructure some $1.4 billion in debt, according to bankruptcy filings. 5:10 p.m. Houston law enforcement officials will begin issuing fines and citations to people who do not comply with the states mask order, reports Jasper Scherer. The current mandate from Gov. Greg Abbott requires nearly all Texans to wear face coverings in most public settings and has been in effect since early July. Mayor Sylvester Turner on Monday announced the change in Houston. This comes as the city experiences a slight dip in its COVID-19 hospitalization levels and a decline in the rate of positive tests, despite a sustained number of daily new cases. The mayor said police would continue to issue warnings at first, as Abbotts order requires, before fining people $250 for a second offense. 4:05 p.m. In an apparent warning shot at Dr. Stella Immanuel, the Texas agency that regulates the practice of medicine has advised physicians it can take action against those who promise a cure for COVID-19, reports Houston Chronicle's Todd Ackerman. The Texas Medical Board issued a statement about such claims Friday, just a few days after Immanuel, a Houston pastor-doctor, very publicly touted hydroxychloroquine as a cure for the disease. Numerous studies have found the drug does not show any benefit against COVID-19 and the Food and Drug Administration has cautioned about its use because of reports linking it with heart problems and other injuries and disorders. 3:02 p.m. Texas is among 12 states where the wait time to receive COVID-19 results is more than three days, a new study shows, according to Houston Chronicle's Taylor Goldenstein. The median wait time in Texas was four days, while most states was exactly three days, according to the study conducted by The COVID-19 Consortium, a collaborative research project from Northeastern, Harvard, Rutgers and Northwestern universities. Only six states Hawaii, Iowa, Kentucky, New Jersey, Ohio, and Washington had a median wait time of two days. 2:40 p.m Houston Chronicle's Editorial Board is calling for state officials to include antigen test results in their covid-19 case count, which currently isn't happening. Including these antigen results will give Texans better information about the pandemics scope, writes The Editorial Board. That will help them make better decisions, especially with regard to the common-sense restrictions and guidelines announced by state and local public officials aimed at slowing its spread. It also would give officials more confidence in moving to reopen. 12:30 p.m. At least 14 districts in Greater Houston will start their school years online before Labor Day, reports Houston Chronicle's Shelby Webb. Now, education leaders are trying to convince skeptical parents like Amanda Bryant that distance learning this fall will be less headache-inducing than the virtual programs rolled out in spring. 11:41 a.m. Noble Energy, the Houston energy company bought by Chevron last month, suffered steep losses during the second quarter as the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic no the oil and gas industry deepened, reports Houston Chronicle's Paul Takahashi. Energy has become the worst performing sector of the U.S. stock market after the global pandemic slashed demand and sent prices for petroleum products plummeting, forcing companies to cut spending, halt drilling projects and lay off thousands of employees. Nobles losses were affected by a $264 million loss in value of its oil-related assets, a $51 million write-down on its Equatorial Guinea project and $30 million in corporate restructuring costs. 11:00 a.m. The COVID-19 pandemic has strained Houston-area animal shelters, limiting operations during the busiest time of the year and requiring a massive increase in fosters and adoptions to meet demand, reports Houston Chronicle's Jasper Scherer. City and county officials say they have been able to withstand the coronavirus-imposed challenges thanks to a near-herculean response from residents and rescue groups around the Houston area, with the key being a sharp uptick in fosters. Sustained success, however, rests on a number of uncertainties. As the citys Bureau of Animal Control and Regulation, or BARC, and the county shelter, Harris County Pets, continue to operate under a diminished capacity, Houstonians will have to continue fostering and adopting at higher-than-usual rates, shelter officials say. 10:15 a.m. In a conversation with The Houston Chronicle's Lisa Gray, Dr. Peter Hotez, a professor and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, explains how the country could re-open by October. 9:40 a.m Cases and deaths rose across Texas soon after the state reopened in May. But few areas have been hit as hard as the Rio Grande Valley. Across the four-county region, the corpses of those killed by the disease are stacking up in hospitals, mobile morgues, funeral homes and cemeteries. Some funeral homes are booked until late August. Some have an 80-body backlog. Businesses that deal in sanitation and death are booming as the worst outbreak in Texas afflicts the area. 9:00 a.m. The governments official data on the coronavirus outbreak is startling: More than 4.6 million cases in the U.S. More than 440,000 in Texas. More than 70,000 in Harris County. But those numbers dont include all positive COVID-19 patients, reports Houston Chronicle's Stephanie Lamm, Matt Dempsey and Jordan Rubio. Texas, unlike 27 other states, excludes the results of increasingly popular, rapid COVID-19 tests from the numbers it reports publicly obscuring the scope of the pandemic, records and interviews show. 8:41 a.m. A second Houston-area firefighter has died from COVID-19, HFD Chief Samuel Pena announced Monday morning in a tweet. Captain Leroy Lucio, the first Houston-area firefighter to die of COVID, was among at least 189 firefighters who had contracted the virus since the start of the pandemic in March, officials told the Chronicle's Nicole Hensley in July. 8:26 a.m. While Houston's hospitalization numbers for early August are encouraging, the Chronicle's Zach Despart says Texas still has plenty of recovering left to do. HARRISBURG, Pa., Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, AARP Pennsylvania launched "Protect Voters 50+," a comprehensive voter engagement campaign to support and protect Pennsylvanians age 50 and up as they vote in the 2020 elections. The campaign will provide information on where candidates stand on issues that matter to Pennsylvanians 50-plus and help them cast their votes safely from home or in-person. A centerpiece of the campaign will focus on providing information about voting options in Pennsylvania this fall at aarp.org/PAvotes, the AARP Bulletin, direct mail, digital communications and paid media. "This election season promises to be unlike any other but one thing remains clear: If candidates want to win, they must listen to voters 50+," said AARP Pennsylvania State Director Bill Johnston-Walsh. "We'll be looking for candidates to explain how they plan to protect the health and financial security of 50+ Pennsylvanians and their families, especially during this pandemic." The "Protect Voters 50+" campaign will provide people with the information they need about this year's elections, including: Video voters' guides Polling Issue briefings Direct mail, text messaging, social media and paid media AARP Pennsylvania will track key races and host tele-townhall events. Election information will be provided through a full-scale digital effort, including, aarp.org/election2020, AARP Now app, social media, and news alerts. AARP has a proud 34-year history of non-partisan voter engagement and does not endorse or oppose candidates, nor does AARP make contributions to political campaigns or candidates. We encourage all Pennsylvanians to ask questions, so they understand where the candidates stand on important issues and make their own decisions on Election Day. About AARP AARP has 1.8 million members in Pennsylvania. Follow AARP Pennsylvania on Facebook at AARPPA and on Twitter @AARPPA. AARP is the nation's largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With a nationwide presence and nearly 38 million members, AARP strengthens communities and advocates for what matters most to families: health security, financial stability and personal fulfillment. AARP also produces the nation's largest circulation publications: AARP The Magazine and AARP Bulletin. To learn more, visit www.aarp.org or follow @AARP and @AARPadvocates on social media. CONTACT: Steve Gardner, AARP PA (717) 319-5484 or [email protected] SOURCE AARP Pennsylvania Related Links http://www.aarp.org An airport staff member unloads Chinese medical supplies in Ljubljana, Slovenia, May 1, 2020. /Xinhua Editor's Note: Seymur Mammadov is the director of the international expert club EurAsiaAz and editor-in-chief of Azerbaijan news agency Vzglyad.az. The article reflects the author's opinions, and not necessarily the views of CGTN. The coronavirus pandemic that has paralyzed the world is hitting the economies of developing countries. More than 150 countries have already turned to the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank for help. This will be a test for the organizations, which are called upon to maintain the stability of the global economy. On the one hand, we see how the economic crisis is deepening. On the other hand, tensions are growing in relations between the Eurasian countries. During the pandemic, armed conflicts flared up in the hot spots of Eurasia. For example, an escalation of conflict happened on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, which led to the death of at least 16 people. The risks are many and there is a possibility that there will be even more. Therefore, to minimize existing risks and suppress potential risks, it is necessary to "turn risks into opportunities" this is the creation of a more favorable environment for multilateral economic cooperation between Eurasian countries, which can definitely lead to an increase in the level of security and a decrease in tension in relations between Eurasian countries. By launching a sizable economic platform, using economic instruments, effective results can be achieved. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) proposed by China can serve as such a platform during the pandemic and post-pandemic era. China, in fact, may well become the locomotive of a new post-pandemic economic order. Today, risks in the form of inter-ethnic and interstate conflicts in Eurasia have loudly declared themselves, but the willingness to work together can be the first step in reducing tension in relations between the Eurasian countries and their gradual recovery from the economic crisis induced by COVID-19. In this regard, China has a special responsibility as many of the Eurasian countries participating in the BRI look forward to further expanding multilateral cooperation within the framework of the initiative in the post-pandemic period. Belt and Road partner countries and countries that are reluctant to participate in the initiative are all looking for new opportunities and ideas to revitalize their economies, to complete projects suspended due to the pandemic and implement new infrastructure projects. For example, the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine has requested a loan from the Azerbaijani government for the implementation of infrastructure projects in the field of transport. Moreover, the request was sent against the background of the recently provided financial assistance to Kiev by the European Union in the amount of 1.2 billion euros. In fact, there are many more countries, including European ones, that need loans to revive their economies than you might imagine. There is an explanation for this: the GDP of the European Union (EU) countries in the second quarter of 2020 fell by a record 14.4 percent in annual terms. In the EU countries themselves, not everything is going smoothly with the financing of the economic recovery plan. Some are facing severe depletion of their domestic reserves. And the funds allocated by the EU to support the economies of member states are not sufficient to compensate for the losses from the coronavirus pandemic and from the decline in oil prices. During the pandemic, BRI-participating economies were in a better position. In the first four months of 2020, the foreign trade turnover between China and the countries along the Belt and Road reached 2.76 trillion yuan, an increase of 0.9 percent on an annual basis, according to China's General Administration of Customs. Meanwhile, according to China's Ministry of Commerce, Chinese enterprises in the first four months of 2020 invested 4.2 billion U.S. dollars in 52 BRI-participating countries, an 11.7-percent increase over the same period a year earlier. The Belt and Road transport corridors, ports and logistics centers have benefited the countries participating in the initiative by providing medical assistance to partner countries in need of support during the pandemic. This shows that the interconnected routes continue to maintain their main functions, namely, to provide uninterrupted communication between China and other countries of the world. The COVID-19 pandemic has once again proven the close connection between the destinies of all states and the need to create a "Health Silk Road," which the BRI has indicated as a new area of cooperation. During the period of prevention and control of the pandemic, the important role of China-Europe international rail freight was once again revealed, serving as an important logistics line in China's trade cooperation with countries along the Belt and Road. "China-Europe" freight trains from Xi'an, China to Izmit, Turkey cover 6,437 kilometres in just 12 days, cutting the time of transportation of goods by almost half compared to sea transportation. To improve rail freight services on China-Europe routes, China has allocated 200 million yuan (about 28.3 million U.S. dollars) to support the construction of transportation hubs in its five cities. Having passed the test of the coronavirus pandemic, the international cooperation of countries within the BRI framework will become even broader, more diverse and more sophisticated. In the post-pandemic period, the attractiveness of the initiative will only increase. Because if it continues to be implemented and benefits partner countries in a pandemic, then after the final victory over the virus, some countries that have not recognized the success of the BRI in the past and have stayed away from it may reconsider their relations with China and join the idea of building a multipolar world. It doesn't take long to wait. China issues arrest warrants for 6 Hong Kong pro-democracy activists, including US citizen Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Police in Hong Kong issued arrest warrants for six pro-democracy activists living in exile, including in the United States, for violating a controversial China-imposed national security law in the semi-autonomous city. The six named include U.S. citizen Samuel Chu, former U.K. consulate worker Simon Cheng and activists Nathan Law and Ray Wong Toi-yeung, and the charges include taking part in secession efforts and colluding with foreign powers, according to the U.S.-based group China Aid. I think they want to cut off our connection with people in Hong Kong ... it will make people fear that they may violate the national security law by contacting us, Wong, who is currently in the United Kingdom, told Reuters. That Hong Kong has no place for even such moderate views like ours underscores the absurdity of Chinese Communist rule, Law, who is also in the U.K., was quoted as saying. Hong Kong government recently delayed legislative elections, which were supposed to be held in September, for a year as pro-democracy candidates could have won due to anger among the citys people against the new national security law. The law, which went into effect without a review by Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, has four categories of crimes: succession, subversion of state power, local terrorist activities and collaborating with foreign or external foreign forces to endanger national security. The law also positions Beijing as over the Hong Kong judicial system in cases deemed related to national security, China Aid said. This means that the judges in these cases must be Beijing-approved. Hong Kong residents can now also be taken to China, where they will face a courtroom with allegiance to the government. In 1997, China had agreed for a one country, two systems arrangement to allow certain freedoms for Hong Kong when it received the city back from British control. The security law undercuts the promised autonomy. This law fundamentally compromises one-country, two-systems, and breach of the handover agreement. The details emerging put human rights in jeopardy, the U.K.-based group Hong Kong Watch wrote on Twitter after a draft of the law was revealed in June. After the passage of the new security law, President Donald Trump approved sanctions on Chinese officials and banks and also ended Hong Kong's preferential treatment, saying it will now be "treated the same as mainland China." Sen. Rick Scott from Florida had commented earlier, Communist China continues their mission to destroy human rights and autonomy in #HongKong. Its plans to suffocate and intimidate those fighting for their basic rights is clear. The US continues to stand with the people of HK. JEROME, Idaho Magic Valley ranchers have talked for years about the need to increase beef processing capacity in the region. Now a big boost is on the way. On Friday, True West Beef announced itll be building a new beef processing facility near U.S. Highway 93 within Jeromes area of impact. The company has received tax incentives from Jerome County for the project. True West Beef is owned by Boise-based Agri Beef. The Jerome facility will process 500 head of cattle a day and will employ nearly 400 workers at an average salary of $52,000 a year. The company does not yet know exactly when that facility will be finished or how much it will cost. This is a generational moment for everybody in this valley, Oakley rancher Doug Pickett said. Its something weve hoped for for years. Historically, most Magic Valley-raised cattle have been shipped out of the region or state for processing. Long-distance shipping can mean less profit for producers. There are a few smaller processors in south-central Idaho perhaps most notably Ida-Beef in Burley, which opened in 2018 and specializes in dairy cull cows but local producers have long been eager to have more meatpackers. Idaho Gov. Brad Little, a rancher, attended True West Beefs unveiling Friday at the Jerome County Airport and said the company will be a boon both to the cattle-rich Magic Valley and the state. This will add value to local beef, he said. It so reflects what everyone in Idaho wants to see, Little said. I cant think of anything more valuable. Finding a niche Agri Beefs business covers virtually every step of the beef supply chain, from genetics operations, nutrition products and feedlots to processing, niche product marketing and online overnight beef sales. The company has feedlots in Idaho and a mid-size processing facility in Toppenish, Washington. Much of Agri Beefs business is focused on high-end, niche foods. Agri Beef owns the Snake River Farms, Double R Ranch, St. Helens Farms and Rancho El Oro brands. Some of those brands can be found in Magic Valley grocery stores, and some Agri Beef products have been lauded by professional chefs or appeared on national cooking television shows. Snake River Farms Wagyu cattle are raised in eastern Idaho, while Double R Ranch beef is raised in Washington. While an increase in local processing capacity will likely be a big benefit for some ranchers, its not only the beef packing that has some producers excited. The Jerome processing plant will mainly produce Snake River Farms and Double R Ranch products. Those brands are growing more popular, which is why Agri Beef needed to ramp up its processing capacity. Its not just 500 head, its 500 head of highly, highly prized, value-added, highly-marketed livestock thats going to go throughout the world, Little said. This is a big, big addition. When Agri Beef markets the Snake River Farms and Double R Ranch brands, it emphasizes that they come from Idaho and the Northwest. Some consumers are increasingly drawn to products that can be traced back to a specific region. Magic Valley ranchers who can sell their beef to niche markets could see bigger profits. Thats huge for these ranchers, Idaho Rep. Laurie Lickley said. They dont have to develop their own brands and labels. Pickett noted that most Magic Valley ranchers have never had an opportunity to market their beef like this. He said that bringing recognizable, desired brands to the area will help ranchers keep their operations going for future generations. I cant imagine a better scenario, he said. Its the next step in diversifying our ag economy and giving us a chance to be more stable going forward. An unusual model Not only will some Snake River Farms and Double R Ranch beef come from the Magic Valley and be processed in a Jerome facility, some Magic Valley ranchers will partially own that facility. True West Beef will have a somewhat unusual ownership arrangement. Agri Beef will be the majority owner of the Jerome plant, but the ranchers who provide beef to the facility will also have equity. True West Beef Executive Vice President Jay Theiler said the company will know in the next month or two which producers will be partial owners of the plant, but its highly likely some of them will be Magic Valley ranchers. We believe that this model can serve as a new way for beef processing to expand in the U.S. and meet consumer needs, Thieler said. Little noted that other Idaho products already have great marketing and brand recognition. And for many Gem State staples a lot of processing is done in state, keeping more of the revenue here. Adding True West Beef will help make that true for the beef industry. Weve got the dairy industry pretty well taken care of, Little said. Weve got the potato industry pretty well taken care of. The gaping hole was the beef industry. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 New Delhi, Aug 3 : Alleging blatant discrimination by Air India's Personnel and Finance Departments, the pilots have told the national carrier's management that if such behaviour continues unchecked, the Director, Personnel will be responsible for the consequences. In a letter to Air India Chairman and Managing Director Rajiv Bansal, the pilots' associations, the Indian Commercial Pilots Association and the Indian Pilots Guild, have alleged that the management is discriminating against the pilots. "We request you to kindly direct the concerned departments to clear backlogged files as well as outstanding dues for all pilots. We have cooperated unconditionally above and beyond the call of duty to ensure smooth flight operations. This blatant discrimination, among other grievances, has severely hampered our morale and faith in these departments. If such behaviour continues unchecked, the Director, Personnel will be responsible for the consequences to follow," the pilots said. "We would like to bring to your notice the lackadaisical attitude of the Personnel and Finance Departments in ensuring timely action and payment when it comes to pilots," the letter said. "When it comes to doling out promotions en masse for themselves or other support departments, not even a pandemic or national lockdown can dent their enthusiasm. When even retrospective deductions are made on our wages with immediate effect by way of prompt circulars, why do the same people drag their feet when it comes to clearing our rightful dues or honouring our service conditions?" the pilots asked. Citing examples of this "lackadaisical attitude", the pilots said that the Special Pay increment, as per the bilateral wage agreement between the management and the ICPA of January 1, 2016, mentions a yearly increment as per years of service in the grade. "No increment has been made in special pay since 2019. This routine exercise is never given priority, as pilots are the prime beneficiaries. Further, despite clear directions from the Hon. Supreme Court, the 2016 wage has been illegally and unilaterally imposed upon pilots of the IPG who already have a separate bilateral wage agreement. The TMU (Temporary Medically Unfit) Insurance compensation for pilots is never paid on time. Pilots are made to run after their files from one department to the next till there are no more excuses to delay processing. At times, the delay is in years," they said. The pilots alleged that the Captain or Commander Grade revision is never carried out on time, despite being a routine annual exercise. Then, the Personnel Department's draft Establishment orders are replete with mistakes/omissions which has to be corrected through repeated representations, they said. After all this unnecessary delay, when the order is eventually released, the financial benefits accrue from the date of the Establishment order and not from the actual date of promotion, they said. "Why is the cost of the inefficiency of the Personnel Department being paid by pilots?" they asked. The PMU (Permanently Medical Unfit) compensation to any affected pilot is again never paid on time. As mentioned above, the affected pilot is made to run from pillar to post for his/her rightful compensation. "Please note that these pilots have lost their source of livelihood as they are permanently grounded. They are being let down by the company when they need it the most," the pilots said. They also said that the retirement benefits of recent retirees are yet to be cleared. The treatment meted out to these loyal long-serving employees of Air India is unethical, as per the pilots. Purplebricks and Winkworth have reported a surge in demand after a cut in stamp duty and the lifting of lockdown measures boosted the housing market. Chancellor Rishi Sunak raised the stamp duty threshold until March 31 in his summer statement, meaning those who buy properties worth less than 500,000 before then will pay the Exchequer nothing. Since the tax break, London-focused estate agent Winkworth said it had seen 'a significant recovery in sales interest', with traffic on its website at its 'highest-ever level' on the day the cut was announced. At the same time, online agent Purplebricks said it was 'encouraged by the early signs of the housing market rebounding well. Boost: Chancellor Rishi Sunak raised the stamp duty threshold until March 31 in his summer statement Following the updates, Winkworth shares rose 4.3 per cent, or 6p, to 146p, while Purplebricks shares rose 9.3 per cent, or 4.35p, to 51p. Purplebricks said July was its 'highest ever month' for UK instructions, with more than 7,000 homes listed. However, the firm reported a 2 per cent drop in revenues for the year to April 30, which included flat revenues for the first 10 months and a drop in the last two as the pandemic struck. The firm's losses also widened from 4.9m to 13.2m. Boss Vic Darvey said despite the difficult conditions he was 'pleased to say that we saw a resilient performance'. But the business also warned the outlook for the second half of this financial year is uncertain, despite a strong restart in the market. Winkworth said week-on-week reservations had surged 64 per cent higher the day after the stamp duty cut but it was hard to say whether this would 'translate into completed sales and how sustained this increased activity level will be'. Dominic Agace, chief executive, said the big uplift had come from buyers not only interested in London but also in areas in the commuter belt and towns and cities with a longer commute, 'reflecting the move to a more flexible working landscape'. Suspended Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Tahir Hussain has told the Delhi Police that ask was to collect as much glass bottle, petrol, acid, stones as possible during the violence in Northeast Delhi in February this year, according to news agency ANI. The Delhi Police have prepared an Interrogation Report (IR), ANI reported, in which they have mentioned that one of Hussains acquaintance, Khalid Saifi, was given the task to gather people on the streets for protest. Khalid Saifi, along with his friend Ishrat Jahan, first started a dharna demonstration in Khureji on the lines of Shaheen Bagh. On February 4, in Abu Fazal Enclave, I met Khalid Saifi for planning the riots, the police have quoted Hussain as saying in their Interrogation Report, according to ANI. On February 4, in Abu Fazal Enclave, I met Khalid Saifi for planning the riots. It was decided to provoke people sitting on the anti-CAA strike. Khalif Saifi said that something big has to be done at the time of Donald Trumps visit so that the government kneel, the Delhi Polices IR further mentioned. The Delhi Polices Crime Branch had earlier filed a charge sheet against 15 people, including Hussain and his younger brother Shah Alam. The police had contended that there was recovery of crates containing glass bottles having some liquid filled in them and their necks stuffed with pieces of cloth. The police said these were as Molotov cocktails while adding that a large number of bricks, stone pieces and three catapults were also seized from Hussains house. They said that this point towards the conspiracy and the extent of preparation for causing riots in the area. The police said that Hussain met former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid at Popular Front of India (PFI) office in Shaheen Bagh on January 8. Hussain is one of the prime accused in the killing of Intelligence Bureau (IB) staffer Ankit Sharma, whose body was recovered from a drain in Chand Bagh on February 26, during the violence in Northeast Delhi. During an interview this morning, national food poisoning lawyer Ron Simon stated: "As of now, there are 396 identified victims in the U.S., with another 114 in Canada. But this is likely just the tip of the iceberg. We have yet to find out how many victims there will be in the red onion salmonella outbreak linked to Thomson International, Inc. This is likely to be the largest salmonella outbreak of 2020." The lawsuit was filed against Thomson International, Inc. and the retail outlet, Stater Bros Markets, in Riverside County, California, on behalf of Betty Alderson. A copy of the lawsuit is available upon request. Mrs. Alderson purchased onions from the local Stater Bros Markets, and shortly thereafter began to experience severe abdominal pain, nausea, and frequent diarrhea. On June 29th, she was forced to seek medical treatment at San Gorgonio Memorial Hospital in Banning, California. She was admitted due to the severity of her condition, including kidney failure. She was hospitalized for twelve days. Mrs. Alderson continues to recover from salmonella food poisoning. The Red Onion Salmonella Outbreak Likely to be the Largest in 2020 By early July, 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Food and Drug Association (FDA), and state and local health agencies had identified a large spike in Salmonella Newport cases across 34 states and Canada. After an intense investigation and trace-back effort, the CDC and FDA announced, on July 31, 2020, that the source of the outbreak was red onions produced by Thomson International, Inc. of Bakersfield, California. In response to the investigation Thomson International, Inc. initiated a voluntary recall of all of its onion products to prevent the continuous spread of salmonellosis. The recall was announced on August 1, 2020, and it includes Red, Yellow, White, and Sweet Yellow Onions shipped by Thomson International, Inc. from May 1, 2020 through the present. The contaminated onion products were distributed to wholesalers, restaurants, and retail stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. Illness onset began on June 19, 2020, with 396 reported cases and 59 hospitalizations in at least 34 states in the United States, including: AK (6), AZ (14), CA (49), CO (10), FL (3), ID (5), IL (10), IN (2), IA (15), KS (1), KY (1), ME (4), MD (1), MI (23), MN (10), MO (6), MT (33), NE (5), NV (5), NY (4), NC (3), ND (5), OH (7), OR (71), PA (2), SC (1), SD (11), TN (5), TX (1), UT (61), VA (4), WA (2), WI (5), and WY (11). The outbreak has also spread to Canada, with 114 reported cases in the following provinces: British Columbia (43), Alberta (55), Manitoba (13), Ontario (2), and Prince Edward Island (1). The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has reported that those with reported salmonella infections confirmed eating red onions at home, at restaurants, or in residential care settings. The investigation into the outbreak and illnesses are ongoing. Food Safety Attorney Ron Simon Establishes Salmonella Claim Center National food safety attorney Ron Simon, who represents Mrs. Alderson and other salmonella victims, has established a Salmonella Claim Center to assist victims in the outbreak. The Salmonella Claim Center can be reached toll-free at 1-888-335-4901, or by visiting www.foodpoisoningnews.com or www.onionsalmonellalawsuit.com. About Food Safety Attorney Ron Simon Over the last 25 years, Ron Simon and his colleagues have prosecuted thousands of food poisoning cases for victims across the United States. His work has resulted in numerous upgrades to food safety procedures in Fortune 500 companies and in legislation designed to protect consumers from dangerous food-borne pathogens. Mr. Simon and his clients have been featured on NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, FOX and virtually all other major television networks and print media. Mr. Simon and his legal team have collected over $750,000,000 for their clients. He regularly publishes articles about food safety and litigation at www.foodpoisoningnews.com which are read by viewers in over 180 countries. Through litigation, media commentary, and his food poisoning publications, Mr. Simon relentlessly challenges food manufacturers, distributors, and restaurants to do a better job in making our food safe. For media inquiries or more information on the salmonella outbreak and ongoing litigation, please contact Ron Simon directly at (281) 851-9343, 1-888-335-4901, or [email protected]. SOURCE Ron Simon & Associates Related Links foodpoisoningnews.com His discovery, at the home of a family friend, ended a four-day search by his parents. Charles Todman reunited with his father at Sydney Airport in 1970. Credit:Robert Rice A 13-year-old boy ran away from his Kingsford home on Saturday and ended up in Paris yesterday. First published in The Age on August 5, 1970 The boy is Charles Todman, who migrated to Australia just over a year ago with his parents and five brothers and sisters. It was his second attempt to return to Paris. Charles left home with 20 cents. It cost him 10 cents to catch the bus to Mascot airport. Charles was discovered when he turned up at the Paris home of a family friend on the Rue des Couronnes. Nahrstadt said he would ask the company about their flexibility and availability in the future. For now, Village President Sandy Frum suggested canceling the current contract and revisiting the idea at a later date so as to not miss out on the grace period. Hours after late Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput's father claimed that the Mumbai Police was warned about the threat to the actor's life in February, the Mumbai Police on Monday countered Singh saying that he never made any written complaint about the threat to his son's life. It is to be noted that in the morning, Mumbai Commissioner Param Bir Singh said that the police had was no information about the complaint made on February 25. However, in the evening, the Mumbai Police stated that there was information but there was no written complaint. In a startling claim, Rajput's father Krishna Kishore Singh said that Mumbai Police was warned but it failed to take note of it and also did not act upon complaints against named persons a day after his death on June 14. The official statement of the Mumbai Police read, "Today KK Singh, father of late Sushant Singh Rajput has released a statement saying that the family had made a written complaint to Bandra Police on 25th February. It must be clarified that no such written complaint has been addressed to Bandra Police Station on that date." "However. one OP Singh IPS, the brother in law of late Sushant Singh Rajput, had sent some Whatsapp messages to the then DCP Zone 9 regarding this matter. The then DCP Zone 9 had called OP Singh and requested him that a written complaint is mandatory for any enquiry or action. However, Singh wanted this to be resolved informally, to which the then DCP Zone 9 clearly told him that it was not possible." Issuing a video statement, KK Singh recounted the sequence of events that led to his lodging a complaint with Patna police after which it is on the lookout for the accused currently on the run. "I had told the Mumbai police in February that my son Sushant faced a threat to his life but it did nothing. When my son died on June 14, I requested them to take action against named persons. But nothing came of it even after 40 days. Left with no other option, I lodged a case at a police station here in Patna," Singh said. Patna police swung into action immediately, Singh remarked appreciatively and thanked Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and state minister Sanjay Jha who came forward to "stand for the truth. Singh had, in his complaint on which an FIR was lodged on July 25, accused actress Rhea Chakraborty and her family members of abetting his son's suicide, besides defrauding him of his money and subjecting him to blackmail. His decision to go public on the matter for the first time comes in the backdrop of alleged non-cooperation of Mumbai police with its Patna counterpart. CASEVILLE When students return to Huron County public schools next month, almost six months will have passed since they have been in a classroom. Caseville Public Schools Superintendent Ken Ewald knows its crucial for his students to return to in-person learning, but uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus pandemic in Michigan could interfere with the scheduled start of the new school year. I just hope that by Sept. 8 were able to have kids in school, Ewald said. We need to get back to face-to-face instruction with our students as quickly as possible. Ewald said he has been conferring with administrators from other districts on a regular basis as they navigate through uncharted waters. The academic year was originally scheduled to begin on Aug. 17, but they all agreed it would be best for students and staff if the date was moved up to Sept. 8, giving them a little more breathing room. They are all facing considerable challenges in bringing students back to class, and cooperation is playing a vital role as the first day of school draws closer. The superintendents in our county have been meeting weekly, and were trying to coordinate our services as much as possible with one another so that our students are receiving the best educational opportunities possible, Ewald said. Caseville conducted a survey of parents in July to gather information about student access to technology and the internet in their homes, as well as parents concerns and opinions on in-person and online learning. Ewald said they were still reviewing survey responses and would have results in a week or two. In the meantime, Ewald said staff members are continuing to prepare to welcome back students and have already created protocols for keeping classrooms clean and disinfected. He didnt anticipate issues regarding class size and social distancing, and plans for lunchtime to include staggering classes and essentially establishing six different lunchtimes instead of three. Were small enough where we can have two classes in our cafeteria at a time and still have a social distancing component, keeping the kids separated as much as possible, Ewald said. He also said theyre making some small adjustments regarding their busing, and theyre also developing new practices for picking up and dropping off students, since parents will not be allowed in the building. Ewald said the school has had a wellness clinic with a nurse for some time, and the health department nurse assigned to Caseville Public Schools will coordinate with the schools wellness nurse. I just want parents to know that all of us in the county are working hard to put together the best plans feasible for the education of all of our students, Ewald said. Robbins said it will take some work to get their messaging across that this acquisition will benefit students. We just havent done as good a job as I think we could have in that regard. I think this is a golden opportunity for us to give that message to students that the University of Arizona cares about you, cares about your future, Robbins said. THE FUTURE UA Internally, there are hopes that with expansion not only will more students come through the UA pipeline, but financial gains will also be recognized for years to come. Thats particularly important now, with the UA facing extreme financial pressure due to COVID-19. When an organization is struggling, you cant just stand back and let the world happen around you. Youve got to think about where youd like to be 10 years from now and what are the things youd like to be doing to help you get there, Goldberg said. He noted that if you look at the large online providers, these are $600- and $700-million-a-year businesses. This easily in a decade could be $100 million in revenue to the University of Arizona. The Indian army has categorically conveyed to China's PLA at the fifth round of military talks it will not compromise on India's territorial integrity, and clearly said disengagement of troops from Pangong Tso and a few other friction points in eastern Ladakh should be completed at the earliest, people familiar with the developments said on Monday. Senior commanders of the two armies held intense negotiations for nearly 11 hours on Sunday at a designated meeting point in Moldo on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC). The Indian delegation very clearly and firmly communicated to the Chinese side that restoration of status quo ante in all areas of eastern Ladakh was key for overall ties between the two countries, and that Beijing must ensure complete disengagement of its troops from the remaining friction points, according to the people familiar with the developments. It was also categorically conveyed that the Indian army will not compromise on the country's territorial integrity, they said. The Chinese army has pulled back from Galwan Valley and certain other areas but the withdrawal of troops has not moved forward from the Finger Four and Eight areas in Pangong Tso as demanded by India. The mountain spurs in the area are referred to as Fingers. China also has not completed withdrawal of troops from Gogra areas. The focus of the Sunday talks was on finalising the modalities for further de-escalation, and disengagement of troops from various friction points, sources said, adding both sides were to discuss details of the negotiations with their respective military and political leadership. The sources said Army Chief Gen MM Naravane was given a detailed briefing about the talks on Monday morning which was subsequently followed by a discussion he held with senior military officials on the overall situation in eastern Ladakh. It is learnt that National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar were also apprised about the talks, and the entire military and strategic brass tasked to deal with the border row is deliberating on various aspects of the overall situation. The Indian delegation was led by Lt Gen Harinder Singh, the commander of the Leh-based 14 Corps, while the Chinese side was headed by Major General Liu Lin, commander of the South Xinjiang military region. The previous round of the Corps Commander-level talks took place on the Indian side of the LAC on July 14 and it lasted for nearly 15 hours. There was no official word on details of the meeting. The military talks took place 10 days after both sides held another round of diplomatic parleys on the border issue. After the diplomatic talks, the Ministry of External Affairs(MEA) said both sides agreed that an early and complete disengagement of the troops along the LAC in accordance with bilateral agreement and protocols was essential for the overall development of bilateral relations. Last week, India rebutted China's claim that the disengagement process was completed at most locations. "There has been some progress made towards this objective but the disengagement process has as yet not been completed," MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said when asked about China's claim. In the last three weeks, India has significantly ramped up troops and weaponry in the areas around Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) and Depsang Valley in commensurate with deployment of troops by China's People's Liberation Army(PLA). During the military and diplomatic talks, India has also been demanding withdrawal of Chinese troops from Depsang, the area where they had intruded in 2013. The transgressions had created military and diplomatic tensions but was resolved after hectic rounds of negotiations following which the Chinese troops withdrew. India began sending reinforcements to Depsang and the areas around DBO in mid-May when tension between the two sides gradually escalated, and the deployment has been significantly ramped up with several thousand troops, tanks and artillery guns in the last two months, sources said. The formal process of disengagement of troops began on July 6, a day after a nearly two-hour telephonic conversation between NSA Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on ways to bring down tension in the face-off points. The first round of the Lt General talks was held on June 6 during which both sides finalised an agreement to disengage gradually from all the standoff points beginning with Galwan Valley. However, the situation deteriorated following the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15 in which 20 Indian Army personnel were killed as the two sides significantly bolstered their deployments in most areas along the LAC. The Chinese side also suffered casualties in the clashes but it is yet to give out the details. According to an American intelligence report, the number of casualties on the Chinese side was 35. The second round of military talks took place on June 22. At the third round of military talks on June 30, both sides agreed on an "expeditious, phased and step wise" de-escalation as a "priority" to end the standoff. Following the Galwan Valley incident, the government has given the armed forces "full freedom" to give a "befitting" response to any Chinese misadventure along the LAC. The Indian Air Force(IAF) has also moved air defence systems as well as a sizable number of its frontline combat jets and attack helicopters to several key air bases. Five people have been injured after a shotgun was fired following a large street party in Birmingham, police said. Armed police were sent to Dudley Road in Winson Green at 1.45am this morning as they responded to calls of a firearm being discharged in the street. One man was found with multiple wounds on his legs while a further two men and two women also suffered minor injuries. Police understand more than 100 people gathered for a street party and there was a shooting after disorder broke out. Armed police were sent to Dudley Road in Winson Green at 1.45am this morning as they responded to calls of gun shots The road is closed to forensic examination and detectives are currently seizing and reviewing CCTV. Gatherings of more than 30 people are still banned in England under the government's eased lockdown measures to help slow the spread of coronavirus. Birmingham Police Chief Inspector Pervez Mohammed said: 'This is a hugely reckless act, discharging a shotgun in a crowded space, and it is lucky no-one was seriously hurt. 'Our detectives have moved quickly to seize some potentially very significant CCTV and well be progressing that today to try and identify offenders. A West Midlands Police forensics officer takes pictures and recovers evidence on Dudley Road West Midlands Police cordoned off the road for forensic examination and detectives are seizing and reviewing CCTV West Midlands Police are appealing for any witnesses or anyone with footage recorded on a mobile phone. Pictured: Two officers at the scene following the street party 'It also needs stressing that large gatherings like this during the CoVID-19 health pandemic are completely unacceptable and dangerous. 'We understand there may have been in excess of 100 people gathered for this street party. They were causing concern among residents and major traffic disruption. 'Large gatherings are still banned because there is a risk of the virus spreading. If we have encountered any large gatherings we have been encouraging people to disperse but we will enforce and issue fines if necessary.' A forensic officer recovers evidence after the street party in Winson Green, Birmingham Police understand more than 100 people had gathered for a street party in Birmingham West Midlands Police are appealing for any witnesses or anyone with footage recorded on a mobile phone showing the disorder or the shooting to get in touch. A resident who lives in an apartment overlooking the road with their wife and child told Express & Star: 'Women were even dancing on cars, twerking, it was like a full on party. They had a barbecue and even a bouncy castle, it was surreal.' They added: 'I live with my wife and my child and I dont want to put them in danger because people who dont live here have decided to have a rave.' A spokesman for West Ambulance Service confirmed two ambulances and two paramedics attended the scene after police called them at 1.59am, Express & Star reported. They said they treated a man for injuries not believed to be serious and two women for minor injuries. All three were taken to hospital for further treatment. A UN-backed tribunal will give its verdict Friday on the 2005 murder of former Lebanese premier Rafic Hariri, but questions will remain over a long and costly trial whose suspects remain at large. Four alleged members of the Shiite Muslim fundamentalist group Hezbollah are on trial in absentia at the court in the Netherlands over the huge Beirut suicide bombing that killed Sunni billionaire Hariri and 21 other people. The judgment harks back to an event that changed the face of the Middle East, with Hariri's assassination triggering a wave of demonstrations that pushed Syrian forces out of Lebanon after 30 years. The court is billed as the world's first international tribunal set up to probe terrorist crimes, and it has cost at least $600 million since it opened its doors in 2009 following a UN Security Council resolution. But the tribunal faces doubts over its credibility with Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah refusing to hand over the defendants, and the case relying almost entirely on mobile phone records. And while Hariri's son Saad looked forward to a "day of truth and justice", many Lebanese people are meanwhile more preoccupied with the country's economic crisis, the worst since the 1975-1990 civil war. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the judgment "will be delivered from the courtroom with partial virtual participation" at 0900 GMT on Friday. - 'Intentional homicide' - The four defendants went on trial in 2014 on charges including the "intentional homicide" of Hariri and 21 others, attempted homicide of 226 people wounded in the bombing, and conspiracy to commit a terrorist act. Salim Ayyash, 56, is accused of leading the team that carried out the bombing, which involved a truck packed full of explosives that detonated near Hariri's motorcade on February 14, 2005. Assad Sabra, 43, and Hussein Oneissi, 46, allegedly sent a fake video to the Al-Jazeera news channel claiming responsibility on behalf of a made-up group. Hassan Habib Merhi, 54, is accused of general involvement in the plot. The alleged mastermind of the bombing, Hezbollah commander Mustafa Badreddine, was indicted by the court but is believed to have died while fighting with the Syrian regime in May 2016. The surviving suspects face life imprisonment if convicted, although sentencing will be carried out at a later date. "If a convicted person is at liberty and not present the trial chamber shall issue a warrant of arrest," a court spokesman said. Both the prosecution and defence can appeal the judgment and sentence, while if a defendant is eventually arrested he can request a retrial. - 'Severe threat' - Prosecutors said during the trial that Hariri was assassinated because he was perceived to be a "severe threat" to Syrian control of the country. Hariri was Lebanon's Sunni premier until his resignation in 2004 over Syria's role as power-broker in the country. The case was "circumstantial" but "compelling", prosecutors said, resting on mobile phone records allegedly showing the suspects conducting intense surveillance of Hariri from just after his resignation until minutes before the blast. Saad Hariri, who later went on to become prime minister like his father, said in a statement issued by his office last week that he had "never lost hope in international justice and the exposure of the truth". "We in the Future Movement look to the seventh of August, to be a day of truth and justice for Lebanon," he said. He called on supporters to demonstrate "patience" and avoid social media disputes about the verdict. Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab meanwhile called on people to avoid "fishing in troubled waters" and said authorities "must be ready to deal with the fallout" of the judgment. The verdict will not be the end of the tribunal's work, as it opened a second case last year charging prime suspect Ayyash with terrorism and murder over deadly attacks on politicians in 2004 and 2005. The consequences of the Hariri murder still loom large over the Middle East They didn't show up for their trial The head of Ukrainian delegation to the Trilateral Contact Group to settle the situation in Donbas, the first president of Ukraine, Leonid Kravchuk, believes that representatives of the occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions should clearly articulate how they see the future of the so-called ORDLO. "Judging by their statements, the "elections" that have already taken place there, they [representatives of ORDLO] want autonomy, federalization. They want this to be a territory with signs not only of some kind of "special status of government", but that it there was a territory with signs of statehood. That is, they take very high. Russia is still talking about a "special status", as it is written in the Minsk documents. But there they wrote down so that we do not know what it means," he said on air of Ukraine 24 TV channel on Saturday, August 1. Kravchuk recalled that when the events in Donbas began, he had already addressed the leaders of the so-called "DPR" and "LPR" on one of the TV channels so that they could prepare written proposals on what they wanted to have on the territory of these regions. "Either it is a 'Special status', or it is something with signs of statehood, or it is an autonomy. Write down what steps you could take so that there is a compromise, so that you can negotiate. I have not received any answer," he said. Kravchuk said also that he speaks of a "special management system" in these territories, since, in his opinion, management there cannot duplicate those management schemes that exist in other regions, because ORDLO has developed quite complex and not similar to other regions of Ukraine situation. Kravchuk believes that Ukraine should not negotiate with representatives of ORDLO at a level of the president, at a high state level, but it is necessary to look for formats when other negotiators can conduct a dialogue, for example, with Ukraine's First Prime Minister Vitold Fokin, if he appointed as a member of Ukrainian delegation to the TCG. "There are people there who are not tied to purely political issues. Perhaps there could be scientists, someone else. You can create from this side and from the other side, and start talking at this level. So that it does not look like the state level at once. And when they write a roadmap and this map is agreed upon, then it will be possible to raise the issue at a higher level for a final decision," he said. Testing at schools could be carried out in 90 minutes - Barry Batchelor A new 90-minute virus testing regime will be rolled out in schools, Matt Hancock has confirmed. The Health Secretary said the two tests, which can detect coronavirus and flu and promise results in 90 minutes, were "a big step forward in terms of how quickly we're going to be able to get tests. "These technologies which deliver these rapid turnaround tests will mean that we can expand testing capacity further and into settings where, for instance, in schools, currently we have survey testing, so we have some testing, that would be able to be expanded, he told BBC News. "We're on track to deliver half a million tests a day by the end of October, but new technologies, like these two, will help us to accelerate that. Mr Hancock added that this meant a greater number of people were going to be able to get tested more quickly so we can find out where the virus is and tackle it and keep those rates of infection down. Nadhim Zahawi, the business and industry minister, reiterated that the new 90-minute tests could be used in schools, when he said that they could be rolled out to other settings, including schools. He added that the tests can be administered without someone having technical abilities or technical know-how. "There is a plan already for schools, and we're going to have children back at school, September 1, Mr Zahawi added. "This is a further enhancement of our capabilities, and as we roll this out we will obviously be looking at other settings, including schools, to roll it out into." It comes as Downing Street confirmed that schools will reopen "for all pupils in all year groups" in England at the start of the autumn term. The Prime Minister's official spokesman said: "You've heard from the Prime Minister on many occasions his absolute commitment to getting children back into school in September and that's vital for their education and their development. Story continues "We are planning for all pupils in all year groups to be in school full-time from the beginning of the autumn term." He cautioned that "hypothetically" some schools might not reopen straight away "if there was to be a very specific localised lockdown that requires a single school to close". Any localised approach would involve an assessment of the situation on the ground and take whatever steps were required to slow the spread of the virus. However Patrick Roach, general secretary of the NASUWT, the teachers union, said over the weekend that ministers would still have to convince staff and parents that it is safe to reopen schools next month, after unions were accused by MPs of breathing fear into parents during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic that schools were death traps. The union IATSE (the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees) has released a 27-page set of safety guidelines for the return of live performance after the coronavirus pandemic ends. IATSE represents over 140,000 theatrical technicians, stagehands, front-of-house workers, ticket sellers, hair and makeup artists, wardrobe specialists, and more. The list of guidelines was reviewed by medical experts in occupational health and safety. Among the necessary changes listed are canceling all future backstage tours and autograph experiences at stage doors. Ushers will no longer handout programs; they will be provided for audience members to take from a table or rack. All union venues must have a written Covid-19 safety plan in place. Employers will provide and maintain PPE if required. Paid leave and income retention will be ensured for any employee that gets sick or comes in contact with the virus. Click here to read the full list. On February 29, Washington State health officials announced what they believed to be the first death due to the novel coronavirus in the United States. By March 31, the official national death toll stood at 3,173. It was a larger number, news outlets noted, than lives lost in the September 11 attacks. A month later, on April 28, the US confirmed its millionth covid-19 case and logged its 58,365th death from the virus. Now we had passed American military deaths in the Vietnam War. By May 27, the coronavirus had killed more than 100,000 people in the US. As outlets ticked off the grim numerical milestones, photojournalists struggled for better ways to convey the devastation. The definitive image of the crisis has eluded us. The Great Depression had Migrant Mother, and World War II Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima. The aids crisis had The Face of aids, depicting the death of David Kirby; 9/11 had Falling Man; and the war in Syria has Alan Kurdi. But now, with the country in hibernation, and hospital patients largely off limits, how can photographers give meaning to the incomprehensible numbers? War is 95 percent boredom and 5 percent sheer terror, from a journalists point of view, says David Hume Kennerly, who won a 1972 Pulitzer Prize for his feature photography of the Vietnam War. CJR sat down with Kennerly and three other esteemed photojournalists from that conflict, Art Greenspon, Robert Hodierne, and David Burnett, to ask what lessons we can take from Vietnam to cover todays invisible killer and the absence of public suffering. The conversations have been edited for length and clarity. Sign up for CJR 's daily email We just passed one hundred and fifty thousand deaths in the States. Why are those last fifty thousand deaths less noteworthy to us than the ones between ninety thousand and one hundred thousand? Art Greenspon: You know, covid is being covered like a war, but a war is different, at least in my experience of the Vietnam War. Its numbers and tactics and troop movements. With the virus, journalists have focused on the number of hospitalizations, number of new cases, number of tests. Just numbers, numbers, numbers. And credit Governor Cuomo for referring to that all the time in his press conferences. We lost another thousand people today. Robert Hodierne: About the fourth word out of [PBS anchor] Judy Woodruffs mouth every night is the new body count. This is different than war. There are no funerals. When a guy was killed in Vietnam, there was a big hoopla as he came home. The flag-draped coffin, and the bugler playing taps. The family was given the flag, and everybody would gather around for the burial. It was a very traditional way of mourning. covid, you take your loved one to the hospital, and you never see them again. David Hume Kennerly: I think the problem with numbers in general is they dont relate to the actual person. Its something Ive thought about my whole career. When I first realized that, I think, was one of those big cyclones in Bangladesh or East Pakistan or whatever it was at the time, you know, like five hundred thousand people killed. No way to relate to that. I dont think we understand the immensity of this, and everybody uses the same markers. Now weve reached the death toll of Vietnam. Now its more than Iraq and Afghanistan put together. Its all b.s. What is missing in our photographic coverage so far? Kennerly: A lot of the funerals happen and the families cant even be there, so basically what is stripped away is people grieving at a grave site. Like the great moment with Jackie Kennedy at the grave site, stuff like that. Youre not going to see it. I havent been doing it because Im past seventy years old. Ive just tried to avoid it. Ive hung my ass out enough without getting whacked by some invisible presence, you know, and possibly giving it to somebody else. But there are a lot of great photographers out there trying to make that picture, and I think its probably most frustrating to them because we dont have a signal moment. If you can stay alive doing it, its easier to cover a war with palpable action right there in front of you. Smoke, fire, and fear. I know the people who took the greatest photographs ever. Eddie Adamss Saigon Execution, Nick Uts Napalm Girl, Joe Rosenthal of the Iwo Jima flag raising. And those are pictures that are forever in your heart and soul. And we dont have that moment right now. A perfect recent example of the power of the image in a situation like this would be the Syrian refugee kid on the beach. Or the El Salvadorean father and child who had drowned trying to cross the border river. I dont think one of those kinds of images has been made yet showing the impact of the coronavirus plague. A majority of people are dying in nursing homes and hospitals. Its a medical atmosphere. If you can stay alive doing it, its easier to cover a war with palpable action right there in front of you. Smoke, fire, and fear. David Burnett: There is no cataclysmic equivalent of bombs dropping, or grenades going off, or rifle fire, or firefights. Its kind of anti-noise. Its so much more internal and infernal. We are groping to try and find something that equates to those numbers, to give a sense of the extent to which this has taken over and destroyed the lives of so many people. Its not an easy thing to do if youre the photographer. Youre trying to give a representation of something thats, in a way, very physical. But the feeling is kind of metaphysicalyoure trying to imply something, to make people understand it, without overdoing the dead-body part. Its about trying to find something thats representational. In Vietnam, there were these visual moments of high panic and stress in combat or the moments after combat when you could see the effect of it. And here its all been the hospital. Theres probably a little bit of alarms going off if youre in the ICU or something, but essentially, the whole thing is existing on a level of quietude that is very different. Hodierne: The iconic imagery from Vietnam that involves casualties were like the Art Greenspon photograph of the jungle clearing. Everybody has their heads down, and one guy is raising his arms up. John Olsens photograph from Hue during Tet of a tank with dead and wounded guys arrayed on it is a pretty powerful image of death in combat. But I dont know how to compare the two. I think the photographers who are going into these hospitals are very brave. Taking pictures in a combat situation is pretty scary and pretty dangerous. But at least you sort of know where the danger is coming from. You know where the gunfire is coming from, how to take shelter, how to protect yourself. In the hospital, no matter how well dressed you are in PPE, its still a risk. How do you clean your cameras? Im glad Im not having to do that. Greenspon: Wheres Life magazine? Wheres Jimmy Breslin from the Daily News? They used to do personal essays, you know, of great photography. I think when youre remote filing, and doing things on the phone, and that kind of becomes the culture, youre going to get journalism from thirty thousand feet at best. How many photographers and journalists have lost their lives covering the covid epidemic? It was typical in Vietnam, too. There were six hundred journalists, but most of them didnt go into the field. They were happy to go to the Five Oclock Follies and cover it from a distance with the handouts and the numbers. My kids are twenty-one now. I keep telling them: You have to pay attention to this, this is the biggest story in your life, this may be the biggest story in my life. I keep trying to think back to 1968 and to this series of traumas. You know, the demonstrations, the anti-war protests, and then the Martin Luther King assassination, and then the [Robert] Kennedy assassination. There was this series of gut punches. But this is different. This is somehow more terrifying. Weve been focusing on the big picture, the pervasiveness of this. But the secret to an iconic photograph is to make it very personal and express the larger picture through an intimate portrait of a situation. In May of 1968 I was shot in the face in a cemetery in Saigon the same day that Co Rentmeester (Life) was wounded and Charlie Eggleston (UPI) was killed. I guess we got too close. Journalists have always suffered heavy casualties covering risky stories. Maybe they are today too, but Im not reading about it. Why? I dont see those stories that tell the really human content. When I was a broadcast journalist, my editors kept saying to me, What does it mean to the guy in the street? And when you do journalism from thirty thousand feet, you dont connect with the guy in the street. Now, this is devastating, the links with systemic racism. covid is devastating our Black and brown communities. Whos telling that story from inside the community? All right, its very difficult as a photographer to get up close because of hipaa and because of patient confidentiality, but I think a reporter can get inside and maybe a photographer could get inside. Somebody has got to tell the story of the firehouse, and the EMT, and the church doing the testing, and the people dying in fifth-floor walk-ups that are a hundred degrees. Whos telling those stories? Wheres the story from inside the nursing home, about the people waiting to die and not being with their loved ones? Weve seen the picture from outside, you know, of the people trying to get inside. But what about the story from the inside, those old people? What is it like to be an old person? Breslin would be in that firehouse and hed be rolling with those ambulances and fire trucks that are going to get somebody out of the fifth floor on a ladder because they couldnt get him down the stairs or something. Hed be telling that story. And it would be very emotional. It would be very connected. So maybe thats what Im talking about, is connectivity. Now, that may have to do with how the structure of journalism has changed. Id really have to ask myself whether Id be willing to risk my life to get that iconic photograph of covid. Because what are the rewards? Its tough to make a living as a photojournalist these days. War is 95 percent boredom and 5 percent sheer terror, from a journalists point of view. Sometimes the definitive photograph from an event doesnt emerge until later. With 9/11, it wasnt immediately clear that Falling Man was it. Hodierne: There are photographs from the Vietnam era that I think everybody knew at the time. The little girl was burned, running naked toward the photographer. I think everybody recognized that that photograph was really important. And the photograph of the Saigon police chief blowing the brains out of a Viet Cong prisoner. You knew instantly. From the Second World War, Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima was immediately published in every newspaper in the country, on stamps and everything. There wasnt any waiting on that one. But I think youre right about this. I have yet to see the definitive image, the one that I think, you know, we will look back on five years from now and say that got it like the Falling Man got it. I wonder if part of the challenge of capturing the definitive images of the pandemic is that so much of the suffering is internal. Or that our faces are covered? Hodierne: Well, yeah, but the eyes. In some ways, it makes you focus even more on the eyes. When you look at all the best war pictures, its the eyes of those guys. Its what we used to call the two-thousand-meter stare. You know, David Douglas Duncan. Photographs of Marines in Korea. Its the eyes that get you. Or I think that you could still do really good portraits of people with their masks on if you stand eight feet away with a 105 millimeter lens. Ask him to take the mask off. The mask isnt protecting them, its protecting you. Kennerly: With Ebola, the fact that you were on the line between life and death was much more palpable. Here, all the major players are behind protective clothing: goggles, masks. So you can get some intense intensity in the eyes of the doctors and nurses and health caregivers and all that. A sterile atmosphere does not a good picture make. Burnett: You realize how much we rely on looking at someone in their eyes, in their face, and that becomes a great communicator of what people are undergoing, what theyre thinking. And if masks are in placewell, I just have yet to see a mask picture that really touches me. A lot of journalists feel story fatigue has become a real challenge with covid coverage. Did you ever have that problem with Vietnam? Burnett: I only got to Vietnam in 1970. Id just turned twenty-four when I went out there. It sounds young, but I was older than probably three-quarters of the soldiers. Even then it was still a big story. It was still a story that demanded attention. In 71 there was the invasion of Laos, in 72 the Easter Offensive. It was a story that just kind of kept going; every week it was still the big story. This is clearly a gigantic story with all these different elements. Youve got people dying. Youve got people out of work. How does that affect the economy, and is the economy coming back? We might be tired of it, but it affects everybody in every aspect of their lives. We might be tired of it. Its not going to be tired of us for a while. Kennerly: Its really not how you dealt with it when you were in Vietnam. The bottom line was you knew when you went up the road you could get whacked, unlike this, where you could go to the grocery store or go to a protest out on the street and catch the bug. The fatigue of covid was replaced by this other big story. People dont like hanging out in their house. And people are unemployed now and dont have money. But now its about the killing of George Floyd, which is a huge story. You have this tectonic shift; people have the emotional impetus to go out and protest. A picture cannot necessarily tell that story in one frame. Its too spread out. Its too big, in a way. What visuals have worked best in the pandemic so far? Greenspon: The front page of the New York Times when we hit a hundred thousand deaths. That hit me like a ton of bricks. The thing that was so brilliant was those personal comments. There was someone for every reader to connect with and be delighted, or saddened that they never got to meet. Hodierne: Some of the pictures of the hospital workers sitting exhausted with their face in their hands. Some of the photographs of elderly people in nursing homes with their faces pressed to the window, looking at their grandkidsI think those are powerful and enduring images. Burnett: The Philip Montgomery series, shot in a funeral home in Brooklyn, for New York Times Magazine. Just the guy from the funeral home, surrounded by all these bodies. It was an ultra-quiet moment, nothing loud about it, just the sense of the devastation. Also in the New York Times, Fabio Bucciarelli did this amazing, like a Renaissance-era picture, of this old guy dying in bed, surrounded by his family. I mean, like something that had been put together for a Renaissance painting. Theres just a level of quiet now. Kennerly: I think the early images that made the impact on me really were the mass graves. Bulldozers digging the ground out there, putting bodies in refrigerated trucks, all lined up. And you know there are bodies in them, its just not a very dramatic photo. Visual doesnt always intersect with the impact of the story. There have been a lot of really good ones coming out of the demonstrations, of course, because youve got signs and passion and all that. Some people wearing masks and others not. The covid crisis, although monumental, is just plain harder to illustrate. But it can be done, and the Joshua Irwandi photo from Indonesia for National Geographic is a good example of an excellent coronavirus pandemic photo, and should be a Pulitzer contender. Its the body of a suspected covid-19 victim, wrapped in plastic in a hospital roomthe antithesis of fiery protest coverage. It is quiet, lonely, and chilling. It shows someone who most likely died without family around, as so many thousands have. It illuminates the worst side of the pandemic. Its the power of one. This image is a vivid reminder that sometimes the best illustration of a story is away from the action. With all the challenges weve discussed in mind, how can we remedy the difficulties visualizing covid? Greenspon: If I was photographing now, Id go to Brazil, because I think its possible to get the numbers, and the mass, to get that one picture that shows the scale, as well as the tragedy and suffering. Thats a key word, suffering. To make an iconic picture, you have to relate to the people that youre photographing. When the heart gets filtered up through the camera, it allows you to see things you might not otherwise see. I have tremendous compassion for the people of Brazil and some of the other countries that are going to perhaps be destroyed. Poor people in those countries have to be suffering incredibly. Its bad enough in this country that American citizens who are poor have to suffer. But there is no hope if you live in Brazil. I think it would be easier to photograph in Brazil or another developing country because of looser restrictions. It might be more dangerous for a journalist. Youre more likely to get into a ward with a hundred people in it. Maybe catch a priest walking through. It seems to me that theres a spiritual component to this. We are suffering as a nation. We are suffering as a world. We are suffering from all kinds of biases and environmental issues. The word that comes to mind is agape. It comes from the Ancient Greek term for love, but now agape means in awe. And thats the way I feel about the virus. I am in awe of whats going on in the world. I am loving and compassionate for the suffering. This tremendous isolation. And thats what would be in my heart if I went out to photograph. The sense of aloneness and this incredible suffering. What does it mean to have covid? I only know, really, from Chris Cuomo, who did his show when he had it. And Brooke Baldwin. But what does it mean to have the virus if youre sixty-five years old and overweight? I would be trying to tell the story of somebody at home, afraid to go to the hospital. I have compassion for the photographers, too, because theyre not allowed in anywhere. So youve got to go make your own story. Youve got to go hang out in the poor communities. The zip codes that theyre focusing on now, those churches where theyre doing the testing would be fertile ground. Thats got the spirituality aspect of it, and you got that subject matter who are suffering. Hodierne: Did you see that Washington Post graphic? It looks like its at nighttime, a map with the beams of light coming up from different locations on a map of the country? The spotlights are brighter and bigger in areas where more people have died than others. Its a beautiful piece of work. I could see doing something like that and animating it. If I were the editor of a local newspaper, Id be hiring some kid just out of art school. Id say, Go wild, give me your best ideas. Greenspon: I have another thought. Theres another story thats not being told, and I know this because I suffered from PTSD for forty-odd years, only recently being relieved of it. These nurses, when they hold a cellphone up to the dying patients ear, and its their loved ones saying goodbye, its not only traumatizing the family. It is traumatizing that nurse, or doctor, or nurses assistant. And thats happening day after day after day. These people are going to have real issues going forward. Id be hiring some kid just out of art school. Id say, Go wild, give me your best ideas. Looking back at Vietnam coverage, what pictures might be useful to guide covid photographers? Greenspon: I have a picture in mind. Its a picture of a Marine sniper coming across the body, in the foreground, of a dead North Vietnamese soldier who he had just shot. Hes got a look of horror on his face; hes about nineteen, but he looks really seventeen. Its Hue, 1968. Its just the horror of war. Its young kids killing. Burnett: I think of Don McCullins picture of the Marine in Hue whos kind of got that thousand-yard stare, just completely worn down by the abusive power of being in combat that long. Hodierne: In June of 1969, Life magazine published 217 photographs: all the young men who had died in one week in June. You just kept turning the page. Many of them were high school yearbook pictures with their crew cuts and their black-framed glasses. Some have them in their high school graduation gowns, others in stiff, formal portraits, posed in front of the flag, that were taken when they graduated from basic training. All these young, young, young faces, page after page after page, was very powerful. Kennerly: I dont think I ever got a great combat photo in Vietnam. For one thing, if youre under heavy fire, its really hard for practical reasons. Its been done. But I won the Pulitzer Prize for pictures that were right before or right after the action. One of the photos that wasnt in the Pulitzer portfolio, but it was taken that same year, in 1971, was a soldier with his shirt off and a cross dangling from his neck, sort of over a machine gun. You can make a really good picture of a quiet moment. War is 95 percent boredom and 5 percent sheer terror, from a journalists point of view. I think any good photographer has to be able to deal with the 95 percent. Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today Amanda Darrach is a contributor to CJR and a visiting scholar at the University of St Andrews School of International Relations. Follow her on Twitter @thedarrach. RIL reports 31% YoY jump in profit to Rs13,233 cr on BP investment Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has reported a 30.97 per cent year-on-year rise in its consolidated net profit, at Rs13,233 crore, for the quarter ended 30 June 2020 thanks to a 54 per cent year-on-year growth in other income at Rs4,388 crore. The energy-to-telecom conglomerate booked a one-time gain of Rs4,966 crore on an investment by British oil major BP in its fuel marketing business - Reliance BP Mobility Services. At the same time, consolidated total income fell 42 per cent YoY to Rs 95,626 crore. The company said the groups operations and revenues for the quarter were impacted by the Covid-19 disruption. Consolidated Ebitda declined 11.80 per cent YoY to Rs 21,585 crore agaist Rs 24,486 crore reported for the same period last year. RILs revenues from the petrochemicals business declined 33 per cent YoY to Rs25,192 crore, primarily due to lower price realisations due to the Covid-19 disruptions in local and regional markets. The segments EBIDTA declined 49.7 per cent YoY to Rs4,430 crore. Weak domestic demand and higher share of exports impacted margins compared with regional benchmarks. The impact of lower realisation was partially offset by cost optimisation and integration benefits, RIL said. In fact, it was a combination of the increasing demand for its digital services and strong growth of its retail unit that helped RIL to ride out a tough quarter with better-than-expected earnings. RILs telecom arm Reliance Jio Infocomm reported 182.82 per cent YoY growth in net profit at Rs2,520 crore for the quarter against Rs891 crore reported in the same quarter of the previous year. Jios revenue from operations jumped 33.70 per cent to Rs16,557 crore while EBITDA grew 55.40 per cent to Rs7,281 crore,. Jio's ARPU growth of 7.4 per cent QoQ at Rs140.3 per subscriber per month. "The severe demand destruction due to global lockdowns impacted our hydrocarbons business but the flexibility in our operations enabled us to operate at near normal levels and deliver industry leading results," Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani, chairman and managing director said. Reliance Retail, however, witnessed a 17.20 per cent YoY fall in revenue at Rs 31,633 crore. EBITDA declined 47.40 per cent YoY to Rs 1,083 crore. The company said Reliance Retails EBITDA was positive and resilient despite the limitations of the quarter, and cost management initiatives led to savings on fixed cost, which in turn helped cushion the impact of lower profits from lower sales. "Our consumer facing businesses became the life-line for individuals and businesses with our Retail and Jio teams working hard to ensure millions got essential goods and services through the lockdown," he added. Consolidated profit in March quarter 2020 stood at Rs6,348 crore and Rs 10,141 crore in the corresponding period of last year. In the March quarter, the company had reported an exceptional loss of Rs4,267 crore due to fall in oil prices. Profit before the exceptional item was at Rs10,813 crore. Reliance's consolidated revenue for the quarter stood at Rs1,00,929 crore compared to Rs1,51,461 crore QoQ and Rs1,74,087 crore year-on-year. The company also managed to bring down total expenditure by about 42 per cent YoY to Rs87,406 crore from Rs1,50,858 crore in Q1FY20. The company managed to bring down total expenditure by about 42 per cent YoY to Rs 87,406 crore from Rs 1,50,858 crore in Q1FY20. Ambani said Reliance Industries completed the largest fund raise in Indian Corporate history in this quarter. I thank the millions of individual investors who supported our Rights Issue and welcome all our new partners to an exciting new phase of growth at Reliance. RIL's digital unit Jio Platforms, which raised Rs1,52,056 crore during the quarter under review from some of the worlds top tech investors led by Facebook, was one of the few companies to have grown during the coronavirus lockdown. With the fund raising from stake sale in Jio Platforms, Rights issue of Rs 53,124 crore and stake sale to BP in petro-retail joint venture, Reliance achieved its net debt free target in June 2020, which is well ahead of its timeline 31 March 2021. Reliance Industries said it, post completion of these investments, would hold 66.48 percent equity stake in Jio Platform on a fully diluted basis. "Of the total investment, Jio Platform Limited has already received Rs 1,15,694 crore as subscription amount from ten investors. Rs 22,981 crore will be retained at Jio Platform to drive future growth," it added. The new head of Ukraine's delegation in the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG) on Donbas, Leonid Kravchuk, said that it would be very difficult to establish peace in the east of the country without the United States' participation in this process. "I will tell you frankly: in this format, if the deadlock continues, until the U.S. has been introduced into the format of installing peace in Donbas, it will be difficult, because I think that the most powerful, the richest country in the world may have the biggest influence. True, they have elections around the corner, the coronavirus, there are many problems there. I am talking about it in a longer term. But we'll see, what if steps begin and the peace will gradually set in," Kravchuk, who was the first president of Ukraine, said on the Ukraine24 television channel on Saturday, August 1. The last time Israels south was hit was on July 5, when Gaza assailants fired three rockets into Israel. In response, the Israel Defense Fores (IDF) then bombed a number of Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip. But after almost a month of relative quiet on that front, the situation is now evolving. Israels security system must currently focus not only on its northern borders but also on the south. As a reminder, on June 20, Hezbollah operative Ali Kamel Mohsen Jawad was killed in an airstrike outside Damascus. The group blamed Israel for the attack and vowed to retaliate. Since then, tensions on Israels borders with Syria and Lebanon have intensified, with Israel deploying additional forces in the Galilee. The most recent incident took place on Aug. 2. IDF troops foiled an attempt by an unidentified group to place bombs along the border with Syria. The troops spotted the group during the night when it tried to plant explosives along the border fence and opened fire. Four assailants were apparently hit. The IDF said it was too soon to say if the group belonged to any organization but emphasized that Israel held "the Syrian regime accountable." Still, Israel fears that following the failed operation, Hezbollah will try to launch another attack on Israeli soldiers. While this incident kept unfolding in the north, another incident took place in the south. A rocket was fired from the Gaza Strip toward the south of Israel, without any group taking responsibility for the launch. The rocket set off sirens in the southern town of Sderot as well as in the Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council, sending thousands of Israelis into bomb shelters. The attack came as Sderot inaugurated a new coronavirus-fit drive-in movie theater, with dozens of cars full of people watching the first film. The IDF reported later that the Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted the rocket and no injuries were registered. Only one vehicle was damaged by shrapnel following the rocket interception near the Gaza border. Retaliating for the rocket, Israeli warplanes hit several Hamas targets in central and southern Gaza Strip. The IDF said the targets included a cement factory used in the construction of underground infrastructure and underground facilities allegedly used by Hamas. Earlier today, Israels State Comptroller Matanyahu Engelman published a report on the situation of bomb shelters across the country. According to the report, nearly 30% of Israeli citizens do not have access to functioning shelters near their homes, including over a quarter of a million people who live near the borders with the Gaza Strip in the south and with Lebanon in the north. More so, 2,494 out of 12,601 existing shelters would not offer proper protection in the case of an attack. In preparation for escalation on either front, an American cargo plane carrying US military Oshkosh trucks is expected to land in Israel tonight. According to the Defense Ministry, these trucks will be fitted with Iron Dome batteries to be deployed across the country. It was another 'heartbreaking' day for Australia in the fight against coronavirus, with with Victoria releasing details on its stage four lockdown measures amid warnings NSW is entering a 'critical stage'. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced sweeping restrictions that will effect the retail, manufacturing and construction sectors. The NSW government strongly urged residents to wear masks in high-risk settings as the state attempts to fight off a Victoria-style outbreak. Here's the latest on the crisis in Australia. Australia has experienced a concerning day during the pandemic as Victoria announces further lockdown restrictions and NSW enters a 'critical stage' LATEST DEVELOPMENTS * Another 13 Victorians have died, bringing the national death toll to 221. It was the state's equal worst day for fatalities. * Victoria announced 429 new cases on Monday. The other new cases in Australia are 13 in NSW and two in South Australia. * Of the 13 deaths announced on Monday, eight were linked to outbreaks in aged care facilities. They include a man in his 60s, two men and a woman in their 70s, two men in their 80s and five women and two men in their 90s. * Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews also announced a partial business shutdown across Melbourne. * Supermarkets, groceries and post offices will stay open, but retail, some manufacturing and administration, must stop onsite operations as of midnight on Wednesday. * A third group of businesses, including meatworks, will stay open but under much stricter conditions. * It follows the introduction of tough new restrictions imposed across Melbourne from Sunday evening, which include allowing only one person per household to shop and only one to exercise for an hour a day. Both activities must be within a 5km radius. * There will also be an 8pm-5am curfew in Melbourne over the next six weeks. Anyone caught in breach of the regulations will be handed a $1652 on-the-spot fine. * Stage three restrictions also apply in regional Victoria, with people only allowed out to shop for food and essential items, and for exercise, work, study or caregiving. * The NSW government, meanwhile, is strongly recommending people wear masks in high-risk situations as the state enters what Ms Berejiklian labelled a critical phase. * South Australia has reimposed some coronavirus restrictions. From midnight on Tuesday, family gatherings will be limited to 10 people, down from 50, and pubs and restaurant patrons must be seated. * Tasmania has reneged on its agreement to open its border to South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory at the end of the week. Instead Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein said his government would not open the state to anyone until at least August 31. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced the retail sector along with some manufacturing and administration will shut down but supermarkets, groceries and post offices will stay open. Pictured are commuters wearing facemasks in Melbourne SPORT * AFL crowds at Adelaide Oval will be cut back and North Melbourne's round-12 game against Brisbane will no longer take place in Hobart after the premier announced Tasmania's borders would remain shut. * The capacity at the Melbourne Storm's home ground on the Sunshine Coast will be reduced by 1000 after concerns were raised about social distancing. The parties were in contact with the Queensland government on Monday morning after vision of the stadium appeared to show the crowd packed on the hill for the Storm's Sunday afternoon NRL win over Newcastle. KEY DATES * July 2 to September 13 - stage four lockdown for Melbourne including a nightly curfew and stage three lockdown for regional Victoria. * August 3 - Face masks will be mandatory for all Victorians. * August 5 - Business shutdowns across Melbourne will begin. * August 31 - Tasmania's borders will remain shut until at least the end of the month. The street were empty in Melbourne's China town on Sunday night as the 8pm curfew kicked in AUSTRALIAN CORONAVIRUS NUMBERS * Australia's total number of active cases is 7475. * The national death toll as of Sunday is 221: NSW 52, Victoria 136, Tasmania 13, WA 9, Queensland 6, SA 4, ACT 3. (Two Queensland residents who died in NSW have been included in the official tolls of both states). GLOBAL CORONAVIRUS NUMBERS * Cases: at least 18,239,000 * Deaths: at least 692,000 * Recovered: at least 11,450,000. Data current as of 1815 AEST August 3, taking in federal government and state/territory government updates, Worldometer and Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Centre. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Reuters) Zurich, Switzerland Mon, August 3, 2020 08:17 533 6657ac82168da9fa101c8a4066b153a4 2 World switzerland,coronavirus,coronavirus-restrictions,COVID-19,COVID-19-infection,pandemic,SARS-CoV-2,virus-corona,novel-coronavirus Free Switzerland should tighten restrictions to curb the coronavirus again following a recent spike in cases, in order to prevent the need for much harsher lockdown measures in future, the new head of the country's coronavirus taskforce said. Switzerland has seen the number of new cases of COVID-19 surge to more than 200 a day recently after an average of 35 per day in June. Martin Ackermann, who heads the body that provides scientific advice to the Swiss government, said the country was on the brink of a big increase in infections and had little room to maneuver. "We should intervene early to prevent exponential growth," Ackermann told newspaper SonntagsZeitung. "Otherwise there's a risk of drastic and expensive restrictions. This must be prevented under all circumstances." Switzerland has lifted a partial lockdown that was imposed in March, when shops, bars and restaurants were ordered to close to prevent the spread of the virus which has infected 35,000 people and killed 1,707 in the country of 8.6 million people. Ackermann, who took over as head of the taskforce on Saturday, said he supported making it mandatory to wear face masks indoors. Face masks are currently only compulsory on public transport and at political demonstrations. The government has relaxed restrictions on gatherings, although it still bans events of more than 1,000 people. The size of public gatherings should be limited again, said Ackermann, who is an expert in microbiology. "I also believe that the size of public events should now be reduced to 100 participants, as there is a risk of an exponential increase in the number of cases," Ackermann told the newspaper. He said it was difficult to say whether large scale events were fuelling the epidemic. "Initial data ...shows that where large numbers of people gather, there are also many infections," he said. "Exact data on who is infected and where [they] are infected is absolutely vital. Without this data we are flying blind." Health care workers are not 100% protected even with adequate gloves, gowns, and face masks worn while attending to coronavirus disease patients, according to a new study from King's College London. Health care workers who are wearing personal protective equipment still had 3.4 times the risk of getting the disease compared to the general population; the study found out. Also, minority healthcare workers, such as African America, Latinos, and other ethnic groups, had an even higher risk of contracting the disease. "A little over 20 percent of frontline healthcare workers reported at least one symptom associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection compared with 14.4 percent of the general population," the researchers were quoted in a report. The researchers added that the most common symptoms were fatigue, loss of smell or taste, and hoarse voice. The researchers conducted the study with the COVID Symptom Tracker app to look at the date of more than two million people, with almost 100,000 frontline healthcare workers in the United States and the United Kingdom. The study found out that with 100,000 health care workers, 2,700 cases of COVID-19 have been recorded. This compared to 100,000 among the general population, with 240 COVID-19 cases. "After accounting for differences in testing for healthcare workers compared with the general community, the researchers estimate frontline workers are around 3.4 times more likely to test positive for COVID-19," the researchers said. The researchers concluded that there is still an increased risk of infection despite wearing PPE. King's College London professor and senior study author Sebastien Ourselin added that minority healthcare workers had an elevated risk of getting the disease, adding that these groups were most likely to report a shortage in PPE and were forced to reuse equipment. The study was published in the journal Lancet Public Health on Friday. Health Care Workers and COVID-19 The World Health Organization announced that more than 1.4 million COVID-19 infections are accounted for by healthcare workers, at least 10 percent of all cases. According to an Aljazeera report, over 3,000 health care workers are known to have died to the COVID-19 in Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The report added that Russia had 545 healthcare worker deaths from COVID-19, followed by the UK with 540 deaths, and the US with 507. UK rights group, Amnesty International, said that the global toll was much likely higher due to under-reporting. Sanhita Ambast, Amnesty's researcher and adviser on economic, social, and cultural rights, said that the government should start taking health essential workers' lives seriously. Ambast added that it is also disturbing how governments are punishing workers for saying their concerns about their working conditions. Several states in the US have also reported a shortage of COVID-19 medical supplies in their hospitals. According to a report in New York, officials have been searching for where to source medical supplies and hospital beds. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that everything that can be done is being done. A hospital in Starr County, Texas, was forced to choose who is "sent home to die" with the growing number of confirmed cases in Texas. Check these out: Texas County's Hospital Forced to Choose 'Who is Sent Home to Die' as COVID-19 Cases Spike COVID-19: Shortage in Medical Supplies And Hospital Beds A Massive Number of Donations Are Needed During the Pandemic On this occasion, we cannot remain silent in the face of the EFFs pretentiousness to know more about the history and politics of Zimbabwe than the Zimbabweans themselves. Even more, the EFF has the audacity to dare teach Zimbabweans, even our head of state about the land question in our country, it said in a strongly worded statement. Police have released new footage of the moment a stolen Audi R8 exploded into flames during a high-speed police chase along the M6 near Birmingham. Dramatic footage, which was caught by an overhead infra-red camera in 2016, shows the vehicle emit a stream of sparks as it loses a tyre and sheds bodywork near the busy motorway's Spaghetti Junction. West Midlands Police had been pursuing the driver from the ground and by helicopter after they suspected he was carrying firearms. Following the incident, officers from the Central Motorway Police Group, who claimed the car hit speeds of 100mph during the pursuit, said they were able to arrest the three men inside the car moments before it exploded into a fireball. The stolen Audi R8 explodes into flames during a police chase along the M6 near Birmingham Police officers arrive to the scene as the vehicle bursts into flames following a high-speed chase in 2016 During the clip, which was released by the force's Firearms Operations Department yesterday, the driver speeds past motorists and undertakes a number of vehicles along the hard shoulder. With a team of officers keeping track of the car, one officer is heard saying: 'Vehicle's in lane one, there between the shoulder and lane one. Undertaking on the shoulder. Junction six still on the shoulder.' As it approaches the Spaghetti Junction, the vehicle's rear begins to emit sparks but the driver continues his journey in a bid to evade capture. With no signs of stopping, one officer is heard on police audio saying: 'Got sparks or fire from the rear of the vehicle. Back into the shoulder vehicle is continuing just approaching the exit.' Moments later the car erupts into a fireball and the driver comes to a halt on the exit slip road to junction six. With the car now on fire, an officer tells his colleagues over audio 'we're going to need a fire brigade please. Fire brigade to this location' as four armed officers rush to the vehicle. The vehicle begins to emit a stream of spark as it speeds along the busy motorway near Birmingham Images of the car following the police chase later revealed the damaged bodywork The Firearms Operations Unit commended officers for their 'great team work' and 'bravery' Still photographs from the ground later revealed the damaged shell of the car after the fire was extinguished. Yesterday the Firearms Operations Unit for West Midlands Police shared the new footage on social media and commended the officers for their 'great team work' and 'bravery'. In a message on Twitter the unit tweeted: 'Great team work and bravery demonstrated during this incident. Stolen Audi R8 suspected of carrying firearms intercepted on the M6 by @firearmsWMP. 'Awesome to see @cmpg, @WMPDogs, @NPASMidlands and ourselves working together to get the job done.' MailOnline has contacted West Midlands Police for comment. Microsoft has confirmed that it is exploring the possibility to acquire TikTok in the United States. In a blog post on Sunday, the company said CEO Satya Nadella has had a conversation with the US President Donald J. Trump on the matter. The Indian government recently banned TikTok on security grounds. The app was facing a similar fate in the US because of its Chinese roots and associated privacy and security concerns. However, newer reports suggest that the Trump administration is pushing for an American takeover of the popular short video-sharing app in the US instead of an outright ban. Microsoft emerged as a potential buyer last week and the company has now officially confirmed the developments. The company is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, an official statement read. Advertisement Microsoft may acquire TikTok US Microsoft has announced that it will soon begin discussions with TikToks parent company, ByteDance, over a potential purchase of the apps US arm. The discussions will begin in a matter of weeks. The software giant hopes to reach a definitive outcome by September 15, 2020. Microsoft and ByteDance have already provided notice to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The two companies have expressed their intent to explore a preliminary proposal. The potential deal would involve Microsoft acquiring TikTok in the United States, as well as Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The company, however, isnt committing to undertake the purchase completely on its own. It may also invite other American investors to participate in this purchase on a minority basis. Advertisement If Microsoft does reach a deal with ByteDance, which is very likely to happen, it promises to transfer and keep all private data of TikToks American users within the country. It will also ensure that data currently stored or backed-up outside the United States is deleted after it is transferred. Microsofts operating model for TikTok will further ensure transparency to users, the company says. It will build on the experience of TikTok users while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections. Additionally, it will ensure appropriate security oversight by governments in the countries where the company will have ownership. Its unclear how Microsoft would cut off those countries from other markets where TikTok currently operates. The company hasnt disclosed any deal terms yet. The discussions are still in preliminary stages. In the meantime, it will also continue to hold talks with the Trump administration to discuss security concerns. CLEVELAND, Ohio Three Cuyahoga County Jail officers and a supervisor face discipline after they released three inmates by mistake in one day, according to a county official. Cuyahoga County spokeswoman Mary Louise Madigan said in an email on Monday that three different officers failed to follow well-defined protocols that led to the inmates releases. She also said a supervisor failed to review the officers work. As a result, we are moving forward with the disciplinary process for all 4 employees, Madigans statement said. Madigan did not return multiple messages seeking more information, including the current employment status of the officers, their names, potential punishments or the specifics of how each inmate ended up released. County officials will hold a hearing at a later date and determine discipline. Ohio Patrolmens Benevolent Association attorney Adam Chaloupka said the county has not yet notified the union of the disciplinary proceedings. I think its horribly inappropriate for the county the announce this without letting the union and the officers know beforehand, said Chaloupka, who represents the jail officers union. We will scrutinize these allegations to ensure all of our members are defended in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement. All three inmates were released by mistake on June 13. They each faced misdemeanor charges when they were released that day after their arraignments. Two are charged with domestic violence and one with assault. Two were later arrested and a third was issued a summons to appear in court at a later date. The jail in recent years struggled with releasing inmates by mistake. Jail employees erroneously released four inmates in six months between April and October 2019, including a man accused of murder. Read more from cleveland.com: Fourth Cuyahoga County Jail inmate mistakenly released in sixth months Three Cuyahoga County jail guards suspended over inmate escape Cuyahoga County Jail inmate released by mistake told staff he wasnt supposed to go free, asked judge how to go back Cuyahoga County Jail officer fired for mistaken release of burglary suspect MILAN When the mayor of Modica, a Sicilian town known for its chocolates and churches, learned that a sex worker in the area had tested positive for the coronavirus, he immediately started to worry about an outbreak. He made a frantic public appeal for clients to get tested, assuring them that their wives wouldnt find out. But contact tracing proved difficult as the mayor, Ignazio Abbate, began receiving anonymous phone calls from men asking for a friend what the sex worker looked like. The secrecy and stigma around unregulated sex work put everyone in danger, Mr. Abbate said. Modica has so far not experienced a new outbreak, but as the sex worker recovered in a hospital in Perugia last month, news of her situation and occupation spread throughout the country, highlighting the ways in which the pandemic has affected some of the most vulnerable and marginalized communities in Italy, and the dangers of keeping sex work in the shadows. Of course I am scared, said Fernanda Ponciano, a 31-year-old sex worker from Torre del Lago, in Tuscany. Ms. Ponciano started taking clients again after a three-month hiatus during the lockdown. She works as a maid in the morning and as a sex worker in the afternoon, she said. She also supports her mother, her sister and a niece in Brazil. Vero Beach, Fla. Bands of heavy rain from Isaias lashed Florida's east coast Sunday, with the tropical storm strengthening slightly in the evening on its way up the Eastern seaboard. Officials dealing with surging cases of the coronavirus in Florida kept a close watch on the storm that was weakened from a hurricane to a tropical storm Saturday afternoon, but still brought heavy rain and flooding to Florida's Atlantic coast. The National Hurricane Center advised at 5 p.m. Sunday that the storm was about 65 miles off the east coast of Central Florida, and about 410 miles south of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It was strengthening slightly with sustained winds just under a Category 1 hurricane, taking a north-northwest path, according to the center. "Don't be fooled by the downgrade," Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned at a news conference after the storm spent hours roughing up the Bahamas. Upper-level winds took much of the strength out of Isaias, said Stacy Stewart, senior hurricane specialist at the hurricane center in Miami. "We were expecting a hurricane to develop and it didn't," Stewart said Sunday. "It's a tale of two storms. If you live on the west side of the storm, you didn't get much. If you live east of the storm, there's a lot of nasty weather there." Authorities closed beaches, parks and virus testing sites, lashing signs to palm trees so they wouldn't blow away. DeSantis said the state is anticipating power outages and asked residents to have a week's supply of water, food and medicine on hand. Officials wrestled with how to prepare shelters where people can seek refuge from the storm if necessary, while also safely social distancing to prevent the spread of the virus. Sunday, before crawling back up to 70 mph a few hours later, the hurricane center said. Models show NYC in path New York City area residents should be prepared for heavy winds and rain from Isaias on Tuesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. The storm was off the Florida coast Sunday and while it had weakened to a tropical storm, it could batter much of the East Coast this week as the system is forecast to track up or just off the Atlantic seaboard. Cuomo said models project it will move over the New York City area, including Long Island and parts of the Hudson Valley, as early as Monday night but primarily on Tuesday. Some areas could see up to 3 inches of rain and 50 mph gusts, he told reporters during a phone briefing Sunday. The governor said people living in flood-prone areas should be getting ready for the storm. The state was making sure generators, pumps and high- water vehicles were ready, he said. "We're preparing. Local governments should be preparing," Cuomo said. In a bizarre ruling, the Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court has granted bail to a man accused of molestation on condition that he would get a Rakhi thread tied to his wrist by the complainant and promise to protect her for all times to come. The Court also ordered the bail applicant to produce photographs of the occasion and receipts of payments to the survivor and her son before the court registry. The accused, Vikram Bagri, was granted bail through an order passed on Thursday on a personal bond of Rs 50,000 with one solvent surety of an equal amount. Apart from this, the court has further directed him to pay Rs 11,000 to the woman as part of a customary offering on Raksha Bandhan. While reading out the order. A single bench of justice Rohit Arya said, The applicant along with his wife shall visit the house of the complainant with a Rakhi thread/band at 11 am on August 3 with a box of sweets and request the complainant to tie the Rakhi band to him with the promise to protect her to the best of his ability for all times to come. He shall also tender Rs 11,000 to the complainant as a customary ritual usually offered by the brothers to sisters on such occasion and shall also seek her blessings. The applicant shall also tender Rs 5,000 to the son of the complainant for purchase of clothes and sweets, the order added. After the incident of sexual harassment, the Bhatpachalana police station booked Bagri under section 354 (sexual harassment), 452 (house trespass), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC. The woman, a resident of Ujjain district, lodged a complaint against her neighbour on April 20 that he had barged into her house and sexually harassed her, government advocate Sudhanshu Vyas told The Hindustan Times. The bail petition was filed on grounds that the accused was the only earning member of his family, which had been struggling to meet ends since his arrest, said Vishal Patidar, the lawyer for the accused. Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 13:02:10|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close WELLINGTON, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- The New Zealand final of the 13th "Chinese Bridge" Speech Contest for World Secondary School Students ended here on Sunday at the Confucius Institute at Victoria University of Wellington (VUW). Three Confucius Institutes in New Zealand selected 35 contestants from 25 schools in New Zealand's North and South Islands to participate in the competition. It is reported that the top four in the high school group will represent New Zealand in the finals of the "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Speech Contest for World Middle School Students in China. While New Zealand has no community transmission of COVID-19, the country decided to run the competition in an online format, and divided into two parts: speech and talent. Contestants submitted videos of their talent performance in advance and the winners were announced during the competition. Adele Bryant, director of the Confucius Institute at Victoria University of Wellington, said, "It has been exciting to see how students and teachers have responded to the new online format, and we think that this could make it easier for more students to participate in the future." The winner of the senior group Jake Doyle focused his speech on the topic of "Cheer for China." "The outbreak of COVID-19 has changed our way of life greatly both in China and New Zealand, and even the whole world, but China is great, China is an example to the rest of the world, so I think need to learn Chinese well and then go to China, this is my dream," Doyle said. Rhea Homroy, a contestant from the junior high school group, said, "New Zealand and China have always had a very good political and economic relationship. Learning Chinese will open a door to you, a door to a different world. Learning Chinese will help make people understand each other. This can make the bridge between us stronger and make our future better." Tony Browne, chairman of the Confucius Institute at VUW, in his opening remarks to students said there are over 6,000 secondary school students studying Chinese in New Zealand, and only 18 have made it to take part in this senior competition. "I hope, this will be the beginning of an involvement with Chinese that will take you in directions you don't yet know. For me, I started my Chinese studies 47 years ago. It has been part of my life ever since. You don't know what direction your career will take you, but I hope China will be part of it," Browne said. The competition which is run internationally by the Centre for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC) was hosted by the Confucius Institute at Victoria University of Wellington this year. Enditem TikTok owner ByteDance said on Monday that the company had initiated preliminary talks with a tech company to help it continue offering the short video app in the United States, a source said citing an internal company letter. President Donald Trump only agreed to allow Microsoft Corp to negotiate the acquisition of popular short-video app TikTok if it could secure a deal in 45 days, three people familiar with the matter said on Sunday. The move represents an about-face for Trump and prompted the U.S. tech giant to declare its interest in the blockbuster social media deal that could further inflame U.S.-China relations. ByteDance did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the letter. Subscribe to Mint Newsletters * Enter a valid email * Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Never miss a story! Stay connected and informed with Mint. Download our App Now!! Topics Ayodhya, Aug 3 : Two brothers, both in their 70s, have collected water from 151 rivers across the country and three seas and have now brought it to Ayodhya ahead of the 'bhumi pujan' of the Ram temple. Radhey Shyam Pandey and Pandit Triphala, who belong to Jaunpur district, have been collecting water from the Indian rivers and seas and also soil from 16 places in Sri Lanka since 1968. "It has always been our dream that whenever the Ram Temple gets constructed, we will gift the holy water from rivers across India and soil from Sri Lanka. We have collected water from 151 rivers, three seas and soil from 16 places in Sri Lanka," said Radhey Shyam Pandey. Since 1968 to 2019, the brothers have been travelling on foot, cycle, motorcycle, train, and airplane to collect the elements. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to lay the foundation stone of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on Wednesday. The construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya will begin after the ceremony that is likely to be attended by saints and seers, top leaders from the government, RSS and Hindu organizations. The Supreme Court had on November 9, 2019 directed the central government to hand over the site at Ayodhya for the construction of Ram temple. Latest updates on Ayodhya Ram Temple Bhumi Pujan -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-04 02:22:40|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIRUT, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Newly-appointed Lebanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Charbel Wehbi emphasized on Monday the need for Lebanon to strengthen ties with all friendly countries to get out of its crisis, local media reported. "Lebanon has friendly ties with countries that are still effective in the international arena," Wehbi was quoted as saying by Elnashra, online independent newspaper. Wehbi did not rule out future visits to Syria to achieve some goals for his country. "We should be open to visit any Arab country," he said. Wehbi noted that Lebanon is not besieged by the United States but the U.S. has imposed sanctions on specific parties in the country. "These issues can be discussed with the concerned parties," he said. Wehbi was appointed on Monday as successor to Former Foreign Minister Nassif Hitti who resigned earlier in the day. Enditem She was legally blind as a child, and now shes building a tool for the world to see. As the coronavirus pandemic continues its global dominance, a shy, quiet yet ambitious teenager in New Jersey is on a mission to latch onto some of the more prestigious institutions that have produced eye-catching and informative graphics and maps to track COVID-19 trends and make her own version of it. News and commentary on organized crime, street crime, white collar crime, cyber crime, sex crime, crime fiction, crime prevention, espionage and terrorism. As investigation in Sushant Singh Rajputs death case continues to reveal shocking and murky details, TV actor Krissann Barretto, who claims to be his good friend, shared on social media that the late actor distanced himself from friends for almost a year. Alleging Rajputs girlfriend Rhea Chakrabortys involvement in his changed behaviour, Barretto wrote on Instagram, After he started dating this female he was not allowed to be in touch with any of us!!... His numbers were changed We all tried reaching him but we could not!... The actor says she last met Rajput in April 5, 2019. Sushant, his sister (Priyanka Singh), brother-in-law and I we had a good time at his Pali Hill residence. We spoke about life and work. Sushant and I have a few common friends and we made plans of catching up with all of them soon. But things changed in no time and soon Rajput wasnt keeping in touch with most of the people around. We thought maybe he has just fallen in love, and going through his honeymoon phase, but we never thought this would happen. In between, I even tried contacting Sushant but none of his closest friends had his number. I send him a message on instagram in March, but he didnt reply, she reveals. The 24-year-old, however, says she doesnt know much about Chakraborty. Ive never met her. I dont think someone like Sushant who motivated us to dream big, told us to write down our dreams and work hard to achieve them and was always there to help can do this. He was very happy. Things changed when he Rhea came in his life and they started to date, says the actor known for shows such as Sasural Simar Ka and Ishqbaaaz. While Barretto is ready to help in the investigation, if required, she recently admitted on social media that she was also being scared that something like what happened to Sushant may happen to her. I know many of his friends are scared of opening up fearing their career and life would be at risk. When I spoke, I got calls from some of them. Im scared, too. If something like this can happen to Sushant, it can happen to anyone, she shares. In support of a CBI enquiry, Barretto adds further, I dont think anyone in the right state of mind would put their life and career in jeopardy to speak for their friend, just for some personal agenda. Follow @htshowbiz for more SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON New Delhi, Aug 3 : The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has given approval to Pune's Serum Institute of India (SII) to conduct clinical trials of Oxford University-Astra Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine in India. The SII received approval by the India's top drug regulator on Sunday after a thorough evaluation based on the recommendations of the Subject Expert Committee on COVID-19. In a statement, the Health Ministry said, "Drugs Controller General of India has given approval to Serum Institute of India, Pune to conduct Phase II+III clinical trials of Oxford University-Astra Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine (COVISHIELD) in India." The institute had submitted a application seeking permission for conducting the trial in July last week. The vaccine candidate is in the midst of Phase II and III clinical trials in the UK, Phase III trials in Brazil, and Phase I and II clinical trials in South Africa. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Source: Xinhua| 2020-08-03 11:12:59|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close SYDNEY, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Authorities in Papua New Guinea (PNG) continued to track those involved in the country's largest ever illegal drug haul on Monday, after a plane carrying roughly 500 kg of cocaine crashed into the jungle. The Cessna model light aircraft had flown covertly from Australia into PNG and was set to make the return trip last Sunday, when the half-ton payload potentially proved too heavy and the aircraft went down shortly after takeoff. Two days later, the pilot of the aircraft turned himself in at the Australian Consulate in PNG and was charged with illegally entering the country. Over the weekend, Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers said that five other men had been arrested in the states of Queensland and Victoria, with alleged links to Italian organized crime. All five of the men were charged with crimes related to transporting illegal drugs as well as other crimes and face life in prison if found guilty. The criminal syndicate had been the focus of a roughly two years, multi-agency investigation which has been hailed as a success. Police estimate the value of the haul to be around 80 million Australian dollars (57 million U.S. dollars), making it the largest seizure of illegal narcotics ever in PNG. The Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC) suspects that the pilot was assisted in collecting the drugs by a group of locals, who also came to his rescue after the crash. Initially the drugs were removed from the crash site, however they were recovered late on Friday by the RPNGC in the form of 28 bags believed to contain over 500 kg of cocaine. "We believe the PNG members of this criminal group assisted the pilot and retrieved the drugs from the plane," RPNGC Commissioner David Manning said. Police said that they were in possession of information related to the group including descriptions, unique features and tattoos. "Those persons are encouraged to come forward to police, as we will find them." Enditem WATERLOO A food delivery went wrong Sunday when a driver was assaulted and robbed of the food he was delivering. Waterloo Regional Police arrested a suspect after chasing him on foot. It happened at 5:10 p.m. in the area of Brighton Street in Waterloo. The delivery driver suffered minor injuries and did not need medical attention. A Waterloo man, 33, is charged with robbery and assault and was held for a bail hearing. Hes also charged with theft relating to a previous incident with the same delivery service that at first went unreported. ECORSE, MI A mother is charged with child abuse following an alleged brutal beating that led to the death of one of her 13-month-old twin boys and put the other in the hospital with several broken bones and other injuries. Lisa Marie Reed, 34, of Ecorse, is charged with first degree child abuse, a felony punishable by up to life in prison, in connection to the alleged physical abuse of her son Zion Michael Reed, the boy who survived, according to a news release from the Wayne County Prosecutors Office. Twin brother Zyaire Reed died of injuries sustained in the same alleged abuse. A homicide investigation into his death is ongoing. Lisa Marie Reeds live-in boyfriend, who is not the twins father, was arrested but has not yet been charged as the investigation into his involvement continues, the prosecutors office said. On July 28, Ecorse Police officers responded to a child abuse call at Renaissance Estates. They arrived at the residence on the 3900 block of Seventh Street where they found one of the boys unresponsive on the hood of a vehicle. The other was found inside the home. RELATED: Child dead, 1-year-old twin injured in alleged abuse; mother, boyfriend arrested Both boys were transported to a hospital. Zyaire was pronounced dead upon arrival. Zion was treated for his injuries, including surgery to repair broken bones. Both children had severe facial injuries, including to their lips, ears and eyes, The News-Herald reports. Zion had a broken femur, hip and nose and both clavicle bones were broken. He also suffered brain bleeding. The injuries to both boys appeared to be old and new. Officers who stayed at the residence to investigate found the boys bedding was bloody, the report said. Lisa Marie Reed was arrested at the hospital. On July 30, Lisa Marie Reed was arraigned and remanded to jail in 25th District Court in Ecorse. A probable cause conference is set for 9 a.m. on Aug. 11 before Judge David Zelenak. The boyfriend was taken also taken into custody. He attempted to flee police but he was arrested at a relatives home in Sumpter Township, police said. Wayne County Violent Crime Reduction Task Force hunted him down; the Michigan Department of Corrections was also involved because he was in violation of his parole, the News-Herald reports. He also has at least five outstanding warrants out of Traverse City, including one for alleged child abuse. His name has not been released, pending charges and arraignment in this case. READ MORE: Michigan man met teen through Facebook, charged with sex crimes Suspect arrested in death of pro poker player found burned at Michigan park Boy, 4, shoots 5-year-old sister in head; parents charged Yes, Matthew Stafford has tested positive for COVID-19 Suspect caught shooting gun right in front of parked MSP troopers, 4 arrested following pursuit Man killed in head-on crash with tanker truck on U.S. 127 near Jackson As the executive director at Te Tuinga Whanau social services, Tommy Kapai Wilson sees the widespread impact of drugs and addiction first hand. Tommy says hes for the decriminalisation of recreational cannabis use, because the stigma around the drug needs to be removed in order to reduce harm. Too many families are broken because a parent has been imprisoned for low level cannabis crimes, says Tommy. People turn to synthetics because they cant afford failing a drug test, or use P because its easier to obtain. In our organisation, the drug that causes the biggest harm to families is alcohol. Cannabis is way down the Richter-scale and yet its more stigmatised. We need to stop stigmatising drugs so differently and instead look at why people need to get high in the first place. While decriminalising cannabis is a great start, the real key to reducing harm is education, says Tommy. He likens the situation to the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff phrase. We need to change the drivers in the ambulance and drive away from the cliff. The drivers should be educators, not policemen and hospital workers. Id love to see the 25 marae in Tauranga Moana host drugs and addiction talks, because its where Maori feel comfortable. That wont happen while the stigma remains. We need to ditch clinical language and use locool language that tomorrows generation can understand. They need to learn how to get high on life, so they never have to turn to a substance. New Zealand will vote on whether to pass the Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill at the election this September. For more information, visit: https://socialink.org.nz/information-about-the-cannabis-legalisation-and-control-referendum/ Multiple public surveys show a growing divide between Democrats and Republicans about the security of voting by mail, with Republicans saying they are far less likely to trust it in November. In addition, party leaders in several states said they are encountering resistance among GOP voters who are being encouraged to vote absentee while also seeing the president describe mail voting as rigged and fraudulent.